title: Alejandro Abrines Redondo

paragraphs: Alejandro Abrines Redondo (born in Palma de Mallorca in 1993) is the son of the player Gabriel Abrines Martí, who played in ACB too.

paragraphs: Abrines started to play basketball at seven years old in La Salle Palma (C.B. La Salle). He was playing basketball in La Salle in the junior category at seventeen years old.

paragraphs: In 2010 Abrines went to a campus with Unicaja De Málaga, and signed a contract with Aíto García Reneses, the trainer of Unicaja De Málaga.

paragraphs: He started playing in LEB Oro with Clínicas Rincón, the branch of Unicaja.

paragraphs: In the summer of 2011 Abrines was selected to the Spanish selection of Basketball U-18 for play the European Championship, where he was elected MVP.

paragraphs: And later was selected to play the all-star at European level.

paragraphs: In October 2011 Alejandro Abrines debuted VS Gran Canaria in the ACB. He later did the same in the Basketball Euroleague. In February 2012 he debuted in La Copa del Rey.


title: Giosuè Carducci

paragraphs: Giosuè Alessandro Giuseppe Carducci (Pietrasanta, 27 July 1835 – Bologna, 16 February 1907) was an Italian poet and teacher. He was very influential and was regarded as the official national poet of modern Italy. In 1906, he became the first Italian to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.

paragraphs: He was fascinated with the restrained style of Greek and Roman antiquity, and his mature work reflects a restrained classical style, often using the classical meters of Latin poets as Horace and Virgil.


title: Audley Harrison

paragraphs: Audley Harrison (born 26 October 1971) is a British heavyweight boxer. He is 6 ft 5 1/2 tall (1.97 metres) and weighs 18 stone 3 pounds (116 kilograms).

paragraphs: Harrison was born and raised in London. As a Super Heavyweight, he won two gold medals: one at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur and another at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. He was the European Boxing Union Heavyweight Champion from 9 April - 8 June 2010.

paragraphs: Harrison was a contestant in the 2011 series of Strictly Come Dancing. He is a housemate in the August-September 2014 series of Celebrity Big Brother.


title: Japanese calendar

paragraphs: Japanese calendar types have included several of official and unofficial systems. At present, Japan uses the Gregorian calendar and also the Japanese era name system.

paragraphs: Japan has more than one traditional system for counting years, including

paragraphs: Since the Meiji period, Japan has used the system.

paragraphs: In Japan today, the old Chinese calendar is rarely used. The system of counting years from the reign of Emperor Jimmu has been abandoned.

paragraphs: The Japanese calendar has yearly holidays and traditional events. Some of these preserve ancient customs.

paragraphs: The names and dates of some of Japan's national holidays have changed over time.


title: Children's Day (Japan)

paragraphs: Since the 8th century, it was traditional to have special days for children twice a year—March 3 for girls and May 5 for boys.


title: Plastic Man

paragraphs: Plastic Man (real name Patrick "Eel" O'Brian) is a fictional comic-book superhero, with the ability to shift his body into any shape or form, created by artist Jack Cole. He was published by Quality Comics first and then later by DC Comics.

paragraphs: Plastic Man first appeared in August 1941. After being shot by an acid bullet, his fellow burglar partners left him for dead without hesitation. This angered him and caused him to become a crime fighter. The acid from the bullet caused a chemical reaction inside of him that allows his body to take on any shape or form, even ones with moving parts.


title: Japanese Imperial year

paragraphs: "Kōki" emphasizes the long history of Japan and the Imperial dynasty.

paragraphs: The Summer Olympics and Tokyo Expo were planned as anniversary events in 1940 ("Kōki 2600"); but the international games were not held because of the Second Sino-Japanese War.

paragraphs: The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) and Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) used the "Kōki" system for identification. For example,

paragraphs: In Japan today, the system of counting years from the reign of Emperor Jimmu has been abandoned.


title: Sagrada Família

paragraphs: The Sagrada Familia (full name ) is a large Roman Catholic church in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It was designed by architect Antoni Gaudí (1852–1926).

paragraphs: Although it is not finished, the church is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In November 2010 it was consecrated (dedicated to a special purpose) and made a minor basilica by Pope Benedict XVI.

paragraphs: Building of the Sagrada Familia began in 1882. Gaudi started working on it in 1883. He took over the project, and changed it with his ideas on architecture and engineering.

paragraphs: Gaudi worked on it until he died. At the time of his death in 1926, less than a quarter of the building was finished. The Sagrada Família's building was slow. It needed private donations (people giving money to it). It was stopped by the Spanish Civil War—only to start again in the 1950s. Building was more than halfway done after 2010. Some of the project's biggest problems still remain.


title: Tauriel

paragraphs: Tauriel is a fictional character from Peter Jackson's three-part feature movie adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit". The character does not appear in the original book by writer J.R.R. Tolkien, but was created by Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh for two of the movies. Tauriel is a Woodland Elf, and is the leader of the Elven guard. Her name means "forest daughter" in the Elvish language. She is played by actress Evangeline Lilly, who appeared as Kate Austen on the TV show "Lost".

paragraphs: Tauriel first appears in the second part of the trilogy, "The Desolation of Smaug", which was released December 13, 2013. Before it was decided to have three films instead of two, Tauriel was described as having a more important role in what was then the final film, " Battle of the Five Armies", which was originally going to be released in 2013. However, when the filmmakers decided to make the series into a trilogy, that part of the story became the third part of the trilogy, which would be released in December 2014.

paragraphs: In "The Desolation of Smaug", the hobbit Bilbo Baggins, and thirteen dwarves, are traveling to Lonely Mountain, and pass through the black forest of Mirkwood, where they are captured by giant spiders. The spiders are then attacked by the Wood Elves, led by Legolas and Tauriel. Tauriel saves Kíli by killing a spider that was attacking him, but the Elves take the dwarves as prisoners for trespassing on their land. During the dwarves' imprisonment, Tauriel forms a bond with Kíli. It is later mentioned that Tauriel is a talented warrior and for this reason, was made leader of the Mirkwood border guards. Legolas, the son of Mirkwood's Elven king Thranduil, is shown to be attracted to her, and she used to be attracted to him too, but because she is a lowly Silvan Elf, she does not believe herself worthy of him, and similarly, Thranduil does not consider her to be a proper match for his son.

paragraphs: As the dwarves escape with Bilbo's help, the Elves' home is attacked by orcs. Tauriel again uses her skills to save Kíli, but Kíli is struck in the leg with an orc's arrow. This arrow is poisoned, and the wound it created will slowly kill Kíli. Thranduil learns that an evil entity has returned and is amassing great power in the south, and seals off his kingdom, but before he does this, Tauriel goes after the dwarves by herself. Legolas follows, and tries to convince her to return, but when she refuses, saying that the Elves are part of Middle Earth and that they must fight in the upcoming war, Legolas joins her pursuit.

paragraphs: After getting weapons and supplies at Laketown, the dwarves leave for the Lonely Mountain, but leave Kíli behind because of his injury, and Fili, Bofur and Oin stay behind to be with him. By the time Tauriel and Legolas reach Laketown, the dwarves are being attacked by orcs. They defeat the invaders, and Tauriel uses her knowledge of herbs to heal Kíli's wound, saving his life once again, after which they admit that they have developed a bond with one another.

paragraphs: In 1937 J. R. R. Tolkien published the fantasy novel "The Hobbit", which is about a group of 15 people: a Hobbit named Bilbo Baggins, a wizard named Gandalf and thirteen dwarves. This group goes searching for a treasure guarded by the dragon, Smaug. During the story, the group are captured by the Silvan Elves. During the Battle of Five Armies at the end of the story, the group of 15 travelers join with the Elves to fight an army of goblins and wargs.

paragraphs: Although Tauriel does not appear in this story, she was created by Peter Jackson and his wife and producing partner Fran Walsh for the movie. They did this in order to expand the world of the elves of Mirkwood Forest, and to bring another female to the cast, since it is mostly males. The character is a Silvan Elf, which means she is of a much lower place in Elf society than the elves that had been seen in "The Lord of the Rings" film series, like Arwen, Galadriel, Elrond, and Legolas. A Woodland Elf, her name has been translated as "Daughter of Mirkwood".

paragraphs: In June 2011 Peter Jackson announced that actress Evangeline Lilly, who played Kate Austen in the ABC drama "Lost", was cast in the role. Lilly, had been a fan of Tolkien's books since she was 13, but was nervous about how Tolkien fans would react to a character that did not appear in Tolkien's books. She stated that creating the character for the adaptation was the right thing to do, saying, "I believe she is authentic, because Tolkien refers to The Woodland Elves, he just doesn't talk about who they are specifically… [Peter and Fran] know that world so well. They’re not going to create a character that is not true to Tolkien's world." Despite this, some fans were unhappy with the creation of her character after the first trailer for the film was released on June 12, 2013.

paragraphs: As head of the Elven guard, Lilly says that Tauriel is "slightly reckless and totally ruthless and doesn't hesitate to kill." Lilly also says Tauriel is a nonconformist (someone who refuses to follow established customs), and that because of her relative youth among Elves, she can be reckless in the decisions she makes, tending to rebel against the established social order of the Elves. Lilly explains, "She's only 600 years old, she's just a baby. So she's a bit more impulsive, and she's a bit more immature. I think she's more easily romanticized by a lot of things." However, she also has a "softer side", and her character's story has her falling in love with another character. Although she and Legolas are close, childhood friends, the romance is not with him. According to Lilly, Legolas' father, the Elven king Thranduil, is fond of Tauriel, and "sees something very special in her". Lilly told the filmmakers that she would only play the character if they promised that her character would not be part of a love triangle. However, when she was called back into production to shoot new scenes after it was decided to split the story into three films instead of two, she was told that a love triangle would indeed be added to the story.

paragraphs: To look like Tauriel in the films, she wore a red wig with knee-length hair, fake ears that are three times larger than the ones Orlando Bloom wore as Legolas (though Lilly felt that the long hair would take attention away from the ears). Instead of wearing the complex formal gowns that female Elf noblewomen were seen wearing in previous films, Tauriel wears Elven military garb, which is better-suited to her job as a border guard and soldier. The is an expert in a variety of weapons, but she usually uses a bow and two daggers, the same weapons Legolas uses. Lilly had a stunt coach help her film the action scenes. Although Lilly asked to do the character's wirework herself, because she had experience doing her own stunts on "Lost", that work was performed by a stunt double. Lilly also had a language coach teacher her how to speak the Elvish language.

paragraphs: Filming of Tauriel's scenes began in September 2011 in New Zealand, and was expected to last a year. Lilly said that she enjoyed the calm atmosphere of the set, and the familiar experience of filming with a cast of mostly men, which reminded her of working on "Lost" and "The Hurt Locker". However, she said that the experience of having had her first baby in May 2011 made some parts of filming the fighting scenes harder than she expected, saying, "Recovering from labor is like recovering from a full-body injury, and I didn't realize to what extent that was true until I started training for elf fighting. My hips don't move like they used to move, my back doesn't move like it used to move, my shoulders are sore every day. But it's fun."

paragraphs: Tauriel is part of the toy Lego set No. 79001, which is called "Escape from Mirkwood Spiders". Her minifigures comes with those of Legolas and the Dwarves Fíli and Kíli.

paragraphs: For her performance as Tauriel, Evangeline Lilly was nominated for the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress, the Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress in an Action Movie, the Empire Award for Best Supporting Actress, and the 2014 Kids' Choice Awards.

paragraphs: The band The Esgaroth Three poked fun at fans' reaction to Tauriel's appearance in the films, and to other changes made by Peter Jackson to the story, with the song and video "Who the 'ell is Tauriel?".


title: Canet gun

paragraphs: The Canet guns were designed by Gustave Canet (1846-1913) for Schneider et Cie.

paragraphs: Schneider was successful in sales to the Empire of Japan.

paragraphs: The guns supplied to Japan equipped the cruisers , , and .

paragraphs: The guns were used during the First Sino-Japanese War.


title: Boxcar

paragraphs: A boxcar is a railroad car that is enclosed and used to carry freight. Boxcars have side doors of varying size and operation. Some boxcars have end doors and adjustable bulkheads to load very large items.


title: Gertrude Chandler Warner

paragraphs: Gertrude Chandler Warner (16 April 1890 - 29 August 1979) was an American writer. She wrote the popular "Boxcar Children" books. She was criticized for showing children with little parental supervision. Her critics thought that this would cause child rebellion. She was born in Putnam, Connecticut.


title: Norwich School

paragraphs: Norwich School (before called King Edward VI’s Grammar School) is a co-ed (girls and boys) private school in Norwich, England. It is one of the oldest schools in the world, going back to at least 1096. Norwich School has one of the best academic records in East Anglia. "The Daily Telegraph" ranked the school's A-Level results as 74th in 2006, 55th in 2007 and 80th in 2008 amongst independent schools in the UK. In each case, the rank was the highest in Norfolk and Suffolk.

paragraphs: The school used to be for boys only. It began admitting girls below the Sixth Form in September 2008. All year groups had girls in them by September 2010.

paragraphs: Norwich School is an Anglican school. It has a long relationship with Norwich Cathedral, which it uses for morning assemblies and some annual events. Many famous people were taught at Norwich School, like Horatio Nelson, who has a house named after him.

paragraphs: There are eight houses: Brooke, Coke, Seagrim, Nelson, Parker, Repton, School and Valpy.


title: Christina Perri

paragraphs: Christina Judith Perri (born August 19, 1986) is an American singer, musician and songwriter. She is from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her song "Jar of Hearts" became a hit in the United States. It has been used on the FOX network programs "So You Think You Can Dance" and "Glee" and the ABC Family series "Switched at Birth". Another of her songs, "A Thousand Years", was used in the movie "Twilight: Breaking Dawn".

paragraphs: Perri was born in , Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia. She attended Archbishop Ryan High School, a Roman Catholic high school in the Far Northeast section of Philadelphia. She married Paul Costabile on December 12, 2017. Their daughter, Carmella Stanley Costabile, was born January 17, 2018.

paragraphs: In March 2019, Perri revealed she had maintained sobriety for seven years.


title: Prince Albert Raiders

paragraphs: The Prince Albert Raiders are a Canadian ice hockey team. They began playing in 1964. The team currently plays in the Western Hockey League. They play their home games in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan at the Art Hauser Centre. The team started in 1971 and played in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League where they were one of the most successful Tier II franchises in Canada. They won the Tier II national championship, the Manitoba Centennial Trophy, 4 times in a six-year span from 1977 to 1982. They moved up to the WHL in 1982. They won a Memorial Cup in 1985.


title: Jorge Lorenzo

paragraphs: Jorje Lorenzo Guerrrero (born 4 May 1987) is a Spanish motorcyclist. He was the world champion in MotoGP in 2010. In 2008, Lorenzo signed a contract with the official Yamaha team. He was the partner of seven-time world champion, Valentino Rossi. In the Portugal championship, Lorenzo got his first victory in MotoGP.

paragraphs: On 10 October 2010, in Malaysia, Jorge was proclaimed world champion of MotoGP.


title: Type 74 105 mm self-propelled howitzer

paragraphs: Komatsu developed the chassis; and Japan Steel Works made the turret.

paragraphs: The howitzer was accepted for service or "standardised" in 1974.

paragraphs: Type 74s are used by the 2nd Artillery Regiment at Asahikawa, Hokkaido.


title: Battle of Plataea

paragraphs: The Battle of Plataea was the final land battle during the second Persian invasion of Greece. It was a decisive victory for the Greeks as it ended that war. The battle was in 479 BC near the city of Plataea in Boeotia. It was fought between the Greek allies (the city-states, of Sparta, Athens, Corinth and Megara), and the Persian Empire of Xerxes I.

paragraphs: The previous year, the Persian invasion force, led by the Xerxes in person, won the Battles of Thermopylae and Artemisium, and conquered Thessaly, Boeotia and Attica. However, at the last-ditch naval Battle of Salamis, the Allied Greek navy had won a surprise victory, and that stopped the conquest of the whole Peloponnesus. Xerxes then returned home with some of his army, leaving his general Mardonius to finish off the Greeks the next year.

paragraphs: In the summer of 479 BC, the Greeks got together a huge army by the standards of the day, and marched out of the Peloponnesus. The Persians retreated to Boeotia, and built a fortified camp near Plataea. The Greeks refused to be drawn into the open cavalry ground near the Persian camp, and this led to a stalemate which lasted eleven days. When their supply lines were disrupted, the Greeks retreated a distance, and their battle-line fragmented. Mardonius thought the Greeks were in full retreat, and ordered his men to pursue them. The Greeks (particularly the Spartans, Tegeans and Athenians) turned and gave battle, routing the lightly armed Persian infantry and killing Mardonius.

paragraphs: Much of the Persian army were caught in their camp, and slaughtered. The destruction of this army, and the remnants of the Persian navy, allegedly on the same day at the Battle of Mycale, ended the invasion. After Plataea and Mycale, the Greek allies would take the offensive against the Persians, marking a new phase of the Greco-Persian Wars. Although Plataea was in every sense a decisive victory, it does not seem (even at the time) to have been as famous as the Athenian victory at the Battle of Marathon or even the Allied defeat at Thermopylae.

paragraphs: A bronze column in the shape of intertwined snakes (the Serpent column) was created from melted-down Persian weapons, and was erected at Delphi. It commemorated all the Greek city-states that had participated in the battle, listing them on the column, and thus confirming some of Herodotus's claims. Most of it still survives in the Hippodrome of Constantinople (present-day Istanbul), where it was carried by Constantine the Great during the founding of his city on the Greek colony of Byzantium.


title: Bellver Castle

paragraphs: Bellver Castle ("bellver" in Castilian means "good view") is a castle that was built by order of King Jaime II for use as a residence of the kings of Mallorca.

paragraphs: Today it belongs to the City Council of Palma de Mallorca and it is the Museum of the History of the city of Palma. It is open to the public.

paragraphs: Bellver Castle was one of 100 finalists for the 12 Treasures of Spain in 2007.


title: Philosophy of the World

paragraphs: Philosophy of the World is the first album by The Shaggs. It was released in 1969 by Third Word Records. It was rereleased in 1980 by Red Rooster Records/Rounder Records after the band NRBQ found it at a Massachusetts radio station in 1978.

paragraphs: Recording of the album was financed by Austin Wiggin, father of the Wiggin Sisters.

paragraphs: All songs written & composed by Dorothy Wiggin.


title: Type 96 150 mm howitzer

paragraphs: The , also known as a "15-cm" gun, was a howitzer used by the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA).

paragraphs: This artillery piece was designed to replace the Type 4 150 mm howitzer in front line combat. Type 96s fired the same ammunition as the Type 4s.

paragraphs: Type 96s began to be built in 1937. A total of 440 units were produced. A medium artillery regiment had 24 Type 96s.

paragraphs: The Type 96 15 cm howitzer was used in the Second Sino-Japanese War and in World War II. The 96s were among Japan's most used artillery weapons.

paragraphs: One of the Type 96s is preserved at the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo.


title: Type 89 150 mm cannon

paragraphs: , also known as a "15-cm" gun, was a cannon of the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA).

paragraphs: This was one of the main guns of the IJA heavy artillery units.

paragraphs: Type 89s were used in the Second Sino-Japanese War and in World War II.


title: GRB 970228

paragraphs: GRB 970228 was a gamma-ray burst (GRB). It was the first GRB which had an afterglow. It was seen on 28 February 1997. Since 1993, scientists had predicted GRBs to be followed by afterglows. But, until this event, GRBs had only been seen in very bright bursts of high-energy gamma rays.

paragraphs: The burst had several peaks in its light curve. It lasted around 80 seconds. The light curve was not normal. This suggested that a supernova may have happened as well. GRB 970228 happened in the same place as a galaxy about 8.1 billion light-years away. This means that GRBs happen outside the Milky Way.

paragraphs: Reichart showed that the light curve of GRB 970228 could only have been caused by a supernova. Definitive evidence linking gamma-ray bursts and supernovae was eventually found in the spectrum of GRB 020813, and the afterglow of GRB 030329. However, supernova-like features only become apparent in the weeks following a burst, leaving the possibility that very early luminosity variations could be explained by dust echoes.


title: Ferran Adria

paragraphs: Ferran Adrià Acosta (b. May 14, 1962) is a Spanish chef. He was born in l'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Catalonia. Adria started out washing dishes at a restaurant in the town of Castelldefels. There the chef taught him the basics. He then worked at different restaurants before becoming assistant chef at the Barcelona restaurant, Finisterre. Now Adriá is the chef at El Bulli, a restaurant on the coast of Catalonia. In 1997, El Bulli got its third Michelin star. It was one of only three restaurants in Spain with this ranking.

paragraphs: Adria is considered one of the best chefs in the world.


title: Murray Waxman

paragraphs: Murray Waxman (born July 10, 1925 in Toronto, Ontario) is a retired Canadian basketball player who competed in the 1948 Summer Olympics. He was part of the Canadian basketball team, which finished eighth in the Olympic tournament.


title: Imperial Japanese Navy

paragraphs: , also known as IJN, was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947.

paragraphs: The IJN was created in 1868 by the Meiji Restoration. It won against larger navies in the First Sino-Japanese War and Russo-Japanese War. It lost in World War II and was dissolved.

paragraphs: Article 9 of the Constitution of Japan prohibits the use of aggressive force as a means for settling international disputes.

paragraphs: In order to defend Japan, if necessary, the Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) was formed.

paragraphs: The ocean-reach of JSDF is the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF).


title: Vilmantas Dilys

paragraphs: Vilmantas Dilys (born October 6, 1987, Utena, Lithuania) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player who plays for Lietuvos Rytas.

paragraphs: He is 2.08 m tall and can play both power forward and small forward positions.


title: Space Coast

paragraphs: The Space Coast is a region in the U.S. state of Florida around the Kennedy Space Center. The region includes the cities  Titusville, Cocoa, Rockledge, Cape Canaveral, Merritt Island, Cocoa Beach, Melbourne and Palm Bay. The most of the area lies within Brevard County.


title: Homologous chromosome

paragraphs: Homologous chromosomes are the pairs of chromosomes in a diploid organism. They are the chromosomes which pair during meiosis.

paragraphs: With the exception of the sex chromosomes, each pair has the gene loci in the same positions on each chromosome, and the centromere in the same position. They are not genetically identical because they will usually have different alleles (versions of a gene) at some of the loci.

paragraphs: The most important fact is that homologous chromosomes physically pair for meiosis, the cell division which produces the gametes. During this pairing, crossing over takes place between chromatids of each pair. This exchange of alleles means the offspring are not identical to each other, or to either parent. In other words, the process increases the genetic variation in the population.

paragraphs: Sex chromosomes only pair along those parts where there is similar genetic material (loci) on both members of the pair.


title: Tonight's the Night

paragraphs: Tonight's the Night could refer to one of several things:


title: Type 41 75 mm cavalry gun

paragraphs: This artillery piece went into service in 1908.

paragraphs: Type 41s were lighter versions of the Type 38 75 mm field gun. Type 41s were the primary weapon of artillery units which were part of cavalry regiments.

paragraphs: Type 95s were used in the Second Sino-Japanese War and in World War II.


title: Kelowna Rockets

paragraphs: The Kelowna Rockets are a Canadian ice hockey team. They began playing in 1991. The team currently plays in the Western Hockey League. They play their home games in Kelowna, British Columbia at the Prospera Place. The team originally played in Tacoma, Washington as the "Tacoma Rockets" from 1991 to 1995 until relocating to Kelowna. They have won 3 Ed Chynoweth Cups and 1 Memorial Cup.


title: Strictly Come Dancing

paragraphs: Strictly Come Dancing is a British television programme. It features celebrities dancing with professional dancers. In each series, the couples compete to decide a winner.

paragraphs: It is shown on BBC One and is presented by Bruce Forsyth, Tess Daly & Claudia Winkleman. It is narrated by Alan Dedicoat. The judges since it began are Len Goodman, Craig Revel Horwood and Bruno Tonioli. Arlene Phillips was a judge from 2004-2008; Alesha Dixon was a judge from 2009-2011. Darcey Bussell is the current judge in Alesha Dixon's place.

paragraphs: There were two series in its first year, 2004. From 2005 onwards, there has been one series per year. Many countries have their own version of the show (see "Dancing with the Stars").


title: Richard Pryor

paragraphs: Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor (December 1, 1940 - December 10, 2005) was an American comedian, actor and writer. Pryor performed in movies, on television and as a stand-up comedian. He won an Emmy Award in 1973. He won five Grammy Awards (in 1974, 1975, 1976, 1981 and 1982). In 1974, he also won two American Academy of Humor awards and the Writers Guild of America Award. He was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Screenplay for his work on "Blazing Saddles". The first ever Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor was given to him in 1998. Pryor is listed at Number 1 on Comedy Central's list of all-time greatest stand-up comedians.

paragraphs: Pryor died of a heart attack in Encino, Los Angeles, California. He was awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006, a year after his death.

paragraphs: A biographical movie based on the life of Pryor is being produced by Lee Daniels and Oprah Winfrey. It will star Mike Epps as Pryor.

paragraphs: Pryor was born in Peoria, Illinois into an African-American family.

paragraphs: Pryor had a mild heart attack in November 1977. He was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1986. In 1990, Pryor had a second and more severe heart attack. He had triple heart bypass surgery. By the early 1990s, he needed to use a wheelchair because of his multiple sclerosis.

paragraphs: On June 9, 1980, during the making of the movie "Bustin' Loose", Pryor set himself on fire. He was freebasing cocaine while drinking 151-proof rum. He ran down Parthenia Street from his Northridge, California, home, on fire, until stopped by police. He was taken to the hospital. Burns covered more than half of his body. Pryor spent six weeks in recovery at the Grossman Burn Center at Sherman Oaks Hospital.

paragraphs: Pryor was married seven times to five different women:

paragraphs: All of his wives, except Belaine, said there was domestic violence. Most of these times were connected to Pryor's drug use.

paragraphs: He had six children: Richard Jr., Elizabeth, Rain, Steven, Franklin and Kelsey.


title: Prince George Cougars

paragraphs: The Prince George Cougars are a Canadian ice hockey team. They began playing in 1994. The team currently plays in the Western Hockey League. They play their home games in Prince George, British Columbia at the CN Centre. They were originally known as the "Victoria Cougars" from 1971 to 1994 before relocating to Prince George in 1994. Their most successful playoff run was in the 2006–07 WHL season when they swept Kamloops Blazers and defeated the Everett Silvertips but were defeated in conference finals to the Vancouver Giants.


title: Prince George, British Columbia

paragraphs: Prince George is a city in the Canadian province of British Columbia.

paragraphs: The population of Prince George was 71,974 in 2011. The mayor of Prince George is Lyn Hall. It is nicknamed the "BC's Northern Capital" because it is the largest city in northern British Columbia. It is named after King George V and Prince George, Duke of Kent.


title: Gazza Zubizareta

paragraphs: Gazza Zubizareta (born 12 June 1996) is an actor from Indonesia. He started his film debut in Negeri 5 Menara where he played a teenager called Alif.


title: Vancouver Giants

paragraphs: The Vancouver Giants are a Canadian ice hockey team. They began playing in 2001. The team currently plays in the Western Hockey League. They play their home games in Vancouver, British Columbia at the Pacific Coliseum.

paragraphs: The owners of the Giants are businessmen Ron Toigo and Sultan Thiara, Hockey Hall of Fame members Gordie Howe, Pat Quinn, and singer and actor Michael Bublé. The have won 1 Memorial Cup in 2007 and a Ed Chynoweth Cup in 2006.


title: Victoria Royals

paragraphs: The Victoria Royals are a Canadian ice hockey team. They began playing in 2011. The team currently plays in the Western Hockey League. They play their home games in Victoria, British Columbia at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre. They originally played in Chilliwack, British Columbia as the Chilliwack Bruins from 2006 to 2011 before relocating to Victoria in 2011 and becoming the Royals.


title: Louise Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun

paragraphs: Louise Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun (Marie Élisabeth Louise; 16 April 1755 – 30 March 1842) was a painter. She is the most important female painter of the 18th century. Her style is considered Rococo with an interest in Neoclassicism. Sometimes, her name is spelled "Vigée-Lebrun".

paragraphs: She painted more than 30 portraits of Marie Antoinette over a six year period. She was accepted as a member of the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture in 1783. She left France after the arrest of the royal family during the French Revolution. She lived and worked in Italy, Austria, and Russia. Her work met great critical acclaim in Rome. She was elected to the Roman Accademia di San Luca. In Russia, she painted many aristocrats including Catherine the Great's family. She was made a member of the Academy of Fine Arts of Saint Petersburg.

paragraphs: Vigée Le Brun returned to France during the reign of Emperor Napoleon I. Her relationship with the new regime was not completely harmonious. After all, she was a royalist and the former portraitist of Marie Antoinette. She visited England and painted British notables including Lord Byron. In 1807 she traveled to Switzerland where she was made an honorary member of the Société pour l'Avancement des Beaux-Arts of Geneva. She published her memoirs in 1835 and 1837. She lived in Paris, and died there on 30 March 1842. Vigée Le Brun's legacy includes 660 portraits and 200 landscapes.


title: Chinese folk religion

paragraphs: Chinese folk religion (Chinese: 中国 民间 信仰 (simplified spelling) or 中國 民間 信仰 (traditional spelling), "zhōng-guó mín-jiān xìn-yǎng") is a religion that has been practiced in China, and in areas inhabited by Chinese people. It is difficult to make a clear distinction between Chinese folk religion and other beliefs, because Chinese folk religion has elements of veneration of the dead, local spirits, clan spirits and traditional Eastern religions, such as Taoism, Confucianism, Buddhism, but also superstition, geomancy and Feng shui. There is no standarized mythology or clergy: rites are often performed by the father of a family. Since the 1950s, Chinese folk-religion is also sometimes refered to as Shenism or Shénism (Chinese: "Shén-jiào", 神教). In this context, shen refers to a spirit or a deity. The term Shenism was first used by A. J. A Elliot in 1955. The term Chinese folk religion is not used inside China.

paragraphs: Sometimes, it is classified with Taoism: Over the centuries, Taoism became institutionalised. During that time, it tried to use local customs, and to become similar to local religions and beliefs. It would however be more accurate to say that Taoism developed from Shenism, since Shenism was there before. Taoism also developed from Chinese philosophy. With around 454 million adherents, or about 6.6% of the world population, Chinese folk religion is one of the major religious traditions in the world. In China more than 30% of the population adheres to Shenism or Taoism.

paragraphs: During the last 200 years, religion has been heavily suppressed in China, with rebellions such as the Taiping Movement or Cultural Revolution. Today, Chinese folk religion is experiencing a major revival in both Mainland China and Taiwan.

paragraphs: The government of Mainland China has officially supported different forms of Shenism, such as Mazuism in Southern China (officially about 160 million Chinese are Mazuists), Huangdi worship, Black Dragon worship in Shaanxi, and Caishen worship.


title: Snuff movie

paragraphs: A Snuff movie is a movie that shows the murder of a person, or a group of people, for the entertainment of the audience. Snuff movies are made to gain money. They do not use special effects. The first such movie was "El Angel de la Muerte". It is an Argentine horror movie made in 1976. One of the scenes shows how the makers of the movie kill one of the actresses. The English title of the movie was "Snuff". This turned out to be a marketing ploy. The actress was not killed. Today, no real snuff movie is known.

paragraphs: Since the 1970s, the theme has been used by different movements in the United States. These groups usually argue that the government needs to control the media more than it currently does. The last such debate was about happy slapping. The debate is also fueled by violent pornography or videos of executions and murders.


title: Natalie Horler

paragraphs: Natalie Christine Horler (born 23 September 1981 in Bonn, West Germany) is a German singer-songwriter of English origin. Her parents David and Christine Horler, are English. She is the lead singer of the Eurodance dance-pop group Cascada.


title: Evacuate the Dancefloor

paragraphs: "Evacuate the Dancefloor" is a hit song off the album of the same name by German music group Cascada. The single was released as the lead single of the album June 29, 2009, debuting at #1 on the UK singles chart. It was their third hit song in the United States on many music charts. The song also hit Top 5 in Canada, France and certain other countries.


title: Madonna del cardellino

paragraphs: The Madonna del cardellino (Madonna of the Goldfinch) is an oil painting by Raphael. It was painted about 15051506. It is known as "Madonna of the Goldfinch" in English. The painting is in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy. The painting has been restored.

paragraphs: The three people form a triangle. The Virgin holds a book. St. John holds a goldfinch. Christ reaches for the bird. Raphael gave the painting to Lorenzo Nasi as a wedding gift. Nasi's house was destroyed by an earthquake in November 1548. The painting broke into several pieces. It was restored, but the damage could still be seen.


title: Riace bronzes

paragraphs: The Bronzi di Riace (), sometimes "Riace Warriors", (460–430 BCE) are two large monumental Greek bronze sculptures. The statues are of nude bearded warriors. It is possible the statues depict two individuals. It is more likely that they represent "types". Rich Romans were collectors of Greek sculpture. It is probable the two warriors were being transported from their original site in Greece to one in Rome. Since the two warriors share so many similarities, they probably formed part of one Greek monument.

paragraphs: The bronzes were found in the Ionian Sea on 16 August 1972 by Stefano Mariottini. He was on a scuba diving vacation near Reggio Calabria, Italy. The sculptures were found not far from shore at Riace Marina, a village near Porto Foricchio. The area was on an important shipping lane between the ports of Rome and the coastal cities of Greece. The bronzes may have been in an ancient shipwreck. They were either ripped from their moorings or thrown overboard to lighten the load.

paragraphs: The eyes are made of bone and glass. The teeth are made of silver. The lips and nipples are made of copper. The warriors once held spears and shields. One warrior once wore a helmet pushed up atop his head. The bronzes are in the Museo Nazionale della Magna Grecia in Reggio Calabria.


title: The Blue Boy

paragraphs: The Blue Boy is an oil painting by Thomas Gainsborough. It was painted about 1770. The boy in the picture might be Jonathan Buttall, the son of a hardware merchant. The boy wears a 17th-century suit. The painting is large. It measures 48 inches (1,200 mm) wide by 70 inches (1,800 mm) tall.

paragraphs: The painting belonged to Jonathan Buttall until 1796. It was then sold many times. In 1921 it was sold to an art dealer. An American bought the painting from the dealer. The sale caused a furor in England. The British were losing a national treasure. The portrait is now in the Huntington Library, San Marino, California. "Pinkie" is a famous painting which hangs near it.


title: As You Like It

paragraphs: As You Like It is a play by William Shakespeare. It is a comedy.

paragraphs: The play was written in 1599 or early 1600. Shakespeare rarely invented his own plays. He based his plays on stories by other writers. The story he used for "As You Like It" was "Rosalynde, Euphues Golden Legacy" (1590) by Thomas Lodge.

paragraphs: "As You Like It" may have been first performed in 1603. This is not certain though. The play was first published in 1623 in the First Folio, a collection of all of Shakespeare's plays.

paragraphs: "As You Like It" tells the story of a young woman named Rosalind. She has been banished from her uncle's court. Her uncle does not like her because she is gentle, beautiful, witty, and smart. Rosalind decides to live in the Forest of Arden with her cousin Celia and the court jester Touchstone. She dresses like a boy for self-protection. Several scenes involve Rosalind and the people who live in the forest. She is finally united with her sweetheart Orlando.

paragraphs: Some people think the play is not as good as Shakespeare's other plays. Other people think it is a very good play. One of the great speeches in the play begins "All the world's a stage".

paragraphs: The play is a favourite with theatre-goers. Rosalind, Touchstone, and a sour old man named Jacques are three of Shakespeare's greatest characters. The play has been adapted to a radio play, to a television show, and to musical theatre. A movie version of the play made in 1936 stars Laurence Olivier.


title: M110 howitzer

paragraphs: The M110 howitzer was the largest available self-propelled howitzer in the United States Army's inventory.

paragraphs: The M110 first entered service with the US Army in 1963. It was retired in the early 1990s.

paragraphs: This artillery piece was exported to many countries, including Egypt, Greece, Iran, Japan, Morocco, Pakistan, South Korea, Spain, Taiwan and Turkey.


title: Flyball

paragraphs: Flyball is a relay race between two teams of dogs. Each team is made up of four dogs and handlers and a ball loader. There are also two reserve dogs and handlers who can be swapped between legs. Each race consists of three legs.


title: Eishō (Heian period)

paragraphs: The 11th reconstruction of the Kasuga Shrine in Nara was finished.


title: Sengoku period

paragraphs: The name "Sengoku" was adopted by Japanese historians. The Sengoku period in Japan mirrors the Warring States period in Chinese history.

paragraphs: The Sengoku period would precede a process of unification and the end of Japan's medieval period.

paragraphs: Three important and powerful daimyo were Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu. These three leaders did the most to bring Japan together as one country. Other important leaders include Date Masamune and Akechi Mitsuhide.


title: École des Ponts ParisTech

paragraphs: Founded in 1747, the ' (officially ', literally "National school of Bridges and Roads") was founded in 1747. It is one of the oldest engineering schools in France.

paragraphs: The school has different programs including an executive Master of Business Administration in aviation management In Morocco ( in partnership with the "Académie internationale Mohammed VI de l'aviation civile" and the French Civil Aviation University) and China (in partnership with Tsinghua University and ENAC).

paragraphs: The school trains the Corps of Bridges and Roads.


title: Mitochondrial DNA

paragraphs: Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA or mDNA) is the DNA in mitochondria. It is inherited only from mothers, though there are a few rare exceptions.

paragraphs: Mitochondria are cellular organelles in eukaryotic cells. They convert chemical energy from food into a form that cells can use, adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial DNA is only a small part of the DNA in a eukaryotic cell. Most of the DNA is in the cell nucleus on chromosomes. In plants, the chloroplasts have DNA as well.

paragraphs: In humans, mitochondrial DNA codes for 37 genes and with about 16,600 base pairs in a circle. Human mitochondrial DNA was the first significant part of the human genome to be sequenced. The mtDNA in plants is much larger: "Arabidopsis" has 367 kilobytes.


title: MDNA (album)

paragraphs: MDNA is the name of an album by the recording artist and actress Madonna. The album was her debut release from her 360-degree record deal from Live Nation Entertainment, in partnership with Interscope Records. The album was released on March 23, 2012 and featured production from Madonna herself, Benny Benassi, William Orbit, Benny's brother Alle Benassi and Martin Solveig. The lead single from the album, "Give Me All Your Luvin'" was released on February 3, 2012 and features M.I.A. and Nicki Minaj. The second single, "Girl Gone Wild", had its lyric video premiere on February 27, 2012 and was available as a single on March 2, 2012. The album was also her first release not to be associated with Warner Bros.


title: Pinkie

paragraphs: Pinkie (1794) is a painting by Thomas Lawrence. It depicts Sarah Barrett Moulton. She was born in 1783 in Jamaica. Her father was a rich plantation owner. The painting was commissioned at the time Sarah left Jamaica to complete her education in England. Sarah's nickname was "Pinkie". She died in 1795, one year after the painting was completed. The painting is in the Huntington Library at San Marino, California. It hangs near "The Blue Boy" by Thomas Gainsborough. "Pinkie" and "The Blue Boy" are used as set decorations for many episodes of the television show, "Leave It to Beaver".


title: Girl Gone Wild

paragraphs: "Girl Gone Wild" is the name of the second single, which is coming out in 2012 from Madonna's album "MDNA". Jenson Vaughan, Madonna, and her producers wrote the song together. Benny Benassi and Alle Benassi produced the song with Madonna. The song was released for digital download on March 2, 2012.


title: Thomas Lawrence

paragraphs: Thomas Lawrence (13 April 1769 – 7 January 1830) was an English portrait painter. He was born in Bristol. He was a child prodigy. His father was an innkeeper. When Lawrence was 10 years old he was supporting his family with his pastel portraits. He went to London when he was 18. He soon was well known as a portrait painter in oils. His first royal commission was a portrait of Queen Charlotte in 1790. He became an associate of the Royal Academy in 1791, a full member in 1794, and president in 1820. In 1810 he received the patronage of the Prince Regent. He died at age 60 in 1830. At his death, Lawrence was the most fashionable portrait painter in Europe. He is remembered today as the Romanticism portraitist of the British Regency.


title: Leave It to Beaver

paragraphs: Leave It to Beaver is an American television sitcom series. It first aired from October 7, 1957 to June 20, 1963. The series stars Jerry Mathers as "Beaver"; Tony Dow as his older brother Wally; Barbara Billingsley as his mother June Cleaver; and Hugh Beaumont as his father Ward Cleaver.

paragraphs: Semi-regulars include Ken Osmond as Wally's friend Eddie Haskell; Frank Bank as Wally's other friend Lumpy; Burt Mustin as Gus the fireman; Sue Randall as Beaver's teacher Miss Landers; Rusty Stevens as Beaver's friend Larry Mondello; and Jerry Weil as Beaver's mean little schoolmate Judy Hensler.

paragraphs: The series is about Beaver's adventures at home, in school, and around his neighborhood. Writers Bob Mosher and Joe Connelly based Beaver's adventures on the exploits of their own children. In most episodes, Beaver would get into trouble. His parents would speak to him and explain what he had done wrong. They would hope that he had learned a lesson.

paragraphs: Critics and television viewers liked the series. In 1997, a movie based on "Leave It to Beaver" opened in theaters. In 2007, TV Land observed the show's 50th anniversary with a marathon (running many episodes in a row). In October 1957 the first toilet was seen on American television in "Captain Jack", the second episode of the series. The boys buy a baby alligator and keep it in the toilet tank of their bathroom.

paragraphs: Production Company: DHX Media Studio B Productions (in cartoon) Wildbrain (in The New Leave it to Beaver) Perez-Minton Productions, Inc. MGA Entertainment DLHG Productions Moonscoop CJ Entertainment Magnet Productions Dolman Entertainment


title: Plan 9 from Outer Space

paragraphs: Plan 9 from Outer Space (1959) is a science fiction movie. It was written and directed by Ed Wood It stars Gregory Walcott, Mona McKinnon, Lyle Talbot, Tor Johnson, Maila Nurmi (Vampira), and Criswell. Some footage of Bela Lugosi as the "Old Man" was edited into the movie after Lugosi's death.

paragraphs: The movie is about aliens who want to stop humans from creating a weapon that will destroy the universe. To do this, the aliens put their "Plan 9" in operation. This is a scheme to bring Earth's dead back to life. This plan will get Earth's attention and chaos will follow.

paragraphs: For years, the movie was aired on television without much notice. In 1980 authors Michael Medved and Harry Medved called "Plan 9 from Outer Space" the "worst movie ever made". They posthumously awarded their Golden Turkey Award to Wood as the worst director ever.


title: Alannah Myles

paragraphs: Alannah Myles (b. December 25, 1958, Toronto) is a Canadian singer, songwriter and producer. She began her career as an actress. Myles began singing professionally around 1979 but was rejected by all record labels in Canada. After recording 3 masters and a video of "Just One Kiss" with Christopher Ward and David Tyson for her first album, she was immediately signed to an 8 album international contract by the head of A&R, Tunc Erim. Her first album was released on April 6, 1989. The first two singles released at the same time in Canada. They were "Love Is" and "Black Velvet". "Love is was released in the mainly English speaking west. It went to #1. "Black Velvet" was released in Quebec and went to #1 on French Canadian radio. "Black Velvet" was released internationally in 1990. It reached number one in many places. It stayed at #1 for two weeks in the United Kingdom. "Black Velvet" was a hit song released in the United States on Jan 9, 1990 as a single. This made Myles eligible for a Grammy Award. She won the award in 1991 for "Best Rock Vocal Performance-Female".


title: Henry IV, Pt. 1

paragraphs: Henry IV, Part 1 is a play by William Shakespeare. It was likely written no later than 1597. Shakespeare probably read Holinshed's "Chronicles" for background. The play was first printed in quarto in 1598 by Andrew Wise. The play was Shakespeare's most popular printed text. It is the second of Shakespeare's three plays about the reigns of Richard II, Henry IV (two plays), and Henry V. It has always been a popular play with audiences and with critics. Sir John Falstaff is one of Shakespeare's greatest and most popular characters.


title: Portland Winterhawks

paragraphs: The Portland Winterhawks are an American professional ice hockey team that began playing in 1976. They currently play in the Western Hockey League. They play their home games in Portland, Oregon at both the Memorial Coliseum and Rose Garden arenas. They have won 2 Memorial Cups in 1982 and 1997. They have also won 2 President's Cups in 1981 and 1997. They were originally known as the Portland Winter Hawks until May 2009 when they took out the space.


title: Bal du moulin de la Galette

paragraphs: Bal du moulin de la Galette () (1876) is a painting by Pierre-Auguste Renoir. It is in the Musée d'Orsay in Paris. The painting depicts a typical Sunday afternoon at Moulin de la Galette in the district of Montmartre. In the late 19th century, working class Parisians would dress up and spend time there dancing, drinking, and eating galettes into the evening. "Bal du moulin de la Galette" is a typical Impressionist snapshot of real life. It shows a richness of form, a fluidity of brush stroke, and a flickering light. The French painter Gustave Caillebotte owned the painting for about 20 years. When he died it became the property of the French Republic. From 1896 to 1929 the painting hung in the Musée du Luxembourg. From 1929 it hung in the Musée du Louvre. It was sent to the Musée d'Orsay in 1986. Renoir painted a smaller version of the picture with the same title. This painting is in a private collection. For many years it was owned by John Hay Whitney. On May 17, 1990, his widow sold it for US$78 million at Sotheby's in New York City. It was one of the most expensive artworks ever sold.


title: Federal University of Rio de Janeiro

paragraphs: The Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (, UFRJ) is the largest federal universities of Brazil. It has a central campus in the city of Rio de Janeiro and two smaller ones. It was established in 1792 as a military college, and became a university in 1920. It is one the country's most prestigious universities.

paragraphs: The Federal University owns several hospitals and and several museums including the National Museum of Brazil.


title: Bride of Frankenstein

paragraphs: Bride of Frankenstein (sometimes The Bride of Frankenstein) is a 1935 Universal Pictures science fiction horror movie. It is a sequel to Universal's "Frankenstein" (1931). "Bride" was directed by James Whale. It stars Boris Karloff, Elsa Lanchester, Colin Clive, and Ernest Thesiger.

paragraphs: The movie is based on a subplot in the book "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley. It picks up where the movie "Frankenstein" leaves off. In "Bride", Henry Frankenstein drops his work in the laboratory. The Monster wants a mate. He forces Henry to create one.

paragraphs: Preparations for making "Bride" began shortly after "Frankenstein" opened in theaters. Photography started in January 1935. Many of the actors and crew from "Frankenstein" returned for "Bride". Critics and audiences loved the movie, but the censors found fault.

paragraphs: Today, the movie is considered Whale's masterpiece. The director and others involved in the production were homosexuals. Some viewers detect a gay sensibility in the movie. Some of Whale's associates have dismissed the idea.


title: The Wild One

paragraphs: The Wild One (1953) is an outlaw biker movie. The movie was based on a short story that told of the damage done to a small California town in 1947 by thousands of rowdy outlaw bikers. The movie was directed by László Benedek. It stars Marlon Brando and Lee Marvin (in his movie debut) as rival biker gang leaders. It is the first outlaw biker movie. Critics and teenagers liked the movie. It inspired fads such as sideburns.

paragraphs: The movie was based on the short story "The Cyclists' Raid" by Frank Rooney. Rooney wrote the story after seeing photos in a "Life" magazine showing the damage done by 4,000 bikers to a small town in California after a weekend spree of violence in 1947.

paragraphs: The story was published in "Harper's Magazine" in 1951. Kramer bought the sceen rights. Brando was leery about taking on the role of a lowlife bully after playing Stanley Kowalski in "A Streetcar Named Desire". He accepted though because he liked the director and the movie's social commentary.

paragraphs: Johnny leads his biker gang into a small town. The club members are rowdy. They hang out at the cafe drinking beer. Kathie works in the cafe. Johnny takes a liking to her. He asks her out. She declines. Johnny learns that she is a policeman's daughter. He changes his mind about dating her.

paragraphs: Another biker gang rides into town. Their leader is Chino. He does not like Johnny. The two fight. Johnny wins. Chino's bikers vandalize the town and harass the townspeople. They tease Kathie. Johnny rescues her. The two ride into a park. Kathie is attracted to Johnny. He mauls her. She cries and runs off. Johnny rides after her.

paragraphs: The townspeople have had enough of the bikers. Some think Johnny assaulted Kathie. Johnny is caught by angry townsmen. They beat him, but he gets away on his motorcycle. The townspeople chase him. A tire iron is thrown. It hits Johnny and he falls from his bike. His motorcycle takes off without its rider. It hits and kills an old man.

paragraphs: The sheriff arrives with his deputies. Order is restored. Johnny is arrested for killing the old man. Two witnesses say that Johnny was not responsible for the old man's death. The bikers are ordered to leave town. Johnny goes back to the cafe to say goodbye to Kathie. He then leaves.

paragraphs: Dave Kehr of "The Chicago Reader" has written: "Legions of Brando impersonators have turned his performance in this seminal 1954 motorcycle movie into self-parody, but it's still a sleazy good time." "Variety" noted that the film "is long on suspense, brutality and sadism ... All performances are highly competent."

paragraphs: The Catholic Legion of Decency objected to the "excessive brutality, lack of moral compensation and suggestiveness" in "The Wild One". One French journalist described the movie as "the most unpleasant American movie ever seen." The magazine "Positif" described the movie as a masterpiece and "the [movie] of the year".

paragraphs: Brando has written: "The public's reaction to "The Wild One" was, I believe, a product of its time and circumstances. It was only seventy-nine minutes long, short by modern standards, and it looks dated and corny now; I don't think it has aged well."

paragraphs: Brando's sideburns inspired a fad. James Dean and Elvis Presley wore them. Brando's character was parodied by Harvey Lembeck in the "beach party" movies of the early 1960s.

paragraphs: Presley used Johnny's image as a model for his role in "Jailhouse Rock". James Dean bought a Triumph TR5 Trophy motorcycle like Brando's Triumph Thunderbird 6T motorcycle. For 2010, Triumph motorcycles introduced a range of clothing and promotional items inspired by Brando's image from "The Wild One".


title: Matilda (1996 movie)

paragraphs: Matilda is a fantasy movie. Danny DeVito directed the movie. The story is based on the novel called Matilda by Roald Dahl. TriStar Pictures released the movie on July 28, 1996. Mara Wilson, Danny DeVito, Rhea Perlman, Embeth Davidtz, and Pam Ferris are the stars of the movie. 6 1/2 (6 in a half)-7 year old kindergardener named Matilda (who lives with her abusive father who abuses her) got played by Mara Wilson.


title: Switching Channels

paragraphs: Switching Channels is a 1988 comedy starring Kathleen Turner, Burt Reynolds and Christopher Reeve. This movie got mixed reviews and was a commercial failure when it came out. This movie was like "The Front Page", which was remade as "His Girl Friday". This was released in March of 1988.

paragraphs: The movie got mixed reviews from the critics.

paragraphs: The movie was nominated for two Golden Raspberry Awards: Burt Reynolds for Worst Actor and Christopher Reeve for Worst Supporting Actor.


title: W.G. Grace

paragraphs: W.G. Grace , (William Gilbert Grace, 18 July 1848 – 23 October 1915) was an English physician and cricketer.

paragraphs: Grace, always known as 'W.G.', was one of the greatest players, and was important in the development of the sport. He played first-class cricket for a record-equalling 44 seasons, from 1865 to 1908, during which he captained England, Gloucestershire County Cricket Club, the Gentlemen, MCC, the United South of England Eleven and several other teams. He came from a cricketing family. In 1880 W.G. with E.M. Grace, one of his elder brothers, and Fred Grace, his younger brother, was the first time three brothers played together in Test cricket. His father and a cousin were also good players.

paragraphs: Right-handed as both batsman and bowler, Grace dominated the sport during his career. His technical innovations and enormous influence had a lasting effect. An outstanding all-rounder, he excelled at batting, bowling and fielding. It is for his batting that he is most renowned. Usually opening the innings, he was admired for his mastery of all strokes: his level of expertise was said by contemporary reviewers to be unique. He generally captained the teams he played for at all levels because of his skill and tactical know-how, and his dominant personality.

paragraphs: Grace qualified as a medical practitioner in 1879. Because of his medical profession, he was nominally an amateur cricketer but he is said to have made more money from cricket than any professional. He was a very competitive player. Although he was one of the most famous men in England, he was also one of the most controversial on account of his gamesmanship and his financial skill.

paragraphs: He took part in other sports: as a young man he was a champion 440 yard hurdler, and also played football for the Wanderers. In later life, he developed enthusiasm for golf, lawn bowls and curling.

paragraphs: Test cricket began in 1877, when Grace was already 28. He made his debut in 1880, scoring England's first-ever Test century against Australia. He played for England in 22 Tests through the 1880s and 1890s, all of them against Australia. He was an automatic selection for England at home, but his only Test-playing tour of Australia was that of 1891–92.

paragraphs: Grace's most significant Test was England v Australia in 1882 at The Oval. Thanks to Spofforth, the 'demon bowler', who took 14 wickets in the match, Australia won by 7 runs and the legend of The Ashes was born. Grace scored only 4 and 32, and he was held responsible for "firing up" Spofforth. This came about through a piece of gamesmanship by Grace when he made an unsporting, but legal, run out of one of the Australian batsmen. Grace died of a heart attack.


title: Terry Crews

paragraphs: Terrence Alan Crews (born July 30, 1968) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, voice artist, and comedian. He is known for appearing in "Everybody Hates Chris", "The Expendables", "White Chicks", "The 6th Day", "Norbit", "Brooklyn Nine-Nine", and other movies and television series. He is a retired NFL player. Crews is from Flint, Michigan. Crews was the host of "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire" on September 2014 until May 2015 due to his busy schedule. He was replaced by Chris Harrison in September 2015.


title: Galette

paragraphs: Galette, or more properly Breton galette is a term used in French cuisine for various types of flat, round or freeform crusty cakes.

paragraphs: One notable type is the "galette des Rois" ('King cake') eaten on the day of Epiphany. In Quebec, the term "galette" is usually applied to pastries best described as large cookies.

paragraphs: Galette is also the name given in most French "crêperies" to savoury buckwheat flour pancakes. Those made from wheat flour, much smaller in size and mostly served with a sweet filling, are called crêpes.


title: Air Buddies

paragraphs: Air Buddies is the 6th movie in the "Air Bud" movie series. It is also the first movie in the "Air Buddies" movie series. It was released in 2006 by Walt Disney Home Entertainment. The movie was directed by Robert Vince.


title: New Girl

paragraphs: New Girl is an American television sitcom set in Los Angeles. It began on September 20, 2011 and is shown on Fox. It stars Zooey Deschanel as Jess Day, a teacher who moves in with three young men she meets on the Internet after separating from her partner with whom she lived.


title: Oppuurs

paragraphs: Oppuurs is a small town in the Belgian province of Antwerp. It is a part of the municipality of Sint-Amands. Oppuurs has 2028 inhabitants . Oppuurs has an area of .

paragraphs: The first time Oppuurs was mentioned was in 1414, then called "Oppuedersel". In the 15th century, it was owned by the family Van der Calsteren. Later, Joost Snoy became the owner. In 1664, it got the title of barony. At the 7th of mai 1818, Idisbalda-Ghislain Snoy was appointed to mayor by the king. Later, in 1777 the properties were bought by Philippe Ghislain Snoy, who became baron.

paragraphs: Oppuurs belonged to the parish of Puurs and was separated in 1803. It was an independent municipality until 1976. Then, it became, along with Lippelo, part of the municipality of Sint-Amands.

paragraphs: The title of "Baron Snoy et d'Oppuers" still exists today.


title: Lucille Ball

paragraphs: Ball (August 6, 1911 – April 26, 1989) was an American comedian, model, movie and television actress and studio executive. She was the star of the sitcoms "I Love Lucy", "The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour", "The Lucy Show", "Here's Lucy" and "Life With Lucy". Ball was one of the most popular and powerful actors in the United States during her lifetime. She also had one of Hollywood's longest careers.

paragraphs: Ball began acting in the 1930s. She became both a radio actress and B-movie star in the 1940s. Her television career began in the 1950s. She was still making movies in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1962, Ball became the first woman to run a major television studio, Desilu. This studio made many successful and popular television series.

paragraphs: Ball was born to Henry Durrell Ball (September 16, 1887 – February 19, 1915) and Desiree "DeDe" Evelyn Hunt (September 21, 1892 – July 20, 1977) in Jamestown, New York. Her family was Baptist. She was of French, Scottish, English, and Irish ancestry. She had a brother Fred Henry Ball (July 17, 1915 – February 5, 2007).

paragraphs: In 1929, Ball got work as a model. She later began her performing career on Broadway using the stage name Diane Belmont. She was in many small movie roles in the 1930s. She worked for RKO Radio Pictures at the time. Ball was named the "Queen of the Bs".

paragraphs: In 1951, Ball was important in the creation of the television series "I Love Lucy". The show ended in 1957 after 180 episodes. Then, some small changes were made to the series format. The time-length of the series was changed from 30 minutes to 60 minutes. The first program lasted 75 mins. Some new characters were added. The story was changed. After these changes, the program was renamed "The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour". It was shown from 1957 until 1960.

paragraphs: Ball went on to star in two more successful television series. The first was "The Lucy Show". It was shown on CBS from 1962 to 1968 (156 episodes). The other was "Here's Lucy". It was shown from 1968 to 1974 (144 episodes). Her last television series was in 1986. It was called "Life with Lucy". This program did not do very well. Only 8 of the 13 episodes that were made were shown on television.

paragraphs: Ball met and married Cuban band leader Desi Arnaz in 1940. On July 17, 1951, she gave birth to their first child, Lucie Désirée Arnaz. A year and a half later, Ball gave birth to their second child, Desiderio Alberto Arnaz IV, known as Desi Arnaz, Jr. Ball and Arnaz divorced on 4 May 1960.

paragraphs: On April 18, 1989, Ball said she had chest pains at her home in Beverly Hills and was taken to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where she had dissecting aortic aneurysm and had an eight-hour aortic transplant. The surgery worked, and Ball was soon able to walk around her room with very little help. She got a lot of get-well wishes.

paragraphs: On the morning of April 26, Ball awoke with bad back pains then lost consciousness. After, she died at 5:47 a.m. PDT at the age of 77. Doctors thought that Ball had succumbed to a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm not that related to her ascending aortic aneurysm and surgery. Ball had been a smoker most of her life, making her risk of abdominal aortic aneurysm higher.

paragraphs: Ball was nominated for an Emmy Award thirteen times. She won four times. In 1977 Ball was one of the first people to be given the Women in Film Crystal Award. She was given the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award in 1979, the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Kennedy Center Honors in 1986, and the Governors Award from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in 1989.


title: The Blob

paragraphs: The Blob is a 1958 American science fiction horror movie. It was directed by Irvin Yeaworth. It was produced by Jack H. Harris. Paramount Pictures released the movie. The movie is about a giant jellylike blob that terrorizes a small town. "The Blob" marked Steve McQueen's movie debut. The movie's theme song, "Beware of the Blob", was written by Burt Bacharach and Mack David. It was remade in 1988.

paragraphs: Teenagers Steve and Jane are loitering in a Lover's Lane. They see an object in the night sky crash-land nearby. They investigate. It is The Blob, a jelly-like thing from Outer Space that consumes flesh. It kills an old man, a doctor, and a nurse. It doubles in size after each feeding. Steve and Jane report their findings to the police. They are dismissed as crazy teenagers. In the meantime, The Blob has consumed many others.

paragraphs: Steve and Jane are cornered by The Blob in the grocery store. They seek refuge in the walk-in refrigerator. The Blob tries to ooze in under the door. It retreats. Steve and Jane escape. They set off the town's fire and air-raid alarms. The Blob enters the movie theatre. The customers run away screaming. The Blob oozes out of the theater. Jane's little brother runs into a diner. Jane and Steve follow him. They become trapped in the diner along with the owner and a waitress.

paragraphs: The Blob – now a huge mass – engulfs the diner. It begins to ooze in through the windows. The occupants go to the cellar. The police try to kill The Blob by dropping a power line onto it. This attempt fails. It only serves to set the diner ablaze. Inside, the diner's owner uses a CO2 fire extinguisher to try to put out the fire. This causes The Blob to recoil. The Blob cannot stand cold. The town's teenagers gather all the fire extinguishers they can find. They use them to freeze The Blob. The United States Air Force sends in a jet to carry The Blob to the North Pole. It will remain frozen forever.


title: Akita, Akita

paragraphs: Akita has been one of the most important cities in the Tōhoku region since ancient times.

paragraphs: The Ashina clan held this part of northern Japan (Mutsu Province) in the 15-16th centuries.

paragraphs: The Satake clan built Akita Castle in 1604.

paragraphs: The modern city of Akita was established on April 1, 1889.

paragraphs: Akita is the largest city on the western coast of the Tōhoku region.


title: Japanese clock

paragraphs: The Japanese clock is a device made to tell the time according to Japanese tradition.

paragraphs: These clocks were introduced to Japan via Jesuit missionaries in the 16th century.

paragraphs: In 1612, the clockmaker of Philip II of Spain created a working timepiece which became a gift for Tokugawa Ieyasu.

paragraphs: One of the major features of the Japanese clock is that it has a mechanism for measuring unequal temporal hours. Usual clock tells hours at same intervals, but in the Japanese traditional timekeeping practice, a day had six daytime units from sunrise to sunset and six night units from sunset to sunrise. Then the Japanese clock was designed to adapt to this practice.


title: Polonaises Op. 40 (Chopin)

paragraphs: The Polonaise in A major, Op. 40, No. 1 (nicknamed the "Military" Polonaise) is a piece of music for solo piano. It was composed by Frédéric Chopin. It was published in 1838, with the Polonaise in C minor, Op. 40, No. 2. Anton Rubinstein wrote that the Polonaise in A major is the symbol of Polish glory, while the Polonaise in C minor is the symbol of Polish tragedy.

paragraphs: The polonaise is a Polish dance in 3/4 time. It has a distinctive rhythmic pattern which this polonaise follows unflinchingly. The A major Polonaise is written in an A-B-A form, with the B section being a "Trio". The polonaise opens with an A major chord. It continues in a vigorously masculine manner. The tempo indication is Allegro con brio (Fast, with bravura). The trio section begins in D major. The short passage following the first section of the trio is distinguished with trills for both hands on low C-sharps an octave apart. These trills suggest drum rolls.

paragraphs: Charles Rosen writes, "Polonaises had been written by many composers before, including Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven; Schubert, in fact, wrote lots of them. But nothing like the violence of Chopin’s military polonaises, ... The military polonaises were certainly understood as political statements of patriotism for his country, which was struggling to obtain its freedom ... these military polonaises have a decidedly popular character ..."


title: Kinderszenen

paragraphs: Kinderszenen (original spelling "Kinderscenen", (), Opus 15, is a set of 13 pieces for solo piano by Robert Schumann. It was published in 1838. Schumann was looking back on his childhood when composing these pieces. He had originally written 30 movements for Scenes from Childhood. He chose only 13 for the final set. The unused movements were published years later in "Bunte Blätter", Opus 99, and "Albumblätter" ().

paragraphs: Schumann originally titled the work "Leichte Stücke" (). The titles for the individual pieces were only added after the music was complete. Schumann described the titles as "nothing more than delicate hints for execution and interpretation". Timothy Taylor has discussed Schumann's choice of titles for this work in the context of the changing situation of music in 19th century culture and economics. In 1974, Eric Sams noted that there is no known complete manuscript of "Kinderszenen".


title: Giselle

paragraphs: Giselle; or, The Wilis is a romantic ballet in two acts. Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges and Théophile Gautier wrote the story of the ballet. They based it on a short prose passage in Heinrich Heine's "De l'Allemagne". They also used Victor Hugo's poem "Fantômes". Adolphe Adam wrote the music. Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot designed the dances. Carlotta Grisi danced the role of Giselle in the first production. The scenery was created by Pierre Cisceri.

paragraphs: The story is set in Germany during the Renaissance. Giselle is a peasant girl. She falls in love with Albrecht. He is a nobleman pretending to be a peasant boy. Giselle is shocked to discover Albrecht is going to marry the princess Bathilde. Her heart breaks. She goes mad (insane, crazy) and dies. One night, she rises from her grave. She wants to protect Albrecht from the Wilis. The Wilis are the ghostly spirits of dead girls. They force men to dance to their deaths.

paragraphs: The ballet was first performed in Paris on Monday 28 June 1841 at the Théâtre de l'Académie Royale de Musique. It was a great success. It was staged almost at once by other ballet companies in Europe, Russia, and the United States. Grisi was declared another Taglioni. Taglioni was the age's greatest ballerina. Ballet historian Grace Robert writes ""Giselle" ... is the archetype of the ballets of the romantic age".

paragraphs: The ballet opens on an autumn morning in Germany. Giselle and Albrecht are in love. Hilarion is in love with Giselle, too. She does not love him though. He grows jealous. He promises to take revenge. Albrecht's gentle manners arouse Hilarion's suspicions. Albrecht is really a Duke. He is pretending to be a peasant. The peasant boys and girls start a waltz. Giselle asks Albrecht to dance with her. Giselle's mother says her daughter has a weak heart. She will die if she does not give up dancing. She is afraid that Giselle will become one of the Wilis. The Wilis are ghostly female spirits. They dance men to death.

paragraphs: A hunting horn is heard in the distance. Albrecht becomes nervous. He hurries away with the peasants. The Prince of Courland, his daughter Bathilde, and their courtiers enter. They are looking for a place to rest after the hunt. Giselle and her mother bring them food and drink. Bathilde takes an interest in Giselle. They each say that they are in love, and soon to be married. Albrecht returns with the peasants. Bathilde says he is her future husband. Giselle is shocked. She goes mad and dies in her mother's arms. Albrecht is chased away by the peasants.

paragraphs: It is midnight in a dark wood. A pool of water is in the distance. Gamekeepers enter. Hilarion warns them that the spot is haunted by the Wilis. The gamekeepers run away. The Queen of the Wilis rises from the weeds to call the Wilis together. Giselle is about to become one of them. She rises from her grave. She dances. Albrecht enters to pray at Giselle's grave. He sees Giselle. They dance. The Wilis trap Hilarion. They force him to dance. They throw him into the pool to his death. The Queen of the Wilis wants Albrecht to die too. Giselle does not want this. She wants to save his life. Day breaks. The Wilis disappear. Giselle returns to her grave. Bathilde and the courtiers enter. They are looking for Albrecht. He falls into their arms exhausted.

paragraphs: The French Revolution (17891799) created a French middle class. These people did not like tastes and values of the aristocracy. These tastes and values had influenced French art and literature since the reign of Louis XIV. The power of the aristocracy had ended with the Revolution. Thousands of aristocrats had died on the guillotine, or in massacres. Many died in prisons, or had fled France for safety in other lands.

paragraphs: After the Revolution, French ballet directors and designers turned their attention to stories based on the Greek and Roman mythologies. The aristocracy liked these stories. The directors and designers however turned instead to the stories the middle class liked. These stories were based on real life, real places, past times, everyday people, and the supernatural.

paragraphs: Two ballets with such stories caused great excitement in Paris in the 1830s. In November 1831, Meyerbeer's opera "Robert le diable" had its first performance. It included a short ballet called "The Ballet of the Nuns". In this little ballet, dead nuns rise from their graves. They dance in the moonlight. The public loved this ballet. In March 1832, the ballet "La Sylphide" was performed. This ballet is about a beautiful sylph (fairy). She loves James, a young Scotsman. Tragedy occurs. James accidentally kills the sylph.

paragraphs: This ballet brought Marie Taglioni before the French public. She was the first to dance "en pointe". She did this for artistic reasons rather than spectacle. She was also the first to wear the white, bell-shaped, calf-length ballet skirt. This skirt is now considered an essential feature of the romantic ballet. Poet and critic Théophile Gautier attended the first performance of "La Sylphide". His ideas for "Giselle" would show touches of "La Sylphide" ten years later. It would be set in a real place and in the past, for example, and would be about everyday people and supernatural women.

paragraphs: In an 1841 news article announcing the first performance of "Giselle", Théophile Gautier recorded his part in the creation of the ballet. He had read Heinrich Heine's description of the Wilis in "De l'Allemagne", and thought these evil spirits would make a "pretty ballet". He planned their story for Act 2, and settled upon a verse by Victor Hugo called "Fantômes" to provide the inspiration for Act 1. This verse is about a beautiful 15 year old Spanish girl who loves to dance. She becomes too warm at a ball, and dies of a chill in the cool morning.

paragraphs: Heine's prose passage in "De l'Allemagne" tells of supernatural young women called the Wilis. They have died before their wedding day and rise from their graves in the middle of the night to dance. Any young man who crosses their path is forced to dance to his death. In another book, the Wilis are said to be jilted young women who have died and become vampires. This is assumed to be the reason that they hate men.

paragraphs: Gautier thought Heine's Wilis and Hugo's fifteen year old Spanish girl would make a good ballet story. His first idea was to present an empty ballroom glittering with crystal and candlelight. The Wilis would cast a spell over the floor. Giselle and other dancers would enter and whirl through the room, unable to resist the spell to keep them dancing. Giselle would try to keep her lover from partnering other girls. The Queen of the Wilis would enter, lay her cold hand on Giselle's heart, and the girl would drop dead.

paragraphs: Gautier was not satisfied with this story. It was basically a succession of dances with one moment of drama at its end. He had no experience writing ballet stories so he called upon Vernoy de St. Georges, a man who had written many stories for the ballet. St. Georges liked Gautier's basic idea of the frail young girl and the Wilis. He wrote the story of Giselle as it is known today in three days, and sent it to Léon Pillet, the director of the Paris Opéra.

paragraphs: Pillet wanted to present a beautiful young Italian dancer named Carlotta Grisi to the public. He considered "La Sylphide", but Adèle Dumilâtre reminded him that the role had been promised to her. A ballet in preparation, "La Rosière de Gand", was suggested, but Grisi objected. The role was too long and the story was not suitable for dance. Pillet needed a good story, and he found it in "Giselle". Grisi liked the story as much as Pillet did, so "Giselle" was put into development at once.

paragraphs: Adolphe Adam was a popular writer of ballet and opera music in early 19th-century France. He wrote with great speed. He completed "Giselle" in about two months. The music was written in the smooth, song-like style of the day called "cantilena". This style is well known to music lovers from Bellini's opera "Norma" and Donizetti's "Lucia di Lammermoor".

paragraphs: Adam used several "leitmotifs" in the ballet. A "leitmotif" is a short musical phrase that is associated with a certain character, event, or idea. Adam's leitmotifs are heard several times throughout the ballet. A leitmotif is associated with Giselle, and another with Albrecht. Hilarion's motif marks his every entrance. It suggests the Fate theme in Beethoven's "Fifth Symphony". Another leitmotif is associated with the "he loves me, he loves me not" flower test in Act 1. This leitmotif is heard again in the mad scene, and in Act 2 when Giselle offers flowers to Albrecht. The Wilis have their own motif. It is heard in the overture, in Act 1 when Berthe tells the story of the Wilis, and in the mad scene. It is heard again in Act 2 when the Wilis make their first entrance. The hunting horn motif marks sudden surprises. This motif is heard when Albrecht is exposed as a nobleman.

paragraphs: The music was completely original with Adam. A critic noted however that Adam had borrowed eight bars from a romance by a Miss Puget and three bars from the huntsman's chorus in Carl Maria von Weber's opera "Euryanthé". In addition, two pieces by Friedrich Burgmüller were put into the ballet. One was a waltz called "Souvenir de Ratisbonne". The other music was a group of dances performed by Giselle's friends. It is unknown who put these pieces into the ballet.

paragraphs: Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot designed the dances for "Giselle". Perrot and Carlotta Grisi were lovers, and Perrot designed all of Grisi's dances and all of her pantomime. Everyone in the Paris dance world knew that Perrot had designed Grisi's dances, and Coralli said so, but Perrot was given no official credit in the printed materials such as posters and programs. This was most likely done to prevent Perrot from collecting royalties (money, profits) on the ballet. Perrot liked bold touches and planned several rapid aerial swoops on wires in Act 2 for Giselle. Grisi was afraid of these swoops. A stage hand was brought in to test the swoops. He crashed face-first into the scenery. The swoops were abandoned.

paragraphs: Cyril Beaumont writes that "Giselle" is made up of two elementsdance and mime. Act 1 features short mimed scenes, he points out, and episodes of dancing which are fused with mime. In Act 2, mime has become fused entirely with dance. He writes that the choreographic vocabulary is composed of a small number of simple steps:

paragraphs: Beaumont speculates that the simple steps were deliberately planned to allow the "utmost expressiveness."

paragraphs: Parts of "Giselle" have been cut or changed since the ballet's first night. Giselle's Act 1 pantomime scene in which she tells Albrecht of her strange dream is cut. The peasant "pas de deux" in Act 1 is cut back a bit. The Prince of Courland and his daughter Bathilde used to make their entrance on horseback, but today they walk on. In the original production, the Prince and Bathilde were present at Giselle's death, but now they leave the scene before she dies. The machines used to make Giselle fly and to make her disappear are no longer used. A trapdoor is sometimes employed to make Giselle rise from her grave and then to make her sink into it at the end of Act 2.

paragraphs: At the end of Act 2, Bathilde formerly entered with the courtiers to search for Albrecht. He took a few unsteady steps toward them and collapsed into their arms. This moment was an artistic parallel to the Act 1 finale when the peasants gathered about the dead Giselle. Now, Bathilde and the courtiers are cut, and Albrecht slowly leaves the stage alone.

paragraphs: Ethnic music, dance, and costume were a large part of romantic ballet. At the time "Giselle" was written, people thought of Germany when they heard a waltz because the waltz was of German origin. Giselle makes her first entrance to the music of a waltz, and the audience would have known at once that the ballet was set in Germany. Adam wrote three waltzes for "Giselle": two for Giselle and one for the Wilis. Adam wrote that the "Giselle Waltz" in Act 1 has "all the German color indicated by the locality." People agreed. One critic wrote: "A lovely waltz ... in the Germanic spirit of the subject".

paragraphs: At first, Gautier thought that some of the dancers in the Act 2 waltz for the Wilis should dress in ethnic costume and dance ethnic steps. Adam put bits of French, Spanish, German, and Indian -sounding music in the waltz for this purpose. Gautier's "ethnic" idea was dropped as the ballet developed however, and it has not been picked up by modern producers. Today, Act 2 is a "ballet blanc"a "white" ballet in which all the ballerinas and the "corps de ballet" are dressed in full, white, bell-shaped skirts and the dances have a geometric design.

paragraphs: The historical period for "Giselle" is not indicated in the story. Paul Lormier, the chief costume designer at the Paris Opéra, probably consulted Gautier on this matter. It is also possible that Pillet had the ballet's budget in mind and decided to use the many Renaissance-style costumes in the Opéra's wardrobe for "Giselle". These costumes were said to have been those from Rossini's "William Tell" (1829) and Berlioz's "Benvenuto Cellini" (1838). Lormier certainly designed the costumes for the principal characters. His costumes were in use at the Opéra until the ballet was dropped from the repertory in 1853.

paragraphs: "Giselle" was revived in 1863 with new costumes by Lormier's assistant, Alfred Albert. Albert's costumes are closer to those of modern productions than those of Lormier, and were in use at the opera until 1868. The ballet was revived again in 1924 with scenery and costumes by Alexandre Benois. He wanted to revive the costumes of the original production but dropped the idea, believing the critics would charge him with a lack of imaginative creativity.

paragraphs: Pierre Luc Charles Ciceri was the chief set designer at the Paris Opéra from 1815 to 1847. He designed the sets for the first production of "Giselle". Gautier was not specific about the ballet's locale, but placed it in "some mysterious corner of Germany ... on the other side of the Rhine". This would have been the eastern side.

paragraphs: "Giselle" was two months in rehearsal. This was a very long rehearsal time for the period. Even so, Ciceri did not have enough time to design sets for both acts and focused on the second act. The sets for the first act were actually those designed for the 1838 ballet, "La Fille du Danube" by Adam. An illustration from "Les Beautés de l'Opera" of 1845 shows Giselle's cottage with a roof of straw on the left, and Albrecht's cottage on the right. The two cottages are framed by the branches of two large trees on either sides of the stage. Between the two cottages, in the distance, appears a castle and slopes covered with vineyards. Although this scene was not designed for "Giselle", it has remained the model for most modern productions. Ciceri's set was in use until the ballet was dropped from the repertoire in 1853. At that time, Gautier noticed that the sets were falling apart: "Giselle's cottage has barely three or four straws on its roof."

paragraphs: The Act 2 illustration from "Les Beautés" shows a dark wood with a pool of water in the distance. The branches of aged trees create an arch overhead. Beneath these branches on the left is a marble cross with 'Giselle' written on it. From one of its arms hangs the crown of grape leaves Giselle wore as Queen of the Vintage. On the stage, thick weeds and wildflowers (200 bulrushes and 120 branches of flowers) were the undergrowth. The gas jets of the footlights and those overhead suspended in the flies were turned low to create a mood of mystery and terror.

paragraphs: A circular hole was cut into the backdrop and covered with a transparent material. A strong light behind this hole represented the moon. The light was occasionally manipulated to suggest the passage of clouds. Gautier and St. Georges wanted the pool to be made of large mirrors. Pillet rejected this idea because of its cost. In the 1868 revival however, the mirrors were acquired for this scene.

paragraphs: Adam thought Ciceri's backdrop for Act 1 was "not so good ... it is all weak and pale" but he liked the set for Act 2: "[Ciceri's] second act is a delight, a dark humid forest filled with bulrushes and wild flowers, and ending with a sunrise, seen at first through the trees at the end of the piece, and very magical in its effect." The sunrise also delighted the critics.

paragraphs: The balletomanes of Paris became very excited as the opening night of "Giselle" approached. News reports kept their interest alive. Some reports said that Grisi had had an accident. Some reports said that the conductor was ill with a tumour. Still others said that the stage hands feared for their safety.

paragraphs: Hopes that the ballet would be ready in May were dashed. Opening night was postponed several times. Grisi was absent for a few days and her return was delayed to protect her health. Lighting, trapdoors, and scene changes needed further rehearsals. Cuts were made in Grisi's role to spare the dancer's health. Instead of returning to her tomb at the end of the ballet, it was decided Giselle would be placed on a bed of flowers and sink slowly into the earth. This touch preserved the romantic mood of the Act 2 finale.

paragraphs: At last, on Monday 28 June 1841, the curtain rose on "Giselle" in the Salle Le Peletier. Grisi played Giselle with Lucien Petipa as her lover Albrecht, M. Simon as the gamekeeper Hilarion, and Adèle Dumilâtre as Myrtha, the Queen of the Wilis. Typical of the theatrical practices of the time, "Giselle" was preceded by an excerpt from another productionin this case, the third act of Rossini's opera, "Moise".

paragraphs: In spite of the chief machinist shouting orders to his crew that could be heard by the audience, "Giselle" was a great success. Grisi was a sensation. Ballet-goers regarded her as another Taglioni, the greatest ballerina of the period.

paragraphs: "Giselle" was a great artistic and commercial success. "Le Constitutionnel" praised Act 2 for its "poetic effects". "Moniteur des théâtres" wrote that Grisi "runs [and] flies across the stage like a gazelle in love". One critic made a detailed analysis of the music in "La France Musicale". He thought the Act 1 waltz "ravishing", and noted that the scene of Berthe's narrative was filled with "quite new" harmonic modulations. He praised other moments in Act 1 (especially the mad scene), and was in raptures with the music of Act 2, singling out the entrance of the Wilis and the viola solo played through Giselle's last moments. He thought the flute and harp music accompanying Giselle as she disappeared into her grave at ballet's end "full of tragic beauty."

paragraphs: Coralli was praised for the Act 1 peasant "pas de deux" and for the "elegance" of Act 2. Coralli followed a suggestion made by Gautier and picked the most beautiful girls in the company to play the peasants and the Wilis. One observer thought the selection process cruel: the almost-beautiful girls were turned away without a second thought.

paragraphs: Grisi and Petipa were great successes as the tragic lovers. Gautier praised their performance in Act 2, writing that the two dancers made the act "a real poem, a choreographic elegy full of charm and tenderness ... More than one eye that thought it was seeing only [dance] was surprised to find its vision obscured by a tearsomething that does not often happen in a ballet ... Grisi danced with a perfection ... that places her in the ranks between Elssler and Taglioni ... Her miming surpassed every expectation ... She is nature and artlessness personified."

paragraphs: Adam thought Petipa "charming" as both dancer and actor, and that he had "rehabilitated" male dancing with his performance. Of Dumilâtre he wrote, "... in spite of her coldness, [Dumilâtre] deserved the success she achieved by the correctness and the 'mythological' quality of her poses: perhaps this word may seem a little pretentious, but I can think of no other to express such cold and noble dancing as would suit Minerva in a merry mood, and in this respect [Dumilâtre] seems to bear a strong resemblamce to that goddess."

paragraphs: "Giselle" made 6500 francs between June and September 1841. This was twice the amount for the same time period in 1839. Grisi's salary was increased to make her the top earner among the dancers at the Opéra. Souvenirs were sold. Pictures of Grisi as Giselle were printed, and sheet music arrangements were made for social dancing. The sculptor Emile Thomas made a statuette of Giselle in her Act 2 costume. A silk cloth was manufactured called "façonné Giselle", and Madame Lainné, a milliner, sold an artificial flower called 'Giselle'. The ballet was parodied at the Théâtre du Palais-Royal in October 1841.

paragraphs: "Giselle" was performed in Paris from its debut in 1841 to 1849. It was then dropped from the repertory. Grisi always danced the title role. The ballet was revived in 1852 and 1853, but without Grisi. The work was dropped from the repertory after 1853. It was revived in 1863 for a Russian ballerina then dropped in 1868. It was revived almost 50 years later in 1924 for the debut of Olga Spessivtzeva. This production was revived in 1932 and 1938.

paragraphs: "Giselle" was produced by other ballet companies in Europe and America almost immediately after its first night. The British had their first taste of "Giselle"not with the ballet but with a drama based on the ballet called "Giselle, or The Phantom Night Dancers" by William Moncrieff. He had seen the ballet in Paris the same year. The play was performed on 23 August 1841 at the Theatre Royal, Sadler's Wells.

paragraphs: The actual ballet was first staged in London at Her Majesty's Theatre on 12 March 1842 with Grisi as Giselle and Perrot as Albrecht. The dances were credited to Perrot and one Deshayes. It was revived many times, once in 1884 with a Mlle. Sismondi in the role of Albrecht. This production was received with little enthusiasm. It was preceded by the operetta "Pocahontas".

paragraphs: The ballet was staged by Diaghilev's Ballets Russes in 1911 at the Royal Opera, Covent Garden with Tamara Karsavina and Nijinsky as Giselle and Albrecht. Anna Pavlova danced Giselle with her own company in 1913. Alicia Markova danced the role with the Vic-Wells Ballet in 1934, and Margot Fonteyn took the role in 1937 when Markova left the company. The English loved "Giselle". In 1942, for example, three different companies were dancing the ballet in London.

paragraphs: "Giselle" was first performed in Russia at the Bolshoi Theatre, St. Petersburg, on 18 December 1842. Gedeonov, the Director of the St. Petersburg Imperial Theatres, sent his Ballet Master Titus to Paris to find a new ballet for ballerina Elena Andreyanova. Titus picked "Giselle". The Ballet Master then staged the work completely from memory in St. Petersburg. Perrot produced "Giselle" in St. Petersburg in 1851. He made many changes to the ballet in his years of service to the Imperial Ballet. In the 1880s, Ballet Master Marius Petipa made many changes to the Perrot production.

paragraphs: "Giselle" was first staged in Italy at Teatro alla Scala in Milan on 17 January 1843. The music however was not Adam's, but that of one N. Bajetti. The dances were not the original either, but those of one A. Cortesi. It is possible, but unknown if, the ballet was first staged in the provincial theatres.

paragraphs: In 1844, American ballerina Mary Ann Lee arrived in Paris to study with Coralli for a year. She returned to the United States in 1841 with the directions for "Giselle" and other ballets. Lee was the first to present "Giselle" in the United States. She did this on 1 January 1846 in Boston at the Howard Athenæum. George Washington Smith played Albrecht. Lee danced "Giselle" (again with Smith) on 13 April 1846 at the Park Theatre in New York City.

paragraphs: Nijinsky was going to dance Albrecht for the first time in St. Petersburg in January 1911. The Czar and his family would be present. Diaghilev wanted Nijinsky to wear the Renaissance-style costume he had worn in Paris the same month. It was easier to dance in than the thick pants of traditional Russian Albrechts, but his genitals (though covered) could be detected. He was ordered not to wear it. Nijinsky said that he only wanted to dance well. According to Stravinsky, Nijinsky wore not much more than the tightest tights and a padded athletic supporter (jockstrap). The next day, the angry director of the Imperial Theatres ordered Nijinsky to apologize. Complaints about the dancer were collected here and there. Nijinsky knew Diaghilev would give him work, so he resigned. On 24 January 1911 he was officially dismissed from the Imperial Theatres.


paragraphs: IONIS School of Technology and Management (IONIS STM) is a French private graduate school in information technology, computer science, energy, biotechnology and management.

paragraphs: It was made in 2009 and is in Le Kremlin-Bicêtre.

paragraphs: The school delivers 14 Master of Business Administration (MBA) recognized by French State and can teach both technical and management aspects.


title: Robert Vince

paragraphs: Robert Vince is a Canadian movie director, producer, writer, and screenwriter. He is the director of the "Air Buddies" movies and the brother of William Vince. Vince is the CEO of PeyPix Productions.