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[
"Hakeem Olajuwon",
"Dream Shake",
"What is Dream Shake?",
"Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake."
]
| C_1ddb552e4d134bd6a8e7879e823b6767_1 | What did these moves consist of? | 2 | What did the moves consist of that became known as the Dream Shake | Hakeem Olajuwon | "The best footwork I've ever seen from a big man" --Pete Newell Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake. Executed with uncanny speed and power, they are still regarded as the pinnacle of "big man" footwork. Shaquille O'Neal stated: "Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves - that gives him 20 moves." Olajuwon himself traced the move back to the soccer-playing days of his youth. "The Dream Shake was actually one of my soccer moves which I translated to basketball. It would accomplish one of three things: one, to misdirect the opponent and make him go the opposite way; two, to freeze the opponent and leave him devastated in his tracks; three, to shake off the opponent and giving him no chance to contest the shot." The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook. One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs. With David Robinson guarding him, Olajuwon performed a cross-over, drove to the basket and faked a layup. Robinson, an excellent defender, kept up with Olajuwon and remained planted. Olajuwon spun counterclockwise and faked a jump shot. Robinson, who was voted the 1995 NBA MVP, fell for the fake and jumped to block the shot. With Robinson in the air, Olajuwon performed an up-and-under move and made an easy layup. Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: "When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move. I call it the 'touch landing.' The defender is waiting for me to come down because I jumped but I'm gone before I land. Defenders say 'Wow, he's quick,' but they don't know that where I'm going is predetermined. He's basing it on quickness, but the jump is to set him up. Before I come down, I make my move. When you jump, you turn as you land. Boom! The defender can't react because he's waiting for you to come down to defend you. Now, the first time when you showed that quickness, he has to react to that quickness, so you can fake baseline and go the other way with your jump hook. All this is part of the Dream Shake. The Dream Shake is you dribble and then you jump; now you don't have a pivot foot. When I dribble I move it so when I come here, I jump. By jumping, I don't have a pivot foot now. I dribble so now I can use either foot. I can go this way or this way. So he's frozen, he doesn't know which way I'm going to go. That is the shake. You put him in the mix and you jump stop and now you have choice of pivot foot. He doesn't know where you're gonna turn and when." CANNOTANSWER | Shaquille O'Neal stated: "Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves - that gives him 20 moves." | Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon (; ; born January 21, 1963), nicknamed "the Dream", is a Nigerian-American former professional basketball player. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest centers and one of the greatest basketball players of all time. From 1984 to 2002, he played the center position in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Houston Rockets and eventually the Toronto Raptors. He led the Rockets to back-to-back NBA championships in 1994 and 1995. In 2008, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and in 2016, he was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame.
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Olajuwon traveled from his home country to play for the University of Houston under head coach Guy Lewis. His college career for the Cougars included three trips to the Final Four. Olajuwon was drafted by the Houston Rockets with the first overall selection of the 1984 NBA draft, a draft that included Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton. He combined with the Ralph Sampson to form a duo dubbed the "Twin Towers". The two led the Rockets to the 1986 NBA Finals, where they lost in six games to the Boston Celtics. After Sampson was traded to the Warriors in 1988, Olajuwon became the Rockets' undisputed leader. He led the league in rebounding twice (1989, 1990) and blocks three times (1990, 1991, 1993).
Despite very nearly being traded during a bitter contract dispute before the 1992–93 season, he remained in Houston. He became the first non-American to be an All-Star and start in an All-Star Game, the first non-American to win NBA MVP, the first non-American to win NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and in the 1993–94 season, he became the only player in NBA history to win the NBA MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and Finals MVP awards in the same season. His Rockets won back-to-back championships against the New York Knicks—avenging his college championship loss to Patrick Ewing—and Shaquille O'Neal's Orlando Magic. In 1996, Olajuwon was a member of the Olympic gold medal-winning United States national team, and he was selected as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. In October 2021, Olajuwon was honored as one of the league’s greatest players of all-time by being named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team. He ended his career as the league's all-time leader in blocks (3,830) and is one of four NBA players to record a quadruple-double.
Early life
Hakeem Olajuwon was born to Salim and Abike Olajuwon, working-class Yoruba owners of a cement business in Lagos, Nigeria. He was the third of eight children. He credits his parents with instilling virtues of hard work and discipline into him and his siblings: "They taught us to be honest, work hard, respect our elders, and believe in ourselves." Olajuwon has expressed displeasure at his childhood in Nigeria being characterized as backward. "Lagos is a very cosmopolitan city ... There are many ethnic groups. I grew up in an environment at schools where there were all different types of people."
During his youth, Olajuwon was a soccer goalkeeper, which helped give him the footwork and agility to balance his size and strength in basketball, and also contributed to his shot-blocking ability. Olajuwon did not play basketball until the age of 15 in high school, when he entered a local tournament while at the Muslim Teachers College in Lagos, Nigeria. It has been said that a coach in Nigeria once asked him to dunk and demonstrated while standing on a chair. Olajuwon then tried to stand on the chair himself. When redirected by staff not to use the chair, Hakeem could initially not dunk the basketball.
Despite early struggles, Olajuwon said: "Basketball is something that is so unique. That immediately I pick up the game and, you know, realize that this is the life for me. All the other sports just become obsolete."
College career
Olajuwon emigrated from Nigeria to play basketball at the University of Houston under Cougars coach Guy Lewis. Olajuwon was not highly recruited and was merely offered a visit to the university to work out for the coaching staff, based on a recommendation from a friend of Lewis who had seen Olajuwon play. He later recalled that when he originally arrived at the airport in 1980 for the visit, no representative of the school was there to greet him. When he called the staff, they told him to take a taxi out to the university.
After redshirting his freshman year in 1980–81 because he could not yet get clearance from the NCAA to play, Olajuwon came mostly off the bench and served as the Cougars' sixth man as a redshirt freshman in 1981–82, averaging 8.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.5 blocks, shooting 60% from the field in 18 minutes per game as Houston was eliminated in the Final Four by the eventual NCAA champion, North Carolina. Olajuwon sought advice from the coaching staff about how to increase his playing time, and they advised him to work out with local Houston resident and multiple NBA MVP winner, Moses Malone. Malone, who was then a center on the NBA's Houston Rockets, played games every off-season with several NBA players at the Fonde Recreation Center. Olajuwon joined the workouts and went head to head with Malone in several games throughout the summer. Olajuwon credited this experience with rapidly improving his game: "The way Moses helped me is by being out there playing and allowing me to go against that level of competition. He was the best center in the NBA at the time, so I was trying to improve my game against the best."
Olajuwon returned from that summer a different player. He was nicknamed "the Dream" during his basketball career after he dunked so effortlessly that his college coach said it "looked like a dream." He and his teammates (including Clyde Drexler) formed what was dubbed "Phi Slama Jama", the first slam-dunking "fraternity", so named because of its above-the-rim prowess. In his sophomore and junior years he helped the Cougars advance to consecutive NCAA championship games, where they lost to North Carolina State on a last-second tip-in in 1983 and a Patrick Ewing-led Georgetown team in 1984. He averaged 13.9 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 5.1 blocks in 1982–83 and 16.8 points, 13.5 rebounds, and 5.6 blocks in 1983–84. Olajuwon won the 1983 NCAA Tournament Player of the Year award, even though he played for the losing team in the final game. To date, he is the last player from a losing side to be granted this honor. Drexler departed for the NBA in 1983, leaving Olajuwon the lone star on the team.
After the 1983–84 season, Olajuwon debated whether to stay in college or declare early for the NBA draft. At that time, before the NBA Draft Lottery was introduced in 1985, the first pick was awarded by coin flip. Olajuwon recalled: "I really believed that Houston was going to win the coin flip and pick the first draft choice, and I really wanted to play in Houston so I had to make that decision (to leave early)." His intuition proved correct, and a lucky toss placed Houston ahead of the Portland Trail Blazers. Olajuwon was considered the top amateur prospect in the summer of 1984 over fellow collegians and future NBA stars Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton, and was selected first overall by the Rockets in the 1984 NBA draft.
In his autobiography Living the Dream, Olajuwon mentions an intriguing draft trade offered to the Rockets that would have sent Clyde Drexler and the number two pick in the 1984 NBA draft from Portland in exchange for Ralph Sampson. Had the Rockets made the deal, Olajuwon states the Rockets could have selected Jordan with the number two pick to play alongside Olajuwon and Drexler, who had established chemistry playing together during their Phi Slama Jama days in college. Sportswriter Sam Smith speculates that such a trade "would have changed league history and maybe the entire Michael Jordan legend." From 1991 to 1998, every NBA championship team included either Jordan or Olajuwon; furthermore, at least one of Drexler, Jordan, and Olajuwon was involved in every NBA Finals from 1990 to 1998.
Professional career
Houston Rockets (1984–2001)
Rookie and second years (1984–1987)
The Rockets had immediate success during Olajuwon's rookie season, as their win-loss record improved from 29 to 53 in 1983–84 to 48–34 in 1984–85. He teamed with the 1984 Rookie of the Year, 7 ft 4 in (2.24 m) Ralph Sampson to form the original NBA "Twin Towers" duo. Olajuwon averaged 20.6 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2.68 blocks in his rookie season. He finished as runner-up to Michael Jordan in the 1985 Rookie of the Year voting, and was the only other rookie to receive any votes.
Olajuwon averaged 23.5 points, 11.5 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game during his second pro season (1985–86). The Rockets finished 51–31, and advanced all the way to the Western Conference Finals where they faced the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers. The Rockets won the series fairly easily, four games to one, shocking the sports world and landing Olajuwon on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Olajuwon scored 75 points in victories in games three and four, and after the series Lakers coach Pat Riley remarked "We tried everything. We put four bodies on him. We helped from different angles. He's just a great player." The Rockets advanced to the 1986 NBA Finals where they lost in six games to the Boston Celtics, whose 1986 team is often considered one of the best teams in NBA history.
Mid-career years (1987–1993)
During the 1987–88 season, Sampson (who was struggling with knee injuries that would eventually end his career prematurely) was traded to the Golden State Warriors. The 1988–89 season was Olajuwon's first full season as the Rockets' undisputed leader. This change also coincided with the hiring of new coach Don Chaney. The Rockets ended the regular season with a record of 45–37, and Olajuwon finished the season as the league leader in rebounds (13.5 per game) by a full rebound per game over Charles Barkley. This performance was consistent with his averages of 24.8 points and 3.4 blocks. Olajuwon posted exceptional playoff numbers of 37.5 ppg and 16.8 rpg, plus a record for points in a four-game playoff series (150). Nevertheless, the Rockets were eliminated in the first round by the Seattle SuperSonics, 3 games to 1.
The 1989–90 season was a disappointment for the Rockets. They finished the season with a 41–41 record, and though they made the playoffs, were eliminated in four games by Los Angeles. Olajuwon put up one of the most productive defensive seasons by an interior player in the history of the NBA. He won the NBA rebounding crown (14.0 per game) again, this time by an even larger margin; a full two rebounds per game over David Robinson, and led the league in blocks by averaging 4.6 per game. He is the only player since the NBA started recording blocked shots in 1973–74 to average 14+ rebounds and 4.5+ blocked shots per game in the same season. In doing so he joined Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton as the only players in NBA history (at that point) to lead the league in rebounding and shot-blocking in the same season. Olajuwon also recorded a quadruple-double during the season, becoming only the third player in NBA history to do so.
The Rockets finished the 1990–91 season with a record of 52–30 under NBA Coach of the Year Chaney. Olajuwon averaged 21.8 points per game in 1990–91, but due to an injury to his eyesocket caused by an elbow from Bill Cartwright, did not play in enough games (56) to qualify for the rebounding title. Otherwise, he would have won it for a third consecutive year, averaging 13.8 a game (league leader Robinson averaged 13.0 rpg). He also averaged a league-leading 3.95 blocks per game. However, the Rockets were swept in the playoffs by the LA Lakers.
The following season was a low point for the Rockets during Olajuwon's tenure. They finished 42–40, and missed the playoffs for the first time in Olajuwon's career. He missed two weeks early in the season due to an accelerated heartbeat. Despite his usual strong numbers, he could not lift his team out of mediocrity. Since making the Finals in 1986, the Rockets had made the playoffs five times, but their record in those playoff series was 1–5 and they were eliminated in the first round four times. Following the season, Olajuwon requested a trade in part because of his bad contract; his salary was considerably low for a top center, and his contract specifically forbade re-negotiation. He also expressed displeasure with the organization's efforts to surround him with quality players. He felt the Rockets had cut corners at every turn, and were more concerned with the bottom line than winning. Management had also infuriated Olajuwon during the season when they accused of him of faking a hamstring injury because of his unhappiness over his contract situation. His agent cited his differences with the organization as being "irreconcilable", and Olajuwon publicly insulted owner Charlie Thomas and the team's front office. With the 1992–93 season approaching, a reporter for the Houston Chronicle said that Olajuwon being dealt was "as close to a sure thing as there is."
Nonetheless, he was not traded and the Rockets began the season with a new coach, Rudy Tomjanovich. Olajuwon improved his passing in 1992–93, setting a new career-high of 3.5 assists per game. This willingness to pass the ball increased his scoring, making it more difficult for opposing teams to double and triple-team him. Olajuwon set a new career-high with 26.1 points per game. The Rockets set a new franchise record with 55 wins, and advanced to the second round of the playoffs, pushing the Seattle SuperSonics to a seventh game before losing in overtime, 103–100. He finished second in the MVP race to Charles Barkley with 22 votes to Barkley's 59. The team rewarded him with a four-year contract extension toward the end of the regular season. In stark contrast to the previous year, the Rockets entered the 1993–94 season as a team on the rise. They had a solid core of young players and veterans, with a leader in Olajuwon who was entering his prime.
Championship years (1993–1995)
Olajuwon gained a reputation as a clutch performer and also as one of the top centers in history based on his performances in the 1993–94 and 1994–95 seasons. He outplayed centers such as Patrick Ewing, David Robinson, Shaquille O'Neal, and Dikembe Mutombo, and other defensive stalwarts such as Dennis Rodman and Karl Malone. Many of his battles were with his fellow Texas-based rival David Robinson of the San Antonio Spurs. In the 30 head–to–head match-ups during the seven seasons from the 1989 to 1996, when both Olajuwon and Robinson were in their prime, Olajuwon averaged 26.3 points per game, shooting 47.6% from the field, while Robinson averaged 22.1 and 46.8%.
Olajuwon led the Rockets to a championship in the 1994 NBA Finals in a seven-game series against the New York Knicks, the team of one of Olajuwon's perennial rivals since his collegiate days, Patrick Ewing. After being down 2–1, the Knicks took a 3–2 lead into Game 6. The Rockets were defending an 86–84 lead when in the last second, Knicks guard John Starks (who had already scored 27 points) went up for what would have been a Finals-winning three. Olajuwon pulled off a clutch play by blocking the shot as time expired. In Game 7, Olajuwon posted a game–high 25 points and 10 rebounds, which helped defeat the Knicks, bringing the first professional sports championship to Houston since the Houston Oilers won the American Football League championship in 1961. Olajuwon dominated Ewing in their head–to–head match-up, outscoring him in every game of the series and averaging 26.9 points per game on 50% shooting, compared to Ewing's 18.9 and 36.3%. For his efforts Olajuwon was named NBA Finals Most Valuable Player.
Olajuwon was at the pinnacle of his career. In 1994, he became the only player in NBA history to win the MVP, the Championship, the Finals MVP and Defensive Player of the Year awards in the same season. He was also the first foreign-born player to win the league's MVP award.
On December 1, 1994, Olajuwon recorded a triple-double 37 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists in a 113–109 win over the Golden State Warriors. But despite a slow start by the team, and Olajuwon missing eight games toward the end of the season with anemia, the Rockets repeated as champions in 1995. They were bolstered in part by the acquisition of Clyde Drexler, Olajuwon's former University of Houston "Phi Slama Jama" teammate, in a mid-season trade from the Portland Trail Blazers. Olajuwon averaged 27.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game during the regular season. Olajuwon displayed perhaps the most impressive moments of his career during the playoffs. San Antonio Spurs center David Robinson, recently crowned league MVP, was outplayed by Olajuwon in the Conference Finals: Olajuwon averaged 35.3 points on .560 shooting (Robinson's numbers were 23.8 and .449) and outscored Robinson 81–41 in the final two games. In the series-clinching game, Olajuwon recorded 39 points, 17 rebounds and 5 blocks. When asked later what a team could do to "solve" Olajuwon, Robinson told LIFE magazine: "Hakeem? You don't solve Hakeem." The Rockets won every road game that series. In the NBA Finals, the Rockets swept the Orlando Magic, who were led by a young Shaquille O'Neal. Olajuwon outscored O'Neal in every game, scoring more than 30 points in each and raising his regular-season rate by five while O'Neal's production dropped by one. Olajuwon was again named Finals MVP. He averaged 33.0 points on .531 shooting, 10.3 rebounds, and 2.81 blocks in the 1995 Playoffs. As in 1994, Olajuwon was the only Rockets All-Star.
Post-championship period (1995–2001)
The Rockets' two-year championship run ended when they were eliminated in the second round of the 1996 NBA Playoffs by the eventual Western Conference Champion Seattle SuperSonics. Michael Jordan had returned from an 18-month hiatus in March 1995, and his Chicago Bulls dominated the league for the next three years (1996–98). The Bulls and Rockets never met in the NBA Playoffs. The Rockets posted a 57–win season in 1996–97 season when they added Charles Barkley to their roster. They started the season 21–2, but lost the Western Conference Finals in six games to the Utah Jazz. After averaging 26.9 and 23.2 points in 1995–96 and 1996–97 respectively, Olajuwon's point production dipped to 16.4 in 1997–98. After the Rockets lost in the first round in five games to the Jazz in 1998, Drexler retired. In 1998–99 the Rockets acquired veteran All-Star Scottie Pippen and finished 31–19 in the lockout-shortened regular season. Olajuwon's scoring production rose to 18.9 points per game, and he made his twelfth and final All-NBA Team. However, they lost in the first round again, this time to the Lakers. After the season, Pippen was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers.
Toronto Raptors (2001–2002)
Houston began to rebuild, bringing in young guards Cuttino Mobley and 2000 NBA co-Rookie of the Year Steve Francis. On August 2, 2001, after refusing a $13 million deal with the Rockets, Olajuwon was traded to the Toronto Raptors for draft picks (the highest of which was used by Houston to draft Boštjan Nachbar at #15 in the 2002 NBA draft), with the player having a three-year contract that would give him $18 million. In his first game with the Raptors, he scored 11 points in just 22 minutes of playing time against the Magic. Olajuwon averaged career lows of 7.1 points and 6.0 rebounds per game in what would be his final season in the NBA, as he decided to retire in the fall of 2002, due to a back injury. Olajuwon retired as the all–time league leader in total blocked shots with 3,830, although shot-blocking did not become an official statistic until the 1973–74 NBA season.
Shortly after his retirement, his #34 jersey was retired by the Rockets.
For his NBA career, Olajuwon averaged 21.8 points on 51% shooting, 11.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 3.1 blocks in 1238 career games.
National team career
In 1980, before arriving in the US, Olajuwon played for a Nigerian junior team in the All-Africa Games. This created some problems when he tried to play for the United States men's national basketball team initially. FIBA rules prohibit players from representing more than one country in international competition, and players must go through a three-year waiting period for any nationality change. Olajuwon was ineligible for selection to the "Dream Team" as he hadn't become a US citizen.
Olajuwon became a naturalized American citizen on April 2, 1993. For the 1996 Olympics, he received a FIBA exemption and was eligible to play for Dream Team II. The team went on to win the gold medal in Atlanta. During the tournament, he shared his minutes with Shaquille O'Neal and David Robinson. He played 7 out of the 8 games and started 2. He averaged 5 points and 3.1 rebounds and had 8 assists and 6 steals in seven games.
Player profile
Olajuwon was highly skilled as both an offensive and defensive player. On defense, his rare combination of quickness and strength allowed him to guard a wide range of players effectively. He was noted for both his outstanding shot-blocking ability and his unique talent (for a frontcourt player) for stealing the ball. Olajuwon is the only player in NBA history to record more than 200 blocks and 200 steals in the same season. He averaged 3.09 blocks and 1.75 steals per game for his career. He is the only center to rank among the top ten all-time in steals. Olajuwon was also an outstanding rebounder, with a career average of 11.1 rebounds per game. He led the NBA in rebounding twice, during the 1989 and 1990 seasons. He was twice named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and was a five-time NBA All-Defensive First Team selection.
On offense, Olajuwon was famous for his deft shooting touch around the basket and his nimble footwork in the low post. With the ball, Hakeem displayed a vast array of fakes and spin moves, highlighted in his signature "Dream Shake" (see below). He was a prolific scorer, averaging 21.8 points per game for his career, and an above-average offensive rebounder, averaging 3.3 offensive rebounds per game. Additionally, Olajuwon became a skilled dribbler with an ability to score in "face-up" situations like a perimeter player. He is one of only four players to have recorded a quadruple-double in the NBA, which have only been possible since the 1973–74 season, when blocked shots and steals were first kept as statistics in the NBA.
Dream Shake
Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake. Executed with uncanny speed and power, they are still regarded as the pinnacle of "big man" footwork. Shaquille O'Neal stated: "Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves – that gives him 20 moves." Olajuwon himself traced the move back to the soccer-playing days of his youth. "The Dream Shake was actually one of my soccer moves which I translated to basketball. It would accomplish one of three things: one, to misdirect the opponent and make him go the opposite way; two, to freeze the opponent and leave him devastated in his tracks; three, to shake off the opponent and giving him no chance to contest the shot." The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook.
One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs. With David Robinson guarding him, Olajuwon performed a cross-over, drove to the basket and faked a layup. Robinson, an excellent defender, kept up with Olajuwon and remained planted. Olajuwon spun counterclockwise and faked a jump shot. Robinson, who was voted the 1995 NBA MVP, fell for the fake and jumped to block the shot. With Robinson in the air, Olajuwon performed an up-and-under move and made an easy layup.
Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: "When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move. I call it the 'touch landing.' The defender is waiting for me to come down because I jumped but I'm gone before I land. Defenders say 'Wow, he's quick,' but they don't know that where I'm going is predetermined. He's basing it on quickness, but the jump is to set him up. Before I come down, I make my move. When you jump, you turn as you land. Boom! The defender can't react because he's waiting for you to come down to defend you. Now, the first time when you showed that quickness, he has to react to that quickness, so you can fake baseline and go the other way with your jump hook. All this is part of the Dream Shake. The Dream Shake is you dribble and then you jump; now you don't have a pivot foot. When I dribble I move it so when I come here, I jump. By jumping, I don't have a pivot foot now. I dribble so now I can use either foot. I can go this way or this way. So he's frozen, he doesn't know which way I'm going to go. That is the shake. You put him in the mix and you jump stop and now you have choice of pivot foot. He doesn't know where you're gonna turn and when."
Personal life
Olajuwon married his current wife, Dalia Asafi, on August 8, 1996, in Houston. The couple have four children together; two daughters, Rahmah and Aisha and two sons, Abdullah and Abdul. Olajuwon also has an older daughter, Abisola from a previous relationship with Lita Spencer, whom he met in college. Abisola represented the West Girls in the McDonald's All-American Game and played in the WNBA.
In addition to English, Olajuwon is fluent in French, Arabic, and the Nigerian languages of Yoruba and Ekiti. He wrote his autobiography, Living the Dream, with co-author Peter Knobler in 1996. During his 18-year NBA career, Olajuwon earned more than $110 million in salary.
Olajuwon, who earlier in his career signed a shoe endorsement deal with LA Gear, later became the face of Spalding's athletic shoe line and endorsed The Dream, a sneaker that retailed in various outlets (such as Payless ShoeSource) for $34.99. This made him one of the very few well-known players in any professional sport to endorse a sneaker not from Nike, Reebok, Adidas, or other high-visibility retail brands. As Olajuwon declared: "How can a poor working mother with three boys buy Nikes or Reeboks that cost $120? ... She can't. So kids steal these shoes from stores and from other kids. Sometimes they kill for them."
Higher education
Attending college was also an important priority to Olajuwon. At the University of Houston, Olajuwon was a physical education major.
Muslim faith
In Olajuwon's college career and early years in the NBA, he was often undisciplined, talking back to officials, getting in minor fights with other players and amassing technical fouls. Later, Olajuwon took an active interest in spirituality, becoming a more devout Muslim. On March 9, 1991, he altered his name from Akeem to the more conventional spelling of Hakeem, saying, "I'm not changing the spelling of my name, I'm correcting it". He later recalled, "I studied the Qur'an every day. At home, at the mosque ... I would read it in airplanes, before games and after them. I was soaking up the faith and learning new meanings each time I turned a page. I didn't dabble in the faith, I gave myself over to it." "His religion dominates his life", Drexler said in 1995. Olajuwon was still recognized as one of the league's elite centers despite his strict observance of Ramadan (i.e., abstaining from food and drink during daylight hours for about a month), which occurred during the playing season throughout his career. Olajuwon was noted as sometimes playing better during the month of Ramadan, and in 1995 he was named NBA Player of the Month in February, even though Ramadan began on February 1 of that year.
Post-NBA life
Olajuwon played for 20 consecutive seasons in Houston, first collegiately for the University of Houston Cougars and then professionally with the Houston Rockets. He is considered a Houston icon and one of the city's most beloved citizens. Olajuwon has had great success in the Houston real estate market, with his estimated profits exceeding $100 million. He buys in cash-only purchases, as it is against Islamic law to pay interest. Olajuwon splits his time between Jordan, where he moved with his family to pursue Islamic studies, and his ranch near Houston.
In the 2006 NBA offseason, Olajuwon opened his first Big Man Camp, where he teaches young frontcourt players the finer points of playing in the post. While Olajuwon never expressed an interest in coaching a team, he wishes to give back to the game by helping younger players. When asked whether the league was becoming more guard-oriented and big men were being de-emphasized, Olajuwon responded, "For a big man who is just big, maybe. But not if you play with speed, with agility. It will always be a big man's game if the big man plays the right way. On defense, the big man can rebound and block shots. On offense, he draws double-teams and creates opportunities. He can add so much, make it easier for the entire team." He runs the camp for free. Olajuwon has worked with several NBA players, including power forward Emeka Okafor, and center Yao Ming. In September 2009, he also worked with Kobe Bryant on the post moves and the Dream Shake. More recently he has been working with Dwight Howard, helping him diversify his post moves and encouraging more mental focus. In the 2011 offseason, LeBron James flew to Houston and spent time working with Olajuwon. Olajuwon has also worked with Ömer Aşık, Donatas Motiejūnas, Amar'e Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony, JaVale McGee and Kenneth Faried. In an interview with the Sporting News in April 2016, Olajuwon said that Kobe Bryant was his best low-post student. He stated, "I’ve worked with a lot of players, but the one who really capitalized on it the most is Kobe Bryant. When I watch him play, he’ll go down in the post comfortably, naturally, and he’ll execute it perfectly."
Olajuwon was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2008. On April 10, 2008, the Rockets unveiled a sculpture in honor of him outside the Toyota Center.
Olajuwon attended the 2013 NBA Draft to bid farewell to retiring commissioner David Stern as Stern made his announcement for the final pick of the first round. Olajuwon was the first pick announced by Stern back in 1984.
On August 1, 2015, Olajuwon made a special appearance for Team Africa at the 2015 NBA Africa exhibition game. He became a member of the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016.
Awards and achievements
2× NBA champion (1994, 1995)
2× NBA Finals MVP (1994, 1995)
1× NBA MVP (1994)
2× NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1993, 1994)
6× All-NBA First Team (1987, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1997)
3× All-NBA Second Team (1986, 1990, 1996)
3× All-NBA Third Team (1991, 1995, 1999)
5× NBA All-Defensive First Team (1987, 1988, 1990, 1993, 1994)
4× NBA All-Defensive Second Team (1985, 1991, 1996, 1997)
12× NBA All-Star
Olympic gold medalist (1996)
Named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996).
Named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team
Olajuwon ended his career in the top eleven all-time in blocks, scoring, rebounding, and steals. He is the only player in NBA history to retire in the top eleven for all four categories (he is now 13th all-time in rebounding).
Olajuwon was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2008, as well as to the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016.
Ranked #10 in ESPN'''s All-Time #NBArank: Counting down the greatest players ever (published in 2016)
Ranked #12 in SLAM Magazines 2018 revision of the top 100 greatest players of all time (published in the January 2018 issue)
NBA career statistics
Regular season
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 35.5 || .538 || || .613 || 11.9 || 1.4 || 1.2 || 2.7 || 20.6
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 68 || 68 || 36.3 || .526 || || .645 || 11.5 || 2.0 || 2.0 || 3.4 || 23.5
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 75 || 75 || 36.8 || .508 || .200 || .702 || 11.4 || 2.9 || 1.9 || 3.4 || 23.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 79 || 79 || 35.8 || .514 || .000 || .695 || 12.1 || 2.1 || 2.1 || 2.7 || 22.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 36.9 || .508 || .000 || .696 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|13.5* || 1.8 || 2.6 || 3.4 || 24.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 38.1 || .501 || .167 || .713 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|14.0* || 2.9 || 2.1 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|4.6* || 24.3
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 56 || 50 || 36.8 || .508 || .000 || .769 || 13.8 || 2.3 || 2.2 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|3.9* || 21.2
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 70 || 69 || 37.7 || .502 || .000 || .766 || 12.1 || 2.2 || 1.8 || 4.3 || 21.6
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 82 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 39.5 || .529 || .000 || .779 || 13.0 || 3.5 || 1.8 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|4.2* || 26.1
|-
| style="text-align:left; background:#AFE6BA;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 80 || 80 || 41.0 || .528 || .421 || .716 || 11.9 || 3.6 || 1.6 || 3.7 || 27.3
|-
| style="text-align:left; background:#AFE6BA;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 72 || 72 || 39.6 || .517 || .188 || .756 || 10.8 || 3.5 || 1.8 || 3.4 || 27.8|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 72 || 72 || 38.8 || .514 || .214 || .724 || 10.9 || 3.6 || 1.6 || 2.9 || 26.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 78 || 78 || 36.6 || .510 || .313 || .787' || 9.2 || 3.0 || 1.5 || 2.2 || 23.2
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 47 || 45 || 34.7 || .483 || .000 || .755 || 9.8 || 3.0 || 1.8 || 2.0 || 16.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|50* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|50* || 35.7 || .514 || .308 || .717 || 9.6 || 1.8 || 1.6 || 2.5 || 18.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 44 || 28 || 23.8 || .458 || .000 || .616 || 6.2 || 1.4 || .9 || 1.6 || 10.3
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 58 || 55 || 26.6 || .498 || .000 || .621 || 7.4 || 1.2 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 11.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Toronto
| 61 || 37 || 22.6 || .464 || .000 || .560 || 6.0 || 1.1 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 7.1
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Career
| 1,238 || 1,186 || 35.7 || .512 || .202 || .712 || 11.1 || 2.5 || 1.7 || 3.1 || 21.8
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|All-Star
| 12 || 8 || 23.2 || .409 || 1.000 || .520 || 7.8 || 1.4 || 1.3 || 1.9 || 9.8
Playoffs
See also
List of National Basketball Association career games played leaders
List of National Basketball Association career scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association franchise career scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career steals leaders
List of National Basketball Association career blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association career turnovers leaders
List of National Basketball Association career free throw scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career minutes played leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff steals leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff turnovers leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff free throw scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association annual rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association annual blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association players with most blocks in a game
List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season rebounding leaders
Islam in Houston
References
Sources
Harris, Othello, Nolte, Claire Elaine, and Kirsch, George B. Encyclopedia of Ethnicity and Sports in the United States, Greenwood Press. 2000
Heisler, Mark. Big Men Who Shook the NBA. Triumph Books. 2003
Olajuwon, Hakeem with Knobler, Peter. Living the Dream: My Life and Basketball. Little, Brown and Company. 1996
Simmons, Bill, The Book of Basketball: The NBA According to the Sports Guy'', ESPN 2009
External links
Hakeem Olajuwon entry at NBA Encyclopedia
Hakeem Olajuwon player profile at NBA.com
1963 births
Living people
African-American Muslims
All-American college men's basketball players
American expatriate basketball people in Canada
American men's basketball players
American people of Yoruba descent
Basketball players at the 1982 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1983 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1984 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Centers (basketball)
FIBA Hall of Fame inductees
Houston Cougars men's basketball players
Houston Rockets draft picks
Houston Rockets players
Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees
National Basketball Association All-Stars
National Basketball Association players from Nigeria
National Basketball Association players with retired numbers
Nigerian emigrants to the United States
Nigerian expatriate basketball people in Canada
Nigerian expatriate basketball people in the United States
Nigerian men's basketball players
Olympic gold medalists for the United States in basketball
People from Sugar Land, Texas
People with acquired American citizenship
Basketball players from Houston
Sportspeople from Lagos
Toronto Raptors players
United States men's national basketball team players
Yoruba sportspeople | false | [
"In game theory, an information set is a set that, for a particular player, given what that player has observed shows the decision vertices available to the player which are undistinguishable to them at the current point in the game. For a better idea on decision vertices, refer to Figure 1. If the game has perfect information, every information set contains only one member, namely the point actually reached at that stage of the game, since each player knows the exact mix of chance moves and player strategies up to the current point in the game. Otherwise, it is the case that some players cannot be sure exactly what has taken place so far in the game and what their position is.\n\nInformation sets are used in extensive form games and are often depicted in game trees. Game trees show the path from the start of a game and the subsequent paths that can be made depending on each player's next move. Information sets can be easily depicted in game trees to display each player's possible moves typically using dotted lines, circles or even by just labelling the vertices which shows a particular player's options at the current stage of the game as shown in Figure 1. \n\nMore specifically, in the extensive form, an information set is a set of decision nodes such that:\n Every node in the set belongs to one player.\n When the game reaches the information set, the player with the move cannot differentiate between nodes within the information set, i.e. if the information set contains more than one node, the player to whom that set belongs does not know which node in the set has been reached.\nGames in extensive form often involve each player being able to play multiple moves which results in the formation of multiple information sets as well. A player is to make choices at each of these vertices based on the options in the information set. This is known as the player's strategy and can provide the player's path from the start of the game, to the end which is also known as the play of the game. From the play of the game, the outcome will always be known based on the strategy of each player unless chance moves are involved, then there will not always be a singular outcome. Not all games play's are strategy based as they can also involve chance moves. When chance moves are involved, a vector of strategies can result in the probability distribution of the multiple outcomes of the games that could occur. Multiple outcomes of games can be created when chance is involved as the moves are likely to be different each time. However, based on the strength of the strategy, some outcomes could have higher probabilities than others. \n\nThe notion of information set was introduced by John von Neumann, motivated by studying the game of Poker.\n\nExample\n\nAt the right are two versions of the battle of the sexes game, shown in extensive form. Below, the normal form for both of these games is shown as well.\n\nThe first game is simply sequential―when player 2 has the chance to move, he or she is aware of whether player 1 has chosen or .\n\nThe second game is also sequential, but the dotted line shows player 2's information set. This is the common way to show that when player 2 moves, he or she is not aware of what player 1 did.\n\nThis difference also leads to different predictions for the two games. In the first game, player 1 has the upper hand. They know that they can choose safely because once player 2 knows that player 1 has chosen opera, player 2 would rather go along for and get 2 than choose and get 0. Formally, that's applying subgame perfection to solve the game.\n\nIn the second game, player 2 can't observe what player 1 did, so it might as well be a simultaneous game. So subgame perfection doesn't get us anything that Nash equilibrium can't get us, and we have the standard 3 possible equilibria:\n Both choose opera\n both choose football\n or both use a mixed strategy, with player 1 choosing O(pera) 3/5 of the time, and player 2 choosing 3/5 of the time\n\nSee also\n Self-confirming equilibrium\n\nReferences\n \n\nGame theory",
"Night Moves is a 2013 poetry book by Stephanie Barber which consists of a portion of comments posted to YouTube on the music video of the 1976 song \"Night Moves\" by Bob Seger. The nostalgic and relatable comments and the large amount of cultural references Barber saw here are compiled in this work of conceptual writing.\n\nBob Seger's \"Night Moves\"\nAccording to Slate, “Night Moves” was a 70s FM radio classic. In an article edited from interviews in The Wall Street Journal, Seger (age 70 at the time) reflects on when he was 30 and wrote “Night Moves” as a reflection on his childhood and coming of age.\n\nContent\nThe book contains 75 pages worth of comments from the YouTube music video. The majority of these comments are instances of people relating to the song lyrics. Many comments are memories of commenters, such as this one: “Love this song…I remember this song and dancing around singing it, stereo as loud as it would go…” A few times a series of comments appear as a conversation between two listeners, more often than not arguing about music. For example, one commenter wrote, “You claim this song is boring but I think what you are missing is that it is a “Mood” song. It might not have interesting melodies and chord changes but to Add these you would Subtract from the “Mood.” Some of the best songs are the simplest and this you do not understand.” Another disagreement ensues when one commenter states that they are a rapper and other commenters attack the original commenter’s career, claiming that being a rapper is a sad excuse for a career.\n\nAs cultural references go, many commenters mention what brought them to find the song on YouTube. These references include the television programs How I Met Your Mother, That '70s Show, Top Gear, and the video game Grand Theft Auto V. There was also a one-line parody of the song featured in 30 Rock, remaking the main chorus phrase to be \"Workin' on my night cheese...\" instead of the original, \"Workin' on my night moves...\".\n\nReception\nAccording to a review by Barrett Warner, Barber’s work transformed a common 2013 discussion on YouTube into something much more romanticized and cryptic at times. However, in the same review, Warner touches upon how Barber’s book promotes poetry that is more about the big picture or the extended metaphor, than an actual concrete narrative. and of the ability of people to connect through music, there have been some critics of the form of the work, specifically the fact that it is simply copy-and-pasted and that is uncreative. Another discussion of the book remarks that while Night Moves is a conceptual book, it is not only conceptual.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nhttp://www.vice.com/read/conceptual-gender-violence-murder-and-bob-seger\nhttp://www.thenervousbreakdown.com/arobinson/2013/02/on-reading-thinking-and-stephanie-barbers-night-moves/\nhttp://www.slate.com/articles/podcasts/gist/2014/10/the_gist_bob_seger_s_night_moves_and_fbi_comments_on_apple_and_google.html\n\nAmerican poetry collections"
]
|
[
"Hakeem Olajuwon",
"Dream Shake",
"What is Dream Shake?",
"Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake.",
"What did these moves consist of?",
"Shaquille O'Neal stated: \"Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves - that gives him 20 moves.\""
]
| C_1ddb552e4d134bd6a8e7879e823b6767_1 | Did it always work against his opponents? | 3 | Did the dream shake moves always work against Hakeem Olajuwon's opponents? | Hakeem Olajuwon | "The best footwork I've ever seen from a big man" --Pete Newell Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake. Executed with uncanny speed and power, they are still regarded as the pinnacle of "big man" footwork. Shaquille O'Neal stated: "Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves - that gives him 20 moves." Olajuwon himself traced the move back to the soccer-playing days of his youth. "The Dream Shake was actually one of my soccer moves which I translated to basketball. It would accomplish one of three things: one, to misdirect the opponent and make him go the opposite way; two, to freeze the opponent and leave him devastated in his tracks; three, to shake off the opponent and giving him no chance to contest the shot." The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook. One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs. With David Robinson guarding him, Olajuwon performed a cross-over, drove to the basket and faked a layup. Robinson, an excellent defender, kept up with Olajuwon and remained planted. Olajuwon spun counterclockwise and faked a jump shot. Robinson, who was voted the 1995 NBA MVP, fell for the fake and jumped to block the shot. With Robinson in the air, Olajuwon performed an up-and-under move and made an easy layup. Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: "When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move. I call it the 'touch landing.' The defender is waiting for me to come down because I jumped but I'm gone before I land. Defenders say 'Wow, he's quick,' but they don't know that where I'm going is predetermined. He's basing it on quickness, but the jump is to set him up. Before I come down, I make my move. When you jump, you turn as you land. Boom! The defender can't react because he's waiting for you to come down to defend you. Now, the first time when you showed that quickness, he has to react to that quickness, so you can fake baseline and go the other way with your jump hook. All this is part of the Dream Shake. The Dream Shake is you dribble and then you jump; now you don't have a pivot foot. When I dribble I move it so when I come here, I jump. By jumping, I don't have a pivot foot now. I dribble so now I can use either foot. I can go this way or this way. So he's frozen, he doesn't know which way I'm going to go. That is the shake. You put him in the mix and you jump stop and now you have choice of pivot foot. He doesn't know where you're gonna turn and when." CANNOTANSWER | The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook. | Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon (; ; born January 21, 1963), nicknamed "the Dream", is a Nigerian-American former professional basketball player. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest centers and one of the greatest basketball players of all time. From 1984 to 2002, he played the center position in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Houston Rockets and eventually the Toronto Raptors. He led the Rockets to back-to-back NBA championships in 1994 and 1995. In 2008, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and in 2016, he was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame.
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Olajuwon traveled from his home country to play for the University of Houston under head coach Guy Lewis. His college career for the Cougars included three trips to the Final Four. Olajuwon was drafted by the Houston Rockets with the first overall selection of the 1984 NBA draft, a draft that included Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton. He combined with the Ralph Sampson to form a duo dubbed the "Twin Towers". The two led the Rockets to the 1986 NBA Finals, where they lost in six games to the Boston Celtics. After Sampson was traded to the Warriors in 1988, Olajuwon became the Rockets' undisputed leader. He led the league in rebounding twice (1989, 1990) and blocks three times (1990, 1991, 1993).
Despite very nearly being traded during a bitter contract dispute before the 1992–93 season, he remained in Houston. He became the first non-American to be an All-Star and start in an All-Star Game, the first non-American to win NBA MVP, the first non-American to win NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and in the 1993–94 season, he became the only player in NBA history to win the NBA MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and Finals MVP awards in the same season. His Rockets won back-to-back championships against the New York Knicks—avenging his college championship loss to Patrick Ewing—and Shaquille O'Neal's Orlando Magic. In 1996, Olajuwon was a member of the Olympic gold medal-winning United States national team, and he was selected as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. In October 2021, Olajuwon was honored as one of the league’s greatest players of all-time by being named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team. He ended his career as the league's all-time leader in blocks (3,830) and is one of four NBA players to record a quadruple-double.
Early life
Hakeem Olajuwon was born to Salim and Abike Olajuwon, working-class Yoruba owners of a cement business in Lagos, Nigeria. He was the third of eight children. He credits his parents with instilling virtues of hard work and discipline into him and his siblings: "They taught us to be honest, work hard, respect our elders, and believe in ourselves." Olajuwon has expressed displeasure at his childhood in Nigeria being characterized as backward. "Lagos is a very cosmopolitan city ... There are many ethnic groups. I grew up in an environment at schools where there were all different types of people."
During his youth, Olajuwon was a soccer goalkeeper, which helped give him the footwork and agility to balance his size and strength in basketball, and also contributed to his shot-blocking ability. Olajuwon did not play basketball until the age of 15 in high school, when he entered a local tournament while at the Muslim Teachers College in Lagos, Nigeria. It has been said that a coach in Nigeria once asked him to dunk and demonstrated while standing on a chair. Olajuwon then tried to stand on the chair himself. When redirected by staff not to use the chair, Hakeem could initially not dunk the basketball.
Despite early struggles, Olajuwon said: "Basketball is something that is so unique. That immediately I pick up the game and, you know, realize that this is the life for me. All the other sports just become obsolete."
College career
Olajuwon emigrated from Nigeria to play basketball at the University of Houston under Cougars coach Guy Lewis. Olajuwon was not highly recruited and was merely offered a visit to the university to work out for the coaching staff, based on a recommendation from a friend of Lewis who had seen Olajuwon play. He later recalled that when he originally arrived at the airport in 1980 for the visit, no representative of the school was there to greet him. When he called the staff, they told him to take a taxi out to the university.
After redshirting his freshman year in 1980–81 because he could not yet get clearance from the NCAA to play, Olajuwon came mostly off the bench and served as the Cougars' sixth man as a redshirt freshman in 1981–82, averaging 8.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.5 blocks, shooting 60% from the field in 18 minutes per game as Houston was eliminated in the Final Four by the eventual NCAA champion, North Carolina. Olajuwon sought advice from the coaching staff about how to increase his playing time, and they advised him to work out with local Houston resident and multiple NBA MVP winner, Moses Malone. Malone, who was then a center on the NBA's Houston Rockets, played games every off-season with several NBA players at the Fonde Recreation Center. Olajuwon joined the workouts and went head to head with Malone in several games throughout the summer. Olajuwon credited this experience with rapidly improving his game: "The way Moses helped me is by being out there playing and allowing me to go against that level of competition. He was the best center in the NBA at the time, so I was trying to improve my game against the best."
Olajuwon returned from that summer a different player. He was nicknamed "the Dream" during his basketball career after he dunked so effortlessly that his college coach said it "looked like a dream." He and his teammates (including Clyde Drexler) formed what was dubbed "Phi Slama Jama", the first slam-dunking "fraternity", so named because of its above-the-rim prowess. In his sophomore and junior years he helped the Cougars advance to consecutive NCAA championship games, where they lost to North Carolina State on a last-second tip-in in 1983 and a Patrick Ewing-led Georgetown team in 1984. He averaged 13.9 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 5.1 blocks in 1982–83 and 16.8 points, 13.5 rebounds, and 5.6 blocks in 1983–84. Olajuwon won the 1983 NCAA Tournament Player of the Year award, even though he played for the losing team in the final game. To date, he is the last player from a losing side to be granted this honor. Drexler departed for the NBA in 1983, leaving Olajuwon the lone star on the team.
After the 1983–84 season, Olajuwon debated whether to stay in college or declare early for the NBA draft. At that time, before the NBA Draft Lottery was introduced in 1985, the first pick was awarded by coin flip. Olajuwon recalled: "I really believed that Houston was going to win the coin flip and pick the first draft choice, and I really wanted to play in Houston so I had to make that decision (to leave early)." His intuition proved correct, and a lucky toss placed Houston ahead of the Portland Trail Blazers. Olajuwon was considered the top amateur prospect in the summer of 1984 over fellow collegians and future NBA stars Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton, and was selected first overall by the Rockets in the 1984 NBA draft.
In his autobiography Living the Dream, Olajuwon mentions an intriguing draft trade offered to the Rockets that would have sent Clyde Drexler and the number two pick in the 1984 NBA draft from Portland in exchange for Ralph Sampson. Had the Rockets made the deal, Olajuwon states the Rockets could have selected Jordan with the number two pick to play alongside Olajuwon and Drexler, who had established chemistry playing together during their Phi Slama Jama days in college. Sportswriter Sam Smith speculates that such a trade "would have changed league history and maybe the entire Michael Jordan legend." From 1991 to 1998, every NBA championship team included either Jordan or Olajuwon; furthermore, at least one of Drexler, Jordan, and Olajuwon was involved in every NBA Finals from 1990 to 1998.
Professional career
Houston Rockets (1984–2001)
Rookie and second years (1984–1987)
The Rockets had immediate success during Olajuwon's rookie season, as their win-loss record improved from 29 to 53 in 1983–84 to 48–34 in 1984–85. He teamed with the 1984 Rookie of the Year, 7 ft 4 in (2.24 m) Ralph Sampson to form the original NBA "Twin Towers" duo. Olajuwon averaged 20.6 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2.68 blocks in his rookie season. He finished as runner-up to Michael Jordan in the 1985 Rookie of the Year voting, and was the only other rookie to receive any votes.
Olajuwon averaged 23.5 points, 11.5 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game during his second pro season (1985–86). The Rockets finished 51–31, and advanced all the way to the Western Conference Finals where they faced the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers. The Rockets won the series fairly easily, four games to one, shocking the sports world and landing Olajuwon on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Olajuwon scored 75 points in victories in games three and four, and after the series Lakers coach Pat Riley remarked "We tried everything. We put four bodies on him. We helped from different angles. He's just a great player." The Rockets advanced to the 1986 NBA Finals where they lost in six games to the Boston Celtics, whose 1986 team is often considered one of the best teams in NBA history.
Mid-career years (1987–1993)
During the 1987–88 season, Sampson (who was struggling with knee injuries that would eventually end his career prematurely) was traded to the Golden State Warriors. The 1988–89 season was Olajuwon's first full season as the Rockets' undisputed leader. This change also coincided with the hiring of new coach Don Chaney. The Rockets ended the regular season with a record of 45–37, and Olajuwon finished the season as the league leader in rebounds (13.5 per game) by a full rebound per game over Charles Barkley. This performance was consistent with his averages of 24.8 points and 3.4 blocks. Olajuwon posted exceptional playoff numbers of 37.5 ppg and 16.8 rpg, plus a record for points in a four-game playoff series (150). Nevertheless, the Rockets were eliminated in the first round by the Seattle SuperSonics, 3 games to 1.
The 1989–90 season was a disappointment for the Rockets. They finished the season with a 41–41 record, and though they made the playoffs, were eliminated in four games by Los Angeles. Olajuwon put up one of the most productive defensive seasons by an interior player in the history of the NBA. He won the NBA rebounding crown (14.0 per game) again, this time by an even larger margin; a full two rebounds per game over David Robinson, and led the league in blocks by averaging 4.6 per game. He is the only player since the NBA started recording blocked shots in 1973–74 to average 14+ rebounds and 4.5+ blocked shots per game in the same season. In doing so he joined Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton as the only players in NBA history (at that point) to lead the league in rebounding and shot-blocking in the same season. Olajuwon also recorded a quadruple-double during the season, becoming only the third player in NBA history to do so.
The Rockets finished the 1990–91 season with a record of 52–30 under NBA Coach of the Year Chaney. Olajuwon averaged 21.8 points per game in 1990–91, but due to an injury to his eyesocket caused by an elbow from Bill Cartwright, did not play in enough games (56) to qualify for the rebounding title. Otherwise, he would have won it for a third consecutive year, averaging 13.8 a game (league leader Robinson averaged 13.0 rpg). He also averaged a league-leading 3.95 blocks per game. However, the Rockets were swept in the playoffs by the LA Lakers.
The following season was a low point for the Rockets during Olajuwon's tenure. They finished 42–40, and missed the playoffs for the first time in Olajuwon's career. He missed two weeks early in the season due to an accelerated heartbeat. Despite his usual strong numbers, he could not lift his team out of mediocrity. Since making the Finals in 1986, the Rockets had made the playoffs five times, but their record in those playoff series was 1–5 and they were eliminated in the first round four times. Following the season, Olajuwon requested a trade in part because of his bad contract; his salary was considerably low for a top center, and his contract specifically forbade re-negotiation. He also expressed displeasure with the organization's efforts to surround him with quality players. He felt the Rockets had cut corners at every turn, and were more concerned with the bottom line than winning. Management had also infuriated Olajuwon during the season when they accused of him of faking a hamstring injury because of his unhappiness over his contract situation. His agent cited his differences with the organization as being "irreconcilable", and Olajuwon publicly insulted owner Charlie Thomas and the team's front office. With the 1992–93 season approaching, a reporter for the Houston Chronicle said that Olajuwon being dealt was "as close to a sure thing as there is."
Nonetheless, he was not traded and the Rockets began the season with a new coach, Rudy Tomjanovich. Olajuwon improved his passing in 1992–93, setting a new career-high of 3.5 assists per game. This willingness to pass the ball increased his scoring, making it more difficult for opposing teams to double and triple-team him. Olajuwon set a new career-high with 26.1 points per game. The Rockets set a new franchise record with 55 wins, and advanced to the second round of the playoffs, pushing the Seattle SuperSonics to a seventh game before losing in overtime, 103–100. He finished second in the MVP race to Charles Barkley with 22 votes to Barkley's 59. The team rewarded him with a four-year contract extension toward the end of the regular season. In stark contrast to the previous year, the Rockets entered the 1993–94 season as a team on the rise. They had a solid core of young players and veterans, with a leader in Olajuwon who was entering his prime.
Championship years (1993–1995)
Olajuwon gained a reputation as a clutch performer and also as one of the top centers in history based on his performances in the 1993–94 and 1994–95 seasons. He outplayed centers such as Patrick Ewing, David Robinson, Shaquille O'Neal, and Dikembe Mutombo, and other defensive stalwarts such as Dennis Rodman and Karl Malone. Many of his battles were with his fellow Texas-based rival David Robinson of the San Antonio Spurs. In the 30 head–to–head match-ups during the seven seasons from the 1989 to 1996, when both Olajuwon and Robinson were in their prime, Olajuwon averaged 26.3 points per game, shooting 47.6% from the field, while Robinson averaged 22.1 and 46.8%.
Olajuwon led the Rockets to a championship in the 1994 NBA Finals in a seven-game series against the New York Knicks, the team of one of Olajuwon's perennial rivals since his collegiate days, Patrick Ewing. After being down 2–1, the Knicks took a 3–2 lead into Game 6. The Rockets were defending an 86–84 lead when in the last second, Knicks guard John Starks (who had already scored 27 points) went up for what would have been a Finals-winning three. Olajuwon pulled off a clutch play by blocking the shot as time expired. In Game 7, Olajuwon posted a game–high 25 points and 10 rebounds, which helped defeat the Knicks, bringing the first professional sports championship to Houston since the Houston Oilers won the American Football League championship in 1961. Olajuwon dominated Ewing in their head–to–head match-up, outscoring him in every game of the series and averaging 26.9 points per game on 50% shooting, compared to Ewing's 18.9 and 36.3%. For his efforts Olajuwon was named NBA Finals Most Valuable Player.
Olajuwon was at the pinnacle of his career. In 1994, he became the only player in NBA history to win the MVP, the Championship, the Finals MVP and Defensive Player of the Year awards in the same season. He was also the first foreign-born player to win the league's MVP award.
On December 1, 1994, Olajuwon recorded a triple-double 37 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists in a 113–109 win over the Golden State Warriors. But despite a slow start by the team, and Olajuwon missing eight games toward the end of the season with anemia, the Rockets repeated as champions in 1995. They were bolstered in part by the acquisition of Clyde Drexler, Olajuwon's former University of Houston "Phi Slama Jama" teammate, in a mid-season trade from the Portland Trail Blazers. Olajuwon averaged 27.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game during the regular season. Olajuwon displayed perhaps the most impressive moments of his career during the playoffs. San Antonio Spurs center David Robinson, recently crowned league MVP, was outplayed by Olajuwon in the Conference Finals: Olajuwon averaged 35.3 points on .560 shooting (Robinson's numbers were 23.8 and .449) and outscored Robinson 81–41 in the final two games. In the series-clinching game, Olajuwon recorded 39 points, 17 rebounds and 5 blocks. When asked later what a team could do to "solve" Olajuwon, Robinson told LIFE magazine: "Hakeem? You don't solve Hakeem." The Rockets won every road game that series. In the NBA Finals, the Rockets swept the Orlando Magic, who were led by a young Shaquille O'Neal. Olajuwon outscored O'Neal in every game, scoring more than 30 points in each and raising his regular-season rate by five while O'Neal's production dropped by one. Olajuwon was again named Finals MVP. He averaged 33.0 points on .531 shooting, 10.3 rebounds, and 2.81 blocks in the 1995 Playoffs. As in 1994, Olajuwon was the only Rockets All-Star.
Post-championship period (1995–2001)
The Rockets' two-year championship run ended when they were eliminated in the second round of the 1996 NBA Playoffs by the eventual Western Conference Champion Seattle SuperSonics. Michael Jordan had returned from an 18-month hiatus in March 1995, and his Chicago Bulls dominated the league for the next three years (1996–98). The Bulls and Rockets never met in the NBA Playoffs. The Rockets posted a 57–win season in 1996–97 season when they added Charles Barkley to their roster. They started the season 21–2, but lost the Western Conference Finals in six games to the Utah Jazz. After averaging 26.9 and 23.2 points in 1995–96 and 1996–97 respectively, Olajuwon's point production dipped to 16.4 in 1997–98. After the Rockets lost in the first round in five games to the Jazz in 1998, Drexler retired. In 1998–99 the Rockets acquired veteran All-Star Scottie Pippen and finished 31–19 in the lockout-shortened regular season. Olajuwon's scoring production rose to 18.9 points per game, and he made his twelfth and final All-NBA Team. However, they lost in the first round again, this time to the Lakers. After the season, Pippen was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers.
Toronto Raptors (2001–2002)
Houston began to rebuild, bringing in young guards Cuttino Mobley and 2000 NBA co-Rookie of the Year Steve Francis. On August 2, 2001, after refusing a $13 million deal with the Rockets, Olajuwon was traded to the Toronto Raptors for draft picks (the highest of which was used by Houston to draft Boštjan Nachbar at #15 in the 2002 NBA draft), with the player having a three-year contract that would give him $18 million. In his first game with the Raptors, he scored 11 points in just 22 minutes of playing time against the Magic. Olajuwon averaged career lows of 7.1 points and 6.0 rebounds per game in what would be his final season in the NBA, as he decided to retire in the fall of 2002, due to a back injury. Olajuwon retired as the all–time league leader in total blocked shots with 3,830, although shot-blocking did not become an official statistic until the 1973–74 NBA season.
Shortly after his retirement, his #34 jersey was retired by the Rockets.
For his NBA career, Olajuwon averaged 21.8 points on 51% shooting, 11.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 3.1 blocks in 1238 career games.
National team career
In 1980, before arriving in the US, Olajuwon played for a Nigerian junior team in the All-Africa Games. This created some problems when he tried to play for the United States men's national basketball team initially. FIBA rules prohibit players from representing more than one country in international competition, and players must go through a three-year waiting period for any nationality change. Olajuwon was ineligible for selection to the "Dream Team" as he hadn't become a US citizen.
Olajuwon became a naturalized American citizen on April 2, 1993. For the 1996 Olympics, he received a FIBA exemption and was eligible to play for Dream Team II. The team went on to win the gold medal in Atlanta. During the tournament, he shared his minutes with Shaquille O'Neal and David Robinson. He played 7 out of the 8 games and started 2. He averaged 5 points and 3.1 rebounds and had 8 assists and 6 steals in seven games.
Player profile
Olajuwon was highly skilled as both an offensive and defensive player. On defense, his rare combination of quickness and strength allowed him to guard a wide range of players effectively. He was noted for both his outstanding shot-blocking ability and his unique talent (for a frontcourt player) for stealing the ball. Olajuwon is the only player in NBA history to record more than 200 blocks and 200 steals in the same season. He averaged 3.09 blocks and 1.75 steals per game for his career. He is the only center to rank among the top ten all-time in steals. Olajuwon was also an outstanding rebounder, with a career average of 11.1 rebounds per game. He led the NBA in rebounding twice, during the 1989 and 1990 seasons. He was twice named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and was a five-time NBA All-Defensive First Team selection.
On offense, Olajuwon was famous for his deft shooting touch around the basket and his nimble footwork in the low post. With the ball, Hakeem displayed a vast array of fakes and spin moves, highlighted in his signature "Dream Shake" (see below). He was a prolific scorer, averaging 21.8 points per game for his career, and an above-average offensive rebounder, averaging 3.3 offensive rebounds per game. Additionally, Olajuwon became a skilled dribbler with an ability to score in "face-up" situations like a perimeter player. He is one of only four players to have recorded a quadruple-double in the NBA, which have only been possible since the 1973–74 season, when blocked shots and steals were first kept as statistics in the NBA.
Dream Shake
Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake. Executed with uncanny speed and power, they are still regarded as the pinnacle of "big man" footwork. Shaquille O'Neal stated: "Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves – that gives him 20 moves." Olajuwon himself traced the move back to the soccer-playing days of his youth. "The Dream Shake was actually one of my soccer moves which I translated to basketball. It would accomplish one of three things: one, to misdirect the opponent and make him go the opposite way; two, to freeze the opponent and leave him devastated in his tracks; three, to shake off the opponent and giving him no chance to contest the shot." The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook.
One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs. With David Robinson guarding him, Olajuwon performed a cross-over, drove to the basket and faked a layup. Robinson, an excellent defender, kept up with Olajuwon and remained planted. Olajuwon spun counterclockwise and faked a jump shot. Robinson, who was voted the 1995 NBA MVP, fell for the fake and jumped to block the shot. With Robinson in the air, Olajuwon performed an up-and-under move and made an easy layup.
Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: "When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move. I call it the 'touch landing.' The defender is waiting for me to come down because I jumped but I'm gone before I land. Defenders say 'Wow, he's quick,' but they don't know that where I'm going is predetermined. He's basing it on quickness, but the jump is to set him up. Before I come down, I make my move. When you jump, you turn as you land. Boom! The defender can't react because he's waiting for you to come down to defend you. Now, the first time when you showed that quickness, he has to react to that quickness, so you can fake baseline and go the other way with your jump hook. All this is part of the Dream Shake. The Dream Shake is you dribble and then you jump; now you don't have a pivot foot. When I dribble I move it so when I come here, I jump. By jumping, I don't have a pivot foot now. I dribble so now I can use either foot. I can go this way or this way. So he's frozen, he doesn't know which way I'm going to go. That is the shake. You put him in the mix and you jump stop and now you have choice of pivot foot. He doesn't know where you're gonna turn and when."
Personal life
Olajuwon married his current wife, Dalia Asafi, on August 8, 1996, in Houston. The couple have four children together; two daughters, Rahmah and Aisha and two sons, Abdullah and Abdul. Olajuwon also has an older daughter, Abisola from a previous relationship with Lita Spencer, whom he met in college. Abisola represented the West Girls in the McDonald's All-American Game and played in the WNBA.
In addition to English, Olajuwon is fluent in French, Arabic, and the Nigerian languages of Yoruba and Ekiti. He wrote his autobiography, Living the Dream, with co-author Peter Knobler in 1996. During his 18-year NBA career, Olajuwon earned more than $110 million in salary.
Olajuwon, who earlier in his career signed a shoe endorsement deal with LA Gear, later became the face of Spalding's athletic shoe line and endorsed The Dream, a sneaker that retailed in various outlets (such as Payless ShoeSource) for $34.99. This made him one of the very few well-known players in any professional sport to endorse a sneaker not from Nike, Reebok, Adidas, or other high-visibility retail brands. As Olajuwon declared: "How can a poor working mother with three boys buy Nikes or Reeboks that cost $120? ... She can't. So kids steal these shoes from stores and from other kids. Sometimes they kill for them."
Higher education
Attending college was also an important priority to Olajuwon. At the University of Houston, Olajuwon was a physical education major.
Muslim faith
In Olajuwon's college career and early years in the NBA, he was often undisciplined, talking back to officials, getting in minor fights with other players and amassing technical fouls. Later, Olajuwon took an active interest in spirituality, becoming a more devout Muslim. On March 9, 1991, he altered his name from Akeem to the more conventional spelling of Hakeem, saying, "I'm not changing the spelling of my name, I'm correcting it". He later recalled, "I studied the Qur'an every day. At home, at the mosque ... I would read it in airplanes, before games and after them. I was soaking up the faith and learning new meanings each time I turned a page. I didn't dabble in the faith, I gave myself over to it." "His religion dominates his life", Drexler said in 1995. Olajuwon was still recognized as one of the league's elite centers despite his strict observance of Ramadan (i.e., abstaining from food and drink during daylight hours for about a month), which occurred during the playing season throughout his career. Olajuwon was noted as sometimes playing better during the month of Ramadan, and in 1995 he was named NBA Player of the Month in February, even though Ramadan began on February 1 of that year.
Post-NBA life
Olajuwon played for 20 consecutive seasons in Houston, first collegiately for the University of Houston Cougars and then professionally with the Houston Rockets. He is considered a Houston icon and one of the city's most beloved citizens. Olajuwon has had great success in the Houston real estate market, with his estimated profits exceeding $100 million. He buys in cash-only purchases, as it is against Islamic law to pay interest. Olajuwon splits his time between Jordan, where he moved with his family to pursue Islamic studies, and his ranch near Houston.
In the 2006 NBA offseason, Olajuwon opened his first Big Man Camp, where he teaches young frontcourt players the finer points of playing in the post. While Olajuwon never expressed an interest in coaching a team, he wishes to give back to the game by helping younger players. When asked whether the league was becoming more guard-oriented and big men were being de-emphasized, Olajuwon responded, "For a big man who is just big, maybe. But not if you play with speed, with agility. It will always be a big man's game if the big man plays the right way. On defense, the big man can rebound and block shots. On offense, he draws double-teams and creates opportunities. He can add so much, make it easier for the entire team." He runs the camp for free. Olajuwon has worked with several NBA players, including power forward Emeka Okafor, and center Yao Ming. In September 2009, he also worked with Kobe Bryant on the post moves and the Dream Shake. More recently he has been working with Dwight Howard, helping him diversify his post moves and encouraging more mental focus. In the 2011 offseason, LeBron James flew to Houston and spent time working with Olajuwon. Olajuwon has also worked with Ömer Aşık, Donatas Motiejūnas, Amar'e Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony, JaVale McGee and Kenneth Faried. In an interview with the Sporting News in April 2016, Olajuwon said that Kobe Bryant was his best low-post student. He stated, "I’ve worked with a lot of players, but the one who really capitalized on it the most is Kobe Bryant. When I watch him play, he’ll go down in the post comfortably, naturally, and he’ll execute it perfectly."
Olajuwon was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2008. On April 10, 2008, the Rockets unveiled a sculpture in honor of him outside the Toyota Center.
Olajuwon attended the 2013 NBA Draft to bid farewell to retiring commissioner David Stern as Stern made his announcement for the final pick of the first round. Olajuwon was the first pick announced by Stern back in 1984.
On August 1, 2015, Olajuwon made a special appearance for Team Africa at the 2015 NBA Africa exhibition game. He became a member of the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016.
Awards and achievements
2× NBA champion (1994, 1995)
2× NBA Finals MVP (1994, 1995)
1× NBA MVP (1994)
2× NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1993, 1994)
6× All-NBA First Team (1987, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1997)
3× All-NBA Second Team (1986, 1990, 1996)
3× All-NBA Third Team (1991, 1995, 1999)
5× NBA All-Defensive First Team (1987, 1988, 1990, 1993, 1994)
4× NBA All-Defensive Second Team (1985, 1991, 1996, 1997)
12× NBA All-Star
Olympic gold medalist (1996)
Named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996).
Named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team
Olajuwon ended his career in the top eleven all-time in blocks, scoring, rebounding, and steals. He is the only player in NBA history to retire in the top eleven for all four categories (he is now 13th all-time in rebounding).
Olajuwon was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2008, as well as to the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016.
Ranked #10 in ESPN'''s All-Time #NBArank: Counting down the greatest players ever (published in 2016)
Ranked #12 in SLAM Magazines 2018 revision of the top 100 greatest players of all time (published in the January 2018 issue)
NBA career statistics
Regular season
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 35.5 || .538 || || .613 || 11.9 || 1.4 || 1.2 || 2.7 || 20.6
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 68 || 68 || 36.3 || .526 || || .645 || 11.5 || 2.0 || 2.0 || 3.4 || 23.5
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 75 || 75 || 36.8 || .508 || .200 || .702 || 11.4 || 2.9 || 1.9 || 3.4 || 23.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 79 || 79 || 35.8 || .514 || .000 || .695 || 12.1 || 2.1 || 2.1 || 2.7 || 22.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 36.9 || .508 || .000 || .696 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|13.5* || 1.8 || 2.6 || 3.4 || 24.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 38.1 || .501 || .167 || .713 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|14.0* || 2.9 || 2.1 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|4.6* || 24.3
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 56 || 50 || 36.8 || .508 || .000 || .769 || 13.8 || 2.3 || 2.2 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|3.9* || 21.2
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 70 || 69 || 37.7 || .502 || .000 || .766 || 12.1 || 2.2 || 1.8 || 4.3 || 21.6
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 82 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 39.5 || .529 || .000 || .779 || 13.0 || 3.5 || 1.8 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|4.2* || 26.1
|-
| style="text-align:left; background:#AFE6BA;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 80 || 80 || 41.0 || .528 || .421 || .716 || 11.9 || 3.6 || 1.6 || 3.7 || 27.3
|-
| style="text-align:left; background:#AFE6BA;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 72 || 72 || 39.6 || .517 || .188 || .756 || 10.8 || 3.5 || 1.8 || 3.4 || 27.8|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 72 || 72 || 38.8 || .514 || .214 || .724 || 10.9 || 3.6 || 1.6 || 2.9 || 26.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 78 || 78 || 36.6 || .510 || .313 || .787' || 9.2 || 3.0 || 1.5 || 2.2 || 23.2
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 47 || 45 || 34.7 || .483 || .000 || .755 || 9.8 || 3.0 || 1.8 || 2.0 || 16.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|50* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|50* || 35.7 || .514 || .308 || .717 || 9.6 || 1.8 || 1.6 || 2.5 || 18.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 44 || 28 || 23.8 || .458 || .000 || .616 || 6.2 || 1.4 || .9 || 1.6 || 10.3
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 58 || 55 || 26.6 || .498 || .000 || .621 || 7.4 || 1.2 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 11.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Toronto
| 61 || 37 || 22.6 || .464 || .000 || .560 || 6.0 || 1.1 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 7.1
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Career
| 1,238 || 1,186 || 35.7 || .512 || .202 || .712 || 11.1 || 2.5 || 1.7 || 3.1 || 21.8
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|All-Star
| 12 || 8 || 23.2 || .409 || 1.000 || .520 || 7.8 || 1.4 || 1.3 || 1.9 || 9.8
Playoffs
See also
List of National Basketball Association career games played leaders
List of National Basketball Association career scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association franchise career scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career steals leaders
List of National Basketball Association career blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association career turnovers leaders
List of National Basketball Association career free throw scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career minutes played leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff steals leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff turnovers leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff free throw scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association annual rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association annual blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association players with most blocks in a game
List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season rebounding leaders
Islam in Houston
References
Sources
Harris, Othello, Nolte, Claire Elaine, and Kirsch, George B. Encyclopedia of Ethnicity and Sports in the United States, Greenwood Press. 2000
Heisler, Mark. Big Men Who Shook the NBA. Triumph Books. 2003
Olajuwon, Hakeem with Knobler, Peter. Living the Dream: My Life and Basketball. Little, Brown and Company. 1996
Simmons, Bill, The Book of Basketball: The NBA According to the Sports Guy'', ESPN 2009
External links
Hakeem Olajuwon entry at NBA Encyclopedia
Hakeem Olajuwon player profile at NBA.com
1963 births
Living people
African-American Muslims
All-American college men's basketball players
American expatriate basketball people in Canada
American men's basketball players
American people of Yoruba descent
Basketball players at the 1982 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1983 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1984 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Centers (basketball)
FIBA Hall of Fame inductees
Houston Cougars men's basketball players
Houston Rockets draft picks
Houston Rockets players
Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees
National Basketball Association All-Stars
National Basketball Association players from Nigeria
National Basketball Association players with retired numbers
Nigerian emigrants to the United States
Nigerian expatriate basketball people in Canada
Nigerian expatriate basketball people in the United States
Nigerian men's basketball players
Olympic gold medalists for the United States in basketball
People from Sugar Land, Texas
People with acquired American citizenship
Basketball players from Houston
Sportspeople from Lagos
Toronto Raptors players
United States men's national basketball team players
Yoruba sportspeople | true | [
"The 1889 New York Athletic Club football team was an American football team that represented the New York Athletic Club in the American Football Union (AFU) during the 1889 college football season. The team played its home games at the Polo Grounds in New York City, compiled a 4–5 record (1–4 against AFU opponents), and shut out two opponents. The New York team was not always able to employ elven men on the field, forced to place with ten, nine, or even eight men on account of shortages in available members throughout the season.\n\nSchedule\n\nReferences\n\nNew York Athletic Club\nNew York Athletic Club football seasons\nNew York Athletic Club football",
"The 1941 Texas Tech Red Raiders football team was an American football team that represented Texas Tech University as a member of the Border Conference during the 1941 college football season. In their first season under head coach Dell Morgan, the Red Raiders compiled a 9–2 record (2–0 against conference opponents), lost to Tulsa in the 1942 Sun Bowl, and outscored opponents by a total of 226 to 36. The team shut out six opponents, allowed only 3.3 points per game, and ranked second ranked in scoring defense among 119 major college teams during the 1941 season. The team did not play sufficient number of games against conference opponents to qualify for the conference championship. Home games were played at Tech Field in Lubbock, Texas.\n\nQuarterback Tyrus Bain and fullback Charles Dvoracek were selected by the conference coaches as second-team players on the 1941 All-Border Conference football team.\n\nSchedule\n\nReferences\n\nTexas Tech\nTexas Tech Red Raiders football seasons\nTexas Tech Red Raiders football"
]
|
[
"Hakeem Olajuwon",
"Dream Shake",
"What is Dream Shake?",
"Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake.",
"What did these moves consist of?",
"Shaquille O'Neal stated: \"Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves - that gives him 20 moves.\"",
"Did it always work against his opponents?",
"The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook."
]
| C_1ddb552e4d134bd6a8e7879e823b6767_1 | When did he begin using the Dream Shake? | 4 | When did Hakeem Olajuwon begin using the Dream Shake? | Hakeem Olajuwon | "The best footwork I've ever seen from a big man" --Pete Newell Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake. Executed with uncanny speed and power, they are still regarded as the pinnacle of "big man" footwork. Shaquille O'Neal stated: "Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves - that gives him 20 moves." Olajuwon himself traced the move back to the soccer-playing days of his youth. "The Dream Shake was actually one of my soccer moves which I translated to basketball. It would accomplish one of three things: one, to misdirect the opponent and make him go the opposite way; two, to freeze the opponent and leave him devastated in his tracks; three, to shake off the opponent and giving him no chance to contest the shot." The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook. One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs. With David Robinson guarding him, Olajuwon performed a cross-over, drove to the basket and faked a layup. Robinson, an excellent defender, kept up with Olajuwon and remained planted. Olajuwon spun counterclockwise and faked a jump shot. Robinson, who was voted the 1995 NBA MVP, fell for the fake and jumped to block the shot. With Robinson in the air, Olajuwon performed an up-and-under move and made an easy layup. Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: "When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move. I call it the 'touch landing.' The defender is waiting for me to come down because I jumped but I'm gone before I land. Defenders say 'Wow, he's quick,' but they don't know that where I'm going is predetermined. He's basing it on quickness, but the jump is to set him up. Before I come down, I make my move. When you jump, you turn as you land. Boom! The defender can't react because he's waiting for you to come down to defend you. Now, the first time when you showed that quickness, he has to react to that quickness, so you can fake baseline and go the other way with your jump hook. All this is part of the Dream Shake. The Dream Shake is you dribble and then you jump; now you don't have a pivot foot. When I dribble I move it so when I come here, I jump. By jumping, I don't have a pivot foot now. I dribble so now I can use either foot. I can go this way or this way. So he's frozen, he doesn't know which way I'm going to go. That is the shake. You put him in the mix and you jump stop and now you have choice of pivot foot. He doesn't know where you're gonna turn and when." CANNOTANSWER | One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs. | Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon (; ; born January 21, 1963), nicknamed "the Dream", is a Nigerian-American former professional basketball player. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest centers and one of the greatest basketball players of all time. From 1984 to 2002, he played the center position in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Houston Rockets and eventually the Toronto Raptors. He led the Rockets to back-to-back NBA championships in 1994 and 1995. In 2008, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and in 2016, he was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame.
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Olajuwon traveled from his home country to play for the University of Houston under head coach Guy Lewis. His college career for the Cougars included three trips to the Final Four. Olajuwon was drafted by the Houston Rockets with the first overall selection of the 1984 NBA draft, a draft that included Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton. He combined with the Ralph Sampson to form a duo dubbed the "Twin Towers". The two led the Rockets to the 1986 NBA Finals, where they lost in six games to the Boston Celtics. After Sampson was traded to the Warriors in 1988, Olajuwon became the Rockets' undisputed leader. He led the league in rebounding twice (1989, 1990) and blocks three times (1990, 1991, 1993).
Despite very nearly being traded during a bitter contract dispute before the 1992–93 season, he remained in Houston. He became the first non-American to be an All-Star and start in an All-Star Game, the first non-American to win NBA MVP, the first non-American to win NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and in the 1993–94 season, he became the only player in NBA history to win the NBA MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and Finals MVP awards in the same season. His Rockets won back-to-back championships against the New York Knicks—avenging his college championship loss to Patrick Ewing—and Shaquille O'Neal's Orlando Magic. In 1996, Olajuwon was a member of the Olympic gold medal-winning United States national team, and he was selected as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. In October 2021, Olajuwon was honored as one of the league’s greatest players of all-time by being named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team. He ended his career as the league's all-time leader in blocks (3,830) and is one of four NBA players to record a quadruple-double.
Early life
Hakeem Olajuwon was born to Salim and Abike Olajuwon, working-class Yoruba owners of a cement business in Lagos, Nigeria. He was the third of eight children. He credits his parents with instilling virtues of hard work and discipline into him and his siblings: "They taught us to be honest, work hard, respect our elders, and believe in ourselves." Olajuwon has expressed displeasure at his childhood in Nigeria being characterized as backward. "Lagos is a very cosmopolitan city ... There are many ethnic groups. I grew up in an environment at schools where there were all different types of people."
During his youth, Olajuwon was a soccer goalkeeper, which helped give him the footwork and agility to balance his size and strength in basketball, and also contributed to his shot-blocking ability. Olajuwon did not play basketball until the age of 15 in high school, when he entered a local tournament while at the Muslim Teachers College in Lagos, Nigeria. It has been said that a coach in Nigeria once asked him to dunk and demonstrated while standing on a chair. Olajuwon then tried to stand on the chair himself. When redirected by staff not to use the chair, Hakeem could initially not dunk the basketball.
Despite early struggles, Olajuwon said: "Basketball is something that is so unique. That immediately I pick up the game and, you know, realize that this is the life for me. All the other sports just become obsolete."
College career
Olajuwon emigrated from Nigeria to play basketball at the University of Houston under Cougars coach Guy Lewis. Olajuwon was not highly recruited and was merely offered a visit to the university to work out for the coaching staff, based on a recommendation from a friend of Lewis who had seen Olajuwon play. He later recalled that when he originally arrived at the airport in 1980 for the visit, no representative of the school was there to greet him. When he called the staff, they told him to take a taxi out to the university.
After redshirting his freshman year in 1980–81 because he could not yet get clearance from the NCAA to play, Olajuwon came mostly off the bench and served as the Cougars' sixth man as a redshirt freshman in 1981–82, averaging 8.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.5 blocks, shooting 60% from the field in 18 minutes per game as Houston was eliminated in the Final Four by the eventual NCAA champion, North Carolina. Olajuwon sought advice from the coaching staff about how to increase his playing time, and they advised him to work out with local Houston resident and multiple NBA MVP winner, Moses Malone. Malone, who was then a center on the NBA's Houston Rockets, played games every off-season with several NBA players at the Fonde Recreation Center. Olajuwon joined the workouts and went head to head with Malone in several games throughout the summer. Olajuwon credited this experience with rapidly improving his game: "The way Moses helped me is by being out there playing and allowing me to go against that level of competition. He was the best center in the NBA at the time, so I was trying to improve my game against the best."
Olajuwon returned from that summer a different player. He was nicknamed "the Dream" during his basketball career after he dunked so effortlessly that his college coach said it "looked like a dream." He and his teammates (including Clyde Drexler) formed what was dubbed "Phi Slama Jama", the first slam-dunking "fraternity", so named because of its above-the-rim prowess. In his sophomore and junior years he helped the Cougars advance to consecutive NCAA championship games, where they lost to North Carolina State on a last-second tip-in in 1983 and a Patrick Ewing-led Georgetown team in 1984. He averaged 13.9 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 5.1 blocks in 1982–83 and 16.8 points, 13.5 rebounds, and 5.6 blocks in 1983–84. Olajuwon won the 1983 NCAA Tournament Player of the Year award, even though he played for the losing team in the final game. To date, he is the last player from a losing side to be granted this honor. Drexler departed for the NBA in 1983, leaving Olajuwon the lone star on the team.
After the 1983–84 season, Olajuwon debated whether to stay in college or declare early for the NBA draft. At that time, before the NBA Draft Lottery was introduced in 1985, the first pick was awarded by coin flip. Olajuwon recalled: "I really believed that Houston was going to win the coin flip and pick the first draft choice, and I really wanted to play in Houston so I had to make that decision (to leave early)." His intuition proved correct, and a lucky toss placed Houston ahead of the Portland Trail Blazers. Olajuwon was considered the top amateur prospect in the summer of 1984 over fellow collegians and future NBA stars Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton, and was selected first overall by the Rockets in the 1984 NBA draft.
In his autobiography Living the Dream, Olajuwon mentions an intriguing draft trade offered to the Rockets that would have sent Clyde Drexler and the number two pick in the 1984 NBA draft from Portland in exchange for Ralph Sampson. Had the Rockets made the deal, Olajuwon states the Rockets could have selected Jordan with the number two pick to play alongside Olajuwon and Drexler, who had established chemistry playing together during their Phi Slama Jama days in college. Sportswriter Sam Smith speculates that such a trade "would have changed league history and maybe the entire Michael Jordan legend." From 1991 to 1998, every NBA championship team included either Jordan or Olajuwon; furthermore, at least one of Drexler, Jordan, and Olajuwon was involved in every NBA Finals from 1990 to 1998.
Professional career
Houston Rockets (1984–2001)
Rookie and second years (1984–1987)
The Rockets had immediate success during Olajuwon's rookie season, as their win-loss record improved from 29 to 53 in 1983–84 to 48–34 in 1984–85. He teamed with the 1984 Rookie of the Year, 7 ft 4 in (2.24 m) Ralph Sampson to form the original NBA "Twin Towers" duo. Olajuwon averaged 20.6 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2.68 blocks in his rookie season. He finished as runner-up to Michael Jordan in the 1985 Rookie of the Year voting, and was the only other rookie to receive any votes.
Olajuwon averaged 23.5 points, 11.5 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game during his second pro season (1985–86). The Rockets finished 51–31, and advanced all the way to the Western Conference Finals where they faced the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers. The Rockets won the series fairly easily, four games to one, shocking the sports world and landing Olajuwon on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Olajuwon scored 75 points in victories in games three and four, and after the series Lakers coach Pat Riley remarked "We tried everything. We put four bodies on him. We helped from different angles. He's just a great player." The Rockets advanced to the 1986 NBA Finals where they lost in six games to the Boston Celtics, whose 1986 team is often considered one of the best teams in NBA history.
Mid-career years (1987–1993)
During the 1987–88 season, Sampson (who was struggling with knee injuries that would eventually end his career prematurely) was traded to the Golden State Warriors. The 1988–89 season was Olajuwon's first full season as the Rockets' undisputed leader. This change also coincided with the hiring of new coach Don Chaney. The Rockets ended the regular season with a record of 45–37, and Olajuwon finished the season as the league leader in rebounds (13.5 per game) by a full rebound per game over Charles Barkley. This performance was consistent with his averages of 24.8 points and 3.4 blocks. Olajuwon posted exceptional playoff numbers of 37.5 ppg and 16.8 rpg, plus a record for points in a four-game playoff series (150). Nevertheless, the Rockets were eliminated in the first round by the Seattle SuperSonics, 3 games to 1.
The 1989–90 season was a disappointment for the Rockets. They finished the season with a 41–41 record, and though they made the playoffs, were eliminated in four games by Los Angeles. Olajuwon put up one of the most productive defensive seasons by an interior player in the history of the NBA. He won the NBA rebounding crown (14.0 per game) again, this time by an even larger margin; a full two rebounds per game over David Robinson, and led the league in blocks by averaging 4.6 per game. He is the only player since the NBA started recording blocked shots in 1973–74 to average 14+ rebounds and 4.5+ blocked shots per game in the same season. In doing so he joined Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton as the only players in NBA history (at that point) to lead the league in rebounding and shot-blocking in the same season. Olajuwon also recorded a quadruple-double during the season, becoming only the third player in NBA history to do so.
The Rockets finished the 1990–91 season with a record of 52–30 under NBA Coach of the Year Chaney. Olajuwon averaged 21.8 points per game in 1990–91, but due to an injury to his eyesocket caused by an elbow from Bill Cartwright, did not play in enough games (56) to qualify for the rebounding title. Otherwise, he would have won it for a third consecutive year, averaging 13.8 a game (league leader Robinson averaged 13.0 rpg). He also averaged a league-leading 3.95 blocks per game. However, the Rockets were swept in the playoffs by the LA Lakers.
The following season was a low point for the Rockets during Olajuwon's tenure. They finished 42–40, and missed the playoffs for the first time in Olajuwon's career. He missed two weeks early in the season due to an accelerated heartbeat. Despite his usual strong numbers, he could not lift his team out of mediocrity. Since making the Finals in 1986, the Rockets had made the playoffs five times, but their record in those playoff series was 1–5 and they were eliminated in the first round four times. Following the season, Olajuwon requested a trade in part because of his bad contract; his salary was considerably low for a top center, and his contract specifically forbade re-negotiation. He also expressed displeasure with the organization's efforts to surround him with quality players. He felt the Rockets had cut corners at every turn, and were more concerned with the bottom line than winning. Management had also infuriated Olajuwon during the season when they accused of him of faking a hamstring injury because of his unhappiness over his contract situation. His agent cited his differences with the organization as being "irreconcilable", and Olajuwon publicly insulted owner Charlie Thomas and the team's front office. With the 1992–93 season approaching, a reporter for the Houston Chronicle said that Olajuwon being dealt was "as close to a sure thing as there is."
Nonetheless, he was not traded and the Rockets began the season with a new coach, Rudy Tomjanovich. Olajuwon improved his passing in 1992–93, setting a new career-high of 3.5 assists per game. This willingness to pass the ball increased his scoring, making it more difficult for opposing teams to double and triple-team him. Olajuwon set a new career-high with 26.1 points per game. The Rockets set a new franchise record with 55 wins, and advanced to the second round of the playoffs, pushing the Seattle SuperSonics to a seventh game before losing in overtime, 103–100. He finished second in the MVP race to Charles Barkley with 22 votes to Barkley's 59. The team rewarded him with a four-year contract extension toward the end of the regular season. In stark contrast to the previous year, the Rockets entered the 1993–94 season as a team on the rise. They had a solid core of young players and veterans, with a leader in Olajuwon who was entering his prime.
Championship years (1993–1995)
Olajuwon gained a reputation as a clutch performer and also as one of the top centers in history based on his performances in the 1993–94 and 1994–95 seasons. He outplayed centers such as Patrick Ewing, David Robinson, Shaquille O'Neal, and Dikembe Mutombo, and other defensive stalwarts such as Dennis Rodman and Karl Malone. Many of his battles were with his fellow Texas-based rival David Robinson of the San Antonio Spurs. In the 30 head–to–head match-ups during the seven seasons from the 1989 to 1996, when both Olajuwon and Robinson were in their prime, Olajuwon averaged 26.3 points per game, shooting 47.6% from the field, while Robinson averaged 22.1 and 46.8%.
Olajuwon led the Rockets to a championship in the 1994 NBA Finals in a seven-game series against the New York Knicks, the team of one of Olajuwon's perennial rivals since his collegiate days, Patrick Ewing. After being down 2–1, the Knicks took a 3–2 lead into Game 6. The Rockets were defending an 86–84 lead when in the last second, Knicks guard John Starks (who had already scored 27 points) went up for what would have been a Finals-winning three. Olajuwon pulled off a clutch play by blocking the shot as time expired. In Game 7, Olajuwon posted a game–high 25 points and 10 rebounds, which helped defeat the Knicks, bringing the first professional sports championship to Houston since the Houston Oilers won the American Football League championship in 1961. Olajuwon dominated Ewing in their head–to–head match-up, outscoring him in every game of the series and averaging 26.9 points per game on 50% shooting, compared to Ewing's 18.9 and 36.3%. For his efforts Olajuwon was named NBA Finals Most Valuable Player.
Olajuwon was at the pinnacle of his career. In 1994, he became the only player in NBA history to win the MVP, the Championship, the Finals MVP and Defensive Player of the Year awards in the same season. He was also the first foreign-born player to win the league's MVP award.
On December 1, 1994, Olajuwon recorded a triple-double 37 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists in a 113–109 win over the Golden State Warriors. But despite a slow start by the team, and Olajuwon missing eight games toward the end of the season with anemia, the Rockets repeated as champions in 1995. They were bolstered in part by the acquisition of Clyde Drexler, Olajuwon's former University of Houston "Phi Slama Jama" teammate, in a mid-season trade from the Portland Trail Blazers. Olajuwon averaged 27.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game during the regular season. Olajuwon displayed perhaps the most impressive moments of his career during the playoffs. San Antonio Spurs center David Robinson, recently crowned league MVP, was outplayed by Olajuwon in the Conference Finals: Olajuwon averaged 35.3 points on .560 shooting (Robinson's numbers were 23.8 and .449) and outscored Robinson 81–41 in the final two games. In the series-clinching game, Olajuwon recorded 39 points, 17 rebounds and 5 blocks. When asked later what a team could do to "solve" Olajuwon, Robinson told LIFE magazine: "Hakeem? You don't solve Hakeem." The Rockets won every road game that series. In the NBA Finals, the Rockets swept the Orlando Magic, who were led by a young Shaquille O'Neal. Olajuwon outscored O'Neal in every game, scoring more than 30 points in each and raising his regular-season rate by five while O'Neal's production dropped by one. Olajuwon was again named Finals MVP. He averaged 33.0 points on .531 shooting, 10.3 rebounds, and 2.81 blocks in the 1995 Playoffs. As in 1994, Olajuwon was the only Rockets All-Star.
Post-championship period (1995–2001)
The Rockets' two-year championship run ended when they were eliminated in the second round of the 1996 NBA Playoffs by the eventual Western Conference Champion Seattle SuperSonics. Michael Jordan had returned from an 18-month hiatus in March 1995, and his Chicago Bulls dominated the league for the next three years (1996–98). The Bulls and Rockets never met in the NBA Playoffs. The Rockets posted a 57–win season in 1996–97 season when they added Charles Barkley to their roster. They started the season 21–2, but lost the Western Conference Finals in six games to the Utah Jazz. After averaging 26.9 and 23.2 points in 1995–96 and 1996–97 respectively, Olajuwon's point production dipped to 16.4 in 1997–98. After the Rockets lost in the first round in five games to the Jazz in 1998, Drexler retired. In 1998–99 the Rockets acquired veteran All-Star Scottie Pippen and finished 31–19 in the lockout-shortened regular season. Olajuwon's scoring production rose to 18.9 points per game, and he made his twelfth and final All-NBA Team. However, they lost in the first round again, this time to the Lakers. After the season, Pippen was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers.
Toronto Raptors (2001–2002)
Houston began to rebuild, bringing in young guards Cuttino Mobley and 2000 NBA co-Rookie of the Year Steve Francis. On August 2, 2001, after refusing a $13 million deal with the Rockets, Olajuwon was traded to the Toronto Raptors for draft picks (the highest of which was used by Houston to draft Boštjan Nachbar at #15 in the 2002 NBA draft), with the player having a three-year contract that would give him $18 million. In his first game with the Raptors, he scored 11 points in just 22 minutes of playing time against the Magic. Olajuwon averaged career lows of 7.1 points and 6.0 rebounds per game in what would be his final season in the NBA, as he decided to retire in the fall of 2002, due to a back injury. Olajuwon retired as the all–time league leader in total blocked shots with 3,830, although shot-blocking did not become an official statistic until the 1973–74 NBA season.
Shortly after his retirement, his #34 jersey was retired by the Rockets.
For his NBA career, Olajuwon averaged 21.8 points on 51% shooting, 11.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 3.1 blocks in 1238 career games.
National team career
In 1980, before arriving in the US, Olajuwon played for a Nigerian junior team in the All-Africa Games. This created some problems when he tried to play for the United States men's national basketball team initially. FIBA rules prohibit players from representing more than one country in international competition, and players must go through a three-year waiting period for any nationality change. Olajuwon was ineligible for selection to the "Dream Team" as he hadn't become a US citizen.
Olajuwon became a naturalized American citizen on April 2, 1993. For the 1996 Olympics, he received a FIBA exemption and was eligible to play for Dream Team II. The team went on to win the gold medal in Atlanta. During the tournament, he shared his minutes with Shaquille O'Neal and David Robinson. He played 7 out of the 8 games and started 2. He averaged 5 points and 3.1 rebounds and had 8 assists and 6 steals in seven games.
Player profile
Olajuwon was highly skilled as both an offensive and defensive player. On defense, his rare combination of quickness and strength allowed him to guard a wide range of players effectively. He was noted for both his outstanding shot-blocking ability and his unique talent (for a frontcourt player) for stealing the ball. Olajuwon is the only player in NBA history to record more than 200 blocks and 200 steals in the same season. He averaged 3.09 blocks and 1.75 steals per game for his career. He is the only center to rank among the top ten all-time in steals. Olajuwon was also an outstanding rebounder, with a career average of 11.1 rebounds per game. He led the NBA in rebounding twice, during the 1989 and 1990 seasons. He was twice named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and was a five-time NBA All-Defensive First Team selection.
On offense, Olajuwon was famous for his deft shooting touch around the basket and his nimble footwork in the low post. With the ball, Hakeem displayed a vast array of fakes and spin moves, highlighted in his signature "Dream Shake" (see below). He was a prolific scorer, averaging 21.8 points per game for his career, and an above-average offensive rebounder, averaging 3.3 offensive rebounds per game. Additionally, Olajuwon became a skilled dribbler with an ability to score in "face-up" situations like a perimeter player. He is one of only four players to have recorded a quadruple-double in the NBA, which have only been possible since the 1973–74 season, when blocked shots and steals were first kept as statistics in the NBA.
Dream Shake
Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake. Executed with uncanny speed and power, they are still regarded as the pinnacle of "big man" footwork. Shaquille O'Neal stated: "Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves – that gives him 20 moves." Olajuwon himself traced the move back to the soccer-playing days of his youth. "The Dream Shake was actually one of my soccer moves which I translated to basketball. It would accomplish one of three things: one, to misdirect the opponent and make him go the opposite way; two, to freeze the opponent and leave him devastated in his tracks; three, to shake off the opponent and giving him no chance to contest the shot." The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook.
One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs. With David Robinson guarding him, Olajuwon performed a cross-over, drove to the basket and faked a layup. Robinson, an excellent defender, kept up with Olajuwon and remained planted. Olajuwon spun counterclockwise and faked a jump shot. Robinson, who was voted the 1995 NBA MVP, fell for the fake and jumped to block the shot. With Robinson in the air, Olajuwon performed an up-and-under move and made an easy layup.
Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: "When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move. I call it the 'touch landing.' The defender is waiting for me to come down because I jumped but I'm gone before I land. Defenders say 'Wow, he's quick,' but they don't know that where I'm going is predetermined. He's basing it on quickness, but the jump is to set him up. Before I come down, I make my move. When you jump, you turn as you land. Boom! The defender can't react because he's waiting for you to come down to defend you. Now, the first time when you showed that quickness, he has to react to that quickness, so you can fake baseline and go the other way with your jump hook. All this is part of the Dream Shake. The Dream Shake is you dribble and then you jump; now you don't have a pivot foot. When I dribble I move it so when I come here, I jump. By jumping, I don't have a pivot foot now. I dribble so now I can use either foot. I can go this way or this way. So he's frozen, he doesn't know which way I'm going to go. That is the shake. You put him in the mix and you jump stop and now you have choice of pivot foot. He doesn't know where you're gonna turn and when."
Personal life
Olajuwon married his current wife, Dalia Asafi, on August 8, 1996, in Houston. The couple have four children together; two daughters, Rahmah and Aisha and two sons, Abdullah and Abdul. Olajuwon also has an older daughter, Abisola from a previous relationship with Lita Spencer, whom he met in college. Abisola represented the West Girls in the McDonald's All-American Game and played in the WNBA.
In addition to English, Olajuwon is fluent in French, Arabic, and the Nigerian languages of Yoruba and Ekiti. He wrote his autobiography, Living the Dream, with co-author Peter Knobler in 1996. During his 18-year NBA career, Olajuwon earned more than $110 million in salary.
Olajuwon, who earlier in his career signed a shoe endorsement deal with LA Gear, later became the face of Spalding's athletic shoe line and endorsed The Dream, a sneaker that retailed in various outlets (such as Payless ShoeSource) for $34.99. This made him one of the very few well-known players in any professional sport to endorse a sneaker not from Nike, Reebok, Adidas, or other high-visibility retail brands. As Olajuwon declared: "How can a poor working mother with three boys buy Nikes or Reeboks that cost $120? ... She can't. So kids steal these shoes from stores and from other kids. Sometimes they kill for them."
Higher education
Attending college was also an important priority to Olajuwon. At the University of Houston, Olajuwon was a physical education major.
Muslim faith
In Olajuwon's college career and early years in the NBA, he was often undisciplined, talking back to officials, getting in minor fights with other players and amassing technical fouls. Later, Olajuwon took an active interest in spirituality, becoming a more devout Muslim. On March 9, 1991, he altered his name from Akeem to the more conventional spelling of Hakeem, saying, "I'm not changing the spelling of my name, I'm correcting it". He later recalled, "I studied the Qur'an every day. At home, at the mosque ... I would read it in airplanes, before games and after them. I was soaking up the faith and learning new meanings each time I turned a page. I didn't dabble in the faith, I gave myself over to it." "His religion dominates his life", Drexler said in 1995. Olajuwon was still recognized as one of the league's elite centers despite his strict observance of Ramadan (i.e., abstaining from food and drink during daylight hours for about a month), which occurred during the playing season throughout his career. Olajuwon was noted as sometimes playing better during the month of Ramadan, and in 1995 he was named NBA Player of the Month in February, even though Ramadan began on February 1 of that year.
Post-NBA life
Olajuwon played for 20 consecutive seasons in Houston, first collegiately for the University of Houston Cougars and then professionally with the Houston Rockets. He is considered a Houston icon and one of the city's most beloved citizens. Olajuwon has had great success in the Houston real estate market, with his estimated profits exceeding $100 million. He buys in cash-only purchases, as it is against Islamic law to pay interest. Olajuwon splits his time between Jordan, where he moved with his family to pursue Islamic studies, and his ranch near Houston.
In the 2006 NBA offseason, Olajuwon opened his first Big Man Camp, where he teaches young frontcourt players the finer points of playing in the post. While Olajuwon never expressed an interest in coaching a team, he wishes to give back to the game by helping younger players. When asked whether the league was becoming more guard-oriented and big men were being de-emphasized, Olajuwon responded, "For a big man who is just big, maybe. But not if you play with speed, with agility. It will always be a big man's game if the big man plays the right way. On defense, the big man can rebound and block shots. On offense, he draws double-teams and creates opportunities. He can add so much, make it easier for the entire team." He runs the camp for free. Olajuwon has worked with several NBA players, including power forward Emeka Okafor, and center Yao Ming. In September 2009, he also worked with Kobe Bryant on the post moves and the Dream Shake. More recently he has been working with Dwight Howard, helping him diversify his post moves and encouraging more mental focus. In the 2011 offseason, LeBron James flew to Houston and spent time working with Olajuwon. Olajuwon has also worked with Ömer Aşık, Donatas Motiejūnas, Amar'e Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony, JaVale McGee and Kenneth Faried. In an interview with the Sporting News in April 2016, Olajuwon said that Kobe Bryant was his best low-post student. He stated, "I’ve worked with a lot of players, but the one who really capitalized on it the most is Kobe Bryant. When I watch him play, he’ll go down in the post comfortably, naturally, and he’ll execute it perfectly."
Olajuwon was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2008. On April 10, 2008, the Rockets unveiled a sculpture in honor of him outside the Toyota Center.
Olajuwon attended the 2013 NBA Draft to bid farewell to retiring commissioner David Stern as Stern made his announcement for the final pick of the first round. Olajuwon was the first pick announced by Stern back in 1984.
On August 1, 2015, Olajuwon made a special appearance for Team Africa at the 2015 NBA Africa exhibition game. He became a member of the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016.
Awards and achievements
2× NBA champion (1994, 1995)
2× NBA Finals MVP (1994, 1995)
1× NBA MVP (1994)
2× NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1993, 1994)
6× All-NBA First Team (1987, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1997)
3× All-NBA Second Team (1986, 1990, 1996)
3× All-NBA Third Team (1991, 1995, 1999)
5× NBA All-Defensive First Team (1987, 1988, 1990, 1993, 1994)
4× NBA All-Defensive Second Team (1985, 1991, 1996, 1997)
12× NBA All-Star
Olympic gold medalist (1996)
Named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996).
Named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team
Olajuwon ended his career in the top eleven all-time in blocks, scoring, rebounding, and steals. He is the only player in NBA history to retire in the top eleven for all four categories (he is now 13th all-time in rebounding).
Olajuwon was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2008, as well as to the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016.
Ranked #10 in ESPN'''s All-Time #NBArank: Counting down the greatest players ever (published in 2016)
Ranked #12 in SLAM Magazines 2018 revision of the top 100 greatest players of all time (published in the January 2018 issue)
NBA career statistics
Regular season
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 35.5 || .538 || || .613 || 11.9 || 1.4 || 1.2 || 2.7 || 20.6
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 68 || 68 || 36.3 || .526 || || .645 || 11.5 || 2.0 || 2.0 || 3.4 || 23.5
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 75 || 75 || 36.8 || .508 || .200 || .702 || 11.4 || 2.9 || 1.9 || 3.4 || 23.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 79 || 79 || 35.8 || .514 || .000 || .695 || 12.1 || 2.1 || 2.1 || 2.7 || 22.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 36.9 || .508 || .000 || .696 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|13.5* || 1.8 || 2.6 || 3.4 || 24.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 38.1 || .501 || .167 || .713 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|14.0* || 2.9 || 2.1 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|4.6* || 24.3
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 56 || 50 || 36.8 || .508 || .000 || .769 || 13.8 || 2.3 || 2.2 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|3.9* || 21.2
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 70 || 69 || 37.7 || .502 || .000 || .766 || 12.1 || 2.2 || 1.8 || 4.3 || 21.6
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 82 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 39.5 || .529 || .000 || .779 || 13.0 || 3.5 || 1.8 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|4.2* || 26.1
|-
| style="text-align:left; background:#AFE6BA;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 80 || 80 || 41.0 || .528 || .421 || .716 || 11.9 || 3.6 || 1.6 || 3.7 || 27.3
|-
| style="text-align:left; background:#AFE6BA;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 72 || 72 || 39.6 || .517 || .188 || .756 || 10.8 || 3.5 || 1.8 || 3.4 || 27.8|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 72 || 72 || 38.8 || .514 || .214 || .724 || 10.9 || 3.6 || 1.6 || 2.9 || 26.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 78 || 78 || 36.6 || .510 || .313 || .787' || 9.2 || 3.0 || 1.5 || 2.2 || 23.2
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 47 || 45 || 34.7 || .483 || .000 || .755 || 9.8 || 3.0 || 1.8 || 2.0 || 16.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|50* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|50* || 35.7 || .514 || .308 || .717 || 9.6 || 1.8 || 1.6 || 2.5 || 18.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 44 || 28 || 23.8 || .458 || .000 || .616 || 6.2 || 1.4 || .9 || 1.6 || 10.3
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 58 || 55 || 26.6 || .498 || .000 || .621 || 7.4 || 1.2 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 11.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Toronto
| 61 || 37 || 22.6 || .464 || .000 || .560 || 6.0 || 1.1 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 7.1
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Career
| 1,238 || 1,186 || 35.7 || .512 || .202 || .712 || 11.1 || 2.5 || 1.7 || 3.1 || 21.8
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|All-Star
| 12 || 8 || 23.2 || .409 || 1.000 || .520 || 7.8 || 1.4 || 1.3 || 1.9 || 9.8
Playoffs
See also
List of National Basketball Association career games played leaders
List of National Basketball Association career scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association franchise career scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career steals leaders
List of National Basketball Association career blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association career turnovers leaders
List of National Basketball Association career free throw scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career minutes played leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff steals leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff turnovers leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff free throw scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association annual rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association annual blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association players with most blocks in a game
List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season rebounding leaders
Islam in Houston
References
Sources
Harris, Othello, Nolte, Claire Elaine, and Kirsch, George B. Encyclopedia of Ethnicity and Sports in the United States, Greenwood Press. 2000
Heisler, Mark. Big Men Who Shook the NBA. Triumph Books. 2003
Olajuwon, Hakeem with Knobler, Peter. Living the Dream: My Life and Basketball. Little, Brown and Company. 1996
Simmons, Bill, The Book of Basketball: The NBA According to the Sports Guy'', ESPN 2009
External links
Hakeem Olajuwon entry at NBA Encyclopedia
Hakeem Olajuwon player profile at NBA.com
1963 births
Living people
African-American Muslims
All-American college men's basketball players
American expatriate basketball people in Canada
American men's basketball players
American people of Yoruba descent
Basketball players at the 1982 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1983 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1984 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Centers (basketball)
FIBA Hall of Fame inductees
Houston Cougars men's basketball players
Houston Rockets draft picks
Houston Rockets players
Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees
National Basketball Association All-Stars
National Basketball Association players from Nigeria
National Basketball Association players with retired numbers
Nigerian emigrants to the United States
Nigerian expatriate basketball people in Canada
Nigerian expatriate basketball people in the United States
Nigerian men's basketball players
Olympic gold medalists for the United States in basketball
People from Sugar Land, Texas
People with acquired American citizenship
Basketball players from Houston
Sportspeople from Lagos
Toronto Raptors players
United States men's national basketball team players
Yoruba sportspeople | true | [
"Curtis Grover Shake (July 14, 1887 – September 11, 1978), a noted Indiana jurist and politician, author, and a member of the Indiana Senate, is best known for his service as the 72nd Justice of the Indiana Supreme Court from January 4, 1938, to January 7, 1945, and as the presiding civilian judge over the IG Farben trial, one of the Nurember trials the United States convened at Nuremberg, Germany, in 1947–48, following World War II.\n\nShake, a native of Knox County, Indiana, attended Vincennes University for two years and earned a law degree from Indiana University in 1910. He initially established a law practice in Bicknell, Indiana, but relocated his family and law practice to the county seat at Vincennes, in 1916. Shake was elected as a Democrat to represent Knox and Daviess Counties in the Indiana Senate in 1926, but lost his bid to become Indiana Attorney General in 1928. Shake presided as chief justice of the Indiana Supreme Court three times (1939, 1941, and 1944), but he did not run for re-election in 1945. Between 1938 and 1946 Shake was also involved at the national level in mediating labor disputes, including service on six presidential emergency boards charged with settling railroad strikes.\n\nIn 1947 Shake was appointed presiding judge over the Farben trial at Nuremberg. News reporters harshly criticized the relatively light sentences imposed on those found guilty of war crimes. Years later Shake remarked that although he accepted the legitimacy of the tribunals, he thought an impartial trial from neutral countries using neutral judges would have been preferable. After his return to the United States in 1948, Shake continued to practice law in Vincennes, where he was also a longtime member of Vincennes University’s board of trustees (1923–66). Shake was elected to the Indiana Academy in 1975 for his contributions to Indiana and the nation.\n\nEarly life and education\nCurtis Grover Shake, the son of Arminda and Daniel Shake, was born in Monroe City, Harrison Township, Knox County, Indiana, on July 14, 1887. Daniel was a farmer and music teacher; Arminda worked as a midwife. Shake completed eighth grade in Knox County's public schools. In 1903, because there were no public high schools in the area, Shake began studies at Vincennes University, where he attended classes for two years to earn a teacher's license. At Vincennes he was a member of Sigma Pi fraternity.\n\nShake taught in a one-room schoolhouse for two years before deciding to pursue a law career. He moved to Vincennes, Indiana, in the spring of 1907 and began law school at Indiana University in Bloomington that fall. Shake, an avid storyteller, later recalled that while he was living in Vincennes, Jacob Gimbel, owner of a Vincennes department store that later became Gimbels in New York, offered to pay for his law studies at IU as long as he agreed to help another student in a similar manner in the future. Shake agreed to Gimbel's proposal.\n\nShake earned a law degree from Indiana University in 1910. Among his classmates were Paul V. McNutt, a future governor of Indiana; Sherman Minton, a future Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court; and Wendell Willkie, the Republican Party's nominee in the 1940 presidential election. Shake also met his first wife, Anna Selesky, a Czech immigrant and a fellow law student, while attending IU. Shake and Anna married in June 1911; their son, Gilbert, was born the following year.\n\nCareer\n\nEarly years\nShake established a law practice in Bicknell, Indiana, following his graduation from law school in 1910. After six years in Bicknell, where Shake served as city attorney and as Knox County's deputy prosecuting attorney, he moved his family and law practice to Vincennes in 1916 and formed a law partnership with Joseph W. Kimmel. While living in Vincennes, Shake also held positions as city attorney, U.S. commissioner for the southern Indiana judicial district, and Knox County attorney.\n\nIn 1926 Shake was elected as a Democrat to represent Knox and Daviess Counties in the Indiana Senate. Shake was an active state senator who coauthored the Lindley-Shake-Johnson law that reduced tax assessments on Indiana farmland.\n\nIn 1928 Shake became the Democratic Party's nominee for Indiana Attorney General, but lost the race. A week before the election, John Rabb Emison, a Vincennes lawyer, announced at a Republican Party gathering in Indianapolis that Shake was a former member of the Ku Klux Klan. Emison asserted that Shake had joined Knox County Klan Number 75 on September 30, 1924, and produced a membership book to support the claim. Emison also proclaimed that the Klan had provided Shake with support during his campaign for the Indiana Senate in 1926, but Shake had discontinued paying his membership dues when the Klan organization became unpopular.\n\nIt is not known with certainty whether or not Shake was a Klan member. Shake never fully denied Klan membership in his speeches, but he did label the claims \"insinuations and false charges.\" Newspapers of the time did not report that he refuted Emison's claims. Shake blamed his loss on New York governor Al Smith's nomination in the U.S. presidential election of 1928. Nearly the entire Indiana Democratic slate of candidates, including Shake, were defeated in the elections that year.\n\nAfter his defeat in the race for Indiana attorney general, Shake continued to practice law in Vincennes for the next ten years. His primary client was the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. Shake represented the railroad in litigation within a four-county area of southern Indiana. Known as an skilled orator, Shake also delivered speeches in support of Democratic causes and wrote books about Vincennes.\n\nIndiana Supreme Court justice\nIn December 1937 Indiana governor M. Clifford Townsend appointed Shake to the Indiana Supreme Court to fill a vacancy that was created when U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed Indiana Supreme Court Justice Walter E. Treanor to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago. Shake completed the remaining year of Justice Treanor's term on the Indiana Supreme Court and was elected in his own right to a six-year term in 1938. Shake served on the Court from January 4, 1938, to January 7, 1945, and presided as chief justice three times (1939, 1941, and 1944). In the Warren v Indiana Telephone Company case, Shake's opinion resolved a longstanding debate about the Indiana Court of Appeals. Shake rejected the Indiana General Assembly's authority to limit the Court's powers, made the state's Court of Appeals an intermediate court, and brought Indiana's court system into alignment with court systems of the majority of other states.\n\nShake decided not to run for re-election because he believed that the state's voters would choose Republican candidates in the upcoming election and he wanted to avoid a defeat. At the end of his term on the bench in 1945, Shake returned to Vincennes to practice law with his son, Gilbert. Shake's first wife, Anna, died on November 2, 1946.\n\nBetween 1938 and 1946 Shake became involved at the national level in mediating labor disputes. He mediated an estimated 400 labor disputes as a National Mediation Board referee. Shake gained a national reputation when he served on six presidential emergency boards charged with settling railroad strikes, chairing three of these boards from 1944 to 1949.\n\nWar crime trials in Nuremberg, Germany\nIn early 1947, Shake was appointed presiding judge over the IG Farben trial, one of the war crimes\nthat U.S. authorities held in Nuremberg, Germany, after the end of World War II. Shake, a widower at the time, went to Nuremberg alone. The Farben trial began on August 27, 1947, and concluded in mid-June 1948. The case was primarily based on the Farben defendants' \"knowing participation\" in \"Nazi plans for conquest,\" even before the war began, and for the Farben firm's use of slave labor in manufacturing synthetic rubber during the war. The company’s production site used laborers from the adjacent German concentration camp at Auschwitz, Poland. Shake presided over the tribunal, which rendered its verdicts on July 29–30, 1948, more than a year after the trial began. Ten of the defendants were acquitted on all counts; the remaining thirteen received prison sentences that ranged from two to eight years, considered mild punishments compared to the gravity of the indictments.\n\nNews reporters harshly criticized Shake for the relatively light sentences in the Farben case and made allegations that he had been partial to the German defendants, which he denied. Shake countered the criticisms by arguing that the tribunal \"had worked hard to apply international law\" in the trial. Shake returned to the United States in 1948. Many years later Shake remarked that he accepted the legitimacy of the tribunals, but thought an impartial tribunal from neutral countries using neutral judges would have been \"preferable\" in avoiding a case where \"the victor\" tried \"the vanquished.\"\n\nLater years\nAfter Shake returned to the United States from Germany in 1948, he continued to practiced law in Vincennes, Indiana, until his retirement at age eighty-eight.\n\nShake married Alice Killion Hubbard on January 2, 1952. They had one child, Susan. Shake's son, Gilbert, died in 1968; Alice died in 1970.\n\nDeath and legacy\nShake died on September 11, 1978, at the age of ninety-one. His funeral and burial took place at Vincennes.\n\nShake is known for his service as an Indiana Supreme Court judge (1938–45) and as the presiding judge of the tribunal that heard the Farban case in Nuremberg, Germany, in 1947–48. Shake was also remembered for his \"wisdom, wit, and warmth\" and as a \"masterful\" orator. In addition, Shake was dedicated to serving Vincennes University, where he was once a student, as a member of the university's board of trustees from 1923 to 1966. He was also actively involved in Sigma Pi fraternity throughout his lifetime. He served on the fraternity's grand council four times between 1908 and 1964, including the fraternity's first grand council in 1908. Shake, a devotee of Abraham Lincoln helped to establish a memorial to Lincoln along the Illinois banks of the Wabash River near Vincennes.\n\nHonors and tributes\n The 14,000 square-foot Shake Learning Resources Center, located on the Vincennes University campus, was dedicated in 1960 and named in Shake’s honor. A 5,000-square-foot addition was dedicated in 1967, and a 20,000-square-foot expansion was dedicated on November 16, 1986., with another expansion in 1999 (including the addition of a second floor) and a complete renovation in 2018.\n In 1975 Shake was elected to the Indiana Academy, an organization honoring people with a Hoosier background who have won national recognition for their contributions to the state and the nation. \n Sigma Pi fraternity's Curtis G. Shake Scholarship, named in his honor, is awarded to members of his fraternity who excel in legal studies. He was awarded the fraternity's Founders' Award in 1962 and is one of only six men who have been named as an Honorary Grand Sage (President).\n Shake wrote that he had spent several evenings discussing the Nuremberg trials with Abby Mann, writer of the film Judgment at Nuremberg (1961), a fictionalized version of the Nuremberg trial of German judges. The film did not cover the Farben case. At the end of the film an aide to the presiding judge, who is portrayed by Spencer Tracy, asks if he had heard that the verdict in the Farben case had been announced.\n\nSelected published works\n A History of Vincennes University (1928)\n The Old Cathedral and Its Environs (1934)\n A Naval History of Vincennes (1936)\n Historic Vincennes (1961)\n Vincennes University: A Brief History 1801–1951 (1951)\n ''Vincennes, The Old Post on the Wabash: Its Place in American History (1965)\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\n Bellamy, Suzanne S., \"Curtis G. Shake\" in\n\nFurther reading\n \n\n1887 births\n1978 deaths\nJustices of the Indiana Supreme Court\nIndiana state senators\nJudges of the United States Nuremberg Military Tribunals\nVincennes University alumni\nIndiana University alumni\n20th-century American judges\nChief Justices of the Indiana Supreme Court\n20th-century American politicians",
"Woo! is the first release by Omaha, Nebraska-based band Tilly and the Wall. It was self-released in 2003 with 6 songs, recorded in Conor Oberst's basement studio.\n\nTrack listing\n \"I Can't Believe You\" – 2:56\n \"Shake Shake\" – 4:03\n \"Do You Dream at All\" – 2:29\n \"In Bed All Day\" – 4:02\n \"Pictures of Houses\" – 2:41\n \"Sad for Days\" – 3:30\n\nExternal links\nOfficial Tilly and the Wall website\nTeam Love Records\n\nSelf-released albums"
]
|
[
"Hakeem Olajuwon",
"Dream Shake",
"What is Dream Shake?",
"Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake.",
"What did these moves consist of?",
"Shaquille O'Neal stated: \"Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves - that gives him 20 moves.\"",
"Did it always work against his opponents?",
"The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook.",
"When did he begin using the Dream Shake?",
"One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs."
]
| C_1ddb552e4d134bd6a8e7879e823b6767_1 | Has anyone else used the Dream Shake? | 5 | Has anyone else used the Dream Shake other than Hakeem Olajuwon? | Hakeem Olajuwon | "The best footwork I've ever seen from a big man" --Pete Newell Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake. Executed with uncanny speed and power, they are still regarded as the pinnacle of "big man" footwork. Shaquille O'Neal stated: "Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves - that gives him 20 moves." Olajuwon himself traced the move back to the soccer-playing days of his youth. "The Dream Shake was actually one of my soccer moves which I translated to basketball. It would accomplish one of three things: one, to misdirect the opponent and make him go the opposite way; two, to freeze the opponent and leave him devastated in his tracks; three, to shake off the opponent and giving him no chance to contest the shot." The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook. One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs. With David Robinson guarding him, Olajuwon performed a cross-over, drove to the basket and faked a layup. Robinson, an excellent defender, kept up with Olajuwon and remained planted. Olajuwon spun counterclockwise and faked a jump shot. Robinson, who was voted the 1995 NBA MVP, fell for the fake and jumped to block the shot. With Robinson in the air, Olajuwon performed an up-and-under move and made an easy layup. Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: "When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move. I call it the 'touch landing.' The defender is waiting for me to come down because I jumped but I'm gone before I land. Defenders say 'Wow, he's quick,' but they don't know that where I'm going is predetermined. He's basing it on quickness, but the jump is to set him up. Before I come down, I make my move. When you jump, you turn as you land. Boom! The defender can't react because he's waiting for you to come down to defend you. Now, the first time when you showed that quickness, he has to react to that quickness, so you can fake baseline and go the other way with your jump hook. All this is part of the Dream Shake. The Dream Shake is you dribble and then you jump; now you don't have a pivot foot. When I dribble I move it so when I come here, I jump. By jumping, I don't have a pivot foot now. I dribble so now I can use either foot. I can go this way or this way. So he's frozen, he doesn't know which way I'm going to go. That is the shake. You put him in the mix and you jump stop and now you have choice of pivot foot. He doesn't know where you're gonna turn and when." CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon (; ; born January 21, 1963), nicknamed "the Dream", is a Nigerian-American former professional basketball player. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest centers and one of the greatest basketball players of all time. From 1984 to 2002, he played the center position in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Houston Rockets and eventually the Toronto Raptors. He led the Rockets to back-to-back NBA championships in 1994 and 1995. In 2008, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and in 2016, he was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame.
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Olajuwon traveled from his home country to play for the University of Houston under head coach Guy Lewis. His college career for the Cougars included three trips to the Final Four. Olajuwon was drafted by the Houston Rockets with the first overall selection of the 1984 NBA draft, a draft that included Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton. He combined with the Ralph Sampson to form a duo dubbed the "Twin Towers". The two led the Rockets to the 1986 NBA Finals, where they lost in six games to the Boston Celtics. After Sampson was traded to the Warriors in 1988, Olajuwon became the Rockets' undisputed leader. He led the league in rebounding twice (1989, 1990) and blocks three times (1990, 1991, 1993).
Despite very nearly being traded during a bitter contract dispute before the 1992–93 season, he remained in Houston. He became the first non-American to be an All-Star and start in an All-Star Game, the first non-American to win NBA MVP, the first non-American to win NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and in the 1993–94 season, he became the only player in NBA history to win the NBA MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and Finals MVP awards in the same season. His Rockets won back-to-back championships against the New York Knicks—avenging his college championship loss to Patrick Ewing—and Shaquille O'Neal's Orlando Magic. In 1996, Olajuwon was a member of the Olympic gold medal-winning United States national team, and he was selected as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. In October 2021, Olajuwon was honored as one of the league’s greatest players of all-time by being named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team. He ended his career as the league's all-time leader in blocks (3,830) and is one of four NBA players to record a quadruple-double.
Early life
Hakeem Olajuwon was born to Salim and Abike Olajuwon, working-class Yoruba owners of a cement business in Lagos, Nigeria. He was the third of eight children. He credits his parents with instilling virtues of hard work and discipline into him and his siblings: "They taught us to be honest, work hard, respect our elders, and believe in ourselves." Olajuwon has expressed displeasure at his childhood in Nigeria being characterized as backward. "Lagos is a very cosmopolitan city ... There are many ethnic groups. I grew up in an environment at schools where there were all different types of people."
During his youth, Olajuwon was a soccer goalkeeper, which helped give him the footwork and agility to balance his size and strength in basketball, and also contributed to his shot-blocking ability. Olajuwon did not play basketball until the age of 15 in high school, when he entered a local tournament while at the Muslim Teachers College in Lagos, Nigeria. It has been said that a coach in Nigeria once asked him to dunk and demonstrated while standing on a chair. Olajuwon then tried to stand on the chair himself. When redirected by staff not to use the chair, Hakeem could initially not dunk the basketball.
Despite early struggles, Olajuwon said: "Basketball is something that is so unique. That immediately I pick up the game and, you know, realize that this is the life for me. All the other sports just become obsolete."
College career
Olajuwon emigrated from Nigeria to play basketball at the University of Houston under Cougars coach Guy Lewis. Olajuwon was not highly recruited and was merely offered a visit to the university to work out for the coaching staff, based on a recommendation from a friend of Lewis who had seen Olajuwon play. He later recalled that when he originally arrived at the airport in 1980 for the visit, no representative of the school was there to greet him. When he called the staff, they told him to take a taxi out to the university.
After redshirting his freshman year in 1980–81 because he could not yet get clearance from the NCAA to play, Olajuwon came mostly off the bench and served as the Cougars' sixth man as a redshirt freshman in 1981–82, averaging 8.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.5 blocks, shooting 60% from the field in 18 minutes per game as Houston was eliminated in the Final Four by the eventual NCAA champion, North Carolina. Olajuwon sought advice from the coaching staff about how to increase his playing time, and they advised him to work out with local Houston resident and multiple NBA MVP winner, Moses Malone. Malone, who was then a center on the NBA's Houston Rockets, played games every off-season with several NBA players at the Fonde Recreation Center. Olajuwon joined the workouts and went head to head with Malone in several games throughout the summer. Olajuwon credited this experience with rapidly improving his game: "The way Moses helped me is by being out there playing and allowing me to go against that level of competition. He was the best center in the NBA at the time, so I was trying to improve my game against the best."
Olajuwon returned from that summer a different player. He was nicknamed "the Dream" during his basketball career after he dunked so effortlessly that his college coach said it "looked like a dream." He and his teammates (including Clyde Drexler) formed what was dubbed "Phi Slama Jama", the first slam-dunking "fraternity", so named because of its above-the-rim prowess. In his sophomore and junior years he helped the Cougars advance to consecutive NCAA championship games, where they lost to North Carolina State on a last-second tip-in in 1983 and a Patrick Ewing-led Georgetown team in 1984. He averaged 13.9 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 5.1 blocks in 1982–83 and 16.8 points, 13.5 rebounds, and 5.6 blocks in 1983–84. Olajuwon won the 1983 NCAA Tournament Player of the Year award, even though he played for the losing team in the final game. To date, he is the last player from a losing side to be granted this honor. Drexler departed for the NBA in 1983, leaving Olajuwon the lone star on the team.
After the 1983–84 season, Olajuwon debated whether to stay in college or declare early for the NBA draft. At that time, before the NBA Draft Lottery was introduced in 1985, the first pick was awarded by coin flip. Olajuwon recalled: "I really believed that Houston was going to win the coin flip and pick the first draft choice, and I really wanted to play in Houston so I had to make that decision (to leave early)." His intuition proved correct, and a lucky toss placed Houston ahead of the Portland Trail Blazers. Olajuwon was considered the top amateur prospect in the summer of 1984 over fellow collegians and future NBA stars Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton, and was selected first overall by the Rockets in the 1984 NBA draft.
In his autobiography Living the Dream, Olajuwon mentions an intriguing draft trade offered to the Rockets that would have sent Clyde Drexler and the number two pick in the 1984 NBA draft from Portland in exchange for Ralph Sampson. Had the Rockets made the deal, Olajuwon states the Rockets could have selected Jordan with the number two pick to play alongside Olajuwon and Drexler, who had established chemistry playing together during their Phi Slama Jama days in college. Sportswriter Sam Smith speculates that such a trade "would have changed league history and maybe the entire Michael Jordan legend." From 1991 to 1998, every NBA championship team included either Jordan or Olajuwon; furthermore, at least one of Drexler, Jordan, and Olajuwon was involved in every NBA Finals from 1990 to 1998.
Professional career
Houston Rockets (1984–2001)
Rookie and second years (1984–1987)
The Rockets had immediate success during Olajuwon's rookie season, as their win-loss record improved from 29 to 53 in 1983–84 to 48–34 in 1984–85. He teamed with the 1984 Rookie of the Year, 7 ft 4 in (2.24 m) Ralph Sampson to form the original NBA "Twin Towers" duo. Olajuwon averaged 20.6 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2.68 blocks in his rookie season. He finished as runner-up to Michael Jordan in the 1985 Rookie of the Year voting, and was the only other rookie to receive any votes.
Olajuwon averaged 23.5 points, 11.5 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game during his second pro season (1985–86). The Rockets finished 51–31, and advanced all the way to the Western Conference Finals where they faced the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers. The Rockets won the series fairly easily, four games to one, shocking the sports world and landing Olajuwon on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Olajuwon scored 75 points in victories in games three and four, and after the series Lakers coach Pat Riley remarked "We tried everything. We put four bodies on him. We helped from different angles. He's just a great player." The Rockets advanced to the 1986 NBA Finals where they lost in six games to the Boston Celtics, whose 1986 team is often considered one of the best teams in NBA history.
Mid-career years (1987–1993)
During the 1987–88 season, Sampson (who was struggling with knee injuries that would eventually end his career prematurely) was traded to the Golden State Warriors. The 1988–89 season was Olajuwon's first full season as the Rockets' undisputed leader. This change also coincided with the hiring of new coach Don Chaney. The Rockets ended the regular season with a record of 45–37, and Olajuwon finished the season as the league leader in rebounds (13.5 per game) by a full rebound per game over Charles Barkley. This performance was consistent with his averages of 24.8 points and 3.4 blocks. Olajuwon posted exceptional playoff numbers of 37.5 ppg and 16.8 rpg, plus a record for points in a four-game playoff series (150). Nevertheless, the Rockets were eliminated in the first round by the Seattle SuperSonics, 3 games to 1.
The 1989–90 season was a disappointment for the Rockets. They finished the season with a 41–41 record, and though they made the playoffs, were eliminated in four games by Los Angeles. Olajuwon put up one of the most productive defensive seasons by an interior player in the history of the NBA. He won the NBA rebounding crown (14.0 per game) again, this time by an even larger margin; a full two rebounds per game over David Robinson, and led the league in blocks by averaging 4.6 per game. He is the only player since the NBA started recording blocked shots in 1973–74 to average 14+ rebounds and 4.5+ blocked shots per game in the same season. In doing so he joined Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton as the only players in NBA history (at that point) to lead the league in rebounding and shot-blocking in the same season. Olajuwon also recorded a quadruple-double during the season, becoming only the third player in NBA history to do so.
The Rockets finished the 1990–91 season with a record of 52–30 under NBA Coach of the Year Chaney. Olajuwon averaged 21.8 points per game in 1990–91, but due to an injury to his eyesocket caused by an elbow from Bill Cartwright, did not play in enough games (56) to qualify for the rebounding title. Otherwise, he would have won it for a third consecutive year, averaging 13.8 a game (league leader Robinson averaged 13.0 rpg). He also averaged a league-leading 3.95 blocks per game. However, the Rockets were swept in the playoffs by the LA Lakers.
The following season was a low point for the Rockets during Olajuwon's tenure. They finished 42–40, and missed the playoffs for the first time in Olajuwon's career. He missed two weeks early in the season due to an accelerated heartbeat. Despite his usual strong numbers, he could not lift his team out of mediocrity. Since making the Finals in 1986, the Rockets had made the playoffs five times, but their record in those playoff series was 1–5 and they were eliminated in the first round four times. Following the season, Olajuwon requested a trade in part because of his bad contract; his salary was considerably low for a top center, and his contract specifically forbade re-negotiation. He also expressed displeasure with the organization's efforts to surround him with quality players. He felt the Rockets had cut corners at every turn, and were more concerned with the bottom line than winning. Management had also infuriated Olajuwon during the season when they accused of him of faking a hamstring injury because of his unhappiness over his contract situation. His agent cited his differences with the organization as being "irreconcilable", and Olajuwon publicly insulted owner Charlie Thomas and the team's front office. With the 1992–93 season approaching, a reporter for the Houston Chronicle said that Olajuwon being dealt was "as close to a sure thing as there is."
Nonetheless, he was not traded and the Rockets began the season with a new coach, Rudy Tomjanovich. Olajuwon improved his passing in 1992–93, setting a new career-high of 3.5 assists per game. This willingness to pass the ball increased his scoring, making it more difficult for opposing teams to double and triple-team him. Olajuwon set a new career-high with 26.1 points per game. The Rockets set a new franchise record with 55 wins, and advanced to the second round of the playoffs, pushing the Seattle SuperSonics to a seventh game before losing in overtime, 103–100. He finished second in the MVP race to Charles Barkley with 22 votes to Barkley's 59. The team rewarded him with a four-year contract extension toward the end of the regular season. In stark contrast to the previous year, the Rockets entered the 1993–94 season as a team on the rise. They had a solid core of young players and veterans, with a leader in Olajuwon who was entering his prime.
Championship years (1993–1995)
Olajuwon gained a reputation as a clutch performer and also as one of the top centers in history based on his performances in the 1993–94 and 1994–95 seasons. He outplayed centers such as Patrick Ewing, David Robinson, Shaquille O'Neal, and Dikembe Mutombo, and other defensive stalwarts such as Dennis Rodman and Karl Malone. Many of his battles were with his fellow Texas-based rival David Robinson of the San Antonio Spurs. In the 30 head–to–head match-ups during the seven seasons from the 1989 to 1996, when both Olajuwon and Robinson were in their prime, Olajuwon averaged 26.3 points per game, shooting 47.6% from the field, while Robinson averaged 22.1 and 46.8%.
Olajuwon led the Rockets to a championship in the 1994 NBA Finals in a seven-game series against the New York Knicks, the team of one of Olajuwon's perennial rivals since his collegiate days, Patrick Ewing. After being down 2–1, the Knicks took a 3–2 lead into Game 6. The Rockets were defending an 86–84 lead when in the last second, Knicks guard John Starks (who had already scored 27 points) went up for what would have been a Finals-winning three. Olajuwon pulled off a clutch play by blocking the shot as time expired. In Game 7, Olajuwon posted a game–high 25 points and 10 rebounds, which helped defeat the Knicks, bringing the first professional sports championship to Houston since the Houston Oilers won the American Football League championship in 1961. Olajuwon dominated Ewing in their head–to–head match-up, outscoring him in every game of the series and averaging 26.9 points per game on 50% shooting, compared to Ewing's 18.9 and 36.3%. For his efforts Olajuwon was named NBA Finals Most Valuable Player.
Olajuwon was at the pinnacle of his career. In 1994, he became the only player in NBA history to win the MVP, the Championship, the Finals MVP and Defensive Player of the Year awards in the same season. He was also the first foreign-born player to win the league's MVP award.
On December 1, 1994, Olajuwon recorded a triple-double 37 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists in a 113–109 win over the Golden State Warriors. But despite a slow start by the team, and Olajuwon missing eight games toward the end of the season with anemia, the Rockets repeated as champions in 1995. They were bolstered in part by the acquisition of Clyde Drexler, Olajuwon's former University of Houston "Phi Slama Jama" teammate, in a mid-season trade from the Portland Trail Blazers. Olajuwon averaged 27.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game during the regular season. Olajuwon displayed perhaps the most impressive moments of his career during the playoffs. San Antonio Spurs center David Robinson, recently crowned league MVP, was outplayed by Olajuwon in the Conference Finals: Olajuwon averaged 35.3 points on .560 shooting (Robinson's numbers were 23.8 and .449) and outscored Robinson 81–41 in the final two games. In the series-clinching game, Olajuwon recorded 39 points, 17 rebounds and 5 blocks. When asked later what a team could do to "solve" Olajuwon, Robinson told LIFE magazine: "Hakeem? You don't solve Hakeem." The Rockets won every road game that series. In the NBA Finals, the Rockets swept the Orlando Magic, who were led by a young Shaquille O'Neal. Olajuwon outscored O'Neal in every game, scoring more than 30 points in each and raising his regular-season rate by five while O'Neal's production dropped by one. Olajuwon was again named Finals MVP. He averaged 33.0 points on .531 shooting, 10.3 rebounds, and 2.81 blocks in the 1995 Playoffs. As in 1994, Olajuwon was the only Rockets All-Star.
Post-championship period (1995–2001)
The Rockets' two-year championship run ended when they were eliminated in the second round of the 1996 NBA Playoffs by the eventual Western Conference Champion Seattle SuperSonics. Michael Jordan had returned from an 18-month hiatus in March 1995, and his Chicago Bulls dominated the league for the next three years (1996–98). The Bulls and Rockets never met in the NBA Playoffs. The Rockets posted a 57–win season in 1996–97 season when they added Charles Barkley to their roster. They started the season 21–2, but lost the Western Conference Finals in six games to the Utah Jazz. After averaging 26.9 and 23.2 points in 1995–96 and 1996–97 respectively, Olajuwon's point production dipped to 16.4 in 1997–98. After the Rockets lost in the first round in five games to the Jazz in 1998, Drexler retired. In 1998–99 the Rockets acquired veteran All-Star Scottie Pippen and finished 31–19 in the lockout-shortened regular season. Olajuwon's scoring production rose to 18.9 points per game, and he made his twelfth and final All-NBA Team. However, they lost in the first round again, this time to the Lakers. After the season, Pippen was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers.
Toronto Raptors (2001–2002)
Houston began to rebuild, bringing in young guards Cuttino Mobley and 2000 NBA co-Rookie of the Year Steve Francis. On August 2, 2001, after refusing a $13 million deal with the Rockets, Olajuwon was traded to the Toronto Raptors for draft picks (the highest of which was used by Houston to draft Boštjan Nachbar at #15 in the 2002 NBA draft), with the player having a three-year contract that would give him $18 million. In his first game with the Raptors, he scored 11 points in just 22 minutes of playing time against the Magic. Olajuwon averaged career lows of 7.1 points and 6.0 rebounds per game in what would be his final season in the NBA, as he decided to retire in the fall of 2002, due to a back injury. Olajuwon retired as the all–time league leader in total blocked shots with 3,830, although shot-blocking did not become an official statistic until the 1973–74 NBA season.
Shortly after his retirement, his #34 jersey was retired by the Rockets.
For his NBA career, Olajuwon averaged 21.8 points on 51% shooting, 11.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 3.1 blocks in 1238 career games.
National team career
In 1980, before arriving in the US, Olajuwon played for a Nigerian junior team in the All-Africa Games. This created some problems when he tried to play for the United States men's national basketball team initially. FIBA rules prohibit players from representing more than one country in international competition, and players must go through a three-year waiting period for any nationality change. Olajuwon was ineligible for selection to the "Dream Team" as he hadn't become a US citizen.
Olajuwon became a naturalized American citizen on April 2, 1993. For the 1996 Olympics, he received a FIBA exemption and was eligible to play for Dream Team II. The team went on to win the gold medal in Atlanta. During the tournament, he shared his minutes with Shaquille O'Neal and David Robinson. He played 7 out of the 8 games and started 2. He averaged 5 points and 3.1 rebounds and had 8 assists and 6 steals in seven games.
Player profile
Olajuwon was highly skilled as both an offensive and defensive player. On defense, his rare combination of quickness and strength allowed him to guard a wide range of players effectively. He was noted for both his outstanding shot-blocking ability and his unique talent (for a frontcourt player) for stealing the ball. Olajuwon is the only player in NBA history to record more than 200 blocks and 200 steals in the same season. He averaged 3.09 blocks and 1.75 steals per game for his career. He is the only center to rank among the top ten all-time in steals. Olajuwon was also an outstanding rebounder, with a career average of 11.1 rebounds per game. He led the NBA in rebounding twice, during the 1989 and 1990 seasons. He was twice named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and was a five-time NBA All-Defensive First Team selection.
On offense, Olajuwon was famous for his deft shooting touch around the basket and his nimble footwork in the low post. With the ball, Hakeem displayed a vast array of fakes and spin moves, highlighted in his signature "Dream Shake" (see below). He was a prolific scorer, averaging 21.8 points per game for his career, and an above-average offensive rebounder, averaging 3.3 offensive rebounds per game. Additionally, Olajuwon became a skilled dribbler with an ability to score in "face-up" situations like a perimeter player. He is one of only four players to have recorded a quadruple-double in the NBA, which have only been possible since the 1973–74 season, when blocked shots and steals were first kept as statistics in the NBA.
Dream Shake
Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake. Executed with uncanny speed and power, they are still regarded as the pinnacle of "big man" footwork. Shaquille O'Neal stated: "Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves – that gives him 20 moves." Olajuwon himself traced the move back to the soccer-playing days of his youth. "The Dream Shake was actually one of my soccer moves which I translated to basketball. It would accomplish one of three things: one, to misdirect the opponent and make him go the opposite way; two, to freeze the opponent and leave him devastated in his tracks; three, to shake off the opponent and giving him no chance to contest the shot." The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook.
One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs. With David Robinson guarding him, Olajuwon performed a cross-over, drove to the basket and faked a layup. Robinson, an excellent defender, kept up with Olajuwon and remained planted. Olajuwon spun counterclockwise and faked a jump shot. Robinson, who was voted the 1995 NBA MVP, fell for the fake and jumped to block the shot. With Robinson in the air, Olajuwon performed an up-and-under move and made an easy layup.
Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: "When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move. I call it the 'touch landing.' The defender is waiting for me to come down because I jumped but I'm gone before I land. Defenders say 'Wow, he's quick,' but they don't know that where I'm going is predetermined. He's basing it on quickness, but the jump is to set him up. Before I come down, I make my move. When you jump, you turn as you land. Boom! The defender can't react because he's waiting for you to come down to defend you. Now, the first time when you showed that quickness, he has to react to that quickness, so you can fake baseline and go the other way with your jump hook. All this is part of the Dream Shake. The Dream Shake is you dribble and then you jump; now you don't have a pivot foot. When I dribble I move it so when I come here, I jump. By jumping, I don't have a pivot foot now. I dribble so now I can use either foot. I can go this way or this way. So he's frozen, he doesn't know which way I'm going to go. That is the shake. You put him in the mix and you jump stop and now you have choice of pivot foot. He doesn't know where you're gonna turn and when."
Personal life
Olajuwon married his current wife, Dalia Asafi, on August 8, 1996, in Houston. The couple have four children together; two daughters, Rahmah and Aisha and two sons, Abdullah and Abdul. Olajuwon also has an older daughter, Abisola from a previous relationship with Lita Spencer, whom he met in college. Abisola represented the West Girls in the McDonald's All-American Game and played in the WNBA.
In addition to English, Olajuwon is fluent in French, Arabic, and the Nigerian languages of Yoruba and Ekiti. He wrote his autobiography, Living the Dream, with co-author Peter Knobler in 1996. During his 18-year NBA career, Olajuwon earned more than $110 million in salary.
Olajuwon, who earlier in his career signed a shoe endorsement deal with LA Gear, later became the face of Spalding's athletic shoe line and endorsed The Dream, a sneaker that retailed in various outlets (such as Payless ShoeSource) for $34.99. This made him one of the very few well-known players in any professional sport to endorse a sneaker not from Nike, Reebok, Adidas, or other high-visibility retail brands. As Olajuwon declared: "How can a poor working mother with three boys buy Nikes or Reeboks that cost $120? ... She can't. So kids steal these shoes from stores and from other kids. Sometimes they kill for them."
Higher education
Attending college was also an important priority to Olajuwon. At the University of Houston, Olajuwon was a physical education major.
Muslim faith
In Olajuwon's college career and early years in the NBA, he was often undisciplined, talking back to officials, getting in minor fights with other players and amassing technical fouls. Later, Olajuwon took an active interest in spirituality, becoming a more devout Muslim. On March 9, 1991, he altered his name from Akeem to the more conventional spelling of Hakeem, saying, "I'm not changing the spelling of my name, I'm correcting it". He later recalled, "I studied the Qur'an every day. At home, at the mosque ... I would read it in airplanes, before games and after them. I was soaking up the faith and learning new meanings each time I turned a page. I didn't dabble in the faith, I gave myself over to it." "His religion dominates his life", Drexler said in 1995. Olajuwon was still recognized as one of the league's elite centers despite his strict observance of Ramadan (i.e., abstaining from food and drink during daylight hours for about a month), which occurred during the playing season throughout his career. Olajuwon was noted as sometimes playing better during the month of Ramadan, and in 1995 he was named NBA Player of the Month in February, even though Ramadan began on February 1 of that year.
Post-NBA life
Olajuwon played for 20 consecutive seasons in Houston, first collegiately for the University of Houston Cougars and then professionally with the Houston Rockets. He is considered a Houston icon and one of the city's most beloved citizens. Olajuwon has had great success in the Houston real estate market, with his estimated profits exceeding $100 million. He buys in cash-only purchases, as it is against Islamic law to pay interest. Olajuwon splits his time between Jordan, where he moved with his family to pursue Islamic studies, and his ranch near Houston.
In the 2006 NBA offseason, Olajuwon opened his first Big Man Camp, where he teaches young frontcourt players the finer points of playing in the post. While Olajuwon never expressed an interest in coaching a team, he wishes to give back to the game by helping younger players. When asked whether the league was becoming more guard-oriented and big men were being de-emphasized, Olajuwon responded, "For a big man who is just big, maybe. But not if you play with speed, with agility. It will always be a big man's game if the big man plays the right way. On defense, the big man can rebound and block shots. On offense, he draws double-teams and creates opportunities. He can add so much, make it easier for the entire team." He runs the camp for free. Olajuwon has worked with several NBA players, including power forward Emeka Okafor, and center Yao Ming. In September 2009, he also worked with Kobe Bryant on the post moves and the Dream Shake. More recently he has been working with Dwight Howard, helping him diversify his post moves and encouraging more mental focus. In the 2011 offseason, LeBron James flew to Houston and spent time working with Olajuwon. Olajuwon has also worked with Ömer Aşık, Donatas Motiejūnas, Amar'e Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony, JaVale McGee and Kenneth Faried. In an interview with the Sporting News in April 2016, Olajuwon said that Kobe Bryant was his best low-post student. He stated, "I’ve worked with a lot of players, but the one who really capitalized on it the most is Kobe Bryant. When I watch him play, he’ll go down in the post comfortably, naturally, and he’ll execute it perfectly."
Olajuwon was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2008. On April 10, 2008, the Rockets unveiled a sculpture in honor of him outside the Toyota Center.
Olajuwon attended the 2013 NBA Draft to bid farewell to retiring commissioner David Stern as Stern made his announcement for the final pick of the first round. Olajuwon was the first pick announced by Stern back in 1984.
On August 1, 2015, Olajuwon made a special appearance for Team Africa at the 2015 NBA Africa exhibition game. He became a member of the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016.
Awards and achievements
2× NBA champion (1994, 1995)
2× NBA Finals MVP (1994, 1995)
1× NBA MVP (1994)
2× NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1993, 1994)
6× All-NBA First Team (1987, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1997)
3× All-NBA Second Team (1986, 1990, 1996)
3× All-NBA Third Team (1991, 1995, 1999)
5× NBA All-Defensive First Team (1987, 1988, 1990, 1993, 1994)
4× NBA All-Defensive Second Team (1985, 1991, 1996, 1997)
12× NBA All-Star
Olympic gold medalist (1996)
Named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996).
Named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team
Olajuwon ended his career in the top eleven all-time in blocks, scoring, rebounding, and steals. He is the only player in NBA history to retire in the top eleven for all four categories (he is now 13th all-time in rebounding).
Olajuwon was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2008, as well as to the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016.
Ranked #10 in ESPN'''s All-Time #NBArank: Counting down the greatest players ever (published in 2016)
Ranked #12 in SLAM Magazines 2018 revision of the top 100 greatest players of all time (published in the January 2018 issue)
NBA career statistics
Regular season
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 35.5 || .538 || || .613 || 11.9 || 1.4 || 1.2 || 2.7 || 20.6
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 68 || 68 || 36.3 || .526 || || .645 || 11.5 || 2.0 || 2.0 || 3.4 || 23.5
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 75 || 75 || 36.8 || .508 || .200 || .702 || 11.4 || 2.9 || 1.9 || 3.4 || 23.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 79 || 79 || 35.8 || .514 || .000 || .695 || 12.1 || 2.1 || 2.1 || 2.7 || 22.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 36.9 || .508 || .000 || .696 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|13.5* || 1.8 || 2.6 || 3.4 || 24.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 38.1 || .501 || .167 || .713 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|14.0* || 2.9 || 2.1 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|4.6* || 24.3
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 56 || 50 || 36.8 || .508 || .000 || .769 || 13.8 || 2.3 || 2.2 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|3.9* || 21.2
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 70 || 69 || 37.7 || .502 || .000 || .766 || 12.1 || 2.2 || 1.8 || 4.3 || 21.6
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 82 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 39.5 || .529 || .000 || .779 || 13.0 || 3.5 || 1.8 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|4.2* || 26.1
|-
| style="text-align:left; background:#AFE6BA;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 80 || 80 || 41.0 || .528 || .421 || .716 || 11.9 || 3.6 || 1.6 || 3.7 || 27.3
|-
| style="text-align:left; background:#AFE6BA;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 72 || 72 || 39.6 || .517 || .188 || .756 || 10.8 || 3.5 || 1.8 || 3.4 || 27.8|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 72 || 72 || 38.8 || .514 || .214 || .724 || 10.9 || 3.6 || 1.6 || 2.9 || 26.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 78 || 78 || 36.6 || .510 || .313 || .787' || 9.2 || 3.0 || 1.5 || 2.2 || 23.2
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 47 || 45 || 34.7 || .483 || .000 || .755 || 9.8 || 3.0 || 1.8 || 2.0 || 16.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|50* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|50* || 35.7 || .514 || .308 || .717 || 9.6 || 1.8 || 1.6 || 2.5 || 18.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 44 || 28 || 23.8 || .458 || .000 || .616 || 6.2 || 1.4 || .9 || 1.6 || 10.3
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 58 || 55 || 26.6 || .498 || .000 || .621 || 7.4 || 1.2 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 11.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Toronto
| 61 || 37 || 22.6 || .464 || .000 || .560 || 6.0 || 1.1 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 7.1
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Career
| 1,238 || 1,186 || 35.7 || .512 || .202 || .712 || 11.1 || 2.5 || 1.7 || 3.1 || 21.8
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|All-Star
| 12 || 8 || 23.2 || .409 || 1.000 || .520 || 7.8 || 1.4 || 1.3 || 1.9 || 9.8
Playoffs
See also
List of National Basketball Association career games played leaders
List of National Basketball Association career scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association franchise career scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career steals leaders
List of National Basketball Association career blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association career turnovers leaders
List of National Basketball Association career free throw scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career minutes played leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff steals leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff turnovers leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff free throw scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association annual rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association annual blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association players with most blocks in a game
List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season rebounding leaders
Islam in Houston
References
Sources
Harris, Othello, Nolte, Claire Elaine, and Kirsch, George B. Encyclopedia of Ethnicity and Sports in the United States, Greenwood Press. 2000
Heisler, Mark. Big Men Who Shook the NBA. Triumph Books. 2003
Olajuwon, Hakeem with Knobler, Peter. Living the Dream: My Life and Basketball. Little, Brown and Company. 1996
Simmons, Bill, The Book of Basketball: The NBA According to the Sports Guy'', ESPN 2009
External links
Hakeem Olajuwon entry at NBA Encyclopedia
Hakeem Olajuwon player profile at NBA.com
1963 births
Living people
African-American Muslims
All-American college men's basketball players
American expatriate basketball people in Canada
American men's basketball players
American people of Yoruba descent
Basketball players at the 1982 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1983 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1984 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Centers (basketball)
FIBA Hall of Fame inductees
Houston Cougars men's basketball players
Houston Rockets draft picks
Houston Rockets players
Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees
National Basketball Association All-Stars
National Basketball Association players from Nigeria
National Basketball Association players with retired numbers
Nigerian emigrants to the United States
Nigerian expatriate basketball people in Canada
Nigerian expatriate basketball people in the United States
Nigerian men's basketball players
Olympic gold medalists for the United States in basketball
People from Sugar Land, Texas
People with acquired American citizenship
Basketball players from Houston
Sportspeople from Lagos
Toronto Raptors players
United States men's national basketball team players
Yoruba sportspeople | false | [
"Woo! is the first release by Omaha, Nebraska-based band Tilly and the Wall. It was self-released in 2003 with 6 songs, recorded in Conor Oberst's basement studio.\n\nTrack listing\n \"I Can't Believe You\" – 2:56\n \"Shake Shake\" – 4:03\n \"Do You Dream at All\" – 2:29\n \"In Bed All Day\" – 4:02\n \"Pictures of Houses\" – 2:41\n \"Sad for Days\" – 3:30\n\nExternal links\nOfficial Tilly and the Wall website\nTeam Love Records\n\nSelf-released albums",
"\"Shake It\" is a song by American pop band Metro Station, released as the third single (and debut British single) from the group's 2007 self-titled debut studio album.\n\n\"Shake It\" was the band's first charting single, peaking at number 10 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Internationally, the song peaked within the top 10 of the charts in Australia, Austria, Canada, Germany, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. The single was certified Gold by the RIAA on June 13, 2008, and later Platinum that year, until finally reaching 2× Platinum status at the end of January 2009.\n\nComposition\n\"Shake It\" was written in the key of E major, but Metro Station played the song in D major for live performances.\n\nMusic video\n\nThe music video for the song \"Shake It\" was inspired by fans who created their own versions of the video, 63 of which the band posted as a playlist on the band's YouTube account. The band has commented that the final product was based on the cult film The Warriors, with rival dance crews in place of gangs. The video features the four band members as they enter the Los Angeles Theatre. Once inside the theatre, the band performs the song while various dancers compete against each other around the band members. Cameos are made by online celebrity Jeffree Star and vocalist/guitarist Trace Cyrus' ex-girlfriend Hanna Beth as audience members watching the dancers perform. The video ends with the band and everyone else being forced to exit the theatre by the police.\n\nTrack listings\nUK CD single\n \"Shake It\" (Radio Mix) - 3:04\n \"Shake It (Lenny B Remix - Extended Version)\" - 7:15\n \"Comin' Around\" - 2:40\n\nU.S. Digital Remix single\n \"Shake It\" [The Lindbergh Palace Remix] - 6:25\n \"Shake It\" [Lenny B Remix] - 3:22\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nDecade-end charts\n\nCertifications\n\nRelease history\n\nUse in media\n In the soundtrack of The House Bunny and on So You Think You Can Dance Canada.\n On the evening of April 7, 2008, Disney Channel had a bump that said: Shake It [Metro Station].\n It appeared on the season eight premiere of American Idol.\n It is also featured as a downloadable song for the Xbox 360 karaoke game, Lips.\n It was covered by a Portuguese boy band to be used in Sweet Strawberries (original title: Morangos Com Açúcar) season 7 soundtrack.\n The song was featured in 90210 when Annie and Ty were on a date in San Francisco.\n The song was featured in the episode \"All About Appearances\" from the series Privileged.\n The song can be heard on a 2010 viral video of a young man's elaborately choreographed proposal to his girlfriend.\n The song was played during the opening of the episode \"When Cougars Attack\" of the show The Whole Truth, which first aired on October 27, 2010.\n The song was featured on a television commercial for Schwarzkopf's Live Colour XXL Shake It Up Foam product in the United Kingdom. The commercial first aired on British commercial television networks in December 2011.\n The song accompanied the Fastrack commercials for watches in India. The commercial first aired on Indian commercial television networks in October 2013.\n The song is frequently used by social media star Lenarr Young as the music for one of his characters named Zac.\n The song can be heard in the Grey's Anatomy spin-off show Private Practice in season 4, episode 12 as the first song Bizzy and Susan dance to after getting married.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n\n2008 singles\nMetro Station (band) songs\nSong recordings produced by S*A*M and Sluggo\n2007 songs\nColumbia Records singles\nSongs about sexuality"
]
|
[
"Hakeem Olajuwon",
"Dream Shake",
"What is Dream Shake?",
"Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake.",
"What did these moves consist of?",
"Shaquille O'Neal stated: \"Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves - that gives him 20 moves.\"",
"Did it always work against his opponents?",
"The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook.",
"When did he begin using the Dream Shake?",
"One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs.",
"Has anyone else used the Dream Shake?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_1ddb552e4d134bd6a8e7879e823b6767_1 | What else can you tell me about the Dream Shake? | 6 | What else can you tell me about the Dream Shake other than how the Dream Shake was used by Hakeem Olajuwon? | Hakeem Olajuwon | "The best footwork I've ever seen from a big man" --Pete Newell Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake. Executed with uncanny speed and power, they are still regarded as the pinnacle of "big man" footwork. Shaquille O'Neal stated: "Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves - that gives him 20 moves." Olajuwon himself traced the move back to the soccer-playing days of his youth. "The Dream Shake was actually one of my soccer moves which I translated to basketball. It would accomplish one of three things: one, to misdirect the opponent and make him go the opposite way; two, to freeze the opponent and leave him devastated in his tracks; three, to shake off the opponent and giving him no chance to contest the shot." The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook. One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs. With David Robinson guarding him, Olajuwon performed a cross-over, drove to the basket and faked a layup. Robinson, an excellent defender, kept up with Olajuwon and remained planted. Olajuwon spun counterclockwise and faked a jump shot. Robinson, who was voted the 1995 NBA MVP, fell for the fake and jumped to block the shot. With Robinson in the air, Olajuwon performed an up-and-under move and made an easy layup. Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: "When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move. I call it the 'touch landing.' The defender is waiting for me to come down because I jumped but I'm gone before I land. Defenders say 'Wow, he's quick,' but they don't know that where I'm going is predetermined. He's basing it on quickness, but the jump is to set him up. Before I come down, I make my move. When you jump, you turn as you land. Boom! The defender can't react because he's waiting for you to come down to defend you. Now, the first time when you showed that quickness, he has to react to that quickness, so you can fake baseline and go the other way with your jump hook. All this is part of the Dream Shake. The Dream Shake is you dribble and then you jump; now you don't have a pivot foot. When I dribble I move it so when I come here, I jump. By jumping, I don't have a pivot foot now. I dribble so now I can use either foot. I can go this way or this way. So he's frozen, he doesn't know which way I'm going to go. That is the shake. You put him in the mix and you jump stop and now you have choice of pivot foot. He doesn't know where you're gonna turn and when." CANNOTANSWER | Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: " | Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon (; ; born January 21, 1963), nicknamed "the Dream", is a Nigerian-American former professional basketball player. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest centers and one of the greatest basketball players of all time. From 1984 to 2002, he played the center position in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Houston Rockets and eventually the Toronto Raptors. He led the Rockets to back-to-back NBA championships in 1994 and 1995. In 2008, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and in 2016, he was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame.
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Olajuwon traveled from his home country to play for the University of Houston under head coach Guy Lewis. His college career for the Cougars included three trips to the Final Four. Olajuwon was drafted by the Houston Rockets with the first overall selection of the 1984 NBA draft, a draft that included Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton. He combined with the Ralph Sampson to form a duo dubbed the "Twin Towers". The two led the Rockets to the 1986 NBA Finals, where they lost in six games to the Boston Celtics. After Sampson was traded to the Warriors in 1988, Olajuwon became the Rockets' undisputed leader. He led the league in rebounding twice (1989, 1990) and blocks three times (1990, 1991, 1993).
Despite very nearly being traded during a bitter contract dispute before the 1992–93 season, he remained in Houston. He became the first non-American to be an All-Star and start in an All-Star Game, the first non-American to win NBA MVP, the first non-American to win NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and in the 1993–94 season, he became the only player in NBA history to win the NBA MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and Finals MVP awards in the same season. His Rockets won back-to-back championships against the New York Knicks—avenging his college championship loss to Patrick Ewing—and Shaquille O'Neal's Orlando Magic. In 1996, Olajuwon was a member of the Olympic gold medal-winning United States national team, and he was selected as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. In October 2021, Olajuwon was honored as one of the league’s greatest players of all-time by being named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team. He ended his career as the league's all-time leader in blocks (3,830) and is one of four NBA players to record a quadruple-double.
Early life
Hakeem Olajuwon was born to Salim and Abike Olajuwon, working-class Yoruba owners of a cement business in Lagos, Nigeria. He was the third of eight children. He credits his parents with instilling virtues of hard work and discipline into him and his siblings: "They taught us to be honest, work hard, respect our elders, and believe in ourselves." Olajuwon has expressed displeasure at his childhood in Nigeria being characterized as backward. "Lagos is a very cosmopolitan city ... There are many ethnic groups. I grew up in an environment at schools where there were all different types of people."
During his youth, Olajuwon was a soccer goalkeeper, which helped give him the footwork and agility to balance his size and strength in basketball, and also contributed to his shot-blocking ability. Olajuwon did not play basketball until the age of 15 in high school, when he entered a local tournament while at the Muslim Teachers College in Lagos, Nigeria. It has been said that a coach in Nigeria once asked him to dunk and demonstrated while standing on a chair. Olajuwon then tried to stand on the chair himself. When redirected by staff not to use the chair, Hakeem could initially not dunk the basketball.
Despite early struggles, Olajuwon said: "Basketball is something that is so unique. That immediately I pick up the game and, you know, realize that this is the life for me. All the other sports just become obsolete."
College career
Olajuwon emigrated from Nigeria to play basketball at the University of Houston under Cougars coach Guy Lewis. Olajuwon was not highly recruited and was merely offered a visit to the university to work out for the coaching staff, based on a recommendation from a friend of Lewis who had seen Olajuwon play. He later recalled that when he originally arrived at the airport in 1980 for the visit, no representative of the school was there to greet him. When he called the staff, they told him to take a taxi out to the university.
After redshirting his freshman year in 1980–81 because he could not yet get clearance from the NCAA to play, Olajuwon came mostly off the bench and served as the Cougars' sixth man as a redshirt freshman in 1981–82, averaging 8.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.5 blocks, shooting 60% from the field in 18 minutes per game as Houston was eliminated in the Final Four by the eventual NCAA champion, North Carolina. Olajuwon sought advice from the coaching staff about how to increase his playing time, and they advised him to work out with local Houston resident and multiple NBA MVP winner, Moses Malone. Malone, who was then a center on the NBA's Houston Rockets, played games every off-season with several NBA players at the Fonde Recreation Center. Olajuwon joined the workouts and went head to head with Malone in several games throughout the summer. Olajuwon credited this experience with rapidly improving his game: "The way Moses helped me is by being out there playing and allowing me to go against that level of competition. He was the best center in the NBA at the time, so I was trying to improve my game against the best."
Olajuwon returned from that summer a different player. He was nicknamed "the Dream" during his basketball career after he dunked so effortlessly that his college coach said it "looked like a dream." He and his teammates (including Clyde Drexler) formed what was dubbed "Phi Slama Jama", the first slam-dunking "fraternity", so named because of its above-the-rim prowess. In his sophomore and junior years he helped the Cougars advance to consecutive NCAA championship games, where they lost to North Carolina State on a last-second tip-in in 1983 and a Patrick Ewing-led Georgetown team in 1984. He averaged 13.9 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 5.1 blocks in 1982–83 and 16.8 points, 13.5 rebounds, and 5.6 blocks in 1983–84. Olajuwon won the 1983 NCAA Tournament Player of the Year award, even though he played for the losing team in the final game. To date, he is the last player from a losing side to be granted this honor. Drexler departed for the NBA in 1983, leaving Olajuwon the lone star on the team.
After the 1983–84 season, Olajuwon debated whether to stay in college or declare early for the NBA draft. At that time, before the NBA Draft Lottery was introduced in 1985, the first pick was awarded by coin flip. Olajuwon recalled: "I really believed that Houston was going to win the coin flip and pick the first draft choice, and I really wanted to play in Houston so I had to make that decision (to leave early)." His intuition proved correct, and a lucky toss placed Houston ahead of the Portland Trail Blazers. Olajuwon was considered the top amateur prospect in the summer of 1984 over fellow collegians and future NBA stars Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton, and was selected first overall by the Rockets in the 1984 NBA draft.
In his autobiography Living the Dream, Olajuwon mentions an intriguing draft trade offered to the Rockets that would have sent Clyde Drexler and the number two pick in the 1984 NBA draft from Portland in exchange for Ralph Sampson. Had the Rockets made the deal, Olajuwon states the Rockets could have selected Jordan with the number two pick to play alongside Olajuwon and Drexler, who had established chemistry playing together during their Phi Slama Jama days in college. Sportswriter Sam Smith speculates that such a trade "would have changed league history and maybe the entire Michael Jordan legend." From 1991 to 1998, every NBA championship team included either Jordan or Olajuwon; furthermore, at least one of Drexler, Jordan, and Olajuwon was involved in every NBA Finals from 1990 to 1998.
Professional career
Houston Rockets (1984–2001)
Rookie and second years (1984–1987)
The Rockets had immediate success during Olajuwon's rookie season, as their win-loss record improved from 29 to 53 in 1983–84 to 48–34 in 1984–85. He teamed with the 1984 Rookie of the Year, 7 ft 4 in (2.24 m) Ralph Sampson to form the original NBA "Twin Towers" duo. Olajuwon averaged 20.6 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2.68 blocks in his rookie season. He finished as runner-up to Michael Jordan in the 1985 Rookie of the Year voting, and was the only other rookie to receive any votes.
Olajuwon averaged 23.5 points, 11.5 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game during his second pro season (1985–86). The Rockets finished 51–31, and advanced all the way to the Western Conference Finals where they faced the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers. The Rockets won the series fairly easily, four games to one, shocking the sports world and landing Olajuwon on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Olajuwon scored 75 points in victories in games three and four, and after the series Lakers coach Pat Riley remarked "We tried everything. We put four bodies on him. We helped from different angles. He's just a great player." The Rockets advanced to the 1986 NBA Finals where they lost in six games to the Boston Celtics, whose 1986 team is often considered one of the best teams in NBA history.
Mid-career years (1987–1993)
During the 1987–88 season, Sampson (who was struggling with knee injuries that would eventually end his career prematurely) was traded to the Golden State Warriors. The 1988–89 season was Olajuwon's first full season as the Rockets' undisputed leader. This change also coincided with the hiring of new coach Don Chaney. The Rockets ended the regular season with a record of 45–37, and Olajuwon finished the season as the league leader in rebounds (13.5 per game) by a full rebound per game over Charles Barkley. This performance was consistent with his averages of 24.8 points and 3.4 blocks. Olajuwon posted exceptional playoff numbers of 37.5 ppg and 16.8 rpg, plus a record for points in a four-game playoff series (150). Nevertheless, the Rockets were eliminated in the first round by the Seattle SuperSonics, 3 games to 1.
The 1989–90 season was a disappointment for the Rockets. They finished the season with a 41–41 record, and though they made the playoffs, were eliminated in four games by Los Angeles. Olajuwon put up one of the most productive defensive seasons by an interior player in the history of the NBA. He won the NBA rebounding crown (14.0 per game) again, this time by an even larger margin; a full two rebounds per game over David Robinson, and led the league in blocks by averaging 4.6 per game. He is the only player since the NBA started recording blocked shots in 1973–74 to average 14+ rebounds and 4.5+ blocked shots per game in the same season. In doing so he joined Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton as the only players in NBA history (at that point) to lead the league in rebounding and shot-blocking in the same season. Olajuwon also recorded a quadruple-double during the season, becoming only the third player in NBA history to do so.
The Rockets finished the 1990–91 season with a record of 52–30 under NBA Coach of the Year Chaney. Olajuwon averaged 21.8 points per game in 1990–91, but due to an injury to his eyesocket caused by an elbow from Bill Cartwright, did not play in enough games (56) to qualify for the rebounding title. Otherwise, he would have won it for a third consecutive year, averaging 13.8 a game (league leader Robinson averaged 13.0 rpg). He also averaged a league-leading 3.95 blocks per game. However, the Rockets were swept in the playoffs by the LA Lakers.
The following season was a low point for the Rockets during Olajuwon's tenure. They finished 42–40, and missed the playoffs for the first time in Olajuwon's career. He missed two weeks early in the season due to an accelerated heartbeat. Despite his usual strong numbers, he could not lift his team out of mediocrity. Since making the Finals in 1986, the Rockets had made the playoffs five times, but their record in those playoff series was 1–5 and they were eliminated in the first round four times. Following the season, Olajuwon requested a trade in part because of his bad contract; his salary was considerably low for a top center, and his contract specifically forbade re-negotiation. He also expressed displeasure with the organization's efforts to surround him with quality players. He felt the Rockets had cut corners at every turn, and were more concerned with the bottom line than winning. Management had also infuriated Olajuwon during the season when they accused of him of faking a hamstring injury because of his unhappiness over his contract situation. His agent cited his differences with the organization as being "irreconcilable", and Olajuwon publicly insulted owner Charlie Thomas and the team's front office. With the 1992–93 season approaching, a reporter for the Houston Chronicle said that Olajuwon being dealt was "as close to a sure thing as there is."
Nonetheless, he was not traded and the Rockets began the season with a new coach, Rudy Tomjanovich. Olajuwon improved his passing in 1992–93, setting a new career-high of 3.5 assists per game. This willingness to pass the ball increased his scoring, making it more difficult for opposing teams to double and triple-team him. Olajuwon set a new career-high with 26.1 points per game. The Rockets set a new franchise record with 55 wins, and advanced to the second round of the playoffs, pushing the Seattle SuperSonics to a seventh game before losing in overtime, 103–100. He finished second in the MVP race to Charles Barkley with 22 votes to Barkley's 59. The team rewarded him with a four-year contract extension toward the end of the regular season. In stark contrast to the previous year, the Rockets entered the 1993–94 season as a team on the rise. They had a solid core of young players and veterans, with a leader in Olajuwon who was entering his prime.
Championship years (1993–1995)
Olajuwon gained a reputation as a clutch performer and also as one of the top centers in history based on his performances in the 1993–94 and 1994–95 seasons. He outplayed centers such as Patrick Ewing, David Robinson, Shaquille O'Neal, and Dikembe Mutombo, and other defensive stalwarts such as Dennis Rodman and Karl Malone. Many of his battles were with his fellow Texas-based rival David Robinson of the San Antonio Spurs. In the 30 head–to–head match-ups during the seven seasons from the 1989 to 1996, when both Olajuwon and Robinson were in their prime, Olajuwon averaged 26.3 points per game, shooting 47.6% from the field, while Robinson averaged 22.1 and 46.8%.
Olajuwon led the Rockets to a championship in the 1994 NBA Finals in a seven-game series against the New York Knicks, the team of one of Olajuwon's perennial rivals since his collegiate days, Patrick Ewing. After being down 2–1, the Knicks took a 3–2 lead into Game 6. The Rockets were defending an 86–84 lead when in the last second, Knicks guard John Starks (who had already scored 27 points) went up for what would have been a Finals-winning three. Olajuwon pulled off a clutch play by blocking the shot as time expired. In Game 7, Olajuwon posted a game–high 25 points and 10 rebounds, which helped defeat the Knicks, bringing the first professional sports championship to Houston since the Houston Oilers won the American Football League championship in 1961. Olajuwon dominated Ewing in their head–to–head match-up, outscoring him in every game of the series and averaging 26.9 points per game on 50% shooting, compared to Ewing's 18.9 and 36.3%. For his efforts Olajuwon was named NBA Finals Most Valuable Player.
Olajuwon was at the pinnacle of his career. In 1994, he became the only player in NBA history to win the MVP, the Championship, the Finals MVP and Defensive Player of the Year awards in the same season. He was also the first foreign-born player to win the league's MVP award.
On December 1, 1994, Olajuwon recorded a triple-double 37 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists in a 113–109 win over the Golden State Warriors. But despite a slow start by the team, and Olajuwon missing eight games toward the end of the season with anemia, the Rockets repeated as champions in 1995. They were bolstered in part by the acquisition of Clyde Drexler, Olajuwon's former University of Houston "Phi Slama Jama" teammate, in a mid-season trade from the Portland Trail Blazers. Olajuwon averaged 27.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game during the regular season. Olajuwon displayed perhaps the most impressive moments of his career during the playoffs. San Antonio Spurs center David Robinson, recently crowned league MVP, was outplayed by Olajuwon in the Conference Finals: Olajuwon averaged 35.3 points on .560 shooting (Robinson's numbers were 23.8 and .449) and outscored Robinson 81–41 in the final two games. In the series-clinching game, Olajuwon recorded 39 points, 17 rebounds and 5 blocks. When asked later what a team could do to "solve" Olajuwon, Robinson told LIFE magazine: "Hakeem? You don't solve Hakeem." The Rockets won every road game that series. In the NBA Finals, the Rockets swept the Orlando Magic, who were led by a young Shaquille O'Neal. Olajuwon outscored O'Neal in every game, scoring more than 30 points in each and raising his regular-season rate by five while O'Neal's production dropped by one. Olajuwon was again named Finals MVP. He averaged 33.0 points on .531 shooting, 10.3 rebounds, and 2.81 blocks in the 1995 Playoffs. As in 1994, Olajuwon was the only Rockets All-Star.
Post-championship period (1995–2001)
The Rockets' two-year championship run ended when they were eliminated in the second round of the 1996 NBA Playoffs by the eventual Western Conference Champion Seattle SuperSonics. Michael Jordan had returned from an 18-month hiatus in March 1995, and his Chicago Bulls dominated the league for the next three years (1996–98). The Bulls and Rockets never met in the NBA Playoffs. The Rockets posted a 57–win season in 1996–97 season when they added Charles Barkley to their roster. They started the season 21–2, but lost the Western Conference Finals in six games to the Utah Jazz. After averaging 26.9 and 23.2 points in 1995–96 and 1996–97 respectively, Olajuwon's point production dipped to 16.4 in 1997–98. After the Rockets lost in the first round in five games to the Jazz in 1998, Drexler retired. In 1998–99 the Rockets acquired veteran All-Star Scottie Pippen and finished 31–19 in the lockout-shortened regular season. Olajuwon's scoring production rose to 18.9 points per game, and he made his twelfth and final All-NBA Team. However, they lost in the first round again, this time to the Lakers. After the season, Pippen was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers.
Toronto Raptors (2001–2002)
Houston began to rebuild, bringing in young guards Cuttino Mobley and 2000 NBA co-Rookie of the Year Steve Francis. On August 2, 2001, after refusing a $13 million deal with the Rockets, Olajuwon was traded to the Toronto Raptors for draft picks (the highest of which was used by Houston to draft Boštjan Nachbar at #15 in the 2002 NBA draft), with the player having a three-year contract that would give him $18 million. In his first game with the Raptors, he scored 11 points in just 22 minutes of playing time against the Magic. Olajuwon averaged career lows of 7.1 points and 6.0 rebounds per game in what would be his final season in the NBA, as he decided to retire in the fall of 2002, due to a back injury. Olajuwon retired as the all–time league leader in total blocked shots with 3,830, although shot-blocking did not become an official statistic until the 1973–74 NBA season.
Shortly after his retirement, his #34 jersey was retired by the Rockets.
For his NBA career, Olajuwon averaged 21.8 points on 51% shooting, 11.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 3.1 blocks in 1238 career games.
National team career
In 1980, before arriving in the US, Olajuwon played for a Nigerian junior team in the All-Africa Games. This created some problems when he tried to play for the United States men's national basketball team initially. FIBA rules prohibit players from representing more than one country in international competition, and players must go through a three-year waiting period for any nationality change. Olajuwon was ineligible for selection to the "Dream Team" as he hadn't become a US citizen.
Olajuwon became a naturalized American citizen on April 2, 1993. For the 1996 Olympics, he received a FIBA exemption and was eligible to play for Dream Team II. The team went on to win the gold medal in Atlanta. During the tournament, he shared his minutes with Shaquille O'Neal and David Robinson. He played 7 out of the 8 games and started 2. He averaged 5 points and 3.1 rebounds and had 8 assists and 6 steals in seven games.
Player profile
Olajuwon was highly skilled as both an offensive and defensive player. On defense, his rare combination of quickness and strength allowed him to guard a wide range of players effectively. He was noted for both his outstanding shot-blocking ability and his unique talent (for a frontcourt player) for stealing the ball. Olajuwon is the only player in NBA history to record more than 200 blocks and 200 steals in the same season. He averaged 3.09 blocks and 1.75 steals per game for his career. He is the only center to rank among the top ten all-time in steals. Olajuwon was also an outstanding rebounder, with a career average of 11.1 rebounds per game. He led the NBA in rebounding twice, during the 1989 and 1990 seasons. He was twice named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and was a five-time NBA All-Defensive First Team selection.
On offense, Olajuwon was famous for his deft shooting touch around the basket and his nimble footwork in the low post. With the ball, Hakeem displayed a vast array of fakes and spin moves, highlighted in his signature "Dream Shake" (see below). He was a prolific scorer, averaging 21.8 points per game for his career, and an above-average offensive rebounder, averaging 3.3 offensive rebounds per game. Additionally, Olajuwon became a skilled dribbler with an ability to score in "face-up" situations like a perimeter player. He is one of only four players to have recorded a quadruple-double in the NBA, which have only been possible since the 1973–74 season, when blocked shots and steals were first kept as statistics in the NBA.
Dream Shake
Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake. Executed with uncanny speed and power, they are still regarded as the pinnacle of "big man" footwork. Shaquille O'Neal stated: "Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves – that gives him 20 moves." Olajuwon himself traced the move back to the soccer-playing days of his youth. "The Dream Shake was actually one of my soccer moves which I translated to basketball. It would accomplish one of three things: one, to misdirect the opponent and make him go the opposite way; two, to freeze the opponent and leave him devastated in his tracks; three, to shake off the opponent and giving him no chance to contest the shot." The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook.
One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs. With David Robinson guarding him, Olajuwon performed a cross-over, drove to the basket and faked a layup. Robinson, an excellent defender, kept up with Olajuwon and remained planted. Olajuwon spun counterclockwise and faked a jump shot. Robinson, who was voted the 1995 NBA MVP, fell for the fake and jumped to block the shot. With Robinson in the air, Olajuwon performed an up-and-under move and made an easy layup.
Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: "When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move. I call it the 'touch landing.' The defender is waiting for me to come down because I jumped but I'm gone before I land. Defenders say 'Wow, he's quick,' but they don't know that where I'm going is predetermined. He's basing it on quickness, but the jump is to set him up. Before I come down, I make my move. When you jump, you turn as you land. Boom! The defender can't react because he's waiting for you to come down to defend you. Now, the first time when you showed that quickness, he has to react to that quickness, so you can fake baseline and go the other way with your jump hook. All this is part of the Dream Shake. The Dream Shake is you dribble and then you jump; now you don't have a pivot foot. When I dribble I move it so when I come here, I jump. By jumping, I don't have a pivot foot now. I dribble so now I can use either foot. I can go this way or this way. So he's frozen, he doesn't know which way I'm going to go. That is the shake. You put him in the mix and you jump stop and now you have choice of pivot foot. He doesn't know where you're gonna turn and when."
Personal life
Olajuwon married his current wife, Dalia Asafi, on August 8, 1996, in Houston. The couple have four children together; two daughters, Rahmah and Aisha and two sons, Abdullah and Abdul. Olajuwon also has an older daughter, Abisola from a previous relationship with Lita Spencer, whom he met in college. Abisola represented the West Girls in the McDonald's All-American Game and played in the WNBA.
In addition to English, Olajuwon is fluent in French, Arabic, and the Nigerian languages of Yoruba and Ekiti. He wrote his autobiography, Living the Dream, with co-author Peter Knobler in 1996. During his 18-year NBA career, Olajuwon earned more than $110 million in salary.
Olajuwon, who earlier in his career signed a shoe endorsement deal with LA Gear, later became the face of Spalding's athletic shoe line and endorsed The Dream, a sneaker that retailed in various outlets (such as Payless ShoeSource) for $34.99. This made him one of the very few well-known players in any professional sport to endorse a sneaker not from Nike, Reebok, Adidas, or other high-visibility retail brands. As Olajuwon declared: "How can a poor working mother with three boys buy Nikes or Reeboks that cost $120? ... She can't. So kids steal these shoes from stores and from other kids. Sometimes they kill for them."
Higher education
Attending college was also an important priority to Olajuwon. At the University of Houston, Olajuwon was a physical education major.
Muslim faith
In Olajuwon's college career and early years in the NBA, he was often undisciplined, talking back to officials, getting in minor fights with other players and amassing technical fouls. Later, Olajuwon took an active interest in spirituality, becoming a more devout Muslim. On March 9, 1991, he altered his name from Akeem to the more conventional spelling of Hakeem, saying, "I'm not changing the spelling of my name, I'm correcting it". He later recalled, "I studied the Qur'an every day. At home, at the mosque ... I would read it in airplanes, before games and after them. I was soaking up the faith and learning new meanings each time I turned a page. I didn't dabble in the faith, I gave myself over to it." "His religion dominates his life", Drexler said in 1995. Olajuwon was still recognized as one of the league's elite centers despite his strict observance of Ramadan (i.e., abstaining from food and drink during daylight hours for about a month), which occurred during the playing season throughout his career. Olajuwon was noted as sometimes playing better during the month of Ramadan, and in 1995 he was named NBA Player of the Month in February, even though Ramadan began on February 1 of that year.
Post-NBA life
Olajuwon played for 20 consecutive seasons in Houston, first collegiately for the University of Houston Cougars and then professionally with the Houston Rockets. He is considered a Houston icon and one of the city's most beloved citizens. Olajuwon has had great success in the Houston real estate market, with his estimated profits exceeding $100 million. He buys in cash-only purchases, as it is against Islamic law to pay interest. Olajuwon splits his time between Jordan, where he moved with his family to pursue Islamic studies, and his ranch near Houston.
In the 2006 NBA offseason, Olajuwon opened his first Big Man Camp, where he teaches young frontcourt players the finer points of playing in the post. While Olajuwon never expressed an interest in coaching a team, he wishes to give back to the game by helping younger players. When asked whether the league was becoming more guard-oriented and big men were being de-emphasized, Olajuwon responded, "For a big man who is just big, maybe. But not if you play with speed, with agility. It will always be a big man's game if the big man plays the right way. On defense, the big man can rebound and block shots. On offense, he draws double-teams and creates opportunities. He can add so much, make it easier for the entire team." He runs the camp for free. Olajuwon has worked with several NBA players, including power forward Emeka Okafor, and center Yao Ming. In September 2009, he also worked with Kobe Bryant on the post moves and the Dream Shake. More recently he has been working with Dwight Howard, helping him diversify his post moves and encouraging more mental focus. In the 2011 offseason, LeBron James flew to Houston and spent time working with Olajuwon. Olajuwon has also worked with Ömer Aşık, Donatas Motiejūnas, Amar'e Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony, JaVale McGee and Kenneth Faried. In an interview with the Sporting News in April 2016, Olajuwon said that Kobe Bryant was his best low-post student. He stated, "I’ve worked with a lot of players, but the one who really capitalized on it the most is Kobe Bryant. When I watch him play, he’ll go down in the post comfortably, naturally, and he’ll execute it perfectly."
Olajuwon was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2008. On April 10, 2008, the Rockets unveiled a sculpture in honor of him outside the Toyota Center.
Olajuwon attended the 2013 NBA Draft to bid farewell to retiring commissioner David Stern as Stern made his announcement for the final pick of the first round. Olajuwon was the first pick announced by Stern back in 1984.
On August 1, 2015, Olajuwon made a special appearance for Team Africa at the 2015 NBA Africa exhibition game. He became a member of the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016.
Awards and achievements
2× NBA champion (1994, 1995)
2× NBA Finals MVP (1994, 1995)
1× NBA MVP (1994)
2× NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1993, 1994)
6× All-NBA First Team (1987, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1997)
3× All-NBA Second Team (1986, 1990, 1996)
3× All-NBA Third Team (1991, 1995, 1999)
5× NBA All-Defensive First Team (1987, 1988, 1990, 1993, 1994)
4× NBA All-Defensive Second Team (1985, 1991, 1996, 1997)
12× NBA All-Star
Olympic gold medalist (1996)
Named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996).
Named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team
Olajuwon ended his career in the top eleven all-time in blocks, scoring, rebounding, and steals. He is the only player in NBA history to retire in the top eleven for all four categories (he is now 13th all-time in rebounding).
Olajuwon was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2008, as well as to the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016.
Ranked #10 in ESPN'''s All-Time #NBArank: Counting down the greatest players ever (published in 2016)
Ranked #12 in SLAM Magazines 2018 revision of the top 100 greatest players of all time (published in the January 2018 issue)
NBA career statistics
Regular season
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 35.5 || .538 || || .613 || 11.9 || 1.4 || 1.2 || 2.7 || 20.6
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 68 || 68 || 36.3 || .526 || || .645 || 11.5 || 2.0 || 2.0 || 3.4 || 23.5
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 75 || 75 || 36.8 || .508 || .200 || .702 || 11.4 || 2.9 || 1.9 || 3.4 || 23.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 79 || 79 || 35.8 || .514 || .000 || .695 || 12.1 || 2.1 || 2.1 || 2.7 || 22.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 36.9 || .508 || .000 || .696 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|13.5* || 1.8 || 2.6 || 3.4 || 24.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 38.1 || .501 || .167 || .713 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|14.0* || 2.9 || 2.1 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|4.6* || 24.3
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 56 || 50 || 36.8 || .508 || .000 || .769 || 13.8 || 2.3 || 2.2 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|3.9* || 21.2
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 70 || 69 || 37.7 || .502 || .000 || .766 || 12.1 || 2.2 || 1.8 || 4.3 || 21.6
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 82 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 39.5 || .529 || .000 || .779 || 13.0 || 3.5 || 1.8 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|4.2* || 26.1
|-
| style="text-align:left; background:#AFE6BA;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 80 || 80 || 41.0 || .528 || .421 || .716 || 11.9 || 3.6 || 1.6 || 3.7 || 27.3
|-
| style="text-align:left; background:#AFE6BA;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 72 || 72 || 39.6 || .517 || .188 || .756 || 10.8 || 3.5 || 1.8 || 3.4 || 27.8|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 72 || 72 || 38.8 || .514 || .214 || .724 || 10.9 || 3.6 || 1.6 || 2.9 || 26.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 78 || 78 || 36.6 || .510 || .313 || .787' || 9.2 || 3.0 || 1.5 || 2.2 || 23.2
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 47 || 45 || 34.7 || .483 || .000 || .755 || 9.8 || 3.0 || 1.8 || 2.0 || 16.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|50* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|50* || 35.7 || .514 || .308 || .717 || 9.6 || 1.8 || 1.6 || 2.5 || 18.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 44 || 28 || 23.8 || .458 || .000 || .616 || 6.2 || 1.4 || .9 || 1.6 || 10.3
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 58 || 55 || 26.6 || .498 || .000 || .621 || 7.4 || 1.2 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 11.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Toronto
| 61 || 37 || 22.6 || .464 || .000 || .560 || 6.0 || 1.1 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 7.1
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Career
| 1,238 || 1,186 || 35.7 || .512 || .202 || .712 || 11.1 || 2.5 || 1.7 || 3.1 || 21.8
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|All-Star
| 12 || 8 || 23.2 || .409 || 1.000 || .520 || 7.8 || 1.4 || 1.3 || 1.9 || 9.8
Playoffs
See also
List of National Basketball Association career games played leaders
List of National Basketball Association career scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association franchise career scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career steals leaders
List of National Basketball Association career blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association career turnovers leaders
List of National Basketball Association career free throw scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career minutes played leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff steals leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff turnovers leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff free throw scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association annual rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association annual blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association players with most blocks in a game
List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season rebounding leaders
Islam in Houston
References
Sources
Harris, Othello, Nolte, Claire Elaine, and Kirsch, George B. Encyclopedia of Ethnicity and Sports in the United States, Greenwood Press. 2000
Heisler, Mark. Big Men Who Shook the NBA. Triumph Books. 2003
Olajuwon, Hakeem with Knobler, Peter. Living the Dream: My Life and Basketball. Little, Brown and Company. 1996
Simmons, Bill, The Book of Basketball: The NBA According to the Sports Guy'', ESPN 2009
External links
Hakeem Olajuwon entry at NBA Encyclopedia
Hakeem Olajuwon player profile at NBA.com
1963 births
Living people
African-American Muslims
All-American college men's basketball players
American expatriate basketball people in Canada
American men's basketball players
American people of Yoruba descent
Basketball players at the 1982 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1983 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1984 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Centers (basketball)
FIBA Hall of Fame inductees
Houston Cougars men's basketball players
Houston Rockets draft picks
Houston Rockets players
Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees
National Basketball Association All-Stars
National Basketball Association players from Nigeria
National Basketball Association players with retired numbers
Nigerian emigrants to the United States
Nigerian expatriate basketball people in Canada
Nigerian expatriate basketball people in the United States
Nigerian men's basketball players
Olympic gold medalists for the United States in basketball
People from Sugar Land, Texas
People with acquired American citizenship
Basketball players from Houston
Sportspeople from Lagos
Toronto Raptors players
United States men's national basketball team players
Yoruba sportspeople | true | [
"On My Own is an album released by a Polish pop singer Tatiana Okupnik.\n\nTrack listing \n Introducing\n Tell Me Do I Drive U Crazy (Striptease)\n Don't Hold Back (Find Your Way)\n Shake It\n Hey Big Spender\n Around The World\n Tell Me What U Really Want\n Keep It On The Low\n Afterglow\n The Look (Of Love)\n Lovin' You (cover of Minnie Riperton's \"Lovin' You\")\n The Woman In Me\n On My Own\n\n2007 albums",
"\"Tell Me How You Feel\" is a song by American singer and actress Joy Enriquez. It samples \"Mellow Mellow Right On\" by Lowrell Simon. The song was released as the second single from her debut self-titled studio album in September 2000, peaking at number 17 on the US Billboard Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, number 24 in Australia and number 14 in New Zealand, where it was certified Gold for sales of over 5,000.\n\nTrack listings\n\nUS CD single\n \"Tell Me How You Feel\" – 4:06\n Snippets from Joy Enriquez\n \"Shake Up the Party\"\n \"Situation\"\n \"I Can't Believe\"\n\nAustralian maxi-CD single\n \"Tell Me How You Feel\" – 4:06\n \"Tell Me How You Feel\" (Full Crew remix) – 4:04\n \"Between You and Me\" – 4:21\n \"How Can I Not Love You\" – 4:33\n\nEuropean CD single\n \"Tell Me How You Feel\" (album version) – 4:06\n \"Tell Me How You Feel\" (Full Crew remix) – 4:05\n\nEuropean maxi-CD single\n \"Tell Me How You Feel\" (album version) – 4:06\n \"Tell Me How You Feel\" (Full Crew remix) – 4:05\n \"Dime mi amor\" (Spanish version) – 3:59\n \"Tell Me How You Feel\" (instrumental) – 4:05\n\nJapanese CD single\n \"Tell Me How You Feel\"\n \"How Can I Not Love You\"\n\nCharts\n\nCertifications\n\nRelease history\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n at Discogs\n\n2000 singles\n2000 songs\n2001 singles\nArista Records singles\nSong recordings produced by Soulshock and Karlin\nSongs written by Kenneth Karlin\nSongs written by Soulshock"
]
|
[
"Hakeem Olajuwon",
"Dream Shake",
"What is Dream Shake?",
"Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake.",
"What did these moves consist of?",
"Shaquille O'Neal stated: \"Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves - that gives him 20 moves.\"",
"Did it always work against his opponents?",
"The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook.",
"When did he begin using the Dream Shake?",
"One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs.",
"Has anyone else used the Dream Shake?",
"I don't know.",
"What else can you tell me about the Dream Shake?",
"Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: \""
]
| C_1ddb552e4d134bd6a8e7879e823b6767_1 | How does he see it as a science? | 7 | How does Hakeem Olajuwon see Basketball as a science? | Hakeem Olajuwon | "The best footwork I've ever seen from a big man" --Pete Newell Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake. Executed with uncanny speed and power, they are still regarded as the pinnacle of "big man" footwork. Shaquille O'Neal stated: "Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves - that gives him 20 moves." Olajuwon himself traced the move back to the soccer-playing days of his youth. "The Dream Shake was actually one of my soccer moves which I translated to basketball. It would accomplish one of three things: one, to misdirect the opponent and make him go the opposite way; two, to freeze the opponent and leave him devastated in his tracks; three, to shake off the opponent and giving him no chance to contest the shot." The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook. One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs. With David Robinson guarding him, Olajuwon performed a cross-over, drove to the basket and faked a layup. Robinson, an excellent defender, kept up with Olajuwon and remained planted. Olajuwon spun counterclockwise and faked a jump shot. Robinson, who was voted the 1995 NBA MVP, fell for the fake and jumped to block the shot. With Robinson in the air, Olajuwon performed an up-and-under move and made an easy layup. Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: "When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move. I call it the 'touch landing.' The defender is waiting for me to come down because I jumped but I'm gone before I land. Defenders say 'Wow, he's quick,' but they don't know that where I'm going is predetermined. He's basing it on quickness, but the jump is to set him up. Before I come down, I make my move. When you jump, you turn as you land. Boom! The defender can't react because he's waiting for you to come down to defend you. Now, the first time when you showed that quickness, he has to react to that quickness, so you can fake baseline and go the other way with your jump hook. All this is part of the Dream Shake. The Dream Shake is you dribble and then you jump; now you don't have a pivot foot. When I dribble I move it so when I come here, I jump. By jumping, I don't have a pivot foot now. I dribble so now I can use either foot. I can go this way or this way. So he's frozen, he doesn't know which way I'm going to go. That is the shake. You put him in the mix and you jump stop and now you have choice of pivot foot. He doesn't know where you're gonna turn and when." CANNOTANSWER | "When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move. | Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon (; ; born January 21, 1963), nicknamed "the Dream", is a Nigerian-American former professional basketball player. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest centers and one of the greatest basketball players of all time. From 1984 to 2002, he played the center position in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Houston Rockets and eventually the Toronto Raptors. He led the Rockets to back-to-back NBA championships in 1994 and 1995. In 2008, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and in 2016, he was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame.
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Olajuwon traveled from his home country to play for the University of Houston under head coach Guy Lewis. His college career for the Cougars included three trips to the Final Four. Olajuwon was drafted by the Houston Rockets with the first overall selection of the 1984 NBA draft, a draft that included Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton. He combined with the Ralph Sampson to form a duo dubbed the "Twin Towers". The two led the Rockets to the 1986 NBA Finals, where they lost in six games to the Boston Celtics. After Sampson was traded to the Warriors in 1988, Olajuwon became the Rockets' undisputed leader. He led the league in rebounding twice (1989, 1990) and blocks three times (1990, 1991, 1993).
Despite very nearly being traded during a bitter contract dispute before the 1992–93 season, he remained in Houston. He became the first non-American to be an All-Star and start in an All-Star Game, the first non-American to win NBA MVP, the first non-American to win NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and in the 1993–94 season, he became the only player in NBA history to win the NBA MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and Finals MVP awards in the same season. His Rockets won back-to-back championships against the New York Knicks—avenging his college championship loss to Patrick Ewing—and Shaquille O'Neal's Orlando Magic. In 1996, Olajuwon was a member of the Olympic gold medal-winning United States national team, and he was selected as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. In October 2021, Olajuwon was honored as one of the league’s greatest players of all-time by being named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team. He ended his career as the league's all-time leader in blocks (3,830) and is one of four NBA players to record a quadruple-double.
Early life
Hakeem Olajuwon was born to Salim and Abike Olajuwon, working-class Yoruba owners of a cement business in Lagos, Nigeria. He was the third of eight children. He credits his parents with instilling virtues of hard work and discipline into him and his siblings: "They taught us to be honest, work hard, respect our elders, and believe in ourselves." Olajuwon has expressed displeasure at his childhood in Nigeria being characterized as backward. "Lagos is a very cosmopolitan city ... There are many ethnic groups. I grew up in an environment at schools where there were all different types of people."
During his youth, Olajuwon was a soccer goalkeeper, which helped give him the footwork and agility to balance his size and strength in basketball, and also contributed to his shot-blocking ability. Olajuwon did not play basketball until the age of 15 in high school, when he entered a local tournament while at the Muslim Teachers College in Lagos, Nigeria. It has been said that a coach in Nigeria once asked him to dunk and demonstrated while standing on a chair. Olajuwon then tried to stand on the chair himself. When redirected by staff not to use the chair, Hakeem could initially not dunk the basketball.
Despite early struggles, Olajuwon said: "Basketball is something that is so unique. That immediately I pick up the game and, you know, realize that this is the life for me. All the other sports just become obsolete."
College career
Olajuwon emigrated from Nigeria to play basketball at the University of Houston under Cougars coach Guy Lewis. Olajuwon was not highly recruited and was merely offered a visit to the university to work out for the coaching staff, based on a recommendation from a friend of Lewis who had seen Olajuwon play. He later recalled that when he originally arrived at the airport in 1980 for the visit, no representative of the school was there to greet him. When he called the staff, they told him to take a taxi out to the university.
After redshirting his freshman year in 1980–81 because he could not yet get clearance from the NCAA to play, Olajuwon came mostly off the bench and served as the Cougars' sixth man as a redshirt freshman in 1981–82, averaging 8.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.5 blocks, shooting 60% from the field in 18 minutes per game as Houston was eliminated in the Final Four by the eventual NCAA champion, North Carolina. Olajuwon sought advice from the coaching staff about how to increase his playing time, and they advised him to work out with local Houston resident and multiple NBA MVP winner, Moses Malone. Malone, who was then a center on the NBA's Houston Rockets, played games every off-season with several NBA players at the Fonde Recreation Center. Olajuwon joined the workouts and went head to head with Malone in several games throughout the summer. Olajuwon credited this experience with rapidly improving his game: "The way Moses helped me is by being out there playing and allowing me to go against that level of competition. He was the best center in the NBA at the time, so I was trying to improve my game against the best."
Olajuwon returned from that summer a different player. He was nicknamed "the Dream" during his basketball career after he dunked so effortlessly that his college coach said it "looked like a dream." He and his teammates (including Clyde Drexler) formed what was dubbed "Phi Slama Jama", the first slam-dunking "fraternity", so named because of its above-the-rim prowess. In his sophomore and junior years he helped the Cougars advance to consecutive NCAA championship games, where they lost to North Carolina State on a last-second tip-in in 1983 and a Patrick Ewing-led Georgetown team in 1984. He averaged 13.9 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 5.1 blocks in 1982–83 and 16.8 points, 13.5 rebounds, and 5.6 blocks in 1983–84. Olajuwon won the 1983 NCAA Tournament Player of the Year award, even though he played for the losing team in the final game. To date, he is the last player from a losing side to be granted this honor. Drexler departed for the NBA in 1983, leaving Olajuwon the lone star on the team.
After the 1983–84 season, Olajuwon debated whether to stay in college or declare early for the NBA draft. At that time, before the NBA Draft Lottery was introduced in 1985, the first pick was awarded by coin flip. Olajuwon recalled: "I really believed that Houston was going to win the coin flip and pick the first draft choice, and I really wanted to play in Houston so I had to make that decision (to leave early)." His intuition proved correct, and a lucky toss placed Houston ahead of the Portland Trail Blazers. Olajuwon was considered the top amateur prospect in the summer of 1984 over fellow collegians and future NBA stars Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton, and was selected first overall by the Rockets in the 1984 NBA draft.
In his autobiography Living the Dream, Olajuwon mentions an intriguing draft trade offered to the Rockets that would have sent Clyde Drexler and the number two pick in the 1984 NBA draft from Portland in exchange for Ralph Sampson. Had the Rockets made the deal, Olajuwon states the Rockets could have selected Jordan with the number two pick to play alongside Olajuwon and Drexler, who had established chemistry playing together during their Phi Slama Jama days in college. Sportswriter Sam Smith speculates that such a trade "would have changed league history and maybe the entire Michael Jordan legend." From 1991 to 1998, every NBA championship team included either Jordan or Olajuwon; furthermore, at least one of Drexler, Jordan, and Olajuwon was involved in every NBA Finals from 1990 to 1998.
Professional career
Houston Rockets (1984–2001)
Rookie and second years (1984–1987)
The Rockets had immediate success during Olajuwon's rookie season, as their win-loss record improved from 29 to 53 in 1983–84 to 48–34 in 1984–85. He teamed with the 1984 Rookie of the Year, 7 ft 4 in (2.24 m) Ralph Sampson to form the original NBA "Twin Towers" duo. Olajuwon averaged 20.6 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2.68 blocks in his rookie season. He finished as runner-up to Michael Jordan in the 1985 Rookie of the Year voting, and was the only other rookie to receive any votes.
Olajuwon averaged 23.5 points, 11.5 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game during his second pro season (1985–86). The Rockets finished 51–31, and advanced all the way to the Western Conference Finals where they faced the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers. The Rockets won the series fairly easily, four games to one, shocking the sports world and landing Olajuwon on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Olajuwon scored 75 points in victories in games three and four, and after the series Lakers coach Pat Riley remarked "We tried everything. We put four bodies on him. We helped from different angles. He's just a great player." The Rockets advanced to the 1986 NBA Finals where they lost in six games to the Boston Celtics, whose 1986 team is often considered one of the best teams in NBA history.
Mid-career years (1987–1993)
During the 1987–88 season, Sampson (who was struggling with knee injuries that would eventually end his career prematurely) was traded to the Golden State Warriors. The 1988–89 season was Olajuwon's first full season as the Rockets' undisputed leader. This change also coincided with the hiring of new coach Don Chaney. The Rockets ended the regular season with a record of 45–37, and Olajuwon finished the season as the league leader in rebounds (13.5 per game) by a full rebound per game over Charles Barkley. This performance was consistent with his averages of 24.8 points and 3.4 blocks. Olajuwon posted exceptional playoff numbers of 37.5 ppg and 16.8 rpg, plus a record for points in a four-game playoff series (150). Nevertheless, the Rockets were eliminated in the first round by the Seattle SuperSonics, 3 games to 1.
The 1989–90 season was a disappointment for the Rockets. They finished the season with a 41–41 record, and though they made the playoffs, were eliminated in four games by Los Angeles. Olajuwon put up one of the most productive defensive seasons by an interior player in the history of the NBA. He won the NBA rebounding crown (14.0 per game) again, this time by an even larger margin; a full two rebounds per game over David Robinson, and led the league in blocks by averaging 4.6 per game. He is the only player since the NBA started recording blocked shots in 1973–74 to average 14+ rebounds and 4.5+ blocked shots per game in the same season. In doing so he joined Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton as the only players in NBA history (at that point) to lead the league in rebounding and shot-blocking in the same season. Olajuwon also recorded a quadruple-double during the season, becoming only the third player in NBA history to do so.
The Rockets finished the 1990–91 season with a record of 52–30 under NBA Coach of the Year Chaney. Olajuwon averaged 21.8 points per game in 1990–91, but due to an injury to his eyesocket caused by an elbow from Bill Cartwright, did not play in enough games (56) to qualify for the rebounding title. Otherwise, he would have won it for a third consecutive year, averaging 13.8 a game (league leader Robinson averaged 13.0 rpg). He also averaged a league-leading 3.95 blocks per game. However, the Rockets were swept in the playoffs by the LA Lakers.
The following season was a low point for the Rockets during Olajuwon's tenure. They finished 42–40, and missed the playoffs for the first time in Olajuwon's career. He missed two weeks early in the season due to an accelerated heartbeat. Despite his usual strong numbers, he could not lift his team out of mediocrity. Since making the Finals in 1986, the Rockets had made the playoffs five times, but their record in those playoff series was 1–5 and they were eliminated in the first round four times. Following the season, Olajuwon requested a trade in part because of his bad contract; his salary was considerably low for a top center, and his contract specifically forbade re-negotiation. He also expressed displeasure with the organization's efforts to surround him with quality players. He felt the Rockets had cut corners at every turn, and were more concerned with the bottom line than winning. Management had also infuriated Olajuwon during the season when they accused of him of faking a hamstring injury because of his unhappiness over his contract situation. His agent cited his differences with the organization as being "irreconcilable", and Olajuwon publicly insulted owner Charlie Thomas and the team's front office. With the 1992–93 season approaching, a reporter for the Houston Chronicle said that Olajuwon being dealt was "as close to a sure thing as there is."
Nonetheless, he was not traded and the Rockets began the season with a new coach, Rudy Tomjanovich. Olajuwon improved his passing in 1992–93, setting a new career-high of 3.5 assists per game. This willingness to pass the ball increased his scoring, making it more difficult for opposing teams to double and triple-team him. Olajuwon set a new career-high with 26.1 points per game. The Rockets set a new franchise record with 55 wins, and advanced to the second round of the playoffs, pushing the Seattle SuperSonics to a seventh game before losing in overtime, 103–100. He finished second in the MVP race to Charles Barkley with 22 votes to Barkley's 59. The team rewarded him with a four-year contract extension toward the end of the regular season. In stark contrast to the previous year, the Rockets entered the 1993–94 season as a team on the rise. They had a solid core of young players and veterans, with a leader in Olajuwon who was entering his prime.
Championship years (1993–1995)
Olajuwon gained a reputation as a clutch performer and also as one of the top centers in history based on his performances in the 1993–94 and 1994–95 seasons. He outplayed centers such as Patrick Ewing, David Robinson, Shaquille O'Neal, and Dikembe Mutombo, and other defensive stalwarts such as Dennis Rodman and Karl Malone. Many of his battles were with his fellow Texas-based rival David Robinson of the San Antonio Spurs. In the 30 head–to–head match-ups during the seven seasons from the 1989 to 1996, when both Olajuwon and Robinson were in their prime, Olajuwon averaged 26.3 points per game, shooting 47.6% from the field, while Robinson averaged 22.1 and 46.8%.
Olajuwon led the Rockets to a championship in the 1994 NBA Finals in a seven-game series against the New York Knicks, the team of one of Olajuwon's perennial rivals since his collegiate days, Patrick Ewing. After being down 2–1, the Knicks took a 3–2 lead into Game 6. The Rockets were defending an 86–84 lead when in the last second, Knicks guard John Starks (who had already scored 27 points) went up for what would have been a Finals-winning three. Olajuwon pulled off a clutch play by blocking the shot as time expired. In Game 7, Olajuwon posted a game–high 25 points and 10 rebounds, which helped defeat the Knicks, bringing the first professional sports championship to Houston since the Houston Oilers won the American Football League championship in 1961. Olajuwon dominated Ewing in their head–to–head match-up, outscoring him in every game of the series and averaging 26.9 points per game on 50% shooting, compared to Ewing's 18.9 and 36.3%. For his efforts Olajuwon was named NBA Finals Most Valuable Player.
Olajuwon was at the pinnacle of his career. In 1994, he became the only player in NBA history to win the MVP, the Championship, the Finals MVP and Defensive Player of the Year awards in the same season. He was also the first foreign-born player to win the league's MVP award.
On December 1, 1994, Olajuwon recorded a triple-double 37 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists in a 113–109 win over the Golden State Warriors. But despite a slow start by the team, and Olajuwon missing eight games toward the end of the season with anemia, the Rockets repeated as champions in 1995. They were bolstered in part by the acquisition of Clyde Drexler, Olajuwon's former University of Houston "Phi Slama Jama" teammate, in a mid-season trade from the Portland Trail Blazers. Olajuwon averaged 27.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game during the regular season. Olajuwon displayed perhaps the most impressive moments of his career during the playoffs. San Antonio Spurs center David Robinson, recently crowned league MVP, was outplayed by Olajuwon in the Conference Finals: Olajuwon averaged 35.3 points on .560 shooting (Robinson's numbers were 23.8 and .449) and outscored Robinson 81–41 in the final two games. In the series-clinching game, Olajuwon recorded 39 points, 17 rebounds and 5 blocks. When asked later what a team could do to "solve" Olajuwon, Robinson told LIFE magazine: "Hakeem? You don't solve Hakeem." The Rockets won every road game that series. In the NBA Finals, the Rockets swept the Orlando Magic, who were led by a young Shaquille O'Neal. Olajuwon outscored O'Neal in every game, scoring more than 30 points in each and raising his regular-season rate by five while O'Neal's production dropped by one. Olajuwon was again named Finals MVP. He averaged 33.0 points on .531 shooting, 10.3 rebounds, and 2.81 blocks in the 1995 Playoffs. As in 1994, Olajuwon was the only Rockets All-Star.
Post-championship period (1995–2001)
The Rockets' two-year championship run ended when they were eliminated in the second round of the 1996 NBA Playoffs by the eventual Western Conference Champion Seattle SuperSonics. Michael Jordan had returned from an 18-month hiatus in March 1995, and his Chicago Bulls dominated the league for the next three years (1996–98). The Bulls and Rockets never met in the NBA Playoffs. The Rockets posted a 57–win season in 1996–97 season when they added Charles Barkley to their roster. They started the season 21–2, but lost the Western Conference Finals in six games to the Utah Jazz. After averaging 26.9 and 23.2 points in 1995–96 and 1996–97 respectively, Olajuwon's point production dipped to 16.4 in 1997–98. After the Rockets lost in the first round in five games to the Jazz in 1998, Drexler retired. In 1998–99 the Rockets acquired veteran All-Star Scottie Pippen and finished 31–19 in the lockout-shortened regular season. Olajuwon's scoring production rose to 18.9 points per game, and he made his twelfth and final All-NBA Team. However, they lost in the first round again, this time to the Lakers. After the season, Pippen was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers.
Toronto Raptors (2001–2002)
Houston began to rebuild, bringing in young guards Cuttino Mobley and 2000 NBA co-Rookie of the Year Steve Francis. On August 2, 2001, after refusing a $13 million deal with the Rockets, Olajuwon was traded to the Toronto Raptors for draft picks (the highest of which was used by Houston to draft Boštjan Nachbar at #15 in the 2002 NBA draft), with the player having a three-year contract that would give him $18 million. In his first game with the Raptors, he scored 11 points in just 22 minutes of playing time against the Magic. Olajuwon averaged career lows of 7.1 points and 6.0 rebounds per game in what would be his final season in the NBA, as he decided to retire in the fall of 2002, due to a back injury. Olajuwon retired as the all–time league leader in total blocked shots with 3,830, although shot-blocking did not become an official statistic until the 1973–74 NBA season.
Shortly after his retirement, his #34 jersey was retired by the Rockets.
For his NBA career, Olajuwon averaged 21.8 points on 51% shooting, 11.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 3.1 blocks in 1238 career games.
National team career
In 1980, before arriving in the US, Olajuwon played for a Nigerian junior team in the All-Africa Games. This created some problems when he tried to play for the United States men's national basketball team initially. FIBA rules prohibit players from representing more than one country in international competition, and players must go through a three-year waiting period for any nationality change. Olajuwon was ineligible for selection to the "Dream Team" as he hadn't become a US citizen.
Olajuwon became a naturalized American citizen on April 2, 1993. For the 1996 Olympics, he received a FIBA exemption and was eligible to play for Dream Team II. The team went on to win the gold medal in Atlanta. During the tournament, he shared his minutes with Shaquille O'Neal and David Robinson. He played 7 out of the 8 games and started 2. He averaged 5 points and 3.1 rebounds and had 8 assists and 6 steals in seven games.
Player profile
Olajuwon was highly skilled as both an offensive and defensive player. On defense, his rare combination of quickness and strength allowed him to guard a wide range of players effectively. He was noted for both his outstanding shot-blocking ability and his unique talent (for a frontcourt player) for stealing the ball. Olajuwon is the only player in NBA history to record more than 200 blocks and 200 steals in the same season. He averaged 3.09 blocks and 1.75 steals per game for his career. He is the only center to rank among the top ten all-time in steals. Olajuwon was also an outstanding rebounder, with a career average of 11.1 rebounds per game. He led the NBA in rebounding twice, during the 1989 and 1990 seasons. He was twice named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and was a five-time NBA All-Defensive First Team selection.
On offense, Olajuwon was famous for his deft shooting touch around the basket and his nimble footwork in the low post. With the ball, Hakeem displayed a vast array of fakes and spin moves, highlighted in his signature "Dream Shake" (see below). He was a prolific scorer, averaging 21.8 points per game for his career, and an above-average offensive rebounder, averaging 3.3 offensive rebounds per game. Additionally, Olajuwon became a skilled dribbler with an ability to score in "face-up" situations like a perimeter player. He is one of only four players to have recorded a quadruple-double in the NBA, which have only been possible since the 1973–74 season, when blocked shots and steals were first kept as statistics in the NBA.
Dream Shake
Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake. Executed with uncanny speed and power, they are still regarded as the pinnacle of "big man" footwork. Shaquille O'Neal stated: "Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves – that gives him 20 moves." Olajuwon himself traced the move back to the soccer-playing days of his youth. "The Dream Shake was actually one of my soccer moves which I translated to basketball. It would accomplish one of three things: one, to misdirect the opponent and make him go the opposite way; two, to freeze the opponent and leave him devastated in his tracks; three, to shake off the opponent and giving him no chance to contest the shot." The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook.
One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs. With David Robinson guarding him, Olajuwon performed a cross-over, drove to the basket and faked a layup. Robinson, an excellent defender, kept up with Olajuwon and remained planted. Olajuwon spun counterclockwise and faked a jump shot. Robinson, who was voted the 1995 NBA MVP, fell for the fake and jumped to block the shot. With Robinson in the air, Olajuwon performed an up-and-under move and made an easy layup.
Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: "When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move. I call it the 'touch landing.' The defender is waiting for me to come down because I jumped but I'm gone before I land. Defenders say 'Wow, he's quick,' but they don't know that where I'm going is predetermined. He's basing it on quickness, but the jump is to set him up. Before I come down, I make my move. When you jump, you turn as you land. Boom! The defender can't react because he's waiting for you to come down to defend you. Now, the first time when you showed that quickness, he has to react to that quickness, so you can fake baseline and go the other way with your jump hook. All this is part of the Dream Shake. The Dream Shake is you dribble and then you jump; now you don't have a pivot foot. When I dribble I move it so when I come here, I jump. By jumping, I don't have a pivot foot now. I dribble so now I can use either foot. I can go this way or this way. So he's frozen, he doesn't know which way I'm going to go. That is the shake. You put him in the mix and you jump stop and now you have choice of pivot foot. He doesn't know where you're gonna turn and when."
Personal life
Olajuwon married his current wife, Dalia Asafi, on August 8, 1996, in Houston. The couple have four children together; two daughters, Rahmah and Aisha and two sons, Abdullah and Abdul. Olajuwon also has an older daughter, Abisola from a previous relationship with Lita Spencer, whom he met in college. Abisola represented the West Girls in the McDonald's All-American Game and played in the WNBA.
In addition to English, Olajuwon is fluent in French, Arabic, and the Nigerian languages of Yoruba and Ekiti. He wrote his autobiography, Living the Dream, with co-author Peter Knobler in 1996. During his 18-year NBA career, Olajuwon earned more than $110 million in salary.
Olajuwon, who earlier in his career signed a shoe endorsement deal with LA Gear, later became the face of Spalding's athletic shoe line and endorsed The Dream, a sneaker that retailed in various outlets (such as Payless ShoeSource) for $34.99. This made him one of the very few well-known players in any professional sport to endorse a sneaker not from Nike, Reebok, Adidas, or other high-visibility retail brands. As Olajuwon declared: "How can a poor working mother with three boys buy Nikes or Reeboks that cost $120? ... She can't. So kids steal these shoes from stores and from other kids. Sometimes they kill for them."
Higher education
Attending college was also an important priority to Olajuwon. At the University of Houston, Olajuwon was a physical education major.
Muslim faith
In Olajuwon's college career and early years in the NBA, he was often undisciplined, talking back to officials, getting in minor fights with other players and amassing technical fouls. Later, Olajuwon took an active interest in spirituality, becoming a more devout Muslim. On March 9, 1991, he altered his name from Akeem to the more conventional spelling of Hakeem, saying, "I'm not changing the spelling of my name, I'm correcting it". He later recalled, "I studied the Qur'an every day. At home, at the mosque ... I would read it in airplanes, before games and after them. I was soaking up the faith and learning new meanings each time I turned a page. I didn't dabble in the faith, I gave myself over to it." "His religion dominates his life", Drexler said in 1995. Olajuwon was still recognized as one of the league's elite centers despite his strict observance of Ramadan (i.e., abstaining from food and drink during daylight hours for about a month), which occurred during the playing season throughout his career. Olajuwon was noted as sometimes playing better during the month of Ramadan, and in 1995 he was named NBA Player of the Month in February, even though Ramadan began on February 1 of that year.
Post-NBA life
Olajuwon played for 20 consecutive seasons in Houston, first collegiately for the University of Houston Cougars and then professionally with the Houston Rockets. He is considered a Houston icon and one of the city's most beloved citizens. Olajuwon has had great success in the Houston real estate market, with his estimated profits exceeding $100 million. He buys in cash-only purchases, as it is against Islamic law to pay interest. Olajuwon splits his time between Jordan, where he moved with his family to pursue Islamic studies, and his ranch near Houston.
In the 2006 NBA offseason, Olajuwon opened his first Big Man Camp, where he teaches young frontcourt players the finer points of playing in the post. While Olajuwon never expressed an interest in coaching a team, he wishes to give back to the game by helping younger players. When asked whether the league was becoming more guard-oriented and big men were being de-emphasized, Olajuwon responded, "For a big man who is just big, maybe. But not if you play with speed, with agility. It will always be a big man's game if the big man plays the right way. On defense, the big man can rebound and block shots. On offense, he draws double-teams and creates opportunities. He can add so much, make it easier for the entire team." He runs the camp for free. Olajuwon has worked with several NBA players, including power forward Emeka Okafor, and center Yao Ming. In September 2009, he also worked with Kobe Bryant on the post moves and the Dream Shake. More recently he has been working with Dwight Howard, helping him diversify his post moves and encouraging more mental focus. In the 2011 offseason, LeBron James flew to Houston and spent time working with Olajuwon. Olajuwon has also worked with Ömer Aşık, Donatas Motiejūnas, Amar'e Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony, JaVale McGee and Kenneth Faried. In an interview with the Sporting News in April 2016, Olajuwon said that Kobe Bryant was his best low-post student. He stated, "I’ve worked with a lot of players, but the one who really capitalized on it the most is Kobe Bryant. When I watch him play, he’ll go down in the post comfortably, naturally, and he’ll execute it perfectly."
Olajuwon was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2008. On April 10, 2008, the Rockets unveiled a sculpture in honor of him outside the Toyota Center.
Olajuwon attended the 2013 NBA Draft to bid farewell to retiring commissioner David Stern as Stern made his announcement for the final pick of the first round. Olajuwon was the first pick announced by Stern back in 1984.
On August 1, 2015, Olajuwon made a special appearance for Team Africa at the 2015 NBA Africa exhibition game. He became a member of the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016.
Awards and achievements
2× NBA champion (1994, 1995)
2× NBA Finals MVP (1994, 1995)
1× NBA MVP (1994)
2× NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1993, 1994)
6× All-NBA First Team (1987, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1997)
3× All-NBA Second Team (1986, 1990, 1996)
3× All-NBA Third Team (1991, 1995, 1999)
5× NBA All-Defensive First Team (1987, 1988, 1990, 1993, 1994)
4× NBA All-Defensive Second Team (1985, 1991, 1996, 1997)
12× NBA All-Star
Olympic gold medalist (1996)
Named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996).
Named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team
Olajuwon ended his career in the top eleven all-time in blocks, scoring, rebounding, and steals. He is the only player in NBA history to retire in the top eleven for all four categories (he is now 13th all-time in rebounding).
Olajuwon was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2008, as well as to the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016.
Ranked #10 in ESPN'''s All-Time #NBArank: Counting down the greatest players ever (published in 2016)
Ranked #12 in SLAM Magazines 2018 revision of the top 100 greatest players of all time (published in the January 2018 issue)
NBA career statistics
Regular season
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 35.5 || .538 || || .613 || 11.9 || 1.4 || 1.2 || 2.7 || 20.6
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 68 || 68 || 36.3 || .526 || || .645 || 11.5 || 2.0 || 2.0 || 3.4 || 23.5
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 75 || 75 || 36.8 || .508 || .200 || .702 || 11.4 || 2.9 || 1.9 || 3.4 || 23.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 79 || 79 || 35.8 || .514 || .000 || .695 || 12.1 || 2.1 || 2.1 || 2.7 || 22.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 36.9 || .508 || .000 || .696 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|13.5* || 1.8 || 2.6 || 3.4 || 24.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 38.1 || .501 || .167 || .713 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|14.0* || 2.9 || 2.1 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|4.6* || 24.3
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 56 || 50 || 36.8 || .508 || .000 || .769 || 13.8 || 2.3 || 2.2 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|3.9* || 21.2
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 70 || 69 || 37.7 || .502 || .000 || .766 || 12.1 || 2.2 || 1.8 || 4.3 || 21.6
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 82 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 39.5 || .529 || .000 || .779 || 13.0 || 3.5 || 1.8 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|4.2* || 26.1
|-
| style="text-align:left; background:#AFE6BA;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 80 || 80 || 41.0 || .528 || .421 || .716 || 11.9 || 3.6 || 1.6 || 3.7 || 27.3
|-
| style="text-align:left; background:#AFE6BA;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 72 || 72 || 39.6 || .517 || .188 || .756 || 10.8 || 3.5 || 1.8 || 3.4 || 27.8|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 72 || 72 || 38.8 || .514 || .214 || .724 || 10.9 || 3.6 || 1.6 || 2.9 || 26.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 78 || 78 || 36.6 || .510 || .313 || .787' || 9.2 || 3.0 || 1.5 || 2.2 || 23.2
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 47 || 45 || 34.7 || .483 || .000 || .755 || 9.8 || 3.0 || 1.8 || 2.0 || 16.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|50* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|50* || 35.7 || .514 || .308 || .717 || 9.6 || 1.8 || 1.6 || 2.5 || 18.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 44 || 28 || 23.8 || .458 || .000 || .616 || 6.2 || 1.4 || .9 || 1.6 || 10.3
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 58 || 55 || 26.6 || .498 || .000 || .621 || 7.4 || 1.2 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 11.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Toronto
| 61 || 37 || 22.6 || .464 || .000 || .560 || 6.0 || 1.1 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 7.1
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Career
| 1,238 || 1,186 || 35.7 || .512 || .202 || .712 || 11.1 || 2.5 || 1.7 || 3.1 || 21.8
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|All-Star
| 12 || 8 || 23.2 || .409 || 1.000 || .520 || 7.8 || 1.4 || 1.3 || 1.9 || 9.8
Playoffs
See also
List of National Basketball Association career games played leaders
List of National Basketball Association career scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association franchise career scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career steals leaders
List of National Basketball Association career blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association career turnovers leaders
List of National Basketball Association career free throw scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career minutes played leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff steals leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff turnovers leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff free throw scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association annual rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association annual blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association players with most blocks in a game
List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season rebounding leaders
Islam in Houston
References
Sources
Harris, Othello, Nolte, Claire Elaine, and Kirsch, George B. Encyclopedia of Ethnicity and Sports in the United States, Greenwood Press. 2000
Heisler, Mark. Big Men Who Shook the NBA. Triumph Books. 2003
Olajuwon, Hakeem with Knobler, Peter. Living the Dream: My Life and Basketball. Little, Brown and Company. 1996
Simmons, Bill, The Book of Basketball: The NBA According to the Sports Guy'', ESPN 2009
External links
Hakeem Olajuwon entry at NBA Encyclopedia
Hakeem Olajuwon player profile at NBA.com
1963 births
Living people
African-American Muslims
All-American college men's basketball players
American expatriate basketball people in Canada
American men's basketball players
American people of Yoruba descent
Basketball players at the 1982 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1983 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1984 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Centers (basketball)
FIBA Hall of Fame inductees
Houston Cougars men's basketball players
Houston Rockets draft picks
Houston Rockets players
Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees
National Basketball Association All-Stars
National Basketball Association players from Nigeria
National Basketball Association players with retired numbers
Nigerian emigrants to the United States
Nigerian expatriate basketball people in Canada
Nigerian expatriate basketball people in the United States
Nigerian men's basketball players
Olympic gold medalists for the United States in basketball
People from Sugar Land, Texas
People with acquired American citizenship
Basketball players from Houston
Sportspeople from Lagos
Toronto Raptors players
United States men's national basketball team players
Yoruba sportspeople | true | [
"War of the Worldviews: Science vs. Spirituality is a book written by Deepak Chopra and Leonard Mlodinow, which was published in 2011, and is a debate between views on science and spirituality.\n\nPremise\nThe book is written as a series of essays by each author on a mutually-agreed-upon list of 18 questions. The science worldview is represented by Mlodinow and the spirituality worldview is represented by Chopra. Each presents his side which is followed by the other person's rebuttal.\n\nOverall\nMlodinow suggests that \"the universe operates according to laws of physics while acknowledging that science does not address why the laws exist or how they arise\". Chopra says that \"the laws of nature as well as mathematics share the same source as human consciousness\".\n\nSee also\nThe Tao of Physics\n\nReferences\n\n2011 non-fiction books\nBritish books\nBooks about spirituality\nBooks about religion and science\nDebates",
"Science In Society: An Introduction to Social Studies of Science () is a 2004 book by Massimiano Bucchi. The book explains how science works, what sociologists find to be of interest, and how scientific knowledge is produced. There are chapters on the relevance of science to contemporary life, Kuhn's work and its modern relevance, as well as the role of scientific communication.\n\nSee also\nList of books about the politics of science\n\nReferences\n\n2004 non-fiction books\nScience books\nSociology of science\nEpistemology"
]
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[
"Hakeem Olajuwon",
"Dream Shake",
"What is Dream Shake?",
"Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake.",
"What did these moves consist of?",
"Shaquille O'Neal stated: \"Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves - that gives him 20 moves.\"",
"Did it always work against his opponents?",
"The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook.",
"When did he begin using the Dream Shake?",
"One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs.",
"Has anyone else used the Dream Shake?",
"I don't know.",
"What else can you tell me about the Dream Shake?",
"Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: \"",
"How does he see it as a science?",
"\"When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move."
]
| C_1ddb552e4d134bd6a8e7879e823b6767_1 | Has anyone ever used the dream shake to defend him? | 8 | Has anyone ever used the dream shake to defend against Hakeem Olajuwon? | Hakeem Olajuwon | "The best footwork I've ever seen from a big man" --Pete Newell Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake. Executed with uncanny speed and power, they are still regarded as the pinnacle of "big man" footwork. Shaquille O'Neal stated: "Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves - that gives him 20 moves." Olajuwon himself traced the move back to the soccer-playing days of his youth. "The Dream Shake was actually one of my soccer moves which I translated to basketball. It would accomplish one of three things: one, to misdirect the opponent and make him go the opposite way; two, to freeze the opponent and leave him devastated in his tracks; three, to shake off the opponent and giving him no chance to contest the shot." The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook. One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs. With David Robinson guarding him, Olajuwon performed a cross-over, drove to the basket and faked a layup. Robinson, an excellent defender, kept up with Olajuwon and remained planted. Olajuwon spun counterclockwise and faked a jump shot. Robinson, who was voted the 1995 NBA MVP, fell for the fake and jumped to block the shot. With Robinson in the air, Olajuwon performed an up-and-under move and made an easy layup. Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: "When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move. I call it the 'touch landing.' The defender is waiting for me to come down because I jumped but I'm gone before I land. Defenders say 'Wow, he's quick,' but they don't know that where I'm going is predetermined. He's basing it on quickness, but the jump is to set him up. Before I come down, I make my move. When you jump, you turn as you land. Boom! The defender can't react because he's waiting for you to come down to defend you. Now, the first time when you showed that quickness, he has to react to that quickness, so you can fake baseline and go the other way with your jump hook. All this is part of the Dream Shake. The Dream Shake is you dribble and then you jump; now you don't have a pivot foot. When I dribble I move it so when I come here, I jump. By jumping, I don't have a pivot foot now. I dribble so now I can use either foot. I can go this way or this way. So he's frozen, he doesn't know which way I'm going to go. That is the shake. You put him in the mix and you jump stop and now you have choice of pivot foot. He doesn't know where you're gonna turn and when." CANNOTANSWER | Robinson, an excellent defender, kept up with Olajuwon and remained planted. | Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon (; ; born January 21, 1963), nicknamed "the Dream", is a Nigerian-American former professional basketball player. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest centers and one of the greatest basketball players of all time. From 1984 to 2002, he played the center position in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Houston Rockets and eventually the Toronto Raptors. He led the Rockets to back-to-back NBA championships in 1994 and 1995. In 2008, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and in 2016, he was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame.
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Olajuwon traveled from his home country to play for the University of Houston under head coach Guy Lewis. His college career for the Cougars included three trips to the Final Four. Olajuwon was drafted by the Houston Rockets with the first overall selection of the 1984 NBA draft, a draft that included Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton. He combined with the Ralph Sampson to form a duo dubbed the "Twin Towers". The two led the Rockets to the 1986 NBA Finals, where they lost in six games to the Boston Celtics. After Sampson was traded to the Warriors in 1988, Olajuwon became the Rockets' undisputed leader. He led the league in rebounding twice (1989, 1990) and blocks three times (1990, 1991, 1993).
Despite very nearly being traded during a bitter contract dispute before the 1992–93 season, he remained in Houston. He became the first non-American to be an All-Star and start in an All-Star Game, the first non-American to win NBA MVP, the first non-American to win NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and in the 1993–94 season, he became the only player in NBA history to win the NBA MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and Finals MVP awards in the same season. His Rockets won back-to-back championships against the New York Knicks—avenging his college championship loss to Patrick Ewing—and Shaquille O'Neal's Orlando Magic. In 1996, Olajuwon was a member of the Olympic gold medal-winning United States national team, and he was selected as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. In October 2021, Olajuwon was honored as one of the league’s greatest players of all-time by being named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team. He ended his career as the league's all-time leader in blocks (3,830) and is one of four NBA players to record a quadruple-double.
Early life
Hakeem Olajuwon was born to Salim and Abike Olajuwon, working-class Yoruba owners of a cement business in Lagos, Nigeria. He was the third of eight children. He credits his parents with instilling virtues of hard work and discipline into him and his siblings: "They taught us to be honest, work hard, respect our elders, and believe in ourselves." Olajuwon has expressed displeasure at his childhood in Nigeria being characterized as backward. "Lagos is a very cosmopolitan city ... There are many ethnic groups. I grew up in an environment at schools where there were all different types of people."
During his youth, Olajuwon was a soccer goalkeeper, which helped give him the footwork and agility to balance his size and strength in basketball, and also contributed to his shot-blocking ability. Olajuwon did not play basketball until the age of 15 in high school, when he entered a local tournament while at the Muslim Teachers College in Lagos, Nigeria. It has been said that a coach in Nigeria once asked him to dunk and demonstrated while standing on a chair. Olajuwon then tried to stand on the chair himself. When redirected by staff not to use the chair, Hakeem could initially not dunk the basketball.
Despite early struggles, Olajuwon said: "Basketball is something that is so unique. That immediately I pick up the game and, you know, realize that this is the life for me. All the other sports just become obsolete."
College career
Olajuwon emigrated from Nigeria to play basketball at the University of Houston under Cougars coach Guy Lewis. Olajuwon was not highly recruited and was merely offered a visit to the university to work out for the coaching staff, based on a recommendation from a friend of Lewis who had seen Olajuwon play. He later recalled that when he originally arrived at the airport in 1980 for the visit, no representative of the school was there to greet him. When he called the staff, they told him to take a taxi out to the university.
After redshirting his freshman year in 1980–81 because he could not yet get clearance from the NCAA to play, Olajuwon came mostly off the bench and served as the Cougars' sixth man as a redshirt freshman in 1981–82, averaging 8.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.5 blocks, shooting 60% from the field in 18 minutes per game as Houston was eliminated in the Final Four by the eventual NCAA champion, North Carolina. Olajuwon sought advice from the coaching staff about how to increase his playing time, and they advised him to work out with local Houston resident and multiple NBA MVP winner, Moses Malone. Malone, who was then a center on the NBA's Houston Rockets, played games every off-season with several NBA players at the Fonde Recreation Center. Olajuwon joined the workouts and went head to head with Malone in several games throughout the summer. Olajuwon credited this experience with rapidly improving his game: "The way Moses helped me is by being out there playing and allowing me to go against that level of competition. He was the best center in the NBA at the time, so I was trying to improve my game against the best."
Olajuwon returned from that summer a different player. He was nicknamed "the Dream" during his basketball career after he dunked so effortlessly that his college coach said it "looked like a dream." He and his teammates (including Clyde Drexler) formed what was dubbed "Phi Slama Jama", the first slam-dunking "fraternity", so named because of its above-the-rim prowess. In his sophomore and junior years he helped the Cougars advance to consecutive NCAA championship games, where they lost to North Carolina State on a last-second tip-in in 1983 and a Patrick Ewing-led Georgetown team in 1984. He averaged 13.9 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 5.1 blocks in 1982–83 and 16.8 points, 13.5 rebounds, and 5.6 blocks in 1983–84. Olajuwon won the 1983 NCAA Tournament Player of the Year award, even though he played for the losing team in the final game. To date, he is the last player from a losing side to be granted this honor. Drexler departed for the NBA in 1983, leaving Olajuwon the lone star on the team.
After the 1983–84 season, Olajuwon debated whether to stay in college or declare early for the NBA draft. At that time, before the NBA Draft Lottery was introduced in 1985, the first pick was awarded by coin flip. Olajuwon recalled: "I really believed that Houston was going to win the coin flip and pick the first draft choice, and I really wanted to play in Houston so I had to make that decision (to leave early)." His intuition proved correct, and a lucky toss placed Houston ahead of the Portland Trail Blazers. Olajuwon was considered the top amateur prospect in the summer of 1984 over fellow collegians and future NBA stars Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton, and was selected first overall by the Rockets in the 1984 NBA draft.
In his autobiography Living the Dream, Olajuwon mentions an intriguing draft trade offered to the Rockets that would have sent Clyde Drexler and the number two pick in the 1984 NBA draft from Portland in exchange for Ralph Sampson. Had the Rockets made the deal, Olajuwon states the Rockets could have selected Jordan with the number two pick to play alongside Olajuwon and Drexler, who had established chemistry playing together during their Phi Slama Jama days in college. Sportswriter Sam Smith speculates that such a trade "would have changed league history and maybe the entire Michael Jordan legend." From 1991 to 1998, every NBA championship team included either Jordan or Olajuwon; furthermore, at least one of Drexler, Jordan, and Olajuwon was involved in every NBA Finals from 1990 to 1998.
Professional career
Houston Rockets (1984–2001)
Rookie and second years (1984–1987)
The Rockets had immediate success during Olajuwon's rookie season, as their win-loss record improved from 29 to 53 in 1983–84 to 48–34 in 1984–85. He teamed with the 1984 Rookie of the Year, 7 ft 4 in (2.24 m) Ralph Sampson to form the original NBA "Twin Towers" duo. Olajuwon averaged 20.6 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2.68 blocks in his rookie season. He finished as runner-up to Michael Jordan in the 1985 Rookie of the Year voting, and was the only other rookie to receive any votes.
Olajuwon averaged 23.5 points, 11.5 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game during his second pro season (1985–86). The Rockets finished 51–31, and advanced all the way to the Western Conference Finals where they faced the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers. The Rockets won the series fairly easily, four games to one, shocking the sports world and landing Olajuwon on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Olajuwon scored 75 points in victories in games three and four, and after the series Lakers coach Pat Riley remarked "We tried everything. We put four bodies on him. We helped from different angles. He's just a great player." The Rockets advanced to the 1986 NBA Finals where they lost in six games to the Boston Celtics, whose 1986 team is often considered one of the best teams in NBA history.
Mid-career years (1987–1993)
During the 1987–88 season, Sampson (who was struggling with knee injuries that would eventually end his career prematurely) was traded to the Golden State Warriors. The 1988–89 season was Olajuwon's first full season as the Rockets' undisputed leader. This change also coincided with the hiring of new coach Don Chaney. The Rockets ended the regular season with a record of 45–37, and Olajuwon finished the season as the league leader in rebounds (13.5 per game) by a full rebound per game over Charles Barkley. This performance was consistent with his averages of 24.8 points and 3.4 blocks. Olajuwon posted exceptional playoff numbers of 37.5 ppg and 16.8 rpg, plus a record for points in a four-game playoff series (150). Nevertheless, the Rockets were eliminated in the first round by the Seattle SuperSonics, 3 games to 1.
The 1989–90 season was a disappointment for the Rockets. They finished the season with a 41–41 record, and though they made the playoffs, were eliminated in four games by Los Angeles. Olajuwon put up one of the most productive defensive seasons by an interior player in the history of the NBA. He won the NBA rebounding crown (14.0 per game) again, this time by an even larger margin; a full two rebounds per game over David Robinson, and led the league in blocks by averaging 4.6 per game. He is the only player since the NBA started recording blocked shots in 1973–74 to average 14+ rebounds and 4.5+ blocked shots per game in the same season. In doing so he joined Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton as the only players in NBA history (at that point) to lead the league in rebounding and shot-blocking in the same season. Olajuwon also recorded a quadruple-double during the season, becoming only the third player in NBA history to do so.
The Rockets finished the 1990–91 season with a record of 52–30 under NBA Coach of the Year Chaney. Olajuwon averaged 21.8 points per game in 1990–91, but due to an injury to his eyesocket caused by an elbow from Bill Cartwright, did not play in enough games (56) to qualify for the rebounding title. Otherwise, he would have won it for a third consecutive year, averaging 13.8 a game (league leader Robinson averaged 13.0 rpg). He also averaged a league-leading 3.95 blocks per game. However, the Rockets were swept in the playoffs by the LA Lakers.
The following season was a low point for the Rockets during Olajuwon's tenure. They finished 42–40, and missed the playoffs for the first time in Olajuwon's career. He missed two weeks early in the season due to an accelerated heartbeat. Despite his usual strong numbers, he could not lift his team out of mediocrity. Since making the Finals in 1986, the Rockets had made the playoffs five times, but their record in those playoff series was 1–5 and they were eliminated in the first round four times. Following the season, Olajuwon requested a trade in part because of his bad contract; his salary was considerably low for a top center, and his contract specifically forbade re-negotiation. He also expressed displeasure with the organization's efforts to surround him with quality players. He felt the Rockets had cut corners at every turn, and were more concerned with the bottom line than winning. Management had also infuriated Olajuwon during the season when they accused of him of faking a hamstring injury because of his unhappiness over his contract situation. His agent cited his differences with the organization as being "irreconcilable", and Olajuwon publicly insulted owner Charlie Thomas and the team's front office. With the 1992–93 season approaching, a reporter for the Houston Chronicle said that Olajuwon being dealt was "as close to a sure thing as there is."
Nonetheless, he was not traded and the Rockets began the season with a new coach, Rudy Tomjanovich. Olajuwon improved his passing in 1992–93, setting a new career-high of 3.5 assists per game. This willingness to pass the ball increased his scoring, making it more difficult for opposing teams to double and triple-team him. Olajuwon set a new career-high with 26.1 points per game. The Rockets set a new franchise record with 55 wins, and advanced to the second round of the playoffs, pushing the Seattle SuperSonics to a seventh game before losing in overtime, 103–100. He finished second in the MVP race to Charles Barkley with 22 votes to Barkley's 59. The team rewarded him with a four-year contract extension toward the end of the regular season. In stark contrast to the previous year, the Rockets entered the 1993–94 season as a team on the rise. They had a solid core of young players and veterans, with a leader in Olajuwon who was entering his prime.
Championship years (1993–1995)
Olajuwon gained a reputation as a clutch performer and also as one of the top centers in history based on his performances in the 1993–94 and 1994–95 seasons. He outplayed centers such as Patrick Ewing, David Robinson, Shaquille O'Neal, and Dikembe Mutombo, and other defensive stalwarts such as Dennis Rodman and Karl Malone. Many of his battles were with his fellow Texas-based rival David Robinson of the San Antonio Spurs. In the 30 head–to–head match-ups during the seven seasons from the 1989 to 1996, when both Olajuwon and Robinson were in their prime, Olajuwon averaged 26.3 points per game, shooting 47.6% from the field, while Robinson averaged 22.1 and 46.8%.
Olajuwon led the Rockets to a championship in the 1994 NBA Finals in a seven-game series against the New York Knicks, the team of one of Olajuwon's perennial rivals since his collegiate days, Patrick Ewing. After being down 2–1, the Knicks took a 3–2 lead into Game 6. The Rockets were defending an 86–84 lead when in the last second, Knicks guard John Starks (who had already scored 27 points) went up for what would have been a Finals-winning three. Olajuwon pulled off a clutch play by blocking the shot as time expired. In Game 7, Olajuwon posted a game–high 25 points and 10 rebounds, which helped defeat the Knicks, bringing the first professional sports championship to Houston since the Houston Oilers won the American Football League championship in 1961. Olajuwon dominated Ewing in their head–to–head match-up, outscoring him in every game of the series and averaging 26.9 points per game on 50% shooting, compared to Ewing's 18.9 and 36.3%. For his efforts Olajuwon was named NBA Finals Most Valuable Player.
Olajuwon was at the pinnacle of his career. In 1994, he became the only player in NBA history to win the MVP, the Championship, the Finals MVP and Defensive Player of the Year awards in the same season. He was also the first foreign-born player to win the league's MVP award.
On December 1, 1994, Olajuwon recorded a triple-double 37 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists in a 113–109 win over the Golden State Warriors. But despite a slow start by the team, and Olajuwon missing eight games toward the end of the season with anemia, the Rockets repeated as champions in 1995. They were bolstered in part by the acquisition of Clyde Drexler, Olajuwon's former University of Houston "Phi Slama Jama" teammate, in a mid-season trade from the Portland Trail Blazers. Olajuwon averaged 27.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game during the regular season. Olajuwon displayed perhaps the most impressive moments of his career during the playoffs. San Antonio Spurs center David Robinson, recently crowned league MVP, was outplayed by Olajuwon in the Conference Finals: Olajuwon averaged 35.3 points on .560 shooting (Robinson's numbers were 23.8 and .449) and outscored Robinson 81–41 in the final two games. In the series-clinching game, Olajuwon recorded 39 points, 17 rebounds and 5 blocks. When asked later what a team could do to "solve" Olajuwon, Robinson told LIFE magazine: "Hakeem? You don't solve Hakeem." The Rockets won every road game that series. In the NBA Finals, the Rockets swept the Orlando Magic, who were led by a young Shaquille O'Neal. Olajuwon outscored O'Neal in every game, scoring more than 30 points in each and raising his regular-season rate by five while O'Neal's production dropped by one. Olajuwon was again named Finals MVP. He averaged 33.0 points on .531 shooting, 10.3 rebounds, and 2.81 blocks in the 1995 Playoffs. As in 1994, Olajuwon was the only Rockets All-Star.
Post-championship period (1995–2001)
The Rockets' two-year championship run ended when they were eliminated in the second round of the 1996 NBA Playoffs by the eventual Western Conference Champion Seattle SuperSonics. Michael Jordan had returned from an 18-month hiatus in March 1995, and his Chicago Bulls dominated the league for the next three years (1996–98). The Bulls and Rockets never met in the NBA Playoffs. The Rockets posted a 57–win season in 1996–97 season when they added Charles Barkley to their roster. They started the season 21–2, but lost the Western Conference Finals in six games to the Utah Jazz. After averaging 26.9 and 23.2 points in 1995–96 and 1996–97 respectively, Olajuwon's point production dipped to 16.4 in 1997–98. After the Rockets lost in the first round in five games to the Jazz in 1998, Drexler retired. In 1998–99 the Rockets acquired veteran All-Star Scottie Pippen and finished 31–19 in the lockout-shortened regular season. Olajuwon's scoring production rose to 18.9 points per game, and he made his twelfth and final All-NBA Team. However, they lost in the first round again, this time to the Lakers. After the season, Pippen was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers.
Toronto Raptors (2001–2002)
Houston began to rebuild, bringing in young guards Cuttino Mobley and 2000 NBA co-Rookie of the Year Steve Francis. On August 2, 2001, after refusing a $13 million deal with the Rockets, Olajuwon was traded to the Toronto Raptors for draft picks (the highest of which was used by Houston to draft Boštjan Nachbar at #15 in the 2002 NBA draft), with the player having a three-year contract that would give him $18 million. In his first game with the Raptors, he scored 11 points in just 22 minutes of playing time against the Magic. Olajuwon averaged career lows of 7.1 points and 6.0 rebounds per game in what would be his final season in the NBA, as he decided to retire in the fall of 2002, due to a back injury. Olajuwon retired as the all–time league leader in total blocked shots with 3,830, although shot-blocking did not become an official statistic until the 1973–74 NBA season.
Shortly after his retirement, his #34 jersey was retired by the Rockets.
For his NBA career, Olajuwon averaged 21.8 points on 51% shooting, 11.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 3.1 blocks in 1238 career games.
National team career
In 1980, before arriving in the US, Olajuwon played for a Nigerian junior team in the All-Africa Games. This created some problems when he tried to play for the United States men's national basketball team initially. FIBA rules prohibit players from representing more than one country in international competition, and players must go through a three-year waiting period for any nationality change. Olajuwon was ineligible for selection to the "Dream Team" as he hadn't become a US citizen.
Olajuwon became a naturalized American citizen on April 2, 1993. For the 1996 Olympics, he received a FIBA exemption and was eligible to play for Dream Team II. The team went on to win the gold medal in Atlanta. During the tournament, he shared his minutes with Shaquille O'Neal and David Robinson. He played 7 out of the 8 games and started 2. He averaged 5 points and 3.1 rebounds and had 8 assists and 6 steals in seven games.
Player profile
Olajuwon was highly skilled as both an offensive and defensive player. On defense, his rare combination of quickness and strength allowed him to guard a wide range of players effectively. He was noted for both his outstanding shot-blocking ability and his unique talent (for a frontcourt player) for stealing the ball. Olajuwon is the only player in NBA history to record more than 200 blocks and 200 steals in the same season. He averaged 3.09 blocks and 1.75 steals per game for his career. He is the only center to rank among the top ten all-time in steals. Olajuwon was also an outstanding rebounder, with a career average of 11.1 rebounds per game. He led the NBA in rebounding twice, during the 1989 and 1990 seasons. He was twice named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and was a five-time NBA All-Defensive First Team selection.
On offense, Olajuwon was famous for his deft shooting touch around the basket and his nimble footwork in the low post. With the ball, Hakeem displayed a vast array of fakes and spin moves, highlighted in his signature "Dream Shake" (see below). He was a prolific scorer, averaging 21.8 points per game for his career, and an above-average offensive rebounder, averaging 3.3 offensive rebounds per game. Additionally, Olajuwon became a skilled dribbler with an ability to score in "face-up" situations like a perimeter player. He is one of only four players to have recorded a quadruple-double in the NBA, which have only been possible since the 1973–74 season, when blocked shots and steals were first kept as statistics in the NBA.
Dream Shake
Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake. Executed with uncanny speed and power, they are still regarded as the pinnacle of "big man" footwork. Shaquille O'Neal stated: "Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves – that gives him 20 moves." Olajuwon himself traced the move back to the soccer-playing days of his youth. "The Dream Shake was actually one of my soccer moves which I translated to basketball. It would accomplish one of three things: one, to misdirect the opponent and make him go the opposite way; two, to freeze the opponent and leave him devastated in his tracks; three, to shake off the opponent and giving him no chance to contest the shot." The Dream Shake was very difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky-hook.
One notable Dream Shake happened in Game 2 of the 1995 Western Conference Finals against the Spurs. With David Robinson guarding him, Olajuwon performed a cross-over, drove to the basket and faked a layup. Robinson, an excellent defender, kept up with Olajuwon and remained planted. Olajuwon spun counterclockwise and faked a jump shot. Robinson, who was voted the 1995 NBA MVP, fell for the fake and jumped to block the shot. With Robinson in the air, Olajuwon performed an up-and-under move and made an easy layup.
Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: "When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move. I call it the 'touch landing.' The defender is waiting for me to come down because I jumped but I'm gone before I land. Defenders say 'Wow, he's quick,' but they don't know that where I'm going is predetermined. He's basing it on quickness, but the jump is to set him up. Before I come down, I make my move. When you jump, you turn as you land. Boom! The defender can't react because he's waiting for you to come down to defend you. Now, the first time when you showed that quickness, he has to react to that quickness, so you can fake baseline and go the other way with your jump hook. All this is part of the Dream Shake. The Dream Shake is you dribble and then you jump; now you don't have a pivot foot. When I dribble I move it so when I come here, I jump. By jumping, I don't have a pivot foot now. I dribble so now I can use either foot. I can go this way or this way. So he's frozen, he doesn't know which way I'm going to go. That is the shake. You put him in the mix and you jump stop and now you have choice of pivot foot. He doesn't know where you're gonna turn and when."
Personal life
Olajuwon married his current wife, Dalia Asafi, on August 8, 1996, in Houston. The couple have four children together; two daughters, Rahmah and Aisha and two sons, Abdullah and Abdul. Olajuwon also has an older daughter, Abisola from a previous relationship with Lita Spencer, whom he met in college. Abisola represented the West Girls in the McDonald's All-American Game and played in the WNBA.
In addition to English, Olajuwon is fluent in French, Arabic, and the Nigerian languages of Yoruba and Ekiti. He wrote his autobiography, Living the Dream, with co-author Peter Knobler in 1996. During his 18-year NBA career, Olajuwon earned more than $110 million in salary.
Olajuwon, who earlier in his career signed a shoe endorsement deal with LA Gear, later became the face of Spalding's athletic shoe line and endorsed The Dream, a sneaker that retailed in various outlets (such as Payless ShoeSource) for $34.99. This made him one of the very few well-known players in any professional sport to endorse a sneaker not from Nike, Reebok, Adidas, or other high-visibility retail brands. As Olajuwon declared: "How can a poor working mother with three boys buy Nikes or Reeboks that cost $120? ... She can't. So kids steal these shoes from stores and from other kids. Sometimes they kill for them."
Higher education
Attending college was also an important priority to Olajuwon. At the University of Houston, Olajuwon was a physical education major.
Muslim faith
In Olajuwon's college career and early years in the NBA, he was often undisciplined, talking back to officials, getting in minor fights with other players and amassing technical fouls. Later, Olajuwon took an active interest in spirituality, becoming a more devout Muslim. On March 9, 1991, he altered his name from Akeem to the more conventional spelling of Hakeem, saying, "I'm not changing the spelling of my name, I'm correcting it". He later recalled, "I studied the Qur'an every day. At home, at the mosque ... I would read it in airplanes, before games and after them. I was soaking up the faith and learning new meanings each time I turned a page. I didn't dabble in the faith, I gave myself over to it." "His religion dominates his life", Drexler said in 1995. Olajuwon was still recognized as one of the league's elite centers despite his strict observance of Ramadan (i.e., abstaining from food and drink during daylight hours for about a month), which occurred during the playing season throughout his career. Olajuwon was noted as sometimes playing better during the month of Ramadan, and in 1995 he was named NBA Player of the Month in February, even though Ramadan began on February 1 of that year.
Post-NBA life
Olajuwon played for 20 consecutive seasons in Houston, first collegiately for the University of Houston Cougars and then professionally with the Houston Rockets. He is considered a Houston icon and one of the city's most beloved citizens. Olajuwon has had great success in the Houston real estate market, with his estimated profits exceeding $100 million. He buys in cash-only purchases, as it is against Islamic law to pay interest. Olajuwon splits his time between Jordan, where he moved with his family to pursue Islamic studies, and his ranch near Houston.
In the 2006 NBA offseason, Olajuwon opened his first Big Man Camp, where he teaches young frontcourt players the finer points of playing in the post. While Olajuwon never expressed an interest in coaching a team, he wishes to give back to the game by helping younger players. When asked whether the league was becoming more guard-oriented and big men were being de-emphasized, Olajuwon responded, "For a big man who is just big, maybe. But not if you play with speed, with agility. It will always be a big man's game if the big man plays the right way. On defense, the big man can rebound and block shots. On offense, he draws double-teams and creates opportunities. He can add so much, make it easier for the entire team." He runs the camp for free. Olajuwon has worked with several NBA players, including power forward Emeka Okafor, and center Yao Ming. In September 2009, he also worked with Kobe Bryant on the post moves and the Dream Shake. More recently he has been working with Dwight Howard, helping him diversify his post moves and encouraging more mental focus. In the 2011 offseason, LeBron James flew to Houston and spent time working with Olajuwon. Olajuwon has also worked with Ömer Aşık, Donatas Motiejūnas, Amar'e Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony, JaVale McGee and Kenneth Faried. In an interview with the Sporting News in April 2016, Olajuwon said that Kobe Bryant was his best low-post student. He stated, "I’ve worked with a lot of players, but the one who really capitalized on it the most is Kobe Bryant. When I watch him play, he’ll go down in the post comfortably, naturally, and he’ll execute it perfectly."
Olajuwon was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2008. On April 10, 2008, the Rockets unveiled a sculpture in honor of him outside the Toyota Center.
Olajuwon attended the 2013 NBA Draft to bid farewell to retiring commissioner David Stern as Stern made his announcement for the final pick of the first round. Olajuwon was the first pick announced by Stern back in 1984.
On August 1, 2015, Olajuwon made a special appearance for Team Africa at the 2015 NBA Africa exhibition game. He became a member of the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016.
Awards and achievements
2× NBA champion (1994, 1995)
2× NBA Finals MVP (1994, 1995)
1× NBA MVP (1994)
2× NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1993, 1994)
6× All-NBA First Team (1987, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1997)
3× All-NBA Second Team (1986, 1990, 1996)
3× All-NBA Third Team (1991, 1995, 1999)
5× NBA All-Defensive First Team (1987, 1988, 1990, 1993, 1994)
4× NBA All-Defensive Second Team (1985, 1991, 1996, 1997)
12× NBA All-Star
Olympic gold medalist (1996)
Named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996).
Named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team
Olajuwon ended his career in the top eleven all-time in blocks, scoring, rebounding, and steals. He is the only player in NBA history to retire in the top eleven for all four categories (he is now 13th all-time in rebounding).
Olajuwon was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2008, as well as to the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016.
Ranked #10 in ESPN'''s All-Time #NBArank: Counting down the greatest players ever (published in 2016)
Ranked #12 in SLAM Magazines 2018 revision of the top 100 greatest players of all time (published in the January 2018 issue)
NBA career statistics
Regular season
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 35.5 || .538 || || .613 || 11.9 || 1.4 || 1.2 || 2.7 || 20.6
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 68 || 68 || 36.3 || .526 || || .645 || 11.5 || 2.0 || 2.0 || 3.4 || 23.5
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 75 || 75 || 36.8 || .508 || .200 || .702 || 11.4 || 2.9 || 1.9 || 3.4 || 23.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 79 || 79 || 35.8 || .514 || .000 || .695 || 12.1 || 2.1 || 2.1 || 2.7 || 22.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 36.9 || .508 || .000 || .696 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|13.5* || 1.8 || 2.6 || 3.4 || 24.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 38.1 || .501 || .167 || .713 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|14.0* || 2.9 || 2.1 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|4.6* || 24.3
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 56 || 50 || 36.8 || .508 || .000 || .769 || 13.8 || 2.3 || 2.2 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|3.9* || 21.2
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 70 || 69 || 37.7 || .502 || .000 || .766 || 12.1 || 2.2 || 1.8 || 4.3 || 21.6
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 82 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|82* || 39.5 || .529 || .000 || .779 || 13.0 || 3.5 || 1.8 || style="background:#CFECEC;"|4.2* || 26.1
|-
| style="text-align:left; background:#AFE6BA;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 80 || 80 || 41.0 || .528 || .421 || .716 || 11.9 || 3.6 || 1.6 || 3.7 || 27.3
|-
| style="text-align:left; background:#AFE6BA;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 72 || 72 || 39.6 || .517 || .188 || .756 || 10.8 || 3.5 || 1.8 || 3.4 || 27.8|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 72 || 72 || 38.8 || .514 || .214 || .724 || 10.9 || 3.6 || 1.6 || 2.9 || 26.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 78 || 78 || 36.6 || .510 || .313 || .787' || 9.2 || 3.0 || 1.5 || 2.2 || 23.2
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 47 || 45 || 34.7 || .483 || .000 || .755 || 9.8 || 3.0 || 1.8 || 2.0 || 16.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| style="background:#CFECEC;"|50* || style="background:#CFECEC;"|50* || 35.7 || .514 || .308 || .717 || 9.6 || 1.8 || 1.6 || 2.5 || 18.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 44 || 28 || 23.8 || .458 || .000 || .616 || 6.2 || 1.4 || .9 || 1.6 || 10.3
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Houston
| 58 || 55 || 26.6 || .498 || .000 || .621 || 7.4 || 1.2 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 11.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"|Toronto
| 61 || 37 || 22.6 || .464 || .000 || .560 || 6.0 || 1.1 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 7.1
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Career
| 1,238 || 1,186 || 35.7 || .512 || .202 || .712 || 11.1 || 2.5 || 1.7 || 3.1 || 21.8
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|All-Star
| 12 || 8 || 23.2 || .409 || 1.000 || .520 || 7.8 || 1.4 || 1.3 || 1.9 || 9.8
Playoffs
See also
List of National Basketball Association career games played leaders
List of National Basketball Association career scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association franchise career scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career steals leaders
List of National Basketball Association career blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association career turnovers leaders
List of National Basketball Association career free throw scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career minutes played leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff steals leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff turnovers leaders
List of National Basketball Association career playoff free throw scoring leaders
List of National Basketball Association annual rebounding leaders
List of National Basketball Association annual blocks leaders
List of National Basketball Association players with most blocks in a game
List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season rebounding leaders
Islam in Houston
References
Sources
Harris, Othello, Nolte, Claire Elaine, and Kirsch, George B. Encyclopedia of Ethnicity and Sports in the United States, Greenwood Press. 2000
Heisler, Mark. Big Men Who Shook the NBA. Triumph Books. 2003
Olajuwon, Hakeem with Knobler, Peter. Living the Dream: My Life and Basketball. Little, Brown and Company. 1996
Simmons, Bill, The Book of Basketball: The NBA According to the Sports Guy'', ESPN 2009
External links
Hakeem Olajuwon entry at NBA Encyclopedia
Hakeem Olajuwon player profile at NBA.com
1963 births
Living people
African-American Muslims
All-American college men's basketball players
American expatriate basketball people in Canada
American men's basketball players
American people of Yoruba descent
Basketball players at the 1982 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1983 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1984 NCAA Division I Men's Final Four
Basketball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Centers (basketball)
FIBA Hall of Fame inductees
Houston Cougars men's basketball players
Houston Rockets draft picks
Houston Rockets players
Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees
National Basketball Association All-Stars
National Basketball Association players from Nigeria
National Basketball Association players with retired numbers
Nigerian emigrants to the United States
Nigerian expatriate basketball people in Canada
Nigerian expatriate basketball people in the United States
Nigerian men's basketball players
Olympic gold medalists for the United States in basketball
People from Sugar Land, Texas
People with acquired American citizenship
Basketball players from Houston
Sportspeople from Lagos
Toronto Raptors players
United States men's national basketball team players
Yoruba sportspeople | true | [
"\"Last Last One Forever and Ever\" (also known as \"Live Action\") is the tenth and final episode in the sixth season of the American animated television series Aqua Teen Hunger Force. The 88th episode of the series overall, it originally aired in the United States on Adult Swim on May 31, 2009. In the episode, Don Shake, a live-action version of Master Shake, attempts to write a successful novel in order to afford his rent in a live-action universe. This episode ends on an unofficial cliffhanger, which is continued in the season seven episode \"Rabbot Redux\".\n\n\"Last Last One Forever and Ever\" was made as a special \"live action\" episode with the majority of the episode taking place in a live-action set. This episode features comedian H. Jon Benjamin as a live-action version of Master Shake named Don Shake; recording artist T-Pain portrayed a live-action version of Frylock, and a \"brownish\" exercise ball was used to portray Meatwad. It also featured David Long, Jr., who portrayed the role of their neighbor, Carl Brutananadilewski, after winning an open casting call sponsored by Burger King to fill the role.\n\nThen-Adult Swim vice president Mike Lazzo considered not airing it on television. This episode received a mixed review from Jonah Krakow of IGN, and was the third highest rated program on the night of its original debut. This episode has been made available on DVD, and other forms of home media, including on demand.\n\nPlot\nFrylock discovers that the water in the area is flammable; he tries to warn Master Shake, who is drinking from a hose, and Meatwad, who is bathing at a car wash, which leads to it exploding. Shake and Frylock go next door to warn Carl, who is standing in his pool with sticks of dynamite, but Carl ignores their warning as he farts into the pool, causing a huge explosion seen from outer space.\n\nThe scene transitions to a live-action shot of Frylock reading a script, which describes the events that previously transpired, written by \"Don\" Shake; it is dismissed by Frylock as \"terrible\". It is soon revealed that Shake has made several attempts to write stories but has failed to receive any compensation, despite promising ten-percent of his future earnings to his roommate. Frylock, growing frustrated with Shake for his lack of income, warns him he needs to leave the house. Meanwhile, Shake goes to the \"exercise room\" in Frylock's home and sits down next to an exercise ball, from which comes the voice of Meatwad. Shake shares his feelings about Frylock and his method of writing stories; in turn, Meatwad agrees to help Shake write a story, which contains elements taken verbatim from the children's program SpongeBob SquarePants.\n\nLater, while at work at Dr. Weird's Castle (a shoddy children's pay venue consisting of several bouncy castles inside a run down warehouse), Shake seeks an opinion from Carl on the story, and is advised to add scenes with lesbians and women's breasts. Shake heads back to Meatwad to talk more about the story, who reacts to the changes with adamant disapproval. Following Frylock entering the room to exercise and then leaving, Meatwad advises Shake to kill Frylock with a sword in the closet. Shake is then seen sneaking across to Frylock, who is on Craigslist looking for a new roommate, with Meatwad holding up the sword. When Frylock turns toward Shake, Shake nicely offers the sword to Frylock, saying \"Here's your sword, I found it in my room\". Afterwards, Shake gets an idea for the ending to his story.\n\nThe scene transitions back to animation, in which the trio is seen putting their things into a moving truck, and saying goodbye to Carl. Shake says his final words to Carl, and as the camera slowly focuses on Carl, he solemnly intones, \"Truly, they were an Aqua Teen Hunger Force.\" Shake then drives the moving truck slowly away with the emergency brake on while Carl angrily shouts at him for it. As the credits roll, the live-action Carl is seen standing in Dr. Weird's Castle, and soon pumps his fist while shouting one of his famous catchphrases: \"Tonight!\" The episode ends on somewhat of a cliffhanger, with the storyline being continued in the season seven episode \"Rabbot Redux\".\n\nProduction\n\n\"Last Last One Forever and Ever\" was written and directed by series creators Dave Willis and Matt Maiellaro, who have written and directed every episode of the series. It originally aired in the United States on Cartoon Network's late night programming block, Adult Swim, on May 31, 2009. It features live-action guest appearances from David Long, Jr. as live-action Carl Brutananadilewski, H. Jon Benjamin as live-action Master Shake (named Don Shake), T-Pain as live-action Frylock, and Drake E. Stephens.\n\nAuto-Tune was used for T-Pain's dialog on and off throughout the episode as a reference to his music, which frequently features it. Despite the episode being predominantly live action, the beginning and end sequences were made in the same animation used throughout the regular series. Adult Swim vice president Mike Lazzo strongly considered not airing the episode on television and instead making it a DVD extra or posting it on YouTube.\n\nIn 2008 Adult Swim launched a nationwide casting call contest, sponsored by Burger King, whose winner would get to appear as a live-action version of Carl. The search began in July 2008 in San Diego, California during the San Diego Comic-Con, where contestants dressed as Carl performed their auditions. Fans also sent in application videos to the Adult Swim website. Willis stated in an interview that several people were turned down for the role, including Kyle Gass of Tenacious D and Samuel L. Jackson; the winner was David Long, Jr. from Ebensburg, Pennsylvania. Adult Swim aired a bump stating that there were legal issues regarding the casting of an \"outsider\" in the role.\n\nReception\nIn its original American broadcast on May 31, 2009, \"Last Last One Forever and Ever\" was watched by 824,000 viewers, making it the third most watched Adult Swim program of that night, behind a repeat of Family Guy and a repeat of Robot Chicken. Jonah Krakow of IGN gave the episode a six out of ten which is considered \"okay\", calling it \"over-hyped\" and saying that \"the show lost focus and failed to deliver the one thing that has kept it going for six seasons: jokes\".\n\nHome release\n\n\"Last Last One Forever and Ever\" was released on DVD in Region 1 as part of the Aqua Teen Hunger Force Volume Seven DVD set on June 1, 2010, along with five other episodes from season six and five episodes from season seven. The set was released and distributed by Adult Swim and Warner Home Video, and features behind-the-scenes footage for \"Last Last One Forever and Ever\". The set features completely uncensored audio on every episode, which marks the first time episodes were released on DVD with completely uncensored dialogue. The set was later released in Region 4 by Madman Entertainment on June 16, 2010.\n\nThis episode is also available in HD and SD on iTunes, the Xbox Live Marketplace, and Amazon Video.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n \n\nAqua Teen Hunger Force episodes\n2009 American television episodes\nTelevision episodes with live action and animation\nBurger King advertising",
"\"Allen\" is the two-part season premiere of the eighth season of the American animated television series Aqua Teen Hunger Force (under the alternative title of Aqua Unit Patrol Squad 1), and the 101st and 102nd episodes of the series overall respectively. Both parts of \"Allen\" originally aired in the United States on May 8, 2011 and May 15, 2011, respectively on Adult Swim. In the first part, Master Shake freezes himself in Dr. Weird's lab and awakes up nine years later disoriented and with no knowledge of the whereabouts of Frylock and Meatwad. In the second part, Shake discovers the world is now controlled by a god-like figure named Allen who kills anyone who misbehaves in order to maintain the world as a Utopia where everyone has respect for one another.\n\n\"Allen\" is the first episode of the series to be branded under an alternative title, and the first part marks the final appearance of Dr. Weird. The script for the beginning of the first part was read live by the main cast at Dragon*Con in 2010, months before the episode originally aired on television. This is the first two-part episode since \"Last Last One Forever and Ever\" and \"Rabbot Redux\"; no other multi-part episodes have premiered since. Both parts later aired together back-to-back in a half-hour block on May 29, 2011. Both parts ranked #1 in their respective time slots on basic cable with all key adult demographics, and the May 29, 2011 airing was seen by 1.675 million viewers. Both parts have been made available on DVD, and other forms of home media, including on demand streaming.\n\nPlot\n\nPart 1\nThe newly formed \"Aqua Unit Patrol Squad\", a detective squad made up of Master Shake, Meatwad, and Frylock, anthropomorphic fast-food items, are under their latest investigation at an abandoned house to find out if a man is having a sexual affair with the woman they are working for. After Frylock leaves because of a debate over the new show not being any good, Shake and Meatwad fall asleep. Later, when they wake up, a construction worker, whom they believe to be the person having an affair with their client, begins to demolish the house. Shake believes this to be an insurance scam, and that he may be trying to hide \"evidence\" by tearing the house down. He puts on a beret, a fake mustache, and a poor French accent, and walks over to the construction worker. He tells him that his name is Jacques and that he just moved into the neighborhood, wondering what the man was doing. The construction worker replies that he is tearing the house down. Shake tries to cajole info out of the construction worker about the supposed insurance scam/sexual affair, but he does not budge. Meatwad then tells Shake that they are at the wrong house, and that the man tearing the house down got sent by the city, as it has been vacant for ten years. Shake even admits that the person they are looking for is small and white, while the man in front of them is large and black. After the construction worker orders them to leave, Shake rips off his disguise and accent and orders the construction worker to tell him what kind of back-room operation he had to have to look like that.\n\nLater, at the hospital, Shake is badly injured, to the point where he cannot move, and Meatwad must hand him water. Shake, with his voice very weak, brags about beating the man up. Meatwad then tells Shake that he checked with their client and that she was not even married, ruling out that she had a husband, or that she even had an affair, since she was single. Frylock reveals that the woman really wanted them to find her cat. Shake then comes up with the notion that the man that beat him up took the woman's cat, and framed them by saying that they are detectives. Shake wants her phone records, as well as everyone she has emailed. Frylock then complains that the \"new show\" still isn't any good, and that they should go back and do what they used to do. Shake then comes up with another plan: hypersleep. They go to Dr. Weird's castle at the South Jersey Shore to \"borrow\" hypersleep chambers and freeze themselves for nine years. The reason for this is because crime will surely have increased by then, so as a result they will have more business. After they all get into the chambers, Shake freezes himself, and Frylock leaves because he sees it as a terrible, hair-brained scheme. After nine years, Shake awakens, and sees that there was a monster named Danny in the chamber that was making love to his face on and off the entire time so he could deposit his eggs into him. Shake (now sporting a full beard) is disgusted by this, and then jumps at the sight of Danny being electrocuted by lightning. Shake gets a cab ride to an abortion clinic and discovers that \"everything is free now\" because everyone is supposed to be good. After he gets an abortion, protesters outside are also shot by lightning, as is the doctor that performed the abortion on Shake. Shake then goes back to his home, now in Seattle, and is horrified to discover that no one is there.\n\nPart 2\nShake goes over to his neighbor Carl's house (now repainted and with random junk in the yard) to discover that he had moved away, and instead, a man named George Lowe lives there, under the alias \"Mister Beefy\". George shows him an area to rent that is in a bad section of town. It, however, is free. Kids run away with items in the room and get blasted by the lightning. Shake does not feel like buying it, and then George says that everything is free, vulgarly. Then a blast of lightning kills George. Shake makes a run to a phone booth and leaves many unsuccessful messages on Frylock's answering machine to come and pick him up (Frylock and Meatwad now live in an apartment). Frylock, after having enough of his messages, destroys his answer machine. Shake wanders around for a moment, and is then stopped by some friendly gangsters who ask Shake if he needs directions. Shake is frightened by them and is surprised that they do not want to kill him. One of the gangsters then pulls out a knife and is then electrocuted by the lightning after mentioning Allen and threatening him. Shake questions the other gangster about this Allen, and he tries to walk away from Shake, pretending to not know what he is talking about. Shake is then abducted and thrown into a tiny room with thousands of small monitors inside. The room has a banner outside that reads, \"BEHAVE FOR THE ALLEN\". It is supposed to say alien, but \"Allen\" says they, \"fucked it up.\"\n\nAllen says that the monitors track all bad deeds around the entire world, and when spotted the perpetrators are electrocuted, so that the Earth can remain good. Allen then explains to Shake that he is the meanest person on the planet, and that he is going to electrocute him. But Shake responds that he has on a \"forcefield\"; Allen believes this, and refrains from killing him. Frylock and Meatwad then go right next to the room where Allen and Shake are located and Meatwad tells Frylock a plan he has. Allen tells Shake that he has an abusive father, who forced him to do the job he is doing, after Allen and his friend Tommy have a party and Tommy ruined his father's pool table. Shake then tells Allen that he knows his father, and that his father is going out of town on business. Allen sees this as the perfect opportunity to party with his friend Tommy, and tells Shake to do his job. Meatwad's plan starts, with him saying tiny swears such as \"doody\" and \"butt\", while Frylock goes all out and says things like \"suck my fry dick\". Allen blasts and kills Frylock and gives Shake his powers and goes up out of the room, leaving Shake in charge. But before he can go up to the party room, it catches fire because Tommy was smoking, and Allen argues with his father. Shake then flicks a button which puts a shield on the tower, and Allen's father electrocutes and kills him for \"his own good\".\n\nProduction\nBoth parts of \"Allen\" were written and directed by series creators Dave Willis and Matt Maiellaro who have written and directed every episode of the series. The first part originally aired in the United States on Cartoon Network's late night programing block, Adult Swim, on May 8, 2011 with the second part airing a week later on May 15, 2011. Both parts aired together in a half-hour block on May 29, 2011.\n\nThe first part features a guest appearance from Steven Wright who voiced Danny. The second part features an appearance from Matt Berry who voiced the lead character and Allen and cameo appearances from Michael K. Williams and Donnie Blue as well. The beginning script for the first part was read live by the main cast: Dana Snyder, Carey Means, and Dave Willis at the Aqua Teen Hunger Force panel at Dragon*Con in 2010, several months before the episode officially aired on television.\n\nThis episode is the first episode not to premiere under the Aqua Teen Hunger Force brand as it was the first to air when each season was given an alternative title. The first part features the first and only cold opening since the season two episode, \"The Cloning\", which features the final appearance of Dr. Weird.\n\nReception\nThe original American broadcast of the first part on May 8, 2011 was watched by 1.846 million viewers, and ranked #1 in its time slot on basic cable with all key adult demographics and men 18–34 and 18–24. The original American broadcast of the second part the following week on May 15, 2011 was watched by 1.798 viewers, and ranked #1 in its time slot on basic cable among adults 18–24, alongside the premiere of the Superjail! episode \"Jailbot 2.0\".\n\nWhen both parts were re-aired together in a half-hour block on May 29, 2011, it was watched by 1.675 million viewers.\n\nHome release\n\nBoth parts of \"Allen\" were released on DVD in Region 1 as part of the Aqua Unit Patrol Squad 1: Season 1 DVD set on October 11, 2011, along with seven episodes from season seven and the remaining eight episodes from the eighth season. The set was released and distributed by Adult Swim and Warner Home Video, and features \"Terror Phone 3\" as a special feature, the set also features completely uncensored audio on every episode. The set was later released in Region 4 by Madman Entertainment on November 30, 2011. Both parts of \"Allen\" are also available in HD and SD on iTunes, the Xbox Live Marketplace, and Amazon Video.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n \n \n\nAqua Teen Hunger Force episodes\n2011 American television episodes\nCryonics in fiction\nUtopian fiction\nTelevision episodes set in the future\nTelevision episodes about extraterrestrial life\nTelevision episodes about rape\nTelevision episodes about abortion\nTelevision episodes about censorship"
]
|
[
"Pavel Bure",
"CSKA Moscow (1987-1991)"
]
| C_32732a22d04542398a2a0695a7ea171d_1 | What is CSKA? | 1 | What is CSKA? | Pavel Bure | At age 16, Bure began his professional hockey career playing for CSKA Moscow. He was invited to the senior club's training camp for the 1987-88 season. Although he was deemed too young, and not yet ready, for the Soviet League, Bure earned minimal playing time filling in for absent regulars. He made his debut in September 1987, and played five games for the senior team, scoring his only goal in his first game. Bure joined the club full-time in 1988-89 and amassed 17 goals, a Soviet League record for rookies. The record would last for 18 years until Alexei Cherepanov scored 18 goals in 2006-07. Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (they repeated as European champions the following year). As a member CSKA, Bure joined a lineup that featured several future NHL players, including linemates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, as well as Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladimir Konstantinov. The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, the K-L-M combination of Vladimir Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. The trio was short-lived, as Mogilny defected to play for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, and Fedorov joined the Detroit Red Wings the following year. In his third and final season with the Red Army, Bure tied for the lead in team-scoring with Valeri Kamensky, tallying 46 points. His 35 goals was second in the league, one goal behind Ramil Yuldashev of Sokil Kyiv. Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Pavel Vladimirovich Bure (, ; born March 31, 1971) is a Russian former professional ice hockey player who played the right wing position. Nicknamed "the Russian Rocket" for his speed, Bure played for 12 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Vancouver Canucks, the Florida Panthers and the New York Rangers. Trained in the Soviet Union, he played three seasons with the Central Red Army team before his NHL career.
Selected 113th overall in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft by Vancouver, he began his NHL career in the 1991–92 season, and won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league's best rookie before leading the NHL in goal-scoring in 1993-94 and helping the Canucks to the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals. After seven seasons the Canucks traded Bure to the Panthers, where he won back-to-back Rocket Richard Trophies as the league's leading goal-scorer. Bure struggled with knee injuries throughout his career, resulting in his retirement in 2005 as a member of the Rangers, although he had not played since 2003. He averaged better than a point per game in his NHL career (779 points with 437 goals in 702 NHL games) and is fourth all-time in goals per game. After six years of eligibility, Bure was elected into the Hockey Hall of Fame in June 2012. In 2017, an NHL panel named Bure one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in history.
Internationally, Bure competed for the Soviet Union and Russia. As a member of the Soviet Union, he won two silver medals and a gold in three World Junior Championships, followed by a gold and a silver medal in the 1990 and 1991 World Championships, respectively. After the Soviet Union was dissolved in 1991, Bure competed for Russia in two Winter Olympics, claiming silver at the 1998 Games in Nagano as team captain, and bronze at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City. Following Bure's retirement in 2005, he was named the general manager for Russia's national team at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. Bure was later recognized for his international career as a 2012 inductee in the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame.
Early life
Bure was born in Moscow in 1971 to Vladimir and Tatiana Bure. Vladimir Bure, a Russian swimming legend, had dreams of Pavel becoming a professional swimmer, but he aspired to play hockey at an early age. He attended his first tryout with the CSKA Moscow hockey school at the age of six, despite his limited skating ability. Until that point, Bure had only played ball hockey on the streets. After Bure failed to impress in his first tryout, his father told him that if he did not show significant improvement within two months, he would withdraw him from the hockey school. By age 11, he was named the best forward in his league. Around that time, in July 1982, Bure was selected as one of three young Russian players to practice with Wayne Gretzky and Soviet national goaltender Vladislav Tretiak in a taped television special.
At age 12, his parents separated, and he remained with his mother. By the time he was 14 years old, he was named to the Central Red Army's junior team. In 1991, he joined his father and brother, Valeri in moving to North America as he embarked on a National Hockey League (NHL) career with the Vancouver Canucks. His mother arrived two months later. They settled initially in Los Angeles where Vladimir continued to train and coach both Valeri and Pavel in hockey and physical conditioning. However both became estranged from their father, along with his second wife and their half-sister Katya, by 1998. Neither brother has explained a reason for the split.
In December 1986, he embarked on a tour of Canada with the Soviet national midget team from Ottawa to Vancouver. Nearly five years before Bure made his NHL debut with the Vancouver Canucks in 1991 at the Pacific Coliseum, he played his first game at his future home rink as part of the tour. Bure also earned another opportunity to meet Gretzky, as well as defenseman Paul Coffey, when his team stopped in Edmonton to play at the Northlands Coliseum.
Playing career
CSKA Moscow (1987–1991)
At age 16, Bure began his professional hockey career playing for CSKA Moscow. He was invited to the senior club's training camp for the 1987–88 season. Although he was deemed too young, and not yet ready, for the Soviet League, Bure earned minimal playing time filling in for absent regulars. He made his debut in September 1987, and played five games for the senior team, scoring his only goal in his first game.
Bure joined the club full-time in 1988–89 and amassed 17 goals, a Soviet League record for rookies. The record would last for 18 years until Alexei Cherepanov scored 18 goals in 2006–07. Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (they repeated as European champions the following year).
As a member CSKA, Bure joined a lineup that featured several future NHL players, including linemates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, as well as Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladimir Konstantinov. The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, the K-L-M combination of Vladimir Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. The trio was short-lived, as Mogilny defected to play for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, and Fedorov joined the Detroit Red Wings the following year.
In his third and final season with the Red Army, Bure tied for the lead in team-scoring with Valeri Kamensky, tallying 46 points. His 35 goals was second in the league, one goal behind Ramil Yuldashev of Sokil Kyiv. Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup.
Transfer to the NHL (1989–1991)
Prior to the 1989 NHL Entry Draft, William Houston of The Globe and Mail wrote, "The best of the group is Soviet star winger Pavel Bure, a spectacular player with outstanding speed. He is compared to Vladimir Krutov and also the late Soviet superstar of the 1970s, Valeri Kharlamov." NHL organizations were afraid he would not leave the Soviet Union to play in the NHL thus deterring teams from selecting him early, although scouts and analysts believed he could have been selected as high as the second round had he defected. Many analysts compared him to Valeri Kharlamov. Edmonton Oilers' scout Barry Fraser commented, "From what I've seen of him, Bure can play on any team in the NHL right now... he's quick, real quick, small and very exciting. He may be the top player in this year's draft, but because he is from the Soviet Union, we don't analyze him the same way as a kid from the West... I don't expect him to go really early because it is still too much of a gamble to hope he will defect."
Bure was selected 113th overall in the sixth round Draft by the Vancouver Canucks, following his rookie season with CSKA Moscow. The pick was controversial, as the Canucks had chosen him seemingly a year ahead of his eligible draft season. At the age of 18, he was available to be chosen in the first three rounds of the draft, but to be selected any later, he would have needed to play at least two seasons—with a minimum of 11 games per season—for his elite-level Soviet club, the Central Red Army. While most teams believed he was ineligible, the Canucks' head scout at the time, Mike Penny, discovered Bure had played in additional exhibition and international games to make him an eligible late-round draft choice a year early. Jack Button, the Washington Capitals' director of player personnel, admitted "everybody would have taken him earlier. We assumed he was not eligible... you've got to give the Canucks credit for doing their homework."
Several other teams either had similar knowledge or had pursued Bure but there was confusion as to the legitimacy of the extra games. The Detroit Red Wings had asked league vice president Gil Stein about Bure's availability before their fifth-round pick but were told he was not eligible. They later decided to select him with their sixth-round pick, 116th overall, and settle his eligibility later. The Canucks selected Bure three picks ahead of Detroit's turn. Meanwhile, Winnipeg Jets general manager Mike Smith, claimed he made an offer to the Soviet Ice Hockey Federation that would involve three years of transfer payments before Bure would be allowed to join the Jets; however Smith did not have any plans to draft Bure in 1989 as he believed he was ineligible.
Canucks' general manager Pat Quinn originally intended to draft Bure in the eighth round but after receiving word the Oilers had similar intentions selected him in the sixth. Following the announcement of Bure's draft, several other team representatives reportedly stormed the Met Center stage in Minnesota, where the draft was being held. Formal complaints were filed resulting in an investigation into the selection. After the pick was deemed illegal by league president John Ziegler in a press release on May 17, 1990, the Canucks appealed the decision, procuring game sheets proving Bure's participation in the additional games with the help of recent Soviet acquisition Igor Larionov. It was not until the eve of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft, in which Bure would have been re-entered that the draft choice was upheld. Although Larionov and Fetisov had successfully spearheaded the rebellion against Soviet ice hockey officials in the late 1980s that led to Soviet players joining the NHL, Bure's transfer to the Canucks was met with resistance, and the Soviet authorities forbade the Canucks to contact Bure personally. During the 1991 World Junior Championships, he said in an interview that he was hesitant to defect for fears the Soviets would make things difficult for his younger brother Valeri Bure, who was 15 at the time and playing in the junior league.
Bure left Moscow with his father and brother on September 6, 1991, staying temporarily in Los Angeles. His mother arrived shortly afterward. The Canucks began negotiating a contract with Bure, but before one could be finalized, the issue of his existing contract with the Central Red Army had to be settled. The Canucks management and officials from the Soviet Ice Hockey Federation met in late-October 1991 in a Detroit court, where they bartered for a cash settlement. After the Canucks offered US$200,000, Bure stood up in the courtroom to offer an additional $50,000, bringing the total to $250,000. The Soviet officials accepted, and Canucks management paid the full $250,000. Bure signed a four-year contract worth a reported $2.7 million with an $800,000 signing bonus. The deal made Bure the Canucks' second highest paid player behind team captain Trevor Linden.
Vancouver Canucks (1991–1999)
Due to the court proceedings, Bure's debut with the Canucks was delayed until a month into the 1991–92 season. Garnering much attention in Vancouver, his first practice with the club on November 3, 1991, was attended by approximately 2,000 fans. He played his first game for the Canucks on November 5, 1991, in a 2–2 tie against the Winnipeg Jets. Despite not scoring a point, Bure showcased his talent and speed with several end-to-end rushes, carrying the puck past several defenders from near his defensive zone to the opposing net. Following the game, Vancouver Sun columnist Iain MacIntyre compared him to a rocket, calling him "the fastest Soviet creation since Sputnik". MacIntyre's comments are credited for laying the groundwork for Bure's moniker as the "Russian Rocket," which echoed the nickname of Maurice "Rocket" Richard, who played for the Montreal Canadiens in the 1950s. In his third game, Bure recorded his first point, an assist against the New York Islanders on November 10. He scored his first two NHL goals in the next game, on November 12, against Daniel Berthiaume of the Los Angeles Kings. He finished with 34 goals and 60 points in 65 games that season, including 22 goals in his final 23 games. In the last game of the regular season, Bure scored a goal to tie Ivan Hlinka's 1981–82 team mark for most points by a rookie.
As the Canucks opened the 1992 playoffs against the Winnipeg Jets, Bure recorded his first NHL hat trick in game six to help force a seventh and deciding game. Vancouver won the series to advance to the second round, but were eliminated by the Edmonton Oilers. Bure finished his first Stanley Cup playoffs with six goals and 10 points in 13 games. At the end of the season, he was awarded the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year. His 60 points were second among first-year players to Tony Amonte's 69 points with the Rangers, although Bure played in 14 fewer games. When accepting the award, Bure thanked Canucks linemate Igor Larionov for his guidance. On arriving in Vancouver, his former Red Army teammate took him into his home for two weeks before Bure moved into his own apartment; the two also roomed together on the road. Bure's Calder Trophy, along with head coach Pat Quinn's Jack Adams Award as the league's top coach, marked the first major individual NHL awards in Canucks' team history. However, despite being named the league's top rookie, Bure was left off the NHL All-Rookie Team, making him the only Calder recipient not to be named to the lineup. This was because he split his time playing both left and right wing. When it came to voting for the players, Bure had the most total votes, but not enough at either position to claim a spot.
Bure improved on his rookie season in 1992–93 with the first of two consecutive 60-goal seasons. In the third game of the season, he scored a career-high four goals against the Winnipeg Jets. His three goals and one assist in the second period set a pair of Canucks' records for most goals and points in a period, in addition to the team mark for most goals overall in a game (for which he is tied with several players). Furthermore, Bure scored two of his goals on the penalty kill to set a fourth team record for most short-handed goals in one contest. He appeared in his first NHL All-Star Game in 1993, being named to the Clarence Campbell Conference Team as the lone Canucks' representative, and scored two goals. Shortly after the All-Star break, Bure established a new franchise record for goals in a season during a 5–1 win over the Quebec Nordiques, surpassing Tony Tanti's 45-goal mark. The next month, on March 1, he reached the 50-goal mark for the first time in his career, scoring against Grant Fuhr of the Buffalo Sabres in a neutral-site game in Hamilton, Ontario. He also surpassed Patrik Sundström's franchise record of 91 points. Bure finished the season with 110 points in 83 games, and became the first Canuck named to the NHL First All-Star Team. His 110 points stood as the team record until it was broken by Henrik Sedin's 112 points in 2009–10.
A groin injury early in the 1993-94 season limited Bure's production for the first half of the season. Even so, he improved in the second half, and led the league in goal-scoring by repeating his 60-goal feat of the previous season. In doing so, he became the eighth player in NHL history to record back-to-back 60-goal seasons. He concluded the season with a streak of 49 goals and 78 points in his final 51 games, and earned player of the month honours in March 1994 after scoring 19 goals and 30 points in 16 games. His March scoring burst was just one point shy of Stan Smyl's 31-point March in 1983 for the most productive month by a Canucks player. Bure's 154 NHL goals at that point in his career put him behind only Wayne Gretzky and Mike Bossy for the most in any NHL player's first three seasons. He recorded 49 goals in the club's final 51 games, and contributed to 46.45% of his team's goals in the final 47 games of the season to carry the Canucks into the 1994 postseason.
Entering the 1994 Stanley Cup Playoffs as the seventh seed, the Canucks went on a run to the Stanley Cup Finals. In the seventh game of the opening-round series against the Calgary Flames, Bure scored one of the most significant and well-known goals in Canucks' history. After receiving a breakaway pass from defenceman Jeff Brown, he deked and scored on Flames' goalie Mike Vernon in the second overtime to win the series. In game two of the second round against the Dallas Stars, Bure knocked enforcer Shane Churla to the ice with an elbow to the jaw. He also scored two goals in the game to help Vancouver to a 3–0 win. Although Bure was not initially penalized for the play, he was later fined $500 by the league. He recorded six goals and eight points in five games against the Dallas Stars, and against the Toronto Maple Leafs the following round scored four goals and six points in five games.
After defeating Dallas in five games, the Canucks eliminated the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Campbell Conference Finals to meet the New York Rangers in the Finals, where the Canucks lost in seven games. Bure finished with a team-high 16 goals and 31 points in 24 games, second in playoff scoring only to Conn Smythe Trophy winner Brian Leetch. His points total also remained the highest by any Russian player until Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins recorded 36 in 2009.
In the next off-season, the Canucks announced they had re-signed Bure to a five-year, $24.5 million contract on June 16. The deal was reported to have been signed before game three of the Stanley Cup Finals against New York. It also included Bure's marketing rights and put his father, Vladimir, on the team payroll as a fitness and marketing consultant. The average annual salary of $4.9 million made Bure the league's third highest-paid player, behind Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux. In fact, Bure and the Canucks had entered into contract negotiations at the beginning of the 1993–94 season, although two years remained in his original deal. Neither side could come to an initial agreement; one of the major factors was the Canucks' demands for the contract to be in Canadian dollars on account of the American exchange rate. Numerous accusations were made in the media during the Canucks' playoff run that Bure threatened not to play if a contract could not be agreed upon. A Toronto Star article, published before the first game of the Finals on May 31, 1994, claimed Bure had signed a five-year, $30 million contract that, if the Canucks had not agreed to, would have seen him pull out of game five of the Conference Finals against the Maple Leafs. The article was followed by two additional claims in the following two days in the Vancouver-based newspaper The Province and Toronto Sun. The Toronto Sun held the contract was a five-year, $22.5 million deal, and that it was signed before either game six or seven of the opening round against the Flames after Bure's agent, Ron Salcer, told general manager Quinn that Bure would not play if the deal was not made. As the story continued well into the next season, Pat Quinn appeared in a segment on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)'s Hockey Night in Canada on March 27, 1995, publicly denying the claims.
Due to the 1994–95 NHL lockout, Bure spent single-game stints with Spartak Moscow of the Russian Super League and EV Landshut of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). He joined a team of Russian NHL players organized by Slava Fetisov that returned to Russia to play a five-game charity tour against local clubs. On the team, Bure reunited with former Central Red Army linemates Mogilny and Fedorov. When the NHL Players Association (NHLPA) and owners came to an agreement on January 12, 1995, NHL play was set to resume. However, there were unresolved contract issues, as Salcer claimed the Canucks promised they would pay Bure's full salary, despite the lockout, which cancelled nearly half of the 1994–95 season. Bure held out for four days as a result (the amount claimed to be owing was $1.7 million), before the two sides reached an agreement. The Canucks would put the disputed amount in escrow and would continue discussions. He soon reported to Vancouver and went on to tally 43 points in 44 games of the shortened season. In the 1995 playoffs, Bure set franchise records for most goals and points in a series with seven and 12 respectively in a seven-game series victory against the St. Louis Blues (Mikael Samuelsson tied Bure's goal-scoring record in 2010 against the Los Angeles Kings). The Canucks, however, failed to defend their Clarence Campbell Conference championship title, being swept by the Chicago Blackhawks in the second round. The Canucks' elimination in 1995 marked the last time Bure appeared in the post-season with the club. He finished with a career playoff total of 66 points with the Canucks, including 34 goals, which remained the highest club total until Linden tied the mark in 2007.
At the start of the 1995–96 season, Bure changed his jersey number from 10 to 96. The switch commemorated September 6, 1991, the day on which he first landed in North America from Moscow—9th month, 6th day. He had originally asked to wear the number when he first joined the Canucks, but was not permitted to do so by head coach Pat Quinn, who did not approve of high jersey numbers. After the Canucks traded with the Buffalo Sabres for Alexander Mogilny, reuniting the two Russian players, the jersey number was deemed acceptable because Mogilny had used number 89 since defecting to North America in 1989.
Early in the season, Bure sustained the first of several serious knee injuries during his career. On November 9, 1995, in a game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Bure was grabbed around the head by defenseman Steve Smith while approaching the end boards. Falling to the ice, he caught his skate against the boards, tearing the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee. Requiring arthroscopic surgery, in which tendon was removed from his hamstring to repair the ACL, he was sidelined for the remainder of the season.
Bure returned to the Canucks' lineup with his knee fully recovered in the 1996–97 season. In the season opener against the Flames on October 5, 1996, Bure was pushed into the boards head-first. He continued to play after the hit, but experienced headaches in the following weeks. As Bure's play dropped early in the season, the media speculated that he was playing injured. After he went eight games without a goal, head coach Tom Renney claimed Bure was not playing with a head injury, but instead had injured his shoulder in a game against the New York Rangers on November 23. Nevertheless, he continued to play. With under a month left in the season, he received another hit, during a game against the Avalanche on March 3, 1997. Bure left the game and did not return for the remainder of the season. Afterwards, he admitted he was playing with a neck injury, having sustained whiplash from the first game against Calgary, but did not want to take himself out of the lineup after missing 62 games the previous season. With Bure's reduced playing capacity, he managed 55 points in 63 games, well below his usual pace, and the Canucks missed the playoffs for the first time since he joined the team. In a 2012 interview, Bure admitted having sustained a head injury on the initial hit against Calgary and that "he should not have played through it".
In the off-season, the Canucks made another significant move, signing Rangers' captain Mark Messier during free agency on July 26, 1997. Despite finally having a high-profile centre to play with, media reports soon appeared claiming that Bure was asking to be traded. The Canucks opened the season with two games against the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in Tokyo – an event organized by the league to market hockey for the upcoming 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. After two injury-plagued seasons with the number 96 on his jersey, Bure switched back to his familiar number 10, explaining: "I'm not superstitious, but the last two seasons have been bad memories." Although the Canucks missed the playoffs for the second straight year, he returned to his previous form in 1997–98, scoring 51 goals for his first 50-goal season since 1993–94, and third overall. Bure later recalled that with the Canucks out of playoff contention with a handful of games left, head coach Mike Keenan told him he could play as much as he wanted to reach the milestone. Scoring 50 goals was also implicit in a contract bonus for Bure. With an additional 39 assists, his 90 points ranked him third in the NHL, behind Peter Forsberg and Jaromír Jágr.
Following the 1997–98 season, Bure told newly appointed general manager Brian Burke that he would not play for the Canucks again, despite still having a year left in his contract worth $8 million. He then went public with the declaration, stating he intended to leave the club for "personal reasons". Bure did not report to the club the following season. Instead, he returned to his hometown Moscow to practise with his former Central Red Army club. During this time, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko offered Bure a tax-free $4 million salary to play in Belarus, which he turned down.
Florida Panthers (1999–2002)
Bure held out well into the 1998–99 season until he was traded on January 17, 1999, to the Florida Panthers, with Bret Hedican, Brad Ference, and Vancouver's third-round choice in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft (Robert Fried) for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes, and Florida's first-round choice in the 2000 draft (Nathan Smith). Talks between Burke and Bryan Murray, general manager of the Panthers, had begun in late-December. After the trade was completed, Bure explained that he felt alienated from Canucks' management after arriving in North America having defected from Russia. He claimed he had been in Los Angeles for two weeks before any Canucks' representative came to see him, as well as several bitter contract negotiations—particularly those of 1994. He also claimed that someone within the Canucks' management planted the constant allegations that he threatened not to play during the 1994 playoff run. Bure's agent at the time, Ron Salcer, also believed the story.
Meeting the Panthers in New York for a game against the Islanders, Bure debuted with his new club on January 20, 1999. He played on an all-Russian line with Viktor Kozlov and Oleg Kvasha and scored two goals. In his first six games with the club, Bure scored eight goals and three assists for eleven points. Less than a month into his Panthers debut, he reinjured his knee, keeping him out for three weeks. Despite the injury, the Panthers signed him to a five-year, $47.5 million contract (with an option for a sixth year at $10.5 million), the most lucrative in team history. Another injury ended Bure's season after just 11 games with Florida, though he scored 13 goals and three assists in that time.
In 1999–2000, his first full season as a Panther, Bure led the league in goal-scoring to capture his first of two consecutive Rocket Richard Trophies with a 58-goal season. It marked the second time Bure led the league in goal-scoring, but his first Rocket Richard Trophy as the award had been introduced the previous season. Combined with 36 assists, his 94 points came within two of Art Ross Trophy winner Jaromír Jágr as the league's leading point-scorer. His 58 goals and 94 points both set franchise records. He helped Florida to a fifth-place finish in the Eastern Conference to earn their first post-season berth in three seasons, though they were swept by the eventual Stanley Cup champions, the New Jersey Devils. Bure finished third for the Hart Memorial Trophy winner behind Chris Pronger and Jágr. He was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team for the first time.
Bure was set to make his much-anticipated return to Vancouver to play the Canucks on November 5, 1999, but was kept out of the lineup due to a broken finger. A prior groin injury had also forced him out of a Panther's home game against the Canucks earlier in the season. During the season, he was named to the 2000 NHL All-Star Game in Toronto, where he recorded an assist and the eleventh hat trick in the history of the All-Star Game. Of Bure's three goals, two were assisted by his brother Valeri, who played on the same line with him, along with his Panthers linemate, Viktor Kozlov. Helping lead the World team to a 9–4 victory over North America, Bure was named the All-Star Game MVP.
Bure repeated as league scoring champion in 2000–01 with 59 goals, reaching the 50-goal plateau for the fifth and final time in his career, as well as bettering his franchise single-season, goal-scoring record. However, the Panthers missed the playoffs, finishing 12th place in the East. Bure set a league record that season by scoring 29.5% of his team's total goals over the course of the season. He was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team, behind Jágr in the right wing position for the second consecutive year.
Before the 2001–02 season, the Panthers acquired Valeri Bure from the Calgary Flames in a trade, putting the brothers on the same team for the first time. However, Bure suffered a setback in the pre-season re-injuring his groin. Bure recalled having "good relations" with Panthers' management, who often consulted with him on team matters, including the acquisition of his brother. At the trading deadline, Bure was traded to the New York Rangers. During his 56 games for the Panthers that season, he led the team in scoring for the third consecutive season with 49 points.
New York Rangers (2002–2003)
The New York Rangers acquired Bure on March 18, 2002, along with Florida's second-round pick in the 2002 draft (Lee Falardeau) for Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak, as well as the Rangers' first and second-round choices in the 2002 draft (Petr Tatíček and Rob Globke, respectively) and a fourth-round choice in the 2003 draft. The Rangers had shown interest in Bure when he requested a trade from the Canucks in 1997. After losing their initial bid for Bure, Wayne Gretzky, who retired the same season Bure was traded to Florida, announced prior to the 1999–2000 season he would have extended his career had the Rangers been able to pull off the trade. Bure made his Rangers debut against the Vancouver Canucks the day after his trade on March 19, scoring a goal against his former team. He scored 12 goals and 20 points in 12 games after being traded, bettering his pace with Florida that season. Between the two teams, he finished the season with 34 goals and 69 points.
Bure suffered another knee injury in the 2002–03 pre-season; combined with a case of strep throat, he missed the first three games of the regular season. After returning to play, he had 14 goals and 21 points in his first 27 games, including two goals and an assist in his first game back, before a knee-on-knee collision in December forced him back out. After undergoing surgery 10 days later, it was revealed that there was no damage to the ACL as previously feared, but instead a tear to the meniscus in his left knee, which was repaired. Bure returned that season to appear in 39 games, managing 19 goals and 30 points.
Even after two operations, Bure did not play in 2003–04 due to the lingering effects of the knee injury. He failed a pre-season physical and was declared medically unable to play. Left with his fully insured $10 million salary (80 percent of which would be reimbursed to the team), the Rangers left him unprotected in the NHL's Waiver Draft, where he was unclaimed.
Retirement
Bure remained inactive for another season due to the 2004–05 NHL lockout. After the NHL resumed play for the 2005–06 season, he announced his retirement from professional hockey at a press conference in Moscow on November 1, 2005, citing complications with his chronic knee injuries. In an interview Bure explained that he did not want to extend his playing career without being able to play at an elite level.
Because Bure had been inactive since the 2002–03 season, he was eligible for selection into the Hockey Hall of Fame (which requires players to wait three years after their last game) immediately following his retirement. After being passed for induction in his first six years of eligibility, Bure was voted in on June 27, 2012, alongside Joe Sakic, Adam Oates and Mats Sundin. He became the fifth Soviet or Russian player (after Vladislav Tretiak, Viacheslav Fetisov, Valeri Kharlamov and Igor Larionov) and the first player to spend the majority of his career with the Canucks to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
His non-selection in previous years was widely debated in the media. Bure was often compared with Cam Neely, a player who also waited six years for induction; he recorded similar goals-per-game numbers in a career that was also shortened to 700-plus games. It had been often rumoured that Pat Quinn, Bure's former head coach and general manager in Vancouver, who became co-chairman of the Hockey Hall of Fame's selection committee, opposed Bure's induction. However, in a conference call following his selection, Quinn was among the most prominent figures he thanked. Quinn criticized the Canucks organization for not yet retiring Bure's jersey.
In his retirement, he remained publicly steadfast in his dissatisfaction with the way he was treated by the Canucks organization during his playing career. While Bure admitted to "a lot of disagreements with the Canucks management," he maintained that he "never had any problems with the Canucks fans". The Canucks retired Bure's 10 jersey on November 2, 2013. The day before the Canucks announced they would rename the team's Most Exciting Player Award to the Pavel Bure Most Exciting Player Award in his honor. Bure renounced his US citizenship in 2016.
International career
Junior
Prior to joining the NHL in 1991, Bure competed for the Soviet Union in several junior, international tournaments. The first was the 1988 Quebec Esso Cup, an under-17 tournament (now known as the World U-17 Hockey Challenge) held in Quebec City, where he earned a gold medal. That same year, he competed in his first of two consecutive European Junior Championships, winning a bronze medal.
The following year, Bure debuted at the world under-20 level as a 17-year-old at the 1989 World Junior Championships in Anchorage, Alaska. The top line of CSKA Moscow teammates Bure, Alexander Mogilny and Sergei Fedorov led the Soviet Union to a gold medal. Bure's eight goals tied him for the tournament lead with Jeremy Roenick of the United States; he led the Soviet team with 14 points. He was named to the Tournament All-Star Team, and earned Best Forward honours. He again participated in the 1989 European Junior Championship, helping the Soviet Union win the gold medal.
Bure competed in his second World Juniors in 1990, winning a silver medal in Helsinki, Finland, and scoring seven goals in seven games. Later that year, he made his senior debut with the Soviet national team as a 19-year-old at the 1990 World Championships in Switzerland. He scored two goals and four assists in ten games to help the Soviets to a gold medal finish. The Soviet team also won silver in the European Championship, which was decided from games played among the European teams at the tournament. Several months later, in July, Bure took part in his third international tournament of the year at the 1990 Goodwill Games in Seattle. Bure scored four goals and an assist in five games, and the Soviets won the gold medal.
In 1991, Bure appeared in his third and final World Junior Championships. Bure finished the tournament as the leading scorer with 12 goals in 7 games and the Soviets won the silver medal. He finished his three-year World Junior career with a tournament-record 27 goals, to go with 39 points, in 21 games. Bure later competed in the 1991 World Championships, his second international appearance of the year. He improved on his previous year's total with 11 points in 11 games, tied for the team lead with Valeri Kamensky, and helped the Soviets to a bronze medal finish. Bure was named to the tournament's Second All-Star Team. The 1991 team marked the last World Championships for the USSR, as the country was dissolved later that year.
Senior
Bure was set to represent the Soviet Union at the 1991 Canada Cup, however after turning down a three-year contract with his Russian club, CSKA Moscow, he was left off the final roster.
Bure played his first international tournament for Russia in preliminary games for the inaugural 1996 World Cup (the successor tournament to the Canada Cup). Bure had recently recovered from reconstructive surgery to his right knee, and had begun practicing with the Russian national team where he was reunited on a line with Fedorov and Mogilny, the first and only time the three of them would play together at the senior level; the line was considered "perhaps the best forward line on earth" at the time. However Bure bruised a kidney in one of the games and was forced to miss the main tournament.
As with the 1991 Canada Cup, controversy ensued when Bure refused to sign a petition organized by national team veteran Viacheslav Fetisov. With the Russian Ice Hockey Federation dealing with internal corruption, the petition called for the ouster of a few select Russian ice hockey officials. In response, Bure explained, "I do not sign petitions. I believe I should work – play hockey. Petitions to the federation or to Olympic committees do not interest me."
Two years later, Bure made his Olympic debut with Russia at the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano. He helped his team to advance to the gold medal game after a five-goal game in Russia's 7–4 semifinal win against Finland. The Russians lost the gold medal game to the Czech Republic, ending with silver. Bure finished with a tournament-high nine goals to be named the top forward, and though he recorded no assists, placed third in point-scoring with nine points in six games.
Bure's next international tournament was the 2000 World Championships, held in Saint Petersburg. The Russians had a disappointing tournament and finished eleventh. In six games, Bure managed four goals and an assist. Two years later, Bure made his second Olympic appearance at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City, playing with a fractured hand. Bure finished his final international tournament as a player with two goals and an assist in six games while Russia won the bronze medal.
On the announcement of his retirement in 2005, Bure was named Russia's Olympic general manager, succeeding Viacheslav Fetisov. He promised to put an end to the Russian Hockey Federation's history of internal conflict and player boycotts, saying, "You won't see such a mess with the national team that you've seen here before," and that "You won't see grouchy players here anymore. Only those who really want to play for Russia will be called into the team." As general manager, Bure chose the team for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. The Russians failed to win a medal, losing to the Czech Republic in the bronze medal match. Leading up to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, former Soviet national goaltender Vladislav Tretiak was named Bure's successor as Olympic general manager.
In December 2011, Bure was announced as one of the 2012 inductees into the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame. He was named alongside American Phil Housley, Finn Raimo Helminen and Czechoslovak Milan Nový in the annual class. The players were inducted in a ceremony in May 2012.
Playing style
Bure's playing style reflected the speed, skill and puck possession that was prominent in Soviet Union hockey programs. The most prevalent aspects of his game were his skating speed, agility, and acceleration, which earned him his nickname the "Russian Rocket". He was able to use his quickness to separate himself from defenders, to retrieve pucks before the opposition could in all zones of the ice, and to skate the length of the ice on many occasions. In a 1993 poll of NHL coaches conducted by hockey writer Bob McKenzie, Bure was named the league's best skater with eight of twenty-one votes, twice as many votes as any other player. One coach noted: "Bure has the best combination of speed, agility and balance ... He can also use change of speed better than anybody in the league right now."
During Bure's rehabilitation period, following his first major knee injury in 1995, Canucks' conditioning coach Peter Twist noticed that his skating style was distinct in comparison to typical North American players. He explained: "Most players skate on their inside edge and push off at a 45-degree angle, but Bure starts on his outer edge and rolls over to his inside edge and pushes back straighter on his stride ... he gets more power and force in his stride to get up to top speed quicker." his skating was also complemented by his ability to deke out defenders and goaltenders at top speeds, making him capable of routinely starting end-to-end rushes. However, several knee injuries, and the resulting reconstructive surgeries, compromised the speed that defined Bure's game, ultimately leading to his retirement.
Early in Bure's career, he was noted for playing a strong two-way game. Having joined Pat Quinn's defensive-minded Canucks in 1991, Bure's transition to the NHL was cited as being easier than that of his countryman, Igor Larionov, due to his quick adjustment to the team's defensive demands. Regarding Bure's first NHL game against the Winnipeg Jets, reporter Mike Beamish explained that "hockey fans marvelled at his offensive thrusts, but hockey people were taken by a singular display of jet-powered defensive diligence. On one play, after the Canucks were caught deep in the Winnipeg zone, the Russian winger raced back and almost single-handedly foiled a two-on-one Jets' rush, making up a half-rink disadvantage." Bure was used on the team's penalty kill for his entire tenure with the Canucks, and was proficient at generating shorthanded chances, pressuring the opposition with his quickness and positioning in the defensive zone. During the 1992 Stanley Cup playoffs, commentator and ex-NHL coach Harry Neale commented, "I like the effort he gives it when he doesn't have the puck. We all know what he can do when he thinks he can score, but he's killing penalties, he's checking, doing a lot of things." Bure tied for second-place on Bob McKenzie's 1993 coaches poll for the NHL's best penalty killer. He was also voted the league's second-best stickhandler that season and garnered recognition as one of the smartest players in the NHL.
Sports journalists Damien Cox and Stephen Brunt wrote about Bure during the 1994 Stanley Cup playoffs that he was a "two-way dynamo," accounting for "several bodychecks he handed out on the night" and for his defensive abilities as he stayed on the ice in the last minutes of a one-goal playoff match against the Toronto Maple Leafs. They spoke highly of his creativity as well, recognizing him as "someone who sees in his game a world of possibilities that just never occur to others," praising his "sheer elegance and imagination" and characterizing his hockey sense as "ho-hum brilliance from the most explosive player in the sport". Brunt called him "a nonpareil, a van Gogh, a Picasso, a Charlie Parker". During the 1993-94 season, Bure demonstrated his strong playmaking abilities, helping linemate and friend Gino Odjick score a career-high 16 goals in a single season, more than twice the number of goals Odjick would score in any other year separated from Bure, and doubling his career goal totals up to that point in his career. According to teammate Cliff Ronning in 1994, "we play a much sounder game defensively when Pavel's flying, as he was in the first period". Former Canuck teammate Jyrki Lumme spoke of Bure as a player and teammate, "That guy does something spectacular every time ... it's frustrating to go against him in practice because he's all over the place. He makes everybody on our team better."
During his time with the Canucks, Bure won the team's Most Exciting Player Award, as voted by the fans, a record five times (tied with Tony Tanti), from 1992 to 1995, and once more in 1998. Trevor Linden, who had played with Bure for seven seasons, said following Bure's retirement, "I don't know if I've ever seen or played with a player that's brought people out of their seats like that." During the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals, Rangers coach Mike Keenan, who later coached Bure for one-and-a-half seasons in Vancouver, called him "perhaps the most electrifying forward in the league". The Canucks renamed the award the Pavel Bure Most Exciting Player Award in his honour in 2013.
Bure has been described as a pure goal scorer and is statistically among the top players in NHL history in that regard. In addition to having reached the 50-goal mark in his career five times, and the 60-goal mark twice, his .623 goals per game average is third among the top 100 goal scorers in NHL history, behind Mike Bossy and Mario Lemieux. Michael Farber of the Montreal Gazette described Bure as "the most dangerous scorer in the National Hockey League with the continued absence of Mario Lemieux because Bure can beat a defence with his speed, his strength, his mind. Bure isn't a scorer as much as he is a permanent late-night television guest; he is to highlight packages what Terri Garr is to Letterman."
Personal life
Family
Bure comes from an athletic family; his father Vladimir, who is of Swiss descent (his side of the family originated from Furna, Switzerland), was an Olympic swimmer who competed for the Soviet Union in the 1968, 1972, and 1976 Olympic Games, where he won four medals. Bure retained his father as his personal trainer well into his playing career, before severing ties with him in 1997. Bure's paternal grandfather, Valeri Bure, played goalkeeper for the national water polo team. Both Pavel and his younger brother Valeri became estranged from their father and his second wife, Julia, along with their half-sister Katya, by 1998. Neither brother has explained a reason for the split.
Named after their grandfather, Bure's younger brother, Valeri, was also a hockey player, spending 10 years in the NHL. The two siblings played with each other briefly as members of the Florida Panthers, after Valeri was traded there in 2001, and played together at the 1998 and 2002 Winter Olympics.
The Bure family made precious watches for the Russian tsars from 1815 until 1917, and Bure was named after his great-grandfather, a watchmaker to Tsar Alexander III. As craftspersons to the imperial family, the Bures were granted noble status. After Bure sustained his first serious knee injury in 1995, he pursued the watchmaking business during his rehabilitation period in an attempt to revive the family business. Fifty replicas of the same watches his ancestors made for the Russian imperial family were made and sold at US$30,000 each. Bure presented three of the gold replicas to Russian President Boris Yeltsin, Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin and Moscow mayor Yuriy Luzhkov.
Relationships
Five days after arriving in North America from Moscow with his father and brother on September 6, 1991, (his mother Tatiana arrived two months later), Bure married an American fashion model, later revealed to be Jayme Bohn, in a civil ceremony. The marriage was allegedly set up by Bure's agents as a preventative measure against deportation in the event he and the Canucks could not come to terms with a contract. Bure derived no immigration benefit from the marriage, which was dissolved the following year. Bohn became a costume designer in the film and television industry.
After being linked to girlfriend Dahn Bryan, a model and actress, early in his NHL career, Bure shared a relationship with tennis star and fellow Russian Anna Kournikova. The two met in 1999 when she was still linked to Bure's former Russian teammate Sergei Fedorov. Bure and Kournikova were reported to have been engaged in 2000 after reporter Andrew Greven took a photo of them together in a Florida restaurant where Bure supposedly asked Kournikova to marry him. As the story made headlines in Russia, where they were both heavily followed in the media as celebrities, Bure and Kournikova both denied any engagement. Kournikova, 10 years younger than Bure, was 18 years old at the time. The following year, Kournikova and Fedorov were married in Moscow, though they soon divorced.
Bure married 23-year-old model Alina Khasanova on October 10, 2009, in Moscow, with 300 guests present. Pravda has reported, however, that the couple, who had known each other for four years, had officially married on October 10, 2008, in Miami. Together they have three children: Pavel Jr., Palina and Anastasia. Pavel Jr. was born on April 23, 2013; Palina was born on July 20, 2015. Their third child, a daughter named Anastasia, was born on 28 December 2018.
Politics
Bure is also frequently playing ice hockey with Russian president Vladimir Putin, but has denied having any political ambitions himself in an interview with a Swedish newspaper in 2019.
Legal activity
In 2002, Bure sued the Russian newspaper the eXile for publishing an article stating he broke up with Kournikova because she had two vaginas. Although the newspapers' editorial staff claimed the story was a mere joke, the court ruled in favour of Bure in the amount of 500,000 rubles (US$17,770), and ordered a retraction to be printed. Two years later, on December 27, 2004, the Russian cosmetics chain Arbat Prestige published a story in their free promotional paper that Bure had bragged about Kournikova losing her virginity to him. Shortly thereafter, on January 31, 2005, Bure sued Arbat Prestige for 300 million rubles (US$10.65 million) in a court in Moscow. He also demanded the company print a retraction and apology in a future paper. The court ruled in favour of Bure in November 2005. However, the amount was reduced from 300 million to approximately 320,000 rubles.
On October 31, 2006, nearly a year after his retirement, Bure filed another suit after being kicked off a British Airways flight by the pilot, having been mistaken for a rowdy soccer fan. Despite an apology from the airline company in June 2007, Bure took the issue to court, suing British Airways for 20 million rubles. In late-August 2007, a Russian court ruled in favour of Bure in the amount of 67,000 rubles.
Alleged Mafia connections
During Bure's playing career, much speculation surrounded Russian NHL players and their potential ties to the Russian mafia both as victims and associates. As Soviet players began defecting to the NHL, many cases of extortion began surfacing. The Russian mafia was targeting the players' families still living in Russia. Former teammate Alexander Mogilny was a victim of such an extortion attempt in 1994, while Bure was reported to have made payments totaling in the thousands of dollars to Russian extortionists in 1993. Three years later, in 1996, American sports network ESPN aired reports alleging Bure was a potential associate of the Russian mafia because of his relationship with friend and business partner Anzor Kikalishvili, known to both Russian and American police as a suspected criminal and possible Russian mob boss. Bure was revealed to hold a position as vice president in the sports company Twenty First Century Association, owned by Kikalishvili, and reportedly believed by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation to be a mafia front worth at least US$100 million in illicit funds. While Bure did not deny his business and personal relationships with Kikalishvili, he refuted reports Kikalishvili was involved in any criminal activity.
Speculation resurfaced in 1999, as Bure was included in an investigation aired by the CBC investigative news program The Fifth Estate that made several supposed associations between Soviet NHL players and the Russian mafia. An allegation arose that Bure's former CSKA teammate Viacheslav Fetisov used a company, of which he was president, to launder money for Vyacheslav Ivankov, considered the "Russian godfather" in North America. Bure's relationship with Kikalishvili continued to be questioned. Bure denied Kikalishvili's involvement in any criminal activity, dismissing the allegations as "rumours".
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Bold indicates led league
International
a does not include 1988 Quebec Esso Cup (U17)b does not include the 1990 Goodwill Games
Awards
Soviet
International
NHL
Vancouver Canucks
Records
Team
Vancouver Canucks' single-season record, most points by a rookie – 60 in 1991–92 (tied with Ivan Hlinka, 1981–82 and Elias Pettersson, 2018–19)
Vancouver Canucks' single-season record, most goals – 60 in 1992–93 and 1993–94
Vancouver Canucks' all-time playoffs record, most goals – 34 (tied with Trevor Linden)
Vancouver Canucks' all-time record, most shorthanded goals – 24
Vancouver Canucks' single-game record, most goals – four versus the Winnipeg Jets on October 12, 1992 (tied with Rosaire Paiement, Bobby Schmautz, Rick Blight, Petri Skriko, Greg Adams, Tony Tanti, Martin Gélinas, Markus Näslund and Daniel Sedin)
Florida Panthers' single-season record, most goals – 59 in 2000–01
International
World Junior Championships all-time record, most goals – 27 in 21 games (1989–1991)
Winter Olympics single-game record, most goals – five (1998; semifinal vs. Finland)
NHL
NHL record, most goals scored in proportion to team – 29.5% of the Florida Panthers' goals in 2000–01.
Transactions
June 9, 1989 – Drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in the sixth round, 113th overall, in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft.
October 31, 1991 – Signed by the Vancouver Canucks to a four-year, $3.5 million contract.
June 16, 1994 – Re-signed by the Vancouver Canucks to a five-year, $24.5 million contract.
January 17, 1999 – Traded by the Vancouver Canucks, along with Bret Hedican, Brad Ference and Vancouver's third-round draft choice (Robert Fried) in 2000, to the Florida Panthers in exchange for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes and Florida's first-round draft choice (Nathan Smith) in 2000.
February 8, 1999 – Signed by the Florida Panthers to a five-year, $47.5 million deal.
March 18, 2002 – Traded by the Florida Panthers, along with Florida's second-round draft choice in 2002 (Lee Falardeau), to the New York Rangers in exchange for Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak, the Rangers' first-round draft choice in 2002 (Eric Nystrom), the Rangers' second-round draft choice in 2002 (Rob Globke) and the Rangers fourth-round draft choice in 2003 (later traded to the Atlanta Thrashers; Atlanta selected Guillaume Desbiens).
See also
List of NHL statistical leaders
List of NHL players with 50-goal seasons
List of NHL players with 100-point seasons
Notable families in the NHL
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links
Pavel Bure's Official Web Site
1971 births
Living people
Calder Trophy winners
EV Landshut players
Florida Panthers players
HC CSKA Moscow players
HC Spartak Moscow players
Hockey Hall of Fame inductees
Ice hockey players at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Ice hockey players at the 2002 Winter Olympics
IIHF Hall of Fame inductees
New York Rangers players
National Hockey League All-Stars
National Hockey League players with retired numbers
Olympic bronze medalists for Russia
Olympic ice hockey players of Russia
Olympic silver medalists for Russia
Ice hockey people from Moscow
Rocket Richard Trophy winners
Russian ice hockey right wingers
Russian people of Swiss descent
Soviet expatriate ice hockey players
Soviet expatriates in Canada
Soviet ice hockey right wingers
Soviet people of Swiss descent
Vancouver Canucks draft picks
Vancouver Canucks players
Olympic medalists in ice hockey
Medalists at the 2002 Winter Olympics
Medalists at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Pavel
Russian State University of Physical Education, Sport, Youth and Tourism alumni
Competitors at the 1990 Goodwill Games | false | [
"HC CSKA Sofia is an ice hockey team from Sofia, Bulgaria that currently plays in the Bulgarian Hockey League. They are a department of the United Sports Clubs of CSKA Sofia.\n\nHistory\nIce hockey develops in Bulgaria in the start of the 20th century, but the organized hockey becomes famous in the end of the 40s. In 1994 a tournament in honor of the 5th congress of \"Bulgarian Communist Party\" is held and a few teams participate in it. On the 16th of September in the same year, the \"Republican section for skates and ice hockey\" is created. At the start, the competitions are in the form of city championships, without age requirements. One of the first teams is CSKA's one.\n\nDuring 1952 the first republican championship is held, where CSKA doesn't reach top 3. In the next competition, CSKA becomes third and wins its first medals. Then a few competitions that are played at the capital's racecourse, in which CSKA participates under the name \"CDNA\" and wins silver four times and bronze two times.\n\nThe golden period for CSKA is in the 60s, when CDNA unites with the hockey hegemon in those times - \"Red flag\" and under the name of CSKA \"Red flag\" four consecutive titles are won in the period 1963-67. After the second place in 1968, the golden rhythm is regained and CSKA is a champion in 1969 once again. Until 1975, five new titles are won, and the hegemony in CSKA is stopped only for one season by the team from Pernik - \"Krakra\".\n\nCSKA won the title in 1983 once again and doubled it during the next season. In 1986 the \"army\" players win their third title for the decade, which turns out to be their last for the next 27 years.\n\nAfter the changes in 1989, ice hockey degrades in Bulgaria as a whole, and CSKA suffers the most out of those changes. Separate competitions are held where only up to 3 teams participate. On a certain championship the title was to be given to one of the two teams that participated, which was very curious. However, CSKA manages to keep ice hockey alive throughout all of those years, and in the last few years a new powerful period is established when the hockey club is taken over by the coach and president Kiril Hodulov.\n\nThere is a future for ice hockey for CSKA, especially because the team is full of young and talented payers. One of them is Nikolai Bozhanov. Bozhanov has went through all of the formations of the \"army\" team and is also very thankful to the coach - Kiril Hodulov, who constantly helps him. Niki is a hereditary fan of CSKA and always visits the games of CSKA when he has the opportunity to, no matter what the sport is.\n\nFrom 2012 CSKA not only wins three consecutive titles, but also returns with a bang on the European hockey scene. The club participates in the prestige tournament for the \"Continental cup\", where in two consecutive seasons the club manages to go through the first phase.\n\nUnfortunately, in 2015 however, due to the lack of enough financial support, CSKA is forced to give up its participation in the second group stage of the \"Continental cup\", even though the club won in a dominant fashion in Belgrade.\n\nAchievements\n Bulgarian Champion (24): 1952, 1956, 1957, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1983, 1984, 1986, 2013, 2014, 2015\n Bulgarian Runner-up (15): 1955, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1970, 1978, 1987, 1988, 1989. 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012\n Bulgarian Cup (14): 1964, 1965, 1967, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1981, 1983, 1986, 1987, 2012, 2013\n\nHC CSKA Sofia in European Hockey \n\n(*)CSKA Sofia, the winners of First round renounced its participation due to financial problems and were replaced by First round third-placed team Partizan Belgrade after First round runners-up Zeytinburnu Belediyespor declined the invitation.\n\nNotable players\nKonstantin Mihailov\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nHC CSKA Sofia website\nClub profile on hockeyarenas.net\n\n1964 establishments in Bulgaria\nBulgarian Hockey League teams\nCSKA Sofia\nIce hockey teams in Bulgaria\nIce hockey clubs established in 1964\nMilitary ice hockey teams",
"CSKA Ice Palace () is an indoor arena that is located in Moscow, Russia. The arena's current seating capacity is 5,600. The arena is located next to Khodynka Field, and is a part of the CSKA Sports Complex. It is primarily used to host ice hockey games and figure skating competitions.\n\nHistory\nOriginally built in 1964, CSKA Ice Palace was heavily renovated and expanded in 1991, and expanded again in 2006. It has been used as the long-time home arena for the ice hockey games of CSKA Moscow.\n\nSee also\n CSKA Sports Complex\n\nExternal links\nCSKA Ice Palace at HC CSKA Moscow official site \nInfo on the arena. peski.ru\nMore info. sports.ru\n\nIndoor ice hockey venues in Russia\nIndoor arenas in Russia\nSports venues in Moscow\nHC CSKA Moscow\nSports venues built in the Soviet Union\nSports venues completed in 1964\nSports venues completed in 1991\nKontinental Hockey League venues\n1964 establishments in the Soviet Union\nCSKA Moscow"
]
|
[
"Pavel Bure",
"CSKA Moscow (1987-1991)",
"What is CSKA?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_32732a22d04542398a2a0695a7ea171d_1 | What did he do with CSKA? | 2 | What did Pavel Bure do with CSKA? | Pavel Bure | At age 16, Bure began his professional hockey career playing for CSKA Moscow. He was invited to the senior club's training camp for the 1987-88 season. Although he was deemed too young, and not yet ready, for the Soviet League, Bure earned minimal playing time filling in for absent regulars. He made his debut in September 1987, and played five games for the senior team, scoring his only goal in his first game. Bure joined the club full-time in 1988-89 and amassed 17 goals, a Soviet League record for rookies. The record would last for 18 years until Alexei Cherepanov scored 18 goals in 2006-07. Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (they repeated as European champions the following year). As a member CSKA, Bure joined a lineup that featured several future NHL players, including linemates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, as well as Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladimir Konstantinov. The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, the K-L-M combination of Vladimir Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. The trio was short-lived, as Mogilny defected to play for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, and Fedorov joined the Detroit Red Wings the following year. In his third and final season with the Red Army, Bure tied for the lead in team-scoring with Valeri Kamensky, tallying 46 points. His 35 goals was second in the league, one goal behind Ramil Yuldashev of Sokil Kyiv. Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup. CANNOTANSWER | professional hockey | Pavel Vladimirovich Bure (, ; born March 31, 1971) is a Russian former professional ice hockey player who played the right wing position. Nicknamed "the Russian Rocket" for his speed, Bure played for 12 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Vancouver Canucks, the Florida Panthers and the New York Rangers. Trained in the Soviet Union, he played three seasons with the Central Red Army team before his NHL career.
Selected 113th overall in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft by Vancouver, he began his NHL career in the 1991–92 season, and won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league's best rookie before leading the NHL in goal-scoring in 1993-94 and helping the Canucks to the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals. After seven seasons the Canucks traded Bure to the Panthers, where he won back-to-back Rocket Richard Trophies as the league's leading goal-scorer. Bure struggled with knee injuries throughout his career, resulting in his retirement in 2005 as a member of the Rangers, although he had not played since 2003. He averaged better than a point per game in his NHL career (779 points with 437 goals in 702 NHL games) and is fourth all-time in goals per game. After six years of eligibility, Bure was elected into the Hockey Hall of Fame in June 2012. In 2017, an NHL panel named Bure one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in history.
Internationally, Bure competed for the Soviet Union and Russia. As a member of the Soviet Union, he won two silver medals and a gold in three World Junior Championships, followed by a gold and a silver medal in the 1990 and 1991 World Championships, respectively. After the Soviet Union was dissolved in 1991, Bure competed for Russia in two Winter Olympics, claiming silver at the 1998 Games in Nagano as team captain, and bronze at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City. Following Bure's retirement in 2005, he was named the general manager for Russia's national team at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. Bure was later recognized for his international career as a 2012 inductee in the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame.
Early life
Bure was born in Moscow in 1971 to Vladimir and Tatiana Bure. Vladimir Bure, a Russian swimming legend, had dreams of Pavel becoming a professional swimmer, but he aspired to play hockey at an early age. He attended his first tryout with the CSKA Moscow hockey school at the age of six, despite his limited skating ability. Until that point, Bure had only played ball hockey on the streets. After Bure failed to impress in his first tryout, his father told him that if he did not show significant improvement within two months, he would withdraw him from the hockey school. By age 11, he was named the best forward in his league. Around that time, in July 1982, Bure was selected as one of three young Russian players to practice with Wayne Gretzky and Soviet national goaltender Vladislav Tretiak in a taped television special.
At age 12, his parents separated, and he remained with his mother. By the time he was 14 years old, he was named to the Central Red Army's junior team. In 1991, he joined his father and brother, Valeri in moving to North America as he embarked on a National Hockey League (NHL) career with the Vancouver Canucks. His mother arrived two months later. They settled initially in Los Angeles where Vladimir continued to train and coach both Valeri and Pavel in hockey and physical conditioning. However both became estranged from their father, along with his second wife and their half-sister Katya, by 1998. Neither brother has explained a reason for the split.
In December 1986, he embarked on a tour of Canada with the Soviet national midget team from Ottawa to Vancouver. Nearly five years before Bure made his NHL debut with the Vancouver Canucks in 1991 at the Pacific Coliseum, he played his first game at his future home rink as part of the tour. Bure also earned another opportunity to meet Gretzky, as well as defenseman Paul Coffey, when his team stopped in Edmonton to play at the Northlands Coliseum.
Playing career
CSKA Moscow (1987–1991)
At age 16, Bure began his professional hockey career playing for CSKA Moscow. He was invited to the senior club's training camp for the 1987–88 season. Although he was deemed too young, and not yet ready, for the Soviet League, Bure earned minimal playing time filling in for absent regulars. He made his debut in September 1987, and played five games for the senior team, scoring his only goal in his first game.
Bure joined the club full-time in 1988–89 and amassed 17 goals, a Soviet League record for rookies. The record would last for 18 years until Alexei Cherepanov scored 18 goals in 2006–07. Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (they repeated as European champions the following year).
As a member CSKA, Bure joined a lineup that featured several future NHL players, including linemates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, as well as Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladimir Konstantinov. The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, the K-L-M combination of Vladimir Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. The trio was short-lived, as Mogilny defected to play for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, and Fedorov joined the Detroit Red Wings the following year.
In his third and final season with the Red Army, Bure tied for the lead in team-scoring with Valeri Kamensky, tallying 46 points. His 35 goals was second in the league, one goal behind Ramil Yuldashev of Sokil Kyiv. Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup.
Transfer to the NHL (1989–1991)
Prior to the 1989 NHL Entry Draft, William Houston of The Globe and Mail wrote, "The best of the group is Soviet star winger Pavel Bure, a spectacular player with outstanding speed. He is compared to Vladimir Krutov and also the late Soviet superstar of the 1970s, Valeri Kharlamov." NHL organizations were afraid he would not leave the Soviet Union to play in the NHL thus deterring teams from selecting him early, although scouts and analysts believed he could have been selected as high as the second round had he defected. Many analysts compared him to Valeri Kharlamov. Edmonton Oilers' scout Barry Fraser commented, "From what I've seen of him, Bure can play on any team in the NHL right now... he's quick, real quick, small and very exciting. He may be the top player in this year's draft, but because he is from the Soviet Union, we don't analyze him the same way as a kid from the West... I don't expect him to go really early because it is still too much of a gamble to hope he will defect."
Bure was selected 113th overall in the sixth round Draft by the Vancouver Canucks, following his rookie season with CSKA Moscow. The pick was controversial, as the Canucks had chosen him seemingly a year ahead of his eligible draft season. At the age of 18, he was available to be chosen in the first three rounds of the draft, but to be selected any later, he would have needed to play at least two seasons—with a minimum of 11 games per season—for his elite-level Soviet club, the Central Red Army. While most teams believed he was ineligible, the Canucks' head scout at the time, Mike Penny, discovered Bure had played in additional exhibition and international games to make him an eligible late-round draft choice a year early. Jack Button, the Washington Capitals' director of player personnel, admitted "everybody would have taken him earlier. We assumed he was not eligible... you've got to give the Canucks credit for doing their homework."
Several other teams either had similar knowledge or had pursued Bure but there was confusion as to the legitimacy of the extra games. The Detroit Red Wings had asked league vice president Gil Stein about Bure's availability before their fifth-round pick but were told he was not eligible. They later decided to select him with their sixth-round pick, 116th overall, and settle his eligibility later. The Canucks selected Bure three picks ahead of Detroit's turn. Meanwhile, Winnipeg Jets general manager Mike Smith, claimed he made an offer to the Soviet Ice Hockey Federation that would involve three years of transfer payments before Bure would be allowed to join the Jets; however Smith did not have any plans to draft Bure in 1989 as he believed he was ineligible.
Canucks' general manager Pat Quinn originally intended to draft Bure in the eighth round but after receiving word the Oilers had similar intentions selected him in the sixth. Following the announcement of Bure's draft, several other team representatives reportedly stormed the Met Center stage in Minnesota, where the draft was being held. Formal complaints were filed resulting in an investigation into the selection. After the pick was deemed illegal by league president John Ziegler in a press release on May 17, 1990, the Canucks appealed the decision, procuring game sheets proving Bure's participation in the additional games with the help of recent Soviet acquisition Igor Larionov. It was not until the eve of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft, in which Bure would have been re-entered that the draft choice was upheld. Although Larionov and Fetisov had successfully spearheaded the rebellion against Soviet ice hockey officials in the late 1980s that led to Soviet players joining the NHL, Bure's transfer to the Canucks was met with resistance, and the Soviet authorities forbade the Canucks to contact Bure personally. During the 1991 World Junior Championships, he said in an interview that he was hesitant to defect for fears the Soviets would make things difficult for his younger brother Valeri Bure, who was 15 at the time and playing in the junior league.
Bure left Moscow with his father and brother on September 6, 1991, staying temporarily in Los Angeles. His mother arrived shortly afterward. The Canucks began negotiating a contract with Bure, but before one could be finalized, the issue of his existing contract with the Central Red Army had to be settled. The Canucks management and officials from the Soviet Ice Hockey Federation met in late-October 1991 in a Detroit court, where they bartered for a cash settlement. After the Canucks offered US$200,000, Bure stood up in the courtroom to offer an additional $50,000, bringing the total to $250,000. The Soviet officials accepted, and Canucks management paid the full $250,000. Bure signed a four-year contract worth a reported $2.7 million with an $800,000 signing bonus. The deal made Bure the Canucks' second highest paid player behind team captain Trevor Linden.
Vancouver Canucks (1991–1999)
Due to the court proceedings, Bure's debut with the Canucks was delayed until a month into the 1991–92 season. Garnering much attention in Vancouver, his first practice with the club on November 3, 1991, was attended by approximately 2,000 fans. He played his first game for the Canucks on November 5, 1991, in a 2–2 tie against the Winnipeg Jets. Despite not scoring a point, Bure showcased his talent and speed with several end-to-end rushes, carrying the puck past several defenders from near his defensive zone to the opposing net. Following the game, Vancouver Sun columnist Iain MacIntyre compared him to a rocket, calling him "the fastest Soviet creation since Sputnik". MacIntyre's comments are credited for laying the groundwork for Bure's moniker as the "Russian Rocket," which echoed the nickname of Maurice "Rocket" Richard, who played for the Montreal Canadiens in the 1950s. In his third game, Bure recorded his first point, an assist against the New York Islanders on November 10. He scored his first two NHL goals in the next game, on November 12, against Daniel Berthiaume of the Los Angeles Kings. He finished with 34 goals and 60 points in 65 games that season, including 22 goals in his final 23 games. In the last game of the regular season, Bure scored a goal to tie Ivan Hlinka's 1981–82 team mark for most points by a rookie.
As the Canucks opened the 1992 playoffs against the Winnipeg Jets, Bure recorded his first NHL hat trick in game six to help force a seventh and deciding game. Vancouver won the series to advance to the second round, but were eliminated by the Edmonton Oilers. Bure finished his first Stanley Cup playoffs with six goals and 10 points in 13 games. At the end of the season, he was awarded the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year. His 60 points were second among first-year players to Tony Amonte's 69 points with the Rangers, although Bure played in 14 fewer games. When accepting the award, Bure thanked Canucks linemate Igor Larionov for his guidance. On arriving in Vancouver, his former Red Army teammate took him into his home for two weeks before Bure moved into his own apartment; the two also roomed together on the road. Bure's Calder Trophy, along with head coach Pat Quinn's Jack Adams Award as the league's top coach, marked the first major individual NHL awards in Canucks' team history. However, despite being named the league's top rookie, Bure was left off the NHL All-Rookie Team, making him the only Calder recipient not to be named to the lineup. This was because he split his time playing both left and right wing. When it came to voting for the players, Bure had the most total votes, but not enough at either position to claim a spot.
Bure improved on his rookie season in 1992–93 with the first of two consecutive 60-goal seasons. In the third game of the season, he scored a career-high four goals against the Winnipeg Jets. His three goals and one assist in the second period set a pair of Canucks' records for most goals and points in a period, in addition to the team mark for most goals overall in a game (for which he is tied with several players). Furthermore, Bure scored two of his goals on the penalty kill to set a fourth team record for most short-handed goals in one contest. He appeared in his first NHL All-Star Game in 1993, being named to the Clarence Campbell Conference Team as the lone Canucks' representative, and scored two goals. Shortly after the All-Star break, Bure established a new franchise record for goals in a season during a 5–1 win over the Quebec Nordiques, surpassing Tony Tanti's 45-goal mark. The next month, on March 1, he reached the 50-goal mark for the first time in his career, scoring against Grant Fuhr of the Buffalo Sabres in a neutral-site game in Hamilton, Ontario. He also surpassed Patrik Sundström's franchise record of 91 points. Bure finished the season with 110 points in 83 games, and became the first Canuck named to the NHL First All-Star Team. His 110 points stood as the team record until it was broken by Henrik Sedin's 112 points in 2009–10.
A groin injury early in the 1993-94 season limited Bure's production for the first half of the season. Even so, he improved in the second half, and led the league in goal-scoring by repeating his 60-goal feat of the previous season. In doing so, he became the eighth player in NHL history to record back-to-back 60-goal seasons. He concluded the season with a streak of 49 goals and 78 points in his final 51 games, and earned player of the month honours in March 1994 after scoring 19 goals and 30 points in 16 games. His March scoring burst was just one point shy of Stan Smyl's 31-point March in 1983 for the most productive month by a Canucks player. Bure's 154 NHL goals at that point in his career put him behind only Wayne Gretzky and Mike Bossy for the most in any NHL player's first three seasons. He recorded 49 goals in the club's final 51 games, and contributed to 46.45% of his team's goals in the final 47 games of the season to carry the Canucks into the 1994 postseason.
Entering the 1994 Stanley Cup Playoffs as the seventh seed, the Canucks went on a run to the Stanley Cup Finals. In the seventh game of the opening-round series against the Calgary Flames, Bure scored one of the most significant and well-known goals in Canucks' history. After receiving a breakaway pass from defenceman Jeff Brown, he deked and scored on Flames' goalie Mike Vernon in the second overtime to win the series. In game two of the second round against the Dallas Stars, Bure knocked enforcer Shane Churla to the ice with an elbow to the jaw. He also scored two goals in the game to help Vancouver to a 3–0 win. Although Bure was not initially penalized for the play, he was later fined $500 by the league. He recorded six goals and eight points in five games against the Dallas Stars, and against the Toronto Maple Leafs the following round scored four goals and six points in five games.
After defeating Dallas in five games, the Canucks eliminated the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Campbell Conference Finals to meet the New York Rangers in the Finals, where the Canucks lost in seven games. Bure finished with a team-high 16 goals and 31 points in 24 games, second in playoff scoring only to Conn Smythe Trophy winner Brian Leetch. His points total also remained the highest by any Russian player until Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins recorded 36 in 2009.
In the next off-season, the Canucks announced they had re-signed Bure to a five-year, $24.5 million contract on June 16. The deal was reported to have been signed before game three of the Stanley Cup Finals against New York. It also included Bure's marketing rights and put his father, Vladimir, on the team payroll as a fitness and marketing consultant. The average annual salary of $4.9 million made Bure the league's third highest-paid player, behind Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux. In fact, Bure and the Canucks had entered into contract negotiations at the beginning of the 1993–94 season, although two years remained in his original deal. Neither side could come to an initial agreement; one of the major factors was the Canucks' demands for the contract to be in Canadian dollars on account of the American exchange rate. Numerous accusations were made in the media during the Canucks' playoff run that Bure threatened not to play if a contract could not be agreed upon. A Toronto Star article, published before the first game of the Finals on May 31, 1994, claimed Bure had signed a five-year, $30 million contract that, if the Canucks had not agreed to, would have seen him pull out of game five of the Conference Finals against the Maple Leafs. The article was followed by two additional claims in the following two days in the Vancouver-based newspaper The Province and Toronto Sun. The Toronto Sun held the contract was a five-year, $22.5 million deal, and that it was signed before either game six or seven of the opening round against the Flames after Bure's agent, Ron Salcer, told general manager Quinn that Bure would not play if the deal was not made. As the story continued well into the next season, Pat Quinn appeared in a segment on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)'s Hockey Night in Canada on March 27, 1995, publicly denying the claims.
Due to the 1994–95 NHL lockout, Bure spent single-game stints with Spartak Moscow of the Russian Super League and EV Landshut of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). He joined a team of Russian NHL players organized by Slava Fetisov that returned to Russia to play a five-game charity tour against local clubs. On the team, Bure reunited with former Central Red Army linemates Mogilny and Fedorov. When the NHL Players Association (NHLPA) and owners came to an agreement on January 12, 1995, NHL play was set to resume. However, there were unresolved contract issues, as Salcer claimed the Canucks promised they would pay Bure's full salary, despite the lockout, which cancelled nearly half of the 1994–95 season. Bure held out for four days as a result (the amount claimed to be owing was $1.7 million), before the two sides reached an agreement. The Canucks would put the disputed amount in escrow and would continue discussions. He soon reported to Vancouver and went on to tally 43 points in 44 games of the shortened season. In the 1995 playoffs, Bure set franchise records for most goals and points in a series with seven and 12 respectively in a seven-game series victory against the St. Louis Blues (Mikael Samuelsson tied Bure's goal-scoring record in 2010 against the Los Angeles Kings). The Canucks, however, failed to defend their Clarence Campbell Conference championship title, being swept by the Chicago Blackhawks in the second round. The Canucks' elimination in 1995 marked the last time Bure appeared in the post-season with the club. He finished with a career playoff total of 66 points with the Canucks, including 34 goals, which remained the highest club total until Linden tied the mark in 2007.
At the start of the 1995–96 season, Bure changed his jersey number from 10 to 96. The switch commemorated September 6, 1991, the day on which he first landed in North America from Moscow—9th month, 6th day. He had originally asked to wear the number when he first joined the Canucks, but was not permitted to do so by head coach Pat Quinn, who did not approve of high jersey numbers. After the Canucks traded with the Buffalo Sabres for Alexander Mogilny, reuniting the two Russian players, the jersey number was deemed acceptable because Mogilny had used number 89 since defecting to North America in 1989.
Early in the season, Bure sustained the first of several serious knee injuries during his career. On November 9, 1995, in a game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Bure was grabbed around the head by defenseman Steve Smith while approaching the end boards. Falling to the ice, he caught his skate against the boards, tearing the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee. Requiring arthroscopic surgery, in which tendon was removed from his hamstring to repair the ACL, he was sidelined for the remainder of the season.
Bure returned to the Canucks' lineup with his knee fully recovered in the 1996–97 season. In the season opener against the Flames on October 5, 1996, Bure was pushed into the boards head-first. He continued to play after the hit, but experienced headaches in the following weeks. As Bure's play dropped early in the season, the media speculated that he was playing injured. After he went eight games without a goal, head coach Tom Renney claimed Bure was not playing with a head injury, but instead had injured his shoulder in a game against the New York Rangers on November 23. Nevertheless, he continued to play. With under a month left in the season, he received another hit, during a game against the Avalanche on March 3, 1997. Bure left the game and did not return for the remainder of the season. Afterwards, he admitted he was playing with a neck injury, having sustained whiplash from the first game against Calgary, but did not want to take himself out of the lineup after missing 62 games the previous season. With Bure's reduced playing capacity, he managed 55 points in 63 games, well below his usual pace, and the Canucks missed the playoffs for the first time since he joined the team. In a 2012 interview, Bure admitted having sustained a head injury on the initial hit against Calgary and that "he should not have played through it".
In the off-season, the Canucks made another significant move, signing Rangers' captain Mark Messier during free agency on July 26, 1997. Despite finally having a high-profile centre to play with, media reports soon appeared claiming that Bure was asking to be traded. The Canucks opened the season with two games against the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in Tokyo – an event organized by the league to market hockey for the upcoming 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. After two injury-plagued seasons with the number 96 on his jersey, Bure switched back to his familiar number 10, explaining: "I'm not superstitious, but the last two seasons have been bad memories." Although the Canucks missed the playoffs for the second straight year, he returned to his previous form in 1997–98, scoring 51 goals for his first 50-goal season since 1993–94, and third overall. Bure later recalled that with the Canucks out of playoff contention with a handful of games left, head coach Mike Keenan told him he could play as much as he wanted to reach the milestone. Scoring 50 goals was also implicit in a contract bonus for Bure. With an additional 39 assists, his 90 points ranked him third in the NHL, behind Peter Forsberg and Jaromír Jágr.
Following the 1997–98 season, Bure told newly appointed general manager Brian Burke that he would not play for the Canucks again, despite still having a year left in his contract worth $8 million. He then went public with the declaration, stating he intended to leave the club for "personal reasons". Bure did not report to the club the following season. Instead, he returned to his hometown Moscow to practise with his former Central Red Army club. During this time, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko offered Bure a tax-free $4 million salary to play in Belarus, which he turned down.
Florida Panthers (1999–2002)
Bure held out well into the 1998–99 season until he was traded on January 17, 1999, to the Florida Panthers, with Bret Hedican, Brad Ference, and Vancouver's third-round choice in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft (Robert Fried) for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes, and Florida's first-round choice in the 2000 draft (Nathan Smith). Talks between Burke and Bryan Murray, general manager of the Panthers, had begun in late-December. After the trade was completed, Bure explained that he felt alienated from Canucks' management after arriving in North America having defected from Russia. He claimed he had been in Los Angeles for two weeks before any Canucks' representative came to see him, as well as several bitter contract negotiations—particularly those of 1994. He also claimed that someone within the Canucks' management planted the constant allegations that he threatened not to play during the 1994 playoff run. Bure's agent at the time, Ron Salcer, also believed the story.
Meeting the Panthers in New York for a game against the Islanders, Bure debuted with his new club on January 20, 1999. He played on an all-Russian line with Viktor Kozlov and Oleg Kvasha and scored two goals. In his first six games with the club, Bure scored eight goals and three assists for eleven points. Less than a month into his Panthers debut, he reinjured his knee, keeping him out for three weeks. Despite the injury, the Panthers signed him to a five-year, $47.5 million contract (with an option for a sixth year at $10.5 million), the most lucrative in team history. Another injury ended Bure's season after just 11 games with Florida, though he scored 13 goals and three assists in that time.
In 1999–2000, his first full season as a Panther, Bure led the league in goal-scoring to capture his first of two consecutive Rocket Richard Trophies with a 58-goal season. It marked the second time Bure led the league in goal-scoring, but his first Rocket Richard Trophy as the award had been introduced the previous season. Combined with 36 assists, his 94 points came within two of Art Ross Trophy winner Jaromír Jágr as the league's leading point-scorer. His 58 goals and 94 points both set franchise records. He helped Florida to a fifth-place finish in the Eastern Conference to earn their first post-season berth in three seasons, though they were swept by the eventual Stanley Cup champions, the New Jersey Devils. Bure finished third for the Hart Memorial Trophy winner behind Chris Pronger and Jágr. He was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team for the first time.
Bure was set to make his much-anticipated return to Vancouver to play the Canucks on November 5, 1999, but was kept out of the lineup due to a broken finger. A prior groin injury had also forced him out of a Panther's home game against the Canucks earlier in the season. During the season, he was named to the 2000 NHL All-Star Game in Toronto, where he recorded an assist and the eleventh hat trick in the history of the All-Star Game. Of Bure's three goals, two were assisted by his brother Valeri, who played on the same line with him, along with his Panthers linemate, Viktor Kozlov. Helping lead the World team to a 9–4 victory over North America, Bure was named the All-Star Game MVP.
Bure repeated as league scoring champion in 2000–01 with 59 goals, reaching the 50-goal plateau for the fifth and final time in his career, as well as bettering his franchise single-season, goal-scoring record. However, the Panthers missed the playoffs, finishing 12th place in the East. Bure set a league record that season by scoring 29.5% of his team's total goals over the course of the season. He was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team, behind Jágr in the right wing position for the second consecutive year.
Before the 2001–02 season, the Panthers acquired Valeri Bure from the Calgary Flames in a trade, putting the brothers on the same team for the first time. However, Bure suffered a setback in the pre-season re-injuring his groin. Bure recalled having "good relations" with Panthers' management, who often consulted with him on team matters, including the acquisition of his brother. At the trading deadline, Bure was traded to the New York Rangers. During his 56 games for the Panthers that season, he led the team in scoring for the third consecutive season with 49 points.
New York Rangers (2002–2003)
The New York Rangers acquired Bure on March 18, 2002, along with Florida's second-round pick in the 2002 draft (Lee Falardeau) for Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak, as well as the Rangers' first and second-round choices in the 2002 draft (Petr Tatíček and Rob Globke, respectively) and a fourth-round choice in the 2003 draft. The Rangers had shown interest in Bure when he requested a trade from the Canucks in 1997. After losing their initial bid for Bure, Wayne Gretzky, who retired the same season Bure was traded to Florida, announced prior to the 1999–2000 season he would have extended his career had the Rangers been able to pull off the trade. Bure made his Rangers debut against the Vancouver Canucks the day after his trade on March 19, scoring a goal against his former team. He scored 12 goals and 20 points in 12 games after being traded, bettering his pace with Florida that season. Between the two teams, he finished the season with 34 goals and 69 points.
Bure suffered another knee injury in the 2002–03 pre-season; combined with a case of strep throat, he missed the first three games of the regular season. After returning to play, he had 14 goals and 21 points in his first 27 games, including two goals and an assist in his first game back, before a knee-on-knee collision in December forced him back out. After undergoing surgery 10 days later, it was revealed that there was no damage to the ACL as previously feared, but instead a tear to the meniscus in his left knee, which was repaired. Bure returned that season to appear in 39 games, managing 19 goals and 30 points.
Even after two operations, Bure did not play in 2003–04 due to the lingering effects of the knee injury. He failed a pre-season physical and was declared medically unable to play. Left with his fully insured $10 million salary (80 percent of which would be reimbursed to the team), the Rangers left him unprotected in the NHL's Waiver Draft, where he was unclaimed.
Retirement
Bure remained inactive for another season due to the 2004–05 NHL lockout. After the NHL resumed play for the 2005–06 season, he announced his retirement from professional hockey at a press conference in Moscow on November 1, 2005, citing complications with his chronic knee injuries. In an interview Bure explained that he did not want to extend his playing career without being able to play at an elite level.
Because Bure had been inactive since the 2002–03 season, he was eligible for selection into the Hockey Hall of Fame (which requires players to wait three years after their last game) immediately following his retirement. After being passed for induction in his first six years of eligibility, Bure was voted in on June 27, 2012, alongside Joe Sakic, Adam Oates and Mats Sundin. He became the fifth Soviet or Russian player (after Vladislav Tretiak, Viacheslav Fetisov, Valeri Kharlamov and Igor Larionov) and the first player to spend the majority of his career with the Canucks to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
His non-selection in previous years was widely debated in the media. Bure was often compared with Cam Neely, a player who also waited six years for induction; he recorded similar goals-per-game numbers in a career that was also shortened to 700-plus games. It had been often rumoured that Pat Quinn, Bure's former head coach and general manager in Vancouver, who became co-chairman of the Hockey Hall of Fame's selection committee, opposed Bure's induction. However, in a conference call following his selection, Quinn was among the most prominent figures he thanked. Quinn criticized the Canucks organization for not yet retiring Bure's jersey.
In his retirement, he remained publicly steadfast in his dissatisfaction with the way he was treated by the Canucks organization during his playing career. While Bure admitted to "a lot of disagreements with the Canucks management," he maintained that he "never had any problems with the Canucks fans". The Canucks retired Bure's 10 jersey on November 2, 2013. The day before the Canucks announced they would rename the team's Most Exciting Player Award to the Pavel Bure Most Exciting Player Award in his honor. Bure renounced his US citizenship in 2016.
International career
Junior
Prior to joining the NHL in 1991, Bure competed for the Soviet Union in several junior, international tournaments. The first was the 1988 Quebec Esso Cup, an under-17 tournament (now known as the World U-17 Hockey Challenge) held in Quebec City, where he earned a gold medal. That same year, he competed in his first of two consecutive European Junior Championships, winning a bronze medal.
The following year, Bure debuted at the world under-20 level as a 17-year-old at the 1989 World Junior Championships in Anchorage, Alaska. The top line of CSKA Moscow teammates Bure, Alexander Mogilny and Sergei Fedorov led the Soviet Union to a gold medal. Bure's eight goals tied him for the tournament lead with Jeremy Roenick of the United States; he led the Soviet team with 14 points. He was named to the Tournament All-Star Team, and earned Best Forward honours. He again participated in the 1989 European Junior Championship, helping the Soviet Union win the gold medal.
Bure competed in his second World Juniors in 1990, winning a silver medal in Helsinki, Finland, and scoring seven goals in seven games. Later that year, he made his senior debut with the Soviet national team as a 19-year-old at the 1990 World Championships in Switzerland. He scored two goals and four assists in ten games to help the Soviets to a gold medal finish. The Soviet team also won silver in the European Championship, which was decided from games played among the European teams at the tournament. Several months later, in July, Bure took part in his third international tournament of the year at the 1990 Goodwill Games in Seattle. Bure scored four goals and an assist in five games, and the Soviets won the gold medal.
In 1991, Bure appeared in his third and final World Junior Championships. Bure finished the tournament as the leading scorer with 12 goals in 7 games and the Soviets won the silver medal. He finished his three-year World Junior career with a tournament-record 27 goals, to go with 39 points, in 21 games. Bure later competed in the 1991 World Championships, his second international appearance of the year. He improved on his previous year's total with 11 points in 11 games, tied for the team lead with Valeri Kamensky, and helped the Soviets to a bronze medal finish. Bure was named to the tournament's Second All-Star Team. The 1991 team marked the last World Championships for the USSR, as the country was dissolved later that year.
Senior
Bure was set to represent the Soviet Union at the 1991 Canada Cup, however after turning down a three-year contract with his Russian club, CSKA Moscow, he was left off the final roster.
Bure played his first international tournament for Russia in preliminary games for the inaugural 1996 World Cup (the successor tournament to the Canada Cup). Bure had recently recovered from reconstructive surgery to his right knee, and had begun practicing with the Russian national team where he was reunited on a line with Fedorov and Mogilny, the first and only time the three of them would play together at the senior level; the line was considered "perhaps the best forward line on earth" at the time. However Bure bruised a kidney in one of the games and was forced to miss the main tournament.
As with the 1991 Canada Cup, controversy ensued when Bure refused to sign a petition organized by national team veteran Viacheslav Fetisov. With the Russian Ice Hockey Federation dealing with internal corruption, the petition called for the ouster of a few select Russian ice hockey officials. In response, Bure explained, "I do not sign petitions. I believe I should work – play hockey. Petitions to the federation or to Olympic committees do not interest me."
Two years later, Bure made his Olympic debut with Russia at the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano. He helped his team to advance to the gold medal game after a five-goal game in Russia's 7–4 semifinal win against Finland. The Russians lost the gold medal game to the Czech Republic, ending with silver. Bure finished with a tournament-high nine goals to be named the top forward, and though he recorded no assists, placed third in point-scoring with nine points in six games.
Bure's next international tournament was the 2000 World Championships, held in Saint Petersburg. The Russians had a disappointing tournament and finished eleventh. In six games, Bure managed four goals and an assist. Two years later, Bure made his second Olympic appearance at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City, playing with a fractured hand. Bure finished his final international tournament as a player with two goals and an assist in six games while Russia won the bronze medal.
On the announcement of his retirement in 2005, Bure was named Russia's Olympic general manager, succeeding Viacheslav Fetisov. He promised to put an end to the Russian Hockey Federation's history of internal conflict and player boycotts, saying, "You won't see such a mess with the national team that you've seen here before," and that "You won't see grouchy players here anymore. Only those who really want to play for Russia will be called into the team." As general manager, Bure chose the team for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. The Russians failed to win a medal, losing to the Czech Republic in the bronze medal match. Leading up to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, former Soviet national goaltender Vladislav Tretiak was named Bure's successor as Olympic general manager.
In December 2011, Bure was announced as one of the 2012 inductees into the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame. He was named alongside American Phil Housley, Finn Raimo Helminen and Czechoslovak Milan Nový in the annual class. The players were inducted in a ceremony in May 2012.
Playing style
Bure's playing style reflected the speed, skill and puck possession that was prominent in Soviet Union hockey programs. The most prevalent aspects of his game were his skating speed, agility, and acceleration, which earned him his nickname the "Russian Rocket". He was able to use his quickness to separate himself from defenders, to retrieve pucks before the opposition could in all zones of the ice, and to skate the length of the ice on many occasions. In a 1993 poll of NHL coaches conducted by hockey writer Bob McKenzie, Bure was named the league's best skater with eight of twenty-one votes, twice as many votes as any other player. One coach noted: "Bure has the best combination of speed, agility and balance ... He can also use change of speed better than anybody in the league right now."
During Bure's rehabilitation period, following his first major knee injury in 1995, Canucks' conditioning coach Peter Twist noticed that his skating style was distinct in comparison to typical North American players. He explained: "Most players skate on their inside edge and push off at a 45-degree angle, but Bure starts on his outer edge and rolls over to his inside edge and pushes back straighter on his stride ... he gets more power and force in his stride to get up to top speed quicker." his skating was also complemented by his ability to deke out defenders and goaltenders at top speeds, making him capable of routinely starting end-to-end rushes. However, several knee injuries, and the resulting reconstructive surgeries, compromised the speed that defined Bure's game, ultimately leading to his retirement.
Early in Bure's career, he was noted for playing a strong two-way game. Having joined Pat Quinn's defensive-minded Canucks in 1991, Bure's transition to the NHL was cited as being easier than that of his countryman, Igor Larionov, due to his quick adjustment to the team's defensive demands. Regarding Bure's first NHL game against the Winnipeg Jets, reporter Mike Beamish explained that "hockey fans marvelled at his offensive thrusts, but hockey people were taken by a singular display of jet-powered defensive diligence. On one play, after the Canucks were caught deep in the Winnipeg zone, the Russian winger raced back and almost single-handedly foiled a two-on-one Jets' rush, making up a half-rink disadvantage." Bure was used on the team's penalty kill for his entire tenure with the Canucks, and was proficient at generating shorthanded chances, pressuring the opposition with his quickness and positioning in the defensive zone. During the 1992 Stanley Cup playoffs, commentator and ex-NHL coach Harry Neale commented, "I like the effort he gives it when he doesn't have the puck. We all know what he can do when he thinks he can score, but he's killing penalties, he's checking, doing a lot of things." Bure tied for second-place on Bob McKenzie's 1993 coaches poll for the NHL's best penalty killer. He was also voted the league's second-best stickhandler that season and garnered recognition as one of the smartest players in the NHL.
Sports journalists Damien Cox and Stephen Brunt wrote about Bure during the 1994 Stanley Cup playoffs that he was a "two-way dynamo," accounting for "several bodychecks he handed out on the night" and for his defensive abilities as he stayed on the ice in the last minutes of a one-goal playoff match against the Toronto Maple Leafs. They spoke highly of his creativity as well, recognizing him as "someone who sees in his game a world of possibilities that just never occur to others," praising his "sheer elegance and imagination" and characterizing his hockey sense as "ho-hum brilliance from the most explosive player in the sport". Brunt called him "a nonpareil, a van Gogh, a Picasso, a Charlie Parker". During the 1993-94 season, Bure demonstrated his strong playmaking abilities, helping linemate and friend Gino Odjick score a career-high 16 goals in a single season, more than twice the number of goals Odjick would score in any other year separated from Bure, and doubling his career goal totals up to that point in his career. According to teammate Cliff Ronning in 1994, "we play a much sounder game defensively when Pavel's flying, as he was in the first period". Former Canuck teammate Jyrki Lumme spoke of Bure as a player and teammate, "That guy does something spectacular every time ... it's frustrating to go against him in practice because he's all over the place. He makes everybody on our team better."
During his time with the Canucks, Bure won the team's Most Exciting Player Award, as voted by the fans, a record five times (tied with Tony Tanti), from 1992 to 1995, and once more in 1998. Trevor Linden, who had played with Bure for seven seasons, said following Bure's retirement, "I don't know if I've ever seen or played with a player that's brought people out of their seats like that." During the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals, Rangers coach Mike Keenan, who later coached Bure for one-and-a-half seasons in Vancouver, called him "perhaps the most electrifying forward in the league". The Canucks renamed the award the Pavel Bure Most Exciting Player Award in his honour in 2013.
Bure has been described as a pure goal scorer and is statistically among the top players in NHL history in that regard. In addition to having reached the 50-goal mark in his career five times, and the 60-goal mark twice, his .623 goals per game average is third among the top 100 goal scorers in NHL history, behind Mike Bossy and Mario Lemieux. Michael Farber of the Montreal Gazette described Bure as "the most dangerous scorer in the National Hockey League with the continued absence of Mario Lemieux because Bure can beat a defence with his speed, his strength, his mind. Bure isn't a scorer as much as he is a permanent late-night television guest; he is to highlight packages what Terri Garr is to Letterman."
Personal life
Family
Bure comes from an athletic family; his father Vladimir, who is of Swiss descent (his side of the family originated from Furna, Switzerland), was an Olympic swimmer who competed for the Soviet Union in the 1968, 1972, and 1976 Olympic Games, where he won four medals. Bure retained his father as his personal trainer well into his playing career, before severing ties with him in 1997. Bure's paternal grandfather, Valeri Bure, played goalkeeper for the national water polo team. Both Pavel and his younger brother Valeri became estranged from their father and his second wife, Julia, along with their half-sister Katya, by 1998. Neither brother has explained a reason for the split.
Named after their grandfather, Bure's younger brother, Valeri, was also a hockey player, spending 10 years in the NHL. The two siblings played with each other briefly as members of the Florida Panthers, after Valeri was traded there in 2001, and played together at the 1998 and 2002 Winter Olympics.
The Bure family made precious watches for the Russian tsars from 1815 until 1917, and Bure was named after his great-grandfather, a watchmaker to Tsar Alexander III. As craftspersons to the imperial family, the Bures were granted noble status. After Bure sustained his first serious knee injury in 1995, he pursued the watchmaking business during his rehabilitation period in an attempt to revive the family business. Fifty replicas of the same watches his ancestors made for the Russian imperial family were made and sold at US$30,000 each. Bure presented three of the gold replicas to Russian President Boris Yeltsin, Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin and Moscow mayor Yuriy Luzhkov.
Relationships
Five days after arriving in North America from Moscow with his father and brother on September 6, 1991, (his mother Tatiana arrived two months later), Bure married an American fashion model, later revealed to be Jayme Bohn, in a civil ceremony. The marriage was allegedly set up by Bure's agents as a preventative measure against deportation in the event he and the Canucks could not come to terms with a contract. Bure derived no immigration benefit from the marriage, which was dissolved the following year. Bohn became a costume designer in the film and television industry.
After being linked to girlfriend Dahn Bryan, a model and actress, early in his NHL career, Bure shared a relationship with tennis star and fellow Russian Anna Kournikova. The two met in 1999 when she was still linked to Bure's former Russian teammate Sergei Fedorov. Bure and Kournikova were reported to have been engaged in 2000 after reporter Andrew Greven took a photo of them together in a Florida restaurant where Bure supposedly asked Kournikova to marry him. As the story made headlines in Russia, where they were both heavily followed in the media as celebrities, Bure and Kournikova both denied any engagement. Kournikova, 10 years younger than Bure, was 18 years old at the time. The following year, Kournikova and Fedorov were married in Moscow, though they soon divorced.
Bure married 23-year-old model Alina Khasanova on October 10, 2009, in Moscow, with 300 guests present. Pravda has reported, however, that the couple, who had known each other for four years, had officially married on October 10, 2008, in Miami. Together they have three children: Pavel Jr., Palina and Anastasia. Pavel Jr. was born on April 23, 2013; Palina was born on July 20, 2015. Their third child, a daughter named Anastasia, was born on 28 December 2018.
Politics
Bure is also frequently playing ice hockey with Russian president Vladimir Putin, but has denied having any political ambitions himself in an interview with a Swedish newspaper in 2019.
Legal activity
In 2002, Bure sued the Russian newspaper the eXile for publishing an article stating he broke up with Kournikova because she had two vaginas. Although the newspapers' editorial staff claimed the story was a mere joke, the court ruled in favour of Bure in the amount of 500,000 rubles (US$17,770), and ordered a retraction to be printed. Two years later, on December 27, 2004, the Russian cosmetics chain Arbat Prestige published a story in their free promotional paper that Bure had bragged about Kournikova losing her virginity to him. Shortly thereafter, on January 31, 2005, Bure sued Arbat Prestige for 300 million rubles (US$10.65 million) in a court in Moscow. He also demanded the company print a retraction and apology in a future paper. The court ruled in favour of Bure in November 2005. However, the amount was reduced from 300 million to approximately 320,000 rubles.
On October 31, 2006, nearly a year after his retirement, Bure filed another suit after being kicked off a British Airways flight by the pilot, having been mistaken for a rowdy soccer fan. Despite an apology from the airline company in June 2007, Bure took the issue to court, suing British Airways for 20 million rubles. In late-August 2007, a Russian court ruled in favour of Bure in the amount of 67,000 rubles.
Alleged Mafia connections
During Bure's playing career, much speculation surrounded Russian NHL players and their potential ties to the Russian mafia both as victims and associates. As Soviet players began defecting to the NHL, many cases of extortion began surfacing. The Russian mafia was targeting the players' families still living in Russia. Former teammate Alexander Mogilny was a victim of such an extortion attempt in 1994, while Bure was reported to have made payments totaling in the thousands of dollars to Russian extortionists in 1993. Three years later, in 1996, American sports network ESPN aired reports alleging Bure was a potential associate of the Russian mafia because of his relationship with friend and business partner Anzor Kikalishvili, known to both Russian and American police as a suspected criminal and possible Russian mob boss. Bure was revealed to hold a position as vice president in the sports company Twenty First Century Association, owned by Kikalishvili, and reportedly believed by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation to be a mafia front worth at least US$100 million in illicit funds. While Bure did not deny his business and personal relationships with Kikalishvili, he refuted reports Kikalishvili was involved in any criminal activity.
Speculation resurfaced in 1999, as Bure was included in an investigation aired by the CBC investigative news program The Fifth Estate that made several supposed associations between Soviet NHL players and the Russian mafia. An allegation arose that Bure's former CSKA teammate Viacheslav Fetisov used a company, of which he was president, to launder money for Vyacheslav Ivankov, considered the "Russian godfather" in North America. Bure's relationship with Kikalishvili continued to be questioned. Bure denied Kikalishvili's involvement in any criminal activity, dismissing the allegations as "rumours".
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Bold indicates led league
International
a does not include 1988 Quebec Esso Cup (U17)b does not include the 1990 Goodwill Games
Awards
Soviet
International
NHL
Vancouver Canucks
Records
Team
Vancouver Canucks' single-season record, most points by a rookie – 60 in 1991–92 (tied with Ivan Hlinka, 1981–82 and Elias Pettersson, 2018–19)
Vancouver Canucks' single-season record, most goals – 60 in 1992–93 and 1993–94
Vancouver Canucks' all-time playoffs record, most goals – 34 (tied with Trevor Linden)
Vancouver Canucks' all-time record, most shorthanded goals – 24
Vancouver Canucks' single-game record, most goals – four versus the Winnipeg Jets on October 12, 1992 (tied with Rosaire Paiement, Bobby Schmautz, Rick Blight, Petri Skriko, Greg Adams, Tony Tanti, Martin Gélinas, Markus Näslund and Daniel Sedin)
Florida Panthers' single-season record, most goals – 59 in 2000–01
International
World Junior Championships all-time record, most goals – 27 in 21 games (1989–1991)
Winter Olympics single-game record, most goals – five (1998; semifinal vs. Finland)
NHL
NHL record, most goals scored in proportion to team – 29.5% of the Florida Panthers' goals in 2000–01.
Transactions
June 9, 1989 – Drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in the sixth round, 113th overall, in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft.
October 31, 1991 – Signed by the Vancouver Canucks to a four-year, $3.5 million contract.
June 16, 1994 – Re-signed by the Vancouver Canucks to a five-year, $24.5 million contract.
January 17, 1999 – Traded by the Vancouver Canucks, along with Bret Hedican, Brad Ference and Vancouver's third-round draft choice (Robert Fried) in 2000, to the Florida Panthers in exchange for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes and Florida's first-round draft choice (Nathan Smith) in 2000.
February 8, 1999 – Signed by the Florida Panthers to a five-year, $47.5 million deal.
March 18, 2002 – Traded by the Florida Panthers, along with Florida's second-round draft choice in 2002 (Lee Falardeau), to the New York Rangers in exchange for Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak, the Rangers' first-round draft choice in 2002 (Eric Nystrom), the Rangers' second-round draft choice in 2002 (Rob Globke) and the Rangers fourth-round draft choice in 2003 (later traded to the Atlanta Thrashers; Atlanta selected Guillaume Desbiens).
See also
List of NHL statistical leaders
List of NHL players with 50-goal seasons
List of NHL players with 100-point seasons
Notable families in the NHL
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links
Pavel Bure's Official Web Site
1971 births
Living people
Calder Trophy winners
EV Landshut players
Florida Panthers players
HC CSKA Moscow players
HC Spartak Moscow players
Hockey Hall of Fame inductees
Ice hockey players at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Ice hockey players at the 2002 Winter Olympics
IIHF Hall of Fame inductees
New York Rangers players
National Hockey League All-Stars
National Hockey League players with retired numbers
Olympic bronze medalists for Russia
Olympic ice hockey players of Russia
Olympic silver medalists for Russia
Ice hockey people from Moscow
Rocket Richard Trophy winners
Russian ice hockey right wingers
Russian people of Swiss descent
Soviet expatriate ice hockey players
Soviet expatriates in Canada
Soviet ice hockey right wingers
Soviet people of Swiss descent
Vancouver Canucks draft picks
Vancouver Canucks players
Olympic medalists in ice hockey
Medalists at the 2002 Winter Olympics
Medalists at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Pavel
Russian State University of Physical Education, Sport, Youth and Tourism alumni
Competitors at the 1990 Goodwill Games | true | [
"Victor Vinícius Coelho dos Santos (born 9 October 1993), commonly known as Vitinho, is a Brazilian footballer who plays as a striker and attacking midfielder for Brazilian Série A club Flamengo.\n\nClub career\n\nBotafogo\nDuring the 2013 season, he scored 4 goals in 16 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A matches.\n\nCSKA Moscow\n\nOn 2 September 2013, Vitinho signed a 5-year contract with Russian Premier League Champions CSKA Moscow. However, Vitinho struggled to be in the regular first team and instead, he made a handful appearances from the bench and often remained an unused substitute. Vitinho was linked with a loan move to Botafogo.\n\nInternacional (loan)\nOn 16 January 2015 Vitinho joined Internacional on a one-year loan deal. The loan was extended until the end of 2016 on 24 December 2015. At the same time Vitinho extended his CSKA contract until the summer of 2020. CSKA had an option to recall him from loan in the summer of 2016, but they did not. At the end of his loan, CSKA announced they will not extend the loan and Vitinho will return to CSKA for the start of their camp in January 2017.\n\nFlamengo\n\nFollowing the 2018 Russian Super Cup game that CSKA won on 27 July 2018, the club announced that this was Vitinho's last game for them as they agreed on his transfer with Flamengo. Both clubs agreed in a €10 million transfer fee, so Vitinho became the highest transfer in Flamengo's history.\n\nOn 4 August 2018 Vitinho debuted for Flamengo in a league match against Grêmio at Arena do Grêmio, Flamengo lost 2–0. He scored his first goal for his new club on 5 September 2018 in a Brazilian Série A 2–1 loss to Internacional at Estádio Beira-Rio. He finished 2018 season with a total of 28 appearances and 3 goals for Flamengo.\n\nClub statistics\n\nClub\n\nHonours\n\nClub\nBotafogo\nCampeonato Carioca: 2013\n\nCSKA\nRussian Premier League: 2013–14\nRussian Super Cup: 2014, 2018\n\nInternacional\nCampeonato Gaúcho: 2015, 2016\n\nFlamengo\nCopa Libertadores: 2019\nRecopa Sudamericana: 2020\nCampeonato Brasileiro Série A: 2019, 2020\nSupercopa do Brasil: 2020, 2021\nCampeonato Carioca: 2019, 2020, 2021\nFIFA Club World Cup runner-up: 2019\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n1993 births\nLiving people\nFootballers from Rio de Janeiro (city)\nBrazilian footballers\nAssociation football forwards\nCampeonato Brasileiro Série A players\nRussian Premier League players\nBotafogo de Futebol e Regatas players\nPFC CSKA Moscow players\nSport Club Internacional players\nClube de Regatas do Flamengo footballers\nBrazilian expatriate footballers\nExpatriate footballers in Russia\nBrazilian expatriate sportspeople in Russia",
"The 2015–16 season was PFC CSKA Sofia's 1st season in the Bulgarian V Football Group. CSKA started the 2015/2016 season in V group (3rd division) as they did not receive a licence to play in A group due to unpaid debts. CSKA finished in first place in the standings. This article shows player statistics and all matches (official and friendly) that the club will play during the 2015–16 season.\n\nPlayers\n\nSquad stats \n\n|-\n|colspan=\"14\"|Players sold or loaned out after the start of the season:\n\n|}\nAs of 29 May 2016\n\nPlayers in/out\n\nSummer transfers \n\nIn:\n\nOut:\n\nWinter transfers \n\nIn:\n\nOut:\n\nPre-season and friendlies\n\nCompetitions\n\nV Group\n\nTable\n\nResults summary\n\nResults by round\n\nFixtures and results\n\nBulgarian Cup\n\nAmateur Cup \n\nOn 24 September CSKA was drawn to play against Vitosha Bistritsa for the BAFL Cup. However, several hours after the draw the club cancelled its participation, citing its growing problems with injured and exhausted players. In doing so, CSKA will be fined with 700 BGN for its refusal of participation.\n\nSee also \nPFC CSKA Sofia\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \nCSKA Official Site\nCSKA Fan Page with up-to-date information\nBulgarian A Professional Football Group\nUEFA Profile\n\nPFC CSKA Sofia seasons\nCska Sofia"
]
|
[
"Pavel Bure",
"CSKA Moscow (1987-1991)",
"What is CSKA?",
"I don't know.",
"What did he do with CSKA?",
"professional hockey"
]
| C_32732a22d04542398a2a0695a7ea171d_1 | Did he win? | 3 | Did Pavel Bure win in professional hockey? | Pavel Bure | At age 16, Bure began his professional hockey career playing for CSKA Moscow. He was invited to the senior club's training camp for the 1987-88 season. Although he was deemed too young, and not yet ready, for the Soviet League, Bure earned minimal playing time filling in for absent regulars. He made his debut in September 1987, and played five games for the senior team, scoring his only goal in his first game. Bure joined the club full-time in 1988-89 and amassed 17 goals, a Soviet League record for rookies. The record would last for 18 years until Alexei Cherepanov scored 18 goals in 2006-07. Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (they repeated as European champions the following year). As a member CSKA, Bure joined a lineup that featured several future NHL players, including linemates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, as well as Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladimir Konstantinov. The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, the K-L-M combination of Vladimir Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. The trio was short-lived, as Mogilny defected to play for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, and Fedorov joined the Detroit Red Wings the following year. In his third and final season with the Red Army, Bure tied for the lead in team-scoring with Valeri Kamensky, tallying 46 points. His 35 goals was second in the league, one goal behind Ramil Yuldashev of Sokil Kyiv. Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup. CANNOTANSWER | His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 ( | Pavel Vladimirovich Bure (, ; born March 31, 1971) is a Russian former professional ice hockey player who played the right wing position. Nicknamed "the Russian Rocket" for his speed, Bure played for 12 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Vancouver Canucks, the Florida Panthers and the New York Rangers. Trained in the Soviet Union, he played three seasons with the Central Red Army team before his NHL career.
Selected 113th overall in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft by Vancouver, he began his NHL career in the 1991–92 season, and won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league's best rookie before leading the NHL in goal-scoring in 1993-94 and helping the Canucks to the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals. After seven seasons the Canucks traded Bure to the Panthers, where he won back-to-back Rocket Richard Trophies as the league's leading goal-scorer. Bure struggled with knee injuries throughout his career, resulting in his retirement in 2005 as a member of the Rangers, although he had not played since 2003. He averaged better than a point per game in his NHL career (779 points with 437 goals in 702 NHL games) and is fourth all-time in goals per game. After six years of eligibility, Bure was elected into the Hockey Hall of Fame in June 2012. In 2017, an NHL panel named Bure one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in history.
Internationally, Bure competed for the Soviet Union and Russia. As a member of the Soviet Union, he won two silver medals and a gold in three World Junior Championships, followed by a gold and a silver medal in the 1990 and 1991 World Championships, respectively. After the Soviet Union was dissolved in 1991, Bure competed for Russia in two Winter Olympics, claiming silver at the 1998 Games in Nagano as team captain, and bronze at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City. Following Bure's retirement in 2005, he was named the general manager for Russia's national team at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. Bure was later recognized for his international career as a 2012 inductee in the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame.
Early life
Bure was born in Moscow in 1971 to Vladimir and Tatiana Bure. Vladimir Bure, a Russian swimming legend, had dreams of Pavel becoming a professional swimmer, but he aspired to play hockey at an early age. He attended his first tryout with the CSKA Moscow hockey school at the age of six, despite his limited skating ability. Until that point, Bure had only played ball hockey on the streets. After Bure failed to impress in his first tryout, his father told him that if he did not show significant improvement within two months, he would withdraw him from the hockey school. By age 11, he was named the best forward in his league. Around that time, in July 1982, Bure was selected as one of three young Russian players to practice with Wayne Gretzky and Soviet national goaltender Vladislav Tretiak in a taped television special.
At age 12, his parents separated, and he remained with his mother. By the time he was 14 years old, he was named to the Central Red Army's junior team. In 1991, he joined his father and brother, Valeri in moving to North America as he embarked on a National Hockey League (NHL) career with the Vancouver Canucks. His mother arrived two months later. They settled initially in Los Angeles where Vladimir continued to train and coach both Valeri and Pavel in hockey and physical conditioning. However both became estranged from their father, along with his second wife and their half-sister Katya, by 1998. Neither brother has explained a reason for the split.
In December 1986, he embarked on a tour of Canada with the Soviet national midget team from Ottawa to Vancouver. Nearly five years before Bure made his NHL debut with the Vancouver Canucks in 1991 at the Pacific Coliseum, he played his first game at his future home rink as part of the tour. Bure also earned another opportunity to meet Gretzky, as well as defenseman Paul Coffey, when his team stopped in Edmonton to play at the Northlands Coliseum.
Playing career
CSKA Moscow (1987–1991)
At age 16, Bure began his professional hockey career playing for CSKA Moscow. He was invited to the senior club's training camp for the 1987–88 season. Although he was deemed too young, and not yet ready, for the Soviet League, Bure earned minimal playing time filling in for absent regulars. He made his debut in September 1987, and played five games for the senior team, scoring his only goal in his first game.
Bure joined the club full-time in 1988–89 and amassed 17 goals, a Soviet League record for rookies. The record would last for 18 years until Alexei Cherepanov scored 18 goals in 2006–07. Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (they repeated as European champions the following year).
As a member CSKA, Bure joined a lineup that featured several future NHL players, including linemates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, as well as Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladimir Konstantinov. The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, the K-L-M combination of Vladimir Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. The trio was short-lived, as Mogilny defected to play for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, and Fedorov joined the Detroit Red Wings the following year.
In his third and final season with the Red Army, Bure tied for the lead in team-scoring with Valeri Kamensky, tallying 46 points. His 35 goals was second in the league, one goal behind Ramil Yuldashev of Sokil Kyiv. Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup.
Transfer to the NHL (1989–1991)
Prior to the 1989 NHL Entry Draft, William Houston of The Globe and Mail wrote, "The best of the group is Soviet star winger Pavel Bure, a spectacular player with outstanding speed. He is compared to Vladimir Krutov and also the late Soviet superstar of the 1970s, Valeri Kharlamov." NHL organizations were afraid he would not leave the Soviet Union to play in the NHL thus deterring teams from selecting him early, although scouts and analysts believed he could have been selected as high as the second round had he defected. Many analysts compared him to Valeri Kharlamov. Edmonton Oilers' scout Barry Fraser commented, "From what I've seen of him, Bure can play on any team in the NHL right now... he's quick, real quick, small and very exciting. He may be the top player in this year's draft, but because he is from the Soviet Union, we don't analyze him the same way as a kid from the West... I don't expect him to go really early because it is still too much of a gamble to hope he will defect."
Bure was selected 113th overall in the sixth round Draft by the Vancouver Canucks, following his rookie season with CSKA Moscow. The pick was controversial, as the Canucks had chosen him seemingly a year ahead of his eligible draft season. At the age of 18, he was available to be chosen in the first three rounds of the draft, but to be selected any later, he would have needed to play at least two seasons—with a minimum of 11 games per season—for his elite-level Soviet club, the Central Red Army. While most teams believed he was ineligible, the Canucks' head scout at the time, Mike Penny, discovered Bure had played in additional exhibition and international games to make him an eligible late-round draft choice a year early. Jack Button, the Washington Capitals' director of player personnel, admitted "everybody would have taken him earlier. We assumed he was not eligible... you've got to give the Canucks credit for doing their homework."
Several other teams either had similar knowledge or had pursued Bure but there was confusion as to the legitimacy of the extra games. The Detroit Red Wings had asked league vice president Gil Stein about Bure's availability before their fifth-round pick but were told he was not eligible. They later decided to select him with their sixth-round pick, 116th overall, and settle his eligibility later. The Canucks selected Bure three picks ahead of Detroit's turn. Meanwhile, Winnipeg Jets general manager Mike Smith, claimed he made an offer to the Soviet Ice Hockey Federation that would involve three years of transfer payments before Bure would be allowed to join the Jets; however Smith did not have any plans to draft Bure in 1989 as he believed he was ineligible.
Canucks' general manager Pat Quinn originally intended to draft Bure in the eighth round but after receiving word the Oilers had similar intentions selected him in the sixth. Following the announcement of Bure's draft, several other team representatives reportedly stormed the Met Center stage in Minnesota, where the draft was being held. Formal complaints were filed resulting in an investigation into the selection. After the pick was deemed illegal by league president John Ziegler in a press release on May 17, 1990, the Canucks appealed the decision, procuring game sheets proving Bure's participation in the additional games with the help of recent Soviet acquisition Igor Larionov. It was not until the eve of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft, in which Bure would have been re-entered that the draft choice was upheld. Although Larionov and Fetisov had successfully spearheaded the rebellion against Soviet ice hockey officials in the late 1980s that led to Soviet players joining the NHL, Bure's transfer to the Canucks was met with resistance, and the Soviet authorities forbade the Canucks to contact Bure personally. During the 1991 World Junior Championships, he said in an interview that he was hesitant to defect for fears the Soviets would make things difficult for his younger brother Valeri Bure, who was 15 at the time and playing in the junior league.
Bure left Moscow with his father and brother on September 6, 1991, staying temporarily in Los Angeles. His mother arrived shortly afterward. The Canucks began negotiating a contract with Bure, but before one could be finalized, the issue of his existing contract with the Central Red Army had to be settled. The Canucks management and officials from the Soviet Ice Hockey Federation met in late-October 1991 in a Detroit court, where they bartered for a cash settlement. After the Canucks offered US$200,000, Bure stood up in the courtroom to offer an additional $50,000, bringing the total to $250,000. The Soviet officials accepted, and Canucks management paid the full $250,000. Bure signed a four-year contract worth a reported $2.7 million with an $800,000 signing bonus. The deal made Bure the Canucks' second highest paid player behind team captain Trevor Linden.
Vancouver Canucks (1991–1999)
Due to the court proceedings, Bure's debut with the Canucks was delayed until a month into the 1991–92 season. Garnering much attention in Vancouver, his first practice with the club on November 3, 1991, was attended by approximately 2,000 fans. He played his first game for the Canucks on November 5, 1991, in a 2–2 tie against the Winnipeg Jets. Despite not scoring a point, Bure showcased his talent and speed with several end-to-end rushes, carrying the puck past several defenders from near his defensive zone to the opposing net. Following the game, Vancouver Sun columnist Iain MacIntyre compared him to a rocket, calling him "the fastest Soviet creation since Sputnik". MacIntyre's comments are credited for laying the groundwork for Bure's moniker as the "Russian Rocket," which echoed the nickname of Maurice "Rocket" Richard, who played for the Montreal Canadiens in the 1950s. In his third game, Bure recorded his first point, an assist against the New York Islanders on November 10. He scored his first two NHL goals in the next game, on November 12, against Daniel Berthiaume of the Los Angeles Kings. He finished with 34 goals and 60 points in 65 games that season, including 22 goals in his final 23 games. In the last game of the regular season, Bure scored a goal to tie Ivan Hlinka's 1981–82 team mark for most points by a rookie.
As the Canucks opened the 1992 playoffs against the Winnipeg Jets, Bure recorded his first NHL hat trick in game six to help force a seventh and deciding game. Vancouver won the series to advance to the second round, but were eliminated by the Edmonton Oilers. Bure finished his first Stanley Cup playoffs with six goals and 10 points in 13 games. At the end of the season, he was awarded the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year. His 60 points were second among first-year players to Tony Amonte's 69 points with the Rangers, although Bure played in 14 fewer games. When accepting the award, Bure thanked Canucks linemate Igor Larionov for his guidance. On arriving in Vancouver, his former Red Army teammate took him into his home for two weeks before Bure moved into his own apartment; the two also roomed together on the road. Bure's Calder Trophy, along with head coach Pat Quinn's Jack Adams Award as the league's top coach, marked the first major individual NHL awards in Canucks' team history. However, despite being named the league's top rookie, Bure was left off the NHL All-Rookie Team, making him the only Calder recipient not to be named to the lineup. This was because he split his time playing both left and right wing. When it came to voting for the players, Bure had the most total votes, but not enough at either position to claim a spot.
Bure improved on his rookie season in 1992–93 with the first of two consecutive 60-goal seasons. In the third game of the season, he scored a career-high four goals against the Winnipeg Jets. His three goals and one assist in the second period set a pair of Canucks' records for most goals and points in a period, in addition to the team mark for most goals overall in a game (for which he is tied with several players). Furthermore, Bure scored two of his goals on the penalty kill to set a fourth team record for most short-handed goals in one contest. He appeared in his first NHL All-Star Game in 1993, being named to the Clarence Campbell Conference Team as the lone Canucks' representative, and scored two goals. Shortly after the All-Star break, Bure established a new franchise record for goals in a season during a 5–1 win over the Quebec Nordiques, surpassing Tony Tanti's 45-goal mark. The next month, on March 1, he reached the 50-goal mark for the first time in his career, scoring against Grant Fuhr of the Buffalo Sabres in a neutral-site game in Hamilton, Ontario. He also surpassed Patrik Sundström's franchise record of 91 points. Bure finished the season with 110 points in 83 games, and became the first Canuck named to the NHL First All-Star Team. His 110 points stood as the team record until it was broken by Henrik Sedin's 112 points in 2009–10.
A groin injury early in the 1993-94 season limited Bure's production for the first half of the season. Even so, he improved in the second half, and led the league in goal-scoring by repeating his 60-goal feat of the previous season. In doing so, he became the eighth player in NHL history to record back-to-back 60-goal seasons. He concluded the season with a streak of 49 goals and 78 points in his final 51 games, and earned player of the month honours in March 1994 after scoring 19 goals and 30 points in 16 games. His March scoring burst was just one point shy of Stan Smyl's 31-point March in 1983 for the most productive month by a Canucks player. Bure's 154 NHL goals at that point in his career put him behind only Wayne Gretzky and Mike Bossy for the most in any NHL player's first three seasons. He recorded 49 goals in the club's final 51 games, and contributed to 46.45% of his team's goals in the final 47 games of the season to carry the Canucks into the 1994 postseason.
Entering the 1994 Stanley Cup Playoffs as the seventh seed, the Canucks went on a run to the Stanley Cup Finals. In the seventh game of the opening-round series against the Calgary Flames, Bure scored one of the most significant and well-known goals in Canucks' history. After receiving a breakaway pass from defenceman Jeff Brown, he deked and scored on Flames' goalie Mike Vernon in the second overtime to win the series. In game two of the second round against the Dallas Stars, Bure knocked enforcer Shane Churla to the ice with an elbow to the jaw. He also scored two goals in the game to help Vancouver to a 3–0 win. Although Bure was not initially penalized for the play, he was later fined $500 by the league. He recorded six goals and eight points in five games against the Dallas Stars, and against the Toronto Maple Leafs the following round scored four goals and six points in five games.
After defeating Dallas in five games, the Canucks eliminated the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Campbell Conference Finals to meet the New York Rangers in the Finals, where the Canucks lost in seven games. Bure finished with a team-high 16 goals and 31 points in 24 games, second in playoff scoring only to Conn Smythe Trophy winner Brian Leetch. His points total also remained the highest by any Russian player until Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins recorded 36 in 2009.
In the next off-season, the Canucks announced they had re-signed Bure to a five-year, $24.5 million contract on June 16. The deal was reported to have been signed before game three of the Stanley Cup Finals against New York. It also included Bure's marketing rights and put his father, Vladimir, on the team payroll as a fitness and marketing consultant. The average annual salary of $4.9 million made Bure the league's third highest-paid player, behind Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux. In fact, Bure and the Canucks had entered into contract negotiations at the beginning of the 1993–94 season, although two years remained in his original deal. Neither side could come to an initial agreement; one of the major factors was the Canucks' demands for the contract to be in Canadian dollars on account of the American exchange rate. Numerous accusations were made in the media during the Canucks' playoff run that Bure threatened not to play if a contract could not be agreed upon. A Toronto Star article, published before the first game of the Finals on May 31, 1994, claimed Bure had signed a five-year, $30 million contract that, if the Canucks had not agreed to, would have seen him pull out of game five of the Conference Finals against the Maple Leafs. The article was followed by two additional claims in the following two days in the Vancouver-based newspaper The Province and Toronto Sun. The Toronto Sun held the contract was a five-year, $22.5 million deal, and that it was signed before either game six or seven of the opening round against the Flames after Bure's agent, Ron Salcer, told general manager Quinn that Bure would not play if the deal was not made. As the story continued well into the next season, Pat Quinn appeared in a segment on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)'s Hockey Night in Canada on March 27, 1995, publicly denying the claims.
Due to the 1994–95 NHL lockout, Bure spent single-game stints with Spartak Moscow of the Russian Super League and EV Landshut of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). He joined a team of Russian NHL players organized by Slava Fetisov that returned to Russia to play a five-game charity tour against local clubs. On the team, Bure reunited with former Central Red Army linemates Mogilny and Fedorov. When the NHL Players Association (NHLPA) and owners came to an agreement on January 12, 1995, NHL play was set to resume. However, there were unresolved contract issues, as Salcer claimed the Canucks promised they would pay Bure's full salary, despite the lockout, which cancelled nearly half of the 1994–95 season. Bure held out for four days as a result (the amount claimed to be owing was $1.7 million), before the two sides reached an agreement. The Canucks would put the disputed amount in escrow and would continue discussions. He soon reported to Vancouver and went on to tally 43 points in 44 games of the shortened season. In the 1995 playoffs, Bure set franchise records for most goals and points in a series with seven and 12 respectively in a seven-game series victory against the St. Louis Blues (Mikael Samuelsson tied Bure's goal-scoring record in 2010 against the Los Angeles Kings). The Canucks, however, failed to defend their Clarence Campbell Conference championship title, being swept by the Chicago Blackhawks in the second round. The Canucks' elimination in 1995 marked the last time Bure appeared in the post-season with the club. He finished with a career playoff total of 66 points with the Canucks, including 34 goals, which remained the highest club total until Linden tied the mark in 2007.
At the start of the 1995–96 season, Bure changed his jersey number from 10 to 96. The switch commemorated September 6, 1991, the day on which he first landed in North America from Moscow—9th month, 6th day. He had originally asked to wear the number when he first joined the Canucks, but was not permitted to do so by head coach Pat Quinn, who did not approve of high jersey numbers. After the Canucks traded with the Buffalo Sabres for Alexander Mogilny, reuniting the two Russian players, the jersey number was deemed acceptable because Mogilny had used number 89 since defecting to North America in 1989.
Early in the season, Bure sustained the first of several serious knee injuries during his career. On November 9, 1995, in a game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Bure was grabbed around the head by defenseman Steve Smith while approaching the end boards. Falling to the ice, he caught his skate against the boards, tearing the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee. Requiring arthroscopic surgery, in which tendon was removed from his hamstring to repair the ACL, he was sidelined for the remainder of the season.
Bure returned to the Canucks' lineup with his knee fully recovered in the 1996–97 season. In the season opener against the Flames on October 5, 1996, Bure was pushed into the boards head-first. He continued to play after the hit, but experienced headaches in the following weeks. As Bure's play dropped early in the season, the media speculated that he was playing injured. After he went eight games without a goal, head coach Tom Renney claimed Bure was not playing with a head injury, but instead had injured his shoulder in a game against the New York Rangers on November 23. Nevertheless, he continued to play. With under a month left in the season, he received another hit, during a game against the Avalanche on March 3, 1997. Bure left the game and did not return for the remainder of the season. Afterwards, he admitted he was playing with a neck injury, having sustained whiplash from the first game against Calgary, but did not want to take himself out of the lineup after missing 62 games the previous season. With Bure's reduced playing capacity, he managed 55 points in 63 games, well below his usual pace, and the Canucks missed the playoffs for the first time since he joined the team. In a 2012 interview, Bure admitted having sustained a head injury on the initial hit against Calgary and that "he should not have played through it".
In the off-season, the Canucks made another significant move, signing Rangers' captain Mark Messier during free agency on July 26, 1997. Despite finally having a high-profile centre to play with, media reports soon appeared claiming that Bure was asking to be traded. The Canucks opened the season with two games against the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in Tokyo – an event organized by the league to market hockey for the upcoming 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. After two injury-plagued seasons with the number 96 on his jersey, Bure switched back to his familiar number 10, explaining: "I'm not superstitious, but the last two seasons have been bad memories." Although the Canucks missed the playoffs for the second straight year, he returned to his previous form in 1997–98, scoring 51 goals for his first 50-goal season since 1993–94, and third overall. Bure later recalled that with the Canucks out of playoff contention with a handful of games left, head coach Mike Keenan told him he could play as much as he wanted to reach the milestone. Scoring 50 goals was also implicit in a contract bonus for Bure. With an additional 39 assists, his 90 points ranked him third in the NHL, behind Peter Forsberg and Jaromír Jágr.
Following the 1997–98 season, Bure told newly appointed general manager Brian Burke that he would not play for the Canucks again, despite still having a year left in his contract worth $8 million. He then went public with the declaration, stating he intended to leave the club for "personal reasons". Bure did not report to the club the following season. Instead, he returned to his hometown Moscow to practise with his former Central Red Army club. During this time, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko offered Bure a tax-free $4 million salary to play in Belarus, which he turned down.
Florida Panthers (1999–2002)
Bure held out well into the 1998–99 season until he was traded on January 17, 1999, to the Florida Panthers, with Bret Hedican, Brad Ference, and Vancouver's third-round choice in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft (Robert Fried) for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes, and Florida's first-round choice in the 2000 draft (Nathan Smith). Talks between Burke and Bryan Murray, general manager of the Panthers, had begun in late-December. After the trade was completed, Bure explained that he felt alienated from Canucks' management after arriving in North America having defected from Russia. He claimed he had been in Los Angeles for two weeks before any Canucks' representative came to see him, as well as several bitter contract negotiations—particularly those of 1994. He also claimed that someone within the Canucks' management planted the constant allegations that he threatened not to play during the 1994 playoff run. Bure's agent at the time, Ron Salcer, also believed the story.
Meeting the Panthers in New York for a game against the Islanders, Bure debuted with his new club on January 20, 1999. He played on an all-Russian line with Viktor Kozlov and Oleg Kvasha and scored two goals. In his first six games with the club, Bure scored eight goals and three assists for eleven points. Less than a month into his Panthers debut, he reinjured his knee, keeping him out for three weeks. Despite the injury, the Panthers signed him to a five-year, $47.5 million contract (with an option for a sixth year at $10.5 million), the most lucrative in team history. Another injury ended Bure's season after just 11 games with Florida, though he scored 13 goals and three assists in that time.
In 1999–2000, his first full season as a Panther, Bure led the league in goal-scoring to capture his first of two consecutive Rocket Richard Trophies with a 58-goal season. It marked the second time Bure led the league in goal-scoring, but his first Rocket Richard Trophy as the award had been introduced the previous season. Combined with 36 assists, his 94 points came within two of Art Ross Trophy winner Jaromír Jágr as the league's leading point-scorer. His 58 goals and 94 points both set franchise records. He helped Florida to a fifth-place finish in the Eastern Conference to earn their first post-season berth in three seasons, though they were swept by the eventual Stanley Cup champions, the New Jersey Devils. Bure finished third for the Hart Memorial Trophy winner behind Chris Pronger and Jágr. He was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team for the first time.
Bure was set to make his much-anticipated return to Vancouver to play the Canucks on November 5, 1999, but was kept out of the lineup due to a broken finger. A prior groin injury had also forced him out of a Panther's home game against the Canucks earlier in the season. During the season, he was named to the 2000 NHL All-Star Game in Toronto, where he recorded an assist and the eleventh hat trick in the history of the All-Star Game. Of Bure's three goals, two were assisted by his brother Valeri, who played on the same line with him, along with his Panthers linemate, Viktor Kozlov. Helping lead the World team to a 9–4 victory over North America, Bure was named the All-Star Game MVP.
Bure repeated as league scoring champion in 2000–01 with 59 goals, reaching the 50-goal plateau for the fifth and final time in his career, as well as bettering his franchise single-season, goal-scoring record. However, the Panthers missed the playoffs, finishing 12th place in the East. Bure set a league record that season by scoring 29.5% of his team's total goals over the course of the season. He was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team, behind Jágr in the right wing position for the second consecutive year.
Before the 2001–02 season, the Panthers acquired Valeri Bure from the Calgary Flames in a trade, putting the brothers on the same team for the first time. However, Bure suffered a setback in the pre-season re-injuring his groin. Bure recalled having "good relations" with Panthers' management, who often consulted with him on team matters, including the acquisition of his brother. At the trading deadline, Bure was traded to the New York Rangers. During his 56 games for the Panthers that season, he led the team in scoring for the third consecutive season with 49 points.
New York Rangers (2002–2003)
The New York Rangers acquired Bure on March 18, 2002, along with Florida's second-round pick in the 2002 draft (Lee Falardeau) for Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak, as well as the Rangers' first and second-round choices in the 2002 draft (Petr Tatíček and Rob Globke, respectively) and a fourth-round choice in the 2003 draft. The Rangers had shown interest in Bure when he requested a trade from the Canucks in 1997. After losing their initial bid for Bure, Wayne Gretzky, who retired the same season Bure was traded to Florida, announced prior to the 1999–2000 season he would have extended his career had the Rangers been able to pull off the trade. Bure made his Rangers debut against the Vancouver Canucks the day after his trade on March 19, scoring a goal against his former team. He scored 12 goals and 20 points in 12 games after being traded, bettering his pace with Florida that season. Between the two teams, he finished the season with 34 goals and 69 points.
Bure suffered another knee injury in the 2002–03 pre-season; combined with a case of strep throat, he missed the first three games of the regular season. After returning to play, he had 14 goals and 21 points in his first 27 games, including two goals and an assist in his first game back, before a knee-on-knee collision in December forced him back out. After undergoing surgery 10 days later, it was revealed that there was no damage to the ACL as previously feared, but instead a tear to the meniscus in his left knee, which was repaired. Bure returned that season to appear in 39 games, managing 19 goals and 30 points.
Even after two operations, Bure did not play in 2003–04 due to the lingering effects of the knee injury. He failed a pre-season physical and was declared medically unable to play. Left with his fully insured $10 million salary (80 percent of which would be reimbursed to the team), the Rangers left him unprotected in the NHL's Waiver Draft, where he was unclaimed.
Retirement
Bure remained inactive for another season due to the 2004–05 NHL lockout. After the NHL resumed play for the 2005–06 season, he announced his retirement from professional hockey at a press conference in Moscow on November 1, 2005, citing complications with his chronic knee injuries. In an interview Bure explained that he did not want to extend his playing career without being able to play at an elite level.
Because Bure had been inactive since the 2002–03 season, he was eligible for selection into the Hockey Hall of Fame (which requires players to wait three years after their last game) immediately following his retirement. After being passed for induction in his first six years of eligibility, Bure was voted in on June 27, 2012, alongside Joe Sakic, Adam Oates and Mats Sundin. He became the fifth Soviet or Russian player (after Vladislav Tretiak, Viacheslav Fetisov, Valeri Kharlamov and Igor Larionov) and the first player to spend the majority of his career with the Canucks to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
His non-selection in previous years was widely debated in the media. Bure was often compared with Cam Neely, a player who also waited six years for induction; he recorded similar goals-per-game numbers in a career that was also shortened to 700-plus games. It had been often rumoured that Pat Quinn, Bure's former head coach and general manager in Vancouver, who became co-chairman of the Hockey Hall of Fame's selection committee, opposed Bure's induction. However, in a conference call following his selection, Quinn was among the most prominent figures he thanked. Quinn criticized the Canucks organization for not yet retiring Bure's jersey.
In his retirement, he remained publicly steadfast in his dissatisfaction with the way he was treated by the Canucks organization during his playing career. While Bure admitted to "a lot of disagreements with the Canucks management," he maintained that he "never had any problems with the Canucks fans". The Canucks retired Bure's 10 jersey on November 2, 2013. The day before the Canucks announced they would rename the team's Most Exciting Player Award to the Pavel Bure Most Exciting Player Award in his honor. Bure renounced his US citizenship in 2016.
International career
Junior
Prior to joining the NHL in 1991, Bure competed for the Soviet Union in several junior, international tournaments. The first was the 1988 Quebec Esso Cup, an under-17 tournament (now known as the World U-17 Hockey Challenge) held in Quebec City, where he earned a gold medal. That same year, he competed in his first of two consecutive European Junior Championships, winning a bronze medal.
The following year, Bure debuted at the world under-20 level as a 17-year-old at the 1989 World Junior Championships in Anchorage, Alaska. The top line of CSKA Moscow teammates Bure, Alexander Mogilny and Sergei Fedorov led the Soviet Union to a gold medal. Bure's eight goals tied him for the tournament lead with Jeremy Roenick of the United States; he led the Soviet team with 14 points. He was named to the Tournament All-Star Team, and earned Best Forward honours. He again participated in the 1989 European Junior Championship, helping the Soviet Union win the gold medal.
Bure competed in his second World Juniors in 1990, winning a silver medal in Helsinki, Finland, and scoring seven goals in seven games. Later that year, he made his senior debut with the Soviet national team as a 19-year-old at the 1990 World Championships in Switzerland. He scored two goals and four assists in ten games to help the Soviets to a gold medal finish. The Soviet team also won silver in the European Championship, which was decided from games played among the European teams at the tournament. Several months later, in July, Bure took part in his third international tournament of the year at the 1990 Goodwill Games in Seattle. Bure scored four goals and an assist in five games, and the Soviets won the gold medal.
In 1991, Bure appeared in his third and final World Junior Championships. Bure finished the tournament as the leading scorer with 12 goals in 7 games and the Soviets won the silver medal. He finished his three-year World Junior career with a tournament-record 27 goals, to go with 39 points, in 21 games. Bure later competed in the 1991 World Championships, his second international appearance of the year. He improved on his previous year's total with 11 points in 11 games, tied for the team lead with Valeri Kamensky, and helped the Soviets to a bronze medal finish. Bure was named to the tournament's Second All-Star Team. The 1991 team marked the last World Championships for the USSR, as the country was dissolved later that year.
Senior
Bure was set to represent the Soviet Union at the 1991 Canada Cup, however after turning down a three-year contract with his Russian club, CSKA Moscow, he was left off the final roster.
Bure played his first international tournament for Russia in preliminary games for the inaugural 1996 World Cup (the successor tournament to the Canada Cup). Bure had recently recovered from reconstructive surgery to his right knee, and had begun practicing with the Russian national team where he was reunited on a line with Fedorov and Mogilny, the first and only time the three of them would play together at the senior level; the line was considered "perhaps the best forward line on earth" at the time. However Bure bruised a kidney in one of the games and was forced to miss the main tournament.
As with the 1991 Canada Cup, controversy ensued when Bure refused to sign a petition organized by national team veteran Viacheslav Fetisov. With the Russian Ice Hockey Federation dealing with internal corruption, the petition called for the ouster of a few select Russian ice hockey officials. In response, Bure explained, "I do not sign petitions. I believe I should work – play hockey. Petitions to the federation or to Olympic committees do not interest me."
Two years later, Bure made his Olympic debut with Russia at the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano. He helped his team to advance to the gold medal game after a five-goal game in Russia's 7–4 semifinal win against Finland. The Russians lost the gold medal game to the Czech Republic, ending with silver. Bure finished with a tournament-high nine goals to be named the top forward, and though he recorded no assists, placed third in point-scoring with nine points in six games.
Bure's next international tournament was the 2000 World Championships, held in Saint Petersburg. The Russians had a disappointing tournament and finished eleventh. In six games, Bure managed four goals and an assist. Two years later, Bure made his second Olympic appearance at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City, playing with a fractured hand. Bure finished his final international tournament as a player with two goals and an assist in six games while Russia won the bronze medal.
On the announcement of his retirement in 2005, Bure was named Russia's Olympic general manager, succeeding Viacheslav Fetisov. He promised to put an end to the Russian Hockey Federation's history of internal conflict and player boycotts, saying, "You won't see such a mess with the national team that you've seen here before," and that "You won't see grouchy players here anymore. Only those who really want to play for Russia will be called into the team." As general manager, Bure chose the team for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. The Russians failed to win a medal, losing to the Czech Republic in the bronze medal match. Leading up to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, former Soviet national goaltender Vladislav Tretiak was named Bure's successor as Olympic general manager.
In December 2011, Bure was announced as one of the 2012 inductees into the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame. He was named alongside American Phil Housley, Finn Raimo Helminen and Czechoslovak Milan Nový in the annual class. The players were inducted in a ceremony in May 2012.
Playing style
Bure's playing style reflected the speed, skill and puck possession that was prominent in Soviet Union hockey programs. The most prevalent aspects of his game were his skating speed, agility, and acceleration, which earned him his nickname the "Russian Rocket". He was able to use his quickness to separate himself from defenders, to retrieve pucks before the opposition could in all zones of the ice, and to skate the length of the ice on many occasions. In a 1993 poll of NHL coaches conducted by hockey writer Bob McKenzie, Bure was named the league's best skater with eight of twenty-one votes, twice as many votes as any other player. One coach noted: "Bure has the best combination of speed, agility and balance ... He can also use change of speed better than anybody in the league right now."
During Bure's rehabilitation period, following his first major knee injury in 1995, Canucks' conditioning coach Peter Twist noticed that his skating style was distinct in comparison to typical North American players. He explained: "Most players skate on their inside edge and push off at a 45-degree angle, but Bure starts on his outer edge and rolls over to his inside edge and pushes back straighter on his stride ... he gets more power and force in his stride to get up to top speed quicker." his skating was also complemented by his ability to deke out defenders and goaltenders at top speeds, making him capable of routinely starting end-to-end rushes. However, several knee injuries, and the resulting reconstructive surgeries, compromised the speed that defined Bure's game, ultimately leading to his retirement.
Early in Bure's career, he was noted for playing a strong two-way game. Having joined Pat Quinn's defensive-minded Canucks in 1991, Bure's transition to the NHL was cited as being easier than that of his countryman, Igor Larionov, due to his quick adjustment to the team's defensive demands. Regarding Bure's first NHL game against the Winnipeg Jets, reporter Mike Beamish explained that "hockey fans marvelled at his offensive thrusts, but hockey people were taken by a singular display of jet-powered defensive diligence. On one play, after the Canucks were caught deep in the Winnipeg zone, the Russian winger raced back and almost single-handedly foiled a two-on-one Jets' rush, making up a half-rink disadvantage." Bure was used on the team's penalty kill for his entire tenure with the Canucks, and was proficient at generating shorthanded chances, pressuring the opposition with his quickness and positioning in the defensive zone. During the 1992 Stanley Cup playoffs, commentator and ex-NHL coach Harry Neale commented, "I like the effort he gives it when he doesn't have the puck. We all know what he can do when he thinks he can score, but he's killing penalties, he's checking, doing a lot of things." Bure tied for second-place on Bob McKenzie's 1993 coaches poll for the NHL's best penalty killer. He was also voted the league's second-best stickhandler that season and garnered recognition as one of the smartest players in the NHL.
Sports journalists Damien Cox and Stephen Brunt wrote about Bure during the 1994 Stanley Cup playoffs that he was a "two-way dynamo," accounting for "several bodychecks he handed out on the night" and for his defensive abilities as he stayed on the ice in the last minutes of a one-goal playoff match against the Toronto Maple Leafs. They spoke highly of his creativity as well, recognizing him as "someone who sees in his game a world of possibilities that just never occur to others," praising his "sheer elegance and imagination" and characterizing his hockey sense as "ho-hum brilliance from the most explosive player in the sport". Brunt called him "a nonpareil, a van Gogh, a Picasso, a Charlie Parker". During the 1993-94 season, Bure demonstrated his strong playmaking abilities, helping linemate and friend Gino Odjick score a career-high 16 goals in a single season, more than twice the number of goals Odjick would score in any other year separated from Bure, and doubling his career goal totals up to that point in his career. According to teammate Cliff Ronning in 1994, "we play a much sounder game defensively when Pavel's flying, as he was in the first period". Former Canuck teammate Jyrki Lumme spoke of Bure as a player and teammate, "That guy does something spectacular every time ... it's frustrating to go against him in practice because he's all over the place. He makes everybody on our team better."
During his time with the Canucks, Bure won the team's Most Exciting Player Award, as voted by the fans, a record five times (tied with Tony Tanti), from 1992 to 1995, and once more in 1998. Trevor Linden, who had played with Bure for seven seasons, said following Bure's retirement, "I don't know if I've ever seen or played with a player that's brought people out of their seats like that." During the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals, Rangers coach Mike Keenan, who later coached Bure for one-and-a-half seasons in Vancouver, called him "perhaps the most electrifying forward in the league". The Canucks renamed the award the Pavel Bure Most Exciting Player Award in his honour in 2013.
Bure has been described as a pure goal scorer and is statistically among the top players in NHL history in that regard. In addition to having reached the 50-goal mark in his career five times, and the 60-goal mark twice, his .623 goals per game average is third among the top 100 goal scorers in NHL history, behind Mike Bossy and Mario Lemieux. Michael Farber of the Montreal Gazette described Bure as "the most dangerous scorer in the National Hockey League with the continued absence of Mario Lemieux because Bure can beat a defence with his speed, his strength, his mind. Bure isn't a scorer as much as he is a permanent late-night television guest; he is to highlight packages what Terri Garr is to Letterman."
Personal life
Family
Bure comes from an athletic family; his father Vladimir, who is of Swiss descent (his side of the family originated from Furna, Switzerland), was an Olympic swimmer who competed for the Soviet Union in the 1968, 1972, and 1976 Olympic Games, where he won four medals. Bure retained his father as his personal trainer well into his playing career, before severing ties with him in 1997. Bure's paternal grandfather, Valeri Bure, played goalkeeper for the national water polo team. Both Pavel and his younger brother Valeri became estranged from their father and his second wife, Julia, along with their half-sister Katya, by 1998. Neither brother has explained a reason for the split.
Named after their grandfather, Bure's younger brother, Valeri, was also a hockey player, spending 10 years in the NHL. The two siblings played with each other briefly as members of the Florida Panthers, after Valeri was traded there in 2001, and played together at the 1998 and 2002 Winter Olympics.
The Bure family made precious watches for the Russian tsars from 1815 until 1917, and Bure was named after his great-grandfather, a watchmaker to Tsar Alexander III. As craftspersons to the imperial family, the Bures were granted noble status. After Bure sustained his first serious knee injury in 1995, he pursued the watchmaking business during his rehabilitation period in an attempt to revive the family business. Fifty replicas of the same watches his ancestors made for the Russian imperial family were made and sold at US$30,000 each. Bure presented three of the gold replicas to Russian President Boris Yeltsin, Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin and Moscow mayor Yuriy Luzhkov.
Relationships
Five days after arriving in North America from Moscow with his father and brother on September 6, 1991, (his mother Tatiana arrived two months later), Bure married an American fashion model, later revealed to be Jayme Bohn, in a civil ceremony. The marriage was allegedly set up by Bure's agents as a preventative measure against deportation in the event he and the Canucks could not come to terms with a contract. Bure derived no immigration benefit from the marriage, which was dissolved the following year. Bohn became a costume designer in the film and television industry.
After being linked to girlfriend Dahn Bryan, a model and actress, early in his NHL career, Bure shared a relationship with tennis star and fellow Russian Anna Kournikova. The two met in 1999 when she was still linked to Bure's former Russian teammate Sergei Fedorov. Bure and Kournikova were reported to have been engaged in 2000 after reporter Andrew Greven took a photo of them together in a Florida restaurant where Bure supposedly asked Kournikova to marry him. As the story made headlines in Russia, where they were both heavily followed in the media as celebrities, Bure and Kournikova both denied any engagement. Kournikova, 10 years younger than Bure, was 18 years old at the time. The following year, Kournikova and Fedorov were married in Moscow, though they soon divorced.
Bure married 23-year-old model Alina Khasanova on October 10, 2009, in Moscow, with 300 guests present. Pravda has reported, however, that the couple, who had known each other for four years, had officially married on October 10, 2008, in Miami. Together they have three children: Pavel Jr., Palina and Anastasia. Pavel Jr. was born on April 23, 2013; Palina was born on July 20, 2015. Their third child, a daughter named Anastasia, was born on 28 December 2018.
Politics
Bure is also frequently playing ice hockey with Russian president Vladimir Putin, but has denied having any political ambitions himself in an interview with a Swedish newspaper in 2019.
Legal activity
In 2002, Bure sued the Russian newspaper the eXile for publishing an article stating he broke up with Kournikova because she had two vaginas. Although the newspapers' editorial staff claimed the story was a mere joke, the court ruled in favour of Bure in the amount of 500,000 rubles (US$17,770), and ordered a retraction to be printed. Two years later, on December 27, 2004, the Russian cosmetics chain Arbat Prestige published a story in their free promotional paper that Bure had bragged about Kournikova losing her virginity to him. Shortly thereafter, on January 31, 2005, Bure sued Arbat Prestige for 300 million rubles (US$10.65 million) in a court in Moscow. He also demanded the company print a retraction and apology in a future paper. The court ruled in favour of Bure in November 2005. However, the amount was reduced from 300 million to approximately 320,000 rubles.
On October 31, 2006, nearly a year after his retirement, Bure filed another suit after being kicked off a British Airways flight by the pilot, having been mistaken for a rowdy soccer fan. Despite an apology from the airline company in June 2007, Bure took the issue to court, suing British Airways for 20 million rubles. In late-August 2007, a Russian court ruled in favour of Bure in the amount of 67,000 rubles.
Alleged Mafia connections
During Bure's playing career, much speculation surrounded Russian NHL players and their potential ties to the Russian mafia both as victims and associates. As Soviet players began defecting to the NHL, many cases of extortion began surfacing. The Russian mafia was targeting the players' families still living in Russia. Former teammate Alexander Mogilny was a victim of such an extortion attempt in 1994, while Bure was reported to have made payments totaling in the thousands of dollars to Russian extortionists in 1993. Three years later, in 1996, American sports network ESPN aired reports alleging Bure was a potential associate of the Russian mafia because of his relationship with friend and business partner Anzor Kikalishvili, known to both Russian and American police as a suspected criminal and possible Russian mob boss. Bure was revealed to hold a position as vice president in the sports company Twenty First Century Association, owned by Kikalishvili, and reportedly believed by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation to be a mafia front worth at least US$100 million in illicit funds. While Bure did not deny his business and personal relationships with Kikalishvili, he refuted reports Kikalishvili was involved in any criminal activity.
Speculation resurfaced in 1999, as Bure was included in an investigation aired by the CBC investigative news program The Fifth Estate that made several supposed associations between Soviet NHL players and the Russian mafia. An allegation arose that Bure's former CSKA teammate Viacheslav Fetisov used a company, of which he was president, to launder money for Vyacheslav Ivankov, considered the "Russian godfather" in North America. Bure's relationship with Kikalishvili continued to be questioned. Bure denied Kikalishvili's involvement in any criminal activity, dismissing the allegations as "rumours".
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Bold indicates led league
International
a does not include 1988 Quebec Esso Cup (U17)b does not include the 1990 Goodwill Games
Awards
Soviet
International
NHL
Vancouver Canucks
Records
Team
Vancouver Canucks' single-season record, most points by a rookie – 60 in 1991–92 (tied with Ivan Hlinka, 1981–82 and Elias Pettersson, 2018–19)
Vancouver Canucks' single-season record, most goals – 60 in 1992–93 and 1993–94
Vancouver Canucks' all-time playoffs record, most goals – 34 (tied with Trevor Linden)
Vancouver Canucks' all-time record, most shorthanded goals – 24
Vancouver Canucks' single-game record, most goals – four versus the Winnipeg Jets on October 12, 1992 (tied with Rosaire Paiement, Bobby Schmautz, Rick Blight, Petri Skriko, Greg Adams, Tony Tanti, Martin Gélinas, Markus Näslund and Daniel Sedin)
Florida Panthers' single-season record, most goals – 59 in 2000–01
International
World Junior Championships all-time record, most goals – 27 in 21 games (1989–1991)
Winter Olympics single-game record, most goals – five (1998; semifinal vs. Finland)
NHL
NHL record, most goals scored in proportion to team – 29.5% of the Florida Panthers' goals in 2000–01.
Transactions
June 9, 1989 – Drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in the sixth round, 113th overall, in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft.
October 31, 1991 – Signed by the Vancouver Canucks to a four-year, $3.5 million contract.
June 16, 1994 – Re-signed by the Vancouver Canucks to a five-year, $24.5 million contract.
January 17, 1999 – Traded by the Vancouver Canucks, along with Bret Hedican, Brad Ference and Vancouver's third-round draft choice (Robert Fried) in 2000, to the Florida Panthers in exchange for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes and Florida's first-round draft choice (Nathan Smith) in 2000.
February 8, 1999 – Signed by the Florida Panthers to a five-year, $47.5 million deal.
March 18, 2002 – Traded by the Florida Panthers, along with Florida's second-round draft choice in 2002 (Lee Falardeau), to the New York Rangers in exchange for Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak, the Rangers' first-round draft choice in 2002 (Eric Nystrom), the Rangers' second-round draft choice in 2002 (Rob Globke) and the Rangers fourth-round draft choice in 2003 (later traded to the Atlanta Thrashers; Atlanta selected Guillaume Desbiens).
See also
List of NHL statistical leaders
List of NHL players with 50-goal seasons
List of NHL players with 100-point seasons
Notable families in the NHL
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links
Pavel Bure's Official Web Site
1971 births
Living people
Calder Trophy winners
EV Landshut players
Florida Panthers players
HC CSKA Moscow players
HC Spartak Moscow players
Hockey Hall of Fame inductees
Ice hockey players at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Ice hockey players at the 2002 Winter Olympics
IIHF Hall of Fame inductees
New York Rangers players
National Hockey League All-Stars
National Hockey League players with retired numbers
Olympic bronze medalists for Russia
Olympic ice hockey players of Russia
Olympic silver medalists for Russia
Ice hockey people from Moscow
Rocket Richard Trophy winners
Russian ice hockey right wingers
Russian people of Swiss descent
Soviet expatriate ice hockey players
Soviet expatriates in Canada
Soviet ice hockey right wingers
Soviet people of Swiss descent
Vancouver Canucks draft picks
Vancouver Canucks players
Olympic medalists in ice hockey
Medalists at the 2002 Winter Olympics
Medalists at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Pavel
Russian State University of Physical Education, Sport, Youth and Tourism alumni
Competitors at the 1990 Goodwill Games | true | [
"Karl Cordin (born 3 November 1948) is an Austrian former alpine skier who did only compete in Downhill Races; he competed in the 1972 Winter Olympics, becoming 7th silver medal at FIS Alpine World Ski Championships 1970 in downhill.\n\nBiography\nCording did win three World Cup races: on February 21, 1970, at Jackson Hole, on December 20th, 1970, at Val-d’Isère, and on December 18, 1973, at Zell am See; he did become five-times second and twice third too. He also could achieve the Downhill World Cup in 1969-70.\nHe won the silver medal in the FIS Alpine Skiing World Championships 1970 and became fourth in the FIS Alpine Skiing World Championships 1974; in both races he was overtaken by a racer with a higher number. In 1970, he was in lead (and it looked that he could gain the gold medal) - but Bernhard Russi did win. In 1974, he was on the way to win the bronze medal, but Willi Frommelt did catch it.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n\n1948 births\nLiving people\nAustrian male alpine skiers\nOlympic alpine skiers of Austria\nAlpine skiers at the 1972 Winter Olympics\nFIS Alpine Ski World Cup champions",
"The 1972 UEFA European Under-23 Championship, which spanned two years (1970–72) had 23 entrants. Czechoslovakia U-23s won the competition.\n\nThe 23 national teams were divided into eight groups. The group winners played off against each other on a two-legged home-and-away basis until the winner was decided. There was no finals tournament or 3rd-place playoff.\n\nQualifying Stage\n\nDraw\nThe allocation of teams into qualifying groups was based on that of UEFA Euro 1972 qualifying tournament with several changes, reflecting the absence of some nations:\n Group 2 and 8 had the same competing nations\n Group 1 did not include Wales\n Group 3 did not include England and Malta\n Group 4 did not include Northern Ireland and Cyprus\n Group 5 did not include Belgium and Scotland\n Group 6 did not include Republic of Ireland\n Group 7 did not include Luxembourg\n\nGroup 1\n\nGroup 2\n\nGroup 3\n\nGroup 4\n\nGroup 5\n\nGroup 6\n\nGroup 7\n\nGroup 8\n\nKnockout Stages\n{|width=100%\n|valign=\"center\"|\nQuarter Finals\n Bulgaria 2–2 Netherlands\n Netherlands 0–0 Bulgaria\n Bulgaria 2–0 Netherlands\n2–2: win playoff match\n\n Denmark 2–0 Greece\n Greece 5–0 Denmark\n win 5–2 on aggregate\n\n Soviet Union 3–1 West Germany\n West Germany 0–0 Soviet Union\n win 3–1 on aggregate\n\n Sweden 1–0 Czechoslovakia\n Czechoslovakia 3–1 Sweden\n win 3–2 on aggregate|width=\"5%\"| \n|valign=\"center\"|\nSemi Finals\n Czechoslovakia 2–0 Greece\n Greece 2–1 Czechoslovakia win 3–2 on aggregate Soviet Union 4–0 Bulgaria\n Bulgaria 3–3 Soviet Union win 7–3 on aggregate|width=\"5%\"| \n|valign=\"center\"|\nFinal\n Soviet Union 2–2 Czechoslovakia\n Czechoslovakia 3–1 Soviet Union win 5–3 on aggregate finish as Champions\n|}\n\nSee also\n UEFA European Under-21 Championship\n\nExternal links\n RSSSF Results Archive at rsssf.com\n\nUEFA European Under-21 Championship\n1970–71 in European football\n1971–72 in European football\n1972 in youth association football"
]
|
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"Pavel Bure",
"CSKA Moscow (1987-1991)",
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"I don't know.",
"What did he do with CSKA?",
"professional hockey",
"Did he win?",
"His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 ("
]
| C_32732a22d04542398a2a0695a7ea171d_1 | Did he receive any special recognition or awards? | 4 | Did Pavel Bure receive any special recognition or awards? | Pavel Bure | At age 16, Bure began his professional hockey career playing for CSKA Moscow. He was invited to the senior club's training camp for the 1987-88 season. Although he was deemed too young, and not yet ready, for the Soviet League, Bure earned minimal playing time filling in for absent regulars. He made his debut in September 1987, and played five games for the senior team, scoring his only goal in his first game. Bure joined the club full-time in 1988-89 and amassed 17 goals, a Soviet League record for rookies. The record would last for 18 years until Alexei Cherepanov scored 18 goals in 2006-07. Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (they repeated as European champions the following year). As a member CSKA, Bure joined a lineup that featured several future NHL players, including linemates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, as well as Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladimir Konstantinov. The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, the K-L-M combination of Vladimir Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. The trio was short-lived, as Mogilny defected to play for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, and Fedorov joined the Detroit Red Wings the following year. In his third and final season with the Red Army, Bure tied for the lead in team-scoring with Valeri Kamensky, tallying 46 points. His 35 goals was second in the league, one goal behind Ramil Yuldashev of Sokil Kyiv. Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup. CANNOTANSWER | Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. | Pavel Vladimirovich Bure (, ; born March 31, 1971) is a Russian former professional ice hockey player who played the right wing position. Nicknamed "the Russian Rocket" for his speed, Bure played for 12 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Vancouver Canucks, the Florida Panthers and the New York Rangers. Trained in the Soviet Union, he played three seasons with the Central Red Army team before his NHL career.
Selected 113th overall in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft by Vancouver, he began his NHL career in the 1991–92 season, and won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league's best rookie before leading the NHL in goal-scoring in 1993-94 and helping the Canucks to the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals. After seven seasons the Canucks traded Bure to the Panthers, where he won back-to-back Rocket Richard Trophies as the league's leading goal-scorer. Bure struggled with knee injuries throughout his career, resulting in his retirement in 2005 as a member of the Rangers, although he had not played since 2003. He averaged better than a point per game in his NHL career (779 points with 437 goals in 702 NHL games) and is fourth all-time in goals per game. After six years of eligibility, Bure was elected into the Hockey Hall of Fame in June 2012. In 2017, an NHL panel named Bure one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in history.
Internationally, Bure competed for the Soviet Union and Russia. As a member of the Soviet Union, he won two silver medals and a gold in three World Junior Championships, followed by a gold and a silver medal in the 1990 and 1991 World Championships, respectively. After the Soviet Union was dissolved in 1991, Bure competed for Russia in two Winter Olympics, claiming silver at the 1998 Games in Nagano as team captain, and bronze at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City. Following Bure's retirement in 2005, he was named the general manager for Russia's national team at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. Bure was later recognized for his international career as a 2012 inductee in the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame.
Early life
Bure was born in Moscow in 1971 to Vladimir and Tatiana Bure. Vladimir Bure, a Russian swimming legend, had dreams of Pavel becoming a professional swimmer, but he aspired to play hockey at an early age. He attended his first tryout with the CSKA Moscow hockey school at the age of six, despite his limited skating ability. Until that point, Bure had only played ball hockey on the streets. After Bure failed to impress in his first tryout, his father told him that if he did not show significant improvement within two months, he would withdraw him from the hockey school. By age 11, he was named the best forward in his league. Around that time, in July 1982, Bure was selected as one of three young Russian players to practice with Wayne Gretzky and Soviet national goaltender Vladislav Tretiak in a taped television special.
At age 12, his parents separated, and he remained with his mother. By the time he was 14 years old, he was named to the Central Red Army's junior team. In 1991, he joined his father and brother, Valeri in moving to North America as he embarked on a National Hockey League (NHL) career with the Vancouver Canucks. His mother arrived two months later. They settled initially in Los Angeles where Vladimir continued to train and coach both Valeri and Pavel in hockey and physical conditioning. However both became estranged from their father, along with his second wife and their half-sister Katya, by 1998. Neither brother has explained a reason for the split.
In December 1986, he embarked on a tour of Canada with the Soviet national midget team from Ottawa to Vancouver. Nearly five years before Bure made his NHL debut with the Vancouver Canucks in 1991 at the Pacific Coliseum, he played his first game at his future home rink as part of the tour. Bure also earned another opportunity to meet Gretzky, as well as defenseman Paul Coffey, when his team stopped in Edmonton to play at the Northlands Coliseum.
Playing career
CSKA Moscow (1987–1991)
At age 16, Bure began his professional hockey career playing for CSKA Moscow. He was invited to the senior club's training camp for the 1987–88 season. Although he was deemed too young, and not yet ready, for the Soviet League, Bure earned minimal playing time filling in for absent regulars. He made his debut in September 1987, and played five games for the senior team, scoring his only goal in his first game.
Bure joined the club full-time in 1988–89 and amassed 17 goals, a Soviet League record for rookies. The record would last for 18 years until Alexei Cherepanov scored 18 goals in 2006–07. Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (they repeated as European champions the following year).
As a member CSKA, Bure joined a lineup that featured several future NHL players, including linemates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, as well as Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladimir Konstantinov. The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, the K-L-M combination of Vladimir Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. The trio was short-lived, as Mogilny defected to play for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, and Fedorov joined the Detroit Red Wings the following year.
In his third and final season with the Red Army, Bure tied for the lead in team-scoring with Valeri Kamensky, tallying 46 points. His 35 goals was second in the league, one goal behind Ramil Yuldashev of Sokil Kyiv. Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup.
Transfer to the NHL (1989–1991)
Prior to the 1989 NHL Entry Draft, William Houston of The Globe and Mail wrote, "The best of the group is Soviet star winger Pavel Bure, a spectacular player with outstanding speed. He is compared to Vladimir Krutov and also the late Soviet superstar of the 1970s, Valeri Kharlamov." NHL organizations were afraid he would not leave the Soviet Union to play in the NHL thus deterring teams from selecting him early, although scouts and analysts believed he could have been selected as high as the second round had he defected. Many analysts compared him to Valeri Kharlamov. Edmonton Oilers' scout Barry Fraser commented, "From what I've seen of him, Bure can play on any team in the NHL right now... he's quick, real quick, small and very exciting. He may be the top player in this year's draft, but because he is from the Soviet Union, we don't analyze him the same way as a kid from the West... I don't expect him to go really early because it is still too much of a gamble to hope he will defect."
Bure was selected 113th overall in the sixth round Draft by the Vancouver Canucks, following his rookie season with CSKA Moscow. The pick was controversial, as the Canucks had chosen him seemingly a year ahead of his eligible draft season. At the age of 18, he was available to be chosen in the first three rounds of the draft, but to be selected any later, he would have needed to play at least two seasons—with a minimum of 11 games per season—for his elite-level Soviet club, the Central Red Army. While most teams believed he was ineligible, the Canucks' head scout at the time, Mike Penny, discovered Bure had played in additional exhibition and international games to make him an eligible late-round draft choice a year early. Jack Button, the Washington Capitals' director of player personnel, admitted "everybody would have taken him earlier. We assumed he was not eligible... you've got to give the Canucks credit for doing their homework."
Several other teams either had similar knowledge or had pursued Bure but there was confusion as to the legitimacy of the extra games. The Detroit Red Wings had asked league vice president Gil Stein about Bure's availability before their fifth-round pick but were told he was not eligible. They later decided to select him with their sixth-round pick, 116th overall, and settle his eligibility later. The Canucks selected Bure three picks ahead of Detroit's turn. Meanwhile, Winnipeg Jets general manager Mike Smith, claimed he made an offer to the Soviet Ice Hockey Federation that would involve three years of transfer payments before Bure would be allowed to join the Jets; however Smith did not have any plans to draft Bure in 1989 as he believed he was ineligible.
Canucks' general manager Pat Quinn originally intended to draft Bure in the eighth round but after receiving word the Oilers had similar intentions selected him in the sixth. Following the announcement of Bure's draft, several other team representatives reportedly stormed the Met Center stage in Minnesota, where the draft was being held. Formal complaints were filed resulting in an investigation into the selection. After the pick was deemed illegal by league president John Ziegler in a press release on May 17, 1990, the Canucks appealed the decision, procuring game sheets proving Bure's participation in the additional games with the help of recent Soviet acquisition Igor Larionov. It was not until the eve of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft, in which Bure would have been re-entered that the draft choice was upheld. Although Larionov and Fetisov had successfully spearheaded the rebellion against Soviet ice hockey officials in the late 1980s that led to Soviet players joining the NHL, Bure's transfer to the Canucks was met with resistance, and the Soviet authorities forbade the Canucks to contact Bure personally. During the 1991 World Junior Championships, he said in an interview that he was hesitant to defect for fears the Soviets would make things difficult for his younger brother Valeri Bure, who was 15 at the time and playing in the junior league.
Bure left Moscow with his father and brother on September 6, 1991, staying temporarily in Los Angeles. His mother arrived shortly afterward. The Canucks began negotiating a contract with Bure, but before one could be finalized, the issue of his existing contract with the Central Red Army had to be settled. The Canucks management and officials from the Soviet Ice Hockey Federation met in late-October 1991 in a Detroit court, where they bartered for a cash settlement. After the Canucks offered US$200,000, Bure stood up in the courtroom to offer an additional $50,000, bringing the total to $250,000. The Soviet officials accepted, and Canucks management paid the full $250,000. Bure signed a four-year contract worth a reported $2.7 million with an $800,000 signing bonus. The deal made Bure the Canucks' second highest paid player behind team captain Trevor Linden.
Vancouver Canucks (1991–1999)
Due to the court proceedings, Bure's debut with the Canucks was delayed until a month into the 1991–92 season. Garnering much attention in Vancouver, his first practice with the club on November 3, 1991, was attended by approximately 2,000 fans. He played his first game for the Canucks on November 5, 1991, in a 2–2 tie against the Winnipeg Jets. Despite not scoring a point, Bure showcased his talent and speed with several end-to-end rushes, carrying the puck past several defenders from near his defensive zone to the opposing net. Following the game, Vancouver Sun columnist Iain MacIntyre compared him to a rocket, calling him "the fastest Soviet creation since Sputnik". MacIntyre's comments are credited for laying the groundwork for Bure's moniker as the "Russian Rocket," which echoed the nickname of Maurice "Rocket" Richard, who played for the Montreal Canadiens in the 1950s. In his third game, Bure recorded his first point, an assist against the New York Islanders on November 10. He scored his first two NHL goals in the next game, on November 12, against Daniel Berthiaume of the Los Angeles Kings. He finished with 34 goals and 60 points in 65 games that season, including 22 goals in his final 23 games. In the last game of the regular season, Bure scored a goal to tie Ivan Hlinka's 1981–82 team mark for most points by a rookie.
As the Canucks opened the 1992 playoffs against the Winnipeg Jets, Bure recorded his first NHL hat trick in game six to help force a seventh and deciding game. Vancouver won the series to advance to the second round, but were eliminated by the Edmonton Oilers. Bure finished his first Stanley Cup playoffs with six goals and 10 points in 13 games. At the end of the season, he was awarded the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year. His 60 points were second among first-year players to Tony Amonte's 69 points with the Rangers, although Bure played in 14 fewer games. When accepting the award, Bure thanked Canucks linemate Igor Larionov for his guidance. On arriving in Vancouver, his former Red Army teammate took him into his home for two weeks before Bure moved into his own apartment; the two also roomed together on the road. Bure's Calder Trophy, along with head coach Pat Quinn's Jack Adams Award as the league's top coach, marked the first major individual NHL awards in Canucks' team history. However, despite being named the league's top rookie, Bure was left off the NHL All-Rookie Team, making him the only Calder recipient not to be named to the lineup. This was because he split his time playing both left and right wing. When it came to voting for the players, Bure had the most total votes, but not enough at either position to claim a spot.
Bure improved on his rookie season in 1992–93 with the first of two consecutive 60-goal seasons. In the third game of the season, he scored a career-high four goals against the Winnipeg Jets. His three goals and one assist in the second period set a pair of Canucks' records for most goals and points in a period, in addition to the team mark for most goals overall in a game (for which he is tied with several players). Furthermore, Bure scored two of his goals on the penalty kill to set a fourth team record for most short-handed goals in one contest. He appeared in his first NHL All-Star Game in 1993, being named to the Clarence Campbell Conference Team as the lone Canucks' representative, and scored two goals. Shortly after the All-Star break, Bure established a new franchise record for goals in a season during a 5–1 win over the Quebec Nordiques, surpassing Tony Tanti's 45-goal mark. The next month, on March 1, he reached the 50-goal mark for the first time in his career, scoring against Grant Fuhr of the Buffalo Sabres in a neutral-site game in Hamilton, Ontario. He also surpassed Patrik Sundström's franchise record of 91 points. Bure finished the season with 110 points in 83 games, and became the first Canuck named to the NHL First All-Star Team. His 110 points stood as the team record until it was broken by Henrik Sedin's 112 points in 2009–10.
A groin injury early in the 1993-94 season limited Bure's production for the first half of the season. Even so, he improved in the second half, and led the league in goal-scoring by repeating his 60-goal feat of the previous season. In doing so, he became the eighth player in NHL history to record back-to-back 60-goal seasons. He concluded the season with a streak of 49 goals and 78 points in his final 51 games, and earned player of the month honours in March 1994 after scoring 19 goals and 30 points in 16 games. His March scoring burst was just one point shy of Stan Smyl's 31-point March in 1983 for the most productive month by a Canucks player. Bure's 154 NHL goals at that point in his career put him behind only Wayne Gretzky and Mike Bossy for the most in any NHL player's first three seasons. He recorded 49 goals in the club's final 51 games, and contributed to 46.45% of his team's goals in the final 47 games of the season to carry the Canucks into the 1994 postseason.
Entering the 1994 Stanley Cup Playoffs as the seventh seed, the Canucks went on a run to the Stanley Cup Finals. In the seventh game of the opening-round series against the Calgary Flames, Bure scored one of the most significant and well-known goals in Canucks' history. After receiving a breakaway pass from defenceman Jeff Brown, he deked and scored on Flames' goalie Mike Vernon in the second overtime to win the series. In game two of the second round against the Dallas Stars, Bure knocked enforcer Shane Churla to the ice with an elbow to the jaw. He also scored two goals in the game to help Vancouver to a 3–0 win. Although Bure was not initially penalized for the play, he was later fined $500 by the league. He recorded six goals and eight points in five games against the Dallas Stars, and against the Toronto Maple Leafs the following round scored four goals and six points in five games.
After defeating Dallas in five games, the Canucks eliminated the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Campbell Conference Finals to meet the New York Rangers in the Finals, where the Canucks lost in seven games. Bure finished with a team-high 16 goals and 31 points in 24 games, second in playoff scoring only to Conn Smythe Trophy winner Brian Leetch. His points total also remained the highest by any Russian player until Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins recorded 36 in 2009.
In the next off-season, the Canucks announced they had re-signed Bure to a five-year, $24.5 million contract on June 16. The deal was reported to have been signed before game three of the Stanley Cup Finals against New York. It also included Bure's marketing rights and put his father, Vladimir, on the team payroll as a fitness and marketing consultant. The average annual salary of $4.9 million made Bure the league's third highest-paid player, behind Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux. In fact, Bure and the Canucks had entered into contract negotiations at the beginning of the 1993–94 season, although two years remained in his original deal. Neither side could come to an initial agreement; one of the major factors was the Canucks' demands for the contract to be in Canadian dollars on account of the American exchange rate. Numerous accusations were made in the media during the Canucks' playoff run that Bure threatened not to play if a contract could not be agreed upon. A Toronto Star article, published before the first game of the Finals on May 31, 1994, claimed Bure had signed a five-year, $30 million contract that, if the Canucks had not agreed to, would have seen him pull out of game five of the Conference Finals against the Maple Leafs. The article was followed by two additional claims in the following two days in the Vancouver-based newspaper The Province and Toronto Sun. The Toronto Sun held the contract was a five-year, $22.5 million deal, and that it was signed before either game six or seven of the opening round against the Flames after Bure's agent, Ron Salcer, told general manager Quinn that Bure would not play if the deal was not made. As the story continued well into the next season, Pat Quinn appeared in a segment on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)'s Hockey Night in Canada on March 27, 1995, publicly denying the claims.
Due to the 1994–95 NHL lockout, Bure spent single-game stints with Spartak Moscow of the Russian Super League and EV Landshut of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). He joined a team of Russian NHL players organized by Slava Fetisov that returned to Russia to play a five-game charity tour against local clubs. On the team, Bure reunited with former Central Red Army linemates Mogilny and Fedorov. When the NHL Players Association (NHLPA) and owners came to an agreement on January 12, 1995, NHL play was set to resume. However, there were unresolved contract issues, as Salcer claimed the Canucks promised they would pay Bure's full salary, despite the lockout, which cancelled nearly half of the 1994–95 season. Bure held out for four days as a result (the amount claimed to be owing was $1.7 million), before the two sides reached an agreement. The Canucks would put the disputed amount in escrow and would continue discussions. He soon reported to Vancouver and went on to tally 43 points in 44 games of the shortened season. In the 1995 playoffs, Bure set franchise records for most goals and points in a series with seven and 12 respectively in a seven-game series victory against the St. Louis Blues (Mikael Samuelsson tied Bure's goal-scoring record in 2010 against the Los Angeles Kings). The Canucks, however, failed to defend their Clarence Campbell Conference championship title, being swept by the Chicago Blackhawks in the second round. The Canucks' elimination in 1995 marked the last time Bure appeared in the post-season with the club. He finished with a career playoff total of 66 points with the Canucks, including 34 goals, which remained the highest club total until Linden tied the mark in 2007.
At the start of the 1995–96 season, Bure changed his jersey number from 10 to 96. The switch commemorated September 6, 1991, the day on which he first landed in North America from Moscow—9th month, 6th day. He had originally asked to wear the number when he first joined the Canucks, but was not permitted to do so by head coach Pat Quinn, who did not approve of high jersey numbers. After the Canucks traded with the Buffalo Sabres for Alexander Mogilny, reuniting the two Russian players, the jersey number was deemed acceptable because Mogilny had used number 89 since defecting to North America in 1989.
Early in the season, Bure sustained the first of several serious knee injuries during his career. On November 9, 1995, in a game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Bure was grabbed around the head by defenseman Steve Smith while approaching the end boards. Falling to the ice, he caught his skate against the boards, tearing the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee. Requiring arthroscopic surgery, in which tendon was removed from his hamstring to repair the ACL, he was sidelined for the remainder of the season.
Bure returned to the Canucks' lineup with his knee fully recovered in the 1996–97 season. In the season opener against the Flames on October 5, 1996, Bure was pushed into the boards head-first. He continued to play after the hit, but experienced headaches in the following weeks. As Bure's play dropped early in the season, the media speculated that he was playing injured. After he went eight games without a goal, head coach Tom Renney claimed Bure was not playing with a head injury, but instead had injured his shoulder in a game against the New York Rangers on November 23. Nevertheless, he continued to play. With under a month left in the season, he received another hit, during a game against the Avalanche on March 3, 1997. Bure left the game and did not return for the remainder of the season. Afterwards, he admitted he was playing with a neck injury, having sustained whiplash from the first game against Calgary, but did not want to take himself out of the lineup after missing 62 games the previous season. With Bure's reduced playing capacity, he managed 55 points in 63 games, well below his usual pace, and the Canucks missed the playoffs for the first time since he joined the team. In a 2012 interview, Bure admitted having sustained a head injury on the initial hit against Calgary and that "he should not have played through it".
In the off-season, the Canucks made another significant move, signing Rangers' captain Mark Messier during free agency on July 26, 1997. Despite finally having a high-profile centre to play with, media reports soon appeared claiming that Bure was asking to be traded. The Canucks opened the season with two games against the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in Tokyo – an event organized by the league to market hockey for the upcoming 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. After two injury-plagued seasons with the number 96 on his jersey, Bure switched back to his familiar number 10, explaining: "I'm not superstitious, but the last two seasons have been bad memories." Although the Canucks missed the playoffs for the second straight year, he returned to his previous form in 1997–98, scoring 51 goals for his first 50-goal season since 1993–94, and third overall. Bure later recalled that with the Canucks out of playoff contention with a handful of games left, head coach Mike Keenan told him he could play as much as he wanted to reach the milestone. Scoring 50 goals was also implicit in a contract bonus for Bure. With an additional 39 assists, his 90 points ranked him third in the NHL, behind Peter Forsberg and Jaromír Jágr.
Following the 1997–98 season, Bure told newly appointed general manager Brian Burke that he would not play for the Canucks again, despite still having a year left in his contract worth $8 million. He then went public with the declaration, stating he intended to leave the club for "personal reasons". Bure did not report to the club the following season. Instead, he returned to his hometown Moscow to practise with his former Central Red Army club. During this time, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko offered Bure a tax-free $4 million salary to play in Belarus, which he turned down.
Florida Panthers (1999–2002)
Bure held out well into the 1998–99 season until he was traded on January 17, 1999, to the Florida Panthers, with Bret Hedican, Brad Ference, and Vancouver's third-round choice in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft (Robert Fried) for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes, and Florida's first-round choice in the 2000 draft (Nathan Smith). Talks between Burke and Bryan Murray, general manager of the Panthers, had begun in late-December. After the trade was completed, Bure explained that he felt alienated from Canucks' management after arriving in North America having defected from Russia. He claimed he had been in Los Angeles for two weeks before any Canucks' representative came to see him, as well as several bitter contract negotiations—particularly those of 1994. He also claimed that someone within the Canucks' management planted the constant allegations that he threatened not to play during the 1994 playoff run. Bure's agent at the time, Ron Salcer, also believed the story.
Meeting the Panthers in New York for a game against the Islanders, Bure debuted with his new club on January 20, 1999. He played on an all-Russian line with Viktor Kozlov and Oleg Kvasha and scored two goals. In his first six games with the club, Bure scored eight goals and three assists for eleven points. Less than a month into his Panthers debut, he reinjured his knee, keeping him out for three weeks. Despite the injury, the Panthers signed him to a five-year, $47.5 million contract (with an option for a sixth year at $10.5 million), the most lucrative in team history. Another injury ended Bure's season after just 11 games with Florida, though he scored 13 goals and three assists in that time.
In 1999–2000, his first full season as a Panther, Bure led the league in goal-scoring to capture his first of two consecutive Rocket Richard Trophies with a 58-goal season. It marked the second time Bure led the league in goal-scoring, but his first Rocket Richard Trophy as the award had been introduced the previous season. Combined with 36 assists, his 94 points came within two of Art Ross Trophy winner Jaromír Jágr as the league's leading point-scorer. His 58 goals and 94 points both set franchise records. He helped Florida to a fifth-place finish in the Eastern Conference to earn their first post-season berth in three seasons, though they were swept by the eventual Stanley Cup champions, the New Jersey Devils. Bure finished third for the Hart Memorial Trophy winner behind Chris Pronger and Jágr. He was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team for the first time.
Bure was set to make his much-anticipated return to Vancouver to play the Canucks on November 5, 1999, but was kept out of the lineup due to a broken finger. A prior groin injury had also forced him out of a Panther's home game against the Canucks earlier in the season. During the season, he was named to the 2000 NHL All-Star Game in Toronto, where he recorded an assist and the eleventh hat trick in the history of the All-Star Game. Of Bure's three goals, two were assisted by his brother Valeri, who played on the same line with him, along with his Panthers linemate, Viktor Kozlov. Helping lead the World team to a 9–4 victory over North America, Bure was named the All-Star Game MVP.
Bure repeated as league scoring champion in 2000–01 with 59 goals, reaching the 50-goal plateau for the fifth and final time in his career, as well as bettering his franchise single-season, goal-scoring record. However, the Panthers missed the playoffs, finishing 12th place in the East. Bure set a league record that season by scoring 29.5% of his team's total goals over the course of the season. He was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team, behind Jágr in the right wing position for the second consecutive year.
Before the 2001–02 season, the Panthers acquired Valeri Bure from the Calgary Flames in a trade, putting the brothers on the same team for the first time. However, Bure suffered a setback in the pre-season re-injuring his groin. Bure recalled having "good relations" with Panthers' management, who often consulted with him on team matters, including the acquisition of his brother. At the trading deadline, Bure was traded to the New York Rangers. During his 56 games for the Panthers that season, he led the team in scoring for the third consecutive season with 49 points.
New York Rangers (2002–2003)
The New York Rangers acquired Bure on March 18, 2002, along with Florida's second-round pick in the 2002 draft (Lee Falardeau) for Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak, as well as the Rangers' first and second-round choices in the 2002 draft (Petr Tatíček and Rob Globke, respectively) and a fourth-round choice in the 2003 draft. The Rangers had shown interest in Bure when he requested a trade from the Canucks in 1997. After losing their initial bid for Bure, Wayne Gretzky, who retired the same season Bure was traded to Florida, announced prior to the 1999–2000 season he would have extended his career had the Rangers been able to pull off the trade. Bure made his Rangers debut against the Vancouver Canucks the day after his trade on March 19, scoring a goal against his former team. He scored 12 goals and 20 points in 12 games after being traded, bettering his pace with Florida that season. Between the two teams, he finished the season with 34 goals and 69 points.
Bure suffered another knee injury in the 2002–03 pre-season; combined with a case of strep throat, he missed the first three games of the regular season. After returning to play, he had 14 goals and 21 points in his first 27 games, including two goals and an assist in his first game back, before a knee-on-knee collision in December forced him back out. After undergoing surgery 10 days later, it was revealed that there was no damage to the ACL as previously feared, but instead a tear to the meniscus in his left knee, which was repaired. Bure returned that season to appear in 39 games, managing 19 goals and 30 points.
Even after two operations, Bure did not play in 2003–04 due to the lingering effects of the knee injury. He failed a pre-season physical and was declared medically unable to play. Left with his fully insured $10 million salary (80 percent of which would be reimbursed to the team), the Rangers left him unprotected in the NHL's Waiver Draft, where he was unclaimed.
Retirement
Bure remained inactive for another season due to the 2004–05 NHL lockout. After the NHL resumed play for the 2005–06 season, he announced his retirement from professional hockey at a press conference in Moscow on November 1, 2005, citing complications with his chronic knee injuries. In an interview Bure explained that he did not want to extend his playing career without being able to play at an elite level.
Because Bure had been inactive since the 2002–03 season, he was eligible for selection into the Hockey Hall of Fame (which requires players to wait three years after their last game) immediately following his retirement. After being passed for induction in his first six years of eligibility, Bure was voted in on June 27, 2012, alongside Joe Sakic, Adam Oates and Mats Sundin. He became the fifth Soviet or Russian player (after Vladislav Tretiak, Viacheslav Fetisov, Valeri Kharlamov and Igor Larionov) and the first player to spend the majority of his career with the Canucks to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
His non-selection in previous years was widely debated in the media. Bure was often compared with Cam Neely, a player who also waited six years for induction; he recorded similar goals-per-game numbers in a career that was also shortened to 700-plus games. It had been often rumoured that Pat Quinn, Bure's former head coach and general manager in Vancouver, who became co-chairman of the Hockey Hall of Fame's selection committee, opposed Bure's induction. However, in a conference call following his selection, Quinn was among the most prominent figures he thanked. Quinn criticized the Canucks organization for not yet retiring Bure's jersey.
In his retirement, he remained publicly steadfast in his dissatisfaction with the way he was treated by the Canucks organization during his playing career. While Bure admitted to "a lot of disagreements with the Canucks management," he maintained that he "never had any problems with the Canucks fans". The Canucks retired Bure's 10 jersey on November 2, 2013. The day before the Canucks announced they would rename the team's Most Exciting Player Award to the Pavel Bure Most Exciting Player Award in his honor. Bure renounced his US citizenship in 2016.
International career
Junior
Prior to joining the NHL in 1991, Bure competed for the Soviet Union in several junior, international tournaments. The first was the 1988 Quebec Esso Cup, an under-17 tournament (now known as the World U-17 Hockey Challenge) held in Quebec City, where he earned a gold medal. That same year, he competed in his first of two consecutive European Junior Championships, winning a bronze medal.
The following year, Bure debuted at the world under-20 level as a 17-year-old at the 1989 World Junior Championships in Anchorage, Alaska. The top line of CSKA Moscow teammates Bure, Alexander Mogilny and Sergei Fedorov led the Soviet Union to a gold medal. Bure's eight goals tied him for the tournament lead with Jeremy Roenick of the United States; he led the Soviet team with 14 points. He was named to the Tournament All-Star Team, and earned Best Forward honours. He again participated in the 1989 European Junior Championship, helping the Soviet Union win the gold medal.
Bure competed in his second World Juniors in 1990, winning a silver medal in Helsinki, Finland, and scoring seven goals in seven games. Later that year, he made his senior debut with the Soviet national team as a 19-year-old at the 1990 World Championships in Switzerland. He scored two goals and four assists in ten games to help the Soviets to a gold medal finish. The Soviet team also won silver in the European Championship, which was decided from games played among the European teams at the tournament. Several months later, in July, Bure took part in his third international tournament of the year at the 1990 Goodwill Games in Seattle. Bure scored four goals and an assist in five games, and the Soviets won the gold medal.
In 1991, Bure appeared in his third and final World Junior Championships. Bure finished the tournament as the leading scorer with 12 goals in 7 games and the Soviets won the silver medal. He finished his three-year World Junior career with a tournament-record 27 goals, to go with 39 points, in 21 games. Bure later competed in the 1991 World Championships, his second international appearance of the year. He improved on his previous year's total with 11 points in 11 games, tied for the team lead with Valeri Kamensky, and helped the Soviets to a bronze medal finish. Bure was named to the tournament's Second All-Star Team. The 1991 team marked the last World Championships for the USSR, as the country was dissolved later that year.
Senior
Bure was set to represent the Soviet Union at the 1991 Canada Cup, however after turning down a three-year contract with his Russian club, CSKA Moscow, he was left off the final roster.
Bure played his first international tournament for Russia in preliminary games for the inaugural 1996 World Cup (the successor tournament to the Canada Cup). Bure had recently recovered from reconstructive surgery to his right knee, and had begun practicing with the Russian national team where he was reunited on a line with Fedorov and Mogilny, the first and only time the three of them would play together at the senior level; the line was considered "perhaps the best forward line on earth" at the time. However Bure bruised a kidney in one of the games and was forced to miss the main tournament.
As with the 1991 Canada Cup, controversy ensued when Bure refused to sign a petition organized by national team veteran Viacheslav Fetisov. With the Russian Ice Hockey Federation dealing with internal corruption, the petition called for the ouster of a few select Russian ice hockey officials. In response, Bure explained, "I do not sign petitions. I believe I should work – play hockey. Petitions to the federation or to Olympic committees do not interest me."
Two years later, Bure made his Olympic debut with Russia at the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano. He helped his team to advance to the gold medal game after a five-goal game in Russia's 7–4 semifinal win against Finland. The Russians lost the gold medal game to the Czech Republic, ending with silver. Bure finished with a tournament-high nine goals to be named the top forward, and though he recorded no assists, placed third in point-scoring with nine points in six games.
Bure's next international tournament was the 2000 World Championships, held in Saint Petersburg. The Russians had a disappointing tournament and finished eleventh. In six games, Bure managed four goals and an assist. Two years later, Bure made his second Olympic appearance at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City, playing with a fractured hand. Bure finished his final international tournament as a player with two goals and an assist in six games while Russia won the bronze medal.
On the announcement of his retirement in 2005, Bure was named Russia's Olympic general manager, succeeding Viacheslav Fetisov. He promised to put an end to the Russian Hockey Federation's history of internal conflict and player boycotts, saying, "You won't see such a mess with the national team that you've seen here before," and that "You won't see grouchy players here anymore. Only those who really want to play for Russia will be called into the team." As general manager, Bure chose the team for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. The Russians failed to win a medal, losing to the Czech Republic in the bronze medal match. Leading up to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, former Soviet national goaltender Vladislav Tretiak was named Bure's successor as Olympic general manager.
In December 2011, Bure was announced as one of the 2012 inductees into the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame. He was named alongside American Phil Housley, Finn Raimo Helminen and Czechoslovak Milan Nový in the annual class. The players were inducted in a ceremony in May 2012.
Playing style
Bure's playing style reflected the speed, skill and puck possession that was prominent in Soviet Union hockey programs. The most prevalent aspects of his game were his skating speed, agility, and acceleration, which earned him his nickname the "Russian Rocket". He was able to use his quickness to separate himself from defenders, to retrieve pucks before the opposition could in all zones of the ice, and to skate the length of the ice on many occasions. In a 1993 poll of NHL coaches conducted by hockey writer Bob McKenzie, Bure was named the league's best skater with eight of twenty-one votes, twice as many votes as any other player. One coach noted: "Bure has the best combination of speed, agility and balance ... He can also use change of speed better than anybody in the league right now."
During Bure's rehabilitation period, following his first major knee injury in 1995, Canucks' conditioning coach Peter Twist noticed that his skating style was distinct in comparison to typical North American players. He explained: "Most players skate on their inside edge and push off at a 45-degree angle, but Bure starts on his outer edge and rolls over to his inside edge and pushes back straighter on his stride ... he gets more power and force in his stride to get up to top speed quicker." his skating was also complemented by his ability to deke out defenders and goaltenders at top speeds, making him capable of routinely starting end-to-end rushes. However, several knee injuries, and the resulting reconstructive surgeries, compromised the speed that defined Bure's game, ultimately leading to his retirement.
Early in Bure's career, he was noted for playing a strong two-way game. Having joined Pat Quinn's defensive-minded Canucks in 1991, Bure's transition to the NHL was cited as being easier than that of his countryman, Igor Larionov, due to his quick adjustment to the team's defensive demands. Regarding Bure's first NHL game against the Winnipeg Jets, reporter Mike Beamish explained that "hockey fans marvelled at his offensive thrusts, but hockey people were taken by a singular display of jet-powered defensive diligence. On one play, after the Canucks were caught deep in the Winnipeg zone, the Russian winger raced back and almost single-handedly foiled a two-on-one Jets' rush, making up a half-rink disadvantage." Bure was used on the team's penalty kill for his entire tenure with the Canucks, and was proficient at generating shorthanded chances, pressuring the opposition with his quickness and positioning in the defensive zone. During the 1992 Stanley Cup playoffs, commentator and ex-NHL coach Harry Neale commented, "I like the effort he gives it when he doesn't have the puck. We all know what he can do when he thinks he can score, but he's killing penalties, he's checking, doing a lot of things." Bure tied for second-place on Bob McKenzie's 1993 coaches poll for the NHL's best penalty killer. He was also voted the league's second-best stickhandler that season and garnered recognition as one of the smartest players in the NHL.
Sports journalists Damien Cox and Stephen Brunt wrote about Bure during the 1994 Stanley Cup playoffs that he was a "two-way dynamo," accounting for "several bodychecks he handed out on the night" and for his defensive abilities as he stayed on the ice in the last minutes of a one-goal playoff match against the Toronto Maple Leafs. They spoke highly of his creativity as well, recognizing him as "someone who sees in his game a world of possibilities that just never occur to others," praising his "sheer elegance and imagination" and characterizing his hockey sense as "ho-hum brilliance from the most explosive player in the sport". Brunt called him "a nonpareil, a van Gogh, a Picasso, a Charlie Parker". During the 1993-94 season, Bure demonstrated his strong playmaking abilities, helping linemate and friend Gino Odjick score a career-high 16 goals in a single season, more than twice the number of goals Odjick would score in any other year separated from Bure, and doubling his career goal totals up to that point in his career. According to teammate Cliff Ronning in 1994, "we play a much sounder game defensively when Pavel's flying, as he was in the first period". Former Canuck teammate Jyrki Lumme spoke of Bure as a player and teammate, "That guy does something spectacular every time ... it's frustrating to go against him in practice because he's all over the place. He makes everybody on our team better."
During his time with the Canucks, Bure won the team's Most Exciting Player Award, as voted by the fans, a record five times (tied with Tony Tanti), from 1992 to 1995, and once more in 1998. Trevor Linden, who had played with Bure for seven seasons, said following Bure's retirement, "I don't know if I've ever seen or played with a player that's brought people out of their seats like that." During the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals, Rangers coach Mike Keenan, who later coached Bure for one-and-a-half seasons in Vancouver, called him "perhaps the most electrifying forward in the league". The Canucks renamed the award the Pavel Bure Most Exciting Player Award in his honour in 2013.
Bure has been described as a pure goal scorer and is statistically among the top players in NHL history in that regard. In addition to having reached the 50-goal mark in his career five times, and the 60-goal mark twice, his .623 goals per game average is third among the top 100 goal scorers in NHL history, behind Mike Bossy and Mario Lemieux. Michael Farber of the Montreal Gazette described Bure as "the most dangerous scorer in the National Hockey League with the continued absence of Mario Lemieux because Bure can beat a defence with his speed, his strength, his mind. Bure isn't a scorer as much as he is a permanent late-night television guest; he is to highlight packages what Terri Garr is to Letterman."
Personal life
Family
Bure comes from an athletic family; his father Vladimir, who is of Swiss descent (his side of the family originated from Furna, Switzerland), was an Olympic swimmer who competed for the Soviet Union in the 1968, 1972, and 1976 Olympic Games, where he won four medals. Bure retained his father as his personal trainer well into his playing career, before severing ties with him in 1997. Bure's paternal grandfather, Valeri Bure, played goalkeeper for the national water polo team. Both Pavel and his younger brother Valeri became estranged from their father and his second wife, Julia, along with their half-sister Katya, by 1998. Neither brother has explained a reason for the split.
Named after their grandfather, Bure's younger brother, Valeri, was also a hockey player, spending 10 years in the NHL. The two siblings played with each other briefly as members of the Florida Panthers, after Valeri was traded there in 2001, and played together at the 1998 and 2002 Winter Olympics.
The Bure family made precious watches for the Russian tsars from 1815 until 1917, and Bure was named after his great-grandfather, a watchmaker to Tsar Alexander III. As craftspersons to the imperial family, the Bures were granted noble status. After Bure sustained his first serious knee injury in 1995, he pursued the watchmaking business during his rehabilitation period in an attempt to revive the family business. Fifty replicas of the same watches his ancestors made for the Russian imperial family were made and sold at US$30,000 each. Bure presented three of the gold replicas to Russian President Boris Yeltsin, Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin and Moscow mayor Yuriy Luzhkov.
Relationships
Five days after arriving in North America from Moscow with his father and brother on September 6, 1991, (his mother Tatiana arrived two months later), Bure married an American fashion model, later revealed to be Jayme Bohn, in a civil ceremony. The marriage was allegedly set up by Bure's agents as a preventative measure against deportation in the event he and the Canucks could not come to terms with a contract. Bure derived no immigration benefit from the marriage, which was dissolved the following year. Bohn became a costume designer in the film and television industry.
After being linked to girlfriend Dahn Bryan, a model and actress, early in his NHL career, Bure shared a relationship with tennis star and fellow Russian Anna Kournikova. The two met in 1999 when she was still linked to Bure's former Russian teammate Sergei Fedorov. Bure and Kournikova were reported to have been engaged in 2000 after reporter Andrew Greven took a photo of them together in a Florida restaurant where Bure supposedly asked Kournikova to marry him. As the story made headlines in Russia, where they were both heavily followed in the media as celebrities, Bure and Kournikova both denied any engagement. Kournikova, 10 years younger than Bure, was 18 years old at the time. The following year, Kournikova and Fedorov were married in Moscow, though they soon divorced.
Bure married 23-year-old model Alina Khasanova on October 10, 2009, in Moscow, with 300 guests present. Pravda has reported, however, that the couple, who had known each other for four years, had officially married on October 10, 2008, in Miami. Together they have three children: Pavel Jr., Palina and Anastasia. Pavel Jr. was born on April 23, 2013; Palina was born on July 20, 2015. Their third child, a daughter named Anastasia, was born on 28 December 2018.
Politics
Bure is also frequently playing ice hockey with Russian president Vladimir Putin, but has denied having any political ambitions himself in an interview with a Swedish newspaper in 2019.
Legal activity
In 2002, Bure sued the Russian newspaper the eXile for publishing an article stating he broke up with Kournikova because she had two vaginas. Although the newspapers' editorial staff claimed the story was a mere joke, the court ruled in favour of Bure in the amount of 500,000 rubles (US$17,770), and ordered a retraction to be printed. Two years later, on December 27, 2004, the Russian cosmetics chain Arbat Prestige published a story in their free promotional paper that Bure had bragged about Kournikova losing her virginity to him. Shortly thereafter, on January 31, 2005, Bure sued Arbat Prestige for 300 million rubles (US$10.65 million) in a court in Moscow. He also demanded the company print a retraction and apology in a future paper. The court ruled in favour of Bure in November 2005. However, the amount was reduced from 300 million to approximately 320,000 rubles.
On October 31, 2006, nearly a year after his retirement, Bure filed another suit after being kicked off a British Airways flight by the pilot, having been mistaken for a rowdy soccer fan. Despite an apology from the airline company in June 2007, Bure took the issue to court, suing British Airways for 20 million rubles. In late-August 2007, a Russian court ruled in favour of Bure in the amount of 67,000 rubles.
Alleged Mafia connections
During Bure's playing career, much speculation surrounded Russian NHL players and their potential ties to the Russian mafia both as victims and associates. As Soviet players began defecting to the NHL, many cases of extortion began surfacing. The Russian mafia was targeting the players' families still living in Russia. Former teammate Alexander Mogilny was a victim of such an extortion attempt in 1994, while Bure was reported to have made payments totaling in the thousands of dollars to Russian extortionists in 1993. Three years later, in 1996, American sports network ESPN aired reports alleging Bure was a potential associate of the Russian mafia because of his relationship with friend and business partner Anzor Kikalishvili, known to both Russian and American police as a suspected criminal and possible Russian mob boss. Bure was revealed to hold a position as vice president in the sports company Twenty First Century Association, owned by Kikalishvili, and reportedly believed by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation to be a mafia front worth at least US$100 million in illicit funds. While Bure did not deny his business and personal relationships with Kikalishvili, he refuted reports Kikalishvili was involved in any criminal activity.
Speculation resurfaced in 1999, as Bure was included in an investigation aired by the CBC investigative news program The Fifth Estate that made several supposed associations between Soviet NHL players and the Russian mafia. An allegation arose that Bure's former CSKA teammate Viacheslav Fetisov used a company, of which he was president, to launder money for Vyacheslav Ivankov, considered the "Russian godfather" in North America. Bure's relationship with Kikalishvili continued to be questioned. Bure denied Kikalishvili's involvement in any criminal activity, dismissing the allegations as "rumours".
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Bold indicates led league
International
a does not include 1988 Quebec Esso Cup (U17)b does not include the 1990 Goodwill Games
Awards
Soviet
International
NHL
Vancouver Canucks
Records
Team
Vancouver Canucks' single-season record, most points by a rookie – 60 in 1991–92 (tied with Ivan Hlinka, 1981–82 and Elias Pettersson, 2018–19)
Vancouver Canucks' single-season record, most goals – 60 in 1992–93 and 1993–94
Vancouver Canucks' all-time playoffs record, most goals – 34 (tied with Trevor Linden)
Vancouver Canucks' all-time record, most shorthanded goals – 24
Vancouver Canucks' single-game record, most goals – four versus the Winnipeg Jets on October 12, 1992 (tied with Rosaire Paiement, Bobby Schmautz, Rick Blight, Petri Skriko, Greg Adams, Tony Tanti, Martin Gélinas, Markus Näslund and Daniel Sedin)
Florida Panthers' single-season record, most goals – 59 in 2000–01
International
World Junior Championships all-time record, most goals – 27 in 21 games (1989–1991)
Winter Olympics single-game record, most goals – five (1998; semifinal vs. Finland)
NHL
NHL record, most goals scored in proportion to team – 29.5% of the Florida Panthers' goals in 2000–01.
Transactions
June 9, 1989 – Drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in the sixth round, 113th overall, in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft.
October 31, 1991 – Signed by the Vancouver Canucks to a four-year, $3.5 million contract.
June 16, 1994 – Re-signed by the Vancouver Canucks to a five-year, $24.5 million contract.
January 17, 1999 – Traded by the Vancouver Canucks, along with Bret Hedican, Brad Ference and Vancouver's third-round draft choice (Robert Fried) in 2000, to the Florida Panthers in exchange for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes and Florida's first-round draft choice (Nathan Smith) in 2000.
February 8, 1999 – Signed by the Florida Panthers to a five-year, $47.5 million deal.
March 18, 2002 – Traded by the Florida Panthers, along with Florida's second-round draft choice in 2002 (Lee Falardeau), to the New York Rangers in exchange for Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak, the Rangers' first-round draft choice in 2002 (Eric Nystrom), the Rangers' second-round draft choice in 2002 (Rob Globke) and the Rangers fourth-round draft choice in 2003 (later traded to the Atlanta Thrashers; Atlanta selected Guillaume Desbiens).
See also
List of NHL statistical leaders
List of NHL players with 50-goal seasons
List of NHL players with 100-point seasons
Notable families in the NHL
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links
Pavel Bure's Official Web Site
1971 births
Living people
Calder Trophy winners
EV Landshut players
Florida Panthers players
HC CSKA Moscow players
HC Spartak Moscow players
Hockey Hall of Fame inductees
Ice hockey players at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Ice hockey players at the 2002 Winter Olympics
IIHF Hall of Fame inductees
New York Rangers players
National Hockey League All-Stars
National Hockey League players with retired numbers
Olympic bronze medalists for Russia
Olympic ice hockey players of Russia
Olympic silver medalists for Russia
Ice hockey people from Moscow
Rocket Richard Trophy winners
Russian ice hockey right wingers
Russian people of Swiss descent
Soviet expatriate ice hockey players
Soviet expatriates in Canada
Soviet ice hockey right wingers
Soviet people of Swiss descent
Vancouver Canucks draft picks
Vancouver Canucks players
Olympic medalists in ice hockey
Medalists at the 2002 Winter Olympics
Medalists at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Pavel
Russian State University of Physical Education, Sport, Youth and Tourism alumni
Competitors at the 1990 Goodwill Games | true | [
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"The IEEE Corporate Innovation Recognition was established by the IEEE Board of Directors in 1985. This award is presented for outstanding and exemplary contributions by an industrial entity, governmental, or academic organization, or other corporate body.\n\nRecipients of this award will receive a certificate and crystal sculpture.\n\nRecipients \nSource\n\nReferences\n\nCorporate Innovation Recognition\nIEEE awards\nAwards established in 1985\n1985 establishments in the United States"
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| C_32732a22d04542398a2a0695a7ea171d_1 | What was he doing in 1991? | 5 | What was Pavel Bure doing in 1991? | Pavel Bure | At age 16, Bure began his professional hockey career playing for CSKA Moscow. He was invited to the senior club's training camp for the 1987-88 season. Although he was deemed too young, and not yet ready, for the Soviet League, Bure earned minimal playing time filling in for absent regulars. He made his debut in September 1987, and played five games for the senior team, scoring his only goal in his first game. Bure joined the club full-time in 1988-89 and amassed 17 goals, a Soviet League record for rookies. The record would last for 18 years until Alexei Cherepanov scored 18 goals in 2006-07. Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (they repeated as European champions the following year). As a member CSKA, Bure joined a lineup that featured several future NHL players, including linemates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, as well as Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladimir Konstantinov. The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, the K-L-M combination of Vladimir Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. The trio was short-lived, as Mogilny defected to play for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, and Fedorov joined the Detroit Red Wings the following year. In his third and final season with the Red Army, Bure tied for the lead in team-scoring with Valeri Kamensky, tallying 46 points. His 35 goals was second in the league, one goal behind Ramil Yuldashev of Sokil Kyiv. Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup. CANNOTANSWER | Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup. | Pavel Vladimirovich Bure (, ; born March 31, 1971) is a Russian former professional ice hockey player who played the right wing position. Nicknamed "the Russian Rocket" for his speed, Bure played for 12 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Vancouver Canucks, the Florida Panthers and the New York Rangers. Trained in the Soviet Union, he played three seasons with the Central Red Army team before his NHL career.
Selected 113th overall in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft by Vancouver, he began his NHL career in the 1991–92 season, and won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league's best rookie before leading the NHL in goal-scoring in 1993-94 and helping the Canucks to the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals. After seven seasons the Canucks traded Bure to the Panthers, where he won back-to-back Rocket Richard Trophies as the league's leading goal-scorer. Bure struggled with knee injuries throughout his career, resulting in his retirement in 2005 as a member of the Rangers, although he had not played since 2003. He averaged better than a point per game in his NHL career (779 points with 437 goals in 702 NHL games) and is fourth all-time in goals per game. After six years of eligibility, Bure was elected into the Hockey Hall of Fame in June 2012. In 2017, an NHL panel named Bure one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in history.
Internationally, Bure competed for the Soviet Union and Russia. As a member of the Soviet Union, he won two silver medals and a gold in three World Junior Championships, followed by a gold and a silver medal in the 1990 and 1991 World Championships, respectively. After the Soviet Union was dissolved in 1991, Bure competed for Russia in two Winter Olympics, claiming silver at the 1998 Games in Nagano as team captain, and bronze at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City. Following Bure's retirement in 2005, he was named the general manager for Russia's national team at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. Bure was later recognized for his international career as a 2012 inductee in the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame.
Early life
Bure was born in Moscow in 1971 to Vladimir and Tatiana Bure. Vladimir Bure, a Russian swimming legend, had dreams of Pavel becoming a professional swimmer, but he aspired to play hockey at an early age. He attended his first tryout with the CSKA Moscow hockey school at the age of six, despite his limited skating ability. Until that point, Bure had only played ball hockey on the streets. After Bure failed to impress in his first tryout, his father told him that if he did not show significant improvement within two months, he would withdraw him from the hockey school. By age 11, he was named the best forward in his league. Around that time, in July 1982, Bure was selected as one of three young Russian players to practice with Wayne Gretzky and Soviet national goaltender Vladislav Tretiak in a taped television special.
At age 12, his parents separated, and he remained with his mother. By the time he was 14 years old, he was named to the Central Red Army's junior team. In 1991, he joined his father and brother, Valeri in moving to North America as he embarked on a National Hockey League (NHL) career with the Vancouver Canucks. His mother arrived two months later. They settled initially in Los Angeles where Vladimir continued to train and coach both Valeri and Pavel in hockey and physical conditioning. However both became estranged from their father, along with his second wife and their half-sister Katya, by 1998. Neither brother has explained a reason for the split.
In December 1986, he embarked on a tour of Canada with the Soviet national midget team from Ottawa to Vancouver. Nearly five years before Bure made his NHL debut with the Vancouver Canucks in 1991 at the Pacific Coliseum, he played his first game at his future home rink as part of the tour. Bure also earned another opportunity to meet Gretzky, as well as defenseman Paul Coffey, when his team stopped in Edmonton to play at the Northlands Coliseum.
Playing career
CSKA Moscow (1987–1991)
At age 16, Bure began his professional hockey career playing for CSKA Moscow. He was invited to the senior club's training camp for the 1987–88 season. Although he was deemed too young, and not yet ready, for the Soviet League, Bure earned minimal playing time filling in for absent regulars. He made his debut in September 1987, and played five games for the senior team, scoring his only goal in his first game.
Bure joined the club full-time in 1988–89 and amassed 17 goals, a Soviet League record for rookies. The record would last for 18 years until Alexei Cherepanov scored 18 goals in 2006–07. Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (they repeated as European champions the following year).
As a member CSKA, Bure joined a lineup that featured several future NHL players, including linemates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, as well as Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladimir Konstantinov. The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, the K-L-M combination of Vladimir Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. The trio was short-lived, as Mogilny defected to play for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, and Fedorov joined the Detroit Red Wings the following year.
In his third and final season with the Red Army, Bure tied for the lead in team-scoring with Valeri Kamensky, tallying 46 points. His 35 goals was second in the league, one goal behind Ramil Yuldashev of Sokil Kyiv. Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup.
Transfer to the NHL (1989–1991)
Prior to the 1989 NHL Entry Draft, William Houston of The Globe and Mail wrote, "The best of the group is Soviet star winger Pavel Bure, a spectacular player with outstanding speed. He is compared to Vladimir Krutov and also the late Soviet superstar of the 1970s, Valeri Kharlamov." NHL organizations were afraid he would not leave the Soviet Union to play in the NHL thus deterring teams from selecting him early, although scouts and analysts believed he could have been selected as high as the second round had he defected. Many analysts compared him to Valeri Kharlamov. Edmonton Oilers' scout Barry Fraser commented, "From what I've seen of him, Bure can play on any team in the NHL right now... he's quick, real quick, small and very exciting. He may be the top player in this year's draft, but because he is from the Soviet Union, we don't analyze him the same way as a kid from the West... I don't expect him to go really early because it is still too much of a gamble to hope he will defect."
Bure was selected 113th overall in the sixth round Draft by the Vancouver Canucks, following his rookie season with CSKA Moscow. The pick was controversial, as the Canucks had chosen him seemingly a year ahead of his eligible draft season. At the age of 18, he was available to be chosen in the first three rounds of the draft, but to be selected any later, he would have needed to play at least two seasons—with a minimum of 11 games per season—for his elite-level Soviet club, the Central Red Army. While most teams believed he was ineligible, the Canucks' head scout at the time, Mike Penny, discovered Bure had played in additional exhibition and international games to make him an eligible late-round draft choice a year early. Jack Button, the Washington Capitals' director of player personnel, admitted "everybody would have taken him earlier. We assumed he was not eligible... you've got to give the Canucks credit for doing their homework."
Several other teams either had similar knowledge or had pursued Bure but there was confusion as to the legitimacy of the extra games. The Detroit Red Wings had asked league vice president Gil Stein about Bure's availability before their fifth-round pick but were told he was not eligible. They later decided to select him with their sixth-round pick, 116th overall, and settle his eligibility later. The Canucks selected Bure three picks ahead of Detroit's turn. Meanwhile, Winnipeg Jets general manager Mike Smith, claimed he made an offer to the Soviet Ice Hockey Federation that would involve three years of transfer payments before Bure would be allowed to join the Jets; however Smith did not have any plans to draft Bure in 1989 as he believed he was ineligible.
Canucks' general manager Pat Quinn originally intended to draft Bure in the eighth round but after receiving word the Oilers had similar intentions selected him in the sixth. Following the announcement of Bure's draft, several other team representatives reportedly stormed the Met Center stage in Minnesota, where the draft was being held. Formal complaints were filed resulting in an investigation into the selection. After the pick was deemed illegal by league president John Ziegler in a press release on May 17, 1990, the Canucks appealed the decision, procuring game sheets proving Bure's participation in the additional games with the help of recent Soviet acquisition Igor Larionov. It was not until the eve of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft, in which Bure would have been re-entered that the draft choice was upheld. Although Larionov and Fetisov had successfully spearheaded the rebellion against Soviet ice hockey officials in the late 1980s that led to Soviet players joining the NHL, Bure's transfer to the Canucks was met with resistance, and the Soviet authorities forbade the Canucks to contact Bure personally. During the 1991 World Junior Championships, he said in an interview that he was hesitant to defect for fears the Soviets would make things difficult for his younger brother Valeri Bure, who was 15 at the time and playing in the junior league.
Bure left Moscow with his father and brother on September 6, 1991, staying temporarily in Los Angeles. His mother arrived shortly afterward. The Canucks began negotiating a contract with Bure, but before one could be finalized, the issue of his existing contract with the Central Red Army had to be settled. The Canucks management and officials from the Soviet Ice Hockey Federation met in late-October 1991 in a Detroit court, where they bartered for a cash settlement. After the Canucks offered US$200,000, Bure stood up in the courtroom to offer an additional $50,000, bringing the total to $250,000. The Soviet officials accepted, and Canucks management paid the full $250,000. Bure signed a four-year contract worth a reported $2.7 million with an $800,000 signing bonus. The deal made Bure the Canucks' second highest paid player behind team captain Trevor Linden.
Vancouver Canucks (1991–1999)
Due to the court proceedings, Bure's debut with the Canucks was delayed until a month into the 1991–92 season. Garnering much attention in Vancouver, his first practice with the club on November 3, 1991, was attended by approximately 2,000 fans. He played his first game for the Canucks on November 5, 1991, in a 2–2 tie against the Winnipeg Jets. Despite not scoring a point, Bure showcased his talent and speed with several end-to-end rushes, carrying the puck past several defenders from near his defensive zone to the opposing net. Following the game, Vancouver Sun columnist Iain MacIntyre compared him to a rocket, calling him "the fastest Soviet creation since Sputnik". MacIntyre's comments are credited for laying the groundwork for Bure's moniker as the "Russian Rocket," which echoed the nickname of Maurice "Rocket" Richard, who played for the Montreal Canadiens in the 1950s. In his third game, Bure recorded his first point, an assist against the New York Islanders on November 10. He scored his first two NHL goals in the next game, on November 12, against Daniel Berthiaume of the Los Angeles Kings. He finished with 34 goals and 60 points in 65 games that season, including 22 goals in his final 23 games. In the last game of the regular season, Bure scored a goal to tie Ivan Hlinka's 1981–82 team mark for most points by a rookie.
As the Canucks opened the 1992 playoffs against the Winnipeg Jets, Bure recorded his first NHL hat trick in game six to help force a seventh and deciding game. Vancouver won the series to advance to the second round, but were eliminated by the Edmonton Oilers. Bure finished his first Stanley Cup playoffs with six goals and 10 points in 13 games. At the end of the season, he was awarded the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year. His 60 points were second among first-year players to Tony Amonte's 69 points with the Rangers, although Bure played in 14 fewer games. When accepting the award, Bure thanked Canucks linemate Igor Larionov for his guidance. On arriving in Vancouver, his former Red Army teammate took him into his home for two weeks before Bure moved into his own apartment; the two also roomed together on the road. Bure's Calder Trophy, along with head coach Pat Quinn's Jack Adams Award as the league's top coach, marked the first major individual NHL awards in Canucks' team history. However, despite being named the league's top rookie, Bure was left off the NHL All-Rookie Team, making him the only Calder recipient not to be named to the lineup. This was because he split his time playing both left and right wing. When it came to voting for the players, Bure had the most total votes, but not enough at either position to claim a spot.
Bure improved on his rookie season in 1992–93 with the first of two consecutive 60-goal seasons. In the third game of the season, he scored a career-high four goals against the Winnipeg Jets. His three goals and one assist in the second period set a pair of Canucks' records for most goals and points in a period, in addition to the team mark for most goals overall in a game (for which he is tied with several players). Furthermore, Bure scored two of his goals on the penalty kill to set a fourth team record for most short-handed goals in one contest. He appeared in his first NHL All-Star Game in 1993, being named to the Clarence Campbell Conference Team as the lone Canucks' representative, and scored two goals. Shortly after the All-Star break, Bure established a new franchise record for goals in a season during a 5–1 win over the Quebec Nordiques, surpassing Tony Tanti's 45-goal mark. The next month, on March 1, he reached the 50-goal mark for the first time in his career, scoring against Grant Fuhr of the Buffalo Sabres in a neutral-site game in Hamilton, Ontario. He also surpassed Patrik Sundström's franchise record of 91 points. Bure finished the season with 110 points in 83 games, and became the first Canuck named to the NHL First All-Star Team. His 110 points stood as the team record until it was broken by Henrik Sedin's 112 points in 2009–10.
A groin injury early in the 1993-94 season limited Bure's production for the first half of the season. Even so, he improved in the second half, and led the league in goal-scoring by repeating his 60-goal feat of the previous season. In doing so, he became the eighth player in NHL history to record back-to-back 60-goal seasons. He concluded the season with a streak of 49 goals and 78 points in his final 51 games, and earned player of the month honours in March 1994 after scoring 19 goals and 30 points in 16 games. His March scoring burst was just one point shy of Stan Smyl's 31-point March in 1983 for the most productive month by a Canucks player. Bure's 154 NHL goals at that point in his career put him behind only Wayne Gretzky and Mike Bossy for the most in any NHL player's first three seasons. He recorded 49 goals in the club's final 51 games, and contributed to 46.45% of his team's goals in the final 47 games of the season to carry the Canucks into the 1994 postseason.
Entering the 1994 Stanley Cup Playoffs as the seventh seed, the Canucks went on a run to the Stanley Cup Finals. In the seventh game of the opening-round series against the Calgary Flames, Bure scored one of the most significant and well-known goals in Canucks' history. After receiving a breakaway pass from defenceman Jeff Brown, he deked and scored on Flames' goalie Mike Vernon in the second overtime to win the series. In game two of the second round against the Dallas Stars, Bure knocked enforcer Shane Churla to the ice with an elbow to the jaw. He also scored two goals in the game to help Vancouver to a 3–0 win. Although Bure was not initially penalized for the play, he was later fined $500 by the league. He recorded six goals and eight points in five games against the Dallas Stars, and against the Toronto Maple Leafs the following round scored four goals and six points in five games.
After defeating Dallas in five games, the Canucks eliminated the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Campbell Conference Finals to meet the New York Rangers in the Finals, where the Canucks lost in seven games. Bure finished with a team-high 16 goals and 31 points in 24 games, second in playoff scoring only to Conn Smythe Trophy winner Brian Leetch. His points total also remained the highest by any Russian player until Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins recorded 36 in 2009.
In the next off-season, the Canucks announced they had re-signed Bure to a five-year, $24.5 million contract on June 16. The deal was reported to have been signed before game three of the Stanley Cup Finals against New York. It also included Bure's marketing rights and put his father, Vladimir, on the team payroll as a fitness and marketing consultant. The average annual salary of $4.9 million made Bure the league's third highest-paid player, behind Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux. In fact, Bure and the Canucks had entered into contract negotiations at the beginning of the 1993–94 season, although two years remained in his original deal. Neither side could come to an initial agreement; one of the major factors was the Canucks' demands for the contract to be in Canadian dollars on account of the American exchange rate. Numerous accusations were made in the media during the Canucks' playoff run that Bure threatened not to play if a contract could not be agreed upon. A Toronto Star article, published before the first game of the Finals on May 31, 1994, claimed Bure had signed a five-year, $30 million contract that, if the Canucks had not agreed to, would have seen him pull out of game five of the Conference Finals against the Maple Leafs. The article was followed by two additional claims in the following two days in the Vancouver-based newspaper The Province and Toronto Sun. The Toronto Sun held the contract was a five-year, $22.5 million deal, and that it was signed before either game six or seven of the opening round against the Flames after Bure's agent, Ron Salcer, told general manager Quinn that Bure would not play if the deal was not made. As the story continued well into the next season, Pat Quinn appeared in a segment on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)'s Hockey Night in Canada on March 27, 1995, publicly denying the claims.
Due to the 1994–95 NHL lockout, Bure spent single-game stints with Spartak Moscow of the Russian Super League and EV Landshut of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). He joined a team of Russian NHL players organized by Slava Fetisov that returned to Russia to play a five-game charity tour against local clubs. On the team, Bure reunited with former Central Red Army linemates Mogilny and Fedorov. When the NHL Players Association (NHLPA) and owners came to an agreement on January 12, 1995, NHL play was set to resume. However, there were unresolved contract issues, as Salcer claimed the Canucks promised they would pay Bure's full salary, despite the lockout, which cancelled nearly half of the 1994–95 season. Bure held out for four days as a result (the amount claimed to be owing was $1.7 million), before the two sides reached an agreement. The Canucks would put the disputed amount in escrow and would continue discussions. He soon reported to Vancouver and went on to tally 43 points in 44 games of the shortened season. In the 1995 playoffs, Bure set franchise records for most goals and points in a series with seven and 12 respectively in a seven-game series victory against the St. Louis Blues (Mikael Samuelsson tied Bure's goal-scoring record in 2010 against the Los Angeles Kings). The Canucks, however, failed to defend their Clarence Campbell Conference championship title, being swept by the Chicago Blackhawks in the second round. The Canucks' elimination in 1995 marked the last time Bure appeared in the post-season with the club. He finished with a career playoff total of 66 points with the Canucks, including 34 goals, which remained the highest club total until Linden tied the mark in 2007.
At the start of the 1995–96 season, Bure changed his jersey number from 10 to 96. The switch commemorated September 6, 1991, the day on which he first landed in North America from Moscow—9th month, 6th day. He had originally asked to wear the number when he first joined the Canucks, but was not permitted to do so by head coach Pat Quinn, who did not approve of high jersey numbers. After the Canucks traded with the Buffalo Sabres for Alexander Mogilny, reuniting the two Russian players, the jersey number was deemed acceptable because Mogilny had used number 89 since defecting to North America in 1989.
Early in the season, Bure sustained the first of several serious knee injuries during his career. On November 9, 1995, in a game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Bure was grabbed around the head by defenseman Steve Smith while approaching the end boards. Falling to the ice, he caught his skate against the boards, tearing the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee. Requiring arthroscopic surgery, in which tendon was removed from his hamstring to repair the ACL, he was sidelined for the remainder of the season.
Bure returned to the Canucks' lineup with his knee fully recovered in the 1996–97 season. In the season opener against the Flames on October 5, 1996, Bure was pushed into the boards head-first. He continued to play after the hit, but experienced headaches in the following weeks. As Bure's play dropped early in the season, the media speculated that he was playing injured. After he went eight games without a goal, head coach Tom Renney claimed Bure was not playing with a head injury, but instead had injured his shoulder in a game against the New York Rangers on November 23. Nevertheless, he continued to play. With under a month left in the season, he received another hit, during a game against the Avalanche on March 3, 1997. Bure left the game and did not return for the remainder of the season. Afterwards, he admitted he was playing with a neck injury, having sustained whiplash from the first game against Calgary, but did not want to take himself out of the lineup after missing 62 games the previous season. With Bure's reduced playing capacity, he managed 55 points in 63 games, well below his usual pace, and the Canucks missed the playoffs for the first time since he joined the team. In a 2012 interview, Bure admitted having sustained a head injury on the initial hit against Calgary and that "he should not have played through it".
In the off-season, the Canucks made another significant move, signing Rangers' captain Mark Messier during free agency on July 26, 1997. Despite finally having a high-profile centre to play with, media reports soon appeared claiming that Bure was asking to be traded. The Canucks opened the season with two games against the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in Tokyo – an event organized by the league to market hockey for the upcoming 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. After two injury-plagued seasons with the number 96 on his jersey, Bure switched back to his familiar number 10, explaining: "I'm not superstitious, but the last two seasons have been bad memories." Although the Canucks missed the playoffs for the second straight year, he returned to his previous form in 1997–98, scoring 51 goals for his first 50-goal season since 1993–94, and third overall. Bure later recalled that with the Canucks out of playoff contention with a handful of games left, head coach Mike Keenan told him he could play as much as he wanted to reach the milestone. Scoring 50 goals was also implicit in a contract bonus for Bure. With an additional 39 assists, his 90 points ranked him third in the NHL, behind Peter Forsberg and Jaromír Jágr.
Following the 1997–98 season, Bure told newly appointed general manager Brian Burke that he would not play for the Canucks again, despite still having a year left in his contract worth $8 million. He then went public with the declaration, stating he intended to leave the club for "personal reasons". Bure did not report to the club the following season. Instead, he returned to his hometown Moscow to practise with his former Central Red Army club. During this time, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko offered Bure a tax-free $4 million salary to play in Belarus, which he turned down.
Florida Panthers (1999–2002)
Bure held out well into the 1998–99 season until he was traded on January 17, 1999, to the Florida Panthers, with Bret Hedican, Brad Ference, and Vancouver's third-round choice in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft (Robert Fried) for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes, and Florida's first-round choice in the 2000 draft (Nathan Smith). Talks between Burke and Bryan Murray, general manager of the Panthers, had begun in late-December. After the trade was completed, Bure explained that he felt alienated from Canucks' management after arriving in North America having defected from Russia. He claimed he had been in Los Angeles for two weeks before any Canucks' representative came to see him, as well as several bitter contract negotiations—particularly those of 1994. He also claimed that someone within the Canucks' management planted the constant allegations that he threatened not to play during the 1994 playoff run. Bure's agent at the time, Ron Salcer, also believed the story.
Meeting the Panthers in New York for a game against the Islanders, Bure debuted with his new club on January 20, 1999. He played on an all-Russian line with Viktor Kozlov and Oleg Kvasha and scored two goals. In his first six games with the club, Bure scored eight goals and three assists for eleven points. Less than a month into his Panthers debut, he reinjured his knee, keeping him out for three weeks. Despite the injury, the Panthers signed him to a five-year, $47.5 million contract (with an option for a sixth year at $10.5 million), the most lucrative in team history. Another injury ended Bure's season after just 11 games with Florida, though he scored 13 goals and three assists in that time.
In 1999–2000, his first full season as a Panther, Bure led the league in goal-scoring to capture his first of two consecutive Rocket Richard Trophies with a 58-goal season. It marked the second time Bure led the league in goal-scoring, but his first Rocket Richard Trophy as the award had been introduced the previous season. Combined with 36 assists, his 94 points came within two of Art Ross Trophy winner Jaromír Jágr as the league's leading point-scorer. His 58 goals and 94 points both set franchise records. He helped Florida to a fifth-place finish in the Eastern Conference to earn their first post-season berth in three seasons, though they were swept by the eventual Stanley Cup champions, the New Jersey Devils. Bure finished third for the Hart Memorial Trophy winner behind Chris Pronger and Jágr. He was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team for the first time.
Bure was set to make his much-anticipated return to Vancouver to play the Canucks on November 5, 1999, but was kept out of the lineup due to a broken finger. A prior groin injury had also forced him out of a Panther's home game against the Canucks earlier in the season. During the season, he was named to the 2000 NHL All-Star Game in Toronto, where he recorded an assist and the eleventh hat trick in the history of the All-Star Game. Of Bure's three goals, two were assisted by his brother Valeri, who played on the same line with him, along with his Panthers linemate, Viktor Kozlov. Helping lead the World team to a 9–4 victory over North America, Bure was named the All-Star Game MVP.
Bure repeated as league scoring champion in 2000–01 with 59 goals, reaching the 50-goal plateau for the fifth and final time in his career, as well as bettering his franchise single-season, goal-scoring record. However, the Panthers missed the playoffs, finishing 12th place in the East. Bure set a league record that season by scoring 29.5% of his team's total goals over the course of the season. He was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team, behind Jágr in the right wing position for the second consecutive year.
Before the 2001–02 season, the Panthers acquired Valeri Bure from the Calgary Flames in a trade, putting the brothers on the same team for the first time. However, Bure suffered a setback in the pre-season re-injuring his groin. Bure recalled having "good relations" with Panthers' management, who often consulted with him on team matters, including the acquisition of his brother. At the trading deadline, Bure was traded to the New York Rangers. During his 56 games for the Panthers that season, he led the team in scoring for the third consecutive season with 49 points.
New York Rangers (2002–2003)
The New York Rangers acquired Bure on March 18, 2002, along with Florida's second-round pick in the 2002 draft (Lee Falardeau) for Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak, as well as the Rangers' first and second-round choices in the 2002 draft (Petr Tatíček and Rob Globke, respectively) and a fourth-round choice in the 2003 draft. The Rangers had shown interest in Bure when he requested a trade from the Canucks in 1997. After losing their initial bid for Bure, Wayne Gretzky, who retired the same season Bure was traded to Florida, announced prior to the 1999–2000 season he would have extended his career had the Rangers been able to pull off the trade. Bure made his Rangers debut against the Vancouver Canucks the day after his trade on March 19, scoring a goal against his former team. He scored 12 goals and 20 points in 12 games after being traded, bettering his pace with Florida that season. Between the two teams, he finished the season with 34 goals and 69 points.
Bure suffered another knee injury in the 2002–03 pre-season; combined with a case of strep throat, he missed the first three games of the regular season. After returning to play, he had 14 goals and 21 points in his first 27 games, including two goals and an assist in his first game back, before a knee-on-knee collision in December forced him back out. After undergoing surgery 10 days later, it was revealed that there was no damage to the ACL as previously feared, but instead a tear to the meniscus in his left knee, which was repaired. Bure returned that season to appear in 39 games, managing 19 goals and 30 points.
Even after two operations, Bure did not play in 2003–04 due to the lingering effects of the knee injury. He failed a pre-season physical and was declared medically unable to play. Left with his fully insured $10 million salary (80 percent of which would be reimbursed to the team), the Rangers left him unprotected in the NHL's Waiver Draft, where he was unclaimed.
Retirement
Bure remained inactive for another season due to the 2004–05 NHL lockout. After the NHL resumed play for the 2005–06 season, he announced his retirement from professional hockey at a press conference in Moscow on November 1, 2005, citing complications with his chronic knee injuries. In an interview Bure explained that he did not want to extend his playing career without being able to play at an elite level.
Because Bure had been inactive since the 2002–03 season, he was eligible for selection into the Hockey Hall of Fame (which requires players to wait three years after their last game) immediately following his retirement. After being passed for induction in his first six years of eligibility, Bure was voted in on June 27, 2012, alongside Joe Sakic, Adam Oates and Mats Sundin. He became the fifth Soviet or Russian player (after Vladislav Tretiak, Viacheslav Fetisov, Valeri Kharlamov and Igor Larionov) and the first player to spend the majority of his career with the Canucks to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
His non-selection in previous years was widely debated in the media. Bure was often compared with Cam Neely, a player who also waited six years for induction; he recorded similar goals-per-game numbers in a career that was also shortened to 700-plus games. It had been often rumoured that Pat Quinn, Bure's former head coach and general manager in Vancouver, who became co-chairman of the Hockey Hall of Fame's selection committee, opposed Bure's induction. However, in a conference call following his selection, Quinn was among the most prominent figures he thanked. Quinn criticized the Canucks organization for not yet retiring Bure's jersey.
In his retirement, he remained publicly steadfast in his dissatisfaction with the way he was treated by the Canucks organization during his playing career. While Bure admitted to "a lot of disagreements with the Canucks management," he maintained that he "never had any problems with the Canucks fans". The Canucks retired Bure's 10 jersey on November 2, 2013. The day before the Canucks announced they would rename the team's Most Exciting Player Award to the Pavel Bure Most Exciting Player Award in his honor. Bure renounced his US citizenship in 2016.
International career
Junior
Prior to joining the NHL in 1991, Bure competed for the Soviet Union in several junior, international tournaments. The first was the 1988 Quebec Esso Cup, an under-17 tournament (now known as the World U-17 Hockey Challenge) held in Quebec City, where he earned a gold medal. That same year, he competed in his first of two consecutive European Junior Championships, winning a bronze medal.
The following year, Bure debuted at the world under-20 level as a 17-year-old at the 1989 World Junior Championships in Anchorage, Alaska. The top line of CSKA Moscow teammates Bure, Alexander Mogilny and Sergei Fedorov led the Soviet Union to a gold medal. Bure's eight goals tied him for the tournament lead with Jeremy Roenick of the United States; he led the Soviet team with 14 points. He was named to the Tournament All-Star Team, and earned Best Forward honours. He again participated in the 1989 European Junior Championship, helping the Soviet Union win the gold medal.
Bure competed in his second World Juniors in 1990, winning a silver medal in Helsinki, Finland, and scoring seven goals in seven games. Later that year, he made his senior debut with the Soviet national team as a 19-year-old at the 1990 World Championships in Switzerland. He scored two goals and four assists in ten games to help the Soviets to a gold medal finish. The Soviet team also won silver in the European Championship, which was decided from games played among the European teams at the tournament. Several months later, in July, Bure took part in his third international tournament of the year at the 1990 Goodwill Games in Seattle. Bure scored four goals and an assist in five games, and the Soviets won the gold medal.
In 1991, Bure appeared in his third and final World Junior Championships. Bure finished the tournament as the leading scorer with 12 goals in 7 games and the Soviets won the silver medal. He finished his three-year World Junior career with a tournament-record 27 goals, to go with 39 points, in 21 games. Bure later competed in the 1991 World Championships, his second international appearance of the year. He improved on his previous year's total with 11 points in 11 games, tied for the team lead with Valeri Kamensky, and helped the Soviets to a bronze medal finish. Bure was named to the tournament's Second All-Star Team. The 1991 team marked the last World Championships for the USSR, as the country was dissolved later that year.
Senior
Bure was set to represent the Soviet Union at the 1991 Canada Cup, however after turning down a three-year contract with his Russian club, CSKA Moscow, he was left off the final roster.
Bure played his first international tournament for Russia in preliminary games for the inaugural 1996 World Cup (the successor tournament to the Canada Cup). Bure had recently recovered from reconstructive surgery to his right knee, and had begun practicing with the Russian national team where he was reunited on a line with Fedorov and Mogilny, the first and only time the three of them would play together at the senior level; the line was considered "perhaps the best forward line on earth" at the time. However Bure bruised a kidney in one of the games and was forced to miss the main tournament.
As with the 1991 Canada Cup, controversy ensued when Bure refused to sign a petition organized by national team veteran Viacheslav Fetisov. With the Russian Ice Hockey Federation dealing with internal corruption, the petition called for the ouster of a few select Russian ice hockey officials. In response, Bure explained, "I do not sign petitions. I believe I should work – play hockey. Petitions to the federation or to Olympic committees do not interest me."
Two years later, Bure made his Olympic debut with Russia at the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano. He helped his team to advance to the gold medal game after a five-goal game in Russia's 7–4 semifinal win against Finland. The Russians lost the gold medal game to the Czech Republic, ending with silver. Bure finished with a tournament-high nine goals to be named the top forward, and though he recorded no assists, placed third in point-scoring with nine points in six games.
Bure's next international tournament was the 2000 World Championships, held in Saint Petersburg. The Russians had a disappointing tournament and finished eleventh. In six games, Bure managed four goals and an assist. Two years later, Bure made his second Olympic appearance at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City, playing with a fractured hand. Bure finished his final international tournament as a player with two goals and an assist in six games while Russia won the bronze medal.
On the announcement of his retirement in 2005, Bure was named Russia's Olympic general manager, succeeding Viacheslav Fetisov. He promised to put an end to the Russian Hockey Federation's history of internal conflict and player boycotts, saying, "You won't see such a mess with the national team that you've seen here before," and that "You won't see grouchy players here anymore. Only those who really want to play for Russia will be called into the team." As general manager, Bure chose the team for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. The Russians failed to win a medal, losing to the Czech Republic in the bronze medal match. Leading up to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, former Soviet national goaltender Vladislav Tretiak was named Bure's successor as Olympic general manager.
In December 2011, Bure was announced as one of the 2012 inductees into the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame. He was named alongside American Phil Housley, Finn Raimo Helminen and Czechoslovak Milan Nový in the annual class. The players were inducted in a ceremony in May 2012.
Playing style
Bure's playing style reflected the speed, skill and puck possession that was prominent in Soviet Union hockey programs. The most prevalent aspects of his game were his skating speed, agility, and acceleration, which earned him his nickname the "Russian Rocket". He was able to use his quickness to separate himself from defenders, to retrieve pucks before the opposition could in all zones of the ice, and to skate the length of the ice on many occasions. In a 1993 poll of NHL coaches conducted by hockey writer Bob McKenzie, Bure was named the league's best skater with eight of twenty-one votes, twice as many votes as any other player. One coach noted: "Bure has the best combination of speed, agility and balance ... He can also use change of speed better than anybody in the league right now."
During Bure's rehabilitation period, following his first major knee injury in 1995, Canucks' conditioning coach Peter Twist noticed that his skating style was distinct in comparison to typical North American players. He explained: "Most players skate on their inside edge and push off at a 45-degree angle, but Bure starts on his outer edge and rolls over to his inside edge and pushes back straighter on his stride ... he gets more power and force in his stride to get up to top speed quicker." his skating was also complemented by his ability to deke out defenders and goaltenders at top speeds, making him capable of routinely starting end-to-end rushes. However, several knee injuries, and the resulting reconstructive surgeries, compromised the speed that defined Bure's game, ultimately leading to his retirement.
Early in Bure's career, he was noted for playing a strong two-way game. Having joined Pat Quinn's defensive-minded Canucks in 1991, Bure's transition to the NHL was cited as being easier than that of his countryman, Igor Larionov, due to his quick adjustment to the team's defensive demands. Regarding Bure's first NHL game against the Winnipeg Jets, reporter Mike Beamish explained that "hockey fans marvelled at his offensive thrusts, but hockey people were taken by a singular display of jet-powered defensive diligence. On one play, after the Canucks were caught deep in the Winnipeg zone, the Russian winger raced back and almost single-handedly foiled a two-on-one Jets' rush, making up a half-rink disadvantage." Bure was used on the team's penalty kill for his entire tenure with the Canucks, and was proficient at generating shorthanded chances, pressuring the opposition with his quickness and positioning in the defensive zone. During the 1992 Stanley Cup playoffs, commentator and ex-NHL coach Harry Neale commented, "I like the effort he gives it when he doesn't have the puck. We all know what he can do when he thinks he can score, but he's killing penalties, he's checking, doing a lot of things." Bure tied for second-place on Bob McKenzie's 1993 coaches poll for the NHL's best penalty killer. He was also voted the league's second-best stickhandler that season and garnered recognition as one of the smartest players in the NHL.
Sports journalists Damien Cox and Stephen Brunt wrote about Bure during the 1994 Stanley Cup playoffs that he was a "two-way dynamo," accounting for "several bodychecks he handed out on the night" and for his defensive abilities as he stayed on the ice in the last minutes of a one-goal playoff match against the Toronto Maple Leafs. They spoke highly of his creativity as well, recognizing him as "someone who sees in his game a world of possibilities that just never occur to others," praising his "sheer elegance and imagination" and characterizing his hockey sense as "ho-hum brilliance from the most explosive player in the sport". Brunt called him "a nonpareil, a van Gogh, a Picasso, a Charlie Parker". During the 1993-94 season, Bure demonstrated his strong playmaking abilities, helping linemate and friend Gino Odjick score a career-high 16 goals in a single season, more than twice the number of goals Odjick would score in any other year separated from Bure, and doubling his career goal totals up to that point in his career. According to teammate Cliff Ronning in 1994, "we play a much sounder game defensively when Pavel's flying, as he was in the first period". Former Canuck teammate Jyrki Lumme spoke of Bure as a player and teammate, "That guy does something spectacular every time ... it's frustrating to go against him in practice because he's all over the place. He makes everybody on our team better."
During his time with the Canucks, Bure won the team's Most Exciting Player Award, as voted by the fans, a record five times (tied with Tony Tanti), from 1992 to 1995, and once more in 1998. Trevor Linden, who had played with Bure for seven seasons, said following Bure's retirement, "I don't know if I've ever seen or played with a player that's brought people out of their seats like that." During the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals, Rangers coach Mike Keenan, who later coached Bure for one-and-a-half seasons in Vancouver, called him "perhaps the most electrifying forward in the league". The Canucks renamed the award the Pavel Bure Most Exciting Player Award in his honour in 2013.
Bure has been described as a pure goal scorer and is statistically among the top players in NHL history in that regard. In addition to having reached the 50-goal mark in his career five times, and the 60-goal mark twice, his .623 goals per game average is third among the top 100 goal scorers in NHL history, behind Mike Bossy and Mario Lemieux. Michael Farber of the Montreal Gazette described Bure as "the most dangerous scorer in the National Hockey League with the continued absence of Mario Lemieux because Bure can beat a defence with his speed, his strength, his mind. Bure isn't a scorer as much as he is a permanent late-night television guest; he is to highlight packages what Terri Garr is to Letterman."
Personal life
Family
Bure comes from an athletic family; his father Vladimir, who is of Swiss descent (his side of the family originated from Furna, Switzerland), was an Olympic swimmer who competed for the Soviet Union in the 1968, 1972, and 1976 Olympic Games, where he won four medals. Bure retained his father as his personal trainer well into his playing career, before severing ties with him in 1997. Bure's paternal grandfather, Valeri Bure, played goalkeeper for the national water polo team. Both Pavel and his younger brother Valeri became estranged from their father and his second wife, Julia, along with their half-sister Katya, by 1998. Neither brother has explained a reason for the split.
Named after their grandfather, Bure's younger brother, Valeri, was also a hockey player, spending 10 years in the NHL. The two siblings played with each other briefly as members of the Florida Panthers, after Valeri was traded there in 2001, and played together at the 1998 and 2002 Winter Olympics.
The Bure family made precious watches for the Russian tsars from 1815 until 1917, and Bure was named after his great-grandfather, a watchmaker to Tsar Alexander III. As craftspersons to the imperial family, the Bures were granted noble status. After Bure sustained his first serious knee injury in 1995, he pursued the watchmaking business during his rehabilitation period in an attempt to revive the family business. Fifty replicas of the same watches his ancestors made for the Russian imperial family were made and sold at US$30,000 each. Bure presented three of the gold replicas to Russian President Boris Yeltsin, Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin and Moscow mayor Yuriy Luzhkov.
Relationships
Five days after arriving in North America from Moscow with his father and brother on September 6, 1991, (his mother Tatiana arrived two months later), Bure married an American fashion model, later revealed to be Jayme Bohn, in a civil ceremony. The marriage was allegedly set up by Bure's agents as a preventative measure against deportation in the event he and the Canucks could not come to terms with a contract. Bure derived no immigration benefit from the marriage, which was dissolved the following year. Bohn became a costume designer in the film and television industry.
After being linked to girlfriend Dahn Bryan, a model and actress, early in his NHL career, Bure shared a relationship with tennis star and fellow Russian Anna Kournikova. The two met in 1999 when she was still linked to Bure's former Russian teammate Sergei Fedorov. Bure and Kournikova were reported to have been engaged in 2000 after reporter Andrew Greven took a photo of them together in a Florida restaurant where Bure supposedly asked Kournikova to marry him. As the story made headlines in Russia, where they were both heavily followed in the media as celebrities, Bure and Kournikova both denied any engagement. Kournikova, 10 years younger than Bure, was 18 years old at the time. The following year, Kournikova and Fedorov were married in Moscow, though they soon divorced.
Bure married 23-year-old model Alina Khasanova on October 10, 2009, in Moscow, with 300 guests present. Pravda has reported, however, that the couple, who had known each other for four years, had officially married on October 10, 2008, in Miami. Together they have three children: Pavel Jr., Palina and Anastasia. Pavel Jr. was born on April 23, 2013; Palina was born on July 20, 2015. Their third child, a daughter named Anastasia, was born on 28 December 2018.
Politics
Bure is also frequently playing ice hockey with Russian president Vladimir Putin, but has denied having any political ambitions himself in an interview with a Swedish newspaper in 2019.
Legal activity
In 2002, Bure sued the Russian newspaper the eXile for publishing an article stating he broke up with Kournikova because she had two vaginas. Although the newspapers' editorial staff claimed the story was a mere joke, the court ruled in favour of Bure in the amount of 500,000 rubles (US$17,770), and ordered a retraction to be printed. Two years later, on December 27, 2004, the Russian cosmetics chain Arbat Prestige published a story in their free promotional paper that Bure had bragged about Kournikova losing her virginity to him. Shortly thereafter, on January 31, 2005, Bure sued Arbat Prestige for 300 million rubles (US$10.65 million) in a court in Moscow. He also demanded the company print a retraction and apology in a future paper. The court ruled in favour of Bure in November 2005. However, the amount was reduced from 300 million to approximately 320,000 rubles.
On October 31, 2006, nearly a year after his retirement, Bure filed another suit after being kicked off a British Airways flight by the pilot, having been mistaken for a rowdy soccer fan. Despite an apology from the airline company in June 2007, Bure took the issue to court, suing British Airways for 20 million rubles. In late-August 2007, a Russian court ruled in favour of Bure in the amount of 67,000 rubles.
Alleged Mafia connections
During Bure's playing career, much speculation surrounded Russian NHL players and their potential ties to the Russian mafia both as victims and associates. As Soviet players began defecting to the NHL, many cases of extortion began surfacing. The Russian mafia was targeting the players' families still living in Russia. Former teammate Alexander Mogilny was a victim of such an extortion attempt in 1994, while Bure was reported to have made payments totaling in the thousands of dollars to Russian extortionists in 1993. Three years later, in 1996, American sports network ESPN aired reports alleging Bure was a potential associate of the Russian mafia because of his relationship with friend and business partner Anzor Kikalishvili, known to both Russian and American police as a suspected criminal and possible Russian mob boss. Bure was revealed to hold a position as vice president in the sports company Twenty First Century Association, owned by Kikalishvili, and reportedly believed by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation to be a mafia front worth at least US$100 million in illicit funds. While Bure did not deny his business and personal relationships with Kikalishvili, he refuted reports Kikalishvili was involved in any criminal activity.
Speculation resurfaced in 1999, as Bure was included in an investigation aired by the CBC investigative news program The Fifth Estate that made several supposed associations between Soviet NHL players and the Russian mafia. An allegation arose that Bure's former CSKA teammate Viacheslav Fetisov used a company, of which he was president, to launder money for Vyacheslav Ivankov, considered the "Russian godfather" in North America. Bure's relationship with Kikalishvili continued to be questioned. Bure denied Kikalishvili's involvement in any criminal activity, dismissing the allegations as "rumours".
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Bold indicates led league
International
a does not include 1988 Quebec Esso Cup (U17)b does not include the 1990 Goodwill Games
Awards
Soviet
International
NHL
Vancouver Canucks
Records
Team
Vancouver Canucks' single-season record, most points by a rookie – 60 in 1991–92 (tied with Ivan Hlinka, 1981–82 and Elias Pettersson, 2018–19)
Vancouver Canucks' single-season record, most goals – 60 in 1992–93 and 1993–94
Vancouver Canucks' all-time playoffs record, most goals – 34 (tied with Trevor Linden)
Vancouver Canucks' all-time record, most shorthanded goals – 24
Vancouver Canucks' single-game record, most goals – four versus the Winnipeg Jets on October 12, 1992 (tied with Rosaire Paiement, Bobby Schmautz, Rick Blight, Petri Skriko, Greg Adams, Tony Tanti, Martin Gélinas, Markus Näslund and Daniel Sedin)
Florida Panthers' single-season record, most goals – 59 in 2000–01
International
World Junior Championships all-time record, most goals – 27 in 21 games (1989–1991)
Winter Olympics single-game record, most goals – five (1998; semifinal vs. Finland)
NHL
NHL record, most goals scored in proportion to team – 29.5% of the Florida Panthers' goals in 2000–01.
Transactions
June 9, 1989 – Drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in the sixth round, 113th overall, in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft.
October 31, 1991 – Signed by the Vancouver Canucks to a four-year, $3.5 million contract.
June 16, 1994 – Re-signed by the Vancouver Canucks to a five-year, $24.5 million contract.
January 17, 1999 – Traded by the Vancouver Canucks, along with Bret Hedican, Brad Ference and Vancouver's third-round draft choice (Robert Fried) in 2000, to the Florida Panthers in exchange for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes and Florida's first-round draft choice (Nathan Smith) in 2000.
February 8, 1999 – Signed by the Florida Panthers to a five-year, $47.5 million deal.
March 18, 2002 – Traded by the Florida Panthers, along with Florida's second-round draft choice in 2002 (Lee Falardeau), to the New York Rangers in exchange for Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak, the Rangers' first-round draft choice in 2002 (Eric Nystrom), the Rangers' second-round draft choice in 2002 (Rob Globke) and the Rangers fourth-round draft choice in 2003 (later traded to the Atlanta Thrashers; Atlanta selected Guillaume Desbiens).
See also
List of NHL statistical leaders
List of NHL players with 50-goal seasons
List of NHL players with 100-point seasons
Notable families in the NHL
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links
Pavel Bure's Official Web Site
1971 births
Living people
Calder Trophy winners
EV Landshut players
Florida Panthers players
HC CSKA Moscow players
HC Spartak Moscow players
Hockey Hall of Fame inductees
Ice hockey players at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Ice hockey players at the 2002 Winter Olympics
IIHF Hall of Fame inductees
New York Rangers players
National Hockey League All-Stars
National Hockey League players with retired numbers
Olympic bronze medalists for Russia
Olympic ice hockey players of Russia
Olympic silver medalists for Russia
Ice hockey people from Moscow
Rocket Richard Trophy winners
Russian ice hockey right wingers
Russian people of Swiss descent
Soviet expatriate ice hockey players
Soviet expatriates in Canada
Soviet ice hockey right wingers
Soviet people of Swiss descent
Vancouver Canucks draft picks
Vancouver Canucks players
Olympic medalists in ice hockey
Medalists at the 2002 Winter Olympics
Medalists at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Pavel
Russian State University of Physical Education, Sport, Youth and Tourism alumni
Competitors at the 1990 Goodwill Games | true | [
"\"I Love What Love Is Doing to Me\" is a song written by Johnny Cunningham. It was recorded by American country music artist Lynn Anderson and released as a single in 1977 via Columbia Records, becoming a top 40 hit that year.\n\nBackground and release\n\"I Love What Love Is Doing to Me\" was recorded in April 1977 at the Columbia Studio, located in Nashville, Tennessee. The sessions was produced by Glenn Sutton, Anderson's longtime production collaborator at the label and her first husband. It was co-produced by Steve Gibson, making the session Anderson's first experience under the co-production of Gibson. Nine additional tracks were recorded at this particular session, including the major hit \"He Ain't You.\"\n\n\"I Love What Love Is Doing to Me\" was released as a single in May 1977 via Columbia Records. The song spent ten weeks on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart before reaching number 22 in July 1977. The song was issued on Anderson's 1977 studio album I Love What Love Is Doing to Me/He Ain't You.\n\nTrack listings \n7\" vinyl single\n \"I Love What Love Is Doing to Me\" – 2:10\n \"Will I Ever Hear Those Churchbells Ring?\" – 3:32\n\nChart performance\n\nReferences\n\n1977 singles\n1977 songs\nColumbia Records singles\nLynn Anderson songs\nSong recordings produced by Glenn Sutton",
"\"What She's Doing Now\" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music singer Garth Brooks. It was released in December 1991 as the third single from his album Ropin' the Wind. It spent four weeks at the top of the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart. It was co-written by Pat Alger.\n\nContent\nThe song is a ballad about a man who wonders what his former lover is currently doing and what her whereabouts are (\"last I heard she had moved to Boulder\"). While the singer has no idea what she is doing now, he proclaims \"what she's doing now is tearing [him] apart\".\n\nBackground and production\nBrooks provided the following background information on the song in the CD booklet liner notes from The Hits:\n\n\"What She's Doing Now\" was an idea I had a long, long time about a man wondering what a woman was doing. And it was very simple. What is she doing now? Is she hanging out the clothes? Is she running a business? Is she a mother? Is she married? Who is she with? When I told the idea to Pat Alger, he looked at me with a smile and said, 'I wonder if she knows what she's doing now to me?' When I heard that, the bumps went over my arms and the back of my neck, and I knew that he had something. Crystal Gayle cut this song back in 1989. It came back to us for the Ropin' The Wind album. It is a song that has crossed all boundaries and borders around the world. This has made me extremely happy because the greatest gift a writer can ask for is to relate to someone. I can't help but think that this song might relate to a lot of people.\"\n\nOther versions\nWhile Garth Brooks penned the song, he was not the first person to release it. On the 1990 release Ain't Gonna Worry'', Crystal Gayle recorded the song as \"What He's Doing Now\"; her version was not released as a single.\n\nTrack listing\nEuropean CD single\nLiberty CDCL 656\n\"What She's Doing Now\"\n\"Shameless\"\n\"We Bury The Hatchet\"\nUS 7\" Jukebox single\nLiberty S7-57784\n\"What She's Doing Now\"\n\"Friends in Low Places\"\n\nChart positions\n\nYear-end charts\n\nReferences\n\n1991 singles\nCrystal Gayle songs\nGarth Brooks songs\nSongs written by Pat Alger\nSongs written by Garth Brooks\nSong recordings produced by Allen Reynolds\nLiberty Records singles\n1991 songs"
]
|
[
"Pavel Bure",
"CSKA Moscow (1987-1991)",
"What is CSKA?",
"I don't know.",
"What did he do with CSKA?",
"professional hockey",
"Did he win?",
"His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (",
"Did he receive any special recognition or awards?",
"Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours.",
"What was he doing in 1991?",
"Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup."
]
| C_32732a22d04542398a2a0695a7ea171d_1 | Did he have any injuries? | 6 | Did Pavel Bure have any injuries? | Pavel Bure | At age 16, Bure began his professional hockey career playing for CSKA Moscow. He was invited to the senior club's training camp for the 1987-88 season. Although he was deemed too young, and not yet ready, for the Soviet League, Bure earned minimal playing time filling in for absent regulars. He made his debut in September 1987, and played five games for the senior team, scoring his only goal in his first game. Bure joined the club full-time in 1988-89 and amassed 17 goals, a Soviet League record for rookies. The record would last for 18 years until Alexei Cherepanov scored 18 goals in 2006-07. Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (they repeated as European champions the following year). As a member CSKA, Bure joined a lineup that featured several future NHL players, including linemates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, as well as Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladimir Konstantinov. The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, the K-L-M combination of Vladimir Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. The trio was short-lived, as Mogilny defected to play for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, and Fedorov joined the Detroit Red Wings the following year. In his third and final season with the Red Army, Bure tied for the lead in team-scoring with Valeri Kamensky, tallying 46 points. His 35 goals was second in the league, one goal behind Ramil Yuldashev of Sokil Kyiv. Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Pavel Vladimirovich Bure (, ; born March 31, 1971) is a Russian former professional ice hockey player who played the right wing position. Nicknamed "the Russian Rocket" for his speed, Bure played for 12 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Vancouver Canucks, the Florida Panthers and the New York Rangers. Trained in the Soviet Union, he played three seasons with the Central Red Army team before his NHL career.
Selected 113th overall in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft by Vancouver, he began his NHL career in the 1991–92 season, and won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league's best rookie before leading the NHL in goal-scoring in 1993-94 and helping the Canucks to the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals. After seven seasons the Canucks traded Bure to the Panthers, where he won back-to-back Rocket Richard Trophies as the league's leading goal-scorer. Bure struggled with knee injuries throughout his career, resulting in his retirement in 2005 as a member of the Rangers, although he had not played since 2003. He averaged better than a point per game in his NHL career (779 points with 437 goals in 702 NHL games) and is fourth all-time in goals per game. After six years of eligibility, Bure was elected into the Hockey Hall of Fame in June 2012. In 2017, an NHL panel named Bure one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in history.
Internationally, Bure competed for the Soviet Union and Russia. As a member of the Soviet Union, he won two silver medals and a gold in three World Junior Championships, followed by a gold and a silver medal in the 1990 and 1991 World Championships, respectively. After the Soviet Union was dissolved in 1991, Bure competed for Russia in two Winter Olympics, claiming silver at the 1998 Games in Nagano as team captain, and bronze at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City. Following Bure's retirement in 2005, he was named the general manager for Russia's national team at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. Bure was later recognized for his international career as a 2012 inductee in the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame.
Early life
Bure was born in Moscow in 1971 to Vladimir and Tatiana Bure. Vladimir Bure, a Russian swimming legend, had dreams of Pavel becoming a professional swimmer, but he aspired to play hockey at an early age. He attended his first tryout with the CSKA Moscow hockey school at the age of six, despite his limited skating ability. Until that point, Bure had only played ball hockey on the streets. After Bure failed to impress in his first tryout, his father told him that if he did not show significant improvement within two months, he would withdraw him from the hockey school. By age 11, he was named the best forward in his league. Around that time, in July 1982, Bure was selected as one of three young Russian players to practice with Wayne Gretzky and Soviet national goaltender Vladislav Tretiak in a taped television special.
At age 12, his parents separated, and he remained with his mother. By the time he was 14 years old, he was named to the Central Red Army's junior team. In 1991, he joined his father and brother, Valeri in moving to North America as he embarked on a National Hockey League (NHL) career with the Vancouver Canucks. His mother arrived two months later. They settled initially in Los Angeles where Vladimir continued to train and coach both Valeri and Pavel in hockey and physical conditioning. However both became estranged from their father, along with his second wife and their half-sister Katya, by 1998. Neither brother has explained a reason for the split.
In December 1986, he embarked on a tour of Canada with the Soviet national midget team from Ottawa to Vancouver. Nearly five years before Bure made his NHL debut with the Vancouver Canucks in 1991 at the Pacific Coliseum, he played his first game at his future home rink as part of the tour. Bure also earned another opportunity to meet Gretzky, as well as defenseman Paul Coffey, when his team stopped in Edmonton to play at the Northlands Coliseum.
Playing career
CSKA Moscow (1987–1991)
At age 16, Bure began his professional hockey career playing for CSKA Moscow. He was invited to the senior club's training camp for the 1987–88 season. Although he was deemed too young, and not yet ready, for the Soviet League, Bure earned minimal playing time filling in for absent regulars. He made his debut in September 1987, and played five games for the senior team, scoring his only goal in his first game.
Bure joined the club full-time in 1988–89 and amassed 17 goals, a Soviet League record for rookies. The record would last for 18 years until Alexei Cherepanov scored 18 goals in 2006–07. Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (they repeated as European champions the following year).
As a member CSKA, Bure joined a lineup that featured several future NHL players, including linemates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, as well as Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladimir Konstantinov. The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, the K-L-M combination of Vladimir Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. The trio was short-lived, as Mogilny defected to play for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, and Fedorov joined the Detroit Red Wings the following year.
In his third and final season with the Red Army, Bure tied for the lead in team-scoring with Valeri Kamensky, tallying 46 points. His 35 goals was second in the league, one goal behind Ramil Yuldashev of Sokil Kyiv. Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup.
Transfer to the NHL (1989–1991)
Prior to the 1989 NHL Entry Draft, William Houston of The Globe and Mail wrote, "The best of the group is Soviet star winger Pavel Bure, a spectacular player with outstanding speed. He is compared to Vladimir Krutov and also the late Soviet superstar of the 1970s, Valeri Kharlamov." NHL organizations were afraid he would not leave the Soviet Union to play in the NHL thus deterring teams from selecting him early, although scouts and analysts believed he could have been selected as high as the second round had he defected. Many analysts compared him to Valeri Kharlamov. Edmonton Oilers' scout Barry Fraser commented, "From what I've seen of him, Bure can play on any team in the NHL right now... he's quick, real quick, small and very exciting. He may be the top player in this year's draft, but because he is from the Soviet Union, we don't analyze him the same way as a kid from the West... I don't expect him to go really early because it is still too much of a gamble to hope he will defect."
Bure was selected 113th overall in the sixth round Draft by the Vancouver Canucks, following his rookie season with CSKA Moscow. The pick was controversial, as the Canucks had chosen him seemingly a year ahead of his eligible draft season. At the age of 18, he was available to be chosen in the first three rounds of the draft, but to be selected any later, he would have needed to play at least two seasons—with a minimum of 11 games per season—for his elite-level Soviet club, the Central Red Army. While most teams believed he was ineligible, the Canucks' head scout at the time, Mike Penny, discovered Bure had played in additional exhibition and international games to make him an eligible late-round draft choice a year early. Jack Button, the Washington Capitals' director of player personnel, admitted "everybody would have taken him earlier. We assumed he was not eligible... you've got to give the Canucks credit for doing their homework."
Several other teams either had similar knowledge or had pursued Bure but there was confusion as to the legitimacy of the extra games. The Detroit Red Wings had asked league vice president Gil Stein about Bure's availability before their fifth-round pick but were told he was not eligible. They later decided to select him with their sixth-round pick, 116th overall, and settle his eligibility later. The Canucks selected Bure three picks ahead of Detroit's turn. Meanwhile, Winnipeg Jets general manager Mike Smith, claimed he made an offer to the Soviet Ice Hockey Federation that would involve three years of transfer payments before Bure would be allowed to join the Jets; however Smith did not have any plans to draft Bure in 1989 as he believed he was ineligible.
Canucks' general manager Pat Quinn originally intended to draft Bure in the eighth round but after receiving word the Oilers had similar intentions selected him in the sixth. Following the announcement of Bure's draft, several other team representatives reportedly stormed the Met Center stage in Minnesota, where the draft was being held. Formal complaints were filed resulting in an investigation into the selection. After the pick was deemed illegal by league president John Ziegler in a press release on May 17, 1990, the Canucks appealed the decision, procuring game sheets proving Bure's participation in the additional games with the help of recent Soviet acquisition Igor Larionov. It was not until the eve of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft, in which Bure would have been re-entered that the draft choice was upheld. Although Larionov and Fetisov had successfully spearheaded the rebellion against Soviet ice hockey officials in the late 1980s that led to Soviet players joining the NHL, Bure's transfer to the Canucks was met with resistance, and the Soviet authorities forbade the Canucks to contact Bure personally. During the 1991 World Junior Championships, he said in an interview that he was hesitant to defect for fears the Soviets would make things difficult for his younger brother Valeri Bure, who was 15 at the time and playing in the junior league.
Bure left Moscow with his father and brother on September 6, 1991, staying temporarily in Los Angeles. His mother arrived shortly afterward. The Canucks began negotiating a contract with Bure, but before one could be finalized, the issue of his existing contract with the Central Red Army had to be settled. The Canucks management and officials from the Soviet Ice Hockey Federation met in late-October 1991 in a Detroit court, where they bartered for a cash settlement. After the Canucks offered US$200,000, Bure stood up in the courtroom to offer an additional $50,000, bringing the total to $250,000. The Soviet officials accepted, and Canucks management paid the full $250,000. Bure signed a four-year contract worth a reported $2.7 million with an $800,000 signing bonus. The deal made Bure the Canucks' second highest paid player behind team captain Trevor Linden.
Vancouver Canucks (1991–1999)
Due to the court proceedings, Bure's debut with the Canucks was delayed until a month into the 1991–92 season. Garnering much attention in Vancouver, his first practice with the club on November 3, 1991, was attended by approximately 2,000 fans. He played his first game for the Canucks on November 5, 1991, in a 2–2 tie against the Winnipeg Jets. Despite not scoring a point, Bure showcased his talent and speed with several end-to-end rushes, carrying the puck past several defenders from near his defensive zone to the opposing net. Following the game, Vancouver Sun columnist Iain MacIntyre compared him to a rocket, calling him "the fastest Soviet creation since Sputnik". MacIntyre's comments are credited for laying the groundwork for Bure's moniker as the "Russian Rocket," which echoed the nickname of Maurice "Rocket" Richard, who played for the Montreal Canadiens in the 1950s. In his third game, Bure recorded his first point, an assist against the New York Islanders on November 10. He scored his first two NHL goals in the next game, on November 12, against Daniel Berthiaume of the Los Angeles Kings. He finished with 34 goals and 60 points in 65 games that season, including 22 goals in his final 23 games. In the last game of the regular season, Bure scored a goal to tie Ivan Hlinka's 1981–82 team mark for most points by a rookie.
As the Canucks opened the 1992 playoffs against the Winnipeg Jets, Bure recorded his first NHL hat trick in game six to help force a seventh and deciding game. Vancouver won the series to advance to the second round, but were eliminated by the Edmonton Oilers. Bure finished his first Stanley Cup playoffs with six goals and 10 points in 13 games. At the end of the season, he was awarded the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year. His 60 points were second among first-year players to Tony Amonte's 69 points with the Rangers, although Bure played in 14 fewer games. When accepting the award, Bure thanked Canucks linemate Igor Larionov for his guidance. On arriving in Vancouver, his former Red Army teammate took him into his home for two weeks before Bure moved into his own apartment; the two also roomed together on the road. Bure's Calder Trophy, along with head coach Pat Quinn's Jack Adams Award as the league's top coach, marked the first major individual NHL awards in Canucks' team history. However, despite being named the league's top rookie, Bure was left off the NHL All-Rookie Team, making him the only Calder recipient not to be named to the lineup. This was because he split his time playing both left and right wing. When it came to voting for the players, Bure had the most total votes, but not enough at either position to claim a spot.
Bure improved on his rookie season in 1992–93 with the first of two consecutive 60-goal seasons. In the third game of the season, he scored a career-high four goals against the Winnipeg Jets. His three goals and one assist in the second period set a pair of Canucks' records for most goals and points in a period, in addition to the team mark for most goals overall in a game (for which he is tied with several players). Furthermore, Bure scored two of his goals on the penalty kill to set a fourth team record for most short-handed goals in one contest. He appeared in his first NHL All-Star Game in 1993, being named to the Clarence Campbell Conference Team as the lone Canucks' representative, and scored two goals. Shortly after the All-Star break, Bure established a new franchise record for goals in a season during a 5–1 win over the Quebec Nordiques, surpassing Tony Tanti's 45-goal mark. The next month, on March 1, he reached the 50-goal mark for the first time in his career, scoring against Grant Fuhr of the Buffalo Sabres in a neutral-site game in Hamilton, Ontario. He also surpassed Patrik Sundström's franchise record of 91 points. Bure finished the season with 110 points in 83 games, and became the first Canuck named to the NHL First All-Star Team. His 110 points stood as the team record until it was broken by Henrik Sedin's 112 points in 2009–10.
A groin injury early in the 1993-94 season limited Bure's production for the first half of the season. Even so, he improved in the second half, and led the league in goal-scoring by repeating his 60-goal feat of the previous season. In doing so, he became the eighth player in NHL history to record back-to-back 60-goal seasons. He concluded the season with a streak of 49 goals and 78 points in his final 51 games, and earned player of the month honours in March 1994 after scoring 19 goals and 30 points in 16 games. His March scoring burst was just one point shy of Stan Smyl's 31-point March in 1983 for the most productive month by a Canucks player. Bure's 154 NHL goals at that point in his career put him behind only Wayne Gretzky and Mike Bossy for the most in any NHL player's first three seasons. He recorded 49 goals in the club's final 51 games, and contributed to 46.45% of his team's goals in the final 47 games of the season to carry the Canucks into the 1994 postseason.
Entering the 1994 Stanley Cup Playoffs as the seventh seed, the Canucks went on a run to the Stanley Cup Finals. In the seventh game of the opening-round series against the Calgary Flames, Bure scored one of the most significant and well-known goals in Canucks' history. After receiving a breakaway pass from defenceman Jeff Brown, he deked and scored on Flames' goalie Mike Vernon in the second overtime to win the series. In game two of the second round against the Dallas Stars, Bure knocked enforcer Shane Churla to the ice with an elbow to the jaw. He also scored two goals in the game to help Vancouver to a 3–0 win. Although Bure was not initially penalized for the play, he was later fined $500 by the league. He recorded six goals and eight points in five games against the Dallas Stars, and against the Toronto Maple Leafs the following round scored four goals and six points in five games.
After defeating Dallas in five games, the Canucks eliminated the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Campbell Conference Finals to meet the New York Rangers in the Finals, where the Canucks lost in seven games. Bure finished with a team-high 16 goals and 31 points in 24 games, second in playoff scoring only to Conn Smythe Trophy winner Brian Leetch. His points total also remained the highest by any Russian player until Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins recorded 36 in 2009.
In the next off-season, the Canucks announced they had re-signed Bure to a five-year, $24.5 million contract on June 16. The deal was reported to have been signed before game three of the Stanley Cup Finals against New York. It also included Bure's marketing rights and put his father, Vladimir, on the team payroll as a fitness and marketing consultant. The average annual salary of $4.9 million made Bure the league's third highest-paid player, behind Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux. In fact, Bure and the Canucks had entered into contract negotiations at the beginning of the 1993–94 season, although two years remained in his original deal. Neither side could come to an initial agreement; one of the major factors was the Canucks' demands for the contract to be in Canadian dollars on account of the American exchange rate. Numerous accusations were made in the media during the Canucks' playoff run that Bure threatened not to play if a contract could not be agreed upon. A Toronto Star article, published before the first game of the Finals on May 31, 1994, claimed Bure had signed a five-year, $30 million contract that, if the Canucks had not agreed to, would have seen him pull out of game five of the Conference Finals against the Maple Leafs. The article was followed by two additional claims in the following two days in the Vancouver-based newspaper The Province and Toronto Sun. The Toronto Sun held the contract was a five-year, $22.5 million deal, and that it was signed before either game six or seven of the opening round against the Flames after Bure's agent, Ron Salcer, told general manager Quinn that Bure would not play if the deal was not made. As the story continued well into the next season, Pat Quinn appeared in a segment on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)'s Hockey Night in Canada on March 27, 1995, publicly denying the claims.
Due to the 1994–95 NHL lockout, Bure spent single-game stints with Spartak Moscow of the Russian Super League and EV Landshut of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). He joined a team of Russian NHL players organized by Slava Fetisov that returned to Russia to play a five-game charity tour against local clubs. On the team, Bure reunited with former Central Red Army linemates Mogilny and Fedorov. When the NHL Players Association (NHLPA) and owners came to an agreement on January 12, 1995, NHL play was set to resume. However, there were unresolved contract issues, as Salcer claimed the Canucks promised they would pay Bure's full salary, despite the lockout, which cancelled nearly half of the 1994–95 season. Bure held out for four days as a result (the amount claimed to be owing was $1.7 million), before the two sides reached an agreement. The Canucks would put the disputed amount in escrow and would continue discussions. He soon reported to Vancouver and went on to tally 43 points in 44 games of the shortened season. In the 1995 playoffs, Bure set franchise records for most goals and points in a series with seven and 12 respectively in a seven-game series victory against the St. Louis Blues (Mikael Samuelsson tied Bure's goal-scoring record in 2010 against the Los Angeles Kings). The Canucks, however, failed to defend their Clarence Campbell Conference championship title, being swept by the Chicago Blackhawks in the second round. The Canucks' elimination in 1995 marked the last time Bure appeared in the post-season with the club. He finished with a career playoff total of 66 points with the Canucks, including 34 goals, which remained the highest club total until Linden tied the mark in 2007.
At the start of the 1995–96 season, Bure changed his jersey number from 10 to 96. The switch commemorated September 6, 1991, the day on which he first landed in North America from Moscow—9th month, 6th day. He had originally asked to wear the number when he first joined the Canucks, but was not permitted to do so by head coach Pat Quinn, who did not approve of high jersey numbers. After the Canucks traded with the Buffalo Sabres for Alexander Mogilny, reuniting the two Russian players, the jersey number was deemed acceptable because Mogilny had used number 89 since defecting to North America in 1989.
Early in the season, Bure sustained the first of several serious knee injuries during his career. On November 9, 1995, in a game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Bure was grabbed around the head by defenseman Steve Smith while approaching the end boards. Falling to the ice, he caught his skate against the boards, tearing the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee. Requiring arthroscopic surgery, in which tendon was removed from his hamstring to repair the ACL, he was sidelined for the remainder of the season.
Bure returned to the Canucks' lineup with his knee fully recovered in the 1996–97 season. In the season opener against the Flames on October 5, 1996, Bure was pushed into the boards head-first. He continued to play after the hit, but experienced headaches in the following weeks. As Bure's play dropped early in the season, the media speculated that he was playing injured. After he went eight games without a goal, head coach Tom Renney claimed Bure was not playing with a head injury, but instead had injured his shoulder in a game against the New York Rangers on November 23. Nevertheless, he continued to play. With under a month left in the season, he received another hit, during a game against the Avalanche on March 3, 1997. Bure left the game and did not return for the remainder of the season. Afterwards, he admitted he was playing with a neck injury, having sustained whiplash from the first game against Calgary, but did not want to take himself out of the lineup after missing 62 games the previous season. With Bure's reduced playing capacity, he managed 55 points in 63 games, well below his usual pace, and the Canucks missed the playoffs for the first time since he joined the team. In a 2012 interview, Bure admitted having sustained a head injury on the initial hit against Calgary and that "he should not have played through it".
In the off-season, the Canucks made another significant move, signing Rangers' captain Mark Messier during free agency on July 26, 1997. Despite finally having a high-profile centre to play with, media reports soon appeared claiming that Bure was asking to be traded. The Canucks opened the season with two games against the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in Tokyo – an event organized by the league to market hockey for the upcoming 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. After two injury-plagued seasons with the number 96 on his jersey, Bure switched back to his familiar number 10, explaining: "I'm not superstitious, but the last two seasons have been bad memories." Although the Canucks missed the playoffs for the second straight year, he returned to his previous form in 1997–98, scoring 51 goals for his first 50-goal season since 1993–94, and third overall. Bure later recalled that with the Canucks out of playoff contention with a handful of games left, head coach Mike Keenan told him he could play as much as he wanted to reach the milestone. Scoring 50 goals was also implicit in a contract bonus for Bure. With an additional 39 assists, his 90 points ranked him third in the NHL, behind Peter Forsberg and Jaromír Jágr.
Following the 1997–98 season, Bure told newly appointed general manager Brian Burke that he would not play for the Canucks again, despite still having a year left in his contract worth $8 million. He then went public with the declaration, stating he intended to leave the club for "personal reasons". Bure did not report to the club the following season. Instead, he returned to his hometown Moscow to practise with his former Central Red Army club. During this time, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko offered Bure a tax-free $4 million salary to play in Belarus, which he turned down.
Florida Panthers (1999–2002)
Bure held out well into the 1998–99 season until he was traded on January 17, 1999, to the Florida Panthers, with Bret Hedican, Brad Ference, and Vancouver's third-round choice in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft (Robert Fried) for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes, and Florida's first-round choice in the 2000 draft (Nathan Smith). Talks between Burke and Bryan Murray, general manager of the Panthers, had begun in late-December. After the trade was completed, Bure explained that he felt alienated from Canucks' management after arriving in North America having defected from Russia. He claimed he had been in Los Angeles for two weeks before any Canucks' representative came to see him, as well as several bitter contract negotiations—particularly those of 1994. He also claimed that someone within the Canucks' management planted the constant allegations that he threatened not to play during the 1994 playoff run. Bure's agent at the time, Ron Salcer, also believed the story.
Meeting the Panthers in New York for a game against the Islanders, Bure debuted with his new club on January 20, 1999. He played on an all-Russian line with Viktor Kozlov and Oleg Kvasha and scored two goals. In his first six games with the club, Bure scored eight goals and three assists for eleven points. Less than a month into his Panthers debut, he reinjured his knee, keeping him out for three weeks. Despite the injury, the Panthers signed him to a five-year, $47.5 million contract (with an option for a sixth year at $10.5 million), the most lucrative in team history. Another injury ended Bure's season after just 11 games with Florida, though he scored 13 goals and three assists in that time.
In 1999–2000, his first full season as a Panther, Bure led the league in goal-scoring to capture his first of two consecutive Rocket Richard Trophies with a 58-goal season. It marked the second time Bure led the league in goal-scoring, but his first Rocket Richard Trophy as the award had been introduced the previous season. Combined with 36 assists, his 94 points came within two of Art Ross Trophy winner Jaromír Jágr as the league's leading point-scorer. His 58 goals and 94 points both set franchise records. He helped Florida to a fifth-place finish in the Eastern Conference to earn their first post-season berth in three seasons, though they were swept by the eventual Stanley Cup champions, the New Jersey Devils. Bure finished third for the Hart Memorial Trophy winner behind Chris Pronger and Jágr. He was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team for the first time.
Bure was set to make his much-anticipated return to Vancouver to play the Canucks on November 5, 1999, but was kept out of the lineup due to a broken finger. A prior groin injury had also forced him out of a Panther's home game against the Canucks earlier in the season. During the season, he was named to the 2000 NHL All-Star Game in Toronto, where he recorded an assist and the eleventh hat trick in the history of the All-Star Game. Of Bure's three goals, two were assisted by his brother Valeri, who played on the same line with him, along with his Panthers linemate, Viktor Kozlov. Helping lead the World team to a 9–4 victory over North America, Bure was named the All-Star Game MVP.
Bure repeated as league scoring champion in 2000–01 with 59 goals, reaching the 50-goal plateau for the fifth and final time in his career, as well as bettering his franchise single-season, goal-scoring record. However, the Panthers missed the playoffs, finishing 12th place in the East. Bure set a league record that season by scoring 29.5% of his team's total goals over the course of the season. He was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team, behind Jágr in the right wing position for the second consecutive year.
Before the 2001–02 season, the Panthers acquired Valeri Bure from the Calgary Flames in a trade, putting the brothers on the same team for the first time. However, Bure suffered a setback in the pre-season re-injuring his groin. Bure recalled having "good relations" with Panthers' management, who often consulted with him on team matters, including the acquisition of his brother. At the trading deadline, Bure was traded to the New York Rangers. During his 56 games for the Panthers that season, he led the team in scoring for the third consecutive season with 49 points.
New York Rangers (2002–2003)
The New York Rangers acquired Bure on March 18, 2002, along with Florida's second-round pick in the 2002 draft (Lee Falardeau) for Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak, as well as the Rangers' first and second-round choices in the 2002 draft (Petr Tatíček and Rob Globke, respectively) and a fourth-round choice in the 2003 draft. The Rangers had shown interest in Bure when he requested a trade from the Canucks in 1997. After losing their initial bid for Bure, Wayne Gretzky, who retired the same season Bure was traded to Florida, announced prior to the 1999–2000 season he would have extended his career had the Rangers been able to pull off the trade. Bure made his Rangers debut against the Vancouver Canucks the day after his trade on March 19, scoring a goal against his former team. He scored 12 goals and 20 points in 12 games after being traded, bettering his pace with Florida that season. Between the two teams, he finished the season with 34 goals and 69 points.
Bure suffered another knee injury in the 2002–03 pre-season; combined with a case of strep throat, he missed the first three games of the regular season. After returning to play, he had 14 goals and 21 points in his first 27 games, including two goals and an assist in his first game back, before a knee-on-knee collision in December forced him back out. After undergoing surgery 10 days later, it was revealed that there was no damage to the ACL as previously feared, but instead a tear to the meniscus in his left knee, which was repaired. Bure returned that season to appear in 39 games, managing 19 goals and 30 points.
Even after two operations, Bure did not play in 2003–04 due to the lingering effects of the knee injury. He failed a pre-season physical and was declared medically unable to play. Left with his fully insured $10 million salary (80 percent of which would be reimbursed to the team), the Rangers left him unprotected in the NHL's Waiver Draft, where he was unclaimed.
Retirement
Bure remained inactive for another season due to the 2004–05 NHL lockout. After the NHL resumed play for the 2005–06 season, he announced his retirement from professional hockey at a press conference in Moscow on November 1, 2005, citing complications with his chronic knee injuries. In an interview Bure explained that he did not want to extend his playing career without being able to play at an elite level.
Because Bure had been inactive since the 2002–03 season, he was eligible for selection into the Hockey Hall of Fame (which requires players to wait three years after their last game) immediately following his retirement. After being passed for induction in his first six years of eligibility, Bure was voted in on June 27, 2012, alongside Joe Sakic, Adam Oates and Mats Sundin. He became the fifth Soviet or Russian player (after Vladislav Tretiak, Viacheslav Fetisov, Valeri Kharlamov and Igor Larionov) and the first player to spend the majority of his career with the Canucks to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
His non-selection in previous years was widely debated in the media. Bure was often compared with Cam Neely, a player who also waited six years for induction; he recorded similar goals-per-game numbers in a career that was also shortened to 700-plus games. It had been often rumoured that Pat Quinn, Bure's former head coach and general manager in Vancouver, who became co-chairman of the Hockey Hall of Fame's selection committee, opposed Bure's induction. However, in a conference call following his selection, Quinn was among the most prominent figures he thanked. Quinn criticized the Canucks organization for not yet retiring Bure's jersey.
In his retirement, he remained publicly steadfast in his dissatisfaction with the way he was treated by the Canucks organization during his playing career. While Bure admitted to "a lot of disagreements with the Canucks management," he maintained that he "never had any problems with the Canucks fans". The Canucks retired Bure's 10 jersey on November 2, 2013. The day before the Canucks announced they would rename the team's Most Exciting Player Award to the Pavel Bure Most Exciting Player Award in his honor. Bure renounced his US citizenship in 2016.
International career
Junior
Prior to joining the NHL in 1991, Bure competed for the Soviet Union in several junior, international tournaments. The first was the 1988 Quebec Esso Cup, an under-17 tournament (now known as the World U-17 Hockey Challenge) held in Quebec City, where he earned a gold medal. That same year, he competed in his first of two consecutive European Junior Championships, winning a bronze medal.
The following year, Bure debuted at the world under-20 level as a 17-year-old at the 1989 World Junior Championships in Anchorage, Alaska. The top line of CSKA Moscow teammates Bure, Alexander Mogilny and Sergei Fedorov led the Soviet Union to a gold medal. Bure's eight goals tied him for the tournament lead with Jeremy Roenick of the United States; he led the Soviet team with 14 points. He was named to the Tournament All-Star Team, and earned Best Forward honours. He again participated in the 1989 European Junior Championship, helping the Soviet Union win the gold medal.
Bure competed in his second World Juniors in 1990, winning a silver medal in Helsinki, Finland, and scoring seven goals in seven games. Later that year, he made his senior debut with the Soviet national team as a 19-year-old at the 1990 World Championships in Switzerland. He scored two goals and four assists in ten games to help the Soviets to a gold medal finish. The Soviet team also won silver in the European Championship, which was decided from games played among the European teams at the tournament. Several months later, in July, Bure took part in his third international tournament of the year at the 1990 Goodwill Games in Seattle. Bure scored four goals and an assist in five games, and the Soviets won the gold medal.
In 1991, Bure appeared in his third and final World Junior Championships. Bure finished the tournament as the leading scorer with 12 goals in 7 games and the Soviets won the silver medal. He finished his three-year World Junior career with a tournament-record 27 goals, to go with 39 points, in 21 games. Bure later competed in the 1991 World Championships, his second international appearance of the year. He improved on his previous year's total with 11 points in 11 games, tied for the team lead with Valeri Kamensky, and helped the Soviets to a bronze medal finish. Bure was named to the tournament's Second All-Star Team. The 1991 team marked the last World Championships for the USSR, as the country was dissolved later that year.
Senior
Bure was set to represent the Soviet Union at the 1991 Canada Cup, however after turning down a three-year contract with his Russian club, CSKA Moscow, he was left off the final roster.
Bure played his first international tournament for Russia in preliminary games for the inaugural 1996 World Cup (the successor tournament to the Canada Cup). Bure had recently recovered from reconstructive surgery to his right knee, and had begun practicing with the Russian national team where he was reunited on a line with Fedorov and Mogilny, the first and only time the three of them would play together at the senior level; the line was considered "perhaps the best forward line on earth" at the time. However Bure bruised a kidney in one of the games and was forced to miss the main tournament.
As with the 1991 Canada Cup, controversy ensued when Bure refused to sign a petition organized by national team veteran Viacheslav Fetisov. With the Russian Ice Hockey Federation dealing with internal corruption, the petition called for the ouster of a few select Russian ice hockey officials. In response, Bure explained, "I do not sign petitions. I believe I should work – play hockey. Petitions to the federation or to Olympic committees do not interest me."
Two years later, Bure made his Olympic debut with Russia at the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano. He helped his team to advance to the gold medal game after a five-goal game in Russia's 7–4 semifinal win against Finland. The Russians lost the gold medal game to the Czech Republic, ending with silver. Bure finished with a tournament-high nine goals to be named the top forward, and though he recorded no assists, placed third in point-scoring with nine points in six games.
Bure's next international tournament was the 2000 World Championships, held in Saint Petersburg. The Russians had a disappointing tournament and finished eleventh. In six games, Bure managed four goals and an assist. Two years later, Bure made his second Olympic appearance at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City, playing with a fractured hand. Bure finished his final international tournament as a player with two goals and an assist in six games while Russia won the bronze medal.
On the announcement of his retirement in 2005, Bure was named Russia's Olympic general manager, succeeding Viacheslav Fetisov. He promised to put an end to the Russian Hockey Federation's history of internal conflict and player boycotts, saying, "You won't see such a mess with the national team that you've seen here before," and that "You won't see grouchy players here anymore. Only those who really want to play for Russia will be called into the team." As general manager, Bure chose the team for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. The Russians failed to win a medal, losing to the Czech Republic in the bronze medal match. Leading up to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, former Soviet national goaltender Vladislav Tretiak was named Bure's successor as Olympic general manager.
In December 2011, Bure was announced as one of the 2012 inductees into the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame. He was named alongside American Phil Housley, Finn Raimo Helminen and Czechoslovak Milan Nový in the annual class. The players were inducted in a ceremony in May 2012.
Playing style
Bure's playing style reflected the speed, skill and puck possession that was prominent in Soviet Union hockey programs. The most prevalent aspects of his game were his skating speed, agility, and acceleration, which earned him his nickname the "Russian Rocket". He was able to use his quickness to separate himself from defenders, to retrieve pucks before the opposition could in all zones of the ice, and to skate the length of the ice on many occasions. In a 1993 poll of NHL coaches conducted by hockey writer Bob McKenzie, Bure was named the league's best skater with eight of twenty-one votes, twice as many votes as any other player. One coach noted: "Bure has the best combination of speed, agility and balance ... He can also use change of speed better than anybody in the league right now."
During Bure's rehabilitation period, following his first major knee injury in 1995, Canucks' conditioning coach Peter Twist noticed that his skating style was distinct in comparison to typical North American players. He explained: "Most players skate on their inside edge and push off at a 45-degree angle, but Bure starts on his outer edge and rolls over to his inside edge and pushes back straighter on his stride ... he gets more power and force in his stride to get up to top speed quicker." his skating was also complemented by his ability to deke out defenders and goaltenders at top speeds, making him capable of routinely starting end-to-end rushes. However, several knee injuries, and the resulting reconstructive surgeries, compromised the speed that defined Bure's game, ultimately leading to his retirement.
Early in Bure's career, he was noted for playing a strong two-way game. Having joined Pat Quinn's defensive-minded Canucks in 1991, Bure's transition to the NHL was cited as being easier than that of his countryman, Igor Larionov, due to his quick adjustment to the team's defensive demands. Regarding Bure's first NHL game against the Winnipeg Jets, reporter Mike Beamish explained that "hockey fans marvelled at his offensive thrusts, but hockey people were taken by a singular display of jet-powered defensive diligence. On one play, after the Canucks were caught deep in the Winnipeg zone, the Russian winger raced back and almost single-handedly foiled a two-on-one Jets' rush, making up a half-rink disadvantage." Bure was used on the team's penalty kill for his entire tenure with the Canucks, and was proficient at generating shorthanded chances, pressuring the opposition with his quickness and positioning in the defensive zone. During the 1992 Stanley Cup playoffs, commentator and ex-NHL coach Harry Neale commented, "I like the effort he gives it when he doesn't have the puck. We all know what he can do when he thinks he can score, but he's killing penalties, he's checking, doing a lot of things." Bure tied for second-place on Bob McKenzie's 1993 coaches poll for the NHL's best penalty killer. He was also voted the league's second-best stickhandler that season and garnered recognition as one of the smartest players in the NHL.
Sports journalists Damien Cox and Stephen Brunt wrote about Bure during the 1994 Stanley Cup playoffs that he was a "two-way dynamo," accounting for "several bodychecks he handed out on the night" and for his defensive abilities as he stayed on the ice in the last minutes of a one-goal playoff match against the Toronto Maple Leafs. They spoke highly of his creativity as well, recognizing him as "someone who sees in his game a world of possibilities that just never occur to others," praising his "sheer elegance and imagination" and characterizing his hockey sense as "ho-hum brilliance from the most explosive player in the sport". Brunt called him "a nonpareil, a van Gogh, a Picasso, a Charlie Parker". During the 1993-94 season, Bure demonstrated his strong playmaking abilities, helping linemate and friend Gino Odjick score a career-high 16 goals in a single season, more than twice the number of goals Odjick would score in any other year separated from Bure, and doubling his career goal totals up to that point in his career. According to teammate Cliff Ronning in 1994, "we play a much sounder game defensively when Pavel's flying, as he was in the first period". Former Canuck teammate Jyrki Lumme spoke of Bure as a player and teammate, "That guy does something spectacular every time ... it's frustrating to go against him in practice because he's all over the place. He makes everybody on our team better."
During his time with the Canucks, Bure won the team's Most Exciting Player Award, as voted by the fans, a record five times (tied with Tony Tanti), from 1992 to 1995, and once more in 1998. Trevor Linden, who had played with Bure for seven seasons, said following Bure's retirement, "I don't know if I've ever seen or played with a player that's brought people out of their seats like that." During the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals, Rangers coach Mike Keenan, who later coached Bure for one-and-a-half seasons in Vancouver, called him "perhaps the most electrifying forward in the league". The Canucks renamed the award the Pavel Bure Most Exciting Player Award in his honour in 2013.
Bure has been described as a pure goal scorer and is statistically among the top players in NHL history in that regard. In addition to having reached the 50-goal mark in his career five times, and the 60-goal mark twice, his .623 goals per game average is third among the top 100 goal scorers in NHL history, behind Mike Bossy and Mario Lemieux. Michael Farber of the Montreal Gazette described Bure as "the most dangerous scorer in the National Hockey League with the continued absence of Mario Lemieux because Bure can beat a defence with his speed, his strength, his mind. Bure isn't a scorer as much as he is a permanent late-night television guest; he is to highlight packages what Terri Garr is to Letterman."
Personal life
Family
Bure comes from an athletic family; his father Vladimir, who is of Swiss descent (his side of the family originated from Furna, Switzerland), was an Olympic swimmer who competed for the Soviet Union in the 1968, 1972, and 1976 Olympic Games, where he won four medals. Bure retained his father as his personal trainer well into his playing career, before severing ties with him in 1997. Bure's paternal grandfather, Valeri Bure, played goalkeeper for the national water polo team. Both Pavel and his younger brother Valeri became estranged from their father and his second wife, Julia, along with their half-sister Katya, by 1998. Neither brother has explained a reason for the split.
Named after their grandfather, Bure's younger brother, Valeri, was also a hockey player, spending 10 years in the NHL. The two siblings played with each other briefly as members of the Florida Panthers, after Valeri was traded there in 2001, and played together at the 1998 and 2002 Winter Olympics.
The Bure family made precious watches for the Russian tsars from 1815 until 1917, and Bure was named after his great-grandfather, a watchmaker to Tsar Alexander III. As craftspersons to the imperial family, the Bures were granted noble status. After Bure sustained his first serious knee injury in 1995, he pursued the watchmaking business during his rehabilitation period in an attempt to revive the family business. Fifty replicas of the same watches his ancestors made for the Russian imperial family were made and sold at US$30,000 each. Bure presented three of the gold replicas to Russian President Boris Yeltsin, Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin and Moscow mayor Yuriy Luzhkov.
Relationships
Five days after arriving in North America from Moscow with his father and brother on September 6, 1991, (his mother Tatiana arrived two months later), Bure married an American fashion model, later revealed to be Jayme Bohn, in a civil ceremony. The marriage was allegedly set up by Bure's agents as a preventative measure against deportation in the event he and the Canucks could not come to terms with a contract. Bure derived no immigration benefit from the marriage, which was dissolved the following year. Bohn became a costume designer in the film and television industry.
After being linked to girlfriend Dahn Bryan, a model and actress, early in his NHL career, Bure shared a relationship with tennis star and fellow Russian Anna Kournikova. The two met in 1999 when she was still linked to Bure's former Russian teammate Sergei Fedorov. Bure and Kournikova were reported to have been engaged in 2000 after reporter Andrew Greven took a photo of them together in a Florida restaurant where Bure supposedly asked Kournikova to marry him. As the story made headlines in Russia, where they were both heavily followed in the media as celebrities, Bure and Kournikova both denied any engagement. Kournikova, 10 years younger than Bure, was 18 years old at the time. The following year, Kournikova and Fedorov were married in Moscow, though they soon divorced.
Bure married 23-year-old model Alina Khasanova on October 10, 2009, in Moscow, with 300 guests present. Pravda has reported, however, that the couple, who had known each other for four years, had officially married on October 10, 2008, in Miami. Together they have three children: Pavel Jr., Palina and Anastasia. Pavel Jr. was born on April 23, 2013; Palina was born on July 20, 2015. Their third child, a daughter named Anastasia, was born on 28 December 2018.
Politics
Bure is also frequently playing ice hockey with Russian president Vladimir Putin, but has denied having any political ambitions himself in an interview with a Swedish newspaper in 2019.
Legal activity
In 2002, Bure sued the Russian newspaper the eXile for publishing an article stating he broke up with Kournikova because she had two vaginas. Although the newspapers' editorial staff claimed the story was a mere joke, the court ruled in favour of Bure in the amount of 500,000 rubles (US$17,770), and ordered a retraction to be printed. Two years later, on December 27, 2004, the Russian cosmetics chain Arbat Prestige published a story in their free promotional paper that Bure had bragged about Kournikova losing her virginity to him. Shortly thereafter, on January 31, 2005, Bure sued Arbat Prestige for 300 million rubles (US$10.65 million) in a court in Moscow. He also demanded the company print a retraction and apology in a future paper. The court ruled in favour of Bure in November 2005. However, the amount was reduced from 300 million to approximately 320,000 rubles.
On October 31, 2006, nearly a year after his retirement, Bure filed another suit after being kicked off a British Airways flight by the pilot, having been mistaken for a rowdy soccer fan. Despite an apology from the airline company in June 2007, Bure took the issue to court, suing British Airways for 20 million rubles. In late-August 2007, a Russian court ruled in favour of Bure in the amount of 67,000 rubles.
Alleged Mafia connections
During Bure's playing career, much speculation surrounded Russian NHL players and their potential ties to the Russian mafia both as victims and associates. As Soviet players began defecting to the NHL, many cases of extortion began surfacing. The Russian mafia was targeting the players' families still living in Russia. Former teammate Alexander Mogilny was a victim of such an extortion attempt in 1994, while Bure was reported to have made payments totaling in the thousands of dollars to Russian extortionists in 1993. Three years later, in 1996, American sports network ESPN aired reports alleging Bure was a potential associate of the Russian mafia because of his relationship with friend and business partner Anzor Kikalishvili, known to both Russian and American police as a suspected criminal and possible Russian mob boss. Bure was revealed to hold a position as vice president in the sports company Twenty First Century Association, owned by Kikalishvili, and reportedly believed by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation to be a mafia front worth at least US$100 million in illicit funds. While Bure did not deny his business and personal relationships with Kikalishvili, he refuted reports Kikalishvili was involved in any criminal activity.
Speculation resurfaced in 1999, as Bure was included in an investigation aired by the CBC investigative news program The Fifth Estate that made several supposed associations between Soviet NHL players and the Russian mafia. An allegation arose that Bure's former CSKA teammate Viacheslav Fetisov used a company, of which he was president, to launder money for Vyacheslav Ivankov, considered the "Russian godfather" in North America. Bure's relationship with Kikalishvili continued to be questioned. Bure denied Kikalishvili's involvement in any criminal activity, dismissing the allegations as "rumours".
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Bold indicates led league
International
a does not include 1988 Quebec Esso Cup (U17)b does not include the 1990 Goodwill Games
Awards
Soviet
International
NHL
Vancouver Canucks
Records
Team
Vancouver Canucks' single-season record, most points by a rookie – 60 in 1991–92 (tied with Ivan Hlinka, 1981–82 and Elias Pettersson, 2018–19)
Vancouver Canucks' single-season record, most goals – 60 in 1992–93 and 1993–94
Vancouver Canucks' all-time playoffs record, most goals – 34 (tied with Trevor Linden)
Vancouver Canucks' all-time record, most shorthanded goals – 24
Vancouver Canucks' single-game record, most goals – four versus the Winnipeg Jets on October 12, 1992 (tied with Rosaire Paiement, Bobby Schmautz, Rick Blight, Petri Skriko, Greg Adams, Tony Tanti, Martin Gélinas, Markus Näslund and Daniel Sedin)
Florida Panthers' single-season record, most goals – 59 in 2000–01
International
World Junior Championships all-time record, most goals – 27 in 21 games (1989–1991)
Winter Olympics single-game record, most goals – five (1998; semifinal vs. Finland)
NHL
NHL record, most goals scored in proportion to team – 29.5% of the Florida Panthers' goals in 2000–01.
Transactions
June 9, 1989 – Drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in the sixth round, 113th overall, in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft.
October 31, 1991 – Signed by the Vancouver Canucks to a four-year, $3.5 million contract.
June 16, 1994 – Re-signed by the Vancouver Canucks to a five-year, $24.5 million contract.
January 17, 1999 – Traded by the Vancouver Canucks, along with Bret Hedican, Brad Ference and Vancouver's third-round draft choice (Robert Fried) in 2000, to the Florida Panthers in exchange for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes and Florida's first-round draft choice (Nathan Smith) in 2000.
February 8, 1999 – Signed by the Florida Panthers to a five-year, $47.5 million deal.
March 18, 2002 – Traded by the Florida Panthers, along with Florida's second-round draft choice in 2002 (Lee Falardeau), to the New York Rangers in exchange for Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak, the Rangers' first-round draft choice in 2002 (Eric Nystrom), the Rangers' second-round draft choice in 2002 (Rob Globke) and the Rangers fourth-round draft choice in 2003 (later traded to the Atlanta Thrashers; Atlanta selected Guillaume Desbiens).
See also
List of NHL statistical leaders
List of NHL players with 50-goal seasons
List of NHL players with 100-point seasons
Notable families in the NHL
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links
Pavel Bure's Official Web Site
1971 births
Living people
Calder Trophy winners
EV Landshut players
Florida Panthers players
HC CSKA Moscow players
HC Spartak Moscow players
Hockey Hall of Fame inductees
Ice hockey players at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Ice hockey players at the 2002 Winter Olympics
IIHF Hall of Fame inductees
New York Rangers players
National Hockey League All-Stars
National Hockey League players with retired numbers
Olympic bronze medalists for Russia
Olympic ice hockey players of Russia
Olympic silver medalists for Russia
Ice hockey people from Moscow
Rocket Richard Trophy winners
Russian ice hockey right wingers
Russian people of Swiss descent
Soviet expatriate ice hockey players
Soviet expatriates in Canada
Soviet ice hockey right wingers
Soviet people of Swiss descent
Vancouver Canucks draft picks
Vancouver Canucks players
Olympic medalists in ice hockey
Medalists at the 2002 Winter Olympics
Medalists at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Pavel
Russian State University of Physical Education, Sport, Youth and Tourism alumni
Competitors at the 1990 Goodwill Games | false | [
"Steeplejack Charles Miller (1882–1910), nicknamed the Human Fly, was an American man famous for climbing buildings. He began climbing in 1900, and earned a living from his stunts. Miller did not use any climbing equipment. He died after falling sixty feet from the fourth floor of the Hamburger building in Los Angeles in full view of hundreds of spectators, who transported his unconscious body to the hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries.\n\nSee also\n List of stunt performers nicknamed the \"Human Fly\"\nBuildering\n\nReferences\n\n1882 births\n1910 deaths\nUrban climbers\nUrban exploration",
"A chest injury, also known as chest trauma, is any form of physical injury to the chest including the ribs, heart and lungs. Chest injuries account for 25% of all deaths from traumatic injury. Typically chest injuries are caused by blunt mechanisms such as direct, indirect, compression, contusion, deceleration, or blasts- caused by motor vehicle collisions or penetrating mechanisms such as stabbings.\n\nClassification\nChest injuries can be classified as blunt or penetrating. Blunt and penetrating injuries have different pathophysiologies and clinical courses.\n\nSpecific types of injuries include:\n Injuries to the chest wall\n Chest wall contusions or hematomas. \n Rib fractures\n Flail chest\n Sternal fractures\n Fractures of the shoulder girdle\n Pulmonary injury (injury to the lung) and injuries involving the pleural space\n Pulmonary contusion \n Pulmonary laceration\n Pneumothorax\n Hemothorax\n Hemopneumothorax\n Injury to the airways\n Tracheobronchial tear\n Cardiac injury\n Pericardial tamponade\n Myocardial contusion\n Traumatic arrest\n Hemopericardium\n Blood vessel injuries\n Traumatic aortic rupture\n Thoracic aorta injury\n Aortic dissection\n And injuries to other structures within the torso\n Esophageal injury (Boerhaave syndrome)\n Diaphragm injury\n\nDiagnosis\nMost blunt injuries are managed with relatively simple interventions like tracheal intubation and mechanical ventilation and chest tube insertion. Diagnosis of blunt injuries may be more difficult and require additional investigations such as CT scanning. Penetrating injuries often require surgery, and complex investigations are usually not needed to come to a diagnosis. Patients with penetrating trauma may deteriorate rapidly, but may also recover much faster than patients with blunt injury.\n\nSee also\n Transmediastinal gunshot wound\n Commotio thoracis\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n\nMedical emergencies"
]
|
[
"Pavel Bure",
"CSKA Moscow (1987-1991)",
"What is CSKA?",
"I don't know.",
"What did he do with CSKA?",
"professional hockey",
"Did he win?",
"His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (",
"Did he receive any special recognition or awards?",
"Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours.",
"What was he doing in 1991?",
"Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup.",
"Did he have any injuries?",
"I don't know."
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| C_32732a22d04542398a2a0695a7ea171d_1 | What is significant during this time? | 7 | What is significant during August 1991? | Pavel Bure | At age 16, Bure began his professional hockey career playing for CSKA Moscow. He was invited to the senior club's training camp for the 1987-88 season. Although he was deemed too young, and not yet ready, for the Soviet League, Bure earned minimal playing time filling in for absent regulars. He made his debut in September 1987, and played five games for the senior team, scoring his only goal in his first game. Bure joined the club full-time in 1988-89 and amassed 17 goals, a Soviet League record for rookies. The record would last for 18 years until Alexei Cherepanov scored 18 goals in 2006-07. Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (they repeated as European champions the following year). As a member CSKA, Bure joined a lineup that featured several future NHL players, including linemates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, as well as Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladimir Konstantinov. The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, the K-L-M combination of Vladimir Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. The trio was short-lived, as Mogilny defected to play for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, and Fedorov joined the Detroit Red Wings the following year. In his third and final season with the Red Army, Bure tied for the lead in team-scoring with Valeri Kamensky, tallying 46 points. His 35 goals was second in the league, one goal behind Ramil Yuldashev of Sokil Kyiv. Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup. CANNOTANSWER | The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, | Pavel Vladimirovich Bure (, ; born March 31, 1971) is a Russian former professional ice hockey player who played the right wing position. Nicknamed "the Russian Rocket" for his speed, Bure played for 12 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Vancouver Canucks, the Florida Panthers and the New York Rangers. Trained in the Soviet Union, he played three seasons with the Central Red Army team before his NHL career.
Selected 113th overall in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft by Vancouver, he began his NHL career in the 1991–92 season, and won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league's best rookie before leading the NHL in goal-scoring in 1993-94 and helping the Canucks to the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals. After seven seasons the Canucks traded Bure to the Panthers, where he won back-to-back Rocket Richard Trophies as the league's leading goal-scorer. Bure struggled with knee injuries throughout his career, resulting in his retirement in 2005 as a member of the Rangers, although he had not played since 2003. He averaged better than a point per game in his NHL career (779 points with 437 goals in 702 NHL games) and is fourth all-time in goals per game. After six years of eligibility, Bure was elected into the Hockey Hall of Fame in June 2012. In 2017, an NHL panel named Bure one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in history.
Internationally, Bure competed for the Soviet Union and Russia. As a member of the Soviet Union, he won two silver medals and a gold in three World Junior Championships, followed by a gold and a silver medal in the 1990 and 1991 World Championships, respectively. After the Soviet Union was dissolved in 1991, Bure competed for Russia in two Winter Olympics, claiming silver at the 1998 Games in Nagano as team captain, and bronze at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City. Following Bure's retirement in 2005, he was named the general manager for Russia's national team at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. Bure was later recognized for his international career as a 2012 inductee in the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame.
Early life
Bure was born in Moscow in 1971 to Vladimir and Tatiana Bure. Vladimir Bure, a Russian swimming legend, had dreams of Pavel becoming a professional swimmer, but he aspired to play hockey at an early age. He attended his first tryout with the CSKA Moscow hockey school at the age of six, despite his limited skating ability. Until that point, Bure had only played ball hockey on the streets. After Bure failed to impress in his first tryout, his father told him that if he did not show significant improvement within two months, he would withdraw him from the hockey school. By age 11, he was named the best forward in his league. Around that time, in July 1982, Bure was selected as one of three young Russian players to practice with Wayne Gretzky and Soviet national goaltender Vladislav Tretiak in a taped television special.
At age 12, his parents separated, and he remained with his mother. By the time he was 14 years old, he was named to the Central Red Army's junior team. In 1991, he joined his father and brother, Valeri in moving to North America as he embarked on a National Hockey League (NHL) career with the Vancouver Canucks. His mother arrived two months later. They settled initially in Los Angeles where Vladimir continued to train and coach both Valeri and Pavel in hockey and physical conditioning. However both became estranged from their father, along with his second wife and their half-sister Katya, by 1998. Neither brother has explained a reason for the split.
In December 1986, he embarked on a tour of Canada with the Soviet national midget team from Ottawa to Vancouver. Nearly five years before Bure made his NHL debut with the Vancouver Canucks in 1991 at the Pacific Coliseum, he played his first game at his future home rink as part of the tour. Bure also earned another opportunity to meet Gretzky, as well as defenseman Paul Coffey, when his team stopped in Edmonton to play at the Northlands Coliseum.
Playing career
CSKA Moscow (1987–1991)
At age 16, Bure began his professional hockey career playing for CSKA Moscow. He was invited to the senior club's training camp for the 1987–88 season. Although he was deemed too young, and not yet ready, for the Soviet League, Bure earned minimal playing time filling in for absent regulars. He made his debut in September 1987, and played five games for the senior team, scoring his only goal in his first game.
Bure joined the club full-time in 1988–89 and amassed 17 goals, a Soviet League record for rookies. The record would last for 18 years until Alexei Cherepanov scored 18 goals in 2006–07. Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (they repeated as European champions the following year).
As a member CSKA, Bure joined a lineup that featured several future NHL players, including linemates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, as well as Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladimir Konstantinov. The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, the K-L-M combination of Vladimir Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. The trio was short-lived, as Mogilny defected to play for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, and Fedorov joined the Detroit Red Wings the following year.
In his third and final season with the Red Army, Bure tied for the lead in team-scoring with Valeri Kamensky, tallying 46 points. His 35 goals was second in the league, one goal behind Ramil Yuldashev of Sokil Kyiv. Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup.
Transfer to the NHL (1989–1991)
Prior to the 1989 NHL Entry Draft, William Houston of The Globe and Mail wrote, "The best of the group is Soviet star winger Pavel Bure, a spectacular player with outstanding speed. He is compared to Vladimir Krutov and also the late Soviet superstar of the 1970s, Valeri Kharlamov." NHL organizations were afraid he would not leave the Soviet Union to play in the NHL thus deterring teams from selecting him early, although scouts and analysts believed he could have been selected as high as the second round had he defected. Many analysts compared him to Valeri Kharlamov. Edmonton Oilers' scout Barry Fraser commented, "From what I've seen of him, Bure can play on any team in the NHL right now... he's quick, real quick, small and very exciting. He may be the top player in this year's draft, but because he is from the Soviet Union, we don't analyze him the same way as a kid from the West... I don't expect him to go really early because it is still too much of a gamble to hope he will defect."
Bure was selected 113th overall in the sixth round Draft by the Vancouver Canucks, following his rookie season with CSKA Moscow. The pick was controversial, as the Canucks had chosen him seemingly a year ahead of his eligible draft season. At the age of 18, he was available to be chosen in the first three rounds of the draft, but to be selected any later, he would have needed to play at least two seasons—with a minimum of 11 games per season—for his elite-level Soviet club, the Central Red Army. While most teams believed he was ineligible, the Canucks' head scout at the time, Mike Penny, discovered Bure had played in additional exhibition and international games to make him an eligible late-round draft choice a year early. Jack Button, the Washington Capitals' director of player personnel, admitted "everybody would have taken him earlier. We assumed he was not eligible... you've got to give the Canucks credit for doing their homework."
Several other teams either had similar knowledge or had pursued Bure but there was confusion as to the legitimacy of the extra games. The Detroit Red Wings had asked league vice president Gil Stein about Bure's availability before their fifth-round pick but were told he was not eligible. They later decided to select him with their sixth-round pick, 116th overall, and settle his eligibility later. The Canucks selected Bure three picks ahead of Detroit's turn. Meanwhile, Winnipeg Jets general manager Mike Smith, claimed he made an offer to the Soviet Ice Hockey Federation that would involve three years of transfer payments before Bure would be allowed to join the Jets; however Smith did not have any plans to draft Bure in 1989 as he believed he was ineligible.
Canucks' general manager Pat Quinn originally intended to draft Bure in the eighth round but after receiving word the Oilers had similar intentions selected him in the sixth. Following the announcement of Bure's draft, several other team representatives reportedly stormed the Met Center stage in Minnesota, where the draft was being held. Formal complaints were filed resulting in an investigation into the selection. After the pick was deemed illegal by league president John Ziegler in a press release on May 17, 1990, the Canucks appealed the decision, procuring game sheets proving Bure's participation in the additional games with the help of recent Soviet acquisition Igor Larionov. It was not until the eve of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft, in which Bure would have been re-entered that the draft choice was upheld. Although Larionov and Fetisov had successfully spearheaded the rebellion against Soviet ice hockey officials in the late 1980s that led to Soviet players joining the NHL, Bure's transfer to the Canucks was met with resistance, and the Soviet authorities forbade the Canucks to contact Bure personally. During the 1991 World Junior Championships, he said in an interview that he was hesitant to defect for fears the Soviets would make things difficult for his younger brother Valeri Bure, who was 15 at the time and playing in the junior league.
Bure left Moscow with his father and brother on September 6, 1991, staying temporarily in Los Angeles. His mother arrived shortly afterward. The Canucks began negotiating a contract with Bure, but before one could be finalized, the issue of his existing contract with the Central Red Army had to be settled. The Canucks management and officials from the Soviet Ice Hockey Federation met in late-October 1991 in a Detroit court, where they bartered for a cash settlement. After the Canucks offered US$200,000, Bure stood up in the courtroom to offer an additional $50,000, bringing the total to $250,000. The Soviet officials accepted, and Canucks management paid the full $250,000. Bure signed a four-year contract worth a reported $2.7 million with an $800,000 signing bonus. The deal made Bure the Canucks' second highest paid player behind team captain Trevor Linden.
Vancouver Canucks (1991–1999)
Due to the court proceedings, Bure's debut with the Canucks was delayed until a month into the 1991–92 season. Garnering much attention in Vancouver, his first practice with the club on November 3, 1991, was attended by approximately 2,000 fans. He played his first game for the Canucks on November 5, 1991, in a 2–2 tie against the Winnipeg Jets. Despite not scoring a point, Bure showcased his talent and speed with several end-to-end rushes, carrying the puck past several defenders from near his defensive zone to the opposing net. Following the game, Vancouver Sun columnist Iain MacIntyre compared him to a rocket, calling him "the fastest Soviet creation since Sputnik". MacIntyre's comments are credited for laying the groundwork for Bure's moniker as the "Russian Rocket," which echoed the nickname of Maurice "Rocket" Richard, who played for the Montreal Canadiens in the 1950s. In his third game, Bure recorded his first point, an assist against the New York Islanders on November 10. He scored his first two NHL goals in the next game, on November 12, against Daniel Berthiaume of the Los Angeles Kings. He finished with 34 goals and 60 points in 65 games that season, including 22 goals in his final 23 games. In the last game of the regular season, Bure scored a goal to tie Ivan Hlinka's 1981–82 team mark for most points by a rookie.
As the Canucks opened the 1992 playoffs against the Winnipeg Jets, Bure recorded his first NHL hat trick in game six to help force a seventh and deciding game. Vancouver won the series to advance to the second round, but were eliminated by the Edmonton Oilers. Bure finished his first Stanley Cup playoffs with six goals and 10 points in 13 games. At the end of the season, he was awarded the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year. His 60 points were second among first-year players to Tony Amonte's 69 points with the Rangers, although Bure played in 14 fewer games. When accepting the award, Bure thanked Canucks linemate Igor Larionov for his guidance. On arriving in Vancouver, his former Red Army teammate took him into his home for two weeks before Bure moved into his own apartment; the two also roomed together on the road. Bure's Calder Trophy, along with head coach Pat Quinn's Jack Adams Award as the league's top coach, marked the first major individual NHL awards in Canucks' team history. However, despite being named the league's top rookie, Bure was left off the NHL All-Rookie Team, making him the only Calder recipient not to be named to the lineup. This was because he split his time playing both left and right wing. When it came to voting for the players, Bure had the most total votes, but not enough at either position to claim a spot.
Bure improved on his rookie season in 1992–93 with the first of two consecutive 60-goal seasons. In the third game of the season, he scored a career-high four goals against the Winnipeg Jets. His three goals and one assist in the second period set a pair of Canucks' records for most goals and points in a period, in addition to the team mark for most goals overall in a game (for which he is tied with several players). Furthermore, Bure scored two of his goals on the penalty kill to set a fourth team record for most short-handed goals in one contest. He appeared in his first NHL All-Star Game in 1993, being named to the Clarence Campbell Conference Team as the lone Canucks' representative, and scored two goals. Shortly after the All-Star break, Bure established a new franchise record for goals in a season during a 5–1 win over the Quebec Nordiques, surpassing Tony Tanti's 45-goal mark. The next month, on March 1, he reached the 50-goal mark for the first time in his career, scoring against Grant Fuhr of the Buffalo Sabres in a neutral-site game in Hamilton, Ontario. He also surpassed Patrik Sundström's franchise record of 91 points. Bure finished the season with 110 points in 83 games, and became the first Canuck named to the NHL First All-Star Team. His 110 points stood as the team record until it was broken by Henrik Sedin's 112 points in 2009–10.
A groin injury early in the 1993-94 season limited Bure's production for the first half of the season. Even so, he improved in the second half, and led the league in goal-scoring by repeating his 60-goal feat of the previous season. In doing so, he became the eighth player in NHL history to record back-to-back 60-goal seasons. He concluded the season with a streak of 49 goals and 78 points in his final 51 games, and earned player of the month honours in March 1994 after scoring 19 goals and 30 points in 16 games. His March scoring burst was just one point shy of Stan Smyl's 31-point March in 1983 for the most productive month by a Canucks player. Bure's 154 NHL goals at that point in his career put him behind only Wayne Gretzky and Mike Bossy for the most in any NHL player's first three seasons. He recorded 49 goals in the club's final 51 games, and contributed to 46.45% of his team's goals in the final 47 games of the season to carry the Canucks into the 1994 postseason.
Entering the 1994 Stanley Cup Playoffs as the seventh seed, the Canucks went on a run to the Stanley Cup Finals. In the seventh game of the opening-round series against the Calgary Flames, Bure scored one of the most significant and well-known goals in Canucks' history. After receiving a breakaway pass from defenceman Jeff Brown, he deked and scored on Flames' goalie Mike Vernon in the second overtime to win the series. In game two of the second round against the Dallas Stars, Bure knocked enforcer Shane Churla to the ice with an elbow to the jaw. He also scored two goals in the game to help Vancouver to a 3–0 win. Although Bure was not initially penalized for the play, he was later fined $500 by the league. He recorded six goals and eight points in five games against the Dallas Stars, and against the Toronto Maple Leafs the following round scored four goals and six points in five games.
After defeating Dallas in five games, the Canucks eliminated the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Campbell Conference Finals to meet the New York Rangers in the Finals, where the Canucks lost in seven games. Bure finished with a team-high 16 goals and 31 points in 24 games, second in playoff scoring only to Conn Smythe Trophy winner Brian Leetch. His points total also remained the highest by any Russian player until Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins recorded 36 in 2009.
In the next off-season, the Canucks announced they had re-signed Bure to a five-year, $24.5 million contract on June 16. The deal was reported to have been signed before game three of the Stanley Cup Finals against New York. It also included Bure's marketing rights and put his father, Vladimir, on the team payroll as a fitness and marketing consultant. The average annual salary of $4.9 million made Bure the league's third highest-paid player, behind Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux. In fact, Bure and the Canucks had entered into contract negotiations at the beginning of the 1993–94 season, although two years remained in his original deal. Neither side could come to an initial agreement; one of the major factors was the Canucks' demands for the contract to be in Canadian dollars on account of the American exchange rate. Numerous accusations were made in the media during the Canucks' playoff run that Bure threatened not to play if a contract could not be agreed upon. A Toronto Star article, published before the first game of the Finals on May 31, 1994, claimed Bure had signed a five-year, $30 million contract that, if the Canucks had not agreed to, would have seen him pull out of game five of the Conference Finals against the Maple Leafs. The article was followed by two additional claims in the following two days in the Vancouver-based newspaper The Province and Toronto Sun. The Toronto Sun held the contract was a five-year, $22.5 million deal, and that it was signed before either game six or seven of the opening round against the Flames after Bure's agent, Ron Salcer, told general manager Quinn that Bure would not play if the deal was not made. As the story continued well into the next season, Pat Quinn appeared in a segment on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)'s Hockey Night in Canada on March 27, 1995, publicly denying the claims.
Due to the 1994–95 NHL lockout, Bure spent single-game stints with Spartak Moscow of the Russian Super League and EV Landshut of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). He joined a team of Russian NHL players organized by Slava Fetisov that returned to Russia to play a five-game charity tour against local clubs. On the team, Bure reunited with former Central Red Army linemates Mogilny and Fedorov. When the NHL Players Association (NHLPA) and owners came to an agreement on January 12, 1995, NHL play was set to resume. However, there were unresolved contract issues, as Salcer claimed the Canucks promised they would pay Bure's full salary, despite the lockout, which cancelled nearly half of the 1994–95 season. Bure held out for four days as a result (the amount claimed to be owing was $1.7 million), before the two sides reached an agreement. The Canucks would put the disputed amount in escrow and would continue discussions. He soon reported to Vancouver and went on to tally 43 points in 44 games of the shortened season. In the 1995 playoffs, Bure set franchise records for most goals and points in a series with seven and 12 respectively in a seven-game series victory against the St. Louis Blues (Mikael Samuelsson tied Bure's goal-scoring record in 2010 against the Los Angeles Kings). The Canucks, however, failed to defend their Clarence Campbell Conference championship title, being swept by the Chicago Blackhawks in the second round. The Canucks' elimination in 1995 marked the last time Bure appeared in the post-season with the club. He finished with a career playoff total of 66 points with the Canucks, including 34 goals, which remained the highest club total until Linden tied the mark in 2007.
At the start of the 1995–96 season, Bure changed his jersey number from 10 to 96. The switch commemorated September 6, 1991, the day on which he first landed in North America from Moscow—9th month, 6th day. He had originally asked to wear the number when he first joined the Canucks, but was not permitted to do so by head coach Pat Quinn, who did not approve of high jersey numbers. After the Canucks traded with the Buffalo Sabres for Alexander Mogilny, reuniting the two Russian players, the jersey number was deemed acceptable because Mogilny had used number 89 since defecting to North America in 1989.
Early in the season, Bure sustained the first of several serious knee injuries during his career. On November 9, 1995, in a game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Bure was grabbed around the head by defenseman Steve Smith while approaching the end boards. Falling to the ice, he caught his skate against the boards, tearing the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee. Requiring arthroscopic surgery, in which tendon was removed from his hamstring to repair the ACL, he was sidelined for the remainder of the season.
Bure returned to the Canucks' lineup with his knee fully recovered in the 1996–97 season. In the season opener against the Flames on October 5, 1996, Bure was pushed into the boards head-first. He continued to play after the hit, but experienced headaches in the following weeks. As Bure's play dropped early in the season, the media speculated that he was playing injured. After he went eight games without a goal, head coach Tom Renney claimed Bure was not playing with a head injury, but instead had injured his shoulder in a game against the New York Rangers on November 23. Nevertheless, he continued to play. With under a month left in the season, he received another hit, during a game against the Avalanche on March 3, 1997. Bure left the game and did not return for the remainder of the season. Afterwards, he admitted he was playing with a neck injury, having sustained whiplash from the first game against Calgary, but did not want to take himself out of the lineup after missing 62 games the previous season. With Bure's reduced playing capacity, he managed 55 points in 63 games, well below his usual pace, and the Canucks missed the playoffs for the first time since he joined the team. In a 2012 interview, Bure admitted having sustained a head injury on the initial hit against Calgary and that "he should not have played through it".
In the off-season, the Canucks made another significant move, signing Rangers' captain Mark Messier during free agency on July 26, 1997. Despite finally having a high-profile centre to play with, media reports soon appeared claiming that Bure was asking to be traded. The Canucks opened the season with two games against the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in Tokyo – an event organized by the league to market hockey for the upcoming 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. After two injury-plagued seasons with the number 96 on his jersey, Bure switched back to his familiar number 10, explaining: "I'm not superstitious, but the last two seasons have been bad memories." Although the Canucks missed the playoffs for the second straight year, he returned to his previous form in 1997–98, scoring 51 goals for his first 50-goal season since 1993–94, and third overall. Bure later recalled that with the Canucks out of playoff contention with a handful of games left, head coach Mike Keenan told him he could play as much as he wanted to reach the milestone. Scoring 50 goals was also implicit in a contract bonus for Bure. With an additional 39 assists, his 90 points ranked him third in the NHL, behind Peter Forsberg and Jaromír Jágr.
Following the 1997–98 season, Bure told newly appointed general manager Brian Burke that he would not play for the Canucks again, despite still having a year left in his contract worth $8 million. He then went public with the declaration, stating he intended to leave the club for "personal reasons". Bure did not report to the club the following season. Instead, he returned to his hometown Moscow to practise with his former Central Red Army club. During this time, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko offered Bure a tax-free $4 million salary to play in Belarus, which he turned down.
Florida Panthers (1999–2002)
Bure held out well into the 1998–99 season until he was traded on January 17, 1999, to the Florida Panthers, with Bret Hedican, Brad Ference, and Vancouver's third-round choice in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft (Robert Fried) for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes, and Florida's first-round choice in the 2000 draft (Nathan Smith). Talks between Burke and Bryan Murray, general manager of the Panthers, had begun in late-December. After the trade was completed, Bure explained that he felt alienated from Canucks' management after arriving in North America having defected from Russia. He claimed he had been in Los Angeles for two weeks before any Canucks' representative came to see him, as well as several bitter contract negotiations—particularly those of 1994. He also claimed that someone within the Canucks' management planted the constant allegations that he threatened not to play during the 1994 playoff run. Bure's agent at the time, Ron Salcer, also believed the story.
Meeting the Panthers in New York for a game against the Islanders, Bure debuted with his new club on January 20, 1999. He played on an all-Russian line with Viktor Kozlov and Oleg Kvasha and scored two goals. In his first six games with the club, Bure scored eight goals and three assists for eleven points. Less than a month into his Panthers debut, he reinjured his knee, keeping him out for three weeks. Despite the injury, the Panthers signed him to a five-year, $47.5 million contract (with an option for a sixth year at $10.5 million), the most lucrative in team history. Another injury ended Bure's season after just 11 games with Florida, though he scored 13 goals and three assists in that time.
In 1999–2000, his first full season as a Panther, Bure led the league in goal-scoring to capture his first of two consecutive Rocket Richard Trophies with a 58-goal season. It marked the second time Bure led the league in goal-scoring, but his first Rocket Richard Trophy as the award had been introduced the previous season. Combined with 36 assists, his 94 points came within two of Art Ross Trophy winner Jaromír Jágr as the league's leading point-scorer. His 58 goals and 94 points both set franchise records. He helped Florida to a fifth-place finish in the Eastern Conference to earn their first post-season berth in three seasons, though they were swept by the eventual Stanley Cup champions, the New Jersey Devils. Bure finished third for the Hart Memorial Trophy winner behind Chris Pronger and Jágr. He was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team for the first time.
Bure was set to make his much-anticipated return to Vancouver to play the Canucks on November 5, 1999, but was kept out of the lineup due to a broken finger. A prior groin injury had also forced him out of a Panther's home game against the Canucks earlier in the season. During the season, he was named to the 2000 NHL All-Star Game in Toronto, where he recorded an assist and the eleventh hat trick in the history of the All-Star Game. Of Bure's three goals, two were assisted by his brother Valeri, who played on the same line with him, along with his Panthers linemate, Viktor Kozlov. Helping lead the World team to a 9–4 victory over North America, Bure was named the All-Star Game MVP.
Bure repeated as league scoring champion in 2000–01 with 59 goals, reaching the 50-goal plateau for the fifth and final time in his career, as well as bettering his franchise single-season, goal-scoring record. However, the Panthers missed the playoffs, finishing 12th place in the East. Bure set a league record that season by scoring 29.5% of his team's total goals over the course of the season. He was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team, behind Jágr in the right wing position for the second consecutive year.
Before the 2001–02 season, the Panthers acquired Valeri Bure from the Calgary Flames in a trade, putting the brothers on the same team for the first time. However, Bure suffered a setback in the pre-season re-injuring his groin. Bure recalled having "good relations" with Panthers' management, who often consulted with him on team matters, including the acquisition of his brother. At the trading deadline, Bure was traded to the New York Rangers. During his 56 games for the Panthers that season, he led the team in scoring for the third consecutive season with 49 points.
New York Rangers (2002–2003)
The New York Rangers acquired Bure on March 18, 2002, along with Florida's second-round pick in the 2002 draft (Lee Falardeau) for Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak, as well as the Rangers' first and second-round choices in the 2002 draft (Petr Tatíček and Rob Globke, respectively) and a fourth-round choice in the 2003 draft. The Rangers had shown interest in Bure when he requested a trade from the Canucks in 1997. After losing their initial bid for Bure, Wayne Gretzky, who retired the same season Bure was traded to Florida, announced prior to the 1999–2000 season he would have extended his career had the Rangers been able to pull off the trade. Bure made his Rangers debut against the Vancouver Canucks the day after his trade on March 19, scoring a goal against his former team. He scored 12 goals and 20 points in 12 games after being traded, bettering his pace with Florida that season. Between the two teams, he finished the season with 34 goals and 69 points.
Bure suffered another knee injury in the 2002–03 pre-season; combined with a case of strep throat, he missed the first three games of the regular season. After returning to play, he had 14 goals and 21 points in his first 27 games, including two goals and an assist in his first game back, before a knee-on-knee collision in December forced him back out. After undergoing surgery 10 days later, it was revealed that there was no damage to the ACL as previously feared, but instead a tear to the meniscus in his left knee, which was repaired. Bure returned that season to appear in 39 games, managing 19 goals and 30 points.
Even after two operations, Bure did not play in 2003–04 due to the lingering effects of the knee injury. He failed a pre-season physical and was declared medically unable to play. Left with his fully insured $10 million salary (80 percent of which would be reimbursed to the team), the Rangers left him unprotected in the NHL's Waiver Draft, where he was unclaimed.
Retirement
Bure remained inactive for another season due to the 2004–05 NHL lockout. After the NHL resumed play for the 2005–06 season, he announced his retirement from professional hockey at a press conference in Moscow on November 1, 2005, citing complications with his chronic knee injuries. In an interview Bure explained that he did not want to extend his playing career without being able to play at an elite level.
Because Bure had been inactive since the 2002–03 season, he was eligible for selection into the Hockey Hall of Fame (which requires players to wait three years after their last game) immediately following his retirement. After being passed for induction in his first six years of eligibility, Bure was voted in on June 27, 2012, alongside Joe Sakic, Adam Oates and Mats Sundin. He became the fifth Soviet or Russian player (after Vladislav Tretiak, Viacheslav Fetisov, Valeri Kharlamov and Igor Larionov) and the first player to spend the majority of his career with the Canucks to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
His non-selection in previous years was widely debated in the media. Bure was often compared with Cam Neely, a player who also waited six years for induction; he recorded similar goals-per-game numbers in a career that was also shortened to 700-plus games. It had been often rumoured that Pat Quinn, Bure's former head coach and general manager in Vancouver, who became co-chairman of the Hockey Hall of Fame's selection committee, opposed Bure's induction. However, in a conference call following his selection, Quinn was among the most prominent figures he thanked. Quinn criticized the Canucks organization for not yet retiring Bure's jersey.
In his retirement, he remained publicly steadfast in his dissatisfaction with the way he was treated by the Canucks organization during his playing career. While Bure admitted to "a lot of disagreements with the Canucks management," he maintained that he "never had any problems with the Canucks fans". The Canucks retired Bure's 10 jersey on November 2, 2013. The day before the Canucks announced they would rename the team's Most Exciting Player Award to the Pavel Bure Most Exciting Player Award in his honor. Bure renounced his US citizenship in 2016.
International career
Junior
Prior to joining the NHL in 1991, Bure competed for the Soviet Union in several junior, international tournaments. The first was the 1988 Quebec Esso Cup, an under-17 tournament (now known as the World U-17 Hockey Challenge) held in Quebec City, where he earned a gold medal. That same year, he competed in his first of two consecutive European Junior Championships, winning a bronze medal.
The following year, Bure debuted at the world under-20 level as a 17-year-old at the 1989 World Junior Championships in Anchorage, Alaska. The top line of CSKA Moscow teammates Bure, Alexander Mogilny and Sergei Fedorov led the Soviet Union to a gold medal. Bure's eight goals tied him for the tournament lead with Jeremy Roenick of the United States; he led the Soviet team with 14 points. He was named to the Tournament All-Star Team, and earned Best Forward honours. He again participated in the 1989 European Junior Championship, helping the Soviet Union win the gold medal.
Bure competed in his second World Juniors in 1990, winning a silver medal in Helsinki, Finland, and scoring seven goals in seven games. Later that year, he made his senior debut with the Soviet national team as a 19-year-old at the 1990 World Championships in Switzerland. He scored two goals and four assists in ten games to help the Soviets to a gold medal finish. The Soviet team also won silver in the European Championship, which was decided from games played among the European teams at the tournament. Several months later, in July, Bure took part in his third international tournament of the year at the 1990 Goodwill Games in Seattle. Bure scored four goals and an assist in five games, and the Soviets won the gold medal.
In 1991, Bure appeared in his third and final World Junior Championships. Bure finished the tournament as the leading scorer with 12 goals in 7 games and the Soviets won the silver medal. He finished his three-year World Junior career with a tournament-record 27 goals, to go with 39 points, in 21 games. Bure later competed in the 1991 World Championships, his second international appearance of the year. He improved on his previous year's total with 11 points in 11 games, tied for the team lead with Valeri Kamensky, and helped the Soviets to a bronze medal finish. Bure was named to the tournament's Second All-Star Team. The 1991 team marked the last World Championships for the USSR, as the country was dissolved later that year.
Senior
Bure was set to represent the Soviet Union at the 1991 Canada Cup, however after turning down a three-year contract with his Russian club, CSKA Moscow, he was left off the final roster.
Bure played his first international tournament for Russia in preliminary games for the inaugural 1996 World Cup (the successor tournament to the Canada Cup). Bure had recently recovered from reconstructive surgery to his right knee, and had begun practicing with the Russian national team where he was reunited on a line with Fedorov and Mogilny, the first and only time the three of them would play together at the senior level; the line was considered "perhaps the best forward line on earth" at the time. However Bure bruised a kidney in one of the games and was forced to miss the main tournament.
As with the 1991 Canada Cup, controversy ensued when Bure refused to sign a petition organized by national team veteran Viacheslav Fetisov. With the Russian Ice Hockey Federation dealing with internal corruption, the petition called for the ouster of a few select Russian ice hockey officials. In response, Bure explained, "I do not sign petitions. I believe I should work – play hockey. Petitions to the federation or to Olympic committees do not interest me."
Two years later, Bure made his Olympic debut with Russia at the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano. He helped his team to advance to the gold medal game after a five-goal game in Russia's 7–4 semifinal win against Finland. The Russians lost the gold medal game to the Czech Republic, ending with silver. Bure finished with a tournament-high nine goals to be named the top forward, and though he recorded no assists, placed third in point-scoring with nine points in six games.
Bure's next international tournament was the 2000 World Championships, held in Saint Petersburg. The Russians had a disappointing tournament and finished eleventh. In six games, Bure managed four goals and an assist. Two years later, Bure made his second Olympic appearance at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City, playing with a fractured hand. Bure finished his final international tournament as a player with two goals and an assist in six games while Russia won the bronze medal.
On the announcement of his retirement in 2005, Bure was named Russia's Olympic general manager, succeeding Viacheslav Fetisov. He promised to put an end to the Russian Hockey Federation's history of internal conflict and player boycotts, saying, "You won't see such a mess with the national team that you've seen here before," and that "You won't see grouchy players here anymore. Only those who really want to play for Russia will be called into the team." As general manager, Bure chose the team for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. The Russians failed to win a medal, losing to the Czech Republic in the bronze medal match. Leading up to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, former Soviet national goaltender Vladislav Tretiak was named Bure's successor as Olympic general manager.
In December 2011, Bure was announced as one of the 2012 inductees into the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame. He was named alongside American Phil Housley, Finn Raimo Helminen and Czechoslovak Milan Nový in the annual class. The players were inducted in a ceremony in May 2012.
Playing style
Bure's playing style reflected the speed, skill and puck possession that was prominent in Soviet Union hockey programs. The most prevalent aspects of his game were his skating speed, agility, and acceleration, which earned him his nickname the "Russian Rocket". He was able to use his quickness to separate himself from defenders, to retrieve pucks before the opposition could in all zones of the ice, and to skate the length of the ice on many occasions. In a 1993 poll of NHL coaches conducted by hockey writer Bob McKenzie, Bure was named the league's best skater with eight of twenty-one votes, twice as many votes as any other player. One coach noted: "Bure has the best combination of speed, agility and balance ... He can also use change of speed better than anybody in the league right now."
During Bure's rehabilitation period, following his first major knee injury in 1995, Canucks' conditioning coach Peter Twist noticed that his skating style was distinct in comparison to typical North American players. He explained: "Most players skate on their inside edge and push off at a 45-degree angle, but Bure starts on his outer edge and rolls over to his inside edge and pushes back straighter on his stride ... he gets more power and force in his stride to get up to top speed quicker." his skating was also complemented by his ability to deke out defenders and goaltenders at top speeds, making him capable of routinely starting end-to-end rushes. However, several knee injuries, and the resulting reconstructive surgeries, compromised the speed that defined Bure's game, ultimately leading to his retirement.
Early in Bure's career, he was noted for playing a strong two-way game. Having joined Pat Quinn's defensive-minded Canucks in 1991, Bure's transition to the NHL was cited as being easier than that of his countryman, Igor Larionov, due to his quick adjustment to the team's defensive demands. Regarding Bure's first NHL game against the Winnipeg Jets, reporter Mike Beamish explained that "hockey fans marvelled at his offensive thrusts, but hockey people were taken by a singular display of jet-powered defensive diligence. On one play, after the Canucks were caught deep in the Winnipeg zone, the Russian winger raced back and almost single-handedly foiled a two-on-one Jets' rush, making up a half-rink disadvantage." Bure was used on the team's penalty kill for his entire tenure with the Canucks, and was proficient at generating shorthanded chances, pressuring the opposition with his quickness and positioning in the defensive zone. During the 1992 Stanley Cup playoffs, commentator and ex-NHL coach Harry Neale commented, "I like the effort he gives it when he doesn't have the puck. We all know what he can do when he thinks he can score, but he's killing penalties, he's checking, doing a lot of things." Bure tied for second-place on Bob McKenzie's 1993 coaches poll for the NHL's best penalty killer. He was also voted the league's second-best stickhandler that season and garnered recognition as one of the smartest players in the NHL.
Sports journalists Damien Cox and Stephen Brunt wrote about Bure during the 1994 Stanley Cup playoffs that he was a "two-way dynamo," accounting for "several bodychecks he handed out on the night" and for his defensive abilities as he stayed on the ice in the last minutes of a one-goal playoff match against the Toronto Maple Leafs. They spoke highly of his creativity as well, recognizing him as "someone who sees in his game a world of possibilities that just never occur to others," praising his "sheer elegance and imagination" and characterizing his hockey sense as "ho-hum brilliance from the most explosive player in the sport". Brunt called him "a nonpareil, a van Gogh, a Picasso, a Charlie Parker". During the 1993-94 season, Bure demonstrated his strong playmaking abilities, helping linemate and friend Gino Odjick score a career-high 16 goals in a single season, more than twice the number of goals Odjick would score in any other year separated from Bure, and doubling his career goal totals up to that point in his career. According to teammate Cliff Ronning in 1994, "we play a much sounder game defensively when Pavel's flying, as he was in the first period". Former Canuck teammate Jyrki Lumme spoke of Bure as a player and teammate, "That guy does something spectacular every time ... it's frustrating to go against him in practice because he's all over the place. He makes everybody on our team better."
During his time with the Canucks, Bure won the team's Most Exciting Player Award, as voted by the fans, a record five times (tied with Tony Tanti), from 1992 to 1995, and once more in 1998. Trevor Linden, who had played with Bure for seven seasons, said following Bure's retirement, "I don't know if I've ever seen or played with a player that's brought people out of their seats like that." During the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals, Rangers coach Mike Keenan, who later coached Bure for one-and-a-half seasons in Vancouver, called him "perhaps the most electrifying forward in the league". The Canucks renamed the award the Pavel Bure Most Exciting Player Award in his honour in 2013.
Bure has been described as a pure goal scorer and is statistically among the top players in NHL history in that regard. In addition to having reached the 50-goal mark in his career five times, and the 60-goal mark twice, his .623 goals per game average is third among the top 100 goal scorers in NHL history, behind Mike Bossy and Mario Lemieux. Michael Farber of the Montreal Gazette described Bure as "the most dangerous scorer in the National Hockey League with the continued absence of Mario Lemieux because Bure can beat a defence with his speed, his strength, his mind. Bure isn't a scorer as much as he is a permanent late-night television guest; he is to highlight packages what Terri Garr is to Letterman."
Personal life
Family
Bure comes from an athletic family; his father Vladimir, who is of Swiss descent (his side of the family originated from Furna, Switzerland), was an Olympic swimmer who competed for the Soviet Union in the 1968, 1972, and 1976 Olympic Games, where he won four medals. Bure retained his father as his personal trainer well into his playing career, before severing ties with him in 1997. Bure's paternal grandfather, Valeri Bure, played goalkeeper for the national water polo team. Both Pavel and his younger brother Valeri became estranged from their father and his second wife, Julia, along with their half-sister Katya, by 1998. Neither brother has explained a reason for the split.
Named after their grandfather, Bure's younger brother, Valeri, was also a hockey player, spending 10 years in the NHL. The two siblings played with each other briefly as members of the Florida Panthers, after Valeri was traded there in 2001, and played together at the 1998 and 2002 Winter Olympics.
The Bure family made precious watches for the Russian tsars from 1815 until 1917, and Bure was named after his great-grandfather, a watchmaker to Tsar Alexander III. As craftspersons to the imperial family, the Bures were granted noble status. After Bure sustained his first serious knee injury in 1995, he pursued the watchmaking business during his rehabilitation period in an attempt to revive the family business. Fifty replicas of the same watches his ancestors made for the Russian imperial family were made and sold at US$30,000 each. Bure presented three of the gold replicas to Russian President Boris Yeltsin, Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin and Moscow mayor Yuriy Luzhkov.
Relationships
Five days after arriving in North America from Moscow with his father and brother on September 6, 1991, (his mother Tatiana arrived two months later), Bure married an American fashion model, later revealed to be Jayme Bohn, in a civil ceremony. The marriage was allegedly set up by Bure's agents as a preventative measure against deportation in the event he and the Canucks could not come to terms with a contract. Bure derived no immigration benefit from the marriage, which was dissolved the following year. Bohn became a costume designer in the film and television industry.
After being linked to girlfriend Dahn Bryan, a model and actress, early in his NHL career, Bure shared a relationship with tennis star and fellow Russian Anna Kournikova. The two met in 1999 when she was still linked to Bure's former Russian teammate Sergei Fedorov. Bure and Kournikova were reported to have been engaged in 2000 after reporter Andrew Greven took a photo of them together in a Florida restaurant where Bure supposedly asked Kournikova to marry him. As the story made headlines in Russia, where they were both heavily followed in the media as celebrities, Bure and Kournikova both denied any engagement. Kournikova, 10 years younger than Bure, was 18 years old at the time. The following year, Kournikova and Fedorov were married in Moscow, though they soon divorced.
Bure married 23-year-old model Alina Khasanova on October 10, 2009, in Moscow, with 300 guests present. Pravda has reported, however, that the couple, who had known each other for four years, had officially married on October 10, 2008, in Miami. Together they have three children: Pavel Jr., Palina and Anastasia. Pavel Jr. was born on April 23, 2013; Palina was born on July 20, 2015. Their third child, a daughter named Anastasia, was born on 28 December 2018.
Politics
Bure is also frequently playing ice hockey with Russian president Vladimir Putin, but has denied having any political ambitions himself in an interview with a Swedish newspaper in 2019.
Legal activity
In 2002, Bure sued the Russian newspaper the eXile for publishing an article stating he broke up with Kournikova because she had two vaginas. Although the newspapers' editorial staff claimed the story was a mere joke, the court ruled in favour of Bure in the amount of 500,000 rubles (US$17,770), and ordered a retraction to be printed. Two years later, on December 27, 2004, the Russian cosmetics chain Arbat Prestige published a story in their free promotional paper that Bure had bragged about Kournikova losing her virginity to him. Shortly thereafter, on January 31, 2005, Bure sued Arbat Prestige for 300 million rubles (US$10.65 million) in a court in Moscow. He also demanded the company print a retraction and apology in a future paper. The court ruled in favour of Bure in November 2005. However, the amount was reduced from 300 million to approximately 320,000 rubles.
On October 31, 2006, nearly a year after his retirement, Bure filed another suit after being kicked off a British Airways flight by the pilot, having been mistaken for a rowdy soccer fan. Despite an apology from the airline company in June 2007, Bure took the issue to court, suing British Airways for 20 million rubles. In late-August 2007, a Russian court ruled in favour of Bure in the amount of 67,000 rubles.
Alleged Mafia connections
During Bure's playing career, much speculation surrounded Russian NHL players and their potential ties to the Russian mafia both as victims and associates. As Soviet players began defecting to the NHL, many cases of extortion began surfacing. The Russian mafia was targeting the players' families still living in Russia. Former teammate Alexander Mogilny was a victim of such an extortion attempt in 1994, while Bure was reported to have made payments totaling in the thousands of dollars to Russian extortionists in 1993. Three years later, in 1996, American sports network ESPN aired reports alleging Bure was a potential associate of the Russian mafia because of his relationship with friend and business partner Anzor Kikalishvili, known to both Russian and American police as a suspected criminal and possible Russian mob boss. Bure was revealed to hold a position as vice president in the sports company Twenty First Century Association, owned by Kikalishvili, and reportedly believed by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation to be a mafia front worth at least US$100 million in illicit funds. While Bure did not deny his business and personal relationships with Kikalishvili, he refuted reports Kikalishvili was involved in any criminal activity.
Speculation resurfaced in 1999, as Bure was included in an investigation aired by the CBC investigative news program The Fifth Estate that made several supposed associations between Soviet NHL players and the Russian mafia. An allegation arose that Bure's former CSKA teammate Viacheslav Fetisov used a company, of which he was president, to launder money for Vyacheslav Ivankov, considered the "Russian godfather" in North America. Bure's relationship with Kikalishvili continued to be questioned. Bure denied Kikalishvili's involvement in any criminal activity, dismissing the allegations as "rumours".
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Bold indicates led league
International
a does not include 1988 Quebec Esso Cup (U17)b does not include the 1990 Goodwill Games
Awards
Soviet
International
NHL
Vancouver Canucks
Records
Team
Vancouver Canucks' single-season record, most points by a rookie – 60 in 1991–92 (tied with Ivan Hlinka, 1981–82 and Elias Pettersson, 2018–19)
Vancouver Canucks' single-season record, most goals – 60 in 1992–93 and 1993–94
Vancouver Canucks' all-time playoffs record, most goals – 34 (tied with Trevor Linden)
Vancouver Canucks' all-time record, most shorthanded goals – 24
Vancouver Canucks' single-game record, most goals – four versus the Winnipeg Jets on October 12, 1992 (tied with Rosaire Paiement, Bobby Schmautz, Rick Blight, Petri Skriko, Greg Adams, Tony Tanti, Martin Gélinas, Markus Näslund and Daniel Sedin)
Florida Panthers' single-season record, most goals – 59 in 2000–01
International
World Junior Championships all-time record, most goals – 27 in 21 games (1989–1991)
Winter Olympics single-game record, most goals – five (1998; semifinal vs. Finland)
NHL
NHL record, most goals scored in proportion to team – 29.5% of the Florida Panthers' goals in 2000–01.
Transactions
June 9, 1989 – Drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in the sixth round, 113th overall, in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft.
October 31, 1991 – Signed by the Vancouver Canucks to a four-year, $3.5 million contract.
June 16, 1994 – Re-signed by the Vancouver Canucks to a five-year, $24.5 million contract.
January 17, 1999 – Traded by the Vancouver Canucks, along with Bret Hedican, Brad Ference and Vancouver's third-round draft choice (Robert Fried) in 2000, to the Florida Panthers in exchange for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes and Florida's first-round draft choice (Nathan Smith) in 2000.
February 8, 1999 – Signed by the Florida Panthers to a five-year, $47.5 million deal.
March 18, 2002 – Traded by the Florida Panthers, along with Florida's second-round draft choice in 2002 (Lee Falardeau), to the New York Rangers in exchange for Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak, the Rangers' first-round draft choice in 2002 (Eric Nystrom), the Rangers' second-round draft choice in 2002 (Rob Globke) and the Rangers fourth-round draft choice in 2003 (later traded to the Atlanta Thrashers; Atlanta selected Guillaume Desbiens).
See also
List of NHL statistical leaders
List of NHL players with 50-goal seasons
List of NHL players with 100-point seasons
Notable families in the NHL
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links
Pavel Bure's Official Web Site
1971 births
Living people
Calder Trophy winners
EV Landshut players
Florida Panthers players
HC CSKA Moscow players
HC Spartak Moscow players
Hockey Hall of Fame inductees
Ice hockey players at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Ice hockey players at the 2002 Winter Olympics
IIHF Hall of Fame inductees
New York Rangers players
National Hockey League All-Stars
National Hockey League players with retired numbers
Olympic bronze medalists for Russia
Olympic ice hockey players of Russia
Olympic silver medalists for Russia
Ice hockey people from Moscow
Rocket Richard Trophy winners
Russian ice hockey right wingers
Russian people of Swiss descent
Soviet expatriate ice hockey players
Soviet expatriates in Canada
Soviet ice hockey right wingers
Soviet people of Swiss descent
Vancouver Canucks draft picks
Vancouver Canucks players
Olympic medalists in ice hockey
Medalists at the 2002 Winter Olympics
Medalists at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Pavel
Russian State University of Physical Education, Sport, Youth and Tourism alumni
Competitors at the 1990 Goodwill Games | true | [
"Morris Massey (born 1939) is a marketing professor/sociologist, and producer of training videos.\n\nEducation\nHis undergraduate and M.B.A. degrees are from the University of Texas, Austin, and his Ph.D. in business is from Louisiana State University.\n\nCareer\nDuring the late 1960s through the 1970s, as an Associate Dean and Professor of Marketing, at the University of Colorado at Boulder, he received four awards for teaching excellence.\n\nDr Massey was honored with the W.M. McFeely award presented by the International Management Council for \"significant contribution to the field of management and human relations.\" During the 1980s and 90s he was the #1 ranked resource for the Young Presidents Organization International. In What Works At Work (Lakewood Publications, 1988) he was cited as one of the 27 most influential workplace experts of the time. His work is focused on values, generations, and Significant Emotional Events (SEE).\n\nDevelopment of values\nMorris Massey has described three major periods during which values are developed.\n\n1. The Imprint Period. Up to the age of seven, we are like sponges, absorbing everything around us and accepting much of it as true, especially when it comes from our parents. The confusion and blind belief of this period can also lead to the early formation of trauma and other deep problems. The critical thing here is to learn a sense of right and wrong, good and bad. This is a human construction which we nevertheless often assume would exist even if we were not here (which is an indication of how deeply imprinted it has become).\n\n2. The Modeling Period. Between the ages of eight and thirteen, we copy people, often our parents, but also other people. Rather than blind acceptance, we are trying on things like suit of clothes, to see how they feel. We may be much impressed with religion or our teachers. You may remember being particularly influenced by junior school teachers who seemed so knowledgeable—maybe even more so than your parents.\n\n3. The Socialization Period. Between 13 and 21, we are very largely influenced by our peers. As we develop as individuals and look for ways to get away from the earlier programming, we naturally turn to people who seem more like us. Other influences at these ages include the media, especially those parts which seem to resonate with the values of our peer groups.\n\nRetirement\nHe retired in 1995 from the consulting/speaking circuit and now lives with his wife, Judith Ford Massey, in New Orleans, Louisiana. They have twin sons, Ryan Massey and Blake Massey.\n\nVideo programs \n What You Are Is Where You Were When... AGAIN!\n Just Get It!\n Flashpoint: When Values Collide\n The Original Massey Tapes - 1: What You Are Is Where You Were When\n The Original Massey Tapes - 3: What You Are Is\n The Original Massey Tapes - 4: What You Are Is Where You See\n What You Are Is What You Choose…So Don't Screw It Up\n Dancing With The Bogeyman\n The Massey Triad Program 1: What You Are Is Where You Were When\n The Massey Triad Program 2: What You Are is Not What You Have To Be\n The Massey Triad Program 3: What You Are Is Where You See\n\nSee also \n Significant Emotional Event (SEE)\n University of Colorado at Boulder\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Changing Minds\n\n1939 births\nLiving people\nLouisiana State University alumni",
"Lafayette, Louisiana is part of the Gulf Coastal Plain region of the United States and is located at coordinates 30°12′50″N 92°01′46″W. It has an elevation of 36 feet (11.0 m). One of the physical characteristics of the geography include many streams that drain the parish. The primary river that runs through the city is the Vermillion River (Louisiana). This river was formed by the confluence of a few small bayous, stretches about 70 miles long, and drains into the Gulf of Mexico. Most of Lafayette's landscape is urban; however its humid and subtropic climate during the summer allow it to house many species of birds, alligators, and fish. The winter season is mild. While Lafayette is situated in a geographic location that is overall relatively safe, the city is susceptible to flooding; hurricanes are also a common natural disaster.\n\nGeography\nLafayette is located at and has an elevation of .\n\nAccording to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 47.7 square miles (123.5 km2), of which, 47.6 square miles (123.3 km2) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km2) of it (0.19%) is water.\n\nLafayette is located on the West Gulf Coastal Plain. What is now Lafayette was part of the seabed during the Quaternary Period. During this time, the Mississippi River cut a valley between what is now Lafayette and Baton Rouge. This valley was filled and is now the Atchafalaya Basin. Lafayette is located on the western rim of this valley. This land, called the southwestern Louisiana Prairie Terrace is higher in elevation, and not made of wetland like much of the surrounding areas to the south and east of Lafayette. Because of this, Lafayette does not suffer significant flooding problems.\n\nThe Vermilion River runs through the center of Lafayette. Other significant waterways in the city are Isaac Verot Coulee, Coulee Mine, Coulee des Poches and Coulee Ile des Cannes, which are natural drainage canals that lead to the Vermilion River.\n\nClimate\n\nLafayette's climate is described as humid subtropical using Köppen climate classification. Lafayette is typical of areas along the Gulf of Mexico in that it has hot, humid summers a mild winters. (See table below for average temperatures for Lafayette.)\n\nReferences\n\n \nGeography of Lafayette Parish, Louisiana"
]
|
[
"Pavel Bure",
"CSKA Moscow (1987-1991)",
"What is CSKA?",
"I don't know.",
"What did he do with CSKA?",
"professional hockey",
"Did he win?",
"His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (",
"Did he receive any special recognition or awards?",
"Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours.",
"What was he doing in 1991?",
"Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup.",
"Did he have any injuries?",
"I don't know.",
"What is significant during this time?",
"The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line,"
]
| C_32732a22d04542398a2a0695a7ea171d_1 | Did Bure retire? | 8 | Did Pavel Bure retire? | Pavel Bure | At age 16, Bure began his professional hockey career playing for CSKA Moscow. He was invited to the senior club's training camp for the 1987-88 season. Although he was deemed too young, and not yet ready, for the Soviet League, Bure earned minimal playing time filling in for absent regulars. He made his debut in September 1987, and played five games for the senior team, scoring his only goal in his first game. Bure joined the club full-time in 1988-89 and amassed 17 goals, a Soviet League record for rookies. The record would last for 18 years until Alexei Cherepanov scored 18 goals in 2006-07. Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (they repeated as European champions the following year). As a member CSKA, Bure joined a lineup that featured several future NHL players, including linemates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, as well as Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladimir Konstantinov. The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, the K-L-M combination of Vladimir Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. The trio was short-lived, as Mogilny defected to play for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, and Fedorov joined the Detroit Red Wings the following year. In his third and final season with the Red Army, Bure tied for the lead in team-scoring with Valeri Kamensky, tallying 46 points. His 35 goals was second in the league, one goal behind Ramil Yuldashev of Sokil Kyiv. Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Pavel Vladimirovich Bure (, ; born March 31, 1971) is a Russian former professional ice hockey player who played the right wing position. Nicknamed "the Russian Rocket" for his speed, Bure played for 12 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Vancouver Canucks, the Florida Panthers and the New York Rangers. Trained in the Soviet Union, he played three seasons with the Central Red Army team before his NHL career.
Selected 113th overall in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft by Vancouver, he began his NHL career in the 1991–92 season, and won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league's best rookie before leading the NHL in goal-scoring in 1993-94 and helping the Canucks to the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals. After seven seasons the Canucks traded Bure to the Panthers, where he won back-to-back Rocket Richard Trophies as the league's leading goal-scorer. Bure struggled with knee injuries throughout his career, resulting in his retirement in 2005 as a member of the Rangers, although he had not played since 2003. He averaged better than a point per game in his NHL career (779 points with 437 goals in 702 NHL games) and is fourth all-time in goals per game. After six years of eligibility, Bure was elected into the Hockey Hall of Fame in June 2012. In 2017, an NHL panel named Bure one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in history.
Internationally, Bure competed for the Soviet Union and Russia. As a member of the Soviet Union, he won two silver medals and a gold in three World Junior Championships, followed by a gold and a silver medal in the 1990 and 1991 World Championships, respectively. After the Soviet Union was dissolved in 1991, Bure competed for Russia in two Winter Olympics, claiming silver at the 1998 Games in Nagano as team captain, and bronze at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City. Following Bure's retirement in 2005, he was named the general manager for Russia's national team at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. Bure was later recognized for his international career as a 2012 inductee in the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame.
Early life
Bure was born in Moscow in 1971 to Vladimir and Tatiana Bure. Vladimir Bure, a Russian swimming legend, had dreams of Pavel becoming a professional swimmer, but he aspired to play hockey at an early age. He attended his first tryout with the CSKA Moscow hockey school at the age of six, despite his limited skating ability. Until that point, Bure had only played ball hockey on the streets. After Bure failed to impress in his first tryout, his father told him that if he did not show significant improvement within two months, he would withdraw him from the hockey school. By age 11, he was named the best forward in his league. Around that time, in July 1982, Bure was selected as one of three young Russian players to practice with Wayne Gretzky and Soviet national goaltender Vladislav Tretiak in a taped television special.
At age 12, his parents separated, and he remained with his mother. By the time he was 14 years old, he was named to the Central Red Army's junior team. In 1991, he joined his father and brother, Valeri in moving to North America as he embarked on a National Hockey League (NHL) career with the Vancouver Canucks. His mother arrived two months later. They settled initially in Los Angeles where Vladimir continued to train and coach both Valeri and Pavel in hockey and physical conditioning. However both became estranged from their father, along with his second wife and their half-sister Katya, by 1998. Neither brother has explained a reason for the split.
In December 1986, he embarked on a tour of Canada with the Soviet national midget team from Ottawa to Vancouver. Nearly five years before Bure made his NHL debut with the Vancouver Canucks in 1991 at the Pacific Coliseum, he played his first game at his future home rink as part of the tour. Bure also earned another opportunity to meet Gretzky, as well as defenseman Paul Coffey, when his team stopped in Edmonton to play at the Northlands Coliseum.
Playing career
CSKA Moscow (1987–1991)
At age 16, Bure began his professional hockey career playing for CSKA Moscow. He was invited to the senior club's training camp for the 1987–88 season. Although he was deemed too young, and not yet ready, for the Soviet League, Bure earned minimal playing time filling in for absent regulars. He made his debut in September 1987, and played five games for the senior team, scoring his only goal in his first game.
Bure joined the club full-time in 1988–89 and amassed 17 goals, a Soviet League record for rookies. The record would last for 18 years until Alexei Cherepanov scored 18 goals in 2006–07. Bure added 9 assists for 26 points to earn the league's rookie of the year honours. His individual success helped CSKA Moscow capture their thirteenth consecutive Soviet championship and twelfth consecutive IIHF European Cup in 1989 (they repeated as European champions the following year).
As a member CSKA, Bure joined a lineup that featured several future NHL players, including linemates Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, as well as Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladimir Konstantinov. The combination of Bure, Fedorov and Mogilny formed a promising combination for head coach Viktor Tikhonov, with expectations to replace the previous top Soviet line, the K-L-M combination of Vladimir Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. The trio was short-lived, as Mogilny defected to play for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, and Fedorov joined the Detroit Red Wings the following year.
In his third and final season with the Red Army, Bure tied for the lead in team-scoring with Valeri Kamensky, tallying 46 points. His 35 goals was second in the league, one goal behind Ramil Yuldashev of Sokil Kyiv. Bure turned down a three-year contract extension in August 1991, which resulted in him being left off the roster of the Soviet team for the Canada Cup.
Transfer to the NHL (1989–1991)
Prior to the 1989 NHL Entry Draft, William Houston of The Globe and Mail wrote, "The best of the group is Soviet star winger Pavel Bure, a spectacular player with outstanding speed. He is compared to Vladimir Krutov and also the late Soviet superstar of the 1970s, Valeri Kharlamov." NHL organizations were afraid he would not leave the Soviet Union to play in the NHL thus deterring teams from selecting him early, although scouts and analysts believed he could have been selected as high as the second round had he defected. Many analysts compared him to Valeri Kharlamov. Edmonton Oilers' scout Barry Fraser commented, "From what I've seen of him, Bure can play on any team in the NHL right now... he's quick, real quick, small and very exciting. He may be the top player in this year's draft, but because he is from the Soviet Union, we don't analyze him the same way as a kid from the West... I don't expect him to go really early because it is still too much of a gamble to hope he will defect."
Bure was selected 113th overall in the sixth round Draft by the Vancouver Canucks, following his rookie season with CSKA Moscow. The pick was controversial, as the Canucks had chosen him seemingly a year ahead of his eligible draft season. At the age of 18, he was available to be chosen in the first three rounds of the draft, but to be selected any later, he would have needed to play at least two seasons—with a minimum of 11 games per season—for his elite-level Soviet club, the Central Red Army. While most teams believed he was ineligible, the Canucks' head scout at the time, Mike Penny, discovered Bure had played in additional exhibition and international games to make him an eligible late-round draft choice a year early. Jack Button, the Washington Capitals' director of player personnel, admitted "everybody would have taken him earlier. We assumed he was not eligible... you've got to give the Canucks credit for doing their homework."
Several other teams either had similar knowledge or had pursued Bure but there was confusion as to the legitimacy of the extra games. The Detroit Red Wings had asked league vice president Gil Stein about Bure's availability before their fifth-round pick but were told he was not eligible. They later decided to select him with their sixth-round pick, 116th overall, and settle his eligibility later. The Canucks selected Bure three picks ahead of Detroit's turn. Meanwhile, Winnipeg Jets general manager Mike Smith, claimed he made an offer to the Soviet Ice Hockey Federation that would involve three years of transfer payments before Bure would be allowed to join the Jets; however Smith did not have any plans to draft Bure in 1989 as he believed he was ineligible.
Canucks' general manager Pat Quinn originally intended to draft Bure in the eighth round but after receiving word the Oilers had similar intentions selected him in the sixth. Following the announcement of Bure's draft, several other team representatives reportedly stormed the Met Center stage in Minnesota, where the draft was being held. Formal complaints were filed resulting in an investigation into the selection. After the pick was deemed illegal by league president John Ziegler in a press release on May 17, 1990, the Canucks appealed the decision, procuring game sheets proving Bure's participation in the additional games with the help of recent Soviet acquisition Igor Larionov. It was not until the eve of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft, in which Bure would have been re-entered that the draft choice was upheld. Although Larionov and Fetisov had successfully spearheaded the rebellion against Soviet ice hockey officials in the late 1980s that led to Soviet players joining the NHL, Bure's transfer to the Canucks was met with resistance, and the Soviet authorities forbade the Canucks to contact Bure personally. During the 1991 World Junior Championships, he said in an interview that he was hesitant to defect for fears the Soviets would make things difficult for his younger brother Valeri Bure, who was 15 at the time and playing in the junior league.
Bure left Moscow with his father and brother on September 6, 1991, staying temporarily in Los Angeles. His mother arrived shortly afterward. The Canucks began negotiating a contract with Bure, but before one could be finalized, the issue of his existing contract with the Central Red Army had to be settled. The Canucks management and officials from the Soviet Ice Hockey Federation met in late-October 1991 in a Detroit court, where they bartered for a cash settlement. After the Canucks offered US$200,000, Bure stood up in the courtroom to offer an additional $50,000, bringing the total to $250,000. The Soviet officials accepted, and Canucks management paid the full $250,000. Bure signed a four-year contract worth a reported $2.7 million with an $800,000 signing bonus. The deal made Bure the Canucks' second highest paid player behind team captain Trevor Linden.
Vancouver Canucks (1991–1999)
Due to the court proceedings, Bure's debut with the Canucks was delayed until a month into the 1991–92 season. Garnering much attention in Vancouver, his first practice with the club on November 3, 1991, was attended by approximately 2,000 fans. He played his first game for the Canucks on November 5, 1991, in a 2–2 tie against the Winnipeg Jets. Despite not scoring a point, Bure showcased his talent and speed with several end-to-end rushes, carrying the puck past several defenders from near his defensive zone to the opposing net. Following the game, Vancouver Sun columnist Iain MacIntyre compared him to a rocket, calling him "the fastest Soviet creation since Sputnik". MacIntyre's comments are credited for laying the groundwork for Bure's moniker as the "Russian Rocket," which echoed the nickname of Maurice "Rocket" Richard, who played for the Montreal Canadiens in the 1950s. In his third game, Bure recorded his first point, an assist against the New York Islanders on November 10. He scored his first two NHL goals in the next game, on November 12, against Daniel Berthiaume of the Los Angeles Kings. He finished with 34 goals and 60 points in 65 games that season, including 22 goals in his final 23 games. In the last game of the regular season, Bure scored a goal to tie Ivan Hlinka's 1981–82 team mark for most points by a rookie.
As the Canucks opened the 1992 playoffs against the Winnipeg Jets, Bure recorded his first NHL hat trick in game six to help force a seventh and deciding game. Vancouver won the series to advance to the second round, but were eliminated by the Edmonton Oilers. Bure finished his first Stanley Cup playoffs with six goals and 10 points in 13 games. At the end of the season, he was awarded the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year. His 60 points were second among first-year players to Tony Amonte's 69 points with the Rangers, although Bure played in 14 fewer games. When accepting the award, Bure thanked Canucks linemate Igor Larionov for his guidance. On arriving in Vancouver, his former Red Army teammate took him into his home for two weeks before Bure moved into his own apartment; the two also roomed together on the road. Bure's Calder Trophy, along with head coach Pat Quinn's Jack Adams Award as the league's top coach, marked the first major individual NHL awards in Canucks' team history. However, despite being named the league's top rookie, Bure was left off the NHL All-Rookie Team, making him the only Calder recipient not to be named to the lineup. This was because he split his time playing both left and right wing. When it came to voting for the players, Bure had the most total votes, but not enough at either position to claim a spot.
Bure improved on his rookie season in 1992–93 with the first of two consecutive 60-goal seasons. In the third game of the season, he scored a career-high four goals against the Winnipeg Jets. His three goals and one assist in the second period set a pair of Canucks' records for most goals and points in a period, in addition to the team mark for most goals overall in a game (for which he is tied with several players). Furthermore, Bure scored two of his goals on the penalty kill to set a fourth team record for most short-handed goals in one contest. He appeared in his first NHL All-Star Game in 1993, being named to the Clarence Campbell Conference Team as the lone Canucks' representative, and scored two goals. Shortly after the All-Star break, Bure established a new franchise record for goals in a season during a 5–1 win over the Quebec Nordiques, surpassing Tony Tanti's 45-goal mark. The next month, on March 1, he reached the 50-goal mark for the first time in his career, scoring against Grant Fuhr of the Buffalo Sabres in a neutral-site game in Hamilton, Ontario. He also surpassed Patrik Sundström's franchise record of 91 points. Bure finished the season with 110 points in 83 games, and became the first Canuck named to the NHL First All-Star Team. His 110 points stood as the team record until it was broken by Henrik Sedin's 112 points in 2009–10.
A groin injury early in the 1993-94 season limited Bure's production for the first half of the season. Even so, he improved in the second half, and led the league in goal-scoring by repeating his 60-goal feat of the previous season. In doing so, he became the eighth player in NHL history to record back-to-back 60-goal seasons. He concluded the season with a streak of 49 goals and 78 points in his final 51 games, and earned player of the month honours in March 1994 after scoring 19 goals and 30 points in 16 games. His March scoring burst was just one point shy of Stan Smyl's 31-point March in 1983 for the most productive month by a Canucks player. Bure's 154 NHL goals at that point in his career put him behind only Wayne Gretzky and Mike Bossy for the most in any NHL player's first three seasons. He recorded 49 goals in the club's final 51 games, and contributed to 46.45% of his team's goals in the final 47 games of the season to carry the Canucks into the 1994 postseason.
Entering the 1994 Stanley Cup Playoffs as the seventh seed, the Canucks went on a run to the Stanley Cup Finals. In the seventh game of the opening-round series against the Calgary Flames, Bure scored one of the most significant and well-known goals in Canucks' history. After receiving a breakaway pass from defenceman Jeff Brown, he deked and scored on Flames' goalie Mike Vernon in the second overtime to win the series. In game two of the second round against the Dallas Stars, Bure knocked enforcer Shane Churla to the ice with an elbow to the jaw. He also scored two goals in the game to help Vancouver to a 3–0 win. Although Bure was not initially penalized for the play, he was later fined $500 by the league. He recorded six goals and eight points in five games against the Dallas Stars, and against the Toronto Maple Leafs the following round scored four goals and six points in five games.
After defeating Dallas in five games, the Canucks eliminated the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Campbell Conference Finals to meet the New York Rangers in the Finals, where the Canucks lost in seven games. Bure finished with a team-high 16 goals and 31 points in 24 games, second in playoff scoring only to Conn Smythe Trophy winner Brian Leetch. His points total also remained the highest by any Russian player until Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins recorded 36 in 2009.
In the next off-season, the Canucks announced they had re-signed Bure to a five-year, $24.5 million contract on June 16. The deal was reported to have been signed before game three of the Stanley Cup Finals against New York. It also included Bure's marketing rights and put his father, Vladimir, on the team payroll as a fitness and marketing consultant. The average annual salary of $4.9 million made Bure the league's third highest-paid player, behind Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux. In fact, Bure and the Canucks had entered into contract negotiations at the beginning of the 1993–94 season, although two years remained in his original deal. Neither side could come to an initial agreement; one of the major factors was the Canucks' demands for the contract to be in Canadian dollars on account of the American exchange rate. Numerous accusations were made in the media during the Canucks' playoff run that Bure threatened not to play if a contract could not be agreed upon. A Toronto Star article, published before the first game of the Finals on May 31, 1994, claimed Bure had signed a five-year, $30 million contract that, if the Canucks had not agreed to, would have seen him pull out of game five of the Conference Finals against the Maple Leafs. The article was followed by two additional claims in the following two days in the Vancouver-based newspaper The Province and Toronto Sun. The Toronto Sun held the contract was a five-year, $22.5 million deal, and that it was signed before either game six or seven of the opening round against the Flames after Bure's agent, Ron Salcer, told general manager Quinn that Bure would not play if the deal was not made. As the story continued well into the next season, Pat Quinn appeared in a segment on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)'s Hockey Night in Canada on March 27, 1995, publicly denying the claims.
Due to the 1994–95 NHL lockout, Bure spent single-game stints with Spartak Moscow of the Russian Super League and EV Landshut of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). He joined a team of Russian NHL players organized by Slava Fetisov that returned to Russia to play a five-game charity tour against local clubs. On the team, Bure reunited with former Central Red Army linemates Mogilny and Fedorov. When the NHL Players Association (NHLPA) and owners came to an agreement on January 12, 1995, NHL play was set to resume. However, there were unresolved contract issues, as Salcer claimed the Canucks promised they would pay Bure's full salary, despite the lockout, which cancelled nearly half of the 1994–95 season. Bure held out for four days as a result (the amount claimed to be owing was $1.7 million), before the two sides reached an agreement. The Canucks would put the disputed amount in escrow and would continue discussions. He soon reported to Vancouver and went on to tally 43 points in 44 games of the shortened season. In the 1995 playoffs, Bure set franchise records for most goals and points in a series with seven and 12 respectively in a seven-game series victory against the St. Louis Blues (Mikael Samuelsson tied Bure's goal-scoring record in 2010 against the Los Angeles Kings). The Canucks, however, failed to defend their Clarence Campbell Conference championship title, being swept by the Chicago Blackhawks in the second round. The Canucks' elimination in 1995 marked the last time Bure appeared in the post-season with the club. He finished with a career playoff total of 66 points with the Canucks, including 34 goals, which remained the highest club total until Linden tied the mark in 2007.
At the start of the 1995–96 season, Bure changed his jersey number from 10 to 96. The switch commemorated September 6, 1991, the day on which he first landed in North America from Moscow—9th month, 6th day. He had originally asked to wear the number when he first joined the Canucks, but was not permitted to do so by head coach Pat Quinn, who did not approve of high jersey numbers. After the Canucks traded with the Buffalo Sabres for Alexander Mogilny, reuniting the two Russian players, the jersey number was deemed acceptable because Mogilny had used number 89 since defecting to North America in 1989.
Early in the season, Bure sustained the first of several serious knee injuries during his career. On November 9, 1995, in a game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Bure was grabbed around the head by defenseman Steve Smith while approaching the end boards. Falling to the ice, he caught his skate against the boards, tearing the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee. Requiring arthroscopic surgery, in which tendon was removed from his hamstring to repair the ACL, he was sidelined for the remainder of the season.
Bure returned to the Canucks' lineup with his knee fully recovered in the 1996–97 season. In the season opener against the Flames on October 5, 1996, Bure was pushed into the boards head-first. He continued to play after the hit, but experienced headaches in the following weeks. As Bure's play dropped early in the season, the media speculated that he was playing injured. After he went eight games without a goal, head coach Tom Renney claimed Bure was not playing with a head injury, but instead had injured his shoulder in a game against the New York Rangers on November 23. Nevertheless, he continued to play. With under a month left in the season, he received another hit, during a game against the Avalanche on March 3, 1997. Bure left the game and did not return for the remainder of the season. Afterwards, he admitted he was playing with a neck injury, having sustained whiplash from the first game against Calgary, but did not want to take himself out of the lineup after missing 62 games the previous season. With Bure's reduced playing capacity, he managed 55 points in 63 games, well below his usual pace, and the Canucks missed the playoffs for the first time since he joined the team. In a 2012 interview, Bure admitted having sustained a head injury on the initial hit against Calgary and that "he should not have played through it".
In the off-season, the Canucks made another significant move, signing Rangers' captain Mark Messier during free agency on July 26, 1997. Despite finally having a high-profile centre to play with, media reports soon appeared claiming that Bure was asking to be traded. The Canucks opened the season with two games against the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in Tokyo – an event organized by the league to market hockey for the upcoming 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. After two injury-plagued seasons with the number 96 on his jersey, Bure switched back to his familiar number 10, explaining: "I'm not superstitious, but the last two seasons have been bad memories." Although the Canucks missed the playoffs for the second straight year, he returned to his previous form in 1997–98, scoring 51 goals for his first 50-goal season since 1993–94, and third overall. Bure later recalled that with the Canucks out of playoff contention with a handful of games left, head coach Mike Keenan told him he could play as much as he wanted to reach the milestone. Scoring 50 goals was also implicit in a contract bonus for Bure. With an additional 39 assists, his 90 points ranked him third in the NHL, behind Peter Forsberg and Jaromír Jágr.
Following the 1997–98 season, Bure told newly appointed general manager Brian Burke that he would not play for the Canucks again, despite still having a year left in his contract worth $8 million. He then went public with the declaration, stating he intended to leave the club for "personal reasons". Bure did not report to the club the following season. Instead, he returned to his hometown Moscow to practise with his former Central Red Army club. During this time, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko offered Bure a tax-free $4 million salary to play in Belarus, which he turned down.
Florida Panthers (1999–2002)
Bure held out well into the 1998–99 season until he was traded on January 17, 1999, to the Florida Panthers, with Bret Hedican, Brad Ference, and Vancouver's third-round choice in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft (Robert Fried) for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes, and Florida's first-round choice in the 2000 draft (Nathan Smith). Talks between Burke and Bryan Murray, general manager of the Panthers, had begun in late-December. After the trade was completed, Bure explained that he felt alienated from Canucks' management after arriving in North America having defected from Russia. He claimed he had been in Los Angeles for two weeks before any Canucks' representative came to see him, as well as several bitter contract negotiations—particularly those of 1994. He also claimed that someone within the Canucks' management planted the constant allegations that he threatened not to play during the 1994 playoff run. Bure's agent at the time, Ron Salcer, also believed the story.
Meeting the Panthers in New York for a game against the Islanders, Bure debuted with his new club on January 20, 1999. He played on an all-Russian line with Viktor Kozlov and Oleg Kvasha and scored two goals. In his first six games with the club, Bure scored eight goals and three assists for eleven points. Less than a month into his Panthers debut, he reinjured his knee, keeping him out for three weeks. Despite the injury, the Panthers signed him to a five-year, $47.5 million contract (with an option for a sixth year at $10.5 million), the most lucrative in team history. Another injury ended Bure's season after just 11 games with Florida, though he scored 13 goals and three assists in that time.
In 1999–2000, his first full season as a Panther, Bure led the league in goal-scoring to capture his first of two consecutive Rocket Richard Trophies with a 58-goal season. It marked the second time Bure led the league in goal-scoring, but his first Rocket Richard Trophy as the award had been introduced the previous season. Combined with 36 assists, his 94 points came within two of Art Ross Trophy winner Jaromír Jágr as the league's leading point-scorer. His 58 goals and 94 points both set franchise records. He helped Florida to a fifth-place finish in the Eastern Conference to earn their first post-season berth in three seasons, though they were swept by the eventual Stanley Cup champions, the New Jersey Devils. Bure finished third for the Hart Memorial Trophy winner behind Chris Pronger and Jágr. He was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team for the first time.
Bure was set to make his much-anticipated return to Vancouver to play the Canucks on November 5, 1999, but was kept out of the lineup due to a broken finger. A prior groin injury had also forced him out of a Panther's home game against the Canucks earlier in the season. During the season, he was named to the 2000 NHL All-Star Game in Toronto, where he recorded an assist and the eleventh hat trick in the history of the All-Star Game. Of Bure's three goals, two were assisted by his brother Valeri, who played on the same line with him, along with his Panthers linemate, Viktor Kozlov. Helping lead the World team to a 9–4 victory over North America, Bure was named the All-Star Game MVP.
Bure repeated as league scoring champion in 2000–01 with 59 goals, reaching the 50-goal plateau for the fifth and final time in his career, as well as bettering his franchise single-season, goal-scoring record. However, the Panthers missed the playoffs, finishing 12th place in the East. Bure set a league record that season by scoring 29.5% of his team's total goals over the course of the season. He was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team, behind Jágr in the right wing position for the second consecutive year.
Before the 2001–02 season, the Panthers acquired Valeri Bure from the Calgary Flames in a trade, putting the brothers on the same team for the first time. However, Bure suffered a setback in the pre-season re-injuring his groin. Bure recalled having "good relations" with Panthers' management, who often consulted with him on team matters, including the acquisition of his brother. At the trading deadline, Bure was traded to the New York Rangers. During his 56 games for the Panthers that season, he led the team in scoring for the third consecutive season with 49 points.
New York Rangers (2002–2003)
The New York Rangers acquired Bure on March 18, 2002, along with Florida's second-round pick in the 2002 draft (Lee Falardeau) for Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak, as well as the Rangers' first and second-round choices in the 2002 draft (Petr Tatíček and Rob Globke, respectively) and a fourth-round choice in the 2003 draft. The Rangers had shown interest in Bure when he requested a trade from the Canucks in 1997. After losing their initial bid for Bure, Wayne Gretzky, who retired the same season Bure was traded to Florida, announced prior to the 1999–2000 season he would have extended his career had the Rangers been able to pull off the trade. Bure made his Rangers debut against the Vancouver Canucks the day after his trade on March 19, scoring a goal against his former team. He scored 12 goals and 20 points in 12 games after being traded, bettering his pace with Florida that season. Between the two teams, he finished the season with 34 goals and 69 points.
Bure suffered another knee injury in the 2002–03 pre-season; combined with a case of strep throat, he missed the first three games of the regular season. After returning to play, he had 14 goals and 21 points in his first 27 games, including two goals and an assist in his first game back, before a knee-on-knee collision in December forced him back out. After undergoing surgery 10 days later, it was revealed that there was no damage to the ACL as previously feared, but instead a tear to the meniscus in his left knee, which was repaired. Bure returned that season to appear in 39 games, managing 19 goals and 30 points.
Even after two operations, Bure did not play in 2003–04 due to the lingering effects of the knee injury. He failed a pre-season physical and was declared medically unable to play. Left with his fully insured $10 million salary (80 percent of which would be reimbursed to the team), the Rangers left him unprotected in the NHL's Waiver Draft, where he was unclaimed.
Retirement
Bure remained inactive for another season due to the 2004–05 NHL lockout. After the NHL resumed play for the 2005–06 season, he announced his retirement from professional hockey at a press conference in Moscow on November 1, 2005, citing complications with his chronic knee injuries. In an interview Bure explained that he did not want to extend his playing career without being able to play at an elite level.
Because Bure had been inactive since the 2002–03 season, he was eligible for selection into the Hockey Hall of Fame (which requires players to wait three years after their last game) immediately following his retirement. After being passed for induction in his first six years of eligibility, Bure was voted in on June 27, 2012, alongside Joe Sakic, Adam Oates and Mats Sundin. He became the fifth Soviet or Russian player (after Vladislav Tretiak, Viacheslav Fetisov, Valeri Kharlamov and Igor Larionov) and the first player to spend the majority of his career with the Canucks to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
His non-selection in previous years was widely debated in the media. Bure was often compared with Cam Neely, a player who also waited six years for induction; he recorded similar goals-per-game numbers in a career that was also shortened to 700-plus games. It had been often rumoured that Pat Quinn, Bure's former head coach and general manager in Vancouver, who became co-chairman of the Hockey Hall of Fame's selection committee, opposed Bure's induction. However, in a conference call following his selection, Quinn was among the most prominent figures he thanked. Quinn criticized the Canucks organization for not yet retiring Bure's jersey.
In his retirement, he remained publicly steadfast in his dissatisfaction with the way he was treated by the Canucks organization during his playing career. While Bure admitted to "a lot of disagreements with the Canucks management," he maintained that he "never had any problems with the Canucks fans". The Canucks retired Bure's 10 jersey on November 2, 2013. The day before the Canucks announced they would rename the team's Most Exciting Player Award to the Pavel Bure Most Exciting Player Award in his honor. Bure renounced his US citizenship in 2016.
International career
Junior
Prior to joining the NHL in 1991, Bure competed for the Soviet Union in several junior, international tournaments. The first was the 1988 Quebec Esso Cup, an under-17 tournament (now known as the World U-17 Hockey Challenge) held in Quebec City, where he earned a gold medal. That same year, he competed in his first of two consecutive European Junior Championships, winning a bronze medal.
The following year, Bure debuted at the world under-20 level as a 17-year-old at the 1989 World Junior Championships in Anchorage, Alaska. The top line of CSKA Moscow teammates Bure, Alexander Mogilny and Sergei Fedorov led the Soviet Union to a gold medal. Bure's eight goals tied him for the tournament lead with Jeremy Roenick of the United States; he led the Soviet team with 14 points. He was named to the Tournament All-Star Team, and earned Best Forward honours. He again participated in the 1989 European Junior Championship, helping the Soviet Union win the gold medal.
Bure competed in his second World Juniors in 1990, winning a silver medal in Helsinki, Finland, and scoring seven goals in seven games. Later that year, he made his senior debut with the Soviet national team as a 19-year-old at the 1990 World Championships in Switzerland. He scored two goals and four assists in ten games to help the Soviets to a gold medal finish. The Soviet team also won silver in the European Championship, which was decided from games played among the European teams at the tournament. Several months later, in July, Bure took part in his third international tournament of the year at the 1990 Goodwill Games in Seattle. Bure scored four goals and an assist in five games, and the Soviets won the gold medal.
In 1991, Bure appeared in his third and final World Junior Championships. Bure finished the tournament as the leading scorer with 12 goals in 7 games and the Soviets won the silver medal. He finished his three-year World Junior career with a tournament-record 27 goals, to go with 39 points, in 21 games. Bure later competed in the 1991 World Championships, his second international appearance of the year. He improved on his previous year's total with 11 points in 11 games, tied for the team lead with Valeri Kamensky, and helped the Soviets to a bronze medal finish. Bure was named to the tournament's Second All-Star Team. The 1991 team marked the last World Championships for the USSR, as the country was dissolved later that year.
Senior
Bure was set to represent the Soviet Union at the 1991 Canada Cup, however after turning down a three-year contract with his Russian club, CSKA Moscow, he was left off the final roster.
Bure played his first international tournament for Russia in preliminary games for the inaugural 1996 World Cup (the successor tournament to the Canada Cup). Bure had recently recovered from reconstructive surgery to his right knee, and had begun practicing with the Russian national team where he was reunited on a line with Fedorov and Mogilny, the first and only time the three of them would play together at the senior level; the line was considered "perhaps the best forward line on earth" at the time. However Bure bruised a kidney in one of the games and was forced to miss the main tournament.
As with the 1991 Canada Cup, controversy ensued when Bure refused to sign a petition organized by national team veteran Viacheslav Fetisov. With the Russian Ice Hockey Federation dealing with internal corruption, the petition called for the ouster of a few select Russian ice hockey officials. In response, Bure explained, "I do not sign petitions. I believe I should work – play hockey. Petitions to the federation or to Olympic committees do not interest me."
Two years later, Bure made his Olympic debut with Russia at the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano. He helped his team to advance to the gold medal game after a five-goal game in Russia's 7–4 semifinal win against Finland. The Russians lost the gold medal game to the Czech Republic, ending with silver. Bure finished with a tournament-high nine goals to be named the top forward, and though he recorded no assists, placed third in point-scoring with nine points in six games.
Bure's next international tournament was the 2000 World Championships, held in Saint Petersburg. The Russians had a disappointing tournament and finished eleventh. In six games, Bure managed four goals and an assist. Two years later, Bure made his second Olympic appearance at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City, playing with a fractured hand. Bure finished his final international tournament as a player with two goals and an assist in six games while Russia won the bronze medal.
On the announcement of his retirement in 2005, Bure was named Russia's Olympic general manager, succeeding Viacheslav Fetisov. He promised to put an end to the Russian Hockey Federation's history of internal conflict and player boycotts, saying, "You won't see such a mess with the national team that you've seen here before," and that "You won't see grouchy players here anymore. Only those who really want to play for Russia will be called into the team." As general manager, Bure chose the team for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. The Russians failed to win a medal, losing to the Czech Republic in the bronze medal match. Leading up to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, former Soviet national goaltender Vladislav Tretiak was named Bure's successor as Olympic general manager.
In December 2011, Bure was announced as one of the 2012 inductees into the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame. He was named alongside American Phil Housley, Finn Raimo Helminen and Czechoslovak Milan Nový in the annual class. The players were inducted in a ceremony in May 2012.
Playing style
Bure's playing style reflected the speed, skill and puck possession that was prominent in Soviet Union hockey programs. The most prevalent aspects of his game were his skating speed, agility, and acceleration, which earned him his nickname the "Russian Rocket". He was able to use his quickness to separate himself from defenders, to retrieve pucks before the opposition could in all zones of the ice, and to skate the length of the ice on many occasions. In a 1993 poll of NHL coaches conducted by hockey writer Bob McKenzie, Bure was named the league's best skater with eight of twenty-one votes, twice as many votes as any other player. One coach noted: "Bure has the best combination of speed, agility and balance ... He can also use change of speed better than anybody in the league right now."
During Bure's rehabilitation period, following his first major knee injury in 1995, Canucks' conditioning coach Peter Twist noticed that his skating style was distinct in comparison to typical North American players. He explained: "Most players skate on their inside edge and push off at a 45-degree angle, but Bure starts on his outer edge and rolls over to his inside edge and pushes back straighter on his stride ... he gets more power and force in his stride to get up to top speed quicker." his skating was also complemented by his ability to deke out defenders and goaltenders at top speeds, making him capable of routinely starting end-to-end rushes. However, several knee injuries, and the resulting reconstructive surgeries, compromised the speed that defined Bure's game, ultimately leading to his retirement.
Early in Bure's career, he was noted for playing a strong two-way game. Having joined Pat Quinn's defensive-minded Canucks in 1991, Bure's transition to the NHL was cited as being easier than that of his countryman, Igor Larionov, due to his quick adjustment to the team's defensive demands. Regarding Bure's first NHL game against the Winnipeg Jets, reporter Mike Beamish explained that "hockey fans marvelled at his offensive thrusts, but hockey people were taken by a singular display of jet-powered defensive diligence. On one play, after the Canucks were caught deep in the Winnipeg zone, the Russian winger raced back and almost single-handedly foiled a two-on-one Jets' rush, making up a half-rink disadvantage." Bure was used on the team's penalty kill for his entire tenure with the Canucks, and was proficient at generating shorthanded chances, pressuring the opposition with his quickness and positioning in the defensive zone. During the 1992 Stanley Cup playoffs, commentator and ex-NHL coach Harry Neale commented, "I like the effort he gives it when he doesn't have the puck. We all know what he can do when he thinks he can score, but he's killing penalties, he's checking, doing a lot of things." Bure tied for second-place on Bob McKenzie's 1993 coaches poll for the NHL's best penalty killer. He was also voted the league's second-best stickhandler that season and garnered recognition as one of the smartest players in the NHL.
Sports journalists Damien Cox and Stephen Brunt wrote about Bure during the 1994 Stanley Cup playoffs that he was a "two-way dynamo," accounting for "several bodychecks he handed out on the night" and for his defensive abilities as he stayed on the ice in the last minutes of a one-goal playoff match against the Toronto Maple Leafs. They spoke highly of his creativity as well, recognizing him as "someone who sees in his game a world of possibilities that just never occur to others," praising his "sheer elegance and imagination" and characterizing his hockey sense as "ho-hum brilliance from the most explosive player in the sport". Brunt called him "a nonpareil, a van Gogh, a Picasso, a Charlie Parker". During the 1993-94 season, Bure demonstrated his strong playmaking abilities, helping linemate and friend Gino Odjick score a career-high 16 goals in a single season, more than twice the number of goals Odjick would score in any other year separated from Bure, and doubling his career goal totals up to that point in his career. According to teammate Cliff Ronning in 1994, "we play a much sounder game defensively when Pavel's flying, as he was in the first period". Former Canuck teammate Jyrki Lumme spoke of Bure as a player and teammate, "That guy does something spectacular every time ... it's frustrating to go against him in practice because he's all over the place. He makes everybody on our team better."
During his time with the Canucks, Bure won the team's Most Exciting Player Award, as voted by the fans, a record five times (tied with Tony Tanti), from 1992 to 1995, and once more in 1998. Trevor Linden, who had played with Bure for seven seasons, said following Bure's retirement, "I don't know if I've ever seen or played with a player that's brought people out of their seats like that." During the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals, Rangers coach Mike Keenan, who later coached Bure for one-and-a-half seasons in Vancouver, called him "perhaps the most electrifying forward in the league". The Canucks renamed the award the Pavel Bure Most Exciting Player Award in his honour in 2013.
Bure has been described as a pure goal scorer and is statistically among the top players in NHL history in that regard. In addition to having reached the 50-goal mark in his career five times, and the 60-goal mark twice, his .623 goals per game average is third among the top 100 goal scorers in NHL history, behind Mike Bossy and Mario Lemieux. Michael Farber of the Montreal Gazette described Bure as "the most dangerous scorer in the National Hockey League with the continued absence of Mario Lemieux because Bure can beat a defence with his speed, his strength, his mind. Bure isn't a scorer as much as he is a permanent late-night television guest; he is to highlight packages what Terri Garr is to Letterman."
Personal life
Family
Bure comes from an athletic family; his father Vladimir, who is of Swiss descent (his side of the family originated from Furna, Switzerland), was an Olympic swimmer who competed for the Soviet Union in the 1968, 1972, and 1976 Olympic Games, where he won four medals. Bure retained his father as his personal trainer well into his playing career, before severing ties with him in 1997. Bure's paternal grandfather, Valeri Bure, played goalkeeper for the national water polo team. Both Pavel and his younger brother Valeri became estranged from their father and his second wife, Julia, along with their half-sister Katya, by 1998. Neither brother has explained a reason for the split.
Named after their grandfather, Bure's younger brother, Valeri, was also a hockey player, spending 10 years in the NHL. The two siblings played with each other briefly as members of the Florida Panthers, after Valeri was traded there in 2001, and played together at the 1998 and 2002 Winter Olympics.
The Bure family made precious watches for the Russian tsars from 1815 until 1917, and Bure was named after his great-grandfather, a watchmaker to Tsar Alexander III. As craftspersons to the imperial family, the Bures were granted noble status. After Bure sustained his first serious knee injury in 1995, he pursued the watchmaking business during his rehabilitation period in an attempt to revive the family business. Fifty replicas of the same watches his ancestors made for the Russian imperial family were made and sold at US$30,000 each. Bure presented three of the gold replicas to Russian President Boris Yeltsin, Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin and Moscow mayor Yuriy Luzhkov.
Relationships
Five days after arriving in North America from Moscow with his father and brother on September 6, 1991, (his mother Tatiana arrived two months later), Bure married an American fashion model, later revealed to be Jayme Bohn, in a civil ceremony. The marriage was allegedly set up by Bure's agents as a preventative measure against deportation in the event he and the Canucks could not come to terms with a contract. Bure derived no immigration benefit from the marriage, which was dissolved the following year. Bohn became a costume designer in the film and television industry.
After being linked to girlfriend Dahn Bryan, a model and actress, early in his NHL career, Bure shared a relationship with tennis star and fellow Russian Anna Kournikova. The two met in 1999 when she was still linked to Bure's former Russian teammate Sergei Fedorov. Bure and Kournikova were reported to have been engaged in 2000 after reporter Andrew Greven took a photo of them together in a Florida restaurant where Bure supposedly asked Kournikova to marry him. As the story made headlines in Russia, where they were both heavily followed in the media as celebrities, Bure and Kournikova both denied any engagement. Kournikova, 10 years younger than Bure, was 18 years old at the time. The following year, Kournikova and Fedorov were married in Moscow, though they soon divorced.
Bure married 23-year-old model Alina Khasanova on October 10, 2009, in Moscow, with 300 guests present. Pravda has reported, however, that the couple, who had known each other for four years, had officially married on October 10, 2008, in Miami. Together they have three children: Pavel Jr., Palina and Anastasia. Pavel Jr. was born on April 23, 2013; Palina was born on July 20, 2015. Their third child, a daughter named Anastasia, was born on 28 December 2018.
Politics
Bure is also frequently playing ice hockey with Russian president Vladimir Putin, but has denied having any political ambitions himself in an interview with a Swedish newspaper in 2019.
Legal activity
In 2002, Bure sued the Russian newspaper the eXile for publishing an article stating he broke up with Kournikova because she had two vaginas. Although the newspapers' editorial staff claimed the story was a mere joke, the court ruled in favour of Bure in the amount of 500,000 rubles (US$17,770), and ordered a retraction to be printed. Two years later, on December 27, 2004, the Russian cosmetics chain Arbat Prestige published a story in their free promotional paper that Bure had bragged about Kournikova losing her virginity to him. Shortly thereafter, on January 31, 2005, Bure sued Arbat Prestige for 300 million rubles (US$10.65 million) in a court in Moscow. He also demanded the company print a retraction and apology in a future paper. The court ruled in favour of Bure in November 2005. However, the amount was reduced from 300 million to approximately 320,000 rubles.
On October 31, 2006, nearly a year after his retirement, Bure filed another suit after being kicked off a British Airways flight by the pilot, having been mistaken for a rowdy soccer fan. Despite an apology from the airline company in June 2007, Bure took the issue to court, suing British Airways for 20 million rubles. In late-August 2007, a Russian court ruled in favour of Bure in the amount of 67,000 rubles.
Alleged Mafia connections
During Bure's playing career, much speculation surrounded Russian NHL players and their potential ties to the Russian mafia both as victims and associates. As Soviet players began defecting to the NHL, many cases of extortion began surfacing. The Russian mafia was targeting the players' families still living in Russia. Former teammate Alexander Mogilny was a victim of such an extortion attempt in 1994, while Bure was reported to have made payments totaling in the thousands of dollars to Russian extortionists in 1993. Three years later, in 1996, American sports network ESPN aired reports alleging Bure was a potential associate of the Russian mafia because of his relationship with friend and business partner Anzor Kikalishvili, known to both Russian and American police as a suspected criminal and possible Russian mob boss. Bure was revealed to hold a position as vice president in the sports company Twenty First Century Association, owned by Kikalishvili, and reportedly believed by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation to be a mafia front worth at least US$100 million in illicit funds. While Bure did not deny his business and personal relationships with Kikalishvili, he refuted reports Kikalishvili was involved in any criminal activity.
Speculation resurfaced in 1999, as Bure was included in an investigation aired by the CBC investigative news program The Fifth Estate that made several supposed associations between Soviet NHL players and the Russian mafia. An allegation arose that Bure's former CSKA teammate Viacheslav Fetisov used a company, of which he was president, to launder money for Vyacheslav Ivankov, considered the "Russian godfather" in North America. Bure's relationship with Kikalishvili continued to be questioned. Bure denied Kikalishvili's involvement in any criminal activity, dismissing the allegations as "rumours".
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Bold indicates led league
International
a does not include 1988 Quebec Esso Cup (U17)b does not include the 1990 Goodwill Games
Awards
Soviet
International
NHL
Vancouver Canucks
Records
Team
Vancouver Canucks' single-season record, most points by a rookie – 60 in 1991–92 (tied with Ivan Hlinka, 1981–82 and Elias Pettersson, 2018–19)
Vancouver Canucks' single-season record, most goals – 60 in 1992–93 and 1993–94
Vancouver Canucks' all-time playoffs record, most goals – 34 (tied with Trevor Linden)
Vancouver Canucks' all-time record, most shorthanded goals – 24
Vancouver Canucks' single-game record, most goals – four versus the Winnipeg Jets on October 12, 1992 (tied with Rosaire Paiement, Bobby Schmautz, Rick Blight, Petri Skriko, Greg Adams, Tony Tanti, Martin Gélinas, Markus Näslund and Daniel Sedin)
Florida Panthers' single-season record, most goals – 59 in 2000–01
International
World Junior Championships all-time record, most goals – 27 in 21 games (1989–1991)
Winter Olympics single-game record, most goals – five (1998; semifinal vs. Finland)
NHL
NHL record, most goals scored in proportion to team – 29.5% of the Florida Panthers' goals in 2000–01.
Transactions
June 9, 1989 – Drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in the sixth round, 113th overall, in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft.
October 31, 1991 – Signed by the Vancouver Canucks to a four-year, $3.5 million contract.
June 16, 1994 – Re-signed by the Vancouver Canucks to a five-year, $24.5 million contract.
January 17, 1999 – Traded by the Vancouver Canucks, along with Bret Hedican, Brad Ference and Vancouver's third-round draft choice (Robert Fried) in 2000, to the Florida Panthers in exchange for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes and Florida's first-round draft choice (Nathan Smith) in 2000.
February 8, 1999 – Signed by the Florida Panthers to a five-year, $47.5 million deal.
March 18, 2002 – Traded by the Florida Panthers, along with Florida's second-round draft choice in 2002 (Lee Falardeau), to the New York Rangers in exchange for Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak, the Rangers' first-round draft choice in 2002 (Eric Nystrom), the Rangers' second-round draft choice in 2002 (Rob Globke) and the Rangers fourth-round draft choice in 2003 (later traded to the Atlanta Thrashers; Atlanta selected Guillaume Desbiens).
See also
List of NHL statistical leaders
List of NHL players with 50-goal seasons
List of NHL players with 100-point seasons
Notable families in the NHL
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links
Pavel Bure's Official Web Site
1971 births
Living people
Calder Trophy winners
EV Landshut players
Florida Panthers players
HC CSKA Moscow players
HC Spartak Moscow players
Hockey Hall of Fame inductees
Ice hockey players at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Ice hockey players at the 2002 Winter Olympics
IIHF Hall of Fame inductees
New York Rangers players
National Hockey League All-Stars
National Hockey League players with retired numbers
Olympic bronze medalists for Russia
Olympic ice hockey players of Russia
Olympic silver medalists for Russia
Ice hockey people from Moscow
Rocket Richard Trophy winners
Russian ice hockey right wingers
Russian people of Swiss descent
Soviet expatriate ice hockey players
Soviet expatriates in Canada
Soviet ice hockey right wingers
Soviet people of Swiss descent
Vancouver Canucks draft picks
Vancouver Canucks players
Olympic medalists in ice hockey
Medalists at the 2002 Winter Olympics
Medalists at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Pavel
Russian State University of Physical Education, Sport, Youth and Tourism alumni
Competitors at the 1990 Goodwill Games | false | [
"Bulnensis also known as Bure is a titular episcopal see of the Roman Catholic Church ascribed to the ecclesiastical province of Africa Proconsularis, as a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Carthage.\n\nVery little is known of the ancient Christian diocese. The bishopric is mentioned in passing by Optatus of Milevi Only one bishop is known from antiquity and the exact location of Bure is not known, though it is thought to be in the region of Djebel-Gorra and was doubtless in Tunisia.\n\nBure ceased to function as a Catholic diocese with the arrival of the Islamic armies at the end of the 7th century and was only established as a titular diocese in 1933. Today Bure survives as a titular bishopric.\n\nKnown Bishops of Buritanus:\nDonataus (catholic bishop fl 411.)\nJacques Teerenstra, (1949 – 1955 Appointed) \nStephen Aloysius Leven (1955–1969) \nSecundo Tagliabue (1970–1976) \nDominic Anthony Marconi (1976 Appointed – )\n\nName\nThe name Bure is of unknown meaning. Bure is, however, common in Roman North Africa and appears as a component in the name of many important towns of the Roman province including Thrburnica, ThurboMaise and Saltus Burunitanus and Thingibba Bure to name but a few places. The recurrence of the name Bure in over two dozen places indicates that it did signify something important to the local population.\n\nSee also\nTubursico-Bure\n\nReferences\n\nRoman towns and cities in Africa (Roman province)\nCatholic titular sees in Africa\nFormer populated places in Tunisia",
"Bure may refer to:\n\nPlaces\n\nBelgium\nBure, Wallonia, Belgium, a small village in the Tellin municipality\nBattle of Bure, a World War II battle during the Battle of the Bulge\n\nEritrea and Ethiopia\nBure (disputed zone), on the border between Eritrea and Ethiopia, claimed by both countries\nBure, Gojjam (woreda), a woreda (district) in the Amhara Region, Ethiopia\nBure (Gojjam), Ethiopia, a town\nBure, Oromia (woreda), a woreda (district) in the Oromia Region, Ethiopia\nBure, Illubabor, a town\n\nFrance\nBure, Meuse, a commune in the Meuse department in Grand Est, hosting the Meuse/Haute Marne Underground Research Laboratory\nBure, Moselle a village in the French département of Moselle\nBuré, a commune in the French département of Orne\n\nItaly\nBure (torrent), a torrent in Tuscany\n\nSweden\nBure River, a river in Sweden\n\nSwitzerland\nBure, Switzerland, a municipality in the Canton of Jura\n\nUnited Kingdom\nRiver Bure, a river in Norfolk\nHM Prison Bure, Scottow, Norfolk\n\nOther uses\nBure (diocese), a titular see of the Roman Catholic Church in Tunisia\nBure (surname)\nBure (cloth)\nBure Equity, a Swedish investment company\nBure (Fiji), the Fijian word for a wood-and-straw hut\nBure language, an Afro-Asiatic language\n\nSee also\nBrue (disambiguation)\nBúri, or Buri, the first god in Norse mythology"
]
|
[
"Ukrainians",
"Early history"
]
| C_658f2d15938146ada5953397dfbe6cd7_1 | what was the early history like? | 1 | What was the Ukrainians early history like? | Ukrainians | The ethnonym Ukrainians became widely accepted only in the 20th century after their territory obtained distinctive statehood in 1917. From the 14th to the 16th centuries, the Western portions of the European part of what is now known as Russia, the territories of northern Ukraine and Belarus (Western Rus') were largely known as Rus', continuing the tradition of Kievan Rus'. People of these territories were usually called Rus or Rusyns (known as Ruthenians in Western and Central Europe). The Ukrainian language appeared in the 14th - 16th centuries (with some prototypical features already evident in the 11th century), but at that time, it was mostly known as Ruthenian, like its brothers. In the 16th - 17th centuries, with the establishment of the Zaporizhian Sich, the notion of Ukraine as a separate country with a separate ethnic identity came into being. However, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the linguonym Ukrainian were used only occasionally, and the people of Ukraine usually continued to call themselves and their language Ruthenian. After the decline of the Zaporizhian Sich and the establishment of Imperial Russian hegemony in Ukraine, Ukrainians became more widely known by the Russian regional name, Little Russians (Malorossy), with the majority of Ukrainian elites espousing Little Russian identity. This official name (usually regarded now as colonial and humiliating) did not spread widely among the peasantry which constituted the majority of the population. Ukrainian peasants still referred to their country as Ukraine (a name associated with the Zaporizhian Sich, with the Hetmanate and with their struggle against Poles, Russians, Turks and Crimean Tatars) and to themselves and their language as Ruthenians/Ruthenian. With the publication of Ivan Kotliarevsky's Eneyida (Aeneid) in 1798, which established the modern Ukrainian language, and with the subsequent Romantic revival of national traditions and culture, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the notion of a Ukrainian language came into more prominence at the beginning of the 19th century and gradually replaced the words "Rusyns" and "Ruthenian(s)". In areas outside the control of the Russian/Soviet state until the mid-20th century (Western Ukraine), Ukrainians were known by their pre-existing names for much longer. The appellation Ukrainians initially came into common usage in Central Ukraine and did not take hold in Galicia and Bukovyna until the latter part of the 19th century, in Transcarpathia until the 1930s, and in the Presov Region until the late 1940s. The modern name ukrayintsi (Ukrainians) derives from Ukrayina (Ukraine), a name first documented in 1187. Several scientific theories attempt to explain the etymology of the term. According to the traditional theory (especially predominant in Russia), it derives from the Proto-Slavic root *kraj-, which has two meanings, one meaning the homeland as in "nash rodnoi kraj" (our homeland), and the other "edge, border", and originally had the sense of "periphery", "borderland" or "frontier region" etc. According to some new alternative Ukrainian historians such as Hryhoriy Pivtorak, Vitaly Sklyarenko and other scholars, translate the term "u-kraine" as "in-land", "home-land" or "our-country". The name in this context derives from the word "u-kraina" in the sense of "domestic region", "domestic land" or "country" (inside the country). In the last few centuries the population of Ukraine experienced periods of Polonization and Russification, but preserved a common culture and a sense of common identity. Most ethnic Ukrainians live in Ukraine, where they make up over three-quarters of the population. The largest population of ethnic Ukrainians outside of Ukraine lives in Russia where about 1.9 million Russian citizens consider themselves ethnic Ukrainians, while millions of others (primarily in southern Russia and Siberia) have some Ukrainian ancestry. The inhabitants of the Kuban, for example, have vacillated among three identities: Ukrainian, Russian (an identity supported by the Soviet regime), and "Cossack". Approximately 800,000 people of Ukrainian ancestry live in the Russian Far East in an area known historically as "Green Ukraine". According to some previous assumptions, an estimated number of almost 2.4 million people of Ukrainian origin live in North America (1,359,655 in Canada and 1,028,492 in the United States). Large numbers of Ukrainians live in Brazil (600,000), Kazakhstan (338,022), Moldova (325,235), Argentina (305,000), Germany (272,000), Italy (234,354), Belarus (225,734), Uzbekistan (124,602), the Czech Republic (110,245), Spain (90,530-100,000) and Romania (51,703-200,000). There are also large Ukrainian communities in such countries as Latvia, Portugal, France, Australia, Paraguay, the UK, Israel, Slovakia, Kyrgyzstan, Austria, Uruguay and the former Yugoslavia. Generally, the Ukrainian diaspora is present in more than one hundred and twenty countries of the world. The number of Ukrainians in Poland amounted to some 51,000 people in 2011 (according to Polish Census). Since 2014, the country has experienced a large increase in immigration from Ukraine. More recent data put the number of Ukrainian workers at 1.2 - 1.3 million in 2016. In the last decades of the 19th century, many Ukrainians were forced by the Tsarist autocracy to move to the Asian regions of Russia, while many of their counterpart Slavs under Austro-Hungarian rule emigrated to the New World seeking work and better economic opportunities. Today, large ethnic Ukrainian minorities reside in Russia, Canada, the United States, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Italy and Argentina. According to some sources, around 20 million people outside Ukraine identify as having Ukrainian ethnicity, however the official data of the respective countries calculated together doesn't show more than 10 million. Ukrainians have one of the largest diasporas in the world. Ukraine has had a very turbulent history, a fact explained by its geographical position. In the 9th century the Varangians from Scandinavia conquered the proto-Slavic tribes on the territory of today's Ukraine, Belarus, and western Russia and laid the groundwork for the Kievan Rus' state. The ancestors of the Ukrainian nation such as Polianians had an important role in the development and culturalization of Kievan Rus' state. The internecine wars between Rus' princes, which began after the death of Yaroslav the Wise, led to the political fragmentation of the state into a number of principalities. The quarreling between the princes left Kievan Rus' vulnerable to foreign attacks, and the invasion of the Mongols in 1236. and 1240. finally destroyed the state. Another important state in the history of the Ukrainians is Kingdom of Galicia-Volhynia (1199-1349). The third important state for Ukrainians is Cossack Hetmanate. The Cossacks of Zaporizhia since the late 15th century controlled the lower bends of the river Dnieper, between Russia, Poland and the Tatars of Crimea, with the fortified capital, Zaporizhian Sich. Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky is one of the most celebrated and at the same time most controversial political figures in Ukraine's early-modern history. A brilliant military leader, his greatest achievement in the process of national revolution was the formation of the Cossack Hetmanate state of the Zaporozhian Host (1648-1782). The period of the Ruin in the late 17th century in the history of Ukraine is characterized by the disintegration of Ukrainian statehood and general decline. During the Ruin Ukraine became divided along the Dnieper River into Left-Bank Ukraine and Right-Bank Ukraine, and the two halves became hostile to each other. Ukrainian leaders during the period are considered to have been largely opportunists and men of little vision who could not muster broad popular support for their policies. There were roughly 4 million Ukrainians at the end of the 17th century. At the final stages of the First World War, a powerful struggle for an independent Ukrainian state developed in the central Ukrainian territories, which, until 1917, were part of the Russian Empire. The newly established Ukrainian government, the Central Rada, headed by Mykhailo Hrushevsky, issued four universals, the Fourth of which, dated 22 January 1918, declared the independence and sovereignty of the Ukrainian National Republic (UNR) on 25 January 1918. The session of the Central Rada on 29 April 1918 ratified the Constitution of the UNR and elected Hrushevsky president. CANNOTANSWER | The ethnonym Ukrainians became widely accepted only in the 20th century after their territory obtained distinctive statehood in 1917. | Ukrainians (, ), or the Ukrainian people, are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe and the second-largest among the East Slavs after the Russians. According to the Constitution of Ukraine, the term "Ukrainians" applies to all its citizens. The majority of Ukrainians are Eastern Orthodox Christians.
Ethnic Ukrainians were historically known as Ruthenians until the early 20th century, referring to the medieval land of Ruthenia, which was the Latin term for what is now known as Kievan Rus, a medieval East Slavic state with the capital in Kyiv. After its collapse, the Kingdom of Ruthenia emerged, but was soon dismantled by its neighbours. Starting from the 15th century, the people of Ukraine were also known as Cossacks and formed the state Zaporizhian Host. The connection with the Zaporozhian Cossacks especially, is emphasized in the Ukrainian national anthem, "We are, brothers, of Cossack kin".
Ethnonym
The ethnonym Ukrainians came into wide use only in the 20th century after the territory of Ukraine obtained distinctive statehood in 1917. From the 14th to the 16th centuries the western portions of the European part of what is now known as Russia, plus the territories of northern Ukraine and Belarus (Western Rus) were largely known as Rus, continuing the tradition of Kievan Rus. People of these territories were usually called Rus or Rusyns (known as Ruthenians in Western and Central Europe). The period of Old Ukrainian (mid-11th to late 14th century) dates from the same time as the oldest extant Rus’ texts and coincides with the rise and fall of Kievan Rus’. The Ukrainian language appeared in the 14th to 16th centuries (with some prototypical features already evident in the 11th century), but at that time, it was mostly known as Ruthenian, like its sister-languages. In the 16th to 17th centuries, with the establishment of the Zaporizhian Sich, the notion of Ukraine as a separate country with a separate ethnic identity came into being. However, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the linguonym Ukrainian were used only occasionally, and the people of Ukraine usually continued to call themselves and their language Ruthenian. After the decline of the Zaporizhian Sich and the establishment of Imperial Russian hegemony in Ukraine (17th to 18th centuries), Ukrainians became more widely known by the Russian regional name, Little Russians (Malorossy), with the majority of Ukrainian élites espousing Little Russian identity. This official name (usually regarded now as colonial and humiliating) did not spread widely among the peasantry which constituted the majority of the population. Ukrainian peasants still referred to their country as "Ukraine" (a name associated with the Zaporizhian Sich, with the Hetmanate and with their struggle against Poles, Russians, Turks and Crimean Tatars) and to themselves and their language as Ruthenians/Ruthenian. With the publication of Ivan Kotliarevsky's Eneyida (Aeneid) in 1798, which established the modern Ukrainian language, and with the subsequent Romantic revival of national traditions and culture, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the notion of a Ukrainian language came into more prominence at the beginning of the 19th century and gradually replaced the words "Rusyns" and "Ruthenian(s)". In areas outside the control of the Russian/Soviet state until the mid-20th century (Western Ukraine), Ukrainians were known by their pre-existing names for much longer. The appellation Ukrainians initially came into common usage in Central Ukraine and did not take hold in Galicia and Bukovyna until the latter part of the 19th century, in Transcarpathia until the 1930s, and in the Prešov Region until the late 1940s.
The modern name ukraintsi (Ukrainians) derives from Ukraina (Ukraine), a name first documented in 1187. Several scientific theories attempt to explain the etymology of the term.
According to the traditional theory, it derives from the Proto-Slavic root *kraj-, which has two meanings, one meaning the homeland as in "nash rodnoi kraj" (our homeland), and the other "edge, border", and originally had the sense of "periphery", "borderland" or "frontier region" etc.
According to another theory, the term ukraina should be distinguished from the term okraina: whereas the latter term means "borderland", the former one has the meaning of "cut-off piece of land", thus acquiring the connotation of "our land", "land allotted to us".
In the last three centuries the population of Ukraine experienced periods of Polonization and Russification, but preserved a common culture and a sense of common identity.
Geographic distribution
Most ethnic Ukrainians live in Ukraine, where they make up over three-quarters of the population. The largest population of Ukrainians outside of Ukraine lives in Russia where about 1.9 million Russian citizens identify as Ukrainian, while millions of others (primarily in southern Russia and Siberia) have some Ukrainian ancestry. The inhabitants of the Kuban, for example, have vacillated among three identities: Ukrainian, Russian (an identity supported by the Soviet regime), and "Cossack". Approximately 800,000 people of Ukrainian ancestry live in the Russian Far East in an area known historically as "Green Ukraine".
In a 2011 national poll of Ukraine, 49% of Ukrainians said they had relatives living in Russia.
According to some previous assumptions, an estimated number of almost 2.4 million people of Ukrainian origin live in North America (1,359,655 in Canada and 1,028,492 in the United States). Large numbers of Ukrainians live in Brazil (600,000), Kazakhstan (338,022), Moldova (325,235), Argentina (305,000), (Germany) (272,000), Italy (234,354), Belarus (225,734), Uzbekistan (124,602), the Czech Republic (110,245), Spain (90,530–100,000) and Romania (51,703–200,000). There are also large Ukrainian communities in such countries as Latvia, Portugal, France, Australia, Paraguay, the UK, Israel, Slovakia, Kyrgyzstan, Austria, Uruguay and the former Yugoslavia. Generally, the Ukrainian diaspora is present in more than one hundred and twenty countries of the world.
The number of Ukrainians in Poland amounted to some 51,000 people in 2011 (according to the Polish Census). Since 2014, the country has experienced a large increase in immigration from Ukraine. More recent data put the number of Ukrainian migrant workers at 1.2 – 1.3 million in 2016.
In the last decades of the 19th century, many Ukrainians were forced by the Tsarist autocracy to move to the Asian regions of Russia, while many of their counterpart Slavs under Austro-Hungarian rule emigrated to the New World seeking work and better economic opportunities. Today, large ethnic Ukrainian minorities reside in Russia, Canada, the United States, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Italy and Argentina. According to some sources, around 20 million people outside Ukraine identify as having Ukrainian ethnicity, however the official data of the respective countries calculated together doesn't show more than 10 million. Ukrainians have one of the largest diasporas in the world.
Origin
The East Slavs emerged from the undifferentiated early Slavs in the Slavic migrations of the 6th and 7th centuries CE. The state of Kievan Rus united the East Slavs during the 9th to 13th centuries. East Slavic tribes cited as "proto-Ukrainian" include the Volhynians, Derevlianians, Polianians, and Siverianians and the less significant Ulychians, Tivertsians, and White Croats.
The Gothic historian Jordanes and 6th-century Byzantine authors named two groups that lived in the south-east of Europe: Sclavins (western Slavs) and Antes. Polianians are identified as the founders of the city of Kyiv and as playing the key role in the formation of the Kievan Rus state. At the beginning of the 9th century, Varangians used the waterways of Eastern Europe for military raids and trade, particularly the trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks. Until the 11th century these Varangians also served as key mercenary troops for a number of princes in medieval Kyiv, as well as for some of the Byzantine emperors, while others occupied key administrative positions in Kievan Rus society, and eventually became slavicized. Besides other cultural traces, several Ukrainian names show traces of Norse origins as a result of influences from that period.
Differentiation between separate East Slavic groups began to emerge in the later medieval period, and an East Slavic dialect continuum developed within the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, with the Ruthenian language emerging as a written standard. The active development of a concept of a Ukrainian nation and a Ukrainian language began with the Ukrainian National Revival in the early 19th century. In the Soviet era (1917–1991), official historiography emphasized "the cultural unity of 'proto-Ukrainians' and 'proto-Russians' in the fifth and sixth centuries".
Genetics and genomics
In a survey of 97 genomes for diversity in full genome sequences among self-identified Ukrainians from Ukraine, a study identified more than 13 million genetic variants, representing about a quarter of the total genetic diversity discovered in Europe. Among these nearly 500,000 are previously undocumented and likely to be unique for this population. Medically relevant mutations whose prevalence in the Ukrainian genomes differed significantly compared to other European genome sequences, particularly from Western Europe and Russia. Ukrainian genomes form a single cluster positioned between the Northern on one side, and Western European populations on the other. There was a significant overlap with Central European populations as well as with people from the Balkans. In addition to the close geographic distance between these populations, this may also reflect the insufficient representation of samples from the surrounding populations.
The Ukrainian gene-pool includes the following Y-haplogroups, in order from the most prevalent:
R1a (43%)
I (23% I2a)
R1b (8%)
E1b1b (7%)
I1 (5%)
N1 (5%)
J2 (4%)
G (3%)
T (1%)
Roughly all R1a Ukrainians carry R1a-Z282; R1a-Z282 has been found significantly only in Eastern Europe. Chernivtsi Oblast is the only region in Ukraine where Haplogroup I2a occurs more frequently than R1a, much less frequent even in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast. In comparison to their northern and eastern neighbors, Ukrainians have a similar percentage of Haplogroup R1a-Z280 (43%) in their population—compare Belarusians, Russians, and Lithuanians and (55%, 46%, and 42% respectively). Populations in Eastern Europe which have never been Slavic do as well. Ukrainians in Chernivtsi Oblast (near the Romanian border) have a higher percentage of I2a as opposed to R1a, which is typical of the Balkan region, but a smaller percentage than Russians of the N1c1 lineage found among Finnic, Baltic, and Siberian populations, and also less R1b than West Slavs.
In terms of haplogroup distribution, the genetic pattern of Ukrainians most closely resembles that of Belarusians. The presence of the N1c lineage is explained by a contribution of the assimilated Finnic tribes.
Related ethnic groups
Within Ukraine and adjacent areas, there are several other distinct ethnic groups, especially in western Ukraine: places like Zakarpattia and Halychyna. Among them the most known are Hutsuls, Volhynians, Boykos and Lemkos (otherwise known as Rusyns – a derivative of Ruthenians), each with particular areas of settlement, dialect, dress, anthropological type, and folk traditions.
History
Early history
Ukraine has had a very turbulent history, a fact explained by its geographical position. In the 9th century the Varangians from Scandinavia conquered the proto-Slavic tribes on the territory of today's Ukraine, Belarus, and western Russia and laid the groundwork for the Kyivan Rus state. The ancestors of the Ukrainian nation such as Polianians had an important role in the development and culturalization of Kyivan Rus state. The internecine wars between Rus princes, which began after the death of Yaroslav the Wise, led to the political fragmentation of the state into a number of principalities. The quarreling between the princes left Kyivan Rus vulnerable to foreign attacks, and the invasion of the Mongols in 1236. and 1240. finally destroyed the state. Another important state in the history of the Ukrainians is Kingdom of Ruthenia (1199–1349).
The third important state for Ukrainians is Cossack Hetmanate. The Cossacks of Zaporizhia since the late 15th century controlled the lower bends of the river Dnieper, between Russia, Poland and the Tatars of Crimea, with the fortified capital, Zaporizhian Sich. Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky is one of the most celebrated and at the same time most controversial political figures in Ukraine's early-modern history. A brilliant military leader, his greatest achievement in the process of national revolution was the formation of the Cossack Hetmanate state of the Zaporozhian Host (1648–1782). The period of the Ruin in the late 17th century in the history of Ukraine is characterized by the disintegration of Ukrainian statehood and general decline. During the Ruin Ukraine became divided along the Dnieper River into Left-Bank Ukraine and Right-Bank Ukraine, and the two-halves became hostile to each other. Ukrainian leaders during the period are considered to have been largely opportunists and men of little vision who could not muster broad popular support for their policies. There were roughly 4 million Ukrainians at the end of the 17th century.
At the final stages of the First World War, a powerful struggle for an independent Ukrainian state developed in the central Ukrainian territories, which, until 1917, were part of the Russian Empire. The newly established Ukrainian government, the Central Rada, headed by Mykhailo Hrushevsky, issued four universals, the Fourth of which, dated 22 January 1918, declared the independence and sovereignty of the Ukrainian National Republic (UNR) on 25 January 1918. The session of the Central Rada on 29 April 1918 ratified the Constitution of the UNR and elected Hrushevsky president.
Soviet period
During the 1920s, under the Ukrainisation policy pursued by the national Communist leadership of Mykola Skrypnyk, Soviet leadership encouraged a national renaissance in the Ukrainian culture and language. Ukrainisation was part of the Soviet-wide policy of Korenisation (literally indigenisation). The Bolsheviks were also committed to universal health care, education and social-security benefits, as well as the right to work and housing. Starting from the late 1920s with a centrally planned economy, Ukraine was involved in Soviet industrialisation and the republic's industrial output quadrupled during the 1930s.
During 1932–1933, millions of Ukrainians were starved to death by a Soviet regime which led to a famine, known as the Holodomor. The Soviet regime remained silent about the Holodomor and provided no aid to the victims or the survivors. But news and information about what was going on reached the West and evoked public responses in Polish-ruled Western Ukraine and in the Ukrainian diaspora. Since the 1990s the independent Ukrainian state, particularly under President Viktor Yushchenko, the Ukrainian mass media and academic institutions, many foreign governments, most Ukrainian scholars, and many foreign scholars have viewed and written about the Holodomor as genocide and issued official declarations and publications to that effect. Modern scholarly estimates of the direct loss of human life due to the famine range between 2.6 million (3–3.5 million) and 12 million although much higher numbers are usually published in the media and cited in political debates. As of March 2008, the parliament of Ukraine and the governments of several countries, including the United States have recognized the Holodomor as an act of genocide.
Following the Invasion of Poland in September 1939, German and Soviet troops divided the territory of Poland. Thus, Eastern Galicia and Volhynia with their Ukrainian population became part of Soviet Ukraine. When the German armies invaded the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, those regions temporarily became part of the Nazi-controlled Reichskommissariat Ukraine. In total, the number of ethnic Ukrainians who fought in the ranks of the Soviet Army is estimated from 4.5 million to 7 million. The pro-Soviet partisan guerrilla resistance in Ukraine is estimated to number at 47,800 from the start of occupation to 500,000 at its peak in 1944, with about 50% being ethnic Ukrainians. Of the estimated 8.6 million Soviet troop losses, 1.4 million were ethnic Ukrainians. Victory Day is celebrated as one of ten Ukrainian national holidays.
Historical maps of Ukraine
The Ukrainian state has occupied a number of territories since its initial foundation. Most of these territories have been located within Eastern Europe, however, as depicted in the maps in the gallery below, has also at times extended well into Eurasia and South-Eastern Europe. At times there has also been a distinct lack of a Ukrainian state, as its territories were on a number of occasions, annexed by its more powerful neighbours.
Ethnic/national identity
The watershed period in the development of modern Ukrainian national consciousness was the struggle for independence during the creation of the Ukrainian People's Republic from 1917 to 1921. A concerted effort to reverse the growth of Ukrainian national consciousness was begun by the regime of Joseph Stalin in the late 1920s, and continued with minor interruptions until the most recent times. The man-made Famine of 1932–33, the deportations of the so-called kulaks, the physical annihilation of the nationally conscious intelligentsia, and terror in general were used to destroy and subdue the Ukrainian nation. Even after Joseph Stalin's death the concept of a Russified though multiethnic Soviet people was officially promoted, according to which the non-Russian nations were relegated to second-class status. Despite this, many Ukrainians played prominent roles in the Soviet Union, including such public figures as Semen Tymoshenko.
The creation of a sovereign and independent Ukraine in 1991, however, pointed to the failure of the policy of the "merging of nations" and to the enduring strength of the Ukrainian national consciousness. Today, one of the consequences of these acts is Ukrainophobia.
Biculturalism is especially present in southeastern Ukraine where there is a significant Russian minority. Historical colonization of Ukraine is one reason that creates confusion about national identity to this day. Many citizens of Ukraine have adopted the Ukrainian national identity in the past 20 years. According to the concept of nationality dominant in Eastern Europe the Ukrainians are people whose native language is Ukrainian (an objective criterion) whether or not they are nationally conscious, and all those who identify themselves as Ukrainian (a subjective criterion) whether or not they speak Ukrainian.
Attempts to introduce a territorial-political concept of Ukrainian nationality on the Western European model (presented by political philosopher Viacheslav Lypynsky) were unsuccessful until the 1990s. Territorial loyalty has also been manifested by the historical national minorities living in Ukraine. The official declaration of Ukrainian sovereignty of 16 July 1990 stated that "citizens of the Republic of all nationalities constitute the people of Ukraine."
Culture
Due to Ukraine's geographical location, its culture primarily exhibits Eastern European influence as well as Central European to an extent (primarily in the western region). Over the years it has been influenced by movements such as those brought about during the Byzantine Empire and the Renaissance. Today, the country is somewhat culturally divided with the western regions bearing a stronger Central European influence and the eastern regions showing a significant Russian influence. A strong Christian culture was predominant for many centuries, although Ukraine was also the center of conflict between the Catholic, Orthodox and Islamic spheres of influence.
Languages
Ukrainian (, ukraі́nska móva) is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the only official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses the Ukrainian alphabet, one of many based on the Cyrillic alphabet.
The Ukrainian language traces its origins to the Old East Slavic language of the medieval state of Kyivan Rus. In its earlier stages it was called Ruthenian in Latin. Ukrainian, along with all other East Slavic languages, is a lineal descendant of the colloquial language used in Kyivan Rus (10th–13th century).
While the Golden Horde placed officials in key Kyivan Rus areas, practised forced resettlement, and even renamed urban centers to suit their own language, the Mongols did not attempt to annihilate Kyivan Rus society and culture. The second onslaught began with the destruction of Kyiv by the Golden Horde in 1240. This khanate formed the western part of a great Mongol Empire that had been founded by Genghis Khan in the early 13th century. After the Mongol destruction of Kyivan Rus in the 13th century, literary activity in Ukraine declined. A revival began in the late 18th century in eastern Ukraine with overlapping literary and academic phases at a time when nostalgia for the Cossack past and resentment at the loss of autonomy still lingered on.
The language has persisted despite several periods of bans and/or discouragement throughout centuries as it has always nevertheless maintained a sufficient base among the people of Ukraine, its folklore songs, itinerant musicians, and prominent authors.
A large portion of citizens of Ukraine speaks Russian. According to the 2001 Ukrainian census, 67.5% of Ukrainians (citizens of Ukraine) and 85.2% of ethnic Ukrainians named Ukrainian as their mother-tongue, and 14.8% named Russian as their mother-tongue. This census does not cover Ukrainians living in other countries.
Religions
Ukraine was inhabited by pagan tribes until Byzantine rite Christianity was introduced by the turn of the first millennium. It was imagined by later writers who sought to put Kyivan Christianity on the same level of primacy as Byzantine Christianity that Apostle Andrew himself had visited the site where the city of Kyiv would be later built.
However it was only by the 10th century that the emerging state, the Kyivan Rus, became influenced by the Byzantine Empire; the first known conversion was by the Princess Saint Olga who came to Constantinople in 945 or 957. Several years later, her grandson, Kniaz Vladimir baptised his people in the Dnieper River. This began a long history of the dominance of the Eastern Orthodoxy in Ruthenia (Ukraine).
Ukrainians are predominantly Eastern Orthodox Christians, and they form the second largest ethno-linguistic group among Eastern Orthodox in the world. Ukrainians have their own autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine headed by Metropolitan Epiphanius and in the eastern and southern areas of Ukraine the Ukrainian Orthodox Church under the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate is the most common.
In the Western region known as Halychyna the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, one of the Eastern Rite Catholic Churches has a strong membership. Since the fall of the Soviet Union there has been a growth of Protestant churches and Rodnovery, a contemporary Slavic modern pagan religion. There are also ethnic minorities that practice other religions, i.e. Crimean Tatars (Islam), and Jews and Karaim (Judaism).
A 2020 survey conducted by the Razumkov Centre found that majority of Ukrainian populations was adhering to Christianity (81.9%). Of these Christians, 75.4% are Eastern Orthodox (34% of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine and 13.8% of the Moscow Patriarchate, and 27.6% are simply Orthodox), 8,2% are Greek Catholics, 7.1% are simply Christians, a further 1.9% are Protestants and 0.4% are Latin Catholics. As of 2016, 16.3% of the population does not claim a religious affiliation, and 1.7% adheres to other religions. According to the same survey, 70% of the population of Ukraine declared to be believers, but do not belong to any church. 8.8% do not identify themselves with any of the denominations, and another 5.6% identified themselves as non-believers.
Music
Ukrainian music incorporates a diversity of external cultural influences. It also has a very strong indigenous Slavic and Christian uniqueness whose elements were used among many neighboring nations.
Ukrainian folk oral literature, poetry, and songs (such as the dumas) are among the most distinctive ethnocultural features of Ukrainians as a people. Religious music existed in Ukraine before the official adoption of Christianity, in the form of plainsong "obychnyi spiv" or "musica practica". Traditional Ukrainian music is easily recognized by its somewhat melancholy tone. It first became known outside of Ukraine during the 15th century as musicians from Ukraine would perform before the royal courts in Poland (latter in Russia).
A large number of famous musicians around the world was educated or born in Ukraine, among them are famous names like Dmitry Bortniansky, Sergei Prokofiev, Myroslav Skoryk, etc. Ukraine is also the rarely acknowledged musical heartland of the former Russian Empire, home to its first professional music academy, which opened in the mid-18th century and produced numerous early musicians and composers.
Dance
Ukrainian dance refers to the traditional folk dances of the peoples of Ukraine. Today, Ukrainian dance is primarily represented by what ethnographers, folklorists and dance historians refer to as "Ukrainian Folk-Stage Dances", which are stylized representations of traditional dances and their characteristic movements that have been choreographed for concert dance performances. This stylized art form has so permeated the culture of Ukraine, that very few purely traditional forms of Ukrainian dance remain today.
Ukrainian dance is often described as energetic, fast-paced, and entertaining, and along with traditional Easter eggs (pysanky), it is a characteristic example of Ukrainian culture recognized and appreciated throughout the world.
Symbols
The national symbols of the Ukraine are the Flag of Ukraine and the Coat of arms of Ukraine.
The national flag of Ukraine is a blue and yellow bicolour rectangle. The colour fields are of same form and equal size. The colours of the flag represent a blue sky above yellow fields of wheat. The flag was designed for the convention of the Supreme Ruthenian Council, meeting in Lviv in October 1848. Its colours were based on the coat-of-arms of the Kingdom of Ruthenia.
The Coat of arms of Ukraine features the same colours found on the Ukrainian flag: a blue shield with yellow trident—the symbol of ancient East Slavic tribes that once lived in Ukraine, later adopted by Ruthenian and Kievan Rus rulers.
See also
List of Ukrainian rulers
List of Ukrainians
Cossacks
Green Ukraine
Lemkos
Rusyns
Ruthenians
Ukrainization
Polonization
Russification of Ukraine
Soviet population transfers
Ukrainian dialects
Ukrainians in Russia
References
Notes
Footnotes
Sources
Online sources
Vasyl Balushok, "How Rusyns Became Ukrainians", Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), July 2005. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Vasyl Balushok, "When was the Ukrainian nation born?", Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), April 23 – May 6, 2005. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Dmytro Kyianskyi, "We are more "Russian" then they are: history without myths and sensationalism", Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), January 27 – February 2, 2001. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Oleg Chirkov, "External migration – the main reason for the presence of a non-Ukrainian ethnic population in contemporary Ukraine". Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), January 26 – February 1, 2002. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Halyna Lozko, "Ukrainian ethnology. Ethnographic division of Ukraine" Available in Ukrainian.
External links
Ukrainian World Congress.
Ukrainian diaspora in Canada and the U.S.
Ukrainians at Encyclopedia of Ukraine
Races of Europe 1942–1943
Hammond's Racial map of Europe, 1919 "National Alumni" 1920, vol.7
Peoples of Europe / Die Voelker Europas 1914
Ethno-Linguistic Map of Europe Before 1914
Linguistic Divisions of Europe in 1914
Ethnic Territory of the Ukrainian people in the Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries
Ethnic groups in Azerbaijan
Ethnic groups in Crimea
Ethnic groups in Kazakhstan
Ethnic groups in Kyrgyzstan
Ethnic groups in Poland
Ethnic groups in Russia
Ethnic groups in Ukraine
Slavic ethnic groups
Ukrainian studies
Indigenous peoples of Ukraine
Ethnic groups divided by international borders | false | [
"\"This Is What It Feels Like\" is a song by Dutch DJ and record producer Armin van Buuren, featuring Canadian singer, songwriter and former soulDecision frontman Trevor Guthrie, released in the Netherlands by Armada Music on 29 April 2013 as the second single from van Buuren's fifth studio album, Intense (2013).\n\n\"This Is What It Feels Like\" peaked at number three on the Dutch Top 40. Outside the Netherlands, \"This Is What It Feels Like\" peaked within the top ten of the charts in ten countries, including Austria, Belgium (Flanders), Canada, Israel and the United Kingdom.\n\nThe song was written by Armin van Buuren, Benno de Goeij, Jenson Vaughan, Trevor Guthrie and John Ewbank. Van Buuren wrote the instrumental with de Goeij and Ewbank in 2012. Trevor Guthrie wrote the lyrics with Jenson Vaughan, and it was inspired by Guthrie's neighbour who was diagnosed with a brain tumor. \"This Is What It Feels Like\" was nominated for the 2014 Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording. The song was featured in the intro for a 2019 episode of America's Got Talent.\n\nMusic video\nA music video to accompany the release of \"This is What It Feels Like\" was first released onto YouTube on 17 March 2013. The video also features a guest appearance by Ron Jeremy. As of September 2017, it has received over 100 million views, making it the fifth most viewed video on Armada Music's YouTube channel.\n\nTrack listing\n Digital downloads\n \"This Is What It Feels Like\" – 3:25\n \"This Is What It Feels Like\" (extended mix) – 5:16\n \"This Is What It Feels Like\" (W&W remix) – 6:16\n \"This Is What It Feels Like\" (David Guetta remix) – 5:28\n \"This Is What It Feels Like\" (Antillas and Dankann remix) – 5:44\n \"This Is What It Feels Like\" (Antillas and Dankann radio edit) – 3:34\n \"This Is What It Feels Like\" (Giuseppe Ottaviani remix) – 6:38\n \"This Is What It Feels Like\" (Giuseppe Ottaviani radio edit) – 3:55\n \"This Is What It Feels Like\" (John Ewbank classical remix) – 3:12\n UK CD single\n \"This Is What It Feels Like\" – 3:25\n \"This Is What It Feels Like\" (extended mix) – 5:16\n \"This Is What It Feels Like\" (W&W remix) – 6:16\n \"Waiting for the Night\" – 3:03\n German CD single\n \"This Is What It Feels Like\" – 3:25\n \"This Is What It Feels Like\" (David Guetta remix) – 5:28\n\n Maddix remix\n \"This Is What It Feels Like\" (Maddix remix) – 3:50\n \"This Is What It Feels Like\" (Maddix extended mix) – 4:50\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nCertifications\n\nRelease history\n\nJason Benoit version\n\n\"This Is What It Feels Like\" was covered by Canadian country music artist Jason Benoit and released through Sky Hit Records, under license to Sony Music Canada, as Benoit's debut single on 10 September 2013. His rendition reached number 46 on the Billboard Canada Country chart. It received positive reviews for Benoit's \"strong vocal performance\" was also included on the compilation album, Country Heat 2014.\n\nMusic video\nAn official lyric video was uploaded to Benoit's Vevo channel on 4 October 2013.\n\nChart performance\n\nReferences\n\n2013 singles\n2013 songs\nArmin van Buuren songs\nArmada Music singles\nJuno Award for Dance Recording of the Year recordings\nSongs written by Armin van Buuren\nSongs written by Benno de Goeij\nSongs written by Jenson Vaughan\nSongs written by Trevor Guthrie\nTrevor Guthrie songs",
"Percy Greg (7 January 1836 Bury – 24 December 1889, Chelsea), son of William Rathbone Greg, was an English writer.\n\nPercy Greg, like his father, wrote about politics, but his views were violently reactionary: his History of the United States to the Reconstruction of the Union (1887) can be said to be more of a polemic, rather than a history.\n\nHis Across the Zodiac (1880) is an early science fiction novel, said to be the progenitor of the sword-and-planet genre. For that novel, Greg created what may have been the first artistic language that was described with linguistic and grammatical terminology. It also contained what is possibly the first instance in the English language of the word \"Astronaut\".\n\nIn 2010 a crater on Mars was named Greg in recognition of his contribution to the lore of Mars.\n\nBibliography\n\nAcross the Zodiac (1880)\nHistory of the United States to the Reconstruction of the Union (1887)\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n \n \n\n1836 births\n1889 deaths\nPeople from Bury, Greater Manchester"
]
|
[
"Ukrainians",
"Early history",
"what was the early history like?",
"The ethnonym Ukrainians became widely accepted only in the 20th century after their territory obtained distinctive statehood in 1917."
]
| C_658f2d15938146ada5953397dfbe6cd7_1 | how did it obtain distinctive statehood? | 2 | How did ethnonym Ukrainians obtain distinctive statehood? | Ukrainians | The ethnonym Ukrainians became widely accepted only in the 20th century after their territory obtained distinctive statehood in 1917. From the 14th to the 16th centuries, the Western portions of the European part of what is now known as Russia, the territories of northern Ukraine and Belarus (Western Rus') were largely known as Rus', continuing the tradition of Kievan Rus'. People of these territories were usually called Rus or Rusyns (known as Ruthenians in Western and Central Europe). The Ukrainian language appeared in the 14th - 16th centuries (with some prototypical features already evident in the 11th century), but at that time, it was mostly known as Ruthenian, like its brothers. In the 16th - 17th centuries, with the establishment of the Zaporizhian Sich, the notion of Ukraine as a separate country with a separate ethnic identity came into being. However, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the linguonym Ukrainian were used only occasionally, and the people of Ukraine usually continued to call themselves and their language Ruthenian. After the decline of the Zaporizhian Sich and the establishment of Imperial Russian hegemony in Ukraine, Ukrainians became more widely known by the Russian regional name, Little Russians (Malorossy), with the majority of Ukrainian elites espousing Little Russian identity. This official name (usually regarded now as colonial and humiliating) did not spread widely among the peasantry which constituted the majority of the population. Ukrainian peasants still referred to their country as Ukraine (a name associated with the Zaporizhian Sich, with the Hetmanate and with their struggle against Poles, Russians, Turks and Crimean Tatars) and to themselves and their language as Ruthenians/Ruthenian. With the publication of Ivan Kotliarevsky's Eneyida (Aeneid) in 1798, which established the modern Ukrainian language, and with the subsequent Romantic revival of national traditions and culture, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the notion of a Ukrainian language came into more prominence at the beginning of the 19th century and gradually replaced the words "Rusyns" and "Ruthenian(s)". In areas outside the control of the Russian/Soviet state until the mid-20th century (Western Ukraine), Ukrainians were known by their pre-existing names for much longer. The appellation Ukrainians initially came into common usage in Central Ukraine and did not take hold in Galicia and Bukovyna until the latter part of the 19th century, in Transcarpathia until the 1930s, and in the Presov Region until the late 1940s. The modern name ukrayintsi (Ukrainians) derives from Ukrayina (Ukraine), a name first documented in 1187. Several scientific theories attempt to explain the etymology of the term. According to the traditional theory (especially predominant in Russia), it derives from the Proto-Slavic root *kraj-, which has two meanings, one meaning the homeland as in "nash rodnoi kraj" (our homeland), and the other "edge, border", and originally had the sense of "periphery", "borderland" or "frontier region" etc. According to some new alternative Ukrainian historians such as Hryhoriy Pivtorak, Vitaly Sklyarenko and other scholars, translate the term "u-kraine" as "in-land", "home-land" or "our-country". The name in this context derives from the word "u-kraina" in the sense of "domestic region", "domestic land" or "country" (inside the country). In the last few centuries the population of Ukraine experienced periods of Polonization and Russification, but preserved a common culture and a sense of common identity. Most ethnic Ukrainians live in Ukraine, where they make up over three-quarters of the population. The largest population of ethnic Ukrainians outside of Ukraine lives in Russia where about 1.9 million Russian citizens consider themselves ethnic Ukrainians, while millions of others (primarily in southern Russia and Siberia) have some Ukrainian ancestry. The inhabitants of the Kuban, for example, have vacillated among three identities: Ukrainian, Russian (an identity supported by the Soviet regime), and "Cossack". Approximately 800,000 people of Ukrainian ancestry live in the Russian Far East in an area known historically as "Green Ukraine". According to some previous assumptions, an estimated number of almost 2.4 million people of Ukrainian origin live in North America (1,359,655 in Canada and 1,028,492 in the United States). Large numbers of Ukrainians live in Brazil (600,000), Kazakhstan (338,022), Moldova (325,235), Argentina (305,000), Germany (272,000), Italy (234,354), Belarus (225,734), Uzbekistan (124,602), the Czech Republic (110,245), Spain (90,530-100,000) and Romania (51,703-200,000). There are also large Ukrainian communities in such countries as Latvia, Portugal, France, Australia, Paraguay, the UK, Israel, Slovakia, Kyrgyzstan, Austria, Uruguay and the former Yugoslavia. Generally, the Ukrainian diaspora is present in more than one hundred and twenty countries of the world. The number of Ukrainians in Poland amounted to some 51,000 people in 2011 (according to Polish Census). Since 2014, the country has experienced a large increase in immigration from Ukraine. More recent data put the number of Ukrainian workers at 1.2 - 1.3 million in 2016. In the last decades of the 19th century, many Ukrainians were forced by the Tsarist autocracy to move to the Asian regions of Russia, while many of their counterpart Slavs under Austro-Hungarian rule emigrated to the New World seeking work and better economic opportunities. Today, large ethnic Ukrainian minorities reside in Russia, Canada, the United States, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Italy and Argentina. According to some sources, around 20 million people outside Ukraine identify as having Ukrainian ethnicity, however the official data of the respective countries calculated together doesn't show more than 10 million. Ukrainians have one of the largest diasporas in the world. Ukraine has had a very turbulent history, a fact explained by its geographical position. In the 9th century the Varangians from Scandinavia conquered the proto-Slavic tribes on the territory of today's Ukraine, Belarus, and western Russia and laid the groundwork for the Kievan Rus' state. The ancestors of the Ukrainian nation such as Polianians had an important role in the development and culturalization of Kievan Rus' state. The internecine wars between Rus' princes, which began after the death of Yaroslav the Wise, led to the political fragmentation of the state into a number of principalities. The quarreling between the princes left Kievan Rus' vulnerable to foreign attacks, and the invasion of the Mongols in 1236. and 1240. finally destroyed the state. Another important state in the history of the Ukrainians is Kingdom of Galicia-Volhynia (1199-1349). The third important state for Ukrainians is Cossack Hetmanate. The Cossacks of Zaporizhia since the late 15th century controlled the lower bends of the river Dnieper, between Russia, Poland and the Tatars of Crimea, with the fortified capital, Zaporizhian Sich. Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky is one of the most celebrated and at the same time most controversial political figures in Ukraine's early-modern history. A brilliant military leader, his greatest achievement in the process of national revolution was the formation of the Cossack Hetmanate state of the Zaporozhian Host (1648-1782). The period of the Ruin in the late 17th century in the history of Ukraine is characterized by the disintegration of Ukrainian statehood and general decline. During the Ruin Ukraine became divided along the Dnieper River into Left-Bank Ukraine and Right-Bank Ukraine, and the two halves became hostile to each other. Ukrainian leaders during the period are considered to have been largely opportunists and men of little vision who could not muster broad popular support for their policies. There were roughly 4 million Ukrainians at the end of the 17th century. At the final stages of the First World War, a powerful struggle for an independent Ukrainian state developed in the central Ukrainian territories, which, until 1917, were part of the Russian Empire. The newly established Ukrainian government, the Central Rada, headed by Mykhailo Hrushevsky, issued four universals, the Fourth of which, dated 22 January 1918, declared the independence and sovereignty of the Ukrainian National Republic (UNR) on 25 January 1918. The session of the Central Rada on 29 April 1918 ratified the Constitution of the UNR and elected Hrushevsky president. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Ukrainians (, ), or the Ukrainian people, are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe and the second-largest among the East Slavs after the Russians. According to the Constitution of Ukraine, the term "Ukrainians" applies to all its citizens. The majority of Ukrainians are Eastern Orthodox Christians.
Ethnic Ukrainians were historically known as Ruthenians until the early 20th century, referring to the medieval land of Ruthenia, which was the Latin term for what is now known as Kievan Rus, a medieval East Slavic state with the capital in Kyiv. After its collapse, the Kingdom of Ruthenia emerged, but was soon dismantled by its neighbours. Starting from the 15th century, the people of Ukraine were also known as Cossacks and formed the state Zaporizhian Host. The connection with the Zaporozhian Cossacks especially, is emphasized in the Ukrainian national anthem, "We are, brothers, of Cossack kin".
Ethnonym
The ethnonym Ukrainians came into wide use only in the 20th century after the territory of Ukraine obtained distinctive statehood in 1917. From the 14th to the 16th centuries the western portions of the European part of what is now known as Russia, plus the territories of northern Ukraine and Belarus (Western Rus) were largely known as Rus, continuing the tradition of Kievan Rus. People of these territories were usually called Rus or Rusyns (known as Ruthenians in Western and Central Europe). The period of Old Ukrainian (mid-11th to late 14th century) dates from the same time as the oldest extant Rus’ texts and coincides with the rise and fall of Kievan Rus’. The Ukrainian language appeared in the 14th to 16th centuries (with some prototypical features already evident in the 11th century), but at that time, it was mostly known as Ruthenian, like its sister-languages. In the 16th to 17th centuries, with the establishment of the Zaporizhian Sich, the notion of Ukraine as a separate country with a separate ethnic identity came into being. However, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the linguonym Ukrainian were used only occasionally, and the people of Ukraine usually continued to call themselves and their language Ruthenian. After the decline of the Zaporizhian Sich and the establishment of Imperial Russian hegemony in Ukraine (17th to 18th centuries), Ukrainians became more widely known by the Russian regional name, Little Russians (Malorossy), with the majority of Ukrainian élites espousing Little Russian identity. This official name (usually regarded now as colonial and humiliating) did not spread widely among the peasantry which constituted the majority of the population. Ukrainian peasants still referred to their country as "Ukraine" (a name associated with the Zaporizhian Sich, with the Hetmanate and with their struggle against Poles, Russians, Turks and Crimean Tatars) and to themselves and their language as Ruthenians/Ruthenian. With the publication of Ivan Kotliarevsky's Eneyida (Aeneid) in 1798, which established the modern Ukrainian language, and with the subsequent Romantic revival of national traditions and culture, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the notion of a Ukrainian language came into more prominence at the beginning of the 19th century and gradually replaced the words "Rusyns" and "Ruthenian(s)". In areas outside the control of the Russian/Soviet state until the mid-20th century (Western Ukraine), Ukrainians were known by their pre-existing names for much longer. The appellation Ukrainians initially came into common usage in Central Ukraine and did not take hold in Galicia and Bukovyna until the latter part of the 19th century, in Transcarpathia until the 1930s, and in the Prešov Region until the late 1940s.
The modern name ukraintsi (Ukrainians) derives from Ukraina (Ukraine), a name first documented in 1187. Several scientific theories attempt to explain the etymology of the term.
According to the traditional theory, it derives from the Proto-Slavic root *kraj-, which has two meanings, one meaning the homeland as in "nash rodnoi kraj" (our homeland), and the other "edge, border", and originally had the sense of "periphery", "borderland" or "frontier region" etc.
According to another theory, the term ukraina should be distinguished from the term okraina: whereas the latter term means "borderland", the former one has the meaning of "cut-off piece of land", thus acquiring the connotation of "our land", "land allotted to us".
In the last three centuries the population of Ukraine experienced periods of Polonization and Russification, but preserved a common culture and a sense of common identity.
Geographic distribution
Most ethnic Ukrainians live in Ukraine, where they make up over three-quarters of the population. The largest population of Ukrainians outside of Ukraine lives in Russia where about 1.9 million Russian citizens identify as Ukrainian, while millions of others (primarily in southern Russia and Siberia) have some Ukrainian ancestry. The inhabitants of the Kuban, for example, have vacillated among three identities: Ukrainian, Russian (an identity supported by the Soviet regime), and "Cossack". Approximately 800,000 people of Ukrainian ancestry live in the Russian Far East in an area known historically as "Green Ukraine".
In a 2011 national poll of Ukraine, 49% of Ukrainians said they had relatives living in Russia.
According to some previous assumptions, an estimated number of almost 2.4 million people of Ukrainian origin live in North America (1,359,655 in Canada and 1,028,492 in the United States). Large numbers of Ukrainians live in Brazil (600,000), Kazakhstan (338,022), Moldova (325,235), Argentina (305,000), (Germany) (272,000), Italy (234,354), Belarus (225,734), Uzbekistan (124,602), the Czech Republic (110,245), Spain (90,530–100,000) and Romania (51,703–200,000). There are also large Ukrainian communities in such countries as Latvia, Portugal, France, Australia, Paraguay, the UK, Israel, Slovakia, Kyrgyzstan, Austria, Uruguay and the former Yugoslavia. Generally, the Ukrainian diaspora is present in more than one hundred and twenty countries of the world.
The number of Ukrainians in Poland amounted to some 51,000 people in 2011 (according to the Polish Census). Since 2014, the country has experienced a large increase in immigration from Ukraine. More recent data put the number of Ukrainian migrant workers at 1.2 – 1.3 million in 2016.
In the last decades of the 19th century, many Ukrainians were forced by the Tsarist autocracy to move to the Asian regions of Russia, while many of their counterpart Slavs under Austro-Hungarian rule emigrated to the New World seeking work and better economic opportunities. Today, large ethnic Ukrainian minorities reside in Russia, Canada, the United States, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Italy and Argentina. According to some sources, around 20 million people outside Ukraine identify as having Ukrainian ethnicity, however the official data of the respective countries calculated together doesn't show more than 10 million. Ukrainians have one of the largest diasporas in the world.
Origin
The East Slavs emerged from the undifferentiated early Slavs in the Slavic migrations of the 6th and 7th centuries CE. The state of Kievan Rus united the East Slavs during the 9th to 13th centuries. East Slavic tribes cited as "proto-Ukrainian" include the Volhynians, Derevlianians, Polianians, and Siverianians and the less significant Ulychians, Tivertsians, and White Croats.
The Gothic historian Jordanes and 6th-century Byzantine authors named two groups that lived in the south-east of Europe: Sclavins (western Slavs) and Antes. Polianians are identified as the founders of the city of Kyiv and as playing the key role in the formation of the Kievan Rus state. At the beginning of the 9th century, Varangians used the waterways of Eastern Europe for military raids and trade, particularly the trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks. Until the 11th century these Varangians also served as key mercenary troops for a number of princes in medieval Kyiv, as well as for some of the Byzantine emperors, while others occupied key administrative positions in Kievan Rus society, and eventually became slavicized. Besides other cultural traces, several Ukrainian names show traces of Norse origins as a result of influences from that period.
Differentiation between separate East Slavic groups began to emerge in the later medieval period, and an East Slavic dialect continuum developed within the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, with the Ruthenian language emerging as a written standard. The active development of a concept of a Ukrainian nation and a Ukrainian language began with the Ukrainian National Revival in the early 19th century. In the Soviet era (1917–1991), official historiography emphasized "the cultural unity of 'proto-Ukrainians' and 'proto-Russians' in the fifth and sixth centuries".
Genetics and genomics
In a survey of 97 genomes for diversity in full genome sequences among self-identified Ukrainians from Ukraine, a study identified more than 13 million genetic variants, representing about a quarter of the total genetic diversity discovered in Europe. Among these nearly 500,000 are previously undocumented and likely to be unique for this population. Medically relevant mutations whose prevalence in the Ukrainian genomes differed significantly compared to other European genome sequences, particularly from Western Europe and Russia. Ukrainian genomes form a single cluster positioned between the Northern on one side, and Western European populations on the other. There was a significant overlap with Central European populations as well as with people from the Balkans. In addition to the close geographic distance between these populations, this may also reflect the insufficient representation of samples from the surrounding populations.
The Ukrainian gene-pool includes the following Y-haplogroups, in order from the most prevalent:
R1a (43%)
I (23% I2a)
R1b (8%)
E1b1b (7%)
I1 (5%)
N1 (5%)
J2 (4%)
G (3%)
T (1%)
Roughly all R1a Ukrainians carry R1a-Z282; R1a-Z282 has been found significantly only in Eastern Europe. Chernivtsi Oblast is the only region in Ukraine where Haplogroup I2a occurs more frequently than R1a, much less frequent even in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast. In comparison to their northern and eastern neighbors, Ukrainians have a similar percentage of Haplogroup R1a-Z280 (43%) in their population—compare Belarusians, Russians, and Lithuanians and (55%, 46%, and 42% respectively). Populations in Eastern Europe which have never been Slavic do as well. Ukrainians in Chernivtsi Oblast (near the Romanian border) have a higher percentage of I2a as opposed to R1a, which is typical of the Balkan region, but a smaller percentage than Russians of the N1c1 lineage found among Finnic, Baltic, and Siberian populations, and also less R1b than West Slavs.
In terms of haplogroup distribution, the genetic pattern of Ukrainians most closely resembles that of Belarusians. The presence of the N1c lineage is explained by a contribution of the assimilated Finnic tribes.
Related ethnic groups
Within Ukraine and adjacent areas, there are several other distinct ethnic groups, especially in western Ukraine: places like Zakarpattia and Halychyna. Among them the most known are Hutsuls, Volhynians, Boykos and Lemkos (otherwise known as Rusyns – a derivative of Ruthenians), each with particular areas of settlement, dialect, dress, anthropological type, and folk traditions.
History
Early history
Ukraine has had a very turbulent history, a fact explained by its geographical position. In the 9th century the Varangians from Scandinavia conquered the proto-Slavic tribes on the territory of today's Ukraine, Belarus, and western Russia and laid the groundwork for the Kyivan Rus state. The ancestors of the Ukrainian nation such as Polianians had an important role in the development and culturalization of Kyivan Rus state. The internecine wars between Rus princes, which began after the death of Yaroslav the Wise, led to the political fragmentation of the state into a number of principalities. The quarreling between the princes left Kyivan Rus vulnerable to foreign attacks, and the invasion of the Mongols in 1236. and 1240. finally destroyed the state. Another important state in the history of the Ukrainians is Kingdom of Ruthenia (1199–1349).
The third important state for Ukrainians is Cossack Hetmanate. The Cossacks of Zaporizhia since the late 15th century controlled the lower bends of the river Dnieper, between Russia, Poland and the Tatars of Crimea, with the fortified capital, Zaporizhian Sich. Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky is one of the most celebrated and at the same time most controversial political figures in Ukraine's early-modern history. A brilliant military leader, his greatest achievement in the process of national revolution was the formation of the Cossack Hetmanate state of the Zaporozhian Host (1648–1782). The period of the Ruin in the late 17th century in the history of Ukraine is characterized by the disintegration of Ukrainian statehood and general decline. During the Ruin Ukraine became divided along the Dnieper River into Left-Bank Ukraine and Right-Bank Ukraine, and the two-halves became hostile to each other. Ukrainian leaders during the period are considered to have been largely opportunists and men of little vision who could not muster broad popular support for their policies. There were roughly 4 million Ukrainians at the end of the 17th century.
At the final stages of the First World War, a powerful struggle for an independent Ukrainian state developed in the central Ukrainian territories, which, until 1917, were part of the Russian Empire. The newly established Ukrainian government, the Central Rada, headed by Mykhailo Hrushevsky, issued four universals, the Fourth of which, dated 22 January 1918, declared the independence and sovereignty of the Ukrainian National Republic (UNR) on 25 January 1918. The session of the Central Rada on 29 April 1918 ratified the Constitution of the UNR and elected Hrushevsky president.
Soviet period
During the 1920s, under the Ukrainisation policy pursued by the national Communist leadership of Mykola Skrypnyk, Soviet leadership encouraged a national renaissance in the Ukrainian culture and language. Ukrainisation was part of the Soviet-wide policy of Korenisation (literally indigenisation). The Bolsheviks were also committed to universal health care, education and social-security benefits, as well as the right to work and housing. Starting from the late 1920s with a centrally planned economy, Ukraine was involved in Soviet industrialisation and the republic's industrial output quadrupled during the 1930s.
During 1932–1933, millions of Ukrainians were starved to death by a Soviet regime which led to a famine, known as the Holodomor. The Soviet regime remained silent about the Holodomor and provided no aid to the victims or the survivors. But news and information about what was going on reached the West and evoked public responses in Polish-ruled Western Ukraine and in the Ukrainian diaspora. Since the 1990s the independent Ukrainian state, particularly under President Viktor Yushchenko, the Ukrainian mass media and academic institutions, many foreign governments, most Ukrainian scholars, and many foreign scholars have viewed and written about the Holodomor as genocide and issued official declarations and publications to that effect. Modern scholarly estimates of the direct loss of human life due to the famine range between 2.6 million (3–3.5 million) and 12 million although much higher numbers are usually published in the media and cited in political debates. As of March 2008, the parliament of Ukraine and the governments of several countries, including the United States have recognized the Holodomor as an act of genocide.
Following the Invasion of Poland in September 1939, German and Soviet troops divided the territory of Poland. Thus, Eastern Galicia and Volhynia with their Ukrainian population became part of Soviet Ukraine. When the German armies invaded the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, those regions temporarily became part of the Nazi-controlled Reichskommissariat Ukraine. In total, the number of ethnic Ukrainians who fought in the ranks of the Soviet Army is estimated from 4.5 million to 7 million. The pro-Soviet partisan guerrilla resistance in Ukraine is estimated to number at 47,800 from the start of occupation to 500,000 at its peak in 1944, with about 50% being ethnic Ukrainians. Of the estimated 8.6 million Soviet troop losses, 1.4 million were ethnic Ukrainians. Victory Day is celebrated as one of ten Ukrainian national holidays.
Historical maps of Ukraine
The Ukrainian state has occupied a number of territories since its initial foundation. Most of these territories have been located within Eastern Europe, however, as depicted in the maps in the gallery below, has also at times extended well into Eurasia and South-Eastern Europe. At times there has also been a distinct lack of a Ukrainian state, as its territories were on a number of occasions, annexed by its more powerful neighbours.
Ethnic/national identity
The watershed period in the development of modern Ukrainian national consciousness was the struggle for independence during the creation of the Ukrainian People's Republic from 1917 to 1921. A concerted effort to reverse the growth of Ukrainian national consciousness was begun by the regime of Joseph Stalin in the late 1920s, and continued with minor interruptions until the most recent times. The man-made Famine of 1932–33, the deportations of the so-called kulaks, the physical annihilation of the nationally conscious intelligentsia, and terror in general were used to destroy and subdue the Ukrainian nation. Even after Joseph Stalin's death the concept of a Russified though multiethnic Soviet people was officially promoted, according to which the non-Russian nations were relegated to second-class status. Despite this, many Ukrainians played prominent roles in the Soviet Union, including such public figures as Semen Tymoshenko.
The creation of a sovereign and independent Ukraine in 1991, however, pointed to the failure of the policy of the "merging of nations" and to the enduring strength of the Ukrainian national consciousness. Today, one of the consequences of these acts is Ukrainophobia.
Biculturalism is especially present in southeastern Ukraine where there is a significant Russian minority. Historical colonization of Ukraine is one reason that creates confusion about national identity to this day. Many citizens of Ukraine have adopted the Ukrainian national identity in the past 20 years. According to the concept of nationality dominant in Eastern Europe the Ukrainians are people whose native language is Ukrainian (an objective criterion) whether or not they are nationally conscious, and all those who identify themselves as Ukrainian (a subjective criterion) whether or not they speak Ukrainian.
Attempts to introduce a territorial-political concept of Ukrainian nationality on the Western European model (presented by political philosopher Viacheslav Lypynsky) were unsuccessful until the 1990s. Territorial loyalty has also been manifested by the historical national minorities living in Ukraine. The official declaration of Ukrainian sovereignty of 16 July 1990 stated that "citizens of the Republic of all nationalities constitute the people of Ukraine."
Culture
Due to Ukraine's geographical location, its culture primarily exhibits Eastern European influence as well as Central European to an extent (primarily in the western region). Over the years it has been influenced by movements such as those brought about during the Byzantine Empire and the Renaissance. Today, the country is somewhat culturally divided with the western regions bearing a stronger Central European influence and the eastern regions showing a significant Russian influence. A strong Christian culture was predominant for many centuries, although Ukraine was also the center of conflict between the Catholic, Orthodox and Islamic spheres of influence.
Languages
Ukrainian (, ukraі́nska móva) is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the only official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses the Ukrainian alphabet, one of many based on the Cyrillic alphabet.
The Ukrainian language traces its origins to the Old East Slavic language of the medieval state of Kyivan Rus. In its earlier stages it was called Ruthenian in Latin. Ukrainian, along with all other East Slavic languages, is a lineal descendant of the colloquial language used in Kyivan Rus (10th–13th century).
While the Golden Horde placed officials in key Kyivan Rus areas, practised forced resettlement, and even renamed urban centers to suit their own language, the Mongols did not attempt to annihilate Kyivan Rus society and culture. The second onslaught began with the destruction of Kyiv by the Golden Horde in 1240. This khanate formed the western part of a great Mongol Empire that had been founded by Genghis Khan in the early 13th century. After the Mongol destruction of Kyivan Rus in the 13th century, literary activity in Ukraine declined. A revival began in the late 18th century in eastern Ukraine with overlapping literary and academic phases at a time when nostalgia for the Cossack past and resentment at the loss of autonomy still lingered on.
The language has persisted despite several periods of bans and/or discouragement throughout centuries as it has always nevertheless maintained a sufficient base among the people of Ukraine, its folklore songs, itinerant musicians, and prominent authors.
A large portion of citizens of Ukraine speaks Russian. According to the 2001 Ukrainian census, 67.5% of Ukrainians (citizens of Ukraine) and 85.2% of ethnic Ukrainians named Ukrainian as their mother-tongue, and 14.8% named Russian as their mother-tongue. This census does not cover Ukrainians living in other countries.
Religions
Ukraine was inhabited by pagan tribes until Byzantine rite Christianity was introduced by the turn of the first millennium. It was imagined by later writers who sought to put Kyivan Christianity on the same level of primacy as Byzantine Christianity that Apostle Andrew himself had visited the site where the city of Kyiv would be later built.
However it was only by the 10th century that the emerging state, the Kyivan Rus, became influenced by the Byzantine Empire; the first known conversion was by the Princess Saint Olga who came to Constantinople in 945 or 957. Several years later, her grandson, Kniaz Vladimir baptised his people in the Dnieper River. This began a long history of the dominance of the Eastern Orthodoxy in Ruthenia (Ukraine).
Ukrainians are predominantly Eastern Orthodox Christians, and they form the second largest ethno-linguistic group among Eastern Orthodox in the world. Ukrainians have their own autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine headed by Metropolitan Epiphanius and in the eastern and southern areas of Ukraine the Ukrainian Orthodox Church under the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate is the most common.
In the Western region known as Halychyna the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, one of the Eastern Rite Catholic Churches has a strong membership. Since the fall of the Soviet Union there has been a growth of Protestant churches and Rodnovery, a contemporary Slavic modern pagan religion. There are also ethnic minorities that practice other religions, i.e. Crimean Tatars (Islam), and Jews and Karaim (Judaism).
A 2020 survey conducted by the Razumkov Centre found that majority of Ukrainian populations was adhering to Christianity (81.9%). Of these Christians, 75.4% are Eastern Orthodox (34% of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine and 13.8% of the Moscow Patriarchate, and 27.6% are simply Orthodox), 8,2% are Greek Catholics, 7.1% are simply Christians, a further 1.9% are Protestants and 0.4% are Latin Catholics. As of 2016, 16.3% of the population does not claim a religious affiliation, and 1.7% adheres to other religions. According to the same survey, 70% of the population of Ukraine declared to be believers, but do not belong to any church. 8.8% do not identify themselves with any of the denominations, and another 5.6% identified themselves as non-believers.
Music
Ukrainian music incorporates a diversity of external cultural influences. It also has a very strong indigenous Slavic and Christian uniqueness whose elements were used among many neighboring nations.
Ukrainian folk oral literature, poetry, and songs (such as the dumas) are among the most distinctive ethnocultural features of Ukrainians as a people. Religious music existed in Ukraine before the official adoption of Christianity, in the form of plainsong "obychnyi spiv" or "musica practica". Traditional Ukrainian music is easily recognized by its somewhat melancholy tone. It first became known outside of Ukraine during the 15th century as musicians from Ukraine would perform before the royal courts in Poland (latter in Russia).
A large number of famous musicians around the world was educated or born in Ukraine, among them are famous names like Dmitry Bortniansky, Sergei Prokofiev, Myroslav Skoryk, etc. Ukraine is also the rarely acknowledged musical heartland of the former Russian Empire, home to its first professional music academy, which opened in the mid-18th century and produced numerous early musicians and composers.
Dance
Ukrainian dance refers to the traditional folk dances of the peoples of Ukraine. Today, Ukrainian dance is primarily represented by what ethnographers, folklorists and dance historians refer to as "Ukrainian Folk-Stage Dances", which are stylized representations of traditional dances and their characteristic movements that have been choreographed for concert dance performances. This stylized art form has so permeated the culture of Ukraine, that very few purely traditional forms of Ukrainian dance remain today.
Ukrainian dance is often described as energetic, fast-paced, and entertaining, and along with traditional Easter eggs (pysanky), it is a characteristic example of Ukrainian culture recognized and appreciated throughout the world.
Symbols
The national symbols of the Ukraine are the Flag of Ukraine and the Coat of arms of Ukraine.
The national flag of Ukraine is a blue and yellow bicolour rectangle. The colour fields are of same form and equal size. The colours of the flag represent a blue sky above yellow fields of wheat. The flag was designed for the convention of the Supreme Ruthenian Council, meeting in Lviv in October 1848. Its colours were based on the coat-of-arms of the Kingdom of Ruthenia.
The Coat of arms of Ukraine features the same colours found on the Ukrainian flag: a blue shield with yellow trident—the symbol of ancient East Slavic tribes that once lived in Ukraine, later adopted by Ruthenian and Kievan Rus rulers.
See also
List of Ukrainian rulers
List of Ukrainians
Cossacks
Green Ukraine
Lemkos
Rusyns
Ruthenians
Ukrainization
Polonization
Russification of Ukraine
Soviet population transfers
Ukrainian dialects
Ukrainians in Russia
References
Notes
Footnotes
Sources
Online sources
Vasyl Balushok, "How Rusyns Became Ukrainians", Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), July 2005. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Vasyl Balushok, "When was the Ukrainian nation born?", Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), April 23 – May 6, 2005. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Dmytro Kyianskyi, "We are more "Russian" then they are: history without myths and sensationalism", Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), January 27 – February 2, 2001. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Oleg Chirkov, "External migration – the main reason for the presence of a non-Ukrainian ethnic population in contemporary Ukraine". Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), January 26 – February 1, 2002. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Halyna Lozko, "Ukrainian ethnology. Ethnographic division of Ukraine" Available in Ukrainian.
External links
Ukrainian World Congress.
Ukrainian diaspora in Canada and the U.S.
Ukrainians at Encyclopedia of Ukraine
Races of Europe 1942–1943
Hammond's Racial map of Europe, 1919 "National Alumni" 1920, vol.7
Peoples of Europe / Die Voelker Europas 1914
Ethno-Linguistic Map of Europe Before 1914
Linguistic Divisions of Europe in 1914
Ethnic Territory of the Ukrainian people in the Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries
Ethnic groups in Azerbaijan
Ethnic groups in Crimea
Ethnic groups in Kazakhstan
Ethnic groups in Kyrgyzstan
Ethnic groups in Poland
Ethnic groups in Russia
Ethnic groups in Ukraine
Slavic ethnic groups
Ukrainian studies
Indigenous peoples of Ukraine
Ethnic groups divided by international borders | false | [
"The Statehood Green Party, known as DC Statehood Party prior to 1999, is the progressive political party in the District of Columbia. The party is the DC affiliate of the national Green Party, but has traditionally elevated issues of District of Columbia statehood movement as its primary focus. Party members refer to the Statehood Green Party as the second most popular party in the District because STG (on the DC electoral ballot) candidates, historically, win the second highest vote totals in the city, ahead of the Republican Party but behind the Democratic Party. As of September 30, 2020, there are approximately 3,630 voters registered in the Statehood Green Party. That is 0.72% of registered voters in the city.\n\nHistory\nThe party was founded to convince Julius Hobson to run for the District's non-voting Congressional Delegate position as a member of the D.C. Statehood Party. Although Hobson lost that race to Walter E. Fauntroy, Hobson received enough votes to make the party an official major party in the District. Following the election, Hobson helped set up the party in the District. The party was organized on the ward level, and ward chairs could decide how to organize their activities in their wards. Hobson later served on the DC Council. In 1973, the party was a strong proponent of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, which gave limited self-government to the district. From the creation of the District Council in 1975 until 1999, the party always had one of the at-large seats, first occupied by Hobson and then by Hilda Mason.\n\nIn 1998, a Green Party was founded in D.C. Their candidate for Shadow Representative, Mike Livingston, ran that year. He received about 2,000 more votes than necessary for the party to qualify for continued ballot access. In October 1999, the new Green Party merged with the longstanding and larger Statehood Party to form the Statehood Green Party.\n\nIn a 2016 district-wide plebiscite, D.C. residents voted in favor of statehood. The party criticized the lack of involvement of regular citizens in the process.\n\nSee also\nDC Statehood\nDistrict of Columbia voting rights\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nGreen Party of the United States\nPolitical parties established in 1971\nDC Statehood Green Party\nPolitical parties in the District of Columbia\n1971 establishments in Washington, D.C.",
"Statehood Day may refer to:\n\n Statehood Day (Bosnia and Herzegovina)\n Statehood Day (Croatia)\n Statehood Day (Hawaii)\n Statehood Day (Lithuania)\n Statehood Day (Montenegro)\n Statehood Day (Serbia)\n Statehood Day (Slovenia)\n Statehood Day (Czech Republic), a public holiday in the Czech Republic\n\nSee also\n List of U.S. states by date of admission to the Union"
]
|
[
"Ukrainians",
"Early history",
"what was the early history like?",
"The ethnonym Ukrainians became widely accepted only in the 20th century after their territory obtained distinctive statehood in 1917.",
"how did it obtain distinctive statehood?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_658f2d15938146ada5953397dfbe6cd7_1 | what else did they do in their early history? | 3 | Besides obtaining distinctive statehood, what else did Ukrainians do in their early history? | Ukrainians | The ethnonym Ukrainians became widely accepted only in the 20th century after their territory obtained distinctive statehood in 1917. From the 14th to the 16th centuries, the Western portions of the European part of what is now known as Russia, the territories of northern Ukraine and Belarus (Western Rus') were largely known as Rus', continuing the tradition of Kievan Rus'. People of these territories were usually called Rus or Rusyns (known as Ruthenians in Western and Central Europe). The Ukrainian language appeared in the 14th - 16th centuries (with some prototypical features already evident in the 11th century), but at that time, it was mostly known as Ruthenian, like its brothers. In the 16th - 17th centuries, with the establishment of the Zaporizhian Sich, the notion of Ukraine as a separate country with a separate ethnic identity came into being. However, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the linguonym Ukrainian were used only occasionally, and the people of Ukraine usually continued to call themselves and their language Ruthenian. After the decline of the Zaporizhian Sich and the establishment of Imperial Russian hegemony in Ukraine, Ukrainians became more widely known by the Russian regional name, Little Russians (Malorossy), with the majority of Ukrainian elites espousing Little Russian identity. This official name (usually regarded now as colonial and humiliating) did not spread widely among the peasantry which constituted the majority of the population. Ukrainian peasants still referred to their country as Ukraine (a name associated with the Zaporizhian Sich, with the Hetmanate and with their struggle against Poles, Russians, Turks and Crimean Tatars) and to themselves and their language as Ruthenians/Ruthenian. With the publication of Ivan Kotliarevsky's Eneyida (Aeneid) in 1798, which established the modern Ukrainian language, and with the subsequent Romantic revival of national traditions and culture, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the notion of a Ukrainian language came into more prominence at the beginning of the 19th century and gradually replaced the words "Rusyns" and "Ruthenian(s)". In areas outside the control of the Russian/Soviet state until the mid-20th century (Western Ukraine), Ukrainians were known by their pre-existing names for much longer. The appellation Ukrainians initially came into common usage in Central Ukraine and did not take hold in Galicia and Bukovyna until the latter part of the 19th century, in Transcarpathia until the 1930s, and in the Presov Region until the late 1940s. The modern name ukrayintsi (Ukrainians) derives from Ukrayina (Ukraine), a name first documented in 1187. Several scientific theories attempt to explain the etymology of the term. According to the traditional theory (especially predominant in Russia), it derives from the Proto-Slavic root *kraj-, which has two meanings, one meaning the homeland as in "nash rodnoi kraj" (our homeland), and the other "edge, border", and originally had the sense of "periphery", "borderland" or "frontier region" etc. According to some new alternative Ukrainian historians such as Hryhoriy Pivtorak, Vitaly Sklyarenko and other scholars, translate the term "u-kraine" as "in-land", "home-land" or "our-country". The name in this context derives from the word "u-kraina" in the sense of "domestic region", "domestic land" or "country" (inside the country). In the last few centuries the population of Ukraine experienced periods of Polonization and Russification, but preserved a common culture and a sense of common identity. Most ethnic Ukrainians live in Ukraine, where they make up over three-quarters of the population. The largest population of ethnic Ukrainians outside of Ukraine lives in Russia where about 1.9 million Russian citizens consider themselves ethnic Ukrainians, while millions of others (primarily in southern Russia and Siberia) have some Ukrainian ancestry. The inhabitants of the Kuban, for example, have vacillated among three identities: Ukrainian, Russian (an identity supported by the Soviet regime), and "Cossack". Approximately 800,000 people of Ukrainian ancestry live in the Russian Far East in an area known historically as "Green Ukraine". According to some previous assumptions, an estimated number of almost 2.4 million people of Ukrainian origin live in North America (1,359,655 in Canada and 1,028,492 in the United States). Large numbers of Ukrainians live in Brazil (600,000), Kazakhstan (338,022), Moldova (325,235), Argentina (305,000), Germany (272,000), Italy (234,354), Belarus (225,734), Uzbekistan (124,602), the Czech Republic (110,245), Spain (90,530-100,000) and Romania (51,703-200,000). There are also large Ukrainian communities in such countries as Latvia, Portugal, France, Australia, Paraguay, the UK, Israel, Slovakia, Kyrgyzstan, Austria, Uruguay and the former Yugoslavia. Generally, the Ukrainian diaspora is present in more than one hundred and twenty countries of the world. The number of Ukrainians in Poland amounted to some 51,000 people in 2011 (according to Polish Census). Since 2014, the country has experienced a large increase in immigration from Ukraine. More recent data put the number of Ukrainian workers at 1.2 - 1.3 million in 2016. In the last decades of the 19th century, many Ukrainians were forced by the Tsarist autocracy to move to the Asian regions of Russia, while many of their counterpart Slavs under Austro-Hungarian rule emigrated to the New World seeking work and better economic opportunities. Today, large ethnic Ukrainian minorities reside in Russia, Canada, the United States, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Italy and Argentina. According to some sources, around 20 million people outside Ukraine identify as having Ukrainian ethnicity, however the official data of the respective countries calculated together doesn't show more than 10 million. Ukrainians have one of the largest diasporas in the world. Ukraine has had a very turbulent history, a fact explained by its geographical position. In the 9th century the Varangians from Scandinavia conquered the proto-Slavic tribes on the territory of today's Ukraine, Belarus, and western Russia and laid the groundwork for the Kievan Rus' state. The ancestors of the Ukrainian nation such as Polianians had an important role in the development and culturalization of Kievan Rus' state. The internecine wars between Rus' princes, which began after the death of Yaroslav the Wise, led to the political fragmentation of the state into a number of principalities. The quarreling between the princes left Kievan Rus' vulnerable to foreign attacks, and the invasion of the Mongols in 1236. and 1240. finally destroyed the state. Another important state in the history of the Ukrainians is Kingdom of Galicia-Volhynia (1199-1349). The third important state for Ukrainians is Cossack Hetmanate. The Cossacks of Zaporizhia since the late 15th century controlled the lower bends of the river Dnieper, between Russia, Poland and the Tatars of Crimea, with the fortified capital, Zaporizhian Sich. Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky is one of the most celebrated and at the same time most controversial political figures in Ukraine's early-modern history. A brilliant military leader, his greatest achievement in the process of national revolution was the formation of the Cossack Hetmanate state of the Zaporozhian Host (1648-1782). The period of the Ruin in the late 17th century in the history of Ukraine is characterized by the disintegration of Ukrainian statehood and general decline. During the Ruin Ukraine became divided along the Dnieper River into Left-Bank Ukraine and Right-Bank Ukraine, and the two halves became hostile to each other. Ukrainian leaders during the period are considered to have been largely opportunists and men of little vision who could not muster broad popular support for their policies. There were roughly 4 million Ukrainians at the end of the 17th century. At the final stages of the First World War, a powerful struggle for an independent Ukrainian state developed in the central Ukrainian territories, which, until 1917, were part of the Russian Empire. The newly established Ukrainian government, the Central Rada, headed by Mykhailo Hrushevsky, issued four universals, the Fourth of which, dated 22 January 1918, declared the independence and sovereignty of the Ukrainian National Republic (UNR) on 25 January 1918. The session of the Central Rada on 29 April 1918 ratified the Constitution of the UNR and elected Hrushevsky president. CANNOTANSWER | The Ukrainian language appeared in the 14th - 16th centuries (with some prototypical features already evident in the 11th century), | Ukrainians (, ), or the Ukrainian people, are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe and the second-largest among the East Slavs after the Russians. According to the Constitution of Ukraine, the term "Ukrainians" applies to all its citizens. The majority of Ukrainians are Eastern Orthodox Christians.
Ethnic Ukrainians were historically known as Ruthenians until the early 20th century, referring to the medieval land of Ruthenia, which was the Latin term for what is now known as Kievan Rus, a medieval East Slavic state with the capital in Kyiv. After its collapse, the Kingdom of Ruthenia emerged, but was soon dismantled by its neighbours. Starting from the 15th century, the people of Ukraine were also known as Cossacks and formed the state Zaporizhian Host. The connection with the Zaporozhian Cossacks especially, is emphasized in the Ukrainian national anthem, "We are, brothers, of Cossack kin".
Ethnonym
The ethnonym Ukrainians came into wide use only in the 20th century after the territory of Ukraine obtained distinctive statehood in 1917. From the 14th to the 16th centuries the western portions of the European part of what is now known as Russia, plus the territories of northern Ukraine and Belarus (Western Rus) were largely known as Rus, continuing the tradition of Kievan Rus. People of these territories were usually called Rus or Rusyns (known as Ruthenians in Western and Central Europe). The period of Old Ukrainian (mid-11th to late 14th century) dates from the same time as the oldest extant Rus’ texts and coincides with the rise and fall of Kievan Rus’. The Ukrainian language appeared in the 14th to 16th centuries (with some prototypical features already evident in the 11th century), but at that time, it was mostly known as Ruthenian, like its sister-languages. In the 16th to 17th centuries, with the establishment of the Zaporizhian Sich, the notion of Ukraine as a separate country with a separate ethnic identity came into being. However, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the linguonym Ukrainian were used only occasionally, and the people of Ukraine usually continued to call themselves and their language Ruthenian. After the decline of the Zaporizhian Sich and the establishment of Imperial Russian hegemony in Ukraine (17th to 18th centuries), Ukrainians became more widely known by the Russian regional name, Little Russians (Malorossy), with the majority of Ukrainian élites espousing Little Russian identity. This official name (usually regarded now as colonial and humiliating) did not spread widely among the peasantry which constituted the majority of the population. Ukrainian peasants still referred to their country as "Ukraine" (a name associated with the Zaporizhian Sich, with the Hetmanate and with their struggle against Poles, Russians, Turks and Crimean Tatars) and to themselves and their language as Ruthenians/Ruthenian. With the publication of Ivan Kotliarevsky's Eneyida (Aeneid) in 1798, which established the modern Ukrainian language, and with the subsequent Romantic revival of national traditions and culture, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the notion of a Ukrainian language came into more prominence at the beginning of the 19th century and gradually replaced the words "Rusyns" and "Ruthenian(s)". In areas outside the control of the Russian/Soviet state until the mid-20th century (Western Ukraine), Ukrainians were known by their pre-existing names for much longer. The appellation Ukrainians initially came into common usage in Central Ukraine and did not take hold in Galicia and Bukovyna until the latter part of the 19th century, in Transcarpathia until the 1930s, and in the Prešov Region until the late 1940s.
The modern name ukraintsi (Ukrainians) derives from Ukraina (Ukraine), a name first documented in 1187. Several scientific theories attempt to explain the etymology of the term.
According to the traditional theory, it derives from the Proto-Slavic root *kraj-, which has two meanings, one meaning the homeland as in "nash rodnoi kraj" (our homeland), and the other "edge, border", and originally had the sense of "periphery", "borderland" or "frontier region" etc.
According to another theory, the term ukraina should be distinguished from the term okraina: whereas the latter term means "borderland", the former one has the meaning of "cut-off piece of land", thus acquiring the connotation of "our land", "land allotted to us".
In the last three centuries the population of Ukraine experienced periods of Polonization and Russification, but preserved a common culture and a sense of common identity.
Geographic distribution
Most ethnic Ukrainians live in Ukraine, where they make up over three-quarters of the population. The largest population of Ukrainians outside of Ukraine lives in Russia where about 1.9 million Russian citizens identify as Ukrainian, while millions of others (primarily in southern Russia and Siberia) have some Ukrainian ancestry. The inhabitants of the Kuban, for example, have vacillated among three identities: Ukrainian, Russian (an identity supported by the Soviet regime), and "Cossack". Approximately 800,000 people of Ukrainian ancestry live in the Russian Far East in an area known historically as "Green Ukraine".
In a 2011 national poll of Ukraine, 49% of Ukrainians said they had relatives living in Russia.
According to some previous assumptions, an estimated number of almost 2.4 million people of Ukrainian origin live in North America (1,359,655 in Canada and 1,028,492 in the United States). Large numbers of Ukrainians live in Brazil (600,000), Kazakhstan (338,022), Moldova (325,235), Argentina (305,000), (Germany) (272,000), Italy (234,354), Belarus (225,734), Uzbekistan (124,602), the Czech Republic (110,245), Spain (90,530–100,000) and Romania (51,703–200,000). There are also large Ukrainian communities in such countries as Latvia, Portugal, France, Australia, Paraguay, the UK, Israel, Slovakia, Kyrgyzstan, Austria, Uruguay and the former Yugoslavia. Generally, the Ukrainian diaspora is present in more than one hundred and twenty countries of the world.
The number of Ukrainians in Poland amounted to some 51,000 people in 2011 (according to the Polish Census). Since 2014, the country has experienced a large increase in immigration from Ukraine. More recent data put the number of Ukrainian migrant workers at 1.2 – 1.3 million in 2016.
In the last decades of the 19th century, many Ukrainians were forced by the Tsarist autocracy to move to the Asian regions of Russia, while many of their counterpart Slavs under Austro-Hungarian rule emigrated to the New World seeking work and better economic opportunities. Today, large ethnic Ukrainian minorities reside in Russia, Canada, the United States, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Italy and Argentina. According to some sources, around 20 million people outside Ukraine identify as having Ukrainian ethnicity, however the official data of the respective countries calculated together doesn't show more than 10 million. Ukrainians have one of the largest diasporas in the world.
Origin
The East Slavs emerged from the undifferentiated early Slavs in the Slavic migrations of the 6th and 7th centuries CE. The state of Kievan Rus united the East Slavs during the 9th to 13th centuries. East Slavic tribes cited as "proto-Ukrainian" include the Volhynians, Derevlianians, Polianians, and Siverianians and the less significant Ulychians, Tivertsians, and White Croats.
The Gothic historian Jordanes and 6th-century Byzantine authors named two groups that lived in the south-east of Europe: Sclavins (western Slavs) and Antes. Polianians are identified as the founders of the city of Kyiv and as playing the key role in the formation of the Kievan Rus state. At the beginning of the 9th century, Varangians used the waterways of Eastern Europe for military raids and trade, particularly the trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks. Until the 11th century these Varangians also served as key mercenary troops for a number of princes in medieval Kyiv, as well as for some of the Byzantine emperors, while others occupied key administrative positions in Kievan Rus society, and eventually became slavicized. Besides other cultural traces, several Ukrainian names show traces of Norse origins as a result of influences from that period.
Differentiation between separate East Slavic groups began to emerge in the later medieval period, and an East Slavic dialect continuum developed within the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, with the Ruthenian language emerging as a written standard. The active development of a concept of a Ukrainian nation and a Ukrainian language began with the Ukrainian National Revival in the early 19th century. In the Soviet era (1917–1991), official historiography emphasized "the cultural unity of 'proto-Ukrainians' and 'proto-Russians' in the fifth and sixth centuries".
Genetics and genomics
In a survey of 97 genomes for diversity in full genome sequences among self-identified Ukrainians from Ukraine, a study identified more than 13 million genetic variants, representing about a quarter of the total genetic diversity discovered in Europe. Among these nearly 500,000 are previously undocumented and likely to be unique for this population. Medically relevant mutations whose prevalence in the Ukrainian genomes differed significantly compared to other European genome sequences, particularly from Western Europe and Russia. Ukrainian genomes form a single cluster positioned between the Northern on one side, and Western European populations on the other. There was a significant overlap with Central European populations as well as with people from the Balkans. In addition to the close geographic distance between these populations, this may also reflect the insufficient representation of samples from the surrounding populations.
The Ukrainian gene-pool includes the following Y-haplogroups, in order from the most prevalent:
R1a (43%)
I (23% I2a)
R1b (8%)
E1b1b (7%)
I1 (5%)
N1 (5%)
J2 (4%)
G (3%)
T (1%)
Roughly all R1a Ukrainians carry R1a-Z282; R1a-Z282 has been found significantly only in Eastern Europe. Chernivtsi Oblast is the only region in Ukraine where Haplogroup I2a occurs more frequently than R1a, much less frequent even in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast. In comparison to their northern and eastern neighbors, Ukrainians have a similar percentage of Haplogroup R1a-Z280 (43%) in their population—compare Belarusians, Russians, and Lithuanians and (55%, 46%, and 42% respectively). Populations in Eastern Europe which have never been Slavic do as well. Ukrainians in Chernivtsi Oblast (near the Romanian border) have a higher percentage of I2a as opposed to R1a, which is typical of the Balkan region, but a smaller percentage than Russians of the N1c1 lineage found among Finnic, Baltic, and Siberian populations, and also less R1b than West Slavs.
In terms of haplogroup distribution, the genetic pattern of Ukrainians most closely resembles that of Belarusians. The presence of the N1c lineage is explained by a contribution of the assimilated Finnic tribes.
Related ethnic groups
Within Ukraine and adjacent areas, there are several other distinct ethnic groups, especially in western Ukraine: places like Zakarpattia and Halychyna. Among them the most known are Hutsuls, Volhynians, Boykos and Lemkos (otherwise known as Rusyns – a derivative of Ruthenians), each with particular areas of settlement, dialect, dress, anthropological type, and folk traditions.
History
Early history
Ukraine has had a very turbulent history, a fact explained by its geographical position. In the 9th century the Varangians from Scandinavia conquered the proto-Slavic tribes on the territory of today's Ukraine, Belarus, and western Russia and laid the groundwork for the Kyivan Rus state. The ancestors of the Ukrainian nation such as Polianians had an important role in the development and culturalization of Kyivan Rus state. The internecine wars between Rus princes, which began after the death of Yaroslav the Wise, led to the political fragmentation of the state into a number of principalities. The quarreling between the princes left Kyivan Rus vulnerable to foreign attacks, and the invasion of the Mongols in 1236. and 1240. finally destroyed the state. Another important state in the history of the Ukrainians is Kingdom of Ruthenia (1199–1349).
The third important state for Ukrainians is Cossack Hetmanate. The Cossacks of Zaporizhia since the late 15th century controlled the lower bends of the river Dnieper, between Russia, Poland and the Tatars of Crimea, with the fortified capital, Zaporizhian Sich. Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky is one of the most celebrated and at the same time most controversial political figures in Ukraine's early-modern history. A brilliant military leader, his greatest achievement in the process of national revolution was the formation of the Cossack Hetmanate state of the Zaporozhian Host (1648–1782). The period of the Ruin in the late 17th century in the history of Ukraine is characterized by the disintegration of Ukrainian statehood and general decline. During the Ruin Ukraine became divided along the Dnieper River into Left-Bank Ukraine and Right-Bank Ukraine, and the two-halves became hostile to each other. Ukrainian leaders during the period are considered to have been largely opportunists and men of little vision who could not muster broad popular support for their policies. There were roughly 4 million Ukrainians at the end of the 17th century.
At the final stages of the First World War, a powerful struggle for an independent Ukrainian state developed in the central Ukrainian territories, which, until 1917, were part of the Russian Empire. The newly established Ukrainian government, the Central Rada, headed by Mykhailo Hrushevsky, issued four universals, the Fourth of which, dated 22 January 1918, declared the independence and sovereignty of the Ukrainian National Republic (UNR) on 25 January 1918. The session of the Central Rada on 29 April 1918 ratified the Constitution of the UNR and elected Hrushevsky president.
Soviet period
During the 1920s, under the Ukrainisation policy pursued by the national Communist leadership of Mykola Skrypnyk, Soviet leadership encouraged a national renaissance in the Ukrainian culture and language. Ukrainisation was part of the Soviet-wide policy of Korenisation (literally indigenisation). The Bolsheviks were also committed to universal health care, education and social-security benefits, as well as the right to work and housing. Starting from the late 1920s with a centrally planned economy, Ukraine was involved in Soviet industrialisation and the republic's industrial output quadrupled during the 1930s.
During 1932–1933, millions of Ukrainians were starved to death by a Soviet regime which led to a famine, known as the Holodomor. The Soviet regime remained silent about the Holodomor and provided no aid to the victims or the survivors. But news and information about what was going on reached the West and evoked public responses in Polish-ruled Western Ukraine and in the Ukrainian diaspora. Since the 1990s the independent Ukrainian state, particularly under President Viktor Yushchenko, the Ukrainian mass media and academic institutions, many foreign governments, most Ukrainian scholars, and many foreign scholars have viewed and written about the Holodomor as genocide and issued official declarations and publications to that effect. Modern scholarly estimates of the direct loss of human life due to the famine range between 2.6 million (3–3.5 million) and 12 million although much higher numbers are usually published in the media and cited in political debates. As of March 2008, the parliament of Ukraine and the governments of several countries, including the United States have recognized the Holodomor as an act of genocide.
Following the Invasion of Poland in September 1939, German and Soviet troops divided the territory of Poland. Thus, Eastern Galicia and Volhynia with their Ukrainian population became part of Soviet Ukraine. When the German armies invaded the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, those regions temporarily became part of the Nazi-controlled Reichskommissariat Ukraine. In total, the number of ethnic Ukrainians who fought in the ranks of the Soviet Army is estimated from 4.5 million to 7 million. The pro-Soviet partisan guerrilla resistance in Ukraine is estimated to number at 47,800 from the start of occupation to 500,000 at its peak in 1944, with about 50% being ethnic Ukrainians. Of the estimated 8.6 million Soviet troop losses, 1.4 million were ethnic Ukrainians. Victory Day is celebrated as one of ten Ukrainian national holidays.
Historical maps of Ukraine
The Ukrainian state has occupied a number of territories since its initial foundation. Most of these territories have been located within Eastern Europe, however, as depicted in the maps in the gallery below, has also at times extended well into Eurasia and South-Eastern Europe. At times there has also been a distinct lack of a Ukrainian state, as its territories were on a number of occasions, annexed by its more powerful neighbours.
Ethnic/national identity
The watershed period in the development of modern Ukrainian national consciousness was the struggle for independence during the creation of the Ukrainian People's Republic from 1917 to 1921. A concerted effort to reverse the growth of Ukrainian national consciousness was begun by the regime of Joseph Stalin in the late 1920s, and continued with minor interruptions until the most recent times. The man-made Famine of 1932–33, the deportations of the so-called kulaks, the physical annihilation of the nationally conscious intelligentsia, and terror in general were used to destroy and subdue the Ukrainian nation. Even after Joseph Stalin's death the concept of a Russified though multiethnic Soviet people was officially promoted, according to which the non-Russian nations were relegated to second-class status. Despite this, many Ukrainians played prominent roles in the Soviet Union, including such public figures as Semen Tymoshenko.
The creation of a sovereign and independent Ukraine in 1991, however, pointed to the failure of the policy of the "merging of nations" and to the enduring strength of the Ukrainian national consciousness. Today, one of the consequences of these acts is Ukrainophobia.
Biculturalism is especially present in southeastern Ukraine where there is a significant Russian minority. Historical colonization of Ukraine is one reason that creates confusion about national identity to this day. Many citizens of Ukraine have adopted the Ukrainian national identity in the past 20 years. According to the concept of nationality dominant in Eastern Europe the Ukrainians are people whose native language is Ukrainian (an objective criterion) whether or not they are nationally conscious, and all those who identify themselves as Ukrainian (a subjective criterion) whether or not they speak Ukrainian.
Attempts to introduce a territorial-political concept of Ukrainian nationality on the Western European model (presented by political philosopher Viacheslav Lypynsky) were unsuccessful until the 1990s. Territorial loyalty has also been manifested by the historical national minorities living in Ukraine. The official declaration of Ukrainian sovereignty of 16 July 1990 stated that "citizens of the Republic of all nationalities constitute the people of Ukraine."
Culture
Due to Ukraine's geographical location, its culture primarily exhibits Eastern European influence as well as Central European to an extent (primarily in the western region). Over the years it has been influenced by movements such as those brought about during the Byzantine Empire and the Renaissance. Today, the country is somewhat culturally divided with the western regions bearing a stronger Central European influence and the eastern regions showing a significant Russian influence. A strong Christian culture was predominant for many centuries, although Ukraine was also the center of conflict between the Catholic, Orthodox and Islamic spheres of influence.
Languages
Ukrainian (, ukraі́nska móva) is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the only official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses the Ukrainian alphabet, one of many based on the Cyrillic alphabet.
The Ukrainian language traces its origins to the Old East Slavic language of the medieval state of Kyivan Rus. In its earlier stages it was called Ruthenian in Latin. Ukrainian, along with all other East Slavic languages, is a lineal descendant of the colloquial language used in Kyivan Rus (10th–13th century).
While the Golden Horde placed officials in key Kyivan Rus areas, practised forced resettlement, and even renamed urban centers to suit their own language, the Mongols did not attempt to annihilate Kyivan Rus society and culture. The second onslaught began with the destruction of Kyiv by the Golden Horde in 1240. This khanate formed the western part of a great Mongol Empire that had been founded by Genghis Khan in the early 13th century. After the Mongol destruction of Kyivan Rus in the 13th century, literary activity in Ukraine declined. A revival began in the late 18th century in eastern Ukraine with overlapping literary and academic phases at a time when nostalgia for the Cossack past and resentment at the loss of autonomy still lingered on.
The language has persisted despite several periods of bans and/or discouragement throughout centuries as it has always nevertheless maintained a sufficient base among the people of Ukraine, its folklore songs, itinerant musicians, and prominent authors.
A large portion of citizens of Ukraine speaks Russian. According to the 2001 Ukrainian census, 67.5% of Ukrainians (citizens of Ukraine) and 85.2% of ethnic Ukrainians named Ukrainian as their mother-tongue, and 14.8% named Russian as their mother-tongue. This census does not cover Ukrainians living in other countries.
Religions
Ukraine was inhabited by pagan tribes until Byzantine rite Christianity was introduced by the turn of the first millennium. It was imagined by later writers who sought to put Kyivan Christianity on the same level of primacy as Byzantine Christianity that Apostle Andrew himself had visited the site where the city of Kyiv would be later built.
However it was only by the 10th century that the emerging state, the Kyivan Rus, became influenced by the Byzantine Empire; the first known conversion was by the Princess Saint Olga who came to Constantinople in 945 or 957. Several years later, her grandson, Kniaz Vladimir baptised his people in the Dnieper River. This began a long history of the dominance of the Eastern Orthodoxy in Ruthenia (Ukraine).
Ukrainians are predominantly Eastern Orthodox Christians, and they form the second largest ethno-linguistic group among Eastern Orthodox in the world. Ukrainians have their own autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine headed by Metropolitan Epiphanius and in the eastern and southern areas of Ukraine the Ukrainian Orthodox Church under the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate is the most common.
In the Western region known as Halychyna the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, one of the Eastern Rite Catholic Churches has a strong membership. Since the fall of the Soviet Union there has been a growth of Protestant churches and Rodnovery, a contemporary Slavic modern pagan religion. There are also ethnic minorities that practice other religions, i.e. Crimean Tatars (Islam), and Jews and Karaim (Judaism).
A 2020 survey conducted by the Razumkov Centre found that majority of Ukrainian populations was adhering to Christianity (81.9%). Of these Christians, 75.4% are Eastern Orthodox (34% of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine and 13.8% of the Moscow Patriarchate, and 27.6% are simply Orthodox), 8,2% are Greek Catholics, 7.1% are simply Christians, a further 1.9% are Protestants and 0.4% are Latin Catholics. As of 2016, 16.3% of the population does not claim a religious affiliation, and 1.7% adheres to other religions. According to the same survey, 70% of the population of Ukraine declared to be believers, but do not belong to any church. 8.8% do not identify themselves with any of the denominations, and another 5.6% identified themselves as non-believers.
Music
Ukrainian music incorporates a diversity of external cultural influences. It also has a very strong indigenous Slavic and Christian uniqueness whose elements were used among many neighboring nations.
Ukrainian folk oral literature, poetry, and songs (such as the dumas) are among the most distinctive ethnocultural features of Ukrainians as a people. Religious music existed in Ukraine before the official adoption of Christianity, in the form of plainsong "obychnyi spiv" or "musica practica". Traditional Ukrainian music is easily recognized by its somewhat melancholy tone. It first became known outside of Ukraine during the 15th century as musicians from Ukraine would perform before the royal courts in Poland (latter in Russia).
A large number of famous musicians around the world was educated or born in Ukraine, among them are famous names like Dmitry Bortniansky, Sergei Prokofiev, Myroslav Skoryk, etc. Ukraine is also the rarely acknowledged musical heartland of the former Russian Empire, home to its first professional music academy, which opened in the mid-18th century and produced numerous early musicians and composers.
Dance
Ukrainian dance refers to the traditional folk dances of the peoples of Ukraine. Today, Ukrainian dance is primarily represented by what ethnographers, folklorists and dance historians refer to as "Ukrainian Folk-Stage Dances", which are stylized representations of traditional dances and their characteristic movements that have been choreographed for concert dance performances. This stylized art form has so permeated the culture of Ukraine, that very few purely traditional forms of Ukrainian dance remain today.
Ukrainian dance is often described as energetic, fast-paced, and entertaining, and along with traditional Easter eggs (pysanky), it is a characteristic example of Ukrainian culture recognized and appreciated throughout the world.
Symbols
The national symbols of the Ukraine are the Flag of Ukraine and the Coat of arms of Ukraine.
The national flag of Ukraine is a blue and yellow bicolour rectangle. The colour fields are of same form and equal size. The colours of the flag represent a blue sky above yellow fields of wheat. The flag was designed for the convention of the Supreme Ruthenian Council, meeting in Lviv in October 1848. Its colours were based on the coat-of-arms of the Kingdom of Ruthenia.
The Coat of arms of Ukraine features the same colours found on the Ukrainian flag: a blue shield with yellow trident—the symbol of ancient East Slavic tribes that once lived in Ukraine, later adopted by Ruthenian and Kievan Rus rulers.
See also
List of Ukrainian rulers
List of Ukrainians
Cossacks
Green Ukraine
Lemkos
Rusyns
Ruthenians
Ukrainization
Polonization
Russification of Ukraine
Soviet population transfers
Ukrainian dialects
Ukrainians in Russia
References
Notes
Footnotes
Sources
Online sources
Vasyl Balushok, "How Rusyns Became Ukrainians", Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), July 2005. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Vasyl Balushok, "When was the Ukrainian nation born?", Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), April 23 – May 6, 2005. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Dmytro Kyianskyi, "We are more "Russian" then they are: history without myths and sensationalism", Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), January 27 – February 2, 2001. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Oleg Chirkov, "External migration – the main reason for the presence of a non-Ukrainian ethnic population in contemporary Ukraine". Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), January 26 – February 1, 2002. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Halyna Lozko, "Ukrainian ethnology. Ethnographic division of Ukraine" Available in Ukrainian.
External links
Ukrainian World Congress.
Ukrainian diaspora in Canada and the U.S.
Ukrainians at Encyclopedia of Ukraine
Races of Europe 1942–1943
Hammond's Racial map of Europe, 1919 "National Alumni" 1920, vol.7
Peoples of Europe / Die Voelker Europas 1914
Ethno-Linguistic Map of Europe Before 1914
Linguistic Divisions of Europe in 1914
Ethnic Territory of the Ukrainian people in the Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries
Ethnic groups in Azerbaijan
Ethnic groups in Crimea
Ethnic groups in Kazakhstan
Ethnic groups in Kyrgyzstan
Ethnic groups in Poland
Ethnic groups in Russia
Ethnic groups in Ukraine
Slavic ethnic groups
Ukrainian studies
Indigenous peoples of Ukraine
Ethnic groups divided by international borders | false | [
"What Else Do You Do? (A Compilation of Quiet Music) is a various artists compilation album, released in 1990 by Shimmy Disc.\n\nTrack listing\n\nPersonnel \nAdapted from the What Else Do You Do? (A Compilation of Quiet Music) liner notes.\n Kramer – production, engineering\n\nRelease history\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n \n\n1990 compilation albums\nAlbums produced by Kramer (musician)\nShimmy Disc compilation albums",
"The Pressure was an American band formed in September 1996.\n\nHistory\nThe band played their first show in San Diego. During their existence, the trio lived crammed together in a tiny studio apartment in Costa Mesa, California, with their cat. The band played live several times on college radio, as well as television, where they not only hosted the alternative rock program Are-Oh-Vee twice, but would appear on The Gong Show. The energy of their live shows guaranteed almost continual coverage in the Orange County Weekly, which voted them one of the top unsigned bands in October 1997. In April 1998, a cover story asked, \"Are The Pressure OC's favorite band?\".\n\nTheir single, \"I Wanna Call Someone\" sold out of Orange County record stores the day it was released, and would wind up selling out completely in October 1998 after a deluge of European orders. Early in 1999, the band began working on their debut album with Alex Newport in San Francisco, a place where they had all originally lived. An appearance on the Vans Warped Tour 1999 that July, with Eminem, The Black Eyed Peas, NOFX and Pennywise in San Bernardino wound up being their last. The day their debut album Things Move Fast was released, drummer Jason Thornberry was found beaten nearly to death on the streets of Long Beach, and remained in hospital for several months. The band did not break up so much as break apart. Members Ronnie Washburn and Dana James went on to found Your Enemies Friends.\n\nMembers\nDana James – vocals, bass guitar\nJason Thornberry – drums, vocals\nRonnie Washburn – vocals, guitar\n\nDiscography\nMy Heart Was Lost, cassette, Self Service Recs, 1997.\nThe Pressure, cassette, Corporate Corp Recs, 1997.\n\"I Wanna Call Someone\", 7\" single, What Else? Recs, 1998.\nv/a Al's Bar Compilation, Vol. 2, Al's Bar Recs, 1998.\nv/a Styzine Compilation 1998.\nv/a Buddy List Compilation, 1999.\nv/a Brother Can You Spare Some Ska Vol. 4, Vegas Recs, 1998.\nThings Move Fast, Elastic Recs, 1999.\nv/a Orange County Weekly compilation’’ 1999.\nv/a Sampler WE 20.0'', What Else? Recs, (year?).\n\nExternal links\n Myspace\n What Else? Records website\n Elastic Records\n\nAmerican post-punk music groups\nAmerican post-hardcore musical groups\nIndie rock musical groups from California\nMod revival groups"
]
|
[
"Ukrainians",
"Early history",
"what was the early history like?",
"The ethnonym Ukrainians became widely accepted only in the 20th century after their territory obtained distinctive statehood in 1917.",
"how did it obtain distinctive statehood?",
"I don't know.",
"what else did they do in their early history?",
"The Ukrainian language appeared in the 14th - 16th centuries (with some prototypical features already evident in the 11th century),"
]
| C_658f2d15938146ada5953397dfbe6cd7_1 | did it become widely used? | 4 | Did Ukrainian language become widely used? | Ukrainians | The ethnonym Ukrainians became widely accepted only in the 20th century after their territory obtained distinctive statehood in 1917. From the 14th to the 16th centuries, the Western portions of the European part of what is now known as Russia, the territories of northern Ukraine and Belarus (Western Rus') were largely known as Rus', continuing the tradition of Kievan Rus'. People of these territories were usually called Rus or Rusyns (known as Ruthenians in Western and Central Europe). The Ukrainian language appeared in the 14th - 16th centuries (with some prototypical features already evident in the 11th century), but at that time, it was mostly known as Ruthenian, like its brothers. In the 16th - 17th centuries, with the establishment of the Zaporizhian Sich, the notion of Ukraine as a separate country with a separate ethnic identity came into being. However, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the linguonym Ukrainian were used only occasionally, and the people of Ukraine usually continued to call themselves and their language Ruthenian. After the decline of the Zaporizhian Sich and the establishment of Imperial Russian hegemony in Ukraine, Ukrainians became more widely known by the Russian regional name, Little Russians (Malorossy), with the majority of Ukrainian elites espousing Little Russian identity. This official name (usually regarded now as colonial and humiliating) did not spread widely among the peasantry which constituted the majority of the population. Ukrainian peasants still referred to their country as Ukraine (a name associated with the Zaporizhian Sich, with the Hetmanate and with their struggle against Poles, Russians, Turks and Crimean Tatars) and to themselves and their language as Ruthenians/Ruthenian. With the publication of Ivan Kotliarevsky's Eneyida (Aeneid) in 1798, which established the modern Ukrainian language, and with the subsequent Romantic revival of national traditions and culture, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the notion of a Ukrainian language came into more prominence at the beginning of the 19th century and gradually replaced the words "Rusyns" and "Ruthenian(s)". In areas outside the control of the Russian/Soviet state until the mid-20th century (Western Ukraine), Ukrainians were known by their pre-existing names for much longer. The appellation Ukrainians initially came into common usage in Central Ukraine and did not take hold in Galicia and Bukovyna until the latter part of the 19th century, in Transcarpathia until the 1930s, and in the Presov Region until the late 1940s. The modern name ukrayintsi (Ukrainians) derives from Ukrayina (Ukraine), a name first documented in 1187. Several scientific theories attempt to explain the etymology of the term. According to the traditional theory (especially predominant in Russia), it derives from the Proto-Slavic root *kraj-, which has two meanings, one meaning the homeland as in "nash rodnoi kraj" (our homeland), and the other "edge, border", and originally had the sense of "periphery", "borderland" or "frontier region" etc. According to some new alternative Ukrainian historians such as Hryhoriy Pivtorak, Vitaly Sklyarenko and other scholars, translate the term "u-kraine" as "in-land", "home-land" or "our-country". The name in this context derives from the word "u-kraina" in the sense of "domestic region", "domestic land" or "country" (inside the country). In the last few centuries the population of Ukraine experienced periods of Polonization and Russification, but preserved a common culture and a sense of common identity. Most ethnic Ukrainians live in Ukraine, where they make up over three-quarters of the population. The largest population of ethnic Ukrainians outside of Ukraine lives in Russia where about 1.9 million Russian citizens consider themselves ethnic Ukrainians, while millions of others (primarily in southern Russia and Siberia) have some Ukrainian ancestry. The inhabitants of the Kuban, for example, have vacillated among three identities: Ukrainian, Russian (an identity supported by the Soviet regime), and "Cossack". Approximately 800,000 people of Ukrainian ancestry live in the Russian Far East in an area known historically as "Green Ukraine". According to some previous assumptions, an estimated number of almost 2.4 million people of Ukrainian origin live in North America (1,359,655 in Canada and 1,028,492 in the United States). Large numbers of Ukrainians live in Brazil (600,000), Kazakhstan (338,022), Moldova (325,235), Argentina (305,000), Germany (272,000), Italy (234,354), Belarus (225,734), Uzbekistan (124,602), the Czech Republic (110,245), Spain (90,530-100,000) and Romania (51,703-200,000). There are also large Ukrainian communities in such countries as Latvia, Portugal, France, Australia, Paraguay, the UK, Israel, Slovakia, Kyrgyzstan, Austria, Uruguay and the former Yugoslavia. Generally, the Ukrainian diaspora is present in more than one hundred and twenty countries of the world. The number of Ukrainians in Poland amounted to some 51,000 people in 2011 (according to Polish Census). Since 2014, the country has experienced a large increase in immigration from Ukraine. More recent data put the number of Ukrainian workers at 1.2 - 1.3 million in 2016. In the last decades of the 19th century, many Ukrainians were forced by the Tsarist autocracy to move to the Asian regions of Russia, while many of their counterpart Slavs under Austro-Hungarian rule emigrated to the New World seeking work and better economic opportunities. Today, large ethnic Ukrainian minorities reside in Russia, Canada, the United States, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Italy and Argentina. According to some sources, around 20 million people outside Ukraine identify as having Ukrainian ethnicity, however the official data of the respective countries calculated together doesn't show more than 10 million. Ukrainians have one of the largest diasporas in the world. Ukraine has had a very turbulent history, a fact explained by its geographical position. In the 9th century the Varangians from Scandinavia conquered the proto-Slavic tribes on the territory of today's Ukraine, Belarus, and western Russia and laid the groundwork for the Kievan Rus' state. The ancestors of the Ukrainian nation such as Polianians had an important role in the development and culturalization of Kievan Rus' state. The internecine wars between Rus' princes, which began after the death of Yaroslav the Wise, led to the political fragmentation of the state into a number of principalities. The quarreling between the princes left Kievan Rus' vulnerable to foreign attacks, and the invasion of the Mongols in 1236. and 1240. finally destroyed the state. Another important state in the history of the Ukrainians is Kingdom of Galicia-Volhynia (1199-1349). The third important state for Ukrainians is Cossack Hetmanate. The Cossacks of Zaporizhia since the late 15th century controlled the lower bends of the river Dnieper, between Russia, Poland and the Tatars of Crimea, with the fortified capital, Zaporizhian Sich. Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky is one of the most celebrated and at the same time most controversial political figures in Ukraine's early-modern history. A brilliant military leader, his greatest achievement in the process of national revolution was the formation of the Cossack Hetmanate state of the Zaporozhian Host (1648-1782). The period of the Ruin in the late 17th century in the history of Ukraine is characterized by the disintegration of Ukrainian statehood and general decline. During the Ruin Ukraine became divided along the Dnieper River into Left-Bank Ukraine and Right-Bank Ukraine, and the two halves became hostile to each other. Ukrainian leaders during the period are considered to have been largely opportunists and men of little vision who could not muster broad popular support for their policies. There were roughly 4 million Ukrainians at the end of the 17th century. At the final stages of the First World War, a powerful struggle for an independent Ukrainian state developed in the central Ukrainian territories, which, until 1917, were part of the Russian Empire. The newly established Ukrainian government, the Central Rada, headed by Mykhailo Hrushevsky, issued four universals, the Fourth of which, dated 22 January 1918, declared the independence and sovereignty of the Ukrainian National Republic (UNR) on 25 January 1918. The session of the Central Rada on 29 April 1918 ratified the Constitution of the UNR and elected Hrushevsky president. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Ukrainians (, ), or the Ukrainian people, are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe and the second-largest among the East Slavs after the Russians. According to the Constitution of Ukraine, the term "Ukrainians" applies to all its citizens. The majority of Ukrainians are Eastern Orthodox Christians.
Ethnic Ukrainians were historically known as Ruthenians until the early 20th century, referring to the medieval land of Ruthenia, which was the Latin term for what is now known as Kievan Rus, a medieval East Slavic state with the capital in Kyiv. After its collapse, the Kingdom of Ruthenia emerged, but was soon dismantled by its neighbours. Starting from the 15th century, the people of Ukraine were also known as Cossacks and formed the state Zaporizhian Host. The connection with the Zaporozhian Cossacks especially, is emphasized in the Ukrainian national anthem, "We are, brothers, of Cossack kin".
Ethnonym
The ethnonym Ukrainians came into wide use only in the 20th century after the territory of Ukraine obtained distinctive statehood in 1917. From the 14th to the 16th centuries the western portions of the European part of what is now known as Russia, plus the territories of northern Ukraine and Belarus (Western Rus) were largely known as Rus, continuing the tradition of Kievan Rus. People of these territories were usually called Rus or Rusyns (known as Ruthenians in Western and Central Europe). The period of Old Ukrainian (mid-11th to late 14th century) dates from the same time as the oldest extant Rus’ texts and coincides with the rise and fall of Kievan Rus’. The Ukrainian language appeared in the 14th to 16th centuries (with some prototypical features already evident in the 11th century), but at that time, it was mostly known as Ruthenian, like its sister-languages. In the 16th to 17th centuries, with the establishment of the Zaporizhian Sich, the notion of Ukraine as a separate country with a separate ethnic identity came into being. However, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the linguonym Ukrainian were used only occasionally, and the people of Ukraine usually continued to call themselves and their language Ruthenian. After the decline of the Zaporizhian Sich and the establishment of Imperial Russian hegemony in Ukraine (17th to 18th centuries), Ukrainians became more widely known by the Russian regional name, Little Russians (Malorossy), with the majority of Ukrainian élites espousing Little Russian identity. This official name (usually regarded now as colonial and humiliating) did not spread widely among the peasantry which constituted the majority of the population. Ukrainian peasants still referred to their country as "Ukraine" (a name associated with the Zaporizhian Sich, with the Hetmanate and with their struggle against Poles, Russians, Turks and Crimean Tatars) and to themselves and their language as Ruthenians/Ruthenian. With the publication of Ivan Kotliarevsky's Eneyida (Aeneid) in 1798, which established the modern Ukrainian language, and with the subsequent Romantic revival of national traditions and culture, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the notion of a Ukrainian language came into more prominence at the beginning of the 19th century and gradually replaced the words "Rusyns" and "Ruthenian(s)". In areas outside the control of the Russian/Soviet state until the mid-20th century (Western Ukraine), Ukrainians were known by their pre-existing names for much longer. The appellation Ukrainians initially came into common usage in Central Ukraine and did not take hold in Galicia and Bukovyna until the latter part of the 19th century, in Transcarpathia until the 1930s, and in the Prešov Region until the late 1940s.
The modern name ukraintsi (Ukrainians) derives from Ukraina (Ukraine), a name first documented in 1187. Several scientific theories attempt to explain the etymology of the term.
According to the traditional theory, it derives from the Proto-Slavic root *kraj-, which has two meanings, one meaning the homeland as in "nash rodnoi kraj" (our homeland), and the other "edge, border", and originally had the sense of "periphery", "borderland" or "frontier region" etc.
According to another theory, the term ukraina should be distinguished from the term okraina: whereas the latter term means "borderland", the former one has the meaning of "cut-off piece of land", thus acquiring the connotation of "our land", "land allotted to us".
In the last three centuries the population of Ukraine experienced periods of Polonization and Russification, but preserved a common culture and a sense of common identity.
Geographic distribution
Most ethnic Ukrainians live in Ukraine, where they make up over three-quarters of the population. The largest population of Ukrainians outside of Ukraine lives in Russia where about 1.9 million Russian citizens identify as Ukrainian, while millions of others (primarily in southern Russia and Siberia) have some Ukrainian ancestry. The inhabitants of the Kuban, for example, have vacillated among three identities: Ukrainian, Russian (an identity supported by the Soviet regime), and "Cossack". Approximately 800,000 people of Ukrainian ancestry live in the Russian Far East in an area known historically as "Green Ukraine".
In a 2011 national poll of Ukraine, 49% of Ukrainians said they had relatives living in Russia.
According to some previous assumptions, an estimated number of almost 2.4 million people of Ukrainian origin live in North America (1,359,655 in Canada and 1,028,492 in the United States). Large numbers of Ukrainians live in Brazil (600,000), Kazakhstan (338,022), Moldova (325,235), Argentina (305,000), (Germany) (272,000), Italy (234,354), Belarus (225,734), Uzbekistan (124,602), the Czech Republic (110,245), Spain (90,530–100,000) and Romania (51,703–200,000). There are also large Ukrainian communities in such countries as Latvia, Portugal, France, Australia, Paraguay, the UK, Israel, Slovakia, Kyrgyzstan, Austria, Uruguay and the former Yugoslavia. Generally, the Ukrainian diaspora is present in more than one hundred and twenty countries of the world.
The number of Ukrainians in Poland amounted to some 51,000 people in 2011 (according to the Polish Census). Since 2014, the country has experienced a large increase in immigration from Ukraine. More recent data put the number of Ukrainian migrant workers at 1.2 – 1.3 million in 2016.
In the last decades of the 19th century, many Ukrainians were forced by the Tsarist autocracy to move to the Asian regions of Russia, while many of their counterpart Slavs under Austro-Hungarian rule emigrated to the New World seeking work and better economic opportunities. Today, large ethnic Ukrainian minorities reside in Russia, Canada, the United States, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Italy and Argentina. According to some sources, around 20 million people outside Ukraine identify as having Ukrainian ethnicity, however the official data of the respective countries calculated together doesn't show more than 10 million. Ukrainians have one of the largest diasporas in the world.
Origin
The East Slavs emerged from the undifferentiated early Slavs in the Slavic migrations of the 6th and 7th centuries CE. The state of Kievan Rus united the East Slavs during the 9th to 13th centuries. East Slavic tribes cited as "proto-Ukrainian" include the Volhynians, Derevlianians, Polianians, and Siverianians and the less significant Ulychians, Tivertsians, and White Croats.
The Gothic historian Jordanes and 6th-century Byzantine authors named two groups that lived in the south-east of Europe: Sclavins (western Slavs) and Antes. Polianians are identified as the founders of the city of Kyiv and as playing the key role in the formation of the Kievan Rus state. At the beginning of the 9th century, Varangians used the waterways of Eastern Europe for military raids and trade, particularly the trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks. Until the 11th century these Varangians also served as key mercenary troops for a number of princes in medieval Kyiv, as well as for some of the Byzantine emperors, while others occupied key administrative positions in Kievan Rus society, and eventually became slavicized. Besides other cultural traces, several Ukrainian names show traces of Norse origins as a result of influences from that period.
Differentiation between separate East Slavic groups began to emerge in the later medieval period, and an East Slavic dialect continuum developed within the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, with the Ruthenian language emerging as a written standard. The active development of a concept of a Ukrainian nation and a Ukrainian language began with the Ukrainian National Revival in the early 19th century. In the Soviet era (1917–1991), official historiography emphasized "the cultural unity of 'proto-Ukrainians' and 'proto-Russians' in the fifth and sixth centuries".
Genetics and genomics
In a survey of 97 genomes for diversity in full genome sequences among self-identified Ukrainians from Ukraine, a study identified more than 13 million genetic variants, representing about a quarter of the total genetic diversity discovered in Europe. Among these nearly 500,000 are previously undocumented and likely to be unique for this population. Medically relevant mutations whose prevalence in the Ukrainian genomes differed significantly compared to other European genome sequences, particularly from Western Europe and Russia. Ukrainian genomes form a single cluster positioned between the Northern on one side, and Western European populations on the other. There was a significant overlap with Central European populations as well as with people from the Balkans. In addition to the close geographic distance between these populations, this may also reflect the insufficient representation of samples from the surrounding populations.
The Ukrainian gene-pool includes the following Y-haplogroups, in order from the most prevalent:
R1a (43%)
I (23% I2a)
R1b (8%)
E1b1b (7%)
I1 (5%)
N1 (5%)
J2 (4%)
G (3%)
T (1%)
Roughly all R1a Ukrainians carry R1a-Z282; R1a-Z282 has been found significantly only in Eastern Europe. Chernivtsi Oblast is the only region in Ukraine where Haplogroup I2a occurs more frequently than R1a, much less frequent even in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast. In comparison to their northern and eastern neighbors, Ukrainians have a similar percentage of Haplogroup R1a-Z280 (43%) in their population—compare Belarusians, Russians, and Lithuanians and (55%, 46%, and 42% respectively). Populations in Eastern Europe which have never been Slavic do as well. Ukrainians in Chernivtsi Oblast (near the Romanian border) have a higher percentage of I2a as opposed to R1a, which is typical of the Balkan region, but a smaller percentage than Russians of the N1c1 lineage found among Finnic, Baltic, and Siberian populations, and also less R1b than West Slavs.
In terms of haplogroup distribution, the genetic pattern of Ukrainians most closely resembles that of Belarusians. The presence of the N1c lineage is explained by a contribution of the assimilated Finnic tribes.
Related ethnic groups
Within Ukraine and adjacent areas, there are several other distinct ethnic groups, especially in western Ukraine: places like Zakarpattia and Halychyna. Among them the most known are Hutsuls, Volhynians, Boykos and Lemkos (otherwise known as Rusyns – a derivative of Ruthenians), each with particular areas of settlement, dialect, dress, anthropological type, and folk traditions.
History
Early history
Ukraine has had a very turbulent history, a fact explained by its geographical position. In the 9th century the Varangians from Scandinavia conquered the proto-Slavic tribes on the territory of today's Ukraine, Belarus, and western Russia and laid the groundwork for the Kyivan Rus state. The ancestors of the Ukrainian nation such as Polianians had an important role in the development and culturalization of Kyivan Rus state. The internecine wars between Rus princes, which began after the death of Yaroslav the Wise, led to the political fragmentation of the state into a number of principalities. The quarreling between the princes left Kyivan Rus vulnerable to foreign attacks, and the invasion of the Mongols in 1236. and 1240. finally destroyed the state. Another important state in the history of the Ukrainians is Kingdom of Ruthenia (1199–1349).
The third important state for Ukrainians is Cossack Hetmanate. The Cossacks of Zaporizhia since the late 15th century controlled the lower bends of the river Dnieper, between Russia, Poland and the Tatars of Crimea, with the fortified capital, Zaporizhian Sich. Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky is one of the most celebrated and at the same time most controversial political figures in Ukraine's early-modern history. A brilliant military leader, his greatest achievement in the process of national revolution was the formation of the Cossack Hetmanate state of the Zaporozhian Host (1648–1782). The period of the Ruin in the late 17th century in the history of Ukraine is characterized by the disintegration of Ukrainian statehood and general decline. During the Ruin Ukraine became divided along the Dnieper River into Left-Bank Ukraine and Right-Bank Ukraine, and the two-halves became hostile to each other. Ukrainian leaders during the period are considered to have been largely opportunists and men of little vision who could not muster broad popular support for their policies. There were roughly 4 million Ukrainians at the end of the 17th century.
At the final stages of the First World War, a powerful struggle for an independent Ukrainian state developed in the central Ukrainian territories, which, until 1917, were part of the Russian Empire. The newly established Ukrainian government, the Central Rada, headed by Mykhailo Hrushevsky, issued four universals, the Fourth of which, dated 22 January 1918, declared the independence and sovereignty of the Ukrainian National Republic (UNR) on 25 January 1918. The session of the Central Rada on 29 April 1918 ratified the Constitution of the UNR and elected Hrushevsky president.
Soviet period
During the 1920s, under the Ukrainisation policy pursued by the national Communist leadership of Mykola Skrypnyk, Soviet leadership encouraged a national renaissance in the Ukrainian culture and language. Ukrainisation was part of the Soviet-wide policy of Korenisation (literally indigenisation). The Bolsheviks were also committed to universal health care, education and social-security benefits, as well as the right to work and housing. Starting from the late 1920s with a centrally planned economy, Ukraine was involved in Soviet industrialisation and the republic's industrial output quadrupled during the 1930s.
During 1932–1933, millions of Ukrainians were starved to death by a Soviet regime which led to a famine, known as the Holodomor. The Soviet regime remained silent about the Holodomor and provided no aid to the victims or the survivors. But news and information about what was going on reached the West and evoked public responses in Polish-ruled Western Ukraine and in the Ukrainian diaspora. Since the 1990s the independent Ukrainian state, particularly under President Viktor Yushchenko, the Ukrainian mass media and academic institutions, many foreign governments, most Ukrainian scholars, and many foreign scholars have viewed and written about the Holodomor as genocide and issued official declarations and publications to that effect. Modern scholarly estimates of the direct loss of human life due to the famine range between 2.6 million (3–3.5 million) and 12 million although much higher numbers are usually published in the media and cited in political debates. As of March 2008, the parliament of Ukraine and the governments of several countries, including the United States have recognized the Holodomor as an act of genocide.
Following the Invasion of Poland in September 1939, German and Soviet troops divided the territory of Poland. Thus, Eastern Galicia and Volhynia with their Ukrainian population became part of Soviet Ukraine. When the German armies invaded the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, those regions temporarily became part of the Nazi-controlled Reichskommissariat Ukraine. In total, the number of ethnic Ukrainians who fought in the ranks of the Soviet Army is estimated from 4.5 million to 7 million. The pro-Soviet partisan guerrilla resistance in Ukraine is estimated to number at 47,800 from the start of occupation to 500,000 at its peak in 1944, with about 50% being ethnic Ukrainians. Of the estimated 8.6 million Soviet troop losses, 1.4 million were ethnic Ukrainians. Victory Day is celebrated as one of ten Ukrainian national holidays.
Historical maps of Ukraine
The Ukrainian state has occupied a number of territories since its initial foundation. Most of these territories have been located within Eastern Europe, however, as depicted in the maps in the gallery below, has also at times extended well into Eurasia and South-Eastern Europe. At times there has also been a distinct lack of a Ukrainian state, as its territories were on a number of occasions, annexed by its more powerful neighbours.
Ethnic/national identity
The watershed period in the development of modern Ukrainian national consciousness was the struggle for independence during the creation of the Ukrainian People's Republic from 1917 to 1921. A concerted effort to reverse the growth of Ukrainian national consciousness was begun by the regime of Joseph Stalin in the late 1920s, and continued with minor interruptions until the most recent times. The man-made Famine of 1932–33, the deportations of the so-called kulaks, the physical annihilation of the nationally conscious intelligentsia, and terror in general were used to destroy and subdue the Ukrainian nation. Even after Joseph Stalin's death the concept of a Russified though multiethnic Soviet people was officially promoted, according to which the non-Russian nations were relegated to second-class status. Despite this, many Ukrainians played prominent roles in the Soviet Union, including such public figures as Semen Tymoshenko.
The creation of a sovereign and independent Ukraine in 1991, however, pointed to the failure of the policy of the "merging of nations" and to the enduring strength of the Ukrainian national consciousness. Today, one of the consequences of these acts is Ukrainophobia.
Biculturalism is especially present in southeastern Ukraine where there is a significant Russian minority. Historical colonization of Ukraine is one reason that creates confusion about national identity to this day. Many citizens of Ukraine have adopted the Ukrainian national identity in the past 20 years. According to the concept of nationality dominant in Eastern Europe the Ukrainians are people whose native language is Ukrainian (an objective criterion) whether or not they are nationally conscious, and all those who identify themselves as Ukrainian (a subjective criterion) whether or not they speak Ukrainian.
Attempts to introduce a territorial-political concept of Ukrainian nationality on the Western European model (presented by political philosopher Viacheslav Lypynsky) were unsuccessful until the 1990s. Territorial loyalty has also been manifested by the historical national minorities living in Ukraine. The official declaration of Ukrainian sovereignty of 16 July 1990 stated that "citizens of the Republic of all nationalities constitute the people of Ukraine."
Culture
Due to Ukraine's geographical location, its culture primarily exhibits Eastern European influence as well as Central European to an extent (primarily in the western region). Over the years it has been influenced by movements such as those brought about during the Byzantine Empire and the Renaissance. Today, the country is somewhat culturally divided with the western regions bearing a stronger Central European influence and the eastern regions showing a significant Russian influence. A strong Christian culture was predominant for many centuries, although Ukraine was also the center of conflict between the Catholic, Orthodox and Islamic spheres of influence.
Languages
Ukrainian (, ukraі́nska móva) is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the only official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses the Ukrainian alphabet, one of many based on the Cyrillic alphabet.
The Ukrainian language traces its origins to the Old East Slavic language of the medieval state of Kyivan Rus. In its earlier stages it was called Ruthenian in Latin. Ukrainian, along with all other East Slavic languages, is a lineal descendant of the colloquial language used in Kyivan Rus (10th–13th century).
While the Golden Horde placed officials in key Kyivan Rus areas, practised forced resettlement, and even renamed urban centers to suit their own language, the Mongols did not attempt to annihilate Kyivan Rus society and culture. The second onslaught began with the destruction of Kyiv by the Golden Horde in 1240. This khanate formed the western part of a great Mongol Empire that had been founded by Genghis Khan in the early 13th century. After the Mongol destruction of Kyivan Rus in the 13th century, literary activity in Ukraine declined. A revival began in the late 18th century in eastern Ukraine with overlapping literary and academic phases at a time when nostalgia for the Cossack past and resentment at the loss of autonomy still lingered on.
The language has persisted despite several periods of bans and/or discouragement throughout centuries as it has always nevertheless maintained a sufficient base among the people of Ukraine, its folklore songs, itinerant musicians, and prominent authors.
A large portion of citizens of Ukraine speaks Russian. According to the 2001 Ukrainian census, 67.5% of Ukrainians (citizens of Ukraine) and 85.2% of ethnic Ukrainians named Ukrainian as their mother-tongue, and 14.8% named Russian as their mother-tongue. This census does not cover Ukrainians living in other countries.
Religions
Ukraine was inhabited by pagan tribes until Byzantine rite Christianity was introduced by the turn of the first millennium. It was imagined by later writers who sought to put Kyivan Christianity on the same level of primacy as Byzantine Christianity that Apostle Andrew himself had visited the site where the city of Kyiv would be later built.
However it was only by the 10th century that the emerging state, the Kyivan Rus, became influenced by the Byzantine Empire; the first known conversion was by the Princess Saint Olga who came to Constantinople in 945 or 957. Several years later, her grandson, Kniaz Vladimir baptised his people in the Dnieper River. This began a long history of the dominance of the Eastern Orthodoxy in Ruthenia (Ukraine).
Ukrainians are predominantly Eastern Orthodox Christians, and they form the second largest ethno-linguistic group among Eastern Orthodox in the world. Ukrainians have their own autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine headed by Metropolitan Epiphanius and in the eastern and southern areas of Ukraine the Ukrainian Orthodox Church under the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate is the most common.
In the Western region known as Halychyna the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, one of the Eastern Rite Catholic Churches has a strong membership. Since the fall of the Soviet Union there has been a growth of Protestant churches and Rodnovery, a contemporary Slavic modern pagan religion. There are also ethnic minorities that practice other religions, i.e. Crimean Tatars (Islam), and Jews and Karaim (Judaism).
A 2020 survey conducted by the Razumkov Centre found that majority of Ukrainian populations was adhering to Christianity (81.9%). Of these Christians, 75.4% are Eastern Orthodox (34% of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine and 13.8% of the Moscow Patriarchate, and 27.6% are simply Orthodox), 8,2% are Greek Catholics, 7.1% are simply Christians, a further 1.9% are Protestants and 0.4% are Latin Catholics. As of 2016, 16.3% of the population does not claim a religious affiliation, and 1.7% adheres to other religions. According to the same survey, 70% of the population of Ukraine declared to be believers, but do not belong to any church. 8.8% do not identify themselves with any of the denominations, and another 5.6% identified themselves as non-believers.
Music
Ukrainian music incorporates a diversity of external cultural influences. It also has a very strong indigenous Slavic and Christian uniqueness whose elements were used among many neighboring nations.
Ukrainian folk oral literature, poetry, and songs (such as the dumas) are among the most distinctive ethnocultural features of Ukrainians as a people. Religious music existed in Ukraine before the official adoption of Christianity, in the form of plainsong "obychnyi spiv" or "musica practica". Traditional Ukrainian music is easily recognized by its somewhat melancholy tone. It first became known outside of Ukraine during the 15th century as musicians from Ukraine would perform before the royal courts in Poland (latter in Russia).
A large number of famous musicians around the world was educated or born in Ukraine, among them are famous names like Dmitry Bortniansky, Sergei Prokofiev, Myroslav Skoryk, etc. Ukraine is also the rarely acknowledged musical heartland of the former Russian Empire, home to its first professional music academy, which opened in the mid-18th century and produced numerous early musicians and composers.
Dance
Ukrainian dance refers to the traditional folk dances of the peoples of Ukraine. Today, Ukrainian dance is primarily represented by what ethnographers, folklorists and dance historians refer to as "Ukrainian Folk-Stage Dances", which are stylized representations of traditional dances and their characteristic movements that have been choreographed for concert dance performances. This stylized art form has so permeated the culture of Ukraine, that very few purely traditional forms of Ukrainian dance remain today.
Ukrainian dance is often described as energetic, fast-paced, and entertaining, and along with traditional Easter eggs (pysanky), it is a characteristic example of Ukrainian culture recognized and appreciated throughout the world.
Symbols
The national symbols of the Ukraine are the Flag of Ukraine and the Coat of arms of Ukraine.
The national flag of Ukraine is a blue and yellow bicolour rectangle. The colour fields are of same form and equal size. The colours of the flag represent a blue sky above yellow fields of wheat. The flag was designed for the convention of the Supreme Ruthenian Council, meeting in Lviv in October 1848. Its colours were based on the coat-of-arms of the Kingdom of Ruthenia.
The Coat of arms of Ukraine features the same colours found on the Ukrainian flag: a blue shield with yellow trident—the symbol of ancient East Slavic tribes that once lived in Ukraine, later adopted by Ruthenian and Kievan Rus rulers.
See also
List of Ukrainian rulers
List of Ukrainians
Cossacks
Green Ukraine
Lemkos
Rusyns
Ruthenians
Ukrainization
Polonization
Russification of Ukraine
Soviet population transfers
Ukrainian dialects
Ukrainians in Russia
References
Notes
Footnotes
Sources
Online sources
Vasyl Balushok, "How Rusyns Became Ukrainians", Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), July 2005. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Vasyl Balushok, "When was the Ukrainian nation born?", Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), April 23 – May 6, 2005. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Dmytro Kyianskyi, "We are more "Russian" then they are: history without myths and sensationalism", Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), January 27 – February 2, 2001. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Oleg Chirkov, "External migration – the main reason for the presence of a non-Ukrainian ethnic population in contemporary Ukraine". Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), January 26 – February 1, 2002. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Halyna Lozko, "Ukrainian ethnology. Ethnographic division of Ukraine" Available in Ukrainian.
External links
Ukrainian World Congress.
Ukrainian diaspora in Canada and the U.S.
Ukrainians at Encyclopedia of Ukraine
Races of Europe 1942–1943
Hammond's Racial map of Europe, 1919 "National Alumni" 1920, vol.7
Peoples of Europe / Die Voelker Europas 1914
Ethno-Linguistic Map of Europe Before 1914
Linguistic Divisions of Europe in 1914
Ethnic Territory of the Ukrainian people in the Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries
Ethnic groups in Azerbaijan
Ethnic groups in Crimea
Ethnic groups in Kazakhstan
Ethnic groups in Kyrgyzstan
Ethnic groups in Poland
Ethnic groups in Russia
Ethnic groups in Ukraine
Slavic ethnic groups
Ukrainian studies
Indigenous peoples of Ukraine
Ethnic groups divided by international borders | false | [
"Thitarodes caligophilus is a species of moth of the family Hepialidae. It is found in Bhutan. It is a host of the entomopathogenic fungus Ophiocordyceps sinensis, a species of the genus Cordyceps. The fruiting bodies of Ophiocordyceps sinensis are used extensively in Traditional Chinese medicine. As a result, T. caligophilus-sourced Cordyceps harvested in Bhutan have become \"widely used\".\n\nReferences\n\nMoths described in 2010\nHepialidae",
"The Deperdussin TT was a French monoplane built by Société Pour les Appareils Deperdussin, later to become S.P.A.D. Introduced in 1912, the type was one widely used by the French Air Force (then Aviation Militaire) before the First World War. In February 1914, an experiment was made to install a machine gun on the aircraft, but this did not see service.\n\nA number were used by the Naval Wing of the British Royal Flying Corps, one being fitted with floats and flown from Lake Windemere.\n\nOperators\n\nBelgian Air Force\n\nFrench Air Force\n\nParaguayan Air Force\n\nPortuguese Air Force\n\nImperial Russian Air Service\n\nSerbian Air Force\n\nSpanish Air Force\n\nOttoman Air Force\n\nRoyal Flying Corps\nNo. 3 Squadron RFC\nRoyal Naval Air Service\n\nSpecifications\n\nSee also\n\nReferences\n\n The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft (Part Work 1982-1985), 1985, Orbis Publishing, Page 1434\n\nTT\nSPAD aircraft\nSingle-engined tractor aircraft\n1910s French military reconnaissance aircraft\nShoulder-wing aircraft\nAircraft first flown in 1912\nRotary-engined aircraft"
]
|
[
"Ukrainians",
"Early history",
"what was the early history like?",
"The ethnonym Ukrainians became widely accepted only in the 20th century after their territory obtained distinctive statehood in 1917.",
"how did it obtain distinctive statehood?",
"I don't know.",
"what else did they do in their early history?",
"The Ukrainian language appeared in the 14th - 16th centuries (with some prototypical features already evident in the 11th century),",
"did it become widely used?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_658f2d15938146ada5953397dfbe6cd7_1 | Are there any other interesting aspects about this article? | 5 | Besides Ukrainian language, are there any other interesting aspects about this article? | Ukrainians | The ethnonym Ukrainians became widely accepted only in the 20th century after their territory obtained distinctive statehood in 1917. From the 14th to the 16th centuries, the Western portions of the European part of what is now known as Russia, the territories of northern Ukraine and Belarus (Western Rus') were largely known as Rus', continuing the tradition of Kievan Rus'. People of these territories were usually called Rus or Rusyns (known as Ruthenians in Western and Central Europe). The Ukrainian language appeared in the 14th - 16th centuries (with some prototypical features already evident in the 11th century), but at that time, it was mostly known as Ruthenian, like its brothers. In the 16th - 17th centuries, with the establishment of the Zaporizhian Sich, the notion of Ukraine as a separate country with a separate ethnic identity came into being. However, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the linguonym Ukrainian were used only occasionally, and the people of Ukraine usually continued to call themselves and their language Ruthenian. After the decline of the Zaporizhian Sich and the establishment of Imperial Russian hegemony in Ukraine, Ukrainians became more widely known by the Russian regional name, Little Russians (Malorossy), with the majority of Ukrainian elites espousing Little Russian identity. This official name (usually regarded now as colonial and humiliating) did not spread widely among the peasantry which constituted the majority of the population. Ukrainian peasants still referred to their country as Ukraine (a name associated with the Zaporizhian Sich, with the Hetmanate and with their struggle against Poles, Russians, Turks and Crimean Tatars) and to themselves and their language as Ruthenians/Ruthenian. With the publication of Ivan Kotliarevsky's Eneyida (Aeneid) in 1798, which established the modern Ukrainian language, and with the subsequent Romantic revival of national traditions and culture, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the notion of a Ukrainian language came into more prominence at the beginning of the 19th century and gradually replaced the words "Rusyns" and "Ruthenian(s)". In areas outside the control of the Russian/Soviet state until the mid-20th century (Western Ukraine), Ukrainians were known by their pre-existing names for much longer. The appellation Ukrainians initially came into common usage in Central Ukraine and did not take hold in Galicia and Bukovyna until the latter part of the 19th century, in Transcarpathia until the 1930s, and in the Presov Region until the late 1940s. The modern name ukrayintsi (Ukrainians) derives from Ukrayina (Ukraine), a name first documented in 1187. Several scientific theories attempt to explain the etymology of the term. According to the traditional theory (especially predominant in Russia), it derives from the Proto-Slavic root *kraj-, which has two meanings, one meaning the homeland as in "nash rodnoi kraj" (our homeland), and the other "edge, border", and originally had the sense of "periphery", "borderland" or "frontier region" etc. According to some new alternative Ukrainian historians such as Hryhoriy Pivtorak, Vitaly Sklyarenko and other scholars, translate the term "u-kraine" as "in-land", "home-land" or "our-country". The name in this context derives from the word "u-kraina" in the sense of "domestic region", "domestic land" or "country" (inside the country). In the last few centuries the population of Ukraine experienced periods of Polonization and Russification, but preserved a common culture and a sense of common identity. Most ethnic Ukrainians live in Ukraine, where they make up over three-quarters of the population. The largest population of ethnic Ukrainians outside of Ukraine lives in Russia where about 1.9 million Russian citizens consider themselves ethnic Ukrainians, while millions of others (primarily in southern Russia and Siberia) have some Ukrainian ancestry. The inhabitants of the Kuban, for example, have vacillated among three identities: Ukrainian, Russian (an identity supported by the Soviet regime), and "Cossack". Approximately 800,000 people of Ukrainian ancestry live in the Russian Far East in an area known historically as "Green Ukraine". According to some previous assumptions, an estimated number of almost 2.4 million people of Ukrainian origin live in North America (1,359,655 in Canada and 1,028,492 in the United States). Large numbers of Ukrainians live in Brazil (600,000), Kazakhstan (338,022), Moldova (325,235), Argentina (305,000), Germany (272,000), Italy (234,354), Belarus (225,734), Uzbekistan (124,602), the Czech Republic (110,245), Spain (90,530-100,000) and Romania (51,703-200,000). There are also large Ukrainian communities in such countries as Latvia, Portugal, France, Australia, Paraguay, the UK, Israel, Slovakia, Kyrgyzstan, Austria, Uruguay and the former Yugoslavia. Generally, the Ukrainian diaspora is present in more than one hundred and twenty countries of the world. The number of Ukrainians in Poland amounted to some 51,000 people in 2011 (according to Polish Census). Since 2014, the country has experienced a large increase in immigration from Ukraine. More recent data put the number of Ukrainian workers at 1.2 - 1.3 million in 2016. In the last decades of the 19th century, many Ukrainians were forced by the Tsarist autocracy to move to the Asian regions of Russia, while many of their counterpart Slavs under Austro-Hungarian rule emigrated to the New World seeking work and better economic opportunities. Today, large ethnic Ukrainian minorities reside in Russia, Canada, the United States, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Italy and Argentina. According to some sources, around 20 million people outside Ukraine identify as having Ukrainian ethnicity, however the official data of the respective countries calculated together doesn't show more than 10 million. Ukrainians have one of the largest diasporas in the world. Ukraine has had a very turbulent history, a fact explained by its geographical position. In the 9th century the Varangians from Scandinavia conquered the proto-Slavic tribes on the territory of today's Ukraine, Belarus, and western Russia and laid the groundwork for the Kievan Rus' state. The ancestors of the Ukrainian nation such as Polianians had an important role in the development and culturalization of Kievan Rus' state. The internecine wars between Rus' princes, which began after the death of Yaroslav the Wise, led to the political fragmentation of the state into a number of principalities. The quarreling between the princes left Kievan Rus' vulnerable to foreign attacks, and the invasion of the Mongols in 1236. and 1240. finally destroyed the state. Another important state in the history of the Ukrainians is Kingdom of Galicia-Volhynia (1199-1349). The third important state for Ukrainians is Cossack Hetmanate. The Cossacks of Zaporizhia since the late 15th century controlled the lower bends of the river Dnieper, between Russia, Poland and the Tatars of Crimea, with the fortified capital, Zaporizhian Sich. Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky is one of the most celebrated and at the same time most controversial political figures in Ukraine's early-modern history. A brilliant military leader, his greatest achievement in the process of national revolution was the formation of the Cossack Hetmanate state of the Zaporozhian Host (1648-1782). The period of the Ruin in the late 17th century in the history of Ukraine is characterized by the disintegration of Ukrainian statehood and general decline. During the Ruin Ukraine became divided along the Dnieper River into Left-Bank Ukraine and Right-Bank Ukraine, and the two halves became hostile to each other. Ukrainian leaders during the period are considered to have been largely opportunists and men of little vision who could not muster broad popular support for their policies. There were roughly 4 million Ukrainians at the end of the 17th century. At the final stages of the First World War, a powerful struggle for an independent Ukrainian state developed in the central Ukrainian territories, which, until 1917, were part of the Russian Empire. The newly established Ukrainian government, the Central Rada, headed by Mykhailo Hrushevsky, issued four universals, the Fourth of which, dated 22 January 1918, declared the independence and sovereignty of the Ukrainian National Republic (UNR) on 25 January 1918. The session of the Central Rada on 29 April 1918 ratified the Constitution of the UNR and elected Hrushevsky president. CANNOTANSWER | The modern name ukrayintsi (Ukrainians) derives from Ukrayina (Ukraine), a name first documented in 1187. | Ukrainians (, ), or the Ukrainian people, are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe and the second-largest among the East Slavs after the Russians. According to the Constitution of Ukraine, the term "Ukrainians" applies to all its citizens. The majority of Ukrainians are Eastern Orthodox Christians.
Ethnic Ukrainians were historically known as Ruthenians until the early 20th century, referring to the medieval land of Ruthenia, which was the Latin term for what is now known as Kievan Rus, a medieval East Slavic state with the capital in Kyiv. After its collapse, the Kingdom of Ruthenia emerged, but was soon dismantled by its neighbours. Starting from the 15th century, the people of Ukraine were also known as Cossacks and formed the state Zaporizhian Host. The connection with the Zaporozhian Cossacks especially, is emphasized in the Ukrainian national anthem, "We are, brothers, of Cossack kin".
Ethnonym
The ethnonym Ukrainians came into wide use only in the 20th century after the territory of Ukraine obtained distinctive statehood in 1917. From the 14th to the 16th centuries the western portions of the European part of what is now known as Russia, plus the territories of northern Ukraine and Belarus (Western Rus) were largely known as Rus, continuing the tradition of Kievan Rus. People of these territories were usually called Rus or Rusyns (known as Ruthenians in Western and Central Europe). The period of Old Ukrainian (mid-11th to late 14th century) dates from the same time as the oldest extant Rus’ texts and coincides with the rise and fall of Kievan Rus’. The Ukrainian language appeared in the 14th to 16th centuries (with some prototypical features already evident in the 11th century), but at that time, it was mostly known as Ruthenian, like its sister-languages. In the 16th to 17th centuries, with the establishment of the Zaporizhian Sich, the notion of Ukraine as a separate country with a separate ethnic identity came into being. However, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the linguonym Ukrainian were used only occasionally, and the people of Ukraine usually continued to call themselves and their language Ruthenian. After the decline of the Zaporizhian Sich and the establishment of Imperial Russian hegemony in Ukraine (17th to 18th centuries), Ukrainians became more widely known by the Russian regional name, Little Russians (Malorossy), with the majority of Ukrainian élites espousing Little Russian identity. This official name (usually regarded now as colonial and humiliating) did not spread widely among the peasantry which constituted the majority of the population. Ukrainian peasants still referred to their country as "Ukraine" (a name associated with the Zaporizhian Sich, with the Hetmanate and with their struggle against Poles, Russians, Turks and Crimean Tatars) and to themselves and their language as Ruthenians/Ruthenian. With the publication of Ivan Kotliarevsky's Eneyida (Aeneid) in 1798, which established the modern Ukrainian language, and with the subsequent Romantic revival of national traditions and culture, the ethnonym Ukrainians and the notion of a Ukrainian language came into more prominence at the beginning of the 19th century and gradually replaced the words "Rusyns" and "Ruthenian(s)". In areas outside the control of the Russian/Soviet state until the mid-20th century (Western Ukraine), Ukrainians were known by their pre-existing names for much longer. The appellation Ukrainians initially came into common usage in Central Ukraine and did not take hold in Galicia and Bukovyna until the latter part of the 19th century, in Transcarpathia until the 1930s, and in the Prešov Region until the late 1940s.
The modern name ukraintsi (Ukrainians) derives from Ukraina (Ukraine), a name first documented in 1187. Several scientific theories attempt to explain the etymology of the term.
According to the traditional theory, it derives from the Proto-Slavic root *kraj-, which has two meanings, one meaning the homeland as in "nash rodnoi kraj" (our homeland), and the other "edge, border", and originally had the sense of "periphery", "borderland" or "frontier region" etc.
According to another theory, the term ukraina should be distinguished from the term okraina: whereas the latter term means "borderland", the former one has the meaning of "cut-off piece of land", thus acquiring the connotation of "our land", "land allotted to us".
In the last three centuries the population of Ukraine experienced periods of Polonization and Russification, but preserved a common culture and a sense of common identity.
Geographic distribution
Most ethnic Ukrainians live in Ukraine, where they make up over three-quarters of the population. The largest population of Ukrainians outside of Ukraine lives in Russia where about 1.9 million Russian citizens identify as Ukrainian, while millions of others (primarily in southern Russia and Siberia) have some Ukrainian ancestry. The inhabitants of the Kuban, for example, have vacillated among three identities: Ukrainian, Russian (an identity supported by the Soviet regime), and "Cossack". Approximately 800,000 people of Ukrainian ancestry live in the Russian Far East in an area known historically as "Green Ukraine".
In a 2011 national poll of Ukraine, 49% of Ukrainians said they had relatives living in Russia.
According to some previous assumptions, an estimated number of almost 2.4 million people of Ukrainian origin live in North America (1,359,655 in Canada and 1,028,492 in the United States). Large numbers of Ukrainians live in Brazil (600,000), Kazakhstan (338,022), Moldova (325,235), Argentina (305,000), (Germany) (272,000), Italy (234,354), Belarus (225,734), Uzbekistan (124,602), the Czech Republic (110,245), Spain (90,530–100,000) and Romania (51,703–200,000). There are also large Ukrainian communities in such countries as Latvia, Portugal, France, Australia, Paraguay, the UK, Israel, Slovakia, Kyrgyzstan, Austria, Uruguay and the former Yugoslavia. Generally, the Ukrainian diaspora is present in more than one hundred and twenty countries of the world.
The number of Ukrainians in Poland amounted to some 51,000 people in 2011 (according to the Polish Census). Since 2014, the country has experienced a large increase in immigration from Ukraine. More recent data put the number of Ukrainian migrant workers at 1.2 – 1.3 million in 2016.
In the last decades of the 19th century, many Ukrainians were forced by the Tsarist autocracy to move to the Asian regions of Russia, while many of their counterpart Slavs under Austro-Hungarian rule emigrated to the New World seeking work and better economic opportunities. Today, large ethnic Ukrainian minorities reside in Russia, Canada, the United States, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Italy and Argentina. According to some sources, around 20 million people outside Ukraine identify as having Ukrainian ethnicity, however the official data of the respective countries calculated together doesn't show more than 10 million. Ukrainians have one of the largest diasporas in the world.
Origin
The East Slavs emerged from the undifferentiated early Slavs in the Slavic migrations of the 6th and 7th centuries CE. The state of Kievan Rus united the East Slavs during the 9th to 13th centuries. East Slavic tribes cited as "proto-Ukrainian" include the Volhynians, Derevlianians, Polianians, and Siverianians and the less significant Ulychians, Tivertsians, and White Croats.
The Gothic historian Jordanes and 6th-century Byzantine authors named two groups that lived in the south-east of Europe: Sclavins (western Slavs) and Antes. Polianians are identified as the founders of the city of Kyiv and as playing the key role in the formation of the Kievan Rus state. At the beginning of the 9th century, Varangians used the waterways of Eastern Europe for military raids and trade, particularly the trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks. Until the 11th century these Varangians also served as key mercenary troops for a number of princes in medieval Kyiv, as well as for some of the Byzantine emperors, while others occupied key administrative positions in Kievan Rus society, and eventually became slavicized. Besides other cultural traces, several Ukrainian names show traces of Norse origins as a result of influences from that period.
Differentiation between separate East Slavic groups began to emerge in the later medieval period, and an East Slavic dialect continuum developed within the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, with the Ruthenian language emerging as a written standard. The active development of a concept of a Ukrainian nation and a Ukrainian language began with the Ukrainian National Revival in the early 19th century. In the Soviet era (1917–1991), official historiography emphasized "the cultural unity of 'proto-Ukrainians' and 'proto-Russians' in the fifth and sixth centuries".
Genetics and genomics
In a survey of 97 genomes for diversity in full genome sequences among self-identified Ukrainians from Ukraine, a study identified more than 13 million genetic variants, representing about a quarter of the total genetic diversity discovered in Europe. Among these nearly 500,000 are previously undocumented and likely to be unique for this population. Medically relevant mutations whose prevalence in the Ukrainian genomes differed significantly compared to other European genome sequences, particularly from Western Europe and Russia. Ukrainian genomes form a single cluster positioned between the Northern on one side, and Western European populations on the other. There was a significant overlap with Central European populations as well as with people from the Balkans. In addition to the close geographic distance between these populations, this may also reflect the insufficient representation of samples from the surrounding populations.
The Ukrainian gene-pool includes the following Y-haplogroups, in order from the most prevalent:
R1a (43%)
I (23% I2a)
R1b (8%)
E1b1b (7%)
I1 (5%)
N1 (5%)
J2 (4%)
G (3%)
T (1%)
Roughly all R1a Ukrainians carry R1a-Z282; R1a-Z282 has been found significantly only in Eastern Europe. Chernivtsi Oblast is the only region in Ukraine where Haplogroup I2a occurs more frequently than R1a, much less frequent even in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast. In comparison to their northern and eastern neighbors, Ukrainians have a similar percentage of Haplogroup R1a-Z280 (43%) in their population—compare Belarusians, Russians, and Lithuanians and (55%, 46%, and 42% respectively). Populations in Eastern Europe which have never been Slavic do as well. Ukrainians in Chernivtsi Oblast (near the Romanian border) have a higher percentage of I2a as opposed to R1a, which is typical of the Balkan region, but a smaller percentage than Russians of the N1c1 lineage found among Finnic, Baltic, and Siberian populations, and also less R1b than West Slavs.
In terms of haplogroup distribution, the genetic pattern of Ukrainians most closely resembles that of Belarusians. The presence of the N1c lineage is explained by a contribution of the assimilated Finnic tribes.
Related ethnic groups
Within Ukraine and adjacent areas, there are several other distinct ethnic groups, especially in western Ukraine: places like Zakarpattia and Halychyna. Among them the most known are Hutsuls, Volhynians, Boykos and Lemkos (otherwise known as Rusyns – a derivative of Ruthenians), each with particular areas of settlement, dialect, dress, anthropological type, and folk traditions.
History
Early history
Ukraine has had a very turbulent history, a fact explained by its geographical position. In the 9th century the Varangians from Scandinavia conquered the proto-Slavic tribes on the territory of today's Ukraine, Belarus, and western Russia and laid the groundwork for the Kyivan Rus state. The ancestors of the Ukrainian nation such as Polianians had an important role in the development and culturalization of Kyivan Rus state. The internecine wars between Rus princes, which began after the death of Yaroslav the Wise, led to the political fragmentation of the state into a number of principalities. The quarreling between the princes left Kyivan Rus vulnerable to foreign attacks, and the invasion of the Mongols in 1236. and 1240. finally destroyed the state. Another important state in the history of the Ukrainians is Kingdom of Ruthenia (1199–1349).
The third important state for Ukrainians is Cossack Hetmanate. The Cossacks of Zaporizhia since the late 15th century controlled the lower bends of the river Dnieper, between Russia, Poland and the Tatars of Crimea, with the fortified capital, Zaporizhian Sich. Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky is one of the most celebrated and at the same time most controversial political figures in Ukraine's early-modern history. A brilliant military leader, his greatest achievement in the process of national revolution was the formation of the Cossack Hetmanate state of the Zaporozhian Host (1648–1782). The period of the Ruin in the late 17th century in the history of Ukraine is characterized by the disintegration of Ukrainian statehood and general decline. During the Ruin Ukraine became divided along the Dnieper River into Left-Bank Ukraine and Right-Bank Ukraine, and the two-halves became hostile to each other. Ukrainian leaders during the period are considered to have been largely opportunists and men of little vision who could not muster broad popular support for their policies. There were roughly 4 million Ukrainians at the end of the 17th century.
At the final stages of the First World War, a powerful struggle for an independent Ukrainian state developed in the central Ukrainian territories, which, until 1917, were part of the Russian Empire. The newly established Ukrainian government, the Central Rada, headed by Mykhailo Hrushevsky, issued four universals, the Fourth of which, dated 22 January 1918, declared the independence and sovereignty of the Ukrainian National Republic (UNR) on 25 January 1918. The session of the Central Rada on 29 April 1918 ratified the Constitution of the UNR and elected Hrushevsky president.
Soviet period
During the 1920s, under the Ukrainisation policy pursued by the national Communist leadership of Mykola Skrypnyk, Soviet leadership encouraged a national renaissance in the Ukrainian culture and language. Ukrainisation was part of the Soviet-wide policy of Korenisation (literally indigenisation). The Bolsheviks were also committed to universal health care, education and social-security benefits, as well as the right to work and housing. Starting from the late 1920s with a centrally planned economy, Ukraine was involved in Soviet industrialisation and the republic's industrial output quadrupled during the 1930s.
During 1932–1933, millions of Ukrainians were starved to death by a Soviet regime which led to a famine, known as the Holodomor. The Soviet regime remained silent about the Holodomor and provided no aid to the victims or the survivors. But news and information about what was going on reached the West and evoked public responses in Polish-ruled Western Ukraine and in the Ukrainian diaspora. Since the 1990s the independent Ukrainian state, particularly under President Viktor Yushchenko, the Ukrainian mass media and academic institutions, many foreign governments, most Ukrainian scholars, and many foreign scholars have viewed and written about the Holodomor as genocide and issued official declarations and publications to that effect. Modern scholarly estimates of the direct loss of human life due to the famine range between 2.6 million (3–3.5 million) and 12 million although much higher numbers are usually published in the media and cited in political debates. As of March 2008, the parliament of Ukraine and the governments of several countries, including the United States have recognized the Holodomor as an act of genocide.
Following the Invasion of Poland in September 1939, German and Soviet troops divided the territory of Poland. Thus, Eastern Galicia and Volhynia with their Ukrainian population became part of Soviet Ukraine. When the German armies invaded the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, those regions temporarily became part of the Nazi-controlled Reichskommissariat Ukraine. In total, the number of ethnic Ukrainians who fought in the ranks of the Soviet Army is estimated from 4.5 million to 7 million. The pro-Soviet partisan guerrilla resistance in Ukraine is estimated to number at 47,800 from the start of occupation to 500,000 at its peak in 1944, with about 50% being ethnic Ukrainians. Of the estimated 8.6 million Soviet troop losses, 1.4 million were ethnic Ukrainians. Victory Day is celebrated as one of ten Ukrainian national holidays.
Historical maps of Ukraine
The Ukrainian state has occupied a number of territories since its initial foundation. Most of these territories have been located within Eastern Europe, however, as depicted in the maps in the gallery below, has also at times extended well into Eurasia and South-Eastern Europe. At times there has also been a distinct lack of a Ukrainian state, as its territories were on a number of occasions, annexed by its more powerful neighbours.
Ethnic/national identity
The watershed period in the development of modern Ukrainian national consciousness was the struggle for independence during the creation of the Ukrainian People's Republic from 1917 to 1921. A concerted effort to reverse the growth of Ukrainian national consciousness was begun by the regime of Joseph Stalin in the late 1920s, and continued with minor interruptions until the most recent times. The man-made Famine of 1932–33, the deportations of the so-called kulaks, the physical annihilation of the nationally conscious intelligentsia, and terror in general were used to destroy and subdue the Ukrainian nation. Even after Joseph Stalin's death the concept of a Russified though multiethnic Soviet people was officially promoted, according to which the non-Russian nations were relegated to second-class status. Despite this, many Ukrainians played prominent roles in the Soviet Union, including such public figures as Semen Tymoshenko.
The creation of a sovereign and independent Ukraine in 1991, however, pointed to the failure of the policy of the "merging of nations" and to the enduring strength of the Ukrainian national consciousness. Today, one of the consequences of these acts is Ukrainophobia.
Biculturalism is especially present in southeastern Ukraine where there is a significant Russian minority. Historical colonization of Ukraine is one reason that creates confusion about national identity to this day. Many citizens of Ukraine have adopted the Ukrainian national identity in the past 20 years. According to the concept of nationality dominant in Eastern Europe the Ukrainians are people whose native language is Ukrainian (an objective criterion) whether or not they are nationally conscious, and all those who identify themselves as Ukrainian (a subjective criterion) whether or not they speak Ukrainian.
Attempts to introduce a territorial-political concept of Ukrainian nationality on the Western European model (presented by political philosopher Viacheslav Lypynsky) were unsuccessful until the 1990s. Territorial loyalty has also been manifested by the historical national minorities living in Ukraine. The official declaration of Ukrainian sovereignty of 16 July 1990 stated that "citizens of the Republic of all nationalities constitute the people of Ukraine."
Culture
Due to Ukraine's geographical location, its culture primarily exhibits Eastern European influence as well as Central European to an extent (primarily in the western region). Over the years it has been influenced by movements such as those brought about during the Byzantine Empire and the Renaissance. Today, the country is somewhat culturally divided with the western regions bearing a stronger Central European influence and the eastern regions showing a significant Russian influence. A strong Christian culture was predominant for many centuries, although Ukraine was also the center of conflict between the Catholic, Orthodox and Islamic spheres of influence.
Languages
Ukrainian (, ukraі́nska móva) is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the only official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses the Ukrainian alphabet, one of many based on the Cyrillic alphabet.
The Ukrainian language traces its origins to the Old East Slavic language of the medieval state of Kyivan Rus. In its earlier stages it was called Ruthenian in Latin. Ukrainian, along with all other East Slavic languages, is a lineal descendant of the colloquial language used in Kyivan Rus (10th–13th century).
While the Golden Horde placed officials in key Kyivan Rus areas, practised forced resettlement, and even renamed urban centers to suit their own language, the Mongols did not attempt to annihilate Kyivan Rus society and culture. The second onslaught began with the destruction of Kyiv by the Golden Horde in 1240. This khanate formed the western part of a great Mongol Empire that had been founded by Genghis Khan in the early 13th century. After the Mongol destruction of Kyivan Rus in the 13th century, literary activity in Ukraine declined. A revival began in the late 18th century in eastern Ukraine with overlapping literary and academic phases at a time when nostalgia for the Cossack past and resentment at the loss of autonomy still lingered on.
The language has persisted despite several periods of bans and/or discouragement throughout centuries as it has always nevertheless maintained a sufficient base among the people of Ukraine, its folklore songs, itinerant musicians, and prominent authors.
A large portion of citizens of Ukraine speaks Russian. According to the 2001 Ukrainian census, 67.5% of Ukrainians (citizens of Ukraine) and 85.2% of ethnic Ukrainians named Ukrainian as their mother-tongue, and 14.8% named Russian as their mother-tongue. This census does not cover Ukrainians living in other countries.
Religions
Ukraine was inhabited by pagan tribes until Byzantine rite Christianity was introduced by the turn of the first millennium. It was imagined by later writers who sought to put Kyivan Christianity on the same level of primacy as Byzantine Christianity that Apostle Andrew himself had visited the site where the city of Kyiv would be later built.
However it was only by the 10th century that the emerging state, the Kyivan Rus, became influenced by the Byzantine Empire; the first known conversion was by the Princess Saint Olga who came to Constantinople in 945 or 957. Several years later, her grandson, Kniaz Vladimir baptised his people in the Dnieper River. This began a long history of the dominance of the Eastern Orthodoxy in Ruthenia (Ukraine).
Ukrainians are predominantly Eastern Orthodox Christians, and they form the second largest ethno-linguistic group among Eastern Orthodox in the world. Ukrainians have their own autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine headed by Metropolitan Epiphanius and in the eastern and southern areas of Ukraine the Ukrainian Orthodox Church under the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate is the most common.
In the Western region known as Halychyna the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, one of the Eastern Rite Catholic Churches has a strong membership. Since the fall of the Soviet Union there has been a growth of Protestant churches and Rodnovery, a contemporary Slavic modern pagan religion. There are also ethnic minorities that practice other religions, i.e. Crimean Tatars (Islam), and Jews and Karaim (Judaism).
A 2020 survey conducted by the Razumkov Centre found that majority of Ukrainian populations was adhering to Christianity (81.9%). Of these Christians, 75.4% are Eastern Orthodox (34% of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine and 13.8% of the Moscow Patriarchate, and 27.6% are simply Orthodox), 8,2% are Greek Catholics, 7.1% are simply Christians, a further 1.9% are Protestants and 0.4% are Latin Catholics. As of 2016, 16.3% of the population does not claim a religious affiliation, and 1.7% adheres to other religions. According to the same survey, 70% of the population of Ukraine declared to be believers, but do not belong to any church. 8.8% do not identify themselves with any of the denominations, and another 5.6% identified themselves as non-believers.
Music
Ukrainian music incorporates a diversity of external cultural influences. It also has a very strong indigenous Slavic and Christian uniqueness whose elements were used among many neighboring nations.
Ukrainian folk oral literature, poetry, and songs (such as the dumas) are among the most distinctive ethnocultural features of Ukrainians as a people. Religious music existed in Ukraine before the official adoption of Christianity, in the form of plainsong "obychnyi spiv" or "musica practica". Traditional Ukrainian music is easily recognized by its somewhat melancholy tone. It first became known outside of Ukraine during the 15th century as musicians from Ukraine would perform before the royal courts in Poland (latter in Russia).
A large number of famous musicians around the world was educated or born in Ukraine, among them are famous names like Dmitry Bortniansky, Sergei Prokofiev, Myroslav Skoryk, etc. Ukraine is also the rarely acknowledged musical heartland of the former Russian Empire, home to its first professional music academy, which opened in the mid-18th century and produced numerous early musicians and composers.
Dance
Ukrainian dance refers to the traditional folk dances of the peoples of Ukraine. Today, Ukrainian dance is primarily represented by what ethnographers, folklorists and dance historians refer to as "Ukrainian Folk-Stage Dances", which are stylized representations of traditional dances and their characteristic movements that have been choreographed for concert dance performances. This stylized art form has so permeated the culture of Ukraine, that very few purely traditional forms of Ukrainian dance remain today.
Ukrainian dance is often described as energetic, fast-paced, and entertaining, and along with traditional Easter eggs (pysanky), it is a characteristic example of Ukrainian culture recognized and appreciated throughout the world.
Symbols
The national symbols of the Ukraine are the Flag of Ukraine and the Coat of arms of Ukraine.
The national flag of Ukraine is a blue and yellow bicolour rectangle. The colour fields are of same form and equal size. The colours of the flag represent a blue sky above yellow fields of wheat. The flag was designed for the convention of the Supreme Ruthenian Council, meeting in Lviv in October 1848. Its colours were based on the coat-of-arms of the Kingdom of Ruthenia.
The Coat of arms of Ukraine features the same colours found on the Ukrainian flag: a blue shield with yellow trident—the symbol of ancient East Slavic tribes that once lived in Ukraine, later adopted by Ruthenian and Kievan Rus rulers.
See also
List of Ukrainian rulers
List of Ukrainians
Cossacks
Green Ukraine
Lemkos
Rusyns
Ruthenians
Ukrainization
Polonization
Russification of Ukraine
Soviet population transfers
Ukrainian dialects
Ukrainians in Russia
References
Notes
Footnotes
Sources
Online sources
Vasyl Balushok, "How Rusyns Became Ukrainians", Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), July 2005. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Vasyl Balushok, "When was the Ukrainian nation born?", Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), April 23 – May 6, 2005. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Dmytro Kyianskyi, "We are more "Russian" then they are: history without myths and sensationalism", Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), January 27 – February 2, 2001. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Oleg Chirkov, "External migration – the main reason for the presence of a non-Ukrainian ethnic population in contemporary Ukraine". Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), January 26 – February 1, 2002. Available in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Halyna Lozko, "Ukrainian ethnology. Ethnographic division of Ukraine" Available in Ukrainian.
External links
Ukrainian World Congress.
Ukrainian diaspora in Canada and the U.S.
Ukrainians at Encyclopedia of Ukraine
Races of Europe 1942–1943
Hammond's Racial map of Europe, 1919 "National Alumni" 1920, vol.7
Peoples of Europe / Die Voelker Europas 1914
Ethno-Linguistic Map of Europe Before 1914
Linguistic Divisions of Europe in 1914
Ethnic Territory of the Ukrainian people in the Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries
Ethnic groups in Azerbaijan
Ethnic groups in Crimea
Ethnic groups in Kazakhstan
Ethnic groups in Kyrgyzstan
Ethnic groups in Poland
Ethnic groups in Russia
Ethnic groups in Ukraine
Slavic ethnic groups
Ukrainian studies
Indigenous peoples of Ukraine
Ethnic groups divided by international borders | false | [
"Přírodní park Třebíčsko (before Oblast klidu Třebíčsko) is a natural park near Třebíč in the Czech Republic. There are many interesting plants. The park was founded in 1983.\n\nKobylinec and Ptáčovský kopeček\n\nKobylinec is a natural monument situated ca 0,5 km from the village of Trnava.\nThe area of this monument is 0,44 ha. Pulsatilla grandis can be found here and in the Ptáčovský kopeček park near Ptáčov near Třebíč. Both monuments are very popular for tourists.\n\nPonds\n\nIn the natural park there are some interesting ponds such as Velký Bor, Malý Bor, Buršík near Přeckov and a brook Březinka. Dams on the brook are examples of European beaver activity.\n\nSyenitové skály near Pocoucov\n\nSyenitové skály (rocks of syenit) near Pocoucov is one of famed locations. There are interesting granite boulders. The area of the reservation is 0,77 ha.\n\nExternal links\nParts of this article or all article was translated from Czech. The original article is :cs:Přírodní park Třebíčsko.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nNature near the village Trnava which is there\n\nTřebíč\nParks in the Czech Republic\nTourist attractions in the Vysočina Region",
"Damn Interesting is an independent website founded by Alan Bellows in 2005. The website presents true stories from science, history, and psychology, primarily as long-form articles, often illustrated with original artwork. Works are written by various authors, and published at irregular intervals. The website openly rejects advertising, relying on reader and listener donations to cover operating costs.\n\nAs of October 2012, each article is also published as a podcast under the same name. In November 2019, a second podcast was launched under the title Damn Interesting Week, featuring unscripted commentary on an assortment of news articles featured on the website's \"Curated Links\" section that week. In mid-2020, a third podcast called Damn Interesting Curio Cabinet began highlighting the website's periodic short-form articles in the same radioplay format as the original podcast.\n\nIn July 2009, Damn Interesting published the print book Alien Hand Syndrome through Workman Publishing. It contains some favorites from the site and some exclusive content.\n\nAwards and recognition \nIn August 2007, PC Magazine named Damn Interesting one of the \"Top 100 Undiscovered Web Sites\".\nThe article \"The Zero-Armed Bandit\" by Alan Bellows won a 2015 Sidney Award from David Brooks in The New York Times.\nThe article \"Ghoulish Acts and Dastardly Deeds\" by Alan Bellows was cited as \"nonfiction journalism from 2017 that will stand the test of time\" by Conor Friedersdorf in The Atlantic.\nThe article \"Dupes and Duplicity\" by Jennifer Lee Noonan won a 2020 Sidney Award from David Brooks in the New York Times.\n\nAccusing The Dollop of plagiarism \n\nOn July 9, 2015, Bellows posted an open letter accusing The Dollop, a comedy podcast about history, of plagiarism due to their repeated use of verbatim text from Damn Interesting articles without permission or attribution. Dave Anthony, the writer of The Dollop, responded on reddit, admitting to using Damn Interesting content, but claiming that the use was protected by fair use, and that \"historical facts are not copyrightable.\" In an article about the controversy on Plagiarism Today, Jonathan Bailey concluded, \"Any way one looks at it, The Dollop failed its ethical obligations to all of the people, not just those writing for Damn Interesting, who put in the time, energy and expertise into writing the original content upon which their show is based.\"\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Official website\n\n2005 podcast debuts"
]
|
[
"Raymond Berry",
"Profile"
]
| C_32af37cb57654035bcfb1a0dddaeedf6_0 | Any interesting information? | 1 | Any interesting information about Raymond Berry? | Raymond Berry | Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp. Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun." Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week. Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow--but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least." CANNOTANSWER | Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, | Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. (born February 27, 1933) is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He played as a split end for the Baltimore Colts from 1955 to 1967, and after several assistant coaching positions, was head coach of the New England Patriots from 1984 to 1989. With the Colts, Berry led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice, and was invited to six Pro Bowls. The Colts won consecutive NFL championships, including the 1958 NFL Championship Game—known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played"—in which Berry caught 12 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown. He retired as the all-time NFL leader in both receptions and receiving yardage.
As a head coach, Berry led the Patriots to Super Bowl XX following the 1985 season, where his team was defeated by the Chicago Bears, 46–10.
After catching very few passes in high school and college, Berry was drafted in the 20th round of the 1954 NFL Draft by the Colts and was considered a long shot to make the team's roster. Diminutive and unassuming, his subsequent rise to the Pro Football Hall of Fame has been touted as one of football's Cinderella stories. He made up for his lack of athleticism through rigorous practice and attention to detail, and was known for his near-perfect route running and sure-handedness. Berry was a favorite target of quarterback Johnny Unitas, and the two were regarded as the dominant passing and receiving duo of their era.
After his playing career, Berry coached wide receivers for the Dallas Cowboys, the University of Arkansas, Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns, and Patriots. He became the Patriots' head coach in 1984 and held that position through 1989, amassing 48 wins and 39 losses. In recognition of his playing career, Berry was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 75 years and a unanimous selection to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 100 years. His number 82 jersey is retired by the Indianapolis Colts and he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team.
Early life and college
Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, on February 27, 1933, and spent the majority of his childhood in Paris, Texas. At Paris High School and in college, Berry caught very few passes. He did not start on his high school team until he was a senior, even though his father, Berry Sr., was the coach. After high school Berry played one year of junior college football at Shreiner Institute (now Schreiner University) in Kerrville, Texas, during the 1950 campaign. He helped the Mountaineers finish its most successful season in 10 years with a record of 7–3. He then transferred to Southern Methodist University (SMU). In three seasons for the SMU Mustangs football team, Berry received only 33 passes total. Sportswriters attributed his lack of receptions to his poor eyesight, but during the early 1950s, colleges specialized in the running game. As Berry said, "I didn't catch many passes because not many were thrown". He also played outside linebacker and defensive end for the Mustangs, despite weighing only even by his senior year.
Professional playing career
Berry was drafted by the Baltimore Colts in the 20th round as the 203rd overall pick of the 1954 NFL Draft. Considered a long-shot to make the team roster, he was used sparingly as a rookie, catching only 13 passes. By his second NFL season he became a permanent starter when the Colts acquired quarterback Johnny Unitas. Over the next 12 seasons together the two became one of the most dominant passing and catching duos in NFL history. Berry, who did not miss a single game until his eighth year in the league, led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice.
In 1957, Berry caught 47 passes for 800 yards and six touchdowns, leading the NFL in receiving yards for the first time. Against the Washington Redskins that year in near-freezing weather, Unitas connected with Berry on 12 passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns, staging what the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette called a "spectacular show". He was recognized as a first-team All-Pro by The Sporting News and earned second-team honors from the Associated Press (AP). The following season, he recorded 794 receiving yards and led the league with 56 receptions and nine touchdowns. For his efforts, Berry was invited to his first Pro Bowl, and was a first-team All-Pro by the AP and several other major selectors. The Colts finished atop the Western Division with a record of 9–3 and faced the New York Giants in the NFL Championship Game.
One of Berry's most notable performances was in that 1958 NFL Championship Game, known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played", in which he led the Colts to the franchise's first title with a then championship record 12 catches for 178 yards and a touchdown in the Colts' 23–17 victory over the Giants. At the end of regulation, he caught three consecutive passes for 62 yards to set up the Colts' tying field goal. He also had two key receptions for 33 yards during the Colts' final game-winning drive in overtime. His 12 receptions would remain an NFL championship game record for more than half a century, topped by one by Demaryius Thomas in Super Bowl XLVIII after the 2013 season.
Berry led the NFL in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns in 1959, becoming the fourth player to record a "triple crown" in receiving. His 14 receiving touchdowns set a Colts single-season franchise record that stood unmatched for over four decades. He was invited to his second straight Pro Bowl, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from the AP, UPI, the Newspaper Enterprise Association, and the New York Daily News. The Colts won back-to-back championships in an encore with the Giants, 31–16. In that game, Berry caught five passes for 68 yards, second on the team behind halfback Lenny Moore's 126 yards on three receptions.
In 1960, Berry recorded his only 1,000-yard season, catching 74 passes en route to career highs in receiving yards (1,298) and receiving yards per game (108.2). Each of those totals led the NFL that year by a wide margin; no other player had more than 1,000 yards, and the next highest yards-per-game average was 81.0. He had a mid-season string of six straight games with over 100 yards, during which he caught 50 passes for 920 yards and eight touchdowns. Berry again was a Pro Bowl invitee, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from all the same selectors as the previous year, including unanimous All-Pro recognition by UPI sportswriters.
Following this zenith, Berry did not have the same statistical success over his final seven seasons, but remained a consistent target for Unitas. His 75 receptions in the 1961 season was second-most in the league, and he finished 10th in receiving yards, but failed to record a touchdown for the first time since his rookie year. He scored the first touchdown of the 1962 Pro Bowl on a 16-yard reception from Unitas in the first quarter. His streak of Pro Bowl invitations ended at four, but he rebounded to appearances in 1963 and 1964, the latter his final. The Colts returned to the postseason in 1964, where they were shut out 27–0 by the Cleveland Browns in the 1964 championship game.
After consecutive seasons recording 700+ receiving yards and seven touchdowns in 1965 and 1966, Berry missed half of the 1967 season due to injuries and caught only 11 passes for 167 yards. He announced his retirement shortly after the season's end. He completed his professional playing career having caught 631 passes for 9,275 yards (14.7 yards per catch) and 68 touchdowns. At the time, he held the NFL career records for receptions and receiving yards, and his receiving touchdowns were tied for fourth most with Don Maynard.
Coaching career
After retiring from playing, Berry joined Tom Landry's Dallas Cowboys coaching staff as receivers coach. In 1970, after two seasons, Berry took a job with Frank Broyles at the University of Arkansas as receivers coach. In 1973 Berry joined Don McCafferty with the Detroit Lions as his receivers coach. In 1976, Berry joined former SMU teammate Forrest Gregg as his receivers coach with the Cleveland Browns. Berry joined the New England Patriots as receivers coach under Chuck Fairbanks in 1978. He stayed on with new coach Ron Erhardt until Erhardt and his entire staff were fired following a 2–14 1981 season. Berry left football and worked in real estate in Medfield, Massachusetts, until the Patriots fired Ron Meyer in the middle of the 1984 season and hired Berry to replace him. Under his leadership, the Patriots won four of their last eight games and finished the season with a 9–7 record. Berry's importance to the team was reflected less in his initial win–loss record than in the respect he immediately earned in the locker room – according to running back Tony Collins, "Raymond Berry earned more respect in one day than Ron Meyer earned in three years".
In the 1985 season, the team improved further, posting an 11–5 record and making the playoffs as a wild card team. They went on to become the first team in NFL history to advance to the Super Bowl by winning three playoff games on the road, defeating the New York Jets 26–14 (the second postseason win in franchise history), the Los Angeles Raiders 27–20, and the Miami Dolphins 31–14. It was the first time the Patriots had beaten the Dolphins at the Orange Bowl (Miami's then-home stadium) since 1966, Miami's first season as a franchise. The Patriots had lost to the Dolphins there 18 consecutive times, including a 30–27 loss in Week 15 of the regular season. Despite their success in the playoffs, the Patriots were heavy underdogs to the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XX. They lost 46–10 in what was at the time the most lopsided defeat in Super Bowl history. "We couldn't protect the quarterback, and that was my fault. I couldn't come up with a system to handle the Bears' pass rush", Berry acknowledged.
The following season, Berry's Patriots again recorded an 11–5 record and made the playoffs, this time after winning their second division title as an NFL team. However, they lost in the first round of the postseason. It would be Berry's last postseason appearance in New England, and the Patriots' last playoff berth altogether until 1994. They narrowly missed the playoffs with an 8–7 record in 1987 (a strike-shortened season) and a 9–7 record in 1988, in which quarterback Doug Flutie went 6-3 as a starter. However, Berry benched Flutie in the season finale against the Denver Broncos until the final seconds. The Patriots lost 21-10 and Flutie left for the CFL less than two years later. Then in Berry's last year as a coach, the Patriots finished the 1989 season 5–11. New Patriots majority owner Victor Kiam demanded Berry relinquish control over personnel and reorganize his staff; Berry refused and was fired. His regular-season coaching record was 48–39 () and he was 3–2 () in the playoffs.
After a year out of coaching, Berry joined Wayne Fontes' staff with the Detroit Lions in 1991 as their quarterbacks coach, and then held the same position the following season on Dan Reeves' staff with the Denver Broncos. Reeves was fired after that season, along with his entire coaching staff.
Profile
Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury-prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp.
Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun."
Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week.
Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow—but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least."
Honors
In 1973, Berry was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team, compiled in 1994 by the Hall of Fame selection committee and media to honor the NFL's best players of the league's first 75 years, and the 1950s All-Decade Team. In 1999, he was ranked 40th on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. Berry's number 82 jersey is retired by the Colts, he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team as a coach, and he is enshrined in the Baltimore Ravens Ring of Honor.
Personal life
Berry is a professed born again Christian and a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He considers his faith to be a "huge part" of his life. As of 2009, he lives with his wife in Tennessee. On February 5, 2012, at Super Bowl XLVI, Berry carried the Vince Lombardi Trophy to midfield to present it to the New York Giants, who had just defeated the New England Patriots. He was given the honor due to the game being played at Lucas Oil Stadium, the home stadium of his former team, the Colts, who had moved to Indianapolis in 1984.
Coaching record
References
Bibliography
External links
1933 births
Living people
American football wide receivers
Arkansas Razorbacks football coaches
Baltimore Colts players
Cleveland Browns coaches
Dallas Cowboys coaches
Denver Broncos coaches
Detroit Lions coaches
New England Patriots coaches
New England Patriots head coaches
Schreiner Mountaineers football players
SMU Mustangs football players
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Western Conference Pro Bowl players
United States Army soldiers
People from Paris, Texas
Sportspeople from Corpus Christi, Texas
Coaches of American football from Texas
Players of American football from Texas
National Football League players with retired numbers | true | [
"A narrative technique (known for literary fictional narratives as a literary technique, literary device, or fictional device) is any of several specific methods the creator of a narrative uses to convey what they want—in other words, a strategy used in the making of a narrative to relay information to the audience and particularly to develop the narrative, usually in order to make it more complete, complex, or interesting. Literary techniques are distinguished from literary elements, which exist inherently in works of writing.\n\nSetting\n\nPlots\n\nPerspective\n\nStyle\n\nTheme\n\nCharacter\n\nSee also \n Plot device\n\nNotes\n\nReferences \n \n\n \nNarratology\nPoetic devices\nStyle (fiction)",
"DiscoveryBox is a children's magazine by Bayard Presse. It is targeted at children from 9 to 12 years old. Inside there are topics about science, animals, current events, nature, history and the world. It also includes games and quizzes. It is designed for the completely independent reader and is the 3rd and final instalment of the Box series (after StoryBox and AdventureBox).\n\nDiscoveryBox is mostly non fictional and is designed to answer questions and expand the knowledge of its readers in the subjects that it covers each month.\n\nThere is a current shortage in this type of information rich magazine for this age group at the moment and children find the magazine very interesting. It is designed to build on what they have learned in School and it takes many of its subjects from the British Curriculum so reinforces what they have learned as well as adding additional interesting facts that they may not have previously known about.\n\nBecause there is a shortage of information magazines for children this age, both ESL and English speaking students like to read this book as the information is specially presented for them. As it is specifically designed for the ages 9 to 12 the magazine takes subjects that they would find interesting such as The Olympic Games, Space Exploration and Avalanches being just a few of the previous topics covered.\n\nIn July 2009 DiscoveryBox collaborated with the movie Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs with a behind-the-scenes look at 3D animation.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n DiscoveryBox Website\n DiscoveryBox Information Page\n Bayard English magazine Website\n\nChildren's magazines published in France\nFrench-language magazines\nMonthly magazines published in France\nMagazines established in 1995"
]
|
[
"Raymond Berry",
"Profile",
"Any interesting information?",
"Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for,"
]
| C_32af37cb57654035bcfb1a0dddaeedf6_0 | What were some of his ailments? | 2 | What were some of Raymond Berry's ailments? | Raymond Berry | Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp. Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun." Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week. Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow--but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least." CANNOTANSWER | bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs | Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. (born February 27, 1933) is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He played as a split end for the Baltimore Colts from 1955 to 1967, and after several assistant coaching positions, was head coach of the New England Patriots from 1984 to 1989. With the Colts, Berry led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice, and was invited to six Pro Bowls. The Colts won consecutive NFL championships, including the 1958 NFL Championship Game—known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played"—in which Berry caught 12 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown. He retired as the all-time NFL leader in both receptions and receiving yardage.
As a head coach, Berry led the Patriots to Super Bowl XX following the 1985 season, where his team was defeated by the Chicago Bears, 46–10.
After catching very few passes in high school and college, Berry was drafted in the 20th round of the 1954 NFL Draft by the Colts and was considered a long shot to make the team's roster. Diminutive and unassuming, his subsequent rise to the Pro Football Hall of Fame has been touted as one of football's Cinderella stories. He made up for his lack of athleticism through rigorous practice and attention to detail, and was known for his near-perfect route running and sure-handedness. Berry was a favorite target of quarterback Johnny Unitas, and the two were regarded as the dominant passing and receiving duo of their era.
After his playing career, Berry coached wide receivers for the Dallas Cowboys, the University of Arkansas, Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns, and Patriots. He became the Patriots' head coach in 1984 and held that position through 1989, amassing 48 wins and 39 losses. In recognition of his playing career, Berry was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 75 years and a unanimous selection to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 100 years. His number 82 jersey is retired by the Indianapolis Colts and he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team.
Early life and college
Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, on February 27, 1933, and spent the majority of his childhood in Paris, Texas. At Paris High School and in college, Berry caught very few passes. He did not start on his high school team until he was a senior, even though his father, Berry Sr., was the coach. After high school Berry played one year of junior college football at Shreiner Institute (now Schreiner University) in Kerrville, Texas, during the 1950 campaign. He helped the Mountaineers finish its most successful season in 10 years with a record of 7–3. He then transferred to Southern Methodist University (SMU). In three seasons for the SMU Mustangs football team, Berry received only 33 passes total. Sportswriters attributed his lack of receptions to his poor eyesight, but during the early 1950s, colleges specialized in the running game. As Berry said, "I didn't catch many passes because not many were thrown". He also played outside linebacker and defensive end for the Mustangs, despite weighing only even by his senior year.
Professional playing career
Berry was drafted by the Baltimore Colts in the 20th round as the 203rd overall pick of the 1954 NFL Draft. Considered a long-shot to make the team roster, he was used sparingly as a rookie, catching only 13 passes. By his second NFL season he became a permanent starter when the Colts acquired quarterback Johnny Unitas. Over the next 12 seasons together the two became one of the most dominant passing and catching duos in NFL history. Berry, who did not miss a single game until his eighth year in the league, led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice.
In 1957, Berry caught 47 passes for 800 yards and six touchdowns, leading the NFL in receiving yards for the first time. Against the Washington Redskins that year in near-freezing weather, Unitas connected with Berry on 12 passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns, staging what the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette called a "spectacular show". He was recognized as a first-team All-Pro by The Sporting News and earned second-team honors from the Associated Press (AP). The following season, he recorded 794 receiving yards and led the league with 56 receptions and nine touchdowns. For his efforts, Berry was invited to his first Pro Bowl, and was a first-team All-Pro by the AP and several other major selectors. The Colts finished atop the Western Division with a record of 9–3 and faced the New York Giants in the NFL Championship Game.
One of Berry's most notable performances was in that 1958 NFL Championship Game, known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played", in which he led the Colts to the franchise's first title with a then championship record 12 catches for 178 yards and a touchdown in the Colts' 23–17 victory over the Giants. At the end of regulation, he caught three consecutive passes for 62 yards to set up the Colts' tying field goal. He also had two key receptions for 33 yards during the Colts' final game-winning drive in overtime. His 12 receptions would remain an NFL championship game record for more than half a century, topped by one by Demaryius Thomas in Super Bowl XLVIII after the 2013 season.
Berry led the NFL in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns in 1959, becoming the fourth player to record a "triple crown" in receiving. His 14 receiving touchdowns set a Colts single-season franchise record that stood unmatched for over four decades. He was invited to his second straight Pro Bowl, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from the AP, UPI, the Newspaper Enterprise Association, and the New York Daily News. The Colts won back-to-back championships in an encore with the Giants, 31–16. In that game, Berry caught five passes for 68 yards, second on the team behind halfback Lenny Moore's 126 yards on three receptions.
In 1960, Berry recorded his only 1,000-yard season, catching 74 passes en route to career highs in receiving yards (1,298) and receiving yards per game (108.2). Each of those totals led the NFL that year by a wide margin; no other player had more than 1,000 yards, and the next highest yards-per-game average was 81.0. He had a mid-season string of six straight games with over 100 yards, during which he caught 50 passes for 920 yards and eight touchdowns. Berry again was a Pro Bowl invitee, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from all the same selectors as the previous year, including unanimous All-Pro recognition by UPI sportswriters.
Following this zenith, Berry did not have the same statistical success over his final seven seasons, but remained a consistent target for Unitas. His 75 receptions in the 1961 season was second-most in the league, and he finished 10th in receiving yards, but failed to record a touchdown for the first time since his rookie year. He scored the first touchdown of the 1962 Pro Bowl on a 16-yard reception from Unitas in the first quarter. His streak of Pro Bowl invitations ended at four, but he rebounded to appearances in 1963 and 1964, the latter his final. The Colts returned to the postseason in 1964, where they were shut out 27–0 by the Cleveland Browns in the 1964 championship game.
After consecutive seasons recording 700+ receiving yards and seven touchdowns in 1965 and 1966, Berry missed half of the 1967 season due to injuries and caught only 11 passes for 167 yards. He announced his retirement shortly after the season's end. He completed his professional playing career having caught 631 passes for 9,275 yards (14.7 yards per catch) and 68 touchdowns. At the time, he held the NFL career records for receptions and receiving yards, and his receiving touchdowns were tied for fourth most with Don Maynard.
Coaching career
After retiring from playing, Berry joined Tom Landry's Dallas Cowboys coaching staff as receivers coach. In 1970, after two seasons, Berry took a job with Frank Broyles at the University of Arkansas as receivers coach. In 1973 Berry joined Don McCafferty with the Detroit Lions as his receivers coach. In 1976, Berry joined former SMU teammate Forrest Gregg as his receivers coach with the Cleveland Browns. Berry joined the New England Patriots as receivers coach under Chuck Fairbanks in 1978. He stayed on with new coach Ron Erhardt until Erhardt and his entire staff were fired following a 2–14 1981 season. Berry left football and worked in real estate in Medfield, Massachusetts, until the Patriots fired Ron Meyer in the middle of the 1984 season and hired Berry to replace him. Under his leadership, the Patriots won four of their last eight games and finished the season with a 9–7 record. Berry's importance to the team was reflected less in his initial win–loss record than in the respect he immediately earned in the locker room – according to running back Tony Collins, "Raymond Berry earned more respect in one day than Ron Meyer earned in three years".
In the 1985 season, the team improved further, posting an 11–5 record and making the playoffs as a wild card team. They went on to become the first team in NFL history to advance to the Super Bowl by winning three playoff games on the road, defeating the New York Jets 26–14 (the second postseason win in franchise history), the Los Angeles Raiders 27–20, and the Miami Dolphins 31–14. It was the first time the Patriots had beaten the Dolphins at the Orange Bowl (Miami's then-home stadium) since 1966, Miami's first season as a franchise. The Patriots had lost to the Dolphins there 18 consecutive times, including a 30–27 loss in Week 15 of the regular season. Despite their success in the playoffs, the Patriots were heavy underdogs to the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XX. They lost 46–10 in what was at the time the most lopsided defeat in Super Bowl history. "We couldn't protect the quarterback, and that was my fault. I couldn't come up with a system to handle the Bears' pass rush", Berry acknowledged.
The following season, Berry's Patriots again recorded an 11–5 record and made the playoffs, this time after winning their second division title as an NFL team. However, they lost in the first round of the postseason. It would be Berry's last postseason appearance in New England, and the Patriots' last playoff berth altogether until 1994. They narrowly missed the playoffs with an 8–7 record in 1987 (a strike-shortened season) and a 9–7 record in 1988, in which quarterback Doug Flutie went 6-3 as a starter. However, Berry benched Flutie in the season finale against the Denver Broncos until the final seconds. The Patriots lost 21-10 and Flutie left for the CFL less than two years later. Then in Berry's last year as a coach, the Patriots finished the 1989 season 5–11. New Patriots majority owner Victor Kiam demanded Berry relinquish control over personnel and reorganize his staff; Berry refused and was fired. His regular-season coaching record was 48–39 () and he was 3–2 () in the playoffs.
After a year out of coaching, Berry joined Wayne Fontes' staff with the Detroit Lions in 1991 as their quarterbacks coach, and then held the same position the following season on Dan Reeves' staff with the Denver Broncos. Reeves was fired after that season, along with his entire coaching staff.
Profile
Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury-prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp.
Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun."
Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week.
Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow—but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least."
Honors
In 1973, Berry was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team, compiled in 1994 by the Hall of Fame selection committee and media to honor the NFL's best players of the league's first 75 years, and the 1950s All-Decade Team. In 1999, he was ranked 40th on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. Berry's number 82 jersey is retired by the Colts, he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team as a coach, and he is enshrined in the Baltimore Ravens Ring of Honor.
Personal life
Berry is a professed born again Christian and a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He considers his faith to be a "huge part" of his life. As of 2009, he lives with his wife in Tennessee. On February 5, 2012, at Super Bowl XLVI, Berry carried the Vince Lombardi Trophy to midfield to present it to the New York Giants, who had just defeated the New England Patriots. He was given the honor due to the game being played at Lucas Oil Stadium, the home stadium of his former team, the Colts, who had moved to Indianapolis in 1984.
Coaching record
References
Bibliography
External links
1933 births
Living people
American football wide receivers
Arkansas Razorbacks football coaches
Baltimore Colts players
Cleveland Browns coaches
Dallas Cowboys coaches
Denver Broncos coaches
Detroit Lions coaches
New England Patriots coaches
New England Patriots head coaches
Schreiner Mountaineers football players
SMU Mustangs football players
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Western Conference Pro Bowl players
United States Army soldiers
People from Paris, Texas
Sportspeople from Corpus Christi, Texas
Coaches of American football from Texas
Players of American football from Texas
National Football League players with retired numbers | true | [
"In botany, blossoms are the flowers of stone fruit trees (genus Prunus) and of some other plants with a similar appearance that flower profusely for a period of time in spring.\n\nColloquially, flowers of orange are referred to as such as well. Peach blossoms (including nectarine), most cherry blossoms, and some almond blossoms are usually pink. Plum blossoms, apple blossoms, orange blossoms, some cherry blossoms, and most almond blossoms are white.\n\nBlossoms provide pollen to pollinators such as bees, and initiate cross-pollination necessary for the trees to reproduce by producing fruit.\n\nHerbal use\n\nThe ancient Phoenicians used almond blossoms with honey and urine as a tonic, and sprinkled them into stews and gruels to give muscular strength. Crushed petals were also used as a poultice on skin spots and mixed with banana oil, for dry skin and sunburn.\n\nIn herbalism the crab apple was used as treatment for boils, abscesses, splinters, wounds, coughs, colds and a host of other ailments ranging from acne to kidney ailments. Many dishes made with apples and apple blossom are of medieval origin. In the spring, monks and physicians would gather the blossoms and preserve them in vinegar for drawing poultices and for bee stings and other insect bites. Descending from China and south east Asia, the earliest orange species moved westwards via the trade routes.\nIn 17th century Italy peach blossoms were made into a poultice for bruises, rashes, eczema, grazes and stings.\n\nIn ancient Greek medicine plum blossoms were used to treat bleeding gums, mouth ulcers and tighten loose teeth. Plum blossoms mixed with sage leaves and flowers were used in plum wine or plum brandy as a mouthwash to soothe sore throats and mouth ailments and sweeten bad breath.\n\nGallery\n\nSee also \n Fragrance extraction\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n \n \n\n+\nPlants",
"Readily visible alterations of the skin surface have been recognized since the dawn of history, with some being treated, and some not. One of the earliest known sources documenting skin ailments is the Ebers Papyrus, a medical document from ancient Egypt dating to around 1500 BC. It describes various skin diseases, including ulcers, rashes, and tumors, and prescribes surgery and ointments to treat the ailments.\n\nIn 1572, Geronimo Mercuriali of Forlì, Italy, completed De morbis cutaneis (translated \"On the diseases of the skin\"), and is known as the first scientific work to be dedicated to dermatology. One source lists Jean Astruc (1684-1766) as the founder of modern dermatology. In 1799, Francesco Bianchi wrote the book Dermatologia which is the first comprehensive textbook of modern dermatology written for the students of medicine.\n\nIn 1801 the first great school of dermatology became a reality at the famous Hôpital Saint-Louis in Paris, while the first textbooks (Willan's, 1798-1808) and atlases (Alibert's, 1806-1814) appeared in print during the same period of time.\n\nSee also \n Vienna School of Dermatology\n List of dermatologists\nList of cutaneous conditions\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n History of Dermatology Society\n French Society for the History of Dermatology\n American Association for the History of Medicine\n The Canadian Society for the History of Medicine\n\nDermatology"
]
|
[
"Raymond Berry",
"Profile",
"Any interesting information?",
"Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for,",
"What were some of his ailments?",
"bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs"
]
| C_32af37cb57654035bcfb1a0dddaeedf6_0 | How did it affect his legs? | 3 | How did bruised nerves affect Raymond Berry's legs? | Raymond Berry | Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp. Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun." Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week. Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow--but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least." CANNOTANSWER | caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. | Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. (born February 27, 1933) is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He played as a split end for the Baltimore Colts from 1955 to 1967, and after several assistant coaching positions, was head coach of the New England Patriots from 1984 to 1989. With the Colts, Berry led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice, and was invited to six Pro Bowls. The Colts won consecutive NFL championships, including the 1958 NFL Championship Game—known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played"—in which Berry caught 12 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown. He retired as the all-time NFL leader in both receptions and receiving yardage.
As a head coach, Berry led the Patriots to Super Bowl XX following the 1985 season, where his team was defeated by the Chicago Bears, 46–10.
After catching very few passes in high school and college, Berry was drafted in the 20th round of the 1954 NFL Draft by the Colts and was considered a long shot to make the team's roster. Diminutive and unassuming, his subsequent rise to the Pro Football Hall of Fame has been touted as one of football's Cinderella stories. He made up for his lack of athleticism through rigorous practice and attention to detail, and was known for his near-perfect route running and sure-handedness. Berry was a favorite target of quarterback Johnny Unitas, and the two were regarded as the dominant passing and receiving duo of their era.
After his playing career, Berry coached wide receivers for the Dallas Cowboys, the University of Arkansas, Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns, and Patriots. He became the Patriots' head coach in 1984 and held that position through 1989, amassing 48 wins and 39 losses. In recognition of his playing career, Berry was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 75 years and a unanimous selection to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 100 years. His number 82 jersey is retired by the Indianapolis Colts and he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team.
Early life and college
Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, on February 27, 1933, and spent the majority of his childhood in Paris, Texas. At Paris High School and in college, Berry caught very few passes. He did not start on his high school team until he was a senior, even though his father, Berry Sr., was the coach. After high school Berry played one year of junior college football at Shreiner Institute (now Schreiner University) in Kerrville, Texas, during the 1950 campaign. He helped the Mountaineers finish its most successful season in 10 years with a record of 7–3. He then transferred to Southern Methodist University (SMU). In three seasons for the SMU Mustangs football team, Berry received only 33 passes total. Sportswriters attributed his lack of receptions to his poor eyesight, but during the early 1950s, colleges specialized in the running game. As Berry said, "I didn't catch many passes because not many were thrown". He also played outside linebacker and defensive end for the Mustangs, despite weighing only even by his senior year.
Professional playing career
Berry was drafted by the Baltimore Colts in the 20th round as the 203rd overall pick of the 1954 NFL Draft. Considered a long-shot to make the team roster, he was used sparingly as a rookie, catching only 13 passes. By his second NFL season he became a permanent starter when the Colts acquired quarterback Johnny Unitas. Over the next 12 seasons together the two became one of the most dominant passing and catching duos in NFL history. Berry, who did not miss a single game until his eighth year in the league, led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice.
In 1957, Berry caught 47 passes for 800 yards and six touchdowns, leading the NFL in receiving yards for the first time. Against the Washington Redskins that year in near-freezing weather, Unitas connected with Berry on 12 passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns, staging what the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette called a "spectacular show". He was recognized as a first-team All-Pro by The Sporting News and earned second-team honors from the Associated Press (AP). The following season, he recorded 794 receiving yards and led the league with 56 receptions and nine touchdowns. For his efforts, Berry was invited to his first Pro Bowl, and was a first-team All-Pro by the AP and several other major selectors. The Colts finished atop the Western Division with a record of 9–3 and faced the New York Giants in the NFL Championship Game.
One of Berry's most notable performances was in that 1958 NFL Championship Game, known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played", in which he led the Colts to the franchise's first title with a then championship record 12 catches for 178 yards and a touchdown in the Colts' 23–17 victory over the Giants. At the end of regulation, he caught three consecutive passes for 62 yards to set up the Colts' tying field goal. He also had two key receptions for 33 yards during the Colts' final game-winning drive in overtime. His 12 receptions would remain an NFL championship game record for more than half a century, topped by one by Demaryius Thomas in Super Bowl XLVIII after the 2013 season.
Berry led the NFL in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns in 1959, becoming the fourth player to record a "triple crown" in receiving. His 14 receiving touchdowns set a Colts single-season franchise record that stood unmatched for over four decades. He was invited to his second straight Pro Bowl, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from the AP, UPI, the Newspaper Enterprise Association, and the New York Daily News. The Colts won back-to-back championships in an encore with the Giants, 31–16. In that game, Berry caught five passes for 68 yards, second on the team behind halfback Lenny Moore's 126 yards on three receptions.
In 1960, Berry recorded his only 1,000-yard season, catching 74 passes en route to career highs in receiving yards (1,298) and receiving yards per game (108.2). Each of those totals led the NFL that year by a wide margin; no other player had more than 1,000 yards, and the next highest yards-per-game average was 81.0. He had a mid-season string of six straight games with over 100 yards, during which he caught 50 passes for 920 yards and eight touchdowns. Berry again was a Pro Bowl invitee, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from all the same selectors as the previous year, including unanimous All-Pro recognition by UPI sportswriters.
Following this zenith, Berry did not have the same statistical success over his final seven seasons, but remained a consistent target for Unitas. His 75 receptions in the 1961 season was second-most in the league, and he finished 10th in receiving yards, but failed to record a touchdown for the first time since his rookie year. He scored the first touchdown of the 1962 Pro Bowl on a 16-yard reception from Unitas in the first quarter. His streak of Pro Bowl invitations ended at four, but he rebounded to appearances in 1963 and 1964, the latter his final. The Colts returned to the postseason in 1964, where they were shut out 27–0 by the Cleveland Browns in the 1964 championship game.
After consecutive seasons recording 700+ receiving yards and seven touchdowns in 1965 and 1966, Berry missed half of the 1967 season due to injuries and caught only 11 passes for 167 yards. He announced his retirement shortly after the season's end. He completed his professional playing career having caught 631 passes for 9,275 yards (14.7 yards per catch) and 68 touchdowns. At the time, he held the NFL career records for receptions and receiving yards, and his receiving touchdowns were tied for fourth most with Don Maynard.
Coaching career
After retiring from playing, Berry joined Tom Landry's Dallas Cowboys coaching staff as receivers coach. In 1970, after two seasons, Berry took a job with Frank Broyles at the University of Arkansas as receivers coach. In 1973 Berry joined Don McCafferty with the Detroit Lions as his receivers coach. In 1976, Berry joined former SMU teammate Forrest Gregg as his receivers coach with the Cleveland Browns. Berry joined the New England Patriots as receivers coach under Chuck Fairbanks in 1978. He stayed on with new coach Ron Erhardt until Erhardt and his entire staff were fired following a 2–14 1981 season. Berry left football and worked in real estate in Medfield, Massachusetts, until the Patriots fired Ron Meyer in the middle of the 1984 season and hired Berry to replace him. Under his leadership, the Patriots won four of their last eight games and finished the season with a 9–7 record. Berry's importance to the team was reflected less in his initial win–loss record than in the respect he immediately earned in the locker room – according to running back Tony Collins, "Raymond Berry earned more respect in one day than Ron Meyer earned in three years".
In the 1985 season, the team improved further, posting an 11–5 record and making the playoffs as a wild card team. They went on to become the first team in NFL history to advance to the Super Bowl by winning three playoff games on the road, defeating the New York Jets 26–14 (the second postseason win in franchise history), the Los Angeles Raiders 27–20, and the Miami Dolphins 31–14. It was the first time the Patriots had beaten the Dolphins at the Orange Bowl (Miami's then-home stadium) since 1966, Miami's first season as a franchise. The Patriots had lost to the Dolphins there 18 consecutive times, including a 30–27 loss in Week 15 of the regular season. Despite their success in the playoffs, the Patriots were heavy underdogs to the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XX. They lost 46–10 in what was at the time the most lopsided defeat in Super Bowl history. "We couldn't protect the quarterback, and that was my fault. I couldn't come up with a system to handle the Bears' pass rush", Berry acknowledged.
The following season, Berry's Patriots again recorded an 11–5 record and made the playoffs, this time after winning their second division title as an NFL team. However, they lost in the first round of the postseason. It would be Berry's last postseason appearance in New England, and the Patriots' last playoff berth altogether until 1994. They narrowly missed the playoffs with an 8–7 record in 1987 (a strike-shortened season) and a 9–7 record in 1988, in which quarterback Doug Flutie went 6-3 as a starter. However, Berry benched Flutie in the season finale against the Denver Broncos until the final seconds. The Patriots lost 21-10 and Flutie left for the CFL less than two years later. Then in Berry's last year as a coach, the Patriots finished the 1989 season 5–11. New Patriots majority owner Victor Kiam demanded Berry relinquish control over personnel and reorganize his staff; Berry refused and was fired. His regular-season coaching record was 48–39 () and he was 3–2 () in the playoffs.
After a year out of coaching, Berry joined Wayne Fontes' staff with the Detroit Lions in 1991 as their quarterbacks coach, and then held the same position the following season on Dan Reeves' staff with the Denver Broncos. Reeves was fired after that season, along with his entire coaching staff.
Profile
Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury-prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp.
Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun."
Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week.
Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow—but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least."
Honors
In 1973, Berry was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team, compiled in 1994 by the Hall of Fame selection committee and media to honor the NFL's best players of the league's first 75 years, and the 1950s All-Decade Team. In 1999, he was ranked 40th on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. Berry's number 82 jersey is retired by the Colts, he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team as a coach, and he is enshrined in the Baltimore Ravens Ring of Honor.
Personal life
Berry is a professed born again Christian and a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He considers his faith to be a "huge part" of his life. As of 2009, he lives with his wife in Tennessee. On February 5, 2012, at Super Bowl XLVI, Berry carried the Vince Lombardi Trophy to midfield to present it to the New York Giants, who had just defeated the New England Patriots. He was given the honor due to the game being played at Lucas Oil Stadium, the home stadium of his former team, the Colts, who had moved to Indianapolis in 1984.
Coaching record
References
Bibliography
External links
1933 births
Living people
American football wide receivers
Arkansas Razorbacks football coaches
Baltimore Colts players
Cleveland Browns coaches
Dallas Cowboys coaches
Denver Broncos coaches
Detroit Lions coaches
New England Patriots coaches
New England Patriots head coaches
Schreiner Mountaineers football players
SMU Mustangs football players
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Western Conference Pro Bowl players
United States Army soldiers
People from Paris, Texas
Sportspeople from Corpus Christi, Texas
Coaches of American football from Texas
Players of American football from Texas
National Football League players with retired numbers | true | [
"Affect, as a term of rhetoric, is the responsive, emotional feeling (affect) that precedes cognition. Affect differs from pathos as described by Aristotle as one of the modes of proof and pathos as described by Jasinski as an emotional appeal because it is “the response we have to things before we label that response with feelings or emotions.”\n\nIn further exploring this term, scholars recognized affect’s rhetorical role in literature, photography, marketing and memory. In 2012, Rogers described how author W. E. B. Du Bois used the structure of his work, The Souls of Black Folk, to affect his audience into feeling shame. In 2016, Brunner and Deluca proposed the term affective winds to describe “the force of images that moves people to engage and interact by exploring the affective potency of visual arguments.” Affective winds were part of the rhetorical persuasiveness of images shared through social media. In a different sense, Harold described how the Target Corporation’s advertising used aura and affect to democratize the appearance of some products. Affect has also been identified as a conduit through which rhetorical memories can be internalized.\n\nDrawing from philosophy, some rhetorical studies of affect have followed Martin Heidegger's articulation of Dasein which posits \"affect\" as the ground of reason. Others follow post-structuralist and post-Heideggerian insights to follow affect's influence on rhetorical canons and digital rhetoric.\n\nReferences\n\nRhetorical techniques",
"Leg fetishism or crurophilia is the sexual fetish for legs. Individuals may experience a sexual attraction to a particular area such as the thighs, knees, or calves. Crurophilia is often connected to other fetishes with regards to preferences in attire; people with a leg fetish may desire to view specific articles of clothing such as shorts, skirts, thigh-high boots, or stockings.\n\nCharacteristics\nA leg fetish is a partialism in which one is sexually attracted to an individual's legs. Common expressions of this attraction may include intimate physical interaction with the legs or simply act as a fantasy to be admired from afar.\n\nLeg fetishes are elucidated by the stringent expectations placed on women. In order to conform to western societal standards, women are encouraged to shave their legs and use skin softeners, for a cleaner and more feminine look. Men self-purported to have crurophilia tend to view the legs as the most attractive part of the female body because of their seductively-teasing nature. Whereas display of the breasts and buttocks is considerably \"in your face\", presentation of the legs offers more control over how much and for how long.\n\nAlthough leg fetishes are typically associated with men, they are not a gender-specific phenomenon. A 2008 study by researchers in Wroclaw University in Poland featured a sample of 200 male and female volunteers. Participants were presented with images of people with the same height but varying leg lengths. Their research supported that both men and women find longer legs attractive; the majority preferred legs 5% longer than average, and the ideal female leg length was found to be 1.4 times the length of the upper body. As stated by the lead researcher, \"There are good evolutionary reasons for the preference. Long legs are a sign of health.\" UCLA associate psychology professor Martie Haselton said, \"Legginess is something that we know men prefer in mates. The news in this research is that women prefer longer legs in mates.\" Although leg length isn't always a sign of good health, people tend to prefer longer legs for a more attractive appearance.\n\nHistorical and cultural background\nAreas of the body deemed sexually-desirable are affected by contemporary social norms and dress codes. A substantial portion of Victorian men famously boasted a knee or ankle fetish. This is due to the modesty of the nineteenth century which considered bare legs in public scandalous.\n\nIn the modern era, leg fetishes can often manifest as a subconscious byproduct of western media. Whereas many other cultures consider public display of the legs scandalous, the vast majority of western culture has normalized exhibition of the legs. In many other countries, shorts which reach at or below the knee are considered sufficiently modest. Yet much of western media promotes viewing female thighs. A study on sexual imagery in magazine advertising found that in 2003, 78% of women in magazine advertisements were sexually attired, much attributable to the category of \"very short shorts\". It is this consistent interaction with media which some ascribe to the fetishism of the legs.\n\nThe widespread social acceptance of women showing their legs in public can subconsciously affect men's perceptions. In a 1981 study, both male and female subjects rated their first impressions of female job applicants in 12 outfits. The study supported that, \"Male subjects found female models more physically attractive and more likable in short shorts and short skirts compared with regular lengths.\"\n\nSee also \nHemline\n\nReferences \n\nSexual fetishism\nParaphilias"
]
|
[
"Raymond Berry",
"Profile",
"Any interesting information?",
"Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for,",
"What were some of his ailments?",
"bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs",
"How did it affect his legs?",
"caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition."
]
| C_32af37cb57654035bcfb1a0dddaeedf6_0 | How was it fixed? | 4 | How were Raymond Berry's legs fixed? | Raymond Berry | Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp. Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun." Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week. Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow--but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least." CANNOTANSWER | To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. | Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. (born February 27, 1933) is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He played as a split end for the Baltimore Colts from 1955 to 1967, and after several assistant coaching positions, was head coach of the New England Patriots from 1984 to 1989. With the Colts, Berry led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice, and was invited to six Pro Bowls. The Colts won consecutive NFL championships, including the 1958 NFL Championship Game—known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played"—in which Berry caught 12 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown. He retired as the all-time NFL leader in both receptions and receiving yardage.
As a head coach, Berry led the Patriots to Super Bowl XX following the 1985 season, where his team was defeated by the Chicago Bears, 46–10.
After catching very few passes in high school and college, Berry was drafted in the 20th round of the 1954 NFL Draft by the Colts and was considered a long shot to make the team's roster. Diminutive and unassuming, his subsequent rise to the Pro Football Hall of Fame has been touted as one of football's Cinderella stories. He made up for his lack of athleticism through rigorous practice and attention to detail, and was known for his near-perfect route running and sure-handedness. Berry was a favorite target of quarterback Johnny Unitas, and the two were regarded as the dominant passing and receiving duo of their era.
After his playing career, Berry coached wide receivers for the Dallas Cowboys, the University of Arkansas, Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns, and Patriots. He became the Patriots' head coach in 1984 and held that position through 1989, amassing 48 wins and 39 losses. In recognition of his playing career, Berry was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 75 years and a unanimous selection to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 100 years. His number 82 jersey is retired by the Indianapolis Colts and he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team.
Early life and college
Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, on February 27, 1933, and spent the majority of his childhood in Paris, Texas. At Paris High School and in college, Berry caught very few passes. He did not start on his high school team until he was a senior, even though his father, Berry Sr., was the coach. After high school Berry played one year of junior college football at Shreiner Institute (now Schreiner University) in Kerrville, Texas, during the 1950 campaign. He helped the Mountaineers finish its most successful season in 10 years with a record of 7–3. He then transferred to Southern Methodist University (SMU). In three seasons for the SMU Mustangs football team, Berry received only 33 passes total. Sportswriters attributed his lack of receptions to his poor eyesight, but during the early 1950s, colleges specialized in the running game. As Berry said, "I didn't catch many passes because not many were thrown". He also played outside linebacker and defensive end for the Mustangs, despite weighing only even by his senior year.
Professional playing career
Berry was drafted by the Baltimore Colts in the 20th round as the 203rd overall pick of the 1954 NFL Draft. Considered a long-shot to make the team roster, he was used sparingly as a rookie, catching only 13 passes. By his second NFL season he became a permanent starter when the Colts acquired quarterback Johnny Unitas. Over the next 12 seasons together the two became one of the most dominant passing and catching duos in NFL history. Berry, who did not miss a single game until his eighth year in the league, led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice.
In 1957, Berry caught 47 passes for 800 yards and six touchdowns, leading the NFL in receiving yards for the first time. Against the Washington Redskins that year in near-freezing weather, Unitas connected with Berry on 12 passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns, staging what the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette called a "spectacular show". He was recognized as a first-team All-Pro by The Sporting News and earned second-team honors from the Associated Press (AP). The following season, he recorded 794 receiving yards and led the league with 56 receptions and nine touchdowns. For his efforts, Berry was invited to his first Pro Bowl, and was a first-team All-Pro by the AP and several other major selectors. The Colts finished atop the Western Division with a record of 9–3 and faced the New York Giants in the NFL Championship Game.
One of Berry's most notable performances was in that 1958 NFL Championship Game, known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played", in which he led the Colts to the franchise's first title with a then championship record 12 catches for 178 yards and a touchdown in the Colts' 23–17 victory over the Giants. At the end of regulation, he caught three consecutive passes for 62 yards to set up the Colts' tying field goal. He also had two key receptions for 33 yards during the Colts' final game-winning drive in overtime. His 12 receptions would remain an NFL championship game record for more than half a century, topped by one by Demaryius Thomas in Super Bowl XLVIII after the 2013 season.
Berry led the NFL in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns in 1959, becoming the fourth player to record a "triple crown" in receiving. His 14 receiving touchdowns set a Colts single-season franchise record that stood unmatched for over four decades. He was invited to his second straight Pro Bowl, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from the AP, UPI, the Newspaper Enterprise Association, and the New York Daily News. The Colts won back-to-back championships in an encore with the Giants, 31–16. In that game, Berry caught five passes for 68 yards, second on the team behind halfback Lenny Moore's 126 yards on three receptions.
In 1960, Berry recorded his only 1,000-yard season, catching 74 passes en route to career highs in receiving yards (1,298) and receiving yards per game (108.2). Each of those totals led the NFL that year by a wide margin; no other player had more than 1,000 yards, and the next highest yards-per-game average was 81.0. He had a mid-season string of six straight games with over 100 yards, during which he caught 50 passes for 920 yards and eight touchdowns. Berry again was a Pro Bowl invitee, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from all the same selectors as the previous year, including unanimous All-Pro recognition by UPI sportswriters.
Following this zenith, Berry did not have the same statistical success over his final seven seasons, but remained a consistent target for Unitas. His 75 receptions in the 1961 season was second-most in the league, and he finished 10th in receiving yards, but failed to record a touchdown for the first time since his rookie year. He scored the first touchdown of the 1962 Pro Bowl on a 16-yard reception from Unitas in the first quarter. His streak of Pro Bowl invitations ended at four, but he rebounded to appearances in 1963 and 1964, the latter his final. The Colts returned to the postseason in 1964, where they were shut out 27–0 by the Cleveland Browns in the 1964 championship game.
After consecutive seasons recording 700+ receiving yards and seven touchdowns in 1965 and 1966, Berry missed half of the 1967 season due to injuries and caught only 11 passes for 167 yards. He announced his retirement shortly after the season's end. He completed his professional playing career having caught 631 passes for 9,275 yards (14.7 yards per catch) and 68 touchdowns. At the time, he held the NFL career records for receptions and receiving yards, and his receiving touchdowns were tied for fourth most with Don Maynard.
Coaching career
After retiring from playing, Berry joined Tom Landry's Dallas Cowboys coaching staff as receivers coach. In 1970, after two seasons, Berry took a job with Frank Broyles at the University of Arkansas as receivers coach. In 1973 Berry joined Don McCafferty with the Detroit Lions as his receivers coach. In 1976, Berry joined former SMU teammate Forrest Gregg as his receivers coach with the Cleveland Browns. Berry joined the New England Patriots as receivers coach under Chuck Fairbanks in 1978. He stayed on with new coach Ron Erhardt until Erhardt and his entire staff were fired following a 2–14 1981 season. Berry left football and worked in real estate in Medfield, Massachusetts, until the Patriots fired Ron Meyer in the middle of the 1984 season and hired Berry to replace him. Under his leadership, the Patriots won four of their last eight games and finished the season with a 9–7 record. Berry's importance to the team was reflected less in his initial win–loss record than in the respect he immediately earned in the locker room – according to running back Tony Collins, "Raymond Berry earned more respect in one day than Ron Meyer earned in three years".
In the 1985 season, the team improved further, posting an 11–5 record and making the playoffs as a wild card team. They went on to become the first team in NFL history to advance to the Super Bowl by winning three playoff games on the road, defeating the New York Jets 26–14 (the second postseason win in franchise history), the Los Angeles Raiders 27–20, and the Miami Dolphins 31–14. It was the first time the Patriots had beaten the Dolphins at the Orange Bowl (Miami's then-home stadium) since 1966, Miami's first season as a franchise. The Patriots had lost to the Dolphins there 18 consecutive times, including a 30–27 loss in Week 15 of the regular season. Despite their success in the playoffs, the Patriots were heavy underdogs to the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XX. They lost 46–10 in what was at the time the most lopsided defeat in Super Bowl history. "We couldn't protect the quarterback, and that was my fault. I couldn't come up with a system to handle the Bears' pass rush", Berry acknowledged.
The following season, Berry's Patriots again recorded an 11–5 record and made the playoffs, this time after winning their second division title as an NFL team. However, they lost in the first round of the postseason. It would be Berry's last postseason appearance in New England, and the Patriots' last playoff berth altogether until 1994. They narrowly missed the playoffs with an 8–7 record in 1987 (a strike-shortened season) and a 9–7 record in 1988, in which quarterback Doug Flutie went 6-3 as a starter. However, Berry benched Flutie in the season finale against the Denver Broncos until the final seconds. The Patriots lost 21-10 and Flutie left for the CFL less than two years later. Then in Berry's last year as a coach, the Patriots finished the 1989 season 5–11. New Patriots majority owner Victor Kiam demanded Berry relinquish control over personnel and reorganize his staff; Berry refused and was fired. His regular-season coaching record was 48–39 () and he was 3–2 () in the playoffs.
After a year out of coaching, Berry joined Wayne Fontes' staff with the Detroit Lions in 1991 as their quarterbacks coach, and then held the same position the following season on Dan Reeves' staff with the Denver Broncos. Reeves was fired after that season, along with his entire coaching staff.
Profile
Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury-prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp.
Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun."
Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week.
Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow—but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least."
Honors
In 1973, Berry was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team, compiled in 1994 by the Hall of Fame selection committee and media to honor the NFL's best players of the league's first 75 years, and the 1950s All-Decade Team. In 1999, he was ranked 40th on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. Berry's number 82 jersey is retired by the Colts, he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team as a coach, and he is enshrined in the Baltimore Ravens Ring of Honor.
Personal life
Berry is a professed born again Christian and a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He considers his faith to be a "huge part" of his life. As of 2009, he lives with his wife in Tennessee. On February 5, 2012, at Super Bowl XLVI, Berry carried the Vince Lombardi Trophy to midfield to present it to the New York Giants, who had just defeated the New England Patriots. He was given the honor due to the game being played at Lucas Oil Stadium, the home stadium of his former team, the Colts, who had moved to Indianapolis in 1984.
Coaching record
References
Bibliography
External links
1933 births
Living people
American football wide receivers
Arkansas Razorbacks football coaches
Baltimore Colts players
Cleveland Browns coaches
Dallas Cowboys coaches
Denver Broncos coaches
Detroit Lions coaches
New England Patriots coaches
New England Patriots head coaches
Schreiner Mountaineers football players
SMU Mustangs football players
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Western Conference Pro Bowl players
United States Army soldiers
People from Paris, Texas
Sportspeople from Corpus Christi, Texas
Coaches of American football from Texas
Players of American football from Texas
National Football League players with retired numbers | true | [
"A fixed-price contract is a type of contract such that the payment amount does not depend on resources used or time expended by the contractor. This is opposed to a cost-plus contract, which is intended to cover the costs incurred by the contractor plus an additional amount for profit. Such a scheme is often used by military and government contractors to require vendors to incur the risk of cost overruns, and to control costs. However, historically when such contracts are used for innovative new projects with untested or undeveloped technologies (such as new military transports or stealth attack airplanes), it often results in failure if costs greatly exceed the ability of the contractor to absorb unexpected cost overruns. \n\nFixed prices can require more time, in advance, for sellers to determine the price of each item. However, the fixed-price items can each be purchased faster, but bargaining could set the price for an entire set of items being purchased, reducing the time for bulk purchases. Also, fixed-price items can help in pre-determining the value of an inventory, such as for insurance estimates.\n\nSuch contracts continue to be popular despite a history of failed or troubled projects, although they tend to work when costs are well known in advance. Some laws mandate a preference for fixed-price contracts, however, many people maintain that such contracts are actually the most expensive, especially when the risks or costs are unknown in advance.\n\nContract types\nThe United States' Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) provides for the following types of contract with a fixed price element:\nFirm-fixed-price contract (FAR 16.202)\nFixed-price contract with economic price adjustment (FAR 16.203)\nFixed-price contract with prospective price redetermination (FAR 16.205)\nFixed-ceiling-price contract with retroactive price redetermination (FAR 16.206)\nFirm-fixed-price, level-of-effort term contract (FAR 16.207)\nFixed-price incentive contract (FAR 16.403)\nFixed-price incentive (firm target) contract (FAR 16.403-1)\nFixed-price incentive (successive targets) contract (FAR 16.403-2)\nFixed-price contract with award fees (FAR 16.404).\n\nEconomic price adjustment may take account of increases or decreases from an established and agreed-upon price level, actual costs or a price index.\n\nExamples\n\nA400M\nAirbus's German chief executive Tom Enders indicated that the fixed-price contract for the A400M transport aircraft was a disaster based on naivety, excessive enthusiasm and arrogance, stating, \"If you had offered it to an American defence contractor like Northrop, they would have run a mile from it\". He stated that unless the contract was renegotiated, the project must be abandoned.\n\nA-12 Avenger II\nThe U.S. A-12 Avenger II aircraft development contract was a fixed-price incentive contract, not a fixed-price contract, with a target price of $4.38 billion and ceiling price of $4.84 billion. It was for a unique, stealthy, flying wing design. On 7 January 1991, the Secretary of Defense canceled the program. It was the largest contract termination in United States Department of Defense history. Rather than saving costs, the new type of aircraft was projected to consume 70 percent of the U.S. Navy's aircraft budget within three years.\n\nKC-46 Pegasus \nThe U.S. Boeing KC-46 Pegasus contract was a fixed price contract. Due to its history of cost overruns, it is an example of how fixed price contracts place the risk upon the vendor, in this case Boeing. Total cost overruns for this aircraft have totaled about $1.9 billion. However, Boeing was able to absorb those costs and has gained US Air Force approval to begin producing the KC-46.\n\nConstruction\nThe Canadian Construction Documents Committee's \"Stipulated Price Contract\" (CCDC-2), revised in February 2008, provides for a property owner and prime contractor to agree that work is done for a fixed price or lump sum.\n\nReferences\n\nFurther reading\n Allan, B. (2004). Project management. 1st ed. London: Facet.\n\nContract law\nProcurement\nBusiness terms\nPricing",
"Tarsnap is a secure online backup service for UNIX-like operating systems, including BSD, Linux, and OS X. It was created in 2008 by Colin Percival. Tarsnap encrypts data, and then stores it on Amazon S3.\n\nService\nThe service is designed for efficiency, only uploading and storing data that has directly changed since the last backup. Its security keys are known only to the user.\n\nIt was developed and debugged, with input solicited from bug bounty hunters, to try to find vulnerabilities. A serious nonce-reuse vulnerability was found by this process and fixed in 2011.\n\nThe document of the presentation \"From bsdtar to tarsnap\" by Percival from EuroBSD-Con 2013 contains \"all kinds of detail on exactly how the algorithms work, how deduplication is managed ... the innards of how Tarsnap works\"\n\nSee also\n Comparison of online backup services\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n \n Tarsnap presentation on crowd-sourcing bug bounties\n\nOnline backup services\nBackup software\nFile hosting\nCloud storage\nWeb services\nNetwork file systems\nS3"
]
|
[
"Raymond Berry",
"Profile",
"Any interesting information?",
"Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for,",
"What were some of his ailments?",
"bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs",
"How did it affect his legs?",
"caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition.",
"How was it fixed?",
"To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL."
]
| C_32af37cb57654035bcfb1a0dddaeedf6_0 | Did it affect his playing? | 5 | Did the back brace affect Raymond Berry's playing? | Raymond Berry | Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp. Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun." Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week. Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow--but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least." CANNOTANSWER | Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. | Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. (born February 27, 1933) is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He played as a split end for the Baltimore Colts from 1955 to 1967, and after several assistant coaching positions, was head coach of the New England Patriots from 1984 to 1989. With the Colts, Berry led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice, and was invited to six Pro Bowls. The Colts won consecutive NFL championships, including the 1958 NFL Championship Game—known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played"—in which Berry caught 12 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown. He retired as the all-time NFL leader in both receptions and receiving yardage.
As a head coach, Berry led the Patriots to Super Bowl XX following the 1985 season, where his team was defeated by the Chicago Bears, 46–10.
After catching very few passes in high school and college, Berry was drafted in the 20th round of the 1954 NFL Draft by the Colts and was considered a long shot to make the team's roster. Diminutive and unassuming, his subsequent rise to the Pro Football Hall of Fame has been touted as one of football's Cinderella stories. He made up for his lack of athleticism through rigorous practice and attention to detail, and was known for his near-perfect route running and sure-handedness. Berry was a favorite target of quarterback Johnny Unitas, and the two were regarded as the dominant passing and receiving duo of their era.
After his playing career, Berry coached wide receivers for the Dallas Cowboys, the University of Arkansas, Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns, and Patriots. He became the Patriots' head coach in 1984 and held that position through 1989, amassing 48 wins and 39 losses. In recognition of his playing career, Berry was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 75 years and a unanimous selection to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 100 years. His number 82 jersey is retired by the Indianapolis Colts and he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team.
Early life and college
Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, on February 27, 1933, and spent the majority of his childhood in Paris, Texas. At Paris High School and in college, Berry caught very few passes. He did not start on his high school team until he was a senior, even though his father, Berry Sr., was the coach. After high school Berry played one year of junior college football at Shreiner Institute (now Schreiner University) in Kerrville, Texas, during the 1950 campaign. He helped the Mountaineers finish its most successful season in 10 years with a record of 7–3. He then transferred to Southern Methodist University (SMU). In three seasons for the SMU Mustangs football team, Berry received only 33 passes total. Sportswriters attributed his lack of receptions to his poor eyesight, but during the early 1950s, colleges specialized in the running game. As Berry said, "I didn't catch many passes because not many were thrown". He also played outside linebacker and defensive end for the Mustangs, despite weighing only even by his senior year.
Professional playing career
Berry was drafted by the Baltimore Colts in the 20th round as the 203rd overall pick of the 1954 NFL Draft. Considered a long-shot to make the team roster, he was used sparingly as a rookie, catching only 13 passes. By his second NFL season he became a permanent starter when the Colts acquired quarterback Johnny Unitas. Over the next 12 seasons together the two became one of the most dominant passing and catching duos in NFL history. Berry, who did not miss a single game until his eighth year in the league, led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice.
In 1957, Berry caught 47 passes for 800 yards and six touchdowns, leading the NFL in receiving yards for the first time. Against the Washington Redskins that year in near-freezing weather, Unitas connected with Berry on 12 passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns, staging what the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette called a "spectacular show". He was recognized as a first-team All-Pro by The Sporting News and earned second-team honors from the Associated Press (AP). The following season, he recorded 794 receiving yards and led the league with 56 receptions and nine touchdowns. For his efforts, Berry was invited to his first Pro Bowl, and was a first-team All-Pro by the AP and several other major selectors. The Colts finished atop the Western Division with a record of 9–3 and faced the New York Giants in the NFL Championship Game.
One of Berry's most notable performances was in that 1958 NFL Championship Game, known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played", in which he led the Colts to the franchise's first title with a then championship record 12 catches for 178 yards and a touchdown in the Colts' 23–17 victory over the Giants. At the end of regulation, he caught three consecutive passes for 62 yards to set up the Colts' tying field goal. He also had two key receptions for 33 yards during the Colts' final game-winning drive in overtime. His 12 receptions would remain an NFL championship game record for more than half a century, topped by one by Demaryius Thomas in Super Bowl XLVIII after the 2013 season.
Berry led the NFL in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns in 1959, becoming the fourth player to record a "triple crown" in receiving. His 14 receiving touchdowns set a Colts single-season franchise record that stood unmatched for over four decades. He was invited to his second straight Pro Bowl, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from the AP, UPI, the Newspaper Enterprise Association, and the New York Daily News. The Colts won back-to-back championships in an encore with the Giants, 31–16. In that game, Berry caught five passes for 68 yards, second on the team behind halfback Lenny Moore's 126 yards on three receptions.
In 1960, Berry recorded his only 1,000-yard season, catching 74 passes en route to career highs in receiving yards (1,298) and receiving yards per game (108.2). Each of those totals led the NFL that year by a wide margin; no other player had more than 1,000 yards, and the next highest yards-per-game average was 81.0. He had a mid-season string of six straight games with over 100 yards, during which he caught 50 passes for 920 yards and eight touchdowns. Berry again was a Pro Bowl invitee, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from all the same selectors as the previous year, including unanimous All-Pro recognition by UPI sportswriters.
Following this zenith, Berry did not have the same statistical success over his final seven seasons, but remained a consistent target for Unitas. His 75 receptions in the 1961 season was second-most in the league, and he finished 10th in receiving yards, but failed to record a touchdown for the first time since his rookie year. He scored the first touchdown of the 1962 Pro Bowl on a 16-yard reception from Unitas in the first quarter. His streak of Pro Bowl invitations ended at four, but he rebounded to appearances in 1963 and 1964, the latter his final. The Colts returned to the postseason in 1964, where they were shut out 27–0 by the Cleveland Browns in the 1964 championship game.
After consecutive seasons recording 700+ receiving yards and seven touchdowns in 1965 and 1966, Berry missed half of the 1967 season due to injuries and caught only 11 passes for 167 yards. He announced his retirement shortly after the season's end. He completed his professional playing career having caught 631 passes for 9,275 yards (14.7 yards per catch) and 68 touchdowns. At the time, he held the NFL career records for receptions and receiving yards, and his receiving touchdowns were tied for fourth most with Don Maynard.
Coaching career
After retiring from playing, Berry joined Tom Landry's Dallas Cowboys coaching staff as receivers coach. In 1970, after two seasons, Berry took a job with Frank Broyles at the University of Arkansas as receivers coach. In 1973 Berry joined Don McCafferty with the Detroit Lions as his receivers coach. In 1976, Berry joined former SMU teammate Forrest Gregg as his receivers coach with the Cleveland Browns. Berry joined the New England Patriots as receivers coach under Chuck Fairbanks in 1978. He stayed on with new coach Ron Erhardt until Erhardt and his entire staff were fired following a 2–14 1981 season. Berry left football and worked in real estate in Medfield, Massachusetts, until the Patriots fired Ron Meyer in the middle of the 1984 season and hired Berry to replace him. Under his leadership, the Patriots won four of their last eight games and finished the season with a 9–7 record. Berry's importance to the team was reflected less in his initial win–loss record than in the respect he immediately earned in the locker room – according to running back Tony Collins, "Raymond Berry earned more respect in one day than Ron Meyer earned in three years".
In the 1985 season, the team improved further, posting an 11–5 record and making the playoffs as a wild card team. They went on to become the first team in NFL history to advance to the Super Bowl by winning three playoff games on the road, defeating the New York Jets 26–14 (the second postseason win in franchise history), the Los Angeles Raiders 27–20, and the Miami Dolphins 31–14. It was the first time the Patriots had beaten the Dolphins at the Orange Bowl (Miami's then-home stadium) since 1966, Miami's first season as a franchise. The Patriots had lost to the Dolphins there 18 consecutive times, including a 30–27 loss in Week 15 of the regular season. Despite their success in the playoffs, the Patriots were heavy underdogs to the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XX. They lost 46–10 in what was at the time the most lopsided defeat in Super Bowl history. "We couldn't protect the quarterback, and that was my fault. I couldn't come up with a system to handle the Bears' pass rush", Berry acknowledged.
The following season, Berry's Patriots again recorded an 11–5 record and made the playoffs, this time after winning their second division title as an NFL team. However, they lost in the first round of the postseason. It would be Berry's last postseason appearance in New England, and the Patriots' last playoff berth altogether until 1994. They narrowly missed the playoffs with an 8–7 record in 1987 (a strike-shortened season) and a 9–7 record in 1988, in which quarterback Doug Flutie went 6-3 as a starter. However, Berry benched Flutie in the season finale against the Denver Broncos until the final seconds. The Patriots lost 21-10 and Flutie left for the CFL less than two years later. Then in Berry's last year as a coach, the Patriots finished the 1989 season 5–11. New Patriots majority owner Victor Kiam demanded Berry relinquish control over personnel and reorganize his staff; Berry refused and was fired. His regular-season coaching record was 48–39 () and he was 3–2 () in the playoffs.
After a year out of coaching, Berry joined Wayne Fontes' staff with the Detroit Lions in 1991 as their quarterbacks coach, and then held the same position the following season on Dan Reeves' staff with the Denver Broncos. Reeves was fired after that season, along with his entire coaching staff.
Profile
Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury-prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp.
Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun."
Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week.
Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow—but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least."
Honors
In 1973, Berry was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team, compiled in 1994 by the Hall of Fame selection committee and media to honor the NFL's best players of the league's first 75 years, and the 1950s All-Decade Team. In 1999, he was ranked 40th on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. Berry's number 82 jersey is retired by the Colts, he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team as a coach, and he is enshrined in the Baltimore Ravens Ring of Honor.
Personal life
Berry is a professed born again Christian and a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He considers his faith to be a "huge part" of his life. As of 2009, he lives with his wife in Tennessee. On February 5, 2012, at Super Bowl XLVI, Berry carried the Vince Lombardi Trophy to midfield to present it to the New York Giants, who had just defeated the New England Patriots. He was given the honor due to the game being played at Lucas Oil Stadium, the home stadium of his former team, the Colts, who had moved to Indianapolis in 1984.
Coaching record
References
Bibliography
External links
1933 births
Living people
American football wide receivers
Arkansas Razorbacks football coaches
Baltimore Colts players
Cleveland Browns coaches
Dallas Cowboys coaches
Denver Broncos coaches
Detroit Lions coaches
New England Patriots coaches
New England Patriots head coaches
Schreiner Mountaineers football players
SMU Mustangs football players
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Western Conference Pro Bowl players
United States Army soldiers
People from Paris, Texas
Sportspeople from Corpus Christi, Texas
Coaches of American football from Texas
Players of American football from Texas
National Football League players with retired numbers | true | [
"The name Miriam has been used for eight tropical cyclones in the Eastern Pacific Ocean.\n\nHurricane Miriam (1978), a Category 1 hurricane that threatened Hawaii but did not affect land.\nHurricane Miriam (1982), a Category 1 hurricane that did not affect land.\nTropical Storm Miriam (1988), continuation of Hurricane Joan which originally formed in the Atlantic Ocean and crossed into the Pacific.\nTropical Storm Miriam (1994), a short-lived storm that did not affect land.\nTropical Storm Miriam (2000), a short-lived storm that hit Baja California as a weak storm.\nTropical Storm Miriam (2006), a short-lived tropical storm that did not affect land.\nHurricane Miriam (2012), a Category 3 hurricane that did not affect land.\nHurricane Miriam (2018), a Category 2 hurricane that did not affect land.\n\nPacific hurricane disambiguation pages",
"The name Marcia has been used for four tropical cyclones in the Southern Hemisphere.\n Tropical Cyclone Marcia (1974), did not affect land\n Tropical Cyclone Marcia (1989), did not affect land\n Tropical Cyclone Marcia (2000), did not affect land\n Cyclone Marcia, one of the most intense tropical cyclones making landfall over Queensland, Australia\n\nAustralian region cyclone disambiguation pages"
]
|
[
"Raymond Berry",
"Profile",
"Any interesting information?",
"Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for,",
"What were some of his ailments?",
"bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs",
"How did it affect his legs?",
"caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition.",
"How was it fixed?",
"To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL.",
"Did it affect his playing?",
"Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations."
]
| C_32af37cb57654035bcfb1a0dddaeedf6_0 | Did he have any other physical problems? | 6 | Did Raymond Berry have any other physical problems besides his legs? | Raymond Berry | Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp. Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun." Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week. Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow--but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least." CANNOTANSWER | Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. | Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. (born February 27, 1933) is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He played as a split end for the Baltimore Colts from 1955 to 1967, and after several assistant coaching positions, was head coach of the New England Patriots from 1984 to 1989. With the Colts, Berry led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice, and was invited to six Pro Bowls. The Colts won consecutive NFL championships, including the 1958 NFL Championship Game—known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played"—in which Berry caught 12 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown. He retired as the all-time NFL leader in both receptions and receiving yardage.
As a head coach, Berry led the Patriots to Super Bowl XX following the 1985 season, where his team was defeated by the Chicago Bears, 46–10.
After catching very few passes in high school and college, Berry was drafted in the 20th round of the 1954 NFL Draft by the Colts and was considered a long shot to make the team's roster. Diminutive and unassuming, his subsequent rise to the Pro Football Hall of Fame has been touted as one of football's Cinderella stories. He made up for his lack of athleticism through rigorous practice and attention to detail, and was known for his near-perfect route running and sure-handedness. Berry was a favorite target of quarterback Johnny Unitas, and the two were regarded as the dominant passing and receiving duo of their era.
After his playing career, Berry coached wide receivers for the Dallas Cowboys, the University of Arkansas, Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns, and Patriots. He became the Patriots' head coach in 1984 and held that position through 1989, amassing 48 wins and 39 losses. In recognition of his playing career, Berry was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 75 years and a unanimous selection to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 100 years. His number 82 jersey is retired by the Indianapolis Colts and he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team.
Early life and college
Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, on February 27, 1933, and spent the majority of his childhood in Paris, Texas. At Paris High School and in college, Berry caught very few passes. He did not start on his high school team until he was a senior, even though his father, Berry Sr., was the coach. After high school Berry played one year of junior college football at Shreiner Institute (now Schreiner University) in Kerrville, Texas, during the 1950 campaign. He helped the Mountaineers finish its most successful season in 10 years with a record of 7–3. He then transferred to Southern Methodist University (SMU). In three seasons for the SMU Mustangs football team, Berry received only 33 passes total. Sportswriters attributed his lack of receptions to his poor eyesight, but during the early 1950s, colleges specialized in the running game. As Berry said, "I didn't catch many passes because not many were thrown". He also played outside linebacker and defensive end for the Mustangs, despite weighing only even by his senior year.
Professional playing career
Berry was drafted by the Baltimore Colts in the 20th round as the 203rd overall pick of the 1954 NFL Draft. Considered a long-shot to make the team roster, he was used sparingly as a rookie, catching only 13 passes. By his second NFL season he became a permanent starter when the Colts acquired quarterback Johnny Unitas. Over the next 12 seasons together the two became one of the most dominant passing and catching duos in NFL history. Berry, who did not miss a single game until his eighth year in the league, led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice.
In 1957, Berry caught 47 passes for 800 yards and six touchdowns, leading the NFL in receiving yards for the first time. Against the Washington Redskins that year in near-freezing weather, Unitas connected with Berry on 12 passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns, staging what the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette called a "spectacular show". He was recognized as a first-team All-Pro by The Sporting News and earned second-team honors from the Associated Press (AP). The following season, he recorded 794 receiving yards and led the league with 56 receptions and nine touchdowns. For his efforts, Berry was invited to his first Pro Bowl, and was a first-team All-Pro by the AP and several other major selectors. The Colts finished atop the Western Division with a record of 9–3 and faced the New York Giants in the NFL Championship Game.
One of Berry's most notable performances was in that 1958 NFL Championship Game, known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played", in which he led the Colts to the franchise's first title with a then championship record 12 catches for 178 yards and a touchdown in the Colts' 23–17 victory over the Giants. At the end of regulation, he caught three consecutive passes for 62 yards to set up the Colts' tying field goal. He also had two key receptions for 33 yards during the Colts' final game-winning drive in overtime. His 12 receptions would remain an NFL championship game record for more than half a century, topped by one by Demaryius Thomas in Super Bowl XLVIII after the 2013 season.
Berry led the NFL in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns in 1959, becoming the fourth player to record a "triple crown" in receiving. His 14 receiving touchdowns set a Colts single-season franchise record that stood unmatched for over four decades. He was invited to his second straight Pro Bowl, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from the AP, UPI, the Newspaper Enterprise Association, and the New York Daily News. The Colts won back-to-back championships in an encore with the Giants, 31–16. In that game, Berry caught five passes for 68 yards, second on the team behind halfback Lenny Moore's 126 yards on three receptions.
In 1960, Berry recorded his only 1,000-yard season, catching 74 passes en route to career highs in receiving yards (1,298) and receiving yards per game (108.2). Each of those totals led the NFL that year by a wide margin; no other player had more than 1,000 yards, and the next highest yards-per-game average was 81.0. He had a mid-season string of six straight games with over 100 yards, during which he caught 50 passes for 920 yards and eight touchdowns. Berry again was a Pro Bowl invitee, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from all the same selectors as the previous year, including unanimous All-Pro recognition by UPI sportswriters.
Following this zenith, Berry did not have the same statistical success over his final seven seasons, but remained a consistent target for Unitas. His 75 receptions in the 1961 season was second-most in the league, and he finished 10th in receiving yards, but failed to record a touchdown for the first time since his rookie year. He scored the first touchdown of the 1962 Pro Bowl on a 16-yard reception from Unitas in the first quarter. His streak of Pro Bowl invitations ended at four, but he rebounded to appearances in 1963 and 1964, the latter his final. The Colts returned to the postseason in 1964, where they were shut out 27–0 by the Cleveland Browns in the 1964 championship game.
After consecutive seasons recording 700+ receiving yards and seven touchdowns in 1965 and 1966, Berry missed half of the 1967 season due to injuries and caught only 11 passes for 167 yards. He announced his retirement shortly after the season's end. He completed his professional playing career having caught 631 passes for 9,275 yards (14.7 yards per catch) and 68 touchdowns. At the time, he held the NFL career records for receptions and receiving yards, and his receiving touchdowns were tied for fourth most with Don Maynard.
Coaching career
After retiring from playing, Berry joined Tom Landry's Dallas Cowboys coaching staff as receivers coach. In 1970, after two seasons, Berry took a job with Frank Broyles at the University of Arkansas as receivers coach. In 1973 Berry joined Don McCafferty with the Detroit Lions as his receivers coach. In 1976, Berry joined former SMU teammate Forrest Gregg as his receivers coach with the Cleveland Browns. Berry joined the New England Patriots as receivers coach under Chuck Fairbanks in 1978. He stayed on with new coach Ron Erhardt until Erhardt and his entire staff were fired following a 2–14 1981 season. Berry left football and worked in real estate in Medfield, Massachusetts, until the Patriots fired Ron Meyer in the middle of the 1984 season and hired Berry to replace him. Under his leadership, the Patriots won four of their last eight games and finished the season with a 9–7 record. Berry's importance to the team was reflected less in his initial win–loss record than in the respect he immediately earned in the locker room – according to running back Tony Collins, "Raymond Berry earned more respect in one day than Ron Meyer earned in three years".
In the 1985 season, the team improved further, posting an 11–5 record and making the playoffs as a wild card team. They went on to become the first team in NFL history to advance to the Super Bowl by winning three playoff games on the road, defeating the New York Jets 26–14 (the second postseason win in franchise history), the Los Angeles Raiders 27–20, and the Miami Dolphins 31–14. It was the first time the Patriots had beaten the Dolphins at the Orange Bowl (Miami's then-home stadium) since 1966, Miami's first season as a franchise. The Patriots had lost to the Dolphins there 18 consecutive times, including a 30–27 loss in Week 15 of the regular season. Despite their success in the playoffs, the Patriots were heavy underdogs to the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XX. They lost 46–10 in what was at the time the most lopsided defeat in Super Bowl history. "We couldn't protect the quarterback, and that was my fault. I couldn't come up with a system to handle the Bears' pass rush", Berry acknowledged.
The following season, Berry's Patriots again recorded an 11–5 record and made the playoffs, this time after winning their second division title as an NFL team. However, they lost in the first round of the postseason. It would be Berry's last postseason appearance in New England, and the Patriots' last playoff berth altogether until 1994. They narrowly missed the playoffs with an 8–7 record in 1987 (a strike-shortened season) and a 9–7 record in 1988, in which quarterback Doug Flutie went 6-3 as a starter. However, Berry benched Flutie in the season finale against the Denver Broncos until the final seconds. The Patriots lost 21-10 and Flutie left for the CFL less than two years later. Then in Berry's last year as a coach, the Patriots finished the 1989 season 5–11. New Patriots majority owner Victor Kiam demanded Berry relinquish control over personnel and reorganize his staff; Berry refused and was fired. His regular-season coaching record was 48–39 () and he was 3–2 () in the playoffs.
After a year out of coaching, Berry joined Wayne Fontes' staff with the Detroit Lions in 1991 as their quarterbacks coach, and then held the same position the following season on Dan Reeves' staff with the Denver Broncos. Reeves was fired after that season, along with his entire coaching staff.
Profile
Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury-prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp.
Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun."
Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week.
Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow—but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least."
Honors
In 1973, Berry was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team, compiled in 1994 by the Hall of Fame selection committee and media to honor the NFL's best players of the league's first 75 years, and the 1950s All-Decade Team. In 1999, he was ranked 40th on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. Berry's number 82 jersey is retired by the Colts, he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team as a coach, and he is enshrined in the Baltimore Ravens Ring of Honor.
Personal life
Berry is a professed born again Christian and a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He considers his faith to be a "huge part" of his life. As of 2009, he lives with his wife in Tennessee. On February 5, 2012, at Super Bowl XLVI, Berry carried the Vince Lombardi Trophy to midfield to present it to the New York Giants, who had just defeated the New England Patriots. He was given the honor due to the game being played at Lucas Oil Stadium, the home stadium of his former team, the Colts, who had moved to Indianapolis in 1984.
Coaching record
References
Bibliography
External links
1933 births
Living people
American football wide receivers
Arkansas Razorbacks football coaches
Baltimore Colts players
Cleveland Browns coaches
Dallas Cowboys coaches
Denver Broncos coaches
Detroit Lions coaches
New England Patriots coaches
New England Patriots head coaches
Schreiner Mountaineers football players
SMU Mustangs football players
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Western Conference Pro Bowl players
United States Army soldiers
People from Paris, Texas
Sportspeople from Corpus Christi, Texas
Coaches of American football from Texas
Players of American football from Texas
National Football League players with retired numbers | true | [
"The principle of mutability is the notion that any physical property which appears to follow a conservation law may undergo some physical process that violates its conservation. John Archibald Wheeler offered this speculative principle after Stephen Hawking predicted the evaporation of black holes which violates baryon number conservation.\n\nSee also\n Philosophy of physics\n\nReferences\n\nPhilosophy of physics\nPhilosophical problems\nTheoretical physics",
"Dissociative disorder not otherwise specified (DDNOS) was a mental health diagnosis for pathological dissociation that matched the DSM-IV criteria for a dissociative disorder, but did not fit the full criteria for any of the specifically identified subtypes, and the reasons why the previous diagnoses were not met are specified. The International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-10) refers to the diagnosis as \"Other dissociative and conversion disorders\". Under the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), it is known as \"Other specified dissociative disorder\" (OSDD).\n\nDDNOS diagnoses \nUnder DDNOS, there were a number of dissociative conditions.\n\n DDNOS 1 - DID but switching not observed by clinician, or amnesia for the significant past but not everyday life.\n DDNOS 1a - Like DID but with less distinct parts/no alters. Alters may be emotional fragments or the same individual at different ages. Can experience emotional amnesia rather than physical amnesia.\n DDNOS 1b - Like DID but no amnesia between alters.\n DDNOS 2 - Derealization without Depersonalization.\n DDNOS 3,4,5,etc - DID but with specific symptoms. Eg) Identity change due to brainwashing, acute dissociative reaction, dissociative trance, Ganser Syndrome.\n Dissociative Disorder with Unclear Symptoms.\n\nSee also\n\n Biopsychiatry controversy\n Identity\n Jamais vu\n Memory\n Posttraumatic stress disorder\nMultiplicity\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \nAmerican Psychiatric Association proposed revision of DSM-5 entry\n\nDissociative disorders"
]
|
[
"Raymond Berry",
"Profile",
"Any interesting information?",
"Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for,",
"What were some of his ailments?",
"bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs",
"How did it affect his legs?",
"caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition.",
"How was it fixed?",
"To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL.",
"Did it affect his playing?",
"Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations.",
"Did he have any other physical problems?",
"Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played."
]
| C_32af37cb57654035bcfb1a0dddaeedf6_0 | Did the contacts cause any problems? | 7 | Did the contacts cause any problems for Raymond Berry? | Raymond Berry | Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp. Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun." Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week. Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow--but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least." CANNOTANSWER | Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, | Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. (born February 27, 1933) is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He played as a split end for the Baltimore Colts from 1955 to 1967, and after several assistant coaching positions, was head coach of the New England Patriots from 1984 to 1989. With the Colts, Berry led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice, and was invited to six Pro Bowls. The Colts won consecutive NFL championships, including the 1958 NFL Championship Game—known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played"—in which Berry caught 12 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown. He retired as the all-time NFL leader in both receptions and receiving yardage.
As a head coach, Berry led the Patriots to Super Bowl XX following the 1985 season, where his team was defeated by the Chicago Bears, 46–10.
After catching very few passes in high school and college, Berry was drafted in the 20th round of the 1954 NFL Draft by the Colts and was considered a long shot to make the team's roster. Diminutive and unassuming, his subsequent rise to the Pro Football Hall of Fame has been touted as one of football's Cinderella stories. He made up for his lack of athleticism through rigorous practice and attention to detail, and was known for his near-perfect route running and sure-handedness. Berry was a favorite target of quarterback Johnny Unitas, and the two were regarded as the dominant passing and receiving duo of their era.
After his playing career, Berry coached wide receivers for the Dallas Cowboys, the University of Arkansas, Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns, and Patriots. He became the Patriots' head coach in 1984 and held that position through 1989, amassing 48 wins and 39 losses. In recognition of his playing career, Berry was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 75 years and a unanimous selection to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 100 years. His number 82 jersey is retired by the Indianapolis Colts and he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team.
Early life and college
Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, on February 27, 1933, and spent the majority of his childhood in Paris, Texas. At Paris High School and in college, Berry caught very few passes. He did not start on his high school team until he was a senior, even though his father, Berry Sr., was the coach. After high school Berry played one year of junior college football at Shreiner Institute (now Schreiner University) in Kerrville, Texas, during the 1950 campaign. He helped the Mountaineers finish its most successful season in 10 years with a record of 7–3. He then transferred to Southern Methodist University (SMU). In three seasons for the SMU Mustangs football team, Berry received only 33 passes total. Sportswriters attributed his lack of receptions to his poor eyesight, but during the early 1950s, colleges specialized in the running game. As Berry said, "I didn't catch many passes because not many were thrown". He also played outside linebacker and defensive end for the Mustangs, despite weighing only even by his senior year.
Professional playing career
Berry was drafted by the Baltimore Colts in the 20th round as the 203rd overall pick of the 1954 NFL Draft. Considered a long-shot to make the team roster, he was used sparingly as a rookie, catching only 13 passes. By his second NFL season he became a permanent starter when the Colts acquired quarterback Johnny Unitas. Over the next 12 seasons together the two became one of the most dominant passing and catching duos in NFL history. Berry, who did not miss a single game until his eighth year in the league, led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice.
In 1957, Berry caught 47 passes for 800 yards and six touchdowns, leading the NFL in receiving yards for the first time. Against the Washington Redskins that year in near-freezing weather, Unitas connected with Berry on 12 passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns, staging what the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette called a "spectacular show". He was recognized as a first-team All-Pro by The Sporting News and earned second-team honors from the Associated Press (AP). The following season, he recorded 794 receiving yards and led the league with 56 receptions and nine touchdowns. For his efforts, Berry was invited to his first Pro Bowl, and was a first-team All-Pro by the AP and several other major selectors. The Colts finished atop the Western Division with a record of 9–3 and faced the New York Giants in the NFL Championship Game.
One of Berry's most notable performances was in that 1958 NFL Championship Game, known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played", in which he led the Colts to the franchise's first title with a then championship record 12 catches for 178 yards and a touchdown in the Colts' 23–17 victory over the Giants. At the end of regulation, he caught three consecutive passes for 62 yards to set up the Colts' tying field goal. He also had two key receptions for 33 yards during the Colts' final game-winning drive in overtime. His 12 receptions would remain an NFL championship game record for more than half a century, topped by one by Demaryius Thomas in Super Bowl XLVIII after the 2013 season.
Berry led the NFL in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns in 1959, becoming the fourth player to record a "triple crown" in receiving. His 14 receiving touchdowns set a Colts single-season franchise record that stood unmatched for over four decades. He was invited to his second straight Pro Bowl, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from the AP, UPI, the Newspaper Enterprise Association, and the New York Daily News. The Colts won back-to-back championships in an encore with the Giants, 31–16. In that game, Berry caught five passes for 68 yards, second on the team behind halfback Lenny Moore's 126 yards on three receptions.
In 1960, Berry recorded his only 1,000-yard season, catching 74 passes en route to career highs in receiving yards (1,298) and receiving yards per game (108.2). Each of those totals led the NFL that year by a wide margin; no other player had more than 1,000 yards, and the next highest yards-per-game average was 81.0. He had a mid-season string of six straight games with over 100 yards, during which he caught 50 passes for 920 yards and eight touchdowns. Berry again was a Pro Bowl invitee, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from all the same selectors as the previous year, including unanimous All-Pro recognition by UPI sportswriters.
Following this zenith, Berry did not have the same statistical success over his final seven seasons, but remained a consistent target for Unitas. His 75 receptions in the 1961 season was second-most in the league, and he finished 10th in receiving yards, but failed to record a touchdown for the first time since his rookie year. He scored the first touchdown of the 1962 Pro Bowl on a 16-yard reception from Unitas in the first quarter. His streak of Pro Bowl invitations ended at four, but he rebounded to appearances in 1963 and 1964, the latter his final. The Colts returned to the postseason in 1964, where they were shut out 27–0 by the Cleveland Browns in the 1964 championship game.
After consecutive seasons recording 700+ receiving yards and seven touchdowns in 1965 and 1966, Berry missed half of the 1967 season due to injuries and caught only 11 passes for 167 yards. He announced his retirement shortly after the season's end. He completed his professional playing career having caught 631 passes for 9,275 yards (14.7 yards per catch) and 68 touchdowns. At the time, he held the NFL career records for receptions and receiving yards, and his receiving touchdowns were tied for fourth most with Don Maynard.
Coaching career
After retiring from playing, Berry joined Tom Landry's Dallas Cowboys coaching staff as receivers coach. In 1970, after two seasons, Berry took a job with Frank Broyles at the University of Arkansas as receivers coach. In 1973 Berry joined Don McCafferty with the Detroit Lions as his receivers coach. In 1976, Berry joined former SMU teammate Forrest Gregg as his receivers coach with the Cleveland Browns. Berry joined the New England Patriots as receivers coach under Chuck Fairbanks in 1978. He stayed on with new coach Ron Erhardt until Erhardt and his entire staff were fired following a 2–14 1981 season. Berry left football and worked in real estate in Medfield, Massachusetts, until the Patriots fired Ron Meyer in the middle of the 1984 season and hired Berry to replace him. Under his leadership, the Patriots won four of their last eight games and finished the season with a 9–7 record. Berry's importance to the team was reflected less in his initial win–loss record than in the respect he immediately earned in the locker room – according to running back Tony Collins, "Raymond Berry earned more respect in one day than Ron Meyer earned in three years".
In the 1985 season, the team improved further, posting an 11–5 record and making the playoffs as a wild card team. They went on to become the first team in NFL history to advance to the Super Bowl by winning three playoff games on the road, defeating the New York Jets 26–14 (the second postseason win in franchise history), the Los Angeles Raiders 27–20, and the Miami Dolphins 31–14. It was the first time the Patriots had beaten the Dolphins at the Orange Bowl (Miami's then-home stadium) since 1966, Miami's first season as a franchise. The Patriots had lost to the Dolphins there 18 consecutive times, including a 30–27 loss in Week 15 of the regular season. Despite their success in the playoffs, the Patriots were heavy underdogs to the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XX. They lost 46–10 in what was at the time the most lopsided defeat in Super Bowl history. "We couldn't protect the quarterback, and that was my fault. I couldn't come up with a system to handle the Bears' pass rush", Berry acknowledged.
The following season, Berry's Patriots again recorded an 11–5 record and made the playoffs, this time after winning their second division title as an NFL team. However, they lost in the first round of the postseason. It would be Berry's last postseason appearance in New England, and the Patriots' last playoff berth altogether until 1994. They narrowly missed the playoffs with an 8–7 record in 1987 (a strike-shortened season) and a 9–7 record in 1988, in which quarterback Doug Flutie went 6-3 as a starter. However, Berry benched Flutie in the season finale against the Denver Broncos until the final seconds. The Patriots lost 21-10 and Flutie left for the CFL less than two years later. Then in Berry's last year as a coach, the Patriots finished the 1989 season 5–11. New Patriots majority owner Victor Kiam demanded Berry relinquish control over personnel and reorganize his staff; Berry refused and was fired. His regular-season coaching record was 48–39 () and he was 3–2 () in the playoffs.
After a year out of coaching, Berry joined Wayne Fontes' staff with the Detroit Lions in 1991 as their quarterbacks coach, and then held the same position the following season on Dan Reeves' staff with the Denver Broncos. Reeves was fired after that season, along with his entire coaching staff.
Profile
Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury-prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp.
Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun."
Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week.
Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow—but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least."
Honors
In 1973, Berry was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team, compiled in 1994 by the Hall of Fame selection committee and media to honor the NFL's best players of the league's first 75 years, and the 1950s All-Decade Team. In 1999, he was ranked 40th on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. Berry's number 82 jersey is retired by the Colts, he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team as a coach, and he is enshrined in the Baltimore Ravens Ring of Honor.
Personal life
Berry is a professed born again Christian and a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He considers his faith to be a "huge part" of his life. As of 2009, he lives with his wife in Tennessee. On February 5, 2012, at Super Bowl XLVI, Berry carried the Vince Lombardi Trophy to midfield to present it to the New York Giants, who had just defeated the New England Patriots. He was given the honor due to the game being played at Lucas Oil Stadium, the home stadium of his former team, the Colts, who had moved to Indianapolis in 1984.
Coaching record
References
Bibliography
External links
1933 births
Living people
American football wide receivers
Arkansas Razorbacks football coaches
Baltimore Colts players
Cleveland Browns coaches
Dallas Cowboys coaches
Denver Broncos coaches
Detroit Lions coaches
New England Patriots coaches
New England Patriots head coaches
Schreiner Mountaineers football players
SMU Mustangs football players
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Western Conference Pro Bowl players
United States Army soldiers
People from Paris, Texas
Sportspeople from Corpus Christi, Texas
Coaches of American football from Texas
Players of American football from Texas
National Football League players with retired numbers | true | [
"1-800 Contacts Inc. is an American contact lens retailer based in Draper, Utah. The brands that 1-800 Contacts use includes Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Alcon, Bausch & Lomb and CooperVision. In 2006, its last year as a public company, the company reported net sales of US$247 million.\n\nHistory\n1-800 Contacts was founded in 1995 by Jonathan C. Coon and John F. Nichols, and was incorporated in February that year. The company held an IPO in 1998 on NASDAQ with the symbol CTAC with an offer price of $27.5M and share price of $12.50. They acquired Lens Express in 2002.\n\nOver the years, 1-800 Contacts has been owned by several companies. In June 2007, 1-800 Contacts was acquired by Fenway Partners for $24.25 per share. In June 2012, 1-800 Contacts was sold to WellPoint (now Anthem). In 2013 Wellpoint sold 1-800 Contacts to Thomas H. Lee Partners and glasses.com to Luxottica. AEA Investors acquired a majority interest in 1-800 Contacts in December 2015.\n\nIn 2008, 1-800 Contacts entered into a partnership with Walmart to integrate phone and Internet orders for contact lenses with eye-doctor services and operations in Walmart's stores, The agreement ended in 2013. In June 2013, 1-800 Contacts launched glasses.com, a domain which the company has held since 1999.\n\nBrand awareness \nIt was hoped that consumers would more easily remember the company's phone number, and thus be more likely to become repeat customers. 1800Contacts.com is also a domain name owned by the company in which a customer may order online. The combined toll-free number and matching domain is called a \"Toll-Free Domain\" or a \"Teledotcom\".\n\nLawsuits\n\nWhenU lawsuit \n\n1-800 Contacts sued WhenU over pop-up advertisements in 2002. In the suit against WhenU, which also named Vision Direct as a co-defendant, 1-800 Contacts alleged that the advertisements provided by WhenU, which advertised competitors of 1-800 Contacts (such as Vision Direct) when people viewed the company's web site, as \"inherently deceptive\" and one that \"misleads users into falsely believing the pop-up advertisements supplied by WhenU.com are in actuality advertisements authorized by and originating with the underlying Web site\".\n\nIn December 2003, Judge Deborah Batts of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York granted a preliminary injunction, barring WhenU from delivering the advertisements to some web surfers, on the grounds that it constituted trademark infringement violating the Lanham Act. WhenU appealed, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit held that WhenU's actions did not amount to the \"use\" that the Lanham Act requires in order to constitute trademark infringement.\n\nThe appeals court reversed the preliminary injunction and ordered the dismissal of all claims made by 1-800 Contacts that were based upon trademark infringement, leaving the claims based upon unfair competition and copyright infringement. The district court had already found that 1-800 Contacts was unlikely to prevail in its copyright infringement claims, finding that \"the conduct neither violated [the] plaintiff's right to display its copyrighted website, nor its right to create derivative works therefrom\".\n\nThe Electronic Frontier Foundation criticized the case, stating that it was \"not to help [people] fight off adware and spyware\" but was rather intended to allow companies \"to gain control over [a computer's] desktop\", where the legal principles being employed \"would create a precedent that would enable trademark owners to dictate what could be open on your desktop when you visit their websites\". At the time of the appeal, it filed an amicus curiae brief urging the Appeals Court to limit the reach of the \"initial interest confusion\" doctrine that had been applied by the District Court.\n\nIn addition to the WhenU case, 1-800 Contacts has been involved in other trademark infringement suits revolving around the issue of keyword advertising. On March 8, 2010, 1-800 Contacts sued Contact Lens King, Inc. for trademark infringement based on their use of \"1-800 CONTACTS\" trademarks as keywords to trigger sponsored ads directing consumers to Contact Lens King's website and products.\n\nLens.com lawsuit \n1-800 Contacts was also involved in several lawsuits against Lens.com, Inc., including a trademark cancellation case in the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, Lens.com, Inc. v. 1-800 Contacts, Inc., in which the Court determined that Lens.com's trademark \"LENS\", held in connection with \"computer software\", had been abandoned because Lens.com merely used software to sell contact lenses over the internet, while consumers had no association between the trademark and computer software.\n\nIn 2013, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals held that Lens.com did not commit trademark infringement when it purchased search advertisements using 1-800 Contacts' federally registered 1800 CONTACTS trademark as a keyword. In August 2016, the Federal Trade Commission filed an administrative complaint against 1-800 Contacts alleging, among other things, that its search advertising trademark enforcement practices have unreasonably restrained competition in violation of the FTC Act. 1-800 Contacts has denied all wrongdoing. , the case was still being litigated.\n\nDITTO and FTC lawsuits \nOn April 17, 2013, the Electronic Frontier Foundation claimed that 1-800 Contacts abused patent law by acting like a patent troll in its lawsuit against DITTO. In a blog post, the EFF accused 1-800 Contacts of “leveraging the massive expense of patent litigation to squelch the competition” and asked its followers to help DITTO by crowdsourcing prior art.\n\nOn August 8, 2016, the Federal Trade Commission filed an administrative complaint charging that 1-800 Contacts, the largest online retailer of contact lenses in the United States, unlawfully orchestrated a web of anti-competitive agreements with rival online contact lens sellers that suppress competition in certain online search advertising auctions and that restrict truthful and non-misleading internet advertising to consumers.\n\nAccording to the administrative complaint, 1-800 Contacts entered into bidding agreements with at least 14 competing online contact lens retailers that eliminate competition in auctions to place advertisements on the search results page generated by online search engines such as Google and Bing. The complaint alleges that these bidding agreements unreasonably restrain price competition in internet search auctions, and restrict truthful and non-misleading advertising to consumers, constituting an unfair method of competition in violation of federal law.\n\nIn an initial decision entered on October 27, 2017, and announced on October 30, 2017, Chief Administrative Law Judge D. Michael Chappell upheld a Federal Trade Commission complaint against 1-800 Contacts, ruling that the FTC has proved that the nation's largest online retailer of contact lenses unlawfully orchestrated a web of anti-competitive agreements with rival online contact lens sellers.\n\nAn order Judge Chappell included with the initial decision would bar 1-800 Contacts from agreeing with a marketer or seller of any contact lens product to restrict, prohibit, regulate or otherwise limit that seller's participation in search advertising auctions, and would also bar 1-800 Contacts from instructing search engines to restrict or prohibit any seller's use of any keyword (a word or phrase used to instruct a search engine to display specified search advertising), or to require any seller to use any negative keyword (a word or phrase used to instruct a search engine not to display specified search advertising).\n\nAlso under the order, 1-800 Contacts would be barred from agreeing with a seller to restrict, prohibit, regulate or otherwise limit that seller's use of truthful, non-deceptive, and non-trademark-infringing advertising or promotion. The order would also require the company to stop enforcing or attempting to enforce any and all provisions, terms, or requirements in any existing agreement or court order that impose a condition on a seller that would be inconsistent with the order.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nSEC Filing on NASDAQ\n\n1995 establishments in Utah\nCompanies based in Utah\nAmerican companies established in 1995\nRetail companies established in 1995\n800-Contacts\nContact lenses\nEyewear companies of the United States\n2007 mergers and acquisitions\n2012 mergers and acquisitions\n2013 mergers and acquisitions\n2015 mergers and acquisitions",
"Contact protection methods are designed to mitigate the wear and degradation occurring during the normal use of contacts within an electromechanical switch, relay or contactor and thus avoid an excessive increase in contact resistance or switch failure.\n\nContact wear\n\nEvery time the contacts of an electromechanical switch, relay or contactor are opened or closed, there is a certain amount of contact wear. The sources of the wear are high current densities in microscopic areas, and the electric arc. Contact wear includes material transfer between contacts, loss of contact material due to splattering and evaporation, and oxidation or corrosion of the contacts due to high temperatures and atmospheric influences.\n\nWhile a pair of contacts is closed, only a small part of the contacts are in intimate contact due to asperities and low-conductivity films. Because of the constriction of the current to a very small area, the current density frequently becomes so high that it melts a microscopic portion of the contact. During the close-to-open (break) transition, a microscopic molten bridge forms and eventually ruptures asymmetrically, transferring contact material between contacts and increasing the surface roughness. This can also occur during the open-to-close (make) transition due to contact bounce.\n\nThe electric arc occurs between the contact points (electrodes) both during the transition from closed to open (break) and from open to closed (make) when the contact gap is small and the voltage is high enough. Heating due to arcing and high current density can melt the contact surface temporarily. If some of the melting material solidifies while the contacts are closed, the contact may stick closed due to a micro-weld, similar to spot welding.\n\nThe arc caused during the contact break (break arc) is similar to arc welding, as the break arc is typically more energetic and more destructive. The arc can cause material transfer between contacts. The arc may also be hot enough to evaporate metal from the contact surface.\n\nThe high temperatures can also cause the contact metals to more rapidly oxidize and corrode.\n\nContacts reach end of life for one of two reasons. Either the contacts fail to break because they are stuck (welded) closed, or the contacts fail to make (high resistance) because of contact corrosion or because excessive material is lost from one or both contacts. These conditions are the result of cumulative material transfer during successive switching operations, and of material loss due to evaporation and splattering.\n\nThere are additional mechanisms for stuck closed failures, such as mechanical interlocking of rough contact surfaces due to contact wear.\n\nProtection\n\nThe degradation of the contacts can be limited by including various contact protection methods.\n\nOne method is to add electronic components such as: capacitors, snubbers, diodes, Zener diodes, transient voltage suppressors (TVS), resistors, varistors or in-rush current limiters (PTC and NTC resistors). However, this is the least effective method as these neither significantly influence the creation of nor suppress the arc between the contacts of electromechanical power switches, relays and contactors.\n\nA slightly more effective method is to make the contacts themselves larger, i.e., a contactor.\n\nA similar method to increasing contact size is to make the contacts out of more durable metals or metal alloys such as tungsten.\n\nThe most effective methods are to employ arc suppression circuitry including arc suppressors, solid state relays, hybrid power relays, mercury displacement relays and hybrid power contactors.\n\nSee also\n Arc suppression\n Contact resistance\n Wetting current\n Wetting voltage\n\nReferences\n\nSwitches\nPower engineering\nElectric arcs"
]
|
[
"Raymond Berry",
"Profile",
"Any interesting information?",
"Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for,",
"What were some of his ailments?",
"bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs",
"How did it affect his legs?",
"caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition.",
"How was it fixed?",
"To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL.",
"Did it affect his playing?",
"Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations.",
"Did he have any other physical problems?",
"Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played.",
"Did the contacts cause any problems?",
"Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses,"
]
| C_32af37cb57654035bcfb1a0dddaeedf6_0 | What were his best attributes as a player? | 8 | What were Raymond Berry's best attributes as a player? | Raymond Berry | Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp. Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun." Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week. Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow--but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least." CANNOTANSWER | Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, | Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. (born February 27, 1933) is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He played as a split end for the Baltimore Colts from 1955 to 1967, and after several assistant coaching positions, was head coach of the New England Patriots from 1984 to 1989. With the Colts, Berry led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice, and was invited to six Pro Bowls. The Colts won consecutive NFL championships, including the 1958 NFL Championship Game—known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played"—in which Berry caught 12 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown. He retired as the all-time NFL leader in both receptions and receiving yardage.
As a head coach, Berry led the Patriots to Super Bowl XX following the 1985 season, where his team was defeated by the Chicago Bears, 46–10.
After catching very few passes in high school and college, Berry was drafted in the 20th round of the 1954 NFL Draft by the Colts and was considered a long shot to make the team's roster. Diminutive and unassuming, his subsequent rise to the Pro Football Hall of Fame has been touted as one of football's Cinderella stories. He made up for his lack of athleticism through rigorous practice and attention to detail, and was known for his near-perfect route running and sure-handedness. Berry was a favorite target of quarterback Johnny Unitas, and the two were regarded as the dominant passing and receiving duo of their era.
After his playing career, Berry coached wide receivers for the Dallas Cowboys, the University of Arkansas, Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns, and Patriots. He became the Patriots' head coach in 1984 and held that position through 1989, amassing 48 wins and 39 losses. In recognition of his playing career, Berry was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 75 years and a unanimous selection to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 100 years. His number 82 jersey is retired by the Indianapolis Colts and he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team.
Early life and college
Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, on February 27, 1933, and spent the majority of his childhood in Paris, Texas. At Paris High School and in college, Berry caught very few passes. He did not start on his high school team until he was a senior, even though his father, Berry Sr., was the coach. After high school Berry played one year of junior college football at Shreiner Institute (now Schreiner University) in Kerrville, Texas, during the 1950 campaign. He helped the Mountaineers finish its most successful season in 10 years with a record of 7–3. He then transferred to Southern Methodist University (SMU). In three seasons for the SMU Mustangs football team, Berry received only 33 passes total. Sportswriters attributed his lack of receptions to his poor eyesight, but during the early 1950s, colleges specialized in the running game. As Berry said, "I didn't catch many passes because not many were thrown". He also played outside linebacker and defensive end for the Mustangs, despite weighing only even by his senior year.
Professional playing career
Berry was drafted by the Baltimore Colts in the 20th round as the 203rd overall pick of the 1954 NFL Draft. Considered a long-shot to make the team roster, he was used sparingly as a rookie, catching only 13 passes. By his second NFL season he became a permanent starter when the Colts acquired quarterback Johnny Unitas. Over the next 12 seasons together the two became one of the most dominant passing and catching duos in NFL history. Berry, who did not miss a single game until his eighth year in the league, led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice.
In 1957, Berry caught 47 passes for 800 yards and six touchdowns, leading the NFL in receiving yards for the first time. Against the Washington Redskins that year in near-freezing weather, Unitas connected with Berry on 12 passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns, staging what the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette called a "spectacular show". He was recognized as a first-team All-Pro by The Sporting News and earned second-team honors from the Associated Press (AP). The following season, he recorded 794 receiving yards and led the league with 56 receptions and nine touchdowns. For his efforts, Berry was invited to his first Pro Bowl, and was a first-team All-Pro by the AP and several other major selectors. The Colts finished atop the Western Division with a record of 9–3 and faced the New York Giants in the NFL Championship Game.
One of Berry's most notable performances was in that 1958 NFL Championship Game, known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played", in which he led the Colts to the franchise's first title with a then championship record 12 catches for 178 yards and a touchdown in the Colts' 23–17 victory over the Giants. At the end of regulation, he caught three consecutive passes for 62 yards to set up the Colts' tying field goal. He also had two key receptions for 33 yards during the Colts' final game-winning drive in overtime. His 12 receptions would remain an NFL championship game record for more than half a century, topped by one by Demaryius Thomas in Super Bowl XLVIII after the 2013 season.
Berry led the NFL in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns in 1959, becoming the fourth player to record a "triple crown" in receiving. His 14 receiving touchdowns set a Colts single-season franchise record that stood unmatched for over four decades. He was invited to his second straight Pro Bowl, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from the AP, UPI, the Newspaper Enterprise Association, and the New York Daily News. The Colts won back-to-back championships in an encore with the Giants, 31–16. In that game, Berry caught five passes for 68 yards, second on the team behind halfback Lenny Moore's 126 yards on three receptions.
In 1960, Berry recorded his only 1,000-yard season, catching 74 passes en route to career highs in receiving yards (1,298) and receiving yards per game (108.2). Each of those totals led the NFL that year by a wide margin; no other player had more than 1,000 yards, and the next highest yards-per-game average was 81.0. He had a mid-season string of six straight games with over 100 yards, during which he caught 50 passes for 920 yards and eight touchdowns. Berry again was a Pro Bowl invitee, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from all the same selectors as the previous year, including unanimous All-Pro recognition by UPI sportswriters.
Following this zenith, Berry did not have the same statistical success over his final seven seasons, but remained a consistent target for Unitas. His 75 receptions in the 1961 season was second-most in the league, and he finished 10th in receiving yards, but failed to record a touchdown for the first time since his rookie year. He scored the first touchdown of the 1962 Pro Bowl on a 16-yard reception from Unitas in the first quarter. His streak of Pro Bowl invitations ended at four, but he rebounded to appearances in 1963 and 1964, the latter his final. The Colts returned to the postseason in 1964, where they were shut out 27–0 by the Cleveland Browns in the 1964 championship game.
After consecutive seasons recording 700+ receiving yards and seven touchdowns in 1965 and 1966, Berry missed half of the 1967 season due to injuries and caught only 11 passes for 167 yards. He announced his retirement shortly after the season's end. He completed his professional playing career having caught 631 passes for 9,275 yards (14.7 yards per catch) and 68 touchdowns. At the time, he held the NFL career records for receptions and receiving yards, and his receiving touchdowns were tied for fourth most with Don Maynard.
Coaching career
After retiring from playing, Berry joined Tom Landry's Dallas Cowboys coaching staff as receivers coach. In 1970, after two seasons, Berry took a job with Frank Broyles at the University of Arkansas as receivers coach. In 1973 Berry joined Don McCafferty with the Detroit Lions as his receivers coach. In 1976, Berry joined former SMU teammate Forrest Gregg as his receivers coach with the Cleveland Browns. Berry joined the New England Patriots as receivers coach under Chuck Fairbanks in 1978. He stayed on with new coach Ron Erhardt until Erhardt and his entire staff were fired following a 2–14 1981 season. Berry left football and worked in real estate in Medfield, Massachusetts, until the Patriots fired Ron Meyer in the middle of the 1984 season and hired Berry to replace him. Under his leadership, the Patriots won four of their last eight games and finished the season with a 9–7 record. Berry's importance to the team was reflected less in his initial win–loss record than in the respect he immediately earned in the locker room – according to running back Tony Collins, "Raymond Berry earned more respect in one day than Ron Meyer earned in three years".
In the 1985 season, the team improved further, posting an 11–5 record and making the playoffs as a wild card team. They went on to become the first team in NFL history to advance to the Super Bowl by winning three playoff games on the road, defeating the New York Jets 26–14 (the second postseason win in franchise history), the Los Angeles Raiders 27–20, and the Miami Dolphins 31–14. It was the first time the Patriots had beaten the Dolphins at the Orange Bowl (Miami's then-home stadium) since 1966, Miami's first season as a franchise. The Patriots had lost to the Dolphins there 18 consecutive times, including a 30–27 loss in Week 15 of the regular season. Despite their success in the playoffs, the Patriots were heavy underdogs to the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XX. They lost 46–10 in what was at the time the most lopsided defeat in Super Bowl history. "We couldn't protect the quarterback, and that was my fault. I couldn't come up with a system to handle the Bears' pass rush", Berry acknowledged.
The following season, Berry's Patriots again recorded an 11–5 record and made the playoffs, this time after winning their second division title as an NFL team. However, they lost in the first round of the postseason. It would be Berry's last postseason appearance in New England, and the Patriots' last playoff berth altogether until 1994. They narrowly missed the playoffs with an 8–7 record in 1987 (a strike-shortened season) and a 9–7 record in 1988, in which quarterback Doug Flutie went 6-3 as a starter. However, Berry benched Flutie in the season finale against the Denver Broncos until the final seconds. The Patriots lost 21-10 and Flutie left for the CFL less than two years later. Then in Berry's last year as a coach, the Patriots finished the 1989 season 5–11. New Patriots majority owner Victor Kiam demanded Berry relinquish control over personnel and reorganize his staff; Berry refused and was fired. His regular-season coaching record was 48–39 () and he was 3–2 () in the playoffs.
After a year out of coaching, Berry joined Wayne Fontes' staff with the Detroit Lions in 1991 as their quarterbacks coach, and then held the same position the following season on Dan Reeves' staff with the Denver Broncos. Reeves was fired after that season, along with his entire coaching staff.
Profile
Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury-prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp.
Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun."
Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week.
Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow—but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least."
Honors
In 1973, Berry was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team, compiled in 1994 by the Hall of Fame selection committee and media to honor the NFL's best players of the league's first 75 years, and the 1950s All-Decade Team. In 1999, he was ranked 40th on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. Berry's number 82 jersey is retired by the Colts, he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team as a coach, and he is enshrined in the Baltimore Ravens Ring of Honor.
Personal life
Berry is a professed born again Christian and a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He considers his faith to be a "huge part" of his life. As of 2009, he lives with his wife in Tennessee. On February 5, 2012, at Super Bowl XLVI, Berry carried the Vince Lombardi Trophy to midfield to present it to the New York Giants, who had just defeated the New England Patriots. He was given the honor due to the game being played at Lucas Oil Stadium, the home stadium of his former team, the Colts, who had moved to Indianapolis in 1984.
Coaching record
References
Bibliography
External links
1933 births
Living people
American football wide receivers
Arkansas Razorbacks football coaches
Baltimore Colts players
Cleveland Browns coaches
Dallas Cowboys coaches
Denver Broncos coaches
Detroit Lions coaches
New England Patriots coaches
New England Patriots head coaches
Schreiner Mountaineers football players
SMU Mustangs football players
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Western Conference Pro Bowl players
United States Army soldiers
People from Paris, Texas
Sportspeople from Corpus Christi, Texas
Coaches of American football from Texas
Players of American football from Texas
National Football League players with retired numbers | true | [
"A statistic (or stat) in role-playing games is a piece of data that represents a particular aspect of a fictional character. That piece of data is usually a (unitless) integer or, in some cases, a set of dice.\n\nFor some types of statistics, this value may be accompanied with a descriptive adjective, sometimes called a specialisation or aspect, that either describes how the character developed that particular score or an affinity for a particular use of that statistic (like Specialisations in Ars Magica or Attribute Aspects in Aria).\n\nMost games divide their statistics into several categories. The set of categories actually used in a game system, as well as the precise statistics within each category, vary greatly. The most often used types of statistic include:\n\n Attributes describe to what extent a character possesses natural, in-born characteristics common to all characters.\n Advantages and disadvantages are useful or problematic characteristics that are not common to all characters.\n Powers represent unique or special qualities of the character. In game terms, these often grant the character the potential to gain or develop certain advantages or to learn and use certain skills.\n Skills represent a character's learned abilities in predefined areas.\n Traits are broad areas of expertise, similar to skills, but with a broader and usually more loosely defined scope, in areas freely chosen by the player.\n\nThere is no standard nomenclature for statistics; for example, both GURPS and the Storytelling System refer to their statistics as \"traits\", even though they are treated as attributes and skills.\n\nMany games make use of derived statistics whose values depend on other statistics, which are known as primary or basic statistics. Game-specific concepts such as experience levels, alignment, character class and race can also be considered statistics.\n\nTypes\n\nAttributes \n\nAn attribute describes to what extent a character possesses a natural, in-born characteristic common to all characters in the game. Attributes are also called statistics, characteristics or abilities.\n\nMost role-playing games use attributes to describe characters’ physical and mental characteristics, for example their strength or wisdom. Many games also include social characteristics as well, for example a character's natural charisma or physical appearance. They often influence the chance to succeed in a skill or other tests by addition to a die roll or by determining the number of dice to be thrown. As a consequence, usually a higher number is better, and ranges can be as small as 1–5 (for numbers of dice) or as great as 1–100 (when adding to results of percentile dice). In some games, attributes represent linearly increasing ability (e.g. in Tunnels and Trolls, where a character can lift 10 lbs per point of Strength) whereas in others a small increase can represent a major gain in ability (e.g. in the DC Heroes/Blood of Heroes system, where +1 to Strength doubles a character's lifting capacity).\n\nSome games work with only a few broad attributes (such as Physical or Mental), while others have a greater number of more specific ones. Most games have about 4–10 attributes.\n\nMost games try to give all attributes about the same usefulness to a character. Therefore, certain characteristics might be merged (such as merging a Charisma-type and a Willpower-type attribute into a single Personality attribute), or split into more attributes (such as splitting physical \"Comeliness\" from Charisma in the original Unearthed Arcana), or even ignored altogether (for example, Intelligence and Charisma in a hack and slash adventure). In many games, a small set of primary attributes control a larger number of derived statistics such as Armor Class or magic points.\n\nDuring character creation, attribute scores are usually determined either randomly (by rolling dice) or by distributing character points. In some games, such as World of Warcraft, the base attribute scores are determined by the character’s race and class (however the vast majority of stat points will be obtained through end-game gear/equipment). Because they represent common, in-born characteristics and not learned capabilities (as skills do), in many games they are fixed for the duration of the game. However, in some games they can be increased by spending experience points gained during the game, or as part of the process of \"levelling up\".\n\nAdvantages and disadvantages \n\nAn advantage is a physical, social, intellectual, or other enhancement to a character. In contrast, a disadvantage is an adverse effect. Advantages are also known as virtues, merits or edges and disadvantages as flaws or hindrances, or by the abbreviation \"disads\".\n\nMany games encourage or even force players to take disadvantages for their characters in order to balance their advantages or other \"positive\" statistics. Disadvantages also add flavor to a character that can't be obtained solely by a list of positive traits. Advantages and disadvantages often have a thematic element to them. They often provide a direct relationship between how someone wants to role-play their character and a tangible \"in-game\" enhancement to skill or ability rolls.\n\nSystems of advantages and disadvantages are often criticized for allowing or even encouraging min-maxing, where a player strives to take disadvantages which have little or no tangible effect on play while using the character points gained from those disadvantages to pay for powerful advantages.\n\nCharacter points \nCharacter points are abstract units used in some role-playing games during character creation and development.\n\nEarly role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons assigned random values to a player character's attributes, while allowing each character a fixed number of skills. As a result, characters were at the same time wildly unbalanced in terms of attributes and heavily constrained in terms of skills. Champions (1981) introduced a points-based system of purchasing attributes and skills as a means of improving game balance and flexibility. These points are known as character points, and it has become a feature of numerous later games, most notably GURPS.\n\nUsually, a player is allotted a number of points for character creation. A character's attributes (such as high intelligence), skills (such as fixing a car or mechanics), or powers (such as flying) can then be bought for a certain number of points. More powerful abilities or a greater degree of power will require more \"spending\" of character points. Later, character points can be earned and spent to improve attributes or skills, or to buy new skills or powers. In some games, such as Champions, these points are experience points; in others, such as Ars Magica, there is a more complicated relationship between experience points and character points.\n\nPowers \nA power represents a unique or special quality of a character.\n\nIn many games, powers are binary on-or-off qualities as opposed to attributes and skills which are usually numeric quantities. The main exception to this is superhero RPGs, where superpowers are often treated as a sort of skill. Superpowers may also use the same rating scale as the primary statistics.\n\nSkills \n\nA skill represents the learned knowledge and abilities of a character. Skills are known by various names, including proficiencies, abilities, powers, talents and knacks.\n\nDuring character creation, a player character's skills are generally chosen from a long list. A character may have a fixed number of starting skills, or they may be paid for using character points. In contrast to attributes, very few games fix a player's skills at the start of the game, instead allowing players to increase them by spending experience points or during \"levelling up\". Since some skills are likely to be more useful than others, different skills often have different costs.\n\nSkills usually influence a character's chance to succeed by adding to the relevant attribute. In some games (such as GURPS), each skill has a specific base attribute to which it is always added; in others (such as Ars Magica), a skill can be added to different attributes depending on how the skill is being used. Some games (such as Feng Shui) add the base attribute to the skill at character creation time; after that, it is independent of the attribute and is used instead of the attribute rather than adding to it. Most games have a fixed penalty for attempting a task without a relevant skill; older editions of Shadowrun gave a complex network of penalties for using similar skills (such as attempting to pick an electronic lock by using the Computer skill instead of the Electronics skill). The text-based roleplaying game Avalon: The Legend Lives is noted for being the first text based multi user role-playing game to offer a developed profession and skills system . Choosing a profession then conveyed a bank of general skills and guild specific ones each containing a ladder of skills which could be invested in via lessons earned through on-line play. Initially there were around 30 such skills with approximately 17 abilities in each covering a wide range from Riding, Perception, Thievery or Demonology. As of 2015 Avalon possesses 66 Skills with 2194 distinct abilities developed over its 26-year tenure.\n\nTraits \nA trait represents a broad area of expertise of a character.\n\nTraits are rarely drawn from a predetermined list; rather, the player chooses some description during character generation. For example, a squash-playing history professor with a knowledge of fine wines might have the traits \"History\", \"Squash\" and \"Oenology\". In terms of a more fine-grained system of statistics, a single trait would often be represented by a group of skills, one or more advantages and attributes, or a combination thereof.\n\nThe first major role-playing game to use traits was Over the Edge. Some systems, such as Castle Falkenstein and HeroQuest, use traits as the only type of statistic, although they may use some other term for them, such as abilities.\n\nDerived statistics \nMany games make use of derived statistics: statistics whose values are determined only by the values of other, \"basic\" statistics. They often represent a single capability of the character such as the weight a character can lift, or the speed at which they can move. Some are unitless numbers, but often they use real-world units of measurement (such as kilograms or metres per second). Derived statistics are often used during combat (e.g. hit points, Armor Class and initiative). Basic and derived statistics are also called primary and secondary statistics, respectively.\n\nIn games which use such concepts, derived statistics are often modified by the character's race and class. In addition, certain in-game methods such as spells or magical items might raise or lower these statistics temporarily.\n\nInterdependencies between statistics \nSome games define various interdependencies between statistics of different categories, as well as within categories. The most common are:\n\n Prerequisite Only if statistic A has a value of at least x, statistic B may exceed value y. (Where y is often 0 or none.) For example, a character class may require certain minimum attribute scores, or a spell may require a minimal level of magical talent. Learning some esoteric skill often requires knowledge of another one at an \"expert\" level or possession of a certain advantage: In GURPS Martial Arts, for example, \"cinematic\" or \"mystical\" martial arts abilities require a special advantage, Trained by a Master.\n\n Limitation If statistic A has a value of at least x, then statistic B cannot exceed value y. This is the opposite of prerequisite. (Only if statistic A has a value of at most x, statistic B may exceed value y.) For example, a character class may be disallowed for certain races, or one of the game effects of a disadvantage (say, Unfit), could be to limit a certain attribute (Constitution or Health in the example) to a certain maximum value (no more than average).\n\n Bonus or base value If statistic A has a value of x, then the value of statistic B is increased by (or starts at) y. The term base value is preferred if y = x or if y is large compared to Bs value. Higher scores in an attribute often grant bonuses to a group of skills.\n\n Derivation If statistics A and B have values of x and y, respectively, then the value of statistic C is a function of (x, y)''.\n\nReferences\n\nRole-playing game terminology",
"Natura naturans is a Latin term coined during the Middle Ages, meaning \"nature naturing\" or, more loosely, \"nature doing what nature does\". These terms are most commonly associated with the philosophy of Baruch Spinoza. For Spinoza, natura naturans refers to the self-causing activity of nature, while natura naturata refers to nature considered as a passive product of an infinite causal chain.<ref>See Ethics, Part 1, Proposition 29.</ref>\n\nSamuel Taylor Coleridge defined natura naturans as \"Nature in the active sense\" as opposed to natura naturata.\n\nThe distinction is expressed in Spinoza's Ethics as follows:\n[B]y Natura naturans we must understand what is in itself and is conceived through itself, or such attributes of substance as express an eternal and infinite essence, that is … God, insofar as he is considered as a free cause. But by Natura naturata I understand whatever follows from the necessity of God's nature, or from God's attributes, that is, all the modes of God's attributes insofar as they are considered as things which are in God, and can neither be nor be conceived without God.\n\nEtymology\nIn Latin naturans is the present active participle of naturo, indicated by the suffix \"-ans\" which is akin to the English suffix \"-ing\". Naturata is the perfect passive participle.\n\nSee also\n Deus sive Natura\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Baruch Spinoza (1632-1677)\n\nLatin philosophical phrases\nPhilosophy of religion\nSpinoza studies\nSpinozism"
]
|
[
"Raymond Berry",
"Profile",
"Any interesting information?",
"Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for,",
"What were some of his ailments?",
"bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs",
"How did it affect his legs?",
"caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition.",
"How was it fixed?",
"To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL.",
"Did it affect his playing?",
"Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations.",
"Did he have any other physical problems?",
"Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played.",
"Did the contacts cause any problems?",
"Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses,",
"What were his best attributes as a player?",
"Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes,"
]
| C_32af37cb57654035bcfb1a0dddaeedf6_0 | How did he develop those traits? | 9 | How did Raymond Berry develop precise pass patterns and sure hands? | Raymond Berry | Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp. Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun." Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week. Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow--but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least." CANNOTANSWER | He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. | Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. (born February 27, 1933) is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He played as a split end for the Baltimore Colts from 1955 to 1967, and after several assistant coaching positions, was head coach of the New England Patriots from 1984 to 1989. With the Colts, Berry led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice, and was invited to six Pro Bowls. The Colts won consecutive NFL championships, including the 1958 NFL Championship Game—known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played"—in which Berry caught 12 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown. He retired as the all-time NFL leader in both receptions and receiving yardage.
As a head coach, Berry led the Patriots to Super Bowl XX following the 1985 season, where his team was defeated by the Chicago Bears, 46–10.
After catching very few passes in high school and college, Berry was drafted in the 20th round of the 1954 NFL Draft by the Colts and was considered a long shot to make the team's roster. Diminutive and unassuming, his subsequent rise to the Pro Football Hall of Fame has been touted as one of football's Cinderella stories. He made up for his lack of athleticism through rigorous practice and attention to detail, and was known for his near-perfect route running and sure-handedness. Berry was a favorite target of quarterback Johnny Unitas, and the two were regarded as the dominant passing and receiving duo of their era.
After his playing career, Berry coached wide receivers for the Dallas Cowboys, the University of Arkansas, Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns, and Patriots. He became the Patriots' head coach in 1984 and held that position through 1989, amassing 48 wins and 39 losses. In recognition of his playing career, Berry was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 75 years and a unanimous selection to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the best players of the NFL's first 100 years. His number 82 jersey is retired by the Indianapolis Colts and he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team.
Early life and college
Raymond Emmett Berry Jr. was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, on February 27, 1933, and spent the majority of his childhood in Paris, Texas. At Paris High School and in college, Berry caught very few passes. He did not start on his high school team until he was a senior, even though his father, Berry Sr., was the coach. After high school Berry played one year of junior college football at Shreiner Institute (now Schreiner University) in Kerrville, Texas, during the 1950 campaign. He helped the Mountaineers finish its most successful season in 10 years with a record of 7–3. He then transferred to Southern Methodist University (SMU). In three seasons for the SMU Mustangs football team, Berry received only 33 passes total. Sportswriters attributed his lack of receptions to his poor eyesight, but during the early 1950s, colleges specialized in the running game. As Berry said, "I didn't catch many passes because not many were thrown". He also played outside linebacker and defensive end for the Mustangs, despite weighing only even by his senior year.
Professional playing career
Berry was drafted by the Baltimore Colts in the 20th round as the 203rd overall pick of the 1954 NFL Draft. Considered a long-shot to make the team roster, he was used sparingly as a rookie, catching only 13 passes. By his second NFL season he became a permanent starter when the Colts acquired quarterback Johnny Unitas. Over the next 12 seasons together the two became one of the most dominant passing and catching duos in NFL history. Berry, who did not miss a single game until his eighth year in the league, led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards three times and in receiving touchdowns twice.
In 1957, Berry caught 47 passes for 800 yards and six touchdowns, leading the NFL in receiving yards for the first time. Against the Washington Redskins that year in near-freezing weather, Unitas connected with Berry on 12 passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns, staging what the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette called a "spectacular show". He was recognized as a first-team All-Pro by The Sporting News and earned second-team honors from the Associated Press (AP). The following season, he recorded 794 receiving yards and led the league with 56 receptions and nine touchdowns. For his efforts, Berry was invited to his first Pro Bowl, and was a first-team All-Pro by the AP and several other major selectors. The Colts finished atop the Western Division with a record of 9–3 and faced the New York Giants in the NFL Championship Game.
One of Berry's most notable performances was in that 1958 NFL Championship Game, known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played", in which he led the Colts to the franchise's first title with a then championship record 12 catches for 178 yards and a touchdown in the Colts' 23–17 victory over the Giants. At the end of regulation, he caught three consecutive passes for 62 yards to set up the Colts' tying field goal. He also had two key receptions for 33 yards during the Colts' final game-winning drive in overtime. His 12 receptions would remain an NFL championship game record for more than half a century, topped by one by Demaryius Thomas in Super Bowl XLVIII after the 2013 season.
Berry led the NFL in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns in 1959, becoming the fourth player to record a "triple crown" in receiving. His 14 receiving touchdowns set a Colts single-season franchise record that stood unmatched for over four decades. He was invited to his second straight Pro Bowl, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from the AP, UPI, the Newspaper Enterprise Association, and the New York Daily News. The Colts won back-to-back championships in an encore with the Giants, 31–16. In that game, Berry caught five passes for 68 yards, second on the team behind halfback Lenny Moore's 126 yards on three receptions.
In 1960, Berry recorded his only 1,000-yard season, catching 74 passes en route to career highs in receiving yards (1,298) and receiving yards per game (108.2). Each of those totals led the NFL that year by a wide margin; no other player had more than 1,000 yards, and the next highest yards-per-game average was 81.0. He had a mid-season string of six straight games with over 100 yards, during which he caught 50 passes for 920 yards and eight touchdowns. Berry again was a Pro Bowl invitee, and earned first-team All-Pro honors from all the same selectors as the previous year, including unanimous All-Pro recognition by UPI sportswriters.
Following this zenith, Berry did not have the same statistical success over his final seven seasons, but remained a consistent target for Unitas. His 75 receptions in the 1961 season was second-most in the league, and he finished 10th in receiving yards, but failed to record a touchdown for the first time since his rookie year. He scored the first touchdown of the 1962 Pro Bowl on a 16-yard reception from Unitas in the first quarter. His streak of Pro Bowl invitations ended at four, but he rebounded to appearances in 1963 and 1964, the latter his final. The Colts returned to the postseason in 1964, where they were shut out 27–0 by the Cleveland Browns in the 1964 championship game.
After consecutive seasons recording 700+ receiving yards and seven touchdowns in 1965 and 1966, Berry missed half of the 1967 season due to injuries and caught only 11 passes for 167 yards. He announced his retirement shortly after the season's end. He completed his professional playing career having caught 631 passes for 9,275 yards (14.7 yards per catch) and 68 touchdowns. At the time, he held the NFL career records for receptions and receiving yards, and his receiving touchdowns were tied for fourth most with Don Maynard.
Coaching career
After retiring from playing, Berry joined Tom Landry's Dallas Cowboys coaching staff as receivers coach. In 1970, after two seasons, Berry took a job with Frank Broyles at the University of Arkansas as receivers coach. In 1973 Berry joined Don McCafferty with the Detroit Lions as his receivers coach. In 1976, Berry joined former SMU teammate Forrest Gregg as his receivers coach with the Cleveland Browns. Berry joined the New England Patriots as receivers coach under Chuck Fairbanks in 1978. He stayed on with new coach Ron Erhardt until Erhardt and his entire staff were fired following a 2–14 1981 season. Berry left football and worked in real estate in Medfield, Massachusetts, until the Patriots fired Ron Meyer in the middle of the 1984 season and hired Berry to replace him. Under his leadership, the Patriots won four of their last eight games and finished the season with a 9–7 record. Berry's importance to the team was reflected less in his initial win–loss record than in the respect he immediately earned in the locker room – according to running back Tony Collins, "Raymond Berry earned more respect in one day than Ron Meyer earned in three years".
In the 1985 season, the team improved further, posting an 11–5 record and making the playoffs as a wild card team. They went on to become the first team in NFL history to advance to the Super Bowl by winning three playoff games on the road, defeating the New York Jets 26–14 (the second postseason win in franchise history), the Los Angeles Raiders 27–20, and the Miami Dolphins 31–14. It was the first time the Patriots had beaten the Dolphins at the Orange Bowl (Miami's then-home stadium) since 1966, Miami's first season as a franchise. The Patriots had lost to the Dolphins there 18 consecutive times, including a 30–27 loss in Week 15 of the regular season. Despite their success in the playoffs, the Patriots were heavy underdogs to the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XX. They lost 46–10 in what was at the time the most lopsided defeat in Super Bowl history. "We couldn't protect the quarterback, and that was my fault. I couldn't come up with a system to handle the Bears' pass rush", Berry acknowledged.
The following season, Berry's Patriots again recorded an 11–5 record and made the playoffs, this time after winning their second division title as an NFL team. However, they lost in the first round of the postseason. It would be Berry's last postseason appearance in New England, and the Patriots' last playoff berth altogether until 1994. They narrowly missed the playoffs with an 8–7 record in 1987 (a strike-shortened season) and a 9–7 record in 1988, in which quarterback Doug Flutie went 6-3 as a starter. However, Berry benched Flutie in the season finale against the Denver Broncos until the final seconds. The Patriots lost 21-10 and Flutie left for the CFL less than two years later. Then in Berry's last year as a coach, the Patriots finished the 1989 season 5–11. New Patriots majority owner Victor Kiam demanded Berry relinquish control over personnel and reorganize his staff; Berry refused and was fired. His regular-season coaching record was 48–39 () and he was 3–2 () in the playoffs.
After a year out of coaching, Berry joined Wayne Fontes' staff with the Detroit Lions in 1991 as their quarterbacks coach, and then held the same position the following season on Dan Reeves' staff with the Denver Broncos. Reeves was fired after that season, along with his entire coaching staff.
Profile
Berry overcame several physical ailments during his football career, a fact he became famous for, but one that according to Berry was often exaggerated by the media. He was skinny and injury-prone, such that when his college teammates saw him for the first time they sarcastically dubbed him, "Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy". Reportedly, because one leg was shorter than the other, Berry had to wear padding inside his shoe in order to walk properly. However, according to Berry, this was not entirely true. In actuality, bruised nerves near the sacroiliac joint occasionally caused misalignment in his back, which in turn affected his legs and caused one to become slightly shorter; it was not a permanent condition. To alleviate this, he wore a back brace for 13 years in the NFL. That he required specialized shoes was a myth, which Berry says was perpetuated by an overzealous information director with the Colts when Berry tried to compensate for his condition by putting something in his shoe during training camp.
Due to his poor eyesight, Berry wore contact lenses when he played. Because the lenses would often slip when he did rapid eye movements toward the ball, he tried many different lenses, which led sportswriters to believe he must have had major eye problems. "I tried all kinds of lenses till we got what we wanted," he said. "I even had tinted lenses for sunny days, so I could watch the ball come right across the sun."
Berry was famous for his attention to detail and preparation, which he used to overcome his physical limitations. Considered slow for a wide receiver, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds. Rather than speed, he was renowned for his precise pass patterns and sure hands; he rarely dropped passes, and he fumbled only once in his career. He would squeeze Silly Putty constantly to strengthen his hands. He and Unitas regularly worked after practice and developed the timing and knowledge of each other's abilities that made each more effective. The reason for this, according to Berry, was that the two did not think on the same wavelength. "Every season we had to start all over on our timing, especially the long ball," said Berry. "He knew he had to release the ball when I was eighteen yards from scrimmage for me to receive it thirty-eight yards out. I knew I had to make my break in those first eighteen yards and get free within 2.8 seconds." He also relied on shifty moves, and by his count, he had 88 different moves to get open, all of which he practiced every week.
Even in his adult years, Berry was soft-spoken and reserved. He preferred not to draw attention to himself, and was described by sportswriter Jim Murray as "polite as a deacon, as quiet as a monk." Both as a player and as a coach, he was studious, serious, and orderly; "He was too straight and narrow—but a great guy, a hell of a guy," former Colts teammate Art Donovan said of Berry. "He was a little peculiar, to say the least."
Honors
In 1973, Berry was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. He is a member of the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team, compiled in 1994 by the Hall of Fame selection committee and media to honor the NFL's best players of the league's first 75 years, and the 1950s All-Decade Team. In 1999, he was ranked 40th on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. Berry's number 82 jersey is retired by the Colts, he is a member of the Patriots' 1980s All-Decade Team as a coach, and he is enshrined in the Baltimore Ravens Ring of Honor.
Personal life
Berry is a professed born again Christian and a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He considers his faith to be a "huge part" of his life. As of 2009, he lives with his wife in Tennessee. On February 5, 2012, at Super Bowl XLVI, Berry carried the Vince Lombardi Trophy to midfield to present it to the New York Giants, who had just defeated the New England Patriots. He was given the honor due to the game being played at Lucas Oil Stadium, the home stadium of his former team, the Colts, who had moved to Indianapolis in 1984.
Coaching record
References
Bibliography
External links
1933 births
Living people
American football wide receivers
Arkansas Razorbacks football coaches
Baltimore Colts players
Cleveland Browns coaches
Dallas Cowboys coaches
Denver Broncos coaches
Detroit Lions coaches
New England Patriots coaches
New England Patriots head coaches
Schreiner Mountaineers football players
SMU Mustangs football players
Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
Western Conference Pro Bowl players
United States Army soldiers
People from Paris, Texas
Sportspeople from Corpus Christi, Texas
Coaches of American football from Texas
Players of American football from Texas
National Football League players with retired numbers | true | [
"Theodore P. Beauchaine is an American psychologist and William K. Warren Foundation Professor of Psychology at the University of Notre Dame. His research focuses on neural bases of behavioral impulsivity, emotion dysregulation, and self-injurious behavior, and how these neural vulnerabilities interact with environmental risk factors (e.g., maltreatment, neighborhood violence and criminality, marginalization) across development for both boys and girls (as opposed to boys alone as in most previous research). He is among the first psychologists to specify how impulsivity, expressed early in life as ADHD, follows different developmental trajectories across the lifespan for boys vs. girls who are exposed to adversity. In contexts of maltreatment, deviant peer affiliations, and other environment risk factors, boys with ADHD are more likely to develop conduct problems, substance use disorders, and antisocial traits, whereas girls with ADHD are more likely to engage in self-injurious behavior (e.g., cutting) and develop borderline traits. In protective environments, these outcomes are far less likely. Beauchaine has received two awards from the American Psychological Association: the Distinguished Scientific Award for an Early Career Contribution to Psychology and the Mid-Career Award for Outstanding Contributions to Benefit Children, Youth, and Families.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nFaculty page\n\nLiving people\nAmerican psychologists\nUniversity of Notre Dame faculty\nPortland State University alumni\nStony Brook University alumni\nYear of birth missing (living people)",
"The lek paradox is the conundrum of how additive or beneficial genetic variation is maintained in lek mating species, in the face of consistent female preferences, sexual selection. While many studies have attempted to explain how the lek paradox fits into Darwinian theory, the paradox remains. Persistent female choice for particular male trait values should erode genetic diversity in male traits and thereby remove the benefits of choice, yet choice persists. This paradox can be somewhat alleviated by the occurrence of mutations introducing potential differences, as well as the possibility that traits of interest have more or less favorable recessive alleles.\n\nThe basis of the lek paradox is continuous genetic variation in spite of strong female preference for certain traits. There are two conditions in which the lek paradox arises. The first is that males contribute only genes and the second is that female preference does not affect fecundity. Female choice should lead to directional runaway selection, resulting in a greater prevalence for the selected traits. Stronger selection should lead to impaired survival, as it decreases genetic variance and ensures that more offspring have similar traits. However, lekking species do not exhibit runaway selection.\n\nIn a lekking reproductive system, what male sexual characteristics can signal to females is limited, as the males provide no resources to females or parental care to their offspring. This implies that a female gains indirect benefits from her choice in the form of \"good genes\" for her offspring. Hypothetically, in choosing a male that excels at courtship displays, females gain genes for their offspring that increase their survival or reproductive fitness.\n\nAmotz Zahavi declared that male sexual characteristics only convey useful information to the females if these traits confer a handicap on the male. Otherwise, males could simply cheat: if the courtship displays have a neutral effect on survival, males could all perform equally and it would signify nothing to the females. But if the courtship display is somehow deleterious to the male’s survival—such as increased predator risk or time and energy expenditure—it becomes a test by which females can assess male quality. Under the handicap principle, males who excel at the courtship displays prove that they are of better quality and genotype, as they have already withstood the costs to having these traits. Resolutions have been formed to explain why strong female mate choice does not lead to runaway selection. The handicap principle describes how costly male ornaments provide females with information about the male’s inheritable fitness. The handicap principle may be a resolution to the lek paradox, for if females select for the condition of male ornaments, then their offspring have better fitness.\n\nOne potential resolution to the lek paradox is Rowe and Houle's theory of condition-dependent expression of male sexually selected traits. Similar to the handicap principle, Rowe and Houle argue that sexually selected traits depend on physical condition. Condition, in turn, summarizes a large number of genetic loci, including those involved in metabolism, muscular mass, nutrition, etc. Rowe and Houle claim that condition dependence maintains genetic variation in the face of persistent female choice, as the male trait is correlated with abundant genetic variation in condition. This is the genic capture hypothesis, which describes how a significant amount of the genome is involved in shaping the traits that are sexually selected. There are two criteria in the genic capture hypothesis: the first is that sexually selected traits are dependent upon condition and the second is that general condition is attributable to high genetic variance.\n\nGenetic variation in condition-dependent traits may be further maintained through mutations and environmental effects. Genotypes may be more effective in developing condition dependent sexual characteristics in different environments, while mutations may be deleterious in one environment and advantageous in another. Thus genetic variance remains in populations through gene flow across environments or generation overlap. According to the genic capture hypothesis, female selection does not deplete the genetic variance, as sexual selection operates on condition dependence traits, thereby accumulating genetic variance within the selected for trait. Therefore, females are actually selecting for high genetic variance.\n\nIn an alternate but non-exclusionary hypothesis, W. D. Hamilton and M. Zuk proposed that successful development of sexually selected traits signal resistance to parasites. Parasites can significantly stress their hosts so that they are unable to develop sexually selected traits as well as healthy males. According to this theory, a male who vigorously displays demonstrates that he has parasite-resistant genes to the females. In support of this theory, Hamilton and Zuk found that male sexual ornaments were significantly correlated with levels of incidence of six blood diseases in North American passerine bird species. The Hamilton and Zuk model addresses the lek paradox, arguing that the cycles of co-adaptation between host and parasite resist a stable equilibrium point. Hosts continue to evolve resistance to parasites and parasites continue to bypass resistant mechanisms, continuously generating genetic variation. The genic capture and parasite resistance hypotheses could logically co-occur in the same population.\n\nOne resolution to the lek paradox involves female preferences and how preference alone does not cause a drastic enough directional selection to diminish the genetic variance in fitness. Another conclusion is that the preferred trait is not naturally selected for or against and the trait is maintained because it implies increased attractiveness to the male. Thus, there may be no paradox.\n\nReferences\n\nEthology\nReproduction in animals\nEvolutionary biology"
]
|
[
"Stephen F. Austin",
"Moving to Texas"
]
| C_1dc5f3cb170c498c93cda9aa5bae10a9_0 | Why did he move to Texas? | 1 | Why did Stephen F. Austin move to Texas? | Stephen F. Austin | During Austin's time in Arkansas, his father traveled to Spanish Texas and received an empresarial grant that would allow him to bring 300 American families to Texas, they would be called "The Old 300." Moses Austin caught pneumonia soon after returning to Missouri. He directed that his empresario grant would be taken over by his son Stephen. Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother, Mary Brown Austin, written two days before Moses Austin would die. Austin boarded the steamer, Beaver, and departed to New Orleans to meet Spanish officials led by Erasmo Seguin. He was at Natchitoches, Louisiana, on June 31, 1821, when he learned of his father's death. "This news has effected me very much, he was one of the most feeling and affectionate Fathers that ever lived. His faults I now say, and always have, were not of the heart." At the age of 24, Austin led his party to travel 300 miles (480 km) in four weeks to San Antonio with the intent of reauthorizing his father's grant, arriving on August 12. While in transit, they learned Mexico had declared its independence from Spain, and Texas had become a Mexican province, rather than a Spanish territory. Jose Antonio Navarro, a San Antonio native with ambitious visions of the future of Texas, befriended Stephen F. Austin, and the two developed a lasting association. Navarro, proficient in Spanish and Mexican law, assisted Austin in obtaining his empresario contracts. In San Antonio, the grant was reauthorized by Governor Antonio Maria Martinez, who allowed Austin to explore the Gulf Coast between San Antonio and the Brazos River to find a suitable location for a colony. As guides for the party, Manuel Becerra and three Aranama Indians, went with the expedition. Austin advertised the Texas opportunity in New Orleans, announcing that land was available along the Brazos and Colorado rivers. A family of a husband, wife, and two children would receive 1,280 acres (520 ha) at twelve and a half cents per acre. Farmers could get 177 acres (72 ha), and ranchers 4,428 acres (1,792 ha). In December 1821, the first U.S. colonists crossed into the granted territory by land and sea, on the Brazos River in present-day Brazoria County, Texas. CANNOTANSWER | Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother, | Stephen Fuller Austin (November 3, 1793 – December 27, 1836) was an American-born empresario. Known as the "Father of Texas" and the founder of Anglo Texas, he led the second and, ultimately, the successful colonization of the region by bringing 300 families and their slaves from the United States to the tejanos region in 1825.
Born in Virginia and raised in southeastern Missouri, Austin served in the Missouri territorial legislature before moving to Arkansas Territory and later Louisiana. His father, Moses Austin, received an empresario grant from Spain to settle Texas. After Moses Austin's death in 1821, Stephen Austin won recognition of the empresario grant from the newly independent state of Mexico. Austin convinced numerous American settlers to move to Texas, and by 1825 Austin had brought the first 300 American families into the territory. Throughout the 1820s, Austin sought to maintain good relations with the Mexican government, and he helped suppress the Fredonian Rebellion. He also helped ensure the introduction of slavery into Texas despite the attempts of the Mexican government to ban the institution. He led the initial actions against the Karankawa people in this area.
As Texas settlers became increasingly dissatisfied with the Mexican government, Austin advocated conciliation, but the dissent against Mexico escalated into the Texas Revolution. Austin led Texas forces at the successful Siege of Béxar before serving as a commissioner to the United States. Austin ran in the 1836 Texas presidential election but was defeated by Sam Houston, who entered the race just two weeks before the election. Houston appointed Austin as Secretary of State for the new republic, and Austin held that position until his death in December 1836.
Numerous places and institutions are named in his honor, including the capital of Texas, Austin County, Austin Bayou, Stephen F. Austin State University, Austin College, and numerous public schools.
Early years
Stephen F. Austin was born on November 3, 1793, in the mining region of southwestern Virginia. His parents were Mary Brown Austin and Moses Austin. In 1798, his family moved west to the lead-mining region of present-day Potosi, Missouri. Moses Austin received a sitio from the Spanish government for the mining site of Mine à Breton, established by French colonists. His great-great-grandfather, Anthony Austin (b. 1636), was the son of Richard Austin (b.1598 in Bishopstoke, Hampshire, England), he and his wife Esther were original settlers of Suffield, Massachusetts, which became Connecticut in 1749.
When Austin was eleven years old, his family sent him back east to be educated, first at the preparatory school of Bacon Academy in Colchester, Connecticut. He studied at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky, from which he graduated in 1810. After graduation, Austin began studying to be a lawyer, reading the law with an established firm.
At age 21, he was elected to and served in the legislature of the Missouri Territory. As a member of the territorial legislature, he was "influential in obtaining a charter for the struggling Bank of St. Louis". Left penniless after the Panic of 1819, Austin decided to move south to the new Arkansas Territory. He acquired property on the south bank of the Arkansas River, in the area that would later become Little Rock. After purchasing the property, he learned the area was being considered as the location for the new territorial capital, which could make his land worth a great deal more. He made his home in Hempstead County, Arkansas. Two weeks before the first Arkansas territorial elections in 1820, Austin declared his candidacy for Congress. His late entrance meant his name did not appear on the ballot in two of the five counties, but he still placed second in the field of six candidates. Later, he was appointed as a judge for the First Circuit Court. Over the next few months, Little Rock did become the territorial capital. But Austin's claim to land in the area was contested, and the courts ruled against him. The Territorial Assembly reorganized the government and abolished Austin's judgeship.
Austin left the territory, moving to Louisiana. He reached New Orleans in November 1820, where he met and stayed with Joseph H. Hawkins, a New Orleans lawyer and former Kentucky congressman. He made arrangements to study law with him.
Move to Texas
During Austin's time in Arkansas, his father traveled to Spanish Texas and received an empresarial grant that would allow him to bring 300 American families to Texas. Moses Austin caught pneumonia soon after returning to Missouri. He directed that his empresario grant would be taken over by his son Stephen. Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother, written two days before Moses' death. Austin boarded the steamer Beaver and departed to New Orleans to meet Spanish officials led by Erasmo Seguín. He was at Natchitoches, Louisiana, in 1821, when he learned of his father's death. "This news has effected me very much, he was one of the most feeling and affectionate Fathers that ever lived. His faults I now say, and always have, were not of the heart."
Austin led his party to travel in four weeks to San Antonio with the intent of reauthorizing his father's grant, arriving on August 12. While in transit, they learned Mexico had declared its independence from Spain, and Texas had become a Mexican province, rather than a Spanish territory. José Antonio Navarro, a San Antonio native with ambitious visions of the future of Texas, befriended Stephen F. Austin, and the two developed a lasting association. Navarro, proficient in Spanish and Mexican law, assisted Austin in obtaining his empresario contracts. In San Antonio, the grant was reauthorized by Governor Antonio María Martínez, who allowed Austin to explore the Gulf Coast between San Antonio and the Brazos River to find a suitable location for a colony. As guides for the party, Manuel Becerra and three Aranama Indians, went with the expedition.
Austin advertised the Texas opportunity in New Orleans, announcing that land was available along the Brazos and Colorado rivers. A family of a husband, wife, and two children would receive at twelve and a half cents per acre. Farmers could get and ranchers . In December 1821, the first U.S. colonists crossed into the granted territory by land and sea, on the Brazos River in present-day Brazoria County.
Empresario
Austin's plan for an American colony was thrown into turmoil by Mexico's gaining independence from Spain in 1821. Governor Martínez informed Austin that the junta instituyente, the new rump congress of the government of Agustín de Iturbide of Mexico, refused to recognize the land grant authorized by Spain. His government intended to use a general immigration law to regulate new settlement in Mexico. Austin traveled to Mexico City, where he persuaded the junta instituyente to approve the grant to his father, as well as the law signed by the Mexican Emperor on January 3, 1823.
The old imperial law offered heads of families a league and a labor of land, , and other inducements. It also provided for the employment of agents, called empresarios, to promote immigration. As an empresario, Austin was to receive 67,000 acres of land for each 200 families he brought to Texas. According to the law, immigrants were not required to pay fees to the government. Some of the immigrants denied Austin's right to charge them for services at the rate of 12.5 cents/acre (31 cents/ha).
When Emperor of Mexico Agustín de Iturbide abdicated in March 1823, the law was annulled once again. In April 1823, Austin induced the congress to grant him a contract to bring 300 families into Texas. He wanted honest, hard-working people who would make the colony a success. In 1824, the congress passed a new immigration law that allowed the individual states of Mexico to administer public lands and open them to settlement under certain conditions. In March 1825, the legislature of the Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas passed a law similar to the one authorized by Iturbide. The law continued the system of empresarios, as well as granting each married man a league of land, , with the stipulation that he must pay the state $30 within six years.
Austin laid claim to rich tracts of land near bays and river mouths populated by the Karankawa. The Karankawa relied on these bays for the fish and shellfish that provided their winter protein sources and thus were fiercely protective of that land. Austin wrote upon scouting the land that extermination of the Karankawa would be necessary, despite the fact that his first encounter with the tribe was friendly. He spread rumors among the settlers of cannibalism and extreme violence of the Karankawa, sometimes more specifically the Carancaguases. Research has suggested that these accusations of cannibalism were false, possibly caused by confusion with another tribe, and that the Karankawa were horrified by cannibalism when they learned of it being practiced by shipwrecked Spaniards. Austin's stories primed the colonists to believe that the Karankawa would be impossible to live among and may have contributed to the Skull Creek massacre in which an Karankawa village was razed and 19 Kawankawa Indians were killed. After the massacre, Austin continued to encourage violence both against and between the Indian tribes, culminating in 1825 with his order for all Kawankawa to be pursued and killed on sight.
By late 1825, Austin had brought the first 300 families to his settlement, the Austin Colony; these 300 are now known in Texas history as the Old Three Hundred. Austin had obtained further contracts to settle an additional 900 families between 1825 and 1829. He had effective civil and military authority over the settlers, but he was quick to introduce a semblance of American law – the Constitution of Coahuila y Tejas was agreed on in November 1827. Austin organized small, informal armed groups to protect the colonists, which evolved into the Texas Rangers. Despite his hopes, Austin was making little money from his endeavors; the colonists were unwilling to pay for his services as empresario, and most of his revenues were spent on the processes of government and other public services.
During these years, Austin, a member of Louisiana Lodge No. 111 at Ste. Genevieve, Missouri, sought to establish Freemasonry in Texas. Freemasonry was well established among the educated classes of Mexican society. It had been introduced among the aristocracy loyal to the House of Bourbon, and the conservatives had total control over the Order. By 1827, Americans living in Mexico City had introduced the United States York Rite of Freemasonry as a liberal alternative to the established European-style Scottish Rite. On February 11, 1828, Austin called a meeting of Freemasons at San Felipe to elect officers and to petition the Masonic Grand Lodge in Mexico City for a charter to form a lodge. Austin was elected Worshipful Master of the new lodge. Although the petition reached Matamoros and was to be forwarded to Mexico City, nothing more was heard of it. By 1828, the ruling faction in Mexico was afraid the liberal elements in Texas might try to gain their independence. Fully aware of the political philosophies of American Freemasons, the Mexican government outlawed Freemasonry on October 25, 1828. In 1829, Austin called another meeting, where it was decided that it was "impolitic and imprudent, at this time, to form Masonic lodges in Texas".
He was active in promoting trade and currying the good favor of the Mexican authorities, aiding them in the suppression of the Fredonian Rebellion of Haden Edwards. Some historians consider the Fredonian Rebellion to be the beginning of the Texas Revolution. Although "premature ... the Fredonian Rebellion sparked the powder for later success." For this event, Austin raised troops to fight with Mexican troops against the Texas rebels. With the colonists numbering more than 11,000 by 1832, they were becoming less amenable to Austin's cautious leadership, and also, the Mexican government was becoming less cooperative. It was concerned with the growth of the colony and the efforts of the U.S. government to buy the state from them. The Mexican government had attempted to stop further U.S. immigration as early as April 1830, but Austin's skills gained an exemption for his colonies. He granted land to immigrants based on to the husband, 320 to the wife, 160 for every child, and 80 for every slave.
Slavery
Slavery was a very important issue to Austin, one he called "of great interest" to him. Austin was a periodical slaveowner throughout his life; however, he had conflicting views about it. Theoretically, he believed slavery was wrong and went against the American ideal of liberty. In practice, however, he agreed with the social, economic, and political justifications of it, and worked hard to defend and expand it. Despite his defense of it, he also harbored concerns that the long-term effects of slavery would destroy American society. He grew particularly concerned following Nat Turner's rebellion, stating:
While Austin thought it would be advantageous some day for Texas to phase out of slavery, up until the Texas Revolution he worked to ensure that his colony's immigrants could bypass the Mexican government's resistance to it. Doing so ensured the population growth and economic development of his colony, which was primarily dependent on the monocropping of cotton and sugar. In August 1825, he recommended that the state government allow immigrants to bring their slaves with them through 1840, with the caveat that female grandchildren of the slaves would be freed by age 15 and males by age 25. His recommendation was rejected.
In 1826, when a state committee proposed abolishing slavery outright, 25 percent of the people in Austin's colony were slaves. Austin's colonists, mostly pro-slavery immigrants from the south, threatened to leave Texas if the proposition passed, while prospective Southern immigrants hesitated to come to Texas until slavery was guaranteed there. Austin conceded that the success of his colony was dependent on slavery. Without slaves, the colonists would lack the mass labor to cultivate the land, which would stall the pace of immigration needed to develop and increase the value of the land, and would deflate the economy and motivate his colonists to leave.
Austin went before the legislature and pleaded that, at the least, his original 300 families should be allowed to keep their slaves. He argued against the "bad faith" of freeing them, demanded reparations to slaveowners for every slave emancipated by the state, warned that the loss of slaves could leave some colonists destitute, and reasoned that freeing them would not only leave his settlers alone in the harsh Texas environment, but would also expose them to the discomfort and nuisance of living amongst freed slaves, who would become vagrants seeking retribution upon their former owners. While he waited for the legislature's verdict of his request, Austin went into a deep depression over the issue and sent his brother, Brown Austin, to further lobby the legislature on his behalf.
In March 1827, the legislature signed Article 13 into law. Despite the law complying with some of his requests, Austin called it "unconstitutional". He contested the law as it freed the children of slaves at birth, established a six-month grace period before fully emancipating all slaves in the state, and included provisions to improve the conditions of slaves and transitioning freedmen. Austin –– who had been so effective in persuading the legislature, however, that the author of Article 13 (before its passage) requested to withdraw it –– helped his colonists evade the law by advising them to legally supplant the word "slave" with the words "workingmen," "family servants," and "laborers," and by working to pass a decree that banned freedmen from Texas and forced emancipated slaves to work for their former slaveowners until the accrued "debt" (e.g. clothing, food), incurred for their own enslavement, was worked off.
In 1828, Austin petitioned the legislature to guarantee that slaveowners, immigrating to Texas, could legally "free" their slaves before immigrating, and contract them into a lifetime term of indentured servitude, thereby avoiding recognizing them as slaves. He lobbied to help his colony elude Vicente Guerrero's 1829 attempt to legally emancipate slaves in the province, and to bypass the government's effort to prohibit slavery when it passed the Law of April 6, 1830. In 1830, Austin wrote that he would oppose Texas joining the United States without guarantees that he should "insist on the perpetual exclusion of slavery from this state [Texas]". In 1833, he wrote:
In May 1835, Austin's colonists learned that Mexico's tolerance for the evasions of slaveowners was drawing to a close, with its proposal of new abolition legislation. Alarmed, and with Austin imprisoned in Mexico for pushing for independence, colonists turned against the Mexican government, calling it "oppressive" and a "plundering, robbing, autocratical government" without regard for the security of "life, liberty or property". Resisting the impact a changed slavery policy would have on economic growth, and fearing rumors of Mexico's plan to free the slaves and turn them loose upon the colonists, shortly after Austin returned from Mexico, he and his colonists took up arms against the Mexican government. Austin later gained U.S. Government support for his revolution when he wrote to Senator Lewis F. Linn and pleaded that Santa Anna planned to "exterminate" all of the colonists and fill Texas "with Indians and negroes [freed slaves]".
Relations with Mexico
Immigration controls and the introduction of tariff laws had done much to dissatisfy the colonists, peaking in the Anahuac Disturbances. Austin became involved in Mexican politics, supporting the upstart Antonio López de Santa Anna. Following the success of Santa Anna, the colonists sought a compensatory reward, proclaimed at the Convention of 1832—resumption of immigration, tariff exemption, separation from Coahuila, and a new state government for Texas. Austin did not support these demands; he considered them ill-timed and tried to moderate them. When they were repeated and extended at the Convention of 1833, Austin traveled to Mexico City on July 18, 1833, and met with Vice President Valentín Gomez Farías. Austin did gain certain important reforms; the immigration ban was lifted, but a separate state government was not authorized. Statehood in Mexico required a population of 80,000, and Texas had only 30,000.
Believing that he was pushing for Texas independence and suspect that he was trying to incite insurrection, Austin was arrested by the Mexican government in January 1834 in Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico. He was taken to Mexico City and imprisoned. No charges were filed against him as no court would take jurisdiction. He was moved from prison to prison. He was released under bond in December 1834 and required to stay in the Federal District. He was fully freed under the general amnesty in July 1835 and in August 1835 left Mexico to return to Texas via New Orleans.
Texas Revolution
In his absence, several events propelled the colonists toward confrontation with Santa Anna's centralist government. Austin took temporary command of the Texian forces during the Siege of Béxar from October 12 to December 11, 1835. After learning of the Disturbances at Anahuac and Velasco in the summer of 1835, an enraged Santa Anna made rapid preparations for the Mexican army to sweep Anglo settlers from Texas. War began in October 1835 at Gonzales. The Republic of Texas, created by a new constitution on March 2, 1836, won independence following a string of defeats with the dramatic turnabout victory at the Battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836, and the capture of Santa Anna the following morning. He was then imprisoned.
Republic of Texas
In December 1835, Austin, Branch Archer, and William H. Wharton were appointed commissioners to the U.S. by the provisional government of the republic. On June 10, 1836, Austin was in New Orleans, where he received word of Santa Anna's defeat by Sam Houston at the Battle of San Jacinto. Austin returned to Texas to rest at Peach Point in August. On August 4, he announced his candidacy for president of Texas. Austin felt confident he could win the election until two weeks before the election, when on August 20, Houston entered the race. Austin wrote, "Many of the old settlers who are too blind to see or understand their interest will vote for him." Houston carried East Texas, the Red River region, and most of the soldiers' votes. Austin received 587 votes to Sam Houston's 5,119 and Henry Smith's 743 votes. Houston appointed Austin as the first secretary of state of the new republic; however, Austin only served approximately two months before his death.
Death and estate
In December 1836, Austin was in the new capital of Columbia (now known as West Columbia) where he caught a severe cold; his condition worsened. Doctors were called in but could not help him. Austin died of pneumonia at noon on December 27, 1836. He was at the home of George B. McKinstry, near what is now West Columbia, Texas. He was 43. Austin's last words were "The independence of Texas is recognized! Don't you see it in the papers?..." Upon hearing of Austin's death, Houston ordered an official statement proclaiming: "The Father of Texas is no more; the first pioneer of the wilderness has departed." Originally, Austin was buried at Gulf Prairie Cemetery in Brazoria County, Texas. In 1910 Austin's body was reinterred at the Texas State Cemetery in Austin. Austin never married, nor did he have any children. He bequeathed all his land, titles, and possessions, to his married sister, Emily Austin Perry.
Monuments
Sherman, Texas, is the home of Austin College.
Nacogdoches, Texas, is the home of Stephen F. Austin State University.
Both Austin, Texas, and Austin County, Texas, are named after Stephen F. Austin.
Angleton, Texas, features a statue of Austin, sponsored by The Stephen F. Austin 500, sculpted by David Adickes, with a base of 12-feet and a total statue height of 72-feet. The base is 2 feet taller than the base of the Sam Houston statue in Huntsville, Texas, but the statue is 7 feet shorter.
The National Statuary Hall Collection permits each state to select just two statues for display at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. Texas selected Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin; these statues were sculpted by German immigrant Elisabet Ney.
Gulf Prairie Cemetery, his original place of burial.
In 1959, Austin was posthumously inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners at the National Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
In Austinville, Virginia, Austin's birthplace, a monument was erected along the New River near a junction with the New River Trail State Park.
In Bellville, Texas, the county seat of Austin County, a large bust of Austin by sculptor David Adickes is located at the intersection of State Highways 36 and 159.
John Carter played Austin in the 1969 episode "Here Stands Bailey" of the syndicated television series Death Valley Days, hosted by Robert Taylor not long before Taylor's own death. In the story line, the hardy, cantankerous pioneer James Briton "Brit" Bailey (Paul Fix) and his wife, Hannah (Rosemary DeCamp), make their final settlement in southeastern Texas after having overcome many obstacles over the years. Now they face Austin's order that they leave their land; however, Austin has a change of heart and asks them to stay. Bailey dies with his final wish of interment standing upright facing west, hence his grave marker, "Here Stands Bailey Facing West".
Past family
While Stephen F. Austin and his sister Emily have each been the subject of biography, they are descended from several generations of noteworthy people, including: Moses Austin (father—biography published by Trinity University Press), Abia Brown (grandfather), Joseph Sharp (great grandfather), Isaac Sharp (great, great grandfather), Anthony Sharp (great, great, great grandfather—biography published by Stanford University Press). Accordingly, history records noteworthy social contributions in each generation of Stephen's family dating back to the early seventeenth century. Richard Austin, a native of Titchfield, Hampshire was his paternal emigrant ancestor.
See also
James Elijah "Brown" Austin, his brother
José María Jesús Carbajal, mentored by Austin
Peach Point Plantation, his residence
Thomas J. Pilgrim, his friend and Spanish interpreter
James Bryan, his brother-in-law (first husband to Emily)
James Franklin Perry, his brother-in-law (second husband to Emily)
List of Notable Freemasons
O. P. Q. Letters
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
Ellis P. Bean, Stephen F. Austin, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
Biography of Stephen F. Austin from The Biographical Encyclopedia of Texas, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
Austin's Colonization Laws, 1822 from Gammel's Laws of Texas, Vol. I. hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
1793 births
1836 deaths
Members of the Missouri Territorial Legislature
Convention of 1832 delegates
Texas Consultation delegates
American emigrants to Mexico
People of the Texas Revolution
American people of English descent
People from Jones Creek, Texas
People from Wythe County, Virginia
People from Potosi, Missouri
Texas Ranger Division
Burials at Texas State Cemetery
Transylvania University alumni
American Freemasons
History of Austin, Texas
19th-century Mexican politicians
American slave owners
Deaths from pneumonia in Texas
American proslavery activists
Ranchers from Texas
19th-century American politicians
Bacon Academy alumni | true | [
"The Rice–Texas football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the Rice Owls and Texas Longhorns. Texas leads the series 74–21–1 through the 2021 season. \n\nRice has won only twice since 1960. 17 of the 21 Rice wins came between 1930 and 1960, a span over which it enjoyed a slight edge over the Longhorns.\n\nGame results\n\nKennedy speech\n\nOn September 12, 1962, Rice Stadium hosted the speech in which President John F. Kennedy challenged Americans to meet his goal, set the previous year, to send a man to the moon by the end of the decade. In the speech, he used a reference to Rice University football to help frame his rhetoric:\nBut why, some say, the moon? Why choose this as our goal? And they may well ask, why climb the highest mountain? Why, 35 years ago, fly the Atlantic? Why does Rice play Texas? We choose to go to the moon! We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.\n\nIn hindsight Kennedy's comments may suggest a frustrated Rice with a history of losing to Texas, but as can be seen above, the two football teams had split 5–5 in their previous 10 meetings, 15–15 in their previous 30, and would tie the following month; presumably this parity would have been understood by both the President and the audience at the time. What made the comparison apt was not just that Texas was perennially strong, but that its enrollment dwarfed that of Rice, and Rice had admissions hurdles UT prospects didn’t face. That playing the Longhorns was \"not... easy, but... hard\" would have been obvious and appreciated at Rice Stadium.\n\nOn the other hand, Kennedy's comments about Rice-Texas might have been as prescient as his statements about going to the moon (which did occur in 1969): Since 1963, Rice has won just 2 games against Texas, including 28 straight losses between 1966 and 1993 and 14 straight from 1995 to the present.\n\nSee also \n List of NCAA college football rivalry games\n\nReferences\n\nCollege football rivalries in the United States\nRice Owls football\nTexas Longhorns football\n1914 establishments in Texas",
"The following television stations broadcast on digital channel 41 in the United States:\n\n K41BW-D in New Mobeetie, Texas, to move to channel 24\n K41GI-D in Imlay, Nevada, to move to channel 27\n K41HH-D in Austin, Nevada, to move to channel 21\n K41HQ-D in Quanah, Texas, to move to channel 24\n K41MX-D in Perryton, Texas\n WFRW-LD in Enterprise, Alabama, to move to channel 14\n WFYW-LP in Waterville, Maine, to move to channel 35\n WNJJ-LD in Paterson, New Jersey, to move to channel 30, on virtual channel 40\n\nThe following stations, which are no longer licensed, formerly broadcast on digital channel 41:\n K41JF-D in Hagerman, Idaho\n K41KZ-D in Chalfant Valley, California\n KLMW-LD in Lufkin, Texas\n KMMA-CD in San Luis Obispo, California\n KQLP-LD in Lincoln, Nebraska\n KTJX-LD in College Station, Texas\n WIFR in Freeport, Illinois\n WRZY-LD in Buxton, North Carolina\n\nReferences\n\n41 digital"
]
|
[
"Stephen F. Austin",
"Moving to Texas",
"Why did he move to Texas?",
"Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother,"
]
| C_1dc5f3cb170c498c93cda9aa5bae10a9_0 | Did he run for any office right away? | 2 | Did Stephen F. Austin run for any office right away? | Stephen F. Austin | During Austin's time in Arkansas, his father traveled to Spanish Texas and received an empresarial grant that would allow him to bring 300 American families to Texas, they would be called "The Old 300." Moses Austin caught pneumonia soon after returning to Missouri. He directed that his empresario grant would be taken over by his son Stephen. Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother, Mary Brown Austin, written two days before Moses Austin would die. Austin boarded the steamer, Beaver, and departed to New Orleans to meet Spanish officials led by Erasmo Seguin. He was at Natchitoches, Louisiana, on June 31, 1821, when he learned of his father's death. "This news has effected me very much, he was one of the most feeling and affectionate Fathers that ever lived. His faults I now say, and always have, were not of the heart." At the age of 24, Austin led his party to travel 300 miles (480 km) in four weeks to San Antonio with the intent of reauthorizing his father's grant, arriving on August 12. While in transit, they learned Mexico had declared its independence from Spain, and Texas had become a Mexican province, rather than a Spanish territory. Jose Antonio Navarro, a San Antonio native with ambitious visions of the future of Texas, befriended Stephen F. Austin, and the two developed a lasting association. Navarro, proficient in Spanish and Mexican law, assisted Austin in obtaining his empresario contracts. In San Antonio, the grant was reauthorized by Governor Antonio Maria Martinez, who allowed Austin to explore the Gulf Coast between San Antonio and the Brazos River to find a suitable location for a colony. As guides for the party, Manuel Becerra and three Aranama Indians, went with the expedition. Austin advertised the Texas opportunity in New Orleans, announcing that land was available along the Brazos and Colorado rivers. A family of a husband, wife, and two children would receive 1,280 acres (520 ha) at twelve and a half cents per acre. Farmers could get 177 acres (72 ha), and ranchers 4,428 acres (1,792 ha). In December 1821, the first U.S. colonists crossed into the granted territory by land and sea, on the Brazos River in present-day Brazoria County, Texas. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Stephen Fuller Austin (November 3, 1793 – December 27, 1836) was an American-born empresario. Known as the "Father of Texas" and the founder of Anglo Texas, he led the second and, ultimately, the successful colonization of the region by bringing 300 families and their slaves from the United States to the tejanos region in 1825.
Born in Virginia and raised in southeastern Missouri, Austin served in the Missouri territorial legislature before moving to Arkansas Territory and later Louisiana. His father, Moses Austin, received an empresario grant from Spain to settle Texas. After Moses Austin's death in 1821, Stephen Austin won recognition of the empresario grant from the newly independent state of Mexico. Austin convinced numerous American settlers to move to Texas, and by 1825 Austin had brought the first 300 American families into the territory. Throughout the 1820s, Austin sought to maintain good relations with the Mexican government, and he helped suppress the Fredonian Rebellion. He also helped ensure the introduction of slavery into Texas despite the attempts of the Mexican government to ban the institution. He led the initial actions against the Karankawa people in this area.
As Texas settlers became increasingly dissatisfied with the Mexican government, Austin advocated conciliation, but the dissent against Mexico escalated into the Texas Revolution. Austin led Texas forces at the successful Siege of Béxar before serving as a commissioner to the United States. Austin ran in the 1836 Texas presidential election but was defeated by Sam Houston, who entered the race just two weeks before the election. Houston appointed Austin as Secretary of State for the new republic, and Austin held that position until his death in December 1836.
Numerous places and institutions are named in his honor, including the capital of Texas, Austin County, Austin Bayou, Stephen F. Austin State University, Austin College, and numerous public schools.
Early years
Stephen F. Austin was born on November 3, 1793, in the mining region of southwestern Virginia. His parents were Mary Brown Austin and Moses Austin. In 1798, his family moved west to the lead-mining region of present-day Potosi, Missouri. Moses Austin received a sitio from the Spanish government for the mining site of Mine à Breton, established by French colonists. His great-great-grandfather, Anthony Austin (b. 1636), was the son of Richard Austin (b.1598 in Bishopstoke, Hampshire, England), he and his wife Esther were original settlers of Suffield, Massachusetts, which became Connecticut in 1749.
When Austin was eleven years old, his family sent him back east to be educated, first at the preparatory school of Bacon Academy in Colchester, Connecticut. He studied at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky, from which he graduated in 1810. After graduation, Austin began studying to be a lawyer, reading the law with an established firm.
At age 21, he was elected to and served in the legislature of the Missouri Territory. As a member of the territorial legislature, he was "influential in obtaining a charter for the struggling Bank of St. Louis". Left penniless after the Panic of 1819, Austin decided to move south to the new Arkansas Territory. He acquired property on the south bank of the Arkansas River, in the area that would later become Little Rock. After purchasing the property, he learned the area was being considered as the location for the new territorial capital, which could make his land worth a great deal more. He made his home in Hempstead County, Arkansas. Two weeks before the first Arkansas territorial elections in 1820, Austin declared his candidacy for Congress. His late entrance meant his name did not appear on the ballot in two of the five counties, but he still placed second in the field of six candidates. Later, he was appointed as a judge for the First Circuit Court. Over the next few months, Little Rock did become the territorial capital. But Austin's claim to land in the area was contested, and the courts ruled against him. The Territorial Assembly reorganized the government and abolished Austin's judgeship.
Austin left the territory, moving to Louisiana. He reached New Orleans in November 1820, where he met and stayed with Joseph H. Hawkins, a New Orleans lawyer and former Kentucky congressman. He made arrangements to study law with him.
Move to Texas
During Austin's time in Arkansas, his father traveled to Spanish Texas and received an empresarial grant that would allow him to bring 300 American families to Texas. Moses Austin caught pneumonia soon after returning to Missouri. He directed that his empresario grant would be taken over by his son Stephen. Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother, written two days before Moses' death. Austin boarded the steamer Beaver and departed to New Orleans to meet Spanish officials led by Erasmo Seguín. He was at Natchitoches, Louisiana, in 1821, when he learned of his father's death. "This news has effected me very much, he was one of the most feeling and affectionate Fathers that ever lived. His faults I now say, and always have, were not of the heart."
Austin led his party to travel in four weeks to San Antonio with the intent of reauthorizing his father's grant, arriving on August 12. While in transit, they learned Mexico had declared its independence from Spain, and Texas had become a Mexican province, rather than a Spanish territory. José Antonio Navarro, a San Antonio native with ambitious visions of the future of Texas, befriended Stephen F. Austin, and the two developed a lasting association. Navarro, proficient in Spanish and Mexican law, assisted Austin in obtaining his empresario contracts. In San Antonio, the grant was reauthorized by Governor Antonio María Martínez, who allowed Austin to explore the Gulf Coast between San Antonio and the Brazos River to find a suitable location for a colony. As guides for the party, Manuel Becerra and three Aranama Indians, went with the expedition.
Austin advertised the Texas opportunity in New Orleans, announcing that land was available along the Brazos and Colorado rivers. A family of a husband, wife, and two children would receive at twelve and a half cents per acre. Farmers could get and ranchers . In December 1821, the first U.S. colonists crossed into the granted territory by land and sea, on the Brazos River in present-day Brazoria County.
Empresario
Austin's plan for an American colony was thrown into turmoil by Mexico's gaining independence from Spain in 1821. Governor Martínez informed Austin that the junta instituyente, the new rump congress of the government of Agustín de Iturbide of Mexico, refused to recognize the land grant authorized by Spain. His government intended to use a general immigration law to regulate new settlement in Mexico. Austin traveled to Mexico City, where he persuaded the junta instituyente to approve the grant to his father, as well as the law signed by the Mexican Emperor on January 3, 1823.
The old imperial law offered heads of families a league and a labor of land, , and other inducements. It also provided for the employment of agents, called empresarios, to promote immigration. As an empresario, Austin was to receive 67,000 acres of land for each 200 families he brought to Texas. According to the law, immigrants were not required to pay fees to the government. Some of the immigrants denied Austin's right to charge them for services at the rate of 12.5 cents/acre (31 cents/ha).
When Emperor of Mexico Agustín de Iturbide abdicated in March 1823, the law was annulled once again. In April 1823, Austin induced the congress to grant him a contract to bring 300 families into Texas. He wanted honest, hard-working people who would make the colony a success. In 1824, the congress passed a new immigration law that allowed the individual states of Mexico to administer public lands and open them to settlement under certain conditions. In March 1825, the legislature of the Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas passed a law similar to the one authorized by Iturbide. The law continued the system of empresarios, as well as granting each married man a league of land, , with the stipulation that he must pay the state $30 within six years.
Austin laid claim to rich tracts of land near bays and river mouths populated by the Karankawa. The Karankawa relied on these bays for the fish and shellfish that provided their winter protein sources and thus were fiercely protective of that land. Austin wrote upon scouting the land that extermination of the Karankawa would be necessary, despite the fact that his first encounter with the tribe was friendly. He spread rumors among the settlers of cannibalism and extreme violence of the Karankawa, sometimes more specifically the Carancaguases. Research has suggested that these accusations of cannibalism were false, possibly caused by confusion with another tribe, and that the Karankawa were horrified by cannibalism when they learned of it being practiced by shipwrecked Spaniards. Austin's stories primed the colonists to believe that the Karankawa would be impossible to live among and may have contributed to the Skull Creek massacre in which an Karankawa village was razed and 19 Kawankawa Indians were killed. After the massacre, Austin continued to encourage violence both against and between the Indian tribes, culminating in 1825 with his order for all Kawankawa to be pursued and killed on sight.
By late 1825, Austin had brought the first 300 families to his settlement, the Austin Colony; these 300 are now known in Texas history as the Old Three Hundred. Austin had obtained further contracts to settle an additional 900 families between 1825 and 1829. He had effective civil and military authority over the settlers, but he was quick to introduce a semblance of American law – the Constitution of Coahuila y Tejas was agreed on in November 1827. Austin organized small, informal armed groups to protect the colonists, which evolved into the Texas Rangers. Despite his hopes, Austin was making little money from his endeavors; the colonists were unwilling to pay for his services as empresario, and most of his revenues were spent on the processes of government and other public services.
During these years, Austin, a member of Louisiana Lodge No. 111 at Ste. Genevieve, Missouri, sought to establish Freemasonry in Texas. Freemasonry was well established among the educated classes of Mexican society. It had been introduced among the aristocracy loyal to the House of Bourbon, and the conservatives had total control over the Order. By 1827, Americans living in Mexico City had introduced the United States York Rite of Freemasonry as a liberal alternative to the established European-style Scottish Rite. On February 11, 1828, Austin called a meeting of Freemasons at San Felipe to elect officers and to petition the Masonic Grand Lodge in Mexico City for a charter to form a lodge. Austin was elected Worshipful Master of the new lodge. Although the petition reached Matamoros and was to be forwarded to Mexico City, nothing more was heard of it. By 1828, the ruling faction in Mexico was afraid the liberal elements in Texas might try to gain their independence. Fully aware of the political philosophies of American Freemasons, the Mexican government outlawed Freemasonry on October 25, 1828. In 1829, Austin called another meeting, where it was decided that it was "impolitic and imprudent, at this time, to form Masonic lodges in Texas".
He was active in promoting trade and currying the good favor of the Mexican authorities, aiding them in the suppression of the Fredonian Rebellion of Haden Edwards. Some historians consider the Fredonian Rebellion to be the beginning of the Texas Revolution. Although "premature ... the Fredonian Rebellion sparked the powder for later success." For this event, Austin raised troops to fight with Mexican troops against the Texas rebels. With the colonists numbering more than 11,000 by 1832, they were becoming less amenable to Austin's cautious leadership, and also, the Mexican government was becoming less cooperative. It was concerned with the growth of the colony and the efforts of the U.S. government to buy the state from them. The Mexican government had attempted to stop further U.S. immigration as early as April 1830, but Austin's skills gained an exemption for his colonies. He granted land to immigrants based on to the husband, 320 to the wife, 160 for every child, and 80 for every slave.
Slavery
Slavery was a very important issue to Austin, one he called "of great interest" to him. Austin was a periodical slaveowner throughout his life; however, he had conflicting views about it. Theoretically, he believed slavery was wrong and went against the American ideal of liberty. In practice, however, he agreed with the social, economic, and political justifications of it, and worked hard to defend and expand it. Despite his defense of it, he also harbored concerns that the long-term effects of slavery would destroy American society. He grew particularly concerned following Nat Turner's rebellion, stating:
While Austin thought it would be advantageous some day for Texas to phase out of slavery, up until the Texas Revolution he worked to ensure that his colony's immigrants could bypass the Mexican government's resistance to it. Doing so ensured the population growth and economic development of his colony, which was primarily dependent on the monocropping of cotton and sugar. In August 1825, he recommended that the state government allow immigrants to bring their slaves with them through 1840, with the caveat that female grandchildren of the slaves would be freed by age 15 and males by age 25. His recommendation was rejected.
In 1826, when a state committee proposed abolishing slavery outright, 25 percent of the people in Austin's colony were slaves. Austin's colonists, mostly pro-slavery immigrants from the south, threatened to leave Texas if the proposition passed, while prospective Southern immigrants hesitated to come to Texas until slavery was guaranteed there. Austin conceded that the success of his colony was dependent on slavery. Without slaves, the colonists would lack the mass labor to cultivate the land, which would stall the pace of immigration needed to develop and increase the value of the land, and would deflate the economy and motivate his colonists to leave.
Austin went before the legislature and pleaded that, at the least, his original 300 families should be allowed to keep their slaves. He argued against the "bad faith" of freeing them, demanded reparations to slaveowners for every slave emancipated by the state, warned that the loss of slaves could leave some colonists destitute, and reasoned that freeing them would not only leave his settlers alone in the harsh Texas environment, but would also expose them to the discomfort and nuisance of living amongst freed slaves, who would become vagrants seeking retribution upon their former owners. While he waited for the legislature's verdict of his request, Austin went into a deep depression over the issue and sent his brother, Brown Austin, to further lobby the legislature on his behalf.
In March 1827, the legislature signed Article 13 into law. Despite the law complying with some of his requests, Austin called it "unconstitutional". He contested the law as it freed the children of slaves at birth, established a six-month grace period before fully emancipating all slaves in the state, and included provisions to improve the conditions of slaves and transitioning freedmen. Austin –– who had been so effective in persuading the legislature, however, that the author of Article 13 (before its passage) requested to withdraw it –– helped his colonists evade the law by advising them to legally supplant the word "slave" with the words "workingmen," "family servants," and "laborers," and by working to pass a decree that banned freedmen from Texas and forced emancipated slaves to work for their former slaveowners until the accrued "debt" (e.g. clothing, food), incurred for their own enslavement, was worked off.
In 1828, Austin petitioned the legislature to guarantee that slaveowners, immigrating to Texas, could legally "free" their slaves before immigrating, and contract them into a lifetime term of indentured servitude, thereby avoiding recognizing them as slaves. He lobbied to help his colony elude Vicente Guerrero's 1829 attempt to legally emancipate slaves in the province, and to bypass the government's effort to prohibit slavery when it passed the Law of April 6, 1830. In 1830, Austin wrote that he would oppose Texas joining the United States without guarantees that he should "insist on the perpetual exclusion of slavery from this state [Texas]". In 1833, he wrote:
In May 1835, Austin's colonists learned that Mexico's tolerance for the evasions of slaveowners was drawing to a close, with its proposal of new abolition legislation. Alarmed, and with Austin imprisoned in Mexico for pushing for independence, colonists turned against the Mexican government, calling it "oppressive" and a "plundering, robbing, autocratical government" without regard for the security of "life, liberty or property". Resisting the impact a changed slavery policy would have on economic growth, and fearing rumors of Mexico's plan to free the slaves and turn them loose upon the colonists, shortly after Austin returned from Mexico, he and his colonists took up arms against the Mexican government. Austin later gained U.S. Government support for his revolution when he wrote to Senator Lewis F. Linn and pleaded that Santa Anna planned to "exterminate" all of the colonists and fill Texas "with Indians and negroes [freed slaves]".
Relations with Mexico
Immigration controls and the introduction of tariff laws had done much to dissatisfy the colonists, peaking in the Anahuac Disturbances. Austin became involved in Mexican politics, supporting the upstart Antonio López de Santa Anna. Following the success of Santa Anna, the colonists sought a compensatory reward, proclaimed at the Convention of 1832—resumption of immigration, tariff exemption, separation from Coahuila, and a new state government for Texas. Austin did not support these demands; he considered them ill-timed and tried to moderate them. When they were repeated and extended at the Convention of 1833, Austin traveled to Mexico City on July 18, 1833, and met with Vice President Valentín Gomez Farías. Austin did gain certain important reforms; the immigration ban was lifted, but a separate state government was not authorized. Statehood in Mexico required a population of 80,000, and Texas had only 30,000.
Believing that he was pushing for Texas independence and suspect that he was trying to incite insurrection, Austin was arrested by the Mexican government in January 1834 in Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico. He was taken to Mexico City and imprisoned. No charges were filed against him as no court would take jurisdiction. He was moved from prison to prison. He was released under bond in December 1834 and required to stay in the Federal District. He was fully freed under the general amnesty in July 1835 and in August 1835 left Mexico to return to Texas via New Orleans.
Texas Revolution
In his absence, several events propelled the colonists toward confrontation with Santa Anna's centralist government. Austin took temporary command of the Texian forces during the Siege of Béxar from October 12 to December 11, 1835. After learning of the Disturbances at Anahuac and Velasco in the summer of 1835, an enraged Santa Anna made rapid preparations for the Mexican army to sweep Anglo settlers from Texas. War began in October 1835 at Gonzales. The Republic of Texas, created by a new constitution on March 2, 1836, won independence following a string of defeats with the dramatic turnabout victory at the Battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836, and the capture of Santa Anna the following morning. He was then imprisoned.
Republic of Texas
In December 1835, Austin, Branch Archer, and William H. Wharton were appointed commissioners to the U.S. by the provisional government of the republic. On June 10, 1836, Austin was in New Orleans, where he received word of Santa Anna's defeat by Sam Houston at the Battle of San Jacinto. Austin returned to Texas to rest at Peach Point in August. On August 4, he announced his candidacy for president of Texas. Austin felt confident he could win the election until two weeks before the election, when on August 20, Houston entered the race. Austin wrote, "Many of the old settlers who are too blind to see or understand their interest will vote for him." Houston carried East Texas, the Red River region, and most of the soldiers' votes. Austin received 587 votes to Sam Houston's 5,119 and Henry Smith's 743 votes. Houston appointed Austin as the first secretary of state of the new republic; however, Austin only served approximately two months before his death.
Death and estate
In December 1836, Austin was in the new capital of Columbia (now known as West Columbia) where he caught a severe cold; his condition worsened. Doctors were called in but could not help him. Austin died of pneumonia at noon on December 27, 1836. He was at the home of George B. McKinstry, near what is now West Columbia, Texas. He was 43. Austin's last words were "The independence of Texas is recognized! Don't you see it in the papers?..." Upon hearing of Austin's death, Houston ordered an official statement proclaiming: "The Father of Texas is no more; the first pioneer of the wilderness has departed." Originally, Austin was buried at Gulf Prairie Cemetery in Brazoria County, Texas. In 1910 Austin's body was reinterred at the Texas State Cemetery in Austin. Austin never married, nor did he have any children. He bequeathed all his land, titles, and possessions, to his married sister, Emily Austin Perry.
Monuments
Sherman, Texas, is the home of Austin College.
Nacogdoches, Texas, is the home of Stephen F. Austin State University.
Both Austin, Texas, and Austin County, Texas, are named after Stephen F. Austin.
Angleton, Texas, features a statue of Austin, sponsored by The Stephen F. Austin 500, sculpted by David Adickes, with a base of 12-feet and a total statue height of 72-feet. The base is 2 feet taller than the base of the Sam Houston statue in Huntsville, Texas, but the statue is 7 feet shorter.
The National Statuary Hall Collection permits each state to select just two statues for display at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. Texas selected Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin; these statues were sculpted by German immigrant Elisabet Ney.
Gulf Prairie Cemetery, his original place of burial.
In 1959, Austin was posthumously inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners at the National Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
In Austinville, Virginia, Austin's birthplace, a monument was erected along the New River near a junction with the New River Trail State Park.
In Bellville, Texas, the county seat of Austin County, a large bust of Austin by sculptor David Adickes is located at the intersection of State Highways 36 and 159.
John Carter played Austin in the 1969 episode "Here Stands Bailey" of the syndicated television series Death Valley Days, hosted by Robert Taylor not long before Taylor's own death. In the story line, the hardy, cantankerous pioneer James Briton "Brit" Bailey (Paul Fix) and his wife, Hannah (Rosemary DeCamp), make their final settlement in southeastern Texas after having overcome many obstacles over the years. Now they face Austin's order that they leave their land; however, Austin has a change of heart and asks them to stay. Bailey dies with his final wish of interment standing upright facing west, hence his grave marker, "Here Stands Bailey Facing West".
Past family
While Stephen F. Austin and his sister Emily have each been the subject of biography, they are descended from several generations of noteworthy people, including: Moses Austin (father—biography published by Trinity University Press), Abia Brown (grandfather), Joseph Sharp (great grandfather), Isaac Sharp (great, great grandfather), Anthony Sharp (great, great, great grandfather—biography published by Stanford University Press). Accordingly, history records noteworthy social contributions in each generation of Stephen's family dating back to the early seventeenth century. Richard Austin, a native of Titchfield, Hampshire was his paternal emigrant ancestor.
See also
James Elijah "Brown" Austin, his brother
José María Jesús Carbajal, mentored by Austin
Peach Point Plantation, his residence
Thomas J. Pilgrim, his friend and Spanish interpreter
James Bryan, his brother-in-law (first husband to Emily)
James Franklin Perry, his brother-in-law (second husband to Emily)
List of Notable Freemasons
O. P. Q. Letters
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
Ellis P. Bean, Stephen F. Austin, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
Biography of Stephen F. Austin from The Biographical Encyclopedia of Texas, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
Austin's Colonization Laws, 1822 from Gammel's Laws of Texas, Vol. I. hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
1793 births
1836 deaths
Members of the Missouri Territorial Legislature
Convention of 1832 delegates
Texas Consultation delegates
American emigrants to Mexico
People of the Texas Revolution
American people of English descent
People from Jones Creek, Texas
People from Wythe County, Virginia
People from Potosi, Missouri
Texas Ranger Division
Burials at Texas State Cemetery
Transylvania University alumni
American Freemasons
History of Austin, Texas
19th-century Mexican politicians
American slave owners
Deaths from pneumonia in Texas
American proslavery activists
Ranchers from Texas
19th-century American politicians
Bacon Academy alumni | false | [
"The 2016 Missouri Attorney General election was held on November 8, 2016, to elect the Attorney General of Missouri, concurrently with the 2016 U.S. presidential election, as well as elections to the United States Senate and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Republican Josh Hawley defeated the Democratic nominee Teresa Hensley.\n\nIncumbent Democratic Attorney General Chris Koster did not run for re-election to a third term in office, but was instead the unsuccessful Democratic nominee for Governor.\n\nDemocratic primary\n\nCandidates\n\nDeclared\n Teresa Hensley, former Cass County Prosecuting Attorney and nominee for MO-04 in 2012\n Jake Zimmerman, St. Louis County Assessor, former state representative and former assistant attorney general\n\nWithdrawn\n Scott Sifton, state senator (running for re-election)\n\nDeclined\n Jennifer Joyce, St. Louis Circuit Attorney\n Jason Kander, Missouri Secretary of State (running for the U.S. Senate)\n Chris Koster, incumbent Attorney General (running for Governor)\n Joe Maxwell, former Lieutenant Governor of Missouri\n Jean Peters Baker, Jackson County Prosecuting Attorney\n Mike Sanders, Jackson County Executive, former Jackson County Prosecuting Attorney and former Chairman of the Missouri Democratic Party\n\nEndorsements\n\nPolling\n\nResults\n\nRepublican primary\n\nCandidates\n\nDeclared\n Josh Hawley, law professor at University of Missouri School of Law and former clerk for United States Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts\n Kurt Schaefer, state senator\n\nDeclined\n Catherine Hanaway, former Speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives and former U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri (running for Governor)\n Tim Jones, Speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives\n Eric Schmitt, state senator (running for state treasurer)\n\nControversy\nAllegations of abuse of office by Missouri attorney general candidate Kurt Schaefer have surfaced: Schaefer allegedly pressured the former University of Missouri System President Tim Wolfe to interfere with Josh Hawley's ability to run for attorney general. Hawley was a professor at the University of Missouri. Wolfe wrote in a January 19 email: \"Schaefer had several meetings with me pressuring me to take away Josh Hawley's right to run for Attorney General by taking away an employee's right to ask for an unpaid leave of absence when running for public office.\" The email went on to say he was worried that Schaefer might influence cuts in the university's budget due to political fallout if he did not do as Schaefer asked.\n\nEndorsements\n\nPolling\n\nResults\n\nGeneral election\n\nPolling\n\nResults\n\nSee also\nMissouri gubernatorial election, 2016\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nOfficial campaign websites\n Josh Hawley for Attorney General\n Teresa Hensley for Attorney General\n Kurt Schaefer for Attorney General\n Jake Zimmerman for Attorney General\n\nAttorney General\nMissouri\nMissouri Attorney General elections",
"Michael Hanna (born 6 June 1926 at Camberwell, London), played first-class cricket for Somerset and List A and Minor Counties cricket for Wiltshire. He also played rugby union for Bath and for Somerset.\n\nAs a cricketer, Hanna was a right-handed lower-order batsman and a wicketkeeper whose opportunities to play county cricket in the 1950s were limited by the presence of Harold Stephenson in the Somerset side. Hanna played one match against Nottinghamshire at Yeovil in 1951: in a rain-affected match, Nottinghamshire made 401 for seven wickets, and Hanna did not take a catch or, when Somerset batted, score a run. His only other first-class match, three years later against Northamptonshire, was no more successful. Northamptonshire made 362 for two wickets and though Somerset avoided being beaten by an innings, the match was lost by 10 wickets. Again Hanna did not take a catch, though this time he made 4 not out in the first innings and a single in the second.\n\nFrom 1957 to 1968, Hanna played Minor Counties cricket for Wiltshire, and in 1964 and 1965 he played in Gillette Cup matches for the team against first-class county sides. He scored four runs against Hampshire in 1964 and one run against Nottinghamshire in 1965, but in neither match did he take any catches or effect any stumpings.\n\nAs a rugby player, he was scrum-half for both Bath and Somerset.\n\nReferences\n\n1926 births\nPossibly living people\nEnglish cricketers\nEnglish rugby union players\nRugby union players from Camberwell\nSomerset cricketers\nWiltshire cricketers"
]
|
[
"Stephen F. Austin",
"Moving to Texas",
"Why did he move to Texas?",
"Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother,",
"Did he run for any office right away?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_1dc5f3cb170c498c93cda9aa5bae10a9_0 | Did his father own property in Texas? | 3 | Did Stephen F. Austin's father own property in Texas? | Stephen F. Austin | During Austin's time in Arkansas, his father traveled to Spanish Texas and received an empresarial grant that would allow him to bring 300 American families to Texas, they would be called "The Old 300." Moses Austin caught pneumonia soon after returning to Missouri. He directed that his empresario grant would be taken over by his son Stephen. Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother, Mary Brown Austin, written two days before Moses Austin would die. Austin boarded the steamer, Beaver, and departed to New Orleans to meet Spanish officials led by Erasmo Seguin. He was at Natchitoches, Louisiana, on June 31, 1821, when he learned of his father's death. "This news has effected me very much, he was one of the most feeling and affectionate Fathers that ever lived. His faults I now say, and always have, were not of the heart." At the age of 24, Austin led his party to travel 300 miles (480 km) in four weeks to San Antonio with the intent of reauthorizing his father's grant, arriving on August 12. While in transit, they learned Mexico had declared its independence from Spain, and Texas had become a Mexican province, rather than a Spanish territory. Jose Antonio Navarro, a San Antonio native with ambitious visions of the future of Texas, befriended Stephen F. Austin, and the two developed a lasting association. Navarro, proficient in Spanish and Mexican law, assisted Austin in obtaining his empresario contracts. In San Antonio, the grant was reauthorized by Governor Antonio Maria Martinez, who allowed Austin to explore the Gulf Coast between San Antonio and the Brazos River to find a suitable location for a colony. As guides for the party, Manuel Becerra and three Aranama Indians, went with the expedition. Austin advertised the Texas opportunity in New Orleans, announcing that land was available along the Brazos and Colorado rivers. A family of a husband, wife, and two children would receive 1,280 acres (520 ha) at twelve and a half cents per acre. Farmers could get 177 acres (72 ha), and ranchers 4,428 acres (1,792 ha). In December 1821, the first U.S. colonists crossed into the granted territory by land and sea, on the Brazos River in present-day Brazoria County, Texas. CANNOTANSWER | his father traveled to Spanish Texas and received an empresarial grant that would allow him to bring 300 American families to Texas, | Stephen Fuller Austin (November 3, 1793 – December 27, 1836) was an American-born empresario. Known as the "Father of Texas" and the founder of Anglo Texas, he led the second and, ultimately, the successful colonization of the region by bringing 300 families and their slaves from the United States to the tejanos region in 1825.
Born in Virginia and raised in southeastern Missouri, Austin served in the Missouri territorial legislature before moving to Arkansas Territory and later Louisiana. His father, Moses Austin, received an empresario grant from Spain to settle Texas. After Moses Austin's death in 1821, Stephen Austin won recognition of the empresario grant from the newly independent state of Mexico. Austin convinced numerous American settlers to move to Texas, and by 1825 Austin had brought the first 300 American families into the territory. Throughout the 1820s, Austin sought to maintain good relations with the Mexican government, and he helped suppress the Fredonian Rebellion. He also helped ensure the introduction of slavery into Texas despite the attempts of the Mexican government to ban the institution. He led the initial actions against the Karankawa people in this area.
As Texas settlers became increasingly dissatisfied with the Mexican government, Austin advocated conciliation, but the dissent against Mexico escalated into the Texas Revolution. Austin led Texas forces at the successful Siege of Béxar before serving as a commissioner to the United States. Austin ran in the 1836 Texas presidential election but was defeated by Sam Houston, who entered the race just two weeks before the election. Houston appointed Austin as Secretary of State for the new republic, and Austin held that position until his death in December 1836.
Numerous places and institutions are named in his honor, including the capital of Texas, Austin County, Austin Bayou, Stephen F. Austin State University, Austin College, and numerous public schools.
Early years
Stephen F. Austin was born on November 3, 1793, in the mining region of southwestern Virginia. His parents were Mary Brown Austin and Moses Austin. In 1798, his family moved west to the lead-mining region of present-day Potosi, Missouri. Moses Austin received a sitio from the Spanish government for the mining site of Mine à Breton, established by French colonists. His great-great-grandfather, Anthony Austin (b. 1636), was the son of Richard Austin (b.1598 in Bishopstoke, Hampshire, England), he and his wife Esther were original settlers of Suffield, Massachusetts, which became Connecticut in 1749.
When Austin was eleven years old, his family sent him back east to be educated, first at the preparatory school of Bacon Academy in Colchester, Connecticut. He studied at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky, from which he graduated in 1810. After graduation, Austin began studying to be a lawyer, reading the law with an established firm.
At age 21, he was elected to and served in the legislature of the Missouri Territory. As a member of the territorial legislature, he was "influential in obtaining a charter for the struggling Bank of St. Louis". Left penniless after the Panic of 1819, Austin decided to move south to the new Arkansas Territory. He acquired property on the south bank of the Arkansas River, in the area that would later become Little Rock. After purchasing the property, he learned the area was being considered as the location for the new territorial capital, which could make his land worth a great deal more. He made his home in Hempstead County, Arkansas. Two weeks before the first Arkansas territorial elections in 1820, Austin declared his candidacy for Congress. His late entrance meant his name did not appear on the ballot in two of the five counties, but he still placed second in the field of six candidates. Later, he was appointed as a judge for the First Circuit Court. Over the next few months, Little Rock did become the territorial capital. But Austin's claim to land in the area was contested, and the courts ruled against him. The Territorial Assembly reorganized the government and abolished Austin's judgeship.
Austin left the territory, moving to Louisiana. He reached New Orleans in November 1820, where he met and stayed with Joseph H. Hawkins, a New Orleans lawyer and former Kentucky congressman. He made arrangements to study law with him.
Move to Texas
During Austin's time in Arkansas, his father traveled to Spanish Texas and received an empresarial grant that would allow him to bring 300 American families to Texas. Moses Austin caught pneumonia soon after returning to Missouri. He directed that his empresario grant would be taken over by his son Stephen. Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother, written two days before Moses' death. Austin boarded the steamer Beaver and departed to New Orleans to meet Spanish officials led by Erasmo Seguín. He was at Natchitoches, Louisiana, in 1821, when he learned of his father's death. "This news has effected me very much, he was one of the most feeling and affectionate Fathers that ever lived. His faults I now say, and always have, were not of the heart."
Austin led his party to travel in four weeks to San Antonio with the intent of reauthorizing his father's grant, arriving on August 12. While in transit, they learned Mexico had declared its independence from Spain, and Texas had become a Mexican province, rather than a Spanish territory. José Antonio Navarro, a San Antonio native with ambitious visions of the future of Texas, befriended Stephen F. Austin, and the two developed a lasting association. Navarro, proficient in Spanish and Mexican law, assisted Austin in obtaining his empresario contracts. In San Antonio, the grant was reauthorized by Governor Antonio María Martínez, who allowed Austin to explore the Gulf Coast between San Antonio and the Brazos River to find a suitable location for a colony. As guides for the party, Manuel Becerra and three Aranama Indians, went with the expedition.
Austin advertised the Texas opportunity in New Orleans, announcing that land was available along the Brazos and Colorado rivers. A family of a husband, wife, and two children would receive at twelve and a half cents per acre. Farmers could get and ranchers . In December 1821, the first U.S. colonists crossed into the granted territory by land and sea, on the Brazos River in present-day Brazoria County.
Empresario
Austin's plan for an American colony was thrown into turmoil by Mexico's gaining independence from Spain in 1821. Governor Martínez informed Austin that the junta instituyente, the new rump congress of the government of Agustín de Iturbide of Mexico, refused to recognize the land grant authorized by Spain. His government intended to use a general immigration law to regulate new settlement in Mexico. Austin traveled to Mexico City, where he persuaded the junta instituyente to approve the grant to his father, as well as the law signed by the Mexican Emperor on January 3, 1823.
The old imperial law offered heads of families a league and a labor of land, , and other inducements. It also provided for the employment of agents, called empresarios, to promote immigration. As an empresario, Austin was to receive 67,000 acres of land for each 200 families he brought to Texas. According to the law, immigrants were not required to pay fees to the government. Some of the immigrants denied Austin's right to charge them for services at the rate of 12.5 cents/acre (31 cents/ha).
When Emperor of Mexico Agustín de Iturbide abdicated in March 1823, the law was annulled once again. In April 1823, Austin induced the congress to grant him a contract to bring 300 families into Texas. He wanted honest, hard-working people who would make the colony a success. In 1824, the congress passed a new immigration law that allowed the individual states of Mexico to administer public lands and open them to settlement under certain conditions. In March 1825, the legislature of the Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas passed a law similar to the one authorized by Iturbide. The law continued the system of empresarios, as well as granting each married man a league of land, , with the stipulation that he must pay the state $30 within six years.
Austin laid claim to rich tracts of land near bays and river mouths populated by the Karankawa. The Karankawa relied on these bays for the fish and shellfish that provided their winter protein sources and thus were fiercely protective of that land. Austin wrote upon scouting the land that extermination of the Karankawa would be necessary, despite the fact that his first encounter with the tribe was friendly. He spread rumors among the settlers of cannibalism and extreme violence of the Karankawa, sometimes more specifically the Carancaguases. Research has suggested that these accusations of cannibalism were false, possibly caused by confusion with another tribe, and that the Karankawa were horrified by cannibalism when they learned of it being practiced by shipwrecked Spaniards. Austin's stories primed the colonists to believe that the Karankawa would be impossible to live among and may have contributed to the Skull Creek massacre in which an Karankawa village was razed and 19 Kawankawa Indians were killed. After the massacre, Austin continued to encourage violence both against and between the Indian tribes, culminating in 1825 with his order for all Kawankawa to be pursued and killed on sight.
By late 1825, Austin had brought the first 300 families to his settlement, the Austin Colony; these 300 are now known in Texas history as the Old Three Hundred. Austin had obtained further contracts to settle an additional 900 families between 1825 and 1829. He had effective civil and military authority over the settlers, but he was quick to introduce a semblance of American law – the Constitution of Coahuila y Tejas was agreed on in November 1827. Austin organized small, informal armed groups to protect the colonists, which evolved into the Texas Rangers. Despite his hopes, Austin was making little money from his endeavors; the colonists were unwilling to pay for his services as empresario, and most of his revenues were spent on the processes of government and other public services.
During these years, Austin, a member of Louisiana Lodge No. 111 at Ste. Genevieve, Missouri, sought to establish Freemasonry in Texas. Freemasonry was well established among the educated classes of Mexican society. It had been introduced among the aristocracy loyal to the House of Bourbon, and the conservatives had total control over the Order. By 1827, Americans living in Mexico City had introduced the United States York Rite of Freemasonry as a liberal alternative to the established European-style Scottish Rite. On February 11, 1828, Austin called a meeting of Freemasons at San Felipe to elect officers and to petition the Masonic Grand Lodge in Mexico City for a charter to form a lodge. Austin was elected Worshipful Master of the new lodge. Although the petition reached Matamoros and was to be forwarded to Mexico City, nothing more was heard of it. By 1828, the ruling faction in Mexico was afraid the liberal elements in Texas might try to gain their independence. Fully aware of the political philosophies of American Freemasons, the Mexican government outlawed Freemasonry on October 25, 1828. In 1829, Austin called another meeting, where it was decided that it was "impolitic and imprudent, at this time, to form Masonic lodges in Texas".
He was active in promoting trade and currying the good favor of the Mexican authorities, aiding them in the suppression of the Fredonian Rebellion of Haden Edwards. Some historians consider the Fredonian Rebellion to be the beginning of the Texas Revolution. Although "premature ... the Fredonian Rebellion sparked the powder for later success." For this event, Austin raised troops to fight with Mexican troops against the Texas rebels. With the colonists numbering more than 11,000 by 1832, they were becoming less amenable to Austin's cautious leadership, and also, the Mexican government was becoming less cooperative. It was concerned with the growth of the colony and the efforts of the U.S. government to buy the state from them. The Mexican government had attempted to stop further U.S. immigration as early as April 1830, but Austin's skills gained an exemption for his colonies. He granted land to immigrants based on to the husband, 320 to the wife, 160 for every child, and 80 for every slave.
Slavery
Slavery was a very important issue to Austin, one he called "of great interest" to him. Austin was a periodical slaveowner throughout his life; however, he had conflicting views about it. Theoretically, he believed slavery was wrong and went against the American ideal of liberty. In practice, however, he agreed with the social, economic, and political justifications of it, and worked hard to defend and expand it. Despite his defense of it, he also harbored concerns that the long-term effects of slavery would destroy American society. He grew particularly concerned following Nat Turner's rebellion, stating:
While Austin thought it would be advantageous some day for Texas to phase out of slavery, up until the Texas Revolution he worked to ensure that his colony's immigrants could bypass the Mexican government's resistance to it. Doing so ensured the population growth and economic development of his colony, which was primarily dependent on the monocropping of cotton and sugar. In August 1825, he recommended that the state government allow immigrants to bring their slaves with them through 1840, with the caveat that female grandchildren of the slaves would be freed by age 15 and males by age 25. His recommendation was rejected.
In 1826, when a state committee proposed abolishing slavery outright, 25 percent of the people in Austin's colony were slaves. Austin's colonists, mostly pro-slavery immigrants from the south, threatened to leave Texas if the proposition passed, while prospective Southern immigrants hesitated to come to Texas until slavery was guaranteed there. Austin conceded that the success of his colony was dependent on slavery. Without slaves, the colonists would lack the mass labor to cultivate the land, which would stall the pace of immigration needed to develop and increase the value of the land, and would deflate the economy and motivate his colonists to leave.
Austin went before the legislature and pleaded that, at the least, his original 300 families should be allowed to keep their slaves. He argued against the "bad faith" of freeing them, demanded reparations to slaveowners for every slave emancipated by the state, warned that the loss of slaves could leave some colonists destitute, and reasoned that freeing them would not only leave his settlers alone in the harsh Texas environment, but would also expose them to the discomfort and nuisance of living amongst freed slaves, who would become vagrants seeking retribution upon their former owners. While he waited for the legislature's verdict of his request, Austin went into a deep depression over the issue and sent his brother, Brown Austin, to further lobby the legislature on his behalf.
In March 1827, the legislature signed Article 13 into law. Despite the law complying with some of his requests, Austin called it "unconstitutional". He contested the law as it freed the children of slaves at birth, established a six-month grace period before fully emancipating all slaves in the state, and included provisions to improve the conditions of slaves and transitioning freedmen. Austin –– who had been so effective in persuading the legislature, however, that the author of Article 13 (before its passage) requested to withdraw it –– helped his colonists evade the law by advising them to legally supplant the word "slave" with the words "workingmen," "family servants," and "laborers," and by working to pass a decree that banned freedmen from Texas and forced emancipated slaves to work for their former slaveowners until the accrued "debt" (e.g. clothing, food), incurred for their own enslavement, was worked off.
In 1828, Austin petitioned the legislature to guarantee that slaveowners, immigrating to Texas, could legally "free" their slaves before immigrating, and contract them into a lifetime term of indentured servitude, thereby avoiding recognizing them as slaves. He lobbied to help his colony elude Vicente Guerrero's 1829 attempt to legally emancipate slaves in the province, and to bypass the government's effort to prohibit slavery when it passed the Law of April 6, 1830. In 1830, Austin wrote that he would oppose Texas joining the United States without guarantees that he should "insist on the perpetual exclusion of slavery from this state [Texas]". In 1833, he wrote:
In May 1835, Austin's colonists learned that Mexico's tolerance for the evasions of slaveowners was drawing to a close, with its proposal of new abolition legislation. Alarmed, and with Austin imprisoned in Mexico for pushing for independence, colonists turned against the Mexican government, calling it "oppressive" and a "plundering, robbing, autocratical government" without regard for the security of "life, liberty or property". Resisting the impact a changed slavery policy would have on economic growth, and fearing rumors of Mexico's plan to free the slaves and turn them loose upon the colonists, shortly after Austin returned from Mexico, he and his colonists took up arms against the Mexican government. Austin later gained U.S. Government support for his revolution when he wrote to Senator Lewis F. Linn and pleaded that Santa Anna planned to "exterminate" all of the colonists and fill Texas "with Indians and negroes [freed slaves]".
Relations with Mexico
Immigration controls and the introduction of tariff laws had done much to dissatisfy the colonists, peaking in the Anahuac Disturbances. Austin became involved in Mexican politics, supporting the upstart Antonio López de Santa Anna. Following the success of Santa Anna, the colonists sought a compensatory reward, proclaimed at the Convention of 1832—resumption of immigration, tariff exemption, separation from Coahuila, and a new state government for Texas. Austin did not support these demands; he considered them ill-timed and tried to moderate them. When they were repeated and extended at the Convention of 1833, Austin traveled to Mexico City on July 18, 1833, and met with Vice President Valentín Gomez Farías. Austin did gain certain important reforms; the immigration ban was lifted, but a separate state government was not authorized. Statehood in Mexico required a population of 80,000, and Texas had only 30,000.
Believing that he was pushing for Texas independence and suspect that he was trying to incite insurrection, Austin was arrested by the Mexican government in January 1834 in Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico. He was taken to Mexico City and imprisoned. No charges were filed against him as no court would take jurisdiction. He was moved from prison to prison. He was released under bond in December 1834 and required to stay in the Federal District. He was fully freed under the general amnesty in July 1835 and in August 1835 left Mexico to return to Texas via New Orleans.
Texas Revolution
In his absence, several events propelled the colonists toward confrontation with Santa Anna's centralist government. Austin took temporary command of the Texian forces during the Siege of Béxar from October 12 to December 11, 1835. After learning of the Disturbances at Anahuac and Velasco in the summer of 1835, an enraged Santa Anna made rapid preparations for the Mexican army to sweep Anglo settlers from Texas. War began in October 1835 at Gonzales. The Republic of Texas, created by a new constitution on March 2, 1836, won independence following a string of defeats with the dramatic turnabout victory at the Battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836, and the capture of Santa Anna the following morning. He was then imprisoned.
Republic of Texas
In December 1835, Austin, Branch Archer, and William H. Wharton were appointed commissioners to the U.S. by the provisional government of the republic. On June 10, 1836, Austin was in New Orleans, where he received word of Santa Anna's defeat by Sam Houston at the Battle of San Jacinto. Austin returned to Texas to rest at Peach Point in August. On August 4, he announced his candidacy for president of Texas. Austin felt confident he could win the election until two weeks before the election, when on August 20, Houston entered the race. Austin wrote, "Many of the old settlers who are too blind to see or understand their interest will vote for him." Houston carried East Texas, the Red River region, and most of the soldiers' votes. Austin received 587 votes to Sam Houston's 5,119 and Henry Smith's 743 votes. Houston appointed Austin as the first secretary of state of the new republic; however, Austin only served approximately two months before his death.
Death and estate
In December 1836, Austin was in the new capital of Columbia (now known as West Columbia) where he caught a severe cold; his condition worsened. Doctors were called in but could not help him. Austin died of pneumonia at noon on December 27, 1836. He was at the home of George B. McKinstry, near what is now West Columbia, Texas. He was 43. Austin's last words were "The independence of Texas is recognized! Don't you see it in the papers?..." Upon hearing of Austin's death, Houston ordered an official statement proclaiming: "The Father of Texas is no more; the first pioneer of the wilderness has departed." Originally, Austin was buried at Gulf Prairie Cemetery in Brazoria County, Texas. In 1910 Austin's body was reinterred at the Texas State Cemetery in Austin. Austin never married, nor did he have any children. He bequeathed all his land, titles, and possessions, to his married sister, Emily Austin Perry.
Monuments
Sherman, Texas, is the home of Austin College.
Nacogdoches, Texas, is the home of Stephen F. Austin State University.
Both Austin, Texas, and Austin County, Texas, are named after Stephen F. Austin.
Angleton, Texas, features a statue of Austin, sponsored by The Stephen F. Austin 500, sculpted by David Adickes, with a base of 12-feet and a total statue height of 72-feet. The base is 2 feet taller than the base of the Sam Houston statue in Huntsville, Texas, but the statue is 7 feet shorter.
The National Statuary Hall Collection permits each state to select just two statues for display at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. Texas selected Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin; these statues were sculpted by German immigrant Elisabet Ney.
Gulf Prairie Cemetery, his original place of burial.
In 1959, Austin was posthumously inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners at the National Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
In Austinville, Virginia, Austin's birthplace, a monument was erected along the New River near a junction with the New River Trail State Park.
In Bellville, Texas, the county seat of Austin County, a large bust of Austin by sculptor David Adickes is located at the intersection of State Highways 36 and 159.
John Carter played Austin in the 1969 episode "Here Stands Bailey" of the syndicated television series Death Valley Days, hosted by Robert Taylor not long before Taylor's own death. In the story line, the hardy, cantankerous pioneer James Briton "Brit" Bailey (Paul Fix) and his wife, Hannah (Rosemary DeCamp), make their final settlement in southeastern Texas after having overcome many obstacles over the years. Now they face Austin's order that they leave their land; however, Austin has a change of heart and asks them to stay. Bailey dies with his final wish of interment standing upright facing west, hence his grave marker, "Here Stands Bailey Facing West".
Past family
While Stephen F. Austin and his sister Emily have each been the subject of biography, they are descended from several generations of noteworthy people, including: Moses Austin (father—biography published by Trinity University Press), Abia Brown (grandfather), Joseph Sharp (great grandfather), Isaac Sharp (great, great grandfather), Anthony Sharp (great, great, great grandfather—biography published by Stanford University Press). Accordingly, history records noteworthy social contributions in each generation of Stephen's family dating back to the early seventeenth century. Richard Austin, a native of Titchfield, Hampshire was his paternal emigrant ancestor.
See also
James Elijah "Brown" Austin, his brother
José María Jesús Carbajal, mentored by Austin
Peach Point Plantation, his residence
Thomas J. Pilgrim, his friend and Spanish interpreter
James Bryan, his brother-in-law (first husband to Emily)
James Franklin Perry, his brother-in-law (second husband to Emily)
List of Notable Freemasons
O. P. Q. Letters
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
Ellis P. Bean, Stephen F. Austin, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
Biography of Stephen F. Austin from The Biographical Encyclopedia of Texas, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
Austin's Colonization Laws, 1822 from Gammel's Laws of Texas, Vol. I. hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
1793 births
1836 deaths
Members of the Missouri Territorial Legislature
Convention of 1832 delegates
Texas Consultation delegates
American emigrants to Mexico
People of the Texas Revolution
American people of English descent
People from Jones Creek, Texas
People from Wythe County, Virginia
People from Potosi, Missouri
Texas Ranger Division
Burials at Texas State Cemetery
Transylvania University alumni
American Freemasons
History of Austin, Texas
19th-century Mexican politicians
American slave owners
Deaths from pneumonia in Texas
American proslavery activists
Ranchers from Texas
19th-century American politicians
Bacon Academy alumni | false | [
"The Sterne–Hoya House Museum and Library is located at 211 S. Lanana, in the city and county of Nacogdoches, in the U.S. state of Texas. It is on the National Register of Historic Places listings in Nacogdoches County and is a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark. Davy Crockett was a guest in the house, and Sam Houston was baptized in the house.\n\nHistory\nAdolphus Sterne was an immigrant from Cologne, Germany. During a sojourn through Tennessee, he became friends with Sam Houston. He moved to Nacogdoches in 1826. Sterne became a munitions smuggler during the Fredonian Rebellion. He was a financier of the Texas Revolution. When Texas became a state, Sterne served in both houses of the legislature. In 1830, he built the house at 211 S. Lanana. Davy Crockett was a guest in the house for two weeks of 1835. Sam Houston was baptized into the Catholic faith in the parlor of this house, thereby meeting the requirements of the Mexican government to settle in Coahuila y Tejas and own property.\n\nThe house is a -story wood-frame construction on a brick pier foundation. A Victorian porch serves as the entrance. On the same lot, to the rear of the main house, is the servants quarters. Sterne also built a stable, smoke house, hen house and corn crib on the property, but they are no longer there. Sterne made modifications and repairs in the two decades following the home's original construction.\n\nCharles Hoya was a county surveyor in Nacogdoches, operating the Hoya Land Office Building on the downtown square. His father Joseph T. Von der Hoya was a Prussian immigrant. Hoya, his wife Frances, and his father lived in the house at 211 S. Lanana, which the Hoya family purchased in 1866.\n\nMuseum\nThe house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places listings in Nacogdoches County in 1976, and became a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 1977. The museum and library house many local historic artifacts donated by the Hoyas.\n\nHours, admission\nAdmission is free. The museum is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. Tour groups need to book in advance.\n\nSee also\n\nList of museums in East Texas\nMillard's Crossing Historic Village\nOld Stone Fort Museum\nNational Register of Historic Places listings in Texas\nRecorded Texas Historic Landmarks in Nacogdoches County\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nHouses completed in 1830\nHistoric house museums in Texas\nMuseums in Nacogdoches County, Texas\nHouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Texas\nRecorded Texas Historic Landmarks\nLibraries in Nacogdoches County, Texas\nDavy Crockett\nSam Houston\n1830 establishments in Mexico\nHouses in Nacogdoches County, Texas\nNational Register of Historic Places in Nacogdoches County, Texas\nNacogdoches, Texas",
"The Varner–Hogg Plantation State Historic Site is a historic site operated by the Texas Historical Commission. The site was the home of former Governor of Texas James S. Hogg and his family. The site is located outside West Columbia, in Brazoria County.\n\nHistory\nThe property was originally the home of Martin Varner, one of the Old Three Hundred and a veteran of the Texas Revolution. His was the nineteenth land grant offered in Stephen F. Austin's colony and consisted of over . He built the first house, a log cabin, on the property in 1824. Varner raised corn, cattle and sugar cane on the land, and had at least two slaves working for him. It is possible that he distilled rum from the sugar cane.\n\nIn 1834, Varner sold his holdings to Columbus R. Patton, representing his father, John D. Patton. The plantation was known as the Patton Plantation through the rest of the 19th century. The Pattons built what is now the main house on the same site as Varner's cabin. The Patton family developed the property into a sugar plantation. Columbus Patton brought slaves with him from Kentucky, and in 1833 sixty-six slaves were working the 13,500 acres of land. \n\nSeveral members of the Patton family were active in the Texas Revolution and one, William H. Patton, was aide-de-camp to Sam Houston. William was part of the group that guarded Antonio López de Santa Anna after his capture at the Battle of San Jacinto. Santa Anna was briefly held at the Patton Plantation.\n\nColumbus Patton was declared insane in 1854, at which time his property was placed under the control of Brazoria County farmer and merchant John Adriance. Upon Patton's death in 1856, the estate was placed into probate, since Patton had died intestate. Soon after Patton's death, Adriance found Patton's 1853 will. Patton's will not only left a bulk of his estate to his nieces, but also stipulated that 4 of the slaves not be hired out, be allowed to choose their residence among Patton's heirs, and receive $100 per year until their death. One of the slaves mentioned in his will was his mistress, Rachel. However, although his will was found, it was disputed in court by Patton's nieces and nephews. Eventually, when a partial agreement was reached in 1857, Rachel was given her financial support and freedom to move among Patton family-owned properties. Patton's family gave a portion of the land to Adriance, but eventually regained control of the property. They sold it by 1869.\n\nThe property was run through a convict lease system through the Texas prison system until the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 knocked down most of the buildings, but left the farm house intact.\n\nFormer Governor Jim Hogg bought the property in 1902. Although the family used it as a second home, Hogg intended to use it as an investment. He was convinced that there was a great deal of oil on the grounds, and began drilling soon after the purchase, but he died in 1906, 14 years before oil was found. The 1920 oil strike proved to be the cornerstone of his children's wealth.\n\nThe family leased the property for livestock grazing and farming. The Governor's daughter, Ima Hogg, refurbished the house, and in 1958, she donated it to the state to commemorate her father and the heroes of Texas and America. During her renovations, Ima Hogg chose to assign each room of the house to a period of Texas history.\n\nGeography and description\nThe Site is located on Farm to Market Road 2852 off State Highway 35, two miles north of West Columbia. The site is near in size. Varner Creek runs through the property.\n\nAn 1835-era farmhouse, refurbished by Miss Ima, is located on the site. The house and other buildings demonstrate a view of antebellum Texas plantation life. The property was named to the National Register of Historic Places on April 9, 1980.\n\nSee also\n\nList of Texas State Historic Sites\nNational Register of Historic Places listings in Brazoria County, Texas\nRecorded Texas Historic Landmarks in Brazoria County\nThe Hogg Family and Houston\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nHouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Texas\nMuseums in Brazoria County, Texas\nTexas state historic sites\nHistoric house museums in Texas\nPlantation houses in Texas\nProtected areas of Brazoria County, Texas\nWest Columbia, Texas\nHouses in Brazoria County, Texas\nNational Register of Historic Places in Brazoria County, Texas\nRecorded Texas Historic Landmarks\nGovernor of Texas"
]
|
[
"Stephen F. Austin",
"Moving to Texas",
"Why did he move to Texas?",
"Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother,",
"Did he run for any office right away?",
"I don't know.",
"Did his father own property in Texas?",
"his father traveled to Spanish Texas and received an empresarial grant that would allow him to bring 300 American families to Texas,"
]
| C_1dc5f3cb170c498c93cda9aa5bae10a9_0 | What is an empresarial grant? | 4 | What is an empresarial grant from Spanish Texas? | Stephen F. Austin | During Austin's time in Arkansas, his father traveled to Spanish Texas and received an empresarial grant that would allow him to bring 300 American families to Texas, they would be called "The Old 300." Moses Austin caught pneumonia soon after returning to Missouri. He directed that his empresario grant would be taken over by his son Stephen. Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother, Mary Brown Austin, written two days before Moses Austin would die. Austin boarded the steamer, Beaver, and departed to New Orleans to meet Spanish officials led by Erasmo Seguin. He was at Natchitoches, Louisiana, on June 31, 1821, when he learned of his father's death. "This news has effected me very much, he was one of the most feeling and affectionate Fathers that ever lived. His faults I now say, and always have, were not of the heart." At the age of 24, Austin led his party to travel 300 miles (480 km) in four weeks to San Antonio with the intent of reauthorizing his father's grant, arriving on August 12. While in transit, they learned Mexico had declared its independence from Spain, and Texas had become a Mexican province, rather than a Spanish territory. Jose Antonio Navarro, a San Antonio native with ambitious visions of the future of Texas, befriended Stephen F. Austin, and the two developed a lasting association. Navarro, proficient in Spanish and Mexican law, assisted Austin in obtaining his empresario contracts. In San Antonio, the grant was reauthorized by Governor Antonio Maria Martinez, who allowed Austin to explore the Gulf Coast between San Antonio and the Brazos River to find a suitable location for a colony. As guides for the party, Manuel Becerra and three Aranama Indians, went with the expedition. Austin advertised the Texas opportunity in New Orleans, announcing that land was available along the Brazos and Colorado rivers. A family of a husband, wife, and two children would receive 1,280 acres (520 ha) at twelve and a half cents per acre. Farmers could get 177 acres (72 ha), and ranchers 4,428 acres (1,792 ha). In December 1821, the first U.S. colonists crossed into the granted territory by land and sea, on the Brazos River in present-day Brazoria County, Texas. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Stephen Fuller Austin (November 3, 1793 – December 27, 1836) was an American-born empresario. Known as the "Father of Texas" and the founder of Anglo Texas, he led the second and, ultimately, the successful colonization of the region by bringing 300 families and their slaves from the United States to the tejanos region in 1825.
Born in Virginia and raised in southeastern Missouri, Austin served in the Missouri territorial legislature before moving to Arkansas Territory and later Louisiana. His father, Moses Austin, received an empresario grant from Spain to settle Texas. After Moses Austin's death in 1821, Stephen Austin won recognition of the empresario grant from the newly independent state of Mexico. Austin convinced numerous American settlers to move to Texas, and by 1825 Austin had brought the first 300 American families into the territory. Throughout the 1820s, Austin sought to maintain good relations with the Mexican government, and he helped suppress the Fredonian Rebellion. He also helped ensure the introduction of slavery into Texas despite the attempts of the Mexican government to ban the institution. He led the initial actions against the Karankawa people in this area.
As Texas settlers became increasingly dissatisfied with the Mexican government, Austin advocated conciliation, but the dissent against Mexico escalated into the Texas Revolution. Austin led Texas forces at the successful Siege of Béxar before serving as a commissioner to the United States. Austin ran in the 1836 Texas presidential election but was defeated by Sam Houston, who entered the race just two weeks before the election. Houston appointed Austin as Secretary of State for the new republic, and Austin held that position until his death in December 1836.
Numerous places and institutions are named in his honor, including the capital of Texas, Austin County, Austin Bayou, Stephen F. Austin State University, Austin College, and numerous public schools.
Early years
Stephen F. Austin was born on November 3, 1793, in the mining region of southwestern Virginia. His parents were Mary Brown Austin and Moses Austin. In 1798, his family moved west to the lead-mining region of present-day Potosi, Missouri. Moses Austin received a sitio from the Spanish government for the mining site of Mine à Breton, established by French colonists. His great-great-grandfather, Anthony Austin (b. 1636), was the son of Richard Austin (b.1598 in Bishopstoke, Hampshire, England), he and his wife Esther were original settlers of Suffield, Massachusetts, which became Connecticut in 1749.
When Austin was eleven years old, his family sent him back east to be educated, first at the preparatory school of Bacon Academy in Colchester, Connecticut. He studied at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky, from which he graduated in 1810. After graduation, Austin began studying to be a lawyer, reading the law with an established firm.
At age 21, he was elected to and served in the legislature of the Missouri Territory. As a member of the territorial legislature, he was "influential in obtaining a charter for the struggling Bank of St. Louis". Left penniless after the Panic of 1819, Austin decided to move south to the new Arkansas Territory. He acquired property on the south bank of the Arkansas River, in the area that would later become Little Rock. After purchasing the property, he learned the area was being considered as the location for the new territorial capital, which could make his land worth a great deal more. He made his home in Hempstead County, Arkansas. Two weeks before the first Arkansas territorial elections in 1820, Austin declared his candidacy for Congress. His late entrance meant his name did not appear on the ballot in two of the five counties, but he still placed second in the field of six candidates. Later, he was appointed as a judge for the First Circuit Court. Over the next few months, Little Rock did become the territorial capital. But Austin's claim to land in the area was contested, and the courts ruled against him. The Territorial Assembly reorganized the government and abolished Austin's judgeship.
Austin left the territory, moving to Louisiana. He reached New Orleans in November 1820, where he met and stayed with Joseph H. Hawkins, a New Orleans lawyer and former Kentucky congressman. He made arrangements to study law with him.
Move to Texas
During Austin's time in Arkansas, his father traveled to Spanish Texas and received an empresarial grant that would allow him to bring 300 American families to Texas. Moses Austin caught pneumonia soon after returning to Missouri. He directed that his empresario grant would be taken over by his son Stephen. Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother, written two days before Moses' death. Austin boarded the steamer Beaver and departed to New Orleans to meet Spanish officials led by Erasmo Seguín. He was at Natchitoches, Louisiana, in 1821, when he learned of his father's death. "This news has effected me very much, he was one of the most feeling and affectionate Fathers that ever lived. His faults I now say, and always have, were not of the heart."
Austin led his party to travel in four weeks to San Antonio with the intent of reauthorizing his father's grant, arriving on August 12. While in transit, they learned Mexico had declared its independence from Spain, and Texas had become a Mexican province, rather than a Spanish territory. José Antonio Navarro, a San Antonio native with ambitious visions of the future of Texas, befriended Stephen F. Austin, and the two developed a lasting association. Navarro, proficient in Spanish and Mexican law, assisted Austin in obtaining his empresario contracts. In San Antonio, the grant was reauthorized by Governor Antonio María Martínez, who allowed Austin to explore the Gulf Coast between San Antonio and the Brazos River to find a suitable location for a colony. As guides for the party, Manuel Becerra and three Aranama Indians, went with the expedition.
Austin advertised the Texas opportunity in New Orleans, announcing that land was available along the Brazos and Colorado rivers. A family of a husband, wife, and two children would receive at twelve and a half cents per acre. Farmers could get and ranchers . In December 1821, the first U.S. colonists crossed into the granted territory by land and sea, on the Brazos River in present-day Brazoria County.
Empresario
Austin's plan for an American colony was thrown into turmoil by Mexico's gaining independence from Spain in 1821. Governor Martínez informed Austin that the junta instituyente, the new rump congress of the government of Agustín de Iturbide of Mexico, refused to recognize the land grant authorized by Spain. His government intended to use a general immigration law to regulate new settlement in Mexico. Austin traveled to Mexico City, where he persuaded the junta instituyente to approve the grant to his father, as well as the law signed by the Mexican Emperor on January 3, 1823.
The old imperial law offered heads of families a league and a labor of land, , and other inducements. It also provided for the employment of agents, called empresarios, to promote immigration. As an empresario, Austin was to receive 67,000 acres of land for each 200 families he brought to Texas. According to the law, immigrants were not required to pay fees to the government. Some of the immigrants denied Austin's right to charge them for services at the rate of 12.5 cents/acre (31 cents/ha).
When Emperor of Mexico Agustín de Iturbide abdicated in March 1823, the law was annulled once again. In April 1823, Austin induced the congress to grant him a contract to bring 300 families into Texas. He wanted honest, hard-working people who would make the colony a success. In 1824, the congress passed a new immigration law that allowed the individual states of Mexico to administer public lands and open them to settlement under certain conditions. In March 1825, the legislature of the Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas passed a law similar to the one authorized by Iturbide. The law continued the system of empresarios, as well as granting each married man a league of land, , with the stipulation that he must pay the state $30 within six years.
Austin laid claim to rich tracts of land near bays and river mouths populated by the Karankawa. The Karankawa relied on these bays for the fish and shellfish that provided their winter protein sources and thus were fiercely protective of that land. Austin wrote upon scouting the land that extermination of the Karankawa would be necessary, despite the fact that his first encounter with the tribe was friendly. He spread rumors among the settlers of cannibalism and extreme violence of the Karankawa, sometimes more specifically the Carancaguases. Research has suggested that these accusations of cannibalism were false, possibly caused by confusion with another tribe, and that the Karankawa were horrified by cannibalism when they learned of it being practiced by shipwrecked Spaniards. Austin's stories primed the colonists to believe that the Karankawa would be impossible to live among and may have contributed to the Skull Creek massacre in which an Karankawa village was razed and 19 Kawankawa Indians were killed. After the massacre, Austin continued to encourage violence both against and between the Indian tribes, culminating in 1825 with his order for all Kawankawa to be pursued and killed on sight.
By late 1825, Austin had brought the first 300 families to his settlement, the Austin Colony; these 300 are now known in Texas history as the Old Three Hundred. Austin had obtained further contracts to settle an additional 900 families between 1825 and 1829. He had effective civil and military authority over the settlers, but he was quick to introduce a semblance of American law – the Constitution of Coahuila y Tejas was agreed on in November 1827. Austin organized small, informal armed groups to protect the colonists, which evolved into the Texas Rangers. Despite his hopes, Austin was making little money from his endeavors; the colonists were unwilling to pay for his services as empresario, and most of his revenues were spent on the processes of government and other public services.
During these years, Austin, a member of Louisiana Lodge No. 111 at Ste. Genevieve, Missouri, sought to establish Freemasonry in Texas. Freemasonry was well established among the educated classes of Mexican society. It had been introduced among the aristocracy loyal to the House of Bourbon, and the conservatives had total control over the Order. By 1827, Americans living in Mexico City had introduced the United States York Rite of Freemasonry as a liberal alternative to the established European-style Scottish Rite. On February 11, 1828, Austin called a meeting of Freemasons at San Felipe to elect officers and to petition the Masonic Grand Lodge in Mexico City for a charter to form a lodge. Austin was elected Worshipful Master of the new lodge. Although the petition reached Matamoros and was to be forwarded to Mexico City, nothing more was heard of it. By 1828, the ruling faction in Mexico was afraid the liberal elements in Texas might try to gain their independence. Fully aware of the political philosophies of American Freemasons, the Mexican government outlawed Freemasonry on October 25, 1828. In 1829, Austin called another meeting, where it was decided that it was "impolitic and imprudent, at this time, to form Masonic lodges in Texas".
He was active in promoting trade and currying the good favor of the Mexican authorities, aiding them in the suppression of the Fredonian Rebellion of Haden Edwards. Some historians consider the Fredonian Rebellion to be the beginning of the Texas Revolution. Although "premature ... the Fredonian Rebellion sparked the powder for later success." For this event, Austin raised troops to fight with Mexican troops against the Texas rebels. With the colonists numbering more than 11,000 by 1832, they were becoming less amenable to Austin's cautious leadership, and also, the Mexican government was becoming less cooperative. It was concerned with the growth of the colony and the efforts of the U.S. government to buy the state from them. The Mexican government had attempted to stop further U.S. immigration as early as April 1830, but Austin's skills gained an exemption for his colonies. He granted land to immigrants based on to the husband, 320 to the wife, 160 for every child, and 80 for every slave.
Slavery
Slavery was a very important issue to Austin, one he called "of great interest" to him. Austin was a periodical slaveowner throughout his life; however, he had conflicting views about it. Theoretically, he believed slavery was wrong and went against the American ideal of liberty. In practice, however, he agreed with the social, economic, and political justifications of it, and worked hard to defend and expand it. Despite his defense of it, he also harbored concerns that the long-term effects of slavery would destroy American society. He grew particularly concerned following Nat Turner's rebellion, stating:
While Austin thought it would be advantageous some day for Texas to phase out of slavery, up until the Texas Revolution he worked to ensure that his colony's immigrants could bypass the Mexican government's resistance to it. Doing so ensured the population growth and economic development of his colony, which was primarily dependent on the monocropping of cotton and sugar. In August 1825, he recommended that the state government allow immigrants to bring their slaves with them through 1840, with the caveat that female grandchildren of the slaves would be freed by age 15 and males by age 25. His recommendation was rejected.
In 1826, when a state committee proposed abolishing slavery outright, 25 percent of the people in Austin's colony were slaves. Austin's colonists, mostly pro-slavery immigrants from the south, threatened to leave Texas if the proposition passed, while prospective Southern immigrants hesitated to come to Texas until slavery was guaranteed there. Austin conceded that the success of his colony was dependent on slavery. Without slaves, the colonists would lack the mass labor to cultivate the land, which would stall the pace of immigration needed to develop and increase the value of the land, and would deflate the economy and motivate his colonists to leave.
Austin went before the legislature and pleaded that, at the least, his original 300 families should be allowed to keep their slaves. He argued against the "bad faith" of freeing them, demanded reparations to slaveowners for every slave emancipated by the state, warned that the loss of slaves could leave some colonists destitute, and reasoned that freeing them would not only leave his settlers alone in the harsh Texas environment, but would also expose them to the discomfort and nuisance of living amongst freed slaves, who would become vagrants seeking retribution upon their former owners. While he waited for the legislature's verdict of his request, Austin went into a deep depression over the issue and sent his brother, Brown Austin, to further lobby the legislature on his behalf.
In March 1827, the legislature signed Article 13 into law. Despite the law complying with some of his requests, Austin called it "unconstitutional". He contested the law as it freed the children of slaves at birth, established a six-month grace period before fully emancipating all slaves in the state, and included provisions to improve the conditions of slaves and transitioning freedmen. Austin –– who had been so effective in persuading the legislature, however, that the author of Article 13 (before its passage) requested to withdraw it –– helped his colonists evade the law by advising them to legally supplant the word "slave" with the words "workingmen," "family servants," and "laborers," and by working to pass a decree that banned freedmen from Texas and forced emancipated slaves to work for their former slaveowners until the accrued "debt" (e.g. clothing, food), incurred for their own enslavement, was worked off.
In 1828, Austin petitioned the legislature to guarantee that slaveowners, immigrating to Texas, could legally "free" their slaves before immigrating, and contract them into a lifetime term of indentured servitude, thereby avoiding recognizing them as slaves. He lobbied to help his colony elude Vicente Guerrero's 1829 attempt to legally emancipate slaves in the province, and to bypass the government's effort to prohibit slavery when it passed the Law of April 6, 1830. In 1830, Austin wrote that he would oppose Texas joining the United States without guarantees that he should "insist on the perpetual exclusion of slavery from this state [Texas]". In 1833, he wrote:
In May 1835, Austin's colonists learned that Mexico's tolerance for the evasions of slaveowners was drawing to a close, with its proposal of new abolition legislation. Alarmed, and with Austin imprisoned in Mexico for pushing for independence, colonists turned against the Mexican government, calling it "oppressive" and a "plundering, robbing, autocratical government" without regard for the security of "life, liberty or property". Resisting the impact a changed slavery policy would have on economic growth, and fearing rumors of Mexico's plan to free the slaves and turn them loose upon the colonists, shortly after Austin returned from Mexico, he and his colonists took up arms against the Mexican government. Austin later gained U.S. Government support for his revolution when he wrote to Senator Lewis F. Linn and pleaded that Santa Anna planned to "exterminate" all of the colonists and fill Texas "with Indians and negroes [freed slaves]".
Relations with Mexico
Immigration controls and the introduction of tariff laws had done much to dissatisfy the colonists, peaking in the Anahuac Disturbances. Austin became involved in Mexican politics, supporting the upstart Antonio López de Santa Anna. Following the success of Santa Anna, the colonists sought a compensatory reward, proclaimed at the Convention of 1832—resumption of immigration, tariff exemption, separation from Coahuila, and a new state government for Texas. Austin did not support these demands; he considered them ill-timed and tried to moderate them. When they were repeated and extended at the Convention of 1833, Austin traveled to Mexico City on July 18, 1833, and met with Vice President Valentín Gomez Farías. Austin did gain certain important reforms; the immigration ban was lifted, but a separate state government was not authorized. Statehood in Mexico required a population of 80,000, and Texas had only 30,000.
Believing that he was pushing for Texas independence and suspect that he was trying to incite insurrection, Austin was arrested by the Mexican government in January 1834 in Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico. He was taken to Mexico City and imprisoned. No charges were filed against him as no court would take jurisdiction. He was moved from prison to prison. He was released under bond in December 1834 and required to stay in the Federal District. He was fully freed under the general amnesty in July 1835 and in August 1835 left Mexico to return to Texas via New Orleans.
Texas Revolution
In his absence, several events propelled the colonists toward confrontation with Santa Anna's centralist government. Austin took temporary command of the Texian forces during the Siege of Béxar from October 12 to December 11, 1835. After learning of the Disturbances at Anahuac and Velasco in the summer of 1835, an enraged Santa Anna made rapid preparations for the Mexican army to sweep Anglo settlers from Texas. War began in October 1835 at Gonzales. The Republic of Texas, created by a new constitution on March 2, 1836, won independence following a string of defeats with the dramatic turnabout victory at the Battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836, and the capture of Santa Anna the following morning. He was then imprisoned.
Republic of Texas
In December 1835, Austin, Branch Archer, and William H. Wharton were appointed commissioners to the U.S. by the provisional government of the republic. On June 10, 1836, Austin was in New Orleans, where he received word of Santa Anna's defeat by Sam Houston at the Battle of San Jacinto. Austin returned to Texas to rest at Peach Point in August. On August 4, he announced his candidacy for president of Texas. Austin felt confident he could win the election until two weeks before the election, when on August 20, Houston entered the race. Austin wrote, "Many of the old settlers who are too blind to see or understand their interest will vote for him." Houston carried East Texas, the Red River region, and most of the soldiers' votes. Austin received 587 votes to Sam Houston's 5,119 and Henry Smith's 743 votes. Houston appointed Austin as the first secretary of state of the new republic; however, Austin only served approximately two months before his death.
Death and estate
In December 1836, Austin was in the new capital of Columbia (now known as West Columbia) where he caught a severe cold; his condition worsened. Doctors were called in but could not help him. Austin died of pneumonia at noon on December 27, 1836. He was at the home of George B. McKinstry, near what is now West Columbia, Texas. He was 43. Austin's last words were "The independence of Texas is recognized! Don't you see it in the papers?..." Upon hearing of Austin's death, Houston ordered an official statement proclaiming: "The Father of Texas is no more; the first pioneer of the wilderness has departed." Originally, Austin was buried at Gulf Prairie Cemetery in Brazoria County, Texas. In 1910 Austin's body was reinterred at the Texas State Cemetery in Austin. Austin never married, nor did he have any children. He bequeathed all his land, titles, and possessions, to his married sister, Emily Austin Perry.
Monuments
Sherman, Texas, is the home of Austin College.
Nacogdoches, Texas, is the home of Stephen F. Austin State University.
Both Austin, Texas, and Austin County, Texas, are named after Stephen F. Austin.
Angleton, Texas, features a statue of Austin, sponsored by The Stephen F. Austin 500, sculpted by David Adickes, with a base of 12-feet and a total statue height of 72-feet. The base is 2 feet taller than the base of the Sam Houston statue in Huntsville, Texas, but the statue is 7 feet shorter.
The National Statuary Hall Collection permits each state to select just two statues for display at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. Texas selected Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin; these statues were sculpted by German immigrant Elisabet Ney.
Gulf Prairie Cemetery, his original place of burial.
In 1959, Austin was posthumously inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners at the National Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
In Austinville, Virginia, Austin's birthplace, a monument was erected along the New River near a junction with the New River Trail State Park.
In Bellville, Texas, the county seat of Austin County, a large bust of Austin by sculptor David Adickes is located at the intersection of State Highways 36 and 159.
John Carter played Austin in the 1969 episode "Here Stands Bailey" of the syndicated television series Death Valley Days, hosted by Robert Taylor not long before Taylor's own death. In the story line, the hardy, cantankerous pioneer James Briton "Brit" Bailey (Paul Fix) and his wife, Hannah (Rosemary DeCamp), make their final settlement in southeastern Texas after having overcome many obstacles over the years. Now they face Austin's order that they leave their land; however, Austin has a change of heart and asks them to stay. Bailey dies with his final wish of interment standing upright facing west, hence his grave marker, "Here Stands Bailey Facing West".
Past family
While Stephen F. Austin and his sister Emily have each been the subject of biography, they are descended from several generations of noteworthy people, including: Moses Austin (father—biography published by Trinity University Press), Abia Brown (grandfather), Joseph Sharp (great grandfather), Isaac Sharp (great, great grandfather), Anthony Sharp (great, great, great grandfather—biography published by Stanford University Press). Accordingly, history records noteworthy social contributions in each generation of Stephen's family dating back to the early seventeenth century. Richard Austin, a native of Titchfield, Hampshire was his paternal emigrant ancestor.
See also
James Elijah "Brown" Austin, his brother
José María Jesús Carbajal, mentored by Austin
Peach Point Plantation, his residence
Thomas J. Pilgrim, his friend and Spanish interpreter
James Bryan, his brother-in-law (first husband to Emily)
James Franklin Perry, his brother-in-law (second husband to Emily)
List of Notable Freemasons
O. P. Q. Letters
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
Ellis P. Bean, Stephen F. Austin, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
Biography of Stephen F. Austin from The Biographical Encyclopedia of Texas, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
Austin's Colonization Laws, 1822 from Gammel's Laws of Texas, Vol. I. hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
1793 births
1836 deaths
Members of the Missouri Territorial Legislature
Convention of 1832 delegates
Texas Consultation delegates
American emigrants to Mexico
People of the Texas Revolution
American people of English descent
People from Jones Creek, Texas
People from Wythe County, Virginia
People from Potosi, Missouri
Texas Ranger Division
Burials at Texas State Cemetery
Transylvania University alumni
American Freemasons
History of Austin, Texas
19th-century Mexican politicians
American slave owners
Deaths from pneumonia in Texas
American proslavery activists
Ranchers from Texas
19th-century American politicians
Bacon Academy alumni | false | [
"Carlos Rodríguez Braun (born 3 December 1948, in Buenos Aires) is professor of History of Economic Thought at the Universidad Complutense in Madrid, and is the author of more than twenty books.\n\nA correspondent member of the Argentine Academy of Economic Sciences, he is also a member of the Mont Pèlerin Society, and has published articles in learned journals in Spain and other countries.\n\nRodríguez Braun is also a well-known figure in Spanish journalism: he was editor of España Económica and deputy editor of Cambio 16 and of the TV program El Valor del Dinero, and has published thousands of articles in the press. At present he is columnist of La Razón, Expansión, Actualidad Económica and Libertad Digital, and participates in Spanish radio programs in Onda Cero.\n\nBooks \n\n La cuestión colonial y la economía clásica. De Adam Smith y Jeremy Bentham a Karl Marx, Madrid, Alianza Editorial, 1989.\n Argentina, 1946-1983. The economy ministers speak (co-edited with Guido di Tella), London, Macmillan, 1990.\n Encuentro con Karl Popper (co-edited with Pedro Schwartz and Fernando Méndez Ibisate), Madrid, Alianza Editorial, 1993.\n Grandes economistas, Madrid, Pirámide, 1997, 2nd. ed. 2006.\n La economía en sus textos (co-edited with Julio Segura), Madrid, Taurus, 1998.\n A pesar del Gobierno, Madrid, Unión Editorial, 1999.\n Estado contra mercado, Madrid, Taurus, 2000.\n 25 años del Círculo de Empresarios, Madrid, Círculo de Empresarios, 2002.\n An Eponymous Dictionary of Economics (co-edited with Julio Segura), Aldershot, Edward Elgar, 2004.\n Diccionario políticamente incorrecto, Madrid, LID Editorial Empresarial, 2004, 2nd. ed. 2005.\n Panfletos liberales, Madrid, LID Editorial Empresarial, 2005.\n Tonterías Económicas, Madrid, LID Editorial Empresarial, 2006, 3rd., ed. 2009.\n Diez ensayos liberales, Madrid, LID Editorial Empresarial, 2008.\n Una crisis y cinco errores (with Juan Ramón Rallo), Madrid, LID Editorial Empresarial, 2009.\n Panfletos liberales II, Madrid, LID Editorial Empresarial, 2010.\n Tonterías Económicas II, Madrid, LID Editorial Empresarial, 2011.\n Economía de los no economistas, Madrid, LID Editorial Empresarial, 2011.\n El liberalismo no es pecado. La economía en cinco lecciones (with Juan Ramón Rallo), Barcelona, Deusto, 2011.\n Economía para andar por casa (with O.Macías Valle, I. Rodríguez Burgos and P.P.González Vicente), Madrid, LID Editorial Empresarial, 2012.\n\nClichés antiliberales (ebook), Expansión, 2013.\nPanfletos liberales III, Madrid, LID Editorial Empresarial, 2013.\nMás economía para andar por casa (with O.Macías Valle, I. Rodríguez Burgos and P.P.González Vicente), Madrid, LID Editorial Empresarial, 2014.\n\nTonterías Económicas III, Madrid, LID Editorial Empresarial, 2015.\nDiez ensayos liberales II, Madrid, LID Editorial Empresarial, 2017.\nPanfletos liberales IV, Madrid, LID Editorial Empresarial, 2018\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Carlos Rodríguez Braun's personal blog.\nCarlos Rodríguez Braun's Blog at La Razón.\n\n1948 births\nLiving people\nArgentine people of Latvian-Jewish descent\nComplutense University of Madrid faculty\nArgentine economists\nWriters from Buenos Aires\nArgentine expatriates in Spain\nPeople educated at Colegio Cardenal Newman",
"Universidad Empresarial de Costa Rica, also known as UNEM or Business University of Costa Rica, is a private university in the city of San José, Costa Rica. It is approved by the Consejo Nacional de Enseñanza Superior Universitaria Privada, the national council of higher education of Costa Rica, to award undergraduate degrees in accounting and business administration, and master's degrees in business administration.\n\nThe degree programs offered by UNEM are not among those accredited by the Sistema Nacional de Acreditación de la Educación Superior (SINAES), the national accreditation agency of Costa Rica. SINAES offers a voluntary accreditation process to Costa Rican Universities and accredits degree programs rather than universities. Nineteen of the fifty-eight Costa Rican universities are accredited by SINAES.\n\nUNEM is authorized by the Asesoria Legal del Ministerio de Educación No. ATJ-167-CONESUP to operate internationally, to offer international programs, and to grant bachelor's, master's and doctorate degrees with agreements with foreign universities \n\nIn 2013 the university was described by The Costa Rica Star as \"infamous\" for its involvement in several diploma mill allegations, in cases where students paid to receive degrees without following a course of study. The university has awarded PhD degrees to people in Germany and the United States. A 2008 investigation by Der Spiegel failed to find any legitimate campus or professors associated with UNEM.\n\nHistory\nUNEM was founded in 1992 as an international graduate school, and acquired its present name and status in 1997.\n\nThe university reported no graduates in 2007, and enrolled no students in 2010; it may be inactive.\n\nHun Sen, the Cambodian prime minister, was made an \"Honorary Professor of Diplomatic and International Relations\" in July 2008.\n\nAlso in 2008, Yahya Jammeh, president of The Gambia, was awarded an Universidad Empresarial honorary professorship in traditional medicine by the International Parliament for Safety and Peace, a private Italian organisation.\n\nRankings\nUniversidad Empresarial de Costa Rica was not among the five hundred top universities world-wide in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings for 2014–15, nor among the top five hundred in the Shanghai Academic Ranking of World Universities for 2014. It was not among the eight hundred universities in the QS World University Rankings for 2014, nor is it among the thirteen Costa Rican universities listed by Quacquarelli Symonds.\n\nIn the 2012 Classbase rating of web presence, it was not among the top one hundred universities in Latin America; it was rated eleventh of the thirteen universities listed for Costa Rica.\n\nReferences\n\nUniversities in Costa Rica"
]
|
[
"Stephen F. Austin",
"Moving to Texas",
"Why did he move to Texas?",
"Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother,",
"Did he run for any office right away?",
"I don't know.",
"Did his father own property in Texas?",
"his father traveled to Spanish Texas and received an empresarial grant that would allow him to bring 300 American families to Texas,",
"What is an empresarial grant?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_1dc5f3cb170c498c93cda9aa5bae10a9_0 | Did he move to Texas alone? | 5 | Did Stephen F. Austin move to Texas alone? | Stephen F. Austin | During Austin's time in Arkansas, his father traveled to Spanish Texas and received an empresarial grant that would allow him to bring 300 American families to Texas, they would be called "The Old 300." Moses Austin caught pneumonia soon after returning to Missouri. He directed that his empresario grant would be taken over by his son Stephen. Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother, Mary Brown Austin, written two days before Moses Austin would die. Austin boarded the steamer, Beaver, and departed to New Orleans to meet Spanish officials led by Erasmo Seguin. He was at Natchitoches, Louisiana, on June 31, 1821, when he learned of his father's death. "This news has effected me very much, he was one of the most feeling and affectionate Fathers that ever lived. His faults I now say, and always have, were not of the heart." At the age of 24, Austin led his party to travel 300 miles (480 km) in four weeks to San Antonio with the intent of reauthorizing his father's grant, arriving on August 12. While in transit, they learned Mexico had declared its independence from Spain, and Texas had become a Mexican province, rather than a Spanish territory. Jose Antonio Navarro, a San Antonio native with ambitious visions of the future of Texas, befriended Stephen F. Austin, and the two developed a lasting association. Navarro, proficient in Spanish and Mexican law, assisted Austin in obtaining his empresario contracts. In San Antonio, the grant was reauthorized by Governor Antonio Maria Martinez, who allowed Austin to explore the Gulf Coast between San Antonio and the Brazos River to find a suitable location for a colony. As guides for the party, Manuel Becerra and three Aranama Indians, went with the expedition. Austin advertised the Texas opportunity in New Orleans, announcing that land was available along the Brazos and Colorado rivers. A family of a husband, wife, and two children would receive 1,280 acres (520 ha) at twelve and a half cents per acre. Farmers could get 177 acres (72 ha), and ranchers 4,428 acres (1,792 ha). In December 1821, the first U.S. colonists crossed into the granted territory by land and sea, on the Brazos River in present-day Brazoria County, Texas. CANNOTANSWER | At the age of 24, Austin led his party to travel 300 miles (480 km) in four weeks to San Antonio | Stephen Fuller Austin (November 3, 1793 – December 27, 1836) was an American-born empresario. Known as the "Father of Texas" and the founder of Anglo Texas, he led the second and, ultimately, the successful colonization of the region by bringing 300 families and their slaves from the United States to the tejanos region in 1825.
Born in Virginia and raised in southeastern Missouri, Austin served in the Missouri territorial legislature before moving to Arkansas Territory and later Louisiana. His father, Moses Austin, received an empresario grant from Spain to settle Texas. After Moses Austin's death in 1821, Stephen Austin won recognition of the empresario grant from the newly independent state of Mexico. Austin convinced numerous American settlers to move to Texas, and by 1825 Austin had brought the first 300 American families into the territory. Throughout the 1820s, Austin sought to maintain good relations with the Mexican government, and he helped suppress the Fredonian Rebellion. He also helped ensure the introduction of slavery into Texas despite the attempts of the Mexican government to ban the institution. He led the initial actions against the Karankawa people in this area.
As Texas settlers became increasingly dissatisfied with the Mexican government, Austin advocated conciliation, but the dissent against Mexico escalated into the Texas Revolution. Austin led Texas forces at the successful Siege of Béxar before serving as a commissioner to the United States. Austin ran in the 1836 Texas presidential election but was defeated by Sam Houston, who entered the race just two weeks before the election. Houston appointed Austin as Secretary of State for the new republic, and Austin held that position until his death in December 1836.
Numerous places and institutions are named in his honor, including the capital of Texas, Austin County, Austin Bayou, Stephen F. Austin State University, Austin College, and numerous public schools.
Early years
Stephen F. Austin was born on November 3, 1793, in the mining region of southwestern Virginia. His parents were Mary Brown Austin and Moses Austin. In 1798, his family moved west to the lead-mining region of present-day Potosi, Missouri. Moses Austin received a sitio from the Spanish government for the mining site of Mine à Breton, established by French colonists. His great-great-grandfather, Anthony Austin (b. 1636), was the son of Richard Austin (b.1598 in Bishopstoke, Hampshire, England), he and his wife Esther were original settlers of Suffield, Massachusetts, which became Connecticut in 1749.
When Austin was eleven years old, his family sent him back east to be educated, first at the preparatory school of Bacon Academy in Colchester, Connecticut. He studied at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky, from which he graduated in 1810. After graduation, Austin began studying to be a lawyer, reading the law with an established firm.
At age 21, he was elected to and served in the legislature of the Missouri Territory. As a member of the territorial legislature, he was "influential in obtaining a charter for the struggling Bank of St. Louis". Left penniless after the Panic of 1819, Austin decided to move south to the new Arkansas Territory. He acquired property on the south bank of the Arkansas River, in the area that would later become Little Rock. After purchasing the property, he learned the area was being considered as the location for the new territorial capital, which could make his land worth a great deal more. He made his home in Hempstead County, Arkansas. Two weeks before the first Arkansas territorial elections in 1820, Austin declared his candidacy for Congress. His late entrance meant his name did not appear on the ballot in two of the five counties, but he still placed second in the field of six candidates. Later, he was appointed as a judge for the First Circuit Court. Over the next few months, Little Rock did become the territorial capital. But Austin's claim to land in the area was contested, and the courts ruled against him. The Territorial Assembly reorganized the government and abolished Austin's judgeship.
Austin left the territory, moving to Louisiana. He reached New Orleans in November 1820, where he met and stayed with Joseph H. Hawkins, a New Orleans lawyer and former Kentucky congressman. He made arrangements to study law with him.
Move to Texas
During Austin's time in Arkansas, his father traveled to Spanish Texas and received an empresarial grant that would allow him to bring 300 American families to Texas. Moses Austin caught pneumonia soon after returning to Missouri. He directed that his empresario grant would be taken over by his son Stephen. Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother, written two days before Moses' death. Austin boarded the steamer Beaver and departed to New Orleans to meet Spanish officials led by Erasmo Seguín. He was at Natchitoches, Louisiana, in 1821, when he learned of his father's death. "This news has effected me very much, he was one of the most feeling and affectionate Fathers that ever lived. His faults I now say, and always have, were not of the heart."
Austin led his party to travel in four weeks to San Antonio with the intent of reauthorizing his father's grant, arriving on August 12. While in transit, they learned Mexico had declared its independence from Spain, and Texas had become a Mexican province, rather than a Spanish territory. José Antonio Navarro, a San Antonio native with ambitious visions of the future of Texas, befriended Stephen F. Austin, and the two developed a lasting association. Navarro, proficient in Spanish and Mexican law, assisted Austin in obtaining his empresario contracts. In San Antonio, the grant was reauthorized by Governor Antonio María Martínez, who allowed Austin to explore the Gulf Coast between San Antonio and the Brazos River to find a suitable location for a colony. As guides for the party, Manuel Becerra and three Aranama Indians, went with the expedition.
Austin advertised the Texas opportunity in New Orleans, announcing that land was available along the Brazos and Colorado rivers. A family of a husband, wife, and two children would receive at twelve and a half cents per acre. Farmers could get and ranchers . In December 1821, the first U.S. colonists crossed into the granted territory by land and sea, on the Brazos River in present-day Brazoria County.
Empresario
Austin's plan for an American colony was thrown into turmoil by Mexico's gaining independence from Spain in 1821. Governor Martínez informed Austin that the junta instituyente, the new rump congress of the government of Agustín de Iturbide of Mexico, refused to recognize the land grant authorized by Spain. His government intended to use a general immigration law to regulate new settlement in Mexico. Austin traveled to Mexico City, where he persuaded the junta instituyente to approve the grant to his father, as well as the law signed by the Mexican Emperor on January 3, 1823.
The old imperial law offered heads of families a league and a labor of land, , and other inducements. It also provided for the employment of agents, called empresarios, to promote immigration. As an empresario, Austin was to receive 67,000 acres of land for each 200 families he brought to Texas. According to the law, immigrants were not required to pay fees to the government. Some of the immigrants denied Austin's right to charge them for services at the rate of 12.5 cents/acre (31 cents/ha).
When Emperor of Mexico Agustín de Iturbide abdicated in March 1823, the law was annulled once again. In April 1823, Austin induced the congress to grant him a contract to bring 300 families into Texas. He wanted honest, hard-working people who would make the colony a success. In 1824, the congress passed a new immigration law that allowed the individual states of Mexico to administer public lands and open them to settlement under certain conditions. In March 1825, the legislature of the Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas passed a law similar to the one authorized by Iturbide. The law continued the system of empresarios, as well as granting each married man a league of land, , with the stipulation that he must pay the state $30 within six years.
Austin laid claim to rich tracts of land near bays and river mouths populated by the Karankawa. The Karankawa relied on these bays for the fish and shellfish that provided their winter protein sources and thus were fiercely protective of that land. Austin wrote upon scouting the land that extermination of the Karankawa would be necessary, despite the fact that his first encounter with the tribe was friendly. He spread rumors among the settlers of cannibalism and extreme violence of the Karankawa, sometimes more specifically the Carancaguases. Research has suggested that these accusations of cannibalism were false, possibly caused by confusion with another tribe, and that the Karankawa were horrified by cannibalism when they learned of it being practiced by shipwrecked Spaniards. Austin's stories primed the colonists to believe that the Karankawa would be impossible to live among and may have contributed to the Skull Creek massacre in which an Karankawa village was razed and 19 Kawankawa Indians were killed. After the massacre, Austin continued to encourage violence both against and between the Indian tribes, culminating in 1825 with his order for all Kawankawa to be pursued and killed on sight.
By late 1825, Austin had brought the first 300 families to his settlement, the Austin Colony; these 300 are now known in Texas history as the Old Three Hundred. Austin had obtained further contracts to settle an additional 900 families between 1825 and 1829. He had effective civil and military authority over the settlers, but he was quick to introduce a semblance of American law – the Constitution of Coahuila y Tejas was agreed on in November 1827. Austin organized small, informal armed groups to protect the colonists, which evolved into the Texas Rangers. Despite his hopes, Austin was making little money from his endeavors; the colonists were unwilling to pay for his services as empresario, and most of his revenues were spent on the processes of government and other public services.
During these years, Austin, a member of Louisiana Lodge No. 111 at Ste. Genevieve, Missouri, sought to establish Freemasonry in Texas. Freemasonry was well established among the educated classes of Mexican society. It had been introduced among the aristocracy loyal to the House of Bourbon, and the conservatives had total control over the Order. By 1827, Americans living in Mexico City had introduced the United States York Rite of Freemasonry as a liberal alternative to the established European-style Scottish Rite. On February 11, 1828, Austin called a meeting of Freemasons at San Felipe to elect officers and to petition the Masonic Grand Lodge in Mexico City for a charter to form a lodge. Austin was elected Worshipful Master of the new lodge. Although the petition reached Matamoros and was to be forwarded to Mexico City, nothing more was heard of it. By 1828, the ruling faction in Mexico was afraid the liberal elements in Texas might try to gain their independence. Fully aware of the political philosophies of American Freemasons, the Mexican government outlawed Freemasonry on October 25, 1828. In 1829, Austin called another meeting, where it was decided that it was "impolitic and imprudent, at this time, to form Masonic lodges in Texas".
He was active in promoting trade and currying the good favor of the Mexican authorities, aiding them in the suppression of the Fredonian Rebellion of Haden Edwards. Some historians consider the Fredonian Rebellion to be the beginning of the Texas Revolution. Although "premature ... the Fredonian Rebellion sparked the powder for later success." For this event, Austin raised troops to fight with Mexican troops against the Texas rebels. With the colonists numbering more than 11,000 by 1832, they were becoming less amenable to Austin's cautious leadership, and also, the Mexican government was becoming less cooperative. It was concerned with the growth of the colony and the efforts of the U.S. government to buy the state from them. The Mexican government had attempted to stop further U.S. immigration as early as April 1830, but Austin's skills gained an exemption for his colonies. He granted land to immigrants based on to the husband, 320 to the wife, 160 for every child, and 80 for every slave.
Slavery
Slavery was a very important issue to Austin, one he called "of great interest" to him. Austin was a periodical slaveowner throughout his life; however, he had conflicting views about it. Theoretically, he believed slavery was wrong and went against the American ideal of liberty. In practice, however, he agreed with the social, economic, and political justifications of it, and worked hard to defend and expand it. Despite his defense of it, he also harbored concerns that the long-term effects of slavery would destroy American society. He grew particularly concerned following Nat Turner's rebellion, stating:
While Austin thought it would be advantageous some day for Texas to phase out of slavery, up until the Texas Revolution he worked to ensure that his colony's immigrants could bypass the Mexican government's resistance to it. Doing so ensured the population growth and economic development of his colony, which was primarily dependent on the monocropping of cotton and sugar. In August 1825, he recommended that the state government allow immigrants to bring their slaves with them through 1840, with the caveat that female grandchildren of the slaves would be freed by age 15 and males by age 25. His recommendation was rejected.
In 1826, when a state committee proposed abolishing slavery outright, 25 percent of the people in Austin's colony were slaves. Austin's colonists, mostly pro-slavery immigrants from the south, threatened to leave Texas if the proposition passed, while prospective Southern immigrants hesitated to come to Texas until slavery was guaranteed there. Austin conceded that the success of his colony was dependent on slavery. Without slaves, the colonists would lack the mass labor to cultivate the land, which would stall the pace of immigration needed to develop and increase the value of the land, and would deflate the economy and motivate his colonists to leave.
Austin went before the legislature and pleaded that, at the least, his original 300 families should be allowed to keep their slaves. He argued against the "bad faith" of freeing them, demanded reparations to slaveowners for every slave emancipated by the state, warned that the loss of slaves could leave some colonists destitute, and reasoned that freeing them would not only leave his settlers alone in the harsh Texas environment, but would also expose them to the discomfort and nuisance of living amongst freed slaves, who would become vagrants seeking retribution upon their former owners. While he waited for the legislature's verdict of his request, Austin went into a deep depression over the issue and sent his brother, Brown Austin, to further lobby the legislature on his behalf.
In March 1827, the legislature signed Article 13 into law. Despite the law complying with some of his requests, Austin called it "unconstitutional". He contested the law as it freed the children of slaves at birth, established a six-month grace period before fully emancipating all slaves in the state, and included provisions to improve the conditions of slaves and transitioning freedmen. Austin –– who had been so effective in persuading the legislature, however, that the author of Article 13 (before its passage) requested to withdraw it –– helped his colonists evade the law by advising them to legally supplant the word "slave" with the words "workingmen," "family servants," and "laborers," and by working to pass a decree that banned freedmen from Texas and forced emancipated slaves to work for their former slaveowners until the accrued "debt" (e.g. clothing, food), incurred for their own enslavement, was worked off.
In 1828, Austin petitioned the legislature to guarantee that slaveowners, immigrating to Texas, could legally "free" their slaves before immigrating, and contract them into a lifetime term of indentured servitude, thereby avoiding recognizing them as slaves. He lobbied to help his colony elude Vicente Guerrero's 1829 attempt to legally emancipate slaves in the province, and to bypass the government's effort to prohibit slavery when it passed the Law of April 6, 1830. In 1830, Austin wrote that he would oppose Texas joining the United States without guarantees that he should "insist on the perpetual exclusion of slavery from this state [Texas]". In 1833, he wrote:
In May 1835, Austin's colonists learned that Mexico's tolerance for the evasions of slaveowners was drawing to a close, with its proposal of new abolition legislation. Alarmed, and with Austin imprisoned in Mexico for pushing for independence, colonists turned against the Mexican government, calling it "oppressive" and a "plundering, robbing, autocratical government" without regard for the security of "life, liberty or property". Resisting the impact a changed slavery policy would have on economic growth, and fearing rumors of Mexico's plan to free the slaves and turn them loose upon the colonists, shortly after Austin returned from Mexico, he and his colonists took up arms against the Mexican government. Austin later gained U.S. Government support for his revolution when he wrote to Senator Lewis F. Linn and pleaded that Santa Anna planned to "exterminate" all of the colonists and fill Texas "with Indians and negroes [freed slaves]".
Relations with Mexico
Immigration controls and the introduction of tariff laws had done much to dissatisfy the colonists, peaking in the Anahuac Disturbances. Austin became involved in Mexican politics, supporting the upstart Antonio López de Santa Anna. Following the success of Santa Anna, the colonists sought a compensatory reward, proclaimed at the Convention of 1832—resumption of immigration, tariff exemption, separation from Coahuila, and a new state government for Texas. Austin did not support these demands; he considered them ill-timed and tried to moderate them. When they were repeated and extended at the Convention of 1833, Austin traveled to Mexico City on July 18, 1833, and met with Vice President Valentín Gomez Farías. Austin did gain certain important reforms; the immigration ban was lifted, but a separate state government was not authorized. Statehood in Mexico required a population of 80,000, and Texas had only 30,000.
Believing that he was pushing for Texas independence and suspect that he was trying to incite insurrection, Austin was arrested by the Mexican government in January 1834 in Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico. He was taken to Mexico City and imprisoned. No charges were filed against him as no court would take jurisdiction. He was moved from prison to prison. He was released under bond in December 1834 and required to stay in the Federal District. He was fully freed under the general amnesty in July 1835 and in August 1835 left Mexico to return to Texas via New Orleans.
Texas Revolution
In his absence, several events propelled the colonists toward confrontation with Santa Anna's centralist government. Austin took temporary command of the Texian forces during the Siege of Béxar from October 12 to December 11, 1835. After learning of the Disturbances at Anahuac and Velasco in the summer of 1835, an enraged Santa Anna made rapid preparations for the Mexican army to sweep Anglo settlers from Texas. War began in October 1835 at Gonzales. The Republic of Texas, created by a new constitution on March 2, 1836, won independence following a string of defeats with the dramatic turnabout victory at the Battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836, and the capture of Santa Anna the following morning. He was then imprisoned.
Republic of Texas
In December 1835, Austin, Branch Archer, and William H. Wharton were appointed commissioners to the U.S. by the provisional government of the republic. On June 10, 1836, Austin was in New Orleans, where he received word of Santa Anna's defeat by Sam Houston at the Battle of San Jacinto. Austin returned to Texas to rest at Peach Point in August. On August 4, he announced his candidacy for president of Texas. Austin felt confident he could win the election until two weeks before the election, when on August 20, Houston entered the race. Austin wrote, "Many of the old settlers who are too blind to see or understand their interest will vote for him." Houston carried East Texas, the Red River region, and most of the soldiers' votes. Austin received 587 votes to Sam Houston's 5,119 and Henry Smith's 743 votes. Houston appointed Austin as the first secretary of state of the new republic; however, Austin only served approximately two months before his death.
Death and estate
In December 1836, Austin was in the new capital of Columbia (now known as West Columbia) where he caught a severe cold; his condition worsened. Doctors were called in but could not help him. Austin died of pneumonia at noon on December 27, 1836. He was at the home of George B. McKinstry, near what is now West Columbia, Texas. He was 43. Austin's last words were "The independence of Texas is recognized! Don't you see it in the papers?..." Upon hearing of Austin's death, Houston ordered an official statement proclaiming: "The Father of Texas is no more; the first pioneer of the wilderness has departed." Originally, Austin was buried at Gulf Prairie Cemetery in Brazoria County, Texas. In 1910 Austin's body was reinterred at the Texas State Cemetery in Austin. Austin never married, nor did he have any children. He bequeathed all his land, titles, and possessions, to his married sister, Emily Austin Perry.
Monuments
Sherman, Texas, is the home of Austin College.
Nacogdoches, Texas, is the home of Stephen F. Austin State University.
Both Austin, Texas, and Austin County, Texas, are named after Stephen F. Austin.
Angleton, Texas, features a statue of Austin, sponsored by The Stephen F. Austin 500, sculpted by David Adickes, with a base of 12-feet and a total statue height of 72-feet. The base is 2 feet taller than the base of the Sam Houston statue in Huntsville, Texas, but the statue is 7 feet shorter.
The National Statuary Hall Collection permits each state to select just two statues for display at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. Texas selected Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin; these statues were sculpted by German immigrant Elisabet Ney.
Gulf Prairie Cemetery, his original place of burial.
In 1959, Austin was posthumously inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners at the National Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
In Austinville, Virginia, Austin's birthplace, a monument was erected along the New River near a junction with the New River Trail State Park.
In Bellville, Texas, the county seat of Austin County, a large bust of Austin by sculptor David Adickes is located at the intersection of State Highways 36 and 159.
John Carter played Austin in the 1969 episode "Here Stands Bailey" of the syndicated television series Death Valley Days, hosted by Robert Taylor not long before Taylor's own death. In the story line, the hardy, cantankerous pioneer James Briton "Brit" Bailey (Paul Fix) and his wife, Hannah (Rosemary DeCamp), make their final settlement in southeastern Texas after having overcome many obstacles over the years. Now they face Austin's order that they leave their land; however, Austin has a change of heart and asks them to stay. Bailey dies with his final wish of interment standing upright facing west, hence his grave marker, "Here Stands Bailey Facing West".
Past family
While Stephen F. Austin and his sister Emily have each been the subject of biography, they are descended from several generations of noteworthy people, including: Moses Austin (father—biography published by Trinity University Press), Abia Brown (grandfather), Joseph Sharp (great grandfather), Isaac Sharp (great, great grandfather), Anthony Sharp (great, great, great grandfather—biography published by Stanford University Press). Accordingly, history records noteworthy social contributions in each generation of Stephen's family dating back to the early seventeenth century. Richard Austin, a native of Titchfield, Hampshire was his paternal emigrant ancestor.
See also
James Elijah "Brown" Austin, his brother
José María Jesús Carbajal, mentored by Austin
Peach Point Plantation, his residence
Thomas J. Pilgrim, his friend and Spanish interpreter
James Bryan, his brother-in-law (first husband to Emily)
James Franklin Perry, his brother-in-law (second husband to Emily)
List of Notable Freemasons
O. P. Q. Letters
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
Ellis P. Bean, Stephen F. Austin, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
Biography of Stephen F. Austin from The Biographical Encyclopedia of Texas, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
Austin's Colonization Laws, 1822 from Gammel's Laws of Texas, Vol. I. hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
1793 births
1836 deaths
Members of the Missouri Territorial Legislature
Convention of 1832 delegates
Texas Consultation delegates
American emigrants to Mexico
People of the Texas Revolution
American people of English descent
People from Jones Creek, Texas
People from Wythe County, Virginia
People from Potosi, Missouri
Texas Ranger Division
Burials at Texas State Cemetery
Transylvania University alumni
American Freemasons
History of Austin, Texas
19th-century Mexican politicians
American slave owners
Deaths from pneumonia in Texas
American proslavery activists
Ranchers from Texas
19th-century American politicians
Bacon Academy alumni | false | [
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[
"Stephen F. Austin",
"Moving to Texas",
"Why did he move to Texas?",
"Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother,",
"Did he run for any office right away?",
"I don't know.",
"Did his father own property in Texas?",
"his father traveled to Spanish Texas and received an empresarial grant that would allow him to bring 300 American families to Texas,",
"What is an empresarial grant?",
"I don't know.",
"Did he move to Texas alone?",
"At the age of 24, Austin led his party to travel 300 miles (480 km) in four weeks to San Antonio"
]
| C_1dc5f3cb170c498c93cda9aa5bae10a9_0 | How did they travel? | 6 | How did Stephen F. Austin's party travel? | Stephen F. Austin | During Austin's time in Arkansas, his father traveled to Spanish Texas and received an empresarial grant that would allow him to bring 300 American families to Texas, they would be called "The Old 300." Moses Austin caught pneumonia soon after returning to Missouri. He directed that his empresario grant would be taken over by his son Stephen. Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother, Mary Brown Austin, written two days before Moses Austin would die. Austin boarded the steamer, Beaver, and departed to New Orleans to meet Spanish officials led by Erasmo Seguin. He was at Natchitoches, Louisiana, on June 31, 1821, when he learned of his father's death. "This news has effected me very much, he was one of the most feeling and affectionate Fathers that ever lived. His faults I now say, and always have, were not of the heart." At the age of 24, Austin led his party to travel 300 miles (480 km) in four weeks to San Antonio with the intent of reauthorizing his father's grant, arriving on August 12. While in transit, they learned Mexico had declared its independence from Spain, and Texas had become a Mexican province, rather than a Spanish territory. Jose Antonio Navarro, a San Antonio native with ambitious visions of the future of Texas, befriended Stephen F. Austin, and the two developed a lasting association. Navarro, proficient in Spanish and Mexican law, assisted Austin in obtaining his empresario contracts. In San Antonio, the grant was reauthorized by Governor Antonio Maria Martinez, who allowed Austin to explore the Gulf Coast between San Antonio and the Brazos River to find a suitable location for a colony. As guides for the party, Manuel Becerra and three Aranama Indians, went with the expedition. Austin advertised the Texas opportunity in New Orleans, announcing that land was available along the Brazos and Colorado rivers. A family of a husband, wife, and two children would receive 1,280 acres (520 ha) at twelve and a half cents per acre. Farmers could get 177 acres (72 ha), and ranchers 4,428 acres (1,792 ha). In December 1821, the first U.S. colonists crossed into the granted territory by land and sea, on the Brazos River in present-day Brazoria County, Texas. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Stephen Fuller Austin (November 3, 1793 – December 27, 1836) was an American-born empresario. Known as the "Father of Texas" and the founder of Anglo Texas, he led the second and, ultimately, the successful colonization of the region by bringing 300 families and their slaves from the United States to the tejanos region in 1825.
Born in Virginia and raised in southeastern Missouri, Austin served in the Missouri territorial legislature before moving to Arkansas Territory and later Louisiana. His father, Moses Austin, received an empresario grant from Spain to settle Texas. After Moses Austin's death in 1821, Stephen Austin won recognition of the empresario grant from the newly independent state of Mexico. Austin convinced numerous American settlers to move to Texas, and by 1825 Austin had brought the first 300 American families into the territory. Throughout the 1820s, Austin sought to maintain good relations with the Mexican government, and he helped suppress the Fredonian Rebellion. He also helped ensure the introduction of slavery into Texas despite the attempts of the Mexican government to ban the institution. He led the initial actions against the Karankawa people in this area.
As Texas settlers became increasingly dissatisfied with the Mexican government, Austin advocated conciliation, but the dissent against Mexico escalated into the Texas Revolution. Austin led Texas forces at the successful Siege of Béxar before serving as a commissioner to the United States. Austin ran in the 1836 Texas presidential election but was defeated by Sam Houston, who entered the race just two weeks before the election. Houston appointed Austin as Secretary of State for the new republic, and Austin held that position until his death in December 1836.
Numerous places and institutions are named in his honor, including the capital of Texas, Austin County, Austin Bayou, Stephen F. Austin State University, Austin College, and numerous public schools.
Early years
Stephen F. Austin was born on November 3, 1793, in the mining region of southwestern Virginia. His parents were Mary Brown Austin and Moses Austin. In 1798, his family moved west to the lead-mining region of present-day Potosi, Missouri. Moses Austin received a sitio from the Spanish government for the mining site of Mine à Breton, established by French colonists. His great-great-grandfather, Anthony Austin (b. 1636), was the son of Richard Austin (b.1598 in Bishopstoke, Hampshire, England), he and his wife Esther were original settlers of Suffield, Massachusetts, which became Connecticut in 1749.
When Austin was eleven years old, his family sent him back east to be educated, first at the preparatory school of Bacon Academy in Colchester, Connecticut. He studied at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky, from which he graduated in 1810. After graduation, Austin began studying to be a lawyer, reading the law with an established firm.
At age 21, he was elected to and served in the legislature of the Missouri Territory. As a member of the territorial legislature, he was "influential in obtaining a charter for the struggling Bank of St. Louis". Left penniless after the Panic of 1819, Austin decided to move south to the new Arkansas Territory. He acquired property on the south bank of the Arkansas River, in the area that would later become Little Rock. After purchasing the property, he learned the area was being considered as the location for the new territorial capital, which could make his land worth a great deal more. He made his home in Hempstead County, Arkansas. Two weeks before the first Arkansas territorial elections in 1820, Austin declared his candidacy for Congress. His late entrance meant his name did not appear on the ballot in two of the five counties, but he still placed second in the field of six candidates. Later, he was appointed as a judge for the First Circuit Court. Over the next few months, Little Rock did become the territorial capital. But Austin's claim to land in the area was contested, and the courts ruled against him. The Territorial Assembly reorganized the government and abolished Austin's judgeship.
Austin left the territory, moving to Louisiana. He reached New Orleans in November 1820, where he met and stayed with Joseph H. Hawkins, a New Orleans lawyer and former Kentucky congressman. He made arrangements to study law with him.
Move to Texas
During Austin's time in Arkansas, his father traveled to Spanish Texas and received an empresarial grant that would allow him to bring 300 American families to Texas. Moses Austin caught pneumonia soon after returning to Missouri. He directed that his empresario grant would be taken over by his son Stephen. Although Austin was reluctant to carry on his father's Texas venture, he was persuaded to pursue the colonization of Texas by a letter from his mother, written two days before Moses' death. Austin boarded the steamer Beaver and departed to New Orleans to meet Spanish officials led by Erasmo Seguín. He was at Natchitoches, Louisiana, in 1821, when he learned of his father's death. "This news has effected me very much, he was one of the most feeling and affectionate Fathers that ever lived. His faults I now say, and always have, were not of the heart."
Austin led his party to travel in four weeks to San Antonio with the intent of reauthorizing his father's grant, arriving on August 12. While in transit, they learned Mexico had declared its independence from Spain, and Texas had become a Mexican province, rather than a Spanish territory. José Antonio Navarro, a San Antonio native with ambitious visions of the future of Texas, befriended Stephen F. Austin, and the two developed a lasting association. Navarro, proficient in Spanish and Mexican law, assisted Austin in obtaining his empresario contracts. In San Antonio, the grant was reauthorized by Governor Antonio María Martínez, who allowed Austin to explore the Gulf Coast between San Antonio and the Brazos River to find a suitable location for a colony. As guides for the party, Manuel Becerra and three Aranama Indians, went with the expedition.
Austin advertised the Texas opportunity in New Orleans, announcing that land was available along the Brazos and Colorado rivers. A family of a husband, wife, and two children would receive at twelve and a half cents per acre. Farmers could get and ranchers . In December 1821, the first U.S. colonists crossed into the granted territory by land and sea, on the Brazos River in present-day Brazoria County.
Empresario
Austin's plan for an American colony was thrown into turmoil by Mexico's gaining independence from Spain in 1821. Governor Martínez informed Austin that the junta instituyente, the new rump congress of the government of Agustín de Iturbide of Mexico, refused to recognize the land grant authorized by Spain. His government intended to use a general immigration law to regulate new settlement in Mexico. Austin traveled to Mexico City, where he persuaded the junta instituyente to approve the grant to his father, as well as the law signed by the Mexican Emperor on January 3, 1823.
The old imperial law offered heads of families a league and a labor of land, , and other inducements. It also provided for the employment of agents, called empresarios, to promote immigration. As an empresario, Austin was to receive 67,000 acres of land for each 200 families he brought to Texas. According to the law, immigrants were not required to pay fees to the government. Some of the immigrants denied Austin's right to charge them for services at the rate of 12.5 cents/acre (31 cents/ha).
When Emperor of Mexico Agustín de Iturbide abdicated in March 1823, the law was annulled once again. In April 1823, Austin induced the congress to grant him a contract to bring 300 families into Texas. He wanted honest, hard-working people who would make the colony a success. In 1824, the congress passed a new immigration law that allowed the individual states of Mexico to administer public lands and open them to settlement under certain conditions. In March 1825, the legislature of the Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas passed a law similar to the one authorized by Iturbide. The law continued the system of empresarios, as well as granting each married man a league of land, , with the stipulation that he must pay the state $30 within six years.
Austin laid claim to rich tracts of land near bays and river mouths populated by the Karankawa. The Karankawa relied on these bays for the fish and shellfish that provided their winter protein sources and thus were fiercely protective of that land. Austin wrote upon scouting the land that extermination of the Karankawa would be necessary, despite the fact that his first encounter with the tribe was friendly. He spread rumors among the settlers of cannibalism and extreme violence of the Karankawa, sometimes more specifically the Carancaguases. Research has suggested that these accusations of cannibalism were false, possibly caused by confusion with another tribe, and that the Karankawa were horrified by cannibalism when they learned of it being practiced by shipwrecked Spaniards. Austin's stories primed the colonists to believe that the Karankawa would be impossible to live among and may have contributed to the Skull Creek massacre in which an Karankawa village was razed and 19 Kawankawa Indians were killed. After the massacre, Austin continued to encourage violence both against and between the Indian tribes, culminating in 1825 with his order for all Kawankawa to be pursued and killed on sight.
By late 1825, Austin had brought the first 300 families to his settlement, the Austin Colony; these 300 are now known in Texas history as the Old Three Hundred. Austin had obtained further contracts to settle an additional 900 families between 1825 and 1829. He had effective civil and military authority over the settlers, but he was quick to introduce a semblance of American law – the Constitution of Coahuila y Tejas was agreed on in November 1827. Austin organized small, informal armed groups to protect the colonists, which evolved into the Texas Rangers. Despite his hopes, Austin was making little money from his endeavors; the colonists were unwilling to pay for his services as empresario, and most of his revenues were spent on the processes of government and other public services.
During these years, Austin, a member of Louisiana Lodge No. 111 at Ste. Genevieve, Missouri, sought to establish Freemasonry in Texas. Freemasonry was well established among the educated classes of Mexican society. It had been introduced among the aristocracy loyal to the House of Bourbon, and the conservatives had total control over the Order. By 1827, Americans living in Mexico City had introduced the United States York Rite of Freemasonry as a liberal alternative to the established European-style Scottish Rite. On February 11, 1828, Austin called a meeting of Freemasons at San Felipe to elect officers and to petition the Masonic Grand Lodge in Mexico City for a charter to form a lodge. Austin was elected Worshipful Master of the new lodge. Although the petition reached Matamoros and was to be forwarded to Mexico City, nothing more was heard of it. By 1828, the ruling faction in Mexico was afraid the liberal elements in Texas might try to gain their independence. Fully aware of the political philosophies of American Freemasons, the Mexican government outlawed Freemasonry on October 25, 1828. In 1829, Austin called another meeting, where it was decided that it was "impolitic and imprudent, at this time, to form Masonic lodges in Texas".
He was active in promoting trade and currying the good favor of the Mexican authorities, aiding them in the suppression of the Fredonian Rebellion of Haden Edwards. Some historians consider the Fredonian Rebellion to be the beginning of the Texas Revolution. Although "premature ... the Fredonian Rebellion sparked the powder for later success." For this event, Austin raised troops to fight with Mexican troops against the Texas rebels. With the colonists numbering more than 11,000 by 1832, they were becoming less amenable to Austin's cautious leadership, and also, the Mexican government was becoming less cooperative. It was concerned with the growth of the colony and the efforts of the U.S. government to buy the state from them. The Mexican government had attempted to stop further U.S. immigration as early as April 1830, but Austin's skills gained an exemption for his colonies. He granted land to immigrants based on to the husband, 320 to the wife, 160 for every child, and 80 for every slave.
Slavery
Slavery was a very important issue to Austin, one he called "of great interest" to him. Austin was a periodical slaveowner throughout his life; however, he had conflicting views about it. Theoretically, he believed slavery was wrong and went against the American ideal of liberty. In practice, however, he agreed with the social, economic, and political justifications of it, and worked hard to defend and expand it. Despite his defense of it, he also harbored concerns that the long-term effects of slavery would destroy American society. He grew particularly concerned following Nat Turner's rebellion, stating:
While Austin thought it would be advantageous some day for Texas to phase out of slavery, up until the Texas Revolution he worked to ensure that his colony's immigrants could bypass the Mexican government's resistance to it. Doing so ensured the population growth and economic development of his colony, which was primarily dependent on the monocropping of cotton and sugar. In August 1825, he recommended that the state government allow immigrants to bring their slaves with them through 1840, with the caveat that female grandchildren of the slaves would be freed by age 15 and males by age 25. His recommendation was rejected.
In 1826, when a state committee proposed abolishing slavery outright, 25 percent of the people in Austin's colony were slaves. Austin's colonists, mostly pro-slavery immigrants from the south, threatened to leave Texas if the proposition passed, while prospective Southern immigrants hesitated to come to Texas until slavery was guaranteed there. Austin conceded that the success of his colony was dependent on slavery. Without slaves, the colonists would lack the mass labor to cultivate the land, which would stall the pace of immigration needed to develop and increase the value of the land, and would deflate the economy and motivate his colonists to leave.
Austin went before the legislature and pleaded that, at the least, his original 300 families should be allowed to keep their slaves. He argued against the "bad faith" of freeing them, demanded reparations to slaveowners for every slave emancipated by the state, warned that the loss of slaves could leave some colonists destitute, and reasoned that freeing them would not only leave his settlers alone in the harsh Texas environment, but would also expose them to the discomfort and nuisance of living amongst freed slaves, who would become vagrants seeking retribution upon their former owners. While he waited for the legislature's verdict of his request, Austin went into a deep depression over the issue and sent his brother, Brown Austin, to further lobby the legislature on his behalf.
In March 1827, the legislature signed Article 13 into law. Despite the law complying with some of his requests, Austin called it "unconstitutional". He contested the law as it freed the children of slaves at birth, established a six-month grace period before fully emancipating all slaves in the state, and included provisions to improve the conditions of slaves and transitioning freedmen. Austin –– who had been so effective in persuading the legislature, however, that the author of Article 13 (before its passage) requested to withdraw it –– helped his colonists evade the law by advising them to legally supplant the word "slave" with the words "workingmen," "family servants," and "laborers," and by working to pass a decree that banned freedmen from Texas and forced emancipated slaves to work for their former slaveowners until the accrued "debt" (e.g. clothing, food), incurred for their own enslavement, was worked off.
In 1828, Austin petitioned the legislature to guarantee that slaveowners, immigrating to Texas, could legally "free" their slaves before immigrating, and contract them into a lifetime term of indentured servitude, thereby avoiding recognizing them as slaves. He lobbied to help his colony elude Vicente Guerrero's 1829 attempt to legally emancipate slaves in the province, and to bypass the government's effort to prohibit slavery when it passed the Law of April 6, 1830. In 1830, Austin wrote that he would oppose Texas joining the United States without guarantees that he should "insist on the perpetual exclusion of slavery from this state [Texas]". In 1833, he wrote:
In May 1835, Austin's colonists learned that Mexico's tolerance for the evasions of slaveowners was drawing to a close, with its proposal of new abolition legislation. Alarmed, and with Austin imprisoned in Mexico for pushing for independence, colonists turned against the Mexican government, calling it "oppressive" and a "plundering, robbing, autocratical government" without regard for the security of "life, liberty or property". Resisting the impact a changed slavery policy would have on economic growth, and fearing rumors of Mexico's plan to free the slaves and turn them loose upon the colonists, shortly after Austin returned from Mexico, he and his colonists took up arms against the Mexican government. Austin later gained U.S. Government support for his revolution when he wrote to Senator Lewis F. Linn and pleaded that Santa Anna planned to "exterminate" all of the colonists and fill Texas "with Indians and negroes [freed slaves]".
Relations with Mexico
Immigration controls and the introduction of tariff laws had done much to dissatisfy the colonists, peaking in the Anahuac Disturbances. Austin became involved in Mexican politics, supporting the upstart Antonio López de Santa Anna. Following the success of Santa Anna, the colonists sought a compensatory reward, proclaimed at the Convention of 1832—resumption of immigration, tariff exemption, separation from Coahuila, and a new state government for Texas. Austin did not support these demands; he considered them ill-timed and tried to moderate them. When they were repeated and extended at the Convention of 1833, Austin traveled to Mexico City on July 18, 1833, and met with Vice President Valentín Gomez Farías. Austin did gain certain important reforms; the immigration ban was lifted, but a separate state government was not authorized. Statehood in Mexico required a population of 80,000, and Texas had only 30,000.
Believing that he was pushing for Texas independence and suspect that he was trying to incite insurrection, Austin was arrested by the Mexican government in January 1834 in Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico. He was taken to Mexico City and imprisoned. No charges were filed against him as no court would take jurisdiction. He was moved from prison to prison. He was released under bond in December 1834 and required to stay in the Federal District. He was fully freed under the general amnesty in July 1835 and in August 1835 left Mexico to return to Texas via New Orleans.
Texas Revolution
In his absence, several events propelled the colonists toward confrontation with Santa Anna's centralist government. Austin took temporary command of the Texian forces during the Siege of Béxar from October 12 to December 11, 1835. After learning of the Disturbances at Anahuac and Velasco in the summer of 1835, an enraged Santa Anna made rapid preparations for the Mexican army to sweep Anglo settlers from Texas. War began in October 1835 at Gonzales. The Republic of Texas, created by a new constitution on March 2, 1836, won independence following a string of defeats with the dramatic turnabout victory at the Battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836, and the capture of Santa Anna the following morning. He was then imprisoned.
Republic of Texas
In December 1835, Austin, Branch Archer, and William H. Wharton were appointed commissioners to the U.S. by the provisional government of the republic. On June 10, 1836, Austin was in New Orleans, where he received word of Santa Anna's defeat by Sam Houston at the Battle of San Jacinto. Austin returned to Texas to rest at Peach Point in August. On August 4, he announced his candidacy for president of Texas. Austin felt confident he could win the election until two weeks before the election, when on August 20, Houston entered the race. Austin wrote, "Many of the old settlers who are too blind to see or understand their interest will vote for him." Houston carried East Texas, the Red River region, and most of the soldiers' votes. Austin received 587 votes to Sam Houston's 5,119 and Henry Smith's 743 votes. Houston appointed Austin as the first secretary of state of the new republic; however, Austin only served approximately two months before his death.
Death and estate
In December 1836, Austin was in the new capital of Columbia (now known as West Columbia) where he caught a severe cold; his condition worsened. Doctors were called in but could not help him. Austin died of pneumonia at noon on December 27, 1836. He was at the home of George B. McKinstry, near what is now West Columbia, Texas. He was 43. Austin's last words were "The independence of Texas is recognized! Don't you see it in the papers?..." Upon hearing of Austin's death, Houston ordered an official statement proclaiming: "The Father of Texas is no more; the first pioneer of the wilderness has departed." Originally, Austin was buried at Gulf Prairie Cemetery in Brazoria County, Texas. In 1910 Austin's body was reinterred at the Texas State Cemetery in Austin. Austin never married, nor did he have any children. He bequeathed all his land, titles, and possessions, to his married sister, Emily Austin Perry.
Monuments
Sherman, Texas, is the home of Austin College.
Nacogdoches, Texas, is the home of Stephen F. Austin State University.
Both Austin, Texas, and Austin County, Texas, are named after Stephen F. Austin.
Angleton, Texas, features a statue of Austin, sponsored by The Stephen F. Austin 500, sculpted by David Adickes, with a base of 12-feet and a total statue height of 72-feet. The base is 2 feet taller than the base of the Sam Houston statue in Huntsville, Texas, but the statue is 7 feet shorter.
The National Statuary Hall Collection permits each state to select just two statues for display at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. Texas selected Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin; these statues were sculpted by German immigrant Elisabet Ney.
Gulf Prairie Cemetery, his original place of burial.
In 1959, Austin was posthumously inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners at the National Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
In Austinville, Virginia, Austin's birthplace, a monument was erected along the New River near a junction with the New River Trail State Park.
In Bellville, Texas, the county seat of Austin County, a large bust of Austin by sculptor David Adickes is located at the intersection of State Highways 36 and 159.
John Carter played Austin in the 1969 episode "Here Stands Bailey" of the syndicated television series Death Valley Days, hosted by Robert Taylor not long before Taylor's own death. In the story line, the hardy, cantankerous pioneer James Briton "Brit" Bailey (Paul Fix) and his wife, Hannah (Rosemary DeCamp), make their final settlement in southeastern Texas after having overcome many obstacles over the years. Now they face Austin's order that they leave their land; however, Austin has a change of heart and asks them to stay. Bailey dies with his final wish of interment standing upright facing west, hence his grave marker, "Here Stands Bailey Facing West".
Past family
While Stephen F. Austin and his sister Emily have each been the subject of biography, they are descended from several generations of noteworthy people, including: Moses Austin (father—biography published by Trinity University Press), Abia Brown (grandfather), Joseph Sharp (great grandfather), Isaac Sharp (great, great grandfather), Anthony Sharp (great, great, great grandfather—biography published by Stanford University Press). Accordingly, history records noteworthy social contributions in each generation of Stephen's family dating back to the early seventeenth century. Richard Austin, a native of Titchfield, Hampshire was his paternal emigrant ancestor.
See also
James Elijah "Brown" Austin, his brother
José María Jesús Carbajal, mentored by Austin
Peach Point Plantation, his residence
Thomas J. Pilgrim, his friend and Spanish interpreter
James Bryan, his brother-in-law (first husband to Emily)
James Franklin Perry, his brother-in-law (second husband to Emily)
List of Notable Freemasons
O. P. Q. Letters
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
Ellis P. Bean, Stephen F. Austin, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
Biography of Stephen F. Austin from The Biographical Encyclopedia of Texas, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
Austin's Colonization Laws, 1822 from Gammel's Laws of Texas, Vol. I. hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
1793 births
1836 deaths
Members of the Missouri Territorial Legislature
Convention of 1832 delegates
Texas Consultation delegates
American emigrants to Mexico
People of the Texas Revolution
American people of English descent
People from Jones Creek, Texas
People from Wythe County, Virginia
People from Potosi, Missouri
Texas Ranger Division
Burials at Texas State Cemetery
Transylvania University alumni
American Freemasons
History of Austin, Texas
19th-century Mexican politicians
American slave owners
Deaths from pneumonia in Texas
American proslavery activists
Ranchers from Texas
19th-century American politicians
Bacon Academy alumni | false | [
"\n\nAbout \n\nBorn in 1903 , Bimal Mukherjee () (1903–1996) was the first Indian globe trotter to travel the entire world on a bicycle from the year 1926 to 1937. Though born in Odisha his ancestral house was at Pataldanga street , Kolkata , West Bengal .\n\nThe Voyage \nBimal Mukherjee () (1903–1996) was the first Indian globe trotter who travelled the entire world on a bicycle from the year 1926 to 1937. He wrote the book Du Chakay Duniya about his experiences.\n\nThe world voyage started on bicycle from Town Hall, Calcutta on December 12, 1926 and halted at Chandannagar for the first night.\n\nHe and his three friends Ashok Mukherjee, Ananda Mukherjee and Manindra Ghosh had crossed the Bohemian Alps in bicycles wearing flannel shirts and no woolen clothing in the month of December. They had kept warm by cycling vigorously and alternated keeping one hand in their pockets to prevent frostbite. When asked how they did the amazing feat. He had replied, \"We are carrying the sun rays from India!\".\n\nSee also\n Ramnath Biswas\n Rajesh Chandrasekar\n Chandan Biswas\n\nReferences\n\n1903 births\n1987 deaths\nCircumnavigators of the globe\nIndian explorers\nIndian male cyclists\nIndian travel writers",
"Travel behavior is the study of what people do over space, and how people use transport.\n\nQuestions studied\nThe questions studied in travel behavior are broad, and are probed through activity and time-use research studies, and surveys of travelers designed to reveal attitudes, behaviors and the gaps between them in relation to the sociological and environmental impacts of travel.\n\n How many trips do people make?\n Where do they go? (What is the destination?)\n What mode do they take?\n Who accompanies whom?\n When is the trip made? What is the schedule?\n What is the sequence or pattern of trips?\n What route choices do people make?\n Why do people travel? (Why can't people stay at home and telecommute or teleshop?)\n To what degree are people aware of the environmental and climate impacts of their travel choices?\n To what degree and how do people rationalize the environmental and climate impacts causes by their travel?\n Where changes in travel behavior would be beneficial to society, how might those changes be promoted?\n\nOther behavioral aspects of traveling, such as letting people get off before entering a vehicle, queueing behavior, etc. (See for example Passenger behavior in Shanghai)\n\nData\nThese questions can be answered descriptively using a travel diary, often part of a travel survey or travel behavior inventory. Large metropolitan areas typically only do such surveys once every decade, though some cities are conducting panel surveys, which track the same people year after year. Such repeated surveys are useful because they yield different answers than surveys at a single point in time.\n\nThat data is generally used to estimate transportation planning models, so that transport analysts can make predictions about people who haven't been surveyed. This is important in forecasting traffic, which depends on future changes to road networks, land use patterns, and policies.\n\nSome years ago it was recognized that behavioral research was limited by data, and a special data set was developed to aid research: The Baltimore Disaggregate Data Set which is the result an in depth survey, ca. 1977. Its title indicates today’s emphasis on disaggregated rather than aggregated data. This particular data set is believed lost. A small program to preserve and make available on the web these travel behavior surveys, the Metropolitan Travel Survey Archive, is now under way at the University of Minnesota. There is also the National Personal Transportation Survey (later National Household Travel Survey), conducted every five years or so, but with much less spatial detail.\n\nToday, the best source of information about travel behavior is a Household Travel Survey. In this type of data collection the sampling unit is the household and all its members because people interact the most with other people with whom they share a residence. Data on household characteristics, person characteristics, and a daily diary constitute the Household Travel Survey. The diary can be a trip diary (in which a person records every trip made in a day), or a place-based diary (in which a person record every location visited, the trips made to reach these location and the activities completed), or a time use diary (in which a person everything he/she does in day). Examples include the National Household Travel Survey, the California Household Travel Survey, The Puget Sound Travel Survey. Data from these surveys can be found at https://www.nrel.gov/transportation/secure-transportation-data/.\n\nTravel behavior and activity analysis\nAnalysis of travel behavior from the home can answer the question: How does the family participate in modern society. Consider two non-observable extremes. At one extreme we have the non-specialized household. It does everything for itself, and no travel is required. Ultimate specialization is the other extreme; travel is required for all things. Observed households are somewhere in between. The “in between” position of households might be thought of as the consequence of two matters.\n\n\tThere is social and economic structure – the organization of society. To participate in this society, the household specializes its occupations, education, social activities, etc.\n\tThe extent to which members of the household specialize turns on their attributes and resources.\n\nMoore (1964) has observed that increasing specialization in all things is the chief feature of social change. Considering social changes, one might observe that 100 years ago things were less specialized compared to today. So we would expect lots of change in household travel over the time period. Data are not very good, but the travel time aspect of what’s available seems contrary to the expectation, travel hasn’t changed much. For instance, the time spent on the journey to work may have been stable for centuries (the travel budget hypothesis). Here are some travel time comparisons from John Robinson (1986).\n\nMost travel behavior analysis concerns demand issues and do not touch very much on supply issues. Yet when we observe travel from a home, we are certainly observing some sort of market clearing process – demand and supply are matched.\n\nHistory of travel behavior analysis\nAnalytic work on travel behavior can be dated from Liepmann (1945). Liepmann obtained and analyzed 1930s data on worker travel in England. Many of the insights current today were found by Liepmann: time spent, ride sharing, etc. Most academics date modern work from advances in mode choice analysis made in the 1970s. This created much excitement, and after some years an International Association for Travel Behaviour Research emerged. There are about 150 members of the Association; it holds a conference every three years. The proceedings of those conferences yield a nice record of advances in the field. The proceedings also provide a record of topics of lasting interest and of changing priorities. Mode choice received priority early on, but in the main today’s work is not so much on theory as it is on practice. Hagerstrand (1970) developed a time and space path analysis, often called the time-space prism.\n\nGender difference in travel patterns\nOn November 18–20, 2004, Transportation Research Board (TRB) held its third conference in Chicago, Illinois, with an interest in advancing the understanding of women’s issues in transportation. One of the presented studies, conducted by Nobis et al., revealed that the gender difference in travel patterns is linked to employment status, household structure, child care, and maintenance tasks. They found that travel patterns of men and women are much similar when considering single families; the differences are greater once males and females are compared in multi-person households without children; and are the highest once they live in households with children. Over the past two decades numerous studies have been conducted on travel behavior showing gender as an influential factor in travel decision making.\n\nSee also\n Hypermobility\n Metropolitan Travel Survey Archive\n Prof. Stefan Gössling, sustainable travel expert\n Travel survey\n Willingness to pay\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n https://web.archive.org/web/20110530124709/http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/scienceresearch/social/climatechangetransportchoices/\n http://www.dft.gov.uk/data/release/10036\n\nConsumer behaviour\nHuman geography\nTransportation planning\nTravel"
]
|
[
"Patricia Highsmith",
"The \"Ripliad\""
]
| C_23fdf1ec48f84f14b6ba708db2036d39_0 | what is the Ripliad? | 1 | What is the series The Ripliad? | Patricia Highsmith | In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series--collectively dubbed "The Ripliad"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works and have sold millions of copies worldwide. The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated," a "dapper sociopath," and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath." Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, Rene Clement's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written." The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development. CANNOTANSWER | The series--collectively dubbed "The Ripliad"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works | Patricia Highsmith (January 19, 1921 – February 4, 1995) was an American novelist and short story writer widely known for her psychological thrillers, including her series of five novels featuring the character Tom Ripley.
She wrote 22 novels and numerous short stories throughout her career spanning nearly five decades, and her work has led to more than two dozen film adaptations. Her writing derived influence from existentialist literature, and questioned notions of identity and popular morality. She was dubbed "the poet of apprehension" by novelist Graham Greene.
Her first novel, Strangers on a Train, has been adapted for stage and screen, the best known being the Alfred Hitchcock film released in 1951. Her 1955 novel The Talented Mr. Ripley has been adapted for film. Writing under the pseudonym Claire Morgan, Highsmith published the first lesbian novel with a happy ending, The Price of Salt, in 1952, republished 38 years later as Carol under her own name and later adapted into a 2015 film.
Early life
Highsmith was born Mary Patricia Plangman in Fort Worth, Texas. She was the only child of artists Jay Bernard Plangman (1889–1975), who was of German descent, and Mary Plangman (née Coates; September 13, 1895 – March 12, 1991). The couple divorced ten days before their daughter's birth.
In 1927, Highsmith, her mother and her adoptive stepfather, artist Stanley Highsmith, whom her mother had married in 1924, moved to New York City. When she was 12 years old, Highsmith was sent to Fort Worth and lived with her maternal grandmother for a year. She called this the "saddest year" of her life and felt "abandoned" by her mother. She returned to New York to continue living with her mother and stepfather, primarily in Manhattan, but also in Astoria, Queens.
According to Highsmith, her mother once told her that she had tried to abort her by drinking turpentine, although a biography of Highsmith indicates Jay Plangman tried to persuade his wife to have the abortion but she refused. Highsmith never resolved this love–hate relationship, which reportedly haunted her for the rest of her life, and which she fictionalized in "The Terrapin", her short story about a young boy who stabs his mother to death. Highsmith's mother predeceased her by only four years, dying at the age of 95.
Highsmith's grandmother taught her to read at an early age, and she made good use of her grandmother's extensive library. At the age of nine, she found a resemblance to her own imaginative life in the case histories of The Human Mind by Karl Menninger, a popularizer of Freudian analysis.
Many of Highsmith's 22 novels were set in Greenwich Village, where she lived at 48 Grove Street from 1940 to 1942, before moving to 345 E. 57th Street. In 1942, Highsmith graduated from Barnard College, where she studied English composition, playwriting, and short story prose. After graduating from college, and despite endorsements from "highly placed professionals," she applied without success for a job at publications such as Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, Mademoiselle, Good Housekeeping, Time, Fortune, and The New Yorker.
Based on the recommendation from Truman Capote, Highsmith was accepted by the Yaddo artist's retreat during the summer of 1948, where she worked on her first novel, Strangers on a Train.
Personal life
Highsmith endured cycles of depression, some of them deep, throughout her life. Despite literary success, she wrote in her diary of January 1970: "[I] am now cynical, fairly rich ... lonely, depressed, and totally pessimistic." Over the years, Highsmith suffered from female hormone deficiency, anorexia nervosa, chronic anemia, Buerger's disease, and lung cancer.
According to her biographer, Andrew Wilson, Highsmith's personal life was a "troubled one". She was an alcoholic who, allegedly, never had an intimate relationship that lasted for more than a few years, and she was seen by some of her contemporaries and acquaintances as misanthropic and hostile. Her chronic alcoholism intensified as she grew older.
She famously preferred the company of animals to that of people and stated in a 1991 interview, "I choose to live alone because my imagination functions better when I don't have to speak with people."
Otto Penzler, her U.S. publisher through his Penzler Books imprint, had met Highsmith in 1983, and four years later witnessed some of her theatrics intended to create havoc at dinner tables and shipwreck an evening. He said after her death that "[Highsmith] was a mean, cruel, hard, unlovable, unloving human being ... I could never penetrate how any human being could be that relentlessly ugly. ... But her books? Brilliant."
Other friends, publishers, and acquaintances held different views of Highsmith. Editor Gary Fisketjon, who published her later novels through Knopf, said that "She was very rough, very difficult ... But she was also plainspoken, dryly funny, and great fun to be around." Composer David Diamond met Highsmith in 1943 and described her as being "quite a depressed person—and I think people explain her by pulling out traits like cold and reserved, when in fact it all came from depression." J. G. Ballard said of Highsmith, "The author of Strangers on a Train and The Talented Mr. Ripley was every bit as deviant and quirky as her mischievous heroes, and didn't seem to mind if everyone knew it." Screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, who adapted The Price of Salt into the 2015 film Carol, met Highsmith in 1987 and the two remained friends for the rest of Highsmith's life. Nagy said that Highsmith was "very sweet" and "encouraging" to her as a young writer, as well as "wonderfully funny."
She was considered by some as "a lesbian with a misogynist streak."
Highsmith loved cats, and she bred about three hundred snails in her garden at home in Suffolk, England. Highsmith once attended a London cocktail party with a "gigantic handbag" that "contained a head of lettuce and a hundred snails" which she said were her "companions for the evening."
She loved woodworking tools and made several pieces of furniture. Highsmith worked without stopping. In later life, she became stooped, with an osteoporotic hump. Though the 22 novels and 8 books of short stories she wrote were highly acclaimed, especially outside of the United States, Highsmith preferred her personal life to remain private.
A lifelong diarist, Highsmith left behind eight thousand pages of handwritten notebooks and diaries.
Sexuality
As an adult, Patricia Highsmith's sexual relationships were predominantly with women. She occasionally engaged in sex with men without physical desire for them, and wrote in her diary: "The male face doesn't attract me, isn't beautiful to me." She told writer Marijane Meaker in the late 1950s that she had "tried to like men. I like most men better than I like women, but not in bed." In a 1970 letter to her stepfather Stanley, Highsmith described sexual encounters with men as "steel wool in the face, a sensation of being raped in the wrong place—leading to a sensation of having to have, pretty soon, a boewl [sic] movement." Stressing, "If these words are unpleasant to read, I can assure you it is a little more unpleasant in bed." Phyllis Nagy described Highsmith as "a lesbian who did not very much enjoy being around other women" and the few sexual dabbles she'd had with men occurred just to "see if she could be into men in that way because she so much more preferred their company."
In 1943, Highsmith had an affair with artist Allela Cornell who, despondent over unrequited love from another woman, committed suicide in 1946 by drinking nitric acid.
During her stay at Yaddo, Highsmith met writer Marc Brandel, son of author J. D. Beresford. Even though she told him about her homosexuality, they soon entered into a short-lived relationship. He convinced her to visit him in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where he introduced her to Ann Smith, a painter and designer with a previous métier as a Vogue fashion model, and the two became involved. After Smith left Provincetown, Highsmith felt she was "in prison" with Brandel and told him she was leaving. "[B]ecause of that I have to sleep with him, and only the fact that it is the last night strengthens me to bear it." Highsmith, who had never been sexually exclusive with Brandel, resented having sex with him. Highsmith temporarily broke off the relationship with Brandel and continued to be involved with several women, reuniting after the well-received publication of his new novel. Beginning November 30, 1948, and continuing for the next six months, Highsmith underwent psychoanalysis in an effort "to regularize herself sexually" so she could marry Brandel. The analysis was brought to a stop by Highsmith, after which she ended her relationship with him.
After ending her engagement to Marc Brandel, she had an affair with psychoanalyst Kathryn Hamill Cohen, the wife of British publisher Dennis Cohen and founder of Cresset Press, which later published Strangers on a Train.
To help pay for the twice-a-week therapy sessions, Highsmith had taken a sales job during Christmas rush season in the toy section of Bloomingdale's department store. Ironically, it was during this attempt to "cure" her homosexuality that Highsmith was inspired to write her semi-autobiographical novel The Price of Salt, in which two women meet in a department store and begin a passionate affair.
Believing that Brandel's disclosure that she was homosexual, along with the publication of The Price of Salt, would hurt her professionally, Highsmith had an unsuccessful affair with Arthur Koestler in 1950, designed to hide her homosexuality.
In early September 1951, she began an affair with sociologist Ellen Blumenthal Hill, traveling back and forth to Europe to meet with her. When Highsmith and Hill came to New York in early May 1953, their affair ostensibly "in a fragile state", Highsmith began an "impossible" affair with the homosexual German photographer Rolf Tietgens, who had played a "sporadic, intense, and unconsummated role in her emotional life since 1943." She was reportedly attracted to Tietgens on account of his homosexuality, confiding that she felt with him "as if he is another girl, or a singularly innocent man." Tietgens shot several nude photographs of Highsmith, but only one has survived, torn in half at the waist so that only her upper body is visible. She dedicated The Two Faces of January (1964) to Tietgens.
Between 1959 and 1961, Highsmith was in love with author Marijane Meaker. Meaker wrote lesbian stories under the pseudonym "Ann Aldrich" and mystery/suspense fiction as "Vin Packer", and later wrote young adult fiction as "M.E. Kerr." In the late 1980s, after 27 years of separation, Highsmith began corresponding with Meaker again, and one day showed up on Meaker's doorstep, slightly drunk and ranting bitterly. Meaker later said she was horrified at how Highsmith's personality had changed.
Highsmith was attracted to women of privilege who expected their lovers to treat them with veneration. According to Phyllis Nagy, she belonged to a "very particular subset of lesbians" and described her conduct with many women she was interested in as being comparable to a movie "studio boss" who chased starlets. Many of these women, who to some extent belonged to the 'Carol Aird'-type and her social set, remained friendly with Highsmith and confirmed the stories of seduction.
An intensely private person, Highsmith was remarkably open and outspoken about her sexuality. She told Meaker: "the only difference between us and heterosexuals is what we do in bed."
Death
Highsmith died on February 4, 1995, at 74, from a combination of aplastic anemia and lung cancer at Carita hospital in Locarno, Switzerland, near the village where she had lived since 1982. She was cremated at the cemetery in Bellinzona; a memorial service was conducted in the Chiesa di Tegna in Tegna, Ticino, Switzerland; and her ashes were interred in its columbarium.
She left her estate, worth an estimated $3 million, and the promise of any future royalties to the Yaddo colony, where she spent two months in 1948 writing the draft of Strangers on a Train. Highsmith bequeathed her literary estate to the Swiss Literary Archives at the Swiss National Library in Bern, Switzerland. Her Swiss publisher, Diogenes Verlag, was appointed literary executor of the estate.
Religious, racial and ethnic views
Highsmith was a resolute atheist. Although she considered herself a liberal, and in her school years had gotten along with black students, in later years she became convinced that Black people were responsible for the welfare crisis in America. She disliked Koreans because "they ate dogs".
Highsmith was an avowed antisemite; she described herself as a "Jew hater" and described The Holocaust as "the semicaust". When she was living in Switzerland in the 1980s, she used nearly 40 aliases when writing to government bodies and newspapers deploring the state of Israel and the "influence" of the Jews. Highsmith was an active supporter of Palestinian rights, a stance which, according to Carol screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, "often teetered into outright antisemitism."
Politics
Highsmith described herself as a social democrat. She believed in American democratic ideals and in "the promise" of U.S. history, but was also highly critical of the reality of the country's 20th-century culture and foreign policy. Beginning in 1963, she resided exclusively in Europe. She retained her United States citizenship, despite the tax penalties, of which she complained bitterly while living for many years in France and Switzerland.
Palestine
Highsmith aligned herself with writers such as Gore Vidal, Alexander Cockburn, Noam Chomsky and Edward Said in supporting Palestinian self-determination. As a member of Amnesty International, she felt duty-bound to express publicly her opposition to the displacement of Palestinians. Highsmith prohibited her books from being published in Israel after the election of Menachem Begin as prime minister in 1977. She dedicated her 1983 novel People Who Knock on the Door to the Palestinian people:
The inscription was dropped from the U.S. edition with permission from her agent but without consent from Highsmith.
Highsmith contributed financially to the Jewish Committee on the Middle East, an organization founded in 1988 that represented American Jews who wanted the United States to "dissociate ... from the policies of Israel." She wrote in an August 1993 letter to Marijane Meaker: "USA could save 11 million per day if they would cut the dough to Israel. The Jewish vote is 1%."
Writing history
Comic books
After graduating from Barnard College, before her short stories started appearing in print, Highsmith wrote for comic book publishers from 1942 and 1948, while she lived in New York City and Mexico. Answering an ad for "reporter/rewrite", she landed a job working for comic book publisher Ned Pines in a "bullpen" with four artists and three other writers. Initially scripting two comic-book stories a day for $55-a-week paychecks, Highsmith soon realized she could make more money by freelance writing for comics, a situation which enabled her to find time to work on her own short stories and live for a period in Mexico. The comic book scriptwriter job was the only long-term job Highsmith ever held.
From 1942 to 1943, for the Sangor–Pines shop (Better/Cinema/Pines/Standard/Nedor), Highsmith wrote "Sergeant Bill King" stories, contributed to Black Terror and Fighting Yank comics, and wrote profiles such as Catherine the Great, Barney Ross, and Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker for the "Real Life Comics" series. From 1943 to 1946, under editor Vincent Fago at Timely Comics, she contributed to its U.S.A. Comics wartime series, writing scenarios for comics such as Jap Buster Johnson and The Destroyer. During these same years she wrote for Fawcett Publications, scripting for Fawcett Comics characters "Crisco and Jasper" and others. Highsmith also wrote for True Comics, Captain Midnight, and Western Comics.
When Highsmith wrote the psychological thriller novel The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955), one of the title character's first victims is a comic-book artist named Reddington: "Tom had a hunch about Reddington. He was a comic-book artist. He probably didn't know whether he was coming or going."
Early novels and short stories
Highsmith's first novel, Strangers on a Train, proved modestly successful upon publication in 1950, and Alfred Hitchcock's 1951 film adaptation of the novel enhanced her reputation.
Highsmith's second novel, The Price of Salt, was published in 1952 under the nom de plume Claire Morgan. Highsmith mined her personal life for the novel's content. Its groundbreaking happy ending and departure from stereotypical conceptions about lesbians made it stand out in lesbian fiction. In what BBC 2's The Late Show presenter Sarah Dunant described as a "literary coming out" after 38 years of disaffirmation, Highsmith finally acknowledged authorship of the novel publicly when she agreed to the 1990 publication by Bloomsbury retitled Carol. Highsmith wrote in the "Afterword" to the new edition:
The paperback version of the novel sold nearly one million copies before its 1990 reissue as Carol. The Price of Salt is distinct for also being the only one of Highsmith's novels in which no violent crime takes place, and where her characters have "more explicit sexual existences" and are allowed "to find happiness in their relationship."
Her short stories appeared for the first time in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine in the early 1950s.
Her last novel, Small g: a Summer Idyll, was rejected by Knopf (her usual publisher by then) several months before her death, leaving Highsmith without an American publisher. It was published posthumously in the United Kingdom by Bloomsbury Publishing in March 1995, and nine years later in the United States by W.W. Norton.
The "Ripliad"
In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series—collectively called "The Ripliad"—are some of Highsmith's most popular works.
The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated", a "dapper sociopath", and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath."
Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, René Clément's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written."
The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development.
Honors
1979 : Grand Master, Swedish Crime Writers' Academy
1987 : , Festival du Cinéma Américain de Deauville
1989 : Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, French Ministry of Culture
1993 : Best Foreign Literary Award, Finnish Crime Society
2008 : Greatest Crime Writer, The Times
Awards and nominations
1946 : O. Henry Award, Best First Story, for The Heroine (in Harper's Bazaar)
1951 : Nominee, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Best First Novel, Mystery Writers of America, for Strangers on a Train
1956 : Edgar Allan Poe Scroll (special award), Mystery Writers of America, for The Talented Mr. Ripley
1957 : Grand Prix de Littérature Policière, International, for The Talented Mr. Ripley
1963 : Nominee, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Best Short Story, Mystery Writers of America, for The Terrapin (in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine)
1963 : Special Award, Mystery Writers of America, for The Terrapin
1964 : Silver Dagger Award, Best Foreign Novel, Crime Writers' Association, for The Two Faces of January (pub. Heinemann)
1975 : for L'Amateur d'escargots (pub. Calmann-Lévy) (English title: Eleven)
Bibliography
Novels
Strangers on a Train (1950)
The Price of Salt (1952) (as Claire Morgan) (republished as Carol in 1990 under Highsmith's name)
The Blunderer (1954)
Deep Water (1957)
A Game for the Living (1958)
This Sweet Sickness (1960)
The Cry of the Owl (1962)
The Two Faces of January (1964)
The Glass Cell (1964)
A Suspension of Mercy (1965) (published as The Story-Teller in the U.S.)
Those Who Walk Away (1967)
The Tremor of Forgery (1969)
A Dog's Ransom (1972)
Edith's Diary (1977)
People Who Knock on the Door (1983)
Found in the Street (1986)
Small g: a Summer Idyll (1995)
The "Ripliad"
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955)
Ripley Under Ground (1970)
Ripley's Game (1974)
The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980)
Ripley Under Water (1991)
Short story collections
Eleven (1970) (Foreword by Graham Greene). . (published as The Snail-Watcher and Other Stories in the U.S.)
Little Tales of Misogyny (1975). (published first as Kleine Geschichten für Weiberfeinde in Switzerland)
The Animal Lover's Book of Beastly Murder (1975). .
Slowly, Slowly in the Wind (1979). .
The Black House (1981).
Mermaids on the Golf Course (1985).
Tales of Natural and Unnatural Catastrophes (1987). .
Chillers (1990). . (publication of Highsmith stories broadcast on U.S. television series Chillers)
Nothing That Meets the Eye: The Uncollected Stories (2002). . (published posthumously)
Under a Dark Angel's Eye: The Selected Stories of Patricia Highsmith (2021) (introduction by Carmen Maria Machado). .
Other books
Miranda the Panda Is on the Veranda (1958) with Doris Sanders. . (children's book of verse and illustrations)
Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction (1966). . (enlarged and revised edition, 1981, )
Essays and articles
"Not-Thinking with the Dishes" (1982), Whodunit? A Guide to Crime, Suspense and Spy Fiction, pg. 92. By H. R. F. Keating, Windward,
"Scene of the Crime" (1989), Granta, Issue No. 29, Winter
Miscellaneous
"Introduction" (1977), The World of Raymond Chandler. Ed. Miriam Gross, Weidenfeld and Nicolson,
"Foreword" (1987), Crime and Mystery: The 100 Best Books. By H. R. F. Keating, Xanadu,
Collected works
Mystery Cats III: More Feline Felonies (1995) (Signet Books, ) (anthology includes Patricia Highsmith)
'The Selected Stories of Patricia Highsmith (2001) (W. W. Norton & Company, )
Patricia Highsmith: Selected Novels and Short Stories (2011) (W. W. Norton & Company, )
Film, television, theatre and radio adaptations
Several of Highsmith's works have been adapted for other media, some more than once. In 1978, Highsmith was president of the jury at the 28th Berlin International Film Festival.
Film
1951. Strangers on a Train was adapted as a film of same name directed by Alfred Hitchcock starring Farley Granger as Guy Haines, Robert Walker as Anthony Bruno, Ruth Roman as Anne Morton, Patricia Hitchcock as Barbara Morton and Laura Elliott as Miriam Joyce Haines.
1963. The Blunderer was adapted as French-language film Le meurtrier ("The Murderer"), directed by Claude Autant-Lara starring Maurice Ronet as Walter Saccard, Yvonne Furneaux as Clara Saccard, Gert Fröbe as Melchior Kimmel, Marina Vlady as Ellie and Robert Hossein as Corbi. It is known in English as Enough Rope.
1969. Strangers on a Train was adapted as Once You Kiss a Stranger, directed by Robert Sparr starring Paul Burke as Jerry, Carol Lynley as Diana and Martha Hyer as Lee.
1977. This Sweet Sickness was adapted as French-language film Dites-lui que je l'aime, directed by Claude Miller starring Gérard Depardieu as David Martineau, Miou-Miou as Juliette, Dominique Laffin as Lise, and Jacques Denis as Gérard Dutilleux. It is known in English as This Sweet Sickness.
1978. The Glass Cell was adapted as German-language film Die gläserne Zelle, directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer starring Brigitte Fossey as Lisa Braun, Helmut Griem as Phillip Braun, Dieter Laser as David Reinelt and Walter Kohut as Robert Lasky.
1981. Deep Water was adapted as French-language film Eaux profondes, directed by Michel Deville starring Isabelle Huppert as Melanie and Jean-Louis Trintignant as Vic Allen.
1983. Edith's Diary was adapted as German-language film Ediths Tagebuch, directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer starring Angela Winkler as Edith.
1986. The Two Faces of January was adapted as German-language film Die zwei Gesichter des Januars, directed by Wolfgang Storch starring Charles Brauer as Chester McFarland, Yolanda Jilot as Colette McFarland and Thomas Schücke as Rydal Keener.
1987. The Cry of the Owl was adapted as French-language film Le cri du hibou, directed by Claude Chabrol starring Christophe Malavoy as Robert, Mathilda May as Juliette, Jacques Penot as Patrick and Virginie Thévenet as Véronique.
1987. The film version of Strangers on a Train by Alfred Hitchcock inspired the black comedy American film Throw Momma from the Train, directed by Danny DeVito.
1989. The Story Teller was adapted as German-language film Der Geschichtenerzähler, directed by Rainer Boldt starring Udo Schenk as Nico Thomkins and Anke Sevenich as Helen Thomkins.
2009. The Cry of the Owl was adapted as a film of same name, directed by Jamie Thraves starring Paddy Considine as Robert Forester and Julia Stiles as Jenny Thierolf.
2014. The Two Faces of January was adapted as a film of same name, written and directed by Hossein Amini starring Viggo Mortensen as Chester MacFarland, Kirsten Dunst as Colette MacFarland and Oscar Isaac as Rydal. It was released during the 64th Berlin International Film Festival.
2014. A Mighty Nice Man was adapted as a short film, directed by Jonathan Dee starring Kylie McVey as Charlotte, Jacqueline Baum as Emilie, Kristen Connolly as Charlotte's Mother, and Billy Magnussen as Robbie.
2015. A film adaption of The Price of Salt, titled Carol, was written by Phyllis Nagy and directed by Todd Haynes, starring Cate Blanchett as Carol Aird and Rooney Mara as Therese Belivet.
2016. The Blunderer was adapted as A Kind of Murder, directed by Andy Goddard starring Patrick Wilson as Walter Stackhouse, Jessica Biel as Clara Stackhouse, Eddie Marsan as Marty Kimmel and Haley Bennett as Ellie Briess.
"Ripliad"
1960: The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted as French-language film Plein soleil (titled Purple Noon for English-language audiences, though it translates as "Full Sun"). Directed by René Clément starring Alain Delon as Tom Ripley, Maurice Ronet as Philippe Greenleaf, and Marie Laforêt as Marge Duval. Both Highsmith and film critic Roger Ebert criticized the screenplay for altering the ending to prevent Ripley from going unpunished as he does in the novel.
1977: Ripley's Game (third novel) and a "plot fragment" of Ripley Under Ground (second novel) were adapted as German-language film Der Amerikanische Freund (The American Friend). Directed by Wim Wenders with Dennis Hopper as Ripley. Highsmith initially disliked the film but later found it stylish, although she did not like how Ripley was interpreted.
1999: The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted as an American production. Directed by Anthony Minghella with Matt Damon as Ripley, Jude Law as Dickie Greenleaf, and Gwyneth Paltrow as Marge Sherwood.
2002: Ripley's Game was adapted as a film of same name for an English-language Italian production. Directed by Liliana Cavani with John Malkovich as Ripley, Chiara Caselli as Luisa Harari Ripley, Ray Winstone as Reeves Minot, Dougray Scott as Jonathan Trevanny, and Lena Headey as Sarah Trevanny. Although not all reviews were favorable, Roger Ebert regarded it as the best of all the Ripley films.
2005: Ripley Under Ground was adapted as a film of same name. Directed by Roger Spottiswoode with Barry Pepper as Ripley, Jacinda Barrett as Héloïse Plisson-Ripley, Willem Dafoe as Neil Murchison, and Tom Wilkinson as John Webster.
2020: Ripley upcoming American television series by Showtime. Directed by Steven Zaillian starring Andrew Scott as Tom Ripley.
Television
1958. Strangers on a Train was adapted by Warner Brothers for an episode of the TV series 77 Sunset Strip.
1982. Scenes from the Ripley novels were dramatized in the episode A Gift for Murder of The South Bank Show, with Jonathan Kent portraying Tom Ripley. The episode included an interview with Patricia Highsmith.
1983. Deep Water was adapted as a miniseries for German television as , directed by Franz Peter Wirth starring Peter Bongartz as Vic van Allen, Constanze Engelbrecht as Melinda van Allen, Reinhard Glemnitz as Dirk Weisberg, Raimund Harmstorf as Anton Kameter, and Sky du Mont as Charley de Lisle.
1987. The Cry of the Owl was adapted for German television as Der Schrei der Eule, directed by Tom Toelle starring Matthias Habich as Robert Forster, Birgit Doll as Johanna Tierolf, Jacques Breuer as Karl Weick, Fritz Lichtenhahn as Inspektor Lippenholtz, and Doris Kunstmann as Vicky.
1990. The twelve episodes of the television series Mistress of Suspense are based on stories by Highsmith. The series aired first in France, then in the UK. It became available in the U.S. under the title Chillers.
1993. The Tremor of Forgery was adapted as German television film Trip nach Tunis, directed by Peter Goedel starring David Hunt as Howard Ingham, Karen Sillas as Ina Pallant and John Seitz as Francis J. Adams.
1995. Little Tales of Misogyny was adapted as Spanish/Catalan television film Petits contes misògins, directed by Pere Sagristà starring Marta Pérez, Carme Pla, Mamen Duch, and Míriam Iscla.
1996. Strangers on a Train was adapted for television as Once You Meet a Stranger, directed by Tommy Lee Wallace starring Jacqueline Bisset as Sheila Gaines ("Guy"), Theresa Russell as Margo Anthony ("Bruno") and Celeste Holm as Clara. The gender of the two lead characters was changed from male to female.
1996. A Dog's Ransom was adapted as French television film La rançon du chien, directed by Peter Kassovitz starring François Négret as César, François Perrot as Edouard Raynaud, Daniel Prévost as Max Ducasse and Charlotte Valandrey as Sophie.
Theatre
1998. The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted for the stage as a play of same name by playwright Phyllis Nagy. It was revived in 2010.
2013. Strangers on a Train was adapted as a play of same name by playwright Craig Warner.
Radio
2002. A four-episode radio drama of The Cry of the Owl was broadcast by BBC Radio 4, with voice acting by John Sharian as Robert Forester, Joanne McQuinn as Jenny Theirolf, Adrian Lester as Greg Wyncoop, and Matt Rippy as Jack Neilsen.
2009. All five books of the "Ripliad" were dramatized by BBC Radio 4, with Ian Hart voicing Tom Ripley.
2014. A five-segment dramatization of Carol (aka The Price of Salt) was broadcast by BBC Radio 4, with voice acting by Miranda Richardson as Carol Aird and Andrea Deck as Therese Belivet.
2019. A five-episode broadcast of selected short stories (One for the Islands, A Curious Suicide, The Terrors of Basket-Weaving, The Man Who Wrote Books In His Head, The Baby Spoon) by BBC Radio 4.
Works about Patricia Highsmith
Fictional
Dawson, Jill (2016). The Crime Writer. Sceptre. .
Murray-Smith, Joanna (2015). Switzerland. Dramatists Play Service. . (First presented at Sydney Theatre Company in November 2014).
Documentary
Highsmith: Her Secret Life (2004), documentary film by Hugh Thomson, BBC Four.
Highsmith: Her Secret Life, "notes on the film", Hugh Thomson, BBC, 2004.
See also
Ruth Rendell: A "mistress of suspense" contemporary of Highsmith for whom Highsmith acknowledged rarely admitted admiration. Rendell explored characters and themes similar to Highsmith's.
Notes
References
Further reading
Dirda, Michael (July 2, 2009). This Woman Is Dangerous. The New York Review of Books. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
Dupont, Joan (June 12, 1988). Criminal Pursuits. The New York Times. Retrieved March 28, 2017.
Helmore, Edward (October 26, 2019). Diaries expose ‘strong brew’ of Ripley novelist Patricia Highsmith's dark thoughts. The Guardian. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
McCann, Sean (April 1, 2011). “Frequently as a rat has orgasms”. New York City in the '40s, Wesleyan University. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
Morgan, Kim (December 4, 2015). The Gnarly Allure of Patricia Highsmith. The Daily Beast. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Perrin, Tom (December 18, 2012). On Patricia Highsmith. Post45 (Yale University). Retrieved March 12, 2016.
Piepenbring, Dan (January 19, 2015). A Dissatisfaction with Life. The Paris Review. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Rayner, Richard (July 17, 2011). Paperback Writers: Classic Patricia Highsmith. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 18, 2016.
Schenkar, Joan (January 21, 2012). The Talented Miss Highsmith: The Secret Life and Serious Art of Patricia Highsmith. Joan Schenkar. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Schenkar, Joan (February 25, 2016). What Patricia Highsmith did for love: 'The Price of Salt' and the secrets behind 'Carol'. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Shipley, Diane (April 1, 2014). Patricia Highsmith's criminal neglect. The Guardian. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Smith, Nathan (November 19, 2015). When Patricia Highsmith Offered Gay Readers a Hopeful Ending. The New Republic. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Tonkin, Boyd (December 7, 2015). 'Carol', Patricia Highsmith, and how gay literature found its voice in the 1950s. The Independent''. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Books
External links
Patricia Highsmith Papers – Swiss Literary Archives. Swiss National Library, 2006.
Patricia Highsmith – Exhibition of the Swiss National Library. March–September 2006, Swiss National Library, March 13, 2006.
Patricia Highsmith : photographs from the exhibition. Swiss Literary Archives, Swiss National Library, December 1, 2006. (archive)
Choose Your Highsmith (The Patricia Highsmith Recommendation Engine). W. W. Norton & Company.
Patricia Highsmith First Edition Book Cover Gallery (UK publishers). Existential Ennui, 2013.
Patricia Highsmith gallery by René Burri, Magnum Photos, 1988.
Patricia Highsmith interview by Naim Attallah, Naim Attallah Online, Quartet Books, 1993.
Works by or about Patricia Highsmith in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
Audio interviews
Patricia Highsmith on Audio Interviews: "Thrillers and Crime Fiction", BBC Four, December 3, 1972 (archive)
Patricia Highsmith interview with Roy Plomley, Desert Island Discs, BBC Radio 4, April 21, 1979.
Patricia Highsmith interview (The Black House) with Peter Clayton, Meridian, BBC World Service, August 8, 1980.
Patricia Highsmith interview with Terry Gross, Fresh Air, NPR, October 27, 1987.
Patricia Highsmith interview with Don Swaim, Book Beat, WCBS-Radio (via Wired for Books, Ohio University), October 29, 1987. (archive)
Patricia Highsmith, In Conversation with Michael Dibdin, ICA talks, Institute of Contemporary Arts, September 27, 1991.
1921 births
1995 deaths
20th-century American novelists
20th-century American short story writers
20th-century American women writers
20th-century pseudonymous writers
American adoptees
American comics writers
American crime fiction writers
American detective fiction writers
American horror writers
American lesbian writers
American people of German descent
American women novelists
American women short story writers
Female comics writers
LGBT comics creators
American LGBT novelists
People with mood disorders
Pseudonymous women writers
Psychological fiction writers
Women horror writers
Women mystery writers
Deaths from anemia
Deaths from cancer in Switzerland
LGBT people from Texas
People from Fort Worth, Texas
People from Greenwich Village
Golden Age comics creators
Members of the Detection Club
Officiers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
Barnard College alumni
Yaddo alumni | false | [
"Ripley Under Ground is a psychological thriller by Patricia Highsmith, the second novel in her Ripliad series. It was published in June 1970.\n\nPlot summary \n\nSix years after the events of The Talented Mr. Ripley, Tom Ripley is now in his early 30s, living a comfortable life in France with his heiress wife, Héloïse Plisson. The lifestyle at his estate, Belle Ombre, is supported by Dickie Greenleaf's fortune, occasional fence work with an American named Reeves Minot, and Derwatt Ltd. — an art forgery scheme that he helped set up years before as a silent partner. \n\nYears prior, after the painter Philip Derwatt disappeared and committed suicide in Greece, his friends — photographer Jeff Constant and freelance journalist Ed Banbury — began to publicize his work and sold a number of authentic paintings. Thanks to their PR efforts, Derwatt became more famous and his paintings more valuable. When the original Derwatts began to run out, Ripley went into business with them and convinced Bernard Tufts, another painter, to produce forged Derwatts. The money is rolling in, but Tufts, who had idolized Derwatt, is plagued by guilt for his role in the scheme.\n\nDerwatt Ltd. is threatened by a disgruntled American collector, Thomas Murchison, who surmises that one of his Derwatts is a forgery. Worried that the lid is about to be blown on the whole scheme, Ripley decides to go to London and impersonate Derwatt, meet with Murchison, and convince him that the paintings are genuine. Ripley is unsuccessful, however, particularly as Tufts meets with Murchison and tells him not to buy any more Derwatts. Ripley, as himself, invites Murchison to Belle Ombre to inspect his own Derwatt painting (also a fake) to try to persuade him from taking the case to a Tate Gallery curator and the police.\n\nMurchison inspects Ripley's painting and believes it is also a fake. Realizing that the argument is futile, Ripley comes clean on the entire scam, asking for mercy for Tufts' sake. Murchison refuses, however, so Ripley kills him. He abandons Murchison's suitcase and painting at Orly Airport, then buries his body in the woods near Belle Ombre. Later, Dickie's cousin Chris comes to stay while on a European tour. He notices the fresh grave outside the house, but doesn't think much of it. Tufts also visits Ripley, rattled by the recent events and saying he wants to confess everything to the police. Ripley tells Tufts that he killed Murchison and, realizing his own terrible choice of a gravesite, asks him to help move the body. Together, they dump the corpse in a river.\n\nThe French police, together with Inspector Webster from the Met, investigate Murchison's disappearance, making trips to Belle Ombre and inspecting the property. Tufts leaves a hanging effigy in the cellar that is discovered by Héloïse, along with a note suggesting that he is going to confess. When he returns to Belle Ombre, Tufts unsuccessfully tries to strangle Ripley, who feels pity for the disturbed man and does not retaliate. Later, Tufts knocks Ripley out with a shovel and buries him alive in Murchison's empty grave. Ripley manages to escape and returns to London to impersonate Derwatt for a second appearance, this time for Webster and Murchison's wife. Mrs. Murchison decides to pay a visit to Belle Ombre, the last place her husband was seen.\n\nBack at Belle Ombre, Ripley entertains Mrs. Murchison. After she leaves, Ripley realizes that Tufts is contemplating suicide. Feeling responsible, Ripley searches for him in Greece, Paris, and finally Salzburg. There, he finds Tufts, but the painter believes Ripley is a ghost - he thinks he killed him in France. Tufts runs from Ripley and leaps off a cliff to his death. Ripley uses the corpse to tie up loose ends; he partially cremates and buries the body, making sure to smash or hide any teeth. He then goes to the police with the information that Derwatt killed himself there. Seeing suicidal journal entries, the police presume that Tufts also killed himself in Salzburg by jumping off a bridge. \n\nWith Bernard and Derwatt both gone, the art forgery allegations have no active leads and Derwatt Ltd.'s existence is no longer in jeopardy. The novel ends with Ripley's being content in bed with Héloïse, who prefers to remain ignorant of what he has done and, further, how exactly he makes his money. He receives an optimistic-sounding call from the gallery showcasing the forged Derwatts, but still fears that the next one will be from the police, who have noticed that people tend to die after meeting Ripley.\n\nReception\n\nAccording to Michael Dirda, Ripley Under Ground considers authenticity, and the difference between appearance and reality. As Ripley admires a pair of Derwatt paintings on his walls, he actually comes to prefer the forgery over the genuine artwork. Dirda notes, \"Fakery, though, suffuses every page of Ripley Under Ground. Tom pretends to be Derwatt. Murchison appears to catch a plane at Orly. An effigy of Bernard is found hanging by its neck. A supposedly dead man rises from his grave. Bernard is haunted by what seems a ghost. In this counterfeit world only the pragmatic Tom thrives, for he alone recognizes that there is no distinction that matters between what is real and what is only apparently real.\"\n\nAdaptations\n\nFilm\n The 1977 film The American Friend, primarily based on Ripley's Game, also uses plot elements of Ripley Under Ground.\n The novel was filmed in 2005: Ripley Under Ground stars Barry Pepper as Ripley and features Willem Dafoe, Alan Cumming, and Tom Wilkinson in supporting roles. The film was directed by Roger Spottiswoode.\n\nTelevision\n Parts of the novel were adapted in \"A Gift for Murder\", a 1982 episode of The South Bank Show. Jonathan Kent plays Ripley, and Patricia Highsmith herself cameos.\n\nRadio\n The 2009 BBC Radio 4 adaptation stars Ian Hart as Ripley.\n\nReferences \n\n1970 American novels\nNovels by Patricia Highsmith\nAmerican novels adapted into films\nNovels set in France\nNovels about serial killers\nAmerican novels adapted into television shows\nNovels about psychopathy\nHeinemann (publisher) books",
"\"The Question Is What Is the Question?\" is a song by German musical group Scooter. It was released as the first single from their 13th studio album, Jumping All Over the World. The B-side, \"The Fish is Jumping\", is a jumpstyle remix of \"How Much Is the Fish?\".\n\nSamples used\n \"The Question Is What Is the Question?\" samples the song \"How Do You Do\" by Mouth & MacNeal, taken from the 1972 album of the same name.\n \"The Fish Is Jumping\" samples the song \"Zeven Dagen Lang\" by the Dutch band Bots. This same piece of music is used on the 1998 Scooter single \"How Much Is The Fish?\", taken from the album No Time to Chill.\n\nTrack listings\nGerman CD maxi and download\n \"The Question Is What Is the Question?\" (radio edit) (3:46)\n \"The Question Is What Is the Question?\" ('A Little Higher' Clubmix) (6:02)\n \"The Question Is What Is the Question?\" (extended) (5:50)\n \"The Fish Is Jumping\" (3:50)\n\n12-inch\n \"The Question Is What Is the Question?\" ('A Little Higher' Clubmix) (6:02)\n \"The Question Is What Is the Question?\" (extended) (5:50)\n \"The Fish Is Jumping\" (3:50)\n\nUK CD maxi and download\n \"The Question Is What Is the Question?\" (radio edit) (3:46)\n \"The Question Is What Is the Question?\" (extended) (5:50)\n \"The Question Is What Is the Question?\" (Headhunters Remix) (5:54)\n \"The Question Is What Is the Question?\" (Alex K Remix) (6:28)\n \"The Question Is What Is the Question?\" (Flip & Fill Remix) (5:50)\n \"The Question Is What Is the Question?\" (Micky Modelle Remix) (6:49)\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nReferences\n\nScooter (band) songs\n2007 singles\n2007 songs\n2008 singles\nAll Around the World Productions singles\nJumpstyle songs\nSongs written by H.P. Baxxter\nSongs written by Hans van Hemert\nSongs written by Jens Thele\nSongs written by Michael Simon (DJ)\nSongs written by Rick J. Jordan"
]
|
[
"Patricia Highsmith",
"The \"Ripliad\"",
"what is the Ripliad?",
"The series--collectively dubbed \"The Ripliad\"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works"
]
| C_23fdf1ec48f84f14b6ba708db2036d39_0 | When was it published? | 2 | When was the series The Ripliad published? | Patricia Highsmith | In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series--collectively dubbed "The Ripliad"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works and have sold millions of copies worldwide. The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated," a "dapper sociopath," and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath." Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, Rene Clement's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written." The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development. CANNOTANSWER | In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, | Patricia Highsmith (January 19, 1921 – February 4, 1995) was an American novelist and short story writer widely known for her psychological thrillers, including her series of five novels featuring the character Tom Ripley.
She wrote 22 novels and numerous short stories throughout her career spanning nearly five decades, and her work has led to more than two dozen film adaptations. Her writing derived influence from existentialist literature, and questioned notions of identity and popular morality. She was dubbed "the poet of apprehension" by novelist Graham Greene.
Her first novel, Strangers on a Train, has been adapted for stage and screen, the best known being the Alfred Hitchcock film released in 1951. Her 1955 novel The Talented Mr. Ripley has been adapted for film. Writing under the pseudonym Claire Morgan, Highsmith published the first lesbian novel with a happy ending, The Price of Salt, in 1952, republished 38 years later as Carol under her own name and later adapted into a 2015 film.
Early life
Highsmith was born Mary Patricia Plangman in Fort Worth, Texas. She was the only child of artists Jay Bernard Plangman (1889–1975), who was of German descent, and Mary Plangman (née Coates; September 13, 1895 – March 12, 1991). The couple divorced ten days before their daughter's birth.
In 1927, Highsmith, her mother and her adoptive stepfather, artist Stanley Highsmith, whom her mother had married in 1924, moved to New York City. When she was 12 years old, Highsmith was sent to Fort Worth and lived with her maternal grandmother for a year. She called this the "saddest year" of her life and felt "abandoned" by her mother. She returned to New York to continue living with her mother and stepfather, primarily in Manhattan, but also in Astoria, Queens.
According to Highsmith, her mother once told her that she had tried to abort her by drinking turpentine, although a biography of Highsmith indicates Jay Plangman tried to persuade his wife to have the abortion but she refused. Highsmith never resolved this love–hate relationship, which reportedly haunted her for the rest of her life, and which she fictionalized in "The Terrapin", her short story about a young boy who stabs his mother to death. Highsmith's mother predeceased her by only four years, dying at the age of 95.
Highsmith's grandmother taught her to read at an early age, and she made good use of her grandmother's extensive library. At the age of nine, she found a resemblance to her own imaginative life in the case histories of The Human Mind by Karl Menninger, a popularizer of Freudian analysis.
Many of Highsmith's 22 novels were set in Greenwich Village, where she lived at 48 Grove Street from 1940 to 1942, before moving to 345 E. 57th Street. In 1942, Highsmith graduated from Barnard College, where she studied English composition, playwriting, and short story prose. After graduating from college, and despite endorsements from "highly placed professionals," she applied without success for a job at publications such as Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, Mademoiselle, Good Housekeeping, Time, Fortune, and The New Yorker.
Based on the recommendation from Truman Capote, Highsmith was accepted by the Yaddo artist's retreat during the summer of 1948, where she worked on her first novel, Strangers on a Train.
Personal life
Highsmith endured cycles of depression, some of them deep, throughout her life. Despite literary success, she wrote in her diary of January 1970: "[I] am now cynical, fairly rich ... lonely, depressed, and totally pessimistic." Over the years, Highsmith suffered from female hormone deficiency, anorexia nervosa, chronic anemia, Buerger's disease, and lung cancer.
According to her biographer, Andrew Wilson, Highsmith's personal life was a "troubled one". She was an alcoholic who, allegedly, never had an intimate relationship that lasted for more than a few years, and she was seen by some of her contemporaries and acquaintances as misanthropic and hostile. Her chronic alcoholism intensified as she grew older.
She famously preferred the company of animals to that of people and stated in a 1991 interview, "I choose to live alone because my imagination functions better when I don't have to speak with people."
Otto Penzler, her U.S. publisher through his Penzler Books imprint, had met Highsmith in 1983, and four years later witnessed some of her theatrics intended to create havoc at dinner tables and shipwreck an evening. He said after her death that "[Highsmith] was a mean, cruel, hard, unlovable, unloving human being ... I could never penetrate how any human being could be that relentlessly ugly. ... But her books? Brilliant."
Other friends, publishers, and acquaintances held different views of Highsmith. Editor Gary Fisketjon, who published her later novels through Knopf, said that "She was very rough, very difficult ... But she was also plainspoken, dryly funny, and great fun to be around." Composer David Diamond met Highsmith in 1943 and described her as being "quite a depressed person—and I think people explain her by pulling out traits like cold and reserved, when in fact it all came from depression." J. G. Ballard said of Highsmith, "The author of Strangers on a Train and The Talented Mr. Ripley was every bit as deviant and quirky as her mischievous heroes, and didn't seem to mind if everyone knew it." Screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, who adapted The Price of Salt into the 2015 film Carol, met Highsmith in 1987 and the two remained friends for the rest of Highsmith's life. Nagy said that Highsmith was "very sweet" and "encouraging" to her as a young writer, as well as "wonderfully funny."
She was considered by some as "a lesbian with a misogynist streak."
Highsmith loved cats, and she bred about three hundred snails in her garden at home in Suffolk, England. Highsmith once attended a London cocktail party with a "gigantic handbag" that "contained a head of lettuce and a hundred snails" which she said were her "companions for the evening."
She loved woodworking tools and made several pieces of furniture. Highsmith worked without stopping. In later life, she became stooped, with an osteoporotic hump. Though the 22 novels and 8 books of short stories she wrote were highly acclaimed, especially outside of the United States, Highsmith preferred her personal life to remain private.
A lifelong diarist, Highsmith left behind eight thousand pages of handwritten notebooks and diaries.
Sexuality
As an adult, Patricia Highsmith's sexual relationships were predominantly with women. She occasionally engaged in sex with men without physical desire for them, and wrote in her diary: "The male face doesn't attract me, isn't beautiful to me." She told writer Marijane Meaker in the late 1950s that she had "tried to like men. I like most men better than I like women, but not in bed." In a 1970 letter to her stepfather Stanley, Highsmith described sexual encounters with men as "steel wool in the face, a sensation of being raped in the wrong place—leading to a sensation of having to have, pretty soon, a boewl [sic] movement." Stressing, "If these words are unpleasant to read, I can assure you it is a little more unpleasant in bed." Phyllis Nagy described Highsmith as "a lesbian who did not very much enjoy being around other women" and the few sexual dabbles she'd had with men occurred just to "see if she could be into men in that way because she so much more preferred their company."
In 1943, Highsmith had an affair with artist Allela Cornell who, despondent over unrequited love from another woman, committed suicide in 1946 by drinking nitric acid.
During her stay at Yaddo, Highsmith met writer Marc Brandel, son of author J. D. Beresford. Even though she told him about her homosexuality, they soon entered into a short-lived relationship. He convinced her to visit him in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where he introduced her to Ann Smith, a painter and designer with a previous métier as a Vogue fashion model, and the two became involved. After Smith left Provincetown, Highsmith felt she was "in prison" with Brandel and told him she was leaving. "[B]ecause of that I have to sleep with him, and only the fact that it is the last night strengthens me to bear it." Highsmith, who had never been sexually exclusive with Brandel, resented having sex with him. Highsmith temporarily broke off the relationship with Brandel and continued to be involved with several women, reuniting after the well-received publication of his new novel. Beginning November 30, 1948, and continuing for the next six months, Highsmith underwent psychoanalysis in an effort "to regularize herself sexually" so she could marry Brandel. The analysis was brought to a stop by Highsmith, after which she ended her relationship with him.
After ending her engagement to Marc Brandel, she had an affair with psychoanalyst Kathryn Hamill Cohen, the wife of British publisher Dennis Cohen and founder of Cresset Press, which later published Strangers on a Train.
To help pay for the twice-a-week therapy sessions, Highsmith had taken a sales job during Christmas rush season in the toy section of Bloomingdale's department store. Ironically, it was during this attempt to "cure" her homosexuality that Highsmith was inspired to write her semi-autobiographical novel The Price of Salt, in which two women meet in a department store and begin a passionate affair.
Believing that Brandel's disclosure that she was homosexual, along with the publication of The Price of Salt, would hurt her professionally, Highsmith had an unsuccessful affair with Arthur Koestler in 1950, designed to hide her homosexuality.
In early September 1951, she began an affair with sociologist Ellen Blumenthal Hill, traveling back and forth to Europe to meet with her. When Highsmith and Hill came to New York in early May 1953, their affair ostensibly "in a fragile state", Highsmith began an "impossible" affair with the homosexual German photographer Rolf Tietgens, who had played a "sporadic, intense, and unconsummated role in her emotional life since 1943." She was reportedly attracted to Tietgens on account of his homosexuality, confiding that she felt with him "as if he is another girl, or a singularly innocent man." Tietgens shot several nude photographs of Highsmith, but only one has survived, torn in half at the waist so that only her upper body is visible. She dedicated The Two Faces of January (1964) to Tietgens.
Between 1959 and 1961, Highsmith was in love with author Marijane Meaker. Meaker wrote lesbian stories under the pseudonym "Ann Aldrich" and mystery/suspense fiction as "Vin Packer", and later wrote young adult fiction as "M.E. Kerr." In the late 1980s, after 27 years of separation, Highsmith began corresponding with Meaker again, and one day showed up on Meaker's doorstep, slightly drunk and ranting bitterly. Meaker later said she was horrified at how Highsmith's personality had changed.
Highsmith was attracted to women of privilege who expected their lovers to treat them with veneration. According to Phyllis Nagy, she belonged to a "very particular subset of lesbians" and described her conduct with many women she was interested in as being comparable to a movie "studio boss" who chased starlets. Many of these women, who to some extent belonged to the 'Carol Aird'-type and her social set, remained friendly with Highsmith and confirmed the stories of seduction.
An intensely private person, Highsmith was remarkably open and outspoken about her sexuality. She told Meaker: "the only difference between us and heterosexuals is what we do in bed."
Death
Highsmith died on February 4, 1995, at 74, from a combination of aplastic anemia and lung cancer at Carita hospital in Locarno, Switzerland, near the village where she had lived since 1982. She was cremated at the cemetery in Bellinzona; a memorial service was conducted in the Chiesa di Tegna in Tegna, Ticino, Switzerland; and her ashes were interred in its columbarium.
She left her estate, worth an estimated $3 million, and the promise of any future royalties to the Yaddo colony, where she spent two months in 1948 writing the draft of Strangers on a Train. Highsmith bequeathed her literary estate to the Swiss Literary Archives at the Swiss National Library in Bern, Switzerland. Her Swiss publisher, Diogenes Verlag, was appointed literary executor of the estate.
Religious, racial and ethnic views
Highsmith was a resolute atheist. Although she considered herself a liberal, and in her school years had gotten along with black students, in later years she became convinced that Black people were responsible for the welfare crisis in America. She disliked Koreans because "they ate dogs".
Highsmith was an avowed antisemite; she described herself as a "Jew hater" and described The Holocaust as "the semicaust". When she was living in Switzerland in the 1980s, she used nearly 40 aliases when writing to government bodies and newspapers deploring the state of Israel and the "influence" of the Jews. Highsmith was an active supporter of Palestinian rights, a stance which, according to Carol screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, "often teetered into outright antisemitism."
Politics
Highsmith described herself as a social democrat. She believed in American democratic ideals and in "the promise" of U.S. history, but was also highly critical of the reality of the country's 20th-century culture and foreign policy. Beginning in 1963, she resided exclusively in Europe. She retained her United States citizenship, despite the tax penalties, of which she complained bitterly while living for many years in France and Switzerland.
Palestine
Highsmith aligned herself with writers such as Gore Vidal, Alexander Cockburn, Noam Chomsky and Edward Said in supporting Palestinian self-determination. As a member of Amnesty International, she felt duty-bound to express publicly her opposition to the displacement of Palestinians. Highsmith prohibited her books from being published in Israel after the election of Menachem Begin as prime minister in 1977. She dedicated her 1983 novel People Who Knock on the Door to the Palestinian people:
The inscription was dropped from the U.S. edition with permission from her agent but without consent from Highsmith.
Highsmith contributed financially to the Jewish Committee on the Middle East, an organization founded in 1988 that represented American Jews who wanted the United States to "dissociate ... from the policies of Israel." She wrote in an August 1993 letter to Marijane Meaker: "USA could save 11 million per day if they would cut the dough to Israel. The Jewish vote is 1%."
Writing history
Comic books
After graduating from Barnard College, before her short stories started appearing in print, Highsmith wrote for comic book publishers from 1942 and 1948, while she lived in New York City and Mexico. Answering an ad for "reporter/rewrite", she landed a job working for comic book publisher Ned Pines in a "bullpen" with four artists and three other writers. Initially scripting two comic-book stories a day for $55-a-week paychecks, Highsmith soon realized she could make more money by freelance writing for comics, a situation which enabled her to find time to work on her own short stories and live for a period in Mexico. The comic book scriptwriter job was the only long-term job Highsmith ever held.
From 1942 to 1943, for the Sangor–Pines shop (Better/Cinema/Pines/Standard/Nedor), Highsmith wrote "Sergeant Bill King" stories, contributed to Black Terror and Fighting Yank comics, and wrote profiles such as Catherine the Great, Barney Ross, and Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker for the "Real Life Comics" series. From 1943 to 1946, under editor Vincent Fago at Timely Comics, she contributed to its U.S.A. Comics wartime series, writing scenarios for comics such as Jap Buster Johnson and The Destroyer. During these same years she wrote for Fawcett Publications, scripting for Fawcett Comics characters "Crisco and Jasper" and others. Highsmith also wrote for True Comics, Captain Midnight, and Western Comics.
When Highsmith wrote the psychological thriller novel The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955), one of the title character's first victims is a comic-book artist named Reddington: "Tom had a hunch about Reddington. He was a comic-book artist. He probably didn't know whether he was coming or going."
Early novels and short stories
Highsmith's first novel, Strangers on a Train, proved modestly successful upon publication in 1950, and Alfred Hitchcock's 1951 film adaptation of the novel enhanced her reputation.
Highsmith's second novel, The Price of Salt, was published in 1952 under the nom de plume Claire Morgan. Highsmith mined her personal life for the novel's content. Its groundbreaking happy ending and departure from stereotypical conceptions about lesbians made it stand out in lesbian fiction. In what BBC 2's The Late Show presenter Sarah Dunant described as a "literary coming out" after 38 years of disaffirmation, Highsmith finally acknowledged authorship of the novel publicly when she agreed to the 1990 publication by Bloomsbury retitled Carol. Highsmith wrote in the "Afterword" to the new edition:
The paperback version of the novel sold nearly one million copies before its 1990 reissue as Carol. The Price of Salt is distinct for also being the only one of Highsmith's novels in which no violent crime takes place, and where her characters have "more explicit sexual existences" and are allowed "to find happiness in their relationship."
Her short stories appeared for the first time in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine in the early 1950s.
Her last novel, Small g: a Summer Idyll, was rejected by Knopf (her usual publisher by then) several months before her death, leaving Highsmith without an American publisher. It was published posthumously in the United Kingdom by Bloomsbury Publishing in March 1995, and nine years later in the United States by W.W. Norton.
The "Ripliad"
In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series—collectively called "The Ripliad"—are some of Highsmith's most popular works.
The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated", a "dapper sociopath", and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath."
Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, René Clément's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written."
The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development.
Honors
1979 : Grand Master, Swedish Crime Writers' Academy
1987 : , Festival du Cinéma Américain de Deauville
1989 : Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, French Ministry of Culture
1993 : Best Foreign Literary Award, Finnish Crime Society
2008 : Greatest Crime Writer, The Times
Awards and nominations
1946 : O. Henry Award, Best First Story, for The Heroine (in Harper's Bazaar)
1951 : Nominee, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Best First Novel, Mystery Writers of America, for Strangers on a Train
1956 : Edgar Allan Poe Scroll (special award), Mystery Writers of America, for The Talented Mr. Ripley
1957 : Grand Prix de Littérature Policière, International, for The Talented Mr. Ripley
1963 : Nominee, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Best Short Story, Mystery Writers of America, for The Terrapin (in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine)
1963 : Special Award, Mystery Writers of America, for The Terrapin
1964 : Silver Dagger Award, Best Foreign Novel, Crime Writers' Association, for The Two Faces of January (pub. Heinemann)
1975 : for L'Amateur d'escargots (pub. Calmann-Lévy) (English title: Eleven)
Bibliography
Novels
Strangers on a Train (1950)
The Price of Salt (1952) (as Claire Morgan) (republished as Carol in 1990 under Highsmith's name)
The Blunderer (1954)
Deep Water (1957)
A Game for the Living (1958)
This Sweet Sickness (1960)
The Cry of the Owl (1962)
The Two Faces of January (1964)
The Glass Cell (1964)
A Suspension of Mercy (1965) (published as The Story-Teller in the U.S.)
Those Who Walk Away (1967)
The Tremor of Forgery (1969)
A Dog's Ransom (1972)
Edith's Diary (1977)
People Who Knock on the Door (1983)
Found in the Street (1986)
Small g: a Summer Idyll (1995)
The "Ripliad"
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955)
Ripley Under Ground (1970)
Ripley's Game (1974)
The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980)
Ripley Under Water (1991)
Short story collections
Eleven (1970) (Foreword by Graham Greene). . (published as The Snail-Watcher and Other Stories in the U.S.)
Little Tales of Misogyny (1975). (published first as Kleine Geschichten für Weiberfeinde in Switzerland)
The Animal Lover's Book of Beastly Murder (1975). .
Slowly, Slowly in the Wind (1979). .
The Black House (1981).
Mermaids on the Golf Course (1985).
Tales of Natural and Unnatural Catastrophes (1987). .
Chillers (1990). . (publication of Highsmith stories broadcast on U.S. television series Chillers)
Nothing That Meets the Eye: The Uncollected Stories (2002). . (published posthumously)
Under a Dark Angel's Eye: The Selected Stories of Patricia Highsmith (2021) (introduction by Carmen Maria Machado). .
Other books
Miranda the Panda Is on the Veranda (1958) with Doris Sanders. . (children's book of verse and illustrations)
Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction (1966). . (enlarged and revised edition, 1981, )
Essays and articles
"Not-Thinking with the Dishes" (1982), Whodunit? A Guide to Crime, Suspense and Spy Fiction, pg. 92. By H. R. F. Keating, Windward,
"Scene of the Crime" (1989), Granta, Issue No. 29, Winter
Miscellaneous
"Introduction" (1977), The World of Raymond Chandler. Ed. Miriam Gross, Weidenfeld and Nicolson,
"Foreword" (1987), Crime and Mystery: The 100 Best Books. By H. R. F. Keating, Xanadu,
Collected works
Mystery Cats III: More Feline Felonies (1995) (Signet Books, ) (anthology includes Patricia Highsmith)
'The Selected Stories of Patricia Highsmith (2001) (W. W. Norton & Company, )
Patricia Highsmith: Selected Novels and Short Stories (2011) (W. W. Norton & Company, )
Film, television, theatre and radio adaptations
Several of Highsmith's works have been adapted for other media, some more than once. In 1978, Highsmith was president of the jury at the 28th Berlin International Film Festival.
Film
1951. Strangers on a Train was adapted as a film of same name directed by Alfred Hitchcock starring Farley Granger as Guy Haines, Robert Walker as Anthony Bruno, Ruth Roman as Anne Morton, Patricia Hitchcock as Barbara Morton and Laura Elliott as Miriam Joyce Haines.
1963. The Blunderer was adapted as French-language film Le meurtrier ("The Murderer"), directed by Claude Autant-Lara starring Maurice Ronet as Walter Saccard, Yvonne Furneaux as Clara Saccard, Gert Fröbe as Melchior Kimmel, Marina Vlady as Ellie and Robert Hossein as Corbi. It is known in English as Enough Rope.
1969. Strangers on a Train was adapted as Once You Kiss a Stranger, directed by Robert Sparr starring Paul Burke as Jerry, Carol Lynley as Diana and Martha Hyer as Lee.
1977. This Sweet Sickness was adapted as French-language film Dites-lui que je l'aime, directed by Claude Miller starring Gérard Depardieu as David Martineau, Miou-Miou as Juliette, Dominique Laffin as Lise, and Jacques Denis as Gérard Dutilleux. It is known in English as This Sweet Sickness.
1978. The Glass Cell was adapted as German-language film Die gläserne Zelle, directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer starring Brigitte Fossey as Lisa Braun, Helmut Griem as Phillip Braun, Dieter Laser as David Reinelt and Walter Kohut as Robert Lasky.
1981. Deep Water was adapted as French-language film Eaux profondes, directed by Michel Deville starring Isabelle Huppert as Melanie and Jean-Louis Trintignant as Vic Allen.
1983. Edith's Diary was adapted as German-language film Ediths Tagebuch, directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer starring Angela Winkler as Edith.
1986. The Two Faces of January was adapted as German-language film Die zwei Gesichter des Januars, directed by Wolfgang Storch starring Charles Brauer as Chester McFarland, Yolanda Jilot as Colette McFarland and Thomas Schücke as Rydal Keener.
1987. The Cry of the Owl was adapted as French-language film Le cri du hibou, directed by Claude Chabrol starring Christophe Malavoy as Robert, Mathilda May as Juliette, Jacques Penot as Patrick and Virginie Thévenet as Véronique.
1987. The film version of Strangers on a Train by Alfred Hitchcock inspired the black comedy American film Throw Momma from the Train, directed by Danny DeVito.
1989. The Story Teller was adapted as German-language film Der Geschichtenerzähler, directed by Rainer Boldt starring Udo Schenk as Nico Thomkins and Anke Sevenich as Helen Thomkins.
2009. The Cry of the Owl was adapted as a film of same name, directed by Jamie Thraves starring Paddy Considine as Robert Forester and Julia Stiles as Jenny Thierolf.
2014. The Two Faces of January was adapted as a film of same name, written and directed by Hossein Amini starring Viggo Mortensen as Chester MacFarland, Kirsten Dunst as Colette MacFarland and Oscar Isaac as Rydal. It was released during the 64th Berlin International Film Festival.
2014. A Mighty Nice Man was adapted as a short film, directed by Jonathan Dee starring Kylie McVey as Charlotte, Jacqueline Baum as Emilie, Kristen Connolly as Charlotte's Mother, and Billy Magnussen as Robbie.
2015. A film adaption of The Price of Salt, titled Carol, was written by Phyllis Nagy and directed by Todd Haynes, starring Cate Blanchett as Carol Aird and Rooney Mara as Therese Belivet.
2016. The Blunderer was adapted as A Kind of Murder, directed by Andy Goddard starring Patrick Wilson as Walter Stackhouse, Jessica Biel as Clara Stackhouse, Eddie Marsan as Marty Kimmel and Haley Bennett as Ellie Briess.
"Ripliad"
1960: The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted as French-language film Plein soleil (titled Purple Noon for English-language audiences, though it translates as "Full Sun"). Directed by René Clément starring Alain Delon as Tom Ripley, Maurice Ronet as Philippe Greenleaf, and Marie Laforêt as Marge Duval. Both Highsmith and film critic Roger Ebert criticized the screenplay for altering the ending to prevent Ripley from going unpunished as he does in the novel.
1977: Ripley's Game (third novel) and a "plot fragment" of Ripley Under Ground (second novel) were adapted as German-language film Der Amerikanische Freund (The American Friend). Directed by Wim Wenders with Dennis Hopper as Ripley. Highsmith initially disliked the film but later found it stylish, although she did not like how Ripley was interpreted.
1999: The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted as an American production. Directed by Anthony Minghella with Matt Damon as Ripley, Jude Law as Dickie Greenleaf, and Gwyneth Paltrow as Marge Sherwood.
2002: Ripley's Game was adapted as a film of same name for an English-language Italian production. Directed by Liliana Cavani with John Malkovich as Ripley, Chiara Caselli as Luisa Harari Ripley, Ray Winstone as Reeves Minot, Dougray Scott as Jonathan Trevanny, and Lena Headey as Sarah Trevanny. Although not all reviews were favorable, Roger Ebert regarded it as the best of all the Ripley films.
2005: Ripley Under Ground was adapted as a film of same name. Directed by Roger Spottiswoode with Barry Pepper as Ripley, Jacinda Barrett as Héloïse Plisson-Ripley, Willem Dafoe as Neil Murchison, and Tom Wilkinson as John Webster.
2020: Ripley upcoming American television series by Showtime. Directed by Steven Zaillian starring Andrew Scott as Tom Ripley.
Television
1958. Strangers on a Train was adapted by Warner Brothers for an episode of the TV series 77 Sunset Strip.
1982. Scenes from the Ripley novels were dramatized in the episode A Gift for Murder of The South Bank Show, with Jonathan Kent portraying Tom Ripley. The episode included an interview with Patricia Highsmith.
1983. Deep Water was adapted as a miniseries for German television as , directed by Franz Peter Wirth starring Peter Bongartz as Vic van Allen, Constanze Engelbrecht as Melinda van Allen, Reinhard Glemnitz as Dirk Weisberg, Raimund Harmstorf as Anton Kameter, and Sky du Mont as Charley de Lisle.
1987. The Cry of the Owl was adapted for German television as Der Schrei der Eule, directed by Tom Toelle starring Matthias Habich as Robert Forster, Birgit Doll as Johanna Tierolf, Jacques Breuer as Karl Weick, Fritz Lichtenhahn as Inspektor Lippenholtz, and Doris Kunstmann as Vicky.
1990. The twelve episodes of the television series Mistress of Suspense are based on stories by Highsmith. The series aired first in France, then in the UK. It became available in the U.S. under the title Chillers.
1993. The Tremor of Forgery was adapted as German television film Trip nach Tunis, directed by Peter Goedel starring David Hunt as Howard Ingham, Karen Sillas as Ina Pallant and John Seitz as Francis J. Adams.
1995. Little Tales of Misogyny was adapted as Spanish/Catalan television film Petits contes misògins, directed by Pere Sagristà starring Marta Pérez, Carme Pla, Mamen Duch, and Míriam Iscla.
1996. Strangers on a Train was adapted for television as Once You Meet a Stranger, directed by Tommy Lee Wallace starring Jacqueline Bisset as Sheila Gaines ("Guy"), Theresa Russell as Margo Anthony ("Bruno") and Celeste Holm as Clara. The gender of the two lead characters was changed from male to female.
1996. A Dog's Ransom was adapted as French television film La rançon du chien, directed by Peter Kassovitz starring François Négret as César, François Perrot as Edouard Raynaud, Daniel Prévost as Max Ducasse and Charlotte Valandrey as Sophie.
Theatre
1998. The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted for the stage as a play of same name by playwright Phyllis Nagy. It was revived in 2010.
2013. Strangers on a Train was adapted as a play of same name by playwright Craig Warner.
Radio
2002. A four-episode radio drama of The Cry of the Owl was broadcast by BBC Radio 4, with voice acting by John Sharian as Robert Forester, Joanne McQuinn as Jenny Theirolf, Adrian Lester as Greg Wyncoop, and Matt Rippy as Jack Neilsen.
2009. All five books of the "Ripliad" were dramatized by BBC Radio 4, with Ian Hart voicing Tom Ripley.
2014. A five-segment dramatization of Carol (aka The Price of Salt) was broadcast by BBC Radio 4, with voice acting by Miranda Richardson as Carol Aird and Andrea Deck as Therese Belivet.
2019. A five-episode broadcast of selected short stories (One for the Islands, A Curious Suicide, The Terrors of Basket-Weaving, The Man Who Wrote Books In His Head, The Baby Spoon) by BBC Radio 4.
Works about Patricia Highsmith
Fictional
Dawson, Jill (2016). The Crime Writer. Sceptre. .
Murray-Smith, Joanna (2015). Switzerland. Dramatists Play Service. . (First presented at Sydney Theatre Company in November 2014).
Documentary
Highsmith: Her Secret Life (2004), documentary film by Hugh Thomson, BBC Four.
Highsmith: Her Secret Life, "notes on the film", Hugh Thomson, BBC, 2004.
See also
Ruth Rendell: A "mistress of suspense" contemporary of Highsmith for whom Highsmith acknowledged rarely admitted admiration. Rendell explored characters and themes similar to Highsmith's.
Notes
References
Further reading
Dirda, Michael (July 2, 2009). This Woman Is Dangerous. The New York Review of Books. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
Dupont, Joan (June 12, 1988). Criminal Pursuits. The New York Times. Retrieved March 28, 2017.
Helmore, Edward (October 26, 2019). Diaries expose ‘strong brew’ of Ripley novelist Patricia Highsmith's dark thoughts. The Guardian. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
McCann, Sean (April 1, 2011). “Frequently as a rat has orgasms”. New York City in the '40s, Wesleyan University. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
Morgan, Kim (December 4, 2015). The Gnarly Allure of Patricia Highsmith. The Daily Beast. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Perrin, Tom (December 18, 2012). On Patricia Highsmith. Post45 (Yale University). Retrieved March 12, 2016.
Piepenbring, Dan (January 19, 2015). A Dissatisfaction with Life. The Paris Review. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Rayner, Richard (July 17, 2011). Paperback Writers: Classic Patricia Highsmith. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 18, 2016.
Schenkar, Joan (January 21, 2012). The Talented Miss Highsmith: The Secret Life and Serious Art of Patricia Highsmith. Joan Schenkar. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Schenkar, Joan (February 25, 2016). What Patricia Highsmith did for love: 'The Price of Salt' and the secrets behind 'Carol'. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Shipley, Diane (April 1, 2014). Patricia Highsmith's criminal neglect. The Guardian. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Smith, Nathan (November 19, 2015). When Patricia Highsmith Offered Gay Readers a Hopeful Ending. The New Republic. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Tonkin, Boyd (December 7, 2015). 'Carol', Patricia Highsmith, and how gay literature found its voice in the 1950s. The Independent''. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Books
External links
Patricia Highsmith Papers – Swiss Literary Archives. Swiss National Library, 2006.
Patricia Highsmith – Exhibition of the Swiss National Library. March–September 2006, Swiss National Library, March 13, 2006.
Patricia Highsmith : photographs from the exhibition. Swiss Literary Archives, Swiss National Library, December 1, 2006. (archive)
Choose Your Highsmith (The Patricia Highsmith Recommendation Engine). W. W. Norton & Company.
Patricia Highsmith First Edition Book Cover Gallery (UK publishers). Existential Ennui, 2013.
Patricia Highsmith gallery by René Burri, Magnum Photos, 1988.
Patricia Highsmith interview by Naim Attallah, Naim Attallah Online, Quartet Books, 1993.
Works by or about Patricia Highsmith in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
Audio interviews
Patricia Highsmith on Audio Interviews: "Thrillers and Crime Fiction", BBC Four, December 3, 1972 (archive)
Patricia Highsmith interview with Roy Plomley, Desert Island Discs, BBC Radio 4, April 21, 1979.
Patricia Highsmith interview (The Black House) with Peter Clayton, Meridian, BBC World Service, August 8, 1980.
Patricia Highsmith interview with Terry Gross, Fresh Air, NPR, October 27, 1987.
Patricia Highsmith interview with Don Swaim, Book Beat, WCBS-Radio (via Wired for Books, Ohio University), October 29, 1987. (archive)
Patricia Highsmith, In Conversation with Michael Dibdin, ICA talks, Institute of Contemporary Arts, September 27, 1991.
1921 births
1995 deaths
20th-century American novelists
20th-century American short story writers
20th-century American women writers
20th-century pseudonymous writers
American adoptees
American comics writers
American crime fiction writers
American detective fiction writers
American horror writers
American lesbian writers
American people of German descent
American women novelists
American women short story writers
Female comics writers
LGBT comics creators
American LGBT novelists
People with mood disorders
Pseudonymous women writers
Psychological fiction writers
Women horror writers
Women mystery writers
Deaths from anemia
Deaths from cancer in Switzerland
LGBT people from Texas
People from Fort Worth, Texas
People from Greenwich Village
Golden Age comics creators
Members of the Detection Club
Officiers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
Barnard College alumni
Yaddo alumni | true | [
"This is a list of notable books by young authors and of books written by notable writers in their early years. These books were written, or substantially completed, before the author's twentieth birthday. \n\nAlexandra Adornetto (born 18 April 1994) wrote her debut novel, The Shadow Thief, when she was 13. It was published in 2007. Other books written by her as a teenager are: The Lampo Circus (2008), Von Gobstopper's Arcade (2009), Halo (2010) and Hades (2011).\nMargery Allingham (1904–1966) had her first novel, Blackkerchief Dick, about smugglers in 17th century Essex, published in 1923, when she was 19.\nJorge Amado (1912–2001) had his debut novel, The Country of Carnival, published in 1931, when he was 18.\nPrateek Arora wrote his debut novel Village 1104 at the age of 16. It was published in 2010.\nDaisy Ashford (1881–1972) wrote The Young Visiters while aged nine. This novella was first published in 1919, preserving her juvenile punctuation and spelling. An earlier work, The Life of Father McSwiney, was dictated to her father when she was four. It was published almost a century later in 1983.\nAmelia Atwater-Rhodes (born 1984) had her first novel, In the Forests of the Night, published in 1999. Subsequent novels include Demon in My View (2000), Shattered Mirror (2001), Midnight Predator (2002), Hawksong (2003) and Snakecharm (2004).\nJane Austen (1775–1817) wrote Lady Susan, a short epistolary novel, between 1793 and 1795 when she was aged 18-20.\nRuskin Bond (born 1934) wrote his semi-autobiographical novel The Room on the Roof when he was 17. It was published in 1955.\nMarjorie Bowen (1885–1952) wrote the historical novel The Viper of Milan when she was 16. Published in 1906 after several rejections, it became a bestseller.\nOliver Madox Brown (1855–1874) finished his novel Gabriel Denver in early 1872, when he was 17. It was published the following year.\nPamela Brown (1924–1989) finished her children's novel about an amateur theatre company, The Swish of the Curtain (1941), when she was 16 and later wrote other books about the stage.\nCeleste and Carmel Buckingham wrote The Lost Princess when they were 11 and 9.\nFlavia Bujor (born 8 August 1988) wrote The Prophecy of the Stones (2002) when she was 13.\nLord Byron (1788–1824) published two volumes of poetry in his teens, Fugitive Pieces and Hours of Idleness.\nTaylor Caldwell's The Romance of Atlantis was written when she was 12.\n (1956–1976), Le Don de Vorace, was published in 1974.\nHilda Conkling (1910–1986) had her poems published in Poems by a Little Girl (1920), Shoes of the Wind (1922) and Silverhorn (1924).\nAbraham Cowley (1618–1667), Tragicall History of Piramus and Thisbe (1628), Poetical Blossoms (published 1633).\nMaureen Daly (1921–2006) completed Seventeenth Summer before she was 20. It was published in 1942.\nJuliette Davies (born 2000) wrote the first book in the JJ Halo series when she was eight years old. The series was published the following year.\nSamuel R. Delany (born 1 April 1942) published his The Jewels of Aptor in 1962.\nPatricia Finney's A Shadow of Gulls was published in 1977 when she was 18. Its sequel, The Crow Goddess, was published in 1978.\nBarbara Newhall Follett (1914–1939) wrote her first novel The House Without Windows at the age of eight. The manuscript was destroyed in a house fire and she later retyped her manuscript at the age of 12. The novel was published by Knopf publishing house in January 1927.\nFord Madox Ford (né Hueffer) (1873–1939) published in 1892 two children's stories, The Brown Owl and The Feather, and a novel, The Shifting of the Fire.\nAnne Frank (1929–1945) wrote her diary for two-and-a-half years starting on her 13th birthday. It was published posthumously as Het Achterhuis in 1947 and then in English translation in 1952 as Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl. An unabridged translation followed in 1996.\nMiles Franklin wrote My Brilliant Career (1901) when she was a teenager.\nAlec Greven's How to Talk to Girls was published in 2008 when he was nine years old. Subsequently he has published How to Talk to Moms, How to Talk to Dads and How to Talk to Santa.\nFaïza Guène (born 1985) had Kiffe kiffe demain published in 2004, when she was 19. It has since been translated into 22 languages, including English (as Kiffe Kiffe Tomorrow).\nSonya Hartnett (born 1968) was thirteen years old when she wrote her first novel, Trouble All the Way, which was published in Australia in 1984.\nAlex and Brett Harris wrote the best-selling book Do Hard Things (2008), a non-fiction book challenging teenagers to \"rebel against low expectations\", at age 19. Two years later came a follow-up book called Start Here (2010).\nGeorgette Heyer (1902–1974) wrote The Black Moth when she was 17 and received a publishing contract when she was 18. It was published just after she turned 19.\nSusan Hill (born 1942), The Enclosure, published in 1961.\nS. E. Hinton (born 1948), The Outsiders, first published in 1967.\nPalle Huld (1912–2010) wrote A Boy Scout Around the World (Jorden Rundt i 44 dage) when he was 15, following a sponsored journey around the world.\nGeorge Vernon Hudson (1867–1946) completed An Elementary Manual of New Zealand Entomology at the end of 1886, when he was 19, but not published until 1892.\nKatharine Hull (1921–1977) and Pamela Whitlock (1920–1982) wrote the children's outdoor adventure novel The Far-Distant Oxus in 1937. It was followed in 1938 by Escape to Persia and in 1939 by Oxus in Summer.\nLeigh Hunt (1784–1859) published Juvenilia; or, a Collection of Poems Written between the ages of Twelve and Sixteen by J. H. L. Hunt, Late of the Grammar School of Christ's Hospital in March 1801.\nKody Keplinger (born 1991) wrote her debut novel The DUFF when she was 17.\nGordon Korman (born 1963), This Can't Be Happening at Macdonald Hall (1978), three sequels, and I Want to Go Home (1981).\nMatthew Gregory Lewis (1775–1818) wrote the Gothic novel The Monk, now regarded as a classic of the genre, before he was twenty. It was published in 1796.\nNina Lugovskaya (1918–1993), a painter, theater director and Gulag survivor, kept a diary in 1932–37, which shows strong social sensitivities. It was found in the Russian State Archives and published 2003. It appeared in English in the same year.\nJoyce Maynard (born 1953) completed Looking Back while she was 19. It was first published in 1973.\nMargaret Mitchell (1900–1949) wrote her novella Lost Laysen at the age of fifteen and gave the two notebooks containing the manuscript to her boyfriend, Henry Love Angel. The novel was published posthumously in 1996.\nBen Okri, the Nigerian poet and novelist, (born 1959) wrote his first book Flowers and Shadows while he was 19.\nAlice Oseman(born 1994) wrote the novel Solitaire when she was 17 and it was published in 2014.\nHelen Oyeyemi (born 1984) completed The Icarus Girl while still 18. First published in 2005.\nChristopher Paolini (born 1983) had Eragon, the first novel of the Inheritance Cycle, first published 2002.\nEmily Pepys (1833–1877), daughter of a bishop, wrote a vivid private journal over six months of 1844–45, aged ten. It was discovered much later and published in 1984.\nAnya Reiss (born 1991) wrote her play Spur of the Moment when she was 17. It was both performed and published in 2010, when she was 18.\nArthur Rimbaud (1854–1891) wrote almost all his prose and poetry while still a teenager, for example Le Soleil était encore chaud (1866), Le Bateau ivre (1871) and Une Saison en Enfer (1873).\nJohn Thomas Romney Robinson (1792–1882) saw his juvenile poems published in 1806, when he was 13.\nFrançoise Sagan (1935–2004) had Bonjour tristesse published in 1954, when she was 18.\nMary Shelley (1797–1851) completed Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus during May 1817, when she was 19. It was first published in the following year.\nMattie Stepanek (1990–2004), an American poet, published seven best-selling books of poetry.\nJohn Steptoe (1950–1989), author and illustrator, began his picture book Stevie at 16. It was published in 1969 in Life.\nAnna Stothard (born 1983) saw her Isabel and Rocco published when she was 19.\nDorothy Straight (born 1958) in 1962 wrote How the World Began, which was published by Pantheon Books in 1964. She holds the Guinness world record for the youngest female published author.\nJalaluddin Al-Suyuti (c. 1445–1505) wrote his first book, Sharh Al-Isti'aadha wal-Basmalah, at the age of 17.\nF. J. Thwaites (1908–1979) wrote his bestselling novel The Broken Melody when he was 19.\nJohn Kennedy Toole (1937–1969) wrote The Neon Bible in 1954 when he was 16. It was not published until 1989.\nAlec Waugh (1898–1981) wrote his novel about school life, The Loom of Youth, after leaving school. It was published in 1917.\nCatherine Webb (born 1986) had five young adult books published before she was 20: Mirror Dreams (2002), Mirror Wakes (2003), Waywalkers (2003), Timekeepers (2004) and The Extraordinary and Unusual Adventures of Horatio Lyle (February 2006).\nNancy Yi Fan (born 1993) published her debut Swordbird when she was 12. Other books she published as a teenager include Sword Quest (2008) and Sword Mountain (2012).\nKat Zhang (born 1991) was 20 when she sold, in a three-book deal, her entire Hybrid Chronicles trilogy. The first book, What's Left of Me, was published 2012.\n\nSee also \nLists of books\n\nReferences \n\nBooks Written By Children and Teenagers\nbooks\nChildren And Teenagers, Written By\nChi",
"Ísafold was an Icelandic newspaper, published weekly. It was founded in 1874 by the politician Björn Jónsson, who was the editor until 1909, when he became prime minister.\n\nÍsafold was published until 1929, when it merged with Morgunblaðið.\n\nReferences\n\n1874 establishments in Iceland\n1929 disestablishments in Iceland\nDefunct newspapers published in Iceland\nDefunct weekly newspapers\nPublications established in 1874\nPublications disestablished in 1929\nWeekly newspapers published in Iceland"
]
|
[
"Patricia Highsmith",
"The \"Ripliad\"",
"what is the Ripliad?",
"The series--collectively dubbed \"The Ripliad\"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works",
"When was it published?",
"In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley,"
]
| C_23fdf1ec48f84f14b6ba708db2036d39_0 | Are there any other interesting aspects about this article? | 3 | Other than being written by author Highsmith who also write The Talented Mr. Ripley, are there any other interesting aspects about The Ripliad? | Patricia Highsmith | In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series--collectively dubbed "The Ripliad"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works and have sold millions of copies worldwide. The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated," a "dapper sociopath," and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath." Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, Rene Clement's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written." The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development. CANNOTANSWER | production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development. | Patricia Highsmith (January 19, 1921 – February 4, 1995) was an American novelist and short story writer widely known for her psychological thrillers, including her series of five novels featuring the character Tom Ripley.
She wrote 22 novels and numerous short stories throughout her career spanning nearly five decades, and her work has led to more than two dozen film adaptations. Her writing derived influence from existentialist literature, and questioned notions of identity and popular morality. She was dubbed "the poet of apprehension" by novelist Graham Greene.
Her first novel, Strangers on a Train, has been adapted for stage and screen, the best known being the Alfred Hitchcock film released in 1951. Her 1955 novel The Talented Mr. Ripley has been adapted for film. Writing under the pseudonym Claire Morgan, Highsmith published the first lesbian novel with a happy ending, The Price of Salt, in 1952, republished 38 years later as Carol under her own name and later adapted into a 2015 film.
Early life
Highsmith was born Mary Patricia Plangman in Fort Worth, Texas. She was the only child of artists Jay Bernard Plangman (1889–1975), who was of German descent, and Mary Plangman (née Coates; September 13, 1895 – March 12, 1991). The couple divorced ten days before their daughter's birth.
In 1927, Highsmith, her mother and her adoptive stepfather, artist Stanley Highsmith, whom her mother had married in 1924, moved to New York City. When she was 12 years old, Highsmith was sent to Fort Worth and lived with her maternal grandmother for a year. She called this the "saddest year" of her life and felt "abandoned" by her mother. She returned to New York to continue living with her mother and stepfather, primarily in Manhattan, but also in Astoria, Queens.
According to Highsmith, her mother once told her that she had tried to abort her by drinking turpentine, although a biography of Highsmith indicates Jay Plangman tried to persuade his wife to have the abortion but she refused. Highsmith never resolved this love–hate relationship, which reportedly haunted her for the rest of her life, and which she fictionalized in "The Terrapin", her short story about a young boy who stabs his mother to death. Highsmith's mother predeceased her by only four years, dying at the age of 95.
Highsmith's grandmother taught her to read at an early age, and she made good use of her grandmother's extensive library. At the age of nine, she found a resemblance to her own imaginative life in the case histories of The Human Mind by Karl Menninger, a popularizer of Freudian analysis.
Many of Highsmith's 22 novels were set in Greenwich Village, where she lived at 48 Grove Street from 1940 to 1942, before moving to 345 E. 57th Street. In 1942, Highsmith graduated from Barnard College, where she studied English composition, playwriting, and short story prose. After graduating from college, and despite endorsements from "highly placed professionals," she applied without success for a job at publications such as Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, Mademoiselle, Good Housekeeping, Time, Fortune, and The New Yorker.
Based on the recommendation from Truman Capote, Highsmith was accepted by the Yaddo artist's retreat during the summer of 1948, where she worked on her first novel, Strangers on a Train.
Personal life
Highsmith endured cycles of depression, some of them deep, throughout her life. Despite literary success, she wrote in her diary of January 1970: "[I] am now cynical, fairly rich ... lonely, depressed, and totally pessimistic." Over the years, Highsmith suffered from female hormone deficiency, anorexia nervosa, chronic anemia, Buerger's disease, and lung cancer.
According to her biographer, Andrew Wilson, Highsmith's personal life was a "troubled one". She was an alcoholic who, allegedly, never had an intimate relationship that lasted for more than a few years, and she was seen by some of her contemporaries and acquaintances as misanthropic and hostile. Her chronic alcoholism intensified as she grew older.
She famously preferred the company of animals to that of people and stated in a 1991 interview, "I choose to live alone because my imagination functions better when I don't have to speak with people."
Otto Penzler, her U.S. publisher through his Penzler Books imprint, had met Highsmith in 1983, and four years later witnessed some of her theatrics intended to create havoc at dinner tables and shipwreck an evening. He said after her death that "[Highsmith] was a mean, cruel, hard, unlovable, unloving human being ... I could never penetrate how any human being could be that relentlessly ugly. ... But her books? Brilliant."
Other friends, publishers, and acquaintances held different views of Highsmith. Editor Gary Fisketjon, who published her later novels through Knopf, said that "She was very rough, very difficult ... But she was also plainspoken, dryly funny, and great fun to be around." Composer David Diamond met Highsmith in 1943 and described her as being "quite a depressed person—and I think people explain her by pulling out traits like cold and reserved, when in fact it all came from depression." J. G. Ballard said of Highsmith, "The author of Strangers on a Train and The Talented Mr. Ripley was every bit as deviant and quirky as her mischievous heroes, and didn't seem to mind if everyone knew it." Screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, who adapted The Price of Salt into the 2015 film Carol, met Highsmith in 1987 and the two remained friends for the rest of Highsmith's life. Nagy said that Highsmith was "very sweet" and "encouraging" to her as a young writer, as well as "wonderfully funny."
She was considered by some as "a lesbian with a misogynist streak."
Highsmith loved cats, and she bred about three hundred snails in her garden at home in Suffolk, England. Highsmith once attended a London cocktail party with a "gigantic handbag" that "contained a head of lettuce and a hundred snails" which she said were her "companions for the evening."
She loved woodworking tools and made several pieces of furniture. Highsmith worked without stopping. In later life, she became stooped, with an osteoporotic hump. Though the 22 novels and 8 books of short stories she wrote were highly acclaimed, especially outside of the United States, Highsmith preferred her personal life to remain private.
A lifelong diarist, Highsmith left behind eight thousand pages of handwritten notebooks and diaries.
Sexuality
As an adult, Patricia Highsmith's sexual relationships were predominantly with women. She occasionally engaged in sex with men without physical desire for them, and wrote in her diary: "The male face doesn't attract me, isn't beautiful to me." She told writer Marijane Meaker in the late 1950s that she had "tried to like men. I like most men better than I like women, but not in bed." In a 1970 letter to her stepfather Stanley, Highsmith described sexual encounters with men as "steel wool in the face, a sensation of being raped in the wrong place—leading to a sensation of having to have, pretty soon, a boewl [sic] movement." Stressing, "If these words are unpleasant to read, I can assure you it is a little more unpleasant in bed." Phyllis Nagy described Highsmith as "a lesbian who did not very much enjoy being around other women" and the few sexual dabbles she'd had with men occurred just to "see if she could be into men in that way because she so much more preferred their company."
In 1943, Highsmith had an affair with artist Allela Cornell who, despondent over unrequited love from another woman, committed suicide in 1946 by drinking nitric acid.
During her stay at Yaddo, Highsmith met writer Marc Brandel, son of author J. D. Beresford. Even though she told him about her homosexuality, they soon entered into a short-lived relationship. He convinced her to visit him in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where he introduced her to Ann Smith, a painter and designer with a previous métier as a Vogue fashion model, and the two became involved. After Smith left Provincetown, Highsmith felt she was "in prison" with Brandel and told him she was leaving. "[B]ecause of that I have to sleep with him, and only the fact that it is the last night strengthens me to bear it." Highsmith, who had never been sexually exclusive with Brandel, resented having sex with him. Highsmith temporarily broke off the relationship with Brandel and continued to be involved with several women, reuniting after the well-received publication of his new novel. Beginning November 30, 1948, and continuing for the next six months, Highsmith underwent psychoanalysis in an effort "to regularize herself sexually" so she could marry Brandel. The analysis was brought to a stop by Highsmith, after which she ended her relationship with him.
After ending her engagement to Marc Brandel, she had an affair with psychoanalyst Kathryn Hamill Cohen, the wife of British publisher Dennis Cohen and founder of Cresset Press, which later published Strangers on a Train.
To help pay for the twice-a-week therapy sessions, Highsmith had taken a sales job during Christmas rush season in the toy section of Bloomingdale's department store. Ironically, it was during this attempt to "cure" her homosexuality that Highsmith was inspired to write her semi-autobiographical novel The Price of Salt, in which two women meet in a department store and begin a passionate affair.
Believing that Brandel's disclosure that she was homosexual, along with the publication of The Price of Salt, would hurt her professionally, Highsmith had an unsuccessful affair with Arthur Koestler in 1950, designed to hide her homosexuality.
In early September 1951, she began an affair with sociologist Ellen Blumenthal Hill, traveling back and forth to Europe to meet with her. When Highsmith and Hill came to New York in early May 1953, their affair ostensibly "in a fragile state", Highsmith began an "impossible" affair with the homosexual German photographer Rolf Tietgens, who had played a "sporadic, intense, and unconsummated role in her emotional life since 1943." She was reportedly attracted to Tietgens on account of his homosexuality, confiding that she felt with him "as if he is another girl, or a singularly innocent man." Tietgens shot several nude photographs of Highsmith, but only one has survived, torn in half at the waist so that only her upper body is visible. She dedicated The Two Faces of January (1964) to Tietgens.
Between 1959 and 1961, Highsmith was in love with author Marijane Meaker. Meaker wrote lesbian stories under the pseudonym "Ann Aldrich" and mystery/suspense fiction as "Vin Packer", and later wrote young adult fiction as "M.E. Kerr." In the late 1980s, after 27 years of separation, Highsmith began corresponding with Meaker again, and one day showed up on Meaker's doorstep, slightly drunk and ranting bitterly. Meaker later said she was horrified at how Highsmith's personality had changed.
Highsmith was attracted to women of privilege who expected their lovers to treat them with veneration. According to Phyllis Nagy, she belonged to a "very particular subset of lesbians" and described her conduct with many women she was interested in as being comparable to a movie "studio boss" who chased starlets. Many of these women, who to some extent belonged to the 'Carol Aird'-type and her social set, remained friendly with Highsmith and confirmed the stories of seduction.
An intensely private person, Highsmith was remarkably open and outspoken about her sexuality. She told Meaker: "the only difference between us and heterosexuals is what we do in bed."
Death
Highsmith died on February 4, 1995, at 74, from a combination of aplastic anemia and lung cancer at Carita hospital in Locarno, Switzerland, near the village where she had lived since 1982. She was cremated at the cemetery in Bellinzona; a memorial service was conducted in the Chiesa di Tegna in Tegna, Ticino, Switzerland; and her ashes were interred in its columbarium.
She left her estate, worth an estimated $3 million, and the promise of any future royalties to the Yaddo colony, where she spent two months in 1948 writing the draft of Strangers on a Train. Highsmith bequeathed her literary estate to the Swiss Literary Archives at the Swiss National Library in Bern, Switzerland. Her Swiss publisher, Diogenes Verlag, was appointed literary executor of the estate.
Religious, racial and ethnic views
Highsmith was a resolute atheist. Although she considered herself a liberal, and in her school years had gotten along with black students, in later years she became convinced that Black people were responsible for the welfare crisis in America. She disliked Koreans because "they ate dogs".
Highsmith was an avowed antisemite; she described herself as a "Jew hater" and described The Holocaust as "the semicaust". When she was living in Switzerland in the 1980s, she used nearly 40 aliases when writing to government bodies and newspapers deploring the state of Israel and the "influence" of the Jews. Highsmith was an active supporter of Palestinian rights, a stance which, according to Carol screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, "often teetered into outright antisemitism."
Politics
Highsmith described herself as a social democrat. She believed in American democratic ideals and in "the promise" of U.S. history, but was also highly critical of the reality of the country's 20th-century culture and foreign policy. Beginning in 1963, she resided exclusively in Europe. She retained her United States citizenship, despite the tax penalties, of which she complained bitterly while living for many years in France and Switzerland.
Palestine
Highsmith aligned herself with writers such as Gore Vidal, Alexander Cockburn, Noam Chomsky and Edward Said in supporting Palestinian self-determination. As a member of Amnesty International, she felt duty-bound to express publicly her opposition to the displacement of Palestinians. Highsmith prohibited her books from being published in Israel after the election of Menachem Begin as prime minister in 1977. She dedicated her 1983 novel People Who Knock on the Door to the Palestinian people:
The inscription was dropped from the U.S. edition with permission from her agent but without consent from Highsmith.
Highsmith contributed financially to the Jewish Committee on the Middle East, an organization founded in 1988 that represented American Jews who wanted the United States to "dissociate ... from the policies of Israel." She wrote in an August 1993 letter to Marijane Meaker: "USA could save 11 million per day if they would cut the dough to Israel. The Jewish vote is 1%."
Writing history
Comic books
After graduating from Barnard College, before her short stories started appearing in print, Highsmith wrote for comic book publishers from 1942 and 1948, while she lived in New York City and Mexico. Answering an ad for "reporter/rewrite", she landed a job working for comic book publisher Ned Pines in a "bullpen" with four artists and three other writers. Initially scripting two comic-book stories a day for $55-a-week paychecks, Highsmith soon realized she could make more money by freelance writing for comics, a situation which enabled her to find time to work on her own short stories and live for a period in Mexico. The comic book scriptwriter job was the only long-term job Highsmith ever held.
From 1942 to 1943, for the Sangor–Pines shop (Better/Cinema/Pines/Standard/Nedor), Highsmith wrote "Sergeant Bill King" stories, contributed to Black Terror and Fighting Yank comics, and wrote profiles such as Catherine the Great, Barney Ross, and Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker for the "Real Life Comics" series. From 1943 to 1946, under editor Vincent Fago at Timely Comics, she contributed to its U.S.A. Comics wartime series, writing scenarios for comics such as Jap Buster Johnson and The Destroyer. During these same years she wrote for Fawcett Publications, scripting for Fawcett Comics characters "Crisco and Jasper" and others. Highsmith also wrote for True Comics, Captain Midnight, and Western Comics.
When Highsmith wrote the psychological thriller novel The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955), one of the title character's first victims is a comic-book artist named Reddington: "Tom had a hunch about Reddington. He was a comic-book artist. He probably didn't know whether he was coming or going."
Early novels and short stories
Highsmith's first novel, Strangers on a Train, proved modestly successful upon publication in 1950, and Alfred Hitchcock's 1951 film adaptation of the novel enhanced her reputation.
Highsmith's second novel, The Price of Salt, was published in 1952 under the nom de plume Claire Morgan. Highsmith mined her personal life for the novel's content. Its groundbreaking happy ending and departure from stereotypical conceptions about lesbians made it stand out in lesbian fiction. In what BBC 2's The Late Show presenter Sarah Dunant described as a "literary coming out" after 38 years of disaffirmation, Highsmith finally acknowledged authorship of the novel publicly when she agreed to the 1990 publication by Bloomsbury retitled Carol. Highsmith wrote in the "Afterword" to the new edition:
The paperback version of the novel sold nearly one million copies before its 1990 reissue as Carol. The Price of Salt is distinct for also being the only one of Highsmith's novels in which no violent crime takes place, and where her characters have "more explicit sexual existences" and are allowed "to find happiness in their relationship."
Her short stories appeared for the first time in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine in the early 1950s.
Her last novel, Small g: a Summer Idyll, was rejected by Knopf (her usual publisher by then) several months before her death, leaving Highsmith without an American publisher. It was published posthumously in the United Kingdom by Bloomsbury Publishing in March 1995, and nine years later in the United States by W.W. Norton.
The "Ripliad"
In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series—collectively called "The Ripliad"—are some of Highsmith's most popular works.
The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated", a "dapper sociopath", and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath."
Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, René Clément's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written."
The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development.
Honors
1979 : Grand Master, Swedish Crime Writers' Academy
1987 : , Festival du Cinéma Américain de Deauville
1989 : Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, French Ministry of Culture
1993 : Best Foreign Literary Award, Finnish Crime Society
2008 : Greatest Crime Writer, The Times
Awards and nominations
1946 : O. Henry Award, Best First Story, for The Heroine (in Harper's Bazaar)
1951 : Nominee, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Best First Novel, Mystery Writers of America, for Strangers on a Train
1956 : Edgar Allan Poe Scroll (special award), Mystery Writers of America, for The Talented Mr. Ripley
1957 : Grand Prix de Littérature Policière, International, for The Talented Mr. Ripley
1963 : Nominee, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Best Short Story, Mystery Writers of America, for The Terrapin (in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine)
1963 : Special Award, Mystery Writers of America, for The Terrapin
1964 : Silver Dagger Award, Best Foreign Novel, Crime Writers' Association, for The Two Faces of January (pub. Heinemann)
1975 : for L'Amateur d'escargots (pub. Calmann-Lévy) (English title: Eleven)
Bibliography
Novels
Strangers on a Train (1950)
The Price of Salt (1952) (as Claire Morgan) (republished as Carol in 1990 under Highsmith's name)
The Blunderer (1954)
Deep Water (1957)
A Game for the Living (1958)
This Sweet Sickness (1960)
The Cry of the Owl (1962)
The Two Faces of January (1964)
The Glass Cell (1964)
A Suspension of Mercy (1965) (published as The Story-Teller in the U.S.)
Those Who Walk Away (1967)
The Tremor of Forgery (1969)
A Dog's Ransom (1972)
Edith's Diary (1977)
People Who Knock on the Door (1983)
Found in the Street (1986)
Small g: a Summer Idyll (1995)
The "Ripliad"
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955)
Ripley Under Ground (1970)
Ripley's Game (1974)
The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980)
Ripley Under Water (1991)
Short story collections
Eleven (1970) (Foreword by Graham Greene). . (published as The Snail-Watcher and Other Stories in the U.S.)
Little Tales of Misogyny (1975). (published first as Kleine Geschichten für Weiberfeinde in Switzerland)
The Animal Lover's Book of Beastly Murder (1975). .
Slowly, Slowly in the Wind (1979). .
The Black House (1981).
Mermaids on the Golf Course (1985).
Tales of Natural and Unnatural Catastrophes (1987). .
Chillers (1990). . (publication of Highsmith stories broadcast on U.S. television series Chillers)
Nothing That Meets the Eye: The Uncollected Stories (2002). . (published posthumously)
Under a Dark Angel's Eye: The Selected Stories of Patricia Highsmith (2021) (introduction by Carmen Maria Machado). .
Other books
Miranda the Panda Is on the Veranda (1958) with Doris Sanders. . (children's book of verse and illustrations)
Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction (1966). . (enlarged and revised edition, 1981, )
Essays and articles
"Not-Thinking with the Dishes" (1982), Whodunit? A Guide to Crime, Suspense and Spy Fiction, pg. 92. By H. R. F. Keating, Windward,
"Scene of the Crime" (1989), Granta, Issue No. 29, Winter
Miscellaneous
"Introduction" (1977), The World of Raymond Chandler. Ed. Miriam Gross, Weidenfeld and Nicolson,
"Foreword" (1987), Crime and Mystery: The 100 Best Books. By H. R. F. Keating, Xanadu,
Collected works
Mystery Cats III: More Feline Felonies (1995) (Signet Books, ) (anthology includes Patricia Highsmith)
'The Selected Stories of Patricia Highsmith (2001) (W. W. Norton & Company, )
Patricia Highsmith: Selected Novels and Short Stories (2011) (W. W. Norton & Company, )
Film, television, theatre and radio adaptations
Several of Highsmith's works have been adapted for other media, some more than once. In 1978, Highsmith was president of the jury at the 28th Berlin International Film Festival.
Film
1951. Strangers on a Train was adapted as a film of same name directed by Alfred Hitchcock starring Farley Granger as Guy Haines, Robert Walker as Anthony Bruno, Ruth Roman as Anne Morton, Patricia Hitchcock as Barbara Morton and Laura Elliott as Miriam Joyce Haines.
1963. The Blunderer was adapted as French-language film Le meurtrier ("The Murderer"), directed by Claude Autant-Lara starring Maurice Ronet as Walter Saccard, Yvonne Furneaux as Clara Saccard, Gert Fröbe as Melchior Kimmel, Marina Vlady as Ellie and Robert Hossein as Corbi. It is known in English as Enough Rope.
1969. Strangers on a Train was adapted as Once You Kiss a Stranger, directed by Robert Sparr starring Paul Burke as Jerry, Carol Lynley as Diana and Martha Hyer as Lee.
1977. This Sweet Sickness was adapted as French-language film Dites-lui que je l'aime, directed by Claude Miller starring Gérard Depardieu as David Martineau, Miou-Miou as Juliette, Dominique Laffin as Lise, and Jacques Denis as Gérard Dutilleux. It is known in English as This Sweet Sickness.
1978. The Glass Cell was adapted as German-language film Die gläserne Zelle, directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer starring Brigitte Fossey as Lisa Braun, Helmut Griem as Phillip Braun, Dieter Laser as David Reinelt and Walter Kohut as Robert Lasky.
1981. Deep Water was adapted as French-language film Eaux profondes, directed by Michel Deville starring Isabelle Huppert as Melanie and Jean-Louis Trintignant as Vic Allen.
1983. Edith's Diary was adapted as German-language film Ediths Tagebuch, directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer starring Angela Winkler as Edith.
1986. The Two Faces of January was adapted as German-language film Die zwei Gesichter des Januars, directed by Wolfgang Storch starring Charles Brauer as Chester McFarland, Yolanda Jilot as Colette McFarland and Thomas Schücke as Rydal Keener.
1987. The Cry of the Owl was adapted as French-language film Le cri du hibou, directed by Claude Chabrol starring Christophe Malavoy as Robert, Mathilda May as Juliette, Jacques Penot as Patrick and Virginie Thévenet as Véronique.
1987. The film version of Strangers on a Train by Alfred Hitchcock inspired the black comedy American film Throw Momma from the Train, directed by Danny DeVito.
1989. The Story Teller was adapted as German-language film Der Geschichtenerzähler, directed by Rainer Boldt starring Udo Schenk as Nico Thomkins and Anke Sevenich as Helen Thomkins.
2009. The Cry of the Owl was adapted as a film of same name, directed by Jamie Thraves starring Paddy Considine as Robert Forester and Julia Stiles as Jenny Thierolf.
2014. The Two Faces of January was adapted as a film of same name, written and directed by Hossein Amini starring Viggo Mortensen as Chester MacFarland, Kirsten Dunst as Colette MacFarland and Oscar Isaac as Rydal. It was released during the 64th Berlin International Film Festival.
2014. A Mighty Nice Man was adapted as a short film, directed by Jonathan Dee starring Kylie McVey as Charlotte, Jacqueline Baum as Emilie, Kristen Connolly as Charlotte's Mother, and Billy Magnussen as Robbie.
2015. A film adaption of The Price of Salt, titled Carol, was written by Phyllis Nagy and directed by Todd Haynes, starring Cate Blanchett as Carol Aird and Rooney Mara as Therese Belivet.
2016. The Blunderer was adapted as A Kind of Murder, directed by Andy Goddard starring Patrick Wilson as Walter Stackhouse, Jessica Biel as Clara Stackhouse, Eddie Marsan as Marty Kimmel and Haley Bennett as Ellie Briess.
"Ripliad"
1960: The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted as French-language film Plein soleil (titled Purple Noon for English-language audiences, though it translates as "Full Sun"). Directed by René Clément starring Alain Delon as Tom Ripley, Maurice Ronet as Philippe Greenleaf, and Marie Laforêt as Marge Duval. Both Highsmith and film critic Roger Ebert criticized the screenplay for altering the ending to prevent Ripley from going unpunished as he does in the novel.
1977: Ripley's Game (third novel) and a "plot fragment" of Ripley Under Ground (second novel) were adapted as German-language film Der Amerikanische Freund (The American Friend). Directed by Wim Wenders with Dennis Hopper as Ripley. Highsmith initially disliked the film but later found it stylish, although she did not like how Ripley was interpreted.
1999: The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted as an American production. Directed by Anthony Minghella with Matt Damon as Ripley, Jude Law as Dickie Greenleaf, and Gwyneth Paltrow as Marge Sherwood.
2002: Ripley's Game was adapted as a film of same name for an English-language Italian production. Directed by Liliana Cavani with John Malkovich as Ripley, Chiara Caselli as Luisa Harari Ripley, Ray Winstone as Reeves Minot, Dougray Scott as Jonathan Trevanny, and Lena Headey as Sarah Trevanny. Although not all reviews were favorable, Roger Ebert regarded it as the best of all the Ripley films.
2005: Ripley Under Ground was adapted as a film of same name. Directed by Roger Spottiswoode with Barry Pepper as Ripley, Jacinda Barrett as Héloïse Plisson-Ripley, Willem Dafoe as Neil Murchison, and Tom Wilkinson as John Webster.
2020: Ripley upcoming American television series by Showtime. Directed by Steven Zaillian starring Andrew Scott as Tom Ripley.
Television
1958. Strangers on a Train was adapted by Warner Brothers for an episode of the TV series 77 Sunset Strip.
1982. Scenes from the Ripley novels were dramatized in the episode A Gift for Murder of The South Bank Show, with Jonathan Kent portraying Tom Ripley. The episode included an interview with Patricia Highsmith.
1983. Deep Water was adapted as a miniseries for German television as , directed by Franz Peter Wirth starring Peter Bongartz as Vic van Allen, Constanze Engelbrecht as Melinda van Allen, Reinhard Glemnitz as Dirk Weisberg, Raimund Harmstorf as Anton Kameter, and Sky du Mont as Charley de Lisle.
1987. The Cry of the Owl was adapted for German television as Der Schrei der Eule, directed by Tom Toelle starring Matthias Habich as Robert Forster, Birgit Doll as Johanna Tierolf, Jacques Breuer as Karl Weick, Fritz Lichtenhahn as Inspektor Lippenholtz, and Doris Kunstmann as Vicky.
1990. The twelve episodes of the television series Mistress of Suspense are based on stories by Highsmith. The series aired first in France, then in the UK. It became available in the U.S. under the title Chillers.
1993. The Tremor of Forgery was adapted as German television film Trip nach Tunis, directed by Peter Goedel starring David Hunt as Howard Ingham, Karen Sillas as Ina Pallant and John Seitz as Francis J. Adams.
1995. Little Tales of Misogyny was adapted as Spanish/Catalan television film Petits contes misògins, directed by Pere Sagristà starring Marta Pérez, Carme Pla, Mamen Duch, and Míriam Iscla.
1996. Strangers on a Train was adapted for television as Once You Meet a Stranger, directed by Tommy Lee Wallace starring Jacqueline Bisset as Sheila Gaines ("Guy"), Theresa Russell as Margo Anthony ("Bruno") and Celeste Holm as Clara. The gender of the two lead characters was changed from male to female.
1996. A Dog's Ransom was adapted as French television film La rançon du chien, directed by Peter Kassovitz starring François Négret as César, François Perrot as Edouard Raynaud, Daniel Prévost as Max Ducasse and Charlotte Valandrey as Sophie.
Theatre
1998. The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted for the stage as a play of same name by playwright Phyllis Nagy. It was revived in 2010.
2013. Strangers on a Train was adapted as a play of same name by playwright Craig Warner.
Radio
2002. A four-episode radio drama of The Cry of the Owl was broadcast by BBC Radio 4, with voice acting by John Sharian as Robert Forester, Joanne McQuinn as Jenny Theirolf, Adrian Lester as Greg Wyncoop, and Matt Rippy as Jack Neilsen.
2009. All five books of the "Ripliad" were dramatized by BBC Radio 4, with Ian Hart voicing Tom Ripley.
2014. A five-segment dramatization of Carol (aka The Price of Salt) was broadcast by BBC Radio 4, with voice acting by Miranda Richardson as Carol Aird and Andrea Deck as Therese Belivet.
2019. A five-episode broadcast of selected short stories (One for the Islands, A Curious Suicide, The Terrors of Basket-Weaving, The Man Who Wrote Books In His Head, The Baby Spoon) by BBC Radio 4.
Works about Patricia Highsmith
Fictional
Dawson, Jill (2016). The Crime Writer. Sceptre. .
Murray-Smith, Joanna (2015). Switzerland. Dramatists Play Service. . (First presented at Sydney Theatre Company in November 2014).
Documentary
Highsmith: Her Secret Life (2004), documentary film by Hugh Thomson, BBC Four.
Highsmith: Her Secret Life, "notes on the film", Hugh Thomson, BBC, 2004.
See also
Ruth Rendell: A "mistress of suspense" contemporary of Highsmith for whom Highsmith acknowledged rarely admitted admiration. Rendell explored characters and themes similar to Highsmith's.
Notes
References
Further reading
Dirda, Michael (July 2, 2009). This Woman Is Dangerous. The New York Review of Books. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
Dupont, Joan (June 12, 1988). Criminal Pursuits. The New York Times. Retrieved March 28, 2017.
Helmore, Edward (October 26, 2019). Diaries expose ‘strong brew’ of Ripley novelist Patricia Highsmith's dark thoughts. The Guardian. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
McCann, Sean (April 1, 2011). “Frequently as a rat has orgasms”. New York City in the '40s, Wesleyan University. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
Morgan, Kim (December 4, 2015). The Gnarly Allure of Patricia Highsmith. The Daily Beast. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Perrin, Tom (December 18, 2012). On Patricia Highsmith. Post45 (Yale University). Retrieved March 12, 2016.
Piepenbring, Dan (January 19, 2015). A Dissatisfaction with Life. The Paris Review. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Rayner, Richard (July 17, 2011). Paperback Writers: Classic Patricia Highsmith. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 18, 2016.
Schenkar, Joan (January 21, 2012). The Talented Miss Highsmith: The Secret Life and Serious Art of Patricia Highsmith. Joan Schenkar. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Schenkar, Joan (February 25, 2016). What Patricia Highsmith did for love: 'The Price of Salt' and the secrets behind 'Carol'. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Shipley, Diane (April 1, 2014). Patricia Highsmith's criminal neglect. The Guardian. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Smith, Nathan (November 19, 2015). When Patricia Highsmith Offered Gay Readers a Hopeful Ending. The New Republic. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Tonkin, Boyd (December 7, 2015). 'Carol', Patricia Highsmith, and how gay literature found its voice in the 1950s. The Independent''. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Books
External links
Patricia Highsmith Papers – Swiss Literary Archives. Swiss National Library, 2006.
Patricia Highsmith – Exhibition of the Swiss National Library. March–September 2006, Swiss National Library, March 13, 2006.
Patricia Highsmith : photographs from the exhibition. Swiss Literary Archives, Swiss National Library, December 1, 2006. (archive)
Choose Your Highsmith (The Patricia Highsmith Recommendation Engine). W. W. Norton & Company.
Patricia Highsmith First Edition Book Cover Gallery (UK publishers). Existential Ennui, 2013.
Patricia Highsmith gallery by René Burri, Magnum Photos, 1988.
Patricia Highsmith interview by Naim Attallah, Naim Attallah Online, Quartet Books, 1993.
Works by or about Patricia Highsmith in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
Audio interviews
Patricia Highsmith on Audio Interviews: "Thrillers and Crime Fiction", BBC Four, December 3, 1972 (archive)
Patricia Highsmith interview with Roy Plomley, Desert Island Discs, BBC Radio 4, April 21, 1979.
Patricia Highsmith interview (The Black House) with Peter Clayton, Meridian, BBC World Service, August 8, 1980.
Patricia Highsmith interview with Terry Gross, Fresh Air, NPR, October 27, 1987.
Patricia Highsmith interview with Don Swaim, Book Beat, WCBS-Radio (via Wired for Books, Ohio University), October 29, 1987. (archive)
Patricia Highsmith, In Conversation with Michael Dibdin, ICA talks, Institute of Contemporary Arts, September 27, 1991.
1921 births
1995 deaths
20th-century American novelists
20th-century American short story writers
20th-century American women writers
20th-century pseudonymous writers
American adoptees
American comics writers
American crime fiction writers
American detective fiction writers
American horror writers
American lesbian writers
American people of German descent
American women novelists
American women short story writers
Female comics writers
LGBT comics creators
American LGBT novelists
People with mood disorders
Pseudonymous women writers
Psychological fiction writers
Women horror writers
Women mystery writers
Deaths from anemia
Deaths from cancer in Switzerland
LGBT people from Texas
People from Fort Worth, Texas
People from Greenwich Village
Golden Age comics creators
Members of the Detection Club
Officiers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
Barnard College alumni
Yaddo alumni | true | [
"Přírodní park Třebíčsko (before Oblast klidu Třebíčsko) is a natural park near Třebíč in the Czech Republic. There are many interesting plants. The park was founded in 1983.\n\nKobylinec and Ptáčovský kopeček\n\nKobylinec is a natural monument situated ca 0,5 km from the village of Trnava.\nThe area of this monument is 0,44 ha. Pulsatilla grandis can be found here and in the Ptáčovský kopeček park near Ptáčov near Třebíč. Both monuments are very popular for tourists.\n\nPonds\n\nIn the natural park there are some interesting ponds such as Velký Bor, Malý Bor, Buršík near Přeckov and a brook Březinka. Dams on the brook are examples of European beaver activity.\n\nSyenitové skály near Pocoucov\n\nSyenitové skály (rocks of syenit) near Pocoucov is one of famed locations. There are interesting granite boulders. The area of the reservation is 0,77 ha.\n\nExternal links\nParts of this article or all article was translated from Czech. The original article is :cs:Přírodní park Třebíčsko.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nNature near the village Trnava which is there\n\nTřebíč\nParks in the Czech Republic\nTourist attractions in the Vysočina Region",
"Damn Interesting is an independent website founded by Alan Bellows in 2005. The website presents true stories from science, history, and psychology, primarily as long-form articles, often illustrated with original artwork. Works are written by various authors, and published at irregular intervals. The website openly rejects advertising, relying on reader and listener donations to cover operating costs.\n\nAs of October 2012, each article is also published as a podcast under the same name. In November 2019, a second podcast was launched under the title Damn Interesting Week, featuring unscripted commentary on an assortment of news articles featured on the website's \"Curated Links\" section that week. In mid-2020, a third podcast called Damn Interesting Curio Cabinet began highlighting the website's periodic short-form articles in the same radioplay format as the original podcast.\n\nIn July 2009, Damn Interesting published the print book Alien Hand Syndrome through Workman Publishing. It contains some favorites from the site and some exclusive content.\n\nAwards and recognition \nIn August 2007, PC Magazine named Damn Interesting one of the \"Top 100 Undiscovered Web Sites\".\nThe article \"The Zero-Armed Bandit\" by Alan Bellows won a 2015 Sidney Award from David Brooks in The New York Times.\nThe article \"Ghoulish Acts and Dastardly Deeds\" by Alan Bellows was cited as \"nonfiction journalism from 2017 that will stand the test of time\" by Conor Friedersdorf in The Atlantic.\nThe article \"Dupes and Duplicity\" by Jennifer Lee Noonan won a 2020 Sidney Award from David Brooks in the New York Times.\n\nAccusing The Dollop of plagiarism \n\nOn July 9, 2015, Bellows posted an open letter accusing The Dollop, a comedy podcast about history, of plagiarism due to their repeated use of verbatim text from Damn Interesting articles without permission or attribution. Dave Anthony, the writer of The Dollop, responded on reddit, admitting to using Damn Interesting content, but claiming that the use was protected by fair use, and that \"historical facts are not copyrightable.\" In an article about the controversy on Plagiarism Today, Jonathan Bailey concluded, \"Any way one looks at it, The Dollop failed its ethical obligations to all of the people, not just those writing for Damn Interesting, who put in the time, energy and expertise into writing the original content upon which their show is based.\"\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Official website\n\n2005 podcast debuts"
]
|
[
"Patricia Highsmith",
"The \"Ripliad\"",
"what is the Ripliad?",
"The series--collectively dubbed \"The Ripliad\"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works",
"When was it published?",
"In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley,",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development."
]
| C_23fdf1ec48f84f14b6ba708db2036d39_0 | What is the series called? | 4 | What is the television series, which is in production based around the Ripliad book series called? | Patricia Highsmith | In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series--collectively dubbed "The Ripliad"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works and have sold millions of copies worldwide. The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated," a "dapper sociopath," and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath." Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, Rene Clement's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written." The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Patricia Highsmith (January 19, 1921 – February 4, 1995) was an American novelist and short story writer widely known for her psychological thrillers, including her series of five novels featuring the character Tom Ripley.
She wrote 22 novels and numerous short stories throughout her career spanning nearly five decades, and her work has led to more than two dozen film adaptations. Her writing derived influence from existentialist literature, and questioned notions of identity and popular morality. She was dubbed "the poet of apprehension" by novelist Graham Greene.
Her first novel, Strangers on a Train, has been adapted for stage and screen, the best known being the Alfred Hitchcock film released in 1951. Her 1955 novel The Talented Mr. Ripley has been adapted for film. Writing under the pseudonym Claire Morgan, Highsmith published the first lesbian novel with a happy ending, The Price of Salt, in 1952, republished 38 years later as Carol under her own name and later adapted into a 2015 film.
Early life
Highsmith was born Mary Patricia Plangman in Fort Worth, Texas. She was the only child of artists Jay Bernard Plangman (1889–1975), who was of German descent, and Mary Plangman (née Coates; September 13, 1895 – March 12, 1991). The couple divorced ten days before their daughter's birth.
In 1927, Highsmith, her mother and her adoptive stepfather, artist Stanley Highsmith, whom her mother had married in 1924, moved to New York City. When she was 12 years old, Highsmith was sent to Fort Worth and lived with her maternal grandmother for a year. She called this the "saddest year" of her life and felt "abandoned" by her mother. She returned to New York to continue living with her mother and stepfather, primarily in Manhattan, but also in Astoria, Queens.
According to Highsmith, her mother once told her that she had tried to abort her by drinking turpentine, although a biography of Highsmith indicates Jay Plangman tried to persuade his wife to have the abortion but she refused. Highsmith never resolved this love–hate relationship, which reportedly haunted her for the rest of her life, and which she fictionalized in "The Terrapin", her short story about a young boy who stabs his mother to death. Highsmith's mother predeceased her by only four years, dying at the age of 95.
Highsmith's grandmother taught her to read at an early age, and she made good use of her grandmother's extensive library. At the age of nine, she found a resemblance to her own imaginative life in the case histories of The Human Mind by Karl Menninger, a popularizer of Freudian analysis.
Many of Highsmith's 22 novels were set in Greenwich Village, where she lived at 48 Grove Street from 1940 to 1942, before moving to 345 E. 57th Street. In 1942, Highsmith graduated from Barnard College, where she studied English composition, playwriting, and short story prose. After graduating from college, and despite endorsements from "highly placed professionals," she applied without success for a job at publications such as Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, Mademoiselle, Good Housekeeping, Time, Fortune, and The New Yorker.
Based on the recommendation from Truman Capote, Highsmith was accepted by the Yaddo artist's retreat during the summer of 1948, where she worked on her first novel, Strangers on a Train.
Personal life
Highsmith endured cycles of depression, some of them deep, throughout her life. Despite literary success, she wrote in her diary of January 1970: "[I] am now cynical, fairly rich ... lonely, depressed, and totally pessimistic." Over the years, Highsmith suffered from female hormone deficiency, anorexia nervosa, chronic anemia, Buerger's disease, and lung cancer.
According to her biographer, Andrew Wilson, Highsmith's personal life was a "troubled one". She was an alcoholic who, allegedly, never had an intimate relationship that lasted for more than a few years, and she was seen by some of her contemporaries and acquaintances as misanthropic and hostile. Her chronic alcoholism intensified as she grew older.
She famously preferred the company of animals to that of people and stated in a 1991 interview, "I choose to live alone because my imagination functions better when I don't have to speak with people."
Otto Penzler, her U.S. publisher through his Penzler Books imprint, had met Highsmith in 1983, and four years later witnessed some of her theatrics intended to create havoc at dinner tables and shipwreck an evening. He said after her death that "[Highsmith] was a mean, cruel, hard, unlovable, unloving human being ... I could never penetrate how any human being could be that relentlessly ugly. ... But her books? Brilliant."
Other friends, publishers, and acquaintances held different views of Highsmith. Editor Gary Fisketjon, who published her later novels through Knopf, said that "She was very rough, very difficult ... But she was also plainspoken, dryly funny, and great fun to be around." Composer David Diamond met Highsmith in 1943 and described her as being "quite a depressed person—and I think people explain her by pulling out traits like cold and reserved, when in fact it all came from depression." J. G. Ballard said of Highsmith, "The author of Strangers on a Train and The Talented Mr. Ripley was every bit as deviant and quirky as her mischievous heroes, and didn't seem to mind if everyone knew it." Screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, who adapted The Price of Salt into the 2015 film Carol, met Highsmith in 1987 and the two remained friends for the rest of Highsmith's life. Nagy said that Highsmith was "very sweet" and "encouraging" to her as a young writer, as well as "wonderfully funny."
She was considered by some as "a lesbian with a misogynist streak."
Highsmith loved cats, and she bred about three hundred snails in her garden at home in Suffolk, England. Highsmith once attended a London cocktail party with a "gigantic handbag" that "contained a head of lettuce and a hundred snails" which she said were her "companions for the evening."
She loved woodworking tools and made several pieces of furniture. Highsmith worked without stopping. In later life, she became stooped, with an osteoporotic hump. Though the 22 novels and 8 books of short stories she wrote were highly acclaimed, especially outside of the United States, Highsmith preferred her personal life to remain private.
A lifelong diarist, Highsmith left behind eight thousand pages of handwritten notebooks and diaries.
Sexuality
As an adult, Patricia Highsmith's sexual relationships were predominantly with women. She occasionally engaged in sex with men without physical desire for them, and wrote in her diary: "The male face doesn't attract me, isn't beautiful to me." She told writer Marijane Meaker in the late 1950s that she had "tried to like men. I like most men better than I like women, but not in bed." In a 1970 letter to her stepfather Stanley, Highsmith described sexual encounters with men as "steel wool in the face, a sensation of being raped in the wrong place—leading to a sensation of having to have, pretty soon, a boewl [sic] movement." Stressing, "If these words are unpleasant to read, I can assure you it is a little more unpleasant in bed." Phyllis Nagy described Highsmith as "a lesbian who did not very much enjoy being around other women" and the few sexual dabbles she'd had with men occurred just to "see if she could be into men in that way because she so much more preferred their company."
In 1943, Highsmith had an affair with artist Allela Cornell who, despondent over unrequited love from another woman, committed suicide in 1946 by drinking nitric acid.
During her stay at Yaddo, Highsmith met writer Marc Brandel, son of author J. D. Beresford. Even though she told him about her homosexuality, they soon entered into a short-lived relationship. He convinced her to visit him in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where he introduced her to Ann Smith, a painter and designer with a previous métier as a Vogue fashion model, and the two became involved. After Smith left Provincetown, Highsmith felt she was "in prison" with Brandel and told him she was leaving. "[B]ecause of that I have to sleep with him, and only the fact that it is the last night strengthens me to bear it." Highsmith, who had never been sexually exclusive with Brandel, resented having sex with him. Highsmith temporarily broke off the relationship with Brandel and continued to be involved with several women, reuniting after the well-received publication of his new novel. Beginning November 30, 1948, and continuing for the next six months, Highsmith underwent psychoanalysis in an effort "to regularize herself sexually" so she could marry Brandel. The analysis was brought to a stop by Highsmith, after which she ended her relationship with him.
After ending her engagement to Marc Brandel, she had an affair with psychoanalyst Kathryn Hamill Cohen, the wife of British publisher Dennis Cohen and founder of Cresset Press, which later published Strangers on a Train.
To help pay for the twice-a-week therapy sessions, Highsmith had taken a sales job during Christmas rush season in the toy section of Bloomingdale's department store. Ironically, it was during this attempt to "cure" her homosexuality that Highsmith was inspired to write her semi-autobiographical novel The Price of Salt, in which two women meet in a department store and begin a passionate affair.
Believing that Brandel's disclosure that she was homosexual, along with the publication of The Price of Salt, would hurt her professionally, Highsmith had an unsuccessful affair with Arthur Koestler in 1950, designed to hide her homosexuality.
In early September 1951, she began an affair with sociologist Ellen Blumenthal Hill, traveling back and forth to Europe to meet with her. When Highsmith and Hill came to New York in early May 1953, their affair ostensibly "in a fragile state", Highsmith began an "impossible" affair with the homosexual German photographer Rolf Tietgens, who had played a "sporadic, intense, and unconsummated role in her emotional life since 1943." She was reportedly attracted to Tietgens on account of his homosexuality, confiding that she felt with him "as if he is another girl, or a singularly innocent man." Tietgens shot several nude photographs of Highsmith, but only one has survived, torn in half at the waist so that only her upper body is visible. She dedicated The Two Faces of January (1964) to Tietgens.
Between 1959 and 1961, Highsmith was in love with author Marijane Meaker. Meaker wrote lesbian stories under the pseudonym "Ann Aldrich" and mystery/suspense fiction as "Vin Packer", and later wrote young adult fiction as "M.E. Kerr." In the late 1980s, after 27 years of separation, Highsmith began corresponding with Meaker again, and one day showed up on Meaker's doorstep, slightly drunk and ranting bitterly. Meaker later said she was horrified at how Highsmith's personality had changed.
Highsmith was attracted to women of privilege who expected their lovers to treat them with veneration. According to Phyllis Nagy, she belonged to a "very particular subset of lesbians" and described her conduct with many women she was interested in as being comparable to a movie "studio boss" who chased starlets. Many of these women, who to some extent belonged to the 'Carol Aird'-type and her social set, remained friendly with Highsmith and confirmed the stories of seduction.
An intensely private person, Highsmith was remarkably open and outspoken about her sexuality. She told Meaker: "the only difference between us and heterosexuals is what we do in bed."
Death
Highsmith died on February 4, 1995, at 74, from a combination of aplastic anemia and lung cancer at Carita hospital in Locarno, Switzerland, near the village where she had lived since 1982. She was cremated at the cemetery in Bellinzona; a memorial service was conducted in the Chiesa di Tegna in Tegna, Ticino, Switzerland; and her ashes were interred in its columbarium.
She left her estate, worth an estimated $3 million, and the promise of any future royalties to the Yaddo colony, where she spent two months in 1948 writing the draft of Strangers on a Train. Highsmith bequeathed her literary estate to the Swiss Literary Archives at the Swiss National Library in Bern, Switzerland. Her Swiss publisher, Diogenes Verlag, was appointed literary executor of the estate.
Religious, racial and ethnic views
Highsmith was a resolute atheist. Although she considered herself a liberal, and in her school years had gotten along with black students, in later years she became convinced that Black people were responsible for the welfare crisis in America. She disliked Koreans because "they ate dogs".
Highsmith was an avowed antisemite; she described herself as a "Jew hater" and described The Holocaust as "the semicaust". When she was living in Switzerland in the 1980s, she used nearly 40 aliases when writing to government bodies and newspapers deploring the state of Israel and the "influence" of the Jews. Highsmith was an active supporter of Palestinian rights, a stance which, according to Carol screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, "often teetered into outright antisemitism."
Politics
Highsmith described herself as a social democrat. She believed in American democratic ideals and in "the promise" of U.S. history, but was also highly critical of the reality of the country's 20th-century culture and foreign policy. Beginning in 1963, she resided exclusively in Europe. She retained her United States citizenship, despite the tax penalties, of which she complained bitterly while living for many years in France and Switzerland.
Palestine
Highsmith aligned herself with writers such as Gore Vidal, Alexander Cockburn, Noam Chomsky and Edward Said in supporting Palestinian self-determination. As a member of Amnesty International, she felt duty-bound to express publicly her opposition to the displacement of Palestinians. Highsmith prohibited her books from being published in Israel after the election of Menachem Begin as prime minister in 1977. She dedicated her 1983 novel People Who Knock on the Door to the Palestinian people:
The inscription was dropped from the U.S. edition with permission from her agent but without consent from Highsmith.
Highsmith contributed financially to the Jewish Committee on the Middle East, an organization founded in 1988 that represented American Jews who wanted the United States to "dissociate ... from the policies of Israel." She wrote in an August 1993 letter to Marijane Meaker: "USA could save 11 million per day if they would cut the dough to Israel. The Jewish vote is 1%."
Writing history
Comic books
After graduating from Barnard College, before her short stories started appearing in print, Highsmith wrote for comic book publishers from 1942 and 1948, while she lived in New York City and Mexico. Answering an ad for "reporter/rewrite", she landed a job working for comic book publisher Ned Pines in a "bullpen" with four artists and three other writers. Initially scripting two comic-book stories a day for $55-a-week paychecks, Highsmith soon realized she could make more money by freelance writing for comics, a situation which enabled her to find time to work on her own short stories and live for a period in Mexico. The comic book scriptwriter job was the only long-term job Highsmith ever held.
From 1942 to 1943, for the Sangor–Pines shop (Better/Cinema/Pines/Standard/Nedor), Highsmith wrote "Sergeant Bill King" stories, contributed to Black Terror and Fighting Yank comics, and wrote profiles such as Catherine the Great, Barney Ross, and Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker for the "Real Life Comics" series. From 1943 to 1946, under editor Vincent Fago at Timely Comics, she contributed to its U.S.A. Comics wartime series, writing scenarios for comics such as Jap Buster Johnson and The Destroyer. During these same years she wrote for Fawcett Publications, scripting for Fawcett Comics characters "Crisco and Jasper" and others. Highsmith also wrote for True Comics, Captain Midnight, and Western Comics.
When Highsmith wrote the psychological thriller novel The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955), one of the title character's first victims is a comic-book artist named Reddington: "Tom had a hunch about Reddington. He was a comic-book artist. He probably didn't know whether he was coming or going."
Early novels and short stories
Highsmith's first novel, Strangers on a Train, proved modestly successful upon publication in 1950, and Alfred Hitchcock's 1951 film adaptation of the novel enhanced her reputation.
Highsmith's second novel, The Price of Salt, was published in 1952 under the nom de plume Claire Morgan. Highsmith mined her personal life for the novel's content. Its groundbreaking happy ending and departure from stereotypical conceptions about lesbians made it stand out in lesbian fiction. In what BBC 2's The Late Show presenter Sarah Dunant described as a "literary coming out" after 38 years of disaffirmation, Highsmith finally acknowledged authorship of the novel publicly when she agreed to the 1990 publication by Bloomsbury retitled Carol. Highsmith wrote in the "Afterword" to the new edition:
The paperback version of the novel sold nearly one million copies before its 1990 reissue as Carol. The Price of Salt is distinct for also being the only one of Highsmith's novels in which no violent crime takes place, and where her characters have "more explicit sexual existences" and are allowed "to find happiness in their relationship."
Her short stories appeared for the first time in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine in the early 1950s.
Her last novel, Small g: a Summer Idyll, was rejected by Knopf (her usual publisher by then) several months before her death, leaving Highsmith without an American publisher. It was published posthumously in the United Kingdom by Bloomsbury Publishing in March 1995, and nine years later in the United States by W.W. Norton.
The "Ripliad"
In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series—collectively called "The Ripliad"—are some of Highsmith's most popular works.
The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated", a "dapper sociopath", and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath."
Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, René Clément's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written."
The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development.
Honors
1979 : Grand Master, Swedish Crime Writers' Academy
1987 : , Festival du Cinéma Américain de Deauville
1989 : Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, French Ministry of Culture
1993 : Best Foreign Literary Award, Finnish Crime Society
2008 : Greatest Crime Writer, The Times
Awards and nominations
1946 : O. Henry Award, Best First Story, for The Heroine (in Harper's Bazaar)
1951 : Nominee, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Best First Novel, Mystery Writers of America, for Strangers on a Train
1956 : Edgar Allan Poe Scroll (special award), Mystery Writers of America, for The Talented Mr. Ripley
1957 : Grand Prix de Littérature Policière, International, for The Talented Mr. Ripley
1963 : Nominee, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Best Short Story, Mystery Writers of America, for The Terrapin (in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine)
1963 : Special Award, Mystery Writers of America, for The Terrapin
1964 : Silver Dagger Award, Best Foreign Novel, Crime Writers' Association, for The Two Faces of January (pub. Heinemann)
1975 : for L'Amateur d'escargots (pub. Calmann-Lévy) (English title: Eleven)
Bibliography
Novels
Strangers on a Train (1950)
The Price of Salt (1952) (as Claire Morgan) (republished as Carol in 1990 under Highsmith's name)
The Blunderer (1954)
Deep Water (1957)
A Game for the Living (1958)
This Sweet Sickness (1960)
The Cry of the Owl (1962)
The Two Faces of January (1964)
The Glass Cell (1964)
A Suspension of Mercy (1965) (published as The Story-Teller in the U.S.)
Those Who Walk Away (1967)
The Tremor of Forgery (1969)
A Dog's Ransom (1972)
Edith's Diary (1977)
People Who Knock on the Door (1983)
Found in the Street (1986)
Small g: a Summer Idyll (1995)
The "Ripliad"
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955)
Ripley Under Ground (1970)
Ripley's Game (1974)
The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980)
Ripley Under Water (1991)
Short story collections
Eleven (1970) (Foreword by Graham Greene). . (published as The Snail-Watcher and Other Stories in the U.S.)
Little Tales of Misogyny (1975). (published first as Kleine Geschichten für Weiberfeinde in Switzerland)
The Animal Lover's Book of Beastly Murder (1975). .
Slowly, Slowly in the Wind (1979). .
The Black House (1981).
Mermaids on the Golf Course (1985).
Tales of Natural and Unnatural Catastrophes (1987). .
Chillers (1990). . (publication of Highsmith stories broadcast on U.S. television series Chillers)
Nothing That Meets the Eye: The Uncollected Stories (2002). . (published posthumously)
Under a Dark Angel's Eye: The Selected Stories of Patricia Highsmith (2021) (introduction by Carmen Maria Machado). .
Other books
Miranda the Panda Is on the Veranda (1958) with Doris Sanders. . (children's book of verse and illustrations)
Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction (1966). . (enlarged and revised edition, 1981, )
Essays and articles
"Not-Thinking with the Dishes" (1982), Whodunit? A Guide to Crime, Suspense and Spy Fiction, pg. 92. By H. R. F. Keating, Windward,
"Scene of the Crime" (1989), Granta, Issue No. 29, Winter
Miscellaneous
"Introduction" (1977), The World of Raymond Chandler. Ed. Miriam Gross, Weidenfeld and Nicolson,
"Foreword" (1987), Crime and Mystery: The 100 Best Books. By H. R. F. Keating, Xanadu,
Collected works
Mystery Cats III: More Feline Felonies (1995) (Signet Books, ) (anthology includes Patricia Highsmith)
'The Selected Stories of Patricia Highsmith (2001) (W. W. Norton & Company, )
Patricia Highsmith: Selected Novels and Short Stories (2011) (W. W. Norton & Company, )
Film, television, theatre and radio adaptations
Several of Highsmith's works have been adapted for other media, some more than once. In 1978, Highsmith was president of the jury at the 28th Berlin International Film Festival.
Film
1951. Strangers on a Train was adapted as a film of same name directed by Alfred Hitchcock starring Farley Granger as Guy Haines, Robert Walker as Anthony Bruno, Ruth Roman as Anne Morton, Patricia Hitchcock as Barbara Morton and Laura Elliott as Miriam Joyce Haines.
1963. The Blunderer was adapted as French-language film Le meurtrier ("The Murderer"), directed by Claude Autant-Lara starring Maurice Ronet as Walter Saccard, Yvonne Furneaux as Clara Saccard, Gert Fröbe as Melchior Kimmel, Marina Vlady as Ellie and Robert Hossein as Corbi. It is known in English as Enough Rope.
1969. Strangers on a Train was adapted as Once You Kiss a Stranger, directed by Robert Sparr starring Paul Burke as Jerry, Carol Lynley as Diana and Martha Hyer as Lee.
1977. This Sweet Sickness was adapted as French-language film Dites-lui que je l'aime, directed by Claude Miller starring Gérard Depardieu as David Martineau, Miou-Miou as Juliette, Dominique Laffin as Lise, and Jacques Denis as Gérard Dutilleux. It is known in English as This Sweet Sickness.
1978. The Glass Cell was adapted as German-language film Die gläserne Zelle, directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer starring Brigitte Fossey as Lisa Braun, Helmut Griem as Phillip Braun, Dieter Laser as David Reinelt and Walter Kohut as Robert Lasky.
1981. Deep Water was adapted as French-language film Eaux profondes, directed by Michel Deville starring Isabelle Huppert as Melanie and Jean-Louis Trintignant as Vic Allen.
1983. Edith's Diary was adapted as German-language film Ediths Tagebuch, directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer starring Angela Winkler as Edith.
1986. The Two Faces of January was adapted as German-language film Die zwei Gesichter des Januars, directed by Wolfgang Storch starring Charles Brauer as Chester McFarland, Yolanda Jilot as Colette McFarland and Thomas Schücke as Rydal Keener.
1987. The Cry of the Owl was adapted as French-language film Le cri du hibou, directed by Claude Chabrol starring Christophe Malavoy as Robert, Mathilda May as Juliette, Jacques Penot as Patrick and Virginie Thévenet as Véronique.
1987. The film version of Strangers on a Train by Alfred Hitchcock inspired the black comedy American film Throw Momma from the Train, directed by Danny DeVito.
1989. The Story Teller was adapted as German-language film Der Geschichtenerzähler, directed by Rainer Boldt starring Udo Schenk as Nico Thomkins and Anke Sevenich as Helen Thomkins.
2009. The Cry of the Owl was adapted as a film of same name, directed by Jamie Thraves starring Paddy Considine as Robert Forester and Julia Stiles as Jenny Thierolf.
2014. The Two Faces of January was adapted as a film of same name, written and directed by Hossein Amini starring Viggo Mortensen as Chester MacFarland, Kirsten Dunst as Colette MacFarland and Oscar Isaac as Rydal. It was released during the 64th Berlin International Film Festival.
2014. A Mighty Nice Man was adapted as a short film, directed by Jonathan Dee starring Kylie McVey as Charlotte, Jacqueline Baum as Emilie, Kristen Connolly as Charlotte's Mother, and Billy Magnussen as Robbie.
2015. A film adaption of The Price of Salt, titled Carol, was written by Phyllis Nagy and directed by Todd Haynes, starring Cate Blanchett as Carol Aird and Rooney Mara as Therese Belivet.
2016. The Blunderer was adapted as A Kind of Murder, directed by Andy Goddard starring Patrick Wilson as Walter Stackhouse, Jessica Biel as Clara Stackhouse, Eddie Marsan as Marty Kimmel and Haley Bennett as Ellie Briess.
"Ripliad"
1960: The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted as French-language film Plein soleil (titled Purple Noon for English-language audiences, though it translates as "Full Sun"). Directed by René Clément starring Alain Delon as Tom Ripley, Maurice Ronet as Philippe Greenleaf, and Marie Laforêt as Marge Duval. Both Highsmith and film critic Roger Ebert criticized the screenplay for altering the ending to prevent Ripley from going unpunished as he does in the novel.
1977: Ripley's Game (third novel) and a "plot fragment" of Ripley Under Ground (second novel) were adapted as German-language film Der Amerikanische Freund (The American Friend). Directed by Wim Wenders with Dennis Hopper as Ripley. Highsmith initially disliked the film but later found it stylish, although she did not like how Ripley was interpreted.
1999: The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted as an American production. Directed by Anthony Minghella with Matt Damon as Ripley, Jude Law as Dickie Greenleaf, and Gwyneth Paltrow as Marge Sherwood.
2002: Ripley's Game was adapted as a film of same name for an English-language Italian production. Directed by Liliana Cavani with John Malkovich as Ripley, Chiara Caselli as Luisa Harari Ripley, Ray Winstone as Reeves Minot, Dougray Scott as Jonathan Trevanny, and Lena Headey as Sarah Trevanny. Although not all reviews were favorable, Roger Ebert regarded it as the best of all the Ripley films.
2005: Ripley Under Ground was adapted as a film of same name. Directed by Roger Spottiswoode with Barry Pepper as Ripley, Jacinda Barrett as Héloïse Plisson-Ripley, Willem Dafoe as Neil Murchison, and Tom Wilkinson as John Webster.
2020: Ripley upcoming American television series by Showtime. Directed by Steven Zaillian starring Andrew Scott as Tom Ripley.
Television
1958. Strangers on a Train was adapted by Warner Brothers for an episode of the TV series 77 Sunset Strip.
1982. Scenes from the Ripley novels were dramatized in the episode A Gift for Murder of The South Bank Show, with Jonathan Kent portraying Tom Ripley. The episode included an interview with Patricia Highsmith.
1983. Deep Water was adapted as a miniseries for German television as , directed by Franz Peter Wirth starring Peter Bongartz as Vic van Allen, Constanze Engelbrecht as Melinda van Allen, Reinhard Glemnitz as Dirk Weisberg, Raimund Harmstorf as Anton Kameter, and Sky du Mont as Charley de Lisle.
1987. The Cry of the Owl was adapted for German television as Der Schrei der Eule, directed by Tom Toelle starring Matthias Habich as Robert Forster, Birgit Doll as Johanna Tierolf, Jacques Breuer as Karl Weick, Fritz Lichtenhahn as Inspektor Lippenholtz, and Doris Kunstmann as Vicky.
1990. The twelve episodes of the television series Mistress of Suspense are based on stories by Highsmith. The series aired first in France, then in the UK. It became available in the U.S. under the title Chillers.
1993. The Tremor of Forgery was adapted as German television film Trip nach Tunis, directed by Peter Goedel starring David Hunt as Howard Ingham, Karen Sillas as Ina Pallant and John Seitz as Francis J. Adams.
1995. Little Tales of Misogyny was adapted as Spanish/Catalan television film Petits contes misògins, directed by Pere Sagristà starring Marta Pérez, Carme Pla, Mamen Duch, and Míriam Iscla.
1996. Strangers on a Train was adapted for television as Once You Meet a Stranger, directed by Tommy Lee Wallace starring Jacqueline Bisset as Sheila Gaines ("Guy"), Theresa Russell as Margo Anthony ("Bruno") and Celeste Holm as Clara. The gender of the two lead characters was changed from male to female.
1996. A Dog's Ransom was adapted as French television film La rançon du chien, directed by Peter Kassovitz starring François Négret as César, François Perrot as Edouard Raynaud, Daniel Prévost as Max Ducasse and Charlotte Valandrey as Sophie.
Theatre
1998. The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted for the stage as a play of same name by playwright Phyllis Nagy. It was revived in 2010.
2013. Strangers on a Train was adapted as a play of same name by playwright Craig Warner.
Radio
2002. A four-episode radio drama of The Cry of the Owl was broadcast by BBC Radio 4, with voice acting by John Sharian as Robert Forester, Joanne McQuinn as Jenny Theirolf, Adrian Lester as Greg Wyncoop, and Matt Rippy as Jack Neilsen.
2009. All five books of the "Ripliad" were dramatized by BBC Radio 4, with Ian Hart voicing Tom Ripley.
2014. A five-segment dramatization of Carol (aka The Price of Salt) was broadcast by BBC Radio 4, with voice acting by Miranda Richardson as Carol Aird and Andrea Deck as Therese Belivet.
2019. A five-episode broadcast of selected short stories (One for the Islands, A Curious Suicide, The Terrors of Basket-Weaving, The Man Who Wrote Books In His Head, The Baby Spoon) by BBC Radio 4.
Works about Patricia Highsmith
Fictional
Dawson, Jill (2016). The Crime Writer. Sceptre. .
Murray-Smith, Joanna (2015). Switzerland. Dramatists Play Service. . (First presented at Sydney Theatre Company in November 2014).
Documentary
Highsmith: Her Secret Life (2004), documentary film by Hugh Thomson, BBC Four.
Highsmith: Her Secret Life, "notes on the film", Hugh Thomson, BBC, 2004.
See also
Ruth Rendell: A "mistress of suspense" contemporary of Highsmith for whom Highsmith acknowledged rarely admitted admiration. Rendell explored characters and themes similar to Highsmith's.
Notes
References
Further reading
Dirda, Michael (July 2, 2009). This Woman Is Dangerous. The New York Review of Books. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
Dupont, Joan (June 12, 1988). Criminal Pursuits. The New York Times. Retrieved March 28, 2017.
Helmore, Edward (October 26, 2019). Diaries expose ‘strong brew’ of Ripley novelist Patricia Highsmith's dark thoughts. The Guardian. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
McCann, Sean (April 1, 2011). “Frequently as a rat has orgasms”. New York City in the '40s, Wesleyan University. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
Morgan, Kim (December 4, 2015). The Gnarly Allure of Patricia Highsmith. The Daily Beast. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Perrin, Tom (December 18, 2012). On Patricia Highsmith. Post45 (Yale University). Retrieved March 12, 2016.
Piepenbring, Dan (January 19, 2015). A Dissatisfaction with Life. The Paris Review. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Rayner, Richard (July 17, 2011). Paperback Writers: Classic Patricia Highsmith. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 18, 2016.
Schenkar, Joan (January 21, 2012). The Talented Miss Highsmith: The Secret Life and Serious Art of Patricia Highsmith. Joan Schenkar. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Schenkar, Joan (February 25, 2016). What Patricia Highsmith did for love: 'The Price of Salt' and the secrets behind 'Carol'. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Shipley, Diane (April 1, 2014). Patricia Highsmith's criminal neglect. The Guardian. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Smith, Nathan (November 19, 2015). When Patricia Highsmith Offered Gay Readers a Hopeful Ending. The New Republic. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Tonkin, Boyd (December 7, 2015). 'Carol', Patricia Highsmith, and how gay literature found its voice in the 1950s. The Independent''. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Books
External links
Patricia Highsmith Papers – Swiss Literary Archives. Swiss National Library, 2006.
Patricia Highsmith – Exhibition of the Swiss National Library. March–September 2006, Swiss National Library, March 13, 2006.
Patricia Highsmith : photographs from the exhibition. Swiss Literary Archives, Swiss National Library, December 1, 2006. (archive)
Choose Your Highsmith (The Patricia Highsmith Recommendation Engine). W. W. Norton & Company.
Patricia Highsmith First Edition Book Cover Gallery (UK publishers). Existential Ennui, 2013.
Patricia Highsmith gallery by René Burri, Magnum Photos, 1988.
Patricia Highsmith interview by Naim Attallah, Naim Attallah Online, Quartet Books, 1993.
Works by or about Patricia Highsmith in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
Audio interviews
Patricia Highsmith on Audio Interviews: "Thrillers and Crime Fiction", BBC Four, December 3, 1972 (archive)
Patricia Highsmith interview with Roy Plomley, Desert Island Discs, BBC Radio 4, April 21, 1979.
Patricia Highsmith interview (The Black House) with Peter Clayton, Meridian, BBC World Service, August 8, 1980.
Patricia Highsmith interview with Terry Gross, Fresh Air, NPR, October 27, 1987.
Patricia Highsmith interview with Don Swaim, Book Beat, WCBS-Radio (via Wired for Books, Ohio University), October 29, 1987. (archive)
Patricia Highsmith, In Conversation with Michael Dibdin, ICA talks, Institute of Contemporary Arts, September 27, 1991.
1921 births
1995 deaths
20th-century American novelists
20th-century American short story writers
20th-century American women writers
20th-century pseudonymous writers
American adoptees
American comics writers
American crime fiction writers
American detective fiction writers
American horror writers
American lesbian writers
American people of German descent
American women novelists
American women short story writers
Female comics writers
LGBT comics creators
American LGBT novelists
People with mood disorders
Pseudonymous women writers
Psychological fiction writers
Women horror writers
Women mystery writers
Deaths from anemia
Deaths from cancer in Switzerland
LGBT people from Texas
People from Fort Worth, Texas
People from Greenwich Village
Golden Age comics creators
Members of the Detection Club
Officiers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
Barnard College alumni
Yaddo alumni | false | [
"In mathematics, especially in the fields of group theory and Lie theory, a central series is a kind of normal series of subgroups or Lie subalgebras, expressing the idea that the commutator is nearly trivial. For groups, this is an explicit expression that the group is a nilpotent group, and for matrix rings, this is an explicit expression that in some basis the matrix ring consists entirely of upper triangular matrices with constant diagonal.\n\nThis article uses the language of group theory; analogous terms are used for Lie algebras.\n\nThe lower central series and upper central series (also called the descending central series and ascending central series, respectively), are, despite the \"central\" in their names, central series if and only if a group is nilpotent.\n\nDefinition\nA central series is a sequence of subgroups\n\nsuch that the successive quotients are central; that is, , where denotes the commutator subgroup generated by all elements of the form , with g in G and h in H. Since , the subgroup is normal in G for each i. Thus, we can rephrase the 'central' condition above as: is normal in G and is central in for each i. As a consequence, is abelian for each i.\n\nA central series is analogous in Lie theory to a flag that is strictly preserved by the adjoint action (more prosaically, a basis in which each element is represented by a strictly upper triangular matrix); compare Engel's theorem.\n\nA group need not have a central series. In fact, a group has a central series if and only if it is a nilpotent group. If a group has a central series, then there are two central series whose terms are extremal in certain senses. Since A0 = {1}, the center Z(G) satisfies A1 ≤ Z(G). Therefore, the maximal choice for A1 is A1 = Z(G). Continuing in this way to choose the largest possible Ai + 1 given Ai produces what is called the upper central series. Dually, since An = G, the commutator subgroup [G, G] satisfies [G, G] = [G, An] ≤ An − 1. Therefore, the minimal choice for An − 1 is [G, G]. Continuing to choose Ai minimally given Ai + 1 such that [G, Ai + 1] ≤ Ai produces what is called the lower central series. These series can be constructed for any group, and if a group has a central series (is a nilpotent group), these procedures will yield central series.\n\nLower central series\nThe lower central series (or descending central series) of a group G is the descending series of subgroups\nG = G1 ⊵ G2 ⊵ ⋯ ⊵ Gn ⊵ ⋯,\nwhere, for each n,\n,\nthe subgroup of G generated by all commutators with and . Thus, , the derived subgroup of G, while , etc. The lower central series is often denoted .\n\nThis should not be confused with the derived series, whose terms are \n, \nnot . The two series are related by . For instance, the symmetric group S3 is solvable of class 2: the derived series is S3 ⊵ {e, (1 2 3), (1 3 2)} ⊵ {e}. But it is not nilpotent: its lower central series S3 ⊵ {e, (1 2 3), (1 3 2)} ⊵ {e, (1 2 3), (1 3 2)} ⊵ ⋯ does not terminate. A nilpotent group is a solvable group, and its derived length is logarithmic in its nilpotency class .\n\nFor infinite groups, one can continue the lower central series to infinite ordinal numbers via transfinite recursion: for a limit ordinal λ, define \n. \nIf for some ordinal λ, then G is said to be a hypocentral group. For every ordinal λ, there is a group G such that , but for all , .\n\nIf is the first infinite ordinal, then is the smallest normal subgroup of G such that the quotient is residually nilpotent, that is, such that every non-identity element has a non-identity homomorphic image in a nilpotent group . In the field of combinatorial group theory, it is an important and early result that free groups are residually nilpotent. In fact the quotients of the lower central series are free abelian groups with a natural basis defined by basic commutators, .\n\nIf for some finite n, then is the smallest normal subgroup of G with nilpotent quotient, and is called the nilpotent residual of G. This is always the case for a finite group, and defines the term in the lower Fitting series for G.\n\nIf for all finite n, then is not nilpotent, but it is residually nilpotent.\n\nThere is no general term for the intersection of all terms of the transfinite lower central series, analogous to the hypercenter (below).\n\nUpper central series\nThe upper central series (or ascending central series) of a group G is the sequence of subgroups\n\nwhere each successive group is defined by:\n\nand is called the ith center of G (respectively, second center, third center, etc.). In this case, is the center of G, and for each successive group, the factor group is the center of , and is called an upper central series quotient.\n\nFor infinite groups, one can continue the upper central series to infinite ordinal numbers via transfinite recursion: for a limit ordinal λ, define \n \nThe limit of this process (the union of the higher centers) is called the hypercenter of the group.\n\nIf the transfinite upper central series stabilizes at the whole group, then the group is called hypercentral. Hypercentral groups enjoy many properties of nilpotent groups, such as the normalizer condition (the normalizer of a proper subgroup properly contains the subgroup), elements of coprime order commute, and periodic hypercentral groups are the direct sum of their Sylow p-subgroups . For every ordinal λ there is a group G with Zλ(G) = G, but Zα(G) ≠ G for α < λ, and .\n\nConnection between lower and upper central series\nThere are various connections between the lower central series (LCS) and upper central series (UCS) , particularly for nilpotent groups.\n\nMost simply, a group is abelian if and only if the LCS terminates at the first step (the commutator subgroup is trivial) if and only if the UCS stabilizes at the first step (the center is the entire group). More generally, for a nilpotent group, the length of the LCS and the length of the UCS agree (and is called the nilpotency class of the group). However, the LCS and UCS of a nilpotent group may not necessarily have the same terms. For example, while the UCS and LCS agree for the cyclic group C2 and quaternion group Q8 (which are C2 ⊵ {e} and Q8 ⊵ {1, −1} ⊵ {1} respectively), the UCS and LCS of their direct product C2 × Q8 do not: its lower central series is C2 × Q8 ⊵ {e} × {−1, 1} ⊵ {e} × {1}, while the upper central series is C2 × Q8 ⊵ C2 × {−1, 1} ⊵ {e} × {1}.\n\nHowever, the LCS stabilizes at the zeroth step if and only if it is perfect, while the UCS stabilizes at the zeroth step if and only if it is centerless, which are distinct concepts, and show that the lengths of the LCS and UCS (interpreted to mean the length before stabilization) need not agree in general.\n\nFor a perfect group, the UCS always stabilizes by the first step, a fact called Grün's lemma. However, a centerless group may have a very long lower central series: a free group on two or more generators is centerless, but its lower central series does not stabilize until the first infinite ordinal.\n\nRefined central series \nIn the study of p-groups, it is often important to use longer central series. An important class of such central series are the exponent-p central series; that is, a central series whose quotients are elementary abelian groups, or what is the same, have exponent p. There is a unique most quickly descending such series, the lower exponent-p central series λ defined by:\n, and\n.\nThe second term, , is equal to , the Frattini subgroup. The lower exponent-p central series is sometimes simply called the p-central series.\n\nThere is a unique most quickly ascending such series, the upper exponent-p central series S defined by:\nS0(G) = 1\nSn+1(G)/Sn(G) = Ω(Z(G/Sn(G)))\nwhere Ω(Z(H)) denotes the subgroup generated by (and equal to) the set of central elements of H of order dividing p. The first term, S1(G), is the subgroup generated by the minimal normal subgroups and so is equal to the socle of G. For this reason the upper exponent-p central series is sometimes known as the socle series or even the Loewy series, though the latter is usually used to indicate a descending series.\n\nSometimes other refinements of the central series are useful, such as the Jennings series κ defined by:\nκ1(G) = G, and\nκn + 1(G) = [G, κn(G)] (κi(G))p, where i is the smallest integer larger than or equal to n/p.\nThe Jennings series is named after Stephen Arthur Jennings who used the series to describe the Loewy series of the modular group ring of a p-group.\n\nSee also\n Nilpotent series, an analogous concept for solvable groups\n Parent-descendant relations for finite p-groups defined by various kinds of central series\nUnipotent group\n\nReferences\n\n, especially chapter VI.\n\nSubgroup series",
"What to Eat Now is a six-part series, broadcast on BBC Two and presented by chef Valentine Warner. The basic message behind the series is that people should eat food that is in season. The programme was first broadcast on 15 September 2008. A second and final series was broadcast in 2009.\n\nThe series has covered autumnal foods, both meats such as rabbit and pigeon, and fruits and vegetables and fungi, including apples, pears, pumpkins, chicory, beetroot and truffle as part of the series.\nIn looking at apples, the show visited Benedictine monks, and talked about how they could find the best apples to make a dish called \"apple charlotte\".\nIn looking at beetroot, the show visited a farmer who practiced biodynamic farming, believing that the phases of the moon could affect plant growth.\n\nThe show travelled to Lindisfarne to illustrate mussel catching. Warner has also published two books entitled \"What to Eat Now\" and \"What to Eat Now – More Please!\" to accompany the series'.\n\nReception\nThe Guardian commented \"do we need a return to the ways of the caveman? Is Valentine Warner the future of TV chefs?\" in their review of the series.\n\nBooks\nValentine Warner has written two books to accompany the series – What to Eat Now and What to Eat Now – More Please! published by Mitchell Beazley\n\nDVD\nA DVD of the first series is now available, distributed by Acorn Media UK.\n\nSee also\n Seasonal food\n\nReferences\n\n Warner, V. (2008). In \"Living\" section of \"Radio Times\", 27 September – 3 October, p24\n\nExternal links\n \n \n What to Eat Now at Optomen\n\n2008 British television series debuts\n2009 British television series endings\nBBC high definition shows\nBBC television documentaries\nBritish cooking television shows\nTelevision series by All3Media\nEnglish-language television shows"
]
|
[
"Patricia Highsmith",
"The \"Ripliad\"",
"what is the Ripliad?",
"The series--collectively dubbed \"The Ripliad\"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works",
"When was it published?",
"In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley,",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development.",
"What is the series called?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_23fdf1ec48f84f14b6ba708db2036d39_0 | How wa the book taken by the public? | 5 | How wa the book The Ripliad taken by the public? | Patricia Highsmith | In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series--collectively dubbed "The Ripliad"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works and have sold millions of copies worldwide. The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated," a "dapper sociopath," and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath." Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, Rene Clement's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written." The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development. CANNOTANSWER | has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." | Patricia Highsmith (January 19, 1921 – February 4, 1995) was an American novelist and short story writer widely known for her psychological thrillers, including her series of five novels featuring the character Tom Ripley.
She wrote 22 novels and numerous short stories throughout her career spanning nearly five decades, and her work has led to more than two dozen film adaptations. Her writing derived influence from existentialist literature, and questioned notions of identity and popular morality. She was dubbed "the poet of apprehension" by novelist Graham Greene.
Her first novel, Strangers on a Train, has been adapted for stage and screen, the best known being the Alfred Hitchcock film released in 1951. Her 1955 novel The Talented Mr. Ripley has been adapted for film. Writing under the pseudonym Claire Morgan, Highsmith published the first lesbian novel with a happy ending, The Price of Salt, in 1952, republished 38 years later as Carol under her own name and later adapted into a 2015 film.
Early life
Highsmith was born Mary Patricia Plangman in Fort Worth, Texas. She was the only child of artists Jay Bernard Plangman (1889–1975), who was of German descent, and Mary Plangman (née Coates; September 13, 1895 – March 12, 1991). The couple divorced ten days before their daughter's birth.
In 1927, Highsmith, her mother and her adoptive stepfather, artist Stanley Highsmith, whom her mother had married in 1924, moved to New York City. When she was 12 years old, Highsmith was sent to Fort Worth and lived with her maternal grandmother for a year. She called this the "saddest year" of her life and felt "abandoned" by her mother. She returned to New York to continue living with her mother and stepfather, primarily in Manhattan, but also in Astoria, Queens.
According to Highsmith, her mother once told her that she had tried to abort her by drinking turpentine, although a biography of Highsmith indicates Jay Plangman tried to persuade his wife to have the abortion but she refused. Highsmith never resolved this love–hate relationship, which reportedly haunted her for the rest of her life, and which she fictionalized in "The Terrapin", her short story about a young boy who stabs his mother to death. Highsmith's mother predeceased her by only four years, dying at the age of 95.
Highsmith's grandmother taught her to read at an early age, and she made good use of her grandmother's extensive library. At the age of nine, she found a resemblance to her own imaginative life in the case histories of The Human Mind by Karl Menninger, a popularizer of Freudian analysis.
Many of Highsmith's 22 novels were set in Greenwich Village, where she lived at 48 Grove Street from 1940 to 1942, before moving to 345 E. 57th Street. In 1942, Highsmith graduated from Barnard College, where she studied English composition, playwriting, and short story prose. After graduating from college, and despite endorsements from "highly placed professionals," she applied without success for a job at publications such as Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, Mademoiselle, Good Housekeeping, Time, Fortune, and The New Yorker.
Based on the recommendation from Truman Capote, Highsmith was accepted by the Yaddo artist's retreat during the summer of 1948, where she worked on her first novel, Strangers on a Train.
Personal life
Highsmith endured cycles of depression, some of them deep, throughout her life. Despite literary success, she wrote in her diary of January 1970: "[I] am now cynical, fairly rich ... lonely, depressed, and totally pessimistic." Over the years, Highsmith suffered from female hormone deficiency, anorexia nervosa, chronic anemia, Buerger's disease, and lung cancer.
According to her biographer, Andrew Wilson, Highsmith's personal life was a "troubled one". She was an alcoholic who, allegedly, never had an intimate relationship that lasted for more than a few years, and she was seen by some of her contemporaries and acquaintances as misanthropic and hostile. Her chronic alcoholism intensified as she grew older.
She famously preferred the company of animals to that of people and stated in a 1991 interview, "I choose to live alone because my imagination functions better when I don't have to speak with people."
Otto Penzler, her U.S. publisher through his Penzler Books imprint, had met Highsmith in 1983, and four years later witnessed some of her theatrics intended to create havoc at dinner tables and shipwreck an evening. He said after her death that "[Highsmith] was a mean, cruel, hard, unlovable, unloving human being ... I could never penetrate how any human being could be that relentlessly ugly. ... But her books? Brilliant."
Other friends, publishers, and acquaintances held different views of Highsmith. Editor Gary Fisketjon, who published her later novels through Knopf, said that "She was very rough, very difficult ... But she was also plainspoken, dryly funny, and great fun to be around." Composer David Diamond met Highsmith in 1943 and described her as being "quite a depressed person—and I think people explain her by pulling out traits like cold and reserved, when in fact it all came from depression." J. G. Ballard said of Highsmith, "The author of Strangers on a Train and The Talented Mr. Ripley was every bit as deviant and quirky as her mischievous heroes, and didn't seem to mind if everyone knew it." Screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, who adapted The Price of Salt into the 2015 film Carol, met Highsmith in 1987 and the two remained friends for the rest of Highsmith's life. Nagy said that Highsmith was "very sweet" and "encouraging" to her as a young writer, as well as "wonderfully funny."
She was considered by some as "a lesbian with a misogynist streak."
Highsmith loved cats, and she bred about three hundred snails in her garden at home in Suffolk, England. Highsmith once attended a London cocktail party with a "gigantic handbag" that "contained a head of lettuce and a hundred snails" which she said were her "companions for the evening."
She loved woodworking tools and made several pieces of furniture. Highsmith worked without stopping. In later life, she became stooped, with an osteoporotic hump. Though the 22 novels and 8 books of short stories she wrote were highly acclaimed, especially outside of the United States, Highsmith preferred her personal life to remain private.
A lifelong diarist, Highsmith left behind eight thousand pages of handwritten notebooks and diaries.
Sexuality
As an adult, Patricia Highsmith's sexual relationships were predominantly with women. She occasionally engaged in sex with men without physical desire for them, and wrote in her diary: "The male face doesn't attract me, isn't beautiful to me." She told writer Marijane Meaker in the late 1950s that she had "tried to like men. I like most men better than I like women, but not in bed." In a 1970 letter to her stepfather Stanley, Highsmith described sexual encounters with men as "steel wool in the face, a sensation of being raped in the wrong place—leading to a sensation of having to have, pretty soon, a boewl [sic] movement." Stressing, "If these words are unpleasant to read, I can assure you it is a little more unpleasant in bed." Phyllis Nagy described Highsmith as "a lesbian who did not very much enjoy being around other women" and the few sexual dabbles she'd had with men occurred just to "see if she could be into men in that way because she so much more preferred their company."
In 1943, Highsmith had an affair with artist Allela Cornell who, despondent over unrequited love from another woman, committed suicide in 1946 by drinking nitric acid.
During her stay at Yaddo, Highsmith met writer Marc Brandel, son of author J. D. Beresford. Even though she told him about her homosexuality, they soon entered into a short-lived relationship. He convinced her to visit him in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where he introduced her to Ann Smith, a painter and designer with a previous métier as a Vogue fashion model, and the two became involved. After Smith left Provincetown, Highsmith felt she was "in prison" with Brandel and told him she was leaving. "[B]ecause of that I have to sleep with him, and only the fact that it is the last night strengthens me to bear it." Highsmith, who had never been sexually exclusive with Brandel, resented having sex with him. Highsmith temporarily broke off the relationship with Brandel and continued to be involved with several women, reuniting after the well-received publication of his new novel. Beginning November 30, 1948, and continuing for the next six months, Highsmith underwent psychoanalysis in an effort "to regularize herself sexually" so she could marry Brandel. The analysis was brought to a stop by Highsmith, after which she ended her relationship with him.
After ending her engagement to Marc Brandel, she had an affair with psychoanalyst Kathryn Hamill Cohen, the wife of British publisher Dennis Cohen and founder of Cresset Press, which later published Strangers on a Train.
To help pay for the twice-a-week therapy sessions, Highsmith had taken a sales job during Christmas rush season in the toy section of Bloomingdale's department store. Ironically, it was during this attempt to "cure" her homosexuality that Highsmith was inspired to write her semi-autobiographical novel The Price of Salt, in which two women meet in a department store and begin a passionate affair.
Believing that Brandel's disclosure that she was homosexual, along with the publication of The Price of Salt, would hurt her professionally, Highsmith had an unsuccessful affair with Arthur Koestler in 1950, designed to hide her homosexuality.
In early September 1951, she began an affair with sociologist Ellen Blumenthal Hill, traveling back and forth to Europe to meet with her. When Highsmith and Hill came to New York in early May 1953, their affair ostensibly "in a fragile state", Highsmith began an "impossible" affair with the homosexual German photographer Rolf Tietgens, who had played a "sporadic, intense, and unconsummated role in her emotional life since 1943." She was reportedly attracted to Tietgens on account of his homosexuality, confiding that she felt with him "as if he is another girl, or a singularly innocent man." Tietgens shot several nude photographs of Highsmith, but only one has survived, torn in half at the waist so that only her upper body is visible. She dedicated The Two Faces of January (1964) to Tietgens.
Between 1959 and 1961, Highsmith was in love with author Marijane Meaker. Meaker wrote lesbian stories under the pseudonym "Ann Aldrich" and mystery/suspense fiction as "Vin Packer", and later wrote young adult fiction as "M.E. Kerr." In the late 1980s, after 27 years of separation, Highsmith began corresponding with Meaker again, and one day showed up on Meaker's doorstep, slightly drunk and ranting bitterly. Meaker later said she was horrified at how Highsmith's personality had changed.
Highsmith was attracted to women of privilege who expected their lovers to treat them with veneration. According to Phyllis Nagy, she belonged to a "very particular subset of lesbians" and described her conduct with many women she was interested in as being comparable to a movie "studio boss" who chased starlets. Many of these women, who to some extent belonged to the 'Carol Aird'-type and her social set, remained friendly with Highsmith and confirmed the stories of seduction.
An intensely private person, Highsmith was remarkably open and outspoken about her sexuality. She told Meaker: "the only difference between us and heterosexuals is what we do in bed."
Death
Highsmith died on February 4, 1995, at 74, from a combination of aplastic anemia and lung cancer at Carita hospital in Locarno, Switzerland, near the village where she had lived since 1982. She was cremated at the cemetery in Bellinzona; a memorial service was conducted in the Chiesa di Tegna in Tegna, Ticino, Switzerland; and her ashes were interred in its columbarium.
She left her estate, worth an estimated $3 million, and the promise of any future royalties to the Yaddo colony, where she spent two months in 1948 writing the draft of Strangers on a Train. Highsmith bequeathed her literary estate to the Swiss Literary Archives at the Swiss National Library in Bern, Switzerland. Her Swiss publisher, Diogenes Verlag, was appointed literary executor of the estate.
Religious, racial and ethnic views
Highsmith was a resolute atheist. Although she considered herself a liberal, and in her school years had gotten along with black students, in later years she became convinced that Black people were responsible for the welfare crisis in America. She disliked Koreans because "they ate dogs".
Highsmith was an avowed antisemite; she described herself as a "Jew hater" and described The Holocaust as "the semicaust". When she was living in Switzerland in the 1980s, she used nearly 40 aliases when writing to government bodies and newspapers deploring the state of Israel and the "influence" of the Jews. Highsmith was an active supporter of Palestinian rights, a stance which, according to Carol screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, "often teetered into outright antisemitism."
Politics
Highsmith described herself as a social democrat. She believed in American democratic ideals and in "the promise" of U.S. history, but was also highly critical of the reality of the country's 20th-century culture and foreign policy. Beginning in 1963, she resided exclusively in Europe. She retained her United States citizenship, despite the tax penalties, of which she complained bitterly while living for many years in France and Switzerland.
Palestine
Highsmith aligned herself with writers such as Gore Vidal, Alexander Cockburn, Noam Chomsky and Edward Said in supporting Palestinian self-determination. As a member of Amnesty International, she felt duty-bound to express publicly her opposition to the displacement of Palestinians. Highsmith prohibited her books from being published in Israel after the election of Menachem Begin as prime minister in 1977. She dedicated her 1983 novel People Who Knock on the Door to the Palestinian people:
The inscription was dropped from the U.S. edition with permission from her agent but without consent from Highsmith.
Highsmith contributed financially to the Jewish Committee on the Middle East, an organization founded in 1988 that represented American Jews who wanted the United States to "dissociate ... from the policies of Israel." She wrote in an August 1993 letter to Marijane Meaker: "USA could save 11 million per day if they would cut the dough to Israel. The Jewish vote is 1%."
Writing history
Comic books
After graduating from Barnard College, before her short stories started appearing in print, Highsmith wrote for comic book publishers from 1942 and 1948, while she lived in New York City and Mexico. Answering an ad for "reporter/rewrite", she landed a job working for comic book publisher Ned Pines in a "bullpen" with four artists and three other writers. Initially scripting two comic-book stories a day for $55-a-week paychecks, Highsmith soon realized she could make more money by freelance writing for comics, a situation which enabled her to find time to work on her own short stories and live for a period in Mexico. The comic book scriptwriter job was the only long-term job Highsmith ever held.
From 1942 to 1943, for the Sangor–Pines shop (Better/Cinema/Pines/Standard/Nedor), Highsmith wrote "Sergeant Bill King" stories, contributed to Black Terror and Fighting Yank comics, and wrote profiles such as Catherine the Great, Barney Ross, and Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker for the "Real Life Comics" series. From 1943 to 1946, under editor Vincent Fago at Timely Comics, she contributed to its U.S.A. Comics wartime series, writing scenarios for comics such as Jap Buster Johnson and The Destroyer. During these same years she wrote for Fawcett Publications, scripting for Fawcett Comics characters "Crisco and Jasper" and others. Highsmith also wrote for True Comics, Captain Midnight, and Western Comics.
When Highsmith wrote the psychological thriller novel The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955), one of the title character's first victims is a comic-book artist named Reddington: "Tom had a hunch about Reddington. He was a comic-book artist. He probably didn't know whether he was coming or going."
Early novels and short stories
Highsmith's first novel, Strangers on a Train, proved modestly successful upon publication in 1950, and Alfred Hitchcock's 1951 film adaptation of the novel enhanced her reputation.
Highsmith's second novel, The Price of Salt, was published in 1952 under the nom de plume Claire Morgan. Highsmith mined her personal life for the novel's content. Its groundbreaking happy ending and departure from stereotypical conceptions about lesbians made it stand out in lesbian fiction. In what BBC 2's The Late Show presenter Sarah Dunant described as a "literary coming out" after 38 years of disaffirmation, Highsmith finally acknowledged authorship of the novel publicly when she agreed to the 1990 publication by Bloomsbury retitled Carol. Highsmith wrote in the "Afterword" to the new edition:
The paperback version of the novel sold nearly one million copies before its 1990 reissue as Carol. The Price of Salt is distinct for also being the only one of Highsmith's novels in which no violent crime takes place, and where her characters have "more explicit sexual existences" and are allowed "to find happiness in their relationship."
Her short stories appeared for the first time in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine in the early 1950s.
Her last novel, Small g: a Summer Idyll, was rejected by Knopf (her usual publisher by then) several months before her death, leaving Highsmith without an American publisher. It was published posthumously in the United Kingdom by Bloomsbury Publishing in March 1995, and nine years later in the United States by W.W. Norton.
The "Ripliad"
In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series—collectively called "The Ripliad"—are some of Highsmith's most popular works.
The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated", a "dapper sociopath", and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath."
Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, René Clément's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written."
The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development.
Honors
1979 : Grand Master, Swedish Crime Writers' Academy
1987 : , Festival du Cinéma Américain de Deauville
1989 : Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, French Ministry of Culture
1993 : Best Foreign Literary Award, Finnish Crime Society
2008 : Greatest Crime Writer, The Times
Awards and nominations
1946 : O. Henry Award, Best First Story, for The Heroine (in Harper's Bazaar)
1951 : Nominee, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Best First Novel, Mystery Writers of America, for Strangers on a Train
1956 : Edgar Allan Poe Scroll (special award), Mystery Writers of America, for The Talented Mr. Ripley
1957 : Grand Prix de Littérature Policière, International, for The Talented Mr. Ripley
1963 : Nominee, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Best Short Story, Mystery Writers of America, for The Terrapin (in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine)
1963 : Special Award, Mystery Writers of America, for The Terrapin
1964 : Silver Dagger Award, Best Foreign Novel, Crime Writers' Association, for The Two Faces of January (pub. Heinemann)
1975 : for L'Amateur d'escargots (pub. Calmann-Lévy) (English title: Eleven)
Bibliography
Novels
Strangers on a Train (1950)
The Price of Salt (1952) (as Claire Morgan) (republished as Carol in 1990 under Highsmith's name)
The Blunderer (1954)
Deep Water (1957)
A Game for the Living (1958)
This Sweet Sickness (1960)
The Cry of the Owl (1962)
The Two Faces of January (1964)
The Glass Cell (1964)
A Suspension of Mercy (1965) (published as The Story-Teller in the U.S.)
Those Who Walk Away (1967)
The Tremor of Forgery (1969)
A Dog's Ransom (1972)
Edith's Diary (1977)
People Who Knock on the Door (1983)
Found in the Street (1986)
Small g: a Summer Idyll (1995)
The "Ripliad"
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955)
Ripley Under Ground (1970)
Ripley's Game (1974)
The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980)
Ripley Under Water (1991)
Short story collections
Eleven (1970) (Foreword by Graham Greene). . (published as The Snail-Watcher and Other Stories in the U.S.)
Little Tales of Misogyny (1975). (published first as Kleine Geschichten für Weiberfeinde in Switzerland)
The Animal Lover's Book of Beastly Murder (1975). .
Slowly, Slowly in the Wind (1979). .
The Black House (1981).
Mermaids on the Golf Course (1985).
Tales of Natural and Unnatural Catastrophes (1987). .
Chillers (1990). . (publication of Highsmith stories broadcast on U.S. television series Chillers)
Nothing That Meets the Eye: The Uncollected Stories (2002). . (published posthumously)
Under a Dark Angel's Eye: The Selected Stories of Patricia Highsmith (2021) (introduction by Carmen Maria Machado). .
Other books
Miranda the Panda Is on the Veranda (1958) with Doris Sanders. . (children's book of verse and illustrations)
Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction (1966). . (enlarged and revised edition, 1981, )
Essays and articles
"Not-Thinking with the Dishes" (1982), Whodunit? A Guide to Crime, Suspense and Spy Fiction, pg. 92. By H. R. F. Keating, Windward,
"Scene of the Crime" (1989), Granta, Issue No. 29, Winter
Miscellaneous
"Introduction" (1977), The World of Raymond Chandler. Ed. Miriam Gross, Weidenfeld and Nicolson,
"Foreword" (1987), Crime and Mystery: The 100 Best Books. By H. R. F. Keating, Xanadu,
Collected works
Mystery Cats III: More Feline Felonies (1995) (Signet Books, ) (anthology includes Patricia Highsmith)
'The Selected Stories of Patricia Highsmith (2001) (W. W. Norton & Company, )
Patricia Highsmith: Selected Novels and Short Stories (2011) (W. W. Norton & Company, )
Film, television, theatre and radio adaptations
Several of Highsmith's works have been adapted for other media, some more than once. In 1978, Highsmith was president of the jury at the 28th Berlin International Film Festival.
Film
1951. Strangers on a Train was adapted as a film of same name directed by Alfred Hitchcock starring Farley Granger as Guy Haines, Robert Walker as Anthony Bruno, Ruth Roman as Anne Morton, Patricia Hitchcock as Barbara Morton and Laura Elliott as Miriam Joyce Haines.
1963. The Blunderer was adapted as French-language film Le meurtrier ("The Murderer"), directed by Claude Autant-Lara starring Maurice Ronet as Walter Saccard, Yvonne Furneaux as Clara Saccard, Gert Fröbe as Melchior Kimmel, Marina Vlady as Ellie and Robert Hossein as Corbi. It is known in English as Enough Rope.
1969. Strangers on a Train was adapted as Once You Kiss a Stranger, directed by Robert Sparr starring Paul Burke as Jerry, Carol Lynley as Diana and Martha Hyer as Lee.
1977. This Sweet Sickness was adapted as French-language film Dites-lui que je l'aime, directed by Claude Miller starring Gérard Depardieu as David Martineau, Miou-Miou as Juliette, Dominique Laffin as Lise, and Jacques Denis as Gérard Dutilleux. It is known in English as This Sweet Sickness.
1978. The Glass Cell was adapted as German-language film Die gläserne Zelle, directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer starring Brigitte Fossey as Lisa Braun, Helmut Griem as Phillip Braun, Dieter Laser as David Reinelt and Walter Kohut as Robert Lasky.
1981. Deep Water was adapted as French-language film Eaux profondes, directed by Michel Deville starring Isabelle Huppert as Melanie and Jean-Louis Trintignant as Vic Allen.
1983. Edith's Diary was adapted as German-language film Ediths Tagebuch, directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer starring Angela Winkler as Edith.
1986. The Two Faces of January was adapted as German-language film Die zwei Gesichter des Januars, directed by Wolfgang Storch starring Charles Brauer as Chester McFarland, Yolanda Jilot as Colette McFarland and Thomas Schücke as Rydal Keener.
1987. The Cry of the Owl was adapted as French-language film Le cri du hibou, directed by Claude Chabrol starring Christophe Malavoy as Robert, Mathilda May as Juliette, Jacques Penot as Patrick and Virginie Thévenet as Véronique.
1987. The film version of Strangers on a Train by Alfred Hitchcock inspired the black comedy American film Throw Momma from the Train, directed by Danny DeVito.
1989. The Story Teller was adapted as German-language film Der Geschichtenerzähler, directed by Rainer Boldt starring Udo Schenk as Nico Thomkins and Anke Sevenich as Helen Thomkins.
2009. The Cry of the Owl was adapted as a film of same name, directed by Jamie Thraves starring Paddy Considine as Robert Forester and Julia Stiles as Jenny Thierolf.
2014. The Two Faces of January was adapted as a film of same name, written and directed by Hossein Amini starring Viggo Mortensen as Chester MacFarland, Kirsten Dunst as Colette MacFarland and Oscar Isaac as Rydal. It was released during the 64th Berlin International Film Festival.
2014. A Mighty Nice Man was adapted as a short film, directed by Jonathan Dee starring Kylie McVey as Charlotte, Jacqueline Baum as Emilie, Kristen Connolly as Charlotte's Mother, and Billy Magnussen as Robbie.
2015. A film adaption of The Price of Salt, titled Carol, was written by Phyllis Nagy and directed by Todd Haynes, starring Cate Blanchett as Carol Aird and Rooney Mara as Therese Belivet.
2016. The Blunderer was adapted as A Kind of Murder, directed by Andy Goddard starring Patrick Wilson as Walter Stackhouse, Jessica Biel as Clara Stackhouse, Eddie Marsan as Marty Kimmel and Haley Bennett as Ellie Briess.
"Ripliad"
1960: The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted as French-language film Plein soleil (titled Purple Noon for English-language audiences, though it translates as "Full Sun"). Directed by René Clément starring Alain Delon as Tom Ripley, Maurice Ronet as Philippe Greenleaf, and Marie Laforêt as Marge Duval. Both Highsmith and film critic Roger Ebert criticized the screenplay for altering the ending to prevent Ripley from going unpunished as he does in the novel.
1977: Ripley's Game (third novel) and a "plot fragment" of Ripley Under Ground (second novel) were adapted as German-language film Der Amerikanische Freund (The American Friend). Directed by Wim Wenders with Dennis Hopper as Ripley. Highsmith initially disliked the film but later found it stylish, although she did not like how Ripley was interpreted.
1999: The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted as an American production. Directed by Anthony Minghella with Matt Damon as Ripley, Jude Law as Dickie Greenleaf, and Gwyneth Paltrow as Marge Sherwood.
2002: Ripley's Game was adapted as a film of same name for an English-language Italian production. Directed by Liliana Cavani with John Malkovich as Ripley, Chiara Caselli as Luisa Harari Ripley, Ray Winstone as Reeves Minot, Dougray Scott as Jonathan Trevanny, and Lena Headey as Sarah Trevanny. Although not all reviews were favorable, Roger Ebert regarded it as the best of all the Ripley films.
2005: Ripley Under Ground was adapted as a film of same name. Directed by Roger Spottiswoode with Barry Pepper as Ripley, Jacinda Barrett as Héloïse Plisson-Ripley, Willem Dafoe as Neil Murchison, and Tom Wilkinson as John Webster.
2020: Ripley upcoming American television series by Showtime. Directed by Steven Zaillian starring Andrew Scott as Tom Ripley.
Television
1958. Strangers on a Train was adapted by Warner Brothers for an episode of the TV series 77 Sunset Strip.
1982. Scenes from the Ripley novels were dramatized in the episode A Gift for Murder of The South Bank Show, with Jonathan Kent portraying Tom Ripley. The episode included an interview with Patricia Highsmith.
1983. Deep Water was adapted as a miniseries for German television as , directed by Franz Peter Wirth starring Peter Bongartz as Vic van Allen, Constanze Engelbrecht as Melinda van Allen, Reinhard Glemnitz as Dirk Weisberg, Raimund Harmstorf as Anton Kameter, and Sky du Mont as Charley de Lisle.
1987. The Cry of the Owl was adapted for German television as Der Schrei der Eule, directed by Tom Toelle starring Matthias Habich as Robert Forster, Birgit Doll as Johanna Tierolf, Jacques Breuer as Karl Weick, Fritz Lichtenhahn as Inspektor Lippenholtz, and Doris Kunstmann as Vicky.
1990. The twelve episodes of the television series Mistress of Suspense are based on stories by Highsmith. The series aired first in France, then in the UK. It became available in the U.S. under the title Chillers.
1993. The Tremor of Forgery was adapted as German television film Trip nach Tunis, directed by Peter Goedel starring David Hunt as Howard Ingham, Karen Sillas as Ina Pallant and John Seitz as Francis J. Adams.
1995. Little Tales of Misogyny was adapted as Spanish/Catalan television film Petits contes misògins, directed by Pere Sagristà starring Marta Pérez, Carme Pla, Mamen Duch, and Míriam Iscla.
1996. Strangers on a Train was adapted for television as Once You Meet a Stranger, directed by Tommy Lee Wallace starring Jacqueline Bisset as Sheila Gaines ("Guy"), Theresa Russell as Margo Anthony ("Bruno") and Celeste Holm as Clara. The gender of the two lead characters was changed from male to female.
1996. A Dog's Ransom was adapted as French television film La rançon du chien, directed by Peter Kassovitz starring François Négret as César, François Perrot as Edouard Raynaud, Daniel Prévost as Max Ducasse and Charlotte Valandrey as Sophie.
Theatre
1998. The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted for the stage as a play of same name by playwright Phyllis Nagy. It was revived in 2010.
2013. Strangers on a Train was adapted as a play of same name by playwright Craig Warner.
Radio
2002. A four-episode radio drama of The Cry of the Owl was broadcast by BBC Radio 4, with voice acting by John Sharian as Robert Forester, Joanne McQuinn as Jenny Theirolf, Adrian Lester as Greg Wyncoop, and Matt Rippy as Jack Neilsen.
2009. All five books of the "Ripliad" were dramatized by BBC Radio 4, with Ian Hart voicing Tom Ripley.
2014. A five-segment dramatization of Carol (aka The Price of Salt) was broadcast by BBC Radio 4, with voice acting by Miranda Richardson as Carol Aird and Andrea Deck as Therese Belivet.
2019. A five-episode broadcast of selected short stories (One for the Islands, A Curious Suicide, The Terrors of Basket-Weaving, The Man Who Wrote Books In His Head, The Baby Spoon) by BBC Radio 4.
Works about Patricia Highsmith
Fictional
Dawson, Jill (2016). The Crime Writer. Sceptre. .
Murray-Smith, Joanna (2015). Switzerland. Dramatists Play Service. . (First presented at Sydney Theatre Company in November 2014).
Documentary
Highsmith: Her Secret Life (2004), documentary film by Hugh Thomson, BBC Four.
Highsmith: Her Secret Life, "notes on the film", Hugh Thomson, BBC, 2004.
See also
Ruth Rendell: A "mistress of suspense" contemporary of Highsmith for whom Highsmith acknowledged rarely admitted admiration. Rendell explored characters and themes similar to Highsmith's.
Notes
References
Further reading
Dirda, Michael (July 2, 2009). This Woman Is Dangerous. The New York Review of Books. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
Dupont, Joan (June 12, 1988). Criminal Pursuits. The New York Times. Retrieved March 28, 2017.
Helmore, Edward (October 26, 2019). Diaries expose ‘strong brew’ of Ripley novelist Patricia Highsmith's dark thoughts. The Guardian. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
McCann, Sean (April 1, 2011). “Frequently as a rat has orgasms”. New York City in the '40s, Wesleyan University. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
Morgan, Kim (December 4, 2015). The Gnarly Allure of Patricia Highsmith. The Daily Beast. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Perrin, Tom (December 18, 2012). On Patricia Highsmith. Post45 (Yale University). Retrieved March 12, 2016.
Piepenbring, Dan (January 19, 2015). A Dissatisfaction with Life. The Paris Review. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Rayner, Richard (July 17, 2011). Paperback Writers: Classic Patricia Highsmith. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 18, 2016.
Schenkar, Joan (January 21, 2012). The Talented Miss Highsmith: The Secret Life and Serious Art of Patricia Highsmith. Joan Schenkar. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Schenkar, Joan (February 25, 2016). What Patricia Highsmith did for love: 'The Price of Salt' and the secrets behind 'Carol'. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Shipley, Diane (April 1, 2014). Patricia Highsmith's criminal neglect. The Guardian. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Smith, Nathan (November 19, 2015). When Patricia Highsmith Offered Gay Readers a Hopeful Ending. The New Republic. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Tonkin, Boyd (December 7, 2015). 'Carol', Patricia Highsmith, and how gay literature found its voice in the 1950s. The Independent''. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Books
External links
Patricia Highsmith Papers – Swiss Literary Archives. Swiss National Library, 2006.
Patricia Highsmith – Exhibition of the Swiss National Library. March–September 2006, Swiss National Library, March 13, 2006.
Patricia Highsmith : photographs from the exhibition. Swiss Literary Archives, Swiss National Library, December 1, 2006. (archive)
Choose Your Highsmith (The Patricia Highsmith Recommendation Engine). W. W. Norton & Company.
Patricia Highsmith First Edition Book Cover Gallery (UK publishers). Existential Ennui, 2013.
Patricia Highsmith gallery by René Burri, Magnum Photos, 1988.
Patricia Highsmith interview by Naim Attallah, Naim Attallah Online, Quartet Books, 1993.
Works by or about Patricia Highsmith in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
Audio interviews
Patricia Highsmith on Audio Interviews: "Thrillers and Crime Fiction", BBC Four, December 3, 1972 (archive)
Patricia Highsmith interview with Roy Plomley, Desert Island Discs, BBC Radio 4, April 21, 1979.
Patricia Highsmith interview (The Black House) with Peter Clayton, Meridian, BBC World Service, August 8, 1980.
Patricia Highsmith interview with Terry Gross, Fresh Air, NPR, October 27, 1987.
Patricia Highsmith interview with Don Swaim, Book Beat, WCBS-Radio (via Wired for Books, Ohio University), October 29, 1987. (archive)
Patricia Highsmith, In Conversation with Michael Dibdin, ICA talks, Institute of Contemporary Arts, September 27, 1991.
1921 births
1995 deaths
20th-century American novelists
20th-century American short story writers
20th-century American women writers
20th-century pseudonymous writers
American adoptees
American comics writers
American crime fiction writers
American detective fiction writers
American horror writers
American lesbian writers
American people of German descent
American women novelists
American women short story writers
Female comics writers
LGBT comics creators
American LGBT novelists
People with mood disorders
Pseudonymous women writers
Psychological fiction writers
Women horror writers
Women mystery writers
Deaths from anemia
Deaths from cancer in Switzerland
LGBT people from Texas
People from Fort Worth, Texas
People from Greenwich Village
Golden Age comics creators
Members of the Detection Club
Officiers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
Barnard College alumni
Yaddo alumni | true | [
"al-ʿIqd al-Farīd (The Unique Necklace, ) is an anthology attempting to encompass 'all that a well-informed person had to know in order to pass in society as a cultured and refined individual' (or adab), composed by Ibn ʿAbd Rabbih (860–940), an Arab writer and poet from Cordova, now in Spain.\n\nContents\n\nThe anthology is divided into 25 sections. The 13th section is named the middle jewel of the necklace, and the chapters on either side are named after other jewels. It is an adab book resembling Ibn Qutaybah's `Uyun al-akhbar (The Fountains of Story) and the writings of al-Jahiz from which it borrows largely. Although he spent all his life in al-Andalus and did not travel to the East like some other Andalusian scholars, most of his book's material is drawn from the East Islamic world. Also, Ibn Abd Rabbih quoted no Andalusian compositions other than his own. He included in his book his 445-line Urjuza, a poem in the meter of the rajaz in which he narrates the warlike exploits of Abd al-Rahman al-Nasir, along with some of his eulogies of the Umayyads of al-Andalus. A major study of its sources was undertaken by Werkmeister.\n\nAs transliterated and translated by Isabel Toral-Niehoff, the books for The Unique Necklace are:\n\n The Book of the Pearl on Rulership and Authority 26 (Kitāb al-luʼluʼa fī l-sulṭān)\n The Book of the Nonpareil Jewel on Warfare (Kitāb al-farīda fī l-ḥurūb)\n The Book of the Chrysolite on Generous Men and Gifts (Kitāb al-zabarjada fī l-ajwād wa-l-aṣfād)\n The Book of the Nacre on Delegations (Kitāb al-jumāna fī l-wufūd)\n The Book of the Coral on the Etiquette of Addressing Kings (Kitāb al-marjāna fī mukhāṭabat al-mulūk)\n The Book of the Ruby on Knowledge and adab (Kitāb al-yaqūta fī l-ʻilm wa-l-adab)\n The Book of the Gem on Proverbs (Kitāb al-jawhara fī l-amthāl)\n The Book of the Emerald on Sermonizing and Asceticism (Kitāb al-zumurruda fī l-muwāʻaẓa wa-l-zuhd)\n The book of the Mother-of Pearl on Condolences and Elegies (Kitāb al-durra fī l-taʻāzī wa-l-marāthī)\n The Book of the Unique Jewel on Genealogy and Virtues of the Arabs (Kitāb al-yatīma fī l-nasab wa-faḍāʼil al-ʻarab)\n The Book of the Adorable Jewel on the Speech of Bedouins (Kitāb al-masjada fī kalām al-aʻrāb)\n The Book of the Flanking Jewel on Responses (Kitāb al-mujannaba fī l-ajwiba)\n The Book of the Middle Jewel on Orations (Kitāb al-wāsiṭa fī l-khuṭab)\n The Book of the Second Flanking Level on Signatures, Departments, Viziers and the Stories of the Secretaries (Kitāb al-mujannaba al-thāniya fī l-tawqīʻāt wa-l-fuṣūl wa-l-ṣudūr wa-akhbār al-kataba) \n The book of the Second Adorable Jewel on Caliphs, their Histories, and Battles (Kitāb al-masjada al-thāniya fī l-khulafāʼ wa-l-tawārīkh wa-ayyāmihim)\n The book of the Second Unique Jewel on Reports about Ziyād, al-Hajjāj, the Ṭālibīyyīn and the Barmakids (Kitāb al-yatīma al-thāniya fī akhbār Ziyād wa-l-Ḥajjāj wa-l-Ṭālibiyyīn wa-l-Barāmika)\n The Book of the Second Mother of Pearl on the Battle Days of the Arabs (Kitāb al-durra al-thāniya fī ayyām al-ʻarab wa-waqāʼiʻihim)\n The Book of the Second Emerald on the Merits of Poetry, its Meter and its Scansion (Kitāb al-zumurruda al-thāniya fī faḍāʼil al-shiʻr wa-maqāṭiʻih wa-makhārijih)\n The book of the Second Gem on Prosody and Metrical Irregularities (Kitāb al-jawhara al-thāniya fī aʻārīḍ al-shiʻr wa-ʻilal al-qawāfī)\n The Book of the Second Ruby on the Art of Song and Dissenting Opinions Thereof (Kitāb al-yāqūta al-thāniya fī ʻilm al-alḥān wa-ikhtilāf al-nās fīh)\n The Book of the Second Coral on Women and their Attributes (Kitāb al-marjāna al-thāniya fī l-nisāʼ wa-ṣifātihinna)\n The Book of the Second Nacre on False Prophets, Lunatics, Misers and Parasites (Kitāb al-jumāna al-thāniya fī l-mutannabiʼīn wa-l-marūrīn wa-l-bukhalāʼ wa-l-ṭufayliyyīn)\n The Book of the Second Chrysolite on the Nature of Humans and Other Animals and the contention for precedence among cities (Kitāb al-zabarjada al-thāniya fī bayān ṭabāʼiʻ al-insān wa-sāʼir al-ḥayawān wa-tafāḏul al-buldān)\n The Book of the Second Nonpareil Jewel on Food and Drink (Kitāb al-farīda al-thāniya fī l-ṭaʻām wa-l-sharāb)\n The Book of the Second Pearl on Tidbits, Gifts, Jokes and Witticism (Kitāb al-luʼluʼa al-thāniya fī l-nutaf wa-l-fukāhāt wa-l-hidāyā wa-l-milaḥ)\n\nInfluence\n\nThe Būyid vizier Sahib ibn Abbad 'is commonly quoted to illustrate the alleged lackluster reception the book met in the Orient': he is alleged to have said '“this is our merchandise brought back to us.” I thought this book contained some information about their country [Andalusia]. But it rather contains information about ours. We have no need for it' (alluding to Koran 12:65). However, it was widely copied—about 100 manuscripts are known—and was frequently excerpted. It was also among the earliest adab works to be printed and has been printed at least ten times since in different editions. The collection was not, however, translated until scholarly European translations of portions began in the nineteenth century.\n\nEditions and translations\n\nThis list focuses on the most recent editions of al-ʿIqd al-Farīd. None is free of typographical errors.\n Ibn ʿAbd Rabbih, The Unique Necklace: Al-ʿIqd al-Farīd, trans. by Issa J. Boullata, Great Books of Islamic Civilization, 3 vols (Reading: Garnet, 2007–2011), vol 1, vol 2\n Kitāb al-ʿIqd al-Farīd, ed. by Aḥmad Amīn, Aḥmad al-Zayn, and Ibrāhīm al-Abyārī, 7 vols (Cairo: Lajnat al-Ta’līf wa al-Tarjama wa al-Nashr, 1940–53) [3rd repr. 1965]. 'This edition, based on two manuscripts and seven previously printed editions, has ample footnotes with a competent apparatus criticus. It also has a good introduction and detailed indexes.'\n Al-ʿIqd al-Farīd, ed. by Muḥammad Saʿīd al-ʿAryān, 8 vols (Cairo: Maṭbaʿat al-Istiqāma, 1940–54) [repr. 1953]. 'This edition has rare footnotes but detailed indexes. Its good text reflects an implicit apparatus criticus in the mind of the editor but it is not explained in the notes. It has a good introduction which faults Aḥmad Amīn's with regard to a couple of historical facts'. The machine-readable text here appears to be from a 1983/84 Beirut reprint of this edition.\n Al-ʿIqd al-Farīd, ed. by Mufīd Muḥammad Qumayḥa, 9 vols (Beirut: Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmiyya, 1997). 'This edition has short footnotes, mostly abbreviated or derived from those in the edition of Aḥmad Amīn et al. and published selectively with only a few additions. It has detailed indexes and a general introduction but barely any critical apparatus, its text being mostly based on the edition of Aḥmad Amīn et al. with minor differences.\n \n Ibn ʻAbd Rabbih, Aḥmad b. Muḥammad (1990), al-’Iqd al-farīd, ed. A. Amīn, with an introduction by ʻU. Tadmurī, 7 vols., Beirut.\n\nReferences\n\nIslam-related literature\nMedieval Arabic literature\nArab culture\nLiterature of Al-Andalus\n9th-century Arabic books\n10th-century Arabic books\n9th-century books\n10th-century books",
"Seyed Mohammad Shirazi (12 May 1894 – 11 October 1971), commonly known as Sultan al-Wa'izin Shirazi (\"Prince of Preachers from Shiraz\"), was a prominent Shi'a scholar. He authored Peshawar Nights, an account of a public debate between Shi'a and Sunni Muslims which took place in Peshawar over 10 nights beginning on 27 January 1927 \n\nSultanu l-Wa'izin Shirazi was born in Tehran on 12 May 1894. After his primary school in Tehran, he moved with his father to Karbala and studied in some Hawzas.\n\nOverview\nAccording to the book, he participated in a public debate between Shi'a Muslims and Sunni Muslims. The debate is said to have taken place in Peshawar (now in Pakistan, which at the time was part of British India) beginning on 27 January 1924. The Shi'a were victorious in debate. According to the preface:\n''A condition of the dialogue was that only sources acceptable to both sects would be cited. The dialogue was held in Persian, commonly understood in the city of Peshawar. The transcript, made by four reporters and published in the newspapers daily, was published in book form in Teheran and soon became a classic authority in the East. The present work is based on the fourth edition, published in Teheran in 1971, the year in which Sultan al-Wa'izin died at the age of 75\n\nSee also\nList of Islamic scholars\n\nReferences\n\nShia scholars of Islam\nIranian ayatollahs\n1894 births\n1971 deaths\nBurials at Fatima Masumeh Shrine"
]
|
[
"Patricia Highsmith",
"The \"Ripliad\"",
"what is the Ripliad?",
"The series--collectively dubbed \"The Ripliad\"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works",
"When was it published?",
"In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley,",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development.",
"What is the series called?",
"I don't know.",
"How wa the book taken by the public?",
"has been critically acclaimed for being \"both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer.\""
]
| C_23fdf1ec48f84f14b6ba708db2036d39_0 | Did it receive any notable awards? | 6 | Did the book The Ripliad receive any notable awards? | Patricia Highsmith | In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series--collectively dubbed "The Ripliad"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works and have sold millions of copies worldwide. The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated," a "dapper sociopath," and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath." Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, Rene Clement's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written." The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Patricia Highsmith (January 19, 1921 – February 4, 1995) was an American novelist and short story writer widely known for her psychological thrillers, including her series of five novels featuring the character Tom Ripley.
She wrote 22 novels and numerous short stories throughout her career spanning nearly five decades, and her work has led to more than two dozen film adaptations. Her writing derived influence from existentialist literature, and questioned notions of identity and popular morality. She was dubbed "the poet of apprehension" by novelist Graham Greene.
Her first novel, Strangers on a Train, has been adapted for stage and screen, the best known being the Alfred Hitchcock film released in 1951. Her 1955 novel The Talented Mr. Ripley has been adapted for film. Writing under the pseudonym Claire Morgan, Highsmith published the first lesbian novel with a happy ending, The Price of Salt, in 1952, republished 38 years later as Carol under her own name and later adapted into a 2015 film.
Early life
Highsmith was born Mary Patricia Plangman in Fort Worth, Texas. She was the only child of artists Jay Bernard Plangman (1889–1975), who was of German descent, and Mary Plangman (née Coates; September 13, 1895 – March 12, 1991). The couple divorced ten days before their daughter's birth.
In 1927, Highsmith, her mother and her adoptive stepfather, artist Stanley Highsmith, whom her mother had married in 1924, moved to New York City. When she was 12 years old, Highsmith was sent to Fort Worth and lived with her maternal grandmother for a year. She called this the "saddest year" of her life and felt "abandoned" by her mother. She returned to New York to continue living with her mother and stepfather, primarily in Manhattan, but also in Astoria, Queens.
According to Highsmith, her mother once told her that she had tried to abort her by drinking turpentine, although a biography of Highsmith indicates Jay Plangman tried to persuade his wife to have the abortion but she refused. Highsmith never resolved this love–hate relationship, which reportedly haunted her for the rest of her life, and which she fictionalized in "The Terrapin", her short story about a young boy who stabs his mother to death. Highsmith's mother predeceased her by only four years, dying at the age of 95.
Highsmith's grandmother taught her to read at an early age, and she made good use of her grandmother's extensive library. At the age of nine, she found a resemblance to her own imaginative life in the case histories of The Human Mind by Karl Menninger, a popularizer of Freudian analysis.
Many of Highsmith's 22 novels were set in Greenwich Village, where she lived at 48 Grove Street from 1940 to 1942, before moving to 345 E. 57th Street. In 1942, Highsmith graduated from Barnard College, where she studied English composition, playwriting, and short story prose. After graduating from college, and despite endorsements from "highly placed professionals," she applied without success for a job at publications such as Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, Mademoiselle, Good Housekeeping, Time, Fortune, and The New Yorker.
Based on the recommendation from Truman Capote, Highsmith was accepted by the Yaddo artist's retreat during the summer of 1948, where she worked on her first novel, Strangers on a Train.
Personal life
Highsmith endured cycles of depression, some of them deep, throughout her life. Despite literary success, she wrote in her diary of January 1970: "[I] am now cynical, fairly rich ... lonely, depressed, and totally pessimistic." Over the years, Highsmith suffered from female hormone deficiency, anorexia nervosa, chronic anemia, Buerger's disease, and lung cancer.
According to her biographer, Andrew Wilson, Highsmith's personal life was a "troubled one". She was an alcoholic who, allegedly, never had an intimate relationship that lasted for more than a few years, and she was seen by some of her contemporaries and acquaintances as misanthropic and hostile. Her chronic alcoholism intensified as she grew older.
She famously preferred the company of animals to that of people and stated in a 1991 interview, "I choose to live alone because my imagination functions better when I don't have to speak with people."
Otto Penzler, her U.S. publisher through his Penzler Books imprint, had met Highsmith in 1983, and four years later witnessed some of her theatrics intended to create havoc at dinner tables and shipwreck an evening. He said after her death that "[Highsmith] was a mean, cruel, hard, unlovable, unloving human being ... I could never penetrate how any human being could be that relentlessly ugly. ... But her books? Brilliant."
Other friends, publishers, and acquaintances held different views of Highsmith. Editor Gary Fisketjon, who published her later novels through Knopf, said that "She was very rough, very difficult ... But she was also plainspoken, dryly funny, and great fun to be around." Composer David Diamond met Highsmith in 1943 and described her as being "quite a depressed person—and I think people explain her by pulling out traits like cold and reserved, when in fact it all came from depression." J. G. Ballard said of Highsmith, "The author of Strangers on a Train and The Talented Mr. Ripley was every bit as deviant and quirky as her mischievous heroes, and didn't seem to mind if everyone knew it." Screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, who adapted The Price of Salt into the 2015 film Carol, met Highsmith in 1987 and the two remained friends for the rest of Highsmith's life. Nagy said that Highsmith was "very sweet" and "encouraging" to her as a young writer, as well as "wonderfully funny."
She was considered by some as "a lesbian with a misogynist streak."
Highsmith loved cats, and she bred about three hundred snails in her garden at home in Suffolk, England. Highsmith once attended a London cocktail party with a "gigantic handbag" that "contained a head of lettuce and a hundred snails" which she said were her "companions for the evening."
She loved woodworking tools and made several pieces of furniture. Highsmith worked without stopping. In later life, she became stooped, with an osteoporotic hump. Though the 22 novels and 8 books of short stories she wrote were highly acclaimed, especially outside of the United States, Highsmith preferred her personal life to remain private.
A lifelong diarist, Highsmith left behind eight thousand pages of handwritten notebooks and diaries.
Sexuality
As an adult, Patricia Highsmith's sexual relationships were predominantly with women. She occasionally engaged in sex with men without physical desire for them, and wrote in her diary: "The male face doesn't attract me, isn't beautiful to me." She told writer Marijane Meaker in the late 1950s that she had "tried to like men. I like most men better than I like women, but not in bed." In a 1970 letter to her stepfather Stanley, Highsmith described sexual encounters with men as "steel wool in the face, a sensation of being raped in the wrong place—leading to a sensation of having to have, pretty soon, a boewl [sic] movement." Stressing, "If these words are unpleasant to read, I can assure you it is a little more unpleasant in bed." Phyllis Nagy described Highsmith as "a lesbian who did not very much enjoy being around other women" and the few sexual dabbles she'd had with men occurred just to "see if she could be into men in that way because she so much more preferred their company."
In 1943, Highsmith had an affair with artist Allela Cornell who, despondent over unrequited love from another woman, committed suicide in 1946 by drinking nitric acid.
During her stay at Yaddo, Highsmith met writer Marc Brandel, son of author J. D. Beresford. Even though she told him about her homosexuality, they soon entered into a short-lived relationship. He convinced her to visit him in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where he introduced her to Ann Smith, a painter and designer with a previous métier as a Vogue fashion model, and the two became involved. After Smith left Provincetown, Highsmith felt she was "in prison" with Brandel and told him she was leaving. "[B]ecause of that I have to sleep with him, and only the fact that it is the last night strengthens me to bear it." Highsmith, who had never been sexually exclusive with Brandel, resented having sex with him. Highsmith temporarily broke off the relationship with Brandel and continued to be involved with several women, reuniting after the well-received publication of his new novel. Beginning November 30, 1948, and continuing for the next six months, Highsmith underwent psychoanalysis in an effort "to regularize herself sexually" so she could marry Brandel. The analysis was brought to a stop by Highsmith, after which she ended her relationship with him.
After ending her engagement to Marc Brandel, she had an affair with psychoanalyst Kathryn Hamill Cohen, the wife of British publisher Dennis Cohen and founder of Cresset Press, which later published Strangers on a Train.
To help pay for the twice-a-week therapy sessions, Highsmith had taken a sales job during Christmas rush season in the toy section of Bloomingdale's department store. Ironically, it was during this attempt to "cure" her homosexuality that Highsmith was inspired to write her semi-autobiographical novel The Price of Salt, in which two women meet in a department store and begin a passionate affair.
Believing that Brandel's disclosure that she was homosexual, along with the publication of The Price of Salt, would hurt her professionally, Highsmith had an unsuccessful affair with Arthur Koestler in 1950, designed to hide her homosexuality.
In early September 1951, she began an affair with sociologist Ellen Blumenthal Hill, traveling back and forth to Europe to meet with her. When Highsmith and Hill came to New York in early May 1953, their affair ostensibly "in a fragile state", Highsmith began an "impossible" affair with the homosexual German photographer Rolf Tietgens, who had played a "sporadic, intense, and unconsummated role in her emotional life since 1943." She was reportedly attracted to Tietgens on account of his homosexuality, confiding that she felt with him "as if he is another girl, or a singularly innocent man." Tietgens shot several nude photographs of Highsmith, but only one has survived, torn in half at the waist so that only her upper body is visible. She dedicated The Two Faces of January (1964) to Tietgens.
Between 1959 and 1961, Highsmith was in love with author Marijane Meaker. Meaker wrote lesbian stories under the pseudonym "Ann Aldrich" and mystery/suspense fiction as "Vin Packer", and later wrote young adult fiction as "M.E. Kerr." In the late 1980s, after 27 years of separation, Highsmith began corresponding with Meaker again, and one day showed up on Meaker's doorstep, slightly drunk and ranting bitterly. Meaker later said she was horrified at how Highsmith's personality had changed.
Highsmith was attracted to women of privilege who expected their lovers to treat them with veneration. According to Phyllis Nagy, she belonged to a "very particular subset of lesbians" and described her conduct with many women she was interested in as being comparable to a movie "studio boss" who chased starlets. Many of these women, who to some extent belonged to the 'Carol Aird'-type and her social set, remained friendly with Highsmith and confirmed the stories of seduction.
An intensely private person, Highsmith was remarkably open and outspoken about her sexuality. She told Meaker: "the only difference between us and heterosexuals is what we do in bed."
Death
Highsmith died on February 4, 1995, at 74, from a combination of aplastic anemia and lung cancer at Carita hospital in Locarno, Switzerland, near the village where she had lived since 1982. She was cremated at the cemetery in Bellinzona; a memorial service was conducted in the Chiesa di Tegna in Tegna, Ticino, Switzerland; and her ashes were interred in its columbarium.
She left her estate, worth an estimated $3 million, and the promise of any future royalties to the Yaddo colony, where she spent two months in 1948 writing the draft of Strangers on a Train. Highsmith bequeathed her literary estate to the Swiss Literary Archives at the Swiss National Library in Bern, Switzerland. Her Swiss publisher, Diogenes Verlag, was appointed literary executor of the estate.
Religious, racial and ethnic views
Highsmith was a resolute atheist. Although she considered herself a liberal, and in her school years had gotten along with black students, in later years she became convinced that Black people were responsible for the welfare crisis in America. She disliked Koreans because "they ate dogs".
Highsmith was an avowed antisemite; she described herself as a "Jew hater" and described The Holocaust as "the semicaust". When she was living in Switzerland in the 1980s, she used nearly 40 aliases when writing to government bodies and newspapers deploring the state of Israel and the "influence" of the Jews. Highsmith was an active supporter of Palestinian rights, a stance which, according to Carol screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, "often teetered into outright antisemitism."
Politics
Highsmith described herself as a social democrat. She believed in American democratic ideals and in "the promise" of U.S. history, but was also highly critical of the reality of the country's 20th-century culture and foreign policy. Beginning in 1963, she resided exclusively in Europe. She retained her United States citizenship, despite the tax penalties, of which she complained bitterly while living for many years in France and Switzerland.
Palestine
Highsmith aligned herself with writers such as Gore Vidal, Alexander Cockburn, Noam Chomsky and Edward Said in supporting Palestinian self-determination. As a member of Amnesty International, she felt duty-bound to express publicly her opposition to the displacement of Palestinians. Highsmith prohibited her books from being published in Israel after the election of Menachem Begin as prime minister in 1977. She dedicated her 1983 novel People Who Knock on the Door to the Palestinian people:
The inscription was dropped from the U.S. edition with permission from her agent but without consent from Highsmith.
Highsmith contributed financially to the Jewish Committee on the Middle East, an organization founded in 1988 that represented American Jews who wanted the United States to "dissociate ... from the policies of Israel." She wrote in an August 1993 letter to Marijane Meaker: "USA could save 11 million per day if they would cut the dough to Israel. The Jewish vote is 1%."
Writing history
Comic books
After graduating from Barnard College, before her short stories started appearing in print, Highsmith wrote for comic book publishers from 1942 and 1948, while she lived in New York City and Mexico. Answering an ad for "reporter/rewrite", she landed a job working for comic book publisher Ned Pines in a "bullpen" with four artists and three other writers. Initially scripting two comic-book stories a day for $55-a-week paychecks, Highsmith soon realized she could make more money by freelance writing for comics, a situation which enabled her to find time to work on her own short stories and live for a period in Mexico. The comic book scriptwriter job was the only long-term job Highsmith ever held.
From 1942 to 1943, for the Sangor–Pines shop (Better/Cinema/Pines/Standard/Nedor), Highsmith wrote "Sergeant Bill King" stories, contributed to Black Terror and Fighting Yank comics, and wrote profiles such as Catherine the Great, Barney Ross, and Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker for the "Real Life Comics" series. From 1943 to 1946, under editor Vincent Fago at Timely Comics, she contributed to its U.S.A. Comics wartime series, writing scenarios for comics such as Jap Buster Johnson and The Destroyer. During these same years she wrote for Fawcett Publications, scripting for Fawcett Comics characters "Crisco and Jasper" and others. Highsmith also wrote for True Comics, Captain Midnight, and Western Comics.
When Highsmith wrote the psychological thriller novel The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955), one of the title character's first victims is a comic-book artist named Reddington: "Tom had a hunch about Reddington. He was a comic-book artist. He probably didn't know whether he was coming or going."
Early novels and short stories
Highsmith's first novel, Strangers on a Train, proved modestly successful upon publication in 1950, and Alfred Hitchcock's 1951 film adaptation of the novel enhanced her reputation.
Highsmith's second novel, The Price of Salt, was published in 1952 under the nom de plume Claire Morgan. Highsmith mined her personal life for the novel's content. Its groundbreaking happy ending and departure from stereotypical conceptions about lesbians made it stand out in lesbian fiction. In what BBC 2's The Late Show presenter Sarah Dunant described as a "literary coming out" after 38 years of disaffirmation, Highsmith finally acknowledged authorship of the novel publicly when she agreed to the 1990 publication by Bloomsbury retitled Carol. Highsmith wrote in the "Afterword" to the new edition:
The paperback version of the novel sold nearly one million copies before its 1990 reissue as Carol. The Price of Salt is distinct for also being the only one of Highsmith's novels in which no violent crime takes place, and where her characters have "more explicit sexual existences" and are allowed "to find happiness in their relationship."
Her short stories appeared for the first time in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine in the early 1950s.
Her last novel, Small g: a Summer Idyll, was rejected by Knopf (her usual publisher by then) several months before her death, leaving Highsmith without an American publisher. It was published posthumously in the United Kingdom by Bloomsbury Publishing in March 1995, and nine years later in the United States by W.W. Norton.
The "Ripliad"
In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series—collectively called "The Ripliad"—are some of Highsmith's most popular works.
The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated", a "dapper sociopath", and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath."
Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, René Clément's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written."
The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development.
Honors
1979 : Grand Master, Swedish Crime Writers' Academy
1987 : , Festival du Cinéma Américain de Deauville
1989 : Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, French Ministry of Culture
1993 : Best Foreign Literary Award, Finnish Crime Society
2008 : Greatest Crime Writer, The Times
Awards and nominations
1946 : O. Henry Award, Best First Story, for The Heroine (in Harper's Bazaar)
1951 : Nominee, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Best First Novel, Mystery Writers of America, for Strangers on a Train
1956 : Edgar Allan Poe Scroll (special award), Mystery Writers of America, for The Talented Mr. Ripley
1957 : Grand Prix de Littérature Policière, International, for The Talented Mr. Ripley
1963 : Nominee, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Best Short Story, Mystery Writers of America, for The Terrapin (in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine)
1963 : Special Award, Mystery Writers of America, for The Terrapin
1964 : Silver Dagger Award, Best Foreign Novel, Crime Writers' Association, for The Two Faces of January (pub. Heinemann)
1975 : for L'Amateur d'escargots (pub. Calmann-Lévy) (English title: Eleven)
Bibliography
Novels
Strangers on a Train (1950)
The Price of Salt (1952) (as Claire Morgan) (republished as Carol in 1990 under Highsmith's name)
The Blunderer (1954)
Deep Water (1957)
A Game for the Living (1958)
This Sweet Sickness (1960)
The Cry of the Owl (1962)
The Two Faces of January (1964)
The Glass Cell (1964)
A Suspension of Mercy (1965) (published as The Story-Teller in the U.S.)
Those Who Walk Away (1967)
The Tremor of Forgery (1969)
A Dog's Ransom (1972)
Edith's Diary (1977)
People Who Knock on the Door (1983)
Found in the Street (1986)
Small g: a Summer Idyll (1995)
The "Ripliad"
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955)
Ripley Under Ground (1970)
Ripley's Game (1974)
The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980)
Ripley Under Water (1991)
Short story collections
Eleven (1970) (Foreword by Graham Greene). . (published as The Snail-Watcher and Other Stories in the U.S.)
Little Tales of Misogyny (1975). (published first as Kleine Geschichten für Weiberfeinde in Switzerland)
The Animal Lover's Book of Beastly Murder (1975). .
Slowly, Slowly in the Wind (1979). .
The Black House (1981).
Mermaids on the Golf Course (1985).
Tales of Natural and Unnatural Catastrophes (1987). .
Chillers (1990). . (publication of Highsmith stories broadcast on U.S. television series Chillers)
Nothing That Meets the Eye: The Uncollected Stories (2002). . (published posthumously)
Under a Dark Angel's Eye: The Selected Stories of Patricia Highsmith (2021) (introduction by Carmen Maria Machado). .
Other books
Miranda the Panda Is on the Veranda (1958) with Doris Sanders. . (children's book of verse and illustrations)
Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction (1966). . (enlarged and revised edition, 1981, )
Essays and articles
"Not-Thinking with the Dishes" (1982), Whodunit? A Guide to Crime, Suspense and Spy Fiction, pg. 92. By H. R. F. Keating, Windward,
"Scene of the Crime" (1989), Granta, Issue No. 29, Winter
Miscellaneous
"Introduction" (1977), The World of Raymond Chandler. Ed. Miriam Gross, Weidenfeld and Nicolson,
"Foreword" (1987), Crime and Mystery: The 100 Best Books. By H. R. F. Keating, Xanadu,
Collected works
Mystery Cats III: More Feline Felonies (1995) (Signet Books, ) (anthology includes Patricia Highsmith)
'The Selected Stories of Patricia Highsmith (2001) (W. W. Norton & Company, )
Patricia Highsmith: Selected Novels and Short Stories (2011) (W. W. Norton & Company, )
Film, television, theatre and radio adaptations
Several of Highsmith's works have been adapted for other media, some more than once. In 1978, Highsmith was president of the jury at the 28th Berlin International Film Festival.
Film
1951. Strangers on a Train was adapted as a film of same name directed by Alfred Hitchcock starring Farley Granger as Guy Haines, Robert Walker as Anthony Bruno, Ruth Roman as Anne Morton, Patricia Hitchcock as Barbara Morton and Laura Elliott as Miriam Joyce Haines.
1963. The Blunderer was adapted as French-language film Le meurtrier ("The Murderer"), directed by Claude Autant-Lara starring Maurice Ronet as Walter Saccard, Yvonne Furneaux as Clara Saccard, Gert Fröbe as Melchior Kimmel, Marina Vlady as Ellie and Robert Hossein as Corbi. It is known in English as Enough Rope.
1969. Strangers on a Train was adapted as Once You Kiss a Stranger, directed by Robert Sparr starring Paul Burke as Jerry, Carol Lynley as Diana and Martha Hyer as Lee.
1977. This Sweet Sickness was adapted as French-language film Dites-lui que je l'aime, directed by Claude Miller starring Gérard Depardieu as David Martineau, Miou-Miou as Juliette, Dominique Laffin as Lise, and Jacques Denis as Gérard Dutilleux. It is known in English as This Sweet Sickness.
1978. The Glass Cell was adapted as German-language film Die gläserne Zelle, directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer starring Brigitte Fossey as Lisa Braun, Helmut Griem as Phillip Braun, Dieter Laser as David Reinelt and Walter Kohut as Robert Lasky.
1981. Deep Water was adapted as French-language film Eaux profondes, directed by Michel Deville starring Isabelle Huppert as Melanie and Jean-Louis Trintignant as Vic Allen.
1983. Edith's Diary was adapted as German-language film Ediths Tagebuch, directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer starring Angela Winkler as Edith.
1986. The Two Faces of January was adapted as German-language film Die zwei Gesichter des Januars, directed by Wolfgang Storch starring Charles Brauer as Chester McFarland, Yolanda Jilot as Colette McFarland and Thomas Schücke as Rydal Keener.
1987. The Cry of the Owl was adapted as French-language film Le cri du hibou, directed by Claude Chabrol starring Christophe Malavoy as Robert, Mathilda May as Juliette, Jacques Penot as Patrick and Virginie Thévenet as Véronique.
1987. The film version of Strangers on a Train by Alfred Hitchcock inspired the black comedy American film Throw Momma from the Train, directed by Danny DeVito.
1989. The Story Teller was adapted as German-language film Der Geschichtenerzähler, directed by Rainer Boldt starring Udo Schenk as Nico Thomkins and Anke Sevenich as Helen Thomkins.
2009. The Cry of the Owl was adapted as a film of same name, directed by Jamie Thraves starring Paddy Considine as Robert Forester and Julia Stiles as Jenny Thierolf.
2014. The Two Faces of January was adapted as a film of same name, written and directed by Hossein Amini starring Viggo Mortensen as Chester MacFarland, Kirsten Dunst as Colette MacFarland and Oscar Isaac as Rydal. It was released during the 64th Berlin International Film Festival.
2014. A Mighty Nice Man was adapted as a short film, directed by Jonathan Dee starring Kylie McVey as Charlotte, Jacqueline Baum as Emilie, Kristen Connolly as Charlotte's Mother, and Billy Magnussen as Robbie.
2015. A film adaption of The Price of Salt, titled Carol, was written by Phyllis Nagy and directed by Todd Haynes, starring Cate Blanchett as Carol Aird and Rooney Mara as Therese Belivet.
2016. The Blunderer was adapted as A Kind of Murder, directed by Andy Goddard starring Patrick Wilson as Walter Stackhouse, Jessica Biel as Clara Stackhouse, Eddie Marsan as Marty Kimmel and Haley Bennett as Ellie Briess.
"Ripliad"
1960: The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted as French-language film Plein soleil (titled Purple Noon for English-language audiences, though it translates as "Full Sun"). Directed by René Clément starring Alain Delon as Tom Ripley, Maurice Ronet as Philippe Greenleaf, and Marie Laforêt as Marge Duval. Both Highsmith and film critic Roger Ebert criticized the screenplay for altering the ending to prevent Ripley from going unpunished as he does in the novel.
1977: Ripley's Game (third novel) and a "plot fragment" of Ripley Under Ground (second novel) were adapted as German-language film Der Amerikanische Freund (The American Friend). Directed by Wim Wenders with Dennis Hopper as Ripley. Highsmith initially disliked the film but later found it stylish, although she did not like how Ripley was interpreted.
1999: The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted as an American production. Directed by Anthony Minghella with Matt Damon as Ripley, Jude Law as Dickie Greenleaf, and Gwyneth Paltrow as Marge Sherwood.
2002: Ripley's Game was adapted as a film of same name for an English-language Italian production. Directed by Liliana Cavani with John Malkovich as Ripley, Chiara Caselli as Luisa Harari Ripley, Ray Winstone as Reeves Minot, Dougray Scott as Jonathan Trevanny, and Lena Headey as Sarah Trevanny. Although not all reviews were favorable, Roger Ebert regarded it as the best of all the Ripley films.
2005: Ripley Under Ground was adapted as a film of same name. Directed by Roger Spottiswoode with Barry Pepper as Ripley, Jacinda Barrett as Héloïse Plisson-Ripley, Willem Dafoe as Neil Murchison, and Tom Wilkinson as John Webster.
2020: Ripley upcoming American television series by Showtime. Directed by Steven Zaillian starring Andrew Scott as Tom Ripley.
Television
1958. Strangers on a Train was adapted by Warner Brothers for an episode of the TV series 77 Sunset Strip.
1982. Scenes from the Ripley novels were dramatized in the episode A Gift for Murder of The South Bank Show, with Jonathan Kent portraying Tom Ripley. The episode included an interview with Patricia Highsmith.
1983. Deep Water was adapted as a miniseries for German television as , directed by Franz Peter Wirth starring Peter Bongartz as Vic van Allen, Constanze Engelbrecht as Melinda van Allen, Reinhard Glemnitz as Dirk Weisberg, Raimund Harmstorf as Anton Kameter, and Sky du Mont as Charley de Lisle.
1987. The Cry of the Owl was adapted for German television as Der Schrei der Eule, directed by Tom Toelle starring Matthias Habich as Robert Forster, Birgit Doll as Johanna Tierolf, Jacques Breuer as Karl Weick, Fritz Lichtenhahn as Inspektor Lippenholtz, and Doris Kunstmann as Vicky.
1990. The twelve episodes of the television series Mistress of Suspense are based on stories by Highsmith. The series aired first in France, then in the UK. It became available in the U.S. under the title Chillers.
1993. The Tremor of Forgery was adapted as German television film Trip nach Tunis, directed by Peter Goedel starring David Hunt as Howard Ingham, Karen Sillas as Ina Pallant and John Seitz as Francis J. Adams.
1995. Little Tales of Misogyny was adapted as Spanish/Catalan television film Petits contes misògins, directed by Pere Sagristà starring Marta Pérez, Carme Pla, Mamen Duch, and Míriam Iscla.
1996. Strangers on a Train was adapted for television as Once You Meet a Stranger, directed by Tommy Lee Wallace starring Jacqueline Bisset as Sheila Gaines ("Guy"), Theresa Russell as Margo Anthony ("Bruno") and Celeste Holm as Clara. The gender of the two lead characters was changed from male to female.
1996. A Dog's Ransom was adapted as French television film La rançon du chien, directed by Peter Kassovitz starring François Négret as César, François Perrot as Edouard Raynaud, Daniel Prévost as Max Ducasse and Charlotte Valandrey as Sophie.
Theatre
1998. The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted for the stage as a play of same name by playwright Phyllis Nagy. It was revived in 2010.
2013. Strangers on a Train was adapted as a play of same name by playwright Craig Warner.
Radio
2002. A four-episode radio drama of The Cry of the Owl was broadcast by BBC Radio 4, with voice acting by John Sharian as Robert Forester, Joanne McQuinn as Jenny Theirolf, Adrian Lester as Greg Wyncoop, and Matt Rippy as Jack Neilsen.
2009. All five books of the "Ripliad" were dramatized by BBC Radio 4, with Ian Hart voicing Tom Ripley.
2014. A five-segment dramatization of Carol (aka The Price of Salt) was broadcast by BBC Radio 4, with voice acting by Miranda Richardson as Carol Aird and Andrea Deck as Therese Belivet.
2019. A five-episode broadcast of selected short stories (One for the Islands, A Curious Suicide, The Terrors of Basket-Weaving, The Man Who Wrote Books In His Head, The Baby Spoon) by BBC Radio 4.
Works about Patricia Highsmith
Fictional
Dawson, Jill (2016). The Crime Writer. Sceptre. .
Murray-Smith, Joanna (2015). Switzerland. Dramatists Play Service. . (First presented at Sydney Theatre Company in November 2014).
Documentary
Highsmith: Her Secret Life (2004), documentary film by Hugh Thomson, BBC Four.
Highsmith: Her Secret Life, "notes on the film", Hugh Thomson, BBC, 2004.
See also
Ruth Rendell: A "mistress of suspense" contemporary of Highsmith for whom Highsmith acknowledged rarely admitted admiration. Rendell explored characters and themes similar to Highsmith's.
Notes
References
Further reading
Dirda, Michael (July 2, 2009). This Woman Is Dangerous. The New York Review of Books. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
Dupont, Joan (June 12, 1988). Criminal Pursuits. The New York Times. Retrieved March 28, 2017.
Helmore, Edward (October 26, 2019). Diaries expose ‘strong brew’ of Ripley novelist Patricia Highsmith's dark thoughts. The Guardian. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
McCann, Sean (April 1, 2011). “Frequently as a rat has orgasms”. New York City in the '40s, Wesleyan University. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
Morgan, Kim (December 4, 2015). The Gnarly Allure of Patricia Highsmith. The Daily Beast. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Perrin, Tom (December 18, 2012). On Patricia Highsmith. Post45 (Yale University). Retrieved March 12, 2016.
Piepenbring, Dan (January 19, 2015). A Dissatisfaction with Life. The Paris Review. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Rayner, Richard (July 17, 2011). Paperback Writers: Classic Patricia Highsmith. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 18, 2016.
Schenkar, Joan (January 21, 2012). The Talented Miss Highsmith: The Secret Life and Serious Art of Patricia Highsmith. Joan Schenkar. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Schenkar, Joan (February 25, 2016). What Patricia Highsmith did for love: 'The Price of Salt' and the secrets behind 'Carol'. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Shipley, Diane (April 1, 2014). Patricia Highsmith's criminal neglect. The Guardian. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Smith, Nathan (November 19, 2015). When Patricia Highsmith Offered Gay Readers a Hopeful Ending. The New Republic. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Tonkin, Boyd (December 7, 2015). 'Carol', Patricia Highsmith, and how gay literature found its voice in the 1950s. The Independent''. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Books
External links
Patricia Highsmith Papers – Swiss Literary Archives. Swiss National Library, 2006.
Patricia Highsmith – Exhibition of the Swiss National Library. March–September 2006, Swiss National Library, March 13, 2006.
Patricia Highsmith : photographs from the exhibition. Swiss Literary Archives, Swiss National Library, December 1, 2006. (archive)
Choose Your Highsmith (The Patricia Highsmith Recommendation Engine). W. W. Norton & Company.
Patricia Highsmith First Edition Book Cover Gallery (UK publishers). Existential Ennui, 2013.
Patricia Highsmith gallery by René Burri, Magnum Photos, 1988.
Patricia Highsmith interview by Naim Attallah, Naim Attallah Online, Quartet Books, 1993.
Works by or about Patricia Highsmith in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
Audio interviews
Patricia Highsmith on Audio Interviews: "Thrillers and Crime Fiction", BBC Four, December 3, 1972 (archive)
Patricia Highsmith interview with Roy Plomley, Desert Island Discs, BBC Radio 4, April 21, 1979.
Patricia Highsmith interview (The Black House) with Peter Clayton, Meridian, BBC World Service, August 8, 1980.
Patricia Highsmith interview with Terry Gross, Fresh Air, NPR, October 27, 1987.
Patricia Highsmith interview with Don Swaim, Book Beat, WCBS-Radio (via Wired for Books, Ohio University), October 29, 1987. (archive)
Patricia Highsmith, In Conversation with Michael Dibdin, ICA talks, Institute of Contemporary Arts, September 27, 1991.
1921 births
1995 deaths
20th-century American novelists
20th-century American short story writers
20th-century American women writers
20th-century pseudonymous writers
American adoptees
American comics writers
American crime fiction writers
American detective fiction writers
American horror writers
American lesbian writers
American people of German descent
American women novelists
American women short story writers
Female comics writers
LGBT comics creators
American LGBT novelists
People with mood disorders
Pseudonymous women writers
Psychological fiction writers
Women horror writers
Women mystery writers
Deaths from anemia
Deaths from cancer in Switzerland
LGBT people from Texas
People from Fort Worth, Texas
People from Greenwich Village
Golden Age comics creators
Members of the Detection Club
Officiers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
Barnard College alumni
Yaddo alumni | false | [
"The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has had occurrences of actors and actresses nominated for two different Academy Awards in acting categories in a single year, with the first instance in 1938. Provided that they receive enough votes from the Academy in both categories to earn a nomination, there are no restrictions on actors being nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor or actresses being nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress in any given year. The only two rules with regard to multiple nominations is that an actor or actress cannot receive multiple nominations for different performances in the same category (one nomination must be for a lead role and the other must be for a supporting role), and they cannot receive multiple nominations for the same performance. The second rule was introduced in 1944 after Barry Fitzgerald received a Best Actor nomination and a Best Supporting Actor nomination for his performance in Going My Way.\n\n, 12 actors and actresses have been nominated for two different Academy Awards in the same year. The first of these actors and actresses was Fay Bainter, who received nominations for her performances in White Banners and Jezebel at the 11th Academy Awards. The most recent occurrence was the 92nd Academy Awards when Scarlett Johansson received (her first ever) nominations for Marriage Story and Jojo Rabbit. Seven of these actors and actresses received an Academy Award in one of the categories they were nominated in, and none have won two Academy Awards in the same year. Five did not receive an Academy Award in either category: Sigourney Weaver (nominations for Gorillas in the Mist and Working Girl), Emma Thompson (nominations for The Remains of the Day and In the Name of the Father), Julianne Moore (nominations for Far from Heaven and The Hours), Cate Blanchett (nominations for Elizabeth: The Golden Age and I'm Not There) and Scarlett Johansson. Emma Thompson is notable for not only her dual nominations, but also for being the only person to win Academy Awards for both acting and writing. In 1993, the only time to date, two actors were nominated in two categories each in a single year: Holly Hunter (for The Piano and The Firm) and Emma Thompson (for The Remains of the Day and In the Name of the Father).\n\nNominees\n\nSee also\n\nList of actors nominated for Academy Awards for non-English performances\n\nReferences\nGeneral\n\nSpecific\n\nExternal links\nThe Official Academy Awards Database\n\nAcademy Awards lists\nLists of film actors",
"Below is a list of awards received by Twins since they were formed in 2001 as a cantopop girl group. They average to receive about 2-3 awards in each Hong Kong music awards. Their major accomplishment is in 2007 when they received the Asia Pacific Most Popular Female Artist Award from Jade Solid Gold Top 10 Awards.\n\nBecause of the Edison Chen photo scandal in 2008, Gillian took a short leave from the group. And thus the group did not record any songs or receive any awards between March 2008 to 2009.\n\nCommercial Radio Hong Kong Ultimate Song Chart Awards\nThe Ultimate Song Chart Awards Presentation (叱咤樂壇流行榜頒獎典禮) is a cantopop award ceremony from one of the famous channel in Commercial Radio Hong Kong known as Ultimate 903 (FM 90.3). Unlike other cantopop award ceremonies, this one is judged based on the popularity of the song/artist on the actual radio show.\n\nGlobal Chinese Music Awards\n\nIFPI Hong Kong Sales Awards\nIFPI Awards is given to artists base on the sales in Hong Kong at the end of the year.\n\nJade Solid Gold Top 10 Awards\nThe Jade Solid Gold Songs Awards Ceremony(十大勁歌金曲頒獎典禮) is held annually in Hong Kong since 1984. The awards are based on Jade Solid Gold show on TVB.\n\nMetro Radio Mandarin Music Awards\n\nMetro Showbiz Hit Awards\nThe Metro Showbiz Hit Awards (新城勁爆頒獎禮) is held in Hong Kong annually by Metro Showbiz radio station. It focus mostly in cantopop music.\n\nRTHK Top 10 Gold Songs Awards\nThe RTHK Top 10 Gold Songs Awards Ceremony(十大中文金曲頒獎音樂會) is held annually in Hong Kong since 1978. The awards are determined by Radio and Television Hong Kong based on the work of all Asian artists (mostly cantopop) for the previous year.\n\nSprite Music Awards\nThe Sprite Music Awards Ceremony is an annual event given by Sprite China for work artists performed in previous years; awards received on 2008 are actually for the work and accomplishment for 2007.\n\nReferences\n\nTwins\nCantopop"
]
|
[
"Patricia Highsmith",
"The \"Ripliad\"",
"what is the Ripliad?",
"The series--collectively dubbed \"The Ripliad\"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works",
"When was it published?",
"In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley,",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development.",
"What is the series called?",
"I don't know.",
"How wa the book taken by the public?",
"has been critically acclaimed for being \"both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer.\"",
"Did it receive any notable awards?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_23fdf1ec48f84f14b6ba708db2036d39_0 | Any other ascpects about the bok? | 7 | Besides being turned into a TV series, are there any other notable aspects about the book The Ripliad? | Patricia Highsmith | In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series--collectively dubbed "The Ripliad"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works and have sold millions of copies worldwide. The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated," a "dapper sociopath," and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath." Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, Rene Clement's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written." The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development. CANNOTANSWER | The Ripliad"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works and have sold millions of copies worldwide. | Patricia Highsmith (January 19, 1921 – February 4, 1995) was an American novelist and short story writer widely known for her psychological thrillers, including her series of five novels featuring the character Tom Ripley.
She wrote 22 novels and numerous short stories throughout her career spanning nearly five decades, and her work has led to more than two dozen film adaptations. Her writing derived influence from existentialist literature, and questioned notions of identity and popular morality. She was dubbed "the poet of apprehension" by novelist Graham Greene.
Her first novel, Strangers on a Train, has been adapted for stage and screen, the best known being the Alfred Hitchcock film released in 1951. Her 1955 novel The Talented Mr. Ripley has been adapted for film. Writing under the pseudonym Claire Morgan, Highsmith published the first lesbian novel with a happy ending, The Price of Salt, in 1952, republished 38 years later as Carol under her own name and later adapted into a 2015 film.
Early life
Highsmith was born Mary Patricia Plangman in Fort Worth, Texas. She was the only child of artists Jay Bernard Plangman (1889–1975), who was of German descent, and Mary Plangman (née Coates; September 13, 1895 – March 12, 1991). The couple divorced ten days before their daughter's birth.
In 1927, Highsmith, her mother and her adoptive stepfather, artist Stanley Highsmith, whom her mother had married in 1924, moved to New York City. When she was 12 years old, Highsmith was sent to Fort Worth and lived with her maternal grandmother for a year. She called this the "saddest year" of her life and felt "abandoned" by her mother. She returned to New York to continue living with her mother and stepfather, primarily in Manhattan, but also in Astoria, Queens.
According to Highsmith, her mother once told her that she had tried to abort her by drinking turpentine, although a biography of Highsmith indicates Jay Plangman tried to persuade his wife to have the abortion but she refused. Highsmith never resolved this love–hate relationship, which reportedly haunted her for the rest of her life, and which she fictionalized in "The Terrapin", her short story about a young boy who stabs his mother to death. Highsmith's mother predeceased her by only four years, dying at the age of 95.
Highsmith's grandmother taught her to read at an early age, and she made good use of her grandmother's extensive library. At the age of nine, she found a resemblance to her own imaginative life in the case histories of The Human Mind by Karl Menninger, a popularizer of Freudian analysis.
Many of Highsmith's 22 novels were set in Greenwich Village, where she lived at 48 Grove Street from 1940 to 1942, before moving to 345 E. 57th Street. In 1942, Highsmith graduated from Barnard College, where she studied English composition, playwriting, and short story prose. After graduating from college, and despite endorsements from "highly placed professionals," she applied without success for a job at publications such as Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, Mademoiselle, Good Housekeeping, Time, Fortune, and The New Yorker.
Based on the recommendation from Truman Capote, Highsmith was accepted by the Yaddo artist's retreat during the summer of 1948, where she worked on her first novel, Strangers on a Train.
Personal life
Highsmith endured cycles of depression, some of them deep, throughout her life. Despite literary success, she wrote in her diary of January 1970: "[I] am now cynical, fairly rich ... lonely, depressed, and totally pessimistic." Over the years, Highsmith suffered from female hormone deficiency, anorexia nervosa, chronic anemia, Buerger's disease, and lung cancer.
According to her biographer, Andrew Wilson, Highsmith's personal life was a "troubled one". She was an alcoholic who, allegedly, never had an intimate relationship that lasted for more than a few years, and she was seen by some of her contemporaries and acquaintances as misanthropic and hostile. Her chronic alcoholism intensified as she grew older.
She famously preferred the company of animals to that of people and stated in a 1991 interview, "I choose to live alone because my imagination functions better when I don't have to speak with people."
Otto Penzler, her U.S. publisher through his Penzler Books imprint, had met Highsmith in 1983, and four years later witnessed some of her theatrics intended to create havoc at dinner tables and shipwreck an evening. He said after her death that "[Highsmith] was a mean, cruel, hard, unlovable, unloving human being ... I could never penetrate how any human being could be that relentlessly ugly. ... But her books? Brilliant."
Other friends, publishers, and acquaintances held different views of Highsmith. Editor Gary Fisketjon, who published her later novels through Knopf, said that "She was very rough, very difficult ... But she was also plainspoken, dryly funny, and great fun to be around." Composer David Diamond met Highsmith in 1943 and described her as being "quite a depressed person—and I think people explain her by pulling out traits like cold and reserved, when in fact it all came from depression." J. G. Ballard said of Highsmith, "The author of Strangers on a Train and The Talented Mr. Ripley was every bit as deviant and quirky as her mischievous heroes, and didn't seem to mind if everyone knew it." Screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, who adapted The Price of Salt into the 2015 film Carol, met Highsmith in 1987 and the two remained friends for the rest of Highsmith's life. Nagy said that Highsmith was "very sweet" and "encouraging" to her as a young writer, as well as "wonderfully funny."
She was considered by some as "a lesbian with a misogynist streak."
Highsmith loved cats, and she bred about three hundred snails in her garden at home in Suffolk, England. Highsmith once attended a London cocktail party with a "gigantic handbag" that "contained a head of lettuce and a hundred snails" which she said were her "companions for the evening."
She loved woodworking tools and made several pieces of furniture. Highsmith worked without stopping. In later life, she became stooped, with an osteoporotic hump. Though the 22 novels and 8 books of short stories she wrote were highly acclaimed, especially outside of the United States, Highsmith preferred her personal life to remain private.
A lifelong diarist, Highsmith left behind eight thousand pages of handwritten notebooks and diaries.
Sexuality
As an adult, Patricia Highsmith's sexual relationships were predominantly with women. She occasionally engaged in sex with men without physical desire for them, and wrote in her diary: "The male face doesn't attract me, isn't beautiful to me." She told writer Marijane Meaker in the late 1950s that she had "tried to like men. I like most men better than I like women, but not in bed." In a 1970 letter to her stepfather Stanley, Highsmith described sexual encounters with men as "steel wool in the face, a sensation of being raped in the wrong place—leading to a sensation of having to have, pretty soon, a boewl [sic] movement." Stressing, "If these words are unpleasant to read, I can assure you it is a little more unpleasant in bed." Phyllis Nagy described Highsmith as "a lesbian who did not very much enjoy being around other women" and the few sexual dabbles she'd had with men occurred just to "see if she could be into men in that way because she so much more preferred their company."
In 1943, Highsmith had an affair with artist Allela Cornell who, despondent over unrequited love from another woman, committed suicide in 1946 by drinking nitric acid.
During her stay at Yaddo, Highsmith met writer Marc Brandel, son of author J. D. Beresford. Even though she told him about her homosexuality, they soon entered into a short-lived relationship. He convinced her to visit him in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where he introduced her to Ann Smith, a painter and designer with a previous métier as a Vogue fashion model, and the two became involved. After Smith left Provincetown, Highsmith felt she was "in prison" with Brandel and told him she was leaving. "[B]ecause of that I have to sleep with him, and only the fact that it is the last night strengthens me to bear it." Highsmith, who had never been sexually exclusive with Brandel, resented having sex with him. Highsmith temporarily broke off the relationship with Brandel and continued to be involved with several women, reuniting after the well-received publication of his new novel. Beginning November 30, 1948, and continuing for the next six months, Highsmith underwent psychoanalysis in an effort "to regularize herself sexually" so she could marry Brandel. The analysis was brought to a stop by Highsmith, after which she ended her relationship with him.
After ending her engagement to Marc Brandel, she had an affair with psychoanalyst Kathryn Hamill Cohen, the wife of British publisher Dennis Cohen and founder of Cresset Press, which later published Strangers on a Train.
To help pay for the twice-a-week therapy sessions, Highsmith had taken a sales job during Christmas rush season in the toy section of Bloomingdale's department store. Ironically, it was during this attempt to "cure" her homosexuality that Highsmith was inspired to write her semi-autobiographical novel The Price of Salt, in which two women meet in a department store and begin a passionate affair.
Believing that Brandel's disclosure that she was homosexual, along with the publication of The Price of Salt, would hurt her professionally, Highsmith had an unsuccessful affair with Arthur Koestler in 1950, designed to hide her homosexuality.
In early September 1951, she began an affair with sociologist Ellen Blumenthal Hill, traveling back and forth to Europe to meet with her. When Highsmith and Hill came to New York in early May 1953, their affair ostensibly "in a fragile state", Highsmith began an "impossible" affair with the homosexual German photographer Rolf Tietgens, who had played a "sporadic, intense, and unconsummated role in her emotional life since 1943." She was reportedly attracted to Tietgens on account of his homosexuality, confiding that she felt with him "as if he is another girl, or a singularly innocent man." Tietgens shot several nude photographs of Highsmith, but only one has survived, torn in half at the waist so that only her upper body is visible. She dedicated The Two Faces of January (1964) to Tietgens.
Between 1959 and 1961, Highsmith was in love with author Marijane Meaker. Meaker wrote lesbian stories under the pseudonym "Ann Aldrich" and mystery/suspense fiction as "Vin Packer", and later wrote young adult fiction as "M.E. Kerr." In the late 1980s, after 27 years of separation, Highsmith began corresponding with Meaker again, and one day showed up on Meaker's doorstep, slightly drunk and ranting bitterly. Meaker later said she was horrified at how Highsmith's personality had changed.
Highsmith was attracted to women of privilege who expected their lovers to treat them with veneration. According to Phyllis Nagy, she belonged to a "very particular subset of lesbians" and described her conduct with many women she was interested in as being comparable to a movie "studio boss" who chased starlets. Many of these women, who to some extent belonged to the 'Carol Aird'-type and her social set, remained friendly with Highsmith and confirmed the stories of seduction.
An intensely private person, Highsmith was remarkably open and outspoken about her sexuality. She told Meaker: "the only difference between us and heterosexuals is what we do in bed."
Death
Highsmith died on February 4, 1995, at 74, from a combination of aplastic anemia and lung cancer at Carita hospital in Locarno, Switzerland, near the village where she had lived since 1982. She was cremated at the cemetery in Bellinzona; a memorial service was conducted in the Chiesa di Tegna in Tegna, Ticino, Switzerland; and her ashes were interred in its columbarium.
She left her estate, worth an estimated $3 million, and the promise of any future royalties to the Yaddo colony, where she spent two months in 1948 writing the draft of Strangers on a Train. Highsmith bequeathed her literary estate to the Swiss Literary Archives at the Swiss National Library in Bern, Switzerland. Her Swiss publisher, Diogenes Verlag, was appointed literary executor of the estate.
Religious, racial and ethnic views
Highsmith was a resolute atheist. Although she considered herself a liberal, and in her school years had gotten along with black students, in later years she became convinced that Black people were responsible for the welfare crisis in America. She disliked Koreans because "they ate dogs".
Highsmith was an avowed antisemite; she described herself as a "Jew hater" and described The Holocaust as "the semicaust". When she was living in Switzerland in the 1980s, she used nearly 40 aliases when writing to government bodies and newspapers deploring the state of Israel and the "influence" of the Jews. Highsmith was an active supporter of Palestinian rights, a stance which, according to Carol screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, "often teetered into outright antisemitism."
Politics
Highsmith described herself as a social democrat. She believed in American democratic ideals and in "the promise" of U.S. history, but was also highly critical of the reality of the country's 20th-century culture and foreign policy. Beginning in 1963, she resided exclusively in Europe. She retained her United States citizenship, despite the tax penalties, of which she complained bitterly while living for many years in France and Switzerland.
Palestine
Highsmith aligned herself with writers such as Gore Vidal, Alexander Cockburn, Noam Chomsky and Edward Said in supporting Palestinian self-determination. As a member of Amnesty International, she felt duty-bound to express publicly her opposition to the displacement of Palestinians. Highsmith prohibited her books from being published in Israel after the election of Menachem Begin as prime minister in 1977. She dedicated her 1983 novel People Who Knock on the Door to the Palestinian people:
The inscription was dropped from the U.S. edition with permission from her agent but without consent from Highsmith.
Highsmith contributed financially to the Jewish Committee on the Middle East, an organization founded in 1988 that represented American Jews who wanted the United States to "dissociate ... from the policies of Israel." She wrote in an August 1993 letter to Marijane Meaker: "USA could save 11 million per day if they would cut the dough to Israel. The Jewish vote is 1%."
Writing history
Comic books
After graduating from Barnard College, before her short stories started appearing in print, Highsmith wrote for comic book publishers from 1942 and 1948, while she lived in New York City and Mexico. Answering an ad for "reporter/rewrite", she landed a job working for comic book publisher Ned Pines in a "bullpen" with four artists and three other writers. Initially scripting two comic-book stories a day for $55-a-week paychecks, Highsmith soon realized she could make more money by freelance writing for comics, a situation which enabled her to find time to work on her own short stories and live for a period in Mexico. The comic book scriptwriter job was the only long-term job Highsmith ever held.
From 1942 to 1943, for the Sangor–Pines shop (Better/Cinema/Pines/Standard/Nedor), Highsmith wrote "Sergeant Bill King" stories, contributed to Black Terror and Fighting Yank comics, and wrote profiles such as Catherine the Great, Barney Ross, and Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker for the "Real Life Comics" series. From 1943 to 1946, under editor Vincent Fago at Timely Comics, she contributed to its U.S.A. Comics wartime series, writing scenarios for comics such as Jap Buster Johnson and The Destroyer. During these same years she wrote for Fawcett Publications, scripting for Fawcett Comics characters "Crisco and Jasper" and others. Highsmith also wrote for True Comics, Captain Midnight, and Western Comics.
When Highsmith wrote the psychological thriller novel The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955), one of the title character's first victims is a comic-book artist named Reddington: "Tom had a hunch about Reddington. He was a comic-book artist. He probably didn't know whether he was coming or going."
Early novels and short stories
Highsmith's first novel, Strangers on a Train, proved modestly successful upon publication in 1950, and Alfred Hitchcock's 1951 film adaptation of the novel enhanced her reputation.
Highsmith's second novel, The Price of Salt, was published in 1952 under the nom de plume Claire Morgan. Highsmith mined her personal life for the novel's content. Its groundbreaking happy ending and departure from stereotypical conceptions about lesbians made it stand out in lesbian fiction. In what BBC 2's The Late Show presenter Sarah Dunant described as a "literary coming out" after 38 years of disaffirmation, Highsmith finally acknowledged authorship of the novel publicly when she agreed to the 1990 publication by Bloomsbury retitled Carol. Highsmith wrote in the "Afterword" to the new edition:
The paperback version of the novel sold nearly one million copies before its 1990 reissue as Carol. The Price of Salt is distinct for also being the only one of Highsmith's novels in which no violent crime takes place, and where her characters have "more explicit sexual existences" and are allowed "to find happiness in their relationship."
Her short stories appeared for the first time in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine in the early 1950s.
Her last novel, Small g: a Summer Idyll, was rejected by Knopf (her usual publisher by then) several months before her death, leaving Highsmith without an American publisher. It was published posthumously in the United Kingdom by Bloomsbury Publishing in March 1995, and nine years later in the United States by W.W. Norton.
The "Ripliad"
In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series—collectively called "The Ripliad"—are some of Highsmith's most popular works.
The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated", a "dapper sociopath", and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath."
Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, René Clément's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written."
The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development.
Honors
1979 : Grand Master, Swedish Crime Writers' Academy
1987 : , Festival du Cinéma Américain de Deauville
1989 : Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, French Ministry of Culture
1993 : Best Foreign Literary Award, Finnish Crime Society
2008 : Greatest Crime Writer, The Times
Awards and nominations
1946 : O. Henry Award, Best First Story, for The Heroine (in Harper's Bazaar)
1951 : Nominee, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Best First Novel, Mystery Writers of America, for Strangers on a Train
1956 : Edgar Allan Poe Scroll (special award), Mystery Writers of America, for The Talented Mr. Ripley
1957 : Grand Prix de Littérature Policière, International, for The Talented Mr. Ripley
1963 : Nominee, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Best Short Story, Mystery Writers of America, for The Terrapin (in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine)
1963 : Special Award, Mystery Writers of America, for The Terrapin
1964 : Silver Dagger Award, Best Foreign Novel, Crime Writers' Association, for The Two Faces of January (pub. Heinemann)
1975 : for L'Amateur d'escargots (pub. Calmann-Lévy) (English title: Eleven)
Bibliography
Novels
Strangers on a Train (1950)
The Price of Salt (1952) (as Claire Morgan) (republished as Carol in 1990 under Highsmith's name)
The Blunderer (1954)
Deep Water (1957)
A Game for the Living (1958)
This Sweet Sickness (1960)
The Cry of the Owl (1962)
The Two Faces of January (1964)
The Glass Cell (1964)
A Suspension of Mercy (1965) (published as The Story-Teller in the U.S.)
Those Who Walk Away (1967)
The Tremor of Forgery (1969)
A Dog's Ransom (1972)
Edith's Diary (1977)
People Who Knock on the Door (1983)
Found in the Street (1986)
Small g: a Summer Idyll (1995)
The "Ripliad"
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955)
Ripley Under Ground (1970)
Ripley's Game (1974)
The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980)
Ripley Under Water (1991)
Short story collections
Eleven (1970) (Foreword by Graham Greene). . (published as The Snail-Watcher and Other Stories in the U.S.)
Little Tales of Misogyny (1975). (published first as Kleine Geschichten für Weiberfeinde in Switzerland)
The Animal Lover's Book of Beastly Murder (1975). .
Slowly, Slowly in the Wind (1979). .
The Black House (1981).
Mermaids on the Golf Course (1985).
Tales of Natural and Unnatural Catastrophes (1987). .
Chillers (1990). . (publication of Highsmith stories broadcast on U.S. television series Chillers)
Nothing That Meets the Eye: The Uncollected Stories (2002). . (published posthumously)
Under a Dark Angel's Eye: The Selected Stories of Patricia Highsmith (2021) (introduction by Carmen Maria Machado). .
Other books
Miranda the Panda Is on the Veranda (1958) with Doris Sanders. . (children's book of verse and illustrations)
Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction (1966). . (enlarged and revised edition, 1981, )
Essays and articles
"Not-Thinking with the Dishes" (1982), Whodunit? A Guide to Crime, Suspense and Spy Fiction, pg. 92. By H. R. F. Keating, Windward,
"Scene of the Crime" (1989), Granta, Issue No. 29, Winter
Miscellaneous
"Introduction" (1977), The World of Raymond Chandler. Ed. Miriam Gross, Weidenfeld and Nicolson,
"Foreword" (1987), Crime and Mystery: The 100 Best Books. By H. R. F. Keating, Xanadu,
Collected works
Mystery Cats III: More Feline Felonies (1995) (Signet Books, ) (anthology includes Patricia Highsmith)
'The Selected Stories of Patricia Highsmith (2001) (W. W. Norton & Company, )
Patricia Highsmith: Selected Novels and Short Stories (2011) (W. W. Norton & Company, )
Film, television, theatre and radio adaptations
Several of Highsmith's works have been adapted for other media, some more than once. In 1978, Highsmith was president of the jury at the 28th Berlin International Film Festival.
Film
1951. Strangers on a Train was adapted as a film of same name directed by Alfred Hitchcock starring Farley Granger as Guy Haines, Robert Walker as Anthony Bruno, Ruth Roman as Anne Morton, Patricia Hitchcock as Barbara Morton and Laura Elliott as Miriam Joyce Haines.
1963. The Blunderer was adapted as French-language film Le meurtrier ("The Murderer"), directed by Claude Autant-Lara starring Maurice Ronet as Walter Saccard, Yvonne Furneaux as Clara Saccard, Gert Fröbe as Melchior Kimmel, Marina Vlady as Ellie and Robert Hossein as Corbi. It is known in English as Enough Rope.
1969. Strangers on a Train was adapted as Once You Kiss a Stranger, directed by Robert Sparr starring Paul Burke as Jerry, Carol Lynley as Diana and Martha Hyer as Lee.
1977. This Sweet Sickness was adapted as French-language film Dites-lui que je l'aime, directed by Claude Miller starring Gérard Depardieu as David Martineau, Miou-Miou as Juliette, Dominique Laffin as Lise, and Jacques Denis as Gérard Dutilleux. It is known in English as This Sweet Sickness.
1978. The Glass Cell was adapted as German-language film Die gläserne Zelle, directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer starring Brigitte Fossey as Lisa Braun, Helmut Griem as Phillip Braun, Dieter Laser as David Reinelt and Walter Kohut as Robert Lasky.
1981. Deep Water was adapted as French-language film Eaux profondes, directed by Michel Deville starring Isabelle Huppert as Melanie and Jean-Louis Trintignant as Vic Allen.
1983. Edith's Diary was adapted as German-language film Ediths Tagebuch, directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer starring Angela Winkler as Edith.
1986. The Two Faces of January was adapted as German-language film Die zwei Gesichter des Januars, directed by Wolfgang Storch starring Charles Brauer as Chester McFarland, Yolanda Jilot as Colette McFarland and Thomas Schücke as Rydal Keener.
1987. The Cry of the Owl was adapted as French-language film Le cri du hibou, directed by Claude Chabrol starring Christophe Malavoy as Robert, Mathilda May as Juliette, Jacques Penot as Patrick and Virginie Thévenet as Véronique.
1987. The film version of Strangers on a Train by Alfred Hitchcock inspired the black comedy American film Throw Momma from the Train, directed by Danny DeVito.
1989. The Story Teller was adapted as German-language film Der Geschichtenerzähler, directed by Rainer Boldt starring Udo Schenk as Nico Thomkins and Anke Sevenich as Helen Thomkins.
2009. The Cry of the Owl was adapted as a film of same name, directed by Jamie Thraves starring Paddy Considine as Robert Forester and Julia Stiles as Jenny Thierolf.
2014. The Two Faces of January was adapted as a film of same name, written and directed by Hossein Amini starring Viggo Mortensen as Chester MacFarland, Kirsten Dunst as Colette MacFarland and Oscar Isaac as Rydal. It was released during the 64th Berlin International Film Festival.
2014. A Mighty Nice Man was adapted as a short film, directed by Jonathan Dee starring Kylie McVey as Charlotte, Jacqueline Baum as Emilie, Kristen Connolly as Charlotte's Mother, and Billy Magnussen as Robbie.
2015. A film adaption of The Price of Salt, titled Carol, was written by Phyllis Nagy and directed by Todd Haynes, starring Cate Blanchett as Carol Aird and Rooney Mara as Therese Belivet.
2016. The Blunderer was adapted as A Kind of Murder, directed by Andy Goddard starring Patrick Wilson as Walter Stackhouse, Jessica Biel as Clara Stackhouse, Eddie Marsan as Marty Kimmel and Haley Bennett as Ellie Briess.
"Ripliad"
1960: The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted as French-language film Plein soleil (titled Purple Noon for English-language audiences, though it translates as "Full Sun"). Directed by René Clément starring Alain Delon as Tom Ripley, Maurice Ronet as Philippe Greenleaf, and Marie Laforêt as Marge Duval. Both Highsmith and film critic Roger Ebert criticized the screenplay for altering the ending to prevent Ripley from going unpunished as he does in the novel.
1977: Ripley's Game (third novel) and a "plot fragment" of Ripley Under Ground (second novel) were adapted as German-language film Der Amerikanische Freund (The American Friend). Directed by Wim Wenders with Dennis Hopper as Ripley. Highsmith initially disliked the film but later found it stylish, although she did not like how Ripley was interpreted.
1999: The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted as an American production. Directed by Anthony Minghella with Matt Damon as Ripley, Jude Law as Dickie Greenleaf, and Gwyneth Paltrow as Marge Sherwood.
2002: Ripley's Game was adapted as a film of same name for an English-language Italian production. Directed by Liliana Cavani with John Malkovich as Ripley, Chiara Caselli as Luisa Harari Ripley, Ray Winstone as Reeves Minot, Dougray Scott as Jonathan Trevanny, and Lena Headey as Sarah Trevanny. Although not all reviews were favorable, Roger Ebert regarded it as the best of all the Ripley films.
2005: Ripley Under Ground was adapted as a film of same name. Directed by Roger Spottiswoode with Barry Pepper as Ripley, Jacinda Barrett as Héloïse Plisson-Ripley, Willem Dafoe as Neil Murchison, and Tom Wilkinson as John Webster.
2020: Ripley upcoming American television series by Showtime. Directed by Steven Zaillian starring Andrew Scott as Tom Ripley.
Television
1958. Strangers on a Train was adapted by Warner Brothers for an episode of the TV series 77 Sunset Strip.
1982. Scenes from the Ripley novels were dramatized in the episode A Gift for Murder of The South Bank Show, with Jonathan Kent portraying Tom Ripley. The episode included an interview with Patricia Highsmith.
1983. Deep Water was adapted as a miniseries for German television as , directed by Franz Peter Wirth starring Peter Bongartz as Vic van Allen, Constanze Engelbrecht as Melinda van Allen, Reinhard Glemnitz as Dirk Weisberg, Raimund Harmstorf as Anton Kameter, and Sky du Mont as Charley de Lisle.
1987. The Cry of the Owl was adapted for German television as Der Schrei der Eule, directed by Tom Toelle starring Matthias Habich as Robert Forster, Birgit Doll as Johanna Tierolf, Jacques Breuer as Karl Weick, Fritz Lichtenhahn as Inspektor Lippenholtz, and Doris Kunstmann as Vicky.
1990. The twelve episodes of the television series Mistress of Suspense are based on stories by Highsmith. The series aired first in France, then in the UK. It became available in the U.S. under the title Chillers.
1993. The Tremor of Forgery was adapted as German television film Trip nach Tunis, directed by Peter Goedel starring David Hunt as Howard Ingham, Karen Sillas as Ina Pallant and John Seitz as Francis J. Adams.
1995. Little Tales of Misogyny was adapted as Spanish/Catalan television film Petits contes misògins, directed by Pere Sagristà starring Marta Pérez, Carme Pla, Mamen Duch, and Míriam Iscla.
1996. Strangers on a Train was adapted for television as Once You Meet a Stranger, directed by Tommy Lee Wallace starring Jacqueline Bisset as Sheila Gaines ("Guy"), Theresa Russell as Margo Anthony ("Bruno") and Celeste Holm as Clara. The gender of the two lead characters was changed from male to female.
1996. A Dog's Ransom was adapted as French television film La rançon du chien, directed by Peter Kassovitz starring François Négret as César, François Perrot as Edouard Raynaud, Daniel Prévost as Max Ducasse and Charlotte Valandrey as Sophie.
Theatre
1998. The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted for the stage as a play of same name by playwright Phyllis Nagy. It was revived in 2010.
2013. Strangers on a Train was adapted as a play of same name by playwright Craig Warner.
Radio
2002. A four-episode radio drama of The Cry of the Owl was broadcast by BBC Radio 4, with voice acting by John Sharian as Robert Forester, Joanne McQuinn as Jenny Theirolf, Adrian Lester as Greg Wyncoop, and Matt Rippy as Jack Neilsen.
2009. All five books of the "Ripliad" were dramatized by BBC Radio 4, with Ian Hart voicing Tom Ripley.
2014. A five-segment dramatization of Carol (aka The Price of Salt) was broadcast by BBC Radio 4, with voice acting by Miranda Richardson as Carol Aird and Andrea Deck as Therese Belivet.
2019. A five-episode broadcast of selected short stories (One for the Islands, A Curious Suicide, The Terrors of Basket-Weaving, The Man Who Wrote Books In His Head, The Baby Spoon) by BBC Radio 4.
Works about Patricia Highsmith
Fictional
Dawson, Jill (2016). The Crime Writer. Sceptre. .
Murray-Smith, Joanna (2015). Switzerland. Dramatists Play Service. . (First presented at Sydney Theatre Company in November 2014).
Documentary
Highsmith: Her Secret Life (2004), documentary film by Hugh Thomson, BBC Four.
Highsmith: Her Secret Life, "notes on the film", Hugh Thomson, BBC, 2004.
See also
Ruth Rendell: A "mistress of suspense" contemporary of Highsmith for whom Highsmith acknowledged rarely admitted admiration. Rendell explored characters and themes similar to Highsmith's.
Notes
References
Further reading
Dirda, Michael (July 2, 2009). This Woman Is Dangerous. The New York Review of Books. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
Dupont, Joan (June 12, 1988). Criminal Pursuits. The New York Times. Retrieved March 28, 2017.
Helmore, Edward (October 26, 2019). Diaries expose ‘strong brew’ of Ripley novelist Patricia Highsmith's dark thoughts. The Guardian. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
McCann, Sean (April 1, 2011). “Frequently as a rat has orgasms”. New York City in the '40s, Wesleyan University. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
Morgan, Kim (December 4, 2015). The Gnarly Allure of Patricia Highsmith. The Daily Beast. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Perrin, Tom (December 18, 2012). On Patricia Highsmith. Post45 (Yale University). Retrieved March 12, 2016.
Piepenbring, Dan (January 19, 2015). A Dissatisfaction with Life. The Paris Review. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Rayner, Richard (July 17, 2011). Paperback Writers: Classic Patricia Highsmith. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 18, 2016.
Schenkar, Joan (January 21, 2012). The Talented Miss Highsmith: The Secret Life and Serious Art of Patricia Highsmith. Joan Schenkar. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Schenkar, Joan (February 25, 2016). What Patricia Highsmith did for love: 'The Price of Salt' and the secrets behind 'Carol'. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Shipley, Diane (April 1, 2014). Patricia Highsmith's criminal neglect. The Guardian. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Smith, Nathan (November 19, 2015). When Patricia Highsmith Offered Gay Readers a Hopeful Ending. The New Republic. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Tonkin, Boyd (December 7, 2015). 'Carol', Patricia Highsmith, and how gay literature found its voice in the 1950s. The Independent''. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Books
External links
Patricia Highsmith Papers – Swiss Literary Archives. Swiss National Library, 2006.
Patricia Highsmith – Exhibition of the Swiss National Library. March–September 2006, Swiss National Library, March 13, 2006.
Patricia Highsmith : photographs from the exhibition. Swiss Literary Archives, Swiss National Library, December 1, 2006. (archive)
Choose Your Highsmith (The Patricia Highsmith Recommendation Engine). W. W. Norton & Company.
Patricia Highsmith First Edition Book Cover Gallery (UK publishers). Existential Ennui, 2013.
Patricia Highsmith gallery by René Burri, Magnum Photos, 1988.
Patricia Highsmith interview by Naim Attallah, Naim Attallah Online, Quartet Books, 1993.
Works by or about Patricia Highsmith in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
Audio interviews
Patricia Highsmith on Audio Interviews: "Thrillers and Crime Fiction", BBC Four, December 3, 1972 (archive)
Patricia Highsmith interview with Roy Plomley, Desert Island Discs, BBC Radio 4, April 21, 1979.
Patricia Highsmith interview (The Black House) with Peter Clayton, Meridian, BBC World Service, August 8, 1980.
Patricia Highsmith interview with Terry Gross, Fresh Air, NPR, October 27, 1987.
Patricia Highsmith interview with Don Swaim, Book Beat, WCBS-Radio (via Wired for Books, Ohio University), October 29, 1987. (archive)
Patricia Highsmith, In Conversation with Michael Dibdin, ICA talks, Institute of Contemporary Arts, September 27, 1991.
1921 births
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20th-century American novelists
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American people of German descent
American women novelists
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Female comics writers
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Deaths from anemia
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LGBT people from Texas
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Barnard College alumni
Yaddo alumni | false | [
"Bok (Bcl-2 related ovarian killer) is a protein-coding gene of the Bcl-2 family that is found in many invertebrates and vertebrates. It induces apoptosis, a special type of cell death. Currently, the precise function of Bok in this process is unknown.\n\nDiscovery and homology \nIn 1997, the protein Bcl-2-related ovarian killer (Bok) was identified in a yeast two-hybrid experiment with a rat ovarian cDNA library in a screen for proteins interacting with Mcl-1, an abundant anti-apoptotic protein. The overexpression of Bok induces apoptosis. Because of its high sequence similarity to Bak and Bax, Bok is classified as a member of the Bcl-2 protein family.\nThe mouse homologue of Bok is called Matador (Mtd). This name is derived from the Latin term mactator which means butcher or killer. Additionally, homologous proteins were found in Drosophila melanogaster (fruit fly) and Gallus gallus (chicken).\n\nPromoter and gene structure \nThe human BOK promoter is activated by the overexpression of members of the E2F hand transcription factor family. Typically, these transcription factors are involved in the promotion of S-phase, so there might be a connection between Bok expression and cell cycle progression. Due to this regulation of Bok expression by the cell cycle, it was proposed that Bok sensitizes growing cells to stress-induced apoptosis.\n\nBok mRNA comprises five exons which code for a 213 amino acid protein, called Bok-L. This protein consists of four Bcl-2 homology domains (abbreviated BH1, BH2, BH3, BH4, respectively) and a C-terminal transmembrane region (Figure 1). Its BH3 domain contains a stretch with many leucine residues. This is unique among the Bcl-2 family members. The leucine-rich stretch functions as a nuclear export signal. It is recognized by the nuclear exportin Crm1. Mutations in the leucine-rich stretch impair the binding of Crm1 to Bok. Consequently, Bok accumulates in the nucleus and triggers apoptosis.\n\nSplice variants \nDue to alternative splicing, Bok mRNA gives rise to different Bok proteins: Figure 1 illustrates the different splice variants schematically. Full length Bok is named Bok-L.\n\nThe shorter version, Bok-S, lacks exon 3. This results in a fusion of the BH3 domain with the BH1 domain. The BH3 domain is involved in the interaction of Bok with Mcl-1 and other molecules. It is dispensable for the induction of apoptosis. Expression of Bok-S may be an immediate response to stress signals. It has been shown to induce apoptosis regardless of the presence of anti-apoptotic molecules.\n\nAnother splice variant termed Bok-P was found in placental tissue from patients suffering from pre-eclampsia. While Bok-S misses exon 3, Bok-P lacks exon 2. This deletion includes the BH4 domain and parts of the BH3 domain. Bok-P may be the cause for trophoblast cell death in pre-eclampsia, a dangerous pregnancy complication. In pre-eclampsia, typical alterations occur in the maternal kidney and lead to hypertension and proteins in the urine. To date, the cause of this medical condition as well as an appropriate treatment have not been discovered.\n\nExpression pattern \nThe Bok gene is activated and produces protein in different tissues. In mice, elevated Bok levels were detected in the ovary, the testis, and the uterus. Nevertheless, it also exists in the brain and at low levels in most other tissues. However, the expression pattern of the Bok gene varies among species.\n\nIn humans, Bok is found in a wide range of tissues. The gene is expressed in the colon, the stomach, the testes, the placenta, the pancreas, the ovaries, and the uterus. Furthermore, more Bok is expressed in fetal tissue compared to adult tissue. Thus, Bok may influence development.\n\nSubcellular localization \nThe subcellular localization of Bok protein is controversial. In proliferating cells, Bok is found in the nucleus. Upon induction of apoptosis, it was found to tightly associate with mitochondrial membranes. On the other hand, another group found Bok shuttling between the cytoplasm and the nucleus. In their experiments, increased nuclear (not mitochondrial) localization correlated with a stronger apoptotic activity.\n\nRegulation \nIt was found that the cellular ratio of pro-apoptotic to anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 family members effects late apoptotic events such as release of cytochrome c from the mitochondria and the activation of caspases. Higher levels of pro-apoptotic proteins compared to anti-apoptotic proteins seem to cause apoptosis. In a current model, the formation of heterodimers between pro-apoptotic and anti-apoptotic proteins prevents induction of apoptosis.\n\nInteractions \nThe binding of Bok to its interacting partners seems to be mediated by its BH3 domain. The splice variant Bok-S lacks this domain and is unable to form heterodimers with other proteins of the Bcl-2 family.\n\nIn yeast two-hybrid experiments, Bok was found to interact with the anti-apoptotic proteins Mcl-1, BHRF-1, and Bfl-1. However, interactions with other anti-apoptotic proteins such as Bcl-2, Bcl-xL, and Bcl-w were not detectable (1). Later studies aimed at confirming an interaction between Bok and pro-apoptotic Bak or Bax but were not successful.\n\nAccordingly, coexpression of anti-apoptotic proteins such as Mcl-1 suppresses apoptosis induced by Bok overexpression. Consistent with the results mentioned above, coexpression of anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 does not prevent Bok-induced apoptosis.\n\nKnock-out mouse \nSince its discovery in 1997, several attempts have been made to characterize Bok. Due to the increased expression levels in fetal tissue, scientists anticipated a developmental role for Bok. Recently, the Bok knock-out mouse was created. This mouse shows, however, no developmental defects and normal fertility. This finding indicates that the function of Bok seems to overlap with the function of the related pro-apoptotic proteins Bak and Bax.\n\nSeveral other roles were proposed for Bok, especially in developing cells. Since the action of Bok in triggering apoptosis seems to be redundant, it is difficult to assign a specific role to Bok in the presence of Bak and Bax. The study of cells deficient in Bak and Bok or deficient in Bax and Bok, respectively, could help to better characterize the role of Bok in apoptosis. If Bok exerts a critical function, it is likely that this function is limited to certain circumstances, e.g. specific cell types, stress conditions. Thus, these aspects should be assessed in more detail to analyze the physiological and pathological role of Bok.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n \n\nGenes\nProtein families",
"Bok or BOK may refer to:\n\nPlaces \n Bok (lunar crater), on the Moon's far side\n Bok (Martian crater)\n Bok, Khash, a village in Sistan and Baluchestan Province, Iran\n Bok, Orašje, a village near Orašje, Bosnia, Bosnia and Herzegovina\n 1983 Bok, an asteroid\n Brookings Airport, IATA code BOK\n\nPeople\n Bok (surname)\n Johannes Bok de Korver (1883–1957), Dutch footballer\n Bok van Blerk (born Louis Andreas Pepler, 1978), South African musician\n\nArts, entertainment, and media\n Bok, the title of the Vahnatai leaders in the Avernum video games\n Bok, an animated gargoyle from the Doctor Who serial The Dæmons\n\nBusinesses\n Bank of Kaohsiung, a commercial bank in Taiwan\n Bank of Khartoum, a commercial bank in Sudan\n Bank of Khyber, a provincial government-owned bank in Peshawar, Pakistan\n Bank of Korea, the South Korean central bank\n BOK Financial Corporation, headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States\n\nScience and technology\n BOK (gene), full name BCL2-related ovarian killer\n Bok Prize, awarded by the Astronomical Society of Australia\n Bok Telescope, Arizona, United States\n\nOther uses \n Body of knowledge, the complete set of concepts, terms and activities that make up a professional domain\n BOK Center, an arena in Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States\n Derek Bok Public Service Prizes, awarded at Harvard University, United States\n Edward W. Bok Technical High School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States\n\nSee also \n \n Bok bok (disambiguation)\n Boks, a surname"
]
|
[
"Patricia Highsmith",
"The \"Ripliad\"",
"what is the Ripliad?",
"The series--collectively dubbed \"The Ripliad\"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works",
"When was it published?",
"In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley,",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development.",
"What is the series called?",
"I don't know.",
"How wa the book taken by the public?",
"has been critically acclaimed for being \"both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer.\"",
"Did it receive any notable awards?",
"I don't know.",
"Any other ascpects about the bok?",
"The Ripliad\"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works and have sold millions of copies worldwide."
]
| C_23fdf1ec48f84f14b6ba708db2036d39_0 | was there many versions of the book | 8 | Were there many versions of the book The Ripliad by Highsmith? | Patricia Highsmith | In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series--collectively dubbed "The Ripliad"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works and have sold millions of copies worldwide. The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated," a "dapper sociopath," and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath." Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, Rene Clement's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written." The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development. CANNOTANSWER | Highsmith wrote four sequels: | Patricia Highsmith (January 19, 1921 – February 4, 1995) was an American novelist and short story writer widely known for her psychological thrillers, including her series of five novels featuring the character Tom Ripley.
She wrote 22 novels and numerous short stories throughout her career spanning nearly five decades, and her work has led to more than two dozen film adaptations. Her writing derived influence from existentialist literature, and questioned notions of identity and popular morality. She was dubbed "the poet of apprehension" by novelist Graham Greene.
Her first novel, Strangers on a Train, has been adapted for stage and screen, the best known being the Alfred Hitchcock film released in 1951. Her 1955 novel The Talented Mr. Ripley has been adapted for film. Writing under the pseudonym Claire Morgan, Highsmith published the first lesbian novel with a happy ending, The Price of Salt, in 1952, republished 38 years later as Carol under her own name and later adapted into a 2015 film.
Early life
Highsmith was born Mary Patricia Plangman in Fort Worth, Texas. She was the only child of artists Jay Bernard Plangman (1889–1975), who was of German descent, and Mary Plangman (née Coates; September 13, 1895 – March 12, 1991). The couple divorced ten days before their daughter's birth.
In 1927, Highsmith, her mother and her adoptive stepfather, artist Stanley Highsmith, whom her mother had married in 1924, moved to New York City. When she was 12 years old, Highsmith was sent to Fort Worth and lived with her maternal grandmother for a year. She called this the "saddest year" of her life and felt "abandoned" by her mother. She returned to New York to continue living with her mother and stepfather, primarily in Manhattan, but also in Astoria, Queens.
According to Highsmith, her mother once told her that she had tried to abort her by drinking turpentine, although a biography of Highsmith indicates Jay Plangman tried to persuade his wife to have the abortion but she refused. Highsmith never resolved this love–hate relationship, which reportedly haunted her for the rest of her life, and which she fictionalized in "The Terrapin", her short story about a young boy who stabs his mother to death. Highsmith's mother predeceased her by only four years, dying at the age of 95.
Highsmith's grandmother taught her to read at an early age, and she made good use of her grandmother's extensive library. At the age of nine, she found a resemblance to her own imaginative life in the case histories of The Human Mind by Karl Menninger, a popularizer of Freudian analysis.
Many of Highsmith's 22 novels were set in Greenwich Village, where she lived at 48 Grove Street from 1940 to 1942, before moving to 345 E. 57th Street. In 1942, Highsmith graduated from Barnard College, where she studied English composition, playwriting, and short story prose. After graduating from college, and despite endorsements from "highly placed professionals," she applied without success for a job at publications such as Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, Mademoiselle, Good Housekeeping, Time, Fortune, and The New Yorker.
Based on the recommendation from Truman Capote, Highsmith was accepted by the Yaddo artist's retreat during the summer of 1948, where she worked on her first novel, Strangers on a Train.
Personal life
Highsmith endured cycles of depression, some of them deep, throughout her life. Despite literary success, she wrote in her diary of January 1970: "[I] am now cynical, fairly rich ... lonely, depressed, and totally pessimistic." Over the years, Highsmith suffered from female hormone deficiency, anorexia nervosa, chronic anemia, Buerger's disease, and lung cancer.
According to her biographer, Andrew Wilson, Highsmith's personal life was a "troubled one". She was an alcoholic who, allegedly, never had an intimate relationship that lasted for more than a few years, and she was seen by some of her contemporaries and acquaintances as misanthropic and hostile. Her chronic alcoholism intensified as she grew older.
She famously preferred the company of animals to that of people and stated in a 1991 interview, "I choose to live alone because my imagination functions better when I don't have to speak with people."
Otto Penzler, her U.S. publisher through his Penzler Books imprint, had met Highsmith in 1983, and four years later witnessed some of her theatrics intended to create havoc at dinner tables and shipwreck an evening. He said after her death that "[Highsmith] was a mean, cruel, hard, unlovable, unloving human being ... I could never penetrate how any human being could be that relentlessly ugly. ... But her books? Brilliant."
Other friends, publishers, and acquaintances held different views of Highsmith. Editor Gary Fisketjon, who published her later novels through Knopf, said that "She was very rough, very difficult ... But she was also plainspoken, dryly funny, and great fun to be around." Composer David Diamond met Highsmith in 1943 and described her as being "quite a depressed person—and I think people explain her by pulling out traits like cold and reserved, when in fact it all came from depression." J. G. Ballard said of Highsmith, "The author of Strangers on a Train and The Talented Mr. Ripley was every bit as deviant and quirky as her mischievous heroes, and didn't seem to mind if everyone knew it." Screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, who adapted The Price of Salt into the 2015 film Carol, met Highsmith in 1987 and the two remained friends for the rest of Highsmith's life. Nagy said that Highsmith was "very sweet" and "encouraging" to her as a young writer, as well as "wonderfully funny."
She was considered by some as "a lesbian with a misogynist streak."
Highsmith loved cats, and she bred about three hundred snails in her garden at home in Suffolk, England. Highsmith once attended a London cocktail party with a "gigantic handbag" that "contained a head of lettuce and a hundred snails" which she said were her "companions for the evening."
She loved woodworking tools and made several pieces of furniture. Highsmith worked without stopping. In later life, she became stooped, with an osteoporotic hump. Though the 22 novels and 8 books of short stories she wrote were highly acclaimed, especially outside of the United States, Highsmith preferred her personal life to remain private.
A lifelong diarist, Highsmith left behind eight thousand pages of handwritten notebooks and diaries.
Sexuality
As an adult, Patricia Highsmith's sexual relationships were predominantly with women. She occasionally engaged in sex with men without physical desire for them, and wrote in her diary: "The male face doesn't attract me, isn't beautiful to me." She told writer Marijane Meaker in the late 1950s that she had "tried to like men. I like most men better than I like women, but not in bed." In a 1970 letter to her stepfather Stanley, Highsmith described sexual encounters with men as "steel wool in the face, a sensation of being raped in the wrong place—leading to a sensation of having to have, pretty soon, a boewl [sic] movement." Stressing, "If these words are unpleasant to read, I can assure you it is a little more unpleasant in bed." Phyllis Nagy described Highsmith as "a lesbian who did not very much enjoy being around other women" and the few sexual dabbles she'd had with men occurred just to "see if she could be into men in that way because she so much more preferred their company."
In 1943, Highsmith had an affair with artist Allela Cornell who, despondent over unrequited love from another woman, committed suicide in 1946 by drinking nitric acid.
During her stay at Yaddo, Highsmith met writer Marc Brandel, son of author J. D. Beresford. Even though she told him about her homosexuality, they soon entered into a short-lived relationship. He convinced her to visit him in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where he introduced her to Ann Smith, a painter and designer with a previous métier as a Vogue fashion model, and the two became involved. After Smith left Provincetown, Highsmith felt she was "in prison" with Brandel and told him she was leaving. "[B]ecause of that I have to sleep with him, and only the fact that it is the last night strengthens me to bear it." Highsmith, who had never been sexually exclusive with Brandel, resented having sex with him. Highsmith temporarily broke off the relationship with Brandel and continued to be involved with several women, reuniting after the well-received publication of his new novel. Beginning November 30, 1948, and continuing for the next six months, Highsmith underwent psychoanalysis in an effort "to regularize herself sexually" so she could marry Brandel. The analysis was brought to a stop by Highsmith, after which she ended her relationship with him.
After ending her engagement to Marc Brandel, she had an affair with psychoanalyst Kathryn Hamill Cohen, the wife of British publisher Dennis Cohen and founder of Cresset Press, which later published Strangers on a Train.
To help pay for the twice-a-week therapy sessions, Highsmith had taken a sales job during Christmas rush season in the toy section of Bloomingdale's department store. Ironically, it was during this attempt to "cure" her homosexuality that Highsmith was inspired to write her semi-autobiographical novel The Price of Salt, in which two women meet in a department store and begin a passionate affair.
Believing that Brandel's disclosure that she was homosexual, along with the publication of The Price of Salt, would hurt her professionally, Highsmith had an unsuccessful affair with Arthur Koestler in 1950, designed to hide her homosexuality.
In early September 1951, she began an affair with sociologist Ellen Blumenthal Hill, traveling back and forth to Europe to meet with her. When Highsmith and Hill came to New York in early May 1953, their affair ostensibly "in a fragile state", Highsmith began an "impossible" affair with the homosexual German photographer Rolf Tietgens, who had played a "sporadic, intense, and unconsummated role in her emotional life since 1943." She was reportedly attracted to Tietgens on account of his homosexuality, confiding that she felt with him "as if he is another girl, or a singularly innocent man." Tietgens shot several nude photographs of Highsmith, but only one has survived, torn in half at the waist so that only her upper body is visible. She dedicated The Two Faces of January (1964) to Tietgens.
Between 1959 and 1961, Highsmith was in love with author Marijane Meaker. Meaker wrote lesbian stories under the pseudonym "Ann Aldrich" and mystery/suspense fiction as "Vin Packer", and later wrote young adult fiction as "M.E. Kerr." In the late 1980s, after 27 years of separation, Highsmith began corresponding with Meaker again, and one day showed up on Meaker's doorstep, slightly drunk and ranting bitterly. Meaker later said she was horrified at how Highsmith's personality had changed.
Highsmith was attracted to women of privilege who expected their lovers to treat them with veneration. According to Phyllis Nagy, she belonged to a "very particular subset of lesbians" and described her conduct with many women she was interested in as being comparable to a movie "studio boss" who chased starlets. Many of these women, who to some extent belonged to the 'Carol Aird'-type and her social set, remained friendly with Highsmith and confirmed the stories of seduction.
An intensely private person, Highsmith was remarkably open and outspoken about her sexuality. She told Meaker: "the only difference between us and heterosexuals is what we do in bed."
Death
Highsmith died on February 4, 1995, at 74, from a combination of aplastic anemia and lung cancer at Carita hospital in Locarno, Switzerland, near the village where she had lived since 1982. She was cremated at the cemetery in Bellinzona; a memorial service was conducted in the Chiesa di Tegna in Tegna, Ticino, Switzerland; and her ashes were interred in its columbarium.
She left her estate, worth an estimated $3 million, and the promise of any future royalties to the Yaddo colony, where she spent two months in 1948 writing the draft of Strangers on a Train. Highsmith bequeathed her literary estate to the Swiss Literary Archives at the Swiss National Library in Bern, Switzerland. Her Swiss publisher, Diogenes Verlag, was appointed literary executor of the estate.
Religious, racial and ethnic views
Highsmith was a resolute atheist. Although she considered herself a liberal, and in her school years had gotten along with black students, in later years she became convinced that Black people were responsible for the welfare crisis in America. She disliked Koreans because "they ate dogs".
Highsmith was an avowed antisemite; she described herself as a "Jew hater" and described The Holocaust as "the semicaust". When she was living in Switzerland in the 1980s, she used nearly 40 aliases when writing to government bodies and newspapers deploring the state of Israel and the "influence" of the Jews. Highsmith was an active supporter of Palestinian rights, a stance which, according to Carol screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, "often teetered into outright antisemitism."
Politics
Highsmith described herself as a social democrat. She believed in American democratic ideals and in "the promise" of U.S. history, but was also highly critical of the reality of the country's 20th-century culture and foreign policy. Beginning in 1963, she resided exclusively in Europe. She retained her United States citizenship, despite the tax penalties, of which she complained bitterly while living for many years in France and Switzerland.
Palestine
Highsmith aligned herself with writers such as Gore Vidal, Alexander Cockburn, Noam Chomsky and Edward Said in supporting Palestinian self-determination. As a member of Amnesty International, she felt duty-bound to express publicly her opposition to the displacement of Palestinians. Highsmith prohibited her books from being published in Israel after the election of Menachem Begin as prime minister in 1977. She dedicated her 1983 novel People Who Knock on the Door to the Palestinian people:
The inscription was dropped from the U.S. edition with permission from her agent but without consent from Highsmith.
Highsmith contributed financially to the Jewish Committee on the Middle East, an organization founded in 1988 that represented American Jews who wanted the United States to "dissociate ... from the policies of Israel." She wrote in an August 1993 letter to Marijane Meaker: "USA could save 11 million per day if they would cut the dough to Israel. The Jewish vote is 1%."
Writing history
Comic books
After graduating from Barnard College, before her short stories started appearing in print, Highsmith wrote for comic book publishers from 1942 and 1948, while she lived in New York City and Mexico. Answering an ad for "reporter/rewrite", she landed a job working for comic book publisher Ned Pines in a "bullpen" with four artists and three other writers. Initially scripting two comic-book stories a day for $55-a-week paychecks, Highsmith soon realized she could make more money by freelance writing for comics, a situation which enabled her to find time to work on her own short stories and live for a period in Mexico. The comic book scriptwriter job was the only long-term job Highsmith ever held.
From 1942 to 1943, for the Sangor–Pines shop (Better/Cinema/Pines/Standard/Nedor), Highsmith wrote "Sergeant Bill King" stories, contributed to Black Terror and Fighting Yank comics, and wrote profiles such as Catherine the Great, Barney Ross, and Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker for the "Real Life Comics" series. From 1943 to 1946, under editor Vincent Fago at Timely Comics, she contributed to its U.S.A. Comics wartime series, writing scenarios for comics such as Jap Buster Johnson and The Destroyer. During these same years she wrote for Fawcett Publications, scripting for Fawcett Comics characters "Crisco and Jasper" and others. Highsmith also wrote for True Comics, Captain Midnight, and Western Comics.
When Highsmith wrote the psychological thriller novel The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955), one of the title character's first victims is a comic-book artist named Reddington: "Tom had a hunch about Reddington. He was a comic-book artist. He probably didn't know whether he was coming or going."
Early novels and short stories
Highsmith's first novel, Strangers on a Train, proved modestly successful upon publication in 1950, and Alfred Hitchcock's 1951 film adaptation of the novel enhanced her reputation.
Highsmith's second novel, The Price of Salt, was published in 1952 under the nom de plume Claire Morgan. Highsmith mined her personal life for the novel's content. Its groundbreaking happy ending and departure from stereotypical conceptions about lesbians made it stand out in lesbian fiction. In what BBC 2's The Late Show presenter Sarah Dunant described as a "literary coming out" after 38 years of disaffirmation, Highsmith finally acknowledged authorship of the novel publicly when she agreed to the 1990 publication by Bloomsbury retitled Carol. Highsmith wrote in the "Afterword" to the new edition:
The paperback version of the novel sold nearly one million copies before its 1990 reissue as Carol. The Price of Salt is distinct for also being the only one of Highsmith's novels in which no violent crime takes place, and where her characters have "more explicit sexual existences" and are allowed "to find happiness in their relationship."
Her short stories appeared for the first time in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine in the early 1950s.
Her last novel, Small g: a Summer Idyll, was rejected by Knopf (her usual publisher by then) several months before her death, leaving Highsmith without an American publisher. It was published posthumously in the United Kingdom by Bloomsbury Publishing in March 1995, and nine years later in the United States by W.W. Norton.
The "Ripliad"
In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series—collectively called "The Ripliad"—are some of Highsmith's most popular works.
The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated", a "dapper sociopath", and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath."
Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, René Clément's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written."
The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development.
Honors
1979 : Grand Master, Swedish Crime Writers' Academy
1987 : , Festival du Cinéma Américain de Deauville
1989 : Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, French Ministry of Culture
1993 : Best Foreign Literary Award, Finnish Crime Society
2008 : Greatest Crime Writer, The Times
Awards and nominations
1946 : O. Henry Award, Best First Story, for The Heroine (in Harper's Bazaar)
1951 : Nominee, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Best First Novel, Mystery Writers of America, for Strangers on a Train
1956 : Edgar Allan Poe Scroll (special award), Mystery Writers of America, for The Talented Mr. Ripley
1957 : Grand Prix de Littérature Policière, International, for The Talented Mr. Ripley
1963 : Nominee, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Best Short Story, Mystery Writers of America, for The Terrapin (in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine)
1963 : Special Award, Mystery Writers of America, for The Terrapin
1964 : Silver Dagger Award, Best Foreign Novel, Crime Writers' Association, for The Two Faces of January (pub. Heinemann)
1975 : for L'Amateur d'escargots (pub. Calmann-Lévy) (English title: Eleven)
Bibliography
Novels
Strangers on a Train (1950)
The Price of Salt (1952) (as Claire Morgan) (republished as Carol in 1990 under Highsmith's name)
The Blunderer (1954)
Deep Water (1957)
A Game for the Living (1958)
This Sweet Sickness (1960)
The Cry of the Owl (1962)
The Two Faces of January (1964)
The Glass Cell (1964)
A Suspension of Mercy (1965) (published as The Story-Teller in the U.S.)
Those Who Walk Away (1967)
The Tremor of Forgery (1969)
A Dog's Ransom (1972)
Edith's Diary (1977)
People Who Knock on the Door (1983)
Found in the Street (1986)
Small g: a Summer Idyll (1995)
The "Ripliad"
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955)
Ripley Under Ground (1970)
Ripley's Game (1974)
The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980)
Ripley Under Water (1991)
Short story collections
Eleven (1970) (Foreword by Graham Greene). . (published as The Snail-Watcher and Other Stories in the U.S.)
Little Tales of Misogyny (1975). (published first as Kleine Geschichten für Weiberfeinde in Switzerland)
The Animal Lover's Book of Beastly Murder (1975). .
Slowly, Slowly in the Wind (1979). .
The Black House (1981).
Mermaids on the Golf Course (1985).
Tales of Natural and Unnatural Catastrophes (1987). .
Chillers (1990). . (publication of Highsmith stories broadcast on U.S. television series Chillers)
Nothing That Meets the Eye: The Uncollected Stories (2002). . (published posthumously)
Under a Dark Angel's Eye: The Selected Stories of Patricia Highsmith (2021) (introduction by Carmen Maria Machado). .
Other books
Miranda the Panda Is on the Veranda (1958) with Doris Sanders. . (children's book of verse and illustrations)
Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction (1966). . (enlarged and revised edition, 1981, )
Essays and articles
"Not-Thinking with the Dishes" (1982), Whodunit? A Guide to Crime, Suspense and Spy Fiction, pg. 92. By H. R. F. Keating, Windward,
"Scene of the Crime" (1989), Granta, Issue No. 29, Winter
Miscellaneous
"Introduction" (1977), The World of Raymond Chandler. Ed. Miriam Gross, Weidenfeld and Nicolson,
"Foreword" (1987), Crime and Mystery: The 100 Best Books. By H. R. F. Keating, Xanadu,
Collected works
Mystery Cats III: More Feline Felonies (1995) (Signet Books, ) (anthology includes Patricia Highsmith)
'The Selected Stories of Patricia Highsmith (2001) (W. W. Norton & Company, )
Patricia Highsmith: Selected Novels and Short Stories (2011) (W. W. Norton & Company, )
Film, television, theatre and radio adaptations
Several of Highsmith's works have been adapted for other media, some more than once. In 1978, Highsmith was president of the jury at the 28th Berlin International Film Festival.
Film
1951. Strangers on a Train was adapted as a film of same name directed by Alfred Hitchcock starring Farley Granger as Guy Haines, Robert Walker as Anthony Bruno, Ruth Roman as Anne Morton, Patricia Hitchcock as Barbara Morton and Laura Elliott as Miriam Joyce Haines.
1963. The Blunderer was adapted as French-language film Le meurtrier ("The Murderer"), directed by Claude Autant-Lara starring Maurice Ronet as Walter Saccard, Yvonne Furneaux as Clara Saccard, Gert Fröbe as Melchior Kimmel, Marina Vlady as Ellie and Robert Hossein as Corbi. It is known in English as Enough Rope.
1969. Strangers on a Train was adapted as Once You Kiss a Stranger, directed by Robert Sparr starring Paul Burke as Jerry, Carol Lynley as Diana and Martha Hyer as Lee.
1977. This Sweet Sickness was adapted as French-language film Dites-lui que je l'aime, directed by Claude Miller starring Gérard Depardieu as David Martineau, Miou-Miou as Juliette, Dominique Laffin as Lise, and Jacques Denis as Gérard Dutilleux. It is known in English as This Sweet Sickness.
1978. The Glass Cell was adapted as German-language film Die gläserne Zelle, directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer starring Brigitte Fossey as Lisa Braun, Helmut Griem as Phillip Braun, Dieter Laser as David Reinelt and Walter Kohut as Robert Lasky.
1981. Deep Water was adapted as French-language film Eaux profondes, directed by Michel Deville starring Isabelle Huppert as Melanie and Jean-Louis Trintignant as Vic Allen.
1983. Edith's Diary was adapted as German-language film Ediths Tagebuch, directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer starring Angela Winkler as Edith.
1986. The Two Faces of January was adapted as German-language film Die zwei Gesichter des Januars, directed by Wolfgang Storch starring Charles Brauer as Chester McFarland, Yolanda Jilot as Colette McFarland and Thomas Schücke as Rydal Keener.
1987. The Cry of the Owl was adapted as French-language film Le cri du hibou, directed by Claude Chabrol starring Christophe Malavoy as Robert, Mathilda May as Juliette, Jacques Penot as Patrick and Virginie Thévenet as Véronique.
1987. The film version of Strangers on a Train by Alfred Hitchcock inspired the black comedy American film Throw Momma from the Train, directed by Danny DeVito.
1989. The Story Teller was adapted as German-language film Der Geschichtenerzähler, directed by Rainer Boldt starring Udo Schenk as Nico Thomkins and Anke Sevenich as Helen Thomkins.
2009. The Cry of the Owl was adapted as a film of same name, directed by Jamie Thraves starring Paddy Considine as Robert Forester and Julia Stiles as Jenny Thierolf.
2014. The Two Faces of January was adapted as a film of same name, written and directed by Hossein Amini starring Viggo Mortensen as Chester MacFarland, Kirsten Dunst as Colette MacFarland and Oscar Isaac as Rydal. It was released during the 64th Berlin International Film Festival.
2014. A Mighty Nice Man was adapted as a short film, directed by Jonathan Dee starring Kylie McVey as Charlotte, Jacqueline Baum as Emilie, Kristen Connolly as Charlotte's Mother, and Billy Magnussen as Robbie.
2015. A film adaption of The Price of Salt, titled Carol, was written by Phyllis Nagy and directed by Todd Haynes, starring Cate Blanchett as Carol Aird and Rooney Mara as Therese Belivet.
2016. The Blunderer was adapted as A Kind of Murder, directed by Andy Goddard starring Patrick Wilson as Walter Stackhouse, Jessica Biel as Clara Stackhouse, Eddie Marsan as Marty Kimmel and Haley Bennett as Ellie Briess.
"Ripliad"
1960: The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted as French-language film Plein soleil (titled Purple Noon for English-language audiences, though it translates as "Full Sun"). Directed by René Clément starring Alain Delon as Tom Ripley, Maurice Ronet as Philippe Greenleaf, and Marie Laforêt as Marge Duval. Both Highsmith and film critic Roger Ebert criticized the screenplay for altering the ending to prevent Ripley from going unpunished as he does in the novel.
1977: Ripley's Game (third novel) and a "plot fragment" of Ripley Under Ground (second novel) were adapted as German-language film Der Amerikanische Freund (The American Friend). Directed by Wim Wenders with Dennis Hopper as Ripley. Highsmith initially disliked the film but later found it stylish, although she did not like how Ripley was interpreted.
1999: The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted as an American production. Directed by Anthony Minghella with Matt Damon as Ripley, Jude Law as Dickie Greenleaf, and Gwyneth Paltrow as Marge Sherwood.
2002: Ripley's Game was adapted as a film of same name for an English-language Italian production. Directed by Liliana Cavani with John Malkovich as Ripley, Chiara Caselli as Luisa Harari Ripley, Ray Winstone as Reeves Minot, Dougray Scott as Jonathan Trevanny, and Lena Headey as Sarah Trevanny. Although not all reviews were favorable, Roger Ebert regarded it as the best of all the Ripley films.
2005: Ripley Under Ground was adapted as a film of same name. Directed by Roger Spottiswoode with Barry Pepper as Ripley, Jacinda Barrett as Héloïse Plisson-Ripley, Willem Dafoe as Neil Murchison, and Tom Wilkinson as John Webster.
2020: Ripley upcoming American television series by Showtime. Directed by Steven Zaillian starring Andrew Scott as Tom Ripley.
Television
1958. Strangers on a Train was adapted by Warner Brothers for an episode of the TV series 77 Sunset Strip.
1982. Scenes from the Ripley novels were dramatized in the episode A Gift for Murder of The South Bank Show, with Jonathan Kent portraying Tom Ripley. The episode included an interview with Patricia Highsmith.
1983. Deep Water was adapted as a miniseries for German television as , directed by Franz Peter Wirth starring Peter Bongartz as Vic van Allen, Constanze Engelbrecht as Melinda van Allen, Reinhard Glemnitz as Dirk Weisberg, Raimund Harmstorf as Anton Kameter, and Sky du Mont as Charley de Lisle.
1987. The Cry of the Owl was adapted for German television as Der Schrei der Eule, directed by Tom Toelle starring Matthias Habich as Robert Forster, Birgit Doll as Johanna Tierolf, Jacques Breuer as Karl Weick, Fritz Lichtenhahn as Inspektor Lippenholtz, and Doris Kunstmann as Vicky.
1990. The twelve episodes of the television series Mistress of Suspense are based on stories by Highsmith. The series aired first in France, then in the UK. It became available in the U.S. under the title Chillers.
1993. The Tremor of Forgery was adapted as German television film Trip nach Tunis, directed by Peter Goedel starring David Hunt as Howard Ingham, Karen Sillas as Ina Pallant and John Seitz as Francis J. Adams.
1995. Little Tales of Misogyny was adapted as Spanish/Catalan television film Petits contes misògins, directed by Pere Sagristà starring Marta Pérez, Carme Pla, Mamen Duch, and Míriam Iscla.
1996. Strangers on a Train was adapted for television as Once You Meet a Stranger, directed by Tommy Lee Wallace starring Jacqueline Bisset as Sheila Gaines ("Guy"), Theresa Russell as Margo Anthony ("Bruno") and Celeste Holm as Clara. The gender of the two lead characters was changed from male to female.
1996. A Dog's Ransom was adapted as French television film La rançon du chien, directed by Peter Kassovitz starring François Négret as César, François Perrot as Edouard Raynaud, Daniel Prévost as Max Ducasse and Charlotte Valandrey as Sophie.
Theatre
1998. The Talented Mr. Ripley was adapted for the stage as a play of same name by playwright Phyllis Nagy. It was revived in 2010.
2013. Strangers on a Train was adapted as a play of same name by playwright Craig Warner.
Radio
2002. A four-episode radio drama of The Cry of the Owl was broadcast by BBC Radio 4, with voice acting by John Sharian as Robert Forester, Joanne McQuinn as Jenny Theirolf, Adrian Lester as Greg Wyncoop, and Matt Rippy as Jack Neilsen.
2009. All five books of the "Ripliad" were dramatized by BBC Radio 4, with Ian Hart voicing Tom Ripley.
2014. A five-segment dramatization of Carol (aka The Price of Salt) was broadcast by BBC Radio 4, with voice acting by Miranda Richardson as Carol Aird and Andrea Deck as Therese Belivet.
2019. A five-episode broadcast of selected short stories (One for the Islands, A Curious Suicide, The Terrors of Basket-Weaving, The Man Who Wrote Books In His Head, The Baby Spoon) by BBC Radio 4.
Works about Patricia Highsmith
Fictional
Dawson, Jill (2016). The Crime Writer. Sceptre. .
Murray-Smith, Joanna (2015). Switzerland. Dramatists Play Service. . (First presented at Sydney Theatre Company in November 2014).
Documentary
Highsmith: Her Secret Life (2004), documentary film by Hugh Thomson, BBC Four.
Highsmith: Her Secret Life, "notes on the film", Hugh Thomson, BBC, 2004.
See also
Ruth Rendell: A "mistress of suspense" contemporary of Highsmith for whom Highsmith acknowledged rarely admitted admiration. Rendell explored characters and themes similar to Highsmith's.
Notes
References
Further reading
Dirda, Michael (July 2, 2009). This Woman Is Dangerous. The New York Review of Books. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
Dupont, Joan (June 12, 1988). Criminal Pursuits. The New York Times. Retrieved March 28, 2017.
Helmore, Edward (October 26, 2019). Diaries expose ‘strong brew’ of Ripley novelist Patricia Highsmith's dark thoughts. The Guardian. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
McCann, Sean (April 1, 2011). “Frequently as a rat has orgasms”. New York City in the '40s, Wesleyan University. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
Morgan, Kim (December 4, 2015). The Gnarly Allure of Patricia Highsmith. The Daily Beast. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Perrin, Tom (December 18, 2012). On Patricia Highsmith. Post45 (Yale University). Retrieved March 12, 2016.
Piepenbring, Dan (January 19, 2015). A Dissatisfaction with Life. The Paris Review. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Rayner, Richard (July 17, 2011). Paperback Writers: Classic Patricia Highsmith. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 18, 2016.
Schenkar, Joan (January 21, 2012). The Talented Miss Highsmith: The Secret Life and Serious Art of Patricia Highsmith. Joan Schenkar. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Schenkar, Joan (February 25, 2016). What Patricia Highsmith did for love: 'The Price of Salt' and the secrets behind 'Carol'. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Shipley, Diane (April 1, 2014). Patricia Highsmith's criminal neglect. The Guardian. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Smith, Nathan (November 19, 2015). When Patricia Highsmith Offered Gay Readers a Hopeful Ending. The New Republic. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Tonkin, Boyd (December 7, 2015). 'Carol', Patricia Highsmith, and how gay literature found its voice in the 1950s. The Independent''. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
Books
External links
Patricia Highsmith Papers – Swiss Literary Archives. Swiss National Library, 2006.
Patricia Highsmith – Exhibition of the Swiss National Library. March–September 2006, Swiss National Library, March 13, 2006.
Patricia Highsmith : photographs from the exhibition. Swiss Literary Archives, Swiss National Library, December 1, 2006. (archive)
Choose Your Highsmith (The Patricia Highsmith Recommendation Engine). W. W. Norton & Company.
Patricia Highsmith First Edition Book Cover Gallery (UK publishers). Existential Ennui, 2013.
Patricia Highsmith gallery by René Burri, Magnum Photos, 1988.
Patricia Highsmith interview by Naim Attallah, Naim Attallah Online, Quartet Books, 1993.
Works by or about Patricia Highsmith in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
Audio interviews
Patricia Highsmith on Audio Interviews: "Thrillers and Crime Fiction", BBC Four, December 3, 1972 (archive)
Patricia Highsmith interview with Roy Plomley, Desert Island Discs, BBC Radio 4, April 21, 1979.
Patricia Highsmith interview (The Black House) with Peter Clayton, Meridian, BBC World Service, August 8, 1980.
Patricia Highsmith interview with Terry Gross, Fresh Air, NPR, October 27, 1987.
Patricia Highsmith interview with Don Swaim, Book Beat, WCBS-Radio (via Wired for Books, Ohio University), October 29, 1987. (archive)
Patricia Highsmith, In Conversation with Michael Dibdin, ICA talks, Institute of Contemporary Arts, September 27, 1991.
1921 births
1995 deaths
20th-century American novelists
20th-century American short story writers
20th-century American women writers
20th-century pseudonymous writers
American adoptees
American comics writers
American crime fiction writers
American detective fiction writers
American horror writers
American lesbian writers
American people of German descent
American women novelists
American women short story writers
Female comics writers
LGBT comics creators
American LGBT novelists
People with mood disorders
Pseudonymous women writers
Psychological fiction writers
Women horror writers
Women mystery writers
Deaths from anemia
Deaths from cancer in Switzerland
LGBT people from Texas
People from Fort Worth, Texas
People from Greenwich Village
Golden Age comics creators
Members of the Detection Club
Officiers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
Barnard College alumni
Yaddo alumni | true | [
"The Prayer Book Society of the USA (PBS USA), officially the Society for the Preservation of the Book of Common Prayer, seeks to maintain the Anglican tradition of liturgical common prayer and promote the use and understanding of traditional versions of the Book of Common Prayer such as the American edition of 1928.\n\nA related society is the Prayer Book Society of Canada. There are additional groups in Britain and Australia.\n\nThe late Peter Toon was a president and CEO of the society. Many of his articles can still be found at its website.\n\nSee also\n\nPrayer Book Society (England)\n\nExternal links\n \n\nBook of Common Prayer",
"Oz Before the Rainbow is a book written by Mark Evan Swartz in 2000 chronicling the early stage and film versions of The Wizard of Oz, before the 1939 movie, as well as an album featuring music from the early stage versions.\n\nHalf of the book is devoted to the 1902 stage musical of The Wizard of Oz that Baum adapted from his book, with substantial revisions by the director and producer. The adaptation was a tremendous success, first in Chicago, then on Broadway, where it ran for two years, and then on tour for an additional seven years. It starred the comedy team of David C. Montgomery and Fred Stone as the Tin Woodman and the Scarecrow. The production was a lavish extravaganza. Swartz explores how this production influenced stage and film adaptations that followed, including the 1939 MGM movie.\n\nThe book also discusses Baum's 1908 Fairylogue and Radio-Plays, a presentation narrated by Baum, involving live action, slides and silent film, which included stories from Baum's original book and from its first two sequels, The Marvelous Land of Oz and Ozma of Oz. Among other adaptations, the book also discusses the 1910, 1914 and 1925 silent film adaptations (the latter with Oliver Hardy as the Tin Woodman), some of which used material from other Oz books. In 1913, another stage version, adapted from Ozma of Oz was The Tik-Tok Man of Oz, which itself was adapted into Tik-Tok of Oz. The book contains numerous illustrations, advertisements, photos from many of the versions, program covers, posters and sheet music. It goes into great detail about performers, staging and designs. The book notes that, despite many attempts, Baum was unable to repeat the extraordinary stage success of the 1902 musical and its revivals, although some of the adaptations were then turned into successful novels. He notes, however, that the various versions influenced each other and led to the 1939 MGM movie.\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\nSwartz, Mark Evan. Oz Before the Rainbow: L. Frank Baum's 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' on Stage and Screen to 1939. The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2000 \n\nWorks based on The Wizard of Oz\nBooks about film\nOz studies"
]
|
[
"Tom Lehrer",
"Style and Influences"
]
| C_c961772cd2d64c99971128bee7391985_0 | What was his style? | 1 | What was Tom Lehrer's style? | Tom Lehrer | In 1953, inspired by the success of his performances, Lehrer paid $15 for some studio time to record Songs by Tom Lehrer. The initial pressing was 400 copies. At the time, radio stations would not give Lehrer air time because of his controversial subjects. He sold his album on campus at Harvard for $3 (equivalent to $27.00 today), while "several stores near the Harvard campus sold it for $3.50, taking only a minimal markup as a kind of community service. Newsstands on campus sold it for the same price." After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country (as far away as San Francisco, after The Chronicle wrote an article on the record). Interest in his recordings was spread by word of mouth; friends and supporters brought their records home and played them for their friends, who then also wanted a copy. Lehrer later recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola." The album--which included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risque "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" (regarding plagiarizing mathematicians)--became a cult success via word of mouth, despite being self-published and without promotion. Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours and in 1959 recorded a second album, which was released in two versions: the songs were the same, but More of Tom Lehrer was studio-recorded while An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer was recorded live in concert. In 2013, Lehrer recalled the studio session for "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park," which referred to the practice of controlling pigeons in Boston with strychnine-treated corn: "The copyist arrived at the last minute with the parts and passed them out to the band... And there was no title on it, and there was no lyrics. And so they ran through it, 'what a pleasant little waltz'... And the engineer said, '"Poisoning Pigeons in the Park,' take one," and the piano player said, '"What?"' and literally fell off the stool." CANNOTANSWER | At the time, radio stations would not give Lehrer air time because of his controversial subjects. | Thomas Andrew Lehrer (; born April 9, 1928) is a retired American musician, singer-songwriter, satirist, and mathematician, having lectured on mathematics and musical theater. He is best known for the pithy and humorous songs that he recorded in the 1950s and 1960s. His songs often parodied popular musical forms, though he usually created original melodies when doing so. A notable exception is "The Elements", in which he set the names of the chemical elements to the tune of the "Major-General's Song" from Gilbert and Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance.
Lehrer's early musical work typically dealt with non-topical subject matter and was noted for its black humor in songs such as "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park". In the 1960s, he produced a number of songs that dealt with social and political issues of the day, particularly when he wrote for the U.S. version of the television show That Was the Week That Was. The popularity of these songs has far outlasted their topical subjects and references. Lehrer quoted a friend's explanation: "Always predict the worst and you'll be hailed as a prophet." In the early 1970s, Lehrer largely retired from public performances to devote his time to teaching mathematics and musical theater history at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Early life
Thomas Andrew Lehrer was born on April 9, 1928 to a secular Jewish family and grew up on Manhattan's Upper East Side. He was the second and younger son of Moses James Lehrer (1898-?) and Anna Lehrer (née Waller) (1905-1978). He had an older brother. He began studying classical piano at the age of seven, but was more interested in the popular music of the age. Eventually, his mother also sent him to a popular-music piano teacher. At this early age, he began writing show tunes, which eventually helped him as a satirical composer and writer in his years of lecturing at Harvard University and later at other universities.
Lehrer attended the Horace Mann School in Riverdale, New York, part of the Bronx. He also attended Camp Androscoggin, both as a camper and a counselor. Lehrer was considered a child prodigy and entered Harvard College, where one of his professors was Irving Kaplansky, at the age of 15 after graduating from Loomis School. As a mathematics undergraduate student at Harvard College, he began to write comic songs to entertain his friends, including "Fight Fiercely, Harvard" (1945). Those songs were later named collectively The Physical Revue, a joking reference to a leading scientific journal, the Physical Review.
Academic and military career
Lehrer graduated Bachelor of Arts in mathematics from Harvard University, magna cum laude, in 1946. At Harvard, he was the roommate of the Canadian theologian Robert Crouse. He received his AM degree the next year and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. He later taught mathematics and other classes at MIT, Harvard, Wellesley, and the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Lehrer remained in Harvard's doctoral program for several years, taking time out for his musical career and to work as a researcher at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory.
Lehrer was drafted into the U.S. Army from 1955 to 1957, working at the National Security Agency (NSA). Lehrer has stated that he invented the Jello shot during this time, as a means of circumventing the base's ban on alcoholic beverages.
Despite holding a master's degree in an era when American conscripts often lacked a high school diploma, Lehrer served as an enlisted soldier, achieving the rank of Specialist Third Class, which he described as being a "corporal without portfolio". These experiences became fodder for songs, such as "The Wild West is Where I Want to Be" and "It Makes a Fellow Proud to Be a Soldier". It was many years before Lehrer publicly revealed that he had been assigned to the NSA, since the mere fact of its existence was classified at the time; this left him in the interesting position of implicitly using nuclear weapons work as a cover story for something more sensitive.
In 1960, Lehrer returned to full-time math studies at Harvard.
From 1962, Lehrer taught in the political science department at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). In 1965 he gave up on his mathematics dissertation on modes in statistics, after having worked on it intermittently for 15 years.
In 1972, Lehrer joined the faculty of the University of California, Santa Cruz, teaching an introductory course entitled The Nature of Mathematics to liberal arts majors—"math for tenors", according to Lehrer. He also taught a class in musical theater. He occasionally performed songs in his lectures.
In 2001, Lehrer taught his last mathematics class, on the topic of infinity, and retired from academia. He has remained in the area, and in 2003 said he still "hangs out" around the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Publications
The American Mathematical Society database lists him as co-author of two papers:
Two of Lehrer's songs were also reprinted, with his permission, in MAD Magazine:
Tom Lehrer Sings "The Wild West is Where I Where I Want To Be" (illustrated by George Woodbridge, MAD #32, April 1957)
Tom Lehrer's "The Hunting Song" (illustrated by George Woodbridge, MAD #35, October 1957)
Musical career
Style and influences
Lehrer was mainly influenced by musical theater. According to Gerald Nachman's book Seriously Funny, the Broadway musical Let's Face It! made an early and lasting impression on him. Lehrer's style consists of parodying various forms of popular song. For example, his appreciation of list songs led him to write "The Elements", which lists the chemical elements to the tune of Gilbert and Sullivan's "Major-General's Song".
In author and Boston University professor Isaac Asimov's second autobiographical volume, In Joy Still Felt, Asimov recounted seeing Lehrer perform in a Boston nightclub on October 9, 1954. Lehrer sang a song about Jim getting it from Louise, and Sally from Jim, "...and after a while you gathered the 'it' was venereal disease. [The song was likely "I Got It From Agnes".] Suddenly, as the combinations grew more grotesque, you realized he was satirizing every known perversion without using a single naughty phrase. It was clearly unsingable outside a nightclub." Asimov also recalled a song that dealt with the Boston subway system, making use of the stations leading into town from Harvard, observing that the local subject-matter rendered the song useless for general distribution. Lehrer subsequently granted Asimov permission to print the lyrics to the subway song in his book. "I haven't gone to nightclubs often," said Asimov, "but of all the times I have gone, it was on this occasion that I had by far the best time."
Recordings
Lehrer was encouraged by the success of his performances, so he paid $15 () for some studio time in 1953 to record Songs by Tom Lehrer. The initial pressing was 400 copies. Radio stations would not air his songs because of his controversial subjects, so he sold the album on campus at Harvard for $3, , while "several stores near the Harvard campus sold it for $3.50, taking only a minimal markup as a kind of community service. Newsstands on campus sold it for the same price." After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country, as far away as San Francisco, after the San Francisco Chronicle wrote an article on the record. Interest in his recordings spread by word of mouth. People played their records for friends, who then also wanted a copy. Lehrer recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola."
The album included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risqué "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" regarding plagiarizing mathematicians. It became a cult success by word of mouth, despite being self-published and without promotion. Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours and recorded a second album in 1959. He released the second album in two versions: the songs were the same, but More of Tom Lehrer was a studio recording and An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer was recorded live in concert. In 2013, Lehrer recalled the studio session for "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park", which referred to the practice of controlling pigeons in Boston with strychnine-treated corn:
Touring
Lehrer had a breakthrough in the United Kingdom on December 4, 1957, when the University of London awarded a doctor of music degree honoris causa to Princess Margaret, and the public orator, Professor J. R. Sutherland, said it was "in the full knowledge that the Princess is a connoisseur of music and a performer of skill and distinction, her taste being catholic, ranging from Mozart to the calypso and from opera to the songs of Miss Beatrice Lillie and Tom Lehrer." This prompted significant interest in Lehrer's works and helped to secure distribution for his five-year-old debut album in Britain. It was there that his music achieved real sales popularity, as a result of the proliferation of university newspapers referring to the material, and inadvertently due to the BBC, which in 1958 banned from broadcast 10 of the 12 songs on the album. By the end of the 1950s, Lehrer had sold 370,000 records.
That Was The Week That Was
In 1960, Lehrer essentially retired from touring in the U.S.
The same year, Lehrer toured Australia and New Zealand, performing a total of 33 concerts to great acclaim and controversy. While in New Zealand, Lehrer wrote a song criticizing the All Blacks rugby team 1960 tour of apartheid South Africa. These tours occurred during a time in which he was, he said, "banned, censored, mentioned in several houses of parliament and threatened with arrest". In particular, "Be Prepared" drew advance resistance in Brisbane from the commissioner of police. He performed several unreleased songs in Australia, including "The Masochism Tango".
In the early 1960s, he was employed as the resident songwriter for the U.S. edition of That Was The Week That Was (TW3), a satirical television show.
A greater proportion of his output became overtly political, or at least topical, on subjects such as education ("New Math"), the Second Vatican Council ("The Vatican Rag", a tune based on the 1910 "Spaghetti Rag" by Lyons and Yosco), race relations ("National Brotherhood Week"), air and water pollution ("Pollution"), American militarism ("Send the Marines"), and nuclear proliferation ("Who's Next?" and "MLF Lullaby"). He also wrote a song satirizing rocket scientist Wernher von Braun, who worked for Nazi Germany before working for the United States. (Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down? That's not my department,' says Wernher von Braun.") Lehrer did not appear on the television show; vocalist Nancy Ames performed his songs (to Lehrer's chagrin), and network censors often altered his lyrics. Lehrer later performed these songs on the album That Was The Year That Was (1965) at which point people could hear them the way that he intended.
In 1966, BBC TV host David Frost invited him to contribute some of his classic compositions to his BBC program The Frost Report. The show was transmitted live, and he pre-recorded all his segments at one performance. Lehrer was not featured in every edition, but his songs featured in an appropriate part of each show. At least two of his songs were not included on any of his LPs: a reworking of Noël Coward's "That is the End of the News" (with some new lyrics) and a comic explanation of how Britain might adapt to the coming of decimal currency.
The record deal with Reprise Records for That Was The Year That Was also gave Reprise distribution rights for his earlier recordings, as Lehrer wanted to wind up his own record imprint. The Reprise issue of Songs by Tom Lehrer was a stereo re-recording. This version was not issued on CD, but the songs were issued on the live Tom Lehrer Revisited CD. The live recording included bonus tracks "L-Y" and "Silent E", two of the ten songs that he wrote for the PBS children's educational series The Electric Company. Lehrer later commented that worldwide sales of the recordings under Reprise surpassed 1.8 million units in 1996. That same year, That Was The Year That Was went gold. The album liner notes promote his songs with self-deprecating humor, such as quoting a New York Times review from 1959: Mr. Lehrer's muse is "not fettered by such inhibiting factors as taste."
Lehrer made a short tour in Norway and Denmark in 1967, performing some of the songs from the television program. His performance in Oslo on September 10 was recorded on video tape and aired locally that autumn, then released on DVD some 40 years later. He performed as a prominent international guest at the Studenterforeningen (student association) in Copenhagen, which was televised, and he commented on stage that he might be America's "revenge for Victor Borge". He performed original songs in a Dodge automobile industrial film distributed primarily to automobile dealers and shown at promotional events in 1967, set in a fictional American wild west town and titled The Dodge Rebellion Theatre presents Ballads For '67. He attempted to adapt Sweeney Todd as a Broadway musical, working with Joe Raposo, to star Jerry Colonna. They started a few songs but, as Lehrer noted, "Nothing ever came of it, and of course twenty years later Stephen Sondheim beat me to the punch."
Departure from the music scene
In the 1970s, Lehrer concentrated on teaching mathematics and musical theater, although he also wrote ten songs for the educational children's television show The Electric Company. His last public performance for many years took place in 1972, on a fundraising tour for Democratic US presidential candidate George McGovern.
When asked about his reasons for abandoning his musical career in an interview in the book accompanying his CD box set, released in 2000, Lehrer cited a lack of interest, a disdain of touring, and the monotony of performing the same songs repeatedly. He observed that when he was moved to write and perform songs, he did, and when he was not, he did not, and that after a while he simply lost interest. Even though Lehrer was "a hero of the anti-nuclear, civil rights left" and covered its political issues in many of his songs, and even though he shared the New Left's opposition to the Vietnam War, and advocated for civil rights, he disliked the aesthetics of the counterculture of the 1960s and stopped performing as the movement gained momentum.
Lehrer's musical career was relatively brief. He once mentioned that he performed a mere 109 shows and wrote 37 songs over 20 years. Nevertheless, he developed a significant following in the United States and abroad.
Revivals and discographic reissues
In 1980, Cameron Mackintosh produced Tomfoolery, a revue of Lehrer's songs that was a hit on the London stage. Lehrer was not initially involved with the show, but he was pleased with it; he eventually gave the stage production his full support and updated several of his lyrics for the show. Tomfoolery contained 27 songs and led to more than 200 productions, including an Off-Broadway production at the Village Gate which ran for 120 performances in 1981. Lehrer made a rare TV appearance on BBC's Parkinson show in conjunction with the Tom Foolery premiere in 1980 at the Criterion Theatre in London, where he sang "I Got It from Agnes". There were "Tomfoolery" performances in San Francisco about 1982 and in 2018–19. In 1993, he wrote "That's Mathematics" for the closing credits to a Mathematical Sciences Research Institute video celebrating the proof of Fermat's Last Theorem.
On June 7 and 8, 1998, Lehrer performed in public for the first time in 25 years at the Lyceum Theatre, London as part of the show Hey, Mr. Producer! celebrating the career of Cameron Mackintosh, who had produced Tom Foolery. The June 8 show was his only performance before Queen Elizabeth II. Lehrer sang "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park" and an updated version of the nuclear proliferation song "Who's Next?"
In 2000 Lehrer commented that he doubted his songs had any real effect on those not already critical of the establishment: "I don't think this kind of thing has an impact on the unconverted, frankly. It's not even preaching to the converted; it's titillating the converted ... I'm fond of quoting Peter Cook, who talked about the satirical Berlin kabaretts of the 1930s, which did so much to stop the rise of Hitler and prevent the Second World War."
Lehrer has said, jokingly, of his musical career, "If, after hearing my songs, just one human being is inspired to say something nasty to a friend, or perhaps to strike a loved one, it will all have been worth the while."
In 2003, Lehrer commented that his particular brand of political satire is more difficult in the modern world: "The real issues I don't think most people touch. The Clinton jokes are all about Monica Lewinsky and all that stuff and not about the important things, like the fact that he wouldn't ban land mines ... I'm not tempted to write a song about George W. Bush. I couldn't figure out what sort of song I would write. That's the problem: I don't want to satirize George Bush and his puppeteers, I want to vaporize them."
In 2000, the boxed CD set The Remains of Tom Lehrer was released by Rhino Entertainment. It included live and studio versions of his first two albums, That Was The Year That Was, the songs that he wrote for The Electric Company, and some previously unreleased material, a small hardbound lyrics book with an introduction by Dr. Demento. In 2010, Shout! Factory launched a reissue campaign, making Lehrer's out-of-print albums available digitally. The CD/DVD combo The Tom Lehrer Collection was also issued, including his best-known songs, with a DVD featuring an Oslo concert.
In a February 2008 phone call, Gene Weingarten of The Washington Post interviewed Lehrer off the record. When Weingarten asked if there was anything he could print for the record, Lehrer responded, "Just tell the people that I am voting for Obama."
In 2012 rapper 2 Chainz sampled Lehrer's song "Dope Peddler", on his 2012 debut album, Based on a T.R.U. Story. In 2013, Lehrer said he was "very proud" to have his song sampled "literally sixty years after I recorded it". Lehrer went on to describe his official response to the request to use his song: "As sole copyright owner of 'The Old Dope Peddler', I grant you motherfuckers permission to do this. Please give my regards to Mr. Chainz, or may I call him 2?"
In 2020, at the age of 92, Lehrer donated all of his lyrics and music written by him to the public domain.
Musical legacy
In 1967, Swedish actor Lars Ekborg, known outside Sweden for his part in Ingmar Bergman's Summer with Monika, made an album called I Tom Lehrers vackra värld ("In the beautiful world of Tom Lehrer"), with 12 of Lehrer's songs interpreted in Swedish. Lehrer wrote in a letter to the producer Per-Anders Boquist that, "Not knowing any Swedish, I am obviously not equipped to judge, but it sounds to me as though Mr. Ekborg is perfect for the songs," along with further compliments to pianist Leif Asp for unexpected additional flourishes.
In 1971, Argentinian singer Nacha Guevara sang Spanish versions of several Lehrer songs for the show/live album Este es el año que es.
In 2010, the German musician-comedian Felix Janosa released an album with the title "Tauben vergiften: Die bösen Lieder von Tom Lehrer" ("Poisoning pigeons: The Evil Songs of Tom Lehrer"), with German versions of some of his best-known songs.
Composer Randy Newman said of Lehrer, "He's one of the great American songwriters without a doubt, right up there with everybody, the top guys. As a lyricist, as good as there's been in the last half of the 20th century." Singer and comedian Dillie Keane has acknowledged Lehrer's influence on her work.
Dr. Demento praised Lehrer as "the best musical satirist of the twentieth century." Other artists who cite Lehrer as an influence include "Weird Al" Yankovic, whose work generally addresses more popular and less technical or political subjects, and educator and scientist H. Paul Shuch, who tours under the stage name Dr. SETI, and calls himself "a cross between Carl Sagan and Tom Lehrer: He sings like Sagan and lectures like Lehrer."
From January 16 to February 25, 2006, the play Letters from Lehrer, written and performed by Canadian Richard Greenblatt, ran at CanStage in Toronto. It followed Lehrer's musical career, the meaning of several songs, the politics of the time, and Greenblatt's own experiences with Lehrer's music, while playing some of Lehrer's songs.
Performers influenced by Lehrer's style include American political satirist Mark Russell, Canadian comedian and songwriter Randy Vancourt, and the British duo Kit and The Widow.
In 2004, British medical satirists Amateur Transplants acknowledge the debt they owe to Lehrer on the back of their first album, Fitness to Practice. Their song "The Menstrual Rag" uses the tune of Lehrer's "The Vatican Rag"; and "The Drugs Song" mirrors Lehrer's song "The Elements", both using the tune of the "Major-General's Song" from The Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan. The Amateur Transplants' second album, Unfit to Practise, opens with an update of Lehrer's "The Masochism Tango" called "Masochism Tango 2008".
Discography
Studio albums
Songs by Tom Lehrer (1953), re-recorded in 1966
More of Tom Lehrer (1959)
Live albums
An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer (1959)
Revisited (1960)
Tom Lehrer Discovers Australia (And Vice Versa) (1960; Australia-only)
That Was the Year That Was (1965)
Compilation albums
Tom Lehrer in Concert (1994; UK compilation)
Songs & More Songs by Tom Lehrer (1997; US compilation of his first two studio albums with additional songs)
The Remains of Tom Lehrer (2000)
The Tom Lehrer Collection (2010)
Many of Lehrer's songs are performed by others in That Was The Week That Was (Radiola LP, 1981).
The sheet music of many songs is published in The Tom Lehrer Song Book (Crown Publishers Inc., 1954; Library of Congress Card Catalog Number 54-12068) and Too Many Songs by Tom Lehrer: With Not Enough Drawings by Ronald Searle (Pantheon, 1981, ; Methuen, 1999, ). A second song book, Tom Lehrer's Second Song Book, is out of print, .
References
External links
Archived Tom Lehrer website (from 2008).
Song lyrics and music, released for free use.
Tom Lehrer interview on BBC Radio 4 Desert Island Discs, July 18, 1980
Interview with Tom Lehrer by the Library of Congress on July 22, 2015
1928 births
Living people
20th-century American mathematicians
American agnostics
American comedy musicians
Jewish American male comedians
American lyricists
American male singer-songwriters
American novelty song performers
American satirists
Harvard College alumni
Horace Mann School alumni
Jewish agnostics
Jewish American musicians
Jewish American songwriters
MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences faculty
Parody musicians
People from the Upper East Side
Reprise Records artists
Singers from New York City
University of California, Santa Cruz faculty
Wellesley College faculty
20th-century American pianists
Loomis Chaffee School alumni
American male non-fiction writers
20th-century American comedians
Mathematicians from New York (state)
American male pianists
21st-century American pianists
20th-century American male musicians
21st-century American male musicians
National Security Agency people
United States Army soldiers
Singer-songwriters from New York (state) | false | [
"Wang Maozhai (1862–1940) was one of Wu Quanyou's of Wu-style t'ai chi ch'uan three primary disciples. When Wu Quanyou's son Wu Chien-ch'uan (Wu Jianquan) moved from Beijing to Shanghai in 1928 he remained to lead the Wu-style Beijing group. He was the founder of the Beijing Tai Miao t'ai chi ch'uan Research Centre. In 1929, the first documentary book on Wu-style t'ai chi 'The record of Wu Style Tai Chi Chuan' was published by Wu Chien-ch'uan, Wang Maozhai and Guo Fen. His primary disciple was Yang Yuting.\n\nThe beginnings of Wu-style were created by a Manchurian named Wu Quanyou (1834–1902). Wu was a student of Yang Luchan, (founder of the Yang style), and Yang Banhou. Wu Quanyou’s son, Wu Jianquan (1870–1942), loved martial arts from his youth and studied under the tutorship of his father. After 1912 he continuously developed the teaching t'ai chi ch'uan at the Beijing Sport Research Society, gradually refining his father’s style to what is currently recognised as Wu-style.\n\nT'ai chi ch'uan lineage tree with Wu-style focus\n\nReferences\n\n \n\nChinese tai chi practitioners\n1862 births\n1940 deaths",
"Mainstream jazz is a term coined in the 1950s by music journalist Stanley Dance, who considered anything within the popular jazz of the Swing Era \"mainstream\", and did not include the bebop style.\n\nJazz in the mainstream \n\nAfter Dance defined mainstream jazz in the 1950s, the definition changed with the evolution and progression of jazz music. What was mainstream then would not be considered mainstream now. In a general sense, mainstream jazz can be considered what was most popular at the time: For example, during the Swing era, swing and big band music were in their prime and what target audiences were looking for. Although bebop was introduced into jazz during that time, audiences had not developed an ear for it.\n\nMainstream jazz musicians \nThe jazz musicians listed below were either considered \"mainstream\" musicians, or were influenced by mainstream musicians.\n\nSwing era \n Duke Ellington was an important influence on mainstream jazz; his music during the swing era was not known for breaking rules. \n Coleman Hawkins made significant contributions to big band music prior to introducing bebop to his style. \n Johnny Hodges was a member of Duke Ellington's Orchestra and became a familiar voice within the orchestra itself. \n Benny Carter was a major influence on the big band style. \n Roy Eldridge has been named one of the most influential jazz musicians both within the swing era and to the development of bebop. His trumpet playing was influenced by Louis Armstrong.\n\nMainstream jazz in popular culture \nIn the 1950s and 1960s, jazz was a mainstream part of pop culture. Jazz music was on the radio and Hollywood frequently incorporated jazz in television and films.\n\nReferences \n\n \nJazz genres"
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| C_c961772cd2d64c99971128bee7391985_0 | What controversial subjects? | 2 | What controversial subjects kept Tom Lehrer from getting radio time? | Tom Lehrer | In 1953, inspired by the success of his performances, Lehrer paid $15 for some studio time to record Songs by Tom Lehrer. The initial pressing was 400 copies. At the time, radio stations would not give Lehrer air time because of his controversial subjects. He sold his album on campus at Harvard for $3 (equivalent to $27.00 today), while "several stores near the Harvard campus sold it for $3.50, taking only a minimal markup as a kind of community service. Newsstands on campus sold it for the same price." After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country (as far away as San Francisco, after The Chronicle wrote an article on the record). Interest in his recordings was spread by word of mouth; friends and supporters brought their records home and played them for their friends, who then also wanted a copy. Lehrer later recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola." The album--which included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risque "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" (regarding plagiarizing mathematicians)--became a cult success via word of mouth, despite being self-published and without promotion. Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours and in 1959 recorded a second album, which was released in two versions: the songs were the same, but More of Tom Lehrer was studio-recorded while An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer was recorded live in concert. In 2013, Lehrer recalled the studio session for "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park," which referred to the practice of controlling pigeons in Boston with strychnine-treated corn: "The copyist arrived at the last minute with the parts and passed them out to the band... And there was no title on it, and there was no lyrics. And so they ran through it, 'what a pleasant little waltz'... And the engineer said, '"Poisoning Pigeons in the Park,' take one," and the piano player said, '"What?"' and literally fell off the stool." CANNOTANSWER | The album--which included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risque "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" (regarding plagiarizing mathematicians)-- | Thomas Andrew Lehrer (; born April 9, 1928) is a retired American musician, singer-songwriter, satirist, and mathematician, having lectured on mathematics and musical theater. He is best known for the pithy and humorous songs that he recorded in the 1950s and 1960s. His songs often parodied popular musical forms, though he usually created original melodies when doing so. A notable exception is "The Elements", in which he set the names of the chemical elements to the tune of the "Major-General's Song" from Gilbert and Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance.
Lehrer's early musical work typically dealt with non-topical subject matter and was noted for its black humor in songs such as "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park". In the 1960s, he produced a number of songs that dealt with social and political issues of the day, particularly when he wrote for the U.S. version of the television show That Was the Week That Was. The popularity of these songs has far outlasted their topical subjects and references. Lehrer quoted a friend's explanation: "Always predict the worst and you'll be hailed as a prophet." In the early 1970s, Lehrer largely retired from public performances to devote his time to teaching mathematics and musical theater history at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Early life
Thomas Andrew Lehrer was born on April 9, 1928 to a secular Jewish family and grew up on Manhattan's Upper East Side. He was the second and younger son of Moses James Lehrer (1898-?) and Anna Lehrer (née Waller) (1905-1978). He had an older brother. He began studying classical piano at the age of seven, but was more interested in the popular music of the age. Eventually, his mother also sent him to a popular-music piano teacher. At this early age, he began writing show tunes, which eventually helped him as a satirical composer and writer in his years of lecturing at Harvard University and later at other universities.
Lehrer attended the Horace Mann School in Riverdale, New York, part of the Bronx. He also attended Camp Androscoggin, both as a camper and a counselor. Lehrer was considered a child prodigy and entered Harvard College, where one of his professors was Irving Kaplansky, at the age of 15 after graduating from Loomis School. As a mathematics undergraduate student at Harvard College, he began to write comic songs to entertain his friends, including "Fight Fiercely, Harvard" (1945). Those songs were later named collectively The Physical Revue, a joking reference to a leading scientific journal, the Physical Review.
Academic and military career
Lehrer graduated Bachelor of Arts in mathematics from Harvard University, magna cum laude, in 1946. At Harvard, he was the roommate of the Canadian theologian Robert Crouse. He received his AM degree the next year and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. He later taught mathematics and other classes at MIT, Harvard, Wellesley, and the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Lehrer remained in Harvard's doctoral program for several years, taking time out for his musical career and to work as a researcher at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory.
Lehrer was drafted into the U.S. Army from 1955 to 1957, working at the National Security Agency (NSA). Lehrer has stated that he invented the Jello shot during this time, as a means of circumventing the base's ban on alcoholic beverages.
Despite holding a master's degree in an era when American conscripts often lacked a high school diploma, Lehrer served as an enlisted soldier, achieving the rank of Specialist Third Class, which he described as being a "corporal without portfolio". These experiences became fodder for songs, such as "The Wild West is Where I Want to Be" and "It Makes a Fellow Proud to Be a Soldier". It was many years before Lehrer publicly revealed that he had been assigned to the NSA, since the mere fact of its existence was classified at the time; this left him in the interesting position of implicitly using nuclear weapons work as a cover story for something more sensitive.
In 1960, Lehrer returned to full-time math studies at Harvard.
From 1962, Lehrer taught in the political science department at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). In 1965 he gave up on his mathematics dissertation on modes in statistics, after having worked on it intermittently for 15 years.
In 1972, Lehrer joined the faculty of the University of California, Santa Cruz, teaching an introductory course entitled The Nature of Mathematics to liberal arts majors—"math for tenors", according to Lehrer. He also taught a class in musical theater. He occasionally performed songs in his lectures.
In 2001, Lehrer taught his last mathematics class, on the topic of infinity, and retired from academia. He has remained in the area, and in 2003 said he still "hangs out" around the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Publications
The American Mathematical Society database lists him as co-author of two papers:
Two of Lehrer's songs were also reprinted, with his permission, in MAD Magazine:
Tom Lehrer Sings "The Wild West is Where I Where I Want To Be" (illustrated by George Woodbridge, MAD #32, April 1957)
Tom Lehrer's "The Hunting Song" (illustrated by George Woodbridge, MAD #35, October 1957)
Musical career
Style and influences
Lehrer was mainly influenced by musical theater. According to Gerald Nachman's book Seriously Funny, the Broadway musical Let's Face It! made an early and lasting impression on him. Lehrer's style consists of parodying various forms of popular song. For example, his appreciation of list songs led him to write "The Elements", which lists the chemical elements to the tune of Gilbert and Sullivan's "Major-General's Song".
In author and Boston University professor Isaac Asimov's second autobiographical volume, In Joy Still Felt, Asimov recounted seeing Lehrer perform in a Boston nightclub on October 9, 1954. Lehrer sang a song about Jim getting it from Louise, and Sally from Jim, "...and after a while you gathered the 'it' was venereal disease. [The song was likely "I Got It From Agnes".] Suddenly, as the combinations grew more grotesque, you realized he was satirizing every known perversion without using a single naughty phrase. It was clearly unsingable outside a nightclub." Asimov also recalled a song that dealt with the Boston subway system, making use of the stations leading into town from Harvard, observing that the local subject-matter rendered the song useless for general distribution. Lehrer subsequently granted Asimov permission to print the lyrics to the subway song in his book. "I haven't gone to nightclubs often," said Asimov, "but of all the times I have gone, it was on this occasion that I had by far the best time."
Recordings
Lehrer was encouraged by the success of his performances, so he paid $15 () for some studio time in 1953 to record Songs by Tom Lehrer. The initial pressing was 400 copies. Radio stations would not air his songs because of his controversial subjects, so he sold the album on campus at Harvard for $3, , while "several stores near the Harvard campus sold it for $3.50, taking only a minimal markup as a kind of community service. Newsstands on campus sold it for the same price." After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country, as far away as San Francisco, after the San Francisco Chronicle wrote an article on the record. Interest in his recordings spread by word of mouth. People played their records for friends, who then also wanted a copy. Lehrer recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola."
The album included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risqué "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" regarding plagiarizing mathematicians. It became a cult success by word of mouth, despite being self-published and without promotion. Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours and recorded a second album in 1959. He released the second album in two versions: the songs were the same, but More of Tom Lehrer was a studio recording and An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer was recorded live in concert. In 2013, Lehrer recalled the studio session for "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park", which referred to the practice of controlling pigeons in Boston with strychnine-treated corn:
Touring
Lehrer had a breakthrough in the United Kingdom on December 4, 1957, when the University of London awarded a doctor of music degree honoris causa to Princess Margaret, and the public orator, Professor J. R. Sutherland, said it was "in the full knowledge that the Princess is a connoisseur of music and a performer of skill and distinction, her taste being catholic, ranging from Mozart to the calypso and from opera to the songs of Miss Beatrice Lillie and Tom Lehrer." This prompted significant interest in Lehrer's works and helped to secure distribution for his five-year-old debut album in Britain. It was there that his music achieved real sales popularity, as a result of the proliferation of university newspapers referring to the material, and inadvertently due to the BBC, which in 1958 banned from broadcast 10 of the 12 songs on the album. By the end of the 1950s, Lehrer had sold 370,000 records.
That Was The Week That Was
In 1960, Lehrer essentially retired from touring in the U.S.
The same year, Lehrer toured Australia and New Zealand, performing a total of 33 concerts to great acclaim and controversy. While in New Zealand, Lehrer wrote a song criticizing the All Blacks rugby team 1960 tour of apartheid South Africa. These tours occurred during a time in which he was, he said, "banned, censored, mentioned in several houses of parliament and threatened with arrest". In particular, "Be Prepared" drew advance resistance in Brisbane from the commissioner of police. He performed several unreleased songs in Australia, including "The Masochism Tango".
In the early 1960s, he was employed as the resident songwriter for the U.S. edition of That Was The Week That Was (TW3), a satirical television show.
A greater proportion of his output became overtly political, or at least topical, on subjects such as education ("New Math"), the Second Vatican Council ("The Vatican Rag", a tune based on the 1910 "Spaghetti Rag" by Lyons and Yosco), race relations ("National Brotherhood Week"), air and water pollution ("Pollution"), American militarism ("Send the Marines"), and nuclear proliferation ("Who's Next?" and "MLF Lullaby"). He also wrote a song satirizing rocket scientist Wernher von Braun, who worked for Nazi Germany before working for the United States. (Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down? That's not my department,' says Wernher von Braun.") Lehrer did not appear on the television show; vocalist Nancy Ames performed his songs (to Lehrer's chagrin), and network censors often altered his lyrics. Lehrer later performed these songs on the album That Was The Year That Was (1965) at which point people could hear them the way that he intended.
In 1966, BBC TV host David Frost invited him to contribute some of his classic compositions to his BBC program The Frost Report. The show was transmitted live, and he pre-recorded all his segments at one performance. Lehrer was not featured in every edition, but his songs featured in an appropriate part of each show. At least two of his songs were not included on any of his LPs: a reworking of Noël Coward's "That is the End of the News" (with some new lyrics) and a comic explanation of how Britain might adapt to the coming of decimal currency.
The record deal with Reprise Records for That Was The Year That Was also gave Reprise distribution rights for his earlier recordings, as Lehrer wanted to wind up his own record imprint. The Reprise issue of Songs by Tom Lehrer was a stereo re-recording. This version was not issued on CD, but the songs were issued on the live Tom Lehrer Revisited CD. The live recording included bonus tracks "L-Y" and "Silent E", two of the ten songs that he wrote for the PBS children's educational series The Electric Company. Lehrer later commented that worldwide sales of the recordings under Reprise surpassed 1.8 million units in 1996. That same year, That Was The Year That Was went gold. The album liner notes promote his songs with self-deprecating humor, such as quoting a New York Times review from 1959: Mr. Lehrer's muse is "not fettered by such inhibiting factors as taste."
Lehrer made a short tour in Norway and Denmark in 1967, performing some of the songs from the television program. His performance in Oslo on September 10 was recorded on video tape and aired locally that autumn, then released on DVD some 40 years later. He performed as a prominent international guest at the Studenterforeningen (student association) in Copenhagen, which was televised, and he commented on stage that he might be America's "revenge for Victor Borge". He performed original songs in a Dodge automobile industrial film distributed primarily to automobile dealers and shown at promotional events in 1967, set in a fictional American wild west town and titled The Dodge Rebellion Theatre presents Ballads For '67. He attempted to adapt Sweeney Todd as a Broadway musical, working with Joe Raposo, to star Jerry Colonna. They started a few songs but, as Lehrer noted, "Nothing ever came of it, and of course twenty years later Stephen Sondheim beat me to the punch."
Departure from the music scene
In the 1970s, Lehrer concentrated on teaching mathematics and musical theater, although he also wrote ten songs for the educational children's television show The Electric Company. His last public performance for many years took place in 1972, on a fundraising tour for Democratic US presidential candidate George McGovern.
When asked about his reasons for abandoning his musical career in an interview in the book accompanying his CD box set, released in 2000, Lehrer cited a lack of interest, a disdain of touring, and the monotony of performing the same songs repeatedly. He observed that when he was moved to write and perform songs, he did, and when he was not, he did not, and that after a while he simply lost interest. Even though Lehrer was "a hero of the anti-nuclear, civil rights left" and covered its political issues in many of his songs, and even though he shared the New Left's opposition to the Vietnam War, and advocated for civil rights, he disliked the aesthetics of the counterculture of the 1960s and stopped performing as the movement gained momentum.
Lehrer's musical career was relatively brief. He once mentioned that he performed a mere 109 shows and wrote 37 songs over 20 years. Nevertheless, he developed a significant following in the United States and abroad.
Revivals and discographic reissues
In 1980, Cameron Mackintosh produced Tomfoolery, a revue of Lehrer's songs that was a hit on the London stage. Lehrer was not initially involved with the show, but he was pleased with it; he eventually gave the stage production his full support and updated several of his lyrics for the show. Tomfoolery contained 27 songs and led to more than 200 productions, including an Off-Broadway production at the Village Gate which ran for 120 performances in 1981. Lehrer made a rare TV appearance on BBC's Parkinson show in conjunction with the Tom Foolery premiere in 1980 at the Criterion Theatre in London, where he sang "I Got It from Agnes". There were "Tomfoolery" performances in San Francisco about 1982 and in 2018–19. In 1993, he wrote "That's Mathematics" for the closing credits to a Mathematical Sciences Research Institute video celebrating the proof of Fermat's Last Theorem.
On June 7 and 8, 1998, Lehrer performed in public for the first time in 25 years at the Lyceum Theatre, London as part of the show Hey, Mr. Producer! celebrating the career of Cameron Mackintosh, who had produced Tom Foolery. The June 8 show was his only performance before Queen Elizabeth II. Lehrer sang "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park" and an updated version of the nuclear proliferation song "Who's Next?"
In 2000 Lehrer commented that he doubted his songs had any real effect on those not already critical of the establishment: "I don't think this kind of thing has an impact on the unconverted, frankly. It's not even preaching to the converted; it's titillating the converted ... I'm fond of quoting Peter Cook, who talked about the satirical Berlin kabaretts of the 1930s, which did so much to stop the rise of Hitler and prevent the Second World War."
Lehrer has said, jokingly, of his musical career, "If, after hearing my songs, just one human being is inspired to say something nasty to a friend, or perhaps to strike a loved one, it will all have been worth the while."
In 2003, Lehrer commented that his particular brand of political satire is more difficult in the modern world: "The real issues I don't think most people touch. The Clinton jokes are all about Monica Lewinsky and all that stuff and not about the important things, like the fact that he wouldn't ban land mines ... I'm not tempted to write a song about George W. Bush. I couldn't figure out what sort of song I would write. That's the problem: I don't want to satirize George Bush and his puppeteers, I want to vaporize them."
In 2000, the boxed CD set The Remains of Tom Lehrer was released by Rhino Entertainment. It included live and studio versions of his first two albums, That Was The Year That Was, the songs that he wrote for The Electric Company, and some previously unreleased material, a small hardbound lyrics book with an introduction by Dr. Demento. In 2010, Shout! Factory launched a reissue campaign, making Lehrer's out-of-print albums available digitally. The CD/DVD combo The Tom Lehrer Collection was also issued, including his best-known songs, with a DVD featuring an Oslo concert.
In a February 2008 phone call, Gene Weingarten of The Washington Post interviewed Lehrer off the record. When Weingarten asked if there was anything he could print for the record, Lehrer responded, "Just tell the people that I am voting for Obama."
In 2012 rapper 2 Chainz sampled Lehrer's song "Dope Peddler", on his 2012 debut album, Based on a T.R.U. Story. In 2013, Lehrer said he was "very proud" to have his song sampled "literally sixty years after I recorded it". Lehrer went on to describe his official response to the request to use his song: "As sole copyright owner of 'The Old Dope Peddler', I grant you motherfuckers permission to do this. Please give my regards to Mr. Chainz, or may I call him 2?"
In 2020, at the age of 92, Lehrer donated all of his lyrics and music written by him to the public domain.
Musical legacy
In 1967, Swedish actor Lars Ekborg, known outside Sweden for his part in Ingmar Bergman's Summer with Monika, made an album called I Tom Lehrers vackra värld ("In the beautiful world of Tom Lehrer"), with 12 of Lehrer's songs interpreted in Swedish. Lehrer wrote in a letter to the producer Per-Anders Boquist that, "Not knowing any Swedish, I am obviously not equipped to judge, but it sounds to me as though Mr. Ekborg is perfect for the songs," along with further compliments to pianist Leif Asp for unexpected additional flourishes.
In 1971, Argentinian singer Nacha Guevara sang Spanish versions of several Lehrer songs for the show/live album Este es el año que es.
In 2010, the German musician-comedian Felix Janosa released an album with the title "Tauben vergiften: Die bösen Lieder von Tom Lehrer" ("Poisoning pigeons: The Evil Songs of Tom Lehrer"), with German versions of some of his best-known songs.
Composer Randy Newman said of Lehrer, "He's one of the great American songwriters without a doubt, right up there with everybody, the top guys. As a lyricist, as good as there's been in the last half of the 20th century." Singer and comedian Dillie Keane has acknowledged Lehrer's influence on her work.
Dr. Demento praised Lehrer as "the best musical satirist of the twentieth century." Other artists who cite Lehrer as an influence include "Weird Al" Yankovic, whose work generally addresses more popular and less technical or political subjects, and educator and scientist H. Paul Shuch, who tours under the stage name Dr. SETI, and calls himself "a cross between Carl Sagan and Tom Lehrer: He sings like Sagan and lectures like Lehrer."
From January 16 to February 25, 2006, the play Letters from Lehrer, written and performed by Canadian Richard Greenblatt, ran at CanStage in Toronto. It followed Lehrer's musical career, the meaning of several songs, the politics of the time, and Greenblatt's own experiences with Lehrer's music, while playing some of Lehrer's songs.
Performers influenced by Lehrer's style include American political satirist Mark Russell, Canadian comedian and songwriter Randy Vancourt, and the British duo Kit and The Widow.
In 2004, British medical satirists Amateur Transplants acknowledge the debt they owe to Lehrer on the back of their first album, Fitness to Practice. Their song "The Menstrual Rag" uses the tune of Lehrer's "The Vatican Rag"; and "The Drugs Song" mirrors Lehrer's song "The Elements", both using the tune of the "Major-General's Song" from The Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan. The Amateur Transplants' second album, Unfit to Practise, opens with an update of Lehrer's "The Masochism Tango" called "Masochism Tango 2008".
Discography
Studio albums
Songs by Tom Lehrer (1953), re-recorded in 1966
More of Tom Lehrer (1959)
Live albums
An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer (1959)
Revisited (1960)
Tom Lehrer Discovers Australia (And Vice Versa) (1960; Australia-only)
That Was the Year That Was (1965)
Compilation albums
Tom Lehrer in Concert (1994; UK compilation)
Songs & More Songs by Tom Lehrer (1997; US compilation of his first two studio albums with additional songs)
The Remains of Tom Lehrer (2000)
The Tom Lehrer Collection (2010)
Many of Lehrer's songs are performed by others in That Was The Week That Was (Radiola LP, 1981).
The sheet music of many songs is published in The Tom Lehrer Song Book (Crown Publishers Inc., 1954; Library of Congress Card Catalog Number 54-12068) and Too Many Songs by Tom Lehrer: With Not Enough Drawings by Ronald Searle (Pantheon, 1981, ; Methuen, 1999, ). A second song book, Tom Lehrer's Second Song Book, is out of print, .
References
External links
Archived Tom Lehrer website (from 2008).
Song lyrics and music, released for free use.
Tom Lehrer interview on BBC Radio 4 Desert Island Discs, July 18, 1980
Interview with Tom Lehrer by the Library of Congress on July 22, 2015
1928 births
Living people
20th-century American mathematicians
American agnostics
American comedy musicians
Jewish American male comedians
American lyricists
American male singer-songwriters
American novelty song performers
American satirists
Harvard College alumni
Horace Mann School alumni
Jewish agnostics
Jewish American musicians
Jewish American songwriters
MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences faculty
Parody musicians
People from the Upper East Side
Reprise Records artists
Singers from New York City
University of California, Santa Cruz faculty
Wellesley College faculty
20th-century American pianists
Loomis Chaffee School alumni
American male non-fiction writers
20th-century American comedians
Mathematicians from New York (state)
American male pianists
21st-century American pianists
20th-century American male musicians
21st-century American male musicians
National Security Agency people
United States Army soldiers
Singer-songwriters from New York (state) | false | [
"The Chrystal Rose Show is a British talk show presented by Chrystal Rose. Produced by Carlton Television, the programme discussed controversial subjects and was first broadcast on ITV in January 1993.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n IMDb Profile\n\n1993 British television series debuts\n1996 British television series endings\nBritish television talk shows\nITV (TV network) original programming\nCarlton Television\nTelevision series by ITV Studios\nEnglish-language television shows",
"The memory confusion protocol is a technique used by social psychologists to discover whether subjects are categorizing individuals into groups and, if so, what characteristics they are using to do so – without the knowledge of the subjects, in order to reduce the risk that subjects will try to conceal their reasons. The technique has three main steps:\nSubjects are shown photographs of the individuals and are asked to form impressions of them.\nThe subjects then see a set of sentences, each of which is paired with a photograph of the individual who said it.\nSubjects are not forewarned of the final step, a surprise recall task: the sentences are presented in random order, and the subjects must attribute each to the correct individual.\n\nThe subjects' mistakes in the recall task reveal how they categorize the individuals: the subjects are more likely to misattribute A's statement to B if they grouped A and B as members of the same category than if they considered them members of different categories.\n\nReferences\n\nSocial psychology"
]
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"Tom Lehrer",
"Style and Influences",
"What was his style?",
"At the time, radio stations would not give Lehrer air time because of his controversial subjects.",
"What controversial subjects?",
"The album--which included the macabre \"I Hold Your Hand in Mine\", the mildly risque \"Be Prepared\", and \"Lobachevsky\" (regarding plagiarizing mathematicians)--"
]
| C_c961772cd2d64c99971128bee7391985_0 | What genre of music did he make? | 3 | What genre of music did Tom Lehrer make? | Tom Lehrer | In 1953, inspired by the success of his performances, Lehrer paid $15 for some studio time to record Songs by Tom Lehrer. The initial pressing was 400 copies. At the time, radio stations would not give Lehrer air time because of his controversial subjects. He sold his album on campus at Harvard for $3 (equivalent to $27.00 today), while "several stores near the Harvard campus sold it for $3.50, taking only a minimal markup as a kind of community service. Newsstands on campus sold it for the same price." After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country (as far away as San Francisco, after The Chronicle wrote an article on the record). Interest in his recordings was spread by word of mouth; friends and supporters brought their records home and played them for their friends, who then also wanted a copy. Lehrer later recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola." The album--which included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risque "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" (regarding plagiarizing mathematicians)--became a cult success via word of mouth, despite being self-published and without promotion. Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours and in 1959 recorded a second album, which was released in two versions: the songs were the same, but More of Tom Lehrer was studio-recorded while An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer was recorded live in concert. In 2013, Lehrer recalled the studio session for "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park," which referred to the practice of controlling pigeons in Boston with strychnine-treated corn: "The copyist arrived at the last minute with the parts and passed them out to the band... And there was no title on it, and there was no lyrics. And so they ran through it, 'what a pleasant little waltz'... And the engineer said, '"Poisoning Pigeons in the Park,' take one," and the piano player said, '"What?"' and literally fell off the stool." CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Thomas Andrew Lehrer (; born April 9, 1928) is a retired American musician, singer-songwriter, satirist, and mathematician, having lectured on mathematics and musical theater. He is best known for the pithy and humorous songs that he recorded in the 1950s and 1960s. His songs often parodied popular musical forms, though he usually created original melodies when doing so. A notable exception is "The Elements", in which he set the names of the chemical elements to the tune of the "Major-General's Song" from Gilbert and Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance.
Lehrer's early musical work typically dealt with non-topical subject matter and was noted for its black humor in songs such as "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park". In the 1960s, he produced a number of songs that dealt with social and political issues of the day, particularly when he wrote for the U.S. version of the television show That Was the Week That Was. The popularity of these songs has far outlasted their topical subjects and references. Lehrer quoted a friend's explanation: "Always predict the worst and you'll be hailed as a prophet." In the early 1970s, Lehrer largely retired from public performances to devote his time to teaching mathematics and musical theater history at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Early life
Thomas Andrew Lehrer was born on April 9, 1928 to a secular Jewish family and grew up on Manhattan's Upper East Side. He was the second and younger son of Moses James Lehrer (1898-?) and Anna Lehrer (née Waller) (1905-1978). He had an older brother. He began studying classical piano at the age of seven, but was more interested in the popular music of the age. Eventually, his mother also sent him to a popular-music piano teacher. At this early age, he began writing show tunes, which eventually helped him as a satirical composer and writer in his years of lecturing at Harvard University and later at other universities.
Lehrer attended the Horace Mann School in Riverdale, New York, part of the Bronx. He also attended Camp Androscoggin, both as a camper and a counselor. Lehrer was considered a child prodigy and entered Harvard College, where one of his professors was Irving Kaplansky, at the age of 15 after graduating from Loomis School. As a mathematics undergraduate student at Harvard College, he began to write comic songs to entertain his friends, including "Fight Fiercely, Harvard" (1945). Those songs were later named collectively The Physical Revue, a joking reference to a leading scientific journal, the Physical Review.
Academic and military career
Lehrer graduated Bachelor of Arts in mathematics from Harvard University, magna cum laude, in 1946. At Harvard, he was the roommate of the Canadian theologian Robert Crouse. He received his AM degree the next year and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. He later taught mathematics and other classes at MIT, Harvard, Wellesley, and the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Lehrer remained in Harvard's doctoral program for several years, taking time out for his musical career and to work as a researcher at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory.
Lehrer was drafted into the U.S. Army from 1955 to 1957, working at the National Security Agency (NSA). Lehrer has stated that he invented the Jello shot during this time, as a means of circumventing the base's ban on alcoholic beverages.
Despite holding a master's degree in an era when American conscripts often lacked a high school diploma, Lehrer served as an enlisted soldier, achieving the rank of Specialist Third Class, which he described as being a "corporal without portfolio". These experiences became fodder for songs, such as "The Wild West is Where I Want to Be" and "It Makes a Fellow Proud to Be a Soldier". It was many years before Lehrer publicly revealed that he had been assigned to the NSA, since the mere fact of its existence was classified at the time; this left him in the interesting position of implicitly using nuclear weapons work as a cover story for something more sensitive.
In 1960, Lehrer returned to full-time math studies at Harvard.
From 1962, Lehrer taught in the political science department at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). In 1965 he gave up on his mathematics dissertation on modes in statistics, after having worked on it intermittently for 15 years.
In 1972, Lehrer joined the faculty of the University of California, Santa Cruz, teaching an introductory course entitled The Nature of Mathematics to liberal arts majors—"math for tenors", according to Lehrer. He also taught a class in musical theater. He occasionally performed songs in his lectures.
In 2001, Lehrer taught his last mathematics class, on the topic of infinity, and retired from academia. He has remained in the area, and in 2003 said he still "hangs out" around the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Publications
The American Mathematical Society database lists him as co-author of two papers:
Two of Lehrer's songs were also reprinted, with his permission, in MAD Magazine:
Tom Lehrer Sings "The Wild West is Where I Where I Want To Be" (illustrated by George Woodbridge, MAD #32, April 1957)
Tom Lehrer's "The Hunting Song" (illustrated by George Woodbridge, MAD #35, October 1957)
Musical career
Style and influences
Lehrer was mainly influenced by musical theater. According to Gerald Nachman's book Seriously Funny, the Broadway musical Let's Face It! made an early and lasting impression on him. Lehrer's style consists of parodying various forms of popular song. For example, his appreciation of list songs led him to write "The Elements", which lists the chemical elements to the tune of Gilbert and Sullivan's "Major-General's Song".
In author and Boston University professor Isaac Asimov's second autobiographical volume, In Joy Still Felt, Asimov recounted seeing Lehrer perform in a Boston nightclub on October 9, 1954. Lehrer sang a song about Jim getting it from Louise, and Sally from Jim, "...and after a while you gathered the 'it' was venereal disease. [The song was likely "I Got It From Agnes".] Suddenly, as the combinations grew more grotesque, you realized he was satirizing every known perversion without using a single naughty phrase. It was clearly unsingable outside a nightclub." Asimov also recalled a song that dealt with the Boston subway system, making use of the stations leading into town from Harvard, observing that the local subject-matter rendered the song useless for general distribution. Lehrer subsequently granted Asimov permission to print the lyrics to the subway song in his book. "I haven't gone to nightclubs often," said Asimov, "but of all the times I have gone, it was on this occasion that I had by far the best time."
Recordings
Lehrer was encouraged by the success of his performances, so he paid $15 () for some studio time in 1953 to record Songs by Tom Lehrer. The initial pressing was 400 copies. Radio stations would not air his songs because of his controversial subjects, so he sold the album on campus at Harvard for $3, , while "several stores near the Harvard campus sold it for $3.50, taking only a minimal markup as a kind of community service. Newsstands on campus sold it for the same price." After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country, as far away as San Francisco, after the San Francisco Chronicle wrote an article on the record. Interest in his recordings spread by word of mouth. People played their records for friends, who then also wanted a copy. Lehrer recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola."
The album included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risqué "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" regarding plagiarizing mathematicians. It became a cult success by word of mouth, despite being self-published and without promotion. Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours and recorded a second album in 1959. He released the second album in two versions: the songs were the same, but More of Tom Lehrer was a studio recording and An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer was recorded live in concert. In 2013, Lehrer recalled the studio session for "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park", which referred to the practice of controlling pigeons in Boston with strychnine-treated corn:
Touring
Lehrer had a breakthrough in the United Kingdom on December 4, 1957, when the University of London awarded a doctor of music degree honoris causa to Princess Margaret, and the public orator, Professor J. R. Sutherland, said it was "in the full knowledge that the Princess is a connoisseur of music and a performer of skill and distinction, her taste being catholic, ranging from Mozart to the calypso and from opera to the songs of Miss Beatrice Lillie and Tom Lehrer." This prompted significant interest in Lehrer's works and helped to secure distribution for his five-year-old debut album in Britain. It was there that his music achieved real sales popularity, as a result of the proliferation of university newspapers referring to the material, and inadvertently due to the BBC, which in 1958 banned from broadcast 10 of the 12 songs on the album. By the end of the 1950s, Lehrer had sold 370,000 records.
That Was The Week That Was
In 1960, Lehrer essentially retired from touring in the U.S.
The same year, Lehrer toured Australia and New Zealand, performing a total of 33 concerts to great acclaim and controversy. While in New Zealand, Lehrer wrote a song criticizing the All Blacks rugby team 1960 tour of apartheid South Africa. These tours occurred during a time in which he was, he said, "banned, censored, mentioned in several houses of parliament and threatened with arrest". In particular, "Be Prepared" drew advance resistance in Brisbane from the commissioner of police. He performed several unreleased songs in Australia, including "The Masochism Tango".
In the early 1960s, he was employed as the resident songwriter for the U.S. edition of That Was The Week That Was (TW3), a satirical television show.
A greater proportion of his output became overtly political, or at least topical, on subjects such as education ("New Math"), the Second Vatican Council ("The Vatican Rag", a tune based on the 1910 "Spaghetti Rag" by Lyons and Yosco), race relations ("National Brotherhood Week"), air and water pollution ("Pollution"), American militarism ("Send the Marines"), and nuclear proliferation ("Who's Next?" and "MLF Lullaby"). He also wrote a song satirizing rocket scientist Wernher von Braun, who worked for Nazi Germany before working for the United States. (Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down? That's not my department,' says Wernher von Braun.") Lehrer did not appear on the television show; vocalist Nancy Ames performed his songs (to Lehrer's chagrin), and network censors often altered his lyrics. Lehrer later performed these songs on the album That Was The Year That Was (1965) at which point people could hear them the way that he intended.
In 1966, BBC TV host David Frost invited him to contribute some of his classic compositions to his BBC program The Frost Report. The show was transmitted live, and he pre-recorded all his segments at one performance. Lehrer was not featured in every edition, but his songs featured in an appropriate part of each show. At least two of his songs were not included on any of his LPs: a reworking of Noël Coward's "That is the End of the News" (with some new lyrics) and a comic explanation of how Britain might adapt to the coming of decimal currency.
The record deal with Reprise Records for That Was The Year That Was also gave Reprise distribution rights for his earlier recordings, as Lehrer wanted to wind up his own record imprint. The Reprise issue of Songs by Tom Lehrer was a stereo re-recording. This version was not issued on CD, but the songs were issued on the live Tom Lehrer Revisited CD. The live recording included bonus tracks "L-Y" and "Silent E", two of the ten songs that he wrote for the PBS children's educational series The Electric Company. Lehrer later commented that worldwide sales of the recordings under Reprise surpassed 1.8 million units in 1996. That same year, That Was The Year That Was went gold. The album liner notes promote his songs with self-deprecating humor, such as quoting a New York Times review from 1959: Mr. Lehrer's muse is "not fettered by such inhibiting factors as taste."
Lehrer made a short tour in Norway and Denmark in 1967, performing some of the songs from the television program. His performance in Oslo on September 10 was recorded on video tape and aired locally that autumn, then released on DVD some 40 years later. He performed as a prominent international guest at the Studenterforeningen (student association) in Copenhagen, which was televised, and he commented on stage that he might be America's "revenge for Victor Borge". He performed original songs in a Dodge automobile industrial film distributed primarily to automobile dealers and shown at promotional events in 1967, set in a fictional American wild west town and titled The Dodge Rebellion Theatre presents Ballads For '67. He attempted to adapt Sweeney Todd as a Broadway musical, working with Joe Raposo, to star Jerry Colonna. They started a few songs but, as Lehrer noted, "Nothing ever came of it, and of course twenty years later Stephen Sondheim beat me to the punch."
Departure from the music scene
In the 1970s, Lehrer concentrated on teaching mathematics and musical theater, although he also wrote ten songs for the educational children's television show The Electric Company. His last public performance for many years took place in 1972, on a fundraising tour for Democratic US presidential candidate George McGovern.
When asked about his reasons for abandoning his musical career in an interview in the book accompanying his CD box set, released in 2000, Lehrer cited a lack of interest, a disdain of touring, and the monotony of performing the same songs repeatedly. He observed that when he was moved to write and perform songs, he did, and when he was not, he did not, and that after a while he simply lost interest. Even though Lehrer was "a hero of the anti-nuclear, civil rights left" and covered its political issues in many of his songs, and even though he shared the New Left's opposition to the Vietnam War, and advocated for civil rights, he disliked the aesthetics of the counterculture of the 1960s and stopped performing as the movement gained momentum.
Lehrer's musical career was relatively brief. He once mentioned that he performed a mere 109 shows and wrote 37 songs over 20 years. Nevertheless, he developed a significant following in the United States and abroad.
Revivals and discographic reissues
In 1980, Cameron Mackintosh produced Tomfoolery, a revue of Lehrer's songs that was a hit on the London stage. Lehrer was not initially involved with the show, but he was pleased with it; he eventually gave the stage production his full support and updated several of his lyrics for the show. Tomfoolery contained 27 songs and led to more than 200 productions, including an Off-Broadway production at the Village Gate which ran for 120 performances in 1981. Lehrer made a rare TV appearance on BBC's Parkinson show in conjunction with the Tom Foolery premiere in 1980 at the Criterion Theatre in London, where he sang "I Got It from Agnes". There were "Tomfoolery" performances in San Francisco about 1982 and in 2018–19. In 1993, he wrote "That's Mathematics" for the closing credits to a Mathematical Sciences Research Institute video celebrating the proof of Fermat's Last Theorem.
On June 7 and 8, 1998, Lehrer performed in public for the first time in 25 years at the Lyceum Theatre, London as part of the show Hey, Mr. Producer! celebrating the career of Cameron Mackintosh, who had produced Tom Foolery. The June 8 show was his only performance before Queen Elizabeth II. Lehrer sang "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park" and an updated version of the nuclear proliferation song "Who's Next?"
In 2000 Lehrer commented that he doubted his songs had any real effect on those not already critical of the establishment: "I don't think this kind of thing has an impact on the unconverted, frankly. It's not even preaching to the converted; it's titillating the converted ... I'm fond of quoting Peter Cook, who talked about the satirical Berlin kabaretts of the 1930s, which did so much to stop the rise of Hitler and prevent the Second World War."
Lehrer has said, jokingly, of his musical career, "If, after hearing my songs, just one human being is inspired to say something nasty to a friend, or perhaps to strike a loved one, it will all have been worth the while."
In 2003, Lehrer commented that his particular brand of political satire is more difficult in the modern world: "The real issues I don't think most people touch. The Clinton jokes are all about Monica Lewinsky and all that stuff and not about the important things, like the fact that he wouldn't ban land mines ... I'm not tempted to write a song about George W. Bush. I couldn't figure out what sort of song I would write. That's the problem: I don't want to satirize George Bush and his puppeteers, I want to vaporize them."
In 2000, the boxed CD set The Remains of Tom Lehrer was released by Rhino Entertainment. It included live and studio versions of his first two albums, That Was The Year That Was, the songs that he wrote for The Electric Company, and some previously unreleased material, a small hardbound lyrics book with an introduction by Dr. Demento. In 2010, Shout! Factory launched a reissue campaign, making Lehrer's out-of-print albums available digitally. The CD/DVD combo The Tom Lehrer Collection was also issued, including his best-known songs, with a DVD featuring an Oslo concert.
In a February 2008 phone call, Gene Weingarten of The Washington Post interviewed Lehrer off the record. When Weingarten asked if there was anything he could print for the record, Lehrer responded, "Just tell the people that I am voting for Obama."
In 2012 rapper 2 Chainz sampled Lehrer's song "Dope Peddler", on his 2012 debut album, Based on a T.R.U. Story. In 2013, Lehrer said he was "very proud" to have his song sampled "literally sixty years after I recorded it". Lehrer went on to describe his official response to the request to use his song: "As sole copyright owner of 'The Old Dope Peddler', I grant you motherfuckers permission to do this. Please give my regards to Mr. Chainz, or may I call him 2?"
In 2020, at the age of 92, Lehrer donated all of his lyrics and music written by him to the public domain.
Musical legacy
In 1967, Swedish actor Lars Ekborg, known outside Sweden for his part in Ingmar Bergman's Summer with Monika, made an album called I Tom Lehrers vackra värld ("In the beautiful world of Tom Lehrer"), with 12 of Lehrer's songs interpreted in Swedish. Lehrer wrote in a letter to the producer Per-Anders Boquist that, "Not knowing any Swedish, I am obviously not equipped to judge, but it sounds to me as though Mr. Ekborg is perfect for the songs," along with further compliments to pianist Leif Asp for unexpected additional flourishes.
In 1971, Argentinian singer Nacha Guevara sang Spanish versions of several Lehrer songs for the show/live album Este es el año que es.
In 2010, the German musician-comedian Felix Janosa released an album with the title "Tauben vergiften: Die bösen Lieder von Tom Lehrer" ("Poisoning pigeons: The Evil Songs of Tom Lehrer"), with German versions of some of his best-known songs.
Composer Randy Newman said of Lehrer, "He's one of the great American songwriters without a doubt, right up there with everybody, the top guys. As a lyricist, as good as there's been in the last half of the 20th century." Singer and comedian Dillie Keane has acknowledged Lehrer's influence on her work.
Dr. Demento praised Lehrer as "the best musical satirist of the twentieth century." Other artists who cite Lehrer as an influence include "Weird Al" Yankovic, whose work generally addresses more popular and less technical or political subjects, and educator and scientist H. Paul Shuch, who tours under the stage name Dr. SETI, and calls himself "a cross between Carl Sagan and Tom Lehrer: He sings like Sagan and lectures like Lehrer."
From January 16 to February 25, 2006, the play Letters from Lehrer, written and performed by Canadian Richard Greenblatt, ran at CanStage in Toronto. It followed Lehrer's musical career, the meaning of several songs, the politics of the time, and Greenblatt's own experiences with Lehrer's music, while playing some of Lehrer's songs.
Performers influenced by Lehrer's style include American political satirist Mark Russell, Canadian comedian and songwriter Randy Vancourt, and the British duo Kit and The Widow.
In 2004, British medical satirists Amateur Transplants acknowledge the debt they owe to Lehrer on the back of their first album, Fitness to Practice. Their song "The Menstrual Rag" uses the tune of Lehrer's "The Vatican Rag"; and "The Drugs Song" mirrors Lehrer's song "The Elements", both using the tune of the "Major-General's Song" from The Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan. The Amateur Transplants' second album, Unfit to Practise, opens with an update of Lehrer's "The Masochism Tango" called "Masochism Tango 2008".
Discography
Studio albums
Songs by Tom Lehrer (1953), re-recorded in 1966
More of Tom Lehrer (1959)
Live albums
An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer (1959)
Revisited (1960)
Tom Lehrer Discovers Australia (And Vice Versa) (1960; Australia-only)
That Was the Year That Was (1965)
Compilation albums
Tom Lehrer in Concert (1994; UK compilation)
Songs & More Songs by Tom Lehrer (1997; US compilation of his first two studio albums with additional songs)
The Remains of Tom Lehrer (2000)
The Tom Lehrer Collection (2010)
Many of Lehrer's songs are performed by others in That Was The Week That Was (Radiola LP, 1981).
The sheet music of many songs is published in The Tom Lehrer Song Book (Crown Publishers Inc., 1954; Library of Congress Card Catalog Number 54-12068) and Too Many Songs by Tom Lehrer: With Not Enough Drawings by Ronald Searle (Pantheon, 1981, ; Methuen, 1999, ). A second song book, Tom Lehrer's Second Song Book, is out of print, .
References
External links
Archived Tom Lehrer website (from 2008).
Song lyrics and music, released for free use.
Tom Lehrer interview on BBC Radio 4 Desert Island Discs, July 18, 1980
Interview with Tom Lehrer by the Library of Congress on July 22, 2015
1928 births
Living people
20th-century American mathematicians
American agnostics
American comedy musicians
Jewish American male comedians
American lyricists
American male singer-songwriters
American novelty song performers
American satirists
Harvard College alumni
Horace Mann School alumni
Jewish agnostics
Jewish American musicians
Jewish American songwriters
MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences faculty
Parody musicians
People from the Upper East Side
Reprise Records artists
Singers from New York City
University of California, Santa Cruz faculty
Wellesley College faculty
20th-century American pianists
Loomis Chaffee School alumni
American male non-fiction writers
20th-century American comedians
Mathematicians from New York (state)
American male pianists
21st-century American pianists
20th-century American male musicians
21st-century American male musicians
National Security Agency people
United States Army soldiers
Singer-songwriters from New York (state) | false | [
"Amapiano (Zulu for \"the pianos\") is a style of house music that emerged in South Africa in 2012. Amapiano is a hybrid of deep house, jazz and lounge music characterized by synths, airy pads and wide percussive basslines. It is distinguished by high-pitched piano melodies, Kwaito basslines, low tempo 90s South African house rhythms and percussions from another local subgenre of house known as Bacardi.\n\nOrigins \nAlthough the genre gained popularity in Katlehong the township East of Johannesburg, there's a lot of ambiguity concerning its origins, with various accounts of the musical styles in the Johannesburg townships - Soweto, Alexandra, Vosloorus and Katlehong. Because of the genre's similarities with Bacardi, some people assert the genre began in Pretoria and there has been an on going debate about the origin of Amapiano. \n\nVarious accounts as to who formed the popular genre make it impossible to accurately pinpoint its origins.\n\nAn important element of the genre is the use of the “log drum”, a creation which has been attributed to Mdu aka TRP. Amapiano pioneer Kabza De Small stated: \nI don’t know what happened. I don’t know how he figured out the log drum. Amapiano music has always been there, but he’s the one who came up with the log drum sound. These boys like experimenting. They always check out new plug-ins. SO when Mdu figured it out, he ran with it.\n\nArtists and DJs\nFor a list of amapiano producers, vocalists and disc jockeys, see: Amapiano musicians\n\nPopularity \nIn 2019, the genre experienced increased popularity across the African continent with noted increases in digital streams and chart successes in countries far from its South African origin.\n\nReferences\n\nAfrican electronic dance music\nHouse music genres\nSouth African culture",
"Balwo is a style of music and poetry practiced in Somaliland as well as Djibouti. Its lyrical contents often deal with love and passion. The Balwo genre was founded by Abdi Sinimo.\n\nOrigins \nThe Balwo genre was founded by Abdi Sinimo, a Somali of the Reer Nuur subclan of the Gadabuursi. The first Heelo (Which is considered a sub genre of Balwo) was brought fourth by Abdi Sinimo as well.\n\nIn 1945, while working as a lorry driver for the Djiboutian Port Authority, Abdi Sinimo was driving his truck and had experienced misfortune when around the Zeila area, thus the first Balwo was created. He called it \"Balwo\" (meaning misfortune in Somali), because of the remoteness of where his truck had experienced difficulty. The Balwo is a simple love lyric that has revolutionized modern Somali music. Another artist who made significant contributions to the genre was Abdullahi Qarshe, who is credited with the introduction of the kaban (oud) as an accompaniment to Somali music.\n\nIn an interview with Abdullahi Qarshe, he affirmed that \"modern music was in the air at the time of Abdi Sinimo, who is widely regarded as the genius who formulated and organized it into the belwo and thus took well deserved credit and honor for it.\"\n\nHistory \n\nAbdi Deeqsi (Abdi Sinimo) was born in a place in the Borama area named Jarahorato, where he spent most of his youth. Unlike the overwhelming majority of Somali poets, his family were never rural nomad in the Somali bush, living in the traditional manner; Abdi Deqsi and his family was urbanized from the beginning. Early in youth, he went to Djibouti (At the time was known as French Somaliland) where he studied about vehicle mechanics as an apprentice. After returning to Borama around 1941, he was employed as a lorry driver mechanic by a wealthy merchant, by the name of Haji Hirsi. \n\nBy now, Abdi had passed his thirtieth birthday and had acquired the nickname Sinimo (Cinema in Somali). Abdi was a well known orator of stories and jokes because of his passion to deliver the story, the nickname fit him extremely well. His outgoing personality made him very popular, especially among the youth. Abdi's trade route took him from Zeila, to Djibouti to Borama and Hargeysa and sometimes even as far away as Dire Dhabe in Ethiopia. One day, sometime between 1943 and 1945, his lorry broke down in the bush. Somali oral tradition debates the whereabouts of this happening. Some say it occurred in a place called Habaas; others say in Ban Balcad; while still others claim the place was Selel on the plain of Geryaad, thirty miles south of Zeila. Abdi was unable to determine what was wrong with his vehicle and was thus unable to repair it. Finally after much frustrating work and failed repair, he sat down and (as the Somali poet Hasan Sheekh Muumin states) these words escaped from his mouth: \"Belwooy, belwooy, hooy belwooy....Waha i baleeyay mooyaane. Belwooy, belwooy, hooy belwooy!\" (I am unaware of what caused me to suffer) \n\nThe following variation is also sometimes quoted as the first Balwo by some Somalis: \"Balwooy, hooy balwooy, Waha ii balweeyay mooyaane, Waha i balweeyay baabuure, Balwooy, hoy balwooy !\" ( I am unaware of what caused me to suffer; What caused me to suffer was a lorry.)\n\nWhen Abdi returned to Borama after having his lorry towed back to Zeila, he recited his short poem in public. It was an immediate success which inspired him to compose other Balwo. Other poets also began to compose in the new genre, and it began to spread rapidly. \n\nBelow is a sample from a poem by Abdi Sinimo .\n\nControversy \nBalwo was becoming increasing popular, with members of the upper class in northern Somali towns hosting Balwo listening parties. This rapid expansion of the Balwo genre, after its establishment, caused many members of Somali religious orders to speak out against it. \n\nReligious leaders such as Shaykh Abdullah Mijlrtain and Muhammad Hassan, started to compose poems against the spread of Balwo. Their position was, the singing of love poems of the Somali Balwo genre is offensive to Muslim morality and decorum, and is against Islamic morals. Nonetheless, the spread of the genre did not stop, Abdi established a troop and performed the genre in many cities in Somalia, thus becoming a modern Somali music innovator.\n\nInfluence on Somali Music \nBalwo, was the immediate predecessor of the Heello, and thus Heelo become a sub genre of Balwo. Abdi's innovation and passion for music revolutionized Somali music forever.\n\nReferences\n\nDjiboutian culture\nEthnopoetics\nPoetic form\nSomali culture\nSomalian music\nGadabuursi"
]
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[
"Tom Lehrer",
"Style and Influences",
"What was his style?",
"At the time, radio stations would not give Lehrer air time because of his controversial subjects.",
"What controversial subjects?",
"The album--which included the macabre \"I Hold Your Hand in Mine\", the mildly risque \"Be Prepared\", and \"Lobachevsky\" (regarding plagiarizing mathematicians)--",
"What genre of music did he make?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_c961772cd2d64c99971128bee7391985_0 | Who were his influences? | 4 | Who were Tom Lehrer's influences? | Tom Lehrer | In 1953, inspired by the success of his performances, Lehrer paid $15 for some studio time to record Songs by Tom Lehrer. The initial pressing was 400 copies. At the time, radio stations would not give Lehrer air time because of his controversial subjects. He sold his album on campus at Harvard for $3 (equivalent to $27.00 today), while "several stores near the Harvard campus sold it for $3.50, taking only a minimal markup as a kind of community service. Newsstands on campus sold it for the same price." After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country (as far away as San Francisco, after The Chronicle wrote an article on the record). Interest in his recordings was spread by word of mouth; friends and supporters brought their records home and played them for their friends, who then also wanted a copy. Lehrer later recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola." The album--which included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risque "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" (regarding plagiarizing mathematicians)--became a cult success via word of mouth, despite being self-published and without promotion. Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours and in 1959 recorded a second album, which was released in two versions: the songs were the same, but More of Tom Lehrer was studio-recorded while An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer was recorded live in concert. In 2013, Lehrer recalled the studio session for "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park," which referred to the practice of controlling pigeons in Boston with strychnine-treated corn: "The copyist arrived at the last minute with the parts and passed them out to the band... And there was no title on it, and there was no lyrics. And so they ran through it, 'what a pleasant little waltz'... And the engineer said, '"Poisoning Pigeons in the Park,' take one," and the piano player said, '"What?"' and literally fell off the stool." CANNOTANSWER | 'what a pleasant little waltz'... | Thomas Andrew Lehrer (; born April 9, 1928) is a retired American musician, singer-songwriter, satirist, and mathematician, having lectured on mathematics and musical theater. He is best known for the pithy and humorous songs that he recorded in the 1950s and 1960s. His songs often parodied popular musical forms, though he usually created original melodies when doing so. A notable exception is "The Elements", in which he set the names of the chemical elements to the tune of the "Major-General's Song" from Gilbert and Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance.
Lehrer's early musical work typically dealt with non-topical subject matter and was noted for its black humor in songs such as "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park". In the 1960s, he produced a number of songs that dealt with social and political issues of the day, particularly when he wrote for the U.S. version of the television show That Was the Week That Was. The popularity of these songs has far outlasted their topical subjects and references. Lehrer quoted a friend's explanation: "Always predict the worst and you'll be hailed as a prophet." In the early 1970s, Lehrer largely retired from public performances to devote his time to teaching mathematics and musical theater history at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Early life
Thomas Andrew Lehrer was born on April 9, 1928 to a secular Jewish family and grew up on Manhattan's Upper East Side. He was the second and younger son of Moses James Lehrer (1898-?) and Anna Lehrer (née Waller) (1905-1978). He had an older brother. He began studying classical piano at the age of seven, but was more interested in the popular music of the age. Eventually, his mother also sent him to a popular-music piano teacher. At this early age, he began writing show tunes, which eventually helped him as a satirical composer and writer in his years of lecturing at Harvard University and later at other universities.
Lehrer attended the Horace Mann School in Riverdale, New York, part of the Bronx. He also attended Camp Androscoggin, both as a camper and a counselor. Lehrer was considered a child prodigy and entered Harvard College, where one of his professors was Irving Kaplansky, at the age of 15 after graduating from Loomis School. As a mathematics undergraduate student at Harvard College, he began to write comic songs to entertain his friends, including "Fight Fiercely, Harvard" (1945). Those songs were later named collectively The Physical Revue, a joking reference to a leading scientific journal, the Physical Review.
Academic and military career
Lehrer graduated Bachelor of Arts in mathematics from Harvard University, magna cum laude, in 1946. At Harvard, he was the roommate of the Canadian theologian Robert Crouse. He received his AM degree the next year and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. He later taught mathematics and other classes at MIT, Harvard, Wellesley, and the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Lehrer remained in Harvard's doctoral program for several years, taking time out for his musical career and to work as a researcher at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory.
Lehrer was drafted into the U.S. Army from 1955 to 1957, working at the National Security Agency (NSA). Lehrer has stated that he invented the Jello shot during this time, as a means of circumventing the base's ban on alcoholic beverages.
Despite holding a master's degree in an era when American conscripts often lacked a high school diploma, Lehrer served as an enlisted soldier, achieving the rank of Specialist Third Class, which he described as being a "corporal without portfolio". These experiences became fodder for songs, such as "The Wild West is Where I Want to Be" and "It Makes a Fellow Proud to Be a Soldier". It was many years before Lehrer publicly revealed that he had been assigned to the NSA, since the mere fact of its existence was classified at the time; this left him in the interesting position of implicitly using nuclear weapons work as a cover story for something more sensitive.
In 1960, Lehrer returned to full-time math studies at Harvard.
From 1962, Lehrer taught in the political science department at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). In 1965 he gave up on his mathematics dissertation on modes in statistics, after having worked on it intermittently for 15 years.
In 1972, Lehrer joined the faculty of the University of California, Santa Cruz, teaching an introductory course entitled The Nature of Mathematics to liberal arts majors—"math for tenors", according to Lehrer. He also taught a class in musical theater. He occasionally performed songs in his lectures.
In 2001, Lehrer taught his last mathematics class, on the topic of infinity, and retired from academia. He has remained in the area, and in 2003 said he still "hangs out" around the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Publications
The American Mathematical Society database lists him as co-author of two papers:
Two of Lehrer's songs were also reprinted, with his permission, in MAD Magazine:
Tom Lehrer Sings "The Wild West is Where I Where I Want To Be" (illustrated by George Woodbridge, MAD #32, April 1957)
Tom Lehrer's "The Hunting Song" (illustrated by George Woodbridge, MAD #35, October 1957)
Musical career
Style and influences
Lehrer was mainly influenced by musical theater. According to Gerald Nachman's book Seriously Funny, the Broadway musical Let's Face It! made an early and lasting impression on him. Lehrer's style consists of parodying various forms of popular song. For example, his appreciation of list songs led him to write "The Elements", which lists the chemical elements to the tune of Gilbert and Sullivan's "Major-General's Song".
In author and Boston University professor Isaac Asimov's second autobiographical volume, In Joy Still Felt, Asimov recounted seeing Lehrer perform in a Boston nightclub on October 9, 1954. Lehrer sang a song about Jim getting it from Louise, and Sally from Jim, "...and after a while you gathered the 'it' was venereal disease. [The song was likely "I Got It From Agnes".] Suddenly, as the combinations grew more grotesque, you realized he was satirizing every known perversion without using a single naughty phrase. It was clearly unsingable outside a nightclub." Asimov also recalled a song that dealt with the Boston subway system, making use of the stations leading into town from Harvard, observing that the local subject-matter rendered the song useless for general distribution. Lehrer subsequently granted Asimov permission to print the lyrics to the subway song in his book. "I haven't gone to nightclubs often," said Asimov, "but of all the times I have gone, it was on this occasion that I had by far the best time."
Recordings
Lehrer was encouraged by the success of his performances, so he paid $15 () for some studio time in 1953 to record Songs by Tom Lehrer. The initial pressing was 400 copies. Radio stations would not air his songs because of his controversial subjects, so he sold the album on campus at Harvard for $3, , while "several stores near the Harvard campus sold it for $3.50, taking only a minimal markup as a kind of community service. Newsstands on campus sold it for the same price." After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country, as far away as San Francisco, after the San Francisco Chronicle wrote an article on the record. Interest in his recordings spread by word of mouth. People played their records for friends, who then also wanted a copy. Lehrer recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola."
The album included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risqué "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" regarding plagiarizing mathematicians. It became a cult success by word of mouth, despite being self-published and without promotion. Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours and recorded a second album in 1959. He released the second album in two versions: the songs were the same, but More of Tom Lehrer was a studio recording and An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer was recorded live in concert. In 2013, Lehrer recalled the studio session for "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park", which referred to the practice of controlling pigeons in Boston with strychnine-treated corn:
Touring
Lehrer had a breakthrough in the United Kingdom on December 4, 1957, when the University of London awarded a doctor of music degree honoris causa to Princess Margaret, and the public orator, Professor J. R. Sutherland, said it was "in the full knowledge that the Princess is a connoisseur of music and a performer of skill and distinction, her taste being catholic, ranging from Mozart to the calypso and from opera to the songs of Miss Beatrice Lillie and Tom Lehrer." This prompted significant interest in Lehrer's works and helped to secure distribution for his five-year-old debut album in Britain. It was there that his music achieved real sales popularity, as a result of the proliferation of university newspapers referring to the material, and inadvertently due to the BBC, which in 1958 banned from broadcast 10 of the 12 songs on the album. By the end of the 1950s, Lehrer had sold 370,000 records.
That Was The Week That Was
In 1960, Lehrer essentially retired from touring in the U.S.
The same year, Lehrer toured Australia and New Zealand, performing a total of 33 concerts to great acclaim and controversy. While in New Zealand, Lehrer wrote a song criticizing the All Blacks rugby team 1960 tour of apartheid South Africa. These tours occurred during a time in which he was, he said, "banned, censored, mentioned in several houses of parliament and threatened with arrest". In particular, "Be Prepared" drew advance resistance in Brisbane from the commissioner of police. He performed several unreleased songs in Australia, including "The Masochism Tango".
In the early 1960s, he was employed as the resident songwriter for the U.S. edition of That Was The Week That Was (TW3), a satirical television show.
A greater proportion of his output became overtly political, or at least topical, on subjects such as education ("New Math"), the Second Vatican Council ("The Vatican Rag", a tune based on the 1910 "Spaghetti Rag" by Lyons and Yosco), race relations ("National Brotherhood Week"), air and water pollution ("Pollution"), American militarism ("Send the Marines"), and nuclear proliferation ("Who's Next?" and "MLF Lullaby"). He also wrote a song satirizing rocket scientist Wernher von Braun, who worked for Nazi Germany before working for the United States. (Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down? That's not my department,' says Wernher von Braun.") Lehrer did not appear on the television show; vocalist Nancy Ames performed his songs (to Lehrer's chagrin), and network censors often altered his lyrics. Lehrer later performed these songs on the album That Was The Year That Was (1965) at which point people could hear them the way that he intended.
In 1966, BBC TV host David Frost invited him to contribute some of his classic compositions to his BBC program The Frost Report. The show was transmitted live, and he pre-recorded all his segments at one performance. Lehrer was not featured in every edition, but his songs featured in an appropriate part of each show. At least two of his songs were not included on any of his LPs: a reworking of Noël Coward's "That is the End of the News" (with some new lyrics) and a comic explanation of how Britain might adapt to the coming of decimal currency.
The record deal with Reprise Records for That Was The Year That Was also gave Reprise distribution rights for his earlier recordings, as Lehrer wanted to wind up his own record imprint. The Reprise issue of Songs by Tom Lehrer was a stereo re-recording. This version was not issued on CD, but the songs were issued on the live Tom Lehrer Revisited CD. The live recording included bonus tracks "L-Y" and "Silent E", two of the ten songs that he wrote for the PBS children's educational series The Electric Company. Lehrer later commented that worldwide sales of the recordings under Reprise surpassed 1.8 million units in 1996. That same year, That Was The Year That Was went gold. The album liner notes promote his songs with self-deprecating humor, such as quoting a New York Times review from 1959: Mr. Lehrer's muse is "not fettered by such inhibiting factors as taste."
Lehrer made a short tour in Norway and Denmark in 1967, performing some of the songs from the television program. His performance in Oslo on September 10 was recorded on video tape and aired locally that autumn, then released on DVD some 40 years later. He performed as a prominent international guest at the Studenterforeningen (student association) in Copenhagen, which was televised, and he commented on stage that he might be America's "revenge for Victor Borge". He performed original songs in a Dodge automobile industrial film distributed primarily to automobile dealers and shown at promotional events in 1967, set in a fictional American wild west town and titled The Dodge Rebellion Theatre presents Ballads For '67. He attempted to adapt Sweeney Todd as a Broadway musical, working with Joe Raposo, to star Jerry Colonna. They started a few songs but, as Lehrer noted, "Nothing ever came of it, and of course twenty years later Stephen Sondheim beat me to the punch."
Departure from the music scene
In the 1970s, Lehrer concentrated on teaching mathematics and musical theater, although he also wrote ten songs for the educational children's television show The Electric Company. His last public performance for many years took place in 1972, on a fundraising tour for Democratic US presidential candidate George McGovern.
When asked about his reasons for abandoning his musical career in an interview in the book accompanying his CD box set, released in 2000, Lehrer cited a lack of interest, a disdain of touring, and the monotony of performing the same songs repeatedly. He observed that when he was moved to write and perform songs, he did, and when he was not, he did not, and that after a while he simply lost interest. Even though Lehrer was "a hero of the anti-nuclear, civil rights left" and covered its political issues in many of his songs, and even though he shared the New Left's opposition to the Vietnam War, and advocated for civil rights, he disliked the aesthetics of the counterculture of the 1960s and stopped performing as the movement gained momentum.
Lehrer's musical career was relatively brief. He once mentioned that he performed a mere 109 shows and wrote 37 songs over 20 years. Nevertheless, he developed a significant following in the United States and abroad.
Revivals and discographic reissues
In 1980, Cameron Mackintosh produced Tomfoolery, a revue of Lehrer's songs that was a hit on the London stage. Lehrer was not initially involved with the show, but he was pleased with it; he eventually gave the stage production his full support and updated several of his lyrics for the show. Tomfoolery contained 27 songs and led to more than 200 productions, including an Off-Broadway production at the Village Gate which ran for 120 performances in 1981. Lehrer made a rare TV appearance on BBC's Parkinson show in conjunction with the Tom Foolery premiere in 1980 at the Criterion Theatre in London, where he sang "I Got It from Agnes". There were "Tomfoolery" performances in San Francisco about 1982 and in 2018–19. In 1993, he wrote "That's Mathematics" for the closing credits to a Mathematical Sciences Research Institute video celebrating the proof of Fermat's Last Theorem.
On June 7 and 8, 1998, Lehrer performed in public for the first time in 25 years at the Lyceum Theatre, London as part of the show Hey, Mr. Producer! celebrating the career of Cameron Mackintosh, who had produced Tom Foolery. The June 8 show was his only performance before Queen Elizabeth II. Lehrer sang "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park" and an updated version of the nuclear proliferation song "Who's Next?"
In 2000 Lehrer commented that he doubted his songs had any real effect on those not already critical of the establishment: "I don't think this kind of thing has an impact on the unconverted, frankly. It's not even preaching to the converted; it's titillating the converted ... I'm fond of quoting Peter Cook, who talked about the satirical Berlin kabaretts of the 1930s, which did so much to stop the rise of Hitler and prevent the Second World War."
Lehrer has said, jokingly, of his musical career, "If, after hearing my songs, just one human being is inspired to say something nasty to a friend, or perhaps to strike a loved one, it will all have been worth the while."
In 2003, Lehrer commented that his particular brand of political satire is more difficult in the modern world: "The real issues I don't think most people touch. The Clinton jokes are all about Monica Lewinsky and all that stuff and not about the important things, like the fact that he wouldn't ban land mines ... I'm not tempted to write a song about George W. Bush. I couldn't figure out what sort of song I would write. That's the problem: I don't want to satirize George Bush and his puppeteers, I want to vaporize them."
In 2000, the boxed CD set The Remains of Tom Lehrer was released by Rhino Entertainment. It included live and studio versions of his first two albums, That Was The Year That Was, the songs that he wrote for The Electric Company, and some previously unreleased material, a small hardbound lyrics book with an introduction by Dr. Demento. In 2010, Shout! Factory launched a reissue campaign, making Lehrer's out-of-print albums available digitally. The CD/DVD combo The Tom Lehrer Collection was also issued, including his best-known songs, with a DVD featuring an Oslo concert.
In a February 2008 phone call, Gene Weingarten of The Washington Post interviewed Lehrer off the record. When Weingarten asked if there was anything he could print for the record, Lehrer responded, "Just tell the people that I am voting for Obama."
In 2012 rapper 2 Chainz sampled Lehrer's song "Dope Peddler", on his 2012 debut album, Based on a T.R.U. Story. In 2013, Lehrer said he was "very proud" to have his song sampled "literally sixty years after I recorded it". Lehrer went on to describe his official response to the request to use his song: "As sole copyright owner of 'The Old Dope Peddler', I grant you motherfuckers permission to do this. Please give my regards to Mr. Chainz, or may I call him 2?"
In 2020, at the age of 92, Lehrer donated all of his lyrics and music written by him to the public domain.
Musical legacy
In 1967, Swedish actor Lars Ekborg, known outside Sweden for his part in Ingmar Bergman's Summer with Monika, made an album called I Tom Lehrers vackra värld ("In the beautiful world of Tom Lehrer"), with 12 of Lehrer's songs interpreted in Swedish. Lehrer wrote in a letter to the producer Per-Anders Boquist that, "Not knowing any Swedish, I am obviously not equipped to judge, but it sounds to me as though Mr. Ekborg is perfect for the songs," along with further compliments to pianist Leif Asp for unexpected additional flourishes.
In 1971, Argentinian singer Nacha Guevara sang Spanish versions of several Lehrer songs for the show/live album Este es el año que es.
In 2010, the German musician-comedian Felix Janosa released an album with the title "Tauben vergiften: Die bösen Lieder von Tom Lehrer" ("Poisoning pigeons: The Evil Songs of Tom Lehrer"), with German versions of some of his best-known songs.
Composer Randy Newman said of Lehrer, "He's one of the great American songwriters without a doubt, right up there with everybody, the top guys. As a lyricist, as good as there's been in the last half of the 20th century." Singer and comedian Dillie Keane has acknowledged Lehrer's influence on her work.
Dr. Demento praised Lehrer as "the best musical satirist of the twentieth century." Other artists who cite Lehrer as an influence include "Weird Al" Yankovic, whose work generally addresses more popular and less technical or political subjects, and educator and scientist H. Paul Shuch, who tours under the stage name Dr. SETI, and calls himself "a cross between Carl Sagan and Tom Lehrer: He sings like Sagan and lectures like Lehrer."
From January 16 to February 25, 2006, the play Letters from Lehrer, written and performed by Canadian Richard Greenblatt, ran at CanStage in Toronto. It followed Lehrer's musical career, the meaning of several songs, the politics of the time, and Greenblatt's own experiences with Lehrer's music, while playing some of Lehrer's songs.
Performers influenced by Lehrer's style include American political satirist Mark Russell, Canadian comedian and songwriter Randy Vancourt, and the British duo Kit and The Widow.
In 2004, British medical satirists Amateur Transplants acknowledge the debt they owe to Lehrer on the back of their first album, Fitness to Practice. Their song "The Menstrual Rag" uses the tune of Lehrer's "The Vatican Rag"; and "The Drugs Song" mirrors Lehrer's song "The Elements", both using the tune of the "Major-General's Song" from The Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan. The Amateur Transplants' second album, Unfit to Practise, opens with an update of Lehrer's "The Masochism Tango" called "Masochism Tango 2008".
Discography
Studio albums
Songs by Tom Lehrer (1953), re-recorded in 1966
More of Tom Lehrer (1959)
Live albums
An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer (1959)
Revisited (1960)
Tom Lehrer Discovers Australia (And Vice Versa) (1960; Australia-only)
That Was the Year That Was (1965)
Compilation albums
Tom Lehrer in Concert (1994; UK compilation)
Songs & More Songs by Tom Lehrer (1997; US compilation of his first two studio albums with additional songs)
The Remains of Tom Lehrer (2000)
The Tom Lehrer Collection (2010)
Many of Lehrer's songs are performed by others in That Was The Week That Was (Radiola LP, 1981).
The sheet music of many songs is published in The Tom Lehrer Song Book (Crown Publishers Inc., 1954; Library of Congress Card Catalog Number 54-12068) and Too Many Songs by Tom Lehrer: With Not Enough Drawings by Ronald Searle (Pantheon, 1981, ; Methuen, 1999, ). A second song book, Tom Lehrer's Second Song Book, is out of print, .
References
External links
Archived Tom Lehrer website (from 2008).
Song lyrics and music, released for free use.
Tom Lehrer interview on BBC Radio 4 Desert Island Discs, July 18, 1980
Interview with Tom Lehrer by the Library of Congress on July 22, 2015
1928 births
Living people
20th-century American mathematicians
American agnostics
American comedy musicians
Jewish American male comedians
American lyricists
American male singer-songwriters
American novelty song performers
American satirists
Harvard College alumni
Horace Mann School alumni
Jewish agnostics
Jewish American musicians
Jewish American songwriters
MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences faculty
Parody musicians
People from the Upper East Side
Reprise Records artists
Singers from New York City
University of California, Santa Cruz faculty
Wellesley College faculty
20th-century American pianists
Loomis Chaffee School alumni
American male non-fiction writers
20th-century American comedians
Mathematicians from New York (state)
American male pianists
21st-century American pianists
20th-century American male musicians
21st-century American male musicians
National Security Agency people
United States Army soldiers
Singer-songwriters from New York (state) | false | [
"Uzi (pronounced as \"Uji\") is a popular Japanese hip-hop artist. He has released four major albums, most recently his “Natural 9” album released in March 2008. Uzi is one of the rappers to incorporate more overt elements of Japanese culture into his music and videos, specifically aspects referring to the samurai (to which he claims direct ancestry). He is a great example of an artist who maintains the localization of hip-hop music through his dependence on the incorporation of Japanese themes into his work. Such non-Americanization of his hip-hop music has been met with varying opinions; some view this as disrespectful of the origins of hip-hop culture, while there are those who appreciate Uzi’s apparent embracing of Japanese culture.\n\nJapanese musical influences\nMuch of Uzi's musical influences correspond with his national identity as a corollary of the fact that \"Japanese have long perceived themselves, and been perceived by others as one homogeneous group, racially, ethnically, and culturally identical\". As such, a number of his influences [even regarding hip-hop specifically] are Japanese artists. Some songs and their artists which Uzi lists as musical influences include: KNOCK OUT feat. ZEEBRA 2002 produced by INOVADER 新日本プロレスエンディングテーマ, ひとり酒 DRINKING BY MYSELF 2003 produced by SUB ZERO, 開放軍 III feat. 神, KENTA 5 RUS, MASARU, 565, AKTION, DOB-ROC 2006 produced by LUCHA a.k.a. Kut.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Uzi music video from YouTube\n\nJapanese hip hop\nJapanese hip hop musicians\nLiving people\nYear of birth missing (living people)",
"Nikola Đorđević (in Cyrillic Serbian: Никола Ђорђевић) was a Serbian architect who lived and worked at the beginning of the 19th century. His work is characteristic of the architectural tradition of that time, between traditional contributions and openings with Western influences.\n\nWorks\n\nHis two best-known works are the Konak of Prince Miloš Obrenović in Belgrade, in the Topčider district, built between 1831 and 1833 2 and the Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul in Topčider, built between 1832 and 1834, which mixes influences traditional and references to western architecture (classical and baroque).These two works are respectively classified on the list of exceptional monuments and on the list of protected monuments of the Republic of Serbia.\n\nThese two buildings were produced in collaboration with the architect Janja Mihailović.\n\nReferences \n\n Translated and adapted from French Wikipedia: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikola_%C4%90or%C4%91evi%C4%87\n\nArchitects from Belgrade\n19th-century Serbian people"
]
|
[
"Tom Lehrer",
"Style and Influences",
"What was his style?",
"At the time, radio stations would not give Lehrer air time because of his controversial subjects.",
"What controversial subjects?",
"The album--which included the macabre \"I Hold Your Hand in Mine\", the mildly risque \"Be Prepared\", and \"Lobachevsky\" (regarding plagiarizing mathematicians)--",
"What genre of music did he make?",
"I don't know.",
"Who were his influences?",
"'what a pleasant little waltz'..."
]
| C_c961772cd2d64c99971128bee7391985_0 | Are there any other interesting aspects about this article? | 5 | Are there any other interesting aspects about this article besides Tom Lehrer not getting radio time? | Tom Lehrer | In 1953, inspired by the success of his performances, Lehrer paid $15 for some studio time to record Songs by Tom Lehrer. The initial pressing was 400 copies. At the time, radio stations would not give Lehrer air time because of his controversial subjects. He sold his album on campus at Harvard for $3 (equivalent to $27.00 today), while "several stores near the Harvard campus sold it for $3.50, taking only a minimal markup as a kind of community service. Newsstands on campus sold it for the same price." After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country (as far away as San Francisco, after The Chronicle wrote an article on the record). Interest in his recordings was spread by word of mouth; friends and supporters brought their records home and played them for their friends, who then also wanted a copy. Lehrer later recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola." The album--which included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risque "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" (regarding plagiarizing mathematicians)--became a cult success via word of mouth, despite being self-published and without promotion. Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours and in 1959 recorded a second album, which was released in two versions: the songs were the same, but More of Tom Lehrer was studio-recorded while An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer was recorded live in concert. In 2013, Lehrer recalled the studio session for "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park," which referred to the practice of controlling pigeons in Boston with strychnine-treated corn: "The copyist arrived at the last minute with the parts and passed them out to the band... And there was no title on it, and there was no lyrics. And so they ran through it, 'what a pleasant little waltz'... And the engineer said, '"Poisoning Pigeons in the Park,' take one," and the piano player said, '"What?"' and literally fell off the stool." CANNOTANSWER | Lehrer later recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola." | Thomas Andrew Lehrer (; born April 9, 1928) is a retired American musician, singer-songwriter, satirist, and mathematician, having lectured on mathematics and musical theater. He is best known for the pithy and humorous songs that he recorded in the 1950s and 1960s. His songs often parodied popular musical forms, though he usually created original melodies when doing so. A notable exception is "The Elements", in which he set the names of the chemical elements to the tune of the "Major-General's Song" from Gilbert and Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance.
Lehrer's early musical work typically dealt with non-topical subject matter and was noted for its black humor in songs such as "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park". In the 1960s, he produced a number of songs that dealt with social and political issues of the day, particularly when he wrote for the U.S. version of the television show That Was the Week That Was. The popularity of these songs has far outlasted their topical subjects and references. Lehrer quoted a friend's explanation: "Always predict the worst and you'll be hailed as a prophet." In the early 1970s, Lehrer largely retired from public performances to devote his time to teaching mathematics and musical theater history at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Early life
Thomas Andrew Lehrer was born on April 9, 1928 to a secular Jewish family and grew up on Manhattan's Upper East Side. He was the second and younger son of Moses James Lehrer (1898-?) and Anna Lehrer (née Waller) (1905-1978). He had an older brother. He began studying classical piano at the age of seven, but was more interested in the popular music of the age. Eventually, his mother also sent him to a popular-music piano teacher. At this early age, he began writing show tunes, which eventually helped him as a satirical composer and writer in his years of lecturing at Harvard University and later at other universities.
Lehrer attended the Horace Mann School in Riverdale, New York, part of the Bronx. He also attended Camp Androscoggin, both as a camper and a counselor. Lehrer was considered a child prodigy and entered Harvard College, where one of his professors was Irving Kaplansky, at the age of 15 after graduating from Loomis School. As a mathematics undergraduate student at Harvard College, he began to write comic songs to entertain his friends, including "Fight Fiercely, Harvard" (1945). Those songs were later named collectively The Physical Revue, a joking reference to a leading scientific journal, the Physical Review.
Academic and military career
Lehrer graduated Bachelor of Arts in mathematics from Harvard University, magna cum laude, in 1946. At Harvard, he was the roommate of the Canadian theologian Robert Crouse. He received his AM degree the next year and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. He later taught mathematics and other classes at MIT, Harvard, Wellesley, and the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Lehrer remained in Harvard's doctoral program for several years, taking time out for his musical career and to work as a researcher at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory.
Lehrer was drafted into the U.S. Army from 1955 to 1957, working at the National Security Agency (NSA). Lehrer has stated that he invented the Jello shot during this time, as a means of circumventing the base's ban on alcoholic beverages.
Despite holding a master's degree in an era when American conscripts often lacked a high school diploma, Lehrer served as an enlisted soldier, achieving the rank of Specialist Third Class, which he described as being a "corporal without portfolio". These experiences became fodder for songs, such as "The Wild West is Where I Want to Be" and "It Makes a Fellow Proud to Be a Soldier". It was many years before Lehrer publicly revealed that he had been assigned to the NSA, since the mere fact of its existence was classified at the time; this left him in the interesting position of implicitly using nuclear weapons work as a cover story for something more sensitive.
In 1960, Lehrer returned to full-time math studies at Harvard.
From 1962, Lehrer taught in the political science department at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). In 1965 he gave up on his mathematics dissertation on modes in statistics, after having worked on it intermittently for 15 years.
In 1972, Lehrer joined the faculty of the University of California, Santa Cruz, teaching an introductory course entitled The Nature of Mathematics to liberal arts majors—"math for tenors", according to Lehrer. He also taught a class in musical theater. He occasionally performed songs in his lectures.
In 2001, Lehrer taught his last mathematics class, on the topic of infinity, and retired from academia. He has remained in the area, and in 2003 said he still "hangs out" around the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Publications
The American Mathematical Society database lists him as co-author of two papers:
Two of Lehrer's songs were also reprinted, with his permission, in MAD Magazine:
Tom Lehrer Sings "The Wild West is Where I Where I Want To Be" (illustrated by George Woodbridge, MAD #32, April 1957)
Tom Lehrer's "The Hunting Song" (illustrated by George Woodbridge, MAD #35, October 1957)
Musical career
Style and influences
Lehrer was mainly influenced by musical theater. According to Gerald Nachman's book Seriously Funny, the Broadway musical Let's Face It! made an early and lasting impression on him. Lehrer's style consists of parodying various forms of popular song. For example, his appreciation of list songs led him to write "The Elements", which lists the chemical elements to the tune of Gilbert and Sullivan's "Major-General's Song".
In author and Boston University professor Isaac Asimov's second autobiographical volume, In Joy Still Felt, Asimov recounted seeing Lehrer perform in a Boston nightclub on October 9, 1954. Lehrer sang a song about Jim getting it from Louise, and Sally from Jim, "...and after a while you gathered the 'it' was venereal disease. [The song was likely "I Got It From Agnes".] Suddenly, as the combinations grew more grotesque, you realized he was satirizing every known perversion without using a single naughty phrase. It was clearly unsingable outside a nightclub." Asimov also recalled a song that dealt with the Boston subway system, making use of the stations leading into town from Harvard, observing that the local subject-matter rendered the song useless for general distribution. Lehrer subsequently granted Asimov permission to print the lyrics to the subway song in his book. "I haven't gone to nightclubs often," said Asimov, "but of all the times I have gone, it was on this occasion that I had by far the best time."
Recordings
Lehrer was encouraged by the success of his performances, so he paid $15 () for some studio time in 1953 to record Songs by Tom Lehrer. The initial pressing was 400 copies. Radio stations would not air his songs because of his controversial subjects, so he sold the album on campus at Harvard for $3, , while "several stores near the Harvard campus sold it for $3.50, taking only a minimal markup as a kind of community service. Newsstands on campus sold it for the same price." After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country, as far away as San Francisco, after the San Francisco Chronicle wrote an article on the record. Interest in his recordings spread by word of mouth. People played their records for friends, who then also wanted a copy. Lehrer recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola."
The album included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risqué "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" regarding plagiarizing mathematicians. It became a cult success by word of mouth, despite being self-published and without promotion. Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours and recorded a second album in 1959. He released the second album in two versions: the songs were the same, but More of Tom Lehrer was a studio recording and An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer was recorded live in concert. In 2013, Lehrer recalled the studio session for "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park", which referred to the practice of controlling pigeons in Boston with strychnine-treated corn:
Touring
Lehrer had a breakthrough in the United Kingdom on December 4, 1957, when the University of London awarded a doctor of music degree honoris causa to Princess Margaret, and the public orator, Professor J. R. Sutherland, said it was "in the full knowledge that the Princess is a connoisseur of music and a performer of skill and distinction, her taste being catholic, ranging from Mozart to the calypso and from opera to the songs of Miss Beatrice Lillie and Tom Lehrer." This prompted significant interest in Lehrer's works and helped to secure distribution for his five-year-old debut album in Britain. It was there that his music achieved real sales popularity, as a result of the proliferation of university newspapers referring to the material, and inadvertently due to the BBC, which in 1958 banned from broadcast 10 of the 12 songs on the album. By the end of the 1950s, Lehrer had sold 370,000 records.
That Was The Week That Was
In 1960, Lehrer essentially retired from touring in the U.S.
The same year, Lehrer toured Australia and New Zealand, performing a total of 33 concerts to great acclaim and controversy. While in New Zealand, Lehrer wrote a song criticizing the All Blacks rugby team 1960 tour of apartheid South Africa. These tours occurred during a time in which he was, he said, "banned, censored, mentioned in several houses of parliament and threatened with arrest". In particular, "Be Prepared" drew advance resistance in Brisbane from the commissioner of police. He performed several unreleased songs in Australia, including "The Masochism Tango".
In the early 1960s, he was employed as the resident songwriter for the U.S. edition of That Was The Week That Was (TW3), a satirical television show.
A greater proportion of his output became overtly political, or at least topical, on subjects such as education ("New Math"), the Second Vatican Council ("The Vatican Rag", a tune based on the 1910 "Spaghetti Rag" by Lyons and Yosco), race relations ("National Brotherhood Week"), air and water pollution ("Pollution"), American militarism ("Send the Marines"), and nuclear proliferation ("Who's Next?" and "MLF Lullaby"). He also wrote a song satirizing rocket scientist Wernher von Braun, who worked for Nazi Germany before working for the United States. (Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down? That's not my department,' says Wernher von Braun.") Lehrer did not appear on the television show; vocalist Nancy Ames performed his songs (to Lehrer's chagrin), and network censors often altered his lyrics. Lehrer later performed these songs on the album That Was The Year That Was (1965) at which point people could hear them the way that he intended.
In 1966, BBC TV host David Frost invited him to contribute some of his classic compositions to his BBC program The Frost Report. The show was transmitted live, and he pre-recorded all his segments at one performance. Lehrer was not featured in every edition, but his songs featured in an appropriate part of each show. At least two of his songs were not included on any of his LPs: a reworking of Noël Coward's "That is the End of the News" (with some new lyrics) and a comic explanation of how Britain might adapt to the coming of decimal currency.
The record deal with Reprise Records for That Was The Year That Was also gave Reprise distribution rights for his earlier recordings, as Lehrer wanted to wind up his own record imprint. The Reprise issue of Songs by Tom Lehrer was a stereo re-recording. This version was not issued on CD, but the songs were issued on the live Tom Lehrer Revisited CD. The live recording included bonus tracks "L-Y" and "Silent E", two of the ten songs that he wrote for the PBS children's educational series The Electric Company. Lehrer later commented that worldwide sales of the recordings under Reprise surpassed 1.8 million units in 1996. That same year, That Was The Year That Was went gold. The album liner notes promote his songs with self-deprecating humor, such as quoting a New York Times review from 1959: Mr. Lehrer's muse is "not fettered by such inhibiting factors as taste."
Lehrer made a short tour in Norway and Denmark in 1967, performing some of the songs from the television program. His performance in Oslo on September 10 was recorded on video tape and aired locally that autumn, then released on DVD some 40 years later. He performed as a prominent international guest at the Studenterforeningen (student association) in Copenhagen, which was televised, and he commented on stage that he might be America's "revenge for Victor Borge". He performed original songs in a Dodge automobile industrial film distributed primarily to automobile dealers and shown at promotional events in 1967, set in a fictional American wild west town and titled The Dodge Rebellion Theatre presents Ballads For '67. He attempted to adapt Sweeney Todd as a Broadway musical, working with Joe Raposo, to star Jerry Colonna. They started a few songs but, as Lehrer noted, "Nothing ever came of it, and of course twenty years later Stephen Sondheim beat me to the punch."
Departure from the music scene
In the 1970s, Lehrer concentrated on teaching mathematics and musical theater, although he also wrote ten songs for the educational children's television show The Electric Company. His last public performance for many years took place in 1972, on a fundraising tour for Democratic US presidential candidate George McGovern.
When asked about his reasons for abandoning his musical career in an interview in the book accompanying his CD box set, released in 2000, Lehrer cited a lack of interest, a disdain of touring, and the monotony of performing the same songs repeatedly. He observed that when he was moved to write and perform songs, he did, and when he was not, he did not, and that after a while he simply lost interest. Even though Lehrer was "a hero of the anti-nuclear, civil rights left" and covered its political issues in many of his songs, and even though he shared the New Left's opposition to the Vietnam War, and advocated for civil rights, he disliked the aesthetics of the counterculture of the 1960s and stopped performing as the movement gained momentum.
Lehrer's musical career was relatively brief. He once mentioned that he performed a mere 109 shows and wrote 37 songs over 20 years. Nevertheless, he developed a significant following in the United States and abroad.
Revivals and discographic reissues
In 1980, Cameron Mackintosh produced Tomfoolery, a revue of Lehrer's songs that was a hit on the London stage. Lehrer was not initially involved with the show, but he was pleased with it; he eventually gave the stage production his full support and updated several of his lyrics for the show. Tomfoolery contained 27 songs and led to more than 200 productions, including an Off-Broadway production at the Village Gate which ran for 120 performances in 1981. Lehrer made a rare TV appearance on BBC's Parkinson show in conjunction with the Tom Foolery premiere in 1980 at the Criterion Theatre in London, where he sang "I Got It from Agnes". There were "Tomfoolery" performances in San Francisco about 1982 and in 2018–19. In 1993, he wrote "That's Mathematics" for the closing credits to a Mathematical Sciences Research Institute video celebrating the proof of Fermat's Last Theorem.
On June 7 and 8, 1998, Lehrer performed in public for the first time in 25 years at the Lyceum Theatre, London as part of the show Hey, Mr. Producer! celebrating the career of Cameron Mackintosh, who had produced Tom Foolery. The June 8 show was his only performance before Queen Elizabeth II. Lehrer sang "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park" and an updated version of the nuclear proliferation song "Who's Next?"
In 2000 Lehrer commented that he doubted his songs had any real effect on those not already critical of the establishment: "I don't think this kind of thing has an impact on the unconverted, frankly. It's not even preaching to the converted; it's titillating the converted ... I'm fond of quoting Peter Cook, who talked about the satirical Berlin kabaretts of the 1930s, which did so much to stop the rise of Hitler and prevent the Second World War."
Lehrer has said, jokingly, of his musical career, "If, after hearing my songs, just one human being is inspired to say something nasty to a friend, or perhaps to strike a loved one, it will all have been worth the while."
In 2003, Lehrer commented that his particular brand of political satire is more difficult in the modern world: "The real issues I don't think most people touch. The Clinton jokes are all about Monica Lewinsky and all that stuff and not about the important things, like the fact that he wouldn't ban land mines ... I'm not tempted to write a song about George W. Bush. I couldn't figure out what sort of song I would write. That's the problem: I don't want to satirize George Bush and his puppeteers, I want to vaporize them."
In 2000, the boxed CD set The Remains of Tom Lehrer was released by Rhino Entertainment. It included live and studio versions of his first two albums, That Was The Year That Was, the songs that he wrote for The Electric Company, and some previously unreleased material, a small hardbound lyrics book with an introduction by Dr. Demento. In 2010, Shout! Factory launched a reissue campaign, making Lehrer's out-of-print albums available digitally. The CD/DVD combo The Tom Lehrer Collection was also issued, including his best-known songs, with a DVD featuring an Oslo concert.
In a February 2008 phone call, Gene Weingarten of The Washington Post interviewed Lehrer off the record. When Weingarten asked if there was anything he could print for the record, Lehrer responded, "Just tell the people that I am voting for Obama."
In 2012 rapper 2 Chainz sampled Lehrer's song "Dope Peddler", on his 2012 debut album, Based on a T.R.U. Story. In 2013, Lehrer said he was "very proud" to have his song sampled "literally sixty years after I recorded it". Lehrer went on to describe his official response to the request to use his song: "As sole copyright owner of 'The Old Dope Peddler', I grant you motherfuckers permission to do this. Please give my regards to Mr. Chainz, or may I call him 2?"
In 2020, at the age of 92, Lehrer donated all of his lyrics and music written by him to the public domain.
Musical legacy
In 1967, Swedish actor Lars Ekborg, known outside Sweden for his part in Ingmar Bergman's Summer with Monika, made an album called I Tom Lehrers vackra värld ("In the beautiful world of Tom Lehrer"), with 12 of Lehrer's songs interpreted in Swedish. Lehrer wrote in a letter to the producer Per-Anders Boquist that, "Not knowing any Swedish, I am obviously not equipped to judge, but it sounds to me as though Mr. Ekborg is perfect for the songs," along with further compliments to pianist Leif Asp for unexpected additional flourishes.
In 1971, Argentinian singer Nacha Guevara sang Spanish versions of several Lehrer songs for the show/live album Este es el año que es.
In 2010, the German musician-comedian Felix Janosa released an album with the title "Tauben vergiften: Die bösen Lieder von Tom Lehrer" ("Poisoning pigeons: The Evil Songs of Tom Lehrer"), with German versions of some of his best-known songs.
Composer Randy Newman said of Lehrer, "He's one of the great American songwriters without a doubt, right up there with everybody, the top guys. As a lyricist, as good as there's been in the last half of the 20th century." Singer and comedian Dillie Keane has acknowledged Lehrer's influence on her work.
Dr. Demento praised Lehrer as "the best musical satirist of the twentieth century." Other artists who cite Lehrer as an influence include "Weird Al" Yankovic, whose work generally addresses more popular and less technical or political subjects, and educator and scientist H. Paul Shuch, who tours under the stage name Dr. SETI, and calls himself "a cross between Carl Sagan and Tom Lehrer: He sings like Sagan and lectures like Lehrer."
From January 16 to February 25, 2006, the play Letters from Lehrer, written and performed by Canadian Richard Greenblatt, ran at CanStage in Toronto. It followed Lehrer's musical career, the meaning of several songs, the politics of the time, and Greenblatt's own experiences with Lehrer's music, while playing some of Lehrer's songs.
Performers influenced by Lehrer's style include American political satirist Mark Russell, Canadian comedian and songwriter Randy Vancourt, and the British duo Kit and The Widow.
In 2004, British medical satirists Amateur Transplants acknowledge the debt they owe to Lehrer on the back of their first album, Fitness to Practice. Their song "The Menstrual Rag" uses the tune of Lehrer's "The Vatican Rag"; and "The Drugs Song" mirrors Lehrer's song "The Elements", both using the tune of the "Major-General's Song" from The Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan. The Amateur Transplants' second album, Unfit to Practise, opens with an update of Lehrer's "The Masochism Tango" called "Masochism Tango 2008".
Discography
Studio albums
Songs by Tom Lehrer (1953), re-recorded in 1966
More of Tom Lehrer (1959)
Live albums
An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer (1959)
Revisited (1960)
Tom Lehrer Discovers Australia (And Vice Versa) (1960; Australia-only)
That Was the Year That Was (1965)
Compilation albums
Tom Lehrer in Concert (1994; UK compilation)
Songs & More Songs by Tom Lehrer (1997; US compilation of his first two studio albums with additional songs)
The Remains of Tom Lehrer (2000)
The Tom Lehrer Collection (2010)
Many of Lehrer's songs are performed by others in That Was The Week That Was (Radiola LP, 1981).
The sheet music of many songs is published in The Tom Lehrer Song Book (Crown Publishers Inc., 1954; Library of Congress Card Catalog Number 54-12068) and Too Many Songs by Tom Lehrer: With Not Enough Drawings by Ronald Searle (Pantheon, 1981, ; Methuen, 1999, ). A second song book, Tom Lehrer's Second Song Book, is out of print, .
References
External links
Archived Tom Lehrer website (from 2008).
Song lyrics and music, released for free use.
Tom Lehrer interview on BBC Radio 4 Desert Island Discs, July 18, 1980
Interview with Tom Lehrer by the Library of Congress on July 22, 2015
1928 births
Living people
20th-century American mathematicians
American agnostics
American comedy musicians
Jewish American male comedians
American lyricists
American male singer-songwriters
American novelty song performers
American satirists
Harvard College alumni
Horace Mann School alumni
Jewish agnostics
Jewish American musicians
Jewish American songwriters
MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences faculty
Parody musicians
People from the Upper East Side
Reprise Records artists
Singers from New York City
University of California, Santa Cruz faculty
Wellesley College faculty
20th-century American pianists
Loomis Chaffee School alumni
American male non-fiction writers
20th-century American comedians
Mathematicians from New York (state)
American male pianists
21st-century American pianists
20th-century American male musicians
21st-century American male musicians
National Security Agency people
United States Army soldiers
Singer-songwriters from New York (state) | false | [
"Přírodní park Třebíčsko (before Oblast klidu Třebíčsko) is a natural park near Třebíč in the Czech Republic. There are many interesting plants. The park was founded in 1983.\n\nKobylinec and Ptáčovský kopeček\n\nKobylinec is a natural monument situated ca 0,5 km from the village of Trnava.\nThe area of this monument is 0,44 ha. Pulsatilla grandis can be found here and in the Ptáčovský kopeček park near Ptáčov near Třebíč. Both monuments are very popular for tourists.\n\nPonds\n\nIn the natural park there are some interesting ponds such as Velký Bor, Malý Bor, Buršík near Přeckov and a brook Březinka. Dams on the brook are examples of European beaver activity.\n\nSyenitové skály near Pocoucov\n\nSyenitové skály (rocks of syenit) near Pocoucov is one of famed locations. There are interesting granite boulders. The area of the reservation is 0,77 ha.\n\nExternal links\nParts of this article or all article was translated from Czech. The original article is :cs:Přírodní park Třebíčsko.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nNature near the village Trnava which is there\n\nTřebíč\nParks in the Czech Republic\nTourist attractions in the Vysočina Region",
"Damn Interesting is an independent website founded by Alan Bellows in 2005. The website presents true stories from science, history, and psychology, primarily as long-form articles, often illustrated with original artwork. Works are written by various authors, and published at irregular intervals. The website openly rejects advertising, relying on reader and listener donations to cover operating costs.\n\nAs of October 2012, each article is also published as a podcast under the same name. In November 2019, a second podcast was launched under the title Damn Interesting Week, featuring unscripted commentary on an assortment of news articles featured on the website's \"Curated Links\" section that week. In mid-2020, a third podcast called Damn Interesting Curio Cabinet began highlighting the website's periodic short-form articles in the same radioplay format as the original podcast.\n\nIn July 2009, Damn Interesting published the print book Alien Hand Syndrome through Workman Publishing. It contains some favorites from the site and some exclusive content.\n\nAwards and recognition \nIn August 2007, PC Magazine named Damn Interesting one of the \"Top 100 Undiscovered Web Sites\".\nThe article \"The Zero-Armed Bandit\" by Alan Bellows won a 2015 Sidney Award from David Brooks in The New York Times.\nThe article \"Ghoulish Acts and Dastardly Deeds\" by Alan Bellows was cited as \"nonfiction journalism from 2017 that will stand the test of time\" by Conor Friedersdorf in The Atlantic.\nThe article \"Dupes and Duplicity\" by Jennifer Lee Noonan won a 2020 Sidney Award from David Brooks in the New York Times.\n\nAccusing The Dollop of plagiarism \n\nOn July 9, 2015, Bellows posted an open letter accusing The Dollop, a comedy podcast about history, of plagiarism due to their repeated use of verbatim text from Damn Interesting articles without permission or attribution. Dave Anthony, the writer of The Dollop, responded on reddit, admitting to using Damn Interesting content, but claiming that the use was protected by fair use, and that \"historical facts are not copyrightable.\" In an article about the controversy on Plagiarism Today, Jonathan Bailey concluded, \"Any way one looks at it, The Dollop failed its ethical obligations to all of the people, not just those writing for Damn Interesting, who put in the time, energy and expertise into writing the original content upon which their show is based.\"\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n Official website\n\n2005 podcast debuts"
]
|
[
"Tom Lehrer",
"Style and Influences",
"What was his style?",
"At the time, radio stations would not give Lehrer air time because of his controversial subjects.",
"What controversial subjects?",
"The album--which included the macabre \"I Hold Your Hand in Mine\", the mildly risque \"Be Prepared\", and \"Lobachevsky\" (regarding plagiarizing mathematicians)--",
"What genre of music did he make?",
"I don't know.",
"Who were his influences?",
"'what a pleasant little waltz'...",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"Lehrer later recalled, \"Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola.\""
]
| C_c961772cd2d64c99971128bee7391985_0 | Did his music become popular? | 6 | Did Tom Lehrer's music become popular? | Tom Lehrer | In 1953, inspired by the success of his performances, Lehrer paid $15 for some studio time to record Songs by Tom Lehrer. The initial pressing was 400 copies. At the time, radio stations would not give Lehrer air time because of his controversial subjects. He sold his album on campus at Harvard for $3 (equivalent to $27.00 today), while "several stores near the Harvard campus sold it for $3.50, taking only a minimal markup as a kind of community service. Newsstands on campus sold it for the same price." After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country (as far away as San Francisco, after The Chronicle wrote an article on the record). Interest in his recordings was spread by word of mouth; friends and supporters brought their records home and played them for their friends, who then also wanted a copy. Lehrer later recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola." The album--which included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risque "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" (regarding plagiarizing mathematicians)--became a cult success via word of mouth, despite being self-published and without promotion. Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours and in 1959 recorded a second album, which was released in two versions: the songs were the same, but More of Tom Lehrer was studio-recorded while An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer was recorded live in concert. In 2013, Lehrer recalled the studio session for "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park," which referred to the practice of controlling pigeons in Boston with strychnine-treated corn: "The copyist arrived at the last minute with the parts and passed them out to the band... And there was no title on it, and there was no lyrics. And so they ran through it, 'what a pleasant little waltz'... And the engineer said, '"Poisoning Pigeons in the Park,' take one," and the piano player said, '"What?"' and literally fell off the stool." CANNOTANSWER | After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country | Thomas Andrew Lehrer (; born April 9, 1928) is a retired American musician, singer-songwriter, satirist, and mathematician, having lectured on mathematics and musical theater. He is best known for the pithy and humorous songs that he recorded in the 1950s and 1960s. His songs often parodied popular musical forms, though he usually created original melodies when doing so. A notable exception is "The Elements", in which he set the names of the chemical elements to the tune of the "Major-General's Song" from Gilbert and Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance.
Lehrer's early musical work typically dealt with non-topical subject matter and was noted for its black humor in songs such as "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park". In the 1960s, he produced a number of songs that dealt with social and political issues of the day, particularly when he wrote for the U.S. version of the television show That Was the Week That Was. The popularity of these songs has far outlasted their topical subjects and references. Lehrer quoted a friend's explanation: "Always predict the worst and you'll be hailed as a prophet." In the early 1970s, Lehrer largely retired from public performances to devote his time to teaching mathematics and musical theater history at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Early life
Thomas Andrew Lehrer was born on April 9, 1928 to a secular Jewish family and grew up on Manhattan's Upper East Side. He was the second and younger son of Moses James Lehrer (1898-?) and Anna Lehrer (née Waller) (1905-1978). He had an older brother. He began studying classical piano at the age of seven, but was more interested in the popular music of the age. Eventually, his mother also sent him to a popular-music piano teacher. At this early age, he began writing show tunes, which eventually helped him as a satirical composer and writer in his years of lecturing at Harvard University and later at other universities.
Lehrer attended the Horace Mann School in Riverdale, New York, part of the Bronx. He also attended Camp Androscoggin, both as a camper and a counselor. Lehrer was considered a child prodigy and entered Harvard College, where one of his professors was Irving Kaplansky, at the age of 15 after graduating from Loomis School. As a mathematics undergraduate student at Harvard College, he began to write comic songs to entertain his friends, including "Fight Fiercely, Harvard" (1945). Those songs were later named collectively The Physical Revue, a joking reference to a leading scientific journal, the Physical Review.
Academic and military career
Lehrer graduated Bachelor of Arts in mathematics from Harvard University, magna cum laude, in 1946. At Harvard, he was the roommate of the Canadian theologian Robert Crouse. He received his AM degree the next year and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. He later taught mathematics and other classes at MIT, Harvard, Wellesley, and the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Lehrer remained in Harvard's doctoral program for several years, taking time out for his musical career and to work as a researcher at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory.
Lehrer was drafted into the U.S. Army from 1955 to 1957, working at the National Security Agency (NSA). Lehrer has stated that he invented the Jello shot during this time, as a means of circumventing the base's ban on alcoholic beverages.
Despite holding a master's degree in an era when American conscripts often lacked a high school diploma, Lehrer served as an enlisted soldier, achieving the rank of Specialist Third Class, which he described as being a "corporal without portfolio". These experiences became fodder for songs, such as "The Wild West is Where I Want to Be" and "It Makes a Fellow Proud to Be a Soldier". It was many years before Lehrer publicly revealed that he had been assigned to the NSA, since the mere fact of its existence was classified at the time; this left him in the interesting position of implicitly using nuclear weapons work as a cover story for something more sensitive.
In 1960, Lehrer returned to full-time math studies at Harvard.
From 1962, Lehrer taught in the political science department at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). In 1965 he gave up on his mathematics dissertation on modes in statistics, after having worked on it intermittently for 15 years.
In 1972, Lehrer joined the faculty of the University of California, Santa Cruz, teaching an introductory course entitled The Nature of Mathematics to liberal arts majors—"math for tenors", according to Lehrer. He also taught a class in musical theater. He occasionally performed songs in his lectures.
In 2001, Lehrer taught his last mathematics class, on the topic of infinity, and retired from academia. He has remained in the area, and in 2003 said he still "hangs out" around the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Publications
The American Mathematical Society database lists him as co-author of two papers:
Two of Lehrer's songs were also reprinted, with his permission, in MAD Magazine:
Tom Lehrer Sings "The Wild West is Where I Where I Want To Be" (illustrated by George Woodbridge, MAD #32, April 1957)
Tom Lehrer's "The Hunting Song" (illustrated by George Woodbridge, MAD #35, October 1957)
Musical career
Style and influences
Lehrer was mainly influenced by musical theater. According to Gerald Nachman's book Seriously Funny, the Broadway musical Let's Face It! made an early and lasting impression on him. Lehrer's style consists of parodying various forms of popular song. For example, his appreciation of list songs led him to write "The Elements", which lists the chemical elements to the tune of Gilbert and Sullivan's "Major-General's Song".
In author and Boston University professor Isaac Asimov's second autobiographical volume, In Joy Still Felt, Asimov recounted seeing Lehrer perform in a Boston nightclub on October 9, 1954. Lehrer sang a song about Jim getting it from Louise, and Sally from Jim, "...and after a while you gathered the 'it' was venereal disease. [The song was likely "I Got It From Agnes".] Suddenly, as the combinations grew more grotesque, you realized he was satirizing every known perversion without using a single naughty phrase. It was clearly unsingable outside a nightclub." Asimov also recalled a song that dealt with the Boston subway system, making use of the stations leading into town from Harvard, observing that the local subject-matter rendered the song useless for general distribution. Lehrer subsequently granted Asimov permission to print the lyrics to the subway song in his book. "I haven't gone to nightclubs often," said Asimov, "but of all the times I have gone, it was on this occasion that I had by far the best time."
Recordings
Lehrer was encouraged by the success of his performances, so he paid $15 () for some studio time in 1953 to record Songs by Tom Lehrer. The initial pressing was 400 copies. Radio stations would not air his songs because of his controversial subjects, so he sold the album on campus at Harvard for $3, , while "several stores near the Harvard campus sold it for $3.50, taking only a minimal markup as a kind of community service. Newsstands on campus sold it for the same price." After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country, as far away as San Francisco, after the San Francisco Chronicle wrote an article on the record. Interest in his recordings spread by word of mouth. People played their records for friends, who then also wanted a copy. Lehrer recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola."
The album included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risqué "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" regarding plagiarizing mathematicians. It became a cult success by word of mouth, despite being self-published and without promotion. Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours and recorded a second album in 1959. He released the second album in two versions: the songs were the same, but More of Tom Lehrer was a studio recording and An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer was recorded live in concert. In 2013, Lehrer recalled the studio session for "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park", which referred to the practice of controlling pigeons in Boston with strychnine-treated corn:
Touring
Lehrer had a breakthrough in the United Kingdom on December 4, 1957, when the University of London awarded a doctor of music degree honoris causa to Princess Margaret, and the public orator, Professor J. R. Sutherland, said it was "in the full knowledge that the Princess is a connoisseur of music and a performer of skill and distinction, her taste being catholic, ranging from Mozart to the calypso and from opera to the songs of Miss Beatrice Lillie and Tom Lehrer." This prompted significant interest in Lehrer's works and helped to secure distribution for his five-year-old debut album in Britain. It was there that his music achieved real sales popularity, as a result of the proliferation of university newspapers referring to the material, and inadvertently due to the BBC, which in 1958 banned from broadcast 10 of the 12 songs on the album. By the end of the 1950s, Lehrer had sold 370,000 records.
That Was The Week That Was
In 1960, Lehrer essentially retired from touring in the U.S.
The same year, Lehrer toured Australia and New Zealand, performing a total of 33 concerts to great acclaim and controversy. While in New Zealand, Lehrer wrote a song criticizing the All Blacks rugby team 1960 tour of apartheid South Africa. These tours occurred during a time in which he was, he said, "banned, censored, mentioned in several houses of parliament and threatened with arrest". In particular, "Be Prepared" drew advance resistance in Brisbane from the commissioner of police. He performed several unreleased songs in Australia, including "The Masochism Tango".
In the early 1960s, he was employed as the resident songwriter for the U.S. edition of That Was The Week That Was (TW3), a satirical television show.
A greater proportion of his output became overtly political, or at least topical, on subjects such as education ("New Math"), the Second Vatican Council ("The Vatican Rag", a tune based on the 1910 "Spaghetti Rag" by Lyons and Yosco), race relations ("National Brotherhood Week"), air and water pollution ("Pollution"), American militarism ("Send the Marines"), and nuclear proliferation ("Who's Next?" and "MLF Lullaby"). He also wrote a song satirizing rocket scientist Wernher von Braun, who worked for Nazi Germany before working for the United States. (Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down? That's not my department,' says Wernher von Braun.") Lehrer did not appear on the television show; vocalist Nancy Ames performed his songs (to Lehrer's chagrin), and network censors often altered his lyrics. Lehrer later performed these songs on the album That Was The Year That Was (1965) at which point people could hear them the way that he intended.
In 1966, BBC TV host David Frost invited him to contribute some of his classic compositions to his BBC program The Frost Report. The show was transmitted live, and he pre-recorded all his segments at one performance. Lehrer was not featured in every edition, but his songs featured in an appropriate part of each show. At least two of his songs were not included on any of his LPs: a reworking of Noël Coward's "That is the End of the News" (with some new lyrics) and a comic explanation of how Britain might adapt to the coming of decimal currency.
The record deal with Reprise Records for That Was The Year That Was also gave Reprise distribution rights for his earlier recordings, as Lehrer wanted to wind up his own record imprint. The Reprise issue of Songs by Tom Lehrer was a stereo re-recording. This version was not issued on CD, but the songs were issued on the live Tom Lehrer Revisited CD. The live recording included bonus tracks "L-Y" and "Silent E", two of the ten songs that he wrote for the PBS children's educational series The Electric Company. Lehrer later commented that worldwide sales of the recordings under Reprise surpassed 1.8 million units in 1996. That same year, That Was The Year That Was went gold. The album liner notes promote his songs with self-deprecating humor, such as quoting a New York Times review from 1959: Mr. Lehrer's muse is "not fettered by such inhibiting factors as taste."
Lehrer made a short tour in Norway and Denmark in 1967, performing some of the songs from the television program. His performance in Oslo on September 10 was recorded on video tape and aired locally that autumn, then released on DVD some 40 years later. He performed as a prominent international guest at the Studenterforeningen (student association) in Copenhagen, which was televised, and he commented on stage that he might be America's "revenge for Victor Borge". He performed original songs in a Dodge automobile industrial film distributed primarily to automobile dealers and shown at promotional events in 1967, set in a fictional American wild west town and titled The Dodge Rebellion Theatre presents Ballads For '67. He attempted to adapt Sweeney Todd as a Broadway musical, working with Joe Raposo, to star Jerry Colonna. They started a few songs but, as Lehrer noted, "Nothing ever came of it, and of course twenty years later Stephen Sondheim beat me to the punch."
Departure from the music scene
In the 1970s, Lehrer concentrated on teaching mathematics and musical theater, although he also wrote ten songs for the educational children's television show The Electric Company. His last public performance for many years took place in 1972, on a fundraising tour for Democratic US presidential candidate George McGovern.
When asked about his reasons for abandoning his musical career in an interview in the book accompanying his CD box set, released in 2000, Lehrer cited a lack of interest, a disdain of touring, and the monotony of performing the same songs repeatedly. He observed that when he was moved to write and perform songs, he did, and when he was not, he did not, and that after a while he simply lost interest. Even though Lehrer was "a hero of the anti-nuclear, civil rights left" and covered its political issues in many of his songs, and even though he shared the New Left's opposition to the Vietnam War, and advocated for civil rights, he disliked the aesthetics of the counterculture of the 1960s and stopped performing as the movement gained momentum.
Lehrer's musical career was relatively brief. He once mentioned that he performed a mere 109 shows and wrote 37 songs over 20 years. Nevertheless, he developed a significant following in the United States and abroad.
Revivals and discographic reissues
In 1980, Cameron Mackintosh produced Tomfoolery, a revue of Lehrer's songs that was a hit on the London stage. Lehrer was not initially involved with the show, but he was pleased with it; he eventually gave the stage production his full support and updated several of his lyrics for the show. Tomfoolery contained 27 songs and led to more than 200 productions, including an Off-Broadway production at the Village Gate which ran for 120 performances in 1981. Lehrer made a rare TV appearance on BBC's Parkinson show in conjunction with the Tom Foolery premiere in 1980 at the Criterion Theatre in London, where he sang "I Got It from Agnes". There were "Tomfoolery" performances in San Francisco about 1982 and in 2018–19. In 1993, he wrote "That's Mathematics" for the closing credits to a Mathematical Sciences Research Institute video celebrating the proof of Fermat's Last Theorem.
On June 7 and 8, 1998, Lehrer performed in public for the first time in 25 years at the Lyceum Theatre, London as part of the show Hey, Mr. Producer! celebrating the career of Cameron Mackintosh, who had produced Tom Foolery. The June 8 show was his only performance before Queen Elizabeth II. Lehrer sang "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park" and an updated version of the nuclear proliferation song "Who's Next?"
In 2000 Lehrer commented that he doubted his songs had any real effect on those not already critical of the establishment: "I don't think this kind of thing has an impact on the unconverted, frankly. It's not even preaching to the converted; it's titillating the converted ... I'm fond of quoting Peter Cook, who talked about the satirical Berlin kabaretts of the 1930s, which did so much to stop the rise of Hitler and prevent the Second World War."
Lehrer has said, jokingly, of his musical career, "If, after hearing my songs, just one human being is inspired to say something nasty to a friend, or perhaps to strike a loved one, it will all have been worth the while."
In 2003, Lehrer commented that his particular brand of political satire is more difficult in the modern world: "The real issues I don't think most people touch. The Clinton jokes are all about Monica Lewinsky and all that stuff and not about the important things, like the fact that he wouldn't ban land mines ... I'm not tempted to write a song about George W. Bush. I couldn't figure out what sort of song I would write. That's the problem: I don't want to satirize George Bush and his puppeteers, I want to vaporize them."
In 2000, the boxed CD set The Remains of Tom Lehrer was released by Rhino Entertainment. It included live and studio versions of his first two albums, That Was The Year That Was, the songs that he wrote for The Electric Company, and some previously unreleased material, a small hardbound lyrics book with an introduction by Dr. Demento. In 2010, Shout! Factory launched a reissue campaign, making Lehrer's out-of-print albums available digitally. The CD/DVD combo The Tom Lehrer Collection was also issued, including his best-known songs, with a DVD featuring an Oslo concert.
In a February 2008 phone call, Gene Weingarten of The Washington Post interviewed Lehrer off the record. When Weingarten asked if there was anything he could print for the record, Lehrer responded, "Just tell the people that I am voting for Obama."
In 2012 rapper 2 Chainz sampled Lehrer's song "Dope Peddler", on his 2012 debut album, Based on a T.R.U. Story. In 2013, Lehrer said he was "very proud" to have his song sampled "literally sixty years after I recorded it". Lehrer went on to describe his official response to the request to use his song: "As sole copyright owner of 'The Old Dope Peddler', I grant you motherfuckers permission to do this. Please give my regards to Mr. Chainz, or may I call him 2?"
In 2020, at the age of 92, Lehrer donated all of his lyrics and music written by him to the public domain.
Musical legacy
In 1967, Swedish actor Lars Ekborg, known outside Sweden for his part in Ingmar Bergman's Summer with Monika, made an album called I Tom Lehrers vackra värld ("In the beautiful world of Tom Lehrer"), with 12 of Lehrer's songs interpreted in Swedish. Lehrer wrote in a letter to the producer Per-Anders Boquist that, "Not knowing any Swedish, I am obviously not equipped to judge, but it sounds to me as though Mr. Ekborg is perfect for the songs," along with further compliments to pianist Leif Asp for unexpected additional flourishes.
In 1971, Argentinian singer Nacha Guevara sang Spanish versions of several Lehrer songs for the show/live album Este es el año que es.
In 2010, the German musician-comedian Felix Janosa released an album with the title "Tauben vergiften: Die bösen Lieder von Tom Lehrer" ("Poisoning pigeons: The Evil Songs of Tom Lehrer"), with German versions of some of his best-known songs.
Composer Randy Newman said of Lehrer, "He's one of the great American songwriters without a doubt, right up there with everybody, the top guys. As a lyricist, as good as there's been in the last half of the 20th century." Singer and comedian Dillie Keane has acknowledged Lehrer's influence on her work.
Dr. Demento praised Lehrer as "the best musical satirist of the twentieth century." Other artists who cite Lehrer as an influence include "Weird Al" Yankovic, whose work generally addresses more popular and less technical or political subjects, and educator and scientist H. Paul Shuch, who tours under the stage name Dr. SETI, and calls himself "a cross between Carl Sagan and Tom Lehrer: He sings like Sagan and lectures like Lehrer."
From January 16 to February 25, 2006, the play Letters from Lehrer, written and performed by Canadian Richard Greenblatt, ran at CanStage in Toronto. It followed Lehrer's musical career, the meaning of several songs, the politics of the time, and Greenblatt's own experiences with Lehrer's music, while playing some of Lehrer's songs.
Performers influenced by Lehrer's style include American political satirist Mark Russell, Canadian comedian and songwriter Randy Vancourt, and the British duo Kit and The Widow.
In 2004, British medical satirists Amateur Transplants acknowledge the debt they owe to Lehrer on the back of their first album, Fitness to Practice. Their song "The Menstrual Rag" uses the tune of Lehrer's "The Vatican Rag"; and "The Drugs Song" mirrors Lehrer's song "The Elements", both using the tune of the "Major-General's Song" from The Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan. The Amateur Transplants' second album, Unfit to Practise, opens with an update of Lehrer's "The Masochism Tango" called "Masochism Tango 2008".
Discography
Studio albums
Songs by Tom Lehrer (1953), re-recorded in 1966
More of Tom Lehrer (1959)
Live albums
An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer (1959)
Revisited (1960)
Tom Lehrer Discovers Australia (And Vice Versa) (1960; Australia-only)
That Was the Year That Was (1965)
Compilation albums
Tom Lehrer in Concert (1994; UK compilation)
Songs & More Songs by Tom Lehrer (1997; US compilation of his first two studio albums with additional songs)
The Remains of Tom Lehrer (2000)
The Tom Lehrer Collection (2010)
Many of Lehrer's songs are performed by others in That Was The Week That Was (Radiola LP, 1981).
The sheet music of many songs is published in The Tom Lehrer Song Book (Crown Publishers Inc., 1954; Library of Congress Card Catalog Number 54-12068) and Too Many Songs by Tom Lehrer: With Not Enough Drawings by Ronald Searle (Pantheon, 1981, ; Methuen, 1999, ). A second song book, Tom Lehrer's Second Song Book, is out of print, .
References
External links
Archived Tom Lehrer website (from 2008).
Song lyrics and music, released for free use.
Tom Lehrer interview on BBC Radio 4 Desert Island Discs, July 18, 1980
Interview with Tom Lehrer by the Library of Congress on July 22, 2015
1928 births
Living people
20th-century American mathematicians
American agnostics
American comedy musicians
Jewish American male comedians
American lyricists
American male singer-songwriters
American novelty song performers
American satirists
Harvard College alumni
Horace Mann School alumni
Jewish agnostics
Jewish American musicians
Jewish American songwriters
MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences faculty
Parody musicians
People from the Upper East Side
Reprise Records artists
Singers from New York City
University of California, Santa Cruz faculty
Wellesley College faculty
20th-century American pianists
Loomis Chaffee School alumni
American male non-fiction writers
20th-century American comedians
Mathematicians from New York (state)
American male pianists
21st-century American pianists
20th-century American male musicians
21st-century American male musicians
National Security Agency people
United States Army soldiers
Singer-songwriters from New York (state) | true | [
"Thore Ehrling (December 29, 1912, Stockholm - October 21, 1994, Stockholm) was a Swedish trumpeter, composer, and bandleader, who led jazz and popular music ensembles.\n\nEhrling played with Frank Vernon's ensemble from 1930 to 1934, and concomitantly studied at the Royal Swedish Academy of Music. From 1935 to 1938 he played under Håkan von Eichwald and did arrangement and composition work on the side. He founded his own ensemble in 1938, which grew to big band size in the nineteen years it was active. This group played popular music and jazz, recorded frequently, and played often on Swedish radio. The group featured many sidemen who went on to become prominent on the Swedish jazz scene, such as Uffe Baadh and Carl-Henrik Norin, and accompanied popular Swedish singers such as Inger Berggren and Lily Berglund.\n\nReferences\n\"Thore Ehrling\". The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz. 2nd edition, ed. Barry Kernfeld.\n\nSwedish jazz trumpeters\nMale trumpeters\nSwedish jazz bandleaders\nSwedish composers\nSwedish male composers\nMusicians from Stockholm\n1912 births\n1994 deaths\n20th-century trumpeters\n20th-century Swedish male musicians\n20th-century Swedish musicians\nMale jazz musicians",
"Yo-pop is a style of Nigerian popular music, popularized in the 1980s by Segun Adewale. The style did not remain popular for long as it was quickly replaced by afro towards the end of the 1980s.\n\nIt was a style influenced by juju music. \n\nNigerian styles of music\nAfrican popular music"
]
|
[
"Tom Lehrer",
"Style and Influences",
"What was his style?",
"At the time, radio stations would not give Lehrer air time because of his controversial subjects.",
"What controversial subjects?",
"The album--which included the macabre \"I Hold Your Hand in Mine\", the mildly risque \"Be Prepared\", and \"Lobachevsky\" (regarding plagiarizing mathematicians)--",
"What genre of music did he make?",
"I don't know.",
"Who were his influences?",
"'what a pleasant little waltz'...",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"Lehrer later recalled, \"Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola.\"",
"Did his music become popular?",
"After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country"
]
| C_c961772cd2d64c99971128bee7391985_0 | What happened in that summer? | 7 | What happened in that summer when Tom Lehrer started to receive mail orders? | Tom Lehrer | In 1953, inspired by the success of his performances, Lehrer paid $15 for some studio time to record Songs by Tom Lehrer. The initial pressing was 400 copies. At the time, radio stations would not give Lehrer air time because of his controversial subjects. He sold his album on campus at Harvard for $3 (equivalent to $27.00 today), while "several stores near the Harvard campus sold it for $3.50, taking only a minimal markup as a kind of community service. Newsstands on campus sold it for the same price." After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country (as far away as San Francisco, after The Chronicle wrote an article on the record). Interest in his recordings was spread by word of mouth; friends and supporters brought their records home and played them for their friends, who then also wanted a copy. Lehrer later recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola." The album--which included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risque "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" (regarding plagiarizing mathematicians)--became a cult success via word of mouth, despite being self-published and without promotion. Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours and in 1959 recorded a second album, which was released in two versions: the songs were the same, but More of Tom Lehrer was studio-recorded while An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer was recorded live in concert. In 2013, Lehrer recalled the studio session for "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park," which referred to the practice of controlling pigeons in Boston with strychnine-treated corn: "The copyist arrived at the last minute with the parts and passed them out to the band... And there was no title on it, and there was no lyrics. And so they ran through it, 'what a pleasant little waltz'... And the engineer said, '"Poisoning Pigeons in the Park,' take one," and the piano player said, '"What?"' and literally fell off the stool." CANNOTANSWER | Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours | Thomas Andrew Lehrer (; born April 9, 1928) is a retired American musician, singer-songwriter, satirist, and mathematician, having lectured on mathematics and musical theater. He is best known for the pithy and humorous songs that he recorded in the 1950s and 1960s. His songs often parodied popular musical forms, though he usually created original melodies when doing so. A notable exception is "The Elements", in which he set the names of the chemical elements to the tune of the "Major-General's Song" from Gilbert and Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance.
Lehrer's early musical work typically dealt with non-topical subject matter and was noted for its black humor in songs such as "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park". In the 1960s, he produced a number of songs that dealt with social and political issues of the day, particularly when he wrote for the U.S. version of the television show That Was the Week That Was. The popularity of these songs has far outlasted their topical subjects and references. Lehrer quoted a friend's explanation: "Always predict the worst and you'll be hailed as a prophet." In the early 1970s, Lehrer largely retired from public performances to devote his time to teaching mathematics and musical theater history at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Early life
Thomas Andrew Lehrer was born on April 9, 1928 to a secular Jewish family and grew up on Manhattan's Upper East Side. He was the second and younger son of Moses James Lehrer (1898-?) and Anna Lehrer (née Waller) (1905-1978). He had an older brother. He began studying classical piano at the age of seven, but was more interested in the popular music of the age. Eventually, his mother also sent him to a popular-music piano teacher. At this early age, he began writing show tunes, which eventually helped him as a satirical composer and writer in his years of lecturing at Harvard University and later at other universities.
Lehrer attended the Horace Mann School in Riverdale, New York, part of the Bronx. He also attended Camp Androscoggin, both as a camper and a counselor. Lehrer was considered a child prodigy and entered Harvard College, where one of his professors was Irving Kaplansky, at the age of 15 after graduating from Loomis School. As a mathematics undergraduate student at Harvard College, he began to write comic songs to entertain his friends, including "Fight Fiercely, Harvard" (1945). Those songs were later named collectively The Physical Revue, a joking reference to a leading scientific journal, the Physical Review.
Academic and military career
Lehrer graduated Bachelor of Arts in mathematics from Harvard University, magna cum laude, in 1946. At Harvard, he was the roommate of the Canadian theologian Robert Crouse. He received his AM degree the next year and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. He later taught mathematics and other classes at MIT, Harvard, Wellesley, and the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Lehrer remained in Harvard's doctoral program for several years, taking time out for his musical career and to work as a researcher at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory.
Lehrer was drafted into the U.S. Army from 1955 to 1957, working at the National Security Agency (NSA). Lehrer has stated that he invented the Jello shot during this time, as a means of circumventing the base's ban on alcoholic beverages.
Despite holding a master's degree in an era when American conscripts often lacked a high school diploma, Lehrer served as an enlisted soldier, achieving the rank of Specialist Third Class, which he described as being a "corporal without portfolio". These experiences became fodder for songs, such as "The Wild West is Where I Want to Be" and "It Makes a Fellow Proud to Be a Soldier". It was many years before Lehrer publicly revealed that he had been assigned to the NSA, since the mere fact of its existence was classified at the time; this left him in the interesting position of implicitly using nuclear weapons work as a cover story for something more sensitive.
In 1960, Lehrer returned to full-time math studies at Harvard.
From 1962, Lehrer taught in the political science department at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). In 1965 he gave up on his mathematics dissertation on modes in statistics, after having worked on it intermittently for 15 years.
In 1972, Lehrer joined the faculty of the University of California, Santa Cruz, teaching an introductory course entitled The Nature of Mathematics to liberal arts majors—"math for tenors", according to Lehrer. He also taught a class in musical theater. He occasionally performed songs in his lectures.
In 2001, Lehrer taught his last mathematics class, on the topic of infinity, and retired from academia. He has remained in the area, and in 2003 said he still "hangs out" around the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Publications
The American Mathematical Society database lists him as co-author of two papers:
Two of Lehrer's songs were also reprinted, with his permission, in MAD Magazine:
Tom Lehrer Sings "The Wild West is Where I Where I Want To Be" (illustrated by George Woodbridge, MAD #32, April 1957)
Tom Lehrer's "The Hunting Song" (illustrated by George Woodbridge, MAD #35, October 1957)
Musical career
Style and influences
Lehrer was mainly influenced by musical theater. According to Gerald Nachman's book Seriously Funny, the Broadway musical Let's Face It! made an early and lasting impression on him. Lehrer's style consists of parodying various forms of popular song. For example, his appreciation of list songs led him to write "The Elements", which lists the chemical elements to the tune of Gilbert and Sullivan's "Major-General's Song".
In author and Boston University professor Isaac Asimov's second autobiographical volume, In Joy Still Felt, Asimov recounted seeing Lehrer perform in a Boston nightclub on October 9, 1954. Lehrer sang a song about Jim getting it from Louise, and Sally from Jim, "...and after a while you gathered the 'it' was venereal disease. [The song was likely "I Got It From Agnes".] Suddenly, as the combinations grew more grotesque, you realized he was satirizing every known perversion without using a single naughty phrase. It was clearly unsingable outside a nightclub." Asimov also recalled a song that dealt with the Boston subway system, making use of the stations leading into town from Harvard, observing that the local subject-matter rendered the song useless for general distribution. Lehrer subsequently granted Asimov permission to print the lyrics to the subway song in his book. "I haven't gone to nightclubs often," said Asimov, "but of all the times I have gone, it was on this occasion that I had by far the best time."
Recordings
Lehrer was encouraged by the success of his performances, so he paid $15 () for some studio time in 1953 to record Songs by Tom Lehrer. The initial pressing was 400 copies. Radio stations would not air his songs because of his controversial subjects, so he sold the album on campus at Harvard for $3, , while "several stores near the Harvard campus sold it for $3.50, taking only a minimal markup as a kind of community service. Newsstands on campus sold it for the same price." After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country, as far away as San Francisco, after the San Francisco Chronicle wrote an article on the record. Interest in his recordings spread by word of mouth. People played their records for friends, who then also wanted a copy. Lehrer recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola."
The album included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risqué "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" regarding plagiarizing mathematicians. It became a cult success by word of mouth, despite being self-published and without promotion. Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours and recorded a second album in 1959. He released the second album in two versions: the songs were the same, but More of Tom Lehrer was a studio recording and An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer was recorded live in concert. In 2013, Lehrer recalled the studio session for "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park", which referred to the practice of controlling pigeons in Boston with strychnine-treated corn:
Touring
Lehrer had a breakthrough in the United Kingdom on December 4, 1957, when the University of London awarded a doctor of music degree honoris causa to Princess Margaret, and the public orator, Professor J. R. Sutherland, said it was "in the full knowledge that the Princess is a connoisseur of music and a performer of skill and distinction, her taste being catholic, ranging from Mozart to the calypso and from opera to the songs of Miss Beatrice Lillie and Tom Lehrer." This prompted significant interest in Lehrer's works and helped to secure distribution for his five-year-old debut album in Britain. It was there that his music achieved real sales popularity, as a result of the proliferation of university newspapers referring to the material, and inadvertently due to the BBC, which in 1958 banned from broadcast 10 of the 12 songs on the album. By the end of the 1950s, Lehrer had sold 370,000 records.
That Was The Week That Was
In 1960, Lehrer essentially retired from touring in the U.S.
The same year, Lehrer toured Australia and New Zealand, performing a total of 33 concerts to great acclaim and controversy. While in New Zealand, Lehrer wrote a song criticizing the All Blacks rugby team 1960 tour of apartheid South Africa. These tours occurred during a time in which he was, he said, "banned, censored, mentioned in several houses of parliament and threatened with arrest". In particular, "Be Prepared" drew advance resistance in Brisbane from the commissioner of police. He performed several unreleased songs in Australia, including "The Masochism Tango".
In the early 1960s, he was employed as the resident songwriter for the U.S. edition of That Was The Week That Was (TW3), a satirical television show.
A greater proportion of his output became overtly political, or at least topical, on subjects such as education ("New Math"), the Second Vatican Council ("The Vatican Rag", a tune based on the 1910 "Spaghetti Rag" by Lyons and Yosco), race relations ("National Brotherhood Week"), air and water pollution ("Pollution"), American militarism ("Send the Marines"), and nuclear proliferation ("Who's Next?" and "MLF Lullaby"). He also wrote a song satirizing rocket scientist Wernher von Braun, who worked for Nazi Germany before working for the United States. (Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down? That's not my department,' says Wernher von Braun.") Lehrer did not appear on the television show; vocalist Nancy Ames performed his songs (to Lehrer's chagrin), and network censors often altered his lyrics. Lehrer later performed these songs on the album That Was The Year That Was (1965) at which point people could hear them the way that he intended.
In 1966, BBC TV host David Frost invited him to contribute some of his classic compositions to his BBC program The Frost Report. The show was transmitted live, and he pre-recorded all his segments at one performance. Lehrer was not featured in every edition, but his songs featured in an appropriate part of each show. At least two of his songs were not included on any of his LPs: a reworking of Noël Coward's "That is the End of the News" (with some new lyrics) and a comic explanation of how Britain might adapt to the coming of decimal currency.
The record deal with Reprise Records for That Was The Year That Was also gave Reprise distribution rights for his earlier recordings, as Lehrer wanted to wind up his own record imprint. The Reprise issue of Songs by Tom Lehrer was a stereo re-recording. This version was not issued on CD, but the songs were issued on the live Tom Lehrer Revisited CD. The live recording included bonus tracks "L-Y" and "Silent E", two of the ten songs that he wrote for the PBS children's educational series The Electric Company. Lehrer later commented that worldwide sales of the recordings under Reprise surpassed 1.8 million units in 1996. That same year, That Was The Year That Was went gold. The album liner notes promote his songs with self-deprecating humor, such as quoting a New York Times review from 1959: Mr. Lehrer's muse is "not fettered by such inhibiting factors as taste."
Lehrer made a short tour in Norway and Denmark in 1967, performing some of the songs from the television program. His performance in Oslo on September 10 was recorded on video tape and aired locally that autumn, then released on DVD some 40 years later. He performed as a prominent international guest at the Studenterforeningen (student association) in Copenhagen, which was televised, and he commented on stage that he might be America's "revenge for Victor Borge". He performed original songs in a Dodge automobile industrial film distributed primarily to automobile dealers and shown at promotional events in 1967, set in a fictional American wild west town and titled The Dodge Rebellion Theatre presents Ballads For '67. He attempted to adapt Sweeney Todd as a Broadway musical, working with Joe Raposo, to star Jerry Colonna. They started a few songs but, as Lehrer noted, "Nothing ever came of it, and of course twenty years later Stephen Sondheim beat me to the punch."
Departure from the music scene
In the 1970s, Lehrer concentrated on teaching mathematics and musical theater, although he also wrote ten songs for the educational children's television show The Electric Company. His last public performance for many years took place in 1972, on a fundraising tour for Democratic US presidential candidate George McGovern.
When asked about his reasons for abandoning his musical career in an interview in the book accompanying his CD box set, released in 2000, Lehrer cited a lack of interest, a disdain of touring, and the monotony of performing the same songs repeatedly. He observed that when he was moved to write and perform songs, he did, and when he was not, he did not, and that after a while he simply lost interest. Even though Lehrer was "a hero of the anti-nuclear, civil rights left" and covered its political issues in many of his songs, and even though he shared the New Left's opposition to the Vietnam War, and advocated for civil rights, he disliked the aesthetics of the counterculture of the 1960s and stopped performing as the movement gained momentum.
Lehrer's musical career was relatively brief. He once mentioned that he performed a mere 109 shows and wrote 37 songs over 20 years. Nevertheless, he developed a significant following in the United States and abroad.
Revivals and discographic reissues
In 1980, Cameron Mackintosh produced Tomfoolery, a revue of Lehrer's songs that was a hit on the London stage. Lehrer was not initially involved with the show, but he was pleased with it; he eventually gave the stage production his full support and updated several of his lyrics for the show. Tomfoolery contained 27 songs and led to more than 200 productions, including an Off-Broadway production at the Village Gate which ran for 120 performances in 1981. Lehrer made a rare TV appearance on BBC's Parkinson show in conjunction with the Tom Foolery premiere in 1980 at the Criterion Theatre in London, where he sang "I Got It from Agnes". There were "Tomfoolery" performances in San Francisco about 1982 and in 2018–19. In 1993, he wrote "That's Mathematics" for the closing credits to a Mathematical Sciences Research Institute video celebrating the proof of Fermat's Last Theorem.
On June 7 and 8, 1998, Lehrer performed in public for the first time in 25 years at the Lyceum Theatre, London as part of the show Hey, Mr. Producer! celebrating the career of Cameron Mackintosh, who had produced Tom Foolery. The June 8 show was his only performance before Queen Elizabeth II. Lehrer sang "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park" and an updated version of the nuclear proliferation song "Who's Next?"
In 2000 Lehrer commented that he doubted his songs had any real effect on those not already critical of the establishment: "I don't think this kind of thing has an impact on the unconverted, frankly. It's not even preaching to the converted; it's titillating the converted ... I'm fond of quoting Peter Cook, who talked about the satirical Berlin kabaretts of the 1930s, which did so much to stop the rise of Hitler and prevent the Second World War."
Lehrer has said, jokingly, of his musical career, "If, after hearing my songs, just one human being is inspired to say something nasty to a friend, or perhaps to strike a loved one, it will all have been worth the while."
In 2003, Lehrer commented that his particular brand of political satire is more difficult in the modern world: "The real issues I don't think most people touch. The Clinton jokes are all about Monica Lewinsky and all that stuff and not about the important things, like the fact that he wouldn't ban land mines ... I'm not tempted to write a song about George W. Bush. I couldn't figure out what sort of song I would write. That's the problem: I don't want to satirize George Bush and his puppeteers, I want to vaporize them."
In 2000, the boxed CD set The Remains of Tom Lehrer was released by Rhino Entertainment. It included live and studio versions of his first two albums, That Was The Year That Was, the songs that he wrote for The Electric Company, and some previously unreleased material, a small hardbound lyrics book with an introduction by Dr. Demento. In 2010, Shout! Factory launched a reissue campaign, making Lehrer's out-of-print albums available digitally. The CD/DVD combo The Tom Lehrer Collection was also issued, including his best-known songs, with a DVD featuring an Oslo concert.
In a February 2008 phone call, Gene Weingarten of The Washington Post interviewed Lehrer off the record. When Weingarten asked if there was anything he could print for the record, Lehrer responded, "Just tell the people that I am voting for Obama."
In 2012 rapper 2 Chainz sampled Lehrer's song "Dope Peddler", on his 2012 debut album, Based on a T.R.U. Story. In 2013, Lehrer said he was "very proud" to have his song sampled "literally sixty years after I recorded it". Lehrer went on to describe his official response to the request to use his song: "As sole copyright owner of 'The Old Dope Peddler', I grant you motherfuckers permission to do this. Please give my regards to Mr. Chainz, or may I call him 2?"
In 2020, at the age of 92, Lehrer donated all of his lyrics and music written by him to the public domain.
Musical legacy
In 1967, Swedish actor Lars Ekborg, known outside Sweden for his part in Ingmar Bergman's Summer with Monika, made an album called I Tom Lehrers vackra värld ("In the beautiful world of Tom Lehrer"), with 12 of Lehrer's songs interpreted in Swedish. Lehrer wrote in a letter to the producer Per-Anders Boquist that, "Not knowing any Swedish, I am obviously not equipped to judge, but it sounds to me as though Mr. Ekborg is perfect for the songs," along with further compliments to pianist Leif Asp for unexpected additional flourishes.
In 1971, Argentinian singer Nacha Guevara sang Spanish versions of several Lehrer songs for the show/live album Este es el año que es.
In 2010, the German musician-comedian Felix Janosa released an album with the title "Tauben vergiften: Die bösen Lieder von Tom Lehrer" ("Poisoning pigeons: The Evil Songs of Tom Lehrer"), with German versions of some of his best-known songs.
Composer Randy Newman said of Lehrer, "He's one of the great American songwriters without a doubt, right up there with everybody, the top guys. As a lyricist, as good as there's been in the last half of the 20th century." Singer and comedian Dillie Keane has acknowledged Lehrer's influence on her work.
Dr. Demento praised Lehrer as "the best musical satirist of the twentieth century." Other artists who cite Lehrer as an influence include "Weird Al" Yankovic, whose work generally addresses more popular and less technical or political subjects, and educator and scientist H. Paul Shuch, who tours under the stage name Dr. SETI, and calls himself "a cross between Carl Sagan and Tom Lehrer: He sings like Sagan and lectures like Lehrer."
From January 16 to February 25, 2006, the play Letters from Lehrer, written and performed by Canadian Richard Greenblatt, ran at CanStage in Toronto. It followed Lehrer's musical career, the meaning of several songs, the politics of the time, and Greenblatt's own experiences with Lehrer's music, while playing some of Lehrer's songs.
Performers influenced by Lehrer's style include American political satirist Mark Russell, Canadian comedian and songwriter Randy Vancourt, and the British duo Kit and The Widow.
In 2004, British medical satirists Amateur Transplants acknowledge the debt they owe to Lehrer on the back of their first album, Fitness to Practice. Their song "The Menstrual Rag" uses the tune of Lehrer's "The Vatican Rag"; and "The Drugs Song" mirrors Lehrer's song "The Elements", both using the tune of the "Major-General's Song" from The Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan. The Amateur Transplants' second album, Unfit to Practise, opens with an update of Lehrer's "The Masochism Tango" called "Masochism Tango 2008".
Discography
Studio albums
Songs by Tom Lehrer (1953), re-recorded in 1966
More of Tom Lehrer (1959)
Live albums
An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer (1959)
Revisited (1960)
Tom Lehrer Discovers Australia (And Vice Versa) (1960; Australia-only)
That Was the Year That Was (1965)
Compilation albums
Tom Lehrer in Concert (1994; UK compilation)
Songs & More Songs by Tom Lehrer (1997; US compilation of his first two studio albums with additional songs)
The Remains of Tom Lehrer (2000)
The Tom Lehrer Collection (2010)
Many of Lehrer's songs are performed by others in That Was The Week That Was (Radiola LP, 1981).
The sheet music of many songs is published in The Tom Lehrer Song Book (Crown Publishers Inc., 1954; Library of Congress Card Catalog Number 54-12068) and Too Many Songs by Tom Lehrer: With Not Enough Drawings by Ronald Searle (Pantheon, 1981, ; Methuen, 1999, ). A second song book, Tom Lehrer's Second Song Book, is out of print, .
References
External links
Archived Tom Lehrer website (from 2008).
Song lyrics and music, released for free use.
Tom Lehrer interview on BBC Radio 4 Desert Island Discs, July 18, 1980
Interview with Tom Lehrer by the Library of Congress on July 22, 2015
1928 births
Living people
20th-century American mathematicians
American agnostics
American comedy musicians
Jewish American male comedians
American lyricists
American male singer-songwriters
American novelty song performers
American satirists
Harvard College alumni
Horace Mann School alumni
Jewish agnostics
Jewish American musicians
Jewish American songwriters
MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences faculty
Parody musicians
People from the Upper East Side
Reprise Records artists
Singers from New York City
University of California, Santa Cruz faculty
Wellesley College faculty
20th-century American pianists
Loomis Chaffee School alumni
American male non-fiction writers
20th-century American comedians
Mathematicians from New York (state)
American male pianists
21st-century American pianists
20th-century American male musicians
21st-century American male musicians
National Security Agency people
United States Army soldiers
Singer-songwriters from New York (state) | true | [
"Don Juan Manuel's Tales of Count Lucanor, in Spanish Libro de los ejemplos del conde Lucanor y de Patronio (Book of the Examples of Count Lucanor and of Patronio), also commonly known as El Conde Lucanor, Libro de Patronio, or Libro de los ejemplos (original Old Castilian: Libro de los enxiemplos del Conde Lucanor et de Patronio), is one of the earliest works of prose in Castilian Spanish. It was first written in 1335.\n\nThe book is divided into four parts. The first and most well-known part is a series of 51 short stories (some no more than a page or two) drawn from various sources, such as Aesop and other classical writers, and Arabic folktales.\n\nTales of Count Lucanor was first printed in 1575 when it was published at Seville under the auspices of Argote de Molina. It was again printed at Madrid in 1642, after which it lay forgotten for nearly two centuries.\n\nPurpose and structure\n\nA didactic, moralistic purpose, which would color so much of the Spanish literature to follow (see Novela picaresca), is the mark of this book. Count Lucanor engages in conversation with his advisor Patronio, putting to him a problem (\"Some man has made me a proposition...\" or \"I fear that such and such person intends to...\") and asking for advice. Patronio responds always with the greatest humility, claiming not to wish to offer advice to so illustrious a person as the Count, but offering to tell him a story of which the Count's problem reminds him. (Thus, the stories are \"examples\" [ejemplos] of wise action.) At the end he advises the Count to do as the protagonist of his story did.\n\nEach chapter ends in more or less the same way, with slight variations on: \"And this pleased the Count greatly and he did just so, and found it well. And Don Johán (Juan) saw that this example was very good, and had it written in this book, and composed the following verses.\" A rhymed couplet closes, giving the moral of the story.\n\nOrigin of stories and influence on later literature\nMany of the stories written in the book are the first examples written in a modern European language of various stories, which many other writers would use in the proceeding centuries. Many of the stories he included were themselves derived from other stories, coming from western and Arab sources.\n\nShakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew has the basic elements of Tale 35, \"What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\".\n\nTale 32, \"What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth\" tells the story that Hans Christian Andersen made popular as The Emperor's New Clothes.\n\nStory 7, \"What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana\", a version of Aesop's The Milkmaid and Her Pail, was claimed by Max Müller to originate in the Hindu cycle Panchatantra.\n\nTale 2, \"What happened to a good Man and his Son, leading a beast to market,\" is the familiar fable The miller, his son and the donkey.\n\nIn 2016, Baroque Decay released a game under the name \"The Count Lucanor\". As well as some protagonists' names, certain events from the books inspired past events in the game.\n\nThe stories\n\nThe book opens with a prologue which introduces the characters of the Count and Patronio. The titles in the following list are those given in Keller and Keating's 1977 translation into English. James York's 1868 translation into English gives a significantly different ordering of the stories and omits the fifty-first.\n\n What Happened to a King and His Favorite \n What Happened to a Good Man and His Son \n How King Richard of England Leapt into the Sea against the Moors\n What a Genoese Said to His Soul When He Was about to Die \n What Happened to a Fox and a Crow Who Had a Piece of Cheese in His Beak\n How the Swallow Warned the Other Birds When She Saw Flax Being Sown \n What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana \n What Happened to a Man Whose Liver Had to Be Washed \n What Happened to Two Horses Which Were Thrown to the Lion \n What Happened to a Man Who on Account of Poverty and Lack of Other Food Was Eating Bitter Lentils \n What Happened to a Dean of Santiago de Compostela and Don Yllán, the Grand Master of Toledo\n What Happened to the Fox and the Rooster \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Hunting Partridges \n The Miracle of Saint Dominick When He Preached against the Usurer \n What Happened to Lorenzo Suárez at the Siege of Seville \n The Reply that count Fernán González Gave to His Relative Núño Laynes \n What Happened to a Very Hungry Man Who Was Half-heartedly Invited to Dinner \n What Happened to Pero Meléndez de Valdés When He Broke His Leg \n What Happened to the Crows and the Owls \n What Happened to a King for Whom a Man Promised to Perform Alchemy \n What Happened to a Young King and a Philosopher to Whom his Father Commended Him \n What Happened to the Lion and the Bull \n How the Ants Provide for Themselves \n What Happened to the King Who Wanted to Test His Three Sons \n What Happened to the Count of Provence and How He Was Freed from Prison by the Advice of Saladin\n What Happened to the Tree of Lies \n What Happened to an Emperor and to Don Alvarfáñez Minaya and Their Wives \n What Happened in Granada to Don Lorenzo Suárez Gallinato When He Beheaded the Renegade Chaplain \n What Happened to a Fox Who Lay down in the Street to Play Dead \n What Happened to King Abenabet of Seville and Ramayquía His Wife \n How a Cardinal Judged between the Canons of Paris and the Friars Minor \n What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth \n What Happened to Don Juan Manuel's Saker Falcon and an Eagle and a Heron \n What Happened to a Blind Man Who Was Leading Another \n What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\n What Happened to a Merchant When He Found His Son and His Wife Sleeping Together \n What Happened to Count Fernán González with His Men after He Had Won the Battle of Hacinas \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Loaded down with Precious Stones and Drowned in the River \n What Happened to a Man and a Swallow and a Sparrow \n Why the Seneschal of Carcassonne Lost His Soul \n What Happened to a King of Córdova Named Al-Haquem \n What Happened to a Woman of Sham Piety \n What Happened to Good and Evil and the Wise Man and the Madman \n What Happened to Don Pero Núñez the Loyal, to Don Ruy González de Zavallos, and to Don Gutier Roiz de Blaguiello with Don Rodrigo the Generous \n What Happened to a Man Who Became the Devil's Friend and Vassal \n What Happened to a Philosopher who by Accident Went down a Street Where Prostitutes Lived \n What Befell a Moor and His Sister Who Pretended That She Was Timid \n What Happened to a Man Who Tested His Friends \n What Happened to the Man Whom They Cast out Naked on an Island When They Took away from Him the Kingdom He Ruled \n What Happened to Saladin and a Lady, the Wife of a Knight Who Was His Vassal \n What Happened to a Christian King Who Was Very Powerful and Haughty\n\nReferences\n\nNotes\n\nBibliography\n\n Sturm, Harlan\n\n Wacks, David\n\nExternal links\n\nThe Internet Archive provides free access to the 1868 translation by James York.\nJSTOR has the to the 1977 translation by Keller and Keating.\nSelections in English and Spanish (pedagogical edition) with introduction, notes, and bibliography in Open Iberia/América (open access teaching anthology)\n\n14th-century books\nSpanish literature\n1335 books",
"Brother is a yaoi manga by Yuzuha Ougi. It has been published in English by DramaQueen in 2005.\n\nPlot\nThe story is about Asuka Momoki and Yui Momoki who are two stepbrothers who were best friends during their lifetime as kids and young adolescents. But all that changed, they were best friends until an incident they had one day between each other on a hot summer day\n\nEver since that day, Yui has been avoiding Asuka at all costs, because he is ashamed of what happened. Yui is so ashamed of what happened that he is trying to avoid Asuka so much even going so far as leaving his native Japan to foreign North America to study at one of the schools there, and forget what happened between him and Asuka.\n\nIn America, Yui is very successful in what he does: He has become a tennis superstar, and because of his success, Yui feels that he no longer needs a big brother to look after him. In short, Brother is a bittersweet romance about the love that two brothers can have for each other, and the difficult time they can suffer with it.\n\nSequel\nAlthough a sequel to Brother (\"Brother 2\") has been released in Japan, DramaQueen has chosen not to release it in the US.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nBrother Official site at DramaQueen\nMania review\nAbout.com\n\nYaoi anime and manga\n2004 manga"
]
|
[
"Tom Lehrer",
"Style and Influences",
"What was his style?",
"At the time, radio stations would not give Lehrer air time because of his controversial subjects.",
"What controversial subjects?",
"The album--which included the macabre \"I Hold Your Hand in Mine\", the mildly risque \"Be Prepared\", and \"Lobachevsky\" (regarding plagiarizing mathematicians)--",
"What genre of music did he make?",
"I don't know.",
"Who were his influences?",
"'what a pleasant little waltz'...",
"Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?",
"Lehrer later recalled, \"Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola.\"",
"Did his music become popular?",
"After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country",
"What happened in that summer?",
"Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours"
]
| C_c961772cd2d64c99971128bee7391985_0 | What was the name of his album? | 8 | What was the name of Tom Lehrer's album? | Tom Lehrer | In 1953, inspired by the success of his performances, Lehrer paid $15 for some studio time to record Songs by Tom Lehrer. The initial pressing was 400 copies. At the time, radio stations would not give Lehrer air time because of his controversial subjects. He sold his album on campus at Harvard for $3 (equivalent to $27.00 today), while "several stores near the Harvard campus sold it for $3.50, taking only a minimal markup as a kind of community service. Newsstands on campus sold it for the same price." After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country (as far away as San Francisco, after The Chronicle wrote an article on the record). Interest in his recordings was spread by word of mouth; friends and supporters brought their records home and played them for their friends, who then also wanted a copy. Lehrer later recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola." The album--which included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risque "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" (regarding plagiarizing mathematicians)--became a cult success via word of mouth, despite being self-published and without promotion. Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours and in 1959 recorded a second album, which was released in two versions: the songs were the same, but More of Tom Lehrer was studio-recorded while An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer was recorded live in concert. In 2013, Lehrer recalled the studio session for "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park," which referred to the practice of controlling pigeons in Boston with strychnine-treated corn: "The copyist arrived at the last minute with the parts and passed them out to the band... And there was no title on it, and there was no lyrics. And so they ran through it, 'what a pleasant little waltz'... And the engineer said, '"Poisoning Pigeons in the Park,' take one," and the piano player said, '"What?"' and literally fell off the stool." CANNOTANSWER | Songs by Tom Lehrer. | Thomas Andrew Lehrer (; born April 9, 1928) is a retired American musician, singer-songwriter, satirist, and mathematician, having lectured on mathematics and musical theater. He is best known for the pithy and humorous songs that he recorded in the 1950s and 1960s. His songs often parodied popular musical forms, though he usually created original melodies when doing so. A notable exception is "The Elements", in which he set the names of the chemical elements to the tune of the "Major-General's Song" from Gilbert and Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance.
Lehrer's early musical work typically dealt with non-topical subject matter and was noted for its black humor in songs such as "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park". In the 1960s, he produced a number of songs that dealt with social and political issues of the day, particularly when he wrote for the U.S. version of the television show That Was the Week That Was. The popularity of these songs has far outlasted their topical subjects and references. Lehrer quoted a friend's explanation: "Always predict the worst and you'll be hailed as a prophet." In the early 1970s, Lehrer largely retired from public performances to devote his time to teaching mathematics and musical theater history at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Early life
Thomas Andrew Lehrer was born on April 9, 1928 to a secular Jewish family and grew up on Manhattan's Upper East Side. He was the second and younger son of Moses James Lehrer (1898-?) and Anna Lehrer (née Waller) (1905-1978). He had an older brother. He began studying classical piano at the age of seven, but was more interested in the popular music of the age. Eventually, his mother also sent him to a popular-music piano teacher. At this early age, he began writing show tunes, which eventually helped him as a satirical composer and writer in his years of lecturing at Harvard University and later at other universities.
Lehrer attended the Horace Mann School in Riverdale, New York, part of the Bronx. He also attended Camp Androscoggin, both as a camper and a counselor. Lehrer was considered a child prodigy and entered Harvard College, where one of his professors was Irving Kaplansky, at the age of 15 after graduating from Loomis School. As a mathematics undergraduate student at Harvard College, he began to write comic songs to entertain his friends, including "Fight Fiercely, Harvard" (1945). Those songs were later named collectively The Physical Revue, a joking reference to a leading scientific journal, the Physical Review.
Academic and military career
Lehrer graduated Bachelor of Arts in mathematics from Harvard University, magna cum laude, in 1946. At Harvard, he was the roommate of the Canadian theologian Robert Crouse. He received his AM degree the next year and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. He later taught mathematics and other classes at MIT, Harvard, Wellesley, and the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Lehrer remained in Harvard's doctoral program for several years, taking time out for his musical career and to work as a researcher at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory.
Lehrer was drafted into the U.S. Army from 1955 to 1957, working at the National Security Agency (NSA). Lehrer has stated that he invented the Jello shot during this time, as a means of circumventing the base's ban on alcoholic beverages.
Despite holding a master's degree in an era when American conscripts often lacked a high school diploma, Lehrer served as an enlisted soldier, achieving the rank of Specialist Third Class, which he described as being a "corporal without portfolio". These experiences became fodder for songs, such as "The Wild West is Where I Want to Be" and "It Makes a Fellow Proud to Be a Soldier". It was many years before Lehrer publicly revealed that he had been assigned to the NSA, since the mere fact of its existence was classified at the time; this left him in the interesting position of implicitly using nuclear weapons work as a cover story for something more sensitive.
In 1960, Lehrer returned to full-time math studies at Harvard.
From 1962, Lehrer taught in the political science department at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). In 1965 he gave up on his mathematics dissertation on modes in statistics, after having worked on it intermittently for 15 years.
In 1972, Lehrer joined the faculty of the University of California, Santa Cruz, teaching an introductory course entitled The Nature of Mathematics to liberal arts majors—"math for tenors", according to Lehrer. He also taught a class in musical theater. He occasionally performed songs in his lectures.
In 2001, Lehrer taught his last mathematics class, on the topic of infinity, and retired from academia. He has remained in the area, and in 2003 said he still "hangs out" around the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Publications
The American Mathematical Society database lists him as co-author of two papers:
Two of Lehrer's songs were also reprinted, with his permission, in MAD Magazine:
Tom Lehrer Sings "The Wild West is Where I Where I Want To Be" (illustrated by George Woodbridge, MAD #32, April 1957)
Tom Lehrer's "The Hunting Song" (illustrated by George Woodbridge, MAD #35, October 1957)
Musical career
Style and influences
Lehrer was mainly influenced by musical theater. According to Gerald Nachman's book Seriously Funny, the Broadway musical Let's Face It! made an early and lasting impression on him. Lehrer's style consists of parodying various forms of popular song. For example, his appreciation of list songs led him to write "The Elements", which lists the chemical elements to the tune of Gilbert and Sullivan's "Major-General's Song".
In author and Boston University professor Isaac Asimov's second autobiographical volume, In Joy Still Felt, Asimov recounted seeing Lehrer perform in a Boston nightclub on October 9, 1954. Lehrer sang a song about Jim getting it from Louise, and Sally from Jim, "...and after a while you gathered the 'it' was venereal disease. [The song was likely "I Got It From Agnes".] Suddenly, as the combinations grew more grotesque, you realized he was satirizing every known perversion without using a single naughty phrase. It was clearly unsingable outside a nightclub." Asimov also recalled a song that dealt with the Boston subway system, making use of the stations leading into town from Harvard, observing that the local subject-matter rendered the song useless for general distribution. Lehrer subsequently granted Asimov permission to print the lyrics to the subway song in his book. "I haven't gone to nightclubs often," said Asimov, "but of all the times I have gone, it was on this occasion that I had by far the best time."
Recordings
Lehrer was encouraged by the success of his performances, so he paid $15 () for some studio time in 1953 to record Songs by Tom Lehrer. The initial pressing was 400 copies. Radio stations would not air his songs because of his controversial subjects, so he sold the album on campus at Harvard for $3, , while "several stores near the Harvard campus sold it for $3.50, taking only a minimal markup as a kind of community service. Newsstands on campus sold it for the same price." After one summer, he started to receive mail orders from all parts of the country, as far away as San Francisco, after the San Francisco Chronicle wrote an article on the record. Interest in his recordings spread by word of mouth. People played their records for friends, who then also wanted a copy. Lehrer recalled, "Lacking exposure in the media, my songs spread slowly. Like herpes, rather than ebola."
The album included the macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mine", the mildly risqué "Be Prepared", and "Lobachevsky" regarding plagiarizing mathematicians. It became a cult success by word of mouth, despite being self-published and without promotion. Lehrer embarked on a series of concert tours and recorded a second album in 1959. He released the second album in two versions: the songs were the same, but More of Tom Lehrer was a studio recording and An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer was recorded live in concert. In 2013, Lehrer recalled the studio session for "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park", which referred to the practice of controlling pigeons in Boston with strychnine-treated corn:
Touring
Lehrer had a breakthrough in the United Kingdom on December 4, 1957, when the University of London awarded a doctor of music degree honoris causa to Princess Margaret, and the public orator, Professor J. R. Sutherland, said it was "in the full knowledge that the Princess is a connoisseur of music and a performer of skill and distinction, her taste being catholic, ranging from Mozart to the calypso and from opera to the songs of Miss Beatrice Lillie and Tom Lehrer." This prompted significant interest in Lehrer's works and helped to secure distribution for his five-year-old debut album in Britain. It was there that his music achieved real sales popularity, as a result of the proliferation of university newspapers referring to the material, and inadvertently due to the BBC, which in 1958 banned from broadcast 10 of the 12 songs on the album. By the end of the 1950s, Lehrer had sold 370,000 records.
That Was The Week That Was
In 1960, Lehrer essentially retired from touring in the U.S.
The same year, Lehrer toured Australia and New Zealand, performing a total of 33 concerts to great acclaim and controversy. While in New Zealand, Lehrer wrote a song criticizing the All Blacks rugby team 1960 tour of apartheid South Africa. These tours occurred during a time in which he was, he said, "banned, censored, mentioned in several houses of parliament and threatened with arrest". In particular, "Be Prepared" drew advance resistance in Brisbane from the commissioner of police. He performed several unreleased songs in Australia, including "The Masochism Tango".
In the early 1960s, he was employed as the resident songwriter for the U.S. edition of That Was The Week That Was (TW3), a satirical television show.
A greater proportion of his output became overtly political, or at least topical, on subjects such as education ("New Math"), the Second Vatican Council ("The Vatican Rag", a tune based on the 1910 "Spaghetti Rag" by Lyons and Yosco), race relations ("National Brotherhood Week"), air and water pollution ("Pollution"), American militarism ("Send the Marines"), and nuclear proliferation ("Who's Next?" and "MLF Lullaby"). He also wrote a song satirizing rocket scientist Wernher von Braun, who worked for Nazi Germany before working for the United States. (Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down? That's not my department,' says Wernher von Braun.") Lehrer did not appear on the television show; vocalist Nancy Ames performed his songs (to Lehrer's chagrin), and network censors often altered his lyrics. Lehrer later performed these songs on the album That Was The Year That Was (1965) at which point people could hear them the way that he intended.
In 1966, BBC TV host David Frost invited him to contribute some of his classic compositions to his BBC program The Frost Report. The show was transmitted live, and he pre-recorded all his segments at one performance. Lehrer was not featured in every edition, but his songs featured in an appropriate part of each show. At least two of his songs were not included on any of his LPs: a reworking of Noël Coward's "That is the End of the News" (with some new lyrics) and a comic explanation of how Britain might adapt to the coming of decimal currency.
The record deal with Reprise Records for That Was The Year That Was also gave Reprise distribution rights for his earlier recordings, as Lehrer wanted to wind up his own record imprint. The Reprise issue of Songs by Tom Lehrer was a stereo re-recording. This version was not issued on CD, but the songs were issued on the live Tom Lehrer Revisited CD. The live recording included bonus tracks "L-Y" and "Silent E", two of the ten songs that he wrote for the PBS children's educational series The Electric Company. Lehrer later commented that worldwide sales of the recordings under Reprise surpassed 1.8 million units in 1996. That same year, That Was The Year That Was went gold. The album liner notes promote his songs with self-deprecating humor, such as quoting a New York Times review from 1959: Mr. Lehrer's muse is "not fettered by such inhibiting factors as taste."
Lehrer made a short tour in Norway and Denmark in 1967, performing some of the songs from the television program. His performance in Oslo on September 10 was recorded on video tape and aired locally that autumn, then released on DVD some 40 years later. He performed as a prominent international guest at the Studenterforeningen (student association) in Copenhagen, which was televised, and he commented on stage that he might be America's "revenge for Victor Borge". He performed original songs in a Dodge automobile industrial film distributed primarily to automobile dealers and shown at promotional events in 1967, set in a fictional American wild west town and titled The Dodge Rebellion Theatre presents Ballads For '67. He attempted to adapt Sweeney Todd as a Broadway musical, working with Joe Raposo, to star Jerry Colonna. They started a few songs but, as Lehrer noted, "Nothing ever came of it, and of course twenty years later Stephen Sondheim beat me to the punch."
Departure from the music scene
In the 1970s, Lehrer concentrated on teaching mathematics and musical theater, although he also wrote ten songs for the educational children's television show The Electric Company. His last public performance for many years took place in 1972, on a fundraising tour for Democratic US presidential candidate George McGovern.
When asked about his reasons for abandoning his musical career in an interview in the book accompanying his CD box set, released in 2000, Lehrer cited a lack of interest, a disdain of touring, and the monotony of performing the same songs repeatedly. He observed that when he was moved to write and perform songs, he did, and when he was not, he did not, and that after a while he simply lost interest. Even though Lehrer was "a hero of the anti-nuclear, civil rights left" and covered its political issues in many of his songs, and even though he shared the New Left's opposition to the Vietnam War, and advocated for civil rights, he disliked the aesthetics of the counterculture of the 1960s and stopped performing as the movement gained momentum.
Lehrer's musical career was relatively brief. He once mentioned that he performed a mere 109 shows and wrote 37 songs over 20 years. Nevertheless, he developed a significant following in the United States and abroad.
Revivals and discographic reissues
In 1980, Cameron Mackintosh produced Tomfoolery, a revue of Lehrer's songs that was a hit on the London stage. Lehrer was not initially involved with the show, but he was pleased with it; he eventually gave the stage production his full support and updated several of his lyrics for the show. Tomfoolery contained 27 songs and led to more than 200 productions, including an Off-Broadway production at the Village Gate which ran for 120 performances in 1981. Lehrer made a rare TV appearance on BBC's Parkinson show in conjunction with the Tom Foolery premiere in 1980 at the Criterion Theatre in London, where he sang "I Got It from Agnes". There were "Tomfoolery" performances in San Francisco about 1982 and in 2018–19. In 1993, he wrote "That's Mathematics" for the closing credits to a Mathematical Sciences Research Institute video celebrating the proof of Fermat's Last Theorem.
On June 7 and 8, 1998, Lehrer performed in public for the first time in 25 years at the Lyceum Theatre, London as part of the show Hey, Mr. Producer! celebrating the career of Cameron Mackintosh, who had produced Tom Foolery. The June 8 show was his only performance before Queen Elizabeth II. Lehrer sang "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park" and an updated version of the nuclear proliferation song "Who's Next?"
In 2000 Lehrer commented that he doubted his songs had any real effect on those not already critical of the establishment: "I don't think this kind of thing has an impact on the unconverted, frankly. It's not even preaching to the converted; it's titillating the converted ... I'm fond of quoting Peter Cook, who talked about the satirical Berlin kabaretts of the 1930s, which did so much to stop the rise of Hitler and prevent the Second World War."
Lehrer has said, jokingly, of his musical career, "If, after hearing my songs, just one human being is inspired to say something nasty to a friend, or perhaps to strike a loved one, it will all have been worth the while."
In 2003, Lehrer commented that his particular brand of political satire is more difficult in the modern world: "The real issues I don't think most people touch. The Clinton jokes are all about Monica Lewinsky and all that stuff and not about the important things, like the fact that he wouldn't ban land mines ... I'm not tempted to write a song about George W. Bush. I couldn't figure out what sort of song I would write. That's the problem: I don't want to satirize George Bush and his puppeteers, I want to vaporize them."
In 2000, the boxed CD set The Remains of Tom Lehrer was released by Rhino Entertainment. It included live and studio versions of his first two albums, That Was The Year That Was, the songs that he wrote for The Electric Company, and some previously unreleased material, a small hardbound lyrics book with an introduction by Dr. Demento. In 2010, Shout! Factory launched a reissue campaign, making Lehrer's out-of-print albums available digitally. The CD/DVD combo The Tom Lehrer Collection was also issued, including his best-known songs, with a DVD featuring an Oslo concert.
In a February 2008 phone call, Gene Weingarten of The Washington Post interviewed Lehrer off the record. When Weingarten asked if there was anything he could print for the record, Lehrer responded, "Just tell the people that I am voting for Obama."
In 2012 rapper 2 Chainz sampled Lehrer's song "Dope Peddler", on his 2012 debut album, Based on a T.R.U. Story. In 2013, Lehrer said he was "very proud" to have his song sampled "literally sixty years after I recorded it". Lehrer went on to describe his official response to the request to use his song: "As sole copyright owner of 'The Old Dope Peddler', I grant you motherfuckers permission to do this. Please give my regards to Mr. Chainz, or may I call him 2?"
In 2020, at the age of 92, Lehrer donated all of his lyrics and music written by him to the public domain.
Musical legacy
In 1967, Swedish actor Lars Ekborg, known outside Sweden for his part in Ingmar Bergman's Summer with Monika, made an album called I Tom Lehrers vackra värld ("In the beautiful world of Tom Lehrer"), with 12 of Lehrer's songs interpreted in Swedish. Lehrer wrote in a letter to the producer Per-Anders Boquist that, "Not knowing any Swedish, I am obviously not equipped to judge, but it sounds to me as though Mr. Ekborg is perfect for the songs," along with further compliments to pianist Leif Asp for unexpected additional flourishes.
In 1971, Argentinian singer Nacha Guevara sang Spanish versions of several Lehrer songs for the show/live album Este es el año que es.
In 2010, the German musician-comedian Felix Janosa released an album with the title "Tauben vergiften: Die bösen Lieder von Tom Lehrer" ("Poisoning pigeons: The Evil Songs of Tom Lehrer"), with German versions of some of his best-known songs.
Composer Randy Newman said of Lehrer, "He's one of the great American songwriters without a doubt, right up there with everybody, the top guys. As a lyricist, as good as there's been in the last half of the 20th century." Singer and comedian Dillie Keane has acknowledged Lehrer's influence on her work.
Dr. Demento praised Lehrer as "the best musical satirist of the twentieth century." Other artists who cite Lehrer as an influence include "Weird Al" Yankovic, whose work generally addresses more popular and less technical or political subjects, and educator and scientist H. Paul Shuch, who tours under the stage name Dr. SETI, and calls himself "a cross between Carl Sagan and Tom Lehrer: He sings like Sagan and lectures like Lehrer."
From January 16 to February 25, 2006, the play Letters from Lehrer, written and performed by Canadian Richard Greenblatt, ran at CanStage in Toronto. It followed Lehrer's musical career, the meaning of several songs, the politics of the time, and Greenblatt's own experiences with Lehrer's music, while playing some of Lehrer's songs.
Performers influenced by Lehrer's style include American political satirist Mark Russell, Canadian comedian and songwriter Randy Vancourt, and the British duo Kit and The Widow.
In 2004, British medical satirists Amateur Transplants acknowledge the debt they owe to Lehrer on the back of their first album, Fitness to Practice. Their song "The Menstrual Rag" uses the tune of Lehrer's "The Vatican Rag"; and "The Drugs Song" mirrors Lehrer's song "The Elements", both using the tune of the "Major-General's Song" from The Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan. The Amateur Transplants' second album, Unfit to Practise, opens with an update of Lehrer's "The Masochism Tango" called "Masochism Tango 2008".
Discography
Studio albums
Songs by Tom Lehrer (1953), re-recorded in 1966
More of Tom Lehrer (1959)
Live albums
An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer (1959)
Revisited (1960)
Tom Lehrer Discovers Australia (And Vice Versa) (1960; Australia-only)
That Was the Year That Was (1965)
Compilation albums
Tom Lehrer in Concert (1994; UK compilation)
Songs & More Songs by Tom Lehrer (1997; US compilation of his first two studio albums with additional songs)
The Remains of Tom Lehrer (2000)
The Tom Lehrer Collection (2010)
Many of Lehrer's songs are performed by others in That Was The Week That Was (Radiola LP, 1981).
The sheet music of many songs is published in The Tom Lehrer Song Book (Crown Publishers Inc., 1954; Library of Congress Card Catalog Number 54-12068) and Too Many Songs by Tom Lehrer: With Not Enough Drawings by Ronald Searle (Pantheon, 1981, ; Methuen, 1999, ). A second song book, Tom Lehrer's Second Song Book, is out of print, .
References
External links
Archived Tom Lehrer website (from 2008).
Song lyrics and music, released for free use.
Tom Lehrer interview on BBC Radio 4 Desert Island Discs, July 18, 1980
Interview with Tom Lehrer by the Library of Congress on July 22, 2015
1928 births
Living people
20th-century American mathematicians
American agnostics
American comedy musicians
Jewish American male comedians
American lyricists
American male singer-songwriters
American novelty song performers
American satirists
Harvard College alumni
Horace Mann School alumni
Jewish agnostics
Jewish American musicians
Jewish American songwriters
MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences faculty
Parody musicians
People from the Upper East Side
Reprise Records artists
Singers from New York City
University of California, Santa Cruz faculty
Wellesley College faculty
20th-century American pianists
Loomis Chaffee School alumni
American male non-fiction writers
20th-century American comedians
Mathematicians from New York (state)
American male pianists
21st-century American pianists
20th-century American male musicians
21st-century American male musicians
National Security Agency people
United States Army soldiers
Singer-songwriters from New York (state) | true | [
"White Witch is the title of the second studio album by the group Andrea True Connection. It was released in 1977. The album had two singles: and \"N.Y., You Got Me Dancing\" and \"What's Your Name, What's Your Number\". This was the last album released by the group and the vocalist Andrea True would release a new album as a solo release only in 1980.\n\nBackground and production\nAfter the success of her first album and the gold-certified single More, More, More, the band begun to prepeare for their second release. The album production included studio musicians with a new band assembled for the tour, the second line-up, which included future Kiss guitarist Bruce Kulick, it was also produce by the disco pioneers Michael Zager and Jerry Love.\n\nSingles\nThe first single of the album was \"N.Y., You Got Me Dancing\", it was released in 1977 and became True's second biggest hit, reaching No. 27 on Billboard's pop chart, and #4 on the U.S. club chart, it also peaked #89 in the Canadian RPM's chart. \"What's Your Name, What's Your Number\" was released as the second and last single of the album (and also of the group) in 1978 and reached #9 on the U.S. club chart, #34 in the UK and #56 on the Billboard Hot 100\n\nCritical reception\n\nThe album received mixed reviews from music critics. Alex Henderson from the Allmusic website gave the album two and a half stars out of five in a mixed review which he wrote that \"while White Witch isn't a bad album, it falls short of the excellence her first album, More, More, More.\" He also stated that there are a few gems in the album \"including the Michael Zager-produced \"What's Your Name, What's Your Number\" and the exuberant, Gregg Diamond-produced \"N.Y., You Got Me Dancing\"\" according to him they're both \"exercises in unapologetically campy fun.\" He concluded that the album \"LP is strictly for diehard disco collectors.\"\n\nTrack listing\nsource:\n\nReferences\n\n1977 albums\nAndrea True albums\nBuddah Records albums",
"\"John Wesley Harding\" is a song by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan that appears as the opening track on his 1967 album of the same name.\n\nWriting and recording\nDylan told Jann Wenner in a 1969 Rolling Stone interview that the song \"started out to be a long ballad. I was gonna write a ballad on ... like maybe one of those old cowboy ... you know, a real long ballad. But in the middle of the second verse, I got tired. I had a tune, and I didn't want to waste the tune; it was a nice little melody, so I just wrote a quick third verse, and I recorded that.\" Biographer Clinton Heylin states that Dylan has had a well-documented interest in outlaw cowboys, including Jesse James and Billy the Kid, and in the past Dylan has said that his favorite folk song was \"John Hardy\", whose real-life title character in 1893 murdered another man over a game of craps. John Wesley Hardin was another late-19th century outlaw. Dylan has stated that he chose John Wesley Hardin for his protagonist over other badmen because his name \"[fit] in the tempo\" of the song. Dylan added the g to the end of Hardin's name by mistake.\n\nThe song was recorded in two takes on November 6, 1967, in Studio A of Columbia Music Row Studios in Nashville, Tennessee. Both of these were considered for the album, but the second take was ultimately chosen.\n\nThemes\nDylan has said that he did not have a clear notion of what the song was about. He told Cameron Crowe in 1985 that after recording the John Wesley Harding album, he \"didn't know what to make of it. ... So I figured the best thing to do would be to put out the album as quickly as possible, call it John Wesley Harding because that was the one song that I had no idea what it was about, why it was even on the album. So I figured I'd call the album that, call attention to it, make it something special...\" It was the only title that he considered for the album. He told a Newsweek interviewer in 1969 that the songs on his country Nashville Skyline album: \"These are the type of songs that I always felt like writing. The songs reflect more of the inner me than the songs of the past. They're more to my base than, say, 'John Wesley Harding'. There I felt like everyone expected me to be a poet so that's what I tried to be.\"\n\nCover versions\n\"John Wesley Harding\" has been covered by McKendree Spring on their 1969 eponymous album, as well as Tom Russell and Wesley Willis.\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \"John Wesley Harding\" lyrics on official website\n\n1967 songs\nSongs written by Bob Dylan\nBob Dylan songs\nSong recordings produced by Bob Johnston"
]
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[
"Boston (band)",
"Departure of Delp; Walk On (1989-1996)"
]
| C_c61d7973b8b2435f80b9d464781ec3a2_1 | What happened in 1989? | 1 | What happened in 1989 to the band Boston ? | Boston (band) | Tom Scholz first started writing music in 1969 while he was attending Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he wrote an instrumental, titled "Foreplay". While attending MIT, Scholz joined the band Freehold, where he met guitarist Barry Goudreau and drummer Jim Masdea, who would later become members of Boston. Vocalist Brad Delp was added to the collective in 1970. After graduating with a master's degree, Scholz worked for Polaroid, where he used his salary to build a recording studio in his basement, and to finance demo tapes recorded in professional recording studios. These early demo tapes were recorded with (at various times) Delp on vocals, Goudreau on guitar, Masdea on drums, and Scholz on guitar, bass and keyboards. The demo tapes were sent to record companies, but received consistent rejections. In 1973 Scholz formed the band Mother's Milk with Delp, Goudreau, and Masdea. That group disbanded by 1974, but Scholz subsequently worked with Masdea and Delp to produce six new demos, including "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Rock and Roll Band", "Something About You" (then entitled "Life Isn't Easy"), "Hitch a Ride" (then entitled "San Francisco Day"), and "Don't Be Afraid". Scholz stated they finished four of the six by the end of 1974, and they finished "More Than a Feeling" and "Something About You" in 1975. Scholz played all the instruments on the demos, except for the drums, which were played by Masdea, and used self-designed pedals to create the desired guitar sound. The violin-like sound of the guitars was created in the early 1970s by Scholz. This final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie. Masdea left the band around this time. According to Scholz, the managers insisted that Masdea had to be replaced before the band could get a recording deal. Years later, Delp told journalist Chuck Miller: "[Jim] actually told me he was losing interest in playing drums. I know Tom felt very bad when the whole thing happened. And then, of course, we started getting some interest." Scholz and Delp signed a deal with Epic Records after Masdea's departure, thanks to Ahern and McKenzie. Before the deal could be finalized, the band had to do a live audition for the record company executives. The duo recruited Goudreau on guitar, bassist Fran Sheehan and drummer Sib Hashian to create a performing unit which could replicate Scholz's richly layered recordings on stage. The showcase was a success and the band agreed to put out ten albums over the next six years. In addition to the firing of Masdea, the record label insisted that Scholz re-record the demo tapes in a professional studio. However, Scholz wanted the record to be recorded in his basement studio so that he could work at his own pace. The label agreed, and offered to split the producer's royalty with Scholz. Upon request of Scholz, Masdea played drums on the track "Rock and Roll Band", and the instrumentation was recorded in Scholz's studio. The multitrack tapes were then brought to Los Angeles, where Delp added vocals and the album was mixed by John Boylan. It was then that the band was named "Boston", by suggestion of Boylan and engineer Warren Dewey. In late 1979, Scholz began writing new material, but Boston's former co-manager, Paul Ahern, argued that, according to an agreement Scholz had signed years earlier with Ahern, Ahern owned a percentage of all songs Scholz wrote from that point on. Delayed further by the dispute, Scholz suggested that in the meantime the individual members should work on whatever other projects they might be considering. Goudreau then decided to record a solo album that featured Boston members Delp and Hashian, and which was recorded with the help of Paul Grupp, an engineer and producer familiar with Scholz's studio techniques. The album, released in 1980, was titled Barry Goudreau and featured the minor hit single "Dreams". There was tension when CBS's marketing connected Goudreau's solo album to Boston's signature guitar sound, despite Scholz not having played at all on this album. Scholz objected to the ad copy, but it became irrelevant when Epic dropped promotion on Goudreau's album citing lack of interest. Goudreau left the band in 1981 and formed Orion the Hunter. Delp contributed vocals and co-wrote songs on the debut album, but returned to Boston and recorded vocals on the third Boston album. While Scholz and Delp were recording new material for the third Boston album, CBS filed a $60 million lawsuit against Scholz, alleging breach of contract for failing to deliver a new Boston album on time. During this same period, Scholz founded his high-tech company Scholz Research & Development (SR&D), which made amplifiers and other musical electronic equipment. Its most famous product, the Rockman amplifier, was introduced in 1982. The legal trouble slowed progress toward the completion of the next album, which took six years to record and produce. Joining Scholz in the album's development again were Delp and Jim Masdea. In 1985, guitarist Gary Pihl left Sammy Hagar's touring band to work with Scholz as both a musician and an SR&D executive. As CBS v. Scholz played out in court, CBS opted to withhold royalty payments to Scholz, hoping to force him to settle on unfavorable terms. The lawsuit's first round was eventually decided in Scholz's favor, and Scholz moved the band to MCA Records. By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album. Later that year, Delp told Scholz he wanted to concentrate on other projects, and might not be available for some time. With Delp's departure, Scholz was then the last remaining original member. Before he left, Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song "Walk On", which eventually became the title track of the new album. Delp subsequently joined Barry Goudreau's new band, RTZ. Scholz eventually replaced him with Fran Cosmo, who had been in Goudreau's previous band Orion the Hunter. For the second album in a row, and for the second time in a decade, Scholz's work was delayed by renovations to his studio. In the end, eight years passed between Third Stage and Walk On, which was released in June 1994. Walk On was certified platinum by the RIAA, and reached No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. Unlike Boston's previous albums, it failed to chart in the top 5. It produced one hit single, "I Need Your Love", which was widely played on some rock radio stations. Delp reunited with Boston at the end of 1994. Their first appearance was for two benefit shows at the House of Blues on December 12-13, 1994, in Cambridge. The band also handed a check of $5,000 to Globe Santa and another check of $5,000 to Operation Christmas in Fall River. The group, with Delp now back in the band, toured in the summer of 1995 with both Cosmo and Delp combining vocals. By that time drummer Huffman had been replaced by Curly Smith, who was previously with Jo Jo Gunne. Following the conclusion of the "Livin' For You" tour in 1995, Scholz announced that a greatest hits album would be released. Initially planned for release in August 1996, the album was pushed back to a 1997 release date. CANNOTANSWER | By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album. | Boston is an American rock band from namesake Boston, Massachusetts, that had its most notable successes during the 1970s and '80s. The band's core members on their most popular recordings included multi-instrumentalist founder and leader Tom Scholz, who played the majority of instruments on the debut album, and lead vocalist Brad Delp, among a number of other musicians who varied from album to album. Boston's best-known songs include "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Foreplay/Long Time", "Rock and Roll Band", "Smokin'", "Don't Look Back", "A Man I'll Never Be", and "Amanda". The band has sold more than 75 million records worldwide, including 31 million albums in the United States, of which 17 million were from its self-titled debut album and seven million were for its second album, Don't Look Back, making the group one of the world's best-selling artists. Altogether, the band has released six studio albums over a career spanning over years. Boston was ranked the 63rd best hard rock artist by VH1.
After Delp's death in 2007, a number of other vocalists have taken the stage; currently the lead singer is Tommy DeCarlo. Other current members of the band include multi-instrumentalist and singer Beth Cohen, guitarist Gary Pihl, bassist Tracy Ferrie, drummer Jeff Neal and percussionist Curly Smith.
History
Early years (1969–1975)
Tom Scholz first started writing music in 1969 while he was attending Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he wrote an instrumental song, "Foreplay". While attending MIT, Scholz joined the band Freehold, where he met guitarist Barry Goudreau and drummer Jim Masdea, who would later become members of Boston. Vocalist Brad Delp was added to the collective in 1970. After graduating with a master's degree, Scholz worked for Polaroid, using his salary to build a recording studio in his basement, and to finance demo tapes recorded in professional recording studios. These early demo tapes were recorded with (at various times) Delp on vocals, Goudreau on guitar, Masdea on drums, and Scholz on guitar, bass and keyboards. The demo tapes were sent to record companies, but received consistent rejections. In 1973 Scholz formed the band Mother's Milk with Delp, Goudreau, and Masdea. That group disbanded by 1974, but Scholz subsequently worked with Masdea and Delp to produce six new demos, including "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Rock and Roll Band", "Something About You" (then entitled "Life Isn't Easy"), "Hitch a Ride" (then entitled "San Francisco Day"), and "Don't Be Afraid". Scholz stated they finished four of the six by the end of 1974, and they finished "More Than a Feeling" and "Something About You" in 1975. Scholz played all the instruments on the demos, except for the drums, which were played by Masdea, and used self-designed pedals to create the desired guitar sounds.
This final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie. Masdea left the band around this time. According to Scholz, the managers insisted that Masdea had to be replaced before the band could get a recording deal. Years later, Delp told journalist Chuck Miller: "[Jim] actually told me he was losing interest in playing drums. I know Tom felt very bad when the whole thing happened. And then, of course, we started getting some interest." Scholz and Delp signed a deal with Epic Records after Masdea's departure, thanks to Ahern and McKenzie. Before the deal could be finalized, the band had to do a live audition for the record company executives. The duo recruited Goudreau on guitar, bassist Fran Sheehan and drummer Sib Hashian to create a performing unit which could replicate Scholz's richly layered recordings on stage. The showcase was a success and the band agreed to put out ten albums over the next six years.
In addition to the firing of Masdea, the record label insisted that Scholz re-record the demo tapes in a professional studio. However, Scholz wanted to record them in his basement studio so that he could work at his own pace. Scholz and producer John Boylan hatched a plan to send the rest of the band to Los Angeles to make the record label happy, while Scholz recorded most of Boston's debut album at home, with Masdea playing drums on the track "Rock and Roll Band" and Scholz playing the other instruments. The multitrack tapes were then brought to Los Angeles, where Delp added vocals and the album was mixed by Boylan. It was then that the band was named "Boston", by suggestion of Boylan and engineer Warren Dewey.
Boston and Don't Look Back (1976–1978)
The debut album, Boston, released on August 25, 1976, ranks as one of the best-selling debut albums in U.S. history with over 17 million copies sold.
During late summer and early fall of 1976, Boston attracted publicity due to the record sales. However, according to Cameron Crowe in Rolling Stone, there was "a conscious effort to de-emphasize Scholz as the total mastermind behind Boston". After opening for Black Sabbath, Blue Öyster Cult, Foghat and others in the fall, the band embarked on a headlining tour in the winter and spring of 1976–1977 to support the album. This helped establish Boston as one of rock's top acts within a short time, being nominated for a Grammy Award as a "Best New Artist". Boston was the first band in history to make their New York City debut at Madison Square Garden.
The album spawned three singles, "More Than a Feeling", "Long Time", and "Peace of Mind", all of which made the national charts. The album peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and remained on the charts for 132 weeks.
Despite having problems with manager Paul Ahern, being caught in the middle of a fight between Ahern and his business partner Charles McKenzie, and doing most of the recording work alone, Scholz completed the second Boston album two years after the debut album's release. The second album, Don't Look Back, was released by Epic in August 1978. At the time this was considered a long gap between albums, but Scholz still considered Don't Look Back to be a rush job and was unhappy with the album's second side in particular. Overall, Don't Look Back sold about half as well as the debut album, eventually selling over 7 million records.
Another tour followed (playing with the likes of AC/DC, Black Sabbath, Van Halen, Sammy Hagar and The Doobie Brothers), and the album's title track became a top-5 hit. Additionally, two other singles, "A Man I'll Never Be" and "Feelin' Satisfied", went top 40 and top 50, respectively. Despite the success, Scholz's relationship with Ahern completely deteriorated. Delayed by technical renovations to his studio, Scholz eventually began the process of working on Boston's third album, determined to complete the album at his own pace and up to his demanding standard.
Solo projects and CBS lawsuit (1979–1985)
In late 1979, Scholz began writing new material, but Boston's former co-manager, Paul Ahern, argued that, according to an agreement Scholz had signed years earlier with Ahern, Ahern owned a percentage of all songs Scholz wrote from that point on. Delayed further by the dispute, Scholz suggested that in the meantime the individual members should work on whatever other projects they might be considering.
Goudreau then decided to record a solo album that featured Boston members Delp and Hashian, and which was recorded with the help of Paul Grupp, an engineer and producer familiar with Scholz's studio techniques. The album, released in 1980, was titled Barry Goudreau and featured the minor hit single "Dreams". There was tension when CBS's marketing connected Goudreau's solo album to Boston's signature guitar sound, despite Scholz not having played at all on this album. Scholz objected to the ad copy, but it became irrelevant when Epic dropped promotion on Goudreau's album citing lack of interest. Goudreau left the band in 1981 and formed Orion the Hunter. Delp contributed vocals and co-wrote songs on the debut album, but returned to Boston and recorded vocals on the third Boston album.
While Scholz and Delp were recording new material for the third Boston album, CBS filed a $60 million lawsuit against Scholz, alleging breach of contract for failing to deliver a new Boston album on time.
During this same period, Scholz founded his high-tech company Scholz Research & Development (SR&D), which made amplifiers and other musical electronic equipment. Its most famous product, the Rockman amplifier, was introduced in 1982.
The legal trouble slowed progress toward the completion of the next album, which took six years to record and produce. Joining Scholz in the album's development again were Delp and Jim Masdea. In 1985, guitarist Gary Pihl left Sammy Hagar's touring band to work with Scholz as both a musician and an SR&D executive. As CBS v. Scholz played out in court, CBS opted to withhold royalty payments to Scholz, hoping to force him to settle on unfavorable terms.
The lawsuit's first round was eventually decided in Scholz's favor, and Scholz moved the band to MCA Records.
The CBS case took seven years to run its course, and in April 1990 Scholz won.
Third Stage (1986–1988)
Despite the adversity, progress continued to be made on the third Boston album. A tape of one of the songs, "Amanda", leaked out of the studio in 1984. The song became the lead single when Third Stage was finally released on September 23, 1986.
The album topped the Billboard 200 while the lead single "Amanda" went to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and the subsequent singles "We're Ready" and "Can'tcha Say" reached No. 9 and No. 20, respectively. "Cool the Engines" also got significant airplay on rock radio. The album sold over 4 million copies.
The group headed off on tour to promote Third Stage in 1987 and 1988. Third Stage was played in sequence in its entirety during the shows, with expanded arrangements of some cuts. Boston opened with "Rock and Roll Band" and brought back the original drummer, Jim Masdea, to play drums for this one song. For the tour, the group was joined by Doug Huffman and David Sikes, both of whom stayed with the band into the mid-1990s.
Departure of Delp; Walk On (1989–1996)
By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album. Later that year, Delp told Scholz he wanted to concentrate on other projects, and might not be available for some time. With Delp's departure, Scholz was then the last remaining original member. Before he left, Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song "Walk On", which eventually became the title track of the new album.
Delp subsequently joined Barry Goudreau's new band, RTZ. Scholz eventually replaced him with vocalist Fran Cosmo, who had been in Goudreau's previous band Orion the Hunter.
For the second album in a row, and for the second time in a decade, Scholz's work was delayed by renovations to his studio. In the end, eight years passed between Third Stage and Walk On, which was released in June 1994. Walk On was certified platinum by the RIAA, and reached No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. Unlike Boston's previous albums, it failed to chart in the top 5. It produced one hit single, "I Need Your Love", which was widely played on some rock radio stations. Delp reunited with Boston at the end of 1994. Their first appearance was for two benefit shows at the House of Blues on December 12–13, 1994, in Cambridge. The band also handed a check of $5,000 to Globe Santa and another check of $5,000 to Operation Christmas in Fall River.
The group, with Delp now back in the band, toured in the summer of 1995 with both Cosmo and Delp combining vocals. By that time drummer Huffman had been replaced by Curly Smith, who was previously with Jo Jo Gunne. Following the conclusion of the "Livin' For You" tour in 1995, Scholz announced that a greatest hits album would be released. Initially planned for release in August 1996, the album was pushed back to a 1997 release date.
Greatest Hits and Corporate America (1997–2006)
Boston released a compilation album in 1997, titled simply Boston: Greatest Hits. The album featured all of the band's hit singles except "We're Ready", "Can'tcha Say (You Believe In Me)/Still In Love", and "I Need Your Love" along with three new songs, "Higher Power", "Tell Me", and an instrumental version of the "Star Spangled Banner". Smith and Sikes left the band in late 1997 and recorded an album together.
Scholz headed back to the studio in 1998 to begin work on a fifth album, which eventually turned out to be Corporate America. The title track of "Corporate America" was uploaded by Tom Scholz to MP3.com under the pseudonym of "Downer's Revenge" in early 2002 in order to test the album's appeal to a younger demographic. The song reached No. 2 on the progressive rock charts on the website for two weeks.
November 2002 marked the release of Corporate America on the independent label Artemis Records. This album featured the largest Boston lineup ever; returning members included Delp and Cosmo on rhythm guitar and lead vocals, Scholz on lead guitar and keyboards, and Gary Pihl on guitar, along with new members Anthony Cosmo on rhythm guitar, Jeff Neal on drums, and Kimberley Dahme on bass, acoustic guitar, and vocals. Dahme, Delp, and Cosmo all contributed lead vocals to the album. The group embarked on a national tour in support of the album in 2003 and 2004. In 2006, the first two Boston albums appeared in remastered form.
Death of Brad Delp (2007)
On March 9, 2007, lead singer Delp died by suicide at his home in Atkinson, New Hampshire. Police found him dead in his master bathroom, along with several notes for whomever would find him. In the bathroom where he died, two charcoal grills were found on the bathroom fixtures, and the door was sealed with duct tape and a towel underneath. Police called the death "untimely" and said no foul play was indicated. Delp was alone at the time of his death, according to the police report. He was found by his fiancée, who saw a dryer hose attached to his car. According to the New Hampshire medical examiner, his death was the result of suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning. Delp's last concert with Boston was performed at Boston Symphony Hall on November 13, 2006, at a concert honoring Doug Flutie.
A concert in honor of Delp named "Come Together: A Tribute to Brad Delp" occurred on August 19, 2007, at the Bank of America Pavilion in Boston. The concert included Ernie and the Automatics, Beatlejuice, Farrenheit, Extreme, Godsmack, RTZ, Orion the Hunter, and finally the current version of Boston.
All of the living members of Boston were invited to perform in the concert. The singers for Boston included Michael Sweet of Stryper, former band member Curly Smith, band member Kimberley Dahme, and a Boston fan from North Carolina named Tommy DeCarlo, who was chosen to sing based on his performances of Boston cover songs on his MySpace page.
New line-up and intermittent performances (2008–2012)
The ongoing conflicts among the surviving band members spilled over to the 2008 Presidential campaign. Barry Goudreau appeared with Mike Huckabee and played with him at some rallies in New Hampshire. Huckabee used "More Than a Feeling" as a campaign theme song. Scholz, a self-described "Obama supporter", sent an open letter to Huckabee in February 2008 stating that the band had never endorsed any candidate, and that he had never authorized the use of "More Than a Feeling" as Huckabee's theme song. Scholz made a point of saying that he, and not Goudreau or Sheehan, actually played all the guitars on "More Than a Feeling" as well as most of Boston's songs. Huckabee eventually stopped using the song for his campaign.
In the spring of 2008, Scholz and Sweet introduced a new Boston lineup, which subsequently did a North American summer tour, playing 53 dates in 12 weeks (on a double bill with Styx). Scholz was the only founding member of Boston to play on the tour, although longtime member Gary Pihl was also part of the band, and Dahme and Neal returned on bass and drums, respectively. DeCarlo and Sweet shared lead vocals.
In January 2009, Greatest Hits was re-released as a remastered disc.
Michael Sweet left the band in August 2011 in order to focus on Stryper. In 2012, guitarist and vocalist David Victor joined the band, beginning in the studio, where he contributed vocals to several tracks on the album in progress.
Scholz and Pihl led the band on a 2012 North American tour, beginning on June 28, 2012, at the Seminole Hard Rock Live arena in Hollywood, Florida and ending on September 8 at the U.S. Cellular Grandstand in Hutchinson, Kansas. Victor and DeCarlo shared lead vocals, with drummer Curly Smith returning for the first time in over a decade, and former Stryper member Tracy Ferrie on bass. Neither Dahme nor Neal played on the tour.
Life, Love & Hope (2013–2017)
Boston's sixth album, Life, Love & Hope, was released on December 3, 2013, by Frontiers Records; it includes lead vocals from Brad Delp, Tommy DeCarlo, Kimberley Dahme, David Victor, and Tom Scholz. Work on the album started in 2002. On December 11, 2013, Boston re-recorded a Christmas song, "God Rest Ye Metal Gentleman 2013" (previously released in 2002 as "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"). In 2014 Boston embarked on the "Heaven on Earth Tour" spanning the United States and Japan with a lineup including Scholz, Pihl, DeCarlo, Victor and Ferrie. Dahme returned, this time performing rhythm guitar and vocals, and drumming duties were split between Neal and Smith, with Neal handling the first leg of the tour. Victor departed the lineup partway through the tour for unspecified reasons. In his stead, Siobhan Magnus joined the tour as a guest vocalist in July, performing lead vocals on 'Walk On'.
In 2015, Boston launched another tour with a lineup consisting of Scholz, Pihl, DeCarlo, Ferrie and new member Beth Cohen, who performed keyboards, rhythm guitar and vocals. Cohen had previously recorded with the group on both Corporate America and Life, Love & Hope as a vocalist and flautist. Initially, the lineup was to include former Spock's Beard drummer and vocalist Nick D'Virgilio for its first month of shows, with Neal then returning, but D'Virgilio proved "not the right fit" and Smith rejoined in his place. This seven-person lineup proved Boston's most stable lineup in some time, touring as well in the summers of 2016 and 2017. The 2016 tour marked the group's 40th anniversary and included shows in Boston's Wang Theatre, their first full performances in their namesake town since 1994.
On March 22, 2017, former drummer Sib Hashian died after collapsing on a Legends of Rock cruise ship.
Upcoming seventh album (2017–present)
In April 2017, Scholz reported that he has been writing new material for the seventh Boston album. He told Sun Herald, "I find that I'm in a position that I really need to write things that we can play at the shows. We play basically everything that people expect to hear that we can fit into two hours. We also do a lot of things that aren't on any of the records by adding things and segues and instrumental parts, so I always have to come up with new stuff. It's quite a challenge. I have to write new things for the tour every year, which is what I wanted to do in the first place. But I got sidetracked in the studio, recording. Now, I'm actually a performing musician, and I have to tell you, it's much more fun." When asked the same month about a potential release date of the album, Scholz said, "Who knows? I'm only 70. I figure I've got 30 years."
Spaceship
One of the themes of Boston's album covers is the presence of a guitar-shaped spaceship, ostensibly a generation or colony ship carrying the city of Boston inside a clear dome, with the city's name emblazoned across the front. The original spaceship was designed in 1976 by Paula Scher and illustrated by Roger Huyssen with lettering by Gerard Huerta for Epic Records.
Appearances
Boston – Two long lines of guitar shaped starships flee a planet that is breaking apart. The ships all have blue flames coming out of the bottom.
Don't Look Back – The Boston ship is flying low or perhaps hovering over a grassy, crystalline planet. The ship has searchlights on.
Third Stage – The Boston ship is headed towards a large flat spaceship resembling a bank of pipe organ pipes over a blue planet.
Walk On – The Boston ship is shown crashing through a rock outcropping.
Greatest Hits – The Boston ship is flying low over a planet with turquoise rocks and a turquoise tower in the distance.
Corporate America – The Boston ship is flying towards Earth and the United States.
Life, Love & Hope – The Boston ship is flying in space, near a nebula.
Their spaceship also appeared on their tours in the late 1980s, early 1990s, and early 2000s in the form of a giant lighting rig and accompanied on stage by their giant pipe-organ set piece, which is known to Boston insiders as Bertha because of its sheer size.
Innovation and style
Boston's genre is considered by most to be hard rock and arena rock, while combining elements of progressive rock into its music.
Boston founder, guitarist, and primary songwriter Tom Scholz's blend of musical styles, ranging from classical to 1960s English pop, has resulted in a unique sound, most consistently realized on the first two albums (Boston and Don't Look Back). This sound is characterized by multiple lead and blended harmonies guitar work (usually harmonized in thirds), often alternating between and then mixing electric and acoustic guitars. The band's harmonic style has been characterized as being "violin-like" without using synthesizers. Scholz is well-regarded for the development of complex, multi-tracked guitar harmonies. Another contributing factor is the use of handmade, high-tech equipment, such as the Rockman, used by artists such as Journey guitarist Neal Schon, the band ZZ Top, and Ted Nugent. Def Leppard's album Hysteria was created using only Rockman technology. Scholz's production style combines deep, aggressive, comparatively short guitar riffing and nearly ethereal, generally longer note vocal harmonies. A heavier, lower, and darker overall approach came in the next two albums (Third Stage and Walk On). The original track "Higher Power", on the Greatest Hits album, exhibits a near Neue Deutsche Härte and almost techno influence with its sequencer-sounding keyboards, a sound most fully realized on Corporate America'''s title track.
Tom Scholz also credited the late Brad Delp with helping to create Boston's sound with his signature vocal style. Delp, who was strongly influenced by the Beatles, was well known for his extended vocal range, shown on hits such as "More Than a Feeling".
Band members
Current members
Tom Scholz – lead and rhythm guitar, bass, keyboards, drums, percussion, backing vocals (1976–present)
Gary Pihl – rhythm and lead guitar, keyboards, backing vocals (1985–present)
Curly Smith – drums, percussion, harmonica, backing vocals (1994–1997, 2012–present)
Jeff Neal – drums, percussion, backing vocals (2002–2012, 2014–present)
Tommy DeCarlo – lead vocals, keyboards, percussion (2007–present)
Tracy Ferrie – bass guitar, backing vocals (2012–present)
Beth Cohen – keyboards, vocals, rhythm guitar (2002, 2012, 2015–present)
Discography
Studio albumsBoston (1976)Don't Look Back (1978)Third Stage (1986)Walk On (1994)Corporate America (2002)Life, Love & Hope (2013)
Compilation albumsGreatest Hits'' (1997)
References
External links
1976 establishments in Massachusetts
Epic Records artists
Hard rock musical groups from Massachusetts
MCA Records artists
Musical groups established in 1976
Musical groups from Boston | true | [
"Don Juan Manuel's Tales of Count Lucanor, in Spanish Libro de los ejemplos del conde Lucanor y de Patronio (Book of the Examples of Count Lucanor and of Patronio), also commonly known as El Conde Lucanor, Libro de Patronio, or Libro de los ejemplos (original Old Castilian: Libro de los enxiemplos del Conde Lucanor et de Patronio), is one of the earliest works of prose in Castilian Spanish. It was first written in 1335.\n\nThe book is divided into four parts. The first and most well-known part is a series of 51 short stories (some no more than a page or two) drawn from various sources, such as Aesop and other classical writers, and Arabic folktales.\n\nTales of Count Lucanor was first printed in 1575 when it was published at Seville under the auspices of Argote de Molina. It was again printed at Madrid in 1642, after which it lay forgotten for nearly two centuries.\n\nPurpose and structure\n\nA didactic, moralistic purpose, which would color so much of the Spanish literature to follow (see Novela picaresca), is the mark of this book. Count Lucanor engages in conversation with his advisor Patronio, putting to him a problem (\"Some man has made me a proposition...\" or \"I fear that such and such person intends to...\") and asking for advice. Patronio responds always with the greatest humility, claiming not to wish to offer advice to so illustrious a person as the Count, but offering to tell him a story of which the Count's problem reminds him. (Thus, the stories are \"examples\" [ejemplos] of wise action.) At the end he advises the Count to do as the protagonist of his story did.\n\nEach chapter ends in more or less the same way, with slight variations on: \"And this pleased the Count greatly and he did just so, and found it well. And Don Johán (Juan) saw that this example was very good, and had it written in this book, and composed the following verses.\" A rhymed couplet closes, giving the moral of the story.\n\nOrigin of stories and influence on later literature\nMany of the stories written in the book are the first examples written in a modern European language of various stories, which many other writers would use in the proceeding centuries. Many of the stories he included were themselves derived from other stories, coming from western and Arab sources.\n\nShakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew has the basic elements of Tale 35, \"What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\".\n\nTale 32, \"What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth\" tells the story that Hans Christian Andersen made popular as The Emperor's New Clothes.\n\nStory 7, \"What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana\", a version of Aesop's The Milkmaid and Her Pail, was claimed by Max Müller to originate in the Hindu cycle Panchatantra.\n\nTale 2, \"What happened to a good Man and his Son, leading a beast to market,\" is the familiar fable The miller, his son and the donkey.\n\nIn 2016, Baroque Decay released a game under the name \"The Count Lucanor\". As well as some protagonists' names, certain events from the books inspired past events in the game.\n\nThe stories\n\nThe book opens with a prologue which introduces the characters of the Count and Patronio. The titles in the following list are those given in Keller and Keating's 1977 translation into English. James York's 1868 translation into English gives a significantly different ordering of the stories and omits the fifty-first.\n\n What Happened to a King and His Favorite \n What Happened to a Good Man and His Son \n How King Richard of England Leapt into the Sea against the Moors\n What a Genoese Said to His Soul When He Was about to Die \n What Happened to a Fox and a Crow Who Had a Piece of Cheese in His Beak\n How the Swallow Warned the Other Birds When She Saw Flax Being Sown \n What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana \n What Happened to a Man Whose Liver Had to Be Washed \n What Happened to Two Horses Which Were Thrown to the Lion \n What Happened to a Man Who on Account of Poverty and Lack of Other Food Was Eating Bitter Lentils \n What Happened to a Dean of Santiago de Compostela and Don Yllán, the Grand Master of Toledo\n What Happened to the Fox and the Rooster \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Hunting Partridges \n The Miracle of Saint Dominick When He Preached against the Usurer \n What Happened to Lorenzo Suárez at the Siege of Seville \n The Reply that count Fernán González Gave to His Relative Núño Laynes \n What Happened to a Very Hungry Man Who Was Half-heartedly Invited to Dinner \n What Happened to Pero Meléndez de Valdés When He Broke His Leg \n What Happened to the Crows and the Owls \n What Happened to a King for Whom a Man Promised to Perform Alchemy \n What Happened to a Young King and a Philosopher to Whom his Father Commended Him \n What Happened to the Lion and the Bull \n How the Ants Provide for Themselves \n What Happened to the King Who Wanted to Test His Three Sons \n What Happened to the Count of Provence and How He Was Freed from Prison by the Advice of Saladin\n What Happened to the Tree of Lies \n What Happened to an Emperor and to Don Alvarfáñez Minaya and Their Wives \n What Happened in Granada to Don Lorenzo Suárez Gallinato When He Beheaded the Renegade Chaplain \n What Happened to a Fox Who Lay down in the Street to Play Dead \n What Happened to King Abenabet of Seville and Ramayquía His Wife \n How a Cardinal Judged between the Canons of Paris and the Friars Minor \n What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth \n What Happened to Don Juan Manuel's Saker Falcon and an Eagle and a Heron \n What Happened to a Blind Man Who Was Leading Another \n What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\n What Happened to a Merchant When He Found His Son and His Wife Sleeping Together \n What Happened to Count Fernán González with His Men after He Had Won the Battle of Hacinas \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Loaded down with Precious Stones and Drowned in the River \n What Happened to a Man and a Swallow and a Sparrow \n Why the Seneschal of Carcassonne Lost His Soul \n What Happened to a King of Córdova Named Al-Haquem \n What Happened to a Woman of Sham Piety \n What Happened to Good and Evil and the Wise Man and the Madman \n What Happened to Don Pero Núñez the Loyal, to Don Ruy González de Zavallos, and to Don Gutier Roiz de Blaguiello with Don Rodrigo the Generous \n What Happened to a Man Who Became the Devil's Friend and Vassal \n What Happened to a Philosopher who by Accident Went down a Street Where Prostitutes Lived \n What Befell a Moor and His Sister Who Pretended That She Was Timid \n What Happened to a Man Who Tested His Friends \n What Happened to the Man Whom They Cast out Naked on an Island When They Took away from Him the Kingdom He Ruled \n What Happened to Saladin and a Lady, the Wife of a Knight Who Was His Vassal \n What Happened to a Christian King Who Was Very Powerful and Haughty\n\nReferences\n\nNotes\n\nBibliography\n\n Sturm, Harlan\n\n Wacks, David\n\nExternal links\n\nThe Internet Archive provides free access to the 1868 translation by James York.\nJSTOR has the to the 1977 translation by Keller and Keating.\nSelections in English and Spanish (pedagogical edition) with introduction, notes, and bibliography in Open Iberia/América (open access teaching anthology)\n\n14th-century books\nSpanish literature\n1335 books",
"\"What Happened to Us\" is a song by Australian recording artist Jessica Mauboy, featuring English recording artist Jay Sean. It was written by Sean, Josh Alexander, Billy Steinberg, Jeremy Skaller, Rob Larow, Khaled Rohaim and Israel Cruz. \"What Happened to Us\" was leaked online in October 2010, and was released on 10 March 2011, as the third single from Mauboy's second studio album, Get 'Em Girls (2010). The song received positive reviews from critics.\n\nA remix of \"What Happened to Us\" made by production team OFM, was released on 11 April 2011. A different version of the song which features Stan Walker, was released on 29 May 2011. \"What Happened to Us\" charted on the ARIA Singles Chart at number 14 and was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). An accompanying music video was directed by Mark Alston, and reminisces on a former relationship between Mauboy and Sean.\n\nProduction and release\n\n\"What Happened to Us\" was written by Josh Alexander, Billy Steinberg, Jeremy Skaller, Rob Larow, Khaled Rohaim, Israel Cruz and Jay Sean. It was produced by Skaller, Cruz, Rohaim and Bobby Bass. The song uses C, D, and B minor chords in the chorus. \"What Happened to Us\" was sent to contemporary hit radio in Australia on 14 February 2011. The cover art for the song was revealed on 22 February on Mauboy's official Facebook page. A CD release was available for purchase via her official website on 10 March, for one week only. It was released digitally the following day.\n\nReception\nMajhid Heath from ABC Online Indigenous called the song a \"Jordin Sparks-esque duet\", and wrote that it \"has a nice innocence to it that rings true to the experience of losing a first love.\" Chris Urankar from Nine to Five wrote that it as a \"mid-tempo duet ballad\" which signifies Mauboy's strength as a global player. On 21 March 2011, \"What Happened to Us\" debuted at number 30 on the ARIA Singles Chart, and peaked at number 14 the following week. The song was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), for selling 70,000 copies. \"What Happened to Us\" spent a total of ten weeks in the ARIA top fifty.\n\nMusic video\n\nBackground\nThe music video for the song was shot in the Elizabeth Bay House in Sydney on 26 November 2010. The video was shot during Sean's visit to Australia for the Summerbeatz tour. During an interview with The Daily Telegraph while on the set of the video, Sean said \"the song is sick! ... Jessica's voice is amazing and we're shooting [the video] in this ridiculously beautiful mansion overlooking the harbour.\" The video was directed by Mark Alston, who had previously directed the video for Mauboy's single \"Let Me Be Me\" (2009). It premiered on YouTube on 10 February 2011.\n\nSynopsis and reception\nThe video begins showing Mauboy who appears to be sitting on a yellow antique couch in a mansion, wearing a purple dress. As the video progresses, scenes of memories are displayed of Mauboy and her love interest, played by Sean, spending time there previously. It then cuts to the scenes where Sean appears in the main entrance room of the mansion. The final scene shows Mauboy outdoors in a gold dress, surrounded by green grass and trees. She is later joined by Sean who appears in a black suit and a white shirt, and together they sing the chorus of the song to each other. David Lim of Feed Limmy wrote that the video is \"easily the best thing our R&B princess has committed to film – ever\" and praised the \"mansion and wondrous interior décor\". He also commended Mauboy for choosing Australian talent to direct the video instead of American directors, which she had used for her previous two music videos. Since its release, the video has received over two million views on Vevo.\n\nLive performances\nMauboy performed \"What Happened to Us\" live for the first time during her YouTube Live Sessions program on 4 December 2010. She also appeared on Adam Hills in Gordon Street Tonight on 23 February 2011 for an interview and later performed the song. On 15 March 2011, Mauboy performed \"What Happened to Us\" on Sunrise. She also performed the song with Stan Walker during the Australian leg of Chris Brown's F.A.M.E. Tour in April 2011. Mauboy and Walker later performed \"What Happened to Us\" on Dancing with the Stars Australia on 29 May 2011. From November 2013 to February 2014, \"What Happened to Us\" was part of the set list of the To the End of the Earth Tour, Mauboy's second headlining tour of Australia, with Nathaniel Willemse singing Sean's part.\n\nTrack listing\n\nDigital download\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean – 3:19\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (Sgt Slick Remix) – 6:33\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (Just Witness Remix) – 3:45\n\nCD single\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (Album Version) – 3:19\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (Sgt Slick Remix) – 6:33\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (OFM Remix) – 3:39\n\nDigital download – Remix\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Jay Sean (OFM Remix) – 3:38\n\nDigital download\n \"What Happened to Us\" featuring Stan Walker – 3:20\n\nPersonnel\nSongwriting – Josh Alexander, Billy Steinberg, Jeremy Skaller, Rob Larow, Khaled Rohaim, Israel Cruz, Jay Sean\nProduction – Jeremy Skaller, Bobby Bass\nAdditional production – Israel Cruz, Khaled Rohaim\nLead vocals – Jessica Mauboy, Jay Sean\nMixing – Phil Tan\nAdditional mixing – Damien Lewis\nMastering – Tom Coyne \nSource:\n\nCharts\n\nWeekly chart\n\nYear-end chart\n\nCertification\n\nRadio dates and release history\n\nReferences\n\n2010 songs\n2011 singles\nJessica Mauboy songs\nJay Sean songs\nSongs written by Billy Steinberg\nSongs written by Jay Sean\nSongs written by Josh Alexander\nSongs written by Israel Cruz\nVocal duets\nSony Music Australia singles\nSongs written by Khaled Rohaim"
]
|
[
"Boston (band)",
"Departure of Delp; Walk On (1989-1996)",
"What happened in 1989?",
"By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album."
]
| C_c61d7973b8b2435f80b9d464781ec3a2_1 | what was that album called? | 2 | what was Boston's fourth studio album called? | Boston (band) | Tom Scholz first started writing music in 1969 while he was attending Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he wrote an instrumental, titled "Foreplay". While attending MIT, Scholz joined the band Freehold, where he met guitarist Barry Goudreau and drummer Jim Masdea, who would later become members of Boston. Vocalist Brad Delp was added to the collective in 1970. After graduating with a master's degree, Scholz worked for Polaroid, where he used his salary to build a recording studio in his basement, and to finance demo tapes recorded in professional recording studios. These early demo tapes were recorded with (at various times) Delp on vocals, Goudreau on guitar, Masdea on drums, and Scholz on guitar, bass and keyboards. The demo tapes were sent to record companies, but received consistent rejections. In 1973 Scholz formed the band Mother's Milk with Delp, Goudreau, and Masdea. That group disbanded by 1974, but Scholz subsequently worked with Masdea and Delp to produce six new demos, including "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Rock and Roll Band", "Something About You" (then entitled "Life Isn't Easy"), "Hitch a Ride" (then entitled "San Francisco Day"), and "Don't Be Afraid". Scholz stated they finished four of the six by the end of 1974, and they finished "More Than a Feeling" and "Something About You" in 1975. Scholz played all the instruments on the demos, except for the drums, which were played by Masdea, and used self-designed pedals to create the desired guitar sound. The violin-like sound of the guitars was created in the early 1970s by Scholz. This final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie. Masdea left the band around this time. According to Scholz, the managers insisted that Masdea had to be replaced before the band could get a recording deal. Years later, Delp told journalist Chuck Miller: "[Jim] actually told me he was losing interest in playing drums. I know Tom felt very bad when the whole thing happened. And then, of course, we started getting some interest." Scholz and Delp signed a deal with Epic Records after Masdea's departure, thanks to Ahern and McKenzie. Before the deal could be finalized, the band had to do a live audition for the record company executives. The duo recruited Goudreau on guitar, bassist Fran Sheehan and drummer Sib Hashian to create a performing unit which could replicate Scholz's richly layered recordings on stage. The showcase was a success and the band agreed to put out ten albums over the next six years. In addition to the firing of Masdea, the record label insisted that Scholz re-record the demo tapes in a professional studio. However, Scholz wanted the record to be recorded in his basement studio so that he could work at his own pace. The label agreed, and offered to split the producer's royalty with Scholz. Upon request of Scholz, Masdea played drums on the track "Rock and Roll Band", and the instrumentation was recorded in Scholz's studio. The multitrack tapes were then brought to Los Angeles, where Delp added vocals and the album was mixed by John Boylan. It was then that the band was named "Boston", by suggestion of Boylan and engineer Warren Dewey. In late 1979, Scholz began writing new material, but Boston's former co-manager, Paul Ahern, argued that, according to an agreement Scholz had signed years earlier with Ahern, Ahern owned a percentage of all songs Scholz wrote from that point on. Delayed further by the dispute, Scholz suggested that in the meantime the individual members should work on whatever other projects they might be considering. Goudreau then decided to record a solo album that featured Boston members Delp and Hashian, and which was recorded with the help of Paul Grupp, an engineer and producer familiar with Scholz's studio techniques. The album, released in 1980, was titled Barry Goudreau and featured the minor hit single "Dreams". There was tension when CBS's marketing connected Goudreau's solo album to Boston's signature guitar sound, despite Scholz not having played at all on this album. Scholz objected to the ad copy, but it became irrelevant when Epic dropped promotion on Goudreau's album citing lack of interest. Goudreau left the band in 1981 and formed Orion the Hunter. Delp contributed vocals and co-wrote songs on the debut album, but returned to Boston and recorded vocals on the third Boston album. While Scholz and Delp were recording new material for the third Boston album, CBS filed a $60 million lawsuit against Scholz, alleging breach of contract for failing to deliver a new Boston album on time. During this same period, Scholz founded his high-tech company Scholz Research & Development (SR&D), which made amplifiers and other musical electronic equipment. Its most famous product, the Rockman amplifier, was introduced in 1982. The legal trouble slowed progress toward the completion of the next album, which took six years to record and produce. Joining Scholz in the album's development again were Delp and Jim Masdea. In 1985, guitarist Gary Pihl left Sammy Hagar's touring band to work with Scholz as both a musician and an SR&D executive. As CBS v. Scholz played out in court, CBS opted to withhold royalty payments to Scholz, hoping to force him to settle on unfavorable terms. The lawsuit's first round was eventually decided in Scholz's favor, and Scholz moved the band to MCA Records. By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album. Later that year, Delp told Scholz he wanted to concentrate on other projects, and might not be available for some time. With Delp's departure, Scholz was then the last remaining original member. Before he left, Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song "Walk On", which eventually became the title track of the new album. Delp subsequently joined Barry Goudreau's new band, RTZ. Scholz eventually replaced him with Fran Cosmo, who had been in Goudreau's previous band Orion the Hunter. For the second album in a row, and for the second time in a decade, Scholz's work was delayed by renovations to his studio. In the end, eight years passed between Third Stage and Walk On, which was released in June 1994. Walk On was certified platinum by the RIAA, and reached No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. Unlike Boston's previous albums, it failed to chart in the top 5. It produced one hit single, "I Need Your Love", which was widely played on some rock radio stations. Delp reunited with Boston at the end of 1994. Their first appearance was for two benefit shows at the House of Blues on December 12-13, 1994, in Cambridge. The band also handed a check of $5,000 to Globe Santa and another check of $5,000 to Operation Christmas in Fall River. The group, with Delp now back in the band, toured in the summer of 1995 with both Cosmo and Delp combining vocals. By that time drummer Huffman had been replaced by Curly Smith, who was previously with Jo Jo Gunne. Following the conclusion of the "Livin' For You" tour in 1995, Scholz announced that a greatest hits album would be released. Initially planned for release in August 1996, the album was pushed back to a 1997 release date. CANNOTANSWER | Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song "Walk On", which eventually became the title track of the new album. | Boston is an American rock band from namesake Boston, Massachusetts, that had its most notable successes during the 1970s and '80s. The band's core members on their most popular recordings included multi-instrumentalist founder and leader Tom Scholz, who played the majority of instruments on the debut album, and lead vocalist Brad Delp, among a number of other musicians who varied from album to album. Boston's best-known songs include "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Foreplay/Long Time", "Rock and Roll Band", "Smokin'", "Don't Look Back", "A Man I'll Never Be", and "Amanda". The band has sold more than 75 million records worldwide, including 31 million albums in the United States, of which 17 million were from its self-titled debut album and seven million were for its second album, Don't Look Back, making the group one of the world's best-selling artists. Altogether, the band has released six studio albums over a career spanning over years. Boston was ranked the 63rd best hard rock artist by VH1.
After Delp's death in 2007, a number of other vocalists have taken the stage; currently the lead singer is Tommy DeCarlo. Other current members of the band include multi-instrumentalist and singer Beth Cohen, guitarist Gary Pihl, bassist Tracy Ferrie, drummer Jeff Neal and percussionist Curly Smith.
History
Early years (1969–1975)
Tom Scholz first started writing music in 1969 while he was attending Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he wrote an instrumental song, "Foreplay". While attending MIT, Scholz joined the band Freehold, where he met guitarist Barry Goudreau and drummer Jim Masdea, who would later become members of Boston. Vocalist Brad Delp was added to the collective in 1970. After graduating with a master's degree, Scholz worked for Polaroid, using his salary to build a recording studio in his basement, and to finance demo tapes recorded in professional recording studios. These early demo tapes were recorded with (at various times) Delp on vocals, Goudreau on guitar, Masdea on drums, and Scholz on guitar, bass and keyboards. The demo tapes were sent to record companies, but received consistent rejections. In 1973 Scholz formed the band Mother's Milk with Delp, Goudreau, and Masdea. That group disbanded by 1974, but Scholz subsequently worked with Masdea and Delp to produce six new demos, including "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Rock and Roll Band", "Something About You" (then entitled "Life Isn't Easy"), "Hitch a Ride" (then entitled "San Francisco Day"), and "Don't Be Afraid". Scholz stated they finished four of the six by the end of 1974, and they finished "More Than a Feeling" and "Something About You" in 1975. Scholz played all the instruments on the demos, except for the drums, which were played by Masdea, and used self-designed pedals to create the desired guitar sounds.
This final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie. Masdea left the band around this time. According to Scholz, the managers insisted that Masdea had to be replaced before the band could get a recording deal. Years later, Delp told journalist Chuck Miller: "[Jim] actually told me he was losing interest in playing drums. I know Tom felt very bad when the whole thing happened. And then, of course, we started getting some interest." Scholz and Delp signed a deal with Epic Records after Masdea's departure, thanks to Ahern and McKenzie. Before the deal could be finalized, the band had to do a live audition for the record company executives. The duo recruited Goudreau on guitar, bassist Fran Sheehan and drummer Sib Hashian to create a performing unit which could replicate Scholz's richly layered recordings on stage. The showcase was a success and the band agreed to put out ten albums over the next six years.
In addition to the firing of Masdea, the record label insisted that Scholz re-record the demo tapes in a professional studio. However, Scholz wanted to record them in his basement studio so that he could work at his own pace. Scholz and producer John Boylan hatched a plan to send the rest of the band to Los Angeles to make the record label happy, while Scholz recorded most of Boston's debut album at home, with Masdea playing drums on the track "Rock and Roll Band" and Scholz playing the other instruments. The multitrack tapes were then brought to Los Angeles, where Delp added vocals and the album was mixed by Boylan. It was then that the band was named "Boston", by suggestion of Boylan and engineer Warren Dewey.
Boston and Don't Look Back (1976–1978)
The debut album, Boston, released on August 25, 1976, ranks as one of the best-selling debut albums in U.S. history with over 17 million copies sold.
During late summer and early fall of 1976, Boston attracted publicity due to the record sales. However, according to Cameron Crowe in Rolling Stone, there was "a conscious effort to de-emphasize Scholz as the total mastermind behind Boston". After opening for Black Sabbath, Blue Öyster Cult, Foghat and others in the fall, the band embarked on a headlining tour in the winter and spring of 1976–1977 to support the album. This helped establish Boston as one of rock's top acts within a short time, being nominated for a Grammy Award as a "Best New Artist". Boston was the first band in history to make their New York City debut at Madison Square Garden.
The album spawned three singles, "More Than a Feeling", "Long Time", and "Peace of Mind", all of which made the national charts. The album peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and remained on the charts for 132 weeks.
Despite having problems with manager Paul Ahern, being caught in the middle of a fight between Ahern and his business partner Charles McKenzie, and doing most of the recording work alone, Scholz completed the second Boston album two years after the debut album's release. The second album, Don't Look Back, was released by Epic in August 1978. At the time this was considered a long gap between albums, but Scholz still considered Don't Look Back to be a rush job and was unhappy with the album's second side in particular. Overall, Don't Look Back sold about half as well as the debut album, eventually selling over 7 million records.
Another tour followed (playing with the likes of AC/DC, Black Sabbath, Van Halen, Sammy Hagar and The Doobie Brothers), and the album's title track became a top-5 hit. Additionally, two other singles, "A Man I'll Never Be" and "Feelin' Satisfied", went top 40 and top 50, respectively. Despite the success, Scholz's relationship with Ahern completely deteriorated. Delayed by technical renovations to his studio, Scholz eventually began the process of working on Boston's third album, determined to complete the album at his own pace and up to his demanding standard.
Solo projects and CBS lawsuit (1979–1985)
In late 1979, Scholz began writing new material, but Boston's former co-manager, Paul Ahern, argued that, according to an agreement Scholz had signed years earlier with Ahern, Ahern owned a percentage of all songs Scholz wrote from that point on. Delayed further by the dispute, Scholz suggested that in the meantime the individual members should work on whatever other projects they might be considering.
Goudreau then decided to record a solo album that featured Boston members Delp and Hashian, and which was recorded with the help of Paul Grupp, an engineer and producer familiar with Scholz's studio techniques. The album, released in 1980, was titled Barry Goudreau and featured the minor hit single "Dreams". There was tension when CBS's marketing connected Goudreau's solo album to Boston's signature guitar sound, despite Scholz not having played at all on this album. Scholz objected to the ad copy, but it became irrelevant when Epic dropped promotion on Goudreau's album citing lack of interest. Goudreau left the band in 1981 and formed Orion the Hunter. Delp contributed vocals and co-wrote songs on the debut album, but returned to Boston and recorded vocals on the third Boston album.
While Scholz and Delp were recording new material for the third Boston album, CBS filed a $60 million lawsuit against Scholz, alleging breach of contract for failing to deliver a new Boston album on time.
During this same period, Scholz founded his high-tech company Scholz Research & Development (SR&D), which made amplifiers and other musical electronic equipment. Its most famous product, the Rockman amplifier, was introduced in 1982.
The legal trouble slowed progress toward the completion of the next album, which took six years to record and produce. Joining Scholz in the album's development again were Delp and Jim Masdea. In 1985, guitarist Gary Pihl left Sammy Hagar's touring band to work with Scholz as both a musician and an SR&D executive. As CBS v. Scholz played out in court, CBS opted to withhold royalty payments to Scholz, hoping to force him to settle on unfavorable terms.
The lawsuit's first round was eventually decided in Scholz's favor, and Scholz moved the band to MCA Records.
The CBS case took seven years to run its course, and in April 1990 Scholz won.
Third Stage (1986–1988)
Despite the adversity, progress continued to be made on the third Boston album. A tape of one of the songs, "Amanda", leaked out of the studio in 1984. The song became the lead single when Third Stage was finally released on September 23, 1986.
The album topped the Billboard 200 while the lead single "Amanda" went to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and the subsequent singles "We're Ready" and "Can'tcha Say" reached No. 9 and No. 20, respectively. "Cool the Engines" also got significant airplay on rock radio. The album sold over 4 million copies.
The group headed off on tour to promote Third Stage in 1987 and 1988. Third Stage was played in sequence in its entirety during the shows, with expanded arrangements of some cuts. Boston opened with "Rock and Roll Band" and brought back the original drummer, Jim Masdea, to play drums for this one song. For the tour, the group was joined by Doug Huffman and David Sikes, both of whom stayed with the band into the mid-1990s.
Departure of Delp; Walk On (1989–1996)
By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album. Later that year, Delp told Scholz he wanted to concentrate on other projects, and might not be available for some time. With Delp's departure, Scholz was then the last remaining original member. Before he left, Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song "Walk On", which eventually became the title track of the new album.
Delp subsequently joined Barry Goudreau's new band, RTZ. Scholz eventually replaced him with vocalist Fran Cosmo, who had been in Goudreau's previous band Orion the Hunter.
For the second album in a row, and for the second time in a decade, Scholz's work was delayed by renovations to his studio. In the end, eight years passed between Third Stage and Walk On, which was released in June 1994. Walk On was certified platinum by the RIAA, and reached No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. Unlike Boston's previous albums, it failed to chart in the top 5. It produced one hit single, "I Need Your Love", which was widely played on some rock radio stations. Delp reunited with Boston at the end of 1994. Their first appearance was for two benefit shows at the House of Blues on December 12–13, 1994, in Cambridge. The band also handed a check of $5,000 to Globe Santa and another check of $5,000 to Operation Christmas in Fall River.
The group, with Delp now back in the band, toured in the summer of 1995 with both Cosmo and Delp combining vocals. By that time drummer Huffman had been replaced by Curly Smith, who was previously with Jo Jo Gunne. Following the conclusion of the "Livin' For You" tour in 1995, Scholz announced that a greatest hits album would be released. Initially planned for release in August 1996, the album was pushed back to a 1997 release date.
Greatest Hits and Corporate America (1997–2006)
Boston released a compilation album in 1997, titled simply Boston: Greatest Hits. The album featured all of the band's hit singles except "We're Ready", "Can'tcha Say (You Believe In Me)/Still In Love", and "I Need Your Love" along with three new songs, "Higher Power", "Tell Me", and an instrumental version of the "Star Spangled Banner". Smith and Sikes left the band in late 1997 and recorded an album together.
Scholz headed back to the studio in 1998 to begin work on a fifth album, which eventually turned out to be Corporate America. The title track of "Corporate America" was uploaded by Tom Scholz to MP3.com under the pseudonym of "Downer's Revenge" in early 2002 in order to test the album's appeal to a younger demographic. The song reached No. 2 on the progressive rock charts on the website for two weeks.
November 2002 marked the release of Corporate America on the independent label Artemis Records. This album featured the largest Boston lineup ever; returning members included Delp and Cosmo on rhythm guitar and lead vocals, Scholz on lead guitar and keyboards, and Gary Pihl on guitar, along with new members Anthony Cosmo on rhythm guitar, Jeff Neal on drums, and Kimberley Dahme on bass, acoustic guitar, and vocals. Dahme, Delp, and Cosmo all contributed lead vocals to the album. The group embarked on a national tour in support of the album in 2003 and 2004. In 2006, the first two Boston albums appeared in remastered form.
Death of Brad Delp (2007)
On March 9, 2007, lead singer Delp died by suicide at his home in Atkinson, New Hampshire. Police found him dead in his master bathroom, along with several notes for whomever would find him. In the bathroom where he died, two charcoal grills were found on the bathroom fixtures, and the door was sealed with duct tape and a towel underneath. Police called the death "untimely" and said no foul play was indicated. Delp was alone at the time of his death, according to the police report. He was found by his fiancée, who saw a dryer hose attached to his car. According to the New Hampshire medical examiner, his death was the result of suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning. Delp's last concert with Boston was performed at Boston Symphony Hall on November 13, 2006, at a concert honoring Doug Flutie.
A concert in honor of Delp named "Come Together: A Tribute to Brad Delp" occurred on August 19, 2007, at the Bank of America Pavilion in Boston. The concert included Ernie and the Automatics, Beatlejuice, Farrenheit, Extreme, Godsmack, RTZ, Orion the Hunter, and finally the current version of Boston.
All of the living members of Boston were invited to perform in the concert. The singers for Boston included Michael Sweet of Stryper, former band member Curly Smith, band member Kimberley Dahme, and a Boston fan from North Carolina named Tommy DeCarlo, who was chosen to sing based on his performances of Boston cover songs on his MySpace page.
New line-up and intermittent performances (2008–2012)
The ongoing conflicts among the surviving band members spilled over to the 2008 Presidential campaign. Barry Goudreau appeared with Mike Huckabee and played with him at some rallies in New Hampshire. Huckabee used "More Than a Feeling" as a campaign theme song. Scholz, a self-described "Obama supporter", sent an open letter to Huckabee in February 2008 stating that the band had never endorsed any candidate, and that he had never authorized the use of "More Than a Feeling" as Huckabee's theme song. Scholz made a point of saying that he, and not Goudreau or Sheehan, actually played all the guitars on "More Than a Feeling" as well as most of Boston's songs. Huckabee eventually stopped using the song for his campaign.
In the spring of 2008, Scholz and Sweet introduced a new Boston lineup, which subsequently did a North American summer tour, playing 53 dates in 12 weeks (on a double bill with Styx). Scholz was the only founding member of Boston to play on the tour, although longtime member Gary Pihl was also part of the band, and Dahme and Neal returned on bass and drums, respectively. DeCarlo and Sweet shared lead vocals.
In January 2009, Greatest Hits was re-released as a remastered disc.
Michael Sweet left the band in August 2011 in order to focus on Stryper. In 2012, guitarist and vocalist David Victor joined the band, beginning in the studio, where he contributed vocals to several tracks on the album in progress.
Scholz and Pihl led the band on a 2012 North American tour, beginning on June 28, 2012, at the Seminole Hard Rock Live arena in Hollywood, Florida and ending on September 8 at the U.S. Cellular Grandstand in Hutchinson, Kansas. Victor and DeCarlo shared lead vocals, with drummer Curly Smith returning for the first time in over a decade, and former Stryper member Tracy Ferrie on bass. Neither Dahme nor Neal played on the tour.
Life, Love & Hope (2013–2017)
Boston's sixth album, Life, Love & Hope, was released on December 3, 2013, by Frontiers Records; it includes lead vocals from Brad Delp, Tommy DeCarlo, Kimberley Dahme, David Victor, and Tom Scholz. Work on the album started in 2002. On December 11, 2013, Boston re-recorded a Christmas song, "God Rest Ye Metal Gentleman 2013" (previously released in 2002 as "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"). In 2014 Boston embarked on the "Heaven on Earth Tour" spanning the United States and Japan with a lineup including Scholz, Pihl, DeCarlo, Victor and Ferrie. Dahme returned, this time performing rhythm guitar and vocals, and drumming duties were split between Neal and Smith, with Neal handling the first leg of the tour. Victor departed the lineup partway through the tour for unspecified reasons. In his stead, Siobhan Magnus joined the tour as a guest vocalist in July, performing lead vocals on 'Walk On'.
In 2015, Boston launched another tour with a lineup consisting of Scholz, Pihl, DeCarlo, Ferrie and new member Beth Cohen, who performed keyboards, rhythm guitar and vocals. Cohen had previously recorded with the group on both Corporate America and Life, Love & Hope as a vocalist and flautist. Initially, the lineup was to include former Spock's Beard drummer and vocalist Nick D'Virgilio for its first month of shows, with Neal then returning, but D'Virgilio proved "not the right fit" and Smith rejoined in his place. This seven-person lineup proved Boston's most stable lineup in some time, touring as well in the summers of 2016 and 2017. The 2016 tour marked the group's 40th anniversary and included shows in Boston's Wang Theatre, their first full performances in their namesake town since 1994.
On March 22, 2017, former drummer Sib Hashian died after collapsing on a Legends of Rock cruise ship.
Upcoming seventh album (2017–present)
In April 2017, Scholz reported that he has been writing new material for the seventh Boston album. He told Sun Herald, "I find that I'm in a position that I really need to write things that we can play at the shows. We play basically everything that people expect to hear that we can fit into two hours. We also do a lot of things that aren't on any of the records by adding things and segues and instrumental parts, so I always have to come up with new stuff. It's quite a challenge. I have to write new things for the tour every year, which is what I wanted to do in the first place. But I got sidetracked in the studio, recording. Now, I'm actually a performing musician, and I have to tell you, it's much more fun." When asked the same month about a potential release date of the album, Scholz said, "Who knows? I'm only 70. I figure I've got 30 years."
Spaceship
One of the themes of Boston's album covers is the presence of a guitar-shaped spaceship, ostensibly a generation or colony ship carrying the city of Boston inside a clear dome, with the city's name emblazoned across the front. The original spaceship was designed in 1976 by Paula Scher and illustrated by Roger Huyssen with lettering by Gerard Huerta for Epic Records.
Appearances
Boston – Two long lines of guitar shaped starships flee a planet that is breaking apart. The ships all have blue flames coming out of the bottom.
Don't Look Back – The Boston ship is flying low or perhaps hovering over a grassy, crystalline planet. The ship has searchlights on.
Third Stage – The Boston ship is headed towards a large flat spaceship resembling a bank of pipe organ pipes over a blue planet.
Walk On – The Boston ship is shown crashing through a rock outcropping.
Greatest Hits – The Boston ship is flying low over a planet with turquoise rocks and a turquoise tower in the distance.
Corporate America – The Boston ship is flying towards Earth and the United States.
Life, Love & Hope – The Boston ship is flying in space, near a nebula.
Their spaceship also appeared on their tours in the late 1980s, early 1990s, and early 2000s in the form of a giant lighting rig and accompanied on stage by their giant pipe-organ set piece, which is known to Boston insiders as Bertha because of its sheer size.
Innovation and style
Boston's genre is considered by most to be hard rock and arena rock, while combining elements of progressive rock into its music.
Boston founder, guitarist, and primary songwriter Tom Scholz's blend of musical styles, ranging from classical to 1960s English pop, has resulted in a unique sound, most consistently realized on the first two albums (Boston and Don't Look Back). This sound is characterized by multiple lead and blended harmonies guitar work (usually harmonized in thirds), often alternating between and then mixing electric and acoustic guitars. The band's harmonic style has been characterized as being "violin-like" without using synthesizers. Scholz is well-regarded for the development of complex, multi-tracked guitar harmonies. Another contributing factor is the use of handmade, high-tech equipment, such as the Rockman, used by artists such as Journey guitarist Neal Schon, the band ZZ Top, and Ted Nugent. Def Leppard's album Hysteria was created using only Rockman technology. Scholz's production style combines deep, aggressive, comparatively short guitar riffing and nearly ethereal, generally longer note vocal harmonies. A heavier, lower, and darker overall approach came in the next two albums (Third Stage and Walk On). The original track "Higher Power", on the Greatest Hits album, exhibits a near Neue Deutsche Härte and almost techno influence with its sequencer-sounding keyboards, a sound most fully realized on Corporate America'''s title track.
Tom Scholz also credited the late Brad Delp with helping to create Boston's sound with his signature vocal style. Delp, who was strongly influenced by the Beatles, was well known for his extended vocal range, shown on hits such as "More Than a Feeling".
Band members
Current members
Tom Scholz – lead and rhythm guitar, bass, keyboards, drums, percussion, backing vocals (1976–present)
Gary Pihl – rhythm and lead guitar, keyboards, backing vocals (1985–present)
Curly Smith – drums, percussion, harmonica, backing vocals (1994–1997, 2012–present)
Jeff Neal – drums, percussion, backing vocals (2002–2012, 2014–present)
Tommy DeCarlo – lead vocals, keyboards, percussion (2007–present)
Tracy Ferrie – bass guitar, backing vocals (2012–present)
Beth Cohen – keyboards, vocals, rhythm guitar (2002, 2012, 2015–present)
Discography
Studio albumsBoston (1976)Don't Look Back (1978)Third Stage (1986)Walk On (1994)Corporate America (2002)Life, Love & Hope (2013)
Compilation albumsGreatest Hits'' (1997)
References
External links
1976 establishments in Massachusetts
Epic Records artists
Hard rock musical groups from Massachusetts
MCA Records artists
Musical groups established in 1976
Musical groups from Boston | true | [
"Open is the first solo studio album by the English recording artist Shaznay Lewis, following the break up of the girl group All Saints. Released by London Records on 19 July 2004, it peaked at number 22 on the UK Albums Chart.\n\nAbout the album\nThe title Open was chosen by Lewis while she was recording in the studio because she was \"opened\" to many new ideas at the time.\n\nIt includes two singles, \"Never Felt Like This Before\" and \"You\". Lewis was reportedly going to release a third single, \"Nasty Boy\", in March 2005, but this was a rumour.\n\nTrack #3 was originally called \"Never Felt Like This Before\" and the single and video were released under that name as well. However, on the album the title has been changed to \"I Never Felt Like This Before\".\n\nThere was an additional track called \"Don't Know What to Say\" which was removed from the album before it was released. It was removed because it was said to have been a weak song. The album (without any promotion) seems to have been re-released, as \"Don't Know What to Say\" is now an added track on the album. This change can be seen on the HMV website.\n\nThe final track, \"Now You're Gone\", was originally called \"Crying\" but was changed before the album was released. The song is included on the Shaznay Lewis Album Sampler which has five songs taken from Open; however, \"Mr. Dawg\" and \"You\" are both rough demos different from the album versions both vocally and melodically.\n\nTrack listing\nCredits adapted from the liner notes of Open.\n\nCharts\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n\n2004 debut albums\nAlbums produced by Rick Nowels",
"Myriam is the second studio album by Myriam. On her website it is also called \"Myriam: Lo que Soy, lo que Pretendo y lo que Fui\" (Myriam: What I Am, What I Pretend and What I Was) making reference to the lyrics of the album's first single \"Hasta El Limite\". It includes eleven songs with the collaboration of Tiziano Ferro, Leonel (ex Sin Bandera). Again Myriam co-wrote a song along with Estrella. In this album Myriam brought a more fresh concept, almost 100% pop genre with a little touches of flamenco. It was released in July, 2004.\n\nAlbum information\nIt was recorded in Argentina and the producer was Cachorro López who had also worked with Julieta Venegas. Myriam's career was at a low point, as she was being criticized for her third place in Desafio de Estrellas, but all that was eclipsed by the success of this album. \"Hasta el Limite\" was the first single from the album; it was Myriam's first song with a promotional video, and stayed in the charts for more than 6 months. The second single was \"Porque Soy Mujer\" which was written by Myriam and her ex-classmate Estrella.\n\nThe album was a commercial success. Within two weeks of the launch date it reached gold status in Mexico, and sold more than 200,000 copies certificating 2× Platinum. The album was a Latin success in USA selling gold status, 50,000 copies.\n\nTrack listing\n\nReferences\n\n2003 albums\nMyriam Montemayor Cruz albums"
]
|
[
"Boston (band)",
"Departure of Delp; Walk On (1989-1996)",
"What happened in 1989?",
"By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album.",
"what was that album called?",
"Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song \"Walk On\", which eventually became the title track of the new album."
]
| C_c61d7973b8b2435f80b9d464781ec3a2_1 | was the album successful? | 3 | was Boston 's fourth studio album successful? | Boston (band) | Tom Scholz first started writing music in 1969 while he was attending Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he wrote an instrumental, titled "Foreplay". While attending MIT, Scholz joined the band Freehold, where he met guitarist Barry Goudreau and drummer Jim Masdea, who would later become members of Boston. Vocalist Brad Delp was added to the collective in 1970. After graduating with a master's degree, Scholz worked for Polaroid, where he used his salary to build a recording studio in his basement, and to finance demo tapes recorded in professional recording studios. These early demo tapes were recorded with (at various times) Delp on vocals, Goudreau on guitar, Masdea on drums, and Scholz on guitar, bass and keyboards. The demo tapes were sent to record companies, but received consistent rejections. In 1973 Scholz formed the band Mother's Milk with Delp, Goudreau, and Masdea. That group disbanded by 1974, but Scholz subsequently worked with Masdea and Delp to produce six new demos, including "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Rock and Roll Band", "Something About You" (then entitled "Life Isn't Easy"), "Hitch a Ride" (then entitled "San Francisco Day"), and "Don't Be Afraid". Scholz stated they finished four of the six by the end of 1974, and they finished "More Than a Feeling" and "Something About You" in 1975. Scholz played all the instruments on the demos, except for the drums, which were played by Masdea, and used self-designed pedals to create the desired guitar sound. The violin-like sound of the guitars was created in the early 1970s by Scholz. This final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie. Masdea left the band around this time. According to Scholz, the managers insisted that Masdea had to be replaced before the band could get a recording deal. Years later, Delp told journalist Chuck Miller: "[Jim] actually told me he was losing interest in playing drums. I know Tom felt very bad when the whole thing happened. And then, of course, we started getting some interest." Scholz and Delp signed a deal with Epic Records after Masdea's departure, thanks to Ahern and McKenzie. Before the deal could be finalized, the band had to do a live audition for the record company executives. The duo recruited Goudreau on guitar, bassist Fran Sheehan and drummer Sib Hashian to create a performing unit which could replicate Scholz's richly layered recordings on stage. The showcase was a success and the band agreed to put out ten albums over the next six years. In addition to the firing of Masdea, the record label insisted that Scholz re-record the demo tapes in a professional studio. However, Scholz wanted the record to be recorded in his basement studio so that he could work at his own pace. The label agreed, and offered to split the producer's royalty with Scholz. Upon request of Scholz, Masdea played drums on the track "Rock and Roll Band", and the instrumentation was recorded in Scholz's studio. The multitrack tapes were then brought to Los Angeles, where Delp added vocals and the album was mixed by John Boylan. It was then that the band was named "Boston", by suggestion of Boylan and engineer Warren Dewey. In late 1979, Scholz began writing new material, but Boston's former co-manager, Paul Ahern, argued that, according to an agreement Scholz had signed years earlier with Ahern, Ahern owned a percentage of all songs Scholz wrote from that point on. Delayed further by the dispute, Scholz suggested that in the meantime the individual members should work on whatever other projects they might be considering. Goudreau then decided to record a solo album that featured Boston members Delp and Hashian, and which was recorded with the help of Paul Grupp, an engineer and producer familiar with Scholz's studio techniques. The album, released in 1980, was titled Barry Goudreau and featured the minor hit single "Dreams". There was tension when CBS's marketing connected Goudreau's solo album to Boston's signature guitar sound, despite Scholz not having played at all on this album. Scholz objected to the ad copy, but it became irrelevant when Epic dropped promotion on Goudreau's album citing lack of interest. Goudreau left the band in 1981 and formed Orion the Hunter. Delp contributed vocals and co-wrote songs on the debut album, but returned to Boston and recorded vocals on the third Boston album. While Scholz and Delp were recording new material for the third Boston album, CBS filed a $60 million lawsuit against Scholz, alleging breach of contract for failing to deliver a new Boston album on time. During this same period, Scholz founded his high-tech company Scholz Research & Development (SR&D), which made amplifiers and other musical electronic equipment. Its most famous product, the Rockman amplifier, was introduced in 1982. The legal trouble slowed progress toward the completion of the next album, which took six years to record and produce. Joining Scholz in the album's development again were Delp and Jim Masdea. In 1985, guitarist Gary Pihl left Sammy Hagar's touring band to work with Scholz as both a musician and an SR&D executive. As CBS v. Scholz played out in court, CBS opted to withhold royalty payments to Scholz, hoping to force him to settle on unfavorable terms. The lawsuit's first round was eventually decided in Scholz's favor, and Scholz moved the band to MCA Records. By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album. Later that year, Delp told Scholz he wanted to concentrate on other projects, and might not be available for some time. With Delp's departure, Scholz was then the last remaining original member. Before he left, Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song "Walk On", which eventually became the title track of the new album. Delp subsequently joined Barry Goudreau's new band, RTZ. Scholz eventually replaced him with Fran Cosmo, who had been in Goudreau's previous band Orion the Hunter. For the second album in a row, and for the second time in a decade, Scholz's work was delayed by renovations to his studio. In the end, eight years passed between Third Stage and Walk On, which was released in June 1994. Walk On was certified platinum by the RIAA, and reached No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. Unlike Boston's previous albums, it failed to chart in the top 5. It produced one hit single, "I Need Your Love", which was widely played on some rock radio stations. Delp reunited with Boston at the end of 1994. Their first appearance was for two benefit shows at the House of Blues on December 12-13, 1994, in Cambridge. The band also handed a check of $5,000 to Globe Santa and another check of $5,000 to Operation Christmas in Fall River. The group, with Delp now back in the band, toured in the summer of 1995 with both Cosmo and Delp combining vocals. By that time drummer Huffman had been replaced by Curly Smith, who was previously with Jo Jo Gunne. Following the conclusion of the "Livin' For You" tour in 1995, Scholz announced that a greatest hits album would be released. Initially planned for release in August 1996, the album was pushed back to a 1997 release date. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Boston is an American rock band from namesake Boston, Massachusetts, that had its most notable successes during the 1970s and '80s. The band's core members on their most popular recordings included multi-instrumentalist founder and leader Tom Scholz, who played the majority of instruments on the debut album, and lead vocalist Brad Delp, among a number of other musicians who varied from album to album. Boston's best-known songs include "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Foreplay/Long Time", "Rock and Roll Band", "Smokin'", "Don't Look Back", "A Man I'll Never Be", and "Amanda". The band has sold more than 75 million records worldwide, including 31 million albums in the United States, of which 17 million were from its self-titled debut album and seven million were for its second album, Don't Look Back, making the group one of the world's best-selling artists. Altogether, the band has released six studio albums over a career spanning over years. Boston was ranked the 63rd best hard rock artist by VH1.
After Delp's death in 2007, a number of other vocalists have taken the stage; currently the lead singer is Tommy DeCarlo. Other current members of the band include multi-instrumentalist and singer Beth Cohen, guitarist Gary Pihl, bassist Tracy Ferrie, drummer Jeff Neal and percussionist Curly Smith.
History
Early years (1969–1975)
Tom Scholz first started writing music in 1969 while he was attending Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he wrote an instrumental song, "Foreplay". While attending MIT, Scholz joined the band Freehold, where he met guitarist Barry Goudreau and drummer Jim Masdea, who would later become members of Boston. Vocalist Brad Delp was added to the collective in 1970. After graduating with a master's degree, Scholz worked for Polaroid, using his salary to build a recording studio in his basement, and to finance demo tapes recorded in professional recording studios. These early demo tapes were recorded with (at various times) Delp on vocals, Goudreau on guitar, Masdea on drums, and Scholz on guitar, bass and keyboards. The demo tapes were sent to record companies, but received consistent rejections. In 1973 Scholz formed the band Mother's Milk with Delp, Goudreau, and Masdea. That group disbanded by 1974, but Scholz subsequently worked with Masdea and Delp to produce six new demos, including "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Rock and Roll Band", "Something About You" (then entitled "Life Isn't Easy"), "Hitch a Ride" (then entitled "San Francisco Day"), and "Don't Be Afraid". Scholz stated they finished four of the six by the end of 1974, and they finished "More Than a Feeling" and "Something About You" in 1975. Scholz played all the instruments on the demos, except for the drums, which were played by Masdea, and used self-designed pedals to create the desired guitar sounds.
This final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie. Masdea left the band around this time. According to Scholz, the managers insisted that Masdea had to be replaced before the band could get a recording deal. Years later, Delp told journalist Chuck Miller: "[Jim] actually told me he was losing interest in playing drums. I know Tom felt very bad when the whole thing happened. And then, of course, we started getting some interest." Scholz and Delp signed a deal with Epic Records after Masdea's departure, thanks to Ahern and McKenzie. Before the deal could be finalized, the band had to do a live audition for the record company executives. The duo recruited Goudreau on guitar, bassist Fran Sheehan and drummer Sib Hashian to create a performing unit which could replicate Scholz's richly layered recordings on stage. The showcase was a success and the band agreed to put out ten albums over the next six years.
In addition to the firing of Masdea, the record label insisted that Scholz re-record the demo tapes in a professional studio. However, Scholz wanted to record them in his basement studio so that he could work at his own pace. Scholz and producer John Boylan hatched a plan to send the rest of the band to Los Angeles to make the record label happy, while Scholz recorded most of Boston's debut album at home, with Masdea playing drums on the track "Rock and Roll Band" and Scholz playing the other instruments. The multitrack tapes were then brought to Los Angeles, where Delp added vocals and the album was mixed by Boylan. It was then that the band was named "Boston", by suggestion of Boylan and engineer Warren Dewey.
Boston and Don't Look Back (1976–1978)
The debut album, Boston, released on August 25, 1976, ranks as one of the best-selling debut albums in U.S. history with over 17 million copies sold.
During late summer and early fall of 1976, Boston attracted publicity due to the record sales. However, according to Cameron Crowe in Rolling Stone, there was "a conscious effort to de-emphasize Scholz as the total mastermind behind Boston". After opening for Black Sabbath, Blue Öyster Cult, Foghat and others in the fall, the band embarked on a headlining tour in the winter and spring of 1976–1977 to support the album. This helped establish Boston as one of rock's top acts within a short time, being nominated for a Grammy Award as a "Best New Artist". Boston was the first band in history to make their New York City debut at Madison Square Garden.
The album spawned three singles, "More Than a Feeling", "Long Time", and "Peace of Mind", all of which made the national charts. The album peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and remained on the charts for 132 weeks.
Despite having problems with manager Paul Ahern, being caught in the middle of a fight between Ahern and his business partner Charles McKenzie, and doing most of the recording work alone, Scholz completed the second Boston album two years after the debut album's release. The second album, Don't Look Back, was released by Epic in August 1978. At the time this was considered a long gap between albums, but Scholz still considered Don't Look Back to be a rush job and was unhappy with the album's second side in particular. Overall, Don't Look Back sold about half as well as the debut album, eventually selling over 7 million records.
Another tour followed (playing with the likes of AC/DC, Black Sabbath, Van Halen, Sammy Hagar and The Doobie Brothers), and the album's title track became a top-5 hit. Additionally, two other singles, "A Man I'll Never Be" and "Feelin' Satisfied", went top 40 and top 50, respectively. Despite the success, Scholz's relationship with Ahern completely deteriorated. Delayed by technical renovations to his studio, Scholz eventually began the process of working on Boston's third album, determined to complete the album at his own pace and up to his demanding standard.
Solo projects and CBS lawsuit (1979–1985)
In late 1979, Scholz began writing new material, but Boston's former co-manager, Paul Ahern, argued that, according to an agreement Scholz had signed years earlier with Ahern, Ahern owned a percentage of all songs Scholz wrote from that point on. Delayed further by the dispute, Scholz suggested that in the meantime the individual members should work on whatever other projects they might be considering.
Goudreau then decided to record a solo album that featured Boston members Delp and Hashian, and which was recorded with the help of Paul Grupp, an engineer and producer familiar with Scholz's studio techniques. The album, released in 1980, was titled Barry Goudreau and featured the minor hit single "Dreams". There was tension when CBS's marketing connected Goudreau's solo album to Boston's signature guitar sound, despite Scholz not having played at all on this album. Scholz objected to the ad copy, but it became irrelevant when Epic dropped promotion on Goudreau's album citing lack of interest. Goudreau left the band in 1981 and formed Orion the Hunter. Delp contributed vocals and co-wrote songs on the debut album, but returned to Boston and recorded vocals on the third Boston album.
While Scholz and Delp were recording new material for the third Boston album, CBS filed a $60 million lawsuit against Scholz, alleging breach of contract for failing to deliver a new Boston album on time.
During this same period, Scholz founded his high-tech company Scholz Research & Development (SR&D), which made amplifiers and other musical electronic equipment. Its most famous product, the Rockman amplifier, was introduced in 1982.
The legal trouble slowed progress toward the completion of the next album, which took six years to record and produce. Joining Scholz in the album's development again were Delp and Jim Masdea. In 1985, guitarist Gary Pihl left Sammy Hagar's touring band to work with Scholz as both a musician and an SR&D executive. As CBS v. Scholz played out in court, CBS opted to withhold royalty payments to Scholz, hoping to force him to settle on unfavorable terms.
The lawsuit's first round was eventually decided in Scholz's favor, and Scholz moved the band to MCA Records.
The CBS case took seven years to run its course, and in April 1990 Scholz won.
Third Stage (1986–1988)
Despite the adversity, progress continued to be made on the third Boston album. A tape of one of the songs, "Amanda", leaked out of the studio in 1984. The song became the lead single when Third Stage was finally released on September 23, 1986.
The album topped the Billboard 200 while the lead single "Amanda" went to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and the subsequent singles "We're Ready" and "Can'tcha Say" reached No. 9 and No. 20, respectively. "Cool the Engines" also got significant airplay on rock radio. The album sold over 4 million copies.
The group headed off on tour to promote Third Stage in 1987 and 1988. Third Stage was played in sequence in its entirety during the shows, with expanded arrangements of some cuts. Boston opened with "Rock and Roll Band" and brought back the original drummer, Jim Masdea, to play drums for this one song. For the tour, the group was joined by Doug Huffman and David Sikes, both of whom stayed with the band into the mid-1990s.
Departure of Delp; Walk On (1989–1996)
By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album. Later that year, Delp told Scholz he wanted to concentrate on other projects, and might not be available for some time. With Delp's departure, Scholz was then the last remaining original member. Before he left, Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song "Walk On", which eventually became the title track of the new album.
Delp subsequently joined Barry Goudreau's new band, RTZ. Scholz eventually replaced him with vocalist Fran Cosmo, who had been in Goudreau's previous band Orion the Hunter.
For the second album in a row, and for the second time in a decade, Scholz's work was delayed by renovations to his studio. In the end, eight years passed between Third Stage and Walk On, which was released in June 1994. Walk On was certified platinum by the RIAA, and reached No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. Unlike Boston's previous albums, it failed to chart in the top 5. It produced one hit single, "I Need Your Love", which was widely played on some rock radio stations. Delp reunited with Boston at the end of 1994. Their first appearance was for two benefit shows at the House of Blues on December 12–13, 1994, in Cambridge. The band also handed a check of $5,000 to Globe Santa and another check of $5,000 to Operation Christmas in Fall River.
The group, with Delp now back in the band, toured in the summer of 1995 with both Cosmo and Delp combining vocals. By that time drummer Huffman had been replaced by Curly Smith, who was previously with Jo Jo Gunne. Following the conclusion of the "Livin' For You" tour in 1995, Scholz announced that a greatest hits album would be released. Initially planned for release in August 1996, the album was pushed back to a 1997 release date.
Greatest Hits and Corporate America (1997–2006)
Boston released a compilation album in 1997, titled simply Boston: Greatest Hits. The album featured all of the band's hit singles except "We're Ready", "Can'tcha Say (You Believe In Me)/Still In Love", and "I Need Your Love" along with three new songs, "Higher Power", "Tell Me", and an instrumental version of the "Star Spangled Banner". Smith and Sikes left the band in late 1997 and recorded an album together.
Scholz headed back to the studio in 1998 to begin work on a fifth album, which eventually turned out to be Corporate America. The title track of "Corporate America" was uploaded by Tom Scholz to MP3.com under the pseudonym of "Downer's Revenge" in early 2002 in order to test the album's appeal to a younger demographic. The song reached No. 2 on the progressive rock charts on the website for two weeks.
November 2002 marked the release of Corporate America on the independent label Artemis Records. This album featured the largest Boston lineup ever; returning members included Delp and Cosmo on rhythm guitar and lead vocals, Scholz on lead guitar and keyboards, and Gary Pihl on guitar, along with new members Anthony Cosmo on rhythm guitar, Jeff Neal on drums, and Kimberley Dahme on bass, acoustic guitar, and vocals. Dahme, Delp, and Cosmo all contributed lead vocals to the album. The group embarked on a national tour in support of the album in 2003 and 2004. In 2006, the first two Boston albums appeared in remastered form.
Death of Brad Delp (2007)
On March 9, 2007, lead singer Delp died by suicide at his home in Atkinson, New Hampshire. Police found him dead in his master bathroom, along with several notes for whomever would find him. In the bathroom where he died, two charcoal grills were found on the bathroom fixtures, and the door was sealed with duct tape and a towel underneath. Police called the death "untimely" and said no foul play was indicated. Delp was alone at the time of his death, according to the police report. He was found by his fiancée, who saw a dryer hose attached to his car. According to the New Hampshire medical examiner, his death was the result of suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning. Delp's last concert with Boston was performed at Boston Symphony Hall on November 13, 2006, at a concert honoring Doug Flutie.
A concert in honor of Delp named "Come Together: A Tribute to Brad Delp" occurred on August 19, 2007, at the Bank of America Pavilion in Boston. The concert included Ernie and the Automatics, Beatlejuice, Farrenheit, Extreme, Godsmack, RTZ, Orion the Hunter, and finally the current version of Boston.
All of the living members of Boston were invited to perform in the concert. The singers for Boston included Michael Sweet of Stryper, former band member Curly Smith, band member Kimberley Dahme, and a Boston fan from North Carolina named Tommy DeCarlo, who was chosen to sing based on his performances of Boston cover songs on his MySpace page.
New line-up and intermittent performances (2008–2012)
The ongoing conflicts among the surviving band members spilled over to the 2008 Presidential campaign. Barry Goudreau appeared with Mike Huckabee and played with him at some rallies in New Hampshire. Huckabee used "More Than a Feeling" as a campaign theme song. Scholz, a self-described "Obama supporter", sent an open letter to Huckabee in February 2008 stating that the band had never endorsed any candidate, and that he had never authorized the use of "More Than a Feeling" as Huckabee's theme song. Scholz made a point of saying that he, and not Goudreau or Sheehan, actually played all the guitars on "More Than a Feeling" as well as most of Boston's songs. Huckabee eventually stopped using the song for his campaign.
In the spring of 2008, Scholz and Sweet introduced a new Boston lineup, which subsequently did a North American summer tour, playing 53 dates in 12 weeks (on a double bill with Styx). Scholz was the only founding member of Boston to play on the tour, although longtime member Gary Pihl was also part of the band, and Dahme and Neal returned on bass and drums, respectively. DeCarlo and Sweet shared lead vocals.
In January 2009, Greatest Hits was re-released as a remastered disc.
Michael Sweet left the band in August 2011 in order to focus on Stryper. In 2012, guitarist and vocalist David Victor joined the band, beginning in the studio, where he contributed vocals to several tracks on the album in progress.
Scholz and Pihl led the band on a 2012 North American tour, beginning on June 28, 2012, at the Seminole Hard Rock Live arena in Hollywood, Florida and ending on September 8 at the U.S. Cellular Grandstand in Hutchinson, Kansas. Victor and DeCarlo shared lead vocals, with drummer Curly Smith returning for the first time in over a decade, and former Stryper member Tracy Ferrie on bass. Neither Dahme nor Neal played on the tour.
Life, Love & Hope (2013–2017)
Boston's sixth album, Life, Love & Hope, was released on December 3, 2013, by Frontiers Records; it includes lead vocals from Brad Delp, Tommy DeCarlo, Kimberley Dahme, David Victor, and Tom Scholz. Work on the album started in 2002. On December 11, 2013, Boston re-recorded a Christmas song, "God Rest Ye Metal Gentleman 2013" (previously released in 2002 as "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"). In 2014 Boston embarked on the "Heaven on Earth Tour" spanning the United States and Japan with a lineup including Scholz, Pihl, DeCarlo, Victor and Ferrie. Dahme returned, this time performing rhythm guitar and vocals, and drumming duties were split between Neal and Smith, with Neal handling the first leg of the tour. Victor departed the lineup partway through the tour for unspecified reasons. In his stead, Siobhan Magnus joined the tour as a guest vocalist in July, performing lead vocals on 'Walk On'.
In 2015, Boston launched another tour with a lineup consisting of Scholz, Pihl, DeCarlo, Ferrie and new member Beth Cohen, who performed keyboards, rhythm guitar and vocals. Cohen had previously recorded with the group on both Corporate America and Life, Love & Hope as a vocalist and flautist. Initially, the lineup was to include former Spock's Beard drummer and vocalist Nick D'Virgilio for its first month of shows, with Neal then returning, but D'Virgilio proved "not the right fit" and Smith rejoined in his place. This seven-person lineup proved Boston's most stable lineup in some time, touring as well in the summers of 2016 and 2017. The 2016 tour marked the group's 40th anniversary and included shows in Boston's Wang Theatre, their first full performances in their namesake town since 1994.
On March 22, 2017, former drummer Sib Hashian died after collapsing on a Legends of Rock cruise ship.
Upcoming seventh album (2017–present)
In April 2017, Scholz reported that he has been writing new material for the seventh Boston album. He told Sun Herald, "I find that I'm in a position that I really need to write things that we can play at the shows. We play basically everything that people expect to hear that we can fit into two hours. We also do a lot of things that aren't on any of the records by adding things and segues and instrumental parts, so I always have to come up with new stuff. It's quite a challenge. I have to write new things for the tour every year, which is what I wanted to do in the first place. But I got sidetracked in the studio, recording. Now, I'm actually a performing musician, and I have to tell you, it's much more fun." When asked the same month about a potential release date of the album, Scholz said, "Who knows? I'm only 70. I figure I've got 30 years."
Spaceship
One of the themes of Boston's album covers is the presence of a guitar-shaped spaceship, ostensibly a generation or colony ship carrying the city of Boston inside a clear dome, with the city's name emblazoned across the front. The original spaceship was designed in 1976 by Paula Scher and illustrated by Roger Huyssen with lettering by Gerard Huerta for Epic Records.
Appearances
Boston – Two long lines of guitar shaped starships flee a planet that is breaking apart. The ships all have blue flames coming out of the bottom.
Don't Look Back – The Boston ship is flying low or perhaps hovering over a grassy, crystalline planet. The ship has searchlights on.
Third Stage – The Boston ship is headed towards a large flat spaceship resembling a bank of pipe organ pipes over a blue planet.
Walk On – The Boston ship is shown crashing through a rock outcropping.
Greatest Hits – The Boston ship is flying low over a planet with turquoise rocks and a turquoise tower in the distance.
Corporate America – The Boston ship is flying towards Earth and the United States.
Life, Love & Hope – The Boston ship is flying in space, near a nebula.
Their spaceship also appeared on their tours in the late 1980s, early 1990s, and early 2000s in the form of a giant lighting rig and accompanied on stage by their giant pipe-organ set piece, which is known to Boston insiders as Bertha because of its sheer size.
Innovation and style
Boston's genre is considered by most to be hard rock and arena rock, while combining elements of progressive rock into its music.
Boston founder, guitarist, and primary songwriter Tom Scholz's blend of musical styles, ranging from classical to 1960s English pop, has resulted in a unique sound, most consistently realized on the first two albums (Boston and Don't Look Back). This sound is characterized by multiple lead and blended harmonies guitar work (usually harmonized in thirds), often alternating between and then mixing electric and acoustic guitars. The band's harmonic style has been characterized as being "violin-like" without using synthesizers. Scholz is well-regarded for the development of complex, multi-tracked guitar harmonies. Another contributing factor is the use of handmade, high-tech equipment, such as the Rockman, used by artists such as Journey guitarist Neal Schon, the band ZZ Top, and Ted Nugent. Def Leppard's album Hysteria was created using only Rockman technology. Scholz's production style combines deep, aggressive, comparatively short guitar riffing and nearly ethereal, generally longer note vocal harmonies. A heavier, lower, and darker overall approach came in the next two albums (Third Stage and Walk On). The original track "Higher Power", on the Greatest Hits album, exhibits a near Neue Deutsche Härte and almost techno influence with its sequencer-sounding keyboards, a sound most fully realized on Corporate America'''s title track.
Tom Scholz also credited the late Brad Delp with helping to create Boston's sound with his signature vocal style. Delp, who was strongly influenced by the Beatles, was well known for his extended vocal range, shown on hits such as "More Than a Feeling".
Band members
Current members
Tom Scholz – lead and rhythm guitar, bass, keyboards, drums, percussion, backing vocals (1976–present)
Gary Pihl – rhythm and lead guitar, keyboards, backing vocals (1985–present)
Curly Smith – drums, percussion, harmonica, backing vocals (1994–1997, 2012–present)
Jeff Neal – drums, percussion, backing vocals (2002–2012, 2014–present)
Tommy DeCarlo – lead vocals, keyboards, percussion (2007–present)
Tracy Ferrie – bass guitar, backing vocals (2012–present)
Beth Cohen – keyboards, vocals, rhythm guitar (2002, 2012, 2015–present)
Discography
Studio albumsBoston (1976)Don't Look Back (1978)Third Stage (1986)Walk On (1994)Corporate America (2002)Life, Love & Hope (2013)
Compilation albumsGreatest Hits'' (1997)
References
External links
1976 establishments in Massachusetts
Epic Records artists
Hard rock musical groups from Massachusetts
MCA Records artists
Musical groups established in 1976
Musical groups from Boston | false | [
"Maria Arredondo is the first album by Norwegian singer Maria Arredondo, released in Norway on March 17, 2003, with a second edition released on June 30, 2003. The album was the most successful album by Arredondo either in critics or sales. It has 12 songs with the second edition and 5 singles were released. One of the singles, \"In Love With An Angel\", a duet with Christian Ingebrigtsen, was nominated for the 2003 Norwegian Grammy Awards as 'Song Of The Year'.\n\nHistory \nAfter two years recording the songs, Arredondo signed with Universal Music Norway. The album entered the Norwegian Top 40 and Norwegian Topp 30 Norsk at #2 and spent 23 weeks on the charts. It was recorded in Sweden and Norway, and was produced by several well-known Scandinavian producers such as Jonas von Der Burg, Espen Lind, Bluefish, Jonny Sjo, Harry Sommerdahl and Bjørn Erik Pedersen. Several successful songwriters also contributed, including Christian Ingebrigtsen, Jonas von Der Burg, Silje Nergaard, Espen Lind and Harry Sommerdahl. The first single released was \"Can Let Go\". The second single, \"Just A Little Heartache\" was very successful in the radio charts. \"In Love With An Angel\" was the third single and became the first and only #1 single for Arredondo.\n\nThe album was re-released with a new song, \"Hardly Hurts At All\", which was released as a single. The last single from the album was \"A Thousand Nights\". The album went platinum and sold more than 70,000 copies.\n\nTrack listing\n\nCharts\n\nAlbum\n\nSingles\n\nReferences \n\n2003 debut albums\nMaria Arredondo albums\nUniversal Music Norway albums",
"Black and White is the second studio album and major label debut by British hip hop recording artist Wretch 32. The album was released in the United Kingdom on 21 August 2011 through Ministry of Sound, debuting at number four on the UK Albums Chart with first week sales of nearly 25,000 copies. The album follows his independent debut album, Wretchrospective, which was released three years earlier, in 2008. The album spawned six singles over the course of eighteen months, all of which peaked inside the UK top 50, including three top five singles, and a number one single, \"Don't Go\". The album includes collaborations with Ed Sheeran, Daley, Etta Bond and Example.\n\nSingles\n \"Traktor\" was released as the first single released from the album on 16 January 2011. It peaked at number five on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the third most successful single from the album. The track features vocals from L Marshall and was produced by Yogi.\n \"Unorthodox\" was released as the second single from the album on 17 April 2011. It peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the second most successful single from the album. The track features vocals from Example.\n \"Don't Go\" was released as the third single from the album on 14 August 2011. It peaked at number one on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the album's most successful single. The track features vocals from upcoming musician and songwriter Josh Kumra.\n \"Forgiveness\" was released as the fourth single from the album on 11 December 2011. It peaked at number 39 on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the least successful single from the album. The track features vocals from Etta Bond, and was produced by Labrinth.\n \"Long Way Home\" was released as a single from the album on 14 February 2012, in promotion of the track's featuring artist, Daley. It was ineligible to chart on the UK Singles Chart, and was simply released in the form of a promotional music video.\n \"Hush Little Baby\" was released as the fifth and final single from the album on 27 May 2012. It peaked at number 35 on the UK Singles Chart, due to little promotion. The track features vocals from singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran.\n\nTrack listing \n\nNotes\n \"Forgiveness\" features uncredited vocals from Labrinth.\n\nSample credits\n \"Black and White\" samples \"Different Strokes\" by Syl Johnson\n \"Unorthodox\" samples \"Fools Gold\" by The Stone Roses.\n \"Hush Little Baby\" adapts lyrics from the lullaby \"Hush, Little Baby\".\n\nCharts\n\nRelease history\n\nReferences\n\n2011 albums\nWretch 32 albums\nMinistry of Sound albums\nAlbums produced by Labrinth"
]
|
[
"Boston (band)",
"Departure of Delp; Walk On (1989-1996)",
"What happened in 1989?",
"By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album.",
"what was that album called?",
"Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song \"Walk On\", which eventually became the title track of the new album.",
"was the album successful?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_c61d7973b8b2435f80b9d464781ec3a2_1 | did they produce any other music? | 4 | did Boston produce any other music, besides Walk On? | Boston (band) | Tom Scholz first started writing music in 1969 while he was attending Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he wrote an instrumental, titled "Foreplay". While attending MIT, Scholz joined the band Freehold, where he met guitarist Barry Goudreau and drummer Jim Masdea, who would later become members of Boston. Vocalist Brad Delp was added to the collective in 1970. After graduating with a master's degree, Scholz worked for Polaroid, where he used his salary to build a recording studio in his basement, and to finance demo tapes recorded in professional recording studios. These early demo tapes were recorded with (at various times) Delp on vocals, Goudreau on guitar, Masdea on drums, and Scholz on guitar, bass and keyboards. The demo tapes were sent to record companies, but received consistent rejections. In 1973 Scholz formed the band Mother's Milk with Delp, Goudreau, and Masdea. That group disbanded by 1974, but Scholz subsequently worked with Masdea and Delp to produce six new demos, including "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Rock and Roll Band", "Something About You" (then entitled "Life Isn't Easy"), "Hitch a Ride" (then entitled "San Francisco Day"), and "Don't Be Afraid". Scholz stated they finished four of the six by the end of 1974, and they finished "More Than a Feeling" and "Something About You" in 1975. Scholz played all the instruments on the demos, except for the drums, which were played by Masdea, and used self-designed pedals to create the desired guitar sound. The violin-like sound of the guitars was created in the early 1970s by Scholz. This final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie. Masdea left the band around this time. According to Scholz, the managers insisted that Masdea had to be replaced before the band could get a recording deal. Years later, Delp told journalist Chuck Miller: "[Jim] actually told me he was losing interest in playing drums. I know Tom felt very bad when the whole thing happened. And then, of course, we started getting some interest." Scholz and Delp signed a deal with Epic Records after Masdea's departure, thanks to Ahern and McKenzie. Before the deal could be finalized, the band had to do a live audition for the record company executives. The duo recruited Goudreau on guitar, bassist Fran Sheehan and drummer Sib Hashian to create a performing unit which could replicate Scholz's richly layered recordings on stage. The showcase was a success and the band agreed to put out ten albums over the next six years. In addition to the firing of Masdea, the record label insisted that Scholz re-record the demo tapes in a professional studio. However, Scholz wanted the record to be recorded in his basement studio so that he could work at his own pace. The label agreed, and offered to split the producer's royalty with Scholz. Upon request of Scholz, Masdea played drums on the track "Rock and Roll Band", and the instrumentation was recorded in Scholz's studio. The multitrack tapes were then brought to Los Angeles, where Delp added vocals and the album was mixed by John Boylan. It was then that the band was named "Boston", by suggestion of Boylan and engineer Warren Dewey. In late 1979, Scholz began writing new material, but Boston's former co-manager, Paul Ahern, argued that, according to an agreement Scholz had signed years earlier with Ahern, Ahern owned a percentage of all songs Scholz wrote from that point on. Delayed further by the dispute, Scholz suggested that in the meantime the individual members should work on whatever other projects they might be considering. Goudreau then decided to record a solo album that featured Boston members Delp and Hashian, and which was recorded with the help of Paul Grupp, an engineer and producer familiar with Scholz's studio techniques. The album, released in 1980, was titled Barry Goudreau and featured the minor hit single "Dreams". There was tension when CBS's marketing connected Goudreau's solo album to Boston's signature guitar sound, despite Scholz not having played at all on this album. Scholz objected to the ad copy, but it became irrelevant when Epic dropped promotion on Goudreau's album citing lack of interest. Goudreau left the band in 1981 and formed Orion the Hunter. Delp contributed vocals and co-wrote songs on the debut album, but returned to Boston and recorded vocals on the third Boston album. While Scholz and Delp were recording new material for the third Boston album, CBS filed a $60 million lawsuit against Scholz, alleging breach of contract for failing to deliver a new Boston album on time. During this same period, Scholz founded his high-tech company Scholz Research & Development (SR&D), which made amplifiers and other musical electronic equipment. Its most famous product, the Rockman amplifier, was introduced in 1982. The legal trouble slowed progress toward the completion of the next album, which took six years to record and produce. Joining Scholz in the album's development again were Delp and Jim Masdea. In 1985, guitarist Gary Pihl left Sammy Hagar's touring band to work with Scholz as both a musician and an SR&D executive. As CBS v. Scholz played out in court, CBS opted to withhold royalty payments to Scholz, hoping to force him to settle on unfavorable terms. The lawsuit's first round was eventually decided in Scholz's favor, and Scholz moved the band to MCA Records. By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album. Later that year, Delp told Scholz he wanted to concentrate on other projects, and might not be available for some time. With Delp's departure, Scholz was then the last remaining original member. Before he left, Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song "Walk On", which eventually became the title track of the new album. Delp subsequently joined Barry Goudreau's new band, RTZ. Scholz eventually replaced him with Fran Cosmo, who had been in Goudreau's previous band Orion the Hunter. For the second album in a row, and for the second time in a decade, Scholz's work was delayed by renovations to his studio. In the end, eight years passed between Third Stage and Walk On, which was released in June 1994. Walk On was certified platinum by the RIAA, and reached No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. Unlike Boston's previous albums, it failed to chart in the top 5. It produced one hit single, "I Need Your Love", which was widely played on some rock radio stations. Delp reunited with Boston at the end of 1994. Their first appearance was for two benefit shows at the House of Blues on December 12-13, 1994, in Cambridge. The band also handed a check of $5,000 to Globe Santa and another check of $5,000 to Operation Christmas in Fall River. The group, with Delp now back in the band, toured in the summer of 1995 with both Cosmo and Delp combining vocals. By that time drummer Huffman had been replaced by Curly Smith, who was previously with Jo Jo Gunne. Following the conclusion of the "Livin' For You" tour in 1995, Scholz announced that a greatest hits album would be released. Initially planned for release in August 1996, the album was pushed back to a 1997 release date. CANNOTANSWER | "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Rock and Roll Band", "Something About You" ( | Boston is an American rock band from namesake Boston, Massachusetts, that had its most notable successes during the 1970s and '80s. The band's core members on their most popular recordings included multi-instrumentalist founder and leader Tom Scholz, who played the majority of instruments on the debut album, and lead vocalist Brad Delp, among a number of other musicians who varied from album to album. Boston's best-known songs include "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Foreplay/Long Time", "Rock and Roll Band", "Smokin'", "Don't Look Back", "A Man I'll Never Be", and "Amanda". The band has sold more than 75 million records worldwide, including 31 million albums in the United States, of which 17 million were from its self-titled debut album and seven million were for its second album, Don't Look Back, making the group one of the world's best-selling artists. Altogether, the band has released six studio albums over a career spanning over years. Boston was ranked the 63rd best hard rock artist by VH1.
After Delp's death in 2007, a number of other vocalists have taken the stage; currently the lead singer is Tommy DeCarlo. Other current members of the band include multi-instrumentalist and singer Beth Cohen, guitarist Gary Pihl, bassist Tracy Ferrie, drummer Jeff Neal and percussionist Curly Smith.
History
Early years (1969–1975)
Tom Scholz first started writing music in 1969 while he was attending Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he wrote an instrumental song, "Foreplay". While attending MIT, Scholz joined the band Freehold, where he met guitarist Barry Goudreau and drummer Jim Masdea, who would later become members of Boston. Vocalist Brad Delp was added to the collective in 1970. After graduating with a master's degree, Scholz worked for Polaroid, using his salary to build a recording studio in his basement, and to finance demo tapes recorded in professional recording studios. These early demo tapes were recorded with (at various times) Delp on vocals, Goudreau on guitar, Masdea on drums, and Scholz on guitar, bass and keyboards. The demo tapes were sent to record companies, but received consistent rejections. In 1973 Scholz formed the band Mother's Milk with Delp, Goudreau, and Masdea. That group disbanded by 1974, but Scholz subsequently worked with Masdea and Delp to produce six new demos, including "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Rock and Roll Band", "Something About You" (then entitled "Life Isn't Easy"), "Hitch a Ride" (then entitled "San Francisco Day"), and "Don't Be Afraid". Scholz stated they finished four of the six by the end of 1974, and they finished "More Than a Feeling" and "Something About You" in 1975. Scholz played all the instruments on the demos, except for the drums, which were played by Masdea, and used self-designed pedals to create the desired guitar sounds.
This final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie. Masdea left the band around this time. According to Scholz, the managers insisted that Masdea had to be replaced before the band could get a recording deal. Years later, Delp told journalist Chuck Miller: "[Jim] actually told me he was losing interest in playing drums. I know Tom felt very bad when the whole thing happened. And then, of course, we started getting some interest." Scholz and Delp signed a deal with Epic Records after Masdea's departure, thanks to Ahern and McKenzie. Before the deal could be finalized, the band had to do a live audition for the record company executives. The duo recruited Goudreau on guitar, bassist Fran Sheehan and drummer Sib Hashian to create a performing unit which could replicate Scholz's richly layered recordings on stage. The showcase was a success and the band agreed to put out ten albums over the next six years.
In addition to the firing of Masdea, the record label insisted that Scholz re-record the demo tapes in a professional studio. However, Scholz wanted to record them in his basement studio so that he could work at his own pace. Scholz and producer John Boylan hatched a plan to send the rest of the band to Los Angeles to make the record label happy, while Scholz recorded most of Boston's debut album at home, with Masdea playing drums on the track "Rock and Roll Band" and Scholz playing the other instruments. The multitrack tapes were then brought to Los Angeles, where Delp added vocals and the album was mixed by Boylan. It was then that the band was named "Boston", by suggestion of Boylan and engineer Warren Dewey.
Boston and Don't Look Back (1976–1978)
The debut album, Boston, released on August 25, 1976, ranks as one of the best-selling debut albums in U.S. history with over 17 million copies sold.
During late summer and early fall of 1976, Boston attracted publicity due to the record sales. However, according to Cameron Crowe in Rolling Stone, there was "a conscious effort to de-emphasize Scholz as the total mastermind behind Boston". After opening for Black Sabbath, Blue Öyster Cult, Foghat and others in the fall, the band embarked on a headlining tour in the winter and spring of 1976–1977 to support the album. This helped establish Boston as one of rock's top acts within a short time, being nominated for a Grammy Award as a "Best New Artist". Boston was the first band in history to make their New York City debut at Madison Square Garden.
The album spawned three singles, "More Than a Feeling", "Long Time", and "Peace of Mind", all of which made the national charts. The album peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and remained on the charts for 132 weeks.
Despite having problems with manager Paul Ahern, being caught in the middle of a fight between Ahern and his business partner Charles McKenzie, and doing most of the recording work alone, Scholz completed the second Boston album two years after the debut album's release. The second album, Don't Look Back, was released by Epic in August 1978. At the time this was considered a long gap between albums, but Scholz still considered Don't Look Back to be a rush job and was unhappy with the album's second side in particular. Overall, Don't Look Back sold about half as well as the debut album, eventually selling over 7 million records.
Another tour followed (playing with the likes of AC/DC, Black Sabbath, Van Halen, Sammy Hagar and The Doobie Brothers), and the album's title track became a top-5 hit. Additionally, two other singles, "A Man I'll Never Be" and "Feelin' Satisfied", went top 40 and top 50, respectively. Despite the success, Scholz's relationship with Ahern completely deteriorated. Delayed by technical renovations to his studio, Scholz eventually began the process of working on Boston's third album, determined to complete the album at his own pace and up to his demanding standard.
Solo projects and CBS lawsuit (1979–1985)
In late 1979, Scholz began writing new material, but Boston's former co-manager, Paul Ahern, argued that, according to an agreement Scholz had signed years earlier with Ahern, Ahern owned a percentage of all songs Scholz wrote from that point on. Delayed further by the dispute, Scholz suggested that in the meantime the individual members should work on whatever other projects they might be considering.
Goudreau then decided to record a solo album that featured Boston members Delp and Hashian, and which was recorded with the help of Paul Grupp, an engineer and producer familiar with Scholz's studio techniques. The album, released in 1980, was titled Barry Goudreau and featured the minor hit single "Dreams". There was tension when CBS's marketing connected Goudreau's solo album to Boston's signature guitar sound, despite Scholz not having played at all on this album. Scholz objected to the ad copy, but it became irrelevant when Epic dropped promotion on Goudreau's album citing lack of interest. Goudreau left the band in 1981 and formed Orion the Hunter. Delp contributed vocals and co-wrote songs on the debut album, but returned to Boston and recorded vocals on the third Boston album.
While Scholz and Delp were recording new material for the third Boston album, CBS filed a $60 million lawsuit against Scholz, alleging breach of contract for failing to deliver a new Boston album on time.
During this same period, Scholz founded his high-tech company Scholz Research & Development (SR&D), which made amplifiers and other musical electronic equipment. Its most famous product, the Rockman amplifier, was introduced in 1982.
The legal trouble slowed progress toward the completion of the next album, which took six years to record and produce. Joining Scholz in the album's development again were Delp and Jim Masdea. In 1985, guitarist Gary Pihl left Sammy Hagar's touring band to work with Scholz as both a musician and an SR&D executive. As CBS v. Scholz played out in court, CBS opted to withhold royalty payments to Scholz, hoping to force him to settle on unfavorable terms.
The lawsuit's first round was eventually decided in Scholz's favor, and Scholz moved the band to MCA Records.
The CBS case took seven years to run its course, and in April 1990 Scholz won.
Third Stage (1986–1988)
Despite the adversity, progress continued to be made on the third Boston album. A tape of one of the songs, "Amanda", leaked out of the studio in 1984. The song became the lead single when Third Stage was finally released on September 23, 1986.
The album topped the Billboard 200 while the lead single "Amanda" went to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and the subsequent singles "We're Ready" and "Can'tcha Say" reached No. 9 and No. 20, respectively. "Cool the Engines" also got significant airplay on rock radio. The album sold over 4 million copies.
The group headed off on tour to promote Third Stage in 1987 and 1988. Third Stage was played in sequence in its entirety during the shows, with expanded arrangements of some cuts. Boston opened with "Rock and Roll Band" and brought back the original drummer, Jim Masdea, to play drums for this one song. For the tour, the group was joined by Doug Huffman and David Sikes, both of whom stayed with the band into the mid-1990s.
Departure of Delp; Walk On (1989–1996)
By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album. Later that year, Delp told Scholz he wanted to concentrate on other projects, and might not be available for some time. With Delp's departure, Scholz was then the last remaining original member. Before he left, Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song "Walk On", which eventually became the title track of the new album.
Delp subsequently joined Barry Goudreau's new band, RTZ. Scholz eventually replaced him with vocalist Fran Cosmo, who had been in Goudreau's previous band Orion the Hunter.
For the second album in a row, and for the second time in a decade, Scholz's work was delayed by renovations to his studio. In the end, eight years passed between Third Stage and Walk On, which was released in June 1994. Walk On was certified platinum by the RIAA, and reached No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. Unlike Boston's previous albums, it failed to chart in the top 5. It produced one hit single, "I Need Your Love", which was widely played on some rock radio stations. Delp reunited with Boston at the end of 1994. Their first appearance was for two benefit shows at the House of Blues on December 12–13, 1994, in Cambridge. The band also handed a check of $5,000 to Globe Santa and another check of $5,000 to Operation Christmas in Fall River.
The group, with Delp now back in the band, toured in the summer of 1995 with both Cosmo and Delp combining vocals. By that time drummer Huffman had been replaced by Curly Smith, who was previously with Jo Jo Gunne. Following the conclusion of the "Livin' For You" tour in 1995, Scholz announced that a greatest hits album would be released. Initially planned for release in August 1996, the album was pushed back to a 1997 release date.
Greatest Hits and Corporate America (1997–2006)
Boston released a compilation album in 1997, titled simply Boston: Greatest Hits. The album featured all of the band's hit singles except "We're Ready", "Can'tcha Say (You Believe In Me)/Still In Love", and "I Need Your Love" along with three new songs, "Higher Power", "Tell Me", and an instrumental version of the "Star Spangled Banner". Smith and Sikes left the band in late 1997 and recorded an album together.
Scholz headed back to the studio in 1998 to begin work on a fifth album, which eventually turned out to be Corporate America. The title track of "Corporate America" was uploaded by Tom Scholz to MP3.com under the pseudonym of "Downer's Revenge" in early 2002 in order to test the album's appeal to a younger demographic. The song reached No. 2 on the progressive rock charts on the website for two weeks.
November 2002 marked the release of Corporate America on the independent label Artemis Records. This album featured the largest Boston lineup ever; returning members included Delp and Cosmo on rhythm guitar and lead vocals, Scholz on lead guitar and keyboards, and Gary Pihl on guitar, along with new members Anthony Cosmo on rhythm guitar, Jeff Neal on drums, and Kimberley Dahme on bass, acoustic guitar, and vocals. Dahme, Delp, and Cosmo all contributed lead vocals to the album. The group embarked on a national tour in support of the album in 2003 and 2004. In 2006, the first two Boston albums appeared in remastered form.
Death of Brad Delp (2007)
On March 9, 2007, lead singer Delp died by suicide at his home in Atkinson, New Hampshire. Police found him dead in his master bathroom, along with several notes for whomever would find him. In the bathroom where he died, two charcoal grills were found on the bathroom fixtures, and the door was sealed with duct tape and a towel underneath. Police called the death "untimely" and said no foul play was indicated. Delp was alone at the time of his death, according to the police report. He was found by his fiancée, who saw a dryer hose attached to his car. According to the New Hampshire medical examiner, his death was the result of suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning. Delp's last concert with Boston was performed at Boston Symphony Hall on November 13, 2006, at a concert honoring Doug Flutie.
A concert in honor of Delp named "Come Together: A Tribute to Brad Delp" occurred on August 19, 2007, at the Bank of America Pavilion in Boston. The concert included Ernie and the Automatics, Beatlejuice, Farrenheit, Extreme, Godsmack, RTZ, Orion the Hunter, and finally the current version of Boston.
All of the living members of Boston were invited to perform in the concert. The singers for Boston included Michael Sweet of Stryper, former band member Curly Smith, band member Kimberley Dahme, and a Boston fan from North Carolina named Tommy DeCarlo, who was chosen to sing based on his performances of Boston cover songs on his MySpace page.
New line-up and intermittent performances (2008–2012)
The ongoing conflicts among the surviving band members spilled over to the 2008 Presidential campaign. Barry Goudreau appeared with Mike Huckabee and played with him at some rallies in New Hampshire. Huckabee used "More Than a Feeling" as a campaign theme song. Scholz, a self-described "Obama supporter", sent an open letter to Huckabee in February 2008 stating that the band had never endorsed any candidate, and that he had never authorized the use of "More Than a Feeling" as Huckabee's theme song. Scholz made a point of saying that he, and not Goudreau or Sheehan, actually played all the guitars on "More Than a Feeling" as well as most of Boston's songs. Huckabee eventually stopped using the song for his campaign.
In the spring of 2008, Scholz and Sweet introduced a new Boston lineup, which subsequently did a North American summer tour, playing 53 dates in 12 weeks (on a double bill with Styx). Scholz was the only founding member of Boston to play on the tour, although longtime member Gary Pihl was also part of the band, and Dahme and Neal returned on bass and drums, respectively. DeCarlo and Sweet shared lead vocals.
In January 2009, Greatest Hits was re-released as a remastered disc.
Michael Sweet left the band in August 2011 in order to focus on Stryper. In 2012, guitarist and vocalist David Victor joined the band, beginning in the studio, where he contributed vocals to several tracks on the album in progress.
Scholz and Pihl led the band on a 2012 North American tour, beginning on June 28, 2012, at the Seminole Hard Rock Live arena in Hollywood, Florida and ending on September 8 at the U.S. Cellular Grandstand in Hutchinson, Kansas. Victor and DeCarlo shared lead vocals, with drummer Curly Smith returning for the first time in over a decade, and former Stryper member Tracy Ferrie on bass. Neither Dahme nor Neal played on the tour.
Life, Love & Hope (2013–2017)
Boston's sixth album, Life, Love & Hope, was released on December 3, 2013, by Frontiers Records; it includes lead vocals from Brad Delp, Tommy DeCarlo, Kimberley Dahme, David Victor, and Tom Scholz. Work on the album started in 2002. On December 11, 2013, Boston re-recorded a Christmas song, "God Rest Ye Metal Gentleman 2013" (previously released in 2002 as "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"). In 2014 Boston embarked on the "Heaven on Earth Tour" spanning the United States and Japan with a lineup including Scholz, Pihl, DeCarlo, Victor and Ferrie. Dahme returned, this time performing rhythm guitar and vocals, and drumming duties were split between Neal and Smith, with Neal handling the first leg of the tour. Victor departed the lineup partway through the tour for unspecified reasons. In his stead, Siobhan Magnus joined the tour as a guest vocalist in July, performing lead vocals on 'Walk On'.
In 2015, Boston launched another tour with a lineup consisting of Scholz, Pihl, DeCarlo, Ferrie and new member Beth Cohen, who performed keyboards, rhythm guitar and vocals. Cohen had previously recorded with the group on both Corporate America and Life, Love & Hope as a vocalist and flautist. Initially, the lineup was to include former Spock's Beard drummer and vocalist Nick D'Virgilio for its first month of shows, with Neal then returning, but D'Virgilio proved "not the right fit" and Smith rejoined in his place. This seven-person lineup proved Boston's most stable lineup in some time, touring as well in the summers of 2016 and 2017. The 2016 tour marked the group's 40th anniversary and included shows in Boston's Wang Theatre, their first full performances in their namesake town since 1994.
On March 22, 2017, former drummer Sib Hashian died after collapsing on a Legends of Rock cruise ship.
Upcoming seventh album (2017–present)
In April 2017, Scholz reported that he has been writing new material for the seventh Boston album. He told Sun Herald, "I find that I'm in a position that I really need to write things that we can play at the shows. We play basically everything that people expect to hear that we can fit into two hours. We also do a lot of things that aren't on any of the records by adding things and segues and instrumental parts, so I always have to come up with new stuff. It's quite a challenge. I have to write new things for the tour every year, which is what I wanted to do in the first place. But I got sidetracked in the studio, recording. Now, I'm actually a performing musician, and I have to tell you, it's much more fun." When asked the same month about a potential release date of the album, Scholz said, "Who knows? I'm only 70. I figure I've got 30 years."
Spaceship
One of the themes of Boston's album covers is the presence of a guitar-shaped spaceship, ostensibly a generation or colony ship carrying the city of Boston inside a clear dome, with the city's name emblazoned across the front. The original spaceship was designed in 1976 by Paula Scher and illustrated by Roger Huyssen with lettering by Gerard Huerta for Epic Records.
Appearances
Boston – Two long lines of guitar shaped starships flee a planet that is breaking apart. The ships all have blue flames coming out of the bottom.
Don't Look Back – The Boston ship is flying low or perhaps hovering over a grassy, crystalline planet. The ship has searchlights on.
Third Stage – The Boston ship is headed towards a large flat spaceship resembling a bank of pipe organ pipes over a blue planet.
Walk On – The Boston ship is shown crashing through a rock outcropping.
Greatest Hits – The Boston ship is flying low over a planet with turquoise rocks and a turquoise tower in the distance.
Corporate America – The Boston ship is flying towards Earth and the United States.
Life, Love & Hope – The Boston ship is flying in space, near a nebula.
Their spaceship also appeared on their tours in the late 1980s, early 1990s, and early 2000s in the form of a giant lighting rig and accompanied on stage by their giant pipe-organ set piece, which is known to Boston insiders as Bertha because of its sheer size.
Innovation and style
Boston's genre is considered by most to be hard rock and arena rock, while combining elements of progressive rock into its music.
Boston founder, guitarist, and primary songwriter Tom Scholz's blend of musical styles, ranging from classical to 1960s English pop, has resulted in a unique sound, most consistently realized on the first two albums (Boston and Don't Look Back). This sound is characterized by multiple lead and blended harmonies guitar work (usually harmonized in thirds), often alternating between and then mixing electric and acoustic guitars. The band's harmonic style has been characterized as being "violin-like" without using synthesizers. Scholz is well-regarded for the development of complex, multi-tracked guitar harmonies. Another contributing factor is the use of handmade, high-tech equipment, such as the Rockman, used by artists such as Journey guitarist Neal Schon, the band ZZ Top, and Ted Nugent. Def Leppard's album Hysteria was created using only Rockman technology. Scholz's production style combines deep, aggressive, comparatively short guitar riffing and nearly ethereal, generally longer note vocal harmonies. A heavier, lower, and darker overall approach came in the next two albums (Third Stage and Walk On). The original track "Higher Power", on the Greatest Hits album, exhibits a near Neue Deutsche Härte and almost techno influence with its sequencer-sounding keyboards, a sound most fully realized on Corporate America'''s title track.
Tom Scholz also credited the late Brad Delp with helping to create Boston's sound with his signature vocal style. Delp, who was strongly influenced by the Beatles, was well known for his extended vocal range, shown on hits such as "More Than a Feeling".
Band members
Current members
Tom Scholz – lead and rhythm guitar, bass, keyboards, drums, percussion, backing vocals (1976–present)
Gary Pihl – rhythm and lead guitar, keyboards, backing vocals (1985–present)
Curly Smith – drums, percussion, harmonica, backing vocals (1994–1997, 2012–present)
Jeff Neal – drums, percussion, backing vocals (2002–2012, 2014–present)
Tommy DeCarlo – lead vocals, keyboards, percussion (2007–present)
Tracy Ferrie – bass guitar, backing vocals (2012–present)
Beth Cohen – keyboards, vocals, rhythm guitar (2002, 2012, 2015–present)
Discography
Studio albumsBoston (1976)Don't Look Back (1978)Third Stage (1986)Walk On (1994)Corporate America (2002)Life, Love & Hope (2013)
Compilation albumsGreatest Hits'' (1997)
References
External links
1976 establishments in Massachusetts
Epic Records artists
Hard rock musical groups from Massachusetts
MCA Records artists
Musical groups established in 1976
Musical groups from Boston | true | [
"The discography of Pam Tillis, an American country music singer, consists of 13 studio albums and 45 singles. Her first release, Above and Beyond the Doll of Cutey in 1983, did not produce any major hits. Between 1990 and 2001, she recorded for Arista Nashville, achieving two gold albums and three platinum albums. 33 of her singles for Arista, plus a cut for the soundtrack to Happy, Texas, all made the Hot Country Songs in that timespan. Her only number one was \"Mi Vida Loca (My Crazy Life)\", although twelve other songs reached the top 10 on the same chart.\n\nStudio albums\n\n1980s–1990s\n\n2000s–2020s\n\nCompilation albums\n\nSingles\n\n1980s–1990s\n\n2000s–2020s\n\nAs a featured artist\n\nOther album appearances\n\nMusic videos\n\nGuest appearances\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\n\nCountry music discographies\n \n \nDiscographies of American artists",
"Swamp Baby was a Canadian rock band, active in the 1990s. They are most noted for collaborating with Michael Turner and Peter J. Moore on the music for the film Hard Core Logo; their song \"Who the Hell Do You Think You Are?\" won the Genie Award for Best Original Song at the 17th Genie Awards in 1996.\n\nThe band members were vocalist Steve Cowal, guitarists Randall Bergs and Ërno Vlasics, bassist Rick Sentence and drummer Jim Mattachione. They released two albums, Swamp Baby (1990) and Rock Heavy Ripple (1995), on the independent label First Stone Productions; Moore was the producer of both albums. Although the band's own music followed a classic rock style that typically saw them compared to Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show, The Black Crowes and The Doors, several of the band's members had prior experience in punk rock bands, leading Moore to ask them to help compose and produce the music for the film. They played all of the film's songs, although lead actor Hugh Dillon performed lead vocals in lieu of Cowal.\n\nThe band did not record or release any further material after the Hard Core Logo soundtrack.\n\nReferences\n\nCanadian rock music groups\nBest Original Song Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners"
]
|
[
"Boston (band)",
"Departure of Delp; Walk On (1989-1996)",
"What happened in 1989?",
"By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album.",
"what was that album called?",
"Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song \"Walk On\", which eventually became the title track of the new album.",
"was the album successful?",
"I don't know.",
"did they produce any other music?",
"\"More Than a Feeling\", \"Peace of Mind\", \"Rock and Roll Band\", \"Something About You\" ("
]
| C_c61d7973b8b2435f80b9d464781ec3a2_1 | were any of these on the charts? | 5 | were the Boston songs "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Rock and Roll Band", "Something About You" on the charts? | Boston (band) | Tom Scholz first started writing music in 1969 while he was attending Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he wrote an instrumental, titled "Foreplay". While attending MIT, Scholz joined the band Freehold, where he met guitarist Barry Goudreau and drummer Jim Masdea, who would later become members of Boston. Vocalist Brad Delp was added to the collective in 1970. After graduating with a master's degree, Scholz worked for Polaroid, where he used his salary to build a recording studio in his basement, and to finance demo tapes recorded in professional recording studios. These early demo tapes were recorded with (at various times) Delp on vocals, Goudreau on guitar, Masdea on drums, and Scholz on guitar, bass and keyboards. The demo tapes were sent to record companies, but received consistent rejections. In 1973 Scholz formed the band Mother's Milk with Delp, Goudreau, and Masdea. That group disbanded by 1974, but Scholz subsequently worked with Masdea and Delp to produce six new demos, including "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Rock and Roll Band", "Something About You" (then entitled "Life Isn't Easy"), "Hitch a Ride" (then entitled "San Francisco Day"), and "Don't Be Afraid". Scholz stated they finished four of the six by the end of 1974, and they finished "More Than a Feeling" and "Something About You" in 1975. Scholz played all the instruments on the demos, except for the drums, which were played by Masdea, and used self-designed pedals to create the desired guitar sound. The violin-like sound of the guitars was created in the early 1970s by Scholz. This final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie. Masdea left the band around this time. According to Scholz, the managers insisted that Masdea had to be replaced before the band could get a recording deal. Years later, Delp told journalist Chuck Miller: "[Jim] actually told me he was losing interest in playing drums. I know Tom felt very bad when the whole thing happened. And then, of course, we started getting some interest." Scholz and Delp signed a deal with Epic Records after Masdea's departure, thanks to Ahern and McKenzie. Before the deal could be finalized, the band had to do a live audition for the record company executives. The duo recruited Goudreau on guitar, bassist Fran Sheehan and drummer Sib Hashian to create a performing unit which could replicate Scholz's richly layered recordings on stage. The showcase was a success and the band agreed to put out ten albums over the next six years. In addition to the firing of Masdea, the record label insisted that Scholz re-record the demo tapes in a professional studio. However, Scholz wanted the record to be recorded in his basement studio so that he could work at his own pace. The label agreed, and offered to split the producer's royalty with Scholz. Upon request of Scholz, Masdea played drums on the track "Rock and Roll Band", and the instrumentation was recorded in Scholz's studio. The multitrack tapes were then brought to Los Angeles, where Delp added vocals and the album was mixed by John Boylan. It was then that the band was named "Boston", by suggestion of Boylan and engineer Warren Dewey. In late 1979, Scholz began writing new material, but Boston's former co-manager, Paul Ahern, argued that, according to an agreement Scholz had signed years earlier with Ahern, Ahern owned a percentage of all songs Scholz wrote from that point on. Delayed further by the dispute, Scholz suggested that in the meantime the individual members should work on whatever other projects they might be considering. Goudreau then decided to record a solo album that featured Boston members Delp and Hashian, and which was recorded with the help of Paul Grupp, an engineer and producer familiar with Scholz's studio techniques. The album, released in 1980, was titled Barry Goudreau and featured the minor hit single "Dreams". There was tension when CBS's marketing connected Goudreau's solo album to Boston's signature guitar sound, despite Scholz not having played at all on this album. Scholz objected to the ad copy, but it became irrelevant when Epic dropped promotion on Goudreau's album citing lack of interest. Goudreau left the band in 1981 and formed Orion the Hunter. Delp contributed vocals and co-wrote songs on the debut album, but returned to Boston and recorded vocals on the third Boston album. While Scholz and Delp were recording new material for the third Boston album, CBS filed a $60 million lawsuit against Scholz, alleging breach of contract for failing to deliver a new Boston album on time. During this same period, Scholz founded his high-tech company Scholz Research & Development (SR&D), which made amplifiers and other musical electronic equipment. Its most famous product, the Rockman amplifier, was introduced in 1982. The legal trouble slowed progress toward the completion of the next album, which took six years to record and produce. Joining Scholz in the album's development again were Delp and Jim Masdea. In 1985, guitarist Gary Pihl left Sammy Hagar's touring band to work with Scholz as both a musician and an SR&D executive. As CBS v. Scholz played out in court, CBS opted to withhold royalty payments to Scholz, hoping to force him to settle on unfavorable terms. The lawsuit's first round was eventually decided in Scholz's favor, and Scholz moved the band to MCA Records. By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album. Later that year, Delp told Scholz he wanted to concentrate on other projects, and might not be available for some time. With Delp's departure, Scholz was then the last remaining original member. Before he left, Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song "Walk On", which eventually became the title track of the new album. Delp subsequently joined Barry Goudreau's new band, RTZ. Scholz eventually replaced him with Fran Cosmo, who had been in Goudreau's previous band Orion the Hunter. For the second album in a row, and for the second time in a decade, Scholz's work was delayed by renovations to his studio. In the end, eight years passed between Third Stage and Walk On, which was released in June 1994. Walk On was certified platinum by the RIAA, and reached No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. Unlike Boston's previous albums, it failed to chart in the top 5. It produced one hit single, "I Need Your Love", which was widely played on some rock radio stations. Delp reunited with Boston at the end of 1994. Their first appearance was for two benefit shows at the House of Blues on December 12-13, 1994, in Cambridge. The band also handed a check of $5,000 to Globe Santa and another check of $5,000 to Operation Christmas in Fall River. The group, with Delp now back in the band, toured in the summer of 1995 with both Cosmo and Delp combining vocals. By that time drummer Huffman had been replaced by Curly Smith, who was previously with Jo Jo Gunne. Following the conclusion of the "Livin' For You" tour in 1995, Scholz announced that a greatest hits album would be released. Initially planned for release in August 1996, the album was pushed back to a 1997 release date. CANNOTANSWER | final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie. | Boston is an American rock band from namesake Boston, Massachusetts, that had its most notable successes during the 1970s and '80s. The band's core members on their most popular recordings included multi-instrumentalist founder and leader Tom Scholz, who played the majority of instruments on the debut album, and lead vocalist Brad Delp, among a number of other musicians who varied from album to album. Boston's best-known songs include "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Foreplay/Long Time", "Rock and Roll Band", "Smokin'", "Don't Look Back", "A Man I'll Never Be", and "Amanda". The band has sold more than 75 million records worldwide, including 31 million albums in the United States, of which 17 million were from its self-titled debut album and seven million were for its second album, Don't Look Back, making the group one of the world's best-selling artists. Altogether, the band has released six studio albums over a career spanning over years. Boston was ranked the 63rd best hard rock artist by VH1.
After Delp's death in 2007, a number of other vocalists have taken the stage; currently the lead singer is Tommy DeCarlo. Other current members of the band include multi-instrumentalist and singer Beth Cohen, guitarist Gary Pihl, bassist Tracy Ferrie, drummer Jeff Neal and percussionist Curly Smith.
History
Early years (1969–1975)
Tom Scholz first started writing music in 1969 while he was attending Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he wrote an instrumental song, "Foreplay". While attending MIT, Scholz joined the band Freehold, where he met guitarist Barry Goudreau and drummer Jim Masdea, who would later become members of Boston. Vocalist Brad Delp was added to the collective in 1970. After graduating with a master's degree, Scholz worked for Polaroid, using his salary to build a recording studio in his basement, and to finance demo tapes recorded in professional recording studios. These early demo tapes were recorded with (at various times) Delp on vocals, Goudreau on guitar, Masdea on drums, and Scholz on guitar, bass and keyboards. The demo tapes were sent to record companies, but received consistent rejections. In 1973 Scholz formed the band Mother's Milk with Delp, Goudreau, and Masdea. That group disbanded by 1974, but Scholz subsequently worked with Masdea and Delp to produce six new demos, including "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Rock and Roll Band", "Something About You" (then entitled "Life Isn't Easy"), "Hitch a Ride" (then entitled "San Francisco Day"), and "Don't Be Afraid". Scholz stated they finished four of the six by the end of 1974, and they finished "More Than a Feeling" and "Something About You" in 1975. Scholz played all the instruments on the demos, except for the drums, which were played by Masdea, and used self-designed pedals to create the desired guitar sounds.
This final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie. Masdea left the band around this time. According to Scholz, the managers insisted that Masdea had to be replaced before the band could get a recording deal. Years later, Delp told journalist Chuck Miller: "[Jim] actually told me he was losing interest in playing drums. I know Tom felt very bad when the whole thing happened. And then, of course, we started getting some interest." Scholz and Delp signed a deal with Epic Records after Masdea's departure, thanks to Ahern and McKenzie. Before the deal could be finalized, the band had to do a live audition for the record company executives. The duo recruited Goudreau on guitar, bassist Fran Sheehan and drummer Sib Hashian to create a performing unit which could replicate Scholz's richly layered recordings on stage. The showcase was a success and the band agreed to put out ten albums over the next six years.
In addition to the firing of Masdea, the record label insisted that Scholz re-record the demo tapes in a professional studio. However, Scholz wanted to record them in his basement studio so that he could work at his own pace. Scholz and producer John Boylan hatched a plan to send the rest of the band to Los Angeles to make the record label happy, while Scholz recorded most of Boston's debut album at home, with Masdea playing drums on the track "Rock and Roll Band" and Scholz playing the other instruments. The multitrack tapes were then brought to Los Angeles, where Delp added vocals and the album was mixed by Boylan. It was then that the band was named "Boston", by suggestion of Boylan and engineer Warren Dewey.
Boston and Don't Look Back (1976–1978)
The debut album, Boston, released on August 25, 1976, ranks as one of the best-selling debut albums in U.S. history with over 17 million copies sold.
During late summer and early fall of 1976, Boston attracted publicity due to the record sales. However, according to Cameron Crowe in Rolling Stone, there was "a conscious effort to de-emphasize Scholz as the total mastermind behind Boston". After opening for Black Sabbath, Blue Öyster Cult, Foghat and others in the fall, the band embarked on a headlining tour in the winter and spring of 1976–1977 to support the album. This helped establish Boston as one of rock's top acts within a short time, being nominated for a Grammy Award as a "Best New Artist". Boston was the first band in history to make their New York City debut at Madison Square Garden.
The album spawned three singles, "More Than a Feeling", "Long Time", and "Peace of Mind", all of which made the national charts. The album peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and remained on the charts for 132 weeks.
Despite having problems with manager Paul Ahern, being caught in the middle of a fight between Ahern and his business partner Charles McKenzie, and doing most of the recording work alone, Scholz completed the second Boston album two years after the debut album's release. The second album, Don't Look Back, was released by Epic in August 1978. At the time this was considered a long gap between albums, but Scholz still considered Don't Look Back to be a rush job and was unhappy with the album's second side in particular. Overall, Don't Look Back sold about half as well as the debut album, eventually selling over 7 million records.
Another tour followed (playing with the likes of AC/DC, Black Sabbath, Van Halen, Sammy Hagar and The Doobie Brothers), and the album's title track became a top-5 hit. Additionally, two other singles, "A Man I'll Never Be" and "Feelin' Satisfied", went top 40 and top 50, respectively. Despite the success, Scholz's relationship with Ahern completely deteriorated. Delayed by technical renovations to his studio, Scholz eventually began the process of working on Boston's third album, determined to complete the album at his own pace and up to his demanding standard.
Solo projects and CBS lawsuit (1979–1985)
In late 1979, Scholz began writing new material, but Boston's former co-manager, Paul Ahern, argued that, according to an agreement Scholz had signed years earlier with Ahern, Ahern owned a percentage of all songs Scholz wrote from that point on. Delayed further by the dispute, Scholz suggested that in the meantime the individual members should work on whatever other projects they might be considering.
Goudreau then decided to record a solo album that featured Boston members Delp and Hashian, and which was recorded with the help of Paul Grupp, an engineer and producer familiar with Scholz's studio techniques. The album, released in 1980, was titled Barry Goudreau and featured the minor hit single "Dreams". There was tension when CBS's marketing connected Goudreau's solo album to Boston's signature guitar sound, despite Scholz not having played at all on this album. Scholz objected to the ad copy, but it became irrelevant when Epic dropped promotion on Goudreau's album citing lack of interest. Goudreau left the band in 1981 and formed Orion the Hunter. Delp contributed vocals and co-wrote songs on the debut album, but returned to Boston and recorded vocals on the third Boston album.
While Scholz and Delp were recording new material for the third Boston album, CBS filed a $60 million lawsuit against Scholz, alleging breach of contract for failing to deliver a new Boston album on time.
During this same period, Scholz founded his high-tech company Scholz Research & Development (SR&D), which made amplifiers and other musical electronic equipment. Its most famous product, the Rockman amplifier, was introduced in 1982.
The legal trouble slowed progress toward the completion of the next album, which took six years to record and produce. Joining Scholz in the album's development again were Delp and Jim Masdea. In 1985, guitarist Gary Pihl left Sammy Hagar's touring band to work with Scholz as both a musician and an SR&D executive. As CBS v. Scholz played out in court, CBS opted to withhold royalty payments to Scholz, hoping to force him to settle on unfavorable terms.
The lawsuit's first round was eventually decided in Scholz's favor, and Scholz moved the band to MCA Records.
The CBS case took seven years to run its course, and in April 1990 Scholz won.
Third Stage (1986–1988)
Despite the adversity, progress continued to be made on the third Boston album. A tape of one of the songs, "Amanda", leaked out of the studio in 1984. The song became the lead single when Third Stage was finally released on September 23, 1986.
The album topped the Billboard 200 while the lead single "Amanda" went to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and the subsequent singles "We're Ready" and "Can'tcha Say" reached No. 9 and No. 20, respectively. "Cool the Engines" also got significant airplay on rock radio. The album sold over 4 million copies.
The group headed off on tour to promote Third Stage in 1987 and 1988. Third Stage was played in sequence in its entirety during the shows, with expanded arrangements of some cuts. Boston opened with "Rock and Roll Band" and brought back the original drummer, Jim Masdea, to play drums for this one song. For the tour, the group was joined by Doug Huffman and David Sikes, both of whom stayed with the band into the mid-1990s.
Departure of Delp; Walk On (1989–1996)
By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album. Later that year, Delp told Scholz he wanted to concentrate on other projects, and might not be available for some time. With Delp's departure, Scholz was then the last remaining original member. Before he left, Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song "Walk On", which eventually became the title track of the new album.
Delp subsequently joined Barry Goudreau's new band, RTZ. Scholz eventually replaced him with vocalist Fran Cosmo, who had been in Goudreau's previous band Orion the Hunter.
For the second album in a row, and for the second time in a decade, Scholz's work was delayed by renovations to his studio. In the end, eight years passed between Third Stage and Walk On, which was released in June 1994. Walk On was certified platinum by the RIAA, and reached No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. Unlike Boston's previous albums, it failed to chart in the top 5. It produced one hit single, "I Need Your Love", which was widely played on some rock radio stations. Delp reunited with Boston at the end of 1994. Their first appearance was for two benefit shows at the House of Blues on December 12–13, 1994, in Cambridge. The band also handed a check of $5,000 to Globe Santa and another check of $5,000 to Operation Christmas in Fall River.
The group, with Delp now back in the band, toured in the summer of 1995 with both Cosmo and Delp combining vocals. By that time drummer Huffman had been replaced by Curly Smith, who was previously with Jo Jo Gunne. Following the conclusion of the "Livin' For You" tour in 1995, Scholz announced that a greatest hits album would be released. Initially planned for release in August 1996, the album was pushed back to a 1997 release date.
Greatest Hits and Corporate America (1997–2006)
Boston released a compilation album in 1997, titled simply Boston: Greatest Hits. The album featured all of the band's hit singles except "We're Ready", "Can'tcha Say (You Believe In Me)/Still In Love", and "I Need Your Love" along with three new songs, "Higher Power", "Tell Me", and an instrumental version of the "Star Spangled Banner". Smith and Sikes left the band in late 1997 and recorded an album together.
Scholz headed back to the studio in 1998 to begin work on a fifth album, which eventually turned out to be Corporate America. The title track of "Corporate America" was uploaded by Tom Scholz to MP3.com under the pseudonym of "Downer's Revenge" in early 2002 in order to test the album's appeal to a younger demographic. The song reached No. 2 on the progressive rock charts on the website for two weeks.
November 2002 marked the release of Corporate America on the independent label Artemis Records. This album featured the largest Boston lineup ever; returning members included Delp and Cosmo on rhythm guitar and lead vocals, Scholz on lead guitar and keyboards, and Gary Pihl on guitar, along with new members Anthony Cosmo on rhythm guitar, Jeff Neal on drums, and Kimberley Dahme on bass, acoustic guitar, and vocals. Dahme, Delp, and Cosmo all contributed lead vocals to the album. The group embarked on a national tour in support of the album in 2003 and 2004. In 2006, the first two Boston albums appeared in remastered form.
Death of Brad Delp (2007)
On March 9, 2007, lead singer Delp died by suicide at his home in Atkinson, New Hampshire. Police found him dead in his master bathroom, along with several notes for whomever would find him. In the bathroom where he died, two charcoal grills were found on the bathroom fixtures, and the door was sealed with duct tape and a towel underneath. Police called the death "untimely" and said no foul play was indicated. Delp was alone at the time of his death, according to the police report. He was found by his fiancée, who saw a dryer hose attached to his car. According to the New Hampshire medical examiner, his death was the result of suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning. Delp's last concert with Boston was performed at Boston Symphony Hall on November 13, 2006, at a concert honoring Doug Flutie.
A concert in honor of Delp named "Come Together: A Tribute to Brad Delp" occurred on August 19, 2007, at the Bank of America Pavilion in Boston. The concert included Ernie and the Automatics, Beatlejuice, Farrenheit, Extreme, Godsmack, RTZ, Orion the Hunter, and finally the current version of Boston.
All of the living members of Boston were invited to perform in the concert. The singers for Boston included Michael Sweet of Stryper, former band member Curly Smith, band member Kimberley Dahme, and a Boston fan from North Carolina named Tommy DeCarlo, who was chosen to sing based on his performances of Boston cover songs on his MySpace page.
New line-up and intermittent performances (2008–2012)
The ongoing conflicts among the surviving band members spilled over to the 2008 Presidential campaign. Barry Goudreau appeared with Mike Huckabee and played with him at some rallies in New Hampshire. Huckabee used "More Than a Feeling" as a campaign theme song. Scholz, a self-described "Obama supporter", sent an open letter to Huckabee in February 2008 stating that the band had never endorsed any candidate, and that he had never authorized the use of "More Than a Feeling" as Huckabee's theme song. Scholz made a point of saying that he, and not Goudreau or Sheehan, actually played all the guitars on "More Than a Feeling" as well as most of Boston's songs. Huckabee eventually stopped using the song for his campaign.
In the spring of 2008, Scholz and Sweet introduced a new Boston lineup, which subsequently did a North American summer tour, playing 53 dates in 12 weeks (on a double bill with Styx). Scholz was the only founding member of Boston to play on the tour, although longtime member Gary Pihl was also part of the band, and Dahme and Neal returned on bass and drums, respectively. DeCarlo and Sweet shared lead vocals.
In January 2009, Greatest Hits was re-released as a remastered disc.
Michael Sweet left the band in August 2011 in order to focus on Stryper. In 2012, guitarist and vocalist David Victor joined the band, beginning in the studio, where he contributed vocals to several tracks on the album in progress.
Scholz and Pihl led the band on a 2012 North American tour, beginning on June 28, 2012, at the Seminole Hard Rock Live arena in Hollywood, Florida and ending on September 8 at the U.S. Cellular Grandstand in Hutchinson, Kansas. Victor and DeCarlo shared lead vocals, with drummer Curly Smith returning for the first time in over a decade, and former Stryper member Tracy Ferrie on bass. Neither Dahme nor Neal played on the tour.
Life, Love & Hope (2013–2017)
Boston's sixth album, Life, Love & Hope, was released on December 3, 2013, by Frontiers Records; it includes lead vocals from Brad Delp, Tommy DeCarlo, Kimberley Dahme, David Victor, and Tom Scholz. Work on the album started in 2002. On December 11, 2013, Boston re-recorded a Christmas song, "God Rest Ye Metal Gentleman 2013" (previously released in 2002 as "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"). In 2014 Boston embarked on the "Heaven on Earth Tour" spanning the United States and Japan with a lineup including Scholz, Pihl, DeCarlo, Victor and Ferrie. Dahme returned, this time performing rhythm guitar and vocals, and drumming duties were split between Neal and Smith, with Neal handling the first leg of the tour. Victor departed the lineup partway through the tour for unspecified reasons. In his stead, Siobhan Magnus joined the tour as a guest vocalist in July, performing lead vocals on 'Walk On'.
In 2015, Boston launched another tour with a lineup consisting of Scholz, Pihl, DeCarlo, Ferrie and new member Beth Cohen, who performed keyboards, rhythm guitar and vocals. Cohen had previously recorded with the group on both Corporate America and Life, Love & Hope as a vocalist and flautist. Initially, the lineup was to include former Spock's Beard drummer and vocalist Nick D'Virgilio for its first month of shows, with Neal then returning, but D'Virgilio proved "not the right fit" and Smith rejoined in his place. This seven-person lineup proved Boston's most stable lineup in some time, touring as well in the summers of 2016 and 2017. The 2016 tour marked the group's 40th anniversary and included shows in Boston's Wang Theatre, their first full performances in their namesake town since 1994.
On March 22, 2017, former drummer Sib Hashian died after collapsing on a Legends of Rock cruise ship.
Upcoming seventh album (2017–present)
In April 2017, Scholz reported that he has been writing new material for the seventh Boston album. He told Sun Herald, "I find that I'm in a position that I really need to write things that we can play at the shows. We play basically everything that people expect to hear that we can fit into two hours. We also do a lot of things that aren't on any of the records by adding things and segues and instrumental parts, so I always have to come up with new stuff. It's quite a challenge. I have to write new things for the tour every year, which is what I wanted to do in the first place. But I got sidetracked in the studio, recording. Now, I'm actually a performing musician, and I have to tell you, it's much more fun." When asked the same month about a potential release date of the album, Scholz said, "Who knows? I'm only 70. I figure I've got 30 years."
Spaceship
One of the themes of Boston's album covers is the presence of a guitar-shaped spaceship, ostensibly a generation or colony ship carrying the city of Boston inside a clear dome, with the city's name emblazoned across the front. The original spaceship was designed in 1976 by Paula Scher and illustrated by Roger Huyssen with lettering by Gerard Huerta for Epic Records.
Appearances
Boston – Two long lines of guitar shaped starships flee a planet that is breaking apart. The ships all have blue flames coming out of the bottom.
Don't Look Back – The Boston ship is flying low or perhaps hovering over a grassy, crystalline planet. The ship has searchlights on.
Third Stage – The Boston ship is headed towards a large flat spaceship resembling a bank of pipe organ pipes over a blue planet.
Walk On – The Boston ship is shown crashing through a rock outcropping.
Greatest Hits – The Boston ship is flying low over a planet with turquoise rocks and a turquoise tower in the distance.
Corporate America – The Boston ship is flying towards Earth and the United States.
Life, Love & Hope – The Boston ship is flying in space, near a nebula.
Their spaceship also appeared on their tours in the late 1980s, early 1990s, and early 2000s in the form of a giant lighting rig and accompanied on stage by their giant pipe-organ set piece, which is known to Boston insiders as Bertha because of its sheer size.
Innovation and style
Boston's genre is considered by most to be hard rock and arena rock, while combining elements of progressive rock into its music.
Boston founder, guitarist, and primary songwriter Tom Scholz's blend of musical styles, ranging from classical to 1960s English pop, has resulted in a unique sound, most consistently realized on the first two albums (Boston and Don't Look Back). This sound is characterized by multiple lead and blended harmonies guitar work (usually harmonized in thirds), often alternating between and then mixing electric and acoustic guitars. The band's harmonic style has been characterized as being "violin-like" without using synthesizers. Scholz is well-regarded for the development of complex, multi-tracked guitar harmonies. Another contributing factor is the use of handmade, high-tech equipment, such as the Rockman, used by artists such as Journey guitarist Neal Schon, the band ZZ Top, and Ted Nugent. Def Leppard's album Hysteria was created using only Rockman technology. Scholz's production style combines deep, aggressive, comparatively short guitar riffing and nearly ethereal, generally longer note vocal harmonies. A heavier, lower, and darker overall approach came in the next two albums (Third Stage and Walk On). The original track "Higher Power", on the Greatest Hits album, exhibits a near Neue Deutsche Härte and almost techno influence with its sequencer-sounding keyboards, a sound most fully realized on Corporate America'''s title track.
Tom Scholz also credited the late Brad Delp with helping to create Boston's sound with his signature vocal style. Delp, who was strongly influenced by the Beatles, was well known for his extended vocal range, shown on hits such as "More Than a Feeling".
Band members
Current members
Tom Scholz – lead and rhythm guitar, bass, keyboards, drums, percussion, backing vocals (1976–present)
Gary Pihl – rhythm and lead guitar, keyboards, backing vocals (1985–present)
Curly Smith – drums, percussion, harmonica, backing vocals (1994–1997, 2012–present)
Jeff Neal – drums, percussion, backing vocals (2002–2012, 2014–present)
Tommy DeCarlo – lead vocals, keyboards, percussion (2007–present)
Tracy Ferrie – bass guitar, backing vocals (2012–present)
Beth Cohen – keyboards, vocals, rhythm guitar (2002, 2012, 2015–present)
Discography
Studio albumsBoston (1976)Don't Look Back (1978)Third Stage (1986)Walk On (1994)Corporate America (2002)Life, Love & Hope (2013)
Compilation albumsGreatest Hits'' (1997)
References
External links
1976 establishments in Massachusetts
Epic Records artists
Hard rock musical groups from Massachusetts
MCA Records artists
Musical groups established in 1976
Musical groups from Boston | true | [
"Distribution-free (nonparametric) control charts are one of the most important tools of statistical process monitoring and control. Implementation techniques of distribution-free control charts do not require any knowledge about the underlying process distribution or its parameters. The main advantage of distribution-free control charts is its in-control robustness, in the sense that, irrespective of the nature of the underlying process distributions, the properties of these control charts remain the same when the process is smoothly operating without presence of any assignable cause.\n\nEarly research on nonparametric control charts may be found in 1981 when P.K. Bhattacharya and D. Frierson introduced a nonparametric control chart for detecting small disorders. However, major growth of nonparametric control charting schemes has taken place only in the recent years.\n\nPopular distribution-free control charts \nThere are distribution-free control charts for both Phase-I analysis and Phase-II monitoring. \n\nOne of the most notable distribution-free control charts for Phase-I analysis is RS/P chart proposed by G. Capizzi and G. Masaratto. RS/P charts separately monitor location and scale parameters of a univariate process using two separate charts. In 2019, Chenglong Li, Amitava Mukherjee and Qin Su proposed a single distribution-free control chart for Phase-I analysis using multisample Lepage statistic.\n\nSome popular Phase-II distribution-free control charts for univariate continuous processes includes:\n\n Sign charts based on the sign statistic - used to monitor location parameter of a process\nWilcoxon rank-sum charts based on the Wilcoxon rank-sum test - used to monitor location parameter of a process\nControl charts based on precedence or excedance statistic\n Shewhart-Lepage chart based on the Lepage test - used to monitor both location and scale parameters of a process simultaneously in a single chart\n Shewhart-Cucconi chart based on the Cucconi test - used to monitor both location and scale parameters of a process simultaneously in a single chart\n\nReferences\n\nStatistical charts and diagrams\nQuality control tools",
"A flip chart is a stationery item consisting of a pad of large paper sheets. It is typically fixed to the upper edge of a whiteboard, or supported on a tripod or four-legged easel. Such charts are commonly used for presentations.\n\nForms\nAlthough most commonly supported on a tripod, flip charts come in various forms. Some of these are:\n stand-alone flip chart: resembles a big isosceles triangle box that usually sits on a table. Imagine a book that you would open at 270° angle and then lay on a table. The paper is flipped from one side of the top of the triangle box to the other.\n metallic tripod (or easel) stand: usually has 3 or 4 metallic legs that are linked together at one extremity. A support board is attached to two of these legs to support the large paper pad. This is the most common type of flip chart stand.\n metallic mount on wheels: usually has a flat base to support the paper pad and is mounted on one or two legs that then have a set of wheels. The advantage of these more recent forms of stands is that it is easier to transport the flip chart from one location to another.\n\nUsage\nText is usually hand written with marker pens and may include figures or charts. A sheet can be flipped over by the presenter to continue to a new page.\n\nSome flip charts may have a reduced version of the page that faces the audience printed on the back of the preceding page, making it possible for the presenter to see the same thing the audience is seeing. Others have teaching notes printed on the back.\n\nFlip charts are used in many different settings such as:\n in any type of presentation where the papers pads are pre-filled with information on a given topic\n for capturing information in meetings and brainstorming sessions\n in classrooms and teaching institutions of any kind\n to record relevant information in manufacturing plants\n a creative drawing board for Art students\n a palette for artists in “life-drawing” classes\n for strategy coaching for sports teams\n for teaching\n\nA variety of paper sizes are used from the floor standing through to the smaller table-top versions, subject to the country's adopted paper sizes. These include A1, B1, 25\" x30\" through to 20\" x 23\".\n\nHistory\nThe earliest known patent of a flipchart is from May 8, 1913. Flip charts have being in use from the 1900s, the earliest recorded use of a flip chart is a photo from 1912 of John Henry Patterson (1844-1922), NCR’s CEO while addressing the 100 Point Club standing next to a pair of flip charts on casters. The flipchart we know (on a small whiteboard) was invented by Peter Kent in the 1970s. Peter Kent was the founder and CEO of the visual communications group Nobo plc, and it is believed that they were the first company to put the large pieces of paper over whiteboards, rather than over other materials.\n\nDigital\nRecently, scientists have developed a digital self writing flip chart which writes word for word everything it is instructed to record. The disability action group \"Armless\" has stated that this is a significant step forward for disabilities groups to have conferences like people without disabilities.\nAlso available are flipchart stands which are self heightening.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nUsing Flip Charts\nFlipchart\n\nOffice equipment\nEducational devices"
]
|
[
"Boston (band)",
"Departure of Delp; Walk On (1989-1996)",
"What happened in 1989?",
"By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album.",
"what was that album called?",
"Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song \"Walk On\", which eventually became the title track of the new album.",
"was the album successful?",
"I don't know.",
"did they produce any other music?",
"\"More Than a Feeling\", \"Peace of Mind\", \"Rock and Roll Band\", \"Something About You\" (",
"were any of these on the charts?",
"final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie."
]
| C_c61d7973b8b2435f80b9d464781ec3a2_1 | what happened with the promoters? | 6 | what happened with Boston and the promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie? | Boston (band) | Tom Scholz first started writing music in 1969 while he was attending Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he wrote an instrumental, titled "Foreplay". While attending MIT, Scholz joined the band Freehold, where he met guitarist Barry Goudreau and drummer Jim Masdea, who would later become members of Boston. Vocalist Brad Delp was added to the collective in 1970. After graduating with a master's degree, Scholz worked for Polaroid, where he used his salary to build a recording studio in his basement, and to finance demo tapes recorded in professional recording studios. These early demo tapes were recorded with (at various times) Delp on vocals, Goudreau on guitar, Masdea on drums, and Scholz on guitar, bass and keyboards. The demo tapes were sent to record companies, but received consistent rejections. In 1973 Scholz formed the band Mother's Milk with Delp, Goudreau, and Masdea. That group disbanded by 1974, but Scholz subsequently worked with Masdea and Delp to produce six new demos, including "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Rock and Roll Band", "Something About You" (then entitled "Life Isn't Easy"), "Hitch a Ride" (then entitled "San Francisco Day"), and "Don't Be Afraid". Scholz stated they finished four of the six by the end of 1974, and they finished "More Than a Feeling" and "Something About You" in 1975. Scholz played all the instruments on the demos, except for the drums, which were played by Masdea, and used self-designed pedals to create the desired guitar sound. The violin-like sound of the guitars was created in the early 1970s by Scholz. This final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie. Masdea left the band around this time. According to Scholz, the managers insisted that Masdea had to be replaced before the band could get a recording deal. Years later, Delp told journalist Chuck Miller: "[Jim] actually told me he was losing interest in playing drums. I know Tom felt very bad when the whole thing happened. And then, of course, we started getting some interest." Scholz and Delp signed a deal with Epic Records after Masdea's departure, thanks to Ahern and McKenzie. Before the deal could be finalized, the band had to do a live audition for the record company executives. The duo recruited Goudreau on guitar, bassist Fran Sheehan and drummer Sib Hashian to create a performing unit which could replicate Scholz's richly layered recordings on stage. The showcase was a success and the band agreed to put out ten albums over the next six years. In addition to the firing of Masdea, the record label insisted that Scholz re-record the demo tapes in a professional studio. However, Scholz wanted the record to be recorded in his basement studio so that he could work at his own pace. The label agreed, and offered to split the producer's royalty with Scholz. Upon request of Scholz, Masdea played drums on the track "Rock and Roll Band", and the instrumentation was recorded in Scholz's studio. The multitrack tapes were then brought to Los Angeles, where Delp added vocals and the album was mixed by John Boylan. It was then that the band was named "Boston", by suggestion of Boylan and engineer Warren Dewey. In late 1979, Scholz began writing new material, but Boston's former co-manager, Paul Ahern, argued that, according to an agreement Scholz had signed years earlier with Ahern, Ahern owned a percentage of all songs Scholz wrote from that point on. Delayed further by the dispute, Scholz suggested that in the meantime the individual members should work on whatever other projects they might be considering. Goudreau then decided to record a solo album that featured Boston members Delp and Hashian, and which was recorded with the help of Paul Grupp, an engineer and producer familiar with Scholz's studio techniques. The album, released in 1980, was titled Barry Goudreau and featured the minor hit single "Dreams". There was tension when CBS's marketing connected Goudreau's solo album to Boston's signature guitar sound, despite Scholz not having played at all on this album. Scholz objected to the ad copy, but it became irrelevant when Epic dropped promotion on Goudreau's album citing lack of interest. Goudreau left the band in 1981 and formed Orion the Hunter. Delp contributed vocals and co-wrote songs on the debut album, but returned to Boston and recorded vocals on the third Boston album. While Scholz and Delp were recording new material for the third Boston album, CBS filed a $60 million lawsuit against Scholz, alleging breach of contract for failing to deliver a new Boston album on time. During this same period, Scholz founded his high-tech company Scholz Research & Development (SR&D), which made amplifiers and other musical electronic equipment. Its most famous product, the Rockman amplifier, was introduced in 1982. The legal trouble slowed progress toward the completion of the next album, which took six years to record and produce. Joining Scholz in the album's development again were Delp and Jim Masdea. In 1985, guitarist Gary Pihl left Sammy Hagar's touring band to work with Scholz as both a musician and an SR&D executive. As CBS v. Scholz played out in court, CBS opted to withhold royalty payments to Scholz, hoping to force him to settle on unfavorable terms. The lawsuit's first round was eventually decided in Scholz's favor, and Scholz moved the band to MCA Records. By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album. Later that year, Delp told Scholz he wanted to concentrate on other projects, and might not be available for some time. With Delp's departure, Scholz was then the last remaining original member. Before he left, Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song "Walk On", which eventually became the title track of the new album. Delp subsequently joined Barry Goudreau's new band, RTZ. Scholz eventually replaced him with Fran Cosmo, who had been in Goudreau's previous band Orion the Hunter. For the second album in a row, and for the second time in a decade, Scholz's work was delayed by renovations to his studio. In the end, eight years passed between Third Stage and Walk On, which was released in June 1994. Walk On was certified platinum by the RIAA, and reached No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. Unlike Boston's previous albums, it failed to chart in the top 5. It produced one hit single, "I Need Your Love", which was widely played on some rock radio stations. Delp reunited with Boston at the end of 1994. Their first appearance was for two benefit shows at the House of Blues on December 12-13, 1994, in Cambridge. The band also handed a check of $5,000 to Globe Santa and another check of $5,000 to Operation Christmas in Fall River. The group, with Delp now back in the band, toured in the summer of 1995 with both Cosmo and Delp combining vocals. By that time drummer Huffman had been replaced by Curly Smith, who was previously with Jo Jo Gunne. Following the conclusion of the "Livin' For You" tour in 1995, Scholz announced that a greatest hits album would be released. Initially planned for release in August 1996, the album was pushed back to a 1997 release date. CANNOTANSWER | attracted the attention of promoters | Boston is an American rock band from namesake Boston, Massachusetts, that had its most notable successes during the 1970s and '80s. The band's core members on their most popular recordings included multi-instrumentalist founder and leader Tom Scholz, who played the majority of instruments on the debut album, and lead vocalist Brad Delp, among a number of other musicians who varied from album to album. Boston's best-known songs include "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Foreplay/Long Time", "Rock and Roll Band", "Smokin'", "Don't Look Back", "A Man I'll Never Be", and "Amanda". The band has sold more than 75 million records worldwide, including 31 million albums in the United States, of which 17 million were from its self-titled debut album and seven million were for its second album, Don't Look Back, making the group one of the world's best-selling artists. Altogether, the band has released six studio albums over a career spanning over years. Boston was ranked the 63rd best hard rock artist by VH1.
After Delp's death in 2007, a number of other vocalists have taken the stage; currently the lead singer is Tommy DeCarlo. Other current members of the band include multi-instrumentalist and singer Beth Cohen, guitarist Gary Pihl, bassist Tracy Ferrie, drummer Jeff Neal and percussionist Curly Smith.
History
Early years (1969–1975)
Tom Scholz first started writing music in 1969 while he was attending Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he wrote an instrumental song, "Foreplay". While attending MIT, Scholz joined the band Freehold, where he met guitarist Barry Goudreau and drummer Jim Masdea, who would later become members of Boston. Vocalist Brad Delp was added to the collective in 1970. After graduating with a master's degree, Scholz worked for Polaroid, using his salary to build a recording studio in his basement, and to finance demo tapes recorded in professional recording studios. These early demo tapes were recorded with (at various times) Delp on vocals, Goudreau on guitar, Masdea on drums, and Scholz on guitar, bass and keyboards. The demo tapes were sent to record companies, but received consistent rejections. In 1973 Scholz formed the band Mother's Milk with Delp, Goudreau, and Masdea. That group disbanded by 1974, but Scholz subsequently worked with Masdea and Delp to produce six new demos, including "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Rock and Roll Band", "Something About You" (then entitled "Life Isn't Easy"), "Hitch a Ride" (then entitled "San Francisco Day"), and "Don't Be Afraid". Scholz stated they finished four of the six by the end of 1974, and they finished "More Than a Feeling" and "Something About You" in 1975. Scholz played all the instruments on the demos, except for the drums, which were played by Masdea, and used self-designed pedals to create the desired guitar sounds.
This final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie. Masdea left the band around this time. According to Scholz, the managers insisted that Masdea had to be replaced before the band could get a recording deal. Years later, Delp told journalist Chuck Miller: "[Jim] actually told me he was losing interest in playing drums. I know Tom felt very bad when the whole thing happened. And then, of course, we started getting some interest." Scholz and Delp signed a deal with Epic Records after Masdea's departure, thanks to Ahern and McKenzie. Before the deal could be finalized, the band had to do a live audition for the record company executives. The duo recruited Goudreau on guitar, bassist Fran Sheehan and drummer Sib Hashian to create a performing unit which could replicate Scholz's richly layered recordings on stage. The showcase was a success and the band agreed to put out ten albums over the next six years.
In addition to the firing of Masdea, the record label insisted that Scholz re-record the demo tapes in a professional studio. However, Scholz wanted to record them in his basement studio so that he could work at his own pace. Scholz and producer John Boylan hatched a plan to send the rest of the band to Los Angeles to make the record label happy, while Scholz recorded most of Boston's debut album at home, with Masdea playing drums on the track "Rock and Roll Band" and Scholz playing the other instruments. The multitrack tapes were then brought to Los Angeles, where Delp added vocals and the album was mixed by Boylan. It was then that the band was named "Boston", by suggestion of Boylan and engineer Warren Dewey.
Boston and Don't Look Back (1976–1978)
The debut album, Boston, released on August 25, 1976, ranks as one of the best-selling debut albums in U.S. history with over 17 million copies sold.
During late summer and early fall of 1976, Boston attracted publicity due to the record sales. However, according to Cameron Crowe in Rolling Stone, there was "a conscious effort to de-emphasize Scholz as the total mastermind behind Boston". After opening for Black Sabbath, Blue Öyster Cult, Foghat and others in the fall, the band embarked on a headlining tour in the winter and spring of 1976–1977 to support the album. This helped establish Boston as one of rock's top acts within a short time, being nominated for a Grammy Award as a "Best New Artist". Boston was the first band in history to make their New York City debut at Madison Square Garden.
The album spawned three singles, "More Than a Feeling", "Long Time", and "Peace of Mind", all of which made the national charts. The album peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and remained on the charts for 132 weeks.
Despite having problems with manager Paul Ahern, being caught in the middle of a fight between Ahern and his business partner Charles McKenzie, and doing most of the recording work alone, Scholz completed the second Boston album two years after the debut album's release. The second album, Don't Look Back, was released by Epic in August 1978. At the time this was considered a long gap between albums, but Scholz still considered Don't Look Back to be a rush job and was unhappy with the album's second side in particular. Overall, Don't Look Back sold about half as well as the debut album, eventually selling over 7 million records.
Another tour followed (playing with the likes of AC/DC, Black Sabbath, Van Halen, Sammy Hagar and The Doobie Brothers), and the album's title track became a top-5 hit. Additionally, two other singles, "A Man I'll Never Be" and "Feelin' Satisfied", went top 40 and top 50, respectively. Despite the success, Scholz's relationship with Ahern completely deteriorated. Delayed by technical renovations to his studio, Scholz eventually began the process of working on Boston's third album, determined to complete the album at his own pace and up to his demanding standard.
Solo projects and CBS lawsuit (1979–1985)
In late 1979, Scholz began writing new material, but Boston's former co-manager, Paul Ahern, argued that, according to an agreement Scholz had signed years earlier with Ahern, Ahern owned a percentage of all songs Scholz wrote from that point on. Delayed further by the dispute, Scholz suggested that in the meantime the individual members should work on whatever other projects they might be considering.
Goudreau then decided to record a solo album that featured Boston members Delp and Hashian, and which was recorded with the help of Paul Grupp, an engineer and producer familiar with Scholz's studio techniques. The album, released in 1980, was titled Barry Goudreau and featured the minor hit single "Dreams". There was tension when CBS's marketing connected Goudreau's solo album to Boston's signature guitar sound, despite Scholz not having played at all on this album. Scholz objected to the ad copy, but it became irrelevant when Epic dropped promotion on Goudreau's album citing lack of interest. Goudreau left the band in 1981 and formed Orion the Hunter. Delp contributed vocals and co-wrote songs on the debut album, but returned to Boston and recorded vocals on the third Boston album.
While Scholz and Delp were recording new material for the third Boston album, CBS filed a $60 million lawsuit against Scholz, alleging breach of contract for failing to deliver a new Boston album on time.
During this same period, Scholz founded his high-tech company Scholz Research & Development (SR&D), which made amplifiers and other musical electronic equipment. Its most famous product, the Rockman amplifier, was introduced in 1982.
The legal trouble slowed progress toward the completion of the next album, which took six years to record and produce. Joining Scholz in the album's development again were Delp and Jim Masdea. In 1985, guitarist Gary Pihl left Sammy Hagar's touring band to work with Scholz as both a musician and an SR&D executive. As CBS v. Scholz played out in court, CBS opted to withhold royalty payments to Scholz, hoping to force him to settle on unfavorable terms.
The lawsuit's first round was eventually decided in Scholz's favor, and Scholz moved the band to MCA Records.
The CBS case took seven years to run its course, and in April 1990 Scholz won.
Third Stage (1986–1988)
Despite the adversity, progress continued to be made on the third Boston album. A tape of one of the songs, "Amanda", leaked out of the studio in 1984. The song became the lead single when Third Stage was finally released on September 23, 1986.
The album topped the Billboard 200 while the lead single "Amanda" went to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and the subsequent singles "We're Ready" and "Can'tcha Say" reached No. 9 and No. 20, respectively. "Cool the Engines" also got significant airplay on rock radio. The album sold over 4 million copies.
The group headed off on tour to promote Third Stage in 1987 and 1988. Third Stage was played in sequence in its entirety during the shows, with expanded arrangements of some cuts. Boston opened with "Rock and Roll Band" and brought back the original drummer, Jim Masdea, to play drums for this one song. For the tour, the group was joined by Doug Huffman and David Sikes, both of whom stayed with the band into the mid-1990s.
Departure of Delp; Walk On (1989–1996)
By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album. Later that year, Delp told Scholz he wanted to concentrate on other projects, and might not be available for some time. With Delp's departure, Scholz was then the last remaining original member. Before he left, Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song "Walk On", which eventually became the title track of the new album.
Delp subsequently joined Barry Goudreau's new band, RTZ. Scholz eventually replaced him with vocalist Fran Cosmo, who had been in Goudreau's previous band Orion the Hunter.
For the second album in a row, and for the second time in a decade, Scholz's work was delayed by renovations to his studio. In the end, eight years passed between Third Stage and Walk On, which was released in June 1994. Walk On was certified platinum by the RIAA, and reached No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. Unlike Boston's previous albums, it failed to chart in the top 5. It produced one hit single, "I Need Your Love", which was widely played on some rock radio stations. Delp reunited with Boston at the end of 1994. Their first appearance was for two benefit shows at the House of Blues on December 12–13, 1994, in Cambridge. The band also handed a check of $5,000 to Globe Santa and another check of $5,000 to Operation Christmas in Fall River.
The group, with Delp now back in the band, toured in the summer of 1995 with both Cosmo and Delp combining vocals. By that time drummer Huffman had been replaced by Curly Smith, who was previously with Jo Jo Gunne. Following the conclusion of the "Livin' For You" tour in 1995, Scholz announced that a greatest hits album would be released. Initially planned for release in August 1996, the album was pushed back to a 1997 release date.
Greatest Hits and Corporate America (1997–2006)
Boston released a compilation album in 1997, titled simply Boston: Greatest Hits. The album featured all of the band's hit singles except "We're Ready", "Can'tcha Say (You Believe In Me)/Still In Love", and "I Need Your Love" along with three new songs, "Higher Power", "Tell Me", and an instrumental version of the "Star Spangled Banner". Smith and Sikes left the band in late 1997 and recorded an album together.
Scholz headed back to the studio in 1998 to begin work on a fifth album, which eventually turned out to be Corporate America. The title track of "Corporate America" was uploaded by Tom Scholz to MP3.com under the pseudonym of "Downer's Revenge" in early 2002 in order to test the album's appeal to a younger demographic. The song reached No. 2 on the progressive rock charts on the website for two weeks.
November 2002 marked the release of Corporate America on the independent label Artemis Records. This album featured the largest Boston lineup ever; returning members included Delp and Cosmo on rhythm guitar and lead vocals, Scholz on lead guitar and keyboards, and Gary Pihl on guitar, along with new members Anthony Cosmo on rhythm guitar, Jeff Neal on drums, and Kimberley Dahme on bass, acoustic guitar, and vocals. Dahme, Delp, and Cosmo all contributed lead vocals to the album. The group embarked on a national tour in support of the album in 2003 and 2004. In 2006, the first two Boston albums appeared in remastered form.
Death of Brad Delp (2007)
On March 9, 2007, lead singer Delp died by suicide at his home in Atkinson, New Hampshire. Police found him dead in his master bathroom, along with several notes for whomever would find him. In the bathroom where he died, two charcoal grills were found on the bathroom fixtures, and the door was sealed with duct tape and a towel underneath. Police called the death "untimely" and said no foul play was indicated. Delp was alone at the time of his death, according to the police report. He was found by his fiancée, who saw a dryer hose attached to his car. According to the New Hampshire medical examiner, his death was the result of suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning. Delp's last concert with Boston was performed at Boston Symphony Hall on November 13, 2006, at a concert honoring Doug Flutie.
A concert in honor of Delp named "Come Together: A Tribute to Brad Delp" occurred on August 19, 2007, at the Bank of America Pavilion in Boston. The concert included Ernie and the Automatics, Beatlejuice, Farrenheit, Extreme, Godsmack, RTZ, Orion the Hunter, and finally the current version of Boston.
All of the living members of Boston were invited to perform in the concert. The singers for Boston included Michael Sweet of Stryper, former band member Curly Smith, band member Kimberley Dahme, and a Boston fan from North Carolina named Tommy DeCarlo, who was chosen to sing based on his performances of Boston cover songs on his MySpace page.
New line-up and intermittent performances (2008–2012)
The ongoing conflicts among the surviving band members spilled over to the 2008 Presidential campaign. Barry Goudreau appeared with Mike Huckabee and played with him at some rallies in New Hampshire. Huckabee used "More Than a Feeling" as a campaign theme song. Scholz, a self-described "Obama supporter", sent an open letter to Huckabee in February 2008 stating that the band had never endorsed any candidate, and that he had never authorized the use of "More Than a Feeling" as Huckabee's theme song. Scholz made a point of saying that he, and not Goudreau or Sheehan, actually played all the guitars on "More Than a Feeling" as well as most of Boston's songs. Huckabee eventually stopped using the song for his campaign.
In the spring of 2008, Scholz and Sweet introduced a new Boston lineup, which subsequently did a North American summer tour, playing 53 dates in 12 weeks (on a double bill with Styx). Scholz was the only founding member of Boston to play on the tour, although longtime member Gary Pihl was also part of the band, and Dahme and Neal returned on bass and drums, respectively. DeCarlo and Sweet shared lead vocals.
In January 2009, Greatest Hits was re-released as a remastered disc.
Michael Sweet left the band in August 2011 in order to focus on Stryper. In 2012, guitarist and vocalist David Victor joined the band, beginning in the studio, where he contributed vocals to several tracks on the album in progress.
Scholz and Pihl led the band on a 2012 North American tour, beginning on June 28, 2012, at the Seminole Hard Rock Live arena in Hollywood, Florida and ending on September 8 at the U.S. Cellular Grandstand in Hutchinson, Kansas. Victor and DeCarlo shared lead vocals, with drummer Curly Smith returning for the first time in over a decade, and former Stryper member Tracy Ferrie on bass. Neither Dahme nor Neal played on the tour.
Life, Love & Hope (2013–2017)
Boston's sixth album, Life, Love & Hope, was released on December 3, 2013, by Frontiers Records; it includes lead vocals from Brad Delp, Tommy DeCarlo, Kimberley Dahme, David Victor, and Tom Scholz. Work on the album started in 2002. On December 11, 2013, Boston re-recorded a Christmas song, "God Rest Ye Metal Gentleman 2013" (previously released in 2002 as "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"). In 2014 Boston embarked on the "Heaven on Earth Tour" spanning the United States and Japan with a lineup including Scholz, Pihl, DeCarlo, Victor and Ferrie. Dahme returned, this time performing rhythm guitar and vocals, and drumming duties were split between Neal and Smith, with Neal handling the first leg of the tour. Victor departed the lineup partway through the tour for unspecified reasons. In his stead, Siobhan Magnus joined the tour as a guest vocalist in July, performing lead vocals on 'Walk On'.
In 2015, Boston launched another tour with a lineup consisting of Scholz, Pihl, DeCarlo, Ferrie and new member Beth Cohen, who performed keyboards, rhythm guitar and vocals. Cohen had previously recorded with the group on both Corporate America and Life, Love & Hope as a vocalist and flautist. Initially, the lineup was to include former Spock's Beard drummer and vocalist Nick D'Virgilio for its first month of shows, with Neal then returning, but D'Virgilio proved "not the right fit" and Smith rejoined in his place. This seven-person lineup proved Boston's most stable lineup in some time, touring as well in the summers of 2016 and 2017. The 2016 tour marked the group's 40th anniversary and included shows in Boston's Wang Theatre, their first full performances in their namesake town since 1994.
On March 22, 2017, former drummer Sib Hashian died after collapsing on a Legends of Rock cruise ship.
Upcoming seventh album (2017–present)
In April 2017, Scholz reported that he has been writing new material for the seventh Boston album. He told Sun Herald, "I find that I'm in a position that I really need to write things that we can play at the shows. We play basically everything that people expect to hear that we can fit into two hours. We also do a lot of things that aren't on any of the records by adding things and segues and instrumental parts, so I always have to come up with new stuff. It's quite a challenge. I have to write new things for the tour every year, which is what I wanted to do in the first place. But I got sidetracked in the studio, recording. Now, I'm actually a performing musician, and I have to tell you, it's much more fun." When asked the same month about a potential release date of the album, Scholz said, "Who knows? I'm only 70. I figure I've got 30 years."
Spaceship
One of the themes of Boston's album covers is the presence of a guitar-shaped spaceship, ostensibly a generation or colony ship carrying the city of Boston inside a clear dome, with the city's name emblazoned across the front. The original spaceship was designed in 1976 by Paula Scher and illustrated by Roger Huyssen with lettering by Gerard Huerta for Epic Records.
Appearances
Boston – Two long lines of guitar shaped starships flee a planet that is breaking apart. The ships all have blue flames coming out of the bottom.
Don't Look Back – The Boston ship is flying low or perhaps hovering over a grassy, crystalline planet. The ship has searchlights on.
Third Stage – The Boston ship is headed towards a large flat spaceship resembling a bank of pipe organ pipes over a blue planet.
Walk On – The Boston ship is shown crashing through a rock outcropping.
Greatest Hits – The Boston ship is flying low over a planet with turquoise rocks and a turquoise tower in the distance.
Corporate America – The Boston ship is flying towards Earth and the United States.
Life, Love & Hope – The Boston ship is flying in space, near a nebula.
Their spaceship also appeared on their tours in the late 1980s, early 1990s, and early 2000s in the form of a giant lighting rig and accompanied on stage by their giant pipe-organ set piece, which is known to Boston insiders as Bertha because of its sheer size.
Innovation and style
Boston's genre is considered by most to be hard rock and arena rock, while combining elements of progressive rock into its music.
Boston founder, guitarist, and primary songwriter Tom Scholz's blend of musical styles, ranging from classical to 1960s English pop, has resulted in a unique sound, most consistently realized on the first two albums (Boston and Don't Look Back). This sound is characterized by multiple lead and blended harmonies guitar work (usually harmonized in thirds), often alternating between and then mixing electric and acoustic guitars. The band's harmonic style has been characterized as being "violin-like" without using synthesizers. Scholz is well-regarded for the development of complex, multi-tracked guitar harmonies. Another contributing factor is the use of handmade, high-tech equipment, such as the Rockman, used by artists such as Journey guitarist Neal Schon, the band ZZ Top, and Ted Nugent. Def Leppard's album Hysteria was created using only Rockman technology. Scholz's production style combines deep, aggressive, comparatively short guitar riffing and nearly ethereal, generally longer note vocal harmonies. A heavier, lower, and darker overall approach came in the next two albums (Third Stage and Walk On). The original track "Higher Power", on the Greatest Hits album, exhibits a near Neue Deutsche Härte and almost techno influence with its sequencer-sounding keyboards, a sound most fully realized on Corporate America'''s title track.
Tom Scholz also credited the late Brad Delp with helping to create Boston's sound with his signature vocal style. Delp, who was strongly influenced by the Beatles, was well known for his extended vocal range, shown on hits such as "More Than a Feeling".
Band members
Current members
Tom Scholz – lead and rhythm guitar, bass, keyboards, drums, percussion, backing vocals (1976–present)
Gary Pihl – rhythm and lead guitar, keyboards, backing vocals (1985–present)
Curly Smith – drums, percussion, harmonica, backing vocals (1994–1997, 2012–present)
Jeff Neal – drums, percussion, backing vocals (2002–2012, 2014–present)
Tommy DeCarlo – lead vocals, keyboards, percussion (2007–present)
Tracy Ferrie – bass guitar, backing vocals (2012–present)
Beth Cohen – keyboards, vocals, rhythm guitar (2002, 2012, 2015–present)
Discography
Studio albumsBoston (1976)Don't Look Back (1978)Third Stage (1986)Walk On (1994)Corporate America (2002)Life, Love & Hope (2013)
Compilation albumsGreatest Hits'' (1997)
References
External links
1976 establishments in Massachusetts
Epic Records artists
Hard rock musical groups from Massachusetts
MCA Records artists
Musical groups established in 1976
Musical groups from Boston | true | [
"Don Juan Manuel's Tales of Count Lucanor, in Spanish Libro de los ejemplos del conde Lucanor y de Patronio (Book of the Examples of Count Lucanor and of Patronio), also commonly known as El Conde Lucanor, Libro de Patronio, or Libro de los ejemplos (original Old Castilian: Libro de los enxiemplos del Conde Lucanor et de Patronio), is one of the earliest works of prose in Castilian Spanish. It was first written in 1335.\n\nThe book is divided into four parts. The first and most well-known part is a series of 51 short stories (some no more than a page or two) drawn from various sources, such as Aesop and other classical writers, and Arabic folktales.\n\nTales of Count Lucanor was first printed in 1575 when it was published at Seville under the auspices of Argote de Molina. It was again printed at Madrid in 1642, after which it lay forgotten for nearly two centuries.\n\nPurpose and structure\n\nA didactic, moralistic purpose, which would color so much of the Spanish literature to follow (see Novela picaresca), is the mark of this book. Count Lucanor engages in conversation with his advisor Patronio, putting to him a problem (\"Some man has made me a proposition...\" or \"I fear that such and such person intends to...\") and asking for advice. Patronio responds always with the greatest humility, claiming not to wish to offer advice to so illustrious a person as the Count, but offering to tell him a story of which the Count's problem reminds him. (Thus, the stories are \"examples\" [ejemplos] of wise action.) At the end he advises the Count to do as the protagonist of his story did.\n\nEach chapter ends in more or less the same way, with slight variations on: \"And this pleased the Count greatly and he did just so, and found it well. And Don Johán (Juan) saw that this example was very good, and had it written in this book, and composed the following verses.\" A rhymed couplet closes, giving the moral of the story.\n\nOrigin of stories and influence on later literature\nMany of the stories written in the book are the first examples written in a modern European language of various stories, which many other writers would use in the proceeding centuries. Many of the stories he included were themselves derived from other stories, coming from western and Arab sources.\n\nShakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew has the basic elements of Tale 35, \"What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\".\n\nTale 32, \"What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth\" tells the story that Hans Christian Andersen made popular as The Emperor's New Clothes.\n\nStory 7, \"What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana\", a version of Aesop's The Milkmaid and Her Pail, was claimed by Max Müller to originate in the Hindu cycle Panchatantra.\n\nTale 2, \"What happened to a good Man and his Son, leading a beast to market,\" is the familiar fable The miller, his son and the donkey.\n\nIn 2016, Baroque Decay released a game under the name \"The Count Lucanor\". As well as some protagonists' names, certain events from the books inspired past events in the game.\n\nThe stories\n\nThe book opens with a prologue which introduces the characters of the Count and Patronio. The titles in the following list are those given in Keller and Keating's 1977 translation into English. James York's 1868 translation into English gives a significantly different ordering of the stories and omits the fifty-first.\n\n What Happened to a King and His Favorite \n What Happened to a Good Man and His Son \n How King Richard of England Leapt into the Sea against the Moors\n What a Genoese Said to His Soul When He Was about to Die \n What Happened to a Fox and a Crow Who Had a Piece of Cheese in His Beak\n How the Swallow Warned the Other Birds When She Saw Flax Being Sown \n What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana \n What Happened to a Man Whose Liver Had to Be Washed \n What Happened to Two Horses Which Were Thrown to the Lion \n What Happened to a Man Who on Account of Poverty and Lack of Other Food Was Eating Bitter Lentils \n What Happened to a Dean of Santiago de Compostela and Don Yllán, the Grand Master of Toledo\n What Happened to the Fox and the Rooster \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Hunting Partridges \n The Miracle of Saint Dominick When He Preached against the Usurer \n What Happened to Lorenzo Suárez at the Siege of Seville \n The Reply that count Fernán González Gave to His Relative Núño Laynes \n What Happened to a Very Hungry Man Who Was Half-heartedly Invited to Dinner \n What Happened to Pero Meléndez de Valdés When He Broke His Leg \n What Happened to the Crows and the Owls \n What Happened to a King for Whom a Man Promised to Perform Alchemy \n What Happened to a Young King and a Philosopher to Whom his Father Commended Him \n What Happened to the Lion and the Bull \n How the Ants Provide for Themselves \n What Happened to the King Who Wanted to Test His Three Sons \n What Happened to the Count of Provence and How He Was Freed from Prison by the Advice of Saladin\n What Happened to the Tree of Lies \n What Happened to an Emperor and to Don Alvarfáñez Minaya and Their Wives \n What Happened in Granada to Don Lorenzo Suárez Gallinato When He Beheaded the Renegade Chaplain \n What Happened to a Fox Who Lay down in the Street to Play Dead \n What Happened to King Abenabet of Seville and Ramayquía His Wife \n How a Cardinal Judged between the Canons of Paris and the Friars Minor \n What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth \n What Happened to Don Juan Manuel's Saker Falcon and an Eagle and a Heron \n What Happened to a Blind Man Who Was Leading Another \n What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\n What Happened to a Merchant When He Found His Son and His Wife Sleeping Together \n What Happened to Count Fernán González with His Men after He Had Won the Battle of Hacinas \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Loaded down with Precious Stones and Drowned in the River \n What Happened to a Man and a Swallow and a Sparrow \n Why the Seneschal of Carcassonne Lost His Soul \n What Happened to a King of Córdova Named Al-Haquem \n What Happened to a Woman of Sham Piety \n What Happened to Good and Evil and the Wise Man and the Madman \n What Happened to Don Pero Núñez the Loyal, to Don Ruy González de Zavallos, and to Don Gutier Roiz de Blaguiello with Don Rodrigo the Generous \n What Happened to a Man Who Became the Devil's Friend and Vassal \n What Happened to a Philosopher who by Accident Went down a Street Where Prostitutes Lived \n What Befell a Moor and His Sister Who Pretended That She Was Timid \n What Happened to a Man Who Tested His Friends \n What Happened to the Man Whom They Cast out Naked on an Island When They Took away from Him the Kingdom He Ruled \n What Happened to Saladin and a Lady, the Wife of a Knight Who Was His Vassal \n What Happened to a Christian King Who Was Very Powerful and Haughty\n\nReferences\n\nNotes\n\nBibliography\n\n Sturm, Harlan\n\n Wacks, David\n\nExternal links\n\nThe Internet Archive provides free access to the 1868 translation by James York.\nJSTOR has the to the 1977 translation by Keller and Keating.\nSelections in English and Spanish (pedagogical edition) with introduction, notes, and bibliography in Open Iberia/América (open access teaching anthology)\n\n14th-century books\nSpanish literature\n1335 books",
"H. A. \"Hal\" Fredericks is an author and management consultant for governments and businesses in Canada and the United States. He was born in Nova Scotia and served as a governor and director (1955–1960) of the Atlantic Provinces Economic Council and vice president of APEC in New Brunswick (1960–1961). He is a member of the New Brunswick Research and Productivity Council and served as assistant to the general manager during the organization of the New Brunswick Development Corporation.\n\nHe is an honorary alumnus of the University of New Brunswick.\n\nBooks by H. A. Fredericks\nBricklin - (with Allan Chambers) (1977) (softcover) (hardcover)\nHow to Brickle The New Brunswick Funny Book - Interduction under the pseudonym Stillman \"Still\" Pickens (1977) \nBricklemanship The New Brunswick Grief Book - Interduction under the pseudonym Stillman \"Still\" Pickens (1978) \nWhat Happened to the Blueprint for Atlantic Advance? The Leaders and Followers, The Politicians, the Experts and Promoters 2003\n\nReferences\n\nEDAC news\nUNB Alumni news\n\nWriters from Nova Scotia\nUniversity of New Brunswick alumni\nCanadian management consultants\nYear of birth missing (living people)\nLiving people"
]
|
[
"Boston (band)",
"Departure of Delp; Walk On (1989-1996)",
"What happened in 1989?",
"By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album.",
"what was that album called?",
"Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song \"Walk On\", which eventually became the title track of the new album.",
"was the album successful?",
"I don't know.",
"did they produce any other music?",
"\"More Than a Feeling\", \"Peace of Mind\", \"Rock and Roll Band\", \"Something About You\" (",
"were any of these on the charts?",
"final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie.",
"what happened with the promoters?",
"attracted the attention of promoters"
]
| C_c61d7973b8b2435f80b9d464781ec3a2_1 | did they go on tour? | 7 | did Boston go on tour? | Boston (band) | Tom Scholz first started writing music in 1969 while he was attending Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he wrote an instrumental, titled "Foreplay". While attending MIT, Scholz joined the band Freehold, where he met guitarist Barry Goudreau and drummer Jim Masdea, who would later become members of Boston. Vocalist Brad Delp was added to the collective in 1970. After graduating with a master's degree, Scholz worked for Polaroid, where he used his salary to build a recording studio in his basement, and to finance demo tapes recorded in professional recording studios. These early demo tapes were recorded with (at various times) Delp on vocals, Goudreau on guitar, Masdea on drums, and Scholz on guitar, bass and keyboards. The demo tapes were sent to record companies, but received consistent rejections. In 1973 Scholz formed the band Mother's Milk with Delp, Goudreau, and Masdea. That group disbanded by 1974, but Scholz subsequently worked with Masdea and Delp to produce six new demos, including "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Rock and Roll Band", "Something About You" (then entitled "Life Isn't Easy"), "Hitch a Ride" (then entitled "San Francisco Day"), and "Don't Be Afraid". Scholz stated they finished four of the six by the end of 1974, and they finished "More Than a Feeling" and "Something About You" in 1975. Scholz played all the instruments on the demos, except for the drums, which were played by Masdea, and used self-designed pedals to create the desired guitar sound. The violin-like sound of the guitars was created in the early 1970s by Scholz. This final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie. Masdea left the band around this time. According to Scholz, the managers insisted that Masdea had to be replaced before the band could get a recording deal. Years later, Delp told journalist Chuck Miller: "[Jim] actually told me he was losing interest in playing drums. I know Tom felt very bad when the whole thing happened. And then, of course, we started getting some interest." Scholz and Delp signed a deal with Epic Records after Masdea's departure, thanks to Ahern and McKenzie. Before the deal could be finalized, the band had to do a live audition for the record company executives. The duo recruited Goudreau on guitar, bassist Fran Sheehan and drummer Sib Hashian to create a performing unit which could replicate Scholz's richly layered recordings on stage. The showcase was a success and the band agreed to put out ten albums over the next six years. In addition to the firing of Masdea, the record label insisted that Scholz re-record the demo tapes in a professional studio. However, Scholz wanted the record to be recorded in his basement studio so that he could work at his own pace. The label agreed, and offered to split the producer's royalty with Scholz. Upon request of Scholz, Masdea played drums on the track "Rock and Roll Band", and the instrumentation was recorded in Scholz's studio. The multitrack tapes were then brought to Los Angeles, where Delp added vocals and the album was mixed by John Boylan. It was then that the band was named "Boston", by suggestion of Boylan and engineer Warren Dewey. In late 1979, Scholz began writing new material, but Boston's former co-manager, Paul Ahern, argued that, according to an agreement Scholz had signed years earlier with Ahern, Ahern owned a percentage of all songs Scholz wrote from that point on. Delayed further by the dispute, Scholz suggested that in the meantime the individual members should work on whatever other projects they might be considering. Goudreau then decided to record a solo album that featured Boston members Delp and Hashian, and which was recorded with the help of Paul Grupp, an engineer and producer familiar with Scholz's studio techniques. The album, released in 1980, was titled Barry Goudreau and featured the minor hit single "Dreams". There was tension when CBS's marketing connected Goudreau's solo album to Boston's signature guitar sound, despite Scholz not having played at all on this album. Scholz objected to the ad copy, but it became irrelevant when Epic dropped promotion on Goudreau's album citing lack of interest. Goudreau left the band in 1981 and formed Orion the Hunter. Delp contributed vocals and co-wrote songs on the debut album, but returned to Boston and recorded vocals on the third Boston album. While Scholz and Delp were recording new material for the third Boston album, CBS filed a $60 million lawsuit against Scholz, alleging breach of contract for failing to deliver a new Boston album on time. During this same period, Scholz founded his high-tech company Scholz Research & Development (SR&D), which made amplifiers and other musical electronic equipment. Its most famous product, the Rockman amplifier, was introduced in 1982. The legal trouble slowed progress toward the completion of the next album, which took six years to record and produce. Joining Scholz in the album's development again were Delp and Jim Masdea. In 1985, guitarist Gary Pihl left Sammy Hagar's touring band to work with Scholz as both a musician and an SR&D executive. As CBS v. Scholz played out in court, CBS opted to withhold royalty payments to Scholz, hoping to force him to settle on unfavorable terms. The lawsuit's first round was eventually decided in Scholz's favor, and Scholz moved the band to MCA Records. By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album. Later that year, Delp told Scholz he wanted to concentrate on other projects, and might not be available for some time. With Delp's departure, Scholz was then the last remaining original member. Before he left, Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song "Walk On", which eventually became the title track of the new album. Delp subsequently joined Barry Goudreau's new band, RTZ. Scholz eventually replaced him with Fran Cosmo, who had been in Goudreau's previous band Orion the Hunter. For the second album in a row, and for the second time in a decade, Scholz's work was delayed by renovations to his studio. In the end, eight years passed between Third Stage and Walk On, which was released in June 1994. Walk On was certified platinum by the RIAA, and reached No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. Unlike Boston's previous albums, it failed to chart in the top 5. It produced one hit single, "I Need Your Love", which was widely played on some rock radio stations. Delp reunited with Boston at the end of 1994. Their first appearance was for two benefit shows at the House of Blues on December 12-13, 1994, in Cambridge. The band also handed a check of $5,000 to Globe Santa and another check of $5,000 to Operation Christmas in Fall River. The group, with Delp now back in the band, toured in the summer of 1995 with both Cosmo and Delp combining vocals. By that time drummer Huffman had been replaced by Curly Smith, who was previously with Jo Jo Gunne. Following the conclusion of the "Livin' For You" tour in 1995, Scholz announced that a greatest hits album would be released. Initially planned for release in August 1996, the album was pushed back to a 1997 release date. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Boston is an American rock band from namesake Boston, Massachusetts, that had its most notable successes during the 1970s and '80s. The band's core members on their most popular recordings included multi-instrumentalist founder and leader Tom Scholz, who played the majority of instruments on the debut album, and lead vocalist Brad Delp, among a number of other musicians who varied from album to album. Boston's best-known songs include "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Foreplay/Long Time", "Rock and Roll Band", "Smokin'", "Don't Look Back", "A Man I'll Never Be", and "Amanda". The band has sold more than 75 million records worldwide, including 31 million albums in the United States, of which 17 million were from its self-titled debut album and seven million were for its second album, Don't Look Back, making the group one of the world's best-selling artists. Altogether, the band has released six studio albums over a career spanning over years. Boston was ranked the 63rd best hard rock artist by VH1.
After Delp's death in 2007, a number of other vocalists have taken the stage; currently the lead singer is Tommy DeCarlo. Other current members of the band include multi-instrumentalist and singer Beth Cohen, guitarist Gary Pihl, bassist Tracy Ferrie, drummer Jeff Neal and percussionist Curly Smith.
History
Early years (1969–1975)
Tom Scholz first started writing music in 1969 while he was attending Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he wrote an instrumental song, "Foreplay". While attending MIT, Scholz joined the band Freehold, where he met guitarist Barry Goudreau and drummer Jim Masdea, who would later become members of Boston. Vocalist Brad Delp was added to the collective in 1970. After graduating with a master's degree, Scholz worked for Polaroid, using his salary to build a recording studio in his basement, and to finance demo tapes recorded in professional recording studios. These early demo tapes were recorded with (at various times) Delp on vocals, Goudreau on guitar, Masdea on drums, and Scholz on guitar, bass and keyboards. The demo tapes were sent to record companies, but received consistent rejections. In 1973 Scholz formed the band Mother's Milk with Delp, Goudreau, and Masdea. That group disbanded by 1974, but Scholz subsequently worked with Masdea and Delp to produce six new demos, including "More Than a Feeling", "Peace of Mind", "Rock and Roll Band", "Something About You" (then entitled "Life Isn't Easy"), "Hitch a Ride" (then entitled "San Francisco Day"), and "Don't Be Afraid". Scholz stated they finished four of the six by the end of 1974, and they finished "More Than a Feeling" and "Something About You" in 1975. Scholz played all the instruments on the demos, except for the drums, which were played by Masdea, and used self-designed pedals to create the desired guitar sounds.
This final demo tape attracted the attention of promoters Paul Ahern and Charlie McKenzie. Masdea left the band around this time. According to Scholz, the managers insisted that Masdea had to be replaced before the band could get a recording deal. Years later, Delp told journalist Chuck Miller: "[Jim] actually told me he was losing interest in playing drums. I know Tom felt very bad when the whole thing happened. And then, of course, we started getting some interest." Scholz and Delp signed a deal with Epic Records after Masdea's departure, thanks to Ahern and McKenzie. Before the deal could be finalized, the band had to do a live audition for the record company executives. The duo recruited Goudreau on guitar, bassist Fran Sheehan and drummer Sib Hashian to create a performing unit which could replicate Scholz's richly layered recordings on stage. The showcase was a success and the band agreed to put out ten albums over the next six years.
In addition to the firing of Masdea, the record label insisted that Scholz re-record the demo tapes in a professional studio. However, Scholz wanted to record them in his basement studio so that he could work at his own pace. Scholz and producer John Boylan hatched a plan to send the rest of the band to Los Angeles to make the record label happy, while Scholz recorded most of Boston's debut album at home, with Masdea playing drums on the track "Rock and Roll Band" and Scholz playing the other instruments. The multitrack tapes were then brought to Los Angeles, where Delp added vocals and the album was mixed by Boylan. It was then that the band was named "Boston", by suggestion of Boylan and engineer Warren Dewey.
Boston and Don't Look Back (1976–1978)
The debut album, Boston, released on August 25, 1976, ranks as one of the best-selling debut albums in U.S. history with over 17 million copies sold.
During late summer and early fall of 1976, Boston attracted publicity due to the record sales. However, according to Cameron Crowe in Rolling Stone, there was "a conscious effort to de-emphasize Scholz as the total mastermind behind Boston". After opening for Black Sabbath, Blue Öyster Cult, Foghat and others in the fall, the band embarked on a headlining tour in the winter and spring of 1976–1977 to support the album. This helped establish Boston as one of rock's top acts within a short time, being nominated for a Grammy Award as a "Best New Artist". Boston was the first band in history to make their New York City debut at Madison Square Garden.
The album spawned three singles, "More Than a Feeling", "Long Time", and "Peace of Mind", all of which made the national charts. The album peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and remained on the charts for 132 weeks.
Despite having problems with manager Paul Ahern, being caught in the middle of a fight between Ahern and his business partner Charles McKenzie, and doing most of the recording work alone, Scholz completed the second Boston album two years after the debut album's release. The second album, Don't Look Back, was released by Epic in August 1978. At the time this was considered a long gap between albums, but Scholz still considered Don't Look Back to be a rush job and was unhappy with the album's second side in particular. Overall, Don't Look Back sold about half as well as the debut album, eventually selling over 7 million records.
Another tour followed (playing with the likes of AC/DC, Black Sabbath, Van Halen, Sammy Hagar and The Doobie Brothers), and the album's title track became a top-5 hit. Additionally, two other singles, "A Man I'll Never Be" and "Feelin' Satisfied", went top 40 and top 50, respectively. Despite the success, Scholz's relationship with Ahern completely deteriorated. Delayed by technical renovations to his studio, Scholz eventually began the process of working on Boston's third album, determined to complete the album at his own pace and up to his demanding standard.
Solo projects and CBS lawsuit (1979–1985)
In late 1979, Scholz began writing new material, but Boston's former co-manager, Paul Ahern, argued that, according to an agreement Scholz had signed years earlier with Ahern, Ahern owned a percentage of all songs Scholz wrote from that point on. Delayed further by the dispute, Scholz suggested that in the meantime the individual members should work on whatever other projects they might be considering.
Goudreau then decided to record a solo album that featured Boston members Delp and Hashian, and which was recorded with the help of Paul Grupp, an engineer and producer familiar with Scholz's studio techniques. The album, released in 1980, was titled Barry Goudreau and featured the minor hit single "Dreams". There was tension when CBS's marketing connected Goudreau's solo album to Boston's signature guitar sound, despite Scholz not having played at all on this album. Scholz objected to the ad copy, but it became irrelevant when Epic dropped promotion on Goudreau's album citing lack of interest. Goudreau left the band in 1981 and formed Orion the Hunter. Delp contributed vocals and co-wrote songs on the debut album, but returned to Boston and recorded vocals on the third Boston album.
While Scholz and Delp were recording new material for the third Boston album, CBS filed a $60 million lawsuit against Scholz, alleging breach of contract for failing to deliver a new Boston album on time.
During this same period, Scholz founded his high-tech company Scholz Research & Development (SR&D), which made amplifiers and other musical electronic equipment. Its most famous product, the Rockman amplifier, was introduced in 1982.
The legal trouble slowed progress toward the completion of the next album, which took six years to record and produce. Joining Scholz in the album's development again were Delp and Jim Masdea. In 1985, guitarist Gary Pihl left Sammy Hagar's touring band to work with Scholz as both a musician and an SR&D executive. As CBS v. Scholz played out in court, CBS opted to withhold royalty payments to Scholz, hoping to force him to settle on unfavorable terms.
The lawsuit's first round was eventually decided in Scholz's favor, and Scholz moved the band to MCA Records.
The CBS case took seven years to run its course, and in April 1990 Scholz won.
Third Stage (1986–1988)
Despite the adversity, progress continued to be made on the third Boston album. A tape of one of the songs, "Amanda", leaked out of the studio in 1984. The song became the lead single when Third Stage was finally released on September 23, 1986.
The album topped the Billboard 200 while the lead single "Amanda" went to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and the subsequent singles "We're Ready" and "Can'tcha Say" reached No. 9 and No. 20, respectively. "Cool the Engines" also got significant airplay on rock radio. The album sold over 4 million copies.
The group headed off on tour to promote Third Stage in 1987 and 1988. Third Stage was played in sequence in its entirety during the shows, with expanded arrangements of some cuts. Boston opened with "Rock and Roll Band" and brought back the original drummer, Jim Masdea, to play drums for this one song. For the tour, the group was joined by Doug Huffman and David Sikes, both of whom stayed with the band into the mid-1990s.
Departure of Delp; Walk On (1989–1996)
By spring 1990, Scholz was back in the studio working on the band's fourth studio album. Later that year, Delp told Scholz he wanted to concentrate on other projects, and might not be available for some time. With Delp's departure, Scholz was then the last remaining original member. Before he left, Delp co-wrote with Scholz and David Sikes the song "Walk On", which eventually became the title track of the new album.
Delp subsequently joined Barry Goudreau's new band, RTZ. Scholz eventually replaced him with vocalist Fran Cosmo, who had been in Goudreau's previous band Orion the Hunter.
For the second album in a row, and for the second time in a decade, Scholz's work was delayed by renovations to his studio. In the end, eight years passed between Third Stage and Walk On, which was released in June 1994. Walk On was certified platinum by the RIAA, and reached No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. Unlike Boston's previous albums, it failed to chart in the top 5. It produced one hit single, "I Need Your Love", which was widely played on some rock radio stations. Delp reunited with Boston at the end of 1994. Their first appearance was for two benefit shows at the House of Blues on December 12–13, 1994, in Cambridge. The band also handed a check of $5,000 to Globe Santa and another check of $5,000 to Operation Christmas in Fall River.
The group, with Delp now back in the band, toured in the summer of 1995 with both Cosmo and Delp combining vocals. By that time drummer Huffman had been replaced by Curly Smith, who was previously with Jo Jo Gunne. Following the conclusion of the "Livin' For You" tour in 1995, Scholz announced that a greatest hits album would be released. Initially planned for release in August 1996, the album was pushed back to a 1997 release date.
Greatest Hits and Corporate America (1997–2006)
Boston released a compilation album in 1997, titled simply Boston: Greatest Hits. The album featured all of the band's hit singles except "We're Ready", "Can'tcha Say (You Believe In Me)/Still In Love", and "I Need Your Love" along with three new songs, "Higher Power", "Tell Me", and an instrumental version of the "Star Spangled Banner". Smith and Sikes left the band in late 1997 and recorded an album together.
Scholz headed back to the studio in 1998 to begin work on a fifth album, which eventually turned out to be Corporate America. The title track of "Corporate America" was uploaded by Tom Scholz to MP3.com under the pseudonym of "Downer's Revenge" in early 2002 in order to test the album's appeal to a younger demographic. The song reached No. 2 on the progressive rock charts on the website for two weeks.
November 2002 marked the release of Corporate America on the independent label Artemis Records. This album featured the largest Boston lineup ever; returning members included Delp and Cosmo on rhythm guitar and lead vocals, Scholz on lead guitar and keyboards, and Gary Pihl on guitar, along with new members Anthony Cosmo on rhythm guitar, Jeff Neal on drums, and Kimberley Dahme on bass, acoustic guitar, and vocals. Dahme, Delp, and Cosmo all contributed lead vocals to the album. The group embarked on a national tour in support of the album in 2003 and 2004. In 2006, the first two Boston albums appeared in remastered form.
Death of Brad Delp (2007)
On March 9, 2007, lead singer Delp died by suicide at his home in Atkinson, New Hampshire. Police found him dead in his master bathroom, along with several notes for whomever would find him. In the bathroom where he died, two charcoal grills were found on the bathroom fixtures, and the door was sealed with duct tape and a towel underneath. Police called the death "untimely" and said no foul play was indicated. Delp was alone at the time of his death, according to the police report. He was found by his fiancée, who saw a dryer hose attached to his car. According to the New Hampshire medical examiner, his death was the result of suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning. Delp's last concert with Boston was performed at Boston Symphony Hall on November 13, 2006, at a concert honoring Doug Flutie.
A concert in honor of Delp named "Come Together: A Tribute to Brad Delp" occurred on August 19, 2007, at the Bank of America Pavilion in Boston. The concert included Ernie and the Automatics, Beatlejuice, Farrenheit, Extreme, Godsmack, RTZ, Orion the Hunter, and finally the current version of Boston.
All of the living members of Boston were invited to perform in the concert. The singers for Boston included Michael Sweet of Stryper, former band member Curly Smith, band member Kimberley Dahme, and a Boston fan from North Carolina named Tommy DeCarlo, who was chosen to sing based on his performances of Boston cover songs on his MySpace page.
New line-up and intermittent performances (2008–2012)
The ongoing conflicts among the surviving band members spilled over to the 2008 Presidential campaign. Barry Goudreau appeared with Mike Huckabee and played with him at some rallies in New Hampshire. Huckabee used "More Than a Feeling" as a campaign theme song. Scholz, a self-described "Obama supporter", sent an open letter to Huckabee in February 2008 stating that the band had never endorsed any candidate, and that he had never authorized the use of "More Than a Feeling" as Huckabee's theme song. Scholz made a point of saying that he, and not Goudreau or Sheehan, actually played all the guitars on "More Than a Feeling" as well as most of Boston's songs. Huckabee eventually stopped using the song for his campaign.
In the spring of 2008, Scholz and Sweet introduced a new Boston lineup, which subsequently did a North American summer tour, playing 53 dates in 12 weeks (on a double bill with Styx). Scholz was the only founding member of Boston to play on the tour, although longtime member Gary Pihl was also part of the band, and Dahme and Neal returned on bass and drums, respectively. DeCarlo and Sweet shared lead vocals.
In January 2009, Greatest Hits was re-released as a remastered disc.
Michael Sweet left the band in August 2011 in order to focus on Stryper. In 2012, guitarist and vocalist David Victor joined the band, beginning in the studio, where he contributed vocals to several tracks on the album in progress.
Scholz and Pihl led the band on a 2012 North American tour, beginning on June 28, 2012, at the Seminole Hard Rock Live arena in Hollywood, Florida and ending on September 8 at the U.S. Cellular Grandstand in Hutchinson, Kansas. Victor and DeCarlo shared lead vocals, with drummer Curly Smith returning for the first time in over a decade, and former Stryper member Tracy Ferrie on bass. Neither Dahme nor Neal played on the tour.
Life, Love & Hope (2013–2017)
Boston's sixth album, Life, Love & Hope, was released on December 3, 2013, by Frontiers Records; it includes lead vocals from Brad Delp, Tommy DeCarlo, Kimberley Dahme, David Victor, and Tom Scholz. Work on the album started in 2002. On December 11, 2013, Boston re-recorded a Christmas song, "God Rest Ye Metal Gentleman 2013" (previously released in 2002 as "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"). In 2014 Boston embarked on the "Heaven on Earth Tour" spanning the United States and Japan with a lineup including Scholz, Pihl, DeCarlo, Victor and Ferrie. Dahme returned, this time performing rhythm guitar and vocals, and drumming duties were split between Neal and Smith, with Neal handling the first leg of the tour. Victor departed the lineup partway through the tour for unspecified reasons. In his stead, Siobhan Magnus joined the tour as a guest vocalist in July, performing lead vocals on 'Walk On'.
In 2015, Boston launched another tour with a lineup consisting of Scholz, Pihl, DeCarlo, Ferrie and new member Beth Cohen, who performed keyboards, rhythm guitar and vocals. Cohen had previously recorded with the group on both Corporate America and Life, Love & Hope as a vocalist and flautist. Initially, the lineup was to include former Spock's Beard drummer and vocalist Nick D'Virgilio for its first month of shows, with Neal then returning, but D'Virgilio proved "not the right fit" and Smith rejoined in his place. This seven-person lineup proved Boston's most stable lineup in some time, touring as well in the summers of 2016 and 2017. The 2016 tour marked the group's 40th anniversary and included shows in Boston's Wang Theatre, their first full performances in their namesake town since 1994.
On March 22, 2017, former drummer Sib Hashian died after collapsing on a Legends of Rock cruise ship.
Upcoming seventh album (2017–present)
In April 2017, Scholz reported that he has been writing new material for the seventh Boston album. He told Sun Herald, "I find that I'm in a position that I really need to write things that we can play at the shows. We play basically everything that people expect to hear that we can fit into two hours. We also do a lot of things that aren't on any of the records by adding things and segues and instrumental parts, so I always have to come up with new stuff. It's quite a challenge. I have to write new things for the tour every year, which is what I wanted to do in the first place. But I got sidetracked in the studio, recording. Now, I'm actually a performing musician, and I have to tell you, it's much more fun." When asked the same month about a potential release date of the album, Scholz said, "Who knows? I'm only 70. I figure I've got 30 years."
Spaceship
One of the themes of Boston's album covers is the presence of a guitar-shaped spaceship, ostensibly a generation or colony ship carrying the city of Boston inside a clear dome, with the city's name emblazoned across the front. The original spaceship was designed in 1976 by Paula Scher and illustrated by Roger Huyssen with lettering by Gerard Huerta for Epic Records.
Appearances
Boston – Two long lines of guitar shaped starships flee a planet that is breaking apart. The ships all have blue flames coming out of the bottom.
Don't Look Back – The Boston ship is flying low or perhaps hovering over a grassy, crystalline planet. The ship has searchlights on.
Third Stage – The Boston ship is headed towards a large flat spaceship resembling a bank of pipe organ pipes over a blue planet.
Walk On – The Boston ship is shown crashing through a rock outcropping.
Greatest Hits – The Boston ship is flying low over a planet with turquoise rocks and a turquoise tower in the distance.
Corporate America – The Boston ship is flying towards Earth and the United States.
Life, Love & Hope – The Boston ship is flying in space, near a nebula.
Their spaceship also appeared on their tours in the late 1980s, early 1990s, and early 2000s in the form of a giant lighting rig and accompanied on stage by their giant pipe-organ set piece, which is known to Boston insiders as Bertha because of its sheer size.
Innovation and style
Boston's genre is considered by most to be hard rock and arena rock, while combining elements of progressive rock into its music.
Boston founder, guitarist, and primary songwriter Tom Scholz's blend of musical styles, ranging from classical to 1960s English pop, has resulted in a unique sound, most consistently realized on the first two albums (Boston and Don't Look Back). This sound is characterized by multiple lead and blended harmonies guitar work (usually harmonized in thirds), often alternating between and then mixing electric and acoustic guitars. The band's harmonic style has been characterized as being "violin-like" without using synthesizers. Scholz is well-regarded for the development of complex, multi-tracked guitar harmonies. Another contributing factor is the use of handmade, high-tech equipment, such as the Rockman, used by artists such as Journey guitarist Neal Schon, the band ZZ Top, and Ted Nugent. Def Leppard's album Hysteria was created using only Rockman technology. Scholz's production style combines deep, aggressive, comparatively short guitar riffing and nearly ethereal, generally longer note vocal harmonies. A heavier, lower, and darker overall approach came in the next two albums (Third Stage and Walk On). The original track "Higher Power", on the Greatest Hits album, exhibits a near Neue Deutsche Härte and almost techno influence with its sequencer-sounding keyboards, a sound most fully realized on Corporate America'''s title track.
Tom Scholz also credited the late Brad Delp with helping to create Boston's sound with his signature vocal style. Delp, who was strongly influenced by the Beatles, was well known for his extended vocal range, shown on hits such as "More Than a Feeling".
Band members
Current members
Tom Scholz – lead and rhythm guitar, bass, keyboards, drums, percussion, backing vocals (1976–present)
Gary Pihl – rhythm and lead guitar, keyboards, backing vocals (1985–present)
Curly Smith – drums, percussion, harmonica, backing vocals (1994–1997, 2012–present)
Jeff Neal – drums, percussion, backing vocals (2002–2012, 2014–present)
Tommy DeCarlo – lead vocals, keyboards, percussion (2007–present)
Tracy Ferrie – bass guitar, backing vocals (2012–present)
Beth Cohen – keyboards, vocals, rhythm guitar (2002, 2012, 2015–present)
Discography
Studio albumsBoston (1976)Don't Look Back (1978)Third Stage (1986)Walk On (1994)Corporate America (2002)Life, Love & Hope (2013)
Compilation albumsGreatest Hits'' (1997)
References
External links
1976 establishments in Massachusetts
Epic Records artists
Hard rock musical groups from Massachusetts
MCA Records artists
Musical groups established in 1976
Musical groups from Boston | false | [
"Andrew Butterfield (born 7 January 1972) is an English professional golfer who plays on the Challenge Tour.\n\nCareer\nButterfield was born in London, England. He turned professional in 1993 and joined the Challenge Tour in 1996. He played on the Challenge Tour until qualifying for the European Tour through Q-School in 1999. Butterfield did not perform well enough on tour in 2000 to retain his card and had to go back to the Challenge Tour in 2001. He got his European Tour card back through Q-School again in 2001 and played on the European Tour in 2002 but did not find any success on tour. He returned to the Challenge Tour and played there until 2005 when he finished 4th on the Challenge Tour's Order of Merit which earned him his European Tour card for 2006. He did not play well enough in 2006 to retain his tour card but was able to get temporary status on tour for 2007 by finishing 129th on the Order of Merit. He played on the European Tour and the Challenge Tour in 2007 and has played only on the Challenge Tour since 2008. He picked up his first win on the Challenge Tour in Sweden at The Princess in June 2009. He also won an event on the PGA EuroPro Tour in 2004.\n\nProfessional wins (2)\n\nChallenge Tour wins (1)\n\nChallenge Tour playoff record (0–1)\n\nPGA EuroPro Tour wins (1)\n2004 Matchroom Golf Management International at Owston Hall\n\nPlayoff record\nEuropean Tour playoff record (0–1)\n\nResults in major championships\n\nNote: Butterfield only played in The Open Championship.\nCUT = missed the half-way cut\n\nSee also\n2005 Challenge Tour graduates\n2009 Challenge Tour graduates\n\nExternal links\n\nEnglish male golfers\nEuropean Tour golfers\nSportspeople from London\nPeople from the London Borough of Bromley\n1972 births\nLiving people",
"The Bob Dylan England Tour 1965 was a concert tour by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan during late April and early May 1965. The tour was widely documented by filmmaker D. A. Pennebaker, who used the footage of the tour in his documentary Dont Look Back.\n\nTour dates\n\nSet lists \nAs Dylan was still playing exclusively folk music live, much of the material performed during this tour was written pre-1965. Each show was divided into two halves, with seven songs performed during the first, and eight during the second. The set consisted of two songs from The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, three from The Times They Are a-Changin', three from Another Side of Bob Dylan, a comic-relief concert staple; \"If You Gotta Go, Go Now\", issued as a single in Europe, and six songs off his then-recent album, Bringing It All Back Home, including the second side in its entirety.\n\n First half\n\"The Times They Are a-Changin'\"\n\"To Ramona\"\n\"Gates of Eden\"\n\"If You Gotta Go, Go Now (or Else You Got to Stay All Night)\"\n\"It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)\"\n\"Love Minus Zero/No Limit\"\n\"Mr. Tambourine Man\"\n\nSecond Half\n\"Talkin' World War III Blues\"\n\"Don't Think Twice, It's All Right\"\n\"With God on Our Side\"\n\"She Belongs to Me\"\n\"It Ain't Me Babe\"\n\"The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll\"\n\"All I Really Want to Do\"\n\"It's All Over Now, Baby Blue\"\n\nSet list per Olof Bjorner.\n\nAftermath \nJoan Baez accompanied him on the tour, but she was never invited to play with him in concert. In fact, they did not tour together again until 1975. After this tour, Dylan was hailed as a hero of folk music, but two months later, at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival, he would alienate his fans and go electric. Dylan was the only artist apart from the Beatles to sell out the De Montfort Hall in the 1960s. Even the Rolling Stones did not sell out this venue.\n\nReferences \n\nHoward Sounes: Down the Highway. The Life of Bob Dylan.. 2001.\n\nExternal links \n Bjorner's Still on the Road 1965: Tour dates & set lists\n\nBob Dylan concert tours\n1965 concert tours\nConcert tours of the United Kingdom\n1965 in England"
]
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[
"X (American band)",
"1982-1984: Elektra era and The Knitters"
]
| C_cadba23e981c493f89fa21cae4279179_1 | Did X release an album in 1982? | 1 | Did the American band X release an album in 1982? | X (American band) | X then signed to Elektra in 1982 to release Under the Big Black Sun, which marked a slight departure from their trademark sound. While still fast and loud, with raw punk guitars, the album displayed evolving country leanings. The album was heavily influenced by the death of Cervenka's elder sister Mirielle (Mary) in a 1980 automobile accident. Three songs on the album ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" and the title track) all directly related to the tragedy. A fourth, a high-speed version of Al Dubin and Joe Burke's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes", was, years later, indirectly attributed to Cervenka's mournful state of mind. The stark black-and-white cover art and title were also a reflection of the somber mood of the band during this time. Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album "You know, my favorite record is Under the Big Black Sun, so everything else is kind of . . . I'm saying if I had to sit down in a room and put on an X record--which I don't generally do--I have recently listened to some X records but I generally don't listen to myself--the record I would pick to listen to would be Under the Big Black Sun. In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the More Fun in the New World album, making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. With the sound moving away from punk rock, the band's rockabilly influence became even more noticeable, along with some new elements: funk on the track "True Love Pt. II", and Woody Guthrie-influenced folk protest songs like "The New World" and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound. The Knitters, a side project, were composed of X minus Zoom, plus Alvin on guitar and Johnny Ray Bartel (of the Red Devils) on double bass, and released the Poor Little Critter on the Road album in 1985. The Knitters were devoted to folk and country music; their take on Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" "may be the definitive version". CANNOTANSWER | X then signed to Elektra in 1982 to release Under the Big Black Sun, | X is an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles. The original members are vocalist Exene Cervenka, vocalist-bassist John Doe, guitarist Billy Zoom and drummer D. J. Bonebrake. The band released seven studio albums from 1980 to 1993. After a period of inactivity during the mid-to-late 1990s, X reunited in the early 2000s, and currently tours, as of 2021.
X achieved limited mainstream success but influenced various genres of music, including punk rock, Americana, and folk rock, and is considered one of the most influential bands of their era. In 2003, X's first two studio albums, Los Angeles and Wild Gift, were ranked by Rolling Stone as being among the 500 greatest albums of all time. Los Angeles was ranked 91st on Pitchforks Top 100 Albums of the 1980s.
History
1977–1979: Formation and Dangerhouse era
X was founded by bassist-singer Doe and guitarist Zoom. Doe brought his poetry-writing girlfriend Cervenka to band practices, and she eventually joined the band as a vocalist. Drummer Bonebrake was the last of the original members to join after leaving local group The Eyes; he also filled in on drums for Germs.
X's first record deal was with independent label Dangerhouse, for which the band produced one single, "Adult Books"/"We're Desperate" (1978). A Dangerhouse session version of "Los Angeles" was also featured on a 1979 Dangerhouse 12-inch EP compilation called Yes L.A. (a play on the no-wave compilation No New York), a six-song picture disc that also featured other early L.A. punk bands The Eyes, The Germs, The Bags, The Alley Cats, and Black Randy and the Metrosquad.
1980–1981: Los Angeles and Wild Gift
As the band became the flag bearer for the local scene, a larger independent label, Slash Records, signed the band. The result was their debut, Los Angeles (1980), produced by the Doors' keyboard player, Ray Manzarek. It sold well by the standards of independent labels. Much of X's early material had a rockabilly edge. Doe and Cervenka co-wrote most of the group's songs and their slightly off-kilter harmony vocals served as the group's most distinctive element. Their lyrics tended to be straight-out poetry; comparisons to Charles Bukowski and Raymond Chandler were made from the start.
Their follow-up effort, Wild Gift (1981), was similar in musical style. It featured shorter, faster songs and is arguably their most stereotypically punk-sounding record.
During 1981, both Doe and Bonebrake (along with Dave Alvin, guitarist of The Blasters) served as members of The Flesh Eaters, performing on that band's second album, A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die.
1982–1984: Elektra era and The Knitters
X signed with major label Elektra in 1982 and released Under the Big Black Sun, which marked a departure from their trademark sound. While still fast and loud, with raw punk guitars, the album displayed evolving country leanings. The album was influenced by the death of Cervenka's elder sister Mirielle in a 1980 car accident. Three songs on the album ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" and the title track) all directly relate to the tragedy. A fourth, a high-speed version of Al Dubin and Joe Burke's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes", was, years later, indirectly attributed to Cervenka's mournful state of mind. The stark black-and-white cover art and title were also a reflection of the somber mood of the band during this time. Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album.
In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the album More Fun in the New World, making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. With the sound moving away from punk rock, the band's rockabilly influence became even more noticeable, along with some new elements: funk on the track "True Love Pt. II", and Woody Guthrie-influenced folk protest songs like "The New World" and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound.
The Knitters, a side project, were composed of X minus Zoom, plus Alvin on guitar and Johnny Ray Bartel (of the Red Devils) on double bass, and released the Poor Little Critter on the Road album in 1985. The Knitters were devoted to folk and country music; their take on Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" "may be the definitive version".
1985–1987: Commercial era and departure of Zoom
Despite the overwhelmingly positive critical reception for their first four albums, the band was frustrated by its lack of wider mainstream success. Zoom had also stated that he would leave the band unless its next album was more successful. The band decided to change producers in search of a more accessible sound. Their fifth record, Ain't Love Grand!, was produced by pop metal producer Michael Wagener. It featured a drastic change in sound, especially in the polished and layered production, while the band's punk roots were little in evidence, replaced by a countrified version of hard rock. The change in production was intended to bring the band more chart success, but although it received more mainstream radio play than their earlier releases, it did not represent a commercial breakthrough. "Burning House of Love", the album's first single, was a minor hit on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart, where it peaked at #26 in September 1985. Zoom left the group shortly thereafter in 1986, the same year in which the feature-length documentary film, X: The Unheard Music, was released.
Zoom was initially replaced by Alvin, who had left the Blasters. The band then added a fifth member, guitarist Tony Gilkyson, formerly of the band Lone Justice. By the time the band released its sixth album, See How We Are, Alvin had already left the band, although he played on the record along with Gilkyson and wrote "4th of July" for the band. Like Ain't Love Grand, the album's sound was far removed from the band's punk origins, yet featured a punchy, energetic, hard-rocking roots rock sound that in many ways represented a more natural progression from their earlier sound than the previous album had. After touring for the album, X released a live album of the tour, titled Live at the Whisky a Go-Go, and then went on an extended hiatus.
Back in 1984, X had released a cover version of "Wild Thing" as a non-album single. In 1989, the song was re-released as the lead single from the soundtrack to the hit film Major League. It later became a staple at sporting events, particularly baseball games, and was used by Japanese professional wrestler Atsushi Onita after he founded Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling in 1989. The song is now used as Jon Moxley's entrance music in All Elite Wrestling.
1993–1995: First reunion, Hey Zeus! and Unclogged
X regrouped in the early 1990s to record their seventh studio album, Hey Zeus!, released in 1993 on the Big Life label. The album marked somewhat of a retreat from the increasingly roots rock direction that the band's past few records had gone in, instead featuring an eclectic alternative rock sound that fit in well with the then-current musical climate. Despite this, it failed to become a hit, although two of its songs, "Country at War" and "New Life," peaked at numbers 15 and 26 on the Billboard Modern Rock charts, respectively.
In 1994, they contributed a cover of the Richard Thompson song "Shoot Out the Lights" to a Thompson tribute album called Beat the Retreat, which featured David Hidalgo of Los Lobos on electric guitar. On the same album, Doe sang harmony and played bass and Bonebrake played drums on Bob Mould's cover of "Turning of the Tide," and Bonebrake played drums on the title track, which was performed by the British folk artist June Tabor.
The band released an acoustic live album, Unclogged, in 1995 on Infidelity Records.
1997–2004: Hiatus and second reunion
In 1997, X released a compilation called Beyond and Back: The X Anthology, which focused heavily on the early years with Zoom and included a number of previously unreleased versions of songs that had appeared on their previous albums. At the same time, they also announced that they were disbanding. However, they did a farewell tour to promote the compilation in 1998, with Zoom returning on guitar. The original lineup also returned to the studio for the final time, with Manzarek reprising his role as producer, to record a cover of the Doors' "The Crystal Ship" for the soundtrack for The X-Files: Fight the Future.
X: The Unheard Music was released on DVD in 2005, as was the concert DVD X – Live in Los Angeles, which commemorated the 25th anniversary of the band's landmark debut album, Los Angeles.
2005–2007: Reunion of The Knitters
In 2005, Doe, Cervenka and Bonebrake reunited with Alvin and Bartel to release a second Knitters album, 20 years after the first, titled The Modern Sounds of the Knitters. In summer 2006, X toured North America on the "As the World Burns" tour with the Rollins Band and the Riverboat Gamblers. In the spring of 2008, the band, with all original members, embarked on their "13X31" tour with Skybombers and the Detroit Cobras. "13X31" was a reference to their 31st anniversary.
2008–present: Touring and first album in 27 years
From 2004 onward, X have continued to perform frequently around North America.
X appeared at the 2008 SXSW Festival (with footage of their performance made viewable on Crackle); the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 19, 2009; and the All Tomorrow's Parties festival in Minehead, England from May 15–17, 2009. They were invited to perform at the latter by the festival's curators, the Breeders.
In June 2009, the band publicly announced that Cervenka had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. However, she told the Orange County Register in 2011 that the doctor who originally diagnosed the disease believes he misdiagnosed her. Cervenka stated, "I've had so many doctors tell me I have MS, then some say I don't ... I don't even care anymore".
In June 2010, X played a free show at the North by Northeast festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and headlined the third annual Roadshow Revival, a Johnny Cash tribute festival in Ventura, California. X performed at The Voodoo Experience 2011, held at City Park in New Orleans, Louisiana, on October 28–30, 2011. The band also opened for Pearl Jam on their 2011 South and Central American tour in November and their European tour in June and July 2012.
On September 2, 2012, X performed at the Budweiser Made in America Festival in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
In July 2015, Zoom took a performing break to undergo treatment for bladder cancer, returning in November 2015.
On March 4, 2016, X appeared on the episode "Show Me a Hero" of Adult Swim show Childrens Hospital. On October 13, 2017, the Grammy Museum at L.A. Live opened a new exhibit titled "X: 40 Years of Punk in Los Angeles", to run through February 25, 2018.
In 2017, Cervenka announced that X had added Craig Packham of the Palominos to fill in on drums and rhythm guitar, because Bonebrake and Zoom were now playing vibes and saxophone, respectively.
In 2018, the band released X – Live in Latin America via a Kickstarter campaign, to coincide with their 40th anniversary. The album was recorded during a 2011 tour where X was the opening band for Pearl Jam. Pearl Jam's sound engineer made the recordings, and presented them to X at the end of the tour. The album was produced by Rob Schnapf, and featured the four original members of X.
In early 2019 Fat Possum Records released two new X songs as a single, followed by the "genuinely good" (per BrooklynVegan) new album Alphabetland on April 22, 2020, On February 9, 2021, Fat Possum released Xtras: two more tracks from the same recording sessions, one being an alternate version. Robby Krieger, of the Doors, played slide guitar on one track each of Alphabetland and of Xtras.
Members
Discography
EPs
2009 – Merry Xmas from X
Live albums
1988 – Live at the Whisky a Go-Go
1995 – Unclogged
2005 – X – Live in Los Angeles #175 US Billboard Top 200
2018 – X – Live in Latin America (Kickstarter special album)
Compilations
1997 – Beyond and Back: The X Anthology
2004 – The Best: Make the Music Go Bang!
Filmography
1981 – The Decline of Western Civilization
1981 – Urgh! A Music War
1986 – X The Unheard Music
2003 – Mayor of the Sunset Strip
2005 – X – Live in Los Angeles
2016 – Childrens Hospital
References
Further reading
External links
Punk rock groups from California
Musical groups from Los Angeles
Musical groups established in 1977
Musical quartets
1977 establishments in California
Slash Records artists
Dangerhouse Records artists
Elektra Records artists
Big Life artists
Rock music groups from California
Female-fronted musical groups | false | [
"Music is the fifth studio album by American ambient post-rock band, Windsor Airlift. It was released on September 23, 2013.\n\nBackground\nIn August 2013, Windsor Airlift started a kickstarter for their up-and-coming album Music. Around this time, they also announced that they would be having an album art contest for the album. After approximately 220 entries came in, the band announced the winner on September 6, 2013. The kickstarter was also a success and the band was able to release a quantity of physical copies for the release which are currently still available.\n\nOn October 13, 2013, the Johnson brothers did an interview with Flux9.com about the release and Windsor Airlift in general.\n\nTrack listing\n\n\"Music Through the Window\" performed by Emily Johnson\n\nMusic videos\n\nNotes and miscellanea\nThe song \"Silhouette Harbor\" was originally intended to be on the album Moonfish Parachutist 2. However, this album has yet to come to fruition. The release of Music encouraged the band to place it on this album instead.\nAs an added bonus to the success of the kickstarter, Windsor Airlift released The Adventures of Flames Pond in its entirety to YouTube.\n\nReferences\n\n2013 albums\nWindsor Airlift albums",
"Snacks (Supersize) is the debut album by British DJ and record producer Jax Jones, released on 6 September 2019 through Polydor Records. The album expands on his previous release, his 2018 EP Snacks as part of an experimental release strategy that involved new singles being added to the EP as they were released before the addition of six new songs for the release of the full album. In the weeks preceding the release, a brand new collaboration with Tove Lo titled \"Jacques\" was released as the lead single whilst the Ella Henderson collaboration \"This Is Real\" was promoted during the week of release. It was released as the album's second single on 21 October 2019.\n\nBackground\nSnacks was originally released in November 2018 as an EP of 5 songs Jones had already released. Between the EP's release and July 2019, a number of other singles were added to the EP expanding it to 9 songs. The Head of Marketing at Polydor Records, Stephen Hallowes, noted during an interview with Music Week that this was all part of their release strategy to \"reimagine the album as an ever-evolving playlist that would update on an on-going basis and eventually culminate in a full album release with extra songs\".\n\nHallows further explained the \"main purpose was to create one destination for fans to listen to all of Jax’s hits, but it also enabled us to start building an album story with [Jones] over time, which felt like a good strategy for an artist much stronger in the singles market than albums.\" Jones told the Official Charts Company that he did not anticipate releasing an album, he said \"because I don’t sing my music, some people might only be a fan of one or two of my songs\". Jones said that it is \"so exciting to have an album with all my hits and new songs in one place [...] when you work with the names I did on the album, it makes you bring your A-game\". He further explained that his second single, 2016's \"You Don't Know Me\" featuring Raye, \"defined my sound and now I'm so happy to say the record is done\".\n\nJones' own vocals appear on the song \"All 4 You\" and there might be plans to continue releasing new songs as part of Snacks including a song with singer Raye, who already features on the single \"You Don't Know Me\".\n\nCritical reception\n\nNarzra Ahmed from Clash praised the album for containing many hit songs, writing: \"Jones has put together an impressive collection of insanely catchy songs. It's not easy to come by an album which contains hit after hit like this does. It is a joy to listen to.\"\n\nPromotion\nDuring its week of release, Snacks (Supersize) was promoted with the song \"This is Real\" featuring fellow British singer-songwriter Ella Henderson. In support of the album, Jones also launched his own Snacks-themed comedy game show on YouTube.\n\nJones announced he would be touring in 2020, with the tour to include pyrotechnics, dancers and inflatables. Dates include:\n\nTrack listing\n\nNotes\n signifies a co-producer.\n signifies an additional producer.\n \"100 Times\" features un-credited vocals from MNEK.\n \"Cruel\" features un-credited vocals from Madison Love.\n \"All 4 U\" features un-credited vocals from Boy Matthews and Robert Harvey.\n\nCharts\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\n\n2019 debut albums\nJax Jones albums\nPolydor Records albums"
]
|
[
"X (American band)",
"1982-1984: Elektra era and The Knitters",
"Did X release an album in 1982?",
"X then signed to Elektra in 1982 to release Under the Big Black Sun,"
]
| C_cadba23e981c493f89fa21cae4279179_1 | Was "Under the Big Black Sun" a successful album? | 2 | Was "Under the Big Black Sun" by the American band X a successful album? | X (American band) | X then signed to Elektra in 1982 to release Under the Big Black Sun, which marked a slight departure from their trademark sound. While still fast and loud, with raw punk guitars, the album displayed evolving country leanings. The album was heavily influenced by the death of Cervenka's elder sister Mirielle (Mary) in a 1980 automobile accident. Three songs on the album ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" and the title track) all directly related to the tragedy. A fourth, a high-speed version of Al Dubin and Joe Burke's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes", was, years later, indirectly attributed to Cervenka's mournful state of mind. The stark black-and-white cover art and title were also a reflection of the somber mood of the band during this time. Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album "You know, my favorite record is Under the Big Black Sun, so everything else is kind of . . . I'm saying if I had to sit down in a room and put on an X record--which I don't generally do--I have recently listened to some X records but I generally don't listen to myself--the record I would pick to listen to would be Under the Big Black Sun. In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the More Fun in the New World album, making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. With the sound moving away from punk rock, the band's rockabilly influence became even more noticeable, along with some new elements: funk on the track "True Love Pt. II", and Woody Guthrie-influenced folk protest songs like "The New World" and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound. The Knitters, a side project, were composed of X minus Zoom, plus Alvin on guitar and Johnny Ray Bartel (of the Red Devils) on double bass, and released the Poor Little Critter on the Road album in 1985. The Knitters were devoted to folk and country music; their take on Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" "may be the definitive version". CANNOTANSWER | Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album | X is an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles. The original members are vocalist Exene Cervenka, vocalist-bassist John Doe, guitarist Billy Zoom and drummer D. J. Bonebrake. The band released seven studio albums from 1980 to 1993. After a period of inactivity during the mid-to-late 1990s, X reunited in the early 2000s, and currently tours, as of 2021.
X achieved limited mainstream success but influenced various genres of music, including punk rock, Americana, and folk rock, and is considered one of the most influential bands of their era. In 2003, X's first two studio albums, Los Angeles and Wild Gift, were ranked by Rolling Stone as being among the 500 greatest albums of all time. Los Angeles was ranked 91st on Pitchforks Top 100 Albums of the 1980s.
History
1977–1979: Formation and Dangerhouse era
X was founded by bassist-singer Doe and guitarist Zoom. Doe brought his poetry-writing girlfriend Cervenka to band practices, and she eventually joined the band as a vocalist. Drummer Bonebrake was the last of the original members to join after leaving local group The Eyes; he also filled in on drums for Germs.
X's first record deal was with independent label Dangerhouse, for which the band produced one single, "Adult Books"/"We're Desperate" (1978). A Dangerhouse session version of "Los Angeles" was also featured on a 1979 Dangerhouse 12-inch EP compilation called Yes L.A. (a play on the no-wave compilation No New York), a six-song picture disc that also featured other early L.A. punk bands The Eyes, The Germs, The Bags, The Alley Cats, and Black Randy and the Metrosquad.
1980–1981: Los Angeles and Wild Gift
As the band became the flag bearer for the local scene, a larger independent label, Slash Records, signed the band. The result was their debut, Los Angeles (1980), produced by the Doors' keyboard player, Ray Manzarek. It sold well by the standards of independent labels. Much of X's early material had a rockabilly edge. Doe and Cervenka co-wrote most of the group's songs and their slightly off-kilter harmony vocals served as the group's most distinctive element. Their lyrics tended to be straight-out poetry; comparisons to Charles Bukowski and Raymond Chandler were made from the start.
Their follow-up effort, Wild Gift (1981), was similar in musical style. It featured shorter, faster songs and is arguably their most stereotypically punk-sounding record.
During 1981, both Doe and Bonebrake (along with Dave Alvin, guitarist of The Blasters) served as members of The Flesh Eaters, performing on that band's second album, A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die.
1982–1984: Elektra era and The Knitters
X signed with major label Elektra in 1982 and released Under the Big Black Sun, which marked a departure from their trademark sound. While still fast and loud, with raw punk guitars, the album displayed evolving country leanings. The album was influenced by the death of Cervenka's elder sister Mirielle in a 1980 car accident. Three songs on the album ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" and the title track) all directly relate to the tragedy. A fourth, a high-speed version of Al Dubin and Joe Burke's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes", was, years later, indirectly attributed to Cervenka's mournful state of mind. The stark black-and-white cover art and title were also a reflection of the somber mood of the band during this time. Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album.
In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the album More Fun in the New World, making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. With the sound moving away from punk rock, the band's rockabilly influence became even more noticeable, along with some new elements: funk on the track "True Love Pt. II", and Woody Guthrie-influenced folk protest songs like "The New World" and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound.
The Knitters, a side project, were composed of X minus Zoom, plus Alvin on guitar and Johnny Ray Bartel (of the Red Devils) on double bass, and released the Poor Little Critter on the Road album in 1985. The Knitters were devoted to folk and country music; their take on Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" "may be the definitive version".
1985–1987: Commercial era and departure of Zoom
Despite the overwhelmingly positive critical reception for their first four albums, the band was frustrated by its lack of wider mainstream success. Zoom had also stated that he would leave the band unless its next album was more successful. The band decided to change producers in search of a more accessible sound. Their fifth record, Ain't Love Grand!, was produced by pop metal producer Michael Wagener. It featured a drastic change in sound, especially in the polished and layered production, while the band's punk roots were little in evidence, replaced by a countrified version of hard rock. The change in production was intended to bring the band more chart success, but although it received more mainstream radio play than their earlier releases, it did not represent a commercial breakthrough. "Burning House of Love", the album's first single, was a minor hit on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart, where it peaked at #26 in September 1985. Zoom left the group shortly thereafter in 1986, the same year in which the feature-length documentary film, X: The Unheard Music, was released.
Zoom was initially replaced by Alvin, who had left the Blasters. The band then added a fifth member, guitarist Tony Gilkyson, formerly of the band Lone Justice. By the time the band released its sixth album, See How We Are, Alvin had already left the band, although he played on the record along with Gilkyson and wrote "4th of July" for the band. Like Ain't Love Grand, the album's sound was far removed from the band's punk origins, yet featured a punchy, energetic, hard-rocking roots rock sound that in many ways represented a more natural progression from their earlier sound than the previous album had. After touring for the album, X released a live album of the tour, titled Live at the Whisky a Go-Go, and then went on an extended hiatus.
Back in 1984, X had released a cover version of "Wild Thing" as a non-album single. In 1989, the song was re-released as the lead single from the soundtrack to the hit film Major League. It later became a staple at sporting events, particularly baseball games, and was used by Japanese professional wrestler Atsushi Onita after he founded Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling in 1989. The song is now used as Jon Moxley's entrance music in All Elite Wrestling.
1993–1995: First reunion, Hey Zeus! and Unclogged
X regrouped in the early 1990s to record their seventh studio album, Hey Zeus!, released in 1993 on the Big Life label. The album marked somewhat of a retreat from the increasingly roots rock direction that the band's past few records had gone in, instead featuring an eclectic alternative rock sound that fit in well with the then-current musical climate. Despite this, it failed to become a hit, although two of its songs, "Country at War" and "New Life," peaked at numbers 15 and 26 on the Billboard Modern Rock charts, respectively.
In 1994, they contributed a cover of the Richard Thompson song "Shoot Out the Lights" to a Thompson tribute album called Beat the Retreat, which featured David Hidalgo of Los Lobos on electric guitar. On the same album, Doe sang harmony and played bass and Bonebrake played drums on Bob Mould's cover of "Turning of the Tide," and Bonebrake played drums on the title track, which was performed by the British folk artist June Tabor.
The band released an acoustic live album, Unclogged, in 1995 on Infidelity Records.
1997–2004: Hiatus and second reunion
In 1997, X released a compilation called Beyond and Back: The X Anthology, which focused heavily on the early years with Zoom and included a number of previously unreleased versions of songs that had appeared on their previous albums. At the same time, they also announced that they were disbanding. However, they did a farewell tour to promote the compilation in 1998, with Zoom returning on guitar. The original lineup also returned to the studio for the final time, with Manzarek reprising his role as producer, to record a cover of the Doors' "The Crystal Ship" for the soundtrack for The X-Files: Fight the Future.
X: The Unheard Music was released on DVD in 2005, as was the concert DVD X – Live in Los Angeles, which commemorated the 25th anniversary of the band's landmark debut album, Los Angeles.
2005–2007: Reunion of The Knitters
In 2005, Doe, Cervenka and Bonebrake reunited with Alvin and Bartel to release a second Knitters album, 20 years after the first, titled The Modern Sounds of the Knitters. In summer 2006, X toured North America on the "As the World Burns" tour with the Rollins Band and the Riverboat Gamblers. In the spring of 2008, the band, with all original members, embarked on their "13X31" tour with Skybombers and the Detroit Cobras. "13X31" was a reference to their 31st anniversary.
2008–present: Touring and first album in 27 years
From 2004 onward, X have continued to perform frequently around North America.
X appeared at the 2008 SXSW Festival (with footage of their performance made viewable on Crackle); the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 19, 2009; and the All Tomorrow's Parties festival in Minehead, England from May 15–17, 2009. They were invited to perform at the latter by the festival's curators, the Breeders.
In June 2009, the band publicly announced that Cervenka had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. However, she told the Orange County Register in 2011 that the doctor who originally diagnosed the disease believes he misdiagnosed her. Cervenka stated, "I've had so many doctors tell me I have MS, then some say I don't ... I don't even care anymore".
In June 2010, X played a free show at the North by Northeast festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and headlined the third annual Roadshow Revival, a Johnny Cash tribute festival in Ventura, California. X performed at The Voodoo Experience 2011, held at City Park in New Orleans, Louisiana, on October 28–30, 2011. The band also opened for Pearl Jam on their 2011 South and Central American tour in November and their European tour in June and July 2012.
On September 2, 2012, X performed at the Budweiser Made in America Festival in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
In July 2015, Zoom took a performing break to undergo treatment for bladder cancer, returning in November 2015.
On March 4, 2016, X appeared on the episode "Show Me a Hero" of Adult Swim show Childrens Hospital. On October 13, 2017, the Grammy Museum at L.A. Live opened a new exhibit titled "X: 40 Years of Punk in Los Angeles", to run through February 25, 2018.
In 2017, Cervenka announced that X had added Craig Packham of the Palominos to fill in on drums and rhythm guitar, because Bonebrake and Zoom were now playing vibes and saxophone, respectively.
In 2018, the band released X – Live in Latin America via a Kickstarter campaign, to coincide with their 40th anniversary. The album was recorded during a 2011 tour where X was the opening band for Pearl Jam. Pearl Jam's sound engineer made the recordings, and presented them to X at the end of the tour. The album was produced by Rob Schnapf, and featured the four original members of X.
In early 2019 Fat Possum Records released two new X songs as a single, followed by the "genuinely good" (per BrooklynVegan) new album Alphabetland on April 22, 2020, On February 9, 2021, Fat Possum released Xtras: two more tracks from the same recording sessions, one being an alternate version. Robby Krieger, of the Doors, played slide guitar on one track each of Alphabetland and of Xtras.
Members
Discography
EPs
2009 – Merry Xmas from X
Live albums
1988 – Live at the Whisky a Go-Go
1995 – Unclogged
2005 – X – Live in Los Angeles #175 US Billboard Top 200
2018 – X – Live in Latin America (Kickstarter special album)
Compilations
1997 – Beyond and Back: The X Anthology
2004 – The Best: Make the Music Go Bang!
Filmography
1981 – The Decline of Western Civilization
1981 – Urgh! A Music War
1986 – X The Unheard Music
2003 – Mayor of the Sunset Strip
2005 – X – Live in Los Angeles
2016 – Childrens Hospital
References
Further reading
External links
Punk rock groups from California
Musical groups from Los Angeles
Musical groups established in 1977
Musical quartets
1977 establishments in California
Slash Records artists
Dangerhouse Records artists
Elektra Records artists
Big Life artists
Rock music groups from California
Female-fronted musical groups | true | [
"\"Go Go Go (Down the Line)\" (often credited as \"Down the Line\") is a song by Roy Orbison, released in 1956. According to the authorised biography of Roy Orbison, this was the B-side to Orbison's first Sun Records release \"Ooby Dooby\". This was the first song written by Orbison.\n\nBackground \nThe song was released as a Sun Records single in May, 1956, Sun 242, Matrix # U-193, as the B side to \"Ooby Dooby\" with the backup group The Teen Kings.\n\nThe song was later released under the title \"Down the Line\" by Jerry Lee Lewis and Ricky Nelson. Sam Phillips, the owner and founder of Sun Records, bought out Orbison's songs on Sun Records and placed his name on the songwriting credits although Orbison was the actual songwriter. The song was re-recorded by Orbison with the Art Movement in 1969, for the album The Big O released in 1970, and was called \"Down the Line\".\n\nCovers \nJerry Lee Lewis released the song as a Sun single (Sun 288) in February, 1958 backed with \"Breathless.\" \"Down the Line\" reached no. 51 on the Billboard pop singles chart.\n\nJerry Lee Lewis also released a version on the 1973 Mercury Records album The Session...Recorded in London with Great Artists.\n\nIt has been covered by The Del-Tinos in 1963, Mickey Gilley in 1964, The Hollies in 1965, Cliff Richard and the Drifters in 1959, Billy Fury and Peter Case in 1993. Ricky Nelson recorded a version of the song for his 1958 album, Ricky Nelson. A version by Johnny Cash appears on Unearthed.\n\nOrbison performed the song on his Cinemax cable concert special Roy Orbison and Friends, A Black and White Night in 1988 featuring an all-star cast of guest musicians, including Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Costello, James Burton, and T Bone Burnett. The song also appeared on the album from the special A Black & White Night Live released in 1989.\n\nReferences\n\n1956 singles\nSongs written by Roy Orbison\nRoy Orbison songs\nBuddy Holly songs\nThe Hollies songs\nCliff Richard songs\nRicky Nelson songs\nJohnny Cash songs\nJerry Lee Lewis songs\nSong recordings produced by Sam Phillips\nRockabilly songs\nSun Records singles\n1956 songs",
"\"Broken Hearted Savior\" is the most successful song by American rock band Big Head Todd & the Monsters. It was released as the second single from their major label debut album Sister Sweetly in 1993, reaching number nine on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart. A black and white music video was made featuring the band playing the song in a basement.\n\n\"Broken Hearted Savior\" was featured on the soundtrack to the 2006 motion picture Southland Tales.\n\n1993 songs\n1993 singles\nBig Head Todd and the Monsters songs\nGiant Records (Warner) singles"
]
|
[
"X (American band)",
"1982-1984: Elektra era and The Knitters",
"Did X release an album in 1982?",
"X then signed to Elektra in 1982 to release Under the Big Black Sun,",
"Was \"Under the Big Black Sun\" a successful album?",
"Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album"
]
| C_cadba23e981c493f89fa21cae4279179_1 | What reviews did their "Under the Big Black Sun" album get? | 3 | What reviews did the "Under the Big Black Sun" album by the American band X get? | X (American band) | X then signed to Elektra in 1982 to release Under the Big Black Sun, which marked a slight departure from their trademark sound. While still fast and loud, with raw punk guitars, the album displayed evolving country leanings. The album was heavily influenced by the death of Cervenka's elder sister Mirielle (Mary) in a 1980 automobile accident. Three songs on the album ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" and the title track) all directly related to the tragedy. A fourth, a high-speed version of Al Dubin and Joe Burke's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes", was, years later, indirectly attributed to Cervenka's mournful state of mind. The stark black-and-white cover art and title were also a reflection of the somber mood of the band during this time. Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album "You know, my favorite record is Under the Big Black Sun, so everything else is kind of . . . I'm saying if I had to sit down in a room and put on an X record--which I don't generally do--I have recently listened to some X records but I generally don't listen to myself--the record I would pick to listen to would be Under the Big Black Sun. In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the More Fun in the New World album, making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. With the sound moving away from punk rock, the band's rockabilly influence became even more noticeable, along with some new elements: funk on the track "True Love Pt. II", and Woody Guthrie-influenced folk protest songs like "The New World" and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound. The Knitters, a side project, were composed of X minus Zoom, plus Alvin on guitar and Johnny Ray Bartel (of the Red Devils) on double bass, and released the Poor Little Critter on the Road album in 1985. The Knitters were devoted to folk and country music; their take on Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" "may be the definitive version". CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | X is an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles. The original members are vocalist Exene Cervenka, vocalist-bassist John Doe, guitarist Billy Zoom and drummer D. J. Bonebrake. The band released seven studio albums from 1980 to 1993. After a period of inactivity during the mid-to-late 1990s, X reunited in the early 2000s, and currently tours, as of 2021.
X achieved limited mainstream success but influenced various genres of music, including punk rock, Americana, and folk rock, and is considered one of the most influential bands of their era. In 2003, X's first two studio albums, Los Angeles and Wild Gift, were ranked by Rolling Stone as being among the 500 greatest albums of all time. Los Angeles was ranked 91st on Pitchforks Top 100 Albums of the 1980s.
History
1977–1979: Formation and Dangerhouse era
X was founded by bassist-singer Doe and guitarist Zoom. Doe brought his poetry-writing girlfriend Cervenka to band practices, and she eventually joined the band as a vocalist. Drummer Bonebrake was the last of the original members to join after leaving local group The Eyes; he also filled in on drums for Germs.
X's first record deal was with independent label Dangerhouse, for which the band produced one single, "Adult Books"/"We're Desperate" (1978). A Dangerhouse session version of "Los Angeles" was also featured on a 1979 Dangerhouse 12-inch EP compilation called Yes L.A. (a play on the no-wave compilation No New York), a six-song picture disc that also featured other early L.A. punk bands The Eyes, The Germs, The Bags, The Alley Cats, and Black Randy and the Metrosquad.
1980–1981: Los Angeles and Wild Gift
As the band became the flag bearer for the local scene, a larger independent label, Slash Records, signed the band. The result was their debut, Los Angeles (1980), produced by the Doors' keyboard player, Ray Manzarek. It sold well by the standards of independent labels. Much of X's early material had a rockabilly edge. Doe and Cervenka co-wrote most of the group's songs and their slightly off-kilter harmony vocals served as the group's most distinctive element. Their lyrics tended to be straight-out poetry; comparisons to Charles Bukowski and Raymond Chandler were made from the start.
Their follow-up effort, Wild Gift (1981), was similar in musical style. It featured shorter, faster songs and is arguably their most stereotypically punk-sounding record.
During 1981, both Doe and Bonebrake (along with Dave Alvin, guitarist of The Blasters) served as members of The Flesh Eaters, performing on that band's second album, A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die.
1982–1984: Elektra era and The Knitters
X signed with major label Elektra in 1982 and released Under the Big Black Sun, which marked a departure from their trademark sound. While still fast and loud, with raw punk guitars, the album displayed evolving country leanings. The album was influenced by the death of Cervenka's elder sister Mirielle in a 1980 car accident. Three songs on the album ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" and the title track) all directly relate to the tragedy. A fourth, a high-speed version of Al Dubin and Joe Burke's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes", was, years later, indirectly attributed to Cervenka's mournful state of mind. The stark black-and-white cover art and title were also a reflection of the somber mood of the band during this time. Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album.
In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the album More Fun in the New World, making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. With the sound moving away from punk rock, the band's rockabilly influence became even more noticeable, along with some new elements: funk on the track "True Love Pt. II", and Woody Guthrie-influenced folk protest songs like "The New World" and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound.
The Knitters, a side project, were composed of X minus Zoom, plus Alvin on guitar and Johnny Ray Bartel (of the Red Devils) on double bass, and released the Poor Little Critter on the Road album in 1985. The Knitters were devoted to folk and country music; their take on Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" "may be the definitive version".
1985–1987: Commercial era and departure of Zoom
Despite the overwhelmingly positive critical reception for their first four albums, the band was frustrated by its lack of wider mainstream success. Zoom had also stated that he would leave the band unless its next album was more successful. The band decided to change producers in search of a more accessible sound. Their fifth record, Ain't Love Grand!, was produced by pop metal producer Michael Wagener. It featured a drastic change in sound, especially in the polished and layered production, while the band's punk roots were little in evidence, replaced by a countrified version of hard rock. The change in production was intended to bring the band more chart success, but although it received more mainstream radio play than their earlier releases, it did not represent a commercial breakthrough. "Burning House of Love", the album's first single, was a minor hit on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart, where it peaked at #26 in September 1985. Zoom left the group shortly thereafter in 1986, the same year in which the feature-length documentary film, X: The Unheard Music, was released.
Zoom was initially replaced by Alvin, who had left the Blasters. The band then added a fifth member, guitarist Tony Gilkyson, formerly of the band Lone Justice. By the time the band released its sixth album, See How We Are, Alvin had already left the band, although he played on the record along with Gilkyson and wrote "4th of July" for the band. Like Ain't Love Grand, the album's sound was far removed from the band's punk origins, yet featured a punchy, energetic, hard-rocking roots rock sound that in many ways represented a more natural progression from their earlier sound than the previous album had. After touring for the album, X released a live album of the tour, titled Live at the Whisky a Go-Go, and then went on an extended hiatus.
Back in 1984, X had released a cover version of "Wild Thing" as a non-album single. In 1989, the song was re-released as the lead single from the soundtrack to the hit film Major League. It later became a staple at sporting events, particularly baseball games, and was used by Japanese professional wrestler Atsushi Onita after he founded Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling in 1989. The song is now used as Jon Moxley's entrance music in All Elite Wrestling.
1993–1995: First reunion, Hey Zeus! and Unclogged
X regrouped in the early 1990s to record their seventh studio album, Hey Zeus!, released in 1993 on the Big Life label. The album marked somewhat of a retreat from the increasingly roots rock direction that the band's past few records had gone in, instead featuring an eclectic alternative rock sound that fit in well with the then-current musical climate. Despite this, it failed to become a hit, although two of its songs, "Country at War" and "New Life," peaked at numbers 15 and 26 on the Billboard Modern Rock charts, respectively.
In 1994, they contributed a cover of the Richard Thompson song "Shoot Out the Lights" to a Thompson tribute album called Beat the Retreat, which featured David Hidalgo of Los Lobos on electric guitar. On the same album, Doe sang harmony and played bass and Bonebrake played drums on Bob Mould's cover of "Turning of the Tide," and Bonebrake played drums on the title track, which was performed by the British folk artist June Tabor.
The band released an acoustic live album, Unclogged, in 1995 on Infidelity Records.
1997–2004: Hiatus and second reunion
In 1997, X released a compilation called Beyond and Back: The X Anthology, which focused heavily on the early years with Zoom and included a number of previously unreleased versions of songs that had appeared on their previous albums. At the same time, they also announced that they were disbanding. However, they did a farewell tour to promote the compilation in 1998, with Zoom returning on guitar. The original lineup also returned to the studio for the final time, with Manzarek reprising his role as producer, to record a cover of the Doors' "The Crystal Ship" for the soundtrack for The X-Files: Fight the Future.
X: The Unheard Music was released on DVD in 2005, as was the concert DVD X – Live in Los Angeles, which commemorated the 25th anniversary of the band's landmark debut album, Los Angeles.
2005–2007: Reunion of The Knitters
In 2005, Doe, Cervenka and Bonebrake reunited with Alvin and Bartel to release a second Knitters album, 20 years after the first, titled The Modern Sounds of the Knitters. In summer 2006, X toured North America on the "As the World Burns" tour with the Rollins Band and the Riverboat Gamblers. In the spring of 2008, the band, with all original members, embarked on their "13X31" tour with Skybombers and the Detroit Cobras. "13X31" was a reference to their 31st anniversary.
2008–present: Touring and first album in 27 years
From 2004 onward, X have continued to perform frequently around North America.
X appeared at the 2008 SXSW Festival (with footage of their performance made viewable on Crackle); the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 19, 2009; and the All Tomorrow's Parties festival in Minehead, England from May 15–17, 2009. They were invited to perform at the latter by the festival's curators, the Breeders.
In June 2009, the band publicly announced that Cervenka had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. However, she told the Orange County Register in 2011 that the doctor who originally diagnosed the disease believes he misdiagnosed her. Cervenka stated, "I've had so many doctors tell me I have MS, then some say I don't ... I don't even care anymore".
In June 2010, X played a free show at the North by Northeast festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and headlined the third annual Roadshow Revival, a Johnny Cash tribute festival in Ventura, California. X performed at The Voodoo Experience 2011, held at City Park in New Orleans, Louisiana, on October 28–30, 2011. The band also opened for Pearl Jam on their 2011 South and Central American tour in November and their European tour in June and July 2012.
On September 2, 2012, X performed at the Budweiser Made in America Festival in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
In July 2015, Zoom took a performing break to undergo treatment for bladder cancer, returning in November 2015.
On March 4, 2016, X appeared on the episode "Show Me a Hero" of Adult Swim show Childrens Hospital. On October 13, 2017, the Grammy Museum at L.A. Live opened a new exhibit titled "X: 40 Years of Punk in Los Angeles", to run through February 25, 2018.
In 2017, Cervenka announced that X had added Craig Packham of the Palominos to fill in on drums and rhythm guitar, because Bonebrake and Zoom were now playing vibes and saxophone, respectively.
In 2018, the band released X – Live in Latin America via a Kickstarter campaign, to coincide with their 40th anniversary. The album was recorded during a 2011 tour where X was the opening band for Pearl Jam. Pearl Jam's sound engineer made the recordings, and presented them to X at the end of the tour. The album was produced by Rob Schnapf, and featured the four original members of X.
In early 2019 Fat Possum Records released two new X songs as a single, followed by the "genuinely good" (per BrooklynVegan) new album Alphabetland on April 22, 2020, On February 9, 2021, Fat Possum released Xtras: two more tracks from the same recording sessions, one being an alternate version. Robby Krieger, of the Doors, played slide guitar on one track each of Alphabetland and of Xtras.
Members
Discography
EPs
2009 – Merry Xmas from X
Live albums
1988 – Live at the Whisky a Go-Go
1995 – Unclogged
2005 – X – Live in Los Angeles #175 US Billboard Top 200
2018 – X – Live in Latin America (Kickstarter special album)
Compilations
1997 – Beyond and Back: The X Anthology
2004 – The Best: Make the Music Go Bang!
Filmography
1981 – The Decline of Western Civilization
1981 – Urgh! A Music War
1986 – X The Unheard Music
2003 – Mayor of the Sunset Strip
2005 – X – Live in Los Angeles
2016 – Childrens Hospital
References
Further reading
External links
Punk rock groups from California
Musical groups from Los Angeles
Musical groups established in 1977
Musical quartets
1977 establishments in California
Slash Records artists
Dangerhouse Records artists
Elektra Records artists
Big Life artists
Rock music groups from California
Female-fronted musical groups | false | [
"All the Way to the Sun is the ninth studio album by the Norwegian hard rock band TNT. The album was first rumoured to be on the heavy side of TNT, but came out in the end as a more straight forward pop rock album. It did not get as many positive reviews as My Religion but was still regarded as a fairly good TNT album. It also sold less than the previous album. The band toured Norway to support the release as well as shows in Sweden, the UK and in Spain where they recorded what became Live in Madrid before Tony Harnell left the band for professional and personal reasons. \"Driving\" has been played before several major car races in the USA.\n\nTrack listing\n \"A Fix\" - 4:04\n \"Too Late\" - 3:46\n \"Driving\" - 4:05\n \"Me and I\" - 3:43\n \"Sometimes\" - 4:09\n \"All the Way to the Sun\" - 5:04\n \"What a Wonderful World\" - 3:04\n \"The Letter\" - 4:02\n \"Mastic Pines\" - 1:25\n \"Black Butterfly\" - 2:59\n \"Save Your Love\" - 3:58\n \"Ready To Fly\" - 4:36\n \"Get What You Give\" - 4:36 (Japanese Bonus Track)\n\nPersonnel\n\nBand \nTony Harnell – vocals\nRonni Le Tekrø – guitars, backing vocals on \"Save Your Love\"\nDiesel Dahl – drums, percussion\n\nAssociated members\nSid Ringsby – bass guitar\nDag Stokke – keyboards\n\nAdditional personnel\nBruno Ravel - additional background vocals on \"Me and I\"\nAmy Anderson-Harnell - additional background vocals on \"Me and I\"\n\nAlbum credits\n Produced by Tony Harnell and Ronni Le Tekrø\n Engineered by Kjartan Hesthagen\n Mastering & mixing by Tommy Hansen\n\nSources\nhttp://www.ronniletekro.com/discography-album-27.html\n\n2005 albums\nTNT (Norwegian band) albums",
"The Best: Make the Music Go Bang! is a compilation album by American rock band X, released July 27, 2004, by Elektra Records/Rhino Entertainment. The album included liner notes by Tony Alva, K. K. Barrett, Tito Larriva, Ray Manzarek, Paul Reubens and Henry Rollins, among others.\n\nTrack listing\nAll songs were written by Exene Cervenka and John Doe, except where noted.\n\nDisc 1\n\"Adult Books (Single Version)\" – 3:14 (from \"Adult Books\" single, 1978)\n\"We're Desperate (Single Version)\" – 2:03 (B-side to \"Adult Books\")\n\"Los Angeles\" – 2:24 (from Los Angeles album, 1980)\n\"Your Phone's off the Hook, but You're Not\" – 2:25 (Los Angeles)\n\"Johny Hit and Run Paulene\" – 2:50 (Los Angeles)\n\"Soul Kitchen\" – 2:26 (Los Angeles) (written by the Doors)\n\"The World's a Mess; It's in My Kiss\" – 4:28 (Los Angeles)\n\"The Unheard Music\" – 4:45 (Los Angeles)\n\"White Girl (Single Mix)\" – 3:29 (from \"White Girl\" single, 1980)\n\"The Once Over Twice\" – 2:31 (from Wild Gift album, 1981)\n\"Universal Corner\" – 4:33 (Wild Gift)\n\"Some Other Time\" – 2:17 (Wild Gift)\n\"In This House That I Call Home\" – 3:33 (Wild Gift)\n\"Beyond and Back (Live in August, 1980 at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium)\" – 2:41 (from Urgh! A Music War soundtrack, 1981)\n\"Riding with Mary (Single Version)\" – 3:12 (from \"Riding with Mary\" single, 1983)\n\"The Hungry Wolf\" – 3:47 (from Under the Big Black Sun album, 1982)\n\"Motel Room in My Bed\" – 2:41 (Under the Big Black Sun)\n\"Blue Spark\" – 2:08 (Under the Big Black Sun)\n\"The Have Nots\" – 4:46 (Under the Big Black Sun)\n\"Under the Big Black Sun\" – 3:24 (Under the Big Black Sun)\n\"The New World\" – 3:25 (From More Fun in the New World album, 1983)\n\"Breathless\" – 2:19 (More Fun in the New World) (written by Otis Blackwell)\n\"We're Having Much More Fun\" – 3:08 (More Fun in the New World)\n\"True Love\" – 2:15 (More Fun in the New World)\n\"I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts\" – 4:15 (More Fun in the New World)\n\nDisc 2\n\"Wild Thing (7\" Single Edit)\" – 3:33 (from \"Wild Thing\" single, 1984; written by Chip Taylor)\n\"Poor Girl\" – 2:53 (More Fun in the New World)\n\"The Call of the Wreckin' Ball\" – 2:57 (performed by the Knitters; from Poor Little Critter on the Road album, 1985; written by Dave Alvin and John Doe)\n\"Someone Like You\" – 2:42 (Poor Little Critter on the Road)\n\"What's Wrong with Me...\" – 3:45 (from Ain't Love Grand! album, 1985)\n\"Burning House of Love\" – 3:55 (Ain't Love Grand)\n\"My Goodness\" – 4:37 (Ain't Love Grand)\n\"4th of July\" – 4:06 (from See How We Are album, 1987; written by Dave Alvin)\n\"You\"– 3:30 (See How We Are)\n\"When It Rains...\" – 4:33 (See How We Are)\n\"Surprise Surprise\" – 2:52 (See How We Are)\n\"I'm Lost\" – 2:57 (See How We Are)\n\"See How We Are\" – 3:49 (See How We Are)\n\"Skin Deep Town (Live in December, 1987 at the Whisky a Go Go)\" – 3:19 (from Live at the Whisky a Go-Go album, 1988)\n\"Around My Heart (Live in December, 1987 at the Whisky a Go Go)\" – 4:26 \n\"Just Another Perfect Day (Live in December, 1987 at the Whisky a Go Go)\" – 4:34 \n\"Devil Doll (Live in December, 1987 at the Whisky a Go Go)\" – 4:39 \n\"Big Blue House\" – 4:05 (from Hey Zeus! album, 1993)\n\"Clean Like Tomorrow\" – 3:58 (Hey Zeus!; written by Exene Cervenka)\n\"Country at War\" – 4:15 (Hey Zeus!; written by John Doe)\n\"New Life\" – 3:24 (Hey Zeus!; written by John Doe)\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n\n2004 greatest hits albums\nAlbums produced by Tony Berg\nAlbums produced by Michael Wagener\nRhino Records compilation albums\nX (American band) compilation albums\nElektra Records compilation albums\nAlbums produced by Ray Manzarek"
]
|
[
"X (American band)",
"1982-1984: Elektra era and The Knitters",
"Did X release an album in 1982?",
"X then signed to Elektra in 1982 to release Under the Big Black Sun,",
"Was \"Under the Big Black Sun\" a successful album?",
"Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album",
"What reviews did their \"Under the Big Black Sun\" album get?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_cadba23e981c493f89fa21cae4279179_1 | Were there any singles on this album? | 4 | Were there any singles on the "Under the Big Black Sun" album by the American band X? | X (American band) | X then signed to Elektra in 1982 to release Under the Big Black Sun, which marked a slight departure from their trademark sound. While still fast and loud, with raw punk guitars, the album displayed evolving country leanings. The album was heavily influenced by the death of Cervenka's elder sister Mirielle (Mary) in a 1980 automobile accident. Three songs on the album ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" and the title track) all directly related to the tragedy. A fourth, a high-speed version of Al Dubin and Joe Burke's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes", was, years later, indirectly attributed to Cervenka's mournful state of mind. The stark black-and-white cover art and title were also a reflection of the somber mood of the band during this time. Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album "You know, my favorite record is Under the Big Black Sun, so everything else is kind of . . . I'm saying if I had to sit down in a room and put on an X record--which I don't generally do--I have recently listened to some X records but I generally don't listen to myself--the record I would pick to listen to would be Under the Big Black Sun. In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the More Fun in the New World album, making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. With the sound moving away from punk rock, the band's rockabilly influence became even more noticeable, along with some new elements: funk on the track "True Love Pt. II", and Woody Guthrie-influenced folk protest songs like "The New World" and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound. The Knitters, a side project, were composed of X minus Zoom, plus Alvin on guitar and Johnny Ray Bartel (of the Red Devils) on double bass, and released the Poor Little Critter on the Road album in 1985. The Knitters were devoted to folk and country music; their take on Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" "may be the definitive version". CANNOTANSWER | ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" | X is an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles. The original members are vocalist Exene Cervenka, vocalist-bassist John Doe, guitarist Billy Zoom and drummer D. J. Bonebrake. The band released seven studio albums from 1980 to 1993. After a period of inactivity during the mid-to-late 1990s, X reunited in the early 2000s, and currently tours, as of 2021.
X achieved limited mainstream success but influenced various genres of music, including punk rock, Americana, and folk rock, and is considered one of the most influential bands of their era. In 2003, X's first two studio albums, Los Angeles and Wild Gift, were ranked by Rolling Stone as being among the 500 greatest albums of all time. Los Angeles was ranked 91st on Pitchforks Top 100 Albums of the 1980s.
History
1977–1979: Formation and Dangerhouse era
X was founded by bassist-singer Doe and guitarist Zoom. Doe brought his poetry-writing girlfriend Cervenka to band practices, and she eventually joined the band as a vocalist. Drummer Bonebrake was the last of the original members to join after leaving local group The Eyes; he also filled in on drums for Germs.
X's first record deal was with independent label Dangerhouse, for which the band produced one single, "Adult Books"/"We're Desperate" (1978). A Dangerhouse session version of "Los Angeles" was also featured on a 1979 Dangerhouse 12-inch EP compilation called Yes L.A. (a play on the no-wave compilation No New York), a six-song picture disc that also featured other early L.A. punk bands The Eyes, The Germs, The Bags, The Alley Cats, and Black Randy and the Metrosquad.
1980–1981: Los Angeles and Wild Gift
As the band became the flag bearer for the local scene, a larger independent label, Slash Records, signed the band. The result was their debut, Los Angeles (1980), produced by the Doors' keyboard player, Ray Manzarek. It sold well by the standards of independent labels. Much of X's early material had a rockabilly edge. Doe and Cervenka co-wrote most of the group's songs and their slightly off-kilter harmony vocals served as the group's most distinctive element. Their lyrics tended to be straight-out poetry; comparisons to Charles Bukowski and Raymond Chandler were made from the start.
Their follow-up effort, Wild Gift (1981), was similar in musical style. It featured shorter, faster songs and is arguably their most stereotypically punk-sounding record.
During 1981, both Doe and Bonebrake (along with Dave Alvin, guitarist of The Blasters) served as members of The Flesh Eaters, performing on that band's second album, A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die.
1982–1984: Elektra era and The Knitters
X signed with major label Elektra in 1982 and released Under the Big Black Sun, which marked a departure from their trademark sound. While still fast and loud, with raw punk guitars, the album displayed evolving country leanings. The album was influenced by the death of Cervenka's elder sister Mirielle in a 1980 car accident. Three songs on the album ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" and the title track) all directly relate to the tragedy. A fourth, a high-speed version of Al Dubin and Joe Burke's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes", was, years later, indirectly attributed to Cervenka's mournful state of mind. The stark black-and-white cover art and title were also a reflection of the somber mood of the band during this time. Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album.
In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the album More Fun in the New World, making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. With the sound moving away from punk rock, the band's rockabilly influence became even more noticeable, along with some new elements: funk on the track "True Love Pt. II", and Woody Guthrie-influenced folk protest songs like "The New World" and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound.
The Knitters, a side project, were composed of X minus Zoom, plus Alvin on guitar and Johnny Ray Bartel (of the Red Devils) on double bass, and released the Poor Little Critter on the Road album in 1985. The Knitters were devoted to folk and country music; their take on Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" "may be the definitive version".
1985–1987: Commercial era and departure of Zoom
Despite the overwhelmingly positive critical reception for their first four albums, the band was frustrated by its lack of wider mainstream success. Zoom had also stated that he would leave the band unless its next album was more successful. The band decided to change producers in search of a more accessible sound. Their fifth record, Ain't Love Grand!, was produced by pop metal producer Michael Wagener. It featured a drastic change in sound, especially in the polished and layered production, while the band's punk roots were little in evidence, replaced by a countrified version of hard rock. The change in production was intended to bring the band more chart success, but although it received more mainstream radio play than their earlier releases, it did not represent a commercial breakthrough. "Burning House of Love", the album's first single, was a minor hit on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart, where it peaked at #26 in September 1985. Zoom left the group shortly thereafter in 1986, the same year in which the feature-length documentary film, X: The Unheard Music, was released.
Zoom was initially replaced by Alvin, who had left the Blasters. The band then added a fifth member, guitarist Tony Gilkyson, formerly of the band Lone Justice. By the time the band released its sixth album, See How We Are, Alvin had already left the band, although he played on the record along with Gilkyson and wrote "4th of July" for the band. Like Ain't Love Grand, the album's sound was far removed from the band's punk origins, yet featured a punchy, energetic, hard-rocking roots rock sound that in many ways represented a more natural progression from their earlier sound than the previous album had. After touring for the album, X released a live album of the tour, titled Live at the Whisky a Go-Go, and then went on an extended hiatus.
Back in 1984, X had released a cover version of "Wild Thing" as a non-album single. In 1989, the song was re-released as the lead single from the soundtrack to the hit film Major League. It later became a staple at sporting events, particularly baseball games, and was used by Japanese professional wrestler Atsushi Onita after he founded Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling in 1989. The song is now used as Jon Moxley's entrance music in All Elite Wrestling.
1993–1995: First reunion, Hey Zeus! and Unclogged
X regrouped in the early 1990s to record their seventh studio album, Hey Zeus!, released in 1993 on the Big Life label. The album marked somewhat of a retreat from the increasingly roots rock direction that the band's past few records had gone in, instead featuring an eclectic alternative rock sound that fit in well with the then-current musical climate. Despite this, it failed to become a hit, although two of its songs, "Country at War" and "New Life," peaked at numbers 15 and 26 on the Billboard Modern Rock charts, respectively.
In 1994, they contributed a cover of the Richard Thompson song "Shoot Out the Lights" to a Thompson tribute album called Beat the Retreat, which featured David Hidalgo of Los Lobos on electric guitar. On the same album, Doe sang harmony and played bass and Bonebrake played drums on Bob Mould's cover of "Turning of the Tide," and Bonebrake played drums on the title track, which was performed by the British folk artist June Tabor.
The band released an acoustic live album, Unclogged, in 1995 on Infidelity Records.
1997–2004: Hiatus and second reunion
In 1997, X released a compilation called Beyond and Back: The X Anthology, which focused heavily on the early years with Zoom and included a number of previously unreleased versions of songs that had appeared on their previous albums. At the same time, they also announced that they were disbanding. However, they did a farewell tour to promote the compilation in 1998, with Zoom returning on guitar. The original lineup also returned to the studio for the final time, with Manzarek reprising his role as producer, to record a cover of the Doors' "The Crystal Ship" for the soundtrack for The X-Files: Fight the Future.
X: The Unheard Music was released on DVD in 2005, as was the concert DVD X – Live in Los Angeles, which commemorated the 25th anniversary of the band's landmark debut album, Los Angeles.
2005–2007: Reunion of The Knitters
In 2005, Doe, Cervenka and Bonebrake reunited with Alvin and Bartel to release a second Knitters album, 20 years after the first, titled The Modern Sounds of the Knitters. In summer 2006, X toured North America on the "As the World Burns" tour with the Rollins Band and the Riverboat Gamblers. In the spring of 2008, the band, with all original members, embarked on their "13X31" tour with Skybombers and the Detroit Cobras. "13X31" was a reference to their 31st anniversary.
2008–present: Touring and first album in 27 years
From 2004 onward, X have continued to perform frequently around North America.
X appeared at the 2008 SXSW Festival (with footage of their performance made viewable on Crackle); the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 19, 2009; and the All Tomorrow's Parties festival in Minehead, England from May 15–17, 2009. They were invited to perform at the latter by the festival's curators, the Breeders.
In June 2009, the band publicly announced that Cervenka had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. However, she told the Orange County Register in 2011 that the doctor who originally diagnosed the disease believes he misdiagnosed her. Cervenka stated, "I've had so many doctors tell me I have MS, then some say I don't ... I don't even care anymore".
In June 2010, X played a free show at the North by Northeast festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and headlined the third annual Roadshow Revival, a Johnny Cash tribute festival in Ventura, California. X performed at The Voodoo Experience 2011, held at City Park in New Orleans, Louisiana, on October 28–30, 2011. The band also opened for Pearl Jam on their 2011 South and Central American tour in November and their European tour in June and July 2012.
On September 2, 2012, X performed at the Budweiser Made in America Festival in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
In July 2015, Zoom took a performing break to undergo treatment for bladder cancer, returning in November 2015.
On March 4, 2016, X appeared on the episode "Show Me a Hero" of Adult Swim show Childrens Hospital. On October 13, 2017, the Grammy Museum at L.A. Live opened a new exhibit titled "X: 40 Years of Punk in Los Angeles", to run through February 25, 2018.
In 2017, Cervenka announced that X had added Craig Packham of the Palominos to fill in on drums and rhythm guitar, because Bonebrake and Zoom were now playing vibes and saxophone, respectively.
In 2018, the band released X – Live in Latin America via a Kickstarter campaign, to coincide with their 40th anniversary. The album was recorded during a 2011 tour where X was the opening band for Pearl Jam. Pearl Jam's sound engineer made the recordings, and presented them to X at the end of the tour. The album was produced by Rob Schnapf, and featured the four original members of X.
In early 2019 Fat Possum Records released two new X songs as a single, followed by the "genuinely good" (per BrooklynVegan) new album Alphabetland on April 22, 2020, On February 9, 2021, Fat Possum released Xtras: two more tracks from the same recording sessions, one being an alternate version. Robby Krieger, of the Doors, played slide guitar on one track each of Alphabetland and of Xtras.
Members
Discography
EPs
2009 – Merry Xmas from X
Live albums
1988 – Live at the Whisky a Go-Go
1995 – Unclogged
2005 – X – Live in Los Angeles #175 US Billboard Top 200
2018 – X – Live in Latin America (Kickstarter special album)
Compilations
1997 – Beyond and Back: The X Anthology
2004 – The Best: Make the Music Go Bang!
Filmography
1981 – The Decline of Western Civilization
1981 – Urgh! A Music War
1986 – X The Unheard Music
2003 – Mayor of the Sunset Strip
2005 – X – Live in Los Angeles
2016 – Childrens Hospital
References
Further reading
External links
Punk rock groups from California
Musical groups from Los Angeles
Musical groups established in 1977
Musical quartets
1977 establishments in California
Slash Records artists
Dangerhouse Records artists
Elektra Records artists
Big Life artists
Rock music groups from California
Female-fronted musical groups | true | [
"\"If There's Any Justice\" is the first single taken from British R&B singer Lemar's second album, Time to Grow (2004). Originally offered to Hear'Say, the song was rejected by the group after they decided it was \"too mature\" for them. It would eventually become a top-10 hit for Lemar, peaking at 3 on the UK Singles Chart, his fourth in a row to reach the top 10. Outside the UK, the song reached No. 1 in Hungary and entered the top 40 in France, Ireland, and New Zealand.\n\nLyrical content\nThe lyrics refer to Lemar being in love with a girl who already has a man. He claims that if he had met her first, he would be her man instead. He is making it clear in the song that he feels that there is no justice in the world because of this fact.\n\nCover versions\nDutch singer Floortje Smit covered the song—retitled \"Justice\"—for her debut album \"Fearless\". James Blunt performed an acoustic version of the song on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge (part of Jo Wiley's show), later released on the compilation album \"Radio 1's Live Lounge\".\n\nTrack listings\n UK CD1\n \"If There's Any Justice\" (radio edit) – 3:29\n \"If There's Any Justice\" (Ron G remix featuring Cassidy) – 3:55\n\n UK CD2\n \"If There's Any Justice\" (album version) – 3:49\n \"If There's Any Justice\" (5am remix featuring Cassidy) – 3:34\n \"All I Ever Do/My Boo (Part II)\" – 4:12\n \"If There's Any Justice\" (video) – 3:49\n\n UK 12-inch vinyl\nA1. \"If There's Any Justice\" (Kardinal Beats remix featuring Cassidy) – 3:34\nA2. \"If There's Any Justice\" (Ron G remix featuring Cassidy) – 3:53\nA3. \"If There's Any Justice\" (Cutfather & Joe remix featuring Cassidy) – 3:17\nB1. \"If There's Any Justice\" (5am remix featuring Cassidy) – 3:34\nB2. \"If There's Any Justice\" (First Man remix) – 3:30\nB3. \"If There's Any Justice\" (accapella) – 3:40\n\nCharts and certifications\n\nWeekly charts\n\nYear-end charts\n\nCertifications\n\nReferences\n\n2004 singles\n2004 songs\nLemar songs\nNumber-one singles in Hungary\nSongs written by Mick Leeson\nSongs written by Peter Vale\nSony Music UK singles",
"is the fourth studio album by Chara, which was released on October 10, 1994. It debuted at #4 on the Japanese Oricon album charts, and charted in the top 200 for 7 weeks. It eventually sold 145,000 copies.\n\nTwo singles were released from the album: in May, and in September. Tsumibukaku Aishite yo, despite not having any tie-up like her former popular singles, reached #55 on the singles charts and sold more than these singles. Atashi Nande Dakishimetai n darou? was used in commercials for the Toyota Starlet car. This single sold app. 38,000 copies, and has since become one of her signature songs.\n\nTrack listing\n\nNote: translations are official translations, as written in the album booklet. More accurate translations are listed in brackets.\n\nSingles\n\nJapan Sales Rankings\n\nReferences\n \t\n\nChara (singer) albums\n1994 albums"
]
|
[
"X (American band)",
"1982-1984: Elektra era and The Knitters",
"Did X release an album in 1982?",
"X then signed to Elektra in 1982 to release Under the Big Black Sun,",
"Was \"Under the Big Black Sun\" a successful album?",
"Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album",
"What reviews did their \"Under the Big Black Sun\" album get?",
"I don't know.",
"Were there any singles on this album?",
"(\"Riding with Mary\", \"Come Back to Me\""
]
| C_cadba23e981c493f89fa21cae4279179_1 | Did they release another album between 1982-1984? | 5 | Besides the album "Under the Big Black Sun" did the American band X release another album between 1982-1984? | X (American band) | X then signed to Elektra in 1982 to release Under the Big Black Sun, which marked a slight departure from their trademark sound. While still fast and loud, with raw punk guitars, the album displayed evolving country leanings. The album was heavily influenced by the death of Cervenka's elder sister Mirielle (Mary) in a 1980 automobile accident. Three songs on the album ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" and the title track) all directly related to the tragedy. A fourth, a high-speed version of Al Dubin and Joe Burke's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes", was, years later, indirectly attributed to Cervenka's mournful state of mind. The stark black-and-white cover art and title were also a reflection of the somber mood of the band during this time. Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album "You know, my favorite record is Under the Big Black Sun, so everything else is kind of . . . I'm saying if I had to sit down in a room and put on an X record--which I don't generally do--I have recently listened to some X records but I generally don't listen to myself--the record I would pick to listen to would be Under the Big Black Sun. In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the More Fun in the New World album, making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. With the sound moving away from punk rock, the band's rockabilly influence became even more noticeable, along with some new elements: funk on the track "True Love Pt. II", and Woody Guthrie-influenced folk protest songs like "The New World" and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound. The Knitters, a side project, were composed of X minus Zoom, plus Alvin on guitar and Johnny Ray Bartel (of the Red Devils) on double bass, and released the Poor Little Critter on the Road album in 1985. The Knitters were devoted to folk and country music; their take on Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" "may be the definitive version". CANNOTANSWER | In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the More Fun in the New World album, | X is an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles. The original members are vocalist Exene Cervenka, vocalist-bassist John Doe, guitarist Billy Zoom and drummer D. J. Bonebrake. The band released seven studio albums from 1980 to 1993. After a period of inactivity during the mid-to-late 1990s, X reunited in the early 2000s, and currently tours, as of 2021.
X achieved limited mainstream success but influenced various genres of music, including punk rock, Americana, and folk rock, and is considered one of the most influential bands of their era. In 2003, X's first two studio albums, Los Angeles and Wild Gift, were ranked by Rolling Stone as being among the 500 greatest albums of all time. Los Angeles was ranked 91st on Pitchforks Top 100 Albums of the 1980s.
History
1977–1979: Formation and Dangerhouse era
X was founded by bassist-singer Doe and guitarist Zoom. Doe brought his poetry-writing girlfriend Cervenka to band practices, and she eventually joined the band as a vocalist. Drummer Bonebrake was the last of the original members to join after leaving local group The Eyes; he also filled in on drums for Germs.
X's first record deal was with independent label Dangerhouse, for which the band produced one single, "Adult Books"/"We're Desperate" (1978). A Dangerhouse session version of "Los Angeles" was also featured on a 1979 Dangerhouse 12-inch EP compilation called Yes L.A. (a play on the no-wave compilation No New York), a six-song picture disc that also featured other early L.A. punk bands The Eyes, The Germs, The Bags, The Alley Cats, and Black Randy and the Metrosquad.
1980–1981: Los Angeles and Wild Gift
As the band became the flag bearer for the local scene, a larger independent label, Slash Records, signed the band. The result was their debut, Los Angeles (1980), produced by the Doors' keyboard player, Ray Manzarek. It sold well by the standards of independent labels. Much of X's early material had a rockabilly edge. Doe and Cervenka co-wrote most of the group's songs and their slightly off-kilter harmony vocals served as the group's most distinctive element. Their lyrics tended to be straight-out poetry; comparisons to Charles Bukowski and Raymond Chandler were made from the start.
Their follow-up effort, Wild Gift (1981), was similar in musical style. It featured shorter, faster songs and is arguably their most stereotypically punk-sounding record.
During 1981, both Doe and Bonebrake (along with Dave Alvin, guitarist of The Blasters) served as members of The Flesh Eaters, performing on that band's second album, A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die.
1982–1984: Elektra era and The Knitters
X signed with major label Elektra in 1982 and released Under the Big Black Sun, which marked a departure from their trademark sound. While still fast and loud, with raw punk guitars, the album displayed evolving country leanings. The album was influenced by the death of Cervenka's elder sister Mirielle in a 1980 car accident. Three songs on the album ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" and the title track) all directly relate to the tragedy. A fourth, a high-speed version of Al Dubin and Joe Burke's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes", was, years later, indirectly attributed to Cervenka's mournful state of mind. The stark black-and-white cover art and title were also a reflection of the somber mood of the band during this time. Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album.
In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the album More Fun in the New World, making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. With the sound moving away from punk rock, the band's rockabilly influence became even more noticeable, along with some new elements: funk on the track "True Love Pt. II", and Woody Guthrie-influenced folk protest songs like "The New World" and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound.
The Knitters, a side project, were composed of X minus Zoom, plus Alvin on guitar and Johnny Ray Bartel (of the Red Devils) on double bass, and released the Poor Little Critter on the Road album in 1985. The Knitters were devoted to folk and country music; their take on Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" "may be the definitive version".
1985–1987: Commercial era and departure of Zoom
Despite the overwhelmingly positive critical reception for their first four albums, the band was frustrated by its lack of wider mainstream success. Zoom had also stated that he would leave the band unless its next album was more successful. The band decided to change producers in search of a more accessible sound. Their fifth record, Ain't Love Grand!, was produced by pop metal producer Michael Wagener. It featured a drastic change in sound, especially in the polished and layered production, while the band's punk roots were little in evidence, replaced by a countrified version of hard rock. The change in production was intended to bring the band more chart success, but although it received more mainstream radio play than their earlier releases, it did not represent a commercial breakthrough. "Burning House of Love", the album's first single, was a minor hit on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart, where it peaked at #26 in September 1985. Zoom left the group shortly thereafter in 1986, the same year in which the feature-length documentary film, X: The Unheard Music, was released.
Zoom was initially replaced by Alvin, who had left the Blasters. The band then added a fifth member, guitarist Tony Gilkyson, formerly of the band Lone Justice. By the time the band released its sixth album, See How We Are, Alvin had already left the band, although he played on the record along with Gilkyson and wrote "4th of July" for the band. Like Ain't Love Grand, the album's sound was far removed from the band's punk origins, yet featured a punchy, energetic, hard-rocking roots rock sound that in many ways represented a more natural progression from their earlier sound than the previous album had. After touring for the album, X released a live album of the tour, titled Live at the Whisky a Go-Go, and then went on an extended hiatus.
Back in 1984, X had released a cover version of "Wild Thing" as a non-album single. In 1989, the song was re-released as the lead single from the soundtrack to the hit film Major League. It later became a staple at sporting events, particularly baseball games, and was used by Japanese professional wrestler Atsushi Onita after he founded Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling in 1989. The song is now used as Jon Moxley's entrance music in All Elite Wrestling.
1993–1995: First reunion, Hey Zeus! and Unclogged
X regrouped in the early 1990s to record their seventh studio album, Hey Zeus!, released in 1993 on the Big Life label. The album marked somewhat of a retreat from the increasingly roots rock direction that the band's past few records had gone in, instead featuring an eclectic alternative rock sound that fit in well with the then-current musical climate. Despite this, it failed to become a hit, although two of its songs, "Country at War" and "New Life," peaked at numbers 15 and 26 on the Billboard Modern Rock charts, respectively.
In 1994, they contributed a cover of the Richard Thompson song "Shoot Out the Lights" to a Thompson tribute album called Beat the Retreat, which featured David Hidalgo of Los Lobos on electric guitar. On the same album, Doe sang harmony and played bass and Bonebrake played drums on Bob Mould's cover of "Turning of the Tide," and Bonebrake played drums on the title track, which was performed by the British folk artist June Tabor.
The band released an acoustic live album, Unclogged, in 1995 on Infidelity Records.
1997–2004: Hiatus and second reunion
In 1997, X released a compilation called Beyond and Back: The X Anthology, which focused heavily on the early years with Zoom and included a number of previously unreleased versions of songs that had appeared on their previous albums. At the same time, they also announced that they were disbanding. However, they did a farewell tour to promote the compilation in 1998, with Zoom returning on guitar. The original lineup also returned to the studio for the final time, with Manzarek reprising his role as producer, to record a cover of the Doors' "The Crystal Ship" for the soundtrack for The X-Files: Fight the Future.
X: The Unheard Music was released on DVD in 2005, as was the concert DVD X – Live in Los Angeles, which commemorated the 25th anniversary of the band's landmark debut album, Los Angeles.
2005–2007: Reunion of The Knitters
In 2005, Doe, Cervenka and Bonebrake reunited with Alvin and Bartel to release a second Knitters album, 20 years after the first, titled The Modern Sounds of the Knitters. In summer 2006, X toured North America on the "As the World Burns" tour with the Rollins Band and the Riverboat Gamblers. In the spring of 2008, the band, with all original members, embarked on their "13X31" tour with Skybombers and the Detroit Cobras. "13X31" was a reference to their 31st anniversary.
2008–present: Touring and first album in 27 years
From 2004 onward, X have continued to perform frequently around North America.
X appeared at the 2008 SXSW Festival (with footage of their performance made viewable on Crackle); the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 19, 2009; and the All Tomorrow's Parties festival in Minehead, England from May 15–17, 2009. They were invited to perform at the latter by the festival's curators, the Breeders.
In June 2009, the band publicly announced that Cervenka had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. However, she told the Orange County Register in 2011 that the doctor who originally diagnosed the disease believes he misdiagnosed her. Cervenka stated, "I've had so many doctors tell me I have MS, then some say I don't ... I don't even care anymore".
In June 2010, X played a free show at the North by Northeast festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and headlined the third annual Roadshow Revival, a Johnny Cash tribute festival in Ventura, California. X performed at The Voodoo Experience 2011, held at City Park in New Orleans, Louisiana, on October 28–30, 2011. The band also opened for Pearl Jam on their 2011 South and Central American tour in November and their European tour in June and July 2012.
On September 2, 2012, X performed at the Budweiser Made in America Festival in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
In July 2015, Zoom took a performing break to undergo treatment for bladder cancer, returning in November 2015.
On March 4, 2016, X appeared on the episode "Show Me a Hero" of Adult Swim show Childrens Hospital. On October 13, 2017, the Grammy Museum at L.A. Live opened a new exhibit titled "X: 40 Years of Punk in Los Angeles", to run through February 25, 2018.
In 2017, Cervenka announced that X had added Craig Packham of the Palominos to fill in on drums and rhythm guitar, because Bonebrake and Zoom were now playing vibes and saxophone, respectively.
In 2018, the band released X – Live in Latin America via a Kickstarter campaign, to coincide with their 40th anniversary. The album was recorded during a 2011 tour where X was the opening band for Pearl Jam. Pearl Jam's sound engineer made the recordings, and presented them to X at the end of the tour. The album was produced by Rob Schnapf, and featured the four original members of X.
In early 2019 Fat Possum Records released two new X songs as a single, followed by the "genuinely good" (per BrooklynVegan) new album Alphabetland on April 22, 2020, On February 9, 2021, Fat Possum released Xtras: two more tracks from the same recording sessions, one being an alternate version. Robby Krieger, of the Doors, played slide guitar on one track each of Alphabetland and of Xtras.
Members
Discography
EPs
2009 – Merry Xmas from X
Live albums
1988 – Live at the Whisky a Go-Go
1995 – Unclogged
2005 – X – Live in Los Angeles #175 US Billboard Top 200
2018 – X – Live in Latin America (Kickstarter special album)
Compilations
1997 – Beyond and Back: The X Anthology
2004 – The Best: Make the Music Go Bang!
Filmography
1981 – The Decline of Western Civilization
1981 – Urgh! A Music War
1986 – X The Unheard Music
2003 – Mayor of the Sunset Strip
2005 – X – Live in Los Angeles
2016 – Childrens Hospital
References
Further reading
External links
Punk rock groups from California
Musical groups from Los Angeles
Musical groups established in 1977
Musical quartets
1977 establishments in California
Slash Records artists
Dangerhouse Records artists
Elektra Records artists
Big Life artists
Rock music groups from California
Female-fronted musical groups | false | [
"Jeannie Seely is a studio album by American country music artist Jeannie Seely. The album was released in 1990 on Faux Paw Productions and Shadpoke Records. The album was produced by Seely as well. The project was Seely's first studio album in eight years and second eponymous album to be released. It would be one of several studio records she would record during the 1990s.\n\nBackground and release\nJeannie Seely was recorded between 1989 and 1990. It was the first album to be produced by Seely herself. Some of her future releases would also be self-produced. The album consisted of ten tracks. Among the album's tracks was a re-recording of \"Don't Touch Me\", Seely's signature song. It was the second time that Seely had re-recorded the tune. Another track on the album was a cover version of Michael Bolton's hit \"When I'm Back on My Feet Again\". Another song on the album, \"Healing Hands of Time\", was composed by Willie Nelson. The project also included six tracks that were written or co-written by Seely.\n\nJeannie Seely was released in 1990 on Faux Paw Productions and Shadpoke Productions. These two companies had been founded by Seely. The album was released as a cassette with five songs on each side of the device. The album marked Seely's first studio release in eight years and second eponymous album to be issued. The album did not produce any known singles nor did it reach any peak positions on the Billboard music charts.\n\nTrack listing\n\nPersonnel\nAll credits are adapted from the liner notes of Jeannie Seely.\n\n Jeannie Seely – lead vocals, producer\n\nRelease history\n\nReferences\n\n1990 albums\nAlbums produced by Jeannie Seely\nJeannie Seely albums",
"Grinding Stone is the only album by The Gary Moore Band. Released in 1973, it was recorded between Moore's leaving Skid Row and joining Thin Lizzy.\n\nIt contains a mixture of styles that differ from his later solo work. Moore did not release another solo album until 1978's Back on the Streets.\n\nBackground\nMoore put the band together after leaving the group Skid Row, signing to CBS Records. At the time, Moore was unsure about which direction he wanted to take his music in, and consequently the album features a variety of styles. These included the title track's blues shuffle, double-tracked lead guitars on \"Time To Heal\" and \"Spirit\", Latin rhythms reminiscent of Santana, and slide guitar on \"Boogie My Way Back Home\". Keyboardist Jan Schelhaas guested on the album, as did Irish guitarist Philip Donnelly.\n\nMoore split up the band so he could join Thin Lizzy as a replacement for Eric Bell. Drummer Pearse Kelly briefly covered for Thin Lizzy's Brian Downey while the latter was ill. He would revisit some of the jazz fusion styles explored on the album with the group Colosseum II.\n\nReception\nThe album was favourably reviewed by Billboard, who thought \"Sail Across the Mountain\" was its strongest track. It was not commercially successful, and did not chart. Moore would not release another album under his own name until Back on the Streets five years later, after several years in Colosseum II and another stint in Thin Lizzy.\n\nA retrospective review in AllMusic was mixed, saying that while the eclectic and varied styles were interesting, it was not Moore's best album. However, the reviewer felt the album helped explain Moore's change in styles between Skid Row and Colosseum II, and concluded that it was an overlooked album in his solo career.\n\nTrack listing\n\nPersonnel\nThe Gary Moore Band\nGary Moore – lead guitar, vocals\nJohn Curtis – bass guitar\nPearse Kelly – drums, percussion\n\nAdditional musicians\nFrank Boylan – bass guitar\nPhilip Donnelly – rhythm guitar\nJan Schelhaas – keyboards\n\nProduction\nMartin Birch – producer, engineer\n\nReferences\n\nGary Moore albums\n1973 debut albums\nAlbums produced by Martin Birch\nCBS Records albums"
]
|
[
"X (American band)",
"1982-1984: Elektra era and The Knitters",
"Did X release an album in 1982?",
"X then signed to Elektra in 1982 to release Under the Big Black Sun,",
"Was \"Under the Big Black Sun\" a successful album?",
"Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album",
"What reviews did their \"Under the Big Black Sun\" album get?",
"I don't know.",
"Were there any singles on this album?",
"(\"Riding with Mary\", \"Come Back to Me\"",
"Did they release another album between 1982-1984?",
"In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the More Fun in the New World album,"
]
| C_cadba23e981c493f89fa21cae4279179_1 | What was the sound of the album "More Fun in the New World"? | 6 | What was the sound of the album "More Fun in the New World" by the American band X? | X (American band) | X then signed to Elektra in 1982 to release Under the Big Black Sun, which marked a slight departure from their trademark sound. While still fast and loud, with raw punk guitars, the album displayed evolving country leanings. The album was heavily influenced by the death of Cervenka's elder sister Mirielle (Mary) in a 1980 automobile accident. Three songs on the album ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" and the title track) all directly related to the tragedy. A fourth, a high-speed version of Al Dubin and Joe Burke's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes", was, years later, indirectly attributed to Cervenka's mournful state of mind. The stark black-and-white cover art and title were also a reflection of the somber mood of the band during this time. Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album "You know, my favorite record is Under the Big Black Sun, so everything else is kind of . . . I'm saying if I had to sit down in a room and put on an X record--which I don't generally do--I have recently listened to some X records but I generally don't listen to myself--the record I would pick to listen to would be Under the Big Black Sun. In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the More Fun in the New World album, making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. With the sound moving away from punk rock, the band's rockabilly influence became even more noticeable, along with some new elements: funk on the track "True Love Pt. II", and Woody Guthrie-influenced folk protest songs like "The New World" and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound. The Knitters, a side project, were composed of X minus Zoom, plus Alvin on guitar and Johnny Ray Bartel (of the Red Devils) on double bass, and released the Poor Little Critter on the Road album in 1985. The Knitters were devoted to folk and country music; their take on Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" "may be the definitive version". CANNOTANSWER | making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. | X is an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles. The original members are vocalist Exene Cervenka, vocalist-bassist John Doe, guitarist Billy Zoom and drummer D. J. Bonebrake. The band released seven studio albums from 1980 to 1993. After a period of inactivity during the mid-to-late 1990s, X reunited in the early 2000s, and currently tours, as of 2021.
X achieved limited mainstream success but influenced various genres of music, including punk rock, Americana, and folk rock, and is considered one of the most influential bands of their era. In 2003, X's first two studio albums, Los Angeles and Wild Gift, were ranked by Rolling Stone as being among the 500 greatest albums of all time. Los Angeles was ranked 91st on Pitchforks Top 100 Albums of the 1980s.
History
1977–1979: Formation and Dangerhouse era
X was founded by bassist-singer Doe and guitarist Zoom. Doe brought his poetry-writing girlfriend Cervenka to band practices, and she eventually joined the band as a vocalist. Drummer Bonebrake was the last of the original members to join after leaving local group The Eyes; he also filled in on drums for Germs.
X's first record deal was with independent label Dangerhouse, for which the band produced one single, "Adult Books"/"We're Desperate" (1978). A Dangerhouse session version of "Los Angeles" was also featured on a 1979 Dangerhouse 12-inch EP compilation called Yes L.A. (a play on the no-wave compilation No New York), a six-song picture disc that also featured other early L.A. punk bands The Eyes, The Germs, The Bags, The Alley Cats, and Black Randy and the Metrosquad.
1980–1981: Los Angeles and Wild Gift
As the band became the flag bearer for the local scene, a larger independent label, Slash Records, signed the band. The result was their debut, Los Angeles (1980), produced by the Doors' keyboard player, Ray Manzarek. It sold well by the standards of independent labels. Much of X's early material had a rockabilly edge. Doe and Cervenka co-wrote most of the group's songs and their slightly off-kilter harmony vocals served as the group's most distinctive element. Their lyrics tended to be straight-out poetry; comparisons to Charles Bukowski and Raymond Chandler were made from the start.
Their follow-up effort, Wild Gift (1981), was similar in musical style. It featured shorter, faster songs and is arguably their most stereotypically punk-sounding record.
During 1981, both Doe and Bonebrake (along with Dave Alvin, guitarist of The Blasters) served as members of The Flesh Eaters, performing on that band's second album, A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die.
1982–1984: Elektra era and The Knitters
X signed with major label Elektra in 1982 and released Under the Big Black Sun, which marked a departure from their trademark sound. While still fast and loud, with raw punk guitars, the album displayed evolving country leanings. The album was influenced by the death of Cervenka's elder sister Mirielle in a 1980 car accident. Three songs on the album ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" and the title track) all directly relate to the tragedy. A fourth, a high-speed version of Al Dubin and Joe Burke's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes", was, years later, indirectly attributed to Cervenka's mournful state of mind. The stark black-and-white cover art and title were also a reflection of the somber mood of the band during this time. Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album.
In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the album More Fun in the New World, making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. With the sound moving away from punk rock, the band's rockabilly influence became even more noticeable, along with some new elements: funk on the track "True Love Pt. II", and Woody Guthrie-influenced folk protest songs like "The New World" and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound.
The Knitters, a side project, were composed of X minus Zoom, plus Alvin on guitar and Johnny Ray Bartel (of the Red Devils) on double bass, and released the Poor Little Critter on the Road album in 1985. The Knitters were devoted to folk and country music; their take on Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" "may be the definitive version".
1985–1987: Commercial era and departure of Zoom
Despite the overwhelmingly positive critical reception for their first four albums, the band was frustrated by its lack of wider mainstream success. Zoom had also stated that he would leave the band unless its next album was more successful. The band decided to change producers in search of a more accessible sound. Their fifth record, Ain't Love Grand!, was produced by pop metal producer Michael Wagener. It featured a drastic change in sound, especially in the polished and layered production, while the band's punk roots were little in evidence, replaced by a countrified version of hard rock. The change in production was intended to bring the band more chart success, but although it received more mainstream radio play than their earlier releases, it did not represent a commercial breakthrough. "Burning House of Love", the album's first single, was a minor hit on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart, where it peaked at #26 in September 1985. Zoom left the group shortly thereafter in 1986, the same year in which the feature-length documentary film, X: The Unheard Music, was released.
Zoom was initially replaced by Alvin, who had left the Blasters. The band then added a fifth member, guitarist Tony Gilkyson, formerly of the band Lone Justice. By the time the band released its sixth album, See How We Are, Alvin had already left the band, although he played on the record along with Gilkyson and wrote "4th of July" for the band. Like Ain't Love Grand, the album's sound was far removed from the band's punk origins, yet featured a punchy, energetic, hard-rocking roots rock sound that in many ways represented a more natural progression from their earlier sound than the previous album had. After touring for the album, X released a live album of the tour, titled Live at the Whisky a Go-Go, and then went on an extended hiatus.
Back in 1984, X had released a cover version of "Wild Thing" as a non-album single. In 1989, the song was re-released as the lead single from the soundtrack to the hit film Major League. It later became a staple at sporting events, particularly baseball games, and was used by Japanese professional wrestler Atsushi Onita after he founded Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling in 1989. The song is now used as Jon Moxley's entrance music in All Elite Wrestling.
1993–1995: First reunion, Hey Zeus! and Unclogged
X regrouped in the early 1990s to record their seventh studio album, Hey Zeus!, released in 1993 on the Big Life label. The album marked somewhat of a retreat from the increasingly roots rock direction that the band's past few records had gone in, instead featuring an eclectic alternative rock sound that fit in well with the then-current musical climate. Despite this, it failed to become a hit, although two of its songs, "Country at War" and "New Life," peaked at numbers 15 and 26 on the Billboard Modern Rock charts, respectively.
In 1994, they contributed a cover of the Richard Thompson song "Shoot Out the Lights" to a Thompson tribute album called Beat the Retreat, which featured David Hidalgo of Los Lobos on electric guitar. On the same album, Doe sang harmony and played bass and Bonebrake played drums on Bob Mould's cover of "Turning of the Tide," and Bonebrake played drums on the title track, which was performed by the British folk artist June Tabor.
The band released an acoustic live album, Unclogged, in 1995 on Infidelity Records.
1997–2004: Hiatus and second reunion
In 1997, X released a compilation called Beyond and Back: The X Anthology, which focused heavily on the early years with Zoom and included a number of previously unreleased versions of songs that had appeared on their previous albums. At the same time, they also announced that they were disbanding. However, they did a farewell tour to promote the compilation in 1998, with Zoom returning on guitar. The original lineup also returned to the studio for the final time, with Manzarek reprising his role as producer, to record a cover of the Doors' "The Crystal Ship" for the soundtrack for The X-Files: Fight the Future.
X: The Unheard Music was released on DVD in 2005, as was the concert DVD X – Live in Los Angeles, which commemorated the 25th anniversary of the band's landmark debut album, Los Angeles.
2005–2007: Reunion of The Knitters
In 2005, Doe, Cervenka and Bonebrake reunited with Alvin and Bartel to release a second Knitters album, 20 years after the first, titled The Modern Sounds of the Knitters. In summer 2006, X toured North America on the "As the World Burns" tour with the Rollins Band and the Riverboat Gamblers. In the spring of 2008, the band, with all original members, embarked on their "13X31" tour with Skybombers and the Detroit Cobras. "13X31" was a reference to their 31st anniversary.
2008–present: Touring and first album in 27 years
From 2004 onward, X have continued to perform frequently around North America.
X appeared at the 2008 SXSW Festival (with footage of their performance made viewable on Crackle); the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 19, 2009; and the All Tomorrow's Parties festival in Minehead, England from May 15–17, 2009. They were invited to perform at the latter by the festival's curators, the Breeders.
In June 2009, the band publicly announced that Cervenka had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. However, she told the Orange County Register in 2011 that the doctor who originally diagnosed the disease believes he misdiagnosed her. Cervenka stated, "I've had so many doctors tell me I have MS, then some say I don't ... I don't even care anymore".
In June 2010, X played a free show at the North by Northeast festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and headlined the third annual Roadshow Revival, a Johnny Cash tribute festival in Ventura, California. X performed at The Voodoo Experience 2011, held at City Park in New Orleans, Louisiana, on October 28–30, 2011. The band also opened for Pearl Jam on their 2011 South and Central American tour in November and their European tour in June and July 2012.
On September 2, 2012, X performed at the Budweiser Made in America Festival in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
In July 2015, Zoom took a performing break to undergo treatment for bladder cancer, returning in November 2015.
On March 4, 2016, X appeared on the episode "Show Me a Hero" of Adult Swim show Childrens Hospital. On October 13, 2017, the Grammy Museum at L.A. Live opened a new exhibit titled "X: 40 Years of Punk in Los Angeles", to run through February 25, 2018.
In 2017, Cervenka announced that X had added Craig Packham of the Palominos to fill in on drums and rhythm guitar, because Bonebrake and Zoom were now playing vibes and saxophone, respectively.
In 2018, the band released X – Live in Latin America via a Kickstarter campaign, to coincide with their 40th anniversary. The album was recorded during a 2011 tour where X was the opening band for Pearl Jam. Pearl Jam's sound engineer made the recordings, and presented them to X at the end of the tour. The album was produced by Rob Schnapf, and featured the four original members of X.
In early 2019 Fat Possum Records released two new X songs as a single, followed by the "genuinely good" (per BrooklynVegan) new album Alphabetland on April 22, 2020, On February 9, 2021, Fat Possum released Xtras: two more tracks from the same recording sessions, one being an alternate version. Robby Krieger, of the Doors, played slide guitar on one track each of Alphabetland and of Xtras.
Members
Discography
EPs
2009 – Merry Xmas from X
Live albums
1988 – Live at the Whisky a Go-Go
1995 – Unclogged
2005 – X – Live in Los Angeles #175 US Billboard Top 200
2018 – X – Live in Latin America (Kickstarter special album)
Compilations
1997 – Beyond and Back: The X Anthology
2004 – The Best: Make the Music Go Bang!
Filmography
1981 – The Decline of Western Civilization
1981 – Urgh! A Music War
1986 – X The Unheard Music
2003 – Mayor of the Sunset Strip
2005 – X – Live in Los Angeles
2016 – Childrens Hospital
References
Further reading
External links
Punk rock groups from California
Musical groups from Los Angeles
Musical groups established in 1977
Musical quartets
1977 establishments in California
Slash Records artists
Dangerhouse Records artists
Elektra Records artists
Big Life artists
Rock music groups from California
Female-fronted musical groups | true | [
"Whatever, My Love is a studio album by The Juliana Hatfield Three, consisting of Hatfield, drummer Todd Philips and bassist Dean Fisher. The album marks the band's first release in twenty two years, since their LP Become What You Are in 1993. The lead single from the Whatever, My Love , \"If I Could,\" was released in December 2014, and was premiered in publications such as Rolling Stone. That month the album was made available for pre-order on American Laundromat Records, with an announced release date for February 17, 2015. In late December, Stereogum named the album \"one of their most anticipated albums of 2015,\" and on January 4, 2015, Consequence of Sound named it \"one of the 50 most anticipated albums of 2015.\"\n\nProduction\nIn 2014 The Juliana Hatfield Three was reformed after two decades of hiatus, and vocalist Juliana Hatfield, drummer Todd Philips, and bassist Dean Fisher began practicing new material for an album. The album marked the band's first release in twenty two years, since their LP Become What You Are in 1993. Stated Hatfield about the new album, \"We haven’t totally reinvented the wheel or anything,\" and that the tracks exhibit the \"stuff I am sort of known for, I guess. But I am a lot more confident now than I was then with the first album. And I had more fun recording this one.\" The twelve tracks for Whatever, My Love were recorded at Nuthouse Recording in Hoboken, New Jersey, with Tom Beaujour and Hatfield co-producing the project. The album is \"based on new single 'If I Could', a reworking of a catchy old demo from years past,\" according to Consequence of Sound.\n\nRelease\n\nThe lead single from the album, \"If I Could,\" was released in December 2014, and was premiered in publications such as Rolling Stone. That month the album was made available for pre-order on American Laundromat Records, with an announced release date for Whatever, My Love on February 17, 2015. The album's single \"Ordinary Guy\" premiered on Consequence of Sound on January 14, 2015 In late December, Stereogum named the album \"one of their most anticipated albums of 2015,\" and on January 4, 2015, Consequence of Sound named it \"one of the 50 most anticipated albums of 2015.\"\n\nThe band announced they would tour the United States in support of the album throughout February, as well as venues such as the Bowery Ballroom in New York City and The Roxy Theatre in Los Angeles in late March.\n\nReception\n\nOn January 9, 2015, Juliana Hatfield was featured at Nylon.com, who wrote that the upcoming album came off as \"unforced, and with its sly lyrics and mega-hooky coffeehouse-grunge aesthetic.\" When the album's single \"Ordinary Guy\" premiered on Consequence of Sound on January 14, 2015, the review stated \"through distorted guitars and ferocious screams, Hatfield recalls all of the troubles that come with dating an addict. Though there’s no semblance of a happy ending to be found, Hatfield’s honesty and poignancy are deeply romantic in their own right.\"\n\nTrack listing\n\nPersonnel\nJuliana Hatfield - guitars, vocals, keyboards, percussion, production, writing\nTodd Philips - drums\nDean Fisher - bass\nTom Beaujour - production, engineering (at Nuthouse Recording, Hoboken, NJ)\n\nRelease dates\n\nFurther reading\nArticles\n\nSee also\nJuliana Hatfield\nAmerican Laundromat Records\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\nJuliana Hatfield 3 at American Laundromat Records\n\nJuliana Hatfield albums\n2015 albums",
"Fun (stylized as fun.) is an American pop rock band based in New York City. The band was formed by Nate Ruess (then-former lead singer of the Format), Andrew Dost (formerly of Anathallo), and Jack Antonoff (of Steel Train and Bleachers). Fun has released two albums: Aim and Ignite in August 2009 and Some Nights in February 2012.\n\nThe band is best known for three hit singles from Some Nights: Grammy Award-winning \"We Are Young\" featuring Janelle Monáe, \"Some Nights\", and \"Carry On\". \"We Are Young\" reached number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and Digital Songs charts. It also peaked at number one in the United Kingdom. \"Some Nights\" was released as the album's second single in June 2012, peaking at number three on the Hot 100 chart and becoming Fun's second Top 10 single, as well as the band's second song to reach platinum status in the United States.\n\nIn 2013, \"We Are Young\" won the Grammy award for Song of the Year and the band won Best New Artist. Additionally, Fun was a nominee for four other Grammy Awards: Record of the Year and Best Pop Duo or Group Performance (both for \"We Are Young\") along with Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album (both for Some Nights).\n\nHistory\n\n2008: Career beginnings and formation\n\nIn February 2008, Nate Ruess's former band the Format split up. Immediately afterwards, Nate Ruess asked Andrew Dost and Jack Antonoff to join his new project. Dost had toured with the Format and provided various instrumentation, and Ruess met Antonoff after the Format toured with Steel Train. The three began working together in New Jersey within a week. Ruess sang melodies while the other two provided music for them. The first demo song the band recorded was \"Benson Hedges\", which was made available free in Spin'''s August 20, 2008 article on the band. In November 2008, fun embarked on their first tour opening for Jack's Mannequin. Their first show was played in Denver, Colorado on November 5, 2008. A couple of early demos and covers from other bands were performed. Fun then approached Steven McDonald, who produced the Format's album Dog Problems with Ruess, to produce their debut album. McDonald was enthusiastic about the project and stated, \"I can’t believe what we’re working on here. This crushes anything I’ve ever done.\"\n\n2009–2010: Aim and Ignite\nRecording took place in the fall of 2008. The band's first single, \"At Least I'm Not as Sad As I Used to Be\" was made available as a free download on the band's Myspace page on April 6, 2009. Aim and Ignite was released on August 25, 2009 and received positive reviews. AbsolutePunk.net's Drew Beringer praised the album, stating it was \"what a pop album 'should' sound like\" and \"the most essential pop album of 2009.\" AllMusic called the album \"progressive, but in the best possible way\" and admired Ruess's lyrics for \"investigating the larger truths of life...with a witty approach that keeps the songs bubbling merrily along on a positive note\". Dave de Sylvia of Sputnikmusic wrote, \"Aim and Ignite isn’t the most consistent pop album around,\" but he ultimately commended the album as \"a superbly mixed and arranged album made by musicians who clearly understand the limits and potential of pop music\". Estella Hung of PopMatters was less impressed with the album. She praised songs \"Be Calm\" and \"The Gambler\", but criticized the lyrics and production of the album's early tracks. Hung concluded that while Aim and Ignite is \"pretty original to say the least\", it \"fails to live up to the Format’s last outing.\" Popdose's Ken Shane called the album \"an interesting and unusual listen.\" Shane applauded the album's songwriting and said \"many of the songs are really good,\" but he objected to the \"cute\" production, desiring to hear the band \"in a more stripped-down form.\" He ended his review with: \"I have a similar problem with Dr. Dog, a band that was recommended to me by a number of people. I think much of their recorded work is too fussed over, but when I saw them live and their sound was more stripped down out of necessity, emphasizing their powerful songwriting, I thought they were wonderful. Perhaps the same fate awaits me with Fun.\" In reviewing the album, The Washington Post called some of the arrangements \"theatrical, much like those on Panic! at the Disco's 2005 debut\". The album reached number 26 on Sputnikmusic's top 50 albums of 2009. The album peaked at 71 on the U.S. album charts.\n\nFun began its first North American tour on November 8, 2008, opening for Jack's Mannequin as well as opening for them again in February 2010, followed by their first U.K. appearances in March. In April 2010, Fun supported Paramore's headline tour. The band then embarked on a full U.K. tour in May. On August 4, 2010, Fun announced that they had signed with label Fueled by Ramen. In 2010, Fun's single \"Walking the Dog\" was used in a commercial for the travel site Expedia.com. Will Noon (formerly of Straylight Run) played drums with Fun on tour, according to Noon's Twitter page. To celebrate the Paramore U.K. tour and the band's new single \"Walking the Dog\", Hassle Records gave away a free download of an acoustic version of the track.\n\n2011–2015: Some Nights and hiatus\nOn May 17, 2011, the band released \"C'mon\" as a joint single with Panic! at the Disco, for whom they opened on their 2011 Vices & Virtues Tour. On November 7, 2011, the band announced that their next album would be titled Some Nights. Its first single, called \"We Are Young\" featuring Janelle Monáe, has since been used in several other media, including television series Gossip Girl, 90210, Glee, and Chuck; commercials for Chevrolet and Apple; and in the trailer for Judd Apatow's film This Is 40. On December 12, 2011, the band's song \"One Foot\" was available for instant streaming and free download on Nylon's website.\n\nOn February 13, 2012, the band released an album stream of Some Nights on their website along with a note from Ruess thanking fans for their ongoing support. Ruess states he is \"over the moon about what you're about to hear and falling asleep knowing that as soon as I wake up, this will no longer be a dream.\" It was released on February 21, 2012 through Fueled by Ramen. The band kicked off the start of their North American tour in support of Some Nights on February 29.\n\nOn March 7, 2012, Fun's single \"We Are Young\" reached the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. This makes Fun the first multi-member rock band to have a No. 1 Billboard debut on the Hot 100 since Nickelback's \"How You Remind Me\". On April 11, 2012, Billboard.com announced that Fun's \"We Are Young\" also made Digital Sales history. As the song was at the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for a sixth consecutive week, it has become the first, and at this time only, song that has ever gained 300,000+ downloads for seven weeks straight. The music video for the album's third single, \"Carry On\", was released in October 2012 and was the third song from Some Nights to enter the Billboard Hot 100. The group performed \"Some Nights\" and \"Carry On\" on Saturday Night Live on November 3, and then performed \"We Are Young\" on the 2012 MTV Europe Music Awards on November 11.\n\nThe group performed at the 55th Grammy Awards, held February 10, 2013. Entertainment Weekly predicted that \"We Are Young\" would bring home the Grammy in the categories Record of the Year and Song of the Year (writing, of the latter, \"'We Are Young' is the kind of anthem this category is made for\"), and that Some Nights would win for Best Pop Vocal Album. \"We Are Young\" won the Grammy for Song of the Year and was nominated for Record of the Year. Fun also won the Grammy for Best New Artist. Ruess, after winning for \"We Are Young\", jokingly said, \"I don't know what I was thinking, writing the chorus for this song. If this is in HD, everybody can see our faces, and we are not very young.\" On February 26, 2013, Fun released the music video for \"Why Am I the One\", the fourth single from the album.\n\nIn September 2013, the band joined British rock legends Queen for a special version of Queen's hit \"Somebody to Love\" then as a duet with the more modern version of the band in the form of Queen + Adam Lambert for \"Fat Bottomed Girls\" at the iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas. In December 2013, Fun digitally released Before Shane Went To Bangkok: Live in The USA, a live EP with songs from both Aim and Ignite and Some Nights, as well as a recording of \"What the Fuck\", previously unreleased by the band. A vinyl release of the EP was released in March 2014.\n\nIn 2014, the band announced they were working on writing new material for an upcoming unnamed album; however there was no time frame. On June 18, 2014, Fun performed a new song \"Harsh Light\" on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. This song was later released on Nate Ruess' solo album, Grand Romantic.\n\nOn February 4, 2015, the band announced on its Facebook page and their official website that they were not splitting up, but were taking some time off to pursue other projects: \nFirst and foremost, to answer the question that has been raised most often: Fun is not breaking up. Fun was founded by the 3 of us at a time when we were coming out of our own bands. One thing that has always been so special about Fun is that we exist as 3 individuals in music who come together to do something collaborative. We make Fun records when we are super inspired to do so. Currently, Nate is working on his first solo album, Andrew is scoring films, and Jack is on tour and working on Bleachers music. The 3 of us have always followed inspiration wherever it leads us. Sometimes that inspiration leads to Fun music, sometimes it leads to musical endeavors outside of Fun. We see all of it as part of the ecosystem that makes Fun, fun.\n\nRuess' debut solo album, Grand Romantic, was released on June 15, 2015.\n\nAntonoff has gone on to become the lead singer of indie pop band Bleachers. Aside from his work with Bleachers and Fun, Antonoff has worked as a songwriter and record producer with various artists, including Taylor Swift, Lorde, St. Vincent, Lana Del Rey, Kevin Abstract, Carly Rae Jepsen, the Chicks and Clairo.\n\nBand members\n\nDiscography\n\n Aim and Ignite (2009)\n Some Nights'' (2012)\n\nAwards and nominations\n\nFun is the winner of two Grammy Awards, two Teen Choice Awards, and one Billboard Music Award.\n\nIn 2010, they won Best Pop/Rock Song at the Independent Music Awards for \"All the Pretty Girls\".\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n \n Alter the Press Interview\n March 18, 2012 NPR story and interview by Guy Raz\n\n \n2008 establishments in New York City\nFueled by Ramen artists\nGrammy Award winners\nIndependent Music Awards winners\nIndie pop groups from New York (state)\nMusical groups established in 2008\nMusical groups from New York City\nNettwerk Records artists\nAmerican musical trios"
]
|
[
"X (American band)",
"1982-1984: Elektra era and The Knitters",
"Did X release an album in 1982?",
"X then signed to Elektra in 1982 to release Under the Big Black Sun,",
"Was \"Under the Big Black Sun\" a successful album?",
"Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album",
"What reviews did their \"Under the Big Black Sun\" album get?",
"I don't know.",
"Were there any singles on this album?",
"(\"Riding with Mary\", \"Come Back to Me\"",
"Did they release another album between 1982-1984?",
"In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the More Fun in the New World album,",
"What was the sound of the album \"More Fun in the New World\"?",
"making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums."
]
| C_cadba23e981c493f89fa21cae4279179_1 | Was this new album successful? | 7 | Was the album "More Fun in the New World" by the American band X successful? | X (American band) | X then signed to Elektra in 1982 to release Under the Big Black Sun, which marked a slight departure from their trademark sound. While still fast and loud, with raw punk guitars, the album displayed evolving country leanings. The album was heavily influenced by the death of Cervenka's elder sister Mirielle (Mary) in a 1980 automobile accident. Three songs on the album ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" and the title track) all directly related to the tragedy. A fourth, a high-speed version of Al Dubin and Joe Burke's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes", was, years later, indirectly attributed to Cervenka's mournful state of mind. The stark black-and-white cover art and title were also a reflection of the somber mood of the band during this time. Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album "You know, my favorite record is Under the Big Black Sun, so everything else is kind of . . . I'm saying if I had to sit down in a room and put on an X record--which I don't generally do--I have recently listened to some X records but I generally don't listen to myself--the record I would pick to listen to would be Under the Big Black Sun. In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the More Fun in the New World album, making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. With the sound moving away from punk rock, the band's rockabilly influence became even more noticeable, along with some new elements: funk on the track "True Love Pt. II", and Woody Guthrie-influenced folk protest songs like "The New World" and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound. The Knitters, a side project, were composed of X minus Zoom, plus Alvin on guitar and Johnny Ray Bartel (of the Red Devils) on double bass, and released the Poor Little Critter on the Road album in 1985. The Knitters were devoted to folk and country music; their take on Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" "may be the definitive version". CANNOTANSWER | The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound. | X is an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles. The original members are vocalist Exene Cervenka, vocalist-bassist John Doe, guitarist Billy Zoom and drummer D. J. Bonebrake. The band released seven studio albums from 1980 to 1993. After a period of inactivity during the mid-to-late 1990s, X reunited in the early 2000s, and currently tours, as of 2021.
X achieved limited mainstream success but influenced various genres of music, including punk rock, Americana, and folk rock, and is considered one of the most influential bands of their era. In 2003, X's first two studio albums, Los Angeles and Wild Gift, were ranked by Rolling Stone as being among the 500 greatest albums of all time. Los Angeles was ranked 91st on Pitchforks Top 100 Albums of the 1980s.
History
1977–1979: Formation and Dangerhouse era
X was founded by bassist-singer Doe and guitarist Zoom. Doe brought his poetry-writing girlfriend Cervenka to band practices, and she eventually joined the band as a vocalist. Drummer Bonebrake was the last of the original members to join after leaving local group The Eyes; he also filled in on drums for Germs.
X's first record deal was with independent label Dangerhouse, for which the band produced one single, "Adult Books"/"We're Desperate" (1978). A Dangerhouse session version of "Los Angeles" was also featured on a 1979 Dangerhouse 12-inch EP compilation called Yes L.A. (a play on the no-wave compilation No New York), a six-song picture disc that also featured other early L.A. punk bands The Eyes, The Germs, The Bags, The Alley Cats, and Black Randy and the Metrosquad.
1980–1981: Los Angeles and Wild Gift
As the band became the flag bearer for the local scene, a larger independent label, Slash Records, signed the band. The result was their debut, Los Angeles (1980), produced by the Doors' keyboard player, Ray Manzarek. It sold well by the standards of independent labels. Much of X's early material had a rockabilly edge. Doe and Cervenka co-wrote most of the group's songs and their slightly off-kilter harmony vocals served as the group's most distinctive element. Their lyrics tended to be straight-out poetry; comparisons to Charles Bukowski and Raymond Chandler were made from the start.
Their follow-up effort, Wild Gift (1981), was similar in musical style. It featured shorter, faster songs and is arguably their most stereotypically punk-sounding record.
During 1981, both Doe and Bonebrake (along with Dave Alvin, guitarist of The Blasters) served as members of The Flesh Eaters, performing on that band's second album, A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die.
1982–1984: Elektra era and The Knitters
X signed with major label Elektra in 1982 and released Under the Big Black Sun, which marked a departure from their trademark sound. While still fast and loud, with raw punk guitars, the album displayed evolving country leanings. The album was influenced by the death of Cervenka's elder sister Mirielle in a 1980 car accident. Three songs on the album ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" and the title track) all directly relate to the tragedy. A fourth, a high-speed version of Al Dubin and Joe Burke's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes", was, years later, indirectly attributed to Cervenka's mournful state of mind. The stark black-and-white cover art and title were also a reflection of the somber mood of the band during this time. Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album.
In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the album More Fun in the New World, making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. With the sound moving away from punk rock, the band's rockabilly influence became even more noticeable, along with some new elements: funk on the track "True Love Pt. II", and Woody Guthrie-influenced folk protest songs like "The New World" and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound.
The Knitters, a side project, were composed of X minus Zoom, plus Alvin on guitar and Johnny Ray Bartel (of the Red Devils) on double bass, and released the Poor Little Critter on the Road album in 1985. The Knitters were devoted to folk and country music; their take on Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" "may be the definitive version".
1985–1987: Commercial era and departure of Zoom
Despite the overwhelmingly positive critical reception for their first four albums, the band was frustrated by its lack of wider mainstream success. Zoom had also stated that he would leave the band unless its next album was more successful. The band decided to change producers in search of a more accessible sound. Their fifth record, Ain't Love Grand!, was produced by pop metal producer Michael Wagener. It featured a drastic change in sound, especially in the polished and layered production, while the band's punk roots were little in evidence, replaced by a countrified version of hard rock. The change in production was intended to bring the band more chart success, but although it received more mainstream radio play than their earlier releases, it did not represent a commercial breakthrough. "Burning House of Love", the album's first single, was a minor hit on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart, where it peaked at #26 in September 1985. Zoom left the group shortly thereafter in 1986, the same year in which the feature-length documentary film, X: The Unheard Music, was released.
Zoom was initially replaced by Alvin, who had left the Blasters. The band then added a fifth member, guitarist Tony Gilkyson, formerly of the band Lone Justice. By the time the band released its sixth album, See How We Are, Alvin had already left the band, although he played on the record along with Gilkyson and wrote "4th of July" for the band. Like Ain't Love Grand, the album's sound was far removed from the band's punk origins, yet featured a punchy, energetic, hard-rocking roots rock sound that in many ways represented a more natural progression from their earlier sound than the previous album had. After touring for the album, X released a live album of the tour, titled Live at the Whisky a Go-Go, and then went on an extended hiatus.
Back in 1984, X had released a cover version of "Wild Thing" as a non-album single. In 1989, the song was re-released as the lead single from the soundtrack to the hit film Major League. It later became a staple at sporting events, particularly baseball games, and was used by Japanese professional wrestler Atsushi Onita after he founded Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling in 1989. The song is now used as Jon Moxley's entrance music in All Elite Wrestling.
1993–1995: First reunion, Hey Zeus! and Unclogged
X regrouped in the early 1990s to record their seventh studio album, Hey Zeus!, released in 1993 on the Big Life label. The album marked somewhat of a retreat from the increasingly roots rock direction that the band's past few records had gone in, instead featuring an eclectic alternative rock sound that fit in well with the then-current musical climate. Despite this, it failed to become a hit, although two of its songs, "Country at War" and "New Life," peaked at numbers 15 and 26 on the Billboard Modern Rock charts, respectively.
In 1994, they contributed a cover of the Richard Thompson song "Shoot Out the Lights" to a Thompson tribute album called Beat the Retreat, which featured David Hidalgo of Los Lobos on electric guitar. On the same album, Doe sang harmony and played bass and Bonebrake played drums on Bob Mould's cover of "Turning of the Tide," and Bonebrake played drums on the title track, which was performed by the British folk artist June Tabor.
The band released an acoustic live album, Unclogged, in 1995 on Infidelity Records.
1997–2004: Hiatus and second reunion
In 1997, X released a compilation called Beyond and Back: The X Anthology, which focused heavily on the early years with Zoom and included a number of previously unreleased versions of songs that had appeared on their previous albums. At the same time, they also announced that they were disbanding. However, they did a farewell tour to promote the compilation in 1998, with Zoom returning on guitar. The original lineup also returned to the studio for the final time, with Manzarek reprising his role as producer, to record a cover of the Doors' "The Crystal Ship" for the soundtrack for The X-Files: Fight the Future.
X: The Unheard Music was released on DVD in 2005, as was the concert DVD X – Live in Los Angeles, which commemorated the 25th anniversary of the band's landmark debut album, Los Angeles.
2005–2007: Reunion of The Knitters
In 2005, Doe, Cervenka and Bonebrake reunited with Alvin and Bartel to release a second Knitters album, 20 years after the first, titled The Modern Sounds of the Knitters. In summer 2006, X toured North America on the "As the World Burns" tour with the Rollins Band and the Riverboat Gamblers. In the spring of 2008, the band, with all original members, embarked on their "13X31" tour with Skybombers and the Detroit Cobras. "13X31" was a reference to their 31st anniversary.
2008–present: Touring and first album in 27 years
From 2004 onward, X have continued to perform frequently around North America.
X appeared at the 2008 SXSW Festival (with footage of their performance made viewable on Crackle); the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 19, 2009; and the All Tomorrow's Parties festival in Minehead, England from May 15–17, 2009. They were invited to perform at the latter by the festival's curators, the Breeders.
In June 2009, the band publicly announced that Cervenka had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. However, she told the Orange County Register in 2011 that the doctor who originally diagnosed the disease believes he misdiagnosed her. Cervenka stated, "I've had so many doctors tell me I have MS, then some say I don't ... I don't even care anymore".
In June 2010, X played a free show at the North by Northeast festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and headlined the third annual Roadshow Revival, a Johnny Cash tribute festival in Ventura, California. X performed at The Voodoo Experience 2011, held at City Park in New Orleans, Louisiana, on October 28–30, 2011. The band also opened for Pearl Jam on their 2011 South and Central American tour in November and their European tour in June and July 2012.
On September 2, 2012, X performed at the Budweiser Made in America Festival in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
In July 2015, Zoom took a performing break to undergo treatment for bladder cancer, returning in November 2015.
On March 4, 2016, X appeared on the episode "Show Me a Hero" of Adult Swim show Childrens Hospital. On October 13, 2017, the Grammy Museum at L.A. Live opened a new exhibit titled "X: 40 Years of Punk in Los Angeles", to run through February 25, 2018.
In 2017, Cervenka announced that X had added Craig Packham of the Palominos to fill in on drums and rhythm guitar, because Bonebrake and Zoom were now playing vibes and saxophone, respectively.
In 2018, the band released X – Live in Latin America via a Kickstarter campaign, to coincide with their 40th anniversary. The album was recorded during a 2011 tour where X was the opening band for Pearl Jam. Pearl Jam's sound engineer made the recordings, and presented them to X at the end of the tour. The album was produced by Rob Schnapf, and featured the four original members of X.
In early 2019 Fat Possum Records released two new X songs as a single, followed by the "genuinely good" (per BrooklynVegan) new album Alphabetland on April 22, 2020, On February 9, 2021, Fat Possum released Xtras: two more tracks from the same recording sessions, one being an alternate version. Robby Krieger, of the Doors, played slide guitar on one track each of Alphabetland and of Xtras.
Members
Discography
EPs
2009 – Merry Xmas from X
Live albums
1988 – Live at the Whisky a Go-Go
1995 – Unclogged
2005 – X – Live in Los Angeles #175 US Billboard Top 200
2018 – X – Live in Latin America (Kickstarter special album)
Compilations
1997 – Beyond and Back: The X Anthology
2004 – The Best: Make the Music Go Bang!
Filmography
1981 – The Decline of Western Civilization
1981 – Urgh! A Music War
1986 – X The Unheard Music
2003 – Mayor of the Sunset Strip
2005 – X – Live in Los Angeles
2016 – Childrens Hospital
References
Further reading
External links
Punk rock groups from California
Musical groups from Los Angeles
Musical groups established in 1977
Musical quartets
1977 establishments in California
Slash Records artists
Dangerhouse Records artists
Elektra Records artists
Big Life artists
Rock music groups from California
Female-fronted musical groups | true | [
"Rough and Ready Volume 2 is a studio album released by Shabba Ranks. This album was not as successful as Volume 1 and it was going to be difficult to create an album as successful as its predecessor, X-tra Naked, which won a Grammy. Volume 2 was criticised for lacking variety.\n\nTrack listing\n\nReferences\n\n1993 albums\nShabba Ranks albums\nEpic Records albums",
"The discography of Lenka Kripac, best known as simply Lenka, a singer-songwriter from New South Wales, Australia, consists of five studio albums and eleven singles. This list does not include material released by Decoder Ring, a band in which Lenka was a member before pursuing a solo career.\n\nLenka released her debut self-titled album in 2008. The album's lead single, and Kripac's debut single, was titled \"The Show\" and remains her most successful single to date. Her second album, Two, was released over two years later in 2011, but failed to gain the same commercial success as the singer's debut album, due to a string of unsuccessful singles. In November 2012, \"Everything at Once\" was released as Two'''s third and final single after being sampled in a Windows 8 advertisement, and became Lenka's second most successful single to date. Her third studio album, Shadows, was released in June 2013. On 10 March 2015, she released the single \"Blue Skies\" from her new album, The Bright Side, released on 29 May in Germany. On 13 October 2017 , she released her fifth album, Attune''.\n\nStudio albums\n\nSingles\n\nGuest appearances\n\nReferences \n\n19. http://lenkamusic.com/\n\n20. https://itunes.apple.com/de/album/the-bright-side/id964806917\n\nPop music discographies\nDiscographies of Australian artists"
]
|
[
"X (American band)",
"1982-1984: Elektra era and The Knitters",
"Did X release an album in 1982?",
"X then signed to Elektra in 1982 to release Under the Big Black Sun,",
"Was \"Under the Big Black Sun\" a successful album?",
"Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album",
"What reviews did their \"Under the Big Black Sun\" album get?",
"I don't know.",
"Were there any singles on this album?",
"(\"Riding with Mary\", \"Come Back to Me\"",
"Did they release another album between 1982-1984?",
"In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the More Fun in the New World album,",
"What was the sound of the album \"More Fun in the New World\"?",
"making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums.",
"Was this new album successful?",
"The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound."
]
| C_cadba23e981c493f89fa21cae4279179_1 | Were there any chart-toppers in this new album? | 8 | Were there any chart-toppers in the album "More Fun in the New World" by the American band X? | X (American band) | X then signed to Elektra in 1982 to release Under the Big Black Sun, which marked a slight departure from their trademark sound. While still fast and loud, with raw punk guitars, the album displayed evolving country leanings. The album was heavily influenced by the death of Cervenka's elder sister Mirielle (Mary) in a 1980 automobile accident. Three songs on the album ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" and the title track) all directly related to the tragedy. A fourth, a high-speed version of Al Dubin and Joe Burke's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes", was, years later, indirectly attributed to Cervenka's mournful state of mind. The stark black-and-white cover art and title were also a reflection of the somber mood of the band during this time. Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album "You know, my favorite record is Under the Big Black Sun, so everything else is kind of . . . I'm saying if I had to sit down in a room and put on an X record--which I don't generally do--I have recently listened to some X records but I generally don't listen to myself--the record I would pick to listen to would be Under the Big Black Sun. In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the More Fun in the New World album, making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. With the sound moving away from punk rock, the band's rockabilly influence became even more noticeable, along with some new elements: funk on the track "True Love Pt. II", and Woody Guthrie-influenced folk protest songs like "The New World" and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound. The Knitters, a side project, were composed of X minus Zoom, plus Alvin on guitar and Johnny Ray Bartel (of the Red Devils) on double bass, and released the Poor Little Critter on the Road album in 1985. The Knitters were devoted to folk and country music; their take on Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" "may be the definitive version". CANNOTANSWER | I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, | X is an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles. The original members are vocalist Exene Cervenka, vocalist-bassist John Doe, guitarist Billy Zoom and drummer D. J. Bonebrake. The band released seven studio albums from 1980 to 1993. After a period of inactivity during the mid-to-late 1990s, X reunited in the early 2000s, and currently tours, as of 2021.
X achieved limited mainstream success but influenced various genres of music, including punk rock, Americana, and folk rock, and is considered one of the most influential bands of their era. In 2003, X's first two studio albums, Los Angeles and Wild Gift, were ranked by Rolling Stone as being among the 500 greatest albums of all time. Los Angeles was ranked 91st on Pitchforks Top 100 Albums of the 1980s.
History
1977–1979: Formation and Dangerhouse era
X was founded by bassist-singer Doe and guitarist Zoom. Doe brought his poetry-writing girlfriend Cervenka to band practices, and she eventually joined the band as a vocalist. Drummer Bonebrake was the last of the original members to join after leaving local group The Eyes; he also filled in on drums for Germs.
X's first record deal was with independent label Dangerhouse, for which the band produced one single, "Adult Books"/"We're Desperate" (1978). A Dangerhouse session version of "Los Angeles" was also featured on a 1979 Dangerhouse 12-inch EP compilation called Yes L.A. (a play on the no-wave compilation No New York), a six-song picture disc that also featured other early L.A. punk bands The Eyes, The Germs, The Bags, The Alley Cats, and Black Randy and the Metrosquad.
1980–1981: Los Angeles and Wild Gift
As the band became the flag bearer for the local scene, a larger independent label, Slash Records, signed the band. The result was their debut, Los Angeles (1980), produced by the Doors' keyboard player, Ray Manzarek. It sold well by the standards of independent labels. Much of X's early material had a rockabilly edge. Doe and Cervenka co-wrote most of the group's songs and their slightly off-kilter harmony vocals served as the group's most distinctive element. Their lyrics tended to be straight-out poetry; comparisons to Charles Bukowski and Raymond Chandler were made from the start.
Their follow-up effort, Wild Gift (1981), was similar in musical style. It featured shorter, faster songs and is arguably their most stereotypically punk-sounding record.
During 1981, both Doe and Bonebrake (along with Dave Alvin, guitarist of The Blasters) served as members of The Flesh Eaters, performing on that band's second album, A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die.
1982–1984: Elektra era and The Knitters
X signed with major label Elektra in 1982 and released Under the Big Black Sun, which marked a departure from their trademark sound. While still fast and loud, with raw punk guitars, the album displayed evolving country leanings. The album was influenced by the death of Cervenka's elder sister Mirielle in a 1980 car accident. Three songs on the album ("Riding with Mary", "Come Back to Me" and the title track) all directly relate to the tragedy. A fourth, a high-speed version of Al Dubin and Joe Burke's "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes", was, years later, indirectly attributed to Cervenka's mournful state of mind. The stark black-and-white cover art and title were also a reflection of the somber mood of the band during this time. Cervenka has said it is her favorite X album.
In 1983, the band slightly redefined their sound with the release of the album More Fun in the New World, making X somewhat more polished, eclectic and radio-ready than on previous albums. With the sound moving away from punk rock, the band's rockabilly influence became even more noticeable, along with some new elements: funk on the track "True Love Pt. II", and Woody Guthrie-influenced folk protest songs like "The New World" and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". The record received critical praise from Rolling Stone and Playboy, which had long been stalwart supporters of X and their sound.
The Knitters, a side project, were composed of X minus Zoom, plus Alvin on guitar and Johnny Ray Bartel (of the Red Devils) on double bass, and released the Poor Little Critter on the Road album in 1985. The Knitters were devoted to folk and country music; their take on Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" "may be the definitive version".
1985–1987: Commercial era and departure of Zoom
Despite the overwhelmingly positive critical reception for their first four albums, the band was frustrated by its lack of wider mainstream success. Zoom had also stated that he would leave the band unless its next album was more successful. The band decided to change producers in search of a more accessible sound. Their fifth record, Ain't Love Grand!, was produced by pop metal producer Michael Wagener. It featured a drastic change in sound, especially in the polished and layered production, while the band's punk roots were little in evidence, replaced by a countrified version of hard rock. The change in production was intended to bring the band more chart success, but although it received more mainstream radio play than their earlier releases, it did not represent a commercial breakthrough. "Burning House of Love", the album's first single, was a minor hit on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart, where it peaked at #26 in September 1985. Zoom left the group shortly thereafter in 1986, the same year in which the feature-length documentary film, X: The Unheard Music, was released.
Zoom was initially replaced by Alvin, who had left the Blasters. The band then added a fifth member, guitarist Tony Gilkyson, formerly of the band Lone Justice. By the time the band released its sixth album, See How We Are, Alvin had already left the band, although he played on the record along with Gilkyson and wrote "4th of July" for the band. Like Ain't Love Grand, the album's sound was far removed from the band's punk origins, yet featured a punchy, energetic, hard-rocking roots rock sound that in many ways represented a more natural progression from their earlier sound than the previous album had. After touring for the album, X released a live album of the tour, titled Live at the Whisky a Go-Go, and then went on an extended hiatus.
Back in 1984, X had released a cover version of "Wild Thing" as a non-album single. In 1989, the song was re-released as the lead single from the soundtrack to the hit film Major League. It later became a staple at sporting events, particularly baseball games, and was used by Japanese professional wrestler Atsushi Onita after he founded Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling in 1989. The song is now used as Jon Moxley's entrance music in All Elite Wrestling.
1993–1995: First reunion, Hey Zeus! and Unclogged
X regrouped in the early 1990s to record their seventh studio album, Hey Zeus!, released in 1993 on the Big Life label. The album marked somewhat of a retreat from the increasingly roots rock direction that the band's past few records had gone in, instead featuring an eclectic alternative rock sound that fit in well with the then-current musical climate. Despite this, it failed to become a hit, although two of its songs, "Country at War" and "New Life," peaked at numbers 15 and 26 on the Billboard Modern Rock charts, respectively.
In 1994, they contributed a cover of the Richard Thompson song "Shoot Out the Lights" to a Thompson tribute album called Beat the Retreat, which featured David Hidalgo of Los Lobos on electric guitar. On the same album, Doe sang harmony and played bass and Bonebrake played drums on Bob Mould's cover of "Turning of the Tide," and Bonebrake played drums on the title track, which was performed by the British folk artist June Tabor.
The band released an acoustic live album, Unclogged, in 1995 on Infidelity Records.
1997–2004: Hiatus and second reunion
In 1997, X released a compilation called Beyond and Back: The X Anthology, which focused heavily on the early years with Zoom and included a number of previously unreleased versions of songs that had appeared on their previous albums. At the same time, they also announced that they were disbanding. However, they did a farewell tour to promote the compilation in 1998, with Zoom returning on guitar. The original lineup also returned to the studio for the final time, with Manzarek reprising his role as producer, to record a cover of the Doors' "The Crystal Ship" for the soundtrack for The X-Files: Fight the Future.
X: The Unheard Music was released on DVD in 2005, as was the concert DVD X – Live in Los Angeles, which commemorated the 25th anniversary of the band's landmark debut album, Los Angeles.
2005–2007: Reunion of The Knitters
In 2005, Doe, Cervenka and Bonebrake reunited with Alvin and Bartel to release a second Knitters album, 20 years after the first, titled The Modern Sounds of the Knitters. In summer 2006, X toured North America on the "As the World Burns" tour with the Rollins Band and the Riverboat Gamblers. In the spring of 2008, the band, with all original members, embarked on their "13X31" tour with Skybombers and the Detroit Cobras. "13X31" was a reference to their 31st anniversary.
2008–present: Touring and first album in 27 years
From 2004 onward, X have continued to perform frequently around North America.
X appeared at the 2008 SXSW Festival (with footage of their performance made viewable on Crackle); the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 19, 2009; and the All Tomorrow's Parties festival in Minehead, England from May 15–17, 2009. They were invited to perform at the latter by the festival's curators, the Breeders.
In June 2009, the band publicly announced that Cervenka had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. However, she told the Orange County Register in 2011 that the doctor who originally diagnosed the disease believes he misdiagnosed her. Cervenka stated, "I've had so many doctors tell me I have MS, then some say I don't ... I don't even care anymore".
In June 2010, X played a free show at the North by Northeast festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and headlined the third annual Roadshow Revival, a Johnny Cash tribute festival in Ventura, California. X performed at The Voodoo Experience 2011, held at City Park in New Orleans, Louisiana, on October 28–30, 2011. The band also opened for Pearl Jam on their 2011 South and Central American tour in November and their European tour in June and July 2012.
On September 2, 2012, X performed at the Budweiser Made in America Festival in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
In July 2015, Zoom took a performing break to undergo treatment for bladder cancer, returning in November 2015.
On March 4, 2016, X appeared on the episode "Show Me a Hero" of Adult Swim show Childrens Hospital. On October 13, 2017, the Grammy Museum at L.A. Live opened a new exhibit titled "X: 40 Years of Punk in Los Angeles", to run through February 25, 2018.
In 2017, Cervenka announced that X had added Craig Packham of the Palominos to fill in on drums and rhythm guitar, because Bonebrake and Zoom were now playing vibes and saxophone, respectively.
In 2018, the band released X – Live in Latin America via a Kickstarter campaign, to coincide with their 40th anniversary. The album was recorded during a 2011 tour where X was the opening band for Pearl Jam. Pearl Jam's sound engineer made the recordings, and presented them to X at the end of the tour. The album was produced by Rob Schnapf, and featured the four original members of X.
In early 2019 Fat Possum Records released two new X songs as a single, followed by the "genuinely good" (per BrooklynVegan) new album Alphabetland on April 22, 2020, On February 9, 2021, Fat Possum released Xtras: two more tracks from the same recording sessions, one being an alternate version. Robby Krieger, of the Doors, played slide guitar on one track each of Alphabetland and of Xtras.
Members
Discography
EPs
2009 – Merry Xmas from X
Live albums
1988 – Live at the Whisky a Go-Go
1995 – Unclogged
2005 – X – Live in Los Angeles #175 US Billboard Top 200
2018 – X – Live in Latin America (Kickstarter special album)
Compilations
1997 – Beyond and Back: The X Anthology
2004 – The Best: Make the Music Go Bang!
Filmography
1981 – The Decline of Western Civilization
1981 – Urgh! A Music War
1986 – X The Unheard Music
2003 – Mayor of the Sunset Strip
2005 – X – Live in Los Angeles
2016 – Childrens Hospital
References
Further reading
External links
Punk rock groups from California
Musical groups from Los Angeles
Musical groups established in 1977
Musical quartets
1977 establishments in California
Slash Records artists
Dangerhouse Records artists
Elektra Records artists
Big Life artists
Rock music groups from California
Female-fronted musical groups | true | [
"Top Country Albums is a chart that ranks the top-performing country music albums in the United States, published by Billboard. In 1986, 22 different albums topped the chart, based on sales reports submitted by a representative sample of stores nationwide.\n\nIn the issue of Billboard dated January 4, Kenny Rogers was at number one with the album The Heart of the Matter, its second week in the top spot. It would remain atop the chart through the issue dated February 1 for a final total of six weeks at number one but would prove to be the last of the 11 chart-toppers which the singer achieved in his lifetime; he would top the chart again in 2020 shortly after his death. Many of 1986's chart-topping acts were identified with the neotraditional country trend, which moved away from the pop music-influenced style with which acts such as Rogers had dominated the country charts in the earlier part of the decade in favour of a sound closer to the genre's roots. George Strait, Randy Travis, Dwight Yoakam and Steve Earle were all associated with the neotraditional movement. Travis's album Storms of Life spent eight weeks at number one, the most by an album in 1986. Travis, Yoakam and Earle all reached number one for the first time in 1986, as did Lee Greenwood, Dan Seals, Earl Thomas Conley, John Schneider, Ray Stevens, Janie Fricke and Reba McEntire, who would go on to become one of the most successful female singers in country music history, selling more than 50 million albums. \n\nTwo acts achieved more than one number one in 1986. The band Alabama spent five weeks in the top spot beginning in April with Greatest Hits and seven weeks at number one beginning in November with The Touch, which was the year's final chart-topper. The band's total of twelve weeks at number one was the most for any act, and the seven weeks which The Touch spent in the top spot was the year's longest unbroken run at number one; this run would be extended by a further three weeks in 1987. The two albums brought the total number of chart-toppers achieved by the most successful country music band of the 1980s to seven. Hank Williams Jr. had three number ones in 1986, beginning with a two-week spell atop the chart in February with Greatest Hits Volume 2. In May, Five-O, which had been released a year earlier and spent time at number one in the summer of 1985, returned to the top spot for one week. Finally, the singer spent four weeks in the peak position beginning in the issue of Billboard dated September 6 with Montana Cafe. Having not reached number one at all between 1969 and 1984, the second-generation star had now achieved four consecutive chart-toppers in less than three years.\n\nChart history\n\nReferences\n\n1986\n1986 record charts",
"Top Country Albums is a chart that ranks the top-performing country music albums in the United States, published by Billboard. In 2009, 16 different albums topped the chart; placings were based on electronic point of sale data from retail outlets.\n\nUnusually, the year began and ended with the same album at number one. In the issue of Billboard dated January 3, 19-year-old singer Taylor Swift's album Fearless spent its sixth week in the top spot. The album held the top spot for 13 of the first 14 weeks of 2009. Later in the year, the album experienced a resurgence in its chart performance, returning to number one in the issue dated August 1. It returned to the top spot periodically for the remainder of the year, and in the issue dated December 26 spent its 29th week atop the chart. The album also topped the all-genre Billboard 200 for 11 weeks, and won a number of awards, including the Grammy Awards for Album of the Year and Best Country Album. It was 2009's biggest-selling album in the U.S. and would eventually be certified diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America for shipping more than 10 million units.\n\nAfter Fearless, the album which spent the most time at number one on the Top Country Albums chart in 2009 was the soundtrack album of the film Hannah Montana: The Movie, starring 16-year-old actress/singer Miley Cyrus, who performed most of the tracks. The album spent nine non-consecutive weeks atop the chart, interrupted for a single week by Kenny Chesney's Greatest Hits II. In contrast to teen stars Swift and Cyrus, George Strait topped the chart at the age of 57 with Twang. It was the 23rd number one for the singer, who had first reached the peak position with Right or Wrong more than 25 years earlier and achieved regular chart-toppers ever since. Strait's album was displaced from number one by Keep On Loving You by Reba McEntire, another veteran country star who had been achieving chart-toppers since the 1980s. It was the 11th number one for McEntire, breaking the record for the most chart-topping country albums by a female artist which she had previously shared with Loretta Lynn.\n\nChart history\n\nReferences\n\n2009\nUnited States Country Albums"
]
|
[
"Howard Hughes",
"H-4 Hercules"
]
| C_3fad173257b34869985c7b64812d1528_0 | What is the H-4 hercules? | 1 | What is Howard Hughes's H-4 Hercules? | Howard Hughes | The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The project was opposed by the military services, thinking it would siphon resources from higher priority programs, but was advocated by Hughes' powerful allies in Washington, D.C. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II. The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at 319 feet 11 inches (97.51 m), had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next largest wingspan was about 310 ft (94 m)). (The Hercules is no longer the longest or heaviest aircraft ever built; both of those titles are currently held by the Antonov An-225 Mriya.) The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947. The Hercules was nicknamed the Spruce Goose by its critics, but it was actually made largely from birch, not spruce, rather than of aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes' Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the F-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it is now part of the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum. On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes' paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules. CANNOTANSWER | HK-1 Hercules flying boat | Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, investor, record-setting pilot, engineer, film director, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and financially successful individuals in the world. He first became prominent as a film producer, and then as an important figure in the aviation industry. Later in life, he became known for his eccentric behavior and reclusive lifestyle—oddities that were caused in part by his worsening obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), chronic pain from a near-fatal plane crash, and increasing deafness.
As a film tycoon, Hughes gained fame in Hollywood beginning in the late 1920s, when he produced big-budget and often controversial films such as The Racket (1928), Hell's Angels (1930), and Scarface (1932). He later took over the RKO Pictures film studio in 1948, recognized then as one of the Big Five studios of Hollywood's Golden Age, although the production company struggled under his control and ultimately ceased operations in 1957.
Through his interest in aviation and aerospace travel, Hughes formed the Hughes Aircraft Company in 1932, hiring numerous engineers, designers, and defense contractors. He spent the rest of the 1930s and much of the 1940s setting multiple world air speed records and building the Hughes H-1 Racer (1935) and H-4 Hercules (the Spruce Goose, 1947), the latter being the largest flying boat in history and having the longest wingspan of any aircraft from the time it was built until 2019. He acquired and expanded Trans World Airlines and later acquired Air West, renaming it Hughes Airwest. Hughes won the Harmon Trophy on two occasions (1936 and 1938), the Collier Trophy (1938), and the Congressional Gold Medal (1939) all for his achievements in aviation throughout the 1930s. He was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1973 and was included in Flying magazine's 2013 list of the 51 Heroes of Aviation, ranked at 25.
During the 1960s and early 1970s, Hughes extended his financial empire to include several major businesses in Las Vegas, such as real estate, hotels, casinos, and media outlets. Known at the time as one of the most powerful men in the state of Nevada, he is largely credited with transforming Vegas into a more refined cosmopolitan city.
After years of mental and physical decline, Hughes died of kidney failure in 1976, at the age of 70. Today, his legacy is maintained through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Howard Hughes Corporation.
Early life
Howard Robard Hughes Jr. was the son of Allene Stone Gano (1883–1922) and of Howard R. Hughes Sr. (1869–1924), a successful inventor and businessman from Missouri. He had English, Welsh and some French Huguenot ancestry, and was a descendant of John Gano (1727–1804), the minister who allegedly baptized George Washington. His father patented (1909) the two-cone roller bit, which allowed rotary drilling for petroleum in previously inaccessible places. The senior Hughes made the shrewd and lucrative decision to commercialize the invention by leasing the bits instead of selling them, obtained several early patents, and founded the Hughes Tool Company in 1909. Hughes's uncle was the famed novelist, screenwriter, and film-director Rupert Hughes.
A 1941 affidavit birth certificate of Hughes, signed by his aunt Annette Gano Lummis and by Estelle Boughton Sharp, states that he was born on December 24, 1905, in Harris County, Texas. However, his certificate of baptism, recorded on October 7, 1906, in the parish register of St. John's Episcopal Church in Keokuk, Iowa, listed his date of birth as September 24, 1905, without any reference to the place of birth.
At a young age, Hughes showed interest in science and technology. In particular, he had great engineering aptitude and built Houston's first "wireless" radio transmitter at age 11. He went on to be one of the first licensed ham-radio operators in Houston, having the assigned callsign W5CY (originally 5CY). At 12, Hughes was photographed in the local newspaper, identified as the first boy in Houston to have a "motorized" bicycle, which he had built from parts from his father's steam engine. He was an indifferent student, with a liking for mathematics, flying, and mechanics. He took his first flying lesson at 14, and attended Fessenden School in Massachusetts in 1921.
After a brief stint at The Thacher School, Hughes attended math and aeronautical engineering courses at Caltech. The red-brick house where Hughes lived as a teenager at 3921 Yoakum Blvd., Houston, still stands, now known as Hughes House on the grounds of the University of St. Thomas.
His mother Allene died in March 1922 from complications of an ectopic pregnancy. Howard Hughes Sr. died of a heart attack in 1924. Their deaths apparently inspired Hughes to include the establishment of a medical research laboratory in the will that he signed in 1925 at age 19. Howard Sr.'s will had not been updated since Allene's death, and Hughes inherited 75% of the family fortune. On his 19th birthday, Hughes was declared an emancipated minor, enabling him to take full control of his life.
From a young age, Hughes became a proficient and enthusiastic golfer. He often scored near-par figures, played the game to a two-three handicap during his 20s, and for a time aimed for a professional golf career. He golfed frequently with top players, including Gene Sarazen. Hughes rarely played competitively and gradually gave up his passion for the sport to pursue other interests. Hughes played golf every afternoon at LA courses including the Lakeside Golf Club, Wilshire Country Club, or the Bel-Air Country Club. Partners included George Von Elm or Ozzie Carlton. After Hughes hurt himself in the late 1920s, his golfing tapered off, and after his F-11 crash, Hughes was unable to play at all.
Hughes withdrew from Rice University shortly after his father's death. On June 1, 1925, he married Ella Botts Rice, daughter of David Rice and Martha Lawson Botts of Houston, and great-niece of William Marsh Rice, for whom Rice University was named. They moved to Los Angeles, where he hoped to make a name for himself as a filmmaker.
They moved into the Ambassador Hotel, and Hughes proceeded to learn to fly a Waco, while simultaneously producing his first motion picture, Swell Hogan.
Business career
Hughes enjoyed a highly successful business career beyond engineering, aviation, and filmmaking; many of his career endeavors involved varying entrepreneurial roles.
Entertainment
Ralph Graves persuaded Hughes to finance a short film, Swell Hogan, which Graves had written and would star in. Hughes himself produced it. However, it was a disaster. After hiring a film editor to try to salvage it, he finally ordered that it be destroyed. His next two films, Everybody's Acting (1926) and Two Arabian Knights (1927), achieved financial success; the latter won the first Academy Award for Best Director of a comedy picture. The Racket (1928) and The Front Page (1931) were also nominated for Academy Awards.
Hughes spent $3.5 million to make the flying film Hell's Angels (1930). Hell's Angels received one Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography.
He produced another hit, Scarface (1932), a production delayed by censors' concern over its violence.
The Outlaw premiered in 1943, but was not released nationally until 1946. The film featured Jane Russell, who received considerable attention from industry censors, this time owing to her revealing costumes.
RKO
From the 1940s to the late 1950s, the Hughes Tool Company ventured into the film industry when it obtained partial ownership of the RKO companies, which included RKO Pictures, RKO Studios, a chain of movie theaters known as RKO Theatres and a network of radio stations known as the RKO Radio Network.
In 1948, Hughes gained control of RKO, a struggling major Hollywood studio, by acquiring the 929,000 shares owned by Floyd Odlum's Atlas Corporation, for $8,825,000. Within weeks of acquiring the studio, Hughes dismissed 700 employees. Production dwindled to 9 pictures during the first year of Hughes's control; previously RKO had averaged 30 per year.
Production shut down for six months, during which time Hughes ordered investigations of each employee who remained with RKO as far as their political leanings were concerned. Only after ensuring that the stars under contract to RKO had no suspect affiliations would Hughes approve completed pictures to be sent back for re-shooting. This was especially true of the women under contract to RKO at that time. If Hughes felt that his stars did not properly represent the political views of his liking or if a film's anti-communist politics were not sufficiently clear, he pulled the plug. In 1952, an abortive sale to a Chicago-based group connected to the mafia with no experience in the industry disrupted studio operations at RKO even further.
In 1953, Hughes became involved with a high-profile lawsuit as part of the settlement of the United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc. Antitrust Case. As a result of the hearings, the shaky status of RKO became increasingly apparent. A steady stream of lawsuits from RKO's minority shareholders had grown to become extremely annoying to Hughes. They had accused him of financial misconduct and corporate mismanagement. Since Hughes wanted to focus primarily on his aircraft manufacturing and TWA holdings during the years of the Korean War of 1950 to 1953, Hughes offered to buy out all other stockholders in order to dispense with their distractions.
By the end of 1954, Hughes had gained near-total control of RKO at a cost of nearly $24 million, becoming the first sole owner of a major Hollywood studio since the silent-film era. Six months later Hughes sold the studio to the General Tire and Rubber Company for $25 million. Hughes retained the rights to pictures that he had personally produced, including those made at RKO. He also retained Jane Russell's contract. For Howard Hughes, this was the virtual end of his 25-year involvement in the motion-picture industry. However, his reputation as a financial wizard emerged unscathed. During that time period, RKO became known as the home of classic film noir productions, thanks in part to the limited budgets required to make such films during Hughes's tenure. Hughes reportedly walked away from RKO having made $6.5 million in personal profit. According to Noah Dietrich, Hughes made a $10,000,000 profit from the sale of the theaters and made a profit of $1,000,000 from his 7-year ownership of RKO.
Real estate
According to Noah Dietrich, "Land became a principal asset for the Hughes empire". Hughes acquired 1200 acres in Culver City for Hughes Aircraft, bought 7 sections [4,480 acres] in Tucson for his Falcon missile-plant, and purchased 25,000 acres near Las Vegas. In 1968, the Hughes Tool Company purchased the North Las Vegas Air Terminal.
Originally known as Summa Corporation, the Howard Hughes Corporation formed in 1972 when the oil-tools business of Hughes Tool Company, then owned by Howard Hughes Jr., floated on the New York Stock Exchange under the "Hughes Tool" name. This forced the remaining businesses of the "original" Hughes Tool to adopt a new corporate name: "Summa". The name "Summa"Latin for "highest"was adopted without the approval of Hughes himself, who preferred to keep his own name on the business, and suggested "HRH Properties" (for Hughes Resorts and Hotels, and also his own initials). In 1988 Summa announced plans for Summerlin, a master-planned community named for the paternal grandmother of Howard Hughes, Jean Amelia Summerlin.
Initially staying in the Desert Inn, Hughes refused to vacate his room, and instead decided to purchase the entire hotel. Hughes extended his financial empire to include Las Vegas real estate, hotels, and media outlets, spending an estimated $300 million, and using his considerable powers to take over many of the well-known hotels, especially the venues connected with organized crime. He quickly became one of the most powerful men in Las Vegas. He was instrumental in changing the image of Las Vegas from its Wild West roots into a more refined cosmopolitan city. In addition to the Desert Inn, Hughes would eventually own the Sands, Frontier, Silver Slipper, Castaways and Landmark and Harold's Club in Reno. Hughes would eventually become the largest employer in Nevada.
Aviation and aerospace
Another portion of Hughes's commercial interests involved aviation, airlines, and the aerospace and defense industries. A lifelong aircraft enthusiast and pilot, Hughes survived four airplane accidents: one in a Thomas-Morse Scout while filming Hell's Angels, one while setting the airspeed record in the Hughes Racer, one at Lake Mead in 1943, and the near-fatal crash of the Hughes XF-11 in 1946. At Rogers Airport in Los Angeles, he learned to fly from pioneer aviators, including Moye Stephens and J.B. Alexander. He set many world records and commissioned the construction of custom aircraft for himself while heading Hughes Aircraft at the airport in Glendale, CA. Operating from there, the most technologically important aircraft he commissioned was the Hughes H-1 Racer. On September 13, 1935, Hughes, flying the H-1, set the landplane airspeed record of over his test course near Santa Ana, California (Giuseppe Motta reaching 362 mph in 1929 and George Stainforth reached 407.5 mph in 1931, both in seaplanes). This marked the last time in history that an aircraft built by a private individual set the world airspeed record. A year and a half later, on January 19, 1937, flying the same H-1 Racer fitted with longer wings, Hughes set a new transcontinental airspeed record by flying non-stop from Los Angeles to Newark in seven hours, 28 minutes, and 25 seconds (beating his own previous record of nine hours, 27 minutes). His average ground-speed over the flight was .
The H-1 Racer featured a number of design innovations: it had retractable landing gear (as Boeing Monomail had five years before), and all rivets and joints set flush into the body of the aircraft to reduce drag. The H-1 Racer is thought to have influenced the design of a number of World War II fighters such as the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, Focke-Wulf Fw 190, and F8F Bearcat, although that has never been reliably confirmed. In 1975 the H-1 Racer was donated to the Smithsonian.
Round-the-world flight
On July 14, 1938, Hughes set another record by completing a flight around the world in just 91 hours (three days, 19 hours, 17 minutes), beating the previous record of 186 hours (7 days, 18 hours, 49 minutes) set in 1933 by Wiley Post in a single-engine Lockheed Vega by almost four days. Hughes returned home ahead of photographs of his flight. Taking off from New York City, Hughes continued to Paris, Moscow, Omsk, Yakutsk, Fairbanks, and Minneapolis, then returning to New York City. For this flight he flew a Lockheed 14 Super Electra (NX18973, a twin-engine transport with a four-man crew) fitted with the latest radio and navigational equipment. Harry Connor was the co-pilot, Thomas Thurlow the navigator, Richard Stoddart the engineer, and Ed Lund the mechanic. Hughes wanted the flight to be a triumph of American aviation technology, illustrating that safe, long-distance air travel was possible. Albert Lodwick of Mystic, Iowa, provided organizational skills as the flight operations manager. While Hughes had previously been relatively obscure despite his wealth, being better known for dating Katharine Hepburn, New York City now gave him a ticker-tape parade in the Canyon of Heroes. Hughes and his crew were awarded the 1938 Collier Trophy for flying around the world in record time. He was awarded the Harmon Trophy in 1936 and 1938 for the record-breaking global circumnavigation.
In 1938 the William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas—known at the time as Houston Municipal Airport—was renamed after Hughes, but the name was changed back due to public outrage over naming the airport after a living person.
Hughes also had a role in the design and financing of both the Boeing 307 Stratoliner and Lockheed L-049 Constellation.
Other aviator awards include: the Bibesco Cup of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in 1938, the Octave Chanute Award in 1940, and a special Congressional Gold Medal in 1939 "in recognition of the achievements of Howard Hughes in advancing the science of aviation and thus bringing great credit to his country throughout the world".
President Harry S. Truman sent the Congressional medal to Hughes after the F-11 crash. After his around-the-world flight, Hughes had declined to go to the White House to collect it.
Hughes D-2 and XF-11
The Hughes D-2 was conceived in 1939 as a bomber with five crew members, powered by 42-cylinder Wright R-2160 Tornado engines. In the end, it appeared as two-seat fighter-reconnaissance aircraft designated the D-2A, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-2800-49 engines. The aircraft was constructed using the Duramold process. The prototype was brought to Harper's Dry Lake in California in great secrecy in 1943 and first flew on June 20 of that year. Acting on a recommendation of the president's son, Colonel Elliott Roosevelt, who had become friends with Hughes, in September 1943 the USAAF ordered 100 of a reconnaissance development of the D-2, known as the F-11. Hughes then attempted to get the military to pay for the development of the D-2. In November 1944, the hangar containing the D-2A was reportedly hit by lightning and the aircraft was destroyed. The D-2 design was abandoned but led to the extremely controversial Hughes XF-11. The XF-11 was a large, all-metal, two-seat reconnaissance aircraft, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-4360-31 engines, each driving a set of contra-rotating propellers. Only two prototypes were completed; the second one with a single propeller per side.
Fatal crash of the Sikorsky S-43
In the spring of 1943 Hughes spent nearly a month in Las Vegas, test-flying his Sikorsky S-43 amphibious aircraft, practising touch-and-go landings on Lake Mead in preparation for flying the H-4 Hercules. The weather conditions at the lake during the day were ideal and he enjoyed Las Vegas at night. On May 17, 1943, Hughes flew the Sikorsky from California, carrying two CAA aviation inspectors, two of his employees, and actress Ava Gardner. Hughes dropped Gardner off in Las Vegas and proceeded to Lake Mead to conduct qualifying tests in the S-43. The test flight did not go well. The Sikorsky crashed into Lake Mead, killing CAA inspector Ceco Cline and Hughes's employee Richard Felt. Hughes suffered a severe gash on the top of his head when he hit the upper control panel and had to be rescued by one of the others on board. Hughes paid divers $100,000 to raise the aircraft and later spent more than $500,000 restoring it. Hughes sent the plane to Houston, where it remained for many years.
Near-fatal crash of the XF-11
Hughes was involved in another near-fatal aircraft accident on July 7, 1946, while performing the first flight of the prototype U.S. Army Air Forces reconnaissance aircraft, the XF-11, near Hughes airfield at Culver City, California. An oil leak caused one of the contra-rotating propellers to reverse pitch, causing the aircraft to yaw sharply and lose altitude rapidly. Hughes attempted to save the aircraft by landing it at the Los Angeles Country Club golf course, but just seconds before reaching the course, the XF-11 started to drop dramatically and crashed in the Beverly Hills neighborhood surrounding the country club.
When the XF-11 finally came to a halt after destroying three houses, the fuel tanks exploded, setting fire to the aircraft and a nearby home at 808 North Whittier Drive owned by Lt Col. Charles E. Meyer. Hughes managed to pull himself out of the flaming wreckage but lay beside the aircraft until rescued by Marine Master Sgt. William L. Durkin, who happened to be in the area visiting friends. Hughes sustained significant injuries in the crash, including a crushed collar bone, multiple cracked ribs, crushed chest with collapsed left lung, shifting his heart to the right side of the chest cavity, and numerous third-degree burns. An oft-told story said that Hughes sent a check to the Marine weekly for the remainder of his life as a sign of gratitude. Noah Dietrich asserted that Hughes did send Durkin $200 a month, but Durkin's daughter denied knowing that he received any money from Hughes.
Despite his physical injuries, Hughes took pride that his mind was still working. As he lay in his hospital bed, he decided that he did not like the bed's design. He called in plant engineers to design a customized bed, equipped with hot and cold running water, built in six sections, and operated by 30 electric motors, with push-button adjustments. Hughes designed the hospital bed specifically to alleviate the pain caused by moving with severe burn injuries. Although he never used the bed that he designed, Hughes's bed served as a prototype for the modern hospital bed. Hughes's doctors considered his recovery almost miraculous.
Many attribute his long-term dependence on opiates to his use of codeine as a painkiller during his convalescence. Yet Dietrich asserts that Hughes recovered the "hard way—no sleeping pills, no opiates of any kind". The trademark mustache he wore afterward hid a scar on his upper lip resulting from the accident.
H-4 Hercules
The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The military services opposed the project, thinking it would siphon resources from higher-priority programs, but Hughes's powerful allies in Washington, D.C., advocated for it. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II.
The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at , had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next-largest wingspan was about ). (The Hercules is no longer the longest nor heaviest aircraft ever built - surpassed by the Antonov An-225 Mriya produced in 1985.)
The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947.
Critics nicknamed the Hercules the Spruce Goose, but it was actually made largely from birch (not spruce) rather than from aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes's Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the XF-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly-disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense-acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it features at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum.
On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes's paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio-technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules.
Hughes Aircraft
In 1932 Hughes founded the Hughes Aircraft Company, a division of Hughes Tool Company, in a rented corner of a Lockheed Aircraft Corporation hangar in Burbank, California, to build the H-1 racer.
Shortly after founding the company, Hughes used the alias "Charles Howard" to accept a job as a baggage handler for American Airlines. He was soon promoted to co-pilot.
Hughes continued to work for American Airlines until his real identity was discovered.
During and after World War II Hughes fashioned his company into a major defense contractor. The Hughes Helicopters division started in 1947 when helicopter manufacturer Kellett sold their latest design to Hughes for production. Hughes Aircraft became a major American aerospace- and defense contractor, manufacturing numerous technology-related products that included spacecraft vehicles, military aircraft, radar systems, electro-optical systems, the first working laser, aircraft computer systems, missile systems, ion-propulsion engines (for space travel), commercial satellites, and other electronics systems.
In 1948 Hughes created a new division of Hughes Aircraft: the Hughes Aerospace Group. The Hughes Space and Communications Group and the Hughes Space Systems Division were later spun off in 1948 to form their own divisions and ultimately became the Hughes Space and Communications Company in 1961. In 1953 Howard Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the newly formed Howard Hughes Medical Institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a tax-exempt charitable organization. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion. In 1997 General Motors sold Hughes Aircraft to Raytheon and in 2000, sold Hughes Space & Communications to Boeing. A combination of Boeing, GM, and Raytheon acquired the Hughes Research Laboratories, which focused on advanced developments in microelectronics, information & systems sciences, materials, sensors, and photonics; their work-space spans from basic research to product delivery. It has particularly emphasized capabilities in high-performance integrated circuits, high-power lasers, antennas, networking, and smart materials.
Airlines
In 1939, at the urging of Jack Frye, president of Transcontinental & Western Airlines, the predecessor of Trans World Airlines (TWA), Hughes began to quietly purchase a majority share of TWA stock; he took a controlling interest in the airline by 1944. Although he never had an official position with TWA, Hughes handpicked the board of directors, which included Noah Dietrich, and often issued orders directly to airline staff. Hughes Tool Co. purchased the first six Stratoliners Boeing manufactured. Hughes used one personally, and he let TWA operate the other five.
Hughes is commonly credited as the driving force behind the Lockheed Constellation airliner, which Hughes and Frye ordered in 1939 as a long-range replacement for TWA's fleet of Boeing 307 Stratoliners. Hughes personally financed TWA's acquisition of 40 Constellations for $18 million, the largest aircraft order in history up to that time. The Constellations were among the highest-performing commercial aircraft of the late 1940s and 1950s and allowed TWA to pioneer nonstop transcontinental service. During World War II Hughes leveraged political connections in Washington to obtain rights for TWA to serve Europe, making it the only U.S. carrier with a combination of domestic and transatlantic routes.
After the announcement of the Boeing 707, Hughes opted to pursue a more advanced jet aircraft for TWA and approached Convair in late 1954. Convair proposed two concepts to Hughes, but Hughes was unable to decide which concept to adopt, and Convair eventually abandoned its initial jet project after the mockups of the 707 and Douglas DC-8 were unveiled. Even after competitors such as United Airlines, American Airlines and Pan American World Airways had placed large orders for the 707, Hughes only placed eight orders for 707s through the Hughes Tool Company and forbade TWA from using the aircraft. After finally beginning to reserve 707 orders in 1956, Hughes embarked on a plan to build his own "superior" jet aircraft for TWA, applied for CAB permission to sell Hughes aircraft to TWA, and began negotiations with the state of Florida to build a manufacturing plant there. However, he abandoned this plan around 1958, and in the interim, negotiated new contracts for 707 and Convair 880 aircraft and engines totaling $400 million.
The financing of TWA's jet orders precipitated the end of Hughes's relationship with Noah Dietrich, and ultimately Hughes's ouster from control of TWA. Hughes did not have enough cash on hand or future cash flow to pay for the orders and did not immediately seek bank financing. Hughes's refusal to heed Dietrich's financing advice led to a major rift between the two by the end of 1956. Hughes believed that Dietrich wished to have Hughes committed as mentally incompetent, although the evidence of this is inconclusive. Dietrich resigned by telephone in May 1957 after repeated requests for stock options, which Hughes refused to grant, and with no further progress on the jet financing. As Hughes's mental state worsened, he ordered various tactics to delay payments to Boeing and Convair; his behavior led TWA's banks to insist that he be removed from management as a condition for further financing.
In 1960, Hughes was ultimately forced out of the management of TWA, although he continued to own 78% of the company. In 1961, TWA filed suit against Hughes Tool Company, claiming that the latter had violated antitrust law by using TWA as a captive market for aircraft trading. The claim was largely dependent upon obtaining testimony from Hughes himself. Hughes went into hiding and refused to testify. A default judgment was issued against Hughes Tool Company for $135 million in 1963 but was overturned by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1973, on the basis that Hughes was immune from prosecution. In 1966, Hughes was forced to sell his TWA shares. The sale of his TWA shares brought Hughes $546,549,771.
Hughes acquired control of Boston-based Northeast Airlines in 1962. However, the airline's lucrative route authority between major northeastern cities and Miami was terminated by a CAB decision around the time of the acquisition, and Hughes sold control of the company to a trustee in 1964. Northeast went on to merge with Delta Air Lines in 1972.
In 1970, Hughes acquired San Francisco-based Air West and renamed it Hughes Airwest. Air West had been formed in 1968 by the merger of Bonanza Air Lines, Pacific Air Lines, and West Coast Airlines, all of which operated in the western U.S. By the late 1970s, Hughes Airwest operated an all-jet fleet of Boeing 727-200, Douglas DC-9-10, and McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 jetliners serving an extensive route network in the western U.S. with flights to Mexico and western Canada as well. By 1980, the airline's route system reached as far east as Houston (Hobby Airport) and Milwaukee with a total of 42 destinations being served. Hughes Airwest was then acquired by and merged into Republic Airlines (1979–1986) in late 1980. Republic was subsequently acquired by and merged into Northwest Airlines which in turn was ultimately merged into Delta Air Lines in 2008.
Business with David Charnay
Hughes had made numerous business partnerships through industrialist and producer David Charnay. Their friendship and many partnerships began with the film The Conqueror, which was first released to the public in 1956. The film caused many controversies due to its critical flop and radioactive location used in St. George, Utah, that eventually led to Hughes buying up nearly every copy of the film he could, only to watch the film at home repeatedly for many nights in a row.
Charnay later bought Four Star, the film and television production company that produced The Conqueror.
Hughes and Charnay's most published dealings were with a contested AirWest leveraged buyout. Charnay led the buyout group that involved Howard Hughes and their partners acquiring Air West. Hughes, Charnay, as well as three others, were indicted. The indictment, made by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton, accused the group of conspiring to drive down the stock price of Air West in order to pressure company directors to sell to Hughes. The charges were dismissed after a judge had determined that the indictment had failed to allege an illegal action on the part of Hughes, Charnay, and all the other accused in the indictment. Thompson, the federal judge that made the decision to dismiss the charges called the indictment one of the worst claims that he had ever seen. The charges were filed again, a second time, by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton's assistant, Dean Vernon. The Federal Judge ruled on November 13, 1974, and elaborated to say that the case suggested a "reprehensible misuse of the power of great wealth", but in his judicial opinion, "no crime had been committed." The aftermath of the Air West deal was later settled with the SEC by paying former stockholders for alleged losses from the sale of their investment in Air West stock. As noted above, Air West was subsequently renamed Hughes Airwest. During a long pause between the years of the dismissed charges against Hughes, Charnay, and their partners, Howard Hughes mysteriously died mid-flight while on the way to Houston from Acapulco. No further attempts were made to file any indictments after Hughes died.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
In 1953, Hughes launched the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Miami, Florida, (currently located in Chevy Chase, Maryland) with the expressed goal of basic biomedical research, including trying to understand, in Hughes's words, the "genesis of life itself", due to his lifelong interest in science and technology. Hughes's first will, which he signed in 1925 at the age of 19, stipulated that a portion of his estate should be used to create a medical institute bearing his name. When a major battle with the IRS loomed ahead, Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a for-profit entity of a fully tax-exempt charity. Hughes's internist, Verne Mason, who treated Hughes after his 1946 aircraft crash, was chairman of the institute's medical advisory committee. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute's new board of trustees sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion, allowing the institute to grow dramatically.
In 1954, Hughes transferred Hughes Aircraft to the foundation, which paid Hughes Tool Co. $18,000,000 for the assets. The foundation leased the land from Hughes Tool Co., which then subleased it to Hughes Aircraft Corp. The difference in rent, $2,000,000 per year, became the foundation's working capital.
The deal was the topic of a protracted legal battle between Hughes and the Internal Revenue Service, which Hughes ultimately won. After his death in 1976, many thought that the balance of Hughes's estate would go to the institute, although it was ultimately divided among his cousins and other heirs, given the lack of a will to the contrary. The HHMI was the fourth largest private organization and one of the largest devoted to biological and medical research, with an endowment of $20.4 billion .
Glomar Explorer and the taking of K-129
In 1972, during the cold war era, Hughes was approached by the CIA through his longtime partner, David Charnay, to help secretly recover the Soviet submarine K-129, which had sunk near Hawaii four years earlier. Hughes's involvement provided the CIA with a plausible cover story, conducting expensive civilian marine research at extreme depths and the mining of undersea manganese nodules. The recovery plan used the special-purpose salvage vessel Glomar Explorer. In the summer of 1974, Glomar Explorer attempted to raise the Soviet vessel. However, during the recovery a mechanical failure in the ship's grapple caused half of the submarine to break off and fall to the ocean floor. This section is believed to have held many of the most sought-after items, including its code book and nuclear missiles. Two nuclear-tipped torpedoes and some cryptographic machines were recovered, along with the bodies of six Soviet submariners who were subsequently given formal burial at sea in a filmed ceremony. The operation, known as Project Azorian (but incorrectly referred to by the press as Project Jennifer), became public in February 1975 after secret documents were released, obtained by burglars of Hughes's headquarters in June 1974. Although he lent his name and his company's resources to the operation, Hughes and his companies had no operational involvement in the project. The Glomar Explorer was eventually acquired by Transocean and was sent to the scrap yard in 2015 during a large decline in oil prices.
Personal life
Early romances
In 1929, Hughes's wife of four years, Ella, returned to Houston and filed for divorce.
Hughes dated many famous women, including Joan Crawford, Billie Dove, Faith Domergue, Bette Davis, Yvonne De Carlo, Ava Gardner, Olivia de Havilland, Katharine Hepburn, Hedy Lamarr, Ginger Rogers, Janet Leigh, Pat Sheehan, Mamie Van Doren and Gene Tierney. He also proposed to Joan Fontaine several times, according to her autobiography No Bed of Roses. Jean Harlow accompanied him to the premiere of Hell's Angels, but Noah Dietrich wrote many years later that the relationship was strictly professional, as Hughes disliked Harlow personally. In his 1971 book, Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes, Dietrich said that Hughes genuinely liked and respected Jane Russell, but never sought romantic involvement with her. According to Russell's autobiography, however, Hughes once tried to bed her after a party. Russell (who was married at the time) refused him, and Hughes promised it would never happen again. The two maintained a professional and private friendship for many years. Hughes remained good friends with Tierney who, after his failed attempts to seduce her, was quoted as saying "I don't think Howard could love anything that did not have a motor in it". Later, when Tierney's daughter Daria was born deaf and blind and with a severe learning disability because of Tierney's exposure to rubella during her pregnancy, Hughes saw to it that Daria received the best medical care and paid all expenses.
Luxury yacht
In 1933, Hughes made a purchase of a luxury steam yacht named the Rover, which was previously owned by Scottish shipping magnate Lord Inchcape. "I have never seen the Rover but bought it on the blueprints, photographs and the reports of Lloyd's surveyors. My experience is that the English are the most honest race in the world." Hughes renamed the yacht Southern Cross and later sold her to Swedish entrepreneur Axel Wenner-Gren.
1936 automobile accident
On July 11, 1936, Hughes struck and killed a pedestrian named Gabriel S. Meyer with his car at the corner of 3rd Street and Lorraine in Los Angeles. After the crash, Hughes was taken to the hospital and certified as sober, but an attending doctor made a note that Hughes had been drinking. A witness to the crash told police that Hughes was driving erratically and too fast and that Meyer had been standing in the safety zone of a streetcar stop. Hughes was booked on suspicion of negligent homicide and held overnight in jail until his attorney, Neil S. McCarthy, obtained a writ of habeas corpus for his release pending a coroner's inquest. By the time of the coroner's inquiry, however, the witness had changed his story and claimed that Meyer had moved directly in front of Hughes's car. Nancy Bayly (Watts), who was in the car with Hughes at the time of the crash, corroborated this version of the story. On July 16, 1936, Hughes was held blameless by a coroner's jury at the inquest into Meyer's death. Hughes told reporters outside the inquiry, "I was driving slowly and a man stepped out of the darkness in front of me".
Marriage to Jean Peters
On January 12, 1957, Hughes married actress Jean Peters at a small hotel in Tonopah, Nevada. The couple met in the 1940s, before Peters became a film actress. They had a highly publicized romance in 1947 and there was talk of marriage, but she said she could not combine it with her career. Some later claimed that Peters was "the only woman [Hughes] ever loved", and he reportedly had his security officers follow her everywhere even when they were not in a relationship. Such reports were confirmed by actor Max Showalter, who became a close friend of Peters while shooting Niagara (1953). Showalter told an interviewer that because he frequently met with Peters, Hughes's men threatened to ruin his career if he did not leave her alone.
Connections to Richard Nixon and Watergate
Shortly before the 1960 Presidential election, Richard Nixon was alarmed when it was revealed that his brother, Donald, received a $205,000 loan from Hughes. It has long been speculated that Nixon's drive to learn what the Democrats were planning in 1972 was based in part on his belief that the Democrats knew about a later bribe that his friend Bebe Rebozo had received from Hughes after Nixon took office.
In late 1971, Donald Nixon was collecting intelligence for his brother in preparation for the upcoming presidential election. One of his sources was John H. Meier, a former business adviser of Hughes who had also worked with Democratic National Committee Chairman Larry O'Brien.
Meier, in collaboration with former Vice President Hubert Humphrey and others, wanted to feed misinformation to the Nixon campaign. Meier told Donald that he was sure the Democrats would win the election because Larry O'Brien had a great deal of information on Richard Nixon's illicit dealings with Howard Hughes that had never been released; O'Brien did not actually have any such information, but Meier wanted Nixon to think that he did. Donald told his brother that O'Brien was in possession of damaging Hughes information that could destroy his campaign. Terry Lenzner, who was the chief investigator for the Senate Watergate Committee, speculates that it was Nixon's desire to know what O'Brien knew about Nixon's dealings with Hughes that may have partially motivated the Watergate break-in.
Last years and death
Physical and mental decline
Hughes was widely considered eccentric and to have suffered with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
Dietrich wrote that Hughes always ate the same thing for dinner, a New York strip steak cooked medium rare, dinner salad, and peas, but only the smaller ones, pushing the larger ones aside. For breakfast, Hughes wanted his eggs cooked the way his family cook, Lily, made them. Hughes had a "phobia about germs", and "his passion for secrecy became a mania."
While directing The Outlaw, Hughes became fixated on a small flaw in one of Jane Russell's blouses, claiming that the fabric bunched up along a seam and gave the appearance of two nipples on each breast. He wrote a detailed memorandum to the crew on how to fix the problem. Richard Fleischer, who directed His Kind of Woman with Hughes as executive producer, wrote at length in his autobiography about the difficulty of dealing with the tycoon. In his book, Just Tell Me When to Cry, Fleischer explained that Hughes was fixated on trivial details and was alternately indecisive and obstinate. He also revealed that Hughes's unpredictable mood swings made him wonder if the film would ever be completed.
In 1958, Hughes told his aides that he wanted to screen some movies at a film studio near his home. He stayed in the studio's darkened screening room for more than four months, never leaving. He ate only chocolate bars and chicken and drank only milk, and was surrounded by dozens of Kleenex that he continuously stacked and re-arranged. He wrote detailed memos to his aides giving them explicit instructions neither to look at him nor speak to him unless spoken to. Throughout this period, Hughes sat fixated in his chair, often naked, continually watching movies. When he finally emerged in the summer of 1958, his hygiene was terrible. He had neither bathed nor cut his hair and nails for weeks; this may have been due to allodynia, which results in a pain response to stimuli that would normally not cause pain.
After the screening room incident, Hughes moved into a bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel where he also rented rooms for his aides, his wife, and numerous girlfriends. He would sit naked in his bedroom with a pink hotel napkin placed over his genitals, watching movies. This may have been because Hughes found the touch of clothing painful due to allodynia. He may have watched movies to distract himself from his pain—a common practice among patients with intractable pain, especially those who do not receive adequate treatment. In one year, Hughes spent an estimated $11 million at the hotel.
Hughes began purchasing restaurant chains and four-star hotels that had been founded within the state of Texas. This included, if for only a short period, many unknown franchises currently out of business. He placed ownership of the restaurants with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and all licenses were resold shortly after.
Another time, he became obsessed with the 1968 film Ice Station Zebra, and had it run on a continuous loop in his home. According to his aides, he watched it 150 times. Feeling guilty about the commercial, critical, and rumored toxicity of his film The Conqueror, he bought every copy of the film for $12 million, watching the film on repeat. Paramount Pictures acquired the rights of the film in 1979, three years after his death.
Hughes insisted on using tissues to pick up objects to insulate himself from germs. He would also notice dust, stains, or other imperfections on people's clothes and demand that they take care of them. Once one of the most visible men in America, Hughes ultimately vanished from public view, although tabloids continued to follow rumors of his behavior and whereabouts. He was reported to be terminally ill, mentally unstable, or even dead.
Injuries from numerous aircraft crashes caused Hughes to spend much of his later life in pain, and he eventually became addicted to codeine, which he injected intramuscularly. Hughes had his hair cut and nails trimmed only once a year, likely due to the pain caused by the RSD/CRPS, which was caused by the plane crashes. He also stored his urine in bottles.
Later years in Las Vegas
The wealthy and aging Hughes, accompanied by his entourage of personal aides, began moving from one hotel to another, always taking up residence in the top floor penthouse. In the last ten years of his life, 1966 to 1976, Hughes lived in hotels in many cities—including Beverly Hills, Boston, Las Vegas, Nassau, Freeport and Vancouver.
On November 24, 1966 (Thanksgiving Day), Hughes arrived in Las Vegas by railroad car and moved into the Desert Inn. Because he refused to leave the hotel and to avoid further conflicts with the owners, Hughes bought the Desert Inn in early 1967. The hotel's eighth floor became the nerve center of Hughes's empire and the ninth-floor penthouse became his personal residence. Between 1966 and 1968, he bought several other hotel-casinos, including the Castaways, New Frontier, the Landmark Hotel and Casino, and the Sands. He bought the small Silver Slipper casino for the sole purpose of moving its trademark neon silver slipper, which was visible from his bedroom, and had apparently kept him awake at night.
After Hughes left the Desert Inn, hotel employees discovered that his drapes had not been opened during the time he lived there and had rotted through.
Hughes wanted to change the image of Las Vegas to something more glamorous. He wrote in a memo to an aide, "I like to think of Las Vegas in terms of a well-dressed man in a dinner jacket and a beautifully jeweled and furred female getting out of an expensive car." Hughes bought several local television stations (including KLAS-TV).
Eventually the brain trauma from Hughes's previous accidents, the effects of neurosyphilis diagnosed in 1932 and (undiagnosed) Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder considerably affected his decision-making. A small panel, unofficially dubbed "The Mormon Mafia" because of the many Latter-day Saints on the committee, was led by Frank William Gay and originally served Hughes's "secret police" headquartered at 9000 Romaine. Over the next two decades, however, this group oversaw and controlled considerable business holdings, with the CIA anointing Gay while awarding a contract to the Hughes corporation to acquire sensitive information on a sunken Russian submarine. In addition to supervising day-to-day business operations and Hughes's health, they also went to great pains to satisfy Hughes's every whim. For example, Hughes once became fond of Baskin-Robbins' banana nut ice cream, so his aides sought to secure a bulk shipment for him, only to discover that Baskin-Robbins had discontinued the flavor. They put in a request for the smallest amount the company could provide for a special order, 350 gallons (1,300 L), and had it shipped from Los Angeles. A few days after the order arrived, Hughes announced he was tired of banana nut and wanted only French vanilla ice cream. The Desert Inn ended up distributing free banana nut ice cream to casino customers for a year. In a 1996 interview, ex–Howard Hughes Chief of Nevada Operations Robert Maheu said, "There is a rumor that there is still some banana nut ice cream left in the freezer. It is most likely true."
As an owner of several major Las Vegas businesses, Hughes wielded much political and economic influence in Nevada and elsewhere. During the 1960s and early 1970s, he disapproved of underground nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site. Hughes was concerned about the risk from residual nuclear radiation and attempted to halt the tests. When the tests finally went through despite Hughes's efforts, the detonations were powerful enough that the entire hotel in which he was living trembled from the shock waves. In two separate, last-ditch maneuvers, Hughes instructed his representatives to offer bribes of $1m to both Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon.
In 1970, Jean Peters filed for divorce. The two had not lived together for many years. Peters requested a lifetime alimony payment of $70,000 a year, adjusted for inflation, and waived all claims to Hughes's estate. Hughes offered her a settlement of over a million dollars, but she declined it. Hughes did not insist on a confidentiality agreement from Peters as a condition of the divorce. Aides reported that Hughes never spoke ill of her. She refused to discuss her life with Hughes and declined several lucrative offers from publishers and biographers. Peters would state only that she had not seen Hughes for several years before their divorce and had dealt with him only by phone.
Hughes was living in the Intercontinental Hotel near Lake Managua in Nicaragua, seeking privacy and security, when a magnitude 6.5 earthquake damaged Managua in December 1972. As a precaution, Hughes moved to a rather large tent facing the hotel; after a few days, he moved to the Nicaraguan National Palace and stayed there as a guest of Anastasio Somoza Debayle before leaving for Florida on a private jet the following day. He subsequently moved into the Penthouse at the Xanadu Princess Resort on Grand Bahama Island, which he had recently purchased. He lived almost exclusively in the penthouse of the Xanadu Beach Resort & Marina for the last four years of his life.
Hughes spent a total of $300 million on his many properties in Las Vegas.
Autobiography hoax
In 1972, author Clifford Irving caused a media sensation when he claimed he had co-written an authorized Hughes autobiography. Irving claimed he and Hughes had corresponded through the United States mail, and offered as proof handwritten notes allegedly sent by Hughes. Publisher McGraw-Hill, Inc. was duped into believing the manuscript was authentic. Hughes was so reclusive that he did not immediately publicly refute Irving's statement, leading many to believe that Irving's book was genuine. However, before the book's publication, Hughes finally denounced Irving in a teleconference attended by reporters Hughes knew personally: James Bacon of the Hearst papers, Marin Miles of the Los Angeles Times, Vernon Scott of UPI, Roy Neal of NBC News, Gene Handsaker of AP, Wayne Thomas of the Chicago Tribune, and Gladwin Hill of the New York Times.
The entire hoax finally unraveled. The United States Postal Inspection Service got a subpoena to force Irving to turn over samples of his handwriting. The USPS investigation led to Irving's indictment and subsequent conviction for using the postal service to commit fraud. He was incarcerated for 17 months. In 1974, the Orson Welles film F for Fake included a section on the Hughes autobiography hoax, leaving a question open as to whether it was actually Hughes who took part in the teleconference (since so few people had actually heard or seen him in recent years). In 1977, The Hoax by Clifford Irving was published in the United Kingdom, telling his story of these events. The 2006 film The Hoax, starring Richard Gere, is also based on these events.
Death
Hughes is reported to have died on April 5, 1976, at 1:27 p.m. on board an aircraft, Learjet 24B N855W, owned by Robert Graf and piloted by Jeff Abrams. He was en route from his penthouse at the Acapulco Princess Hotel (now the Fairmont Acapulco Princess) in Mexico to the Methodist Hospital in Houston.
His reclusiveness and possibly his drug use made him practically unrecognizable. His hair, beard, fingernails, and toenails were long—his tall frame now weighed barely , and the FBI had to use fingerprints to conclusively identify the body. Howard Hughes's alias, John T. Conover, was used when his body arrived at a morgue in Houston on the day of his death.
An autopsy recorded kidney failure as the cause of death. In an eighteen-month study investigating Hughes' drug abuse for the estate, it was found "someone administered a deadly injection of the painkiller to this comatose man... obviously needlessly and almost certainly fatal". He suffered from malnutrition and was covered in bedsores. While his kidneys were damaged, his other internal organs, including his brain, which had no visible damage or illnesses, were deemed perfectly healthy. X-rays revealed five broken-off hypodermic needles in the flesh of his arms. To inject codeine into his muscles, Hughes had used glass syringes with metal needles that easily became detached.
Hughes is buried next to his parents at Glenwood Cemetery in Houston.
Alleged survival
Following his death, Hughes was subject to several widely rebuked conspiracy theories that he had faked his own death. A notable allegation came from retired Major General Mark Musick, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, who claimed Hughes went on to live under an assumed identity, dying on November 15, 2001, in Troy, Alabama.
Estate
Approximately three weeks after Hughes's death, a handwritten will was found on the desk of an official of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah. The so-called "Mormon Will" gave $1.56 billion to various charitable organizations (including $625 million to the Howard Hughes Medical Institute), nearly $470 million to the upper management in Hughes's companies and to his aides, $156 million to first cousin William Lummis, and $156 million split equally between his two ex-wives Ella Rice and Jean Peters.
A further $156 million was endowed to a gas-station owner, Melvin Dummar, who told reporters that in 1967, he found a disheveled and dirty man lying along U.S. Route 95, just north of Las Vegas. The man asked for a ride to Vegas. Dropping him off at the Sands Hotel, Dummar said the man told him that he was Hughes. Dummar later claimed that days after Hughes's death a "mysterious man" appeared at his gas station, leaving an envelope containing the will on his desk. Unsure if the will was genuine and unsure of what to do, Dummar left the will at the LDS Church office. In 1978, a Nevada court ruled the Mormon Will a forgery and officially declared that Hughes had died intestate (without a valid will). Dummar's story was later adapted into Jonathan Demme's film Melvin and Howard in 1980.
Hughes's $2.5 billion estate was eventually split in 1983 among 22 cousins, including William Lummis, who serves as a trustee of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The Supreme Court of the United States ruled that Hughes Aircraft was owned by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, which sold it to General Motors in 1985 for $5.2 billion. The court rejected suits by the states of California and Texas that claimed they were owed inheritance tax.
In 1984, Hughes's estate paid an undisclosed amount to Terry Moore, who claimed she and Hughes had secretly married on a yacht in international waters off Mexico in 1949 and never divorced. Moore never produced proof of a marriage, but her book, The Beauty and the Billionaire, became a bestseller.
Awards
Harmon Trophy (1936 and 1938)
Collier Trophy (1938)
Congressional Gold Medal (1939)
Octave Chanute Award (1940)
National Aviation Hall of Fame (1973)
International Air & Space Hall of Fame (1987)
Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (2018)
Archive
The moving image collection of Howard Hughes is held at the Academy Film Archive. The collection consists of over 200 items including 35mm and 16mm elements of feature films, documentaries, and television programs made or accumulated by Hughes.
Filmography
In popular culture
Film
In The Carpetbaggers (1964), the main character Jonas Cord (played by George Peppard) is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever (1971) features a tall, Texan, reclusive billionaire character named Willard Whyte (played by Jimmy Dean) who operates his business empire from the penthouse of a Las Vegas hotel. Although he appears only late in the film, his habitual seclusion and his control of a major aerospace contracting firm are key elements of the movie's plot. Several sequences were actually filmed on location at The Landmark Hotel and Casino, which was owned by Hughes at the time.
The Amazing Howard Hughes is a 1977 American made-for-television biographical film which aired as a mini-series on the CBS network, made a year after Hughes's death and based on Noah Dietrich's book Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. Tommy Lee Jones plays Hughes.
Melvin and Howard (1980), directed by Jonathan Demme and starring Jason Robards as Howard Hughes and Paul Le Mat as Melvin Dummar. The film won Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay (Bo Goldman) and Best Supporting Actress (Mary Steenburgen). The film focuses on Melvin Dummar's claims of meeting Hughes in the Nevada desert and subsequent estate battles over his inclusion in Hughes's will. Critic Pauline Kael called the film "an almost flawless act of sympathetic imagination".
In Tucker: The Man and His Dream, (1988), Hughes (played by Dean Stockwell) figures in the plot by telling Preston Tucker to source steel and engines for Tucker's automobiles from a helicopter manufacturer in New York. Scene occurs in a hangar with the Hercules.
In The Rocketeer, a 1991 American period superhero film from Walt Disney Pictures, the title character attracts the attention of Howard Hughes (played by Terry O'Quinn) and the FBI, who are hunting for a missing jet pack, as well as Nazi operatives.
"Howard Hughes Documentary", broadcast in 1992 as an episode of the Time Machine documentary series, was introduced by Peter Graves, later released by A&E Home Video.
In Conspiracy Theory (1997), the character Jerry Fletcher (played by Mel Gibson) mentions one of his theories to a street vendor by saying, "Did you know that the whole Vietnam War was fought over a bet that Howard Hughes lost to Aristotle Onassis?" referring to his (Fletcher's) thoughts on the politics of that conflict.
In The Aviator (2004), directed by Martin Scorsese, Hughes is portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio. The film focuses on Hughes's personal life from the making of Hell's Angels through his successful flight of the Hercules or Spruce Goose. Critically acclaimed, it was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, winning five for Best Cinematography; Best Film Editing; Best Costume Design; Best Art Direction; and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Cate Blanchett.
Howard Hughes: The Real Aviator documentary was broadcast in 2004 and went on to win the Grand Festival Award for Best Documentary at the 2004 Berkeley Video & Film Festival.
In the 2005 animated film Robots, the character Mr Bigweld (voiced by Mel Brooks), a reclusive inventor and owner of Bigweld Industries, is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The American Aviator: The Howard Hughes Story was broadcast in 2006 on the Biography Channel. It was later released to home media as a DVD with a copy of the full-length film The Outlaw starring Jane Russell.
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), as a plot-related prequel to Iron Man 2 (2010), in which Howard Stark (played by Dominic Cooper), father of Tony Stark (Iron Man), showed his inventions of future technology, clearly embodying Hughes's persona and enthusiasm. His subsequent appearances in the TV series Marvel's Agent Carter further this persona, as well as depicting him as sharing the real Hughes's reputation as a womanizer. Stan Lee has noted that Tony, who shared several of these traits himself, was based on Hughes.
Rules Don't Apply (2016), written and directed by Warren Beatty, features Beatty as Hughes from 1958 through 1964.
In the Dark Knight Trilogy, director Christopher Nolan's characterisation of Bruce Wayne is heavily inspired by Hughes's perceived lifestyle – from a playboy in Batman Begins to a recluse in The Dark Knight Rises. Nolan is reported to have integrated his original material intended for a shelved Hughes biopic into the trilogy.
Games
The character of Andrew Ryan in the 2007 video game BioShock is loosely based on Hughes. Ryan is a billionaire industrialist in post-World War II America who, seeking to avoid governments, religions, and other "parasitic" influences, ordered the secret construction of an underwater city, Rapture. Years later, when Ryan's vision for Rapture falls into dystopia, he hides himself away and uses armies of mutated humans, "Splicers", to defend himself and fight against those trying to take over his city, including the player-character.
In L.A. Noire, Hughes makes an appearance presenting his Hercules H-4 aircraft in the game opening scene. The H-4 is later a central plot piece of DLC Arson Case, "Nicholson Electroplating".
In Fallout: New Vegas, the character of Robert Edwin House, a wealthy business magnate and entrepreneur who owns the New Vegas strip, is based on Howard Hughes and closely resembles him in appearance, personality and background. A portrait of Mr. House can also be found in the game which strongly resembles a portrait of Howard Hughes standing in front of a Boeing Army Pursuit Plane.
Literature
Stan Lee repeatedly stated he created the Marvel Comics character Iron Man's civilian persona, Tony Stark, drawing inspiration from Howard Hughes's colorful lifestyle and personality. Additionally, the first name of Stark's father is Howard.
Hughes is a supporting character in all three parts of James Ellroy's Underworld USA Trilogy, employing several of the protagonists as private investigators, bagmen, and consultants in his attempt to assume control of Las Vegas. Referred to behind his back as "Count Dracula" (due to his reclusiveness and rumored obsession with blood transfusions from Mormon donors), Hughes is portrayed as a spoiled, racist, opioid-addicted megalomaniac whose grandiose plans for Las Vegas are undermined by the manipulations of the Chicago Outfit.
In the 1981 novel Dream Park by Larry Niven and Steven Barnes, the weapon "which might have defeated the Japs if it hadn't come so late" is revealed to be the Spruce Goose, which had been magically hijacked on its test flight by evil Foré sorcerers in New Guinea. Hughes's skeleton is found at the controls, identified by Hughes's trademark fedora and cloth-and-leather jacket.
Music
The 1974 song "Workin' at the Car Wash Blues" by Jim Croce compares the main protagonist of the song to Howard Hughes in one of the lyrics.
The 1974 song "The Wall Street Shuffle" by English rock band 10cc directly references Hughes and his ways of life in the last verse.
The song "Me and Howard Hughes" by Irish band The Boomtown Rats on their 1978 album A Tonic for the Troops is about the title subject.
The song "Closet Chronicles" by American rock band Kansas on their 1977 album Point of Know Return is a Howard Hughes allegory.
The song "Ain't No Fun (Waiting 'Round To Be a Millionaire)" by AC/DC on their 1976 album "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" singer Bon Scott referenced Howard Hughes toward the end of the song: "Hey, hello Howard, how you doin', my next door neighbour? Oh, yea... Get your fuckin' jumbo jet off my airport"
Hughes's name is mentioned in the title and the lyrics of the 2002 song "Bargain Basement Howard Hughes" by Jerry Cantrell.
The 2012 song "Nancy From Now On" by American songwriter Father John Misty likens Hughes's destructive and erratic tendencies to the singer's own.
Television
In The Greatest American Hero Season 2 episode 3, "Don't Mess Around with Jim," Ralph and Bill are kidnapped by a reclusive tycoon, owner of Beck Air airplane company, who fakes his own death, and seems to know more about the suit than they do. He then blackmails them into retrieving his will to prevent it from being misused by the president of his company.
In The Simpsons Season 5 episode "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)", Mr. Burns resembles Hughes in his recluse state. Various nods to his life appear in the episode, ranging from casino ownership and penthouse office to the "Spruce Goose" being renamed "Spruce Moose" as well as a lack of hygiene and being a germaphobe.
In The Beverly Hillbillies episode, "The Clampett-Hewes Empire", Jed Clampett, while in Hooterville, decides to merge his interests with a man Mr. Drysdale believes is Howard Hughes, the famous reclusive billionaire. Eventually it turns out, to Mr. Drysdale's chagrin, "Howard Hughes" is no billionaire; he is nothing but a plain old farmer named "Howard Hewes" (H-E-W-E-S).
In the Invader Zim episode, "Germs," the alien Zim becomes paranoid after discovering that Earth is covered in germs. Referencing Howard Hughes, he isolates himself in his home and dons tissue boxes on his feet.
In the Superjail! episode "The Superjail! Six", The Warden repeatedly watches a film called Ice Station Jailpup which parodies Hughes's obsession with the film Ice Station Zebra
See also
Analgesic nephropathy
List of richest Americans in history
List of wealthiest historical figures
List of aviation pioneers
List of entrepreneurs
Phenacetin
References
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
Barkow, Al. Gettin' to the Dance Floor: An Oral History of American Golf. Short Hills, New Jersey: Burford Books, 1986. .
Barton, Charles. Howard Hughes and his Flying Boat. Fallbrook, CA: Aero Publishers, 1982. Republished in 1998, Vienna, VA: Charles Barton, Inc. .
Barlett, Donald L. and James B. Steele. Empire: The Life, Legend and Madness of Howard Hughes. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1979. , republished in 2004 as Howard Hughes: His Life and Madness.
Bellett, Gerald. Age of Secrets: The Conspiracy that Toppled Richard Nixon and the Hidden Death of Howard Hughes. Stillwater, Minnesota: Voyageur Press, 1995. .
Blackman, Tony Tony Blackman Test Pilot Grub Street, 2009,
Brown, Peter Harry and Pat H. Broeske. Howard Hughes: The Untold Story. New York: Penguin Books, 1996. .
Burleson, Clyde W. The Jennifer Project. College Station, Texas: Texas A&M University Press, 1997. .
Dietrich, Noah and Bob Thomas. Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. New York: Fawcett Publications, 1972. .
Drosnin, Michael. Citizen Hughes: In his Own Words, How Howard Hughes Tried to Buy America. Portland, Oregon: Broadway Books, 2004. .
Hack, Richard. Hughes: The Private Diaries, Memos and Letters: The Definitive Biography of the First American Billionaire. Beverly Hills, California: New Millennium Press, 2002. .
Herman, Arthur. Freedom's Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II. New York: Random House, 2012. .
Higham, Charles. Howard Hughes: The Secret Life, 1993.
Porter, Donald J., Howard's Whirlybirds: Howard Hughes' Amazing Pioneering Helicopter Exploits. Fonthill Media, 2013. (ISBN 978-1-78155-089)
Irving, Clifford. The Hoax. New York: E. Reads Ltd., 1999. .
Klepper, Michael and Michael Gunther. The Wealthy 100: From Benjamin Franklin to Bill Gates—A Ranking of the Richest Americans, Past and Present. Secaucus, New Jersey: Carol Publishing Group, 1996.
Marrett, George J. Howard Hughes: Aviator. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 2004. .
Kistler, Ron. I Caught Flies for Howard Hughes. Chicago: Playboy Press, 1976. .
Lasky, Betty. RKO: The Biggest Little Major of Them All, 2d ed . Santa Monica, California: Roundtable, 1989. .
Maheu, Robert and Richard Hack. Next to Hughes: Behind the Power and Tragic Downfall of Howard Hughes by his Closest Adviser. New York: Harper Collins, 1992. .
Moore, Terry. The Beauty and the Billionaire. New York: Pocket Books, 1984. .
Moore, Terry and Jerry Rivers. The Passions of Howard Hughes. Los Angeles: General Publishing Group, 1996. .
Parker, Dana T. Building Victory: Aircraft Manufacturing in the Los Angeles Area in World War II, Cypress, California: Dana T. Parker Books, 2013. .
Phelan, James. Howard Hughes: The Hidden Years. New York, Random House, 1976. .
Real, Jack. The Asylum of Howard Hughes. Philadelphia: Xlibris Corporation, 2003. .
Thomas, Bob. Liberace: The True Story. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1987. .
Tierney, Gene with Mickey Herskowitz. Self-Portrait. New York: Peter Wyden, 1979. lSBN 0-883261-52-9.
Weaver, Tom. Science Fiction and Fantasy Film Flashbacks: Conversations with 24 Actors, Writers, Producers and Directors from the Golden Age. New York: McFarland & Company, 2004. .
External links
AZORIAN The Raising of the K-129 / 2009 – 2 Part TV Documentary / Michael White Films Vienna
Welcome Home Howard: Collection of photographs kept by UNLV
A history of the remarkable achievements of Howard Hughes
FBI file on Howard Hughes
Exclutive Biography of Howard R. Hughes Jr.
Biography in the National Aviation Hall of Fame
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Watergate scandal | true | [
"The following is a list of episodes from the TV series Hercules. All major voice actors from the 1997 film reprise their roles, except for Zeus and Philoctetes who are voiced in the series by Corey Burton and Robert Costanzo, respectively. The syndicated series and One Saturday Morning run ran 65 episodes and a direct-to-video film Hercules: Zero to Hero.\n\nSeries overview\n\nEpisodes\n\nSyndication (1998–99)\nWhat follows is the list of Hercules episodes that aired in syndication.\n\nABC (1998–99)\nWhat follows is the list of Hercules episodes that aired on the ABC television network.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n \n \n Hercules at the Disney website\n \n Episode Guide\n\nEpisodes\nLists of Disney television series episodes\nLists of American children's animated television series episodes",
"Hercules and the Circle of Fire is the third television movie in the syndicated fantasy series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys.\n\nIn the film, when all the Earth's fire begins to go out, Hercules and Deianeira must go in search for fire to stop the world from becoming frozen.\n\nPlot\nHercules is walking through a snowy mountain top where he finds a woman in the cold and goes to help her. He sees Zeus in a cave, and a rock closes over the entrance. Hercules turns around, and the woman calls out to him and freezes and explodes. Hercules wakes from a dream. He turns over and goes back to sleep. As he sleeps, his campfire goes out. The next day Hercules and young man are walking through a cave with dead bodies strewn all over. The man tells Hercules that they are all men from his village and that the witch who guards the Fountain of Youth killed them for their youth and strength. At the heart of the cave they find an old woman. Hercules sees she is chained up, and is hit over the head by the man, who is actually a warlock. He says to Hercules he will now have Hercules' strength. Hercules and the warlock fight and the warlock appears invincible, but then Hercules notices a beating heart among the items in the warlock's cave. Hercules rips the warlock's shirt and sees that the heart belongs to the warlock. Hercules takes a knife and plunges it into the heart and kills the warlock. With the warlock now dead, the old woman reverts to her true form, that of a young woman. Hercules frees the woman from her chains and takes some water from the fountain. After this the fountain begins to boil and begins dissolving everything in the cave. Hercules grabs the woman and they leave the cave. Outside the cave Zeus appears and Hercules tells Zeus the water will cure Chiron of his wound.\nLater Hercules arrives at Chiron's house, he gives him the water and he drinks it. The wound heals, but after a few seconds the wound worsens. Hercules tells him he will find a cure for his wound. Meanwhile, all over the village fires are being inexplicably extinguished. Hercules and Chiron are talking by the fire side and the fire goes out. Hercules realizes that something is amiss. He decides to investigate. He approaches Hera's temple which still has fire. A woman is trying to persuade the priest of the temple to let them light their torches, the priest refuses. Hercules kicks down the door, Hera's priest fight him, he beats them, and lights the torch. Three women appear and tell Hercules that the torch is of no use, because Hera has stolen the Eternal Torch and plans to kill mankind once and for all. Hercules knows that humans cannot survive without fire, and if he does not get the Torch back all life will die. Later on the woman from the temple comes to Chiron, it is revealed she is Deianeira. Chiron says only Hercules can help her and points her the man from the temple. Hercules says they need to talk to Prometheus, so he and Deianeira set off. They find Prometheus frozen, he says that Hera has stolen the Eternal Torch and that Hercules must get it back. Hercules and Deianeira travel onto Mount Aepion, where Hera has the Torch. While traveling, Hercules is attacked by a giant named Antaeus and with the help of Deianeira manages to kill him.\n\nAs they camp for the night, Hercules reveals to Deianeira that he was the one who accidentally inflicted Chiron's wound. The next day as they are crossing a gorge they arrive at a point where Hera has removed the bridge. Hercules says they can continue if they use the rope which still remains. Deianeira reluctantly agrees. The two finally arrive at Mount Aepion, Hercules walks through the snowy mountain top, just like in his dream. He finds Zeus and Hercules asks him what Hera has done. Zeus says that Hera has put the Torch in the center of a ring of fire, and the fire has the power to kill immortals. Zeus warns Hercules from going through with his plan to get the Torch back. Hercules says he will do it anyway. The two men battle it out and Zeus tells Hercules that he is trying to save him. Hercules asks his father if he cares about humanity, Zeus replies that he does, but he loves Hercules more. Hercules tells Zeus he loves him too. Zeus accepts what Hercules must do, and lets him go. Hercules goes through the fire and retrieves the Torch, he throws it and it lands in Prometheus's home waking him. Fire begins to return. As Hercules lays dying in the circle, Zeus begs Hera not to harm Hercules or he will haunt her for eternity, and even threatening to give up his own immortality. Hera stops the flames and Zeus helps Hercules, who thanks him for saving his life. Before leaving the cage Hercules picks up a stick and makes a torch. Zeus asks if he knows the power of the flames, Hercules acknowledges that he does. Hercules takes the torch to Chiron's house and asks him to step inside a circle of straw. Chiron stands in the center of the circle and Hercules lights the straw with the torch. Chiron drops to his knees and cries out. As the flames die out Chiron exclaims that his wound is healed, the flames had burned away his immortality and healed the wound.\n\nCast\n Kevin Sorbo as Hercules\n Anthony Quinn as Zeus\n Tawny Kitaen as Deianeira\n Mark Ferguson as Prometheus\n Kevin Atkinson as Cheiron\n Stephanie Barrett as Phaedra\n Kerry Gallagher as Amalthea\n\nProduction\nThis movie is loosely based on the myth of Prometheus. The basic plot concept of Prometheus being captured, is similar to the first season Xena: Warrior Princess episode \"Prometheus\", although in that episode mankind is robbed of the gift of healing not fire.\n\nExternal links\n \n\nHercules: The Legendary Journeys\nFilms set in ancient Greece\nNew Zealand television films\nFilms about Heracles\nFilms directed by Doug Lefler"
]
|
[
"Howard Hughes",
"H-4 Hercules",
"What is the H-4 hercules?",
"HK-1 Hercules flying boat"
]
| C_3fad173257b34869985c7b64812d1528_0 | What was the use of the flying boat? | 2 | What was the use of the Howard Hughes' H-4 Hercules flying boat? | Howard Hughes | The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The project was opposed by the military services, thinking it would siphon resources from higher priority programs, but was advocated by Hughes' powerful allies in Washington, D.C. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II. The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at 319 feet 11 inches (97.51 m), had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next largest wingspan was about 310 ft (94 m)). (The Hercules is no longer the longest or heaviest aircraft ever built; both of those titles are currently held by the Antonov An-225 Mriya.) The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947. The Hercules was nicknamed the Spruce Goose by its critics, but it was actually made largely from birch, not spruce, rather than of aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes' Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the F-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it is now part of the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum. On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes' paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules. CANNOTANSWER | use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable | Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, investor, record-setting pilot, engineer, film director, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and financially successful individuals in the world. He first became prominent as a film producer, and then as an important figure in the aviation industry. Later in life, he became known for his eccentric behavior and reclusive lifestyle—oddities that were caused in part by his worsening obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), chronic pain from a near-fatal plane crash, and increasing deafness.
As a film tycoon, Hughes gained fame in Hollywood beginning in the late 1920s, when he produced big-budget and often controversial films such as The Racket (1928), Hell's Angels (1930), and Scarface (1932). He later took over the RKO Pictures film studio in 1948, recognized then as one of the Big Five studios of Hollywood's Golden Age, although the production company struggled under his control and ultimately ceased operations in 1957.
Through his interest in aviation and aerospace travel, Hughes formed the Hughes Aircraft Company in 1932, hiring numerous engineers, designers, and defense contractors. He spent the rest of the 1930s and much of the 1940s setting multiple world air speed records and building the Hughes H-1 Racer (1935) and H-4 Hercules (the Spruce Goose, 1947), the latter being the largest flying boat in history and having the longest wingspan of any aircraft from the time it was built until 2019. He acquired and expanded Trans World Airlines and later acquired Air West, renaming it Hughes Airwest. Hughes won the Harmon Trophy on two occasions (1936 and 1938), the Collier Trophy (1938), and the Congressional Gold Medal (1939) all for his achievements in aviation throughout the 1930s. He was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1973 and was included in Flying magazine's 2013 list of the 51 Heroes of Aviation, ranked at 25.
During the 1960s and early 1970s, Hughes extended his financial empire to include several major businesses in Las Vegas, such as real estate, hotels, casinos, and media outlets. Known at the time as one of the most powerful men in the state of Nevada, he is largely credited with transforming Vegas into a more refined cosmopolitan city.
After years of mental and physical decline, Hughes died of kidney failure in 1976, at the age of 70. Today, his legacy is maintained through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Howard Hughes Corporation.
Early life
Howard Robard Hughes Jr. was the son of Allene Stone Gano (1883–1922) and of Howard R. Hughes Sr. (1869–1924), a successful inventor and businessman from Missouri. He had English, Welsh and some French Huguenot ancestry, and was a descendant of John Gano (1727–1804), the minister who allegedly baptized George Washington. His father patented (1909) the two-cone roller bit, which allowed rotary drilling for petroleum in previously inaccessible places. The senior Hughes made the shrewd and lucrative decision to commercialize the invention by leasing the bits instead of selling them, obtained several early patents, and founded the Hughes Tool Company in 1909. Hughes's uncle was the famed novelist, screenwriter, and film-director Rupert Hughes.
A 1941 affidavit birth certificate of Hughes, signed by his aunt Annette Gano Lummis and by Estelle Boughton Sharp, states that he was born on December 24, 1905, in Harris County, Texas. However, his certificate of baptism, recorded on October 7, 1906, in the parish register of St. John's Episcopal Church in Keokuk, Iowa, listed his date of birth as September 24, 1905, without any reference to the place of birth.
At a young age, Hughes showed interest in science and technology. In particular, he had great engineering aptitude and built Houston's first "wireless" radio transmitter at age 11. He went on to be one of the first licensed ham-radio operators in Houston, having the assigned callsign W5CY (originally 5CY). At 12, Hughes was photographed in the local newspaper, identified as the first boy in Houston to have a "motorized" bicycle, which he had built from parts from his father's steam engine. He was an indifferent student, with a liking for mathematics, flying, and mechanics. He took his first flying lesson at 14, and attended Fessenden School in Massachusetts in 1921.
After a brief stint at The Thacher School, Hughes attended math and aeronautical engineering courses at Caltech. The red-brick house where Hughes lived as a teenager at 3921 Yoakum Blvd., Houston, still stands, now known as Hughes House on the grounds of the University of St. Thomas.
His mother Allene died in March 1922 from complications of an ectopic pregnancy. Howard Hughes Sr. died of a heart attack in 1924. Their deaths apparently inspired Hughes to include the establishment of a medical research laboratory in the will that he signed in 1925 at age 19. Howard Sr.'s will had not been updated since Allene's death, and Hughes inherited 75% of the family fortune. On his 19th birthday, Hughes was declared an emancipated minor, enabling him to take full control of his life.
From a young age, Hughes became a proficient and enthusiastic golfer. He often scored near-par figures, played the game to a two-three handicap during his 20s, and for a time aimed for a professional golf career. He golfed frequently with top players, including Gene Sarazen. Hughes rarely played competitively and gradually gave up his passion for the sport to pursue other interests. Hughes played golf every afternoon at LA courses including the Lakeside Golf Club, Wilshire Country Club, or the Bel-Air Country Club. Partners included George Von Elm or Ozzie Carlton. After Hughes hurt himself in the late 1920s, his golfing tapered off, and after his F-11 crash, Hughes was unable to play at all.
Hughes withdrew from Rice University shortly after his father's death. On June 1, 1925, he married Ella Botts Rice, daughter of David Rice and Martha Lawson Botts of Houston, and great-niece of William Marsh Rice, for whom Rice University was named. They moved to Los Angeles, where he hoped to make a name for himself as a filmmaker.
They moved into the Ambassador Hotel, and Hughes proceeded to learn to fly a Waco, while simultaneously producing his first motion picture, Swell Hogan.
Business career
Hughes enjoyed a highly successful business career beyond engineering, aviation, and filmmaking; many of his career endeavors involved varying entrepreneurial roles.
Entertainment
Ralph Graves persuaded Hughes to finance a short film, Swell Hogan, which Graves had written and would star in. Hughes himself produced it. However, it was a disaster. After hiring a film editor to try to salvage it, he finally ordered that it be destroyed. His next two films, Everybody's Acting (1926) and Two Arabian Knights (1927), achieved financial success; the latter won the first Academy Award for Best Director of a comedy picture. The Racket (1928) and The Front Page (1931) were also nominated for Academy Awards.
Hughes spent $3.5 million to make the flying film Hell's Angels (1930). Hell's Angels received one Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography.
He produced another hit, Scarface (1932), a production delayed by censors' concern over its violence.
The Outlaw premiered in 1943, but was not released nationally until 1946. The film featured Jane Russell, who received considerable attention from industry censors, this time owing to her revealing costumes.
RKO
From the 1940s to the late 1950s, the Hughes Tool Company ventured into the film industry when it obtained partial ownership of the RKO companies, which included RKO Pictures, RKO Studios, a chain of movie theaters known as RKO Theatres and a network of radio stations known as the RKO Radio Network.
In 1948, Hughes gained control of RKO, a struggling major Hollywood studio, by acquiring the 929,000 shares owned by Floyd Odlum's Atlas Corporation, for $8,825,000. Within weeks of acquiring the studio, Hughes dismissed 700 employees. Production dwindled to 9 pictures during the first year of Hughes's control; previously RKO had averaged 30 per year.
Production shut down for six months, during which time Hughes ordered investigations of each employee who remained with RKO as far as their political leanings were concerned. Only after ensuring that the stars under contract to RKO had no suspect affiliations would Hughes approve completed pictures to be sent back for re-shooting. This was especially true of the women under contract to RKO at that time. If Hughes felt that his stars did not properly represent the political views of his liking or if a film's anti-communist politics were not sufficiently clear, he pulled the plug. In 1952, an abortive sale to a Chicago-based group connected to the mafia with no experience in the industry disrupted studio operations at RKO even further.
In 1953, Hughes became involved with a high-profile lawsuit as part of the settlement of the United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc. Antitrust Case. As a result of the hearings, the shaky status of RKO became increasingly apparent. A steady stream of lawsuits from RKO's minority shareholders had grown to become extremely annoying to Hughes. They had accused him of financial misconduct and corporate mismanagement. Since Hughes wanted to focus primarily on his aircraft manufacturing and TWA holdings during the years of the Korean War of 1950 to 1953, Hughes offered to buy out all other stockholders in order to dispense with their distractions.
By the end of 1954, Hughes had gained near-total control of RKO at a cost of nearly $24 million, becoming the first sole owner of a major Hollywood studio since the silent-film era. Six months later Hughes sold the studio to the General Tire and Rubber Company for $25 million. Hughes retained the rights to pictures that he had personally produced, including those made at RKO. He also retained Jane Russell's contract. For Howard Hughes, this was the virtual end of his 25-year involvement in the motion-picture industry. However, his reputation as a financial wizard emerged unscathed. During that time period, RKO became known as the home of classic film noir productions, thanks in part to the limited budgets required to make such films during Hughes's tenure. Hughes reportedly walked away from RKO having made $6.5 million in personal profit. According to Noah Dietrich, Hughes made a $10,000,000 profit from the sale of the theaters and made a profit of $1,000,000 from his 7-year ownership of RKO.
Real estate
According to Noah Dietrich, "Land became a principal asset for the Hughes empire". Hughes acquired 1200 acres in Culver City for Hughes Aircraft, bought 7 sections [4,480 acres] in Tucson for his Falcon missile-plant, and purchased 25,000 acres near Las Vegas. In 1968, the Hughes Tool Company purchased the North Las Vegas Air Terminal.
Originally known as Summa Corporation, the Howard Hughes Corporation formed in 1972 when the oil-tools business of Hughes Tool Company, then owned by Howard Hughes Jr., floated on the New York Stock Exchange under the "Hughes Tool" name. This forced the remaining businesses of the "original" Hughes Tool to adopt a new corporate name: "Summa". The name "Summa"Latin for "highest"was adopted without the approval of Hughes himself, who preferred to keep his own name on the business, and suggested "HRH Properties" (for Hughes Resorts and Hotels, and also his own initials). In 1988 Summa announced plans for Summerlin, a master-planned community named for the paternal grandmother of Howard Hughes, Jean Amelia Summerlin.
Initially staying in the Desert Inn, Hughes refused to vacate his room, and instead decided to purchase the entire hotel. Hughes extended his financial empire to include Las Vegas real estate, hotels, and media outlets, spending an estimated $300 million, and using his considerable powers to take over many of the well-known hotels, especially the venues connected with organized crime. He quickly became one of the most powerful men in Las Vegas. He was instrumental in changing the image of Las Vegas from its Wild West roots into a more refined cosmopolitan city. In addition to the Desert Inn, Hughes would eventually own the Sands, Frontier, Silver Slipper, Castaways and Landmark and Harold's Club in Reno. Hughes would eventually become the largest employer in Nevada.
Aviation and aerospace
Another portion of Hughes's commercial interests involved aviation, airlines, and the aerospace and defense industries. A lifelong aircraft enthusiast and pilot, Hughes survived four airplane accidents: one in a Thomas-Morse Scout while filming Hell's Angels, one while setting the airspeed record in the Hughes Racer, one at Lake Mead in 1943, and the near-fatal crash of the Hughes XF-11 in 1946. At Rogers Airport in Los Angeles, he learned to fly from pioneer aviators, including Moye Stephens and J.B. Alexander. He set many world records and commissioned the construction of custom aircraft for himself while heading Hughes Aircraft at the airport in Glendale, CA. Operating from there, the most technologically important aircraft he commissioned was the Hughes H-1 Racer. On September 13, 1935, Hughes, flying the H-1, set the landplane airspeed record of over his test course near Santa Ana, California (Giuseppe Motta reaching 362 mph in 1929 and George Stainforth reached 407.5 mph in 1931, both in seaplanes). This marked the last time in history that an aircraft built by a private individual set the world airspeed record. A year and a half later, on January 19, 1937, flying the same H-1 Racer fitted with longer wings, Hughes set a new transcontinental airspeed record by flying non-stop from Los Angeles to Newark in seven hours, 28 minutes, and 25 seconds (beating his own previous record of nine hours, 27 minutes). His average ground-speed over the flight was .
The H-1 Racer featured a number of design innovations: it had retractable landing gear (as Boeing Monomail had five years before), and all rivets and joints set flush into the body of the aircraft to reduce drag. The H-1 Racer is thought to have influenced the design of a number of World War II fighters such as the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, Focke-Wulf Fw 190, and F8F Bearcat, although that has never been reliably confirmed. In 1975 the H-1 Racer was donated to the Smithsonian.
Round-the-world flight
On July 14, 1938, Hughes set another record by completing a flight around the world in just 91 hours (three days, 19 hours, 17 minutes), beating the previous record of 186 hours (7 days, 18 hours, 49 minutes) set in 1933 by Wiley Post in a single-engine Lockheed Vega by almost four days. Hughes returned home ahead of photographs of his flight. Taking off from New York City, Hughes continued to Paris, Moscow, Omsk, Yakutsk, Fairbanks, and Minneapolis, then returning to New York City. For this flight he flew a Lockheed 14 Super Electra (NX18973, a twin-engine transport with a four-man crew) fitted with the latest radio and navigational equipment. Harry Connor was the co-pilot, Thomas Thurlow the navigator, Richard Stoddart the engineer, and Ed Lund the mechanic. Hughes wanted the flight to be a triumph of American aviation technology, illustrating that safe, long-distance air travel was possible. Albert Lodwick of Mystic, Iowa, provided organizational skills as the flight operations manager. While Hughes had previously been relatively obscure despite his wealth, being better known for dating Katharine Hepburn, New York City now gave him a ticker-tape parade in the Canyon of Heroes. Hughes and his crew were awarded the 1938 Collier Trophy for flying around the world in record time. He was awarded the Harmon Trophy in 1936 and 1938 for the record-breaking global circumnavigation.
In 1938 the William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas—known at the time as Houston Municipal Airport—was renamed after Hughes, but the name was changed back due to public outrage over naming the airport after a living person.
Hughes also had a role in the design and financing of both the Boeing 307 Stratoliner and Lockheed L-049 Constellation.
Other aviator awards include: the Bibesco Cup of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in 1938, the Octave Chanute Award in 1940, and a special Congressional Gold Medal in 1939 "in recognition of the achievements of Howard Hughes in advancing the science of aviation and thus bringing great credit to his country throughout the world".
President Harry S. Truman sent the Congressional medal to Hughes after the F-11 crash. After his around-the-world flight, Hughes had declined to go to the White House to collect it.
Hughes D-2 and XF-11
The Hughes D-2 was conceived in 1939 as a bomber with five crew members, powered by 42-cylinder Wright R-2160 Tornado engines. In the end, it appeared as two-seat fighter-reconnaissance aircraft designated the D-2A, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-2800-49 engines. The aircraft was constructed using the Duramold process. The prototype was brought to Harper's Dry Lake in California in great secrecy in 1943 and first flew on June 20 of that year. Acting on a recommendation of the president's son, Colonel Elliott Roosevelt, who had become friends with Hughes, in September 1943 the USAAF ordered 100 of a reconnaissance development of the D-2, known as the F-11. Hughes then attempted to get the military to pay for the development of the D-2. In November 1944, the hangar containing the D-2A was reportedly hit by lightning and the aircraft was destroyed. The D-2 design was abandoned but led to the extremely controversial Hughes XF-11. The XF-11 was a large, all-metal, two-seat reconnaissance aircraft, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-4360-31 engines, each driving a set of contra-rotating propellers. Only two prototypes were completed; the second one with a single propeller per side.
Fatal crash of the Sikorsky S-43
In the spring of 1943 Hughes spent nearly a month in Las Vegas, test-flying his Sikorsky S-43 amphibious aircraft, practising touch-and-go landings on Lake Mead in preparation for flying the H-4 Hercules. The weather conditions at the lake during the day were ideal and he enjoyed Las Vegas at night. On May 17, 1943, Hughes flew the Sikorsky from California, carrying two CAA aviation inspectors, two of his employees, and actress Ava Gardner. Hughes dropped Gardner off in Las Vegas and proceeded to Lake Mead to conduct qualifying tests in the S-43. The test flight did not go well. The Sikorsky crashed into Lake Mead, killing CAA inspector Ceco Cline and Hughes's employee Richard Felt. Hughes suffered a severe gash on the top of his head when he hit the upper control panel and had to be rescued by one of the others on board. Hughes paid divers $100,000 to raise the aircraft and later spent more than $500,000 restoring it. Hughes sent the plane to Houston, where it remained for many years.
Near-fatal crash of the XF-11
Hughes was involved in another near-fatal aircraft accident on July 7, 1946, while performing the first flight of the prototype U.S. Army Air Forces reconnaissance aircraft, the XF-11, near Hughes airfield at Culver City, California. An oil leak caused one of the contra-rotating propellers to reverse pitch, causing the aircraft to yaw sharply and lose altitude rapidly. Hughes attempted to save the aircraft by landing it at the Los Angeles Country Club golf course, but just seconds before reaching the course, the XF-11 started to drop dramatically and crashed in the Beverly Hills neighborhood surrounding the country club.
When the XF-11 finally came to a halt after destroying three houses, the fuel tanks exploded, setting fire to the aircraft and a nearby home at 808 North Whittier Drive owned by Lt Col. Charles E. Meyer. Hughes managed to pull himself out of the flaming wreckage but lay beside the aircraft until rescued by Marine Master Sgt. William L. Durkin, who happened to be in the area visiting friends. Hughes sustained significant injuries in the crash, including a crushed collar bone, multiple cracked ribs, crushed chest with collapsed left lung, shifting his heart to the right side of the chest cavity, and numerous third-degree burns. An oft-told story said that Hughes sent a check to the Marine weekly for the remainder of his life as a sign of gratitude. Noah Dietrich asserted that Hughes did send Durkin $200 a month, but Durkin's daughter denied knowing that he received any money from Hughes.
Despite his physical injuries, Hughes took pride that his mind was still working. As he lay in his hospital bed, he decided that he did not like the bed's design. He called in plant engineers to design a customized bed, equipped with hot and cold running water, built in six sections, and operated by 30 electric motors, with push-button adjustments. Hughes designed the hospital bed specifically to alleviate the pain caused by moving with severe burn injuries. Although he never used the bed that he designed, Hughes's bed served as a prototype for the modern hospital bed. Hughes's doctors considered his recovery almost miraculous.
Many attribute his long-term dependence on opiates to his use of codeine as a painkiller during his convalescence. Yet Dietrich asserts that Hughes recovered the "hard way—no sleeping pills, no opiates of any kind". The trademark mustache he wore afterward hid a scar on his upper lip resulting from the accident.
H-4 Hercules
The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The military services opposed the project, thinking it would siphon resources from higher-priority programs, but Hughes's powerful allies in Washington, D.C., advocated for it. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II.
The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at , had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next-largest wingspan was about ). (The Hercules is no longer the longest nor heaviest aircraft ever built - surpassed by the Antonov An-225 Mriya produced in 1985.)
The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947.
Critics nicknamed the Hercules the Spruce Goose, but it was actually made largely from birch (not spruce) rather than from aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes's Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the XF-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly-disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense-acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it features at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum.
On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes's paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio-technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules.
Hughes Aircraft
In 1932 Hughes founded the Hughes Aircraft Company, a division of Hughes Tool Company, in a rented corner of a Lockheed Aircraft Corporation hangar in Burbank, California, to build the H-1 racer.
Shortly after founding the company, Hughes used the alias "Charles Howard" to accept a job as a baggage handler for American Airlines. He was soon promoted to co-pilot.
Hughes continued to work for American Airlines until his real identity was discovered.
During and after World War II Hughes fashioned his company into a major defense contractor. The Hughes Helicopters division started in 1947 when helicopter manufacturer Kellett sold their latest design to Hughes for production. Hughes Aircraft became a major American aerospace- and defense contractor, manufacturing numerous technology-related products that included spacecraft vehicles, military aircraft, radar systems, electro-optical systems, the first working laser, aircraft computer systems, missile systems, ion-propulsion engines (for space travel), commercial satellites, and other electronics systems.
In 1948 Hughes created a new division of Hughes Aircraft: the Hughes Aerospace Group. The Hughes Space and Communications Group and the Hughes Space Systems Division were later spun off in 1948 to form their own divisions and ultimately became the Hughes Space and Communications Company in 1961. In 1953 Howard Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the newly formed Howard Hughes Medical Institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a tax-exempt charitable organization. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion. In 1997 General Motors sold Hughes Aircraft to Raytheon and in 2000, sold Hughes Space & Communications to Boeing. A combination of Boeing, GM, and Raytheon acquired the Hughes Research Laboratories, which focused on advanced developments in microelectronics, information & systems sciences, materials, sensors, and photonics; their work-space spans from basic research to product delivery. It has particularly emphasized capabilities in high-performance integrated circuits, high-power lasers, antennas, networking, and smart materials.
Airlines
In 1939, at the urging of Jack Frye, president of Transcontinental & Western Airlines, the predecessor of Trans World Airlines (TWA), Hughes began to quietly purchase a majority share of TWA stock; he took a controlling interest in the airline by 1944. Although he never had an official position with TWA, Hughes handpicked the board of directors, which included Noah Dietrich, and often issued orders directly to airline staff. Hughes Tool Co. purchased the first six Stratoliners Boeing manufactured. Hughes used one personally, and he let TWA operate the other five.
Hughes is commonly credited as the driving force behind the Lockheed Constellation airliner, which Hughes and Frye ordered in 1939 as a long-range replacement for TWA's fleet of Boeing 307 Stratoliners. Hughes personally financed TWA's acquisition of 40 Constellations for $18 million, the largest aircraft order in history up to that time. The Constellations were among the highest-performing commercial aircraft of the late 1940s and 1950s and allowed TWA to pioneer nonstop transcontinental service. During World War II Hughes leveraged political connections in Washington to obtain rights for TWA to serve Europe, making it the only U.S. carrier with a combination of domestic and transatlantic routes.
After the announcement of the Boeing 707, Hughes opted to pursue a more advanced jet aircraft for TWA and approached Convair in late 1954. Convair proposed two concepts to Hughes, but Hughes was unable to decide which concept to adopt, and Convair eventually abandoned its initial jet project after the mockups of the 707 and Douglas DC-8 were unveiled. Even after competitors such as United Airlines, American Airlines and Pan American World Airways had placed large orders for the 707, Hughes only placed eight orders for 707s through the Hughes Tool Company and forbade TWA from using the aircraft. After finally beginning to reserve 707 orders in 1956, Hughes embarked on a plan to build his own "superior" jet aircraft for TWA, applied for CAB permission to sell Hughes aircraft to TWA, and began negotiations with the state of Florida to build a manufacturing plant there. However, he abandoned this plan around 1958, and in the interim, negotiated new contracts for 707 and Convair 880 aircraft and engines totaling $400 million.
The financing of TWA's jet orders precipitated the end of Hughes's relationship with Noah Dietrich, and ultimately Hughes's ouster from control of TWA. Hughes did not have enough cash on hand or future cash flow to pay for the orders and did not immediately seek bank financing. Hughes's refusal to heed Dietrich's financing advice led to a major rift between the two by the end of 1956. Hughes believed that Dietrich wished to have Hughes committed as mentally incompetent, although the evidence of this is inconclusive. Dietrich resigned by telephone in May 1957 after repeated requests for stock options, which Hughes refused to grant, and with no further progress on the jet financing. As Hughes's mental state worsened, he ordered various tactics to delay payments to Boeing and Convair; his behavior led TWA's banks to insist that he be removed from management as a condition for further financing.
In 1960, Hughes was ultimately forced out of the management of TWA, although he continued to own 78% of the company. In 1961, TWA filed suit against Hughes Tool Company, claiming that the latter had violated antitrust law by using TWA as a captive market for aircraft trading. The claim was largely dependent upon obtaining testimony from Hughes himself. Hughes went into hiding and refused to testify. A default judgment was issued against Hughes Tool Company for $135 million in 1963 but was overturned by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1973, on the basis that Hughes was immune from prosecution. In 1966, Hughes was forced to sell his TWA shares. The sale of his TWA shares brought Hughes $546,549,771.
Hughes acquired control of Boston-based Northeast Airlines in 1962. However, the airline's lucrative route authority between major northeastern cities and Miami was terminated by a CAB decision around the time of the acquisition, and Hughes sold control of the company to a trustee in 1964. Northeast went on to merge with Delta Air Lines in 1972.
In 1970, Hughes acquired San Francisco-based Air West and renamed it Hughes Airwest. Air West had been formed in 1968 by the merger of Bonanza Air Lines, Pacific Air Lines, and West Coast Airlines, all of which operated in the western U.S. By the late 1970s, Hughes Airwest operated an all-jet fleet of Boeing 727-200, Douglas DC-9-10, and McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 jetliners serving an extensive route network in the western U.S. with flights to Mexico and western Canada as well. By 1980, the airline's route system reached as far east as Houston (Hobby Airport) and Milwaukee with a total of 42 destinations being served. Hughes Airwest was then acquired by and merged into Republic Airlines (1979–1986) in late 1980. Republic was subsequently acquired by and merged into Northwest Airlines which in turn was ultimately merged into Delta Air Lines in 2008.
Business with David Charnay
Hughes had made numerous business partnerships through industrialist and producer David Charnay. Their friendship and many partnerships began with the film The Conqueror, which was first released to the public in 1956. The film caused many controversies due to its critical flop and radioactive location used in St. George, Utah, that eventually led to Hughes buying up nearly every copy of the film he could, only to watch the film at home repeatedly for many nights in a row.
Charnay later bought Four Star, the film and television production company that produced The Conqueror.
Hughes and Charnay's most published dealings were with a contested AirWest leveraged buyout. Charnay led the buyout group that involved Howard Hughes and their partners acquiring Air West. Hughes, Charnay, as well as three others, were indicted. The indictment, made by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton, accused the group of conspiring to drive down the stock price of Air West in order to pressure company directors to sell to Hughes. The charges were dismissed after a judge had determined that the indictment had failed to allege an illegal action on the part of Hughes, Charnay, and all the other accused in the indictment. Thompson, the federal judge that made the decision to dismiss the charges called the indictment one of the worst claims that he had ever seen. The charges were filed again, a second time, by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton's assistant, Dean Vernon. The Federal Judge ruled on November 13, 1974, and elaborated to say that the case suggested a "reprehensible misuse of the power of great wealth", but in his judicial opinion, "no crime had been committed." The aftermath of the Air West deal was later settled with the SEC by paying former stockholders for alleged losses from the sale of their investment in Air West stock. As noted above, Air West was subsequently renamed Hughes Airwest. During a long pause between the years of the dismissed charges against Hughes, Charnay, and their partners, Howard Hughes mysteriously died mid-flight while on the way to Houston from Acapulco. No further attempts were made to file any indictments after Hughes died.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
In 1953, Hughes launched the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Miami, Florida, (currently located in Chevy Chase, Maryland) with the expressed goal of basic biomedical research, including trying to understand, in Hughes's words, the "genesis of life itself", due to his lifelong interest in science and technology. Hughes's first will, which he signed in 1925 at the age of 19, stipulated that a portion of his estate should be used to create a medical institute bearing his name. When a major battle with the IRS loomed ahead, Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a for-profit entity of a fully tax-exempt charity. Hughes's internist, Verne Mason, who treated Hughes after his 1946 aircraft crash, was chairman of the institute's medical advisory committee. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute's new board of trustees sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion, allowing the institute to grow dramatically.
In 1954, Hughes transferred Hughes Aircraft to the foundation, which paid Hughes Tool Co. $18,000,000 for the assets. The foundation leased the land from Hughes Tool Co., which then subleased it to Hughes Aircraft Corp. The difference in rent, $2,000,000 per year, became the foundation's working capital.
The deal was the topic of a protracted legal battle between Hughes and the Internal Revenue Service, which Hughes ultimately won. After his death in 1976, many thought that the balance of Hughes's estate would go to the institute, although it was ultimately divided among his cousins and other heirs, given the lack of a will to the contrary. The HHMI was the fourth largest private organization and one of the largest devoted to biological and medical research, with an endowment of $20.4 billion .
Glomar Explorer and the taking of K-129
In 1972, during the cold war era, Hughes was approached by the CIA through his longtime partner, David Charnay, to help secretly recover the Soviet submarine K-129, which had sunk near Hawaii four years earlier. Hughes's involvement provided the CIA with a plausible cover story, conducting expensive civilian marine research at extreme depths and the mining of undersea manganese nodules. The recovery plan used the special-purpose salvage vessel Glomar Explorer. In the summer of 1974, Glomar Explorer attempted to raise the Soviet vessel. However, during the recovery a mechanical failure in the ship's grapple caused half of the submarine to break off and fall to the ocean floor. This section is believed to have held many of the most sought-after items, including its code book and nuclear missiles. Two nuclear-tipped torpedoes and some cryptographic machines were recovered, along with the bodies of six Soviet submariners who were subsequently given formal burial at sea in a filmed ceremony. The operation, known as Project Azorian (but incorrectly referred to by the press as Project Jennifer), became public in February 1975 after secret documents were released, obtained by burglars of Hughes's headquarters in June 1974. Although he lent his name and his company's resources to the operation, Hughes and his companies had no operational involvement in the project. The Glomar Explorer was eventually acquired by Transocean and was sent to the scrap yard in 2015 during a large decline in oil prices.
Personal life
Early romances
In 1929, Hughes's wife of four years, Ella, returned to Houston and filed for divorce.
Hughes dated many famous women, including Joan Crawford, Billie Dove, Faith Domergue, Bette Davis, Yvonne De Carlo, Ava Gardner, Olivia de Havilland, Katharine Hepburn, Hedy Lamarr, Ginger Rogers, Janet Leigh, Pat Sheehan, Mamie Van Doren and Gene Tierney. He also proposed to Joan Fontaine several times, according to her autobiography No Bed of Roses. Jean Harlow accompanied him to the premiere of Hell's Angels, but Noah Dietrich wrote many years later that the relationship was strictly professional, as Hughes disliked Harlow personally. In his 1971 book, Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes, Dietrich said that Hughes genuinely liked and respected Jane Russell, but never sought romantic involvement with her. According to Russell's autobiography, however, Hughes once tried to bed her after a party. Russell (who was married at the time) refused him, and Hughes promised it would never happen again. The two maintained a professional and private friendship for many years. Hughes remained good friends with Tierney who, after his failed attempts to seduce her, was quoted as saying "I don't think Howard could love anything that did not have a motor in it". Later, when Tierney's daughter Daria was born deaf and blind and with a severe learning disability because of Tierney's exposure to rubella during her pregnancy, Hughes saw to it that Daria received the best medical care and paid all expenses.
Luxury yacht
In 1933, Hughes made a purchase of a luxury steam yacht named the Rover, which was previously owned by Scottish shipping magnate Lord Inchcape. "I have never seen the Rover but bought it on the blueprints, photographs and the reports of Lloyd's surveyors. My experience is that the English are the most honest race in the world." Hughes renamed the yacht Southern Cross and later sold her to Swedish entrepreneur Axel Wenner-Gren.
1936 automobile accident
On July 11, 1936, Hughes struck and killed a pedestrian named Gabriel S. Meyer with his car at the corner of 3rd Street and Lorraine in Los Angeles. After the crash, Hughes was taken to the hospital and certified as sober, but an attending doctor made a note that Hughes had been drinking. A witness to the crash told police that Hughes was driving erratically and too fast and that Meyer had been standing in the safety zone of a streetcar stop. Hughes was booked on suspicion of negligent homicide and held overnight in jail until his attorney, Neil S. McCarthy, obtained a writ of habeas corpus for his release pending a coroner's inquest. By the time of the coroner's inquiry, however, the witness had changed his story and claimed that Meyer had moved directly in front of Hughes's car. Nancy Bayly (Watts), who was in the car with Hughes at the time of the crash, corroborated this version of the story. On July 16, 1936, Hughes was held blameless by a coroner's jury at the inquest into Meyer's death. Hughes told reporters outside the inquiry, "I was driving slowly and a man stepped out of the darkness in front of me".
Marriage to Jean Peters
On January 12, 1957, Hughes married actress Jean Peters at a small hotel in Tonopah, Nevada. The couple met in the 1940s, before Peters became a film actress. They had a highly publicized romance in 1947 and there was talk of marriage, but she said she could not combine it with her career. Some later claimed that Peters was "the only woman [Hughes] ever loved", and he reportedly had his security officers follow her everywhere even when they were not in a relationship. Such reports were confirmed by actor Max Showalter, who became a close friend of Peters while shooting Niagara (1953). Showalter told an interviewer that because he frequently met with Peters, Hughes's men threatened to ruin his career if he did not leave her alone.
Connections to Richard Nixon and Watergate
Shortly before the 1960 Presidential election, Richard Nixon was alarmed when it was revealed that his brother, Donald, received a $205,000 loan from Hughes. It has long been speculated that Nixon's drive to learn what the Democrats were planning in 1972 was based in part on his belief that the Democrats knew about a later bribe that his friend Bebe Rebozo had received from Hughes after Nixon took office.
In late 1971, Donald Nixon was collecting intelligence for his brother in preparation for the upcoming presidential election. One of his sources was John H. Meier, a former business adviser of Hughes who had also worked with Democratic National Committee Chairman Larry O'Brien.
Meier, in collaboration with former Vice President Hubert Humphrey and others, wanted to feed misinformation to the Nixon campaign. Meier told Donald that he was sure the Democrats would win the election because Larry O'Brien had a great deal of information on Richard Nixon's illicit dealings with Howard Hughes that had never been released; O'Brien did not actually have any such information, but Meier wanted Nixon to think that he did. Donald told his brother that O'Brien was in possession of damaging Hughes information that could destroy his campaign. Terry Lenzner, who was the chief investigator for the Senate Watergate Committee, speculates that it was Nixon's desire to know what O'Brien knew about Nixon's dealings with Hughes that may have partially motivated the Watergate break-in.
Last years and death
Physical and mental decline
Hughes was widely considered eccentric and to have suffered with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
Dietrich wrote that Hughes always ate the same thing for dinner, a New York strip steak cooked medium rare, dinner salad, and peas, but only the smaller ones, pushing the larger ones aside. For breakfast, Hughes wanted his eggs cooked the way his family cook, Lily, made them. Hughes had a "phobia about germs", and "his passion for secrecy became a mania."
While directing The Outlaw, Hughes became fixated on a small flaw in one of Jane Russell's blouses, claiming that the fabric bunched up along a seam and gave the appearance of two nipples on each breast. He wrote a detailed memorandum to the crew on how to fix the problem. Richard Fleischer, who directed His Kind of Woman with Hughes as executive producer, wrote at length in his autobiography about the difficulty of dealing with the tycoon. In his book, Just Tell Me When to Cry, Fleischer explained that Hughes was fixated on trivial details and was alternately indecisive and obstinate. He also revealed that Hughes's unpredictable mood swings made him wonder if the film would ever be completed.
In 1958, Hughes told his aides that he wanted to screen some movies at a film studio near his home. He stayed in the studio's darkened screening room for more than four months, never leaving. He ate only chocolate bars and chicken and drank only milk, and was surrounded by dozens of Kleenex that he continuously stacked and re-arranged. He wrote detailed memos to his aides giving them explicit instructions neither to look at him nor speak to him unless spoken to. Throughout this period, Hughes sat fixated in his chair, often naked, continually watching movies. When he finally emerged in the summer of 1958, his hygiene was terrible. He had neither bathed nor cut his hair and nails for weeks; this may have been due to allodynia, which results in a pain response to stimuli that would normally not cause pain.
After the screening room incident, Hughes moved into a bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel where he also rented rooms for his aides, his wife, and numerous girlfriends. He would sit naked in his bedroom with a pink hotel napkin placed over his genitals, watching movies. This may have been because Hughes found the touch of clothing painful due to allodynia. He may have watched movies to distract himself from his pain—a common practice among patients with intractable pain, especially those who do not receive adequate treatment. In one year, Hughes spent an estimated $11 million at the hotel.
Hughes began purchasing restaurant chains and four-star hotels that had been founded within the state of Texas. This included, if for only a short period, many unknown franchises currently out of business. He placed ownership of the restaurants with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and all licenses were resold shortly after.
Another time, he became obsessed with the 1968 film Ice Station Zebra, and had it run on a continuous loop in his home. According to his aides, he watched it 150 times. Feeling guilty about the commercial, critical, and rumored toxicity of his film The Conqueror, he bought every copy of the film for $12 million, watching the film on repeat. Paramount Pictures acquired the rights of the film in 1979, three years after his death.
Hughes insisted on using tissues to pick up objects to insulate himself from germs. He would also notice dust, stains, or other imperfections on people's clothes and demand that they take care of them. Once one of the most visible men in America, Hughes ultimately vanished from public view, although tabloids continued to follow rumors of his behavior and whereabouts. He was reported to be terminally ill, mentally unstable, or even dead.
Injuries from numerous aircraft crashes caused Hughes to spend much of his later life in pain, and he eventually became addicted to codeine, which he injected intramuscularly. Hughes had his hair cut and nails trimmed only once a year, likely due to the pain caused by the RSD/CRPS, which was caused by the plane crashes. He also stored his urine in bottles.
Later years in Las Vegas
The wealthy and aging Hughes, accompanied by his entourage of personal aides, began moving from one hotel to another, always taking up residence in the top floor penthouse. In the last ten years of his life, 1966 to 1976, Hughes lived in hotels in many cities—including Beverly Hills, Boston, Las Vegas, Nassau, Freeport and Vancouver.
On November 24, 1966 (Thanksgiving Day), Hughes arrived in Las Vegas by railroad car and moved into the Desert Inn. Because he refused to leave the hotel and to avoid further conflicts with the owners, Hughes bought the Desert Inn in early 1967. The hotel's eighth floor became the nerve center of Hughes's empire and the ninth-floor penthouse became his personal residence. Between 1966 and 1968, he bought several other hotel-casinos, including the Castaways, New Frontier, the Landmark Hotel and Casino, and the Sands. He bought the small Silver Slipper casino for the sole purpose of moving its trademark neon silver slipper, which was visible from his bedroom, and had apparently kept him awake at night.
After Hughes left the Desert Inn, hotel employees discovered that his drapes had not been opened during the time he lived there and had rotted through.
Hughes wanted to change the image of Las Vegas to something more glamorous. He wrote in a memo to an aide, "I like to think of Las Vegas in terms of a well-dressed man in a dinner jacket and a beautifully jeweled and furred female getting out of an expensive car." Hughes bought several local television stations (including KLAS-TV).
Eventually the brain trauma from Hughes's previous accidents, the effects of neurosyphilis diagnosed in 1932 and (undiagnosed) Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder considerably affected his decision-making. A small panel, unofficially dubbed "The Mormon Mafia" because of the many Latter-day Saints on the committee, was led by Frank William Gay and originally served Hughes's "secret police" headquartered at 9000 Romaine. Over the next two decades, however, this group oversaw and controlled considerable business holdings, with the CIA anointing Gay while awarding a contract to the Hughes corporation to acquire sensitive information on a sunken Russian submarine. In addition to supervising day-to-day business operations and Hughes's health, they also went to great pains to satisfy Hughes's every whim. For example, Hughes once became fond of Baskin-Robbins' banana nut ice cream, so his aides sought to secure a bulk shipment for him, only to discover that Baskin-Robbins had discontinued the flavor. They put in a request for the smallest amount the company could provide for a special order, 350 gallons (1,300 L), and had it shipped from Los Angeles. A few days after the order arrived, Hughes announced he was tired of banana nut and wanted only French vanilla ice cream. The Desert Inn ended up distributing free banana nut ice cream to casino customers for a year. In a 1996 interview, ex–Howard Hughes Chief of Nevada Operations Robert Maheu said, "There is a rumor that there is still some banana nut ice cream left in the freezer. It is most likely true."
As an owner of several major Las Vegas businesses, Hughes wielded much political and economic influence in Nevada and elsewhere. During the 1960s and early 1970s, he disapproved of underground nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site. Hughes was concerned about the risk from residual nuclear radiation and attempted to halt the tests. When the tests finally went through despite Hughes's efforts, the detonations were powerful enough that the entire hotel in which he was living trembled from the shock waves. In two separate, last-ditch maneuvers, Hughes instructed his representatives to offer bribes of $1m to both Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon.
In 1970, Jean Peters filed for divorce. The two had not lived together for many years. Peters requested a lifetime alimony payment of $70,000 a year, adjusted for inflation, and waived all claims to Hughes's estate. Hughes offered her a settlement of over a million dollars, but she declined it. Hughes did not insist on a confidentiality agreement from Peters as a condition of the divorce. Aides reported that Hughes never spoke ill of her. She refused to discuss her life with Hughes and declined several lucrative offers from publishers and biographers. Peters would state only that she had not seen Hughes for several years before their divorce and had dealt with him only by phone.
Hughes was living in the Intercontinental Hotel near Lake Managua in Nicaragua, seeking privacy and security, when a magnitude 6.5 earthquake damaged Managua in December 1972. As a precaution, Hughes moved to a rather large tent facing the hotel; after a few days, he moved to the Nicaraguan National Palace and stayed there as a guest of Anastasio Somoza Debayle before leaving for Florida on a private jet the following day. He subsequently moved into the Penthouse at the Xanadu Princess Resort on Grand Bahama Island, which he had recently purchased. He lived almost exclusively in the penthouse of the Xanadu Beach Resort & Marina for the last four years of his life.
Hughes spent a total of $300 million on his many properties in Las Vegas.
Autobiography hoax
In 1972, author Clifford Irving caused a media sensation when he claimed he had co-written an authorized Hughes autobiography. Irving claimed he and Hughes had corresponded through the United States mail, and offered as proof handwritten notes allegedly sent by Hughes. Publisher McGraw-Hill, Inc. was duped into believing the manuscript was authentic. Hughes was so reclusive that he did not immediately publicly refute Irving's statement, leading many to believe that Irving's book was genuine. However, before the book's publication, Hughes finally denounced Irving in a teleconference attended by reporters Hughes knew personally: James Bacon of the Hearst papers, Marin Miles of the Los Angeles Times, Vernon Scott of UPI, Roy Neal of NBC News, Gene Handsaker of AP, Wayne Thomas of the Chicago Tribune, and Gladwin Hill of the New York Times.
The entire hoax finally unraveled. The United States Postal Inspection Service got a subpoena to force Irving to turn over samples of his handwriting. The USPS investigation led to Irving's indictment and subsequent conviction for using the postal service to commit fraud. He was incarcerated for 17 months. In 1974, the Orson Welles film F for Fake included a section on the Hughes autobiography hoax, leaving a question open as to whether it was actually Hughes who took part in the teleconference (since so few people had actually heard or seen him in recent years). In 1977, The Hoax by Clifford Irving was published in the United Kingdom, telling his story of these events. The 2006 film The Hoax, starring Richard Gere, is also based on these events.
Death
Hughes is reported to have died on April 5, 1976, at 1:27 p.m. on board an aircraft, Learjet 24B N855W, owned by Robert Graf and piloted by Jeff Abrams. He was en route from his penthouse at the Acapulco Princess Hotel (now the Fairmont Acapulco Princess) in Mexico to the Methodist Hospital in Houston.
His reclusiveness and possibly his drug use made him practically unrecognizable. His hair, beard, fingernails, and toenails were long—his tall frame now weighed barely , and the FBI had to use fingerprints to conclusively identify the body. Howard Hughes's alias, John T. Conover, was used when his body arrived at a morgue in Houston on the day of his death.
An autopsy recorded kidney failure as the cause of death. In an eighteen-month study investigating Hughes' drug abuse for the estate, it was found "someone administered a deadly injection of the painkiller to this comatose man... obviously needlessly and almost certainly fatal". He suffered from malnutrition and was covered in bedsores. While his kidneys were damaged, his other internal organs, including his brain, which had no visible damage or illnesses, were deemed perfectly healthy. X-rays revealed five broken-off hypodermic needles in the flesh of his arms. To inject codeine into his muscles, Hughes had used glass syringes with metal needles that easily became detached.
Hughes is buried next to his parents at Glenwood Cemetery in Houston.
Alleged survival
Following his death, Hughes was subject to several widely rebuked conspiracy theories that he had faked his own death. A notable allegation came from retired Major General Mark Musick, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, who claimed Hughes went on to live under an assumed identity, dying on November 15, 2001, in Troy, Alabama.
Estate
Approximately three weeks after Hughes's death, a handwritten will was found on the desk of an official of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah. The so-called "Mormon Will" gave $1.56 billion to various charitable organizations (including $625 million to the Howard Hughes Medical Institute), nearly $470 million to the upper management in Hughes's companies and to his aides, $156 million to first cousin William Lummis, and $156 million split equally between his two ex-wives Ella Rice and Jean Peters.
A further $156 million was endowed to a gas-station owner, Melvin Dummar, who told reporters that in 1967, he found a disheveled and dirty man lying along U.S. Route 95, just north of Las Vegas. The man asked for a ride to Vegas. Dropping him off at the Sands Hotel, Dummar said the man told him that he was Hughes. Dummar later claimed that days after Hughes's death a "mysterious man" appeared at his gas station, leaving an envelope containing the will on his desk. Unsure if the will was genuine and unsure of what to do, Dummar left the will at the LDS Church office. In 1978, a Nevada court ruled the Mormon Will a forgery and officially declared that Hughes had died intestate (without a valid will). Dummar's story was later adapted into Jonathan Demme's film Melvin and Howard in 1980.
Hughes's $2.5 billion estate was eventually split in 1983 among 22 cousins, including William Lummis, who serves as a trustee of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The Supreme Court of the United States ruled that Hughes Aircraft was owned by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, which sold it to General Motors in 1985 for $5.2 billion. The court rejected suits by the states of California and Texas that claimed they were owed inheritance tax.
In 1984, Hughes's estate paid an undisclosed amount to Terry Moore, who claimed she and Hughes had secretly married on a yacht in international waters off Mexico in 1949 and never divorced. Moore never produced proof of a marriage, but her book, The Beauty and the Billionaire, became a bestseller.
Awards
Harmon Trophy (1936 and 1938)
Collier Trophy (1938)
Congressional Gold Medal (1939)
Octave Chanute Award (1940)
National Aviation Hall of Fame (1973)
International Air & Space Hall of Fame (1987)
Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (2018)
Archive
The moving image collection of Howard Hughes is held at the Academy Film Archive. The collection consists of over 200 items including 35mm and 16mm elements of feature films, documentaries, and television programs made or accumulated by Hughes.
Filmography
In popular culture
Film
In The Carpetbaggers (1964), the main character Jonas Cord (played by George Peppard) is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever (1971) features a tall, Texan, reclusive billionaire character named Willard Whyte (played by Jimmy Dean) who operates his business empire from the penthouse of a Las Vegas hotel. Although he appears only late in the film, his habitual seclusion and his control of a major aerospace contracting firm are key elements of the movie's plot. Several sequences were actually filmed on location at The Landmark Hotel and Casino, which was owned by Hughes at the time.
The Amazing Howard Hughes is a 1977 American made-for-television biographical film which aired as a mini-series on the CBS network, made a year after Hughes's death and based on Noah Dietrich's book Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. Tommy Lee Jones plays Hughes.
Melvin and Howard (1980), directed by Jonathan Demme and starring Jason Robards as Howard Hughes and Paul Le Mat as Melvin Dummar. The film won Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay (Bo Goldman) and Best Supporting Actress (Mary Steenburgen). The film focuses on Melvin Dummar's claims of meeting Hughes in the Nevada desert and subsequent estate battles over his inclusion in Hughes's will. Critic Pauline Kael called the film "an almost flawless act of sympathetic imagination".
In Tucker: The Man and His Dream, (1988), Hughes (played by Dean Stockwell) figures in the plot by telling Preston Tucker to source steel and engines for Tucker's automobiles from a helicopter manufacturer in New York. Scene occurs in a hangar with the Hercules.
In The Rocketeer, a 1991 American period superhero film from Walt Disney Pictures, the title character attracts the attention of Howard Hughes (played by Terry O'Quinn) and the FBI, who are hunting for a missing jet pack, as well as Nazi operatives.
"Howard Hughes Documentary", broadcast in 1992 as an episode of the Time Machine documentary series, was introduced by Peter Graves, later released by A&E Home Video.
In Conspiracy Theory (1997), the character Jerry Fletcher (played by Mel Gibson) mentions one of his theories to a street vendor by saying, "Did you know that the whole Vietnam War was fought over a bet that Howard Hughes lost to Aristotle Onassis?" referring to his (Fletcher's) thoughts on the politics of that conflict.
In The Aviator (2004), directed by Martin Scorsese, Hughes is portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio. The film focuses on Hughes's personal life from the making of Hell's Angels through his successful flight of the Hercules or Spruce Goose. Critically acclaimed, it was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, winning five for Best Cinematography; Best Film Editing; Best Costume Design; Best Art Direction; and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Cate Blanchett.
Howard Hughes: The Real Aviator documentary was broadcast in 2004 and went on to win the Grand Festival Award for Best Documentary at the 2004 Berkeley Video & Film Festival.
In the 2005 animated film Robots, the character Mr Bigweld (voiced by Mel Brooks), a reclusive inventor and owner of Bigweld Industries, is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The American Aviator: The Howard Hughes Story was broadcast in 2006 on the Biography Channel. It was later released to home media as a DVD with a copy of the full-length film The Outlaw starring Jane Russell.
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), as a plot-related prequel to Iron Man 2 (2010), in which Howard Stark (played by Dominic Cooper), father of Tony Stark (Iron Man), showed his inventions of future technology, clearly embodying Hughes's persona and enthusiasm. His subsequent appearances in the TV series Marvel's Agent Carter further this persona, as well as depicting him as sharing the real Hughes's reputation as a womanizer. Stan Lee has noted that Tony, who shared several of these traits himself, was based on Hughes.
Rules Don't Apply (2016), written and directed by Warren Beatty, features Beatty as Hughes from 1958 through 1964.
In the Dark Knight Trilogy, director Christopher Nolan's characterisation of Bruce Wayne is heavily inspired by Hughes's perceived lifestyle – from a playboy in Batman Begins to a recluse in The Dark Knight Rises. Nolan is reported to have integrated his original material intended for a shelved Hughes biopic into the trilogy.
Games
The character of Andrew Ryan in the 2007 video game BioShock is loosely based on Hughes. Ryan is a billionaire industrialist in post-World War II America who, seeking to avoid governments, religions, and other "parasitic" influences, ordered the secret construction of an underwater city, Rapture. Years later, when Ryan's vision for Rapture falls into dystopia, he hides himself away and uses armies of mutated humans, "Splicers", to defend himself and fight against those trying to take over his city, including the player-character.
In L.A. Noire, Hughes makes an appearance presenting his Hercules H-4 aircraft in the game opening scene. The H-4 is later a central plot piece of DLC Arson Case, "Nicholson Electroplating".
In Fallout: New Vegas, the character of Robert Edwin House, a wealthy business magnate and entrepreneur who owns the New Vegas strip, is based on Howard Hughes and closely resembles him in appearance, personality and background. A portrait of Mr. House can also be found in the game which strongly resembles a portrait of Howard Hughes standing in front of a Boeing Army Pursuit Plane.
Literature
Stan Lee repeatedly stated he created the Marvel Comics character Iron Man's civilian persona, Tony Stark, drawing inspiration from Howard Hughes's colorful lifestyle and personality. Additionally, the first name of Stark's father is Howard.
Hughes is a supporting character in all three parts of James Ellroy's Underworld USA Trilogy, employing several of the protagonists as private investigators, bagmen, and consultants in his attempt to assume control of Las Vegas. Referred to behind his back as "Count Dracula" (due to his reclusiveness and rumored obsession with blood transfusions from Mormon donors), Hughes is portrayed as a spoiled, racist, opioid-addicted megalomaniac whose grandiose plans for Las Vegas are undermined by the manipulations of the Chicago Outfit.
In the 1981 novel Dream Park by Larry Niven and Steven Barnes, the weapon "which might have defeated the Japs if it hadn't come so late" is revealed to be the Spruce Goose, which had been magically hijacked on its test flight by evil Foré sorcerers in New Guinea. Hughes's skeleton is found at the controls, identified by Hughes's trademark fedora and cloth-and-leather jacket.
Music
The 1974 song "Workin' at the Car Wash Blues" by Jim Croce compares the main protagonist of the song to Howard Hughes in one of the lyrics.
The 1974 song "The Wall Street Shuffle" by English rock band 10cc directly references Hughes and his ways of life in the last verse.
The song "Me and Howard Hughes" by Irish band The Boomtown Rats on their 1978 album A Tonic for the Troops is about the title subject.
The song "Closet Chronicles" by American rock band Kansas on their 1977 album Point of Know Return is a Howard Hughes allegory.
The song "Ain't No Fun (Waiting 'Round To Be a Millionaire)" by AC/DC on their 1976 album "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" singer Bon Scott referenced Howard Hughes toward the end of the song: "Hey, hello Howard, how you doin', my next door neighbour? Oh, yea... Get your fuckin' jumbo jet off my airport"
Hughes's name is mentioned in the title and the lyrics of the 2002 song "Bargain Basement Howard Hughes" by Jerry Cantrell.
The 2012 song "Nancy From Now On" by American songwriter Father John Misty likens Hughes's destructive and erratic tendencies to the singer's own.
Television
In The Greatest American Hero Season 2 episode 3, "Don't Mess Around with Jim," Ralph and Bill are kidnapped by a reclusive tycoon, owner of Beck Air airplane company, who fakes his own death, and seems to know more about the suit than they do. He then blackmails them into retrieving his will to prevent it from being misused by the president of his company.
In The Simpsons Season 5 episode "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)", Mr. Burns resembles Hughes in his recluse state. Various nods to his life appear in the episode, ranging from casino ownership and penthouse office to the "Spruce Goose" being renamed "Spruce Moose" as well as a lack of hygiene and being a germaphobe.
In The Beverly Hillbillies episode, "The Clampett-Hewes Empire", Jed Clampett, while in Hooterville, decides to merge his interests with a man Mr. Drysdale believes is Howard Hughes, the famous reclusive billionaire. Eventually it turns out, to Mr. Drysdale's chagrin, "Howard Hughes" is no billionaire; he is nothing but a plain old farmer named "Howard Hewes" (H-E-W-E-S).
In the Invader Zim episode, "Germs," the alien Zim becomes paranoid after discovering that Earth is covered in germs. Referencing Howard Hughes, he isolates himself in his home and dons tissue boxes on his feet.
In the Superjail! episode "The Superjail! Six", The Warden repeatedly watches a film called Ice Station Jailpup which parodies Hughes's obsession with the film Ice Station Zebra
See also
Analgesic nephropathy
List of richest Americans in history
List of wealthiest historical figures
List of aviation pioneers
List of entrepreneurs
Phenacetin
References
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
Barkow, Al. Gettin' to the Dance Floor: An Oral History of American Golf. Short Hills, New Jersey: Burford Books, 1986. .
Barton, Charles. Howard Hughes and his Flying Boat. Fallbrook, CA: Aero Publishers, 1982. Republished in 1998, Vienna, VA: Charles Barton, Inc. .
Barlett, Donald L. and James B. Steele. Empire: The Life, Legend and Madness of Howard Hughes. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1979. , republished in 2004 as Howard Hughes: His Life and Madness.
Bellett, Gerald. Age of Secrets: The Conspiracy that Toppled Richard Nixon and the Hidden Death of Howard Hughes. Stillwater, Minnesota: Voyageur Press, 1995. .
Blackman, Tony Tony Blackman Test Pilot Grub Street, 2009,
Brown, Peter Harry and Pat H. Broeske. Howard Hughes: The Untold Story. New York: Penguin Books, 1996. .
Burleson, Clyde W. The Jennifer Project. College Station, Texas: Texas A&M University Press, 1997. .
Dietrich, Noah and Bob Thomas. Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. New York: Fawcett Publications, 1972. .
Drosnin, Michael. Citizen Hughes: In his Own Words, How Howard Hughes Tried to Buy America. Portland, Oregon: Broadway Books, 2004. .
Hack, Richard. Hughes: The Private Diaries, Memos and Letters: The Definitive Biography of the First American Billionaire. Beverly Hills, California: New Millennium Press, 2002. .
Herman, Arthur. Freedom's Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II. New York: Random House, 2012. .
Higham, Charles. Howard Hughes: The Secret Life, 1993.
Porter, Donald J., Howard's Whirlybirds: Howard Hughes' Amazing Pioneering Helicopter Exploits. Fonthill Media, 2013. (ISBN 978-1-78155-089)
Irving, Clifford. The Hoax. New York: E. Reads Ltd., 1999. .
Klepper, Michael and Michael Gunther. The Wealthy 100: From Benjamin Franklin to Bill Gates—A Ranking of the Richest Americans, Past and Present. Secaucus, New Jersey: Carol Publishing Group, 1996.
Marrett, George J. Howard Hughes: Aviator. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 2004. .
Kistler, Ron. I Caught Flies for Howard Hughes. Chicago: Playboy Press, 1976. .
Lasky, Betty. RKO: The Biggest Little Major of Them All, 2d ed . Santa Monica, California: Roundtable, 1989. .
Maheu, Robert and Richard Hack. Next to Hughes: Behind the Power and Tragic Downfall of Howard Hughes by his Closest Adviser. New York: Harper Collins, 1992. .
Moore, Terry. The Beauty and the Billionaire. New York: Pocket Books, 1984. .
Moore, Terry and Jerry Rivers. The Passions of Howard Hughes. Los Angeles: General Publishing Group, 1996. .
Parker, Dana T. Building Victory: Aircraft Manufacturing in the Los Angeles Area in World War II, Cypress, California: Dana T. Parker Books, 2013. .
Phelan, James. Howard Hughes: The Hidden Years. New York, Random House, 1976. .
Real, Jack. The Asylum of Howard Hughes. Philadelphia: Xlibris Corporation, 2003. .
Thomas, Bob. Liberace: The True Story. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1987. .
Tierney, Gene with Mickey Herskowitz. Self-Portrait. New York: Peter Wyden, 1979. lSBN 0-883261-52-9.
Weaver, Tom. Science Fiction and Fantasy Film Flashbacks: Conversations with 24 Actors, Writers, Producers and Directors from the Golden Age. New York: McFarland & Company, 2004. .
External links
AZORIAN The Raising of the K-129 / 2009 – 2 Part TV Documentary / Michael White Films Vienna
Welcome Home Howard: Collection of photographs kept by UNLV
A history of the remarkable achievements of Howard Hughes
FBI file on Howard Hughes
Exclutive Biography of Howard R. Hughes Jr.
Biography in the National Aviation Hall of Fame
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Watergate scandal | true | [
"\n\nThe Besson MB.36 was a French monoplane flying-boat designed by Marcel Besson, only one was built.\n\nDesign and development\nThe MB.36 was a parasol-wing monoplane flying-boat for use as either a bomber or commercial transport. It was powered by three Gnome-Rhône 9Ad Jupiter radial engines. The prototype, registered F-AKEJ, was a 10-seat commercial variant, designed in 1926 but did not fly until 15 May 1930 because of financial difficulties. By the time of the MB.36 first flight, the company had been taken over by the ANF Mureaux company. After the flying-boat lost a stabilizing float during official tests, and because of poor performance the project was abandoned and the MB.36 scrapped.\n\nSpecifications\n\nSee also\n\nReferences\n\nNotes\n\nBibliography\n\n1930s French airliners\nFlying boats\nMB.36\nTrimotors\nParasol-wing aircraft\nAircraft first flown in 1930",
"The Gosport Aircraft Company was a short-lived British aircraft manufacturer based at Gosport, Hampshire formed at the start of the First World War by Sir Charles Allom of White, Allom & Company and Charles Ernest Nicholson of Camper and Nicholsons boat-builders. The company built a number of flying-boats for the British government including the hull for the Fairey Atalanta which at the time was the largest flying-boat hull built in the world.\n\nAircraft\nFBA Type B pusher biplane patrol flying boat, flying surfaces for sixty built for the RNAS.\nFelixstowe F.5 tractor biplane patrol flying boat, cancelled by the RAF in January 1919 after ten from an order of fifty delivered.\n\nProjects\n\nFollowing the end of the First World War, the company proposed a number of designs published 31 July 1919 in Flight magazine:\nGosport Fire Fighter - a 10-seater flying boat designed to carry men and material to the scene of a forest fire or emergency based on the Felixstowe F.5.\nGosport Mail - a six passenger luxury flying boat for long distance passenger, mail and goods-carrying based on the Norman Thompson N.T.4A.\nGosport Patrol Boat - a two-seater flying boat for use as a fast patrol or police boat.\nGosport Two-seater Touring Boat - a flying boat with a tail boom for the American market.\nGosport Popular - a touring flying boat.\nGosport Shrimp - a single-seat flying boat.\nIn December 1919 a number of larger flying-boats were proposed, designed by John Porte who joined the company in August 1919:\nGosport G5 - a twin-engined biplane flying boat with a 103 ft span and a length of 49 ft 3in, for two crew and six passengers or cargo based on the Felixstowe F.5.\nGosport G5a - a smaller variant of the G5 with a 97 ft 6in span and only 46 ft in length.\nGosport G8 - a biplane flying boat for one pilot and three-passengers.\nGosport G8a - a biplane flying boat similar to the G8.\nGosport G9 - a triplane three-engined flying boat for long distance cargo work or ten passengers with three crew, which would have had a 113 foot wingspan. A commercial version of Porte's Felixstowe Fury\n\nWith the death of Porte in October 1919 none of the flying boats proposed were built, and by the middle of 1920 the company had closed.\n\nReferences\n\nDefunct aircraft manufacturers of the United Kingdom"
]
|
[
"Howard Hughes",
"H-4 Hercules",
"What is the H-4 hercules?",
"HK-1 Hercules flying boat",
"What was the use of the flying boat?",
"use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable"
]
| C_3fad173257b34869985c7b64812d1528_0 | How much did the hercules cost to make? | 3 | How much did the Howard Hughes' H-4 Hercules cost to make? | Howard Hughes | The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The project was opposed by the military services, thinking it would siphon resources from higher priority programs, but was advocated by Hughes' powerful allies in Washington, D.C. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II. The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at 319 feet 11 inches (97.51 m), had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next largest wingspan was about 310 ft (94 m)). (The Hercules is no longer the longest or heaviest aircraft ever built; both of those titles are currently held by the Antonov An-225 Mriya.) The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947. The Hercules was nicknamed the Spruce Goose by its critics, but it was actually made largely from birch, not spruce, rather than of aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes' Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the F-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it is now part of the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum. On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes' paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, investor, record-setting pilot, engineer, film director, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and financially successful individuals in the world. He first became prominent as a film producer, and then as an important figure in the aviation industry. Later in life, he became known for his eccentric behavior and reclusive lifestyle—oddities that were caused in part by his worsening obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), chronic pain from a near-fatal plane crash, and increasing deafness.
As a film tycoon, Hughes gained fame in Hollywood beginning in the late 1920s, when he produced big-budget and often controversial films such as The Racket (1928), Hell's Angels (1930), and Scarface (1932). He later took over the RKO Pictures film studio in 1948, recognized then as one of the Big Five studios of Hollywood's Golden Age, although the production company struggled under his control and ultimately ceased operations in 1957.
Through his interest in aviation and aerospace travel, Hughes formed the Hughes Aircraft Company in 1932, hiring numerous engineers, designers, and defense contractors. He spent the rest of the 1930s and much of the 1940s setting multiple world air speed records and building the Hughes H-1 Racer (1935) and H-4 Hercules (the Spruce Goose, 1947), the latter being the largest flying boat in history and having the longest wingspan of any aircraft from the time it was built until 2019. He acquired and expanded Trans World Airlines and later acquired Air West, renaming it Hughes Airwest. Hughes won the Harmon Trophy on two occasions (1936 and 1938), the Collier Trophy (1938), and the Congressional Gold Medal (1939) all for his achievements in aviation throughout the 1930s. He was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1973 and was included in Flying magazine's 2013 list of the 51 Heroes of Aviation, ranked at 25.
During the 1960s and early 1970s, Hughes extended his financial empire to include several major businesses in Las Vegas, such as real estate, hotels, casinos, and media outlets. Known at the time as one of the most powerful men in the state of Nevada, he is largely credited with transforming Vegas into a more refined cosmopolitan city.
After years of mental and physical decline, Hughes died of kidney failure in 1976, at the age of 70. Today, his legacy is maintained through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Howard Hughes Corporation.
Early life
Howard Robard Hughes Jr. was the son of Allene Stone Gano (1883–1922) and of Howard R. Hughes Sr. (1869–1924), a successful inventor and businessman from Missouri. He had English, Welsh and some French Huguenot ancestry, and was a descendant of John Gano (1727–1804), the minister who allegedly baptized George Washington. His father patented (1909) the two-cone roller bit, which allowed rotary drilling for petroleum in previously inaccessible places. The senior Hughes made the shrewd and lucrative decision to commercialize the invention by leasing the bits instead of selling them, obtained several early patents, and founded the Hughes Tool Company in 1909. Hughes's uncle was the famed novelist, screenwriter, and film-director Rupert Hughes.
A 1941 affidavit birth certificate of Hughes, signed by his aunt Annette Gano Lummis and by Estelle Boughton Sharp, states that he was born on December 24, 1905, in Harris County, Texas. However, his certificate of baptism, recorded on October 7, 1906, in the parish register of St. John's Episcopal Church in Keokuk, Iowa, listed his date of birth as September 24, 1905, without any reference to the place of birth.
At a young age, Hughes showed interest in science and technology. In particular, he had great engineering aptitude and built Houston's first "wireless" radio transmitter at age 11. He went on to be one of the first licensed ham-radio operators in Houston, having the assigned callsign W5CY (originally 5CY). At 12, Hughes was photographed in the local newspaper, identified as the first boy in Houston to have a "motorized" bicycle, which he had built from parts from his father's steam engine. He was an indifferent student, with a liking for mathematics, flying, and mechanics. He took his first flying lesson at 14, and attended Fessenden School in Massachusetts in 1921.
After a brief stint at The Thacher School, Hughes attended math and aeronautical engineering courses at Caltech. The red-brick house where Hughes lived as a teenager at 3921 Yoakum Blvd., Houston, still stands, now known as Hughes House on the grounds of the University of St. Thomas.
His mother Allene died in March 1922 from complications of an ectopic pregnancy. Howard Hughes Sr. died of a heart attack in 1924. Their deaths apparently inspired Hughes to include the establishment of a medical research laboratory in the will that he signed in 1925 at age 19. Howard Sr.'s will had not been updated since Allene's death, and Hughes inherited 75% of the family fortune. On his 19th birthday, Hughes was declared an emancipated minor, enabling him to take full control of his life.
From a young age, Hughes became a proficient and enthusiastic golfer. He often scored near-par figures, played the game to a two-three handicap during his 20s, and for a time aimed for a professional golf career. He golfed frequently with top players, including Gene Sarazen. Hughes rarely played competitively and gradually gave up his passion for the sport to pursue other interests. Hughes played golf every afternoon at LA courses including the Lakeside Golf Club, Wilshire Country Club, or the Bel-Air Country Club. Partners included George Von Elm or Ozzie Carlton. After Hughes hurt himself in the late 1920s, his golfing tapered off, and after his F-11 crash, Hughes was unable to play at all.
Hughes withdrew from Rice University shortly after his father's death. On June 1, 1925, he married Ella Botts Rice, daughter of David Rice and Martha Lawson Botts of Houston, and great-niece of William Marsh Rice, for whom Rice University was named. They moved to Los Angeles, where he hoped to make a name for himself as a filmmaker.
They moved into the Ambassador Hotel, and Hughes proceeded to learn to fly a Waco, while simultaneously producing his first motion picture, Swell Hogan.
Business career
Hughes enjoyed a highly successful business career beyond engineering, aviation, and filmmaking; many of his career endeavors involved varying entrepreneurial roles.
Entertainment
Ralph Graves persuaded Hughes to finance a short film, Swell Hogan, which Graves had written and would star in. Hughes himself produced it. However, it was a disaster. After hiring a film editor to try to salvage it, he finally ordered that it be destroyed. His next two films, Everybody's Acting (1926) and Two Arabian Knights (1927), achieved financial success; the latter won the first Academy Award for Best Director of a comedy picture. The Racket (1928) and The Front Page (1931) were also nominated for Academy Awards.
Hughes spent $3.5 million to make the flying film Hell's Angels (1930). Hell's Angels received one Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography.
He produced another hit, Scarface (1932), a production delayed by censors' concern over its violence.
The Outlaw premiered in 1943, but was not released nationally until 1946. The film featured Jane Russell, who received considerable attention from industry censors, this time owing to her revealing costumes.
RKO
From the 1940s to the late 1950s, the Hughes Tool Company ventured into the film industry when it obtained partial ownership of the RKO companies, which included RKO Pictures, RKO Studios, a chain of movie theaters known as RKO Theatres and a network of radio stations known as the RKO Radio Network.
In 1948, Hughes gained control of RKO, a struggling major Hollywood studio, by acquiring the 929,000 shares owned by Floyd Odlum's Atlas Corporation, for $8,825,000. Within weeks of acquiring the studio, Hughes dismissed 700 employees. Production dwindled to 9 pictures during the first year of Hughes's control; previously RKO had averaged 30 per year.
Production shut down for six months, during which time Hughes ordered investigations of each employee who remained with RKO as far as their political leanings were concerned. Only after ensuring that the stars under contract to RKO had no suspect affiliations would Hughes approve completed pictures to be sent back for re-shooting. This was especially true of the women under contract to RKO at that time. If Hughes felt that his stars did not properly represent the political views of his liking or if a film's anti-communist politics were not sufficiently clear, he pulled the plug. In 1952, an abortive sale to a Chicago-based group connected to the mafia with no experience in the industry disrupted studio operations at RKO even further.
In 1953, Hughes became involved with a high-profile lawsuit as part of the settlement of the United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc. Antitrust Case. As a result of the hearings, the shaky status of RKO became increasingly apparent. A steady stream of lawsuits from RKO's minority shareholders had grown to become extremely annoying to Hughes. They had accused him of financial misconduct and corporate mismanagement. Since Hughes wanted to focus primarily on his aircraft manufacturing and TWA holdings during the years of the Korean War of 1950 to 1953, Hughes offered to buy out all other stockholders in order to dispense with their distractions.
By the end of 1954, Hughes had gained near-total control of RKO at a cost of nearly $24 million, becoming the first sole owner of a major Hollywood studio since the silent-film era. Six months later Hughes sold the studio to the General Tire and Rubber Company for $25 million. Hughes retained the rights to pictures that he had personally produced, including those made at RKO. He also retained Jane Russell's contract. For Howard Hughes, this was the virtual end of his 25-year involvement in the motion-picture industry. However, his reputation as a financial wizard emerged unscathed. During that time period, RKO became known as the home of classic film noir productions, thanks in part to the limited budgets required to make such films during Hughes's tenure. Hughes reportedly walked away from RKO having made $6.5 million in personal profit. According to Noah Dietrich, Hughes made a $10,000,000 profit from the sale of the theaters and made a profit of $1,000,000 from his 7-year ownership of RKO.
Real estate
According to Noah Dietrich, "Land became a principal asset for the Hughes empire". Hughes acquired 1200 acres in Culver City for Hughes Aircraft, bought 7 sections [4,480 acres] in Tucson for his Falcon missile-plant, and purchased 25,000 acres near Las Vegas. In 1968, the Hughes Tool Company purchased the North Las Vegas Air Terminal.
Originally known as Summa Corporation, the Howard Hughes Corporation formed in 1972 when the oil-tools business of Hughes Tool Company, then owned by Howard Hughes Jr., floated on the New York Stock Exchange under the "Hughes Tool" name. This forced the remaining businesses of the "original" Hughes Tool to adopt a new corporate name: "Summa". The name "Summa"Latin for "highest"was adopted without the approval of Hughes himself, who preferred to keep his own name on the business, and suggested "HRH Properties" (for Hughes Resorts and Hotels, and also his own initials). In 1988 Summa announced plans for Summerlin, a master-planned community named for the paternal grandmother of Howard Hughes, Jean Amelia Summerlin.
Initially staying in the Desert Inn, Hughes refused to vacate his room, and instead decided to purchase the entire hotel. Hughes extended his financial empire to include Las Vegas real estate, hotels, and media outlets, spending an estimated $300 million, and using his considerable powers to take over many of the well-known hotels, especially the venues connected with organized crime. He quickly became one of the most powerful men in Las Vegas. He was instrumental in changing the image of Las Vegas from its Wild West roots into a more refined cosmopolitan city. In addition to the Desert Inn, Hughes would eventually own the Sands, Frontier, Silver Slipper, Castaways and Landmark and Harold's Club in Reno. Hughes would eventually become the largest employer in Nevada.
Aviation and aerospace
Another portion of Hughes's commercial interests involved aviation, airlines, and the aerospace and defense industries. A lifelong aircraft enthusiast and pilot, Hughes survived four airplane accidents: one in a Thomas-Morse Scout while filming Hell's Angels, one while setting the airspeed record in the Hughes Racer, one at Lake Mead in 1943, and the near-fatal crash of the Hughes XF-11 in 1946. At Rogers Airport in Los Angeles, he learned to fly from pioneer aviators, including Moye Stephens and J.B. Alexander. He set many world records and commissioned the construction of custom aircraft for himself while heading Hughes Aircraft at the airport in Glendale, CA. Operating from there, the most technologically important aircraft he commissioned was the Hughes H-1 Racer. On September 13, 1935, Hughes, flying the H-1, set the landplane airspeed record of over his test course near Santa Ana, California (Giuseppe Motta reaching 362 mph in 1929 and George Stainforth reached 407.5 mph in 1931, both in seaplanes). This marked the last time in history that an aircraft built by a private individual set the world airspeed record. A year and a half later, on January 19, 1937, flying the same H-1 Racer fitted with longer wings, Hughes set a new transcontinental airspeed record by flying non-stop from Los Angeles to Newark in seven hours, 28 minutes, and 25 seconds (beating his own previous record of nine hours, 27 minutes). His average ground-speed over the flight was .
The H-1 Racer featured a number of design innovations: it had retractable landing gear (as Boeing Monomail had five years before), and all rivets and joints set flush into the body of the aircraft to reduce drag. The H-1 Racer is thought to have influenced the design of a number of World War II fighters such as the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, Focke-Wulf Fw 190, and F8F Bearcat, although that has never been reliably confirmed. In 1975 the H-1 Racer was donated to the Smithsonian.
Round-the-world flight
On July 14, 1938, Hughes set another record by completing a flight around the world in just 91 hours (three days, 19 hours, 17 minutes), beating the previous record of 186 hours (7 days, 18 hours, 49 minutes) set in 1933 by Wiley Post in a single-engine Lockheed Vega by almost four days. Hughes returned home ahead of photographs of his flight. Taking off from New York City, Hughes continued to Paris, Moscow, Omsk, Yakutsk, Fairbanks, and Minneapolis, then returning to New York City. For this flight he flew a Lockheed 14 Super Electra (NX18973, a twin-engine transport with a four-man crew) fitted with the latest radio and navigational equipment. Harry Connor was the co-pilot, Thomas Thurlow the navigator, Richard Stoddart the engineer, and Ed Lund the mechanic. Hughes wanted the flight to be a triumph of American aviation technology, illustrating that safe, long-distance air travel was possible. Albert Lodwick of Mystic, Iowa, provided organizational skills as the flight operations manager. While Hughes had previously been relatively obscure despite his wealth, being better known for dating Katharine Hepburn, New York City now gave him a ticker-tape parade in the Canyon of Heroes. Hughes and his crew were awarded the 1938 Collier Trophy for flying around the world in record time. He was awarded the Harmon Trophy in 1936 and 1938 for the record-breaking global circumnavigation.
In 1938 the William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas—known at the time as Houston Municipal Airport—was renamed after Hughes, but the name was changed back due to public outrage over naming the airport after a living person.
Hughes also had a role in the design and financing of both the Boeing 307 Stratoliner and Lockheed L-049 Constellation.
Other aviator awards include: the Bibesco Cup of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in 1938, the Octave Chanute Award in 1940, and a special Congressional Gold Medal in 1939 "in recognition of the achievements of Howard Hughes in advancing the science of aviation and thus bringing great credit to his country throughout the world".
President Harry S. Truman sent the Congressional medal to Hughes after the F-11 crash. After his around-the-world flight, Hughes had declined to go to the White House to collect it.
Hughes D-2 and XF-11
The Hughes D-2 was conceived in 1939 as a bomber with five crew members, powered by 42-cylinder Wright R-2160 Tornado engines. In the end, it appeared as two-seat fighter-reconnaissance aircraft designated the D-2A, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-2800-49 engines. The aircraft was constructed using the Duramold process. The prototype was brought to Harper's Dry Lake in California in great secrecy in 1943 and first flew on June 20 of that year. Acting on a recommendation of the president's son, Colonel Elliott Roosevelt, who had become friends with Hughes, in September 1943 the USAAF ordered 100 of a reconnaissance development of the D-2, known as the F-11. Hughes then attempted to get the military to pay for the development of the D-2. In November 1944, the hangar containing the D-2A was reportedly hit by lightning and the aircraft was destroyed. The D-2 design was abandoned but led to the extremely controversial Hughes XF-11. The XF-11 was a large, all-metal, two-seat reconnaissance aircraft, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-4360-31 engines, each driving a set of contra-rotating propellers. Only two prototypes were completed; the second one with a single propeller per side.
Fatal crash of the Sikorsky S-43
In the spring of 1943 Hughes spent nearly a month in Las Vegas, test-flying his Sikorsky S-43 amphibious aircraft, practising touch-and-go landings on Lake Mead in preparation for flying the H-4 Hercules. The weather conditions at the lake during the day were ideal and he enjoyed Las Vegas at night. On May 17, 1943, Hughes flew the Sikorsky from California, carrying two CAA aviation inspectors, two of his employees, and actress Ava Gardner. Hughes dropped Gardner off in Las Vegas and proceeded to Lake Mead to conduct qualifying tests in the S-43. The test flight did not go well. The Sikorsky crashed into Lake Mead, killing CAA inspector Ceco Cline and Hughes's employee Richard Felt. Hughes suffered a severe gash on the top of his head when he hit the upper control panel and had to be rescued by one of the others on board. Hughes paid divers $100,000 to raise the aircraft and later spent more than $500,000 restoring it. Hughes sent the plane to Houston, where it remained for many years.
Near-fatal crash of the XF-11
Hughes was involved in another near-fatal aircraft accident on July 7, 1946, while performing the first flight of the prototype U.S. Army Air Forces reconnaissance aircraft, the XF-11, near Hughes airfield at Culver City, California. An oil leak caused one of the contra-rotating propellers to reverse pitch, causing the aircraft to yaw sharply and lose altitude rapidly. Hughes attempted to save the aircraft by landing it at the Los Angeles Country Club golf course, but just seconds before reaching the course, the XF-11 started to drop dramatically and crashed in the Beverly Hills neighborhood surrounding the country club.
When the XF-11 finally came to a halt after destroying three houses, the fuel tanks exploded, setting fire to the aircraft and a nearby home at 808 North Whittier Drive owned by Lt Col. Charles E. Meyer. Hughes managed to pull himself out of the flaming wreckage but lay beside the aircraft until rescued by Marine Master Sgt. William L. Durkin, who happened to be in the area visiting friends. Hughes sustained significant injuries in the crash, including a crushed collar bone, multiple cracked ribs, crushed chest with collapsed left lung, shifting his heart to the right side of the chest cavity, and numerous third-degree burns. An oft-told story said that Hughes sent a check to the Marine weekly for the remainder of his life as a sign of gratitude. Noah Dietrich asserted that Hughes did send Durkin $200 a month, but Durkin's daughter denied knowing that he received any money from Hughes.
Despite his physical injuries, Hughes took pride that his mind was still working. As he lay in his hospital bed, he decided that he did not like the bed's design. He called in plant engineers to design a customized bed, equipped with hot and cold running water, built in six sections, and operated by 30 electric motors, with push-button adjustments. Hughes designed the hospital bed specifically to alleviate the pain caused by moving with severe burn injuries. Although he never used the bed that he designed, Hughes's bed served as a prototype for the modern hospital bed. Hughes's doctors considered his recovery almost miraculous.
Many attribute his long-term dependence on opiates to his use of codeine as a painkiller during his convalescence. Yet Dietrich asserts that Hughes recovered the "hard way—no sleeping pills, no opiates of any kind". The trademark mustache he wore afterward hid a scar on his upper lip resulting from the accident.
H-4 Hercules
The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The military services opposed the project, thinking it would siphon resources from higher-priority programs, but Hughes's powerful allies in Washington, D.C., advocated for it. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II.
The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at , had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next-largest wingspan was about ). (The Hercules is no longer the longest nor heaviest aircraft ever built - surpassed by the Antonov An-225 Mriya produced in 1985.)
The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947.
Critics nicknamed the Hercules the Spruce Goose, but it was actually made largely from birch (not spruce) rather than from aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes's Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the XF-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly-disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense-acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it features at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum.
On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes's paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio-technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules.
Hughes Aircraft
In 1932 Hughes founded the Hughes Aircraft Company, a division of Hughes Tool Company, in a rented corner of a Lockheed Aircraft Corporation hangar in Burbank, California, to build the H-1 racer.
Shortly after founding the company, Hughes used the alias "Charles Howard" to accept a job as a baggage handler for American Airlines. He was soon promoted to co-pilot.
Hughes continued to work for American Airlines until his real identity was discovered.
During and after World War II Hughes fashioned his company into a major defense contractor. The Hughes Helicopters division started in 1947 when helicopter manufacturer Kellett sold their latest design to Hughes for production. Hughes Aircraft became a major American aerospace- and defense contractor, manufacturing numerous technology-related products that included spacecraft vehicles, military aircraft, radar systems, electro-optical systems, the first working laser, aircraft computer systems, missile systems, ion-propulsion engines (for space travel), commercial satellites, and other electronics systems.
In 1948 Hughes created a new division of Hughes Aircraft: the Hughes Aerospace Group. The Hughes Space and Communications Group and the Hughes Space Systems Division were later spun off in 1948 to form their own divisions and ultimately became the Hughes Space and Communications Company in 1961. In 1953 Howard Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the newly formed Howard Hughes Medical Institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a tax-exempt charitable organization. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion. In 1997 General Motors sold Hughes Aircraft to Raytheon and in 2000, sold Hughes Space & Communications to Boeing. A combination of Boeing, GM, and Raytheon acquired the Hughes Research Laboratories, which focused on advanced developments in microelectronics, information & systems sciences, materials, sensors, and photonics; their work-space spans from basic research to product delivery. It has particularly emphasized capabilities in high-performance integrated circuits, high-power lasers, antennas, networking, and smart materials.
Airlines
In 1939, at the urging of Jack Frye, president of Transcontinental & Western Airlines, the predecessor of Trans World Airlines (TWA), Hughes began to quietly purchase a majority share of TWA stock; he took a controlling interest in the airline by 1944. Although he never had an official position with TWA, Hughes handpicked the board of directors, which included Noah Dietrich, and often issued orders directly to airline staff. Hughes Tool Co. purchased the first six Stratoliners Boeing manufactured. Hughes used one personally, and he let TWA operate the other five.
Hughes is commonly credited as the driving force behind the Lockheed Constellation airliner, which Hughes and Frye ordered in 1939 as a long-range replacement for TWA's fleet of Boeing 307 Stratoliners. Hughes personally financed TWA's acquisition of 40 Constellations for $18 million, the largest aircraft order in history up to that time. The Constellations were among the highest-performing commercial aircraft of the late 1940s and 1950s and allowed TWA to pioneer nonstop transcontinental service. During World War II Hughes leveraged political connections in Washington to obtain rights for TWA to serve Europe, making it the only U.S. carrier with a combination of domestic and transatlantic routes.
After the announcement of the Boeing 707, Hughes opted to pursue a more advanced jet aircraft for TWA and approached Convair in late 1954. Convair proposed two concepts to Hughes, but Hughes was unable to decide which concept to adopt, and Convair eventually abandoned its initial jet project after the mockups of the 707 and Douglas DC-8 were unveiled. Even after competitors such as United Airlines, American Airlines and Pan American World Airways had placed large orders for the 707, Hughes only placed eight orders for 707s through the Hughes Tool Company and forbade TWA from using the aircraft. After finally beginning to reserve 707 orders in 1956, Hughes embarked on a plan to build his own "superior" jet aircraft for TWA, applied for CAB permission to sell Hughes aircraft to TWA, and began negotiations with the state of Florida to build a manufacturing plant there. However, he abandoned this plan around 1958, and in the interim, negotiated new contracts for 707 and Convair 880 aircraft and engines totaling $400 million.
The financing of TWA's jet orders precipitated the end of Hughes's relationship with Noah Dietrich, and ultimately Hughes's ouster from control of TWA. Hughes did not have enough cash on hand or future cash flow to pay for the orders and did not immediately seek bank financing. Hughes's refusal to heed Dietrich's financing advice led to a major rift between the two by the end of 1956. Hughes believed that Dietrich wished to have Hughes committed as mentally incompetent, although the evidence of this is inconclusive. Dietrich resigned by telephone in May 1957 after repeated requests for stock options, which Hughes refused to grant, and with no further progress on the jet financing. As Hughes's mental state worsened, he ordered various tactics to delay payments to Boeing and Convair; his behavior led TWA's banks to insist that he be removed from management as a condition for further financing.
In 1960, Hughes was ultimately forced out of the management of TWA, although he continued to own 78% of the company. In 1961, TWA filed suit against Hughes Tool Company, claiming that the latter had violated antitrust law by using TWA as a captive market for aircraft trading. The claim was largely dependent upon obtaining testimony from Hughes himself. Hughes went into hiding and refused to testify. A default judgment was issued against Hughes Tool Company for $135 million in 1963 but was overturned by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1973, on the basis that Hughes was immune from prosecution. In 1966, Hughes was forced to sell his TWA shares. The sale of his TWA shares brought Hughes $546,549,771.
Hughes acquired control of Boston-based Northeast Airlines in 1962. However, the airline's lucrative route authority between major northeastern cities and Miami was terminated by a CAB decision around the time of the acquisition, and Hughes sold control of the company to a trustee in 1964. Northeast went on to merge with Delta Air Lines in 1972.
In 1970, Hughes acquired San Francisco-based Air West and renamed it Hughes Airwest. Air West had been formed in 1968 by the merger of Bonanza Air Lines, Pacific Air Lines, and West Coast Airlines, all of which operated in the western U.S. By the late 1970s, Hughes Airwest operated an all-jet fleet of Boeing 727-200, Douglas DC-9-10, and McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 jetliners serving an extensive route network in the western U.S. with flights to Mexico and western Canada as well. By 1980, the airline's route system reached as far east as Houston (Hobby Airport) and Milwaukee with a total of 42 destinations being served. Hughes Airwest was then acquired by and merged into Republic Airlines (1979–1986) in late 1980. Republic was subsequently acquired by and merged into Northwest Airlines which in turn was ultimately merged into Delta Air Lines in 2008.
Business with David Charnay
Hughes had made numerous business partnerships through industrialist and producer David Charnay. Their friendship and many partnerships began with the film The Conqueror, which was first released to the public in 1956. The film caused many controversies due to its critical flop and radioactive location used in St. George, Utah, that eventually led to Hughes buying up nearly every copy of the film he could, only to watch the film at home repeatedly for many nights in a row.
Charnay later bought Four Star, the film and television production company that produced The Conqueror.
Hughes and Charnay's most published dealings were with a contested AirWest leveraged buyout. Charnay led the buyout group that involved Howard Hughes and their partners acquiring Air West. Hughes, Charnay, as well as three others, were indicted. The indictment, made by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton, accused the group of conspiring to drive down the stock price of Air West in order to pressure company directors to sell to Hughes. The charges were dismissed after a judge had determined that the indictment had failed to allege an illegal action on the part of Hughes, Charnay, and all the other accused in the indictment. Thompson, the federal judge that made the decision to dismiss the charges called the indictment one of the worst claims that he had ever seen. The charges were filed again, a second time, by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton's assistant, Dean Vernon. The Federal Judge ruled on November 13, 1974, and elaborated to say that the case suggested a "reprehensible misuse of the power of great wealth", but in his judicial opinion, "no crime had been committed." The aftermath of the Air West deal was later settled with the SEC by paying former stockholders for alleged losses from the sale of their investment in Air West stock. As noted above, Air West was subsequently renamed Hughes Airwest. During a long pause between the years of the dismissed charges against Hughes, Charnay, and their partners, Howard Hughes mysteriously died mid-flight while on the way to Houston from Acapulco. No further attempts were made to file any indictments after Hughes died.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
In 1953, Hughes launched the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Miami, Florida, (currently located in Chevy Chase, Maryland) with the expressed goal of basic biomedical research, including trying to understand, in Hughes's words, the "genesis of life itself", due to his lifelong interest in science and technology. Hughes's first will, which he signed in 1925 at the age of 19, stipulated that a portion of his estate should be used to create a medical institute bearing his name. When a major battle with the IRS loomed ahead, Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a for-profit entity of a fully tax-exempt charity. Hughes's internist, Verne Mason, who treated Hughes after his 1946 aircraft crash, was chairman of the institute's medical advisory committee. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute's new board of trustees sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion, allowing the institute to grow dramatically.
In 1954, Hughes transferred Hughes Aircraft to the foundation, which paid Hughes Tool Co. $18,000,000 for the assets. The foundation leased the land from Hughes Tool Co., which then subleased it to Hughes Aircraft Corp. The difference in rent, $2,000,000 per year, became the foundation's working capital.
The deal was the topic of a protracted legal battle between Hughes and the Internal Revenue Service, which Hughes ultimately won. After his death in 1976, many thought that the balance of Hughes's estate would go to the institute, although it was ultimately divided among his cousins and other heirs, given the lack of a will to the contrary. The HHMI was the fourth largest private organization and one of the largest devoted to biological and medical research, with an endowment of $20.4 billion .
Glomar Explorer and the taking of K-129
In 1972, during the cold war era, Hughes was approached by the CIA through his longtime partner, David Charnay, to help secretly recover the Soviet submarine K-129, which had sunk near Hawaii four years earlier. Hughes's involvement provided the CIA with a plausible cover story, conducting expensive civilian marine research at extreme depths and the mining of undersea manganese nodules. The recovery plan used the special-purpose salvage vessel Glomar Explorer. In the summer of 1974, Glomar Explorer attempted to raise the Soviet vessel. However, during the recovery a mechanical failure in the ship's grapple caused half of the submarine to break off and fall to the ocean floor. This section is believed to have held many of the most sought-after items, including its code book and nuclear missiles. Two nuclear-tipped torpedoes and some cryptographic machines were recovered, along with the bodies of six Soviet submariners who were subsequently given formal burial at sea in a filmed ceremony. The operation, known as Project Azorian (but incorrectly referred to by the press as Project Jennifer), became public in February 1975 after secret documents were released, obtained by burglars of Hughes's headquarters in June 1974. Although he lent his name and his company's resources to the operation, Hughes and his companies had no operational involvement in the project. The Glomar Explorer was eventually acquired by Transocean and was sent to the scrap yard in 2015 during a large decline in oil prices.
Personal life
Early romances
In 1929, Hughes's wife of four years, Ella, returned to Houston and filed for divorce.
Hughes dated many famous women, including Joan Crawford, Billie Dove, Faith Domergue, Bette Davis, Yvonne De Carlo, Ava Gardner, Olivia de Havilland, Katharine Hepburn, Hedy Lamarr, Ginger Rogers, Janet Leigh, Pat Sheehan, Mamie Van Doren and Gene Tierney. He also proposed to Joan Fontaine several times, according to her autobiography No Bed of Roses. Jean Harlow accompanied him to the premiere of Hell's Angels, but Noah Dietrich wrote many years later that the relationship was strictly professional, as Hughes disliked Harlow personally. In his 1971 book, Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes, Dietrich said that Hughes genuinely liked and respected Jane Russell, but never sought romantic involvement with her. According to Russell's autobiography, however, Hughes once tried to bed her after a party. Russell (who was married at the time) refused him, and Hughes promised it would never happen again. The two maintained a professional and private friendship for many years. Hughes remained good friends with Tierney who, after his failed attempts to seduce her, was quoted as saying "I don't think Howard could love anything that did not have a motor in it". Later, when Tierney's daughter Daria was born deaf and blind and with a severe learning disability because of Tierney's exposure to rubella during her pregnancy, Hughes saw to it that Daria received the best medical care and paid all expenses.
Luxury yacht
In 1933, Hughes made a purchase of a luxury steam yacht named the Rover, which was previously owned by Scottish shipping magnate Lord Inchcape. "I have never seen the Rover but bought it on the blueprints, photographs and the reports of Lloyd's surveyors. My experience is that the English are the most honest race in the world." Hughes renamed the yacht Southern Cross and later sold her to Swedish entrepreneur Axel Wenner-Gren.
1936 automobile accident
On July 11, 1936, Hughes struck and killed a pedestrian named Gabriel S. Meyer with his car at the corner of 3rd Street and Lorraine in Los Angeles. After the crash, Hughes was taken to the hospital and certified as sober, but an attending doctor made a note that Hughes had been drinking. A witness to the crash told police that Hughes was driving erratically and too fast and that Meyer had been standing in the safety zone of a streetcar stop. Hughes was booked on suspicion of negligent homicide and held overnight in jail until his attorney, Neil S. McCarthy, obtained a writ of habeas corpus for his release pending a coroner's inquest. By the time of the coroner's inquiry, however, the witness had changed his story and claimed that Meyer had moved directly in front of Hughes's car. Nancy Bayly (Watts), who was in the car with Hughes at the time of the crash, corroborated this version of the story. On July 16, 1936, Hughes was held blameless by a coroner's jury at the inquest into Meyer's death. Hughes told reporters outside the inquiry, "I was driving slowly and a man stepped out of the darkness in front of me".
Marriage to Jean Peters
On January 12, 1957, Hughes married actress Jean Peters at a small hotel in Tonopah, Nevada. The couple met in the 1940s, before Peters became a film actress. They had a highly publicized romance in 1947 and there was talk of marriage, but she said she could not combine it with her career. Some later claimed that Peters was "the only woman [Hughes] ever loved", and he reportedly had his security officers follow her everywhere even when they were not in a relationship. Such reports were confirmed by actor Max Showalter, who became a close friend of Peters while shooting Niagara (1953). Showalter told an interviewer that because he frequently met with Peters, Hughes's men threatened to ruin his career if he did not leave her alone.
Connections to Richard Nixon and Watergate
Shortly before the 1960 Presidential election, Richard Nixon was alarmed when it was revealed that his brother, Donald, received a $205,000 loan from Hughes. It has long been speculated that Nixon's drive to learn what the Democrats were planning in 1972 was based in part on his belief that the Democrats knew about a later bribe that his friend Bebe Rebozo had received from Hughes after Nixon took office.
In late 1971, Donald Nixon was collecting intelligence for his brother in preparation for the upcoming presidential election. One of his sources was John H. Meier, a former business adviser of Hughes who had also worked with Democratic National Committee Chairman Larry O'Brien.
Meier, in collaboration with former Vice President Hubert Humphrey and others, wanted to feed misinformation to the Nixon campaign. Meier told Donald that he was sure the Democrats would win the election because Larry O'Brien had a great deal of information on Richard Nixon's illicit dealings with Howard Hughes that had never been released; O'Brien did not actually have any such information, but Meier wanted Nixon to think that he did. Donald told his brother that O'Brien was in possession of damaging Hughes information that could destroy his campaign. Terry Lenzner, who was the chief investigator for the Senate Watergate Committee, speculates that it was Nixon's desire to know what O'Brien knew about Nixon's dealings with Hughes that may have partially motivated the Watergate break-in.
Last years and death
Physical and mental decline
Hughes was widely considered eccentric and to have suffered with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
Dietrich wrote that Hughes always ate the same thing for dinner, a New York strip steak cooked medium rare, dinner salad, and peas, but only the smaller ones, pushing the larger ones aside. For breakfast, Hughes wanted his eggs cooked the way his family cook, Lily, made them. Hughes had a "phobia about germs", and "his passion for secrecy became a mania."
While directing The Outlaw, Hughes became fixated on a small flaw in one of Jane Russell's blouses, claiming that the fabric bunched up along a seam and gave the appearance of two nipples on each breast. He wrote a detailed memorandum to the crew on how to fix the problem. Richard Fleischer, who directed His Kind of Woman with Hughes as executive producer, wrote at length in his autobiography about the difficulty of dealing with the tycoon. In his book, Just Tell Me When to Cry, Fleischer explained that Hughes was fixated on trivial details and was alternately indecisive and obstinate. He also revealed that Hughes's unpredictable mood swings made him wonder if the film would ever be completed.
In 1958, Hughes told his aides that he wanted to screen some movies at a film studio near his home. He stayed in the studio's darkened screening room for more than four months, never leaving. He ate only chocolate bars and chicken and drank only milk, and was surrounded by dozens of Kleenex that he continuously stacked and re-arranged. He wrote detailed memos to his aides giving them explicit instructions neither to look at him nor speak to him unless spoken to. Throughout this period, Hughes sat fixated in his chair, often naked, continually watching movies. When he finally emerged in the summer of 1958, his hygiene was terrible. He had neither bathed nor cut his hair and nails for weeks; this may have been due to allodynia, which results in a pain response to stimuli that would normally not cause pain.
After the screening room incident, Hughes moved into a bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel where he also rented rooms for his aides, his wife, and numerous girlfriends. He would sit naked in his bedroom with a pink hotel napkin placed over his genitals, watching movies. This may have been because Hughes found the touch of clothing painful due to allodynia. He may have watched movies to distract himself from his pain—a common practice among patients with intractable pain, especially those who do not receive adequate treatment. In one year, Hughes spent an estimated $11 million at the hotel.
Hughes began purchasing restaurant chains and four-star hotels that had been founded within the state of Texas. This included, if for only a short period, many unknown franchises currently out of business. He placed ownership of the restaurants with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and all licenses were resold shortly after.
Another time, he became obsessed with the 1968 film Ice Station Zebra, and had it run on a continuous loop in his home. According to his aides, he watched it 150 times. Feeling guilty about the commercial, critical, and rumored toxicity of his film The Conqueror, he bought every copy of the film for $12 million, watching the film on repeat. Paramount Pictures acquired the rights of the film in 1979, three years after his death.
Hughes insisted on using tissues to pick up objects to insulate himself from germs. He would also notice dust, stains, or other imperfections on people's clothes and demand that they take care of them. Once one of the most visible men in America, Hughes ultimately vanished from public view, although tabloids continued to follow rumors of his behavior and whereabouts. He was reported to be terminally ill, mentally unstable, or even dead.
Injuries from numerous aircraft crashes caused Hughes to spend much of his later life in pain, and he eventually became addicted to codeine, which he injected intramuscularly. Hughes had his hair cut and nails trimmed only once a year, likely due to the pain caused by the RSD/CRPS, which was caused by the plane crashes. He also stored his urine in bottles.
Later years in Las Vegas
The wealthy and aging Hughes, accompanied by his entourage of personal aides, began moving from one hotel to another, always taking up residence in the top floor penthouse. In the last ten years of his life, 1966 to 1976, Hughes lived in hotels in many cities—including Beverly Hills, Boston, Las Vegas, Nassau, Freeport and Vancouver.
On November 24, 1966 (Thanksgiving Day), Hughes arrived in Las Vegas by railroad car and moved into the Desert Inn. Because he refused to leave the hotel and to avoid further conflicts with the owners, Hughes bought the Desert Inn in early 1967. The hotel's eighth floor became the nerve center of Hughes's empire and the ninth-floor penthouse became his personal residence. Between 1966 and 1968, he bought several other hotel-casinos, including the Castaways, New Frontier, the Landmark Hotel and Casino, and the Sands. He bought the small Silver Slipper casino for the sole purpose of moving its trademark neon silver slipper, which was visible from his bedroom, and had apparently kept him awake at night.
After Hughes left the Desert Inn, hotel employees discovered that his drapes had not been opened during the time he lived there and had rotted through.
Hughes wanted to change the image of Las Vegas to something more glamorous. He wrote in a memo to an aide, "I like to think of Las Vegas in terms of a well-dressed man in a dinner jacket and a beautifully jeweled and furred female getting out of an expensive car." Hughes bought several local television stations (including KLAS-TV).
Eventually the brain trauma from Hughes's previous accidents, the effects of neurosyphilis diagnosed in 1932 and (undiagnosed) Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder considerably affected his decision-making. A small panel, unofficially dubbed "The Mormon Mafia" because of the many Latter-day Saints on the committee, was led by Frank William Gay and originally served Hughes's "secret police" headquartered at 9000 Romaine. Over the next two decades, however, this group oversaw and controlled considerable business holdings, with the CIA anointing Gay while awarding a contract to the Hughes corporation to acquire sensitive information on a sunken Russian submarine. In addition to supervising day-to-day business operations and Hughes's health, they also went to great pains to satisfy Hughes's every whim. For example, Hughes once became fond of Baskin-Robbins' banana nut ice cream, so his aides sought to secure a bulk shipment for him, only to discover that Baskin-Robbins had discontinued the flavor. They put in a request for the smallest amount the company could provide for a special order, 350 gallons (1,300 L), and had it shipped from Los Angeles. A few days after the order arrived, Hughes announced he was tired of banana nut and wanted only French vanilla ice cream. The Desert Inn ended up distributing free banana nut ice cream to casino customers for a year. In a 1996 interview, ex–Howard Hughes Chief of Nevada Operations Robert Maheu said, "There is a rumor that there is still some banana nut ice cream left in the freezer. It is most likely true."
As an owner of several major Las Vegas businesses, Hughes wielded much political and economic influence in Nevada and elsewhere. During the 1960s and early 1970s, he disapproved of underground nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site. Hughes was concerned about the risk from residual nuclear radiation and attempted to halt the tests. When the tests finally went through despite Hughes's efforts, the detonations were powerful enough that the entire hotel in which he was living trembled from the shock waves. In two separate, last-ditch maneuvers, Hughes instructed his representatives to offer bribes of $1m to both Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon.
In 1970, Jean Peters filed for divorce. The two had not lived together for many years. Peters requested a lifetime alimony payment of $70,000 a year, adjusted for inflation, and waived all claims to Hughes's estate. Hughes offered her a settlement of over a million dollars, but she declined it. Hughes did not insist on a confidentiality agreement from Peters as a condition of the divorce. Aides reported that Hughes never spoke ill of her. She refused to discuss her life with Hughes and declined several lucrative offers from publishers and biographers. Peters would state only that she had not seen Hughes for several years before their divorce and had dealt with him only by phone.
Hughes was living in the Intercontinental Hotel near Lake Managua in Nicaragua, seeking privacy and security, when a magnitude 6.5 earthquake damaged Managua in December 1972. As a precaution, Hughes moved to a rather large tent facing the hotel; after a few days, he moved to the Nicaraguan National Palace and stayed there as a guest of Anastasio Somoza Debayle before leaving for Florida on a private jet the following day. He subsequently moved into the Penthouse at the Xanadu Princess Resort on Grand Bahama Island, which he had recently purchased. He lived almost exclusively in the penthouse of the Xanadu Beach Resort & Marina for the last four years of his life.
Hughes spent a total of $300 million on his many properties in Las Vegas.
Autobiography hoax
In 1972, author Clifford Irving caused a media sensation when he claimed he had co-written an authorized Hughes autobiography. Irving claimed he and Hughes had corresponded through the United States mail, and offered as proof handwritten notes allegedly sent by Hughes. Publisher McGraw-Hill, Inc. was duped into believing the manuscript was authentic. Hughes was so reclusive that he did not immediately publicly refute Irving's statement, leading many to believe that Irving's book was genuine. However, before the book's publication, Hughes finally denounced Irving in a teleconference attended by reporters Hughes knew personally: James Bacon of the Hearst papers, Marin Miles of the Los Angeles Times, Vernon Scott of UPI, Roy Neal of NBC News, Gene Handsaker of AP, Wayne Thomas of the Chicago Tribune, and Gladwin Hill of the New York Times.
The entire hoax finally unraveled. The United States Postal Inspection Service got a subpoena to force Irving to turn over samples of his handwriting. The USPS investigation led to Irving's indictment and subsequent conviction for using the postal service to commit fraud. He was incarcerated for 17 months. In 1974, the Orson Welles film F for Fake included a section on the Hughes autobiography hoax, leaving a question open as to whether it was actually Hughes who took part in the teleconference (since so few people had actually heard or seen him in recent years). In 1977, The Hoax by Clifford Irving was published in the United Kingdom, telling his story of these events. The 2006 film The Hoax, starring Richard Gere, is also based on these events.
Death
Hughes is reported to have died on April 5, 1976, at 1:27 p.m. on board an aircraft, Learjet 24B N855W, owned by Robert Graf and piloted by Jeff Abrams. He was en route from his penthouse at the Acapulco Princess Hotel (now the Fairmont Acapulco Princess) in Mexico to the Methodist Hospital in Houston.
His reclusiveness and possibly his drug use made him practically unrecognizable. His hair, beard, fingernails, and toenails were long—his tall frame now weighed barely , and the FBI had to use fingerprints to conclusively identify the body. Howard Hughes's alias, John T. Conover, was used when his body arrived at a morgue in Houston on the day of his death.
An autopsy recorded kidney failure as the cause of death. In an eighteen-month study investigating Hughes' drug abuse for the estate, it was found "someone administered a deadly injection of the painkiller to this comatose man... obviously needlessly and almost certainly fatal". He suffered from malnutrition and was covered in bedsores. While his kidneys were damaged, his other internal organs, including his brain, which had no visible damage or illnesses, were deemed perfectly healthy. X-rays revealed five broken-off hypodermic needles in the flesh of his arms. To inject codeine into his muscles, Hughes had used glass syringes with metal needles that easily became detached.
Hughes is buried next to his parents at Glenwood Cemetery in Houston.
Alleged survival
Following his death, Hughes was subject to several widely rebuked conspiracy theories that he had faked his own death. A notable allegation came from retired Major General Mark Musick, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, who claimed Hughes went on to live under an assumed identity, dying on November 15, 2001, in Troy, Alabama.
Estate
Approximately three weeks after Hughes's death, a handwritten will was found on the desk of an official of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah. The so-called "Mormon Will" gave $1.56 billion to various charitable organizations (including $625 million to the Howard Hughes Medical Institute), nearly $470 million to the upper management in Hughes's companies and to his aides, $156 million to first cousin William Lummis, and $156 million split equally between his two ex-wives Ella Rice and Jean Peters.
A further $156 million was endowed to a gas-station owner, Melvin Dummar, who told reporters that in 1967, he found a disheveled and dirty man lying along U.S. Route 95, just north of Las Vegas. The man asked for a ride to Vegas. Dropping him off at the Sands Hotel, Dummar said the man told him that he was Hughes. Dummar later claimed that days after Hughes's death a "mysterious man" appeared at his gas station, leaving an envelope containing the will on his desk. Unsure if the will was genuine and unsure of what to do, Dummar left the will at the LDS Church office. In 1978, a Nevada court ruled the Mormon Will a forgery and officially declared that Hughes had died intestate (without a valid will). Dummar's story was later adapted into Jonathan Demme's film Melvin and Howard in 1980.
Hughes's $2.5 billion estate was eventually split in 1983 among 22 cousins, including William Lummis, who serves as a trustee of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The Supreme Court of the United States ruled that Hughes Aircraft was owned by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, which sold it to General Motors in 1985 for $5.2 billion. The court rejected suits by the states of California and Texas that claimed they were owed inheritance tax.
In 1984, Hughes's estate paid an undisclosed amount to Terry Moore, who claimed she and Hughes had secretly married on a yacht in international waters off Mexico in 1949 and never divorced. Moore never produced proof of a marriage, but her book, The Beauty and the Billionaire, became a bestseller.
Awards
Harmon Trophy (1936 and 1938)
Collier Trophy (1938)
Congressional Gold Medal (1939)
Octave Chanute Award (1940)
National Aviation Hall of Fame (1973)
International Air & Space Hall of Fame (1987)
Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (2018)
Archive
The moving image collection of Howard Hughes is held at the Academy Film Archive. The collection consists of over 200 items including 35mm and 16mm elements of feature films, documentaries, and television programs made or accumulated by Hughes.
Filmography
In popular culture
Film
In The Carpetbaggers (1964), the main character Jonas Cord (played by George Peppard) is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever (1971) features a tall, Texan, reclusive billionaire character named Willard Whyte (played by Jimmy Dean) who operates his business empire from the penthouse of a Las Vegas hotel. Although he appears only late in the film, his habitual seclusion and his control of a major aerospace contracting firm are key elements of the movie's plot. Several sequences were actually filmed on location at The Landmark Hotel and Casino, which was owned by Hughes at the time.
The Amazing Howard Hughes is a 1977 American made-for-television biographical film which aired as a mini-series on the CBS network, made a year after Hughes's death and based on Noah Dietrich's book Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. Tommy Lee Jones plays Hughes.
Melvin and Howard (1980), directed by Jonathan Demme and starring Jason Robards as Howard Hughes and Paul Le Mat as Melvin Dummar. The film won Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay (Bo Goldman) and Best Supporting Actress (Mary Steenburgen). The film focuses on Melvin Dummar's claims of meeting Hughes in the Nevada desert and subsequent estate battles over his inclusion in Hughes's will. Critic Pauline Kael called the film "an almost flawless act of sympathetic imagination".
In Tucker: The Man and His Dream, (1988), Hughes (played by Dean Stockwell) figures in the plot by telling Preston Tucker to source steel and engines for Tucker's automobiles from a helicopter manufacturer in New York. Scene occurs in a hangar with the Hercules.
In The Rocketeer, a 1991 American period superhero film from Walt Disney Pictures, the title character attracts the attention of Howard Hughes (played by Terry O'Quinn) and the FBI, who are hunting for a missing jet pack, as well as Nazi operatives.
"Howard Hughes Documentary", broadcast in 1992 as an episode of the Time Machine documentary series, was introduced by Peter Graves, later released by A&E Home Video.
In Conspiracy Theory (1997), the character Jerry Fletcher (played by Mel Gibson) mentions one of his theories to a street vendor by saying, "Did you know that the whole Vietnam War was fought over a bet that Howard Hughes lost to Aristotle Onassis?" referring to his (Fletcher's) thoughts on the politics of that conflict.
In The Aviator (2004), directed by Martin Scorsese, Hughes is portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio. The film focuses on Hughes's personal life from the making of Hell's Angels through his successful flight of the Hercules or Spruce Goose. Critically acclaimed, it was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, winning five for Best Cinematography; Best Film Editing; Best Costume Design; Best Art Direction; and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Cate Blanchett.
Howard Hughes: The Real Aviator documentary was broadcast in 2004 and went on to win the Grand Festival Award for Best Documentary at the 2004 Berkeley Video & Film Festival.
In the 2005 animated film Robots, the character Mr Bigweld (voiced by Mel Brooks), a reclusive inventor and owner of Bigweld Industries, is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The American Aviator: The Howard Hughes Story was broadcast in 2006 on the Biography Channel. It was later released to home media as a DVD with a copy of the full-length film The Outlaw starring Jane Russell.
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), as a plot-related prequel to Iron Man 2 (2010), in which Howard Stark (played by Dominic Cooper), father of Tony Stark (Iron Man), showed his inventions of future technology, clearly embodying Hughes's persona and enthusiasm. His subsequent appearances in the TV series Marvel's Agent Carter further this persona, as well as depicting him as sharing the real Hughes's reputation as a womanizer. Stan Lee has noted that Tony, who shared several of these traits himself, was based on Hughes.
Rules Don't Apply (2016), written and directed by Warren Beatty, features Beatty as Hughes from 1958 through 1964.
In the Dark Knight Trilogy, director Christopher Nolan's characterisation of Bruce Wayne is heavily inspired by Hughes's perceived lifestyle – from a playboy in Batman Begins to a recluse in The Dark Knight Rises. Nolan is reported to have integrated his original material intended for a shelved Hughes biopic into the trilogy.
Games
The character of Andrew Ryan in the 2007 video game BioShock is loosely based on Hughes. Ryan is a billionaire industrialist in post-World War II America who, seeking to avoid governments, religions, and other "parasitic" influences, ordered the secret construction of an underwater city, Rapture. Years later, when Ryan's vision for Rapture falls into dystopia, he hides himself away and uses armies of mutated humans, "Splicers", to defend himself and fight against those trying to take over his city, including the player-character.
In L.A. Noire, Hughes makes an appearance presenting his Hercules H-4 aircraft in the game opening scene. The H-4 is later a central plot piece of DLC Arson Case, "Nicholson Electroplating".
In Fallout: New Vegas, the character of Robert Edwin House, a wealthy business magnate and entrepreneur who owns the New Vegas strip, is based on Howard Hughes and closely resembles him in appearance, personality and background. A portrait of Mr. House can also be found in the game which strongly resembles a portrait of Howard Hughes standing in front of a Boeing Army Pursuit Plane.
Literature
Stan Lee repeatedly stated he created the Marvel Comics character Iron Man's civilian persona, Tony Stark, drawing inspiration from Howard Hughes's colorful lifestyle and personality. Additionally, the first name of Stark's father is Howard.
Hughes is a supporting character in all three parts of James Ellroy's Underworld USA Trilogy, employing several of the protagonists as private investigators, bagmen, and consultants in his attempt to assume control of Las Vegas. Referred to behind his back as "Count Dracula" (due to his reclusiveness and rumored obsession with blood transfusions from Mormon donors), Hughes is portrayed as a spoiled, racist, opioid-addicted megalomaniac whose grandiose plans for Las Vegas are undermined by the manipulations of the Chicago Outfit.
In the 1981 novel Dream Park by Larry Niven and Steven Barnes, the weapon "which might have defeated the Japs if it hadn't come so late" is revealed to be the Spruce Goose, which had been magically hijacked on its test flight by evil Foré sorcerers in New Guinea. Hughes's skeleton is found at the controls, identified by Hughes's trademark fedora and cloth-and-leather jacket.
Music
The 1974 song "Workin' at the Car Wash Blues" by Jim Croce compares the main protagonist of the song to Howard Hughes in one of the lyrics.
The 1974 song "The Wall Street Shuffle" by English rock band 10cc directly references Hughes and his ways of life in the last verse.
The song "Me and Howard Hughes" by Irish band The Boomtown Rats on their 1978 album A Tonic for the Troops is about the title subject.
The song "Closet Chronicles" by American rock band Kansas on their 1977 album Point of Know Return is a Howard Hughes allegory.
The song "Ain't No Fun (Waiting 'Round To Be a Millionaire)" by AC/DC on their 1976 album "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" singer Bon Scott referenced Howard Hughes toward the end of the song: "Hey, hello Howard, how you doin', my next door neighbour? Oh, yea... Get your fuckin' jumbo jet off my airport"
Hughes's name is mentioned in the title and the lyrics of the 2002 song "Bargain Basement Howard Hughes" by Jerry Cantrell.
The 2012 song "Nancy From Now On" by American songwriter Father John Misty likens Hughes's destructive and erratic tendencies to the singer's own.
Television
In The Greatest American Hero Season 2 episode 3, "Don't Mess Around with Jim," Ralph and Bill are kidnapped by a reclusive tycoon, owner of Beck Air airplane company, who fakes his own death, and seems to know more about the suit than they do. He then blackmails them into retrieving his will to prevent it from being misused by the president of his company.
In The Simpsons Season 5 episode "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)", Mr. Burns resembles Hughes in his recluse state. Various nods to his life appear in the episode, ranging from casino ownership and penthouse office to the "Spruce Goose" being renamed "Spruce Moose" as well as a lack of hygiene and being a germaphobe.
In The Beverly Hillbillies episode, "The Clampett-Hewes Empire", Jed Clampett, while in Hooterville, decides to merge his interests with a man Mr. Drysdale believes is Howard Hughes, the famous reclusive billionaire. Eventually it turns out, to Mr. Drysdale's chagrin, "Howard Hughes" is no billionaire; he is nothing but a plain old farmer named "Howard Hewes" (H-E-W-E-S).
In the Invader Zim episode, "Germs," the alien Zim becomes paranoid after discovering that Earth is covered in germs. Referencing Howard Hughes, he isolates himself in his home and dons tissue boxes on his feet.
In the Superjail! episode "The Superjail! Six", The Warden repeatedly watches a film called Ice Station Jailpup which parodies Hughes's obsession with the film Ice Station Zebra
See also
Analgesic nephropathy
List of richest Americans in history
List of wealthiest historical figures
List of aviation pioneers
List of entrepreneurs
Phenacetin
References
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
Barkow, Al. Gettin' to the Dance Floor: An Oral History of American Golf. Short Hills, New Jersey: Burford Books, 1986. .
Barton, Charles. Howard Hughes and his Flying Boat. Fallbrook, CA: Aero Publishers, 1982. Republished in 1998, Vienna, VA: Charles Barton, Inc. .
Barlett, Donald L. and James B. Steele. Empire: The Life, Legend and Madness of Howard Hughes. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1979. , republished in 2004 as Howard Hughes: His Life and Madness.
Bellett, Gerald. Age of Secrets: The Conspiracy that Toppled Richard Nixon and the Hidden Death of Howard Hughes. Stillwater, Minnesota: Voyageur Press, 1995. .
Blackman, Tony Tony Blackman Test Pilot Grub Street, 2009,
Brown, Peter Harry and Pat H. Broeske. Howard Hughes: The Untold Story. New York: Penguin Books, 1996. .
Burleson, Clyde W. The Jennifer Project. College Station, Texas: Texas A&M University Press, 1997. .
Dietrich, Noah and Bob Thomas. Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. New York: Fawcett Publications, 1972. .
Drosnin, Michael. Citizen Hughes: In his Own Words, How Howard Hughes Tried to Buy America. Portland, Oregon: Broadway Books, 2004. .
Hack, Richard. Hughes: The Private Diaries, Memos and Letters: The Definitive Biography of the First American Billionaire. Beverly Hills, California: New Millennium Press, 2002. .
Herman, Arthur. Freedom's Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II. New York: Random House, 2012. .
Higham, Charles. Howard Hughes: The Secret Life, 1993.
Porter, Donald J., Howard's Whirlybirds: Howard Hughes' Amazing Pioneering Helicopter Exploits. Fonthill Media, 2013. (ISBN 978-1-78155-089)
Irving, Clifford. The Hoax. New York: E. Reads Ltd., 1999. .
Klepper, Michael and Michael Gunther. The Wealthy 100: From Benjamin Franklin to Bill Gates—A Ranking of the Richest Americans, Past and Present. Secaucus, New Jersey: Carol Publishing Group, 1996.
Marrett, George J. Howard Hughes: Aviator. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 2004. .
Kistler, Ron. I Caught Flies for Howard Hughes. Chicago: Playboy Press, 1976. .
Lasky, Betty. RKO: The Biggest Little Major of Them All, 2d ed . Santa Monica, California: Roundtable, 1989. .
Maheu, Robert and Richard Hack. Next to Hughes: Behind the Power and Tragic Downfall of Howard Hughes by his Closest Adviser. New York: Harper Collins, 1992. .
Moore, Terry. The Beauty and the Billionaire. New York: Pocket Books, 1984. .
Moore, Terry and Jerry Rivers. The Passions of Howard Hughes. Los Angeles: General Publishing Group, 1996. .
Parker, Dana T. Building Victory: Aircraft Manufacturing in the Los Angeles Area in World War II, Cypress, California: Dana T. Parker Books, 2013. .
Phelan, James. Howard Hughes: The Hidden Years. New York, Random House, 1976. .
Real, Jack. The Asylum of Howard Hughes. Philadelphia: Xlibris Corporation, 2003. .
Thomas, Bob. Liberace: The True Story. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1987. .
Tierney, Gene with Mickey Herskowitz. Self-Portrait. New York: Peter Wyden, 1979. lSBN 0-883261-52-9.
Weaver, Tom. Science Fiction and Fantasy Film Flashbacks: Conversations with 24 Actors, Writers, Producers and Directors from the Golden Age. New York: McFarland & Company, 2004. .
External links
AZORIAN The Raising of the K-129 / 2009 – 2 Part TV Documentary / Michael White Films Vienna
Welcome Home Howard: Collection of photographs kept by UNLV
A history of the remarkable achievements of Howard Hughes
FBI file on Howard Hughes
Exclutive Biography of Howard R. Hughes Jr.
Biography in the National Aviation Hall of Fame
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Watergate scandal | false | [
"Hercules and the Amazon Women is the first television movie in the syndicated fantasy series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and marked the debut of Kevin Sorbo as the titular character Hercules and co-starred Anthony Quinn, Michael Hurst, Roma Downey and Lucy Lawless.\n\nIn the film, a village of only men comes to seek Hercules' aid in defeating a band of mysterious creatures on the eve of Iolaus' wedding. Hercules discovers these \"creatures\" are really the women of the village who have split with their chauvinistic men and aligned themselves with Hera.\n\nPlot\nThree men are walking through the woods, they hear strange noises and catch glimpses of something moving in the undergrowth. Suddenly they are attacked by unseen creatures. Two men are killed, but one escapes and flees the woods.\n\nHercules strolls into a village after returning from one of his adventures, and is greeted by Iolaus. It is established that Iolaus is getting married and that Hercules is the best man. The two men set off for Alcmene's house. While walking through the woods, they reminisce that it has been a long time since they last saw each other. Iolaus tells Hercules about his bride-to-be, Ania. They stumble upon a little girl crying alone near an altar. She tells them that a monster killed her father while they were placing an offering to the goddess. Hercules tries to comfort the girl and asks if he can help, but the girl transforms into a monster. Hercules chops off its head, and thinking it is now dead, he and Iolaus begin walking away. They hear a noise and turn around to see that the monster is not dead, and has now grown two new heads in the place where the previous one was. The monster is a Hydra. Hercules tells Iolaus to grab the torch from the altar, Hercules cuts off the heads and burns the Hydra, preventing it from growing new heads, thus killing it. After the Hydra is destroyed a peacock feather remains in its place, and Hercules tells Iolaus that Hera is responsible for the Hydra.\n\nHercules and Iolaus finally reach his mother's house. Iolaus invites them both for dinner, then leaves. While the four are enjoying dinner, Ania glimpses a man outside the window and Hercules goes to investigate. It is the Gargarean Pithus, the man who escaped the creatures at the beginning of the film. He explains to Hercules about his village being attacked by creatures and Hercules agrees to help. Iolaus persuades Hercules to let him go along for one last adventure before he is married, Hercules reluctantly relents and says that he can come along. The three men set off for the village. When they arrive Hercules asks where all the women are, Pithus tells him that they were stolen by the creatures in the forest. Hercules and Iolaus head off to find the beasts and rescue the village's women. In the forest they are ambushed by the beasts, managing to stave off the attack for a time until Iolaus discovers that the beasts are really women. He chases after one but is fatally injured in the fight, and dies in Hercules' arms. Hercules is then surrounded by several of the 'beasts'. Two of them approach him with spears. One of the 'creatures' cries out and says \"No Stop!\", and then raises her mask. It happens to be a woman, who then says \"The queen will want to kill him\". Hercules is in utter shock to discover the true nature of the 'beasts'.\n\nHercules is then seen being taken captive by the women, bound in chains and gagged with a black leather strap. He is surrounded by the \"Amazon Women Warriors\" and led through the village full of women. An older woman offers to buy Hercules and several taunt him along the way to see the queen. When he arrives Hippolyta tells him that she knows he is here to defeat them. Hercules tells her she is wrong. Using a magic candle, Hippolyta turns Hercules into a baby telling him she will show him what he is really like. As Hercules reverts to infant form we are shown flashbacks to Hercules's youth and times when he has been told by people how to behave toward women. Later he returns to adult state, realizing that Hippolyta is right and that his attitude toward women is wrong, he tells her that he can change. She says that he cannot change and that all men are the same. Hippolyta goes to consult with Hera, she tells Hippolyta to lead an attack on the village.\n\nHercules escapes from the Amazons and warns the men of the village of the forthcoming attack. He prepares them for when the women arrive. The women ride into the village and order the men to remove their clothes, telling them they are here for only one thing. The men tell the women to sit and talk with them for a while. Pithus's wife enters her home, and her son Franco asks if she really is his mother. He tells her he often dreams about her but she has no face, she removes her mask and shows her face to Franco. Hercules stands up to Hippolyta, who says she's not afraid of Hercules. He kisses her, she tells him she is not afraid and kisses him back. The two make love. The following day the women are still with the men. The Amazons return to their city and both men and women reminisce about the night before. Hera tells Hippolyta that Hercules has tricked her and orders her to attack the village again, this time killing all the men and boys. Hippolyta refuses but Hera possesses her. Hera, now in control of Hippolyta's actions, orders the women to attack the village.\n\nHercules stops Hippolyta and realizes that she is possessed by Hera. She rides off and Hercules goes after her. As they fight Hercules tries to get through to Hippolyta, telling her that she is stronger than Hera and to fight her control, but it proves futile. \nPithus then arrives to aid Hercules, preventing Hera from striking a killing blow to him. She grabs Pithus and holds a knife to his throat. Despite Hercules’s plea, Hera cuts Pithus’s throat, which ignites Hercules’s fury enough to best her. \nHercules is about to deal the fatal blow, but stops as he realises he would be killing Hippolyta, not Hera. Hercules flees, but Hera follows, goading him, and eventually cornering him at the top of a large waterfall. He tells Hera that if he or Hippolyta has to die then he will give up his life for her, saying he could not live his life without her. Upon hearing this Hera runs Hippolyta's body over the edge of the waterfall, killing her.\n\nHercules returns to the City of Amazons and retrieves the candle Hippolyta used to send him back to his childhood. Zeus appears and tells him the candle does not work in the way Hercules wants it to. Hercules replies that Zeus could make it work that way. Zeus tells Hercules that if he did that he would be in big trouble with Hera, but Hercules persuades him anyway. Zeus blows out the candle and Hercules is taken back to the night of the dinner. Ania sees Pithus outside the window and Hercules goes to tell him that the village does not need his help. He explains that all the men need to do is treat the women with respect and things will sort themselves out. Pithus returns to the village and when the women come the men sort out the problems that have been occurring. Alcmene asks Hercules if there is a woman out there who will make him happy like Ania did for Iolaus, and Hercules replies that he is sure there is as he thinks about Hippolyta.\n\nCast\n Kevin Sorbo as Hercules\n Anthony Quinn as Zeus\n Roma Downey as Hippolyta \n Michael Hurst as Iolaus\n Lloyd Scott as Pithus\n Lucy Lawless as Lysia\n Christopher Brougham as Lethan\n Jennifer Ludlam as Alcmene\n Rose McIver as Girl (Hydra)\n\nExternal links\n \n\nHercules: The Legendary Journeys\nFilms set in ancient Greece\nNew Zealand television films\nFilms about Heracles\nFilms directed by Bill L. Norton",
"The Loves of Hercules () is a 1960 international co-production film starring Jayne Mansfield and her then husband Mickey Hargitay. The film was distributed internationally as Hercules vs. the Hydra.\n\nPlot\nWhile Hercules (Hargitay) is away, his village is plundered and his wife is killed by the army of Ecalia, a country ruled by King Eurysteus. Licos (Massimo Serato), chief minister to the king, sees an opportunity to seize the throne himself. Licos knows that Hercules will come to Ecalia for vengeance; as the first part of his plan, he murders the king, planning to claim he died in battle to ensure that he does not bring ruin on Ecalia by resisting Hercules. While consulting an oracle, Hercules learns of the murder of his wife from a survivor and seeks vengeance. The newly-crowned Queen Deianira (Mansfield), daughter of the king, offers her life to Hercules in order to spare Ecalia, as Licos anticipated. Hercules offers mercy, but by law, the Queen and Hercules must participate in a rite to appease the goddess of justice. Deianira is bound to a wall as Hercules throws axes toward her, attempting to sever her bonds. He succeeds, proving her innocence to her people. Licos hatches another scheme to wed Deianira and rule through her.\n\nHercules admires Deianira and her bravery. While escorting Deianira back to her capital, they come across a band of peasants who have been attacked by a monster. As Hercules seeks the monster, their cattle are stampeded and Hercules kills a wild bull with his dagger. Arriving in the city, Hercules discovers Deinaira is betrothed to a man named Acheloo, whom Licos has sent to the couple, expecting Acheloo to challenge Hercules and be killed, therefore alienating Deianira. The plan nearly succeeds, but Deinaira successfully begs Hercules to stay his hand. Hercules decides to leave Ecalia and Deinaira behind him.\n\nLicos follows through on the plan anyway, ordering Acheloo's murder with the dagger Hercules left behind in the bull; he does not expect Hercules to return to defend himself. Licos is foiled again, however, when one of Hercules' companions finds him on the road and informs him that he is accused of the murder; Hercules decides to clear his name. Licos sends the actual murderer, Philoctetes, into hiding beyond the gates of the Underworld. Licos intends for Hercules to follow Philoctetes to prove his innocence, and for both men to be killed by the monstrous Hydra. Believing that his plan is working, Licos attempts to convince Deianira to marry him, but she is hesitant.\n\nPhiloctetes is killed by the Hydra. Hercules kills the Hydra, but their battle weakens him into unconsciousness. He's rescued by Amazons loyal to Queen Hippolyta (Tina Gloriana). Hippolyta turns her lovers into living trees after growing tired of them, but Hercules is only interested in Deinaira. Angered that he is interested in Deinaira but determined to make Hercules her lover, Hippolyta's advisor suggests the only way she can gain the attention of Hercules is to change her face and body through magic to resemble Deianira (Mansfield with red hair). Meanwhile, Deianira discovers Licos' scheming and he has her imprisoned. Hercules manages to escape with his life due to the intervention of the Amazon, Nemea (Moira Orfei), at the cost of her own life, while Hippolyta is crushed to death by one of the trees. Hercules is informed of Licos' treachery and returns to Ecalia at the head of an army to overthrow him.\n\nDefeated in battle, Licos tries to escape Ecalia with Deianira as a hostage, but he is strangled to death by the monster, Alcione, who is in turn killed by Hercules as he rescues Deianira.\n\nMain cast\n\nProduction notes \nThis was one of the earlier movies to follow from Italy in the wake of the success of Hercules (1958) starring Steve Reeves, and marked an attempt to add some star power to the notion of a muscleman movie, not so much in the title role as the female lead.\n\nFilmed on location in Italy during the height of the sword and sandal craze, this was not one of Jayne Mansfield's \"loan out\" films. Mansfield was offered the film while she was shooting The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw in Spain; she agreed on the condition that her husband Mickey Hargitay played Hercules. She received a fee of $75,000 for starring in the movie. Mansfield received permission from her studio 20th Century Fox to film this movie in the early weeks of 1960 whilst she was four months pregnant. A hit in Italy, it was later broadcast as a movie of the week in 1966 on American television and has since gained a cult following.\n\nThe scene where Mickey Hargitay wrestles a bull was prepared by treating the animal with tranquilizers first.\n\nOn April 14, 2017, the film was featured in the eleventh season of Mystery Science Theater 3000 as episode 1108.\n\nRelease\nThe film was released in Italy on August 19, 1960 with a 97-minute running time.\n The film was released in the United States in 1966 with a 98-minute running time.\n\nReferences\n\nFootnotes\n\nSources\n\nExternal links\n \n \n \n\n1960 films\n1960s fantasy adventure films\nItalian fantasy adventure films\nPeplum films\nItalian films\nFrench films\nEnglish-language films\nEnglish-language Italian films\nEnglish-language French films\nItalian-language films\nFilms about Heracles\nSword and sandal films"
]
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[
"Howard Hughes",
"H-4 Hercules",
"What is the H-4 hercules?",
"HK-1 Hercules flying boat",
"What was the use of the flying boat?",
"use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable",
"How much did the hercules cost to make?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_3fad173257b34869985c7b64812d1528_0 | Was the hercules used for many missions? | 4 | Was the Howard Hughes' H-4 Hercules used for many missions? | Howard Hughes | The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The project was opposed by the military services, thinking it would siphon resources from higher priority programs, but was advocated by Hughes' powerful allies in Washington, D.C. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II. The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at 319 feet 11 inches (97.51 m), had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next largest wingspan was about 310 ft (94 m)). (The Hercules is no longer the longest or heaviest aircraft ever built; both of those titles are currently held by the Antonov An-225 Mriya.) The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947. The Hercules was nicknamed the Spruce Goose by its critics, but it was actually made largely from birch, not spruce, rather than of aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes' Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the F-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it is now part of the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum. On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes' paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules. CANNOTANSWER | The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947. | Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, investor, record-setting pilot, engineer, film director, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and financially successful individuals in the world. He first became prominent as a film producer, and then as an important figure in the aviation industry. Later in life, he became known for his eccentric behavior and reclusive lifestyle—oddities that were caused in part by his worsening obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), chronic pain from a near-fatal plane crash, and increasing deafness.
As a film tycoon, Hughes gained fame in Hollywood beginning in the late 1920s, when he produced big-budget and often controversial films such as The Racket (1928), Hell's Angels (1930), and Scarface (1932). He later took over the RKO Pictures film studio in 1948, recognized then as one of the Big Five studios of Hollywood's Golden Age, although the production company struggled under his control and ultimately ceased operations in 1957.
Through his interest in aviation and aerospace travel, Hughes formed the Hughes Aircraft Company in 1932, hiring numerous engineers, designers, and defense contractors. He spent the rest of the 1930s and much of the 1940s setting multiple world air speed records and building the Hughes H-1 Racer (1935) and H-4 Hercules (the Spruce Goose, 1947), the latter being the largest flying boat in history and having the longest wingspan of any aircraft from the time it was built until 2019. He acquired and expanded Trans World Airlines and later acquired Air West, renaming it Hughes Airwest. Hughes won the Harmon Trophy on two occasions (1936 and 1938), the Collier Trophy (1938), and the Congressional Gold Medal (1939) all for his achievements in aviation throughout the 1930s. He was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1973 and was included in Flying magazine's 2013 list of the 51 Heroes of Aviation, ranked at 25.
During the 1960s and early 1970s, Hughes extended his financial empire to include several major businesses in Las Vegas, such as real estate, hotels, casinos, and media outlets. Known at the time as one of the most powerful men in the state of Nevada, he is largely credited with transforming Vegas into a more refined cosmopolitan city.
After years of mental and physical decline, Hughes died of kidney failure in 1976, at the age of 70. Today, his legacy is maintained through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Howard Hughes Corporation.
Early life
Howard Robard Hughes Jr. was the son of Allene Stone Gano (1883–1922) and of Howard R. Hughes Sr. (1869–1924), a successful inventor and businessman from Missouri. He had English, Welsh and some French Huguenot ancestry, and was a descendant of John Gano (1727–1804), the minister who allegedly baptized George Washington. His father patented (1909) the two-cone roller bit, which allowed rotary drilling for petroleum in previously inaccessible places. The senior Hughes made the shrewd and lucrative decision to commercialize the invention by leasing the bits instead of selling them, obtained several early patents, and founded the Hughes Tool Company in 1909. Hughes's uncle was the famed novelist, screenwriter, and film-director Rupert Hughes.
A 1941 affidavit birth certificate of Hughes, signed by his aunt Annette Gano Lummis and by Estelle Boughton Sharp, states that he was born on December 24, 1905, in Harris County, Texas. However, his certificate of baptism, recorded on October 7, 1906, in the parish register of St. John's Episcopal Church in Keokuk, Iowa, listed his date of birth as September 24, 1905, without any reference to the place of birth.
At a young age, Hughes showed interest in science and technology. In particular, he had great engineering aptitude and built Houston's first "wireless" radio transmitter at age 11. He went on to be one of the first licensed ham-radio operators in Houston, having the assigned callsign W5CY (originally 5CY). At 12, Hughes was photographed in the local newspaper, identified as the first boy in Houston to have a "motorized" bicycle, which he had built from parts from his father's steam engine. He was an indifferent student, with a liking for mathematics, flying, and mechanics. He took his first flying lesson at 14, and attended Fessenden School in Massachusetts in 1921.
After a brief stint at The Thacher School, Hughes attended math and aeronautical engineering courses at Caltech. The red-brick house where Hughes lived as a teenager at 3921 Yoakum Blvd., Houston, still stands, now known as Hughes House on the grounds of the University of St. Thomas.
His mother Allene died in March 1922 from complications of an ectopic pregnancy. Howard Hughes Sr. died of a heart attack in 1924. Their deaths apparently inspired Hughes to include the establishment of a medical research laboratory in the will that he signed in 1925 at age 19. Howard Sr.'s will had not been updated since Allene's death, and Hughes inherited 75% of the family fortune. On his 19th birthday, Hughes was declared an emancipated minor, enabling him to take full control of his life.
From a young age, Hughes became a proficient and enthusiastic golfer. He often scored near-par figures, played the game to a two-three handicap during his 20s, and for a time aimed for a professional golf career. He golfed frequently with top players, including Gene Sarazen. Hughes rarely played competitively and gradually gave up his passion for the sport to pursue other interests. Hughes played golf every afternoon at LA courses including the Lakeside Golf Club, Wilshire Country Club, or the Bel-Air Country Club. Partners included George Von Elm or Ozzie Carlton. After Hughes hurt himself in the late 1920s, his golfing tapered off, and after his F-11 crash, Hughes was unable to play at all.
Hughes withdrew from Rice University shortly after his father's death. On June 1, 1925, he married Ella Botts Rice, daughter of David Rice and Martha Lawson Botts of Houston, and great-niece of William Marsh Rice, for whom Rice University was named. They moved to Los Angeles, where he hoped to make a name for himself as a filmmaker.
They moved into the Ambassador Hotel, and Hughes proceeded to learn to fly a Waco, while simultaneously producing his first motion picture, Swell Hogan.
Business career
Hughes enjoyed a highly successful business career beyond engineering, aviation, and filmmaking; many of his career endeavors involved varying entrepreneurial roles.
Entertainment
Ralph Graves persuaded Hughes to finance a short film, Swell Hogan, which Graves had written and would star in. Hughes himself produced it. However, it was a disaster. After hiring a film editor to try to salvage it, he finally ordered that it be destroyed. His next two films, Everybody's Acting (1926) and Two Arabian Knights (1927), achieved financial success; the latter won the first Academy Award for Best Director of a comedy picture. The Racket (1928) and The Front Page (1931) were also nominated for Academy Awards.
Hughes spent $3.5 million to make the flying film Hell's Angels (1930). Hell's Angels received one Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography.
He produced another hit, Scarface (1932), a production delayed by censors' concern over its violence.
The Outlaw premiered in 1943, but was not released nationally until 1946. The film featured Jane Russell, who received considerable attention from industry censors, this time owing to her revealing costumes.
RKO
From the 1940s to the late 1950s, the Hughes Tool Company ventured into the film industry when it obtained partial ownership of the RKO companies, which included RKO Pictures, RKO Studios, a chain of movie theaters known as RKO Theatres and a network of radio stations known as the RKO Radio Network.
In 1948, Hughes gained control of RKO, a struggling major Hollywood studio, by acquiring the 929,000 shares owned by Floyd Odlum's Atlas Corporation, for $8,825,000. Within weeks of acquiring the studio, Hughes dismissed 700 employees. Production dwindled to 9 pictures during the first year of Hughes's control; previously RKO had averaged 30 per year.
Production shut down for six months, during which time Hughes ordered investigations of each employee who remained with RKO as far as their political leanings were concerned. Only after ensuring that the stars under contract to RKO had no suspect affiliations would Hughes approve completed pictures to be sent back for re-shooting. This was especially true of the women under contract to RKO at that time. If Hughes felt that his stars did not properly represent the political views of his liking or if a film's anti-communist politics were not sufficiently clear, he pulled the plug. In 1952, an abortive sale to a Chicago-based group connected to the mafia with no experience in the industry disrupted studio operations at RKO even further.
In 1953, Hughes became involved with a high-profile lawsuit as part of the settlement of the United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc. Antitrust Case. As a result of the hearings, the shaky status of RKO became increasingly apparent. A steady stream of lawsuits from RKO's minority shareholders had grown to become extremely annoying to Hughes. They had accused him of financial misconduct and corporate mismanagement. Since Hughes wanted to focus primarily on his aircraft manufacturing and TWA holdings during the years of the Korean War of 1950 to 1953, Hughes offered to buy out all other stockholders in order to dispense with their distractions.
By the end of 1954, Hughes had gained near-total control of RKO at a cost of nearly $24 million, becoming the first sole owner of a major Hollywood studio since the silent-film era. Six months later Hughes sold the studio to the General Tire and Rubber Company for $25 million. Hughes retained the rights to pictures that he had personally produced, including those made at RKO. He also retained Jane Russell's contract. For Howard Hughes, this was the virtual end of his 25-year involvement in the motion-picture industry. However, his reputation as a financial wizard emerged unscathed. During that time period, RKO became known as the home of classic film noir productions, thanks in part to the limited budgets required to make such films during Hughes's tenure. Hughes reportedly walked away from RKO having made $6.5 million in personal profit. According to Noah Dietrich, Hughes made a $10,000,000 profit from the sale of the theaters and made a profit of $1,000,000 from his 7-year ownership of RKO.
Real estate
According to Noah Dietrich, "Land became a principal asset for the Hughes empire". Hughes acquired 1200 acres in Culver City for Hughes Aircraft, bought 7 sections [4,480 acres] in Tucson for his Falcon missile-plant, and purchased 25,000 acres near Las Vegas. In 1968, the Hughes Tool Company purchased the North Las Vegas Air Terminal.
Originally known as Summa Corporation, the Howard Hughes Corporation formed in 1972 when the oil-tools business of Hughes Tool Company, then owned by Howard Hughes Jr., floated on the New York Stock Exchange under the "Hughes Tool" name. This forced the remaining businesses of the "original" Hughes Tool to adopt a new corporate name: "Summa". The name "Summa"Latin for "highest"was adopted without the approval of Hughes himself, who preferred to keep his own name on the business, and suggested "HRH Properties" (for Hughes Resorts and Hotels, and also his own initials). In 1988 Summa announced plans for Summerlin, a master-planned community named for the paternal grandmother of Howard Hughes, Jean Amelia Summerlin.
Initially staying in the Desert Inn, Hughes refused to vacate his room, and instead decided to purchase the entire hotel. Hughes extended his financial empire to include Las Vegas real estate, hotels, and media outlets, spending an estimated $300 million, and using his considerable powers to take over many of the well-known hotels, especially the venues connected with organized crime. He quickly became one of the most powerful men in Las Vegas. He was instrumental in changing the image of Las Vegas from its Wild West roots into a more refined cosmopolitan city. In addition to the Desert Inn, Hughes would eventually own the Sands, Frontier, Silver Slipper, Castaways and Landmark and Harold's Club in Reno. Hughes would eventually become the largest employer in Nevada.
Aviation and aerospace
Another portion of Hughes's commercial interests involved aviation, airlines, and the aerospace and defense industries. A lifelong aircraft enthusiast and pilot, Hughes survived four airplane accidents: one in a Thomas-Morse Scout while filming Hell's Angels, one while setting the airspeed record in the Hughes Racer, one at Lake Mead in 1943, and the near-fatal crash of the Hughes XF-11 in 1946. At Rogers Airport in Los Angeles, he learned to fly from pioneer aviators, including Moye Stephens and J.B. Alexander. He set many world records and commissioned the construction of custom aircraft for himself while heading Hughes Aircraft at the airport in Glendale, CA. Operating from there, the most technologically important aircraft he commissioned was the Hughes H-1 Racer. On September 13, 1935, Hughes, flying the H-1, set the landplane airspeed record of over his test course near Santa Ana, California (Giuseppe Motta reaching 362 mph in 1929 and George Stainforth reached 407.5 mph in 1931, both in seaplanes). This marked the last time in history that an aircraft built by a private individual set the world airspeed record. A year and a half later, on January 19, 1937, flying the same H-1 Racer fitted with longer wings, Hughes set a new transcontinental airspeed record by flying non-stop from Los Angeles to Newark in seven hours, 28 minutes, and 25 seconds (beating his own previous record of nine hours, 27 minutes). His average ground-speed over the flight was .
The H-1 Racer featured a number of design innovations: it had retractable landing gear (as Boeing Monomail had five years before), and all rivets and joints set flush into the body of the aircraft to reduce drag. The H-1 Racer is thought to have influenced the design of a number of World War II fighters such as the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, Focke-Wulf Fw 190, and F8F Bearcat, although that has never been reliably confirmed. In 1975 the H-1 Racer was donated to the Smithsonian.
Round-the-world flight
On July 14, 1938, Hughes set another record by completing a flight around the world in just 91 hours (three days, 19 hours, 17 minutes), beating the previous record of 186 hours (7 days, 18 hours, 49 minutes) set in 1933 by Wiley Post in a single-engine Lockheed Vega by almost four days. Hughes returned home ahead of photographs of his flight. Taking off from New York City, Hughes continued to Paris, Moscow, Omsk, Yakutsk, Fairbanks, and Minneapolis, then returning to New York City. For this flight he flew a Lockheed 14 Super Electra (NX18973, a twin-engine transport with a four-man crew) fitted with the latest radio and navigational equipment. Harry Connor was the co-pilot, Thomas Thurlow the navigator, Richard Stoddart the engineer, and Ed Lund the mechanic. Hughes wanted the flight to be a triumph of American aviation technology, illustrating that safe, long-distance air travel was possible. Albert Lodwick of Mystic, Iowa, provided organizational skills as the flight operations manager. While Hughes had previously been relatively obscure despite his wealth, being better known for dating Katharine Hepburn, New York City now gave him a ticker-tape parade in the Canyon of Heroes. Hughes and his crew were awarded the 1938 Collier Trophy for flying around the world in record time. He was awarded the Harmon Trophy in 1936 and 1938 for the record-breaking global circumnavigation.
In 1938 the William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas—known at the time as Houston Municipal Airport—was renamed after Hughes, but the name was changed back due to public outrage over naming the airport after a living person.
Hughes also had a role in the design and financing of both the Boeing 307 Stratoliner and Lockheed L-049 Constellation.
Other aviator awards include: the Bibesco Cup of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in 1938, the Octave Chanute Award in 1940, and a special Congressional Gold Medal in 1939 "in recognition of the achievements of Howard Hughes in advancing the science of aviation and thus bringing great credit to his country throughout the world".
President Harry S. Truman sent the Congressional medal to Hughes after the F-11 crash. After his around-the-world flight, Hughes had declined to go to the White House to collect it.
Hughes D-2 and XF-11
The Hughes D-2 was conceived in 1939 as a bomber with five crew members, powered by 42-cylinder Wright R-2160 Tornado engines. In the end, it appeared as two-seat fighter-reconnaissance aircraft designated the D-2A, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-2800-49 engines. The aircraft was constructed using the Duramold process. The prototype was brought to Harper's Dry Lake in California in great secrecy in 1943 and first flew on June 20 of that year. Acting on a recommendation of the president's son, Colonel Elliott Roosevelt, who had become friends with Hughes, in September 1943 the USAAF ordered 100 of a reconnaissance development of the D-2, known as the F-11. Hughes then attempted to get the military to pay for the development of the D-2. In November 1944, the hangar containing the D-2A was reportedly hit by lightning and the aircraft was destroyed. The D-2 design was abandoned but led to the extremely controversial Hughes XF-11. The XF-11 was a large, all-metal, two-seat reconnaissance aircraft, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-4360-31 engines, each driving a set of contra-rotating propellers. Only two prototypes were completed; the second one with a single propeller per side.
Fatal crash of the Sikorsky S-43
In the spring of 1943 Hughes spent nearly a month in Las Vegas, test-flying his Sikorsky S-43 amphibious aircraft, practising touch-and-go landings on Lake Mead in preparation for flying the H-4 Hercules. The weather conditions at the lake during the day were ideal and he enjoyed Las Vegas at night. On May 17, 1943, Hughes flew the Sikorsky from California, carrying two CAA aviation inspectors, two of his employees, and actress Ava Gardner. Hughes dropped Gardner off in Las Vegas and proceeded to Lake Mead to conduct qualifying tests in the S-43. The test flight did not go well. The Sikorsky crashed into Lake Mead, killing CAA inspector Ceco Cline and Hughes's employee Richard Felt. Hughes suffered a severe gash on the top of his head when he hit the upper control panel and had to be rescued by one of the others on board. Hughes paid divers $100,000 to raise the aircraft and later spent more than $500,000 restoring it. Hughes sent the plane to Houston, where it remained for many years.
Near-fatal crash of the XF-11
Hughes was involved in another near-fatal aircraft accident on July 7, 1946, while performing the first flight of the prototype U.S. Army Air Forces reconnaissance aircraft, the XF-11, near Hughes airfield at Culver City, California. An oil leak caused one of the contra-rotating propellers to reverse pitch, causing the aircraft to yaw sharply and lose altitude rapidly. Hughes attempted to save the aircraft by landing it at the Los Angeles Country Club golf course, but just seconds before reaching the course, the XF-11 started to drop dramatically and crashed in the Beverly Hills neighborhood surrounding the country club.
When the XF-11 finally came to a halt after destroying three houses, the fuel tanks exploded, setting fire to the aircraft and a nearby home at 808 North Whittier Drive owned by Lt Col. Charles E. Meyer. Hughes managed to pull himself out of the flaming wreckage but lay beside the aircraft until rescued by Marine Master Sgt. William L. Durkin, who happened to be in the area visiting friends. Hughes sustained significant injuries in the crash, including a crushed collar bone, multiple cracked ribs, crushed chest with collapsed left lung, shifting his heart to the right side of the chest cavity, and numerous third-degree burns. An oft-told story said that Hughes sent a check to the Marine weekly for the remainder of his life as a sign of gratitude. Noah Dietrich asserted that Hughes did send Durkin $200 a month, but Durkin's daughter denied knowing that he received any money from Hughes.
Despite his physical injuries, Hughes took pride that his mind was still working. As he lay in his hospital bed, he decided that he did not like the bed's design. He called in plant engineers to design a customized bed, equipped with hot and cold running water, built in six sections, and operated by 30 electric motors, with push-button adjustments. Hughes designed the hospital bed specifically to alleviate the pain caused by moving with severe burn injuries. Although he never used the bed that he designed, Hughes's bed served as a prototype for the modern hospital bed. Hughes's doctors considered his recovery almost miraculous.
Many attribute his long-term dependence on opiates to his use of codeine as a painkiller during his convalescence. Yet Dietrich asserts that Hughes recovered the "hard way—no sleeping pills, no opiates of any kind". The trademark mustache he wore afterward hid a scar on his upper lip resulting from the accident.
H-4 Hercules
The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The military services opposed the project, thinking it would siphon resources from higher-priority programs, but Hughes's powerful allies in Washington, D.C., advocated for it. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II.
The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at , had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next-largest wingspan was about ). (The Hercules is no longer the longest nor heaviest aircraft ever built - surpassed by the Antonov An-225 Mriya produced in 1985.)
The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947.
Critics nicknamed the Hercules the Spruce Goose, but it was actually made largely from birch (not spruce) rather than from aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes's Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the XF-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly-disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense-acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it features at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum.
On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes's paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio-technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules.
Hughes Aircraft
In 1932 Hughes founded the Hughes Aircraft Company, a division of Hughes Tool Company, in a rented corner of a Lockheed Aircraft Corporation hangar in Burbank, California, to build the H-1 racer.
Shortly after founding the company, Hughes used the alias "Charles Howard" to accept a job as a baggage handler for American Airlines. He was soon promoted to co-pilot.
Hughes continued to work for American Airlines until his real identity was discovered.
During and after World War II Hughes fashioned his company into a major defense contractor. The Hughes Helicopters division started in 1947 when helicopter manufacturer Kellett sold their latest design to Hughes for production. Hughes Aircraft became a major American aerospace- and defense contractor, manufacturing numerous technology-related products that included spacecraft vehicles, military aircraft, radar systems, electro-optical systems, the first working laser, aircraft computer systems, missile systems, ion-propulsion engines (for space travel), commercial satellites, and other electronics systems.
In 1948 Hughes created a new division of Hughes Aircraft: the Hughes Aerospace Group. The Hughes Space and Communications Group and the Hughes Space Systems Division were later spun off in 1948 to form their own divisions and ultimately became the Hughes Space and Communications Company in 1961. In 1953 Howard Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the newly formed Howard Hughes Medical Institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a tax-exempt charitable organization. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion. In 1997 General Motors sold Hughes Aircraft to Raytheon and in 2000, sold Hughes Space & Communications to Boeing. A combination of Boeing, GM, and Raytheon acquired the Hughes Research Laboratories, which focused on advanced developments in microelectronics, information & systems sciences, materials, sensors, and photonics; their work-space spans from basic research to product delivery. It has particularly emphasized capabilities in high-performance integrated circuits, high-power lasers, antennas, networking, and smart materials.
Airlines
In 1939, at the urging of Jack Frye, president of Transcontinental & Western Airlines, the predecessor of Trans World Airlines (TWA), Hughes began to quietly purchase a majority share of TWA stock; he took a controlling interest in the airline by 1944. Although he never had an official position with TWA, Hughes handpicked the board of directors, which included Noah Dietrich, and often issued orders directly to airline staff. Hughes Tool Co. purchased the first six Stratoliners Boeing manufactured. Hughes used one personally, and he let TWA operate the other five.
Hughes is commonly credited as the driving force behind the Lockheed Constellation airliner, which Hughes and Frye ordered in 1939 as a long-range replacement for TWA's fleet of Boeing 307 Stratoliners. Hughes personally financed TWA's acquisition of 40 Constellations for $18 million, the largest aircraft order in history up to that time. The Constellations were among the highest-performing commercial aircraft of the late 1940s and 1950s and allowed TWA to pioneer nonstop transcontinental service. During World War II Hughes leveraged political connections in Washington to obtain rights for TWA to serve Europe, making it the only U.S. carrier with a combination of domestic and transatlantic routes.
After the announcement of the Boeing 707, Hughes opted to pursue a more advanced jet aircraft for TWA and approached Convair in late 1954. Convair proposed two concepts to Hughes, but Hughes was unable to decide which concept to adopt, and Convair eventually abandoned its initial jet project after the mockups of the 707 and Douglas DC-8 were unveiled. Even after competitors such as United Airlines, American Airlines and Pan American World Airways had placed large orders for the 707, Hughes only placed eight orders for 707s through the Hughes Tool Company and forbade TWA from using the aircraft. After finally beginning to reserve 707 orders in 1956, Hughes embarked on a plan to build his own "superior" jet aircraft for TWA, applied for CAB permission to sell Hughes aircraft to TWA, and began negotiations with the state of Florida to build a manufacturing plant there. However, he abandoned this plan around 1958, and in the interim, negotiated new contracts for 707 and Convair 880 aircraft and engines totaling $400 million.
The financing of TWA's jet orders precipitated the end of Hughes's relationship with Noah Dietrich, and ultimately Hughes's ouster from control of TWA. Hughes did not have enough cash on hand or future cash flow to pay for the orders and did not immediately seek bank financing. Hughes's refusal to heed Dietrich's financing advice led to a major rift between the two by the end of 1956. Hughes believed that Dietrich wished to have Hughes committed as mentally incompetent, although the evidence of this is inconclusive. Dietrich resigned by telephone in May 1957 after repeated requests for stock options, which Hughes refused to grant, and with no further progress on the jet financing. As Hughes's mental state worsened, he ordered various tactics to delay payments to Boeing and Convair; his behavior led TWA's banks to insist that he be removed from management as a condition for further financing.
In 1960, Hughes was ultimately forced out of the management of TWA, although he continued to own 78% of the company. In 1961, TWA filed suit against Hughes Tool Company, claiming that the latter had violated antitrust law by using TWA as a captive market for aircraft trading. The claim was largely dependent upon obtaining testimony from Hughes himself. Hughes went into hiding and refused to testify. A default judgment was issued against Hughes Tool Company for $135 million in 1963 but was overturned by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1973, on the basis that Hughes was immune from prosecution. In 1966, Hughes was forced to sell his TWA shares. The sale of his TWA shares brought Hughes $546,549,771.
Hughes acquired control of Boston-based Northeast Airlines in 1962. However, the airline's lucrative route authority between major northeastern cities and Miami was terminated by a CAB decision around the time of the acquisition, and Hughes sold control of the company to a trustee in 1964. Northeast went on to merge with Delta Air Lines in 1972.
In 1970, Hughes acquired San Francisco-based Air West and renamed it Hughes Airwest. Air West had been formed in 1968 by the merger of Bonanza Air Lines, Pacific Air Lines, and West Coast Airlines, all of which operated in the western U.S. By the late 1970s, Hughes Airwest operated an all-jet fleet of Boeing 727-200, Douglas DC-9-10, and McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 jetliners serving an extensive route network in the western U.S. with flights to Mexico and western Canada as well. By 1980, the airline's route system reached as far east as Houston (Hobby Airport) and Milwaukee with a total of 42 destinations being served. Hughes Airwest was then acquired by and merged into Republic Airlines (1979–1986) in late 1980. Republic was subsequently acquired by and merged into Northwest Airlines which in turn was ultimately merged into Delta Air Lines in 2008.
Business with David Charnay
Hughes had made numerous business partnerships through industrialist and producer David Charnay. Their friendship and many partnerships began with the film The Conqueror, which was first released to the public in 1956. The film caused many controversies due to its critical flop and radioactive location used in St. George, Utah, that eventually led to Hughes buying up nearly every copy of the film he could, only to watch the film at home repeatedly for many nights in a row.
Charnay later bought Four Star, the film and television production company that produced The Conqueror.
Hughes and Charnay's most published dealings were with a contested AirWest leveraged buyout. Charnay led the buyout group that involved Howard Hughes and their partners acquiring Air West. Hughes, Charnay, as well as three others, were indicted. The indictment, made by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton, accused the group of conspiring to drive down the stock price of Air West in order to pressure company directors to sell to Hughes. The charges were dismissed after a judge had determined that the indictment had failed to allege an illegal action on the part of Hughes, Charnay, and all the other accused in the indictment. Thompson, the federal judge that made the decision to dismiss the charges called the indictment one of the worst claims that he had ever seen. The charges were filed again, a second time, by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton's assistant, Dean Vernon. The Federal Judge ruled on November 13, 1974, and elaborated to say that the case suggested a "reprehensible misuse of the power of great wealth", but in his judicial opinion, "no crime had been committed." The aftermath of the Air West deal was later settled with the SEC by paying former stockholders for alleged losses from the sale of their investment in Air West stock. As noted above, Air West was subsequently renamed Hughes Airwest. During a long pause between the years of the dismissed charges against Hughes, Charnay, and their partners, Howard Hughes mysteriously died mid-flight while on the way to Houston from Acapulco. No further attempts were made to file any indictments after Hughes died.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
In 1953, Hughes launched the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Miami, Florida, (currently located in Chevy Chase, Maryland) with the expressed goal of basic biomedical research, including trying to understand, in Hughes's words, the "genesis of life itself", due to his lifelong interest in science and technology. Hughes's first will, which he signed in 1925 at the age of 19, stipulated that a portion of his estate should be used to create a medical institute bearing his name. When a major battle with the IRS loomed ahead, Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a for-profit entity of a fully tax-exempt charity. Hughes's internist, Verne Mason, who treated Hughes after his 1946 aircraft crash, was chairman of the institute's medical advisory committee. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute's new board of trustees sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion, allowing the institute to grow dramatically.
In 1954, Hughes transferred Hughes Aircraft to the foundation, which paid Hughes Tool Co. $18,000,000 for the assets. The foundation leased the land from Hughes Tool Co., which then subleased it to Hughes Aircraft Corp. The difference in rent, $2,000,000 per year, became the foundation's working capital.
The deal was the topic of a protracted legal battle between Hughes and the Internal Revenue Service, which Hughes ultimately won. After his death in 1976, many thought that the balance of Hughes's estate would go to the institute, although it was ultimately divided among his cousins and other heirs, given the lack of a will to the contrary. The HHMI was the fourth largest private organization and one of the largest devoted to biological and medical research, with an endowment of $20.4 billion .
Glomar Explorer and the taking of K-129
In 1972, during the cold war era, Hughes was approached by the CIA through his longtime partner, David Charnay, to help secretly recover the Soviet submarine K-129, which had sunk near Hawaii four years earlier. Hughes's involvement provided the CIA with a plausible cover story, conducting expensive civilian marine research at extreme depths and the mining of undersea manganese nodules. The recovery plan used the special-purpose salvage vessel Glomar Explorer. In the summer of 1974, Glomar Explorer attempted to raise the Soviet vessel. However, during the recovery a mechanical failure in the ship's grapple caused half of the submarine to break off and fall to the ocean floor. This section is believed to have held many of the most sought-after items, including its code book and nuclear missiles. Two nuclear-tipped torpedoes and some cryptographic machines were recovered, along with the bodies of six Soviet submariners who were subsequently given formal burial at sea in a filmed ceremony. The operation, known as Project Azorian (but incorrectly referred to by the press as Project Jennifer), became public in February 1975 after secret documents were released, obtained by burglars of Hughes's headquarters in June 1974. Although he lent his name and his company's resources to the operation, Hughes and his companies had no operational involvement in the project. The Glomar Explorer was eventually acquired by Transocean and was sent to the scrap yard in 2015 during a large decline in oil prices.
Personal life
Early romances
In 1929, Hughes's wife of four years, Ella, returned to Houston and filed for divorce.
Hughes dated many famous women, including Joan Crawford, Billie Dove, Faith Domergue, Bette Davis, Yvonne De Carlo, Ava Gardner, Olivia de Havilland, Katharine Hepburn, Hedy Lamarr, Ginger Rogers, Janet Leigh, Pat Sheehan, Mamie Van Doren and Gene Tierney. He also proposed to Joan Fontaine several times, according to her autobiography No Bed of Roses. Jean Harlow accompanied him to the premiere of Hell's Angels, but Noah Dietrich wrote many years later that the relationship was strictly professional, as Hughes disliked Harlow personally. In his 1971 book, Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes, Dietrich said that Hughes genuinely liked and respected Jane Russell, but never sought romantic involvement with her. According to Russell's autobiography, however, Hughes once tried to bed her after a party. Russell (who was married at the time) refused him, and Hughes promised it would never happen again. The two maintained a professional and private friendship for many years. Hughes remained good friends with Tierney who, after his failed attempts to seduce her, was quoted as saying "I don't think Howard could love anything that did not have a motor in it". Later, when Tierney's daughter Daria was born deaf and blind and with a severe learning disability because of Tierney's exposure to rubella during her pregnancy, Hughes saw to it that Daria received the best medical care and paid all expenses.
Luxury yacht
In 1933, Hughes made a purchase of a luxury steam yacht named the Rover, which was previously owned by Scottish shipping magnate Lord Inchcape. "I have never seen the Rover but bought it on the blueprints, photographs and the reports of Lloyd's surveyors. My experience is that the English are the most honest race in the world." Hughes renamed the yacht Southern Cross and later sold her to Swedish entrepreneur Axel Wenner-Gren.
1936 automobile accident
On July 11, 1936, Hughes struck and killed a pedestrian named Gabriel S. Meyer with his car at the corner of 3rd Street and Lorraine in Los Angeles. After the crash, Hughes was taken to the hospital and certified as sober, but an attending doctor made a note that Hughes had been drinking. A witness to the crash told police that Hughes was driving erratically and too fast and that Meyer had been standing in the safety zone of a streetcar stop. Hughes was booked on suspicion of negligent homicide and held overnight in jail until his attorney, Neil S. McCarthy, obtained a writ of habeas corpus for his release pending a coroner's inquest. By the time of the coroner's inquiry, however, the witness had changed his story and claimed that Meyer had moved directly in front of Hughes's car. Nancy Bayly (Watts), who was in the car with Hughes at the time of the crash, corroborated this version of the story. On July 16, 1936, Hughes was held blameless by a coroner's jury at the inquest into Meyer's death. Hughes told reporters outside the inquiry, "I was driving slowly and a man stepped out of the darkness in front of me".
Marriage to Jean Peters
On January 12, 1957, Hughes married actress Jean Peters at a small hotel in Tonopah, Nevada. The couple met in the 1940s, before Peters became a film actress. They had a highly publicized romance in 1947 and there was talk of marriage, but she said she could not combine it with her career. Some later claimed that Peters was "the only woman [Hughes] ever loved", and he reportedly had his security officers follow her everywhere even when they were not in a relationship. Such reports were confirmed by actor Max Showalter, who became a close friend of Peters while shooting Niagara (1953). Showalter told an interviewer that because he frequently met with Peters, Hughes's men threatened to ruin his career if he did not leave her alone.
Connections to Richard Nixon and Watergate
Shortly before the 1960 Presidential election, Richard Nixon was alarmed when it was revealed that his brother, Donald, received a $205,000 loan from Hughes. It has long been speculated that Nixon's drive to learn what the Democrats were planning in 1972 was based in part on his belief that the Democrats knew about a later bribe that his friend Bebe Rebozo had received from Hughes after Nixon took office.
In late 1971, Donald Nixon was collecting intelligence for his brother in preparation for the upcoming presidential election. One of his sources was John H. Meier, a former business adviser of Hughes who had also worked with Democratic National Committee Chairman Larry O'Brien.
Meier, in collaboration with former Vice President Hubert Humphrey and others, wanted to feed misinformation to the Nixon campaign. Meier told Donald that he was sure the Democrats would win the election because Larry O'Brien had a great deal of information on Richard Nixon's illicit dealings with Howard Hughes that had never been released; O'Brien did not actually have any such information, but Meier wanted Nixon to think that he did. Donald told his brother that O'Brien was in possession of damaging Hughes information that could destroy his campaign. Terry Lenzner, who was the chief investigator for the Senate Watergate Committee, speculates that it was Nixon's desire to know what O'Brien knew about Nixon's dealings with Hughes that may have partially motivated the Watergate break-in.
Last years and death
Physical and mental decline
Hughes was widely considered eccentric and to have suffered with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
Dietrich wrote that Hughes always ate the same thing for dinner, a New York strip steak cooked medium rare, dinner salad, and peas, but only the smaller ones, pushing the larger ones aside. For breakfast, Hughes wanted his eggs cooked the way his family cook, Lily, made them. Hughes had a "phobia about germs", and "his passion for secrecy became a mania."
While directing The Outlaw, Hughes became fixated on a small flaw in one of Jane Russell's blouses, claiming that the fabric bunched up along a seam and gave the appearance of two nipples on each breast. He wrote a detailed memorandum to the crew on how to fix the problem. Richard Fleischer, who directed His Kind of Woman with Hughes as executive producer, wrote at length in his autobiography about the difficulty of dealing with the tycoon. In his book, Just Tell Me When to Cry, Fleischer explained that Hughes was fixated on trivial details and was alternately indecisive and obstinate. He also revealed that Hughes's unpredictable mood swings made him wonder if the film would ever be completed.
In 1958, Hughes told his aides that he wanted to screen some movies at a film studio near his home. He stayed in the studio's darkened screening room for more than four months, never leaving. He ate only chocolate bars and chicken and drank only milk, and was surrounded by dozens of Kleenex that he continuously stacked and re-arranged. He wrote detailed memos to his aides giving them explicit instructions neither to look at him nor speak to him unless spoken to. Throughout this period, Hughes sat fixated in his chair, often naked, continually watching movies. When he finally emerged in the summer of 1958, his hygiene was terrible. He had neither bathed nor cut his hair and nails for weeks; this may have been due to allodynia, which results in a pain response to stimuli that would normally not cause pain.
After the screening room incident, Hughes moved into a bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel where he also rented rooms for his aides, his wife, and numerous girlfriends. He would sit naked in his bedroom with a pink hotel napkin placed over his genitals, watching movies. This may have been because Hughes found the touch of clothing painful due to allodynia. He may have watched movies to distract himself from his pain—a common practice among patients with intractable pain, especially those who do not receive adequate treatment. In one year, Hughes spent an estimated $11 million at the hotel.
Hughes began purchasing restaurant chains and four-star hotels that had been founded within the state of Texas. This included, if for only a short period, many unknown franchises currently out of business. He placed ownership of the restaurants with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and all licenses were resold shortly after.
Another time, he became obsessed with the 1968 film Ice Station Zebra, and had it run on a continuous loop in his home. According to his aides, he watched it 150 times. Feeling guilty about the commercial, critical, and rumored toxicity of his film The Conqueror, he bought every copy of the film for $12 million, watching the film on repeat. Paramount Pictures acquired the rights of the film in 1979, three years after his death.
Hughes insisted on using tissues to pick up objects to insulate himself from germs. He would also notice dust, stains, or other imperfections on people's clothes and demand that they take care of them. Once one of the most visible men in America, Hughes ultimately vanished from public view, although tabloids continued to follow rumors of his behavior and whereabouts. He was reported to be terminally ill, mentally unstable, or even dead.
Injuries from numerous aircraft crashes caused Hughes to spend much of his later life in pain, and he eventually became addicted to codeine, which he injected intramuscularly. Hughes had his hair cut and nails trimmed only once a year, likely due to the pain caused by the RSD/CRPS, which was caused by the plane crashes. He also stored his urine in bottles.
Later years in Las Vegas
The wealthy and aging Hughes, accompanied by his entourage of personal aides, began moving from one hotel to another, always taking up residence in the top floor penthouse. In the last ten years of his life, 1966 to 1976, Hughes lived in hotels in many cities—including Beverly Hills, Boston, Las Vegas, Nassau, Freeport and Vancouver.
On November 24, 1966 (Thanksgiving Day), Hughes arrived in Las Vegas by railroad car and moved into the Desert Inn. Because he refused to leave the hotel and to avoid further conflicts with the owners, Hughes bought the Desert Inn in early 1967. The hotel's eighth floor became the nerve center of Hughes's empire and the ninth-floor penthouse became his personal residence. Between 1966 and 1968, he bought several other hotel-casinos, including the Castaways, New Frontier, the Landmark Hotel and Casino, and the Sands. He bought the small Silver Slipper casino for the sole purpose of moving its trademark neon silver slipper, which was visible from his bedroom, and had apparently kept him awake at night.
After Hughes left the Desert Inn, hotel employees discovered that his drapes had not been opened during the time he lived there and had rotted through.
Hughes wanted to change the image of Las Vegas to something more glamorous. He wrote in a memo to an aide, "I like to think of Las Vegas in terms of a well-dressed man in a dinner jacket and a beautifully jeweled and furred female getting out of an expensive car." Hughes bought several local television stations (including KLAS-TV).
Eventually the brain trauma from Hughes's previous accidents, the effects of neurosyphilis diagnosed in 1932 and (undiagnosed) Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder considerably affected his decision-making. A small panel, unofficially dubbed "The Mormon Mafia" because of the many Latter-day Saints on the committee, was led by Frank William Gay and originally served Hughes's "secret police" headquartered at 9000 Romaine. Over the next two decades, however, this group oversaw and controlled considerable business holdings, with the CIA anointing Gay while awarding a contract to the Hughes corporation to acquire sensitive information on a sunken Russian submarine. In addition to supervising day-to-day business operations and Hughes's health, they also went to great pains to satisfy Hughes's every whim. For example, Hughes once became fond of Baskin-Robbins' banana nut ice cream, so his aides sought to secure a bulk shipment for him, only to discover that Baskin-Robbins had discontinued the flavor. They put in a request for the smallest amount the company could provide for a special order, 350 gallons (1,300 L), and had it shipped from Los Angeles. A few days after the order arrived, Hughes announced he was tired of banana nut and wanted only French vanilla ice cream. The Desert Inn ended up distributing free banana nut ice cream to casino customers for a year. In a 1996 interview, ex–Howard Hughes Chief of Nevada Operations Robert Maheu said, "There is a rumor that there is still some banana nut ice cream left in the freezer. It is most likely true."
As an owner of several major Las Vegas businesses, Hughes wielded much political and economic influence in Nevada and elsewhere. During the 1960s and early 1970s, he disapproved of underground nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site. Hughes was concerned about the risk from residual nuclear radiation and attempted to halt the tests. When the tests finally went through despite Hughes's efforts, the detonations were powerful enough that the entire hotel in which he was living trembled from the shock waves. In two separate, last-ditch maneuvers, Hughes instructed his representatives to offer bribes of $1m to both Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon.
In 1970, Jean Peters filed for divorce. The two had not lived together for many years. Peters requested a lifetime alimony payment of $70,000 a year, adjusted for inflation, and waived all claims to Hughes's estate. Hughes offered her a settlement of over a million dollars, but she declined it. Hughes did not insist on a confidentiality agreement from Peters as a condition of the divorce. Aides reported that Hughes never spoke ill of her. She refused to discuss her life with Hughes and declined several lucrative offers from publishers and biographers. Peters would state only that she had not seen Hughes for several years before their divorce and had dealt with him only by phone.
Hughes was living in the Intercontinental Hotel near Lake Managua in Nicaragua, seeking privacy and security, when a magnitude 6.5 earthquake damaged Managua in December 1972. As a precaution, Hughes moved to a rather large tent facing the hotel; after a few days, he moved to the Nicaraguan National Palace and stayed there as a guest of Anastasio Somoza Debayle before leaving for Florida on a private jet the following day. He subsequently moved into the Penthouse at the Xanadu Princess Resort on Grand Bahama Island, which he had recently purchased. He lived almost exclusively in the penthouse of the Xanadu Beach Resort & Marina for the last four years of his life.
Hughes spent a total of $300 million on his many properties in Las Vegas.
Autobiography hoax
In 1972, author Clifford Irving caused a media sensation when he claimed he had co-written an authorized Hughes autobiography. Irving claimed he and Hughes had corresponded through the United States mail, and offered as proof handwritten notes allegedly sent by Hughes. Publisher McGraw-Hill, Inc. was duped into believing the manuscript was authentic. Hughes was so reclusive that he did not immediately publicly refute Irving's statement, leading many to believe that Irving's book was genuine. However, before the book's publication, Hughes finally denounced Irving in a teleconference attended by reporters Hughes knew personally: James Bacon of the Hearst papers, Marin Miles of the Los Angeles Times, Vernon Scott of UPI, Roy Neal of NBC News, Gene Handsaker of AP, Wayne Thomas of the Chicago Tribune, and Gladwin Hill of the New York Times.
The entire hoax finally unraveled. The United States Postal Inspection Service got a subpoena to force Irving to turn over samples of his handwriting. The USPS investigation led to Irving's indictment and subsequent conviction for using the postal service to commit fraud. He was incarcerated for 17 months. In 1974, the Orson Welles film F for Fake included a section on the Hughes autobiography hoax, leaving a question open as to whether it was actually Hughes who took part in the teleconference (since so few people had actually heard or seen him in recent years). In 1977, The Hoax by Clifford Irving was published in the United Kingdom, telling his story of these events. The 2006 film The Hoax, starring Richard Gere, is also based on these events.
Death
Hughes is reported to have died on April 5, 1976, at 1:27 p.m. on board an aircraft, Learjet 24B N855W, owned by Robert Graf and piloted by Jeff Abrams. He was en route from his penthouse at the Acapulco Princess Hotel (now the Fairmont Acapulco Princess) in Mexico to the Methodist Hospital in Houston.
His reclusiveness and possibly his drug use made him practically unrecognizable. His hair, beard, fingernails, and toenails were long—his tall frame now weighed barely , and the FBI had to use fingerprints to conclusively identify the body. Howard Hughes's alias, John T. Conover, was used when his body arrived at a morgue in Houston on the day of his death.
An autopsy recorded kidney failure as the cause of death. In an eighteen-month study investigating Hughes' drug abuse for the estate, it was found "someone administered a deadly injection of the painkiller to this comatose man... obviously needlessly and almost certainly fatal". He suffered from malnutrition and was covered in bedsores. While his kidneys were damaged, his other internal organs, including his brain, which had no visible damage or illnesses, were deemed perfectly healthy. X-rays revealed five broken-off hypodermic needles in the flesh of his arms. To inject codeine into his muscles, Hughes had used glass syringes with metal needles that easily became detached.
Hughes is buried next to his parents at Glenwood Cemetery in Houston.
Alleged survival
Following his death, Hughes was subject to several widely rebuked conspiracy theories that he had faked his own death. A notable allegation came from retired Major General Mark Musick, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, who claimed Hughes went on to live under an assumed identity, dying on November 15, 2001, in Troy, Alabama.
Estate
Approximately three weeks after Hughes's death, a handwritten will was found on the desk of an official of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah. The so-called "Mormon Will" gave $1.56 billion to various charitable organizations (including $625 million to the Howard Hughes Medical Institute), nearly $470 million to the upper management in Hughes's companies and to his aides, $156 million to first cousin William Lummis, and $156 million split equally between his two ex-wives Ella Rice and Jean Peters.
A further $156 million was endowed to a gas-station owner, Melvin Dummar, who told reporters that in 1967, he found a disheveled and dirty man lying along U.S. Route 95, just north of Las Vegas. The man asked for a ride to Vegas. Dropping him off at the Sands Hotel, Dummar said the man told him that he was Hughes. Dummar later claimed that days after Hughes's death a "mysterious man" appeared at his gas station, leaving an envelope containing the will on his desk. Unsure if the will was genuine and unsure of what to do, Dummar left the will at the LDS Church office. In 1978, a Nevada court ruled the Mormon Will a forgery and officially declared that Hughes had died intestate (without a valid will). Dummar's story was later adapted into Jonathan Demme's film Melvin and Howard in 1980.
Hughes's $2.5 billion estate was eventually split in 1983 among 22 cousins, including William Lummis, who serves as a trustee of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The Supreme Court of the United States ruled that Hughes Aircraft was owned by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, which sold it to General Motors in 1985 for $5.2 billion. The court rejected suits by the states of California and Texas that claimed they were owed inheritance tax.
In 1984, Hughes's estate paid an undisclosed amount to Terry Moore, who claimed she and Hughes had secretly married on a yacht in international waters off Mexico in 1949 and never divorced. Moore never produced proof of a marriage, but her book, The Beauty and the Billionaire, became a bestseller.
Awards
Harmon Trophy (1936 and 1938)
Collier Trophy (1938)
Congressional Gold Medal (1939)
Octave Chanute Award (1940)
National Aviation Hall of Fame (1973)
International Air & Space Hall of Fame (1987)
Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (2018)
Archive
The moving image collection of Howard Hughes is held at the Academy Film Archive. The collection consists of over 200 items including 35mm and 16mm elements of feature films, documentaries, and television programs made or accumulated by Hughes.
Filmography
In popular culture
Film
In The Carpetbaggers (1964), the main character Jonas Cord (played by George Peppard) is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever (1971) features a tall, Texan, reclusive billionaire character named Willard Whyte (played by Jimmy Dean) who operates his business empire from the penthouse of a Las Vegas hotel. Although he appears only late in the film, his habitual seclusion and his control of a major aerospace contracting firm are key elements of the movie's plot. Several sequences were actually filmed on location at The Landmark Hotel and Casino, which was owned by Hughes at the time.
The Amazing Howard Hughes is a 1977 American made-for-television biographical film which aired as a mini-series on the CBS network, made a year after Hughes's death and based on Noah Dietrich's book Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. Tommy Lee Jones plays Hughes.
Melvin and Howard (1980), directed by Jonathan Demme and starring Jason Robards as Howard Hughes and Paul Le Mat as Melvin Dummar. The film won Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay (Bo Goldman) and Best Supporting Actress (Mary Steenburgen). The film focuses on Melvin Dummar's claims of meeting Hughes in the Nevada desert and subsequent estate battles over his inclusion in Hughes's will. Critic Pauline Kael called the film "an almost flawless act of sympathetic imagination".
In Tucker: The Man and His Dream, (1988), Hughes (played by Dean Stockwell) figures in the plot by telling Preston Tucker to source steel and engines for Tucker's automobiles from a helicopter manufacturer in New York. Scene occurs in a hangar with the Hercules.
In The Rocketeer, a 1991 American period superhero film from Walt Disney Pictures, the title character attracts the attention of Howard Hughes (played by Terry O'Quinn) and the FBI, who are hunting for a missing jet pack, as well as Nazi operatives.
"Howard Hughes Documentary", broadcast in 1992 as an episode of the Time Machine documentary series, was introduced by Peter Graves, later released by A&E Home Video.
In Conspiracy Theory (1997), the character Jerry Fletcher (played by Mel Gibson) mentions one of his theories to a street vendor by saying, "Did you know that the whole Vietnam War was fought over a bet that Howard Hughes lost to Aristotle Onassis?" referring to his (Fletcher's) thoughts on the politics of that conflict.
In The Aviator (2004), directed by Martin Scorsese, Hughes is portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio. The film focuses on Hughes's personal life from the making of Hell's Angels through his successful flight of the Hercules or Spruce Goose. Critically acclaimed, it was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, winning five for Best Cinematography; Best Film Editing; Best Costume Design; Best Art Direction; and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Cate Blanchett.
Howard Hughes: The Real Aviator documentary was broadcast in 2004 and went on to win the Grand Festival Award for Best Documentary at the 2004 Berkeley Video & Film Festival.
In the 2005 animated film Robots, the character Mr Bigweld (voiced by Mel Brooks), a reclusive inventor and owner of Bigweld Industries, is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The American Aviator: The Howard Hughes Story was broadcast in 2006 on the Biography Channel. It was later released to home media as a DVD with a copy of the full-length film The Outlaw starring Jane Russell.
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), as a plot-related prequel to Iron Man 2 (2010), in which Howard Stark (played by Dominic Cooper), father of Tony Stark (Iron Man), showed his inventions of future technology, clearly embodying Hughes's persona and enthusiasm. His subsequent appearances in the TV series Marvel's Agent Carter further this persona, as well as depicting him as sharing the real Hughes's reputation as a womanizer. Stan Lee has noted that Tony, who shared several of these traits himself, was based on Hughes.
Rules Don't Apply (2016), written and directed by Warren Beatty, features Beatty as Hughes from 1958 through 1964.
In the Dark Knight Trilogy, director Christopher Nolan's characterisation of Bruce Wayne is heavily inspired by Hughes's perceived lifestyle – from a playboy in Batman Begins to a recluse in The Dark Knight Rises. Nolan is reported to have integrated his original material intended for a shelved Hughes biopic into the trilogy.
Games
The character of Andrew Ryan in the 2007 video game BioShock is loosely based on Hughes. Ryan is a billionaire industrialist in post-World War II America who, seeking to avoid governments, religions, and other "parasitic" influences, ordered the secret construction of an underwater city, Rapture. Years later, when Ryan's vision for Rapture falls into dystopia, he hides himself away and uses armies of mutated humans, "Splicers", to defend himself and fight against those trying to take over his city, including the player-character.
In L.A. Noire, Hughes makes an appearance presenting his Hercules H-4 aircraft in the game opening scene. The H-4 is later a central plot piece of DLC Arson Case, "Nicholson Electroplating".
In Fallout: New Vegas, the character of Robert Edwin House, a wealthy business magnate and entrepreneur who owns the New Vegas strip, is based on Howard Hughes and closely resembles him in appearance, personality and background. A portrait of Mr. House can also be found in the game which strongly resembles a portrait of Howard Hughes standing in front of a Boeing Army Pursuit Plane.
Literature
Stan Lee repeatedly stated he created the Marvel Comics character Iron Man's civilian persona, Tony Stark, drawing inspiration from Howard Hughes's colorful lifestyle and personality. Additionally, the first name of Stark's father is Howard.
Hughes is a supporting character in all three parts of James Ellroy's Underworld USA Trilogy, employing several of the protagonists as private investigators, bagmen, and consultants in his attempt to assume control of Las Vegas. Referred to behind his back as "Count Dracula" (due to his reclusiveness and rumored obsession with blood transfusions from Mormon donors), Hughes is portrayed as a spoiled, racist, opioid-addicted megalomaniac whose grandiose plans for Las Vegas are undermined by the manipulations of the Chicago Outfit.
In the 1981 novel Dream Park by Larry Niven and Steven Barnes, the weapon "which might have defeated the Japs if it hadn't come so late" is revealed to be the Spruce Goose, which had been magically hijacked on its test flight by evil Foré sorcerers in New Guinea. Hughes's skeleton is found at the controls, identified by Hughes's trademark fedora and cloth-and-leather jacket.
Music
The 1974 song "Workin' at the Car Wash Blues" by Jim Croce compares the main protagonist of the song to Howard Hughes in one of the lyrics.
The 1974 song "The Wall Street Shuffle" by English rock band 10cc directly references Hughes and his ways of life in the last verse.
The song "Me and Howard Hughes" by Irish band The Boomtown Rats on their 1978 album A Tonic for the Troops is about the title subject.
The song "Closet Chronicles" by American rock band Kansas on their 1977 album Point of Know Return is a Howard Hughes allegory.
The song "Ain't No Fun (Waiting 'Round To Be a Millionaire)" by AC/DC on their 1976 album "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" singer Bon Scott referenced Howard Hughes toward the end of the song: "Hey, hello Howard, how you doin', my next door neighbour? Oh, yea... Get your fuckin' jumbo jet off my airport"
Hughes's name is mentioned in the title and the lyrics of the 2002 song "Bargain Basement Howard Hughes" by Jerry Cantrell.
The 2012 song "Nancy From Now On" by American songwriter Father John Misty likens Hughes's destructive and erratic tendencies to the singer's own.
Television
In The Greatest American Hero Season 2 episode 3, "Don't Mess Around with Jim," Ralph and Bill are kidnapped by a reclusive tycoon, owner of Beck Air airplane company, who fakes his own death, and seems to know more about the suit than they do. He then blackmails them into retrieving his will to prevent it from being misused by the president of his company.
In The Simpsons Season 5 episode "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)", Mr. Burns resembles Hughes in his recluse state. Various nods to his life appear in the episode, ranging from casino ownership and penthouse office to the "Spruce Goose" being renamed "Spruce Moose" as well as a lack of hygiene and being a germaphobe.
In The Beverly Hillbillies episode, "The Clampett-Hewes Empire", Jed Clampett, while in Hooterville, decides to merge his interests with a man Mr. Drysdale believes is Howard Hughes, the famous reclusive billionaire. Eventually it turns out, to Mr. Drysdale's chagrin, "Howard Hughes" is no billionaire; he is nothing but a plain old farmer named "Howard Hewes" (H-E-W-E-S).
In the Invader Zim episode, "Germs," the alien Zim becomes paranoid after discovering that Earth is covered in germs. Referencing Howard Hughes, he isolates himself in his home and dons tissue boxes on his feet.
In the Superjail! episode "The Superjail! Six", The Warden repeatedly watches a film called Ice Station Jailpup which parodies Hughes's obsession with the film Ice Station Zebra
See also
Analgesic nephropathy
List of richest Americans in history
List of wealthiest historical figures
List of aviation pioneers
List of entrepreneurs
Phenacetin
References
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
Barkow, Al. Gettin' to the Dance Floor: An Oral History of American Golf. Short Hills, New Jersey: Burford Books, 1986. .
Barton, Charles. Howard Hughes and his Flying Boat. Fallbrook, CA: Aero Publishers, 1982. Republished in 1998, Vienna, VA: Charles Barton, Inc. .
Barlett, Donald L. and James B. Steele. Empire: The Life, Legend and Madness of Howard Hughes. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1979. , republished in 2004 as Howard Hughes: His Life and Madness.
Bellett, Gerald. Age of Secrets: The Conspiracy that Toppled Richard Nixon and the Hidden Death of Howard Hughes. Stillwater, Minnesota: Voyageur Press, 1995. .
Blackman, Tony Tony Blackman Test Pilot Grub Street, 2009,
Brown, Peter Harry and Pat H. Broeske. Howard Hughes: The Untold Story. New York: Penguin Books, 1996. .
Burleson, Clyde W. The Jennifer Project. College Station, Texas: Texas A&M University Press, 1997. .
Dietrich, Noah and Bob Thomas. Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. New York: Fawcett Publications, 1972. .
Drosnin, Michael. Citizen Hughes: In his Own Words, How Howard Hughes Tried to Buy America. Portland, Oregon: Broadway Books, 2004. .
Hack, Richard. Hughes: The Private Diaries, Memos and Letters: The Definitive Biography of the First American Billionaire. Beverly Hills, California: New Millennium Press, 2002. .
Herman, Arthur. Freedom's Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II. New York: Random House, 2012. .
Higham, Charles. Howard Hughes: The Secret Life, 1993.
Porter, Donald J., Howard's Whirlybirds: Howard Hughes' Amazing Pioneering Helicopter Exploits. Fonthill Media, 2013. (ISBN 978-1-78155-089)
Irving, Clifford. The Hoax. New York: E. Reads Ltd., 1999. .
Klepper, Michael and Michael Gunther. The Wealthy 100: From Benjamin Franklin to Bill Gates—A Ranking of the Richest Americans, Past and Present. Secaucus, New Jersey: Carol Publishing Group, 1996.
Marrett, George J. Howard Hughes: Aviator. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 2004. .
Kistler, Ron. I Caught Flies for Howard Hughes. Chicago: Playboy Press, 1976. .
Lasky, Betty. RKO: The Biggest Little Major of Them All, 2d ed . Santa Monica, California: Roundtable, 1989. .
Maheu, Robert and Richard Hack. Next to Hughes: Behind the Power and Tragic Downfall of Howard Hughes by his Closest Adviser. New York: Harper Collins, 1992. .
Moore, Terry. The Beauty and the Billionaire. New York: Pocket Books, 1984. .
Moore, Terry and Jerry Rivers. The Passions of Howard Hughes. Los Angeles: General Publishing Group, 1996. .
Parker, Dana T. Building Victory: Aircraft Manufacturing in the Los Angeles Area in World War II, Cypress, California: Dana T. Parker Books, 2013. .
Phelan, James. Howard Hughes: The Hidden Years. New York, Random House, 1976. .
Real, Jack. The Asylum of Howard Hughes. Philadelphia: Xlibris Corporation, 2003. .
Thomas, Bob. Liberace: The True Story. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1987. .
Tierney, Gene with Mickey Herskowitz. Self-Portrait. New York: Peter Wyden, 1979. lSBN 0-883261-52-9.
Weaver, Tom. Science Fiction and Fantasy Film Flashbacks: Conversations with 24 Actors, Writers, Producers and Directors from the Golden Age. New York: McFarland & Company, 2004. .
External links
AZORIAN The Raising of the K-129 / 2009 – 2 Part TV Documentary / Michael White Films Vienna
Welcome Home Howard: Collection of photographs kept by UNLV
A history of the remarkable achievements of Howard Hughes
FBI file on Howard Hughes
Exclutive Biography of Howard R. Hughes Jr.
Biography in the National Aviation Hall of Fame
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Watergate scandal | false | [
"Hercules, Inc. was a chemical and munitions manufacturing company based in Wilmington, Delaware, United States, incorporated in 1912 as the Hercules Powder Company following the breakup of the DuPont explosives monopoly by the U.S. Circuit Court in 1911. Hercules Powder Company became Hercules, Inc. in 1966, operating under this name until 2008, when it was merged into Ashland Inc.\n\nAn earlier Hercules Powder Company was formed in 1882 by DuPont and Laflin & Rand Powder Company. This company was dissolved on June 30, 1904.\n\nHercules was one of the major producers of smokeless powder for warfare in the United States during the 20th century. At the time of its spin-off, the DuPont Corp. retained the processes and patents for the production of \"single-base\" nitrocellulose gunpowders, whereas Hercules was given the patents and processes for the production of \"double-base\" gunpowders that combined nitrocellulose and nitroglycerine.\n\nHistory\nA special formulation of dynamite was patented in 1874 by J.W. Willard, superintendent of the California Powder Works in Santa Cruz, California. He called his invention \"Hercules powder\", a competitive jab at rival Giant Powder Company which had acquired the exclusive U.S. rights to Alfred Nobel's original dynamite formula. The mythological Hercules was known as a giant slayer.\n\nThe California Powder Works became the only manufacturer of Hercules powder. In 1877, J.W. Willard moved to Cleveland, Ohio to oversee the opening of a new California Powder Works plant there, dedicated to the manufacture of Hercules powder. In 1881, the California Powder Works moved its Hercules powder manufacturing in California to a new site along the northeast shore of San Francisco Bay. The company town that grew up around the facility became known as \"Hercules\", later (1900) incorporated as Hercules, California.\n\nIn 1882, thanks to their interlocking ownership interests with the California Powder Works by that time, the DuPont corporation and Laflin & Rand Powder Company acquired the rights to manufacture Hercules powder and incorporated the Hercules Powder Company for that purpose. In 1904, Du Pont dissolved the company as part of its ongoing effort to consolidate the many explosives manufacturers that it controlled under the Du Pont name.\n\nIn 1911, the United States won a lawsuit that it had brought against the Du Pont corporation under the Sherman Antitrust Act. The U.S. Circuit Court in Delaware found that Du Pont had been operating an unlawful monopoly, and ordered a breakup of its explosives and gunpowder manufacturing business. The breakup resulted in the creation of two new companies in 1912, Atlas Powder Company and Hercules Powder Company. Atlas received the explosives manufacturing portion of Du Pont's business (including the facilities acquired from the Giant Powder Company), while Hercules received the gunpowder portion.\n\nThe first management team of this new Hercules Powder Company included President H. Dunham, T.W. Bacchus, G.G. Rheuby, J.T Skelly, Norman Rood, Fred Stark, C.D. Prickett, and George Markell.\n\nSome of their products were used by the military in World War I. A school and a plant were named after T. W. Bacchus in Bacchus, Utah. Hercules Powder Company ranked 65th among United States corporations in the value of World War II military production contracts.\n\nIn the 1920s and 30s, Hercules diversified into the pine resin products business (see below).\n\nOn 12 September 1940, the Kenvil, New Jersey plant suffered a major explosion. News reports at the time estimated at least fifteen buildings were destroyed along with twenty-five tons of explosives. Fifty-one people were killed outright with perhaps two hundred injured and many missing.\n\nRichard F. Heck, recipient of the 2010 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, gained experience with transition metal chemistry while working at Hercules in 1957.\n\nBy the 1960s, the community was experiencing the first signs of a suburban transition. The Hercules Powder Co., once a small dynamite manufacturing firm, had begun producing rocket motors at its Bacchus Works south of the Magna community. The growing availability of jobs was one factor encouraging subdivision development in the Magna, Kearns and West Valley areas.\n\nIn 1966, the Hercules Powder Company changed its name to Hercules, Inc.\n\nIn 1995, Hercules, Inc. sold its subsidiary Hercules Aerospace Co. to Alliant Techsystems Inc. The sale included all of what remained of Hercules' gunpowder lines.\n\nBy the end of the 1990s, Hercules Inc., had sold off a significant number of its divisions that had not been profitable for the company. This caused the price of shares of common stock in Hercules to rise above . Several successful cost-savings programs were implemented in addition to buying back its own shares. Also at that time, Hercules had a significant amount of assets available for possible purchases of other corporations. Hercules, Inc., had a Paper Technology Division (PTD) whose products were slowly becoming commodities. In order to survive, this division needed to obtain new products.\n\nFirst, Hercules Inc., tried to purchase the Allied Colloids Company, but this was not successful. Next, Hercules bought the Betz-Dearborn Corporation. Betz-Dearborn produced mostly chemicals for paper processing, and the Hercules PTD produced mainly functional chemicals for paper. According to some business analysts, Hercules Inc. paid about three times as much for Betz-Dearborn as compared with its actual value.\n\nSoon after the purchase of Betz-Dearborn, the price per share of stock in Hercules Inc., had dropped from above US$70 to below US$10. It has been speculated that Hercules Inc., was close to going bankrupt after this failed purchase operation. Afterwards, several senior managers were forced out of the company because of this failure; however, a significant amount of former PTD senior managers were able to keep their positions within Hercules. The price of stock shares in Hercules Inc. never recovered from this debacle. Finally, Hercules Inc. was sold off to the Ashland Corporation in 2008, and dissolved.\n\nProduct lines\n\nCommercial gunpowders\n\nSome of the more recent gunpowders marketed to reloaders include the brand names \"Bullseye\", \"2400\", \"Reloder\", \"Unique\", and \"Red Dot\". These gunpowders are still being manufactured by Alliant Techsystems Inc. in Radford, Virginia.\n\nPowders inherited from DuPont in 1912\n EC (Explosives Company) shotgun powder was the first smokeless powder manufactured in the United States. Production began in 1890, and was discontinued in 1931.\n WA .30 caliber powder was named W for United States Army Lieutenant Whistler and A for American Smokeless Powder Company factory superintendent Aspinwall. This tubular powder was used for military loading of the .30 U.S. Army from 1894 until the military specification was changed to single-base nitrocellulose powder in 1908. Grains of 2 mm (0.08 inch) diameter were 1 mm long. Hercules continued producing the powder for other users until 1930.\n Sharpshooter was a flake powder introduced by Laflin & Rand in 1897 to replace black powder for loading the .45-70. Black flakes containing 15 to 18 percent nitroglycerin were approximately 2 mm in diameter. Production was discontinued after World War II.\n Bullseye was introduced by Laflin & Rand in 1898. Large surface area per unit weight enables rapid combustion in short-barreled handguns. Laflin & Rand began production using small, irregular particles removed by screening runs of larger grained powders. Improved manufacturing processes offered other reclamation options for reduced quantities of rejected material. Hercules manufactured Bullseye as thin, round flakes. It is believed to be the oldest smokeless powder formulation still being manufactured in the United States. It is designed for handguns and can also be used in 12-gauge shotgun target loads\n Lightning was introduced by Laflin & Rand in 1899 for lever action sporting rifles like the .30-30 Winchester and .303 Savage. Production of 2 mm diameter flakes was discontinued after World War II. Tubular Lightning # 2 was manufactured from 1903 to 1929.\n Infallible was a flake shotgun powder introduced by Laflin & Rand in 1900. Initial production had an orange color, but graphite coating gave later production a black color. Production was discontinued after World War II.\n Unique is a gray flake powder introduced by Laflin & Rand in 1900. Individual flakes are approximately 1.5 mm (0.06 inch) in diameter. It is designed for shotguns and can be used in handguns.\n Bear was a tubular powder introduced by Laflin & Rand in 1908 for small capacity rifle cartridges like the .351 and .401 Winchester Self-Loading and the .32-20 and .25-20 Winchester. Production was discontinued after World War II.\n Military Rifle (MR) # 19 was a tubular powder containing 20 percent nitroglycerin introduced by DuPont in 1908 and was renamed HiVel (# 1) when manufactured by Hercules. It was modified as HiVel # 2 in 1915. Production was discontinued in 1964. A smaller grained version was produced as HiVel # 3 from 1926 to 1941.\n\nPowders developed by Hercules Powder Company\n Hercules # 308 was Hercules production of single-base tubular Pyro DG (Diphenylamine Graphited) powder for loading military .30-06 Springfield ammunition through World War I. Production began in 1915 and continued through the 1920s.\n Hercules # 300 was a black, tubular single-base rifle powder produced from 1916 to 1932.\n Pyro was produced from 1922 to 1928 as lightly graphited yellow flakes for loading the .45 ACP.\n Hercules # 2400 is a coated flake powder containing 20 percent nitroglycerin introduced in 1932. Individual dark gray flakes are approximately 1 mm (0.04 inch) in diameter and 0.3 mm thick. It is designed for small capacity center-fire rifle cartridges and can be used in magnum handgun and .410 bore shotgun loads.\n Red Dot is a flake powder introduced in 1932. Individual flakes are approximately 1.5 mm (0.06 inch) in diameter and some are dyed red to aid identification. It is designed for light and standard loads for 12, 16, and 20 gauge shotguns and can be used in handguns.\n HiVel # 6 was produced from 1933 to 1941 for loading the .30-06 Springfield.\n Herco is a flake powder introduced in the 1930s. Individual flakes are approximately 1.5 mm (0.06 inch) in diameter. It is designed for heavy loads for 10, 12, 16, 20 and 28 gauge shotguns and can be used for heavy handgun loads.\n Green Dot is a flake powder introduced in 1965. Individual flakes are approximately 1.5 mm (0.06 inch) in diameter and some are dyed green to aid identification. It is designed for medium and standard loads for 12, 16, and 20 gauge shotguns and can be used in handguns.\n Reloder 7 was the most popular of three cylindrical rifle powders introduced in 1965 to replace HiVel # 2. Each powder was blended from four different formulations dyed different colors. Production of the other two longer-grained powders, Reloder 11 and Reloder 21, was discontinued in 1972.\n Blue Dot is a flake powder introduced in 1972. Individual flakes are approximately 1.5 mm (0.06 inch) in diameter and some are dyed blue to aid identification. It is designed for magnum loads for 10, 12, 16, 20 and 28 gauge shotguns and can be used for magnum handgun loads.\n\nPine resin products\nIn the 1920s, Hercules entered the pine resin products business, a development which followed upon the faster clearing of forests for lumber and farmland , especially in the southeast U.S., around the time of the First World War. The clearings had left many stumps which had to be removed, often with dynamite supplied by Hercules and others. Hercules itself was a consumer of wood pulp, a key ingredient in their dynamite. The increasing surplus of wood pulp led the company to the idea of producing other things from it, namely, the various chemicals that were present in pine resin. They set up production sites such as the one in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and Brunswick, Georgia for this express purpose, and added to their raw supply by offering to take or buy tree stumps from farmers.\n\nSolid-fuel rocket motor production\nBeginning in 1959, Hercules, Inc., began to diversify into the production of large solid-fuel rocket motors, and it soon became a primary producer of these, especially for the U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy, and U.S. Army - and to a lesser degree for the civilian National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). In 1961, the company hired contractors C.H. Leavell & Company, Morrison-Knudsen, and Alaskan Plumbing and Heating Company to expand the existing Bacchus Works site. The contractors added \"Air Force Plant 81\" adding 97 buildings, including a 97,000 square foot administration building. One of its major solid-fuel rocket products was the third-stage engine for the three -stage solid-fueled Minuteman intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) for the U.S. Air Force, of which 1,000 were made and deployed at Air Force Bases in several northern states during the 1960s. In addition, all of the missiles of the Minuteman I series were removed from service and replaced with the Minuteman II and Minuteman III series of more-advanced ICBMs. Hence, the Minuteman ICBM program was a huge project and a major source of revenue for Hercules, Inc.\n\nHercules, Inc., also produced the solid-fueled rocket motors for the two-stage Polaris missile system of intermediate-range ballistic missiles (IRBMs) for the U.S. Navy in its 41 for Freedom series of 41 George Washington class ballistic missile submarines. These nuclear submarines carried 16 Polaris missiles apiece for a grand total of 656 missiles. In addition, the Polaris series consisted of the successively-improved Polaris A-1, Polaris A-2, and Polaris A-3 missiles. The early Polaris submarines that had been armed with the Polaris A-1 were upgraded to the Polaris A-2; and then all that had been armed with the Polaris A-2 were upgraded to the Polaris A-3.\n\nFor some of the early Polaris submarines, the Polaris A-3 was the end of their upgrades, but a large number of them (about 31) were further rearmed with the more-advanced and longer-ranged two-stage Poseidon C-3 missile. Hence, the Polaris missile submarine program was also a huge project and a major source of revenue for Hercules, Inc.\n\nDuring the 1960s, Hercules, Inc., also made solid-fuel rocket motors for hundreds of the U.S. Army's Honest John missile, a mobile tactical missile for carrying tactical nuclear weapons for U.S. Army divisions. The Honest John missile was mostly deployed with the U.S. Seventh Army in West Germany as part of the American commitment to NATO to defend Western Europe against aggression from the Warsaw Pact, using nuclear weapons on Eastern Europe, if necessary. None of the Honest John, Minuteman, Polaris, or Poseidon has ever been used in combat, and the threat of nuclear war has been sufficient to deter aggression and make it unnecessary to use nuclear weapons for defense.\n\nDuring the 1970s and 80s, the Honest John missile was removed from deployment, scrapped, and replaced by the more-advanced Lance missile by the U.S. Army in Europe. Of all of the missiles mentioned above, only a reduced number of the Minuteman missiles remain in service at Air Force Bases in the United States, with all of the others having been removed from deployment and scrapped, along with all of the Polaris and Poseidon submarines.\n\nFor space exploration and satellite launches by the U.S. Air Force and NASA, Hercules, Inc., developed and manufactured the two large, strap-on solid-fueled booster rockets for the otherwise liquid-fueled, and huge, Titan III and Titan IV rockets. These strap-on rockets were used on the Titan IIIC, Titan IIID, and Titan IIIE rockets, and on all of the Titan IV rockets that were ever produced.\n\nAfter the end of production and firing of NASA's huge Saturn IB and \nSaturn V rockets, the Titan IV was the largest and heaviest unmanned rocket available anywhere in the world, and especially in the Titan IV-Centaur version. The Titan IV-Centaur was used for special launches of heavy space probes into the Solar System, such as the Cassini-Huygens mission to Saturn which was launched in 1997. The Titan IV is no longer manufactured, and the last one of these was fired during a launch in October 2005. In 1995 the aerospace division of Hercules, including its solid motor line, was acquired by the American defense contractor ATK.\n\nBusiness segments\nIn its later years, Hercules, Inc., manufactured and marketed worldwide specialist chemicals that were used in a wide variety of industrial, home, and office markets, and it and had over 4,500 employees. Hercules was composed of two major divisions: the Paper Technologies and Ventures (PTV) division and the Aqualon division. In 2005, the former accounted for 49% of its sales and 35% of its operating profits, with the latter producing 37% and 68% respectively.\n\nAqualon Group\nAqualon produces products for physical property modification of aqueous systems which are sold into a wide variety of industries including personal care, food additives, and construction.\n\nPaper Technologies and Ventures Group\n\nPaper Technologies\nPaper Technologies produces specialty chemicals to the pulp and paper industry. These products include functional, process, and water treatment chemicals for a wide variety of pulp and paper applications.\n\nFunctional chemicals can be divided in three main groups. Wet strength resins, Rosin sizes and AKD -sizes. Significant persons developing functional chemicals in Hercules could be mentioned: Dr. Keim on his efforts developing PAE wet strength resin, Mr Kai Kiviö on his efforts on developing cationic rosin size. Basis of AKD -technology Hercules acquired more or less voluntary from German BASF after the Second World War.\n\nVentures\nVentures produces specialty chemicals for a variety of markets, including adhesives and sealants, paints, inks, coatings, lubricants, rubber, plastics, and building and construction.\n\nHercules Incorporated, in collaboration with Professor Kaichang Li of Oregon State University and Columbia Forest Products, received a 2007 Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award for the Greener Synthetic Pathways category in developing and commercializing a formaldehyde-free adhesive made from soy flour and Hercules' unique polymer chemistries.\n\nSee also\n Tekoi, a former solid fuel rocket motor test and calibration site operated by Hercules Aerospace\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\nBoom Times, Patrick H. Shea, Distillations, Summer 2013, Science History Institute\nEncyclopedia.Com, Hercules Inc.\nPhotographs from the Records & Ephemera of Hercules Incorporated Science History Institute Digital Collections (An extensive collection of photographic prints, negatives, slides, and ephemera chronicling the plants, employees, products, advertising, and brand strategies of the Hercules Powder Company (later Hercules Incorporated).\nRecords of Hercules Incorporated Science History Institute Digital Collections (Correspondence, publications, advertisements, and other ephemera produced by the Hercules Powder Company, later Hercules Inc.)\n\nChemical companies of the United States\nCompanies based in Wilmington, Delaware\nManufacturing companies established in 1912\nManufacturing companies disestablished in 2008\n1912 establishments in Delaware\n2008 disestablishments in Delaware\nSuperfund sites in New Jersey\n2008 mergers and acquisitions\nDefunct manufacturing companies based in Delaware",
"The NASA Sounding Rocket Program (NSRP) is a NASA run program of sounding rockets which has been operating since 1959. The missions carried out by this program are primarily used for scientific research, particularly low gravity and material based research. NASA's sounding rocket program is commonly used by colleges and universities for upper atmosphere research.\n\nProgram\nIn 1965, NASA's cost of a sounding rocket system was $5,000 to $150,000, using combinations of stage motors from the Aerobee, Hercules M5E1 (developed for the Nike Ajax), and Thiokol Apache.\n\nThe program was consolidated at the Wallops Flight Facility in the 1980s and uses extra military solid rocket motors. Rockets are frequently launched from fixed facilities at Wallops, the Navy's White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, the Poker Flat Research Range in Alaska, Kwajalein, Marshall Islands, Pacific Missile Range Facility in Barking Sands, Hawaii, and Andøya Rocket Range, Norway. The rockets are categorized as \"Significant Military Equipment\" for ITAR.\n\nPropulsion\nRockets in use include single-stage or combinations of:\n Black Brant family, 17.26\" diameter\n Improved Orion surplus motor, 14\" diameter\n Terrier/Hercules MK12 or MK70 surplus motors, 18\" diameter\n Oriole motor\n Magellan Aerospace Nihka exo-atomospheric motor, 17.26\" diameter, 192,878 pound-seconds impulse\n Thiokol Improved Malemute TU-758 surplus motor, 16\" diameter\n Hercules Talos surplus motor, 30.1\" diameter\n\nSome combinations of stages allow payloads of up to 1550 pounds.\n\nLaunches\n\nPolarNOx \nThe PolarNOx mission was a set of experimental launches used to measure the nitric oxide present in the upper atmosphere that is produced by auroras.\n\nDEUCE \nThe DEUCE (Dual-channel Extreme Ultraviolet Continuum Experiment) mission was planned to obtain scientific data about the IGM. This failed however due to problems with the attitude control system.\n\nASPIRE \nThe ASPIRE mission (Advanced Supersonic Parachute Inflation Research Experiment) was an experiment which tested a Mars mission parachute design. The mission consisted of three tests using the Black Brant IX sounding rocket, with the third and final test taking place on Sept. 7, 2018.\n\nAZURE \nThe Auroral Zone Upwelling Rocket Experiment in April 2019 caught many Norwegians by surprise by triggering an unusual form of the Aurora Borealis.\n\nReferences \n\nNASA programs"
]
|
[
"Howard Hughes",
"H-4 Hercules",
"What is the H-4 hercules?",
"HK-1 Hercules flying boat",
"What was the use of the flying boat?",
"use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable",
"How much did the hercules cost to make?",
"I don't know.",
"Was the hercules used for many missions?",
"The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947."
]
| C_3fad173257b34869985c7b64812d1528_0 | Did the boat have many critics? | 5 | Did Howard Hughes' H-4 Hercules boat have many critics? | Howard Hughes | The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The project was opposed by the military services, thinking it would siphon resources from higher priority programs, but was advocated by Hughes' powerful allies in Washington, D.C. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II. The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at 319 feet 11 inches (97.51 m), had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next largest wingspan was about 310 ft (94 m)). (The Hercules is no longer the longest or heaviest aircraft ever built; both of those titles are currently held by the Antonov An-225 Mriya.) The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947. The Hercules was nicknamed the Spruce Goose by its critics, but it was actually made largely from birch, not spruce, rather than of aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes' Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the F-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it is now part of the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum. On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes' paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules. CANNOTANSWER | Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, | Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, investor, record-setting pilot, engineer, film director, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and financially successful individuals in the world. He first became prominent as a film producer, and then as an important figure in the aviation industry. Later in life, he became known for his eccentric behavior and reclusive lifestyle—oddities that were caused in part by his worsening obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), chronic pain from a near-fatal plane crash, and increasing deafness.
As a film tycoon, Hughes gained fame in Hollywood beginning in the late 1920s, when he produced big-budget and often controversial films such as The Racket (1928), Hell's Angels (1930), and Scarface (1932). He later took over the RKO Pictures film studio in 1948, recognized then as one of the Big Five studios of Hollywood's Golden Age, although the production company struggled under his control and ultimately ceased operations in 1957.
Through his interest in aviation and aerospace travel, Hughes formed the Hughes Aircraft Company in 1932, hiring numerous engineers, designers, and defense contractors. He spent the rest of the 1930s and much of the 1940s setting multiple world air speed records and building the Hughes H-1 Racer (1935) and H-4 Hercules (the Spruce Goose, 1947), the latter being the largest flying boat in history and having the longest wingspan of any aircraft from the time it was built until 2019. He acquired and expanded Trans World Airlines and later acquired Air West, renaming it Hughes Airwest. Hughes won the Harmon Trophy on two occasions (1936 and 1938), the Collier Trophy (1938), and the Congressional Gold Medal (1939) all for his achievements in aviation throughout the 1930s. He was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1973 and was included in Flying magazine's 2013 list of the 51 Heroes of Aviation, ranked at 25.
During the 1960s and early 1970s, Hughes extended his financial empire to include several major businesses in Las Vegas, such as real estate, hotels, casinos, and media outlets. Known at the time as one of the most powerful men in the state of Nevada, he is largely credited with transforming Vegas into a more refined cosmopolitan city.
After years of mental and physical decline, Hughes died of kidney failure in 1976, at the age of 70. Today, his legacy is maintained through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Howard Hughes Corporation.
Early life
Howard Robard Hughes Jr. was the son of Allene Stone Gano (1883–1922) and of Howard R. Hughes Sr. (1869–1924), a successful inventor and businessman from Missouri. He had English, Welsh and some French Huguenot ancestry, and was a descendant of John Gano (1727–1804), the minister who allegedly baptized George Washington. His father patented (1909) the two-cone roller bit, which allowed rotary drilling for petroleum in previously inaccessible places. The senior Hughes made the shrewd and lucrative decision to commercialize the invention by leasing the bits instead of selling them, obtained several early patents, and founded the Hughes Tool Company in 1909. Hughes's uncle was the famed novelist, screenwriter, and film-director Rupert Hughes.
A 1941 affidavit birth certificate of Hughes, signed by his aunt Annette Gano Lummis and by Estelle Boughton Sharp, states that he was born on December 24, 1905, in Harris County, Texas. However, his certificate of baptism, recorded on October 7, 1906, in the parish register of St. John's Episcopal Church in Keokuk, Iowa, listed his date of birth as September 24, 1905, without any reference to the place of birth.
At a young age, Hughes showed interest in science and technology. In particular, he had great engineering aptitude and built Houston's first "wireless" radio transmitter at age 11. He went on to be one of the first licensed ham-radio operators in Houston, having the assigned callsign W5CY (originally 5CY). At 12, Hughes was photographed in the local newspaper, identified as the first boy in Houston to have a "motorized" bicycle, which he had built from parts from his father's steam engine. He was an indifferent student, with a liking for mathematics, flying, and mechanics. He took his first flying lesson at 14, and attended Fessenden School in Massachusetts in 1921.
After a brief stint at The Thacher School, Hughes attended math and aeronautical engineering courses at Caltech. The red-brick house where Hughes lived as a teenager at 3921 Yoakum Blvd., Houston, still stands, now known as Hughes House on the grounds of the University of St. Thomas.
His mother Allene died in March 1922 from complications of an ectopic pregnancy. Howard Hughes Sr. died of a heart attack in 1924. Their deaths apparently inspired Hughes to include the establishment of a medical research laboratory in the will that he signed in 1925 at age 19. Howard Sr.'s will had not been updated since Allene's death, and Hughes inherited 75% of the family fortune. On his 19th birthday, Hughes was declared an emancipated minor, enabling him to take full control of his life.
From a young age, Hughes became a proficient and enthusiastic golfer. He often scored near-par figures, played the game to a two-three handicap during his 20s, and for a time aimed for a professional golf career. He golfed frequently with top players, including Gene Sarazen. Hughes rarely played competitively and gradually gave up his passion for the sport to pursue other interests. Hughes played golf every afternoon at LA courses including the Lakeside Golf Club, Wilshire Country Club, or the Bel-Air Country Club. Partners included George Von Elm or Ozzie Carlton. After Hughes hurt himself in the late 1920s, his golfing tapered off, and after his F-11 crash, Hughes was unable to play at all.
Hughes withdrew from Rice University shortly after his father's death. On June 1, 1925, he married Ella Botts Rice, daughter of David Rice and Martha Lawson Botts of Houston, and great-niece of William Marsh Rice, for whom Rice University was named. They moved to Los Angeles, where he hoped to make a name for himself as a filmmaker.
They moved into the Ambassador Hotel, and Hughes proceeded to learn to fly a Waco, while simultaneously producing his first motion picture, Swell Hogan.
Business career
Hughes enjoyed a highly successful business career beyond engineering, aviation, and filmmaking; many of his career endeavors involved varying entrepreneurial roles.
Entertainment
Ralph Graves persuaded Hughes to finance a short film, Swell Hogan, which Graves had written and would star in. Hughes himself produced it. However, it was a disaster. After hiring a film editor to try to salvage it, he finally ordered that it be destroyed. His next two films, Everybody's Acting (1926) and Two Arabian Knights (1927), achieved financial success; the latter won the first Academy Award for Best Director of a comedy picture. The Racket (1928) and The Front Page (1931) were also nominated for Academy Awards.
Hughes spent $3.5 million to make the flying film Hell's Angels (1930). Hell's Angels received one Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography.
He produced another hit, Scarface (1932), a production delayed by censors' concern over its violence.
The Outlaw premiered in 1943, but was not released nationally until 1946. The film featured Jane Russell, who received considerable attention from industry censors, this time owing to her revealing costumes.
RKO
From the 1940s to the late 1950s, the Hughes Tool Company ventured into the film industry when it obtained partial ownership of the RKO companies, which included RKO Pictures, RKO Studios, a chain of movie theaters known as RKO Theatres and a network of radio stations known as the RKO Radio Network.
In 1948, Hughes gained control of RKO, a struggling major Hollywood studio, by acquiring the 929,000 shares owned by Floyd Odlum's Atlas Corporation, for $8,825,000. Within weeks of acquiring the studio, Hughes dismissed 700 employees. Production dwindled to 9 pictures during the first year of Hughes's control; previously RKO had averaged 30 per year.
Production shut down for six months, during which time Hughes ordered investigations of each employee who remained with RKO as far as their political leanings were concerned. Only after ensuring that the stars under contract to RKO had no suspect affiliations would Hughes approve completed pictures to be sent back for re-shooting. This was especially true of the women under contract to RKO at that time. If Hughes felt that his stars did not properly represent the political views of his liking or if a film's anti-communist politics were not sufficiently clear, he pulled the plug. In 1952, an abortive sale to a Chicago-based group connected to the mafia with no experience in the industry disrupted studio operations at RKO even further.
In 1953, Hughes became involved with a high-profile lawsuit as part of the settlement of the United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc. Antitrust Case. As a result of the hearings, the shaky status of RKO became increasingly apparent. A steady stream of lawsuits from RKO's minority shareholders had grown to become extremely annoying to Hughes. They had accused him of financial misconduct and corporate mismanagement. Since Hughes wanted to focus primarily on his aircraft manufacturing and TWA holdings during the years of the Korean War of 1950 to 1953, Hughes offered to buy out all other stockholders in order to dispense with their distractions.
By the end of 1954, Hughes had gained near-total control of RKO at a cost of nearly $24 million, becoming the first sole owner of a major Hollywood studio since the silent-film era. Six months later Hughes sold the studio to the General Tire and Rubber Company for $25 million. Hughes retained the rights to pictures that he had personally produced, including those made at RKO. He also retained Jane Russell's contract. For Howard Hughes, this was the virtual end of his 25-year involvement in the motion-picture industry. However, his reputation as a financial wizard emerged unscathed. During that time period, RKO became known as the home of classic film noir productions, thanks in part to the limited budgets required to make such films during Hughes's tenure. Hughes reportedly walked away from RKO having made $6.5 million in personal profit. According to Noah Dietrich, Hughes made a $10,000,000 profit from the sale of the theaters and made a profit of $1,000,000 from his 7-year ownership of RKO.
Real estate
According to Noah Dietrich, "Land became a principal asset for the Hughes empire". Hughes acquired 1200 acres in Culver City for Hughes Aircraft, bought 7 sections [4,480 acres] in Tucson for his Falcon missile-plant, and purchased 25,000 acres near Las Vegas. In 1968, the Hughes Tool Company purchased the North Las Vegas Air Terminal.
Originally known as Summa Corporation, the Howard Hughes Corporation formed in 1972 when the oil-tools business of Hughes Tool Company, then owned by Howard Hughes Jr., floated on the New York Stock Exchange under the "Hughes Tool" name. This forced the remaining businesses of the "original" Hughes Tool to adopt a new corporate name: "Summa". The name "Summa"Latin for "highest"was adopted without the approval of Hughes himself, who preferred to keep his own name on the business, and suggested "HRH Properties" (for Hughes Resorts and Hotels, and also his own initials). In 1988 Summa announced plans for Summerlin, a master-planned community named for the paternal grandmother of Howard Hughes, Jean Amelia Summerlin.
Initially staying in the Desert Inn, Hughes refused to vacate his room, and instead decided to purchase the entire hotel. Hughes extended his financial empire to include Las Vegas real estate, hotels, and media outlets, spending an estimated $300 million, and using his considerable powers to take over many of the well-known hotels, especially the venues connected with organized crime. He quickly became one of the most powerful men in Las Vegas. He was instrumental in changing the image of Las Vegas from its Wild West roots into a more refined cosmopolitan city. In addition to the Desert Inn, Hughes would eventually own the Sands, Frontier, Silver Slipper, Castaways and Landmark and Harold's Club in Reno. Hughes would eventually become the largest employer in Nevada.
Aviation and aerospace
Another portion of Hughes's commercial interests involved aviation, airlines, and the aerospace and defense industries. A lifelong aircraft enthusiast and pilot, Hughes survived four airplane accidents: one in a Thomas-Morse Scout while filming Hell's Angels, one while setting the airspeed record in the Hughes Racer, one at Lake Mead in 1943, and the near-fatal crash of the Hughes XF-11 in 1946. At Rogers Airport in Los Angeles, he learned to fly from pioneer aviators, including Moye Stephens and J.B. Alexander. He set many world records and commissioned the construction of custom aircraft for himself while heading Hughes Aircraft at the airport in Glendale, CA. Operating from there, the most technologically important aircraft he commissioned was the Hughes H-1 Racer. On September 13, 1935, Hughes, flying the H-1, set the landplane airspeed record of over his test course near Santa Ana, California (Giuseppe Motta reaching 362 mph in 1929 and George Stainforth reached 407.5 mph in 1931, both in seaplanes). This marked the last time in history that an aircraft built by a private individual set the world airspeed record. A year and a half later, on January 19, 1937, flying the same H-1 Racer fitted with longer wings, Hughes set a new transcontinental airspeed record by flying non-stop from Los Angeles to Newark in seven hours, 28 minutes, and 25 seconds (beating his own previous record of nine hours, 27 minutes). His average ground-speed over the flight was .
The H-1 Racer featured a number of design innovations: it had retractable landing gear (as Boeing Monomail had five years before), and all rivets and joints set flush into the body of the aircraft to reduce drag. The H-1 Racer is thought to have influenced the design of a number of World War II fighters such as the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, Focke-Wulf Fw 190, and F8F Bearcat, although that has never been reliably confirmed. In 1975 the H-1 Racer was donated to the Smithsonian.
Round-the-world flight
On July 14, 1938, Hughes set another record by completing a flight around the world in just 91 hours (three days, 19 hours, 17 minutes), beating the previous record of 186 hours (7 days, 18 hours, 49 minutes) set in 1933 by Wiley Post in a single-engine Lockheed Vega by almost four days. Hughes returned home ahead of photographs of his flight. Taking off from New York City, Hughes continued to Paris, Moscow, Omsk, Yakutsk, Fairbanks, and Minneapolis, then returning to New York City. For this flight he flew a Lockheed 14 Super Electra (NX18973, a twin-engine transport with a four-man crew) fitted with the latest radio and navigational equipment. Harry Connor was the co-pilot, Thomas Thurlow the navigator, Richard Stoddart the engineer, and Ed Lund the mechanic. Hughes wanted the flight to be a triumph of American aviation technology, illustrating that safe, long-distance air travel was possible. Albert Lodwick of Mystic, Iowa, provided organizational skills as the flight operations manager. While Hughes had previously been relatively obscure despite his wealth, being better known for dating Katharine Hepburn, New York City now gave him a ticker-tape parade in the Canyon of Heroes. Hughes and his crew were awarded the 1938 Collier Trophy for flying around the world in record time. He was awarded the Harmon Trophy in 1936 and 1938 for the record-breaking global circumnavigation.
In 1938 the William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas—known at the time as Houston Municipal Airport—was renamed after Hughes, but the name was changed back due to public outrage over naming the airport after a living person.
Hughes also had a role in the design and financing of both the Boeing 307 Stratoliner and Lockheed L-049 Constellation.
Other aviator awards include: the Bibesco Cup of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in 1938, the Octave Chanute Award in 1940, and a special Congressional Gold Medal in 1939 "in recognition of the achievements of Howard Hughes in advancing the science of aviation and thus bringing great credit to his country throughout the world".
President Harry S. Truman sent the Congressional medal to Hughes after the F-11 crash. After his around-the-world flight, Hughes had declined to go to the White House to collect it.
Hughes D-2 and XF-11
The Hughes D-2 was conceived in 1939 as a bomber with five crew members, powered by 42-cylinder Wright R-2160 Tornado engines. In the end, it appeared as two-seat fighter-reconnaissance aircraft designated the D-2A, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-2800-49 engines. The aircraft was constructed using the Duramold process. The prototype was brought to Harper's Dry Lake in California in great secrecy in 1943 and first flew on June 20 of that year. Acting on a recommendation of the president's son, Colonel Elliott Roosevelt, who had become friends with Hughes, in September 1943 the USAAF ordered 100 of a reconnaissance development of the D-2, known as the F-11. Hughes then attempted to get the military to pay for the development of the D-2. In November 1944, the hangar containing the D-2A was reportedly hit by lightning and the aircraft was destroyed. The D-2 design was abandoned but led to the extremely controversial Hughes XF-11. The XF-11 was a large, all-metal, two-seat reconnaissance aircraft, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-4360-31 engines, each driving a set of contra-rotating propellers. Only two prototypes were completed; the second one with a single propeller per side.
Fatal crash of the Sikorsky S-43
In the spring of 1943 Hughes spent nearly a month in Las Vegas, test-flying his Sikorsky S-43 amphibious aircraft, practising touch-and-go landings on Lake Mead in preparation for flying the H-4 Hercules. The weather conditions at the lake during the day were ideal and he enjoyed Las Vegas at night. On May 17, 1943, Hughes flew the Sikorsky from California, carrying two CAA aviation inspectors, two of his employees, and actress Ava Gardner. Hughes dropped Gardner off in Las Vegas and proceeded to Lake Mead to conduct qualifying tests in the S-43. The test flight did not go well. The Sikorsky crashed into Lake Mead, killing CAA inspector Ceco Cline and Hughes's employee Richard Felt. Hughes suffered a severe gash on the top of his head when he hit the upper control panel and had to be rescued by one of the others on board. Hughes paid divers $100,000 to raise the aircraft and later spent more than $500,000 restoring it. Hughes sent the plane to Houston, where it remained for many years.
Near-fatal crash of the XF-11
Hughes was involved in another near-fatal aircraft accident on July 7, 1946, while performing the first flight of the prototype U.S. Army Air Forces reconnaissance aircraft, the XF-11, near Hughes airfield at Culver City, California. An oil leak caused one of the contra-rotating propellers to reverse pitch, causing the aircraft to yaw sharply and lose altitude rapidly. Hughes attempted to save the aircraft by landing it at the Los Angeles Country Club golf course, but just seconds before reaching the course, the XF-11 started to drop dramatically and crashed in the Beverly Hills neighborhood surrounding the country club.
When the XF-11 finally came to a halt after destroying three houses, the fuel tanks exploded, setting fire to the aircraft and a nearby home at 808 North Whittier Drive owned by Lt Col. Charles E. Meyer. Hughes managed to pull himself out of the flaming wreckage but lay beside the aircraft until rescued by Marine Master Sgt. William L. Durkin, who happened to be in the area visiting friends. Hughes sustained significant injuries in the crash, including a crushed collar bone, multiple cracked ribs, crushed chest with collapsed left lung, shifting his heart to the right side of the chest cavity, and numerous third-degree burns. An oft-told story said that Hughes sent a check to the Marine weekly for the remainder of his life as a sign of gratitude. Noah Dietrich asserted that Hughes did send Durkin $200 a month, but Durkin's daughter denied knowing that he received any money from Hughes.
Despite his physical injuries, Hughes took pride that his mind was still working. As he lay in his hospital bed, he decided that he did not like the bed's design. He called in plant engineers to design a customized bed, equipped with hot and cold running water, built in six sections, and operated by 30 electric motors, with push-button adjustments. Hughes designed the hospital bed specifically to alleviate the pain caused by moving with severe burn injuries. Although he never used the bed that he designed, Hughes's bed served as a prototype for the modern hospital bed. Hughes's doctors considered his recovery almost miraculous.
Many attribute his long-term dependence on opiates to his use of codeine as a painkiller during his convalescence. Yet Dietrich asserts that Hughes recovered the "hard way—no sleeping pills, no opiates of any kind". The trademark mustache he wore afterward hid a scar on his upper lip resulting from the accident.
H-4 Hercules
The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The military services opposed the project, thinking it would siphon resources from higher-priority programs, but Hughes's powerful allies in Washington, D.C., advocated for it. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II.
The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at , had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next-largest wingspan was about ). (The Hercules is no longer the longest nor heaviest aircraft ever built - surpassed by the Antonov An-225 Mriya produced in 1985.)
The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947.
Critics nicknamed the Hercules the Spruce Goose, but it was actually made largely from birch (not spruce) rather than from aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes's Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the XF-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly-disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense-acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it features at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum.
On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes's paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio-technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules.
Hughes Aircraft
In 1932 Hughes founded the Hughes Aircraft Company, a division of Hughes Tool Company, in a rented corner of a Lockheed Aircraft Corporation hangar in Burbank, California, to build the H-1 racer.
Shortly after founding the company, Hughes used the alias "Charles Howard" to accept a job as a baggage handler for American Airlines. He was soon promoted to co-pilot.
Hughes continued to work for American Airlines until his real identity was discovered.
During and after World War II Hughes fashioned his company into a major defense contractor. The Hughes Helicopters division started in 1947 when helicopter manufacturer Kellett sold their latest design to Hughes for production. Hughes Aircraft became a major American aerospace- and defense contractor, manufacturing numerous technology-related products that included spacecraft vehicles, military aircraft, radar systems, electro-optical systems, the first working laser, aircraft computer systems, missile systems, ion-propulsion engines (for space travel), commercial satellites, and other electronics systems.
In 1948 Hughes created a new division of Hughes Aircraft: the Hughes Aerospace Group. The Hughes Space and Communications Group and the Hughes Space Systems Division were later spun off in 1948 to form their own divisions and ultimately became the Hughes Space and Communications Company in 1961. In 1953 Howard Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the newly formed Howard Hughes Medical Institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a tax-exempt charitable organization. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion. In 1997 General Motors sold Hughes Aircraft to Raytheon and in 2000, sold Hughes Space & Communications to Boeing. A combination of Boeing, GM, and Raytheon acquired the Hughes Research Laboratories, which focused on advanced developments in microelectronics, information & systems sciences, materials, sensors, and photonics; their work-space spans from basic research to product delivery. It has particularly emphasized capabilities in high-performance integrated circuits, high-power lasers, antennas, networking, and smart materials.
Airlines
In 1939, at the urging of Jack Frye, president of Transcontinental & Western Airlines, the predecessor of Trans World Airlines (TWA), Hughes began to quietly purchase a majority share of TWA stock; he took a controlling interest in the airline by 1944. Although he never had an official position with TWA, Hughes handpicked the board of directors, which included Noah Dietrich, and often issued orders directly to airline staff. Hughes Tool Co. purchased the first six Stratoliners Boeing manufactured. Hughes used one personally, and he let TWA operate the other five.
Hughes is commonly credited as the driving force behind the Lockheed Constellation airliner, which Hughes and Frye ordered in 1939 as a long-range replacement for TWA's fleet of Boeing 307 Stratoliners. Hughes personally financed TWA's acquisition of 40 Constellations for $18 million, the largest aircraft order in history up to that time. The Constellations were among the highest-performing commercial aircraft of the late 1940s and 1950s and allowed TWA to pioneer nonstop transcontinental service. During World War II Hughes leveraged political connections in Washington to obtain rights for TWA to serve Europe, making it the only U.S. carrier with a combination of domestic and transatlantic routes.
After the announcement of the Boeing 707, Hughes opted to pursue a more advanced jet aircraft for TWA and approached Convair in late 1954. Convair proposed two concepts to Hughes, but Hughes was unable to decide which concept to adopt, and Convair eventually abandoned its initial jet project after the mockups of the 707 and Douglas DC-8 were unveiled. Even after competitors such as United Airlines, American Airlines and Pan American World Airways had placed large orders for the 707, Hughes only placed eight orders for 707s through the Hughes Tool Company and forbade TWA from using the aircraft. After finally beginning to reserve 707 orders in 1956, Hughes embarked on a plan to build his own "superior" jet aircraft for TWA, applied for CAB permission to sell Hughes aircraft to TWA, and began negotiations with the state of Florida to build a manufacturing plant there. However, he abandoned this plan around 1958, and in the interim, negotiated new contracts for 707 and Convair 880 aircraft and engines totaling $400 million.
The financing of TWA's jet orders precipitated the end of Hughes's relationship with Noah Dietrich, and ultimately Hughes's ouster from control of TWA. Hughes did not have enough cash on hand or future cash flow to pay for the orders and did not immediately seek bank financing. Hughes's refusal to heed Dietrich's financing advice led to a major rift between the two by the end of 1956. Hughes believed that Dietrich wished to have Hughes committed as mentally incompetent, although the evidence of this is inconclusive. Dietrich resigned by telephone in May 1957 after repeated requests for stock options, which Hughes refused to grant, and with no further progress on the jet financing. As Hughes's mental state worsened, he ordered various tactics to delay payments to Boeing and Convair; his behavior led TWA's banks to insist that he be removed from management as a condition for further financing.
In 1960, Hughes was ultimately forced out of the management of TWA, although he continued to own 78% of the company. In 1961, TWA filed suit against Hughes Tool Company, claiming that the latter had violated antitrust law by using TWA as a captive market for aircraft trading. The claim was largely dependent upon obtaining testimony from Hughes himself. Hughes went into hiding and refused to testify. A default judgment was issued against Hughes Tool Company for $135 million in 1963 but was overturned by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1973, on the basis that Hughes was immune from prosecution. In 1966, Hughes was forced to sell his TWA shares. The sale of his TWA shares brought Hughes $546,549,771.
Hughes acquired control of Boston-based Northeast Airlines in 1962. However, the airline's lucrative route authority between major northeastern cities and Miami was terminated by a CAB decision around the time of the acquisition, and Hughes sold control of the company to a trustee in 1964. Northeast went on to merge with Delta Air Lines in 1972.
In 1970, Hughes acquired San Francisco-based Air West and renamed it Hughes Airwest. Air West had been formed in 1968 by the merger of Bonanza Air Lines, Pacific Air Lines, and West Coast Airlines, all of which operated in the western U.S. By the late 1970s, Hughes Airwest operated an all-jet fleet of Boeing 727-200, Douglas DC-9-10, and McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 jetliners serving an extensive route network in the western U.S. with flights to Mexico and western Canada as well. By 1980, the airline's route system reached as far east as Houston (Hobby Airport) and Milwaukee with a total of 42 destinations being served. Hughes Airwest was then acquired by and merged into Republic Airlines (1979–1986) in late 1980. Republic was subsequently acquired by and merged into Northwest Airlines which in turn was ultimately merged into Delta Air Lines in 2008.
Business with David Charnay
Hughes had made numerous business partnerships through industrialist and producer David Charnay. Their friendship and many partnerships began with the film The Conqueror, which was first released to the public in 1956. The film caused many controversies due to its critical flop and radioactive location used in St. George, Utah, that eventually led to Hughes buying up nearly every copy of the film he could, only to watch the film at home repeatedly for many nights in a row.
Charnay later bought Four Star, the film and television production company that produced The Conqueror.
Hughes and Charnay's most published dealings were with a contested AirWest leveraged buyout. Charnay led the buyout group that involved Howard Hughes and their partners acquiring Air West. Hughes, Charnay, as well as three others, were indicted. The indictment, made by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton, accused the group of conspiring to drive down the stock price of Air West in order to pressure company directors to sell to Hughes. The charges were dismissed after a judge had determined that the indictment had failed to allege an illegal action on the part of Hughes, Charnay, and all the other accused in the indictment. Thompson, the federal judge that made the decision to dismiss the charges called the indictment one of the worst claims that he had ever seen. The charges were filed again, a second time, by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton's assistant, Dean Vernon. The Federal Judge ruled on November 13, 1974, and elaborated to say that the case suggested a "reprehensible misuse of the power of great wealth", but in his judicial opinion, "no crime had been committed." The aftermath of the Air West deal was later settled with the SEC by paying former stockholders for alleged losses from the sale of their investment in Air West stock. As noted above, Air West was subsequently renamed Hughes Airwest. During a long pause between the years of the dismissed charges against Hughes, Charnay, and their partners, Howard Hughes mysteriously died mid-flight while on the way to Houston from Acapulco. No further attempts were made to file any indictments after Hughes died.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
In 1953, Hughes launched the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Miami, Florida, (currently located in Chevy Chase, Maryland) with the expressed goal of basic biomedical research, including trying to understand, in Hughes's words, the "genesis of life itself", due to his lifelong interest in science and technology. Hughes's first will, which he signed in 1925 at the age of 19, stipulated that a portion of his estate should be used to create a medical institute bearing his name. When a major battle with the IRS loomed ahead, Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a for-profit entity of a fully tax-exempt charity. Hughes's internist, Verne Mason, who treated Hughes after his 1946 aircraft crash, was chairman of the institute's medical advisory committee. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute's new board of trustees sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion, allowing the institute to grow dramatically.
In 1954, Hughes transferred Hughes Aircraft to the foundation, which paid Hughes Tool Co. $18,000,000 for the assets. The foundation leased the land from Hughes Tool Co., which then subleased it to Hughes Aircraft Corp. The difference in rent, $2,000,000 per year, became the foundation's working capital.
The deal was the topic of a protracted legal battle between Hughes and the Internal Revenue Service, which Hughes ultimately won. After his death in 1976, many thought that the balance of Hughes's estate would go to the institute, although it was ultimately divided among his cousins and other heirs, given the lack of a will to the contrary. The HHMI was the fourth largest private organization and one of the largest devoted to biological and medical research, with an endowment of $20.4 billion .
Glomar Explorer and the taking of K-129
In 1972, during the cold war era, Hughes was approached by the CIA through his longtime partner, David Charnay, to help secretly recover the Soviet submarine K-129, which had sunk near Hawaii four years earlier. Hughes's involvement provided the CIA with a plausible cover story, conducting expensive civilian marine research at extreme depths and the mining of undersea manganese nodules. The recovery plan used the special-purpose salvage vessel Glomar Explorer. In the summer of 1974, Glomar Explorer attempted to raise the Soviet vessel. However, during the recovery a mechanical failure in the ship's grapple caused half of the submarine to break off and fall to the ocean floor. This section is believed to have held many of the most sought-after items, including its code book and nuclear missiles. Two nuclear-tipped torpedoes and some cryptographic machines were recovered, along with the bodies of six Soviet submariners who were subsequently given formal burial at sea in a filmed ceremony. The operation, known as Project Azorian (but incorrectly referred to by the press as Project Jennifer), became public in February 1975 after secret documents were released, obtained by burglars of Hughes's headquarters in June 1974. Although he lent his name and his company's resources to the operation, Hughes and his companies had no operational involvement in the project. The Glomar Explorer was eventually acquired by Transocean and was sent to the scrap yard in 2015 during a large decline in oil prices.
Personal life
Early romances
In 1929, Hughes's wife of four years, Ella, returned to Houston and filed for divorce.
Hughes dated many famous women, including Joan Crawford, Billie Dove, Faith Domergue, Bette Davis, Yvonne De Carlo, Ava Gardner, Olivia de Havilland, Katharine Hepburn, Hedy Lamarr, Ginger Rogers, Janet Leigh, Pat Sheehan, Mamie Van Doren and Gene Tierney. He also proposed to Joan Fontaine several times, according to her autobiography No Bed of Roses. Jean Harlow accompanied him to the premiere of Hell's Angels, but Noah Dietrich wrote many years later that the relationship was strictly professional, as Hughes disliked Harlow personally. In his 1971 book, Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes, Dietrich said that Hughes genuinely liked and respected Jane Russell, but never sought romantic involvement with her. According to Russell's autobiography, however, Hughes once tried to bed her after a party. Russell (who was married at the time) refused him, and Hughes promised it would never happen again. The two maintained a professional and private friendship for many years. Hughes remained good friends with Tierney who, after his failed attempts to seduce her, was quoted as saying "I don't think Howard could love anything that did not have a motor in it". Later, when Tierney's daughter Daria was born deaf and blind and with a severe learning disability because of Tierney's exposure to rubella during her pregnancy, Hughes saw to it that Daria received the best medical care and paid all expenses.
Luxury yacht
In 1933, Hughes made a purchase of a luxury steam yacht named the Rover, which was previously owned by Scottish shipping magnate Lord Inchcape. "I have never seen the Rover but bought it on the blueprints, photographs and the reports of Lloyd's surveyors. My experience is that the English are the most honest race in the world." Hughes renamed the yacht Southern Cross and later sold her to Swedish entrepreneur Axel Wenner-Gren.
1936 automobile accident
On July 11, 1936, Hughes struck and killed a pedestrian named Gabriel S. Meyer with his car at the corner of 3rd Street and Lorraine in Los Angeles. After the crash, Hughes was taken to the hospital and certified as sober, but an attending doctor made a note that Hughes had been drinking. A witness to the crash told police that Hughes was driving erratically and too fast and that Meyer had been standing in the safety zone of a streetcar stop. Hughes was booked on suspicion of negligent homicide and held overnight in jail until his attorney, Neil S. McCarthy, obtained a writ of habeas corpus for his release pending a coroner's inquest. By the time of the coroner's inquiry, however, the witness had changed his story and claimed that Meyer had moved directly in front of Hughes's car. Nancy Bayly (Watts), who was in the car with Hughes at the time of the crash, corroborated this version of the story. On July 16, 1936, Hughes was held blameless by a coroner's jury at the inquest into Meyer's death. Hughes told reporters outside the inquiry, "I was driving slowly and a man stepped out of the darkness in front of me".
Marriage to Jean Peters
On January 12, 1957, Hughes married actress Jean Peters at a small hotel in Tonopah, Nevada. The couple met in the 1940s, before Peters became a film actress. They had a highly publicized romance in 1947 and there was talk of marriage, but she said she could not combine it with her career. Some later claimed that Peters was "the only woman [Hughes] ever loved", and he reportedly had his security officers follow her everywhere even when they were not in a relationship. Such reports were confirmed by actor Max Showalter, who became a close friend of Peters while shooting Niagara (1953). Showalter told an interviewer that because he frequently met with Peters, Hughes's men threatened to ruin his career if he did not leave her alone.
Connections to Richard Nixon and Watergate
Shortly before the 1960 Presidential election, Richard Nixon was alarmed when it was revealed that his brother, Donald, received a $205,000 loan from Hughes. It has long been speculated that Nixon's drive to learn what the Democrats were planning in 1972 was based in part on his belief that the Democrats knew about a later bribe that his friend Bebe Rebozo had received from Hughes after Nixon took office.
In late 1971, Donald Nixon was collecting intelligence for his brother in preparation for the upcoming presidential election. One of his sources was John H. Meier, a former business adviser of Hughes who had also worked with Democratic National Committee Chairman Larry O'Brien.
Meier, in collaboration with former Vice President Hubert Humphrey and others, wanted to feed misinformation to the Nixon campaign. Meier told Donald that he was sure the Democrats would win the election because Larry O'Brien had a great deal of information on Richard Nixon's illicit dealings with Howard Hughes that had never been released; O'Brien did not actually have any such information, but Meier wanted Nixon to think that he did. Donald told his brother that O'Brien was in possession of damaging Hughes information that could destroy his campaign. Terry Lenzner, who was the chief investigator for the Senate Watergate Committee, speculates that it was Nixon's desire to know what O'Brien knew about Nixon's dealings with Hughes that may have partially motivated the Watergate break-in.
Last years and death
Physical and mental decline
Hughes was widely considered eccentric and to have suffered with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
Dietrich wrote that Hughes always ate the same thing for dinner, a New York strip steak cooked medium rare, dinner salad, and peas, but only the smaller ones, pushing the larger ones aside. For breakfast, Hughes wanted his eggs cooked the way his family cook, Lily, made them. Hughes had a "phobia about germs", and "his passion for secrecy became a mania."
While directing The Outlaw, Hughes became fixated on a small flaw in one of Jane Russell's blouses, claiming that the fabric bunched up along a seam and gave the appearance of two nipples on each breast. He wrote a detailed memorandum to the crew on how to fix the problem. Richard Fleischer, who directed His Kind of Woman with Hughes as executive producer, wrote at length in his autobiography about the difficulty of dealing with the tycoon. In his book, Just Tell Me When to Cry, Fleischer explained that Hughes was fixated on trivial details and was alternately indecisive and obstinate. He also revealed that Hughes's unpredictable mood swings made him wonder if the film would ever be completed.
In 1958, Hughes told his aides that he wanted to screen some movies at a film studio near his home. He stayed in the studio's darkened screening room for more than four months, never leaving. He ate only chocolate bars and chicken and drank only milk, and was surrounded by dozens of Kleenex that he continuously stacked and re-arranged. He wrote detailed memos to his aides giving them explicit instructions neither to look at him nor speak to him unless spoken to. Throughout this period, Hughes sat fixated in his chair, often naked, continually watching movies. When he finally emerged in the summer of 1958, his hygiene was terrible. He had neither bathed nor cut his hair and nails for weeks; this may have been due to allodynia, which results in a pain response to stimuli that would normally not cause pain.
After the screening room incident, Hughes moved into a bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel where he also rented rooms for his aides, his wife, and numerous girlfriends. He would sit naked in his bedroom with a pink hotel napkin placed over his genitals, watching movies. This may have been because Hughes found the touch of clothing painful due to allodynia. He may have watched movies to distract himself from his pain—a common practice among patients with intractable pain, especially those who do not receive adequate treatment. In one year, Hughes spent an estimated $11 million at the hotel.
Hughes began purchasing restaurant chains and four-star hotels that had been founded within the state of Texas. This included, if for only a short period, many unknown franchises currently out of business. He placed ownership of the restaurants with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and all licenses were resold shortly after.
Another time, he became obsessed with the 1968 film Ice Station Zebra, and had it run on a continuous loop in his home. According to his aides, he watched it 150 times. Feeling guilty about the commercial, critical, and rumored toxicity of his film The Conqueror, he bought every copy of the film for $12 million, watching the film on repeat. Paramount Pictures acquired the rights of the film in 1979, three years after his death.
Hughes insisted on using tissues to pick up objects to insulate himself from germs. He would also notice dust, stains, or other imperfections on people's clothes and demand that they take care of them. Once one of the most visible men in America, Hughes ultimately vanished from public view, although tabloids continued to follow rumors of his behavior and whereabouts. He was reported to be terminally ill, mentally unstable, or even dead.
Injuries from numerous aircraft crashes caused Hughes to spend much of his later life in pain, and he eventually became addicted to codeine, which he injected intramuscularly. Hughes had his hair cut and nails trimmed only once a year, likely due to the pain caused by the RSD/CRPS, which was caused by the plane crashes. He also stored his urine in bottles.
Later years in Las Vegas
The wealthy and aging Hughes, accompanied by his entourage of personal aides, began moving from one hotel to another, always taking up residence in the top floor penthouse. In the last ten years of his life, 1966 to 1976, Hughes lived in hotels in many cities—including Beverly Hills, Boston, Las Vegas, Nassau, Freeport and Vancouver.
On November 24, 1966 (Thanksgiving Day), Hughes arrived in Las Vegas by railroad car and moved into the Desert Inn. Because he refused to leave the hotel and to avoid further conflicts with the owners, Hughes bought the Desert Inn in early 1967. The hotel's eighth floor became the nerve center of Hughes's empire and the ninth-floor penthouse became his personal residence. Between 1966 and 1968, he bought several other hotel-casinos, including the Castaways, New Frontier, the Landmark Hotel and Casino, and the Sands. He bought the small Silver Slipper casino for the sole purpose of moving its trademark neon silver slipper, which was visible from his bedroom, and had apparently kept him awake at night.
After Hughes left the Desert Inn, hotel employees discovered that his drapes had not been opened during the time he lived there and had rotted through.
Hughes wanted to change the image of Las Vegas to something more glamorous. He wrote in a memo to an aide, "I like to think of Las Vegas in terms of a well-dressed man in a dinner jacket and a beautifully jeweled and furred female getting out of an expensive car." Hughes bought several local television stations (including KLAS-TV).
Eventually the brain trauma from Hughes's previous accidents, the effects of neurosyphilis diagnosed in 1932 and (undiagnosed) Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder considerably affected his decision-making. A small panel, unofficially dubbed "The Mormon Mafia" because of the many Latter-day Saints on the committee, was led by Frank William Gay and originally served Hughes's "secret police" headquartered at 9000 Romaine. Over the next two decades, however, this group oversaw and controlled considerable business holdings, with the CIA anointing Gay while awarding a contract to the Hughes corporation to acquire sensitive information on a sunken Russian submarine. In addition to supervising day-to-day business operations and Hughes's health, they also went to great pains to satisfy Hughes's every whim. For example, Hughes once became fond of Baskin-Robbins' banana nut ice cream, so his aides sought to secure a bulk shipment for him, only to discover that Baskin-Robbins had discontinued the flavor. They put in a request for the smallest amount the company could provide for a special order, 350 gallons (1,300 L), and had it shipped from Los Angeles. A few days after the order arrived, Hughes announced he was tired of banana nut and wanted only French vanilla ice cream. The Desert Inn ended up distributing free banana nut ice cream to casino customers for a year. In a 1996 interview, ex–Howard Hughes Chief of Nevada Operations Robert Maheu said, "There is a rumor that there is still some banana nut ice cream left in the freezer. It is most likely true."
As an owner of several major Las Vegas businesses, Hughes wielded much political and economic influence in Nevada and elsewhere. During the 1960s and early 1970s, he disapproved of underground nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site. Hughes was concerned about the risk from residual nuclear radiation and attempted to halt the tests. When the tests finally went through despite Hughes's efforts, the detonations were powerful enough that the entire hotel in which he was living trembled from the shock waves. In two separate, last-ditch maneuvers, Hughes instructed his representatives to offer bribes of $1m to both Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon.
In 1970, Jean Peters filed for divorce. The two had not lived together for many years. Peters requested a lifetime alimony payment of $70,000 a year, adjusted for inflation, and waived all claims to Hughes's estate. Hughes offered her a settlement of over a million dollars, but she declined it. Hughes did not insist on a confidentiality agreement from Peters as a condition of the divorce. Aides reported that Hughes never spoke ill of her. She refused to discuss her life with Hughes and declined several lucrative offers from publishers and biographers. Peters would state only that she had not seen Hughes for several years before their divorce and had dealt with him only by phone.
Hughes was living in the Intercontinental Hotel near Lake Managua in Nicaragua, seeking privacy and security, when a magnitude 6.5 earthquake damaged Managua in December 1972. As a precaution, Hughes moved to a rather large tent facing the hotel; after a few days, he moved to the Nicaraguan National Palace and stayed there as a guest of Anastasio Somoza Debayle before leaving for Florida on a private jet the following day. He subsequently moved into the Penthouse at the Xanadu Princess Resort on Grand Bahama Island, which he had recently purchased. He lived almost exclusively in the penthouse of the Xanadu Beach Resort & Marina for the last four years of his life.
Hughes spent a total of $300 million on his many properties in Las Vegas.
Autobiography hoax
In 1972, author Clifford Irving caused a media sensation when he claimed he had co-written an authorized Hughes autobiography. Irving claimed he and Hughes had corresponded through the United States mail, and offered as proof handwritten notes allegedly sent by Hughes. Publisher McGraw-Hill, Inc. was duped into believing the manuscript was authentic. Hughes was so reclusive that he did not immediately publicly refute Irving's statement, leading many to believe that Irving's book was genuine. However, before the book's publication, Hughes finally denounced Irving in a teleconference attended by reporters Hughes knew personally: James Bacon of the Hearst papers, Marin Miles of the Los Angeles Times, Vernon Scott of UPI, Roy Neal of NBC News, Gene Handsaker of AP, Wayne Thomas of the Chicago Tribune, and Gladwin Hill of the New York Times.
The entire hoax finally unraveled. The United States Postal Inspection Service got a subpoena to force Irving to turn over samples of his handwriting. The USPS investigation led to Irving's indictment and subsequent conviction for using the postal service to commit fraud. He was incarcerated for 17 months. In 1974, the Orson Welles film F for Fake included a section on the Hughes autobiography hoax, leaving a question open as to whether it was actually Hughes who took part in the teleconference (since so few people had actually heard or seen him in recent years). In 1977, The Hoax by Clifford Irving was published in the United Kingdom, telling his story of these events. The 2006 film The Hoax, starring Richard Gere, is also based on these events.
Death
Hughes is reported to have died on April 5, 1976, at 1:27 p.m. on board an aircraft, Learjet 24B N855W, owned by Robert Graf and piloted by Jeff Abrams. He was en route from his penthouse at the Acapulco Princess Hotel (now the Fairmont Acapulco Princess) in Mexico to the Methodist Hospital in Houston.
His reclusiveness and possibly his drug use made him practically unrecognizable. His hair, beard, fingernails, and toenails were long—his tall frame now weighed barely , and the FBI had to use fingerprints to conclusively identify the body. Howard Hughes's alias, John T. Conover, was used when his body arrived at a morgue in Houston on the day of his death.
An autopsy recorded kidney failure as the cause of death. In an eighteen-month study investigating Hughes' drug abuse for the estate, it was found "someone administered a deadly injection of the painkiller to this comatose man... obviously needlessly and almost certainly fatal". He suffered from malnutrition and was covered in bedsores. While his kidneys were damaged, his other internal organs, including his brain, which had no visible damage or illnesses, were deemed perfectly healthy. X-rays revealed five broken-off hypodermic needles in the flesh of his arms. To inject codeine into his muscles, Hughes had used glass syringes with metal needles that easily became detached.
Hughes is buried next to his parents at Glenwood Cemetery in Houston.
Alleged survival
Following his death, Hughes was subject to several widely rebuked conspiracy theories that he had faked his own death. A notable allegation came from retired Major General Mark Musick, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, who claimed Hughes went on to live under an assumed identity, dying on November 15, 2001, in Troy, Alabama.
Estate
Approximately three weeks after Hughes's death, a handwritten will was found on the desk of an official of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah. The so-called "Mormon Will" gave $1.56 billion to various charitable organizations (including $625 million to the Howard Hughes Medical Institute), nearly $470 million to the upper management in Hughes's companies and to his aides, $156 million to first cousin William Lummis, and $156 million split equally between his two ex-wives Ella Rice and Jean Peters.
A further $156 million was endowed to a gas-station owner, Melvin Dummar, who told reporters that in 1967, he found a disheveled and dirty man lying along U.S. Route 95, just north of Las Vegas. The man asked for a ride to Vegas. Dropping him off at the Sands Hotel, Dummar said the man told him that he was Hughes. Dummar later claimed that days after Hughes's death a "mysterious man" appeared at his gas station, leaving an envelope containing the will on his desk. Unsure if the will was genuine and unsure of what to do, Dummar left the will at the LDS Church office. In 1978, a Nevada court ruled the Mormon Will a forgery and officially declared that Hughes had died intestate (without a valid will). Dummar's story was later adapted into Jonathan Demme's film Melvin and Howard in 1980.
Hughes's $2.5 billion estate was eventually split in 1983 among 22 cousins, including William Lummis, who serves as a trustee of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The Supreme Court of the United States ruled that Hughes Aircraft was owned by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, which sold it to General Motors in 1985 for $5.2 billion. The court rejected suits by the states of California and Texas that claimed they were owed inheritance tax.
In 1984, Hughes's estate paid an undisclosed amount to Terry Moore, who claimed she and Hughes had secretly married on a yacht in international waters off Mexico in 1949 and never divorced. Moore never produced proof of a marriage, but her book, The Beauty and the Billionaire, became a bestseller.
Awards
Harmon Trophy (1936 and 1938)
Collier Trophy (1938)
Congressional Gold Medal (1939)
Octave Chanute Award (1940)
National Aviation Hall of Fame (1973)
International Air & Space Hall of Fame (1987)
Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (2018)
Archive
The moving image collection of Howard Hughes is held at the Academy Film Archive. The collection consists of over 200 items including 35mm and 16mm elements of feature films, documentaries, and television programs made or accumulated by Hughes.
Filmography
In popular culture
Film
In The Carpetbaggers (1964), the main character Jonas Cord (played by George Peppard) is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever (1971) features a tall, Texan, reclusive billionaire character named Willard Whyte (played by Jimmy Dean) who operates his business empire from the penthouse of a Las Vegas hotel. Although he appears only late in the film, his habitual seclusion and his control of a major aerospace contracting firm are key elements of the movie's plot. Several sequences were actually filmed on location at The Landmark Hotel and Casino, which was owned by Hughes at the time.
The Amazing Howard Hughes is a 1977 American made-for-television biographical film which aired as a mini-series on the CBS network, made a year after Hughes's death and based on Noah Dietrich's book Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. Tommy Lee Jones plays Hughes.
Melvin and Howard (1980), directed by Jonathan Demme and starring Jason Robards as Howard Hughes and Paul Le Mat as Melvin Dummar. The film won Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay (Bo Goldman) and Best Supporting Actress (Mary Steenburgen). The film focuses on Melvin Dummar's claims of meeting Hughes in the Nevada desert and subsequent estate battles over his inclusion in Hughes's will. Critic Pauline Kael called the film "an almost flawless act of sympathetic imagination".
In Tucker: The Man and His Dream, (1988), Hughes (played by Dean Stockwell) figures in the plot by telling Preston Tucker to source steel and engines for Tucker's automobiles from a helicopter manufacturer in New York. Scene occurs in a hangar with the Hercules.
In The Rocketeer, a 1991 American period superhero film from Walt Disney Pictures, the title character attracts the attention of Howard Hughes (played by Terry O'Quinn) and the FBI, who are hunting for a missing jet pack, as well as Nazi operatives.
"Howard Hughes Documentary", broadcast in 1992 as an episode of the Time Machine documentary series, was introduced by Peter Graves, later released by A&E Home Video.
In Conspiracy Theory (1997), the character Jerry Fletcher (played by Mel Gibson) mentions one of his theories to a street vendor by saying, "Did you know that the whole Vietnam War was fought over a bet that Howard Hughes lost to Aristotle Onassis?" referring to his (Fletcher's) thoughts on the politics of that conflict.
In The Aviator (2004), directed by Martin Scorsese, Hughes is portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio. The film focuses on Hughes's personal life from the making of Hell's Angels through his successful flight of the Hercules or Spruce Goose. Critically acclaimed, it was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, winning five for Best Cinematography; Best Film Editing; Best Costume Design; Best Art Direction; and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Cate Blanchett.
Howard Hughes: The Real Aviator documentary was broadcast in 2004 and went on to win the Grand Festival Award for Best Documentary at the 2004 Berkeley Video & Film Festival.
In the 2005 animated film Robots, the character Mr Bigweld (voiced by Mel Brooks), a reclusive inventor and owner of Bigweld Industries, is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The American Aviator: The Howard Hughes Story was broadcast in 2006 on the Biography Channel. It was later released to home media as a DVD with a copy of the full-length film The Outlaw starring Jane Russell.
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), as a plot-related prequel to Iron Man 2 (2010), in which Howard Stark (played by Dominic Cooper), father of Tony Stark (Iron Man), showed his inventions of future technology, clearly embodying Hughes's persona and enthusiasm. His subsequent appearances in the TV series Marvel's Agent Carter further this persona, as well as depicting him as sharing the real Hughes's reputation as a womanizer. Stan Lee has noted that Tony, who shared several of these traits himself, was based on Hughes.
Rules Don't Apply (2016), written and directed by Warren Beatty, features Beatty as Hughes from 1958 through 1964.
In the Dark Knight Trilogy, director Christopher Nolan's characterisation of Bruce Wayne is heavily inspired by Hughes's perceived lifestyle – from a playboy in Batman Begins to a recluse in The Dark Knight Rises. Nolan is reported to have integrated his original material intended for a shelved Hughes biopic into the trilogy.
Games
The character of Andrew Ryan in the 2007 video game BioShock is loosely based on Hughes. Ryan is a billionaire industrialist in post-World War II America who, seeking to avoid governments, religions, and other "parasitic" influences, ordered the secret construction of an underwater city, Rapture. Years later, when Ryan's vision for Rapture falls into dystopia, he hides himself away and uses armies of mutated humans, "Splicers", to defend himself and fight against those trying to take over his city, including the player-character.
In L.A. Noire, Hughes makes an appearance presenting his Hercules H-4 aircraft in the game opening scene. The H-4 is later a central plot piece of DLC Arson Case, "Nicholson Electroplating".
In Fallout: New Vegas, the character of Robert Edwin House, a wealthy business magnate and entrepreneur who owns the New Vegas strip, is based on Howard Hughes and closely resembles him in appearance, personality and background. A portrait of Mr. House can also be found in the game which strongly resembles a portrait of Howard Hughes standing in front of a Boeing Army Pursuit Plane.
Literature
Stan Lee repeatedly stated he created the Marvel Comics character Iron Man's civilian persona, Tony Stark, drawing inspiration from Howard Hughes's colorful lifestyle and personality. Additionally, the first name of Stark's father is Howard.
Hughes is a supporting character in all three parts of James Ellroy's Underworld USA Trilogy, employing several of the protagonists as private investigators, bagmen, and consultants in his attempt to assume control of Las Vegas. Referred to behind his back as "Count Dracula" (due to his reclusiveness and rumored obsession with blood transfusions from Mormon donors), Hughes is portrayed as a spoiled, racist, opioid-addicted megalomaniac whose grandiose plans for Las Vegas are undermined by the manipulations of the Chicago Outfit.
In the 1981 novel Dream Park by Larry Niven and Steven Barnes, the weapon "which might have defeated the Japs if it hadn't come so late" is revealed to be the Spruce Goose, which had been magically hijacked on its test flight by evil Foré sorcerers in New Guinea. Hughes's skeleton is found at the controls, identified by Hughes's trademark fedora and cloth-and-leather jacket.
Music
The 1974 song "Workin' at the Car Wash Blues" by Jim Croce compares the main protagonist of the song to Howard Hughes in one of the lyrics.
The 1974 song "The Wall Street Shuffle" by English rock band 10cc directly references Hughes and his ways of life in the last verse.
The song "Me and Howard Hughes" by Irish band The Boomtown Rats on their 1978 album A Tonic for the Troops is about the title subject.
The song "Closet Chronicles" by American rock band Kansas on their 1977 album Point of Know Return is a Howard Hughes allegory.
The song "Ain't No Fun (Waiting 'Round To Be a Millionaire)" by AC/DC on their 1976 album "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" singer Bon Scott referenced Howard Hughes toward the end of the song: "Hey, hello Howard, how you doin', my next door neighbour? Oh, yea... Get your fuckin' jumbo jet off my airport"
Hughes's name is mentioned in the title and the lyrics of the 2002 song "Bargain Basement Howard Hughes" by Jerry Cantrell.
The 2012 song "Nancy From Now On" by American songwriter Father John Misty likens Hughes's destructive and erratic tendencies to the singer's own.
Television
In The Greatest American Hero Season 2 episode 3, "Don't Mess Around with Jim," Ralph and Bill are kidnapped by a reclusive tycoon, owner of Beck Air airplane company, who fakes his own death, and seems to know more about the suit than they do. He then blackmails them into retrieving his will to prevent it from being misused by the president of his company.
In The Simpsons Season 5 episode "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)", Mr. Burns resembles Hughes in his recluse state. Various nods to his life appear in the episode, ranging from casino ownership and penthouse office to the "Spruce Goose" being renamed "Spruce Moose" as well as a lack of hygiene and being a germaphobe.
In The Beverly Hillbillies episode, "The Clampett-Hewes Empire", Jed Clampett, while in Hooterville, decides to merge his interests with a man Mr. Drysdale believes is Howard Hughes, the famous reclusive billionaire. Eventually it turns out, to Mr. Drysdale's chagrin, "Howard Hughes" is no billionaire; he is nothing but a plain old farmer named "Howard Hewes" (H-E-W-E-S).
In the Invader Zim episode, "Germs," the alien Zim becomes paranoid after discovering that Earth is covered in germs. Referencing Howard Hughes, he isolates himself in his home and dons tissue boxes on his feet.
In the Superjail! episode "The Superjail! Six", The Warden repeatedly watches a film called Ice Station Jailpup which parodies Hughes's obsession with the film Ice Station Zebra
See also
Analgesic nephropathy
List of richest Americans in history
List of wealthiest historical figures
List of aviation pioneers
List of entrepreneurs
Phenacetin
References
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
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Moore, Terry and Jerry Rivers. The Passions of Howard Hughes. Los Angeles: General Publishing Group, 1996. .
Parker, Dana T. Building Victory: Aircraft Manufacturing in the Los Angeles Area in World War II, Cypress, California: Dana T. Parker Books, 2013. .
Phelan, James. Howard Hughes: The Hidden Years. New York, Random House, 1976. .
Real, Jack. The Asylum of Howard Hughes. Philadelphia: Xlibris Corporation, 2003. .
Thomas, Bob. Liberace: The True Story. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1987. .
Tierney, Gene with Mickey Herskowitz. Self-Portrait. New York: Peter Wyden, 1979. lSBN 0-883261-52-9.
Weaver, Tom. Science Fiction and Fantasy Film Flashbacks: Conversations with 24 Actors, Writers, Producers and Directors from the Golden Age. New York: McFarland & Company, 2004. .
External links
AZORIAN The Raising of the K-129 / 2009 – 2 Part TV Documentary / Michael White Films Vienna
Welcome Home Howard: Collection of photographs kept by UNLV
A history of the remarkable achievements of Howard Hughes
FBI file on Howard Hughes
Exclutive Biography of Howard R. Hughes Jr.
Biography in the National Aviation Hall of Fame
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Watergate scandal | true | [
"The 2014 Hirakud boat disaster was an accident that occurred on 9 February 2014 in the reservoir of the Hirakud Dam in the Indian state of Odisha. The incident occurred when a boat carrying about 115 passengers on board capsized in the reservoir. The disaster killed 31 people.\n\nAccident\nThe accident occurred near the Pitapali area inside the reservoir at around 4:30 PM when a large group of picnickers were returning in an overcrowded motor boat. As per eyewitnesses, the motorboat became snagged, water overflowed the gunwale, and it capsized. The passengers tried to bale out the water unsuccessfully. Many of the passengers also jumped off the boat in panic. It was later noted the boat did not have basic safety measures.\n\nRescue\nFirefighters and units of the ODRAF were deployed for rescue operations. A six-member scuba diving rescue team also aided in rescue operations.\n\nReferences\n\n2014 disasters in India\nTransport disasters in India\nSambalpur district\n2010s in Odisha\nMaritime incidents in India\nDeaths due to shipwreck\nAccidental deaths in India\nFebruary 2014 events in India\nDisasters in Odisha",
"The boat dock at the Black Country Living Museum was built in 1976, like many boat docks in the region its buildings are made out of recycled boat timbers from derelict wooden boats. The thousands of boats that used to work the Black Country canals all needed constant maintenance.\n\nIn this area there were many working boat yards, or docks, like this one, where boats were built and repaired. They were busy, cluttered places not unlike a modern scrap yard as it was common practice to break wooden boats, salvaging the ironwork.\n\nCastlefields boat dock is typical of the many on the Black Country canal system of the period and is equipped to build new working craft and to repair those of iron or composite construction. The dock can accommodate three boats, drawn sideways out of the water by winches onto the slip. There are a number of different buildings on the boat dock each serving a specific purpose.\n\nStructures\n\nBased on an 1880s design the blacksmith shop would have wrought all the supplies needed for boat repair such as specialist nails and bolts and the L shaped boat 'knees' used to reinforce the boat structure. Some blacksmiths may have made horseshoes for the canals working horses.\n\nNext to the blacksmiths shop is a series of sheds, the first is made out of the bottom of a recycled boat (see picture). The sheds consist of a nail store and a rivet store which includes a carpenters bench and cast iron stove. At the end of the row is a paint store which would have held all the essentials used in boat painting like red lead, pigments and varnishes. There is also a tackle store with a corrugated roof which would have housed lifting tackle and other boat handling equipment.\n\nThe boat dock also featured a toilet (earth closet) and a stable to house the working horses. Horses provided \"hosmuck an' tar\" (manure and tar) that was used to seal the wooden boats.\n\nReferences\n\nBlack Country Living Museum"
]
|
[
"Howard Hughes",
"H-4 Hercules",
"What is the H-4 hercules?",
"HK-1 Hercules flying boat",
"What was the use of the flying boat?",
"use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable",
"How much did the hercules cost to make?",
"I don't know.",
"Was the hercules used for many missions?",
"The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947.",
"Did the boat have many critics?",
"Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled,"
]
| C_3fad173257b34869985c7b64812d1528_0 | Did hughes win this battle? | 6 | Did Howard Hughes win the H-4 Hercules battle? | Howard Hughes | The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The project was opposed by the military services, thinking it would siphon resources from higher priority programs, but was advocated by Hughes' powerful allies in Washington, D.C. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II. The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at 319 feet 11 inches (97.51 m), had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next largest wingspan was about 310 ft (94 m)). (The Hercules is no longer the longest or heaviest aircraft ever built; both of those titles are currently held by the Antonov An-225 Mriya.) The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947. The Hercules was nicknamed the Spruce Goose by its critics, but it was actually made largely from birch, not spruce, rather than of aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes' Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the F-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it is now part of the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum. On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes' paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules. CANNOTANSWER | Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. | Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, investor, record-setting pilot, engineer, film director, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and financially successful individuals in the world. He first became prominent as a film producer, and then as an important figure in the aviation industry. Later in life, he became known for his eccentric behavior and reclusive lifestyle—oddities that were caused in part by his worsening obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), chronic pain from a near-fatal plane crash, and increasing deafness.
As a film tycoon, Hughes gained fame in Hollywood beginning in the late 1920s, when he produced big-budget and often controversial films such as The Racket (1928), Hell's Angels (1930), and Scarface (1932). He later took over the RKO Pictures film studio in 1948, recognized then as one of the Big Five studios of Hollywood's Golden Age, although the production company struggled under his control and ultimately ceased operations in 1957.
Through his interest in aviation and aerospace travel, Hughes formed the Hughes Aircraft Company in 1932, hiring numerous engineers, designers, and defense contractors. He spent the rest of the 1930s and much of the 1940s setting multiple world air speed records and building the Hughes H-1 Racer (1935) and H-4 Hercules (the Spruce Goose, 1947), the latter being the largest flying boat in history and having the longest wingspan of any aircraft from the time it was built until 2019. He acquired and expanded Trans World Airlines and later acquired Air West, renaming it Hughes Airwest. Hughes won the Harmon Trophy on two occasions (1936 and 1938), the Collier Trophy (1938), and the Congressional Gold Medal (1939) all for his achievements in aviation throughout the 1930s. He was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1973 and was included in Flying magazine's 2013 list of the 51 Heroes of Aviation, ranked at 25.
During the 1960s and early 1970s, Hughes extended his financial empire to include several major businesses in Las Vegas, such as real estate, hotels, casinos, and media outlets. Known at the time as one of the most powerful men in the state of Nevada, he is largely credited with transforming Vegas into a more refined cosmopolitan city.
After years of mental and physical decline, Hughes died of kidney failure in 1976, at the age of 70. Today, his legacy is maintained through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Howard Hughes Corporation.
Early life
Howard Robard Hughes Jr. was the son of Allene Stone Gano (1883–1922) and of Howard R. Hughes Sr. (1869–1924), a successful inventor and businessman from Missouri. He had English, Welsh and some French Huguenot ancestry, and was a descendant of John Gano (1727–1804), the minister who allegedly baptized George Washington. His father patented (1909) the two-cone roller bit, which allowed rotary drilling for petroleum in previously inaccessible places. The senior Hughes made the shrewd and lucrative decision to commercialize the invention by leasing the bits instead of selling them, obtained several early patents, and founded the Hughes Tool Company in 1909. Hughes's uncle was the famed novelist, screenwriter, and film-director Rupert Hughes.
A 1941 affidavit birth certificate of Hughes, signed by his aunt Annette Gano Lummis and by Estelle Boughton Sharp, states that he was born on December 24, 1905, in Harris County, Texas. However, his certificate of baptism, recorded on October 7, 1906, in the parish register of St. John's Episcopal Church in Keokuk, Iowa, listed his date of birth as September 24, 1905, without any reference to the place of birth.
At a young age, Hughes showed interest in science and technology. In particular, he had great engineering aptitude and built Houston's first "wireless" radio transmitter at age 11. He went on to be one of the first licensed ham-radio operators in Houston, having the assigned callsign W5CY (originally 5CY). At 12, Hughes was photographed in the local newspaper, identified as the first boy in Houston to have a "motorized" bicycle, which he had built from parts from his father's steam engine. He was an indifferent student, with a liking for mathematics, flying, and mechanics. He took his first flying lesson at 14, and attended Fessenden School in Massachusetts in 1921.
After a brief stint at The Thacher School, Hughes attended math and aeronautical engineering courses at Caltech. The red-brick house where Hughes lived as a teenager at 3921 Yoakum Blvd., Houston, still stands, now known as Hughes House on the grounds of the University of St. Thomas.
His mother Allene died in March 1922 from complications of an ectopic pregnancy. Howard Hughes Sr. died of a heart attack in 1924. Their deaths apparently inspired Hughes to include the establishment of a medical research laboratory in the will that he signed in 1925 at age 19. Howard Sr.'s will had not been updated since Allene's death, and Hughes inherited 75% of the family fortune. On his 19th birthday, Hughes was declared an emancipated minor, enabling him to take full control of his life.
From a young age, Hughes became a proficient and enthusiastic golfer. He often scored near-par figures, played the game to a two-three handicap during his 20s, and for a time aimed for a professional golf career. He golfed frequently with top players, including Gene Sarazen. Hughes rarely played competitively and gradually gave up his passion for the sport to pursue other interests. Hughes played golf every afternoon at LA courses including the Lakeside Golf Club, Wilshire Country Club, or the Bel-Air Country Club. Partners included George Von Elm or Ozzie Carlton. After Hughes hurt himself in the late 1920s, his golfing tapered off, and after his F-11 crash, Hughes was unable to play at all.
Hughes withdrew from Rice University shortly after his father's death. On June 1, 1925, he married Ella Botts Rice, daughter of David Rice and Martha Lawson Botts of Houston, and great-niece of William Marsh Rice, for whom Rice University was named. They moved to Los Angeles, where he hoped to make a name for himself as a filmmaker.
They moved into the Ambassador Hotel, and Hughes proceeded to learn to fly a Waco, while simultaneously producing his first motion picture, Swell Hogan.
Business career
Hughes enjoyed a highly successful business career beyond engineering, aviation, and filmmaking; many of his career endeavors involved varying entrepreneurial roles.
Entertainment
Ralph Graves persuaded Hughes to finance a short film, Swell Hogan, which Graves had written and would star in. Hughes himself produced it. However, it was a disaster. After hiring a film editor to try to salvage it, he finally ordered that it be destroyed. His next two films, Everybody's Acting (1926) and Two Arabian Knights (1927), achieved financial success; the latter won the first Academy Award for Best Director of a comedy picture. The Racket (1928) and The Front Page (1931) were also nominated for Academy Awards.
Hughes spent $3.5 million to make the flying film Hell's Angels (1930). Hell's Angels received one Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography.
He produced another hit, Scarface (1932), a production delayed by censors' concern over its violence.
The Outlaw premiered in 1943, but was not released nationally until 1946. The film featured Jane Russell, who received considerable attention from industry censors, this time owing to her revealing costumes.
RKO
From the 1940s to the late 1950s, the Hughes Tool Company ventured into the film industry when it obtained partial ownership of the RKO companies, which included RKO Pictures, RKO Studios, a chain of movie theaters known as RKO Theatres and a network of radio stations known as the RKO Radio Network.
In 1948, Hughes gained control of RKO, a struggling major Hollywood studio, by acquiring the 929,000 shares owned by Floyd Odlum's Atlas Corporation, for $8,825,000. Within weeks of acquiring the studio, Hughes dismissed 700 employees. Production dwindled to 9 pictures during the first year of Hughes's control; previously RKO had averaged 30 per year.
Production shut down for six months, during which time Hughes ordered investigations of each employee who remained with RKO as far as their political leanings were concerned. Only after ensuring that the stars under contract to RKO had no suspect affiliations would Hughes approve completed pictures to be sent back for re-shooting. This was especially true of the women under contract to RKO at that time. If Hughes felt that his stars did not properly represent the political views of his liking or if a film's anti-communist politics were not sufficiently clear, he pulled the plug. In 1952, an abortive sale to a Chicago-based group connected to the mafia with no experience in the industry disrupted studio operations at RKO even further.
In 1953, Hughes became involved with a high-profile lawsuit as part of the settlement of the United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc. Antitrust Case. As a result of the hearings, the shaky status of RKO became increasingly apparent. A steady stream of lawsuits from RKO's minority shareholders had grown to become extremely annoying to Hughes. They had accused him of financial misconduct and corporate mismanagement. Since Hughes wanted to focus primarily on his aircraft manufacturing and TWA holdings during the years of the Korean War of 1950 to 1953, Hughes offered to buy out all other stockholders in order to dispense with their distractions.
By the end of 1954, Hughes had gained near-total control of RKO at a cost of nearly $24 million, becoming the first sole owner of a major Hollywood studio since the silent-film era. Six months later Hughes sold the studio to the General Tire and Rubber Company for $25 million. Hughes retained the rights to pictures that he had personally produced, including those made at RKO. He also retained Jane Russell's contract. For Howard Hughes, this was the virtual end of his 25-year involvement in the motion-picture industry. However, his reputation as a financial wizard emerged unscathed. During that time period, RKO became known as the home of classic film noir productions, thanks in part to the limited budgets required to make such films during Hughes's tenure. Hughes reportedly walked away from RKO having made $6.5 million in personal profit. According to Noah Dietrich, Hughes made a $10,000,000 profit from the sale of the theaters and made a profit of $1,000,000 from his 7-year ownership of RKO.
Real estate
According to Noah Dietrich, "Land became a principal asset for the Hughes empire". Hughes acquired 1200 acres in Culver City for Hughes Aircraft, bought 7 sections [4,480 acres] in Tucson for his Falcon missile-plant, and purchased 25,000 acres near Las Vegas. In 1968, the Hughes Tool Company purchased the North Las Vegas Air Terminal.
Originally known as Summa Corporation, the Howard Hughes Corporation formed in 1972 when the oil-tools business of Hughes Tool Company, then owned by Howard Hughes Jr., floated on the New York Stock Exchange under the "Hughes Tool" name. This forced the remaining businesses of the "original" Hughes Tool to adopt a new corporate name: "Summa". The name "Summa"Latin for "highest"was adopted without the approval of Hughes himself, who preferred to keep his own name on the business, and suggested "HRH Properties" (for Hughes Resorts and Hotels, and also his own initials). In 1988 Summa announced plans for Summerlin, a master-planned community named for the paternal grandmother of Howard Hughes, Jean Amelia Summerlin.
Initially staying in the Desert Inn, Hughes refused to vacate his room, and instead decided to purchase the entire hotel. Hughes extended his financial empire to include Las Vegas real estate, hotels, and media outlets, spending an estimated $300 million, and using his considerable powers to take over many of the well-known hotels, especially the venues connected with organized crime. He quickly became one of the most powerful men in Las Vegas. He was instrumental in changing the image of Las Vegas from its Wild West roots into a more refined cosmopolitan city. In addition to the Desert Inn, Hughes would eventually own the Sands, Frontier, Silver Slipper, Castaways and Landmark and Harold's Club in Reno. Hughes would eventually become the largest employer in Nevada.
Aviation and aerospace
Another portion of Hughes's commercial interests involved aviation, airlines, and the aerospace and defense industries. A lifelong aircraft enthusiast and pilot, Hughes survived four airplane accidents: one in a Thomas-Morse Scout while filming Hell's Angels, one while setting the airspeed record in the Hughes Racer, one at Lake Mead in 1943, and the near-fatal crash of the Hughes XF-11 in 1946. At Rogers Airport in Los Angeles, he learned to fly from pioneer aviators, including Moye Stephens and J.B. Alexander. He set many world records and commissioned the construction of custom aircraft for himself while heading Hughes Aircraft at the airport in Glendale, CA. Operating from there, the most technologically important aircraft he commissioned was the Hughes H-1 Racer. On September 13, 1935, Hughes, flying the H-1, set the landplane airspeed record of over his test course near Santa Ana, California (Giuseppe Motta reaching 362 mph in 1929 and George Stainforth reached 407.5 mph in 1931, both in seaplanes). This marked the last time in history that an aircraft built by a private individual set the world airspeed record. A year and a half later, on January 19, 1937, flying the same H-1 Racer fitted with longer wings, Hughes set a new transcontinental airspeed record by flying non-stop from Los Angeles to Newark in seven hours, 28 minutes, and 25 seconds (beating his own previous record of nine hours, 27 minutes). His average ground-speed over the flight was .
The H-1 Racer featured a number of design innovations: it had retractable landing gear (as Boeing Monomail had five years before), and all rivets and joints set flush into the body of the aircraft to reduce drag. The H-1 Racer is thought to have influenced the design of a number of World War II fighters such as the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, Focke-Wulf Fw 190, and F8F Bearcat, although that has never been reliably confirmed. In 1975 the H-1 Racer was donated to the Smithsonian.
Round-the-world flight
On July 14, 1938, Hughes set another record by completing a flight around the world in just 91 hours (three days, 19 hours, 17 minutes), beating the previous record of 186 hours (7 days, 18 hours, 49 minutes) set in 1933 by Wiley Post in a single-engine Lockheed Vega by almost four days. Hughes returned home ahead of photographs of his flight. Taking off from New York City, Hughes continued to Paris, Moscow, Omsk, Yakutsk, Fairbanks, and Minneapolis, then returning to New York City. For this flight he flew a Lockheed 14 Super Electra (NX18973, a twin-engine transport with a four-man crew) fitted with the latest radio and navigational equipment. Harry Connor was the co-pilot, Thomas Thurlow the navigator, Richard Stoddart the engineer, and Ed Lund the mechanic. Hughes wanted the flight to be a triumph of American aviation technology, illustrating that safe, long-distance air travel was possible. Albert Lodwick of Mystic, Iowa, provided organizational skills as the flight operations manager. While Hughes had previously been relatively obscure despite his wealth, being better known for dating Katharine Hepburn, New York City now gave him a ticker-tape parade in the Canyon of Heroes. Hughes and his crew were awarded the 1938 Collier Trophy for flying around the world in record time. He was awarded the Harmon Trophy in 1936 and 1938 for the record-breaking global circumnavigation.
In 1938 the William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas—known at the time as Houston Municipal Airport—was renamed after Hughes, but the name was changed back due to public outrage over naming the airport after a living person.
Hughes also had a role in the design and financing of both the Boeing 307 Stratoliner and Lockheed L-049 Constellation.
Other aviator awards include: the Bibesco Cup of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in 1938, the Octave Chanute Award in 1940, and a special Congressional Gold Medal in 1939 "in recognition of the achievements of Howard Hughes in advancing the science of aviation and thus bringing great credit to his country throughout the world".
President Harry S. Truman sent the Congressional medal to Hughes after the F-11 crash. After his around-the-world flight, Hughes had declined to go to the White House to collect it.
Hughes D-2 and XF-11
The Hughes D-2 was conceived in 1939 as a bomber with five crew members, powered by 42-cylinder Wright R-2160 Tornado engines. In the end, it appeared as two-seat fighter-reconnaissance aircraft designated the D-2A, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-2800-49 engines. The aircraft was constructed using the Duramold process. The prototype was brought to Harper's Dry Lake in California in great secrecy in 1943 and first flew on June 20 of that year. Acting on a recommendation of the president's son, Colonel Elliott Roosevelt, who had become friends with Hughes, in September 1943 the USAAF ordered 100 of a reconnaissance development of the D-2, known as the F-11. Hughes then attempted to get the military to pay for the development of the D-2. In November 1944, the hangar containing the D-2A was reportedly hit by lightning and the aircraft was destroyed. The D-2 design was abandoned but led to the extremely controversial Hughes XF-11. The XF-11 was a large, all-metal, two-seat reconnaissance aircraft, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-4360-31 engines, each driving a set of contra-rotating propellers. Only two prototypes were completed; the second one with a single propeller per side.
Fatal crash of the Sikorsky S-43
In the spring of 1943 Hughes spent nearly a month in Las Vegas, test-flying his Sikorsky S-43 amphibious aircraft, practising touch-and-go landings on Lake Mead in preparation for flying the H-4 Hercules. The weather conditions at the lake during the day were ideal and he enjoyed Las Vegas at night. On May 17, 1943, Hughes flew the Sikorsky from California, carrying two CAA aviation inspectors, two of his employees, and actress Ava Gardner. Hughes dropped Gardner off in Las Vegas and proceeded to Lake Mead to conduct qualifying tests in the S-43. The test flight did not go well. The Sikorsky crashed into Lake Mead, killing CAA inspector Ceco Cline and Hughes's employee Richard Felt. Hughes suffered a severe gash on the top of his head when he hit the upper control panel and had to be rescued by one of the others on board. Hughes paid divers $100,000 to raise the aircraft and later spent more than $500,000 restoring it. Hughes sent the plane to Houston, where it remained for many years.
Near-fatal crash of the XF-11
Hughes was involved in another near-fatal aircraft accident on July 7, 1946, while performing the first flight of the prototype U.S. Army Air Forces reconnaissance aircraft, the XF-11, near Hughes airfield at Culver City, California. An oil leak caused one of the contra-rotating propellers to reverse pitch, causing the aircraft to yaw sharply and lose altitude rapidly. Hughes attempted to save the aircraft by landing it at the Los Angeles Country Club golf course, but just seconds before reaching the course, the XF-11 started to drop dramatically and crashed in the Beverly Hills neighborhood surrounding the country club.
When the XF-11 finally came to a halt after destroying three houses, the fuel tanks exploded, setting fire to the aircraft and a nearby home at 808 North Whittier Drive owned by Lt Col. Charles E. Meyer. Hughes managed to pull himself out of the flaming wreckage but lay beside the aircraft until rescued by Marine Master Sgt. William L. Durkin, who happened to be in the area visiting friends. Hughes sustained significant injuries in the crash, including a crushed collar bone, multiple cracked ribs, crushed chest with collapsed left lung, shifting his heart to the right side of the chest cavity, and numerous third-degree burns. An oft-told story said that Hughes sent a check to the Marine weekly for the remainder of his life as a sign of gratitude. Noah Dietrich asserted that Hughes did send Durkin $200 a month, but Durkin's daughter denied knowing that he received any money from Hughes.
Despite his physical injuries, Hughes took pride that his mind was still working. As he lay in his hospital bed, he decided that he did not like the bed's design. He called in plant engineers to design a customized bed, equipped with hot and cold running water, built in six sections, and operated by 30 electric motors, with push-button adjustments. Hughes designed the hospital bed specifically to alleviate the pain caused by moving with severe burn injuries. Although he never used the bed that he designed, Hughes's bed served as a prototype for the modern hospital bed. Hughes's doctors considered his recovery almost miraculous.
Many attribute his long-term dependence on opiates to his use of codeine as a painkiller during his convalescence. Yet Dietrich asserts that Hughes recovered the "hard way—no sleeping pills, no opiates of any kind". The trademark mustache he wore afterward hid a scar on his upper lip resulting from the accident.
H-4 Hercules
The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The military services opposed the project, thinking it would siphon resources from higher-priority programs, but Hughes's powerful allies in Washington, D.C., advocated for it. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II.
The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at , had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next-largest wingspan was about ). (The Hercules is no longer the longest nor heaviest aircraft ever built - surpassed by the Antonov An-225 Mriya produced in 1985.)
The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947.
Critics nicknamed the Hercules the Spruce Goose, but it was actually made largely from birch (not spruce) rather than from aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes's Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the XF-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly-disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense-acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it features at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum.
On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes's paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio-technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules.
Hughes Aircraft
In 1932 Hughes founded the Hughes Aircraft Company, a division of Hughes Tool Company, in a rented corner of a Lockheed Aircraft Corporation hangar in Burbank, California, to build the H-1 racer.
Shortly after founding the company, Hughes used the alias "Charles Howard" to accept a job as a baggage handler for American Airlines. He was soon promoted to co-pilot.
Hughes continued to work for American Airlines until his real identity was discovered.
During and after World War II Hughes fashioned his company into a major defense contractor. The Hughes Helicopters division started in 1947 when helicopter manufacturer Kellett sold their latest design to Hughes for production. Hughes Aircraft became a major American aerospace- and defense contractor, manufacturing numerous technology-related products that included spacecraft vehicles, military aircraft, radar systems, electro-optical systems, the first working laser, aircraft computer systems, missile systems, ion-propulsion engines (for space travel), commercial satellites, and other electronics systems.
In 1948 Hughes created a new division of Hughes Aircraft: the Hughes Aerospace Group. The Hughes Space and Communications Group and the Hughes Space Systems Division were later spun off in 1948 to form their own divisions and ultimately became the Hughes Space and Communications Company in 1961. In 1953 Howard Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the newly formed Howard Hughes Medical Institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a tax-exempt charitable organization. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion. In 1997 General Motors sold Hughes Aircraft to Raytheon and in 2000, sold Hughes Space & Communications to Boeing. A combination of Boeing, GM, and Raytheon acquired the Hughes Research Laboratories, which focused on advanced developments in microelectronics, information & systems sciences, materials, sensors, and photonics; their work-space spans from basic research to product delivery. It has particularly emphasized capabilities in high-performance integrated circuits, high-power lasers, antennas, networking, and smart materials.
Airlines
In 1939, at the urging of Jack Frye, president of Transcontinental & Western Airlines, the predecessor of Trans World Airlines (TWA), Hughes began to quietly purchase a majority share of TWA stock; he took a controlling interest in the airline by 1944. Although he never had an official position with TWA, Hughes handpicked the board of directors, which included Noah Dietrich, and often issued orders directly to airline staff. Hughes Tool Co. purchased the first six Stratoliners Boeing manufactured. Hughes used one personally, and he let TWA operate the other five.
Hughes is commonly credited as the driving force behind the Lockheed Constellation airliner, which Hughes and Frye ordered in 1939 as a long-range replacement for TWA's fleet of Boeing 307 Stratoliners. Hughes personally financed TWA's acquisition of 40 Constellations for $18 million, the largest aircraft order in history up to that time. The Constellations were among the highest-performing commercial aircraft of the late 1940s and 1950s and allowed TWA to pioneer nonstop transcontinental service. During World War II Hughes leveraged political connections in Washington to obtain rights for TWA to serve Europe, making it the only U.S. carrier with a combination of domestic and transatlantic routes.
After the announcement of the Boeing 707, Hughes opted to pursue a more advanced jet aircraft for TWA and approached Convair in late 1954. Convair proposed two concepts to Hughes, but Hughes was unable to decide which concept to adopt, and Convair eventually abandoned its initial jet project after the mockups of the 707 and Douglas DC-8 were unveiled. Even after competitors such as United Airlines, American Airlines and Pan American World Airways had placed large orders for the 707, Hughes only placed eight orders for 707s through the Hughes Tool Company and forbade TWA from using the aircraft. After finally beginning to reserve 707 orders in 1956, Hughes embarked on a plan to build his own "superior" jet aircraft for TWA, applied for CAB permission to sell Hughes aircraft to TWA, and began negotiations with the state of Florida to build a manufacturing plant there. However, he abandoned this plan around 1958, and in the interim, negotiated new contracts for 707 and Convair 880 aircraft and engines totaling $400 million.
The financing of TWA's jet orders precipitated the end of Hughes's relationship with Noah Dietrich, and ultimately Hughes's ouster from control of TWA. Hughes did not have enough cash on hand or future cash flow to pay for the orders and did not immediately seek bank financing. Hughes's refusal to heed Dietrich's financing advice led to a major rift between the two by the end of 1956. Hughes believed that Dietrich wished to have Hughes committed as mentally incompetent, although the evidence of this is inconclusive. Dietrich resigned by telephone in May 1957 after repeated requests for stock options, which Hughes refused to grant, and with no further progress on the jet financing. As Hughes's mental state worsened, he ordered various tactics to delay payments to Boeing and Convair; his behavior led TWA's banks to insist that he be removed from management as a condition for further financing.
In 1960, Hughes was ultimately forced out of the management of TWA, although he continued to own 78% of the company. In 1961, TWA filed suit against Hughes Tool Company, claiming that the latter had violated antitrust law by using TWA as a captive market for aircraft trading. The claim was largely dependent upon obtaining testimony from Hughes himself. Hughes went into hiding and refused to testify. A default judgment was issued against Hughes Tool Company for $135 million in 1963 but was overturned by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1973, on the basis that Hughes was immune from prosecution. In 1966, Hughes was forced to sell his TWA shares. The sale of his TWA shares brought Hughes $546,549,771.
Hughes acquired control of Boston-based Northeast Airlines in 1962. However, the airline's lucrative route authority between major northeastern cities and Miami was terminated by a CAB decision around the time of the acquisition, and Hughes sold control of the company to a trustee in 1964. Northeast went on to merge with Delta Air Lines in 1972.
In 1970, Hughes acquired San Francisco-based Air West and renamed it Hughes Airwest. Air West had been formed in 1968 by the merger of Bonanza Air Lines, Pacific Air Lines, and West Coast Airlines, all of which operated in the western U.S. By the late 1970s, Hughes Airwest operated an all-jet fleet of Boeing 727-200, Douglas DC-9-10, and McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 jetliners serving an extensive route network in the western U.S. with flights to Mexico and western Canada as well. By 1980, the airline's route system reached as far east as Houston (Hobby Airport) and Milwaukee with a total of 42 destinations being served. Hughes Airwest was then acquired by and merged into Republic Airlines (1979–1986) in late 1980. Republic was subsequently acquired by and merged into Northwest Airlines which in turn was ultimately merged into Delta Air Lines in 2008.
Business with David Charnay
Hughes had made numerous business partnerships through industrialist and producer David Charnay. Their friendship and many partnerships began with the film The Conqueror, which was first released to the public in 1956. The film caused many controversies due to its critical flop and radioactive location used in St. George, Utah, that eventually led to Hughes buying up nearly every copy of the film he could, only to watch the film at home repeatedly for many nights in a row.
Charnay later bought Four Star, the film and television production company that produced The Conqueror.
Hughes and Charnay's most published dealings were with a contested AirWest leveraged buyout. Charnay led the buyout group that involved Howard Hughes and their partners acquiring Air West. Hughes, Charnay, as well as three others, were indicted. The indictment, made by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton, accused the group of conspiring to drive down the stock price of Air West in order to pressure company directors to sell to Hughes. The charges were dismissed after a judge had determined that the indictment had failed to allege an illegal action on the part of Hughes, Charnay, and all the other accused in the indictment. Thompson, the federal judge that made the decision to dismiss the charges called the indictment one of the worst claims that he had ever seen. The charges were filed again, a second time, by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton's assistant, Dean Vernon. The Federal Judge ruled on November 13, 1974, and elaborated to say that the case suggested a "reprehensible misuse of the power of great wealth", but in his judicial opinion, "no crime had been committed." The aftermath of the Air West deal was later settled with the SEC by paying former stockholders for alleged losses from the sale of their investment in Air West stock. As noted above, Air West was subsequently renamed Hughes Airwest. During a long pause between the years of the dismissed charges against Hughes, Charnay, and their partners, Howard Hughes mysteriously died mid-flight while on the way to Houston from Acapulco. No further attempts were made to file any indictments after Hughes died.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
In 1953, Hughes launched the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Miami, Florida, (currently located in Chevy Chase, Maryland) with the expressed goal of basic biomedical research, including trying to understand, in Hughes's words, the "genesis of life itself", due to his lifelong interest in science and technology. Hughes's first will, which he signed in 1925 at the age of 19, stipulated that a portion of his estate should be used to create a medical institute bearing his name. When a major battle with the IRS loomed ahead, Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a for-profit entity of a fully tax-exempt charity. Hughes's internist, Verne Mason, who treated Hughes after his 1946 aircraft crash, was chairman of the institute's medical advisory committee. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute's new board of trustees sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion, allowing the institute to grow dramatically.
In 1954, Hughes transferred Hughes Aircraft to the foundation, which paid Hughes Tool Co. $18,000,000 for the assets. The foundation leased the land from Hughes Tool Co., which then subleased it to Hughes Aircraft Corp. The difference in rent, $2,000,000 per year, became the foundation's working capital.
The deal was the topic of a protracted legal battle between Hughes and the Internal Revenue Service, which Hughes ultimately won. After his death in 1976, many thought that the balance of Hughes's estate would go to the institute, although it was ultimately divided among his cousins and other heirs, given the lack of a will to the contrary. The HHMI was the fourth largest private organization and one of the largest devoted to biological and medical research, with an endowment of $20.4 billion .
Glomar Explorer and the taking of K-129
In 1972, during the cold war era, Hughes was approached by the CIA through his longtime partner, David Charnay, to help secretly recover the Soviet submarine K-129, which had sunk near Hawaii four years earlier. Hughes's involvement provided the CIA with a plausible cover story, conducting expensive civilian marine research at extreme depths and the mining of undersea manganese nodules. The recovery plan used the special-purpose salvage vessel Glomar Explorer. In the summer of 1974, Glomar Explorer attempted to raise the Soviet vessel. However, during the recovery a mechanical failure in the ship's grapple caused half of the submarine to break off and fall to the ocean floor. This section is believed to have held many of the most sought-after items, including its code book and nuclear missiles. Two nuclear-tipped torpedoes and some cryptographic machines were recovered, along with the bodies of six Soviet submariners who were subsequently given formal burial at sea in a filmed ceremony. The operation, known as Project Azorian (but incorrectly referred to by the press as Project Jennifer), became public in February 1975 after secret documents were released, obtained by burglars of Hughes's headquarters in June 1974. Although he lent his name and his company's resources to the operation, Hughes and his companies had no operational involvement in the project. The Glomar Explorer was eventually acquired by Transocean and was sent to the scrap yard in 2015 during a large decline in oil prices.
Personal life
Early romances
In 1929, Hughes's wife of four years, Ella, returned to Houston and filed for divorce.
Hughes dated many famous women, including Joan Crawford, Billie Dove, Faith Domergue, Bette Davis, Yvonne De Carlo, Ava Gardner, Olivia de Havilland, Katharine Hepburn, Hedy Lamarr, Ginger Rogers, Janet Leigh, Pat Sheehan, Mamie Van Doren and Gene Tierney. He also proposed to Joan Fontaine several times, according to her autobiography No Bed of Roses. Jean Harlow accompanied him to the premiere of Hell's Angels, but Noah Dietrich wrote many years later that the relationship was strictly professional, as Hughes disliked Harlow personally. In his 1971 book, Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes, Dietrich said that Hughes genuinely liked and respected Jane Russell, but never sought romantic involvement with her. According to Russell's autobiography, however, Hughes once tried to bed her after a party. Russell (who was married at the time) refused him, and Hughes promised it would never happen again. The two maintained a professional and private friendship for many years. Hughes remained good friends with Tierney who, after his failed attempts to seduce her, was quoted as saying "I don't think Howard could love anything that did not have a motor in it". Later, when Tierney's daughter Daria was born deaf and blind and with a severe learning disability because of Tierney's exposure to rubella during her pregnancy, Hughes saw to it that Daria received the best medical care and paid all expenses.
Luxury yacht
In 1933, Hughes made a purchase of a luxury steam yacht named the Rover, which was previously owned by Scottish shipping magnate Lord Inchcape. "I have never seen the Rover but bought it on the blueprints, photographs and the reports of Lloyd's surveyors. My experience is that the English are the most honest race in the world." Hughes renamed the yacht Southern Cross and later sold her to Swedish entrepreneur Axel Wenner-Gren.
1936 automobile accident
On July 11, 1936, Hughes struck and killed a pedestrian named Gabriel S. Meyer with his car at the corner of 3rd Street and Lorraine in Los Angeles. After the crash, Hughes was taken to the hospital and certified as sober, but an attending doctor made a note that Hughes had been drinking. A witness to the crash told police that Hughes was driving erratically and too fast and that Meyer had been standing in the safety zone of a streetcar stop. Hughes was booked on suspicion of negligent homicide and held overnight in jail until his attorney, Neil S. McCarthy, obtained a writ of habeas corpus for his release pending a coroner's inquest. By the time of the coroner's inquiry, however, the witness had changed his story and claimed that Meyer had moved directly in front of Hughes's car. Nancy Bayly (Watts), who was in the car with Hughes at the time of the crash, corroborated this version of the story. On July 16, 1936, Hughes was held blameless by a coroner's jury at the inquest into Meyer's death. Hughes told reporters outside the inquiry, "I was driving slowly and a man stepped out of the darkness in front of me".
Marriage to Jean Peters
On January 12, 1957, Hughes married actress Jean Peters at a small hotel in Tonopah, Nevada. The couple met in the 1940s, before Peters became a film actress. They had a highly publicized romance in 1947 and there was talk of marriage, but she said she could not combine it with her career. Some later claimed that Peters was "the only woman [Hughes] ever loved", and he reportedly had his security officers follow her everywhere even when they were not in a relationship. Such reports were confirmed by actor Max Showalter, who became a close friend of Peters while shooting Niagara (1953). Showalter told an interviewer that because he frequently met with Peters, Hughes's men threatened to ruin his career if he did not leave her alone.
Connections to Richard Nixon and Watergate
Shortly before the 1960 Presidential election, Richard Nixon was alarmed when it was revealed that his brother, Donald, received a $205,000 loan from Hughes. It has long been speculated that Nixon's drive to learn what the Democrats were planning in 1972 was based in part on his belief that the Democrats knew about a later bribe that his friend Bebe Rebozo had received from Hughes after Nixon took office.
In late 1971, Donald Nixon was collecting intelligence for his brother in preparation for the upcoming presidential election. One of his sources was John H. Meier, a former business adviser of Hughes who had also worked with Democratic National Committee Chairman Larry O'Brien.
Meier, in collaboration with former Vice President Hubert Humphrey and others, wanted to feed misinformation to the Nixon campaign. Meier told Donald that he was sure the Democrats would win the election because Larry O'Brien had a great deal of information on Richard Nixon's illicit dealings with Howard Hughes that had never been released; O'Brien did not actually have any such information, but Meier wanted Nixon to think that he did. Donald told his brother that O'Brien was in possession of damaging Hughes information that could destroy his campaign. Terry Lenzner, who was the chief investigator for the Senate Watergate Committee, speculates that it was Nixon's desire to know what O'Brien knew about Nixon's dealings with Hughes that may have partially motivated the Watergate break-in.
Last years and death
Physical and mental decline
Hughes was widely considered eccentric and to have suffered with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
Dietrich wrote that Hughes always ate the same thing for dinner, a New York strip steak cooked medium rare, dinner salad, and peas, but only the smaller ones, pushing the larger ones aside. For breakfast, Hughes wanted his eggs cooked the way his family cook, Lily, made them. Hughes had a "phobia about germs", and "his passion for secrecy became a mania."
While directing The Outlaw, Hughes became fixated on a small flaw in one of Jane Russell's blouses, claiming that the fabric bunched up along a seam and gave the appearance of two nipples on each breast. He wrote a detailed memorandum to the crew on how to fix the problem. Richard Fleischer, who directed His Kind of Woman with Hughes as executive producer, wrote at length in his autobiography about the difficulty of dealing with the tycoon. In his book, Just Tell Me When to Cry, Fleischer explained that Hughes was fixated on trivial details and was alternately indecisive and obstinate. He also revealed that Hughes's unpredictable mood swings made him wonder if the film would ever be completed.
In 1958, Hughes told his aides that he wanted to screen some movies at a film studio near his home. He stayed in the studio's darkened screening room for more than four months, never leaving. He ate only chocolate bars and chicken and drank only milk, and was surrounded by dozens of Kleenex that he continuously stacked and re-arranged. He wrote detailed memos to his aides giving them explicit instructions neither to look at him nor speak to him unless spoken to. Throughout this period, Hughes sat fixated in his chair, often naked, continually watching movies. When he finally emerged in the summer of 1958, his hygiene was terrible. He had neither bathed nor cut his hair and nails for weeks; this may have been due to allodynia, which results in a pain response to stimuli that would normally not cause pain.
After the screening room incident, Hughes moved into a bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel where he also rented rooms for his aides, his wife, and numerous girlfriends. He would sit naked in his bedroom with a pink hotel napkin placed over his genitals, watching movies. This may have been because Hughes found the touch of clothing painful due to allodynia. He may have watched movies to distract himself from his pain—a common practice among patients with intractable pain, especially those who do not receive adequate treatment. In one year, Hughes spent an estimated $11 million at the hotel.
Hughes began purchasing restaurant chains and four-star hotels that had been founded within the state of Texas. This included, if for only a short period, many unknown franchises currently out of business. He placed ownership of the restaurants with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and all licenses were resold shortly after.
Another time, he became obsessed with the 1968 film Ice Station Zebra, and had it run on a continuous loop in his home. According to his aides, he watched it 150 times. Feeling guilty about the commercial, critical, and rumored toxicity of his film The Conqueror, he bought every copy of the film for $12 million, watching the film on repeat. Paramount Pictures acquired the rights of the film in 1979, three years after his death.
Hughes insisted on using tissues to pick up objects to insulate himself from germs. He would also notice dust, stains, or other imperfections on people's clothes and demand that they take care of them. Once one of the most visible men in America, Hughes ultimately vanished from public view, although tabloids continued to follow rumors of his behavior and whereabouts. He was reported to be terminally ill, mentally unstable, or even dead.
Injuries from numerous aircraft crashes caused Hughes to spend much of his later life in pain, and he eventually became addicted to codeine, which he injected intramuscularly. Hughes had his hair cut and nails trimmed only once a year, likely due to the pain caused by the RSD/CRPS, which was caused by the plane crashes. He also stored his urine in bottles.
Later years in Las Vegas
The wealthy and aging Hughes, accompanied by his entourage of personal aides, began moving from one hotel to another, always taking up residence in the top floor penthouse. In the last ten years of his life, 1966 to 1976, Hughes lived in hotels in many cities—including Beverly Hills, Boston, Las Vegas, Nassau, Freeport and Vancouver.
On November 24, 1966 (Thanksgiving Day), Hughes arrived in Las Vegas by railroad car and moved into the Desert Inn. Because he refused to leave the hotel and to avoid further conflicts with the owners, Hughes bought the Desert Inn in early 1967. The hotel's eighth floor became the nerve center of Hughes's empire and the ninth-floor penthouse became his personal residence. Between 1966 and 1968, he bought several other hotel-casinos, including the Castaways, New Frontier, the Landmark Hotel and Casino, and the Sands. He bought the small Silver Slipper casino for the sole purpose of moving its trademark neon silver slipper, which was visible from his bedroom, and had apparently kept him awake at night.
After Hughes left the Desert Inn, hotel employees discovered that his drapes had not been opened during the time he lived there and had rotted through.
Hughes wanted to change the image of Las Vegas to something more glamorous. He wrote in a memo to an aide, "I like to think of Las Vegas in terms of a well-dressed man in a dinner jacket and a beautifully jeweled and furred female getting out of an expensive car." Hughes bought several local television stations (including KLAS-TV).
Eventually the brain trauma from Hughes's previous accidents, the effects of neurosyphilis diagnosed in 1932 and (undiagnosed) Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder considerably affected his decision-making. A small panel, unofficially dubbed "The Mormon Mafia" because of the many Latter-day Saints on the committee, was led by Frank William Gay and originally served Hughes's "secret police" headquartered at 9000 Romaine. Over the next two decades, however, this group oversaw and controlled considerable business holdings, with the CIA anointing Gay while awarding a contract to the Hughes corporation to acquire sensitive information on a sunken Russian submarine. In addition to supervising day-to-day business operations and Hughes's health, they also went to great pains to satisfy Hughes's every whim. For example, Hughes once became fond of Baskin-Robbins' banana nut ice cream, so his aides sought to secure a bulk shipment for him, only to discover that Baskin-Robbins had discontinued the flavor. They put in a request for the smallest amount the company could provide for a special order, 350 gallons (1,300 L), and had it shipped from Los Angeles. A few days after the order arrived, Hughes announced he was tired of banana nut and wanted only French vanilla ice cream. The Desert Inn ended up distributing free banana nut ice cream to casino customers for a year. In a 1996 interview, ex–Howard Hughes Chief of Nevada Operations Robert Maheu said, "There is a rumor that there is still some banana nut ice cream left in the freezer. It is most likely true."
As an owner of several major Las Vegas businesses, Hughes wielded much political and economic influence in Nevada and elsewhere. During the 1960s and early 1970s, he disapproved of underground nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site. Hughes was concerned about the risk from residual nuclear radiation and attempted to halt the tests. When the tests finally went through despite Hughes's efforts, the detonations were powerful enough that the entire hotel in which he was living trembled from the shock waves. In two separate, last-ditch maneuvers, Hughes instructed his representatives to offer bribes of $1m to both Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon.
In 1970, Jean Peters filed for divorce. The two had not lived together for many years. Peters requested a lifetime alimony payment of $70,000 a year, adjusted for inflation, and waived all claims to Hughes's estate. Hughes offered her a settlement of over a million dollars, but she declined it. Hughes did not insist on a confidentiality agreement from Peters as a condition of the divorce. Aides reported that Hughes never spoke ill of her. She refused to discuss her life with Hughes and declined several lucrative offers from publishers and biographers. Peters would state only that she had not seen Hughes for several years before their divorce and had dealt with him only by phone.
Hughes was living in the Intercontinental Hotel near Lake Managua in Nicaragua, seeking privacy and security, when a magnitude 6.5 earthquake damaged Managua in December 1972. As a precaution, Hughes moved to a rather large tent facing the hotel; after a few days, he moved to the Nicaraguan National Palace and stayed there as a guest of Anastasio Somoza Debayle before leaving for Florida on a private jet the following day. He subsequently moved into the Penthouse at the Xanadu Princess Resort on Grand Bahama Island, which he had recently purchased. He lived almost exclusively in the penthouse of the Xanadu Beach Resort & Marina for the last four years of his life.
Hughes spent a total of $300 million on his many properties in Las Vegas.
Autobiography hoax
In 1972, author Clifford Irving caused a media sensation when he claimed he had co-written an authorized Hughes autobiography. Irving claimed he and Hughes had corresponded through the United States mail, and offered as proof handwritten notes allegedly sent by Hughes. Publisher McGraw-Hill, Inc. was duped into believing the manuscript was authentic. Hughes was so reclusive that he did not immediately publicly refute Irving's statement, leading many to believe that Irving's book was genuine. However, before the book's publication, Hughes finally denounced Irving in a teleconference attended by reporters Hughes knew personally: James Bacon of the Hearst papers, Marin Miles of the Los Angeles Times, Vernon Scott of UPI, Roy Neal of NBC News, Gene Handsaker of AP, Wayne Thomas of the Chicago Tribune, and Gladwin Hill of the New York Times.
The entire hoax finally unraveled. The United States Postal Inspection Service got a subpoena to force Irving to turn over samples of his handwriting. The USPS investigation led to Irving's indictment and subsequent conviction for using the postal service to commit fraud. He was incarcerated for 17 months. In 1974, the Orson Welles film F for Fake included a section on the Hughes autobiography hoax, leaving a question open as to whether it was actually Hughes who took part in the teleconference (since so few people had actually heard or seen him in recent years). In 1977, The Hoax by Clifford Irving was published in the United Kingdom, telling his story of these events. The 2006 film The Hoax, starring Richard Gere, is also based on these events.
Death
Hughes is reported to have died on April 5, 1976, at 1:27 p.m. on board an aircraft, Learjet 24B N855W, owned by Robert Graf and piloted by Jeff Abrams. He was en route from his penthouse at the Acapulco Princess Hotel (now the Fairmont Acapulco Princess) in Mexico to the Methodist Hospital in Houston.
His reclusiveness and possibly his drug use made him practically unrecognizable. His hair, beard, fingernails, and toenails were long—his tall frame now weighed barely , and the FBI had to use fingerprints to conclusively identify the body. Howard Hughes's alias, John T. Conover, was used when his body arrived at a morgue in Houston on the day of his death.
An autopsy recorded kidney failure as the cause of death. In an eighteen-month study investigating Hughes' drug abuse for the estate, it was found "someone administered a deadly injection of the painkiller to this comatose man... obviously needlessly and almost certainly fatal". He suffered from malnutrition and was covered in bedsores. While his kidneys were damaged, his other internal organs, including his brain, which had no visible damage or illnesses, were deemed perfectly healthy. X-rays revealed five broken-off hypodermic needles in the flesh of his arms. To inject codeine into his muscles, Hughes had used glass syringes with metal needles that easily became detached.
Hughes is buried next to his parents at Glenwood Cemetery in Houston.
Alleged survival
Following his death, Hughes was subject to several widely rebuked conspiracy theories that he had faked his own death. A notable allegation came from retired Major General Mark Musick, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, who claimed Hughes went on to live under an assumed identity, dying on November 15, 2001, in Troy, Alabama.
Estate
Approximately three weeks after Hughes's death, a handwritten will was found on the desk of an official of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah. The so-called "Mormon Will" gave $1.56 billion to various charitable organizations (including $625 million to the Howard Hughes Medical Institute), nearly $470 million to the upper management in Hughes's companies and to his aides, $156 million to first cousin William Lummis, and $156 million split equally between his two ex-wives Ella Rice and Jean Peters.
A further $156 million was endowed to a gas-station owner, Melvin Dummar, who told reporters that in 1967, he found a disheveled and dirty man lying along U.S. Route 95, just north of Las Vegas. The man asked for a ride to Vegas. Dropping him off at the Sands Hotel, Dummar said the man told him that he was Hughes. Dummar later claimed that days after Hughes's death a "mysterious man" appeared at his gas station, leaving an envelope containing the will on his desk. Unsure if the will was genuine and unsure of what to do, Dummar left the will at the LDS Church office. In 1978, a Nevada court ruled the Mormon Will a forgery and officially declared that Hughes had died intestate (without a valid will). Dummar's story was later adapted into Jonathan Demme's film Melvin and Howard in 1980.
Hughes's $2.5 billion estate was eventually split in 1983 among 22 cousins, including William Lummis, who serves as a trustee of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The Supreme Court of the United States ruled that Hughes Aircraft was owned by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, which sold it to General Motors in 1985 for $5.2 billion. The court rejected suits by the states of California and Texas that claimed they were owed inheritance tax.
In 1984, Hughes's estate paid an undisclosed amount to Terry Moore, who claimed she and Hughes had secretly married on a yacht in international waters off Mexico in 1949 and never divorced. Moore never produced proof of a marriage, but her book, The Beauty and the Billionaire, became a bestseller.
Awards
Harmon Trophy (1936 and 1938)
Collier Trophy (1938)
Congressional Gold Medal (1939)
Octave Chanute Award (1940)
National Aviation Hall of Fame (1973)
International Air & Space Hall of Fame (1987)
Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (2018)
Archive
The moving image collection of Howard Hughes is held at the Academy Film Archive. The collection consists of over 200 items including 35mm and 16mm elements of feature films, documentaries, and television programs made or accumulated by Hughes.
Filmography
In popular culture
Film
In The Carpetbaggers (1964), the main character Jonas Cord (played by George Peppard) is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever (1971) features a tall, Texan, reclusive billionaire character named Willard Whyte (played by Jimmy Dean) who operates his business empire from the penthouse of a Las Vegas hotel. Although he appears only late in the film, his habitual seclusion and his control of a major aerospace contracting firm are key elements of the movie's plot. Several sequences were actually filmed on location at The Landmark Hotel and Casino, which was owned by Hughes at the time.
The Amazing Howard Hughes is a 1977 American made-for-television biographical film which aired as a mini-series on the CBS network, made a year after Hughes's death and based on Noah Dietrich's book Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. Tommy Lee Jones plays Hughes.
Melvin and Howard (1980), directed by Jonathan Demme and starring Jason Robards as Howard Hughes and Paul Le Mat as Melvin Dummar. The film won Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay (Bo Goldman) and Best Supporting Actress (Mary Steenburgen). The film focuses on Melvin Dummar's claims of meeting Hughes in the Nevada desert and subsequent estate battles over his inclusion in Hughes's will. Critic Pauline Kael called the film "an almost flawless act of sympathetic imagination".
In Tucker: The Man and His Dream, (1988), Hughes (played by Dean Stockwell) figures in the plot by telling Preston Tucker to source steel and engines for Tucker's automobiles from a helicopter manufacturer in New York. Scene occurs in a hangar with the Hercules.
In The Rocketeer, a 1991 American period superhero film from Walt Disney Pictures, the title character attracts the attention of Howard Hughes (played by Terry O'Quinn) and the FBI, who are hunting for a missing jet pack, as well as Nazi operatives.
"Howard Hughes Documentary", broadcast in 1992 as an episode of the Time Machine documentary series, was introduced by Peter Graves, later released by A&E Home Video.
In Conspiracy Theory (1997), the character Jerry Fletcher (played by Mel Gibson) mentions one of his theories to a street vendor by saying, "Did you know that the whole Vietnam War was fought over a bet that Howard Hughes lost to Aristotle Onassis?" referring to his (Fletcher's) thoughts on the politics of that conflict.
In The Aviator (2004), directed by Martin Scorsese, Hughes is portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio. The film focuses on Hughes's personal life from the making of Hell's Angels through his successful flight of the Hercules or Spruce Goose. Critically acclaimed, it was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, winning five for Best Cinematography; Best Film Editing; Best Costume Design; Best Art Direction; and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Cate Blanchett.
Howard Hughes: The Real Aviator documentary was broadcast in 2004 and went on to win the Grand Festival Award for Best Documentary at the 2004 Berkeley Video & Film Festival.
In the 2005 animated film Robots, the character Mr Bigweld (voiced by Mel Brooks), a reclusive inventor and owner of Bigweld Industries, is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The American Aviator: The Howard Hughes Story was broadcast in 2006 on the Biography Channel. It was later released to home media as a DVD with a copy of the full-length film The Outlaw starring Jane Russell.
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), as a plot-related prequel to Iron Man 2 (2010), in which Howard Stark (played by Dominic Cooper), father of Tony Stark (Iron Man), showed his inventions of future technology, clearly embodying Hughes's persona and enthusiasm. His subsequent appearances in the TV series Marvel's Agent Carter further this persona, as well as depicting him as sharing the real Hughes's reputation as a womanizer. Stan Lee has noted that Tony, who shared several of these traits himself, was based on Hughes.
Rules Don't Apply (2016), written and directed by Warren Beatty, features Beatty as Hughes from 1958 through 1964.
In the Dark Knight Trilogy, director Christopher Nolan's characterisation of Bruce Wayne is heavily inspired by Hughes's perceived lifestyle – from a playboy in Batman Begins to a recluse in The Dark Knight Rises. Nolan is reported to have integrated his original material intended for a shelved Hughes biopic into the trilogy.
Games
The character of Andrew Ryan in the 2007 video game BioShock is loosely based on Hughes. Ryan is a billionaire industrialist in post-World War II America who, seeking to avoid governments, religions, and other "parasitic" influences, ordered the secret construction of an underwater city, Rapture. Years later, when Ryan's vision for Rapture falls into dystopia, he hides himself away and uses armies of mutated humans, "Splicers", to defend himself and fight against those trying to take over his city, including the player-character.
In L.A. Noire, Hughes makes an appearance presenting his Hercules H-4 aircraft in the game opening scene. The H-4 is later a central plot piece of DLC Arson Case, "Nicholson Electroplating".
In Fallout: New Vegas, the character of Robert Edwin House, a wealthy business magnate and entrepreneur who owns the New Vegas strip, is based on Howard Hughes and closely resembles him in appearance, personality and background. A portrait of Mr. House can also be found in the game which strongly resembles a portrait of Howard Hughes standing in front of a Boeing Army Pursuit Plane.
Literature
Stan Lee repeatedly stated he created the Marvel Comics character Iron Man's civilian persona, Tony Stark, drawing inspiration from Howard Hughes's colorful lifestyle and personality. Additionally, the first name of Stark's father is Howard.
Hughes is a supporting character in all three parts of James Ellroy's Underworld USA Trilogy, employing several of the protagonists as private investigators, bagmen, and consultants in his attempt to assume control of Las Vegas. Referred to behind his back as "Count Dracula" (due to his reclusiveness and rumored obsession with blood transfusions from Mormon donors), Hughes is portrayed as a spoiled, racist, opioid-addicted megalomaniac whose grandiose plans for Las Vegas are undermined by the manipulations of the Chicago Outfit.
In the 1981 novel Dream Park by Larry Niven and Steven Barnes, the weapon "which might have defeated the Japs if it hadn't come so late" is revealed to be the Spruce Goose, which had been magically hijacked on its test flight by evil Foré sorcerers in New Guinea. Hughes's skeleton is found at the controls, identified by Hughes's trademark fedora and cloth-and-leather jacket.
Music
The 1974 song "Workin' at the Car Wash Blues" by Jim Croce compares the main protagonist of the song to Howard Hughes in one of the lyrics.
The 1974 song "The Wall Street Shuffle" by English rock band 10cc directly references Hughes and his ways of life in the last verse.
The song "Me and Howard Hughes" by Irish band The Boomtown Rats on their 1978 album A Tonic for the Troops is about the title subject.
The song "Closet Chronicles" by American rock band Kansas on their 1977 album Point of Know Return is a Howard Hughes allegory.
The song "Ain't No Fun (Waiting 'Round To Be a Millionaire)" by AC/DC on their 1976 album "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" singer Bon Scott referenced Howard Hughes toward the end of the song: "Hey, hello Howard, how you doin', my next door neighbour? Oh, yea... Get your fuckin' jumbo jet off my airport"
Hughes's name is mentioned in the title and the lyrics of the 2002 song "Bargain Basement Howard Hughes" by Jerry Cantrell.
The 2012 song "Nancy From Now On" by American songwriter Father John Misty likens Hughes's destructive and erratic tendencies to the singer's own.
Television
In The Greatest American Hero Season 2 episode 3, "Don't Mess Around with Jim," Ralph and Bill are kidnapped by a reclusive tycoon, owner of Beck Air airplane company, who fakes his own death, and seems to know more about the suit than they do. He then blackmails them into retrieving his will to prevent it from being misused by the president of his company.
In The Simpsons Season 5 episode "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)", Mr. Burns resembles Hughes in his recluse state. Various nods to his life appear in the episode, ranging from casino ownership and penthouse office to the "Spruce Goose" being renamed "Spruce Moose" as well as a lack of hygiene and being a germaphobe.
In The Beverly Hillbillies episode, "The Clampett-Hewes Empire", Jed Clampett, while in Hooterville, decides to merge his interests with a man Mr. Drysdale believes is Howard Hughes, the famous reclusive billionaire. Eventually it turns out, to Mr. Drysdale's chagrin, "Howard Hughes" is no billionaire; he is nothing but a plain old farmer named "Howard Hewes" (H-E-W-E-S).
In the Invader Zim episode, "Germs," the alien Zim becomes paranoid after discovering that Earth is covered in germs. Referencing Howard Hughes, he isolates himself in his home and dons tissue boxes on his feet.
In the Superjail! episode "The Superjail! Six", The Warden repeatedly watches a film called Ice Station Jailpup which parodies Hughes's obsession with the film Ice Station Zebra
See also
Analgesic nephropathy
List of richest Americans in history
List of wealthiest historical figures
List of aviation pioneers
List of entrepreneurs
Phenacetin
References
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
Barkow, Al. Gettin' to the Dance Floor: An Oral History of American Golf. Short Hills, New Jersey: Burford Books, 1986. .
Barton, Charles. Howard Hughes and his Flying Boat. Fallbrook, CA: Aero Publishers, 1982. Republished in 1998, Vienna, VA: Charles Barton, Inc. .
Barlett, Donald L. and James B. Steele. Empire: The Life, Legend and Madness of Howard Hughes. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1979. , republished in 2004 as Howard Hughes: His Life and Madness.
Bellett, Gerald. Age of Secrets: The Conspiracy that Toppled Richard Nixon and the Hidden Death of Howard Hughes. Stillwater, Minnesota: Voyageur Press, 1995. .
Blackman, Tony Tony Blackman Test Pilot Grub Street, 2009,
Brown, Peter Harry and Pat H. Broeske. Howard Hughes: The Untold Story. New York: Penguin Books, 1996. .
Burleson, Clyde W. The Jennifer Project. College Station, Texas: Texas A&M University Press, 1997. .
Dietrich, Noah and Bob Thomas. Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. New York: Fawcett Publications, 1972. .
Drosnin, Michael. Citizen Hughes: In his Own Words, How Howard Hughes Tried to Buy America. Portland, Oregon: Broadway Books, 2004. .
Hack, Richard. Hughes: The Private Diaries, Memos and Letters: The Definitive Biography of the First American Billionaire. Beverly Hills, California: New Millennium Press, 2002. .
Herman, Arthur. Freedom's Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II. New York: Random House, 2012. .
Higham, Charles. Howard Hughes: The Secret Life, 1993.
Porter, Donald J., Howard's Whirlybirds: Howard Hughes' Amazing Pioneering Helicopter Exploits. Fonthill Media, 2013. (ISBN 978-1-78155-089)
Irving, Clifford. The Hoax. New York: E. Reads Ltd., 1999. .
Klepper, Michael and Michael Gunther. The Wealthy 100: From Benjamin Franklin to Bill Gates—A Ranking of the Richest Americans, Past and Present. Secaucus, New Jersey: Carol Publishing Group, 1996.
Marrett, George J. Howard Hughes: Aviator. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 2004. .
Kistler, Ron. I Caught Flies for Howard Hughes. Chicago: Playboy Press, 1976. .
Lasky, Betty. RKO: The Biggest Little Major of Them All, 2d ed . Santa Monica, California: Roundtable, 1989. .
Maheu, Robert and Richard Hack. Next to Hughes: Behind the Power and Tragic Downfall of Howard Hughes by his Closest Adviser. New York: Harper Collins, 1992. .
Moore, Terry. The Beauty and the Billionaire. New York: Pocket Books, 1984. .
Moore, Terry and Jerry Rivers. The Passions of Howard Hughes. Los Angeles: General Publishing Group, 1996. .
Parker, Dana T. Building Victory: Aircraft Manufacturing in the Los Angeles Area in World War II, Cypress, California: Dana T. Parker Books, 2013. .
Phelan, James. Howard Hughes: The Hidden Years. New York, Random House, 1976. .
Real, Jack. The Asylum of Howard Hughes. Philadelphia: Xlibris Corporation, 2003. .
Thomas, Bob. Liberace: The True Story. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1987. .
Tierney, Gene with Mickey Herskowitz. Self-Portrait. New York: Peter Wyden, 1979. lSBN 0-883261-52-9.
Weaver, Tom. Science Fiction and Fantasy Film Flashbacks: Conversations with 24 Actors, Writers, Producers and Directors from the Golden Age. New York: McFarland & Company, 2004. .
External links
AZORIAN The Raising of the K-129 / 2009 – 2 Part TV Documentary / Michael White Films Vienna
Welcome Home Howard: Collection of photographs kept by UNLV
A history of the remarkable achievements of Howard Hughes
FBI file on Howard Hughes
Exclutive Biography of Howard R. Hughes Jr.
Biography in the National Aviation Hall of Fame
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Watergate scandal | true | [
"Thomas Owen Hughes (October 7, 1919 – November 28, 1990) was an American professional baseball player. Born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, he was a right-handed pitcher who appeared in 144 games pitched in the Major Leagues from 1941–42 and 1946–48 for the Philadelphia Phillies and Cincinnati Reds. Hughes stood tall and weighed .\n\nDuring his rookie season, on June 3, 1941, Hughes threw a one-hit, 7–0 shutout against the Chicago Cubs, with Lou Novikoff getting the only safety. But his best season came in 1942, when he appeared in 40 games, 31 as a starting pitcher, and set a career high in wins (12) and innings pitched (253), and notched a low 3.06 earned run average. However, with a last-place Phillies team behind him, he lost 18 games, also a career high. Hughes then spent three full seasons (1943–1945) in the United States Army during World War II.\n\nPitching for second-division National League teams that never won more than 65 games in any of his five seasons, Hughes never recorded a .500 winning percentage in the Majors. In 144 games, 87 as a starter, and 688 innings pitched, he gave up 698 hits and 308 bases on balls, with 221 strikeouts, 31 complete games, and five shutouts.\n\nPro career\nHughes made his pro debut for the old Baltimore Orioles of the International League. Playing under the legendary Rogers Hornsby, Hughes did not earn a win and finished 0-2 after appearing in seven games at the age of nineteen. That season he also played for Dover of the Eastern Shore League. Playing on the D-League level, Hughes went 9-0 with a 1.80 ERA. The next season, he played the entire year with Baltimore, finishing with a 14-11 record. The next season he made the Orioles parent club, the Philadelphia Phillies. In his rookie season, Hughes went 9-14 with a 4.45 ERA. He earned his first major league victory on April 22, 1941. Coming in relief for starter Si Johnson, who'd pitched 11 innings, Hughes walked two batters and gave up one hit, and struck out one in just one inning of work. Hughes struggle a bit in his rookie season. He finished with nine wins, fourteen losses and an E.R.A. of 4.45. He bounced back with a strong outing in 1942. Hughes went 12-18, despite not recording his first win until May 10, a 4-3 win over the Boston Braves in which Hughes went the distance, giving up three runs on six hits in nine innings. It would be a month, June 16 to be exact, before Hughes earned his next win, a 3-2 win over the Cincinnati Reds, as Hughes out dueled Reds ace Johnny Vander Meer.\n\nHughes missed the next three seasons serving in the military during World War II, as did many major leaguers. In 1946, Hughes appeared in 29 games for the Phillies. Once again, Hughes lost his first several decisions before picking up his first win in June to put him at 1-6. When the season was over, Hughes was 6-9. In 1947, the pattern repeated for Hughes, losing his first several decisions, though he did earn a save in Philadelphia's 8-4 win over Cincinnati. On July 14, Hughes earned his final win as a member of the Philles, a 5-2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. Hughes went the distance, pitching all nine innings, giving up only six hits, and holding Cardinals stars like Enos Slaughter and Marty Marion hitless. Hughes struck out three and gave up a home run to Cardinals third baseman Whitey Kurowski\n\nAt the end of the 1947 season, the Phillies traded Hughes to the Cincinnari reds for journeyman utility player Bert Haas. Hughes' time in Cincinnati saw him not only go 0-4, but the Reds were 0-12 in games in which Hughes appeared. Hughes made his last major league appearance on July 14, 1948. He worked one inning and gave up five hits and allowed four runs. Starter Ken Peterson, who only last two innings, gave up five runs, as did Walker Cress, who relieved Hughes after Hughes' one inning of work. The Giants crushed the Reds 14-2.\n\nIn 1948, Hughes also pitched for the Syracuse Chiefs, the triple A affiliate of the Reds. He spent all of 1949 pitching for the Tulsa Oilers of the Texas League. Hughes was not re-signed by the Reds at the end of the year, ending his career as a baseball player.\n\nMilitary service and post-baseball life\nHughes enlisted in the military on December 19, 1942. During his military career, Hughes served as a Private, First Class (PFC for short). Based at the New Cumberland Reception Center, Hughes played for the camp's baseball team. he was the teams ace, earning wins over the stronger military teams. By the end of the season, Hughes was 14-3. He was assigned to Camp Siebert, located in Alabama. While stationed there, Hughes pitched for the military baseball team. In 1945, he was assigned to Camp Patrick Henry, located in Virginia. While keeping up with his military duties, Hughes found time to play for that camp's baseball squad as well.\n\nAfter his military service and baseball career were both over, Hughes returned home. He served as the director of baseball fields for the city of Wilkes-Barre. In 1953, he was a coach for the Eastern league's Wilkes-Barre Barons. He was active for a few games, but did not appear in any of them.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n1919 births\n1990 deaths\nBaltimore Orioles (IL) players\nBaseball players from Pennsylvania\nCincinnati Reds players\nDover Orioles players\nMajor League Baseball pitchers\nSportspeople from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania\nPhiladelphia Phillies players\nSyracuse Chiefs players\nTulsa Oilers (baseball) players\nWilkes-Barre Barons (baseball) players\nUnited States Army personnel of World War II",
"In 1817, during the First Seminole War, Fort Hughes was built on the south side of the Flint River in what is today Bainbridge, Georgia. It was on a bluff at the west end of today's J. D. Chason Memorial Park. Sovereignty over the land between the Flint River and today's border with Florida was an issue; the battle of nearby Fowltown, November 21–23, 1817, had been over this question. According to the U.S. Government, these lands had been ceded by the Lower Creek Indians in the Treaty of Fort Jackson, whereas the Upper Creeks, also known as Red Stick Creeks or Mikasuki, had not been party to the treaty, did not feel bound by it, and said the land did not belong to the Lower Creeks in the first place. The fort was intended to prevent further conflict in this region.\n\nThe Fort consisted of a stockade square, with two blockhouses at opposite corners, each square. It was named for the only American killed at the Battle of Fowltown, the young fifer Aaron Hughes, whose grave, while unlocated, is believed to be somewhere at the site. The fort site was chosen by Lt. Col. Arbuckle, who supervised its building, which, using 300 men, took three days. 40 men were left stationed at Fort Hughes after its construction was finished about November 27. A group of at least 32 Red Stick Creeks was led against it by Peter Cook, clerk at Arbuthnot's store, and former Colonial Marines lieutenant Robert Ambrister, and attacked it unsuccessfully sometime between December 7 and 15. The fort resisted the attack successfully. However, after the Scott Massacre of November 30, and the impossibility of resupplying the fort given the siege that began at the Battle of Ocheesee on December 15, Arbuckle ordered Fort Hughes evacuated and abandoned on December 18, 1817. It was never reoccupied.\n\nReferences\n\nHistory of Georgia (U.S. state)\nBuildings and structures in Decatur County, Georgia\nHughes\nNative American history of Georgia (U.S. state)\nBattles of the Seminole Wars\nHughes"
]
|
[
"Howard Hughes",
"H-4 Hercules",
"What is the H-4 hercules?",
"HK-1 Hercules flying boat",
"What was the use of the flying boat?",
"use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable",
"How much did the hercules cost to make?",
"I don't know.",
"Was the hercules used for many missions?",
"The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947.",
"Did the boat have many critics?",
"Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled,",
"Did hughes win this battle?",
"Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory."
]
| C_3fad173257b34869985c7b64812d1528_0 | Is there any other interesting aspects about the hercules? | 7 | Besides Howard Hughes' flying boat, is there any other interesting aspects about the Hercules? | Howard Hughes | The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The project was opposed by the military services, thinking it would siphon resources from higher priority programs, but was advocated by Hughes' powerful allies in Washington, D.C. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II. The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at 319 feet 11 inches (97.51 m), had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next largest wingspan was about 310 ft (94 m)). (The Hercules is no longer the longest or heaviest aircraft ever built; both of those titles are currently held by the Antonov An-225 Mriya.) The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947. The Hercules was nicknamed the Spruce Goose by its critics, but it was actually made largely from birch, not spruce, rather than of aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes' Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the F-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it is now part of the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum. On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes' paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules. CANNOTANSWER | On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum | Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, investor, record-setting pilot, engineer, film director, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and financially successful individuals in the world. He first became prominent as a film producer, and then as an important figure in the aviation industry. Later in life, he became known for his eccentric behavior and reclusive lifestyle—oddities that were caused in part by his worsening obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), chronic pain from a near-fatal plane crash, and increasing deafness.
As a film tycoon, Hughes gained fame in Hollywood beginning in the late 1920s, when he produced big-budget and often controversial films such as The Racket (1928), Hell's Angels (1930), and Scarface (1932). He later took over the RKO Pictures film studio in 1948, recognized then as one of the Big Five studios of Hollywood's Golden Age, although the production company struggled under his control and ultimately ceased operations in 1957.
Through his interest in aviation and aerospace travel, Hughes formed the Hughes Aircraft Company in 1932, hiring numerous engineers, designers, and defense contractors. He spent the rest of the 1930s and much of the 1940s setting multiple world air speed records and building the Hughes H-1 Racer (1935) and H-4 Hercules (the Spruce Goose, 1947), the latter being the largest flying boat in history and having the longest wingspan of any aircraft from the time it was built until 2019. He acquired and expanded Trans World Airlines and later acquired Air West, renaming it Hughes Airwest. Hughes won the Harmon Trophy on two occasions (1936 and 1938), the Collier Trophy (1938), and the Congressional Gold Medal (1939) all for his achievements in aviation throughout the 1930s. He was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1973 and was included in Flying magazine's 2013 list of the 51 Heroes of Aviation, ranked at 25.
During the 1960s and early 1970s, Hughes extended his financial empire to include several major businesses in Las Vegas, such as real estate, hotels, casinos, and media outlets. Known at the time as one of the most powerful men in the state of Nevada, he is largely credited with transforming Vegas into a more refined cosmopolitan city.
After years of mental and physical decline, Hughes died of kidney failure in 1976, at the age of 70. Today, his legacy is maintained through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Howard Hughes Corporation.
Early life
Howard Robard Hughes Jr. was the son of Allene Stone Gano (1883–1922) and of Howard R. Hughes Sr. (1869–1924), a successful inventor and businessman from Missouri. He had English, Welsh and some French Huguenot ancestry, and was a descendant of John Gano (1727–1804), the minister who allegedly baptized George Washington. His father patented (1909) the two-cone roller bit, which allowed rotary drilling for petroleum in previously inaccessible places. The senior Hughes made the shrewd and lucrative decision to commercialize the invention by leasing the bits instead of selling them, obtained several early patents, and founded the Hughes Tool Company in 1909. Hughes's uncle was the famed novelist, screenwriter, and film-director Rupert Hughes.
A 1941 affidavit birth certificate of Hughes, signed by his aunt Annette Gano Lummis and by Estelle Boughton Sharp, states that he was born on December 24, 1905, in Harris County, Texas. However, his certificate of baptism, recorded on October 7, 1906, in the parish register of St. John's Episcopal Church in Keokuk, Iowa, listed his date of birth as September 24, 1905, without any reference to the place of birth.
At a young age, Hughes showed interest in science and technology. In particular, he had great engineering aptitude and built Houston's first "wireless" radio transmitter at age 11. He went on to be one of the first licensed ham-radio operators in Houston, having the assigned callsign W5CY (originally 5CY). At 12, Hughes was photographed in the local newspaper, identified as the first boy in Houston to have a "motorized" bicycle, which he had built from parts from his father's steam engine. He was an indifferent student, with a liking for mathematics, flying, and mechanics. He took his first flying lesson at 14, and attended Fessenden School in Massachusetts in 1921.
After a brief stint at The Thacher School, Hughes attended math and aeronautical engineering courses at Caltech. The red-brick house where Hughes lived as a teenager at 3921 Yoakum Blvd., Houston, still stands, now known as Hughes House on the grounds of the University of St. Thomas.
His mother Allene died in March 1922 from complications of an ectopic pregnancy. Howard Hughes Sr. died of a heart attack in 1924. Their deaths apparently inspired Hughes to include the establishment of a medical research laboratory in the will that he signed in 1925 at age 19. Howard Sr.'s will had not been updated since Allene's death, and Hughes inherited 75% of the family fortune. On his 19th birthday, Hughes was declared an emancipated minor, enabling him to take full control of his life.
From a young age, Hughes became a proficient and enthusiastic golfer. He often scored near-par figures, played the game to a two-three handicap during his 20s, and for a time aimed for a professional golf career. He golfed frequently with top players, including Gene Sarazen. Hughes rarely played competitively and gradually gave up his passion for the sport to pursue other interests. Hughes played golf every afternoon at LA courses including the Lakeside Golf Club, Wilshire Country Club, or the Bel-Air Country Club. Partners included George Von Elm or Ozzie Carlton. After Hughes hurt himself in the late 1920s, his golfing tapered off, and after his F-11 crash, Hughes was unable to play at all.
Hughes withdrew from Rice University shortly after his father's death. On June 1, 1925, he married Ella Botts Rice, daughter of David Rice and Martha Lawson Botts of Houston, and great-niece of William Marsh Rice, for whom Rice University was named. They moved to Los Angeles, where he hoped to make a name for himself as a filmmaker.
They moved into the Ambassador Hotel, and Hughes proceeded to learn to fly a Waco, while simultaneously producing his first motion picture, Swell Hogan.
Business career
Hughes enjoyed a highly successful business career beyond engineering, aviation, and filmmaking; many of his career endeavors involved varying entrepreneurial roles.
Entertainment
Ralph Graves persuaded Hughes to finance a short film, Swell Hogan, which Graves had written and would star in. Hughes himself produced it. However, it was a disaster. After hiring a film editor to try to salvage it, he finally ordered that it be destroyed. His next two films, Everybody's Acting (1926) and Two Arabian Knights (1927), achieved financial success; the latter won the first Academy Award for Best Director of a comedy picture. The Racket (1928) and The Front Page (1931) were also nominated for Academy Awards.
Hughes spent $3.5 million to make the flying film Hell's Angels (1930). Hell's Angels received one Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography.
He produced another hit, Scarface (1932), a production delayed by censors' concern over its violence.
The Outlaw premiered in 1943, but was not released nationally until 1946. The film featured Jane Russell, who received considerable attention from industry censors, this time owing to her revealing costumes.
RKO
From the 1940s to the late 1950s, the Hughes Tool Company ventured into the film industry when it obtained partial ownership of the RKO companies, which included RKO Pictures, RKO Studios, a chain of movie theaters known as RKO Theatres and a network of radio stations known as the RKO Radio Network.
In 1948, Hughes gained control of RKO, a struggling major Hollywood studio, by acquiring the 929,000 shares owned by Floyd Odlum's Atlas Corporation, for $8,825,000. Within weeks of acquiring the studio, Hughes dismissed 700 employees. Production dwindled to 9 pictures during the first year of Hughes's control; previously RKO had averaged 30 per year.
Production shut down for six months, during which time Hughes ordered investigations of each employee who remained with RKO as far as their political leanings were concerned. Only after ensuring that the stars under contract to RKO had no suspect affiliations would Hughes approve completed pictures to be sent back for re-shooting. This was especially true of the women under contract to RKO at that time. If Hughes felt that his stars did not properly represent the political views of his liking or if a film's anti-communist politics were not sufficiently clear, he pulled the plug. In 1952, an abortive sale to a Chicago-based group connected to the mafia with no experience in the industry disrupted studio operations at RKO even further.
In 1953, Hughes became involved with a high-profile lawsuit as part of the settlement of the United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc. Antitrust Case. As a result of the hearings, the shaky status of RKO became increasingly apparent. A steady stream of lawsuits from RKO's minority shareholders had grown to become extremely annoying to Hughes. They had accused him of financial misconduct and corporate mismanagement. Since Hughes wanted to focus primarily on his aircraft manufacturing and TWA holdings during the years of the Korean War of 1950 to 1953, Hughes offered to buy out all other stockholders in order to dispense with their distractions.
By the end of 1954, Hughes had gained near-total control of RKO at a cost of nearly $24 million, becoming the first sole owner of a major Hollywood studio since the silent-film era. Six months later Hughes sold the studio to the General Tire and Rubber Company for $25 million. Hughes retained the rights to pictures that he had personally produced, including those made at RKO. He also retained Jane Russell's contract. For Howard Hughes, this was the virtual end of his 25-year involvement in the motion-picture industry. However, his reputation as a financial wizard emerged unscathed. During that time period, RKO became known as the home of classic film noir productions, thanks in part to the limited budgets required to make such films during Hughes's tenure. Hughes reportedly walked away from RKO having made $6.5 million in personal profit. According to Noah Dietrich, Hughes made a $10,000,000 profit from the sale of the theaters and made a profit of $1,000,000 from his 7-year ownership of RKO.
Real estate
According to Noah Dietrich, "Land became a principal asset for the Hughes empire". Hughes acquired 1200 acres in Culver City for Hughes Aircraft, bought 7 sections [4,480 acres] in Tucson for his Falcon missile-plant, and purchased 25,000 acres near Las Vegas. In 1968, the Hughes Tool Company purchased the North Las Vegas Air Terminal.
Originally known as Summa Corporation, the Howard Hughes Corporation formed in 1972 when the oil-tools business of Hughes Tool Company, then owned by Howard Hughes Jr., floated on the New York Stock Exchange under the "Hughes Tool" name. This forced the remaining businesses of the "original" Hughes Tool to adopt a new corporate name: "Summa". The name "Summa"Latin for "highest"was adopted without the approval of Hughes himself, who preferred to keep his own name on the business, and suggested "HRH Properties" (for Hughes Resorts and Hotels, and also his own initials). In 1988 Summa announced plans for Summerlin, a master-planned community named for the paternal grandmother of Howard Hughes, Jean Amelia Summerlin.
Initially staying in the Desert Inn, Hughes refused to vacate his room, and instead decided to purchase the entire hotel. Hughes extended his financial empire to include Las Vegas real estate, hotels, and media outlets, spending an estimated $300 million, and using his considerable powers to take over many of the well-known hotels, especially the venues connected with organized crime. He quickly became one of the most powerful men in Las Vegas. He was instrumental in changing the image of Las Vegas from its Wild West roots into a more refined cosmopolitan city. In addition to the Desert Inn, Hughes would eventually own the Sands, Frontier, Silver Slipper, Castaways and Landmark and Harold's Club in Reno. Hughes would eventually become the largest employer in Nevada.
Aviation and aerospace
Another portion of Hughes's commercial interests involved aviation, airlines, and the aerospace and defense industries. A lifelong aircraft enthusiast and pilot, Hughes survived four airplane accidents: one in a Thomas-Morse Scout while filming Hell's Angels, one while setting the airspeed record in the Hughes Racer, one at Lake Mead in 1943, and the near-fatal crash of the Hughes XF-11 in 1946. At Rogers Airport in Los Angeles, he learned to fly from pioneer aviators, including Moye Stephens and J.B. Alexander. He set many world records and commissioned the construction of custom aircraft for himself while heading Hughes Aircraft at the airport in Glendale, CA. Operating from there, the most technologically important aircraft he commissioned was the Hughes H-1 Racer. On September 13, 1935, Hughes, flying the H-1, set the landplane airspeed record of over his test course near Santa Ana, California (Giuseppe Motta reaching 362 mph in 1929 and George Stainforth reached 407.5 mph in 1931, both in seaplanes). This marked the last time in history that an aircraft built by a private individual set the world airspeed record. A year and a half later, on January 19, 1937, flying the same H-1 Racer fitted with longer wings, Hughes set a new transcontinental airspeed record by flying non-stop from Los Angeles to Newark in seven hours, 28 minutes, and 25 seconds (beating his own previous record of nine hours, 27 minutes). His average ground-speed over the flight was .
The H-1 Racer featured a number of design innovations: it had retractable landing gear (as Boeing Monomail had five years before), and all rivets and joints set flush into the body of the aircraft to reduce drag. The H-1 Racer is thought to have influenced the design of a number of World War II fighters such as the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, Focke-Wulf Fw 190, and F8F Bearcat, although that has never been reliably confirmed. In 1975 the H-1 Racer was donated to the Smithsonian.
Round-the-world flight
On July 14, 1938, Hughes set another record by completing a flight around the world in just 91 hours (three days, 19 hours, 17 minutes), beating the previous record of 186 hours (7 days, 18 hours, 49 minutes) set in 1933 by Wiley Post in a single-engine Lockheed Vega by almost four days. Hughes returned home ahead of photographs of his flight. Taking off from New York City, Hughes continued to Paris, Moscow, Omsk, Yakutsk, Fairbanks, and Minneapolis, then returning to New York City. For this flight he flew a Lockheed 14 Super Electra (NX18973, a twin-engine transport with a four-man crew) fitted with the latest radio and navigational equipment. Harry Connor was the co-pilot, Thomas Thurlow the navigator, Richard Stoddart the engineer, and Ed Lund the mechanic. Hughes wanted the flight to be a triumph of American aviation technology, illustrating that safe, long-distance air travel was possible. Albert Lodwick of Mystic, Iowa, provided organizational skills as the flight operations manager. While Hughes had previously been relatively obscure despite his wealth, being better known for dating Katharine Hepburn, New York City now gave him a ticker-tape parade in the Canyon of Heroes. Hughes and his crew were awarded the 1938 Collier Trophy for flying around the world in record time. He was awarded the Harmon Trophy in 1936 and 1938 for the record-breaking global circumnavigation.
In 1938 the William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas—known at the time as Houston Municipal Airport—was renamed after Hughes, but the name was changed back due to public outrage over naming the airport after a living person.
Hughes also had a role in the design and financing of both the Boeing 307 Stratoliner and Lockheed L-049 Constellation.
Other aviator awards include: the Bibesco Cup of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in 1938, the Octave Chanute Award in 1940, and a special Congressional Gold Medal in 1939 "in recognition of the achievements of Howard Hughes in advancing the science of aviation and thus bringing great credit to his country throughout the world".
President Harry S. Truman sent the Congressional medal to Hughes after the F-11 crash. After his around-the-world flight, Hughes had declined to go to the White House to collect it.
Hughes D-2 and XF-11
The Hughes D-2 was conceived in 1939 as a bomber with five crew members, powered by 42-cylinder Wright R-2160 Tornado engines. In the end, it appeared as two-seat fighter-reconnaissance aircraft designated the D-2A, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-2800-49 engines. The aircraft was constructed using the Duramold process. The prototype was brought to Harper's Dry Lake in California in great secrecy in 1943 and first flew on June 20 of that year. Acting on a recommendation of the president's son, Colonel Elliott Roosevelt, who had become friends with Hughes, in September 1943 the USAAF ordered 100 of a reconnaissance development of the D-2, known as the F-11. Hughes then attempted to get the military to pay for the development of the D-2. In November 1944, the hangar containing the D-2A was reportedly hit by lightning and the aircraft was destroyed. The D-2 design was abandoned but led to the extremely controversial Hughes XF-11. The XF-11 was a large, all-metal, two-seat reconnaissance aircraft, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-4360-31 engines, each driving a set of contra-rotating propellers. Only two prototypes were completed; the second one with a single propeller per side.
Fatal crash of the Sikorsky S-43
In the spring of 1943 Hughes spent nearly a month in Las Vegas, test-flying his Sikorsky S-43 amphibious aircraft, practising touch-and-go landings on Lake Mead in preparation for flying the H-4 Hercules. The weather conditions at the lake during the day were ideal and he enjoyed Las Vegas at night. On May 17, 1943, Hughes flew the Sikorsky from California, carrying two CAA aviation inspectors, two of his employees, and actress Ava Gardner. Hughes dropped Gardner off in Las Vegas and proceeded to Lake Mead to conduct qualifying tests in the S-43. The test flight did not go well. The Sikorsky crashed into Lake Mead, killing CAA inspector Ceco Cline and Hughes's employee Richard Felt. Hughes suffered a severe gash on the top of his head when he hit the upper control panel and had to be rescued by one of the others on board. Hughes paid divers $100,000 to raise the aircraft and later spent more than $500,000 restoring it. Hughes sent the plane to Houston, where it remained for many years.
Near-fatal crash of the XF-11
Hughes was involved in another near-fatal aircraft accident on July 7, 1946, while performing the first flight of the prototype U.S. Army Air Forces reconnaissance aircraft, the XF-11, near Hughes airfield at Culver City, California. An oil leak caused one of the contra-rotating propellers to reverse pitch, causing the aircraft to yaw sharply and lose altitude rapidly. Hughes attempted to save the aircraft by landing it at the Los Angeles Country Club golf course, but just seconds before reaching the course, the XF-11 started to drop dramatically and crashed in the Beverly Hills neighborhood surrounding the country club.
When the XF-11 finally came to a halt after destroying three houses, the fuel tanks exploded, setting fire to the aircraft and a nearby home at 808 North Whittier Drive owned by Lt Col. Charles E. Meyer. Hughes managed to pull himself out of the flaming wreckage but lay beside the aircraft until rescued by Marine Master Sgt. William L. Durkin, who happened to be in the area visiting friends. Hughes sustained significant injuries in the crash, including a crushed collar bone, multiple cracked ribs, crushed chest with collapsed left lung, shifting his heart to the right side of the chest cavity, and numerous third-degree burns. An oft-told story said that Hughes sent a check to the Marine weekly for the remainder of his life as a sign of gratitude. Noah Dietrich asserted that Hughes did send Durkin $200 a month, but Durkin's daughter denied knowing that he received any money from Hughes.
Despite his physical injuries, Hughes took pride that his mind was still working. As he lay in his hospital bed, he decided that he did not like the bed's design. He called in plant engineers to design a customized bed, equipped with hot and cold running water, built in six sections, and operated by 30 electric motors, with push-button adjustments. Hughes designed the hospital bed specifically to alleviate the pain caused by moving with severe burn injuries. Although he never used the bed that he designed, Hughes's bed served as a prototype for the modern hospital bed. Hughes's doctors considered his recovery almost miraculous.
Many attribute his long-term dependence on opiates to his use of codeine as a painkiller during his convalescence. Yet Dietrich asserts that Hughes recovered the "hard way—no sleeping pills, no opiates of any kind". The trademark mustache he wore afterward hid a scar on his upper lip resulting from the accident.
H-4 Hercules
The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The military services opposed the project, thinking it would siphon resources from higher-priority programs, but Hughes's powerful allies in Washington, D.C., advocated for it. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II.
The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at , had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next-largest wingspan was about ). (The Hercules is no longer the longest nor heaviest aircraft ever built - surpassed by the Antonov An-225 Mriya produced in 1985.)
The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947.
Critics nicknamed the Hercules the Spruce Goose, but it was actually made largely from birch (not spruce) rather than from aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes's Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the XF-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly-disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense-acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it features at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum.
On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes's paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio-technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules.
Hughes Aircraft
In 1932 Hughes founded the Hughes Aircraft Company, a division of Hughes Tool Company, in a rented corner of a Lockheed Aircraft Corporation hangar in Burbank, California, to build the H-1 racer.
Shortly after founding the company, Hughes used the alias "Charles Howard" to accept a job as a baggage handler for American Airlines. He was soon promoted to co-pilot.
Hughes continued to work for American Airlines until his real identity was discovered.
During and after World War II Hughes fashioned his company into a major defense contractor. The Hughes Helicopters division started in 1947 when helicopter manufacturer Kellett sold their latest design to Hughes for production. Hughes Aircraft became a major American aerospace- and defense contractor, manufacturing numerous technology-related products that included spacecraft vehicles, military aircraft, radar systems, electro-optical systems, the first working laser, aircraft computer systems, missile systems, ion-propulsion engines (for space travel), commercial satellites, and other electronics systems.
In 1948 Hughes created a new division of Hughes Aircraft: the Hughes Aerospace Group. The Hughes Space and Communications Group and the Hughes Space Systems Division were later spun off in 1948 to form their own divisions and ultimately became the Hughes Space and Communications Company in 1961. In 1953 Howard Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the newly formed Howard Hughes Medical Institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a tax-exempt charitable organization. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion. In 1997 General Motors sold Hughes Aircraft to Raytheon and in 2000, sold Hughes Space & Communications to Boeing. A combination of Boeing, GM, and Raytheon acquired the Hughes Research Laboratories, which focused on advanced developments in microelectronics, information & systems sciences, materials, sensors, and photonics; their work-space spans from basic research to product delivery. It has particularly emphasized capabilities in high-performance integrated circuits, high-power lasers, antennas, networking, and smart materials.
Airlines
In 1939, at the urging of Jack Frye, president of Transcontinental & Western Airlines, the predecessor of Trans World Airlines (TWA), Hughes began to quietly purchase a majority share of TWA stock; he took a controlling interest in the airline by 1944. Although he never had an official position with TWA, Hughes handpicked the board of directors, which included Noah Dietrich, and often issued orders directly to airline staff. Hughes Tool Co. purchased the first six Stratoliners Boeing manufactured. Hughes used one personally, and he let TWA operate the other five.
Hughes is commonly credited as the driving force behind the Lockheed Constellation airliner, which Hughes and Frye ordered in 1939 as a long-range replacement for TWA's fleet of Boeing 307 Stratoliners. Hughes personally financed TWA's acquisition of 40 Constellations for $18 million, the largest aircraft order in history up to that time. The Constellations were among the highest-performing commercial aircraft of the late 1940s and 1950s and allowed TWA to pioneer nonstop transcontinental service. During World War II Hughes leveraged political connections in Washington to obtain rights for TWA to serve Europe, making it the only U.S. carrier with a combination of domestic and transatlantic routes.
After the announcement of the Boeing 707, Hughes opted to pursue a more advanced jet aircraft for TWA and approached Convair in late 1954. Convair proposed two concepts to Hughes, but Hughes was unable to decide which concept to adopt, and Convair eventually abandoned its initial jet project after the mockups of the 707 and Douglas DC-8 were unveiled. Even after competitors such as United Airlines, American Airlines and Pan American World Airways had placed large orders for the 707, Hughes only placed eight orders for 707s through the Hughes Tool Company and forbade TWA from using the aircraft. After finally beginning to reserve 707 orders in 1956, Hughes embarked on a plan to build his own "superior" jet aircraft for TWA, applied for CAB permission to sell Hughes aircraft to TWA, and began negotiations with the state of Florida to build a manufacturing plant there. However, he abandoned this plan around 1958, and in the interim, negotiated new contracts for 707 and Convair 880 aircraft and engines totaling $400 million.
The financing of TWA's jet orders precipitated the end of Hughes's relationship with Noah Dietrich, and ultimately Hughes's ouster from control of TWA. Hughes did not have enough cash on hand or future cash flow to pay for the orders and did not immediately seek bank financing. Hughes's refusal to heed Dietrich's financing advice led to a major rift between the two by the end of 1956. Hughes believed that Dietrich wished to have Hughes committed as mentally incompetent, although the evidence of this is inconclusive. Dietrich resigned by telephone in May 1957 after repeated requests for stock options, which Hughes refused to grant, and with no further progress on the jet financing. As Hughes's mental state worsened, he ordered various tactics to delay payments to Boeing and Convair; his behavior led TWA's banks to insist that he be removed from management as a condition for further financing.
In 1960, Hughes was ultimately forced out of the management of TWA, although he continued to own 78% of the company. In 1961, TWA filed suit against Hughes Tool Company, claiming that the latter had violated antitrust law by using TWA as a captive market for aircraft trading. The claim was largely dependent upon obtaining testimony from Hughes himself. Hughes went into hiding and refused to testify. A default judgment was issued against Hughes Tool Company for $135 million in 1963 but was overturned by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1973, on the basis that Hughes was immune from prosecution. In 1966, Hughes was forced to sell his TWA shares. The sale of his TWA shares brought Hughes $546,549,771.
Hughes acquired control of Boston-based Northeast Airlines in 1962. However, the airline's lucrative route authority between major northeastern cities and Miami was terminated by a CAB decision around the time of the acquisition, and Hughes sold control of the company to a trustee in 1964. Northeast went on to merge with Delta Air Lines in 1972.
In 1970, Hughes acquired San Francisco-based Air West and renamed it Hughes Airwest. Air West had been formed in 1968 by the merger of Bonanza Air Lines, Pacific Air Lines, and West Coast Airlines, all of which operated in the western U.S. By the late 1970s, Hughes Airwest operated an all-jet fleet of Boeing 727-200, Douglas DC-9-10, and McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 jetliners serving an extensive route network in the western U.S. with flights to Mexico and western Canada as well. By 1980, the airline's route system reached as far east as Houston (Hobby Airport) and Milwaukee with a total of 42 destinations being served. Hughes Airwest was then acquired by and merged into Republic Airlines (1979–1986) in late 1980. Republic was subsequently acquired by and merged into Northwest Airlines which in turn was ultimately merged into Delta Air Lines in 2008.
Business with David Charnay
Hughes had made numerous business partnerships through industrialist and producer David Charnay. Their friendship and many partnerships began with the film The Conqueror, which was first released to the public in 1956. The film caused many controversies due to its critical flop and radioactive location used in St. George, Utah, that eventually led to Hughes buying up nearly every copy of the film he could, only to watch the film at home repeatedly for many nights in a row.
Charnay later bought Four Star, the film and television production company that produced The Conqueror.
Hughes and Charnay's most published dealings were with a contested AirWest leveraged buyout. Charnay led the buyout group that involved Howard Hughes and their partners acquiring Air West. Hughes, Charnay, as well as three others, were indicted. The indictment, made by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton, accused the group of conspiring to drive down the stock price of Air West in order to pressure company directors to sell to Hughes. The charges were dismissed after a judge had determined that the indictment had failed to allege an illegal action on the part of Hughes, Charnay, and all the other accused in the indictment. Thompson, the federal judge that made the decision to dismiss the charges called the indictment one of the worst claims that he had ever seen. The charges were filed again, a second time, by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton's assistant, Dean Vernon. The Federal Judge ruled on November 13, 1974, and elaborated to say that the case suggested a "reprehensible misuse of the power of great wealth", but in his judicial opinion, "no crime had been committed." The aftermath of the Air West deal was later settled with the SEC by paying former stockholders for alleged losses from the sale of their investment in Air West stock. As noted above, Air West was subsequently renamed Hughes Airwest. During a long pause between the years of the dismissed charges against Hughes, Charnay, and their partners, Howard Hughes mysteriously died mid-flight while on the way to Houston from Acapulco. No further attempts were made to file any indictments after Hughes died.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
In 1953, Hughes launched the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Miami, Florida, (currently located in Chevy Chase, Maryland) with the expressed goal of basic biomedical research, including trying to understand, in Hughes's words, the "genesis of life itself", due to his lifelong interest in science and technology. Hughes's first will, which he signed in 1925 at the age of 19, stipulated that a portion of his estate should be used to create a medical institute bearing his name. When a major battle with the IRS loomed ahead, Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a for-profit entity of a fully tax-exempt charity. Hughes's internist, Verne Mason, who treated Hughes after his 1946 aircraft crash, was chairman of the institute's medical advisory committee. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute's new board of trustees sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion, allowing the institute to grow dramatically.
In 1954, Hughes transferred Hughes Aircraft to the foundation, which paid Hughes Tool Co. $18,000,000 for the assets. The foundation leased the land from Hughes Tool Co., which then subleased it to Hughes Aircraft Corp. The difference in rent, $2,000,000 per year, became the foundation's working capital.
The deal was the topic of a protracted legal battle between Hughes and the Internal Revenue Service, which Hughes ultimately won. After his death in 1976, many thought that the balance of Hughes's estate would go to the institute, although it was ultimately divided among his cousins and other heirs, given the lack of a will to the contrary. The HHMI was the fourth largest private organization and one of the largest devoted to biological and medical research, with an endowment of $20.4 billion .
Glomar Explorer and the taking of K-129
In 1972, during the cold war era, Hughes was approached by the CIA through his longtime partner, David Charnay, to help secretly recover the Soviet submarine K-129, which had sunk near Hawaii four years earlier. Hughes's involvement provided the CIA with a plausible cover story, conducting expensive civilian marine research at extreme depths and the mining of undersea manganese nodules. The recovery plan used the special-purpose salvage vessel Glomar Explorer. In the summer of 1974, Glomar Explorer attempted to raise the Soviet vessel. However, during the recovery a mechanical failure in the ship's grapple caused half of the submarine to break off and fall to the ocean floor. This section is believed to have held many of the most sought-after items, including its code book and nuclear missiles. Two nuclear-tipped torpedoes and some cryptographic machines were recovered, along with the bodies of six Soviet submariners who were subsequently given formal burial at sea in a filmed ceremony. The operation, known as Project Azorian (but incorrectly referred to by the press as Project Jennifer), became public in February 1975 after secret documents were released, obtained by burglars of Hughes's headquarters in June 1974. Although he lent his name and his company's resources to the operation, Hughes and his companies had no operational involvement in the project. The Glomar Explorer was eventually acquired by Transocean and was sent to the scrap yard in 2015 during a large decline in oil prices.
Personal life
Early romances
In 1929, Hughes's wife of four years, Ella, returned to Houston and filed for divorce.
Hughes dated many famous women, including Joan Crawford, Billie Dove, Faith Domergue, Bette Davis, Yvonne De Carlo, Ava Gardner, Olivia de Havilland, Katharine Hepburn, Hedy Lamarr, Ginger Rogers, Janet Leigh, Pat Sheehan, Mamie Van Doren and Gene Tierney. He also proposed to Joan Fontaine several times, according to her autobiography No Bed of Roses. Jean Harlow accompanied him to the premiere of Hell's Angels, but Noah Dietrich wrote many years later that the relationship was strictly professional, as Hughes disliked Harlow personally. In his 1971 book, Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes, Dietrich said that Hughes genuinely liked and respected Jane Russell, but never sought romantic involvement with her. According to Russell's autobiography, however, Hughes once tried to bed her after a party. Russell (who was married at the time) refused him, and Hughes promised it would never happen again. The two maintained a professional and private friendship for many years. Hughes remained good friends with Tierney who, after his failed attempts to seduce her, was quoted as saying "I don't think Howard could love anything that did not have a motor in it". Later, when Tierney's daughter Daria was born deaf and blind and with a severe learning disability because of Tierney's exposure to rubella during her pregnancy, Hughes saw to it that Daria received the best medical care and paid all expenses.
Luxury yacht
In 1933, Hughes made a purchase of a luxury steam yacht named the Rover, which was previously owned by Scottish shipping magnate Lord Inchcape. "I have never seen the Rover but bought it on the blueprints, photographs and the reports of Lloyd's surveyors. My experience is that the English are the most honest race in the world." Hughes renamed the yacht Southern Cross and later sold her to Swedish entrepreneur Axel Wenner-Gren.
1936 automobile accident
On July 11, 1936, Hughes struck and killed a pedestrian named Gabriel S. Meyer with his car at the corner of 3rd Street and Lorraine in Los Angeles. After the crash, Hughes was taken to the hospital and certified as sober, but an attending doctor made a note that Hughes had been drinking. A witness to the crash told police that Hughes was driving erratically and too fast and that Meyer had been standing in the safety zone of a streetcar stop. Hughes was booked on suspicion of negligent homicide and held overnight in jail until his attorney, Neil S. McCarthy, obtained a writ of habeas corpus for his release pending a coroner's inquest. By the time of the coroner's inquiry, however, the witness had changed his story and claimed that Meyer had moved directly in front of Hughes's car. Nancy Bayly (Watts), who was in the car with Hughes at the time of the crash, corroborated this version of the story. On July 16, 1936, Hughes was held blameless by a coroner's jury at the inquest into Meyer's death. Hughes told reporters outside the inquiry, "I was driving slowly and a man stepped out of the darkness in front of me".
Marriage to Jean Peters
On January 12, 1957, Hughes married actress Jean Peters at a small hotel in Tonopah, Nevada. The couple met in the 1940s, before Peters became a film actress. They had a highly publicized romance in 1947 and there was talk of marriage, but she said she could not combine it with her career. Some later claimed that Peters was "the only woman [Hughes] ever loved", and he reportedly had his security officers follow her everywhere even when they were not in a relationship. Such reports were confirmed by actor Max Showalter, who became a close friend of Peters while shooting Niagara (1953). Showalter told an interviewer that because he frequently met with Peters, Hughes's men threatened to ruin his career if he did not leave her alone.
Connections to Richard Nixon and Watergate
Shortly before the 1960 Presidential election, Richard Nixon was alarmed when it was revealed that his brother, Donald, received a $205,000 loan from Hughes. It has long been speculated that Nixon's drive to learn what the Democrats were planning in 1972 was based in part on his belief that the Democrats knew about a later bribe that his friend Bebe Rebozo had received from Hughes after Nixon took office.
In late 1971, Donald Nixon was collecting intelligence for his brother in preparation for the upcoming presidential election. One of his sources was John H. Meier, a former business adviser of Hughes who had also worked with Democratic National Committee Chairman Larry O'Brien.
Meier, in collaboration with former Vice President Hubert Humphrey and others, wanted to feed misinformation to the Nixon campaign. Meier told Donald that he was sure the Democrats would win the election because Larry O'Brien had a great deal of information on Richard Nixon's illicit dealings with Howard Hughes that had never been released; O'Brien did not actually have any such information, but Meier wanted Nixon to think that he did. Donald told his brother that O'Brien was in possession of damaging Hughes information that could destroy his campaign. Terry Lenzner, who was the chief investigator for the Senate Watergate Committee, speculates that it was Nixon's desire to know what O'Brien knew about Nixon's dealings with Hughes that may have partially motivated the Watergate break-in.
Last years and death
Physical and mental decline
Hughes was widely considered eccentric and to have suffered with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
Dietrich wrote that Hughes always ate the same thing for dinner, a New York strip steak cooked medium rare, dinner salad, and peas, but only the smaller ones, pushing the larger ones aside. For breakfast, Hughes wanted his eggs cooked the way his family cook, Lily, made them. Hughes had a "phobia about germs", and "his passion for secrecy became a mania."
While directing The Outlaw, Hughes became fixated on a small flaw in one of Jane Russell's blouses, claiming that the fabric bunched up along a seam and gave the appearance of two nipples on each breast. He wrote a detailed memorandum to the crew on how to fix the problem. Richard Fleischer, who directed His Kind of Woman with Hughes as executive producer, wrote at length in his autobiography about the difficulty of dealing with the tycoon. In his book, Just Tell Me When to Cry, Fleischer explained that Hughes was fixated on trivial details and was alternately indecisive and obstinate. He also revealed that Hughes's unpredictable mood swings made him wonder if the film would ever be completed.
In 1958, Hughes told his aides that he wanted to screen some movies at a film studio near his home. He stayed in the studio's darkened screening room for more than four months, never leaving. He ate only chocolate bars and chicken and drank only milk, and was surrounded by dozens of Kleenex that he continuously stacked and re-arranged. He wrote detailed memos to his aides giving them explicit instructions neither to look at him nor speak to him unless spoken to. Throughout this period, Hughes sat fixated in his chair, often naked, continually watching movies. When he finally emerged in the summer of 1958, his hygiene was terrible. He had neither bathed nor cut his hair and nails for weeks; this may have been due to allodynia, which results in a pain response to stimuli that would normally not cause pain.
After the screening room incident, Hughes moved into a bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel where he also rented rooms for his aides, his wife, and numerous girlfriends. He would sit naked in his bedroom with a pink hotel napkin placed over his genitals, watching movies. This may have been because Hughes found the touch of clothing painful due to allodynia. He may have watched movies to distract himself from his pain—a common practice among patients with intractable pain, especially those who do not receive adequate treatment. In one year, Hughes spent an estimated $11 million at the hotel.
Hughes began purchasing restaurant chains and four-star hotels that had been founded within the state of Texas. This included, if for only a short period, many unknown franchises currently out of business. He placed ownership of the restaurants with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and all licenses were resold shortly after.
Another time, he became obsessed with the 1968 film Ice Station Zebra, and had it run on a continuous loop in his home. According to his aides, he watched it 150 times. Feeling guilty about the commercial, critical, and rumored toxicity of his film The Conqueror, he bought every copy of the film for $12 million, watching the film on repeat. Paramount Pictures acquired the rights of the film in 1979, three years after his death.
Hughes insisted on using tissues to pick up objects to insulate himself from germs. He would also notice dust, stains, or other imperfections on people's clothes and demand that they take care of them. Once one of the most visible men in America, Hughes ultimately vanished from public view, although tabloids continued to follow rumors of his behavior and whereabouts. He was reported to be terminally ill, mentally unstable, or even dead.
Injuries from numerous aircraft crashes caused Hughes to spend much of his later life in pain, and he eventually became addicted to codeine, which he injected intramuscularly. Hughes had his hair cut and nails trimmed only once a year, likely due to the pain caused by the RSD/CRPS, which was caused by the plane crashes. He also stored his urine in bottles.
Later years in Las Vegas
The wealthy and aging Hughes, accompanied by his entourage of personal aides, began moving from one hotel to another, always taking up residence in the top floor penthouse. In the last ten years of his life, 1966 to 1976, Hughes lived in hotels in many cities—including Beverly Hills, Boston, Las Vegas, Nassau, Freeport and Vancouver.
On November 24, 1966 (Thanksgiving Day), Hughes arrived in Las Vegas by railroad car and moved into the Desert Inn. Because he refused to leave the hotel and to avoid further conflicts with the owners, Hughes bought the Desert Inn in early 1967. The hotel's eighth floor became the nerve center of Hughes's empire and the ninth-floor penthouse became his personal residence. Between 1966 and 1968, he bought several other hotel-casinos, including the Castaways, New Frontier, the Landmark Hotel and Casino, and the Sands. He bought the small Silver Slipper casino for the sole purpose of moving its trademark neon silver slipper, which was visible from his bedroom, and had apparently kept him awake at night.
After Hughes left the Desert Inn, hotel employees discovered that his drapes had not been opened during the time he lived there and had rotted through.
Hughes wanted to change the image of Las Vegas to something more glamorous. He wrote in a memo to an aide, "I like to think of Las Vegas in terms of a well-dressed man in a dinner jacket and a beautifully jeweled and furred female getting out of an expensive car." Hughes bought several local television stations (including KLAS-TV).
Eventually the brain trauma from Hughes's previous accidents, the effects of neurosyphilis diagnosed in 1932 and (undiagnosed) Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder considerably affected his decision-making. A small panel, unofficially dubbed "The Mormon Mafia" because of the many Latter-day Saints on the committee, was led by Frank William Gay and originally served Hughes's "secret police" headquartered at 9000 Romaine. Over the next two decades, however, this group oversaw and controlled considerable business holdings, with the CIA anointing Gay while awarding a contract to the Hughes corporation to acquire sensitive information on a sunken Russian submarine. In addition to supervising day-to-day business operations and Hughes's health, they also went to great pains to satisfy Hughes's every whim. For example, Hughes once became fond of Baskin-Robbins' banana nut ice cream, so his aides sought to secure a bulk shipment for him, only to discover that Baskin-Robbins had discontinued the flavor. They put in a request for the smallest amount the company could provide for a special order, 350 gallons (1,300 L), and had it shipped from Los Angeles. A few days after the order arrived, Hughes announced he was tired of banana nut and wanted only French vanilla ice cream. The Desert Inn ended up distributing free banana nut ice cream to casino customers for a year. In a 1996 interview, ex–Howard Hughes Chief of Nevada Operations Robert Maheu said, "There is a rumor that there is still some banana nut ice cream left in the freezer. It is most likely true."
As an owner of several major Las Vegas businesses, Hughes wielded much political and economic influence in Nevada and elsewhere. During the 1960s and early 1970s, he disapproved of underground nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site. Hughes was concerned about the risk from residual nuclear radiation and attempted to halt the tests. When the tests finally went through despite Hughes's efforts, the detonations were powerful enough that the entire hotel in which he was living trembled from the shock waves. In two separate, last-ditch maneuvers, Hughes instructed his representatives to offer bribes of $1m to both Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon.
In 1970, Jean Peters filed for divorce. The two had not lived together for many years. Peters requested a lifetime alimony payment of $70,000 a year, adjusted for inflation, and waived all claims to Hughes's estate. Hughes offered her a settlement of over a million dollars, but she declined it. Hughes did not insist on a confidentiality agreement from Peters as a condition of the divorce. Aides reported that Hughes never spoke ill of her. She refused to discuss her life with Hughes and declined several lucrative offers from publishers and biographers. Peters would state only that she had not seen Hughes for several years before their divorce and had dealt with him only by phone.
Hughes was living in the Intercontinental Hotel near Lake Managua in Nicaragua, seeking privacy and security, when a magnitude 6.5 earthquake damaged Managua in December 1972. As a precaution, Hughes moved to a rather large tent facing the hotel; after a few days, he moved to the Nicaraguan National Palace and stayed there as a guest of Anastasio Somoza Debayle before leaving for Florida on a private jet the following day. He subsequently moved into the Penthouse at the Xanadu Princess Resort on Grand Bahama Island, which he had recently purchased. He lived almost exclusively in the penthouse of the Xanadu Beach Resort & Marina for the last four years of his life.
Hughes spent a total of $300 million on his many properties in Las Vegas.
Autobiography hoax
In 1972, author Clifford Irving caused a media sensation when he claimed he had co-written an authorized Hughes autobiography. Irving claimed he and Hughes had corresponded through the United States mail, and offered as proof handwritten notes allegedly sent by Hughes. Publisher McGraw-Hill, Inc. was duped into believing the manuscript was authentic. Hughes was so reclusive that he did not immediately publicly refute Irving's statement, leading many to believe that Irving's book was genuine. However, before the book's publication, Hughes finally denounced Irving in a teleconference attended by reporters Hughes knew personally: James Bacon of the Hearst papers, Marin Miles of the Los Angeles Times, Vernon Scott of UPI, Roy Neal of NBC News, Gene Handsaker of AP, Wayne Thomas of the Chicago Tribune, and Gladwin Hill of the New York Times.
The entire hoax finally unraveled. The United States Postal Inspection Service got a subpoena to force Irving to turn over samples of his handwriting. The USPS investigation led to Irving's indictment and subsequent conviction for using the postal service to commit fraud. He was incarcerated for 17 months. In 1974, the Orson Welles film F for Fake included a section on the Hughes autobiography hoax, leaving a question open as to whether it was actually Hughes who took part in the teleconference (since so few people had actually heard or seen him in recent years). In 1977, The Hoax by Clifford Irving was published in the United Kingdom, telling his story of these events. The 2006 film The Hoax, starring Richard Gere, is also based on these events.
Death
Hughes is reported to have died on April 5, 1976, at 1:27 p.m. on board an aircraft, Learjet 24B N855W, owned by Robert Graf and piloted by Jeff Abrams. He was en route from his penthouse at the Acapulco Princess Hotel (now the Fairmont Acapulco Princess) in Mexico to the Methodist Hospital in Houston.
His reclusiveness and possibly his drug use made him practically unrecognizable. His hair, beard, fingernails, and toenails were long—his tall frame now weighed barely , and the FBI had to use fingerprints to conclusively identify the body. Howard Hughes's alias, John T. Conover, was used when his body arrived at a morgue in Houston on the day of his death.
An autopsy recorded kidney failure as the cause of death. In an eighteen-month study investigating Hughes' drug abuse for the estate, it was found "someone administered a deadly injection of the painkiller to this comatose man... obviously needlessly and almost certainly fatal". He suffered from malnutrition and was covered in bedsores. While his kidneys were damaged, his other internal organs, including his brain, which had no visible damage or illnesses, were deemed perfectly healthy. X-rays revealed five broken-off hypodermic needles in the flesh of his arms. To inject codeine into his muscles, Hughes had used glass syringes with metal needles that easily became detached.
Hughes is buried next to his parents at Glenwood Cemetery in Houston.
Alleged survival
Following his death, Hughes was subject to several widely rebuked conspiracy theories that he had faked his own death. A notable allegation came from retired Major General Mark Musick, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, who claimed Hughes went on to live under an assumed identity, dying on November 15, 2001, in Troy, Alabama.
Estate
Approximately three weeks after Hughes's death, a handwritten will was found on the desk of an official of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah. The so-called "Mormon Will" gave $1.56 billion to various charitable organizations (including $625 million to the Howard Hughes Medical Institute), nearly $470 million to the upper management in Hughes's companies and to his aides, $156 million to first cousin William Lummis, and $156 million split equally between his two ex-wives Ella Rice and Jean Peters.
A further $156 million was endowed to a gas-station owner, Melvin Dummar, who told reporters that in 1967, he found a disheveled and dirty man lying along U.S. Route 95, just north of Las Vegas. The man asked for a ride to Vegas. Dropping him off at the Sands Hotel, Dummar said the man told him that he was Hughes. Dummar later claimed that days after Hughes's death a "mysterious man" appeared at his gas station, leaving an envelope containing the will on his desk. Unsure if the will was genuine and unsure of what to do, Dummar left the will at the LDS Church office. In 1978, a Nevada court ruled the Mormon Will a forgery and officially declared that Hughes had died intestate (without a valid will). Dummar's story was later adapted into Jonathan Demme's film Melvin and Howard in 1980.
Hughes's $2.5 billion estate was eventually split in 1983 among 22 cousins, including William Lummis, who serves as a trustee of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The Supreme Court of the United States ruled that Hughes Aircraft was owned by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, which sold it to General Motors in 1985 for $5.2 billion. The court rejected suits by the states of California and Texas that claimed they were owed inheritance tax.
In 1984, Hughes's estate paid an undisclosed amount to Terry Moore, who claimed she and Hughes had secretly married on a yacht in international waters off Mexico in 1949 and never divorced. Moore never produced proof of a marriage, but her book, The Beauty and the Billionaire, became a bestseller.
Awards
Harmon Trophy (1936 and 1938)
Collier Trophy (1938)
Congressional Gold Medal (1939)
Octave Chanute Award (1940)
National Aviation Hall of Fame (1973)
International Air & Space Hall of Fame (1987)
Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (2018)
Archive
The moving image collection of Howard Hughes is held at the Academy Film Archive. The collection consists of over 200 items including 35mm and 16mm elements of feature films, documentaries, and television programs made or accumulated by Hughes.
Filmography
In popular culture
Film
In The Carpetbaggers (1964), the main character Jonas Cord (played by George Peppard) is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever (1971) features a tall, Texan, reclusive billionaire character named Willard Whyte (played by Jimmy Dean) who operates his business empire from the penthouse of a Las Vegas hotel. Although he appears only late in the film, his habitual seclusion and his control of a major aerospace contracting firm are key elements of the movie's plot. Several sequences were actually filmed on location at The Landmark Hotel and Casino, which was owned by Hughes at the time.
The Amazing Howard Hughes is a 1977 American made-for-television biographical film which aired as a mini-series on the CBS network, made a year after Hughes's death and based on Noah Dietrich's book Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. Tommy Lee Jones plays Hughes.
Melvin and Howard (1980), directed by Jonathan Demme and starring Jason Robards as Howard Hughes and Paul Le Mat as Melvin Dummar. The film won Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay (Bo Goldman) and Best Supporting Actress (Mary Steenburgen). The film focuses on Melvin Dummar's claims of meeting Hughes in the Nevada desert and subsequent estate battles over his inclusion in Hughes's will. Critic Pauline Kael called the film "an almost flawless act of sympathetic imagination".
In Tucker: The Man and His Dream, (1988), Hughes (played by Dean Stockwell) figures in the plot by telling Preston Tucker to source steel and engines for Tucker's automobiles from a helicopter manufacturer in New York. Scene occurs in a hangar with the Hercules.
In The Rocketeer, a 1991 American period superhero film from Walt Disney Pictures, the title character attracts the attention of Howard Hughes (played by Terry O'Quinn) and the FBI, who are hunting for a missing jet pack, as well as Nazi operatives.
"Howard Hughes Documentary", broadcast in 1992 as an episode of the Time Machine documentary series, was introduced by Peter Graves, later released by A&E Home Video.
In Conspiracy Theory (1997), the character Jerry Fletcher (played by Mel Gibson) mentions one of his theories to a street vendor by saying, "Did you know that the whole Vietnam War was fought over a bet that Howard Hughes lost to Aristotle Onassis?" referring to his (Fletcher's) thoughts on the politics of that conflict.
In The Aviator (2004), directed by Martin Scorsese, Hughes is portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio. The film focuses on Hughes's personal life from the making of Hell's Angels through his successful flight of the Hercules or Spruce Goose. Critically acclaimed, it was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, winning five for Best Cinematography; Best Film Editing; Best Costume Design; Best Art Direction; and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Cate Blanchett.
Howard Hughes: The Real Aviator documentary was broadcast in 2004 and went on to win the Grand Festival Award for Best Documentary at the 2004 Berkeley Video & Film Festival.
In the 2005 animated film Robots, the character Mr Bigweld (voiced by Mel Brooks), a reclusive inventor and owner of Bigweld Industries, is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The American Aviator: The Howard Hughes Story was broadcast in 2006 on the Biography Channel. It was later released to home media as a DVD with a copy of the full-length film The Outlaw starring Jane Russell.
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), as a plot-related prequel to Iron Man 2 (2010), in which Howard Stark (played by Dominic Cooper), father of Tony Stark (Iron Man), showed his inventions of future technology, clearly embodying Hughes's persona and enthusiasm. His subsequent appearances in the TV series Marvel's Agent Carter further this persona, as well as depicting him as sharing the real Hughes's reputation as a womanizer. Stan Lee has noted that Tony, who shared several of these traits himself, was based on Hughes.
Rules Don't Apply (2016), written and directed by Warren Beatty, features Beatty as Hughes from 1958 through 1964.
In the Dark Knight Trilogy, director Christopher Nolan's characterisation of Bruce Wayne is heavily inspired by Hughes's perceived lifestyle – from a playboy in Batman Begins to a recluse in The Dark Knight Rises. Nolan is reported to have integrated his original material intended for a shelved Hughes biopic into the trilogy.
Games
The character of Andrew Ryan in the 2007 video game BioShock is loosely based on Hughes. Ryan is a billionaire industrialist in post-World War II America who, seeking to avoid governments, religions, and other "parasitic" influences, ordered the secret construction of an underwater city, Rapture. Years later, when Ryan's vision for Rapture falls into dystopia, he hides himself away and uses armies of mutated humans, "Splicers", to defend himself and fight against those trying to take over his city, including the player-character.
In L.A. Noire, Hughes makes an appearance presenting his Hercules H-4 aircraft in the game opening scene. The H-4 is later a central plot piece of DLC Arson Case, "Nicholson Electroplating".
In Fallout: New Vegas, the character of Robert Edwin House, a wealthy business magnate and entrepreneur who owns the New Vegas strip, is based on Howard Hughes and closely resembles him in appearance, personality and background. A portrait of Mr. House can also be found in the game which strongly resembles a portrait of Howard Hughes standing in front of a Boeing Army Pursuit Plane.
Literature
Stan Lee repeatedly stated he created the Marvel Comics character Iron Man's civilian persona, Tony Stark, drawing inspiration from Howard Hughes's colorful lifestyle and personality. Additionally, the first name of Stark's father is Howard.
Hughes is a supporting character in all three parts of James Ellroy's Underworld USA Trilogy, employing several of the protagonists as private investigators, bagmen, and consultants in his attempt to assume control of Las Vegas. Referred to behind his back as "Count Dracula" (due to his reclusiveness and rumored obsession with blood transfusions from Mormon donors), Hughes is portrayed as a spoiled, racist, opioid-addicted megalomaniac whose grandiose plans for Las Vegas are undermined by the manipulations of the Chicago Outfit.
In the 1981 novel Dream Park by Larry Niven and Steven Barnes, the weapon "which might have defeated the Japs if it hadn't come so late" is revealed to be the Spruce Goose, which had been magically hijacked on its test flight by evil Foré sorcerers in New Guinea. Hughes's skeleton is found at the controls, identified by Hughes's trademark fedora and cloth-and-leather jacket.
Music
The 1974 song "Workin' at the Car Wash Blues" by Jim Croce compares the main protagonist of the song to Howard Hughes in one of the lyrics.
The 1974 song "The Wall Street Shuffle" by English rock band 10cc directly references Hughes and his ways of life in the last verse.
The song "Me and Howard Hughes" by Irish band The Boomtown Rats on their 1978 album A Tonic for the Troops is about the title subject.
The song "Closet Chronicles" by American rock band Kansas on their 1977 album Point of Know Return is a Howard Hughes allegory.
The song "Ain't No Fun (Waiting 'Round To Be a Millionaire)" by AC/DC on their 1976 album "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" singer Bon Scott referenced Howard Hughes toward the end of the song: "Hey, hello Howard, how you doin', my next door neighbour? Oh, yea... Get your fuckin' jumbo jet off my airport"
Hughes's name is mentioned in the title and the lyrics of the 2002 song "Bargain Basement Howard Hughes" by Jerry Cantrell.
The 2012 song "Nancy From Now On" by American songwriter Father John Misty likens Hughes's destructive and erratic tendencies to the singer's own.
Television
In The Greatest American Hero Season 2 episode 3, "Don't Mess Around with Jim," Ralph and Bill are kidnapped by a reclusive tycoon, owner of Beck Air airplane company, who fakes his own death, and seems to know more about the suit than they do. He then blackmails them into retrieving his will to prevent it from being misused by the president of his company.
In The Simpsons Season 5 episode "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)", Mr. Burns resembles Hughes in his recluse state. Various nods to his life appear in the episode, ranging from casino ownership and penthouse office to the "Spruce Goose" being renamed "Spruce Moose" as well as a lack of hygiene and being a germaphobe.
In The Beverly Hillbillies episode, "The Clampett-Hewes Empire", Jed Clampett, while in Hooterville, decides to merge his interests with a man Mr. Drysdale believes is Howard Hughes, the famous reclusive billionaire. Eventually it turns out, to Mr. Drysdale's chagrin, "Howard Hughes" is no billionaire; he is nothing but a plain old farmer named "Howard Hewes" (H-E-W-E-S).
In the Invader Zim episode, "Germs," the alien Zim becomes paranoid after discovering that Earth is covered in germs. Referencing Howard Hughes, he isolates himself in his home and dons tissue boxes on his feet.
In the Superjail! episode "The Superjail! Six", The Warden repeatedly watches a film called Ice Station Jailpup which parodies Hughes's obsession with the film Ice Station Zebra
See also
Analgesic nephropathy
List of richest Americans in history
List of wealthiest historical figures
List of aviation pioneers
List of entrepreneurs
Phenacetin
References
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
Barkow, Al. Gettin' to the Dance Floor: An Oral History of American Golf. Short Hills, New Jersey: Burford Books, 1986. .
Barton, Charles. Howard Hughes and his Flying Boat. Fallbrook, CA: Aero Publishers, 1982. Republished in 1998, Vienna, VA: Charles Barton, Inc. .
Barlett, Donald L. and James B. Steele. Empire: The Life, Legend and Madness of Howard Hughes. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1979. , republished in 2004 as Howard Hughes: His Life and Madness.
Bellett, Gerald. Age of Secrets: The Conspiracy that Toppled Richard Nixon and the Hidden Death of Howard Hughes. Stillwater, Minnesota: Voyageur Press, 1995. .
Blackman, Tony Tony Blackman Test Pilot Grub Street, 2009,
Brown, Peter Harry and Pat H. Broeske. Howard Hughes: The Untold Story. New York: Penguin Books, 1996. .
Burleson, Clyde W. The Jennifer Project. College Station, Texas: Texas A&M University Press, 1997. .
Dietrich, Noah and Bob Thomas. Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. New York: Fawcett Publications, 1972. .
Drosnin, Michael. Citizen Hughes: In his Own Words, How Howard Hughes Tried to Buy America. Portland, Oregon: Broadway Books, 2004. .
Hack, Richard. Hughes: The Private Diaries, Memos and Letters: The Definitive Biography of the First American Billionaire. Beverly Hills, California: New Millennium Press, 2002. .
Herman, Arthur. Freedom's Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II. New York: Random House, 2012. .
Higham, Charles. Howard Hughes: The Secret Life, 1993.
Porter, Donald J., Howard's Whirlybirds: Howard Hughes' Amazing Pioneering Helicopter Exploits. Fonthill Media, 2013. (ISBN 978-1-78155-089)
Irving, Clifford. The Hoax. New York: E. Reads Ltd., 1999. .
Klepper, Michael and Michael Gunther. The Wealthy 100: From Benjamin Franklin to Bill Gates—A Ranking of the Richest Americans, Past and Present. Secaucus, New Jersey: Carol Publishing Group, 1996.
Marrett, George J. Howard Hughes: Aviator. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 2004. .
Kistler, Ron. I Caught Flies for Howard Hughes. Chicago: Playboy Press, 1976. .
Lasky, Betty. RKO: The Biggest Little Major of Them All, 2d ed . Santa Monica, California: Roundtable, 1989. .
Maheu, Robert and Richard Hack. Next to Hughes: Behind the Power and Tragic Downfall of Howard Hughes by his Closest Adviser. New York: Harper Collins, 1992. .
Moore, Terry. The Beauty and the Billionaire. New York: Pocket Books, 1984. .
Moore, Terry and Jerry Rivers. The Passions of Howard Hughes. Los Angeles: General Publishing Group, 1996. .
Parker, Dana T. Building Victory: Aircraft Manufacturing in the Los Angeles Area in World War II, Cypress, California: Dana T. Parker Books, 2013. .
Phelan, James. Howard Hughes: The Hidden Years. New York, Random House, 1976. .
Real, Jack. The Asylum of Howard Hughes. Philadelphia: Xlibris Corporation, 2003. .
Thomas, Bob. Liberace: The True Story. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1987. .
Tierney, Gene with Mickey Herskowitz. Self-Portrait. New York: Peter Wyden, 1979. lSBN 0-883261-52-9.
Weaver, Tom. Science Fiction and Fantasy Film Flashbacks: Conversations with 24 Actors, Writers, Producers and Directors from the Golden Age. New York: McFarland & Company, 2004. .
External links
AZORIAN The Raising of the K-129 / 2009 – 2 Part TV Documentary / Michael White Films Vienna
Welcome Home Howard: Collection of photographs kept by UNLV
A history of the remarkable achievements of Howard Hughes
FBI file on Howard Hughes
Exclutive Biography of Howard R. Hughes Jr.
Biography in the National Aviation Hall of Fame
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Watergate scandal | true | [
"Hercules in the Maze of the Minotaur is the fifth and final television movie in the syndicated fantasy series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys.\n\nIn the film, Hercules has given up his days of traveling and has settled down to spend some time with his family. When a distant village is threatened by an unseen monster, Hercules is called upon to help save the village from the monster.\n\nPlot\nIn a sun-dappled forest, two men are searching for buried treasure. They pace out the step given with the map, and discover a cave overgrown with bushes. The two men break through the plants and enter the cave. In the cave they find a huge wooden door, as they try to get through the door, a monster breaks through the door and chases after them. One man is captured and the other flees as the monster tells him to bring Hercules. Meanwhile, Hercules works on his farms, he sees his sons fighting and tells them that they should not fight. They say that Hercules fights, Hercules explains that he only fights when he has to and only to prevent other people from being harmed. He tells about the time when he had to fight Eryx the boxer to stop him from killing anymore people. He asks the boys if they understand, and they say they do. Later that evening, Hercules is working in the stable, Zeus appears and they chat. Hercules tells Zeus that there have been no monsters for a while, which is good as he has now settled down with Deianeira to raise the children. Zeus gives him a scale from a sea serpent and Hercules remembers the time when he and Deianeira were swallowed by a sea serpent while looking for the lost city of Troy. While day-dreaming he snaps back to reality at the dinner table to find the dog eating his dinner. Back in the cave, the Minotaur broods in wait for Hercules.\n\nAt night the children ask their father to tell them a story, Ilea asks for Hercules to tell her about when he and Deianeira first met. Hercules begins relating how the fire had vanished from the Earth and that Deianeira's village needed fire, and how he got the fire back from Hera's temple. Halfway through the story Hercules realises the children are asleep. He and Deianeira retire to bed and she asks him if he misses his adventures and battling monsters, he says truthfully that he does miss it. The following day, Hercules is working in the stables and sees something flit past the door, he goes to look but sees nothing. As he walks back into the stable a man jumps down upon him, Hercules turns to see it is Iolaus. They begin talking about their adventures and the time when they had to fight the Lernaean Hydra that Hera had sent to kill them. The two men go inside to get a drink, Iolaus tells Hercules that he met a man who taught him some new moves that allow smaller men to overpower a bigger man. Hercules says he will not fight Iolaus, but he is eventually persuaded. The two men strip off their tops and prepare to spar. When Hercules attacks Iolaus he is overpowered by the smaller man, but after a short while Hercules gets the best of Iolaus as he sees Deianeira and Ilea standing in the doorway. Deianeira tells Iolaus that since Hercules gave up his adventures he has become depressed. A man arrives at the stable looking for Hercules, he tells him that he must help his village and that a monster has taken his brother. Hercules says he cannot go and the man says he has to because he is Hercules. Later that evening Deianeria asks him why he refused to help and he tells her that he promised to stay and raise the children with her. She tells him that he should not try to stop being Hercules, not for her or the children. She tells him to go and the next day her and Iolaus set off for Alturia. As they travel to Alturia a young couple are looking for somewhere quiet, they find the cave and enter. While they are making out the Minotaur comes and attacks them.\n\nWhen Hercules and Iolaus arrive in Alturia they ask a woman where the monster is and she tells Hercules that there is not any monster. Underneath the village the Minotaur swears that Hercules will pay, Zeus appears and tells the Minotaur that he still has not learned his lesson, he replies that he has been feeding on hate. Minotaur taunts Zeus because he was unable to kill the Minotaur. Hercules and Iolaus are in a tavern and end up fighting some men because they do not believe that he is really Hercules. Outside the tavern three men are killed and Hercules goes to investigate, only to be found by the villagers. They think he killed the men and chase him and Iolaus. The man who had asked for Hercules's help comes and takes Hercules to the cave where his brother was captured. Zeus appears and tells Hercules what the monster is and why he wants Hercules. He asks Hercules to kill the Minotaur, and he enters the cave. In the center of the cave he finds the Minotaur, who challenges Hercules. They begin fighting and as Hercules is about to kill the Minotaur, the creature reveals that he is really Hercules' brother Gryphus and Hercules cannot kill him. The Minotaur then attacks Hercules and Hercules ends up killing him by throwing him onto a stalagmite as Zeus arrives. As Gryphus lies dying, Hercules says he is sorry Zeus had to lose a son this way. Zeus says to Hercules that Gryphus was lost the day he tried to lead the people against him and that it did not have to be this way. When Gryphus begs for Zeus not to let him die like this, Zeus changes Gryphus back to mortal form as a mist covers over Gryphus' dead body. As Zeus declares that Gryphus is now \"free,\" Hercules helps Iolaus and the other people being held by the Minotaur and the two brothers are reunited. With the people of the village now safe and Iolaus freed, the two men journey back home.\n\nCast\n Kevin Sorbo as Hercules\n Anthony Quinn as Zeus\n Michael Hurst as Iolaus\n Tawny Kitaen as Deianira\n Anthony Ray Parker as Gryphus (Minotaur)\n Al Chalk as Gryphus (voice)\n Rose McIver as Ilea\n Paul McIver as Aeson\n Simon Lewthwaite as Klonus\n\nExternal links\n \n\n1994 television films\nHercules: The Legendary Journeys\nFilms set in ancient Greece\nFilms about Heracles\nFilms directed by Josh Becker\nNew Zealand television films\nMinotaur",
"Hercules and the Amazon Women is the first television movie in the syndicated fantasy series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and marked the debut of Kevin Sorbo as the titular character Hercules and co-starred Anthony Quinn, Michael Hurst, Roma Downey and Lucy Lawless.\n\nIn the film, a village of only men comes to seek Hercules' aid in defeating a band of mysterious creatures on the eve of Iolaus' wedding. Hercules discovers these \"creatures\" are really the women of the village who have split with their chauvinistic men and aligned themselves with Hera.\n\nPlot\nThree men are walking through the woods, they hear strange noises and catch glimpses of something moving in the undergrowth. Suddenly they are attacked by unseen creatures. Two men are killed, but one escapes and flees the woods.\n\nHercules strolls into a village after returning from one of his adventures, and is greeted by Iolaus. It is established that Iolaus is getting married and that Hercules is the best man. The two men set off for Alcmene's house. While walking through the woods, they reminisce that it has been a long time since they last saw each other. Iolaus tells Hercules about his bride-to-be, Ania. They stumble upon a little girl crying alone near an altar. She tells them that a monster killed her father while they were placing an offering to the goddess. Hercules tries to comfort the girl and asks if he can help, but the girl transforms into a monster. Hercules chops off its head, and thinking it is now dead, he and Iolaus begin walking away. They hear a noise and turn around to see that the monster is not dead, and has now grown two new heads in the place where the previous one was. The monster is a Hydra. Hercules tells Iolaus to grab the torch from the altar, Hercules cuts off the heads and burns the Hydra, preventing it from growing new heads, thus killing it. After the Hydra is destroyed a peacock feather remains in its place, and Hercules tells Iolaus that Hera is responsible for the Hydra.\n\nHercules and Iolaus finally reach his mother's house. Iolaus invites them both for dinner, then leaves. While the four are enjoying dinner, Ania glimpses a man outside the window and Hercules goes to investigate. It is the Gargarean Pithus, the man who escaped the creatures at the beginning of the film. He explains to Hercules about his village being attacked by creatures and Hercules agrees to help. Iolaus persuades Hercules to let him go along for one last adventure before he is married, Hercules reluctantly relents and says that he can come along. The three men set off for the village. When they arrive Hercules asks where all the women are, Pithus tells him that they were stolen by the creatures in the forest. Hercules and Iolaus head off to find the beasts and rescue the village's women. In the forest they are ambushed by the beasts, managing to stave off the attack for a time until Iolaus discovers that the beasts are really women. He chases after one but is fatally injured in the fight, and dies in Hercules' arms. Hercules is then surrounded by several of the 'beasts'. Two of them approach him with spears. One of the 'creatures' cries out and says \"No Stop!\", and then raises her mask. It happens to be a woman, who then says \"The queen will want to kill him\". Hercules is in utter shock to discover the true nature of the 'beasts'.\n\nHercules is then seen being taken captive by the women, bound in chains and gagged with a black leather strap. He is surrounded by the \"Amazon Women Warriors\" and led through the village full of women. An older woman offers to buy Hercules and several taunt him along the way to see the queen. When he arrives Hippolyta tells him that she knows he is here to defeat them. Hercules tells her she is wrong. Using a magic candle, Hippolyta turns Hercules into a baby telling him she will show him what he is really like. As Hercules reverts to infant form we are shown flashbacks to Hercules's youth and times when he has been told by people how to behave toward women. Later he returns to adult state, realizing that Hippolyta is right and that his attitude toward women is wrong, he tells her that he can change. She says that he cannot change and that all men are the same. Hippolyta goes to consult with Hera, she tells Hippolyta to lead an attack on the village.\n\nHercules escapes from the Amazons and warns the men of the village of the forthcoming attack. He prepares them for when the women arrive. The women ride into the village and order the men to remove their clothes, telling them they are here for only one thing. The men tell the women to sit and talk with them for a while. Pithus's wife enters her home, and her son Franco asks if she really is his mother. He tells her he often dreams about her but she has no face, she removes her mask and shows her face to Franco. Hercules stands up to Hippolyta, who says she's not afraid of Hercules. He kisses her, she tells him she is not afraid and kisses him back. The two make love. The following day the women are still with the men. The Amazons return to their city and both men and women reminisce about the night before. Hera tells Hippolyta that Hercules has tricked her and orders her to attack the village again, this time killing all the men and boys. Hippolyta refuses but Hera possesses her. Hera, now in control of Hippolyta's actions, orders the women to attack the village.\n\nHercules stops Hippolyta and realizes that she is possessed by Hera. She rides off and Hercules goes after her. As they fight Hercules tries to get through to Hippolyta, telling her that she is stronger than Hera and to fight her control, but it proves futile. \nPithus then arrives to aid Hercules, preventing Hera from striking a killing blow to him. She grabs Pithus and holds a knife to his throat. Despite Hercules’s plea, Hera cuts Pithus’s throat, which ignites Hercules’s fury enough to best her. \nHercules is about to deal the fatal blow, but stops as he realises he would be killing Hippolyta, not Hera. Hercules flees, but Hera follows, goading him, and eventually cornering him at the top of a large waterfall. He tells Hera that if he or Hippolyta has to die then he will give up his life for her, saying he could not live his life without her. Upon hearing this Hera runs Hippolyta's body over the edge of the waterfall, killing her.\n\nHercules returns to the City of Amazons and retrieves the candle Hippolyta used to send him back to his childhood. Zeus appears and tells him the candle does not work in the way Hercules wants it to. Hercules replies that Zeus could make it work that way. Zeus tells Hercules that if he did that he would be in big trouble with Hera, but Hercules persuades him anyway. Zeus blows out the candle and Hercules is taken back to the night of the dinner. Ania sees Pithus outside the window and Hercules goes to tell him that the village does not need his help. He explains that all the men need to do is treat the women with respect and things will sort themselves out. Pithus returns to the village and when the women come the men sort out the problems that have been occurring. Alcmene asks Hercules if there is a woman out there who will make him happy like Ania did for Iolaus, and Hercules replies that he is sure there is as he thinks about Hippolyta.\n\nCast\n Kevin Sorbo as Hercules\n Anthony Quinn as Zeus\n Roma Downey as Hippolyta \n Michael Hurst as Iolaus\n Lloyd Scott as Pithus\n Lucy Lawless as Lysia\n Christopher Brougham as Lethan\n Jennifer Ludlam as Alcmene\n Rose McIver as Girl (Hydra)\n\nExternal links\n \n\nHercules: The Legendary Journeys\nFilms set in ancient Greece\nNew Zealand television films\nFilms about Heracles\nFilms directed by Bill L. Norton"
]
|
[
"Howard Hughes",
"H-4 Hercules",
"What is the H-4 hercules?",
"HK-1 Hercules flying boat",
"What was the use of the flying boat?",
"use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable",
"How much did the hercules cost to make?",
"I don't know.",
"Was the hercules used for many missions?",
"The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947.",
"Did the boat have many critics?",
"Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled,",
"Did hughes win this battle?",
"Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory.",
"Is there any other interesting aspects about the hercules?",
"On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum"
]
| C_3fad173257b34869985c7b64812d1528_0 | Was the anniversary well attended? | 8 | Was the Howard Hughes' H-4 Hercules anniversary well attended? | Howard Hughes | The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The project was opposed by the military services, thinking it would siphon resources from higher priority programs, but was advocated by Hughes' powerful allies in Washington, D.C. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II. The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at 319 feet 11 inches (97.51 m), had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next largest wingspan was about 310 ft (94 m)). (The Hercules is no longer the longest or heaviest aircraft ever built; both of those titles are currently held by the Antonov An-225 Mriya.) The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947. The Hercules was nicknamed the Spruce Goose by its critics, but it was actually made largely from birch, not spruce, rather than of aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes' Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the F-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it is now part of the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum. On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes' paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules. CANNOTANSWER | Hughes' paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio technology pioneer Dave Evans, | Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, investor, record-setting pilot, engineer, film director, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and financially successful individuals in the world. He first became prominent as a film producer, and then as an important figure in the aviation industry. Later in life, he became known for his eccentric behavior and reclusive lifestyle—oddities that were caused in part by his worsening obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), chronic pain from a near-fatal plane crash, and increasing deafness.
As a film tycoon, Hughes gained fame in Hollywood beginning in the late 1920s, when he produced big-budget and often controversial films such as The Racket (1928), Hell's Angels (1930), and Scarface (1932). He later took over the RKO Pictures film studio in 1948, recognized then as one of the Big Five studios of Hollywood's Golden Age, although the production company struggled under his control and ultimately ceased operations in 1957.
Through his interest in aviation and aerospace travel, Hughes formed the Hughes Aircraft Company in 1932, hiring numerous engineers, designers, and defense contractors. He spent the rest of the 1930s and much of the 1940s setting multiple world air speed records and building the Hughes H-1 Racer (1935) and H-4 Hercules (the Spruce Goose, 1947), the latter being the largest flying boat in history and having the longest wingspan of any aircraft from the time it was built until 2019. He acquired and expanded Trans World Airlines and later acquired Air West, renaming it Hughes Airwest. Hughes won the Harmon Trophy on two occasions (1936 and 1938), the Collier Trophy (1938), and the Congressional Gold Medal (1939) all for his achievements in aviation throughout the 1930s. He was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1973 and was included in Flying magazine's 2013 list of the 51 Heroes of Aviation, ranked at 25.
During the 1960s and early 1970s, Hughes extended his financial empire to include several major businesses in Las Vegas, such as real estate, hotels, casinos, and media outlets. Known at the time as one of the most powerful men in the state of Nevada, he is largely credited with transforming Vegas into a more refined cosmopolitan city.
After years of mental and physical decline, Hughes died of kidney failure in 1976, at the age of 70. Today, his legacy is maintained through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Howard Hughes Corporation.
Early life
Howard Robard Hughes Jr. was the son of Allene Stone Gano (1883–1922) and of Howard R. Hughes Sr. (1869–1924), a successful inventor and businessman from Missouri. He had English, Welsh and some French Huguenot ancestry, and was a descendant of John Gano (1727–1804), the minister who allegedly baptized George Washington. His father patented (1909) the two-cone roller bit, which allowed rotary drilling for petroleum in previously inaccessible places. The senior Hughes made the shrewd and lucrative decision to commercialize the invention by leasing the bits instead of selling them, obtained several early patents, and founded the Hughes Tool Company in 1909. Hughes's uncle was the famed novelist, screenwriter, and film-director Rupert Hughes.
A 1941 affidavit birth certificate of Hughes, signed by his aunt Annette Gano Lummis and by Estelle Boughton Sharp, states that he was born on December 24, 1905, in Harris County, Texas. However, his certificate of baptism, recorded on October 7, 1906, in the parish register of St. John's Episcopal Church in Keokuk, Iowa, listed his date of birth as September 24, 1905, without any reference to the place of birth.
At a young age, Hughes showed interest in science and technology. In particular, he had great engineering aptitude and built Houston's first "wireless" radio transmitter at age 11. He went on to be one of the first licensed ham-radio operators in Houston, having the assigned callsign W5CY (originally 5CY). At 12, Hughes was photographed in the local newspaper, identified as the first boy in Houston to have a "motorized" bicycle, which he had built from parts from his father's steam engine. He was an indifferent student, with a liking for mathematics, flying, and mechanics. He took his first flying lesson at 14, and attended Fessenden School in Massachusetts in 1921.
After a brief stint at The Thacher School, Hughes attended math and aeronautical engineering courses at Caltech. The red-brick house where Hughes lived as a teenager at 3921 Yoakum Blvd., Houston, still stands, now known as Hughes House on the grounds of the University of St. Thomas.
His mother Allene died in March 1922 from complications of an ectopic pregnancy. Howard Hughes Sr. died of a heart attack in 1924. Their deaths apparently inspired Hughes to include the establishment of a medical research laboratory in the will that he signed in 1925 at age 19. Howard Sr.'s will had not been updated since Allene's death, and Hughes inherited 75% of the family fortune. On his 19th birthday, Hughes was declared an emancipated minor, enabling him to take full control of his life.
From a young age, Hughes became a proficient and enthusiastic golfer. He often scored near-par figures, played the game to a two-three handicap during his 20s, and for a time aimed for a professional golf career. He golfed frequently with top players, including Gene Sarazen. Hughes rarely played competitively and gradually gave up his passion for the sport to pursue other interests. Hughes played golf every afternoon at LA courses including the Lakeside Golf Club, Wilshire Country Club, or the Bel-Air Country Club. Partners included George Von Elm or Ozzie Carlton. After Hughes hurt himself in the late 1920s, his golfing tapered off, and after his F-11 crash, Hughes was unable to play at all.
Hughes withdrew from Rice University shortly after his father's death. On June 1, 1925, he married Ella Botts Rice, daughter of David Rice and Martha Lawson Botts of Houston, and great-niece of William Marsh Rice, for whom Rice University was named. They moved to Los Angeles, where he hoped to make a name for himself as a filmmaker.
They moved into the Ambassador Hotel, and Hughes proceeded to learn to fly a Waco, while simultaneously producing his first motion picture, Swell Hogan.
Business career
Hughes enjoyed a highly successful business career beyond engineering, aviation, and filmmaking; many of his career endeavors involved varying entrepreneurial roles.
Entertainment
Ralph Graves persuaded Hughes to finance a short film, Swell Hogan, which Graves had written and would star in. Hughes himself produced it. However, it was a disaster. After hiring a film editor to try to salvage it, he finally ordered that it be destroyed. His next two films, Everybody's Acting (1926) and Two Arabian Knights (1927), achieved financial success; the latter won the first Academy Award for Best Director of a comedy picture. The Racket (1928) and The Front Page (1931) were also nominated for Academy Awards.
Hughes spent $3.5 million to make the flying film Hell's Angels (1930). Hell's Angels received one Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography.
He produced another hit, Scarface (1932), a production delayed by censors' concern over its violence.
The Outlaw premiered in 1943, but was not released nationally until 1946. The film featured Jane Russell, who received considerable attention from industry censors, this time owing to her revealing costumes.
RKO
From the 1940s to the late 1950s, the Hughes Tool Company ventured into the film industry when it obtained partial ownership of the RKO companies, which included RKO Pictures, RKO Studios, a chain of movie theaters known as RKO Theatres and a network of radio stations known as the RKO Radio Network.
In 1948, Hughes gained control of RKO, a struggling major Hollywood studio, by acquiring the 929,000 shares owned by Floyd Odlum's Atlas Corporation, for $8,825,000. Within weeks of acquiring the studio, Hughes dismissed 700 employees. Production dwindled to 9 pictures during the first year of Hughes's control; previously RKO had averaged 30 per year.
Production shut down for six months, during which time Hughes ordered investigations of each employee who remained with RKO as far as their political leanings were concerned. Only after ensuring that the stars under contract to RKO had no suspect affiliations would Hughes approve completed pictures to be sent back for re-shooting. This was especially true of the women under contract to RKO at that time. If Hughes felt that his stars did not properly represent the political views of his liking or if a film's anti-communist politics were not sufficiently clear, he pulled the plug. In 1952, an abortive sale to a Chicago-based group connected to the mafia with no experience in the industry disrupted studio operations at RKO even further.
In 1953, Hughes became involved with a high-profile lawsuit as part of the settlement of the United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc. Antitrust Case. As a result of the hearings, the shaky status of RKO became increasingly apparent. A steady stream of lawsuits from RKO's minority shareholders had grown to become extremely annoying to Hughes. They had accused him of financial misconduct and corporate mismanagement. Since Hughes wanted to focus primarily on his aircraft manufacturing and TWA holdings during the years of the Korean War of 1950 to 1953, Hughes offered to buy out all other stockholders in order to dispense with their distractions.
By the end of 1954, Hughes had gained near-total control of RKO at a cost of nearly $24 million, becoming the first sole owner of a major Hollywood studio since the silent-film era. Six months later Hughes sold the studio to the General Tire and Rubber Company for $25 million. Hughes retained the rights to pictures that he had personally produced, including those made at RKO. He also retained Jane Russell's contract. For Howard Hughes, this was the virtual end of his 25-year involvement in the motion-picture industry. However, his reputation as a financial wizard emerged unscathed. During that time period, RKO became known as the home of classic film noir productions, thanks in part to the limited budgets required to make such films during Hughes's tenure. Hughes reportedly walked away from RKO having made $6.5 million in personal profit. According to Noah Dietrich, Hughes made a $10,000,000 profit from the sale of the theaters and made a profit of $1,000,000 from his 7-year ownership of RKO.
Real estate
According to Noah Dietrich, "Land became a principal asset for the Hughes empire". Hughes acquired 1200 acres in Culver City for Hughes Aircraft, bought 7 sections [4,480 acres] in Tucson for his Falcon missile-plant, and purchased 25,000 acres near Las Vegas. In 1968, the Hughes Tool Company purchased the North Las Vegas Air Terminal.
Originally known as Summa Corporation, the Howard Hughes Corporation formed in 1972 when the oil-tools business of Hughes Tool Company, then owned by Howard Hughes Jr., floated on the New York Stock Exchange under the "Hughes Tool" name. This forced the remaining businesses of the "original" Hughes Tool to adopt a new corporate name: "Summa". The name "Summa"Latin for "highest"was adopted without the approval of Hughes himself, who preferred to keep his own name on the business, and suggested "HRH Properties" (for Hughes Resorts and Hotels, and also his own initials). In 1988 Summa announced plans for Summerlin, a master-planned community named for the paternal grandmother of Howard Hughes, Jean Amelia Summerlin.
Initially staying in the Desert Inn, Hughes refused to vacate his room, and instead decided to purchase the entire hotel. Hughes extended his financial empire to include Las Vegas real estate, hotels, and media outlets, spending an estimated $300 million, and using his considerable powers to take over many of the well-known hotels, especially the venues connected with organized crime. He quickly became one of the most powerful men in Las Vegas. He was instrumental in changing the image of Las Vegas from its Wild West roots into a more refined cosmopolitan city. In addition to the Desert Inn, Hughes would eventually own the Sands, Frontier, Silver Slipper, Castaways and Landmark and Harold's Club in Reno. Hughes would eventually become the largest employer in Nevada.
Aviation and aerospace
Another portion of Hughes's commercial interests involved aviation, airlines, and the aerospace and defense industries. A lifelong aircraft enthusiast and pilot, Hughes survived four airplane accidents: one in a Thomas-Morse Scout while filming Hell's Angels, one while setting the airspeed record in the Hughes Racer, one at Lake Mead in 1943, and the near-fatal crash of the Hughes XF-11 in 1946. At Rogers Airport in Los Angeles, he learned to fly from pioneer aviators, including Moye Stephens and J.B. Alexander. He set many world records and commissioned the construction of custom aircraft for himself while heading Hughes Aircraft at the airport in Glendale, CA. Operating from there, the most technologically important aircraft he commissioned was the Hughes H-1 Racer. On September 13, 1935, Hughes, flying the H-1, set the landplane airspeed record of over his test course near Santa Ana, California (Giuseppe Motta reaching 362 mph in 1929 and George Stainforth reached 407.5 mph in 1931, both in seaplanes). This marked the last time in history that an aircraft built by a private individual set the world airspeed record. A year and a half later, on January 19, 1937, flying the same H-1 Racer fitted with longer wings, Hughes set a new transcontinental airspeed record by flying non-stop from Los Angeles to Newark in seven hours, 28 minutes, and 25 seconds (beating his own previous record of nine hours, 27 minutes). His average ground-speed over the flight was .
The H-1 Racer featured a number of design innovations: it had retractable landing gear (as Boeing Monomail had five years before), and all rivets and joints set flush into the body of the aircraft to reduce drag. The H-1 Racer is thought to have influenced the design of a number of World War II fighters such as the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, Focke-Wulf Fw 190, and F8F Bearcat, although that has never been reliably confirmed. In 1975 the H-1 Racer was donated to the Smithsonian.
Round-the-world flight
On July 14, 1938, Hughes set another record by completing a flight around the world in just 91 hours (three days, 19 hours, 17 minutes), beating the previous record of 186 hours (7 days, 18 hours, 49 minutes) set in 1933 by Wiley Post in a single-engine Lockheed Vega by almost four days. Hughes returned home ahead of photographs of his flight. Taking off from New York City, Hughes continued to Paris, Moscow, Omsk, Yakutsk, Fairbanks, and Minneapolis, then returning to New York City. For this flight he flew a Lockheed 14 Super Electra (NX18973, a twin-engine transport with a four-man crew) fitted with the latest radio and navigational equipment. Harry Connor was the co-pilot, Thomas Thurlow the navigator, Richard Stoddart the engineer, and Ed Lund the mechanic. Hughes wanted the flight to be a triumph of American aviation technology, illustrating that safe, long-distance air travel was possible. Albert Lodwick of Mystic, Iowa, provided organizational skills as the flight operations manager. While Hughes had previously been relatively obscure despite his wealth, being better known for dating Katharine Hepburn, New York City now gave him a ticker-tape parade in the Canyon of Heroes. Hughes and his crew were awarded the 1938 Collier Trophy for flying around the world in record time. He was awarded the Harmon Trophy in 1936 and 1938 for the record-breaking global circumnavigation.
In 1938 the William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas—known at the time as Houston Municipal Airport—was renamed after Hughes, but the name was changed back due to public outrage over naming the airport after a living person.
Hughes also had a role in the design and financing of both the Boeing 307 Stratoliner and Lockheed L-049 Constellation.
Other aviator awards include: the Bibesco Cup of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in 1938, the Octave Chanute Award in 1940, and a special Congressional Gold Medal in 1939 "in recognition of the achievements of Howard Hughes in advancing the science of aviation and thus bringing great credit to his country throughout the world".
President Harry S. Truman sent the Congressional medal to Hughes after the F-11 crash. After his around-the-world flight, Hughes had declined to go to the White House to collect it.
Hughes D-2 and XF-11
The Hughes D-2 was conceived in 1939 as a bomber with five crew members, powered by 42-cylinder Wright R-2160 Tornado engines. In the end, it appeared as two-seat fighter-reconnaissance aircraft designated the D-2A, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-2800-49 engines. The aircraft was constructed using the Duramold process. The prototype was brought to Harper's Dry Lake in California in great secrecy in 1943 and first flew on June 20 of that year. Acting on a recommendation of the president's son, Colonel Elliott Roosevelt, who had become friends with Hughes, in September 1943 the USAAF ordered 100 of a reconnaissance development of the D-2, known as the F-11. Hughes then attempted to get the military to pay for the development of the D-2. In November 1944, the hangar containing the D-2A was reportedly hit by lightning and the aircraft was destroyed. The D-2 design was abandoned but led to the extremely controversial Hughes XF-11. The XF-11 was a large, all-metal, two-seat reconnaissance aircraft, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-4360-31 engines, each driving a set of contra-rotating propellers. Only two prototypes were completed; the second one with a single propeller per side.
Fatal crash of the Sikorsky S-43
In the spring of 1943 Hughes spent nearly a month in Las Vegas, test-flying his Sikorsky S-43 amphibious aircraft, practising touch-and-go landings on Lake Mead in preparation for flying the H-4 Hercules. The weather conditions at the lake during the day were ideal and he enjoyed Las Vegas at night. On May 17, 1943, Hughes flew the Sikorsky from California, carrying two CAA aviation inspectors, two of his employees, and actress Ava Gardner. Hughes dropped Gardner off in Las Vegas and proceeded to Lake Mead to conduct qualifying tests in the S-43. The test flight did not go well. The Sikorsky crashed into Lake Mead, killing CAA inspector Ceco Cline and Hughes's employee Richard Felt. Hughes suffered a severe gash on the top of his head when he hit the upper control panel and had to be rescued by one of the others on board. Hughes paid divers $100,000 to raise the aircraft and later spent more than $500,000 restoring it. Hughes sent the plane to Houston, where it remained for many years.
Near-fatal crash of the XF-11
Hughes was involved in another near-fatal aircraft accident on July 7, 1946, while performing the first flight of the prototype U.S. Army Air Forces reconnaissance aircraft, the XF-11, near Hughes airfield at Culver City, California. An oil leak caused one of the contra-rotating propellers to reverse pitch, causing the aircraft to yaw sharply and lose altitude rapidly. Hughes attempted to save the aircraft by landing it at the Los Angeles Country Club golf course, but just seconds before reaching the course, the XF-11 started to drop dramatically and crashed in the Beverly Hills neighborhood surrounding the country club.
When the XF-11 finally came to a halt after destroying three houses, the fuel tanks exploded, setting fire to the aircraft and a nearby home at 808 North Whittier Drive owned by Lt Col. Charles E. Meyer. Hughes managed to pull himself out of the flaming wreckage but lay beside the aircraft until rescued by Marine Master Sgt. William L. Durkin, who happened to be in the area visiting friends. Hughes sustained significant injuries in the crash, including a crushed collar bone, multiple cracked ribs, crushed chest with collapsed left lung, shifting his heart to the right side of the chest cavity, and numerous third-degree burns. An oft-told story said that Hughes sent a check to the Marine weekly for the remainder of his life as a sign of gratitude. Noah Dietrich asserted that Hughes did send Durkin $200 a month, but Durkin's daughter denied knowing that he received any money from Hughes.
Despite his physical injuries, Hughes took pride that his mind was still working. As he lay in his hospital bed, he decided that he did not like the bed's design. He called in plant engineers to design a customized bed, equipped with hot and cold running water, built in six sections, and operated by 30 electric motors, with push-button adjustments. Hughes designed the hospital bed specifically to alleviate the pain caused by moving with severe burn injuries. Although he never used the bed that he designed, Hughes's bed served as a prototype for the modern hospital bed. Hughes's doctors considered his recovery almost miraculous.
Many attribute his long-term dependence on opiates to his use of codeine as a painkiller during his convalescence. Yet Dietrich asserts that Hughes recovered the "hard way—no sleeping pills, no opiates of any kind". The trademark mustache he wore afterward hid a scar on his upper lip resulting from the accident.
H-4 Hercules
The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The military services opposed the project, thinking it would siphon resources from higher-priority programs, but Hughes's powerful allies in Washington, D.C., advocated for it. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II.
The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at , had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next-largest wingspan was about ). (The Hercules is no longer the longest nor heaviest aircraft ever built - surpassed by the Antonov An-225 Mriya produced in 1985.)
The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947.
Critics nicknamed the Hercules the Spruce Goose, but it was actually made largely from birch (not spruce) rather than from aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes's Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the XF-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly-disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense-acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it features at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum.
On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes's paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio-technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules.
Hughes Aircraft
In 1932 Hughes founded the Hughes Aircraft Company, a division of Hughes Tool Company, in a rented corner of a Lockheed Aircraft Corporation hangar in Burbank, California, to build the H-1 racer.
Shortly after founding the company, Hughes used the alias "Charles Howard" to accept a job as a baggage handler for American Airlines. He was soon promoted to co-pilot.
Hughes continued to work for American Airlines until his real identity was discovered.
During and after World War II Hughes fashioned his company into a major defense contractor. The Hughes Helicopters division started in 1947 when helicopter manufacturer Kellett sold their latest design to Hughes for production. Hughes Aircraft became a major American aerospace- and defense contractor, manufacturing numerous technology-related products that included spacecraft vehicles, military aircraft, radar systems, electro-optical systems, the first working laser, aircraft computer systems, missile systems, ion-propulsion engines (for space travel), commercial satellites, and other electronics systems.
In 1948 Hughes created a new division of Hughes Aircraft: the Hughes Aerospace Group. The Hughes Space and Communications Group and the Hughes Space Systems Division were later spun off in 1948 to form their own divisions and ultimately became the Hughes Space and Communications Company in 1961. In 1953 Howard Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the newly formed Howard Hughes Medical Institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a tax-exempt charitable organization. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion. In 1997 General Motors sold Hughes Aircraft to Raytheon and in 2000, sold Hughes Space & Communications to Boeing. A combination of Boeing, GM, and Raytheon acquired the Hughes Research Laboratories, which focused on advanced developments in microelectronics, information & systems sciences, materials, sensors, and photonics; their work-space spans from basic research to product delivery. It has particularly emphasized capabilities in high-performance integrated circuits, high-power lasers, antennas, networking, and smart materials.
Airlines
In 1939, at the urging of Jack Frye, president of Transcontinental & Western Airlines, the predecessor of Trans World Airlines (TWA), Hughes began to quietly purchase a majority share of TWA stock; he took a controlling interest in the airline by 1944. Although he never had an official position with TWA, Hughes handpicked the board of directors, which included Noah Dietrich, and often issued orders directly to airline staff. Hughes Tool Co. purchased the first six Stratoliners Boeing manufactured. Hughes used one personally, and he let TWA operate the other five.
Hughes is commonly credited as the driving force behind the Lockheed Constellation airliner, which Hughes and Frye ordered in 1939 as a long-range replacement for TWA's fleet of Boeing 307 Stratoliners. Hughes personally financed TWA's acquisition of 40 Constellations for $18 million, the largest aircraft order in history up to that time. The Constellations were among the highest-performing commercial aircraft of the late 1940s and 1950s and allowed TWA to pioneer nonstop transcontinental service. During World War II Hughes leveraged political connections in Washington to obtain rights for TWA to serve Europe, making it the only U.S. carrier with a combination of domestic and transatlantic routes.
After the announcement of the Boeing 707, Hughes opted to pursue a more advanced jet aircraft for TWA and approached Convair in late 1954. Convair proposed two concepts to Hughes, but Hughes was unable to decide which concept to adopt, and Convair eventually abandoned its initial jet project after the mockups of the 707 and Douglas DC-8 were unveiled. Even after competitors such as United Airlines, American Airlines and Pan American World Airways had placed large orders for the 707, Hughes only placed eight orders for 707s through the Hughes Tool Company and forbade TWA from using the aircraft. After finally beginning to reserve 707 orders in 1956, Hughes embarked on a plan to build his own "superior" jet aircraft for TWA, applied for CAB permission to sell Hughes aircraft to TWA, and began negotiations with the state of Florida to build a manufacturing plant there. However, he abandoned this plan around 1958, and in the interim, negotiated new contracts for 707 and Convair 880 aircraft and engines totaling $400 million.
The financing of TWA's jet orders precipitated the end of Hughes's relationship with Noah Dietrich, and ultimately Hughes's ouster from control of TWA. Hughes did not have enough cash on hand or future cash flow to pay for the orders and did not immediately seek bank financing. Hughes's refusal to heed Dietrich's financing advice led to a major rift between the two by the end of 1956. Hughes believed that Dietrich wished to have Hughes committed as mentally incompetent, although the evidence of this is inconclusive. Dietrich resigned by telephone in May 1957 after repeated requests for stock options, which Hughes refused to grant, and with no further progress on the jet financing. As Hughes's mental state worsened, he ordered various tactics to delay payments to Boeing and Convair; his behavior led TWA's banks to insist that he be removed from management as a condition for further financing.
In 1960, Hughes was ultimately forced out of the management of TWA, although he continued to own 78% of the company. In 1961, TWA filed suit against Hughes Tool Company, claiming that the latter had violated antitrust law by using TWA as a captive market for aircraft trading. The claim was largely dependent upon obtaining testimony from Hughes himself. Hughes went into hiding and refused to testify. A default judgment was issued against Hughes Tool Company for $135 million in 1963 but was overturned by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1973, on the basis that Hughes was immune from prosecution. In 1966, Hughes was forced to sell his TWA shares. The sale of his TWA shares brought Hughes $546,549,771.
Hughes acquired control of Boston-based Northeast Airlines in 1962. However, the airline's lucrative route authority between major northeastern cities and Miami was terminated by a CAB decision around the time of the acquisition, and Hughes sold control of the company to a trustee in 1964. Northeast went on to merge with Delta Air Lines in 1972.
In 1970, Hughes acquired San Francisco-based Air West and renamed it Hughes Airwest. Air West had been formed in 1968 by the merger of Bonanza Air Lines, Pacific Air Lines, and West Coast Airlines, all of which operated in the western U.S. By the late 1970s, Hughes Airwest operated an all-jet fleet of Boeing 727-200, Douglas DC-9-10, and McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 jetliners serving an extensive route network in the western U.S. with flights to Mexico and western Canada as well. By 1980, the airline's route system reached as far east as Houston (Hobby Airport) and Milwaukee with a total of 42 destinations being served. Hughes Airwest was then acquired by and merged into Republic Airlines (1979–1986) in late 1980. Republic was subsequently acquired by and merged into Northwest Airlines which in turn was ultimately merged into Delta Air Lines in 2008.
Business with David Charnay
Hughes had made numerous business partnerships through industrialist and producer David Charnay. Their friendship and many partnerships began with the film The Conqueror, which was first released to the public in 1956. The film caused many controversies due to its critical flop and radioactive location used in St. George, Utah, that eventually led to Hughes buying up nearly every copy of the film he could, only to watch the film at home repeatedly for many nights in a row.
Charnay later bought Four Star, the film and television production company that produced The Conqueror.
Hughes and Charnay's most published dealings were with a contested AirWest leveraged buyout. Charnay led the buyout group that involved Howard Hughes and their partners acquiring Air West. Hughes, Charnay, as well as three others, were indicted. The indictment, made by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton, accused the group of conspiring to drive down the stock price of Air West in order to pressure company directors to sell to Hughes. The charges were dismissed after a judge had determined that the indictment had failed to allege an illegal action on the part of Hughes, Charnay, and all the other accused in the indictment. Thompson, the federal judge that made the decision to dismiss the charges called the indictment one of the worst claims that he had ever seen. The charges were filed again, a second time, by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton's assistant, Dean Vernon. The Federal Judge ruled on November 13, 1974, and elaborated to say that the case suggested a "reprehensible misuse of the power of great wealth", but in his judicial opinion, "no crime had been committed." The aftermath of the Air West deal was later settled with the SEC by paying former stockholders for alleged losses from the sale of their investment in Air West stock. As noted above, Air West was subsequently renamed Hughes Airwest. During a long pause between the years of the dismissed charges against Hughes, Charnay, and their partners, Howard Hughes mysteriously died mid-flight while on the way to Houston from Acapulco. No further attempts were made to file any indictments after Hughes died.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
In 1953, Hughes launched the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Miami, Florida, (currently located in Chevy Chase, Maryland) with the expressed goal of basic biomedical research, including trying to understand, in Hughes's words, the "genesis of life itself", due to his lifelong interest in science and technology. Hughes's first will, which he signed in 1925 at the age of 19, stipulated that a portion of his estate should be used to create a medical institute bearing his name. When a major battle with the IRS loomed ahead, Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a for-profit entity of a fully tax-exempt charity. Hughes's internist, Verne Mason, who treated Hughes after his 1946 aircraft crash, was chairman of the institute's medical advisory committee. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute's new board of trustees sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion, allowing the institute to grow dramatically.
In 1954, Hughes transferred Hughes Aircraft to the foundation, which paid Hughes Tool Co. $18,000,000 for the assets. The foundation leased the land from Hughes Tool Co., which then subleased it to Hughes Aircraft Corp. The difference in rent, $2,000,000 per year, became the foundation's working capital.
The deal was the topic of a protracted legal battle between Hughes and the Internal Revenue Service, which Hughes ultimately won. After his death in 1976, many thought that the balance of Hughes's estate would go to the institute, although it was ultimately divided among his cousins and other heirs, given the lack of a will to the contrary. The HHMI was the fourth largest private organization and one of the largest devoted to biological and medical research, with an endowment of $20.4 billion .
Glomar Explorer and the taking of K-129
In 1972, during the cold war era, Hughes was approached by the CIA through his longtime partner, David Charnay, to help secretly recover the Soviet submarine K-129, which had sunk near Hawaii four years earlier. Hughes's involvement provided the CIA with a plausible cover story, conducting expensive civilian marine research at extreme depths and the mining of undersea manganese nodules. The recovery plan used the special-purpose salvage vessel Glomar Explorer. In the summer of 1974, Glomar Explorer attempted to raise the Soviet vessel. However, during the recovery a mechanical failure in the ship's grapple caused half of the submarine to break off and fall to the ocean floor. This section is believed to have held many of the most sought-after items, including its code book and nuclear missiles. Two nuclear-tipped torpedoes and some cryptographic machines were recovered, along with the bodies of six Soviet submariners who were subsequently given formal burial at sea in a filmed ceremony. The operation, known as Project Azorian (but incorrectly referred to by the press as Project Jennifer), became public in February 1975 after secret documents were released, obtained by burglars of Hughes's headquarters in June 1974. Although he lent his name and his company's resources to the operation, Hughes and his companies had no operational involvement in the project. The Glomar Explorer was eventually acquired by Transocean and was sent to the scrap yard in 2015 during a large decline in oil prices.
Personal life
Early romances
In 1929, Hughes's wife of four years, Ella, returned to Houston and filed for divorce.
Hughes dated many famous women, including Joan Crawford, Billie Dove, Faith Domergue, Bette Davis, Yvonne De Carlo, Ava Gardner, Olivia de Havilland, Katharine Hepburn, Hedy Lamarr, Ginger Rogers, Janet Leigh, Pat Sheehan, Mamie Van Doren and Gene Tierney. He also proposed to Joan Fontaine several times, according to her autobiography No Bed of Roses. Jean Harlow accompanied him to the premiere of Hell's Angels, but Noah Dietrich wrote many years later that the relationship was strictly professional, as Hughes disliked Harlow personally. In his 1971 book, Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes, Dietrich said that Hughes genuinely liked and respected Jane Russell, but never sought romantic involvement with her. According to Russell's autobiography, however, Hughes once tried to bed her after a party. Russell (who was married at the time) refused him, and Hughes promised it would never happen again. The two maintained a professional and private friendship for many years. Hughes remained good friends with Tierney who, after his failed attempts to seduce her, was quoted as saying "I don't think Howard could love anything that did not have a motor in it". Later, when Tierney's daughter Daria was born deaf and blind and with a severe learning disability because of Tierney's exposure to rubella during her pregnancy, Hughes saw to it that Daria received the best medical care and paid all expenses.
Luxury yacht
In 1933, Hughes made a purchase of a luxury steam yacht named the Rover, which was previously owned by Scottish shipping magnate Lord Inchcape. "I have never seen the Rover but bought it on the blueprints, photographs and the reports of Lloyd's surveyors. My experience is that the English are the most honest race in the world." Hughes renamed the yacht Southern Cross and later sold her to Swedish entrepreneur Axel Wenner-Gren.
1936 automobile accident
On July 11, 1936, Hughes struck and killed a pedestrian named Gabriel S. Meyer with his car at the corner of 3rd Street and Lorraine in Los Angeles. After the crash, Hughes was taken to the hospital and certified as sober, but an attending doctor made a note that Hughes had been drinking. A witness to the crash told police that Hughes was driving erratically and too fast and that Meyer had been standing in the safety zone of a streetcar stop. Hughes was booked on suspicion of negligent homicide and held overnight in jail until his attorney, Neil S. McCarthy, obtained a writ of habeas corpus for his release pending a coroner's inquest. By the time of the coroner's inquiry, however, the witness had changed his story and claimed that Meyer had moved directly in front of Hughes's car. Nancy Bayly (Watts), who was in the car with Hughes at the time of the crash, corroborated this version of the story. On July 16, 1936, Hughes was held blameless by a coroner's jury at the inquest into Meyer's death. Hughes told reporters outside the inquiry, "I was driving slowly and a man stepped out of the darkness in front of me".
Marriage to Jean Peters
On January 12, 1957, Hughes married actress Jean Peters at a small hotel in Tonopah, Nevada. The couple met in the 1940s, before Peters became a film actress. They had a highly publicized romance in 1947 and there was talk of marriage, but she said she could not combine it with her career. Some later claimed that Peters was "the only woman [Hughes] ever loved", and he reportedly had his security officers follow her everywhere even when they were not in a relationship. Such reports were confirmed by actor Max Showalter, who became a close friend of Peters while shooting Niagara (1953). Showalter told an interviewer that because he frequently met with Peters, Hughes's men threatened to ruin his career if he did not leave her alone.
Connections to Richard Nixon and Watergate
Shortly before the 1960 Presidential election, Richard Nixon was alarmed when it was revealed that his brother, Donald, received a $205,000 loan from Hughes. It has long been speculated that Nixon's drive to learn what the Democrats were planning in 1972 was based in part on his belief that the Democrats knew about a later bribe that his friend Bebe Rebozo had received from Hughes after Nixon took office.
In late 1971, Donald Nixon was collecting intelligence for his brother in preparation for the upcoming presidential election. One of his sources was John H. Meier, a former business adviser of Hughes who had also worked with Democratic National Committee Chairman Larry O'Brien.
Meier, in collaboration with former Vice President Hubert Humphrey and others, wanted to feed misinformation to the Nixon campaign. Meier told Donald that he was sure the Democrats would win the election because Larry O'Brien had a great deal of information on Richard Nixon's illicit dealings with Howard Hughes that had never been released; O'Brien did not actually have any such information, but Meier wanted Nixon to think that he did. Donald told his brother that O'Brien was in possession of damaging Hughes information that could destroy his campaign. Terry Lenzner, who was the chief investigator for the Senate Watergate Committee, speculates that it was Nixon's desire to know what O'Brien knew about Nixon's dealings with Hughes that may have partially motivated the Watergate break-in.
Last years and death
Physical and mental decline
Hughes was widely considered eccentric and to have suffered with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
Dietrich wrote that Hughes always ate the same thing for dinner, a New York strip steak cooked medium rare, dinner salad, and peas, but only the smaller ones, pushing the larger ones aside. For breakfast, Hughes wanted his eggs cooked the way his family cook, Lily, made them. Hughes had a "phobia about germs", and "his passion for secrecy became a mania."
While directing The Outlaw, Hughes became fixated on a small flaw in one of Jane Russell's blouses, claiming that the fabric bunched up along a seam and gave the appearance of two nipples on each breast. He wrote a detailed memorandum to the crew on how to fix the problem. Richard Fleischer, who directed His Kind of Woman with Hughes as executive producer, wrote at length in his autobiography about the difficulty of dealing with the tycoon. In his book, Just Tell Me When to Cry, Fleischer explained that Hughes was fixated on trivial details and was alternately indecisive and obstinate. He also revealed that Hughes's unpredictable mood swings made him wonder if the film would ever be completed.
In 1958, Hughes told his aides that he wanted to screen some movies at a film studio near his home. He stayed in the studio's darkened screening room for more than four months, never leaving. He ate only chocolate bars and chicken and drank only milk, and was surrounded by dozens of Kleenex that he continuously stacked and re-arranged. He wrote detailed memos to his aides giving them explicit instructions neither to look at him nor speak to him unless spoken to. Throughout this period, Hughes sat fixated in his chair, often naked, continually watching movies. When he finally emerged in the summer of 1958, his hygiene was terrible. He had neither bathed nor cut his hair and nails for weeks; this may have been due to allodynia, which results in a pain response to stimuli that would normally not cause pain.
After the screening room incident, Hughes moved into a bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel where he also rented rooms for his aides, his wife, and numerous girlfriends. He would sit naked in his bedroom with a pink hotel napkin placed over his genitals, watching movies. This may have been because Hughes found the touch of clothing painful due to allodynia. He may have watched movies to distract himself from his pain—a common practice among patients with intractable pain, especially those who do not receive adequate treatment. In one year, Hughes spent an estimated $11 million at the hotel.
Hughes began purchasing restaurant chains and four-star hotels that had been founded within the state of Texas. This included, if for only a short period, many unknown franchises currently out of business. He placed ownership of the restaurants with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and all licenses were resold shortly after.
Another time, he became obsessed with the 1968 film Ice Station Zebra, and had it run on a continuous loop in his home. According to his aides, he watched it 150 times. Feeling guilty about the commercial, critical, and rumored toxicity of his film The Conqueror, he bought every copy of the film for $12 million, watching the film on repeat. Paramount Pictures acquired the rights of the film in 1979, three years after his death.
Hughes insisted on using tissues to pick up objects to insulate himself from germs. He would also notice dust, stains, or other imperfections on people's clothes and demand that they take care of them. Once one of the most visible men in America, Hughes ultimately vanished from public view, although tabloids continued to follow rumors of his behavior and whereabouts. He was reported to be terminally ill, mentally unstable, or even dead.
Injuries from numerous aircraft crashes caused Hughes to spend much of his later life in pain, and he eventually became addicted to codeine, which he injected intramuscularly. Hughes had his hair cut and nails trimmed only once a year, likely due to the pain caused by the RSD/CRPS, which was caused by the plane crashes. He also stored his urine in bottles.
Later years in Las Vegas
The wealthy and aging Hughes, accompanied by his entourage of personal aides, began moving from one hotel to another, always taking up residence in the top floor penthouse. In the last ten years of his life, 1966 to 1976, Hughes lived in hotels in many cities—including Beverly Hills, Boston, Las Vegas, Nassau, Freeport and Vancouver.
On November 24, 1966 (Thanksgiving Day), Hughes arrived in Las Vegas by railroad car and moved into the Desert Inn. Because he refused to leave the hotel and to avoid further conflicts with the owners, Hughes bought the Desert Inn in early 1967. The hotel's eighth floor became the nerve center of Hughes's empire and the ninth-floor penthouse became his personal residence. Between 1966 and 1968, he bought several other hotel-casinos, including the Castaways, New Frontier, the Landmark Hotel and Casino, and the Sands. He bought the small Silver Slipper casino for the sole purpose of moving its trademark neon silver slipper, which was visible from his bedroom, and had apparently kept him awake at night.
After Hughes left the Desert Inn, hotel employees discovered that his drapes had not been opened during the time he lived there and had rotted through.
Hughes wanted to change the image of Las Vegas to something more glamorous. He wrote in a memo to an aide, "I like to think of Las Vegas in terms of a well-dressed man in a dinner jacket and a beautifully jeweled and furred female getting out of an expensive car." Hughes bought several local television stations (including KLAS-TV).
Eventually the brain trauma from Hughes's previous accidents, the effects of neurosyphilis diagnosed in 1932 and (undiagnosed) Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder considerably affected his decision-making. A small panel, unofficially dubbed "The Mormon Mafia" because of the many Latter-day Saints on the committee, was led by Frank William Gay and originally served Hughes's "secret police" headquartered at 9000 Romaine. Over the next two decades, however, this group oversaw and controlled considerable business holdings, with the CIA anointing Gay while awarding a contract to the Hughes corporation to acquire sensitive information on a sunken Russian submarine. In addition to supervising day-to-day business operations and Hughes's health, they also went to great pains to satisfy Hughes's every whim. For example, Hughes once became fond of Baskin-Robbins' banana nut ice cream, so his aides sought to secure a bulk shipment for him, only to discover that Baskin-Robbins had discontinued the flavor. They put in a request for the smallest amount the company could provide for a special order, 350 gallons (1,300 L), and had it shipped from Los Angeles. A few days after the order arrived, Hughes announced he was tired of banana nut and wanted only French vanilla ice cream. The Desert Inn ended up distributing free banana nut ice cream to casino customers for a year. In a 1996 interview, ex–Howard Hughes Chief of Nevada Operations Robert Maheu said, "There is a rumor that there is still some banana nut ice cream left in the freezer. It is most likely true."
As an owner of several major Las Vegas businesses, Hughes wielded much political and economic influence in Nevada and elsewhere. During the 1960s and early 1970s, he disapproved of underground nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site. Hughes was concerned about the risk from residual nuclear radiation and attempted to halt the tests. When the tests finally went through despite Hughes's efforts, the detonations were powerful enough that the entire hotel in which he was living trembled from the shock waves. In two separate, last-ditch maneuvers, Hughes instructed his representatives to offer bribes of $1m to both Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon.
In 1970, Jean Peters filed for divorce. The two had not lived together for many years. Peters requested a lifetime alimony payment of $70,000 a year, adjusted for inflation, and waived all claims to Hughes's estate. Hughes offered her a settlement of over a million dollars, but she declined it. Hughes did not insist on a confidentiality agreement from Peters as a condition of the divorce. Aides reported that Hughes never spoke ill of her. She refused to discuss her life with Hughes and declined several lucrative offers from publishers and biographers. Peters would state only that she had not seen Hughes for several years before their divorce and had dealt with him only by phone.
Hughes was living in the Intercontinental Hotel near Lake Managua in Nicaragua, seeking privacy and security, when a magnitude 6.5 earthquake damaged Managua in December 1972. As a precaution, Hughes moved to a rather large tent facing the hotel; after a few days, he moved to the Nicaraguan National Palace and stayed there as a guest of Anastasio Somoza Debayle before leaving for Florida on a private jet the following day. He subsequently moved into the Penthouse at the Xanadu Princess Resort on Grand Bahama Island, which he had recently purchased. He lived almost exclusively in the penthouse of the Xanadu Beach Resort & Marina for the last four years of his life.
Hughes spent a total of $300 million on his many properties in Las Vegas.
Autobiography hoax
In 1972, author Clifford Irving caused a media sensation when he claimed he had co-written an authorized Hughes autobiography. Irving claimed he and Hughes had corresponded through the United States mail, and offered as proof handwritten notes allegedly sent by Hughes. Publisher McGraw-Hill, Inc. was duped into believing the manuscript was authentic. Hughes was so reclusive that he did not immediately publicly refute Irving's statement, leading many to believe that Irving's book was genuine. However, before the book's publication, Hughes finally denounced Irving in a teleconference attended by reporters Hughes knew personally: James Bacon of the Hearst papers, Marin Miles of the Los Angeles Times, Vernon Scott of UPI, Roy Neal of NBC News, Gene Handsaker of AP, Wayne Thomas of the Chicago Tribune, and Gladwin Hill of the New York Times.
The entire hoax finally unraveled. The United States Postal Inspection Service got a subpoena to force Irving to turn over samples of his handwriting. The USPS investigation led to Irving's indictment and subsequent conviction for using the postal service to commit fraud. He was incarcerated for 17 months. In 1974, the Orson Welles film F for Fake included a section on the Hughes autobiography hoax, leaving a question open as to whether it was actually Hughes who took part in the teleconference (since so few people had actually heard or seen him in recent years). In 1977, The Hoax by Clifford Irving was published in the United Kingdom, telling his story of these events. The 2006 film The Hoax, starring Richard Gere, is also based on these events.
Death
Hughes is reported to have died on April 5, 1976, at 1:27 p.m. on board an aircraft, Learjet 24B N855W, owned by Robert Graf and piloted by Jeff Abrams. He was en route from his penthouse at the Acapulco Princess Hotel (now the Fairmont Acapulco Princess) in Mexico to the Methodist Hospital in Houston.
His reclusiveness and possibly his drug use made him practically unrecognizable. His hair, beard, fingernails, and toenails were long—his tall frame now weighed barely , and the FBI had to use fingerprints to conclusively identify the body. Howard Hughes's alias, John T. Conover, was used when his body arrived at a morgue in Houston on the day of his death.
An autopsy recorded kidney failure as the cause of death. In an eighteen-month study investigating Hughes' drug abuse for the estate, it was found "someone administered a deadly injection of the painkiller to this comatose man... obviously needlessly and almost certainly fatal". He suffered from malnutrition and was covered in bedsores. While his kidneys were damaged, his other internal organs, including his brain, which had no visible damage or illnesses, were deemed perfectly healthy. X-rays revealed five broken-off hypodermic needles in the flesh of his arms. To inject codeine into his muscles, Hughes had used glass syringes with metal needles that easily became detached.
Hughes is buried next to his parents at Glenwood Cemetery in Houston.
Alleged survival
Following his death, Hughes was subject to several widely rebuked conspiracy theories that he had faked his own death. A notable allegation came from retired Major General Mark Musick, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, who claimed Hughes went on to live under an assumed identity, dying on November 15, 2001, in Troy, Alabama.
Estate
Approximately three weeks after Hughes's death, a handwritten will was found on the desk of an official of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah. The so-called "Mormon Will" gave $1.56 billion to various charitable organizations (including $625 million to the Howard Hughes Medical Institute), nearly $470 million to the upper management in Hughes's companies and to his aides, $156 million to first cousin William Lummis, and $156 million split equally between his two ex-wives Ella Rice and Jean Peters.
A further $156 million was endowed to a gas-station owner, Melvin Dummar, who told reporters that in 1967, he found a disheveled and dirty man lying along U.S. Route 95, just north of Las Vegas. The man asked for a ride to Vegas. Dropping him off at the Sands Hotel, Dummar said the man told him that he was Hughes. Dummar later claimed that days after Hughes's death a "mysterious man" appeared at his gas station, leaving an envelope containing the will on his desk. Unsure if the will was genuine and unsure of what to do, Dummar left the will at the LDS Church office. In 1978, a Nevada court ruled the Mormon Will a forgery and officially declared that Hughes had died intestate (without a valid will). Dummar's story was later adapted into Jonathan Demme's film Melvin and Howard in 1980.
Hughes's $2.5 billion estate was eventually split in 1983 among 22 cousins, including William Lummis, who serves as a trustee of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The Supreme Court of the United States ruled that Hughes Aircraft was owned by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, which sold it to General Motors in 1985 for $5.2 billion. The court rejected suits by the states of California and Texas that claimed they were owed inheritance tax.
In 1984, Hughes's estate paid an undisclosed amount to Terry Moore, who claimed she and Hughes had secretly married on a yacht in international waters off Mexico in 1949 and never divorced. Moore never produced proof of a marriage, but her book, The Beauty and the Billionaire, became a bestseller.
Awards
Harmon Trophy (1936 and 1938)
Collier Trophy (1938)
Congressional Gold Medal (1939)
Octave Chanute Award (1940)
National Aviation Hall of Fame (1973)
International Air & Space Hall of Fame (1987)
Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (2018)
Archive
The moving image collection of Howard Hughes is held at the Academy Film Archive. The collection consists of over 200 items including 35mm and 16mm elements of feature films, documentaries, and television programs made or accumulated by Hughes.
Filmography
In popular culture
Film
In The Carpetbaggers (1964), the main character Jonas Cord (played by George Peppard) is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever (1971) features a tall, Texan, reclusive billionaire character named Willard Whyte (played by Jimmy Dean) who operates his business empire from the penthouse of a Las Vegas hotel. Although he appears only late in the film, his habitual seclusion and his control of a major aerospace contracting firm are key elements of the movie's plot. Several sequences were actually filmed on location at The Landmark Hotel and Casino, which was owned by Hughes at the time.
The Amazing Howard Hughes is a 1977 American made-for-television biographical film which aired as a mini-series on the CBS network, made a year after Hughes's death and based on Noah Dietrich's book Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. Tommy Lee Jones plays Hughes.
Melvin and Howard (1980), directed by Jonathan Demme and starring Jason Robards as Howard Hughes and Paul Le Mat as Melvin Dummar. The film won Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay (Bo Goldman) and Best Supporting Actress (Mary Steenburgen). The film focuses on Melvin Dummar's claims of meeting Hughes in the Nevada desert and subsequent estate battles over his inclusion in Hughes's will. Critic Pauline Kael called the film "an almost flawless act of sympathetic imagination".
In Tucker: The Man and His Dream, (1988), Hughes (played by Dean Stockwell) figures in the plot by telling Preston Tucker to source steel and engines for Tucker's automobiles from a helicopter manufacturer in New York. Scene occurs in a hangar with the Hercules.
In The Rocketeer, a 1991 American period superhero film from Walt Disney Pictures, the title character attracts the attention of Howard Hughes (played by Terry O'Quinn) and the FBI, who are hunting for a missing jet pack, as well as Nazi operatives.
"Howard Hughes Documentary", broadcast in 1992 as an episode of the Time Machine documentary series, was introduced by Peter Graves, later released by A&E Home Video.
In Conspiracy Theory (1997), the character Jerry Fletcher (played by Mel Gibson) mentions one of his theories to a street vendor by saying, "Did you know that the whole Vietnam War was fought over a bet that Howard Hughes lost to Aristotle Onassis?" referring to his (Fletcher's) thoughts on the politics of that conflict.
In The Aviator (2004), directed by Martin Scorsese, Hughes is portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio. The film focuses on Hughes's personal life from the making of Hell's Angels through his successful flight of the Hercules or Spruce Goose. Critically acclaimed, it was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, winning five for Best Cinematography; Best Film Editing; Best Costume Design; Best Art Direction; and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Cate Blanchett.
Howard Hughes: The Real Aviator documentary was broadcast in 2004 and went on to win the Grand Festival Award for Best Documentary at the 2004 Berkeley Video & Film Festival.
In the 2005 animated film Robots, the character Mr Bigweld (voiced by Mel Brooks), a reclusive inventor and owner of Bigweld Industries, is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The American Aviator: The Howard Hughes Story was broadcast in 2006 on the Biography Channel. It was later released to home media as a DVD with a copy of the full-length film The Outlaw starring Jane Russell.
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), as a plot-related prequel to Iron Man 2 (2010), in which Howard Stark (played by Dominic Cooper), father of Tony Stark (Iron Man), showed his inventions of future technology, clearly embodying Hughes's persona and enthusiasm. His subsequent appearances in the TV series Marvel's Agent Carter further this persona, as well as depicting him as sharing the real Hughes's reputation as a womanizer. Stan Lee has noted that Tony, who shared several of these traits himself, was based on Hughes.
Rules Don't Apply (2016), written and directed by Warren Beatty, features Beatty as Hughes from 1958 through 1964.
In the Dark Knight Trilogy, director Christopher Nolan's characterisation of Bruce Wayne is heavily inspired by Hughes's perceived lifestyle – from a playboy in Batman Begins to a recluse in The Dark Knight Rises. Nolan is reported to have integrated his original material intended for a shelved Hughes biopic into the trilogy.
Games
The character of Andrew Ryan in the 2007 video game BioShock is loosely based on Hughes. Ryan is a billionaire industrialist in post-World War II America who, seeking to avoid governments, religions, and other "parasitic" influences, ordered the secret construction of an underwater city, Rapture. Years later, when Ryan's vision for Rapture falls into dystopia, he hides himself away and uses armies of mutated humans, "Splicers", to defend himself and fight against those trying to take over his city, including the player-character.
In L.A. Noire, Hughes makes an appearance presenting his Hercules H-4 aircraft in the game opening scene. The H-4 is later a central plot piece of DLC Arson Case, "Nicholson Electroplating".
In Fallout: New Vegas, the character of Robert Edwin House, a wealthy business magnate and entrepreneur who owns the New Vegas strip, is based on Howard Hughes and closely resembles him in appearance, personality and background. A portrait of Mr. House can also be found in the game which strongly resembles a portrait of Howard Hughes standing in front of a Boeing Army Pursuit Plane.
Literature
Stan Lee repeatedly stated he created the Marvel Comics character Iron Man's civilian persona, Tony Stark, drawing inspiration from Howard Hughes's colorful lifestyle and personality. Additionally, the first name of Stark's father is Howard.
Hughes is a supporting character in all three parts of James Ellroy's Underworld USA Trilogy, employing several of the protagonists as private investigators, bagmen, and consultants in his attempt to assume control of Las Vegas. Referred to behind his back as "Count Dracula" (due to his reclusiveness and rumored obsession with blood transfusions from Mormon donors), Hughes is portrayed as a spoiled, racist, opioid-addicted megalomaniac whose grandiose plans for Las Vegas are undermined by the manipulations of the Chicago Outfit.
In the 1981 novel Dream Park by Larry Niven and Steven Barnes, the weapon "which might have defeated the Japs if it hadn't come so late" is revealed to be the Spruce Goose, which had been magically hijacked on its test flight by evil Foré sorcerers in New Guinea. Hughes's skeleton is found at the controls, identified by Hughes's trademark fedora and cloth-and-leather jacket.
Music
The 1974 song "Workin' at the Car Wash Blues" by Jim Croce compares the main protagonist of the song to Howard Hughes in one of the lyrics.
The 1974 song "The Wall Street Shuffle" by English rock band 10cc directly references Hughes and his ways of life in the last verse.
The song "Me and Howard Hughes" by Irish band The Boomtown Rats on their 1978 album A Tonic for the Troops is about the title subject.
The song "Closet Chronicles" by American rock band Kansas on their 1977 album Point of Know Return is a Howard Hughes allegory.
The song "Ain't No Fun (Waiting 'Round To Be a Millionaire)" by AC/DC on their 1976 album "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" singer Bon Scott referenced Howard Hughes toward the end of the song: "Hey, hello Howard, how you doin', my next door neighbour? Oh, yea... Get your fuckin' jumbo jet off my airport"
Hughes's name is mentioned in the title and the lyrics of the 2002 song "Bargain Basement Howard Hughes" by Jerry Cantrell.
The 2012 song "Nancy From Now On" by American songwriter Father John Misty likens Hughes's destructive and erratic tendencies to the singer's own.
Television
In The Greatest American Hero Season 2 episode 3, "Don't Mess Around with Jim," Ralph and Bill are kidnapped by a reclusive tycoon, owner of Beck Air airplane company, who fakes his own death, and seems to know more about the suit than they do. He then blackmails them into retrieving his will to prevent it from being misused by the president of his company.
In The Simpsons Season 5 episode "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)", Mr. Burns resembles Hughes in his recluse state. Various nods to his life appear in the episode, ranging from casino ownership and penthouse office to the "Spruce Goose" being renamed "Spruce Moose" as well as a lack of hygiene and being a germaphobe.
In The Beverly Hillbillies episode, "The Clampett-Hewes Empire", Jed Clampett, while in Hooterville, decides to merge his interests with a man Mr. Drysdale believes is Howard Hughes, the famous reclusive billionaire. Eventually it turns out, to Mr. Drysdale's chagrin, "Howard Hughes" is no billionaire; he is nothing but a plain old farmer named "Howard Hewes" (H-E-W-E-S).
In the Invader Zim episode, "Germs," the alien Zim becomes paranoid after discovering that Earth is covered in germs. Referencing Howard Hughes, he isolates himself in his home and dons tissue boxes on his feet.
In the Superjail! episode "The Superjail! Six", The Warden repeatedly watches a film called Ice Station Jailpup which parodies Hughes's obsession with the film Ice Station Zebra
See also
Analgesic nephropathy
List of richest Americans in history
List of wealthiest historical figures
List of aviation pioneers
List of entrepreneurs
Phenacetin
References
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
Barkow, Al. Gettin' to the Dance Floor: An Oral History of American Golf. Short Hills, New Jersey: Burford Books, 1986. .
Barton, Charles. Howard Hughes and his Flying Boat. Fallbrook, CA: Aero Publishers, 1982. Republished in 1998, Vienna, VA: Charles Barton, Inc. .
Barlett, Donald L. and James B. Steele. Empire: The Life, Legend and Madness of Howard Hughes. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1979. , republished in 2004 as Howard Hughes: His Life and Madness.
Bellett, Gerald. Age of Secrets: The Conspiracy that Toppled Richard Nixon and the Hidden Death of Howard Hughes. Stillwater, Minnesota: Voyageur Press, 1995. .
Blackman, Tony Tony Blackman Test Pilot Grub Street, 2009,
Brown, Peter Harry and Pat H. Broeske. Howard Hughes: The Untold Story. New York: Penguin Books, 1996. .
Burleson, Clyde W. The Jennifer Project. College Station, Texas: Texas A&M University Press, 1997. .
Dietrich, Noah and Bob Thomas. Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. New York: Fawcett Publications, 1972. .
Drosnin, Michael. Citizen Hughes: In his Own Words, How Howard Hughes Tried to Buy America. Portland, Oregon: Broadway Books, 2004. .
Hack, Richard. Hughes: The Private Diaries, Memos and Letters: The Definitive Biography of the First American Billionaire. Beverly Hills, California: New Millennium Press, 2002. .
Herman, Arthur. Freedom's Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II. New York: Random House, 2012. .
Higham, Charles. Howard Hughes: The Secret Life, 1993.
Porter, Donald J., Howard's Whirlybirds: Howard Hughes' Amazing Pioneering Helicopter Exploits. Fonthill Media, 2013. (ISBN 978-1-78155-089)
Irving, Clifford. The Hoax. New York: E. Reads Ltd., 1999. .
Klepper, Michael and Michael Gunther. The Wealthy 100: From Benjamin Franklin to Bill Gates—A Ranking of the Richest Americans, Past and Present. Secaucus, New Jersey: Carol Publishing Group, 1996.
Marrett, George J. Howard Hughes: Aviator. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 2004. .
Kistler, Ron. I Caught Flies for Howard Hughes. Chicago: Playboy Press, 1976. .
Lasky, Betty. RKO: The Biggest Little Major of Them All, 2d ed . Santa Monica, California: Roundtable, 1989. .
Maheu, Robert and Richard Hack. Next to Hughes: Behind the Power and Tragic Downfall of Howard Hughes by his Closest Adviser. New York: Harper Collins, 1992. .
Moore, Terry. The Beauty and the Billionaire. New York: Pocket Books, 1984. .
Moore, Terry and Jerry Rivers. The Passions of Howard Hughes. Los Angeles: General Publishing Group, 1996. .
Parker, Dana T. Building Victory: Aircraft Manufacturing in the Los Angeles Area in World War II, Cypress, California: Dana T. Parker Books, 2013. .
Phelan, James. Howard Hughes: The Hidden Years. New York, Random House, 1976. .
Real, Jack. The Asylum of Howard Hughes. Philadelphia: Xlibris Corporation, 2003. .
Thomas, Bob. Liberace: The True Story. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1987. .
Tierney, Gene with Mickey Herskowitz. Self-Portrait. New York: Peter Wyden, 1979. lSBN 0-883261-52-9.
Weaver, Tom. Science Fiction and Fantasy Film Flashbacks: Conversations with 24 Actors, Writers, Producers and Directors from the Golden Age. New York: McFarland & Company, 2004. .
External links
AZORIAN The Raising of the K-129 / 2009 – 2 Part TV Documentary / Michael White Films Vienna
Welcome Home Howard: Collection of photographs kept by UNLV
A history of the remarkable achievements of Howard Hughes
FBI file on Howard Hughes
Exclutive Biography of Howard R. Hughes Jr.
Biography in the National Aviation Hall of Fame
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Watergate scandal | false | [
"This is a list of military parades held in the Hong Kong since 1945.\n\nBritish Hong Kong\n\n1945\nThe first parade of British Forces Overseas Hong Kong since the reclamation of Hong Kong from Japanese rule took place on 9 October 1945 near The Cenotaph. The parade saw personnel of the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force take part, as well as troops from the Republic of China.\n\n1996\nThe last Royal Air Force parade in territory took place on 15 September 1996, on the 56th anniversary of the Battle of Britain. The parade was conducted by the No. 28 Squadron RAF. The unit was the last of its kind to be pulled out of Hong Kong ahead of the transfer ceremony the following July. It was attended by Chief Secretary for Administration Anson Chan and Commander of British Forces in Hong Kong Bryan Dutton.\n\n1997\nAn evening parade at HMS Tamar was held during the Hong Kong handover ceremony on 30 June. It included a farewell address by Governor Chris Patten as well as an address by Charles, Prince of Wales on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II.\n\nHong Kong SAR\n\n1998\nOn 7 May 1998, the first military parade of the People's Liberation Army Hong Kong Garrison took place on Stonecutters Island at Ngong Shuen Chau Naval Base to commemorate the 1st anniversary of the HKSAR's establishment. It was attended by Jiang Zemin who was Chairman of the Central Military Commission and was on his second visit to the region.\n\n2004\nOn 1 August 2004, the first military parade on PLA Day in the entire PRC took place. The 3,000-strong parade specifically marked the 77th anniversary of the founding of the PLA. The parade was presided by the PLA commander in HKSAR, General Wang Jitang. It also saw the unprecedented attendance of anti-CPC lawmakers in the Legislative Council of Hong Kong at the parade. Beginning at 10:30 that morning, the parade began with the performance of March of the Volunteers and was concluded with a performance by the PLA Hong Kong Band. It was the first major appearance for the PLA Hong Kong Garrison Honour Guard Battalion, which was formed back in the fall of 1997.\n\n2007\nIt took place on Stonecutters and celebrated the CCP's 80th anniversary and the HKSAR's 10th anniversary. It was the first to be held on Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Establishment Day.\n\n2012\nIt was commanded by the General Zhang Shibo and was presided by Central Military Commission chairman Hu Jintao. It celebrated HKSAR's 15th anniversary.\n\n2015\nA parade in honor of the platinum jubilee of the end of World War II took place on V-J Day in 2015. It took place with the participation of cadet/ youth organizations as well as the Hong Kong Police Force. It was attended by Lau Kong-wah as the presiding officer in his position as Secretary for Home Affairs. The parade route went through Kowloon Park in Tsim Sha Tsui.\n\n2017\nThe parade was held in honor of the 20th anniversary of the accession of Hong Kong into the PRC and the 90th anniversary of the PLA. It was commanded by General Tan Benhong and attended by Central Military Commission chairman Xi Jinping. It was the largest parade in the HKSAR's existence, being held at Shek Kong Airfield in the presence of 20 formations including one from Shenzhen Military Base. The 20 formations accounted for over 3,000 troops combined. 60 armoured vehicles, 61 vehicles that specialised in surveillance, command, communications, defence, engineering, missile delivery, interference and field rescue and prevention. Twelve types of military helicopters were on show.\n\nIt was also the first to include the new military greeting Hello Comrades!, to which the troops respond with Hello Chairman!. This was a replacement of the greeting used since the 35th anniversary of parade on Tiananmen Square in 1984 when Hello Leader! was the response by troops.\n\nSee also\nChinese National Day Parade\n2015 China Victory Day Parade\n2017 PLA Day Parade\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n PLA Hong Kong Garrison military parade (8/1/2004)\n Hong Kong’s PLA garrison stages biggest military parade in 20 years as Xi Jinping inspects troops\n China holds its first military parade in Hong Kong\n President Xi inspects PLA Garrison in Hong Kong SAR\nChinese President Xi Jinping attends Hong Kong military parade\nHong Kong Youngsters Participated in Parade to Commemorate Victory of WWII\nHONG KONG: BRITISH ROYAL AIR FORCE CEREMONIAL FAREWELL PARADE\nHong Kong Handover Sunset Farewell Ceremony & Parade\n\nMilitary parades in China\nMilitary parades in the United Kingdom\nEvents in Hong Kong",
"Kim Sang-ik () is a North Korean general and politician. He served in various positions in the Ministry of People's Armed Forces and served as a member of the Supreme People's Assembly, North Korea's unicameral parliament.\n\nBiography\nHe was born in 1943. In 1991 he was appointed to the Commander of the 3rd Corps of the Korean People's Army In June 2000 he was appointed Ministry of People's Armed Forces Railroad Forces Commander. In July 2003 he attended the dinner at the Syrian Embassy in North Korea to commemorate the 37th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Syria and North Korea. In July 2003 he was appointed as director of the Ministry of People's Armed Forces. In September 2003 he was elected to the Supreme People's Assembly. In December of that year, at the 47th anniversary of the Cuban Revolutionary Day, he attended a banquet hosted by the Cuban Embassy. In April 2004 he participated in the banquet of the Ministry of People's Armed Forces at the 72nd anniversary of the founding of the Korean People's Army. In November 2004 he gave a speech at the ASEAN Regional Security Policy Conference in Beijing. In February 2007 On the Defender of the Fatherland Day, he attended a banquet hosted by the Russian embassy in North Korea. In October 2008 he was member of the funeral committee of Pak Song-chol.\n\nReferences\n\nWorkers' Party of Korea politicians\nMembers of the Supreme People's Assembly\nNorth Korean generals\n1943 births\nLiving people"
]
|
[
"Howard Hughes",
"H-4 Hercules",
"What is the H-4 hercules?",
"HK-1 Hercules flying boat",
"What was the use of the flying boat?",
"use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable",
"How much did the hercules cost to make?",
"I don't know.",
"Was the hercules used for many missions?",
"The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947.",
"Did the boat have many critics?",
"Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled,",
"Did hughes win this battle?",
"Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory.",
"Is there any other interesting aspects about the hercules?",
"On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum",
"Was the anniversary well attended?",
"Hughes' paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio technology pioneer Dave Evans,"
]
| C_3fad173257b34869985c7b64812d1528_0 | How large was the hercules? | 9 | How large was the Howard Hughes' H-4 Hercules? | Howard Hughes | The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The project was opposed by the military services, thinking it would siphon resources from higher priority programs, but was advocated by Hughes' powerful allies in Washington, D.C. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II. The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at 319 feet 11 inches (97.51 m), had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next largest wingspan was about 310 ft (94 m)). (The Hercules is no longer the longest or heaviest aircraft ever built; both of those titles are currently held by the Antonov An-225 Mriya.) The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947. The Hercules was nicknamed the Spruce Goose by its critics, but it was actually made largely from birch, not spruce, rather than of aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes' Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the F-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it is now part of the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum. On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes' paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules. CANNOTANSWER | The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at 319 feet 11 inches (97.51 m), | Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, investor, record-setting pilot, engineer, film director, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and financially successful individuals in the world. He first became prominent as a film producer, and then as an important figure in the aviation industry. Later in life, he became known for his eccentric behavior and reclusive lifestyle—oddities that were caused in part by his worsening obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), chronic pain from a near-fatal plane crash, and increasing deafness.
As a film tycoon, Hughes gained fame in Hollywood beginning in the late 1920s, when he produced big-budget and often controversial films such as The Racket (1928), Hell's Angels (1930), and Scarface (1932). He later took over the RKO Pictures film studio in 1948, recognized then as one of the Big Five studios of Hollywood's Golden Age, although the production company struggled under his control and ultimately ceased operations in 1957.
Through his interest in aviation and aerospace travel, Hughes formed the Hughes Aircraft Company in 1932, hiring numerous engineers, designers, and defense contractors. He spent the rest of the 1930s and much of the 1940s setting multiple world air speed records and building the Hughes H-1 Racer (1935) and H-4 Hercules (the Spruce Goose, 1947), the latter being the largest flying boat in history and having the longest wingspan of any aircraft from the time it was built until 2019. He acquired and expanded Trans World Airlines and later acquired Air West, renaming it Hughes Airwest. Hughes won the Harmon Trophy on two occasions (1936 and 1938), the Collier Trophy (1938), and the Congressional Gold Medal (1939) all for his achievements in aviation throughout the 1930s. He was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1973 and was included in Flying magazine's 2013 list of the 51 Heroes of Aviation, ranked at 25.
During the 1960s and early 1970s, Hughes extended his financial empire to include several major businesses in Las Vegas, such as real estate, hotels, casinos, and media outlets. Known at the time as one of the most powerful men in the state of Nevada, he is largely credited with transforming Vegas into a more refined cosmopolitan city.
After years of mental and physical decline, Hughes died of kidney failure in 1976, at the age of 70. Today, his legacy is maintained through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Howard Hughes Corporation.
Early life
Howard Robard Hughes Jr. was the son of Allene Stone Gano (1883–1922) and of Howard R. Hughes Sr. (1869–1924), a successful inventor and businessman from Missouri. He had English, Welsh and some French Huguenot ancestry, and was a descendant of John Gano (1727–1804), the minister who allegedly baptized George Washington. His father patented (1909) the two-cone roller bit, which allowed rotary drilling for petroleum in previously inaccessible places. The senior Hughes made the shrewd and lucrative decision to commercialize the invention by leasing the bits instead of selling them, obtained several early patents, and founded the Hughes Tool Company in 1909. Hughes's uncle was the famed novelist, screenwriter, and film-director Rupert Hughes.
A 1941 affidavit birth certificate of Hughes, signed by his aunt Annette Gano Lummis and by Estelle Boughton Sharp, states that he was born on December 24, 1905, in Harris County, Texas. However, his certificate of baptism, recorded on October 7, 1906, in the parish register of St. John's Episcopal Church in Keokuk, Iowa, listed his date of birth as September 24, 1905, without any reference to the place of birth.
At a young age, Hughes showed interest in science and technology. In particular, he had great engineering aptitude and built Houston's first "wireless" radio transmitter at age 11. He went on to be one of the first licensed ham-radio operators in Houston, having the assigned callsign W5CY (originally 5CY). At 12, Hughes was photographed in the local newspaper, identified as the first boy in Houston to have a "motorized" bicycle, which he had built from parts from his father's steam engine. He was an indifferent student, with a liking for mathematics, flying, and mechanics. He took his first flying lesson at 14, and attended Fessenden School in Massachusetts in 1921.
After a brief stint at The Thacher School, Hughes attended math and aeronautical engineering courses at Caltech. The red-brick house where Hughes lived as a teenager at 3921 Yoakum Blvd., Houston, still stands, now known as Hughes House on the grounds of the University of St. Thomas.
His mother Allene died in March 1922 from complications of an ectopic pregnancy. Howard Hughes Sr. died of a heart attack in 1924. Their deaths apparently inspired Hughes to include the establishment of a medical research laboratory in the will that he signed in 1925 at age 19. Howard Sr.'s will had not been updated since Allene's death, and Hughes inherited 75% of the family fortune. On his 19th birthday, Hughes was declared an emancipated minor, enabling him to take full control of his life.
From a young age, Hughes became a proficient and enthusiastic golfer. He often scored near-par figures, played the game to a two-three handicap during his 20s, and for a time aimed for a professional golf career. He golfed frequently with top players, including Gene Sarazen. Hughes rarely played competitively and gradually gave up his passion for the sport to pursue other interests. Hughes played golf every afternoon at LA courses including the Lakeside Golf Club, Wilshire Country Club, or the Bel-Air Country Club. Partners included George Von Elm or Ozzie Carlton. After Hughes hurt himself in the late 1920s, his golfing tapered off, and after his F-11 crash, Hughes was unable to play at all.
Hughes withdrew from Rice University shortly after his father's death. On June 1, 1925, he married Ella Botts Rice, daughter of David Rice and Martha Lawson Botts of Houston, and great-niece of William Marsh Rice, for whom Rice University was named. They moved to Los Angeles, where he hoped to make a name for himself as a filmmaker.
They moved into the Ambassador Hotel, and Hughes proceeded to learn to fly a Waco, while simultaneously producing his first motion picture, Swell Hogan.
Business career
Hughes enjoyed a highly successful business career beyond engineering, aviation, and filmmaking; many of his career endeavors involved varying entrepreneurial roles.
Entertainment
Ralph Graves persuaded Hughes to finance a short film, Swell Hogan, which Graves had written and would star in. Hughes himself produced it. However, it was a disaster. After hiring a film editor to try to salvage it, he finally ordered that it be destroyed. His next two films, Everybody's Acting (1926) and Two Arabian Knights (1927), achieved financial success; the latter won the first Academy Award for Best Director of a comedy picture. The Racket (1928) and The Front Page (1931) were also nominated for Academy Awards.
Hughes spent $3.5 million to make the flying film Hell's Angels (1930). Hell's Angels received one Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography.
He produced another hit, Scarface (1932), a production delayed by censors' concern over its violence.
The Outlaw premiered in 1943, but was not released nationally until 1946. The film featured Jane Russell, who received considerable attention from industry censors, this time owing to her revealing costumes.
RKO
From the 1940s to the late 1950s, the Hughes Tool Company ventured into the film industry when it obtained partial ownership of the RKO companies, which included RKO Pictures, RKO Studios, a chain of movie theaters known as RKO Theatres and a network of radio stations known as the RKO Radio Network.
In 1948, Hughes gained control of RKO, a struggling major Hollywood studio, by acquiring the 929,000 shares owned by Floyd Odlum's Atlas Corporation, for $8,825,000. Within weeks of acquiring the studio, Hughes dismissed 700 employees. Production dwindled to 9 pictures during the first year of Hughes's control; previously RKO had averaged 30 per year.
Production shut down for six months, during which time Hughes ordered investigations of each employee who remained with RKO as far as their political leanings were concerned. Only after ensuring that the stars under contract to RKO had no suspect affiliations would Hughes approve completed pictures to be sent back for re-shooting. This was especially true of the women under contract to RKO at that time. If Hughes felt that his stars did not properly represent the political views of his liking or if a film's anti-communist politics were not sufficiently clear, he pulled the plug. In 1952, an abortive sale to a Chicago-based group connected to the mafia with no experience in the industry disrupted studio operations at RKO even further.
In 1953, Hughes became involved with a high-profile lawsuit as part of the settlement of the United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc. Antitrust Case. As a result of the hearings, the shaky status of RKO became increasingly apparent. A steady stream of lawsuits from RKO's minority shareholders had grown to become extremely annoying to Hughes. They had accused him of financial misconduct and corporate mismanagement. Since Hughes wanted to focus primarily on his aircraft manufacturing and TWA holdings during the years of the Korean War of 1950 to 1953, Hughes offered to buy out all other stockholders in order to dispense with their distractions.
By the end of 1954, Hughes had gained near-total control of RKO at a cost of nearly $24 million, becoming the first sole owner of a major Hollywood studio since the silent-film era. Six months later Hughes sold the studio to the General Tire and Rubber Company for $25 million. Hughes retained the rights to pictures that he had personally produced, including those made at RKO. He also retained Jane Russell's contract. For Howard Hughes, this was the virtual end of his 25-year involvement in the motion-picture industry. However, his reputation as a financial wizard emerged unscathed. During that time period, RKO became known as the home of classic film noir productions, thanks in part to the limited budgets required to make such films during Hughes's tenure. Hughes reportedly walked away from RKO having made $6.5 million in personal profit. According to Noah Dietrich, Hughes made a $10,000,000 profit from the sale of the theaters and made a profit of $1,000,000 from his 7-year ownership of RKO.
Real estate
According to Noah Dietrich, "Land became a principal asset for the Hughes empire". Hughes acquired 1200 acres in Culver City for Hughes Aircraft, bought 7 sections [4,480 acres] in Tucson for his Falcon missile-plant, and purchased 25,000 acres near Las Vegas. In 1968, the Hughes Tool Company purchased the North Las Vegas Air Terminal.
Originally known as Summa Corporation, the Howard Hughes Corporation formed in 1972 when the oil-tools business of Hughes Tool Company, then owned by Howard Hughes Jr., floated on the New York Stock Exchange under the "Hughes Tool" name. This forced the remaining businesses of the "original" Hughes Tool to adopt a new corporate name: "Summa". The name "Summa"Latin for "highest"was adopted without the approval of Hughes himself, who preferred to keep his own name on the business, and suggested "HRH Properties" (for Hughes Resorts and Hotels, and also his own initials). In 1988 Summa announced plans for Summerlin, a master-planned community named for the paternal grandmother of Howard Hughes, Jean Amelia Summerlin.
Initially staying in the Desert Inn, Hughes refused to vacate his room, and instead decided to purchase the entire hotel. Hughes extended his financial empire to include Las Vegas real estate, hotels, and media outlets, spending an estimated $300 million, and using his considerable powers to take over many of the well-known hotels, especially the venues connected with organized crime. He quickly became one of the most powerful men in Las Vegas. He was instrumental in changing the image of Las Vegas from its Wild West roots into a more refined cosmopolitan city. In addition to the Desert Inn, Hughes would eventually own the Sands, Frontier, Silver Slipper, Castaways and Landmark and Harold's Club in Reno. Hughes would eventually become the largest employer in Nevada.
Aviation and aerospace
Another portion of Hughes's commercial interests involved aviation, airlines, and the aerospace and defense industries. A lifelong aircraft enthusiast and pilot, Hughes survived four airplane accidents: one in a Thomas-Morse Scout while filming Hell's Angels, one while setting the airspeed record in the Hughes Racer, one at Lake Mead in 1943, and the near-fatal crash of the Hughes XF-11 in 1946. At Rogers Airport in Los Angeles, he learned to fly from pioneer aviators, including Moye Stephens and J.B. Alexander. He set many world records and commissioned the construction of custom aircraft for himself while heading Hughes Aircraft at the airport in Glendale, CA. Operating from there, the most technologically important aircraft he commissioned was the Hughes H-1 Racer. On September 13, 1935, Hughes, flying the H-1, set the landplane airspeed record of over his test course near Santa Ana, California (Giuseppe Motta reaching 362 mph in 1929 and George Stainforth reached 407.5 mph in 1931, both in seaplanes). This marked the last time in history that an aircraft built by a private individual set the world airspeed record. A year and a half later, on January 19, 1937, flying the same H-1 Racer fitted with longer wings, Hughes set a new transcontinental airspeed record by flying non-stop from Los Angeles to Newark in seven hours, 28 minutes, and 25 seconds (beating his own previous record of nine hours, 27 minutes). His average ground-speed over the flight was .
The H-1 Racer featured a number of design innovations: it had retractable landing gear (as Boeing Monomail had five years before), and all rivets and joints set flush into the body of the aircraft to reduce drag. The H-1 Racer is thought to have influenced the design of a number of World War II fighters such as the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, Focke-Wulf Fw 190, and F8F Bearcat, although that has never been reliably confirmed. In 1975 the H-1 Racer was donated to the Smithsonian.
Round-the-world flight
On July 14, 1938, Hughes set another record by completing a flight around the world in just 91 hours (three days, 19 hours, 17 minutes), beating the previous record of 186 hours (7 days, 18 hours, 49 minutes) set in 1933 by Wiley Post in a single-engine Lockheed Vega by almost four days. Hughes returned home ahead of photographs of his flight. Taking off from New York City, Hughes continued to Paris, Moscow, Omsk, Yakutsk, Fairbanks, and Minneapolis, then returning to New York City. For this flight he flew a Lockheed 14 Super Electra (NX18973, a twin-engine transport with a four-man crew) fitted with the latest radio and navigational equipment. Harry Connor was the co-pilot, Thomas Thurlow the navigator, Richard Stoddart the engineer, and Ed Lund the mechanic. Hughes wanted the flight to be a triumph of American aviation technology, illustrating that safe, long-distance air travel was possible. Albert Lodwick of Mystic, Iowa, provided organizational skills as the flight operations manager. While Hughes had previously been relatively obscure despite his wealth, being better known for dating Katharine Hepburn, New York City now gave him a ticker-tape parade in the Canyon of Heroes. Hughes and his crew were awarded the 1938 Collier Trophy for flying around the world in record time. He was awarded the Harmon Trophy in 1936 and 1938 for the record-breaking global circumnavigation.
In 1938 the William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas—known at the time as Houston Municipal Airport—was renamed after Hughes, but the name was changed back due to public outrage over naming the airport after a living person.
Hughes also had a role in the design and financing of both the Boeing 307 Stratoliner and Lockheed L-049 Constellation.
Other aviator awards include: the Bibesco Cup of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in 1938, the Octave Chanute Award in 1940, and a special Congressional Gold Medal in 1939 "in recognition of the achievements of Howard Hughes in advancing the science of aviation and thus bringing great credit to his country throughout the world".
President Harry S. Truman sent the Congressional medal to Hughes after the F-11 crash. After his around-the-world flight, Hughes had declined to go to the White House to collect it.
Hughes D-2 and XF-11
The Hughes D-2 was conceived in 1939 as a bomber with five crew members, powered by 42-cylinder Wright R-2160 Tornado engines. In the end, it appeared as two-seat fighter-reconnaissance aircraft designated the D-2A, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-2800-49 engines. The aircraft was constructed using the Duramold process. The prototype was brought to Harper's Dry Lake in California in great secrecy in 1943 and first flew on June 20 of that year. Acting on a recommendation of the president's son, Colonel Elliott Roosevelt, who had become friends with Hughes, in September 1943 the USAAF ordered 100 of a reconnaissance development of the D-2, known as the F-11. Hughes then attempted to get the military to pay for the development of the D-2. In November 1944, the hangar containing the D-2A was reportedly hit by lightning and the aircraft was destroyed. The D-2 design was abandoned but led to the extremely controversial Hughes XF-11. The XF-11 was a large, all-metal, two-seat reconnaissance aircraft, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-4360-31 engines, each driving a set of contra-rotating propellers. Only two prototypes were completed; the second one with a single propeller per side.
Fatal crash of the Sikorsky S-43
In the spring of 1943 Hughes spent nearly a month in Las Vegas, test-flying his Sikorsky S-43 amphibious aircraft, practising touch-and-go landings on Lake Mead in preparation for flying the H-4 Hercules. The weather conditions at the lake during the day were ideal and he enjoyed Las Vegas at night. On May 17, 1943, Hughes flew the Sikorsky from California, carrying two CAA aviation inspectors, two of his employees, and actress Ava Gardner. Hughes dropped Gardner off in Las Vegas and proceeded to Lake Mead to conduct qualifying tests in the S-43. The test flight did not go well. The Sikorsky crashed into Lake Mead, killing CAA inspector Ceco Cline and Hughes's employee Richard Felt. Hughes suffered a severe gash on the top of his head when he hit the upper control panel and had to be rescued by one of the others on board. Hughes paid divers $100,000 to raise the aircraft and later spent more than $500,000 restoring it. Hughes sent the plane to Houston, where it remained for many years.
Near-fatal crash of the XF-11
Hughes was involved in another near-fatal aircraft accident on July 7, 1946, while performing the first flight of the prototype U.S. Army Air Forces reconnaissance aircraft, the XF-11, near Hughes airfield at Culver City, California. An oil leak caused one of the contra-rotating propellers to reverse pitch, causing the aircraft to yaw sharply and lose altitude rapidly. Hughes attempted to save the aircraft by landing it at the Los Angeles Country Club golf course, but just seconds before reaching the course, the XF-11 started to drop dramatically and crashed in the Beverly Hills neighborhood surrounding the country club.
When the XF-11 finally came to a halt after destroying three houses, the fuel tanks exploded, setting fire to the aircraft and a nearby home at 808 North Whittier Drive owned by Lt Col. Charles E. Meyer. Hughes managed to pull himself out of the flaming wreckage but lay beside the aircraft until rescued by Marine Master Sgt. William L. Durkin, who happened to be in the area visiting friends. Hughes sustained significant injuries in the crash, including a crushed collar bone, multiple cracked ribs, crushed chest with collapsed left lung, shifting his heart to the right side of the chest cavity, and numerous third-degree burns. An oft-told story said that Hughes sent a check to the Marine weekly for the remainder of his life as a sign of gratitude. Noah Dietrich asserted that Hughes did send Durkin $200 a month, but Durkin's daughter denied knowing that he received any money from Hughes.
Despite his physical injuries, Hughes took pride that his mind was still working. As he lay in his hospital bed, he decided that he did not like the bed's design. He called in plant engineers to design a customized bed, equipped with hot and cold running water, built in six sections, and operated by 30 electric motors, with push-button adjustments. Hughes designed the hospital bed specifically to alleviate the pain caused by moving with severe burn injuries. Although he never used the bed that he designed, Hughes's bed served as a prototype for the modern hospital bed. Hughes's doctors considered his recovery almost miraculous.
Many attribute his long-term dependence on opiates to his use of codeine as a painkiller during his convalescence. Yet Dietrich asserts that Hughes recovered the "hard way—no sleeping pills, no opiates of any kind". The trademark mustache he wore afterward hid a scar on his upper lip resulting from the accident.
H-4 Hercules
The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The military services opposed the project, thinking it would siphon resources from higher-priority programs, but Hughes's powerful allies in Washington, D.C., advocated for it. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II.
The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at , had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next-largest wingspan was about ). (The Hercules is no longer the longest nor heaviest aircraft ever built - surpassed by the Antonov An-225 Mriya produced in 1985.)
The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947.
Critics nicknamed the Hercules the Spruce Goose, but it was actually made largely from birch (not spruce) rather than from aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes's Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the XF-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly-disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense-acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it features at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum.
On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes's paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio-technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules.
Hughes Aircraft
In 1932 Hughes founded the Hughes Aircraft Company, a division of Hughes Tool Company, in a rented corner of a Lockheed Aircraft Corporation hangar in Burbank, California, to build the H-1 racer.
Shortly after founding the company, Hughes used the alias "Charles Howard" to accept a job as a baggage handler for American Airlines. He was soon promoted to co-pilot.
Hughes continued to work for American Airlines until his real identity was discovered.
During and after World War II Hughes fashioned his company into a major defense contractor. The Hughes Helicopters division started in 1947 when helicopter manufacturer Kellett sold their latest design to Hughes for production. Hughes Aircraft became a major American aerospace- and defense contractor, manufacturing numerous technology-related products that included spacecraft vehicles, military aircraft, radar systems, electro-optical systems, the first working laser, aircraft computer systems, missile systems, ion-propulsion engines (for space travel), commercial satellites, and other electronics systems.
In 1948 Hughes created a new division of Hughes Aircraft: the Hughes Aerospace Group. The Hughes Space and Communications Group and the Hughes Space Systems Division were later spun off in 1948 to form their own divisions and ultimately became the Hughes Space and Communications Company in 1961. In 1953 Howard Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the newly formed Howard Hughes Medical Institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a tax-exempt charitable organization. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion. In 1997 General Motors sold Hughes Aircraft to Raytheon and in 2000, sold Hughes Space & Communications to Boeing. A combination of Boeing, GM, and Raytheon acquired the Hughes Research Laboratories, which focused on advanced developments in microelectronics, information & systems sciences, materials, sensors, and photonics; their work-space spans from basic research to product delivery. It has particularly emphasized capabilities in high-performance integrated circuits, high-power lasers, antennas, networking, and smart materials.
Airlines
In 1939, at the urging of Jack Frye, president of Transcontinental & Western Airlines, the predecessor of Trans World Airlines (TWA), Hughes began to quietly purchase a majority share of TWA stock; he took a controlling interest in the airline by 1944. Although he never had an official position with TWA, Hughes handpicked the board of directors, which included Noah Dietrich, and often issued orders directly to airline staff. Hughes Tool Co. purchased the first six Stratoliners Boeing manufactured. Hughes used one personally, and he let TWA operate the other five.
Hughes is commonly credited as the driving force behind the Lockheed Constellation airliner, which Hughes and Frye ordered in 1939 as a long-range replacement for TWA's fleet of Boeing 307 Stratoliners. Hughes personally financed TWA's acquisition of 40 Constellations for $18 million, the largest aircraft order in history up to that time. The Constellations were among the highest-performing commercial aircraft of the late 1940s and 1950s and allowed TWA to pioneer nonstop transcontinental service. During World War II Hughes leveraged political connections in Washington to obtain rights for TWA to serve Europe, making it the only U.S. carrier with a combination of domestic and transatlantic routes.
After the announcement of the Boeing 707, Hughes opted to pursue a more advanced jet aircraft for TWA and approached Convair in late 1954. Convair proposed two concepts to Hughes, but Hughes was unable to decide which concept to adopt, and Convair eventually abandoned its initial jet project after the mockups of the 707 and Douglas DC-8 were unveiled. Even after competitors such as United Airlines, American Airlines and Pan American World Airways had placed large orders for the 707, Hughes only placed eight orders for 707s through the Hughes Tool Company and forbade TWA from using the aircraft. After finally beginning to reserve 707 orders in 1956, Hughes embarked on a plan to build his own "superior" jet aircraft for TWA, applied for CAB permission to sell Hughes aircraft to TWA, and began negotiations with the state of Florida to build a manufacturing plant there. However, he abandoned this plan around 1958, and in the interim, negotiated new contracts for 707 and Convair 880 aircraft and engines totaling $400 million.
The financing of TWA's jet orders precipitated the end of Hughes's relationship with Noah Dietrich, and ultimately Hughes's ouster from control of TWA. Hughes did not have enough cash on hand or future cash flow to pay for the orders and did not immediately seek bank financing. Hughes's refusal to heed Dietrich's financing advice led to a major rift between the two by the end of 1956. Hughes believed that Dietrich wished to have Hughes committed as mentally incompetent, although the evidence of this is inconclusive. Dietrich resigned by telephone in May 1957 after repeated requests for stock options, which Hughes refused to grant, and with no further progress on the jet financing. As Hughes's mental state worsened, he ordered various tactics to delay payments to Boeing and Convair; his behavior led TWA's banks to insist that he be removed from management as a condition for further financing.
In 1960, Hughes was ultimately forced out of the management of TWA, although he continued to own 78% of the company. In 1961, TWA filed suit against Hughes Tool Company, claiming that the latter had violated antitrust law by using TWA as a captive market for aircraft trading. The claim was largely dependent upon obtaining testimony from Hughes himself. Hughes went into hiding and refused to testify. A default judgment was issued against Hughes Tool Company for $135 million in 1963 but was overturned by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1973, on the basis that Hughes was immune from prosecution. In 1966, Hughes was forced to sell his TWA shares. The sale of his TWA shares brought Hughes $546,549,771.
Hughes acquired control of Boston-based Northeast Airlines in 1962. However, the airline's lucrative route authority between major northeastern cities and Miami was terminated by a CAB decision around the time of the acquisition, and Hughes sold control of the company to a trustee in 1964. Northeast went on to merge with Delta Air Lines in 1972.
In 1970, Hughes acquired San Francisco-based Air West and renamed it Hughes Airwest. Air West had been formed in 1968 by the merger of Bonanza Air Lines, Pacific Air Lines, and West Coast Airlines, all of which operated in the western U.S. By the late 1970s, Hughes Airwest operated an all-jet fleet of Boeing 727-200, Douglas DC-9-10, and McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 jetliners serving an extensive route network in the western U.S. with flights to Mexico and western Canada as well. By 1980, the airline's route system reached as far east as Houston (Hobby Airport) and Milwaukee with a total of 42 destinations being served. Hughes Airwest was then acquired by and merged into Republic Airlines (1979–1986) in late 1980. Republic was subsequently acquired by and merged into Northwest Airlines which in turn was ultimately merged into Delta Air Lines in 2008.
Business with David Charnay
Hughes had made numerous business partnerships through industrialist and producer David Charnay. Their friendship and many partnerships began with the film The Conqueror, which was first released to the public in 1956. The film caused many controversies due to its critical flop and radioactive location used in St. George, Utah, that eventually led to Hughes buying up nearly every copy of the film he could, only to watch the film at home repeatedly for many nights in a row.
Charnay later bought Four Star, the film and television production company that produced The Conqueror.
Hughes and Charnay's most published dealings were with a contested AirWest leveraged buyout. Charnay led the buyout group that involved Howard Hughes and their partners acquiring Air West. Hughes, Charnay, as well as three others, were indicted. The indictment, made by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton, accused the group of conspiring to drive down the stock price of Air West in order to pressure company directors to sell to Hughes. The charges were dismissed after a judge had determined that the indictment had failed to allege an illegal action on the part of Hughes, Charnay, and all the other accused in the indictment. Thompson, the federal judge that made the decision to dismiss the charges called the indictment one of the worst claims that he had ever seen. The charges were filed again, a second time, by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton's assistant, Dean Vernon. The Federal Judge ruled on November 13, 1974, and elaborated to say that the case suggested a "reprehensible misuse of the power of great wealth", but in his judicial opinion, "no crime had been committed." The aftermath of the Air West deal was later settled with the SEC by paying former stockholders for alleged losses from the sale of their investment in Air West stock. As noted above, Air West was subsequently renamed Hughes Airwest. During a long pause between the years of the dismissed charges against Hughes, Charnay, and their partners, Howard Hughes mysteriously died mid-flight while on the way to Houston from Acapulco. No further attempts were made to file any indictments after Hughes died.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
In 1953, Hughes launched the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Miami, Florida, (currently located in Chevy Chase, Maryland) with the expressed goal of basic biomedical research, including trying to understand, in Hughes's words, the "genesis of life itself", due to his lifelong interest in science and technology. Hughes's first will, which he signed in 1925 at the age of 19, stipulated that a portion of his estate should be used to create a medical institute bearing his name. When a major battle with the IRS loomed ahead, Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a for-profit entity of a fully tax-exempt charity. Hughes's internist, Verne Mason, who treated Hughes after his 1946 aircraft crash, was chairman of the institute's medical advisory committee. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute's new board of trustees sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion, allowing the institute to grow dramatically.
In 1954, Hughes transferred Hughes Aircraft to the foundation, which paid Hughes Tool Co. $18,000,000 for the assets. The foundation leased the land from Hughes Tool Co., which then subleased it to Hughes Aircraft Corp. The difference in rent, $2,000,000 per year, became the foundation's working capital.
The deal was the topic of a protracted legal battle between Hughes and the Internal Revenue Service, which Hughes ultimately won. After his death in 1976, many thought that the balance of Hughes's estate would go to the institute, although it was ultimately divided among his cousins and other heirs, given the lack of a will to the contrary. The HHMI was the fourth largest private organization and one of the largest devoted to biological and medical research, with an endowment of $20.4 billion .
Glomar Explorer and the taking of K-129
In 1972, during the cold war era, Hughes was approached by the CIA through his longtime partner, David Charnay, to help secretly recover the Soviet submarine K-129, which had sunk near Hawaii four years earlier. Hughes's involvement provided the CIA with a plausible cover story, conducting expensive civilian marine research at extreme depths and the mining of undersea manganese nodules. The recovery plan used the special-purpose salvage vessel Glomar Explorer. In the summer of 1974, Glomar Explorer attempted to raise the Soviet vessel. However, during the recovery a mechanical failure in the ship's grapple caused half of the submarine to break off and fall to the ocean floor. This section is believed to have held many of the most sought-after items, including its code book and nuclear missiles. Two nuclear-tipped torpedoes and some cryptographic machines were recovered, along with the bodies of six Soviet submariners who were subsequently given formal burial at sea in a filmed ceremony. The operation, known as Project Azorian (but incorrectly referred to by the press as Project Jennifer), became public in February 1975 after secret documents were released, obtained by burglars of Hughes's headquarters in June 1974. Although he lent his name and his company's resources to the operation, Hughes and his companies had no operational involvement in the project. The Glomar Explorer was eventually acquired by Transocean and was sent to the scrap yard in 2015 during a large decline in oil prices.
Personal life
Early romances
In 1929, Hughes's wife of four years, Ella, returned to Houston and filed for divorce.
Hughes dated many famous women, including Joan Crawford, Billie Dove, Faith Domergue, Bette Davis, Yvonne De Carlo, Ava Gardner, Olivia de Havilland, Katharine Hepburn, Hedy Lamarr, Ginger Rogers, Janet Leigh, Pat Sheehan, Mamie Van Doren and Gene Tierney. He also proposed to Joan Fontaine several times, according to her autobiography No Bed of Roses. Jean Harlow accompanied him to the premiere of Hell's Angels, but Noah Dietrich wrote many years later that the relationship was strictly professional, as Hughes disliked Harlow personally. In his 1971 book, Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes, Dietrich said that Hughes genuinely liked and respected Jane Russell, but never sought romantic involvement with her. According to Russell's autobiography, however, Hughes once tried to bed her after a party. Russell (who was married at the time) refused him, and Hughes promised it would never happen again. The two maintained a professional and private friendship for many years. Hughes remained good friends with Tierney who, after his failed attempts to seduce her, was quoted as saying "I don't think Howard could love anything that did not have a motor in it". Later, when Tierney's daughter Daria was born deaf and blind and with a severe learning disability because of Tierney's exposure to rubella during her pregnancy, Hughes saw to it that Daria received the best medical care and paid all expenses.
Luxury yacht
In 1933, Hughes made a purchase of a luxury steam yacht named the Rover, which was previously owned by Scottish shipping magnate Lord Inchcape. "I have never seen the Rover but bought it on the blueprints, photographs and the reports of Lloyd's surveyors. My experience is that the English are the most honest race in the world." Hughes renamed the yacht Southern Cross and later sold her to Swedish entrepreneur Axel Wenner-Gren.
1936 automobile accident
On July 11, 1936, Hughes struck and killed a pedestrian named Gabriel S. Meyer with his car at the corner of 3rd Street and Lorraine in Los Angeles. After the crash, Hughes was taken to the hospital and certified as sober, but an attending doctor made a note that Hughes had been drinking. A witness to the crash told police that Hughes was driving erratically and too fast and that Meyer had been standing in the safety zone of a streetcar stop. Hughes was booked on suspicion of negligent homicide and held overnight in jail until his attorney, Neil S. McCarthy, obtained a writ of habeas corpus for his release pending a coroner's inquest. By the time of the coroner's inquiry, however, the witness had changed his story and claimed that Meyer had moved directly in front of Hughes's car. Nancy Bayly (Watts), who was in the car with Hughes at the time of the crash, corroborated this version of the story. On July 16, 1936, Hughes was held blameless by a coroner's jury at the inquest into Meyer's death. Hughes told reporters outside the inquiry, "I was driving slowly and a man stepped out of the darkness in front of me".
Marriage to Jean Peters
On January 12, 1957, Hughes married actress Jean Peters at a small hotel in Tonopah, Nevada. The couple met in the 1940s, before Peters became a film actress. They had a highly publicized romance in 1947 and there was talk of marriage, but she said she could not combine it with her career. Some later claimed that Peters was "the only woman [Hughes] ever loved", and he reportedly had his security officers follow her everywhere even when they were not in a relationship. Such reports were confirmed by actor Max Showalter, who became a close friend of Peters while shooting Niagara (1953). Showalter told an interviewer that because he frequently met with Peters, Hughes's men threatened to ruin his career if he did not leave her alone.
Connections to Richard Nixon and Watergate
Shortly before the 1960 Presidential election, Richard Nixon was alarmed when it was revealed that his brother, Donald, received a $205,000 loan from Hughes. It has long been speculated that Nixon's drive to learn what the Democrats were planning in 1972 was based in part on his belief that the Democrats knew about a later bribe that his friend Bebe Rebozo had received from Hughes after Nixon took office.
In late 1971, Donald Nixon was collecting intelligence for his brother in preparation for the upcoming presidential election. One of his sources was John H. Meier, a former business adviser of Hughes who had also worked with Democratic National Committee Chairman Larry O'Brien.
Meier, in collaboration with former Vice President Hubert Humphrey and others, wanted to feed misinformation to the Nixon campaign. Meier told Donald that he was sure the Democrats would win the election because Larry O'Brien had a great deal of information on Richard Nixon's illicit dealings with Howard Hughes that had never been released; O'Brien did not actually have any such information, but Meier wanted Nixon to think that he did. Donald told his brother that O'Brien was in possession of damaging Hughes information that could destroy his campaign. Terry Lenzner, who was the chief investigator for the Senate Watergate Committee, speculates that it was Nixon's desire to know what O'Brien knew about Nixon's dealings with Hughes that may have partially motivated the Watergate break-in.
Last years and death
Physical and mental decline
Hughes was widely considered eccentric and to have suffered with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
Dietrich wrote that Hughes always ate the same thing for dinner, a New York strip steak cooked medium rare, dinner salad, and peas, but only the smaller ones, pushing the larger ones aside. For breakfast, Hughes wanted his eggs cooked the way his family cook, Lily, made them. Hughes had a "phobia about germs", and "his passion for secrecy became a mania."
While directing The Outlaw, Hughes became fixated on a small flaw in one of Jane Russell's blouses, claiming that the fabric bunched up along a seam and gave the appearance of two nipples on each breast. He wrote a detailed memorandum to the crew on how to fix the problem. Richard Fleischer, who directed His Kind of Woman with Hughes as executive producer, wrote at length in his autobiography about the difficulty of dealing with the tycoon. In his book, Just Tell Me When to Cry, Fleischer explained that Hughes was fixated on trivial details and was alternately indecisive and obstinate. He also revealed that Hughes's unpredictable mood swings made him wonder if the film would ever be completed.
In 1958, Hughes told his aides that he wanted to screen some movies at a film studio near his home. He stayed in the studio's darkened screening room for more than four months, never leaving. He ate only chocolate bars and chicken and drank only milk, and was surrounded by dozens of Kleenex that he continuously stacked and re-arranged. He wrote detailed memos to his aides giving them explicit instructions neither to look at him nor speak to him unless spoken to. Throughout this period, Hughes sat fixated in his chair, often naked, continually watching movies. When he finally emerged in the summer of 1958, his hygiene was terrible. He had neither bathed nor cut his hair and nails for weeks; this may have been due to allodynia, which results in a pain response to stimuli that would normally not cause pain.
After the screening room incident, Hughes moved into a bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel where he also rented rooms for his aides, his wife, and numerous girlfriends. He would sit naked in his bedroom with a pink hotel napkin placed over his genitals, watching movies. This may have been because Hughes found the touch of clothing painful due to allodynia. He may have watched movies to distract himself from his pain—a common practice among patients with intractable pain, especially those who do not receive adequate treatment. In one year, Hughes spent an estimated $11 million at the hotel.
Hughes began purchasing restaurant chains and four-star hotels that had been founded within the state of Texas. This included, if for only a short period, many unknown franchises currently out of business. He placed ownership of the restaurants with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and all licenses were resold shortly after.
Another time, he became obsessed with the 1968 film Ice Station Zebra, and had it run on a continuous loop in his home. According to his aides, he watched it 150 times. Feeling guilty about the commercial, critical, and rumored toxicity of his film The Conqueror, he bought every copy of the film for $12 million, watching the film on repeat. Paramount Pictures acquired the rights of the film in 1979, three years after his death.
Hughes insisted on using tissues to pick up objects to insulate himself from germs. He would also notice dust, stains, or other imperfections on people's clothes and demand that they take care of them. Once one of the most visible men in America, Hughes ultimately vanished from public view, although tabloids continued to follow rumors of his behavior and whereabouts. He was reported to be terminally ill, mentally unstable, or even dead.
Injuries from numerous aircraft crashes caused Hughes to spend much of his later life in pain, and he eventually became addicted to codeine, which he injected intramuscularly. Hughes had his hair cut and nails trimmed only once a year, likely due to the pain caused by the RSD/CRPS, which was caused by the plane crashes. He also stored his urine in bottles.
Later years in Las Vegas
The wealthy and aging Hughes, accompanied by his entourage of personal aides, began moving from one hotel to another, always taking up residence in the top floor penthouse. In the last ten years of his life, 1966 to 1976, Hughes lived in hotels in many cities—including Beverly Hills, Boston, Las Vegas, Nassau, Freeport and Vancouver.
On November 24, 1966 (Thanksgiving Day), Hughes arrived in Las Vegas by railroad car and moved into the Desert Inn. Because he refused to leave the hotel and to avoid further conflicts with the owners, Hughes bought the Desert Inn in early 1967. The hotel's eighth floor became the nerve center of Hughes's empire and the ninth-floor penthouse became his personal residence. Between 1966 and 1968, he bought several other hotel-casinos, including the Castaways, New Frontier, the Landmark Hotel and Casino, and the Sands. He bought the small Silver Slipper casino for the sole purpose of moving its trademark neon silver slipper, which was visible from his bedroom, and had apparently kept him awake at night.
After Hughes left the Desert Inn, hotel employees discovered that his drapes had not been opened during the time he lived there and had rotted through.
Hughes wanted to change the image of Las Vegas to something more glamorous. He wrote in a memo to an aide, "I like to think of Las Vegas in terms of a well-dressed man in a dinner jacket and a beautifully jeweled and furred female getting out of an expensive car." Hughes bought several local television stations (including KLAS-TV).
Eventually the brain trauma from Hughes's previous accidents, the effects of neurosyphilis diagnosed in 1932 and (undiagnosed) Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder considerably affected his decision-making. A small panel, unofficially dubbed "The Mormon Mafia" because of the many Latter-day Saints on the committee, was led by Frank William Gay and originally served Hughes's "secret police" headquartered at 9000 Romaine. Over the next two decades, however, this group oversaw and controlled considerable business holdings, with the CIA anointing Gay while awarding a contract to the Hughes corporation to acquire sensitive information on a sunken Russian submarine. In addition to supervising day-to-day business operations and Hughes's health, they also went to great pains to satisfy Hughes's every whim. For example, Hughes once became fond of Baskin-Robbins' banana nut ice cream, so his aides sought to secure a bulk shipment for him, only to discover that Baskin-Robbins had discontinued the flavor. They put in a request for the smallest amount the company could provide for a special order, 350 gallons (1,300 L), and had it shipped from Los Angeles. A few days after the order arrived, Hughes announced he was tired of banana nut and wanted only French vanilla ice cream. The Desert Inn ended up distributing free banana nut ice cream to casino customers for a year. In a 1996 interview, ex–Howard Hughes Chief of Nevada Operations Robert Maheu said, "There is a rumor that there is still some banana nut ice cream left in the freezer. It is most likely true."
As an owner of several major Las Vegas businesses, Hughes wielded much political and economic influence in Nevada and elsewhere. During the 1960s and early 1970s, he disapproved of underground nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site. Hughes was concerned about the risk from residual nuclear radiation and attempted to halt the tests. When the tests finally went through despite Hughes's efforts, the detonations were powerful enough that the entire hotel in which he was living trembled from the shock waves. In two separate, last-ditch maneuvers, Hughes instructed his representatives to offer bribes of $1m to both Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon.
In 1970, Jean Peters filed for divorce. The two had not lived together for many years. Peters requested a lifetime alimony payment of $70,000 a year, adjusted for inflation, and waived all claims to Hughes's estate. Hughes offered her a settlement of over a million dollars, but she declined it. Hughes did not insist on a confidentiality agreement from Peters as a condition of the divorce. Aides reported that Hughes never spoke ill of her. She refused to discuss her life with Hughes and declined several lucrative offers from publishers and biographers. Peters would state only that she had not seen Hughes for several years before their divorce and had dealt with him only by phone.
Hughes was living in the Intercontinental Hotel near Lake Managua in Nicaragua, seeking privacy and security, when a magnitude 6.5 earthquake damaged Managua in December 1972. As a precaution, Hughes moved to a rather large tent facing the hotel; after a few days, he moved to the Nicaraguan National Palace and stayed there as a guest of Anastasio Somoza Debayle before leaving for Florida on a private jet the following day. He subsequently moved into the Penthouse at the Xanadu Princess Resort on Grand Bahama Island, which he had recently purchased. He lived almost exclusively in the penthouse of the Xanadu Beach Resort & Marina for the last four years of his life.
Hughes spent a total of $300 million on his many properties in Las Vegas.
Autobiography hoax
In 1972, author Clifford Irving caused a media sensation when he claimed he had co-written an authorized Hughes autobiography. Irving claimed he and Hughes had corresponded through the United States mail, and offered as proof handwritten notes allegedly sent by Hughes. Publisher McGraw-Hill, Inc. was duped into believing the manuscript was authentic. Hughes was so reclusive that he did not immediately publicly refute Irving's statement, leading many to believe that Irving's book was genuine. However, before the book's publication, Hughes finally denounced Irving in a teleconference attended by reporters Hughes knew personally: James Bacon of the Hearst papers, Marin Miles of the Los Angeles Times, Vernon Scott of UPI, Roy Neal of NBC News, Gene Handsaker of AP, Wayne Thomas of the Chicago Tribune, and Gladwin Hill of the New York Times.
The entire hoax finally unraveled. The United States Postal Inspection Service got a subpoena to force Irving to turn over samples of his handwriting. The USPS investigation led to Irving's indictment and subsequent conviction for using the postal service to commit fraud. He was incarcerated for 17 months. In 1974, the Orson Welles film F for Fake included a section on the Hughes autobiography hoax, leaving a question open as to whether it was actually Hughes who took part in the teleconference (since so few people had actually heard or seen him in recent years). In 1977, The Hoax by Clifford Irving was published in the United Kingdom, telling his story of these events. The 2006 film The Hoax, starring Richard Gere, is also based on these events.
Death
Hughes is reported to have died on April 5, 1976, at 1:27 p.m. on board an aircraft, Learjet 24B N855W, owned by Robert Graf and piloted by Jeff Abrams. He was en route from his penthouse at the Acapulco Princess Hotel (now the Fairmont Acapulco Princess) in Mexico to the Methodist Hospital in Houston.
His reclusiveness and possibly his drug use made him practically unrecognizable. His hair, beard, fingernails, and toenails were long—his tall frame now weighed barely , and the FBI had to use fingerprints to conclusively identify the body. Howard Hughes's alias, John T. Conover, was used when his body arrived at a morgue in Houston on the day of his death.
An autopsy recorded kidney failure as the cause of death. In an eighteen-month study investigating Hughes' drug abuse for the estate, it was found "someone administered a deadly injection of the painkiller to this comatose man... obviously needlessly and almost certainly fatal". He suffered from malnutrition and was covered in bedsores. While his kidneys were damaged, his other internal organs, including his brain, which had no visible damage or illnesses, were deemed perfectly healthy. X-rays revealed five broken-off hypodermic needles in the flesh of his arms. To inject codeine into his muscles, Hughes had used glass syringes with metal needles that easily became detached.
Hughes is buried next to his parents at Glenwood Cemetery in Houston.
Alleged survival
Following his death, Hughes was subject to several widely rebuked conspiracy theories that he had faked his own death. A notable allegation came from retired Major General Mark Musick, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, who claimed Hughes went on to live under an assumed identity, dying on November 15, 2001, in Troy, Alabama.
Estate
Approximately three weeks after Hughes's death, a handwritten will was found on the desk of an official of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah. The so-called "Mormon Will" gave $1.56 billion to various charitable organizations (including $625 million to the Howard Hughes Medical Institute), nearly $470 million to the upper management in Hughes's companies and to his aides, $156 million to first cousin William Lummis, and $156 million split equally between his two ex-wives Ella Rice and Jean Peters.
A further $156 million was endowed to a gas-station owner, Melvin Dummar, who told reporters that in 1967, he found a disheveled and dirty man lying along U.S. Route 95, just north of Las Vegas. The man asked for a ride to Vegas. Dropping him off at the Sands Hotel, Dummar said the man told him that he was Hughes. Dummar later claimed that days after Hughes's death a "mysterious man" appeared at his gas station, leaving an envelope containing the will on his desk. Unsure if the will was genuine and unsure of what to do, Dummar left the will at the LDS Church office. In 1978, a Nevada court ruled the Mormon Will a forgery and officially declared that Hughes had died intestate (without a valid will). Dummar's story was later adapted into Jonathan Demme's film Melvin and Howard in 1980.
Hughes's $2.5 billion estate was eventually split in 1983 among 22 cousins, including William Lummis, who serves as a trustee of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The Supreme Court of the United States ruled that Hughes Aircraft was owned by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, which sold it to General Motors in 1985 for $5.2 billion. The court rejected suits by the states of California and Texas that claimed they were owed inheritance tax.
In 1984, Hughes's estate paid an undisclosed amount to Terry Moore, who claimed she and Hughes had secretly married on a yacht in international waters off Mexico in 1949 and never divorced. Moore never produced proof of a marriage, but her book, The Beauty and the Billionaire, became a bestseller.
Awards
Harmon Trophy (1936 and 1938)
Collier Trophy (1938)
Congressional Gold Medal (1939)
Octave Chanute Award (1940)
National Aviation Hall of Fame (1973)
International Air & Space Hall of Fame (1987)
Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (2018)
Archive
The moving image collection of Howard Hughes is held at the Academy Film Archive. The collection consists of over 200 items including 35mm and 16mm elements of feature films, documentaries, and television programs made or accumulated by Hughes.
Filmography
In popular culture
Film
In The Carpetbaggers (1964), the main character Jonas Cord (played by George Peppard) is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever (1971) features a tall, Texan, reclusive billionaire character named Willard Whyte (played by Jimmy Dean) who operates his business empire from the penthouse of a Las Vegas hotel. Although he appears only late in the film, his habitual seclusion and his control of a major aerospace contracting firm are key elements of the movie's plot. Several sequences were actually filmed on location at The Landmark Hotel and Casino, which was owned by Hughes at the time.
The Amazing Howard Hughes is a 1977 American made-for-television biographical film which aired as a mini-series on the CBS network, made a year after Hughes's death and based on Noah Dietrich's book Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. Tommy Lee Jones plays Hughes.
Melvin and Howard (1980), directed by Jonathan Demme and starring Jason Robards as Howard Hughes and Paul Le Mat as Melvin Dummar. The film won Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay (Bo Goldman) and Best Supporting Actress (Mary Steenburgen). The film focuses on Melvin Dummar's claims of meeting Hughes in the Nevada desert and subsequent estate battles over his inclusion in Hughes's will. Critic Pauline Kael called the film "an almost flawless act of sympathetic imagination".
In Tucker: The Man and His Dream, (1988), Hughes (played by Dean Stockwell) figures in the plot by telling Preston Tucker to source steel and engines for Tucker's automobiles from a helicopter manufacturer in New York. Scene occurs in a hangar with the Hercules.
In The Rocketeer, a 1991 American period superhero film from Walt Disney Pictures, the title character attracts the attention of Howard Hughes (played by Terry O'Quinn) and the FBI, who are hunting for a missing jet pack, as well as Nazi operatives.
"Howard Hughes Documentary", broadcast in 1992 as an episode of the Time Machine documentary series, was introduced by Peter Graves, later released by A&E Home Video.
In Conspiracy Theory (1997), the character Jerry Fletcher (played by Mel Gibson) mentions one of his theories to a street vendor by saying, "Did you know that the whole Vietnam War was fought over a bet that Howard Hughes lost to Aristotle Onassis?" referring to his (Fletcher's) thoughts on the politics of that conflict.
In The Aviator (2004), directed by Martin Scorsese, Hughes is portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio. The film focuses on Hughes's personal life from the making of Hell's Angels through his successful flight of the Hercules or Spruce Goose. Critically acclaimed, it was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, winning five for Best Cinematography; Best Film Editing; Best Costume Design; Best Art Direction; and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Cate Blanchett.
Howard Hughes: The Real Aviator documentary was broadcast in 2004 and went on to win the Grand Festival Award for Best Documentary at the 2004 Berkeley Video & Film Festival.
In the 2005 animated film Robots, the character Mr Bigweld (voiced by Mel Brooks), a reclusive inventor and owner of Bigweld Industries, is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The American Aviator: The Howard Hughes Story was broadcast in 2006 on the Biography Channel. It was later released to home media as a DVD with a copy of the full-length film The Outlaw starring Jane Russell.
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), as a plot-related prequel to Iron Man 2 (2010), in which Howard Stark (played by Dominic Cooper), father of Tony Stark (Iron Man), showed his inventions of future technology, clearly embodying Hughes's persona and enthusiasm. His subsequent appearances in the TV series Marvel's Agent Carter further this persona, as well as depicting him as sharing the real Hughes's reputation as a womanizer. Stan Lee has noted that Tony, who shared several of these traits himself, was based on Hughes.
Rules Don't Apply (2016), written and directed by Warren Beatty, features Beatty as Hughes from 1958 through 1964.
In the Dark Knight Trilogy, director Christopher Nolan's characterisation of Bruce Wayne is heavily inspired by Hughes's perceived lifestyle – from a playboy in Batman Begins to a recluse in The Dark Knight Rises. Nolan is reported to have integrated his original material intended for a shelved Hughes biopic into the trilogy.
Games
The character of Andrew Ryan in the 2007 video game BioShock is loosely based on Hughes. Ryan is a billionaire industrialist in post-World War II America who, seeking to avoid governments, religions, and other "parasitic" influences, ordered the secret construction of an underwater city, Rapture. Years later, when Ryan's vision for Rapture falls into dystopia, he hides himself away and uses armies of mutated humans, "Splicers", to defend himself and fight against those trying to take over his city, including the player-character.
In L.A. Noire, Hughes makes an appearance presenting his Hercules H-4 aircraft in the game opening scene. The H-4 is later a central plot piece of DLC Arson Case, "Nicholson Electroplating".
In Fallout: New Vegas, the character of Robert Edwin House, a wealthy business magnate and entrepreneur who owns the New Vegas strip, is based on Howard Hughes and closely resembles him in appearance, personality and background. A portrait of Mr. House can also be found in the game which strongly resembles a portrait of Howard Hughes standing in front of a Boeing Army Pursuit Plane.
Literature
Stan Lee repeatedly stated he created the Marvel Comics character Iron Man's civilian persona, Tony Stark, drawing inspiration from Howard Hughes's colorful lifestyle and personality. Additionally, the first name of Stark's father is Howard.
Hughes is a supporting character in all three parts of James Ellroy's Underworld USA Trilogy, employing several of the protagonists as private investigators, bagmen, and consultants in his attempt to assume control of Las Vegas. Referred to behind his back as "Count Dracula" (due to his reclusiveness and rumored obsession with blood transfusions from Mormon donors), Hughes is portrayed as a spoiled, racist, opioid-addicted megalomaniac whose grandiose plans for Las Vegas are undermined by the manipulations of the Chicago Outfit.
In the 1981 novel Dream Park by Larry Niven and Steven Barnes, the weapon "which might have defeated the Japs if it hadn't come so late" is revealed to be the Spruce Goose, which had been magically hijacked on its test flight by evil Foré sorcerers in New Guinea. Hughes's skeleton is found at the controls, identified by Hughes's trademark fedora and cloth-and-leather jacket.
Music
The 1974 song "Workin' at the Car Wash Blues" by Jim Croce compares the main protagonist of the song to Howard Hughes in one of the lyrics.
The 1974 song "The Wall Street Shuffle" by English rock band 10cc directly references Hughes and his ways of life in the last verse.
The song "Me and Howard Hughes" by Irish band The Boomtown Rats on their 1978 album A Tonic for the Troops is about the title subject.
The song "Closet Chronicles" by American rock band Kansas on their 1977 album Point of Know Return is a Howard Hughes allegory.
The song "Ain't No Fun (Waiting 'Round To Be a Millionaire)" by AC/DC on their 1976 album "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" singer Bon Scott referenced Howard Hughes toward the end of the song: "Hey, hello Howard, how you doin', my next door neighbour? Oh, yea... Get your fuckin' jumbo jet off my airport"
Hughes's name is mentioned in the title and the lyrics of the 2002 song "Bargain Basement Howard Hughes" by Jerry Cantrell.
The 2012 song "Nancy From Now On" by American songwriter Father John Misty likens Hughes's destructive and erratic tendencies to the singer's own.
Television
In The Greatest American Hero Season 2 episode 3, "Don't Mess Around with Jim," Ralph and Bill are kidnapped by a reclusive tycoon, owner of Beck Air airplane company, who fakes his own death, and seems to know more about the suit than they do. He then blackmails them into retrieving his will to prevent it from being misused by the president of his company.
In The Simpsons Season 5 episode "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)", Mr. Burns resembles Hughes in his recluse state. Various nods to his life appear in the episode, ranging from casino ownership and penthouse office to the "Spruce Goose" being renamed "Spruce Moose" as well as a lack of hygiene and being a germaphobe.
In The Beverly Hillbillies episode, "The Clampett-Hewes Empire", Jed Clampett, while in Hooterville, decides to merge his interests with a man Mr. Drysdale believes is Howard Hughes, the famous reclusive billionaire. Eventually it turns out, to Mr. Drysdale's chagrin, "Howard Hughes" is no billionaire; he is nothing but a plain old farmer named "Howard Hewes" (H-E-W-E-S).
In the Invader Zim episode, "Germs," the alien Zim becomes paranoid after discovering that Earth is covered in germs. Referencing Howard Hughes, he isolates himself in his home and dons tissue boxes on his feet.
In the Superjail! episode "The Superjail! Six", The Warden repeatedly watches a film called Ice Station Jailpup which parodies Hughes's obsession with the film Ice Station Zebra
See also
Analgesic nephropathy
List of richest Americans in history
List of wealthiest historical figures
List of aviation pioneers
List of entrepreneurs
Phenacetin
References
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
Barkow, Al. Gettin' to the Dance Floor: An Oral History of American Golf. Short Hills, New Jersey: Burford Books, 1986. .
Barton, Charles. Howard Hughes and his Flying Boat. Fallbrook, CA: Aero Publishers, 1982. Republished in 1998, Vienna, VA: Charles Barton, Inc. .
Barlett, Donald L. and James B. Steele. Empire: The Life, Legend and Madness of Howard Hughes. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1979. , republished in 2004 as Howard Hughes: His Life and Madness.
Bellett, Gerald. Age of Secrets: The Conspiracy that Toppled Richard Nixon and the Hidden Death of Howard Hughes. Stillwater, Minnesota: Voyageur Press, 1995. .
Blackman, Tony Tony Blackman Test Pilot Grub Street, 2009,
Brown, Peter Harry and Pat H. Broeske. Howard Hughes: The Untold Story. New York: Penguin Books, 1996. .
Burleson, Clyde W. The Jennifer Project. College Station, Texas: Texas A&M University Press, 1997. .
Dietrich, Noah and Bob Thomas. Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. New York: Fawcett Publications, 1972. .
Drosnin, Michael. Citizen Hughes: In his Own Words, How Howard Hughes Tried to Buy America. Portland, Oregon: Broadway Books, 2004. .
Hack, Richard. Hughes: The Private Diaries, Memos and Letters: The Definitive Biography of the First American Billionaire. Beverly Hills, California: New Millennium Press, 2002. .
Herman, Arthur. Freedom's Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II. New York: Random House, 2012. .
Higham, Charles. Howard Hughes: The Secret Life, 1993.
Porter, Donald J., Howard's Whirlybirds: Howard Hughes' Amazing Pioneering Helicopter Exploits. Fonthill Media, 2013. (ISBN 978-1-78155-089)
Irving, Clifford. The Hoax. New York: E. Reads Ltd., 1999. .
Klepper, Michael and Michael Gunther. The Wealthy 100: From Benjamin Franklin to Bill Gates—A Ranking of the Richest Americans, Past and Present. Secaucus, New Jersey: Carol Publishing Group, 1996.
Marrett, George J. Howard Hughes: Aviator. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 2004. .
Kistler, Ron. I Caught Flies for Howard Hughes. Chicago: Playboy Press, 1976. .
Lasky, Betty. RKO: The Biggest Little Major of Them All, 2d ed . Santa Monica, California: Roundtable, 1989. .
Maheu, Robert and Richard Hack. Next to Hughes: Behind the Power and Tragic Downfall of Howard Hughes by his Closest Adviser. New York: Harper Collins, 1992. .
Moore, Terry. The Beauty and the Billionaire. New York: Pocket Books, 1984. .
Moore, Terry and Jerry Rivers. The Passions of Howard Hughes. Los Angeles: General Publishing Group, 1996. .
Parker, Dana T. Building Victory: Aircraft Manufacturing in the Los Angeles Area in World War II, Cypress, California: Dana T. Parker Books, 2013. .
Phelan, James. Howard Hughes: The Hidden Years. New York, Random House, 1976. .
Real, Jack. The Asylum of Howard Hughes. Philadelphia: Xlibris Corporation, 2003. .
Thomas, Bob. Liberace: The True Story. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1987. .
Tierney, Gene with Mickey Herskowitz. Self-Portrait. New York: Peter Wyden, 1979. lSBN 0-883261-52-9.
Weaver, Tom. Science Fiction and Fantasy Film Flashbacks: Conversations with 24 Actors, Writers, Producers and Directors from the Golden Age. New York: McFarland & Company, 2004. .
External links
AZORIAN The Raising of the K-129 / 2009 – 2 Part TV Documentary / Michael White Films Vienna
Welcome Home Howard: Collection of photographs kept by UNLV
A history of the remarkable achievements of Howard Hughes
FBI file on Howard Hughes
Exclutive Biography of Howard R. Hughes Jr.
Biography in the National Aviation Hall of Fame
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Watergate scandal | false | [
"Hercules was a brand of bicycle and motorcycle manufactured in Germany.\n\nThe Hercules Company was founded in 1886 to produce bicycles by Carl Marschütz in Nuremberg, Germany and began producing motorcycles in 1904. It was merged with Zweirad Union after being purchased by ZF Sachs in 1963.\n\nIn the 1950s and 1960s Sachs was the largest European fabricator of two-stroke motorcycle engines. Many of these engines were used in the Hercules line of small motorcycles, scooters and mopeds.\n\nIn 1974 Hercules became the first company to offer a Wankel-engined motorcycle for sale to the general public. A prototype was first shown in 1970 at the West Cologne Autumn Motorcycle Show to a mixed reception and the production bike was sold as a Hercules product except in the United Kingdom, where it was marketed as a DKW motorcycle. The W-2000 had a single-rotor air-cooled engine of 294cc displacement that produced 23 hp, later increased to 32 hp. Cooling was by a large fan placed in front of the engine (and the slipstream breeze while riding) and engine lubrication was by manually adding oil to the fuel in the tank.\n\nIn 1976 Hercules launched the W-2000 Injection in which engine lubrication was from a separate oil tank via a pump. It had 18-inch wheels, a front disc brake and a rear drum brake. According to a March 1976 review in Cycle World, the handling was good but the bike's low ground clearance limited its cornering ability. That review also declared the W-2000 to be a daily commuting bike, not a sport motorcycle.\n\nHercules introduced a rotary-powered dirt bike (the KC-30 GS Enduro) in May 1975, but the model failed to sell due to its high price ($2,900).\n\nThe Fichtel & Sachs single-rotor engine of 300 cc swept-volume as used in the Hercules – the only commercially available engine at the time – was used as a basis by BSA's project engineer David Garside in the early 1970s when designing a twin-rotor motorcycle engine of 588 cc, which reached production as the \"Norton Classic\".\n\nProduction of motorcycles ceased in 1996.\n\nPartial product line\n\nHercules K500 1932–1936\nHercules s125 1939–1943\nHercules b50 1932–1935\nHercules Moped, 49cc (1957)\nHercules Scooter, 50cc\nHercules Ultra III Sachs 50 SW\nHercules Lilliput, 98cc\nHercules MK1 moped\nHercules MK2 moped\nHercules MK3 moped\nHercules MK4 moped\nHercules supra 4gp moped\nHercules supra 4 enduro moped\nHercules Prior Moped\nHercules Lastboy\nHercules K100 (1959)\nHercules R 200 (1959)\nHercules 220 (1965)\nHercules 103 (1966)\nHercules Postie Bike (1969)\nHercules K 105 X (1970)\nHercules K 125 X (1971)\nHercules K 50 RX (1971)\nHercules K 125 Military (1971–1990)\nHercules K 125 (1972)\nHercules K 125 T (1973)\nHercules K125 S (1974–1979)\nHercules W-2000 (1974–1978)\nHercules E1 (1974)\nHercules KC-30 GS Enduro (1975)\nHercules 175 GS (1976)\nHercules 502 GS (1976)\nHercules GS250 Ice Racer (1977)\nHercules MC250 (1978)\nHercules DKW 250 GS (1978)\nHercules Prima 5S (1984)\nHercules Prima frisiert\nHercules GS 125B\nHercules KJBe\nHercules K 180 Military (1991–1996)\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \nHercules Owners' Club\n\nMotorcycles powered by Wankel engines\nMotorcycle manufacturers of Germany\nSachs motorcycles",
"The Hercules Superclusters (SCl 160) refers to a set of two nearby superclusters of galaxies.\n\nRelative to other local superclusters, Hercules is considered particularly large, being approximately 330 Mly in diameter. The Northern Local Supervoid lies in front of the superclusters, and is as big as the superclusters themselves. The redshifts of the member galaxies lie between 0.0304 and 0.0414.\n\nThe region includes Abell 2147, Abell 2151 (Hercules Cluster), and Abell 2152 galaxy clusters. An extremely long filament of galaxies has been found, that connects this group of clusters to the Abell 2197 and Abell 2199 pair.\nAbell 2162 in the nearby constellation Corona Borealis is also a member.\n\nThe Hercules Superclusters are near the Coma Supercluster, helping make up part of the CfA2 Great Wall.\n\nIn the 1930s, Harlow Shapley studied the structure of the distribution of galaxies in the constellation of Hercules, and was probably first to discover the existence of a supercluster in that region. However, this was not confirmed until the 1970s. In 1976, Massimo Tarenghi suggested that the A2151 cluster was part of a single supercluster, and at a conference in Estonia in 1977, he, together with several other astronomers, presented evidence that it was indeed a supercluster that appeared in that region.\n\nSee also\n Abell catalogue\n Large-scale structure of the universe\n List of Abell clusters\n\nReferences\n\n \nHercules (constellation)\nGalaxy superclusters"
]
|
[
"Howard Hughes",
"H-4 Hercules",
"What is the H-4 hercules?",
"HK-1 Hercules flying boat",
"What was the use of the flying boat?",
"use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable",
"How much did the hercules cost to make?",
"I don't know.",
"Was the hercules used for many missions?",
"The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947.",
"Did the boat have many critics?",
"Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled,",
"Did hughes win this battle?",
"Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory.",
"Is there any other interesting aspects about the hercules?",
"On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum",
"Was the anniversary well attended?",
"Hughes' paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio technology pioneer Dave Evans,",
"How large was the hercules?",
"The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at 319 feet 11 inches (97.51 m),"
]
| C_3fad173257b34869985c7b64812d1528_0 | Did it break any other records? | 10 | In addition to flying, did Howard Hughes' H-4 Hercules break any other records? | Howard Hughes | The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The project was opposed by the military services, thinking it would siphon resources from higher priority programs, but was advocated by Hughes' powerful allies in Washington, D.C. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II. The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at 319 feet 11 inches (97.51 m), had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next largest wingspan was about 310 ft (94 m)). (The Hercules is no longer the longest or heaviest aircraft ever built; both of those titles are currently held by the Antonov An-225 Mriya.) The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and 70 feet (21 m) above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947. The Hercules was nicknamed the Spruce Goose by its critics, but it was actually made largely from birch, not spruce, rather than of aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes' Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the F-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it is now part of the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum. On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes' paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules. CANNOTANSWER | had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next largest wingspan was about 310 ft (94 m)). | Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, investor, record-setting pilot, engineer, film director, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and financially successful individuals in the world. He first became prominent as a film producer, and then as an important figure in the aviation industry. Later in life, he became known for his eccentric behavior and reclusive lifestyle—oddities that were caused in part by his worsening obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), chronic pain from a near-fatal plane crash, and increasing deafness.
As a film tycoon, Hughes gained fame in Hollywood beginning in the late 1920s, when he produced big-budget and often controversial films such as The Racket (1928), Hell's Angels (1930), and Scarface (1932). He later took over the RKO Pictures film studio in 1948, recognized then as one of the Big Five studios of Hollywood's Golden Age, although the production company struggled under his control and ultimately ceased operations in 1957.
Through his interest in aviation and aerospace travel, Hughes formed the Hughes Aircraft Company in 1932, hiring numerous engineers, designers, and defense contractors. He spent the rest of the 1930s and much of the 1940s setting multiple world air speed records and building the Hughes H-1 Racer (1935) and H-4 Hercules (the Spruce Goose, 1947), the latter being the largest flying boat in history and having the longest wingspan of any aircraft from the time it was built until 2019. He acquired and expanded Trans World Airlines and later acquired Air West, renaming it Hughes Airwest. Hughes won the Harmon Trophy on two occasions (1936 and 1938), the Collier Trophy (1938), and the Congressional Gold Medal (1939) all for his achievements in aviation throughout the 1930s. He was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1973 and was included in Flying magazine's 2013 list of the 51 Heroes of Aviation, ranked at 25.
During the 1960s and early 1970s, Hughes extended his financial empire to include several major businesses in Las Vegas, such as real estate, hotels, casinos, and media outlets. Known at the time as one of the most powerful men in the state of Nevada, he is largely credited with transforming Vegas into a more refined cosmopolitan city.
After years of mental and physical decline, Hughes died of kidney failure in 1976, at the age of 70. Today, his legacy is maintained through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Howard Hughes Corporation.
Early life
Howard Robard Hughes Jr. was the son of Allene Stone Gano (1883–1922) and of Howard R. Hughes Sr. (1869–1924), a successful inventor and businessman from Missouri. He had English, Welsh and some French Huguenot ancestry, and was a descendant of John Gano (1727–1804), the minister who allegedly baptized George Washington. His father patented (1909) the two-cone roller bit, which allowed rotary drilling for petroleum in previously inaccessible places. The senior Hughes made the shrewd and lucrative decision to commercialize the invention by leasing the bits instead of selling them, obtained several early patents, and founded the Hughes Tool Company in 1909. Hughes's uncle was the famed novelist, screenwriter, and film-director Rupert Hughes.
A 1941 affidavit birth certificate of Hughes, signed by his aunt Annette Gano Lummis and by Estelle Boughton Sharp, states that he was born on December 24, 1905, in Harris County, Texas. However, his certificate of baptism, recorded on October 7, 1906, in the parish register of St. John's Episcopal Church in Keokuk, Iowa, listed his date of birth as September 24, 1905, without any reference to the place of birth.
At a young age, Hughes showed interest in science and technology. In particular, he had great engineering aptitude and built Houston's first "wireless" radio transmitter at age 11. He went on to be one of the first licensed ham-radio operators in Houston, having the assigned callsign W5CY (originally 5CY). At 12, Hughes was photographed in the local newspaper, identified as the first boy in Houston to have a "motorized" bicycle, which he had built from parts from his father's steam engine. He was an indifferent student, with a liking for mathematics, flying, and mechanics. He took his first flying lesson at 14, and attended Fessenden School in Massachusetts in 1921.
After a brief stint at The Thacher School, Hughes attended math and aeronautical engineering courses at Caltech. The red-brick house where Hughes lived as a teenager at 3921 Yoakum Blvd., Houston, still stands, now known as Hughes House on the grounds of the University of St. Thomas.
His mother Allene died in March 1922 from complications of an ectopic pregnancy. Howard Hughes Sr. died of a heart attack in 1924. Their deaths apparently inspired Hughes to include the establishment of a medical research laboratory in the will that he signed in 1925 at age 19. Howard Sr.'s will had not been updated since Allene's death, and Hughes inherited 75% of the family fortune. On his 19th birthday, Hughes was declared an emancipated minor, enabling him to take full control of his life.
From a young age, Hughes became a proficient and enthusiastic golfer. He often scored near-par figures, played the game to a two-three handicap during his 20s, and for a time aimed for a professional golf career. He golfed frequently with top players, including Gene Sarazen. Hughes rarely played competitively and gradually gave up his passion for the sport to pursue other interests. Hughes played golf every afternoon at LA courses including the Lakeside Golf Club, Wilshire Country Club, or the Bel-Air Country Club. Partners included George Von Elm or Ozzie Carlton. After Hughes hurt himself in the late 1920s, his golfing tapered off, and after his F-11 crash, Hughes was unable to play at all.
Hughes withdrew from Rice University shortly after his father's death. On June 1, 1925, he married Ella Botts Rice, daughter of David Rice and Martha Lawson Botts of Houston, and great-niece of William Marsh Rice, for whom Rice University was named. They moved to Los Angeles, where he hoped to make a name for himself as a filmmaker.
They moved into the Ambassador Hotel, and Hughes proceeded to learn to fly a Waco, while simultaneously producing his first motion picture, Swell Hogan.
Business career
Hughes enjoyed a highly successful business career beyond engineering, aviation, and filmmaking; many of his career endeavors involved varying entrepreneurial roles.
Entertainment
Ralph Graves persuaded Hughes to finance a short film, Swell Hogan, which Graves had written and would star in. Hughes himself produced it. However, it was a disaster. After hiring a film editor to try to salvage it, he finally ordered that it be destroyed. His next two films, Everybody's Acting (1926) and Two Arabian Knights (1927), achieved financial success; the latter won the first Academy Award for Best Director of a comedy picture. The Racket (1928) and The Front Page (1931) were also nominated for Academy Awards.
Hughes spent $3.5 million to make the flying film Hell's Angels (1930). Hell's Angels received one Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography.
He produced another hit, Scarface (1932), a production delayed by censors' concern over its violence.
The Outlaw premiered in 1943, but was not released nationally until 1946. The film featured Jane Russell, who received considerable attention from industry censors, this time owing to her revealing costumes.
RKO
From the 1940s to the late 1950s, the Hughes Tool Company ventured into the film industry when it obtained partial ownership of the RKO companies, which included RKO Pictures, RKO Studios, a chain of movie theaters known as RKO Theatres and a network of radio stations known as the RKO Radio Network.
In 1948, Hughes gained control of RKO, a struggling major Hollywood studio, by acquiring the 929,000 shares owned by Floyd Odlum's Atlas Corporation, for $8,825,000. Within weeks of acquiring the studio, Hughes dismissed 700 employees. Production dwindled to 9 pictures during the first year of Hughes's control; previously RKO had averaged 30 per year.
Production shut down for six months, during which time Hughes ordered investigations of each employee who remained with RKO as far as their political leanings were concerned. Only after ensuring that the stars under contract to RKO had no suspect affiliations would Hughes approve completed pictures to be sent back for re-shooting. This was especially true of the women under contract to RKO at that time. If Hughes felt that his stars did not properly represent the political views of his liking or if a film's anti-communist politics were not sufficiently clear, he pulled the plug. In 1952, an abortive sale to a Chicago-based group connected to the mafia with no experience in the industry disrupted studio operations at RKO even further.
In 1953, Hughes became involved with a high-profile lawsuit as part of the settlement of the United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc. Antitrust Case. As a result of the hearings, the shaky status of RKO became increasingly apparent. A steady stream of lawsuits from RKO's minority shareholders had grown to become extremely annoying to Hughes. They had accused him of financial misconduct and corporate mismanagement. Since Hughes wanted to focus primarily on his aircraft manufacturing and TWA holdings during the years of the Korean War of 1950 to 1953, Hughes offered to buy out all other stockholders in order to dispense with their distractions.
By the end of 1954, Hughes had gained near-total control of RKO at a cost of nearly $24 million, becoming the first sole owner of a major Hollywood studio since the silent-film era. Six months later Hughes sold the studio to the General Tire and Rubber Company for $25 million. Hughes retained the rights to pictures that he had personally produced, including those made at RKO. He also retained Jane Russell's contract. For Howard Hughes, this was the virtual end of his 25-year involvement in the motion-picture industry. However, his reputation as a financial wizard emerged unscathed. During that time period, RKO became known as the home of classic film noir productions, thanks in part to the limited budgets required to make such films during Hughes's tenure. Hughes reportedly walked away from RKO having made $6.5 million in personal profit. According to Noah Dietrich, Hughes made a $10,000,000 profit from the sale of the theaters and made a profit of $1,000,000 from his 7-year ownership of RKO.
Real estate
According to Noah Dietrich, "Land became a principal asset for the Hughes empire". Hughes acquired 1200 acres in Culver City for Hughes Aircraft, bought 7 sections [4,480 acres] in Tucson for his Falcon missile-plant, and purchased 25,000 acres near Las Vegas. In 1968, the Hughes Tool Company purchased the North Las Vegas Air Terminal.
Originally known as Summa Corporation, the Howard Hughes Corporation formed in 1972 when the oil-tools business of Hughes Tool Company, then owned by Howard Hughes Jr., floated on the New York Stock Exchange under the "Hughes Tool" name. This forced the remaining businesses of the "original" Hughes Tool to adopt a new corporate name: "Summa". The name "Summa"Latin for "highest"was adopted without the approval of Hughes himself, who preferred to keep his own name on the business, and suggested "HRH Properties" (for Hughes Resorts and Hotels, and also his own initials). In 1988 Summa announced plans for Summerlin, a master-planned community named for the paternal grandmother of Howard Hughes, Jean Amelia Summerlin.
Initially staying in the Desert Inn, Hughes refused to vacate his room, and instead decided to purchase the entire hotel. Hughes extended his financial empire to include Las Vegas real estate, hotels, and media outlets, spending an estimated $300 million, and using his considerable powers to take over many of the well-known hotels, especially the venues connected with organized crime. He quickly became one of the most powerful men in Las Vegas. He was instrumental in changing the image of Las Vegas from its Wild West roots into a more refined cosmopolitan city. In addition to the Desert Inn, Hughes would eventually own the Sands, Frontier, Silver Slipper, Castaways and Landmark and Harold's Club in Reno. Hughes would eventually become the largest employer in Nevada.
Aviation and aerospace
Another portion of Hughes's commercial interests involved aviation, airlines, and the aerospace and defense industries. A lifelong aircraft enthusiast and pilot, Hughes survived four airplane accidents: one in a Thomas-Morse Scout while filming Hell's Angels, one while setting the airspeed record in the Hughes Racer, one at Lake Mead in 1943, and the near-fatal crash of the Hughes XF-11 in 1946. At Rogers Airport in Los Angeles, he learned to fly from pioneer aviators, including Moye Stephens and J.B. Alexander. He set many world records and commissioned the construction of custom aircraft for himself while heading Hughes Aircraft at the airport in Glendale, CA. Operating from there, the most technologically important aircraft he commissioned was the Hughes H-1 Racer. On September 13, 1935, Hughes, flying the H-1, set the landplane airspeed record of over his test course near Santa Ana, California (Giuseppe Motta reaching 362 mph in 1929 and George Stainforth reached 407.5 mph in 1931, both in seaplanes). This marked the last time in history that an aircraft built by a private individual set the world airspeed record. A year and a half later, on January 19, 1937, flying the same H-1 Racer fitted with longer wings, Hughes set a new transcontinental airspeed record by flying non-stop from Los Angeles to Newark in seven hours, 28 minutes, and 25 seconds (beating his own previous record of nine hours, 27 minutes). His average ground-speed over the flight was .
The H-1 Racer featured a number of design innovations: it had retractable landing gear (as Boeing Monomail had five years before), and all rivets and joints set flush into the body of the aircraft to reduce drag. The H-1 Racer is thought to have influenced the design of a number of World War II fighters such as the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, Focke-Wulf Fw 190, and F8F Bearcat, although that has never been reliably confirmed. In 1975 the H-1 Racer was donated to the Smithsonian.
Round-the-world flight
On July 14, 1938, Hughes set another record by completing a flight around the world in just 91 hours (three days, 19 hours, 17 minutes), beating the previous record of 186 hours (7 days, 18 hours, 49 minutes) set in 1933 by Wiley Post in a single-engine Lockheed Vega by almost four days. Hughes returned home ahead of photographs of his flight. Taking off from New York City, Hughes continued to Paris, Moscow, Omsk, Yakutsk, Fairbanks, and Minneapolis, then returning to New York City. For this flight he flew a Lockheed 14 Super Electra (NX18973, a twin-engine transport with a four-man crew) fitted with the latest radio and navigational equipment. Harry Connor was the co-pilot, Thomas Thurlow the navigator, Richard Stoddart the engineer, and Ed Lund the mechanic. Hughes wanted the flight to be a triumph of American aviation technology, illustrating that safe, long-distance air travel was possible. Albert Lodwick of Mystic, Iowa, provided organizational skills as the flight operations manager. While Hughes had previously been relatively obscure despite his wealth, being better known for dating Katharine Hepburn, New York City now gave him a ticker-tape parade in the Canyon of Heroes. Hughes and his crew were awarded the 1938 Collier Trophy for flying around the world in record time. He was awarded the Harmon Trophy in 1936 and 1938 for the record-breaking global circumnavigation.
In 1938 the William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas—known at the time as Houston Municipal Airport—was renamed after Hughes, but the name was changed back due to public outrage over naming the airport after a living person.
Hughes also had a role in the design and financing of both the Boeing 307 Stratoliner and Lockheed L-049 Constellation.
Other aviator awards include: the Bibesco Cup of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in 1938, the Octave Chanute Award in 1940, and a special Congressional Gold Medal in 1939 "in recognition of the achievements of Howard Hughes in advancing the science of aviation and thus bringing great credit to his country throughout the world".
President Harry S. Truman sent the Congressional medal to Hughes after the F-11 crash. After his around-the-world flight, Hughes had declined to go to the White House to collect it.
Hughes D-2 and XF-11
The Hughes D-2 was conceived in 1939 as a bomber with five crew members, powered by 42-cylinder Wright R-2160 Tornado engines. In the end, it appeared as two-seat fighter-reconnaissance aircraft designated the D-2A, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-2800-49 engines. The aircraft was constructed using the Duramold process. The prototype was brought to Harper's Dry Lake in California in great secrecy in 1943 and first flew on June 20 of that year. Acting on a recommendation of the president's son, Colonel Elliott Roosevelt, who had become friends with Hughes, in September 1943 the USAAF ordered 100 of a reconnaissance development of the D-2, known as the F-11. Hughes then attempted to get the military to pay for the development of the D-2. In November 1944, the hangar containing the D-2A was reportedly hit by lightning and the aircraft was destroyed. The D-2 design was abandoned but led to the extremely controversial Hughes XF-11. The XF-11 was a large, all-metal, two-seat reconnaissance aircraft, powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-4360-31 engines, each driving a set of contra-rotating propellers. Only two prototypes were completed; the second one with a single propeller per side.
Fatal crash of the Sikorsky S-43
In the spring of 1943 Hughes spent nearly a month in Las Vegas, test-flying his Sikorsky S-43 amphibious aircraft, practising touch-and-go landings on Lake Mead in preparation for flying the H-4 Hercules. The weather conditions at the lake during the day were ideal and he enjoyed Las Vegas at night. On May 17, 1943, Hughes flew the Sikorsky from California, carrying two CAA aviation inspectors, two of his employees, and actress Ava Gardner. Hughes dropped Gardner off in Las Vegas and proceeded to Lake Mead to conduct qualifying tests in the S-43. The test flight did not go well. The Sikorsky crashed into Lake Mead, killing CAA inspector Ceco Cline and Hughes's employee Richard Felt. Hughes suffered a severe gash on the top of his head when he hit the upper control panel and had to be rescued by one of the others on board. Hughes paid divers $100,000 to raise the aircraft and later spent more than $500,000 restoring it. Hughes sent the plane to Houston, where it remained for many years.
Near-fatal crash of the XF-11
Hughes was involved in another near-fatal aircraft accident on July 7, 1946, while performing the first flight of the prototype U.S. Army Air Forces reconnaissance aircraft, the XF-11, near Hughes airfield at Culver City, California. An oil leak caused one of the contra-rotating propellers to reverse pitch, causing the aircraft to yaw sharply and lose altitude rapidly. Hughes attempted to save the aircraft by landing it at the Los Angeles Country Club golf course, but just seconds before reaching the course, the XF-11 started to drop dramatically and crashed in the Beverly Hills neighborhood surrounding the country club.
When the XF-11 finally came to a halt after destroying three houses, the fuel tanks exploded, setting fire to the aircraft and a nearby home at 808 North Whittier Drive owned by Lt Col. Charles E. Meyer. Hughes managed to pull himself out of the flaming wreckage but lay beside the aircraft until rescued by Marine Master Sgt. William L. Durkin, who happened to be in the area visiting friends. Hughes sustained significant injuries in the crash, including a crushed collar bone, multiple cracked ribs, crushed chest with collapsed left lung, shifting his heart to the right side of the chest cavity, and numerous third-degree burns. An oft-told story said that Hughes sent a check to the Marine weekly for the remainder of his life as a sign of gratitude. Noah Dietrich asserted that Hughes did send Durkin $200 a month, but Durkin's daughter denied knowing that he received any money from Hughes.
Despite his physical injuries, Hughes took pride that his mind was still working. As he lay in his hospital bed, he decided that he did not like the bed's design. He called in plant engineers to design a customized bed, equipped with hot and cold running water, built in six sections, and operated by 30 electric motors, with push-button adjustments. Hughes designed the hospital bed specifically to alleviate the pain caused by moving with severe burn injuries. Although he never used the bed that he designed, Hughes's bed served as a prototype for the modern hospital bed. Hughes's doctors considered his recovery almost miraculous.
Many attribute his long-term dependence on opiates to his use of codeine as a painkiller during his convalescence. Yet Dietrich asserts that Hughes recovered the "hard way—no sleeping pills, no opiates of any kind". The trademark mustache he wore afterward hid a scar on his upper lip resulting from the accident.
H-4 Hercules
The War Production Board (not the military) originally contracted with Henry Kaiser and Hughes to produce the gigantic HK-1 Hercules flying boat for use during World War II to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic as an alternative to seagoing troop transport ships that were vulnerable to German U-boats. The military services opposed the project, thinking it would siphon resources from higher-priority programs, but Hughes's powerful allies in Washington, D.C., advocated for it. After disputes, Kaiser withdrew from the project and Hughes elected to continue it as the H-4 Hercules. However, the aircraft was not completed until after the end of World War II.
The Hercules was the world's largest flying boat, the largest aircraft made from wood, and, at , had the longest wingspan of any aircraft (the next-largest wingspan was about ). (The Hercules is no longer the longest nor heaviest aircraft ever built - surpassed by the Antonov An-225 Mriya produced in 1985.)
The Hercules flew only once for one mile (1.6 km), and above the water, with Hughes at the controls, on November 2, 1947.
Critics nicknamed the Hercules the Spruce Goose, but it was actually made largely from birch (not spruce) rather than from aluminum, because the contract required that Hughes build the aircraft of "non-strategic materials". It was built in Hughes's Westchester, California, facility. In 1947, Howard Hughes was summoned to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee to explain why the H-4 development had been so troubled, and why $22 million had produced only two prototypes of the XF-11. General Elliott Roosevelt and numerous other USAAF officers were also called to testify in hearings that transfixed the nation during August and November 1947. In hotly-disputed testimony over TWA's route awards and malfeasance in the defense-acquisition process, Hughes turned the tables on his main interlocutor, Maine Senator Owen Brewster, and the hearings were widely interpreted as a Hughes victory. After being displayed at the harbor of Long Beach, California, the Hercules was moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where it features at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum.
On November 4, 2017, the 70th anniversary of the only flight of the H-4 Hercules was celebrated at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum with Hughes's paternal cousin Michael Wesley Summerlin and Brian Palmer Evans, son of Hughes radio-technology pioneer Dave Evans, taking their positions in the recreation of a photo that was previously taken of Hughes, Dave Evans and Joe Petrali on board the H-4 Hercules.
Hughes Aircraft
In 1932 Hughes founded the Hughes Aircraft Company, a division of Hughes Tool Company, in a rented corner of a Lockheed Aircraft Corporation hangar in Burbank, California, to build the H-1 racer.
Shortly after founding the company, Hughes used the alias "Charles Howard" to accept a job as a baggage handler for American Airlines. He was soon promoted to co-pilot.
Hughes continued to work for American Airlines until his real identity was discovered.
During and after World War II Hughes fashioned his company into a major defense contractor. The Hughes Helicopters division started in 1947 when helicopter manufacturer Kellett sold their latest design to Hughes for production. Hughes Aircraft became a major American aerospace- and defense contractor, manufacturing numerous technology-related products that included spacecraft vehicles, military aircraft, radar systems, electro-optical systems, the first working laser, aircraft computer systems, missile systems, ion-propulsion engines (for space travel), commercial satellites, and other electronics systems.
In 1948 Hughes created a new division of Hughes Aircraft: the Hughes Aerospace Group. The Hughes Space and Communications Group and the Hughes Space Systems Division were later spun off in 1948 to form their own divisions and ultimately became the Hughes Space and Communications Company in 1961. In 1953 Howard Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the newly formed Howard Hughes Medical Institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a tax-exempt charitable organization. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion. In 1997 General Motors sold Hughes Aircraft to Raytheon and in 2000, sold Hughes Space & Communications to Boeing. A combination of Boeing, GM, and Raytheon acquired the Hughes Research Laboratories, which focused on advanced developments in microelectronics, information & systems sciences, materials, sensors, and photonics; their work-space spans from basic research to product delivery. It has particularly emphasized capabilities in high-performance integrated circuits, high-power lasers, antennas, networking, and smart materials.
Airlines
In 1939, at the urging of Jack Frye, president of Transcontinental & Western Airlines, the predecessor of Trans World Airlines (TWA), Hughes began to quietly purchase a majority share of TWA stock; he took a controlling interest in the airline by 1944. Although he never had an official position with TWA, Hughes handpicked the board of directors, which included Noah Dietrich, and often issued orders directly to airline staff. Hughes Tool Co. purchased the first six Stratoliners Boeing manufactured. Hughes used one personally, and he let TWA operate the other five.
Hughes is commonly credited as the driving force behind the Lockheed Constellation airliner, which Hughes and Frye ordered in 1939 as a long-range replacement for TWA's fleet of Boeing 307 Stratoliners. Hughes personally financed TWA's acquisition of 40 Constellations for $18 million, the largest aircraft order in history up to that time. The Constellations were among the highest-performing commercial aircraft of the late 1940s and 1950s and allowed TWA to pioneer nonstop transcontinental service. During World War II Hughes leveraged political connections in Washington to obtain rights for TWA to serve Europe, making it the only U.S. carrier with a combination of domestic and transatlantic routes.
After the announcement of the Boeing 707, Hughes opted to pursue a more advanced jet aircraft for TWA and approached Convair in late 1954. Convair proposed two concepts to Hughes, but Hughes was unable to decide which concept to adopt, and Convair eventually abandoned its initial jet project after the mockups of the 707 and Douglas DC-8 were unveiled. Even after competitors such as United Airlines, American Airlines and Pan American World Airways had placed large orders for the 707, Hughes only placed eight orders for 707s through the Hughes Tool Company and forbade TWA from using the aircraft. After finally beginning to reserve 707 orders in 1956, Hughes embarked on a plan to build his own "superior" jet aircraft for TWA, applied for CAB permission to sell Hughes aircraft to TWA, and began negotiations with the state of Florida to build a manufacturing plant there. However, he abandoned this plan around 1958, and in the interim, negotiated new contracts for 707 and Convair 880 aircraft and engines totaling $400 million.
The financing of TWA's jet orders precipitated the end of Hughes's relationship with Noah Dietrich, and ultimately Hughes's ouster from control of TWA. Hughes did not have enough cash on hand or future cash flow to pay for the orders and did not immediately seek bank financing. Hughes's refusal to heed Dietrich's financing advice led to a major rift between the two by the end of 1956. Hughes believed that Dietrich wished to have Hughes committed as mentally incompetent, although the evidence of this is inconclusive. Dietrich resigned by telephone in May 1957 after repeated requests for stock options, which Hughes refused to grant, and with no further progress on the jet financing. As Hughes's mental state worsened, he ordered various tactics to delay payments to Boeing and Convair; his behavior led TWA's banks to insist that he be removed from management as a condition for further financing.
In 1960, Hughes was ultimately forced out of the management of TWA, although he continued to own 78% of the company. In 1961, TWA filed suit against Hughes Tool Company, claiming that the latter had violated antitrust law by using TWA as a captive market for aircraft trading. The claim was largely dependent upon obtaining testimony from Hughes himself. Hughes went into hiding and refused to testify. A default judgment was issued against Hughes Tool Company for $135 million in 1963 but was overturned by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1973, on the basis that Hughes was immune from prosecution. In 1966, Hughes was forced to sell his TWA shares. The sale of his TWA shares brought Hughes $546,549,771.
Hughes acquired control of Boston-based Northeast Airlines in 1962. However, the airline's lucrative route authority between major northeastern cities and Miami was terminated by a CAB decision around the time of the acquisition, and Hughes sold control of the company to a trustee in 1964. Northeast went on to merge with Delta Air Lines in 1972.
In 1970, Hughes acquired San Francisco-based Air West and renamed it Hughes Airwest. Air West had been formed in 1968 by the merger of Bonanza Air Lines, Pacific Air Lines, and West Coast Airlines, all of which operated in the western U.S. By the late 1970s, Hughes Airwest operated an all-jet fleet of Boeing 727-200, Douglas DC-9-10, and McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 jetliners serving an extensive route network in the western U.S. with flights to Mexico and western Canada as well. By 1980, the airline's route system reached as far east as Houston (Hobby Airport) and Milwaukee with a total of 42 destinations being served. Hughes Airwest was then acquired by and merged into Republic Airlines (1979–1986) in late 1980. Republic was subsequently acquired by and merged into Northwest Airlines which in turn was ultimately merged into Delta Air Lines in 2008.
Business with David Charnay
Hughes had made numerous business partnerships through industrialist and producer David Charnay. Their friendship and many partnerships began with the film The Conqueror, which was first released to the public in 1956. The film caused many controversies due to its critical flop and radioactive location used in St. George, Utah, that eventually led to Hughes buying up nearly every copy of the film he could, only to watch the film at home repeatedly for many nights in a row.
Charnay later bought Four Star, the film and television production company that produced The Conqueror.
Hughes and Charnay's most published dealings were with a contested AirWest leveraged buyout. Charnay led the buyout group that involved Howard Hughes and their partners acquiring Air West. Hughes, Charnay, as well as three others, were indicted. The indictment, made by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton, accused the group of conspiring to drive down the stock price of Air West in order to pressure company directors to sell to Hughes. The charges were dismissed after a judge had determined that the indictment had failed to allege an illegal action on the part of Hughes, Charnay, and all the other accused in the indictment. Thompson, the federal judge that made the decision to dismiss the charges called the indictment one of the worst claims that he had ever seen. The charges were filed again, a second time, by U.S. Attorney DeVoe Heaton's assistant, Dean Vernon. The Federal Judge ruled on November 13, 1974, and elaborated to say that the case suggested a "reprehensible misuse of the power of great wealth", but in his judicial opinion, "no crime had been committed." The aftermath of the Air West deal was later settled with the SEC by paying former stockholders for alleged losses from the sale of their investment in Air West stock. As noted above, Air West was subsequently renamed Hughes Airwest. During a long pause between the years of the dismissed charges against Hughes, Charnay, and their partners, Howard Hughes mysteriously died mid-flight while on the way to Houston from Acapulco. No further attempts were made to file any indictments after Hughes died.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
In 1953, Hughes launched the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Miami, Florida, (currently located in Chevy Chase, Maryland) with the expressed goal of basic biomedical research, including trying to understand, in Hughes's words, the "genesis of life itself", due to his lifelong interest in science and technology. Hughes's first will, which he signed in 1925 at the age of 19, stipulated that a portion of his estate should be used to create a medical institute bearing his name. When a major battle with the IRS loomed ahead, Hughes gave all his stock in the Hughes Aircraft Company to the institute, thereby turning the aerospace and defense contractor into a for-profit entity of a fully tax-exempt charity. Hughes's internist, Verne Mason, who treated Hughes after his 1946 aircraft crash, was chairman of the institute's medical advisory committee. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute's new board of trustees sold Hughes Aircraft in 1985 to General Motors for $5.2 billion, allowing the institute to grow dramatically.
In 1954, Hughes transferred Hughes Aircraft to the foundation, which paid Hughes Tool Co. $18,000,000 for the assets. The foundation leased the land from Hughes Tool Co., which then subleased it to Hughes Aircraft Corp. The difference in rent, $2,000,000 per year, became the foundation's working capital.
The deal was the topic of a protracted legal battle between Hughes and the Internal Revenue Service, which Hughes ultimately won. After his death in 1976, many thought that the balance of Hughes's estate would go to the institute, although it was ultimately divided among his cousins and other heirs, given the lack of a will to the contrary. The HHMI was the fourth largest private organization and one of the largest devoted to biological and medical research, with an endowment of $20.4 billion .
Glomar Explorer and the taking of K-129
In 1972, during the cold war era, Hughes was approached by the CIA through his longtime partner, David Charnay, to help secretly recover the Soviet submarine K-129, which had sunk near Hawaii four years earlier. Hughes's involvement provided the CIA with a plausible cover story, conducting expensive civilian marine research at extreme depths and the mining of undersea manganese nodules. The recovery plan used the special-purpose salvage vessel Glomar Explorer. In the summer of 1974, Glomar Explorer attempted to raise the Soviet vessel. However, during the recovery a mechanical failure in the ship's grapple caused half of the submarine to break off and fall to the ocean floor. This section is believed to have held many of the most sought-after items, including its code book and nuclear missiles. Two nuclear-tipped torpedoes and some cryptographic machines were recovered, along with the bodies of six Soviet submariners who were subsequently given formal burial at sea in a filmed ceremony. The operation, known as Project Azorian (but incorrectly referred to by the press as Project Jennifer), became public in February 1975 after secret documents were released, obtained by burglars of Hughes's headquarters in June 1974. Although he lent his name and his company's resources to the operation, Hughes and his companies had no operational involvement in the project. The Glomar Explorer was eventually acquired by Transocean and was sent to the scrap yard in 2015 during a large decline in oil prices.
Personal life
Early romances
In 1929, Hughes's wife of four years, Ella, returned to Houston and filed for divorce.
Hughes dated many famous women, including Joan Crawford, Billie Dove, Faith Domergue, Bette Davis, Yvonne De Carlo, Ava Gardner, Olivia de Havilland, Katharine Hepburn, Hedy Lamarr, Ginger Rogers, Janet Leigh, Pat Sheehan, Mamie Van Doren and Gene Tierney. He also proposed to Joan Fontaine several times, according to her autobiography No Bed of Roses. Jean Harlow accompanied him to the premiere of Hell's Angels, but Noah Dietrich wrote many years later that the relationship was strictly professional, as Hughes disliked Harlow personally. In his 1971 book, Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes, Dietrich said that Hughes genuinely liked and respected Jane Russell, but never sought romantic involvement with her. According to Russell's autobiography, however, Hughes once tried to bed her after a party. Russell (who was married at the time) refused him, and Hughes promised it would never happen again. The two maintained a professional and private friendship for many years. Hughes remained good friends with Tierney who, after his failed attempts to seduce her, was quoted as saying "I don't think Howard could love anything that did not have a motor in it". Later, when Tierney's daughter Daria was born deaf and blind and with a severe learning disability because of Tierney's exposure to rubella during her pregnancy, Hughes saw to it that Daria received the best medical care and paid all expenses.
Luxury yacht
In 1933, Hughes made a purchase of a luxury steam yacht named the Rover, which was previously owned by Scottish shipping magnate Lord Inchcape. "I have never seen the Rover but bought it on the blueprints, photographs and the reports of Lloyd's surveyors. My experience is that the English are the most honest race in the world." Hughes renamed the yacht Southern Cross and later sold her to Swedish entrepreneur Axel Wenner-Gren.
1936 automobile accident
On July 11, 1936, Hughes struck and killed a pedestrian named Gabriel S. Meyer with his car at the corner of 3rd Street and Lorraine in Los Angeles. After the crash, Hughes was taken to the hospital and certified as sober, but an attending doctor made a note that Hughes had been drinking. A witness to the crash told police that Hughes was driving erratically and too fast and that Meyer had been standing in the safety zone of a streetcar stop. Hughes was booked on suspicion of negligent homicide and held overnight in jail until his attorney, Neil S. McCarthy, obtained a writ of habeas corpus for his release pending a coroner's inquest. By the time of the coroner's inquiry, however, the witness had changed his story and claimed that Meyer had moved directly in front of Hughes's car. Nancy Bayly (Watts), who was in the car with Hughes at the time of the crash, corroborated this version of the story. On July 16, 1936, Hughes was held blameless by a coroner's jury at the inquest into Meyer's death. Hughes told reporters outside the inquiry, "I was driving slowly and a man stepped out of the darkness in front of me".
Marriage to Jean Peters
On January 12, 1957, Hughes married actress Jean Peters at a small hotel in Tonopah, Nevada. The couple met in the 1940s, before Peters became a film actress. They had a highly publicized romance in 1947 and there was talk of marriage, but she said she could not combine it with her career. Some later claimed that Peters was "the only woman [Hughes] ever loved", and he reportedly had his security officers follow her everywhere even when they were not in a relationship. Such reports were confirmed by actor Max Showalter, who became a close friend of Peters while shooting Niagara (1953). Showalter told an interviewer that because he frequently met with Peters, Hughes's men threatened to ruin his career if he did not leave her alone.
Connections to Richard Nixon and Watergate
Shortly before the 1960 Presidential election, Richard Nixon was alarmed when it was revealed that his brother, Donald, received a $205,000 loan from Hughes. It has long been speculated that Nixon's drive to learn what the Democrats were planning in 1972 was based in part on his belief that the Democrats knew about a later bribe that his friend Bebe Rebozo had received from Hughes after Nixon took office.
In late 1971, Donald Nixon was collecting intelligence for his brother in preparation for the upcoming presidential election. One of his sources was John H. Meier, a former business adviser of Hughes who had also worked with Democratic National Committee Chairman Larry O'Brien.
Meier, in collaboration with former Vice President Hubert Humphrey and others, wanted to feed misinformation to the Nixon campaign. Meier told Donald that he was sure the Democrats would win the election because Larry O'Brien had a great deal of information on Richard Nixon's illicit dealings with Howard Hughes that had never been released; O'Brien did not actually have any such information, but Meier wanted Nixon to think that he did. Donald told his brother that O'Brien was in possession of damaging Hughes information that could destroy his campaign. Terry Lenzner, who was the chief investigator for the Senate Watergate Committee, speculates that it was Nixon's desire to know what O'Brien knew about Nixon's dealings with Hughes that may have partially motivated the Watergate break-in.
Last years and death
Physical and mental decline
Hughes was widely considered eccentric and to have suffered with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
Dietrich wrote that Hughes always ate the same thing for dinner, a New York strip steak cooked medium rare, dinner salad, and peas, but only the smaller ones, pushing the larger ones aside. For breakfast, Hughes wanted his eggs cooked the way his family cook, Lily, made them. Hughes had a "phobia about germs", and "his passion for secrecy became a mania."
While directing The Outlaw, Hughes became fixated on a small flaw in one of Jane Russell's blouses, claiming that the fabric bunched up along a seam and gave the appearance of two nipples on each breast. He wrote a detailed memorandum to the crew on how to fix the problem. Richard Fleischer, who directed His Kind of Woman with Hughes as executive producer, wrote at length in his autobiography about the difficulty of dealing with the tycoon. In his book, Just Tell Me When to Cry, Fleischer explained that Hughes was fixated on trivial details and was alternately indecisive and obstinate. He also revealed that Hughes's unpredictable mood swings made him wonder if the film would ever be completed.
In 1958, Hughes told his aides that he wanted to screen some movies at a film studio near his home. He stayed in the studio's darkened screening room for more than four months, never leaving. He ate only chocolate bars and chicken and drank only milk, and was surrounded by dozens of Kleenex that he continuously stacked and re-arranged. He wrote detailed memos to his aides giving them explicit instructions neither to look at him nor speak to him unless spoken to. Throughout this period, Hughes sat fixated in his chair, often naked, continually watching movies. When he finally emerged in the summer of 1958, his hygiene was terrible. He had neither bathed nor cut his hair and nails for weeks; this may have been due to allodynia, which results in a pain response to stimuli that would normally not cause pain.
After the screening room incident, Hughes moved into a bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel where he also rented rooms for his aides, his wife, and numerous girlfriends. He would sit naked in his bedroom with a pink hotel napkin placed over his genitals, watching movies. This may have been because Hughes found the touch of clothing painful due to allodynia. He may have watched movies to distract himself from his pain—a common practice among patients with intractable pain, especially those who do not receive adequate treatment. In one year, Hughes spent an estimated $11 million at the hotel.
Hughes began purchasing restaurant chains and four-star hotels that had been founded within the state of Texas. This included, if for only a short period, many unknown franchises currently out of business. He placed ownership of the restaurants with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and all licenses were resold shortly after.
Another time, he became obsessed with the 1968 film Ice Station Zebra, and had it run on a continuous loop in his home. According to his aides, he watched it 150 times. Feeling guilty about the commercial, critical, and rumored toxicity of his film The Conqueror, he bought every copy of the film for $12 million, watching the film on repeat. Paramount Pictures acquired the rights of the film in 1979, three years after his death.
Hughes insisted on using tissues to pick up objects to insulate himself from germs. He would also notice dust, stains, or other imperfections on people's clothes and demand that they take care of them. Once one of the most visible men in America, Hughes ultimately vanished from public view, although tabloids continued to follow rumors of his behavior and whereabouts. He was reported to be terminally ill, mentally unstable, or even dead.
Injuries from numerous aircraft crashes caused Hughes to spend much of his later life in pain, and he eventually became addicted to codeine, which he injected intramuscularly. Hughes had his hair cut and nails trimmed only once a year, likely due to the pain caused by the RSD/CRPS, which was caused by the plane crashes. He also stored his urine in bottles.
Later years in Las Vegas
The wealthy and aging Hughes, accompanied by his entourage of personal aides, began moving from one hotel to another, always taking up residence in the top floor penthouse. In the last ten years of his life, 1966 to 1976, Hughes lived in hotels in many cities—including Beverly Hills, Boston, Las Vegas, Nassau, Freeport and Vancouver.
On November 24, 1966 (Thanksgiving Day), Hughes arrived in Las Vegas by railroad car and moved into the Desert Inn. Because he refused to leave the hotel and to avoid further conflicts with the owners, Hughes bought the Desert Inn in early 1967. The hotel's eighth floor became the nerve center of Hughes's empire and the ninth-floor penthouse became his personal residence. Between 1966 and 1968, he bought several other hotel-casinos, including the Castaways, New Frontier, the Landmark Hotel and Casino, and the Sands. He bought the small Silver Slipper casino for the sole purpose of moving its trademark neon silver slipper, which was visible from his bedroom, and had apparently kept him awake at night.
After Hughes left the Desert Inn, hotel employees discovered that his drapes had not been opened during the time he lived there and had rotted through.
Hughes wanted to change the image of Las Vegas to something more glamorous. He wrote in a memo to an aide, "I like to think of Las Vegas in terms of a well-dressed man in a dinner jacket and a beautifully jeweled and furred female getting out of an expensive car." Hughes bought several local television stations (including KLAS-TV).
Eventually the brain trauma from Hughes's previous accidents, the effects of neurosyphilis diagnosed in 1932 and (undiagnosed) Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder considerably affected his decision-making. A small panel, unofficially dubbed "The Mormon Mafia" because of the many Latter-day Saints on the committee, was led by Frank William Gay and originally served Hughes's "secret police" headquartered at 9000 Romaine. Over the next two decades, however, this group oversaw and controlled considerable business holdings, with the CIA anointing Gay while awarding a contract to the Hughes corporation to acquire sensitive information on a sunken Russian submarine. In addition to supervising day-to-day business operations and Hughes's health, they also went to great pains to satisfy Hughes's every whim. For example, Hughes once became fond of Baskin-Robbins' banana nut ice cream, so his aides sought to secure a bulk shipment for him, only to discover that Baskin-Robbins had discontinued the flavor. They put in a request for the smallest amount the company could provide for a special order, 350 gallons (1,300 L), and had it shipped from Los Angeles. A few days after the order arrived, Hughes announced he was tired of banana nut and wanted only French vanilla ice cream. The Desert Inn ended up distributing free banana nut ice cream to casino customers for a year. In a 1996 interview, ex–Howard Hughes Chief of Nevada Operations Robert Maheu said, "There is a rumor that there is still some banana nut ice cream left in the freezer. It is most likely true."
As an owner of several major Las Vegas businesses, Hughes wielded much political and economic influence in Nevada and elsewhere. During the 1960s and early 1970s, he disapproved of underground nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site. Hughes was concerned about the risk from residual nuclear radiation and attempted to halt the tests. When the tests finally went through despite Hughes's efforts, the detonations were powerful enough that the entire hotel in which he was living trembled from the shock waves. In two separate, last-ditch maneuvers, Hughes instructed his representatives to offer bribes of $1m to both Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon.
In 1970, Jean Peters filed for divorce. The two had not lived together for many years. Peters requested a lifetime alimony payment of $70,000 a year, adjusted for inflation, and waived all claims to Hughes's estate. Hughes offered her a settlement of over a million dollars, but she declined it. Hughes did not insist on a confidentiality agreement from Peters as a condition of the divorce. Aides reported that Hughes never spoke ill of her. She refused to discuss her life with Hughes and declined several lucrative offers from publishers and biographers. Peters would state only that she had not seen Hughes for several years before their divorce and had dealt with him only by phone.
Hughes was living in the Intercontinental Hotel near Lake Managua in Nicaragua, seeking privacy and security, when a magnitude 6.5 earthquake damaged Managua in December 1972. As a precaution, Hughes moved to a rather large tent facing the hotel; after a few days, he moved to the Nicaraguan National Palace and stayed there as a guest of Anastasio Somoza Debayle before leaving for Florida on a private jet the following day. He subsequently moved into the Penthouse at the Xanadu Princess Resort on Grand Bahama Island, which he had recently purchased. He lived almost exclusively in the penthouse of the Xanadu Beach Resort & Marina for the last four years of his life.
Hughes spent a total of $300 million on his many properties in Las Vegas.
Autobiography hoax
In 1972, author Clifford Irving caused a media sensation when he claimed he had co-written an authorized Hughes autobiography. Irving claimed he and Hughes had corresponded through the United States mail, and offered as proof handwritten notes allegedly sent by Hughes. Publisher McGraw-Hill, Inc. was duped into believing the manuscript was authentic. Hughes was so reclusive that he did not immediately publicly refute Irving's statement, leading many to believe that Irving's book was genuine. However, before the book's publication, Hughes finally denounced Irving in a teleconference attended by reporters Hughes knew personally: James Bacon of the Hearst papers, Marin Miles of the Los Angeles Times, Vernon Scott of UPI, Roy Neal of NBC News, Gene Handsaker of AP, Wayne Thomas of the Chicago Tribune, and Gladwin Hill of the New York Times.
The entire hoax finally unraveled. The United States Postal Inspection Service got a subpoena to force Irving to turn over samples of his handwriting. The USPS investigation led to Irving's indictment and subsequent conviction for using the postal service to commit fraud. He was incarcerated for 17 months. In 1974, the Orson Welles film F for Fake included a section on the Hughes autobiography hoax, leaving a question open as to whether it was actually Hughes who took part in the teleconference (since so few people had actually heard or seen him in recent years). In 1977, The Hoax by Clifford Irving was published in the United Kingdom, telling his story of these events. The 2006 film The Hoax, starring Richard Gere, is also based on these events.
Death
Hughes is reported to have died on April 5, 1976, at 1:27 p.m. on board an aircraft, Learjet 24B N855W, owned by Robert Graf and piloted by Jeff Abrams. He was en route from his penthouse at the Acapulco Princess Hotel (now the Fairmont Acapulco Princess) in Mexico to the Methodist Hospital in Houston.
His reclusiveness and possibly his drug use made him practically unrecognizable. His hair, beard, fingernails, and toenails were long—his tall frame now weighed barely , and the FBI had to use fingerprints to conclusively identify the body. Howard Hughes's alias, John T. Conover, was used when his body arrived at a morgue in Houston on the day of his death.
An autopsy recorded kidney failure as the cause of death. In an eighteen-month study investigating Hughes' drug abuse for the estate, it was found "someone administered a deadly injection of the painkiller to this comatose man... obviously needlessly and almost certainly fatal". He suffered from malnutrition and was covered in bedsores. While his kidneys were damaged, his other internal organs, including his brain, which had no visible damage or illnesses, were deemed perfectly healthy. X-rays revealed five broken-off hypodermic needles in the flesh of his arms. To inject codeine into his muscles, Hughes had used glass syringes with metal needles that easily became detached.
Hughes is buried next to his parents at Glenwood Cemetery in Houston.
Alleged survival
Following his death, Hughes was subject to several widely rebuked conspiracy theories that he had faked his own death. A notable allegation came from retired Major General Mark Musick, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, who claimed Hughes went on to live under an assumed identity, dying on November 15, 2001, in Troy, Alabama.
Estate
Approximately three weeks after Hughes's death, a handwritten will was found on the desk of an official of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah. The so-called "Mormon Will" gave $1.56 billion to various charitable organizations (including $625 million to the Howard Hughes Medical Institute), nearly $470 million to the upper management in Hughes's companies and to his aides, $156 million to first cousin William Lummis, and $156 million split equally between his two ex-wives Ella Rice and Jean Peters.
A further $156 million was endowed to a gas-station owner, Melvin Dummar, who told reporters that in 1967, he found a disheveled and dirty man lying along U.S. Route 95, just north of Las Vegas. The man asked for a ride to Vegas. Dropping him off at the Sands Hotel, Dummar said the man told him that he was Hughes. Dummar later claimed that days after Hughes's death a "mysterious man" appeared at his gas station, leaving an envelope containing the will on his desk. Unsure if the will was genuine and unsure of what to do, Dummar left the will at the LDS Church office. In 1978, a Nevada court ruled the Mormon Will a forgery and officially declared that Hughes had died intestate (without a valid will). Dummar's story was later adapted into Jonathan Demme's film Melvin and Howard in 1980.
Hughes's $2.5 billion estate was eventually split in 1983 among 22 cousins, including William Lummis, who serves as a trustee of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The Supreme Court of the United States ruled that Hughes Aircraft was owned by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, which sold it to General Motors in 1985 for $5.2 billion. The court rejected suits by the states of California and Texas that claimed they were owed inheritance tax.
In 1984, Hughes's estate paid an undisclosed amount to Terry Moore, who claimed she and Hughes had secretly married on a yacht in international waters off Mexico in 1949 and never divorced. Moore never produced proof of a marriage, but her book, The Beauty and the Billionaire, became a bestseller.
Awards
Harmon Trophy (1936 and 1938)
Collier Trophy (1938)
Congressional Gold Medal (1939)
Octave Chanute Award (1940)
National Aviation Hall of Fame (1973)
International Air & Space Hall of Fame (1987)
Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (2018)
Archive
The moving image collection of Howard Hughes is held at the Academy Film Archive. The collection consists of over 200 items including 35mm and 16mm elements of feature films, documentaries, and television programs made or accumulated by Hughes.
Filmography
In popular culture
Film
In The Carpetbaggers (1964), the main character Jonas Cord (played by George Peppard) is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever (1971) features a tall, Texan, reclusive billionaire character named Willard Whyte (played by Jimmy Dean) who operates his business empire from the penthouse of a Las Vegas hotel. Although he appears only late in the film, his habitual seclusion and his control of a major aerospace contracting firm are key elements of the movie's plot. Several sequences were actually filmed on location at The Landmark Hotel and Casino, which was owned by Hughes at the time.
The Amazing Howard Hughes is a 1977 American made-for-television biographical film which aired as a mini-series on the CBS network, made a year after Hughes's death and based on Noah Dietrich's book Howard: The Amazing Mr. Hughes. Tommy Lee Jones plays Hughes.
Melvin and Howard (1980), directed by Jonathan Demme and starring Jason Robards as Howard Hughes and Paul Le Mat as Melvin Dummar. The film won Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay (Bo Goldman) and Best Supporting Actress (Mary Steenburgen). The film focuses on Melvin Dummar's claims of meeting Hughes in the Nevada desert and subsequent estate battles over his inclusion in Hughes's will. Critic Pauline Kael called the film "an almost flawless act of sympathetic imagination".
In Tucker: The Man and His Dream, (1988), Hughes (played by Dean Stockwell) figures in the plot by telling Preston Tucker to source steel and engines for Tucker's automobiles from a helicopter manufacturer in New York. Scene occurs in a hangar with the Hercules.
In The Rocketeer, a 1991 American period superhero film from Walt Disney Pictures, the title character attracts the attention of Howard Hughes (played by Terry O'Quinn) and the FBI, who are hunting for a missing jet pack, as well as Nazi operatives.
"Howard Hughes Documentary", broadcast in 1992 as an episode of the Time Machine documentary series, was introduced by Peter Graves, later released by A&E Home Video.
In Conspiracy Theory (1997), the character Jerry Fletcher (played by Mel Gibson) mentions one of his theories to a street vendor by saying, "Did you know that the whole Vietnam War was fought over a bet that Howard Hughes lost to Aristotle Onassis?" referring to his (Fletcher's) thoughts on the politics of that conflict.
In The Aviator (2004), directed by Martin Scorsese, Hughes is portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio. The film focuses on Hughes's personal life from the making of Hell's Angels through his successful flight of the Hercules or Spruce Goose. Critically acclaimed, it was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, winning five for Best Cinematography; Best Film Editing; Best Costume Design; Best Art Direction; and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Cate Blanchett.
Howard Hughes: The Real Aviator documentary was broadcast in 2004 and went on to win the Grand Festival Award for Best Documentary at the 2004 Berkeley Video & Film Festival.
In the 2005 animated film Robots, the character Mr Bigweld (voiced by Mel Brooks), a reclusive inventor and owner of Bigweld Industries, is loosely based on Howard Hughes.
The American Aviator: The Howard Hughes Story was broadcast in 2006 on the Biography Channel. It was later released to home media as a DVD with a copy of the full-length film The Outlaw starring Jane Russell.
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), as a plot-related prequel to Iron Man 2 (2010), in which Howard Stark (played by Dominic Cooper), father of Tony Stark (Iron Man), showed his inventions of future technology, clearly embodying Hughes's persona and enthusiasm. His subsequent appearances in the TV series Marvel's Agent Carter further this persona, as well as depicting him as sharing the real Hughes's reputation as a womanizer. Stan Lee has noted that Tony, who shared several of these traits himself, was based on Hughes.
Rules Don't Apply (2016), written and directed by Warren Beatty, features Beatty as Hughes from 1958 through 1964.
In the Dark Knight Trilogy, director Christopher Nolan's characterisation of Bruce Wayne is heavily inspired by Hughes's perceived lifestyle – from a playboy in Batman Begins to a recluse in The Dark Knight Rises. Nolan is reported to have integrated his original material intended for a shelved Hughes biopic into the trilogy.
Games
The character of Andrew Ryan in the 2007 video game BioShock is loosely based on Hughes. Ryan is a billionaire industrialist in post-World War II America who, seeking to avoid governments, religions, and other "parasitic" influences, ordered the secret construction of an underwater city, Rapture. Years later, when Ryan's vision for Rapture falls into dystopia, he hides himself away and uses armies of mutated humans, "Splicers", to defend himself and fight against those trying to take over his city, including the player-character.
In L.A. Noire, Hughes makes an appearance presenting his Hercules H-4 aircraft in the game opening scene. The H-4 is later a central plot piece of DLC Arson Case, "Nicholson Electroplating".
In Fallout: New Vegas, the character of Robert Edwin House, a wealthy business magnate and entrepreneur who owns the New Vegas strip, is based on Howard Hughes and closely resembles him in appearance, personality and background. A portrait of Mr. House can also be found in the game which strongly resembles a portrait of Howard Hughes standing in front of a Boeing Army Pursuit Plane.
Literature
Stan Lee repeatedly stated he created the Marvel Comics character Iron Man's civilian persona, Tony Stark, drawing inspiration from Howard Hughes's colorful lifestyle and personality. Additionally, the first name of Stark's father is Howard.
Hughes is a supporting character in all three parts of James Ellroy's Underworld USA Trilogy, employing several of the protagonists as private investigators, bagmen, and consultants in his attempt to assume control of Las Vegas. Referred to behind his back as "Count Dracula" (due to his reclusiveness and rumored obsession with blood transfusions from Mormon donors), Hughes is portrayed as a spoiled, racist, opioid-addicted megalomaniac whose grandiose plans for Las Vegas are undermined by the manipulations of the Chicago Outfit.
In the 1981 novel Dream Park by Larry Niven and Steven Barnes, the weapon "which might have defeated the Japs if it hadn't come so late" is revealed to be the Spruce Goose, which had been magically hijacked on its test flight by evil Foré sorcerers in New Guinea. Hughes's skeleton is found at the controls, identified by Hughes's trademark fedora and cloth-and-leather jacket.
Music
The 1974 song "Workin' at the Car Wash Blues" by Jim Croce compares the main protagonist of the song to Howard Hughes in one of the lyrics.
The 1974 song "The Wall Street Shuffle" by English rock band 10cc directly references Hughes and his ways of life in the last verse.
The song "Me and Howard Hughes" by Irish band The Boomtown Rats on their 1978 album A Tonic for the Troops is about the title subject.
The song "Closet Chronicles" by American rock band Kansas on their 1977 album Point of Know Return is a Howard Hughes allegory.
The song "Ain't No Fun (Waiting 'Round To Be a Millionaire)" by AC/DC on their 1976 album "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" singer Bon Scott referenced Howard Hughes toward the end of the song: "Hey, hello Howard, how you doin', my next door neighbour? Oh, yea... Get your fuckin' jumbo jet off my airport"
Hughes's name is mentioned in the title and the lyrics of the 2002 song "Bargain Basement Howard Hughes" by Jerry Cantrell.
The 2012 song "Nancy From Now On" by American songwriter Father John Misty likens Hughes's destructive and erratic tendencies to the singer's own.
Television
In The Greatest American Hero Season 2 episode 3, "Don't Mess Around with Jim," Ralph and Bill are kidnapped by a reclusive tycoon, owner of Beck Air airplane company, who fakes his own death, and seems to know more about the suit than they do. He then blackmails them into retrieving his will to prevent it from being misused by the president of his company.
In The Simpsons Season 5 episode "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)", Mr. Burns resembles Hughes in his recluse state. Various nods to his life appear in the episode, ranging from casino ownership and penthouse office to the "Spruce Goose" being renamed "Spruce Moose" as well as a lack of hygiene and being a germaphobe.
In The Beverly Hillbillies episode, "The Clampett-Hewes Empire", Jed Clampett, while in Hooterville, decides to merge his interests with a man Mr. Drysdale believes is Howard Hughes, the famous reclusive billionaire. Eventually it turns out, to Mr. Drysdale's chagrin, "Howard Hughes" is no billionaire; he is nothing but a plain old farmer named "Howard Hewes" (H-E-W-E-S).
In the Invader Zim episode, "Germs," the alien Zim becomes paranoid after discovering that Earth is covered in germs. Referencing Howard Hughes, he isolates himself in his home and dons tissue boxes on his feet.
In the Superjail! episode "The Superjail! Six", The Warden repeatedly watches a film called Ice Station Jailpup which parodies Hughes's obsession with the film Ice Station Zebra
See also
Analgesic nephropathy
List of richest Americans in history
List of wealthiest historical figures
List of aviation pioneers
List of entrepreneurs
Phenacetin
References
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
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Moore, Terry and Jerry Rivers. The Passions of Howard Hughes. Los Angeles: General Publishing Group, 1996. .
Parker, Dana T. Building Victory: Aircraft Manufacturing in the Los Angeles Area in World War II, Cypress, California: Dana T. Parker Books, 2013. .
Phelan, James. Howard Hughes: The Hidden Years. New York, Random House, 1976. .
Real, Jack. The Asylum of Howard Hughes. Philadelphia: Xlibris Corporation, 2003. .
Thomas, Bob. Liberace: The True Story. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1987. .
Tierney, Gene with Mickey Herskowitz. Self-Portrait. New York: Peter Wyden, 1979. lSBN 0-883261-52-9.
Weaver, Tom. Science Fiction and Fantasy Film Flashbacks: Conversations with 24 Actors, Writers, Producers and Directors from the Golden Age. New York: McFarland & Company, 2004. .
External links
AZORIAN The Raising of the K-129 / 2009 – 2 Part TV Documentary / Michael White Films Vienna
Welcome Home Howard: Collection of photographs kept by UNLV
A history of the remarkable achievements of Howard Hughes
FBI file on Howard Hughes
Exclutive Biography of Howard R. Hughes Jr.
Biography in the National Aviation Hall of Fame
1905 births
1976 deaths
20th-century American businesspeople
20th-century American engineers
20th-century aviation
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Amateur radio people
American aerospace businesspeople
American aerospace designers
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Film directors from Los Angeles
Watergate scandal | false | [
"Break the Records: By You & For You (stylized as Break the Records -by you & for you-) is the fourth studio album by Japanese boy band KAT-TUN and was released in Japan on April 29, 2009 by J-One Records. The album was released in two editions: a limited edition version with a 36-page photo booklet included and a regular edition which features the bonus track, \"Moon\".\n\nIt was the last album to feature Jin Akanishi.\n\nContent\nFourth album release from KAT-TUN including the songs \"Don't U Ever Stop,\" \"White X'mas (album version),\" \"One Drop,\" \"Rescue,\" and more for 15 songs total. Regular edition includes one bonus track \"Moon\". Limited Edition includes special booklet. Features alternate jacket artwork. Adam Greenburg on Allmusic gave the album three out of five stars, stating that \"this [album] probably isn't the best KAT-TUN album by any measure, but it shows a lot of incremental gains in ability and composition over previous efforts. The rawest energy and emotion captured by the band in some other releases may not always be present, but on Break the Records KAT-TUN nevertheless take a lot of steps in the right direction toward being a more mature band.\"\n\nTrack listing\n\nChart positions\nRIAJ certified Break the Records: By You & For You platinum denoting more than 250,000 shipments by September 2009.\n\nCertifications\n\nReferences\n\nKAT-TUN albums\n2009 albums",
"Donna Cruz Sings Her Greatest Hits is the second compilation album by the Filipino singer Donna Cruz, released in the Philippines in 2001 by Viva Records. The album was Cruz's first album not to receive a PARI certification; all of her studio albums and a previous compilation album, The Best of Donna, were certified either gold or platinum. Though it was labeled as a greatest hits compilation, several songs on the track listing had not been released as singles, and some of Cruz's singles did not appear on the album.\n\nBackground\nReleased during Cruz's break from the entertainment industry, Donna Cruz Sings Her Greatest Hits did not include any newly recorded material. Cruz's version of \"Jubilee Song\", which was not found on any of Cruz's albums (as she never recorded studio albums after Hulog Ng Langit in 1999) was included. It was seen as an updated version of Cruz's greatest hits as it included her latest singles \"Hulog ng Langit\" and \"Ikaw Pala 'Yon\".\n\nTrack listing\n\nReferences\n\n2001 compilation albums\nViva Records (Philippines) compilation albums\nDonna Cruz albums"
]
|
[
"Bill Veeck",
"Milwaukee Brewers"
]
| C_45e84fb34aab425fba958a342fb8574f_1 | When was Bill in Milwaukee | 1 | When was Bill Veeck in Milwaukee? | Bill Veeck | In 1942, Veeck left Chicago and, in partnership with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit. According to his autobiography Veeck - As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult for left-handed pull hitters of the opposing team. The screen was on wheels, so any given day it might be in place or not, depending on the batting strength of the opposing team. There was no rule against that activity as such, but Veeck then took it to an extreme, rolling it out when the opponents batted, and pulling it back when the Brewers batted. Veeck reported that the league passed a rule against it the very next day. However, extensive research by two members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) suggests that this story was made up by Veeck. The two researchers could not find any references to a moveable fence or any reference to the gear required for a moveable fence to work. While a half-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray. CANNOTANSWER | In 1942, Veeck left Chicago and, in partnership with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. | William Louis Veeck Jr. (; February 9, 1914 – January 2, 1986), also known as "Sport Shirt Bill", was an American Major League Baseball franchise owner and promoter. Veeck was at various times the owner of the Cleveland Indians, St. Louis Browns and Chicago White Sox. As owner and team president of the Indians in 1947, Veeck signed Larry Doby, thus beginning the integration of the American League, and the following year won a World Series title as Cleveland's owner/president.
Veeck was the last owner to purchase a baseball franchise without an independent fortune, and is responsible for many innovations and contributions to baseball.
Unable to compete in the new era of salary escalation ignited by arbitration and free agency, Veeck sold his ownership interests after the 1980 Chicago White Sox season. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991.
Early life
Bill Veeck was born on February 9, 1914, in Chicago, Illinois. While Veeck was growing up in Hinsdale, Illinois, his father, William Veeck Sr., became president of the Chicago Cubs. Veeck Sr. was a local sports writer who wrote numerous columns about how he would run the Cubs differently, and the team's owner, William Wrigley Jr., took him up on the implied offer. While growing up, the younger Veeck worked as a popcorn vendor for the Cubs and also as a part-time concession salesman for the crosstown Chicago White Sox. Later, in 1937, he came up with the idea of planting ivy on the walls of Wrigley Field. Veeck attended Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. In 1933, when his father died, Veeck left Kenyon College and eventually became club treasurer for the Cubs. In 1935, he married his first wife, Eleanor.
Franchise owner
Minor League Baseball
Milwaukee Brewers
In 1940, Veeck left Chicago and, in a syndicate with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit.
According to his autobiography Veeck – As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult for left-handed pull hitters of the opposing team. The screen was on wheels, so any given day it might be in place or not, depending on the batting strength of the opposing team. There was no rule against that activity as such, but Veeck then took it to an extreme, rolling it out when the opponents batted, and pulling it back when the Brewers batted. Veeck reported that the league passed a rule against it the very next day. However, extensive research by two members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) suggests that this story was made up by Veeck. The two researchers could not find any references to a moveable fence or any reference to the gear required for a moveable fence to work.
While a co-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his right leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray.
Major League Baseball
Attempted purchase of Philadelphia Phillies
Veeck had been a fan of the Negro leagues since his early teens. He had also admired Abe Saperstein's Harlem Globetrotters basketball team, which was based in Chicago. Saperstein saved Veeck from financial disaster early on in Milwaukee by giving him the right to promote the Globetrotters in the upper Midwest in the winter of 1941–42.
In the fall of 1942, Veeck met with Gerry Nugent, president of the Philadelphia Phillies, to discuss the possibility of buying the struggling National League team. He later wrote in his memoirs that he intended to buy the Phillies and stock the team's roster with stars from the Negro leagues. Although no formal rules barred African-American players from the majors, none had appeared in organized baseball since the 1890s.
Veeck quickly secured financing to buy the Phillies, and agreed in principle to buy the team from Nugent. While on his way to Philadelphia to close on the purchase, Veeck decided to alert MLB Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis of his intentions.
Although Veeck knew Landis was an ardent segregationist, he did not believe Landis would dare say black players were unwelcome while blacks were fighting in World War II. However, when Veeck arrived in Philadelphia, he was surprised to discover that the National League had taken over the Phillies and was seeking a new owner (the Phillies were ultimately sold to lumber baron William D. Cox).
The authors of a controversial article in the 1998 issue of SABR's The National Pastime argued that Veeck invented the story of buying the Phillies and filling their roster with Negro leaguers, claiming Philadelphia's black press made no mention of a prospective sale to Veeck.
Subsequently, the article was criticized by historian Jules Tygiel, who reviewed it point-by-point in an article in the 2006 issue of SABR's The Baseball Research Journal, and in an appendix, entitled "Did Bill Veeck Lie About His Plan to Purchase the '43 Phillies?", published in Paul Dickson's biography, Bill Veeck: Baseball's Greatest Maverick. In the SABR article, Tygiel explained that Veeck and others had mentioned the alleged scheme to buy and stock the Phillies up to fifteen years before the publication of Veeck's memoir, but conceded that, "In all of these accounts the only voice telling the story remains Veeck's." The Tygiel article also conceded, "The overall assessment of Jordan, et al. - that Veeck's notion of buying the Phillies and fielding a team of Negro League stars never quite moved as far from the drawing board as Veeck claimed - may still be true. We still lack any solid evidence that confirms that Veeck had not only conceptualized this action, but made a firm offer to buy the Phillies and met a rebuff by Landis and Frick."
Joseph Thomas Moore wrote in his biography of Larry Doby, "Bill Veeck planned to buy the Philadelphia Phillies with the as yet unannounced intention of breaking that color line."
Cleveland Indians
In 1946, having sold his interest in the Class AAA Milwaukee Brewers, Veeck became the owner of a major league team, the Cleveland Indians. He immediately put all the team's games on radio (previously, only limited games had been broadcast). He also moved the team to Cleveland Municipal Stadium permanently in 1947. The team had split their games between the larger Municipal Stadium and the smaller League Park since the 1930s, but Veeck concluded that League Park was far too small and deteriorated to be viable.
In July of that year, he signed Larry Doby, the first black player to play in the American League. Doby's first game was on July 5 and before the game, Doby was introduced to his teammates by player-manager Lou Boudreau. "One by one, Lou introduced me to each player. 'This is Joe Gordon,' and Gordon put his hand out. 'This is Bob Lemon,' and Lemon put his hand out. 'This is Jim Hegan,' and Hegan put his hand out. All the guys put their hand out, all but three. As soon as he could, Bill Veeck got rid of those three", Doby said. The following year Veeck signed Satchel Paige to a contract, making the hurler the oldest rookie in major league history.
To take advantage of the large size of Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Veeck had a portable center field fence installed in 1947, which he could move in or out depending on how the distance favored the Indians against their opponents in a given series. The fence moved as much as between series opponents. Following the 1947 season, the American League countered with a rule change that fixed the distance of an outfield wall for the duration of a season.
As in Milwaukee, Veeck took a unique approach to promotions, hiring Max Patkin, the "Clown Prince of Baseball", as a coach. Patkin's appearance in the coaching box delighted fans and infuriated the front office of the American League.
Although Veeck had become extremely popular, an attempt in 1947 to trade Boudreau to the St. Louis Browns led to mass protests and petitions supporting Boudreau. Veeck, in response, said he would listen to the fans, and re-signed Boudreau to a new two-year contract. Veeck claimed later that the trade talks had already broken down before they became public, but he seized the opportunity to promote the concept he had dropped the idea of the trade in response to public outcry.
By 1948, led by Boudreau's .355 batting average, Cleveland won its first pennant and World Series since 1920. Famously, the following season Veeck buried the 1948 flag, once it became mathematically certain the team could not repeat its championship in 1949. Later that year, Veeck's first wife, Eleanor, filed for divorce. Most of his money was tied up in the Indians, so he was forced to sell the team to fund the divorce settlement. One year later, Veeck married his second wife Mary Frances Ackerman in 1950. He had met her the previous year while in Cleveland.
St. Louis Browns
After marrying Mary Frances Ackerman, Veeck bought an 80% stake in the St. Louis Browns in 1951. Hoping to force the NL's St. Louis Cardinals out of town, Veeck hired Cardinal greats Rogers Hornsby and Marty Marion as managers, and Dizzy Dean as an announcer; and he decorated their shared home park, Sportsman's Park, exclusively with Browns memorabilia. Ironically the Cardinals had been the Browns' tenants since 1920, even though they had long since passed the Browns as St. Louis' favorite team.
Some of Veeck's most memorable publicity stunts occurred during his tenure with the Browns, including the appearance on August 19, 1951, by Eddie Gaedel, who stood tall and is the shortest person to appear in a Major League Baseball game. Veeck sent Gaedel to pinch hit in the bottom of the first of the game. Wearing "1/8" as his uniform number, Gaedel was walked on four straight pitches and then was pulled for a pinch runner.
Shortly afterwards "Grandstand Manager's Day" – involving Veeck, Connie Mack, and thousands of regular fans, enabled the crowd to vote on various in-game strategic decisions by holding up placards: the Browns won, 5–3, snapping a four-game losing streak.
After the 1952 season, Veeck suggested that the American League clubs share radio and television revenue with visiting clubs, a proposal anathema to the powerful Yankees, whose broadcasting revenues dwarfed all the other AL franchises.
Outvoted, he refused to allow the Browns' opponents to broadcast games played against his team on the road. The league responded by eliminating the lucrative Friday night games in St. Louis.
A year later, Cardinals owner Fred Saigh was convicted of tax evasion. Facing certain banishment from baseball, he was forced to put the Cardinals up for sale. At first, the only credible offers came from out-of-town interests, and it appeared that Veeck would succeed in driving the Cardinals out of town.
However, just as Saigh was about to sell the Cardinals to interests who would have moved them to Houston, Texas, he instead accepted a much lower bid from St. Louis-based brewing giant Anheuser-Busch, who entered the picture with the specific intent of keeping the Cardinals in town. It has long been claimed that Saigh was persuaded to accept Anheuser-Busch's bid more out of civic duty than money. However, according to Anheuser-Busch historian William Knoedelseder, Saigh's first preference all along was to sell the Cardinals to interests who would keep the team in St. Louis.
What is beyond dispute is that as soon as Anheuser-Busch closed on its purchase of the Cardinals, Veeck knew he was finished in St. Louis. He quickly realized that with Anheuser-Busch's wealth behind them, the Cardinals now had more financial resources than he could even begin to match, especially since he had no other source of income. Reluctantly, he decided to move the Browns elsewhere. As a preliminary step, he sold Sportsman's Park to the Cardinals.
At first Veeck considered moving the Browns back to Milwaukee (where they had played their inaugural season in 1901). Milwaukee used recently built Milwaukee County Stadium in an attempt to entice the Browns.
However, the decision was in the hands of the Boston Braves, the parent team of the Brewers. Under major league rules of the time, the Braves held the major league rights to Milwaukee. The Braves wanted another team with the same talent if the Brewers were shut down, and an agreement was not made in time for the start of the 1953 season. Ironically, a few weeks later, the Braves themselves moved to Milwaukee. St. Louis was known to want the team to stay, so some in St. Louis campaigned for the removal of Veeck.
Undaunted, Veeck got in touch with a group that was looking to bring a Major League franchise to Baltimore, Maryland. After the 1953 season, Veeck agreed in principle to sell half his stock to Baltimore attorney Clarence Miles, the front man of the Baltimore group, and his other partners. He would have remained the principal owner, with approximately a 40% interest. Even though league president Will Harridge told him approval was certain, only four owners—two short of the necessary six for passage—supported it. Realizing the other owners simply wanted him out of the picture (indeed, he was facing threats of having his franchise canceled), Veeck agreed to sell his entire stake to Miles' group, who then moved the Browns to Baltimore, where they were renamed as the Orioles, which has been their name ever since.
Chicago White Sox
Taking advantage of inter-familial friction within the Comiskey family, in 1959, Veeck became head of a group that purchased a controlling interest in the Chicago White Sox. Following Veeck's acquisition of the team, the White Sox went on to win their first pennant in 40 years. That year the White Sox broke a team attendance record for home games with 1.4 million. The next year the team broke the same record with 1.6 million visitors to Comiskey Park with the addition of the first "exploding scoreboard" in the major leagues – producing electrical and sound effects, and shooting fireworks whenever the White Sox hit a home run. The "exploding scoreboard" was carried over to the "new" Comiskey Park (now Guaranteed Rate Field) when it opened in 1991.
One year later in 1960, Veeck and former Detroit Tigers great Hank Greenberg, his partner with the Indians and White Sox, reportedly made a strong bid for the American League expansion franchise in Los Angeles. Greenberg would have been the principal owner, with Veeck as a minority partner. However Los Angeles Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley was not willing to compete with a team owned by Veeck, even if he would only be a minority partner. When O'Malley heard of the deal, he invoked his exclusive franchise rights for Southern California. Any potential owner of an American League team in the area would have had to have O'Malley's approval, and it was apparent that O'Malley would not allow any team to set up shop with Veeck as a major shareholder. Rather than try to persuade his friend to back out, Greenberg abandoned his bid for what became the Los Angeles Angels.
In 1961, due to poor health, Veeck sold his share of the White Sox to John and Arthur Allyn for $2.5 million. After selling the White Sox, Veeck worked intermittently as a television commentator for ABC. Veeck then moved to the Eastern Shore of Maryland with his family to convalesce.
When his health improved, Veeck made an unsuccessful attempt to buy the Washington Senators, then operated the Suffolk Downs race track in Boston in 1969–70. Veeck was not heard from again in baseball ownership circles until 1975, when he repurchased the White Sox from John Allyn (sole owner since 1969). Veeck's return rankled baseball's establishment, most owners viewing him as a pariah after exposing industry politics and maneuvering in his 1961 book Veeck As In Wreck. The owners were also unhappy with Veeck's extensive unfavorable discussion of the 1964 purchase of the New York Yankees by CBS in 1965's The Hustler's Handbook (a move Veeck felt exposed MLB to dangerous antitrust liabilities and endangered the antitrust exemption established in a 1922 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court).
However, he was the only potential buyer willing to keep the White Sox in Chicago after an offer was made to buy the team and move it to Seattle, Washington. After an initial vote by AL owners rejected his White Sox bid, Veeck discussed a possible lawsuit; another vote was taken and Veeck was approved by one vote.
Almost immediately after reassuming control of the Sox, Veeck unleashed another publicity stunt. He and general manager Roland Hemond conducted four trades in a hotel lobby, in full view of the public; other owners considered this undignified. Two weeks later, however, arbitrator Peter Seitz's ruling struck down the reserve clause and ushered in the era of free agency, leading to dramatic increases in player salaries. Ironically Veeck had been the only baseball owner to testify in support of Curt Flood during his landmark court case, at which Flood had attempted to gain free agency after being traded to the Philadelphia Phillies. Veeck had proposed a gradual transition to a free-agent system in which players would gain free agency rights after a certain amount of service time. The owners gambled that Seitz would rule in their favor and maintain the reserve clause; he did not.
On the field, Veeck presented a Bicentennial-themed "Spirit of '76" parade on Opening Day in 1976, casting himself as the peg-legged fifer bringing up the rear. In the same year he reactivated Minnie Miñoso for eight at-bats, in order to give Miñoso a claim towards playing in four decades; he did so again in 1980, to expand the claim to five. He also unveiled radically altered uniforms for the players, including clamdigger pants and even shorts, which the Sox wore for the first time against the Kansas City Royals on August 8, 1976.
In an attempt to adapt to free agency he developed a "rent-a-player" model, centering on the acquisition of other clubs' stars in their option years. The gambit was moderately successful: in 1977 the White Sox won 90 games, and finished in third place with additions like Oscar Gamble and Richie Zisk.
During this last run, Veeck decided to have announcer Harry Caray sing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the seventh-inning stretch. Veeck asked Caray to sing for the entire park, but he refused. Veeck replied that he already had a recording, so Caray would be heard either way. Caray reluctantly agreed to sing it live, accompanied by White Sox organist Nancy Faust, and went on to become famous for singing the tune, continuing to do so at Wrigley Field after becoming the broadcaster of the Chicago Cubs.
The 1979 season was filled with more promotions. On April 10 he offered fans free admission the day after a 10–2 Opening Day defeat by the Toronto Blue Jays. On July 12, Veeck, with assistance from son Mike and radio personality Steve Dahl, held one of his most infamous promotions, Disco Demolition Night, between games of a scheduled doubleheader, which resulted in a riot at Comiskey Park and a forfeit to the visiting Detroit Tigers.
Life after baseball
Finding himself no longer able to financially compete in the free agent era, Veeck sold the White Sox in January 1981. Following the sale, new White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf made several negative references to Veeck's tenure with the team; in response, Veeck publicly transferred his allegiance back to the Chicago Cubs, the team his father had operated in his youth. Veeck retired to his home in Chicago but in summer could often be found in the Wrigley Field bleachers.
Veeck also wrote occasional articles for magazines and newspapers, usually opining on the overall state of baseball.
Poor health and death
Veeck had been a heavy smoker and drinker until 1980. In 1984, Veeck underwent two operations for lung cancer. Two years later, on the day after New Year's Day, 1986, he died at the age of 71 from cancer. He was elected five years later to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
When he died at age 71, he was survived by his wife, Mary Frances, and eight of his nine children. Two of the surviving children, Peter and Ellen, were from his first marriage, and the others (Mike, Marya, Greg, Lisa, Julie and Chris) were from his second marriage. He was predeceased by his eldest child, William III, who died in 1985. His body was cremated. Mike Veeck became owner of the independent minor-league St. Paul Saints and still is a partner in the team. The younger Veeck and co-owner actor Bill Murray emulated many of Bill Veeck's promotional stunts with the Saints. Greg Veeck earned a Ph.D. at University of Georgia in 1988 and is a geography professor at Western Michigan University focusing on urban geology and East Asia.
Books by Veeck
Veeck wrote three autobiographical works, each a collaboration with journalist Ed Linn. The first two were reissued in updated editions in the 1980s following Veeck's return to baseball ownership. The books include:
Veeck As In Wreck (1962) – a straightforward autobiography, written after Veeck's then-declining health forced him to sell his interest in the White Sox
The Hustler's Handbook (1965) – a sequel and extension of Wreck, divulging his experiences in operating as an outsider in the major leagues, detailing many episodes of behind-the-scenes drama in baseball, including the 1965 acquisition of the New York Yankees by CBS and the maneuvering involved in the move of the Milwaukee Braves to Atlanta, and also a recounting of the 1919 Black Sox Scandal through a diary by Harry Grabiner, business manager of the White Sox in 1919 and much later, an associate of Veeck with the Indians in 1948.
Thirty Tons A Day (1972) – chronicling the time he spent running Suffolk Downs racetrack in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The title refers to the daily quantity of waste (horse excrement, used hay and straw, etc.) that had to be disposed of.
Awards and honors
1948 World Series champion (as owner/president of the Cleveland Indians)
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum (Class of 1991)
The Baseball Reliquary's Shrine of the Eternals (class of 1999).
In 2013, the Bob Feller Act of Valor Award honored Veeck as one of 37 Baseball Hall of Fame members for his service in the United States Marine Corps during World War II.
See also
List of members of the Baseball Hall of Fame
Notes
References
External links
In Praise of Bill Veeck – slideshow by Life magazine
1914 births
1986 deaths
20th-century American businesspeople
American amputees
Businesspeople from Chicago
Chicago White Sox executives
Chicago White Sox owners
Cleveland Indians executives
Cleveland Indians owners
Deaths from cancer in Illinois
Deaths from lung cancer
Kenyon College alumni
Major League Baseball executives
Major League Baseball general managers
Major League Baseball owners
Minor league baseball executives
National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees
People from Hinsdale, Illinois
People from St. Michaels, Maryland
Phillips Academy alumni
St. Louis Browns executives
St. Louis Browns owners
Suffolk Downs executives
United States Marines
United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II | false | [
"The Independent Milwaukee Brewery was an American brewery that was located on the south side of Milwaukee, Wisconsin from 1901 until 1964, when it was closed by G. Heileman Brewing Company which purchased the brewery in 1962. The brewery's signature brand was Braumeister. The trademark for this brand is currently held by Rhinelander Brewing Company.\n\nHistory\n\nThe company was founded by five partners: Henry N. Bills, William Gutknecht, Charles Evers, Emil Czarnecki, and William Jung. During Prohibition, Bills bought out the other partners and brought on his sons and son-in-law into the business. The company survived Prohibition by selling near beer. After Prohibition, the brewer was the first to obtain a beer manufacturing permit from the city to resume beer production. In 1953, the brewery's workers went on strike at the same time as the other five major brewers in the city (Schlitz, Pabst, Miller, Blatz, and Gettelman) in the 1953 Milwaukee brewery strike. In 1962, the company sold to Lacrosse, Wisconsin-based G. Heileman Brewing Company and produced 133,000 barrels of beer. In 1963, the company laid off workers until their staff was reduced to fifty employees. In 1964 the brewery was closed.\n\nBrands\n\n Biermann Beer (1962-1964)\n Bill's Culmbacher Beer (1933-1950)\n Bill's High Power Bock Beer (1933-1950)\n Bill's High Power Pilsener Style Beer (1933-1964)\n Bill's Lager Beer (1933-1950)\n Braumeister Bock Beer (1933-1950)\n Braumeister Dortmunder Dark Beer (1950-1959)\n Braumeister Holiday Beer (1934-1955)\n Braumeister Lager Beer (1933-1950)\n Braumeister Select Beer (1936-1940)\n Deutscher Club Lager Beer (1933-1950)\n Eisen Stark Beer (1958-1960)\n Independent Bock Beer (1933-1936)\n Independent Select Beer (1933-1936)\n Little Brau Beer (1933-1950)\n Log Cabin Beer (1942-1957)\n Special Pilsner Beer (1933-1936)\n\nSee also\n Beer in Milwaukee\n List of defunct breweries in the United States\n\nReferences\n\nAmerican companies established in 1901\n1901 establishments in Wisconsin\nCompanies based in Milwaukee\nDefunct brewery companies of the United States",
"William T. Green (1860 – December 3, 1911) was an African-American attorney and civil rights activist from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Born near Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada in May 1860, Green immigrated to the United States in 1884, and within a couple of years, he became a leader of the African-American community in Milwaukee.\n\nGreen had a common school education and attended St. Catherines Collegiate Institute. After moving to Wisconsin in 1887 and working as a janitor in the state capitol building, he became one of the first black graduates of the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1892 (he is sometimes erroneously reported as the first), and as of his death, he was the only black lawyer in Milwaukee and local African-American member of the Wisconsin Bar Association. He established himself with an office in the Birchard Block in Milwaukee in 1893. His legal work ranged from murder and assault, to worker's compensation and constitutional issues.\n\nHowell vs. Litt \nAfter one Owen Howell was denied permission to sit in the main level of the Bijou Opera House in Milwaukee, Green organized the Union League of Wisconsin and helped Howell file a lawsuit against the building's proprietor, Jacob Litt. In Howell vs. Litt, Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice ruled that discrimination by race was illegal. Green became the first black attorney that argued a case before the Wisconsin Supreme Court when representing Owen Howell. This lawsuit led to the creation of the state's Wisconsin Civil Rights Act of 1895. The Chapter 223 bill, which Green drafted, ended up becoming the foundation of modern civil rights legislation in the state of Wisconsin on April 13, 1895. The bill, entitled \"An act to protect all citizens in their civil and legal rights\", outlawed discrimination in saloons, restaurants, inns, barbershops, and most other public locations.\n\nHe was retained by the Afro-American League of Milwaukee to appear before the legislature against the Cady Bill, which sought to ban the marriage of negroes and whites. He debated the author of the bill, Frank A. Cady of Wood County; and the bill was subsequently defeated in the legislature.\n\nPolitics \nGreen became an active member of the Republican Party, and was elected as a delegate from Milwaukee to its conventions. While he was an acknowledged leader of black Republicans in Milwaukee, the state party never rewarded his loyalty with an endorsement for local elected offices such as district attorney or justice of the peace.\n\nDeath \nGreen died December 3, 1911, and is buried in Forest Home Cemetery.\n\nSee also \n List of first minority male lawyers and judges in Washington\n\nReferences \n\n1860 births\n1911 deaths\n19th-century African-American activists\nAfrican-American history of Milwaukee\nAfrican-American lawyers\nAmerican civil rights lawyers\nLawyers from Milwaukee\nUniversity of Wisconsin Law School alumni\nWisconsin lawyers\nWisconsin Republicans\n19th-century American lawyers\n20th-century African-American people"
]
|
[
"Bill Veeck",
"Milwaukee Brewers",
"When was Bill in Milwaukee",
"In 1942, Veeck left Chicago and, in partnership with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers."
]
| C_45e84fb34aab425fba958a342fb8574f_1 | What did he do after that | 2 | What did Bill Veeck do after purchasing the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers? | Bill Veeck | In 1942, Veeck left Chicago and, in partnership with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit. According to his autobiography Veeck - As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult for left-handed pull hitters of the opposing team. The screen was on wheels, so any given day it might be in place or not, depending on the batting strength of the opposing team. There was no rule against that activity as such, but Veeck then took it to an extreme, rolling it out when the opponents batted, and pulling it back when the Brewers batted. Veeck reported that the league passed a rule against it the very next day. However, extensive research by two members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) suggests that this story was made up by Veeck. The two researchers could not find any references to a moveable fence or any reference to the gear required for a moveable fence to work. While a half-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray. CANNOTANSWER | After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit. | William Louis Veeck Jr. (; February 9, 1914 – January 2, 1986), also known as "Sport Shirt Bill", was an American Major League Baseball franchise owner and promoter. Veeck was at various times the owner of the Cleveland Indians, St. Louis Browns and Chicago White Sox. As owner and team president of the Indians in 1947, Veeck signed Larry Doby, thus beginning the integration of the American League, and the following year won a World Series title as Cleveland's owner/president.
Veeck was the last owner to purchase a baseball franchise without an independent fortune, and is responsible for many innovations and contributions to baseball.
Unable to compete in the new era of salary escalation ignited by arbitration and free agency, Veeck sold his ownership interests after the 1980 Chicago White Sox season. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991.
Early life
Bill Veeck was born on February 9, 1914, in Chicago, Illinois. While Veeck was growing up in Hinsdale, Illinois, his father, William Veeck Sr., became president of the Chicago Cubs. Veeck Sr. was a local sports writer who wrote numerous columns about how he would run the Cubs differently, and the team's owner, William Wrigley Jr., took him up on the implied offer. While growing up, the younger Veeck worked as a popcorn vendor for the Cubs and also as a part-time concession salesman for the crosstown Chicago White Sox. Later, in 1937, he came up with the idea of planting ivy on the walls of Wrigley Field. Veeck attended Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. In 1933, when his father died, Veeck left Kenyon College and eventually became club treasurer for the Cubs. In 1935, he married his first wife, Eleanor.
Franchise owner
Minor League Baseball
Milwaukee Brewers
In 1940, Veeck left Chicago and, in a syndicate with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit.
According to his autobiography Veeck – As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult for left-handed pull hitters of the opposing team. The screen was on wheels, so any given day it might be in place or not, depending on the batting strength of the opposing team. There was no rule against that activity as such, but Veeck then took it to an extreme, rolling it out when the opponents batted, and pulling it back when the Brewers batted. Veeck reported that the league passed a rule against it the very next day. However, extensive research by two members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) suggests that this story was made up by Veeck. The two researchers could not find any references to a moveable fence or any reference to the gear required for a moveable fence to work.
While a co-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his right leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray.
Major League Baseball
Attempted purchase of Philadelphia Phillies
Veeck had been a fan of the Negro leagues since his early teens. He had also admired Abe Saperstein's Harlem Globetrotters basketball team, which was based in Chicago. Saperstein saved Veeck from financial disaster early on in Milwaukee by giving him the right to promote the Globetrotters in the upper Midwest in the winter of 1941–42.
In the fall of 1942, Veeck met with Gerry Nugent, president of the Philadelphia Phillies, to discuss the possibility of buying the struggling National League team. He later wrote in his memoirs that he intended to buy the Phillies and stock the team's roster with stars from the Negro leagues. Although no formal rules barred African-American players from the majors, none had appeared in organized baseball since the 1890s.
Veeck quickly secured financing to buy the Phillies, and agreed in principle to buy the team from Nugent. While on his way to Philadelphia to close on the purchase, Veeck decided to alert MLB Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis of his intentions.
Although Veeck knew Landis was an ardent segregationist, he did not believe Landis would dare say black players were unwelcome while blacks were fighting in World War II. However, when Veeck arrived in Philadelphia, he was surprised to discover that the National League had taken over the Phillies and was seeking a new owner (the Phillies were ultimately sold to lumber baron William D. Cox).
The authors of a controversial article in the 1998 issue of SABR's The National Pastime argued that Veeck invented the story of buying the Phillies and filling their roster with Negro leaguers, claiming Philadelphia's black press made no mention of a prospective sale to Veeck.
Subsequently, the article was criticized by historian Jules Tygiel, who reviewed it point-by-point in an article in the 2006 issue of SABR's The Baseball Research Journal, and in an appendix, entitled "Did Bill Veeck Lie About His Plan to Purchase the '43 Phillies?", published in Paul Dickson's biography, Bill Veeck: Baseball's Greatest Maverick. In the SABR article, Tygiel explained that Veeck and others had mentioned the alleged scheme to buy and stock the Phillies up to fifteen years before the publication of Veeck's memoir, but conceded that, "In all of these accounts the only voice telling the story remains Veeck's." The Tygiel article also conceded, "The overall assessment of Jordan, et al. - that Veeck's notion of buying the Phillies and fielding a team of Negro League stars never quite moved as far from the drawing board as Veeck claimed - may still be true. We still lack any solid evidence that confirms that Veeck had not only conceptualized this action, but made a firm offer to buy the Phillies and met a rebuff by Landis and Frick."
Joseph Thomas Moore wrote in his biography of Larry Doby, "Bill Veeck planned to buy the Philadelphia Phillies with the as yet unannounced intention of breaking that color line."
Cleveland Indians
In 1946, having sold his interest in the Class AAA Milwaukee Brewers, Veeck became the owner of a major league team, the Cleveland Indians. He immediately put all the team's games on radio (previously, only limited games had been broadcast). He also moved the team to Cleveland Municipal Stadium permanently in 1947. The team had split their games between the larger Municipal Stadium and the smaller League Park since the 1930s, but Veeck concluded that League Park was far too small and deteriorated to be viable.
In July of that year, he signed Larry Doby, the first black player to play in the American League. Doby's first game was on July 5 and before the game, Doby was introduced to his teammates by player-manager Lou Boudreau. "One by one, Lou introduced me to each player. 'This is Joe Gordon,' and Gordon put his hand out. 'This is Bob Lemon,' and Lemon put his hand out. 'This is Jim Hegan,' and Hegan put his hand out. All the guys put their hand out, all but three. As soon as he could, Bill Veeck got rid of those three", Doby said. The following year Veeck signed Satchel Paige to a contract, making the hurler the oldest rookie in major league history.
To take advantage of the large size of Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Veeck had a portable center field fence installed in 1947, which he could move in or out depending on how the distance favored the Indians against their opponents in a given series. The fence moved as much as between series opponents. Following the 1947 season, the American League countered with a rule change that fixed the distance of an outfield wall for the duration of a season.
As in Milwaukee, Veeck took a unique approach to promotions, hiring Max Patkin, the "Clown Prince of Baseball", as a coach. Patkin's appearance in the coaching box delighted fans and infuriated the front office of the American League.
Although Veeck had become extremely popular, an attempt in 1947 to trade Boudreau to the St. Louis Browns led to mass protests and petitions supporting Boudreau. Veeck, in response, said he would listen to the fans, and re-signed Boudreau to a new two-year contract. Veeck claimed later that the trade talks had already broken down before they became public, but he seized the opportunity to promote the concept he had dropped the idea of the trade in response to public outcry.
By 1948, led by Boudreau's .355 batting average, Cleveland won its first pennant and World Series since 1920. Famously, the following season Veeck buried the 1948 flag, once it became mathematically certain the team could not repeat its championship in 1949. Later that year, Veeck's first wife, Eleanor, filed for divorce. Most of his money was tied up in the Indians, so he was forced to sell the team to fund the divorce settlement. One year later, Veeck married his second wife Mary Frances Ackerman in 1950. He had met her the previous year while in Cleveland.
St. Louis Browns
After marrying Mary Frances Ackerman, Veeck bought an 80% stake in the St. Louis Browns in 1951. Hoping to force the NL's St. Louis Cardinals out of town, Veeck hired Cardinal greats Rogers Hornsby and Marty Marion as managers, and Dizzy Dean as an announcer; and he decorated their shared home park, Sportsman's Park, exclusively with Browns memorabilia. Ironically the Cardinals had been the Browns' tenants since 1920, even though they had long since passed the Browns as St. Louis' favorite team.
Some of Veeck's most memorable publicity stunts occurred during his tenure with the Browns, including the appearance on August 19, 1951, by Eddie Gaedel, who stood tall and is the shortest person to appear in a Major League Baseball game. Veeck sent Gaedel to pinch hit in the bottom of the first of the game. Wearing "1/8" as his uniform number, Gaedel was walked on four straight pitches and then was pulled for a pinch runner.
Shortly afterwards "Grandstand Manager's Day" – involving Veeck, Connie Mack, and thousands of regular fans, enabled the crowd to vote on various in-game strategic decisions by holding up placards: the Browns won, 5–3, snapping a four-game losing streak.
After the 1952 season, Veeck suggested that the American League clubs share radio and television revenue with visiting clubs, a proposal anathema to the powerful Yankees, whose broadcasting revenues dwarfed all the other AL franchises.
Outvoted, he refused to allow the Browns' opponents to broadcast games played against his team on the road. The league responded by eliminating the lucrative Friday night games in St. Louis.
A year later, Cardinals owner Fred Saigh was convicted of tax evasion. Facing certain banishment from baseball, he was forced to put the Cardinals up for sale. At first, the only credible offers came from out-of-town interests, and it appeared that Veeck would succeed in driving the Cardinals out of town.
However, just as Saigh was about to sell the Cardinals to interests who would have moved them to Houston, Texas, he instead accepted a much lower bid from St. Louis-based brewing giant Anheuser-Busch, who entered the picture with the specific intent of keeping the Cardinals in town. It has long been claimed that Saigh was persuaded to accept Anheuser-Busch's bid more out of civic duty than money. However, according to Anheuser-Busch historian William Knoedelseder, Saigh's first preference all along was to sell the Cardinals to interests who would keep the team in St. Louis.
What is beyond dispute is that as soon as Anheuser-Busch closed on its purchase of the Cardinals, Veeck knew he was finished in St. Louis. He quickly realized that with Anheuser-Busch's wealth behind them, the Cardinals now had more financial resources than he could even begin to match, especially since he had no other source of income. Reluctantly, he decided to move the Browns elsewhere. As a preliminary step, he sold Sportsman's Park to the Cardinals.
At first Veeck considered moving the Browns back to Milwaukee (where they had played their inaugural season in 1901). Milwaukee used recently built Milwaukee County Stadium in an attempt to entice the Browns.
However, the decision was in the hands of the Boston Braves, the parent team of the Brewers. Under major league rules of the time, the Braves held the major league rights to Milwaukee. The Braves wanted another team with the same talent if the Brewers were shut down, and an agreement was not made in time for the start of the 1953 season. Ironically, a few weeks later, the Braves themselves moved to Milwaukee. St. Louis was known to want the team to stay, so some in St. Louis campaigned for the removal of Veeck.
Undaunted, Veeck got in touch with a group that was looking to bring a Major League franchise to Baltimore, Maryland. After the 1953 season, Veeck agreed in principle to sell half his stock to Baltimore attorney Clarence Miles, the front man of the Baltimore group, and his other partners. He would have remained the principal owner, with approximately a 40% interest. Even though league president Will Harridge told him approval was certain, only four owners—two short of the necessary six for passage—supported it. Realizing the other owners simply wanted him out of the picture (indeed, he was facing threats of having his franchise canceled), Veeck agreed to sell his entire stake to Miles' group, who then moved the Browns to Baltimore, where they were renamed as the Orioles, which has been their name ever since.
Chicago White Sox
Taking advantage of inter-familial friction within the Comiskey family, in 1959, Veeck became head of a group that purchased a controlling interest in the Chicago White Sox. Following Veeck's acquisition of the team, the White Sox went on to win their first pennant in 40 years. That year the White Sox broke a team attendance record for home games with 1.4 million. The next year the team broke the same record with 1.6 million visitors to Comiskey Park with the addition of the first "exploding scoreboard" in the major leagues – producing electrical and sound effects, and shooting fireworks whenever the White Sox hit a home run. The "exploding scoreboard" was carried over to the "new" Comiskey Park (now Guaranteed Rate Field) when it opened in 1991.
One year later in 1960, Veeck and former Detroit Tigers great Hank Greenberg, his partner with the Indians and White Sox, reportedly made a strong bid for the American League expansion franchise in Los Angeles. Greenberg would have been the principal owner, with Veeck as a minority partner. However Los Angeles Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley was not willing to compete with a team owned by Veeck, even if he would only be a minority partner. When O'Malley heard of the deal, he invoked his exclusive franchise rights for Southern California. Any potential owner of an American League team in the area would have had to have O'Malley's approval, and it was apparent that O'Malley would not allow any team to set up shop with Veeck as a major shareholder. Rather than try to persuade his friend to back out, Greenberg abandoned his bid for what became the Los Angeles Angels.
In 1961, due to poor health, Veeck sold his share of the White Sox to John and Arthur Allyn for $2.5 million. After selling the White Sox, Veeck worked intermittently as a television commentator for ABC. Veeck then moved to the Eastern Shore of Maryland with his family to convalesce.
When his health improved, Veeck made an unsuccessful attempt to buy the Washington Senators, then operated the Suffolk Downs race track in Boston in 1969–70. Veeck was not heard from again in baseball ownership circles until 1975, when he repurchased the White Sox from John Allyn (sole owner since 1969). Veeck's return rankled baseball's establishment, most owners viewing him as a pariah after exposing industry politics and maneuvering in his 1961 book Veeck As In Wreck. The owners were also unhappy with Veeck's extensive unfavorable discussion of the 1964 purchase of the New York Yankees by CBS in 1965's The Hustler's Handbook (a move Veeck felt exposed MLB to dangerous antitrust liabilities and endangered the antitrust exemption established in a 1922 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court).
However, he was the only potential buyer willing to keep the White Sox in Chicago after an offer was made to buy the team and move it to Seattle, Washington. After an initial vote by AL owners rejected his White Sox bid, Veeck discussed a possible lawsuit; another vote was taken and Veeck was approved by one vote.
Almost immediately after reassuming control of the Sox, Veeck unleashed another publicity stunt. He and general manager Roland Hemond conducted four trades in a hotel lobby, in full view of the public; other owners considered this undignified. Two weeks later, however, arbitrator Peter Seitz's ruling struck down the reserve clause and ushered in the era of free agency, leading to dramatic increases in player salaries. Ironically Veeck had been the only baseball owner to testify in support of Curt Flood during his landmark court case, at which Flood had attempted to gain free agency after being traded to the Philadelphia Phillies. Veeck had proposed a gradual transition to a free-agent system in which players would gain free agency rights after a certain amount of service time. The owners gambled that Seitz would rule in their favor and maintain the reserve clause; he did not.
On the field, Veeck presented a Bicentennial-themed "Spirit of '76" parade on Opening Day in 1976, casting himself as the peg-legged fifer bringing up the rear. In the same year he reactivated Minnie Miñoso for eight at-bats, in order to give Miñoso a claim towards playing in four decades; he did so again in 1980, to expand the claim to five. He also unveiled radically altered uniforms for the players, including clamdigger pants and even shorts, which the Sox wore for the first time against the Kansas City Royals on August 8, 1976.
In an attempt to adapt to free agency he developed a "rent-a-player" model, centering on the acquisition of other clubs' stars in their option years. The gambit was moderately successful: in 1977 the White Sox won 90 games, and finished in third place with additions like Oscar Gamble and Richie Zisk.
During this last run, Veeck decided to have announcer Harry Caray sing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the seventh-inning stretch. Veeck asked Caray to sing for the entire park, but he refused. Veeck replied that he already had a recording, so Caray would be heard either way. Caray reluctantly agreed to sing it live, accompanied by White Sox organist Nancy Faust, and went on to become famous for singing the tune, continuing to do so at Wrigley Field after becoming the broadcaster of the Chicago Cubs.
The 1979 season was filled with more promotions. On April 10 he offered fans free admission the day after a 10–2 Opening Day defeat by the Toronto Blue Jays. On July 12, Veeck, with assistance from son Mike and radio personality Steve Dahl, held one of his most infamous promotions, Disco Demolition Night, between games of a scheduled doubleheader, which resulted in a riot at Comiskey Park and a forfeit to the visiting Detroit Tigers.
Life after baseball
Finding himself no longer able to financially compete in the free agent era, Veeck sold the White Sox in January 1981. Following the sale, new White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf made several negative references to Veeck's tenure with the team; in response, Veeck publicly transferred his allegiance back to the Chicago Cubs, the team his father had operated in his youth. Veeck retired to his home in Chicago but in summer could often be found in the Wrigley Field bleachers.
Veeck also wrote occasional articles for magazines and newspapers, usually opining on the overall state of baseball.
Poor health and death
Veeck had been a heavy smoker and drinker until 1980. In 1984, Veeck underwent two operations for lung cancer. Two years later, on the day after New Year's Day, 1986, he died at the age of 71 from cancer. He was elected five years later to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
When he died at age 71, he was survived by his wife, Mary Frances, and eight of his nine children. Two of the surviving children, Peter and Ellen, were from his first marriage, and the others (Mike, Marya, Greg, Lisa, Julie and Chris) were from his second marriage. He was predeceased by his eldest child, William III, who died in 1985. His body was cremated. Mike Veeck became owner of the independent minor-league St. Paul Saints and still is a partner in the team. The younger Veeck and co-owner actor Bill Murray emulated many of Bill Veeck's promotional stunts with the Saints. Greg Veeck earned a Ph.D. at University of Georgia in 1988 and is a geography professor at Western Michigan University focusing on urban geology and East Asia.
Books by Veeck
Veeck wrote three autobiographical works, each a collaboration with journalist Ed Linn. The first two were reissued in updated editions in the 1980s following Veeck's return to baseball ownership. The books include:
Veeck As In Wreck (1962) – a straightforward autobiography, written after Veeck's then-declining health forced him to sell his interest in the White Sox
The Hustler's Handbook (1965) – a sequel and extension of Wreck, divulging his experiences in operating as an outsider in the major leagues, detailing many episodes of behind-the-scenes drama in baseball, including the 1965 acquisition of the New York Yankees by CBS and the maneuvering involved in the move of the Milwaukee Braves to Atlanta, and also a recounting of the 1919 Black Sox Scandal through a diary by Harry Grabiner, business manager of the White Sox in 1919 and much later, an associate of Veeck with the Indians in 1948.
Thirty Tons A Day (1972) – chronicling the time he spent running Suffolk Downs racetrack in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The title refers to the daily quantity of waste (horse excrement, used hay and straw, etc.) that had to be disposed of.
Awards and honors
1948 World Series champion (as owner/president of the Cleveland Indians)
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum (Class of 1991)
The Baseball Reliquary's Shrine of the Eternals (class of 1999).
In 2013, the Bob Feller Act of Valor Award honored Veeck as one of 37 Baseball Hall of Fame members for his service in the United States Marine Corps during World War II.
See also
List of members of the Baseball Hall of Fame
Notes
References
External links
In Praise of Bill Veeck – slideshow by Life magazine
1914 births
1986 deaths
20th-century American businesspeople
American amputees
Businesspeople from Chicago
Chicago White Sox executives
Chicago White Sox owners
Cleveland Indians executives
Cleveland Indians owners
Deaths from cancer in Illinois
Deaths from lung cancer
Kenyon College alumni
Major League Baseball executives
Major League Baseball general managers
Major League Baseball owners
Minor league baseball executives
National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees
People from Hinsdale, Illinois
People from St. Michaels, Maryland
Phillips Academy alumni
St. Louis Browns executives
St. Louis Browns owners
Suffolk Downs executives
United States Marines
United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II | true | [
"\"What Did I Do to You?\" is a song recorded by British singer Lisa Stansfield for her 1989 album, Affection. It was written by Stansfield, Ian Devaney and Andy Morris, and produced by Devaney and Morris. The song was released as the fourth European single on 30 April 1990. It included three previously unreleased songs written by Stansfield, Devaney and Morris: \"My Apple Heart,\" \"Lay Me Down\" and \"Something's Happenin'.\" \"What Did I Do to You?\" was remixed by Mark Saunders and by the Grammy Award-winning American house music DJ and producer, David Morales. The single became a top forty hit in the European countries reaching number eighteen in Finland, number twenty in Ireland and number twenty-five in the United Kingdom. \"What Did I Do to You?\" was also released in Japan.\n\nIn 2014, the remixes of \"What Did I Do to You?\" were included on the deluxe 2CD + DVD re-release of Affection and on People Hold On ... The Remix Anthology. They were also featured on The Collection 1989–2003 box set (2014), including previously unreleased Red Zone Mix by David Morales.\n\nCritical reception\nThe song received positive reviews from music critics. Matthew Hocter from Albumism viewed it as a \"upbeat offering\". David Giles from Music Week said it is \"beautifully performed\" by Stansfield. A reviewer from Reading Eagle wrote that \"What Did I Do to You?\" \"would be right at home on the \"Saturday Night Fever\" soundtrack.\"\n\nMusic video\nA music video was produced to promote the single, directed by Philip Richardson, who had previously directed the videos for \"All Around the World\" and \"Live Together\". It features Stansfield with her kiss curls, dressed in a white outfit and performing with her band on a stage in front of a jumping audience. The video was later published on Stansfield's official YouTube channel in November 2009. It has amassed more than 1,6 million views as of October 2021.\n\nTrack listings\n\n European/UK 7\" single\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Mark Saunders Remix Edit) – 4:20\n\"Something's Happenin'\" – 3:59\n\n European/UK/Japanese CD single\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Mark Saunders Remix Edit) – 4:20\n\"My Apple Heart\" – 5:19\n\"Lay Me Down\" – 4:17\n\"Something's Happenin'\" – 3:59\n\n UK 10\" single\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Mark Saunders Remix) – 5:52\n\"My Apple Heart\" – 5:19\n\"Lay Me Down\" – 4:17\n\"Something's Happenin'\" – 3:59\n\n European/UK 12\" single\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Morales Mix) – 7:59\n\"My Apple Heart\" – 4:22\n\"Lay Me Down\" – 3:19\n\"Something's Happenin'\" – 3:15\n\n UK 12\" promotional single\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Morales Mix) – 7:59\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Anti Poll Tax Dub) – 6:31\n\n Other remixes\n\"What Did I Do to You?\" (Red Zone Mix) – 7:45\n\nCharts\n\nReferences\n\nLisa Stansfield songs\n1990 singles\nSongs written by Lisa Stansfield\n1989 songs\nArista Records singles\nSongs written by Ian Devaney\nSongs written by Andy Morris (musician)",
"Follow Me! is a series of television programmes produced by Bayerischer Rundfunk and the BBC in the late 1970s to provide a crash course in the English language. It became popular in many overseas countries as a first introduction to English; in 1983, one hundred million people watched the show in China alone, featuring Kathy Flower.\n\nThe British actor Francis Matthews hosted and narrated the series.\n\nThe course consists of sixty lessons. Each lesson lasts from 12 to 15 minutes and covers a specific lexis. The lessons follow a consistent group of actors, with the relationships between their characters developing during the course.\n\nFollow Me! actors\n Francis Matthews\n Raymond Mason\n David Savile\n Ian Bamforth\n Keith Alexander\n Diane Mercer\n Jane Argyle\n Diana King\n Veronica Leigh\n Elaine Wells\n Danielle Cohn\n Lashawnda Bell\n\nEpisodes \n \"What's your name\"\n \"How are you\"\n \"Can you help me\"\n \"Left, right, straight ahead\"\n \"Where are they\"\n \"What's the time\"\n \"What's this What's that\"\n \"I like it very much\"\n \"Have you got any wine\"\n \"What are they doing\"\n \"Can I have your name, please\"\n \"What does she look like\"\n \"No smoking\"\n \"It's on the first floor\"\n \"Where's he gone\"\n \"Going away\"\n \"Buying things\"\n \"Why do you like it\"\n \"What do you need\"\n \"I sometimes work late\"\n \"Welcome to Britain\"\n \"Who's that\"\n \"What would you like to do\"\n \"How can I get there?\"\n \"Where is it\"\n \"What's the date\"\n \"Whose is it\"\n \"I enjoy it\"\n \"How many and how much\"\n \"What have you done\"\n \"Haven't we met before\"\n \"What did you say\"\n \"Please stop\"\n \"How can I get to Brightly\"\n \"Where can I get it\"\n \"There's a concert on Wednesday\"\n \"What's it like\"\n \"What do you think of him\"\n \"I need someone\"\n \"What were you doing\"\n \"What do you do\"\n \"What do you know about him\"\n \"You shouldn't do that\"\n \"I hope you enjoy your holiday\"\n \"Where can I see a football match\"\n \"When will it be ready\"\n \"Where did you go\"\n \"I think it's awful\"\n \"A room with a view\"\n \"You'll be ill\"\n \"I don't believe in strikes\"\n \"They look tired\"\n \"Would you like to\"\n \"Holiday plans\"\n \"The second shelf on the left\"\n \"When you are ready\"\n \"Tell them about Britain\"\n \"I liked everything\"\n \"Classical or modern\"\n \"Finale\"\n\nReferences \n\n BBC article about the series in China\n\nExternal links \n Follow Me – Beginner level \n Follow Me – Elementary level\n Follow Me – Intermediate level\n Follow Me – Advanced level\n\nAdult education television series\nEnglish-language education television programming"
]
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[
"Bill Veeck",
"Milwaukee Brewers",
"When was Bill in Milwaukee",
"In 1942, Veeck left Chicago and, in partnership with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers.",
"What did he do after that",
"After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit."
]
| C_45e84fb34aab425fba958a342fb8574f_1 | Did he have any famous players there? | 3 | Did Bill Veeck have any famous players in the Milwaukee Brewers? | Bill Veeck | In 1942, Veeck left Chicago and, in partnership with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit. According to his autobiography Veeck - As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult for left-handed pull hitters of the opposing team. The screen was on wheels, so any given day it might be in place or not, depending on the batting strength of the opposing team. There was no rule against that activity as such, but Veeck then took it to an extreme, rolling it out when the opponents batted, and pulling it back when the Brewers batted. Veeck reported that the league passed a rule against it the very next day. However, extensive research by two members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) suggests that this story was made up by Veeck. The two researchers could not find any references to a moveable fence or any reference to the gear required for a moveable fence to work. While a half-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray. CANNOTANSWER | According to his autobiography Veeck - As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult | William Louis Veeck Jr. (; February 9, 1914 – January 2, 1986), also known as "Sport Shirt Bill", was an American Major League Baseball franchise owner and promoter. Veeck was at various times the owner of the Cleveland Indians, St. Louis Browns and Chicago White Sox. As owner and team president of the Indians in 1947, Veeck signed Larry Doby, thus beginning the integration of the American League, and the following year won a World Series title as Cleveland's owner/president.
Veeck was the last owner to purchase a baseball franchise without an independent fortune, and is responsible for many innovations and contributions to baseball.
Unable to compete in the new era of salary escalation ignited by arbitration and free agency, Veeck sold his ownership interests after the 1980 Chicago White Sox season. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991.
Early life
Bill Veeck was born on February 9, 1914, in Chicago, Illinois. While Veeck was growing up in Hinsdale, Illinois, his father, William Veeck Sr., became president of the Chicago Cubs. Veeck Sr. was a local sports writer who wrote numerous columns about how he would run the Cubs differently, and the team's owner, William Wrigley Jr., took him up on the implied offer. While growing up, the younger Veeck worked as a popcorn vendor for the Cubs and also as a part-time concession salesman for the crosstown Chicago White Sox. Later, in 1937, he came up with the idea of planting ivy on the walls of Wrigley Field. Veeck attended Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. In 1933, when his father died, Veeck left Kenyon College and eventually became club treasurer for the Cubs. In 1935, he married his first wife, Eleanor.
Franchise owner
Minor League Baseball
Milwaukee Brewers
In 1940, Veeck left Chicago and, in a syndicate with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit.
According to his autobiography Veeck – As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult for left-handed pull hitters of the opposing team. The screen was on wheels, so any given day it might be in place or not, depending on the batting strength of the opposing team. There was no rule against that activity as such, but Veeck then took it to an extreme, rolling it out when the opponents batted, and pulling it back when the Brewers batted. Veeck reported that the league passed a rule against it the very next day. However, extensive research by two members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) suggests that this story was made up by Veeck. The two researchers could not find any references to a moveable fence or any reference to the gear required for a moveable fence to work.
While a co-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his right leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray.
Major League Baseball
Attempted purchase of Philadelphia Phillies
Veeck had been a fan of the Negro leagues since his early teens. He had also admired Abe Saperstein's Harlem Globetrotters basketball team, which was based in Chicago. Saperstein saved Veeck from financial disaster early on in Milwaukee by giving him the right to promote the Globetrotters in the upper Midwest in the winter of 1941–42.
In the fall of 1942, Veeck met with Gerry Nugent, president of the Philadelphia Phillies, to discuss the possibility of buying the struggling National League team. He later wrote in his memoirs that he intended to buy the Phillies and stock the team's roster with stars from the Negro leagues. Although no formal rules barred African-American players from the majors, none had appeared in organized baseball since the 1890s.
Veeck quickly secured financing to buy the Phillies, and agreed in principle to buy the team from Nugent. While on his way to Philadelphia to close on the purchase, Veeck decided to alert MLB Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis of his intentions.
Although Veeck knew Landis was an ardent segregationist, he did not believe Landis would dare say black players were unwelcome while blacks were fighting in World War II. However, when Veeck arrived in Philadelphia, he was surprised to discover that the National League had taken over the Phillies and was seeking a new owner (the Phillies were ultimately sold to lumber baron William D. Cox).
The authors of a controversial article in the 1998 issue of SABR's The National Pastime argued that Veeck invented the story of buying the Phillies and filling their roster with Negro leaguers, claiming Philadelphia's black press made no mention of a prospective sale to Veeck.
Subsequently, the article was criticized by historian Jules Tygiel, who reviewed it point-by-point in an article in the 2006 issue of SABR's The Baseball Research Journal, and in an appendix, entitled "Did Bill Veeck Lie About His Plan to Purchase the '43 Phillies?", published in Paul Dickson's biography, Bill Veeck: Baseball's Greatest Maverick. In the SABR article, Tygiel explained that Veeck and others had mentioned the alleged scheme to buy and stock the Phillies up to fifteen years before the publication of Veeck's memoir, but conceded that, "In all of these accounts the only voice telling the story remains Veeck's." The Tygiel article also conceded, "The overall assessment of Jordan, et al. - that Veeck's notion of buying the Phillies and fielding a team of Negro League stars never quite moved as far from the drawing board as Veeck claimed - may still be true. We still lack any solid evidence that confirms that Veeck had not only conceptualized this action, but made a firm offer to buy the Phillies and met a rebuff by Landis and Frick."
Joseph Thomas Moore wrote in his biography of Larry Doby, "Bill Veeck planned to buy the Philadelphia Phillies with the as yet unannounced intention of breaking that color line."
Cleveland Indians
In 1946, having sold his interest in the Class AAA Milwaukee Brewers, Veeck became the owner of a major league team, the Cleveland Indians. He immediately put all the team's games on radio (previously, only limited games had been broadcast). He also moved the team to Cleveland Municipal Stadium permanently in 1947. The team had split their games between the larger Municipal Stadium and the smaller League Park since the 1930s, but Veeck concluded that League Park was far too small and deteriorated to be viable.
In July of that year, he signed Larry Doby, the first black player to play in the American League. Doby's first game was on July 5 and before the game, Doby was introduced to his teammates by player-manager Lou Boudreau. "One by one, Lou introduced me to each player. 'This is Joe Gordon,' and Gordon put his hand out. 'This is Bob Lemon,' and Lemon put his hand out. 'This is Jim Hegan,' and Hegan put his hand out. All the guys put their hand out, all but three. As soon as he could, Bill Veeck got rid of those three", Doby said. The following year Veeck signed Satchel Paige to a contract, making the hurler the oldest rookie in major league history.
To take advantage of the large size of Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Veeck had a portable center field fence installed in 1947, which he could move in or out depending on how the distance favored the Indians against their opponents in a given series. The fence moved as much as between series opponents. Following the 1947 season, the American League countered with a rule change that fixed the distance of an outfield wall for the duration of a season.
As in Milwaukee, Veeck took a unique approach to promotions, hiring Max Patkin, the "Clown Prince of Baseball", as a coach. Patkin's appearance in the coaching box delighted fans and infuriated the front office of the American League.
Although Veeck had become extremely popular, an attempt in 1947 to trade Boudreau to the St. Louis Browns led to mass protests and petitions supporting Boudreau. Veeck, in response, said he would listen to the fans, and re-signed Boudreau to a new two-year contract. Veeck claimed later that the trade talks had already broken down before they became public, but he seized the opportunity to promote the concept he had dropped the idea of the trade in response to public outcry.
By 1948, led by Boudreau's .355 batting average, Cleveland won its first pennant and World Series since 1920. Famously, the following season Veeck buried the 1948 flag, once it became mathematically certain the team could not repeat its championship in 1949. Later that year, Veeck's first wife, Eleanor, filed for divorce. Most of his money was tied up in the Indians, so he was forced to sell the team to fund the divorce settlement. One year later, Veeck married his second wife Mary Frances Ackerman in 1950. He had met her the previous year while in Cleveland.
St. Louis Browns
After marrying Mary Frances Ackerman, Veeck bought an 80% stake in the St. Louis Browns in 1951. Hoping to force the NL's St. Louis Cardinals out of town, Veeck hired Cardinal greats Rogers Hornsby and Marty Marion as managers, and Dizzy Dean as an announcer; and he decorated their shared home park, Sportsman's Park, exclusively with Browns memorabilia. Ironically the Cardinals had been the Browns' tenants since 1920, even though they had long since passed the Browns as St. Louis' favorite team.
Some of Veeck's most memorable publicity stunts occurred during his tenure with the Browns, including the appearance on August 19, 1951, by Eddie Gaedel, who stood tall and is the shortest person to appear in a Major League Baseball game. Veeck sent Gaedel to pinch hit in the bottom of the first of the game. Wearing "1/8" as his uniform number, Gaedel was walked on four straight pitches and then was pulled for a pinch runner.
Shortly afterwards "Grandstand Manager's Day" – involving Veeck, Connie Mack, and thousands of regular fans, enabled the crowd to vote on various in-game strategic decisions by holding up placards: the Browns won, 5–3, snapping a four-game losing streak.
After the 1952 season, Veeck suggested that the American League clubs share radio and television revenue with visiting clubs, a proposal anathema to the powerful Yankees, whose broadcasting revenues dwarfed all the other AL franchises.
Outvoted, he refused to allow the Browns' opponents to broadcast games played against his team on the road. The league responded by eliminating the lucrative Friday night games in St. Louis.
A year later, Cardinals owner Fred Saigh was convicted of tax evasion. Facing certain banishment from baseball, he was forced to put the Cardinals up for sale. At first, the only credible offers came from out-of-town interests, and it appeared that Veeck would succeed in driving the Cardinals out of town.
However, just as Saigh was about to sell the Cardinals to interests who would have moved them to Houston, Texas, he instead accepted a much lower bid from St. Louis-based brewing giant Anheuser-Busch, who entered the picture with the specific intent of keeping the Cardinals in town. It has long been claimed that Saigh was persuaded to accept Anheuser-Busch's bid more out of civic duty than money. However, according to Anheuser-Busch historian William Knoedelseder, Saigh's first preference all along was to sell the Cardinals to interests who would keep the team in St. Louis.
What is beyond dispute is that as soon as Anheuser-Busch closed on its purchase of the Cardinals, Veeck knew he was finished in St. Louis. He quickly realized that with Anheuser-Busch's wealth behind them, the Cardinals now had more financial resources than he could even begin to match, especially since he had no other source of income. Reluctantly, he decided to move the Browns elsewhere. As a preliminary step, he sold Sportsman's Park to the Cardinals.
At first Veeck considered moving the Browns back to Milwaukee (where they had played their inaugural season in 1901). Milwaukee used recently built Milwaukee County Stadium in an attempt to entice the Browns.
However, the decision was in the hands of the Boston Braves, the parent team of the Brewers. Under major league rules of the time, the Braves held the major league rights to Milwaukee. The Braves wanted another team with the same talent if the Brewers were shut down, and an agreement was not made in time for the start of the 1953 season. Ironically, a few weeks later, the Braves themselves moved to Milwaukee. St. Louis was known to want the team to stay, so some in St. Louis campaigned for the removal of Veeck.
Undaunted, Veeck got in touch with a group that was looking to bring a Major League franchise to Baltimore, Maryland. After the 1953 season, Veeck agreed in principle to sell half his stock to Baltimore attorney Clarence Miles, the front man of the Baltimore group, and his other partners. He would have remained the principal owner, with approximately a 40% interest. Even though league president Will Harridge told him approval was certain, only four owners—two short of the necessary six for passage—supported it. Realizing the other owners simply wanted him out of the picture (indeed, he was facing threats of having his franchise canceled), Veeck agreed to sell his entire stake to Miles' group, who then moved the Browns to Baltimore, where they were renamed as the Orioles, which has been their name ever since.
Chicago White Sox
Taking advantage of inter-familial friction within the Comiskey family, in 1959, Veeck became head of a group that purchased a controlling interest in the Chicago White Sox. Following Veeck's acquisition of the team, the White Sox went on to win their first pennant in 40 years. That year the White Sox broke a team attendance record for home games with 1.4 million. The next year the team broke the same record with 1.6 million visitors to Comiskey Park with the addition of the first "exploding scoreboard" in the major leagues – producing electrical and sound effects, and shooting fireworks whenever the White Sox hit a home run. The "exploding scoreboard" was carried over to the "new" Comiskey Park (now Guaranteed Rate Field) when it opened in 1991.
One year later in 1960, Veeck and former Detroit Tigers great Hank Greenberg, his partner with the Indians and White Sox, reportedly made a strong bid for the American League expansion franchise in Los Angeles. Greenberg would have been the principal owner, with Veeck as a minority partner. However Los Angeles Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley was not willing to compete with a team owned by Veeck, even if he would only be a minority partner. When O'Malley heard of the deal, he invoked his exclusive franchise rights for Southern California. Any potential owner of an American League team in the area would have had to have O'Malley's approval, and it was apparent that O'Malley would not allow any team to set up shop with Veeck as a major shareholder. Rather than try to persuade his friend to back out, Greenberg abandoned his bid for what became the Los Angeles Angels.
In 1961, due to poor health, Veeck sold his share of the White Sox to John and Arthur Allyn for $2.5 million. After selling the White Sox, Veeck worked intermittently as a television commentator for ABC. Veeck then moved to the Eastern Shore of Maryland with his family to convalesce.
When his health improved, Veeck made an unsuccessful attempt to buy the Washington Senators, then operated the Suffolk Downs race track in Boston in 1969–70. Veeck was not heard from again in baseball ownership circles until 1975, when he repurchased the White Sox from John Allyn (sole owner since 1969). Veeck's return rankled baseball's establishment, most owners viewing him as a pariah after exposing industry politics and maneuvering in his 1961 book Veeck As In Wreck. The owners were also unhappy with Veeck's extensive unfavorable discussion of the 1964 purchase of the New York Yankees by CBS in 1965's The Hustler's Handbook (a move Veeck felt exposed MLB to dangerous antitrust liabilities and endangered the antitrust exemption established in a 1922 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court).
However, he was the only potential buyer willing to keep the White Sox in Chicago after an offer was made to buy the team and move it to Seattle, Washington. After an initial vote by AL owners rejected his White Sox bid, Veeck discussed a possible lawsuit; another vote was taken and Veeck was approved by one vote.
Almost immediately after reassuming control of the Sox, Veeck unleashed another publicity stunt. He and general manager Roland Hemond conducted four trades in a hotel lobby, in full view of the public; other owners considered this undignified. Two weeks later, however, arbitrator Peter Seitz's ruling struck down the reserve clause and ushered in the era of free agency, leading to dramatic increases in player salaries. Ironically Veeck had been the only baseball owner to testify in support of Curt Flood during his landmark court case, at which Flood had attempted to gain free agency after being traded to the Philadelphia Phillies. Veeck had proposed a gradual transition to a free-agent system in which players would gain free agency rights after a certain amount of service time. The owners gambled that Seitz would rule in their favor and maintain the reserve clause; he did not.
On the field, Veeck presented a Bicentennial-themed "Spirit of '76" parade on Opening Day in 1976, casting himself as the peg-legged fifer bringing up the rear. In the same year he reactivated Minnie Miñoso for eight at-bats, in order to give Miñoso a claim towards playing in four decades; he did so again in 1980, to expand the claim to five. He also unveiled radically altered uniforms for the players, including clamdigger pants and even shorts, which the Sox wore for the first time against the Kansas City Royals on August 8, 1976.
In an attempt to adapt to free agency he developed a "rent-a-player" model, centering on the acquisition of other clubs' stars in their option years. The gambit was moderately successful: in 1977 the White Sox won 90 games, and finished in third place with additions like Oscar Gamble and Richie Zisk.
During this last run, Veeck decided to have announcer Harry Caray sing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the seventh-inning stretch. Veeck asked Caray to sing for the entire park, but he refused. Veeck replied that he already had a recording, so Caray would be heard either way. Caray reluctantly agreed to sing it live, accompanied by White Sox organist Nancy Faust, and went on to become famous for singing the tune, continuing to do so at Wrigley Field after becoming the broadcaster of the Chicago Cubs.
The 1979 season was filled with more promotions. On April 10 he offered fans free admission the day after a 10–2 Opening Day defeat by the Toronto Blue Jays. On July 12, Veeck, with assistance from son Mike and radio personality Steve Dahl, held one of his most infamous promotions, Disco Demolition Night, between games of a scheduled doubleheader, which resulted in a riot at Comiskey Park and a forfeit to the visiting Detroit Tigers.
Life after baseball
Finding himself no longer able to financially compete in the free agent era, Veeck sold the White Sox in January 1981. Following the sale, new White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf made several negative references to Veeck's tenure with the team; in response, Veeck publicly transferred his allegiance back to the Chicago Cubs, the team his father had operated in his youth. Veeck retired to his home in Chicago but in summer could often be found in the Wrigley Field bleachers.
Veeck also wrote occasional articles for magazines and newspapers, usually opining on the overall state of baseball.
Poor health and death
Veeck had been a heavy smoker and drinker until 1980. In 1984, Veeck underwent two operations for lung cancer. Two years later, on the day after New Year's Day, 1986, he died at the age of 71 from cancer. He was elected five years later to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
When he died at age 71, he was survived by his wife, Mary Frances, and eight of his nine children. Two of the surviving children, Peter and Ellen, were from his first marriage, and the others (Mike, Marya, Greg, Lisa, Julie and Chris) were from his second marriage. He was predeceased by his eldest child, William III, who died in 1985. His body was cremated. Mike Veeck became owner of the independent minor-league St. Paul Saints and still is a partner in the team. The younger Veeck and co-owner actor Bill Murray emulated many of Bill Veeck's promotional stunts with the Saints. Greg Veeck earned a Ph.D. at University of Georgia in 1988 and is a geography professor at Western Michigan University focusing on urban geology and East Asia.
Books by Veeck
Veeck wrote three autobiographical works, each a collaboration with journalist Ed Linn. The first two were reissued in updated editions in the 1980s following Veeck's return to baseball ownership. The books include:
Veeck As In Wreck (1962) – a straightforward autobiography, written after Veeck's then-declining health forced him to sell his interest in the White Sox
The Hustler's Handbook (1965) – a sequel and extension of Wreck, divulging his experiences in operating as an outsider in the major leagues, detailing many episodes of behind-the-scenes drama in baseball, including the 1965 acquisition of the New York Yankees by CBS and the maneuvering involved in the move of the Milwaukee Braves to Atlanta, and also a recounting of the 1919 Black Sox Scandal through a diary by Harry Grabiner, business manager of the White Sox in 1919 and much later, an associate of Veeck with the Indians in 1948.
Thirty Tons A Day (1972) – chronicling the time he spent running Suffolk Downs racetrack in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The title refers to the daily quantity of waste (horse excrement, used hay and straw, etc.) that had to be disposed of.
Awards and honors
1948 World Series champion (as owner/president of the Cleveland Indians)
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum (Class of 1991)
The Baseball Reliquary's Shrine of the Eternals (class of 1999).
In 2013, the Bob Feller Act of Valor Award honored Veeck as one of 37 Baseball Hall of Fame members for his service in the United States Marine Corps during World War II.
See also
List of members of the Baseball Hall of Fame
Notes
References
External links
In Praise of Bill Veeck – slideshow by Life magazine
1914 births
1986 deaths
20th-century American businesspeople
American amputees
Businesspeople from Chicago
Chicago White Sox executives
Chicago White Sox owners
Cleveland Indians executives
Cleveland Indians owners
Deaths from cancer in Illinois
Deaths from lung cancer
Kenyon College alumni
Major League Baseball executives
Major League Baseball general managers
Major League Baseball owners
Minor league baseball executives
National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees
People from Hinsdale, Illinois
People from St. Michaels, Maryland
Phillips Academy alumni
St. Louis Browns executives
St. Louis Browns owners
Suffolk Downs executives
United States Marines
United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II | false | [
"Herbert Seidman (17 October 1920 – 30 August 1995) was a U.S. Senior Master of chess born in New York City. He played several times in the U.S. Chess Championship. He was known for his swashbuckling-style. He defeated many notable players, including Pal Benko, Arthur Bisguier, Donald Byrne, Arnold Denker, William Lombardy, Edmar Mednis, Samuel Reshevsky, and Jan Timman.\n\nIn 1961, Seidman won the most games of any player in the U.S. Championship, but did not win the tournament.\n\nHe played on board eight in the famous USA vs USSR radio match in September 1945, losing both games to Viacheslav Ragozin.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n1920 births\n1995 deaths\n20th-century American Jews\nAmerican chess players\nJewish chess players\nSportspeople from New York City\n20th-century chess players",
"Jeremiah Charles \"Jerry\" Walsh (born 3 November 1938 in Cork, Ireland) was a international rugby union footballer. \n\nHe was capped twenty-six times by Ireland as a centre between 1960 and 1967. That Walsh's prowess was mainly defensive was shown by his scoring record: it was not until his 26th appearance that he managed a try for Ireland. But the occasion, that famous victory at Sydney Cricket Ground, could scarcely have been bettered. With that he retired, in order better to pursue his career as a doctor.\n\nWalsh was selected for the 1966 British & Irish Lions tour to Australia and New Zealand, but did not play in any of the internationals as he returned home early from Australia due to the serious illness of his father . He also toured South Africa and Australia with Ireland in 1961 and 1967 respectively. He played club rugby for University College Cork RFC and Sundays Well.\n\nReferences\n\n1938 births\nIrish rugby union players\nIreland international rugby union players\nBritish & Irish Lions rugby union players from Ireland\nRugby union centres\nUniversity College Cork RFC players\nBarbarian F.C. players\nLiving people\nPeople educated at Presentation Brothers College, Cork\nRugby union players from County Cork\nMunster Rugby players"
]
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[
"Bill Veeck",
"Milwaukee Brewers",
"When was Bill in Milwaukee",
"In 1942, Veeck left Chicago and, in partnership with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers.",
"What did he do after that",
"After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit.",
"Did he have any famous players there?",
"According to his autobiography Veeck - As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult"
]
| C_45e84fb34aab425fba958a342fb8574f_1 | What else did he do in Milwaukee | 4 | What else did Bill Veeck do in Milwaukee, besides buying and selling the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers and installing a screen to make the right field target more difficult? | Bill Veeck | In 1942, Veeck left Chicago and, in partnership with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit. According to his autobiography Veeck - As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult for left-handed pull hitters of the opposing team. The screen was on wheels, so any given day it might be in place or not, depending on the batting strength of the opposing team. There was no rule against that activity as such, but Veeck then took it to an extreme, rolling it out when the opponents batted, and pulling it back when the Brewers batted. Veeck reported that the league passed a rule against it the very next day. However, extensive research by two members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) suggests that this story was made up by Veeck. The two researchers could not find any references to a moveable fence or any reference to the gear required for a moveable fence to work. While a half-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray. CANNOTANSWER | While a half-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. | William Louis Veeck Jr. (; February 9, 1914 – January 2, 1986), also known as "Sport Shirt Bill", was an American Major League Baseball franchise owner and promoter. Veeck was at various times the owner of the Cleveland Indians, St. Louis Browns and Chicago White Sox. As owner and team president of the Indians in 1947, Veeck signed Larry Doby, thus beginning the integration of the American League, and the following year won a World Series title as Cleveland's owner/president.
Veeck was the last owner to purchase a baseball franchise without an independent fortune, and is responsible for many innovations and contributions to baseball.
Unable to compete in the new era of salary escalation ignited by arbitration and free agency, Veeck sold his ownership interests after the 1980 Chicago White Sox season. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991.
Early life
Bill Veeck was born on February 9, 1914, in Chicago, Illinois. While Veeck was growing up in Hinsdale, Illinois, his father, William Veeck Sr., became president of the Chicago Cubs. Veeck Sr. was a local sports writer who wrote numerous columns about how he would run the Cubs differently, and the team's owner, William Wrigley Jr., took him up on the implied offer. While growing up, the younger Veeck worked as a popcorn vendor for the Cubs and also as a part-time concession salesman for the crosstown Chicago White Sox. Later, in 1937, he came up with the idea of planting ivy on the walls of Wrigley Field. Veeck attended Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. In 1933, when his father died, Veeck left Kenyon College and eventually became club treasurer for the Cubs. In 1935, he married his first wife, Eleanor.
Franchise owner
Minor League Baseball
Milwaukee Brewers
In 1940, Veeck left Chicago and, in a syndicate with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit.
According to his autobiography Veeck – As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult for left-handed pull hitters of the opposing team. The screen was on wheels, so any given day it might be in place or not, depending on the batting strength of the opposing team. There was no rule against that activity as such, but Veeck then took it to an extreme, rolling it out when the opponents batted, and pulling it back when the Brewers batted. Veeck reported that the league passed a rule against it the very next day. However, extensive research by two members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) suggests that this story was made up by Veeck. The two researchers could not find any references to a moveable fence or any reference to the gear required for a moveable fence to work.
While a co-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his right leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray.
Major League Baseball
Attempted purchase of Philadelphia Phillies
Veeck had been a fan of the Negro leagues since his early teens. He had also admired Abe Saperstein's Harlem Globetrotters basketball team, which was based in Chicago. Saperstein saved Veeck from financial disaster early on in Milwaukee by giving him the right to promote the Globetrotters in the upper Midwest in the winter of 1941–42.
In the fall of 1942, Veeck met with Gerry Nugent, president of the Philadelphia Phillies, to discuss the possibility of buying the struggling National League team. He later wrote in his memoirs that he intended to buy the Phillies and stock the team's roster with stars from the Negro leagues. Although no formal rules barred African-American players from the majors, none had appeared in organized baseball since the 1890s.
Veeck quickly secured financing to buy the Phillies, and agreed in principle to buy the team from Nugent. While on his way to Philadelphia to close on the purchase, Veeck decided to alert MLB Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis of his intentions.
Although Veeck knew Landis was an ardent segregationist, he did not believe Landis would dare say black players were unwelcome while blacks were fighting in World War II. However, when Veeck arrived in Philadelphia, he was surprised to discover that the National League had taken over the Phillies and was seeking a new owner (the Phillies were ultimately sold to lumber baron William D. Cox).
The authors of a controversial article in the 1998 issue of SABR's The National Pastime argued that Veeck invented the story of buying the Phillies and filling their roster with Negro leaguers, claiming Philadelphia's black press made no mention of a prospective sale to Veeck.
Subsequently, the article was criticized by historian Jules Tygiel, who reviewed it point-by-point in an article in the 2006 issue of SABR's The Baseball Research Journal, and in an appendix, entitled "Did Bill Veeck Lie About His Plan to Purchase the '43 Phillies?", published in Paul Dickson's biography, Bill Veeck: Baseball's Greatest Maverick. In the SABR article, Tygiel explained that Veeck and others had mentioned the alleged scheme to buy and stock the Phillies up to fifteen years before the publication of Veeck's memoir, but conceded that, "In all of these accounts the only voice telling the story remains Veeck's." The Tygiel article also conceded, "The overall assessment of Jordan, et al. - that Veeck's notion of buying the Phillies and fielding a team of Negro League stars never quite moved as far from the drawing board as Veeck claimed - may still be true. We still lack any solid evidence that confirms that Veeck had not only conceptualized this action, but made a firm offer to buy the Phillies and met a rebuff by Landis and Frick."
Joseph Thomas Moore wrote in his biography of Larry Doby, "Bill Veeck planned to buy the Philadelphia Phillies with the as yet unannounced intention of breaking that color line."
Cleveland Indians
In 1946, having sold his interest in the Class AAA Milwaukee Brewers, Veeck became the owner of a major league team, the Cleveland Indians. He immediately put all the team's games on radio (previously, only limited games had been broadcast). He also moved the team to Cleveland Municipal Stadium permanently in 1947. The team had split their games between the larger Municipal Stadium and the smaller League Park since the 1930s, but Veeck concluded that League Park was far too small and deteriorated to be viable.
In July of that year, he signed Larry Doby, the first black player to play in the American League. Doby's first game was on July 5 and before the game, Doby was introduced to his teammates by player-manager Lou Boudreau. "One by one, Lou introduced me to each player. 'This is Joe Gordon,' and Gordon put his hand out. 'This is Bob Lemon,' and Lemon put his hand out. 'This is Jim Hegan,' and Hegan put his hand out. All the guys put their hand out, all but three. As soon as he could, Bill Veeck got rid of those three", Doby said. The following year Veeck signed Satchel Paige to a contract, making the hurler the oldest rookie in major league history.
To take advantage of the large size of Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Veeck had a portable center field fence installed in 1947, which he could move in or out depending on how the distance favored the Indians against their opponents in a given series. The fence moved as much as between series opponents. Following the 1947 season, the American League countered with a rule change that fixed the distance of an outfield wall for the duration of a season.
As in Milwaukee, Veeck took a unique approach to promotions, hiring Max Patkin, the "Clown Prince of Baseball", as a coach. Patkin's appearance in the coaching box delighted fans and infuriated the front office of the American League.
Although Veeck had become extremely popular, an attempt in 1947 to trade Boudreau to the St. Louis Browns led to mass protests and petitions supporting Boudreau. Veeck, in response, said he would listen to the fans, and re-signed Boudreau to a new two-year contract. Veeck claimed later that the trade talks had already broken down before they became public, but he seized the opportunity to promote the concept he had dropped the idea of the trade in response to public outcry.
By 1948, led by Boudreau's .355 batting average, Cleveland won its first pennant and World Series since 1920. Famously, the following season Veeck buried the 1948 flag, once it became mathematically certain the team could not repeat its championship in 1949. Later that year, Veeck's first wife, Eleanor, filed for divorce. Most of his money was tied up in the Indians, so he was forced to sell the team to fund the divorce settlement. One year later, Veeck married his second wife Mary Frances Ackerman in 1950. He had met her the previous year while in Cleveland.
St. Louis Browns
After marrying Mary Frances Ackerman, Veeck bought an 80% stake in the St. Louis Browns in 1951. Hoping to force the NL's St. Louis Cardinals out of town, Veeck hired Cardinal greats Rogers Hornsby and Marty Marion as managers, and Dizzy Dean as an announcer; and he decorated their shared home park, Sportsman's Park, exclusively with Browns memorabilia. Ironically the Cardinals had been the Browns' tenants since 1920, even though they had long since passed the Browns as St. Louis' favorite team.
Some of Veeck's most memorable publicity stunts occurred during his tenure with the Browns, including the appearance on August 19, 1951, by Eddie Gaedel, who stood tall and is the shortest person to appear in a Major League Baseball game. Veeck sent Gaedel to pinch hit in the bottom of the first of the game. Wearing "1/8" as his uniform number, Gaedel was walked on four straight pitches and then was pulled for a pinch runner.
Shortly afterwards "Grandstand Manager's Day" – involving Veeck, Connie Mack, and thousands of regular fans, enabled the crowd to vote on various in-game strategic decisions by holding up placards: the Browns won, 5–3, snapping a four-game losing streak.
After the 1952 season, Veeck suggested that the American League clubs share radio and television revenue with visiting clubs, a proposal anathema to the powerful Yankees, whose broadcasting revenues dwarfed all the other AL franchises.
Outvoted, he refused to allow the Browns' opponents to broadcast games played against his team on the road. The league responded by eliminating the lucrative Friday night games in St. Louis.
A year later, Cardinals owner Fred Saigh was convicted of tax evasion. Facing certain banishment from baseball, he was forced to put the Cardinals up for sale. At first, the only credible offers came from out-of-town interests, and it appeared that Veeck would succeed in driving the Cardinals out of town.
However, just as Saigh was about to sell the Cardinals to interests who would have moved them to Houston, Texas, he instead accepted a much lower bid from St. Louis-based brewing giant Anheuser-Busch, who entered the picture with the specific intent of keeping the Cardinals in town. It has long been claimed that Saigh was persuaded to accept Anheuser-Busch's bid more out of civic duty than money. However, according to Anheuser-Busch historian William Knoedelseder, Saigh's first preference all along was to sell the Cardinals to interests who would keep the team in St. Louis.
What is beyond dispute is that as soon as Anheuser-Busch closed on its purchase of the Cardinals, Veeck knew he was finished in St. Louis. He quickly realized that with Anheuser-Busch's wealth behind them, the Cardinals now had more financial resources than he could even begin to match, especially since he had no other source of income. Reluctantly, he decided to move the Browns elsewhere. As a preliminary step, he sold Sportsman's Park to the Cardinals.
At first Veeck considered moving the Browns back to Milwaukee (where they had played their inaugural season in 1901). Milwaukee used recently built Milwaukee County Stadium in an attempt to entice the Browns.
However, the decision was in the hands of the Boston Braves, the parent team of the Brewers. Under major league rules of the time, the Braves held the major league rights to Milwaukee. The Braves wanted another team with the same talent if the Brewers were shut down, and an agreement was not made in time for the start of the 1953 season. Ironically, a few weeks later, the Braves themselves moved to Milwaukee. St. Louis was known to want the team to stay, so some in St. Louis campaigned for the removal of Veeck.
Undaunted, Veeck got in touch with a group that was looking to bring a Major League franchise to Baltimore, Maryland. After the 1953 season, Veeck agreed in principle to sell half his stock to Baltimore attorney Clarence Miles, the front man of the Baltimore group, and his other partners. He would have remained the principal owner, with approximately a 40% interest. Even though league president Will Harridge told him approval was certain, only four owners—two short of the necessary six for passage—supported it. Realizing the other owners simply wanted him out of the picture (indeed, he was facing threats of having his franchise canceled), Veeck agreed to sell his entire stake to Miles' group, who then moved the Browns to Baltimore, where they were renamed as the Orioles, which has been their name ever since.
Chicago White Sox
Taking advantage of inter-familial friction within the Comiskey family, in 1959, Veeck became head of a group that purchased a controlling interest in the Chicago White Sox. Following Veeck's acquisition of the team, the White Sox went on to win their first pennant in 40 years. That year the White Sox broke a team attendance record for home games with 1.4 million. The next year the team broke the same record with 1.6 million visitors to Comiskey Park with the addition of the first "exploding scoreboard" in the major leagues – producing electrical and sound effects, and shooting fireworks whenever the White Sox hit a home run. The "exploding scoreboard" was carried over to the "new" Comiskey Park (now Guaranteed Rate Field) when it opened in 1991.
One year later in 1960, Veeck and former Detroit Tigers great Hank Greenberg, his partner with the Indians and White Sox, reportedly made a strong bid for the American League expansion franchise in Los Angeles. Greenberg would have been the principal owner, with Veeck as a minority partner. However Los Angeles Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley was not willing to compete with a team owned by Veeck, even if he would only be a minority partner. When O'Malley heard of the deal, he invoked his exclusive franchise rights for Southern California. Any potential owner of an American League team in the area would have had to have O'Malley's approval, and it was apparent that O'Malley would not allow any team to set up shop with Veeck as a major shareholder. Rather than try to persuade his friend to back out, Greenberg abandoned his bid for what became the Los Angeles Angels.
In 1961, due to poor health, Veeck sold his share of the White Sox to John and Arthur Allyn for $2.5 million. After selling the White Sox, Veeck worked intermittently as a television commentator for ABC. Veeck then moved to the Eastern Shore of Maryland with his family to convalesce.
When his health improved, Veeck made an unsuccessful attempt to buy the Washington Senators, then operated the Suffolk Downs race track in Boston in 1969–70. Veeck was not heard from again in baseball ownership circles until 1975, when he repurchased the White Sox from John Allyn (sole owner since 1969). Veeck's return rankled baseball's establishment, most owners viewing him as a pariah after exposing industry politics and maneuvering in his 1961 book Veeck As In Wreck. The owners were also unhappy with Veeck's extensive unfavorable discussion of the 1964 purchase of the New York Yankees by CBS in 1965's The Hustler's Handbook (a move Veeck felt exposed MLB to dangerous antitrust liabilities and endangered the antitrust exemption established in a 1922 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court).
However, he was the only potential buyer willing to keep the White Sox in Chicago after an offer was made to buy the team and move it to Seattle, Washington. After an initial vote by AL owners rejected his White Sox bid, Veeck discussed a possible lawsuit; another vote was taken and Veeck was approved by one vote.
Almost immediately after reassuming control of the Sox, Veeck unleashed another publicity stunt. He and general manager Roland Hemond conducted four trades in a hotel lobby, in full view of the public; other owners considered this undignified. Two weeks later, however, arbitrator Peter Seitz's ruling struck down the reserve clause and ushered in the era of free agency, leading to dramatic increases in player salaries. Ironically Veeck had been the only baseball owner to testify in support of Curt Flood during his landmark court case, at which Flood had attempted to gain free agency after being traded to the Philadelphia Phillies. Veeck had proposed a gradual transition to a free-agent system in which players would gain free agency rights after a certain amount of service time. The owners gambled that Seitz would rule in their favor and maintain the reserve clause; he did not.
On the field, Veeck presented a Bicentennial-themed "Spirit of '76" parade on Opening Day in 1976, casting himself as the peg-legged fifer bringing up the rear. In the same year he reactivated Minnie Miñoso for eight at-bats, in order to give Miñoso a claim towards playing in four decades; he did so again in 1980, to expand the claim to five. He also unveiled radically altered uniforms for the players, including clamdigger pants and even shorts, which the Sox wore for the first time against the Kansas City Royals on August 8, 1976.
In an attempt to adapt to free agency he developed a "rent-a-player" model, centering on the acquisition of other clubs' stars in their option years. The gambit was moderately successful: in 1977 the White Sox won 90 games, and finished in third place with additions like Oscar Gamble and Richie Zisk.
During this last run, Veeck decided to have announcer Harry Caray sing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the seventh-inning stretch. Veeck asked Caray to sing for the entire park, but he refused. Veeck replied that he already had a recording, so Caray would be heard either way. Caray reluctantly agreed to sing it live, accompanied by White Sox organist Nancy Faust, and went on to become famous for singing the tune, continuing to do so at Wrigley Field after becoming the broadcaster of the Chicago Cubs.
The 1979 season was filled with more promotions. On April 10 he offered fans free admission the day after a 10–2 Opening Day defeat by the Toronto Blue Jays. On July 12, Veeck, with assistance from son Mike and radio personality Steve Dahl, held one of his most infamous promotions, Disco Demolition Night, between games of a scheduled doubleheader, which resulted in a riot at Comiskey Park and a forfeit to the visiting Detroit Tigers.
Life after baseball
Finding himself no longer able to financially compete in the free agent era, Veeck sold the White Sox in January 1981. Following the sale, new White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf made several negative references to Veeck's tenure with the team; in response, Veeck publicly transferred his allegiance back to the Chicago Cubs, the team his father had operated in his youth. Veeck retired to his home in Chicago but in summer could often be found in the Wrigley Field bleachers.
Veeck also wrote occasional articles for magazines and newspapers, usually opining on the overall state of baseball.
Poor health and death
Veeck had been a heavy smoker and drinker until 1980. In 1984, Veeck underwent two operations for lung cancer. Two years later, on the day after New Year's Day, 1986, he died at the age of 71 from cancer. He was elected five years later to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
When he died at age 71, he was survived by his wife, Mary Frances, and eight of his nine children. Two of the surviving children, Peter and Ellen, were from his first marriage, and the others (Mike, Marya, Greg, Lisa, Julie and Chris) were from his second marriage. He was predeceased by his eldest child, William III, who died in 1985. His body was cremated. Mike Veeck became owner of the independent minor-league St. Paul Saints and still is a partner in the team. The younger Veeck and co-owner actor Bill Murray emulated many of Bill Veeck's promotional stunts with the Saints. Greg Veeck earned a Ph.D. at University of Georgia in 1988 and is a geography professor at Western Michigan University focusing on urban geology and East Asia.
Books by Veeck
Veeck wrote three autobiographical works, each a collaboration with journalist Ed Linn. The first two were reissued in updated editions in the 1980s following Veeck's return to baseball ownership. The books include:
Veeck As In Wreck (1962) – a straightforward autobiography, written after Veeck's then-declining health forced him to sell his interest in the White Sox
The Hustler's Handbook (1965) – a sequel and extension of Wreck, divulging his experiences in operating as an outsider in the major leagues, detailing many episodes of behind-the-scenes drama in baseball, including the 1965 acquisition of the New York Yankees by CBS and the maneuvering involved in the move of the Milwaukee Braves to Atlanta, and also a recounting of the 1919 Black Sox Scandal through a diary by Harry Grabiner, business manager of the White Sox in 1919 and much later, an associate of Veeck with the Indians in 1948.
Thirty Tons A Day (1972) – chronicling the time he spent running Suffolk Downs racetrack in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The title refers to the daily quantity of waste (horse excrement, used hay and straw, etc.) that had to be disposed of.
Awards and honors
1948 World Series champion (as owner/president of the Cleveland Indians)
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum (Class of 1991)
The Baseball Reliquary's Shrine of the Eternals (class of 1999).
In 2013, the Bob Feller Act of Valor Award honored Veeck as one of 37 Baseball Hall of Fame members for his service in the United States Marine Corps during World War II.
See also
List of members of the Baseball Hall of Fame
Notes
References
External links
In Praise of Bill Veeck – slideshow by Life magazine
1914 births
1986 deaths
20th-century American businesspeople
American amputees
Businesspeople from Chicago
Chicago White Sox executives
Chicago White Sox owners
Cleveland Indians executives
Cleveland Indians owners
Deaths from cancer in Illinois
Deaths from lung cancer
Kenyon College alumni
Major League Baseball executives
Major League Baseball general managers
Major League Baseball owners
Minor league baseball executives
National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees
People from Hinsdale, Illinois
People from St. Michaels, Maryland
Phillips Academy alumni
St. Louis Browns executives
St. Louis Browns owners
Suffolk Downs executives
United States Marines
United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II | false | [
"Frank Haderer (1859–1912) was an American hardware dealer from Milwaukee, Wisconsin who served two terms as a Democratic member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from Milwaukee County.\n\nBackground \nHaderer was born on March 1, 1859 in Milwaukee, and received a common school education. He stayed in Milwaukee, where he became a hardware dealer. He was elected as a school commissioner in 1884.\n\nLegislative career \nHader was first elected to the Assembly in 1885 from the 8th Milwaukee County Assembly district (the 8th, 11th and 14th Wards of the City of Milwaukee), receiving 2,206 votes to 1,794 for Republican John L. Burnham and 29 for Prohibitionist 0. 0. Storle (Democratic incumbent John Fellenz was not a candidate). He did not run for re-election, and was succeeded by Populist Benjamin Charles Garside.\n\nIn 1902, he was again elected to the Assembly, from what was now the 11th Milwaukee County district (the 11th Ward of the City of Milwaukee), with 1,139 votes to 1,112 for incumbent Republican Herman Pomrening, 1,065 for Socialist Edmund T. Melins and 28 for independent Joseph Deikert. He was not a candidate for re-election in 1904, and was succeeded by Socialist Frederick Brockhausen.\n\nHaderer died at the age of 53 on June 22, 1912, and is interred at the Holy Trinity Cemetery in Milwaukee.\n\nReferences\n\n1859 births\n1912 deaths\nBusinesspeople from Milwaukee\nIronmongers\nMembers of the Wisconsin State Assembly\nWisconsin Democrats\n19th-century American businesspeople",
"Fred J. Hasley (December 5, 1884 – April 4, 1939) was an American typesetter from Milwaukee who served one term as a Socialist member of the Wisconsin State Assembly.\n\nBackground \nHasley was born in Milwaukee on December 5, 1884 and was educated in the Milwaukee Public Schools, graduating in 1900, and going into the printer's trade. He became a member of the Typographical Union Local 23 in 1904. He had never held a public office of any kind until being elected to the Assembly in 1920, although he had held offices in his union.\n\nPublic office \nHe was elected to the Assembly in 1920 to succeed fellow Socialist Edwin Knappe in representing the Tenth Milwaukee County Assembly District (the 21st and 25th Wards of the City of Milwaukee). He ran unopposed (one of three Socialists in Milwaukee to do so that year), receiving 6,918 votes to 3 for other persons; and was appointed to the standing committee on labor.\n\nHe did not run for re-election in 1922 after a redistricting split his district into the new Fourth and Third Milwaukee County Districts; and was succeeded by fellow Socialists Frank J. Weber and Thomas M. Duncan, both of whom were elected without opposition.\n\nDeath\nHasley committed suicide in Milwaukee County one half mile north of Silver Springs Road by leaping in front of an interurban electric street car and his body was dragged 45 feet. Hasley's sister said he was depressed about losing his job as a proofreader of a Milwaukee newspaper that went out of business a few months before.\n\nReferences \n\n1884 births\n1939 suicides\nPoliticians from Milwaukee\nMembers of the Wisconsin State Assembly\nSocialist Party of America politicians from Wisconsin\nTypesetters\nSuicides in Wisconsin\nAmerican politicians who committed suicide\n20th-century American politicians"
]
|
[
"Bill Veeck",
"Milwaukee Brewers",
"When was Bill in Milwaukee",
"In 1942, Veeck left Chicago and, in partnership with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers.",
"What did he do after that",
"After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit.",
"Did he have any famous players there?",
"According to his autobiography Veeck - As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult",
"What else did he do in Milwaukee",
"While a half-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit."
]
| C_45e84fb34aab425fba958a342fb8574f_1 | Did he have any interesting stories from the war | 5 | Did Bill Veeck have any interesting stories from World War II? | Bill Veeck | In 1942, Veeck left Chicago and, in partnership with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit. According to his autobiography Veeck - As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult for left-handed pull hitters of the opposing team. The screen was on wheels, so any given day it might be in place or not, depending on the batting strength of the opposing team. There was no rule against that activity as such, but Veeck then took it to an extreme, rolling it out when the opponents batted, and pulling it back when the Brewers batted. Veeck reported that the league passed a rule against it the very next day. However, extensive research by two members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) suggests that this story was made up by Veeck. The two researchers could not find any references to a moveable fence or any reference to the gear required for a moveable fence to work. While a half-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray. CANNOTANSWER | During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. | William Louis Veeck Jr. (; February 9, 1914 – January 2, 1986), also known as "Sport Shirt Bill", was an American Major League Baseball franchise owner and promoter. Veeck was at various times the owner of the Cleveland Indians, St. Louis Browns and Chicago White Sox. As owner and team president of the Indians in 1947, Veeck signed Larry Doby, thus beginning the integration of the American League, and the following year won a World Series title as Cleveland's owner/president.
Veeck was the last owner to purchase a baseball franchise without an independent fortune, and is responsible for many innovations and contributions to baseball.
Unable to compete in the new era of salary escalation ignited by arbitration and free agency, Veeck sold his ownership interests after the 1980 Chicago White Sox season. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991.
Early life
Bill Veeck was born on February 9, 1914, in Chicago, Illinois. While Veeck was growing up in Hinsdale, Illinois, his father, William Veeck Sr., became president of the Chicago Cubs. Veeck Sr. was a local sports writer who wrote numerous columns about how he would run the Cubs differently, and the team's owner, William Wrigley Jr., took him up on the implied offer. While growing up, the younger Veeck worked as a popcorn vendor for the Cubs and also as a part-time concession salesman for the crosstown Chicago White Sox. Later, in 1937, he came up with the idea of planting ivy on the walls of Wrigley Field. Veeck attended Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. In 1933, when his father died, Veeck left Kenyon College and eventually became club treasurer for the Cubs. In 1935, he married his first wife, Eleanor.
Franchise owner
Minor League Baseball
Milwaukee Brewers
In 1940, Veeck left Chicago and, in a syndicate with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit.
According to his autobiography Veeck – As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult for left-handed pull hitters of the opposing team. The screen was on wheels, so any given day it might be in place or not, depending on the batting strength of the opposing team. There was no rule against that activity as such, but Veeck then took it to an extreme, rolling it out when the opponents batted, and pulling it back when the Brewers batted. Veeck reported that the league passed a rule against it the very next day. However, extensive research by two members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) suggests that this story was made up by Veeck. The two researchers could not find any references to a moveable fence or any reference to the gear required for a moveable fence to work.
While a co-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his right leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray.
Major League Baseball
Attempted purchase of Philadelphia Phillies
Veeck had been a fan of the Negro leagues since his early teens. He had also admired Abe Saperstein's Harlem Globetrotters basketball team, which was based in Chicago. Saperstein saved Veeck from financial disaster early on in Milwaukee by giving him the right to promote the Globetrotters in the upper Midwest in the winter of 1941–42.
In the fall of 1942, Veeck met with Gerry Nugent, president of the Philadelphia Phillies, to discuss the possibility of buying the struggling National League team. He later wrote in his memoirs that he intended to buy the Phillies and stock the team's roster with stars from the Negro leagues. Although no formal rules barred African-American players from the majors, none had appeared in organized baseball since the 1890s.
Veeck quickly secured financing to buy the Phillies, and agreed in principle to buy the team from Nugent. While on his way to Philadelphia to close on the purchase, Veeck decided to alert MLB Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis of his intentions.
Although Veeck knew Landis was an ardent segregationist, he did not believe Landis would dare say black players were unwelcome while blacks were fighting in World War II. However, when Veeck arrived in Philadelphia, he was surprised to discover that the National League had taken over the Phillies and was seeking a new owner (the Phillies were ultimately sold to lumber baron William D. Cox).
The authors of a controversial article in the 1998 issue of SABR's The National Pastime argued that Veeck invented the story of buying the Phillies and filling their roster with Negro leaguers, claiming Philadelphia's black press made no mention of a prospective sale to Veeck.
Subsequently, the article was criticized by historian Jules Tygiel, who reviewed it point-by-point in an article in the 2006 issue of SABR's The Baseball Research Journal, and in an appendix, entitled "Did Bill Veeck Lie About His Plan to Purchase the '43 Phillies?", published in Paul Dickson's biography, Bill Veeck: Baseball's Greatest Maverick. In the SABR article, Tygiel explained that Veeck and others had mentioned the alleged scheme to buy and stock the Phillies up to fifteen years before the publication of Veeck's memoir, but conceded that, "In all of these accounts the only voice telling the story remains Veeck's." The Tygiel article also conceded, "The overall assessment of Jordan, et al. - that Veeck's notion of buying the Phillies and fielding a team of Negro League stars never quite moved as far from the drawing board as Veeck claimed - may still be true. We still lack any solid evidence that confirms that Veeck had not only conceptualized this action, but made a firm offer to buy the Phillies and met a rebuff by Landis and Frick."
Joseph Thomas Moore wrote in his biography of Larry Doby, "Bill Veeck planned to buy the Philadelphia Phillies with the as yet unannounced intention of breaking that color line."
Cleveland Indians
In 1946, having sold his interest in the Class AAA Milwaukee Brewers, Veeck became the owner of a major league team, the Cleveland Indians. He immediately put all the team's games on radio (previously, only limited games had been broadcast). He also moved the team to Cleveland Municipal Stadium permanently in 1947. The team had split their games between the larger Municipal Stadium and the smaller League Park since the 1930s, but Veeck concluded that League Park was far too small and deteriorated to be viable.
In July of that year, he signed Larry Doby, the first black player to play in the American League. Doby's first game was on July 5 and before the game, Doby was introduced to his teammates by player-manager Lou Boudreau. "One by one, Lou introduced me to each player. 'This is Joe Gordon,' and Gordon put his hand out. 'This is Bob Lemon,' and Lemon put his hand out. 'This is Jim Hegan,' and Hegan put his hand out. All the guys put their hand out, all but three. As soon as he could, Bill Veeck got rid of those three", Doby said. The following year Veeck signed Satchel Paige to a contract, making the hurler the oldest rookie in major league history.
To take advantage of the large size of Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Veeck had a portable center field fence installed in 1947, which he could move in or out depending on how the distance favored the Indians against their opponents in a given series. The fence moved as much as between series opponents. Following the 1947 season, the American League countered with a rule change that fixed the distance of an outfield wall for the duration of a season.
As in Milwaukee, Veeck took a unique approach to promotions, hiring Max Patkin, the "Clown Prince of Baseball", as a coach. Patkin's appearance in the coaching box delighted fans and infuriated the front office of the American League.
Although Veeck had become extremely popular, an attempt in 1947 to trade Boudreau to the St. Louis Browns led to mass protests and petitions supporting Boudreau. Veeck, in response, said he would listen to the fans, and re-signed Boudreau to a new two-year contract. Veeck claimed later that the trade talks had already broken down before they became public, but he seized the opportunity to promote the concept he had dropped the idea of the trade in response to public outcry.
By 1948, led by Boudreau's .355 batting average, Cleveland won its first pennant and World Series since 1920. Famously, the following season Veeck buried the 1948 flag, once it became mathematically certain the team could not repeat its championship in 1949. Later that year, Veeck's first wife, Eleanor, filed for divorce. Most of his money was tied up in the Indians, so he was forced to sell the team to fund the divorce settlement. One year later, Veeck married his second wife Mary Frances Ackerman in 1950. He had met her the previous year while in Cleveland.
St. Louis Browns
After marrying Mary Frances Ackerman, Veeck bought an 80% stake in the St. Louis Browns in 1951. Hoping to force the NL's St. Louis Cardinals out of town, Veeck hired Cardinal greats Rogers Hornsby and Marty Marion as managers, and Dizzy Dean as an announcer; and he decorated their shared home park, Sportsman's Park, exclusively with Browns memorabilia. Ironically the Cardinals had been the Browns' tenants since 1920, even though they had long since passed the Browns as St. Louis' favorite team.
Some of Veeck's most memorable publicity stunts occurred during his tenure with the Browns, including the appearance on August 19, 1951, by Eddie Gaedel, who stood tall and is the shortest person to appear in a Major League Baseball game. Veeck sent Gaedel to pinch hit in the bottom of the first of the game. Wearing "1/8" as his uniform number, Gaedel was walked on four straight pitches and then was pulled for a pinch runner.
Shortly afterwards "Grandstand Manager's Day" – involving Veeck, Connie Mack, and thousands of regular fans, enabled the crowd to vote on various in-game strategic decisions by holding up placards: the Browns won, 5–3, snapping a four-game losing streak.
After the 1952 season, Veeck suggested that the American League clubs share radio and television revenue with visiting clubs, a proposal anathema to the powerful Yankees, whose broadcasting revenues dwarfed all the other AL franchises.
Outvoted, he refused to allow the Browns' opponents to broadcast games played against his team on the road. The league responded by eliminating the lucrative Friday night games in St. Louis.
A year later, Cardinals owner Fred Saigh was convicted of tax evasion. Facing certain banishment from baseball, he was forced to put the Cardinals up for sale. At first, the only credible offers came from out-of-town interests, and it appeared that Veeck would succeed in driving the Cardinals out of town.
However, just as Saigh was about to sell the Cardinals to interests who would have moved them to Houston, Texas, he instead accepted a much lower bid from St. Louis-based brewing giant Anheuser-Busch, who entered the picture with the specific intent of keeping the Cardinals in town. It has long been claimed that Saigh was persuaded to accept Anheuser-Busch's bid more out of civic duty than money. However, according to Anheuser-Busch historian William Knoedelseder, Saigh's first preference all along was to sell the Cardinals to interests who would keep the team in St. Louis.
What is beyond dispute is that as soon as Anheuser-Busch closed on its purchase of the Cardinals, Veeck knew he was finished in St. Louis. He quickly realized that with Anheuser-Busch's wealth behind them, the Cardinals now had more financial resources than he could even begin to match, especially since he had no other source of income. Reluctantly, he decided to move the Browns elsewhere. As a preliminary step, he sold Sportsman's Park to the Cardinals.
At first Veeck considered moving the Browns back to Milwaukee (where they had played their inaugural season in 1901). Milwaukee used recently built Milwaukee County Stadium in an attempt to entice the Browns.
However, the decision was in the hands of the Boston Braves, the parent team of the Brewers. Under major league rules of the time, the Braves held the major league rights to Milwaukee. The Braves wanted another team with the same talent if the Brewers were shut down, and an agreement was not made in time for the start of the 1953 season. Ironically, a few weeks later, the Braves themselves moved to Milwaukee. St. Louis was known to want the team to stay, so some in St. Louis campaigned for the removal of Veeck.
Undaunted, Veeck got in touch with a group that was looking to bring a Major League franchise to Baltimore, Maryland. After the 1953 season, Veeck agreed in principle to sell half his stock to Baltimore attorney Clarence Miles, the front man of the Baltimore group, and his other partners. He would have remained the principal owner, with approximately a 40% interest. Even though league president Will Harridge told him approval was certain, only four owners—two short of the necessary six for passage—supported it. Realizing the other owners simply wanted him out of the picture (indeed, he was facing threats of having his franchise canceled), Veeck agreed to sell his entire stake to Miles' group, who then moved the Browns to Baltimore, where they were renamed as the Orioles, which has been their name ever since.
Chicago White Sox
Taking advantage of inter-familial friction within the Comiskey family, in 1959, Veeck became head of a group that purchased a controlling interest in the Chicago White Sox. Following Veeck's acquisition of the team, the White Sox went on to win their first pennant in 40 years. That year the White Sox broke a team attendance record for home games with 1.4 million. The next year the team broke the same record with 1.6 million visitors to Comiskey Park with the addition of the first "exploding scoreboard" in the major leagues – producing electrical and sound effects, and shooting fireworks whenever the White Sox hit a home run. The "exploding scoreboard" was carried over to the "new" Comiskey Park (now Guaranteed Rate Field) when it opened in 1991.
One year later in 1960, Veeck and former Detroit Tigers great Hank Greenberg, his partner with the Indians and White Sox, reportedly made a strong bid for the American League expansion franchise in Los Angeles. Greenberg would have been the principal owner, with Veeck as a minority partner. However Los Angeles Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley was not willing to compete with a team owned by Veeck, even if he would only be a minority partner. When O'Malley heard of the deal, he invoked his exclusive franchise rights for Southern California. Any potential owner of an American League team in the area would have had to have O'Malley's approval, and it was apparent that O'Malley would not allow any team to set up shop with Veeck as a major shareholder. Rather than try to persuade his friend to back out, Greenberg abandoned his bid for what became the Los Angeles Angels.
In 1961, due to poor health, Veeck sold his share of the White Sox to John and Arthur Allyn for $2.5 million. After selling the White Sox, Veeck worked intermittently as a television commentator for ABC. Veeck then moved to the Eastern Shore of Maryland with his family to convalesce.
When his health improved, Veeck made an unsuccessful attempt to buy the Washington Senators, then operated the Suffolk Downs race track in Boston in 1969–70. Veeck was not heard from again in baseball ownership circles until 1975, when he repurchased the White Sox from John Allyn (sole owner since 1969). Veeck's return rankled baseball's establishment, most owners viewing him as a pariah after exposing industry politics and maneuvering in his 1961 book Veeck As In Wreck. The owners were also unhappy with Veeck's extensive unfavorable discussion of the 1964 purchase of the New York Yankees by CBS in 1965's The Hustler's Handbook (a move Veeck felt exposed MLB to dangerous antitrust liabilities and endangered the antitrust exemption established in a 1922 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court).
However, he was the only potential buyer willing to keep the White Sox in Chicago after an offer was made to buy the team and move it to Seattle, Washington. After an initial vote by AL owners rejected his White Sox bid, Veeck discussed a possible lawsuit; another vote was taken and Veeck was approved by one vote.
Almost immediately after reassuming control of the Sox, Veeck unleashed another publicity stunt. He and general manager Roland Hemond conducted four trades in a hotel lobby, in full view of the public; other owners considered this undignified. Two weeks later, however, arbitrator Peter Seitz's ruling struck down the reserve clause and ushered in the era of free agency, leading to dramatic increases in player salaries. Ironically Veeck had been the only baseball owner to testify in support of Curt Flood during his landmark court case, at which Flood had attempted to gain free agency after being traded to the Philadelphia Phillies. Veeck had proposed a gradual transition to a free-agent system in which players would gain free agency rights after a certain amount of service time. The owners gambled that Seitz would rule in their favor and maintain the reserve clause; he did not.
On the field, Veeck presented a Bicentennial-themed "Spirit of '76" parade on Opening Day in 1976, casting himself as the peg-legged fifer bringing up the rear. In the same year he reactivated Minnie Miñoso for eight at-bats, in order to give Miñoso a claim towards playing in four decades; he did so again in 1980, to expand the claim to five. He also unveiled radically altered uniforms for the players, including clamdigger pants and even shorts, which the Sox wore for the first time against the Kansas City Royals on August 8, 1976.
In an attempt to adapt to free agency he developed a "rent-a-player" model, centering on the acquisition of other clubs' stars in their option years. The gambit was moderately successful: in 1977 the White Sox won 90 games, and finished in third place with additions like Oscar Gamble and Richie Zisk.
During this last run, Veeck decided to have announcer Harry Caray sing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the seventh-inning stretch. Veeck asked Caray to sing for the entire park, but he refused. Veeck replied that he already had a recording, so Caray would be heard either way. Caray reluctantly agreed to sing it live, accompanied by White Sox organist Nancy Faust, and went on to become famous for singing the tune, continuing to do so at Wrigley Field after becoming the broadcaster of the Chicago Cubs.
The 1979 season was filled with more promotions. On April 10 he offered fans free admission the day after a 10–2 Opening Day defeat by the Toronto Blue Jays. On July 12, Veeck, with assistance from son Mike and radio personality Steve Dahl, held one of his most infamous promotions, Disco Demolition Night, between games of a scheduled doubleheader, which resulted in a riot at Comiskey Park and a forfeit to the visiting Detroit Tigers.
Life after baseball
Finding himself no longer able to financially compete in the free agent era, Veeck sold the White Sox in January 1981. Following the sale, new White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf made several negative references to Veeck's tenure with the team; in response, Veeck publicly transferred his allegiance back to the Chicago Cubs, the team his father had operated in his youth. Veeck retired to his home in Chicago but in summer could often be found in the Wrigley Field bleachers.
Veeck also wrote occasional articles for magazines and newspapers, usually opining on the overall state of baseball.
Poor health and death
Veeck had been a heavy smoker and drinker until 1980. In 1984, Veeck underwent two operations for lung cancer. Two years later, on the day after New Year's Day, 1986, he died at the age of 71 from cancer. He was elected five years later to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
When he died at age 71, he was survived by his wife, Mary Frances, and eight of his nine children. Two of the surviving children, Peter and Ellen, were from his first marriage, and the others (Mike, Marya, Greg, Lisa, Julie and Chris) were from his second marriage. He was predeceased by his eldest child, William III, who died in 1985. His body was cremated. Mike Veeck became owner of the independent minor-league St. Paul Saints and still is a partner in the team. The younger Veeck and co-owner actor Bill Murray emulated many of Bill Veeck's promotional stunts with the Saints. Greg Veeck earned a Ph.D. at University of Georgia in 1988 and is a geography professor at Western Michigan University focusing on urban geology and East Asia.
Books by Veeck
Veeck wrote three autobiographical works, each a collaboration with journalist Ed Linn. The first two were reissued in updated editions in the 1980s following Veeck's return to baseball ownership. The books include:
Veeck As In Wreck (1962) – a straightforward autobiography, written after Veeck's then-declining health forced him to sell his interest in the White Sox
The Hustler's Handbook (1965) – a sequel and extension of Wreck, divulging his experiences in operating as an outsider in the major leagues, detailing many episodes of behind-the-scenes drama in baseball, including the 1965 acquisition of the New York Yankees by CBS and the maneuvering involved in the move of the Milwaukee Braves to Atlanta, and also a recounting of the 1919 Black Sox Scandal through a diary by Harry Grabiner, business manager of the White Sox in 1919 and much later, an associate of Veeck with the Indians in 1948.
Thirty Tons A Day (1972) – chronicling the time he spent running Suffolk Downs racetrack in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The title refers to the daily quantity of waste (horse excrement, used hay and straw, etc.) that had to be disposed of.
Awards and honors
1948 World Series champion (as owner/president of the Cleveland Indians)
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum (Class of 1991)
The Baseball Reliquary's Shrine of the Eternals (class of 1999).
In 2013, the Bob Feller Act of Valor Award honored Veeck as one of 37 Baseball Hall of Fame members for his service in the United States Marine Corps during World War II.
See also
List of members of the Baseball Hall of Fame
Notes
References
External links
In Praise of Bill Veeck – slideshow by Life magazine
1914 births
1986 deaths
20th-century American businesspeople
American amputees
Businesspeople from Chicago
Chicago White Sox executives
Chicago White Sox owners
Cleveland Indians executives
Cleveland Indians owners
Deaths from cancer in Illinois
Deaths from lung cancer
Kenyon College alumni
Major League Baseball executives
Major League Baseball general managers
Major League Baseball owners
Minor league baseball executives
National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees
People from Hinsdale, Illinois
People from St. Michaels, Maryland
Phillips Academy alumni
St. Louis Browns executives
St. Louis Browns owners
Suffolk Downs executives
United States Marines
United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II | false | [
"The Barbarian Swordsmen is an anthology of sword and sorcery stories edited by Peter Haining under the pseudonym of Sean Richards, cover-billed as \"the original sword and sorcery adventures.\" It was first published in paperback by Star Books in 1981.\n\nThe book collects eight novelettes and short stories by various early authors of sword and sorcery or pre-sword and sorcery, together with an introduction by the editor and a concluding letter from Robert E. Howard to H. P. Lovecraft of June 1934, recast as an essay.\n\nContents\n\"Introduction\" (Sean Richards)\n\"The War of Fire\" (excerpt from The Quest for Fire, 1909) (J. H. Rosny)\n\"The Sword of Welleran\" • (from The Sword of Welleran and Other Stories, 1908) (Lord Dunsany)\n\"The Tower of the Elephant\" (Conan) (from Weird Tales, March 1933) (Robert E. Howard)\n\"Brachan the Kelt\" (first publication) (James Allison) (Robert E. Howard)\n\"Jirel Meets Magic\" (Jirel of Joiry) (from Weird Tales, July 1935) (C. L. Moore)\n\"Spawn of Dagon\" (Elak of Atlantis) (from Weird Tales, July 1938) (Henry Kuttner)\n\"The Thief of Forthe\" (Rald the Thief) (from Weird Tales, July 1937) (Clifford Ball)\n\"The Two Best Thieves in Lankhmar\" (Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser) (from Swords Against Wizardry, July 1968) (Fritz Leiber)\n\"The Man Who Influenced Robert E. Howard\" (Robert E. Howard)\n\nReception\nMorgan Holmes, reviewing the volume on castaliahouse.com, calls it \"[a]n interesting anthology of sword and sorcery\" and \"a good little book as an introduction to foundational sword and sorcery fiction\" for which \"[t]he making of [the] Conan the Barbarian movie in the early 1980s appears to be the stimulus.\" He notes that \"My main quibble ... is it could have been bigger. The addition of a Clark Ashton Smith and Nictzin Dyalhis story would have gotten it over the 200 page mark. There is even a Robert Bloch sword and sorcery story that keeps eluding anthologers that could have been used.\" In addition to comment on the individual stories, he observes that \"Peter Haining’s nine page introduction is a good one with some discussion on what sword and sorcery is, and information on the stories and authors.\"\n\nNotes\n\n1981 short story collections\nFantasy anthologies",
"\"Such Interesting Neighbors\" is a science fiction short story by the American writer Jack Finney, first published in 1951. Versions of the story adapted for television aired as episodes of Science Fiction Theatre and Amazing Stories.\n\nPlot summary \nThe story deals with the narrative of Al and Nell Lewis's encounters with their new neighbors, the Hellenbeks. As the plot progresses, the Hellenbeks' interactive manners and general behavior puzzle Al Lewis, who seeks to uncover the cause of their uncommon ways. Towards the end of the story it is revealed that the Hellenbeks are time travellers from a future era. As their world was on the brink of global war, inexpensive time machines became available for the general public to cause a diversion from the extremely unfavorable conditions. However, much of the population, including the Hellenbeks, used them to settle in past eras and caused severe depopulation, which made the waging of war impossible, while eventually the remaining population migrated as well.\n\nAdaptations \n\"Such Interesting Neighbors\" was first adapted for Science Fiction Theatre and aired as its second episode on April 16, 1955, as \"Time Is Just a Place\". On March 20, 1987, a second adaptation of the story aired under its original title for Amazing Stories.\n\nSources \n\n1951 short stories\nWorks originally published in Collier's\nWorks by Jack Finney"
]
|
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"In 1942, Veeck left Chicago and, in partnership with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers.",
"What did he do after that",
"After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit.",
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"According to his autobiography Veeck - As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult",
"What else did he do in Milwaukee",
"While a half-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit.",
"Did he have any interesting stories from the war",
"During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee."
]
| C_45e84fb34aab425fba958a342fb8574f_1 | How did the amputation affect his life | 6 | How did Bill Veeck's amputation affect his life? | Bill Veeck | In 1942, Veeck left Chicago and, in partnership with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit. According to his autobiography Veeck - As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult for left-handed pull hitters of the opposing team. The screen was on wheels, so any given day it might be in place or not, depending on the batting strength of the opposing team. There was no rule against that activity as such, but Veeck then took it to an extreme, rolling it out when the opponents batted, and pulling it back when the Brewers batted. Veeck reported that the league passed a rule against it the very next day. However, extensive research by two members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) suggests that this story was made up by Veeck. The two researchers could not find any references to a moveable fence or any reference to the gear required for a moveable fence to work. While a half-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray. CANNOTANSWER | Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. | William Louis Veeck Jr. (; February 9, 1914 – January 2, 1986), also known as "Sport Shirt Bill", was an American Major League Baseball franchise owner and promoter. Veeck was at various times the owner of the Cleveland Indians, St. Louis Browns and Chicago White Sox. As owner and team president of the Indians in 1947, Veeck signed Larry Doby, thus beginning the integration of the American League, and the following year won a World Series title as Cleveland's owner/president.
Veeck was the last owner to purchase a baseball franchise without an independent fortune, and is responsible for many innovations and contributions to baseball.
Unable to compete in the new era of salary escalation ignited by arbitration and free agency, Veeck sold his ownership interests after the 1980 Chicago White Sox season. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991.
Early life
Bill Veeck was born on February 9, 1914, in Chicago, Illinois. While Veeck was growing up in Hinsdale, Illinois, his father, William Veeck Sr., became president of the Chicago Cubs. Veeck Sr. was a local sports writer who wrote numerous columns about how he would run the Cubs differently, and the team's owner, William Wrigley Jr., took him up on the implied offer. While growing up, the younger Veeck worked as a popcorn vendor for the Cubs and also as a part-time concession salesman for the crosstown Chicago White Sox. Later, in 1937, he came up with the idea of planting ivy on the walls of Wrigley Field. Veeck attended Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. In 1933, when his father died, Veeck left Kenyon College and eventually became club treasurer for the Cubs. In 1935, he married his first wife, Eleanor.
Franchise owner
Minor League Baseball
Milwaukee Brewers
In 1940, Veeck left Chicago and, in a syndicate with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit.
According to his autobiography Veeck – As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult for left-handed pull hitters of the opposing team. The screen was on wheels, so any given day it might be in place or not, depending on the batting strength of the opposing team. There was no rule against that activity as such, but Veeck then took it to an extreme, rolling it out when the opponents batted, and pulling it back when the Brewers batted. Veeck reported that the league passed a rule against it the very next day. However, extensive research by two members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) suggests that this story was made up by Veeck. The two researchers could not find any references to a moveable fence or any reference to the gear required for a moveable fence to work.
While a co-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his right leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray.
Major League Baseball
Attempted purchase of Philadelphia Phillies
Veeck had been a fan of the Negro leagues since his early teens. He had also admired Abe Saperstein's Harlem Globetrotters basketball team, which was based in Chicago. Saperstein saved Veeck from financial disaster early on in Milwaukee by giving him the right to promote the Globetrotters in the upper Midwest in the winter of 1941–42.
In the fall of 1942, Veeck met with Gerry Nugent, president of the Philadelphia Phillies, to discuss the possibility of buying the struggling National League team. He later wrote in his memoirs that he intended to buy the Phillies and stock the team's roster with stars from the Negro leagues. Although no formal rules barred African-American players from the majors, none had appeared in organized baseball since the 1890s.
Veeck quickly secured financing to buy the Phillies, and agreed in principle to buy the team from Nugent. While on his way to Philadelphia to close on the purchase, Veeck decided to alert MLB Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis of his intentions.
Although Veeck knew Landis was an ardent segregationist, he did not believe Landis would dare say black players were unwelcome while blacks were fighting in World War II. However, when Veeck arrived in Philadelphia, he was surprised to discover that the National League had taken over the Phillies and was seeking a new owner (the Phillies were ultimately sold to lumber baron William D. Cox).
The authors of a controversial article in the 1998 issue of SABR's The National Pastime argued that Veeck invented the story of buying the Phillies and filling their roster with Negro leaguers, claiming Philadelphia's black press made no mention of a prospective sale to Veeck.
Subsequently, the article was criticized by historian Jules Tygiel, who reviewed it point-by-point in an article in the 2006 issue of SABR's The Baseball Research Journal, and in an appendix, entitled "Did Bill Veeck Lie About His Plan to Purchase the '43 Phillies?", published in Paul Dickson's biography, Bill Veeck: Baseball's Greatest Maverick. In the SABR article, Tygiel explained that Veeck and others had mentioned the alleged scheme to buy and stock the Phillies up to fifteen years before the publication of Veeck's memoir, but conceded that, "In all of these accounts the only voice telling the story remains Veeck's." The Tygiel article also conceded, "The overall assessment of Jordan, et al. - that Veeck's notion of buying the Phillies and fielding a team of Negro League stars never quite moved as far from the drawing board as Veeck claimed - may still be true. We still lack any solid evidence that confirms that Veeck had not only conceptualized this action, but made a firm offer to buy the Phillies and met a rebuff by Landis and Frick."
Joseph Thomas Moore wrote in his biography of Larry Doby, "Bill Veeck planned to buy the Philadelphia Phillies with the as yet unannounced intention of breaking that color line."
Cleveland Indians
In 1946, having sold his interest in the Class AAA Milwaukee Brewers, Veeck became the owner of a major league team, the Cleveland Indians. He immediately put all the team's games on radio (previously, only limited games had been broadcast). He also moved the team to Cleveland Municipal Stadium permanently in 1947. The team had split their games between the larger Municipal Stadium and the smaller League Park since the 1930s, but Veeck concluded that League Park was far too small and deteriorated to be viable.
In July of that year, he signed Larry Doby, the first black player to play in the American League. Doby's first game was on July 5 and before the game, Doby was introduced to his teammates by player-manager Lou Boudreau. "One by one, Lou introduced me to each player. 'This is Joe Gordon,' and Gordon put his hand out. 'This is Bob Lemon,' and Lemon put his hand out. 'This is Jim Hegan,' and Hegan put his hand out. All the guys put their hand out, all but three. As soon as he could, Bill Veeck got rid of those three", Doby said. The following year Veeck signed Satchel Paige to a contract, making the hurler the oldest rookie in major league history.
To take advantage of the large size of Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Veeck had a portable center field fence installed in 1947, which he could move in or out depending on how the distance favored the Indians against their opponents in a given series. The fence moved as much as between series opponents. Following the 1947 season, the American League countered with a rule change that fixed the distance of an outfield wall for the duration of a season.
As in Milwaukee, Veeck took a unique approach to promotions, hiring Max Patkin, the "Clown Prince of Baseball", as a coach. Patkin's appearance in the coaching box delighted fans and infuriated the front office of the American League.
Although Veeck had become extremely popular, an attempt in 1947 to trade Boudreau to the St. Louis Browns led to mass protests and petitions supporting Boudreau. Veeck, in response, said he would listen to the fans, and re-signed Boudreau to a new two-year contract. Veeck claimed later that the trade talks had already broken down before they became public, but he seized the opportunity to promote the concept he had dropped the idea of the trade in response to public outcry.
By 1948, led by Boudreau's .355 batting average, Cleveland won its first pennant and World Series since 1920. Famously, the following season Veeck buried the 1948 flag, once it became mathematically certain the team could not repeat its championship in 1949. Later that year, Veeck's first wife, Eleanor, filed for divorce. Most of his money was tied up in the Indians, so he was forced to sell the team to fund the divorce settlement. One year later, Veeck married his second wife Mary Frances Ackerman in 1950. He had met her the previous year while in Cleveland.
St. Louis Browns
After marrying Mary Frances Ackerman, Veeck bought an 80% stake in the St. Louis Browns in 1951. Hoping to force the NL's St. Louis Cardinals out of town, Veeck hired Cardinal greats Rogers Hornsby and Marty Marion as managers, and Dizzy Dean as an announcer; and he decorated their shared home park, Sportsman's Park, exclusively with Browns memorabilia. Ironically the Cardinals had been the Browns' tenants since 1920, even though they had long since passed the Browns as St. Louis' favorite team.
Some of Veeck's most memorable publicity stunts occurred during his tenure with the Browns, including the appearance on August 19, 1951, by Eddie Gaedel, who stood tall and is the shortest person to appear in a Major League Baseball game. Veeck sent Gaedel to pinch hit in the bottom of the first of the game. Wearing "1/8" as his uniform number, Gaedel was walked on four straight pitches and then was pulled for a pinch runner.
Shortly afterwards "Grandstand Manager's Day" – involving Veeck, Connie Mack, and thousands of regular fans, enabled the crowd to vote on various in-game strategic decisions by holding up placards: the Browns won, 5–3, snapping a four-game losing streak.
After the 1952 season, Veeck suggested that the American League clubs share radio and television revenue with visiting clubs, a proposal anathema to the powerful Yankees, whose broadcasting revenues dwarfed all the other AL franchises.
Outvoted, he refused to allow the Browns' opponents to broadcast games played against his team on the road. The league responded by eliminating the lucrative Friday night games in St. Louis.
A year later, Cardinals owner Fred Saigh was convicted of tax evasion. Facing certain banishment from baseball, he was forced to put the Cardinals up for sale. At first, the only credible offers came from out-of-town interests, and it appeared that Veeck would succeed in driving the Cardinals out of town.
However, just as Saigh was about to sell the Cardinals to interests who would have moved them to Houston, Texas, he instead accepted a much lower bid from St. Louis-based brewing giant Anheuser-Busch, who entered the picture with the specific intent of keeping the Cardinals in town. It has long been claimed that Saigh was persuaded to accept Anheuser-Busch's bid more out of civic duty than money. However, according to Anheuser-Busch historian William Knoedelseder, Saigh's first preference all along was to sell the Cardinals to interests who would keep the team in St. Louis.
What is beyond dispute is that as soon as Anheuser-Busch closed on its purchase of the Cardinals, Veeck knew he was finished in St. Louis. He quickly realized that with Anheuser-Busch's wealth behind them, the Cardinals now had more financial resources than he could even begin to match, especially since he had no other source of income. Reluctantly, he decided to move the Browns elsewhere. As a preliminary step, he sold Sportsman's Park to the Cardinals.
At first Veeck considered moving the Browns back to Milwaukee (where they had played their inaugural season in 1901). Milwaukee used recently built Milwaukee County Stadium in an attempt to entice the Browns.
However, the decision was in the hands of the Boston Braves, the parent team of the Brewers. Under major league rules of the time, the Braves held the major league rights to Milwaukee. The Braves wanted another team with the same talent if the Brewers were shut down, and an agreement was not made in time for the start of the 1953 season. Ironically, a few weeks later, the Braves themselves moved to Milwaukee. St. Louis was known to want the team to stay, so some in St. Louis campaigned for the removal of Veeck.
Undaunted, Veeck got in touch with a group that was looking to bring a Major League franchise to Baltimore, Maryland. After the 1953 season, Veeck agreed in principle to sell half his stock to Baltimore attorney Clarence Miles, the front man of the Baltimore group, and his other partners. He would have remained the principal owner, with approximately a 40% interest. Even though league president Will Harridge told him approval was certain, only four owners—two short of the necessary six for passage—supported it. Realizing the other owners simply wanted him out of the picture (indeed, he was facing threats of having his franchise canceled), Veeck agreed to sell his entire stake to Miles' group, who then moved the Browns to Baltimore, where they were renamed as the Orioles, which has been their name ever since.
Chicago White Sox
Taking advantage of inter-familial friction within the Comiskey family, in 1959, Veeck became head of a group that purchased a controlling interest in the Chicago White Sox. Following Veeck's acquisition of the team, the White Sox went on to win their first pennant in 40 years. That year the White Sox broke a team attendance record for home games with 1.4 million. The next year the team broke the same record with 1.6 million visitors to Comiskey Park with the addition of the first "exploding scoreboard" in the major leagues – producing electrical and sound effects, and shooting fireworks whenever the White Sox hit a home run. The "exploding scoreboard" was carried over to the "new" Comiskey Park (now Guaranteed Rate Field) when it opened in 1991.
One year later in 1960, Veeck and former Detroit Tigers great Hank Greenberg, his partner with the Indians and White Sox, reportedly made a strong bid for the American League expansion franchise in Los Angeles. Greenberg would have been the principal owner, with Veeck as a minority partner. However Los Angeles Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley was not willing to compete with a team owned by Veeck, even if he would only be a minority partner. When O'Malley heard of the deal, he invoked his exclusive franchise rights for Southern California. Any potential owner of an American League team in the area would have had to have O'Malley's approval, and it was apparent that O'Malley would not allow any team to set up shop with Veeck as a major shareholder. Rather than try to persuade his friend to back out, Greenberg abandoned his bid for what became the Los Angeles Angels.
In 1961, due to poor health, Veeck sold his share of the White Sox to John and Arthur Allyn for $2.5 million. After selling the White Sox, Veeck worked intermittently as a television commentator for ABC. Veeck then moved to the Eastern Shore of Maryland with his family to convalesce.
When his health improved, Veeck made an unsuccessful attempt to buy the Washington Senators, then operated the Suffolk Downs race track in Boston in 1969–70. Veeck was not heard from again in baseball ownership circles until 1975, when he repurchased the White Sox from John Allyn (sole owner since 1969). Veeck's return rankled baseball's establishment, most owners viewing him as a pariah after exposing industry politics and maneuvering in his 1961 book Veeck As In Wreck. The owners were also unhappy with Veeck's extensive unfavorable discussion of the 1964 purchase of the New York Yankees by CBS in 1965's The Hustler's Handbook (a move Veeck felt exposed MLB to dangerous antitrust liabilities and endangered the antitrust exemption established in a 1922 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court).
However, he was the only potential buyer willing to keep the White Sox in Chicago after an offer was made to buy the team and move it to Seattle, Washington. After an initial vote by AL owners rejected his White Sox bid, Veeck discussed a possible lawsuit; another vote was taken and Veeck was approved by one vote.
Almost immediately after reassuming control of the Sox, Veeck unleashed another publicity stunt. He and general manager Roland Hemond conducted four trades in a hotel lobby, in full view of the public; other owners considered this undignified. Two weeks later, however, arbitrator Peter Seitz's ruling struck down the reserve clause and ushered in the era of free agency, leading to dramatic increases in player salaries. Ironically Veeck had been the only baseball owner to testify in support of Curt Flood during his landmark court case, at which Flood had attempted to gain free agency after being traded to the Philadelphia Phillies. Veeck had proposed a gradual transition to a free-agent system in which players would gain free agency rights after a certain amount of service time. The owners gambled that Seitz would rule in their favor and maintain the reserve clause; he did not.
On the field, Veeck presented a Bicentennial-themed "Spirit of '76" parade on Opening Day in 1976, casting himself as the peg-legged fifer bringing up the rear. In the same year he reactivated Minnie Miñoso for eight at-bats, in order to give Miñoso a claim towards playing in four decades; he did so again in 1980, to expand the claim to five. He also unveiled radically altered uniforms for the players, including clamdigger pants and even shorts, which the Sox wore for the first time against the Kansas City Royals on August 8, 1976.
In an attempt to adapt to free agency he developed a "rent-a-player" model, centering on the acquisition of other clubs' stars in their option years. The gambit was moderately successful: in 1977 the White Sox won 90 games, and finished in third place with additions like Oscar Gamble and Richie Zisk.
During this last run, Veeck decided to have announcer Harry Caray sing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the seventh-inning stretch. Veeck asked Caray to sing for the entire park, but he refused. Veeck replied that he already had a recording, so Caray would be heard either way. Caray reluctantly agreed to sing it live, accompanied by White Sox organist Nancy Faust, and went on to become famous for singing the tune, continuing to do so at Wrigley Field after becoming the broadcaster of the Chicago Cubs.
The 1979 season was filled with more promotions. On April 10 he offered fans free admission the day after a 10–2 Opening Day defeat by the Toronto Blue Jays. On July 12, Veeck, with assistance from son Mike and radio personality Steve Dahl, held one of his most infamous promotions, Disco Demolition Night, between games of a scheduled doubleheader, which resulted in a riot at Comiskey Park and a forfeit to the visiting Detroit Tigers.
Life after baseball
Finding himself no longer able to financially compete in the free agent era, Veeck sold the White Sox in January 1981. Following the sale, new White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf made several negative references to Veeck's tenure with the team; in response, Veeck publicly transferred his allegiance back to the Chicago Cubs, the team his father had operated in his youth. Veeck retired to his home in Chicago but in summer could often be found in the Wrigley Field bleachers.
Veeck also wrote occasional articles for magazines and newspapers, usually opining on the overall state of baseball.
Poor health and death
Veeck had been a heavy smoker and drinker until 1980. In 1984, Veeck underwent two operations for lung cancer. Two years later, on the day after New Year's Day, 1986, he died at the age of 71 from cancer. He was elected five years later to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
When he died at age 71, he was survived by his wife, Mary Frances, and eight of his nine children. Two of the surviving children, Peter and Ellen, were from his first marriage, and the others (Mike, Marya, Greg, Lisa, Julie and Chris) were from his second marriage. He was predeceased by his eldest child, William III, who died in 1985. His body was cremated. Mike Veeck became owner of the independent minor-league St. Paul Saints and still is a partner in the team. The younger Veeck and co-owner actor Bill Murray emulated many of Bill Veeck's promotional stunts with the Saints. Greg Veeck earned a Ph.D. at University of Georgia in 1988 and is a geography professor at Western Michigan University focusing on urban geology and East Asia.
Books by Veeck
Veeck wrote three autobiographical works, each a collaboration with journalist Ed Linn. The first two were reissued in updated editions in the 1980s following Veeck's return to baseball ownership. The books include:
Veeck As In Wreck (1962) – a straightforward autobiography, written after Veeck's then-declining health forced him to sell his interest in the White Sox
The Hustler's Handbook (1965) – a sequel and extension of Wreck, divulging his experiences in operating as an outsider in the major leagues, detailing many episodes of behind-the-scenes drama in baseball, including the 1965 acquisition of the New York Yankees by CBS and the maneuvering involved in the move of the Milwaukee Braves to Atlanta, and also a recounting of the 1919 Black Sox Scandal through a diary by Harry Grabiner, business manager of the White Sox in 1919 and much later, an associate of Veeck with the Indians in 1948.
Thirty Tons A Day (1972) – chronicling the time he spent running Suffolk Downs racetrack in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The title refers to the daily quantity of waste (horse excrement, used hay and straw, etc.) that had to be disposed of.
Awards and honors
1948 World Series champion (as owner/president of the Cleveland Indians)
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum (Class of 1991)
The Baseball Reliquary's Shrine of the Eternals (class of 1999).
In 2013, the Bob Feller Act of Valor Award honored Veeck as one of 37 Baseball Hall of Fame members for his service in the United States Marine Corps during World War II.
See also
List of members of the Baseball Hall of Fame
Notes
References
External links
In Praise of Bill Veeck – slideshow by Life magazine
1914 births
1986 deaths
20th-century American businesspeople
American amputees
Businesspeople from Chicago
Chicago White Sox executives
Chicago White Sox owners
Cleveland Indians executives
Cleveland Indians owners
Deaths from cancer in Illinois
Deaths from lung cancer
Kenyon College alumni
Major League Baseball executives
Major League Baseball general managers
Major League Baseball owners
Minor league baseball executives
National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees
People from Hinsdale, Illinois
People from St. Michaels, Maryland
Phillips Academy alumni
St. Louis Browns executives
St. Louis Browns owners
Suffolk Downs executives
United States Marines
United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II | true | [
"Spain sent a delegation to compete at the 1984 Winter Paralympics, in Innsbruck, Austria.\n\nSpain did not win any medals.\n\nClassification\nEach event had separate standing, sitting, or visually impaired classifications:\n\nLW2 - standing: single leg amputation above the knee\nLW 3 - standing: double leg amputation below the knee, mild cerebral palsy, or equivalent impairment\nLW4 - standing: single leg amputation below the knee\nLW5/7 - standing: double arm amputation\nLW6/8 - standing: single arm amputation\nLW9 - standing: amputation or equivalent impairment of one arm and one leg\nB1 - visually impaired: no functional vision\nB2 - visually impaired: up to ca 3-5% functional vision\n\nAlpine skiing\n\nMen\n\nSee also\nSpain at the 1984 Winter Olympics\nSpain at the Paralympics\n\nReferences\n\n \n\n \n\nAthlete Search Results - ESP - 1984PWG, International Paralympic Committee (IPC)\n\nNations at the 1984 Winter Paralympics\n1984\nParalympics",
"Czechoslovakia sent a delegation to compete at the 1984 Winter Paralympics, in Innsbruck, Austria.\n\nCzechoslovakia did not win any medals.\n\nClassification\nEach event had separate standing, sitting, or visually impaired classifications:\n\nLW2 - standing: single leg amputation above the knee\nLW 3 - standing: double leg amputation below the knee, mild cerebral palsy, or equivalent impairment\nLW4 - standing: single leg amputation below the knee\nLW5/7 - standing: double arm amputation\nLW6/8 - standing: single arm amputation\nLW9 - standing: amputation or equivalent impairment of one arm and one leg\nB1 - visually impaired: no functional vision\nB2 - visually impaired: up to ca 3-5% functional vision\n\nAlpine skiing\n\nWomen\n\nMen\n\nSee also\nCzechoslovakia at the 1984 Winter Olympics\nCzechoslovakia at the Paralympics\n\nReferences\n\n \n\n \n\nAthlete Search Results - TCH - 1984PWG, International Paralympic Committee (IPC)\n\nNations at the 1984 Winter Paralympics\n1984\nParalympics"
]
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"When was Bill in Milwaukee",
"In 1942, Veeck left Chicago and, in partnership with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers.",
"What did he do after that",
"After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit.",
"Did he have any famous players there?",
"According to his autobiography Veeck - As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult",
"What else did he do in Milwaukee",
"While a half-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit.",
"Did he have any interesting stories from the war",
"During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee.",
"How did the amputation affect his life",
"Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg."
]
| C_45e84fb34aab425fba958a342fb8574f_1 | What else happened with the war | 7 | What else happened to Bill Veeck in World War II, other than the amputation of his leg? | Bill Veeck | In 1942, Veeck left Chicago and, in partnership with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit. According to his autobiography Veeck - As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult for left-handed pull hitters of the opposing team. The screen was on wheels, so any given day it might be in place or not, depending on the batting strength of the opposing team. There was no rule against that activity as such, but Veeck then took it to an extreme, rolling it out when the opponents batted, and pulling it back when the Brewers batted. Veeck reported that the league passed a rule against it the very next day. However, extensive research by two members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) suggests that this story was made up by Veeck. The two researchers could not find any references to a moveable fence or any reference to the gear required for a moveable fence to work. While a half-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray. CANNOTANSWER | He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray. | William Louis Veeck Jr. (; February 9, 1914 – January 2, 1986), also known as "Sport Shirt Bill", was an American Major League Baseball franchise owner and promoter. Veeck was at various times the owner of the Cleveland Indians, St. Louis Browns and Chicago White Sox. As owner and team president of the Indians in 1947, Veeck signed Larry Doby, thus beginning the integration of the American League, and the following year won a World Series title as Cleveland's owner/president.
Veeck was the last owner to purchase a baseball franchise without an independent fortune, and is responsible for many innovations and contributions to baseball.
Unable to compete in the new era of salary escalation ignited by arbitration and free agency, Veeck sold his ownership interests after the 1980 Chicago White Sox season. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991.
Early life
Bill Veeck was born on February 9, 1914, in Chicago, Illinois. While Veeck was growing up in Hinsdale, Illinois, his father, William Veeck Sr., became president of the Chicago Cubs. Veeck Sr. was a local sports writer who wrote numerous columns about how he would run the Cubs differently, and the team's owner, William Wrigley Jr., took him up on the implied offer. While growing up, the younger Veeck worked as a popcorn vendor for the Cubs and also as a part-time concession salesman for the crosstown Chicago White Sox. Later, in 1937, he came up with the idea of planting ivy on the walls of Wrigley Field. Veeck attended Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. In 1933, when his father died, Veeck left Kenyon College and eventually became club treasurer for the Cubs. In 1935, he married his first wife, Eleanor.
Franchise owner
Minor League Baseball
Milwaukee Brewers
In 1940, Veeck left Chicago and, in a syndicate with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit.
According to his autobiography Veeck – As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult for left-handed pull hitters of the opposing team. The screen was on wheels, so any given day it might be in place or not, depending on the batting strength of the opposing team. There was no rule against that activity as such, but Veeck then took it to an extreme, rolling it out when the opponents batted, and pulling it back when the Brewers batted. Veeck reported that the league passed a rule against it the very next day. However, extensive research by two members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) suggests that this story was made up by Veeck. The two researchers could not find any references to a moveable fence or any reference to the gear required for a moveable fence to work.
While a co-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his right leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray.
Major League Baseball
Attempted purchase of Philadelphia Phillies
Veeck had been a fan of the Negro leagues since his early teens. He had also admired Abe Saperstein's Harlem Globetrotters basketball team, which was based in Chicago. Saperstein saved Veeck from financial disaster early on in Milwaukee by giving him the right to promote the Globetrotters in the upper Midwest in the winter of 1941–42.
In the fall of 1942, Veeck met with Gerry Nugent, president of the Philadelphia Phillies, to discuss the possibility of buying the struggling National League team. He later wrote in his memoirs that he intended to buy the Phillies and stock the team's roster with stars from the Negro leagues. Although no formal rules barred African-American players from the majors, none had appeared in organized baseball since the 1890s.
Veeck quickly secured financing to buy the Phillies, and agreed in principle to buy the team from Nugent. While on his way to Philadelphia to close on the purchase, Veeck decided to alert MLB Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis of his intentions.
Although Veeck knew Landis was an ardent segregationist, he did not believe Landis would dare say black players were unwelcome while blacks were fighting in World War II. However, when Veeck arrived in Philadelphia, he was surprised to discover that the National League had taken over the Phillies and was seeking a new owner (the Phillies were ultimately sold to lumber baron William D. Cox).
The authors of a controversial article in the 1998 issue of SABR's The National Pastime argued that Veeck invented the story of buying the Phillies and filling their roster with Negro leaguers, claiming Philadelphia's black press made no mention of a prospective sale to Veeck.
Subsequently, the article was criticized by historian Jules Tygiel, who reviewed it point-by-point in an article in the 2006 issue of SABR's The Baseball Research Journal, and in an appendix, entitled "Did Bill Veeck Lie About His Plan to Purchase the '43 Phillies?", published in Paul Dickson's biography, Bill Veeck: Baseball's Greatest Maverick. In the SABR article, Tygiel explained that Veeck and others had mentioned the alleged scheme to buy and stock the Phillies up to fifteen years before the publication of Veeck's memoir, but conceded that, "In all of these accounts the only voice telling the story remains Veeck's." The Tygiel article also conceded, "The overall assessment of Jordan, et al. - that Veeck's notion of buying the Phillies and fielding a team of Negro League stars never quite moved as far from the drawing board as Veeck claimed - may still be true. We still lack any solid evidence that confirms that Veeck had not only conceptualized this action, but made a firm offer to buy the Phillies and met a rebuff by Landis and Frick."
Joseph Thomas Moore wrote in his biography of Larry Doby, "Bill Veeck planned to buy the Philadelphia Phillies with the as yet unannounced intention of breaking that color line."
Cleveland Indians
In 1946, having sold his interest in the Class AAA Milwaukee Brewers, Veeck became the owner of a major league team, the Cleveland Indians. He immediately put all the team's games on radio (previously, only limited games had been broadcast). He also moved the team to Cleveland Municipal Stadium permanently in 1947. The team had split their games between the larger Municipal Stadium and the smaller League Park since the 1930s, but Veeck concluded that League Park was far too small and deteriorated to be viable.
In July of that year, he signed Larry Doby, the first black player to play in the American League. Doby's first game was on July 5 and before the game, Doby was introduced to his teammates by player-manager Lou Boudreau. "One by one, Lou introduced me to each player. 'This is Joe Gordon,' and Gordon put his hand out. 'This is Bob Lemon,' and Lemon put his hand out. 'This is Jim Hegan,' and Hegan put his hand out. All the guys put their hand out, all but three. As soon as he could, Bill Veeck got rid of those three", Doby said. The following year Veeck signed Satchel Paige to a contract, making the hurler the oldest rookie in major league history.
To take advantage of the large size of Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Veeck had a portable center field fence installed in 1947, which he could move in or out depending on how the distance favored the Indians against their opponents in a given series. The fence moved as much as between series opponents. Following the 1947 season, the American League countered with a rule change that fixed the distance of an outfield wall for the duration of a season.
As in Milwaukee, Veeck took a unique approach to promotions, hiring Max Patkin, the "Clown Prince of Baseball", as a coach. Patkin's appearance in the coaching box delighted fans and infuriated the front office of the American League.
Although Veeck had become extremely popular, an attempt in 1947 to trade Boudreau to the St. Louis Browns led to mass protests and petitions supporting Boudreau. Veeck, in response, said he would listen to the fans, and re-signed Boudreau to a new two-year contract. Veeck claimed later that the trade talks had already broken down before they became public, but he seized the opportunity to promote the concept he had dropped the idea of the trade in response to public outcry.
By 1948, led by Boudreau's .355 batting average, Cleveland won its first pennant and World Series since 1920. Famously, the following season Veeck buried the 1948 flag, once it became mathematically certain the team could not repeat its championship in 1949. Later that year, Veeck's first wife, Eleanor, filed for divorce. Most of his money was tied up in the Indians, so he was forced to sell the team to fund the divorce settlement. One year later, Veeck married his second wife Mary Frances Ackerman in 1950. He had met her the previous year while in Cleveland.
St. Louis Browns
After marrying Mary Frances Ackerman, Veeck bought an 80% stake in the St. Louis Browns in 1951. Hoping to force the NL's St. Louis Cardinals out of town, Veeck hired Cardinal greats Rogers Hornsby and Marty Marion as managers, and Dizzy Dean as an announcer; and he decorated their shared home park, Sportsman's Park, exclusively with Browns memorabilia. Ironically the Cardinals had been the Browns' tenants since 1920, even though they had long since passed the Browns as St. Louis' favorite team.
Some of Veeck's most memorable publicity stunts occurred during his tenure with the Browns, including the appearance on August 19, 1951, by Eddie Gaedel, who stood tall and is the shortest person to appear in a Major League Baseball game. Veeck sent Gaedel to pinch hit in the bottom of the first of the game. Wearing "1/8" as his uniform number, Gaedel was walked on four straight pitches and then was pulled for a pinch runner.
Shortly afterwards "Grandstand Manager's Day" – involving Veeck, Connie Mack, and thousands of regular fans, enabled the crowd to vote on various in-game strategic decisions by holding up placards: the Browns won, 5–3, snapping a four-game losing streak.
After the 1952 season, Veeck suggested that the American League clubs share radio and television revenue with visiting clubs, a proposal anathema to the powerful Yankees, whose broadcasting revenues dwarfed all the other AL franchises.
Outvoted, he refused to allow the Browns' opponents to broadcast games played against his team on the road. The league responded by eliminating the lucrative Friday night games in St. Louis.
A year later, Cardinals owner Fred Saigh was convicted of tax evasion. Facing certain banishment from baseball, he was forced to put the Cardinals up for sale. At first, the only credible offers came from out-of-town interests, and it appeared that Veeck would succeed in driving the Cardinals out of town.
However, just as Saigh was about to sell the Cardinals to interests who would have moved them to Houston, Texas, he instead accepted a much lower bid from St. Louis-based brewing giant Anheuser-Busch, who entered the picture with the specific intent of keeping the Cardinals in town. It has long been claimed that Saigh was persuaded to accept Anheuser-Busch's bid more out of civic duty than money. However, according to Anheuser-Busch historian William Knoedelseder, Saigh's first preference all along was to sell the Cardinals to interests who would keep the team in St. Louis.
What is beyond dispute is that as soon as Anheuser-Busch closed on its purchase of the Cardinals, Veeck knew he was finished in St. Louis. He quickly realized that with Anheuser-Busch's wealth behind them, the Cardinals now had more financial resources than he could even begin to match, especially since he had no other source of income. Reluctantly, he decided to move the Browns elsewhere. As a preliminary step, he sold Sportsman's Park to the Cardinals.
At first Veeck considered moving the Browns back to Milwaukee (where they had played their inaugural season in 1901). Milwaukee used recently built Milwaukee County Stadium in an attempt to entice the Browns.
However, the decision was in the hands of the Boston Braves, the parent team of the Brewers. Under major league rules of the time, the Braves held the major league rights to Milwaukee. The Braves wanted another team with the same talent if the Brewers were shut down, and an agreement was not made in time for the start of the 1953 season. Ironically, a few weeks later, the Braves themselves moved to Milwaukee. St. Louis was known to want the team to stay, so some in St. Louis campaigned for the removal of Veeck.
Undaunted, Veeck got in touch with a group that was looking to bring a Major League franchise to Baltimore, Maryland. After the 1953 season, Veeck agreed in principle to sell half his stock to Baltimore attorney Clarence Miles, the front man of the Baltimore group, and his other partners. He would have remained the principal owner, with approximately a 40% interest. Even though league president Will Harridge told him approval was certain, only four owners—two short of the necessary six for passage—supported it. Realizing the other owners simply wanted him out of the picture (indeed, he was facing threats of having his franchise canceled), Veeck agreed to sell his entire stake to Miles' group, who then moved the Browns to Baltimore, where they were renamed as the Orioles, which has been their name ever since.
Chicago White Sox
Taking advantage of inter-familial friction within the Comiskey family, in 1959, Veeck became head of a group that purchased a controlling interest in the Chicago White Sox. Following Veeck's acquisition of the team, the White Sox went on to win their first pennant in 40 years. That year the White Sox broke a team attendance record for home games with 1.4 million. The next year the team broke the same record with 1.6 million visitors to Comiskey Park with the addition of the first "exploding scoreboard" in the major leagues – producing electrical and sound effects, and shooting fireworks whenever the White Sox hit a home run. The "exploding scoreboard" was carried over to the "new" Comiskey Park (now Guaranteed Rate Field) when it opened in 1991.
One year later in 1960, Veeck and former Detroit Tigers great Hank Greenberg, his partner with the Indians and White Sox, reportedly made a strong bid for the American League expansion franchise in Los Angeles. Greenberg would have been the principal owner, with Veeck as a minority partner. However Los Angeles Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley was not willing to compete with a team owned by Veeck, even if he would only be a minority partner. When O'Malley heard of the deal, he invoked his exclusive franchise rights for Southern California. Any potential owner of an American League team in the area would have had to have O'Malley's approval, and it was apparent that O'Malley would not allow any team to set up shop with Veeck as a major shareholder. Rather than try to persuade his friend to back out, Greenberg abandoned his bid for what became the Los Angeles Angels.
In 1961, due to poor health, Veeck sold his share of the White Sox to John and Arthur Allyn for $2.5 million. After selling the White Sox, Veeck worked intermittently as a television commentator for ABC. Veeck then moved to the Eastern Shore of Maryland with his family to convalesce.
When his health improved, Veeck made an unsuccessful attempt to buy the Washington Senators, then operated the Suffolk Downs race track in Boston in 1969–70. Veeck was not heard from again in baseball ownership circles until 1975, when he repurchased the White Sox from John Allyn (sole owner since 1969). Veeck's return rankled baseball's establishment, most owners viewing him as a pariah after exposing industry politics and maneuvering in his 1961 book Veeck As In Wreck. The owners were also unhappy with Veeck's extensive unfavorable discussion of the 1964 purchase of the New York Yankees by CBS in 1965's The Hustler's Handbook (a move Veeck felt exposed MLB to dangerous antitrust liabilities and endangered the antitrust exemption established in a 1922 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court).
However, he was the only potential buyer willing to keep the White Sox in Chicago after an offer was made to buy the team and move it to Seattle, Washington. After an initial vote by AL owners rejected his White Sox bid, Veeck discussed a possible lawsuit; another vote was taken and Veeck was approved by one vote.
Almost immediately after reassuming control of the Sox, Veeck unleashed another publicity stunt. He and general manager Roland Hemond conducted four trades in a hotel lobby, in full view of the public; other owners considered this undignified. Two weeks later, however, arbitrator Peter Seitz's ruling struck down the reserve clause and ushered in the era of free agency, leading to dramatic increases in player salaries. Ironically Veeck had been the only baseball owner to testify in support of Curt Flood during his landmark court case, at which Flood had attempted to gain free agency after being traded to the Philadelphia Phillies. Veeck had proposed a gradual transition to a free-agent system in which players would gain free agency rights after a certain amount of service time. The owners gambled that Seitz would rule in their favor and maintain the reserve clause; he did not.
On the field, Veeck presented a Bicentennial-themed "Spirit of '76" parade on Opening Day in 1976, casting himself as the peg-legged fifer bringing up the rear. In the same year he reactivated Minnie Miñoso for eight at-bats, in order to give Miñoso a claim towards playing in four decades; he did so again in 1980, to expand the claim to five. He also unveiled radically altered uniforms for the players, including clamdigger pants and even shorts, which the Sox wore for the first time against the Kansas City Royals on August 8, 1976.
In an attempt to adapt to free agency he developed a "rent-a-player" model, centering on the acquisition of other clubs' stars in their option years. The gambit was moderately successful: in 1977 the White Sox won 90 games, and finished in third place with additions like Oscar Gamble and Richie Zisk.
During this last run, Veeck decided to have announcer Harry Caray sing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the seventh-inning stretch. Veeck asked Caray to sing for the entire park, but he refused. Veeck replied that he already had a recording, so Caray would be heard either way. Caray reluctantly agreed to sing it live, accompanied by White Sox organist Nancy Faust, and went on to become famous for singing the tune, continuing to do so at Wrigley Field after becoming the broadcaster of the Chicago Cubs.
The 1979 season was filled with more promotions. On April 10 he offered fans free admission the day after a 10–2 Opening Day defeat by the Toronto Blue Jays. On July 12, Veeck, with assistance from son Mike and radio personality Steve Dahl, held one of his most infamous promotions, Disco Demolition Night, between games of a scheduled doubleheader, which resulted in a riot at Comiskey Park and a forfeit to the visiting Detroit Tigers.
Life after baseball
Finding himself no longer able to financially compete in the free agent era, Veeck sold the White Sox in January 1981. Following the sale, new White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf made several negative references to Veeck's tenure with the team; in response, Veeck publicly transferred his allegiance back to the Chicago Cubs, the team his father had operated in his youth. Veeck retired to his home in Chicago but in summer could often be found in the Wrigley Field bleachers.
Veeck also wrote occasional articles for magazines and newspapers, usually opining on the overall state of baseball.
Poor health and death
Veeck had been a heavy smoker and drinker until 1980. In 1984, Veeck underwent two operations for lung cancer. Two years later, on the day after New Year's Day, 1986, he died at the age of 71 from cancer. He was elected five years later to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
When he died at age 71, he was survived by his wife, Mary Frances, and eight of his nine children. Two of the surviving children, Peter and Ellen, were from his first marriage, and the others (Mike, Marya, Greg, Lisa, Julie and Chris) were from his second marriage. He was predeceased by his eldest child, William III, who died in 1985. His body was cremated. Mike Veeck became owner of the independent minor-league St. Paul Saints and still is a partner in the team. The younger Veeck and co-owner actor Bill Murray emulated many of Bill Veeck's promotional stunts with the Saints. Greg Veeck earned a Ph.D. at University of Georgia in 1988 and is a geography professor at Western Michigan University focusing on urban geology and East Asia.
Books by Veeck
Veeck wrote three autobiographical works, each a collaboration with journalist Ed Linn. The first two were reissued in updated editions in the 1980s following Veeck's return to baseball ownership. The books include:
Veeck As In Wreck (1962) – a straightforward autobiography, written after Veeck's then-declining health forced him to sell his interest in the White Sox
The Hustler's Handbook (1965) – a sequel and extension of Wreck, divulging his experiences in operating as an outsider in the major leagues, detailing many episodes of behind-the-scenes drama in baseball, including the 1965 acquisition of the New York Yankees by CBS and the maneuvering involved in the move of the Milwaukee Braves to Atlanta, and also a recounting of the 1919 Black Sox Scandal through a diary by Harry Grabiner, business manager of the White Sox in 1919 and much later, an associate of Veeck with the Indians in 1948.
Thirty Tons A Day (1972) – chronicling the time he spent running Suffolk Downs racetrack in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The title refers to the daily quantity of waste (horse excrement, used hay and straw, etc.) that had to be disposed of.
Awards and honors
1948 World Series champion (as owner/president of the Cleveland Indians)
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum (Class of 1991)
The Baseball Reliquary's Shrine of the Eternals (class of 1999).
In 2013, the Bob Feller Act of Valor Award honored Veeck as one of 37 Baseball Hall of Fame members for his service in the United States Marine Corps during World War II.
See also
List of members of the Baseball Hall of Fame
Notes
References
External links
In Praise of Bill Veeck – slideshow by Life magazine
1914 births
1986 deaths
20th-century American businesspeople
American amputees
Businesspeople from Chicago
Chicago White Sox executives
Chicago White Sox owners
Cleveland Indians executives
Cleveland Indians owners
Deaths from cancer in Illinois
Deaths from lung cancer
Kenyon College alumni
Major League Baseball executives
Major League Baseball general managers
Major League Baseball owners
Minor league baseball executives
National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees
People from Hinsdale, Illinois
People from St. Michaels, Maryland
Phillips Academy alumni
St. Louis Browns executives
St. Louis Browns owners
Suffolk Downs executives
United States Marines
United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II | true | [
"¿Qué hubiera pasado si...? (in English, What would have happened if...?) is a counterfactual history Argentine book written by Rosendo Fraga. The book speculates on how would the History of Argentina have developed if certain key events did not take place or had happened in a different way.\n\nDescription\nAmong other things, the book speculates what would have happened if the viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata wasn't created, if the British invasions of the Río de la Plata did not fail, if José de San Martín had obeyed the Supreme Directors and returned with the Army of the Andes to fight Artigas instead of taking the independentist war to Peru, if the Conquest of the Desert did not take place, if the different coup d'états that took place in Argentina did not happen or were defeated, and if Argentina had obtained the sovereignty of the Malvinas. Each chapter starts with a basic premise but speculates as well on related possibilities that could have influenced changes: for example, the one on San Martin questions as well what would have happened if the government of Chile fell, if a Spanish task force arrived to take Buenos Aires, and what stance could have the caudillos taken in those hypothetic scenarios.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Interview with Rosendo Fraga about the book \n\nArgentine books\nAlternate history anthologies",
"Don Juan Manuel's Tales of Count Lucanor, in Spanish Libro de los ejemplos del conde Lucanor y de Patronio (Book of the Examples of Count Lucanor and of Patronio), also commonly known as El Conde Lucanor, Libro de Patronio, or Libro de los ejemplos (original Old Castilian: Libro de los enxiemplos del Conde Lucanor et de Patronio), is one of the earliest works of prose in Castilian Spanish. It was first written in 1335.\n\nThe book is divided into four parts. The first and most well-known part is a series of 51 short stories (some no more than a page or two) drawn from various sources, such as Aesop and other classical writers, and Arabic folktales.\n\nTales of Count Lucanor was first printed in 1575 when it was published at Seville under the auspices of Argote de Molina. It was again printed at Madrid in 1642, after which it lay forgotten for nearly two centuries.\n\nPurpose and structure\n\nA didactic, moralistic purpose, which would color so much of the Spanish literature to follow (see Novela picaresca), is the mark of this book. Count Lucanor engages in conversation with his advisor Patronio, putting to him a problem (\"Some man has made me a proposition...\" or \"I fear that such and such person intends to...\") and asking for advice. Patronio responds always with the greatest humility, claiming not to wish to offer advice to so illustrious a person as the Count, but offering to tell him a story of which the Count's problem reminds him. (Thus, the stories are \"examples\" [ejemplos] of wise action.) At the end he advises the Count to do as the protagonist of his story did.\n\nEach chapter ends in more or less the same way, with slight variations on: \"And this pleased the Count greatly and he did just so, and found it well. And Don Johán (Juan) saw that this example was very good, and had it written in this book, and composed the following verses.\" A rhymed couplet closes, giving the moral of the story.\n\nOrigin of stories and influence on later literature\nMany of the stories written in the book are the first examples written in a modern European language of various stories, which many other writers would use in the proceeding centuries. Many of the stories he included were themselves derived from other stories, coming from western and Arab sources.\n\nShakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew has the basic elements of Tale 35, \"What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\".\n\nTale 32, \"What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth\" tells the story that Hans Christian Andersen made popular as The Emperor's New Clothes.\n\nStory 7, \"What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana\", a version of Aesop's The Milkmaid and Her Pail, was claimed by Max Müller to originate in the Hindu cycle Panchatantra.\n\nTale 2, \"What happened to a good Man and his Son, leading a beast to market,\" is the familiar fable The miller, his son and the donkey.\n\nIn 2016, Baroque Decay released a game under the name \"The Count Lucanor\". As well as some protagonists' names, certain events from the books inspired past events in the game.\n\nThe stories\n\nThe book opens with a prologue which introduces the characters of the Count and Patronio. The titles in the following list are those given in Keller and Keating's 1977 translation into English. James York's 1868 translation into English gives a significantly different ordering of the stories and omits the fifty-first.\n\n What Happened to a King and His Favorite \n What Happened to a Good Man and His Son \n How King Richard of England Leapt into the Sea against the Moors\n What a Genoese Said to His Soul When He Was about to Die \n What Happened to a Fox and a Crow Who Had a Piece of Cheese in His Beak\n How the Swallow Warned the Other Birds When She Saw Flax Being Sown \n What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana \n What Happened to a Man Whose Liver Had to Be Washed \n What Happened to Two Horses Which Were Thrown to the Lion \n What Happened to a Man Who on Account of Poverty and Lack of Other Food Was Eating Bitter Lentils \n What Happened to a Dean of Santiago de Compostela and Don Yllán, the Grand Master of Toledo\n What Happened to the Fox and the Rooster \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Hunting Partridges \n The Miracle of Saint Dominick When He Preached against the Usurer \n What Happened to Lorenzo Suárez at the Siege of Seville \n The Reply that count Fernán González Gave to His Relative Núño Laynes \n What Happened to a Very Hungry Man Who Was Half-heartedly Invited to Dinner \n What Happened to Pero Meléndez de Valdés When He Broke His Leg \n What Happened to the Crows and the Owls \n What Happened to a King for Whom a Man Promised to Perform Alchemy \n What Happened to a Young King and a Philosopher to Whom his Father Commended Him \n What Happened to the Lion and the Bull \n How the Ants Provide for Themselves \n What Happened to the King Who Wanted to Test His Three Sons \n What Happened to the Count of Provence and How He Was Freed from Prison by the Advice of Saladin\n What Happened to the Tree of Lies \n What Happened to an Emperor and to Don Alvarfáñez Minaya and Their Wives \n What Happened in Granada to Don Lorenzo Suárez Gallinato When He Beheaded the Renegade Chaplain \n What Happened to a Fox Who Lay down in the Street to Play Dead \n What Happened to King Abenabet of Seville and Ramayquía His Wife \n How a Cardinal Judged between the Canons of Paris and the Friars Minor \n What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth \n What Happened to Don Juan Manuel's Saker Falcon and an Eagle and a Heron \n What Happened to a Blind Man Who Was Leading Another \n What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\n What Happened to a Merchant When He Found His Son and His Wife Sleeping Together \n What Happened to Count Fernán González with His Men after He Had Won the Battle of Hacinas \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Loaded down with Precious Stones and Drowned in the River \n What Happened to a Man and a Swallow and a Sparrow \n Why the Seneschal of Carcassonne Lost His Soul \n What Happened to a King of Córdova Named Al-Haquem \n What Happened to a Woman of Sham Piety \n What Happened to Good and Evil and the Wise Man and the Madman \n What Happened to Don Pero Núñez the Loyal, to Don Ruy González de Zavallos, and to Don Gutier Roiz de Blaguiello with Don Rodrigo the Generous \n What Happened to a Man Who Became the Devil's Friend and Vassal \n What Happened to a Philosopher who by Accident Went down a Street Where Prostitutes Lived \n What Befell a Moor and His Sister Who Pretended That She Was Timid \n What Happened to a Man Who Tested His Friends \n What Happened to the Man Whom They Cast out Naked on an Island When They Took away from Him the Kingdom He Ruled \n What Happened to Saladin and a Lady, the Wife of a Knight Who Was His Vassal \n What Happened to a Christian King Who Was Very Powerful and Haughty\n\nReferences\n\nNotes\n\nBibliography\n\n Sturm, Harlan\n\n Wacks, David\n\nExternal links\n\nThe Internet Archive provides free access to the 1868 translation by James York.\nJSTOR has the to the 1977 translation by Keller and Keating.\nSelections in English and Spanish (pedagogical edition) with introduction, notes, and bibliography in Open Iberia/América (open access teaching anthology)\n\n14th-century books\nSpanish literature\n1335 books"
]
|
[
"Bill Veeck",
"Milwaukee Brewers",
"When was Bill in Milwaukee",
"In 1942, Veeck left Chicago and, in partnership with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers.",
"What did he do after that",
"After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit.",
"Did he have any famous players there?",
"According to his autobiography Veeck - As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult",
"What else did he do in Milwaukee",
"While a half-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit.",
"Did he have any interesting stories from the war",
"During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee.",
"How did the amputation affect his life",
"Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg.",
"What else happened with the war",
"He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray."
]
| C_45e84fb34aab425fba958a342fb8574f_1 | Did he continue working with Milwaukee after the war | 8 | Did Bill Veeck continue working with Milwaukee after the war? | Bill Veeck | In 1942, Veeck left Chicago and, in partnership with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit. According to his autobiography Veeck - As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult for left-handed pull hitters of the opposing team. The screen was on wheels, so any given day it might be in place or not, depending on the batting strength of the opposing team. There was no rule against that activity as such, but Veeck then took it to an extreme, rolling it out when the opponents batted, and pulling it back when the Brewers batted. Veeck reported that the league passed a rule against it the very next day. However, extensive research by two members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) suggests that this story was made up by Veeck. The two researchers could not find any references to a moveable fence or any reference to the gear required for a moveable fence to work. While a half-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | William Louis Veeck Jr. (; February 9, 1914 – January 2, 1986), also known as "Sport Shirt Bill", was an American Major League Baseball franchise owner and promoter. Veeck was at various times the owner of the Cleveland Indians, St. Louis Browns and Chicago White Sox. As owner and team president of the Indians in 1947, Veeck signed Larry Doby, thus beginning the integration of the American League, and the following year won a World Series title as Cleveland's owner/president.
Veeck was the last owner to purchase a baseball franchise without an independent fortune, and is responsible for many innovations and contributions to baseball.
Unable to compete in the new era of salary escalation ignited by arbitration and free agency, Veeck sold his ownership interests after the 1980 Chicago White Sox season. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991.
Early life
Bill Veeck was born on February 9, 1914, in Chicago, Illinois. While Veeck was growing up in Hinsdale, Illinois, his father, William Veeck Sr., became president of the Chicago Cubs. Veeck Sr. was a local sports writer who wrote numerous columns about how he would run the Cubs differently, and the team's owner, William Wrigley Jr., took him up on the implied offer. While growing up, the younger Veeck worked as a popcorn vendor for the Cubs and also as a part-time concession salesman for the crosstown Chicago White Sox. Later, in 1937, he came up with the idea of planting ivy on the walls of Wrigley Field. Veeck attended Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. In 1933, when his father died, Veeck left Kenyon College and eventually became club treasurer for the Cubs. In 1935, he married his first wife, Eleanor.
Franchise owner
Minor League Baseball
Milwaukee Brewers
In 1940, Veeck left Chicago and, in a syndicate with former Cubs star and manager Charlie Grimm, purchased the American Association Triple-A Milwaukee Brewers. After winning three pennants in five years Veeck sold his Milwaukee franchise in 1945 for a $275,000 profit.
According to his autobiography Veeck – As in Wreck, Veeck claimed to have installed a screen to make the right field target a little more difficult for left-handed pull hitters of the opposing team. The screen was on wheels, so any given day it might be in place or not, depending on the batting strength of the opposing team. There was no rule against that activity as such, but Veeck then took it to an extreme, rolling it out when the opponents batted, and pulling it back when the Brewers batted. Veeck reported that the league passed a rule against it the very next day. However, extensive research by two members of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) suggests that this story was made up by Veeck. The two researchers could not find any references to a moveable fence or any reference to the gear required for a moveable fence to work.
While a co-owner of the Brewers, Veeck served for nearly three years in the United States Marine Corps during World War II in an artillery unit. During this time a recoiling artillery piece crushed his right leg, requiring amputation first of the foot, and shortly after of the leg above the knee. Over the course of his life he had 36 operations on the leg. He had a series of wooden legs and, as an inveterate smoker, cut holes in them to use as an ashtray.
Major League Baseball
Attempted purchase of Philadelphia Phillies
Veeck had been a fan of the Negro leagues since his early teens. He had also admired Abe Saperstein's Harlem Globetrotters basketball team, which was based in Chicago. Saperstein saved Veeck from financial disaster early on in Milwaukee by giving him the right to promote the Globetrotters in the upper Midwest in the winter of 1941–42.
In the fall of 1942, Veeck met with Gerry Nugent, president of the Philadelphia Phillies, to discuss the possibility of buying the struggling National League team. He later wrote in his memoirs that he intended to buy the Phillies and stock the team's roster with stars from the Negro leagues. Although no formal rules barred African-American players from the majors, none had appeared in organized baseball since the 1890s.
Veeck quickly secured financing to buy the Phillies, and agreed in principle to buy the team from Nugent. While on his way to Philadelphia to close on the purchase, Veeck decided to alert MLB Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis of his intentions.
Although Veeck knew Landis was an ardent segregationist, he did not believe Landis would dare say black players were unwelcome while blacks were fighting in World War II. However, when Veeck arrived in Philadelphia, he was surprised to discover that the National League had taken over the Phillies and was seeking a new owner (the Phillies were ultimately sold to lumber baron William D. Cox).
The authors of a controversial article in the 1998 issue of SABR's The National Pastime argued that Veeck invented the story of buying the Phillies and filling their roster with Negro leaguers, claiming Philadelphia's black press made no mention of a prospective sale to Veeck.
Subsequently, the article was criticized by historian Jules Tygiel, who reviewed it point-by-point in an article in the 2006 issue of SABR's The Baseball Research Journal, and in an appendix, entitled "Did Bill Veeck Lie About His Plan to Purchase the '43 Phillies?", published in Paul Dickson's biography, Bill Veeck: Baseball's Greatest Maverick. In the SABR article, Tygiel explained that Veeck and others had mentioned the alleged scheme to buy and stock the Phillies up to fifteen years before the publication of Veeck's memoir, but conceded that, "In all of these accounts the only voice telling the story remains Veeck's." The Tygiel article also conceded, "The overall assessment of Jordan, et al. - that Veeck's notion of buying the Phillies and fielding a team of Negro League stars never quite moved as far from the drawing board as Veeck claimed - may still be true. We still lack any solid evidence that confirms that Veeck had not only conceptualized this action, but made a firm offer to buy the Phillies and met a rebuff by Landis and Frick."
Joseph Thomas Moore wrote in his biography of Larry Doby, "Bill Veeck planned to buy the Philadelphia Phillies with the as yet unannounced intention of breaking that color line."
Cleveland Indians
In 1946, having sold his interest in the Class AAA Milwaukee Brewers, Veeck became the owner of a major league team, the Cleveland Indians. He immediately put all the team's games on radio (previously, only limited games had been broadcast). He also moved the team to Cleveland Municipal Stadium permanently in 1947. The team had split their games between the larger Municipal Stadium and the smaller League Park since the 1930s, but Veeck concluded that League Park was far too small and deteriorated to be viable.
In July of that year, he signed Larry Doby, the first black player to play in the American League. Doby's first game was on July 5 and before the game, Doby was introduced to his teammates by player-manager Lou Boudreau. "One by one, Lou introduced me to each player. 'This is Joe Gordon,' and Gordon put his hand out. 'This is Bob Lemon,' and Lemon put his hand out. 'This is Jim Hegan,' and Hegan put his hand out. All the guys put their hand out, all but three. As soon as he could, Bill Veeck got rid of those three", Doby said. The following year Veeck signed Satchel Paige to a contract, making the hurler the oldest rookie in major league history.
To take advantage of the large size of Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Veeck had a portable center field fence installed in 1947, which he could move in or out depending on how the distance favored the Indians against their opponents in a given series. The fence moved as much as between series opponents. Following the 1947 season, the American League countered with a rule change that fixed the distance of an outfield wall for the duration of a season.
As in Milwaukee, Veeck took a unique approach to promotions, hiring Max Patkin, the "Clown Prince of Baseball", as a coach. Patkin's appearance in the coaching box delighted fans and infuriated the front office of the American League.
Although Veeck had become extremely popular, an attempt in 1947 to trade Boudreau to the St. Louis Browns led to mass protests and petitions supporting Boudreau. Veeck, in response, said he would listen to the fans, and re-signed Boudreau to a new two-year contract. Veeck claimed later that the trade talks had already broken down before they became public, but he seized the opportunity to promote the concept he had dropped the idea of the trade in response to public outcry.
By 1948, led by Boudreau's .355 batting average, Cleveland won its first pennant and World Series since 1920. Famously, the following season Veeck buried the 1948 flag, once it became mathematically certain the team could not repeat its championship in 1949. Later that year, Veeck's first wife, Eleanor, filed for divorce. Most of his money was tied up in the Indians, so he was forced to sell the team to fund the divorce settlement. One year later, Veeck married his second wife Mary Frances Ackerman in 1950. He had met her the previous year while in Cleveland.
St. Louis Browns
After marrying Mary Frances Ackerman, Veeck bought an 80% stake in the St. Louis Browns in 1951. Hoping to force the NL's St. Louis Cardinals out of town, Veeck hired Cardinal greats Rogers Hornsby and Marty Marion as managers, and Dizzy Dean as an announcer; and he decorated their shared home park, Sportsman's Park, exclusively with Browns memorabilia. Ironically the Cardinals had been the Browns' tenants since 1920, even though they had long since passed the Browns as St. Louis' favorite team.
Some of Veeck's most memorable publicity stunts occurred during his tenure with the Browns, including the appearance on August 19, 1951, by Eddie Gaedel, who stood tall and is the shortest person to appear in a Major League Baseball game. Veeck sent Gaedel to pinch hit in the bottom of the first of the game. Wearing "1/8" as his uniform number, Gaedel was walked on four straight pitches and then was pulled for a pinch runner.
Shortly afterwards "Grandstand Manager's Day" – involving Veeck, Connie Mack, and thousands of regular fans, enabled the crowd to vote on various in-game strategic decisions by holding up placards: the Browns won, 5–3, snapping a four-game losing streak.
After the 1952 season, Veeck suggested that the American League clubs share radio and television revenue with visiting clubs, a proposal anathema to the powerful Yankees, whose broadcasting revenues dwarfed all the other AL franchises.
Outvoted, he refused to allow the Browns' opponents to broadcast games played against his team on the road. The league responded by eliminating the lucrative Friday night games in St. Louis.
A year later, Cardinals owner Fred Saigh was convicted of tax evasion. Facing certain banishment from baseball, he was forced to put the Cardinals up for sale. At first, the only credible offers came from out-of-town interests, and it appeared that Veeck would succeed in driving the Cardinals out of town.
However, just as Saigh was about to sell the Cardinals to interests who would have moved them to Houston, Texas, he instead accepted a much lower bid from St. Louis-based brewing giant Anheuser-Busch, who entered the picture with the specific intent of keeping the Cardinals in town. It has long been claimed that Saigh was persuaded to accept Anheuser-Busch's bid more out of civic duty than money. However, according to Anheuser-Busch historian William Knoedelseder, Saigh's first preference all along was to sell the Cardinals to interests who would keep the team in St. Louis.
What is beyond dispute is that as soon as Anheuser-Busch closed on its purchase of the Cardinals, Veeck knew he was finished in St. Louis. He quickly realized that with Anheuser-Busch's wealth behind them, the Cardinals now had more financial resources than he could even begin to match, especially since he had no other source of income. Reluctantly, he decided to move the Browns elsewhere. As a preliminary step, he sold Sportsman's Park to the Cardinals.
At first Veeck considered moving the Browns back to Milwaukee (where they had played their inaugural season in 1901). Milwaukee used recently built Milwaukee County Stadium in an attempt to entice the Browns.
However, the decision was in the hands of the Boston Braves, the parent team of the Brewers. Under major league rules of the time, the Braves held the major league rights to Milwaukee. The Braves wanted another team with the same talent if the Brewers were shut down, and an agreement was not made in time for the start of the 1953 season. Ironically, a few weeks later, the Braves themselves moved to Milwaukee. St. Louis was known to want the team to stay, so some in St. Louis campaigned for the removal of Veeck.
Undaunted, Veeck got in touch with a group that was looking to bring a Major League franchise to Baltimore, Maryland. After the 1953 season, Veeck agreed in principle to sell half his stock to Baltimore attorney Clarence Miles, the front man of the Baltimore group, and his other partners. He would have remained the principal owner, with approximately a 40% interest. Even though league president Will Harridge told him approval was certain, only four owners—two short of the necessary six for passage—supported it. Realizing the other owners simply wanted him out of the picture (indeed, he was facing threats of having his franchise canceled), Veeck agreed to sell his entire stake to Miles' group, who then moved the Browns to Baltimore, where they were renamed as the Orioles, which has been their name ever since.
Chicago White Sox
Taking advantage of inter-familial friction within the Comiskey family, in 1959, Veeck became head of a group that purchased a controlling interest in the Chicago White Sox. Following Veeck's acquisition of the team, the White Sox went on to win their first pennant in 40 years. That year the White Sox broke a team attendance record for home games with 1.4 million. The next year the team broke the same record with 1.6 million visitors to Comiskey Park with the addition of the first "exploding scoreboard" in the major leagues – producing electrical and sound effects, and shooting fireworks whenever the White Sox hit a home run. The "exploding scoreboard" was carried over to the "new" Comiskey Park (now Guaranteed Rate Field) when it opened in 1991.
One year later in 1960, Veeck and former Detroit Tigers great Hank Greenberg, his partner with the Indians and White Sox, reportedly made a strong bid for the American League expansion franchise in Los Angeles. Greenberg would have been the principal owner, with Veeck as a minority partner. However Los Angeles Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley was not willing to compete with a team owned by Veeck, even if he would only be a minority partner. When O'Malley heard of the deal, he invoked his exclusive franchise rights for Southern California. Any potential owner of an American League team in the area would have had to have O'Malley's approval, and it was apparent that O'Malley would not allow any team to set up shop with Veeck as a major shareholder. Rather than try to persuade his friend to back out, Greenberg abandoned his bid for what became the Los Angeles Angels.
In 1961, due to poor health, Veeck sold his share of the White Sox to John and Arthur Allyn for $2.5 million. After selling the White Sox, Veeck worked intermittently as a television commentator for ABC. Veeck then moved to the Eastern Shore of Maryland with his family to convalesce.
When his health improved, Veeck made an unsuccessful attempt to buy the Washington Senators, then operated the Suffolk Downs race track in Boston in 1969–70. Veeck was not heard from again in baseball ownership circles until 1975, when he repurchased the White Sox from John Allyn (sole owner since 1969). Veeck's return rankled baseball's establishment, most owners viewing him as a pariah after exposing industry politics and maneuvering in his 1961 book Veeck As In Wreck. The owners were also unhappy with Veeck's extensive unfavorable discussion of the 1964 purchase of the New York Yankees by CBS in 1965's The Hustler's Handbook (a move Veeck felt exposed MLB to dangerous antitrust liabilities and endangered the antitrust exemption established in a 1922 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court).
However, he was the only potential buyer willing to keep the White Sox in Chicago after an offer was made to buy the team and move it to Seattle, Washington. After an initial vote by AL owners rejected his White Sox bid, Veeck discussed a possible lawsuit; another vote was taken and Veeck was approved by one vote.
Almost immediately after reassuming control of the Sox, Veeck unleashed another publicity stunt. He and general manager Roland Hemond conducted four trades in a hotel lobby, in full view of the public; other owners considered this undignified. Two weeks later, however, arbitrator Peter Seitz's ruling struck down the reserve clause and ushered in the era of free agency, leading to dramatic increases in player salaries. Ironically Veeck had been the only baseball owner to testify in support of Curt Flood during his landmark court case, at which Flood had attempted to gain free agency after being traded to the Philadelphia Phillies. Veeck had proposed a gradual transition to a free-agent system in which players would gain free agency rights after a certain amount of service time. The owners gambled that Seitz would rule in their favor and maintain the reserve clause; he did not.
On the field, Veeck presented a Bicentennial-themed "Spirit of '76" parade on Opening Day in 1976, casting himself as the peg-legged fifer bringing up the rear. In the same year he reactivated Minnie Miñoso for eight at-bats, in order to give Miñoso a claim towards playing in four decades; he did so again in 1980, to expand the claim to five. He also unveiled radically altered uniforms for the players, including clamdigger pants and even shorts, which the Sox wore for the first time against the Kansas City Royals on August 8, 1976.
In an attempt to adapt to free agency he developed a "rent-a-player" model, centering on the acquisition of other clubs' stars in their option years. The gambit was moderately successful: in 1977 the White Sox won 90 games, and finished in third place with additions like Oscar Gamble and Richie Zisk.
During this last run, Veeck decided to have announcer Harry Caray sing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the seventh-inning stretch. Veeck asked Caray to sing for the entire park, but he refused. Veeck replied that he already had a recording, so Caray would be heard either way. Caray reluctantly agreed to sing it live, accompanied by White Sox organist Nancy Faust, and went on to become famous for singing the tune, continuing to do so at Wrigley Field after becoming the broadcaster of the Chicago Cubs.
The 1979 season was filled with more promotions. On April 10 he offered fans free admission the day after a 10–2 Opening Day defeat by the Toronto Blue Jays. On July 12, Veeck, with assistance from son Mike and radio personality Steve Dahl, held one of his most infamous promotions, Disco Demolition Night, between games of a scheduled doubleheader, which resulted in a riot at Comiskey Park and a forfeit to the visiting Detroit Tigers.
Life after baseball
Finding himself no longer able to financially compete in the free agent era, Veeck sold the White Sox in January 1981. Following the sale, new White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf made several negative references to Veeck's tenure with the team; in response, Veeck publicly transferred his allegiance back to the Chicago Cubs, the team his father had operated in his youth. Veeck retired to his home in Chicago but in summer could often be found in the Wrigley Field bleachers.
Veeck also wrote occasional articles for magazines and newspapers, usually opining on the overall state of baseball.
Poor health and death
Veeck had been a heavy smoker and drinker until 1980. In 1984, Veeck underwent two operations for lung cancer. Two years later, on the day after New Year's Day, 1986, he died at the age of 71 from cancer. He was elected five years later to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
When he died at age 71, he was survived by his wife, Mary Frances, and eight of his nine children. Two of the surviving children, Peter and Ellen, were from his first marriage, and the others (Mike, Marya, Greg, Lisa, Julie and Chris) were from his second marriage. He was predeceased by his eldest child, William III, who died in 1985. His body was cremated. Mike Veeck became owner of the independent minor-league St. Paul Saints and still is a partner in the team. The younger Veeck and co-owner actor Bill Murray emulated many of Bill Veeck's promotional stunts with the Saints. Greg Veeck earned a Ph.D. at University of Georgia in 1988 and is a geography professor at Western Michigan University focusing on urban geology and East Asia.
Books by Veeck
Veeck wrote three autobiographical works, each a collaboration with journalist Ed Linn. The first two were reissued in updated editions in the 1980s following Veeck's return to baseball ownership. The books include:
Veeck As In Wreck (1962) – a straightforward autobiography, written after Veeck's then-declining health forced him to sell his interest in the White Sox
The Hustler's Handbook (1965) – a sequel and extension of Wreck, divulging his experiences in operating as an outsider in the major leagues, detailing many episodes of behind-the-scenes drama in baseball, including the 1965 acquisition of the New York Yankees by CBS and the maneuvering involved in the move of the Milwaukee Braves to Atlanta, and also a recounting of the 1919 Black Sox Scandal through a diary by Harry Grabiner, business manager of the White Sox in 1919 and much later, an associate of Veeck with the Indians in 1948.
Thirty Tons A Day (1972) – chronicling the time he spent running Suffolk Downs racetrack in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The title refers to the daily quantity of waste (horse excrement, used hay and straw, etc.) that had to be disposed of.
Awards and honors
1948 World Series champion (as owner/president of the Cleveland Indians)
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum (Class of 1991)
The Baseball Reliquary's Shrine of the Eternals (class of 1999).
In 2013, the Bob Feller Act of Valor Award honored Veeck as one of 37 Baseball Hall of Fame members for his service in the United States Marine Corps during World War II.
See also
List of members of the Baseball Hall of Fame
Notes
References
External links
In Praise of Bill Veeck – slideshow by Life magazine
1914 births
1986 deaths
20th-century American businesspeople
American amputees
Businesspeople from Chicago
Chicago White Sox executives
Chicago White Sox owners
Cleveland Indians executives
Cleveland Indians owners
Deaths from cancer in Illinois
Deaths from lung cancer
Kenyon College alumni
Major League Baseball executives
Major League Baseball general managers
Major League Baseball owners
Minor league baseball executives
National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees
People from Hinsdale, Illinois
People from St. Michaels, Maryland
Phillips Academy alumni
St. Louis Browns executives
St. Louis Browns owners
Suffolk Downs executives
United States Marines
United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II | false | [
"Tim Alioto is a retired American soccer defender who spent most of his career with the amateur Milwaukee Bavarians. He played professionally for four years in the American Indoor Soccer Association.\n\nIn 1968, Alioto began his youth career with a Salvation Army team. In 1974, he joined the Milwaukee Bavarians. In 1976, Alioto graduated from Madison High School. He had played high school soccer as a sophomore, but stopped playing for his high school team after joining the Bavarians. In 1977, the Bavarians went to the final of the McGuire Cup where they fell to the Santa Ana Broncos. Alioto did not attend college and remained played for the Bavarians senior team with short stints with the Milwaukee Sports Club and Milwaukee Serbians (1986-1987). In 1986, Alioto turned professional with the Milwaukee Wave of the American Indoor Soccer Association. The team released him at during the 1990 off-season and Alioto once again returned to the Bavarians. In 1993, Alioto and his team mates lost in the semifinals of the 1993 U.S. Open Cup.\n\nIn 2007, the Wisconsin Soccer Association inducted Alioto into its Hall of Fame.\n\nExternal links\n Career stats\n\nReferences\n\nLiving people\n1958 births\nSoccer players from Milwaukee\nAmerican Indoor Soccer Association players\nMilwaukee Bavarians players\nMilwaukee Wave players\nAssociation football defenders\nAmerican soccer players",
"Jon Szczepanski is a retired American soccer player who played professionally in the National Professional Soccer League and the USISL A-League.\n\nPlayer\nSzczepanski attended the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, playing on the men's soccer team from 1985 to 1988. In 2001, he completed his coursework for a bachelor's degree in community education and policy. In 1989, Szczepanski turned professional with the Milwaukee Wave of the American Indoor Soccer Association after the Wave selected him in the first round (seventh overall) of the AISA amateur draft. In December 1992, the Wave traded Szczepanski to the Canton Invaders for Fahmi El-Shami after Szczepanski did not appear for the Wave that season. However, Szczepanski did not play for the Invaders that season either. In 1994, he moved to the Chicago Power of the National Professional Soccer League for one season. In 1995, Szczepanski joined the Milwaukee Rampage of the USISL Pro League. In February 2000, Szczepanski retired from professional soccer after failing to come to a contract agreement with the Rampage. However, he continued to play, joining the amateur Milwaukee Bavarians that spring.\n\nCoach\nFrom 1992 to 2001, Szczepanski coached the Milwaukee Lutheran High School boys' team. In 1997, he coached the Divine Savior Holy Angels High School girls' team. He also served as an assistant with the Milwaukee Rampage in 1997 and 1998. In 2001, he spent one season as the assistant to the Yale University men's soccer team. In 2002, the University of Wisconsin–Madison hired Szczepanski as an assistant to the men's team Following the 2008-09 season, Szczepanski left UW Madison to become a coach with the Rush Wisconsin Soccer Club where he now is the Boys' Director of Coaching..\n\nReferences\n\nLiving people\nAmerican soccer players\nAmerican Indoor Soccer Association players\nChicago Power players\nMilwaukee Panthers men's soccer players\nMilwaukee Rampage players\nMilwaukee Wave players\nNational Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) players\nUSISL A-League players\nAssociation football midfielders\nYear of birth missing (living people)\nMilwaukee Bavarians players\nAssociation football forwards"
]
|
[
"Frank Hague",
"Commissioner"
]
| C_8b5a49a4558041a6855863e02046905e_1 | where was he commissioner? | 1 | Where was Frank Hague commissioner? | Frank Hague | In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the first City Commission of Jersey City. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee. Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horsehoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate. Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation. Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city. In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor. CANNOTANSWER | City Commission of Jersey City. | Frank Hague (January 17, 1876 – January 1, 1956) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the Mayor of Jersey City, New Jersey from 1917 to 1947, Democratic National Committeeman from New Jersey from 1922 until 1949, and Vice-Chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 1924 until 1949.
Hague has a widely known reputation for corruption and bossism and has been called "the grandaddy of Jersey bosses". By the time he left office in 1947, he enjoyed palatial homes, European vacations, and a private suite at the Plaza Hotel. His wealth has been estimated to have been over $10 million at the time of his death, although his City salary never exceeded $8,500 per year and he had no other legitimate source of income. His desk, according to legend, had a specially designed lap drawer which could be pushed outward towards the person with whom he was meeting. This allowed his "guests" to discreetly deliver bribes in the form of envelopes containing large amounts of cash. However, according to New Jersey preservationist John Hallinan, the drawers were a traditional feature of 19th century partners desks and that "[t]he last thing [Hague] would need to do is take a bribe personally". As of October 2021, the desk was on display in City Hall.
During the height of his power Hague's political machine, known as "the organization", was one of the most powerful in the United States controlling politics on local, county, and state levels. Hague's personal influence extended to the national level, influencing federal patronage, and presidential campaigns.
Early life
Francis "Frank" Hague, born in Jersey City, was the fourth of eight children to John D. and Margaret Hague (née Fagen), immigrants from County Cavan, Ireland. He was raised in Jersey City's Second ward, an area known as The Horseshoe due to its shape which wrapped around a railroad loop. The ward was created when the Republican-controlled legislature gerrymandered a district within Jersey City in 1871 to concentrate and isolate Democratic, and mostly Catholic, votes.
By age 14, Hague was expelled from school prior to completing the sixth grade for poor attendance and unacceptable behavior. He worked briefly as a blacksmith's apprentice for the Erie Railroad. While training at a local gym for his own potential debut as a prizefighter, he arranged to become manager for Joe Craig, a professional lightweight boxer. Craig was successful enough to allow Hague to buy a few suits that made him appear successful. In 1896, Hague's apparent prosperity gained him the attention of local tavern owner "Nat" Kenny who was seeking a candidate for constable in the upcoming primary to run against the candidate of a rival tavern owner. Kenny provided Hague with $75 to "spread around", and Frank Hague quickly won his first election by a ratio of three-to-one.
Political career
Early success
Hague's victory in the Constable election brought him to the attention of Hudson County Democratic political boss "Little Bob" Davis, and Davis asked Hague to help get out Democratic votes for the upcoming 1897 Mayoral election. Hague's efforts were credited with generating large voter turnout in the Second Ward for the 1897 and 1899 elections. As a reward for his work, Hague was appointed as a deputy sheriff at a salary of $25 per week. Over this time, Hague took a leadership role in the Second Ward Democratic club.
In the 1901 Mayoral election, Republican Mark M. Fagan was elected. Hague's second ward was one of only two that voted Democratic. Hague survived a Republican challenge for a third term as Constable the following year.
The "Red Dugan" affair
As a ward leader, Hague was approached by a woman to provide assistance for her son, who had been arrested for passing a forged check. The son, Red Dugan, had been a classmate of Hague's in school. According to the Boston Evening Transcript of October 4, 1904, Dugan had deposited a forged check for $955 in the Peoples Bank of Roxbury, Massachusetts, and convinced the bank manager to let him withdraw $500. Hague ignored a subpoena to testify in Hudson County Court and traveled to Massachusetts to provide an alibi for Dugan. Hague and another deputy sheriff, Thomas "Skidder" Madigan, claimed that they had seen Dugan in Jersey City on the day of the alleged offense. Both were threatened with perjury charges.
Upon returning to Jersey City, Hague was found guilty of contempt of court for ignoring the subpoena. He was fined $100 and stripped of his duties as Deputy Sheriff.
In spite of the resulting press coverage of the event, Hague was more deeply embraced by his constituency. Thomas Smith wrote: "But to the residents of the Horseshoe, Frank Hague had gone out of his way to help a friend – had practically given his livelihood to aid a brother." In the succeeding municipal election of 1905, which saw the return of incumbent Fagan to the office of mayor, Hague was elected to a fourth term as constable.
Ward leader
Hague rose through the Democratic machinery of Hudson County, which drew much of its strength by providing newly arrived immigrants with rudimentary social services. Hague took a job as a collector for a local brewery, leaving him with time to spend in the streets and the local taverns which were hubs of political activity. He also spent his time cleaning up the loose ends of the Second Ward's south-end Democratic Club to consolidate his power.
As a reward for his efforts in turning out votes in the 1905 election, Bob Davis named Hague as the party leader for the Second Ward and arranged for Hague to be appointed as Sergeant at Arms for the New Jersey State Assembly.
Political reformer
Hague broke ties with "Boss" Davis in 1906 over a difference of opinion on a candidate for appointment to the city Street and Water Board. As a result, Hague supported H. Otto Wittpenn for mayor in the 1907 election. Wittpenn was a reformer who opposed the control Davis held over Hudson County politics. Over the objections of Davis, newly elected Mayor Wittpenn appointed Hague as chief custodian of City Hall – a "cushy" job with plenty of patronage opportunities. During the Wittpenn administration, Hague also became friendly with Wittpenn's secretary – a Presbyterian Sunday school teacher named A. Harry Moore.
The resulting battle for control of the Hudson County Democratic machine would ironically result in one of the greatest boosts to Hague's rise to power – the Walsh Act of 1911. In 1909 Davis, seeing support for Hague increasing, supported Wittpenn's re-election against former mayor Fagan. Hague's second ward produced the largest plurality of Wittpenn votes of any of Jersey City's 12 wards. Davis then arranged the appointment of Fagan to the Hudson County Tax Board. When Wittpenn's administration began facing troubles, including Fagan's discovery of a Pennsylvania Railroad property that had paid no taxes for four years, Wittpenn blamed Davis.
Seeking to curb the influence of Davis, Wittpenn announced his candidacy for Governor, stating "I have endured the machine as long as possible, but patience is no longer a virtue." Davis, in turn, prevailed upon Woodrow Wilson, then President of Princeton University, to oppose Wittpenn's candidacy. Wilson's victory was overwhelming even in Hague's ward, despite heavy-handed tactics used there. The Jersey Journal wrote: "Cops on duty were using clubs and blackjacks to assist Mayor Wittpenn and Frank Hague defeat the Davis men."
Wilson's reform-minded term as Governor saw the establishment of Presidential primary elections, introduced workers' compensation, and brought about passage of the Walsh Act which provided for a non-partisan commission form of municipal government that was greatly reflective of his academic writings in Congressional Government.
"Little Bob" Davis died of cancer shortly after the 1910 gubernatorial election leaving a vacuum in the power structure of the Hudson County Democrats. Wittpenn quickly endorsed the idea of converting Jersey City to a commission form of government, but was opposed by forces, including Hague, attempting to take control of the party. Hague campaigned heavily against the idea in the Horseshoe, claiming that such a system of citywide elected commissioners would erode the influence of the working-class and consolidate power among the city's elite. Wittpenn's opponents successfully petitioned for a change in the date of the vote on the charter change, moving it from September to mid-July, and the proposal was defeated. As a result of this campaign, Hague came under the scrutiny of The Jersey Journal, which had supported the proposed charter change. It was reported that Hague's older brother, a battalion chief on the city fire department, had been on "sick leave" for three years at full pay.
Hague reconciled with Wittpenn to support his re-election in 1911. Wittpenn then supported Hague's nomination for Commissioner of Streets and Water. Both were elected. The new position greatly expanded Hague's patronage authority. While City Hall employed a few dozen custodians, there were hundreds of workers in the Street and Water Department. Hague's work as head of the Department of Street Cleaners even convinced The Jersey Journal to endorse him as a "reform candidate" in the next election.
In the spring of 1913, having gained confidence in his own ability to assure himself a place on the commission, Hague supported the renewed effort to change the Jersey City government from the Mayor-Council model to a commission model under the recently adopted Walsh Act. This act would place all executive and legislative powers in a five-man commission, each of whom would head a city department. The five commissioners would choose one of their colleagues to be mayor. The vote for charter change passed, and the stage was set for Frank Hague's rise to power.
Commissioner
In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the five-man commission. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee.
Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horseshoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate.
Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation.
Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city.
In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor.
Boss of Jersey City
Technically, Hague's only responsibility as mayor was to appoint the school board. Otherwise, he was merely first among equals, with no powers over and above the other four commissioners. However, soon after taking office, he wrested control of the Hudson County Democratic Party from Wittpenn. This allowed him to significantly influence the makeup of the commission in this overwhelmingly Democratic city. He soon built the organization into one of the most powerful political machines in the country. Hague himself became very wealthy, owning a $125,000 summer home in Deal, living in a large apartment in the best building in the city, and able to give a $50,000 altar to a local Catholic church. In 1941, Dartmouth professor Dayton David McKean wrote The Boss, a book about Hague's political machine, in which he estimated his amassed wealth at four million dollars on an annual mayoral salary of $8,000 a year.
He also had the support of a significant faction of Republicans which dated to his initial election as mayor, when he cut a deal with then-Governor Walter Edge in which Edge effectively ceded North Jersey to Hague in return for keeping South Jersey for himself. Also, as public safety commissioner (a post he held throughout his entire tenure), he controlled the two departments with the most patronage appointments in the city. This post also placed responsibility for maintaining public order in his hands.
Hague soon extended his influence statewide by helping to elect his "puppets" as governor. In the 1919 gubernatorial election, Hague endorsed State Senator Edward I. Edwards and aggressively campaigned for him. Edwards carried Hudson County by 50,000 votes, which was enough for him to win statewide by just under 15,000 votes. Hague proclaimed himself leader of the New Jersey Democratic Party, and Edwards allowed him to recommend dozens of appointments to high state offices. Democrats won five out of eight gubernatorial races between 1919 and 1940, more often than not due to massive landslides in Hudson County. However, he was never able to extend his dominance to the state legislature.
Hague was able to stay in power despite a nearly constant effort to turn him out of office from 1921 onward. He was also able to avoid prosecution despite numerous federal and state investigations in part due to the fact he took most of his kickbacks in cash. However, from the early 1940s onward, many of the older ethnic groups started moving to the suburbs. They were replaced by Poles, Italians, Eastern Europeans and African-Americans. Hague never adapted his methods to the new groups.
Hague had little tolerance for those who dared oppose him publicly. He relied on two ordinances of dubious constitutionality to muzzle critics. A 1920 ordinance effectively required people making political speeches to obtain clearance from the chief of police. A 1930 ordinance gave the public safety commissioner—Hague himself—the power to turn down permits for meetings if he felt it necessary to prevent "riots, disturbances or disorderly assemblage." The latter ordinance was struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States, but continued to be enforced for several years after that decision. The police were also allowed to stop and search anyone without probable cause or a warrant after 9 pm.
President maker
In 1932, Hague, a friend of Al Smith, backed Smith against Franklin D. Roosevelt during the race for the Democratic nomination. When Roosevelt won the nomination, Hague offered to organize the biggest political rally anyone had ever seen if Roosevelt would launch his presidential campaign in New Jersey. When Roosevelt formally began his campaign with an event at the Jersey Shore town of Sea Girt, Hague's machine made sure there were several thousand Hudson County voters looking on and cheering. Hague's support was rewarded with funding for a massive medical center complex complete with a maternity hospital named after his mother, Margaret Hague. During the 1936 campaign Hague provided 150,000 adults and children to cheer Roosevelt during a visit.
Accusations of voter fraud
Hague's use of voter fraud is the stuff of legend. In 1937, for instance, Jersey City had 160,050 registered voters, but only 147,000 people who were at least 21 years old—the legal voting age.
In 1932, Governor Moore appointed a lawyer named Thomas J. Brogan, who had served as Hague's personal attorney in corruption hearings, to an associate Justice seat on the state's Supreme Court. Less than a year later Brogan was named as Chief Justice. In at least two instances of alleged voting fraud in the 1930s (Ferguson v. Brogan, 112 N.J.L. 471; Clee v. Moore, 119 N.J.L. 215; In re Clee, 119 N.J.L. 310), Brogan's court issued extraordinary rulings in favor of the Democratic machine, in one case asserting that the district superintendent of elections had no authority to open ballot boxes, and in another case ruling that the boxes could be opened, but no one had the right to look inside. Brogan also assigned himself to the Hudson County jurisdiction, thereby controlling the local grand jury process and squelching other election fraud cases.
Although Hague, like other political bosses of the time, was not above outright fraud at the polls, the keys to Hague's success were his matchless organizational skills and demand for complete loyalty from his subordinates. His command over the Democratic voters of Hudson County, a densely populated urban area in a state that was still mostly rural, made him a man to reckon with among state Democrats and Republicans alike. He was a close friend of Al Smith, the New York governor who would become the first Irish-American presidential candidate in 1928. In addition, Hague's support of Roosevelt for President was rewarded with a steady stream of perks that sustained Hague's organization throughout the Depression.
Retirement from politics
The beginning of the end for Hague came in 1943, when former governor Walter Edge was returned to office. Edge's attorney general, Walter Van Riper, initiated several prosecutions of Hague cronies. Hague retaliated by having his handpicked U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey bring federal indictments against Van Riper, but Van Riper was acquitted. Edge also initiated reforms in the civil service, freeing it from Hague's control.
Edge's successor, fellow Republican Alfred Driscoll, succeeded in further curbing Hague's power over state government. He led the effort to implement a new constitution, which streamlined state government and made it less vulnerable to control by locally based bosses like Hague. For example, county prosecutors were now directly accountable to the state attorney general. It also set up a new state Supreme Court, which was given supervision over the state's judges. As the first Chief Justice, Driscoll appointed an old Hague foe, Arthur T. Vanderbilt. Driscoll also installed voting machines throughout the state, which made it harder for corrupt politicians to steal elections.
Seeing the writing on the wall, Hague abruptly announced his retirement in 1947. However, he was able to have his nephew, Frank Hague Eggers, chosen as his successor. It was generally understood that Hague still held the real power. This ended in 1949 when John V. Kenny, a former Hague ward leader alienated by the appointment of Eggers, put together his own commission ticket. Due to the presence of a "third ticket," Kenny's ticket was able to oust the Hague/Eggers ticket from power, ending Hague's 32-year rule. Kenny soon set up a machine which proved every bit as corrupt as Hague's, but far less efficient at providing services.
Friend and foe to labor
Hague was accommodating to labor unions during the first half of his mayoral career. For instance, Jersey City police were known for turning back strikebreakers, something unheard of during the 1920s. However, he became a savage opponent of labor organizers in the 1930s. The turnaround came about during a dispute with labor boss and former supporter Theodore "Teddy" Brandle, whose attempts to organize the work crews on the Pulaski Skyway construction project (1930–32) touched off a labor war so intense that local newspapers called it "the war of the meadows."
The rise of the CIO in the mid-1930s represented a threat to Hague's policy of guaranteeing labor peace to the sweatshop type industries that might otherwise have fled Jersey City's high property taxes. When Socialist presidential candidate Norman Thomas came to speak on behalf of the CIO during a May Day rally in Journal Square, Hague's police swept Thomas and his wife into a car, took them to the Pavonia ferry and sent them back to New York. Hague spent much of the decade inveighing against Communists and labor unions, and his attempts to suppress the CIO's activities in Jersey City led to a U.S. Supreme Court decision, Hague v. Committee for Industrial Organization 307 U.S. 496 (1939), that is a cornerstone of law concerning public expression of political views on public property.
Death
Hague died on New Year's Day in 1956 at his 480 Park Avenue duplex apartment in Manhattan, New York City. While hundreds gathered to see the casket depart the funeral home, only four men were seen to remove their hats for the passing of the coffin. One woman present held an American Flag and a sign that read, "God have mercy on his sinful, greedy soul."
Hague was interred in a large mausoleum at Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City.
Legacy
Hague's pride and joy was the Jersey City Medical Center, which he began creating almost as soon as he became mayor. By the 1940s it had grown into a 10-building complex that provided virtually free medical care to Jersey City residents. At the time of its completion, the Medical Center was one of the biggest medical facilities in the country and included the Medical Center Hospital, Pollak Chest Diseases Hospital, Murdoch Hall, and Margaret Hague Maternity Hospital, named in honor of Hague's mother. The buildings, funded in part through federal funds obtained by Hague, are known for their Art Deco details, including marble walls, terrazzo floors, etched glass, and decorative moldings. Even at the time the Medical Center was too large to operate cost-effectively. In 2005 the 14 acre complex (much of which had fallen into disuse) was sold to a private developer who began converting two towers into a luxury condominium complex called the Beacon.
Quotes
"We hear about constitutional rights, free speech and the free press. Every time I hear those words I say to myself, 'That man is a Red, that man is a Communist.' You never heard a real American talk in that manner." – speech to the Jersey City Chamber of Commerce, January 12, 1938.
"Listen, here is the law! I am the law! These boys go to work!" – speech on city government to the Emory Methodist Episcopal Church in Jersey City, November 10, 1937.
See also
List of mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Notes
References
(originally published—Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1940).
External links
Full text of the decision from FindLaw.com
Frank Hague Page at Jersey City History
The Life and Times of Frank Hague (2001) A five-part radio program
The Pragmatic Populism of a Non-Partisan Politician: An Analysis of the Political Philosophy of Charles Edison
1876 births
1956 deaths
American people of Irish descent
People from Deal, New Jersey
Mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Political corruption in the United States
Culture of Jersey City, New Jersey
American political bosses
American political bosses from New Jersey
New Jersey Democrats
Burials at Holy Name Cemetery (Jersey City, New Jersey)
Catholics from New Jersey
American anti-communists
Nucky Johnson's Organization | false | [
"Sir Charles Hussey (1626 – 2 December 1664) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons in two periods between 1656 and 1664.\n\nHussey was the son of Sir Edward Hussey, 1st Baronet of Honington and his wife Elizabeth Anton, daughter of George Anton of Lincoln. He was baptised on 30 October 1626. In 1646 he was admitted at Gray's Inn. His father died in 1648, but the baronetcy went to Hussey's nephew Thomas, son of his deceased brother Thomas. He was commissioner for assessment for Lincolnshire 1652. In 1656, he was elected Member of Parliament for Lincolnshire in the Second Protectorate Parliament. He was commissioner for assessment for Lincolnshire in 1657 and commissioner for militia for Lincolnshire in 1659.\n\nHussey was commissioner for assessment for Lincolnshire in January 1660 and commissioner for militia in March 1660. He was a J.P. for Kesteven from March 1660 until his death. From August 1660, he was. commissioner for assessment for Kesteven and commissioner for sewers for Lincolnshire. He was created baronet on 21 July 1661. In 1661 he was elected MP for Lincolnshire again in the Cavalier Parliament where he was an active member. He was commissioner for assessment for Lincolnshire from 1661 to 1663, commissioner for loyal and indigent officers in 1662, commissioner for complaints for the Bedford level 1663 and commissioner for assessment for Lincolnshire from 1663 until his death.\n\nHussey died at the age of 38 in London and was buried at Caythorpe where his estate was valued at about £2,500 p.a.\n\nHussey married by licence on 10 April 1649, Elizabeth Brownlow, daughter of Sir William Brownlow, 1st Baronet of Humby and had three sons and six daughters.\n\nReferences\n\n1626 births\n1664 deaths\nPeople from Lincolnshire\nMembers of Gray's Inn\nEnglish MPs 1656–1658\nEnglish MPs 1661–1679\nBaronets in the Baronetage of England\nCommissioners for sewers",
"Sir Hugh Bethell (1 October 1615 – 3 October 1679) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1654 and 1679.\n\nBethell was the eldest son of Hugh Bethell of Rise and his wife Ellen Johnston, daughter of Thomas Johnston of Bishop Burton. He was a captain of horse in the parliamentary army by 1643 and subsequently became a colonel. He commanded a regiment at Marston Moor, where he lost an eye. In 1645 he was a commissioner for the northern association for the East Riding of Yorkshire. He was commissioner for militia in 1649 and was governor of Scarborough Castle from about 1649 to 1651. Also in 1649 he became J.P. for the East Riding of Yorkshire until 1676 and was commissioner for assessment for the East Riding of Yorkshire. From 1650 to 1652 he was commissioner for assessment for Yorkshire. He was High Sheriff of Yorkshire from 1652 to 1653.\n\nIn 1654, Bethell was elected Member of Parliament for East Riding of Yorkshire in the First Protectorate Parliament. He was also commissioner for scandalous ministers for East Riding and Hull in 1654. In 1656 he was re-elected MP for East Riding for the Second Protectorate Parliament. He was commissioner for assessment for the East Riding of Yorkshire and became JP for Beverley in 1657. In 1659 he succeeded to the estates on the death of his father. He was commissioner for militia in 1659 and took part in a rising against the military government. He was captain of horse from January to November 1660 when he took over the regiment of horse formerly commanded by John Lambert and was commissioner for militia in March 1669. He was commissioner for assessment for the East Riding of Yorkshire from January 1660 until his death. When Lambert escaped from the Tower of London in April 1660, Bethell arrested the leaders in York and prevented a rising or any serious trouble. In April 1660 Bethell was elected MP for both Beverley and Hedon and chose to sit for Hedon in the Convention Parliament. He was knighted after 4 September 1660 and became commissioner for sewers in the same month. In 1661 he was re-elected MP for Hedon in the Cavalier Parliament. He was commissioner for corporations for Yorkshire from 1662 to 1663. He was Deputy Lieutenant for East Riding from 1670. In 1675 he was commissioner for recusants for Yorkshire. He was re-elected MP for Hedon at both elections in 1679 but died before the second Exclusion Parliament met.\n\nBethell died at the age of 64 and was buried at Rise.\n\nBethell married Mary Mitchellbourne, daughter of Thomas Mitchellbourne of Carleton, on 14 January 1641. He had a son and daughter. His son and grandson both predeceased him, and his estates went to his nephew, Hugh, who was also MP for Hedon.\n\nReferences\n\n1615 births\n1679 deaths\nHigh Sheriffs of Yorkshire\nMembers of the Parliament of England for Hedon\nEnglish MPs 1654–1655\nEnglish MPs 1656–1658\nEnglish MPs 1660\nEnglish MPs 1661–1679\nEnglish MPs 1679\nRoundheads\nBritish politicians with physical disabilities\nEnglish people with disabilities\nCommissioners for sewers"
]
|
[
"Frank Hague",
"Commissioner",
"where was he commissioner?",
"City Commission of Jersey City."
]
| C_8b5a49a4558041a6855863e02046905e_1 | what years was he Commissioner? | 2 | What years was Frank Hague City Commissioner of Jersey City? | Frank Hague | In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the first City Commission of Jersey City. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee. Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horsehoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate. Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation. Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city. In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor. CANNOTANSWER | 1913, | Frank Hague (January 17, 1876 – January 1, 1956) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the Mayor of Jersey City, New Jersey from 1917 to 1947, Democratic National Committeeman from New Jersey from 1922 until 1949, and Vice-Chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 1924 until 1949.
Hague has a widely known reputation for corruption and bossism and has been called "the grandaddy of Jersey bosses". By the time he left office in 1947, he enjoyed palatial homes, European vacations, and a private suite at the Plaza Hotel. His wealth has been estimated to have been over $10 million at the time of his death, although his City salary never exceeded $8,500 per year and he had no other legitimate source of income. His desk, according to legend, had a specially designed lap drawer which could be pushed outward towards the person with whom he was meeting. This allowed his "guests" to discreetly deliver bribes in the form of envelopes containing large amounts of cash. However, according to New Jersey preservationist John Hallinan, the drawers were a traditional feature of 19th century partners desks and that "[t]he last thing [Hague] would need to do is take a bribe personally". As of October 2021, the desk was on display in City Hall.
During the height of his power Hague's political machine, known as "the organization", was one of the most powerful in the United States controlling politics on local, county, and state levels. Hague's personal influence extended to the national level, influencing federal patronage, and presidential campaigns.
Early life
Francis "Frank" Hague, born in Jersey City, was the fourth of eight children to John D. and Margaret Hague (née Fagen), immigrants from County Cavan, Ireland. He was raised in Jersey City's Second ward, an area known as The Horseshoe due to its shape which wrapped around a railroad loop. The ward was created when the Republican-controlled legislature gerrymandered a district within Jersey City in 1871 to concentrate and isolate Democratic, and mostly Catholic, votes.
By age 14, Hague was expelled from school prior to completing the sixth grade for poor attendance and unacceptable behavior. He worked briefly as a blacksmith's apprentice for the Erie Railroad. While training at a local gym for his own potential debut as a prizefighter, he arranged to become manager for Joe Craig, a professional lightweight boxer. Craig was successful enough to allow Hague to buy a few suits that made him appear successful. In 1896, Hague's apparent prosperity gained him the attention of local tavern owner "Nat" Kenny who was seeking a candidate for constable in the upcoming primary to run against the candidate of a rival tavern owner. Kenny provided Hague with $75 to "spread around", and Frank Hague quickly won his first election by a ratio of three-to-one.
Political career
Early success
Hague's victory in the Constable election brought him to the attention of Hudson County Democratic political boss "Little Bob" Davis, and Davis asked Hague to help get out Democratic votes for the upcoming 1897 Mayoral election. Hague's efforts were credited with generating large voter turnout in the Second Ward for the 1897 and 1899 elections. As a reward for his work, Hague was appointed as a deputy sheriff at a salary of $25 per week. Over this time, Hague took a leadership role in the Second Ward Democratic club.
In the 1901 Mayoral election, Republican Mark M. Fagan was elected. Hague's second ward was one of only two that voted Democratic. Hague survived a Republican challenge for a third term as Constable the following year.
The "Red Dugan" affair
As a ward leader, Hague was approached by a woman to provide assistance for her son, who had been arrested for passing a forged check. The son, Red Dugan, had been a classmate of Hague's in school. According to the Boston Evening Transcript of October 4, 1904, Dugan had deposited a forged check for $955 in the Peoples Bank of Roxbury, Massachusetts, and convinced the bank manager to let him withdraw $500. Hague ignored a subpoena to testify in Hudson County Court and traveled to Massachusetts to provide an alibi for Dugan. Hague and another deputy sheriff, Thomas "Skidder" Madigan, claimed that they had seen Dugan in Jersey City on the day of the alleged offense. Both were threatened with perjury charges.
Upon returning to Jersey City, Hague was found guilty of contempt of court for ignoring the subpoena. He was fined $100 and stripped of his duties as Deputy Sheriff.
In spite of the resulting press coverage of the event, Hague was more deeply embraced by his constituency. Thomas Smith wrote: "But to the residents of the Horseshoe, Frank Hague had gone out of his way to help a friend – had practically given his livelihood to aid a brother." In the succeeding municipal election of 1905, which saw the return of incumbent Fagan to the office of mayor, Hague was elected to a fourth term as constable.
Ward leader
Hague rose through the Democratic machinery of Hudson County, which drew much of its strength by providing newly arrived immigrants with rudimentary social services. Hague took a job as a collector for a local brewery, leaving him with time to spend in the streets and the local taverns which were hubs of political activity. He also spent his time cleaning up the loose ends of the Second Ward's south-end Democratic Club to consolidate his power.
As a reward for his efforts in turning out votes in the 1905 election, Bob Davis named Hague as the party leader for the Second Ward and arranged for Hague to be appointed as Sergeant at Arms for the New Jersey State Assembly.
Political reformer
Hague broke ties with "Boss" Davis in 1906 over a difference of opinion on a candidate for appointment to the city Street and Water Board. As a result, Hague supported H. Otto Wittpenn for mayor in the 1907 election. Wittpenn was a reformer who opposed the control Davis held over Hudson County politics. Over the objections of Davis, newly elected Mayor Wittpenn appointed Hague as chief custodian of City Hall – a "cushy" job with plenty of patronage opportunities. During the Wittpenn administration, Hague also became friendly with Wittpenn's secretary – a Presbyterian Sunday school teacher named A. Harry Moore.
The resulting battle for control of the Hudson County Democratic machine would ironically result in one of the greatest boosts to Hague's rise to power – the Walsh Act of 1911. In 1909 Davis, seeing support for Hague increasing, supported Wittpenn's re-election against former mayor Fagan. Hague's second ward produced the largest plurality of Wittpenn votes of any of Jersey City's 12 wards. Davis then arranged the appointment of Fagan to the Hudson County Tax Board. When Wittpenn's administration began facing troubles, including Fagan's discovery of a Pennsylvania Railroad property that had paid no taxes for four years, Wittpenn blamed Davis.
Seeking to curb the influence of Davis, Wittpenn announced his candidacy for Governor, stating "I have endured the machine as long as possible, but patience is no longer a virtue." Davis, in turn, prevailed upon Woodrow Wilson, then President of Princeton University, to oppose Wittpenn's candidacy. Wilson's victory was overwhelming even in Hague's ward, despite heavy-handed tactics used there. The Jersey Journal wrote: "Cops on duty were using clubs and blackjacks to assist Mayor Wittpenn and Frank Hague defeat the Davis men."
Wilson's reform-minded term as Governor saw the establishment of Presidential primary elections, introduced workers' compensation, and brought about passage of the Walsh Act which provided for a non-partisan commission form of municipal government that was greatly reflective of his academic writings in Congressional Government.
"Little Bob" Davis died of cancer shortly after the 1910 gubernatorial election leaving a vacuum in the power structure of the Hudson County Democrats. Wittpenn quickly endorsed the idea of converting Jersey City to a commission form of government, but was opposed by forces, including Hague, attempting to take control of the party. Hague campaigned heavily against the idea in the Horseshoe, claiming that such a system of citywide elected commissioners would erode the influence of the working-class and consolidate power among the city's elite. Wittpenn's opponents successfully petitioned for a change in the date of the vote on the charter change, moving it from September to mid-July, and the proposal was defeated. As a result of this campaign, Hague came under the scrutiny of The Jersey Journal, which had supported the proposed charter change. It was reported that Hague's older brother, a battalion chief on the city fire department, had been on "sick leave" for three years at full pay.
Hague reconciled with Wittpenn to support his re-election in 1911. Wittpenn then supported Hague's nomination for Commissioner of Streets and Water. Both were elected. The new position greatly expanded Hague's patronage authority. While City Hall employed a few dozen custodians, there were hundreds of workers in the Street and Water Department. Hague's work as head of the Department of Street Cleaners even convinced The Jersey Journal to endorse him as a "reform candidate" in the next election.
In the spring of 1913, having gained confidence in his own ability to assure himself a place on the commission, Hague supported the renewed effort to change the Jersey City government from the Mayor-Council model to a commission model under the recently adopted Walsh Act. This act would place all executive and legislative powers in a five-man commission, each of whom would head a city department. The five commissioners would choose one of their colleagues to be mayor. The vote for charter change passed, and the stage was set for Frank Hague's rise to power.
Commissioner
In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the five-man commission. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee.
Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horseshoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate.
Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation.
Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city.
In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor.
Boss of Jersey City
Technically, Hague's only responsibility as mayor was to appoint the school board. Otherwise, he was merely first among equals, with no powers over and above the other four commissioners. However, soon after taking office, he wrested control of the Hudson County Democratic Party from Wittpenn. This allowed him to significantly influence the makeup of the commission in this overwhelmingly Democratic city. He soon built the organization into one of the most powerful political machines in the country. Hague himself became very wealthy, owning a $125,000 summer home in Deal, living in a large apartment in the best building in the city, and able to give a $50,000 altar to a local Catholic church. In 1941, Dartmouth professor Dayton David McKean wrote The Boss, a book about Hague's political machine, in which he estimated his amassed wealth at four million dollars on an annual mayoral salary of $8,000 a year.
He also had the support of a significant faction of Republicans which dated to his initial election as mayor, when he cut a deal with then-Governor Walter Edge in which Edge effectively ceded North Jersey to Hague in return for keeping South Jersey for himself. Also, as public safety commissioner (a post he held throughout his entire tenure), he controlled the two departments with the most patronage appointments in the city. This post also placed responsibility for maintaining public order in his hands.
Hague soon extended his influence statewide by helping to elect his "puppets" as governor. In the 1919 gubernatorial election, Hague endorsed State Senator Edward I. Edwards and aggressively campaigned for him. Edwards carried Hudson County by 50,000 votes, which was enough for him to win statewide by just under 15,000 votes. Hague proclaimed himself leader of the New Jersey Democratic Party, and Edwards allowed him to recommend dozens of appointments to high state offices. Democrats won five out of eight gubernatorial races between 1919 and 1940, more often than not due to massive landslides in Hudson County. However, he was never able to extend his dominance to the state legislature.
Hague was able to stay in power despite a nearly constant effort to turn him out of office from 1921 onward. He was also able to avoid prosecution despite numerous federal and state investigations in part due to the fact he took most of his kickbacks in cash. However, from the early 1940s onward, many of the older ethnic groups started moving to the suburbs. They were replaced by Poles, Italians, Eastern Europeans and African-Americans. Hague never adapted his methods to the new groups.
Hague had little tolerance for those who dared oppose him publicly. He relied on two ordinances of dubious constitutionality to muzzle critics. A 1920 ordinance effectively required people making political speeches to obtain clearance from the chief of police. A 1930 ordinance gave the public safety commissioner—Hague himself—the power to turn down permits for meetings if he felt it necessary to prevent "riots, disturbances or disorderly assemblage." The latter ordinance was struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States, but continued to be enforced for several years after that decision. The police were also allowed to stop and search anyone without probable cause or a warrant after 9 pm.
President maker
In 1932, Hague, a friend of Al Smith, backed Smith against Franklin D. Roosevelt during the race for the Democratic nomination. When Roosevelt won the nomination, Hague offered to organize the biggest political rally anyone had ever seen if Roosevelt would launch his presidential campaign in New Jersey. When Roosevelt formally began his campaign with an event at the Jersey Shore town of Sea Girt, Hague's machine made sure there were several thousand Hudson County voters looking on and cheering. Hague's support was rewarded with funding for a massive medical center complex complete with a maternity hospital named after his mother, Margaret Hague. During the 1936 campaign Hague provided 150,000 adults and children to cheer Roosevelt during a visit.
Accusations of voter fraud
Hague's use of voter fraud is the stuff of legend. In 1937, for instance, Jersey City had 160,050 registered voters, but only 147,000 people who were at least 21 years old—the legal voting age.
In 1932, Governor Moore appointed a lawyer named Thomas J. Brogan, who had served as Hague's personal attorney in corruption hearings, to an associate Justice seat on the state's Supreme Court. Less than a year later Brogan was named as Chief Justice. In at least two instances of alleged voting fraud in the 1930s (Ferguson v. Brogan, 112 N.J.L. 471; Clee v. Moore, 119 N.J.L. 215; In re Clee, 119 N.J.L. 310), Brogan's court issued extraordinary rulings in favor of the Democratic machine, in one case asserting that the district superintendent of elections had no authority to open ballot boxes, and in another case ruling that the boxes could be opened, but no one had the right to look inside. Brogan also assigned himself to the Hudson County jurisdiction, thereby controlling the local grand jury process and squelching other election fraud cases.
Although Hague, like other political bosses of the time, was not above outright fraud at the polls, the keys to Hague's success were his matchless organizational skills and demand for complete loyalty from his subordinates. His command over the Democratic voters of Hudson County, a densely populated urban area in a state that was still mostly rural, made him a man to reckon with among state Democrats and Republicans alike. He was a close friend of Al Smith, the New York governor who would become the first Irish-American presidential candidate in 1928. In addition, Hague's support of Roosevelt for President was rewarded with a steady stream of perks that sustained Hague's organization throughout the Depression.
Retirement from politics
The beginning of the end for Hague came in 1943, when former governor Walter Edge was returned to office. Edge's attorney general, Walter Van Riper, initiated several prosecutions of Hague cronies. Hague retaliated by having his handpicked U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey bring federal indictments against Van Riper, but Van Riper was acquitted. Edge also initiated reforms in the civil service, freeing it from Hague's control.
Edge's successor, fellow Republican Alfred Driscoll, succeeded in further curbing Hague's power over state government. He led the effort to implement a new constitution, which streamlined state government and made it less vulnerable to control by locally based bosses like Hague. For example, county prosecutors were now directly accountable to the state attorney general. It also set up a new state Supreme Court, which was given supervision over the state's judges. As the first Chief Justice, Driscoll appointed an old Hague foe, Arthur T. Vanderbilt. Driscoll also installed voting machines throughout the state, which made it harder for corrupt politicians to steal elections.
Seeing the writing on the wall, Hague abruptly announced his retirement in 1947. However, he was able to have his nephew, Frank Hague Eggers, chosen as his successor. It was generally understood that Hague still held the real power. This ended in 1949 when John V. Kenny, a former Hague ward leader alienated by the appointment of Eggers, put together his own commission ticket. Due to the presence of a "third ticket," Kenny's ticket was able to oust the Hague/Eggers ticket from power, ending Hague's 32-year rule. Kenny soon set up a machine which proved every bit as corrupt as Hague's, but far less efficient at providing services.
Friend and foe to labor
Hague was accommodating to labor unions during the first half of his mayoral career. For instance, Jersey City police were known for turning back strikebreakers, something unheard of during the 1920s. However, he became a savage opponent of labor organizers in the 1930s. The turnaround came about during a dispute with labor boss and former supporter Theodore "Teddy" Brandle, whose attempts to organize the work crews on the Pulaski Skyway construction project (1930–32) touched off a labor war so intense that local newspapers called it "the war of the meadows."
The rise of the CIO in the mid-1930s represented a threat to Hague's policy of guaranteeing labor peace to the sweatshop type industries that might otherwise have fled Jersey City's high property taxes. When Socialist presidential candidate Norman Thomas came to speak on behalf of the CIO during a May Day rally in Journal Square, Hague's police swept Thomas and his wife into a car, took them to the Pavonia ferry and sent them back to New York. Hague spent much of the decade inveighing against Communists and labor unions, and his attempts to suppress the CIO's activities in Jersey City led to a U.S. Supreme Court decision, Hague v. Committee for Industrial Organization 307 U.S. 496 (1939), that is a cornerstone of law concerning public expression of political views on public property.
Death
Hague died on New Year's Day in 1956 at his 480 Park Avenue duplex apartment in Manhattan, New York City. While hundreds gathered to see the casket depart the funeral home, only four men were seen to remove their hats for the passing of the coffin. One woman present held an American Flag and a sign that read, "God have mercy on his sinful, greedy soul."
Hague was interred in a large mausoleum at Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City.
Legacy
Hague's pride and joy was the Jersey City Medical Center, which he began creating almost as soon as he became mayor. By the 1940s it had grown into a 10-building complex that provided virtually free medical care to Jersey City residents. At the time of its completion, the Medical Center was one of the biggest medical facilities in the country and included the Medical Center Hospital, Pollak Chest Diseases Hospital, Murdoch Hall, and Margaret Hague Maternity Hospital, named in honor of Hague's mother. The buildings, funded in part through federal funds obtained by Hague, are known for their Art Deco details, including marble walls, terrazzo floors, etched glass, and decorative moldings. Even at the time the Medical Center was too large to operate cost-effectively. In 2005 the 14 acre complex (much of which had fallen into disuse) was sold to a private developer who began converting two towers into a luxury condominium complex called the Beacon.
Quotes
"We hear about constitutional rights, free speech and the free press. Every time I hear those words I say to myself, 'That man is a Red, that man is a Communist.' You never heard a real American talk in that manner." – speech to the Jersey City Chamber of Commerce, January 12, 1938.
"Listen, here is the law! I am the law! These boys go to work!" – speech on city government to the Emory Methodist Episcopal Church in Jersey City, November 10, 1937.
See also
List of mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Notes
References
(originally published—Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1940).
External links
Full text of the decision from FindLaw.com
Frank Hague Page at Jersey City History
The Life and Times of Frank Hague (2001) A five-part radio program
The Pragmatic Populism of a Non-Partisan Politician: An Analysis of the Political Philosophy of Charles Edison
1876 births
1956 deaths
American people of Irish descent
People from Deal, New Jersey
Mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Political corruption in the United States
Culture of Jersey City, New Jersey
American political bosses
American political bosses from New Jersey
New Jersey Democrats
Burials at Holy Name Cemetery (Jersey City, New Jersey)
Catholics from New Jersey
American anti-communists
Nucky Johnson's Organization | true | [
"Harry Graham Willis (26 January 1875 – 10 March 1943) was an English administrator in Southern Africa.\n\nWillis was the son of Henry Scott Willis, of Northfield, Trowbridge, Wiltshire, a wool merchant, and Caroline Bevan (née Horner), whose father had been headmaster of a private school. He was the younger brother of Major-General Edward Willis, Lieutenant Governor of Jersey 1929–34, and like his brothers was educated at Marlborough College.\n\nEntering the Colonial Service, he was appointed to north-eastern Rhodesia (in what is now Zambia, the Kafue district) in October 1900; he was made assistant native commissioner in January 1901, civil commissioner in September 1903, and native commissioner in November 1904. He was forced to retire in October 1906 due to ill health, but returned to the service as a native commissioner for the Sesheke district, as well as serving as justice of the peace and assistant resident magistrate for the Balovale sub-district in 1913. He was appointed a district officer in 1921, and ended his career having served as district commissioner for the Awemba district, and, having reached the pinnacle of his service, as provincial commissioner.\n\nIn 1914, Willis had married Alice Berthe, daughter of Edouard Fabre, of Paris, formerly of the Paris Missionary Society, Barotseland. He retired to White Lodge, Wimborne, Dorset, where he died in 1943.\n\nReferences\n\n1875 births\n1943 deaths\nPeople educated at Marlborough College\nBritish colonial governors and administrators in Africa",
"Tim Kidd was the UK Chief Commissioner for The Scout Association. As the Chief Commissioner he was the top administrative volunteer of The Scout Association. The UK Chief Commissioner acts as the association's Deputy Chief Scout and appoints a team of chief commissioners and UK Commissioners who are responsible for programmes in their respective fields.\n\nCareer\nTim Kidd works in information technology. He is an Executive Director in a not-for-profit company called JISC whose vision is for the UK to be the most digitally-advanced higher education, further education and research nation in the world. Tim is responsible for bringing together Jisc's digital technology related people, organisations, strategy, services and operations. He ensures Jisc's digital IT capabilities and expertise are applied cost effectively and imaginatively – making a real and sustained difference to research and education in the UK. October 2017 marked his 20th anniversary working at Jisc and what keeps him there is very simple – “I know that what we do makes a real difference to students, to universities, colleges and research centres, and to the UK economy. Without Jisc’s work to maintain and advance the national research and education network, a lot of research at universities would either be impossible, or it would cost the state more, and without the research we wouldn’t have UK universities up there in the world rankings”\n.\n\nScouting\nKidd's first involvement in Scouting was as a Cub. He has served in numerous leadership roles including Scout Leader, Assistant County Commissioner (Scouts), District Commissioner and County Commissioner. Prior to his current position Kidd was UK Commissioner for Adult Support for four years. Kidd replaced Wayne Bulpitt to become the UK Chief Commissioner in August 2016, serving until the appointment of Carl Hankinson in September 2021.\n\nKidd was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2016 Birthday Honours for services to young people through the Scout Movement.\n\nReferences\n\nLiving people\nOfficers of the Order of the British Empire\nChief Commissioners of The Scout Association\nYear of birth missing (living people)"
]
|
[
"Frank Hague",
"Commissioner",
"where was he commissioner?",
"City Commission of Jersey City.",
"what years was he Commissioner?",
"1913,"
]
| C_8b5a49a4558041a6855863e02046905e_1 | how long was he commissioner? | 3 | How long was Frank Hague City Commissioner of Jersey City? | Frank Hague | In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the first City Commission of Jersey City. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee. Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horsehoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate. Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation. Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city. In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor. CANNOTANSWER | 1917, | Frank Hague (January 17, 1876 – January 1, 1956) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the Mayor of Jersey City, New Jersey from 1917 to 1947, Democratic National Committeeman from New Jersey from 1922 until 1949, and Vice-Chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 1924 until 1949.
Hague has a widely known reputation for corruption and bossism and has been called "the grandaddy of Jersey bosses". By the time he left office in 1947, he enjoyed palatial homes, European vacations, and a private suite at the Plaza Hotel. His wealth has been estimated to have been over $10 million at the time of his death, although his City salary never exceeded $8,500 per year and he had no other legitimate source of income. His desk, according to legend, had a specially designed lap drawer which could be pushed outward towards the person with whom he was meeting. This allowed his "guests" to discreetly deliver bribes in the form of envelopes containing large amounts of cash. However, according to New Jersey preservationist John Hallinan, the drawers were a traditional feature of 19th century partners desks and that "[t]he last thing [Hague] would need to do is take a bribe personally". As of October 2021, the desk was on display in City Hall.
During the height of his power Hague's political machine, known as "the organization", was one of the most powerful in the United States controlling politics on local, county, and state levels. Hague's personal influence extended to the national level, influencing federal patronage, and presidential campaigns.
Early life
Francis "Frank" Hague, born in Jersey City, was the fourth of eight children to John D. and Margaret Hague (née Fagen), immigrants from County Cavan, Ireland. He was raised in Jersey City's Second ward, an area known as The Horseshoe due to its shape which wrapped around a railroad loop. The ward was created when the Republican-controlled legislature gerrymandered a district within Jersey City in 1871 to concentrate and isolate Democratic, and mostly Catholic, votes.
By age 14, Hague was expelled from school prior to completing the sixth grade for poor attendance and unacceptable behavior. He worked briefly as a blacksmith's apprentice for the Erie Railroad. While training at a local gym for his own potential debut as a prizefighter, he arranged to become manager for Joe Craig, a professional lightweight boxer. Craig was successful enough to allow Hague to buy a few suits that made him appear successful. In 1896, Hague's apparent prosperity gained him the attention of local tavern owner "Nat" Kenny who was seeking a candidate for constable in the upcoming primary to run against the candidate of a rival tavern owner. Kenny provided Hague with $75 to "spread around", and Frank Hague quickly won his first election by a ratio of three-to-one.
Political career
Early success
Hague's victory in the Constable election brought him to the attention of Hudson County Democratic political boss "Little Bob" Davis, and Davis asked Hague to help get out Democratic votes for the upcoming 1897 Mayoral election. Hague's efforts were credited with generating large voter turnout in the Second Ward for the 1897 and 1899 elections. As a reward for his work, Hague was appointed as a deputy sheriff at a salary of $25 per week. Over this time, Hague took a leadership role in the Second Ward Democratic club.
In the 1901 Mayoral election, Republican Mark M. Fagan was elected. Hague's second ward was one of only two that voted Democratic. Hague survived a Republican challenge for a third term as Constable the following year.
The "Red Dugan" affair
As a ward leader, Hague was approached by a woman to provide assistance for her son, who had been arrested for passing a forged check. The son, Red Dugan, had been a classmate of Hague's in school. According to the Boston Evening Transcript of October 4, 1904, Dugan had deposited a forged check for $955 in the Peoples Bank of Roxbury, Massachusetts, and convinced the bank manager to let him withdraw $500. Hague ignored a subpoena to testify in Hudson County Court and traveled to Massachusetts to provide an alibi for Dugan. Hague and another deputy sheriff, Thomas "Skidder" Madigan, claimed that they had seen Dugan in Jersey City on the day of the alleged offense. Both were threatened with perjury charges.
Upon returning to Jersey City, Hague was found guilty of contempt of court for ignoring the subpoena. He was fined $100 and stripped of his duties as Deputy Sheriff.
In spite of the resulting press coverage of the event, Hague was more deeply embraced by his constituency. Thomas Smith wrote: "But to the residents of the Horseshoe, Frank Hague had gone out of his way to help a friend – had practically given his livelihood to aid a brother." In the succeeding municipal election of 1905, which saw the return of incumbent Fagan to the office of mayor, Hague was elected to a fourth term as constable.
Ward leader
Hague rose through the Democratic machinery of Hudson County, which drew much of its strength by providing newly arrived immigrants with rudimentary social services. Hague took a job as a collector for a local brewery, leaving him with time to spend in the streets and the local taverns which were hubs of political activity. He also spent his time cleaning up the loose ends of the Second Ward's south-end Democratic Club to consolidate his power.
As a reward for his efforts in turning out votes in the 1905 election, Bob Davis named Hague as the party leader for the Second Ward and arranged for Hague to be appointed as Sergeant at Arms for the New Jersey State Assembly.
Political reformer
Hague broke ties with "Boss" Davis in 1906 over a difference of opinion on a candidate for appointment to the city Street and Water Board. As a result, Hague supported H. Otto Wittpenn for mayor in the 1907 election. Wittpenn was a reformer who opposed the control Davis held over Hudson County politics. Over the objections of Davis, newly elected Mayor Wittpenn appointed Hague as chief custodian of City Hall – a "cushy" job with plenty of patronage opportunities. During the Wittpenn administration, Hague also became friendly with Wittpenn's secretary – a Presbyterian Sunday school teacher named A. Harry Moore.
The resulting battle for control of the Hudson County Democratic machine would ironically result in one of the greatest boosts to Hague's rise to power – the Walsh Act of 1911. In 1909 Davis, seeing support for Hague increasing, supported Wittpenn's re-election against former mayor Fagan. Hague's second ward produced the largest plurality of Wittpenn votes of any of Jersey City's 12 wards. Davis then arranged the appointment of Fagan to the Hudson County Tax Board. When Wittpenn's administration began facing troubles, including Fagan's discovery of a Pennsylvania Railroad property that had paid no taxes for four years, Wittpenn blamed Davis.
Seeking to curb the influence of Davis, Wittpenn announced his candidacy for Governor, stating "I have endured the machine as long as possible, but patience is no longer a virtue." Davis, in turn, prevailed upon Woodrow Wilson, then President of Princeton University, to oppose Wittpenn's candidacy. Wilson's victory was overwhelming even in Hague's ward, despite heavy-handed tactics used there. The Jersey Journal wrote: "Cops on duty were using clubs and blackjacks to assist Mayor Wittpenn and Frank Hague defeat the Davis men."
Wilson's reform-minded term as Governor saw the establishment of Presidential primary elections, introduced workers' compensation, and brought about passage of the Walsh Act which provided for a non-partisan commission form of municipal government that was greatly reflective of his academic writings in Congressional Government.
"Little Bob" Davis died of cancer shortly after the 1910 gubernatorial election leaving a vacuum in the power structure of the Hudson County Democrats. Wittpenn quickly endorsed the idea of converting Jersey City to a commission form of government, but was opposed by forces, including Hague, attempting to take control of the party. Hague campaigned heavily against the idea in the Horseshoe, claiming that such a system of citywide elected commissioners would erode the influence of the working-class and consolidate power among the city's elite. Wittpenn's opponents successfully petitioned for a change in the date of the vote on the charter change, moving it from September to mid-July, and the proposal was defeated. As a result of this campaign, Hague came under the scrutiny of The Jersey Journal, which had supported the proposed charter change. It was reported that Hague's older brother, a battalion chief on the city fire department, had been on "sick leave" for three years at full pay.
Hague reconciled with Wittpenn to support his re-election in 1911. Wittpenn then supported Hague's nomination for Commissioner of Streets and Water. Both were elected. The new position greatly expanded Hague's patronage authority. While City Hall employed a few dozen custodians, there were hundreds of workers in the Street and Water Department. Hague's work as head of the Department of Street Cleaners even convinced The Jersey Journal to endorse him as a "reform candidate" in the next election.
In the spring of 1913, having gained confidence in his own ability to assure himself a place on the commission, Hague supported the renewed effort to change the Jersey City government from the Mayor-Council model to a commission model under the recently adopted Walsh Act. This act would place all executive and legislative powers in a five-man commission, each of whom would head a city department. The five commissioners would choose one of their colleagues to be mayor. The vote for charter change passed, and the stage was set for Frank Hague's rise to power.
Commissioner
In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the five-man commission. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee.
Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horseshoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate.
Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation.
Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city.
In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor.
Boss of Jersey City
Technically, Hague's only responsibility as mayor was to appoint the school board. Otherwise, he was merely first among equals, with no powers over and above the other four commissioners. However, soon after taking office, he wrested control of the Hudson County Democratic Party from Wittpenn. This allowed him to significantly influence the makeup of the commission in this overwhelmingly Democratic city. He soon built the organization into one of the most powerful political machines in the country. Hague himself became very wealthy, owning a $125,000 summer home in Deal, living in a large apartment in the best building in the city, and able to give a $50,000 altar to a local Catholic church. In 1941, Dartmouth professor Dayton David McKean wrote The Boss, a book about Hague's political machine, in which he estimated his amassed wealth at four million dollars on an annual mayoral salary of $8,000 a year.
He also had the support of a significant faction of Republicans which dated to his initial election as mayor, when he cut a deal with then-Governor Walter Edge in which Edge effectively ceded North Jersey to Hague in return for keeping South Jersey for himself. Also, as public safety commissioner (a post he held throughout his entire tenure), he controlled the two departments with the most patronage appointments in the city. This post also placed responsibility for maintaining public order in his hands.
Hague soon extended his influence statewide by helping to elect his "puppets" as governor. In the 1919 gubernatorial election, Hague endorsed State Senator Edward I. Edwards and aggressively campaigned for him. Edwards carried Hudson County by 50,000 votes, which was enough for him to win statewide by just under 15,000 votes. Hague proclaimed himself leader of the New Jersey Democratic Party, and Edwards allowed him to recommend dozens of appointments to high state offices. Democrats won five out of eight gubernatorial races between 1919 and 1940, more often than not due to massive landslides in Hudson County. However, he was never able to extend his dominance to the state legislature.
Hague was able to stay in power despite a nearly constant effort to turn him out of office from 1921 onward. He was also able to avoid prosecution despite numerous federal and state investigations in part due to the fact he took most of his kickbacks in cash. However, from the early 1940s onward, many of the older ethnic groups started moving to the suburbs. They were replaced by Poles, Italians, Eastern Europeans and African-Americans. Hague never adapted his methods to the new groups.
Hague had little tolerance for those who dared oppose him publicly. He relied on two ordinances of dubious constitutionality to muzzle critics. A 1920 ordinance effectively required people making political speeches to obtain clearance from the chief of police. A 1930 ordinance gave the public safety commissioner—Hague himself—the power to turn down permits for meetings if he felt it necessary to prevent "riots, disturbances or disorderly assemblage." The latter ordinance was struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States, but continued to be enforced for several years after that decision. The police were also allowed to stop and search anyone without probable cause or a warrant after 9 pm.
President maker
In 1932, Hague, a friend of Al Smith, backed Smith against Franklin D. Roosevelt during the race for the Democratic nomination. When Roosevelt won the nomination, Hague offered to organize the biggest political rally anyone had ever seen if Roosevelt would launch his presidential campaign in New Jersey. When Roosevelt formally began his campaign with an event at the Jersey Shore town of Sea Girt, Hague's machine made sure there were several thousand Hudson County voters looking on and cheering. Hague's support was rewarded with funding for a massive medical center complex complete with a maternity hospital named after his mother, Margaret Hague. During the 1936 campaign Hague provided 150,000 adults and children to cheer Roosevelt during a visit.
Accusations of voter fraud
Hague's use of voter fraud is the stuff of legend. In 1937, for instance, Jersey City had 160,050 registered voters, but only 147,000 people who were at least 21 years old—the legal voting age.
In 1932, Governor Moore appointed a lawyer named Thomas J. Brogan, who had served as Hague's personal attorney in corruption hearings, to an associate Justice seat on the state's Supreme Court. Less than a year later Brogan was named as Chief Justice. In at least two instances of alleged voting fraud in the 1930s (Ferguson v. Brogan, 112 N.J.L. 471; Clee v. Moore, 119 N.J.L. 215; In re Clee, 119 N.J.L. 310), Brogan's court issued extraordinary rulings in favor of the Democratic machine, in one case asserting that the district superintendent of elections had no authority to open ballot boxes, and in another case ruling that the boxes could be opened, but no one had the right to look inside. Brogan also assigned himself to the Hudson County jurisdiction, thereby controlling the local grand jury process and squelching other election fraud cases.
Although Hague, like other political bosses of the time, was not above outright fraud at the polls, the keys to Hague's success were his matchless organizational skills and demand for complete loyalty from his subordinates. His command over the Democratic voters of Hudson County, a densely populated urban area in a state that was still mostly rural, made him a man to reckon with among state Democrats and Republicans alike. He was a close friend of Al Smith, the New York governor who would become the first Irish-American presidential candidate in 1928. In addition, Hague's support of Roosevelt for President was rewarded with a steady stream of perks that sustained Hague's organization throughout the Depression.
Retirement from politics
The beginning of the end for Hague came in 1943, when former governor Walter Edge was returned to office. Edge's attorney general, Walter Van Riper, initiated several prosecutions of Hague cronies. Hague retaliated by having his handpicked U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey bring federal indictments against Van Riper, but Van Riper was acquitted. Edge also initiated reforms in the civil service, freeing it from Hague's control.
Edge's successor, fellow Republican Alfred Driscoll, succeeded in further curbing Hague's power over state government. He led the effort to implement a new constitution, which streamlined state government and made it less vulnerable to control by locally based bosses like Hague. For example, county prosecutors were now directly accountable to the state attorney general. It also set up a new state Supreme Court, which was given supervision over the state's judges. As the first Chief Justice, Driscoll appointed an old Hague foe, Arthur T. Vanderbilt. Driscoll also installed voting machines throughout the state, which made it harder for corrupt politicians to steal elections.
Seeing the writing on the wall, Hague abruptly announced his retirement in 1947. However, he was able to have his nephew, Frank Hague Eggers, chosen as his successor. It was generally understood that Hague still held the real power. This ended in 1949 when John V. Kenny, a former Hague ward leader alienated by the appointment of Eggers, put together his own commission ticket. Due to the presence of a "third ticket," Kenny's ticket was able to oust the Hague/Eggers ticket from power, ending Hague's 32-year rule. Kenny soon set up a machine which proved every bit as corrupt as Hague's, but far less efficient at providing services.
Friend and foe to labor
Hague was accommodating to labor unions during the first half of his mayoral career. For instance, Jersey City police were known for turning back strikebreakers, something unheard of during the 1920s. However, he became a savage opponent of labor organizers in the 1930s. The turnaround came about during a dispute with labor boss and former supporter Theodore "Teddy" Brandle, whose attempts to organize the work crews on the Pulaski Skyway construction project (1930–32) touched off a labor war so intense that local newspapers called it "the war of the meadows."
The rise of the CIO in the mid-1930s represented a threat to Hague's policy of guaranteeing labor peace to the sweatshop type industries that might otherwise have fled Jersey City's high property taxes. When Socialist presidential candidate Norman Thomas came to speak on behalf of the CIO during a May Day rally in Journal Square, Hague's police swept Thomas and his wife into a car, took them to the Pavonia ferry and sent them back to New York. Hague spent much of the decade inveighing against Communists and labor unions, and his attempts to suppress the CIO's activities in Jersey City led to a U.S. Supreme Court decision, Hague v. Committee for Industrial Organization 307 U.S. 496 (1939), that is a cornerstone of law concerning public expression of political views on public property.
Death
Hague died on New Year's Day in 1956 at his 480 Park Avenue duplex apartment in Manhattan, New York City. While hundreds gathered to see the casket depart the funeral home, only four men were seen to remove their hats for the passing of the coffin. One woman present held an American Flag and a sign that read, "God have mercy on his sinful, greedy soul."
Hague was interred in a large mausoleum at Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City.
Legacy
Hague's pride and joy was the Jersey City Medical Center, which he began creating almost as soon as he became mayor. By the 1940s it had grown into a 10-building complex that provided virtually free medical care to Jersey City residents. At the time of its completion, the Medical Center was one of the biggest medical facilities in the country and included the Medical Center Hospital, Pollak Chest Diseases Hospital, Murdoch Hall, and Margaret Hague Maternity Hospital, named in honor of Hague's mother. The buildings, funded in part through federal funds obtained by Hague, are known for their Art Deco details, including marble walls, terrazzo floors, etched glass, and decorative moldings. Even at the time the Medical Center was too large to operate cost-effectively. In 2005 the 14 acre complex (much of which had fallen into disuse) was sold to a private developer who began converting two towers into a luxury condominium complex called the Beacon.
Quotes
"We hear about constitutional rights, free speech and the free press. Every time I hear those words I say to myself, 'That man is a Red, that man is a Communist.' You never heard a real American talk in that manner." – speech to the Jersey City Chamber of Commerce, January 12, 1938.
"Listen, here is the law! I am the law! These boys go to work!" – speech on city government to the Emory Methodist Episcopal Church in Jersey City, November 10, 1937.
See also
List of mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Notes
References
(originally published—Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1940).
External links
Full text of the decision from FindLaw.com
Frank Hague Page at Jersey City History
The Life and Times of Frank Hague (2001) A five-part radio program
The Pragmatic Populism of a Non-Partisan Politician: An Analysis of the Political Philosophy of Charles Edison
1876 births
1956 deaths
American people of Irish descent
People from Deal, New Jersey
Mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Political corruption in the United States
Culture of Jersey City, New Jersey
American political bosses
American political bosses from New Jersey
New Jersey Democrats
Burials at Holy Name Cemetery (Jersey City, New Jersey)
Catholics from New Jersey
American anti-communists
Nucky Johnson's Organization | true | [
"John Goodwin (1603 – 18 February 1674) was an English lawyer and politician who sat in the House of Commons at various time between 1641 and 1660. He supported the Parliamentary cause in the English Civil War.\n\nGoodwin was the son of Edward Goodwin of Horne, Surrey and his wife Susan Wallop, daughter of Richard Wallop of Bugbrooke, Northamptonshire. He entered Inner Temple in 1622 and was called to the bar in 1630. \n\nIn 1641, Goodwin was elected Member of Parliament for Haslemere in the Long Parliament. In 1643 he was commissioner for sequestration for Surrey, commissioner for levying of money for Leicestershire and Surrey, commissioner for assessment for Surrey, commissioner for accounts for Surrey and commissioner for defence. In 1645, he was commissioner for execution of ordinances, commissioner for new model ordinance and commissioner for defence. By 1646 he was a J.P. for Surrey. He remained in the Rump Parliament after Pride's Purge. He was a steward of Wimbledon manor, Surrey from 1649 to May 1660 and a bencher of his Inn from 1649 to 1661. Also in 1649, he was commissioner for militia for Surrey, commissioner for great level of the fens and commissioner for obstructions 1649. He became a JP for Gloucestershire in 1650 and a commissioner for assessment for London in 1652.\n\nIn 1654 Goodwin was elected MP for East Grinstead in the First Protectorate Parliament and was re-elected MP for East Grinstead in the Second Protectorate Parliament. He became a JP for Surrey in 1656 and a commissioner for assessment for Surreyand commissioner for assessment for Gloucestershire in 1657. He was commissioner for militia for Buckinghamshire, Gloucestershire and Surrey in 1659. Also in 1659 he was elected MP for Bletchingley. He was a commissioner for assessment for Surrey in January 1660, and a commissioner for militia for Surrey in March 1660. In April 1660 he was re-elected MP for Bletchingley in the Convention Parliament.\n\nGoodwin died at the age of 70 and was buried at Worth.\n\nGoodwin married Katherine Deane daughter of Sir Richard Deane, Lord. Mayor of London, before 1635. They had a son and two daughters. He was the brother of Robert Goodwin.\n\nReferences\n\n \n\n1603 births\n1674 deaths\nRoundheads\nMembers of the Inner Temple\nPeople from Surrey (before 1889)\nEnglish MPs 1640–1648\nEnglish MPs 1648–1653\nEnglish MPs 1654–1655\nEnglish MPs 1656–1658\nEnglish MPs 1659\nEnglish MPs 1660",
"William Owfield (1 July 1623 – 1664) was an English landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1645.\n\nOwfield was the eldest son of Sir Samuel Owfield, of Upper Gatton, Surrey and Covent Garden, and his wife Katherine Smith, daughter of William Smith, Mercer, of Thames Street, London. His father was a City of London merchant who represented Gatton in parliament. Owfield was admitted at Emmanuel College, Cambridge on 1 October 1639. He inherited the estates of his father in 1643.\n\nIn October 1645, Owfield was elected Member of Parliament for Gatton in the Long Parliament and sat until 1648 when he was secluded under Pride's Purge. He was a commissioner for assessment for Lincolnshire from 1645 to 1650 and became commissioner for defence for Lincolnshire in 1645. In 1647 he became a J.P. for Lindsey Lincolnshire and a commissioner for assessment for Surrey. He was a commissioner sequestration for Surrey and a commissioner for militia for Surrey and Lincolnshire in 1648. \n\nOwfield was commissioner for sewers for Lincolnshire from 1658 to 1659. From March 1660 he was JP for Lincolnshire again and commissioner for militia for Surrey and Lincolnshire. In April 1660 he stood for parliament at Gatton again, but was involved in a double return and the election was declared void. He was commissioner for sewers for Lincolnshire in 1660 and commissioner for assessment for Lincolnshire from August 1660 until his death. In 1661 he was elected MP for Gatton in the Cavalier Parliament and sat until his death in 1664. He became commissioner for assessment for Surrey in 1661 until his death. \n\nOwfield died at the end of October 1664. \n\nOwfield married firstly Mary Thompson, daughter of Maurice Thomson (d.1676), merchant, of Mile End Green, Middlesex on 13 Nov. 1655 and had two sons. He married secondly by licence on 13 May 1662, Anne Hawkins, daughter of William Hawkins of Mortlake, Surrey.\n\nReferences\n\n1623 births\n1664 deaths\nEnglish landowners\nAlumni of Emmanuel College, Cambridge\nPeople from Surrey (before 1889)\nPeople from Lincolnshire\nEnglish MPs 1640–1648\nEnglish MPs 1661–1679\nCommissioners for sewers"
]
|
[
"Frank Hague",
"Commissioner",
"where was he commissioner?",
"City Commission of Jersey City.",
"what years was he Commissioner?",
"1913,",
"how long was he commissioner?",
"1917,"
]
| C_8b5a49a4558041a6855863e02046905e_1 | what were some noteworthy things that happened while he was Commissioner? | 4 | What were some noteworthy things that happened while Frank Hague was City Commissioner of Jersey City? | Frank Hague | In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the first City Commission of Jersey City. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee. Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horsehoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate. Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation. Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city. In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor. CANNOTANSWER | Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. | Frank Hague (January 17, 1876 – January 1, 1956) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the Mayor of Jersey City, New Jersey from 1917 to 1947, Democratic National Committeeman from New Jersey from 1922 until 1949, and Vice-Chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 1924 until 1949.
Hague has a widely known reputation for corruption and bossism and has been called "the grandaddy of Jersey bosses". By the time he left office in 1947, he enjoyed palatial homes, European vacations, and a private suite at the Plaza Hotel. His wealth has been estimated to have been over $10 million at the time of his death, although his City salary never exceeded $8,500 per year and he had no other legitimate source of income. His desk, according to legend, had a specially designed lap drawer which could be pushed outward towards the person with whom he was meeting. This allowed his "guests" to discreetly deliver bribes in the form of envelopes containing large amounts of cash. However, according to New Jersey preservationist John Hallinan, the drawers were a traditional feature of 19th century partners desks and that "[t]he last thing [Hague] would need to do is take a bribe personally". As of October 2021, the desk was on display in City Hall.
During the height of his power Hague's political machine, known as "the organization", was one of the most powerful in the United States controlling politics on local, county, and state levels. Hague's personal influence extended to the national level, influencing federal patronage, and presidential campaigns.
Early life
Francis "Frank" Hague, born in Jersey City, was the fourth of eight children to John D. and Margaret Hague (née Fagen), immigrants from County Cavan, Ireland. He was raised in Jersey City's Second ward, an area known as The Horseshoe due to its shape which wrapped around a railroad loop. The ward was created when the Republican-controlled legislature gerrymandered a district within Jersey City in 1871 to concentrate and isolate Democratic, and mostly Catholic, votes.
By age 14, Hague was expelled from school prior to completing the sixth grade for poor attendance and unacceptable behavior. He worked briefly as a blacksmith's apprentice for the Erie Railroad. While training at a local gym for his own potential debut as a prizefighter, he arranged to become manager for Joe Craig, a professional lightweight boxer. Craig was successful enough to allow Hague to buy a few suits that made him appear successful. In 1896, Hague's apparent prosperity gained him the attention of local tavern owner "Nat" Kenny who was seeking a candidate for constable in the upcoming primary to run against the candidate of a rival tavern owner. Kenny provided Hague with $75 to "spread around", and Frank Hague quickly won his first election by a ratio of three-to-one.
Political career
Early success
Hague's victory in the Constable election brought him to the attention of Hudson County Democratic political boss "Little Bob" Davis, and Davis asked Hague to help get out Democratic votes for the upcoming 1897 Mayoral election. Hague's efforts were credited with generating large voter turnout in the Second Ward for the 1897 and 1899 elections. As a reward for his work, Hague was appointed as a deputy sheriff at a salary of $25 per week. Over this time, Hague took a leadership role in the Second Ward Democratic club.
In the 1901 Mayoral election, Republican Mark M. Fagan was elected. Hague's second ward was one of only two that voted Democratic. Hague survived a Republican challenge for a third term as Constable the following year.
The "Red Dugan" affair
As a ward leader, Hague was approached by a woman to provide assistance for her son, who had been arrested for passing a forged check. The son, Red Dugan, had been a classmate of Hague's in school. According to the Boston Evening Transcript of October 4, 1904, Dugan had deposited a forged check for $955 in the Peoples Bank of Roxbury, Massachusetts, and convinced the bank manager to let him withdraw $500. Hague ignored a subpoena to testify in Hudson County Court and traveled to Massachusetts to provide an alibi for Dugan. Hague and another deputy sheriff, Thomas "Skidder" Madigan, claimed that they had seen Dugan in Jersey City on the day of the alleged offense. Both were threatened with perjury charges.
Upon returning to Jersey City, Hague was found guilty of contempt of court for ignoring the subpoena. He was fined $100 and stripped of his duties as Deputy Sheriff.
In spite of the resulting press coverage of the event, Hague was more deeply embraced by his constituency. Thomas Smith wrote: "But to the residents of the Horseshoe, Frank Hague had gone out of his way to help a friend – had practically given his livelihood to aid a brother." In the succeeding municipal election of 1905, which saw the return of incumbent Fagan to the office of mayor, Hague was elected to a fourth term as constable.
Ward leader
Hague rose through the Democratic machinery of Hudson County, which drew much of its strength by providing newly arrived immigrants with rudimentary social services. Hague took a job as a collector for a local brewery, leaving him with time to spend in the streets and the local taverns which were hubs of political activity. He also spent his time cleaning up the loose ends of the Second Ward's south-end Democratic Club to consolidate his power.
As a reward for his efforts in turning out votes in the 1905 election, Bob Davis named Hague as the party leader for the Second Ward and arranged for Hague to be appointed as Sergeant at Arms for the New Jersey State Assembly.
Political reformer
Hague broke ties with "Boss" Davis in 1906 over a difference of opinion on a candidate for appointment to the city Street and Water Board. As a result, Hague supported H. Otto Wittpenn for mayor in the 1907 election. Wittpenn was a reformer who opposed the control Davis held over Hudson County politics. Over the objections of Davis, newly elected Mayor Wittpenn appointed Hague as chief custodian of City Hall – a "cushy" job with plenty of patronage opportunities. During the Wittpenn administration, Hague also became friendly with Wittpenn's secretary – a Presbyterian Sunday school teacher named A. Harry Moore.
The resulting battle for control of the Hudson County Democratic machine would ironically result in one of the greatest boosts to Hague's rise to power – the Walsh Act of 1911. In 1909 Davis, seeing support for Hague increasing, supported Wittpenn's re-election against former mayor Fagan. Hague's second ward produced the largest plurality of Wittpenn votes of any of Jersey City's 12 wards. Davis then arranged the appointment of Fagan to the Hudson County Tax Board. When Wittpenn's administration began facing troubles, including Fagan's discovery of a Pennsylvania Railroad property that had paid no taxes for four years, Wittpenn blamed Davis.
Seeking to curb the influence of Davis, Wittpenn announced his candidacy for Governor, stating "I have endured the machine as long as possible, but patience is no longer a virtue." Davis, in turn, prevailed upon Woodrow Wilson, then President of Princeton University, to oppose Wittpenn's candidacy. Wilson's victory was overwhelming even in Hague's ward, despite heavy-handed tactics used there. The Jersey Journal wrote: "Cops on duty were using clubs and blackjacks to assist Mayor Wittpenn and Frank Hague defeat the Davis men."
Wilson's reform-minded term as Governor saw the establishment of Presidential primary elections, introduced workers' compensation, and brought about passage of the Walsh Act which provided for a non-partisan commission form of municipal government that was greatly reflective of his academic writings in Congressional Government.
"Little Bob" Davis died of cancer shortly after the 1910 gubernatorial election leaving a vacuum in the power structure of the Hudson County Democrats. Wittpenn quickly endorsed the idea of converting Jersey City to a commission form of government, but was opposed by forces, including Hague, attempting to take control of the party. Hague campaigned heavily against the idea in the Horseshoe, claiming that such a system of citywide elected commissioners would erode the influence of the working-class and consolidate power among the city's elite. Wittpenn's opponents successfully petitioned for a change in the date of the vote on the charter change, moving it from September to mid-July, and the proposal was defeated. As a result of this campaign, Hague came under the scrutiny of The Jersey Journal, which had supported the proposed charter change. It was reported that Hague's older brother, a battalion chief on the city fire department, had been on "sick leave" for three years at full pay.
Hague reconciled with Wittpenn to support his re-election in 1911. Wittpenn then supported Hague's nomination for Commissioner of Streets and Water. Both were elected. The new position greatly expanded Hague's patronage authority. While City Hall employed a few dozen custodians, there were hundreds of workers in the Street and Water Department. Hague's work as head of the Department of Street Cleaners even convinced The Jersey Journal to endorse him as a "reform candidate" in the next election.
In the spring of 1913, having gained confidence in his own ability to assure himself a place on the commission, Hague supported the renewed effort to change the Jersey City government from the Mayor-Council model to a commission model under the recently adopted Walsh Act. This act would place all executive and legislative powers in a five-man commission, each of whom would head a city department. The five commissioners would choose one of their colleagues to be mayor. The vote for charter change passed, and the stage was set for Frank Hague's rise to power.
Commissioner
In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the five-man commission. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee.
Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horseshoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate.
Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation.
Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city.
In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor.
Boss of Jersey City
Technically, Hague's only responsibility as mayor was to appoint the school board. Otherwise, he was merely first among equals, with no powers over and above the other four commissioners. However, soon after taking office, he wrested control of the Hudson County Democratic Party from Wittpenn. This allowed him to significantly influence the makeup of the commission in this overwhelmingly Democratic city. He soon built the organization into one of the most powerful political machines in the country. Hague himself became very wealthy, owning a $125,000 summer home in Deal, living in a large apartment in the best building in the city, and able to give a $50,000 altar to a local Catholic church. In 1941, Dartmouth professor Dayton David McKean wrote The Boss, a book about Hague's political machine, in which he estimated his amassed wealth at four million dollars on an annual mayoral salary of $8,000 a year.
He also had the support of a significant faction of Republicans which dated to his initial election as mayor, when he cut a deal with then-Governor Walter Edge in which Edge effectively ceded North Jersey to Hague in return for keeping South Jersey for himself. Also, as public safety commissioner (a post he held throughout his entire tenure), he controlled the two departments with the most patronage appointments in the city. This post also placed responsibility for maintaining public order in his hands.
Hague soon extended his influence statewide by helping to elect his "puppets" as governor. In the 1919 gubernatorial election, Hague endorsed State Senator Edward I. Edwards and aggressively campaigned for him. Edwards carried Hudson County by 50,000 votes, which was enough for him to win statewide by just under 15,000 votes. Hague proclaimed himself leader of the New Jersey Democratic Party, and Edwards allowed him to recommend dozens of appointments to high state offices. Democrats won five out of eight gubernatorial races between 1919 and 1940, more often than not due to massive landslides in Hudson County. However, he was never able to extend his dominance to the state legislature.
Hague was able to stay in power despite a nearly constant effort to turn him out of office from 1921 onward. He was also able to avoid prosecution despite numerous federal and state investigations in part due to the fact he took most of his kickbacks in cash. However, from the early 1940s onward, many of the older ethnic groups started moving to the suburbs. They were replaced by Poles, Italians, Eastern Europeans and African-Americans. Hague never adapted his methods to the new groups.
Hague had little tolerance for those who dared oppose him publicly. He relied on two ordinances of dubious constitutionality to muzzle critics. A 1920 ordinance effectively required people making political speeches to obtain clearance from the chief of police. A 1930 ordinance gave the public safety commissioner—Hague himself—the power to turn down permits for meetings if he felt it necessary to prevent "riots, disturbances or disorderly assemblage." The latter ordinance was struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States, but continued to be enforced for several years after that decision. The police were also allowed to stop and search anyone without probable cause or a warrant after 9 pm.
President maker
In 1932, Hague, a friend of Al Smith, backed Smith against Franklin D. Roosevelt during the race for the Democratic nomination. When Roosevelt won the nomination, Hague offered to organize the biggest political rally anyone had ever seen if Roosevelt would launch his presidential campaign in New Jersey. When Roosevelt formally began his campaign with an event at the Jersey Shore town of Sea Girt, Hague's machine made sure there were several thousand Hudson County voters looking on and cheering. Hague's support was rewarded with funding for a massive medical center complex complete with a maternity hospital named after his mother, Margaret Hague. During the 1936 campaign Hague provided 150,000 adults and children to cheer Roosevelt during a visit.
Accusations of voter fraud
Hague's use of voter fraud is the stuff of legend. In 1937, for instance, Jersey City had 160,050 registered voters, but only 147,000 people who were at least 21 years old—the legal voting age.
In 1932, Governor Moore appointed a lawyer named Thomas J. Brogan, who had served as Hague's personal attorney in corruption hearings, to an associate Justice seat on the state's Supreme Court. Less than a year later Brogan was named as Chief Justice. In at least two instances of alleged voting fraud in the 1930s (Ferguson v. Brogan, 112 N.J.L. 471; Clee v. Moore, 119 N.J.L. 215; In re Clee, 119 N.J.L. 310), Brogan's court issued extraordinary rulings in favor of the Democratic machine, in one case asserting that the district superintendent of elections had no authority to open ballot boxes, and in another case ruling that the boxes could be opened, but no one had the right to look inside. Brogan also assigned himself to the Hudson County jurisdiction, thereby controlling the local grand jury process and squelching other election fraud cases.
Although Hague, like other political bosses of the time, was not above outright fraud at the polls, the keys to Hague's success were his matchless organizational skills and demand for complete loyalty from his subordinates. His command over the Democratic voters of Hudson County, a densely populated urban area in a state that was still mostly rural, made him a man to reckon with among state Democrats and Republicans alike. He was a close friend of Al Smith, the New York governor who would become the first Irish-American presidential candidate in 1928. In addition, Hague's support of Roosevelt for President was rewarded with a steady stream of perks that sustained Hague's organization throughout the Depression.
Retirement from politics
The beginning of the end for Hague came in 1943, when former governor Walter Edge was returned to office. Edge's attorney general, Walter Van Riper, initiated several prosecutions of Hague cronies. Hague retaliated by having his handpicked U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey bring federal indictments against Van Riper, but Van Riper was acquitted. Edge also initiated reforms in the civil service, freeing it from Hague's control.
Edge's successor, fellow Republican Alfred Driscoll, succeeded in further curbing Hague's power over state government. He led the effort to implement a new constitution, which streamlined state government and made it less vulnerable to control by locally based bosses like Hague. For example, county prosecutors were now directly accountable to the state attorney general. It also set up a new state Supreme Court, which was given supervision over the state's judges. As the first Chief Justice, Driscoll appointed an old Hague foe, Arthur T. Vanderbilt. Driscoll also installed voting machines throughout the state, which made it harder for corrupt politicians to steal elections.
Seeing the writing on the wall, Hague abruptly announced his retirement in 1947. However, he was able to have his nephew, Frank Hague Eggers, chosen as his successor. It was generally understood that Hague still held the real power. This ended in 1949 when John V. Kenny, a former Hague ward leader alienated by the appointment of Eggers, put together his own commission ticket. Due to the presence of a "third ticket," Kenny's ticket was able to oust the Hague/Eggers ticket from power, ending Hague's 32-year rule. Kenny soon set up a machine which proved every bit as corrupt as Hague's, but far less efficient at providing services.
Friend and foe to labor
Hague was accommodating to labor unions during the first half of his mayoral career. For instance, Jersey City police were known for turning back strikebreakers, something unheard of during the 1920s. However, he became a savage opponent of labor organizers in the 1930s. The turnaround came about during a dispute with labor boss and former supporter Theodore "Teddy" Brandle, whose attempts to organize the work crews on the Pulaski Skyway construction project (1930–32) touched off a labor war so intense that local newspapers called it "the war of the meadows."
The rise of the CIO in the mid-1930s represented a threat to Hague's policy of guaranteeing labor peace to the sweatshop type industries that might otherwise have fled Jersey City's high property taxes. When Socialist presidential candidate Norman Thomas came to speak on behalf of the CIO during a May Day rally in Journal Square, Hague's police swept Thomas and his wife into a car, took them to the Pavonia ferry and sent them back to New York. Hague spent much of the decade inveighing against Communists and labor unions, and his attempts to suppress the CIO's activities in Jersey City led to a U.S. Supreme Court decision, Hague v. Committee for Industrial Organization 307 U.S. 496 (1939), that is a cornerstone of law concerning public expression of political views on public property.
Death
Hague died on New Year's Day in 1956 at his 480 Park Avenue duplex apartment in Manhattan, New York City. While hundreds gathered to see the casket depart the funeral home, only four men were seen to remove their hats for the passing of the coffin. One woman present held an American Flag and a sign that read, "God have mercy on his sinful, greedy soul."
Hague was interred in a large mausoleum at Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City.
Legacy
Hague's pride and joy was the Jersey City Medical Center, which he began creating almost as soon as he became mayor. By the 1940s it had grown into a 10-building complex that provided virtually free medical care to Jersey City residents. At the time of its completion, the Medical Center was one of the biggest medical facilities in the country and included the Medical Center Hospital, Pollak Chest Diseases Hospital, Murdoch Hall, and Margaret Hague Maternity Hospital, named in honor of Hague's mother. The buildings, funded in part through federal funds obtained by Hague, are known for their Art Deco details, including marble walls, terrazzo floors, etched glass, and decorative moldings. Even at the time the Medical Center was too large to operate cost-effectively. In 2005 the 14 acre complex (much of which had fallen into disuse) was sold to a private developer who began converting two towers into a luxury condominium complex called the Beacon.
Quotes
"We hear about constitutional rights, free speech and the free press. Every time I hear those words I say to myself, 'That man is a Red, that man is a Communist.' You never heard a real American talk in that manner." – speech to the Jersey City Chamber of Commerce, January 12, 1938.
"Listen, here is the law! I am the law! These boys go to work!" – speech on city government to the Emory Methodist Episcopal Church in Jersey City, November 10, 1937.
See also
List of mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Notes
References
(originally published—Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1940).
External links
Full text of the decision from FindLaw.com
Frank Hague Page at Jersey City History
The Life and Times of Frank Hague (2001) A five-part radio program
The Pragmatic Populism of a Non-Partisan Politician: An Analysis of the Political Philosophy of Charles Edison
1876 births
1956 deaths
American people of Irish descent
People from Deal, New Jersey
Mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Political corruption in the United States
Culture of Jersey City, New Jersey
American political bosses
American political bosses from New Jersey
New Jersey Democrats
Burials at Holy Name Cemetery (Jersey City, New Jersey)
Catholics from New Jersey
American anti-communists
Nucky Johnson's Organization | true | [
"The Nunn Commission of Inquiry (Nunn Commission-December 2006 ) was a landmark public inquiry into Canada's youth criminal justice system. It was chaired by the Hon. D. Merlin Nunn, a retired Justice of the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia.\nThe Nunn Commission examined the events of October 14, 2004, in which Theresa McEvoy, of Halifax, Nova Scotia, a 52-year-old teacher's aide and mother of three boys, was killed when the car she was traveling was broadsided by another vehicle. The car was stolen and was being driven at high speeds by a serial young offender who had been mistakenly released from jail just two days previously.\n\nThe 16-year-old had been released from jail despite the notable issue of having 38 outstanding criminal charges pending against him.\n\nThe Commission convened on June 29, 2005. The Commissioner was charged with:\n determining what happened\n what the youth criminal justice policies and procedures were at the time and whether they were adequate\n determining what actions of law enforcement and Justice officials took in relation to this incident\n determining the reasons why the offender was released, and\n judging the adequacy of legislation governing youth criminal justice in Canada\n\nOver 31 days of testimony, Commissioner Nunn heard from 47 witnesses, including the families of the principals, policing agencies, Government and court officials, educational officials, and the legal establishment. Chief commission counsel was Michael J. Messenger of Cox & Palmer. Nine parties were represented.\nThe Commissioner tabled his final report on December 5, 2006. The report tabled 34 recommendations in the areas of youth justice administration and accountability, youth crime legislation, and prevention of youth crime. The Commissioner's findings focused much attention on the deficiencies of the Youth Criminal Justice Act, which was cited as an important factor that lead to the tragedy, along with improvements in responding to \"at risk\" children and youth in Nova Scotia.\n\nThe Government of Nova Scotia accepted all of the Commissioner's recommendations, and published an official response.\n\nThe Nunn Commission's findings have been cited as a significant factor in pending changes to the Act, currently before the Canadian Parliament, through Bill C-10 . However, Commissioner Nunn has made public comments disagreeing with some aspects of the proposed legislation.\n\nReferences\n\nCanadian commissions and inquiries\nNova Scotia, Nunn_Commission",
"Don Juan Manuel's Tales of Count Lucanor, in Spanish Libro de los ejemplos del conde Lucanor y de Patronio (Book of the Examples of Count Lucanor and of Patronio), also commonly known as El Conde Lucanor, Libro de Patronio, or Libro de los ejemplos (original Old Castilian: Libro de los enxiemplos del Conde Lucanor et de Patronio), is one of the earliest works of prose in Castilian Spanish. It was first written in 1335.\n\nThe book is divided into four parts. The first and most well-known part is a series of 51 short stories (some no more than a page or two) drawn from various sources, such as Aesop and other classical writers, and Arabic folktales.\n\nTales of Count Lucanor was first printed in 1575 when it was published at Seville under the auspices of Argote de Molina. It was again printed at Madrid in 1642, after which it lay forgotten for nearly two centuries.\n\nPurpose and structure\n\nA didactic, moralistic purpose, which would color so much of the Spanish literature to follow (see Novela picaresca), is the mark of this book. Count Lucanor engages in conversation with his advisor Patronio, putting to him a problem (\"Some man has made me a proposition...\" or \"I fear that such and such person intends to...\") and asking for advice. Patronio responds always with the greatest humility, claiming not to wish to offer advice to so illustrious a person as the Count, but offering to tell him a story of which the Count's problem reminds him. (Thus, the stories are \"examples\" [ejemplos] of wise action.) At the end he advises the Count to do as the protagonist of his story did.\n\nEach chapter ends in more or less the same way, with slight variations on: \"And this pleased the Count greatly and he did just so, and found it well. And Don Johán (Juan) saw that this example was very good, and had it written in this book, and composed the following verses.\" A rhymed couplet closes, giving the moral of the story.\n\nOrigin of stories and influence on later literature\nMany of the stories written in the book are the first examples written in a modern European language of various stories, which many other writers would use in the proceeding centuries. Many of the stories he included were themselves derived from other stories, coming from western and Arab sources.\n\nShakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew has the basic elements of Tale 35, \"What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\".\n\nTale 32, \"What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth\" tells the story that Hans Christian Andersen made popular as The Emperor's New Clothes.\n\nStory 7, \"What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana\", a version of Aesop's The Milkmaid and Her Pail, was claimed by Max Müller to originate in the Hindu cycle Panchatantra.\n\nTale 2, \"What happened to a good Man and his Son, leading a beast to market,\" is the familiar fable The miller, his son and the donkey.\n\nIn 2016, Baroque Decay released a game under the name \"The Count Lucanor\". As well as some protagonists' names, certain events from the books inspired past events in the game.\n\nThe stories\n\nThe book opens with a prologue which introduces the characters of the Count and Patronio. The titles in the following list are those given in Keller and Keating's 1977 translation into English. James York's 1868 translation into English gives a significantly different ordering of the stories and omits the fifty-first.\n\n What Happened to a King and His Favorite \n What Happened to a Good Man and His Son \n How King Richard of England Leapt into the Sea against the Moors\n What a Genoese Said to His Soul When He Was about to Die \n What Happened to a Fox and a Crow Who Had a Piece of Cheese in His Beak\n How the Swallow Warned the Other Birds When She Saw Flax Being Sown \n What Happened to a Woman Named Truhana \n What Happened to a Man Whose Liver Had to Be Washed \n What Happened to Two Horses Which Were Thrown to the Lion \n What Happened to a Man Who on Account of Poverty and Lack of Other Food Was Eating Bitter Lentils \n What Happened to a Dean of Santiago de Compostela and Don Yllán, the Grand Master of Toledo\n What Happened to the Fox and the Rooster \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Hunting Partridges \n The Miracle of Saint Dominick When He Preached against the Usurer \n What Happened to Lorenzo Suárez at the Siege of Seville \n The Reply that count Fernán González Gave to His Relative Núño Laynes \n What Happened to a Very Hungry Man Who Was Half-heartedly Invited to Dinner \n What Happened to Pero Meléndez de Valdés When He Broke His Leg \n What Happened to the Crows and the Owls \n What Happened to a King for Whom a Man Promised to Perform Alchemy \n What Happened to a Young King and a Philosopher to Whom his Father Commended Him \n What Happened to the Lion and the Bull \n How the Ants Provide for Themselves \n What Happened to the King Who Wanted to Test His Three Sons \n What Happened to the Count of Provence and How He Was Freed from Prison by the Advice of Saladin\n What Happened to the Tree of Lies \n What Happened to an Emperor and to Don Alvarfáñez Minaya and Their Wives \n What Happened in Granada to Don Lorenzo Suárez Gallinato When He Beheaded the Renegade Chaplain \n What Happened to a Fox Who Lay down in the Street to Play Dead \n What Happened to King Abenabet of Seville and Ramayquía His Wife \n How a Cardinal Judged between the Canons of Paris and the Friars Minor \n What Happened to the King and the Tricksters Who Made Cloth \n What Happened to Don Juan Manuel's Saker Falcon and an Eagle and a Heron \n What Happened to a Blind Man Who Was Leading Another \n What Happened to a Young Man Who Married a Strong and Ill-tempered Woman\n What Happened to a Merchant When He Found His Son and His Wife Sleeping Together \n What Happened to Count Fernán González with His Men after He Had Won the Battle of Hacinas \n What Happened to a Man Who Was Loaded down with Precious Stones and Drowned in the River \n What Happened to a Man and a Swallow and a Sparrow \n Why the Seneschal of Carcassonne Lost His Soul \n What Happened to a King of Córdova Named Al-Haquem \n What Happened to a Woman of Sham Piety \n What Happened to Good and Evil and the Wise Man and the Madman \n What Happened to Don Pero Núñez the Loyal, to Don Ruy González de Zavallos, and to Don Gutier Roiz de Blaguiello with Don Rodrigo the Generous \n What Happened to a Man Who Became the Devil's Friend and Vassal \n What Happened to a Philosopher who by Accident Went down a Street Where Prostitutes Lived \n What Befell a Moor and His Sister Who Pretended That She Was Timid \n What Happened to a Man Who Tested His Friends \n What Happened to the Man Whom They Cast out Naked on an Island When They Took away from Him the Kingdom He Ruled \n What Happened to Saladin and a Lady, the Wife of a Knight Who Was His Vassal \n What Happened to a Christian King Who Was Very Powerful and Haughty\n\nReferences\n\nNotes\n\nBibliography\n\n Sturm, Harlan\n\n Wacks, David\n\nExternal links\n\nThe Internet Archive provides free access to the 1868 translation by James York.\nJSTOR has the to the 1977 translation by Keller and Keating.\nSelections in English and Spanish (pedagogical edition) with introduction, notes, and bibliography in Open Iberia/América (open access teaching anthology)\n\n14th-century books\nSpanish literature\n1335 books"
]
|
[
"Frank Hague",
"Commissioner",
"where was he commissioner?",
"City Commission of Jersey City.",
"what years was he Commissioner?",
"1913,",
"how long was he commissioner?",
"1917,",
"what were some noteworthy things that happened while he was Commissioner?",
"Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments."
]
| C_8b5a49a4558041a6855863e02046905e_1 | did the fire and police get along with him? | 5 | Did the fire and police departments get along with Frank Hague? | Frank Hague | In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the first City Commission of Jersey City. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee. Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horsehoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate. Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation. Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city. In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor. CANNOTANSWER | Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force | Frank Hague (January 17, 1876 – January 1, 1956) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the Mayor of Jersey City, New Jersey from 1917 to 1947, Democratic National Committeeman from New Jersey from 1922 until 1949, and Vice-Chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 1924 until 1949.
Hague has a widely known reputation for corruption and bossism and has been called "the grandaddy of Jersey bosses". By the time he left office in 1947, he enjoyed palatial homes, European vacations, and a private suite at the Plaza Hotel. His wealth has been estimated to have been over $10 million at the time of his death, although his City salary never exceeded $8,500 per year and he had no other legitimate source of income. His desk, according to legend, had a specially designed lap drawer which could be pushed outward towards the person with whom he was meeting. This allowed his "guests" to discreetly deliver bribes in the form of envelopes containing large amounts of cash. However, according to New Jersey preservationist John Hallinan, the drawers were a traditional feature of 19th century partners desks and that "[t]he last thing [Hague] would need to do is take a bribe personally". As of October 2021, the desk was on display in City Hall.
During the height of his power Hague's political machine, known as "the organization", was one of the most powerful in the United States controlling politics on local, county, and state levels. Hague's personal influence extended to the national level, influencing federal patronage, and presidential campaigns.
Early life
Francis "Frank" Hague, born in Jersey City, was the fourth of eight children to John D. and Margaret Hague (née Fagen), immigrants from County Cavan, Ireland. He was raised in Jersey City's Second ward, an area known as The Horseshoe due to its shape which wrapped around a railroad loop. The ward was created when the Republican-controlled legislature gerrymandered a district within Jersey City in 1871 to concentrate and isolate Democratic, and mostly Catholic, votes.
By age 14, Hague was expelled from school prior to completing the sixth grade for poor attendance and unacceptable behavior. He worked briefly as a blacksmith's apprentice for the Erie Railroad. While training at a local gym for his own potential debut as a prizefighter, he arranged to become manager for Joe Craig, a professional lightweight boxer. Craig was successful enough to allow Hague to buy a few suits that made him appear successful. In 1896, Hague's apparent prosperity gained him the attention of local tavern owner "Nat" Kenny who was seeking a candidate for constable in the upcoming primary to run against the candidate of a rival tavern owner. Kenny provided Hague with $75 to "spread around", and Frank Hague quickly won his first election by a ratio of three-to-one.
Political career
Early success
Hague's victory in the Constable election brought him to the attention of Hudson County Democratic political boss "Little Bob" Davis, and Davis asked Hague to help get out Democratic votes for the upcoming 1897 Mayoral election. Hague's efforts were credited with generating large voter turnout in the Second Ward for the 1897 and 1899 elections. As a reward for his work, Hague was appointed as a deputy sheriff at a salary of $25 per week. Over this time, Hague took a leadership role in the Second Ward Democratic club.
In the 1901 Mayoral election, Republican Mark M. Fagan was elected. Hague's second ward was one of only two that voted Democratic. Hague survived a Republican challenge for a third term as Constable the following year.
The "Red Dugan" affair
As a ward leader, Hague was approached by a woman to provide assistance for her son, who had been arrested for passing a forged check. The son, Red Dugan, had been a classmate of Hague's in school. According to the Boston Evening Transcript of October 4, 1904, Dugan had deposited a forged check for $955 in the Peoples Bank of Roxbury, Massachusetts, and convinced the bank manager to let him withdraw $500. Hague ignored a subpoena to testify in Hudson County Court and traveled to Massachusetts to provide an alibi for Dugan. Hague and another deputy sheriff, Thomas "Skidder" Madigan, claimed that they had seen Dugan in Jersey City on the day of the alleged offense. Both were threatened with perjury charges.
Upon returning to Jersey City, Hague was found guilty of contempt of court for ignoring the subpoena. He was fined $100 and stripped of his duties as Deputy Sheriff.
In spite of the resulting press coverage of the event, Hague was more deeply embraced by his constituency. Thomas Smith wrote: "But to the residents of the Horseshoe, Frank Hague had gone out of his way to help a friend – had practically given his livelihood to aid a brother." In the succeeding municipal election of 1905, which saw the return of incumbent Fagan to the office of mayor, Hague was elected to a fourth term as constable.
Ward leader
Hague rose through the Democratic machinery of Hudson County, which drew much of its strength by providing newly arrived immigrants with rudimentary social services. Hague took a job as a collector for a local brewery, leaving him with time to spend in the streets and the local taverns which were hubs of political activity. He also spent his time cleaning up the loose ends of the Second Ward's south-end Democratic Club to consolidate his power.
As a reward for his efforts in turning out votes in the 1905 election, Bob Davis named Hague as the party leader for the Second Ward and arranged for Hague to be appointed as Sergeant at Arms for the New Jersey State Assembly.
Political reformer
Hague broke ties with "Boss" Davis in 1906 over a difference of opinion on a candidate for appointment to the city Street and Water Board. As a result, Hague supported H. Otto Wittpenn for mayor in the 1907 election. Wittpenn was a reformer who opposed the control Davis held over Hudson County politics. Over the objections of Davis, newly elected Mayor Wittpenn appointed Hague as chief custodian of City Hall – a "cushy" job with plenty of patronage opportunities. During the Wittpenn administration, Hague also became friendly with Wittpenn's secretary – a Presbyterian Sunday school teacher named A. Harry Moore.
The resulting battle for control of the Hudson County Democratic machine would ironically result in one of the greatest boosts to Hague's rise to power – the Walsh Act of 1911. In 1909 Davis, seeing support for Hague increasing, supported Wittpenn's re-election against former mayor Fagan. Hague's second ward produced the largest plurality of Wittpenn votes of any of Jersey City's 12 wards. Davis then arranged the appointment of Fagan to the Hudson County Tax Board. When Wittpenn's administration began facing troubles, including Fagan's discovery of a Pennsylvania Railroad property that had paid no taxes for four years, Wittpenn blamed Davis.
Seeking to curb the influence of Davis, Wittpenn announced his candidacy for Governor, stating "I have endured the machine as long as possible, but patience is no longer a virtue." Davis, in turn, prevailed upon Woodrow Wilson, then President of Princeton University, to oppose Wittpenn's candidacy. Wilson's victory was overwhelming even in Hague's ward, despite heavy-handed tactics used there. The Jersey Journal wrote: "Cops on duty were using clubs and blackjacks to assist Mayor Wittpenn and Frank Hague defeat the Davis men."
Wilson's reform-minded term as Governor saw the establishment of Presidential primary elections, introduced workers' compensation, and brought about passage of the Walsh Act which provided for a non-partisan commission form of municipal government that was greatly reflective of his academic writings in Congressional Government.
"Little Bob" Davis died of cancer shortly after the 1910 gubernatorial election leaving a vacuum in the power structure of the Hudson County Democrats. Wittpenn quickly endorsed the idea of converting Jersey City to a commission form of government, but was opposed by forces, including Hague, attempting to take control of the party. Hague campaigned heavily against the idea in the Horseshoe, claiming that such a system of citywide elected commissioners would erode the influence of the working-class and consolidate power among the city's elite. Wittpenn's opponents successfully petitioned for a change in the date of the vote on the charter change, moving it from September to mid-July, and the proposal was defeated. As a result of this campaign, Hague came under the scrutiny of The Jersey Journal, which had supported the proposed charter change. It was reported that Hague's older brother, a battalion chief on the city fire department, had been on "sick leave" for three years at full pay.
Hague reconciled with Wittpenn to support his re-election in 1911. Wittpenn then supported Hague's nomination for Commissioner of Streets and Water. Both were elected. The new position greatly expanded Hague's patronage authority. While City Hall employed a few dozen custodians, there were hundreds of workers in the Street and Water Department. Hague's work as head of the Department of Street Cleaners even convinced The Jersey Journal to endorse him as a "reform candidate" in the next election.
In the spring of 1913, having gained confidence in his own ability to assure himself a place on the commission, Hague supported the renewed effort to change the Jersey City government from the Mayor-Council model to a commission model under the recently adopted Walsh Act. This act would place all executive and legislative powers in a five-man commission, each of whom would head a city department. The five commissioners would choose one of their colleagues to be mayor. The vote for charter change passed, and the stage was set for Frank Hague's rise to power.
Commissioner
In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the five-man commission. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee.
Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horseshoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate.
Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation.
Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city.
In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor.
Boss of Jersey City
Technically, Hague's only responsibility as mayor was to appoint the school board. Otherwise, he was merely first among equals, with no powers over and above the other four commissioners. However, soon after taking office, he wrested control of the Hudson County Democratic Party from Wittpenn. This allowed him to significantly influence the makeup of the commission in this overwhelmingly Democratic city. He soon built the organization into one of the most powerful political machines in the country. Hague himself became very wealthy, owning a $125,000 summer home in Deal, living in a large apartment in the best building in the city, and able to give a $50,000 altar to a local Catholic church. In 1941, Dartmouth professor Dayton David McKean wrote The Boss, a book about Hague's political machine, in which he estimated his amassed wealth at four million dollars on an annual mayoral salary of $8,000 a year.
He also had the support of a significant faction of Republicans which dated to his initial election as mayor, when he cut a deal with then-Governor Walter Edge in which Edge effectively ceded North Jersey to Hague in return for keeping South Jersey for himself. Also, as public safety commissioner (a post he held throughout his entire tenure), he controlled the two departments with the most patronage appointments in the city. This post also placed responsibility for maintaining public order in his hands.
Hague soon extended his influence statewide by helping to elect his "puppets" as governor. In the 1919 gubernatorial election, Hague endorsed State Senator Edward I. Edwards and aggressively campaigned for him. Edwards carried Hudson County by 50,000 votes, which was enough for him to win statewide by just under 15,000 votes. Hague proclaimed himself leader of the New Jersey Democratic Party, and Edwards allowed him to recommend dozens of appointments to high state offices. Democrats won five out of eight gubernatorial races between 1919 and 1940, more often than not due to massive landslides in Hudson County. However, he was never able to extend his dominance to the state legislature.
Hague was able to stay in power despite a nearly constant effort to turn him out of office from 1921 onward. He was also able to avoid prosecution despite numerous federal and state investigations in part due to the fact he took most of his kickbacks in cash. However, from the early 1940s onward, many of the older ethnic groups started moving to the suburbs. They were replaced by Poles, Italians, Eastern Europeans and African-Americans. Hague never adapted his methods to the new groups.
Hague had little tolerance for those who dared oppose him publicly. He relied on two ordinances of dubious constitutionality to muzzle critics. A 1920 ordinance effectively required people making political speeches to obtain clearance from the chief of police. A 1930 ordinance gave the public safety commissioner—Hague himself—the power to turn down permits for meetings if he felt it necessary to prevent "riots, disturbances or disorderly assemblage." The latter ordinance was struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States, but continued to be enforced for several years after that decision. The police were also allowed to stop and search anyone without probable cause or a warrant after 9 pm.
President maker
In 1932, Hague, a friend of Al Smith, backed Smith against Franklin D. Roosevelt during the race for the Democratic nomination. When Roosevelt won the nomination, Hague offered to organize the biggest political rally anyone had ever seen if Roosevelt would launch his presidential campaign in New Jersey. When Roosevelt formally began his campaign with an event at the Jersey Shore town of Sea Girt, Hague's machine made sure there were several thousand Hudson County voters looking on and cheering. Hague's support was rewarded with funding for a massive medical center complex complete with a maternity hospital named after his mother, Margaret Hague. During the 1936 campaign Hague provided 150,000 adults and children to cheer Roosevelt during a visit.
Accusations of voter fraud
Hague's use of voter fraud is the stuff of legend. In 1937, for instance, Jersey City had 160,050 registered voters, but only 147,000 people who were at least 21 years old—the legal voting age.
In 1932, Governor Moore appointed a lawyer named Thomas J. Brogan, who had served as Hague's personal attorney in corruption hearings, to an associate Justice seat on the state's Supreme Court. Less than a year later Brogan was named as Chief Justice. In at least two instances of alleged voting fraud in the 1930s (Ferguson v. Brogan, 112 N.J.L. 471; Clee v. Moore, 119 N.J.L. 215; In re Clee, 119 N.J.L. 310), Brogan's court issued extraordinary rulings in favor of the Democratic machine, in one case asserting that the district superintendent of elections had no authority to open ballot boxes, and in another case ruling that the boxes could be opened, but no one had the right to look inside. Brogan also assigned himself to the Hudson County jurisdiction, thereby controlling the local grand jury process and squelching other election fraud cases.
Although Hague, like other political bosses of the time, was not above outright fraud at the polls, the keys to Hague's success were his matchless organizational skills and demand for complete loyalty from his subordinates. His command over the Democratic voters of Hudson County, a densely populated urban area in a state that was still mostly rural, made him a man to reckon with among state Democrats and Republicans alike. He was a close friend of Al Smith, the New York governor who would become the first Irish-American presidential candidate in 1928. In addition, Hague's support of Roosevelt for President was rewarded with a steady stream of perks that sustained Hague's organization throughout the Depression.
Retirement from politics
The beginning of the end for Hague came in 1943, when former governor Walter Edge was returned to office. Edge's attorney general, Walter Van Riper, initiated several prosecutions of Hague cronies. Hague retaliated by having his handpicked U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey bring federal indictments against Van Riper, but Van Riper was acquitted. Edge also initiated reforms in the civil service, freeing it from Hague's control.
Edge's successor, fellow Republican Alfred Driscoll, succeeded in further curbing Hague's power over state government. He led the effort to implement a new constitution, which streamlined state government and made it less vulnerable to control by locally based bosses like Hague. For example, county prosecutors were now directly accountable to the state attorney general. It also set up a new state Supreme Court, which was given supervision over the state's judges. As the first Chief Justice, Driscoll appointed an old Hague foe, Arthur T. Vanderbilt. Driscoll also installed voting machines throughout the state, which made it harder for corrupt politicians to steal elections.
Seeing the writing on the wall, Hague abruptly announced his retirement in 1947. However, he was able to have his nephew, Frank Hague Eggers, chosen as his successor. It was generally understood that Hague still held the real power. This ended in 1949 when John V. Kenny, a former Hague ward leader alienated by the appointment of Eggers, put together his own commission ticket. Due to the presence of a "third ticket," Kenny's ticket was able to oust the Hague/Eggers ticket from power, ending Hague's 32-year rule. Kenny soon set up a machine which proved every bit as corrupt as Hague's, but far less efficient at providing services.
Friend and foe to labor
Hague was accommodating to labor unions during the first half of his mayoral career. For instance, Jersey City police were known for turning back strikebreakers, something unheard of during the 1920s. However, he became a savage opponent of labor organizers in the 1930s. The turnaround came about during a dispute with labor boss and former supporter Theodore "Teddy" Brandle, whose attempts to organize the work crews on the Pulaski Skyway construction project (1930–32) touched off a labor war so intense that local newspapers called it "the war of the meadows."
The rise of the CIO in the mid-1930s represented a threat to Hague's policy of guaranteeing labor peace to the sweatshop type industries that might otherwise have fled Jersey City's high property taxes. When Socialist presidential candidate Norman Thomas came to speak on behalf of the CIO during a May Day rally in Journal Square, Hague's police swept Thomas and his wife into a car, took them to the Pavonia ferry and sent them back to New York. Hague spent much of the decade inveighing against Communists and labor unions, and his attempts to suppress the CIO's activities in Jersey City led to a U.S. Supreme Court decision, Hague v. Committee for Industrial Organization 307 U.S. 496 (1939), that is a cornerstone of law concerning public expression of political views on public property.
Death
Hague died on New Year's Day in 1956 at his 480 Park Avenue duplex apartment in Manhattan, New York City. While hundreds gathered to see the casket depart the funeral home, only four men were seen to remove their hats for the passing of the coffin. One woman present held an American Flag and a sign that read, "God have mercy on his sinful, greedy soul."
Hague was interred in a large mausoleum at Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City.
Legacy
Hague's pride and joy was the Jersey City Medical Center, which he began creating almost as soon as he became mayor. By the 1940s it had grown into a 10-building complex that provided virtually free medical care to Jersey City residents. At the time of its completion, the Medical Center was one of the biggest medical facilities in the country and included the Medical Center Hospital, Pollak Chest Diseases Hospital, Murdoch Hall, and Margaret Hague Maternity Hospital, named in honor of Hague's mother. The buildings, funded in part through federal funds obtained by Hague, are known for their Art Deco details, including marble walls, terrazzo floors, etched glass, and decorative moldings. Even at the time the Medical Center was too large to operate cost-effectively. In 2005 the 14 acre complex (much of which had fallen into disuse) was sold to a private developer who began converting two towers into a luxury condominium complex called the Beacon.
Quotes
"We hear about constitutional rights, free speech and the free press. Every time I hear those words I say to myself, 'That man is a Red, that man is a Communist.' You never heard a real American talk in that manner." – speech to the Jersey City Chamber of Commerce, January 12, 1938.
"Listen, here is the law! I am the law! These boys go to work!" – speech on city government to the Emory Methodist Episcopal Church in Jersey City, November 10, 1937.
See also
List of mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Notes
References
(originally published—Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1940).
External links
Full text of the decision from FindLaw.com
Frank Hague Page at Jersey City History
The Life and Times of Frank Hague (2001) A five-part radio program
The Pragmatic Populism of a Non-Partisan Politician: An Analysis of the Political Philosophy of Charles Edison
1876 births
1956 deaths
American people of Irish descent
People from Deal, New Jersey
Mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Political corruption in the United States
Culture of Jersey City, New Jersey
American political bosses
American political bosses from New Jersey
New Jersey Democrats
Burials at Holy Name Cemetery (Jersey City, New Jersey)
Catholics from New Jersey
American anti-communists
Nucky Johnson's Organization | true | [
"Arson, Inc. is a 1949 American film noir directed by William Berke. It is also known as Firebug Squad and Three Alarm Fire.\n\nPlot\n\nJoe Martin is a fire fighter in Los Angeles who is assigned by his department chief to the Arson Detail. His first assignment is to investigate a suspicious fur store fire that seems to be set by the store owner himself, Thomas Peyson.\n\nThe reason why Joe Martin gets the assignment is because his predecessor in the Arson Detail was killed when inspecting the very same fire site. The predecessor's file with his findings wasn't found on his body and hasn't been recovered. This is just one of many equally suspicious fires in the last few years, where the insurance claims following the fires has been filed by the same agent, Frederick P. Fender. There is suspicion that Fender is somehow involved in the disappearance of all the destroyed stores' goods as well.\n\nJoe begins with Peyson, the store owner, and visits his apartment that was also raged by fire not long ago. He meets the babysitter, Jane, a pretty young teacher, and they get along so well that Joe drives her home and ask her out on a date the next evening.\n\nIt turns out Peyson and Fender is in cahoots together, since the first thing Peyson does after Joe leaves, is phone his accomplice. They also meet up the day after, just when Joe comes to see Fender as the next logical step in his investigation. Joe never sees Peyson, as he sneaks out through a back door. Joe gets very little information of use from Fender, but his visit makes Fender put one of his men, Pete, on tailing Joe to see if he finds out something.\n\nPete starts following Joe around everywhere he goes, even when he visits Jane. Soon Joe realizes that he is followed and when he knowingly enters an illegal gambling place Pete finally makes contact, offering Joe a chance of making a little extra money. Joe decides to play along and go \"undercover\".\n\nWhen visiting an illegal bookie, Joe starts to fight a policeman and the next day a picture showing him hitting a police officer is on the tabloids. He gets fired for this highly unfitting behavior, and Pete makes contact again, wanting to use the ex-fireman in the insurance fraud racket. Joe and Jane both meets Fender at a party held at Pete's, and Fender is smitten with the young teacher. Fender's secretary Betty sees this, and feels her own agenda is threatened.\n\nJoe is hired to do some work for Fender, and the following day he is to drive a car for Pete when he is doing a \"job\", setting fire to another store. Joe's job is to block the way for the fire trucks coming to put the fire out. Pete also jams the water sprinklers inside the store.\n\nJoe shares the plan with an undercover policeman, Murph, and after the fire is set, the cop steps in and single-handedly extinguishes the fire before it grows out of control. All the store goods are already removed from the store by Pete. But Pete returns to the store to see that the fire is destroying the store completely, and he finds Murph at the scene. Pete shoots Murph, but more police arrive to the store, and a car chase ensues, where Jie and Pete ultimately manage to shake the police.\n\nFender realizes the police was warned and suspects his secretary Betty, who has been behaving strangely. Fender orders her towatch Pete by dating him, and so they go on a double date with Jie and Jane that night, at the Gaucho Club. Joe tells Jane about his undercover assignment on the way to the club.\n\nWhen Betty gets drunk she accidentally discloses the address where the furs are stored and after the dinner, Joe and Jane go there. Joe is unaware that Betty was ordered by Fender to slip the address to trap Joe.\n\nJoe drives the drunk Pete home and manages to find the file from the fireman investigator in Pete's apartment. He takes Jane with him and return to the warehouse where the furs are, alerting the police on the way. Meanwhile, Pete wakes up again and discovers what has happened.\n\nWhen Joe and the police arrive at the warehouse there are no furs in it. The police look at the file Joe brought and they find evidence implicating Pete as involved in setting the fire. The police leave to arrest Pete, but Pete arrives to the warehouse with a gun and points it towards Jane. Fender is alerted of the situation by a night watchman and tries to get there as fast as he can, driving in his car with Betty by his side.\n\nJoe manages to take the gun from Pete, but Pete gets the gun from the night watchman and pursues Joe and Jane as they try to escape. Pete sets fire to the warehouse, trying to trap Joe and Jane inside. Fire trucks get the alarm and comes to the warehouse, and Fender crashes his car on the way, driving too fast. With the help of the firemen, Joe catches Pete and overpowers him, and the rest of the villains are caught. After the big intermezzo at the warehouse, Joe and Jane continue dating each other.\n\nCast \n Robert Lowery as Joe Martin\n Anne Gwynne as Jane Jennings\n Edward Brophy as Pete Purdy\n Marcia Mae Jones as Betty – Fender's Secretary\n Douglas Fowley as Frederick P. 'Fred' Fender\n Maude Eburne as Grandma\n William Forrest as Deputy Fire Chief / Narrator\n Steve Pendleton as Murph, the undercover man\n Byron Foulger as Thomas Peyson\n Matt McHugh as Hubbell\n Lelah Tyler as Mrs. Peyson\n Emmett Vogan as Al, Night Watchman\n John Maxwell as Detective\n Richard David as Junior Peyson\n\nProduction\nFilming began March 10, 1949. Location footage was shot in San Franscisco.\n\nActor George Reeves did some dialogue directing on the film. (Reeves ad directed in theatre).\n\nReception\nThe Los Angeles Times called the film \"lively\".\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links \n \n \n Arson Inc at BFI\n \n\n1949 films\nAmerican crime films\nAmerican films\n1949 crime films\n1940s English-language films\nAmerican black-and-white films\nFilms directed by William A. Berke\nLippert Pictures films\nFilms scored by Raoul Kraushaar",
"Michael Ortiz was shot in the back by police while handcuffed in Hollywood, Florida on July 3, 2021. He is now paralyzed from the waist down due to the gunshot. He also lost control of his bodily functions, suffered damage to his pancreas and has accumulated $1 million in medical bills.\n\nOrtiz called 911 and reported himself as having a mental health crisis due to his dog being missing. According to the Hollywood police, Ortiz told the 911 dispatcher that he had “chest pains, ingestion of narcotics and, according to the Fire Rescue call log, was making delusional and suicidal statements.” After calling 911, Ortiz's family convinced him to take a shower in order to calm down. Hollywood Fire Rescue arrived at Ortiz's apartment, and stated that “he refused to answer the door so Fire Rescue requested Hollywood Police respond with lights and sirens.” According to Fire Rescue, Ortiz then came out of his apartment without any clothes on and became combative with parametics, threatening suicide. Hollywood Police arrived as the paramedics were attempting to restrain Ortiz from jumping off of the balcony.\n\nAccording to the police, an officer then tasered Ortiz to subdue him, and he was handcuffed. An officer later told Ortiz's family that he was tasered twice and that he was “shot on the shoulder.” Ortiz struggled as officers attempted to escort him to the elevator. During the struggle an officer shot Ortiz in the back. Police and Fire Rescue officers then moved Ortiz to the elevator to get him medical treatment. Six Police and Fire Rescue officers were involved.\n\nHollywood Police later said that “an initial review suggests the officer intended to deploy his taser, but instead discharged his firearm.” The Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigation is ongoing and the unnamed officer was relieved of duty and given administrative duties within the department.\n\nOrtiz was in a coma for several weeks. He described his recovery as like being reborn, with such challenges as getting out of bed and using the restroom. Ortiz's family were initially represented by Morgan and Morgan law firm, and on July 12 sent Hollywood Police a request to preserve all evidence and records. Morgan and Morgan stated that they made a public records request in writing via postal mail, but Hollywood Police claim that they have no record of receiving such a request.\n\nOn February 7, 2022, Ortiz and his family held a press conference with their new attorney, civil rights lawyer Ben Crump. Crump announced a public record's lawsuit against Hollywood Police, specifically in regards to security camera footage from the apartment complex that would have documented the entire incident. Crump stated that “you must release the video that shows us why your police officer shot a man — that was stark naked, handcuffed — in the back and paralyzed him.”\n\nSee also\n 2020–2022 United States racial unrest\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n2022 controversies in the United States"
]
|
[
"Frank Hague",
"Commissioner",
"where was he commissioner?",
"City Commission of Jersey City.",
"what years was he Commissioner?",
"1913,",
"how long was he commissioner?",
"1917,",
"what were some noteworthy things that happened while he was Commissioner?",
"Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments.",
"did the fire and police get along with him?",
"Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force"
]
| C_8b5a49a4558041a6855863e02046905e_1 | What did the police and fire department do when he did this? | 6 | What did the police and fire department do when Frank Hague began reshaping the Jersey City police force? | Frank Hague | In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the first City Commission of Jersey City. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee. Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horsehoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate. Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation. Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city. In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor. CANNOTANSWER | Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. | Frank Hague (January 17, 1876 – January 1, 1956) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the Mayor of Jersey City, New Jersey from 1917 to 1947, Democratic National Committeeman from New Jersey from 1922 until 1949, and Vice-Chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 1924 until 1949.
Hague has a widely known reputation for corruption and bossism and has been called "the grandaddy of Jersey bosses". By the time he left office in 1947, he enjoyed palatial homes, European vacations, and a private suite at the Plaza Hotel. His wealth has been estimated to have been over $10 million at the time of his death, although his City salary never exceeded $8,500 per year and he had no other legitimate source of income. His desk, according to legend, had a specially designed lap drawer which could be pushed outward towards the person with whom he was meeting. This allowed his "guests" to discreetly deliver bribes in the form of envelopes containing large amounts of cash. However, according to New Jersey preservationist John Hallinan, the drawers were a traditional feature of 19th century partners desks and that "[t]he last thing [Hague] would need to do is take a bribe personally". As of October 2021, the desk was on display in City Hall.
During the height of his power Hague's political machine, known as "the organization", was one of the most powerful in the United States controlling politics on local, county, and state levels. Hague's personal influence extended to the national level, influencing federal patronage, and presidential campaigns.
Early life
Francis "Frank" Hague, born in Jersey City, was the fourth of eight children to John D. and Margaret Hague (née Fagen), immigrants from County Cavan, Ireland. He was raised in Jersey City's Second ward, an area known as The Horseshoe due to its shape which wrapped around a railroad loop. The ward was created when the Republican-controlled legislature gerrymandered a district within Jersey City in 1871 to concentrate and isolate Democratic, and mostly Catholic, votes.
By age 14, Hague was expelled from school prior to completing the sixth grade for poor attendance and unacceptable behavior. He worked briefly as a blacksmith's apprentice for the Erie Railroad. While training at a local gym for his own potential debut as a prizefighter, he arranged to become manager for Joe Craig, a professional lightweight boxer. Craig was successful enough to allow Hague to buy a few suits that made him appear successful. In 1896, Hague's apparent prosperity gained him the attention of local tavern owner "Nat" Kenny who was seeking a candidate for constable in the upcoming primary to run against the candidate of a rival tavern owner. Kenny provided Hague with $75 to "spread around", and Frank Hague quickly won his first election by a ratio of three-to-one.
Political career
Early success
Hague's victory in the Constable election brought him to the attention of Hudson County Democratic political boss "Little Bob" Davis, and Davis asked Hague to help get out Democratic votes for the upcoming 1897 Mayoral election. Hague's efforts were credited with generating large voter turnout in the Second Ward for the 1897 and 1899 elections. As a reward for his work, Hague was appointed as a deputy sheriff at a salary of $25 per week. Over this time, Hague took a leadership role in the Second Ward Democratic club.
In the 1901 Mayoral election, Republican Mark M. Fagan was elected. Hague's second ward was one of only two that voted Democratic. Hague survived a Republican challenge for a third term as Constable the following year.
The "Red Dugan" affair
As a ward leader, Hague was approached by a woman to provide assistance for her son, who had been arrested for passing a forged check. The son, Red Dugan, had been a classmate of Hague's in school. According to the Boston Evening Transcript of October 4, 1904, Dugan had deposited a forged check for $955 in the Peoples Bank of Roxbury, Massachusetts, and convinced the bank manager to let him withdraw $500. Hague ignored a subpoena to testify in Hudson County Court and traveled to Massachusetts to provide an alibi for Dugan. Hague and another deputy sheriff, Thomas "Skidder" Madigan, claimed that they had seen Dugan in Jersey City on the day of the alleged offense. Both were threatened with perjury charges.
Upon returning to Jersey City, Hague was found guilty of contempt of court for ignoring the subpoena. He was fined $100 and stripped of his duties as Deputy Sheriff.
In spite of the resulting press coverage of the event, Hague was more deeply embraced by his constituency. Thomas Smith wrote: "But to the residents of the Horseshoe, Frank Hague had gone out of his way to help a friend – had practically given his livelihood to aid a brother." In the succeeding municipal election of 1905, which saw the return of incumbent Fagan to the office of mayor, Hague was elected to a fourth term as constable.
Ward leader
Hague rose through the Democratic machinery of Hudson County, which drew much of its strength by providing newly arrived immigrants with rudimentary social services. Hague took a job as a collector for a local brewery, leaving him with time to spend in the streets and the local taverns which were hubs of political activity. He also spent his time cleaning up the loose ends of the Second Ward's south-end Democratic Club to consolidate his power.
As a reward for his efforts in turning out votes in the 1905 election, Bob Davis named Hague as the party leader for the Second Ward and arranged for Hague to be appointed as Sergeant at Arms for the New Jersey State Assembly.
Political reformer
Hague broke ties with "Boss" Davis in 1906 over a difference of opinion on a candidate for appointment to the city Street and Water Board. As a result, Hague supported H. Otto Wittpenn for mayor in the 1907 election. Wittpenn was a reformer who opposed the control Davis held over Hudson County politics. Over the objections of Davis, newly elected Mayor Wittpenn appointed Hague as chief custodian of City Hall – a "cushy" job with plenty of patronage opportunities. During the Wittpenn administration, Hague also became friendly with Wittpenn's secretary – a Presbyterian Sunday school teacher named A. Harry Moore.
The resulting battle for control of the Hudson County Democratic machine would ironically result in one of the greatest boosts to Hague's rise to power – the Walsh Act of 1911. In 1909 Davis, seeing support for Hague increasing, supported Wittpenn's re-election against former mayor Fagan. Hague's second ward produced the largest plurality of Wittpenn votes of any of Jersey City's 12 wards. Davis then arranged the appointment of Fagan to the Hudson County Tax Board. When Wittpenn's administration began facing troubles, including Fagan's discovery of a Pennsylvania Railroad property that had paid no taxes for four years, Wittpenn blamed Davis.
Seeking to curb the influence of Davis, Wittpenn announced his candidacy for Governor, stating "I have endured the machine as long as possible, but patience is no longer a virtue." Davis, in turn, prevailed upon Woodrow Wilson, then President of Princeton University, to oppose Wittpenn's candidacy. Wilson's victory was overwhelming even in Hague's ward, despite heavy-handed tactics used there. The Jersey Journal wrote: "Cops on duty were using clubs and blackjacks to assist Mayor Wittpenn and Frank Hague defeat the Davis men."
Wilson's reform-minded term as Governor saw the establishment of Presidential primary elections, introduced workers' compensation, and brought about passage of the Walsh Act which provided for a non-partisan commission form of municipal government that was greatly reflective of his academic writings in Congressional Government.
"Little Bob" Davis died of cancer shortly after the 1910 gubernatorial election leaving a vacuum in the power structure of the Hudson County Democrats. Wittpenn quickly endorsed the idea of converting Jersey City to a commission form of government, but was opposed by forces, including Hague, attempting to take control of the party. Hague campaigned heavily against the idea in the Horseshoe, claiming that such a system of citywide elected commissioners would erode the influence of the working-class and consolidate power among the city's elite. Wittpenn's opponents successfully petitioned for a change in the date of the vote on the charter change, moving it from September to mid-July, and the proposal was defeated. As a result of this campaign, Hague came under the scrutiny of The Jersey Journal, which had supported the proposed charter change. It was reported that Hague's older brother, a battalion chief on the city fire department, had been on "sick leave" for three years at full pay.
Hague reconciled with Wittpenn to support his re-election in 1911. Wittpenn then supported Hague's nomination for Commissioner of Streets and Water. Both were elected. The new position greatly expanded Hague's patronage authority. While City Hall employed a few dozen custodians, there were hundreds of workers in the Street and Water Department. Hague's work as head of the Department of Street Cleaners even convinced The Jersey Journal to endorse him as a "reform candidate" in the next election.
In the spring of 1913, having gained confidence in his own ability to assure himself a place on the commission, Hague supported the renewed effort to change the Jersey City government from the Mayor-Council model to a commission model under the recently adopted Walsh Act. This act would place all executive and legislative powers in a five-man commission, each of whom would head a city department. The five commissioners would choose one of their colleagues to be mayor. The vote for charter change passed, and the stage was set for Frank Hague's rise to power.
Commissioner
In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the five-man commission. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee.
Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horseshoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate.
Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation.
Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city.
In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor.
Boss of Jersey City
Technically, Hague's only responsibility as mayor was to appoint the school board. Otherwise, he was merely first among equals, with no powers over and above the other four commissioners. However, soon after taking office, he wrested control of the Hudson County Democratic Party from Wittpenn. This allowed him to significantly influence the makeup of the commission in this overwhelmingly Democratic city. He soon built the organization into one of the most powerful political machines in the country. Hague himself became very wealthy, owning a $125,000 summer home in Deal, living in a large apartment in the best building in the city, and able to give a $50,000 altar to a local Catholic church. In 1941, Dartmouth professor Dayton David McKean wrote The Boss, a book about Hague's political machine, in which he estimated his amassed wealth at four million dollars on an annual mayoral salary of $8,000 a year.
He also had the support of a significant faction of Republicans which dated to his initial election as mayor, when he cut a deal with then-Governor Walter Edge in which Edge effectively ceded North Jersey to Hague in return for keeping South Jersey for himself. Also, as public safety commissioner (a post he held throughout his entire tenure), he controlled the two departments with the most patronage appointments in the city. This post also placed responsibility for maintaining public order in his hands.
Hague soon extended his influence statewide by helping to elect his "puppets" as governor. In the 1919 gubernatorial election, Hague endorsed State Senator Edward I. Edwards and aggressively campaigned for him. Edwards carried Hudson County by 50,000 votes, which was enough for him to win statewide by just under 15,000 votes. Hague proclaimed himself leader of the New Jersey Democratic Party, and Edwards allowed him to recommend dozens of appointments to high state offices. Democrats won five out of eight gubernatorial races between 1919 and 1940, more often than not due to massive landslides in Hudson County. However, he was never able to extend his dominance to the state legislature.
Hague was able to stay in power despite a nearly constant effort to turn him out of office from 1921 onward. He was also able to avoid prosecution despite numerous federal and state investigations in part due to the fact he took most of his kickbacks in cash. However, from the early 1940s onward, many of the older ethnic groups started moving to the suburbs. They were replaced by Poles, Italians, Eastern Europeans and African-Americans. Hague never adapted his methods to the new groups.
Hague had little tolerance for those who dared oppose him publicly. He relied on two ordinances of dubious constitutionality to muzzle critics. A 1920 ordinance effectively required people making political speeches to obtain clearance from the chief of police. A 1930 ordinance gave the public safety commissioner—Hague himself—the power to turn down permits for meetings if he felt it necessary to prevent "riots, disturbances or disorderly assemblage." The latter ordinance was struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States, but continued to be enforced for several years after that decision. The police were also allowed to stop and search anyone without probable cause or a warrant after 9 pm.
President maker
In 1932, Hague, a friend of Al Smith, backed Smith against Franklin D. Roosevelt during the race for the Democratic nomination. When Roosevelt won the nomination, Hague offered to organize the biggest political rally anyone had ever seen if Roosevelt would launch his presidential campaign in New Jersey. When Roosevelt formally began his campaign with an event at the Jersey Shore town of Sea Girt, Hague's machine made sure there were several thousand Hudson County voters looking on and cheering. Hague's support was rewarded with funding for a massive medical center complex complete with a maternity hospital named after his mother, Margaret Hague. During the 1936 campaign Hague provided 150,000 adults and children to cheer Roosevelt during a visit.
Accusations of voter fraud
Hague's use of voter fraud is the stuff of legend. In 1937, for instance, Jersey City had 160,050 registered voters, but only 147,000 people who were at least 21 years old—the legal voting age.
In 1932, Governor Moore appointed a lawyer named Thomas J. Brogan, who had served as Hague's personal attorney in corruption hearings, to an associate Justice seat on the state's Supreme Court. Less than a year later Brogan was named as Chief Justice. In at least two instances of alleged voting fraud in the 1930s (Ferguson v. Brogan, 112 N.J.L. 471; Clee v. Moore, 119 N.J.L. 215; In re Clee, 119 N.J.L. 310), Brogan's court issued extraordinary rulings in favor of the Democratic machine, in one case asserting that the district superintendent of elections had no authority to open ballot boxes, and in another case ruling that the boxes could be opened, but no one had the right to look inside. Brogan also assigned himself to the Hudson County jurisdiction, thereby controlling the local grand jury process and squelching other election fraud cases.
Although Hague, like other political bosses of the time, was not above outright fraud at the polls, the keys to Hague's success were his matchless organizational skills and demand for complete loyalty from his subordinates. His command over the Democratic voters of Hudson County, a densely populated urban area in a state that was still mostly rural, made him a man to reckon with among state Democrats and Republicans alike. He was a close friend of Al Smith, the New York governor who would become the first Irish-American presidential candidate in 1928. In addition, Hague's support of Roosevelt for President was rewarded with a steady stream of perks that sustained Hague's organization throughout the Depression.
Retirement from politics
The beginning of the end for Hague came in 1943, when former governor Walter Edge was returned to office. Edge's attorney general, Walter Van Riper, initiated several prosecutions of Hague cronies. Hague retaliated by having his handpicked U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey bring federal indictments against Van Riper, but Van Riper was acquitted. Edge also initiated reforms in the civil service, freeing it from Hague's control.
Edge's successor, fellow Republican Alfred Driscoll, succeeded in further curbing Hague's power over state government. He led the effort to implement a new constitution, which streamlined state government and made it less vulnerable to control by locally based bosses like Hague. For example, county prosecutors were now directly accountable to the state attorney general. It also set up a new state Supreme Court, which was given supervision over the state's judges. As the first Chief Justice, Driscoll appointed an old Hague foe, Arthur T. Vanderbilt. Driscoll also installed voting machines throughout the state, which made it harder for corrupt politicians to steal elections.
Seeing the writing on the wall, Hague abruptly announced his retirement in 1947. However, he was able to have his nephew, Frank Hague Eggers, chosen as his successor. It was generally understood that Hague still held the real power. This ended in 1949 when John V. Kenny, a former Hague ward leader alienated by the appointment of Eggers, put together his own commission ticket. Due to the presence of a "third ticket," Kenny's ticket was able to oust the Hague/Eggers ticket from power, ending Hague's 32-year rule. Kenny soon set up a machine which proved every bit as corrupt as Hague's, but far less efficient at providing services.
Friend and foe to labor
Hague was accommodating to labor unions during the first half of his mayoral career. For instance, Jersey City police were known for turning back strikebreakers, something unheard of during the 1920s. However, he became a savage opponent of labor organizers in the 1930s. The turnaround came about during a dispute with labor boss and former supporter Theodore "Teddy" Brandle, whose attempts to organize the work crews on the Pulaski Skyway construction project (1930–32) touched off a labor war so intense that local newspapers called it "the war of the meadows."
The rise of the CIO in the mid-1930s represented a threat to Hague's policy of guaranteeing labor peace to the sweatshop type industries that might otherwise have fled Jersey City's high property taxes. When Socialist presidential candidate Norman Thomas came to speak on behalf of the CIO during a May Day rally in Journal Square, Hague's police swept Thomas and his wife into a car, took them to the Pavonia ferry and sent them back to New York. Hague spent much of the decade inveighing against Communists and labor unions, and his attempts to suppress the CIO's activities in Jersey City led to a U.S. Supreme Court decision, Hague v. Committee for Industrial Organization 307 U.S. 496 (1939), that is a cornerstone of law concerning public expression of political views on public property.
Death
Hague died on New Year's Day in 1956 at his 480 Park Avenue duplex apartment in Manhattan, New York City. While hundreds gathered to see the casket depart the funeral home, only four men were seen to remove their hats for the passing of the coffin. One woman present held an American Flag and a sign that read, "God have mercy on his sinful, greedy soul."
Hague was interred in a large mausoleum at Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City.
Legacy
Hague's pride and joy was the Jersey City Medical Center, which he began creating almost as soon as he became mayor. By the 1940s it had grown into a 10-building complex that provided virtually free medical care to Jersey City residents. At the time of its completion, the Medical Center was one of the biggest medical facilities in the country and included the Medical Center Hospital, Pollak Chest Diseases Hospital, Murdoch Hall, and Margaret Hague Maternity Hospital, named in honor of Hague's mother. The buildings, funded in part through federal funds obtained by Hague, are known for their Art Deco details, including marble walls, terrazzo floors, etched glass, and decorative moldings. Even at the time the Medical Center was too large to operate cost-effectively. In 2005 the 14 acre complex (much of which had fallen into disuse) was sold to a private developer who began converting two towers into a luxury condominium complex called the Beacon.
Quotes
"We hear about constitutional rights, free speech and the free press. Every time I hear those words I say to myself, 'That man is a Red, that man is a Communist.' You never heard a real American talk in that manner." – speech to the Jersey City Chamber of Commerce, January 12, 1938.
"Listen, here is the law! I am the law! These boys go to work!" – speech on city government to the Emory Methodist Episcopal Church in Jersey City, November 10, 1937.
See also
List of mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Notes
References
(originally published—Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1940).
External links
Full text of the decision from FindLaw.com
Frank Hague Page at Jersey City History
The Life and Times of Frank Hague (2001) A five-part radio program
The Pragmatic Populism of a Non-Partisan Politician: An Analysis of the Political Philosophy of Charles Edison
1876 births
1956 deaths
American people of Irish descent
People from Deal, New Jersey
Mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Political corruption in the United States
Culture of Jersey City, New Jersey
American political bosses
American political bosses from New Jersey
New Jersey Democrats
Burials at Holy Name Cemetery (Jersey City, New Jersey)
Catholics from New Jersey
American anti-communists
Nucky Johnson's Organization | true | [
"Fire police are volunteer fire brigade/company members who, based upon their jurisdictional authority, receive sworn police powers, special training, and support firefighting efforts at emergency incidents. In addition to securing firefighting equipment, incident and fire scenes, and the station itself, fire police perform traffic and crowd control. In some jurisdictions, fire police are exterior firefighters and may be called upon at fire scenes to perform any of the duties of an interior firefighter except those that require a self-contained breathing apparatus. On occasion, fire police also assist regular police: they perform road closures, traffic control, crowd control at public events, missing persons searches, parade details, salvage, security, and other miscellaneous tasks as requested.\n\nDuties\n\nFire police are a fire brigade resource and answer to the officer in charge (OIC) of the fire brigade in attendance. However, special fire police officers in Pennsylvania, USA, are under the direction of the state or local police. Where no other fire brigade resources are present, fire police will usually assist police under the direction of the police's OIC or, depending on local regulations, act autonomously.\n\nWhile the exact role of fire police may vary between brigades and between countries, the general themes are constant throughout:\n\nTraffic control at emergency scenes \nTraffic control consists of managing the flow of vehicles around or through the immediate vicinity of an emergency. This may entail road closures, diversions, full 'points' control at intersections, or '1-way-shunts', in which the road is reduced to one lane and its direction is alternated in a controlled fashion.\n\nScene safety \nFire police assist in ensuring that the scene of an incident remains safe for firefighters, emergency service workers, and members of the public working in its vicinity.\n\nCrowd control and liaison \nResidents, owners, occupants, relatives, transients, spectators, and the media are among those who may approach the scene of an incident, and fire police prevent them from being harmed or hampering the work of emergency services personnel working at the scene. Since fire police are often the public's first point of contact with the fire department, they must be skilled in public relations.\n\nScene security \nFire police may be asked to provide a scene guard in order to prevent looting or theft and monitor unattended fire brigade equipment.\n\nPolice assistance \nFire police are often called upon by police and other law enforcement agencies to provide additional manpower. Many of the tasks listed above also fall within the area of responsibility of the police, but fire police when on the scene may allow the police to concentrate on other more specific areas of expertise.\n\nLogistics \nFire police may provide a logistics resource - vehicle movements, communications or similar. This would particularly be the case at a scene controlled by the fire brigade but they may be called upon by other services.\n\nFire police around the world\n\nItalian Republic\n\nIn Italy, every firefighter of the National Fire Corps (Corpo Nazionale dei Vigili del Fuoco) is also a Police officer.\n\nNew Zealand\nIn New Zealand, fire police exist by virtue of Section 33 of the Fire Service Act 1975. The Fire Service Act allows for the formation of volunteer fire police units (based on the approval of the district chief of police) and bestows upon them the legal powers of a police constable. Several fire police units exist around New Zealand, some attached to volunteer fire brigades, and others acting as individual units and/or brigades in their own right.\n\nFire police in New Zealand engage in all of the above listed roles. In areas where fire police do not exist, operational support members of the fire service carry out the same tasks (using the powers of a firefighter gained through Section 28 of the Fire Service Act). Firefighters (including operational support members) gain all the powers required to conduct their operations through Section 28; fire police wield both these and the powers of a constable gained through Section 33. Operationally, fire police units and operational support units are generally considered to be equivalent, and are well valued by both the operational firefighters and the New Zealand police.\n\nFuture prospects\nA review of the Fire Service Act was announced in the late 2000s but a change of government placed this on hold. However, in the aftermath of the review of the Policing Act 2008 the NZ fire service announced its intention to have Section 33 of the Fire Service Act (allowing for fire police) repealed. With this in mind, fire police units across New Zealand have become operational support units, with a largely unchanged role, but without the powers of police. The powers of a constable are considered unnecessary, as all the functions of fire police can also be legally carried out under Section 28 of the Act (powers of a chief fire officer) under delegation, except for the power of arrest. Until Section 33 is repealed, fire police still exist in law, but not in practice.\n\nUnited States\nFire police exist in fourteen states of the United States including Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Maine, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. They must take an oath of office and be sworn in by a municipal clerk or official, mayor, magistrate, judge, sheriff or justice of the peace - depending upon jurisdiction and local authorizing laws. At fire service incidents, fire police assume either the full or necessary powers of a police constable.\n\nSome texts list Burlington County, New Jersey as forming one of the first fire police units. Laws in New Jersey State code as early as the 1850s supported fire police in their duties.\n\nConnecticut\nUnlike many other fire police departments, those in Connecticut do not necessarily have police powers or acts as sworn agents of a body of government. Instead, their authority flows directly from the fire chief of their parent fire department; however, this authority relates only to fire drills, emergencies within the fire district, and mutual aid situations. Nevertheless, the mayor or first selectman of some towns may give fire police constable status despite this worldwide custom.\n\nThe state of Connecticut requires that fire police officers are officially appointed by the fire chief, and it provides them with, among other things, distinctive badges of office, headgear, reflective equipment.\n\nAll Connecticut fire police are certified by the Connecticut Fire Police Association under the standards of the Connecticut Fire Academy, and many fire departments have specialized or modified their apparatus for traffic control. For instance, the Hebron volunteer fire company (Hebron, CT) has Service 310, a modified retired ambulance. Colchester Hayward volunteer fire company has Service 328, a utility pick-up truck that it has modified specifically for traffic control by equipping it to hold many cones and signs.\n\nThis is spelled out in Connecticut statute under Chapter 104, Section 7-313a.\n\nMaine\nAlthough Maine fire police are not peace officers and do not have any police powers, they may be sworn in as special police in some towns, albeit rarely. Special police are police officers appointed for one-year terms and given very limited authority by their township to carry out specified duties. For example, under Maine law, only a police officer may actually shut down a roadway, while fire police cannot.\n\nHowever, in 2005, emergency workers in Maine received the authority to \"redirect traffic\" at emergency scenes as public safety traffic flaggers (PSTF's). This new authority improved upon the previous custom of fire police doing so by citing the state law that allows them to use reasonable force to protect a fire scene. Moreover, the law requires anyone acting as a PSTF to be properly trained and wear appropriate safety gear. Furthermore, while PSTF duties are generally carried out by fire police, other department members with proper PTSF training may be pressed into duty at busy scenes.\n\nSee Maine Revised Statutes, Title 29-A, Chapter 2091 - \"Control of vehicular traffic at emergency scenes\".\n\nNew York\nUnder New York State law, Fire Police must complete a Fire Police certification course outlined by the New York State Division of Criminal Justice (NYS DCJS). After which, each fire police member is required to take an oath of office by either the AHJ (Chief/Assistant Chief) of the supporting fire company or the town, county or city clerks office and a copy of which must be kept on file in the town, county, city clerk's office in the municipality in which they serve. The training coordinator must fill out and submit all paperwork concerning the course study and attendance to DCJS for each individual fire company. At that time, each individual person is now registered and certified as a Peace Officer by the State of New York. Fire police in New York State are peace officers with full police powers (including that of arrest) when acting pursuant to their special duties.\n\nThese duties are granted under Section 209 (c) of the General Municipal Law. As New York State peace officers, they are required to take an oath, a copy of which must be kept on file in the town clerk's office in the municipality in which they serve. As mandated by Executive Law, Section 845 (Chapter 482, Laws of 1979 and Chapter 843 Laws of 1980), they are also listed with the Central Registry of Police and Peace Officers at the New York State, Division of Criminal Justice Services, Office of Public Safety in Albany, NY.\n\nTheir duties are as follows:\n\nTo regulate traffic at emergency scenes. - In order to protect firefighters from outside interference, each New York State fire police detachment regulates traffic at the scene of any emergency to which its respective department has been called until relieved by the arrival of a fire chief or the regular police agency. \nTo protect the general public at the scene of a fire. - Residents, owners, occupants, relatives, transients, spectators, and even the news media may hamper firefighting operations; therefore, New York State fire police use tact and courtesy to prevent them from being harmed or obstructing firefighting operations.\nTo keep fire areas clear for fire fighting purpose. - New York State fire police provide room for apparatus, emergency vehicles, service vehicles, and firefighters' vehicles to, among other things, park, operate, turn around, perform tanker operations, and lay hose lines for firefighters. \nTo protect the equipment of a fire company. - New York State fire police keep all non-firefighters away from (and especially off) department vehicles and equipment in order to prevent damage and looting.\nTo enforce the laws of New York State relating to firematic activities and firefighting techniques. - The reckless disregard for safe driving within an emergency area, driving over fire hoses, spectators' disrespect for fire lines, and non-emergency vehicles intrusions, comprise just the tip of the iceberg of undesirable situations that New York fire police must prevent.\nTo cooperate with all regular police agencies. - Owing to their common causes of protection, safety, and order, New York fire police cooperate with regular police agencies. \nTo protect the property at the scene of a fire until the chief releases the fire police from duty and turns the responsibility over to other police agencies or to the owner.\nTo preserve the crime scene until the proper authority arrives on scene. - Although, New York fire police prevent unauthorized entry into the scene, they remain alert to the fact that bystanders may possess critical information. In addition, they protect the scene's evidence and report unusual events or happenings.\nTo carry out the orders of the chief who is in supreme command at all fires and emergencies.\n\nNorth Carolina\nUniformed regular and volunteer firemen and uniformed regular and volunteer member of a rescue squad in North Carolina may direct traffic and enforce traffic laws and ordinances at the scene of or in connection with fires, accidents, or other hazards in connection with their duties as firemen or rescue squad members. These members are not, however, considered law enforcement officers.\n\nPennsylvania\nFire police in Pennsylvania are volunteer fire company members and are sworn in by the mayor, borough council president, township supervisor, or the local district justice of the peace. While they are usually under the direct control of the local police, they are under the Pennsylvania State Police if no local department is available. The first fire police officers in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania were appointed in Meadville, Crawford County in 1896 and until the passage of Title 35 in 1941, had no greater authority than that which could be provided by their respective fire company and municipality.\n\nHowever, the passage of the aforementioned bill granted Pennsylvania's special fire police officers the police power to provide protection. In addition, fire police were legally created to assist their fire department during emergency situations. Moreover, Title 35 was amended in 1949, 1959, and again in 1980 (Act 74, 388, 209, 122) to broaden the scope of authority of the fire police. In 1949, the law was amended (Act 388) to give fire police the power to act without fire company involvement if requested to do so by their municipality. In 1959, (Act 209) the law was again amended to allow fire police to use their police powers in any non-emergency public function conducted by or under the auspices of any volunteer fire company and the requirement of the request of the municipality was later removed from the law.\n\nFurthermore, the provision that allows fire police to use their police power in non-emergency events was later amended to authorize these officers to provide police services for organizations other than volunteer fire companies if requested to do so by their respective municipality. In 1980 (Act 122 - current law), the Fire Police Act was amended to, among other things, make it clear that the act does not grant fire police officers the right or power to use firearms or other weapons while performing their duty.\n\nIn conclusion, these amendments widened the scope of authority of fire police in Pennsylvania to have limited police powers, and although they have no authority to make arrests, they do have the right to detain someone within reason.\n\nFire police may control the flow of traffic to ensure emergency vehicles have a quick, safe entrance and egress to an incident. They may halt traffic or detour traffic because of the situation and the dangers involved. They take orders from the police authority in charge. \n \nAll fire police officers are sworn officers of the law and when on duty shall display a badge of authority and shall be subject to control of the chief of police of the city, borough, town or township in which they are serving, or if none, of a member of the Pennsylvania state police. Disobeying a fire police officer is the same as disobeying a police officer, sheriff's deputy, state constable or state trooper and assaulting one is a felony.\n\nCurrent Pennsylvania fire police law is found in Title 35, Chapter 74, subchapters 7431 to 7437.\n\nVietnam\nIn Vietnam, Vietnam Fire and Rescue Police Department (FRPD) is under command of Ministry of Public Security.\n\nGermany \nDuring the Third Reich the Feuerschutzpolizei (lit. 'Fire Protection Police') was a national firefighter unit formed by former municipal career fire departments and a part of the Ordnungspolizei. Every career firefighter was a police officer. Since 1945 the fire departments are under municipal administration again and strictly separated from police jurisdictions.\n\nSee also\nFire marshal\nWomen in firefighting\n\nReferences\n\nFirefighters\nFirefighting in the United States\nLaw enforcement units\nFirefighter ranks",
"Frank Fowler Loomis (April 2, 1854 – September 19, 1936) was a nineteenth-century American businessman, blacksmith, fireman, engineer and electrician. He was a key manager and director in improving and developing the fire and police departments for the city of Akron, Ohio. Loomis was known for innovating new state of the art electrical-mechanical devices. He developed new style police and fire alarm systems for Akron. He designed and developed the world's first motorized police patrol wagon (\"paddy wagon\"). This vehicle was an exhibit in the 1915 Panama–Pacific International Exposition. His electrical innovations and inventions were duplicated and put into use by other major cities in the United States. He established the \"Loomis Award\" for fire service valor and heroism.\n\nEarly life \nLoomis was born in Akron to Joseph and Elizabeth (née Taylor) Loomis on April 2, 1854. His father died when he was eight years old in 1862 so he then lived with an uncle at Wadsworth, Ohio, for the next seven years. Loomis attended the local Akron public schools when he grew up as a child. In early 1869, he worked on the Ohio & Erie Canal for a few months. Later that year he went to work at Merrill's pottery workshop for a while and after that took up the blacksmith's trade.\n\nMid life and career \nLoomis became a volunteer fireman in Akron's fire department in 1870. He slept at night at the fire station for potential fires and worked at his outside trade as a blacksmith during the day. His first assignment at the fire department was as a \"call man\" and would holler as an alarm to get volunteers during a fire. He became a paid fireman at Steamer No. 1 fire station in January 1871 when the current engineer had died.\n\nIn 1874, Loomis and a city mechanical engineer by the name of James H. Stanford built four fire alarm telegraph signal boxes at key businesses in Akron. These were located in the city at the Empire hotel, Buckeye Mower & Reaper works, Diamond Match factory, and the old Akron Iron company. It was soon realized that more alarm boxes were needed. The city, however, would not finance this needed improvement. Loomis, the other engineer, and the fire chief bought wire then from a defunct telegraph line to make these upgrade improvements. They wired fifteen miles in Akron to install additional new alarm boxes.\n\nThe system first used a telegraph key, but it was realized that the person that operated the key during the emergency could not give the correct signal during the hysteria of a new fire. Loomis then developed an alarm box that worked by turning a crank automatically when the door was opened, giving the correct signal. He patented the alarm box which sent this signal automatically.\n\nThe success of the fire alarm system spawned a similar system for the police department that was installed in 1885. Loomis designed an alarm box for police patrolmen requesting a wagon, additional policemen, or required firemen. It was first developed with a telegraph key before a new alarm box style with a pre-installed telephone replaced it. Loomis was promoted to the city's Chief Engineer in 1890 and held that position for 27 years.\n\nPolice patrol wagon \n\nIn the late 1890s, Loomis started developing a horseless wagon for the police department. His invention in 1899 became the first motorized police patrol wagon in the world. The Collins Buggy Company built the carriage weighing that cost $2,400. The police patrol is sometimes referred to as a \"paddy wagon.\" Visitors came from all over the United States to inspect the vehicle and duplicates were made for the police departments of Cleveland, Chicago, and New York City.\n\nThe motorized police patrol wagon was an electric vehicle that weighed as a complete unit almost three tons. It came with an alarm gong to alert people it was coming. The police patrol vehicle had a headlight for use after sunset and had a stretcher so it could be used as an ambulance. It had three speeds and could go up to . The carriage body of the wagon was built in 1899 by the Collins Buggy Company of Akron to specifications and drawings of Loomis.\n\nThe wagon had a seating capacity of twelve people and ran with two 4-horsepower electric motors. The storage batteries of the police wagon had to be charged every thirty miles. It was less expensive to maintain than a team of horses to pull a wagon to do the equivalent work. A special building was constructed to house the unique electric police wagon which consisted of a modern chief's office station. Akron patrolman John Dunkin made the first arrest with the police horseless transport automobile in 1899.\n\nThe electric carriage was taken by a mob in the 1900 Akron riot before being damaged and dumped into the Ohio & Erie Canal. It was recovered, repaired, and put into service for an additional seven years. The electric patrol wagon had done 226 police runs by 1901 and had traveled 200 miles in the process of escorting criminals to jail. It was in the Akron police force through 1907, traveling some all total in its service. It was then sold out in 1908 as scrap for $25.\n\nLoomis's vehicle was completely overhauled in 1913 by the Selle Company who purchased it in preparation for exhibition in the 1915 Panama–Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco. The historical car of wooden wheels and solid rubber tires was a display of the International Expo. In 1917, the Selle Company who had originally supplied the vehicle's gears, dismantled it into parts that were used elsewhere.\n\nPersonal life \nLoomis married Barbara Grad of Akron on July 10, 1879. He retired from the Akron fire department in 1910. He died September 19, 1936. Loomis established by his will the \"Loomis Award\" for fire service valor and heroism. In the first 50 years of its existence only three firefighters received the award.\n\nReferences\n\nSources\n\nExternal links \n\nThe Vintage News\nFirst Police Car\n\n1854 births\n1936 deaths\nEngineers from Ohio\nAmerican firefighters\n19th-century American inventors\nPeople from Akron, Ohio"
]
|
[
"Frank Hague",
"Commissioner",
"where was he commissioner?",
"City Commission of Jersey City.",
"what years was he Commissioner?",
"1913,",
"how long was he commissioner?",
"1917,",
"what were some noteworthy things that happened while he was Commissioner?",
"Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments.",
"did the fire and police get along with him?",
"Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force",
"What did the police and fire department do when he did this?",
"Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years."
]
| C_8b5a49a4558041a6855863e02046905e_1 | who did he work closesly on his side? | 7 | Who did Frank Hague work closely with on his side? | Frank Hague | In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the first City Commission of Jersey City. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee. Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horsehoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate. Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation. Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city. In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor. CANNOTANSWER | an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. | Frank Hague (January 17, 1876 – January 1, 1956) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the Mayor of Jersey City, New Jersey from 1917 to 1947, Democratic National Committeeman from New Jersey from 1922 until 1949, and Vice-Chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 1924 until 1949.
Hague has a widely known reputation for corruption and bossism and has been called "the grandaddy of Jersey bosses". By the time he left office in 1947, he enjoyed palatial homes, European vacations, and a private suite at the Plaza Hotel. His wealth has been estimated to have been over $10 million at the time of his death, although his City salary never exceeded $8,500 per year and he had no other legitimate source of income. His desk, according to legend, had a specially designed lap drawer which could be pushed outward towards the person with whom he was meeting. This allowed his "guests" to discreetly deliver bribes in the form of envelopes containing large amounts of cash. However, according to New Jersey preservationist John Hallinan, the drawers were a traditional feature of 19th century partners desks and that "[t]he last thing [Hague] would need to do is take a bribe personally". As of October 2021, the desk was on display in City Hall.
During the height of his power Hague's political machine, known as "the organization", was one of the most powerful in the United States controlling politics on local, county, and state levels. Hague's personal influence extended to the national level, influencing federal patronage, and presidential campaigns.
Early life
Francis "Frank" Hague, born in Jersey City, was the fourth of eight children to John D. and Margaret Hague (née Fagen), immigrants from County Cavan, Ireland. He was raised in Jersey City's Second ward, an area known as The Horseshoe due to its shape which wrapped around a railroad loop. The ward was created when the Republican-controlled legislature gerrymandered a district within Jersey City in 1871 to concentrate and isolate Democratic, and mostly Catholic, votes.
By age 14, Hague was expelled from school prior to completing the sixth grade for poor attendance and unacceptable behavior. He worked briefly as a blacksmith's apprentice for the Erie Railroad. While training at a local gym for his own potential debut as a prizefighter, he arranged to become manager for Joe Craig, a professional lightweight boxer. Craig was successful enough to allow Hague to buy a few suits that made him appear successful. In 1896, Hague's apparent prosperity gained him the attention of local tavern owner "Nat" Kenny who was seeking a candidate for constable in the upcoming primary to run against the candidate of a rival tavern owner. Kenny provided Hague with $75 to "spread around", and Frank Hague quickly won his first election by a ratio of three-to-one.
Political career
Early success
Hague's victory in the Constable election brought him to the attention of Hudson County Democratic political boss "Little Bob" Davis, and Davis asked Hague to help get out Democratic votes for the upcoming 1897 Mayoral election. Hague's efforts were credited with generating large voter turnout in the Second Ward for the 1897 and 1899 elections. As a reward for his work, Hague was appointed as a deputy sheriff at a salary of $25 per week. Over this time, Hague took a leadership role in the Second Ward Democratic club.
In the 1901 Mayoral election, Republican Mark M. Fagan was elected. Hague's second ward was one of only two that voted Democratic. Hague survived a Republican challenge for a third term as Constable the following year.
The "Red Dugan" affair
As a ward leader, Hague was approached by a woman to provide assistance for her son, who had been arrested for passing a forged check. The son, Red Dugan, had been a classmate of Hague's in school. According to the Boston Evening Transcript of October 4, 1904, Dugan had deposited a forged check for $955 in the Peoples Bank of Roxbury, Massachusetts, and convinced the bank manager to let him withdraw $500. Hague ignored a subpoena to testify in Hudson County Court and traveled to Massachusetts to provide an alibi for Dugan. Hague and another deputy sheriff, Thomas "Skidder" Madigan, claimed that they had seen Dugan in Jersey City on the day of the alleged offense. Both were threatened with perjury charges.
Upon returning to Jersey City, Hague was found guilty of contempt of court for ignoring the subpoena. He was fined $100 and stripped of his duties as Deputy Sheriff.
In spite of the resulting press coverage of the event, Hague was more deeply embraced by his constituency. Thomas Smith wrote: "But to the residents of the Horseshoe, Frank Hague had gone out of his way to help a friend – had practically given his livelihood to aid a brother." In the succeeding municipal election of 1905, which saw the return of incumbent Fagan to the office of mayor, Hague was elected to a fourth term as constable.
Ward leader
Hague rose through the Democratic machinery of Hudson County, which drew much of its strength by providing newly arrived immigrants with rudimentary social services. Hague took a job as a collector for a local brewery, leaving him with time to spend in the streets and the local taverns which were hubs of political activity. He also spent his time cleaning up the loose ends of the Second Ward's south-end Democratic Club to consolidate his power.
As a reward for his efforts in turning out votes in the 1905 election, Bob Davis named Hague as the party leader for the Second Ward and arranged for Hague to be appointed as Sergeant at Arms for the New Jersey State Assembly.
Political reformer
Hague broke ties with "Boss" Davis in 1906 over a difference of opinion on a candidate for appointment to the city Street and Water Board. As a result, Hague supported H. Otto Wittpenn for mayor in the 1907 election. Wittpenn was a reformer who opposed the control Davis held over Hudson County politics. Over the objections of Davis, newly elected Mayor Wittpenn appointed Hague as chief custodian of City Hall – a "cushy" job with plenty of patronage opportunities. During the Wittpenn administration, Hague also became friendly with Wittpenn's secretary – a Presbyterian Sunday school teacher named A. Harry Moore.
The resulting battle for control of the Hudson County Democratic machine would ironically result in one of the greatest boosts to Hague's rise to power – the Walsh Act of 1911. In 1909 Davis, seeing support for Hague increasing, supported Wittpenn's re-election against former mayor Fagan. Hague's second ward produced the largest plurality of Wittpenn votes of any of Jersey City's 12 wards. Davis then arranged the appointment of Fagan to the Hudson County Tax Board. When Wittpenn's administration began facing troubles, including Fagan's discovery of a Pennsylvania Railroad property that had paid no taxes for four years, Wittpenn blamed Davis.
Seeking to curb the influence of Davis, Wittpenn announced his candidacy for Governor, stating "I have endured the machine as long as possible, but patience is no longer a virtue." Davis, in turn, prevailed upon Woodrow Wilson, then President of Princeton University, to oppose Wittpenn's candidacy. Wilson's victory was overwhelming even in Hague's ward, despite heavy-handed tactics used there. The Jersey Journal wrote: "Cops on duty were using clubs and blackjacks to assist Mayor Wittpenn and Frank Hague defeat the Davis men."
Wilson's reform-minded term as Governor saw the establishment of Presidential primary elections, introduced workers' compensation, and brought about passage of the Walsh Act which provided for a non-partisan commission form of municipal government that was greatly reflective of his academic writings in Congressional Government.
"Little Bob" Davis died of cancer shortly after the 1910 gubernatorial election leaving a vacuum in the power structure of the Hudson County Democrats. Wittpenn quickly endorsed the idea of converting Jersey City to a commission form of government, but was opposed by forces, including Hague, attempting to take control of the party. Hague campaigned heavily against the idea in the Horseshoe, claiming that such a system of citywide elected commissioners would erode the influence of the working-class and consolidate power among the city's elite. Wittpenn's opponents successfully petitioned for a change in the date of the vote on the charter change, moving it from September to mid-July, and the proposal was defeated. As a result of this campaign, Hague came under the scrutiny of The Jersey Journal, which had supported the proposed charter change. It was reported that Hague's older brother, a battalion chief on the city fire department, had been on "sick leave" for three years at full pay.
Hague reconciled with Wittpenn to support his re-election in 1911. Wittpenn then supported Hague's nomination for Commissioner of Streets and Water. Both were elected. The new position greatly expanded Hague's patronage authority. While City Hall employed a few dozen custodians, there were hundreds of workers in the Street and Water Department. Hague's work as head of the Department of Street Cleaners even convinced The Jersey Journal to endorse him as a "reform candidate" in the next election.
In the spring of 1913, having gained confidence in his own ability to assure himself a place on the commission, Hague supported the renewed effort to change the Jersey City government from the Mayor-Council model to a commission model under the recently adopted Walsh Act. This act would place all executive and legislative powers in a five-man commission, each of whom would head a city department. The five commissioners would choose one of their colleagues to be mayor. The vote for charter change passed, and the stage was set for Frank Hague's rise to power.
Commissioner
In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the five-man commission. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee.
Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horseshoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate.
Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation.
Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city.
In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor.
Boss of Jersey City
Technically, Hague's only responsibility as mayor was to appoint the school board. Otherwise, he was merely first among equals, with no powers over and above the other four commissioners. However, soon after taking office, he wrested control of the Hudson County Democratic Party from Wittpenn. This allowed him to significantly influence the makeup of the commission in this overwhelmingly Democratic city. He soon built the organization into one of the most powerful political machines in the country. Hague himself became very wealthy, owning a $125,000 summer home in Deal, living in a large apartment in the best building in the city, and able to give a $50,000 altar to a local Catholic church. In 1941, Dartmouth professor Dayton David McKean wrote The Boss, a book about Hague's political machine, in which he estimated his amassed wealth at four million dollars on an annual mayoral salary of $8,000 a year.
He also had the support of a significant faction of Republicans which dated to his initial election as mayor, when he cut a deal with then-Governor Walter Edge in which Edge effectively ceded North Jersey to Hague in return for keeping South Jersey for himself. Also, as public safety commissioner (a post he held throughout his entire tenure), he controlled the two departments with the most patronage appointments in the city. This post also placed responsibility for maintaining public order in his hands.
Hague soon extended his influence statewide by helping to elect his "puppets" as governor. In the 1919 gubernatorial election, Hague endorsed State Senator Edward I. Edwards and aggressively campaigned for him. Edwards carried Hudson County by 50,000 votes, which was enough for him to win statewide by just under 15,000 votes. Hague proclaimed himself leader of the New Jersey Democratic Party, and Edwards allowed him to recommend dozens of appointments to high state offices. Democrats won five out of eight gubernatorial races between 1919 and 1940, more often than not due to massive landslides in Hudson County. However, he was never able to extend his dominance to the state legislature.
Hague was able to stay in power despite a nearly constant effort to turn him out of office from 1921 onward. He was also able to avoid prosecution despite numerous federal and state investigations in part due to the fact he took most of his kickbacks in cash. However, from the early 1940s onward, many of the older ethnic groups started moving to the suburbs. They were replaced by Poles, Italians, Eastern Europeans and African-Americans. Hague never adapted his methods to the new groups.
Hague had little tolerance for those who dared oppose him publicly. He relied on two ordinances of dubious constitutionality to muzzle critics. A 1920 ordinance effectively required people making political speeches to obtain clearance from the chief of police. A 1930 ordinance gave the public safety commissioner—Hague himself—the power to turn down permits for meetings if he felt it necessary to prevent "riots, disturbances or disorderly assemblage." The latter ordinance was struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States, but continued to be enforced for several years after that decision. The police were also allowed to stop and search anyone without probable cause or a warrant after 9 pm.
President maker
In 1932, Hague, a friend of Al Smith, backed Smith against Franklin D. Roosevelt during the race for the Democratic nomination. When Roosevelt won the nomination, Hague offered to organize the biggest political rally anyone had ever seen if Roosevelt would launch his presidential campaign in New Jersey. When Roosevelt formally began his campaign with an event at the Jersey Shore town of Sea Girt, Hague's machine made sure there were several thousand Hudson County voters looking on and cheering. Hague's support was rewarded with funding for a massive medical center complex complete with a maternity hospital named after his mother, Margaret Hague. During the 1936 campaign Hague provided 150,000 adults and children to cheer Roosevelt during a visit.
Accusations of voter fraud
Hague's use of voter fraud is the stuff of legend. In 1937, for instance, Jersey City had 160,050 registered voters, but only 147,000 people who were at least 21 years old—the legal voting age.
In 1932, Governor Moore appointed a lawyer named Thomas J. Brogan, who had served as Hague's personal attorney in corruption hearings, to an associate Justice seat on the state's Supreme Court. Less than a year later Brogan was named as Chief Justice. In at least two instances of alleged voting fraud in the 1930s (Ferguson v. Brogan, 112 N.J.L. 471; Clee v. Moore, 119 N.J.L. 215; In re Clee, 119 N.J.L. 310), Brogan's court issued extraordinary rulings in favor of the Democratic machine, in one case asserting that the district superintendent of elections had no authority to open ballot boxes, and in another case ruling that the boxes could be opened, but no one had the right to look inside. Brogan also assigned himself to the Hudson County jurisdiction, thereby controlling the local grand jury process and squelching other election fraud cases.
Although Hague, like other political bosses of the time, was not above outright fraud at the polls, the keys to Hague's success were his matchless organizational skills and demand for complete loyalty from his subordinates. His command over the Democratic voters of Hudson County, a densely populated urban area in a state that was still mostly rural, made him a man to reckon with among state Democrats and Republicans alike. He was a close friend of Al Smith, the New York governor who would become the first Irish-American presidential candidate in 1928. In addition, Hague's support of Roosevelt for President was rewarded with a steady stream of perks that sustained Hague's organization throughout the Depression.
Retirement from politics
The beginning of the end for Hague came in 1943, when former governor Walter Edge was returned to office. Edge's attorney general, Walter Van Riper, initiated several prosecutions of Hague cronies. Hague retaliated by having his handpicked U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey bring federal indictments against Van Riper, but Van Riper was acquitted. Edge also initiated reforms in the civil service, freeing it from Hague's control.
Edge's successor, fellow Republican Alfred Driscoll, succeeded in further curbing Hague's power over state government. He led the effort to implement a new constitution, which streamlined state government and made it less vulnerable to control by locally based bosses like Hague. For example, county prosecutors were now directly accountable to the state attorney general. It also set up a new state Supreme Court, which was given supervision over the state's judges. As the first Chief Justice, Driscoll appointed an old Hague foe, Arthur T. Vanderbilt. Driscoll also installed voting machines throughout the state, which made it harder for corrupt politicians to steal elections.
Seeing the writing on the wall, Hague abruptly announced his retirement in 1947. However, he was able to have his nephew, Frank Hague Eggers, chosen as his successor. It was generally understood that Hague still held the real power. This ended in 1949 when John V. Kenny, a former Hague ward leader alienated by the appointment of Eggers, put together his own commission ticket. Due to the presence of a "third ticket," Kenny's ticket was able to oust the Hague/Eggers ticket from power, ending Hague's 32-year rule. Kenny soon set up a machine which proved every bit as corrupt as Hague's, but far less efficient at providing services.
Friend and foe to labor
Hague was accommodating to labor unions during the first half of his mayoral career. For instance, Jersey City police were known for turning back strikebreakers, something unheard of during the 1920s. However, he became a savage opponent of labor organizers in the 1930s. The turnaround came about during a dispute with labor boss and former supporter Theodore "Teddy" Brandle, whose attempts to organize the work crews on the Pulaski Skyway construction project (1930–32) touched off a labor war so intense that local newspapers called it "the war of the meadows."
The rise of the CIO in the mid-1930s represented a threat to Hague's policy of guaranteeing labor peace to the sweatshop type industries that might otherwise have fled Jersey City's high property taxes. When Socialist presidential candidate Norman Thomas came to speak on behalf of the CIO during a May Day rally in Journal Square, Hague's police swept Thomas and his wife into a car, took them to the Pavonia ferry and sent them back to New York. Hague spent much of the decade inveighing against Communists and labor unions, and his attempts to suppress the CIO's activities in Jersey City led to a U.S. Supreme Court decision, Hague v. Committee for Industrial Organization 307 U.S. 496 (1939), that is a cornerstone of law concerning public expression of political views on public property.
Death
Hague died on New Year's Day in 1956 at his 480 Park Avenue duplex apartment in Manhattan, New York City. While hundreds gathered to see the casket depart the funeral home, only four men were seen to remove their hats for the passing of the coffin. One woman present held an American Flag and a sign that read, "God have mercy on his sinful, greedy soul."
Hague was interred in a large mausoleum at Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City.
Legacy
Hague's pride and joy was the Jersey City Medical Center, which he began creating almost as soon as he became mayor. By the 1940s it had grown into a 10-building complex that provided virtually free medical care to Jersey City residents. At the time of its completion, the Medical Center was one of the biggest medical facilities in the country and included the Medical Center Hospital, Pollak Chest Diseases Hospital, Murdoch Hall, and Margaret Hague Maternity Hospital, named in honor of Hague's mother. The buildings, funded in part through federal funds obtained by Hague, are known for their Art Deco details, including marble walls, terrazzo floors, etched glass, and decorative moldings. Even at the time the Medical Center was too large to operate cost-effectively. In 2005 the 14 acre complex (much of which had fallen into disuse) was sold to a private developer who began converting two towers into a luxury condominium complex called the Beacon.
Quotes
"We hear about constitutional rights, free speech and the free press. Every time I hear those words I say to myself, 'That man is a Red, that man is a Communist.' You never heard a real American talk in that manner." – speech to the Jersey City Chamber of Commerce, January 12, 1938.
"Listen, here is the law! I am the law! These boys go to work!" – speech on city government to the Emory Methodist Episcopal Church in Jersey City, November 10, 1937.
See also
List of mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Notes
References
(originally published—Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1940).
External links
Full text of the decision from FindLaw.com
Frank Hague Page at Jersey City History
The Life and Times of Frank Hague (2001) A five-part radio program
The Pragmatic Populism of a Non-Partisan Politician: An Analysis of the Political Philosophy of Charles Edison
1876 births
1956 deaths
American people of Irish descent
People from Deal, New Jersey
Mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Political corruption in the United States
Culture of Jersey City, New Jersey
American political bosses
American political bosses from New Jersey
New Jersey Democrats
Burials at Holy Name Cemetery (Jersey City, New Jersey)
Catholics from New Jersey
American anti-communists
Nucky Johnson's Organization | true | [
"Gevorg Avagyan (, ; 1922–2013) was a Soviet Armenian painter, one of the post-war generation of Soviet Armenian artists.\n\nAvagyan was born on July 20, 1922, in Gyumri, Armenia. The artist graduated from the Armenian Fine Arts College named after Terlemezian (1949), and then from the Armenian Fine Arts Academy (1956), where he studied with the artist Gabriel Gyurjyan.\n\nThe diploma work “Parcels from home” was created in the socialistic realism style as a scene from the Second World War, in which he served as a soldier for the duration of the war.\n\nIn 1971, Avagyan he became a member of the Artists' Union of the USSR and was a constant participant in various Soviet, Armenian and international art exhibitions.\n\nArt works and monumental compositions by Gevorg Avagyan are kept in different national galleries, decorate national theatres, cultural centers and private collections in Armenia and abroad.\n\nAvagyan worked closesly with a number of famous Armenian artists, including Arakel Arakelyan (1929–1990), Mikael Gjurjyan (1935–1995), Hamlet Minasyan (1923–1995), Karlen Rukhikyan (1926–2004). Avagyan was well known among his friends as a master of portrait and beautiful landscapes. He developed the traditional classic school of realistic painting, sometimes coming to impressionism in genres of thematic painting, portrait, landscape and still life.\n\nAvagyan created pictures of different genres, from historical battle canvases and portraits to still-lives and landscapes. Among his big figurative compositions were \"Bacchus Women or the First Theater Performance\", devoted to the 2000 anniversary of Armenian Theater (Artashat State Theater), \"The Battle of Sardarapat\", \"Davit Bek\", \"The Battle of Avarayr\" and many others.\n\nReferences\n\nhttps://www.artabus.com/avagyan/?pic=-1\nhttp://www.russianartgallery.com/artist/Gevorg-Avagyan/\nhayazg.info Avagyan Gevorg page \nUSEUM: Gevorg Avagyan page\n\nPeople from Gyumri\nArmenian painters\nSoviet painters\nSoviet Armenians\nlandscape art\nPortrait art\n1922 births\n2013 deaths\nSoviet military personnel of World War II",
"Neil Matterson was an Australian professional sculler who attempted to win the World Sculling Championship, and although he was unsuccessful in that, he went on to coach Henry Ernest Searle who did become the World Champion.\n\nEarly life and sculling \nNeil Matterson was born at Kempsey, Macleay River, New South Wales on 6 June 1864. As an adult he was 5 ft, 11 in (1.80 m) tall, and his training weight was about 10 st 12 lb (68.9 kg).\n\nOn 24 May 1882 he competed in the second-class All-comers' Light Skiff Race at the Grafton Regatta, and finished last. On the same day, with G. Ashwood, he won the Double-sculling Race; in July he beat J. Stuart over a course of two miles and a-half, in light skiffs, for £10 a side. He then defeated J. Parkinson for £50 a side, in July, over a course of three miles.\n\nOn 26 January 1884, with featherweight, he won the All-comers' Light Skiff Race at Rocky Mouth Regatta. Acting on the advice of Michael Rush, Matterson came to Sydney, and in April beat Nichols, of Shoalhaven, for £20 a side, in light skiffs, over the Parramatta championship course. He was matched against Guilliford for £50 a side, and the latter forfeited. On 22 May, at the Ned Hanlan-Elias C. Laycock exhibition match on the Nepean river, he won the All-comers' Light Skiff with 25 lb, defeating four others. On the same day he also won the Wager Boat Race (his maiden race in an outrigger) with 10sec start, defeating R. Edwards (of Victoria), H. Pearce (scratch), Charles A. Messenger (7sec), and Woods (20sec). He beat R. Edwards on 22 August in wager boats for £100 a side on the Parramatta River; on 18 October he beat Peter Kemp (rower) for £200 a side on the Nepean river, but Kemp gave up after rowing about a mile. On 5 November he defeated R. Edwards in the All-comers' Race at Albert Park Regatta (Victoria); he competed in the All-comers' Race at the Balmain Regatta on 9 November. The race had to be rowed over again, and was then won by Pearce, Messenger being second, and Matterson third.\n\nOn 29 May 1885 he beat Charles A. Messenger for £200 a side over the champion course was then matched to row Peter Kemp, but, being in ill health, forfeited his first deposit of £25.\n\nWorld championship match\nMatterson had challenged Bill Beach for a match for the latter's World Title. The stake was for £200 a side and the match was held on the Parramatta river on 18 December 1885. The challenger was severely overmatched and the race turned out to be little more than a training run for the champion who won easily in a time of 24 minutes. See also World Sculling Championship\n\nLater events\nIn February 1886 Matterson left Sydney for England, arriving there in April. On 24 May he was beaten by George Perkins over the Thames Championship Course for £400 and the Sportsman Cup, which included the English Sculling Championship. On 7 June, on the Thames, he defeated Dave Godwin for £100 a side on 16 August he beat George Perkins for £200 a side. In the first round of the Great International Sculling Sweepstakes, held on the Thames on 30 and 31 August, and 1 September 1886, he defeated Wallace Ross, of Canada, but in the second round he was beaten by John Teemer (America); on 10 September, on the Thames, he was beaten by G. Lee for £200 a side. Matterson returned to Sydney on 3 December of the same year. \nHe competed in the final heat of the Lake Bathurst Handicap Outrigger Race, won by Jim Stanbury, on 14 January 1887, but was not placed. On 4 July of the same year he was beaten by Peter Kemp for £200 a side and the Tennyson Cup, over the championship course, Parramatta river. He did not again appear in a public contest until 26 September 1888, when he defeated Chris. Neilsen for £100 a side on the Parramatta river. On 29 October he was beaten by Peter Kemp on the Parramatta river, the backers of the latter laying £1000 to £300. He was third in the final of the Brisbane Aquatic Carnival, rowed on 11 December, and won by Henry Ernest Searle, with Peter Kemp second.\n\nChampion coach\nMatterson trained the later champion sculler of the world, Henry Ernest Searle, for all his engagements on the Parramatta river. Searle won the Championship off Peter Kemp in October 1888. Searle travelled to England and while there he defeated William Joseph O'Connor for the World Sculling Championship, and Matterson defeated George Bubear (ex-champion of England) for £200 a side, over the Thames course, on 13 October 1889.\n\nA second world title attempt\nHenry Searle famously died shortly afterwards in December 1889 and the Championship Title reverted to Peter Kemp. Matterson had felt that the Title should have been competed for by a round robin series or an elimination series, with him as one of the contestants. However this did not eventuate but he did manage to get in the first challenge. As Searle's trainer he must have had a good idea of Kemp's abilities and felt he could beat him. The race was arranged for 25 April 1890 on the Parramatta and the stake was £200 a side. Both men were in top condition and a good race was expected. From the start Kemp went ahead and stayed ahead until the finish. Matterson became so exhausted that Kemp easily came home several hundred yards in front. The time was 21m. 13.5s. Matterson did not again ever attempt to win the Championship.\n\nLater training success \nMatterson also trained Charles Stephenson (rower) for the latter's race with William Hearn, for the New Zealand Sculling Championship of, which Stephenson won at Wellington in February 1890 and at the Dunedin Exhibition, on 17 February, won Champion Scullers' Race for £50.\nMatterson died April 1933.\n\nReferences\nOtago Witness newspaper 24 April 1890\n\n1864 births\nAustralian male rowers\nYear of death missing\nProfessional rowers"
]
|
[
"Frank Hague",
"Commissioner",
"where was he commissioner?",
"City Commission of Jersey City.",
"what years was he Commissioner?",
"1913,",
"how long was he commissioner?",
"1917,",
"what were some noteworthy things that happened while he was Commissioner?",
"Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments.",
"did the fire and police get along with him?",
"Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force",
"What did the police and fire department do when he did this?",
"Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years.",
"who did he work closesly on his side?",
"an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or \"zepps\" who were personally loyal to Hague alone."
]
| C_8b5a49a4558041a6855863e02046905e_1 | was he ever betrayed by a Zepp? | 8 | Was Frank Hague ever betrayed by a Zeppelin Squad officer? | Frank Hague | In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the first City Commission of Jersey City. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee. Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horsehoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate. Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation. Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city. In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor. CANNOTANSWER | The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. | Frank Hague (January 17, 1876 – January 1, 1956) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the Mayor of Jersey City, New Jersey from 1917 to 1947, Democratic National Committeeman from New Jersey from 1922 until 1949, and Vice-Chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 1924 until 1949.
Hague has a widely known reputation for corruption and bossism and has been called "the grandaddy of Jersey bosses". By the time he left office in 1947, he enjoyed palatial homes, European vacations, and a private suite at the Plaza Hotel. His wealth has been estimated to have been over $10 million at the time of his death, although his City salary never exceeded $8,500 per year and he had no other legitimate source of income. His desk, according to legend, had a specially designed lap drawer which could be pushed outward towards the person with whom he was meeting. This allowed his "guests" to discreetly deliver bribes in the form of envelopes containing large amounts of cash. However, according to New Jersey preservationist John Hallinan, the drawers were a traditional feature of 19th century partners desks and that "[t]he last thing [Hague] would need to do is take a bribe personally". As of October 2021, the desk was on display in City Hall.
During the height of his power Hague's political machine, known as "the organization", was one of the most powerful in the United States controlling politics on local, county, and state levels. Hague's personal influence extended to the national level, influencing federal patronage, and presidential campaigns.
Early life
Francis "Frank" Hague, born in Jersey City, was the fourth of eight children to John D. and Margaret Hague (née Fagen), immigrants from County Cavan, Ireland. He was raised in Jersey City's Second ward, an area known as The Horseshoe due to its shape which wrapped around a railroad loop. The ward was created when the Republican-controlled legislature gerrymandered a district within Jersey City in 1871 to concentrate and isolate Democratic, and mostly Catholic, votes.
By age 14, Hague was expelled from school prior to completing the sixth grade for poor attendance and unacceptable behavior. He worked briefly as a blacksmith's apprentice for the Erie Railroad. While training at a local gym for his own potential debut as a prizefighter, he arranged to become manager for Joe Craig, a professional lightweight boxer. Craig was successful enough to allow Hague to buy a few suits that made him appear successful. In 1896, Hague's apparent prosperity gained him the attention of local tavern owner "Nat" Kenny who was seeking a candidate for constable in the upcoming primary to run against the candidate of a rival tavern owner. Kenny provided Hague with $75 to "spread around", and Frank Hague quickly won his first election by a ratio of three-to-one.
Political career
Early success
Hague's victory in the Constable election brought him to the attention of Hudson County Democratic political boss "Little Bob" Davis, and Davis asked Hague to help get out Democratic votes for the upcoming 1897 Mayoral election. Hague's efforts were credited with generating large voter turnout in the Second Ward for the 1897 and 1899 elections. As a reward for his work, Hague was appointed as a deputy sheriff at a salary of $25 per week. Over this time, Hague took a leadership role in the Second Ward Democratic club.
In the 1901 Mayoral election, Republican Mark M. Fagan was elected. Hague's second ward was one of only two that voted Democratic. Hague survived a Republican challenge for a third term as Constable the following year.
The "Red Dugan" affair
As a ward leader, Hague was approached by a woman to provide assistance for her son, who had been arrested for passing a forged check. The son, Red Dugan, had been a classmate of Hague's in school. According to the Boston Evening Transcript of October 4, 1904, Dugan had deposited a forged check for $955 in the Peoples Bank of Roxbury, Massachusetts, and convinced the bank manager to let him withdraw $500. Hague ignored a subpoena to testify in Hudson County Court and traveled to Massachusetts to provide an alibi for Dugan. Hague and another deputy sheriff, Thomas "Skidder" Madigan, claimed that they had seen Dugan in Jersey City on the day of the alleged offense. Both were threatened with perjury charges.
Upon returning to Jersey City, Hague was found guilty of contempt of court for ignoring the subpoena. He was fined $100 and stripped of his duties as Deputy Sheriff.
In spite of the resulting press coverage of the event, Hague was more deeply embraced by his constituency. Thomas Smith wrote: "But to the residents of the Horseshoe, Frank Hague had gone out of his way to help a friend – had practically given his livelihood to aid a brother." In the succeeding municipal election of 1905, which saw the return of incumbent Fagan to the office of mayor, Hague was elected to a fourth term as constable.
Ward leader
Hague rose through the Democratic machinery of Hudson County, which drew much of its strength by providing newly arrived immigrants with rudimentary social services. Hague took a job as a collector for a local brewery, leaving him with time to spend in the streets and the local taverns which were hubs of political activity. He also spent his time cleaning up the loose ends of the Second Ward's south-end Democratic Club to consolidate his power.
As a reward for his efforts in turning out votes in the 1905 election, Bob Davis named Hague as the party leader for the Second Ward and arranged for Hague to be appointed as Sergeant at Arms for the New Jersey State Assembly.
Political reformer
Hague broke ties with "Boss" Davis in 1906 over a difference of opinion on a candidate for appointment to the city Street and Water Board. As a result, Hague supported H. Otto Wittpenn for mayor in the 1907 election. Wittpenn was a reformer who opposed the control Davis held over Hudson County politics. Over the objections of Davis, newly elected Mayor Wittpenn appointed Hague as chief custodian of City Hall – a "cushy" job with plenty of patronage opportunities. During the Wittpenn administration, Hague also became friendly with Wittpenn's secretary – a Presbyterian Sunday school teacher named A. Harry Moore.
The resulting battle for control of the Hudson County Democratic machine would ironically result in one of the greatest boosts to Hague's rise to power – the Walsh Act of 1911. In 1909 Davis, seeing support for Hague increasing, supported Wittpenn's re-election against former mayor Fagan. Hague's second ward produced the largest plurality of Wittpenn votes of any of Jersey City's 12 wards. Davis then arranged the appointment of Fagan to the Hudson County Tax Board. When Wittpenn's administration began facing troubles, including Fagan's discovery of a Pennsylvania Railroad property that had paid no taxes for four years, Wittpenn blamed Davis.
Seeking to curb the influence of Davis, Wittpenn announced his candidacy for Governor, stating "I have endured the machine as long as possible, but patience is no longer a virtue." Davis, in turn, prevailed upon Woodrow Wilson, then President of Princeton University, to oppose Wittpenn's candidacy. Wilson's victory was overwhelming even in Hague's ward, despite heavy-handed tactics used there. The Jersey Journal wrote: "Cops on duty were using clubs and blackjacks to assist Mayor Wittpenn and Frank Hague defeat the Davis men."
Wilson's reform-minded term as Governor saw the establishment of Presidential primary elections, introduced workers' compensation, and brought about passage of the Walsh Act which provided for a non-partisan commission form of municipal government that was greatly reflective of his academic writings in Congressional Government.
"Little Bob" Davis died of cancer shortly after the 1910 gubernatorial election leaving a vacuum in the power structure of the Hudson County Democrats. Wittpenn quickly endorsed the idea of converting Jersey City to a commission form of government, but was opposed by forces, including Hague, attempting to take control of the party. Hague campaigned heavily against the idea in the Horseshoe, claiming that such a system of citywide elected commissioners would erode the influence of the working-class and consolidate power among the city's elite. Wittpenn's opponents successfully petitioned for a change in the date of the vote on the charter change, moving it from September to mid-July, and the proposal was defeated. As a result of this campaign, Hague came under the scrutiny of The Jersey Journal, which had supported the proposed charter change. It was reported that Hague's older brother, a battalion chief on the city fire department, had been on "sick leave" for three years at full pay.
Hague reconciled with Wittpenn to support his re-election in 1911. Wittpenn then supported Hague's nomination for Commissioner of Streets and Water. Both were elected. The new position greatly expanded Hague's patronage authority. While City Hall employed a few dozen custodians, there were hundreds of workers in the Street and Water Department. Hague's work as head of the Department of Street Cleaners even convinced The Jersey Journal to endorse him as a "reform candidate" in the next election.
In the spring of 1913, having gained confidence in his own ability to assure himself a place on the commission, Hague supported the renewed effort to change the Jersey City government from the Mayor-Council model to a commission model under the recently adopted Walsh Act. This act would place all executive and legislative powers in a five-man commission, each of whom would head a city department. The five commissioners would choose one of their colleagues to be mayor. The vote for charter change passed, and the stage was set for Frank Hague's rise to power.
Commissioner
In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the five-man commission. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee.
Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horseshoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate.
Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation.
Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city.
In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor.
Boss of Jersey City
Technically, Hague's only responsibility as mayor was to appoint the school board. Otherwise, he was merely first among equals, with no powers over and above the other four commissioners. However, soon after taking office, he wrested control of the Hudson County Democratic Party from Wittpenn. This allowed him to significantly influence the makeup of the commission in this overwhelmingly Democratic city. He soon built the organization into one of the most powerful political machines in the country. Hague himself became very wealthy, owning a $125,000 summer home in Deal, living in a large apartment in the best building in the city, and able to give a $50,000 altar to a local Catholic church. In 1941, Dartmouth professor Dayton David McKean wrote The Boss, a book about Hague's political machine, in which he estimated his amassed wealth at four million dollars on an annual mayoral salary of $8,000 a year.
He also had the support of a significant faction of Republicans which dated to his initial election as mayor, when he cut a deal with then-Governor Walter Edge in which Edge effectively ceded North Jersey to Hague in return for keeping South Jersey for himself. Also, as public safety commissioner (a post he held throughout his entire tenure), he controlled the two departments with the most patronage appointments in the city. This post also placed responsibility for maintaining public order in his hands.
Hague soon extended his influence statewide by helping to elect his "puppets" as governor. In the 1919 gubernatorial election, Hague endorsed State Senator Edward I. Edwards and aggressively campaigned for him. Edwards carried Hudson County by 50,000 votes, which was enough for him to win statewide by just under 15,000 votes. Hague proclaimed himself leader of the New Jersey Democratic Party, and Edwards allowed him to recommend dozens of appointments to high state offices. Democrats won five out of eight gubernatorial races between 1919 and 1940, more often than not due to massive landslides in Hudson County. However, he was never able to extend his dominance to the state legislature.
Hague was able to stay in power despite a nearly constant effort to turn him out of office from 1921 onward. He was also able to avoid prosecution despite numerous federal and state investigations in part due to the fact he took most of his kickbacks in cash. However, from the early 1940s onward, many of the older ethnic groups started moving to the suburbs. They were replaced by Poles, Italians, Eastern Europeans and African-Americans. Hague never adapted his methods to the new groups.
Hague had little tolerance for those who dared oppose him publicly. He relied on two ordinances of dubious constitutionality to muzzle critics. A 1920 ordinance effectively required people making political speeches to obtain clearance from the chief of police. A 1930 ordinance gave the public safety commissioner—Hague himself—the power to turn down permits for meetings if he felt it necessary to prevent "riots, disturbances or disorderly assemblage." The latter ordinance was struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States, but continued to be enforced for several years after that decision. The police were also allowed to stop and search anyone without probable cause or a warrant after 9 pm.
President maker
In 1932, Hague, a friend of Al Smith, backed Smith against Franklin D. Roosevelt during the race for the Democratic nomination. When Roosevelt won the nomination, Hague offered to organize the biggest political rally anyone had ever seen if Roosevelt would launch his presidential campaign in New Jersey. When Roosevelt formally began his campaign with an event at the Jersey Shore town of Sea Girt, Hague's machine made sure there were several thousand Hudson County voters looking on and cheering. Hague's support was rewarded with funding for a massive medical center complex complete with a maternity hospital named after his mother, Margaret Hague. During the 1936 campaign Hague provided 150,000 adults and children to cheer Roosevelt during a visit.
Accusations of voter fraud
Hague's use of voter fraud is the stuff of legend. In 1937, for instance, Jersey City had 160,050 registered voters, but only 147,000 people who were at least 21 years old—the legal voting age.
In 1932, Governor Moore appointed a lawyer named Thomas J. Brogan, who had served as Hague's personal attorney in corruption hearings, to an associate Justice seat on the state's Supreme Court. Less than a year later Brogan was named as Chief Justice. In at least two instances of alleged voting fraud in the 1930s (Ferguson v. Brogan, 112 N.J.L. 471; Clee v. Moore, 119 N.J.L. 215; In re Clee, 119 N.J.L. 310), Brogan's court issued extraordinary rulings in favor of the Democratic machine, in one case asserting that the district superintendent of elections had no authority to open ballot boxes, and in another case ruling that the boxes could be opened, but no one had the right to look inside. Brogan also assigned himself to the Hudson County jurisdiction, thereby controlling the local grand jury process and squelching other election fraud cases.
Although Hague, like other political bosses of the time, was not above outright fraud at the polls, the keys to Hague's success were his matchless organizational skills and demand for complete loyalty from his subordinates. His command over the Democratic voters of Hudson County, a densely populated urban area in a state that was still mostly rural, made him a man to reckon with among state Democrats and Republicans alike. He was a close friend of Al Smith, the New York governor who would become the first Irish-American presidential candidate in 1928. In addition, Hague's support of Roosevelt for President was rewarded with a steady stream of perks that sustained Hague's organization throughout the Depression.
Retirement from politics
The beginning of the end for Hague came in 1943, when former governor Walter Edge was returned to office. Edge's attorney general, Walter Van Riper, initiated several prosecutions of Hague cronies. Hague retaliated by having his handpicked U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey bring federal indictments against Van Riper, but Van Riper was acquitted. Edge also initiated reforms in the civil service, freeing it from Hague's control.
Edge's successor, fellow Republican Alfred Driscoll, succeeded in further curbing Hague's power over state government. He led the effort to implement a new constitution, which streamlined state government and made it less vulnerable to control by locally based bosses like Hague. For example, county prosecutors were now directly accountable to the state attorney general. It also set up a new state Supreme Court, which was given supervision over the state's judges. As the first Chief Justice, Driscoll appointed an old Hague foe, Arthur T. Vanderbilt. Driscoll also installed voting machines throughout the state, which made it harder for corrupt politicians to steal elections.
Seeing the writing on the wall, Hague abruptly announced his retirement in 1947. However, he was able to have his nephew, Frank Hague Eggers, chosen as his successor. It was generally understood that Hague still held the real power. This ended in 1949 when John V. Kenny, a former Hague ward leader alienated by the appointment of Eggers, put together his own commission ticket. Due to the presence of a "third ticket," Kenny's ticket was able to oust the Hague/Eggers ticket from power, ending Hague's 32-year rule. Kenny soon set up a machine which proved every bit as corrupt as Hague's, but far less efficient at providing services.
Friend and foe to labor
Hague was accommodating to labor unions during the first half of his mayoral career. For instance, Jersey City police were known for turning back strikebreakers, something unheard of during the 1920s. However, he became a savage opponent of labor organizers in the 1930s. The turnaround came about during a dispute with labor boss and former supporter Theodore "Teddy" Brandle, whose attempts to organize the work crews on the Pulaski Skyway construction project (1930–32) touched off a labor war so intense that local newspapers called it "the war of the meadows."
The rise of the CIO in the mid-1930s represented a threat to Hague's policy of guaranteeing labor peace to the sweatshop type industries that might otherwise have fled Jersey City's high property taxes. When Socialist presidential candidate Norman Thomas came to speak on behalf of the CIO during a May Day rally in Journal Square, Hague's police swept Thomas and his wife into a car, took them to the Pavonia ferry and sent them back to New York. Hague spent much of the decade inveighing against Communists and labor unions, and his attempts to suppress the CIO's activities in Jersey City led to a U.S. Supreme Court decision, Hague v. Committee for Industrial Organization 307 U.S. 496 (1939), that is a cornerstone of law concerning public expression of political views on public property.
Death
Hague died on New Year's Day in 1956 at his 480 Park Avenue duplex apartment in Manhattan, New York City. While hundreds gathered to see the casket depart the funeral home, only four men were seen to remove their hats for the passing of the coffin. One woman present held an American Flag and a sign that read, "God have mercy on his sinful, greedy soul."
Hague was interred in a large mausoleum at Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City.
Legacy
Hague's pride and joy was the Jersey City Medical Center, which he began creating almost as soon as he became mayor. By the 1940s it had grown into a 10-building complex that provided virtually free medical care to Jersey City residents. At the time of its completion, the Medical Center was one of the biggest medical facilities in the country and included the Medical Center Hospital, Pollak Chest Diseases Hospital, Murdoch Hall, and Margaret Hague Maternity Hospital, named in honor of Hague's mother. The buildings, funded in part through federal funds obtained by Hague, are known for their Art Deco details, including marble walls, terrazzo floors, etched glass, and decorative moldings. Even at the time the Medical Center was too large to operate cost-effectively. In 2005 the 14 acre complex (much of which had fallen into disuse) was sold to a private developer who began converting two towers into a luxury condominium complex called the Beacon.
Quotes
"We hear about constitutional rights, free speech and the free press. Every time I hear those words I say to myself, 'That man is a Red, that man is a Communist.' You never heard a real American talk in that manner." – speech to the Jersey City Chamber of Commerce, January 12, 1938.
"Listen, here is the law! I am the law! These boys go to work!" – speech on city government to the Emory Methodist Episcopal Church in Jersey City, November 10, 1937.
See also
List of mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Notes
References
(originally published—Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1940).
External links
Full text of the decision from FindLaw.com
Frank Hague Page at Jersey City History
The Life and Times of Frank Hague (2001) A five-part radio program
The Pragmatic Populism of a Non-Partisan Politician: An Analysis of the Political Philosophy of Charles Edison
1876 births
1956 deaths
American people of Irish descent
People from Deal, New Jersey
Mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Political corruption in the United States
Culture of Jersey City, New Jersey
American political bosses
American political bosses from New Jersey
New Jersey Democrats
Burials at Holy Name Cemetery (Jersey City, New Jersey)
Catholics from New Jersey
American anti-communists
Nucky Johnson's Organization | true | [
"William Clinton Zepp (born July 22, 1946), is an American former professional baseball player. A right-handed pitcher, he attended the University of Michigan and later played professional baseball for four years from 1968 to 1971, including stints in Major League Baseball with the Minnesota Twins (1969–1970) and Detroit Tigers (1971). He compiled a 10-5 win–loss record (.667 winning percentage) and a 3.64 earned run average (ERA) in 63 major league games. He was listed as tall and .\n\nEarly years\nZepp was born in Detroit, Michigan, and became a \"superstar\" while attending Redford High School in that city. After graduating from high school, Zepp declined the opportunity to play professional baseball and instead enrolled at the University of Michigan. While attending Michigan, Zepp reportedly \"lost his velocity and confidence\" as a pitcher. He was drafted but did not sign on three occasions while attending school: by the Milwaukee Braves in the 33rd round of the 1965 Major League Baseball Draft; by the Detroit Tigers in the eighth round of the 1966 MLB Draft; and by the Boston Red Sox in the seventh round of the 1967 MLB Draft.\n\nProfessional baseball\nZepp graduated from the University of Michigan in the spring of 1968 with a master's degree in marketing. After receiving his degree, Zepp sought to pursue his dream of playing Major League Baseball, but most clubs were not interested in a 22-year-old rookie. Zepp noted, \"I finally went begging for a chance to play. When I decided I was in good enough shape, I went to some of the old scouts who had seen me play. I felt I wouldn't embarrass any team that signed me and this was important. Minnesota Twins' scout Frank Franchi convinced the club to give Zepp a chance, and he was signed by the Twins as an amateur free agent.\n\nAfter signing with the Twins, Zepp was assigned for the remainder of the 1968 season to the Wisconsin Rapids Twins where he compiled a 4-6 record and a 3.00 earned run average (ERA) in 14 games. During the winter following the 1968 season, Zepp played in the Florida Instructional League where he worked on developing a changeup pitch and led the circuit with a 1.14 ERA.\n\nAfter a strong showing in spring training in 1969, Twins manager Billy Martin told Zepp he would start the season with the Twins' Triple A club in Denver. However, in a move that reportedly infuriated Martin, the club's management instead assigned Zepp to play Single-A ball with the Red Springs Twins in the Carolina League. Zepp was quickly promoted to play Double-A ball with the Charlotte Hornets in the Southern League. Between the two minor league clubs, Zepp compiled an 18-4 record in the minor leagues during the 1969 season.\n\nIn August 1969, Zepp was called up by the Twins and made his major league debut on August 12, 1969. In four games for the Twins at the waning months of the 1969 season, he compiled a 6.75 ERA in 5-1/3 innings pitched. In 1970, Zepp appeared in 43 games, including 20 games as a starter, compiling a 9–4 record and a 3.22 ERA. He also ranked third in the American League having hit batsmen nine times in 1970. Zepp made two short relief appearances in the 1970 American League Championship Series against the Baltimore Orioles, giving up two hits and one run in one inning.\n\nPrior to the 1971 season, Zepp refused to sign a contract extension with the Twins and stated that he intended to retire from baseball unless he were traded to the Detroit Tigers, his hometown club. In March 1971, following an injury to Tigers' starter Joe Coleman, Zepp was traded by the Twins to the Tigers in exchange for Mike Adams and a player to be named later (minor league pitcher Art Clifford). At the time of the trade, Detroit manager Billy Martin said, \"Coming here where he wants to play might make him a better pitcher. I don't know but I hope so.\" Zepp appeared in 16 games for the 1971 Tigers. He won his first game for Detroit on May 22, 1971, a 3-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles. However, Zepp's ERA rose to 5.12 while playing for Detroit, and he appeared in his last major league game on June 20, 1971. Zepp later recalled that he had suffered a \"Tommy John injury\", tearing a tendon and resulting in lost arm strength. Zepp decided not to undergo risky surgery and instead retired from baseball.\n\nZepp concluded his professional baseball career in 1971 playing for the Toledo Mud Hens in the International League.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n1946 births\nLiving people\nBaseball players from Detroit\nCharlotte Hornets (baseball) players\nDetroit Tigers players\nMajor League Baseball pitchers\nMichigan Wolverines baseball players\nMinnesota Twins players\nRed Springs Twins players\nRedford High School alumni\nToledo Mud Hens players\nWisconsin Rapids Twins players",
"Robert Zepp (born September 7, 1981) is a Canadian-born German former professional ice hockey goaltender who played in the National Hockey League (NHL). Zepp spent most of his playing career in Europe, playing two seasons in the Finnish SM-liiga for SaiPa and seven seasons in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga for Eisbären Berlin. During his final season, he played 10 NHL games with the Philadelphia Flyers.\n\nPlaying career\nBorn in Newmarket, Ontario, Zepp played junior hockey for the Plymouth Whalers in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). During three standout years with the high-flying Whalers, Zepp was awarded the Dave Pinkney Trophy three years running as a part of the goaltending duo in OHL with the lowest goals against average (GAA). In his first season with the Whalers, Zepp was also awarded the Bobby Smith Trophy as the OHL Scholastic Player of the Year who best combines high standards of play and academic excellence and the CHL Scholastic Player of the Year Award.\n\nZepp was drafted by the Atlanta Thrashers in the fourth round, 99th overall, in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft. He never signed a contract with the Thrashers and was drafted by the Carolina Hurricanes in round 4, 110th overall in the 2001 NHL Entry Draft. He played from 2001 until 2005 with the Florida Everblades of the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL) before deciding to play in Europe, joining SaiPa of the Finnish SM-liiga, where he played two seasons. He then joined Eisbären Berlin in 2007.\n\nOn July 1, 2014, Zepp returned to North America by signing a one-year, two-way contract with the Philadelphia Flyers. On December 21, Zepp made his NHL debut against the Winnipeg Jets at the age of 33. Wearing jersey number 72, he made 25 saves out of 28 shots on goal to lead the Flyers to a 4–3 overtime victory.\n\nCareer statistics\n\nRegular season\n\nInternational\n\nAwards and honours\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n \n\n1981 births\nAtlanta Thrashers draft picks\nCanadian ice hockey goaltenders\nCarolina Hurricanes draft picks\nEisbären Berlin players\nFlorida Everblades players\nGerman ice hockey players\nLehigh Valley Phantoms players\nLiving people\nLowell Lock Monsters players\nSportspeople from Newmarket, Ontario\nPhiladelphia Flyers players\nPlymouth Whalers players\nSaiPa players\nSaPKo players\nCanadian expatriate ice hockey players in Finland\nCanadian expatriate ice hockey players in Germany"
]
|
[
"Frank Hague",
"Commissioner",
"where was he commissioner?",
"City Commission of Jersey City.",
"what years was he Commissioner?",
"1913,",
"how long was he commissioner?",
"1917,",
"what were some noteworthy things that happened while he was Commissioner?",
"Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments.",
"did the fire and police get along with him?",
"Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force",
"What did the police and fire department do when he did this?",
"Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years.",
"who did he work closesly on his side?",
"an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or \"zepps\" who were personally loyal to Hague alone.",
"was he ever betrayed by a Zepp?",
"The \"zepps\" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department."
]
| C_8b5a49a4558041a6855863e02046905e_1 | who did the Zepps spy on? | 9 | Who did the Zeppelin Squad officers spy on? | Frank Hague | In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the first City Commission of Jersey City. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee. Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horsehoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate. Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation. Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city. In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor. CANNOTANSWER | other members of the department. | Frank Hague (January 17, 1876 – January 1, 1956) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the Mayor of Jersey City, New Jersey from 1917 to 1947, Democratic National Committeeman from New Jersey from 1922 until 1949, and Vice-Chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 1924 until 1949.
Hague has a widely known reputation for corruption and bossism and has been called "the grandaddy of Jersey bosses". By the time he left office in 1947, he enjoyed palatial homes, European vacations, and a private suite at the Plaza Hotel. His wealth has been estimated to have been over $10 million at the time of his death, although his City salary never exceeded $8,500 per year and he had no other legitimate source of income. His desk, according to legend, had a specially designed lap drawer which could be pushed outward towards the person with whom he was meeting. This allowed his "guests" to discreetly deliver bribes in the form of envelopes containing large amounts of cash. However, according to New Jersey preservationist John Hallinan, the drawers were a traditional feature of 19th century partners desks and that "[t]he last thing [Hague] would need to do is take a bribe personally". As of October 2021, the desk was on display in City Hall.
During the height of his power Hague's political machine, known as "the organization", was one of the most powerful in the United States controlling politics on local, county, and state levels. Hague's personal influence extended to the national level, influencing federal patronage, and presidential campaigns.
Early life
Francis "Frank" Hague, born in Jersey City, was the fourth of eight children to John D. and Margaret Hague (née Fagen), immigrants from County Cavan, Ireland. He was raised in Jersey City's Second ward, an area known as The Horseshoe due to its shape which wrapped around a railroad loop. The ward was created when the Republican-controlled legislature gerrymandered a district within Jersey City in 1871 to concentrate and isolate Democratic, and mostly Catholic, votes.
By age 14, Hague was expelled from school prior to completing the sixth grade for poor attendance and unacceptable behavior. He worked briefly as a blacksmith's apprentice for the Erie Railroad. While training at a local gym for his own potential debut as a prizefighter, he arranged to become manager for Joe Craig, a professional lightweight boxer. Craig was successful enough to allow Hague to buy a few suits that made him appear successful. In 1896, Hague's apparent prosperity gained him the attention of local tavern owner "Nat" Kenny who was seeking a candidate for constable in the upcoming primary to run against the candidate of a rival tavern owner. Kenny provided Hague with $75 to "spread around", and Frank Hague quickly won his first election by a ratio of three-to-one.
Political career
Early success
Hague's victory in the Constable election brought him to the attention of Hudson County Democratic political boss "Little Bob" Davis, and Davis asked Hague to help get out Democratic votes for the upcoming 1897 Mayoral election. Hague's efforts were credited with generating large voter turnout in the Second Ward for the 1897 and 1899 elections. As a reward for his work, Hague was appointed as a deputy sheriff at a salary of $25 per week. Over this time, Hague took a leadership role in the Second Ward Democratic club.
In the 1901 Mayoral election, Republican Mark M. Fagan was elected. Hague's second ward was one of only two that voted Democratic. Hague survived a Republican challenge for a third term as Constable the following year.
The "Red Dugan" affair
As a ward leader, Hague was approached by a woman to provide assistance for her son, who had been arrested for passing a forged check. The son, Red Dugan, had been a classmate of Hague's in school. According to the Boston Evening Transcript of October 4, 1904, Dugan had deposited a forged check for $955 in the Peoples Bank of Roxbury, Massachusetts, and convinced the bank manager to let him withdraw $500. Hague ignored a subpoena to testify in Hudson County Court and traveled to Massachusetts to provide an alibi for Dugan. Hague and another deputy sheriff, Thomas "Skidder" Madigan, claimed that they had seen Dugan in Jersey City on the day of the alleged offense. Both were threatened with perjury charges.
Upon returning to Jersey City, Hague was found guilty of contempt of court for ignoring the subpoena. He was fined $100 and stripped of his duties as Deputy Sheriff.
In spite of the resulting press coverage of the event, Hague was more deeply embraced by his constituency. Thomas Smith wrote: "But to the residents of the Horseshoe, Frank Hague had gone out of his way to help a friend – had practically given his livelihood to aid a brother." In the succeeding municipal election of 1905, which saw the return of incumbent Fagan to the office of mayor, Hague was elected to a fourth term as constable.
Ward leader
Hague rose through the Democratic machinery of Hudson County, which drew much of its strength by providing newly arrived immigrants with rudimentary social services. Hague took a job as a collector for a local brewery, leaving him with time to spend in the streets and the local taverns which were hubs of political activity. He also spent his time cleaning up the loose ends of the Second Ward's south-end Democratic Club to consolidate his power.
As a reward for his efforts in turning out votes in the 1905 election, Bob Davis named Hague as the party leader for the Second Ward and arranged for Hague to be appointed as Sergeant at Arms for the New Jersey State Assembly.
Political reformer
Hague broke ties with "Boss" Davis in 1906 over a difference of opinion on a candidate for appointment to the city Street and Water Board. As a result, Hague supported H. Otto Wittpenn for mayor in the 1907 election. Wittpenn was a reformer who opposed the control Davis held over Hudson County politics. Over the objections of Davis, newly elected Mayor Wittpenn appointed Hague as chief custodian of City Hall – a "cushy" job with plenty of patronage opportunities. During the Wittpenn administration, Hague also became friendly with Wittpenn's secretary – a Presbyterian Sunday school teacher named A. Harry Moore.
The resulting battle for control of the Hudson County Democratic machine would ironically result in one of the greatest boosts to Hague's rise to power – the Walsh Act of 1911. In 1909 Davis, seeing support for Hague increasing, supported Wittpenn's re-election against former mayor Fagan. Hague's second ward produced the largest plurality of Wittpenn votes of any of Jersey City's 12 wards. Davis then arranged the appointment of Fagan to the Hudson County Tax Board. When Wittpenn's administration began facing troubles, including Fagan's discovery of a Pennsylvania Railroad property that had paid no taxes for four years, Wittpenn blamed Davis.
Seeking to curb the influence of Davis, Wittpenn announced his candidacy for Governor, stating "I have endured the machine as long as possible, but patience is no longer a virtue." Davis, in turn, prevailed upon Woodrow Wilson, then President of Princeton University, to oppose Wittpenn's candidacy. Wilson's victory was overwhelming even in Hague's ward, despite heavy-handed tactics used there. The Jersey Journal wrote: "Cops on duty were using clubs and blackjacks to assist Mayor Wittpenn and Frank Hague defeat the Davis men."
Wilson's reform-minded term as Governor saw the establishment of Presidential primary elections, introduced workers' compensation, and brought about passage of the Walsh Act which provided for a non-partisan commission form of municipal government that was greatly reflective of his academic writings in Congressional Government.
"Little Bob" Davis died of cancer shortly after the 1910 gubernatorial election leaving a vacuum in the power structure of the Hudson County Democrats. Wittpenn quickly endorsed the idea of converting Jersey City to a commission form of government, but was opposed by forces, including Hague, attempting to take control of the party. Hague campaigned heavily against the idea in the Horseshoe, claiming that such a system of citywide elected commissioners would erode the influence of the working-class and consolidate power among the city's elite. Wittpenn's opponents successfully petitioned for a change in the date of the vote on the charter change, moving it from September to mid-July, and the proposal was defeated. As a result of this campaign, Hague came under the scrutiny of The Jersey Journal, which had supported the proposed charter change. It was reported that Hague's older brother, a battalion chief on the city fire department, had been on "sick leave" for three years at full pay.
Hague reconciled with Wittpenn to support his re-election in 1911. Wittpenn then supported Hague's nomination for Commissioner of Streets and Water. Both were elected. The new position greatly expanded Hague's patronage authority. While City Hall employed a few dozen custodians, there were hundreds of workers in the Street and Water Department. Hague's work as head of the Department of Street Cleaners even convinced The Jersey Journal to endorse him as a "reform candidate" in the next election.
In the spring of 1913, having gained confidence in his own ability to assure himself a place on the commission, Hague supported the renewed effort to change the Jersey City government from the Mayor-Council model to a commission model under the recently adopted Walsh Act. This act would place all executive and legislative powers in a five-man commission, each of whom would head a city department. The five commissioners would choose one of their colleagues to be mayor. The vote for charter change passed, and the stage was set for Frank Hague's rise to power.
Commissioner
In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the five-man commission. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee.
Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horseshoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate.
Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation.
Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city.
In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor.
Boss of Jersey City
Technically, Hague's only responsibility as mayor was to appoint the school board. Otherwise, he was merely first among equals, with no powers over and above the other four commissioners. However, soon after taking office, he wrested control of the Hudson County Democratic Party from Wittpenn. This allowed him to significantly influence the makeup of the commission in this overwhelmingly Democratic city. He soon built the organization into one of the most powerful political machines in the country. Hague himself became very wealthy, owning a $125,000 summer home in Deal, living in a large apartment in the best building in the city, and able to give a $50,000 altar to a local Catholic church. In 1941, Dartmouth professor Dayton David McKean wrote The Boss, a book about Hague's political machine, in which he estimated his amassed wealth at four million dollars on an annual mayoral salary of $8,000 a year.
He also had the support of a significant faction of Republicans which dated to his initial election as mayor, when he cut a deal with then-Governor Walter Edge in which Edge effectively ceded North Jersey to Hague in return for keeping South Jersey for himself. Also, as public safety commissioner (a post he held throughout his entire tenure), he controlled the two departments with the most patronage appointments in the city. This post also placed responsibility for maintaining public order in his hands.
Hague soon extended his influence statewide by helping to elect his "puppets" as governor. In the 1919 gubernatorial election, Hague endorsed State Senator Edward I. Edwards and aggressively campaigned for him. Edwards carried Hudson County by 50,000 votes, which was enough for him to win statewide by just under 15,000 votes. Hague proclaimed himself leader of the New Jersey Democratic Party, and Edwards allowed him to recommend dozens of appointments to high state offices. Democrats won five out of eight gubernatorial races between 1919 and 1940, more often than not due to massive landslides in Hudson County. However, he was never able to extend his dominance to the state legislature.
Hague was able to stay in power despite a nearly constant effort to turn him out of office from 1921 onward. He was also able to avoid prosecution despite numerous federal and state investigations in part due to the fact he took most of his kickbacks in cash. However, from the early 1940s onward, many of the older ethnic groups started moving to the suburbs. They were replaced by Poles, Italians, Eastern Europeans and African-Americans. Hague never adapted his methods to the new groups.
Hague had little tolerance for those who dared oppose him publicly. He relied on two ordinances of dubious constitutionality to muzzle critics. A 1920 ordinance effectively required people making political speeches to obtain clearance from the chief of police. A 1930 ordinance gave the public safety commissioner—Hague himself—the power to turn down permits for meetings if he felt it necessary to prevent "riots, disturbances or disorderly assemblage." The latter ordinance was struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States, but continued to be enforced for several years after that decision. The police were also allowed to stop and search anyone without probable cause or a warrant after 9 pm.
President maker
In 1932, Hague, a friend of Al Smith, backed Smith against Franklin D. Roosevelt during the race for the Democratic nomination. When Roosevelt won the nomination, Hague offered to organize the biggest political rally anyone had ever seen if Roosevelt would launch his presidential campaign in New Jersey. When Roosevelt formally began his campaign with an event at the Jersey Shore town of Sea Girt, Hague's machine made sure there were several thousand Hudson County voters looking on and cheering. Hague's support was rewarded with funding for a massive medical center complex complete with a maternity hospital named after his mother, Margaret Hague. During the 1936 campaign Hague provided 150,000 adults and children to cheer Roosevelt during a visit.
Accusations of voter fraud
Hague's use of voter fraud is the stuff of legend. In 1937, for instance, Jersey City had 160,050 registered voters, but only 147,000 people who were at least 21 years old—the legal voting age.
In 1932, Governor Moore appointed a lawyer named Thomas J. Brogan, who had served as Hague's personal attorney in corruption hearings, to an associate Justice seat on the state's Supreme Court. Less than a year later Brogan was named as Chief Justice. In at least two instances of alleged voting fraud in the 1930s (Ferguson v. Brogan, 112 N.J.L. 471; Clee v. Moore, 119 N.J.L. 215; In re Clee, 119 N.J.L. 310), Brogan's court issued extraordinary rulings in favor of the Democratic machine, in one case asserting that the district superintendent of elections had no authority to open ballot boxes, and in another case ruling that the boxes could be opened, but no one had the right to look inside. Brogan also assigned himself to the Hudson County jurisdiction, thereby controlling the local grand jury process and squelching other election fraud cases.
Although Hague, like other political bosses of the time, was not above outright fraud at the polls, the keys to Hague's success were his matchless organizational skills and demand for complete loyalty from his subordinates. His command over the Democratic voters of Hudson County, a densely populated urban area in a state that was still mostly rural, made him a man to reckon with among state Democrats and Republicans alike. He was a close friend of Al Smith, the New York governor who would become the first Irish-American presidential candidate in 1928. In addition, Hague's support of Roosevelt for President was rewarded with a steady stream of perks that sustained Hague's organization throughout the Depression.
Retirement from politics
The beginning of the end for Hague came in 1943, when former governor Walter Edge was returned to office. Edge's attorney general, Walter Van Riper, initiated several prosecutions of Hague cronies. Hague retaliated by having his handpicked U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey bring federal indictments against Van Riper, but Van Riper was acquitted. Edge also initiated reforms in the civil service, freeing it from Hague's control.
Edge's successor, fellow Republican Alfred Driscoll, succeeded in further curbing Hague's power over state government. He led the effort to implement a new constitution, which streamlined state government and made it less vulnerable to control by locally based bosses like Hague. For example, county prosecutors were now directly accountable to the state attorney general. It also set up a new state Supreme Court, which was given supervision over the state's judges. As the first Chief Justice, Driscoll appointed an old Hague foe, Arthur T. Vanderbilt. Driscoll also installed voting machines throughout the state, which made it harder for corrupt politicians to steal elections.
Seeing the writing on the wall, Hague abruptly announced his retirement in 1947. However, he was able to have his nephew, Frank Hague Eggers, chosen as his successor. It was generally understood that Hague still held the real power. This ended in 1949 when John V. Kenny, a former Hague ward leader alienated by the appointment of Eggers, put together his own commission ticket. Due to the presence of a "third ticket," Kenny's ticket was able to oust the Hague/Eggers ticket from power, ending Hague's 32-year rule. Kenny soon set up a machine which proved every bit as corrupt as Hague's, but far less efficient at providing services.
Friend and foe to labor
Hague was accommodating to labor unions during the first half of his mayoral career. For instance, Jersey City police were known for turning back strikebreakers, something unheard of during the 1920s. However, he became a savage opponent of labor organizers in the 1930s. The turnaround came about during a dispute with labor boss and former supporter Theodore "Teddy" Brandle, whose attempts to organize the work crews on the Pulaski Skyway construction project (1930–32) touched off a labor war so intense that local newspapers called it "the war of the meadows."
The rise of the CIO in the mid-1930s represented a threat to Hague's policy of guaranteeing labor peace to the sweatshop type industries that might otherwise have fled Jersey City's high property taxes. When Socialist presidential candidate Norman Thomas came to speak on behalf of the CIO during a May Day rally in Journal Square, Hague's police swept Thomas and his wife into a car, took them to the Pavonia ferry and sent them back to New York. Hague spent much of the decade inveighing against Communists and labor unions, and his attempts to suppress the CIO's activities in Jersey City led to a U.S. Supreme Court decision, Hague v. Committee for Industrial Organization 307 U.S. 496 (1939), that is a cornerstone of law concerning public expression of political views on public property.
Death
Hague died on New Year's Day in 1956 at his 480 Park Avenue duplex apartment in Manhattan, New York City. While hundreds gathered to see the casket depart the funeral home, only four men were seen to remove their hats for the passing of the coffin. One woman present held an American Flag and a sign that read, "God have mercy on his sinful, greedy soul."
Hague was interred in a large mausoleum at Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City.
Legacy
Hague's pride and joy was the Jersey City Medical Center, which he began creating almost as soon as he became mayor. By the 1940s it had grown into a 10-building complex that provided virtually free medical care to Jersey City residents. At the time of its completion, the Medical Center was one of the biggest medical facilities in the country and included the Medical Center Hospital, Pollak Chest Diseases Hospital, Murdoch Hall, and Margaret Hague Maternity Hospital, named in honor of Hague's mother. The buildings, funded in part through federal funds obtained by Hague, are known for their Art Deco details, including marble walls, terrazzo floors, etched glass, and decorative moldings. Even at the time the Medical Center was too large to operate cost-effectively. In 2005 the 14 acre complex (much of which had fallen into disuse) was sold to a private developer who began converting two towers into a luxury condominium complex called the Beacon.
Quotes
"We hear about constitutional rights, free speech and the free press. Every time I hear those words I say to myself, 'That man is a Red, that man is a Communist.' You never heard a real American talk in that manner." – speech to the Jersey City Chamber of Commerce, January 12, 1938.
"Listen, here is the law! I am the law! These boys go to work!" – speech on city government to the Emory Methodist Episcopal Church in Jersey City, November 10, 1937.
See also
List of mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Notes
References
(originally published—Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1940).
External links
Full text of the decision from FindLaw.com
Frank Hague Page at Jersey City History
The Life and Times of Frank Hague (2001) A five-part radio program
The Pragmatic Populism of a Non-Partisan Politician: An Analysis of the Political Philosophy of Charles Edison
1876 births
1956 deaths
American people of Irish descent
People from Deal, New Jersey
Mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Political corruption in the United States
Culture of Jersey City, New Jersey
American political bosses
American political bosses from New Jersey
New Jersey Democrats
Burials at Holy Name Cemetery (Jersey City, New Jersey)
Catholics from New Jersey
American anti-communists
Nucky Johnson's Organization | true | [
"The Never Never Newsreel was a weekly syndicated satirical radio sketch created by Australian satirist Josh Zepps that ran until June 2008. It was aired on Radio 2UE in Sydney and on syndicated stations across Australia.\n\nThe Newsreel was the successor to Mike Carlton's long-running weekly comedy sketch Friday News Review, which Zepps also performed in. Zepps' other weekly political sketch, Kevin Rudd's Diary, is the successor to John Howard's Diary and Kim Beazley's Diary.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n Sydney Morning Herald article\n\nAustralian radio comedy\n2000s Australian radio programs",
"Zepp or Zepps is the surname of:\n\n Bill Zepp (born 1946), American retired Major League Baseball pitcher\n Rob Zepp (born 1981), Canadian ice hockey goaltender\n Josh Zepps (formerly Josh Szeps), Australian media personality, political satirist and TV show host\n Katrina Zepps (1918–1980), Australian nurse and educator born in the Russian Empire"
]
|
[
"Frank Hague",
"Commissioner",
"where was he commissioner?",
"City Commission of Jersey City.",
"what years was he Commissioner?",
"1913,",
"how long was he commissioner?",
"1917,",
"what were some noteworthy things that happened while he was Commissioner?",
"Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments.",
"did the fire and police get along with him?",
"Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force",
"What did the police and fire department do when he did this?",
"Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years.",
"who did he work closesly on his side?",
"an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or \"zepps\" who were personally loyal to Hague alone.",
"was he ever betrayed by a Zepp?",
"The \"zepps\" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department.",
"who did the Zepps spy on?",
"other members of the department."
]
| C_8b5a49a4558041a6855863e02046905e_1 | who followed him after as commissioner? | 10 | Who followed Frank Hague after as City Commissioner of Jersey City? | Frank Hague | In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the first City Commission of Jersey City. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee. Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horsehoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate. Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation. Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city. In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Frank Hague (January 17, 1876 – January 1, 1956) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the Mayor of Jersey City, New Jersey from 1917 to 1947, Democratic National Committeeman from New Jersey from 1922 until 1949, and Vice-Chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 1924 until 1949.
Hague has a widely known reputation for corruption and bossism and has been called "the grandaddy of Jersey bosses". By the time he left office in 1947, he enjoyed palatial homes, European vacations, and a private suite at the Plaza Hotel. His wealth has been estimated to have been over $10 million at the time of his death, although his City salary never exceeded $8,500 per year and he had no other legitimate source of income. His desk, according to legend, had a specially designed lap drawer which could be pushed outward towards the person with whom he was meeting. This allowed his "guests" to discreetly deliver bribes in the form of envelopes containing large amounts of cash. However, according to New Jersey preservationist John Hallinan, the drawers were a traditional feature of 19th century partners desks and that "[t]he last thing [Hague] would need to do is take a bribe personally". As of October 2021, the desk was on display in City Hall.
During the height of his power Hague's political machine, known as "the organization", was one of the most powerful in the United States controlling politics on local, county, and state levels. Hague's personal influence extended to the national level, influencing federal patronage, and presidential campaigns.
Early life
Francis "Frank" Hague, born in Jersey City, was the fourth of eight children to John D. and Margaret Hague (née Fagen), immigrants from County Cavan, Ireland. He was raised in Jersey City's Second ward, an area known as The Horseshoe due to its shape which wrapped around a railroad loop. The ward was created when the Republican-controlled legislature gerrymandered a district within Jersey City in 1871 to concentrate and isolate Democratic, and mostly Catholic, votes.
By age 14, Hague was expelled from school prior to completing the sixth grade for poor attendance and unacceptable behavior. He worked briefly as a blacksmith's apprentice for the Erie Railroad. While training at a local gym for his own potential debut as a prizefighter, he arranged to become manager for Joe Craig, a professional lightweight boxer. Craig was successful enough to allow Hague to buy a few suits that made him appear successful. In 1896, Hague's apparent prosperity gained him the attention of local tavern owner "Nat" Kenny who was seeking a candidate for constable in the upcoming primary to run against the candidate of a rival tavern owner. Kenny provided Hague with $75 to "spread around", and Frank Hague quickly won his first election by a ratio of three-to-one.
Political career
Early success
Hague's victory in the Constable election brought him to the attention of Hudson County Democratic political boss "Little Bob" Davis, and Davis asked Hague to help get out Democratic votes for the upcoming 1897 Mayoral election. Hague's efforts were credited with generating large voter turnout in the Second Ward for the 1897 and 1899 elections. As a reward for his work, Hague was appointed as a deputy sheriff at a salary of $25 per week. Over this time, Hague took a leadership role in the Second Ward Democratic club.
In the 1901 Mayoral election, Republican Mark M. Fagan was elected. Hague's second ward was one of only two that voted Democratic. Hague survived a Republican challenge for a third term as Constable the following year.
The "Red Dugan" affair
As a ward leader, Hague was approached by a woman to provide assistance for her son, who had been arrested for passing a forged check. The son, Red Dugan, had been a classmate of Hague's in school. According to the Boston Evening Transcript of October 4, 1904, Dugan had deposited a forged check for $955 in the Peoples Bank of Roxbury, Massachusetts, and convinced the bank manager to let him withdraw $500. Hague ignored a subpoena to testify in Hudson County Court and traveled to Massachusetts to provide an alibi for Dugan. Hague and another deputy sheriff, Thomas "Skidder" Madigan, claimed that they had seen Dugan in Jersey City on the day of the alleged offense. Both were threatened with perjury charges.
Upon returning to Jersey City, Hague was found guilty of contempt of court for ignoring the subpoena. He was fined $100 and stripped of his duties as Deputy Sheriff.
In spite of the resulting press coverage of the event, Hague was more deeply embraced by his constituency. Thomas Smith wrote: "But to the residents of the Horseshoe, Frank Hague had gone out of his way to help a friend – had practically given his livelihood to aid a brother." In the succeeding municipal election of 1905, which saw the return of incumbent Fagan to the office of mayor, Hague was elected to a fourth term as constable.
Ward leader
Hague rose through the Democratic machinery of Hudson County, which drew much of its strength by providing newly arrived immigrants with rudimentary social services. Hague took a job as a collector for a local brewery, leaving him with time to spend in the streets and the local taverns which were hubs of political activity. He also spent his time cleaning up the loose ends of the Second Ward's south-end Democratic Club to consolidate his power.
As a reward for his efforts in turning out votes in the 1905 election, Bob Davis named Hague as the party leader for the Second Ward and arranged for Hague to be appointed as Sergeant at Arms for the New Jersey State Assembly.
Political reformer
Hague broke ties with "Boss" Davis in 1906 over a difference of opinion on a candidate for appointment to the city Street and Water Board. As a result, Hague supported H. Otto Wittpenn for mayor in the 1907 election. Wittpenn was a reformer who opposed the control Davis held over Hudson County politics. Over the objections of Davis, newly elected Mayor Wittpenn appointed Hague as chief custodian of City Hall – a "cushy" job with plenty of patronage opportunities. During the Wittpenn administration, Hague also became friendly with Wittpenn's secretary – a Presbyterian Sunday school teacher named A. Harry Moore.
The resulting battle for control of the Hudson County Democratic machine would ironically result in one of the greatest boosts to Hague's rise to power – the Walsh Act of 1911. In 1909 Davis, seeing support for Hague increasing, supported Wittpenn's re-election against former mayor Fagan. Hague's second ward produced the largest plurality of Wittpenn votes of any of Jersey City's 12 wards. Davis then arranged the appointment of Fagan to the Hudson County Tax Board. When Wittpenn's administration began facing troubles, including Fagan's discovery of a Pennsylvania Railroad property that had paid no taxes for four years, Wittpenn blamed Davis.
Seeking to curb the influence of Davis, Wittpenn announced his candidacy for Governor, stating "I have endured the machine as long as possible, but patience is no longer a virtue." Davis, in turn, prevailed upon Woodrow Wilson, then President of Princeton University, to oppose Wittpenn's candidacy. Wilson's victory was overwhelming even in Hague's ward, despite heavy-handed tactics used there. The Jersey Journal wrote: "Cops on duty were using clubs and blackjacks to assist Mayor Wittpenn and Frank Hague defeat the Davis men."
Wilson's reform-minded term as Governor saw the establishment of Presidential primary elections, introduced workers' compensation, and brought about passage of the Walsh Act which provided for a non-partisan commission form of municipal government that was greatly reflective of his academic writings in Congressional Government.
"Little Bob" Davis died of cancer shortly after the 1910 gubernatorial election leaving a vacuum in the power structure of the Hudson County Democrats. Wittpenn quickly endorsed the idea of converting Jersey City to a commission form of government, but was opposed by forces, including Hague, attempting to take control of the party. Hague campaigned heavily against the idea in the Horseshoe, claiming that such a system of citywide elected commissioners would erode the influence of the working-class and consolidate power among the city's elite. Wittpenn's opponents successfully petitioned for a change in the date of the vote on the charter change, moving it from September to mid-July, and the proposal was defeated. As a result of this campaign, Hague came under the scrutiny of The Jersey Journal, which had supported the proposed charter change. It was reported that Hague's older brother, a battalion chief on the city fire department, had been on "sick leave" for three years at full pay.
Hague reconciled with Wittpenn to support his re-election in 1911. Wittpenn then supported Hague's nomination for Commissioner of Streets and Water. Both were elected. The new position greatly expanded Hague's patronage authority. While City Hall employed a few dozen custodians, there were hundreds of workers in the Street and Water Department. Hague's work as head of the Department of Street Cleaners even convinced The Jersey Journal to endorse him as a "reform candidate" in the next election.
In the spring of 1913, having gained confidence in his own ability to assure himself a place on the commission, Hague supported the renewed effort to change the Jersey City government from the Mayor-Council model to a commission model under the recently adopted Walsh Act. This act would place all executive and legislative powers in a five-man commission, each of whom would head a city department. The five commissioners would choose one of their colleagues to be mayor. The vote for charter change passed, and the stage was set for Frank Hague's rise to power.
Commissioner
In 1913, the first election for the city commission saw 91 men on the ballot competing for five available seats on the commission. Hague finished fourth with 17,390 votes and was elected to the five-man commission. The only Wittpenn-supported candidate, A. Harry Moore, was also elected. As a result of having garnered the most votes (21,419) former mayor Fagan became the first mayor under this new form of government, and the only Republican to hold that title in Jersey City for the following 75 years. Hague was named public safety commissioner, with control over the police and fire departments. In the same year, Hague cemented his control of the Hudson County political machine by securing for himself the leadership of the Hudson County Democratic Organization Executive Committee.
Hague immediately set about reshaping the corrupt Jersey City police force with tough Horseshoe recruits. Hague spearheaded crackdowns on prostitution and narcotics trafficking, earning him favor with religious leaders. These enforcement acts went as far as Hague himself marching across local Vaudeville stages personally directing the shut down of "girlie shows." At the heart of this change was an inner cadre of officers known as the Zeppelin Squad or "zepps" who were personally loyal to Hague alone. The "zepps" would spy on, and report back to Hague about other members of the department. Eventually, Jersey City had one patrolman for every 3,000 residents, causing a marked decline in the city's once-astronomical crime rate.
Hague took steps to curb the police department's lackadaisical work ethic, punishing offenses that had gone unpunished for years. He also made much-needed improvements to the fire department; at the time he took office Jersey City's fire insurance rates were among the highest in the nation.
Upon discovering in early 1916 that millions of pounds of munitions were being stockpiled on the Jersey City waterfront, Hague travelled to Washington, D.C. to register concerns for the safety of his constituents. His meetings with Congressmen resulted in no action, Congress having decided that Jersey City was an "appropriate port." Hague's concerns were shown to be valid in July 1916 when the Black Tom explosion sent shrapnel flying across the city.
In 1917, Hague, with his reputation as the man who cleaned up the police force, ran for reelection. He put together a commission ticket called "The Unbossed." The ticket consisted of him, Parks Commissioner Moore, Revenue Commissioner George Brensinger, ex-judge Charles F.X. O'Brien and City Clerk Michael I. Fagan. It swept all five spots on the commission. Moore topped the poll, and traditional practice called for him to be appointed mayor. However, when the commission met for the first time on May 11, Hague was chosen as the new mayor.
Boss of Jersey City
Technically, Hague's only responsibility as mayor was to appoint the school board. Otherwise, he was merely first among equals, with no powers over and above the other four commissioners. However, soon after taking office, he wrested control of the Hudson County Democratic Party from Wittpenn. This allowed him to significantly influence the makeup of the commission in this overwhelmingly Democratic city. He soon built the organization into one of the most powerful political machines in the country. Hague himself became very wealthy, owning a $125,000 summer home in Deal, living in a large apartment in the best building in the city, and able to give a $50,000 altar to a local Catholic church. In 1941, Dartmouth professor Dayton David McKean wrote The Boss, a book about Hague's political machine, in which he estimated his amassed wealth at four million dollars on an annual mayoral salary of $8,000 a year.
He also had the support of a significant faction of Republicans which dated to his initial election as mayor, when he cut a deal with then-Governor Walter Edge in which Edge effectively ceded North Jersey to Hague in return for keeping South Jersey for himself. Also, as public safety commissioner (a post he held throughout his entire tenure), he controlled the two departments with the most patronage appointments in the city. This post also placed responsibility for maintaining public order in his hands.
Hague soon extended his influence statewide by helping to elect his "puppets" as governor. In the 1919 gubernatorial election, Hague endorsed State Senator Edward I. Edwards and aggressively campaigned for him. Edwards carried Hudson County by 50,000 votes, which was enough for him to win statewide by just under 15,000 votes. Hague proclaimed himself leader of the New Jersey Democratic Party, and Edwards allowed him to recommend dozens of appointments to high state offices. Democrats won five out of eight gubernatorial races between 1919 and 1940, more often than not due to massive landslides in Hudson County. However, he was never able to extend his dominance to the state legislature.
Hague was able to stay in power despite a nearly constant effort to turn him out of office from 1921 onward. He was also able to avoid prosecution despite numerous federal and state investigations in part due to the fact he took most of his kickbacks in cash. However, from the early 1940s onward, many of the older ethnic groups started moving to the suburbs. They were replaced by Poles, Italians, Eastern Europeans and African-Americans. Hague never adapted his methods to the new groups.
Hague had little tolerance for those who dared oppose him publicly. He relied on two ordinances of dubious constitutionality to muzzle critics. A 1920 ordinance effectively required people making political speeches to obtain clearance from the chief of police. A 1930 ordinance gave the public safety commissioner—Hague himself—the power to turn down permits for meetings if he felt it necessary to prevent "riots, disturbances or disorderly assemblage." The latter ordinance was struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States, but continued to be enforced for several years after that decision. The police were also allowed to stop and search anyone without probable cause or a warrant after 9 pm.
President maker
In 1932, Hague, a friend of Al Smith, backed Smith against Franklin D. Roosevelt during the race for the Democratic nomination. When Roosevelt won the nomination, Hague offered to organize the biggest political rally anyone had ever seen if Roosevelt would launch his presidential campaign in New Jersey. When Roosevelt formally began his campaign with an event at the Jersey Shore town of Sea Girt, Hague's machine made sure there were several thousand Hudson County voters looking on and cheering. Hague's support was rewarded with funding for a massive medical center complex complete with a maternity hospital named after his mother, Margaret Hague. During the 1936 campaign Hague provided 150,000 adults and children to cheer Roosevelt during a visit.
Accusations of voter fraud
Hague's use of voter fraud is the stuff of legend. In 1937, for instance, Jersey City had 160,050 registered voters, but only 147,000 people who were at least 21 years old—the legal voting age.
In 1932, Governor Moore appointed a lawyer named Thomas J. Brogan, who had served as Hague's personal attorney in corruption hearings, to an associate Justice seat on the state's Supreme Court. Less than a year later Brogan was named as Chief Justice. In at least two instances of alleged voting fraud in the 1930s (Ferguson v. Brogan, 112 N.J.L. 471; Clee v. Moore, 119 N.J.L. 215; In re Clee, 119 N.J.L. 310), Brogan's court issued extraordinary rulings in favor of the Democratic machine, in one case asserting that the district superintendent of elections had no authority to open ballot boxes, and in another case ruling that the boxes could be opened, but no one had the right to look inside. Brogan also assigned himself to the Hudson County jurisdiction, thereby controlling the local grand jury process and squelching other election fraud cases.
Although Hague, like other political bosses of the time, was not above outright fraud at the polls, the keys to Hague's success were his matchless organizational skills and demand for complete loyalty from his subordinates. His command over the Democratic voters of Hudson County, a densely populated urban area in a state that was still mostly rural, made him a man to reckon with among state Democrats and Republicans alike. He was a close friend of Al Smith, the New York governor who would become the first Irish-American presidential candidate in 1928. In addition, Hague's support of Roosevelt for President was rewarded with a steady stream of perks that sustained Hague's organization throughout the Depression.
Retirement from politics
The beginning of the end for Hague came in 1943, when former governor Walter Edge was returned to office. Edge's attorney general, Walter Van Riper, initiated several prosecutions of Hague cronies. Hague retaliated by having his handpicked U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey bring federal indictments against Van Riper, but Van Riper was acquitted. Edge also initiated reforms in the civil service, freeing it from Hague's control.
Edge's successor, fellow Republican Alfred Driscoll, succeeded in further curbing Hague's power over state government. He led the effort to implement a new constitution, which streamlined state government and made it less vulnerable to control by locally based bosses like Hague. For example, county prosecutors were now directly accountable to the state attorney general. It also set up a new state Supreme Court, which was given supervision over the state's judges. As the first Chief Justice, Driscoll appointed an old Hague foe, Arthur T. Vanderbilt. Driscoll also installed voting machines throughout the state, which made it harder for corrupt politicians to steal elections.
Seeing the writing on the wall, Hague abruptly announced his retirement in 1947. However, he was able to have his nephew, Frank Hague Eggers, chosen as his successor. It was generally understood that Hague still held the real power. This ended in 1949 when John V. Kenny, a former Hague ward leader alienated by the appointment of Eggers, put together his own commission ticket. Due to the presence of a "third ticket," Kenny's ticket was able to oust the Hague/Eggers ticket from power, ending Hague's 32-year rule. Kenny soon set up a machine which proved every bit as corrupt as Hague's, but far less efficient at providing services.
Friend and foe to labor
Hague was accommodating to labor unions during the first half of his mayoral career. For instance, Jersey City police were known for turning back strikebreakers, something unheard of during the 1920s. However, he became a savage opponent of labor organizers in the 1930s. The turnaround came about during a dispute with labor boss and former supporter Theodore "Teddy" Brandle, whose attempts to organize the work crews on the Pulaski Skyway construction project (1930–32) touched off a labor war so intense that local newspapers called it "the war of the meadows."
The rise of the CIO in the mid-1930s represented a threat to Hague's policy of guaranteeing labor peace to the sweatshop type industries that might otherwise have fled Jersey City's high property taxes. When Socialist presidential candidate Norman Thomas came to speak on behalf of the CIO during a May Day rally in Journal Square, Hague's police swept Thomas and his wife into a car, took them to the Pavonia ferry and sent them back to New York. Hague spent much of the decade inveighing against Communists and labor unions, and his attempts to suppress the CIO's activities in Jersey City led to a U.S. Supreme Court decision, Hague v. Committee for Industrial Organization 307 U.S. 496 (1939), that is a cornerstone of law concerning public expression of political views on public property.
Death
Hague died on New Year's Day in 1956 at his 480 Park Avenue duplex apartment in Manhattan, New York City. While hundreds gathered to see the casket depart the funeral home, only four men were seen to remove their hats for the passing of the coffin. One woman present held an American Flag and a sign that read, "God have mercy on his sinful, greedy soul."
Hague was interred in a large mausoleum at Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City.
Legacy
Hague's pride and joy was the Jersey City Medical Center, which he began creating almost as soon as he became mayor. By the 1940s it had grown into a 10-building complex that provided virtually free medical care to Jersey City residents. At the time of its completion, the Medical Center was one of the biggest medical facilities in the country and included the Medical Center Hospital, Pollak Chest Diseases Hospital, Murdoch Hall, and Margaret Hague Maternity Hospital, named in honor of Hague's mother. The buildings, funded in part through federal funds obtained by Hague, are known for their Art Deco details, including marble walls, terrazzo floors, etched glass, and decorative moldings. Even at the time the Medical Center was too large to operate cost-effectively. In 2005 the 14 acre complex (much of which had fallen into disuse) was sold to a private developer who began converting two towers into a luxury condominium complex called the Beacon.
Quotes
"We hear about constitutional rights, free speech and the free press. Every time I hear those words I say to myself, 'That man is a Red, that man is a Communist.' You never heard a real American talk in that manner." – speech to the Jersey City Chamber of Commerce, January 12, 1938.
"Listen, here is the law! I am the law! These boys go to work!" – speech on city government to the Emory Methodist Episcopal Church in Jersey City, November 10, 1937.
See also
List of mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Notes
References
(originally published—Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1940).
External links
Full text of the decision from FindLaw.com
Frank Hague Page at Jersey City History
The Life and Times of Frank Hague (2001) A five-part radio program
The Pragmatic Populism of a Non-Partisan Politician: An Analysis of the Political Philosophy of Charles Edison
1876 births
1956 deaths
American people of Irish descent
People from Deal, New Jersey
Mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey
Political corruption in the United States
Culture of Jersey City, New Jersey
American political bosses
American political bosses from New Jersey
New Jersey Democrats
Burials at Holy Name Cemetery (Jersey City, New Jersey)
Catholics from New Jersey
American anti-communists
Nucky Johnson's Organization | false | [
"The Warning () is a 1980 Italian crime-giallo film directed by Damiano Damiani.\n\nPlot \nThe story takes place in Rome, Italy. During a delicate investigation into various personalities of the upper business and banking world, colluding with organized crime, the chief commissioner Vincenzo Laganà is killed in his office for not accepting a bribe of 200 million. Meanwhile, Commissioner Barresi is about to resign, after having found 100 million credited to his bank account and having received a phone call from unknown persons who clarify how he will have to behave during the investigation that will follow the assassination of Laganà.\n\nAfter having followed the assassins in vain, Barresi makes an agreement with the commissioner to resolve the case. Silvia, Laganà's widow, is blackmailed by a woman who says she has proof that the deceased commissioner was a corrupt man: the blackmailers are arrested, however.\n\nBarresi then questions Silvia and discovers that she had appropriated the bribe offered to her husband to bribe him, and manages to save her just a moment before the woman tries to commit suicide, desperate. At this point, Commissioner Barresi decides to play all out and go through with his investigation.\n\nCast \nGiuliano Gemma as Commissioner Antonio Baresi\nMartin Balsam as Quaestor Martorana\nJohn Karlsen as Ferdinando Violante\nGuido Leontini as Gianfranco Puma\n Laura Trotter as Silvia Laganà\n Giancarlo Zanetti as Prizzi\n Marcello Mandò as Pastore\n Geoffrey Copleston as Prosecutor Vesce\n Vincent Gentile as Ludovico Vella\n Elio Marconato as Nicola Vella\n\nRelease\nThe Warning was released in Italy on August 15, 1980 where it was distributed by Cineriz. It grossed a total of 1.011 billion Italian lire on its theatrical run.\n\nSee also \n List of Italian films of 1980\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n\n1980 films\nItalian films\nFilms directed by Damiano Damiani\nItalian thriller films\nPoliziotteschi films\nFilms scored by Riz Ortolani",
"Ahmed Javed (born 2 January 1956) is a retired Indian police officer and civil servant who was the 39th Commissioner of Police, Mumbai, India. He was succeeded by Dattatray Padsalgikar. He is former Indian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia. Javed is the second former Mumbai police commissioner to get a diplomatic posting after J. F. Ribeiro who served as Indian ambassador to Romania between 1989–1993.\n\nCareer \nA 1980 batch IPS officer, Ahmed Javed was appointed as the Commissioner of Mumbai Police on 8 September 2015 by the Maharashtra Government replacing Rakesh Maria.\n\nHe served as Superintendent of Police in Buldhana and Nanded before being posted as Deputy Commissioner of Police, Intelligence, in Mumbai. He then served in various postings, including a stint with the Delhi Police between 1983 and 1985. He returned to Mumbai in the early 2000s, serving as Additional Commissioner of Police of the Central Region and then the South Region, before being promoted to Inspector General of Police, he was posted as Joint Commissioner of Police (Law and Order). He served in this key post from 2002 to 2005.\n\nAfter being promoted as Additional Director General of Police, Javed was posted with the state reserve police force and with the Maharashtra Police Headquarters as ADG Establishment, and then he took over as Commissioner of Police, Navi Mumbai in 2010.\nHe currently is Ambassador of India in Saudi Arabia.\n\nHe was earlier the Director General of Police (Home Guards).\n\nOn 12 December 2015 Ahmad Javed was appointed India's Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, six months after last Ambassador Hamid Ali Rao had retired.\n\nPersonal life\nAhmad Javed comes from Lucknow. His father Mr. Qazi Mukhtar is a retired senior IAS officer.\nAhmed Javed graduated in Bachelors in Arts from Delhi's St Stephen's College. Javed is married to Shabnam with whom he has two children, Amer and Zaara.His family are still in his home town Tanda Lucknow.\n\nHe wears Khaki ‘Khadi’ uniform daily. He is an avid billiards player.\n\nControversy\n\nRakesh Maria’s appointment\n\nThere was a controversy over Maria's appointment as a commissioner though Ahmed Javed was the senior for the Commissioner of Police post. \n\nAhmad Javed was surprised when his junior, Rakesh Maria, who is from the 1981 batch, had been appointed the CP instead of him. Many suspected political favouritism and questions were raised on how a junior-level officer had become the commissioner superseding the senior. In Feb 2014, Maria had taken charge as the Mumbai Police commissioner – a prestigious post – superseding his senior, Javed, who was then promoted by the Cong-NCP government as DG, Home Guards, a post that does not have much to offer to an officer.\n“Maria managed to get the post of Commissioner of Police as he was very close to some NCP leaders who helped him take the posting superseding seniors like \nIPS officer Vijay Kamble, who was made Thane Commissioner of Police and Ahmad Javed, who became DG, Home guards\", said a police officer.\nJaved and Kamble had both protested at the time and some IPS officers, like Prem Krishna Jain, had even resigned, as they were upset with the government's system of appointing people.\nJaved could have never thought that he would become the Commissioner as he had already been promoted as Director General of Police and the post of Mumbai Police Commissioner is held by an officer of the rank of Additional DGP, which is a lower post. However the rank for the post for Commissioner was upgraded to that of Director General. After the announcement by the CM, Javed was appointed as Commissioner, which left Maria in confusion by the sudden announcement.\nThe tables turned, with Maria proceeding on leave to protest against the government's decision. However most in the force felt that justice had finally been done and a deserving officer was finally, if not belatedly, appointed. After taking the reins of Commissioner, Javed had a very successful term. He introduced various new policing and citizen outreach schemes including the launch of the extremely popular Mumbai Police Twitter handle.\n\nReferences\n\nPolice Commissioners of Mumbai\n1956 births\nLiving people\nIndian Muslims\nIndian Police Service officers\nIndian civil servants"
]
|
[
"Alaska Natives",
"Russian colonial period"
]
| C_ea76d8cb68544f4eba487ac9acc63b00_1 | When was the Russian colonial period? | 1 | When was the Russian colonial period? | Alaska Natives | Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives. New settlements around trading posts were started by Russians, including Russian Orthodox missionaries. These were the first to translate Christian scripture into Native languages. British and American traders generally did not reach the area until the nineteenth century, and in some cases missionaries were not active until the twentieth century. In the 21st century, the numerous congregations of Russian Orthodox Christians in Alaska are generally composed mostly of Alaska Natives. Rather than hunting the marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them. As word spread of the riches in furs to be had, competition among Russian companies increased and they forced the Aleuts into slavery. Catherine the Great, who became Empress in 1763, proclaimed good will toward the Aleut and urged her subjects to treat them fairly. On some islands and parts of the Alaska Peninsula, groups of traders had been capable of relatively peaceful coexistence with the local inhabitants. Other groups could not manage the tensions. Russians took hostages, families were split up, and individuals were forced to leave their villages and settle elsewhere. The growing competition between the trading companies, merging into fewer, larger and more powerful corporations, created conflicts that aggravated the relations with the indigenous populations. Over the years, the situation became catastrophic for the natives. As the animal populations declined, the Aleuts, already too dependent on the new barter economy created by the Russian fur trade, were increasingly coerced into taking greater risks in the dangerous waters of the North Pacific to hunt for more otter. As the Shelikhov-Golikov Company and later Russian-American Company developed as a monopoly, it used skirmishes and systematic violence as a tool of colonial exploitation of the indigenous people. When the Aleut revolted and won some victories, the Russians retaliated, killing many and destroying their boats and hunting gear, leaving them no means of survival. The most devastating effects were from disease: during the first two generations (1741/1759-1781/1799 AD) of Russian contact, 80 percent of the Aleut population died from Eurasian infectious diseases. These were then endemic among the Europeans, but the Aleut had no immunity against the new diseases. CANNOTANSWER | Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives. | Alaska Natives or Alaskan Natives are indigenous peoples of Alaska and include Iñupiat, Yupik, Aleut, Eyak, Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and a number of Northern Athabaskan cultures. They are often defined by their language groups. Many Alaska Natives are enrolled in federally recognized Alaska Native tribal entities, who in turn belong to 13 Alaska Native Regional Corporations, who administer land and financial claims.
Ancestors of Alaska Natives migrated into the area thousands of years ago, in at least two different waves. Some are descendants of the third wave of migration, in which people settled across the northern part of North America. They never migrated to southern areas. For this reason, genetic studies show they are not closely related to native peoples in South America. Alaska Natives came from Asia. Anthropologists have stated that their journey from Asia to Alaska was made possible through the Bering land bridge or by traveling through the sea. Throughout the Arctic and the circumpolar north, the ancestors of Alaska Natives established varying indigenous, complex cultures that have succeeded each other over time. They developed sophisticated ways to deal with the challenging climate and environment. Historic groups have been defined by their languages, which belong to several major language families. Today, Alaska Natives constitute more than 15% of the population of Alaska.
List of peoples
Below is a full list of the different Alaska Native peoples, who are largely defined by their historic languages (within each culture are different tribes):
Ancient Beringian
Alaskan Athabaskans
Ahtna
Deg Hit'an
Dena'ina
Gwich'in
Hän
Holikachuk
Koyukon
Lower Tanana
Tanacross
Upper Tanana
Upper Kuskokwim (Kolchan)
Eyak
Tlingit
Haida
Tsimshian
Eskimo
Iñupiat, an Inuit group
Yupik
Siberian Yupik
Yup'ik
Cup'ik
Nunivak Cup'ig
Sugpiaq ~ Alutiiq
Chugach Sugpiaq
Koniag Alutiiq
Aleut (Unangan)
Demographics
The Alaska Natives Commission estimated there were about 86,000 Alaska Natives living in Alaska in 1990, with another 17,000 who lived outside Alaska. A 2013 study by the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development documented more than 120,000 Alaska Native people in Alaska. While the majority of Alaska Natives live in small villages or remote regional hubs such as Nome, Dillingham, and Bethel, the percentage who live in urban areas has been increasing. In 2010, 44% lived in urban areas, compared to 38% in the 2000 census. As of 2018, natives constitute 15.4% of the overall Alaskan population.
History
The modern history of Alaskan natives begins with the arrival of Europeans. Unusually for North America, Russians sailing from Siberia in the eighteenth century were the first to make contact. British and American traders, coming mostly from eastern settlements in North America, generally did not reach the area until the nineteenth century. In some cases, Christian missionaries were not active in Alaska until the twentieth century.
Russian colonial period
During an expedition, Vitus Bering spotted Alaska. Alaskan Natives first came into contact with Russians in the 18th century. Time of contact with Russians varied throughout each native group since the Alaskan natives groups were spread throughout Alaska. Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives in what became known as the Aleutian Islands. They started new settlements around trading posts, and Russian Orthodox missionaries were part of these. The Russian missionaries were the first persons to translate Christian scripture into Native languages, such as Tlingit. In the 21st century, the numerous congregations of Russian Orthodox Christians in Alaska reflect this early history, as they are generally composed mostly of Alaska Natives.
Rather than hunting and harvesting marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them. As word spread of the riches in furs to be had, competition among Russian companies increased. They forced the Aleuts into slavery. Catherine the Great, who became Empress in 1763, proclaimed good will toward the Aleut and urged her subjects to treat them fairly. The growing competition between the trading companies, which merged into fewer, larger and more powerful corporations, created conflicts that aggravated the relations with the indigenous populations. Over the years, the situation became catastrophic for the natives.
As the animal populations declined, the Aleuts, already dependent on the new barter economy created by their fur trade with the Russians, were increasingly coerced into taking greater risks in the dangerous waters of the North Pacific to hunt for more otter. As the Shelikhov-Golikov Company and later Russian-American Company developed as a monopoly, it used skirmishes and systematic violence as a tool of colonial exploitation of the indigenous people. When the Aleut revolted and won some victories, the Russians retaliated, killing many. They also destroyed the peoples' boats and hunting gear, leaving them no means of survival.
The greatest mortality was caused by the Aleuts' encounters with new diseases: during the first two generations (1741/1759-1781/1799 AD) of Russian contact, 80 percent of the Aleut population died from Eurasian infectious diseases. These had been endemic among the Europeans for centuries, but the Aleut had no immunity against the new diseases.
Effects of Russian colonization
The Russian Tsarist government expanded into Indigenous territory in present-day Alaska for its own geopolitical reasons. It consumed natural resources of the territory during the trading years, and Russian Orthodoxy was evangelized. Their movement into these populated areas of Indigenous communities altered the demographic and natural landscape.
Historians have suggested that the Russian-American Company exploited Indigenous peoples as a source of inexpensive labor. The Russian-American Company not only used Indigenous populations for labor during the fur trade, but also held some as hostages to acquire iasak. Iasak, a form of taxation imposed by the Russians, was a tribute in the form of otter pelts. It was a taxation method the Russians had previously found useful in their early encounter with Indigenous communities of Siberia during the Siberian fur trade. Beaver pelts were also customary to be given to fur traders upon first contact with various communities.
The Russian-American Company used military force on Indigenous families, taking them as hostage until male community members produced furs for them. Otter furs on Kodiak Island and Aleutian Islands enticed the Russians to start these taxations. Robbery and maltreatment in the form of corporal punishment and the withholding of food was also present upon the arrival of fur traders. Catherine the Great dissolved the giving of tribute in 1799, but her government initiated mandatory conscription of Indigenous men between the ages of 18 to 50 to become seal hunters strictly for the Russian American Company. This mandatory labor gave the Russian American Company an edge in competition with American and British fur traders. But the conscription separated men from their families and villages, thus altering and breaking down communities. With able-bodied men away on the hunt, villages were left with little protection as only women, children, and the elderly remained behind.
In addition to changes that came with conscription, the spread of disease also altered the populations of Indigenous communities. Although records kept in the period were scarce, it has been said that 80% of the pre-contact population of the Aleut people were gone by 1800.
Relationships between Indigenous women and fur traders increased as Indigenous men were away from villages. This resulted in marriages and children that would come to be known as Creole peoples, children who were Indigenous and Russian. To reduce hostilities with Aleutian communities, it became policy for fur traders to enter into marriage with Indigenous women. The Creole population increased in the territory controlled by the Russian American Company.
The growth of the Russian Orthodox Church was another important tactic in the colonization and conversion of Indigenous populations. Ioann Veniaminov, who later became Saint Innocent of Alaska, was an important missionary who carried out the Orthodox Church's agenda to Christianize Indigenous populations. The church encouraged Creole children to follow Russian Orthodox Christianity, while the Russian American Company provided them with an education. Creole people were believed to have high levels of loyalty toward the Russian crown and Russian American Company. After completing their education, children were often sent to Russia, where they would study skills such as mapmaking, theology, and military intelligence. In the 1850's Russia lost much of its interest on Alaska.
American colonialism
Alaska has many natural resources. Alaska's natural resources along with its gold caught the attention of the United States. In 1867, the United States purchased Alaska from Russia. It did not consider the wishes of Alaska Natives or view them as citizens. The land that belonged to Alaska Natives was considered to be "open land", which could be claimed by white settlers without redress to the Alaska Natives living there. The only schools for Alaska Natives were those founded by religious missionaries. Most white settlers did not understand the sophisticated cultures the Alaska Natives had developed to live in that challenging place and considered them to be inferior to European Americans. The Americans imposed racial segregation and what were effectively Jim Crow laws applied against the Alaska Natives and treating them as second-class residents. Since Jim Crow law were imposed, it led to segregation amongst Alaskan Natives and Americans. Buildings would even have signs saying that no natives were allowed. There was also segregated schools. In 1880, there was a court case where a child was not allowed to attend a school with Americans because his step father was native. A child that was part native and part American would only be allowed to attend a school with American children if the family has abandoned their culture. This means that they could no longer speak their native language, wear traditional native clothing, be amongst other natives, eat native foods, or practice any native religion.
In 1912, the Alaska Native Brotherhood (ANB) was formed to help fight for citizenship rights. The Alaska Native Sisterhood (ANS) was created in 1915. Also in 1915, the Alaska Territorial legislature passed a law allowing Alaskan Natives the right to vote - but on the condition that they give up their cultural customs and traditions. The Indian Citizenship Act, passed in 1924, gave all Native Americans United States citizenship.
ANB began to hold a great deal of political power in the 1920s. They protested the segregation of Alaska Natives in public areas and institutions, and also staged boycotts. Alberta Schenck (Inupiaq) staged a well-publicized protest against segregation in a movie theater in 1944. With the help of Elizabeth Peratrovich (Tlingit), the Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945 was passed, ending segregation in Alaska.
In 1942, during World War II, the United States forced evacuation of around nine hundred Aleuts from the Aleutian Islands. The idea was to remove the Aleuts from a potential combat zone during World War II for their own protection, but European Americans living in the same area were not forced to leave. The removal was handled so poorly that many Aleuts died after they were evacuated; the elderly and children had the highest mortality rates. Survivors returned to the islands to find their homes and possessions destroyed or looted.
Alaska became part of the United States in 1959 upon President Dwight D. Eisenhower recognizing Alaska as the 49th state.
ANCSA and since (1971 to present)
In 1971, with the support of Alaska Native leaders such as Emil Notti, Willie Hensley, and Byron Mallot, the U.S. Congress passed the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA), which settled land and financial claims for lands and resources which the Alaska Natives had lost to European-Americans. It provided for the establishment of thirteen Alaska Native Regional Corporations to administer those claims. Similar to the separately defined status of the Canadian Inuit and First Nations in Canada, which are recognized as distinct peoples, in the United States, Alaska Natives are in some respects treated separately by the government from other Native Americans in the United States. This is in part related to their interactions with the U.S. government which occurred in a different historic period than its interactions during the period of westward expansion during the 19th-century.
Europeans and Americans did not have sustained encounters with the Alaska Natives until the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries when many were attracted to the region in gold rushes. The Alaska Natives were not allotted individual title in severalty to land under the Dawes Act of 1887 but were instead treated under the Alaska Native Allotment Act of 1906.
It was repealed in 1971, following ANSCA, at which time reservations were ended. Another characteristic difference is that Alaska Native tribal governments do not have the power to collect taxes for business transacted on tribal land, per the United States Supreme Court decision in Alaska v. Native Village of Venetie Tribal Government (1998). Except for the Tsimshian, Alaska Natives no longer hold reservations but do control some lands. Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, Alaska Natives are reserved the right to harvest whales and other marine mammals.
Climate Change
Four indigenous tribes in Alaska, the Shishmaref, Kivalina, Shaktoolik and Newtok tribes, are being considered the first climate refugees for America, due to sea ice melting and increased wildfires in the regions (Bronen and Brubaker). The effects of climate change on the people of Alaska are extensive and include issues such as increased vulnerability to disease, mental health issues, injury, food insecurity, and water insecurity (Brubaker). According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the loss of sea ice will increase erosion area and further displace more native communities. The melting sea ice will also affect the migration of some animals that the tribes rely on and with the ice melting there will be no place to store the food that they do obtain (EPA). Due to the permafrost melting, the infrastructure that has been around in the past will become unstable and native villages will collapse (EPA).
The Shishmaref, Kivalina, Shaktoolik and Newtok tribes are located on the west coast of Alaska and due to sea-level rise the villages are experiencing more severe storm surges that are eroding their coastlines (Bronen). There is no land for these tribes to move to that are already in the area they live in which forces these communities to migrate and change their whole way of living (Bronen). Governments are lacking in response to climate refugees, there are no policies in place to determine where these refugees should go or if they get aid to pay for the cost of traveling (Bronen). It is predicted that a climate event will submerge the tribes completely in less than fifteen years (Bronen).
Extreme weather conditions has increased the risk of injury, usually there are thick layers of ice all year long but due to increasing temperatures in the atmosphere and the sea the ice in becoming thinner and is increasing the number of people who fall through the ice, if a person survives falling through the ice they are faced with other health concerns (Brubaker). Increased water insecurity and failing infrastructure caused by climate change has created sanitation issues which has increased the amount of respiratory illnesses in many regions in Alaska, in 2005 pneumonia was the leading cause of hospitalizations (Brubaker). Many of the affected tribes are experiencing increased mental stress due to climate change and the problem of relocating but no policy or way to relocate (Brubaker). Stress has also increased on villages who face infrastructure damage due to melting permafrost, there are almost no regulations other than the Alaskan government recommended not building on permafrost or using extra layers of insulation that is used on foundation walls (EPA). Food insecurity has also created stress and health issues, families can not get enough food due to animals also relocating to get to a climate that is more suitable to them (Brubaker). Families also do not have a secure food system because their ways of storing food, underground ice cellar, are no longer frozen year long due to climate change, their cellars thaw in the summers leaving their food supply inedible (Brubaker).
Subsistence
Gathering of subsistence food continues to be an important economic and cultural activity for many Alaska Natives. In Utqiaġvik, Alaska in 2005, more than 91 percent of the Iñupiat households which were interviewed still participated in the local subsistence economy, compared with the approximately 33 percent of non-Iñupiat households who used wild resources obtained from hunting, fishing, or gathering.
But, unlike many tribes in the contiguous United States, Alaska Natives do not have treaties with the United States that protect their subsistence rights, except for the right to harvest whales and other marine mammals. The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act explicitly extinguished aboriginal hunting and fishing rights in the state of Alaska.
See also
Ancient Beringian
List of Alaska Native Tribal Entities, the list of Native Villages and other "tribal entities" recognized by the US Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Prehistory of Alaska
First Alaskans Institute
Indigenous Amerindian genetics
Circumpolar peoples
Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast
Indigenous peoples of the Subarctic
Indigenous peoples of Siberia
Alaska Native Storytelling
Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945
Shamanism among Alaska Natives
Women's suffrage in Alaska
References
Sources
Further reading
Chythlook-Sifsof, Callan J. "Native Alaska, Under Threat." (Op-Ed) The New York Times. June 27, 2013.
External links
Alaska Federation of Natives
Alaska Native Health Board
Alaska Native Heritage Center
Alaska Native Language Center
First Alaskans Institute
Tlingit National Anthem, Alaska Natives Online
Arctic Studies Center
American culture | false | [
"Central Street () is a pedestrian street located in central Harbin, China. Measuring 1450 meters long, it is currently the longest pedestrian street in Asia and the only cobbled street in Harbin. It was built in 1898 by Russian constructors when the city was at its semi-colonial period. Architectures along the street are in various styles including eclectic, Baroque, Renaissance and modern.\n\nHistory\nThe street was built in 1898 when China Eastern Railway, a railway crossing Manchuria, was under construction, making Harbin a major railway hub and prospering the city. In 1925, cobblestone was paved on the street with great costs in order to prevent erosion from the nearby Songhua River. By 1920s, the street has become an international street with more than one hundred shops. Its main inhabitants then were Russians, Jews, Chinese, Japanese and various other ethnic groups. \nIn 1986, Central Street was listed preserved by Harbin municipal government.\n\nReferences\n\nJapanese diaspora in China\nJews and Judaism in Harbin\nRussian diaspora in China\nStreets in China",
"The colonial governors of Florida governed Florida during its colonial period (before 1821). The first European known to arrive there was Juan Ponce de León in 1513, but the governorship did not begin until 1565, when Pedro Menéndez de Avilés founded St. Augustine and was declared Governor and Adelantado of Florida. This district was subordinated to the Viceroyalty of New Spain. In 1763, following the transfer of Florida to Britain, the territory was divided into West Florida and East Florida, with separate governors. This division was maintained when Spain resumed control of Florida in 1783, and continued as provincial divisions with the Spanish Constitution of 1812. The Spanish transferred control of Florida to the United States in 1821, and the organized, incorporated Florida Territory was established on March 30, 1822. This became the modern State of Florida on March 3, 1845.\n\nFirst Spanish period, 1565–1763\n\nBritish period, 1763–1784\n\nEast Florida\n\nWest Florida\n\nSecond Spanish period, 1784–1821\n\nEast Florida\n\nWest Florida\n\nSee also\n List of governors of Florida, for a list of United States territorial and state governors of Florida since 1821.\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n The Governors of Colonial Florida, 1565-1821 at University of West Florida\n\n \n\nFlorida\nFlorida\n\n.\nFlorida\nFlorida governors"
]
|
[
"Alaska Natives",
"Russian colonial period",
"When was the Russian colonial period?",
"Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives."
]
| C_ea76d8cb68544f4eba487ac9acc63b00_1 | What did they trade? | 2 | What did Russians trade with Alaska Natives? | Alaska Natives | Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives. New settlements around trading posts were started by Russians, including Russian Orthodox missionaries. These were the first to translate Christian scripture into Native languages. British and American traders generally did not reach the area until the nineteenth century, and in some cases missionaries were not active until the twentieth century. In the 21st century, the numerous congregations of Russian Orthodox Christians in Alaska are generally composed mostly of Alaska Natives. Rather than hunting the marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them. As word spread of the riches in furs to be had, competition among Russian companies increased and they forced the Aleuts into slavery. Catherine the Great, who became Empress in 1763, proclaimed good will toward the Aleut and urged her subjects to treat them fairly. On some islands and parts of the Alaska Peninsula, groups of traders had been capable of relatively peaceful coexistence with the local inhabitants. Other groups could not manage the tensions. Russians took hostages, families were split up, and individuals were forced to leave their villages and settle elsewhere. The growing competition between the trading companies, merging into fewer, larger and more powerful corporations, created conflicts that aggravated the relations with the indigenous populations. Over the years, the situation became catastrophic for the natives. As the animal populations declined, the Aleuts, already too dependent on the new barter economy created by the Russian fur trade, were increasingly coerced into taking greater risks in the dangerous waters of the North Pacific to hunt for more otter. As the Shelikhov-Golikov Company and later Russian-American Company developed as a monopoly, it used skirmishes and systematic violence as a tool of colonial exploitation of the indigenous people. When the Aleut revolted and won some victories, the Russians retaliated, killing many and destroying their boats and hunting gear, leaving them no means of survival. The most devastating effects were from disease: during the first two generations (1741/1759-1781/1799 AD) of Russian contact, 80 percent of the Aleut population died from Eurasian infectious diseases. These were then endemic among the Europeans, but the Aleut had no immunity against the new diseases. CANNOTANSWER | Rather than hunting the marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them. | Alaska Natives or Alaskan Natives are indigenous peoples of Alaska and include Iñupiat, Yupik, Aleut, Eyak, Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and a number of Northern Athabaskan cultures. They are often defined by their language groups. Many Alaska Natives are enrolled in federally recognized Alaska Native tribal entities, who in turn belong to 13 Alaska Native Regional Corporations, who administer land and financial claims.
Ancestors of Alaska Natives migrated into the area thousands of years ago, in at least two different waves. Some are descendants of the third wave of migration, in which people settled across the northern part of North America. They never migrated to southern areas. For this reason, genetic studies show they are not closely related to native peoples in South America. Alaska Natives came from Asia. Anthropologists have stated that their journey from Asia to Alaska was made possible through the Bering land bridge or by traveling through the sea. Throughout the Arctic and the circumpolar north, the ancestors of Alaska Natives established varying indigenous, complex cultures that have succeeded each other over time. They developed sophisticated ways to deal with the challenging climate and environment. Historic groups have been defined by their languages, which belong to several major language families. Today, Alaska Natives constitute more than 15% of the population of Alaska.
List of peoples
Below is a full list of the different Alaska Native peoples, who are largely defined by their historic languages (within each culture are different tribes):
Ancient Beringian
Alaskan Athabaskans
Ahtna
Deg Hit'an
Dena'ina
Gwich'in
Hän
Holikachuk
Koyukon
Lower Tanana
Tanacross
Upper Tanana
Upper Kuskokwim (Kolchan)
Eyak
Tlingit
Haida
Tsimshian
Eskimo
Iñupiat, an Inuit group
Yupik
Siberian Yupik
Yup'ik
Cup'ik
Nunivak Cup'ig
Sugpiaq ~ Alutiiq
Chugach Sugpiaq
Koniag Alutiiq
Aleut (Unangan)
Demographics
The Alaska Natives Commission estimated there were about 86,000 Alaska Natives living in Alaska in 1990, with another 17,000 who lived outside Alaska. A 2013 study by the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development documented more than 120,000 Alaska Native people in Alaska. While the majority of Alaska Natives live in small villages or remote regional hubs such as Nome, Dillingham, and Bethel, the percentage who live in urban areas has been increasing. In 2010, 44% lived in urban areas, compared to 38% in the 2000 census. As of 2018, natives constitute 15.4% of the overall Alaskan population.
History
The modern history of Alaskan natives begins with the arrival of Europeans. Unusually for North America, Russians sailing from Siberia in the eighteenth century were the first to make contact. British and American traders, coming mostly from eastern settlements in North America, generally did not reach the area until the nineteenth century. In some cases, Christian missionaries were not active in Alaska until the twentieth century.
Russian colonial period
During an expedition, Vitus Bering spotted Alaska. Alaskan Natives first came into contact with Russians in the 18th century. Time of contact with Russians varied throughout each native group since the Alaskan natives groups were spread throughout Alaska. Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives in what became known as the Aleutian Islands. They started new settlements around trading posts, and Russian Orthodox missionaries were part of these. The Russian missionaries were the first persons to translate Christian scripture into Native languages, such as Tlingit. In the 21st century, the numerous congregations of Russian Orthodox Christians in Alaska reflect this early history, as they are generally composed mostly of Alaska Natives.
Rather than hunting and harvesting marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them. As word spread of the riches in furs to be had, competition among Russian companies increased. They forced the Aleuts into slavery. Catherine the Great, who became Empress in 1763, proclaimed good will toward the Aleut and urged her subjects to treat them fairly. The growing competition between the trading companies, which merged into fewer, larger and more powerful corporations, created conflicts that aggravated the relations with the indigenous populations. Over the years, the situation became catastrophic for the natives.
As the animal populations declined, the Aleuts, already dependent on the new barter economy created by their fur trade with the Russians, were increasingly coerced into taking greater risks in the dangerous waters of the North Pacific to hunt for more otter. As the Shelikhov-Golikov Company and later Russian-American Company developed as a monopoly, it used skirmishes and systematic violence as a tool of colonial exploitation of the indigenous people. When the Aleut revolted and won some victories, the Russians retaliated, killing many. They also destroyed the peoples' boats and hunting gear, leaving them no means of survival.
The greatest mortality was caused by the Aleuts' encounters with new diseases: during the first two generations (1741/1759-1781/1799 AD) of Russian contact, 80 percent of the Aleut population died from Eurasian infectious diseases. These had been endemic among the Europeans for centuries, but the Aleut had no immunity against the new diseases.
Effects of Russian colonization
The Russian Tsarist government expanded into Indigenous territory in present-day Alaska for its own geopolitical reasons. It consumed natural resources of the territory during the trading years, and Russian Orthodoxy was evangelized. Their movement into these populated areas of Indigenous communities altered the demographic and natural landscape.
Historians have suggested that the Russian-American Company exploited Indigenous peoples as a source of inexpensive labor. The Russian-American Company not only used Indigenous populations for labor during the fur trade, but also held some as hostages to acquire iasak. Iasak, a form of taxation imposed by the Russians, was a tribute in the form of otter pelts. It was a taxation method the Russians had previously found useful in their early encounter with Indigenous communities of Siberia during the Siberian fur trade. Beaver pelts were also customary to be given to fur traders upon first contact with various communities.
The Russian-American Company used military force on Indigenous families, taking them as hostage until male community members produced furs for them. Otter furs on Kodiak Island and Aleutian Islands enticed the Russians to start these taxations. Robbery and maltreatment in the form of corporal punishment and the withholding of food was also present upon the arrival of fur traders. Catherine the Great dissolved the giving of tribute in 1799, but her government initiated mandatory conscription of Indigenous men between the ages of 18 to 50 to become seal hunters strictly for the Russian American Company. This mandatory labor gave the Russian American Company an edge in competition with American and British fur traders. But the conscription separated men from their families and villages, thus altering and breaking down communities. With able-bodied men away on the hunt, villages were left with little protection as only women, children, and the elderly remained behind.
In addition to changes that came with conscription, the spread of disease also altered the populations of Indigenous communities. Although records kept in the period were scarce, it has been said that 80% of the pre-contact population of the Aleut people were gone by 1800.
Relationships between Indigenous women and fur traders increased as Indigenous men were away from villages. This resulted in marriages and children that would come to be known as Creole peoples, children who were Indigenous and Russian. To reduce hostilities with Aleutian communities, it became policy for fur traders to enter into marriage with Indigenous women. The Creole population increased in the territory controlled by the Russian American Company.
The growth of the Russian Orthodox Church was another important tactic in the colonization and conversion of Indigenous populations. Ioann Veniaminov, who later became Saint Innocent of Alaska, was an important missionary who carried out the Orthodox Church's agenda to Christianize Indigenous populations. The church encouraged Creole children to follow Russian Orthodox Christianity, while the Russian American Company provided them with an education. Creole people were believed to have high levels of loyalty toward the Russian crown and Russian American Company. After completing their education, children were often sent to Russia, where they would study skills such as mapmaking, theology, and military intelligence. In the 1850's Russia lost much of its interest on Alaska.
American colonialism
Alaska has many natural resources. Alaska's natural resources along with its gold caught the attention of the United States. In 1867, the United States purchased Alaska from Russia. It did not consider the wishes of Alaska Natives or view them as citizens. The land that belonged to Alaska Natives was considered to be "open land", which could be claimed by white settlers without redress to the Alaska Natives living there. The only schools for Alaska Natives were those founded by religious missionaries. Most white settlers did not understand the sophisticated cultures the Alaska Natives had developed to live in that challenging place and considered them to be inferior to European Americans. The Americans imposed racial segregation and what were effectively Jim Crow laws applied against the Alaska Natives and treating them as second-class residents. Since Jim Crow law were imposed, it led to segregation amongst Alaskan Natives and Americans. Buildings would even have signs saying that no natives were allowed. There was also segregated schools. In 1880, there was a court case where a child was not allowed to attend a school with Americans because his step father was native. A child that was part native and part American would only be allowed to attend a school with American children if the family has abandoned their culture. This means that they could no longer speak their native language, wear traditional native clothing, be amongst other natives, eat native foods, or practice any native religion.
In 1912, the Alaska Native Brotherhood (ANB) was formed to help fight for citizenship rights. The Alaska Native Sisterhood (ANS) was created in 1915. Also in 1915, the Alaska Territorial legislature passed a law allowing Alaskan Natives the right to vote - but on the condition that they give up their cultural customs and traditions. The Indian Citizenship Act, passed in 1924, gave all Native Americans United States citizenship.
ANB began to hold a great deal of political power in the 1920s. They protested the segregation of Alaska Natives in public areas and institutions, and also staged boycotts. Alberta Schenck (Inupiaq) staged a well-publicized protest against segregation in a movie theater in 1944. With the help of Elizabeth Peratrovich (Tlingit), the Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945 was passed, ending segregation in Alaska.
In 1942, during World War II, the United States forced evacuation of around nine hundred Aleuts from the Aleutian Islands. The idea was to remove the Aleuts from a potential combat zone during World War II for their own protection, but European Americans living in the same area were not forced to leave. The removal was handled so poorly that many Aleuts died after they were evacuated; the elderly and children had the highest mortality rates. Survivors returned to the islands to find their homes and possessions destroyed or looted.
Alaska became part of the United States in 1959 upon President Dwight D. Eisenhower recognizing Alaska as the 49th state.
ANCSA and since (1971 to present)
In 1971, with the support of Alaska Native leaders such as Emil Notti, Willie Hensley, and Byron Mallot, the U.S. Congress passed the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA), which settled land and financial claims for lands and resources which the Alaska Natives had lost to European-Americans. It provided for the establishment of thirteen Alaska Native Regional Corporations to administer those claims. Similar to the separately defined status of the Canadian Inuit and First Nations in Canada, which are recognized as distinct peoples, in the United States, Alaska Natives are in some respects treated separately by the government from other Native Americans in the United States. This is in part related to their interactions with the U.S. government which occurred in a different historic period than its interactions during the period of westward expansion during the 19th-century.
Europeans and Americans did not have sustained encounters with the Alaska Natives until the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries when many were attracted to the region in gold rushes. The Alaska Natives were not allotted individual title in severalty to land under the Dawes Act of 1887 but were instead treated under the Alaska Native Allotment Act of 1906.
It was repealed in 1971, following ANSCA, at which time reservations were ended. Another characteristic difference is that Alaska Native tribal governments do not have the power to collect taxes for business transacted on tribal land, per the United States Supreme Court decision in Alaska v. Native Village of Venetie Tribal Government (1998). Except for the Tsimshian, Alaska Natives no longer hold reservations but do control some lands. Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, Alaska Natives are reserved the right to harvest whales and other marine mammals.
Climate Change
Four indigenous tribes in Alaska, the Shishmaref, Kivalina, Shaktoolik and Newtok tribes, are being considered the first climate refugees for America, due to sea ice melting and increased wildfires in the regions (Bronen and Brubaker). The effects of climate change on the people of Alaska are extensive and include issues such as increased vulnerability to disease, mental health issues, injury, food insecurity, and water insecurity (Brubaker). According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the loss of sea ice will increase erosion area and further displace more native communities. The melting sea ice will also affect the migration of some animals that the tribes rely on and with the ice melting there will be no place to store the food that they do obtain (EPA). Due to the permafrost melting, the infrastructure that has been around in the past will become unstable and native villages will collapse (EPA).
The Shishmaref, Kivalina, Shaktoolik and Newtok tribes are located on the west coast of Alaska and due to sea-level rise the villages are experiencing more severe storm surges that are eroding their coastlines (Bronen). There is no land for these tribes to move to that are already in the area they live in which forces these communities to migrate and change their whole way of living (Bronen). Governments are lacking in response to climate refugees, there are no policies in place to determine where these refugees should go or if they get aid to pay for the cost of traveling (Bronen). It is predicted that a climate event will submerge the tribes completely in less than fifteen years (Bronen).
Extreme weather conditions has increased the risk of injury, usually there are thick layers of ice all year long but due to increasing temperatures in the atmosphere and the sea the ice in becoming thinner and is increasing the number of people who fall through the ice, if a person survives falling through the ice they are faced with other health concerns (Brubaker). Increased water insecurity and failing infrastructure caused by climate change has created sanitation issues which has increased the amount of respiratory illnesses in many regions in Alaska, in 2005 pneumonia was the leading cause of hospitalizations (Brubaker). Many of the affected tribes are experiencing increased mental stress due to climate change and the problem of relocating but no policy or way to relocate (Brubaker). Stress has also increased on villages who face infrastructure damage due to melting permafrost, there are almost no regulations other than the Alaskan government recommended not building on permafrost or using extra layers of insulation that is used on foundation walls (EPA). Food insecurity has also created stress and health issues, families can not get enough food due to animals also relocating to get to a climate that is more suitable to them (Brubaker). Families also do not have a secure food system because their ways of storing food, underground ice cellar, are no longer frozen year long due to climate change, their cellars thaw in the summers leaving their food supply inedible (Brubaker).
Subsistence
Gathering of subsistence food continues to be an important economic and cultural activity for many Alaska Natives. In Utqiaġvik, Alaska in 2005, more than 91 percent of the Iñupiat households which were interviewed still participated in the local subsistence economy, compared with the approximately 33 percent of non-Iñupiat households who used wild resources obtained from hunting, fishing, or gathering.
But, unlike many tribes in the contiguous United States, Alaska Natives do not have treaties with the United States that protect their subsistence rights, except for the right to harvest whales and other marine mammals. The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act explicitly extinguished aboriginal hunting and fishing rights in the state of Alaska.
See also
Ancient Beringian
List of Alaska Native Tribal Entities, the list of Native Villages and other "tribal entities" recognized by the US Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Prehistory of Alaska
First Alaskans Institute
Indigenous Amerindian genetics
Circumpolar peoples
Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast
Indigenous peoples of the Subarctic
Indigenous peoples of Siberia
Alaska Native Storytelling
Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945
Shamanism among Alaska Natives
Women's suffrage in Alaska
References
Sources
Further reading
Chythlook-Sifsof, Callan J. "Native Alaska, Under Threat." (Op-Ed) The New York Times. June 27, 2013.
External links
Alaska Federation of Natives
Alaska Native Health Board
Alaska Native Heritage Center
Alaska Native Language Center
First Alaskans Institute
Tlingit National Anthem, Alaska Natives Online
Arctic Studies Center
American culture | false | [
"Tippu Tip's state (1860–1887), sometimes called the sultanate of Utetera, was one of the Arab sultanates established in eastern Africa. A 19th century short-lived state ruled by the infamous Swahili slave trader Tippu Tip (Hamad al Murjebi) and his son Sefu. The capital of the state was the town of Kasongo. Tippu Tip's controlled territory reached as far to eastern Kasai and to Aruwimi Basin in the west. \n\nBy the mid 19th century, the Arab traders arrived from the east African coast, in what was under the control of the Sultanate of Zanzibar. While the Arab traders were already engaged in important and different trade activities, they continued searching for ivory and slaves. Arab settlements in the African interior and trade stations were to be found in many locations, including the most important trade stations at Lualaba, Nyangwe and Kasongo. The Arab traders and explorers were not interested in converting locals to their faith, nor did they seek to bond with local chiefs, but rather to establish trading stations and regular flow of trading goods to Zanzibar.\n\nReferences \n\nFormer sultanates\nFormer countries in Africa",
"Luce v Bexley LBC [1990] ICR 591 (EAT) is a UK labour law case, concerning collective bargaining.\n\nFacts\nBexley London Borough Council refused permission to six teachers to attend a lobby on Parliament organised by the TUC over proposed Conservative legislation. They claimed this breached their right to time off for union activities under (what is now) TULRCA 1992 section 170.\n\nJudgment\nWood J held the phrase ‘any activities of an appropriate trade union of which the employee is a member’ must be given a meaning that is within ‘the ambit of the employment relationship’ in other words ‘between that employer, that employee and that trade union’. Because this lobby concerned political organisation, time off did not need to be granted. The activity went beyond the ambit.\n\nNotes\n\nReferences\n\nUnited Kingdom labour case law\n1990 in British law\n1990 in case law"
]
|
[
"Alaska Natives",
"Russian colonial period",
"When was the Russian colonial period?",
"Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives.",
"What did they trade?",
"Rather than hunting the marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them."
]
| C_ea76d8cb68544f4eba487ac9acc63b00_1 | What did they hunt? | 3 | What did Russians hunt during Russian colonial period at Alaska Natives? | Alaska Natives | Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives. New settlements around trading posts were started by Russians, including Russian Orthodox missionaries. These were the first to translate Christian scripture into Native languages. British and American traders generally did not reach the area until the nineteenth century, and in some cases missionaries were not active until the twentieth century. In the 21st century, the numerous congregations of Russian Orthodox Christians in Alaska are generally composed mostly of Alaska Natives. Rather than hunting the marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them. As word spread of the riches in furs to be had, competition among Russian companies increased and they forced the Aleuts into slavery. Catherine the Great, who became Empress in 1763, proclaimed good will toward the Aleut and urged her subjects to treat them fairly. On some islands and parts of the Alaska Peninsula, groups of traders had been capable of relatively peaceful coexistence with the local inhabitants. Other groups could not manage the tensions. Russians took hostages, families were split up, and individuals were forced to leave their villages and settle elsewhere. The growing competition between the trading companies, merging into fewer, larger and more powerful corporations, created conflicts that aggravated the relations with the indigenous populations. Over the years, the situation became catastrophic for the natives. As the animal populations declined, the Aleuts, already too dependent on the new barter economy created by the Russian fur trade, were increasingly coerced into taking greater risks in the dangerous waters of the North Pacific to hunt for more otter. As the Shelikhov-Golikov Company and later Russian-American Company developed as a monopoly, it used skirmishes and systematic violence as a tool of colonial exploitation of the indigenous people. When the Aleut revolted and won some victories, the Russians retaliated, killing many and destroying their boats and hunting gear, leaving them no means of survival. The most devastating effects were from disease: during the first two generations (1741/1759-1781/1799 AD) of Russian contact, 80 percent of the Aleut population died from Eurasian infectious diseases. These were then endemic among the Europeans, but the Aleut had no immunity against the new diseases. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Alaska Natives or Alaskan Natives are indigenous peoples of Alaska and include Iñupiat, Yupik, Aleut, Eyak, Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and a number of Northern Athabaskan cultures. They are often defined by their language groups. Many Alaska Natives are enrolled in federally recognized Alaska Native tribal entities, who in turn belong to 13 Alaska Native Regional Corporations, who administer land and financial claims.
Ancestors of Alaska Natives migrated into the area thousands of years ago, in at least two different waves. Some are descendants of the third wave of migration, in which people settled across the northern part of North America. They never migrated to southern areas. For this reason, genetic studies show they are not closely related to native peoples in South America. Alaska Natives came from Asia. Anthropologists have stated that their journey from Asia to Alaska was made possible through the Bering land bridge or by traveling through the sea. Throughout the Arctic and the circumpolar north, the ancestors of Alaska Natives established varying indigenous, complex cultures that have succeeded each other over time. They developed sophisticated ways to deal with the challenging climate and environment. Historic groups have been defined by their languages, which belong to several major language families. Today, Alaska Natives constitute more than 15% of the population of Alaska.
List of peoples
Below is a full list of the different Alaska Native peoples, who are largely defined by their historic languages (within each culture are different tribes):
Ancient Beringian
Alaskan Athabaskans
Ahtna
Deg Hit'an
Dena'ina
Gwich'in
Hän
Holikachuk
Koyukon
Lower Tanana
Tanacross
Upper Tanana
Upper Kuskokwim (Kolchan)
Eyak
Tlingit
Haida
Tsimshian
Eskimo
Iñupiat, an Inuit group
Yupik
Siberian Yupik
Yup'ik
Cup'ik
Nunivak Cup'ig
Sugpiaq ~ Alutiiq
Chugach Sugpiaq
Koniag Alutiiq
Aleut (Unangan)
Demographics
The Alaska Natives Commission estimated there were about 86,000 Alaska Natives living in Alaska in 1990, with another 17,000 who lived outside Alaska. A 2013 study by the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development documented more than 120,000 Alaska Native people in Alaska. While the majority of Alaska Natives live in small villages or remote regional hubs such as Nome, Dillingham, and Bethel, the percentage who live in urban areas has been increasing. In 2010, 44% lived in urban areas, compared to 38% in the 2000 census. As of 2018, natives constitute 15.4% of the overall Alaskan population.
History
The modern history of Alaskan natives begins with the arrival of Europeans. Unusually for North America, Russians sailing from Siberia in the eighteenth century were the first to make contact. British and American traders, coming mostly from eastern settlements in North America, generally did not reach the area until the nineteenth century. In some cases, Christian missionaries were not active in Alaska until the twentieth century.
Russian colonial period
During an expedition, Vitus Bering spotted Alaska. Alaskan Natives first came into contact with Russians in the 18th century. Time of contact with Russians varied throughout each native group since the Alaskan natives groups were spread throughout Alaska. Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives in what became known as the Aleutian Islands. They started new settlements around trading posts, and Russian Orthodox missionaries were part of these. The Russian missionaries were the first persons to translate Christian scripture into Native languages, such as Tlingit. In the 21st century, the numerous congregations of Russian Orthodox Christians in Alaska reflect this early history, as they are generally composed mostly of Alaska Natives.
Rather than hunting and harvesting marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them. As word spread of the riches in furs to be had, competition among Russian companies increased. They forced the Aleuts into slavery. Catherine the Great, who became Empress in 1763, proclaimed good will toward the Aleut and urged her subjects to treat them fairly. The growing competition between the trading companies, which merged into fewer, larger and more powerful corporations, created conflicts that aggravated the relations with the indigenous populations. Over the years, the situation became catastrophic for the natives.
As the animal populations declined, the Aleuts, already dependent on the new barter economy created by their fur trade with the Russians, were increasingly coerced into taking greater risks in the dangerous waters of the North Pacific to hunt for more otter. As the Shelikhov-Golikov Company and later Russian-American Company developed as a monopoly, it used skirmishes and systematic violence as a tool of colonial exploitation of the indigenous people. When the Aleut revolted and won some victories, the Russians retaliated, killing many. They also destroyed the peoples' boats and hunting gear, leaving them no means of survival.
The greatest mortality was caused by the Aleuts' encounters with new diseases: during the first two generations (1741/1759-1781/1799 AD) of Russian contact, 80 percent of the Aleut population died from Eurasian infectious diseases. These had been endemic among the Europeans for centuries, but the Aleut had no immunity against the new diseases.
Effects of Russian colonization
The Russian Tsarist government expanded into Indigenous territory in present-day Alaska for its own geopolitical reasons. It consumed natural resources of the territory during the trading years, and Russian Orthodoxy was evangelized. Their movement into these populated areas of Indigenous communities altered the demographic and natural landscape.
Historians have suggested that the Russian-American Company exploited Indigenous peoples as a source of inexpensive labor. The Russian-American Company not only used Indigenous populations for labor during the fur trade, but also held some as hostages to acquire iasak. Iasak, a form of taxation imposed by the Russians, was a tribute in the form of otter pelts. It was a taxation method the Russians had previously found useful in their early encounter with Indigenous communities of Siberia during the Siberian fur trade. Beaver pelts were also customary to be given to fur traders upon first contact with various communities.
The Russian-American Company used military force on Indigenous families, taking them as hostage until male community members produced furs for them. Otter furs on Kodiak Island and Aleutian Islands enticed the Russians to start these taxations. Robbery and maltreatment in the form of corporal punishment and the withholding of food was also present upon the arrival of fur traders. Catherine the Great dissolved the giving of tribute in 1799, but her government initiated mandatory conscription of Indigenous men between the ages of 18 to 50 to become seal hunters strictly for the Russian American Company. This mandatory labor gave the Russian American Company an edge in competition with American and British fur traders. But the conscription separated men from their families and villages, thus altering and breaking down communities. With able-bodied men away on the hunt, villages were left with little protection as only women, children, and the elderly remained behind.
In addition to changes that came with conscription, the spread of disease also altered the populations of Indigenous communities. Although records kept in the period were scarce, it has been said that 80% of the pre-contact population of the Aleut people were gone by 1800.
Relationships between Indigenous women and fur traders increased as Indigenous men were away from villages. This resulted in marriages and children that would come to be known as Creole peoples, children who were Indigenous and Russian. To reduce hostilities with Aleutian communities, it became policy for fur traders to enter into marriage with Indigenous women. The Creole population increased in the territory controlled by the Russian American Company.
The growth of the Russian Orthodox Church was another important tactic in the colonization and conversion of Indigenous populations. Ioann Veniaminov, who later became Saint Innocent of Alaska, was an important missionary who carried out the Orthodox Church's agenda to Christianize Indigenous populations. The church encouraged Creole children to follow Russian Orthodox Christianity, while the Russian American Company provided them with an education. Creole people were believed to have high levels of loyalty toward the Russian crown and Russian American Company. After completing their education, children were often sent to Russia, where they would study skills such as mapmaking, theology, and military intelligence. In the 1850's Russia lost much of its interest on Alaska.
American colonialism
Alaska has many natural resources. Alaska's natural resources along with its gold caught the attention of the United States. In 1867, the United States purchased Alaska from Russia. It did not consider the wishes of Alaska Natives or view them as citizens. The land that belonged to Alaska Natives was considered to be "open land", which could be claimed by white settlers without redress to the Alaska Natives living there. The only schools for Alaska Natives were those founded by religious missionaries. Most white settlers did not understand the sophisticated cultures the Alaska Natives had developed to live in that challenging place and considered them to be inferior to European Americans. The Americans imposed racial segregation and what were effectively Jim Crow laws applied against the Alaska Natives and treating them as second-class residents. Since Jim Crow law were imposed, it led to segregation amongst Alaskan Natives and Americans. Buildings would even have signs saying that no natives were allowed. There was also segregated schools. In 1880, there was a court case where a child was not allowed to attend a school with Americans because his step father was native. A child that was part native and part American would only be allowed to attend a school with American children if the family has abandoned their culture. This means that they could no longer speak their native language, wear traditional native clothing, be amongst other natives, eat native foods, or practice any native religion.
In 1912, the Alaska Native Brotherhood (ANB) was formed to help fight for citizenship rights. The Alaska Native Sisterhood (ANS) was created in 1915. Also in 1915, the Alaska Territorial legislature passed a law allowing Alaskan Natives the right to vote - but on the condition that they give up their cultural customs and traditions. The Indian Citizenship Act, passed in 1924, gave all Native Americans United States citizenship.
ANB began to hold a great deal of political power in the 1920s. They protested the segregation of Alaska Natives in public areas and institutions, and also staged boycotts. Alberta Schenck (Inupiaq) staged a well-publicized protest against segregation in a movie theater in 1944. With the help of Elizabeth Peratrovich (Tlingit), the Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945 was passed, ending segregation in Alaska.
In 1942, during World War II, the United States forced evacuation of around nine hundred Aleuts from the Aleutian Islands. The idea was to remove the Aleuts from a potential combat zone during World War II for their own protection, but European Americans living in the same area were not forced to leave. The removal was handled so poorly that many Aleuts died after they were evacuated; the elderly and children had the highest mortality rates. Survivors returned to the islands to find their homes and possessions destroyed or looted.
Alaska became part of the United States in 1959 upon President Dwight D. Eisenhower recognizing Alaska as the 49th state.
ANCSA and since (1971 to present)
In 1971, with the support of Alaska Native leaders such as Emil Notti, Willie Hensley, and Byron Mallot, the U.S. Congress passed the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA), which settled land and financial claims for lands and resources which the Alaska Natives had lost to European-Americans. It provided for the establishment of thirteen Alaska Native Regional Corporations to administer those claims. Similar to the separately defined status of the Canadian Inuit and First Nations in Canada, which are recognized as distinct peoples, in the United States, Alaska Natives are in some respects treated separately by the government from other Native Americans in the United States. This is in part related to their interactions with the U.S. government which occurred in a different historic period than its interactions during the period of westward expansion during the 19th-century.
Europeans and Americans did not have sustained encounters with the Alaska Natives until the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries when many were attracted to the region in gold rushes. The Alaska Natives were not allotted individual title in severalty to land under the Dawes Act of 1887 but were instead treated under the Alaska Native Allotment Act of 1906.
It was repealed in 1971, following ANSCA, at which time reservations were ended. Another characteristic difference is that Alaska Native tribal governments do not have the power to collect taxes for business transacted on tribal land, per the United States Supreme Court decision in Alaska v. Native Village of Venetie Tribal Government (1998). Except for the Tsimshian, Alaska Natives no longer hold reservations but do control some lands. Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, Alaska Natives are reserved the right to harvest whales and other marine mammals.
Climate Change
Four indigenous tribes in Alaska, the Shishmaref, Kivalina, Shaktoolik and Newtok tribes, are being considered the first climate refugees for America, due to sea ice melting and increased wildfires in the regions (Bronen and Brubaker). The effects of climate change on the people of Alaska are extensive and include issues such as increased vulnerability to disease, mental health issues, injury, food insecurity, and water insecurity (Brubaker). According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the loss of sea ice will increase erosion area and further displace more native communities. The melting sea ice will also affect the migration of some animals that the tribes rely on and with the ice melting there will be no place to store the food that they do obtain (EPA). Due to the permafrost melting, the infrastructure that has been around in the past will become unstable and native villages will collapse (EPA).
The Shishmaref, Kivalina, Shaktoolik and Newtok tribes are located on the west coast of Alaska and due to sea-level rise the villages are experiencing more severe storm surges that are eroding their coastlines (Bronen). There is no land for these tribes to move to that are already in the area they live in which forces these communities to migrate and change their whole way of living (Bronen). Governments are lacking in response to climate refugees, there are no policies in place to determine where these refugees should go or if they get aid to pay for the cost of traveling (Bronen). It is predicted that a climate event will submerge the tribes completely in less than fifteen years (Bronen).
Extreme weather conditions has increased the risk of injury, usually there are thick layers of ice all year long but due to increasing temperatures in the atmosphere and the sea the ice in becoming thinner and is increasing the number of people who fall through the ice, if a person survives falling through the ice they are faced with other health concerns (Brubaker). Increased water insecurity and failing infrastructure caused by climate change has created sanitation issues which has increased the amount of respiratory illnesses in many regions in Alaska, in 2005 pneumonia was the leading cause of hospitalizations (Brubaker). Many of the affected tribes are experiencing increased mental stress due to climate change and the problem of relocating but no policy or way to relocate (Brubaker). Stress has also increased on villages who face infrastructure damage due to melting permafrost, there are almost no regulations other than the Alaskan government recommended not building on permafrost or using extra layers of insulation that is used on foundation walls (EPA). Food insecurity has also created stress and health issues, families can not get enough food due to animals also relocating to get to a climate that is more suitable to them (Brubaker). Families also do not have a secure food system because their ways of storing food, underground ice cellar, are no longer frozen year long due to climate change, their cellars thaw in the summers leaving their food supply inedible (Brubaker).
Subsistence
Gathering of subsistence food continues to be an important economic and cultural activity for many Alaska Natives. In Utqiaġvik, Alaska in 2005, more than 91 percent of the Iñupiat households which were interviewed still participated in the local subsistence economy, compared with the approximately 33 percent of non-Iñupiat households who used wild resources obtained from hunting, fishing, or gathering.
But, unlike many tribes in the contiguous United States, Alaska Natives do not have treaties with the United States that protect their subsistence rights, except for the right to harvest whales and other marine mammals. The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act explicitly extinguished aboriginal hunting and fishing rights in the state of Alaska.
See also
Ancient Beringian
List of Alaska Native Tribal Entities, the list of Native Villages and other "tribal entities" recognized by the US Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Prehistory of Alaska
First Alaskans Institute
Indigenous Amerindian genetics
Circumpolar peoples
Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast
Indigenous peoples of the Subarctic
Indigenous peoples of Siberia
Alaska Native Storytelling
Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945
Shamanism among Alaska Natives
Women's suffrage in Alaska
References
Sources
Further reading
Chythlook-Sifsof, Callan J. "Native Alaska, Under Threat." (Op-Ed) The New York Times. June 27, 2013.
External links
Alaska Federation of Natives
Alaska Native Health Board
Alaska Native Heritage Center
Alaska Native Language Center
First Alaskans Institute
Tlingit National Anthem, Alaska Natives Online
Arctic Studies Center
American culture | false | [
"Ray Hunt (August 31, 1929 – March 12, 2009) was an American horse trainer and clinician of significant influence in the natural horsemanship field. He had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.\n\nNatural horsemanship\nHunt is widely regarded as one of the original proponents of what became known as natural horsemanship. His views about horse-human relations were embraced by inspirational writers about human relations. Lance Secretan wrote that \"We may respect a leader, but the ones we love are servant-leaders.\" In the beginning, Hunt said,\"I was working in the mind of a lot of people who didnt want to believe the horse had a mind. Get a bigger bit. Get a bigger stick. That was their approach.\" \n\nRay Hunt is said to be Tom Dorrance's best-known student. They met around 1960, at a fair in Elko, Nevada. While Dorrance avoided media attention and clinics, by the mid 1970s Hunt was giving clinics far and wide. Ray Hunt is famous for starting each clinic with the statement \"I'm here for the horse, to help him get a better deal.\" He also liked to say \"make the wrong thing difficult and the right thing easy.\" His philosophy has been interpreted as \"If you get bucked off or kicked or bitten, you obviously did something wrong . . . The horse, on the other hand, is never wrong\".\n\nThe idea that \"the horse is never wrong\" is often misunderstood by people who think Ray was talking about the horse's behaviour, he was rather meaning the horse's reaction to human behaviour. The horse always interprets human actions in the moment, they don't think about the past or future in the way that people do. So, their reactions to what is happening in the moment is always pure, they reflect what the human did with the utmost integrity. If we want to change the horse, we should first change ourselves. As Ray said \"it's easy to change the horse, but it's hard to change the human\".\n\nRay Hunt was a mentor and teacher of Buck Brannaman.\n\nWorks\n1978 Think Harmony with Horses: An In-depth Study of Horse/man Relationship\n1992 Turning loose with Ray Hunt (video)\n1996 Colt starting with Ray Hunt (video)\n2001 The Fort Worth Benefit with Ray Hunt (video)\nBack To The Beginning (video)\nRay Hunt Appreciation Clinic: 2005 Western Horseman of the Year (video)\nRay Hunt: Cowboy Logic\n\nSee also\nTom and Bill Dorrance\n\nReferences\n\nFurther reading\n\nExternal links\nOfficial website\n\nAmerican horse trainers\n1929 births\n2009 deaths",
"Ralph Hunt may refer to:\nRalph Hunt (footballer) (1933–1964), English footballer\nRalph Hunt (MP) (died c.1432), MP for Bath\nRalph Hunt (colonist) (born 1613), founding colonist of what is today Long Island\nRalph Hunt (Australian politician) (1928–2011), Australian politician"
]
|
[
"Alaska Natives",
"Russian colonial period",
"When was the Russian colonial period?",
"Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives.",
"What did they trade?",
"Rather than hunting the marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them.",
"What did they hunt?",
"I don't know."
]
| C_ea76d8cb68544f4eba487ac9acc63b00_1 | What else was significant during the Russian colonial period? | 4 | What else was significant during the Russian colonial period other than forcing Aletus to do work for Russians? | Alaska Natives | Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives. New settlements around trading posts were started by Russians, including Russian Orthodox missionaries. These were the first to translate Christian scripture into Native languages. British and American traders generally did not reach the area until the nineteenth century, and in some cases missionaries were not active until the twentieth century. In the 21st century, the numerous congregations of Russian Orthodox Christians in Alaska are generally composed mostly of Alaska Natives. Rather than hunting the marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them. As word spread of the riches in furs to be had, competition among Russian companies increased and they forced the Aleuts into slavery. Catherine the Great, who became Empress in 1763, proclaimed good will toward the Aleut and urged her subjects to treat them fairly. On some islands and parts of the Alaska Peninsula, groups of traders had been capable of relatively peaceful coexistence with the local inhabitants. Other groups could not manage the tensions. Russians took hostages, families were split up, and individuals were forced to leave their villages and settle elsewhere. The growing competition between the trading companies, merging into fewer, larger and more powerful corporations, created conflicts that aggravated the relations with the indigenous populations. Over the years, the situation became catastrophic for the natives. As the animal populations declined, the Aleuts, already too dependent on the new barter economy created by the Russian fur trade, were increasingly coerced into taking greater risks in the dangerous waters of the North Pacific to hunt for more otter. As the Shelikhov-Golikov Company and later Russian-American Company developed as a monopoly, it used skirmishes and systematic violence as a tool of colonial exploitation of the indigenous people. When the Aleut revolted and won some victories, the Russians retaliated, killing many and destroying their boats and hunting gear, leaving them no means of survival. The most devastating effects were from disease: during the first two generations (1741/1759-1781/1799 AD) of Russian contact, 80 percent of the Aleut population died from Eurasian infectious diseases. These were then endemic among the Europeans, but the Aleut had no immunity against the new diseases. CANNOTANSWER | Catherine the Great, who became Empress in 1763, proclaimed good will toward the Aleut | Alaska Natives or Alaskan Natives are indigenous peoples of Alaska and include Iñupiat, Yupik, Aleut, Eyak, Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and a number of Northern Athabaskan cultures. They are often defined by their language groups. Many Alaska Natives are enrolled in federally recognized Alaska Native tribal entities, who in turn belong to 13 Alaska Native Regional Corporations, who administer land and financial claims.
Ancestors of Alaska Natives migrated into the area thousands of years ago, in at least two different waves. Some are descendants of the third wave of migration, in which people settled across the northern part of North America. They never migrated to southern areas. For this reason, genetic studies show they are not closely related to native peoples in South America. Alaska Natives came from Asia. Anthropologists have stated that their journey from Asia to Alaska was made possible through the Bering land bridge or by traveling through the sea. Throughout the Arctic and the circumpolar north, the ancestors of Alaska Natives established varying indigenous, complex cultures that have succeeded each other over time. They developed sophisticated ways to deal with the challenging climate and environment. Historic groups have been defined by their languages, which belong to several major language families. Today, Alaska Natives constitute more than 15% of the population of Alaska.
List of peoples
Below is a full list of the different Alaska Native peoples, who are largely defined by their historic languages (within each culture are different tribes):
Ancient Beringian
Alaskan Athabaskans
Ahtna
Deg Hit'an
Dena'ina
Gwich'in
Hän
Holikachuk
Koyukon
Lower Tanana
Tanacross
Upper Tanana
Upper Kuskokwim (Kolchan)
Eyak
Tlingit
Haida
Tsimshian
Eskimo
Iñupiat, an Inuit group
Yupik
Siberian Yupik
Yup'ik
Cup'ik
Nunivak Cup'ig
Sugpiaq ~ Alutiiq
Chugach Sugpiaq
Koniag Alutiiq
Aleut (Unangan)
Demographics
The Alaska Natives Commission estimated there were about 86,000 Alaska Natives living in Alaska in 1990, with another 17,000 who lived outside Alaska. A 2013 study by the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development documented more than 120,000 Alaska Native people in Alaska. While the majority of Alaska Natives live in small villages or remote regional hubs such as Nome, Dillingham, and Bethel, the percentage who live in urban areas has been increasing. In 2010, 44% lived in urban areas, compared to 38% in the 2000 census. As of 2018, natives constitute 15.4% of the overall Alaskan population.
History
The modern history of Alaskan natives begins with the arrival of Europeans. Unusually for North America, Russians sailing from Siberia in the eighteenth century were the first to make contact. British and American traders, coming mostly from eastern settlements in North America, generally did not reach the area until the nineteenth century. In some cases, Christian missionaries were not active in Alaska until the twentieth century.
Russian colonial period
During an expedition, Vitus Bering spotted Alaska. Alaskan Natives first came into contact with Russians in the 18th century. Time of contact with Russians varied throughout each native group since the Alaskan natives groups were spread throughout Alaska. Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives in what became known as the Aleutian Islands. They started new settlements around trading posts, and Russian Orthodox missionaries were part of these. The Russian missionaries were the first persons to translate Christian scripture into Native languages, such as Tlingit. In the 21st century, the numerous congregations of Russian Orthodox Christians in Alaska reflect this early history, as they are generally composed mostly of Alaska Natives.
Rather than hunting and harvesting marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them. As word spread of the riches in furs to be had, competition among Russian companies increased. They forced the Aleuts into slavery. Catherine the Great, who became Empress in 1763, proclaimed good will toward the Aleut and urged her subjects to treat them fairly. The growing competition between the trading companies, which merged into fewer, larger and more powerful corporations, created conflicts that aggravated the relations with the indigenous populations. Over the years, the situation became catastrophic for the natives.
As the animal populations declined, the Aleuts, already dependent on the new barter economy created by their fur trade with the Russians, were increasingly coerced into taking greater risks in the dangerous waters of the North Pacific to hunt for more otter. As the Shelikhov-Golikov Company and later Russian-American Company developed as a monopoly, it used skirmishes and systematic violence as a tool of colonial exploitation of the indigenous people. When the Aleut revolted and won some victories, the Russians retaliated, killing many. They also destroyed the peoples' boats and hunting gear, leaving them no means of survival.
The greatest mortality was caused by the Aleuts' encounters with new diseases: during the first two generations (1741/1759-1781/1799 AD) of Russian contact, 80 percent of the Aleut population died from Eurasian infectious diseases. These had been endemic among the Europeans for centuries, but the Aleut had no immunity against the new diseases.
Effects of Russian colonization
The Russian Tsarist government expanded into Indigenous territory in present-day Alaska for its own geopolitical reasons. It consumed natural resources of the territory during the trading years, and Russian Orthodoxy was evangelized. Their movement into these populated areas of Indigenous communities altered the demographic and natural landscape.
Historians have suggested that the Russian-American Company exploited Indigenous peoples as a source of inexpensive labor. The Russian-American Company not only used Indigenous populations for labor during the fur trade, but also held some as hostages to acquire iasak. Iasak, a form of taxation imposed by the Russians, was a tribute in the form of otter pelts. It was a taxation method the Russians had previously found useful in their early encounter with Indigenous communities of Siberia during the Siberian fur trade. Beaver pelts were also customary to be given to fur traders upon first contact with various communities.
The Russian-American Company used military force on Indigenous families, taking them as hostage until male community members produced furs for them. Otter furs on Kodiak Island and Aleutian Islands enticed the Russians to start these taxations. Robbery and maltreatment in the form of corporal punishment and the withholding of food was also present upon the arrival of fur traders. Catherine the Great dissolved the giving of tribute in 1799, but her government initiated mandatory conscription of Indigenous men between the ages of 18 to 50 to become seal hunters strictly for the Russian American Company. This mandatory labor gave the Russian American Company an edge in competition with American and British fur traders. But the conscription separated men from their families and villages, thus altering and breaking down communities. With able-bodied men away on the hunt, villages were left with little protection as only women, children, and the elderly remained behind.
In addition to changes that came with conscription, the spread of disease also altered the populations of Indigenous communities. Although records kept in the period were scarce, it has been said that 80% of the pre-contact population of the Aleut people were gone by 1800.
Relationships between Indigenous women and fur traders increased as Indigenous men were away from villages. This resulted in marriages and children that would come to be known as Creole peoples, children who were Indigenous and Russian. To reduce hostilities with Aleutian communities, it became policy for fur traders to enter into marriage with Indigenous women. The Creole population increased in the territory controlled by the Russian American Company.
The growth of the Russian Orthodox Church was another important tactic in the colonization and conversion of Indigenous populations. Ioann Veniaminov, who later became Saint Innocent of Alaska, was an important missionary who carried out the Orthodox Church's agenda to Christianize Indigenous populations. The church encouraged Creole children to follow Russian Orthodox Christianity, while the Russian American Company provided them with an education. Creole people were believed to have high levels of loyalty toward the Russian crown and Russian American Company. After completing their education, children were often sent to Russia, where they would study skills such as mapmaking, theology, and military intelligence. In the 1850's Russia lost much of its interest on Alaska.
American colonialism
Alaska has many natural resources. Alaska's natural resources along with its gold caught the attention of the United States. In 1867, the United States purchased Alaska from Russia. It did not consider the wishes of Alaska Natives or view them as citizens. The land that belonged to Alaska Natives was considered to be "open land", which could be claimed by white settlers without redress to the Alaska Natives living there. The only schools for Alaska Natives were those founded by religious missionaries. Most white settlers did not understand the sophisticated cultures the Alaska Natives had developed to live in that challenging place and considered them to be inferior to European Americans. The Americans imposed racial segregation and what were effectively Jim Crow laws applied against the Alaska Natives and treating them as second-class residents. Since Jim Crow law were imposed, it led to segregation amongst Alaskan Natives and Americans. Buildings would even have signs saying that no natives were allowed. There was also segregated schools. In 1880, there was a court case where a child was not allowed to attend a school with Americans because his step father was native. A child that was part native and part American would only be allowed to attend a school with American children if the family has abandoned their culture. This means that they could no longer speak their native language, wear traditional native clothing, be amongst other natives, eat native foods, or practice any native religion.
In 1912, the Alaska Native Brotherhood (ANB) was formed to help fight for citizenship rights. The Alaska Native Sisterhood (ANS) was created in 1915. Also in 1915, the Alaska Territorial legislature passed a law allowing Alaskan Natives the right to vote - but on the condition that they give up their cultural customs and traditions. The Indian Citizenship Act, passed in 1924, gave all Native Americans United States citizenship.
ANB began to hold a great deal of political power in the 1920s. They protested the segregation of Alaska Natives in public areas and institutions, and also staged boycotts. Alberta Schenck (Inupiaq) staged a well-publicized protest against segregation in a movie theater in 1944. With the help of Elizabeth Peratrovich (Tlingit), the Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945 was passed, ending segregation in Alaska.
In 1942, during World War II, the United States forced evacuation of around nine hundred Aleuts from the Aleutian Islands. The idea was to remove the Aleuts from a potential combat zone during World War II for their own protection, but European Americans living in the same area were not forced to leave. The removal was handled so poorly that many Aleuts died after they were evacuated; the elderly and children had the highest mortality rates. Survivors returned to the islands to find their homes and possessions destroyed or looted.
Alaska became part of the United States in 1959 upon President Dwight D. Eisenhower recognizing Alaska as the 49th state.
ANCSA and since (1971 to present)
In 1971, with the support of Alaska Native leaders such as Emil Notti, Willie Hensley, and Byron Mallot, the U.S. Congress passed the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA), which settled land and financial claims for lands and resources which the Alaska Natives had lost to European-Americans. It provided for the establishment of thirteen Alaska Native Regional Corporations to administer those claims. Similar to the separately defined status of the Canadian Inuit and First Nations in Canada, which are recognized as distinct peoples, in the United States, Alaska Natives are in some respects treated separately by the government from other Native Americans in the United States. This is in part related to their interactions with the U.S. government which occurred in a different historic period than its interactions during the period of westward expansion during the 19th-century.
Europeans and Americans did not have sustained encounters with the Alaska Natives until the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries when many were attracted to the region in gold rushes. The Alaska Natives were not allotted individual title in severalty to land under the Dawes Act of 1887 but were instead treated under the Alaska Native Allotment Act of 1906.
It was repealed in 1971, following ANSCA, at which time reservations were ended. Another characteristic difference is that Alaska Native tribal governments do not have the power to collect taxes for business transacted on tribal land, per the United States Supreme Court decision in Alaska v. Native Village of Venetie Tribal Government (1998). Except for the Tsimshian, Alaska Natives no longer hold reservations but do control some lands. Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, Alaska Natives are reserved the right to harvest whales and other marine mammals.
Climate Change
Four indigenous tribes in Alaska, the Shishmaref, Kivalina, Shaktoolik and Newtok tribes, are being considered the first climate refugees for America, due to sea ice melting and increased wildfires in the regions (Bronen and Brubaker). The effects of climate change on the people of Alaska are extensive and include issues such as increased vulnerability to disease, mental health issues, injury, food insecurity, and water insecurity (Brubaker). According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the loss of sea ice will increase erosion area and further displace more native communities. The melting sea ice will also affect the migration of some animals that the tribes rely on and with the ice melting there will be no place to store the food that they do obtain (EPA). Due to the permafrost melting, the infrastructure that has been around in the past will become unstable and native villages will collapse (EPA).
The Shishmaref, Kivalina, Shaktoolik and Newtok tribes are located on the west coast of Alaska and due to sea-level rise the villages are experiencing more severe storm surges that are eroding their coastlines (Bronen). There is no land for these tribes to move to that are already in the area they live in which forces these communities to migrate and change their whole way of living (Bronen). Governments are lacking in response to climate refugees, there are no policies in place to determine where these refugees should go or if they get aid to pay for the cost of traveling (Bronen). It is predicted that a climate event will submerge the tribes completely in less than fifteen years (Bronen).
Extreme weather conditions has increased the risk of injury, usually there are thick layers of ice all year long but due to increasing temperatures in the atmosphere and the sea the ice in becoming thinner and is increasing the number of people who fall through the ice, if a person survives falling through the ice they are faced with other health concerns (Brubaker). Increased water insecurity and failing infrastructure caused by climate change has created sanitation issues which has increased the amount of respiratory illnesses in many regions in Alaska, in 2005 pneumonia was the leading cause of hospitalizations (Brubaker). Many of the affected tribes are experiencing increased mental stress due to climate change and the problem of relocating but no policy or way to relocate (Brubaker). Stress has also increased on villages who face infrastructure damage due to melting permafrost, there are almost no regulations other than the Alaskan government recommended not building on permafrost or using extra layers of insulation that is used on foundation walls (EPA). Food insecurity has also created stress and health issues, families can not get enough food due to animals also relocating to get to a climate that is more suitable to them (Brubaker). Families also do not have a secure food system because their ways of storing food, underground ice cellar, are no longer frozen year long due to climate change, their cellars thaw in the summers leaving their food supply inedible (Brubaker).
Subsistence
Gathering of subsistence food continues to be an important economic and cultural activity for many Alaska Natives. In Utqiaġvik, Alaska in 2005, more than 91 percent of the Iñupiat households which were interviewed still participated in the local subsistence economy, compared with the approximately 33 percent of non-Iñupiat households who used wild resources obtained from hunting, fishing, or gathering.
But, unlike many tribes in the contiguous United States, Alaska Natives do not have treaties with the United States that protect their subsistence rights, except for the right to harvest whales and other marine mammals. The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act explicitly extinguished aboriginal hunting and fishing rights in the state of Alaska.
See also
Ancient Beringian
List of Alaska Native Tribal Entities, the list of Native Villages and other "tribal entities" recognized by the US Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Prehistory of Alaska
First Alaskans Institute
Indigenous Amerindian genetics
Circumpolar peoples
Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast
Indigenous peoples of the Subarctic
Indigenous peoples of Siberia
Alaska Native Storytelling
Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945
Shamanism among Alaska Natives
Women's suffrage in Alaska
References
Sources
Further reading
Chythlook-Sifsof, Callan J. "Native Alaska, Under Threat." (Op-Ed) The New York Times. June 27, 2013.
External links
Alaska Federation of Natives
Alaska Native Health Board
Alaska Native Heritage Center
Alaska Native Language Center
First Alaskans Institute
Tlingit National Anthem, Alaska Natives Online
Arctic Studies Center
American culture | true | [
"The Franklin City Hall, located at 128 E. Main St. in Franklin, Idaho, was built in 1904. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.\n\nIt is a one-room one-story brick building. It was deemed \"historically significant as a local manifestation of the gradual distinction between church and civil government that developed in Mormon political and religious thought during the turn-of-the-century period. The building is architecturally significant as an example of the transition from Italianate to Colonial Revival forms for institutional buildings in Idaho during the period between about 1890 and 1905. The building also reveals the stylistic preference for Colonial Revival forms in southeast Idaho's Mormon communities, a preference that existed throughout the first half of the twentieth century. The building provides a good example of early brickwork in the region.\"\n\nReferences\n\nGovernment buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Idaho\nItalianate architecture in Idaho\nColonial Revival architecture in Idaho\nGovernment buildings completed in 1904\nFranklin County, Idaho",
"Muna Municipality (In the Yucatec Maya Language: “soft water\") is one of the 106 municipalities in the Mexican state of Yucatán containing (270.81 km2) of land and is located roughly 50 km south of the city of Mérida.\n\nHistory\nThere is no accurate data on when the town was founded, though it existed before the conquest, as part of the chieftainship of Tutul Xiu. At colonization, Muna became part of the encomienda system. The areas encompassing Muna and Dzán Municipality were joined for a time during the encomienda system. The first encomendero was Castilla in 1549 and it then passed to Alonso Rosado and Diego Rosado. By 1607 the encomendero was Pedro Rosado. In 1625, the trusteeship passed to Diego de Jáuregui and Francisca Rosado and in 1629 to Sebastián de Mendoza and Diego de Mendoza.\n\nYucatán declared its independence from the Spanish Crown in 1821, and in 1825 the area was assigned to the low sierra partition of Mama Municipality. In 1867 it was transferred to the Ticul Municipality and confirmed as its own municipality in 1988.\n\nGovernance\nThe municipal president is elected for a three-year term. The town council has nine councilpersons, who serve as Secretary and councilors of education, agricultural development, public lighting, events, roads, cemeteries, maintenance, ecology and parks.\n\nThe Municipal Council administers the business of the municipality. It is responsible for budgeting and expenditures and producing all required reports for all branches of the municipal administration. Annually it determines educational standards for schools.\n\nThe Police Commissioners ensure public order and safety. They are tasked with enforcing regulations, distributing materials and administering rulings of general compliance issued by the council.\n\nCommunities\nThe head of the municipality is Muna, Yucatán. There are 18 populated areas of the municipality including Choyob, Lazaro Cárdenas, Muna, San José Tipceh and Yaxha. The significant populations are shown below:\n\nLocal festivals\nEvery year from 12 to 15 August the town celebrates a festival in honor of its patroness, the Virgin of the Assumption.\n\nTourist attractions\n Church of the Virgin of the Assumption, built during the colonial period\n Chapel of St. Bernard, built during the colonial period\n Chapel of San Andres, built during the colonial period\n Chapel of San Mateo, built during the colonial period \n Chapel of San Sebastián, built during the colonial period\n Chapel of Santa María, built during the colonial period\n Chapel of La Soledad, built during the colonial period\n archaeological site at Uxmal (a UNESCO World Heritage Site)\n archaeological site at Xmatuy\n Hacienda San José Tibceh\n\nReferences\n\nMunicipalities of Yucatán"
]
|
[
"Alaska Natives",
"Russian colonial period",
"When was the Russian colonial period?",
"Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives.",
"What did they trade?",
"Rather than hunting the marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them.",
"What did they hunt?",
"I don't know.",
"What else was significant during the Russian colonial period?",
"Catherine the Great, who became Empress in 1763, proclaimed good will toward the Aleut"
]
| C_ea76d8cb68544f4eba487ac9acc63b00_1 | How did they benefit? | 5 | How did Aleut benefit? | Alaska Natives | Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives. New settlements around trading posts were started by Russians, including Russian Orthodox missionaries. These were the first to translate Christian scripture into Native languages. British and American traders generally did not reach the area until the nineteenth century, and in some cases missionaries were not active until the twentieth century. In the 21st century, the numerous congregations of Russian Orthodox Christians in Alaska are generally composed mostly of Alaska Natives. Rather than hunting the marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them. As word spread of the riches in furs to be had, competition among Russian companies increased and they forced the Aleuts into slavery. Catherine the Great, who became Empress in 1763, proclaimed good will toward the Aleut and urged her subjects to treat them fairly. On some islands and parts of the Alaska Peninsula, groups of traders had been capable of relatively peaceful coexistence with the local inhabitants. Other groups could not manage the tensions. Russians took hostages, families were split up, and individuals were forced to leave their villages and settle elsewhere. The growing competition between the trading companies, merging into fewer, larger and more powerful corporations, created conflicts that aggravated the relations with the indigenous populations. Over the years, the situation became catastrophic for the natives. As the animal populations declined, the Aleuts, already too dependent on the new barter economy created by the Russian fur trade, were increasingly coerced into taking greater risks in the dangerous waters of the North Pacific to hunt for more otter. As the Shelikhov-Golikov Company and later Russian-American Company developed as a monopoly, it used skirmishes and systematic violence as a tool of colonial exploitation of the indigenous people. When the Aleut revolted and won some victories, the Russians retaliated, killing many and destroying their boats and hunting gear, leaving them no means of survival. The most devastating effects were from disease: during the first two generations (1741/1759-1781/1799 AD) of Russian contact, 80 percent of the Aleut population died from Eurasian infectious diseases. These were then endemic among the Europeans, but the Aleut had no immunity against the new diseases. CANNOTANSWER | urged her subjects to treat them fairly. On some islands and parts of the Alaska Peninsula, groups of traders had been capable of relatively peaceful coexistence with the local inhabitants. | Alaska Natives or Alaskan Natives are indigenous peoples of Alaska and include Iñupiat, Yupik, Aleut, Eyak, Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and a number of Northern Athabaskan cultures. They are often defined by their language groups. Many Alaska Natives are enrolled in federally recognized Alaska Native tribal entities, who in turn belong to 13 Alaska Native Regional Corporations, who administer land and financial claims.
Ancestors of Alaska Natives migrated into the area thousands of years ago, in at least two different waves. Some are descendants of the third wave of migration, in which people settled across the northern part of North America. They never migrated to southern areas. For this reason, genetic studies show they are not closely related to native peoples in South America. Alaska Natives came from Asia. Anthropologists have stated that their journey from Asia to Alaska was made possible through the Bering land bridge or by traveling through the sea. Throughout the Arctic and the circumpolar north, the ancestors of Alaska Natives established varying indigenous, complex cultures that have succeeded each other over time. They developed sophisticated ways to deal with the challenging climate and environment. Historic groups have been defined by their languages, which belong to several major language families. Today, Alaska Natives constitute more than 15% of the population of Alaska.
List of peoples
Below is a full list of the different Alaska Native peoples, who are largely defined by their historic languages (within each culture are different tribes):
Ancient Beringian
Alaskan Athabaskans
Ahtna
Deg Hit'an
Dena'ina
Gwich'in
Hän
Holikachuk
Koyukon
Lower Tanana
Tanacross
Upper Tanana
Upper Kuskokwim (Kolchan)
Eyak
Tlingit
Haida
Tsimshian
Eskimo
Iñupiat, an Inuit group
Yupik
Siberian Yupik
Yup'ik
Cup'ik
Nunivak Cup'ig
Sugpiaq ~ Alutiiq
Chugach Sugpiaq
Koniag Alutiiq
Aleut (Unangan)
Demographics
The Alaska Natives Commission estimated there were about 86,000 Alaska Natives living in Alaska in 1990, with another 17,000 who lived outside Alaska. A 2013 study by the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development documented more than 120,000 Alaska Native people in Alaska. While the majority of Alaska Natives live in small villages or remote regional hubs such as Nome, Dillingham, and Bethel, the percentage who live in urban areas has been increasing. In 2010, 44% lived in urban areas, compared to 38% in the 2000 census. As of 2018, natives constitute 15.4% of the overall Alaskan population.
History
The modern history of Alaskan natives begins with the arrival of Europeans. Unusually for North America, Russians sailing from Siberia in the eighteenth century were the first to make contact. British and American traders, coming mostly from eastern settlements in North America, generally did not reach the area until the nineteenth century. In some cases, Christian missionaries were not active in Alaska until the twentieth century.
Russian colonial period
During an expedition, Vitus Bering spotted Alaska. Alaskan Natives first came into contact with Russians in the 18th century. Time of contact with Russians varied throughout each native group since the Alaskan natives groups were spread throughout Alaska. Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives in what became known as the Aleutian Islands. They started new settlements around trading posts, and Russian Orthodox missionaries were part of these. The Russian missionaries were the first persons to translate Christian scripture into Native languages, such as Tlingit. In the 21st century, the numerous congregations of Russian Orthodox Christians in Alaska reflect this early history, as they are generally composed mostly of Alaska Natives.
Rather than hunting and harvesting marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them. As word spread of the riches in furs to be had, competition among Russian companies increased. They forced the Aleuts into slavery. Catherine the Great, who became Empress in 1763, proclaimed good will toward the Aleut and urged her subjects to treat them fairly. The growing competition between the trading companies, which merged into fewer, larger and more powerful corporations, created conflicts that aggravated the relations with the indigenous populations. Over the years, the situation became catastrophic for the natives.
As the animal populations declined, the Aleuts, already dependent on the new barter economy created by their fur trade with the Russians, were increasingly coerced into taking greater risks in the dangerous waters of the North Pacific to hunt for more otter. As the Shelikhov-Golikov Company and later Russian-American Company developed as a monopoly, it used skirmishes and systematic violence as a tool of colonial exploitation of the indigenous people. When the Aleut revolted and won some victories, the Russians retaliated, killing many. They also destroyed the peoples' boats and hunting gear, leaving them no means of survival.
The greatest mortality was caused by the Aleuts' encounters with new diseases: during the first two generations (1741/1759-1781/1799 AD) of Russian contact, 80 percent of the Aleut population died from Eurasian infectious diseases. These had been endemic among the Europeans for centuries, but the Aleut had no immunity against the new diseases.
Effects of Russian colonization
The Russian Tsarist government expanded into Indigenous territory in present-day Alaska for its own geopolitical reasons. It consumed natural resources of the territory during the trading years, and Russian Orthodoxy was evangelized. Their movement into these populated areas of Indigenous communities altered the demographic and natural landscape.
Historians have suggested that the Russian-American Company exploited Indigenous peoples as a source of inexpensive labor. The Russian-American Company not only used Indigenous populations for labor during the fur trade, but also held some as hostages to acquire iasak. Iasak, a form of taxation imposed by the Russians, was a tribute in the form of otter pelts. It was a taxation method the Russians had previously found useful in their early encounter with Indigenous communities of Siberia during the Siberian fur trade. Beaver pelts were also customary to be given to fur traders upon first contact with various communities.
The Russian-American Company used military force on Indigenous families, taking them as hostage until male community members produced furs for them. Otter furs on Kodiak Island and Aleutian Islands enticed the Russians to start these taxations. Robbery and maltreatment in the form of corporal punishment and the withholding of food was also present upon the arrival of fur traders. Catherine the Great dissolved the giving of tribute in 1799, but her government initiated mandatory conscription of Indigenous men between the ages of 18 to 50 to become seal hunters strictly for the Russian American Company. This mandatory labor gave the Russian American Company an edge in competition with American and British fur traders. But the conscription separated men from their families and villages, thus altering and breaking down communities. With able-bodied men away on the hunt, villages were left with little protection as only women, children, and the elderly remained behind.
In addition to changes that came with conscription, the spread of disease also altered the populations of Indigenous communities. Although records kept in the period were scarce, it has been said that 80% of the pre-contact population of the Aleut people were gone by 1800.
Relationships between Indigenous women and fur traders increased as Indigenous men were away from villages. This resulted in marriages and children that would come to be known as Creole peoples, children who were Indigenous and Russian. To reduce hostilities with Aleutian communities, it became policy for fur traders to enter into marriage with Indigenous women. The Creole population increased in the territory controlled by the Russian American Company.
The growth of the Russian Orthodox Church was another important tactic in the colonization and conversion of Indigenous populations. Ioann Veniaminov, who later became Saint Innocent of Alaska, was an important missionary who carried out the Orthodox Church's agenda to Christianize Indigenous populations. The church encouraged Creole children to follow Russian Orthodox Christianity, while the Russian American Company provided them with an education. Creole people were believed to have high levels of loyalty toward the Russian crown and Russian American Company. After completing their education, children were often sent to Russia, where they would study skills such as mapmaking, theology, and military intelligence. In the 1850's Russia lost much of its interest on Alaska.
American colonialism
Alaska has many natural resources. Alaska's natural resources along with its gold caught the attention of the United States. In 1867, the United States purchased Alaska from Russia. It did not consider the wishes of Alaska Natives or view them as citizens. The land that belonged to Alaska Natives was considered to be "open land", which could be claimed by white settlers without redress to the Alaska Natives living there. The only schools for Alaska Natives were those founded by religious missionaries. Most white settlers did not understand the sophisticated cultures the Alaska Natives had developed to live in that challenging place and considered them to be inferior to European Americans. The Americans imposed racial segregation and what were effectively Jim Crow laws applied against the Alaska Natives and treating them as second-class residents. Since Jim Crow law were imposed, it led to segregation amongst Alaskan Natives and Americans. Buildings would even have signs saying that no natives were allowed. There was also segregated schools. In 1880, there was a court case where a child was not allowed to attend a school with Americans because his step father was native. A child that was part native and part American would only be allowed to attend a school with American children if the family has abandoned their culture. This means that they could no longer speak their native language, wear traditional native clothing, be amongst other natives, eat native foods, or practice any native religion.
In 1912, the Alaska Native Brotherhood (ANB) was formed to help fight for citizenship rights. The Alaska Native Sisterhood (ANS) was created in 1915. Also in 1915, the Alaska Territorial legislature passed a law allowing Alaskan Natives the right to vote - but on the condition that they give up their cultural customs and traditions. The Indian Citizenship Act, passed in 1924, gave all Native Americans United States citizenship.
ANB began to hold a great deal of political power in the 1920s. They protested the segregation of Alaska Natives in public areas and institutions, and also staged boycotts. Alberta Schenck (Inupiaq) staged a well-publicized protest against segregation in a movie theater in 1944. With the help of Elizabeth Peratrovich (Tlingit), the Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945 was passed, ending segregation in Alaska.
In 1942, during World War II, the United States forced evacuation of around nine hundred Aleuts from the Aleutian Islands. The idea was to remove the Aleuts from a potential combat zone during World War II for their own protection, but European Americans living in the same area were not forced to leave. The removal was handled so poorly that many Aleuts died after they were evacuated; the elderly and children had the highest mortality rates. Survivors returned to the islands to find their homes and possessions destroyed or looted.
Alaska became part of the United States in 1959 upon President Dwight D. Eisenhower recognizing Alaska as the 49th state.
ANCSA and since (1971 to present)
In 1971, with the support of Alaska Native leaders such as Emil Notti, Willie Hensley, and Byron Mallot, the U.S. Congress passed the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA), which settled land and financial claims for lands and resources which the Alaska Natives had lost to European-Americans. It provided for the establishment of thirteen Alaska Native Regional Corporations to administer those claims. Similar to the separately defined status of the Canadian Inuit and First Nations in Canada, which are recognized as distinct peoples, in the United States, Alaska Natives are in some respects treated separately by the government from other Native Americans in the United States. This is in part related to their interactions with the U.S. government which occurred in a different historic period than its interactions during the period of westward expansion during the 19th-century.
Europeans and Americans did not have sustained encounters with the Alaska Natives until the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries when many were attracted to the region in gold rushes. The Alaska Natives were not allotted individual title in severalty to land under the Dawes Act of 1887 but were instead treated under the Alaska Native Allotment Act of 1906.
It was repealed in 1971, following ANSCA, at which time reservations were ended. Another characteristic difference is that Alaska Native tribal governments do not have the power to collect taxes for business transacted on tribal land, per the United States Supreme Court decision in Alaska v. Native Village of Venetie Tribal Government (1998). Except for the Tsimshian, Alaska Natives no longer hold reservations but do control some lands. Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, Alaska Natives are reserved the right to harvest whales and other marine mammals.
Climate Change
Four indigenous tribes in Alaska, the Shishmaref, Kivalina, Shaktoolik and Newtok tribes, are being considered the first climate refugees for America, due to sea ice melting and increased wildfires in the regions (Bronen and Brubaker). The effects of climate change on the people of Alaska are extensive and include issues such as increased vulnerability to disease, mental health issues, injury, food insecurity, and water insecurity (Brubaker). According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the loss of sea ice will increase erosion area and further displace more native communities. The melting sea ice will also affect the migration of some animals that the tribes rely on and with the ice melting there will be no place to store the food that they do obtain (EPA). Due to the permafrost melting, the infrastructure that has been around in the past will become unstable and native villages will collapse (EPA).
The Shishmaref, Kivalina, Shaktoolik and Newtok tribes are located on the west coast of Alaska and due to sea-level rise the villages are experiencing more severe storm surges that are eroding their coastlines (Bronen). There is no land for these tribes to move to that are already in the area they live in which forces these communities to migrate and change their whole way of living (Bronen). Governments are lacking in response to climate refugees, there are no policies in place to determine where these refugees should go or if they get aid to pay for the cost of traveling (Bronen). It is predicted that a climate event will submerge the tribes completely in less than fifteen years (Bronen).
Extreme weather conditions has increased the risk of injury, usually there are thick layers of ice all year long but due to increasing temperatures in the atmosphere and the sea the ice in becoming thinner and is increasing the number of people who fall through the ice, if a person survives falling through the ice they are faced with other health concerns (Brubaker). Increased water insecurity and failing infrastructure caused by climate change has created sanitation issues which has increased the amount of respiratory illnesses in many regions in Alaska, in 2005 pneumonia was the leading cause of hospitalizations (Brubaker). Many of the affected tribes are experiencing increased mental stress due to climate change and the problem of relocating but no policy or way to relocate (Brubaker). Stress has also increased on villages who face infrastructure damage due to melting permafrost, there are almost no regulations other than the Alaskan government recommended not building on permafrost or using extra layers of insulation that is used on foundation walls (EPA). Food insecurity has also created stress and health issues, families can not get enough food due to animals also relocating to get to a climate that is more suitable to them (Brubaker). Families also do not have a secure food system because their ways of storing food, underground ice cellar, are no longer frozen year long due to climate change, their cellars thaw in the summers leaving their food supply inedible (Brubaker).
Subsistence
Gathering of subsistence food continues to be an important economic and cultural activity for many Alaska Natives. In Utqiaġvik, Alaska in 2005, more than 91 percent of the Iñupiat households which were interviewed still participated in the local subsistence economy, compared with the approximately 33 percent of non-Iñupiat households who used wild resources obtained from hunting, fishing, or gathering.
But, unlike many tribes in the contiguous United States, Alaska Natives do not have treaties with the United States that protect their subsistence rights, except for the right to harvest whales and other marine mammals. The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act explicitly extinguished aboriginal hunting and fishing rights in the state of Alaska.
See also
Ancient Beringian
List of Alaska Native Tribal Entities, the list of Native Villages and other "tribal entities" recognized by the US Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Prehistory of Alaska
First Alaskans Institute
Indigenous Amerindian genetics
Circumpolar peoples
Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast
Indigenous peoples of the Subarctic
Indigenous peoples of Siberia
Alaska Native Storytelling
Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945
Shamanism among Alaska Natives
Women's suffrage in Alaska
References
Sources
Further reading
Chythlook-Sifsof, Callan J. "Native Alaska, Under Threat." (Op-Ed) The New York Times. June 27, 2013.
External links
Alaska Federation of Natives
Alaska Native Health Board
Alaska Native Heritage Center
Alaska Native Language Center
First Alaskans Institute
Tlingit National Anthem, Alaska Natives Online
Arctic Studies Center
American culture | false | [
"The New York Local Government Assistance Corporation is a New York state public-benefit corporation created in 1990 to issue bonds to decrease the state's reliance on short term loans.\n\nOrganization\nUntil January 13, 2006, the Local Government Assistance Corporation had a three-member board of directors. The number was increased to seven in 2006. According to the New York State Authorities Budget Office, the Local Government Assistance Corporation had an operating budget of $3 million in 2017 with a staff of 24 people.\n\nBond issuances\nThe Local Government Assistance Corporation has not issued any new bonds since the 1993-94 fiscal year. As of March 31, 2018, there was $1.758 billion in debt outstanding.\n\nControversy\nThere is ongoing debate in New York State politics regarding the size and scope of New York State public benefit corporations, i.e., how many there are, how much debt they carry, how much power they wield to issue bonds for funding, who they are accountable to, etc. For example, the New York Local Government Assistance Corporation has a 24-member staff to oversee the operations of an organization that no longer serves a purpose, according to the New York State Comptroller's office, other than to reduce its outstanding debt.\n\nSee also\n\n Empire State Development Corporation\n Municipal Assistance Corporation\n Tobacco Settlement Financing Corporation\n\nReferences\n\nExternal links\n LGAC webpage on NYSOSC webpage\n LGAC listing on NYSABO list of NYS Public Benefit Corporations\n\nPublic benefit corporations in New York (state)\nPolitics of New York (state)\nPublic benefit corporations",
"Benefit or benefits may refer to:\n\nPerks and social welfare\n Benefit (social welfare), provided by a social welfare program\n Federal benefits, provided by the United States federal government\n Credit card, and charge card benefits\n Employee benefit, non-wage compensation provided to employees\n Health benefits (insurance), insurance against medical expenses\n Health benefits (medicine)\n\nPlaces\n Benefit, Georgia, a community in the United States\n\nArts, entertainment, and media\n Benefit (album), a 1970 music album by Jethro Tull\n \"Benefits\" (How I Met Your Mother), a 2009 episode of the television show How I Met Your Mother\n The Benefit, a 2012 Egyptian action film\n\nBrands and enterprises\n Benefit Cosmetics, an American cosmetics company\n The Benefit Company, a Bahraini interbanking company\n\nFundraising\n Benefit (sports), a match or season of activities granted by a sporting body to a loyal sportsman to boost their income before retirement\n Benefit concert\n Benefit performance\n\nSee also\n Entitlement\n Incentive\n Incentive program\nLoyalty marketing\n Loyalty program\nReward (disambiguation)"
]
|
[
"Alaska Natives",
"Russian colonial period",
"When was the Russian colonial period?",
"Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives.",
"What did they trade?",
"Rather than hunting the marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them.",
"What did they hunt?",
"I don't know.",
"What else was significant during the Russian colonial period?",
"Catherine the Great, who became Empress in 1763, proclaimed good will toward the Aleut",
"How did they benefit?",
"urged her subjects to treat them fairly. On some islands and parts of the Alaska Peninsula, groups of traders had been capable of relatively peaceful coexistence with the local inhabitants."
]
| C_ea76d8cb68544f4eba487ac9acc63b00_1 | When did this period end? | 6 | When did Russian colonial period end? | Alaska Natives | Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives. New settlements around trading posts were started by Russians, including Russian Orthodox missionaries. These were the first to translate Christian scripture into Native languages. British and American traders generally did not reach the area until the nineteenth century, and in some cases missionaries were not active until the twentieth century. In the 21st century, the numerous congregations of Russian Orthodox Christians in Alaska are generally composed mostly of Alaska Natives. Rather than hunting the marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them. As word spread of the riches in furs to be had, competition among Russian companies increased and they forced the Aleuts into slavery. Catherine the Great, who became Empress in 1763, proclaimed good will toward the Aleut and urged her subjects to treat them fairly. On some islands and parts of the Alaska Peninsula, groups of traders had been capable of relatively peaceful coexistence with the local inhabitants. Other groups could not manage the tensions. Russians took hostages, families were split up, and individuals were forced to leave their villages and settle elsewhere. The growing competition between the trading companies, merging into fewer, larger and more powerful corporations, created conflicts that aggravated the relations with the indigenous populations. Over the years, the situation became catastrophic for the natives. As the animal populations declined, the Aleuts, already too dependent on the new barter economy created by the Russian fur trade, were increasingly coerced into taking greater risks in the dangerous waters of the North Pacific to hunt for more otter. As the Shelikhov-Golikov Company and later Russian-American Company developed as a monopoly, it used skirmishes and systematic violence as a tool of colonial exploitation of the indigenous people. When the Aleut revolted and won some victories, the Russians retaliated, killing many and destroying their boats and hunting gear, leaving them no means of survival. The most devastating effects were from disease: during the first two generations (1741/1759-1781/1799 AD) of Russian contact, 80 percent of the Aleut population died from Eurasian infectious diseases. These were then endemic among the Europeans, but the Aleut had no immunity against the new diseases. CANNOTANSWER | CANNOTANSWER | Alaska Natives or Alaskan Natives are indigenous peoples of Alaska and include Iñupiat, Yupik, Aleut, Eyak, Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and a number of Northern Athabaskan cultures. They are often defined by their language groups. Many Alaska Natives are enrolled in federally recognized Alaska Native tribal entities, who in turn belong to 13 Alaska Native Regional Corporations, who administer land and financial claims.
Ancestors of Alaska Natives migrated into the area thousands of years ago, in at least two different waves. Some are descendants of the third wave of migration, in which people settled across the northern part of North America. They never migrated to southern areas. For this reason, genetic studies show they are not closely related to native peoples in South America. Alaska Natives came from Asia. Anthropologists have stated that their journey from Asia to Alaska was made possible through the Bering land bridge or by traveling through the sea. Throughout the Arctic and the circumpolar north, the ancestors of Alaska Natives established varying indigenous, complex cultures that have succeeded each other over time. They developed sophisticated ways to deal with the challenging climate and environment. Historic groups have been defined by their languages, which belong to several major language families. Today, Alaska Natives constitute more than 15% of the population of Alaska.
List of peoples
Below is a full list of the different Alaska Native peoples, who are largely defined by their historic languages (within each culture are different tribes):
Ancient Beringian
Alaskan Athabaskans
Ahtna
Deg Hit'an
Dena'ina
Gwich'in
Hän
Holikachuk
Koyukon
Lower Tanana
Tanacross
Upper Tanana
Upper Kuskokwim (Kolchan)
Eyak
Tlingit
Haida
Tsimshian
Eskimo
Iñupiat, an Inuit group
Yupik
Siberian Yupik
Yup'ik
Cup'ik
Nunivak Cup'ig
Sugpiaq ~ Alutiiq
Chugach Sugpiaq
Koniag Alutiiq
Aleut (Unangan)
Demographics
The Alaska Natives Commission estimated there were about 86,000 Alaska Natives living in Alaska in 1990, with another 17,000 who lived outside Alaska. A 2013 study by the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development documented more than 120,000 Alaska Native people in Alaska. While the majority of Alaska Natives live in small villages or remote regional hubs such as Nome, Dillingham, and Bethel, the percentage who live in urban areas has been increasing. In 2010, 44% lived in urban areas, compared to 38% in the 2000 census. As of 2018, natives constitute 15.4% of the overall Alaskan population.
History
The modern history of Alaskan natives begins with the arrival of Europeans. Unusually for North America, Russians sailing from Siberia in the eighteenth century were the first to make contact. British and American traders, coming mostly from eastern settlements in North America, generally did not reach the area until the nineteenth century. In some cases, Christian missionaries were not active in Alaska until the twentieth century.
Russian colonial period
During an expedition, Vitus Bering spotted Alaska. Alaskan Natives first came into contact with Russians in the 18th century. Time of contact with Russians varied throughout each native group since the Alaskan natives groups were spread throughout Alaska. Arriving from Siberia by ship in the mid-eighteenth century, Russians began to trade with Alaska Natives in what became known as the Aleutian Islands. They started new settlements around trading posts, and Russian Orthodox missionaries were part of these. The Russian missionaries were the first persons to translate Christian scripture into Native languages, such as Tlingit. In the 21st century, the numerous congregations of Russian Orthodox Christians in Alaska reflect this early history, as they are generally composed mostly of Alaska Natives.
Rather than hunting and harvesting marine life, the Russians forced the Aleuts to do the work for them. As word spread of the riches in furs to be had, competition among Russian companies increased. They forced the Aleuts into slavery. Catherine the Great, who became Empress in 1763, proclaimed good will toward the Aleut and urged her subjects to treat them fairly. The growing competition between the trading companies, which merged into fewer, larger and more powerful corporations, created conflicts that aggravated the relations with the indigenous populations. Over the years, the situation became catastrophic for the natives.
As the animal populations declined, the Aleuts, already dependent on the new barter economy created by their fur trade with the Russians, were increasingly coerced into taking greater risks in the dangerous waters of the North Pacific to hunt for more otter. As the Shelikhov-Golikov Company and later Russian-American Company developed as a monopoly, it used skirmishes and systematic violence as a tool of colonial exploitation of the indigenous people. When the Aleut revolted and won some victories, the Russians retaliated, killing many. They also destroyed the peoples' boats and hunting gear, leaving them no means of survival.
The greatest mortality was caused by the Aleuts' encounters with new diseases: during the first two generations (1741/1759-1781/1799 AD) of Russian contact, 80 percent of the Aleut population died from Eurasian infectious diseases. These had been endemic among the Europeans for centuries, but the Aleut had no immunity against the new diseases.
Effects of Russian colonization
The Russian Tsarist government expanded into Indigenous territory in present-day Alaska for its own geopolitical reasons. It consumed natural resources of the territory during the trading years, and Russian Orthodoxy was evangelized. Their movement into these populated areas of Indigenous communities altered the demographic and natural landscape.
Historians have suggested that the Russian-American Company exploited Indigenous peoples as a source of inexpensive labor. The Russian-American Company not only used Indigenous populations for labor during the fur trade, but also held some as hostages to acquire iasak. Iasak, a form of taxation imposed by the Russians, was a tribute in the form of otter pelts. It was a taxation method the Russians had previously found useful in their early encounter with Indigenous communities of Siberia during the Siberian fur trade. Beaver pelts were also customary to be given to fur traders upon first contact with various communities.
The Russian-American Company used military force on Indigenous families, taking them as hostage until male community members produced furs for them. Otter furs on Kodiak Island and Aleutian Islands enticed the Russians to start these taxations. Robbery and maltreatment in the form of corporal punishment and the withholding of food was also present upon the arrival of fur traders. Catherine the Great dissolved the giving of tribute in 1799, but her government initiated mandatory conscription of Indigenous men between the ages of 18 to 50 to become seal hunters strictly for the Russian American Company. This mandatory labor gave the Russian American Company an edge in competition with American and British fur traders. But the conscription separated men from their families and villages, thus altering and breaking down communities. With able-bodied men away on the hunt, villages were left with little protection as only women, children, and the elderly remained behind.
In addition to changes that came with conscription, the spread of disease also altered the populations of Indigenous communities. Although records kept in the period were scarce, it has been said that 80% of the pre-contact population of the Aleut people were gone by 1800.
Relationships between Indigenous women and fur traders increased as Indigenous men were away from villages. This resulted in marriages and children that would come to be known as Creole peoples, children who were Indigenous and Russian. To reduce hostilities with Aleutian communities, it became policy for fur traders to enter into marriage with Indigenous women. The Creole population increased in the territory controlled by the Russian American Company.
The growth of the Russian Orthodox Church was another important tactic in the colonization and conversion of Indigenous populations. Ioann Veniaminov, who later became Saint Innocent of Alaska, was an important missionary who carried out the Orthodox Church's agenda to Christianize Indigenous populations. The church encouraged Creole children to follow Russian Orthodox Christianity, while the Russian American Company provided them with an education. Creole people were believed to have high levels of loyalty toward the Russian crown and Russian American Company. After completing their education, children were often sent to Russia, where they would study skills such as mapmaking, theology, and military intelligence. In the 1850's Russia lost much of its interest on Alaska.
American colonialism
Alaska has many natural resources. Alaska's natural resources along with its gold caught the attention of the United States. In 1867, the United States purchased Alaska from Russia. It did not consider the wishes of Alaska Natives or view them as citizens. The land that belonged to Alaska Natives was considered to be "open land", which could be claimed by white settlers without redress to the Alaska Natives living there. The only schools for Alaska Natives were those founded by religious missionaries. Most white settlers did not understand the sophisticated cultures the Alaska Natives had developed to live in that challenging place and considered them to be inferior to European Americans. The Americans imposed racial segregation and what were effectively Jim Crow laws applied against the Alaska Natives and treating them as second-class residents. Since Jim Crow law were imposed, it led to segregation amongst Alaskan Natives and Americans. Buildings would even have signs saying that no natives were allowed. There was also segregated schools. In 1880, there was a court case where a child was not allowed to attend a school with Americans because his step father was native. A child that was part native and part American would only be allowed to attend a school with American children if the family has abandoned their culture. This means that they could no longer speak their native language, wear traditional native clothing, be amongst other natives, eat native foods, or practice any native religion.
In 1912, the Alaska Native Brotherhood (ANB) was formed to help fight for citizenship rights. The Alaska Native Sisterhood (ANS) was created in 1915. Also in 1915, the Alaska Territorial legislature passed a law allowing Alaskan Natives the right to vote - but on the condition that they give up their cultural customs and traditions. The Indian Citizenship Act, passed in 1924, gave all Native Americans United States citizenship.
ANB began to hold a great deal of political power in the 1920s. They protested the segregation of Alaska Natives in public areas and institutions, and also staged boycotts. Alberta Schenck (Inupiaq) staged a well-publicized protest against segregation in a movie theater in 1944. With the help of Elizabeth Peratrovich (Tlingit), the Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945 was passed, ending segregation in Alaska.
In 1942, during World War II, the United States forced evacuation of around nine hundred Aleuts from the Aleutian Islands. The idea was to remove the Aleuts from a potential combat zone during World War II for their own protection, but European Americans living in the same area were not forced to leave. The removal was handled so poorly that many Aleuts died after they were evacuated; the elderly and children had the highest mortality rates. Survivors returned to the islands to find their homes and possessions destroyed or looted.
Alaska became part of the United States in 1959 upon President Dwight D. Eisenhower recognizing Alaska as the 49th state.
ANCSA and since (1971 to present)
In 1971, with the support of Alaska Native leaders such as Emil Notti, Willie Hensley, and Byron Mallot, the U.S. Congress passed the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA), which settled land and financial claims for lands and resources which the Alaska Natives had lost to European-Americans. It provided for the establishment of thirteen Alaska Native Regional Corporations to administer those claims. Similar to the separately defined status of the Canadian Inuit and First Nations in Canada, which are recognized as distinct peoples, in the United States, Alaska Natives are in some respects treated separately by the government from other Native Americans in the United States. This is in part related to their interactions with the U.S. government which occurred in a different historic period than its interactions during the period of westward expansion during the 19th-century.
Europeans and Americans did not have sustained encounters with the Alaska Natives until the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries when many were attracted to the region in gold rushes. The Alaska Natives were not allotted individual title in severalty to land under the Dawes Act of 1887 but were instead treated under the Alaska Native Allotment Act of 1906.
It was repealed in 1971, following ANSCA, at which time reservations were ended. Another characteristic difference is that Alaska Native tribal governments do not have the power to collect taxes for business transacted on tribal land, per the United States Supreme Court decision in Alaska v. Native Village of Venetie Tribal Government (1998). Except for the Tsimshian, Alaska Natives no longer hold reservations but do control some lands. Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, Alaska Natives are reserved the right to harvest whales and other marine mammals.
Climate Change
Four indigenous tribes in Alaska, the Shishmaref, Kivalina, Shaktoolik and Newtok tribes, are being considered the first climate refugees for America, due to sea ice melting and increased wildfires in the regions (Bronen and Brubaker). The effects of climate change on the people of Alaska are extensive and include issues such as increased vulnerability to disease, mental health issues, injury, food insecurity, and water insecurity (Brubaker). According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the loss of sea ice will increase erosion area and further displace more native communities. The melting sea ice will also affect the migration of some animals that the tribes rely on and with the ice melting there will be no place to store the food that they do obtain (EPA). Due to the permafrost melting, the infrastructure that has been around in the past will become unstable and native villages will collapse (EPA).
The Shishmaref, Kivalina, Shaktoolik and Newtok tribes are located on the west coast of Alaska and due to sea-level rise the villages are experiencing more severe storm surges that are eroding their coastlines (Bronen). There is no land for these tribes to move to that are already in the area they live in which forces these communities to migrate and change their whole way of living (Bronen). Governments are lacking in response to climate refugees, there are no policies in place to determine where these refugees should go or if they get aid to pay for the cost of traveling (Bronen). It is predicted that a climate event will submerge the tribes completely in less than fifteen years (Bronen).
Extreme weather conditions has increased the risk of injury, usually there are thick layers of ice all year long but due to increasing temperatures in the atmosphere and the sea the ice in becoming thinner and is increasing the number of people who fall through the ice, if a person survives falling through the ice they are faced with other health concerns (Brubaker). Increased water insecurity and failing infrastructure caused by climate change has created sanitation issues which has increased the amount of respiratory illnesses in many regions in Alaska, in 2005 pneumonia was the leading cause of hospitalizations (Brubaker). Many of the affected tribes are experiencing increased mental stress due to climate change and the problem of relocating but no policy or way to relocate (Brubaker). Stress has also increased on villages who face infrastructure damage due to melting permafrost, there are almost no regulations other than the Alaskan government recommended not building on permafrost or using extra layers of insulation that is used on foundation walls (EPA). Food insecurity has also created stress and health issues, families can not get enough food due to animals also relocating to get to a climate that is more suitable to them (Brubaker). Families also do not have a secure food system because their ways of storing food, underground ice cellar, are no longer frozen year long due to climate change, their cellars thaw in the summers leaving their food supply inedible (Brubaker).
Subsistence
Gathering of subsistence food continues to be an important economic and cultural activity for many Alaska Natives. In Utqiaġvik, Alaska in 2005, more than 91 percent of the Iñupiat households which were interviewed still participated in the local subsistence economy, compared with the approximately 33 percent of non-Iñupiat households who used wild resources obtained from hunting, fishing, or gathering.
But, unlike many tribes in the contiguous United States, Alaska Natives do not have treaties with the United States that protect their subsistence rights, except for the right to harvest whales and other marine mammals. The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act explicitly extinguished aboriginal hunting and fishing rights in the state of Alaska.
See also
Ancient Beringian
List of Alaska Native Tribal Entities, the list of Native Villages and other "tribal entities" recognized by the US Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Prehistory of Alaska
First Alaskans Institute
Indigenous Amerindian genetics
Circumpolar peoples
Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast
Indigenous peoples of the Subarctic
Indigenous peoples of Siberia
Alaska Native Storytelling
Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945
Shamanism among Alaska Natives
Women's suffrage in Alaska
References
Sources
Further reading
Chythlook-Sifsof, Callan J. "Native Alaska, Under Threat." (Op-Ed) The New York Times. June 27, 2013.
External links
Alaska Federation of Natives
Alaska Native Health Board
Alaska Native Heritage Center
Alaska Native Language Center
First Alaskans Institute
Tlingit National Anthem, Alaska Natives Online
Arctic Studies Center
American culture | false | [
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"TunnelVision Brilliance is the 2006 debut album by Scott Reeder, former bassist of Kyuss. The album was recorded intermittently over an 18 year period, mainly with song ideas that did not quite fit with the bands Reeder was active with over that time. Reeder performed, recorded and produced the album entirely on his own.\n\nTrack listing\n\"When I Was\" - 1:17 \n\"Thanks\" – 2:56 \n\"The Silver Tree\" – 3:06 \n\"Away\" – 1:29 \n\"Diamond\" – 4:42 \n\"When?\" – 2:24 \n\"For Renee\" – 3:25 \n\"The Day of Neverending\" – 4:12 \n\"Queen of Greed\" – 2:40 \n\"Fuck You All\" – 4:11 \n\"To an End\" – 3:17 \n\"The Fourth\" – 3:34 \n\"As I'm Dreamin'\" – 4:28\n\nPersonnel\nWritten, performed, recorded, and mixed by Scott Reeder\n\nReferences\n\n2006 debut albums\nScott Reeder (bassist) albums"
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