title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: On 5 November 2004, "Queen Elizabeth 2" became Cunard's longest serving express liner, surpassing s 35 years, while on 4 September 2005, during a call to the port of Sydney, Nova Scotia, "QE2" became the longest serving Cunarder, surpassing s record.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: On 20 February 2007 "Queen Elizabeth 2", while on her annual world cruise, met her running mate and successor flagship "QM2" (herself on her maiden world cruise) in Sydney Harbour, Australia. This was the first time two Cunard "Queens" had been together in Sydney since the original "Queen Mary" and "Queen Elizabeth" served as troop ships in 1941.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: On 18 June 2007, it was announced by Cunard that "QE2" had been purchased by the Dubai investment company Istithmar for $100 million. Her retirement, in part, was forced by the oncoming June 2010 implementation of the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) regulations, which would have forced large and expensive structural changes to the ship.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: In a ceremonial display before her retirement, "Queen Elizabeth 2" met and "Queen Mary 2" near the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor on 13 January 2008, with a celebratory fireworks display; "Queen Elizabeth 2" and "Queen Victoria" had made a tandem crossing of the Atlantic for the meet. This marked the first time three "Cunard Queens" had been present in the same location. (Cunard stated this would be the last time these three particular ships would meet, due to the impending retirement of "Queen Elizabeth 2". However, due to a change in "QE2"s schedule, the three ships met again in Southampton on 22 April 2008.)


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: "QE2" shared the harbour at Zeebrugge with "Queen Victoria" on 19 July 2008, where the two Cunarders exchanged whistle blasts.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: On 3 October 2008, "QE2" set off from Cork for Douglas Bay on her farewell tour of Ireland and Britain, before heading for Liverpool. She left Liverpool and arrived in Belfast on 4 October 2008, before moving to Greenock the next day (the ship's height with funnel makes it impossible to pass under the Erskine Bridge so Clydebank is not reachable). There she was escorted by Royal Navy destroyer and visited by . The farewell was viewed by large crowds and concluded with a firework display. "QE2" then sailed around Scotland to the Firth of Forth on 7 October 2008, where she anchored in the shadow of the Forth Bridge. The next day, following an RAF flypast, she left amidst a flotilla of small craft to head to Newcastle upon Tyne, before returning to Southampton.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: "QE2" completed her final Atlantic crossings in tandem with her successor, "QM2". The ships departed for the final westbound crossing from Southampton on October 10, sailing tandem and arriving in New York City one final time on October 16. The Queen Mary 2 docked at the Brooklyn cruise terminal, while the QE2 docked in Manhattan. The two liners departed New York on16 October for the final eastbound crossing, arriving in Southampton on 22 October. This marked the end of "QE2"s transatlantic voyages.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: On her final arrival into Southampton, "QE2" (on 11 November 2008, with 1,700 passengers and 1,000 crew on board) ran aground in the Solent near the Southampton Water entrance at 5.26 am, on a triangular sandbank roughly equidistant between the mouth of Southampton Water and East Cowes named Bramble Bank. BBC reported "Cunard has confirmed it touched the bottom at the Brambles Turn sandbank (sandback) near Calshot, Southampton Water, with three tugs attached to her stern (0530 GMT). A fourth tug secured a line to the ship's bow." Solent Coastguard stated: "Five tugs were sent out to assist her getting off the sandbank, and she was pulled off just before 6.10 am. She had been refloated and was under way under her own power and heading back to her berth in Southampton. She had only partially gone aground, and the tugs pulled her off."


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: Once safely back at her berth, preparations continued for her farewell celebrations. These were led by Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh who toured the ship at great length. He visited areas of interest including the Engine Control Room. He also met with current and former crew members. During this time, divers were sent down to inspect the hull for any possible damage caused by the vessel's earlier mishap – none was found.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: "Queen Elizabeth 2" left Southampton Docks for the final time at 1915 GMT on 11 November 2008, to begin her farewell voyage by the name of ""QE2"s Final Voyage". After purchasing her for US$100 million her ownership passed to Nakheel Properties, a company of Dubai World, on 26 November. The decommissioning of the ship was particularly poignant for "Queen Elizabeth 2"s only permanent resident, Beatrice Muller, aged 89, who lived on board in retirement for fourteen years, at a cost of some £3,500 (~€4,300, ~$5,400) per month.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: At the time of her retirement, "QE2" had sailed 5.6 million miles, carried 2.5 million passengers and completed 806 transatlantic crossings.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: Her final voyage from Southampton to Dubai began on 11 November 2008, arriving on 26 November in a flotilla of 60 smaller vessels, led by MY "Dubai", the personal yacht of Sheikh Mohammed, ruler of Dubai, in time for her official handover the following day.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: She was greeted with a fly-past from an Emirates Airbus A380 jet and a huge fireworks display, while thousands of people gathered at the Mina Rashid, waving the flags of the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates. Since her arrival in Dubai "QE2" remained moored at Port Rashid. Shortly after her final passengers were disembarked, she was moved forward to the cargo area of the port, to free up the passenger terminal for other cruise vessels.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: She was expected to be refurbished and berthed permanently at Nakheel's Palm Jumeirah as "a luxury floating hotel, retail, museum and entertainment destination." The refurbishment planned to see "Queen Elizabeth 2" transformed into a tourist destination in Dubai; however, due to the Global Economic Crisis, "QE2" remained moored at Port Rashid awaiting a decision about her future.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: "QE2" remained an oceangoing vessel at this time, and as such, former Captain Ronald Warwick of "QE2" and ("QM2") and retired commodore of the Cunard Line was initially employed by V-Ships, who managed "QE2" post the Cunard handed her over as the vessel's legal master, but was replaced by other V-Ships captains over time as the ship remained idle.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: It was anticipated that "QE2" would be moved to the Dubai Drydocks sometime in 2009 to begin a series of far-reaching refurbishments which would result in a conversion into a floating hotel.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: Due to the 2008 global recession, it was rumoured that "QE2"s refurbishment and hotel conversion would not take place and that the ship would be resold. These rumours resulted in the owners, Istithmar, issuing a series of press releases stating that plans for QE2's conversion were ongoing, with no intention to sell. However, since arriving in Dubai the only visible exterior change to "QE2" was the painting out of the Cunard titles from the ship's superstructure.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: "QE2" was joined in Mina Rashid by "QM2" on 21 March 2009 while "QM2" visited Dubai as part of her 2009 World Cruise. She was joined once again by ("QV") on 29 March 2009 as a part of her 2009 World Cruise. "QM2" and "QV" again visited "QE2" in 2010 and on 31 March 2011 the new "(QE)" called at Dubai during her maiden world cruise – photos were arranged by Cunard to capture the occasion. "QM2" called in Dubai two days after "QE" left.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: In April 2009, an alleged concept model of the post refurbished "Hotel QE2" was shown for sale on an online auction website. The model depicts a much altered "QE2".


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: In June 2009, the "Southampton Daily Echo" reported that "Queen Elizabeth 2" would return to the UK as an operating cruise ship. However, on 20 July 2009 the owners Nakheel confirmed rumours that "QE2" would re position to Cape Town for use as a floating hotel. On 24 June 2009, "QE2" made her first journey after nearly eight months of inactivity since the liner arrived in Dubai. She manoeuvred under her own power into the Dubai Drydocks for inspection and hull repainting before the then planned voyage to Cape Town's V&A Waterfront to serve there as a floating hotel for the FIFA World Cup 2010 and beyond.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: On 10 July 2009, it was revealed that "QE2" might sail to Cape Town, South Africa, to become a floating hotel for use primarily during the 2010 FIFA World Cup, in a Dubai World sponsored venture at the V&A Waterfront. This was confirmed by Nakheel on 20 July 2009. In preparation for this expected voyage the ship was placed into the Dubai Drydock and underwent an extensive exterior refurbishment. During this refit, the ship's underwater hull was repainted and inspected. Shortly after the refit, "QE2" was registered under the flag of Vanuatu, and Port Vila was painted on her stern, replacing Southampton.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: "QE2" returned to Port Rashid, where it was anticipated she would soon sail for Cape Town. The arrival of "QE2" in Cape Town was expected to create many local jobs including hotel staff, restaurant staff, chefs, cleaners and shop attendants, all being sourced from the local workforce. But, in January 2010, it was confirmed that "QE2" would not be moved to Cape Town.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: In early 2010, due to the continued poor financial performance of Dubai World, there was much media speculation that "QE2", along with other assets owned by Istithmar, Dubai World's private-equity arm, would be sold to raise capital. Despite this sale speculation, a number of alternative locations for QE2 have been cited including London, Singapore, Clydebank, Japan and Fremantle, the latter showing interest in using QE2 as a hotel for the ISAF Sailing World Championships to be held in December 2011. However, as at June 2010 Nakheel's official statement regarding QE2 was that "a number of options being considered for QE2".


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: On 28 January 2011 during a heavy dust storm, "QE2" broke loose from her moorings and drifted out into the channel at Port Rashid. She was attended by pilots and tugs and safely returned to berth at Port Rashid. Images of "QE2"'s unexpected movements appeared on-line after being taken by an observer on the ship in front of QE2.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: Throughout 2011 and 2012, "QE2" remained berthed at Port Mina Rashid in Dubai . She was maintained in a seaworthy condition and generated her own power. Each of her nine diesel generators were turned over and used to power the ship. A live-in crew of approximately 50 people maintained "QE2" to a high standard. Activities include painting, maintenance, cabin checks, and overhauls of machinery. Istithmar were considering plans for "QE2" which could have involved the ship sailing to an alternative location under her own power.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: On 21 March 2011, "QM2" called in Dubai and docked close to "QE2". During the departure, the two ships sounded their horns.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: On 28 September 2011 news circulated that a plan was being formulated to return QE2 to the United Kingdom by berthing her in Liverpool. Liverpool has a historic connection with Cunard Line being the first British home for the line as well as housing the iconic Cunard Building.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: It was revealed that Liverpool Vision, the economic development company responsible for Liverpool's regeneration, has been involved in confidential discussions with Out of Time Concepts, a company headed by a former Chief Engineer on the ship, who recently advised its current owners on plans to turn it into a luxury hotel in Dubai.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: In a letter from Out of Time Concepts to Liverpool Vision, it was explained that "The free global media attention derived from bringing home "Queen Elizabeth 2" will without question promote Liverpool's new waterfront developments, its amazing architecture, its maritime and world heritage sites, its museums, its culture and its history".


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: On the same week that the Liverpool Vision plans were revealed, Nakheel stated that plans for "QE2" to be berthed at The Palm had been dropped because they now planned to build 102 houses on the site which was once intended to be named the QE2 Precinct.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: Nakheel suggested that "Queen Elizabeth 2", under the ownership of Istithmar, would remain at Port Rashid to become an integral part of the growing cruise terminal. "The "QE2" would be placed in a much better location", Ali Rashid Lootah, the chairman of Nakheel, told Dubai's The National newspaper "The Government of Dubai is developing an up-to-date modern cruise terminal which will mean a better environment", confirming the ship would remain in Dubai for the foreseeable future.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: On 31 December 2011, "Queen Elizabeth 2" was the location of a lavish New Year's Eve party in Dubai. The black tie event was run by Global Event Management and included over 1,000 guests. Global Event Management were offering events aboard QE2 in Dubai for 2012 and 2013.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: On 2 July 2012 in a coordinated press release, the ship's owner, operator and Port Rashid operator, DP Ports, jointly announced "QE2" would re-open as a 300-bed hotel after an 18-month refit. The release claims the ship was to be refitted to restore original features, including her 1994–2008 'Heritage Trail' of classic Cunard artefacts. The ship was to be berthed alongside a redeveloped Port Rashid cruise terminal which would double as a maritime museum.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: On 23 December 2012, it was reported that "QE2" had been sold for scrapping in China for £20 million, after a bid to return her to the UK was rejected. With monthly berthing and maintenance charges of £650,000, it was reported that a Chinese salvage crew arrived at the vessel on 21 December, to replace a crew of 40 which has been maintaining the vessel since it arrived at Port Rashid. However, Cunard dismissed the reports as "pure speculation". When the ship was sold in 2007, a clause in the contract which started from her retirement in 2009 stipulated a ten-year "no onward sale" clause, without payment of a full purchase price default penalty.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: The ""QE2" London" Plan had included a £20 million bid for "QE2" and a further £40 million refurbishment that was supposed to create more than 2,000 jobs in London, with "Queen Elizabeth 2" docked near the O2 Arena. It had reportedly obtained the support of the then London Mayor Boris Johnson.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: On 17 January 2013, the Dubai Drydocks World announced that "Queen Elizabeth 2" would be sent to an unknown location in Asia to serve as a floating luxury hotel, shopping mall, and museum. Despite this move, the QE2 London team stated on the same day that "We believe our investors can show Dubai that "QE2" London is still the best proposal".


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: Cunard's 175th anniversary celebrations on 25 May 2015 led to renewed interest in "Queen Elizabeth 2". John Chillingworth secured the backing of London mayor Boris Johnson for a plan to anchor the ship opposite The O2 Arena at Greenwich. A move to London however would require the ship to pass through the Thames Barrier. In late 2015 there was disagreement between ship preservation advocates and harbour authorities on whether a dead ship of her size could safely manoeuvre through the barrier. John Houston suggested returning the ship to Greenock as a maritime attraction, hotel and events space.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: Inverclyde Council leader Stephen McCabe has called on the UK and Scottish governments to campaign to buy the ship, saying that "Bringing the "QE2" home is a Herculean task, one that requires national support in Scotland and perhaps across the UK, if it has any chance of happening." In January 2016 Aubrey Fawcett, the chair of the working group to regenerate the Clyde, admitted defeat in this effort as "QE2's" owners refused to respond to any requests regarding her condition or sale. "Consequently, we must conclude that it is highly unlikely that Scotland features in the future plans for the vessel."


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: On 12 August 2015, the QE2 was observed to have been moved from her berth within Dubai Dry Docks, where she had been since January 2013, to a more open location within Port Rashid. On 17 November 2015, QE2 was again moved within Port Rashid, to the former cruise terminal. It was not known whether these recent moves are connected with any of the publicly known plans regarding the ship's fate.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: Between May and August 2016, observers noted that the ship's lifeboats were lowered and stored on a nearby car park. Following this, the lifeboat davits were removed in September, giving the ship an altered profile on her boat deck. Subsequently, the wooden decking was removed from the deck and replaced by synthetic block flooring.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: September 2017 marked the 50th anniversary of QE2's launch. To mark the occasion, Cunard Line, the ship's former owners, arranged a commemorative voyage aboard MS "Queen Elizabeth" – a 17-night cruise, with special activities and theme days. Meanwhile, in Glasgow, the QE2 Story Forum hosted a 50th anniversary conference with Captain Nick Bates as a speaker. Several books were released for the anniversary, including "Building the Queen Elizabeth 2" by Cunard historian Michael Gallagher, and "QE2: A 50th Anniversary Celebration" by Chris Frame and Rachelle Cross.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: "Queen Elizabeth 2" reopened as a floating hotel on 18 April 2018, following an extensive refurbishment. Over 2.7 million man-hours were committed to the work to upgrade and rebuild the ship to meet hotel standards. This included a full hull repaint and the replacing of Port Vila registry with Dubai on her stern. It is a 'soft opening', while remaining work continues.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: On board is a new QE2 Heritage Exhibition, adjacent to the lobby, detailing the vessel's history. As of April 2018 the grand opening for the completed hotel and attraction was set for October 2018. The ship was operated by PCFC Hotels, a division of the Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation, which is owned by the Dubai government. The ship was sold in May 2022 to Accor, a French hospitality group. Accor has announced plans to further renovate the vessel; following completion there will be 447 hotel rooms for public booking.


title: Queen Elizabeth 2

text: The theatre on board the QE2 has been branded "Theatre by QE2" and regularly has shows including comedians like Jack Whitehall, tribute acts and family shows. Details of upcoming shows can be found at the Theatre website.


title: LMFAO

text: LMFAO (an initialism for Laughing My Freaking Ass Off or Laughing My Fucking Ass Off) are an American electronic dance music duo consisting of Redfoo and Sky Blu. Redfoo is the youngest son of Motown Records founder Berry Gordy and Nancy Leiviska. Sky Blu is Gordy's grandson and the son of Redfoo's half-brother, Berry Gordy IV, Gordy's son with his first wife Thelma Coleman.


title: LMFAO

text: Redfoo and Sky Blu grew up in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles, where they formed the group LMFAO in 2006 and later became part of the electro house scene. LMFAO started building a local buzz through its shows and radio play. In 2010, they were featured on David Guettas song "Gettin' Over You", which charted all over Europe and the United States, including reaching number one on the UK Singles Chart.


title: LMFAO

text: LMFAO is known for their song "Party Rock Anthem", which topped the charts in the United Kingdom, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, New Zealand, Switzerland, and the United States. "Party Rock Anthem" also reached the top five in Italy and Norway and was the third best-selling digital single of 2011 with sales of 9.7 million copies worldwide. In September 2012, the duo announced they would be taking an indefinite hiatus.


title: LMFAO

text: LMFAO began their career in 2006 as part of the electro house club scene in Los Angeles, which at the time featured DJ/producers like Steve Aoki and Adam Goldstein. The duo started building a local buzz through its shows and radio play. Once it had recorded some demos, Redfoo's best friend will.i.am introduced them to Interscope head Jimmy Iovine who gave the green light for them to be signed to Interscope/will.i.am Music. Interscope A&R and will.i.am manager Neil Jacobson told HitQuarters that the demos sounded like "finished records" and that so little artist development work was needed it was essentially a "turnkey operation" for the label. According to LMFAO they were originally going to call themselves "Sexy Dudes", but changed their name to LMFAO after telling SkyBlu's grandmother.


title: LMFAO

text: LMFAO released "Party Rock EP" on the iTunes music store on July 1, 2008, and released its full album on July 7, 2009. The album charted at number 33 on the "Billboard" 200 and number two on the U.S. Dance Chart. "Los Angeles Times" described "Party Rock" as "14 virtually interchangeable odes to night life." Its first single was "I'm in Miami Bitch", which was released in December 2008, and peaked at number 51 on the "Billboard" Hot 100 and number 37 in Canada. In early 2009, a little known DJ/producer 'DJ Inphinity' created a bootleg using the Silvio Ecomo remix of DJ Chuckie's 2008 hit "Let the Bass Kick" and the a cappella of LMFAO, creating "Bass Kick in Miami". The bootleg was spread across the internet and became a massive success at the Miami Winter Music Conference 2009. Weeks later the song became the theme song for the E! television show "Kourtney and Khloé Take Miami" and "Get Crazy" was used for the television show "Jersey Shore" in 2009. LMFAO were a featured storyline on MTV's "" in August 2009, which covered the group's appearance in Cancun during 2009 Spring break. That same year, LMFAO was featured in The Crystal Method's song "Sine Language".


title: LMFAO

text: In 2010, LMFAO was featured in David Guettas song "Gettin' Over You", which was an international hit, peaking in the top ten in eleven countries and at number one in three of them, including in the United Kingdom. It also peaked at number 31 on the U.S. Hot 100 and at number 12 in Canada.


title: LMFAO

text: In March 2011, LMFAO released their official music video "Party Rock Anthem" featuring Lauren Bennett and GoonRock, which has over 2 billion views on YouTube.


title: LMFAO

text: The duo then recorded their second album, "Sorry for Party Rocking" late in 2010 and released it on June 17, 2011, in the U.S. The first single taken from the album, "Party Rock Anthem", was released on January 25, 2011. It features British singer Lauren Bennett formerly of the girl pop group Paradiso Girls and producer GoonRock, and showcases the Melbourne Shuffle dance style in its popular video. The song is the most successful of their career, peaking at number one in the United States, Canada, the UK, and over ten other countries, as well being in the top ten in many others. The second single from "Sorry for Party Rocking", "Champagne Showers", was released on May 27, 2011, and features English singer-songwriter Natalia Kills. The third single, "Sexy and I Know It", was released on October 3, 2011, and reached number one on the iTunes charts worldwide and number one on the Australian and Canadian Hot 100.


title: LMFAO

text: Also in 2011, LMFAO embarked on their first Asian tour. They performed in Singapore, Manila, Taipei, and Kuala Lumpur, among other cities. On June 30, 2011, LMFAO performed a set on the Isle of MTV 2011 Malta Special on the Fosos (Granaries) in Floriana, Malta, in front of a crowd of 50,000, together with Far East Movement and Snoop Dogg.


title: LMFAO

text: Furthermore, the group LMFAO focused on growing its Party Rock clothing line and was one of the opening acts for American singer Kesha's Get Sleazy Tour, along with Spank Rock and Natalia Kills, for the third and fifth legs of the tour in 2011. On August 13, 2011, it opened for Kesha at the St-Jean-sur-Richelieu hot air balloon festival in Quebec, Canada, attracting close to 100,000 fans.


title: LMFAO

text: On August 29, 2011, LMFAO filmed a video for its new single "Sexy and I Know It" in Venice Beach, California. Pornographic actor Ron Jeremy is featured in the video, which focuses thematically on male genitalia. Actors Simon Rex and Wilmer Valderrama, Andrew Furr (as Shufflebot) and mixed martial artist Alistair Overeem also make cameo appearances. The song achieved success similar to that of "Party Rock Anthem", topping charts all over the world. "Sexy and I Know It" became the duo's second number one in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The group guested on the first elimination show of the 13th series of "Dancing with the Stars" on September 20, 2011, which was broadcast live.


title: LMFAO

text: In October 2011, LMFAO's song "Party Rock Anthem" was used in a Halloween house light show when a Southern California man timed lights to the popular song. After the YouTube video of the house went viral, even receiving news coverage, the duo visited the house and recorded a Kia commercial featuring the house. In December 2011, the group played "Party Rock Anthem" on a live national television broadcast of "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve".


title: LMFAO

text: On February 5, 2012, the group appeared with Madonna at Super Bowl XLVI during the Halftime Show. It performed during her song "Music", which contained a mash-up with "Party Rock Anthem" and "Sexy and I Know It". During the commercial break they also appeared in a Budweiser ad featuring their remix of Madonna's single "Give Me All Your Luvin'", which is included in the video game "FIFA Street" and on the deluxe edition of her album "MDNA". Also, in 2012 Redfoo was sued by a previous management company for $7 million, claiming a breach of contract.


title: LMFAO

text: On September 21, 2012, the duo released a statement announcing their hiatus. Redfoo said, "I feel like we've been doing this for so long, four or five years" and that he and SkyBlu would not be performing together anytime soon as they would be taking their careers in different directions. Once the news surfaced that band members Redfoo and SkyBlu had split, the group went to MTV News to set the record straight. SkyBlu said, "Well, you know, first of all, we're not breaking up. I know that for sure. We're family and stuff, so it's always love ... It's interesting because somebody will say one thing [and] it's just like high school, then all of a sudden [it's] 'They're breaking up. They're fighting. However, it was revealed by SkyBlu that their plan is for fans to see the band as individuals and then come back "stronger than ever".


title: LMFAO

text: In 2015, the band alleged that Muskegon, Michigan-based Pigeon Hill Brewing Co.'s LMFAO Stout infringed on its trademarked name, according to a cease-and-desist letter sent on August 11. After weeks of litigation, the Pigeon Hill Brewing Company announced that both they and the band LMFAO had reached an agreement resulting in the brewery retaining its trademark for its LMFAO Stout.


title: LMFAO

text: Redfoo cited Michael Jackson and Madonna as the group's two greatest influences. LMFAO is also influenced by a vast range of other artists, including rappers Tupac Shakur and Snoop Dogg, hip hop groups Black Eyed Peas, Run D.M.C. and the Wu-Tang Clan, R&B artist James Brown and rock bands The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, and Steel Panther as well as DJ AM, who helped introduce them to the electronic music scene. The Australian dance style the Melbourne Shuffle features heavily in the "Party Rock Anthem" videoclip, fused with US hip-hop dance elements. In 2007, LMFAO attended the Winter Music Conference in Miami, Florida, which the duo says was an experience that inspired their musical and creative style.


title: LMFAO

text: The Shuffle Bot is a character best known for his appearances in the LMFAO music videos. The Shuffle Bot is portrayed by American disc jockey, dancer and rapper Andrew Furr, who won an online shuffling contest that promised the winner a place alongside hip-hop dance group Quest Crew who had joined the LMFAO's troupe as winners of a dance contest on MTV's "America's Best Dance Crew".


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Sherilyn Fenn (born Sheryl Ann Fenn; February 1, 1965) is an American actress and author. She came to attention for her performance as Audrey Horne on the television series "Twin Peaks" (1990–1991, 2017) for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: She is also known for her roles in "Wild at Heart" (1990), "Of Mice and Men" (1992), "Boxing Helena" (1993), the television sitcom "Rude Awakening" (1998–2001), "The United States of Leland" (2003), "Shameless" (2016), and "Shining Vale" (2022).


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Fenn was born Sheryl Ann Fenn on February 1, 1965, in Detroit, Michigan. She comes from a family of musicians: her mother is keyboard player Arlene Quatro, her aunt is singer Suzi Quatro, her grandfather Art Quatro was a jazz musician, and her father, Leo Fenn, managed such rock bands as Suzi Quatro's The Pleasure Seekers, Alice Cooper, and The Billion Dollar Babies. Fenn is of Italian and Hungarian descent on her mother's side, and of Irish and French descent on her father's. She was raised Catholic.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Fenn frequently traveled with her mother and two older brothers before the family settled in Los Angeles when she was 17. Not wanting to start with a new school again, Fenn dropped out after her junior year and decided to pursue acting, enrolling at the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Fenn began her career with a number of B-movies, including "The Wild Life" (1984, opposite Chris Penn), the 1986 skater film "Thrashin'" (opposite Josh Brolin and Pamela Gidley), the 1986 teen car action and revenge fantasy "The Wraith" (alongside Charlie Sheen and opposite Nick Cassavetes), the 1987 horror film "Zombie High" (alongside Virginia Madsen), and the "Beauty and the Beast"-inspired erotic movie "". She had a part in the 1985 cult teen-comedy "Just One of the Guys" in which she tries to seduce a teenaged girl who was disguised as a boy, played by Joyce Hyser. Fenn starred alongside Johnny Depp in the 1985 short student film "Dummies", directed by Laurie Frank for the American Film Institute. Fenn and Depp dated for three and a half years, subsequently getting engaged. In 1987, she joined Depp in a season-one episode of "21 Jump Street" called "Blindsided".


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Fenn has described many of these early films as sexploitation films "where directors tried to convince [her] to appear naked after the contract was signed." In a February 1993 interview she explained:


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Fenn landed her first starring role, as an engaged heiress to an old Southern family who falls for carnival worker Richard Tyson, in Zalman King's erotic drama film "Two Moon Junction", after which she wanted to hide for a year: "I was so embarrassed about how it turned out that I went into a cocoon for a year afterwards." "Junction" was meant to be Fenn's big break, but the film turned into another sexploitation film.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: After these film experiences, Fenn decided to take control of her career. "I decided to be more myself and not to be pushed into what other people wanted me to be. It's scary how little imagination many people in this business have."


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Fenn won her most famous role and made an impression on the public when she was cast by David Lynch and Mark Frost as the tantalizing, reckless Audrey Horne, a high school "femme fatale", in the TV series "Twin Peaks". The series ran from 1990 to 1991, and the character of Audrey was one of the most popular with fans, in particular for her unrequited love for FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper (played by Kyle MacLachlan) and her style from the 1950s (with her saddle shoes, plaid skirts, and tight sweaters). Fenn reached cult status with a scene in which she danced to Angelo Badalamenti's music and a scene in which she knotted a cherry stem in her mouth. "With Sherilyn Fenn, "Twin Peaks" came on and effortlessly destroyed every other show's sexuality", said James Marshall, one of her cast-mates. Speaking in September 1990, Fenn pointed out: "Audrey is a woman-child who dresses like the girls in the '50s and shows her body. But she's daddy's little girl at the same time." In the show's second season, when the idea of pairing Audrey with Cooper was abandoned, Audrey was paired with other characters like Bobby Briggs (played by Dana Ashbrook) and John Justice Wheeler (Billy Zane). About Audrey, Fenn said:


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Shortly after shooting the "Twin Peaks"' pilot episode, David Lynch gave her a small part in "Wild at Heart", as a girl injured in a car wreck, obsessed by the contents of her purse, alongside Nicolas Cage and Laura Dern. The film won the Golden Palm Award at the 1990 Cannes Film Festival. "David's direction was, 'Only think of this: bobby pins, lipstick, wallet, comb, that's it.' It's very abstract." "I just pictured her being able to do this," said Lynch of her scene, "she's like a broken China doll." David Lynch, who once described Sherilyn Fenn as "five feet of heaven in a ponytail" (quoting from a 1958 record by The Playmates), said to Banner, who used that description as the title of his article, "She's a mysterious girl and I think that actresses like her who have a mystery – where there's something hiding beneath the surface – are the really interesting ones." "He's very creative and unafraid of taking chances," she said of the director. "I really respect him. He's wonderful." Also during this period, Fenn appeared on the cover and in a nude pictorial in the December 1990 edition of "Playboy" magazine.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: She soon portrayed John Dillinger's girlfriend Billie Frechette in ABC's 1991 gangster TV movie "Dillinger" opposite Mark Harmon, and shot the neo-noir black comedy "Desire and Hell at Sunset Motel" in which she played a sultry, seductive "femme fatale".


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: After "Twin Peaks", Fenn chose to focus on widening her range of roles and was determined to avoid typecasting. She stated, "They've offered me every variation on Audrey Horne, none of which were as good or as much fun." She turned down the Audrey Horne spinoff series that was offered to her, and unlike most of the cast, chose not to return for the 1992 prequel movie "", as she was then shooting "Of Mice and Men".


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: After two nominations (Emmy and Golden Globe) for "Twin Peaks", and the pictorial in "Playboy" mentioned above, Fenn was propelled to stardom and became a major sex symbol, with her Old Hollywood looks. In October 1990, while promoting "Twin Peaks", Fenn made the cover of "Rolling Stone" magazine along with Mädchen Amick and Lara Flynn Boyle. In 1990 "Us Magazine" chose her as one of the "10 Most Beautiful Women in the World" and in 1991 "People" magazine chose her as one of the "50 Most Beautiful Women in the World". She posed for photographer Steven Meisel for the autumn-winter 1991–1992 Dolce & Gabbana campaign, for which he photographed her as a classical Hollywood "femme fatale". In 1992, photographer George Hurrell took a series of photographs of Sherilyn Fenn, Sharon Stone, Julian Sands, Raquel Welch, Eric Roberts, and Sean Penn. In these portraits, he recreated his style of the 1930s, with Fenn posing in costumes, hairstyle, and makeup of the period.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: In 1991, Hollywood acting coach Roy London chose her to star in his directorial debut "Diary of a Hitman", in which she plays a young mother determined to protect her child from hit man Forest Whitaker. According to Fenn, the turning point in her career was when she met London in 1990. She credits him with instilling confidence and newfound enthusiasm. She learned from her beloved teacher "to find the roles that you're passionate about, that speak to you on some level and which will help you grow on some level," which has then become her line of conduct. "A lot of the sentiment that acting should be about an art form rather than mass entertainment and celebrity is at the core of Fenn's attitude to the business," wrote Jessica Sully in Australian magazine "Movie". "I try to keep myself centered," Fenn said. "I don't go to parties and all that. I don't think being seen or being in the right place is going to make me a better actress. I care about my work and try to do what's right in my heart." As Mike Bygrave wrote in "Sky Magazine": "One of the keys to understanding Fenn is that when she talks about the characters she plays she's really talking about herself." Fenn was eager to play varied parts that could eclipse her sex-symbol image. "People who think they know me would be surprised that my whole life doesn't revolve around sex," she said. After "Twin Peaks", Fenn demanded a no-nudity clause in her contracts. She turned to independent films, choosing varied and unusual roles:


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: A highlight of Fenn's film career is Gary Sinise's film adaptation of "Of Mice and Men", in which she played a sad and lonely country wife, desperately in need to talk to somebody, opposite Sinise and John Malkovich. "Sherilyn's one of the reasons we got such a great ovation at Cannes", said Sinise. "She's like a terribly sad angel in this film. Sherilyn plays against just being a sexy and beautiful girl," he added. "Gary Sinise was one of the first people who didn't see me like a lot of other people did", she said. "It was a wonderful experience. Horton Foote adapted the novel and he fleshed out my character, and he made her much, much more." The same year, she starred alongside Danny Aiello and others in John Mackenzie's "Ruby", about Jack Ruby. Fenn played the part of ambitious stripper Sheryl Ann DuJean, a fictitious character who is a composite of several real-life women including stripper Candy Barr, Marilyn Monroe, and Judith Campbell Exner. "She's got a brain and all the right emotional instincts, and that's a great combination," said Mackenzie of Fenn.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: In 1993, she starred in the romantic comedy "Three of Hearts" as Kelly Lynch and William Baldwin's love interest. During the shooting, the relationship between Fenn and director Yurek Bogayevicz became strained as she refused to appear nude in the film.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Another of her notable film roles was in "Boxing Helena", directed by David Lynch's daughter Jennifer Chambers Lynch. Fenn portrayed a narcissistic seductress amputated and imprisoned by Julian Sands, who makes her become his personal Venus de Milo in an effort to possess her. Fenn said of the film, "Society, Hollywood, some men... they want to wrap women up in a neat little package." Both Lynch and Fenn were proud of their work in it, but the film was ultimately a critical and commercial failure. However, both women enjoyed their collaboration. "Sherilyn is an amazing actress, a total bundle of energy and a real powerhouse and I think people will see a side of her that we have never seen of Sherilyn anywhere else before," said Lynch of the actress. "Jennifer's one of the brightest person I know," said Fenn. ""Boxing Helena was"... not perfect, but I think for the story that we were trying to tell, it turned out pretty good. What it signified was really powerful to me: how society puts us in boxes one way or another."


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: She then starred in Carl Reiner's neo-noir parody "Fatal Instinct" as Armand Assante's devoted secretary and Sean Young's and Kate Nelligan's rival. She was asked to read for the "femme fatale" Lola (eventually played by Young), but opted for the secretary role.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Fenn afterward portrayed Potiphar's wife Zulaikha in Showtime's 1995 Biblical TV movie "Slave of Dreams" opposite Adrian Pasdar and Edward James Olmos.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: In 1995, she starred in an episode of "Tales from the Crypt" directed by Robert Zemeckis, alongside Isabella Rossellini and John Lithgow, in which she played the lover of Humphrey Bogart, who appeared in the episode via CGI special effects.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: After a short break during which she married and gave birth to a son, Fenn was chosen out of more than 100 actresses to portray actress Elizabeth Taylor in NBC's 1995 telemovie "". Fenn called the role "probably the hardest job I've ever done." "Director Kevin Connor and I arranged a lunch, not an audition," said executive producer Lester Persky. "We knew 10 minutes into our meeting that Sherilyn was it. She has the same striking beauty, and because of that she's experienced some of the things in life and in this business that make Elizabeth such a fascinating person." When she accepted the part, Fenn was unaware that Taylor was embroiled in a lawsuit intended to stop both the broadcast of the film and the unauthorized biography that it was based on. Fenn stated about the controversy, "I am somebody who doesn't make choices lightly at this point of my life. I'm not somebody who wants to exploit another's woman story or life in any way." Fenn felt a kinship with Taylor, stating, "There are stereotypes of what a beautiful woman is. She struggled with that. A certain part of her life she went on that calling card. I certainly know I've come into contact with that. 'You are too pretty,' I'm told." During the shooting, Fenn supported the original screenwriter's effort to concentrate on Taylor the person, not the legend:


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: In 1997, she stated: "It was crazy, I was very picky. In other words, I didn't take advantage of what was happening necessarily then." Also, she has attributed her failure to adapt to the Hollywood system to her frankness and her dislike for the "Hollywood game."


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: She then began to alternate TV movies and independent films. In 1996, she joined the ensemble cast in the romantic comedy "Lovelife" as a waitress who attempts to become a writer and has to rebuild her life. Fenn also appeared in the 1997 romantic comedy "Just Write", along with Jeremy Piven, as the dream actress of a Hollywood tour bus driver, who mistakes him for a famous screenwriter. Both films have been well-received on the festival circuit.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: In a 1997 episode of "Friends," "The One with Phoebe's Ex-Partner," which was Episode 14 of Season 3 of the show, Fenn guest-starred as Matt LeBlanc's ex-girlfriend Ginger, who has a prosthetic right leg. She stated, "I like the show. I was happy to be a part of it."


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: The same year, she was cast as the female lead in ABC's show "Prey" (originally entitled "Hungry for Survival") and starred in the unaired original pilot episode. However, after the filming was done and post-production work almost wrapped up, the studio heads abruptly changed course, replacing Fenn with Debra Messing and reshooting the entire pilot. "Prey" went on for one season before getting cancelled.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Fenn starred in the 1998 British psychological drama "Darkness Falls" as a wealthy and neglected wife, who is sequestered with her husband (played by Tim Dutton) by a man (Ray Winstone) determined to understand the events that led to his wife ending up in a coma. Fenn called the film "a wonderful character piece" While shooting the film in the Isle of Man in late 1997, Fenn considered settling in London to start a European career, but eventually decided to stay in the U.S.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Fenn gained newfound enthusiasm with the lead role in Showtime's sitcom "Rude Awakening" as Billie Frank, an alcoholic ex-soap opera actress, who tries to go sober and become a writer, but continues to struggle with her self-destructive habits. The series ran from 1998 to 2001 and co-starred Lynn Redgrave, Jonathan Penner, and Mario Van Peebles. She said of it:


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: In 1999, she reteamed with Chris Penn and Adrian Pasdar for Pasdar's art-house directorial debut, the neo-noir "Cement," a contemporary retelling of "Othello" in which she played a tempting but imprudent wife of jealous corrupt cop Penn. "I play a character who's selfish and sloppy with her sexual energy. I saw the film and I was really happy with it. It's got a lot of soul." The film, which won Best Picture awards on the festival circuit, was written by "Farscape"'s screenwriter, Justin Monjo and also starred Jeffrey Wright and Henry Czerny. She also reteamed with actor/director Bruce Davison for his 2001 family comedy, Showtime's "Off Season" alongside Rory Culkin, Hume Cronyn, and Adam Arkin.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Fenn subsequently starred alongside Jon Tenney in the pilot for a remake of ABC's "Love, American Style," for the 1998–1999 television season. Although the show wasn't picked up, it did air as a TV special on February 20, 1999. Guest stars include Mariska Hargitay, Steven Eckholdt, Fenn, Jon Tenney, Melissa Joan Hart, Matt Letscher, Joely Fisher, Tom Verica, and writer/producer Winnie Holzman ("My So-Called Life").


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Following "Rude Awakening," Fenn's has made a number of episodic TV appearances. In the middle of the 2000s, she was involved in many projects that went unrealized.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: In 2001, she starred in "The Outer Limits" episode "Replica", playing a scientist who volunteered to be cloned. She also starred in an episode of "Night Visions", as a woman who buys a used car possessed by a vengeful spirit. She was cast as a kindergarten teacher for the pilot of the 2001 American version of the British TV show "Blind Men", alongside French Stewart. However, the pilot was not ordered into a series.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: In 2002, Fenn was one of several former "Twin Peaks" stars, such as Dana Ashbrook and Mädchen Amick, to have a recurring role on The WB's "Dawson's Creek". She guest-starred in three episodes from the fifth season, as Alex Pearl, the seductive manager of the restaurant where Joshua Jackson works. Fenn was afterwards cast as Harley Quinn in The WB's "Birds of Prey", but was replaced by Mia Sara before the series began. Fenn starred in the original pilot episode, but dropped out, due to scheduling conflicts, as the show's creators realized that the character Harley Quinn would need to be a bigger part of the show. She also played a manipulative woman in a season-four episode of "" versus both Christopher Meloni and Mariska Hargitay, and appeared in "Watching Ellie".


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Fenn played a crime boss in the 2002 film "Swindle" alongside Tom Sizemore. She had a small role in the film "The United States of Leland" alongside Ryan Gosling, in which she played a mother who captivates a troubled teenage boy.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: In 2003, Fenn appeared on The WB's "Gilmore Girls" as Sasha, the girlfriend of Jess Mariano's estranged father (played by Rob Estes) in the season-three episode "Here Comes the Son", which was the back-door pilot for a California-set spin-off titled "Windward Circle", that was to have starred Milo Ventimiglia, Estes, and Fenn. But the network dropped the project, citing cost issues due to filming on location in Venice, California.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: She then played the recurring part of Violet Montgomery on Fox's "Boston Public" (2003–2004), and appeared in Showtime's "Cavedweller" (2004) opposite Kyra Sedgwick. In 2004, Fenn joined former co-star Mark Harmon in an episode of "NCIS", as an amnesiac woman. She was afterwards cast for the 2004 remake of "Mister Ed", planned for the Fox network—but after the pilot was shot, the show's writer/producer, Drake Sather, committed suicide, and the pilot was not aired.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: In 2004, Fenn co-starred opposite Traci Lords and Paul Johansson in Emily Skopov's "Novel Romance," released in 2006, in which she played a pregnancy shop owner who herself cannot have children. She then appeared in the martial arts film "Lesser of Three Evils" alongside Ho Sung Pak, Peter Greene, and Roger Guenveur Smith, as the unbalanced and alcoholic wife of a corrupt detective. The film was released in 2009 under the title "Fist of the Warrior."


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: In 2005, Fenn made a notable appearance on "The 4400", playing Jean DeLynn Baker, a 4400 who has the ability to grow toxin-emitting spores on her hands. She also guest-starred on the final episode of "Judging Amy."


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: After finishing the Russia-set action film "Treasure Raiders" with David Carradine, Fenn starred in the Canadian psychological thriller "Presumed Dead," alongside Duncan Regehr, as a detective working on a missing-person case who has to outwit a crime novelist.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: In 2006, Fenn reteamed with Amy Sherman-Palladino and reappeared in the sixth and seventh seasons of "Gilmore Girls" as Anna Nardini, the ex-girlfriend of Luke Danes (played by Scott Patterson) and protective mother to his daughter April. Since the failure of the 2003 "Gilmore Girls" spin-off project, Sherman-Palladino had continued to want to work with Fenn again, and she wrote the character of Anna with her in mind. When asked why she cast Fenn for two different roles on "Gilmore Girls," Sherman-Palladino explained: However, after Sherman-Palladino left the show, the direction for the character changedthe producers decided to make her character a villain in a custody battle.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Fenn was cast as the female lead in ABC's 2006 comedy series "Three Moons Over Milford," but she was ultimately replaced by Elizabeth McGovern. Fenn was slated for a recurring role on CBS's 2006 crime drama "Smith," but the show was quickly canceled.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: She appeared in the 2007 "Dukes of Hazzard" prequel, "" as Lulu Hogg. "It's just a fun silly role," Fenn said. But having already worked with director Robert Berlinger on "Rude Awakening," she wanted to do so again.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: In July 2006, shortly after shooting "The Dukes of Hazzard" prequel, Fenn stepped behind the camera for the first time and directed in Pittsburgh a documentary film about child enrichment program CosmiKids and its founder, Judy Julin. She subsequently joined its executive team in 2007 as executive director of the film and television division. In July 2008, Fenn filmed "The Scenesters", a black comedy made by Los Angeles-based comedy group The Vacationeers, which premiered in October 2009. In July 2009, Fenn made a guest appearance on "In Plain Sight" as a lesbian counterfeiter.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: In December 2010, Fenn appeared on "Psych" with other "Twin Peaks" actors on the season 5 episode "Dual Spires" as sultry librarian Maudette Hornsby. The episode paid homage to "Twin Peaks" with many references to the show. She reprised her role as Audrey Horne in 2017 for the third season of "Twin Peaks". In February 2016, she joined the cast of the American version of "Shameless."


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: In 2016, Fenn wrote and published a children's book titled "No Man's Land", about a boy who has autism. She was inspired to write the book after her second son, Christian, was diagnosed with autism.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: Fenn dated pop singer Prince for a short time during 1985 and then Johnny Depp the same year; their relationship lasted several years.


title: Sherilyn Fenn

text: In 1994, Fenn married guitarist-songwriter Toulouse Holliday, whom she met on the set of "Three of Hearts".


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: Harry Reid International Airport is an international airport in Paradise, Nevada, and is the main government airport for public use in the Las Vegas Valley, a metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Nevada, about south of Downtown Las Vegas. The airport is owned by the Clark County Commission and operated by the Clark County Department of Aviation. LAS covers of land.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: The airport was built in 1942 and opened to airline flights in 1948. It has expanded and employed various innovative technologies, such as common-use facilities. The airport has four runways and two passenger terminals. East of the passenger terminals is the Marnell Air Cargo Center; on the airport's west side are fixed-base operators and helicopter companies. The airport services as a base for Allegiant Air, Frontier Airlines, Southwest Airlines, and Spirit Airlines.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: The airport is named after U.S. Senator Harry Reid, who represented Nevada in the Senate from 1987 to 2017. Between 1968 and December 14, 2021, the airport was called McCarran International Airport; before 1968, it was named McCarran Field after U.S. Senator Pat McCarran, who represented Nevada from 1933 to 1954.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: The first airport at Las Vegas was Anderson Field, opened in November 1920 southeast of present-day Sahara Ave and Paradise Rd. Purchased by the Rockwell brothers in 1925, the airfield was renamed Rockwell Field, and in April 1926 Western Air Express (WAE) began carrying mail (and eventually passengers). When the brothers sold Rockwell Field and the new owner canceled WAE's lease, the airline had to look for another airport. Local businessman P. A. Simon had built an airfield northeast of the city (now Nellis Air Force Base) and WAE moved there in November 1929 and bought the field a few years later.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: When the city tried to buy the field and build a more modern terminal, WAE refused, but with the advent of World War II WAE was pressured to sell. Nevada Senator Pat McCarran helped obtain federal funding for the city to buy the field and build a terminal. He also helped establish a gunnery school by the United States Army Air Corps at the field. For the senator's contributions, the airport was named in 1941.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: A third airfield, Alamo Field, was established in 1942 by aviator George Crockett south of Las Vegas, at the present location of Harry Reid International Airport. The Army sought to open a base at the site of McCarran Field, so Clark County purchased Alamo Field to make it its airline airport. Alamo Field became the new McCarran Field on December 19, 1948. Meanwhile, the Army reopened its base at the original McCarran Field in 1949 and named it Nellis Air Force Base in 1950.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: In its first year of operation McCarran Field served over 36,000 passengers. The April 1949 OAG shows 12 departures a day: 5 Western, 5 TWA and 2 United. The Las Vegas casino industry grew during the 1950s, and the airport handled 959,603 passengers in 1959. The May 1959 OAG shows 47 weekday departures: 13 Western, 11 United, 11 TWA, 9 Bonanza and 3 Pacific. The first jet flights were United 720s in September 1960.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: Airport officials began planning a new passenger terminal; the original terminal was on Las Vegas Boulevard, and the new one was built on Paradise Road. The terminal, whose design was inspired by the TWA Flight Center in New York City, opened on March 15, 1963. The airport was renamed McCarran International Airport on September 5, 1968. Further expansion took place between 1970 and 1974 with the construction of the A and B gates.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: Before deregulation the airport had four dominant carriers: United and TWA served both coasts nonstop, while Western and Hughes Airwest flew to cities in the western US. After the airline industry was deregulated in 1978, the number of airlines at McCarran doubled from seven to fourteen by the end of 1979. New airlines included American, Braniff and Continental.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: In response, the county launched an expansion plan, McCarran 2000, listing projects to be undertaken into the year 2000. Expanded baggage claim facilities, an esplanade, and a parking garage opened in 1985; the C Gates and the first line of the people mover system followed in 1987.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: The Charter/International Terminal, later renamed Terminal 2, opened in December 1991 to handle international traffic. An additional, nine-story parking garage and a tunnel linking the Las Vegas Beltway to the airport were constructed as well. In June 1998, the southwest and southeast wings of the D Gates were opened.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: In the late 1990s the airport focused on attracting foreign airlines. In 1994, Condor Flugdienst began charter flights from Germany, launching scheduled service from Cologne/Bonn and Frankfurt in 1997. Northwest Airlines and Japan Airlines introduced flights from Tokyo–Narita in 1998, and Virgin Atlantic began flying from London–Gatwick in 2000.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: In 1997, the airport introduced Common Use Terminal Equipment (CUTE), becoming the first airport in the country to do so. With multiple airlines serving McCarran, it became inefficient to have separate facilities for each airline. CUTE allows for shared use of ticket counters and gates; an airline can overflow to inactive facilities during peak times.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: McCarran furthered its common use strategy in 2003 with the SpeedCheck system, introducing Common-Use Self-Service (CUSS) kiosks. The kiosks allow passengers to check-in and print boarding passes for any one of multiple airlines. Previously, airlines had been installing their own check-in kiosks, defeating the use of CUTE and increasing congestion at the ticket counters. SpeedCheck kiosks have been installed at the Las Vegas Convention Center as well.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: In January 2005, McCarrran began offering complimentary Wi-Fi throughout its passenger terminals. The service initially covered , making it the largest free Wi-Fi zone among U.S. airports at the time. The northeast wing of the D Gates opened in April 2005, along with a air traffic control tower at the center of the concourse. The expansion had been postponed following the September 11 attacks but resumed amid high growth in passenger traffic. Later in the year, the airport started a baggage-tracking system using radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags. Small RFID transmitters are inserted into baggage tags to improve bag identification, thereby lowering the risk for lost or misplaced luggage. McCarran became one of the first airports worldwide to conduct RFID tagging on a large scale.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: On August 19, 2008 US Airways closed its night-flight hub at McCarran Airport, which had been established by predecessor America West Airlines in the 1990s. In order to maximize the use of its fleet, US Airways had been operating two banks of flights to and from McCarran in the middle of the night. The operation had made US Airways the second-busiest carrier at McCarran, providing over 100 daily round-trip flights. However, amid rising oil prices and continued demand for low fares, the airline decided to close the hub. In 2011, US Airways reduced flights to Las Vegas by an additional 40%.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: In September 2008 the northwest wing of the D Gates was completed. This marked the completion of the concourse, which has a total of 44 gates.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: In May 2011 construction began on a new air traffic control tower. The tower is tall and replaces a shorter tower that opened in 1983. In January 2014 it was discovered that a chemical coating to prevent the growth of a toxic fungus was added improperly. The problem was corrected by the following June, and the tower opened on August 28, 2016. The shorter tower will be closed and demolished.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: In the late 1990s, the county decided to build a second airport for Las Vegas, to be located 30 miles (48 km) from the city in the Ivanpah Valley, called Ivanpah Valley Airport. Passenger traffic at McCarran had been rising steadily, and the county predicted that the airport would reach its capacity of 55 million passengers per year by 2008. The county began the process of acquiring federal land for the airport, and it started funding an EIS. However, the advent of an economic recession in 2007 and the resulting decline in passenger numbers called the Ivanpah Valley Airport project into question. In June 2010, the project was indefinitely suspended. In 2018, the county re-initiated planning for a new airport.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: Terminal 3 opened on June 27, 2012. The project was announced in January 2001 as a way to accommodate rapid growth in passenger traffic, including international traffic. It came into question amid the 2008 recession and decreased tourism to Las Vegas, but the county decided to proceed with the project, in anticipation of eventual economic recovery and a rebound in passenger numbers. Terminal 3 cost $2.4 billion to build and is one of the largest public works projects in Nevada. It replaced Terminal 2, providing more international gates and a larger U.S. Customs and Border Protection facility. With its seven domestic gates, the terminal also eases congestion at Terminal 1.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: In a $51 million project, eight domestic gates in the D Gates (D19-D26) nearest to Concourse E were converted to seven "swing" gates, capable of receiving both domestic and international flights. The gates were connected to the customs facility in Terminal 3 by an underground pedestrian passageway. Gates D21/D22 were converted into the only 3-jetway gate at the now-Reid; this was done to provide a proper accommodation area for the double-decker Airbus A380. This conversion resulted in the conversion of Gate D23 to D22A, and this "swing" gate project was completed in June 2017. In addition, a $30 million renovation of Terminal 1's ticketing and baggage claim areas was underway as of December 2016. Improvements include refurbished bathrooms, new ticket counters, and terrazzo flooring.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: The airport acquired a route to South America in June 2018, when a LATAM Brasil aircraft touched down from São Paulo. Flights operated until September, and the carrier stated it would return in the winter.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: The airport control tower was closed for several days in March 2020 after a controller tested positive for COVID-19. Airport operations continued using the common traffic advisory frequency, though many flights were delayed or cancelled due to reduced capacity.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: From as early as 2012, there had been calls by elected officials to rename the airport, due to the past actions and comments of the late Nevada senator Pat McCarran that have been viewed as anti-semitic and racist. U.S. Senator Harry Reid of Nevada told the press in 2012 while he was Majority Leader that McCarran "was one of the most anti-Semitic... one of the most anti-black, one of the most prejudiced people who has ever served in the Senate," adding it was his opinion that McCarran's name should not be on anything.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: After previous attempts failed to pass, there was renewed momentum to rename the airport after the murder of George Floyd and the protests in the U.S. that followed. On February 16, 2021, the Clark County Commission voted unanimously to rename the airport Harry Reid International Airport. Reid expressed his appreciation for the recognition after the vote.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: Airport officials expected the renaming to cost $4.2 million, with no public money going towards the cost. The airport was officially renamed Harry Reid International Airport on December 14, 2021. Reid, who was terminally ill, did not attend the renaming ceremony in person. Two weeks after the airport was renamed, Reid died at 82 years of age. The Federal Aviation Administration had updated its official aeronautical charts in June 2021 to reflect the new name.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: All runways have been resurfaced with concrete, a more durable material than the previous asphalt. In April 2016, 8L/26R was the last runway to be resurfaced; it is the longest at Reid and serves a third of the airport's traffic. Parallel to it is runway 8R/26L, which opened in 1991. On the western side of the airport are runways 1L/19R and 1R/19L. 1L/19R was a 5000-foot runway for light aircraft before it was widened and lengthened in 1997. Between the two sets of parallel runways was runway 14/32, which has been decommissioned. Runways 8L/26R and 8R/26L were previously 7L/25R and 7R/25L; they were renumbered in August 2017 due to a shift in direction of the Earth's magnetic field.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: Dry weather at Reid allows operations under visual flying rules 99% of the time. During most of the year (about 56% of the time) the airport uses Visual Configuration 1: runways 19R and 26L for arrivals and 19L and 26R for departures. Airfield capacity in Configuration 1 is constrained by bordering military airspace, high terrain to the west, and an uphill departure from 26R. Because of the heat, 26R is favored over 19L for departures. When the winds shift in the winter (about 13% of the year), the airfield adopts Visual Configuration 3, which uses 01L and 26L for arrivals and 01L and 01R for departures. Marginal flying conditions adopt the same Configuration 1/Configuration 3 split based on the prevailing winds. In instrument weather, arrivals are preferred on 26L, and departures take off from 19L and 26R.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: Harry Reid International Airport contains two terminals and 5 concourses with a total of 108 gates. Terminal 1 was completed in 1963, Terminal 2 was completed in 1986, and Terminal 3 was completed in 2012. Prior to the completion of Terminal 3, Terminal 2 handled international flights. After Terminal 3 was completed, Terminal 2 became redundant and it was demolished in 2016. International arrivals are handled in Terminal 3, and seven gates (D19-D26) in Concourse D are connected to the customs facility in Terminal 3.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: The terminals are connected airside via the Harry Reid International Airport Automated People Movers. The tram has three separate tram lines:


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: Road access to Harry Reid International Airport is provided by Paradise Road to the north and by the Harry Reid Airport Connector to the south, which connects to the Las Vegas Beltway.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: Terminal 1 and Terminal 3 have their own parking garages. Each also has its own economy lot, which provides lower parking rates, and a separate lot for oversize vehicles. Complimentary shuttle transportation is provided between the terminals and the remote Terminal 1 economy and oversize vehicle lots. In March 2016, the airport opened a cellphone lot, which provides free parking to people waiting for passengers.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: A consolidated rental car facility opened in April 2007, located about from the airport. The facility, which sits on of land, houses multiple rental car companies with 5,000 parking spaces on multiple levels. Courtesy shuttles transport passengers between the airport and the facility.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: For transportation between Terminal 1 and Terminal 3, Harry Reid International Airport provides a free shuttle service, which leaves from Level 0 of both terminals.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: RTC Transit provides bus transportation to and from various parts of the Las Vegas Valley. Route 108, Route 109, and the Centennial Express (CX) provide direct access to the airport. Buses depart from Level 0 of Terminal 1 and Level 2 of Terminal 3.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: Extension of the Las Vegas Monorail, whose southern terminus is across the street from the airport's runway, to the airport terminal, has been proposed several times but has not yet come to fruition.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: A small parking lot on the south side of the airport, on E. Sunset Road, between Las Vegas Blvd., and S. Eastern Ave, allows the public to watch aircraft take off, land, and listen to the aircraft radios. This is the only "official" watching area. There are several unofficial areas, mainly off the ends of the runways, however they are heavily patrolled by Las Vegas Metro Police and spectators are commonly asked to leave.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: Atlantic Aviation and Signature Flight Support are the two fixed-base operators (FBOs) at the airport, providing various services to private aircraft. Engine 13 of the Clark County Fire Department is located on the grounds of Harry Reid International Airport.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: Maverick Helicopters and Papillon Grand Canyon Helicopters each operate their own terminal at Harry Reid Airport. The Maverick terminal covers , while the Sundance terminal occupies . The Papillon terminal was established in 1997. The companies provide helicopter tours over the Las Vegas Strip, Grand Canyon, and other tourist attractions.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: Janet flights depart from a private terminal located on the west side of the airport. The airline, which is owned by the U.S. Air Force and operated by AECOM, transports employees and contractors to airports within the Nevada National Security Site.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: The Marnell Air Cargo Center covers and can handle of cargo. The $29 million facility opened in October 2010, replacing a smaller facility that existed at the site of Terminal 3. The center consists of two buildings, one of which is leased by FedEx and the other by multiple other companies, including UPS and Southwest Airlines.


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: The main exhibits of the Howard W. Cannon Aviation Museum are located on Level 2 of Terminal 1, above baggage claim. There are additional exhibits throughout the airport and at other airports in the city. Display items chronicle the early history of aviation in Southern Nevada. The museum is named after former Nevada Senator Howard Cannon, who contributed to the development of aviation in the county. Its administrator is Mark Hall-Patton, who has appeared on the reality television show "Pawn Stars".


title: Harry Reid International Airport

text: The SCCA hosted a number of road racing events at the airport on a portion of the airfield between 1960 and 1962. The official race lap records at McCarran Field are listed as:


title: Portuguese Empire

text: The Portuguese Empire (), also known as the Portuguese Overseas ("Ultramar Português") or the Portuguese Colonial Empire ("Império Colonial Português"), was composed of the overseas colonies, factories, and the later overseas territories governed by Portugal. It was one of the longest-lived empires in European history, lasting almost six centuries from the conquest of Ceuta in North Africa, in 1415, to the transfer of sovereignty over Macau to China in 1999. The empire began in the 15th century, and from the early 16th century it stretched across the globe, with bases in North and South America, Africa, and various regions of Asia and Oceania.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: The Portuguese Empire originated at the beginning of the Age of Discovery, and the power and influence of the Kingdom of Portugal would eventually expand across the globe. In the wake of the Reconquista, Portuguese sailors began exploring the coast of Africa and the Atlantic archipelagos in 1418–1419, using recent developments in navigation, cartography, and maritime technology such as the caravel, with the aim of finding a sea route to the source of the lucrative spice-trade. In 1488, Bartolomeu Dias rounded the Cape of Good Hope, and in 1498 Vasco da Gama reached India. In 1500, either by an accidental landfall or by the crown's secret design, Pedro Álvares Cabral reached what would be Brazil.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: Over the following decades, Portuguese sailors continued to explore the coasts and islands of East Asia, establishing forts and trading posts (factories) as they went. By 1571, a string of naval outposts connected Lisbon to Nagasaki along the coasts of Africa, the Middle East, India, and South Asia. This commercial network and the colonial trade had a substantial positive impact on Portuguese economic growth (1500–1800) when it accounted for about a fifth of Portugal's per-capita income.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: When King Philip II of Spain (Philip I of Portugal) seized the Portuguese crown in 1580 there began a 60-year union between Spain and Portugal known to subsequent historiography as the Iberian Union. The realms continued to have separate administrations. As the King of Spain was also King of Portugal, Portuguese colonies became the subject of attacks by three rival European powers hostile to Spain: the Dutch Republic, England, and France. With its smaller population, Portugal found itself unable to effectively defend its overstretched network of trading posts, and the empire began a long and gradual decline. Eventually, Brazil became the most valuable colony of the second era of empire (1663–1825), until, as part of the wave of independence movements that swept the Americas during the early 19th century, it broke away in 1822.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: The third era of empire covers the final stage of Portuguese colonialism after the independence of Brazil in the 1820s. By then, the colonial possessions had been reduced to forts and plantations along the African coastline (expanded inland during the Scramble for Africa in the late 19th century), Portuguese Timor, and enclaves in India (Portuguese India) and China (Portuguese Macau). The 1890 British Ultimatum led to the contraction of Portuguese ambitions in Africa.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: Under António Salazar (in office 1932–1968), the "Estado Novo" dictatorship made some ill-fated attempts to cling on to its last remaining colonies. Under the ideology of pluricontinentalism, the regime renamed its colonies "overseas provinces" while retaining the system of forced labour, from which only a small indigenous élite was normally exempt. In August 1961, the Dahomey annexed the Fort of São João Baptista de Ajudá, and in December that year India annexed Goa, Daman, and Diu. The Portuguese Colonial War in Africa lasted from 1961 until the final overthrow of the "Estado Novo" regime in 1974. The Carnation Revolution of April 1974 in Lisbon led to the hasty decolonization of Portuguese Africa and to the 1975 annexation of Portuguese Timor by Indonesia. Decolonization prompted the exodus of nearly all the Portuguese colonial settlers and of many mixed-race people from the colonies. Portugal returned Macau to China in 1999. The only overseas possessions to remain under Portuguese rule, the Azores and Madeira, both had overwhelmingly Portuguese populations, and Lisbon subsequently changed their constitutional status from "overseas provinces" to "autonomous regions".


title: Portuguese Empire

text: The origin of the Kingdom of Portugal lay in the "reconquista", the gradual reconquest of the Iberian peninsula from the Moors. After establishing itself as a separate kingdom in 1139, Portugal completed its reconquest of Moorish territory by reaching Algarve in 1249, but its independence continued to be threatened by neighbouring Castile until the signing of the Treaty of Ayllón in 1411.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: Free from threats to its existence and unchallenged by the wars fought by other European states, Portuguese attention turned overseas and towards a military expedition to the Muslim lands of North Africa. There were several probable motives for their first attack, on the Marinid Sultanate (in present-day Morocco). It offered the opportunity to continue the Christian crusade against Islam; to the military class, it promised glory on the battlefield and the spoils of war; and finally, it was also a chance to expand Portuguese trade and to address Portugal's economic decline.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: In 1415 an attack was made on Ceuta, a strategically located North African Muslim enclave along the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the terminal ports of the trans-Saharan gold and slave trades. The conquest was a military success, and marked one of the first steps in Portuguese expansion beyond the Iberian Peninsula, but it proved costly to defend against the Muslim forces that soon besieged it. The Portuguese were unable to use it as a base for further expansion into the hinterland, and the trans-Saharan caravans merely shifted their routes to bypass Ceuta and/or used alternative Muslim ports.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: Although Ceuta proved to be a disappointment for the Portuguese, the decision was taken to hold it while exploring along the Atlantic African coast. A key supporter of this policy was Infante Dom Henry the Navigator, who had been involved in the capture of Ceuta, and who took the lead role in promoting and financing Portuguese maritime exploration until his death in 1460. At the time, Europeans did not know what lay beyond Cape Bojador on the African coast. Henry wished to know how far the Muslim territories in Africa extended, and whether it was possible to reach Asia by sea, both to reach the source of the lucrative spice trade and perhaps to join forces with the fabled Christian kingdom of Prester John that was rumoured to exist somewhere in the "Indies". Under his sponsorship, soon the Atlantic islands of Madeira (1419) and Azores (1427) were reached and started to be settled, producing wheat for export to Portugal.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: The main Portuguese goal was trade, not colonization or conquest. Soon its ships were bringing into the European market highly valued gold, ivory, pepper, cotton, sugar, and slaves. The slave trade, for example, was conducted by a few dozen merchants in Lisbon. In the process of expanding the trade routes, Portuguese navigators mapped unknown parts of Africa, and began exploring the Indian Ocean. In 1487, an overland expedition by Pêro da Covilhã made its way to India, exploring trade opportunities with the Indians and Arabs, and winding up finally in Ethiopia. His detailed report was eagerly read in Lisbon, which became the best informed center for global geography and trade routes.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: Fears of what lay beyond Cape Bojador, and whether it was possible to return once it was passed, were assuaged in 1434 when it was rounded by one of Infante Henry's captains, Gil Eanes. Once this psychological barrier had been crossed, it became easier to probe further along the coast. In 1443 Infante Dom Pedro, Henry's brother and by then regent of the Kingdom, granted him the monopoly of navigation, war and trade in the lands south of Cape Bojador. Later this monopoly would be enforced by the papal bulls "Dum Diversas" (1452) and "Romanus Pontifex" (1455), granting Portugal the trade monopoly for the newly discovered lands. A major advance that accelerated this project was the introduction of the caravel in the mid-15th century, a ship that could be sailed closer to the wind than any other in operation in Europe at the time. Using this new maritime technology, Portuguese navigators reached ever more southerly latitudes, advancing at an average rate of one degree a year. Senegal and Cape Verde Peninsula were reached in 1445.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: The first feitoria trade post overseas was established in 1445 on the island of Arguin, off the coast of Mauritania, to attract Muslim traders and monopolize the business in the routes travelled in North Africa. In 1446, Álvaro Fernandes pushed on almost as far as present-day Sierra Leone, and the Gulf of Guinea was reached in the 1460s. The Cape Verde Islands were discovered in 1456 and settled in 1462.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: Expansion of sugarcane in Madeira started in 1455, using advisers from Sicily and (largely) Genoese capital to produce the ""sweet salt"" rare in Europe. Already cultivated in Algarve, the accessibility of Madeira attracted Genoese and Flemish traders keen to bypass Venetian monopolies. Slaves were used, and the proportion of imported slaves in Madeira reached 10% of the total population by the 16th century. By 1480 Antwerp had some seventy ships engaged in the Madeira sugar trade, with the refining and distribution concentrated in Antwerp. By the 1490s Madeira had overtaken Cyprus as a producer of sugar. The success of sugar merchants such as Bartolomeo Marchionni would propel the investment in future travels.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: In 1469, after prince Henry's death and as a result of meagre returns of the African explorations, King Afonso V granted the monopoly of trade in part of the Gulf of Guinea to merchant Fernão Gomes. Gomes, who had to explore of the coast each year for five years, discovered the islands of the Gulf of Guinea, including São Tomé and Príncipe and found a thriving alluvial gold trade among the natives and visiting Arab and Berber traders at the port then named Mina (the mine), where he established a trading post. Trade between Elmina and Portugal grew throughout a decade. During the War of the Castilian Succession, a large Castilian fleet attempted to wrest control of this lucrative trade, but were decisively defeated in the 1478 Battle of Guinea, which firmly established an exclusive Portuguese control. In 1481, the recently crowned João II decided to build São Jorge da Mina in order to ensure the protection of this trade, which was held again as a royal monopoly. The Equator was crossed by navigators sponsored by Fernão Gomes in 1473 and the Congo River by Diogo Cão in 1482. It was during this expedition that the Portuguese first encountered the Kingdom of Kongo, with which it soon developed a rapport. During his 1485–86 expedition, Cão continued to Cape Cross, in present-day Namibia, near the Tropic of Capricorn.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: In 1488, Bartolomeu Dias rounded the Cape of Good Hope on the southern tip of Africa, proving false the view that had existed since Ptolemy that the Indian Ocean was land-locked. Simultaneously Pêro da Covilhã, traveling secretly overland, had reached Ethiopia, suggesting that a sea route to the Indies would soon be forthcoming.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: As the Portuguese explored the coastlines of Africa, they left behind a series of padrões, stone crosses engraved with the Portuguese coat of arms marking their claims, and built forts and trading posts. From these bases, they engaged profitably in the slave and gold trades. Portugal enjoyed a virtual monopoly on the African seaborne slave trade for over a century, importing around 800 slaves annually. Most were brought to the Portuguese capital Lisbon, where it is estimated black Africans came to constitute 10 percent of the population.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: In 1492 Christopher Columbus's after-discovery for Spain of the New World, which he believed to be Asia, led to disputes between the Spanish and the Portuguese. These were eventually settled by the Treaty of Tordesillas in 1494, which divided the world outside of Europe in an exclusive duopoly between the Portuguese and the Spanish along a north–south meridian 370 leagues, or , west of the Cape Verde islands. However, as it was not possible at the time to correctly measure longitude, the exact boundary was disputed by the two countries until 1777.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: The completion of these negotiations with Spain is one of several reasons proposed by historians for why it took nine years for the Portuguese to follow up on Dias's voyage to the Cape of Good Hope, though it has also been speculated that other voyages were in fact taking place in secret during this time. Whether or not this was the case, the long-standing Portuguese goal of finding a sea route to Asia was finally achieved in a ground-breaking voyage commanded by Vasco da Gama.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: The squadron of Vasco da Gama left Portugal in 1497, rounded the Cape and continued along the coast of East Africa, where a local pilot was brought on board who guided them across the Indian Ocean, reaching Calicut (the capital of the native kingdom ruled by Zamorins (This city also known as Kozhikode) in south-western India in May 1498. The second voyage to India was dispatched in 1500 under Pedro Álvares Cabral. While following the same south-westerly route as Gama across the Atlantic Ocean, Cabral made landfall on the Brazilian coast. This was probably an accidental discovery, but it has been speculated that the Portuguese secretly knew of Brazil's existence and that it lay on their side of the Tordesillas line. Cabral recommended to the Portuguese King that the land be settled, and two follow up voyages were sent in 1501 and 1503. The land was found to be abundant in "pau-brasil", or brazilwood, from which it later inherited its name, but the failure to find gold or silver meant that for the time being Portuguese efforts were concentrated on India. In 1502, to enforce its trade monopoly over a wide area of the Indian Ocean, the Portuguese Empire created the cartaz licensing system, granting merchant ships protection against pirates and rival states.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: Profiting from the rivalry between the ruler of Kochi and the Zamorin of Calicut, the Portuguese were well-received and seen as allies, as they obtained a permit to build the fort "Immanuel" (Fort Kochi) and a trading post that was the first European settlement in India. They established a trading center at Tangasseri, Quilon ("Coulão", Kollam) city in (1503) in 1502, which became the centre of trade in pepper, and after founding manufactories at Cochin ("Cochim", Kochi) and Cannanore ("Canonor", Kannur), built a factory at Quilon in 1503. In 1505 King Manuel I of Portugal appointed Francisco de Almeida first Viceroy of Portuguese India, establishing the Portuguese government in the east. That year the Portuguese also conquered Kannur, where they founded St. Angelo Fort, and Lourenço de Almeida arrived in Ceylon (modern Sri Lanka), where he discovered the source of cinnamon. Although Cankili I of Jaffna initially resisted contact with them, the Jaffna kingdom came to the attention of Portuguese officials soon after for their resistance to missionary activities as well as logistical reasons due to its proximity with Trincomalee harbour among other reasons. In the same year, Manuel I ordered Almeida to fortify the Portuguese fortresses in Kerala and within eastern Africa, as well as probe into the prospects of building forts in Sri Lanka and Malacca in response to growing hostilities with Muslims within those regions and threats from the Mamluk sultan.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: A Portuguese fleet under the command of Tristão da Cunha and Afonso de Albuquerque conquered Socotra at the entrance of the Red Sea in 1506 and Muscat in 1507. Having failed to conquer Ormuz, they instead followed a strategy intended to close off commerce to and from the Indian Ocean. Madagascar was partly explored by Cunha, and Mauritius was discovered by Cunha whilst possibly being accompanied by Albuquerque. After the capture of Socotra, Cunha and Albuquerque operated separately. While Cunha traveled India and Portugal for trading purposes, Albuquerque went to India to take over as governor after Almeida's three-year term ended. Almeida refused to turn over power and soon placed Albuquerque under house arrest, where he remained until 1509.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: Although requested by Manuel I to further explore interests in Malacca and Sri Lanka, Almeida instead focused on western India, in particular the Sultanate of Gujarat due to his suspicions of traders from the region possessing more power. The Mamlûk Sultanate sultan Al-Ashraf Qansuh al-Ghawri along with the Gujarati sultanate attacked Portuguese forces in the harbor of Chaul, resulting in the death of Almeida's son. In retaliation, the Portuguese fought and destroyed the Mamluks and Gujarati fleets in the sea Battle of Diu in 1509.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: Along with Almeida's initial attempts, Manuel I and his council in Lisbon had tried to distribute power in the Indian Ocean, creating three areas of jurisdiction: Albuquerque was sent to the Red Sea, Diogo Lopes de Sequeira to South-east Asia, seeking an agreement with the Sultan of Malacca, and Jorge de Aguiar followed by Duarte de Lemos were sent to the area between the Cape of Good Hope and Gujarat. However, such posts were centralized by Afonso de Albuquerque after his succession and remained so in subsequent ruling.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: By the end of 1509, Albuquerque became viceroy of the East Indies with the capital at Velha Goa, after the Cape route was discovered by Vasco da Gama. In contrast to Almeida, Albuquerque was more concerned with strengthening the navy, as well as being more compliant with the interests of the kingdom. His first objective was to conquer Goa, due to its strategic location as a defensive fort positioned between Kerala and Gujarat, as well as its prominence for Arabian horse imports.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: The initial capture of Goa from the Bijapur sultanate in 1510 was soon countered by the Bijapuris, but with the help of Hindu privateer Timoji, on November 25 of the same year it was recaptured. In Goa, Albuquerque began the first Portuguese mint in India in 1510. He encouraged Portuguese settlers to marry local women, built a church in honor of St. Catherine (as it was recaptured on her feast day), and attempted to build rapport with the Hindus by protecting their temples and reducing their tax requirements. The Portuguese maintained friendly relations with the south Indian Emperors of the Vijayanagara Empire.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: In April 1511, Albuquerque sailed to Malacca in Malaysia, the largest spice market of the period. Though the trade was largely dominated by the Gujarati, other groups such as the Turks, Persians, Armenians, Tamils and Abyssinians traded there. Albuquerque targeted Malacca to impede the Muslim and Venetian influence in the spice trade and increase that of Lisbon. By July 1511, Albuquerque had captured Malacca and sent Antonio de Abreu and Francisco Serrão (along with Ferdinand Magellan) to explore the Indonesian archipelago.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: The Malacca peninsula became the strategic base for Portuguese trade expansion with China and Southeast Asia. A strong gate, called the A Famosa, was erected to defend the city and remains. Learning of Siamese ambitions over Malacca, Albuquerque immediately sent Duarte Fernandes on a diplomatic mission to the Kingdom of Siam (modern Thailand), where he was the first European to arrive, establishing amicable relations and trade between both kingdoms.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: The Portuguese empire pushed further south and proceeded to discover Timor in 1512. Jorge de Meneses discovered New Guinea in 1526, naming it the "Island of the Papua". In 1517, João da Silveira commanded a fleet to Chittagong, and by 1528, the Portuguese had established a settlement in Chittagong. The Portuguese eventually based their center of operations along the Hugli River, where they encountered Muslims, Hindus, and Portuguese deserters known as "Chatins".


title: Portuguese Empire

text: Jorge Alvares was the first European to reach China by sea, while the Romans were the first overland via Asia Minor. He was also the first European to discover Hong Kong. In 1514, Afonso de Albuquerque, the Viceroy of the Estado da India, dispatched Rafael Perestrello to sail to China in order to pioneer European trade relations with the nation.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: In their first attempts at obtaining trading posts by force, the Portuguese were defeated by the Ming Chinese at the Battle of Tunmen in Tamão or Tuen Mun. In 1521, the Portuguese lost 2 ships at the Battle of Sincouwaan in Lantau Island. The Portuguese also lost 2 ships at Shuangyu in 1548 where several Portuguese were captured and near the Dongshan Peninsula. In 1549 two Portuguese junks and Galeote Pereira were captured. During these battles the Ming Chinese captured weapons from the defeated Portuguese which they then reverse engineered and mass-produced in China such as matchlock musket arquebuses which they named bird guns and Breech loading swivel guns which they named as Folangji (Frankish) cannon because the Portuguese were known to the Chinese under the name of Franks at this time. The Portuguese later returned to China peacefully and presented themselves under the name Portuguese instead of Franks in the Luso-Chinese agreement (1554) and rented Macau as a trading post from China by paying annual lease of hundreds of silver taels to Ming China.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: Despite initial harmony and excitement between the two cultures, difficulties began to arise shortly afterwards, including misunderstanding, bigotry, and even hostility. The Portuguese explorer Simão de Andrade incited poor relations with China due to his pirate activities, raiding Chinese shipping, attacking a Chinese official, and kidnappings of Chinese. He based himself at Tamao island in a fort. The Chinese claimed that Simão kidnapped Chinese boys and girls to be molested and cannibalized. The Chinese sent a squadron of junks against Portuguese caravels that succeeded in driving the Portuguese away and reclaiming Tamao. As a result, the Chinese posted an edict banning men with Caucasian features from entering Canton, killing multiple Portuguese there, and driving the Portuguese back to sea.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: After the Sultan of Bintan detained several Portuguese under Tomás Pires, the Chinese then executed 23 Portuguese and threw the rest into prison where they resided in squalid, sometimes fatal conditions. The Chinese then massacred Portuguese who resided at Ningbo and Fujian trading posts in 1545 and 1549, due to extensive and damaging raids by the Portuguese along the coast, which irritated the Chinese. Portuguese pirating was second to Japanese pirating by this period. However, they soon began to shield Chinese junks and a cautious trade began. In 1557 the Chinese authorities allowed the Portuguese to settle in Macau, creating a warehouse in the trade of goods between China, Japan, Goa and Europe.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: Portuguese operations in Asia did not go unnoticed, and in 1521 Magellan arrived in the region and claimed the Philippines for Spain. In 1525, Spain under Charles V sent an expedition to colonize the Moluccas islands, claiming they were in his zone of the Treaty of Tordesillas, since there was no set limit to the east. The expedition of García Jofre de Loaísa reached the Moluccas, docking at Tidore. With the Portuguese already established in nearby Ternate, conflict was inevitable, leading to nearly a decade of skirmishes. A resolution was reached with the Treaty of Zaragoza in 1529, attributing the Moluccas to Portugal and the Philippines to Spain. The Portuguese traded regularly with the Bruneian Empire from 1530 and described the capital of Brunei as surrounded by a stone wall.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: The Portuguese empire expanded into the Persian Gulf, contesting control of the spice trade with the Ajuran Empire and the Ottoman Empire. In 1515, Afonso de Albuquerque conquered the Huwala state of Hormuz at the head of the Persian Gulf, establishing it as a vassal state. Aden, however, resisted Albuquerque's expedition in that same year and another attempt by Albuquerque's successor Lopo Soares de Albergaria in 1516. In 1521 a force led by António Correia captured Bahrain, defeating the Jabrid King, Muqrin ibn Zamil. In a shifting series of alliances, the Portuguese dominated much of the southern Persian Gulf for the next hundred years. With the regular maritime route linking Lisbon to Goa since 1497, the island of Mozambique became a strategic port, and there was built Fort São Sebastião and a hospital. In the Azores, the Islands Armada protected the ships en route to Lisbon.


title: Portuguese Empire

text: In 1534, Gujarat faced attack from the Mughals and the Rajput states of Chitor and Mandu. The Sultan Bahadur Shah of Gujarat was forced to sign the Treaty of Bassein with the Portuguese, establishing an alliance to regain the country, giving in exchange Daman, Diu, Mumbai and Bassein. It also regulated the trade of Gujarati ships departing to the Red Sea and passing through Bassein to pay duties and allow the horse trade. After Mughal ruler Humayun had success against Bahadur, the latter signed another treaty with the Portuguese to confirm the provisions and allowed the fort to be built in Diu. Shortly afterward, Humayun turned his attention elsewhere, and the Gujarats allied with the Ottomans to regain control of Diu and lay siege to the fort. The two failed sieges of 1538 and 1546 put an end to Ottoman ambitions, confirming the Portuguese hegemony in the region, as well as gaining superiority over the Mughals. However, the Ottomans fought off attacks from the Portuguese in the Red Sea and in the Sinai Peninsula in 1541, and in the northern region of the Persian Gulf in 1546 and 1552. Each entity ultimately had to respect the sphere of influence of the other, albeit unofficially.