title: Colon (punctuation)

text: The Bedford Handbook describes several uses of a colon. For example, one can use a colon after an independent clause to direct attention to a list, an appositive or a quotation, and it can be used between independent clauses if the second summarizes or explains the first. In non-literary or non-expository uses, one may use a colon after the salutation in a formal letter, to indicate hours and minutes, to show proportions, between a title and subtitle, and between city and publisher in bibliographic entries.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: Luca Serianni, an Italian scholar who helped to define and develop the colon as a punctuation mark, identified four punctuational modes for it: "syntactical-deductive", "syntactical-descriptive", "appositive", and "segmental".


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In this sense the colon introduces a description; in particular, it makes explicit the elements of a set.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: Syntactical-descriptive colons may separate the numbers indicating hours, minutes, and seconds in abbreviated measures of time.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: A colon is also used in the descriptive location of a book verse if the book is divided into verses, such as in the Bible or the Quran:


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: An appositive colon also separates the subtitle of a work from its principal title. (In effect, the example given above illustrates an appositive use of the colon as an abbreviation for the conjunction 'because'.) Dillon has noted the impact of colons on scholarly articles, but the reliability of colons as a predictor of quality or impact has also been challenged. In titles, neither needs to be a complete sentence as titles do not represent expository writing:


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: Like a dash or quotation mark, a segmental colon introduces speech. The segmental function was once a common means of indicating an unmarked quotation on the same line. The following example is from the grammar book "The King's English":


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: This form is still used in written dialogues, such as in a play. The colon indicates that the words following an individual's name are spoken by that individual.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: Use of capitalization or lower-case after a colon varies. In British English, and in most Commonwealth countries, the word following the colon is in lower case unless it is normally capitalized for some other reason, as with proper nouns and acronyms. British English also capitalizes a new sentence introduced by colon's segmental use.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: American English goes further and permits writers to similarly capitalize the first word of any independent clause following a colon. This follows the guidelines of some modern American style guides, including those published by the Associated Press and the Modern Language Association. "The Chicago Manual of Style", however, requires capitalization only when the colon introduces a direct quotation, a direct question, or two or more complete sentences.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In many European languages, the colon is usually followed by a lower-case letter unless the upper case is required for other reasons, as with British English. German usage requires capitalization of independent clauses following a colon. Dutch further capitalizes the first word of any quotation following a colon, even if it is not a complete sentence on its own.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In print, a thin space was traditionally placed before a colon and a thick space after it. In modern English-language printing, no space is placed before a colon and a single space is placed after it. In French-language typing and printing, the traditional rules are preserved.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: One or two spaces may be and have been used after a colon. The older convention (designed to be used by monospaced fonts) was to use "two" spaces after a colon.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In Finnish and Swedish, the colon can appear inside words in a manner similar to the apostrophe in the English possessive case, connecting a grammatical suffix to an abbreviation or initialism, a special symbol, or a digit (e.g., Finnish "USA:n" and Swedish "USA:s" for the genitive case of "USA", Finnish "%:ssa" for the inessive case of "%", or Finnish "20:een" for the illative case of "20").


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: Written Swedish uses colons in contractions, such as "S:t" for "Sankt" (Swedish for "Saint") – for example in the name of the Stockholm metro station "S:t Eriksplan", and "k:a" for "kyrka" ("church") – for instance Svenska k:a (Svenska kyrkan), the Evangelical Lutheran national Church of Sweden. This can even occur in people's names, for example ("" for "Axelson"). Early Modern English texts also used colons to mark abbreviations.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In Ethiopia, both Amharic and Ge'ez script used and sometimes still use a colon-like mark as word separator.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In German, a colon divides the scores of opponents in sports and games. A result of 149–0 would be written as 149 : 0 in German.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: The colon is used in mathematics, cartography, model building, and other fields—in this context it denotes a ratio or a scale, as in 3∶1 (pronounced "three to one").


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: When a ratio is reduced to a simpler form, such as 10∶15 to 2∶3, this may be expressed with a double colon as 10∶15∶∶2∶3; this would be read "10 is to 15 as 2 is to 3". This form is also used in tests of logic where the question of "Dog is to Puppy as Cat is to _____?" can be expressed as "Dog∶Puppy∶∶Cat∶_____". For these usages the proper Unicode symbol is that is a little higher up than the normal colon. Compare 2∶3 (ratio colon) with 2:3 (normal colon).


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In some languages (e.g. German, Russian and French), the colon is the commonly used sign for division (instead of ÷).


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In mathematical logic, when using set-builder notation for describing the characterizing property of a set, it is used as an alternative to a vertical bar (which is the ISO 31-11 standard), to mean "such that". Example:


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In older literature on mathematical logic, it is used to indicate how expressions should be bracketed (see Glossary of "Principia Mathematica").


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In type theory and programming language theory, the colon sign after a term is used to indicate its type, sometimes as a replacement to the "∈" symbol. Example:


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: A colon is also sometimes used to indicate a tensor contraction involving two indices, and a double colon (::) for a contraction over four indices.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: A colon is also used to denote a parallel sum operation involving two operands (many authors, however, instead use a ∥ sign and a few even a ∗ for this purpose).


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: The character was on early typewriters and therefore appeared in most text encodings, such as Baudot code and EBCDIC. It was placed at code 58 in ASCII and from there inherited into Unicode. Unicode also defines several related characters.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: A number of programming languages, most notably Pascal and Ada, use a colon immediately followed by an equals sign (codice_1) as the assignment operator, to distinguish it from a single equals which is an equality test (C instead used a single equals as assignment, and a double equals as the equality test).


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: Many languages including C and Java use the colon to indicate the text before it is a label, such as a target for a goto or an introduction to a case in a switch statement. In a related use, Python uses a colon to separate a control statement from the block of statements it controls:


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In a number of languages, including JavaScript, colons are used to define name–value pairs in a dictionary or object. This is also used by data formats such as JSON. Some other languages use an equals sign.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: C++ uses a double colon as the scope resolution operator, and class member access. Most other languages use a period but C++ had to use this for compatibility with C. Another language using colons for scope resolution is Erlang, which uses a single colon.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In BASIC, it is used as a separator between the statements or instructions in a single line. Most other languages use a semicolon, but BASIC had used semicolon to separate items in print statements.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: Haskell uses a colon (pronounced as "cons", short for "construct") as an operator to add an element to the front of a list:


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: The ML languages (such as Standard ML) have the above reversed, where the double colon (codice_2) is used to add an element to the front of a list; and the single colon (codice_4) is used for type guards.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: MATLAB uses the colon as a binary operator that generates vectors, as well as to select particular portions of existing matrices.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In the esoteric programming language INTERCAL, the colon is called "two-spot" and is used to identify a 32-bit variable—distinct from a spot (.) which identifies a 16-bit variable.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In an IPv6 address colons (and one optional double colon) separate up to 8 groups of 16 bits in hexadecimal representation. In a URL a colon follows the initial scheme name (such as HTTP and FTP), and separates a port number from the hostname or IP address.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In Microsoft Windows filenames, the colon is reserved for use in alternate data streams and cannot appear in a filename. It was used as the directory separator in Classic Mac OS, and was difficult to use in early versions of the newer BSD-based macOS due to code swapping the slash and colon to try to preserve this usage. In most systems it is often difficult to put a colon in a filename as the shell interprets it for other purposes.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: CP/M and early versions of MSDOS required the colon after the names of devices, such as though this gradually disappeared except for disks (where it had to be between the disk name and the required path representation of the file as in codice_6). This then migrated to use in URLs.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: It is often used as a single post-fix delimiter, signifying a token keyword had immediately preceded it or the transition from one mode of character string interpretation to another related mode. Some applications, such as the widely used MediaWiki, utilize the colon as both a pre-fix and post-fix delimiter.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In wiki markup, the colon is often used to indent text. Common usage includes separating or marking comments in a discussion as replies, or to distinguish certain parts of a text.


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: In human-readable text messages, a colon, or multiple colons, is sometimes used to denote an action (similar to how asterisks are used) or to emote (for example, in vBulletin). In the action denotation usage it has the inverse function of quotation marks, denoting actions where unmarked text is assumed to be dialogue. For example:


title: Colon (punctuation)

text: Colons may also be used for sounds, e.g., ::click::, though sounds can also be denoted by asterisks or other punctuation marks.


title: RuneScape

text: RuneScape is a fantasy massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed and published by Jagex, released in January 2001. "RuneScape" was originally a browser game built with the Java programming language; it was largely replaced by a standalone C++ client in 2016. The game has had over 300 million accounts created and was recognised by the Guinness World Records as the largest and most-updated free MMORPG.


title: RuneScape

text: "RuneScape" takes place in the world of Gielinor, a medieval fantasy realm divided into different kingdoms, regions, and cities. Players can travel throughout Gielinor via a number of methods including on foot, magical spells, or charter ships. Each region offers different types of monsters, resources, and quests to challenge players. The game's fictional universe has been explored through a tie-in video game on another of its maker's websites, "FunOrb", "Armies of Gielinor", and the novels "Betrayal at Falador", "Return to Canifis", and "Legacy of Blood".


title: RuneScape

text: Players are represented in the game with customisable avatars. "RuneScape" does not follow a linear storyline; rather, players set their own goals and objectives. Players can choose to fight non-player character (NPC) monsters, complete quests, or increase their experience in the available skills. Players interact with each other through trading, chatting, or by participating in mini-games and activities, some of which are competitive or combative in nature, while others require cooperative or collaborative play.


title: RuneScape

text: The first public version of "RuneScape" was released in January 2001 in beta form, with Jagex as its copyright holder being formed later that year. As the game's popularity grew, the game engine was rewritten and released as "RuneScape 2", with the original version of the game being renamed "RuneScape Classic". The third iteration of the game, known as "RuneScape 3", was released in July 2013. "Old School RuneScape", a separate, older version of the game dating from August 2007 was released in February 2013, and is maintained alongside the original client. It was announced that mobile ports of both versions of "RuneScape" would be released for Android and iOS devices in 2018. "RuneScape" was released on Steam on 14 October 2020.


title: RuneScape

text: Players begin in a secluded area called Tutorial Island, where they are taken through a tutorial, a set path where they learn the most basic skills in "RuneScape". After the tutorial, players have access to tutors and advisors located in the towns they explore, who can give players appropriate information about their respective skills.


title: RuneScape

text: Players set their own goals and objectives as they play the game. They can train their in-game skills, engage non-player character (NPC) monsters and other players in combat and complete quests at their discretion. Players interact with each other through trading, chatting or by participating in mini-games.


title: RuneScape

text: There are 28 skills in "RuneScape", 17 skills available to free-to-play players and an additional 11 for members, which enable players to perform various activities allowing for interaction with NPCs, the environment and other players. Players gain experience points in a skill when they use it. For example, mining an ore trains the mining skill, and when the player accumulates enough experience points in the skill, their character will "level up". As a skill level rises, the ability to retrieve better raw materials and produce better products increases, as does the experience awarded if the player uses new abilities. The total skill level of a player partly symbolises the player's status in the game and subscribers with a high total level can appear on the high scores. Upon reaching the highest available level in a skill, members may buy a special cape to symbolise their achievement.


title: RuneScape

text: Some skills, such as woodcutting and fishing, enable the player to collect raw materials that can be processed into usable items for other skills, such as fletching and cooking respectively. The items created can be used by the player or sold to shops and other players. Other skills allow players to kill certain NPCs, build their own houses, move around the map with greater ease, steal from various NPCs, market stalls and chests located in-game, light fires, cook their own food, create their own potions, craft runestones and weapons, plant their own plants, hunt NPC animals, raid dungeons, and summon familiars to assist in combat and training skills.


title: RuneScape

text: "RuneScape" features a semi-real-time combat system. Combat is an important aspect of the game, allowing players to defeat monsters to obtain dropped items or to complete quests. A combat level is an indicator of how powerful a player or NPC is in combat. For players, it is determined by applying a mathematical formula to their combat skills. Players engage in combat by clicking on the enemy they want their character to attack and will automatically continue fighting until they kill their opponent, die, or retreat from the fight. Most of the game's weapons are medieval or fantastical in nature, and feature different strengths and weaknesses. Players may summon a familiar to assist with combat, use special attacks called "abilities" to deal additional damage, and use potions and the Prayer skill to boost their combat prowess.


title: RuneScape

text: Combat is subdivided into three main categories: melee, magic and ranged. Melee attacks are close range, magic attacks focus on using runestones to cast spells, and ranged attacks use projectile weapons like arrows, darts or throwing knives. These combat types make up a "Combat Triangle", which governs effectiveness of styles in a rock-paper-scissors fashion; melee beats ranged, ranged beats magic, magic beats melee, and each style is neutral to itself. The advantages and disadvantages of the combat triangle apply to both NPCs and player opponents. Players are not required to choose a character class nor are they bound to a specific category of combat. They may freely change between or combine the three styles of combat by switching weapons and armour.


title: RuneScape

text: Combat is governed by a life points system. Every combatant has a maximum capacity of life points, and dies when their health is depleted to 0. Lost life points can be recovered by consuming certain food or drinks, or casting abilities. Players who die reappear at a respawn point of their choice with their life and skill points restored; however, they drop all but three chosen items, as well as certain common items. Dying spawns a gravestone that will hold all of the player's items and will last for an allotted time; however, there are situations in which all items will be lost upon death. If the player does not return in time, the grave will collapse and their items will disappear.


title: RuneScape

text: In June 2012 players were invited to beta-test a new combat system named "Evolution of Combat", which included fundamental changes such as re-balancing the Combat Triangle to avoid favouring melee attacks, and replacing special weapon attacks with abilities that produce a range of effects when activated. The system was released on the live game on 20 November 2012. Various polls were also added for players to vote on in game that would determine the result of future content development, some of which would dictate the development of the improved combat system. A beta for a separate combat system dubbed "Legacy Mode" was opened to players on 16 June 2014, before being introduced to the live game on 14 July. Legacy Mode allows players to switch to the combat system and interface from prior to June 2012 instead of the Evolution of Combat system.


title: RuneScape

text: Player versus player combat (PvP) can be performed in specific controlled mini-games and in an area known as the Wilderness. The "Duel Arena" allows players to stake money and items, while other PvP games offer their own rewards. In the Wilderness, players can engage in combat provided that their combat levels fall within a certain range of each other, and if a player kills their opponent they will be able to claim their opponent's items as a reward.


title: RuneScape

text: Before December 2007, players went to the Wilderness to fight other players within a certain combat level range, hoping to kill them and gain their items. In December 2007, the Wilderness was altered to prevent players from transferring in-game items for real-world currency. PvP combat was removed from the Wilderness and temporarily restricted to new mini-games named "Bounty Hunter" and "Clan Wars". "Bounty Hunter" was replaced by special "Bounty Worlds" on 6 May 2009 in which players were confined to the Wilderness and could be assigned specific targets to kill. "PvP Worlds" were introduced on 15 October 2008 where players could fight almost anywhere in Gielinor, but these and "Bounty Worlds" were removed when PvP combat in the Wilderness was restored on 1 February 2011.


title: RuneScape

text: Non-player characters (NPCs) populate the realm of Gielinor. Some NPCs, such as shopkeepers and some characters in quests, are unavailable for combat. However, most NPCs can be attacked and these are generally referred to as monsters. Monsters range from common, low-level creatures, such as chickens and goblins, to unique and often much more powerful monsters, such as the Queen Black Dragon, Telos, and Vorago.


title: RuneScape

text: Most monsters have their own strengths and weaknesses, notable exceptions being certain bosses, which have no specific weaknesses. Demons, for example, have a weak defence against ranged attacks, while metal dragons have extremely high defence against ranged. The weakness of an individual monster is displayed in an interface above its model, along with its combat level and lifepoints.


title: RuneScape

text: Monsters may either be aggressive or non-aggressive. Non-aggressive monsters ignore players unless attacked, while aggressive monsters may attack all players or may only attack players with combat levels below a specified level, depending on the circumstances or location. This can make certain areas throughout Gielinor dangerous or inconvenient to players with lower combat levels.


title: RuneScape

text: Players can interact with each other through trading, chatting, or by participating in mini-games and activities, some of which are competitive or combative in nature, while others require cooperative or collaborative play. Players can trade items and gold coins with each other, either through a face-to-face trade, or by using a large automated marketplace known as the Grand Exchange.


title: RuneScape

text: The chat system enables players to communicate with each other. Public Chat broadcasts text to players in the local area on one server, both by text appearing above the speaker's head and in the message box. Friends Chat broadcasts text in the message box only to certain players tuned into a specific channel, who can be available on any "RuneScape" world. Each Friends Chat channel has an owner, who can assign different ranks to individual players; players' ranks dictate their ability to perform administrative tasks within the channel. Clan Chat allows members of a clan to communicate with each other through a separate channel. Quick Chat allows players to choose from a list of predetermined messages to send as Public Chat, Clan Chat, or Friends Chat.


title: RuneScape

text: "RuneScape" features independent mini-games, although most are only available to paying members. Mini-games take place in certain areas and normally involve specific in-game skills, and usually require players to cooperate or to compete with each other. Examples of these mini-games include "Castle Wars", which is similar to the real-life game Capture the Flag, "Pest Control", a highly combat-focused mini-game, and "Fist of Guthix", where one player (the hunter) tries to stop another player (the hunted) from collecting charges into a magical stone.


title: RuneScape

text: Quests are series of tasks with a storyline that players can choose to complete. These often have requirements including minimum levels in certain skills, combat levels, quest points and/or the completion of other quests. Players receive various rewards for completion of quests, including money, unique items, access to new areas, quest points and/or increases in skill experience. Some quests require players to work together, and many require players to engage in challenging combat. Quests are grouped into categories based on requirements and difficulty. Once a player completes all quests in the game, an achievement item known as the "Quest Point Cape" can be claimed. New quests are released periodically.


title: RuneScape

text: Andrew Gower developed "RuneScape" with the assistance of his brother Paul Gower. It was originally conceived as a text-based MUD, but graphics were incorporated early in development, adding it to the ranks of what were then known as "graphical MUDs". The first public version of the game used a mixture of three-dimensional and two-dimensional sprites. It was released as a beta version on 4 January 2001, and originally operated out of their parents' house in Nottingham. In December 2001, the Gower brothers, along with Constant Tedder, formed Jagex to take over the business aspects of running "RuneScape". Among its early innovations Jagex developed an interpreted domain-specific scripting language called RuneScript, which is used by "RuneScape"s server for event handling. In February 2002, a monthly membership service was introduced, allowing access to additional features including new areas, quests, and items not available to free users.


title: RuneScape

text: As the game gained more users, Jagex began planning major changes. The developers rewrote the game engine, producing a new version of the game with entirely three-dimensional graphics called "RuneScape 2". A beta version of "RuneScape 2" was released to paying members for a testing period beginning on 1 December 2003, and ending in March 2004. Upon its official release, "RuneScape 2" was renamed simply "RuneScape", while the older version of the game was kept online under the name "RuneScape Classic". On 12 January 2006, Jagex banned more than 5,000 "Classic" accounts for cheating. To prevent further cheating, "Classic" was closed to new accounts and access was restricted to accounts who had played it at least once between 3 August 2005 and 12 January 2006. Additional reopenings took place in November 2009, June 2010 and September 2011.


title: RuneScape

text: To support "RuneScape" free content, advertisements appear on a banner above the playing screen on the free-to-play servers. Since computer users may use advertisement blockers, which may discourage advertisers, Jagex introduced a rule that prohibits players from blocking these advertisements. On 13 July 2006, Jagex signed an exclusive marketing and distribution contract with WildTangent Games, which granted WildTangent the right to handle advertising in and around "RuneScape" in the United States, and to distribute "RuneScape" through the WildTangent Games Network, reaching over 20 million consumer PCs.


title: RuneScape

text: On 16 May 2006, Jagex upgraded "RuneScape"s game engine, improving the game's loading times and reducing its memory requirements. On 1 July 2008, Jagex released a beta of their "High Detail" mode for members, which was extended to free players two weeks later. Before the launch, Jagex stated that it would be revealed at the 2008 E3 trade show.


title: RuneScape

text: On 14 February 2007, a German translation of "RuneScape" was introduced, followed by a French translation on 11 December 2008, Brazilian Portuguese on 24 July 2009, and Latin American Spanish on 25 April 2013. In an interview in May 2008, former Jagex CEO Geoff Iddison stated that, "We do plan to go East with it ["RuneScape"] to the Asian market and the Eastern European market too" [...] ""RuneScape" is not for Japan, but it could work well in Malaysia for example. And where's India in all this? I think "RuneScape" is a game that would be adopted in the English-speaking Indian world and the local-speaking Indian world. We're looking at all those markets individually." "RuneScape" later launched in India through the gaming portal Zapak on 8 October 2009, and in France and Germany through Bigpoint Games on 27 May 2010.


title: RuneScape

text: On 28 February 2012, an in-game feature was introduced called the "Squeal of Fortune" that allowed players to win items on a daily basis by spinning the wheel. On 2 April 2012, it became possible for players to spend real-world currency in exchange for additional spins, introducing a form of microtransaction to the game. Jagex CEO Mark Gerhard had previously described microtransactions as "a stealth tax", and the update provoked complaints from players who believed they had been "betrayed" by the change. In July 2012, Jagex released Solomon's General Store, making it possible to spend real currency in exchange for "RuneCoins" that could be spent on cosmetic rewards in the game. On 29 August 2012, Gerhard released a response to this controversy, describing these microtransactions as "[having] a significant role in ensuring that we can continue to support, develop and grow the game for many more years to come." He states that while these decisions are "not necessarily popular", they are made with the future of "RuneScape" in mind. On 4 February 2014, the Squeal of Fortune was replaced with Treasure Hunter. Rather than spinning a wheel for prizes, players are given keys which are used to open a chest of their choosing. On 26 March 2014, Gerhard reiterated his stance on microtransactions and their importance in updating "RuneScape", and announced a partnership with Supersonic ads, allowing players to earn RuneCoins by watching advertisements or sampling products.


title: RuneScape

text: On 30 August 2012, Gerhard announced that an HTML5 version of "RuneScape" was in development that would allow the game to be played on "your favourite tablets, platforms and even smart TVs." A video released on 22 March 2013 stated that the new version would be called "RuneScape 3" and would use WebGL, and would include a fully customisable user interface and improved audio. A closed beta of the HTML5 version went live on 17 April 2013, followed by a separate alpha version of the new interface on 24 April. "RuneScape 3" was released on 22 July 2013.


title: RuneScape

text: At RuneFest 2014 Jagex announced that they were developing a new client to replace the HTML5 version, which had never been released from beta due to performance issues. The new client, named NXT, would include improvements to loading times, new graphical effects and better performance. Closed betas took place on 19–22 February and 18–21 March 2016, followed by a public release on 18 April 2016.


title: RuneScape

text: On 23 May 2018, it was announced that due to constantly accumulating bugs and a game engine that has become incompatible with modern support tools of the company, "RuneScape Classic" servers would be permanently closed on 6 August 2018. "RuneScape" was released on Steam on 14 October 2020.


title: RuneScape

text: "RuneScape" can be run with varying levels of graphical detail. High-detail graphics enhance texture and design, while low-detail graphics provide a cleaner look and can reduce lag on less powerful computers. "RuneScape" uses a graphics engine called "RuneTek 5", which provides support for multiple graphics platforms such as DirectX, OpenGL and video game consoles, as well as graphical effects such as sky boxes, bloom lighting and Z-buffering. The high-detail version incorporates hardware acceleration and can be rendered using either Java OpenGL or DirectX.


title: RuneScape

text: "RuneScape" features a character-customisation system. Player characters are human; however, players may choose the gender, hairstyle, facial hair, skin colour, and clothing options. Appearance is further complemented by wearing or wielding items. Players can express emotions through the use of specialised animations called emotes, some of which are standard and others earned through gameplay or released during holiday events.


title: RuneScape

text: "RuneScape" has original music and ambient soundscapes. The music was designed to define the underlying cultures of the various locations accessible, and ambient sounds, such as the cry of seagulls flying over the ocean, occur in logical places. The game also incorporates voice acting in certain areas and situations. The "RuneScape 3" update included orchestral music recorded in Bratislava, Slovakia, and was scored by James Hannigan.


title: RuneScape

text: , there were 139 English "RuneScape" servers located throughout the world, which are numbered and referred to as "worlds" by players and by Jagex. They are located in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, the Netherlands, Australia, Sweden, Finland, Belgium, Ireland, Norway, Denmark, New Zealand, Mexico, France, Lithuania, and India. Servers are moved or added as the need arises.


title: RuneScape

text: Each "RuneScape" server allows up to 2,000 players to log in simultaneously, allowing a maximum capacity of more than 278,000 players. The servers are divided into free servers which are available for all players, and servers which are reserved for paying members. Some servers are given activity labels, allowing players performing tasks that require or desire group participation to group together.


title: RuneScape

text: In February 2013, a poll was opened allowing players to decide whether Jagex should open a separate incarnation of "RuneScape" from August 2007. "Old School RuneScape" was opened to paying subscribers on 22 February 2013 after the poll received 50,000 votes, and a free-to-play version was later released on 19 February 2015. It was originally created as an exact copy of "RuneScape" from August 2007 and receives regular content additions. "Old School RuneScape" is entirely community based; for any proposed update or idea to pass into the game, it needs at least 75% of the community to vote 'Yes' for it, and if it does not pass it will either be dropped or reconstructed and re-polled so that the players may find the update more acceptable. On 17 July 2017, Jagex announced a mobile port of "Old School RuneScape", which was released in 2018.


title: RuneScape

text: On 16 September 2015 Jagex released "DarkScape", a separate version of "RuneScape" which featured open-world player versus player combat. "DarkScape" was originally released with most of "RuneScape"s content, but received separate content updates. "DarkScape" was completely free to play, with some additional benefits reserved for paying subscribers. "DarkScape" closed on 28 March 2016 due to lack of interest.


title: RuneScape

text: A set of forums are provided by Jagex on the "RuneScape" website. On the forums, players are able to participate in game discussions, arrange to buy or sell items, post suggestions for game improvements, vote in polls, and otherwise interact with the community. A user can set an avatar, have a separate display name and set an automatic signature. User profiles display the recent posts a user has made along with the option to disable smileys. The privilege of posting on the forums is limited to paying members, as well as free players with a total level exceeding 350.


title: RuneScape

text: Between 24 September 2002 and 9 December 2004, players could submit questions via e-mail to the "RuneScape" gods, which were published in the form of letters. On 26 September 2005, a new feature known as "Postbag from the Hedge" was introduced, where players can submit questions via e-mail to a non-player character in the game. Players can also submit original "RuneScape" related artwork (such as sculptures, comics, drawings and paintings), some of which is displayed in a gallery on the "RuneScape" website.


title: RuneScape

text: During various holidays, including Easter, Halloween and Christmas, Jagex hosts a holiday event in a specific location in Gielinor. Players who successfully complete the required tasks during the event receive a reward such as an item or an emote, allowing the player character to perform a gesture conveying an emotion. Holiday items released prior to 2002 are tradeable among players, and due to their rarity are worth significant amounts of money on the player market. Holiday items after Christmas 2002 are untradeable and limited to one per player and can be retrieved if lost.


title: RuneScape

text: Various "RuneScape" fansites have been established by players, which are a source of information about the game. For account security reasons, Jagex discourages the discussion of fansites within the game or the forums – and a rule specifically prohibits sharing web addresses. A major fansite has criticised Jagex for not recognising fansites' contributions to the development of its game. However, as a result of announcements made in 2009, Jagex promised to increase communication with fansites.


title: RuneScape

text: On 28 July 2014, Twitch functionality was integrated into the game, allowing players to stream their gameplay or view other streams from within the game.


title: RuneScape

text: Jagex has employed rules for player conduct, such as rules against offensive language, scamming, and bug abuse. To enforce the rules, an in-game feature exists that allows a player to send a report to Jagex if they notice another player breaking a rule. "RuneScape" also uses four types of moderators: Jagex Moderators, who are Jagex employees; Local Moderators, who are employees of Jagex's partners in certain territories; Player Moderators, who are trusted players that enforce the rules within the game; and Forum Moderators, who are trusted players who monitor the game forums. Players who repeatedly break the rules may be temporarily or permanently banned from playing the game.


title: RuneScape

text: There are also rules prohibiting the use of third-party software to play the game, known as "macroing" or "botting", and the sale of game items for real money through real-world trading. In an attempt to stop cheating, Jagex made direct interaction with the client difficult, established rules against the practice, and introduced random events that required player input to complete. In response to continued gold farming, Jagex issued a statement condemning real-world trading, stating that they were seizing billions of gold and banning thousands of accounts every week for cheating, and promising to increase their efforts to prevent real-world trading in the game.


title: RuneScape

text: From October 2007 to December 2007, Jagex began releasing a series of updates to restrict unbalanced trades. The updates limited the value of items staked in duels, removed player-versus-player combat from the Wilderness, made valuable player drops invisible to other players, introduced gravestones for the items of dead players, instituted systems for assisting players with skills and sharing loot among groups of players, and established the Grand Exchange, a sharemarket-like trade system for "RuneScape" goods. Collectively, these changes were designed to make it extremely difficult for real-world traders to distribute gold and items to players. These features were restored on 1 February 2011 following a referendum among players in December 2010 on whether or not to do so.


title: RuneScape

text: On 25 October 2011, Jagex released an anti-bot system code-named the 'ClusterFlutterer', as part of a game update intended to permanently prevent "reflection" bots from working. The release of this was nicknamed the "Bot Nuke", and was estimated to have banned 98% of the accounts that were using bots, eventually resulting in 7.7 million account bans. From 26 September 2012 until its removal on 20 August 2018, accounts that were banned for using bots were sent to an isolated area named "Botany Bay" to be given an ultimate punishment as decided by players.


title: RuneScape

text: On 25 September 2013, Jagex introduced bonds to the game, in-game items that can be purchased using real currency then traded with other players or exchanged for membership, RuneCoins or additional spins on the game's Squeal of Fortune. Bonds were introduced to allow players to exchange real currency for in-game benefits legitimately, a move described by CEO Mark Gerhard as "essential for the future of "RuneScape"". One week later, Jagex reported that the amount of in-game coins brought in by gold farmers was down by 81%; real-world trading was down by 61% and the wealth of those trades was down by 63%.


title: RuneScape

text: The Falador Massacre was a historic bug that occurred on 6 June 2006. The bug caused several players to retain the ability to attack other players after leaving a designated PvP location. Ordinarily, players are only allowed to attack other players in player-owned houses, minigames, or in the Wilderness. According to a statement made by a Jagex employee, the bug was caused by insufficient testing of an update that saw the release of a new game skill, Construction, wherein players could create their own houses in which PvP combat could take place.


title: RuneScape

text: Although the bug was considered quite negative at the time of occurrence, Jagex has since recognized it as a historic event in the franchise, and has created in-game reenactments in both "RuneScape" and "Old School RuneScape". On 6 June 2016, Jagex created two unique and isolated game servers (worlds 111 for RS3 and 666 for OSRS, commemorating 6/6/06) wherein PvP was enabled and players could attack an NPC named after "Durial321", one of the more well known players to have been affected by the bug. World 666 also played an in-game cover of the song "Planet Hell" by Nightwish, which was the song used in the original video of the event. The track was removed from the game when the event was over. The bug's reception has been subject to internet culture. PC Gamer called the bug "One of the best all-time MMO bugs".


title: RuneScape

text: "PC Gamer UK" stated in December 2003, that while the "traditional [role-playing game] values of questing, slaying monsters and developing your character in a familiar medieval setting" will not "have the big boys trembling in their +2 Boots of Subscriber Gathering," this is offset by the game's accessibility through a web browser, "compounded by a version of the game that allows free adventuring player the opportunity to upgrade to a members' account", describing the game as "an unsurprising success".


title: RuneScape

text: The Yahoo! 2006 Buzz Log stated that, "while it may not be as easy on the eyes as some other popular [MMORPGs], like "World of Warcraft", "City of Heroes", or "EverQuest", "RuneScape" is still a lot better way to kill time than pushing around cells in a spreadsheet". A 2007 JustRPG review summarised "RuneScape" as "a fun, addictive game, and while the graphics may not be perfect, for a game written in Java, they aren't bad. The skills are varied, the community is alright, and it'll eat up your time if you aren't careful", giving it a score of 83%.


title: RuneScape

text: In its 2008 intellectual property profile of the game, Developmag.com stated that whilst Jagex's changes to curtail real world trading resulted in "a wave of user criticism... growth is understood to have resumed since". Its analysis stated that ""RuneScape"s mass-market appeal lies in its simplicity and accessibility (both financial and technical). It has tapped into the vast market of games players unwilling or unable to spend premium prices on PCs capable of playing the latest, expensive, processor-intensive games. Its core gameplay concepts are very similar to its retail-distributed RPG and MMORPG analogues." In August 2008, "RuneScape" was recognised by the Guinness World Records as the world's most popular free MMORPG. Jagex was presented with a certificate to commemorate the achievement at the 2008 Leipzig Games Convention. A 2009 Eurogamer article criticised "RuneScape"s in-game community for being unfriendly to newcomers, although they have stated that the fan-forum community is more approachable.


title: RuneScape

text: An April 2011 review by MMORPG.com was complimentary of "RuneScape", stating that "For anyone looking for that "old-school" experience but with also tons of progression, refinement, and unique ideas, RuneScape is easily recommendable", but criticised the game's combat system and emphasis on grinding. "...the genre feels slightly passed clicking an enemy and watching two swords clunk mercilessly into opposing body forms..."RuneScape" has grind in abundance and while this is not entirely a bad thing, it will put some players off looking for a slightly easier and more casual experience". The game received the "Role-Playing Game" award at The Independent Game Developers' Association Awards 2018.


title: RuneScape

text: On 10 December 2007, updates by Jagex removed free player-versus-player combat and unbalanced trading in order to rid the game of activities involving real currency being traded for virtual goods. The updates also affected legitimate players, resulting in many of them actively complaining on the forums. Jagex issued a Customer Support News article admitting the updates may not have been an ideal replacement for what was removed, requesting patience and promising to remedy potential problems with updates in the future. During the changes, subscription numbers fell by 60,000. No figures were given as to how many of those subscriptions belonged to legitimate players and how many to gold farmers. In an interview in February 2008, Jagex's head of content stated that, "we were really afraid we were going to lose our members over this change, because other games had in the past. But we are very, very pleased to say that we have lost practically none of our members."


title: RuneScape

text: In December 2010, a referendum was opened to decide whether to restore unbalanced trades and player-versus-player combat in the Wilderness, which closed with 1.2 million votes cast and 91% of voters in favour of the proposal, and these features were restored on 1 February 2011. A second referendum was announced in February 2013 to decide whether to run a separate version of the game dating from 2007, closing on 1 March 2013 with almost 450,000 votes. Servers for the 2007 version were opened on 22 February 2013 once 50,000 votes were collected.


title: RuneScape

text: In 2018, it was reported that "RuneScape" had generated over US$1 billion in lifetime revenue since its original launch. "RuneScape" annually generates over £100 million in revenue and over £50 million in profit.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Gilbert Scott-Heron (April 1, 1949 – May 27, 2011) was an American jazz poet, singer, musician, and author, known primarily for his work as a spoken-word performer in the 1970s and 1980s. His collaborative efforts with musician Brian Jackson featured a musical fusion of jazz, blues, and soul, as well as lyrical content concerning social and political issues of the time, delivered in both rapping and melismatic vocal styles by Scott-Heron. His own term for himself was "bluesologist", which he defined as "a scientist who is concerned with the origin of the blues". His poem ""The Revolution Will Not Be Televised"", delivered over a jazz-soul beat, is considered a major influence on hip hop music.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: His music, most notably on the albums "Pieces of a Man" and "Winter in America" in the early 1970s, influenced and foreshadowed later African-American music genres such as hip hop and neo soul. His recording work received much critical acclaim, especially for "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised". AllMusic's John Bush called him "one of the most important progenitors of rap music", stating that "his aggressive, no-nonsense street poetry inspired a legion of intelligent rappers while his engaging songwriting skills placed him square in the R&B charts later in his career."


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Scott-Heron remained active until his death, and in 2010 released his first new album in 16 years, entitled "I'm New Here". A memoir he had been working on for years up to the time of his death, "The Last Holiday", was published posthumously in January 2012. Scott-Heron received a posthumous Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012. He also is included in the exhibits at the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) that officially opened on September 24, 2016, on the National Mall, and in an NMAAHC publication, "Dream a World Anew". In 2021, Scott-Heron was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as a recipient of the Early Influence Award.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Gil Scott-Heron was born in Chicago, Illinois. His mother, Bobbie Scott, was an opera singer who performed with the Oratorio Society of New York. His father, Gil Heron, nicknamed "The Black Arrow", was a Jamaican footballer who in the 1950s became the first black man to play for Celtic F.C. in Glasgow, UK. Gil's parents separated in his early childhood and he was sent to live with his maternal grandmother, Lillie Scott, in Jackson, Tennessee. When Scott-Heron was 12 years old, his grandmother died and he returned to live with his mother in The Bronx in New York City. He enrolled at DeWitt Clinton High School, but later transferred to The Fieldston School, after impressing the head of the English department with some of his writings and earning a full scholarship. As one of five Black students at the prestigious school, Scott-Heron was faced with alienation and a significant socioeconomic gap. During his admissions interview at Fieldston, an administrator asked him: How would you feel if you see one of your classmates go by in a limousine while you're walking up the hill from the subway?' And [he] said, 'Same way as you. Y'all can't afford no limousine. How do you feel? This type of intractable boldness would become a hallmark of Scott-Heron's later recordings.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: After completing his secondary education, Scott-Heron decided to attend Lincoln University in Pennsylvania because Langston Hughes (his most important literary influence) was an alumnus. It was here that Scott-Heron met Brian Jackson, with whom he formed the band Black & Blues. After about two years at Lincoln, Scott-Heron took a year off to write the novels "The Vulture" and "The Nigger Factory". Scott-Heron was very heavily influenced by the Black Arts Movement (BAM). The Last Poets, a group associated with the Black Arts Movement, performed at Lincoln in 1969 and Abiodun Oyewole of that Harlem group said Scott-Heron asked him after the performance, "Listen, can I start a group like you guys?" Scott-Heron returned to New York City, settling in Chelsea, Manhattan. "The Vulture" was published by the World Publishing Company in 1970 to positive reviews.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Although Scott-Heron never completed his undergraduate degree, he was admitted to the Writing Seminars at Johns Hopkins University, where he received an M.A. in creative writing in 1972. His master's thesis was titled "Circle of Stone". Beginning in 1972, Scott-Heron taught literature and creative writing for several years as a full-time lecturer at University of the District of Columbia (then known as Federal City College) in Washington, D.C. while maintaining his music career.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Scott-Heron began his recording career with the LP "Small Talk at 125th and Lenox" in 1970. Bob Thiele of Flying Dutchman Records produced the album, and Scott-Heron was accompanied by Eddie Knowles and Charlie Saunders on conga and David Barnes on percussion and vocals. The album's 14 tracks dealt with themes such as the superficiality of television and mass consumerism, the hypocrisy of some would-be black revolutionaries, and white middle-class ignorance of the difficulties faced by inner-city residents. In the liner notes, Scott-Heron acknowledged as influences Richie Havens, John Coltrane, Otis Redding, Jose Feliciano, Billie Holiday, Langston Hughes, Malcolm X, Huey Newton, Nina Simone, and long-time collaborator Brian Jackson.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Scott-Heron's 1971 album "Pieces of a Man" used more conventional song structures than the loose, spoken-word feel of "Small Talk". He was joined by Jackson, Johnny Pate as conductor, Ron Carter on bass and bass guitar, drummer Bernard "Pretty" Purdie, Burt Jones playing electric guitar, and Hubert Laws on flute and saxophone, with Thiele producing again. Scott-Heron's third album, "Free Will", was released in 1972. Jackson, Purdie, Laws, Knowles, and Saunders all returned to play on "Free Will" and were joined by Jerry Jemmott playing bass, David Spinozza on guitar, and Horace Ott (arranger and conductor). Carter later said about Scott-Heron's voice: "He wasn't a great singer, but, with that voice, if he had whispered it would have been dynamic. It was a voice like you would have for Shakespeare."


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: In 1974, he recorded another collaboration with Brian Jackson, "Winter in America", with Bob Adams on drums and Danny Bowens on bass. "Winter in America" has been regarded by many critics as the two musicians' most artistic effort. The following year, Scott-Heron and Jackson released "Midnight Band: The First Minute of a New Day". In 1975, he released the single "Johannesburg", a rallying cry for the end of apartheid in South Africa. The song would be re-issued, in 12"-single form, together with "Waiting for the Axe to Fall" and "B-movie" in 1983.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: A live album, "It's Your World", followed in 1976 and a recording of spoken poetry, "The Mind of Gil Scott-Heron", was released in 1978. Another success followed with the hit single "Angel Dust", which he recorded as a single with producer Malcolm Cecil. "Angel Dust" peaked at No. 15 on the R&B charts in 1978.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: In 1979, Scott-Heron played at the No Nukes concerts at Madison Square Garden. The concerts were organized by Musicians United for Safe Energy to protest the use of nuclear energy following the Three Mile Island accident. Scott-Heron's song "We Almost Lost Detroit" was included in the "No Nukes" album of concert highlights. It alluded to a previous nuclear power plant accident and was also the title of a book by John G. Fuller. Scott-Heron was a frequent critic of President Ronald Reagan and his conservative policies.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Scott-Heron recorded and released four albums during the 1980s: "1980" and "Real Eyes" (1980), "Reflections" (1981) and "Moving Target" (1982). In February 1982, Ron Holloway joined the ensemble to play tenor saxophone. He toured extensively with Scott-Heron and contributed to his next album, "Moving Target" the same year. His tenor accompaniment is a prominent feature of the songs "Fast Lane" and "Black History/The World". Holloway continued with Scott-Heron until the summer of 1989, when he left to join Dizzy Gillespie. Several years later, Scott-Heron would make cameo appearances on two of Ron Holloway's CDs: "Scorcher" (1996) and "Groove Update" (1998), both on the Fantasy/Milestone label.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Scott-Heron was dropped by Arista Records in 1985 and quit recording, though he continued to tour. The same year he helped compose and sang "Let Me See Your I.D." on the Artists United Against Apartheid album "Sun City", containing the famous line: "The first time I heard there was trouble in the Middle East, I thought they were talking about Pittsburgh." The song compares racial tensions in the U.S. with those in apartheid-era South Africa, implying that the U.S. was not too far ahead in race relations. In 1993, he signed to TVT Records and released "Spirits", an album that included the seminal track "'Message to the Messengers". The first track on the album criticized the rap artists of the day. Scott-Heron is known in many circles as "the Godfather of rap" and is widely considered to be one of the genre's founding fathers. Given the political consciousness that lies at the foundation of his work, he can also be called a founder of political rap. "Message to the Messengers" was a plea for the new generation of rappers to speak for change rather than perpetuate the current social situation, and to be more articulate and artistic. Regarding hip hop music in the 1990s, he said in an interview:


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: In 2001, Scott-Heron was sentenced to one to three years imprisonment in a New York State prison for possession of cocaine. While out of jail in 2002, he appeared on the "Blazing Arrow" album by Blackalicious. He was released on parole in 2003, the year BBC TV broadcast the documentary "Gil Scott-Heron: The Revolution Will Not Be Televised"—Scott-Heron was arrested for possession of a crack pipe during the editing of the film in October 2003 and received a six-month prison sentence.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: On July 5, 2006, Scott-Heron was sentenced to two to four years in a New York State prison for violating a plea deal on a drug-possession charge by leaving a drug rehabilitation center. He claimed that he left because the clinic refused to supply him with HIV medication. This story led to the presumption that the artist was HIV positive, subsequently confirmed in a 2008 interview. Originally sentenced to serve until July 13, 2009, he was paroled on May 23, 2007.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: After his release, Scott-Heron began performing live again, starting with a show at SOB's restaurant and nightclub in New York on September 13, 2007. On stage, he stated that he and his musicians were working on a new album and that he had resumed writing a book titled "The Last Holiday", previously on long-term hiatus, about Stevie Wonder and his successful attempt to have the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. declared a federally recognized holiday in the United States.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Malik Al Nasir dedicated a collection of poetry to Scott-Heron titled "Ordinary Guy" that contained a foreword by Jalal Mansur Nuriddin of The Last Poets. Scott-Heron recorded one of the poems in Nasir's book entitled "Black & Blue" in 2006.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: In April 2009, on BBC Radio 4, poet Lemn Sissay presented a half-hour documentary on Gil Scott-Heron entitled "Pieces of a Man", having interviewed Gil Scott-Heron in New York a month earlier. "Pieces of a Man" was the first UK announcement from Scott-Heron of his forthcoming album and return to form. In November 2009, the BBC's "Newsnight" interviewed Scott-Heron for a feature titled "The Legendary Godfather of Rap Returns". In 2009, a new Gil Scott-Heron website, gilscottheron.net, was launched with a new track "Where Did the Night Go" made available as a free download from the site.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: In 2010, Scott-Heron was booked to perform in Tel Aviv, Israel, but this attracted criticism from pro-Palestinian activists, who stated: "Your performance in Israel would be the equivalent to having performed in Sun City during South Africa's apartheid era... We hope that you will not play apartheid Israel". Scott-Heron responded by canceling the performance.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Scott-Heron released his album "I'm New Here" on independent label XL Recordings on February 9, 2010. Produced by XL label owner Richard Russell, "I'm New Here" was Scott-Heron's first studio album in 16 years. The pair started recording the album in 2007, with the majority of the record being recorded over the 12 months leading up to the release date with engineer Lawson White at Clinton Studios in New York. "I'm New Here" is 28 minutes long with 15 tracks; however, casual asides and observations collected during recording sessions are included as interludes.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: The album attracted critical acclaim, with "The Guardian"s Jude Rogers declaring it one of the "best of the next decade", while some have called the record "reverent" and "intimate", due to Scott-Heron's half-sung, half-spoken delivery of his poetry. In a music review for public radio network NPR, Will Hermes stated: "Comeback records always worry me, especially when they're made by one of my heroes ... But I was haunted by this record ... He's made a record not without hope but which doesn't come with any easy or comforting answers. In that way, the man is clearly still committed to speaking the truth". Writing for music website "Music OMH", Darren Lee provided a more mixed assessment of the album, describing it as rewarding and stunning, but he also states that the album's brevity prevents it "from being an unassailable masterpiece".


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: This is Richard's CD. My only knowledge when I got to the studio was how he seemed to have wanted this for a long time. You're in a position to have somebody do something that they really want to do, and it was not something that would hurt me or damage me—why not? All the dreams you show up in are not your own.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: The remix version of the album, "We're New Here", was released in 2011, featuring production by English musician Jamie xx, who reworked material from the original album. Like the original album, "We're New Here" received critical acclaim.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: In April 2014, XL Recordings announced a third album from the "I'm New Here" sessions, titled "Nothing New". The album consists of stripped-down piano and vocal recordings and was released in conjunction with Record Store Day on April 19, 2014.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Scott-Heron died on May 27, 2011 in New York City following a trip to Europe. Scott-Heron had confirmed previous press speculation about his health, when he disclosed in a 2008 "New York Magazine" interview that he had been HIV-positive for several years, and that he had been previously hospitalized for pneumonia.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: He was survived by his firstborn daughter, Raquiyah "Nia" Kelly Heron, from his relationship with Pat Kelly; his son Rumal Rackley, from his relationship with Lurma Rackley; daughter Gia Scott-Heron, from his marriage to Brenda Sykes; and daughter Chegianna Newton, who was 13 years old at the time of her father's death. He is also survived by his sister Gayle; brother Denis Heron, who once managed Scott-Heron; his uncle, Roy Heron; and nephew Terrance Kelly, an actor and rapper who performs as Mr. Cheeks, and is a member of Lost Boyz.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Before his death, Scott-Heron had been in talks with Portuguese director Pedro Costa to participate in his film "Horse Money" as a screenwriter, composer and actor.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: In response to Scott-Heron's death, Public Enemy's Chuck D stated "RIP GSH...and we do what we do and how we do because of you" on his Twitter account. His UK publisher, Jamie Byng, called him "one of the most inspiring people I've ever met". On hearing of the death, R&B singer Usher stated: "I just learned of the loss of a very important poet...R.I.P., Gil Scott-Heron. The revolution will be live!!". Richard Russell, who produced Scott-Heron's final studio album, called him a "father figure of sorts to me", while Eminem stated: "He influenced all of hip-hop". Lupe Fiasco wrote a poem about Scott-Heron that was published on his website.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Scott-Heron's memorial service was held at Riverside Church in New York City on June 2, 2011, where Kanye West performed "Lost in the World" and "Who Will Survive in America", two songs from West's album "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". The studio album version of West's "Who Will Survive in America" features a spoken-word excerpt by Scott-Heron. Scott-Heron is buried at Kensico Cemetery in Westchester County in New York.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Scott-Heron was honored posthumously in 2012 by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Charlotte Fox, member of the Washington, DC NARAS and president of Genesis Poets Music, nominated Scott-Heron for the award, while the letter of support came from Grammy-winner and Grammy Hall of Fame inductee Bill Withers.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Scott-Heron's memoir, "The Last Holiday", was published in January 2012. In her review for the "Los Angeles Times", professor of English and journalism Lynell George wrote:


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: "The Last Holiday" is as much about his life as it is about context, the theater of late 20th century America — from Jim Crow to the Reagan '80s and from Beale Street to 57th Street. The narrative is not, however, a rise-and-fall retelling of Scott-Heron's life and career. It doesn't connect all the dots. It moves off-the-beat, at its own speed ... This approach to revelation lends the book an episodic quality, like oral storytelling does. It winds around, it repeats itself.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: At the time of Scott-Heron's death, a will could not be found to determine the future of his estate. Additionally, Raquiyah Kelly-Heron filed papers in Manhattan's New York Surrogate's Court in August 2013, claiming that Rumal Rackley was not Scott-Heron's son and should therefore be omitted from matters concerning the musician's estate.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: According to the "Daily News" website, Rackley, Kelly-Heron and two other sisters were seeking a resolution to the issue of the management of Scott-Heron's estate, as Rackley stated in court papers that Scott-Heron had prepared him to be the eventual administrator of the estate.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Scott-Heron's 1994 album "Spirits" was dedicated to "my son Rumal and my daughters Nia and Gia", and in court papers Rackley added that Scott-Heron "introduced me [Rackley] from the stage as his son".


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: In 2011, Rackley filed a suit against sister Gia Scott-Heron and her mother, Scott-Heron's first wife, Brenda Sykes, as he believed they had unfairly attained US$250,000 of Scott-Heron's money. The case was settled for an undisclosed sum in early 2013; but the relationship between Rackley and Scott-Heron's two adult daughters already had become strained in the months after Gil's death.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: In her submission to the Surrogate Court, Kelly-Heron states that a DNA test completed by Rackley in 2011—using DNA from Scott-Heron's brother—revealed that they "do not share a common male lineage", while Rackley has refused to undertake another DNA test since that time. A hearing to address Kelly-Heron's filing was scheduled for late August 2013, but by March 2016 further information on the matter was not publicly available. Rackley continued to serve as court-appointed administrator for the estate, and donated material to the Smithsonian's new National Museum of African American History and Culture for Scott-Heron to be included among the exhibits and displays when the museum opened in September 2016.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: The case was decided in December 2018; the Surrogate Court ruled that Rumal Rackley and his half-sisters are all legal heirs, and by the ruling issued in May 2019 Rackley was granted Letters of Administration.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Scott-Heron's work has influenced writers, academics and musicians, from indie rockers to rappers. His work during the 1970s influenced and helped engender subsequent African-American music genres, such as hip hop and neo soul. He has been described by music writers as "the godfather of rap" and "the black Bob Dylan".


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Together they crafted jazz-influenced soul and funk that brought new depth and political consciousness to '70s music alongside Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder. In classic albums such as "Winter in America" and "From South Africa to South Carolina", Scott-Heron took the news of the day and transformed it into social commentary, wicked satire, and proto-rap anthems. He updated his dispatches from the front lines of the inner city on tour, improvising lyrics with an improvisational daring that matched the jazz-soul swirl of the music".


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Of Scott-Heron's influence on hip hop, Kot writes that he "presag[ed] hip-hop and infus[ed] soul and jazz with poetry, humor and pointed political commentary". Ben Sisario of "The New York Times" writes that "He [Scott-Heron] preferred to call himself a "bluesologist", drawing on the traditions of blues, jazz and Harlem renaissance poetics". Tris McCall of "The Star-Ledger" writes that "The arrangements on Gil Scott-Heron's early recordings were consistent with the conventions of jazz poetry – the movement that sought to bring the spontaneity of live performance to the reading of verse". A music writer later noted that "Scott-Heron's unique proto-rap style influenced a generation of hip-hop artists", while "The Washington Post" wrote that "Scott-Heron's work presaged not only conscious rap and poetry slams, but also acid jazz, particularly during his rewarding collaboration with composer-keyboardist-flutist Brian Jackson in the mid- and late '70s". "The Observer"s Sean O'Hagan discussed the significance of Scott-Heron's music with Brian Jackson, stating:


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Together throughout the 1970s, Scott-Heron and Jackson made music that reflected the turbulence, uncertainty and increasing pessimism of the times, merging the soul and jazz traditions and drawing on an oral poetry tradition that reached back to the blues and forward to hip-hop. The music sounded by turns angry, defiant and regretful while Scott-Heron's lyrics possessed a satirical edge that set them apart from the militant soul of contemporaries such as Marvin Gaye and Curtis Mayfield.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: In the early 1970s, Gil Scott-Heron popped onto the scene as a soul poet with jazz leanings; not just another Bill Withers, but a political voice with a poet's skill. His spoken-voice work had punch and topicality. "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" and "Johannesburg" were calls to action: Stokely Carmichael if he'd had the groove of Ray Charles. 'The Bottle' was a poignant story of the streets: Richard Wright as sung by a husky-voiced Marvin Gaye. To paraphrase Chuck D, Gil Scott-Heron's music was a kind of CNN for black neighborhoods, prefiguring hip-hop by several years. It grew from the Last Poets, but it also had the funky swing of Horace Silver or Herbie Hancock—or Otis Redding. "Pieces of a Man" and "Winter in America" (collaborations with Brian Jackson) were classics beyond category".


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Scott-Heron's influence over hip hop is primarily exemplified by his definitive single "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised", sentiments from which have been explored by various rappers, including Aesop Rock, Talib Kweli and Common. In addition to his vocal style, Scott-Heron's indirect contributions to rap music extend to his and co-producer Jackson's compositions, which have been sampled by various hip-hop artists. "We Almost Lost Detroit" was sampled by Brand Nubian member Grand Puba ("Keep On"), Native Tongues duo Black Star ("Brown Skin Lady"), and MF Doom ("Camphor"). Additionally, Scott-Heron's 1980 song "A Legend in His Own Mind" was sampled on Mos Def's "Mr. Nigga", the opening lyrics from his 1978 recording "Angel Dust" were appropriated by rapper RBX on the 1996 song "Blunt Time" by Dr. Dre, and CeCe Peniston's 2000 song "My Boo" samples Scott-Heron's 1974 recording "The Bottle".


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: In addition to the Scott-Heron excerpt used in "Who Will Survive in America", Kanye West sampled Scott-Heron and Jackson's "Home is Where the Hatred Is" and "We Almost Lost Detroit" for the songs "My Way Home" and "The People", respectively, both of which are collaborative efforts with Common. Scott-Heron, in turn, acknowledged West's contributions, sampling the latter's 2007 single "Flashing Lights" on his final album, 2010's "I'm New Here".


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Scott-Heron admitted ambivalence regarding his association with rap, remarking in 2010 in an interview for the "Daily Swarm": "I don't know if I can take the blame for [rap music]". As "New York Times" writer Sisario explained, he preferred the moniker of "bluesologist". Referring to reviews of his last album and references to him as the "godfather of rap", Scott-Heron said: "It's something that's aimed at the kids ... I have kids, so I listen to it. But I would not say it's aimed at me. I listen to the jazz station." In 2013, Chattanooga rapper Isaiah Rashad recorded an unofficial mixtape called Pieces of a Kid, which was greatly influenced by Heron's debut album Pieces of a Man.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: Following Scott-Heron's funeral in 2011, a tribute from publisher, record company owner, poet, and music producer Malik Al Nasir was published on "The Guardian"s website, titled "Gil Scott-Heron saved my life".


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: In the 2018 film "First Man", Scott-Heron is a minor character and is played by soul singer Leon Bridges.


title: Gil Scott-Heron

text: He is one of eight significant people shown in mosaic at the 167th Street renovated subway station on the Grand Concourse in the Bronx that reopened in 2019.


title: Calgary Flames

text: The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary. The Flames compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are the third major professional ice hockey team to represent the city of Calgary, following the Calgary Tigers (1921–1927) and Calgary Cowboys (1975–1977). The Flames are one of two NHL franchises based in Alberta, the other being the Edmonton Oilers. The cities' proximity has led to a rivalry known as the "Battle of Alberta".


title: Calgary Flames

text: The team was founded in 1972 in Atlanta as the Atlanta Flames before relocating to Calgary in 1980. The Flames played their first three seasons in Calgary at the Stampede Corral before moving into the Scotiabank Saddledome (originally the Olympic Saddledome) in 1983. In 1985–86, the Flames became the first Calgary team since the 1923–24 Tigers to compete for the Stanley Cup. In 1988–89, the Flames won their first and only Stanley Cup title. The Flames' unexpected run to the 2004 Stanley Cup Finals gave rise to the Red Mile, and in 2011, the team hosted and won the second Heritage Classic outdoor game.


title: Calgary Flames

text: The Flames have won two Presidents' Trophies as the NHL's top regular-season team, and have claimed eight division championships. Individually, Jarome Iginla is the franchise leader in games played, goals and points, and is a two-time winner of the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy as the NHL's leading goal scorer. Miikka Kiprusoff has the most wins by a goaltender in a Calgary Flames uniform. Eleven people associated with the Flames have been inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.


title: Calgary Flames

text: Off the ice, Calgary Sports and Entertainment, which owns the Flames, also own a Western Hockey League franchise (the Calgary Hitmen), a National Lacrosse League franchise (the Calgary Roughnecks), a Canadian Football League franchise (the Calgary Stampeders), and an American Hockey League franchise (the Calgary Wranglers). Through the Flames Foundation, the team has donated over million to charity throughout southern Alberta since the franchise arrived.


title: Calgary Flames

text: The Flames were the result of the NHL's first pre-emptive strike against the upstart World Hockey Association (WHA). In December 1971, the NHL hastily granted a team to Long Island — the New York Islanders — in an attempt to keep the WHA's New York Raiders out of the recently completed Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Needing another team to balance the schedule, the NHL awarded a team to the Atlanta-based group that owned the National Basketball Association's Atlanta Hawks, headed by prominent local real estate developer Tom Cousins. Cousins named the team the "Flames" after the fire resulting from the March to the Sea in the American Civil War by General William Tecumseh Sherman, in which Atlanta was nearly destroyed. They played home games in the Omni Coliseum in downtown Atlanta.


title: Calgary Flames

text: The Flames were relatively successful early on. Under head coaches Bernie "Boom Boom" Geoffrion, Fred Creighton and Al MacNeil, the Flames made the playoffs in six of eight seasons in Atlanta. In marked contrast, their expansion cousins, the Islanders, won only 31 games during their first two years in the league combined. However, this success did not carry over to the playoffs, as the Flames won only two postseason games during their time in Atlanta.


title: Calgary Flames

text: Despite the on-ice success, the Atlanta ownership was never on sound financial footing. Longtime general manager Cliff Fletcher said years later that Cousins' initial financial projections for an NHL team did not account for the WHA entering the picture. The Flames were also a poor draw, and never signed a major television contract.


title: Calgary Flames

text: In 1980, Cousins was in considerable financial difficulty and was forced to sell the Flames to stave off bankruptcy. With few serious offers from local groups, he was very receptive to an offer from Canadian entrepreneur (and former Oilers owner) Nelson Skalbania. He was fronting a group of Calgary businessmen that included oil magnates Harley Hotchkiss, Ralph T. Scurfield, Norman Green, Doc and Byron Seaman, and former Calgary Stampeders great Norman Kwong. A last-ditch effort to keep the team in Atlanta fell short, and Cousins sold the team to Skalbania for US$16 million, a record sale price for an NHL team at the time. On May 21, 1980, Skalbania announced that the team would move to Calgary. He chose to retain the Flames name, feeling it would be a good fit for an oil town like Calgary, while the flaming "A" logo was replaced by a flaming "C". Skalbania sold his interest in 1981, and the Flames have been locally owned since.


title: Calgary Flames

text: Unlike the WHA's Calgary Cowboys, who folded three years earlier, the Flames were immediately embraced by the city of Calgary. While the Cowboys could manage to sell only 2,000 season tickets in their final campaign of 1976–77, the Flames sold 10,000 full- and half-season ticket packages in the 7,000 seat Stampede Corral.


title: Calgary Flames

text: Led by Kent Nilsson's 49-goal, 131-point season, the Flames qualified for the playoffs in their first season in Calgary with a 39–27–14 record, good for third in the Patrick Division. The team found much greater playoff success in Calgary than it did in Atlanta, winning their first two playoff series over the Chicago Black Hawks and Philadelphia Flyers before bowing out to the Minnesota North Stars in the semi-finals. This early success was not soon repeated. After a losing record in 1981–82, Fletcher jettisoned several holdovers from the Atlanta days who could not adjust to the higher-pressure hockey environment and rebuilt the roster. Over the next three seasons, he put together a core of players that remained together through the early 1990s.


title: Calgary Flames

text: Fletcher's efforts to match the Oilers led him to draw talent from areas previously neglected by the NHL. The Flames were among the earliest teams to sign large numbers of U.S. college players, including Joel Otto, Gary Suter and Colin Patterson. Fletcher also stepped up the search for European hockey talent, acquiring Hakan Loob and other key players. He was among the first to draft players from the Soviet Union, including CSKA Moscow star Sergei Makarov in 1983, but Soviet players were not released to Western teams until 1989. Still, the team was sufficiently improved to challenge the Oilers, who required the maximum seven games to defeat the Flames "en route" to their 1984 Stanley Cup Championship.


title: Calgary Flames

text: In 1983, the Flames moved into their new home, the Olympic Saddledome (now known as the Scotiabank Saddledome). Located on the grounds of the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede, the Saddledome was built as a venue for the 1988 Winter Olympics. In three seasons in the Corral, the Flames lost only 32 home games. The Saddledome hosted the NHL All-Star Game in 1985, a 6–4 victory by the Wales Conference.


title: Calgary Flames

text: The players acquired by Fletcher matured into one of the strongest teams in the NHL during the mid-1980s and early 1990s. From 1984–85 to 1990–91, the Flames tallied 90 points in every season but one. However, they were usually unable to transform that success into a deep playoff run, largely because they could not get the better of their provincial rivals, the powerhouse Edmonton Oilers. The Oilers and Flames usually finished at or near the top of the Campbell Conference and were usually among the best teams in the entire league during this time. However, the NHL's playoff structure of the time made it very likely the Flames would meet the Oilers in either the first or second round, rather than in the Campbell Conference finals. That same structure made it very likely that the other two playoff qualifiers in the Smythe Division would have to get past the Flames or Oilers (or both) in order to make it to the conference finals. From 1983 until 1990, either the Oilers or the Flames represented the Campbell Conference in the Stanley Cup Finals.


title: Calgary Flames

text: By 1986, the Flames landed forwards Doug Risebrough, Lanny McDonald and Dan Quinn, defenceman Al MacInnis and goaltender Mike Vernon. Finishing second in the Smythe with a 40–31–9 record (the only season from 1984 to 1991 in which they did not finish with 90 or more points), the Flames swept the Winnipeg Jets in the first round of the playoffs, setting up a showdown with the Oilers. Edmonton finished 30 points ahead of Calgary during the season, and was heavily favoured to win a third Cup in a row. However, the Flames upset the Oilers in seven games, the only time the Flames defeated the Oilers in a playoff series in the decade. The series-winning goal came when an errant clearing attempt by Steve Smith ricocheted off goaltender Grant Fuhr's leg and into his own net. The goal remains one of the most legendary blunders in hockey history.


title: Calgary Flames

text: From there, the Flames went on to the Campbell Conference Finals, where they defeated the St. Louis Blues in another seven-game series. This time, Calgary had to survive a scare of its own, shaking off the Monday Night Miracle at the St. Louis Arena. Trailing by a score of 5–2 with ten minutes to play in the third period of Game 6, the Blues mounted a furious comeback to send the contest into overtime, where Doug Wickenheiser scored to force a deciding seventh game. Calgary won Game 7 at home, 2–1, advancing into the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time. The Flames proved to be no match for the Montreal Canadiens, losing the championship series in five games. Montreal rookie goaltender Patrick Roy was nearly unbeatable in the last two games, allowing only four goals en route to winning the Conn Smythe Trophy.


title: Calgary Flames

text: The Flames followed up their run to the Finals with their best regular season to that point. Calgary's 46–31–3 record in 1986–87 was good for third overall in the NHL, behind the Oilers and Philadelphia Flyers. However, the Flames were unable to duplicate their playoff success of a year prior, losing their first-round match-up with the Jets in six games. The season was also difficult off the ice, as 1986 first-round draft pick George Pelawa was killed in a car accident prior to the season's start.


title: Calgary Flames

text: Under new head coach Terry Crisp, the Flames recorded their first 100-point season in 1987–88, earning the Presidents' Trophy for having the NHL's best record and ending the Oilers' six-year reign atop the Smythe Division in the process. Joe Nieuwendyk became the second rookie in NHL history to score at least 50 goals in a season, earning the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year. Looking to bolster the line-up for a playoff run, the Flames traded young sniper Brett Hull (along with Steve Bozek) to the Blues in exchange for Rob Ramage and Rick Wamsley on March 7, 1988. However, their playoff frustrations continued after defeating the Los Angeles Kings in five games, as Calgary was swept out of the playoffs in four straight by the Oilers.


title: Calgary Flames

text: In 1988–89, the Flames continued to improve. They captured their second consecutive Presidents' Trophy with a franchise record 117 points, finishing 26 points better than the second-place Kings in the Smythe Division. Fletcher continued to tinker with the roster, acquiring Doug Gilmour as part of a six player deal at the trade deadline. In the playoffs, the Flames were stretched to seven games in the first round by the Vancouver Canucks. They relied on several saves by goaltender Mike Vernon, including a famous glove save off a Stan Smyl breakaway in overtime. The save remains a defining moment in Flames history.


title: Calgary Flames

text: The Flames then made short work of the Kings, defeating them in four straight, before eliminating the Chicago Blackhawks in five games to set up a rematch of the 1986 Stanley Cup Finals against Montreal. This time, the Flames won in six games, the last being a 4–2 victory in Montreal on May 25, 1989. The clinching win was especially significant in that it marked the only time that an opposing team defeated the Canadiens to win the Stanley Cup on Montreal Forum ice. Al MacInnis captured the Conn Smythe as playoffs' most valuable player, while long-time captain Lanny McDonald announced his retirement. The 1989 Stanley Cup win gave Flames co-owner Sonia Scurfield (Ralph's widow) the distinction of being the first (and as of 2013, only) Canadian woman to have her name engraved on the Cup. It also made Kwong one of the few to have his name on both the Stanley Cup and the Grey Cup.


title: Calgary Flames

text: In 1989, due in part to Cliff Fletcher's diplomatic efforts, the Soviets gave permission for a select group of Soviet hockey players to sign with NHL teams. The first of these players was Sergei Pryakhin. Although Pryakhin never became an NHL regular, his arrival blazed a trail for the large number of Russian players who entered the NHL beginning in 1989–90. Sergei Makarov joined the Flames that season and, though already in his 30s, became the fifth Flame to win the Calder Memorial Trophy as the NHL's Rookie of the Year. The selection proved controversial, prompting the NHL to amend the rules to exclude any player over age 26 from future consideration. That season, the team fell two points shy of their third-straight Presidents' Trophy with 99 points. Also that season, they won their third straight Smythe Division title. In the playoffs, they were dethroned in six games by the Los Angeles Kings. They did not win another playoff series until 2004, one of the longest such droughts in NHL history.


title: Calgary Flames

text: In 1991, Fletcher left the Flames to become the general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs. He had been the team's general manager since its inception in 1972. He was succeeded in Calgary by Doug Risebrough, and the two quickly completed a ten-player mega-trade that saw disgruntled forward Doug Gilmour dealt to Toronto with four other players in exchange for former 50-goal scorer Gary Leeman and four others. The trade transformed both clubs. The formerly inept Leafs turned into a contender almost immediately, while Leeman scored only 11 goals in a Flames uniform. Despite the blossoming of Theoren Fleury into an NHL star, the Flames missed the playoffs entirely in 1992, only a year after finishing with their third 100-point season in franchise history. It was the first time the Flames had missed the playoffs since 1975, when they were still in Atlanta. It was also only the third time out of the playoffs in the franchise's 20-year history.


title: Calgary Flames

text: Calgary rebounded to make the playoffs for the next four seasons, including two consecutive division titles. However, they were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs each time. The 1994 and 1995 Division titles led to Game 7 overtime home defeats in the opening round to the Canucks and San Jose Sharks respectively. In the 1995–96 season, Joe Nieuwendyk was traded to the Dallas Stars in a deal that acquired Jarome Iginla. Iginla made his Flames debut in the 1996 playoffs during which the Flames again lost in the first round, a four-game sweep by the Blackhawks. In 1997, only two years after winning their second consecutive division title, the Flames missed the playoffs and did not return for seven years. The low point came in the 1997–98 season, in which the Flames finished with only 67 points, the second-lowest point total in franchise history (behind only the 1972–73 Atlanta Flames).


title: Calgary Flames

text: During this time, the Flames found it increasingly difficult to retain their best players as salaries escalated while the Canadian dollar lost value against the American dollar. Calgary has always been one of the smallest markets in the NHL (it is currently third-smallest, behind only Edmonton and Winnipeg) and the NHL's small-market Canadian teams found it increasingly difficult to compete in the new environment. In 1999, for example, the Flames traded Fleury to the Colorado Avalanche midway through the season. The trade came shortly after Fleury became the franchise's all-time leading scorer. Fleury was due to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, and the Flames did not want to risk losing him without getting anything in return.


title: Calgary Flames

text: As the Flames sank in the standings, their attendance also sagged. For most of their first 16 years in Calgary, Flames tickets were among the toughest to get in the NHL. However, by 1999, attendance had fallen off so severely that the owners issued an ultimatum: buy more season tickets or the team would join its departed counterparts in Winnipeg and Quebec City in leaving for the United States. The fans responded by buying enough season tickets to keep the Flames in Calgary for the 1999–2000 season. The Flames issued another appeal for more season tickets in the summer of 2000. The campaign, aimed at increasing season ticket sales from a franchise low of 8,700 to 14,000, proved successful. However, the increased sales did not halt the Flames' financial losses, as the team estimated it lost $14.5 million between 2001 and 2003.


title: Calgary Flames

text: One of the few bright spots in this stretch was Iginla, who captured the Maurice "Rocket" Richard and Art Ross Trophies in 2001–02 as NHL goal- and point-scoring champion after scoring 52 goals and 96 points. Iginla again won the "Rocket" Richard Trophy, tied with Rick Nash and Ilya Kovalchuk, with 41 goals in 2003–04. Another bright spot for the team during this time was defenceman Robyn Regehr, who became the youngest nominee ever for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, which recognizes perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey. Regehr had suffered two broken legs in a car accident the summer of 1999, but recovered in time to play 57 games at age 19.


title: Calgary Flames

text: During the 2002–03 season, the Flames hired Darryl Sutter as the team's head coach, replacing Greg Gilbert, who was fired as the Flames languished in last place in the Western Conference. Sutter also became the team's general manager following the season, and is credited with revitalizing the franchise. Among Sutter's first moves was to acquire goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff, whom he had previously coached in San Jose, early in the 2003–04 season. Kiprusoff responded by setting a modern NHL record for lowest goals against average (GAA) at 1.69.


title: Calgary Flames

text: After seven consecutive seasons of not making the playoffs, the Flames finally returned to the postseason in 2004. They became the first team in the league's history to defeat three division champions "en route" to becoming the first Canadian team to make it to the Stanley Cup Finals since the Canucks in 1994. The Flames' first victim was the Northwest Division champion Vancouver Canucks, whom they defeated in seven games. It was the Flames' first playoff series win since they won the 1989 final.


title: Calgary Flames

text: The Flames then upset the Presidents' Trophy winning Detroit Red Wings in six games. After eliminating the Pacific Division champion San Jose Sharks, also in six games, in the Western Conference Final, the Flames earned a trip to the 2004 Stanley Cup Finals to face the Tampa Bay Lightning. Martin Gelinas scored the winning goal in all three series. The Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C., flew the Flames flag beside the Maple Leaf, while Prime Minister Paul Martin dubbed the Flames "Canada's team".


title: Calgary Flames

text: The final series went to seven games, with the Flames suffering a controversial non-goal in Game 6 at home. Replays showed Martin Gelinas may have scored what would have been the go-ahead goal late in the third period; however, the referees never signalled a goal, and later replays were ruled inconclusive. The goal would have made Gelinas the only player in NHL history to score the winning goal in every playoff series "en route" to winning the Stanley Cup. The Lightning went on to win the game in double overtime, before winning game seven at home to capture the Stanley Cup. Despite the loss, 30,000 fans packed into Olympic Plaza to celebrate the Flames' run.


title: Calgary Flames

text: The Flames did not raise their Western Conference championship banner for nearly 15 months, as the 2004–05 season was wiped out by a labour dispute. During the lock-out, team owner and chairman of the board Harley Hotchkiss attempted to save the season by engaging in discussions with National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA) president Trevor Linden. While their discussions failed to save the season, Hotchkiss was credited with easing tensions that allowed for a successful negotiation of a new collective agreement.


title: Calgary Flames

text: The Flames played their 25th season in Calgary in 2005–06, finishing with 103 points. It was their best total since the 1989 Cup winning season, and good enough to capture their first division title in 12 years. However, the Flames lost to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in seven games during the first round of the playoffs. Miikka Kiprusoff captured both the William M. Jennings and Vezina Trophies as the NHL's top goaltender, while Dion Phaneuf's 20 goals was the third-highest total for a rookie defenceman in NHL history.


title: Calgary Flames

text: The 2006 off-season began with a trade for Alex Tanguay, formerly of the Colorado Avalanche, and with Sutter relinquishing his head coaching position to assistant Jim Playfair so he could focus on his duties as general manager. Despite a marked improvement in team offence and a solid 96-point season, it was only good enough for eighth place in a Western Conference, where seven teams cracked the 100-point barrier. In the playoffs, Calgary fell in six games to the top-seeded Detroit Red Wings in the first round. During the series, the Flames were fined by the NHL for several stick-related penalties in the fifth game. Notably, backup goaltender Jamie McLennan was suspended five games for slashing Red Wings forward Johan Franzen. Franzen scored the series-clinching goal in the Game 6 defeat in double overtime.


title: Calgary Flames

text: Prior to the start of the 2007–08 season, the Flames demoted Playfair to associate coach, bringing in Mike Keenan as the team's third head coach in three years. During the season, Jarome Iginla became the Flames' all-time leader in games played, passing Al MacInnis' mark of 803. Iginla also passed Theoren Fleury's mark of 364 goals to become the Flames' all-time goalscoring leader on March 10, 2008. Despite another solid season with 94 points, they only garnered the seventh seed in the Western Conference. They fell in the Western Conference quarter-finals to the Pacific Division champion San Jose Sharks in seven games. Iginla continued to set franchise records in 2008–09, surpassing Fleury's franchise mark of 830 points, and scoring his 400th goal on the same night against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The team failed to advance past the first round of the playoffs, being eliminated by the Chicago Blackhawks in six games, resulting in the dismissal of head coach Mike Keenan after two seasons. Brent Sutter was named his successor on June 23, 2009, but the Flames failed to qualify for the playoffs in the 2009–10 season.


title: Calgary Flames

text: The Flames struggled to begin the 2010–11 NHL season, falling to 14th place in the conference at the Christmas break. Consequently, the organization asked Darryl Sutter to step aside as general manager. The team named assistant Jay Feaster the interim general manager in his place, making it permanent following the season. The team pulled itself back into playoff contention following the change but once again failed to qualify for the playoffs.


title: Calgary Flames

text: Calgary hosted the 2011 Heritage Classic, the NHL's second outdoor game of the year, at McMahon Stadium on February 22, 2011. The Flames defeated the Montreal Canadiens 4–0 before 41,022 spectators. Miikka Kiprusoff became the first goaltender to record a shutout in an NHL outdoor game. Jarome Iginla reached two major milestones late in the season—he became the tenth player in NHL history to score at least 30 goals in ten consecutive seasons, and scored his 1,000th career point, all with the Flames, with a goal against the St. Louis Blues on April 1. Iginla also scored his 500th career goal on January 7, 2012, against the Minnesota Wild. He scored the goal against goaltender Niklas Backstrom "en route" to a 3–1 Flames victory.


title: Calgary Flames

text: On March 27, 2013, long-time captain and player Jarome Iginla was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for prospects Kenny Agostino and Ben Hanowski and a first-round pick in 2013 (Morgan Klimchuk), leaving the team without a captain for the first time. The Flames missed the playoffs once again in 2012–13, selecting Sean Monahan sixth overall at the 2013 NHL Entry Draft after the season.


title: Calgary Flames

text: Prior to the beginning of the 2013–14 season, Mark Giordano was named as the new captain of the Flames. Aided from a 22-goal rookie effort from Monahan, the Flames nonetheless endured a poor season, watching 2012–13 co-leading scorers Mike Cammalleri and Lee Stempniak leave in free agency in the summer. However, a bright spot came in the season's final game against the Vancouver Canucks, as 2011 fourth-round draft pick Johnny Gaudreau made his much-anticipated debut after winning the Hobey Baker Award at Boston College the day before. Gaudreau recorded his first NHL goal in the contest, the lone goal in a 5–1 Flames loss.