title: Battlefield 1

text: "Battlefield 1" received positive reviews from critics, who saw it as an improvement over the series' previous installments, "Battlefield 4" and "Battlefield Hardline". Most of the praise was directed towards its World War I setting, single-player campaigns, multiplayer modes, visuals, and sound design.


title: Battlefield 1

text: The game was a commercial success, selling over 15 million copies, and was followed by "Battlefield V" in 2018.


title: Battlefield 1

text: Similar to its predecessors, "Battlefield 1" is a first-person shooter game that emphasizes teamwork. It is set in the period of World War I, and is inspired by historical events. Players can make use of World War I weapons, including bolt-action rifles, submachine guns, automatic and semi-automatic rifles, artillery, flamethrowers, and to combat opponents. Melee combat was reworked, with DICE introducing new melee weapons such as sabres, trench clubs, and shovels into the game. These melee weapons were divided into three groups: heavy, medium and light. Players can also take control of various armored vehicles, including light and heavy tanks, armored trucks, cars, torpedo boats, bi- and tri-plane aircraft, an armored train, reconnaissance vehicles, a dreadnought and an M-class zeppelin, as well as ride horses into battle. Destructible environments and weapon customization, features present in the previous games, returned in "Battlefield 1" and are more dynamic.


title: Battlefield 1

text: The game's world designer, Daniel Berlin, said the campaign mode has larger and more open environments than those in previous installments in the franchise, with more options and choices in terms of paths to completing levels and how to approach combat. Players can control several characters in the campaign. If the player dies in the prologue, they will then take control of another soldier and role instead of reloading from a checkpoint. These roles can range from tank gunner to rifleman. Unlike its predecessors, the game features a collection of war stories, similar to an anthology.


title: Battlefield 1

text: The game's multiplayer mode supports up to 64 players. The new squad system allows a group of players to enter and leave game servers together. According to Berlin, playing without joining a squad would make gameplay significantly more difficult. Multiplayer maps are based on locations around the world, including Arabia, the Western Front, and the Alps. You can also play on the Eastern Front with DLC. The game launched with nine maps and six modes, which include Conquest, Domination, Operations, Rush, Team Deathmatch, and War Pigeons, a mode in which players must secure war pigeons and use them to call for an artillery strike.


title: Battlefield 1

text: "Battlefield 1"s multiplayer mode features numerous game types seen in previous entries in the franchise, as well as new modes;


title: Battlefield 1

text: "Battlefield 1"s multiplayer features four main classes, three spawn-based vehicle classes, and five pick-up based Elite classes:


title: Battlefield 1

text: During the single-player campaigns, the player controls six different characters from a first-person perspective over six different chapters (known as War Stories). Unlike previous campaigns in the series, "Battlefield 1"s single-player story mode is composed of six separate "War Stories", each shown through the eyes of separate Allied soldiers from different nationalities:


title: Battlefield 1

text: The prologue, set in 1918, sees players take control of different members of the Harlem Hellfighters as they defend their positions against a German offensive in France. The player initially starts out near the front line and must survive as long as possible against waves of German soldiers. If the player survives the attack, an artillery barrage will rain down on them and then the game's perspective will shift to another soldier. During the course of the gameplay, an unnamed narrator (one of the Hellfighters) gives commentary on the nature of the war as the battle continues and player controlled soldiers are killed.


title: Battlefield 1

text: At the start of the battle, the Hellfighters initially lose ground to the Germans, but British tanks force the German troops into a retreat until the tanks are stalled by artillery. The Hellfighters mount a counteroffensive and push forward, sustaining casualties as the Germans hold their ground. When the player switches perspective to the final soldier in the gameplay, a German soldier attempts to kill the player character with a shovel but is stopped short by an artillery barrage that wipes out all of the combatants on the battlefield and renders the player unconscious. When the player character regains consciousness, he initially appears to be the lone survivor, but quickly encounters a German survivor. Although the two point their weapons at one another, exhaustion and battle fatigue set in as both realize the futility of their situation, inclining both men to lower their weapons. The game then proceeds to an introduction cinematic that opens up to the other War Stories.


title: Battlefield 1

text: Set in Autumn of 1918 during the Battle of Cambrai in the Hundred Days Offensive, players assume the role of Daniel Edwards, a former chauffeur who enlists in the war as a British tank driver. Edwards is assigned to a Mark V tank dubbed "Black Bess," and meets the rest of his crew: Townsend, the tank crew's commander; McManus, a cynical gunner who doubts Edwards' abilities and the likelihood of the crew's success; Pritchard, another gunner; and Finch, the friendly mechanic.


title: Battlefield 1

text: The crew must penetrate German lines to reach the French town of Cambrai, and helps capture strategic positions and destroy artillery batteries. Finch is killed by machine-gun fire early on while trying to repair the tank, and later on, the tank becomes trapped in mud and surrounded by German infantry. Townsend decides to summon an artillery strike on their own position with the tank's messenger pigeon to save the tank, which McManus objects to vehemently. Pritchard is shot and killed trying to release the pigeon, forcing Edwards to do so, which enables British artillery to save the tank. Encountering thick fog in the nearby Bourlon Wood, Edwards acts as a forward scout to guide the tank. Clearing the forest, the tank becomes beset with mechanical problems, and Townsend sends Edwards and McManus to salvage spark plugs from British tanks captured by the Germans. McManus expresses his disdain for their orders and abandons the mission, deserting. However, McManus has a change of heart later on and returns just in time to save Edwards from a German soldier.


title: Battlefield 1

text: With the tank repaired, the crew proceeds to a railway station defended by German forces. Although Bess is the only British tank in the area, the crew attacks the railway station to deceive the Germans into thinking that a large British offensive is underway. Eliminating the German forces at the railway station, the tank proceeds to Cambrai but is immobilized by artillery and attacked by German soldiers. Edwards and McManus are wounded defending the tank, and an injured Townsend sacrifices himself by igniting a gas leak inside the tank, killing himself and the Germans. With Bess destroyed and Edwards and McManus the only survivors, the two proceed alone on foot to Cambrai. Closing subtitles indicate that with the participation of more than 300 tanks at the Battle of Cambrai, the war ended a month later.


title: Battlefield 1

text: In this story, set in the Spring of 1917, players control Clyde Blackburn, an American pilot and gambler with a habit of deceitful behavior. Early on, Blackburn cheats George Rackham, a pilot of British nobility, in a game of cards and steals the latter's plane. Posing as Rackham, Blackburn introduces himself to Rackham's gunner, Wilson, and the two set off on an aerial exercise. During the exercise, German aircraft ambush the duo, and the two pilots take photographs of a German munitions base they stumble upon after fighting off the enemy fighters. Although Wilson is reluctant to show the photos to British Command out of fears of being accused of insubordination, Blackburn cajoles him into doing so with the prospect of winning medals. Wilson agrees on the condition that Blackburn returns them both safe from future missions.


title: Battlefield 1

text: Blackburn and Wilson escort British bombers in an assault on the photographed German munitions base. Although the base is destroyed, Blackburn and Wilson are caught in a bomb explosion and crash behind enemy lines, separated. Blackburn sneaks through German positions and discovers Wilson is injured. Knowing that he will be unable to return to British lines safely while carrying Wilson, Blackburn contemplates putting his companion out of his misery but changes his mind when Wilson reveals he knew Blackburn's true identity all along. Blackburn carries Wilson through no-man's land to friendly lines but is detained by British Provosts under the orders of Rackham.


title: Battlefield 1

text: On the way to the court-martial in London, the vessel carrying Blackburn, Rackham, and Wilson is attacked by a German aerial raid, and Rackham is killed. Blackburn and Wilson commandeer a plane and fight off the German raid. Blackburn and Wilson first destroy a wave of German bombers and fighters before crashing into a German Zeppelin and using its anti-aircraft gun to destroy another Zeppelin. The two pilots jump into the River Thames after the Zeppelin plummets to the ground. The story ends with Blackburn climbing out of the river unharmed, reflecting on his experiences. He notes that mixed accounts of his exploits may arise due to the confusing nature of the war, but suggests that his version of events is the truth. The story ends on an ambiguous note by leaving the question open as to whether the events of the story truly occurred as they did.


title: Battlefield 1

text: Taking place during the autumn of 1918 in the Dolomites in Northern Italy, players assume the role of Luca Vincenzo Cocchiola, a member of the Italian Arditi unit. The story is conveyed by an aged Luca years after the war as he recounts his memories to his American daughter on his birthday. He and his twin brother, Matteo, take part in a major offensive to seize an Austro-Hungarian fortress, days after their 21st birthday. While Matteo takes part in the main thrust of the offensive, Luca's unit plays an auxiliary role, eliminating barriers to the main advance forces. Donning heavy body armor and using a MG08/15 Luca spearheads the assault on key Austro-Hungarian positions, capturing strongpoints, destroying an artillery gun, and thwarting an enemy aerial assault.


title: Battlefield 1

text: In desperation to stop the assault on the fort, the Austro-Hungarian bombers trigger a landslide to obstruct the Italian offensive. Desperate to save his brother, Luca sets off alone into the battlefield to find his brother's unit, armed with Villar Perosa and Beretta M1915. Along the way, he assists trapped Italian units and pushes toward the direction of the enemy fort. After clearing the fortress, Luca finds the remains of his brother's unit and stumbles upon his deceased brother; much to his grief and dismay. A mourning Luca in the present-day bids his brother farewell and happy birthday, while a concluding subtitle states that the war affected both nation-states and empires, as well as families, with survivors and the deceased of the war named the "Lost Generation."


title: Battlefield 1

text: Set during the Gallipoli Campaign of 1915, the player takes on the role of Australian messenger and Second Boer War veteran, Frederick Bishop. The story starts with Bishop encountering young Jack Foster, who says he is Bishop's new charge. While initially cynical, Bishop reluctantly relents and takes Foster under his wing, but warns Foster to refrain from battle due to his inexperience and young age. Bishop storms the beaches of Gallipoli at Cape Helles and captures a strategic enemy position. Bishop fires a flare to signify the capture of the position but is startled by a lone Foster, who disobeyed Bishop's command to only move up with the rest of the Allied forces. Bishop berates Foster for his naivety and view of war as a glorious activity, given that Foster had lied about his age to enlist. Foster becomes appalled at the sight of the carnage around him, but Bishop softens his rhetoric and reassures Foster that they will be alright.


title: Battlefield 1

text: The next day, Bishop volunteers as a runner in place of Foster, whom Bishop considers inexperienced for the task. Bishop returns to HQ to deliver a message and is saved by Foster, who shoots a nearby Ottoman soldier. British officer Whitehall dispatches Bishop to a rear command post to inform them that the British intend to advance further. Bishop finds the rear CP deserted, and discovers that the British intend to retreat and cover the withdrawal with artillery fire. Remembering that Foster is still on the frontlines, Bishop rushes back to retrieve him. Finding Whitehall, Bishop is shocked to discover that Foster has joined an assault on an Ottoman fortress. Bishop decides to pursue Foster, while a distressed Whitehall permits Bishop to disobey the fallback order to get Foster, telling him he has not much time.


title: Battlefield 1

text: Bishop finds Foster and informs him of the imminent artillery strike, but the young Australian says that they cannot abandon their wounded. Bishop attacks the fort to cover the withdrawal, but tells Foster to fire a flare when the retreat is completed so that the former can make his own escape. Bishop then single-handedly captures the fort and is mortally wounded in the process, but sees Foster's flare and is relieved to see that the retreat was successful. The story ends as Bishop dies from his wounds, watching as British warships shell the fort. Closing subtitles state that the Ottomans eventually won the Battle at Gallipoli, and several notable survivors went on to lead a postwar Turkey. Australian and New Zealand troops fought at Gallipoli under their own flags, distinguishing themselves in combat.


title: Battlefield 1

text: Taking place in the spring of 1918, players assume control of Zara Ghufran, a Bedouin rebel working directly alongside British intelligence officer T. E. Lawrence (better known as Lawrence of Arabia) as they fight to undermine the Ottoman occupation of the Arabian Peninsula. Zara infiltrates a derailed Ottoman train in "Al-Ajdar" and retrieves a manual with Ottoman communication codes. Although caught in a trap by Tilkici, an Ottoman officer, Zara is rescued by Lawrence and several Bedouin insurgents. Zara and Lawrence decide to interrogate Tilkici on how to use the code manually to lure the Canavar, an Ottoman armored train, into a trap, but Tilkici scoffs that the rebels will not triumph.


title: Battlefield 1

text: Having interrogated Tilkici, the rebels discover that they must use message capsules held by three Ottoman officers to ask the train to stand down. Zara proceeds alone, successfully infiltrating Ottoman camps to release two message capsules by a pigeon while eliminating the Ottoman commanders. However, as she prepares to release the third capsule, she is knocked unconscious by Tilkici, who managed to escape from Lawrence. Tilkici drags Zara out into the desert and taunts her, having already ordered the Canavar to strike Lawrence's camp. However, Zara kills Tilkici before he can execute her.


title: Battlefield 1

text: Returning to Lawrence, who survived the attack by relocating following Tilkici's escape, Zara and Lawrence decide to attack the armored train while it stops for supplies. Zara infiltrates the village where the Canavar stops and destroys segments of the train to impede the train's movement. Zara and the rebels destroy the train in an intense battle, ending the threat to their forces. Having achieved her "revenge" against the Canavar, Zara joins Lawrence to strike at targets in the Suez Canal. The closing subtitles indicate that although the Ottomans lost the war, the Allies refused to grant the Arabs full autonomy and that conflicts in the region continue into the 21st century.


title: Battlefield 1

text: According to game designer Daniel Berlin, the team picked World War I as the game's setting as they believed that the weapons and gadgets featured in that period of time suit players with different playstyles. The game was named "Battlefield 1", since the team considered World War I as "the dawn of all-out warfare". Melee weapons were reworked so as to introduce more depth to the system. According to creative director Lars Gustavsson, the setting was a concept for a very long time, and it had been the "dream" for the team to create a game based on that period. According to Berlin, gameplay was the most important aspect when they were developing the game, and he promised that it would not be slowed down due to the game's historical setting. The story of the game is told through multiple protagonists, and explores the stories of unknown war heroes. Patrick Söderlund, the executive at Electronic Arts responsible for overseeing DICE, originally rejected the idea of having a World War One shooter as he thought that it would not be fun to play. He later accepted the pitch after being convinced by a demo created by DICE. Aleksander Grøndal, Senior Producer at DICE, prepared his own research into the war by looking at visual references. He favored colored images of the war in an attempt to visualize what the soldiers lived through. “I wanted to see the pictures and I wanted to imagine how they'd look with a mobile lens,” Grøndal expressed when interviewed. “I wanted to start off with all the footage and imagine that footage in our game with a modern take.” He specifically favored "Apocalypse: World War I", a 2014 colorized French documentary, and "World War I in Colour" by Charles Messenger, a 2004 book of colorized war time photographs. Grøndal favored colored material as he felt, "It's quite interesting and it sucks you in because it feels much closer when you see everything in color." Despite his personal penchant for colored visuals, his self ascribed "big inspiration" was "Blueprint for Armageddon", a six-part audio documentary by Dan Carlin for the latter's "Hardcore History" podcast series.


title: Battlefield 1

text: In June 2015, DICE revealed that they were working on an unannounced game. In January 2016, EA announced that "Titanfall 2", "" and an unannounced video game set in the "Battlefield" universe would be released prior to the end of the company's fiscal year. Both the title, the game's release date, and the plot of the game were leaked prior to the official announcement on May 6, 2016. The game was officially unveiled on that day through a livestream on Twitch, showcasing a reveal trailer of the game featuring a remix of The White Stripes' "Seven Nation Army" by The Glitch Mob. The game's "Collector's Edition" includes items such as a statue of a Harlem Hellfighter, a code for exclusive downloadable content (DLC) of the Doughboy M1911 Pistol, and a Steelbook case. Pre-order bonuses include early access to a DLC map named Giant's Shadow which takes place in the Battle of the Selle, and the "Harlem Hellfighter Pack". The Heroes Bundle includes the pre-order bonuses, as well as three days early access to the game, the "Red Baron Pack", the "Lawrence of Arabia Pack", and five Battlepacks. "Battlefield 1" was released worldwide on October 21, 2016 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.


title: Battlefield 1

text: "Battlefield 1"s open beta became available on August 31, 2016, for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. It ended on September 8, 2016. The open beta allowed the team to ensure that major technical bugs, glitches, and crashes can be patched prior to the game's official launch. 13.2 million players participated in the beta.


title: Battlefield 1

text: DICE released four downloadable content expansions for "Battlefield 1"; "They Shall Not Pass", "In the Name of the Tsar", "Turning Tides", and "Apocalypse".


title: Battlefield 1

text: In December 2016, DICE announced the first major expansion for "Battlefield 1", "They Shall Not Pass", which was released on March 14, 2017 with a two-week exclusivity period for Premium holders. It focuses on the new playable faction, the French Army; the expansion features four new maps set in the Battle of Verdun and the Second Battle of the Marne; Fort de Vaux, Soissons, Rupture, and Verdun Heights. "They Shall Not Pass" adds new weapons and vehicles, as well as new melee-oriented "Trench Raider" elite class. Two additional maps named Nivelle Nights and Prise de Tahure, both set during and after the Nivelle Offensive, are included as part of the expansion and were released in Summer 2017. As of May 5, 2018, "They Shall Not Pass" is free for all players via the Xbox, PC, and PlayStation websites, and remained free until May 15 as part of The Road to Battlefield V.


title: Battlefield 1

text: In April 2017, DICE released the first images of the "In the Name of the Tsar" DLC. This DLC was confirmed during EA Play 2017, where a short amount of footage of it was also shown. "In the Name of the Tsar" focuses on the Russian Empire during the Great War. The Scout class for the Russian Empire faction features a female soldier representing the Women's Battalion. Four maps in the expansion are set on the Eastern Front; Lupkow Pass, Galicia, Brusilov Keep, and Albion, while two other maps are set in the Russian Civil War between the White Guard and Red Army; Tsaritsyn and Volga River. It also adds 11 new infantry weapons to the game and various new vehicles. "In the Name of the Tsar" also features a new horseback weapon called the Cavalry Lance. The expansion was released on September 5, 2017 for Premium Pass, with a worldwide release two weeks later. The cover art for this downloadable content expansion features Vendela Lindblom, the Playmate of the Month for the January 2019 issue of Playboy, as a female soldier.


title: Battlefield 1

text: The "Turning Tides" DLC is focused on aspects of the naval and amphibious combat during World War I. DICE released the first half of the expansion to Premium Pass holders on December 11, 2017, containing 2 maps set during the Gallipoli Campaign: Achi Baba and Cape Helles. This expansion adds six new infantry weapons to the game, as well as a new "Infiltrator" elite class, which is equipped with a heliograph spawn beacon gadget, signal flare gun, and the Martini-Henry Grenade Launcher. "Turning Tides" also brings back the Conquest Assault game mode from previous "Battlefield" installments. The L-Class Destroyer was introduced as a new naval vehicle in the DLC. For the second half of the expansion, released on January 30, 2018, "Turning Tides: North Sea" brought more locations involving naval warfare from the Great War. Two new maps were added: Heligoland Bight and Zeebrugge, along with the Royal Marines as a new faction to battle the German Army. The "North Sea" release also introduced the C-Class Airship as a new air vehicle.


title: Battlefield 1

text: The fourth and final DLC for "Battlefield 1", the "Apocalypse" DLC, is centered around some of the most brutal battles of the Great War. The DLC was released on February 20, 2018, containing five maps, six guns, and a new game mode, among other additions. The three infantry-based maps of "Apocalypse" reflect three of the bloodiest battles of World War I; Caporetto set in present-day Slovenia, Passchendaele in Belgium, and River Somme in France. The DLC brought no new factions to the game, but introduced a new game mode titled "Air Assault" in the remaining two maps. These two maps, both only plane and zeppelin focused, are named "Razor's Edge" and "London Calling." While both maps feature combat above detailed landscapes (Razor's Edge taking place in the Alps and London Calling occurring over the city of London), neither are based on factual battles. "Apocalypse" brought new weapons and gadgets to "Battlefield 1" as well. In addition, melee weapons were introduced to the game. DICE and the "Battlefield" team also added a number of other components to the game, including vehicles, gadgets for various infantry classes, and the stationary Livens Projector/Gaswurfminen, located on each of the three infantry-based maps. The DLC also features two new air vehicles, the Airco DH.10 Amiens and the Hansa-Brandenburg G.I.


title: Battlefield 1

text: The game received positive response from the community after its official announcement. As of July 2, 2016, the "Battlefield 1" reveal trailer is the most liked trailer on YouTube, with over 2 million likes. Electronic Arts expected the game to sell at least 14 million units in its first year of release. Writing for "Wired", Julie Muncy felt worried that the game may not be able to reflect the complex situations in World War I, and thought that the war may not be an ideal setting for a video game. In contrast, "Zam"'s Robert Rath reflected on the same themes, and noted that World War I was largely forgotten in popular culture due to its inability to inspire passion or interest; Rath suggested "Battlefield 1" could rejuvenate popular interest in the war. At The Guardian, Alex Hern criticized what he perceived as the hypocrisy of those objecting to a video game portrayal of WWI, writing: "Asking whether the First World War is an appropriate topic for a first-person shooter may reveal a more pressing question: why do we think any war is?"


title: Battlefield 1

text: "Battlefield 1" received "generally favorable" reviews from critics, according to review aggregator Metacritic.


title: Battlefield 1

text: Reviewers praised the game's unique, refreshing setting, as well as the risk DICE took when developing a WW1-themed game. The multiplayer component was praised for its solid mechanics, the new game mode Operations, the soundtrack, and the maps, amongst other things. Although praise was given to the single-player campaign for its story and level design, it was nonetheless criticized for being too short. "PC World" also criticized that all six campaigns take place from the viewpoint of the Allied Powers and the viewpoint from the Central Powers is absent.


title: Battlefield 1

text: "Battlefield 1" was the best-selling retail game in the UK in its week of release. Its launch week sales surpassed the combined sales of both "Battlefield 4" and "Battlefield Hardline". The PlayStation 4 version topped sales charts in Japan, selling 113,083 copies in its first week. As of January 18, 2017, the PlayStation 4 version has sold 249,053 copies in Japan. "Battlefield 1" was the top-selling game in the US in the month of its release.


title: Dumbo

text: Dumbo is a 1941 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by RKO Radio Pictures. The fourth Disney animated feature film, it is based upon the storyline written by Helen Aberson and Harold Pearl, and illustrated by Helen Durney for the prototype of a novelty toy ("Roll-a-Book"). The main character is Jumbo Jr., an elephant who is cruelly nicknamed "Dumbo", as in "dumb". He is ridiculed for his big ears, but in fact he is capable of flying by using his ears as wings. Throughout most of the film, his only true friend, aside from his mother, is the mouse, Timothy – a relationship parodying the stereotypical animosity between mice and elephants.


title: Dumbo

text: Made to recoup the financial losses of both "Pinocchio" and "Fantasia", "Dumbo" was a deliberate pursuit of simplicity and economy for the Disney studios. At 64 minutes, it is one of Disney's shortest animated features. Sound was recorded conventionally using the RCA System. One voice was synthesized using the Sonovox system, but it, too, was recorded using the RCA System.


title: Dumbo

text: "Dumbo" was released on October 23, 1941, where it was met with generally favorable reviews. However, it has also been criticized for racist stereotyping of black people. In 2017, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically and aesthetically significant".


title: Dumbo

text: A live-action adaptation of the film directed by Tim Burton was released on March 29, 2019, though it was neither critically nor commercially successful.


title: Dumbo

text: While a large circus spends the off-season in the "Winter Grounds" in Florida, a flock of white storks delivers babies to the animals. One elephant, Mrs. Jumbo, does not receive her baby, and keeps scanning the sky. The circus sets out on a new tour, and a belated stork catches up with the moving train and drops off the expected baby elephant, Jumbo Junior. The other elephants are initially delighted, until they see the baby has far-oversized ears, and promptly nickname him "Dumbo". However, Mrs. Jumbo shows her baby great care and love, defending him from the teasing of the other elephants.


title: Dumbo

text: Dumbo, clumsy due to his ears, is made into a sideshow attraction. When some rowdy boys started to bully Dumbo and his ears, Mrs. Jumbo spanks their leader and throws hay bales at them. Circus staff remove Dumbo from the pen, and Mrs. Jumbo flies into a rage, eventually dousing the ringmaster in a water tub. She is subsequently deemed mad and locked in a cage. Dumbo is blamed for the incident and shunned by the other elephants.


title: Dumbo

text: Timothy, a mouse that travels with the circus, befriends Dumbo and decides to make him a star. He whispers in the ringmaster's ear while the latter sleeps, and convinces him to try a new stunt with Dumbo as the top of a pyramid of elephants. However, Dumbo trips on his ears during the show and knocks over the pyramid, injuring the other elephants and bringing the big top crashing down. After this, the other elephants exile Dumbo completely, and he is put in with the clowns' firemen act, regularly jumping from a "burning building" prop into a vat of pie filling. Despite his newfound popularity, he hates the job and becomes depressed.


title: Dumbo

text: Timothy decides to take Dumbo to see Mrs. Jumbo, but they cannot see each other's faces and can only intertwine trunks. Meanwhile, the clowns decide to increase the popularity of their fireman act by dangerously raising the platform Dumbo jumps from. In celebration of the plan, they drink champagne, and a bottle of it falls into a water vat. Dumbo, crying after visiting his mother, gets the hiccups, so Timothy takes him to the vat for water. Both of them get drunk, and hallucinate pink elephants.


title: Dumbo

text: Dumbo and Timothy are later discovered asleep high up in a tree by Dandy Crow and his friends. Initially making fun of Timothy's assertion that Dumbo flew with his ears while drunk, the crows are soon moved by Dumbo's sad story. They decide to help Timothy, giving him a "magic feather" to help Dumbo fly. Holding the feather, Dumbo does indeed take off a second time, and he and Timothy return to the circus with plans to surprise the audience.


title: Dumbo

text: During the clowns' act, Dumbo jumps off the platform and prepares to fly. He drops the feather, but Timothy assures him it was only a psychological aid, and Dumbo successfully flies about the big top, much to the delight of the public. Dumbo gains fame and fortune, Timothy becomes his new manager and signs him to a Hollywood contract, and Mrs. Jumbo is freed. She and Dumbo are given a private coach on the train, and the crows wave goodbye to the elephants as they travel away.


title: Dumbo

text: "Dumbo" is based upon a children's story written by Helen Aberson-Mayer and Harold Pearl, with illustrations by Helen Durney. The children's book was first brought to the attention of Walt Disney in late 1939 by Kay Kamen, the studio's head of merchandise licensing, who showed a prototype of the Roll-A-Book that included "Dumbo". Disney immediately grasped its possibilities and heartwarming story and purchased the rights to it.


title: Dumbo

text: Originally it was intended to be a short film; however, Disney soon found that the only way to do justice to the book was to make it a feature-length film. At the time, the foreign markets in Europe had been curtailed due to World War II, which caused "Pinocchio" and "Fantasia" to fail at the box office. With the film's modest budget, "Dumbo" was intended to be a low-budget feature designed to bring revenue to the studio. Story artists Dick Huemer and Joe Grant were assigned to develop the plot into a feature-length film. From January 22 to March 21, 1940, they wrote a 102-page script outline in chapters, much like a book, an unusual way of writing a film script. They conceived the stork-delivery and the pink elephants sequences and had Dumbo's mother renamed from "Mother Ella" to "Mrs. Jumbo". They riffed on elephants' fear of mice by replacing a wise robin named "Red" found in the original story with the wisecracking mouse character, Timothy. They also added a "rusty black crow", which was later expanded into five. Regardless of this, very little was changed from the original draft. In March 1940, a story team headed by Otto Englander translated the outline into story sketches.


title: Dumbo

text: From Disney's perspective, "Dumbo" required none of the special effects that had slowed down production and grew the budgets of "Pinocchio", "Fantasia", and "Bambi". When the film went into production in early 1941, supervising director Ben Sharpsteen was given orders to keep the film simple and inexpensive. As a result, the character designs are simpler, background paintings are less detailed, and a number of held cels (or frames) were used in the character animation. Although the film is more "cartoony" than previous Disney films, the animators brought elephants and other animals into the studio to study their movement.


title: Dumbo

text: Watercolor paint was used to render the backgrounds. "Dumbo" is one of the few Disney features to use the technique, which was also used for "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs", and regularly employed for the various Disney cartoon shorts. The other Disney features used oil paint and gouache. 2002's "Lilo & Stitch", which drew influences from "Dumbo", also made use of watercolor backgrounds.


title: Dumbo

text: During a story meeting for "Bambi" on February 27, 1940, Disney observed that "Dumbo" was "an obvious straight cartoon" and that the animators that were assigned on "Bambi" were not appropriate for the look of "Dumbo". Animators such as Art Babbitt and Ward Kimball were considered for the film. For that reason, less experienced animators were brought on to animate the characters. Kimball recalled that Disney approached him in a parking lot about "Dumbo" and summarized the entire story in five minutes. "And listening to him tell that story," Kimball noted, "I could tell that the picture was going to work. Because everything sounded right. It had a great plot." In spite of this, Bill Tytla, who was one of the studio's top animators, animated the title character, but admitted that "it was in the nature of the film to go very fast and get it out in a hurry." To speed up production, Disney used photostats of story sketches instead of full layout artwork for the film, and had experienced animators to supervise the younger, less experienced animators assigned on the film.


title: Dumbo

text: Production on the film was interrupted on May 29, 1941 when much of the Disney animation staff went on strike. Kimball chose to not to strike, but his close friend Walt Kelly, who was an assistant animator helping him on the crow sequence, left the studios shortly after for reasons unrelated to the strike.


title: Dumbo

text: The clowns' requests to get a raise from their boss is a reference to the Disney animators that went on strike in 1941 (during the creation of the film), demanding higher pay from Walt himself. Moreover, the clowns, or at least their silhouettes, are caricatures of those animators.


title: Dumbo

text: Frank Churchill and Oliver Wallace scored the film while Ned Washington wrote the lyrics to the songs. For their work on the score, Churchill and Wallace won the Academy Award for Best Original Score. Churchill and Washington's work on "Baby Mine" also garnered a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Original Song.


title: Dumbo

text: "Dumbo" was completed and delivered to Disney's distributor, RKO Radio Pictures, on September 11, 1941. RKO initially balked at the film's 64-minute length and asked Disney to add another ten minutes. Disney refused, "No, that's as far as I can stretch it. You can stretch a thing so far and then it won't hold. The picture is right as it is. And another ten minutes is liable to cost five hundred thousand dollars. I can't afford it." The film was re-released in theaters in 1949, 1959, 1972, and 1976.


title: Dumbo

text: "Dumbo" had its television premiere on September 14, 1955, albeit severely edited, as an installment of the "Disneyland" television show. The film was shown unaltered on September 17, 1978, as part of a two-night salute to the program's 25th anniversary.


title: Dumbo

text: Along with "Alice in Wonderland", "Dumbo" was the first of Disney's canon of animated films to be released on home video. The film was originally released on June 26, 1981 on VHS and Betamax, which was followed with a release on Laserdisc and CED in June 1982. It was again re-released on VHS and Betamax as part of the Walt Disney Classics series on November 6, 1985. The film was re-released on VHS and Laserdisc on July 12, 1991. It was followed by another re-issue on VHS and Laserdisc on October 28, 1994 as a part of the Walt Disney Masterpiece Collection. On October 23, 2001, a 60th Anniversary Edition was released in VHS and DVD formats.


title: Dumbo

text: In 2006, a "Big Top Edition" of the film was released on DVD. A 70th Anniversary Edition of the film was released in the United States on September 20, 2011. The 70th Anniversary Edition was produced in two different packages: a 2-disc Blu-ray/DVD combo pack and a 1-disc DVD. The film was also released as a movie download. All versions of the 70th Anniversary Edition contain deleted scenes and several bonus features, including "Taking Flight: The Making of Dumbo" and "The Magic of Dumbo: A Ride of Passage," while the 2-disc Blu-ray version additionally includes games, animated shorts, and several exclusive features. The film was re-released on Blu-ray and DVD on April 26, 2016 to celebrate its 75th anniversary.


title: Dumbo

text: Despite the advent of World War II, "Dumbo" was still the most financially successful Disney film of the 1940s. After its October 23 release, "Dumbo" proved to be a financial miracle compared to other Disney films. The simple film only cost $950,000 () to produce, half the cost of "Snow White", less than a third of the cost of "Pinocchio", and certainly less than the expensive "Fantasia". "Dumbo" eventually grossed roughly more than $1.3 million () during its original release. The film returned a profit of $850,000.


title: Dumbo

text: "Variety" wrote that "Dumbo" was "a pleasant little story, plenty of pathos mixed with the large doses of humor, a number of appealing new animal characters, lots of good music, and the usual Disney skillfulness in technique in drawing and use of color." Cecelia Ager, writing in "PM", called "Dumbo" "the nicest, kindest Disney yet. It has the most taste, beauty, compassion, skill, restraint. It marks a return to Disney first principles, the animal kingdom—that happy land where Disney workers turn into artists; where their imagination, playfulness, ingenuity, daring flourish freest; where, in short, they're home."


title: Dumbo

text: Bosley Crowther, reviewing for "The New York Times", wrote that the film was "the most genial, the most endearing, the most completely precious cartoon feature film ever to emerge from the magical brushes of Walt Disney's wonder-working artists". "Time" wrote: "Like story and characters, "Dumbo"s coloring is soft and subdued, free from picture-postcard colors and confusing detail—a significant technical advance. But the charm of "Dumbo" is that it again brings to life that almost human animal kingdom where Walter Elias Disney is king of them all." "Harrison's Reports" praised the film as "one of Walt Disney's most delightful offerings. Technically, it is excellent; the color is exceptionally good. The story itself is pleasing; it combines comedy with human appeal. The only fault is that occasionally the action slows down."


title: Dumbo

text: Additionally, "Time" had originally scheduled to run a story with an appearance cover for "Mammal of the Year" (a play on its annual "Man/Person of the Year" honor) on December 8, 1941. However, the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7 of that year had postponed it, and the story was later published on December 29.


title: Dumbo

text: Among retrospective reviews, film critic Leonard Maltin stated that "Dumbo" is his favorite of Disney's films and he described it as "one of Walt Disney's most charming animated films". In 2011, Richard Corliss of "Time" named the film as one of the 25 all-time best animated films. On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of based on reviews, with an average score of . The website's consensus reads ""Dumbo" packs plenty of story into its brief runtime, along with all the warm animation and wonderful music you'd expect from a Disney classic." Metacritic has assigned a weighted score of 96 out of 100 for "Dumbo" based on 11 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".


title: Dumbo

text: The film has been criticized for racist stereotypes of black people. "The Encyclopedia of Racism in American Films" (2018) notes that "All of the circus laborers are African American, the only time that blacks are seen in any great number in the entire movie." Film scholar Richard Schickel, in his 1968 book "The Disney Version", argued that the group of crows in the film were African American stereotypes. The lead crow, voiced by white actor Cliff Edwards in an imitation of Southern African American dialect, was named "Jim Crow", after the pre-Civil-War minstrel character. The term had become a pejorative term for African Americans, and commonly referred to racial segregation laws, and the character's name was changed in the 1950s to "Dandy Crow" in attempt to avoid controversy. The other crows were voiced by African American actors and singers of the popular all-black "Hall Johnson Choir", including actors James Baskett ("Song of the South") and Nick Stewart ("The Amos 'n' Andy Show"). Ward Kimball, the chief animator of the crows, used famous African-American dancers Freddie and Eugene Jackson as live-action reference for the characters. The personalities and mannerisms of the crows—specifically their fast-paced, back and forth dialogue—were inspired by the backchat found on the band records of Cab Calloway and Louis Armstrong. Karina Longworth, exploring the history of "Song of the South" in her podcast "You Must Remember This", discussed the basis of the crows in minstrel show culture, as part of a wider use of minstrel culture by Walt Disney.


title: Dumbo

text: Some however have defended the characters of the Crows. In his 1973 book "The Disney Films", film historian and critic Leonard Maltin argued that the crows "are undeniably black, but they are black characters, not black stereotypes. There is no denigrating dialogue, or Uncle Tomism in the scene, and if offense is to be taken in hearing blacks call each other 'brother', then the viewer is merely sensitive to accuracy." Animation historian John Canemaker felt that the crows were amongst the very few characters in the film that sympathize and are empathetic with Dumbo's plight since being a marginalized ethnic group themselves, they can relate to Dumbo as a fellow outcast. He further added the crows "are the most intelligent, the happiest, the freest spirited characters in the whole film." In 1980, film critic Michael Wilmington referred to the crows as "father figures", self-assured individuals who are "obvious parodies of proletarian blacks", but comments, "The crows are the snappiest, liveliest, most together characters in the film. They are tough and generous. They bow down to no one. And, of course, it is they who teach Dumbo to fly."


title: Dumbo

text: In 2017, Whoopi Goldberg expressed the desire for the crow characters to be more merchandised by Disney, "because those crows sing the song in "Dumbo" that everybody remembers." In 2019, Floyd Norman, the first African-American animator hired at Walt Disney Productions during the 1950s, defended the crows in an article entitled "Black Crows and Other PC Nonsense".


title: Dumbo

text: The crows and Timothy Q. Mouse were not included in the 2019 live-action/CGI remake of "Dumbo". In 2019, it was reported that an edited version of the animated film without the crows would be featured on the forthcoming Disney+ service. However, the film does appear on Disney+ uncensored, with an advisory in the synopsis warning "it may contain outdated cultural depictions." In 2021, the film was one of several that Disney limited to viewers 7 years and older on their service Disney+, citing similarity of the crows' depictions to "racist minstrel shows".


title: Dumbo

text: "Dumbo's Circus" is a live-action/puppet television series for preschool audiences that aired on The Disney Channel in the 1980s. Unlike in the film, Dumbo spoke on the show. Each character would perform a special act, which ranged from dancing and singing to telling knock knock jokes.


title: Dumbo

text: Dumbo the Flying Elephant is a popular ride that appears in Disneyland, Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland, Disneyland Park (Paris), and Hong Kong Disneyland. It is located in Fantasyland.


title: Dumbo

text: In June 2009, Disneyland introduced a flying Dumbo to their nighttime fireworks show, in which the elephant flies around Sleeping Beauty Castle while fireworks synched to music go off.


title: Dumbo

text: Casey Junior is the second float in the Main Street Electrical Parade and its versions. Casey, driven by Goofy, pulls a drum with the parade logo and Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse.


title: Dumbo

text: The Ringmaster appears as one of four villains in the 1999 PC game "Disney's Villains' Revenge". In the game, the Disney Villains alter the happy endings from Jiminy Cricket's book; in particular, the Ringmaster forces Dumbo to endlessly perform humiliating stunts in his circus. In the end, the Ringmaster is defeated when he is knocked unconscious by a well-aimed custard pie.


title: Dumbo

text: Dumbo appears in the popular PlayStation 2 game "Kingdom Hearts" released in 2002 in the form of a summon that the player can call upon in battle for aid. Sora, the protagonist, flies on Dumbo while he splashes enemies with water from his trunk. Dumbo reprises his role as a summon in the follow-up game "" released in 2004 for the Game Boy Advance.


title: Dumbo

text: Dumbo, Timothy Q. Mouse, and the Ringmaster appear as playable characters in the world builder video game "Disney Magic Kingdoms", as part of the main storyline of the game.


title: Dumbo

text: In 2001, the "60th Anniversary Edition" DVD of "Dumbo" featured a sneak peek of the proposed sequel "Dumbo II", including new character designs and storyboards. Robert C. Ramirez ("") was to direct the sequel, in which Dumbo and his circus friends navigated a large city after being left behind by their traveling circus. "Dumbo II" also sought to explain what happened to Dumbo's father, Mr. Jumbo. Dumbo's circus friends included the chaotic twin bears Claude and Lolly, the curious zebra Dot, the older, independent hippo Godfry, and the adventurous ostrich Penny. The animals were metaphors for the different stages of childhood. "Dumbo II" was supposed to be set on the day immediately following the end of the first "Dumbo" movie. John Lasseter cancelled "Dumbo II", soon after being named Chief Creative Officer of Walt Disney Animation Studios in 2006.


title: Dumbo

text: On July 8, 2014, Walt Disney Pictures announced that a live-action adaptation of "Dumbo" was in development. In the same announcement, Ehren Kruger was confirmed as the screenwriter, as well as co-producer with Justin Springer. On March 10, 2015, Tim Burton was announced as the director. On January 11, 2017, it was reported that Will Smith was in talks to star in the remake as the father of some children who befriend Dumbo. That same day, it was revealed that Tom Hanks had reportedly been offered to play the film's villain. The following month, it was announced that Smith would not be starring in the film. Smith had apparently passed on the project due to a disagreement over salary and scheduling as well as to star in "Bad Boys for Life", however, went on to play the role of the Genie in the 2019 live-action remake of "Aladdin". In March 2017, it was reported that Eva Green was in talks to play a trapeze artist. Following this announcement, Danny DeVito was cast as a ringleader named Medici. Two weeks later, it was reported that Colin Farrell had entered negotiations to play the role of Holt, which was originally offered to Will Smith. On April 4, 2017, Michael Keaton, Burton's former frequent collaborator, entered talks to star as the villain. Keaton confirmed his involvement with the film on June 26, 2017. Filming took place at Cardington Studios in Bedfordshire, England. On July 15, 2017, Disney announced the casting for all of the principal roles and that the film would be released on March 29, 2019. DeObia Oparei, Joseph Gatt and Alan Arkin also play new characters created for the film.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation of the in Tokyo, founded in 1934, and the original circuit for the sport in the Empire two years later – Japanese Baseball League (1936–1949), and continued to play even through the final years of World War II. The league that is today's NPB for Japan was formed when that sports organization reorganized in 1950, creating two leagues with six teams each in the Central League and the Pacific League with an annual season-ending Japan Series championship play-off series of games starting that year.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Since the first Japan Series in , the Yomiuri Giants have the most championships with 22, and the most appearances with 37. Entering the 2023 season, the Orix Buffaloes, who defeated the Tokyo Yakult Swallows 4-2-1 in the 2022 Japan Series, are the reigning champions. The Japan Series has been contested 73 times as of 2022, with the Pacific League winning 37 and the Central League winning 36.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Nippon Professional Baseball consists of two leagues, the Central League and the Pacific League, which each have six teams. There are also two secondary-level professional minor leagues, the Eastern League and the Western League, that play shorter schedules for developing players. NPB teams are allowed to have more than one minor league team as long as they are outside of the established minor league system, with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks and Yomiuri Giants being the only teams taking advantage of this. As of 2023, the Hawks have three minor league teams, the Giants have two, and the other ten teams only have one minor league team each. Teams below the Eastern and Western Leagues play exhibition matches against various collegiate, industrial, Shikoku Island League Plus, and other NPB minor league teams.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: The Central League and Pacific League operate as separate entities, unlike the four major professional sports leagues of North America whose leagues operate as one singular entity. TV rights for games are always held by a game's home team. The Pacific League has used the designated hitter (DH) rule since 1975, while the Central League has not used the DH outside of interleague play where a Pacific League team is the home team and in the 1985 Japan Series.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: The season starts in late March or early April, and ends in October, with two or three all-star games in July. In recent decades prior to 2007, the two leagues each scheduled between 130 and 140 regular season games, with the 146 games played by the Central League in 2005 and 2006 being the only exception. Both leagues have since adopted 143-game seasons, 71 or 72 each at home and on road, facing their five respective intra-league opponents 25 times each and facing their six interleague opponents three times each in late May to early June in interleague play, with a separate champion being crowned for the team with the best record through the 18 games of interleague play. In general, Japanese teams play six games a week, with every Monday off (except on specific occasions, such as a game being played outside of the home team's primary stadium or if a rainout forced a game to be postponed to a Monday). Unlike in Major League Baseball, doubleheaders have not been featured in NPB since the late 1990s.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Following the conclusion of each regular season, the top three teams from each league go on to play in the Climax Series championship play-off tournament, with the winner of each play-off tournament facing off in a best-of-seven championship series known as the Japan Series (known locally as the Nippon Series). Implemented in by the Pacific League (then known as the Pacific League Playoffs) and in by the Central League, the Climax Series is a two-stage system; in the "First Stage", the second and third place ranking teams face off in a best-of-three series played entirely in the second place team's home stadium. In the case of an instance where the series ends 1-1-1, the higher seed always advances to the Final Stage. In the "Final Stage", the winner of the First Stage will face off against the league's pennant winner in a best-of-six series played entirely in the pennant winner's home stadium. The higher seed always starts with a "ghost win", or a 1-0 advantage in the series before any games have been played, meaning the higher seed only has to win three games whereas the lower seed has to win four games. In the event of a tie, the higher seed would subsequently only need to win two games. The winners of each league's Final Stage then face off in the Japan Series, a best-of-seven series mirroring the format of the World Series. In the rare instance where the series ends 3-3-1 after seven games, a Game 8 will be played with unlimited innings at the stadium with home-field advantage. Since its inception, home-field advantage alternates from year to year between the CL and PL, with the CL representative getting home-field advantage in even years and the PL representative getting home-field advantage in odd years.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Since its adoption by both leagues in 2007, Climax Series does not determine who won each league's pennant, rather the team with the best regular season record in each league wins the pennant, regardless of their result in the Climax Series. This has led to four occasions where the Japan Series champion did not win their league's pennant that year, with those being the Chunichi Dragons, Chiba Lotte Marines, and the and Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks. However, from to , the winner of the Pacific League Playoffs was given the Pacific League pennant for that year.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Financial problems plague many teams in the league. It is believed that with the exception of the Yomiuri Giants, Hanshin Tigers, and Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, all teams are operating with considerable subsidies, often as much as ¥<nowiki>6 billion (about US$73 million), from their parent companies. A raise in the salaries of players is often blamed, but, from the start of the professional league, parent companies paid the difference as an advertisement. Most teams have never tried to improve their finances through constructive marketing. In addition, teams in the </nowiki>Central League historically saw much higher profits than the Pacific League, having popular teams such as the Giants and Tigers.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: The number of metropolitan areas represented in the league increased from four to five in 1988, when the Nankai Hawks (now Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks) were sold to Daiei and moved to Fukuoka, nine years after the Nishitetsu Lions moved from Fukuoka to Tokorozawa to become the Seibu Lions, and from five to seven between 2003 and 2005, as the Nippon-Ham Fighters moved from Tokyo to Sapporo prior to the season. The Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes merged with the Orix BlueWave (becoming the Orix Buffaloes) in the middle of 2004, which caused a player strike that eventually resulted in the creation of the Tōhoku Rakuten Golden Eagles being founded in Sendai to maintain the 12-team balance before the season.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Until 1993, baseball was the only team sport played professionally in Japan. In that year, the J.League professional football league was founded. The new football league placed teams in prefectural capitals around the country—rather than clustering them in and around Tokyo—and the teams were named after their locations rather than after corporate sponsors, despite many clubs in the J.League still being owned and subsidized by corporate entities.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: The wave of players moving to Major League Baseball, which began with Hideo Nomo "retiring" from the Kintetsu Buffaloes, then signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers, has also added to the financial problems. Attendance suffered as teams lost their most marketable players, while TV ratings declined as viewers tuned into broadcasts of Major League games. To discourage players from leaving to play in North America, or to at least compensate teams that lose players, Japanese baseball and MLB agreed on a posting system for players under contract. MLB teams wishing to negotiate with a player submit bids for a "posting fee", which the winning MLB team would pay the Japanese team if the player signs with the MLB team. Free agents are not subject to the posting system, however, and some teams almost never post their players.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: The first professional baseball team in Japan was founded by media mogul Matsutarō Shōriki in late 1934 and called the Dai Nippon Tokyo Yakyu Kurabu ("the Great Japan Tokyo Baseball Club"). After matching up with a team of visiting American All-Stars that included Babe Ruth, Jimmie Foxx, Lou Gehrig, and Charlie Gehringer, the team spent the 1935 season barnstorming in the U.S., winning 93 of 102 games against semi-pro and Pacific Coast League teams. According to historian Joseph Reaves, "The only minor drawbacks to the team's popularity in the States were their kanji characters and their cumbersome Japanese name. They rectified both by renaming themselves the Tokyo Kyojin ['Tokyo Giants'] and adopting a uniform identical to the New York Giants…"


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: From 1936 to 1950, professional baseball in Japan was played under the banner of the Japanese Baseball League (JBL). The league's dominant team during this period was the Tokyo Kyojin, which won nine league championships, including six in a row from 1938 to 1943. (The team was officially renamed the Yomiuri Giants in 1947.)


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: After the 1949 season, the JBL team owners reorganized into the NPB; Daiei Stars owner Masaichi Nagata promoted a two-league system, which became the Pacific League (initially called the Taiheiyo Baseball Union) and the Central League. (Nagata became the first president of the Pacific League.) The league now known as Nippon Pro Baseball began play in the 1950 season.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Four JBL teams formed the basis of the Central League: the Chunichi Dragons, the Hanshin Tigers, the Yomiuri Giants, and the Shochiku Robins (formerly the Taiyō Robins). To fill out the league, four new teams were formed: the Hiroshima Carp, the Kokutetsu Swallows, the Nishi Nippon Pirates, and the Taiyō Whales.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Four JBL teams formed the basis of the Pacific League: the Hankyu Braves, the Nankai Hawks, the Daiei Stars, and the Tokyu Flyers. To fill out the league, three new teams were formed: the Kintetsu Pearls, the Mainichi Orions, and the Nishitetsu Clippers.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Matsutarō Shōriki, the Giants' owner, acted as NPB's unofficial commissioner and oversaw the first Japan Series, which featured the Mainichi Orions defeating the Shochiku Robins 4 games to 2.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: The Central League's Nishi Nippon Pirates existed for one season—they placed sixth in 1950, and the following season merged with the Nishitetsu Clippers (also based in Fukuoka) to form the Nishitetsu Lions. This brought the number of Central League teams down to an ungainly arrangement of seven. In 1952, it was decided that any Central League team ending the season with a winning percentage below .300 would be disbanded or merged with other teams. The Shochiku Robins fell into this category, and were merged with the Taiyō Whales to become the Taiyō Shochiku Robins in January 1953. This enabled the Central League to shrink to an even number of six teams.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: In 1954 a new Pacific League team was founded, the Takahashi Unions, to increase the number of teams in that division to eight. Although the team was stocked with players from the other Pacific League teams, the Unions struggled from the outset and finished in the second division every season. In 1957, the Unions were merged with the Daiei Stars to form the Daiei Unions (and again bringing the number of Pacific League teams down to seven). The Unions existed for a single season, finishing in last place, 43-1/2 games out of first. In 1958, the Unions merged with the Mainichi Orions to form the Daimai Orions. This enabled the Pacific League to contract from the ungainly seven-team arrangement to six teams.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: After these various franchise developments, by the end of the 1950s Nippon Professional Baseball had contracted from the initial allotment of 15 teams down to the current number of 12.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: On September 1, 1964, Nankai Hawks' prospect Masanori Murakami became the first Japanese player to play in Major League Baseball when he appeared on the mound for the San Francisco Giants; he returned to Japan in 1966. Disputes over the rights to his contract eventually led to the 1967 United States – Japanese Player Contract Agreement; it would be almost 30 years before another Japanese player played in the Major Leagues.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Continuing their dominance from the JBL, the Yomiuri Giants won nine consecutive Japan Series championships from 1965 to 1973.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: The Black Mist Scandal rocked Nippon Professional Baseball between 1969 and 1971. The fallout from a series of game-fixing scandals resulted in several star players receiving long suspensions, salary cuts, or being banned from professional play entirely; the resulting abandonment of baseball by many fans in Japan also led to the sale of the Nishitetsu Lions and the Toei Flyers.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: From 1973 to 1982, in a forerunner to today's Climax Series playoff rounds, the Pacific League employed a split season with the first-half winner playing against the second-half winner in a mini-playoff to determine its champion. In 1975, the Pacific League adopted the designated hitter rule. These were implemented in an attempt to draw fans back to Pacific League, as the Pacific League was hit significantly harder by the Black Mist Scandal than the Central League, with only the Hankyu Braves not having players involved in the incident.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: After being a second division team for much of the 1960s and 1970s, in 1983 the Seibu Lions began a period of sustained success. The team gained the moniker "Invincible Seibu" during the 1980s and 1990s due to their sustained domination of the league, winning 11 league championships and eight Japan Series championships between 1982 and 1994. The Lions had a powerful lineup in this period, loaded with sluggers such as Koji Akiyama, Kazuhiro Kiyohara, and Orestes Destrade. Their defense also benefited from the services of skilled players such as Hiromichi Ishige, Hatsuhiko Tsuji and catcher Tsutomu Ito. Among the pitchers employed by the Lions in this period was "The Oriental Express" Taigen Kaku, Osamu Higashio, Kimiyasu Kudoh, Hisanobu Watanabe, and relievers Yoshitaka Katori and Tetsuya Shiozaki.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: American expatriate players made their mark in NPB in the 1980s, with players like the Lee brothers (Leron Lee and Leon Lee), Greg "Boomer" Wells, Randy Bass, and Ralph Bryant playing key roles on their NPB teams.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: In 1995, star pitcher Hideo Nomo "retired" from the Kintetsu Buffaloes and signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Nomo pitched over the span of 14 seasons in the Major Leagues before retiring in 2008. He won the Rookie of the Year Award in 1995. He twice led the league in strikeouts, and also threw two no-hitters (the only Japanese pitcher to throw a no-hitter in Major League Baseball until Hisashi Iwakuma achieved the feat in August 2015). Nomo's MLB success led to more NPB players moving to Major League Baseball, and eventually led to the creation of the "posting system" in 1998.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Since Nomo's exodus, more than 60 NPB players have played Major League Baseball. Some of the more notable examples include:


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: In September 2004, the professional Japanese players went on strike for the first time in over 70 years. The strike arose from a dispute that took place between the owners of the 12 professional Japanese baseball teams and the players' union (which was led by popular Yakult Swallows player-manager Atsuya Furuta), concerning the merging of the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes and the Orix BlueWave. The owners wanted to get rid of the financially defunct Buffaloes, and merge the two baseball leagues, since teams in the Central League saw much higher profits than the Pacific League, having popular teams such as the Yomiuri Giants and Hanshin Tigers. After negotiations, the owners agreed to guarantee the survival of the Chiba Lotte Marines and the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks, leaving the Central League with six teams and the Pacific League with five.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: A battle escalated between the players union and the owners, and reached its height when Yomiuri Giants owner Tsuneo Watanabe controversially remarked that Furuta was "a mere player", implying that players had no say in what league would look like the next year. The dispute received huge press coverage (which mostly favored Furuta and the players' union) and was dubbed one of the biggest events in the history of Japanese baseball. Proposals and amendments concerning interleague games, player drafting, and management were also discussed between the players union and the owners during this period.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: The strike was originally planned for all Saturday and Sunday games that month, starting from September 11, but was pushed back due to the agreement of another meeting between the union and the owners on September 10. The players decided to strike on September 18–19, 2004, when no progress was made in the negotiations, as there was insufficient time left in the season to hold discussions.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: The dispute officially ended after the two groups reached consensus on September 23, 2004. As part of the agreement, the Buffaloes were allowed to merge with the Blue Wave (forming into the Orix Buffaloes); in addition, the Rakuten Golden Eagles were newly created (at a reduced "entry fee") to keep the former six-team league structure. Other agreements included the leagues adopting interleague play to help the Pacific League gain exposure by playing the more popular Central league teams. All these changes took place before the 2005 season.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: The two leagues began interleague play in 2005, with each team playing two three-game series (one home, one away) against each of the six teams in the other league. This was reduced to two two-game series in 2007. All interleague play games are played in a seven-week span near the middle of the season.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: As of the end of the 2017 season, the Pacific League has won the most games in interleague play since it began in 2005 twelve times, with 2009 being the only time that the Central League has won more games.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: After 2004, a three-team playoff system was introduced in the Pacific League, dubbed the "Pacific League Championship Series". The teams with the second- and third-best records play in the three-game first stage, with the winner advancing to the five-game final against the top team. The winner becomes the representative of the Pacific League to the Japan Series.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Since the Pacific League won every Japan Series after introducing this league playoff system, an identical system was introduced to the Central League in 2007, and the post-season intra-league games were renamed the "Climax Series" in both leagues. Player statistics and drafting order based on team records are not affected by these postseason games.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: In 2011 Miyagi Baseball Stadium, home of the Rakuten Eagles, was badly damaged by the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: The 2013 season featured a livelier baseball which was secretly introduced into NPB, resulting in a marked increase in home runs league-wide. Tokyo Yakult Swallows outfielder Wladimir Balentien broke the NPB single-season home run record of 55, previously held by professional baseball's all-time home run leader Sadaharu Oh in 1964, Tuffy Rhodes in 2001, and Alex Cabrera in 2002. Balantien finished the season with 60 home runs. Three-term NPB commissioner Ryōzō Katō was forced to resign over the scandal when the changed baseball was revealed.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Former Prime Minister Shinzō Abe's ruling Liberal Democratic Party has proposed expanding NPB to 16 total teams by adding two expansion franchises in each of the country's top-tier professional baseball leagues. The goal of such a move would be to energize the economies of the regions receiving the new teams. Okinawa, Shizuoka, Shikoku, and Niigata have been identified as regions that could play host to said teams.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: The 2020 NPB season was delayed numerous times due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Initially preseason games were set to be played without spectators, but with opening day of March 20 remaining unchanged. With the lifting of states of emergency over major Japanese cities, NPB announced that it would begin its regular season on 19 June behind closed doors. "Warm-up" games began 26 May. The shortened 120-game regular season began on 19 June. On 10 July NPB began allowing a limited number of fans to attend games, with plans to further ease restrictions in the near future. On 19 September, attendance was expanded to a maximum of 20,000 fans per game, or 50% of stadium capacity.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: For most of its history, NPB regulations imposed "gaijin waku", a limit on the number of non-Japanese people per team to two or three—including the manager and/or coaching staff. Even today, a team cannot have more than four foreign players on a 25-man game roster, although there is no limit on the number of foreign players that it may sign. If there are four, they cannot all be pitchers nor all be position players. This limits the cost and competition for expensive players of other nationalities, and is similar to rules in many European sports leagues' roster limits on non-European players.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Nonetheless, expatriate baseball players in Japan have been a feature of the Japanese professional leagues since 1934. Hundreds of foreigners—particularly Americans—have played NPB. Taiwanese nationals Shosei Go and Hiroshi Oshita both starred in the 1940s. American players began to steadily find spots on NPB rosters in the 1960s. American players hold several NPB records, including highest career batting average (Leron Lee, .334), highest single-season batting average (Randy Bass, .389), and the dubious record of most strikeouts in a season by a hitter (Ralph Bryant, 204). Americans rank #3 (Tuffy Rhodes, 55) and #5 (Randy Bass, 54) on the list of most home runs in a season, and #2 in single-season RBI (Bobby Rose, 153). Curaçaoan–Dutch outfielder Wladimir Balentien holds the NPB single-season home run record with 60 round-trippers in 2013.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Koreans have had an impact in the NPB as well, including such standout players as Lee Seung-yuop, Sun Dong-yol, Baek In-chun, Lee Jong-beom, and Dae-ho Lee. Venezuelans Alex Ramírez, Alex Cabrera, Bobby Marcano, and Roberto Petagine all had long, successful NPB careers. The Dominican third baseman José Fernández played eleven years in the NPB, compiling a .282 batting average with 206 home runs and 772 runs batted in.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Many of the most celebrated foreign players came to Japan after not finding success in the Major Leagues; see "Big in Japan".


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Since the 1970s, foreigners have also made an impact in Nippon Professional Baseball's managing and coaching ranks, with Americans Bobby Valentine and Trey Hillman managing their respective teams to Japan Series championships.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Note: The Tokyo Yakult Swallows have plans to build a new stadium, located next to its current stadium, in 2030.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Locations are listed from north to south. Only the most prominent names of each franchise are listed.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: The Japanese record is 0.73, set by Hideo Fujimoto in the 1943 Japanese Baseball League season, which is also the world record ERA, surpassing Tim Keefe's 0.86 of the Troy Trojans in 1880.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: Since 1986 an All-Star team from Major League Baseball (MLB) is sent to a biennial end-of-the-season tour of Japan, dubbed as MLB Japan All-Star Series, playing exhibition games in a best-of format against the All-Stars from NPB or recently as of 2014 the national team Samurai Japan.


title: Nippon Professional Baseball

text: The 2014 series also celebrated the 80th anniversary of the establishment of Japan's professional baseball by holding an exhibition game of a joint team of Hanshin Tigers and Yomiuri Giants against the MLB All-Stars at the Koshien Stadium on November 11, 2014.


title: Pooh Shiesty

text: Lontrell Donell Williams Jr. (born November 8, 1999), better known by his stage name Pooh Shiesty, is an American rapper from Memphis, Tennessee. He is signed to Gucci Mane's 1017 Records and Atlantic Records. He rose to fame in 2020 from his collaborations with the rapper and other artists within the label. He is perhaps best known for his 2020 single, "Back in Blood" featuring Lil Durk. Pooh Shiesty released his debut commercial mixtape, "Shiesty Season", on February 5, 2021, which peaked at number 3 on the US "Billboard" 200. His stage name was given by his late brother, and it comes from his childhood nickname "Mr. Pooh", and the name "Shiesty", referring to his lifestyle.


title: Pooh Shiesty

text: Shiesty is from Memphis, Tennessee, and grew up in the Cane Creek Apartments on the south side. He lived in Pflugerville, Texas, for two years. When he returned to Memphis, he took summer school to help him graduate high school. He began focusing on music at age 18.


title: Pooh Shiesty

text: Pooh Shiesty started off his career with his debut single, "Hell Night", featuring fellow rapper Big30, which was released on March 15, 2019, followed by the official music video on February 19, 2020. "Shiesty Summer" was then released five months later, on August 20, 2019, succeeded by the music video the following day. His collaborative single "Choppa Talk" with Big30 was released only three days later, on August 23, 2019, but the video was released a few months prior, on May 6, 2019. His final release of the year came with the single "Day One" along with the accompanying visuals on November 25, 2019.


title: Pooh Shiesty

text: On March 11, 2020, Shiesty released the single "At It Again", but the visuals were released nine days prior. Four days later, he released the single "Main Slime", on March 15, 2020. On May 29, 2020, the latter song received a remix with an accompanying music video, featuring rapper Moneybagg Yo and record producer Tay Keith, the latter of who produced the original song as well. Two days later, Shiesty released the single "ABCGE" alongside the music video on June 3, 2020.


title: Pooh Shiesty

text: After releasing a few singles of his own, Shiesty received attention from rapper Gucci Mane, who later signed him to his record label, 1017 Records, along with Atlantic Records sometime in April 2020. The two eventually ended up collaborating on Mane's single, "Still Remember", and appeared in the music video, both released on June 19, 2020. The song became Shiesty's initial rise to fame and recognition. Only six days later, he released the single "Monday to Sunday", featuring rappers Lil Baby and Big30, alongside the visuals on June 25, 2020. All three singles received music videos and also ended up appearing on Mane's fourth compilation album, "So Icy Summer", which was released on July 3, 2020. The first half of the album consisted of songs by Mane and the second half consisted of songs from the rest of the label, known as the "New 1017", the latter of which is a collective of new signees to the label, which included Shiesty himself, with other labelmates Foogiano, K Shiday, Enchanting, Big Scarr and Roboy. Shiesty and Gucci reunited within the album on the latter's single "Who Is Him", with an accompanying music video the same day.


title: Pooh Shiesty

text: On September 9, 2020, Shiesty released the single "Twerksum" alongside the music video. The whole 1017 label (himself, Gucci Mane, Foogiano, Big Scarr, Roboy, K Shiday, and Enchanting) teamed up on Roboy's single "1017 Loaded", which was released alongside an accompanying music video exactly one month later, on October 9, 2020. Both singles appeared on Gucci's fifth compilation album, "So Icy Gang, Vol. 1", which was released on October 16, 2020. The album is similar to the second half of "So Icy Summer", but is instead scattered by different artists of the label on the songs.


title: Pooh Shiesty

text: On November 6, 2020, Shiesty released the single "Back in Blood", featuring Chicago rapper Lil Durk. It ended up becoming his most-streamed song, and was soon succeeded by the official music video, which was released on January 2, 2021. It has received around two hundred sixty six million views on YouTube as of August 2022. Later, he was featured on fellow labelmate Foogiano's single "First Day in LA", which was released along with accompanying visuals on November 20, 2020. It appeared on the latter's debut commercial mixtape, "Gutta Baby", to which Shiesty makes another appearance on the song "Menace", which was released on Thanksgiving Day, November 26, 2020.


title: Pooh Shiesty

text: Shiesty released the single "Guard Up" alongside the official music video on January 15, 2021. It serves as the third single to his debut commercial mixtape and first project, "Shiesty Season", which he announced on the same day. On January 29, 2021, he was also featured on Lil Durk's song, "Should've Ducked", from the deluxe edition of Durk's sixth studio album, "The Voice", and marks the second time that the two have collaborated, following "Back in Blood". "Neighbors", featuring rapper Big30 was released as the third single on February 2, 2021. The mixtape was released on February 5, 2021. It features guest appearances from Lil Durk, Gucci Mane, Big30, 21 Savage, Veeze, Foogiano, Lil Hank, Choppa Wop, and Tay Keith. The mixtape also includes the previously-released singles "Twerksum" and "Back in Blood" as the respective first and second singles.


title: Pooh Shiesty

text: On May 21, 2021, the deluxe edition of "Shiesty Season" was released, titled "Shiesty Season – Spring Deluxe". The deluxe edition includes features from Lil Baby and G Herbo. Also in 2021, he was featured on the "XXL" Freshman Class.


title: Pooh Shiesty

text: On April 29, 2022, a new deluxe edition of "Shiesty Season" was released, titled "Shiesty Season: Certified". This deluxe edition includes features from Gucci Mane, Jack Harlow, Lil Durk, 42 Dugg, and Lil Uzi Vert, among others.


title: Pooh Shiesty

text: Pooh Shiesty is influenced by Chief Keef, Kodak Black, and Lil Wayne. He listened to Lil Wayne for the longest, and is influenced the most by him.


title: Pooh Shiesty

text: On October 13, 2020, Williams was arrested in connection to a shooting in Bay Harbor Islands, Florida. He faced several charges, including armed robbery, aggravated assault and battery, and criminal theft. He was released from custody on the same day of his arrest.


title: Pooh Shiesty

text: On June 9, 2021, Williams was arrested again, this time in connection to a shooting at a strip club in Northwest Miami-Dade. Williams was held with no bond, and remained in jail, despite the victim of the shooting recanting. On June 29, he was indicted over the Bay Harbor Islands robbery, and on July 8 he was ordered by the federal judge to be held without bond, pending trial.


title: Pooh Shiesty

text: On January 4, 2022, Williams pleaded guilty to federal conspiracy charges; he was facing up to 8 years in prison.


title: Hana Kimura

text: She was a cast member on the Fuji Television and Netflix reality television series "" which is the fifth installment of the "Terrace House" franchise. Following a series of troubling tweets addressing online criticism directed at her from "Terrace House" viewers, she was found dead in her apartment in Tokyo on May 23, 2020. Her death had been ruled a suicide by December 2020.


title: Hana Kimura

text: Prior to her professional wrestling career, Kimura won the DDT Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship one time on August 21, 2005, at a live event in Tokyo, then lost the title to her mother Kyoko.


title: Hana Kimura

text: After graduating the Wrestle-1 training academy, she debuted for promotion on March 30, 2016, against her classmate, Reika Saiki, in a losing effort. The pair wrestled against each other many times throughout 2016 in Wrestle-1.


title: Hana Kimura

text: On August 7, 2016, Kimura wrestled against her mother in a match. On September 18, 2016, Kimura captured her first title, the JWP Junior Championship, by defeating Yako Fujigasaki in a tournament final. She lost her JWP Junior Championship on December 28, 2016, to Yako Fujigasaki. On January 22, 2017, her mother retired. In Kyoko's retirement show, Kimura defeated her mother in a singles match and on the same show, the two teamed in a trios match in a winning effort.


title: Hana Kimura

text: During 2017, Kimura split her time between Wrestle-1, Sendai Girls' Pro Wrestling and Stardom while being a contracted performer for Wrestle-1. Kimura officially became a Wrestle-1 roster member on January 9, 2018. She made an international tour in early 2018, competing for Ring of Honor, , and various promotions in Mexico.


title: Hana Kimura

text: Around September 2016, Kimura also began appearing in World Wonder Ring Stardom. On October 2, 2016, Kimura teamed with her mother and Kagetsu to capture the Artist of Stardom Championship. The team vacated the titles on January 3, 2017, when Kimura was injured. Kimura eventually became a member of Stardom's heel stable, Oedo Tai. On June 21, 2017, at Stardom's Galaxy Stars 2017 event, Kimura teamed with her fellow Oedo Tai member, Kagetsu, to win the Goddess of Stardom Championship by defeating Team Jungle (Hiroyo Matsumoto and Jungle Kyona). Kimura and Kagetsu held the titles for nearly a year, successfully defending against teams such as Jungle Kyona and HZK, Io Shirai and Viper, Jungle Kyona and Natsuko Tora, HZK and Momo Watanabe, Mayu Iwatani and Tam Nakano. The team was defeated by Mayu Iwatani and Saki Kashima in 2018. Kimura left Oedo Tai on September 24, after she attacked Kagetsu.


title: Hana Kimura

text: She officially joined Stardom on March 25, 2019. On April 6, Kimura, along with Stella Grey and Sumie Sakai wrestled Jenny Rose and Oedo Tai (Kagetsu and Hazuki) in a dark match at Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro-Wrestling's G1 Supercard. On April 14, at the 2019 Stardom draft, Hana was named leader of the International Army faction. The faction was renamed, "Tokyo Cyber Squad", on April 21. On May 16, Kimura, along with her stablemates Jungle Kyona and Konami won the Artist of Stardom Championship after defeating Mayu Iwatani, Saki Kashima, and Tam Nakano.


title: Hana Kimura

text: On January 4, 2020, Kimura, along with Giulia wrestled Mayu Iwatani and Arisa Hoshiki in a dark match at New Japan Pro-Wrestling's Wrestle Kingdom 14. It was the first women's match at the Tokyo Dome since 2002. Kimura had her final match on March 24 at Stardom's Cinderella Tournament 2020, wrestling Mayu Iwatani in the first round to a draw.


title: Hana Kimura

text: During her Stardom career, she won the Artist of Stardom Championship twice and the Goddess of Stardom championship once, while also winning the 2019 5★Star GP tournament and Stardom Fighting Spirit Award.


title: Hana Kimura

text: Kimura joined the reality television series "" in September 2019, appearing on the show until her death. One episode filmed in early January 2020 showed Kimura involved in a verbal conflict with her housemate, Kai Edward Kobayashi, for damaging her wrestling attire. After the episode aired in March 2020, her actions drew criticism, name calling and racist abuse from social media users, sending her into depression. The release of new "Terrace House" episodes was suspended as a result of Kimura's death, and Fuji TV later cancelled the season.


title: Hana Kimura

text: Before her death, Kimura was set to co-star with Ena Fujita in the music video for the musician's June 2020 single "Dead Stroke" and Lalo the Don's "Til The Break of Don", recorded before the COVID-19 pandemic and uploaded on YouTube on May 20, 2021.


title: Hana Kimura

text: Kimura was a daughter of Kyoko Kimura, who is also a professional wrestler. Before she was one year old, she was separated from her father. While the identity of Hana Kimura's biological father is not publicly known, Kyoko Kimura has mentioned in interviews that he is an Indonesian national and because of this, Hana Kimura was referred to as Indonesian-Japanese. She was bullied as a child because of her mixed ethnic heritage.


title: Hana Kimura

text: Early in the morning of May 23, 2020, Kimura posted self-harm images on Twitter and Instagram while sharing some of the hate comments she received. She was reported dead later that day, at the age of 22. Dave Meltzer claimed three days later that the cause of death was hydrogen sulfide ingestion. By December 2020 the death was ruled a suicide.


title: Hana Kimura

text: On December 15, 2020, the police announced that they had arrested a man in his mid-20s for cyberbullying. The man, who resides in Osaka Prefecture, admitted to the allegations and was quoted by the police as saying he "couldn't forgive Kimura's attitude on the program." On March 30, 2021, the Tokyo Prosecutors Office indicted the Osaka man for online abuse directed at Kimura, but was not obliged to face trial under the indictment, as is often the case for relatively minor offenses in Japan. He was issued an order of ¥9000 (US$80) fine, which prompted concerns that the punishment was too light. Kyoko Kimura, the late wrestler's mother, has filed a suit seeking more than $20,000 in damages from the man.


title: Hana Kimura

text: On April 5, 2021, Tokyo Metropolitan Police charged a second man in his late 30s for online abuse he sent Kimura. Metropolitan Police Department said the second man, from Fukui Prefecture, admitted to the allegations during voluntary questioning, with investigative sources quoting him as saying, "Many hateful messages had been posted, and I followed suit. I'm sorry." When asked why he did it, he said he was "simply joining in with what he saw others doing on her site."


title: Hana Kimura

text: On January 22, 2021, Kyoko Kimura filed a lawsuit with the Tokyo District Court seeking damages of around 2.94 million yen (US$27,000) against a third man for causing emotional distress to her family. According to the lawsuit, the third man, from Nagano Prefecture, posted hateful messages about Kimura's death in May 2020. On May 19, 2021, the Japanese Court Judge Momoko Ikehara ordered the third man was to pay ¥1.29 million yen (US$12,000).


title: Hana Kimura

text: On the day of Kimura's death, several professional wrestling companies such as New Japan Pro-Wrestling, National Wrestling Alliance, Ring of Honor, All Elite Wrestling, Impact Wrestling, among other companies sent their condolences. During AEW's Double or Nothing pay-per-view event, they paid tribute to Kimura and Shad Gaspard (who also died that same week).


title: Hana Kimura

text: On the May 27 episode of "WWE NXT", Io Shirai and commentator Mauro Ranallo paid tribute to Hana with the following phrase: "Hana was one of the most talented female wrestlers in the world, and I was looking forward to watching her grow to see how far she could go," Io began. "I will always remember her smile that would brighten up any room she walked into. It is so important that we all love and treat each other with respect." On the May 29 episode of "WWE SmackDown", Sasha Banks wore a black armband that said "HANA" in white letters. At , Dakota Kai sported pink hair that she confirmed was dyed as a tribute to Kimura.


title: Hana Kimura

text: On June 21, World Wonder Ring Stardom had its first event during the COVID-19 pandemic and before the event, they paid tribute to Kimura with all the wrestlers around the ringside area for a ten-bell salute.


title: Hana Kimura

text: Kimura's fellow "Terrace House" cast member Peppe drew her in the third volume of his manga series "Mingo", which was released on July 10.


title: Hana Kimura

text: On the September 3 episode of "AEW Dynamite", professional wrestler Kenny Omega wore a Hana Kimura shirt on what would've been her 23rd birthday. The shirt was released on Pro Wrestling Tees with all the proceeds going to Hana's mother, Kyoko.


title: Hana Kimura

text: On June 14, 2022, Japan's parliament passed a law in which "online insults" were punishable by one year in response to Kimura's online bullying. Offenders convicted of online insults can be jailed for up to one year, or fined 300,000 yen (about $2,200).


title: Hana Kimura

text: On March 31, 2021, Kyoko Kimura, Hana's mother launched the non-profit Remember Hana, an anti-bullying organization. As a result, the "Hana Kimura Memorial" events series commenced on May 23, 2021, with the Hana Kimura Memorial Show. The second show took place on May 23, 2022.


title: Tony Gonzalez

text: Anthony David Gonzalez (born February 27, 1976) is an American former football tight end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons. Regarded as one of the greatest tight ends of all time, he is the NFL's all-time leader in receiving yards and receptions by a tight end, along with ranking third in overall receptions. Gonzalez spent his first 12 seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs, who selected him in the first round of the 1997 NFL Draft. During his last five seasons, he was a member of the Atlanta Falcons. Since retiring in 2013, Gonzalez has served as a football analyst for NFL on Prime Video and was previously at CBS Sports and Fox Sports.


title: Tony Gonzalez

text: Gonzalez finished his career with 14 Pro Bowl selections, the most for a tight end and second-most in league history, in addition to receiving six first-team All-Pros. Known for his durability and rarely fumbling, Gonzalez appeared in 270 of 272 regular season games and lost only two fumbles on 1,327 touches. He was inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2019.


title: Tony Gonzalez

text: Gonzalez was born in Torrance, California, and was raised by his mother, Judy, who worked two jobs to support the family. Gonzalez attended Huntington Beach High School in Huntington Beach, California, where he lettered in football and basketball.


title: Tony Gonzalez

text: As a senior, he caught 62 passes for 945 yards and 13 touchdowns and was a first-team All America selection at both tight end and linebacker. Playing basketball, he was named Orange County and Sunset League MVP as he averaged 26 points per game.


title: Tony Gonzalez

text: After his senior year, Gonzalez shared the Orange County High School Athlete of the Year along with golfer Tiger Woods.


title: Tony Gonzalez

text: Gonzalez chose to attend the University of California, Berkeley, where he majored in communications and played both football and basketball. As a member of the California Golden Bears football team, he played tight end under future NFL coach Steve Mariucci. Gonzalez was also an All-Pac-10 and All-America selection.


title: Tony Gonzalez

text: Gonzalez also continued his basketball career at Cal. In his junior year, he played in 28 games, averaging 6.8 points and 5.4 rebounds per game as California made it to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA basketball tournament.


title: Tony Gonzalez

text: Eventually, Gonzalez had to choose a career between basketball or football. On the difficulty of the transition between the two, Tony said "you get done playing football and then you transition to basketball[, which] had already been going for a month", but ultimately "the decision was pretty much made for me..."


title: Tony Gonzalez

text: Gonzalez was ranked as one of the top tight ends in the 1997 NFL Draft and was considered a top 15 selection. The Chiefs traded up from the 18th to the 13th selection with the Tennessee Oilers to draft Gonzalez.


title: Tony Gonzalez

text: Gonzalez began his career in the 1997 season. He finished his rookie season with 33 receptions, two touchdowns, and a blocked punt on special teams, helping the Chiefs to finish with the best record in the American Football Conference (AFC). He was named to the NFL All-Rookie Team for the 1997 season. In the 1998 season, Gonzalez saw dramatic improvements with 59 receptions for 621 yards, and he also caught two touchdown passes for the second (consecutive) year.


title: Tony Gonzalez

text: The 1999 season saw Gonzalez again improving when he caught 76 passes for 849 yards and a career-high 11 touchdown receptions, earning his first Pro Bowl selection. In addition, he was named as a First Team All-Pro. In the 2000 season, he had 93 receptions for 1,203 receiving yards and nine receiving touchdowns. He was named to the Pro Bowl and as a First Team All-Pro for the 2000 season. In the 2001 season, he had 73 receptions for 917 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns while earning his third career First Team All-Pro honor and Pro Bowl nomination. On November 4, against the San Diego Chargers, he threw his first professional pass, which went for 40 yards. In the 2002 season, he had 63 receptions for 773 receiving yards and seven receiving touchdowns to go along with yet another Pro Bowl nod. Among the highlights from that season was a 48–30 victory over the Miami Dolphins, where he had seven receptions for 140 receiving yards and a career-high three touchdowns. From 2003 to 2006, Gonzalez was the most productive tight end in the NFL. In the 2003 season, he had 71 receptions for 916 receiving yards and ten receiving touchdowns. For the fourth time in his career, he was named as a First Team All-Pro. He was named to his fifth consecutive Pro Bowl for the 2003 season. His best season statistically came in 2004, when he caught an NFL-record (for a tight end) 102 passes for 1,258 yards and seven touchdowns. In Week 17, he had a career-high 14 receptions for 144 yards against the San Diego Chargers. He earned a spot in the Pro Bowl for his historic season. Gonzalez's single-season record of 102 receptions by a tight end stood for 8 years, until it was broken by Jason Witten during the 2012 season. In the 2005 season, he had 78 receptions for 905 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns in another Pro Bowl season.


title: Tony Gonzalez

text: Starting late in 2006, Gonzalez began to close in on numerous team and league receiving records. He finished with 73 receptions for 900 receiving yards and five receiving touchdowns and earned his eight consecutive Pro Bowl nomination. In 2006, Gonzalez broke wide receiver Otis Taylor's Chiefs team receiving yards and touchdowns mark, and also passed running back Priest Holmes for the team yards from scrimmage record.


title: Tony Gonzalez

text: In 2007, Gonzalez continued his productivity in spite of the generally poor play of the Chiefs' offense. Though the Chiefs finished at or near the bottom in most major offensive categories, Gonzalez led the Chiefs and all NFL tight ends in receptions (99) and receiving yards (1,172) while being named to his ninth straight Pro Bowl.


title: Tony Gonzalez

text: On October 14, 2007, Gonzalez broke the career touchdown reception record for tight ends previously held by Shannon Sharpe, as well as passing Ozzie Newsome for second in career receiving yards for a tight end. On December 23, 2007, Gonzalez recorded his third season with 1,000 receiving yards, tying him with Kellen Winslow, Todd Christensen, and Shannon Sharpe for most ever by a tight end, and on December 30, 2007, Gonzalez passed Shannon Sharpe for most receptions all time by a tight end.