title: Infamous (video game)

text: Empire City is built on three islands, and the player must work through main story missions on each island before being able to access the next one, though future missions may require the player to return to an earlier island. Each island is divided into a number of sectors, at the start of the game controlled by three different gangs, the Neon District being controlled by Sasha and her Reaper Gang, the Warren District being controlled by Alden and the Dust Men Gang, and the Historic District being controlled by Kessler and the First Sons. The player can undertake a side mission in each sector, once certain main story requirements have been met, to free that sector from gang control, reducing or eliminating the presence of the gang in that sector. Other side missions may also unlock medical stations where Cole will re-awaken should he die. Though Cole must travel on foot he eventually gains powers that allow him to grind along power cables and powered, elevated train rails and to hover for a short time. Scattered around the city are hundreds of 'Blast Shards' which Cole can collect to increase the amount of electricity he can store. There are 32 'Dead Drop' satellite transmitters that help to reveal more of the back-story in the game, all being narrated by John White, or being recordings of Kessler and his experiments.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: "InFamous" is set in Empire City, a fictional metropolis based on New York City, consisting of the Neon District, where most of Empire City's businesses are concentrated, the Warren, a slum dependent on international shipping activity, and the Historic District, the location of the city government. Each district has an elevated train system and a separate power grid. The game's premise is built around the partial destruction of the Historic District by a mysterious explosion, followed by a viral epidemic that forces federal authorities to seal the only bridge leading to the mainland. A rise in violent crime overwhelms the police, resulting in societal collapse.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: The protagonist is Cole MacGrath (Jason Cottle), a bike courier accused of triggering the explosion, which leaves him with the ability to absorb and project electricity. His closest friend, Zeke Jedediah Dunbar (Caleb Moody), allows Cole to hide on his rooftop, despite his envy of the former's powers. Trish Dailey (October Moore), Cole's girlfriend, abandons him out of anger over the death of her sister Amy, while most of Empire City's residents view him as a terrorist. While attempting to escape the city with Zeke, Cole is contacted by FBI agent Moya Jones (Kimberli Colbourne), who offers to clear his name if he helps her find her husband, fellow agent John White (Phil LaMarr). White vanished while investigating a group known as the First Sons, believed to be responsible for orchestrating the explosion.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: While working to restore order in the Neon District, Cole encounters Sasha (Jessica Straus), a former member of the First Sons, who, like Cole, is a "Conduit," an individual given powers by the First Sons. Using her ability to control the minds of others via a tar-like substance, she has formed a gang known as the Reapers. Meanwhile, the Warren has been overrun by the Dust Men, an army of homeless militants led by Alden Tate (also Jason Cottle), the original leader of the First Sons, who possesses telekinesis. Kessler (Sam A. Mowry), the true antagonist of the game, is a shadowy figure who controls the First Sons and takes an obsessive interest in Cole and his powers.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: While the basic story of "InFamous" remains unchanged whether the player opts for the "Good" or "Evil" karma path, some story elements change depending on Cole's choices.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: While making a delivery in the Historic District, Cole is instructed to open the package. In doing so, he activates a device known as the Ray Sphere, leveling six city blocks and nearly killing him. Rescued by Zeke and Trish, he teaches himself to control his emerging powers. After using them in public to fight off a Reaper attack, the locals turn against Cole after he is accused of triggering the explosion, forcing him into hiding. He and Zeke engineer an assault on the sealed bridge, only to be ambushed by government forces. Separated from his friend, Cole meets Moya, an FBI agent, who persuades him to return and find her husband, John White, who was supposedly tasked with investigating a group called the First Sons. With her help, Cole restores the district's power supply, earning the attention of Sasha, who lures him into her underground lair. Cole defeats her, but the Sons abduct her before he can make her talk. Trapped in the Warren, Cole assists what remains of the police in battling the Dust Men. Alden is arrested and imprisoned, but Zeke's incompetence in guarding him allows the Dust Men to free him and massacre most of the officers. With Alden planning to reactivate the Sphere, the two patch things up and confront him, with Zeke ending up in possession of the Sphere. Giving in to his temptations, Zeke deserts Cole and takes the Sphere to Kessler.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: With Alden on a murderous rampage toward the Historic District, Cole defeats him once and for all in a bridge battle. Before jumping in the water, Alden reveals that Kessler exiled him from the First Sons. White, who turns out to be an NSA agent with no connection to Moya, reaches out to Cole and explains that the Ray Sphere is designed to consume bio-energy from thousands of lives and transfer it to a single user, making them a Conduit. During their search for the Sphere, Kessler publicly challenges Cole to stop a series of bombings across the district, ending with him being forced to choose between saving Trish or her colleagues. Regardless of his choice, Cole fails to keep Trish from dying. Determined to punish Kessler, Cole tracks the Sphere to a remote pier, where he must decide whether to destroy it or use it to become even more powerful. Regardless, the Sphere releases the last of its energy, killing John before disappearing into a vortex.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: Kessler then invites Cole to join him for a final fight in the exact location where the game began. Displaying similar, if not superior, powers to the latter, Kessler comes close to killing him, only to be foiled by Zeke. Mortally wounded by a massive energy discharge, Kessler uses his last bit of strength to transmit a message into Cole's brain. In a final twist, Kessler is revealed to be Cole from the future of an alternate timeline. While raising a family with Trish, Future Cole fails to prevent the Beast, a malevolent entity, from destroying humanity. The Beast tracked down and killed Trish and her children despite their attempts to flee. Sending himself back in time, Future Cole, adopting the name "Kessler," seized control of the First Sons, using their resources to prepare his past self for the future to come. Cole denounces Kessler's memory but recognizes that his actions have given his life a new purpose.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: Two endings are possible based on what rank Cole holds at the end of "InFamous". If Cole defeats Kessler as a Hero, he restores peace to Empire City and is hailed as a savior. Nevertheless, his estrangement from Zeke and Moya, coupled with the responsibilities of heroism, leads him to realize that he will always be alone. If Cole is Infamous, he allows Empire City to slip further into chaos and disregards Kessler's warning about the Beast, believing himself to be the strongest being ever to exist.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: "Infamous" was developed by Sucker Punch Productions, with a team of 60 people working for about three years. Though they could have opted to request the necessary funds from Sony to increase the team size and finish the game in two years, producer Brian Fleming noted that Sucker Punch's iteration-based development approach worked better with a smaller team size.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: "Infamous" came during the end of the development for "" as the team began to look towards their next game. After spending the last six years on the same stealth game genre with the "Sly Cooper" games, they wanted to make something that was more "brazen and loud." However, as fans of the "comic book" motif, they decided to develop it in the direction of a superhero game, working with the idea of an origin story that would allow the player to experience the growth of the character. Fleming stated that with the slower development time, they knew they needed to develop the game for the PlayStation 3 and that the work needed to complement their previous game, akin to how Shigeru Miyamoto's "The Legend of Zelda" series contrasted his earlier "Mario" series. They also sought a project that would allow them to become familiar with the new PlayStation 3 hardware but had enough commonalities to allow them to bring their previous work on the "Sly Cooper" series forward.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: Director Nate Fox stated that much of the inspiration of the superhero story came from two DC Comics series, "DMZ" and "Batman: No Man's Land". Both center on a city after a large disaster. The series also inspired the crafting of the game's grim take on the superhero genre. Fox further stated that the film "Batman Begins" was an inspiration for the game. However, any correlation to DC Comics' "Static Shock" was unintentional. Fox considered his own personal involvement in the Seattle WTO riots of 1999 as influencing the reflection of "spending time in a lawless place" within the game. "Grand Theft Auto III" was also stated as an influence, in that the team could easily see themselves as superheroes in the open world of Liberty City; similarly, "Spider-Man 2" was used as a model to demonstrate what it would be like to move about the city and answer random requests for help alongside regular missions. They had toyed around with a version of the game that they compared to a superhero version of "Animal Crossing", and alongside superhero work, the hero would have an alter-ego of property developer to meet the citizens' more common needs, but dropped this and focused solely on superhero activities after about six months of work. The character of Cole was created to be a "kind of an everyman" so that players could then "get into the headspace of what it would be like to be a real human being who has been granted these exceptional abilities". The team also avoided giving Cole an alter-ego or outfitting him with a costume as it would not have reasonably fit in with the character or the game's story.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: The story and cut scene animations were created in-house. The plot was originally written by Fox, who had also written most of the "Sly Cooper" stories, and reviewed by Fleming. As they continued to develop the game, they rewrote pieces of the story to reflect changes in the game, making sure that the story remained enjoyable. As the game became more complex, they brought in Bill Harms, a published comic book author, who had previously written for "Supreme Commander" and other video games. Harms assisted with the story and in-game dialog in addition to marketing materials. Fleming noted that the second half of the story underwent significant changes in the last nine months of development; for example, when voice actor Caleb Moody voiced the lines for Zeke, he ad libbed additional lines that the team found to be enjoyable, and they reworked the story to incorporate them. The cut scenes were created in a similar format to the comics that the game was influenced by, and used to further extend the atmosphere of the superhero motif. The cut scenes were created by taking 2D art created in Corel Painter and Adobe Photoshop and placing them into artificial 3D stages built in Adobe After Effects to create a pseudo-3D effect that allowed them to play with camera placement and effects, and addition of organic elements such as dust clouds and ink spots.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: Darren Bridges, a developer for Sucker Punch, noted that they wanted to make "Infamous" about ""becoming" a modern-day superhero", stressing the word "becoming" as the key motivator to show the growth of Cole from a simple bike messenger to someone with god-like powers. This led to instilling a "sense of progress" and growth of the character in all aspects of the game including the story, the progression of the player's powers, and the variation and difficulty in the enemies that the player faced. The team initially brainstormed on what powers that the lead character had, but selected electricity-based powers for two primary reasons. First, the power translated well to a video game context, as it would be easy to conceptualize the aspects of electrical-based powers in terms of video game concepts such as ranged combat. Secondly, electrical-based powers could then be tied to the city that the player would explore, requiring the player to use the city's electricity as fuel, and thus developing a "real relationship with the city".


title: Infamous (video game)

text: Initially, the game was more free-form, allowing players to purchase new powers at any point during the game, but the developers found it difficult to create a challenging game on that basis, particularly as they could not design missions calling for specific powers that the player may not have at that time. This evolved into the scheme of presenting new powers to the player over the course of the game, with the developers created guiding rules for which powers were ultimately included in the game and when: the power had to be useful and add something unique to the game, the player would need a chance to use that power immediately after they got it, and the power would need to be enjoyable to use. The team employed frequent reviews of when these powers were introduced to the player as other gameplay elements were added to the game. Not all powers were necessarily offensive; the "postcognition" power, allowing the player to see the psychic echo of a dead person of where they were before their death, was added as the team found there was an element of fun in tracking the echo through the crowded city. Some powers were cut from the game. One power, gained through the Evil karma path, was called "Minionize", and would have allowed Cole to control the minds of civilians and force them to join him in battle. Although the power was "decidedly evil and very fun to watch", the team felt it wasn't useful to the game, though they managed to retain a hint of it in one of the Evil side missions. Though the team had tested each of the core missions individually with the powers that the player would have based on the game's storyboard, they found that play-testers, who played the missions back-to-back, found the game lacked a variety of combat situations. The developers revisited all the combat scenarios from this feedback to alter the combat layouts as well as adding new enemies, a step that Bridges believes the game "benefited greatly" from. The ability to use Cole's electrical powers to ride along Empire City's elevated train rails was a last-minute addition during the last month of development based on a play-tester's suggestion.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: Empire City was designed to marry with Cole's new-found superpowers. The city was built with a "crime ecosystem", where petty crimes or calls for help were always occurring outside of the main story, requiring the player to decide to stop to help or not to resolve them. A portion of the team was devoted to implementing the behavior of the citizens of the city and how that behavior would change as the state of the city altered due to the player's actions. Climbing buildings was considered to be an important aspect of the game, both as part of the superhero motif and because it was considered "fun to do", and Sucker Punch set out to make the whole city climbable. Many details of every building have been modeled to allow the player to climb the buildings, "down to the last window frame, lighting sconce and storefront", however, Fox noted that getting the climbing system "just right" was the most challenging aspect of development. One employee was dedicated to making sure the entire city was climbable. Fleming noted that during "Infamous's" development, both "Crackdown" and "Assassin's Creed", two games with alternative takes on the climbing aspect, were released; the team felt that each of the games' climbing systems had their own strengths and weaknesses. To reflect the nature of change of the city as the player interacts with it—either restoring power or taking it away—the developers created a "deferred shading" rendering engine that would render the effects of moving and damaged light sources.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: The Karma system in the game came about as a result of the team wanting to include the "judicious use of power" within the game. Fox commented that they wanted to lead the player along a path of doing the harder tasks believing that these actions were the right things to do. However, without the contrast of "evil" tasks that were simpler to complete, there would be no means of motivating the player to be a "selfless hero". The team wanted to encourage players to think about the results of not only large decisions—Karma moments in the game where Cole thinks of which option to select—but also every moment-to-moment action, such as considering the presence of civilians in the area around a battle. They arranged for the first major use of Cole's powers to turn the city's inhabitants against him, to encourage players to consider both sides. In this mission, Cole is given the option to keep a drop-supply of food for himself and his friends, or allow the other citizens to share it among themselves; they found that most players would choose the latter, but very shortly after this event, the population turns against Cole due to evidence linking him to the explosion, forcing the player to run or to attack them. Fox compared the Karma dichotomy to the differences in styles of Batman (representing Good Karma) versus the Punisher (representing Evil Karma): the former would use precision attacks to avoid harming innocents, while the latter would hurt anything in his path to complete his goal. To that end, they designed the powers in the game to reflect this nature; powers acquired with Good Karma are more precise, while Evil Karma powers are more destructive.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: On December 10, 2010, the "Gigawatt Blade" which had previously been available only as a preorder incentive - was made available on the North American PlayStation Store as a free download. It was released in Europe on January 25, 2010. In the downloadable version of the game, they are packaged in. The Gigawatt Blade allows players to deal heavy amounts of damage with a melee attack. The shape and the color of the blade depends on your Karma, blue being good and red being evil (red and black if the Ray Sphere is activated). Once activated, you can use it on an enemy for one hit, usually killing them instantly. It has 3 upgrades that are available in the Powers Store in the game, that can be spent using XP, each upgrade increasing the damage dealt.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: In March 2009, Sony Computer Entertainment America released a trailer titled "The Beauty of Powers", which was later released on the PlayStation Store. Early copies of "Infamous" included a multiplayer beta voucher for the then upcoming "". The beta started on June 3. Anyone who preordered "Infamous" from GameStop received an exclusive code for the Gigawatt Blades Power, and those who preordered from Amazon.com received a special Reaper costume for PlayStation Home, while those who downloaded the "Infamous" demo from the PlayStation Store and beat it received a Cole costume for PlayStation Home on June 18, 2009. Pre-orders from GameCrazy and Best Buy stores came with an early demo released on May 7. Redeem codes were sent via email to several Oceanic PlayStation Network users on May 14. The demo, which includes four missions, was made available to everyone else on 21 May. "Infamous" was released May 26, 2009 in the United States. It was released May 29, 2009 in Europe and on June 4, 2009, for Australia and New Zealand.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: In July 2009, Sucker Punch Productions released an "Infamous" themed space in the PlayStation 3's online community-based service, PlayStation Home. This space is modeled after and called the "Abandoned Docks of Empire City", and includes a mini-game based on zapping Reapers with leaderboard tracking and clothing reward items, and a graffiti wall that allows players to create their own graffiti. The "Infamous" Home space is the first to broadcast media from the game's developer. Outso developed the "Infamous" Game Space for Sucker Punch Productions.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: Two Sackboy outfits for "LittleBigPlanet", representing both the good and evil Cole, are available as an expansion pack for that game. Good and Evil version of Cole and Zeke appear as downloadable content for the multiplayer mode of "". Cole appears as a guest character for the PlayStation Vita and PlayStation 3 version of "Street Fighter X Tekken". Good and Evil Cole appear as playable characters in the PlayStation 3 title "PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale".


title: Infamous (video game)

text: "Infamous" – along with "Infamous 2" and "Infamous: Festival of Blood" – was released on August 28, 2012, as part of the "Infamous Collection" under Sony's line of PlayStation Collections for the PlayStation 3.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: In 2012, Sony Computer Entertainment America released the "Infamous Collection" to be bundled with a 250 GB PlayStation 3, "", "", a PlayStation Plus 30-day free trial, and the entirety of the "Infamous 2" DLC.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: The soundtrack is composed by the electronic musician Amon Tobin, composers James Dooley and Mel Wesson, and electric cellist Martin Tillman, under the direction of Sony's music manager, Jonathan Mayer. Tobin was specifically brought on board due to his recent trend of blurring the lines between music and sound design as exhibited in his then-recent album, "Foley Room". Instead of using traditional instruments, the team sought to use sounds that results from objects that would be found in an urban environment and using such objects in combination with other instruments used in non-traditional manners; for example, bungee cords were strung alongside a bass drum and strummed, and wire brushes were hit against a suspended tuba. The music was divided between Tobin, who worked on the in-game music, and Dooley who worked on the music for the cinematics; the two worked together to make sure common musical themes were present in both aspects. Tillman was brought in late to the process to add the cello sounds, but the group was so impressed with his work that they remixed already-completed pieces to incorporate his contribution further. Manchester music group, Working for a Nuclear Free City were commissioned by Sony to produce a song for the game. The song was penned "Silent Melody" and was used in one of the game's promotional trailers. The soundtrack was released for digital download from the iTunes Store in May 2009.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: "Infamous" received "generally positive reviews", according to review aggregator Metacritic. Greg Miller of IGN considered the title to be "one of the best PlayStation 3 games to date". Core to the game's success, according to reviewers, were the basic mechanics of the game. Giant Bomb's Brad Shoemaker considered that Sucker Punch had "nailed the basic gameplay elements", tying all the various aspects of the game together. The mixture of Cole's powers with the Karma elements of the game were also praised. The powers and Karma system were seen to bring difficult choices to how the player approach battles. Both sides of the Karma system were considered to be fun to play. The mission structure was considered a strong asset of the game. According to X-Play's Matt Kiel, the missions forced the player to consider the full extent of Cole's powers through their difficulty but provided "generous" checkpoints to prevent too much frustration with the game. Reviewers cited the variation in side missions and how they related to the main story as positive aspects of the game.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: The presentation of Empire City was also considered to be a significant factor of the success of the game. The climbing and grabbing aspect was considered well done and avoided a "frustration-fest" that other games with precision jumping generally bring about, according to Miller. However, some reviewers noted that Cole's climbing ability was too touchy, with the character grabbing onto ledges too greedily, making it difficult to fine-tune jumps. In combination with Cole's other powers, Miller cited the game as having the "most original city-traversal mechanics" for an open-world game. The behavior of the city's population and how that was affected by the player's choice in Karma was also seen as a positive, and as a constant reminder of the game's setting. The game's story, particularly in the second half of the game, was considered to be strong, enhanced by presentation of the cut-scenes. However, the quality of these scenes was seen to negatively highlight the poor animation used for in-game generated cut-scenes and the quality of the voice work; Miller considered Cole's voice to be too gravelly for the character.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: The initial hours of the game, before the player started to acquire some of the more potent powers, were considered to be difficult and may be off-putting to some. Tom Bramwell of Eurogamer noted the remainder of the game continues to have some difficult sections, such as sections where the player must defend a moving target against a large number of foes, and considered these to be "repetitive and overlong". Bramwell further commented that the electrical powers in the game are simply electricity-based reimaginings of standard video game weapon archetypes, such as shotguns and sniper rifles, and, with this awareness, leaves the difficulty of the game up to the enemy placement during encounters. The game is also considered to be rough around the edges in technical execution, with the lack of anti-aliasing and occasional "pop-in" rendering, as well as drops in frame rates when there was a significant amount of action on the screen.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: "Infamous" was released a few weeks before Radical Entertainment's "Prototype", a game with many similar concepts including a character finding himself with super powers, a large open-world environment that can be traveled by climbing up buildings and gliding about the city, and several other comparisons. This led many game critics to compare and contrast the games. In his sarcastic Zero Punctuation review of "Prototype", Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw (who had initially praised "Infamous" as "huge, creative and fun,") compared the two games point for point, and determined that he could not tell which was the better game, and challenged the respective studios to "produce the best image of the rival game's main character wearing a women's bra" as a tiebreaker. To his surprise, both development teams rose to the challenge, producing said images, and forcing Croshaw to call it a near-tie, edging out in favor of "Infamous", though still noted that, like their games, both images created independently were nearly equal in the assets that they included. This rivalry highlighted the advantages and disadvantages of exclusivity over a multiplatform release. Gaming analysts Jesse Divnich had this to say "Due to near identical game play and quality scores, the Infamous vs. Prototype case study presents interesting data to publishers when considering the sales bump a title could receive by choosing exclusivity over a multiplatform release."


title: Infamous (video game)

text: "Infamous" was released at the end of May, and the game sold 175,900 copies in the United States on its opening week, recorded in May 2009 sales according to the NPD Group, and sold 192,700 copies in the United States over the month of June 2009, the 10th highest-selling game that month. In June 2010, Game Informer stated "Infamous" sold nearly two million copies. IGN awarded "Infamous" Best Story, and Game of the Year and Best Acting at the 2009 Golden Game Awards. "Infamous" was also nominated for four other Golden Game Awards, including Best PlayStation 3 Game, Best Graphics, Best Independent Game, and Studio of the Year.


title: Infamous (video game)

text: On September 4, 2010, "Infamous" was ranked fifth in "The Top 25 PlayStation 3 Games" of IGN, stating that "when "Infamous" was released on PlayStation 3 in the spring of 2009, it quickly became clear that this was unlike any sandbox game anyone had ever played".


title: Kingsnake

text: Kingsnakes are colubrid New World members of the genus Lampropeltis, which includes 26 species. Among these, about 45 subspecies are recognized. They are nonvenomous and ophiophagous in diet.


title: Kingsnake

text: Kingsnakes vary widely in size and coloration. They can be as small as 24" (61cm) or as long as 60" (152cm). Some kingsnakes are colored in muted browns to black, while others are brightly marked in white, reds, yellows, grays, and lavenders that form rings, longitudinal stripes, speckles, and saddle-shaped bands.


title: Kingsnake

text: Most kingsnakes have quite vibrant patterns. Some species, such as the scarlet kingsnake, Mexican milk snake, and red milk snake, have coloration and patterning that can cause them to be confused with the highly venomous coral snakes. One of the mnemonic rhymes to help people distinguish between coral snakes and their nonvenomous lookalikes in the United States is "red on black, a friend of Jack; red on yellow, kill a fellow". Other variations include "red on yellow kill a fellow, red on black venom lack", and referencing the order of traffic lights "yellow, red, stop!" All these mnemonics apply only to the three species of coral snakes native to the southern United States: "Micrurus fulvius" (the eastern or common coral snake), "Micrurus tener" (the Texas coral snake), and "Micruroides euryxanthus" (the Arizona coral snake). Coral snakes found in other parts of the world can have distinctly different patterns, such as having red bands touching black bands, having only pink and blue bands, or having no bands at all.


title: Kingsnake

text: "Lampropeltis" includes the Greek words for "shiny shield": ("shiny") + (""peltē" shield") + (a Latin suffix). The name is given to them in reference to their smooth, enamel-like dorsal scales.


title: Kingsnake

text: Taxonomic reclassification of the kingsnakes is an ongoing process and different sources often disagree, one source granting full species status to a group of these snakes that another source considers a subspecies group. In the case of "L. catalinensis", for example, only a single specimen exists, so classification is not necessarily finite. In addition, hybridization between species with overlapping geographic ranges is not uncommon, confusing taxonomists further.


title: Kingsnake

text: Kingsnakes are native to North America, where they are found all over the United States and into Mexico. This genus has adapted to a wide variety of habitats, including tropical forests, shrublands, and deserts.


title: Kingsnake

text: Kingsnakes are often preyed upon by large vertebrates, such as birds of prey. Tarantulas also sometimes prey on them; however, a considerable threat also comes from other kingsnakes. All species of kingsnakes are known snake- and reptile-eaters, and likely won't turn down a chance to prey on their local competitors.


title: Kingsnake

text: Kingsnakes use constriction to kill their prey and tend to be opportunistic in their diet. They're known to seek out and eat other snakes (ophiophagy), including venomous snakes, like rattlesnakes, cottonmouths, and copperheads. Some known non-venomous prey species of the kingsnake include gopher snakes, corn snakes, bullsnakes, garter snakes, rosy boa, water snakes, and brown snakes. Kingsnakes also eat many species of lizards, rodents, birds, and eggs. The common kingsnake is known to be immune to the venom of other snakes and does eat rattlesnakes, but it is not necessarily immune to the venom of snakes from different localities.


title: Kingsnake

text: Kingsnakes such as the California kingsnake can exert twice as much constriction force relative to body size as rat snakes and pythons. Scientists believe that such strong coils may be an adaptation to eating snakes, and other reptile prey, which can endure lower blood-oxygen levels before asphyxiating.


title: Kingsnake

text: Kingsnake species and subspecies include (listed here alphabetically by specific and subspecific name):


title: Kingsnake

text: Additionally, Pyron and Burbrink have argued that the short-tailed snake ("Stilosoma extenuatum") (Brown, 1890) should be included in "Lampropeltis".


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: In the United States, driver's licenses are issued by each individual state, territory, and the District of Columbia rather than by the federal government due to federalism. Drivers are normally required to obtain a license from their state of residence and all states recognize each other's licenses for non-resident age requirements. There are also licenses for motorcycle use. Generally, a minimum age of 16 is required to obtain a driver's or motorcycle license, and 18 for a commercial driver's license which is required for operating heavy size vehicles (buses, trucks, tractor-trailers) or vehicles with at least 16 passengers or hazardous materials. A state may also suspend an individual's driving privilege within its borders for traffic violations. Many states share a common system of license classes, with some exceptions, e.g. commercial license classes are standardized by federal regulation at . Many driving permits and ID cards display small digits next to each data field. This is required by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators' design standard and has been adopted by many US states. According to the United States Department of Transportation, as of 2018, there are approximately 227 million licensed drivers in the United States.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: As the number of motor vehicles in the US reached tens of thousands, state and local governments assumed a new power: authorizing vehicles and drivers. In 1901, New York became the first state to register automobiles. By 1918 all US states required license plates; states were slower to require licenses for drivers. Only 39 states issued them by 1935 and few required a test, despite widespread concern about incompetent drivers. Early motorists were taught to drive by automobile salesmen, family and friends, or organizations like the YMCA. By the 1930s, many high schools offered driver education.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: Massachusetts and Missouri were the first states to require a driver license in 1903, but there was no test associated with the license. In 1908, Henry Ford launched the Model T, the first affordable automobile for many middle-class Americans (in 1919, when Michigan started issuing driver licenses, Ford got his first one at age 56). The same year the Model T debuted, Rhode Island became the first state to require both a license and a driver's exam (Massachusetts instituted a chauffeur exam in 1907 and started requiring tests for all other drivers in 1920). Maryland's driver's licenses did not feature photographs until the 1980s.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: Since the 1990s, young people have generally been less likely to start driving as teenagers than in previous decades. In 2021, it was reported that 61% of 18-year-olds and 25% of 16-year-olds in the US had drivers licenses, a decline from 80% and 46%, respectively, in 1983. This continued a trend that had been observed in 2004, when the "Los Angeles Times" reported that 43% of US 15-to-17-year-olds had drivers licenses in 2002, compared to 52% in 1982.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: Potential explanations for this decline include lower enthusiasm for driving, caused by environmental and road safety concerns; cost issues (including driver's education and insurance premiums) and stricter standards for granting licenses have also been cited as possible reasons. Furthermore, others have cited that the decline could be part of a larger issue of Generation Z youth growing up more slowly compared to previous generations, such as moving out from their parent's home later and getting married later in their lives.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: Some states also have additional classifications. Nevada, for example, has a separate license category for drivers who only operate mopeds, while some more northerly states have separate categories for snowmobiles and ATVs. South Carolina and Georgia have non-commercial versions of every commercial class license for agricultural purposes.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: A commercial driver's license (CDL) is required to operate large and heavy vehicles in commerce, this includes tractor-trailers, buses, and trucks with a gross vehicle weight rating of 26,001 pounds (11,794 kilograms) or more. A CDL is required for any vehicle regardless of size that will be used to transport at least 16 passengers (including the driver) or transport hazardous materials that require placards. The minimum age for a commercial driver's license is generally 18 years old (federal law prohibits drivers under 21 from operating in interstate commerce or hauling hazardous materials), while the minimum age in Hawaii is 21 years old. An unrestricted driver's license is a prerequisite in all states before a commercial driver's license can be issued.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: On 14 May 2022, New York lowered the minimum age for a CDL Class A from 21 to 18 years, making Hawaii the last and only state to have 21 as the minimum age. Previously, New York Law allowed 18 to 20-year-olds to be issued a CDL Class B or C, but not a CDL Class A until they turn 21. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act signed by President Joe Biden authorized a pilot experiment to allow 18 to 20-year-olds with a CDL to operate in interstate commerce in an effort to alleviate the national truck driver shortage provided they meet all other requirements for operating in interstate commerce.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: Most recreational and agricultural vehicles such as converted buses, tractor, lawn mowers, or full size (greater than campers, including fire trucks are exempt from CDL regulations. However, federal law allows states to require a CDL for these vehicles. Some states require drivers who operate large and heavy vehicles strictly used for recreational and/or agricultural purposes to upgrade to a special driver's license or add an endorsement to their license usually by passing a written test, road test, or both. For example, in California, recreational vehicles require the driver to possess a "non-commercial" license (to distinguish from commercial driver licenses) to drive (Non-Commercial Class B) or tow (Non-Commercial Class A) a motorhome between 40 and 45 feet. In New York, recreational vehicles that exceed 26,000 pounds GVWR requires an R endorsement on a driver's license.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: Some states (such as New York and Nevada with endorsement) allow drivers with a CDL Class B or C to tow vehicles of more than 10,000 pounds (4,536 kilograms) as long as the gross combination weight rating of the combined vehicles does not go over 26,000 pounds (11,794 kilograms). In other states, drivers with a CDL Class B or C may only tow vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000 pounds (4,536 kilograms) or less.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: Commercial drivers are usually required to add endorsements to their CDL to drive certain types of vehicles that require additional training. CDL endorsements requirements are mostly similar, but some vary between states. The training and testing requirements are regulated by the US Department of Transportation. Endorsements are as follows:


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: In a rare exception to states and territories issuing driver licenses, the State Department's Office of Foreign Missions (OFM) issues driver licenses to foreign officials and diplomats, bypassing the states and territories in which they live. OFM-issued driver licenses are equivalent to a regular state-issued license.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: The minimum age to obtain a restricted driver license in the US varies from 14 years, three months in South Dakota to as high as 17 in New Jersey. In most states, a graduated licensing law applies to newly-licensed teenage drivers, going by names such as "Provisional Driver", "Junior Operator", "Probationary Driver", or "Intermediate License". These licenses restrict certain driving privileges, such as whether the new driver may carry passengers and if so how many, as well as setting a curfew for young drivers. For example, Utah drivers who are under 18 may not drive other people outside the family in their first six months with a license. Unlike in some states of Australia and some provinces of Canada, graduated licensing laws do not require lowered speed limits, displaying of L and P plates, restrictions on towing a trailer or boat, or prohibitions on highway driving or operating high performance cars.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: Drivers under 18 are usually required to attend a comprehensive driver's education program either at their high school or a professional driving school and take a certain number of behind-the-wheel lessons with a certified driving instructor before applying for a license. Some states like New York also require new adult drivers to attend some form of driver education before applying for a license.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: In some states "all" newly licensed adult drivers may be on probation for a set amount of time (usually between six months and two years), during which traffic violations carry harsher penalties or mandatory suspensions that would not apply to experienced drivers.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: The United States Department of Transportation requires all drivers with a commercial driver's license to pass a periodic physical examination every two years before renewal and to be at least 21 years old to operate in interstate commerce or to transport hazardous materials requiring the driver to place placards on the vehicle, but allow states to issue a commercial driver's license to drivers under 21 providing they only operate within state lines (intrastate commerce). All drivers who will drive commercial motor vehicles that do not require a commercial driver's license in interstate commerce must also be at least 21 years old and are subject to the same health requirements as drivers with a CDL.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: In 2017, Oregon became the first state in the U.S. to offer residents who identify as transgender or non-binary (neither male or female) to designate their gender as "X" on their licenses or identification cards. In March 2022, President Joe Biden signed legislation to allow transgender and non-binary Americans to opt for the "X" gender marker on their United States passport. Other states (including the District of Columbia) that allow transgender and non-binary residents to select "X" as their gender include Hawaii, California, Washington, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Colorado, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island. Utah and Ohio require governmental approval for an "X" gender marker. All other states do not offer a third-gender option.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: Below is a list of Graduated Driver's Licenses (GDL) and hardship licenses for minors laws for each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The list includes the state agency responsible for issuing driver licenses and the length of time that a full (unrestricted) driver license is valid for.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: Driver's licenses issued in the United States have a number or alphanumeric code issued by the issuing state's department of motor vehicles (or equivalent), usually show a photograph of the bearer, as well as a copy of the bearer's signature, the address of the bearer's primary residence, the type or class of license, restrictions, endorsements (if any), the physical characteristics of the bearer (such as height, weight, hair color and eye color) and birth date. Driver's license numbers issued by a state are unique. Social Security numbers are now prohibited by federal law from appearing on new driver's licenses due to identity theft concerns. In most states, to be compliant with AAMVA standards, the orientation of a driver's license for persons under the age of 21 is vertical while a driver's license for those over the age of 21 is horizontal. Since the driver's license is often used as proof of a person's age, the difference in orientation makes it easy to determine that a person is legally allowed to purchase or consume alcohol and purchase tobacco (the drinking and tobacco age in all U.S. states is 21). Some states, such as Arizona, do not require that a driver's license be changed to horizontal at age 21. The vertical license does not expire until age 65 in the state of Arizona. Most states require that when a driver establishes residence in a state, he or she must obtain a license issued by that state within a limited time.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: Because there is no national identity card in the United States, the driver's license is often used as the "de facto" equivalent for completion of many common business and governmental transactions. As a result, driver's licenses are stolen and used for identity theft. Driver's licenses were not always identification cards. In many states, driver's licenses did not even have a photograph until the 1980s. Advocacy by Mothers Against Drunk Driving for photo ID age verification in conjunction with increasing the drinking age to 21 to reduce underage drinking led to photographs being added to all state licenses. New York and Tennessee were the last states to add photos in 1986. New Jersey later allowed drivers to get non-photo licenses, but that option was subsequently revoked. Vermont license holders have the option of receiving a non-photo license. Tennessee drivers 60 years of age or older had the option of a non-photo driver's license prior to January 2013, when photo licenses were required for voting identification. Those with valid non-photo licenses were allowed to get a photo license when their current license expired. Thirteen states allow a non-photo driver's license for reasons of religious belief: Arkansas, Indiana, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Washington, and Wisconsin.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: Later additions to licenses have included fingerprints, bar codes, magnetic strips, social security numbers, and tamper-proof features, most of which were added to prevent identity theft and to curb the use of fake IDs. States have slowly added digitized features to driver's licenses, which incorporate holograms and bar codes to reduce forgery.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: Many states provide identification cards for people who do not drive, usually through the same agency that issues driver's licenses.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: The Department of Homeland Security enforces standards of the Real ID Act of 2005 for identification of applicants and license design for state-issued driver licenses and identification cards. States are not required to comply with Real ID, but any driver licenses or ID cards issued by that state will not be valid for any official purpose with the federal government, including entering federal buildings or boarding airplanes.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: For a state to comply with Real ID, licenses and ID cards issued from that state must be approved by DHS to meet Real ID requirements.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: States can choose to issue both regular licenses and ID cards as well as Real IDs, but any non-Real ID must be marked "Not for Federal Identification". Real IDs are normally valid for eight years.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: An applicant for a Real ID, either as a new driver license or ID card applicant, or renewing a current license or ID card, must present a citizenship document (US passport, certified birth certificate or citizenship certificate) or proof of legal immigrant status, proof of a Social Security number if they have been issued one, proof of any name changes if using birth certificate, and two proofs of residency in the state. The state then must verify the documents and store them either electronically or on paper. No one may have more than one Real ID at one time.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: A Real ID can be identified with a gold or black star located on the top right third of the ID, depending on the state. , all U.S. states and territories have been certified as compliant with the law except American Samoa, which is under review. See RealID article for dates of adoption by individual states.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: Some states, mostly those with an international border, issue enhanced driver's licenses and enhanced ID cards. Enhanced licenses combine a regular driver's license with the specifications of the new federal passport card. Thus, in addition to providing driving privileges, the enhanced license also is proof of US citizenship, and can therefore be used to cross the Canadian and Mexican borders by road, rail, or sea, although air travel still requires a traditional passport book. The enhanced licenses are also fully Real ID compliant.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: On March 27, 2008, the Secretary of Homeland Security announced that Washington's enhanced driver's license was the first one approved under the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. According to a Homeland Security press release, the department is working with Arizonan authorities to develop enhanced driver's licenses. On September 16, 2008, New York began issuing enhanced driver's licenses that meet WHTI requirements. Texas was expected to implement an enhanced driver's license program, but the program has been blocked by Texas Governor Rick Perry, despite a state law authorizing the Texas Department of Public Safety to issue EDLs and a ruling by the state attorney general, Greg Abbott, that Texas's production of EDLs would comply with federal requirements.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: , Vermont, New York, Michigan, and Washington were issuing enhanced driver's licenses and ID cards. In January 2014, Minnesota became the fifth state to issue enhanced driver's licenses, while Ohio is set to become the sixth state once it has been approved by its legislature.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: As of December 2021, approximately 20 US states have launched, tested, or considered digital driver's licenses, with Arizona, Connecticut, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Oklahoma and Utah partnering with Apple to the identification through the Apple Wallet on the iPhone and Apple Watch.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: California, Iowa, and Delaware have proposed digital drivers licenses as a means of identification. The license would be available as an app by MorphoTrust USA and installed on a user's personal cellphone. Questions have been raised about user privacy, since a police officer may ask for one's license and gain access to one's cellphone.


title: Driver's licenses in the United States

text: Louisiana passed House Bill 481 in 2014 which became Act 625, making Louisiana the first state with a legally accepted digital driver's license via LA Wallet, an app created by Envoc that launched in July 2018. The law allows Louisiana residents to present driver identification using LA Wallet "...upon demand of any officer or agent of the department or any police officer of the state, parish, or municipality...". The Louisiana digital driver's license requires no additional hardware to accept and includes a “no-touch” policy whereby the citizen remains in possession of the mobile device at all times. In October 2018, the Louisiana Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin approved the usage of LA Wallet for voter identification at the polling stations. In January 2019, the Louisiana Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control issued a notice legally approving LA Wallet, Louisiana's Digital Driver's License app for purchase age verification for tobacco and alcohol sales. In May 2021, LA Wallet expanded to include an individual's COVID-19 vaccination status and as of mid-June 2021, more than 100,000 people, or 14 percent of all LA Wallet users had added their COVID-19 vaccination status to the app. As of August 2021, LA Wallet had a userbase of 804,000 unique licenses across 1.5 million devices.


title: Adoration (2013 film)

text: Adoration (known in North America and the U.K. as Adore and in France as Perfect Mothers) is a 2013 drama film directed by Anne Fontaine. It is Fontaine's first English-language film. It stars Naomi Watts, Robin Wright, Ben Mendelsohn, Xavier Samuel, and James Frecheville. The film tells the story of a pair of middle-aged women who are life-long friends and have sex with each other's teenage sons, and the resultant emotional consequences of their ongoing affairs. It is based on a 2003 novella by British writer Doris Lessing called "".


title: Adoration (2013 film)

text: In New South Wales, childhood friends Roz and Lil and their families live next door to each other. Roz's son Tom and Lil's son Ian, who are both 18, are also best friends, and the four of them spend all their time together.


title: Adoration (2013 film)

text: Roz's husband Harold is offered a job in Sydney, and goes there to make arrangements, even though Roz does not want to move. That night, Ian kisses Roz, and although she is hesitant the two of them end up having sex. Tom witnesses Roz coming out of Ian's room. Confused and frustrated, Tom tries to seduce Lil, who pushes him away, and he tells her what he witnessed. That night, he stays at her house again, and they have sex.


title: Adoration (2013 film)

text: Roz goes to Lil's work and they discuss what happened with their sons. They agree that they both crossed the line, and that it should never happen again. They get together with both of the boys and tell them that these things need to end. Ian still has feelings for Roz, and eventually, they renew the relationship; they then learn that Lil and Tom never stopped sleeping together. Both Roz and Lil admit that they're happy, and they agree to keep going. When Harold returns, Roz tells him that neither she nor Tom can move with him to Sydney.


title: Adoration (2013 film)

text: Two years later, Roz and Harold are divorced, and Roz and Lil have continued their secret affairs. Ian now works with his mother for a successful yacht-building company, and Tom is studying theater. Harold invites Tom to Sydney to direct one of their plays and Tom accepts, staying with Harold and his new family. While in Sydney, he meets Mary, who is auditioning for the lead role. The two begin a relationship, and Lil reluctantly accepts that he has moved on. Roz and Ian are still together, although Roz believes that Ian will not be attracted to her for much longer. Finally, the mothers agree to end their affairs with the boys. Ian is upset, and storms out.


title: Adoration (2013 film)

text: Some time later, Tom marries Mary. Ian meets a girl at the wedding, Hannah, and decides to have sex with her to get back at Roz. That night, he comes to Roz' door and begs to be let in, but Roz turns him down, crying quietly in her room. Ian goes surfing but suffers a broken leg in the process. He refuses to see Roz, but Hannah comes to visit him and nurses him through his physical therapy. They begin a relationship, but when Ian and Tom meet up for lunch, Ian mentions that it is going nowhere, and that he'll have to break it off. One day, Hannah shows up at Ian's work and tells him that she is pregnant.


title: Adoration (2013 film)

text: Years pass, and now Ian and Tom are both married, and they both have daughters, Shirley and Alice. Mary and Hannah, Tom and Ian's wives respectively, are ignorant of the affairs. They all spend a day together at the beach, and while most are in the water, Ian and Roz share a quiet moment. That night, they all eat dinner together, during which Tom gets drunk and takes a walk to clear his head. Ian follows him and sees him having sex with Lil. Enraged, he tells Mary the truth. The wives are horrified, and leave with the children.


title: Adoration (2013 film)

text: When Tom returns later, he finds Roz sitting alone in her room, and she tells Tom that she doesn't think that Mary, Hannah, or their granddaughters will ever return. Lil tearfully insists that she and Tom tried to stop, but could not keep away from each other. Roz has no words for Lil.


title: Adoration (2013 film)

text: Time passes, and Ian goes for a swim in the ocean until he comes to a free-floating dock in the water, the same dock where he first began his flirtation with Roz, and Roz and Lil used to swim to as girls. He climbs on board and sees that Tom, Lil, and Roz are there. After telling them good morning, he lies down beside Roz.


title: Adoration (2013 film)

text: The film has received mostly negative reviews. Of 75 reviews counted by Rotten Tomatoes, 33% were positive, with a rating average of 4.70/10. The site's consensus reads: "Naomi Watts and Robin Wright give it their all, but they can't quite make "Adore"s trashy, absurd plot believable." Metacritic counted 24 reviews with an average score of 37/100, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".


title: Adoration (2013 film)

text: "The Guardian"s Damon Wise, in positive review that awarded the film 4 out of 5 stars, wrote the film is "An incredibly provocative piece of work, featuring a brave and vulnerable performance by Naomi Watts (who seems perhaps a little too young) and a career-high acting masterclass from Robin Wright (who is cast perfectly)."


title: Adoration (2013 film)

text: Writing for RogerEbert.com, critic Christy Lemire praised the photography and Wright and Watts' acting, but critiqued the story's descent into melodrama. Lemire added, "'Adore' is decadent fantasy fulfillment masquerading as a declaration of feminist independence. Somewhere in here is a message about the importance of remaining sexy and vital in your 40s—about asserting your own identity once more after decades of being defined as someone's wife and someone's mother." In a review for "Grantland", Wesley Morris called the film "an enjoyably shallow movie."


title: Adoration (2013 film)

text: "Adoration" was filmed in New South Wales. The houses and main beach scenes were filmed at Seal Rocks, with some beach scenes filmed at Sugarloaf Point Lighthouse beach. Scenes for where the characters worked were filmed at Shelly Beach and the pub scenes were filmed in Balmain. Parts of the film were also shot in Sydney.


title: Melvin Booker

text: Melvin Jermaine Booker (born August 20, 1972) is an American former professional basketball player. A , point guard, he played for the University of Missouri.


title: Melvin Booker

text: Booker was a standout high school player in Moss Point, Mississippi. He averaged 28 points per game in his senior year and was named the player of the year in his class. Despite that, none of the major four-year schools from the region recruited him. Booker signed with Missouri, a school whose attention he caught during a prior recruitment run through the area. Missouri assistant coaches noticed him while they were scouting fellow Mississippi standouts Litterial Green and Chris Jackson.


title: Melvin Booker

text: Booker was the 1994 Big Eight Player of the Year, when he led Missouri to an undefeated conference record of 14–0 and an Elite Eight berth. He was also an all Big Eight selection in 1993 and 1994 and was a 1994 first-team All-American as a senior, when he averaged 18.1 points and 4.5 assists per game. In 1999, Booker was elected to the intercollegiate athletics Hall of Fame at the University of Missouri.


title: Melvin Booker

text: He played in the NBA for the Houston Rockets during the 1995–96 season; and the Denver Nuggets and Golden State Warriors, during the 1996–97 season, for 32 games.


title: Melvin Booker

text: While playing for the Grand Rapids Mackers in the 1995–1996 CBA season, Booker met Veronica Gutiérrez. The two became close and had a son, Devin Booker, born on October 30, 1996. The two never married and Gutiérrez would take care of their son Devin while his father played pro basketball in Europe and Asia. During the summers, Booker would bring his son to his games which helped to drive Devin's interest in basketball. After Melvin Booker retired from pro basketball in 2008, he returned to his hometown of Moss Point, Mississippi and brought his son with him so he could help train him to become a successful basketball player. Booker was hired as an assistant coach for basketball at his alma mater, Moss Point High School, in 2011.


title: Melvin Booker

text: His only child and son, Devin Booker, played for the University of Kentucky Wildcats basketball team during their nearly undefeated 2014–15 NCAA season and currently plays for the Phoenix Suns.


title: Peyton Royce

text: Cassandra McIntosh (born 10 November 1992) is an Australian professional wrestler. She is best known for her time in WWE, where she performed under the ring name Peyton Royce and for her time in Impact Wrestling where she performed as Cassie Lee.


title: Peyton Royce

text: In February 2009, McIntosh made her professional wrestling debut at Pro Wrestling Women's Alliance (PWWA) as KC Cassidy, and competed on the independent circuit with multiple promotions for several years, becoming a one-time PWA Women's Champion, and winning the Vera and Jenny Memorial Cup in support of breast cancer. McIntosh signed a contract with WWE in 2015, and was assigned to WWE's developmental brand NXT in Orlando, Florida.


title: Peyton Royce

text: McIntosh was born in Sydney, New South Wales and later moved to Melbourne, Victoria and then Calgary, Alberta, Canada to train with Lance Storm. Prior to her training, she excelled in dance. She attended the same high school, Westfields Sports, as fellow wrestler and future tag team partner Jessie McKay. McIntosh began watching wrestling at the age of 9, and cites Eddie Guerrero as her inspiration to become a professional wrestler.


title: Peyton Royce

text: On 28 February 2009, McIntosh made her professional wrestling debut in Pro Wrestling Women's Alliance as KC Cassidy, teaming with Robbie Eagles in a mixed tag team match, defeating Madison Eagles and Mike Valuable. For the next year in the promotion, she traded victories with Jessie McKay in singles matches, including a loss in a PWWA championship match. On 7 January 2011, she unsuccessfully challenged Madison Eagles for the championship. On 20 June 2011, KC Cassidy and Tenille Tayla defeated Eliza Sway and Shazza McKenzie. Cassidy made two appearances for the American all-female promotion Shimmer Women Athletes as Bambi Hall's tag team partner. She was originally the scheduled opponent for Su Yung at a Shine Wrestling event in Ybor City, Florida, but instead became the replacement opponent for Rhia O'Reilly. She also appeared for promotions Pro Wrestling Alliance Australia, New Horizons Pro Wrestling, Melbourne City Wrestling and Riot City Wrestling.


title: Peyton Royce

text: McIntosh received a tryout with WWE during their tour of Australia in August 2014 and became an NXT trainee on 13 April 2015. She made her televised in-ring debut on the 15 May episode of "NXT", using the KC Cassidy name in a loss to NXT Women's Champion Sasha Banks. On the 22 July episode of "NXT", McIntosh (as Cassie) lost to Eva Marie. On 7 August, she was given the new ring name Peyton Royce. After being a face throughout her NXT run, Royce began wrestling as a heel in a non-title loss to NXT Women's Champion Bayley on the 9 December episode of "NXT".<ref name="WWE NXT 12/9/15 results"></ref> On the 13 January 2016 episode of "NXT", Royce competed in a number one contender's battle royal for Bayley's NXT Women's Championship, which was won by Carmella.


title: Peyton Royce

text: In October, Royce formed an alliance with Billie Kay, later dubbed The Iconic Duo. The duo subsequently entered a feud with Liv Morgan,<ref name="NXT 12/10/16"></ref> which culminated in a six-woman tag team match on the 23 November episode of "NXT", in which Morgan, Aliyah, and Ember Moon defeated Royce, Kay, and Daria Berenato.<ref name="NXT23/11/16"></ref> In the end of December, Kay and Royce were placed in a brief feud with the NXT Women's Champion Asuka after the latter stated there is no competition for her. On 28 January 2017 at , Royce competed in a fatal four-way match against Kay, Nikki Cross, and Asuka, in which Royce failed to capture the NXT Women's Championship. Shortly after that, in the end of February, Royce defeated Ember Moon and Liv Morgan in a triple–threat to earn another opportunity at Asuka's NXT Women's Championship, which she once again failed to win.


title: Peyton Royce

text: Throughout the year, Royce continued to rack up victories over competitors like Aliyah, Sarah Logan, and Ruby Riott. After defeating Liv Morgan and Nikki Cross in a triple-threat match, at , Royce competed in a fatal four-way match for the vacant NXT Women's Championship, which was ultimately won by Ember Moon. In December, Royce lost to Moon in a non-title match, which was her final match for NXT. Royce made her first main roster appearance on 8 April 2018 at WrestleMania 34, competing along with several other NXT superstars in the first WrestleMania Women's Battle Royal at WrestleMania 34 where she was eliminated by Sarah Logan.


title: Peyton Royce

text: Royce and Kay, now dubbed The IIconics, made their main roster debut on the 10 April 2018 episode of "SmackDown Live" attacking SmackDown Women's Champion Charlotte Flair, while she was cutting a promo about her match at WrestleMania 34. Two weeks later, The IIconics racked up their first victory, as part of the main roster, over Asuka and Becky Lynch. Throughout the next few months, Royce competed in various singles and tag team matches but ended up on the losing end on them all. In August, The IIconics started their first feud on the main roster, with Naomi, and the two were able to defeat her in singles matches. Eventually, Naomi teamed up with Asuka but lost to The IIconics at the Super Show-Down on 6 October, held in the latter's homeland of Australia. Three weeks later, both Royce and Kay took part in WWE's first all-women's pay-per-view, Evolution; they were the first two eliminated from a battle royal for a future women's championship match.


title: Peyton Royce

text: On 27 January 2019, both Kay and Royce entered their first Royal Rumble match at number 7 and number 9, respectively, and they managed to eliminate Nikki Cross, before they both were eliminated by Lacey Evans. On 17 February, at the Elimination Chamber event, The IIconics competed in a tag team Elimination Chamber match for the inaugural WWE Women's Tag Team Championship, which was won by The Boss 'n' Hug Connection (Bayley and Sasha Banks). In March, The IIconics started a feud with Banks and Bayley, whom they defeated in a non-title match. Because of their win, they (and two other teams) challenged Banks and Bayley for the championship at WrestleMania 35 in a fatal four-way match. At the event, which took place on 7 April, The IIconics won the match after Kay pinned Bayley to win the Women's Tag Team Championship for the first time. On the 5 August episode of "Raw", The IIconics lost the titles to Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross in a fatal four-way match.


title: Peyton Royce

text: On 16 October 2019, it was announced that The IIconics had been drafted to Raw as supplemental picks of the 2019 WWE Draft. After a brief hiatus, Royce and Kay made their return on the 11 May 2020 episode of "Raw", interrupting WWE Women's Tag Team Champions Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross. They later defeated the champions in a non-title match. They would unsuccessfully challenge for the WWE Women's Tag Team Championships multiple times throughout the summer. They would begin a feud with Ruby Riott mocking her backstage for not having any friends. They would go on to trade victories as Kay and Royce defeated Riott while Riott defeated Kay. At Payback, The IIconics were defeated by Riott and her newly reunited tag partner Liv Morgan. The following night on Raw, The IIconics were forced to disband after losing to The Riott Squad per stipulation.


title: Peyton Royce

text: On 12 October 2020 during the 2020 WWE Draft, Peyton remained on Raw, while her former tag team partner Billie moved to SmackDown. She would begin to team with Lacey Evans until Evans announced her pregnancy. On the 22 March 2021 episode of "Raw", Royce faced Raw Women's Champion Asuka in a losing effort. This would in turn be her final match in WWE, as on 15 April 2021, Royce was released from her WWE contract along with other WWE talent including her former partner Billie Kay.


title: Peyton Royce

text: At Knockouts Knockdown on 9 October 2021, it was announced that The IIconics, now known as The IInspiration, would be making their debut for Impact Wrestling at Bound for Glory. At Bound for Glory, they defeated Decay (Havok and Rosemary) to win the Impact Knockouts World Tag Team Championship. On 20 November, at Turning Point, The IInspiration had their first successful title defense, when they defeated Decay once again.


title: Peyton Royce

text: On April 27, McIntosh and McKay requested their immediate release from Impact Wrestling, with a statement they released on their Twitter accounts.


title: Peyton Royce

text: McIntosh as Peyton Royce made her WWE video game debut as a playable character in "WWE 2K18" and has since appeared in "WWE 2K19," "WWE 2K20,WWE 2K22 and WWE 2K Battlegrounds".


title: Peyton Royce

text: On 16 May 2021, McIntosh along with longtime tag team partner and best friend Jessica McKay launched a comedy and variety podcast titled "Off Her Chops".


title: Peyton Royce

text: In August 2019, McIntosh married Canadian wrestler Ronnie Arneill, best known by his ring names Shawn Spears and Tye Dillinger, On August 3, 2022, the couple announced that they are expecting their first child, later revealed to be a boy.


title: NCR Corporation

text: NCR Corporation, previously known as National Cash Register, is an American software, consulting and technology company providing several professional services and electronic products. It manufactures self-service kiosks, point-of-sale terminals, automated teller machines, cheque processing systems, and barcode scanners.


title: NCR Corporation

text: NCR was founded in Dayton, Ohio, in 1884 and acquired by AT&T in 1991. A restructuring of AT&T in 1996 led to NCR's re-establishment on 1 January 1997, as a separate company and involved the spin-off of Lucent Technologies from AT&T. In June 2009 the company sold most of the Dayton properties and moved its headquarters to the Atlanta metropolitan area in unincorporated Gwinnett County, Georgia, near Duluth. In early January 2018, the new NCR Global Headquarters opened in Midtown Atlanta near Technology Square (adjacent to the Georgia Institute of Technology).


title: NCR Corporation

text: The company began as the National Manufacturing Company of Dayton, Ohio, and was established to manufacture and sell the first mechanical cash register invented in 1879 by James Ritty. In 1884, the company and patents were bought by John Henry Patterson and his brother Frank Jefferson Patterson, and the firm was renamed the National Cash Register Company. Patterson formed NCR into one of the first modern American companies by introducing new, aggressive sales methods and business techniques. He established the first sales training school in 1893 and introduced a comprehensive social welfare program for his factory workers.


title: NCR Corporation

text: Other significant figures in the early history of the company were Thomas J. Watson, Sr., Charles F. Kettering and Edward A. Deeds.


title: NCR Corporation

text: Watson—later fired by Patterson in 1914—eventually worked his way up to general sales manager. At an uninspiring sales meeting, Watson interrupted, saying "The trouble with every one of us is that we don't think enough. We don't get paid for working with our feet — we get paid for working with our heads". Watson then wrote THINK on the easel. Signs with this motto were later erected in NCR factory buildings, sales offices and club rooms during the mid-1890s. "THINK" later became a widely known symbol of IBM, which was created by Watson after he joined the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company (CTR).


title: NCR Corporation

text: Kettering designed the first cash register powered by an electric motor in 1906. Within a few years he developed the Class 1000 register which was in production for 40 years, and the O.K. Telephone Credit Authorization system for verifying credit in department stores.


title: NCR Corporation

text: Deeds and Kettering went on to found Dayton Engineering Laboratories Company which later became the Delco Electronics Division of General Motors.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In 1913, the company's market share was dominant and it was successfully prosecuted under the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890. The ruling was appealed and executives avoided at least some of the court's strictures.


title: NCR Corporation

text: When John H. Patterson and his brother took over the company, cash registers were expensive (US$50) and only about a dozen of "Ritty's Incorruptible Cashier" machines were in use. There was little demand for the expensive device, but Patterson believed the product would sell once shopkeepers understood it would drastically decrease theft by salesclerks. He created a sales team known as the "American Selling Force" which worked on commissions and followed a standard sales script, the "N.C.R. Primer." This was the first known sales training manual in existence. The philosophy was to sell a business function rather than just a piece of machinery. Sales demonstrations were set up in hotels (away from the distractions of the buyer's business) depicting a store interior complete with real merchandise and real cash. The sale prospect was described as the "P.P." or "Probable Purchaser." Once initial objections were swept aside and the P.P. admitted to internal theft losses, the product was demonstrated along with large business charts and diagrams. The deal was sealed with a 25 cent cigar.


title: NCR Corporation

text: Patterson also invented the formal sales training academy, a summer event first set up in canvas tents and called “Sugar Camp.” The first known form of direct mail advertising also came courtesy of Patterson, who sent mail pieces to a predetermined list of addresses about his products. Patterson's “Get a Receipt” campaign was one of the world's first advertising campaigns.


title: NCR Corporation

text: NCR undertook extensive welfare work and was referred to as "America's model factory." Some historians have referred to company owner John Patterson as the "father of industrial welfare." The company had its own welfare department and is considered a pioneer in America for this work.


title: NCR Corporation

text: Some of the company's welfare initiatives include safety devices, drinking fountains, baths, lockers, chairs and back support for machine operators, indoor bathrooms and a ventilation system to provide clean air. There were special provisions for women employees including restrooms, shorter work hours, high-back chairs, a women's dining room, and lessons in domestic science. In 1893, NCR constructed the first "daylight factory" buildings with floor-to-ceiling glass windows that let in light and could be opened to let in fresh air as well.


title: NCR Corporation

text: NCR expanded quickly and became multi-national in 1888. Between 1893 and 1906 it acquired a number of smaller cash register companies.


title: NCR Corporation

text: By 1911 it had sold one million machines and grown to almost 6,000 employees. Combined with rigorous legal attacks, Patterson's methods enabled the company to fight off bankruptcy, buy-out over 80 of its early competitors, and achieve control of 95% of the U.S. market.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In 1912 the company was found guilty of violating the Sherman Antitrust Act. Patterson, Deeds, Watson and 25 other NCR executives and managers were convicted of illegal anti-competitive sales practices and were sentenced to one year of imprisonment. Their convictions were unpopular with the public due to the efforts of Patterson and Watson to help those affected by the Dayton, Ohio, floods of 1913, but efforts to have them pardoned by President Woodrow Wilson were unsuccessful. However, their convictions were overturned on appeal in 1915 on the grounds that important defense evidence should have been admitted.


title: NCR Corporation

text: Two million units were sold by 1922, the year John Patterson died. In 1925, NCR went public with an issue of $55 million in stock, at that time the largest public offering in United States history. During the first World War, NCR manufactured fuses and aircraft instrumentation, and during World War II built aero-engines, bomb sights and code-breaking machines, including the American bombe designed by Joseph Desch.


title: NCR Corporation

text: The US Navy Bombe was built by NCR for the United States Naval Computing Machine Laboratory to decrypt the Enigma machine that encrypted German military messages.


title: NCR Corporation

text: The NCR-made American bombes (decryption machines) were faster, and soon more available, than the British bombes at Bletchley Park and its outstations.


title: NCR Corporation

text: The American bombe was essentially the same as the English bombe, though it functioned better as they were not handicapped by having to make it, as Keen was forced to do owing to production difficulties, on the framework of a 3 wheel machine. By late autumn 1943 new American machines were coming into action at the rate of about 2 a week, the ultimate total being in the region of 125.


title: NCR Corporation

text: Building on its wartime experience with secret communication systems, high speed counters and cryptanalytic equipment, NCR became a major post-war force in developing new computing and communications technology.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In 1953 chemists Barrett K. Green and Lowell Schleicher of NCR in Dayton submitted a patent "Pressure responsive record materials" for a carbon-less copy paper. This became US Patent 2,730,457 and was commercialized as "NCR Paper."


title: NCR Corporation

text: In February 1953, the company acquired the Computer Research Corporation (CRC), after which it created a specialized electronics division. In 1956, NCR introduced its first electronic device, the Class 29 Post-Tronic, a bank machine using magnetic stripe technology. With the General Electric Company (now known as GE ), the company manufactured its first transistor-based computer in 1957, the NCR 304. Also in the 1950s NCR introduced MICR (magnetic ink character recognition) and the NCR 3100 accounting machines.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In 1962, NCR introduced the NCR-315 Electronic Data Processing System which included the CRAM storage device, the first automated mass storage alternative to magnetic tape libraries accessed manually by computer operators. The NCR 390 and 500 computers were also offered to customers who did not need the full power of the 315. The NCR 390 accepted four types of input: magnetic ledger cards, punched cards, punched tape, and keyboard entry, with a tape read speed of 400 characters a second.


title: NCR Corporation

text: The company's first all-integrated circuit computer was the Century 100 of 1968. The Century 200 was added in 1970. The line was extended through the Century 300 in 1973. The Century series was followed by the Criterion series in 1976, NCR's first virtual machine system.


title: NCR Corporation

text: During this period, NCR also produced the 605 minicomputer for in-house use. It was the compute engine for the 399 and 499 accounting machines, several generations of in-store and in-bank controllers, and the 82xx/90xx IMOS COBOL systems. The 605 also powered peripheral controllers, including the 658 disk subsystem and the 721 communications processor.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In 1974, scanners and computers developed by NCR marked the first occasion where items with the Universal Product Code (UPC) was scanned at the checkout of a supermarket, Troy's Marsh Supermarket in Troy, Ohio, a few miles away from NCR's Dayton Headquarters. It was treated as a ceremonial occasion and involved a little bit of ritual. The night before, a team of Marsh's supermarket staff had moved in to put bar codes on hundreds of items in the store while NCR installed their scanners and computers.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In 1982, NCR's Peripheral Products Division in Wichita, Kansas, together with peripheral manufacturer, Shugart Associates, helped propel the computer industry into a new era of intelligent standardized peripheral communications with the development the Small Computer System Interface (SCSI). The SCSI standard enabled such diverse devices as disks, tapes, printers, and scanners to share a common interface to one or more computer systems in a way that was never before possible and a model for subsequent interfaces to follow. NCR developed the world's first SCSI interface chip, the NCR 5380, based on the SCSI interface standard collaboratively developed.


title: NCR Corporation

text: By 1986, the number of American mainframe makers had dropped from 8 (IBM and the "seven dwarfs") to 6 (IBM and the "BUNCH") and then to 4: IBM, Unisys, NCR, and Control Data Corporation.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In 1982, NCR became involved in open systems architecture. Its first such system was the UNIX-powered TOWER 16/32, the success of which (approximately 100,000 were sold) established NCR as a pioneer in bringing industry standards and open systems architecture to the computer market. These 5000-series systems were based on Motorola 68k CPUs and supported NCR's proprietary transaction processing system TMX, which was mainly used by financial institutions. This product line also saw the first time NCR had offered its products through other than its own direct sales channels since the early 1900s. Formally added to its company structure in March 1981, NCR's OEM System's Division spearheaded the design, sales revenue and market awareness and acceptance of NCR's Tower family. Part of the cause of this success was the decision by NCR senior management to hire reseller industry veterans for key positions within the fledgling operation and have that unit work with, but not answerable to, NCR's traditional management structure. The industry shift from proprietary minicomputers brought personnel with minicomputer and reseller backgrounds such as division heads Roger Nielsen (ex-Data General), Robert Hahn (ex-Data General), and Dan Kiegler (ex-Datapoint marketing), marketing manager and later Director of Field Sales, Dave Lang (ex-DEC reseller marketing director and salesperson) and other critical contributors at corporate levels; who then hired a complementary field sales organization primarily made up of proven people from DEC, Wang and other faltering minicomputer firms.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In the 1980s, NCR sold various PC compatible AT-class computers, like the small NCR-3390 (called an "intelligent terminal"). They proposed a customized version of MS-DOS named NCR-DOS, which for example offered support for switching the CPU between 6, 8 or 10 MHz speeds. The computers featured an improved CGA adapter, the NGA, which had a 640×400 text mode more suitable for business uses than the original 640×200 mode, with characters drawn using single-pixel-wide lines, giving an appearance similar to that of classic IBM 3270 terminals. The additional four-color 640×400 graphical mode was identical to CGA's 320×200 mode from a programming point of view.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In 1990, NCR introduced the System 3000, a seven-level family of computers based on Intel's 386 and 486 CPUs. The majority of the System 3000 range utilised IBM's Micro Channel architecture rather than the more prevalent ISA architecture, and utilised SCSI peripherals as well as the more popular parallel and serial port interfaces, resulting in a premium product with premium pricing. The 3600, through NCR subsidiary Applied Digital Data Systems supported both the Pick Operating System and Prime Information.


title: NCR Corporation

text: The 1970s saw the widespread installations of the Model 770 in National Westminster and Barclays banks throughout the UK, but it was not until the Model 5070, developed at its Dundee plant in Scotland and introduced in 1983 that the company began to make more serious inroads into the ATM market. Subsequent models included the 5084, and 58xx (Personas) series. In early 2008, the company launched its new generation of ATMs—the 662x/663x SelfServ series. NCR currently commands over a third of the entire ATM market, with an estimated $18 trillion being withdrawn from NCR ATMs every year. In addition, NCR's expertise in this field led the company to contract with the U.S. Military to support the Eagle Cash program with customized ATMs.


title: NCR Corporation

text: The NCR 5xxx-series is the range of (ATMs) produced by NCR from the early 1980s. Most models were designed and initially manufactured at its Dundee factory in Scotland, but later produced at several other locations around the world.


title: NCR Corporation

text: NCR's 6th generation of ATMs have been noted for the further move towards intelligent deposit and the expansion of secondary functions such as barcode reading.


title: NCR Corporation

text: This series is a complete redesign of both outlook and technological contents. It is also a cost down product.


title: NCR Corporation

text: Self-Serv 20 series are single-function (e.g. cash-out) ATMs, while Self-Serv 30 series are full-function (cash-out and intelligent deposit) machines.


title: NCR Corporation

text: Teradata partnered with NCR in 1990 and was purchased by NCR in 1991. Mark Hurd took over the company's Teradata division in 1999 and is credited with expanding NCR's Teradata business. Hurd streamlined operations and invested in research. The Teradata division at NCR became profitable in 2002.


title: NCR Corporation

text: NCR was acquired September 19, 1991 by AT&T Corporation for $7.4 billion and was joined with Teradata Corporation on February 28, 1992. As an AT&T subsidiary, its 1992 year-end headcount was 53,800 employees and contractors. By 1993, the subsidiary produced a year-end $1.287 billion net loss on $7.265 billion in revenue. The net losses continued in 1994 and 1995, losses that required repeated subsidies from the parent company and resulted in a 1995 year-end headcount of 41,100. During these three years, AT&T was the former NCR's largest customer, accounting for over $1.5 billion in revenue.


title: NCR Corporation

text: On February 15, 1995, the company sold its microelectronics division and storage systems division to Hyundai which named it Symbios Logic. At the time it was the largest purchase of an American company by a Korean company.


title: NCR Corporation

text: For a while, starting in 1994, the subsidiary was renamed AT&T Global Information Solutions, but in 1995, AT&T decided to spin off the company, and in 1996, changed its name back to NCR in preparation for the spin-off. The company outlined its reasons for the spin-off in an Information Statement sent to its stockholders, which cited, in addition to "changes in customer needs" and "need for focused management time and attention", the following:


title: NCR Corporation

text: One of NCR's first significant acquisitions after becoming independent from AT&T came in July 1997, when it purchased Compris Technologies, a privately held company in Kennesaw, Georgia that produced software for restaurant chains. In November 1997, NCR purchased Dataworks Inc., a 60-person privately held company in San Antonio, Texas.


title: NCR Corporation

text: The Montgomery County Historical Society and NCR Corporation joined in 1998 into a partnership committed to preserving the historic and voluminous NCR Archive. In 1999, NCR moved an estimated three million items from NCR's Building 28 into the Historical Society's Research Center.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In 1998, NCR sold its computer hardware manufacturing assets to Solectron and ceased to produce general-purpose computer systems, focusing instead on the retail and financial industries. In 2000, NCR acquired customer relationship management provider Ceres Integrated Solutions and services company 4Front Technologies. Recent acquisitions include self-service companies Kinetics, InfoAmerica and Galvanon, and software company DecisionPoint.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In April 2003, NCR purchased Copient Technologies, an Indiana-based retail marketing software company.


title: NCR Corporation

text: CEO Lars Nyberg announced his resignation from the company in February 2003 in order to address family matters. NCR promoted Mark Hurd to replace Nyberg as CEO in March 2003. Early on in his new role, Hurd made changes in order to cut costs, including layoffs and converting an executive parking lot into an ATM training center. Within his first year as CEO, the company's stock doubled and NCR became a market leader in ultra high-end data-warehousing software.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In 2006, NCR acquired software company IDVelocity and the ATM manufacturing division of Tidel, a cash security equipment manufacturer specializing in retail markets.


title: NCR Corporation

text: On January 8, 2007, NCR announced its intention to separate into two independent companies by spinning off Teradata to shareholders. Bill Nuti would continue his role as president and CEO of NCR, while Teradata Senior VP Mike Koehler would assume leadership of Teradata. On October 1, 2007, NCR Corporation and Teradata jointly announced the Teradata business unit spin-off was complete, with Michael Koehler as the first CEO of Teradata.


title: NCR Corporation

text: On January 11, 2007, NCR announced plans to restructure its entire ATM manufacturing operations, with 650 jobs at its Dundee plant being cut. A further 450 jobs were cut in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. In 2009, the Dundee manufacturing facility was closed, along with plants in São Paulo and Bucharest, citing global economic conditions.


title: NCR Corporation

text: NCR extended its self-service portfolio into the digital media market with the January 2007 announcement of NCR Xpress Entertainment, a multichannel entertainment kiosk. NCR's acquisition of Touch Automation LLC was announced on December 31, 2007.


title: NCR Corporation

text: On October 15, 2008, NCR announced a global reseller partnership with Experticity, a Seattle based software company.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In 2009, NCR relocated its corporate headquarters from Dayton, Ohio to near Duluth, Georgia; Dayton had served as NCR's home for 125 years.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In 2009, NCR became the second largest DVD Kiosk operator in North America with the acquisitions of The New Release and DVD Play. In 2010, NCR completed the acquisition of digital signage company, Netkey.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In August 2011, NCR purchased Radiant Systems, a hospitality and retail systems company, for US$1.2 billion. Radiant's hospitality division turned into a new Hospitality Line of Business within NCR. Radiant's petroleum and convenience retail business became part of its retail line of business. Several Radiant executives remained on board, including Scott Kingsfield, who was a general manager of NCR's Retail Line of Business and left NCR in 2014, and Andy Heyman, who became general manager of NCR's Financial Services line of business.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In August 2012, the company was hit with charges of avoiding U.S. economic sanctions against Syria, greatly affecting its stock price.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In February 2013, NCR completed its acquisition of Retalix (NASDAQ: RTLX), a provider of retail software and services, for approximately $650 million in cash.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In January 2014, NCR completed its acquisition of Digital Insight Corporation, a provider of online and mobile banking to mid-market financial institutions, from equity firm Thoma Bravo, LLC for $1.65 billion in cash.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In September 2016, Mark Benjamin was named president and chief operating officer of NCR. Benjamin is a 24-year veteran of human resources management and will report directly to Bill Nuti.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In January 2018, NCR relocated its corporate headquarters from near Duluth, Georgia to a new office in Midtown Atlanta. NCR's mailing address is 864 Spring St NW, Atlanta, GA 30308.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In April 2018, Mike Hayford was named CEO. He leads the company's strategic shift from hardware provider to software- and services-led enterprise technology provider.


title: NCR Corporation

text: In January 2021, NCR reached an agreement to acquire ATM operator Cardtronics in a deal valued at $2.5 billion.


title: NCR Corporation

text: On September 16 2022, NCR announced it will split its Digital Commerce and ATM businesses in two separate companies. The split is targeted for the end of 2023.


title: NCR Corporation

text: NCR's R&D activity is split between its three major centers in Atlanta (retail); Dundee, Scotland (financial industry); and Waterloo, Ontario. It also has R&D centers in Beijing; Cebu, Philippines; Belgrade, Serbia; Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Puducherry Chengalpattu and Hyderabad, India. NCR also has manufacturing facilities in Beijing, Budapest, and the Indian territory of Puducherry and Chengalpattu which is a regional manufacturing and export hub.


title: NCR Corporation

text: NCR's Self-Service subsidiary develops self-service software and hardware travel technology. Solutions for hardware include the TouchPort II C for airline check-in and ResortPort for hospitality self-service. Common Use Self-Service technology simplifies the check-in process by allowing passengers one common point of access for check-in. NCR Self-Service, LLC, was founded as Kinetics in Lake Mary, Florida. NCR acquired the company in 2004.


title: Coyote Shivers

text: Shivers co-produced the first single for the band Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet. The B-side to that single, "Having an Average Weekend," became the theme to the television show "The Kids in the Hall". He also co-produced the band's first two albums.


title: Coyote Shivers

text: He also played guitar in the instrumental rock band Sharkskin. After a series of moves, he ended up in New York City, where he joined The Dave Rave Conspiracy, playing guitar for them. During this time, he appeared in the movies "Empire Records" and "Johnny Mnemonic". He also made cameo appearances in "Smut" and "Dirty Love". He continued playing music, eventually gathering a back-up band to create and record his first solo album on Mutiny Records, the self-titled "Coyote Shivers" with the assistance of Billy Ficca (Richard Hell, Television) and Jack Pedler on drums.


title: Coyote Shivers

text: Shivers has released several limited edition CD singles and the five-song CD "1/2 A Rock & Roll Record". He also appeared in the movies "Down And Out With The Dolls" directed by Kurt Voss, and "Girl In 3D" directed by Luis Aira. He also made a string of cameo appearances in films playing "himself" and released the double CD "Coyote Shivers Gives It To Ya. Twice."


title: Coyote Shivers

text: Shivers was married to model and singer Bebe Buell from 1992 to 1999. In 2000, he married actress Pauley Perrette. Perrette and Shivers separated in 2004 and obtained a divorce in 2006. Buell, Perrette, and ex-girlfriend Angela Garber all allege that Shivers has a pattern of physical, sexual and psychological abuse, stalking, and legal harassment. In 2008, the Los Angeles County Superior Court declared Shivers a vexatious litigant, thus barring him from filing any court actions without review by a judge who will ensure that the court action has legal merit and is not intended to harass or intimidate.


title: Coyote Shivers

text: In March 2010, Shivers married Brazilian author and journalist Mayra Dias Gomes in a private ceremony in Las Vegas. They divorced in 2018.


title: Coyote Shivers

text: On January 11, 2021, Shivers was censured by the Hollywood United Neighborhood Council "for his violation of the code of conduct that Neighborhood Council Board Members should treat other Board Members and members of the public with respect regardless of the other’s political affiliation."


title: Lubyanka Building

text: The Lubyanka () is the popular name for the building which contains the headquarters of the FSB, and its affiliated prison, on Lubyanka Square in the Meshchansky District of Moscow, Russia. It is a large Neo-Baroque building with a facade of yellow brick designed by Alexander V. Ivanov in 1897 and augmented by Aleksey Shchusev from 1940 to 1947. It was previously the national headquarters of the KGB. Soviet hammer and sickles can be seen on the building's facade.