title: Eugen Sandow

text: Sandow was acclaimed on his 1905 visit to India, at which time he was already a "cultural hero" in the country at a time of strong nationalistic feeling. The scholar [[Joseph Alter]] suggests that Sandow was the person who had the most influence on modern [[yoga as exercise]], which absorbed a variety of exercise routines from [[physical culture]] in the early 20th century.


title: Eugen Sandow

text: Sandow died at his home in [[Kensington]], London, on 14 October 1925 of what newspapers announced as a [[brain hemorrhage]] at age 58. It was allegedly brought on after straining himself, without assistance, to lift his car out of a ditch after a road accident two or three years earlier. However, without an [[autopsy]], his death was certified as due to [[aortic aneurysm]].


title: Eugen Sandow

text: Sandow was buried in an unmarked grave in [[Putney Vale Cemetery]] at the request of his wife, Blanche. It is rumoured that he was unfaithful to his wife later in marriage, and she refused to mark his grave, however the cause of this strife will always remain a mystery, as she refused to talk about what occurred between the two of them. In 2002, a gravestone and black marble plaque was added by Sandow admirer and author Thomas Manly. The inscription (in gold letters) read "Eugen Sandow, 1867–1925, the Father of Bodybuilding". In 2008, the grave was purchased by Chris Davies, Sandow's great-grandson. Manly's items were replaced for the anniversary of Sandow's birth that year and a new monument, a one-and-a-half-ton natural pink sandstone monolith, was put in its place. The stone, simply inscribed "SANDOW 1867–1925", is a reference to the ancient Greek funerary monuments called [[stele]]s.


title: Eugen Sandow

text: Sandow was befriended by [[George V of the United Kingdom|King George V]], [[Thomas Edison]], [[Arthur Conan Doyle|Sir Arthur Conan Doyle]] and classical pianist [[Martinus Sieveking]]. He was portrayed by the actor [[Nat Pendleton]] in the Academy Award-winning [[film]] "[[The Great Ziegfeld]]" (1936).


title: Eugen Sandow

text: ""Physical [sic] Strength and How to Obtain It" by Eugen Sandow” appears as one of the books in the catalog of the personal bookshelves of [[Leopold Bloom]] in Chapter 17 ("Ithaca," line 1397) of [[James Joyce]]'s 1922 novel "[[Ulysses (novel)|Ulysses]]".


title: Eugen Sandow

text: As recognition of his contribution to the sport of bodybuilding, a bronze statue of Sandow sculpted by [[Frederick Pomeroy]] has been presented to the winner of the [[Mr. Olympia]] contest, a major professional bodybuilding competition sponsored by the [[International Federation of BodyBuilding & Fitness|International Federation of Bodybuilders]], since 1977. This statue is simply known as "The Sandow".


title: Eugen Sandow

text: In 2013, Eugen Sandow was portrayed by the Canadian bodybuilder Dave Simard in the film "[[Louis Cyr (film)|Louis Cyr]]". In 2018, a film was made on Sandow's life, entitled "Sandow".


title: Eugen Sandow

text: [[English Heritage]] put up a [[blue plaque]] on his house at 161 Holland Park Avenue in west London in 2009; it describes him as a "Body-Builder and Promoter of Physical Culture".


title: Eugen Sandow

text: Sandow (or a character modeled and named after him) appears in the eleventh episode of Season 3 of "[[The Venture Bros.]]", in which he is voiced by [[Paul Boocock]] and appears alongside other contemporary entertainers.


title: Ronaldo

text: Ronaldo is a Portuguese given name equivalent to the English Ronald. It became a common name in all Portuguese-speaking countries, being also prevalent in Italy and Spanish-speaking countries.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: Café Society is a 2016 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Woody Allen. It stars Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Steve Carell, Jeannie Berlin, Blake Lively, Parker Posey, Corey Stoll, and Ken Stott. The plot follows a young man who moves to Hollywood in the 1930s, where he falls in love with the assistant to his uncle, a powerful talent agent.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: The film had its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival on May 11, 2016, and was theatrically released in the United States on July 15, 2016, by Amazon Studios and Lionsgate. It received generally positive reviews and grossed $43 million. It received nomination at the Golden Eagle Award in 2017 for Best Foreign Language Film.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: Bobby Dorfman is the youngest son of a Jewish family in New York City in the 1930s. His elder sister Evelyn is a married school teacher, while his elder brother Ben is a gangster. Discontented with working for his father, a jeweler, Bobby decides to move to Hollywood, where he takes a job running menial errands for his uncle Phil, a powerhouse talent agent.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: Phil introduces Bobby to his secretary Veronica, nicknamed Vonnie, who is tasked with helping Bobby settle into Hollywood. Bobby is drawn to her unpretentiousness as opposed to most young women living in Hollywood, and falls deeply in love with her. She rebuffs his advances, telling him she has a journalist boyfriend named Doug. In reality, "Doug" is Phil, with whom Vonnie is carrying on an illicit romance; he promises to divorce his wife and marry her.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: On the first-year "paper anniversary" of their affair, Vonnie gives Phil a letter written and signed by Rudolph Valentino as a gift. However, Phil proceeds to tell her that he is incapable of divorcing his wife, so he ends the affair. Vonnie subsequently surrenders to Bobby's love for her and their friendship turns into a romance.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: A forlorn Phil confides in Bobby about his affair—without naming his mistress—before telling him he has determined to divorce his wife. Bobby passingly mentions his relationship with Vonnie and his intention to marry her and return to New York. Phil begins petitioning Vonnie privately to leave Bobby and marry him instead.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: While having a conversation with Phil in his office, Bobby notices the Valentino letter. Recognizing it from Vonnie's account about her breakup with "Doug", he confronts her and asks her to choose between himself and Phil. Vonnie chooses Phil.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: A heartbroken Bobby returns to New York City where he begins to run a high-end nightclub with his gangster brother, Ben. It soon becomes a famous hangout for the rich and powerful, from politicians to gangsters. Bobby meets divorcée Veronica Hayes at the nightclub, and they begin dating, soon getting married and starting a family together.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: On an extended visit to New York, a happily married Phil and Vonnie stop at the nightclub and insist on seeing Bobby. Vonnie has become a pretentious name-dropper and Bobby is at first repulsed by her. However, he agrees to show her around New York—as she had once done for him in Hollywood. They spend an evening without Phil, visiting Bobby's favorite haunts and, as dawn breaks over Central Park, share a kiss; but it's clear that it can go no further.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: Bobby's sister Evelyn asks their brother, Ben, to "talk to" her disagreeable neighbor; Ben promptly kills him. He is arrested and convicted for murder and racketeering. Shortly before he goes to the electric chair, he converts to Christianity, mortifying his parents. His late brother's notoriety propels the nightclub to new heights, and Bobby travels to Los Angeles to contemplate opening a Hollywood version. He ultimately decides against it, but, before he leaves, he and Vonnie have lunch together, where she mentions that she and Phil will be returning to New York for a short visit. However, they both decide that it is better if they don't see each other.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: Months later, on New Year's Eve, Bobby and Vonnie are apart—Bobby in New York City hosting festivities in his nightclub, and Vonnie with her husband at a Hollywood house party. As the new year is rung in, they both seem distant to their spouses, and both have a faraway look in their eyes.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: By March 9, 2015, Jesse Eisenberg, Bruce Willis and Kristen Stewart were added to the cast of the Woody Allen film, which was produced by Letty Aronson, Stephen Tenenbaum and Edward Walson. On May 6, 2015, Blake Lively was cast, followed by Parker Posey in mid-July. By August 4, 2015, more cast was added, including Jeannie Berlin, Corey Stoll and Ken Stott, along with Anna Camp, Stephen Kunken, Sari Lennick and Paul Schneider. In August, Tony Sirico was cast and Max Adler had also joined the cast. Vittorio Storaro is the cinematographer.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: On August 24, 2015, it was reported that Willis had exited the film due to his scheduling conflicts with the Broadway stage adaptation of the Stephen King novel "Misery". On August 28, 2015, Steve Carell was cast to replace Willis. In March 2016, the title was confirmed as "Café Society".


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: Principal photography on the film began on August 17, 2015, in and around Los Angeles. On September 8, 2015, filming moved to New York City, where it was shot in Brooklyn. Allen moved to digital for the first time, using a Sony CineAlta F65 camera for this, his 47th film.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: The film began with a budget of $18 million; however it went over budget, and by the end of production, its budget reached $30 million, making it one of the most expensive films of Allen's career.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: In February 2016, Amazon Studios acquired distribution rights to the film. In March 2016, the film was selected to open the 2016 Cannes Film Festival. The film also opened the Seattle International Film Festival, on May 19, 2016, and served as the closing night film of the Karlovy Vary Film Festival. It was announced that Lionsgate would team up with Amazon to release the film on August 12, 2016. It was then moved up to July 15, 2016, in a limited release, before the wide expansion will starting July 29 and the widely release on August 5.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: "Café Society" grossed $11.1 million in the United States and Canada and $32.7 million in other countries, for a worldwide total of $43.8 million.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: The film was released in five theaters on July 15, 2016, and grossed $359,289 in its opening weekend, an average per-theater gross of $71,858, the biggest average of 2016 to that point (its record was broken the following week by "Don't Think Twice"s $92,835 average). The film had its wide release on July 29 and grossed $2.3 million, finishing 12th at the box office.


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 71% based on 251 reviews, with an average rating of 6.13/10. The site's critical consensus reads, ""Café Society"s lovely visuals and charming performances round out a lightweight late-period Allen comedy whose genuine pleasures offset its amiable predictability." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 64 out of 100, based on 37 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: Writing for "New York", David Edelstein gave the film a positive review, stating: ""Cafe Society" is a surprisingly graceful work. It's a young man's tale of woe rendered with an old man's aversion to dawdling over what can't be helped, over questions of human nature that have long been settled to everyone's dissatisfaction. The worldview is weary, and Allen narrates in a voice that, for the first time, suggests his 80 years of age. But his touch lightens with each film, and the melancholy bubbles up from below and catches you off guard." Owen Gleiberman of "Variety" gave the film a mixed review, writing, ""Café Society" leaves you dreaming of the movie it might have been had Woody Allen made it by doing what he's done in his best work: nudging himself out of his comfort zone."


title: Café Society (2016 film)

text: Wendy Ide of "The Guardian" gave the film three stars out of five, commenting, "From the reassuring chug of Woody Allen’s trademark trad jazz score to Jesse Eisenberg’s disconcertingly accurate channelling of the director’s jittery introspection, this handsome, nostalgia-sodden romance feels rather familiar. But just when you are about to dismiss the picture as pure cappuccino froth, the bittersweet bite kicks in. It’s not in the same league as Allen’s finest work, but nor is it a honking misfire like "Magic in the Moonlight"." Todd McCarthy of "The Hollywood Reporter" added, "Layered with a rich soundtrack of romantic tunes from the period, this is a familiar tale of love yearned for, gained, lost and savored after the fact. In other words, it’s a format Allen has relied upon many times before, but even past the age of 80, the still-fertile writer-director, amazingly sticking to his one-film-per-year rhythm (not to mention his upcoming TV series, also with Amazon), has created a small fiction of amiable appeal and vibrancy which goes down as easily as a fizzy cocktail."


title: Tokay gecko

text: The tokay gecko (Gekko gecko) is a nocturnal arboreal gecko in the genus "Gekko", the true geckos. It is native to Asia and some Pacific Islands.


title: Tokay gecko

text: This species is found in northeast India, Bhutan, Nepal, and Bangladesh; throughout Southeast Asia, including Thailand, the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia; and toward western New Guinea. Its native habitat is rainforest, where it lives on trees and cliffs, and it frequently adapts to rural human habitations, roaming walls and ceilings at night in search of insect prey. This is an introduced species in some areas outside its native range. It is established in Florida in the United States, Martinique, the islands of Belize, and possibly Hawaii. Increasing urbanization is reducing its range.


title: Tokay gecko

text: It is currently unclear whether the species is native but very uncommon in Taiwan or whether the rare reports of individuals since the 1920s are based on repeated anthropogenic translocations that may or may not have resulted in established populations by now.


title: Tokay gecko

text: The tokay gecko is a large nocturnal gecko, reaching a total length (including tail) of on average, but some grow as large as long. It is believed to be the third largest species of gecko, after the giant leaf-tail gecko ("Uroplatus giganteus") and New Caledonian giant gecko ("Rhacodactylus leachianus"). It is cylindrical but somewhat flattened in body shape. The eyes have vertical pupils. The skin is soft to the touch and is generally blue-gray with red or orange spots and speckles, but the animal can change the color of its skin to blend into the environment. The species is sexually dimorphic, the males being more brightly colored and slightly larger.


title: Tokay gecko

text: Tokay geckos are generally aggressive, territorial, and can inflict a strong bite. Females lay clutches of one or two hard-shelled eggs and guard them until they hatch. The tokay gecko feeds on insects and small vertebrates. In a study conducted in Thailand, researchers noticed that there was little variation in the diets males, females, and juveniles, which was likely due to low insect availability in this area. It is a strong climber with foot pads that can support the entire weight of the body on a vertical surface for a long period of time. Compared to other gecko species, the tokay gecko has a robust build, with a tail, a large head and muscular jaws. Though common in the pet trade, the strong bite of the tokay gecko makes it ill-suited for inexperienced keepers. In addition, the strength of the bite depending on the gecko's size; larger (usually male) tokay geckos are capable of piercing skin, which often results in immediate bleeding.


title: Tokay gecko

text: The male's mating call, a loud croak, is variously described as sounding like "token", "gekk-gekk", "tuck-too" or "tou-kay" from which both the common and the scientific name (deriving from onomatopoeic names in Malay, Sundanese, Tagalog, Thai, or Javanese), as well as the family name "Gekkonidae" and the generic term "gecko" come from. Most of the time, the call is often preceded by a quick "cackling", similar to the chirping sounds made by house geckos albeit much lower in pitch. When threatened or alarmed, tokay geckos usually "bark" while opening their mouth in a defensive posture.


title: Tokay gecko

text: The tokay gecko's call is also responsible for the name given to it by Filipino residents: "Tuko," and by U.S. soldiers during the Vietnam War, the "Fuck-you lizard".


title: Tokay gecko

text: Light and temperature can affect its vocalizations. The most frequent calling occurs in May at dusk, and the second peak of call frequency occurs in May at dawn. Vocalizations and associated behavior were strongly affected by ambient temperature in both the lab and field and could thus play a role in regulating animal energetic metabolism


title: Tokay gecko

text: The tokay gecko is culturally significant in many East Asian countries. Regional folklore has attributed supernatural powers to the gecko. In Southeast Asia it is a symbol of good luck and fertility. It is believed to be descended from dragons.


title: Tokay gecko

text: This species is poached for the medicinal trades in parts of Asia. The tokay gecko is an ingredient in traditional Chinese medicine, known as "Ge Jie" (蛤蚧). It is believed to nourish the kidneys and lungs, beliefs that are not substantiated by medical science. The animal remains highly sought after in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore and other parts of Asia with Chinese communities, to the point where unscrupulous merchants have taken to disfiguring monitor lizards with prosthetics to pass them off as colossal tokay gecko specimens.


title: Tokay gecko

text: From 2009 to 2011, the poaching of tokay geckos intensified because of a short-lived belief that they were an effective HIV cure.


title: Tokay gecko

text: The tokay gecko is quickly becoming a threatened species in the Philippines because of indiscriminate hunting. Collecting, transporting and trading in geckos without a license can be punishable by up to 12 years in jail and a fine of up to ₱1 million under Republic Act 9147, in addition to other applicable international laws. However, the trade runs unchecked because of the sheer number of illegal traders and reports of lucrative deals. Chinese buyers and other foreign nationals are rumored to pay thousands of dollars for large specimens, because of their alleged medicinal value or as commodities in the illegal wildlife trade.


title: Tokay gecko

text: The species is protected under Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) meaning international trade (including in parts and derivatives) is subject to the CITES permitting system.


title: Tokay gecko

text: Tokay geckos are becoming more popular as pets because of their striking colors and large size. Most of them are wild-caught imports, but captive-bred ones are becoming more common. Wild-caught adults can be difficult to keep because of their aggressive nature and powerful bite, but captive-bred juveniles can be less aggressive if handled from a young age.


title: Rakta Charitra

text: Rakta Charitra () is a 2010 Indian political action thriller film based on the life of Paritala Ravindra. The film was directed by Ram Gopal Varma and written by Prashant Pandey. Shot simultaneously in Telugu and Hindi with the latter titled "Rakht Charitra", the film stars Vivek Oberoi as Pratap Ravi, while Radhika Apte, Sudeep, Shatrughan Sinha, Abhimanyu Singh, Kota Srinivasa Rao and Sushant Singh play supporting roles. The film marks Oberoi's acting debut in Telugu cinema. A sequel to the film, "Rakta Charitra 2" (2010) was released later that year.


title: Rakta Charitra

text: Narasimha Reddy, a local politician, is a powerful man in the area. His close associate Veera Bhadra (Rajendra Gupta), is his trustworthy ally for his political work, to the extent that Narasimha Reddy gives him the freedom to contest Jilla Parishad polls with his men. Veera Bhadra champions the causes of the poor and oppressed, and they look up to him like their leader.


title: Rakta Charitra

text: Nagamuni Reddy (Kota Srinivasa Rao), who is the local MLA of the district and close to Narasimha Reddy, becomes jealous of the budding trust between Veera Bhadra and Narasimha Reddy, and starts poisoning Narasimha Reddy against Veera Bhadra. Narasimha summons Veera Bhadra and asks him not to contest the polls with his contestants, but rather support Nagamuni Reddy's. Veera Bhadra lashes out at Narasimha Reddy for being unfair to the underprivileged communities and storms out. Nagamuni Reddy calls for Manda (Ashish Vidyarthi), a close follower of Veerabhadra, and manipulates him into killing Veerabhadra, giving him the assurance that if he does it, people will suspect the policies of Veera Bhadra as his own follower killed him and he will be the next in line as the leader of the poor people, else take his life. Manda reluctantly agrees to it. Veerabhadra and his wife (Zarina Wahab) travel in a bus with 40 people to a wedding. Manda and Nagamani's men stop the bus, kill Veerabhadra's guards, and tell him to step out of the bus or else he will be killed along with the other innocents on the bus. Veera Bhadra comes out, looking at Manda, and dares him to kill. Nagamani's henchman Durga shoots at Veerabhadra, making it look like Manda shot at him; prompting Manda about the deal he made with Nagamani, he tells him to kill him in front of everyone. Manda takes a boulder and crushes Veerabhadra's skull, and kills him.


title: Rakta Charitra

text: This results in an agitation led by Shankar, who wants to avenge his father's murder by killing all the men of Nagamani and Narasimha Reddy. Enter Nagamuni's son Bukka Reddy (Abhimanyu Singh), described as a ruthless man who enjoys raping women and killing men in brutal ways. He starts killing Shankar's men in gory ways: drilling a hole into their skull, chopping off their heads with a sugarcane chopper, burning them alive and feeding them to ravenous rats.


title: Rakta Charitra

text: Pratap Ravi (Vivek Oberoi), who is in college in the city of Anantapur, gets the news of his father's murder and rushes to the village. Nagamani Reddy orders the local police inspector to kill Shankar in a fake encounter. When Pratap Ravi goes to the police station to ask about his brother, the inspector shows him Shankar's dead body and mocks him. Infuriated with his brother's murder, Pratap Ravi and Veerabhadra's men kill all the police officers and the inspector.


title: Rakta Charitra

text: Pratap Ravi hides in the jungle with his father's associates and vows to kill Narsimha Reddy, Nagamuni Reddy and Manda one by one, instilling fear of death in each one of them. He starts by busting into the house of Narasimha Reddy, killing his guards and finally killing him with a scythe in front of his wife as she looks on in horror. Next is Manda; as he roams in the market, Pratap's men follow him, and before he can defend himself, they chop his hand off. Manda begs for his life, but Pratap stabs him in front of everyone. They plan to kill Nagamuni Reddy, but they are cautious as there is heavy police security in his house. As Nagamani Reddy is sitting on his lawn conversing with a police officer, he is shot at by Pratap, who is dressed as the cop, and his men, dressed as cops as well, kill most of the policemen.


title: Rakta Charitra

text: The story progresses as famed film star-turned-politician Shivaji Rao targets Anantapur for contesting elections. The day he enters Anantapur for the rally, Bukka Reddy's men throw bombs, which makes Shivaji Rao get back inside the car and go back. This insults him greatly, and he asks his secretary for the one who can stop Bukka Reddy. Immediately, his secretary mentions Pratap Ravi's name; Shivaji Rao sends for him and puts down a proposal of joining his party and ticket for contesting elections. On the other hand, Bukka Reddy makes his brother Puru Reddy contest for elections and tries to sabotage the voting process by stealing the ballots. Pratap starts his rampage by eliminating, one by one, every rival of his party. Eventually, he comes across a man named Babu Qadri, who seeks Pratap's help in avenging his sister's death. Bukka Reddy had raped his 16-year-old sister, because of which she immolated herself, and Bukka had then broken Babu Qadri's leg. Pratap assures him his vengeance but asks him to forget everything for some time.


title: Rakta Charitra

text: As Bukka Reddy's men fail in rigging the election process, Pratap Ravi wins by a majority. Immediately, Bukka Reddy is arrested. Puru Reddy gets him out on bail through Sirji's influence. Bukka, inflamed with the desire to avenge his father's death, hides out in an apartment with his men, and plots to kill Pratap Ravi. Pratap learns about his hideout devises a plan to execute him. He immediately gathers his men and calls Babu Qadri, who had sought Pratap's help in avenging his sister, to lead the execution of Bukka Reddy. He calls for the servant of Bukka Reddy and bribes him with 500,000 to aid in the execution. Babu Qadri and Pratap's men rush into the apartment, killing all Bukka's men; then killing Bukka Reddy with an axe.


title: Rakta Charitra

text: Vivek Oberoi's performance in the role of Paritala Ravi drew widespread praise, while Abhimanyu Singh's devious turn as Bukka Reddy, modelled on the real-life Obul Reddy, was regarded as one of the most terrifying villainous acts captured on celluloid in a long time. Renuka Rao of DNA India gave the movie 4 stars in a scale of 5, concluding that RGV has surprisingly thrown at the audience a film that could actually evoke some emotions in you. A must, must watch." Taran Adarsh of "Bollywood Hungama" gave the movie 4 stars in a scale of 5, saying that "On the whole, RAKHT CHARITRA is not for the faint-hearted or the lily-livered. The violence, the blood and gore depicted in the film will shock and disconcert you, which only goes to establish as to how proficiently the subject material has been treated." Nikhat Kazmi of Times of India gave the movie 3 stars out of 5, stating that "Rakta Charitra holds up a brutal mirror on the muck that masquerades as democracy in India." Rajeev Masand of CNN-IBN gave the movie 3 out of 5 stars, noting that "Rakta Charitra is a bold, disturbing film that’s bursting with the kind of confidence we haven’t seen from the filmmaker recently. If the sight of blood doesn’t make you uncomfortable, chances are you’ll enjoy this film." Kittu Singh of Rediff gave the movie 2.5 out of 5, writing that "Once the film is over you realise that all Rakta Charitra has been is a two-hour promotional fare for Rakta Charitra 2. Yes, there is more to come." Anupama Chopra of NDTV gave the movie 2.5 stars in a scale of 5 stars. Shubhra Gupta of Indian Express gave the movie 2.5 stars out of 5, and wrote that "It is an interesting story, and Oberoi, re-united with RGV after Company does a good job as Ravi. But the blood overtakes it all: Rakta Charitra is not for the faint-hearted."


title: Rakta Charitra

text: A sequel titled "Rakta Charitra 2" was released in December 2010 and included Tamil actor Suriya as part of the main cast.


title: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (film)

text: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot is a 2016 American biographical war comedy-drama film, directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa and written by Robert Carlock. It is based on the memoir "The Taliban Shuffle: Strange Days in Afghanistan and Pakistan" by Kim Barker. The film stars Tina Fey, Margot Robbie, Martin Freeman, Christopher Abbott, Alfred Molina, and Billy Bob Thornton. It was released on March 4, 2016, by Paramount Pictures. It received mixed reviews from critics who praised the acting, but criticized the predictable screenplay and execution. The movie grossed $24.9 million against its $35 million budget.


title: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (film)

text: In 2003 New York City, Kim Baker (Tina Fey) is a television journalist who is dissatisfied with the state of her career covering low-profile stories. She decides to take a short assignment as a war correspondent in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom, to the disappointment of her boyfriend Chris (Josh Charles), who spends a lot of time traveling. Assigned to low-budget living quarters with other international journalists, she develops a friendship with noted BBC correspondent Tanya Vanderpoel (Margot Robbie) and lecherous Scottish freelance photographer Iain MacKelpie (Martin Freeman). After a period of adjustment, aided by her Afghan "fixer" Fahim Ahmadzai (Christopher Abbott), she begins taking well to the assignment. She elicits frank remarks on camera from soldiers questioning the value of their assignment there and puts herself in harm's way to capture combat incidents on video. American Marine commander General (previously Colonel) Hollanek (Billy Bob Thornton) sees her as an inexperienced nuisance.


title: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (film)

text: Despite the danger, Kim stays in Afghanistan for months, then years, beyond her original assignment. She catches Chris unprepared with a middle-of-the-night video call and finds him with another woman, ending their relationship. Against her better judgment, she begins a sexual relationship with Iain, which over time also develops into a more personal one. Although her status as a woman presents challenges in an Afghan Islamic society which places restrictive roles on women, she also uses it to her advantage. Kim gains access to women in a village who explain that they have been sabotaging the US-built well because they welcome the daily walk to the river away from the men. She also walks a tightrope, taking advantage of the thinly-veiled sexual interest of Afghan Attorney General Ali Massoud Sadiq (Alfred Molina) to use him as a source. Fahim – who treated opium addicts before the war – cautions her, pointing out that danger can be like a drug.


title: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (film)

text: Despite their mutual friendliness, Kim remains in competition with other journalists for stories and resources from their employers back home. After three years in Afghanistan, Kim flies to New York to argue for more support from her network's new boss, only to discover that Tanya is slated to take over from her. Meanwhile, Iain is kidnapped for ransom while traveling cross-country to cover a developing story that he had earlier offered to bring Kim in on. She returns "home" to Afghanistan, where she blackmails her "special friend," Ali, for information about Iain's whereabouts, and impresses upon Hollanek the political value to him of rescuing Iain. The mission – accompanied by Kim's cameraman – is a success, both militarily and journalistically. However, shortly after Iain's rescue Kim becomes disillusioned with both her tentative relationship and her station. She then bids farewell to her colleagues and Fahim and returns to the U.S. to stay.


title: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (film)

text: After returning, she looks up a Marine (Evan Jonigkeit) who was transferred, apparently because of his on-camera comments to her, and subsequently lost both of his legs to an IED. She tries to apologize for the consequences of her actions, but he refuses to let her take the blame. She moves on to an on-camera desk job, where she finds herself interviewing Iain, who is going to be in New York soon as part of a tour for his new book, and who invites her to meet him for coffee.


title: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (film)

text: In February 2014, Tina Fey confirmed that her production company, Little Stranger, would adapt the memoir "" by Kim Barker of the "Chicago Tribune" into a film. Fey would star in the lead role in the film, which would be produced by Lorne Michaels and written by Robert Carlock. On June 30, 2014, Paramount tapped Glenn Ficarra and John Requa to direct the film. On October 22, 2014, Margot Robbie joined the cast to play a competing reporter alongside Fey's character. On November 20, 2014, Martin Freeman was in talks to play Fey's character's unexpected love interest, a dedicated Scottish photojournalist. On January 10, 2015, it was reported that Nikolaj Coster-Waldau was in talks to join the film for a male lead role, although he did not ultimately star in the film. On February 2, 2015, Christopher Abbott joined the film's cast. On February 3, 2015, Nicholas Braun joined the film to play Tall Brian, Fey's character's cameraman, and the film had the working title "Fun House". On February 9, 2015, Steve Peacocke was set to star in the film, playing Nic, Fey's character's alpha male bodyguard. On February 11, 2015, confirmed cast was announced, with Billy Bob Thornton, Alfred Molina, Sheila Vand, and Evan Jonigkeit also joining the cast of the film, in which Vand would play Shakira El-Khoury, a Lebanese reporter who works alongside Kim and Tanya.


title: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (film)

text: Fey confirmed that the film's title would be "Whiskey Tango Foxtrot" in an interview with "USA Today". Kim Barker was changed to a cable news reporter named "Baker".


title: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (film)

text: On February 3, 2015, the "Albuquerque Journal" reported that filming was underway in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Fey was spotted filming in the Santa Fe University of Art and Design. On February 11, 2015, Paramount also confirmed that principal photography had commenced on the film in New Mexico. It was filmed in part at the historic Scottish Rite Temple in Santa Fe. Production on the film concluded on April 10, 2015.


title: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (film)

text: The film was originally titled "The Taliban Shuffle" and "Fun House", before settling on "Whiskey Tango Foxtrot." It was released on March 4, 2016. At the beginning of the rolling credits is a dedication to Fey's father, Donald Henry Fey, who died in 2015.


title: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (film)

text: "Whiskey Tango Foxtrot" grossed $23.1 million in North America and $1.8 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $24.9 million, against a production budget of $35 million.


title: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (film)

text: In the United States and Canada, pre-release tracking suggested the film would gross $10–12 million from 2,374 theaters in its opening weekend, trailing fellow newcomers "Zootopia" ($60–70 million projection) and "London Has Fallen" ($20–23 million projection). The film ended up grossing $7.6 million in its opening weekend, finishing below expectations and 4th at the box office.


title: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (film)

text: On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes the film holds an approval rating of 68% based on 209 reviews, with an average rating of 6.33/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "While "WTF" is far from FUBAR, Tina Fey and Martin Freeman are just barely enough to overcome the picture's glib predictability and limited worldview." Metacritic gives the film a weighted average score of 57 out of 100, based on 44 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale.


title: Toy Soldiers (1991 film)

text: Toy Soldiers is a 1991 American action film directed by Daniel Petrie Jr., with a screenplay by Petrie and David Koepp. It stars Sean Astin, Wil Wheaton, Louis Gossett Jr., Andrew Divoff, Mason Adams and Denholm Elliott.


title: Toy Soldiers (1991 film)

text: The plot revolves around an all-male boarding school overtaken by terrorists. While the authorities remain helpless, a group of rebellious and mischievous students decide to put their resourcefulness to good use.


title: Toy Soldiers (1991 film)

text: In Barranquilla, Colombia, terrorist Luis Cali has taken over the Palace of Justice with a team of mercenaries. He demands the release of his drug kingpin father, Enrique Cali, only to learn that his father has already been extradited to the United States to stand trial. They escape by helicopter, and with the weapons and logistics assistance of Luis's second-in-command, an American named Jack Thorpe, they enter the U.S. through Mexico.


title: Toy Soldiers (1991 film)

text: In the United States, the Regis High School is a prep school for teenage boys with wealthy and influential parents, many of whom have been expelled from other schools. A group of pranksters led by Billy Tepper that includes Billy's best friend Joey Trotta, Hank Giles, Ricardo Montoya, Jonathan Bradberry, and Phil Donoghue are carefully watched over by their teachers and the stern but well-meaning Dean Parker. Phil's father is the Federal Judge presiding over Enrique Cali's trial, so the entire family is taken to a safe location as a precaution. Unaware of this, Luis Cali and his men invade the school to capture Donoghue, killing a campus police officer and a faculty member who intervenes. They set up lookout posts with heavy firearms and rig the campus with C-3 explosives. With Phil nowhere to be found but with the sons of numerous influential individuals in his grasp, Luis takes the entire school hostage.


title: Toy Soldiers (1991 film)

text: Underestimating the threat, the local Sheriff attempts to intervene but is repelled by heavy weapons fire. The State Police, FBI and US Army are called in, keeping their distance to avoid provoking the terrorists. Thorpe arms the explosives with a detonator wired to a remote control gadget Luis tapes to the back of his hand. Luis warns the authorities he will set off the explosives should they attack the school. He releases the school faculty except for the cooks and the headmaster, Dr. Robert Gould, demanding his father's release in exchange for the hostages and institutes hourly headcounts.


title: Toy Soldiers (1991 film)

text: The students, under Billy's leadership, use their expertise in skirting authority to collect tactical information about the occupying forces, which Billy covertly brings to the authorities on the outside. They won't allow Billy to return, but with Parker's encouragement, he escapes and rejoins the students just in time to be counted, preventing the killing of Gould and four students in response.


title: Toy Soldiers (1991 film)

text: Joey's father, New Jersey mob boss Albert Trotta, arranges for Joey to be released. Joey, contemptuous of his father, refuses to go. He overpowers a guard, steals a submachine gun and opens fire on another terrorist, but is killed in the exchange. Luis tries to impress upon Parker, who comes to retrieve the body, that it was an accident, but Albert takes revenge by having Enrique Cali killed in prison.


title: Toy Soldiers (1991 film)

text: Knowing they must act before Luis can learn of his father's death, the authorities undertake a rescue mission. FBI Hostage Rescue Team personnel (trailed by Parker), supported by the Army and armed with the information provided by Billy, covertly infiltrate the school and begin taking out the terrorists. Meanwhile, Billy and his friends sabotage the remote control receiver for the detonator, overpower their guards and lead the students and Gould to a secret basement chamber. Overwhelmed by the assault, Luis takes Billy at gunpoint and holds him in Gould's office. He presses the button on his gadget, but due to Billy's machinations only activates a toy aeroplane. Parker and commandos converge on Luis and Billy. Luis wounds Parker, but Billy elbows him in the abdomen, giving a commando the chance to shoot Luis, killing him.


title: Toy Soldiers (1991 film)

text: With Parker's wound bandaged, he and Billy gain a better understanding of each other. In the end, the students are freed, the surviving terrorists are arrested and Billy joyously reunites with his friends.


title: Toy Soldiers (1991 film)

text: The first screenplay was written by David Koepp who wrote it for director John Schlesinger. The school was a European boarding school and the villains were Palestinian terrorists. Schlesinger dropped out of the project and the script was rewritten to be set in the US with different villains.


title: Toy Soldiers (1991 film)

text: The main antagonist of the film was portrayed by Andrew Divoff, who has mentioned that his role as Luis Cali was his favourite role as a bad guy. TriStar Pictures distributed in the United States and several countries.


title: Toy Soldiers (1991 film)

text: There is a real private school named Regis High School, located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, although this school is a Jesuit school unlike the fictional school in the film which is not. The location of the fictional Regis School in the film is a fictional King's County Virginia. The Virginia state seal is prominent on the sheriff's car and the license plate is a Virginia public use plate. A cargo van driven by the terrorist as they kill the guard features a logo with a town name in Virginia. The school's exterior scenes were filmed at The Miller School of Albemarle in Charlottesville, Virginia. Other exterior scenes were filmed in San Antonio, Texas, Richmond, Virginia and Waynesboro, Virginia.


title: Toy Soldiers (1991 film)

text: The film debuted at No. 3 on its opening weekend in the United States and grossed $15,073,942 nationwide during its run.


title: Toy Soldiers (1991 film)

text: On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 38% based on reviews from 16 critics. On Metacritic it has a score of 46% based on reviews from 20 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade A− on scale of A to F.


title: Toy Soldiers (1991 film)

text: Roger Ebert gave the film 1 out of 4, stating that "Since the plot of the movie is utterly predictable, we hope at least for some cleverness in the gimmicks. Here the movie is so disappointing that I wonder if the screenwriters were really trying." Critic Clint Morris was more favorable stating "The performances are rock solid".


title: Toy Soldiers (1991 film)

text: For their performance in "Toy Soldiers", Sean Astin, Wil Wheaton, Keith Coogan, T.E. Russell and George Perez were all nominated for an "Outstanding Young Ensemble Cast in a Motion Picture" by the Thirteenth Annual Youth in Film Awards 1990-1991. They lost narrowly to Donovan McCrary, Desi Arnez Hines II and Baha Jackson for their performance in "Boyz n the Hood".


title: Tiamat's Wrath

text: Tiamat's Wrath is a science fiction novel by James S. A. Corey, the pen name of Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck, and the eighth book in their series "The Expanse". Following the series' tradition of referring to ancient mythology in its titles, the book's title references the Babylonian goddess Tiamat, who took part in the creation of the universe.


title: Tiamat's Wrath

text: Following the events of "Persepolis Rising", James Holden is a captive on Laconia, allowed to roam the grounds of High Consul Winston Duarte’s palace but with little other freedom. He pays his respects to Chrisjen Avasarala, who died four months previously, and talks with her granddaughter and Camina Drummer, former president of the defunct Transport Union.


title: Tiamat's Wrath

text: Through another of the Ring gates, Elvi Okoye, her husband Fayez and several other scientists are sent on a Laconian mission to the “dead worlds”, systems past the ring gates which have no habitable worlds. They find a planet-size green diamond which interacts strangely with their sample of active protomolecule but are forced by the commander to move on to the next system before they can adequately probe it. They arrive to find a neutron star pushed to the edge of the Tolman-Oppenheimer-Volkov limit, with no other matter in the area. The Laconian commander reveals their plan to send an antimatter-laden ship through the ring gates to attack the creatures which have been seen “eating” ships.


title: Tiamat's Wrath

text: In the Sol system, Naomi, working for the underground resistance against Laconia, arrives on a station in the Outer Planets to talk with Bobbie and Alex, operating their stolen Laconian gunship "Gathering Storm" before leaving again. Bobbie and Alex embark on a mission to capture a Laconian freighter carrying supplies and a high-ranking political officer but the officer and their own spies are caught in the crossfire and killed. Faced with overwhelming odds, one of the Laconian flagships taking notice of them and notching another (semi)-failure, both are left to wonder whether their fight is winnable at all. Then Bobbie finds antimatter in the supplies taken from the Laconian freighter, a power source for its magnetic weapon and hatches a plan to kill the flagship.


title: Tiamat's Wrath

text: On Laconia, Teresa Duarte, the fourteen-year-old daughter of Winston, learns that her father wants to train her to be the next high consul despite his quest for immortality and talks with Holden about his status in Duarte’s court. She also sneaks away to talk with a man she met in a mountain cave, whom she calls “Timothy”. Naomi mingles with the crew of the ship she rides on to avoid discovery by a Laconian political officer and is saved by the chief engineer who knows her from the events of "Babylon’s Ashes"—until their travel is cut short by a warning from the ring gates. The Laconian experiment, witnessed by Fayez and Elvi (who tried to stop it, to little avail) causes the neutron star to collapse into a black hole and emit a gamma-ray burst, lighting up the slow zone and destroying two of the ring gates. Duarte tells Teresa that they plan to send another antimatter ship but before the attack can be carried out, the aliens make their own attack: everyone across the connected systems experiences ‘lost time’ where they can see the spaces between subatomic particles; Elvi and Fayez are wounded and several of their colleagues killed when parts of their ship vanish; Medina Station, the Laconian dreadnought


title: Tiamat's Wrath

text: "Typhoon" and everything inside the ring space is annihilated in an instant; and Duarte, augmented by the protomolecule, becomes catatonic.


title: Tiamat's Wrath

text: Bobbie and Alex make the decision to ask Naomi about their plan to attack the Laconian flagship, the "Tempest". Holden recognizes that something is wrong on Laconia and speaks with Paolo Cortázar, the head scientist, who plans to kill Teresa rather than let her become immortal. With the death of Medina Station, Naomi travels to Auberon—one of the most prosperous ring worlds—and takes over the underground. Elvi lands on Laconia and is told of what happened to Duarte and that her assistance is needed in running the scientific endeavors there; at the same time, Holden attempts to tell them of Cortázar’s plot against Teresa. Teresa is worried over the state of her father and goes to visit “Timothy”, who is revealed to be Amos Burton, sent with a pocket nuclear weapon to try to rescue Holden. The Laconian security force finds the two of them and kills Amos, though when they return they cannot find his body. Elvi speaks at the science center with two children who died but were reconstructed by the repair drones native to Laconia.


title: Tiamat's Wrath

text: Bobbie and Alex embark to kill the "Tempest", using a bomb constructed from antimatter and a gap in its sensors caused by the Sol forces. Alex distracts the flagship with the "Gathering Storm" while Bobbie delivers the bomb but their ship is damaged and she is forced to throw the bomb at the "Tempest" directly, destroying it and sacrificing herself in the process. Elvi tells Teresa, further traumatized by Amos’ death, of Cortázar’s plot and she tells her father. Naomi and Alex return, independently, to the "Rocinante", which had been stashed on Freehold, the colony they returned to at the end of "Persepolis Rising". Another lost-time attack occurs and Elvi thinks that such attacks are what shut down the consciousness of the protomolecule builders; humanity is more resilient and only loses a few minutes of time, but now the aliens are experimenting with more effective methods that work for longer. Naomi summons ships from the other ring worlds for an attack on Laconia’s shipyards.


title: Tiamat's Wrath

text: Four hundred ships attack Laconia, drawing out the last flagship away from the planet so that a small strike force can destroy the shipyards. Duarte, though still comatose, awakens when he is scanned and kills Cortázar. Teresa decides she needs to leave Laconia, uses Amos' evacuation beacon as a call for her rescue and takes Holden from the cells as a bargaining card. Elvi realizes that Holden was the one who convinced Cortázar to kill Teresa but he tells her that it was a plan to betray Cortázar and install Elvi as the head scientist of Laconia. Naomi and Alex’s plan succeeds and they kill the shipyards, then descend to Laconia, following the evacuation signal. Laconian security forces catch up with Holden and Teresa but are killed by Amos, put back together by the repair drones. The crew of the "Rocinante" reunite and Teresa, as the daughter of the high consul, talks the remaining flagship down from killing them. On the ship, Amos tells Holden that the aliens that killed the protomolecule builders now plan to kill all of humanity.


title: Tiamat's Wrath

text: Main characters in the book include many from earlier in the series, including James Holden, Naomi Nagata, Bobbie Draper, Alex Kamal, Elvi Okoye, and Winston Duarte. The book introduces Duarte's 14-year-old daughter, Teresa, who is being trained as his successor. This is the only book in the series where Holden is not the protagonist, having only chapters in the prologue, epilogue and an interlude.


title: AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs

text: Part of the AFI 100 Years... series, AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs is a list of the top 100 funniest movies in American cinema. A wide variety of comedies, totalling 500 films, were nominated for the distinction; genres included slapstick, action comedy, screwball comedy, romantic comedy, satire, black comedy, musical comedy, comedy of manners, and comedy of errors. The list was unveiled by the American Film Institute on June 13, 2000.


title: Double-barreled shotgun

text: A double-barreled shotgun is a break-action shotgun with two parallel barrels, allowing two single shots to be fired in quick succession or simultaneously.


title: Double-barreled shotgun

text: Modern double-barreled shotguns, often known as "doubles", are almost universally break action, with the barrels hinge down at the rear to expose the breech ends for unloading and reloading. Since there is no reciprocating action needed to eject and reload the shells, doubles are more compact than repeating designs such as pump action, lever action, bolt action, or self-loading shotguns.


title: Double-barreled shotgun

text: The original double-barreled guns were nearly all S×S designs, which was a more practical design for muzzleloaders. Early cartridge-firing shotguns also used the side-by-side action, because they kept the exposed hammers of the earlier muzzleloading shotguns from which they evolved. When hammerless designs started to become common, the over-and-under design was introduced, and most modern sporting doubles are over-and-under designs.


title: Double-barreled shotgun

text: One significant advantage that doubles have over single-barrel repeating shotguns is the ability to have more than one choke at a time. Some shotgun shooting sports, such as skeet shooting, use crossing targets presented in a narrow range of distance, and only require one level of choke. Other sports, like sporting clays, give the shooter targets at differing ranges, and targets that might approach or recede from the shooter, and so must be engaged at differing ranges. Having two barrels lets the shooter use a more open choke for near targets, and a tighter choke for distant targets, providing the optimal shot pattern for each distance.


title: Double-barreled shotgun

text: The disadvantage lies in the fact that the barrels of a double-barreled shotgun, whether over-and-under or side-by-side, are not parallel, but slightly angled, so that shots from the barrels converge, usually at "40 yards out". For the side-by-side configuration, the shotstring continues on its path to the opposite side of the rib after the converging point; for example, the left barrel's discharge travels on the left of the rib till it hits dead center at 40 yards (36.58 m) out, after that, the discharge continues on to the right. In the over-and-under configuration with a parallel rib, both barrels' discharges will keep to the dead center, but the discharge from the "under" barrel will shoot higher than the discharge from the "over" barrel after 40 yards (36.58 m). Thus, double-barreled shotguns are accurate only at practical shotgun ranges, though the range of their ammunition easily exceeds four to six times that distance.


title: Double-barreled shotgun

text: Side-by-side shotguns are often more expensive, and may take more practice to aim effectively than a over-and-under. The off-center nature of the recoil in a "S×S" gun may make shooting the body-side barrel slightly more painful by comparison to an over-and-under, single-shot, or pump-action, lever-action shotgun. Gas-operated and Recoil-operated, designs will recoil less than either. More side-by-side than over-and-under guns have traditional "cast-off" stocks, where the end of the buttstock veers slightly to the right, allowing a right-handed user to point the gun more easily.


title: Double-barreled shotgun

text: Double-barreled shotguns are also inherently more safe, as whether the shotgun is loaded or can be fired can be ascertained by anyone present if the action is broken open, for instance on a skeet, trap or hunting clays course when another shooter is firing; if the action is open, the gun cannot fire. Similarly, doubles are more easily examined to see if loaded than pump or semi-automatic shotguns, whose bolt must be opened and chamber closely examined or felt to make sure it is unloaded; with a double gun (or a break-action single gun), whether the gun is loaded, i.e., has cartridges in any chamber, is easily and immediately seen with a glance (and just as easily unloaded).


title: Double-barreled shotgun

text: The early doubles used two triggers, one for each barrel, located front to back inside the trigger guard. The index finger was used to pull either trigger, as having two fingers inside the trigger guard can cause a very undesirable recoil-induced double-discharge. Double-trigger designs are typically set up for right-handed users. In double-trigger designs, it is often possible to pull both triggers at once, firing both barrels simultaneously, though this is generally not recommended as it doubles the recoil, battering both shotgun and shooter, particularly if it was unanticipated or unintended. Discharging both barrels at the same time has long been a hunting trick employed by hunters using 8 gauge "elephant" shotguns, firing the two two-ounce slugs for sheer stopping power at close range.


title: Double-barreled shotgun

text: Later models use a single trigger that alternately fires both barrels, called a "single selective trigger" or "SST". The single selective trigger does not allow firing both barrels at once, since the single trigger must be pulled twice in order to fire both barrels. The change from one barrel to the other may be done by a clockwork type system, where a cam alternates between barrels, or by an inertial system where the recoil of firing the first barrel toggles the trigger to the next barrel. A double-barreled shotgun with an inertial trigger works best with full power shotshells; shooting low recoil shotshells often will not reliably toggle the inertial trigger, causing an apparent failure to fire occasionally when attempting to depress the trigger a second time to fire the second barrel (this also can happen if the first shell fails to fire). Generally there is a method of selecting the order in which the barrels of a single selective trigger shotgun fire; commonly this is done through manipulation of the safety, pushing to one side to select top barrel first and the other side to select bottom barrel first. In the event that an inertial trigger does not toggle to the second barrel when firing low recoil shotshells, manually selecting the order to the second barrel will enable the second barrel to fire when the trigger is depressed again.


title: Double-barreled shotgun

text: One of the advantages of double-barreled shotgun with double triggers or single selective trigger, is that the second shot can be taken almost immediately after the first with merely a second trigger pull, without needing to manually operate the action (which will inevitably destabilize the gun from the shoulder position and affect aim), and can utilize different chokes for the two shots (assuming, of course, that full power shotshells are fired, at least for a double-barreled shotgun with an inertial type single selective trigger, as needed to toggle the inertial trigger). This can be noticeably faster than a pump shotgun, which requires manually pumping the fore-end to eject and reload for the second shot, and may be faster, or not slower, than a semi-automatic shotgun (as there are no bolt movements to delay the rechambering of a second shell). Note, however, in neither the pump or semi-automatic will the second shot be a different choke pattern from the first shot, whereas for a double, the two shots are usually with different chokes. Thus, depending on the nature of the hunt, the appropriate choke for the shot is always at hand. For example, while field hunting flushing birds, the first shot is usually closer than the second because the bird flies away from the shooter; so, the more open choke (and barrel) would be better for the first shot, and if a second shot is needed, as the bird is flying away, the more closed (and thus longer distance of an effective shot pattern) choke (and barrel) is then appropriate. Conversely, on a driven hunt, where the birds are driven towards the shooter, the closed (longer effective distance) choke (and barrel) should be fired first, saving the open (closer effective distance) choke (and barrel) for the now-closer incoming bird. None of this is possible with single-barrel shotguns, only with a double, whether S×S or O/U.


title: Double-barreled shotgun

text: "Regulation" is a term used for multi-barreled firearms that indicates how close to the same point of aim the barrels will shoot. A poorly regulated gun may hit consistently with one barrel, but miss consistently with the other, making the gun nearly useless for anything requiring two shots. However, the short ranges and spread of shot provide a significant overlap, so a small error in regulation in a double is often too small to be noticed. Generally the shotguns are regulated to hit the point of aim at a given distance, usually the maximum expected range since that is the range at which a full choke is used, and where precise regulation matters most. The regulation is usually more important in side-by-side than over-and-under shotguns, as felt recoil differs.


title: Michael Wilding

text: Michael Charles Gauntlet Wilding (23 July 1912 – 8 July 1979) was an English stage, television, and film actor. He is best known for a series of films he made with Anna Neagle; he also made two films with Alfred Hitchcock, "Under Capricorn" (1949) and "Stage Fright" (1950); and he guest starred on Hitchcock's TV show in 1963. He was married four times, including to Elizabeth Taylor, with whom he had two sons.


title: Michael Wilding

text: Born in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, England, and educated at Christ's Hospital, Wilding left home at age 17 and trained as a commercial artist. He went to Europe when he was 20 and supported himself in Europe by doing sketches. He wanted to get into designing sets for films and approached a London film studio in 1933 looking for work. They invited him to come to work as an extra.


title: Michael Wilding

text: Wilding appeared as an extra in British films such as "Bitter Sweet" (1933), "Heads We Go" (1933), and "Channel Crossing" (1933). He caught the acting bug and decided to make it a career. He reportedly appeared in an Austrian film called "Pastorale".


title: Michael Wilding

text: He made his stage debut in "The Ringer" in 1934 for the Watford Repertory Company and made his London stage debut in "Chase the Ace" the following year. He could be spotted in the films "Late Extra" (1935), "When Knights Were Bold" (1936), and "Wedding Group" (1936). He was in two musicals on stage, "Spread It Abroad" and "Home and Beauty".


title: Michael Wilding

text: In 1937–38 he toured Australia and New Zealand with Fay Compton's stage company. The plays included "Personal Appearance", "Victoria Regina", "Tonight at Eight Thirty" and "George and Margaret". While in Australia he filmed a prologue for "Personal Appearance".


title: Michael Wilding

text: Back in England he appeared in the first Gate Revue, then followed this with another revue, "Let's Face It" and a pantomime, "Who's Taking Liberty".


title: Michael Wilding

text: He had bigger film parts in "There Ain't No Justice" (1939), "Convoy" (1940), and "Tilly of Bloomsbury" (1940). He had a good role in "Sailors Three" (1940), and "Sailors Don't Care" (1940).


title: Michael Wilding

text: Wilding had a leading role in "Spring Meeting" (1941) but was back to support parts in "The Farmer's Wife" (1941). His films grew more prestigious: "Kipps" (1941), "Cottage to Let" (1941), "Ships with Wings" (1941), "The Big Blockade" (1941), "In Which We Serve" (1942), "Secret Mission" (1942), and "Undercover" (1943). He played in "Quiet Weekend" on stage for a year. In 1943 he performed for the troops in Gibraltar with John Gielgud.


title: Michael Wilding

text: Wilding finally became a film name with "Dear Octopus" (1943). He followed it with "English Without Tears" (1944).


title: Michael Wilding

text: What really made him a star was appearing opposite Anna Neagle in "Piccadilly Incident" (1946). Director Herbert Wilcox had wanted Rex Harrison or John Mills and had only taken Wilding reluctantly. However, once he saw the rushes he signed Wilding to a long-term contract. "Piccadilly Incident" was the second most popular film at the British box office in 1946. After co-starring with Sally Gray in "Carnival" (1946), Wilding was reunited with Neagle and Wilcox in "The Courtneys of Curzon Street" (1947), the biggest hit at the 1947 British box office and one of the most-seen British films of all time. Alexander Korda cast him opposite Paulette Goddard in "An Ideal Husband" (1947), another hit, but it failed to recoup its enormous cost. Wilding, Neagle and Wilcox reteamed for "Spring in Park Lane" (1948), another outstanding hit. It led to a sequel, "Maytime in Mayfair" (1949), which was also enormously popular.


title: Michael Wilding

text: Wilding was now one of the biggest stars in Britain—indeed he was voted as such by the readers of "Kine Weekly". Director Alfred Hitchcock then cast him in two consecutive films that he produced through his own film production company Transatlantic Pictures (distributed through Warner Brothers Pictures). The first, "Under Capricorn" (released in 1949), in which he played opposite Ingrid Bergman and Joseph Cotten, was shot mostly in London but had final retakes and overdubs filmed in Hollywood. It was one of Hitchcock's few flops. His second film for Hitchcock was the more popular "Stage Fright" (released in 1950), also filmed in London, with Marlene Dietrich and Jane Wyman. Thirteen years later, in 1963, Wilding starred in an Alfred Hitchcock Hour episode titled "Last Seen Wearing Blue Jeans".


title: Michael Wilding

text: Wilcox used him in a film without Neagle, "Into the Blue" (1950) and the public response was considerably less enthusiastic than for the films they made together. He put Anouk Aimée under personal contract and announced plans to make a movie together but none resulted.


title: Michael Wilding

text: MGM made an offer for Wilding to appear opposite Greer Garson in "The Law and the Lady" (1951); the film was not a success. He returned to Britain for "The Lady with a Lamp" (1951), a biopic of Florence Nightingale with Neagle and Wilcox. It was popular in Britain, though less so than their earlier collaborations.


title: Michael Wilding

text: So too was "Derby Day" (1952), the last Neagle–Wilding collaboration. Wilcox tried Wilding with a new star, Margaret Lockwood, in "Trent's Last Case" (1952), a minor hit. In 1952 British exhibitors voted him the fourth most popular star at the local box office.


title: Michael Wilding

text: In May 1952 Wilding signed a long-term contract with MGM. He turned down a role in MGM's "Latin Lovers" and the studio put him under suspension.


title: Michael Wilding

text: In Hollywood, Wilding supported Joan Crawford in MGM's "Torch Song" (1953). 20th Century Fox borrowed him to play a pharaoh in their big budget spectacular, "The Egyptian" (1954), which was a box office disappointment.


title: Michael Wilding

text: At MGM he was Prince Charming to Leslie Caron's Cinderella in "The Glass Slipper" (1955), and Major John André in "The Scarlet Coat" (1956).


title: Michael Wilding

text: Wilding journeyed with Taylor to Africa to appear in "Zarak" (1956) for Warwick Films, after which his marriage to Taylor ended. He began appearing regularly on U.S. television, including the title role in the 1957 episode "The Trial of Colonel Blood" of NBC's anthology series "The Joseph Cotten Show".


title: Michael Wilding

text: He had some roles in "Danger Within" (1959), a POW movie; "The World of Suzie Wong" (1960); "The Naked Edge" (1961); "The Best of Enemies" (1961); and "A Girl Named Tamiko" (1962).


title: Michael Wilding

text: His last appearance in a feature was in a cameo in "Lady Caroline Lamb" (1972), which co-starred his last wife, Margaret Leighton. His last role was in the TV movie "" (1973).


title: Michael Wilding

text: Wilding was married four times: to Kay Young (married August 1937, separated December 1945, divorced December 1951); Elizabeth Taylor (married February 1952, separated July 1956, divorced January 1957); Susan Nell (married February 1958, divorced July 1962); and Margaret Leighton (married from July 1964 until her death in January 1976).


title: Michael Wilding

text: He and Taylor, who was 20 years his junior, had two sons, Michael Howard (born January 6, 1953) and Christopher Edward (born February 27, 1955). In 1957 he had a short-lived romance with actress Marie McDonald, who was nicknamed The Body.


title: Michael Wilding

text: In the 1960s he was forced to cut back on his film appearances because of illness related to his lifelong epilepsy.


title: Michael Wilding

text: Wilding died on 8 July 1979 in Chichester, West Sussex, as a result of head injuries from a fall down a flight of stairs during an epileptic seizure. His body was cremated and the ashes were scattered.


title: Frano Selak

text: Frano Selak or Frane Selak (14 June 1929 – 30 November 2016) was a Croatian man who was known for his frequent brushes with death. He has been described as either the world's luckiest or unluckiest man.


title: Frano Selak

text: Selak's near-death experiences began in January 1962 when he was riding a train through a cold, rainy canyon and the train flew off the tracks and crashed in a river. An unknown person pulled Selak to safety, while 17 other passengers drowned. Selak suffered a broken arm and hypothermia. The next year, during his first and only plane ride, he was blown out of a malfunctioning plane door and landed in a haystack; the plane crashed, killing 19 people. Three years after that, in 1966, a bus that he was riding in skidded off the road and into a river, drowning four passengers. Selak swam to shore with a few cuts and bruises.


title: Frano Selak

text: In 1970, his car caught fire as he was driving and he managed to escape before the fuel tank blew up. Three years later, in another driving incident, the engine of his car was doused with hot oil from a malfunctioning fuel pump, causing flames to shoot through the air vents. Selak's hair was completely singed in this incident, but he was otherwise unharmed. In 1995, he was struck by a bus in Zagreb, but sustained only minor injuries. In 1996 he eluded a head-on collision with a United Nations truck on a mountain curve by swerving into a guardrail, which gave way under the force. Selak was not wearing a seatbelt and was ejected out of the car, clinging to a tree branch as he watched his vehicle fall 300 feet. Two days after his 73rd birthday, Selak won €900000 (US$1,110,000) (£702,920) in the lottery. At the time of his win, he also married for the fifth time. While he purchased two houses and a boat with his winnings, in 2010 he decided to give most of the remaining money away to relatives and friends after deciding to live a frugal lifestyle.


title: Frano Selak

text: None of Selak's near-death experiences have ever been independently verified, and at times some of his accounts of his near-death experiences were inconsistent. He died at the age of 87.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: Pablo Javier Zabaleta Girod (; born 16 January 1985) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as a right back. Zabaleta could operate on both sides of the pitch as a full-back and was known for his tenacious style of play, and has captained his club on numerous occasions.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: With Manchester City, Zabaleta won all of English football's major honours: the FA Cup (2011), the Premier League (2012 and 2014), the League Cup (2014 and 2016) and the Community Shield (2012). Before joining Manchester City, Zabaleta played for La Liga club RCD Espanyol, where he won the 2005–06 Copa del Rey. He made 333 appearances over nine seasons for Manchester City before signing for London-based club West Ham United in the summer of 2017.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: A full international since 2005, Zabaleta represented Argentina at the 2011 and 2015 Copa América, and was part of their team which finished as runners-up in the 2014 FIFA World Cup. He was also in their team which won gold at the 2008 Olympics.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: Born in Buenos Aires, Zabaleta was raised in Arrecifes. He began his career at Club Atlético San Lorenzo de Almagro in 2002 after progressing through their youth ranks, having been signed at the age of 12 from local club "Obras Sanitarias". He started playing as a defensive midfielder but eventually moved to the right side of midfield.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: Zabaleta was transferred to Espanyol in 2005 for €3 million after being Argentina under-20s captain in the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship, which Argentina won. During the 2005–06 season, Zabaleta helped Espanyol to win the Copa del Rey, playing the full 90 minutes in the 4–1 victory over Real Zaragoza in the final.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: In January 2007, Zabaleta suffered a shoulder injury that kept him off the pitch for almost three months, already having established himself as an undisputed first team choice. Later in the season, he featured in the 2006–07 UEFA Cup final, where Espanyol lost on penalties to fellow Spanish side Sevilla.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: In the summer of 2008, Zabaleta transferred to Premier League club Manchester City after rejecting an offer from Juventus. He stated upon joining that "The offer is impossible to reject and not just because of the money ... Juventus also wanted me but I wanted to come to England, and to Manchester." Having passed a medical and agreed personal terms, Zabaleta completed a five-year deal with City on 31 August 2008 for an undisclosed fee, believed to be the buy-out clause Zabaleta had attached to his contract of around £6.45 million. Zabaleta joined a day before Manchester City was bought by the Abu Dhabi United Group, led by Sheikh Mansour, which enabled a wealth of investment in the club.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: On 13 September 2008, Zabaleta made his debut for Manchester City in a 3–1 defeat to Chelsea at the City of Manchester Stadium. On 5 October, he received his first red card in English football when he was sent off in a 3–2 loss to Liverpool in his fourth Premier League appearance. He scored his first goal for City on 17 January 2009, the only goal of the game in a 1–0 league win over Wigan Athletic.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: On 21 November 2010, Zabaleta scored his second Premier League goal in Manchester City's 4–1 win against Fulham. In the same match, he assisted a Carlos Tevez goal, helping his compatriot to earn his ninth goal for the club during the 2010–11 season.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: On 1 January 2011, Zabaleta played his 100th game for Manchester City in all competitions, coming off the bench against Blackpool in a 1–0 win at Eastlands. Two weeks later, on 15 January, Zabaleta made his second assist of the season in a 4–3 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers. This win meant that City went top of the league above local rivals Manchester United. However, City's title challenge faded with a loss of form in February and March 2011.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: On 1 May 2011, Zabaleta scored his second goal of the season in a Premier League match against West Ham United. This secured a 2–1 win for the Citizens and put them seven points ahead of Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur in the race for fourth place.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: On 14 May 2011, Zabaleta appeared as an 88th-minute substitute for Carlos Tevez in the 2011 FA Cup Final as Manchester City beat Stoke City 1–0.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: In the summer of 2011, it was reported that Italian club Roma were keen on signing Zabaleta, but Manchester City insisted the player was not for sale and Zabaleta agreed a three-year contract in July 2011. On 1 October 2011, Zabaleta started and played the full 90 minutes at right-back in a 4–0 win over Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park in the Premier League, as regular starter Micah Richards was not available. On 23 October, he was an unused substitute in the convincing 6–1 win over rivals Manchester United at Old Trafford, with Richards starting at right-back.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: In November 2011, Zabaleta extended his contract with City until the summer of 2015. Zabaleta said, "I'm in a very good team, and I try to do my best for the club, the team and the fans. I didn't think twice, I gave a quick answer because I was so happy to sign." In his first three-and-a-half years at the club, Zabaleta emerged as a cult hero amongst the Manchester City fans who admire his never-say-die attitude and commitment to the club.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: On 30 April 2012, he started and played the full 90 minutes in the right-back slot in a 1–0 victory over rivals Manchester United thanks to a first-half stoppage time header by Vincent Kompany from a corner at the City of Manchester Stadium. Zabaleta scored the first goal in City's dramatic 3–2 win over Queens Park Rangers on the final day of the season, a result which secured the first league title for the club since 1968. On 9 December 2012, Zabaleta scored a late equalising goal in a 3–2 defeat to Manchester United.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: On 1 January 2013, he scored the opening goal in a 3–0 win at the City of Manchester Stadium over Stoke City, doubling his goal tally from the previous season. On 25 January 2013, Zabaleta scored his third goal of the season and the only goal of the match in a 1–0 win away against Stoke City in the FA Cup, fourth round. His goal took Manchester City through to the fifth round.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: Zabaleta was voted Manchester City's Player of the Month for both December 2012 and January 2013, and was stand-in captain for the club during Vincent Kompany's injury absence between January and March 2013. He was the only City player to be named in the 2012–13 Premier League PFA Team of the Year. After a superb season, Zabaleta was voted 2012–13 Manchester City Player of the Year.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: Zabaleta was sent off in the 2013 FA Cup Final against Wigan Athletic for a second yellow card after a clear foul on Callum McManaman 84 minutes into the match. Wigan went on to win 1–0 through a Ben Watson goal in stoppage time. He was the third player to be sent off in an FA Cup final and first for the losing side.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: On 2 March 2014, Zabaleta played the full 90 minutes as Manchester City beat Sunderland 3–1 in the 2014 League Cup Final to complete a full set of major honours in English football. On 21 April, he scored his first goal of the season in a 3–1 defeat of West Bromwich Albion at the City of Manchester Stadium. On 11 May, Zabaleta was part of the victory against West Ham that won Manchester City the Premier League, his second in three seasons.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: On 21 September 2014, Zabaleta was sent off for a second yellow card due to a challenge on Chelsea's Diego Costa. Both players received a yellow card, Zabaleta for the initial challenge and Costa for his reaction.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: On 21 August 2015, it was announced that Zabaleta was out for a month with knee injury. On 17 January 2016, Zabaleta reached 200 appearances for Manchester City in the club's 4–0 victory over Crystal Palace.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: Zabaleta made 32 appearances in all competitions in the 2016–17 season scoring two goals; against Watford in the Premier League and against Huddersfield Town in the FA Cup. His final appearance for Manchester City came on 16 May 2017, a 3–1 home win against West Bromwich Albion. After the game he was praised by the City manager, Pep Guardiola, as a "legend". Zabaleta was given a lifetime season ticket for Manchester City and a shirt that read "Zabaleta 333", to mark the number of City appearances he made.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: On 26 May 2017, Zabaleta signed for Premier League club West Ham United on a free transfer, agreeing to a two-year contract. He was given number five as his squad number.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: On 22 May 2018, Manuel Pellegrini was confirmed as manager of West Ham United, reuniting him with his former manager at Manchester City.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: In May 2019, Zabaleta extended his contract with West Ham Until the summer of 2020. On 5 January 2020, Zabaleta scored his only goal for West Ham, in a 2–0 win against Gillingham in the FA Cup third round. On 10 January 2020, in a match against Sheffield United, Zabaleta became the first Argentinean, and only the third South American, to record 300 Premier League appearances. In June 2020, West Ham confirmed his departure from the club at the end of the month. Zabaleta played 80 times for West Ham over three seasons, scoring one goal.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: On 16 October 2020, Zabaleta officially announced his retirement from professional football after 18 years.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: At the age of 14, Zabaleta was called up by Hugo Tocalli to the Argentina under-15 squad. He took part in many youth tournaments, including the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2003 and 2005, winning the latter in the Netherlands. He received over 75 caps to national youth sides, and started representing the senior side in 2005. He was also a member of the gold medal-winning team at the 2008 Summer Olympics, starting at right-back and playing all six matches.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: After the 2010 FIFA World Cup, for which Zabaleta was not selected by head coach Diego Maradona, under the new Argentina manager he has established himself as first-choice right-back. On 1 June 2011, Zabaleta captained Argentina for the first time in a friendly against Nigeria.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: In June 2014, Zabaleta was named in Argentina's squad for the 2014 World Cup. He made his World Cup debut in Argentina's 2–1 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina at the Estádio do Maracanã, playing the full match in defence.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: At the 2015 Copa América in Chile, Zabaleta sent in the cross from which his Manchester City teammate Sergio Agüero headed the only goal of the game as Argentina defeated holders Uruguay in their second group match.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: Zabaleta was born in Buenos Aires, to a family of Spanish (Basque) descent. Zabaleta has a tattoo on his chest which bears the name of his mother.


title: Pablo Zabaleta

text: In June 2018, he worked as a pundit for the BBC's "Match of the Day" 2018 World Cup coverage from Russia. Zabaleta again worked as a pundit for the BBC and "Match of the Day" during their coverage of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.


title: Joseph

text: Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the modern-day Nordic countries. In Portuguese and Spanish, the name is "José". In Arabic, including in the Quran, the name is spelled "Yūsuf". In Persian, the name is "Yousef".


title: Joseph

text: The name has enjoyed significant popularity in its many forms in numerous countries, and "Joseph" was one of the two names, along with "Robert", to have remained in the top 10 boys' names list in the US from 1925 to 1972. It is especially common in contemporary Israel, as either "Yossi" or "Yossef", and in Italy, where the name "Giuseppe" was the most common male name in the 20th century. In the first century CE, Joseph was the second most popular male name for Palestine Jews.


title: Joseph

text: In the Book of Genesis Joseph is Jacob's eleventh son and Rachel's first son, and known in the Hebrew Bible as Yossef ben-Yaakov. In the New Testament the most notable two are Joseph, the husband of Mary, the mother of Jesus; and Joseph of Arimathea, a secret disciple of Jesus who supplied the tomb in which Jesus was buried.


title: Joseph

text: The Bible offers two explanations of the name "Yosef:" first, it is compared to the word "asaf" from the root /'sp/, "taken away": "And she conceived, and bore a son; and said, God hath "taken away" my reproach"; "Yosef" is then identified with the similar root /ysp/, meaning "add": "And she called his name Joseph; and said, The LORD shall "add" to me another son." "The Jewish Encyclopedia" says that it is a theophoric name referencing YHWH. The name can also consist of the Hebrew "yadah" meaning "praise", "fame" and the word "asaf".


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: Rickie Lee Skaggs (born July 18, 1954), known professionally as Ricky Skaggs, is an American neotraditional country and bluegrass singer, musician, producer, and composer. He primarily plays mandolin; however, he also plays fiddle, guitar, mandocaster, and banjo.


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: Skaggs was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2016 and the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2018. On January 13, 2021, it was announced Skaggs had been awarded the National Medal of Arts by President Donald Trump, alongside fellow country musician Toby Keith.


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: Skaggs was born in Cordell, Kentucky. He started playing music at age 5 after he was given a mandolin by his father, Hobert Skaggs. At age 6, he played mandolin and sang on stage with Bill Monroe. At age 7, he appeared on television's Martha White country music variety show, playing with Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs. He also wanted to audition for the Grand Ole Opry at that time, but was told he was too young.


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: In his mid-teens, Skaggs met a fellow teen guitarist, Keith Whitley, and the two started playing together with Whitley's banjo playing brother, Dwight, on radio shows. By 1970, they had earned a spot opening for Ralph Stanley, and Skaggs and Keith Whitley were thereafter invited to join Stanley's band, the Clinch Mountain Boys.


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: Skaggs later joined The Country Gentlemen in Washington, DC, J. D. Crowe's New South. In 1976, Skaggs formed progressive bluegrass band Boone Creek, including members Vince Gill and Jerry Douglas. For a few years, Skaggs was a member of Emmylou Harris's Hot Band. He wrote the arrangements for Harris's 1980 bluegrass-roots album, "Roses in the Snow". In addition to arranging for Harris, Skaggs sang harmony and played mandolin and fiddle in the Hot Band.


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: Skaggs launched his own career in 1980, achieving 12 No. 1 hits, 8 CMA awards, and 8 ACM awards. In 1982, he became a member of the Grand Ole Opry, the youngest musician ever to be inducted at that time. Guitarist and producer Chet Atkins credited Skaggs with "single-handedly" saving country music. Skaggs is considered one of the pioneers of the Neotraditional country sub-genre.


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: In 1981, he debuted on Epic Records with the album "Waitin for the Sun to Shine", which brought him to both the country and pop charts and produced two No. 1 hits.


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: In 1982, he released "Highways & Heartaches", his only platinum album, featuring the instrumental heavy "Highway 40 Blues".


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: Keeping with his instrumental heavy themes, he released "Country Boy" on the album of the same name. He also had Bill Monroe as a guest on this album.


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: Exploring a role as producer, Skaggs produced Dolly Parton's album "White Limozeen", which started her comeback in country music.


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: Skaggs also guested on other albums. In 1995, he sang with Vince Gill on "Go Rest High on That Mountain", which later won CMA's Song of the Year and was determined by BMI to be the Most-Performed Song in 1997.


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: In 1996, Skaggs went back to his bluegrass roots, and also experimented with new sounds. With his band, Kentucky Thunder, he is a perennial winner of Grammy Awards and International Bluegrass Music Association for best bluegrass album.


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: In 2000, he shared the stage with Vermont-based jam band, Phish. On March 20, 2007, Skaggs released an album with rock musician Bruce Hornsby.


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: In 2008, Skaggs recorded a bluegrass version of "Old Enough" by the Raconteurs with Ashley Monroe and the Raconteurs. He played the mandolin on the track as well as sharing vocals with Jack White, Brendan Benson, and Ashley Monroe.


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: In 2011, Skaggs, along with other musicians including the Irish band The Brock McGuire Band, released their album 'Green Grass Blue Grass", an exploration of the connection between Irish Traditional Music and American Bluegrass and Appalachian music.


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: Also in 2011, Skaggs contributed to "Moody Bluegrass TWO...Much Love", a bluegrass tribute album to the British Progressive Rock band the Moody Blues. Skaggs sang lead vocal on the song "You And Me".


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: In 2012, Skaggs collaborated with Barry Gibb on the song, "Soldier's Son" which was released on "Music to My Ears".


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: In 2019, he collaborated with Steven Curtis Chapman for Chapman's album "Deeper Roots: Where the Bluegrass Grows"


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: In 2019, Skaggs performed at the 6th Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum Concert and Induction Ceremony.


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: As of recent years, Skaggs continues performing at the historic Grand Ole Opry house in Nashville, Tennessee.


title: Ricky Skaggs

text: Ricky Skaggs was previously married to Brenda Stanley and has two children, Andrew and Mandy, from that relationship. Skaggs has been married to Sharon White of The Whites since August 1981. They have 2 children; a daughter, Molly, and a son, Lucas. Molly Skaggs is a Christian/Gospel singer.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: The Revolutionary United Front (RUF) was a rebel group that fought a failed eleven-year war in Sierra Leone, beginning in 1991 and ending in 2002. It later transformed into a political party, which still exists today. The three most senior surviving leaders, Issa Sesay, Morris Kallon and Augustine Gbao, were convicted in February 2009 of war crimes and crimes against humanity.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: The RUF initially coalesced as a group of Sierra Leoneans which led National Patriotic Front of Liberia elements across the border in an attempt to replicate Charles Taylor's earlier success in toppling the Liberian government.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: The RUF was created by Foday Sankoh, of Temne background, and some allies, Abu Kanu, Rashid Mansaray, with substantial assistance from Charles Taylor of Liberia. Initially, the RUF was popular with Sierra Leoneans, many of whom resented a Freetown elite seen as corrupt and looked forward to promised free education and health care and equitable sharing of diamond revenues. However, the RUF developed a reputation internationally for its terrible cruelty towards the civilian population during its decade-long struggle, especially its practice of hacking off limbs to intimidate and spread terror among the population, and its widespread use of child soldiers.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: When it was first formed, the RUF put forward the slogan, "No More Slaves, No More Masters. Power and Wealth to the People."


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: While its goal was clearly to change the government of Sierra Leone, the RUF gave little indication of what sort of government would replace it. The group did not advocate Marxism or any similar leftist ideology, nor did it advocate extreme nationalism or Fascism. It also did not claim to be a force fighting for a certain ethnic group or region.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: At one point, during ongoing peace negotiations in 1995, RUF published a pamphlet entitled "Footpaths to Democracy: Toward a New Sierra Leone", which contained some rhetorical references to social justice and pan-Africanism.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: Foday Sankoh did not stand by his earlier promises of equitably sharing diamond revenues and used these funds to buy arms for himself.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: With a significant area of the diamond mines under the control of the rebel party, the RUF became singularly focused on protecting its resource base.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: Sierra Leone's economy collapsed, with ordinary citizens trapped between the cruelty of RUF troops and starvation. After a coup by the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) in 1997, the RUF and AFRC created a joint junta to control the country before being evicted from the capital by the intervention of a Nigerian-led West African force that reinstated President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah. The war is estimated to have cost the lives of about 200,000 people.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: Child soldiers were heavily recruited in the Sierra Leone Civil War; a total of 11,000 are thought to have participated in the conflict. Most were used for attacks on villages and on guard duty at diamond fields as well as guarding weapons stockpiles. The RUF made extensive use of child soldiers.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: Guerrillas frequently carved the initials "RUF" on their chests, and officers reportedly rubbed cocaine into open cuts on their troops to make them maniacal and fearless. Before some battles and raids, the children would be given mixtures of cocaine and gunpowder. The gunpowder mixture was called "Brown Brown" and it allowed the cocaine to flow more freely through the blood stream.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: For entertainment, some soldiers would bet on the sex of an unborn baby and then slice open a woman's womb to determine the winner. The RUF abducted children aged 7 to 12, but were known to take children as young as 5 year olds. The children were notoriously known by captains and civilians for their unquestionable obedience and enormous cruelty.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: In response to the immediate execution of rebels by government forces, the RUF instituted a policy of cutting off the hands of captured soldiers with the intent of sending the message: "You don't hold your weapon against your brother." Brandishing machetes, RUF rebels amputated the hands, arms, and legs of tens of thousands of Sierra Leoneans. The RUF indicated that the reason for these actions was that amputees could no longer mine diamonds, which might be used to support government troops.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: The election slogan at that time was that the people "had power in their hands", so the RUF would hack the hands off to prevent people from voting. RUF members are also said to have practised cannibalism. Refugee camps were set up for amputees, supported by the government and other relief agencies.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: In March 1997, Sankoh fled to Nigeria, where he was put under house arrest, and then imprisoned. Before he was later released in 1999, Sam Bockarie performed the task of director of military operations of the RUF. In 1999, after enormous pressure by the United States, the United Kingdom, the UN, and various other countries, Sankoh was forced into signing the Lomé Peace Accord on 7 July 1999.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: Sankoh was then allowed to return under the conditions of the agreement. However fighting again broke out, and the UN sent peacekeeping troops in hopes of integrating the RUF into a new national army. This intervention failed as well, and by 2000 they held 500 UN peacekeepers hostage until their release was negotiated by Taylor. The UK, Guinea, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and various other nations, sent in professional forces in 2001. The RUF was noted to be weakened, especially decreasing resources, and hence had to suffer several crushing defeats at the hands of the British special forces; which eventually led to the end of the revolution, hence the end of the civil war in Sierra Leone. Sankoh was later captured by a mob and handed to the British Army in Sierra Leone. He was indicted for multiple war crimes by a UN-backed special court. In 2003 Sankoh died in prison before the trial took place.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: Four years later, during the sessions of the Special Court for Sierra Leone, prosecutors claimed that Charles Taylor had actively participated in directing the RUF's strategy from Liberia; among the allegations was that he had arranged to transport RUF commanders to Monrovia to meet with them personally.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: After peace was established, RUF was transformed into a political party: the Revolutionary United Front Party. As of 2006, the general secretary of the party was Jonathan. In the May 10, 2001 general election the party won 2.2% of popular votes and no seats. Its candidate at the presidential elections, Alimamy Pallo Bangura, received 1.7% of the vote. The party received its highest voting in Kailahun, 7.8% in the parliamentary election.


title: Revolutionary United Front

text: The RUF most recently participated in the 2018 general election in Sierra Leone and had the 6th highest vote tally in the country. It was not considered to be a significant contender.


title: Sri Lankan rupee

text: The Sri Lankan Rupee (, ; symbol: Re and Rs (plural) in English, රු in Sinhala, ௹ in Tamil; ISO code: LKR) is the currency of Sri Lanka. It is subdivided into 100 cents, but cents are rarely seen in circulation due to its low value. It is issued by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. The abbreviation "Re" (singular) and "Rs" (plural) is generally used, the World Bank suggests SL Rs as a fully disambiguating abbreviation for distinction from other currencies named "rupee".


title: Sri Lankan rupee

text: Sterling became Ceylon's official currency in 1825, replacing the Ceylonese rixdollar at a rate of £1 stg = rixdollars, and British silver coin was made legal tender. Treasury notes denominated in sterling were issued in 1827, replacing the earlier rixdollar notes. Rixdollar notes not presented for exchange were demonetized in June 1831.


title: Sri Lankan rupee

text: The Indian rupee was made Ceylon's standard coin on 26 September 1836, and Ceylon reverted to the Indian currency area. Sterling-denominated treasury notes continued to circulate after 1836, along with the rupee. The legal currency remained British silver and accounts were kept in pounds, shillings and pence. However, payments were made in rupees and annas at the "fictitious par" (fixed accounting rate) of 2 shillings per rupee (i.e. £1 stg = Rs. 10/-).


title: Sri Lankan rupee

text: The Bank of Ceylon was the first private bank to issue banknotes on the island (1844) and Treasury notes were withdrawn in 1856.


title: Sri Lankan rupee

text: The Indian rupee was formally established as the unlimited legal tender 18 June 1869. The rupee was decimalized 23 August 1871. Thus, the rupee of 100 cents became Ceylon's money of account and sole legal tender effective 1 January 1872, replacing sterling at a rate of Re. 1/- = 2s.3d.


title: Sri Lankan rupee

text: Following the Ceylon banking and monetary crisis of 1884, in which the largest exchange bank in the island, The Orient Bank experienced an acute liquidity shortage, resulting in a run on the other two exchange banks, Chartered Mercantile Bank and the Bank of Madras. The Government of Ceylon, stepped in an enacted the "Paper Currency Ordinance of 1884" which was based on a similar Ordinance in Mauritius in 1876. The Paper Currency Ordinance, established a currency board, the Board of Commissioners of Currency of Ceylon was established consisting of the Colonial Secretary of Ceylon, the Treasurer of Ceylon, and the Auditor-General of Ceylon. This Ordinance linked the Ceylon currency notes and the Indian silver rupees being mutually convertible at the office of the Currency Commissioners at a nominal par without any commission of one Ceylon rupee note to one Indian rupee coin.


title: Sri Lankan rupee

text: By April 2022, political upheaval in Sri Lanka made the Sri Lankan rupee the world's "worst performing currency," according to the "Financial Times." The currency's exchange rate had plummeted to over Rs. 350/- = US$1 .


title: Sri Lankan rupee

text: In 1872, copper c, c, 1c and 5c coins dated 1870 were introduced, followed in 1892 by silver 10c, 25c and 50c. Production of the c ceased in 1904. The large, copper 5c coin was replaced in 1909 by a much smaller cupro-nickel coin which was square with rounded corners. In 1919, the fineness of silver used was reduced from .800 to .550.