title: The Grudge (film series)

text: Detective Muldoon (portrayed by Andrea Riseborough) is main character of "The Grudge" (2020). She is a rookie detective who moves to town alongside her young son Burke after her husband’s death of cancer. Investigating the deaths of Lorna Moody and William Matheson, Muldoon becomes cursed and is promptly tormented by the ghosts of the Landers family. Terrified the curse may harm Burke, Muldoon consults her partner Detective Goodman, who reveals to her Fiona Landers had brought the curse abroad from Japan.


title: The Grudge (film series)

text: Hoping to end the curse, Muldoon burns down the Landers home. Believing she had ended the curse, Muldoon hugs Burke before he goes to school only to see another Burke leaving the house; she finds that the Burke she is Melinda, and is dragged away to her doom by Fiona’s ghost.


title: The Grudge (film series)

text: "The Grudge" was a box office success. The film opened in North America on October 22, 2004, and generated $39.1 million in ticket sales in its first weekend of release. During the film's second week, it declined 43% with $21.8 million, becoming the first horror film to top the Halloween box office since "House on Haunted Hill" (1999). It made a total of US$110,359,362 in North America alone and $187,281,115 worldwide, far exceeding the expectations of box office analysts and Sony Pictures executives, who anticipated just $20 million. The company stated that the film cost less than $10 million to produce, thereby making it one of the most profitable films of the year.


title: The Grudge (film series)

text: A sequel was announced the Monday after "The Grudge" opened in North America. Later titled, "The Grudge 2", the film opened on October 13, 2006 in North America, to capitalize on Friday the 13th. The marketing worked, and the filmed grossed $10 million on its opening day. "The Grudge 2" topped the North American box office with $20.8 million overall, during its opening weekend. This was well below what most analysts had expected, and more than 44% less than the opening of the previous film. However, despite failing to reach expectations, it was enough to cover its $20 million production budget. In total, the film had grossed $39 million in North America, the equivalent to what the first film opened with. Worldwide the film grossed $70,711,175.


title: Kim (novel)

text: Kim is a novel by Nobel Prize-winning English author Rudyard Kipling. It was first published serially in "McClure's Magazine" from December 1900 to October 1901 as well as in "Cassell's Magazine" from January to November 1901, and first published in book form by Macmillan & Co. Ltd in October 1901. The story unfolds against the backdrop of the Great Game, the political conflict between Russia and Britain in Central Asia. The novel popularized the phrase and idea of the Great Game.


title: Kim (novel)

text: It is set after the Second Afghan War (which ended in 1881), but before the Third (fought in 1919), probably in the period 1893 to 1898. The novel is notable for its detailed portrait of the people, culture, and varied religions of India. "The book presents a vivid picture of India, its teeming populations, religions, and superstitions, and the life of the bazaars and the road."


title: Kim (novel)

text: In 1998, the Modern Library ranked "Kim" No. 78 on its list of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century. In 2003 the book was listed on the BBC's The Big Read poll of the UK's "best-loved novel".


title: Kim (novel)

text: Kim (Kimball O'Hara) is the orphaned son of an Irish soldier (Kimball O'Hara Sr., a former colour sergeant and later an employee of an Indian railway company) and a poor Irish mother (a former nanny in a colonel's household) who have both died in poverty. Living a vagabond existence in India under British rule in the late 19th century, Kim earns his living by begging and running small errands on the streets of Lahore. He occasionally works for Mahbub Ali, a Pashtun horse trader who is one of the native operatives of the British secret service. Kim is so immersed in the local culture that few realise he is a white child, although he carries a packet of documents from his father entrusted to him by an Indian woman who cared for him.


title: Kim (novel)

text: Kim befriends an aged Tibetan lama who is on a quest to free himself from the Wheel of Things by finding the legendary ″River of the Arrow″. Kim becomes his "chela", or disciple, and accompanies him on his journey. On the way, Kim incidentally learns about parts of the Great Game and is recruited by Mahbub Ali to carry a message to the head of British intelligence in Umballa. Kim's trip with the lama along the Grand Trunk Road is the first great adventure in the novel.


title: Kim (novel)

text: By chance, Kim's father's regimental chaplain identifies Kim by his Masonic certificate, which he wears around his neck, and Kim is forcibly separated from the lama. The lama insists that Kim should comply with the chaplain's plan because he believes it is in Kim's best interests, and the boy is sent to an English school in Lucknow. The lama, a former abbot, funds Kim's education. Kim is divided between his love for his Lama master, and his eagerness to become a secret agent and even have a price put on his head, and his natural independence as a free spirit.


title: Kim (novel)

text: Throughout his years at school, Kim remains in contact with the holy man he has come to love. Kim also retains contact with his secret service connections and is trained in espionage (to be a surveyor) while on vacation from school by Lurgan Sahib, a sort of benevolent Fagin, at his jewellery shop in Simla. As part of his training, Kim looks at a tray full of mixed objects and notes which have been added or taken away, a pastime still called Kim's Game, also called the Jewel Game. Other parts of this training are disguise and the careful study of Indian population, and the characteristic dress, behaviour and "even how they spit" in order to go undercover or to discover those in disguise.


title: Kim (novel)

text: After three years of schooling, Kim is given a government appointment so that he can begin to participate in the Great Game. Before this appointment begins, however, he is granted a much-deserved break. Kim rejoins the lama and at the behest of Kim's superior, Hurree Chunder Mookherjee, they make a trip to the Himalayas so Kim can investigate what some Russian intelligence agents are doing.


title: Kim (novel)

text: Kim obtains maps, papers and other important items from the Russians, who are working to undermine British control of the region. Mookherjee befriends the Russians undercover, acting as a guide, and ensures that they do not recover the lost items. Kim, aided by some porters and villagers, helps to rescue the lama.


title: Kim (novel)

text: The lama realises that he has gone astray. His search for the River of the Arrow should be taking place in the plains, not in the mountains, and he orders the porters to take them back. Here Kim and the lama are nursed back to health after their arduous journey. Kim delivers the Russian documents to Hurree, and a concerned Mahbub Ali comes to check on Kim.


title: Kim (novel)

text: The lama finds his river and is convinced he has achieved Enlightenment, and wants to share it with Kim. However, it is not revealed what happens to them next.


title: Kim (novel)

text: Considered by many to be Kipling's masterpiece, opinion appears varied about its consideration as children's literature or not. Roger Sale, in his history of children's literature, concludes ""Kim" is the apotheosis of the Victorian cult of childhood, but it shines now as bright as ever, long after the Empire's collapse..."


title: Kim (novel)

text: About a reissue of the novel in 1959 by Macmillan, the reviewer opines ""Kim" is a book worked at three levels. It is a tale of adventure...It is the drama of a boy having entirely his boy's own way... and it is the mystical exegesis of this pattern of behaviour..." This reviewer concludes ""Kim" will endure because it is a beginning like all masterly ends..."


title: Kim (novel)

text: Nirad C. Chaudhuri considered it the best story (in English) about India itself – singling out Kipling’s appreciation of the ecological force of “the twin setting of the mountains and the plain...an unbreakable articulation between the Himalayas and the Indo-Gangetic plain”.


title: Kim (novel)

text: British spy and defector Kim Philby was born Harold Philby in Ambala, then in British India. His father, a member of the Indian Civil Service, gave him the nickname 'Kim' on account of his fraternisation with the servants.


title: Sam Smith discography

text: English singer Sam Smith has released three studio albums, one independent album, three live albums, one remix album, one soundtrack, thirteen extended plays, thirty-four singles (featuring on eight singles), and three promotional singles.


title: Sam Smith discography

text: "In the Lonely Hour", Smith's debut album, was released in May 2014. They debuted in October 2012 featuring on English electronic duo Disclosure's single "Latch", which peaked at number 11 on the UK Singles Chart. In February 2013 "Lay Me Down" as the lead single from the album. In May 2013, they featured on Naughty Boy's single "La La La". The single was released on 19 May 2013 and peaked to number one in the UK. In October 2013 they released their first EP "Nirvana". "Money on My Mind" was released as the second single from the album on 16 February 2014, the song peaked to number one on the UK Singles Chart. "Stay with Me" was released as the third single from the album on 14 April 2014, the song peaked to number one on the UK Singles Chart. "I'm Not the Only One" was the album's fourth single. It was released on 31 August 2014, peaking to number 3 on the UK Singles Chart. "Like I Can" was released as the album's fifth single on 5 December 2014, peaking at number 9 on the UK Singles Chart, becoming Smith's fourth consecutive top-ten hit as a lead artist in the UK.


title: Sam Smith discography

text: A re-release of "Lay Me Down" was released as the sixth single from the album on 22 February 2015, peaking at number 15 on the UK Singles Chart. In the same month Smith recorded another version of the song, featuring John Legend, for the British charity television Comic Relief, the song reached number one in the UK. In July 2015, they featured on Disclosure's single "Omen", peaking to number 13 in the UK. On 8 September 2015, Smith confirmed that their new song "Writing's on the Wall" would be the theme song to the 24th James Bond film "Spectre". The song was released on 25 September 2015 and became the first Bond theme ever to go to number one in the UK. Their second album, "The Thrill of It All", followed in 2017 and topped the charts in the United Kingdom, Canada, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, and the United States. Its lead single "Too Good at Goodbyes" reached number one in the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand and also reached the top 5 in Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, and the United States.


title: White Squall (film)

text: White Squall is a 1996 American disaster survival film directed by Ridley Scott. It is a coming of age film in which a group of high school and college-aged teenagers sign up for several months of training aboard a sail ship, a brigantine, and travel around half the globe when suddenly they are challenged by a severe storm. The film stars Jeff Bridges in the role of the captain, called "Skipper", his wife, played by Caroline Goodall, and a supporting cast portraying a group of nearly a dozen student sailors.


title: White Squall (film)

text: The film was based on the 1962 book "The Last Voyage of the Albatross" by Charles Gieg Jr. and Felix Sutton.


title: White Squall (film)

text: The film is based on the fate of the brigantine "Albatross", which sank 2 May 1961, allegedly because of a white squall. The film relates the ill-fated school sailing trip led by Dr. Christopher B. Sheldon (Jeff Bridges), whom the boys call "Skipper". He is tough and teaches them discipline. He forms a close connection with all-American Chuck Gieg (Scott Wolf), troubled rich kid Frank Beaumont (Jeremy Sisto), shy Gil Martin (Ryan Phillippe) and bad-boy Dean Preston (Eric Michael Cole). On the first days, it is discovered that Gil suffers from acrophobia and does not even try to rescue Chuck, who nearly chokes to death when he becomes entangled in some rigging after slipping from one of the masts. After Chuck is saved by Skipper Sheldon, Gil is ordered to climb the ropes, which he ultimately cannot do, and is assigned to alternative limited duty while on board.


title: White Squall (film)

text: Frank's snobby attitude causes him to bump heads with most of the boys, especially Dean, while Gil opens up to Chuck about his troubled home life one night in their bunks, which Frank listens to and identifies with as well.


title: White Squall (film)

text: After many misadventures on land and on the boat, the boys begin to take Skipper's teachings seriously and begin acting like real shipmates, with Chuck, Frank, Gil and Dean becoming strong friends.


title: White Squall (film)

text: Eventually, the brigantine puts into shore and the boys take their leave on the island. Frank's wealthy father and mother give him a surprise visit while the crew is in port. Frank is upset that the visit seems poorly timed by his overbearing parents, and he becomes separated from the boys and their festivities when his parents require him to go out to steak dinner with them. The father and son end up in a fist fight and become further estranged by the visit and the fight. Frank gets drunk and comes to the party and has to be escorted out by Chuck, Gil and Dean.


title: White Squall (film)

text: After a night of festivities, the crew set out to sea again on the next day. When the brigantine encounters a school of dolphins, Frank, still angry at his father, vents his fury by shooting one of the dolphins with a harpoon. Skipper demands Frank at least put the animal out of its misery, but he can't bring himself to, so Skipper kills it, then tells Frank he's been expelled from the program and puts him ashore at the next port. The day he leaves, Frank apologizes to Skipper for the incident on the boat and is given a farewell by Gil, who gets the courage to climb up the ropes to ring the bell for Frank, which symbolizes ‘Where we go one, we go all’.


title: White Squall (film)

text: Soon after, while at sea, the brigantine encounters a freakish white squall storm. The vessel is battered by the seas, and the boys try to use what the Skipper has taught them in order to survive the horrific ordeal. Most of them succeed in abandoning the vessel, but Gil, Dean, Skipper's wife, and the cook George Ptacnik, all drown.


title: White Squall (film)

text: When the survivors are rescued and reach land, Skipper is put on trial, with Frank's powerful parents leading the call for his license to be revoked. Eventually, the Skipper refuses to allow anyone else to be blamed for the disaster, and accepts responsibility, but his former students all stand up for him, and Frank turns against his bullying parents to support the Skipper, as all of the boys embrace him. The end credits explain that in reality six people died in total (four students) and dedicates the film to them.


title: White Squall (film)

text: Part of the film was shot using a horizon tank in Malta, with a full-sized mock-up of the ship, the "Eye of the Wind", used to depict the "Albatross" in scenes shot mainly in the Caribbean, on islands such as St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Maurice Jarre was originally scheduled to compose the original score, but was replaced by Hans Zimmer's protégé Jeff Rona. Zimmer was set to replace Jarre but failed to commit due to time difficulties. The song in the end credits is "Valparaiso" by Sting.


title: White Squall (film)

text: On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 57% based on 37 reviews. The site's consensus states: "Though it gets occasionally bogged down by touchy-feely sentiment, "White Squall" benefits greatly from Jeff Bridges' assured lead performance and Ridley Scott's visceral, exciting direction". "White Squall", like Scott's previous film, "", was a box office disappointment.


title: White Squall (film)

text: Roger Ebert gave it three stars. In his review he said "I enjoyed the movie for the sheer physical exuberance of its adventure."


title: White Squall (film)

text: Decades after "White Squall"s release, believers in the QAnon conspiracy theory have developed an affinity for the film because its original trailer emphasizes several phrases ("Where we go one, we go all," "Anonymous," and "The calm before the storm") which feature prominently in the conspiracy's lore.


title: White Squall (film)

text: Due to the indie nature of "White Squall", it has received very patchy releases over the years, through various locally distributed media companies. When the film was first issued on home entertainment formats, VHS was the current standard. Soon after DVD began to gain popularity and "White Squall" was issued, in North America, via Largo Entertainment, and in the UK and Europe through BMG DVD.


title: White Squall (film)

text: For Blu-ray releases "White Squall" has been issued as Region-Locked Region 2 in mainlane Europe only, Region 4 in Australia and New Zealand and Region 1 via Kino Lorber in America. A UK pressing has never been available.


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: Reba Sabrina Hinojos (born September 16, 1984), known professionally as Sabrina Bryan, is an American dancer, choreographer, actress and singer. She was best known as a member of the girl group The Cheetah Girls, and starred in the Disney Channel Original Movie of the same name and its sequels, "The Cheetah Girls 2" and "". Before she appeared on television, Bryan was a dancer, and trained at Hart Academy of Dance, located in La Habra, California.


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: In 2003, Bryan starred as Dorinda "Do" Thomas in the Disney Channel Original Movie "The Cheetah Girls", a musical comedy based on the bestselling series of young adult books of the same name by Deborah Gregory. The film depicts four best friends (Raven-Symoné, Adrienne Bailon, Kiely Williams, and Bryan) who form a pop group in their first year of high school for a talent show and reach unexpected success. Prior to "The Cheetah Girls", two of Bryan's castmates Bailon and Williams were members of R&B girl group 3LW. "The Cheetah Girls" premiered on August 15, 2003, to 6.5 million viewers, a huge ratings success.


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: Due to the popularity of the film, Bryan and her other bandmates achieved mainstream pop music success as members of the official Cheetah Girls group. The movie's soundtrack reached No. 33 on the Billboard 200 and was certified double-platinum, selling more than 2 million copies in the United States alone. It is one of the best selling albums from Walt Disney Records, alongside the soundtrack to "High School Musical". In November 2005, the group released their Christmas album "Cheetah-licious Christmas" and toured the US on their Cheetah-licious Christmas Tour.


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: "The Cheetah Girls 2" premiered on the Disney Channel on August 25, 2006. Its premiere received the highest ratings of all Disney Channel Movies at its time, bringing in a total of over 8.1 million viewers, beating both the premiere ratings of "High School Musical" (7.7 million) and the previous highest rated DCOM record holder, "Cadet Kelly" (7.8 million). The film would also become the highest rated "Cheetah Girls" movie in the trilogy. The sequel's plot followed the Cheetah Girls as they become largely successful and take a tour of Spain. The film's soundtrack was released on August 15, 2006. It debuted at No. 5 on the "Billboard" 200, and has moved over 1.4 million copies to date, achieving platinum status.


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: After the release of "Cheetah Girls 2", Bryan, along with her fellow Cheetah Girls, toured the United States on their "The Party's Just Begun Tour" from September 2006 to March 2007. While touring, The Cheetah Girls began work on their official debut studio album. Bryan was interviewed by "Billboard" magazine, where she stated that the group was eager to showcase a "more mature" sound to gather an audience of older fans, while still keeping the lyrics clean for the younger fanbase as well. Williams was quoted as saying that the band members co-produced and co-wrote a "good portion" of the album. On September 25, 2007, TCG was released by Hollywood Records, with a debut of No. 44 on the "Billboard" 200 albums chart. It was the first album by the group not to be released by "Walt Disney Records". 126,000 copies have been sold to date.


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: The third and final part of the franchise, "", premiered on August 22, 2008, the only release to not feature Raven Symoné. The film revolves around the three remaining Cheetah Girls visiting India to appear in a Bollywood musical. The movie premiered to over 6.2 million viewers, and reached 7 million viewers in its final half-hour. "One World"'s was released three days prior to the film's release, on August 19, 2008. It peaked at No. 13 on the "Billboard 200". The Cheetah Girls kicked off their One World Tour on October 8, 2008 in Corpus Christi, Texas, and concluded on December 21, 2008 in San Diego, California.


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: In early 2009, The Cheetah Girls officially announced that they had disbanded, in favor of pursuing solo projects.


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: Bryan and former Cheetah Girl bandmate and close friend Kiely Williams continued their creative collaboration with the development of a web series talk show, "Dinner with Friends". The first episode premiered on July 1, 2011 on YouTube. The series ran for nine episodes, concluding on August 28, 2011.


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: Bryan has acted in several TV shows, with notable guest appearances in several episodes of the soap opera "The Bold and the Beautiful". She also appeared in two series pilots, "King's Pawn" and "Driving Me Crazy", neither of which made it to air. She then had guest appearances in shows like "The Geena Davis Show" and "The Jersey". She also appeared in the TV series, "Grounded For Life", before her rise to stardom in "The Cheetah Girls". She had a small supporting role as Mrs. Murray in the 2008 straight-to-DVD film "Mostly Ghostly", and stars in the comedy film "Help Me, Help You" (formerly titled "If It Ain't Broke, Break It"). Sabrina is the voice of Pamela Hamster in the animated Disney channel series "Fish Hooks" appearing in two episodes "Hooray for Hamsterwood" and "Pamela Hamster Returns".


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: Since, Kiely Williams and Sabrina Bryan will both co-star on the web series "Dinner With Friends", "March Moms", and "Bad Sex With Good People".


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: Sabrina competed in the 5th season of "Dancing with the Stars". Sabrina and her professional dancing partner, Mark Ballas, received a score of 26 out of 30, at the time the highest score earned in the first week by any contestant. On week 4 of the show, they set another record by receiving a 30/30 from the judges for their paso doble, making her the first contestant to have received a perfect score that early in the show's history. Bryan led all contenders in judges' scoring in weeks 1, 3, and 4.


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: Bryan received her lowest score, a 25 for a foxtrot, during week 6, in which she also performed a rock 'n' roll routine with the other contestants. That week, she was voted off. The announcement was met by shock and tears from the show's judges, contestants and live audience, since she and Ballas were favored by many to win the competition. An AOL poll voted their elimination "2007's most shocking TV moment". The next week, the remaining dancers and celebrities showed their continued support and affection for Bryan by donning her signature cheetah paw-print tattoo. For the penultimate week, Bryan and Ballas were invited back to the show to perform, another first for any couple as previously non-competition dances had only been performed by pro dancers. For the 100th show, their Paso Doble was chosen as number 9 on the top 10 dances of the first five seasons. Bryan and Ballas were the only couple in the top 10 that did not make it to the finals.


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: In 2012, Bryan was chosen by the public to compete on the 15th season of the show as one of the All-Stars contestants. She was partnered with Louis Van Amstel. She was eliminated sixth from the show, despite receiving a perfect 30 for her Rumba and topping the leaderboard for two consecutive weeks. Coincidentally, she was eliminated on October 30, 2012, five years to the day she was voted off the first time and in the sixth week.


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: She was featured in the Soft Scrub Dancing with the Stars Live Tour. She danced with Derek Hough (while Mark was injured), then with Mark, until her last show on January 13, 2008, when she departed for India to film "".


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: She was one of the featured celebrity dancers in the Live Dancing with the Stars Las Vegas show, running April 14 through August 5, 2012 at the Tropicana Resort and Casino theater.


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: She has been a celebrity correspondent for the behind-the-scenes look at season 8 of "Dancing with the Stars" for E! News, and TV Guide show "Reality Chat". For season 9 of "Dancing with the Stars", she co-hosted TV Guide show "Reality Chat" and hosted backstage at "Dancing with the Stars" on abc.com. Bryan was asked back to co-host backstage at "Dancing with the Stars" for the 10th through 12th seasons. She has interviewed season 10 winner of the series Nicole Scherzinger, country singer Reba McEntire, Evan Lysacek, Erin Andrews, Kate Gosselin, and many more.


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: In 2008, it was announced that Bryan would be partnering with Mission Foods as the spokesperson for the Healthy Kids Challenge. One of Bryan's many roles is to provide information to help educate kids on easy ways to stay healthy through nutrition and keeping active.


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: Bryan released a DVD workout entitled "Byou" in December 2005. The workout is especially geared towards young girls with a tagline that reads ""Be Happy, Be Healthy – BYOU!"". More than a quarter million DVDs have been sold. A soundtrack to the DVD was also released which included the song "Byou", performed by Bryan, as well as other songs by her and other artists. The song "Byou" was also featured on the "Radio Disney: Move It!" CD which was released in 2006. Bryan released "Byou 2", on January 13, 2009. "Byou 2" features one exclusive track by Bryan called "C'mon".


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: Bryan teamed up with popular author Julia DeVillers to write the book "Princess of Gossip", the story of an ordinary girl with an extraordinary secret. "Princess of Gossip" was released on October 8, 2008. It is currently being considered for a possible movie.


title: Sabrina Bryan

text: In April 2017, Bryan became engaged to strategic accounts manager Jordan Lundberg after six years of dating. They were married on October 6, 2018. In March 2020, they announced that they were expecting their first child, a girl due in September. On August 31, 2020, she gave birth to a daughter.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: DeSoto (sometimes De Soto) was an American automobile marque that was manufactured and marketed by the DeSoto division of Chrysler Corporation from 1928 to the 1961 model year. More than two million passenger cars and trucks bore the DeSoto brand in North American markets during its existence.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: In Auburn, Indiana, the de Soto Motor Car Company was created by L.M. Field, Hayes Fry and Glenn Fry of Iowa City, Iowa, and V.H. Van Sickle and H.J. Clark of Des Moines, Iowa in November 1912, and was a subsidiary of the Zimmerman Manufacturing Company of Auburn who had previously started in 1908 until 1915 at 440 North Indiana Avenue. The Zimmerman Manufacturing Company was founded in 1886 as a manufacturer of horse buggies in Auburn, Indiana. It entered automobile production in 1908 with a line of high wheel automobiles and 1912-1916 with light high wheel trucks, but switched to conventional cars and trucks around the time it was bought by the Auburn Automobile Company. Advertisements listed the 1910 Zimmerman Z-35 at $650 to $1,500 ($ to $ in dollars ).


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: The de Soto Company was started with US$20,000 ($ in dollars ) and produced two models. The de Soto Six was a rebadged version of the Zimmerman and was listed at US$2,185 ($ in dollars ) which was more expensive than the Zimmerman on which it was based. It offered electric lights and a compressed air engine starter, which was optional and a credit of US$100 ($ in dollars ) if the customer objected. In 1914, the de Soto Six was joined with a two-cylinder cyclecar where it only accommodated two passengers that sat in tandem, or the driver in front and the passenger behind, and was listed at US$385 ($ in dollars ). There were plans to move manufacturing to Fort Wayne in 1915 and rename the company as Motorette, but when there were deaths in the Zimmerman family, the company was bought by Auburn Automobile Company.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: The DeSoto make was founded by Walter Chrysler on August 4, 1928, to compete with Pontiac, Studebaker, Hudson and Willys in the mid-price class. Introduced for the 1929 model year, DeSoto served as a lower-priced version of Chrysler products, with Dodge positioned above DeSoto, while Plymouth was added as the entry-level product of the Chrysler hierarchy in 1928.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: The marque was named after the Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto, who led the first European expedition deep into the territory of the modern-day United States (Florida, Georgia and Alabama) and was the first documented European to have crossed the Mississippi River. The DeSoto logo featured a stylized image of the explorer.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: In 1929 a total of 81,065 single-model DeSoto Sixes were produced, a first-year record in the U.S. until eclipsed by the 1960 Ford Falcon. However, shortly after the DeSoto was introduced, Chrysler completed its purchase of Dodge Brothers, giving the company two mid-priced makes. Initially, the two-make strategy was relatively successful, as Chrysler was hoping to benefit from the market reputation Dodge had when it was run by Horace Elgin Dodge and John Francis Dodge, the Dodge Brothers, with DeSoto priced below Dodge models. Despite the economic times, DeSoto sales were relatively healthy, equaling Dodge at around 25,000 units in 1932.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: In 1933, Chrysler reversed the market positions of the two marques in hopes of boosting Dodge sales, ranking DeSoto above Dodge. As a result, the DeSoto received Chrysler's streamlined 1934 Airflow bodies, but on a shorter wheelbase; the design proved unpopular with consumers. Unlike Chrysler, which still had more traditional models on which to fall back, DeSoto was hobbled by the Airflow design until its 1935 Airstream arrived.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: Aside from its Airflow models, DeSoto's 1942 model is probably its second-most memorable model from its early years, when the cars were fitted with powered pop-up headlights, a first for a North American mass-production vehicle. (The Cord 810 introduced dashboard hand-cranked hidden headlamps in the 1936 model year.) DeSoto marketed the feature as "Air-Foil" lights ("Out of Sight Except at Night").


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: After wartime restrictions on automotive production were ended, DeSoto returned to civilian car production when it reissued its 1942 models as 1946 models, but without the hidden-headlight feature, and with fender contours extending into the doors, like other Chrysler products of the immediate postwar period.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: Until 1952, DeSoto used the Deluxe and Custom model designations. In 1952, DeSoto added the Firedome with its 276-cid V-8 Hemi engine. However, in 1953, DeSoto dropped the Deluxe and Custom names and designated its six-cylinder cars the Powermaster and its V-8 car remained the Firedome. Initially, the DeSoto "Fire Dome" Hemi engine was installed in the French luxury performance Facel Vega.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: At its height, DeSoto's more popular models included the Firesweep, Firedome and Fireflite. The DeSoto Adventurer, introduced for 1956 as a high-performance hard-top coupe (similar to Chrysler's 300), became a full-range model in 1960.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: In 1955, along with all Chrysler models, DeSotos were redesigned with Virgil Exner's "Forward Look." DeSotos sold well through the 1956 model year. That year, for the first and only time in the marque's history, it served as pace car at the Indianapolis 500. For the 1956 update, Exner gave the DeSoto soaring tailfins fitted with triple taillights, and consumers responded by buying in record numbers.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: The 1957 had a well-integrated design, with two variations: the smaller Firesweep body placed on the concurrent Dodge 122-inch wheelbase chassis with Dodge front fenders and the Firedome and Fireflite (and its halo model Adventurer sub-series), based on the larger 126-inch wheelbase chassis shared with Chrysler. As was conventional in the era, subsequent years within the typical three-year model block were distinguished by trim, bumper and other low-cost modifications, typically by adding bulk to bumpers and grilles, taillight changes, color choices, instrumentation and interior design changes and often additional external trim.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: The 1958 economic downturn hurt sales of mid-priced makes across the board, and DeSoto sales were 60% lower than those of 1957 in what would be DeSoto's worst year since 1938. Also, Ford Motor Company had introduced new mid-price competitors for the 1958 model year with the Edsel brand. The sales slide continued for 1959 and 1960 (down 40% from the already-low 1959 figures), and rumors began to circulate that DeSoto was soon to be discontinued.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: By the time the 1961 DeSoto was introduced in the fall of 1960, rumors were widespread that Chrysler was moving toward terminating the brand, fueled by a reduction in model offerings for the 1960 model year. The introduction of the lower-priced Newport to the upscale Chrysler brand no doubt hastened the decision to end production of the DeSoto, which was very similar in size, styling, price and standard features.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: For 1961, DeSoto lost its series designations entirely, in a move reminiscent of Packard's final lineup. And, as with the final Packards, the final DeSoto was of questionable design merit. Again based on the shorter Chrysler Windsor wheelbase, the DeSoto featured a two-tiered grille (each tier with a different texture) and revised taillights. Only a two-door hardtop and a four-door hardtop were offered. The cars were trimmed similarly to the 1960 Fireflite.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: The final decision to discontinue DeSoto was announced on November 18, 1960, just 47 days after the 1961 models were introduced. At the time, Chrysler warehouses contained several million dollars in 1961 DeSoto parts, so the company ramped up production in order to use up the stock. The last DeSoto rolled off the line on November 30. Chrysler and Plymouth dealers, which had been forced to take possession of DeSotos under the terms of their franchise agreements, received no compensation from Chrysler for their unsold DeSotos at the time of the formal announcement. Making matters worse, Chrysler continued to ship the cars through December, many of which were sold at a loss by dealers eager to be rid of them. After the parts stock was exhausted, a few outstanding customer orders were filled with Chrysler Windsors.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: Despite being a successful mid-priced line for Chrysler Corporation for most of its life, DeSoto's failure was attributable to a combination of corporate mistakes and external factors beyond Chrysler's control. The market segment DeSoto was positioned in was already filled with brands made by rivals Ford and General Motors. Compounding this, in 1961 Chrysler brought out its new entry-level Newport model - an upper-tier DeSoto competitor - at the same time it killed those models off. By 1961 the DeSoto brand had been pushed to the brink.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: The 1958 recession seriously affected demand for mid-priced automobile makes. DeSoto sales were particularly affected, and sales failed to recover in 1959 and 1960. With falling sales, the 1959 and 1960 models were very similar to the concurrent Chryslers. Moreover, rumors that DeSoto would soon be discontinued did not help sales.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: Chrysler's dealer network also had an effect on the termination of the DeSoto brand. Following World War II, Chrysler had a large number of dealers that carried two or more Chrysler makes, with DeSoto-Plymouth and Chrysler–Plymouth relationships being the most common. However, as Chrysler attempted to spin Plymouth off into standalone dealerships, existing dealers typically chose to become higher-volume Plymouth dealerships rather than taking on the slower-selling DeSoto brand, leaving the marque with a weakened dealer network and fewer outlets selling its cars. DeSoto's failure to adjust to changing market trends, evidenced by its lack of a new compact car model in 1960 as GM, Ford and DeSoto's siblings Dodge and Plymouth had done, also hastened its demise.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: Chrysler's brand management during the 1950s pitted each of its five marques (Plymouth, Dodge, DeSoto, Chrysler and Imperial) against one another, causing the greatest damage to DeSoto. Rather than managing the market relationship to specific price points for particular consumers, as General Motors had done successfully, Chrysler allowed its divisions to develop products targeting markets covered by their own sister divisions. Dodge was most successful when it introduced the lower-priced Dodge Dart in 1960. The Dart was advertised in comparison to the "C" car, the "F" car and the "P" car (Chevrolet, Ford, and Plymouth, respectively). While sales of the Dart increased in 1960, they did so at the expense of Plymouth. Traditionally one of the three lower-priced brands, Plymouth fell out of third place, to regain it only twice (1971 and 1974) before its own demise in 2001.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: Dodge moved upmarket with the Custom Royal in the mid-1950s, which cut into and eroded DeSoto's traditional market segment. The introduction of the 1957 DeSoto Firesweep, a model that used the Dodge engine, chassis, front fenders and hood, pushed DeSoto into direct competition with the Custom Royal. The Firesweep sold well, but at the expense of the higher-priced Firedome and Fireflite models. In an era of strong make identification, when DeSoto began to lose any distinctive styling, trouble lay ahead.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: Compounding this, when Chrysler marketing showed that consumers were likelier to buy an entry-level Chrysler than a DeSoto, Chrysler introduced the Newport as a 1961 model, selling more than 45,000 units in its first year. At less than $3,000, the Newport covered the same price range as the 1961 DeSoto, which had sold 3,034 units total. Thus the DeSoto was dropped and replaced by the Newport. In 1962, Dodge also introduced its own DeSoto replacement, the large DeSoto-sized Dodge Custom 880. With the introduction of the Newport and the Custom 880, the price gap caused by the demise of DeSoto was effectively closed.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: Going in the opposite direction, Chrysler pushed into the luxury market by marketing the luxury Imperial as a separate make and division starting in 1955. To make room for the new make, Chrysler began expanding downward, while Dodge began expanding upward, with larger and more luxurious models. Both Chrysler and Dodge began eating into DeSoto's already small market, and Chrysler's upper management did nothing to stop them.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: Chrysler Corporation introduced the DeSoto brand of trucks in 1937 to provide a greater number of sales outlets overseas for the American-built Dodge and Fargo commercial vehicles. The DeSoto brand was badge-engineered sporadically on Dodge trucks made in Argentina by its Chrysler local subsidiary (for the D-100 and the D-400 since 1960 to 1965), Australia, Spain, Turkey and the United Kingdom.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: Chrysler ended its truck operations in international markets in 1970. However, both the DeSoto and Fargo brands continued to be used on trucks made by Askam in Turkey. In 1978, Chrysler sold its share in the Askam venture to its Turkish partners.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: DeSoto sponsored the popular television game show "You Bet Your Life" from 1950 through 1958, in which host Groucho Marx promoted the product by urging viewers to visit a DeSoto dealer with the phrases "Tell 'em Groucho sent you" and "Drive a DeSoto before you decide." A DeSoto logo was visible in the background during the show.


title: DeSoto (automobile)

text: The Cole Porter song "It's De-Lovely" was used, with Porter's permission, in DeSoto advertising between 1955 and 1957. The song lyrics were revised to "It's delovely, it's dynamic, it's DeSoto."


title: Jenny Lee Lindberg

text: Jennifer Lee Lindberg (born July 30, 1981) is an American musician, singer-songwriter and record producer, best known as the bassist of the indie rock band Warpaint. In 2015, Lindberg released her first solo album, "Right On!", under the name "Jennylee".


title: Jenny Lee Lindberg

text: Lindberg was born on July 30, 1981 in Elko, Nevada. She is the daughter of Sherry Sossamon, a nurse, and Todd Lindberg. She is the sister of actress and musician Shannyn Sossamon. Following their parents' divorce when Lindberg was two, she and her sister were raised by their mother, who remarried to Randy Goldman. Her maternal grandmother is of Hawaiian and Filipino descent, while the rest of her ancestry is English, German, Dutch, French and Irish. Raised in Reno, Nevada, Lindberg relocated to Los Angeles, California as an adult.


title: Jenny Lee Lindberg

text: She was formerly married to Chris Cunningham, best known for directing the music videos for Aphex Twin's "Come to Daddy" and "Windowlicker" singles. They divorced in 2016.


title: Jenny Lee Lindberg

text: Lindberg had a "chance encounter" with Emily Kokal during one of Sossamon's DJ sets, soon after relocating to Los Angeles, and formed Warpaint with her, Theresa Wayman and Sossamon on Valentine's Day 2004. After rehearsing and composing original material alone for 18 months, Warpaint began performing regularly in Los Angeles and self-released their debut extended play, "Exquisite Corpse", in August 2008.


title: Jenny Lee Lindberg

text: Warpaint's debut studio album, "The Fool", was released in October 2010 on Rough Trade Records following a number of lineup changes, including the recruitment of drummer Stella Mozgawa. The album was well received by critics and peaked at No. 176 on the "Billboard" 200. The band's second eponymous studio album was released in January 2014, and featured Lindberg performing vocals on two tracks: "Disco//very" and "CC". Receiving favorable reviews and charting in several countries, "Warpaint" reached the top 10 on the UK Albums Chart, Irish Independent Albums Chart, and "Billboard"s Alternative, Independent and Tastemaker album charts.


title: Jenny Lee Lindberg

text: Lindberg's debut solo studio album, "Right On!", was released on December 11, 2015 on Rough Trade; she was credited as "Jennylee". Featuring elements of new wave and gothic rock, the album was produced by Lindberg with Norm Block and featured Warpaint's Mozgawa on drums.


title: Jenny Lee Lindberg

text: Lindberg has collaborated with other musicians during her career. In 2009, she played bass on Brian Blades "Mama Rosa" (2009). She later played bass on "Goodbye Lovers & Friends", a song from Boom Bips "Zig Zaj" (2011), and "The Madness of Clouds", a song from Viv Albertines "The Vermilion Border" (2013). Lindberg worked with Jimmy Giannopoulos of Lolawolf on the project CRW$HD. In 2020 she played bass on Phoebe Bridgers's album Punisher. In 2021 as part of her 'Singles Club' project, Lindberg collaborated with Depeche Mode frontman Dave Gahan on the single "Stop Speaking".


title: Jenny Lee Lindberg

text: When she was young, Lindberg listened to Tears for Fears, which influenced her later music. She has also cited among her influences Jah Wobble's bass playing with PiL in her "list of all-time greats". She named Siouxsie Sioux of Siouxsie and the Banshees as one of her favorite voices of all time, saying, "I have a lot of respect for Siouxsie and she's given me a lot of inspiration over the years". Sylvester, Carly Simon, Art of Noise, Kraftwerk, Aphex Twin and Depeche Mode were other acts that inspired her.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca (; 1488/90/92 after 19 May 1559) was a Spanish explorer of the New World, and one of four survivors of the 1527 Narváez expedition. During eight years of traveling across what is now the US Southwest, he became a trader and faith healer to various Native American tribes before reconnecting with Spanish civilization in Mexico in 1536. After returning to Spain in 1537, he wrote an account, first published in 1542 as "La relación y comentarios" ("The Account and Commentaries"), which in later editions was retitled "Naufragios y comentarios" ("Shipwrecks and Commentaries"). Cabeza de Vaca is sometimes considered a proto-anthropologist for his detailed accounts of the many tribes of Native Americans that he encountered.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: In 1540, Cabeza de Vaca was appointed "adelantado" of what is now Paraguay, where he was governor and captain general of New Andalusia. He worked to build up the population of Buenos Aires but, charged with poor administration, he was arrested in 1544 and then transported to Spain for trial in 1545. Although his sentence was eventually commuted, he never returned to the America. He introduced the story of the India Juliana in his accounts.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca was born around 1490 in the Castilian town of Jerez de la Frontera, Cádiz. His father, Francisco de Vera was an , a rank of minor Spanish nobility. His mother was Teresa Cabeza de Vaca, also from an "hidalgo" family. He was named after his mother's great-grandfather, Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, but the real influence in his life was his paternal grandfather, Pedro de Vera.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Pedro de Vera was described by contemporaries as an expert in fighting battles on land and sea. He led raids against the Moors in North Africa and in 1483 completed the conquest of Grand Canaria, one of the major islands of the Canaries. He was appointed military governor of the island and used his position to capture Canary natives (Guanches) and sell them as slaves in Spain. When natives on the neighboring island of Gomera revolted, he brutally put down the rebellion, killing males over the age of fifteen and selling the women and children into slavery. He was heavily fined for his actions and recalled to Castile in 1490. Cabeza de Vaca would have heard of these exploits growing up; many years later he named a province in South America, Vera, in honor of his grandfather.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Cabeza de Vaca's father and grandfather died around 1506 and his mother died in 1509, leaving behind a modest estate for her seven children. His younger siblings went to live with their aunt but Álvar had already entered the service of Juan Alfonso Pérez de Guzmán, 3rd Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1503. The house of Medina Sidonia was one of the most powerful in Castile and was a dominant force in Seville, the commercial center of Spain's growing overseas empire. Cabeza de Vaca served as a page and then chamberlain for the duke. In 1511 he traveled to Italy to fight against the French in the Italian Wars. In February 1512 he took part in the Battle of Ravenna where the Spanish were badly defeated and Cabeza de Vaca was wounded. He later served as the royal standard-bearer in Gaeta, near Naples.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: In 1513 he returned to Spain, still in the service of Medina Sidonia. At some point he married María Marmolejo, member of a prominent "converso" family in Seville. When the Revolt of the Comuneros broke out in 1520 against the new Spanish king, Charles V, Cabeza de Vaca fought alongside the duke on behalf of the crown. When the "comuneros" tried unsuccessfully to seize control in Seville in September, the duke put him in charge of defending one of the city gates; in December he fought to liberate the city of Tordesillas; and on 23 April 1521 he participated in the defeat of the "comuneros" at the battle of Villalar. Later in 1521 when the French king, Francis I, invaded Navarre, Cabeza de Vaca fought against them in the battle of Puente de la Reina.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: In 1527, Cabeza de Vaca appeared at the royal court in Valladolid and received an appointment as royal treasurer for an expedition to be led by conquistador Pánfilo de Narváez to explore and conquer La Florida, a portion of North America roughly comprising today's southeastern United States. The reasons for his selection are not known but his history of loyal military service to the crown was certainly a critical qualification. He also had a relative, Luis Cabeza de Vaca, serving on the all-important Council of the Indies.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: On 11 December 1526, Charles V commissioned Pánfilo de Narváez to explore, conquer and settle a portion of North America called "La Florida", a territory vaguely described as stretching along the Gulf coast from Mexico to Florida. Cabeza de Vaca was named treasurer by royal appointment, a position that put him second in command and made him chiefly responsible to look after the emperor's interests during the expedition. He was promised an annual salary of 130.000 "maravedies", payable upon his return. Their fleet of five vessels set sail from Spain on 17 June 1527, carrying 600 soldiers and colonists, including a few married women and African slaves.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: When they stopped in Hispaniola for supplies, Narváez lost approximately 150 of his men, who chose to stay behind rather than continue with the expedition. They spent forty-five days on the island re-provisioning the fleet and constructing a sixth ship. They were especially anxious to acquire horses, but there was a shortage of them in Hispaniola, so the expedition continued to Cuba, where they hoped to recruit more men and buy horses. Narváez anchored at Santiago de Cuba and ordered Cabeza de Vaca to take two ships and proceed further up the coast to pick up additional provisions at Trinidad. In October, while Cabeza de Vaca was ashore negotiating for supplies, a hurricane hit the coast, resulting in the destruction of both ships and the loss of sixty men and twenty horses. Narváez arrived in early November to pick up the survivors. Fearful of encountering another storm, Narváez decided to overwinter in Cuba. The four remaining ships anchored in the Bay of Jagua under the command of Cabeza de Vaca.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: While Cabeza de Vaca watched over the ships and crew, Narváez remained on shore to find replacements for the lost ships and hire more men. In February 1528, he returned to the Bay of Jagua with one additional ship and another one waiting for them in Havana. They resumed their expedition to "La Florida" with the intention of first stopping in Havana to pick up the final ship and more supplies. Before reaching Havana however, they were hit by another storm and blown off course into the Gulf of Mexico. Short of supplies and fresh water, they decided to push on toward Florida rather than try to get back to Cuba. In April they sighted land, anchored and went ashore. Although the location of their landing has been much debated, more recent opinion leans toward the vicinity of Tampa Bay.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: During a quick reconnaissance of the area, they came upon a few small villages of Indians belonging to the Safety Harbor culture. Communicating with them through sign language, the Spanish were informed that a community or region called Apalachee lay to the north and was rich with food and gold. Cabeza de Vaca later noted that whenever Narváez expressed interest in something, the Indians assured him it could be found in great quantities at Apalachee. As a result, Narváez was determined to lead a force north into the interior to find this rich country.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Despite strong objections from Cabeza de Vaca, Narváez decided to split his expedition. He would lead some 300 men and 42 horses overland to Apalachee while the remaining crew, including the women, would sail ahead to find a suitable harbor and wait their return. Cabeza de Vaca protested that dividing their forces would put both groups in danger without any certainty that they would be able to find each other again. He advised that everyone remain with the ships until a suitable harbor could be found to serve as their base camp. Narváez ignored his advice and suggested that if Cabeza de Vaca was afraid, he should stay with the ships. Cabeza de Vaca rejected the suggestion of cowardice and participated in the overland march. He later wrote, "I preferred risking my life to placing my honor in jeopardy."


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Narváez and his men set off overland in early May, 1528. They marched north for 15 days without seeing any Indians or native settlements. Then, as they were attempting to cross a swift-flowing river (probably the Withlacoochee), they were confronted by a group of 200 Indians. The encounter quickly turned into a fight and the Indians were driven off. Nearby, the Spaniards found a village where they stayed for several days and helped themselves to the stored maize. Cabeza de Vaca pleaded with Narváez to send a scouting expedition downriver in hopes of finding a bay where their ships might be waiting. Narváez relented and ordered Cabeza de Vaca to lead a reconnaissance. After two attempts to find their way through the swamps and heavy forest, their search yielded no ships or suitable harbor.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Narváez still hoped to find riches at Apalachee, so the expedition pressed forward using captive Indians as guides. Seven weeks after leaving their ships, they came upon the largest village they had found so far, a collection of forty houses. Their guides assured them this was a major Apalachee settlement, so Narváez ordered Cabeza de Vaca to lead about fifty soldiers to seize the village. There was no resistance to their attack and Cabeza de Vaca found only women and children whom he rounded up to serve as hostages. A thorough search of the houses found plenty of food but none of the hoped for gold and gems.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Apalachee had no gold but had only corn, but the explorers were told a village known as Aute, about 5 or 9 days away, was rich. They pushed on through the swamps, harassed by the Native Americans. A few Spanish men were killed and more wounded. When they arrived in Aute, they found that the inhabitants had burned down the village and left. But the fields had not been harvested, so at least the Spanish scavenged food there. After several months of fighting native inhabitants through wilderness and swamp, the party decided to abandon the interior and try to reach Pánuco.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Slaughtering and eating their remaining horses, they gathered the stirrups, spurs, horseshoes and other metal items. They fashioned a bellows from deer hide to make a fire hot enough to forge tools and nails. They used these to make five primitive boats in hopes of reaching Mexico. The small flotilla launched on 22 September 1528, carrying the 242 survivors. Cabeza de Vaca commanded one of the vessels, each of which held approximately 50 men. Depleted of food and water, they followed the coast westward. But when they reached the mouth of the Mississippi River, the powerful current swept them out into the Gulf, where the five rafts were separated by a hurricane. Some lives were lost forever, including that of Narváez.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: In November 1528, two crafts with about 40 survivors each, including Cabeza de Vaca, wrecked on or near Galveston Island (now part of Texas). Of the 80 or so survivors, only 15 lived past that winter. The explorers called the island Malhado (“Ill fate” in Spanish), or the Island of Doom. They tried to repair the rafts, using what remained of their own clothes as oakum to plug holes, but they lost the rafts to a large wave.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: As the number of survivors dwindled rapidly, they were enslaved for four years by various American Indian nomadic tribes of the upper Gulf Coast. The tribes to which Cabeza de Vaca was enslaved included the Hans and the Capoques, and tribes later called the Karankawa and Coahuiltecan. Only four men managed to escape: Cabeza de Vaca, Andrés Dorantes de Carranza, Alonso del Castillo Maldonado, and an African slave of Dorantes, Estevanico.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Traveling mostly with this small group, Cabeza de Vaca walked generally west through what is now the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the northeastern Mexican states of Tamaulipas, Nuevo León and Coahuila, and possibly smaller portions of New Mexico and Arizona. He traveled on foot through the then-colonized territories of Texas and the Gulf Coast, but encountered no other Europeans. He continued through Coahuila and Nueva Vizcaya (present-day states of Chihuahua and Durango); then down the Gulf of California coast to what is now Sinaloa, Mexico, over a period of roughly eight years. Throughout those years, Cabeza de Vaca and the other men adapted to the lives of the indigenous people they stayed with, whom he later described as Roots People, the Fish and Blackberry People, or the Fig People, depending on their principal foods.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: During his wanderings, passing from tribe to tribe, Cabeza de Vaca later reported that he developed sympathies for the indigenous peoples. He became a trader and a healer, which gave him some freedom to travel among the tribes. His group attracted numerous native followers, who regarded them as "children of the sun", endowed with the power to heal and destroy. As Cabeza de Vaca grew healthier, he decided that he would make his way to Pánuco, supporting himself through trading.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: After finally reaching the colonized lands of New Spain, where he first encountered fellow Spaniards near modern-day Culiacán, Cabeza de Vaca and the three other men reached Mexico City. From there he sailed back to Europe in 1537.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Numerous researchers have tried to trace his route across the Southwest. As he did not begin writing his chronicle until he was back in Spain, he had to rely on memory. He did not have instruments to determine his location; he had to rely on dead reckoning, and was uncertain of his route. Aware that his recollection has numerous errors in chronology and geography, historians have worked to put together pieces of the puzzle to discern his paths.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: In 1540, Cabeza de Vaca was appointed "adelantado" of the Río de la Plata in South America. The colony comprised parts of what is now Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Cabeza de Vaca was assigned to find a usable route from this colony to the colony in Peru, on the other side of the Andes Mountains on the Pacific Coast.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: En route, he disembarked from his fleet at Santa Catarina Island in modern Brazil. With an indigenous force, plus 250 musketeers and 26 horses, he followed native trails discovered by Aleixo Garcia overland to the district's Spanish capital, Asunción, far inland on the great Paraguay River. Cabeza de Vaca is thought to have been the first European to see the Iguaçu Falls.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: In March 1542, Cabeza de Vaca met with Domingo Martínez de Irala and relieved him of his position as governor. The government of Asunción pledged loyalty to Cabeza de Vaca, and Irala was assigned to explore a possible route to Peru. Once Irala returned and reported, Cabeza de Vaca planned his own expedition. He hoped to reach Los Reyes (a base that Irala set up) and push forward into the jungle in search of a route to the gold and silver mines of Peru. The expedition did not go well, and Cabeza de Vaca returned to Asunción.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: During his absence, Irala had stirred up resistance to Cabeza de Vaca's rule and capitalized on political rivalries. Scholars widely agree that Cabeza de Vaca had an unusually sympathetic attitude towards the Native Americans for his time. The elite settlers in modern Argentina, known as "encomenderos", generally did not agree with his enlightened conduct toward the Natives; they wanted to use them for labor. Because he lost elite support, and Buenos Aires was failing as a settlement, not attracting enough residents, Martínez de Irala arrested Cabeza de Vaca in 1544 for poor administration. The former explorer was returned to Spain in 1545 for trial.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Although eventually exonerated, Cabeza de Vaca never returned to South America. He wrote an extensive report on the Río de la Plata colony in South America, strongly criticizing the conduct of Martínez de Irala. The report was bound with his earlier "La Relación" and published under the title "Comentarios" (Commentary). He died in Jerez de la Frontera or Valladolid in an uncertain date, however there are no surviving records of him after May 19, 1559.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: ("The story of Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca") is the account of his experiences with the Narváez expedition and after being wrecked on Galveston Island in November 1528. Cabeza de Vaca and his last three men struggled to survive. They wandered along the Texas coast as prisoners of the Han and Capoque American Indians for two years, while Cabeza de Vaca observed the people, picking up their ways of life and customs. They traveled through the American Southwest and ultimately reached Mexico City, nearly eight years after being wrecked on the island.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: In 1537, Cabeza de Vaca returned to Spain, where he wrote his narratives of the Narváez expedition. These narratives were collected and published in 1542 in Spain. They are now known as "The Relation of Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca." The narrative of Cabeza de Vaca is the “first European book devoted completely to North America.” His detailed account describes the lives of numerous tribes of American Indians of the time. Cabeza de Vaca showed compassion and respect for native peoples, which, together with the great detail he recorded, distinguishes his narrative from others of the period.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Cabeza de Vaca reported on the customs and ways of American Indian life, aware of his status as an early European explorer. He spent eight years with various peoples, including the Capoque, Han, Avavare, and Arbadao. He describes details of the culture of the Malhado people, the Capoque, and Han American Indians, such as their treatment of offspring, their wedding rites, and their main sources of food. Cabeza de Vaca and his three fellow survivors at times served as slaves to the American Indians to survive. Through his observations, Cabeza de Vaca provides insights into 16th-century American Indian life near the present-day Mexico-Texas border.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: For many peoples the accounts of Cabeza de Vaca and Hernando de Soto are the only written records of their existence. By the time of the next European contact, many had vanished, possibly from diseases carried by Cabeza de Vaca and his companions.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: One of Cabeza de Vaca's greatest accomplishments in his journey was bringing peace throughout the land. As the travellers passed from one tribe to the next, warring tribes would immediately make peace and become friendly, so that the natives could receive the party and give them gifts. Cabeza noted in his personal account of the journey that, in this way, "We left the whole country in peace." Cabeza de Vaca saw these events as part of his purpose in America, writing that he believed that "God was guiding us to where we could serve Him."


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Cabeza de Vaca's greatest challenge as an ambassador came when he attempted to bring peace between the conquering Spanish army and the natives. As Cabeza approached the area of Spanish settlement, he and his companions grieved to see the destruction of the native villages and enslavement of the native peoples. The fertile land lay uncultivated and the natives were nearly starving, hiding in the forest, for fear of the Spanish army.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Cabeza de Vaca then encountered Diego de Alcaraz, commander of a slaving expedition of about 20 horsemen, and attempted to negotiate peace between them and the natives. However, as soon as they departed, Alcaraz went back on his word and plundered Cabeza de Vaca's entourage of natives that he had sent back home. Not long afterward, Cabeza de Vaca encountered the chief "alcalde" (Spanish captain of the province), Melchor Díaz. Díaz ordered Cabeza de Vaca to bring the natives back from the forests so that they would resume cultivating the land. Cabeza de Vaca and Díaz invited the natives to convert to Christianity, and the natives did so willingly. Cabeza de Vaca then instructed them to build a large wooden cross in each village, so that Spanish soldiers would pass through the village and not attack it. Soon afterward, Alcaraz's expedition returned and explained to Díaz that they were amazed to find, on their return journey, that not only was the land repopulated, but the natives coming to greet them with crosses in hand and also gave them provisions. Díaz then ordered Alcaraz to do no harm to these natives.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Cabeza de Vaca wrote this narrative to Charles V to “transmit what I saw and heard in the nine years I wandered lost and miserable over many remote lands”. He wanted to convey “not merely a report of positions and distances, flora and fauna, but of the customs of the numerous indigenous people I talked with and dwelt among, as well as any other matters I could hear of or observe”. He took care to present facts, as a full account of what he observed. "The Relation" is the only account of many details concerning the indigenous people whom he encountered. The accuracy of his account has been validated by later reports of others, as well as by the oral traditions of descendants of some of the tribes.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Cabeza's account also served as a petition to the King of Spain to both establish a permanent Christian mission and eventually establish the native tribes as a nation under the governance of Spain. In his reflection Cabeza writes to the king of Spain:


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Cabeza continued to be a strong advocate for the rights of Native American Indians throughout his lifetime.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Cabeza De Vaca identified the following peoples by name in his "La Relación" (1542). The following list shows his names, together with what scholars suggested in 1919 were the likely tribes identified by names used in the 20th century. By that time, tribal identification was also related to more linguistic data.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: In 1555, after a four-year position as Adelantado in Rio de la Plata, Cabeza de Vaca wrote from memory a chronicle of his in South America. It is believed that his secretary at the time, Pero Hernández, transcribed Cabeza de Vaca's account in what is known as "Comentarios". The publication of "Comentarios" was appended to "La relación" as a joint publication in Valladolid, Spain entitled: "Naufragios." At that time, explorers often published their reports of travels in foreign lands.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: In 1906, "Naufragios" was published in a new edition in Madrid, Spain. The introduction says the intent of this edition was to publicize Cabeza de Vaca's observations and experiences to strengthen authentic representations. This has been described as having the objective of portraying Cabeza de Vaca as less aggressive , while trying to authenticate his role as a sympathetic observer of the natives.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Herrera (2011) classifies Cabeza de Vaca's "La Relacion" as the first major contribution to Chicano literature. Scholars have identified five major periods of Chicano literature: Spanish Mexican, Mexican American, Annexation, Chicano Renaissance, and Modern. Cabeza de Vaca is classified as part of the Spanish Mexican period; he recounted eight years of travel and survival in the area of Chicano culture: present-day Texas, New Mexico, and northern Mexico. His account is the first known written description of the American Southwest.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Laila Lalami's novel, "The Moor's Account" (2014), is a fictional memoir of Estevanico, the Moroccan slave who survived the journey and accompanied Cabeza de Vaca through the Southwest. He is considered to be the first black explorer of North America.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Lord Buckley created a monologue "The Gasser" based on Haniel Long's novella. This was first recorded in 1954 and again in 1959.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: His story is noted in the first episode of Ken Burns' "The West", a PBS documentary which first aired in 1996.


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: Russell Persson's "The Way of Florida" (Little Island Press, 2017) is a highly stylized novelization of Cabeza de Vaca's "Relación."


title: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

text: "The Great Journey of Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca" is a work composed between 1981 and 1988 by Colin Matthews.


title: Maha Vikas Aghadi

text: The Maha Vikas Aghadi or Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (English: "Maharashtra Development Front"), abbreviated as MVA, is a state-level political coalition formed after the 2019 Maharashtra Legislative Assembly election under the leadership of Uddhav Thackeray of Shiv Sena (Uddhav faction), Sharad Pawar of the NCP and Sonia Gandhi of the INC, along with the support from the Samajwadi Party, PWPI, Prahar Janshakti Party and several other political parties including Independent MLAs.


title: Maha Vikas Aghadi

text: Uddhav Thackeray was elected as the president of the MVA after a meeting on 26 November 2019. He took oath of the office and secrecy on 28 November 2019 as the 19th Chief Minister of Maharashtra state.


title: Maha Vikas Aghadi

text: The alliance was formed by non-NDA political parties in Maharashtra as a result of 2019 Maharashtra political crisis where the Shiv Sena left the NDA post-polls over differences with the BJP in their preferred candidates for Chief Minister and other important portfolio positions after the 2019 Maharashtra Legislative Assembly election. Sharad Pawar, Sanjay Raut, Ahmed Patel and other leaders across the NCP, INC and Shiv Sena worked to realise a new alliance after Shiv Sena and BJP parted ways and Shiv Sena's lone Union Minister in Modi's cabinet, Arvind Sawant, tendered his resignation.


title: Maha Vikas Aghadi

text: In 2022, during a party meeting, Uddhav Thackeray explained his move to pull out of NDA to join UPA. He said, "We supported the BJP wholeheartedly to enable them to fulfill their national ambitions. The understanding was they will go national while we will lead in Maharashtra. But we were betrayed and attempts were made to destroy us in our home. So we had to hit back". Thackeray accused BJP of dumping its allies according to its political convenience. He said, "BJP doesn't mean Hindutva. I stand by my comment that Shiv Sena had wasted 25 years in alliance with BJP"


title: Maha Vikas Aghadi

text: Given the varied ideologies among the partner parties, there was a plan to form two committees for guidance of the coalition - a co-ordination committee for implementation of common minimum programme and other higher decision making committee that will include party chiefs.


title: Maha Vikas Aghadi

text: Eknath Shinde, a senior Shiv Sena leader, wanted to break the Maha Vikas Aghadi and establish BJP-Shiv Sena coalition again.


title: Maha Vikas Aghadi

text: On 29 June, Uddhav Thackeray resigned from the post of Chief Minister as well as MLC member ahead of the no-confidence motion.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: Anders Fogh Rasmussen (; born 26 January 1953) is a Danish politician who was the 24th Prime Minister of Denmark from November 2001 to April 2009 and the 12th Secretary General of NATO from August 2009 to October 2014. He became CEO of political consultancy Rasmussen Global and founded the Alliance of Democracies Foundation. He serves as a Senior Adviser to Citigroup. He also served as a senior advisor at The Boston Consulting Group.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: Rasmussen was first elected to the Folketing in 1978 and served in various ministerial positions, including Minister of Tax (1987–1992) and Minister of Economic Affairs (1990–1992). In his early career, Rasmussen was a strident critic of the welfare state, writing the classical liberal book "From Social State to Minimal State" in 1993. However, his views moved towards the political centre through the 1990s. He was elected the leader of the conservative-liberal party Venstre in 1998 and headed a centre-right coalition with the Conservative People's Party which took office in November 2001 and won its second and third terms in February 2005 and in November 2007. Rasmussen's government relied on the Danish People's Party for support, keeping with the Danish tradition of minority government.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: His government introduced tougher limits on immigration and a freeze on tax rates ("skattestoppet" in Danish). Certain taxes were lowered, but his coalition partners in the Conservative People's Party repeatedly argued for more tax cuts and a flat tax rate at no higher than 50%. Rasmussen's government implemented an administrative reform reducing the number of municipalities ("kommuner") and replacing the thirteen counties ("amter") with five regions which he referred to as "the biggest reform in thirty years". He authored several books about taxation and government structure.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: He resigned as Prime Minister in April 2009 to become Secretary General of NATO, a military alliance that was expanding into Eastern Europe. He aggressively pushed NATO in new directions that extended far beyond the traditional roles of containing of the USSR and directing the Cold War in Europe. His term ended 30 September 2014.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: He became a private consultant on the international stage. He is a Senior Network Member at the European Leadership Network (ELN).


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: Rasmussen was born in 1953 in Ginnerup, Jutland, Denmark, to farmer Knud Rasmussen and Martha Rasmussen (née Fogh). His surname is Rasmussen, while Fogh, his mother's maiden name, is his middle name and not considered part of his last name. He is correctly referred to as Rasmussen (not Fogh Rasmussen), unless his full name (including his given name) is used. In Danish media and society, he has often been popularly referred to as Fogh Rasmussen, or merely Anders Fogh, when not referred to by his full name, mainly to distinguish him from other prominent politicians in the country with the same family name.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: He matriculated in languages and social studies from Viborg Cathedral School, in 1969–1972. and studied Economics at the University of Aarhus, graduating in 1978. He has been active in politics most of his life and has authored several books about taxation and government structure. He and his wife Anne-Mette (born 1958) married in 1978 and have three children: Henrik Fogh Rasmussen (born 1979), Maria (born 1981) and Christina (born 1984). Rasmussen also has six grandchildren.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: As an amateur cyclist, Rasmussen completed part of the notorious Alpe d'Huez stage of the 2008 Tour de France the day after the professional race took place. His attendance at "Le Tour" was at the invitation of Danish former cyclist Bjarne Riis.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: He is of no relation to either his predecessor Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, nor his successor Lars Løkke Rasmussen as Prime Minister of Denmark.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: He has held positions in government and opposition throughout his career, first winning a seat in the Folketing (Danish parliament) in 1978.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: In general, Rasmussen is in favour of centralisation, privatisation and limiting the size of government.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: Rasmussen wrote the book "From Social State to Minimal State" () in 1993, in which he advocated an extensive reform of the Danish welfare system along classic liberal lines. In particular, he favours lower taxes and less government interference in corporate and individual matters. In 1993 he was awarded the Adam Smith award by the libertarian society Libertas, partly because of this book.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: From 1987 to 1990 he was Minister for Taxation and from 1990 Minister for Economy and Taxation in the Conservative-led Poul Schlüter government.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: In 1992 Rasmussen resigned from his ministerial posts after a report from a commission of inquiry had decided that he had provided the Folketing with inaccurate and incomplete information regarding his decision to postpone payment of several bills from Regnecentralen and Kommunedata from one accounting year to the next. Rasmussen disagreed with the findings of the commission, but faced with the threat of a motion of no confidence, he left his posts voluntarily.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: His Liberal ("Venstre") Party won power in the November 2001 election, defeating the Social Democratic government of Poul Nyrup Rasmussen and enabling him to form his first cabinet. That election marked a dramatic change in Danish politics. It was the first time since 1920 that the Social Democratic Party lost its position as the largest party in the Folketing (parliament), mainly due to a loss of working class votes to Dansk Folkeparti (The Danish People's Party).


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: Following the 2001 election, "Venstre" formed a government in a parliamentary coalition with the Conservative People's Party to form a minority government with the parliamentary support of Dansk Folkeparti. Together these three parties survived both the 2005 election and the 2007 election.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: After becoming Prime Minister, Rasmussen distanced himself from his earlier writings and announced the death of neoliberalism during the national elections of 2005. Commonly regarded to have been inspired by the success of Tony Blair, Rasmussen now seemed more in favour of the theories of Anthony Giddens and his third way. There was talk in Libertas of revoking Fogh Rasmussen's award as a result of this, though this never happened.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: His government enacted tough measures designed to limit the number of immigrants coming to Denmark, specifically as asylum seekers or through arranged marriages. However, his governments depended on the support of Dansk Folkeparti, and it is impossible to draw a clear dividing line between his personal ideology and the required compromises with Dansk Folkeparti.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: After the 2001 elections, Venstre banned all tax increases. Venstre campaigned by claiming that taxes had been growing constantly during the previous eight years under the Social Democrats. While the overall tax burden was more or less unchanged from 1993 until 2001, there was a shift from the taxation of income, both corporate and personal, to a personal consumption (especially through the "ecological taxes" (da. "grønne afgifter")), which gave the average citizen the impression of rising taxes.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: This "tax stop" was criticised by left wing parties, allegedly for being "antisocial" and "only for the rich." Since the tax stop also froze the tax on real property (da. "ejendomsværdiskat", 1%), it was beneficial to homeowners in densely populated regions that had experienced rising real estate values. The property tax was set at a nominal level – not at a relative level. While the rate was one percent when the tax stop was enacted, the rate is much less today when recent increases in property value (+20%/p.a. in large cities) are considered. The Danish Economic Council criticized this as unfairly benefiting current homeowners.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: Even though the total tax burden was marginally higher in 2005 than in 2001, the tax stop was popular among voters. Thus, in January 2005, the Social Democrats announced that they accepted the principle of a tax stop until at least one right-wing party was willing to participate in tax reform.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: The tax stop has, however, been ineffective, judging by Venstre's intentions. Its goal was to halt the growth of public expenditures (and halt the growth of taxes), but even with cuts in public spending (which were considered aggressive by the political left wing), overall spending continued to rise by approximately one percentage point above inflation each year.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: In 2009 a major tax reform was implemented. The overall marginal tax rate was reduced by 7.5%. In the end, the top tax rate (topskatten) was not changed, but the income level at which it applied was raised. This had the effect of removing 350,000 Danes from the top tax bracket. The medium tax rate was eliminated, and the lowest was reduced by 1.5%. Various other tax reforms were enacted such as an increase in the old age pension, incentives for renovation, and various initiatives designed to improve energy efficiency. Finance Minister, Lars Lokke Rasmussen, called it the biggest reduction in the marginal tax rate since the introduction of income tax in 1903. In 2009 tax revenue was 777,375 million Krone. It had grown to 831,172 million in 2011, 901,001 million in 2013, 954,473 million in 2015, and 995,058 million in 2017. It's important to note that from 2011 to 2015 Social Democrat Helle Thorning-Schmidt was the prime minister, however, she passed a tax-reform with support from the liberal-conservative opposition. It raised the top tax threshold, effectively lowering tax rates for high income earners.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: Rasmussen held the rotating presidency of the European Union from July to December 2002, proving his dedication to a pro-EU agenda and the guiding principles of the Ellemann-Jensen doctrine. He pursued this to its logical conclusion by publicly denouncing the Danish collaboration policy during its second World War occupation, the first official apology on behalf of Denmark for this.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: As Prime Minister, Rasmussen strongly supported the 2003 Iraq War. As in most European countries he faced considerable opposition, both in the parliament and in the general population. Subsequent opinion polls suggested the Danish population's opinion was split on the issue. One vocal protester managed to get into the Danish parliament during the period before the war, where he poured red paint on the prime minister while yelling "Du har blod på dine hænder" (literally: "You have blood on your hands"). A member of the Danish parliament for the socialist Red-Green Alliance, Pernille Rosenkrantz-Theil, stated that it was a reaction she might have made under the circumstances, although she later denounced such behaviour. Denmark was one of only five countries to take part in the actual invasion operations (the others being the U.S., UK, Poland and Australia) though the contingent mainly consisted of two minor warships and staff and radio units that were never involved in actual combat. In the months after the initial phase of the war, Danish troops participated in the multi-national force stationed in Iraq. Approximately 550 Danish troops were stationed in Iraq from 2004 and into 2007, first at "Camp Dannevang" and later at "Camp Einherjer", both near Basra. When the contingent of troops left around August 2007, it was not replaced and Denmark shifted its focus to non-military support around Baghdad. The official reason provided is that the Iraqi government should now be able to handle security in the Basra area. Critics of Rasmussen argued that the withdrawal was motivated by decreasing domestic support for the war.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: In 2004 Rasmussen's government came under attack based on questions of how much intelligence it had with regard to Iraqi weapons of mass destruction. The government held hearings, and was forced to publish classified reports it had consulted about the likelihood of banned weapons existing in Iraq. While the Blair and Bush administrations became the subject of criticism for extended periods because of their reliance on questionable intelligence, Rasmussen stayed clear of this controversy. This is probably largely because the motion passed by parliament (Folketinget) authorising the deployment of Danish troops states as the reason for the deployment Iraq's continued refusal to cooperate with UN inspectors in violation of the UN Security Council's resolution. The Danish deployment of troops was thus not formally based on a claim that Iraq had WMD's.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: In March 2003, Rasmussen stated as one of the reasons to support a military intervention, "Irak har masseødelæggelsesvåben. Det er ikke noget vi tror. Vi ved det. Irak har selv indrømmet, at det har haft sennepsgas, nervegas, miltbrand, men Saddam vil ikke afregne. Han vil ikke fortælle os, hvor og hvordan de våben er blevet destrueret. Det ved vi fra FN's inspektører, så der er ingen tvivl i mit sind." In English, this translates to:


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: Civil unions between gay couples became legal in Denmark in 1989. In January 2004, Rasmussen stated his belief that homosexuals should be able to marry in religious ceremonies, which were not allowed at the time in the Evangelical Lutheran State Church of Denmark, but he has said it should be up to religious communities to decide whether to perform ceremonies for gay couples.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: On 18 January 2005 Rasmussen called an election for 8 February 2005. He delayed the call by a couple of weeks because of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake which killed several Danes. His government was criticized for its allegedly slow response to that crisis, although a clear majority applauded the government's actions.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: Although his party's support was reduced from the 2001 election, costing it four seats, "Venstre" was able to maintain its coalition through gains by other parties, and on 18 February Rasmussen formed the Cabinet of Anders Fogh Rasmussen II.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: Rasmussen received the most "personal votes" ever of any politician in the Folketing (Denmark's Parliament) with 61,792.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: A major period of conflict in Rasmussen's political career concerned a set of cartoons printed in "Jyllands-Posten", a major Danish newspaper. In September 2005 the newspaper printed a full page with 12 cartoons depicting various interpretations of Muhammad. Due to the cartoons portraying Muhammad as a terrorist, some Muslims found the cartoons offensive. Rasmussen denied a request from 11 ambassadors of Middle-Eastern countries to discuss the issue. Rasmussen described the controversy as Denmark's worst international crisis since World War II. Later he stated, that he "was deeply distressed that the cartoons were seen by some Muslims as an attempt by Denmark to mark and insult or behave disrespectfully towards Islam or Mohammed."


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: One of Rasmussen's main initiatives was the introduction of municipal reform, the aim of which was the geographic and administrative consolidation of smaller municipalities and the abolition of counties. Major areas of public services, such as the national health service, were consolidated into five regional bodies, while the number of municipalities was reduced from 271 to 98. The reform was ratified on 16 June 2005 and was effective as of 1 January 2007.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: In October 2007, Rasmussen called the 2007 general election, which was held on 13 November. His official reason for doing so was to allow parliament to face important upcoming decisions without being distracted by a future election, with welfare reform being cited as an example. Initial polls had predicted that neither the incumbent alliance nor the left-wing opposition would win a majority, leaving the centrist New Alliance with the balance of power.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: At 11:30 p.m. on the night of the election, Rasmussen claimed victory on the basis of almost-complete results. By the morning of 14 November 2007, after results came through from the Faroe Islands and Greenland, his centre-right coalition of the Liberals, the Conservative People's Party and the Danish People's Party secured 90 seats, the minimum number required for a majority. Rasmussen went on to become the longest-ruling Liberal Prime Minister of Denmark.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: Shortly after his second reelection in 2007, rumours began to spread in the Danish media that Rasmussen was a candidate for high-profile international jobs. A first rumour was that he was informally one of the top candidates for the new position of President of the European Council that could be created when the Lisbon Treaty would come into effect. Following the Irish rejection of the treaty in June 2008, it became obvious that this position would not be created in the near future. Rumors then spread around Rasmussen's candidacy for Secretary General of NATO. Rasmussen denied the rumors until a few days before the official announcement of his selection was made.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: Rasmussen expressed support for Israel's right to defend itself during the Gaza–Israel conflict. He said that, "it was Hamas that broke the truce, and Hamas started the conflict by firing rockets on Israel. No country can just passively accept being fired on."


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: After he was confirmed as the NATO Secretary General, Rasmussen announced that he would resign as Prime Minister of Denmark on 5 April 2009.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: Anders Fogh Rasmussen became the 12th NATO Secretary General on 1 August 2009, succeeding Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, who held the post from 2004 until 2009. The announcement was made on 4 April 2009, at the 2009 Strasbourg–Kehl summit in Strasbourg. During the final selection process only one country, Turkey, remained opposed to Rasmussen's candidacy, partly because of his handling of the cartoon episode in 2005, when the publication in some Danish newspapers of cartoons of Muhammad caused violent protests. Another major element of Turkey's opposition was Denmark's tolerance of Roj TV, which is claimed by the Turkish government to be a mouthpiece for the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). Eventually, Turkey withdrew its opposition to Rasmussen's appointment in exchange of assurances Roj TV would be closed down.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: After his accession on 1 August 2009, Rasmussen's first mission was a visit to Afghanistan, where he met with President Karzai and senior Afghan ministers, including Minister for Foreign Affairs Spanta, Minister for Defence General Wardak, and Minister of Interior Atmar to discuss the then impending presidential and provincial council elections.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: On 28 January 2010 Rasmussen attended the 2010 International Conference on Afghanistan at Lancaster House in London. It was at this event that the framework for the next decade of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan was settled by the Afghan president Hamid Karzai and his successor Ashraf Ghani and their donors. As seen at right, Gordon Brown, Hillary Clinton, Catherine Ashton and Hermann van Rompuy amongst other Western leaders were in attendance.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: In April 2011, in relation to the 2011 Libyan civil war Rasmussen said that on the day NATO started taking command of the mission under the U.N. mandate, the alliance ruled out arming the rebels. Rasmussen said the coalition under his control was clear about its mission. "We are not in Libya to arm people. We are in Libya to protect civilians against attacks" from loyalists of the country's Muammar Gaddafi government, he said at that time.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: In October 2011, the intensive 7-month NATO intervention had "now moved much closer" to its end, according to Rasmussen. The last two major outposts of Gaddafi loyalists—Gaddafi's hometown of Sirte and the town of Bani Walid—had fallen and the deposed leader had been killed as he tried to flee from Sirte toward Misrata. Gaddafi's killing came with close NATO aerial support of Libyan ground forces.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: The Secretary General normally serves for a term of four years with a one-year extension option. On 3 October 2012, Fogh Rasmussens term was extended one year, so it ended on 31 July 2014.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: In February 2013 in the first visit of a NATO Secretary General to Ireland for a meeting with EU defence ministers, he said NATO had an "open-door policy" towards membership of the organisation. "Our door remains open for European countries, European democracies that fulfil the necessary criteria and can contribute to Euro-Atlantic security, but of course it's for individual partners to decide how they want to develop their relationship and partnership with NATO." Ireland is not a member of the organisation but ties through the Partnership for Peace Programme (PFP), a bilateral programme that allows for Irish forces to be used for peacekeeping and crisis management where there is a UN mandate and parliamentary approval.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: On 19 December 2013 Rasmussen was invited to speak at a periodic meeting of the European Council by the Prime Minister of the UK, David Cameron, in opposition to plans proposed by the External Action Service of HRUFASC Catherine Ashton to create a European Air Force composed of surveillance drones, heavy transport airplanes, and air-to-air refuelling planes. This plan was supported by France, Spain, Italy, Poland and Germany who together have QMV majority. Rasmussen's position was opposed to that of European Parliament President Martin Schulz, who made a presentation at the same meeting where he said that "If we wish to defend our values and interests, if we wish to maintain the security of our citizens, then a majority of MEPs consider that we need a headquarters for civil and military missions in Brussels and deployable troops." Rasmussen was satisfied with the role of NATO in European defence matters and saw every reason to maintain the status quo.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: On 28 March 2014, Jens Stoltenberg was nominated as Rasmussen's successor as secretary-general. He was to take office on 1 October 2014.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: On 6 April Rasmussen wrote an op-ed piece in London's "The Daily Telegraph" to warn allies to invest in their armed forces, and to maintain that "Russia's illegal aggression against Ukraine and its continued breach of international law" were clear. Russian Foreign Ministry blamed Rasmussen for his "active employment of double standards."


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: On 15 April an EU Defence Ministers' meeting took place in Luxembourg with the Secretary-General. The next day the Defence Ministers meeting of the North Atlantic Council was convened, one day in advance of the meeting in Geneva between Russia, Ukraine, the US and the EU over the Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation. Rasmussen said: "NATO's core task is to protect and defend our Allies. We have already taken a series of steps, including enhancing our Air Policing mission in the Baltic States, and AWACS surveillance flights over Poland and Romania... We will have more planes in the air, more ships on the water, and more readiness on the land. For example, air policing aircraft will fly more sorties over the Baltic region. Allied ships will deploy to the Baltic Sea, the Eastern Mediterranean and elsewhere, as required. Military staff from Allied nations will deploy to enhance our preparedness, training and exercises. Our defence plans will be reviewed and reinforced."


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: In June 2014, Rasmussen claimed that Russia "engaged actively with so-called non-governmental organisations – environmental organisations working against shale gas – to maintain European dependence on imported Russian gas", without providing evidence for this claim.


title: Anders Fogh Rasmussen

text: On 1 October 2014 as Rasmussen was succeeded by Jens Stoltenberg, the former Prime Minister of Norway., he declared the launch of the political consultancy Rasmussen Global to provide support on issues regarding security policy, Transatlantic relations, the European Union, Brexit and Economic development. Furthermore, in 2016 he published a book called 'The Will to Lead', giving his view that the USA should 'restore America's role as a global leader'