title: IPod Touch (6th generation)

text: The iPod touch features an 8 MP rear iSight camera with video which can record in 1080p at 30 fps, or 120 fps in slow-motion mode that records at 720p. The camera also supports a burst mode and has an LED flash. Unlike the previous-generation version, the rear camera on the sixth-generation iPod Touch lacks a sapphire crystal lens. The front camera is unchanged from the previous generation, a 1.2 MP sensor and can record video up to 720p. It is the first iPod touch that is available with 128 GB of storage, partially filling the void left behind by the iPod Classic which offered 160 GB of storage at the time it was discontinued.


title: IPod Touch (6th generation)

text: The exterior design of the sixth-generation iPod touch is largely identical to that of its predecessor, with the exception of the iPod Touch Loop button, which was removed.


title: IPod Touch (6th generation)

text: The sixth-generation iPod touch comes with a Lightning Charging cable. This model also comes with the EarPods without Remote and Mic. This iPod touch is compatible with Apple's AirPods wireless headphones, which were announced at the September 7, 2016, Apple Special Event along with the iPhone 7, and released in late December 2016. It is also compatible with the EarPods with Lightning Connector which launched concurrently with the iPhone 7, and the remote functions are active.


title: IPod Touch (6th generation)

text: Nate Ralph from CNET praised the device's camera quality and noted the iPod Touch's exceptional performance, but criticized it for its middling battery life and small display, and stated that he considered it "largely redundant" due to smartphones and tablets. Sascha Segan from "PCMag" has also noted the poor battery life, but stated that the iPod Touch is still the best option for anyone who would prefer a handheld media player that does not require an intimate relationship with a cellular carrier.


title: EasyJet UK

text: EasyJet UK Limited, trading as easyJet, is a British low-cost airline and a subsidiary of EasyJet plc. It was founded in 2017, after the UK Government triggered Article 50 to leave the European Union.


title: EasyJet UK

text: The airline was established following the UK referendum vote to leave the European Union and the airline's preparation against possible outcomes of Brexit. EasyJet structured itself as a pan-European airline group with three different air operator's certificates, each based in Austria, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.


title: EasyJet UK

text: EasyJet plc is thus a pan-European airline group with three airlines based in the UK, Austria and Switzerland (easyJet UK, easyJet Europe, and easyJet Switzerland), all fully or part-owned by easyJet plc, based in the UK and listed on the London Stock Exchange.


title: EasyJet UK

text: On 17 August 2020, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, easyJet announced it would close its bases in Newcastle upon Tyne, London–Stansted and London–Southend on the 31 August 2020.


title: Peter I Island

text: Peter I Island () is an uninhabited volcanic island in the Bellingshausen Sea, from continental Antarctica. It is claimed as a dependency of Norway and, along with Bouvet Island and Queen Maud Land, composes one of the three Norwegian dependent territories in the Antarctic and Subantarctic. The island measures approximately , with an area of ; its highest point is the ultra-prominent, Lars Christensen Peak. Nearly all the island is covered by a glacier, and it is surrounded most of the year by pack ice, making it inaccessible during these times. There is little vertebrate animal life on the island, apart from some seabirds and seals.


title: Peter I Island

text: The island was first sighted by Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen on 21 January 1821 and was named for Peter I of Russia. Not until 2 February 1929 did anyone set foot on the island, when Nils Larsen and Ola Olstad's Second "Norvegia" Expedition, financed by Lars Christensen, was successful. They claimed it for Norway, which annexed it in 1931 and made it a dependency in 1933. The next landing occurred in 1948, and the island has been subject to some scientific research and a limited amount of tourism. The island became subject to the Antarctic Treaty in 1961. Since 1987, there has been an automated meteorological station on the island. Three amateur radio DX-peditions have visited the island, and there are sporadic landings by tourists.


title: Peter I Island

text: The first sighting of Peter I Island was made on 21 October 1821 by Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen's expedition, who commanded the ships "Vostok" and "Mirny" under the Russian flag. He named the island for Tsar Peter I of Russia. Drift ice made it impossible for Bellinghausen to come nearer than from the island. It was the first land to have been spotted south of the Antarctic Circle, and was thus also the southernmost sighted land at the time of its discovery. In January 1910, the French expedition led by Jean-Baptiste Charcot and his ship "Pourquoi-Pas" confirmed Bellingshausen's discovery, but they also did not land, being stopped from the island by pack ice.


title: Peter I Island

text: In 1926 and 1927, the Norwegian sailor Eyvind Tofte circumnavigated and surveyed the island from "Odd I". However, he was also prevented from landing. The Norwegian whale-ship owner Lars Christensen financed several expeditions to the Antarctic, in part for research and in part to claim land for Norway. The latter was motivated by the British taxation of whaling stations in the Antarctic, and Christensen hoped to be able to establish stations on Norwegian territory to gain better privileges and so at least the taxes went to his home country. The first expedition to land on the island was the Christensen-financed second "Norvegia" expedition, led by Nils Larsen and Ola Olstad. They landed on 2 February 1929 and claimed the island for Norway. Larsen attempted to land again in 1931, but was hindered by pack ice. On 6 March 1931, a Norwegian royal proclamation declared the island under Norwegian sovereignty and on 23 March 1933 the island was declared a dependency.


title: Peter I Island

text: The next landing occurred on 10 February 1948 by Larsen's ship "Brategg". Biological, geological and hydrographic surveys underwent for three days, before the pack ice forced the expedition to leave. The expedition built a hut and placed a copy of the document of occupation from 1929 inside. On 23 June 1961, Peter I Island became subject to the Antarctic Treaty, after Norway's signing of the treaty in 1959. Since then, there have been several landings on the island by various nations for scientific investigations, as well as a limited number of ships that have successfully landed tourists on the island.


title: Peter I Island

text: In 1987, the Norwegian Polar Institute sent five scientists to spend eleven days on the island. The main focuses were aerial photography and topographical measurements to allow an accurate map of the island to be produced. The second important area was marine biological investigations, although also geological, biological and other surveys were conducted. The team also built an automatic weather station. Three DX-peditions have been sent to the island, in 1987, 1994 and 2006.


title: Peter I Island

text: Peter I Island is a volcanic island located off the coast of Ellsworth Land of continental Antarctica, and about to the south-west of Smith Island, the nearest of the South Shetland Islands. It has an area of . The island is almost entirely covered by glacier, with about 95% of the surface covered by ice.


title: Peter I Island

text: Surrounding the island is a tall ice front and vertical cliffs. The long stretches of ice caps are supplemented with rock outcrops. Landing is only possible at three points, and only during the short period of the year in which the island is not surrounded by pack ice. These landings take place on the west side at Kapp Ingrid Christensen, a peninsula which divides the bays Norvegiabukta and Sandefjordbukta. On the cape are some narrow strips of beach, which are suitable for landing. The beach in Norvegiabukta is just wide and is entered via the natural arch Tsarporten. On the west side is a plateau, while the north and south coasts feature ice shelves. The eastern side is the steepest and features two rock columns with flat tops in the sea.


title: Peter I Island

text: The island is a shield volcano, although it is not known if it is still active, and it has been categorized as either Holocene or historic, based on date samples ranging from years ago. The summit, Lars Christensen Peak, is a wide circular crater. An ultra-prominent peak at elevation, it is named after Lars Christensen. It is not known whether this volcano is extinct or not, because the upper part is apparently unmodified by glaciation, indicating an eruption several centuries ago.


title: Peter I Island

text: The island's vegetation consists exclusively of mosses and lichens which have adapted to the extreme Antarctic climate. The island has a very harsh climate with strong winds and freezing temperatures. The steady snowfall keeps vegetation to a minimum. The island is a breeding ground for a few seabirds, particularly southern fulmars, but also Wilson's storm petrels and Antarctic terns. Penguins, including Adélie and chinstrap penguins, visit the island infrequently. There are numerous seals, particularly crabeater seals, leopard seals and smaller numbers of southern elephant seals.


title: Peter I Island

text: Peter I Island is one of Norway's two territorial claims in Antarctica, the other being Queen Maud Land. Peter I Island is the only claim within 90°W and 150°W and is also the only claim which is not a sector. Being south of 60°S, the island is subject to the Antarctic Treaty. The treaty ensures free access to the island for any scientific investigation, and states that it can be used only for peaceful purposes. Norway, Australia, France, New Zealand and the United Kingdom have all mutually recognized each other's claims in Antarctica.


title: Peter I Island

text: Norwegian administration of the island is handled by the Polar Affairs Department of the Ministry of Justice and Public Security, located in Oslo. The annexation of the island is regulated by the Dependency Act of 24 March 1933. It establishes that Norwegian criminal law, private law and procedural law applies to the island, in addition to other laws that explicitly state they are valid on the island. It further establishes that all land belongs to the state, and prohibits the storage and detonation of nuclear products.


title: Peter I Island

text: Since 5 May 1995, Norwegian law has required all Norwegian activity in Antarctica, including Peter I Island, to follow international environmental law for Antarctica. All Norwegian citizens who plan activities on Peter I Island must therefore report to the Norwegian Polar Institute, who may deny any non-conforming activity. All people visiting the island must follow laws regarding protection of nature, treatment of waste, pollution and insurance for search and rescue operations.


title: Hester Prynne

text: Hester Prynne is the protagonist of Nathaniel Hawthorne's 1850 novel "The Scarlet Letter". She is portrayed as a woman condemned by her Puritan neighbors. The character has been called "among the first and most important female protagonists in American literature".


title: Hester Prynne

text: A resident of Colonial America, Hester is sent ahead to the "New World" by her husband, who later assumes the name of Roger Chillingworth, as he has some business to finish before he can join her. After he is shipwrecked and captured by Native Americans and presumed dead, Hester continues to live her life as a seamstress in the town. She looks to the local pastor Arthur Dimmesdale for comfort; somewhere along the way passion emerges, culminating in the conception and subsequent birth of their child, Pearl. Because Hester has no husband with her, she is imprisoned, convicted of the crime of adultery, and sentenced to be forced to wear a prominent scarlet letter 'A' for the rest of her life.


title: Hester Prynne

text: Though scorned by her fellow citizens, Hester continues to lead a relatively uneventful life. Shortly after the birth of the child and her punishment, Hester's husband reappears and demands that she tell him the name of the child's father. Hester refuses but swears not to reveal the fact that Chillingworth is her husband to the town folk. Hester continues living her life as a seamstress, providing for herself and her child.


title: Hester Prynne

text: According to popular tradition, the gravestone of Elizabeth Pain in Boston's King's Chapel Burying Ground was the inspiration for Hester Prynne's grave. Scholar Laurie Rozakis has argued that an alternate or additional source for the story may be Hester Craford, a woman flogged for fornication with John Wedg. Another story claims that Hester was modeled after Mary Bachiler Turner (fourth wife of well-known Colonial minister Stephen Bachiler) whose life in colonial Maine bore a striking resemblance to Hester's tale.


title: Hester Prynne

text: In various film adaptations of the novel, Prynne has been portrayed by actresses such as Lillian Gish, Sommer Parker, Meg Foster, Mary Martin, Sybil Thorndike, Senta Berger, and Demi Moore. In the cult television series "Twin Peaks" the name was also adopted as a pseudonym by the character Audrey Horne. Another literary figure using the surname Prynne is a woman who had an adulterous relationship with a pastor in the novel "A Month of Sundays" by John Updike, part of his trilogy of novels based on characters in "The Scarlet Letter". In the musical "The Music Man", Harold Hill refers to Hester Prynne in the song "Sadder but Wiser Girl". He sings that he wants a girl "with a touch of sin", remarking "I hope, and I pray, for a Hester to win just one more 'A'."


title: Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude

text: Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude is a 2004 adventure video game developed by High Voltage Software and published by Vivendi Universal Games and their subsidiary Sierra Entertainment. It is the seventh main installment in the "Leisure Suit Larry" series and the first game in the series without any involvement with series creator Al Lowe and the final game to be released by Sierra before the rights were sold to Codemasters following its parent company Vivendi Games' merger with Activision to form Activision Blizzard. The game introduces a new main character, Larry Lovage, as Larry Laffer's nephew.


title: Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude

text: "Magna Cum Laude" has an open world where Larry can walk about campus and interact with students and personnel on the premises. In this mode, Larry can search for hidden money or tokens, strike poses to impress girls, and take photos which can later be sold to collectors. At several locations on campus a minigame can be entered, usually by "activating" an object or a person (starting a conversation). The player must win most of the minigames in order to advance. Minigames started by a conversation usually increase the affection of one of the girls; other minigames can provide money or increase "confidence".


title: Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude

text: The game originally received an "Adults Only" rating from the ESRB and was subsequently edited to receive a more commercial "Mature" rating in the United States and Canada. In Europe, the game was released unedited on all three systems and featured a disclaimer on the packaging highlighting that it was "uncut". The unedited version was eventually released in North America under the title "Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude—Uncut and Uncensored!". The major difference between the two North American releases is that the uncut and uncensored version contains full frontal nudity and sex scenes, although there is very little of the latter and it is mostly implied rather than depicted. Both versions were refused classification by the OFLC and effectively banned in Australia.


title: Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude

text: The main protagonist, Larry Lovage, is a student at Walnut Log Community College whose purpose is to get on a dating TV show called "Swingles". Uma Yasmine, the hostess of the show won't allow Larry on the show until he will prove his seductive wits by obtaining "tokens of affection". Sixteen college girls will conveniently be at his disposal. His aging uncle, Larry Laffer from the original games, provides brief advice and appears at a local bar.


title: Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude

text: After going through several rounds on the dating show and obtaining tokens, Larry becomes a finalist and goes on a date at a strip club with three girls. Larry will choose one out of the three who he gets to bring back to his room with. The game ends with Larry partying in college during Spring Break with the entire college.


title: Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude

text: In 2003, Sierra Entertainment announced that the "Leisure Suit Larry" franchise was being revived with a seventh game, called "Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude". This is the first game in which Al Lowe is not involved in any way, as this game was created by game developer High Voltage Software, Inc. On his website, Lowe talks about how he was in talks with Sierra about working with them on the game, but they stopped contacting him, as they went into downsizing. Later he received a letter from a writer on the game, where it was revealed that the game had long since been written by the time he entered discussions with Sierra.


title: Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude

text: The new Larry game does not star Larry Laffer, but a new character: his nephew, Larry Lovage. There are numerous homages to the earlier Larry games: Larry Laffer is the tutorial guide and giver of questionable advice for Larry Lovage; Larry's computer is playing "" ("the best game of its time"); and secret tokens featuring the likeness of the "Where's Dildo?" character from "Larry 7" can be collected. The loose storyline of the game is that Larry wants to appear on a dating TV show called "Swingles", but he must prove his worth before he is allowed on air.


title: Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude

text: Reviews of the game were mixed, with some praising the game for its humor but panning it for its gameplay. Many critics also took the game to task for its sexual content and humor being too direct and obvious, citing that much of the charm of the series has been in its more subtle handling of the dirty jokes and sexual situations, focusing more on double entendres than actual foul words and hints at nudity rather than full-on bare breasts. Al Lowe denounced "Magna Cum Laude" vigorously, emphasizing on his website that he took no part of its creation after being promised a role in its creation.


title: David Freiberg

text: David Freiberg ( ; born August 24, 1938) is an American musician best known for contributing vocals, keyboards, electric bass, rhythm guitar, viola and percussion as a member of Quicksilver Messenger Service, Jefferson Airplane, and Jefferson Starship. Among other tracks, he co-wrote "Jane", a hit for Jefferson Starship.


title: David Freiberg

text: Classically trained in violin and viola, Freiberg began his career moonlighting as a coffeehouse singer-songwriter (playing acoustic guitar) during the American folk music revival while working for a railroad. For a while, he shared a house in Venice, California with David Crosby and Paul Kantner before being briefly jailed for marijuana possession. Prior to being incarcerated, he also became acquainted with Dino Valenti, then Crosby's nominal roommate on a houseboat in Sausalito, California. During his time as a coffee house folk singer, he was part of the duo David & Michaela. David & Michaela made a demo at CBS studios, and "Elektra producer Paul Rothchild proposed fitting them into a bigger folk group. But the onset of the Beatles spelled the end of David & Michaela, and incentive for Freiberg to switch to rock and electric instruments."


title: David Freiberg

text: Following his release, Freiberg co-founded Quicksilver Messenger Service with guitarists John Cipollina, Jim Murray and Gary Duncan and drummer Greg Elmore in 1965. The founding took place shortly after Valenti, who had recently hired the musicians for his backing band following the folk rock explosion, was imprisoned for drugs. Due to the surfeit of guitarists in the group, Freiberg (who was only tangentially acquainted with his bandmates through their mutual friendship with Valenti, with Cipollina remarking that they had been instructed to "take care" of him) was assigned the bass.


title: David Freiberg

text: Freiberg shared lead vocals with Gary Duncan for much of the band's history and regularly contributed additional guitar and keyboards to their studio recordings. As the "most folk-rooted member" of Quicksilver, he also reworked a number of songs from the folk revival and singer-songwriter repertoires (most notably Hamilton Camp's "Pride of Man") for the group. He would play on six of the eight Quicksilver albums.


title: David Freiberg

text: Though not as commercially successful as contemporaries like Jefferson Airplane, Big Brother and the Holding Company and the Grateful Dead, Quicksilver was integral to the development of the San Francisco sound. In addition to earning three "Billboard" Top 100 hits, several of their albums ranked in the Top 30 of the magazine's album chart. He continued to serve as the group's bassist and contribute to the band's songwriting until September 1971, when he left the group to begin another prison sentence for marijuana possession. His most notable songwriting contributions include "The Fool" and "Light Your Windows", both co-written with Duncan.


title: David Freiberg

text: Shortly after being released from jail in 1972, Freiberg joined Jefferson Airplane at the behest of Kantner, belatedly replacing Marty Balin on vocals and tambourine for the tour that supported "Long John Silver". He subsequently appeared on "Thirty Seconds Over Winterland" (1973), a live album culled from those performances. After the tour ended, Freiberg, Kantner, and Slick released "Baron Von Tollbooth & the Chrome Nun" as a trio in 1973.


title: David Freiberg

text: After a long interregnum in which the fate of the band was in question (forcing Freiberg to briefly draw unemployment after RCA Records rescinded Jefferson Airplane's salaries), the final Jefferson Airplane lineup reformed as Jefferson Starship in early 1974 following the departure of lead guitarist Jorma Kaukonen and bassist Jack Casady. He remained with the group for nearly eleven years, departing shortly after the formation of Starship in early 1985 due to creative differences over the selection and recording of "We Built This City" with Grace Slick (who, according to longtime manager Bill Thompson, considered Freiberg to be "dead weight") and the atypically outsized role of producer Peter Wolf; during this period, Wolf had effectively superseded Freiberg as the band's principal keyboardist in the studio and select live performances. Freiberg would later say of the departure: "The only thing real on that song were the vocals and the guitar. I was useless, so I left." He also clarified that “it completely turned away from anything organic, and it wasn’t really what I did.”


title: David Freiberg

text: Although Freiberg (who primarily played keyboards) and fellow multi-instrumentalist Pete Sears (who generally played bass) frequently alternated on both instruments throughout their respective tenures in the group, Ben Fong-Torres noted in a 1978 profile of the group that "Freiberg considers himself primarily a bass player." He elaborated upon this distinction in a 1997 interview with John Barthel: "I am not really a keyboard player. I use it for input to a computer now, and stuff like that, but it never was my instrument. I just did it for writing songs because it is a musical typewriter, basically, that is what it is."


title: David Freiberg

text: Never a prolific songwriter and characterized by Fong-Torres as "essentially a back-up musician" in Jefferson Starship, Freiberg notably served as the primary composer of "Jane." According to "Rolling Stone", the song "was instrumental in moving them into a more commercial, harder-rock direction." "Jane" was a No. 14 hit for the group in 1979 at a crucial juncture immediately following the departures of Slick and Balin and the integration of Mickey Thomas. It has since been prominently showcased in the 2009 video game "" and as the opening theme of the "Wet Hot American Summer" franchise.


title: David Freiberg

text: Freiberg also developed the "distinctive" organ riff of Balin's "Miracles," the group's most successful single.


title: David Freiberg

text: Following his departure from Jefferson Starship, he built and operated a studio in Marin County, often working with local musicians. According to Bruce Arnold of Orpheus, "He has developed a wonderful way of recording my acoustic guitar and has a $100,000 voice mike that will make anyone sound good."


title: David Freiberg

text: He was the only member of Quicksilver Messenger Service to participate in the majority of the Planet Earth Rock and Roll Orchestra records (a series of solo albums and unreleased recordings by Crosby, Kantner and others that drew upon much of the era's Bay Area-based talent) and briefly provided uncredited accompaniment for The Ace of Cups, a groundbreaking all-female San Francisco band.


title: David Freiberg

text: After a two-decade hiatus, Freiberg rejoined Kantner in for their 2005 tour, mending a rift stemming from Freiberg's initial refusal to leave Jefferson Starship with Kantner in 1984. The tour was billed as "The Jefferson Family Galactic Reunion". According to Freiberg, Kantner had been "absolutely right" in leaving Jefferson Starship in the 1980s, and he "apologized." He became a permanent member of the reformed band. He appeared on the 2008 album "Jefferson's Tree of Liberty".


title: David Freiberg

text: Freiberg held his first solo show in 2007 on November 24 in the lounge of the Ledson Hotel on the Sonomoa Plaza. He performed a number of songs not played live before. In 2007, he was still performing in Quicksilver, and he toured alongside Paul Kantner in the then current Jefferson Starship.


title: David Freiberg

text: In April 2017, the current members of Jefferson Starship were sued by former lead guitarist Craig Chaquico for not retiring the band's name in the aftermath of Kantner's death. According to Chaquico, the band had previously agreed to retire the moniker in a 1985 settlement. On December 4, 2018, the lawsuit concerning the use of the name Jefferson Starship was dismissed after an undisclosed settlement was reached between Chaquico and the current members of the band.


title: David Freiberg

text: The band was still touring in July 2018, with Freiberg singing lead on tracks such as "We Built This City". At age 79, Freiberg remained the only active original member in the band. In November 2018, Freiberg is collaborating with the Dayton Symphony.


title: David Freiberg

text: In 1966, Freiberg married Julia "Girl Freiberg" Brigden; they had a daughter, Jessica. Following their divorce in 1979, Freiberg was remarried to singer Linda Imperial in 1990.


title: David Freiberg

text: Around 1968, he moved into a house in Novato that had previously been rented by Bob Weir and Ron McKernan. He and his family reside in the same house, where he has built a recording studio and practices Soka Gakkai.


title: Isaac in Islam

text: The biblical patriarch Isaac ( or "") is recognized as a prophet and messenger of God by Muslims. As in Judaism and Christianity, Islam maintains that Isaac was the son of the patriarch and prophet Abraham from his wife Sarah. Muslims hold Isaac in deep veneration because they believe that both Isaac and his older half-brother Ishmael continued their father's spiritual legacy through their subsequent preaching of the message of God after the death of Abraham. Isaac is mentioned in fifteen passages of the Quran. Along with being mentioned several times in the Quran, Isaac is held up as one of Islam's prophets.


title: Isaac in Islam

text: Because of God’s grace and covenant with Abraham, Sarah was gifted with a child in her old age. Isaac was the age of 10 when his half-brother Ishmael went out from Abraham’s house into the desert. While in the desert Ishmael took a wife of the daughters of Moab named ‘Ayeshah.


title: Isaac in Islam

text: Isaac is mentioned fifteen times by name in the Quran, often with his father and his son, Jacob ("Yaʿqūb"). The Quran states that Abraham received "good tidings of Isaac, a prophet, of the righteous", and that God blessed them both (37: 112). "And We gave him glad tidings of Isaac, a prophet from among the righteous. And We blessed him and Isaac. And among their progeny are the virtuous and those who clearly wrong themselves" In a fuller description, when angels came to Ibrahim to tell him of the future punishment to be imposed on Sodom and Gomorrah, his wife, Sarah, "laughed, and We gave her good tidings of Isaac, and after Isaac of (a grandson) Jacob" (11: 71-74); and it is further explained that this event will take place despite Abraham and Sarah's old age. Several verses speak of Isaac as a "gift" to Abraham (6: 84; 19: 49-50), and 29: 26-27 adds that God made "prophethood and the Book to be among his offspring", which has been interpreted to refer to Abraham's two prophetic sons, his prophetic grandson Jacob, and his prophetic great-grandson Joseph. In the Quran, it later narrates that Abraham also praised God for giving him Ishmael and Isaac in his old age (XIV: 39-41).


title: Isaac in Islam

text: Elsewhere in the Quran, Isaac is mentioned in lists: Joseph follows the religion of his forefathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (12: 38) and speaks of God's favor to them (12: 6); Yaʿqūb's sons all testify their faith and promise to worship the God that their forefathers, "Abraham, Ishmael and Isaac", worshiped (2: 127); and the Quran commands Muslims to believe in the revelations that were given to "Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob and the Patriarchs" (2: 136; III: 84).


title: Isaac in Islam

text: His tomb and that of his wife Rebekah is considered to be in the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron, West Bank, known in Islam as the "Ibrahim-i-Mosque" ("Mosque of Abraham"). Alongside Isaac's tomb are those of some of the other Qur'anic/Biblical patriarchs and their wives: Abraham and Sarah and Jacob and Leah.


title: 2023 AFC U-17 Asian Cup

text: The 2023 AFC U-17 Asian Cup will be the 20th edition of the AFC U-17 Asian Cup (including previous editions of the AFC U-16 Championship and AFC U-17 Championship), the biennial international youth football championship organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the men's under-17 national teams of Asia. This edition will be the first since 2006 to be played as an under-17 tournament, as the AFC proposed to switch the tournament from under-16 to under-17 starting from 2023. Moreover, the tournament was also rebranded from the "AFC U-16 Championship" to the "AFC U-17 Asian Cup".


title: 2023 AFC U-17 Asian Cup

text: On 25 January 2021, the AFC announced that Bahrain would retain hosting rights for the 2023 edition after the cancellation of the 2020 AFC U-16 Championship due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, Bahrain decided to withdraw the rights to host the competition on 16 June 2022, requiring a new host to be chosen at a later date.


title: 2023 AFC U-17 Asian Cup

text: A total of 16 teams will play in the tournament. The top four teams of the tournament will qualify for the 2023 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Peru as the AFC representatives.


title: 2023 AFC U-17 Asian Cup

text: The 16 teams were drawn into four groups of four teams, with the teams seeded according to their performance in the 2018 AFC U-16 Championship final tournament and qualification, with the hosts automatically seeded and assigned to Position A1 in the draw.


title: Starships (song)

text: "Starships" is a song by rapper Nicki Minaj from her second studio album "" (2012). It was released on February 14, 2012, by Young Money, Cash Money, and Universal Republic as the lead single from the album. The song was written by Minaj, Nadir Khayat, Carl Falk, Rami Yacoub, Bilal Hajji, and Wayne Hector, and it was produced by RedOne, Yacoub, and Falk.


title: Starships (song)

text: "Starships" peaked inside the top five in fifteen countries. It debuted at number nine on the U.S. "Billboard" Hot 100, and spent a total of 21 consecutive weeks in the top ten and peaked at number five, breaking a chart record at the time. The song has sold 4.5 million digital downloads in the U.S. as of 2014, and has been certified six-times platinum by the RIAA, becoming her second-highest certified solo single in the U.S. The song is among the best-selling singles of all time worldwide, with 7.2 million copies sold, as of December 2012.


title: Starships (song)

text: The corresponding music video was shot on Oahu Island, Hawaii. Directed by Anthony Mandler, the video features Minaj on a beach in a bikini, and near the end of the video, it shows her at a party, dancing to the song. The music video was well received by music critics, many praising the kaleidoscopic effects in the video and the carefree atmosphere. The music video won Best Female Video at the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards. The song was included in the 2012 video game "Dance Central 3" and it is included in the best-selling video game "Just Dance 2014". It is also one of the select few songs available on "Just Dance 2014"s demo version.


title: Starships (song)

text: Minaj has performed the song live in a number of appearances, and it was the encore performance on the . In September 2013, electronic artist Clive Tanaka filed suit against Minaj and the writers of the song, claiming it infringed on his own composition and recording "Neu Chicago", but the lawsuit was dismissed. Minaj later voiced regret over releasing the song.


title: Starships (song)

text: Nicki Minaj co-wrote "Starships" with its producers Nadir "RedOne" Khayat, Carl Falk, and Rami Yacoub, with additional writing from Wayne Hector and Bilal "The Chef" Hajji. In 2011, a demo version of "Starships", sung by Mohombi, was given to Minaj who personalized the verses to make it sound "more her style", while keeping the chorus. Minaj's vocals were recorded at Conway Studios in Los Angeles. Trevor Muzzy described the vocal recording process:


title: Starships (song)

text: The song was mixed in only a day, and Muzzy went to Conway to see what minor adjustments Minaj wanted to do to the mix.


title: Starships (song)

text: "Starships" is a dance-pop and techno-pop song that features Minaj rapping in the first verse, after the song opens with an electric guitar. According to MTV, the song shows Minaj's "pop side". During the final breakdown, a stadium football chant can be heard chanting the lead notes of the song. The background vocals on the chorus were considered extremely similar to Britney Spears' 2011 single "Till the World Ends" by Scott Schettler of Popcrush. Jocelyn Vena of MTV also said that "it's hard not to see Spears' influence on the rapper/singer when listening to the song." "Billboard" compared "Starships" to the work of Lady Gaga and Jennifer Lopez, other artists produced by RedOne. Musically, "Starships" is written in the key of D major and follows a moderate tempo of 125 beats per minute. Written in common time, the song follows a chord progression of D−A−G−Bm−Fm−G. The song contains a brief sample of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" as written by Jane Taylor. Hector and Mohambi provide backing vocals during the final chorus.


title: Starships (song)

text: The "Los Angeles Times" wrote that "The new single will undoubtedly divide Minaj's fan base. Longtime fans may want the cypher queen they fell in love with when she was young and hungry on the mixtape circuit, while her newer, sugar pop-loving delegation will likely crave the quirkier verses – and cotton candy-colored wigs – of today's Minaj." Jocelyn Vena from MTV stated that "The song not only is pure pop perfection, but RedOne's influence is evident, thanks to its grinding Euro dance beats", adding that "It is certainly the perfect song for those who enjoyed shaking their groove thang to 'Super Bass'. The lighthearted, feel-good vibe of the song is perfect for casual Barbz to blast. It's hard not to see Britney Spears' influence on the rapper/singer when listening to the song, and given that the two toured together last year, Minaj may be trying to remind her pop fans that she has an ear for what they want." "Entertainment Weekly" gave a negative review, stating that it's "super clubby and contains almost no rapping, which continues Minaj's push into the complete opposite direction she should be heading."


title: Starships (song)

text: Bill Lamb from About.com was mixed with his review, stating: "'Starships' is a solid outing for Nicki Minaj. However, the day-glo pop-rap success of 'Super Bass', emotional power of 'Fly', and experimentation of her Grammy Awards performance has left us expecting Nicki Minaj to push boundaries. 'Starships' feels a little bit like retreating into a musical pocket and trying a little too hard to insure another pop chart hit. The result is pleasurable but not particularly memorable." Bloggers for "Billboard" magazine, Andrew Hampp and Erika Ramirez, criticized the track for "...monstrous pop hooks that overshadow its throwaway lyrics", while stating that it is "the most polarizing single in Minaj's career to date". The pair also noticed that Minaj seemed to be exploring her "musical identity" through singing instead of focusing on her strengths. "Slant" stated that "Starships (along with 'Pound the Alarm', 'Whip It', and 'Automatic') are "retro-techno-pop earsores indiscriminately arranged bits of LMFAO's 'Sexy and I Know It', Rihanna's 'We Found Love', and pretty much any recent Britney Spears or Katy Perry song you can name" adding that "For the chorus to her self-affirmation anthem, Minaj shouts 'Starships were meant to fly!', echoing Katy Perry's 'Baby, you're a firework!' for its uncomprehending intuition that if something is in the sky then it must also be inspiring."


title: Starships (song)

text: "Starships" debuted at number nine on the U.S. "Billboard" Hot 100, marking her second solo arrival in the top 10 after "Super Bass", which reached number three. The song peaked at number five, for four non-consecutive weeks, and has been certified six-times platinum in the US. In the week beginning July 13, 2012, "Starships" made history on the chart by having spent twenty-one consecutive weeks in the top ten from its debut week, surpassing the Black Eyed Peas' single "I Gotta Feeling", which had spent 20 weeks in the top 10 in 2009, but has been passed by Justin Bieber's "Love Yourself", then The Chainsmokers's "Closer" (2016–2017), which spent 32 weeks in the top 10. The song peaked at number two on the Hot Dance Club Songs chart and number three on Pop Songs. It managed to reach number 10 on Rap Songs and 85 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. As of December 2014, the song has sold 4.5 million copies in the United States.


title: Starships (song)

text: In the United Kingdom, the song debuted at number 16. The song eventually peaked at number two in that country, missing out on the top spot with Gotye's "Somebody That I Used to Know" outselling Minaj by 20,000 copies. Despite this, the song made it Minaj's highest single at the time in that country (until "Bang Bang" topped the chart in 2014). It also ranked sixth among the most-played songs of 2012 in the UK. It was ranked the 7th best-selling song of 2012 in the UK for selling 864,000 copies as of 31 December, also becoming the best-selling song not to peak at number one. As of 16 June 2013, the song has spent 69 weeks in the charts. In Scotland, the song debuted at number 11. Successfully, the song managed to peak at number one for two consecutive weeks, becoming Minaj's second number one in that country following "Where Them Girls At". The song stayed in the chart for 29 non-consecutive weeks. In Ireland, the song debuted at number eight. Eventually, the song peaked at number two, before going on to spend 38 consecutive weeks in the top 40. As of July 14, 2016, "Starships" has passed the 1 million mark in the United Kingdom.


title: Starships (song)

text: In the Oceanic regions, the song was a big success. In Australia, the song debuted at number 14, rising to number two, staying there for five consecutive weeks. The song resulted in being Minaj's highest single in that country,(until Super Freaky Girl topped the country’s chart) and was certified 6× platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) with sales exceeding 420,000. In New Zealand, the song debuted at 12. The next week. it rose to four and peaked at number two. The song resulted in being Minaj's second highest-peaking and longest-charting single in that country and was certified 2× platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ) with sales exceeding 30,000. Just recently in New Zealand, the song made the top five for the top-selling singles of 2012, placed at four.


title: Starships (song)

text: In the European regions, the song was a huge success as well. In France, the song debuted at 102, and rose to 47 the next week. The song eventually peaked at number five for three non-consecutive weeks. In Belgium (Flanders and Wallonia), the song peaked at number five and number seven and charted over 20 weeks in both regions. It was certified Gold by the Belgian Entertainment Association (BEA) with sales over 10,000. In Sweden, the song debuted at number 43 on the charts. The song peaked at three for two consecutive weeks and stayed in the charts for 29 weeks. The song was certified gold by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI Sweden) with shipments of 20,000. In Switzerland, the song debuted at 60 on the charts. It later rose to number five in its 12th week for two consecutive weeks. It was certified platinum by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI Switzerland) with sales exceeding 30,000. In the spring of 2012, "Starships" was the 21st most downloaded ringtone. "Starships" has reportedly sold 7.2 million copies worldwide.


title: Starships (song)

text: The "Starships" video was filmed on Kualoa Ranch, Oahu Island, Hawaii, and the opening scene is from the Nā Pali Coast on the island of Kauaʻi in Hawaii. It was a three-day shoot, beginning on March 13, 2012. The video was directed by Anthony Mandler with extensive post-VFX produced by Leah Harmony and executed by a team of artists at Culver City-based post production company KILT. In an interview with Capital FM, Minaj briefly commented on the video for "Starships", calling it "very, very saucy" and her "best one yet". The video premiered on April 26, 2012, on MTV.


title: Starships (song)

text: The video opens with a starship flying towards an island after being summoned by its local tribesmen. The island locals slowly awake as the craft passes overhead. The starship then beams a pink bikini-clad electric green-haired Minaj down onto the beach and she begins to sing. She is presumably being worshiped as a goddess as she is carried away through the jungle by the island locals wearing a pale pink bikini with strands hanging off the bottom and short green hair, which is also worn during some kaleidoscope effects and in one scene of her on the beach singing. Minaj is then seen dancing in the mountains wearing a white, pink and black bodysuit behind a glass box while some of the male islanders run up to her. The scene then shifts towards the volcano top at nighttime where Minaj is sitting on top of the box with some of the locals dancing around her. In the final scene, a blonde-haired Minaj, wearing a white fringed strapless bikini splattered with paint, is partying with the islanders. Intercut scenes show Minaj singing with kaleidoscope effects on her in the second outfit and some more kaleidoscope effects in the same outfit but under blacklights. It ends with her singing the last line while looking directly into the camera.


title: Starships (song)

text: MTV's John Mitchell criticized the video's postponed release, finding it strange that the video for "Beez in the Trap", the album's third single, was released before that of "Starships". On May 28, 2012, a "Starships" video campaign was announced on Minaj's official website. It asked fans to record a video of themselves performing "Starships" by singing, dancing or with a musical instrument. Minaj then selected 5 winners, and the contest winners won tickets and passes to meet Minaj on her Pink Friday Tour. The song won the MTV Video Music Award for Best Female Video in September 2012. As of May 2020, the video has more than 400 million views on YouTube.


title: Starships (song)

text: On February 26, 2012, Minaj performed the single live for the first time along with "Moment 4 Life", "Turn Me On" and "Super Bass" at the 2012 NBA All-Star Game. Minaj also performed the single on the eleventh season of "American Idol" results show on March 29, 2012, and on "Today" on April 6. Minaj performed the song in a mash-up with "Right by My Side" at "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" on May 10, 2012. Minaj also performed the single on her Pink Friday Tour. The song was also the encore song of Minaj's and The Pinkprint Tour. On May 30, 2015, Minaj also performed the song on the iHeartRadio Summer Pool Party 2015 in Las Vegas, along with other singles, such as "Super Bass" and "The Night Is Still Young". Minaj performed the song on her fourth concert tour, The Nicki Wrld Tour, in 2019.


title: DNA virus

text: A DNA virus is a virus that has a genome made of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) that is replicated by a DNA polymerase. They can be divided between those that have two strands of DNA in their genome, called double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) viruses, and those that have one strand of DNA in their genome, called single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) viruses. dsDNA viruses primarily belong to two realms: "Duplodnaviria" and "Varidnaviria", and ssDNA viruses are almost exclusively assigned to the realm "Monodnaviria", which also includes some dsDNA viruses. Additionally, many DNA viruses are unassigned to higher taxa. Reverse transcribing viruses, which have a DNA genome that is replicated through an RNA intermediate by a reverse transcriptase, are classified into the kingdom "Pararnavirae" in the realm "Riboviria".


title: DNA virus

text: DNA viruses are ubiquitous worldwide, especially in marine environments where they form an important part of marine ecosystems, and infect both prokaryotes and eukaryotes. They appear to have multiple origins, as viruses in "Monodnaviria" appear to have emerged from archaeal and bacterial plasmids on multiple occasions, though the origins of "Duplodnaviria" and "Varidnaviria" are less clear.


title: DNA virus

text: The Baltimore classification system is used to group viruses together based on their manner of messenger RNA (mRNA) synthesis and is often used alongside standard virus taxonomy, which is based on evolutionary history. DNA viruses constitute two Baltimore groups: Group I: double-stranded DNA viruses, and Group II: single-stranded DNA viruses. While Baltimore classification is chiefly based on transcription of mRNA, viruses in each Baltimore group also typically share their manner of replication. Viruses in a Baltimore group do not necessarily share genetic relation or morphology.


title: DNA virus

text: The first Baltimore group of DNA viruses are those that have a double-stranded DNA genome. All dsDNA viruses have their mRNA synthesized in a three-step process. First, a transcription preinitiation complex binds to the DNA upstream of the site where transcription begins, allowing for the recruitment of a host RNA polymerase. Second, once the RNA polymerase is recruited, it uses the negative strand as a template for synthesizing mRNA strands. Third, the RNA polymerase terminates transcription upon reaching a specific signal, such as a polyadenylation site.


title: DNA virus

text: dsDNA viruses make use of several mechanisms to replicate their genome. Bidirectional replication, in which two replication forks are established at a replication origin site and move in opposite directions of each other, is widely used. A rolling circle mechanism that produces linear strands while progressing in a loop around the circular genome is also common. Some dsDNA viruses use a strand displacement method whereby one strand is synthesized from a template strand, and a complementary strand is then synthesized from the prior synthesized strand, forming a dsDNA genome. Lastly, some dsDNA viruses are replicated as part of a process called replicative transposition whereby a viral genome in a host cell's DNA is replicated to another part of a host genome.


title: DNA virus

text: dsDNA viruses can be subdivided between those that replicate in the cell nucleus, and as such are relatively dependent on host cell machinery for transcription and replication, and those that replicate in the cytoplasm, in which case they have evolved or acquired their own means of executing transcription and replication. dsDNA viruses are also commonly divided between tailed dsDNA viruses, referring to members of the realm "Duplodnaviria", usually the tailed bacteriophages of the order "Caudovirales", and tailless or non-tailed dsDNA viruses of the realm "Varidnaviria".


title: DNA virus

text: The second Baltimore group of DNA viruses are those that have a single-stranded DNA genome. ssDNA viruses have the same manner of transcription as dsDNA viruses. However, because the genome is single-stranded, it is first made into a double-stranded form by a DNA polymerase upon entering a host cell. mRNA is then synthesized from the double-stranded form. The double-stranded form of ssDNA viruses may be produced either directly after entry into a cell or as a consequence of replication of the viral genome. Eukaryotic ssDNA viruses are replicated in the nucleus.


title: DNA virus

text: Most ssDNA viruses contain circular genomes that are replicated via rolling circle replication (RCR). ssDNA RCR is initiated by an endonuclease that bonds to and cleaves the positive strand, allowing a DNA polymerase to use the negative strand as a template for replication. Replication progresses in a loop around the genome by means of extending the 3'-end of the positive strand, displacing the prior positive strand, and the endonuclease cleaves the positive strand again to create a standalone genome that is ligated into a circular loop. The new ssDNA may be packaged into virions or replicated by a DNA polymerase to form a double-stranded form for transcription or continuation of the replication cycle.


title: DNA virus

text: Parvoviruses contain linear ssDNA genomes that are replicated via rolling hairpin replication (RHR), which is similar to RCR. Parvovirus genomes have hairpin loops at each end of the genome that repeatedly unfold and refold during replication to change the direction of DNA synthesis to move back and forth along the genome, producing numerous copies of the genome in a continuous process. Individual genomes are then excised from this molecule by the viral endonuclease. For parvoviruses, either the positive or negative sense strand may be packaged into capsids, varying from virus to virus.


title: DNA virus

text: Nearly all ssDNA viruses have positive sense genomes, but a few exceptions and peculiarities exist. The family "Anelloviridae" is the only ssDNA family whose members have negative sense genomes, which are circular. Parvoviruses, as previously mentioned, may package either the positive or negative sense strand into virions. Lastly, bidnaviruses package both the positive and negative linear strands.


title: DNA virus

text: The International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) oversees virus taxonomy and organizes viruses at the basal level at the rank of realm. Virus realms correspond to the rank of domain used for cellular life but differ in that viruses within a realm do not necessarily share common ancestry, nor do the realms share common ancestry with each other. As such, each virus realm represents at least one instance of viruses coming into existence. Within each realm, viruses are grouped together based on shared characteristics that are highly conserved over time. Three DNA virus realms are recognized: "Duplodnaviria", "Monodnaviria", and "Varidnaviria".


title: DNA virus

text: "Duplodnaviria" contains dsDNA viruses that encode a major capsid protein (MCP) that has the HK97 fold. Viruses in the realm also share a number of other characteristics involving the capsid and capsid assembly, including an icosahedral capsid shape and a terminase enzyme that packages viral DNA into the capsid during assembly. Two groups of viruses are included in the realm: tailed bacteriophages, which infect prokaryotes and are assigned to the order "Caudovirales", and herpesviruses, which infect animals and are assigned to the order "Herpesvirales".


title: DNA virus

text: "Duplodnaviria" is a very ancient realm, perhaps predating the last universal common ancestor (LUCA) of cellular life. Its origins not known, nor whether it is monophyletic or polyphyletic. A characteristic feature is the HK97-fold found in the MCP of all members, which is found outside the realm only in encapsulins, a type of nanocompartment found in bacteria: this relation is not fully understood.


title: DNA virus

text: The relation between caudoviruses and herpesviruses is also uncertain: they may share a common ancestor or herpesviruses may be a divergent clade from the realm "Caudovirales". A common trait among duplodnaviruses is that they cause latent infections without replication while still being able to replicate in the future. Tailed bacteriophages are ubiquitous worldwide, important in marine ecology, and the subject of much research. Herpesviruses are known to cause a variety of epithelial diseases, including herpes simplex, chickenpox and shingles, and Kaposi's sarcoma.


title: DNA virus

text: "Monodnaviria" contains ssDNA viruses that encode an endonuclease of the HUH superfamily that initiates rolling circle replication and all other viruses descended from such viruses. The prototypical members of the realm are called CRESS-DNA viruses and have circular ssDNA genomes. ssDNA viruses with linear genomes are descended from them, and in turn some dsDNA viruses with circular genomes are descended from linear ssDNA viruses.


title: DNA virus

text: Viruses in "Monodnaviria" appear to have emerged on multiple occasions from archaeal and bacterial plasmids, a type of extra-chromosomal DNA molecule that self-replicates inside its host. The kingdom "Shotokuvirae" in the realm likely emerged from recombination events that merged the DNA of these plasmids and complementary DNA encoding the capsid proteins of RNA viruses.


title: DNA virus

text: CRESS-DNA viruses include three kingdoms that infect prokaryotes: "Loebvirae", "Sangervirae", and "Trapavirae". The kingdom "Shotokuvirae" contains eukaryotic CRESS-DNA viruses and the atypical members of "Monodnaviria". Eukaryotic monodnaviruses are associated with many diseases, and they include papillomaviruses and polyomaviruses, which cause many cancers, and geminiviruses, which infect many economically important crops.


title: DNA virus

text: "Varidnaviria" contains DNA viruses that encode MCPs that have a jelly roll fold folded structure in which the jelly roll (JR) fold is perpendicular to the surface of the viral capsid. Many members also share a variety of other characteristics, including a minor capsid protein that has a single JR fold, an ATPase that packages the genome during capsid assembly, and a common DNA polymerase. Two kingdoms are recognized: "Helvetiavirae", whose members have MCPs with a single vertical JR fold, and "Bamfordvirae", whose members have MCPs with two vertical JR folds.


title: DNA virus

text: Varidnaviria is either monophyletic or polyphyletic and may predate the LUCA. The kingdom "Bamfordvirae" is likely derived from the other kingdom "Helvetiavirae" via fusion of two MCPs to have an MCP with two jelly roll folds instead of one. The single jelly roll (SJR) fold MCPs of "Helvetiavirae" show a relation to a group of proteins that contain SJR folds, including the Cupin superfamily and nucleoplasmins.


title: DNA virus

text: Marine viruses in "Varidnaviria" are ubiquitous worldwide and, like tailed bacteriophages, play an important role in marine ecology. Most identified eukaryotic DNA viruses belong to the realm. Notable disease-causing viruses in "Varidnaviria" include adenoviruses, poxviruses, and the African swine fever virus. Poxviruses have been highly prominent in the history of modern medicine, especially "Variola virus", which caused smallpox. Many varidnaviruses can become endogenized in their host's genome; a peculiar example are virophages, which after infecting a host, can protect the host against giant viruses.


title: DNA virus

text: ssDNA viruses are classified into one realm and include several families that are unassigned to a realm:


title: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (novel)

text: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie is a novel by Muriel Spark, the best known of her works. It was first published in "The New Yorker" magazine and was published as a book by Macmillan in 1961. The character of Miss Jean Brodie brought Spark international fame and brought her into the first rank of contemporary Scottish literature. In 2005, the novel was chosen by "Time" magazine as one of the one hundred best English-language novels from 1923 to present. In 1998, the Modern Library ranked "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" No. 76 on its list of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century.


title: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (novel)

text: In 1930s Edinburgh, six ten-year-old girls, Sandy, Rose, Mary, Jenny, Monica, and Eunice, are assigned Miss Jean Brodie, who describes herself as being "in my prime," as their teacher. Miss Brodie, determined that they shall receive an education in the original sense of the Latin verb "educere", "to lead out", gives her students lessons about her personal love life and travels, promoting art history, classical studies, and fascism. Under her mentorship, these six girls whom Brodie singles out as the elite group among her students—known as the "Brodie set"—begin to stand out from the rest of the school. However, in one of the novel's typical flash-forwards we learn that one of them will later betray Brodie, ruining her teaching career, but that she will never learn which one.


title: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (novel)

text: In the Junior School, they meet the singing teacher, the short Mr Gordon Lowther, and the art master, the handsome, one-armed war veteran Mr Teddy Lloyd, a married Roman Catholic with six children. These two teachers form a love triangle with Miss Brodie, each loving her, while she loves only Mr Lloyd. However, Miss Brodie never overtly acts on her love for Mr Lloyd, except once to exchange a kiss with him, witnessed by Monica. During a two-week absence from school, Miss Brodie embarks on an affair with Mr Lowther on the grounds that a bachelor makes a more respectable paramour: she has renounced Mr Lloyd as he is married. At one point during these two years in the Junior School, Jenny is "accosted by a man joyfully exposing himself beside the Water of Leith." The police investigation of the exposure leads Sandy to imagine herself as part of a fictional police force seeking incriminating evidence in respect of Brodie and Mr Lowther.


title: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (novel)

text: Once the girls are promoted to the Senior School (around age twelve) though now dispersed, they hold on to their identity as the Brodie set. Miss Brodie keeps in touch with them after school hours by inviting them to her home as she did when they were her pupils. All the while, the headmistress Miss Mackay tries to break them up and compile information gleaned from them into sufficient cause for Brodie's dismissal. Miss Mackay has more than once suggested to Miss Brodie that she should seek employment at a 'progressive' school; Miss Brodie declines to move to what she describes as a 'crank' school. When two other teachers at the school, the Kerr sisters, take part-time employment as Mr Lowther's housekeepers, Miss Brodie tries to take over their duties. She sets about fattening him up with extravagant cooking. The girls, now thirteen, visit Miss Brodie in pairs at Mr Lowther's house, where Miss Brodie frequently asks about Mr Lloyd in Mr Lowther's presence. At this point Mr Lloyd asks Rose and occasionally the other girls to pose for him as portrait subjects. Each face he paints ultimately resembles Miss Brodie, as her girls report to her in detail, and she thrills at the telling. One day when Sandy is visiting Mr Lloyd, he kisses her.


title: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (novel)

text: Before the Brodie set turns sixteen, Miss Brodie tests her girls to discover which of them she can really trust, ultimately settling on Sandy as her confidante. Miss Brodie is obsessed with the notion that Rose, as the most beautiful of the Brodie set, should have an affair with Mr Lloyd in her place. She begins to neglect Mr Lowther, who ends up marrying Miss Lockhart, the science teacher. Another student, Joyce Emily, steps briefly into the picture, trying unsuccessfully to join the Brodie set. Miss Brodie takes her under her wing separately, encouraging her to run away to fight in the Spanish Civil War on the Nationalist side, which she does, only to be killed in an accident when the train she is travelling in is attacked.


title: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (novel)

text: The original Brodie set, now seventeen and in their final year of school, begin to go their separate ways. Mary and Jenny leave before taking their exams, Mary to become a typist and Jenny to pursue a career in acting. Eunice becomes a nurse and Monica a scientist. Rose lands a handsome husband. Sandy, with a keen interest in psychology, is fascinated by Mr Lloyd's stubborn love, his painter's mind, and his religion. Sandy and Rose model for Mr Lloyd's paintings, Sandy knowing that Miss Brodie expects Rose to become sexually involved with Lloyd. Rose, however, is oblivious to the plan crafted for her and so it is Sandy, now eighteen and alone with Mr Lloyd in his house while his wife and children are on holiday, who has exactly such an affair with him for five weeks during the summer. Over time, Sandy's interest in the man wanes while her interest in the mind that still loves Jean Brodie grows. In the end, Sandy leaves him, adopts his Roman Catholic religion, and becomes a nun. Beforehand, however, she meets with Miss Mackay and blatantly confesses to wanting to bring a stop to Miss Brodie. She suggests that the headmistress could accuse Brodie of encouraging fascism, and this tactic succeeds. Not until her dying moment a year after the end of World War II is Miss Brodie able to imagine that it was her confidante, Sandy, who betrayed her. After her death however, Sandy, now called "Sister Helena of the Transfiguration" and author of "The Transfiguration of the Commonplace," maintains that "it's only possible to betray where loyalty is due." One day, an enquiring young man visits Sandy at the convent, because of her strange book on psychology. He enquires about the main influences of her school years, asking her: "Were they literary or political or personal? Was it Calvinism?" Sandy answers him, instead, by saying: "There was a Miss Jean Brodie in her prime."


title: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (novel)

text: "She thinks she is Providence, thought Sandy, she thinks she is the God of Calvin." In some ways she is: in her prime she draws her chosen few to herself, much as Calvinists understand God to draw the elect to their salvation. With regard to religion, Miss Brodie "was not in any doubt, she let everyone know she was in no doubt, that God was on her side whatever her course, and so she experienced no difficulty or sense of hypocrisy in worship while at the same time she went to bed with the singing master." Feeling herself fated one way or another, Brodie acts as if she transcends morality.


title: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (novel)

text: Of the set, "Miss Brodie fixed on Sandy," taking her as her special confidante. She is characterised as having "small, almost nonexistent, eyes" and a peering gaze. Miss Brodie repeatedly reminds Sandy that she has insight but no instinct. Sandy rejects Calvinism, reacting against its rigid predestination in favour of Roman Catholicism.


title: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (novel)

text: In contrast to Sandy, Rose is an attractive blonde with (according to Miss Brodie) instinct but no insight. Though somewhat undeservedly, Rose is "famous for sex", and the art teacher Mr. Lloyd asks her to model for his paintings: it rapidly becomes clear that he has no sexual interest in her and uses her simply because she is a good model. In every painting, Rose has the likeness of Brodie, whom Mr. Lloyd stubbornly loves. Rose and Sandy are the two girls in whom Miss Brodie places the most hope of becoming the "crème de la crème". Again unlike Sandy, Rose "shook off Miss Brodie's influence as a dog shakes pond-water from its coat."


title: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (novel)

text: Dim-witted and slow, Mary is Brodie's scapegoat. Mary meekly bears the blame for everything that goes wrong. At the age of 23 she dies in a hotel fire, killed running back and forth through the hotel, unable to escape.


title: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (novel)

text: Spark creates deep characterisations which are realistic in their human imperfections. Hal Hager, in his commentary on the novel, writes of Sandy and Miss Brodie: "The complexity of these two characters, especially Jean Brodie, mirrors the complexity of human life. Jean Brodie is genuinely intent on opening up her girls' lives, on heightening their awareness of themselves and their world, and on breaking free of restrictive, conventional ways of thinking, feeling, and being". Critic James Wood noted that by "reducing Miss Brodie to no more than a collection of maxims, Spark forces us to become Brodie's pupils. In the course of the novel we never leave the school to go home, alone, with Miss Brodie. We surmise that there is something unfulfilled and even desperate about her, but the novelist refuses us access to her interior. Brodie talks a great deal about her prime, but we don't witness it, and the nasty suspicion falls that perhaps to talk so much about one's prime is by definition no longer to be in it."


title: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (novel)

text: The character of Miss Jean Brodie was based in part on Christina Kay, a teacher of Spark's for two years at James Gillespie's School for Girls. Spark later wrote of her: "What filled our minds with wonder and made Christina Kay so memorable was the personal drama and poetry within which everything in her classroom happened." Miss Kay was the basis for the good parts of Brodie's character, but also some of the more bizarre; for example, Miss Kay did hang posters of Renaissance paintings on the wall, but also of Benito Mussolini and Italian fascists marching. Spark grew up in heavily Presbyterian Edinburgh, while Franco's supporters were almost unanimously Roman Catholic. Christina Kay looked after her widowed mother, not the music teacher who was in love with her. She encouraged the young Muriel Spark to become a writer. Spark, like Sandy, converted to Roman Catholicism.


title: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (novel)

text: The original 1966 London stage version starred Vanessa Redgrave and a young Olivia Hussey. Redgrave turned down the Broadway production in 1968 which starred Zoe Caldwell who would go on to win the Tony Award. Redgrave also turned down the film role. In 1969 the film "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" was released. It starred Maggie Smith, and she won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance. In 1978 Scottish Television produced the seven part serial "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie". It starred Geraldine McEwan. It was this performance that the author preferred.


title: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (novel)

text: On 5 November 2019 "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" appeared on the "BBC News" list of the 100 most influential novels.


title: Troy Brown Jr.

text: Troy Randall Brown Jr. (born July 28, 1999) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). In his senior year of high school, Brown was named a 2017 McDonald's All-American. He played college basketball for the Oregon Ducks.


title: Troy Brown Jr.

text: Brown's mother (track) and father (basketball) competed collegiately at Texas A&M University-Kingsville. His sister, Jada, also played basketball at the University of Kansas.


title: Troy Brown Jr.

text: Brown Jr. was considered one of the best players in the 2017 recruiting class by Scout.com, Rivals.com and ESPN. On November 7, 2016, he committed to playing with the Oregon Ducks. He was one of their top prospects going into his freshman season and continued to uphold this reputation all throughout his college career.


title: Troy Brown Jr.

text: Brown made his collegiate debut on November 10, 2017, recording 18 points in a win against Coppin State University. Three days later, he recorded 17 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists in a win over Prairie View A&M University. Brown would get his first double-double of the season by recording 12 points and 10 rebounds in a win against Colorado State University on December 8. Three days later, he would record a season-high 12 rebounds to go with 10 points in a win against Texas Southern University. On December 13, Brown recorded a near triple-double with 10 points, 10 rebounds, and a season-high 9 assists in a win over Portland State University. On New Year's Eve, he would record a season-high 21 points in a win against the University of Colorado. He would later match that season-high with points scored on February 18, 2018 in their win against the University of Washington. Because of his immediate success with Oregon, after the end of his freshman season, Brown declared entry for the 2018 NBA Draft.


title: Troy Brown Jr.

text: Brown appeared in 35 games for the Ducks, averaging 11.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 3.2 assists in 31.2 minutes per game. Oregon’s leading rebounder, Brown was also second on the team in assists and he shot 44.4 percent from the field, 29.1 percent from three and 74.3 percent from the foul line.


title: Troy Brown Jr.

text: On June 21, 2018, Brown was selected with the 15th overall pick by the Washington Wizards in the 2018 NBA draft. In his rookie season he played 52 games, starting 10 of them.


title: Troy Brown Jr.

text: On March 25, 2021, Brown was traded to the Chicago Bulls in a three-team trade involving the Boston Celtics.


title: Troy Brown Jr.

text: Brown debuted a Vlog entitled "Life Outside the NBA" on Oct. 7th, 2020 on the Basketballnews.com Network. He is also a writer for the website covering various on and off the court topics.


title: Má vlast

text: Má vlast (), also known as My Fatherland, is a set of six symphonic poems composed between 1874 and 1879 by the Czech composer Bedřich Smetana. The six pieces, conceived as individual works, are often presented and recorded as a single work in six movements. They premiered separately between 1875 and 1880. The complete set premiered on 5 November 1882 in Žofín Palace, Prague, under Adolf Čech.


title: Má vlast

text: "Má vlast" combines the symphonic poem form, pioneered by Franz Liszt, with the ideals of nationalistic music of the late nineteenth century. Each poem depicts an aspect of Bohemia's countryside, history, or legends.


title: Má vlast

text: The works have opened the Prague Spring International Music Festival, on the 12 May anniversary of the death of their composer, since 1952.


title: Má vlast

text: The first poem, "Vyšehrad" (The High Castle), composed between the end of September and 18 November 1874 and premiered on 14 March 1875 at the [Prague] Philharmonic, describes the Vyšehrad castle in Prague which was the seat of the earliest Czech kings. During the summer of 1874, Smetana began to lose his hearing, and total deafness soon followed; he described the gradual, but rapid loss of his hearing in a letter of resignation to the director of the Royal Provincial Czech Theatre, Antonín Čížek. In July 1874 he began hearing anomalous noise and then a permanent buzzing. Not long after the onset he was unable to distinguish individual sounds. At the beginning of October he lost all hearing in his right ear, and finally on 20 October in his left. His treatment was based on maintaining isolation from all sounds, but was unsuccessful.


title: Má vlast

text: The poem begins with the sounds of the harp of the mythical singer Lumír, and then crosses over into the tones of the castle's arsenal. This section of the music introduces the main motifs, which are used in other parts of the cycle. A four note motif (B–E–D–B) represents the castle of Vyšehrad; this is heard again at the end of 'Vltava' and once more, to round the whole cycle off, at the conclusion of 'Blaník'.


title: Má vlast

text: In the score two harps are required to perform the opening arpeggios. After a dominant seventh chord, the winds take up the theme, followed by the strings, before the whole orchestra is employed to reach a climax. In the next part, Smetana recalls the story of the castle, using a faster tempo which becomes a march. A seemingly triumphant climax is cut short by a descending passage depicting the collapse of the castle, and the music falls quiet. Then the opening harp material is heard again and the music reminds again of the beauty of the castle, now in ruins. The music ends quietly, depicting the river Vltava flowing below the castle.


title: Má vlast

text: Conceived between 1872 and 1874, it is the only piece in the cycle to be mostly completed before Smetana began to go noticeably deaf in the summer of 1874. Most performances last approximately fifteen minutes in duration.


title: Má vlast

text: "Vltava", also known by its English title , and the German , was composed between 20 November and 8 December 1874 and was premiered on 4 April 1875 under Adolf Čech. It is about 13 minutes long, and is in the key of E minor.


title: Má vlast

text: In this piece, Smetana uses tone painting to evoke the sounds of one of Bohemia's great rivers. In his own words:


title: Má vlast

text: The composition describes the course of the Vltava, starting from the two small springs, the Studená and Teplá Vltava, to the unification of both streams into a single current, the course of the Vltava through woods and meadows, through landscapes where a farmer's wedding is celebrated, the round dance of the mermaids in the night's moonshine: on the nearby rocks loom proud castles, palaces and ruins aloft. The Vltava swirls into the St John's Rapids; then it widens and flows toward Prague, past the Vyšehrad, and then majestically vanishes into the distance, ending at the Elbe.


title: Má vlast

text: <score sound="1"> \relative c" { \clef treble \key e \minor \time 6/8 \tempo "Allegro commodo non agitato" \partial 8*1 b8-.\p_"dolce" | e4(\< fis8) g4( a8)\! | b4 b8-. b4.--\< | c4.\sf\! c->\> | b->\!\p~ b4 b8\<( | a4.)\!\dim a4 a8 | g4( a8 g4) g8(\< | fis4.)\!\> fis4(\!\> fis8-.)\! | e4\> r8\! } </score>


title: Má vlast

text: Vltava contains Smetana's most famous tune. It is an adaptation of the melody "La Mantovana", attributed to the Italian renaissance tenor, Giuseppe Cenci, which, in a borrowed Romanian form, was also the basis for the Israeli national anthem, "Hatikvah". The tune also appears in an old Czech folk song, "Kočka leze dírou" ("The Cat Crawls Through the Hole"); Hanns Eisler used it for his "Song of the Moldau"; and Stan Getz performed it as "Dear Old Stockholm" (possibly through another derivative of the original tune, "Ack Värmeland du sköna").


title: Má vlast

text: The piece is featured in the 2011 American movie "The Tree of Life" and in Don Hertzfeldt's "Everything Will Be OK".


title: Má vlast

text: The third poem was finished on 20 February 1875 and is named for the female warrior Šárka, a central figure in the ancient Czech legend of "The Maidens' War". Šárka ties herself to a tree as bait and waits to be saved by the princely knight Ctirad, deceiving him into believing that she is an unwilling captive of the rebelling women. Once released by Ctirad, who has quickly fallen in love with her, Šárka serves him and his comrades with drugged mead and once they have fallen asleep she sounds a hunting horn: an agreed signal to the other women. The poem ends with the warrior maidens falling upon and murdering the sleeping men. It was first performed under the baton of Adolf Čech (sources disagree whether this was on 10 December 1876 or 17 March 1877).


title: Má vlast

text: Smetana finished composing this piece, commonly translated as "From Bohemia's Woods and Fields" or "From Bohemian Fields and Groves", on 18 October 1875, and it received its first public performance nearly eight weeks later, on 10 December. A depiction of the beauty of the Czech countryside and its people, the tone poem tells no real story. The first part is dedicated to the grandeur of the forest with a surprising fugue in the strings, interrupted by a soft woodland melody of the horns, which is later taken over by the whole orchestra. In the second part, a village festival is depicted in full swing. This tone poem was originally written to be the finale of "Má vlast".


title: Má vlast

text: This piece, which was finished on 13 December 1878 and premiered on 4 January 1880, is named after the town of Tábor in South Bohemia founded by the Hussites and serving as their centre during the Hussite Wars. The theme for the piece is quoted from the first two lines of the Hussite hymn, "Ktož jsú boží bojovníci" ("Ye Who Are Warriors of God").


title: Má vlast

text: <score sound="1"> \relative c' { \clef treble \time 3/2 \key d \minor d\ff-. d-. d2-> d-> | r r d\ff | e4-.-> c-. c1-> } </score>


title: Má vlast

text: Blaník was finished on 9 March 1879 and premiered on 4 January 1880. It is named for the mountain Blaník inside which a legend says that a huge army of knights led by St. Wenceslaus sleep. The knights will awake and help the country in its gravest hour (sometimes described as four hostile armies attacking from all cardinal directions).


title: Má vlast

text: Musically, "Blaník" begins exactly as "Tábor" ends, "hammering" out the motto which was left unresolved, but now continuing on, as if in the aftermath of the battle. Thus these last two tone poems of the cycle form a cohesive pair, as do the first two; the High Castle's theme returns as the Vltava's river journey triumphantly reaches that same destination, and again returns triumphantly at the end of "Blaník". Once again, the Hussite hymn used in Tábor is quoted, though this time it is the third line which rings out in the march at the end of the piece. The original lyrics to this line in the hymn are "so that finally with Him you will always be victorious", a reference to the eventual victorious rise of the Czech state.


title: Má vlast

text: <score sound="1"> \relative c' { \clef bass \time 3/2 \key d \major d->\fff d-> d2-> d-> | e4-> c-> c2-> r | e4->-. c->~ c b->-. b2-> | a1->\fz r2 | a4->\sfz c-> c2-> a-> | a4-> f-> f2-> } </score>


title: Má vlast

text: The work is scored for piccolo, two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, four French horns, two trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, bass drum, triangle, cymbals, two harps, and strings.


title: Matter of France

text: The Matter of France, also known as the Carolingian cycle, is a body of literature and legendary material associated with the history of France, in particular involving Charlemagne and his associates. The cycle springs from the Old French "chansons de geste", and was later adapted into a variety of art forms, including Renaissance epics and operas. Together with the Matter of Britain, which concerned King Arthur, and the Matter of Rome, comprising material derived from and inspired by classical mythology, it was one of the great European literary cycles that figured repeatedly in medieval literature.


title: Matter of France

text: The Matter of France was one of the "Three Matters" repeatedly recalled in medieval literature. It was contrasted with the Matter of Britain, the legendary history of Great Britain, Brittany and King Arthur; and the Matter of Rome, which represented the medieval poets' interpretations of Ancient Greek and Roman mythology and history. The three names were first used by the twelfth-century French poet Jean Bodel, author of the "Chanson de Saisnes", a "chanson de geste" in which he wrote:


title: Matter of France

text: About 1215 Bertrand de Bar-sur-Aube, in the introductory lines to his "Girart de Vienne", set out a subdivision of the Matter of France into three cycles, which have been adopted by many modern critics as a useful means of grouping the "chansons de geste". These are his words:


title: Matter of France

text: Central figures of the Matter of France include Charlemagne and his paladins, especially Roland, hero of "The Song of Roland", and his companion Oliver, who was frequently cast in conflict with the Muslim champion Fierabras. Originally, the Matter of France contained tales of war and martial valour, being focused on the conflict between the Franks and Saracens or Moors during the period of Charles Martel and Charlemagne. The "Chanson de Roland", for example, is about the Battle of Roncevaux Pass during the Moorish invasion of southern France. As the genre matured, elements of fantasy and magic tended to accrue to the tales. The magic horse Bayard, for example, is a recurring figure in many of the tales.


title: Matter of France

text: The fundamental character of the "Matter of France" is feudal and Christian (in a crusading form). Although viewed as idolators, the Saracens were not necessarily depicted as un-chivalrous. The earliest "gestes" were likely sung by a "jongleur", accompanied by a fiddle. It is apparent that the authors were ignorant of the fact that Islam is monotheistic. D.J.A. Ross says that people of the Middle Ages appear to have regarded the "gestes" as generally historical.


title: Matter of France

text: Einhard's "Vita Caroli" describes the Basque ambush at Roncevaux as driving the Frankish rearguard down the valley. The poet who wrote the "Chanson de Roland" did not hesitate to update the military tactics to a set-piece cavalry charge on the part of the Saracens, although retaining a landscape unsuitable for couched lances.


title: Matter of France

text: After the period of the "chanson de geste", the Matter of France lived on. Its most well known survival is in the Italian epics by Matteo Maria Boiardo, Ludovico Ariosto, and a number of lesser authors who worked the material; their tales of "Orlando innamorato" ("Roland in Love")" and Orlando furioso" ("Roland Gone Mad") were inspired by the "chansons de geste". These works, in turn, inspired Torquato Tasso's "Gerusalemme liberata" and Edmund Spenser's "The Faerie Queene", although these latter works have been separated from the Matter of France and put in the respective settings of the First Crusade and an imaginary faerie land.


title: Matter of France

text: Tales of the Matter of France were also found in Old Norse, where the "Karlamagnus Saga" was written in the thirteenth century in Norway; it contains a synopsis of the main stories of the cycle. Indeed, until a major revival in the 19th century breathed new life into the Arthurian cycle, the Matter of France had enjoyed similar renown to the Matter of Britain.


title: Matter of France

text: Modern fantasy literature has used the Matter of France far less than the Matter of Britain, although L. Sprague de Camp and Fletcher Pratt set one of their Harold Shea stories ("The Castle of Iron") in the world of the Matter of France, and Poul Anderson's "Three Hearts and Three Lions" references the Matter of France. Through Anderson's book, the Matter of France also had some influence on the popular "Dungeons & Dragons" game. Italo Calvino's fantasy novel "The Nonexistent Knight" also takes place in this world.


title: Bad Hair Day

text: Bad Hair Day is the ninth studio album by "Weird Al" Yankovic, released on March 12, 1996. It was also Yankovic's last studio album for the Scotti Brothers label before it was purchased by Volcano Records in 1999 and his final studio album to be released while he still had his classic look (by 1998, Yankovic had shaved off his mustache, grew his hair out, and got laser corrective eye surgery). The album produced an array of hit comedy singles; lead single "Amish Paradise", which lampoons both Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise" and the Amish lifestyle, charted at No. 53 on the "Billboard" Hot 100, while "Gump", which parodies "Lump" by the Presidents of the United States of America and the movie "Forrest Gump", reached at No. 102.


title: Bad Hair Day

text: The musical styles on the album are built around parodies and pastiches of pop and rock music of the mid-1990s, largely targeting alternative rock and hip-hop alike. The album also includes style parodies, imitations of specific artists like They Might Be Giants and Elvis Costello. "Amish Paradise" caused a minor controversy after rapper Coolio expressed distaste at having his song parodied by Yankovic, although the two later made amends.


title: Bad Hair Day

text: "Bad Hair Day" was met with mixed to positive reviews, with many critics praising "Amish Paradise" in particular; "Amish Paradise" went on to become one of Yankovic's best-known singles. The album peaked at No. 14 on the "Billboard" 200. "Bad Hair Day" sold 1,317,000 copies in the U.S. in 1996 alone, the highest sales tally for any comedy album in a single calendar year since Nielsen SoundScan began tracking sales in 1991. "Bad Hair Day" was Yankovic's sixth Gold record in the United States, and went on to be certified Double Platinum for sales of over two million copies in the U.S. by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The album was also certified Platinum in Canada by the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA).


title: Bad Hair Day

text: In November 1994, Yankovic entered Santa Monica Sound Recorders in Santa Monica, California to begin the first of the "Bad Hair Day" sessions, which he produced himself. Recording with Yankovic were Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz on drums, Steve Jay on bass, and Jim West on guitar. The album was recorded in five sessions. The first session started on November 30 and yielded two originals: "Callin' In Sick" and "Everything You Know Is Wrong". The second session started the next day and produced the original songs: "I Remember Larry", "The Night Santa Went Crazy", and "Since You've Been Gone". The third session took place on November 5, 1995, and resulted in the original "I'm So Sick of You" and the parody "Cavity Search". The fourth session yielded "The Alternative Polka" medley, and the two parodies "Gump" and "Phony Calls". The fifth and final recording session produced "Amish Paradise" and "Syndicated Inc.", both of which were parodies.


title: Bad Hair Day

text: "Callin' In Sick" is a style parody of music popular in Seattle, Washington, most notably grunge. "Everything You Know Is Wrong" is a stylistic pastiche of They Might Be Giants. Yankovic explained that he "tried to write a song sort of in their style, but perhaps even a little bit more twisted". For fans of They Might Be Giants, he put "little references in here and there, little allusions to other songs of theirs". Yankovic later admitted that it "is a little bit harder I think to decipher exactly where the inspiration is coming from." The song title is taken from the 1974 Firesign Theatre album of the same name.


title: Bad Hair Day

text: "I Remember Larry" is a style parody of Hilly Michaels, and it tells the tale of a neighborhood bully who, after myriad pranks, drives the narrator to kidnap him and leave him for dead in the forest. At the 3:10 mark, the song contains a backmasked message, which when reversed reads, "Wow, you must have an awful lot of free time on your hands". "The Night Santa Went Crazy" tells the story of Santa snapping, embarking on a killing spree, and eventually being arrested. Originally, the song had a different third verse, differing in the fact that, at the end of the song, Santa is killed by the SWAT team. The "Extra Gory" version was eventually released on the single for "Amish Paradise". Another version was written for the Touring with Scissors tour in 1999, combining elements of the album version and the "Extra Gory" version. "Since You've Been Gone" is a generic doo-wop a cappella track that details a lover's torment after the object of his affections breaks up with him. Yankovic performed most of the vocals himself, and to make sure that he stayed on key, a scratch guitar track was recorded; when the song was mixed, the guitar track was removed. Bassist Steve Jay provides the low voices in the song. Finally, "I'm So Sick of You", a style parody of Elvis Costello in which the singer tells his girlfriend all the things he hates about her.


title: Bad Hair Day

text: The first parody recorded for the album was "Cavity Search", a parody of U2's hit "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me". The song, which recounts the horror of having to go to the dentist, features the sound of an actual dental drill. To enhance the dental theme of the song, Yankovic called in his actual dentist, who brought a real drill and a human tooth, which the two took turns drilling while recording. The second parody was a pastiche of TLC's hit "Waterfalls" called "Phony Calls", about prank calls. During the bridge, a clip from "The Simpsons" second season episode "Blood Feud" is played on top of the music. Because the sound clip was from a preexisting episode, Yankovic noted that "it was a pretty sweet deal for the Simpsons' voice actors – they each got a nice pile of money, and they didn't even have to come to the studio!" Before the call you hear a phone number being dialed. The number is 372-5806, which at the time was guitarist Jim West's home phone number. The next parody recorded for the album was "Gump", a parody of "Lump" by the Presidents of the United States of America. The song recounts the basic plot to the 1994 film "Forrest Gump" about a naïve and slow-witted yet athletically prodigious native of Alabama who witnesses, and in some cases influences, some of the defining events of the latter half of the 20th century in the United States. "Gump" was released as the second single from the album, and received a video.


title: Bad Hair Day

text: On January 15, 1996, Yankovic began recording the lead single for the album, "Amish Paradise". Yankovic felt that parodying Coolio would pay off, because Coolio had "such an identifiable image that a lot of things could be done [with]". He noted, "I like to play around with people that have some- you know, a lot of style as opposed to somebody who's kind of homogonized [sic] and bland and has no personality, and Coolio certainly kind of sticks out in a crowd." Yankovic felt that juxtaposing the original song's "gangsta" themes with the Amish lifestyle would produce a humorous end result. After Yankovic revealed to his label that he would be doing a Coolio parody, they requested that the album artwork for the release also parody Coolio. Yankovic had been toying with the name "Bad Hair Day" for a time and felt that he could adequately use the name and lampoon Coolio – who was known for his distinct hair style – at the same time. The final parody recorded for the album, "Syndicated Inc.", is a parody of "Misery" by Soul Asylum, a loving ode to syndicated television.


title: Bad Hair Day

text: Much like Yankovic's previous album, "Bad Hair Day" features a polka medley of then-current hit songs, "The Alternative Polka". "The Alternative Polka" originally contained the chorus of Weezer's song "Buddy Holly" performed by Yankovic, but the song's writer, Weezer front man Rivers Cuomo, requested its removal just before the album's release. Yankovic was forced to physically cut the bit out of the master tape, but Weezer was still given credit in the liner notes because the notes were already printed. On June 25, 2010, over 14 years after the album's release, Yankovic released the un-mixed and un-mastered "Buddy Holly" clip on his official YouTube channel.


title: Bad Hair Day

text: In addition to the five parodies on the album, Yankovic had several parody ideas that were turned down. Originally, Yankovic wanted to turn The Offspring's hit "Come Out and Play" into an ode about doing laundry called "Laundry Day". There are conflicting stories as to why the song was never recorded; either Yankovic never approached The Offspring about releasing the parody, or the band denied permission. Either way, Yankovic performed the song in concert from 1996 through 2000. Despite not being able to parody "Come Out and Play", Yankovic would later be granted permission to parody their 1998 hit "Pretty Fly (For a White Guy)" as "Pretty Fly for a Rabbi" on his 1999 album "Running with Scissors". Yankovic also wanted to record a parody of The Beatles' "Anthology" hit "Free as a Bird" titled "Gee, I'm a Nerd". Yankovic asked Paul McCartney, a supporter of Yankovic's work, if he could parody "Free as a Bird". McCartney had no problem with the parody, but because "Free as a Bird" was written by John Lennon, McCartney deferred the decision to Yoko Ono, who denied permission because she was uncomfortable with the parody idea.


title: Bad Hair Day

text: Yankovic had also intended to record a parody of the U2 song "Numb" and a parody of The Rembrandts's hit song "I'll Be There for You". The "Numb" spoof would have been called "Green Eggs and Ham", a song in which Yankovic recited various lines from the Dr. Seuss book of the same name. U2 approved the parody, but Yankovic was unable to get permission from the Seuss estate. Likewise, Yankovic had wanted to turn "I'll Be There for You" into "I'll Repair For You", and write it about the popular 1990s sitcom "Home Improvement". The Rembrandts had also given approval when Yankovic asked, but the producers of "Friends" did not want the theme song to get overexposed and refused permission. All of the rejected parodies were later performed in concert.


title: Bad Hair Day

text: The album's lead single, "Amish Paradise", caused a minor controversy after rapper Coolio said that Yankovic had never asked for permission to record the parody. Yankovic traditionally secures permission from the artists he parodies, even though this is not legally required, as parodies are covered under fair use guidelines, but when he inquired about "Gangsta's Paradise", Yankovic was told by Scotti Brothers Records that Coolio had given permission. Coolio later claimed that he had not given such permission, making a statement at the Grammys saying that he did not appreciate Yankovic "desecrating" his song.


title: Bad Hair Day

text: Speculation surfaced that Coolio had actually given permission but later changed his mind, or that Yankovic's record label had lied to Yankovic in the hopes that the song would become popular. Yankovic later stated on VH1's "Behind the Music" that he had written a sincere letter of apology to Coolio which was never returned, and that Coolio never complained when he received his royalty check from proceeds of the song. A series of photos taken at the XM Satellite Radio booth at the 2006 Consumer Electronics Show, and a post on the "Ask Al" feature on Yankovic's website suggested that Yankovic and Coolio made amends. According to Yankovic, he was very surprised when Coolio came over to chat. He later joked on his site's Q&A feature that, "I doubt I'll be invited to Coolio's next birthday party but at least I can stop wearing that bulletproof vest to the mall."


title: Bad Hair Day

text: Scotti Brothers Records developed a promotion strategy for "Bad Hair Day", which included Yankovic dressing up in exaggerated Coolio-styled hair and presenting an award at the American Music Awards in January 1996. According to "Billboard", this was "a hint as to who would be the next victim of a Yankovic parody". "Amish Paradise" was then released in the very beginning of March as a radio and commercial single, when "Gangsta's Paradise" was still receiving radio airplay. Four days later, the video was released. The album's success was also bolstered by the release of "Gump" as a single on April 25, and a video four days later. In addition, WEA, who had taken over distributing Scotti Brothers' albums from BMG, helped with the initial release of the album.


title: Bad Hair Day

text: To promote the album, Yankovic undertook the "Bad Hair Tour", which spanned from May 24, 1996 to October 19, 1997. The tour was largely centered in the United States, although the first half saw Yankovic perform in Canada. Yankovic performed over 130 shows during the tour. Initially, there were preliminary plans to have Yankovic tour Europe, based on whether All American Music Group would secure the album's international release, although this venture never came to fruition.


title: Bad Hair Day

text: Mike Joyce of "The Washington Post" wrote that "Amish Paradise" was "by far the cleverest and funniest track that "Bad Hair Day" has to offer [and] it ranks right up there with such Yankovic classics as 'Another One Rides the Bus,' 'Smells Like Nirvana' and 'Eat It.'" He also enjoyed "Gump", but felt that the remainder of the parodies were weak, particularly citing "Cavity Search" as "a sophomoric attempt to extract yuks". However, Joyce noted that "some of the biggest laugh-getters" on the album were Yankovic's originals. A record review from the "Pittsburgh Post-Gazette" concluded that "'Weird Al' Yankovic's ninth collection of original songs and parodies reinforces his reign as pop music's King of Comedy", and that the record "showcases Yankovic's unparalleled ability to capture the styles of other bands and turn boring pop songs into fun tunes." J. D. Considine of "The Baltimore Sun" noted that while Yankovic's music can be "sophomoric and silly", Yankovic himself "can also be pretty smart". The review highlighted, among other songs, "The Alternative Polka" and "The Night Santa Went Crazy", as some of the album's best songs.