title: Amanda Waller (DC Extended Universe)

text: Several months after Project Starfish, Waller commissions a new team to contain an extraterrestrial threat, with Clemson Murn assigned to lead and Peacemaker assigned after his recovery. As punishment for their insubordination during Project Starfish, Economos and Harcourt are also assigned by Waller, much to their chagrin as they feel as if they are being forced to "babysit" Smith. Wallter's daughter Leota Adebayo, also assigned to the team, is conflicted between following her mother's orders to incriminate Smith and her bond with him. She asks her mother for aid when Smith's team finds the "cow" of the Butterflies, after which Waller summons the Justice League, albeit too late. Leota, becoming disillusioned with her mother, later leaks Waller's involvement with both Project Butterfly and Task Force X, clearing Smith's name and putting Waller in a predicament in the process.


title: Amanda Waller (DC Extended Universe)

text: After Teth-Adam is awakened from a 5,000-year slumber in Kahndaq, Waller contacts Carter Hall / Hawkman and the Justice Society, dispatching them to contain Adam and prevent him from potentially unleashing another rampage for which he was imprisoned by the Council of Wizards. After coming to terms with Adam and facing off against Intergang, the Justice Society take in Adam, who surrenders out of remorse and feeling unfit to be a hero. However, Adam is broken out of his containment by Kent Nelson / Doctor Fate and helps save the country from Sabbac. Waller contacts Adam, who has now adapted the more modern name Black Adam, warning him not to leave Khandaq and sending a since-resurrected Superman to have a word with him.


title: Amanda Waller (DC Extended Universe)

text: Mark Birrel of "Screen Rant" ranked Amanda Waller in "Suicide Squad" the best villain in any DCEU film, looking at the films up to 2019. He writes "Viola Davis' turn as the fan-favorite character produced the DCEU's most human, and most cunning, villain in what has been their most critically reviled effort yet. Davis manages to outshine some of the biggest, brightest, loudest stars in an almighty ensemble movie that's chock-full of conflicting motivations and personalities." He also notes that her unwavering confidence and ruthlessness makes her the perfect "don" of the Suicide Squad. Darren Mooney writes in a review of the film's sequel "The Suicide Squad" that Waller's character and "spymaster archetype" had been deconstructed in the film, due to factors such as having a less dominating presence in the sequel in favor of the second Suicide Squad's members and being more mistake-prone, making errors such as erroneously sending Weasel on an amphibious assault when he is unable to swim and being out-maneuvered by Bloodsport in the film's climax. Mooney also describes Waller as the DCEU's counterpart to Nick Fury of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, continuing to say that like Fury, Waller is "another seemingly mortal character manipulating the superheroes around her within a military framework."


title: Amanda Waller (DC Extended Universe)

text: After the release of the film "The Woman King", which starred Viola Davis, Renaldo Matadeen of "CBR.com" wrote in 2022 that the DCEU was "wasting" her portrayal of Amanda Waller, given Davis' strong performance in the film. Matadeen argued that the DCEU should have portrayed more angles of Waller's character instead of having her "being put in a box in the "Suicide Squad" and "Peacemaker" properties, where she barks orders from the Task Force X headquarters", also calling her nothing more than a "corporate shill for the government" aside from when she met Bruce Wayne and came off as "quite scary" in "Suicide Squad".


title: Amanda Waller (DC Extended Universe)

text: The plot description and characterization were adapted from Amanda Waller at the DC Extended Universe Wiki, which is available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 (Unported) (CC-BY-SA 3.0) license.


title: King's Indian Attack

text: The King's Indian Attack (or KIA), also known as the Barcza System (after Gedeon Barcza) is a chess opening for White, characterized by several moves. The center pawns are developed to e4 and d3, the knights are developed to d2 and f3, the king's bishop fianchettoes at g2 following the g-pawn's movement to g3, and White castles kingside. The resulting arrangement has multiple positional themes: the pawn at d3 and the knight at d2 both defend the pawn at e4, the knight at f3 attacks the center, the fianchettoed bishop may influence the center following subsequent moves, and castling removes the king to safety while bringing a rook into the game.


title: King's Indian Attack

text: Unlike other chess openings, The King's Indian Attack is not a specific sequence of moves, but rather a "system" for White where the moves may be permuted at the player's discretion, in response to the moves of the black pieces. When a game opens with most or all of the above moves, to the exclusion of moves which typify other openings, the game may be described as a King's Indian Attack.


title: King's Indian Attack

text: The KIA is a mirror image of the setup adopted by Black in the King's Indian Defence. Yet, because of White's extra tempo, the nature of the subsequent play is often different from that of a typical King's Indian Defence.


title: King's Indian Attack

text: By its nature, the KIA is a closed, strategic opening that presents its practitioner with common themes and tactics and a comfortable middlegame against various defences. White's most common plan involves a central pawn push, e4–e5, leading to a central bind, , and concrete attacking chances on a kingside-castled black king. Black's resources—more space for example—are not to be underestimated. In fact, this asymmetry often leads to violent middlegames and neatly constructed mating nets involving sacrifices.


title: King's Indian Attack

text: The KIA is often used against the semi-open defences where Black responds asymmetrically to e4, such as in the French Defence, Sicilian Defence, or Caro–Kann Defence. Yet it can also be played against Black's more common defenses, usually through a move order that begins with 1.Nf3 and a later fianchetto of the white-square bishop. For this reason, transpositions to the Réti Opening, Catalan Opening, English opening or even the Nimzo-Larsen Attack (after b3 and Bb2) are not uncommon.


title: King's Indian Attack

text: The KIA is considered a solid opening choice for White, although less ambitious than many more popular openings. Though rarely used at the highest levels except to avoid some pet lines, it is extremely popular at the club level because it is easier to learn than other openings that require memorising specific move orders to avoid bad positions.


title: King's Indian Attack

text: King's Indian Attack (A07) is 1.Nf3 d5 2.g3 (see diagram). Common Black responses are 2...Nf6, 2...c6, 2...Bg4, 2...c5, and 2...g6. Then White can play 3.Bg2.


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: Keorapetse William Kgositsile (19 September 1938 – 3 January 2018), also known by his pen name Bra Willie, was a South African Tswana poet, journalist and political activist. An influential member of the African National Congress in the 1960s and 1970s, he was inaugurated as South Africa's National Poet Laureate in 2006. Kgositsile lived in exile in the United States from 1962 until 1975, the peak of his literary career. He made an extensive study of African-American literature and culture, becoming particularly interested in jazz. During the 1970s he was a central figure among African-American poets, encouraging interest in Africa as well as the practice of poetry as a performance art; he was well known for his readings in New York City jazz clubs. Kgositsile was one of the first to bridge the gap between African poetry and black poetry in the United States.


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: Kgositsile was born in a mostly white section of Johannesburg, and grew up in a small shack at the back of a house in a white neighborhood that was rented by his mother. His first experience of apartheid, other than having to go to school outside of his neighborhood for reasons he did not then understand, was a conflict with a local white family after he fought a white friend of his who hesitated when other friends refused to join a boxing club that denied Kgositsile membership. The experience was a formative one, and joined with other experiences of exclusion that increased throughout his teenage years. For Kgositsile, adulthood meant an entrance into apartheid.


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: Kgositsile attended Madibane High School in Johannesburg, as well as schools in other parts of the country. During that time he was able (with some difficulty) to find books by Langston Hughes and Richard Wright, and was influenced by them as well as by European writers (principally Charles Dickens and D. H. Lawrence), he began writing stories, though not yet with any intention of doing so professionally. After working at a series of odd jobs after high school, he took to writing more seriously, getting a job with the politically charged newspaper "New Age". He contributed both reporting and poetry to the newspaper. These early poems, anticipating a lifetime of Kgositsile's work, combine lyricism with an unmuted call to arms, as in these lines from "Dawn":


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: Any early interest in fiction was replaced by the sheer urgency of communication that Kgositsile felt. As he said later, "In a situation of oppression, there are no choices beyond didactic writing: either you are a tool of oppression or an instrument of liberation."


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: In 1961, under considerable pressure both for himself and as part of a government effort to shut down "New Age", Kgositile was urged by the African National Congress, of which he was a vocal member, to leave the country. He went initially to Dar es Salaam to write for "Spearhead" magazine (unrelated to the right-wing British magazine of the same name), but the following year emigrated to the United States. He studied at a series of universities, beginning with Lincoln University in Pennsylvania, where he "spent a lot of time in the library trying to read as much black literature as I could lay my hands on."


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: After studying at the University of New Hampshire and The New School for Social Research, Kgositsile entered the Master of Fine Arts program in creative writing at Columbia University. At the same time, he published his first collection of poems, "Spirits Unchained". The collection was well received, and he was given a Harlem Cultural Council Poetry Award and a National Endowment for the Arts Poetry Award. He graduated from Columbia in 1971, and remained in New York, teaching and giving his characteristically dynamic readings in downtown clubs and as part of the Uptown Black Arts Movement. Kgositsile's most influential collection, "My Name is Afrika", was published in that year. The response, including an introduction to the book by Gwendolyn Brooks, established Kgositsile as a leading African-American poet. The Last Poets, a group of revolutionary African-American poets, took their name from one of his poems.


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: Jazz was particularly important to Kgositsile's sense of black American culture and his own place in it. He saw John Coltrane, Nina Simone, Billie Holiday, B. B. King, and many others in the jazz clubs of New York, and wrote to them and of them in his poems. Jazz was crucial to Kgositsile's most influential idea: his sense of a worldwide African diaspora united by an ear for a certain quintessentially black sound. He wrote of the black aesthetic he pursued and celebrated:


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: Freedom from a constricting white aesthetic sensibility and the discovery of the rhythmic experience common to black people of all the world were, for Kgositsile, two sides of the same struggle.


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: Kgositsile also became active in theater while in New York, founding the Black Arts Theatre in Harlem. He saw black theater as a fundamentally revolutionary activity, whose ambition must be the destruction of the ingrained habits of thought responsible for perceptions of black people both by white people and by themselves. He wrote:


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: The Black Arts Theatre was part of a larger project aimed at the creation of literary black voice unafraid to be militant. Kgositsile argued persistently against the idea of Négritude, a purely aesthetic conception of black culture, on the grounds that it was dependent on white aesthetic models of perception, a process he called "fornicating with the white eye." This work took place while Kgositsile was teaching at Columbia in the earlier 1970s; he left to work briefly at "Black Dialogue Magazine."


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: In 1975, Kgositsile decided to return to Africa, despite his blossoming career in the United States, and took up a teaching position at the University of Dar es Salaam, in Tanzania. In 1978, he married another ANC exile, Baleka Mbete, who was also living in Tanzania. Still from exile, he renewed his activities with the ANC, founding its Department of Education in 1977 and its Department of Arts and Culture in 1983; he became Deputy Secretary in 1987. Kgositsile taught at several schools in different parts of Africa, including Kenya, Botswana, and Zambia. Throughout this period he was banned in South Africa, but in 1990 the Congress of South African Writers (COSAW), with which he was already associated, decided to attempt a publication within the country. The successful result was "When the Clouds Clear", a collection of poems from other volumes, which was Kgositsile's first book to be available in his native country.


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: In July 1990, after 29 years in exile, Kgositsile returned to South Africa. He arrived in a country wholly different from the one he had left, transformed by the beginning of the end of apartheid and the release and later the political triumph of Nelson Mandela. In 1990, however, it was still a place of great confusion, particularly for the many exiled black writers, artists, and intellectuals pouring into the country. In a 1991 essay, "Crossing Borders Without Leaving", Kgostitsile describes his first trip back to Johannesburg, where he was sponsored by COSAW: "Here are my colleagues and "hosts". Can you deal with that? Hosts! In my own country." But it is not his country anymore: "there are no memories here. The streets of Johannesburg cannot claim me. I cannot claim them either." Still, he returned to the country as a kind of hero to young black writers and activists:


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: Despite that sense of distance from the country, he dove immediately back into politics and cultural activism, and was quick to say that less had changed than should have: "there is the reality," he said in a 1992 interview, "that the South Africa that alienated black people to a very large extent still exists." Kgositsile was quick to criticize black leaders as well as white for this status quo, accusing the ANC of "being criminally backward when it comes to questions of culture and its place in society or struggle." In the early 1990s he served as vice president of COSAW, fostering the careers of young writers while continuing his steady critique of South African politics.


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: Kgositsile's most recent poems are more conversational and perhaps less lyrical than his earlier work, and, compared to his once-fiery nationalism, they are muted, and even skeptical. They speak of doubt rather than certainty, a doubt often reinforced by rhythmical understatement, as in the short, uneven lines of "Recollections":


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: In 2009 Bra Willie was part of the "Beyond Words" UK tour that also featured South African poets Don Mattera, Lesego Rampolokeng, Phillippa Yaa de Villiers and Lebo Mashile (presented by Apples & Snakes in association with Sustained Theatre, funded by the British Council South Africa, Arts Council England and the South African government).


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: In 2013 he was elected as Director of Culture Department and one of the first Executive Committee Members of SA-China People's Friendship Association.


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: Kgositsile returned to the United States several times, including for a visiting professorship at the New School. He was a member of the editorial board of "This Day" newspaper in Johannesburg, and remained at the forefront of contemporary South African literature.


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: His former wife, Baleka Mbete (they had married in 1978, while both living in exile in Tanzania), is the former Deputy President of South Africa; Speaker of the National Assembly of South Africa since 21 May 2014 and chairperson of the African National Congress. With Baleka he had his first son Duma and daughter Nkuli. His daughter Ipeleng (from his previous marriage to the late Melba Johnson Kgositsile) is a journalist and fiction writer who has written for "Vibe" and "Essence" magazines. He had his second son, Thebe Neruda Kgositsile (given his middle name after the poet Pablo Neruda), with Cheryl Harris, a law professor at University of California, Los Angeles. Thebe is better known as a hip hop artist under the stage name Earl Sweatshirt. Kgositsile was posthumously featured, alongside Harris, on the song "Playing Possum" from Earl Sweatshirt's 2018 album "Some Rap Songs".


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: The many literary awards he received include the Gwendolyn Brooks Poetry Prize, the Harlem Cultural Council Poetry Award, the Conrad Kent Rivers Memorial Poetry Award, the Herman Charles Bosman Prize.


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: In 2008, Kgositsile was awarded the national Order of Ikhamanga Silver (OIS) "For excellent achievements in the field of literature and using these exceptional talents to expose the evils of the system of apartheid to the world."


title: Keorapetse Kgositsile

text: "Black music and pan-African solidarity in Keorapetse Kgositsile’s poetry", "Journal of South African and American Studies", Volume 18, Number 4, 2017.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: Ryan O'Reilly (born February 7, 1991) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre and captain of the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League (NHL). He has previously played for the Colorado Avalanche and Buffalo Sabres. O'Reilly was drafted 33rd overall in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft by the Colorado Avalanche, with whom he spent the first six seasons of his NHL career. Nicknamed "the Factor", he is frequently referred to as one of the NHL's best two-way forwards, winning the Frank J. Selke Trophy in 2019.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: In 2015, O'Reilly was traded to the Buffalo Sabres, where he would play three seasons until being traded to the Blues in 2018. O'Reilly won the Stanley Cup with the Blues in 2019 over the Boston Bruins and was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player in the 2019 playoffs. He is currently the youngest player to play without a visor in the NHL.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: O'Reilly grew up playing hockey near his hometown of Varna, Ontario, with the Seaforth Stars of the Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA). He then moved up to the AAA level, playing for the Huron-Perth Lakers of the Minor Hockey Alliance starting in Minor Atom in 2000–01. Touted as one of the most talented prospects to come out from the Lakers, O'Reilly then played one year of minor midget hockey with the Toronto Jr. Canadiens in 2006–07 after playing six years of Lakers hockey.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: O'Reilly began playing at the major junior level for the Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) after he was the recipient of the Jack Ferguson Award as the first overall selection in the 2007 OHL Draft. In his rookie season in 2007–08, O'Reilly put up a solid 52 points in 61 games and was named the Otters Rookie of the Year and Most Sportsmanlike Player while also earning Erie's nomination for the Bobby Smith Trophy. In the following year, he backed up his rookie year with 50 assists and 66 points in 68 games for the 2008–09 season, and his all-around game was noticed when he was named the Western Conference's best penalty killer.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: After the 2008–09 OHL season, O'Reilly was drafted in the second round, 33rd overall, in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft by the Colorado Avalanche. He became the youngest player in Avalanche history to appear in a regular season game when he surprisingly made the opening night roster for the 2009–10 season. He earned his first NHL point in his Avalanche debut on October 1, 2009, against the San Jose Sharks, becoming the first non-first-round draft pick to immediately make the NHL in his first post-draft year since Patrice Bergeron in 2003–04. O'Reilly later scored his first career NHL goal, a game-winner, on October 15 against Carey Price of the Montreal Canadiens. On October 19, following his strong start to the season, the Avalanche announced that O'Reilly and his fellow 2009 draftee Matt Duchene would spend the entire season with the Avalanche. Initially leading all rookie forwards in scoring through October, O'Reilly recorded an assist in a 3–1 victory over the Detroit Red Wings on October 24 to cap a seven-game point streak, which stood as the longest by a rookie throughout the season.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: Suffering an offensive plateau midway through the season, O'Reilly anchored his position as a top defensive forward and penalty killer. He led the Avalanche in ice time on the penalty kill, culminating in posting two short-handed goals during a double minor penalty against the Columbus Blue Jackets on February 2, 2010, to become the first Avalanche player in history to achieve two shorthanded goals in one game. He finished his rookie season with the Avalanche with 26 points (eight goals and 18 assists) in 81 regular-season games before making his Stanley Cup playoff debut in a 2–1 victory over San Jose in Game 1 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals on April 14. On April 18, he scored his first career playoff goal, scoring the game-winning tally in Colorado's Game 3 1–0 overtime victory over San Jose. He was credited with the goal after inadvertently deflecting Sharks defenceman Dan Boyle's pass attempt from an improbable angle into the net past goaltender Evgeni Nabokov to put the Avalanche ahead in the series, two games to one.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: In his second professional season in 2010–11, O'Reilly remained entrenched on the shut-down third line for the Avalanche. On November 19, 2010, he appeared in his 100th NHL game, a 5–1 victory over the New York Rangers. In scoring eight goals in his last 18 games, O'Reilly was able to match his rookie season contribution of 26 points and led the team for a second consecutive season in takeaways, with 72.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: In the following year, 2011–12, having established himself as the leading defensive centre on the Avalanche, O'Reilly developed his two-way game and increased his offensive production playing alongside linemate Gabriel Landeskog. This was recognized as he was named as the NHL's Second Star of the Week for November 28 to December 4 after contributing with seven points in four games, and was leading all Avalanche forwards in ice time. On January 12, 2012, he appeared in his 200th career NHL game, scoring a goal in a 3–2 overtime defeat to the Nashville Predators. Despite the Avalanche missing the playoffs for a second-straight season, O'Reilly lead the NHL and set an Avalanche record with 101 takeaways. He also more than doubled his points output for his previous two seasons combined to finish as top scorer on the Avalanche with 18 goals and 55 points.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: As a restricted free agent in the off-season, O'Reilly's protracted contract negotiations with the Avalanche were halted by the expired Collective Bargaining Agreement between the NHL and the NHL Players' Association (NHLPA), which incurred the 2012–13 NHL lock-out. With the lock-out cancelling the start of the season, O'Reilly, in joining his brother Cal, signed a two-year contract with Russian Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) club Metallurg Magnitogorsk on December 7, 2012. Unlike the exodus of NHL players joining European leagues on short-term contracts, O'Reilly signed a two-year contract with the conditional opt-out clause in returning to the NHL if an agreement with the Avalanche was met. O'Reilly made his debut for Magnitogorsk in a 5–3 victory over Atlant Moscow Oblast on December 19.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: Despite an end to NHL lock-out announced on January 12, 2013, O'Reilly was still unable to come to terms with the Avalanche and initially continued to play in Russia to miss the opening of the shortened 2012–13 season. On January 24, citing an ankle injury suffered through his 12 games with Metallurg, he mutually terminated his contract in Russia and returned for rehabilitation to North America. At an impasse with the Avalanche a month into the season, O'Reilly was training with the OHL's London Knights when he ended his holdout on February 28 after signing a two-year, $10 million offer sheet with the Calgary Flames. With a game coinciding between the two clubs on that day, the Avalanche announced during the contest that they opted to forgo compensation and secured O'Reilly to a contract by matching the Flames' offer sheet. Due to O'Reilly having signed a contract with a KHL franchise, had Colorado not matched Calgary's offer sheet, he would have had to pass through waivers before returning to the NHL.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: In the 2013–14 season, under new Head Coach Patrick Roy, O'Reilly was moved to the wing to play alongside centre Matt Duchene and subsequently responded with a team-leading—and career-high—28 goals and 64 points in 80 games as the Avalanche returned to the playoffs. For the second time in his career, O'Reilly led the NHL in takeaways with 83 and, in recording just one penalty minor, was awarded the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy for gentlemanly conduct and sportsmanship by the League.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: As an impending restricted free agent, and with past difficulties in contract negotiation, the Avalanche elected to take O'Reilly to a salary arbitration. On July 23, 2014, O'Reilly and the Avalanche agreed to settle prior to the arbitration hearing after negotiating a two-year, $12 million contract. During the 2014–15 season, O'Reilly scored 17 goals and 38 assists for 55 points, also leading the Avalanche in average ice time per game, as Colorado failed to make the 2015 playoffs.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: On June 26, 2015, the Avalanche traded O'Reilly, alongside Jamie McGinn, to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for Nikita Zadorov, forward Mikhail Grigorenko, prospect J. T. Compher and the 31st pick in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. On July 2, O'Reilly then signed a seven-year contract extension with Buffalo worth $52.5 million, which came into effect during the 2016–17 season. O'Reilly's signing came on the same day as the Sabres organization signed his brother Cal O'Reilly to a two-year contract. O'Reilly was immediately named an alternate captain upon his arrival in Buffalo. The Sabres improved in O'Reilly's first season, after finishing last in league standings the previous two seasons. O'Reilly led the team offensively with 60 points.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: On April 7, 2018, O'Reilly surpassed Rod Brind'Amour for most faceoff wins in a single season (1,269) in a 4–3 loss to the Florida Panthers. At the end of the 2017–18 season, O'Reilly was named a Lady Byng Memorial Trophy finalist as the league's most gentlemanly player. In spite of his personal success, the Sabres failed to qualify for the NHL playoffs during his tenure, resulting in O'Reilly admitting he began to lose his love of the game. His comments seemed to polarize fans in Buffalo, with many subsequently labeling O'Reilly a cancerous presence on the team, while others defended his remarks and agreed that the Sabres had become complacent with losing.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: On July 1, 2018, O'Reilly was traded to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for Tage Thompson, Vladimír Sobotka, Patrik Berglund, a 2019 first-round pick and a 2021 second-round pick. Although O'Reilly experienced a career-high season with the Blues, the team fell to last place around the entire league by January 2, resulting in a coaching and goaltender change. As the Blues rebounded, O'Reilly enjoyed a career year in his first year in St. Louis, achieving career highs in assists and points and tying his career high in goals. He was invited to his second career NHL All-Star Game, where he registered seven points through two games and was a finalist for the All-Star Game MVP, ultimately losing the award to Sidney Crosby.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: As the Blues qualified for the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs, O'Reilly became the first player to score a goal in four consecutive Stanley Cup Finals games since Wayne Gretzky in 1985. He was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy after recording a franchise-record 23 playoff points as the Blues won their first Stanley Cup in franchise history, defeating the Boston Bruins 4–1 in game 7 of the 2019 Stanley Cup Finals. For his excellent two-way play during the season, O'Reilly won the Frank J. Selke Trophy as the league's best defensive forward on June 19, 2019, over Patrice Bergeron of the Boston Bruins and Mark Stone of the Vegas Golden Knights.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: Although the 2019–20 season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, O'Reilly continued his success with the Blues and recorded 61 points in 71 games. Due to the loss of Vladimir Tarasenko to injury, O'Reilly was appointed an alternate captain for the team on October 31. On January 11, 2020, O'Reilly, as well as fellow Blues teammates Alex Pietrangelo, Jordan Binnington, and David Perron, were invited to the 2020 National Hockey League All-Star Game.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: O'Reilly was named captain of the St. Louis Blues as replacement of Alex Pietrangelo on December 23, 2020.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: O'Reilly made his international debut at the 2008 World U-17 Hockey Challenge, scoring six points in six games as captain of gold medal-winning Team Ontario. As an underage 17-year-old, O'Reilly gained selection to Team Canada the 2008 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament in Slovakia. He scored five points in four games and was named game MVP in the final against Russia as he helped Canada capture the gold medal for the fourth time in five years.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: The following year, O'Reilly was selected as captain of Canada for the 2009 IIHF World U18 Championships. In six games, he contributed with five points before finishing in fourth place after losing 5–4 in the bronze medal game against Finland.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: Unable to reach the playoffs with the Avalanche after the 2014–15 regular season, O'Reilly, for the third time in his professional career, was invited to participate in the 2015 IIHF World Championship in the Czech Republic. He helped contribute to a dominant Canadian team, scoring ten points in ten games as Canada won gold in the tournament final over Russia, their first victory in the World Championship since 2007.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: O'Reilly repeated as World Champion with Canada in 2016. The following year, O'Reilly won silver at the 2017 IIHF World Championship. He was named an alternate captain for Team Canada at the 2018 IIHF World Championship.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: O'Reilly is the younger brother of fellow professional hockey player Cal O'Reilly. The two were teammates with the Sabres. His sister, Tara O'Reilly, served as captain of the Carleton Ravens women's ice hockey program in 2009.


title: Ryan O'Reilly

text: On July 13, 2015, Ontario Provincial Police charged O'Reilly with impaired driving following an incident in Lucan, Ontario when the vintage pickup truck he was driving struck a Tim Hortons. He was charged with driving a motor vehicle while ability impaired and care or control over 80 mgs. He was acquitted of the charges on July 11, 2016.


title: Honda C engine

text: Honda's first production V6 was the C series; it was produced in displacements from 2.0 to 3.5 liters. The C engine was produced in various forms for over 20 years (1985–2005), having first been used in the KA series Legend model, and its British sister car the Rover 800-series (and Sterling).


title: Honda C engine

text: All C engines share in common a 90-degree V-angle from bank to bank, common cylinder block bore centers, and four valves per cylinder. It is an all-aluminum design, and uses timing belt-driven single or dual overhead camshafts; the water pump is also driven by the timing belt.


title: Honda C engine

text: All C engines use an interference design; if the timing belt fails, any open valves will clash into the pistons, and severe engine damage will occur.


title: Honda C engine

text: The variable length intake manifold used six individual small-bore intake runners below 3,500 rpm for each cylinder and added an additional six individual larger bore intake runners at higher RPMs.


title: Honda C engine

text: Honda replaced the variable length intake manifold with a variable geometry turbocharger to the C20A engine used in the Japanese Domestic Market Legend. The turbo with intercooler-equipped engine was the C20AT engine and are extremely rare. Honda pioneered variable-geometry turbo chargers. The "Wing Turbo", as Honda called them, were controlled by an 8-bit processor ECU and they were constantly adjusting. Basically, at low speeds the wings surrounding the turbine wheel inside the compressor housing on the intake side would be nearly closed to speed and direct exhaust pressure precisely on the turbine wheel. At 2000 rpm, the wings would fluctuate and it would act like a much larger turbo to increase fuel economy as needed. This car was quick and powerful, but the price premium over the slightly longer and wider Legend with the naturally aspirated V6 was too much for most, so the car disappeared. This was one of the only production Hondas ever turbocharged from the factory (excluding turbo engines of kei car for the Japan domestic market), along with the K23A1 straight-4 engine used in the Acura RDX and the ER straight-4 engine used in the first generation Honda City until model year 2017, when most of their model lines had the option of the 1.5L turbocharged engine.


title: Honda C engine

text: The engine utilized a 90 degree V-angle to the crankshaft in preference to the taller but more common 60 degree design, with a compression ratio of 9.0:1. The crankshaft had crankpins offset 30 degrees to provide a low profile engine that fires smoothly and evenly. The block and cross flow pent roof cylinder heads with 24 valves are die-cast from aluminum alloy and the cylinder bores are lined with cast iron. The exhaust system uses equal length exhaust pipes connected to the Exhaust manifold to minimize scavenging resistance and maximum total exhaust efficiency. An external high capacity water cooled oil cooler and filter maintain an efficient oil temperature.


title: Honda C engine

text: The SOHC C27A is a 2.7 L version, with the major upgrade being the addition of a variable length intake manifold, producing up to


title: Honda C engine

text: The DOHC VTEC C30A is a version, producing at 7,300 rpm and of torque at 6,500 rpm, with a 10.2:1 compression ratio. The engine has a bore and stroke of 90mm x 78mm, making the engine highly over square, which facilitates a shift in power to the higher end of the rpm range. The engine was the second Honda engine ever to utilize Honda's proprietary VTEC variable valve timing system in an automotive application after the B16A, which adjusts cam lift and duration depending on engine RPM and throttle position. VTEC allows the C30A to produce a high maximum power level while maintaining a relatively flat torque curve. C30A was also equipped with Variable Volume Induction System (VVIS), which used a primary and a secondary intake plenum. Secondary intake plenum engages at 4800 RPM to improve engines breathing ability and broadens torque curve.


title: Honda C engine

text: The C30A also made use of titanium connecting rods, which was another first in a mass-production vehicle. The lightweight rods allowed a higher RPM to be achieved while maintaining the strength of traditional steel rods. The C30A block is an open-deck design made from an aluminum alloy with cylinders sleeved in ductile iron. The heads are 4 valves per cylinder (24 valves per engine total), twin-cam design and contain the VTEC mechanism, which is actuated by oil pressure. For maximum performance, the C30A uses a direct ignition system, with individual coils positioned directly over each cylinder spark plug.


title: Honda C engine

text: Due to its DOHC layout and its lightweight rotating assembly, the C30A is capable of reliable high RPM operation.


title: Honda C engine

text: Due to its complexity, cost and use of exotic materials, the C30A was used exclusively on Honda's NSX car. For NSXs equipped with a 4-speed automatic transmission, Honda used a slightly less powerful version of the C30A, with less aggressive cam timing and producing .


title: Honda C engine

text: Though never mass produced, a heavily upgraded version of the engine was briefly used in GT-spec NSXs for the 2004 JGTC racing series by the satellite team. This engine was extensively modified by Mugen and was the first turbocharged Honda engine used in the series: prior GT-spec NSXs used a variant of the naturally aspirated C32B engine. Though the exact performance figures were kept secret, it is rumored to output more than .


title: Honda C engine

text: The C32B is a highly tuned DOHC V6 used in the Honda NSX, which produces at 7,100 rpm and at 5,500 rpm of torque, retaining the 10.2:1 compression ratio from the C30A. The engine is essentially an update to the C30A and does not share commonality with the C32A. Honda increased displacement to through the use of larger pistons over the used in the C30A, while leaving the stroke the same. To accommodate the larger pistons, Honda used an advanced metallurgical technique on the cylinders called Fiber Reinforced Metal (FRM), in which an ultra lightweight alumina-carbon fiber is cast into the traditional aluminum alloy for enhanced rigidity. This process allowed thinner cylinder walls to be used while providing acceptable cooling characteristics. The C32B also used intake valves, which are larger than those in the C30A.


title: Honda C engine

text: The C35A is a SOHC and carries the largest displacement of the C series at . The C35A was the first mass-produced engine to use block forged connecting rods contributing to precise balancing and an exceptionally strong bottom end. The C35 also contains a balance shaft to dampen engine vibrations associated with 90 degree design V6 engines. Besides the addition of these forged components, the overall design is similar to its smaller counterpart the C32A, with some parts being interchangeable. The 9.6:1 compression ratio of the C32A is also retained, despite the increase in displacement.


title: Honda C engine

text: The C35B (name unconfirmed) is a DOHC V6 with VTEC which shares basic design properties with its SOHC non-VTEC counterpart but with more aggressive camshafts and slightly lighter cylinder walls. This was the only DOHC VTEC V6 ever built by Honda for longitudinal applications and was only used in one non-production car, the Honda FS-X concept.


title: Robin and Marian

text: Robin and Marian is a 1976 British-American romantic adventure film from Columbia Pictures, shot in Panavision and Technicolor, that was directed by Richard Lester and written by James Goldman after the legend of Robin Hood. The film stars Sean Connery as Robin Hood, Audrey Hepburn as Lady Marian, Nicol Williamson as Little John, Robert Shaw as the Sheriff of Nottingham, Richard Harris as Richard the Lionheart, and Denholm Elliott as Will Scarlet. It also features comedian Ronnie Barker in a rare film role as Friar Tuck. "Robin and Marian" was filmed in Zamora, as well as Artajona, Urbasa, Quinto Real and Orgi, all small medieval villages in Navarre, Spain. It marked Hepburn's return to the screen after an eight-year absence.


title: Robin and Marian

text: Lester made "Robin and Marian" amid a series of period pieces, including "The Three Musketeers" (1973). The original music score was composed by John Barry. The film originally was titled "The Death of Robin Hood" but was changed by Columbia Pictures to be more marketable, and perhaps give equal billing to Hepburn.


title: Robin and Marian

text: It is the only theatrical film based on the Robin Hood legend that makes use of a very old story (found in A Gest of Robyn Hode) depicting his murder at the hands of a prioress he was related to, but turns the legend on its head by making Marian the prioress, and making it an act of love, not betrayal.


title: Robin and Marian

text: An ageing Robin Hood is a trusted captain fighting for King Richard the Lionheart in France, the Crusades long over. Richard orders him to take a castle that is rumoured to hold a gold statue. Discovering that it is defended by a solitary, one-eyed old man who is sheltering women and children, and being told that the statue is worthless stone, Robin and his right-hand man, Little John, refuse to attack. King Richard, angry at their insubordination, orders the pair's execution and the castle attacked, but is wounded with an arrow by the old man. Richard has the helpless residents massacred, with the exception of the old man, because Richard likes his eye. The King offers to let Robin beg for his life. When Robin refuses, Richard draws his sword, but having been wounded, lacks the strength to strike him and falls to the floor. Robin helps the dying king and, moved by his loyalty, Richard frees Robin and Little John.


title: Robin and Marian

text: Robin and Little John return to England and are reunited with old friends Will Scarlet and Friar Tuck in Sherwood Forest. He hears that his exploits have become legendary. When Robin casually inquires about Maid Marian, they tell him she is still alive and where she lives. When he goes to see her, she finds him as impossible as ever, while he discovers that she has become an abbess. He learns that his old nemesis, the Sheriff of Nottingham, has ordered her arrest in response to King John's order to expel senior leaders of the Roman Catholic Church from England.


title: Robin and Marian

text: When the Sheriff comes to arrest Marian, Marian wants no trouble, but Robin rescues her against her will, striking Sir Ranulf, the Sheriff's arrogant guest, in the process. He also later rescues the nuns, who have been locked in the Sheriff's castle. Ignoring the Sheriff's warnings, Sir Ranulf pursues Robin into the forest. His men are ambushed and a number killed by arrows; Sir Ranulf is left unharmed only because Robin orders him spared. When the news of Robin's return spreads, old comrades and new recruits rally once more to him. Sir Ranulf asks King John for 200 soldiers to deal with Robin.


title: Robin and Marian

text: The Sheriff waits in the fields beyond the Forest, knowing Robin will be unable to resist indefinitely the temptation to attack, despite the open terrain, which is unfavourable for Robin's untrained and greatly outnumbered men against the King's trained soldiers. When Robin does, he proposes that he and the Sheriff fight by single combat to settle the issue, despite the protests of Sir Ranulf. Although Robin appears to be stronger at the start of the fight, it becomes clear that the Sheriff is more than a match for him. Eventually, the Sheriff has the wounded Robin at his mercy and demands his surrender. Refusing, Robin manages to kill the Sheriff with the last of his strength. Led by Sir Ranulf, the soldiers attack and scatter Robin's ragtag band, many of whom are captured or killed. Will Scarlet and Friar Tuck are captured but Little John manages to kill Sir Ranulf. John and Marian take Robin to her abbey, where she keeps her medicine.


title: Robin and Marian

text: Robin believes he will recover to win future battles. Little John stands guard outside while Marian tends to Robin's wounds. Marian prepares a draught of medicine and drinks some herself before giving it to Robin. He drinks it and notes that the pain has gone away and his legs have gone numb. Realizing that she has poisoned them both, he cries out for Little John. However, he comes to understand that Marian has acted out of love because he would never be the same man again, before admitting she loves him.


title: Robin and Marian

text: Robin and Marian try to touch each other's hands as Little John crashes through the door and weeps at Robin's bedside. Robin asks Little John for his bow and shoots an arrow from his deathbed through the open window, and tells him to bury them both where it lands. The arrow soars out of the window into the distance. Apples are seen decaying on the windowsill.


title: Robin and Marian

text: The film generally received positive reviews by critics on its release. It holds a 74% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 34 reviews.


title: Robin and Marian

text: Roger Ebert was positive towards Connery and Hepburn as Robin and Marian, although he was uncertain about "history repeating itself" in regard to the plot. According to Ebert, "What prevents the movie from really losing its way, though, are the performances of Sean Connery and Audrey Hepburn in the title roles. No matter what the director and the writer may think, Connery and Hepburn seem to have arrived at a tacit understanding between themselves about their characters. They glow. They really do seem in love. And they project as marvelously complex, fond, tender people; the passage of 20 years has given them grace and wisdom." He also approved of the film's cinematography when compared to early films of the genre, noting that "Lester photographs them with more restraint than he might have used 10 years ago. His active camera is replaced here by a visual tempo more suited to bittersweet nostalgia. He photographs Sherwood Forest and its characters with a nice off-hand realism that's better than the pretentious solemnity we sometimes get in historical pictures". "Time Out" also gave the film a positive review. "Time Out" stated "There are quite a few typical Lester gags on the fringes of its tale...but the movie is conceived and executed in an elegiac key (not unlike Siegel's "The Shootist"), and played with an unfashionable depth of feeling (especially by Connery and Hepburn, both terrific)".


title: Orix Buffaloes

text: The are a Nippon Professional Baseball team formed as a result of the 2004 Nippon Professional Baseball realignment by the merger of the Orix BlueWave of Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, and the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes of Osaka, Osaka Prefecture, Japan. The team plays in the Pacific League and is under ownership by Orix, a leading diversified financial services company founded in Osaka.


title: Orix Buffaloes

text: The combined team began play in 2005. The Buffaloes split home games between Kyocera Dome Osaka, which was the home of the original Buffaloes franchise, and Kobe Sports Park Baseball Stadium, the former home of the BlueWave, when the Hanshin Tigers take over Kyocera Dome for when they are kicked out of Hanshin Koshien Stadium during the Japanese High School Baseball Championship in the month of August.


title: Orix Buffaloes

text: The Orix BlueWave was founded in 1936 under the ownership of a Japanese railway company , as . Later nicknamed the Hankyu Braves, it was one of the first professional baseball teams in Japan.


title: Orix Buffaloes

text: In the early 1950s, the franchise made a dedicated effort to attract foreign talent, particularly African-American veterans of Negro league baseball, including infielders John Britton and Larry Raines, and pitchers Jimmy Newberry and Rufus Gaines. These players were the first Americans other than Wally Yonamine to play Nippon Professional Baseball after World War II.


title: Orix Buffaloes

text: Starting in the mid-1960s, the Braves became one of the dominant teams not only in the Pacific League but in all of Japanese professional baseball. Between 1967 and 1972, the Hankyu Braves won the Pacific League pennant five times but lost the Japan Series each time against the Yomiuri Giants. Manager Yukio Nishimoto was known as "the great manager in tragedy" because of those losses. But the Hankyu Braves won Japan Series three times in a row from 1975, against the Tokyo Giants in 1976 and 1977, led by manager Toshiharu Ueda. At that time, many good players in Japanese baseball history played for the Hankyu Braves, including pitcher Hisashi Yamada and outfielder Yutaka Fukumoto.


title: Orix Buffaloes

text: In the 1980s, the team still went strong but lost the pennant to the Seibu Lions every year except 1984.


title: Orix Buffaloes

text: On October 19, 1988, Hankyu Railway sold the franchise to the lease company Orient Lease (since 1989 known as Orix Group), in what was known as "the longest day of the Pacific League". The reason is that when the franchise sale occurred, the Kintetsu Buffaloes played the legendary "10.19" double-header for the Pacific League pennant, only to miss the pennant out because of the second game ending in a tie. For Kintetsu to win the pennant, they had to win both games in the doubleheader against the Lotte Orions. The sale was a surprise, at that time, it was much rarer for a Japanese professional baseball team to change owners, not to mention for a large company to sell one of its parts. In that case, Hankyu Railway was thought of as one of the big companies that would never need to do such a thing.


title: Orix Buffaloes

text: The sale was not without two assurances: the team name would remain "Braves," and the franchise would stay in Nishinomiya. During the first two years of new ownership, the team was known as the Orix Braves and played in Nishinomiya.


title: Orix Buffaloes

text: In 1991, the team moved to Kobe and became the Orix BlueWave. Orix put out a poll to decide the new name, and unsurprisingly, people voted Braves. It was said that Orix put out another poll and told fans "Braves" was not allowed. What made it worse was in that second poll, "Thunder" was the winning name, which fit the new color scheme (when Orix bought the team, they changed their colors to navy blue and gold). But, Orix went with "BlueWave". Longtime fans were shocked by these changes. One member of the Braves ouendan was reported to say that "the race was decided before the gun even went off". Another thing that did not make sense to fans was they were named BlueWave while playing in then-named Green Stadium (now Hotto Motto Field or Kobe Sports Park) in a city whose official color is green. However, since Nishinomiya and Kobe are close to one another, and the new home field of the team was better than the old one, most fans accepted the move, although with some nostalgia for the historic "Braves" name. The team was sometimes called by fans and the baseball media, which means "blue wave" in Japanese.


title: Orix Buffaloes

text: Led by Ichiro Suzuki in 1995 and 1996, the Orix BlueWave won the Pacific League pennant. In 1996, they also won the Japan Series. In 2001, Ichiro moved to the Seattle Mariners and lead the Mariners to a 116 win season, the most wins by an American League team.


title: Orix Buffaloes

text: Following the 2004 Nippon Professional Baseball realignment, the BlueWave merged with the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes. The team struggled since its merger, only finishing in the top half (or A Class) of the Pacific league once from 2005 to 2013. In 2008, The Buffaloes finished 2nd in the Pacific League, going 75-68-1 and finishing 2 1/2 games behind the Saitama Seibu Lions, but were swept by the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters at home in the 1st stage of the Climax Series. After 2 seasons of finishing last in the Pacific League, they finished first in 2021, going 70-55-18. They swept the Chiba Lotte Marines in the final stage of the Climax Series to make their first Japan Series appearance since 1996. Ultimately, they were defeated by the Tokyo Yakult Swallows in six games. In 2022, despite a rough start to the season, the Buffaloes finished 1st after a 5-2 win over the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles on the final day of the Pacific League regular season, combined with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks losing to the Marines, 5-2, at the same time the game was happening, and also because they had 5 more wins against the Hawks during the regular season, 15-10. The Buffaloes would defeat the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks in the Final Stage of the 2022 Pacific League Climax Series, 4 games to 1, which set up a rematch of the previous year's Japan Series, but this time the Buffaloes would exact revenge on the Swallows, defeating them 4 games to 2.


title: Orix Buffaloes

text: The Buffaloes' current theme song is by Japanese band . The song was first used in 2005. Another version that is used is sung by the club's cheerleading squad, BsGirls.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen was a principality in Southwestern Germany. Its rulers belonged to the senior Swabian branch of the House of Hohenzollern. The Swabian Hohenzollerns were elevated to princes in 1623. The small sovereign state with the capital city of Sigmaringen was annexed to the Kingdom of Prussia in 1850 following the abdication of its sovereign in the wake of the revolutions of 1848, then became part of the newly created Province of Hohenzollern.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: The senior Swabian branch is not as well known to history, as is the junior Franconian line which became Burgraves of Nuremberg and later ruled Brandenburg and Prussia, and the German Empire.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: The County of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen was created in 1576, upon the partition of the County of Hohenzollern, a fief of the Holy Roman Empire. When the last count of Hohenzollern, Karl I (1512–1579) died, the territory was divided among his three sons:


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: The Princes of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen ruled over a small principality in southwest Germany, with a seat at Sigmaringen Castle. Unlike the Hohenzollerns of Brandenburg-Prussia, the Hohenzollerns of Sigmaringen remained Roman Catholic, along with their cousins of Hohenzollern-Hechingen (the senior line of the Swabian branch of the House of Hohenzollern) and Hohenzollern-Haigerloch.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: The principality became a sovereign state in 1815 after the abolition of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806 and an independent realm following the Napoleonic Wars in 1815. Its ruler, Charles, was deposed in the revolutions of 1848. His son, Karl Anton, succeeded him, and turned to Prussia for aid. Prussian troops arrived in August 1849, and in a treaty signed in December Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen was annexed by Prussia, effective in March 1850. The annexation of their state did not, however, mean the end of the importance of the House of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: The last prince, Karl Anton, served as Minister President of Prussia from 1858–61. Karl Anton's second son, Karl Eitel of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen became prince (1866–1881) and then King of Romania, under the name Carol (reigned 1881–1914). The house remained on the throne until the end of the Romanian monarchy in 1947. The last King of Romania, Michael, died on 5 December 2017.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: Because the eldest Hechingen line of the Hohenzollerns became extinct in 1869 with the death of Constantine, Prince of Hohenzollern-Hechingen, the head of the Sigmaringen branch, Karl Anton, dropped his line's suffix and took the title of Prince ("Fürst") of (all) Hohenzollern.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: French opposition to the candidacy of Carol's elder brother Prince Leopold for the throne of Spain triggered the Franco-Prussian War (1870–1871), which led to the founding of the German Empire in January 1871.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: From 1061 until 1806 five of these fiefs (not including Nuremberg) constituted an immediate territory of the Holy Roman Empire under the counts of Zollern, vassals of the Holy Roman Emperor.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: From 1806 until 1813 the Hohenzollern lands were a realm of the Confederation of the Rhine, a short-lived state set up by Napoleon I Bonaparte. From 1815 until 1849 the principality was a sovereign country and a member of the German Confederation. In 1849 it lost its independence, and was incorporated into the Kingdom of Prussia as the Province of Hohenzollern.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: The German Confederation was succeeded in 1866 by the North German Confederation, which itself was succeeded by the German Empire in 1871. In 1918, the kingdom of Prussia became the Free State of Prussia, and the German Empire was replaced by the Weimar Republic. In 1933 the republic was replaced by the Third Reich. After the defeat of the Nazis the province of Hohenzollern was merged with other territories into the state of Württemberg-Hohenzollern. This state was part of the Allied Occupation Zones in Germany until 1952. In that year, the state of Württemberg-Hohenzollern was merged into Baden-Württemberg, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: The historical titulature of rulers of the House of Hohenzollern was, in the German original: "Seine Durchlaucht (S.D.) "[name]" von Gottes Gnaden, Fürst von Hohenzollern, Burggraf von Nürnberg, Graf zu Sigmaringen, Veringen und Berg, Herr zu Haigerloch und Wehrstein"


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: The English translation is: "His Serene Highness (HSH) "[name]" by the Grace of God, Prince of Hohenzollern, Burgrave of Nuremberg, Count of Sigmaringen, Veringen and Berg, Lord of Haigerloch and Wehrstein".


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: The modern state of Romania was formed by union of the principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia in 1859, under the prince domnitor Alexandru Ioan Cuza. He was replaced by Karl Eitel of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen in 1866, who ascended the throne as Carol I, Prince of Romania.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: During the Russo-Turkish War, Romania, which was a functionally independent vassal of the Ottoman Empire, proclaimed its full independence. After the commander of the Russian armies had requested Romania's help, Carol accepted to enter the war with the condition of being appointed as commander of the armies that were besieging Plevna. After the end of the Romanian War of Independence in the 1878, at the Treaty of Berlin, Romania was subsequently recognized as an independent state by the Great Powers.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: In return for reverting to the Russian Empire three southern Bessarabian districts that had been regained by Moldavia after the Crimean War in 1852, Dobruja was acquired.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: In 1881, the principality was raised to a kingdom and Prince Carol became King Carol I. He reigned until his death in 1914, and was succeeded by his nephew, Ferdinand. Shortly after taking the throne, Ferdinand, a Roman Catholic like his predecessor, agreed to have his children reared in the Romanian Orthodox Church.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: In 1918 Transylvania and Bessarabia were incorporated. In 1918–19, confirmed by the Treaty of Versailles of 1919 and the Treaty of Trianon of 1920, most of the Banat became part of Romania. Also, Bukovina was incorporated in 1918.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: Ferdinand died in 1927. His eldest son, Crown Prince Carol, having renounced his rights, Carol's only son Michael ascended the throne. In 1930, however, Carol reclaimed the throne and was crowned Carol II. Carol was forced to abdicate in 1940, and Michael re-mounted the throne. His reign, and that of the dynasty, ended when he was forced to abdicate by a communist regime in 1947.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: On 10 May 2011, following lawsuits brought in Germany against his family by his German relatives regarding attribution of the title "Prince of Hohenzollern-Veringen" to his son-in-law, Radu Duda, Michael severed dynastic ties with the princely house of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, changed the name of his family to "of Romania", and ceased the use of all princely titles borne by him and his family that derived from the German Hohenzollerns.


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: The head of the Romanian branch continues, since abolition of the monarchy, to use the hereditary title he bore while reigning:


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: During the reign of Carol II of Romania his son, Michael, was styled "Măria Sa (M.S.) Marele Voievod de Alba Iulia" or the English translation "His Highness The Grand Voivode of Alba Julia".


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: The Romanian original is: "Majestatea Sa (M.S.) N.N., Regele Românilor" (or "Maiestatea Sa (M.S.) N.N., Regele României"; both forms are accepted by the Romanian Academy)


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: The combined coat of arms with inclusion of the House coat of arms of the House of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen is:


title: Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen

text: Following cession of their sovereignty over the principality to their kinsmen the Kings of Prussia in 1849, the heirs of Karl Anton continued to bear the same title, "Prince ("Fürst") of Hohenzollern":


title: Cleanin' Out My Closet

text: "Cleanin' Out My Closet" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his album "The Eminem Show" (2002). "Cleanin' Out My Closet" was the second single released off the album following "Without Me". Unlike the preceding single which was as his humorous Slim Shady persona, "Cleanin' Out My Closet" was a serious song inspired by the events of Eminem's childhood and relationships. It depicts Eminem venting his anger towards his mother, Debbie Mathers, for the way she raised him. In the chorus, Eminem sarcastically apologizes to his mother for hurting her and making her cry, but takes it back by showing the world what his mother, according to him, was like.


title: Cleanin' Out My Closet

text: It became the second top-ten single from the album, reaching number four on the United States "Billboard" Hot 100 chart, and one of the highest-charting singles of his career. It was certified Platinum in Australia. "Cleanin' Out My Closet" was also used in the initial theatrical trailer to Eminem's film "8 Mile", released in November 2002, but was not included on the .


title: Cleanin' Out My Closet

text: The instrumental for "Cleanin' Out My Closet" was created by Eminem during the making of D12's debut studio album, "Devil's Night". According to group member Kuniva, Bizarre was on the song first, but was talking "crazy" on the record and was encouraged to tone it down. Despite receiving the approval of Dr. Dre, Bizarre decided to pass on the record, and Eminem picked it up from there: "The whole group was like 'Yo, you can't say this shit. It's too much.' So, he got a call from Dr. Dre. And Dre was like 'Say that shit, man. You gotta say it.' [...] He ultimately gave into the group and was like 'You know what? Fuck it, man.'"


title: Cleanin' Out My Closet

text: "Cleanin' Out My Closet" is a hip hop and rap rock song written and produced by Eminem and Jeff Bass, the latter of whom provided the guitars, bass, and keyboards. The song's drum programming was handled by DJ Head. At the beginning of the song, after the music begins to play, Eminem asks "Where's my snare? I have no snare in my headphones." Eminem explained that this actually happened; the recording engineer had muted the snare drums in his headphones during the recording of the song. When editing the song, Eminem chose to leave it in the song.


title: Cleanin' Out My Closet

text: In the song's first verse, Eminem criticizes his mother. The second verse then moves on to how his father abandoned him and his mother did drugs. At the start of the third verse, Eminem states that his comments regarding his mother are not made for the sake of public attention.


title: Cleanin' Out My Closet

text: Allmusic highlighted this song. David Browne was lukewarm: "The unhealed scars of his childhood are pored over in "Cleanin' Out My Closet": In the chorus, he apologizes for making his mama cry, but in the verses, he lashes out at her ("you selfish bitch") and vows to be a better dad than his own absentee father ("I wonder if he even kissed me goodbye"). The song is both fragile and furious, and the syncopated music-box arrangement matches it in tension." J-23 was positive: "Cleanin' Out My Closet" features the album's most personal rhymes as he lets us know just how he feels about his parents. His third verse, dealing with his mother, is truly something to behold." "NME" also praised the single: "Cleanin' Out My Closet", a stunning outpouring of grief-stricken anger against his mother." RapReviews agreed: "The jokes don't last very long though, because Eminem's next song "Cleanin' Out My Closet" is a direct attack on his mother for not really being one." "Rolling Stone" praised the song's production: "Cleanin' Out My Closet" feature electric-guitar rhythms fraternizing with hip-hop-sensible drum patterns" and he noted that his (Eminem's) relationship with his estranged mother creates "Cleanin' Out My Closet," possibly the record's most powerful moment."


title: Cleanin' Out My Closet

text: Two remixes of the song feature as European bonus tracks on the "Straight from the Lab" mixtape later released as a compilation: a Drum and bass remix (which was produced by DJ Green Lantern) and a remix combining the song with "God is a Girl" by Groove Coverage entitled "(God Is) Cleanin' Out My Closet."


title: Cleanin' Out My Closet

text: In the mashup video "Atomic Closet" (a fusion of Eminem's original "Cleaning Out My Closet" and Blondie's "Atomic"), Blondie's hit was heavily sampled as the background song, with Eminem rapping throughout. The video was directed by Dr. Dre and Philip Atwell.


title: Cleanin' Out My Closet

text: The B side "Stimulate" appears on the deluxe edition bonus disc of the soundtrack "Music from and Inspired by the Motion Picture 8 Mile", and also appears on "Straight from the Lab".


title: Cleanin' Out My Closet

text: The song was mashed up with "Hotel California" by The Eagles, which appears on DJ Vlad and Roc Raida's mashup mixtape, "Rock Phenomenon".


title: Cleanin' Out My Closet

text: Jon Connor's 2012 mixtape "The People's Rapper LP" included a remix of the song, as well as other Eminem remixes.


title: Cleanin' Out My Closet

text: In October 2012, New York City hip hop artist Angel Haze released a reworked version of "Cleanin' Out My Closet" using their own lyrics, in which they graphically recount their experience with child sexual abuse.


title: Cleanin' Out My Closet

text: Eminem's 2013 album, "The Marshall Mathers LP 2", featured a song titled "Headlights" which serves as an apology to Eminem's mother for things he said about her in his songs, "Cleanin’ Out My Closet" being the only song mentioned by name. The music video, directed by Academy Award-winning director Spike Lee, shows Eminem's rise to fame through his mother's eyes. In the song, Eminem says he no longer plays "Cleanin’ Out my Closet" at shows and says he cringes every time he hears it on the radio.


title: Lord Marksman and Vanadis

text: The series consists of eighteen volumes released by Media Factory, under their "MF Bunko J" imprint, from April 2011 to November 2017. A manga adaptation by Nobuhiko Yanai began serialization ran in "Monthly Comic Flapper" from October 2011 to August 2016. A 13-episode anime television series adaptation by Satelight aired on AT-X and other networks between October and December 2014. The anime is licensed in North America by Funimation, in Australia and New Zealand by Madman Entertainment, and in the United Kingdom by Anime Limited.


title: Lord Marksman and Vanadis

text: In a parallel version of Europe, King Faron of the kingdom of suffers an illness leading to a dispute between the Brunish dukes Felix Aaron Thenardier and Maximilian Bennusa Ganelon for power domination. In response, Brune's rival kingdom dispatches Leitmeritz , Eleonora Viltaria, to battle them in the Dinant Plains. Tigrevurmud Vorn, the Brunish count of Alsace and the sole survivor of the battle, is afterwards captured by Elen. Later, the Brunish count Mashas Rodant has Tigre's attendant Bertrand inform him that Thenardier's son Zion is planning to subjugate Alsace. Tigre, with Elen's assistance, returns to Alsace, where he saves his maid, Titta. After killing Zion, Elen travels to Zhcted's capital city, Silesia, to inform the Zhcted king Viktor Arthur Volk Estes Tur Zhcted of her invasions and, with the assistance of Polesia war maiden, Sofya Obertas, has Viktor approve of Tigre as her general. Elen also encounters her longtime rival war maiden Ludmila Lourie, who is also a supporter of the Thenardiers. Elen reunites with Tigre and they travel to Mila's homeland of Olmütz to fight the war maiden. Realizing Tigre's intentions to save Alsace, Mila professes her neutrality in the war. With the aid of the Territoire Viscount Hugues Augre and his son Gerard, the combined armies of Brune and Zhcted are reorganized into the Silver Meteor Storm.


title: Lord Marksman and Vanadis

text: Back in Brune, Marquis Charon Anquetil Greast is dispatched by Ganelon to kill Tigre, but is easily defeated. Sofy informs Tigre that he has been charged with treason for allying with Zhcted. Roland, a Brunish Knight and Captain of the Order of Navarre, fights the Silver Meteor Storm but they are easily defeated. Traveling to Brune's capital city of Nice, Roland pleads Tigre's cause with Faron, but Ganelon kills him. The kingdom of , which periodically sends slaving expeditions into Zhcted and Brune as well as their neighboring kingdoms, plans to subjugate Brune's southern region of Agnes. Traveling to Agnes, Tigre and his allies liberate its citizens and rescues Regin, Brune's heir apparent and the former Prince Regnas who faked her death and exiled herself to Agnes after Zhcted's invasion. Mila and Mashas aid Tigre to defeat the Muozinellian forces. Elen learns from the Legnica war maiden, Alexandra Alshavin, that Elizaveta Fomina of Lebus plans to invade Legnica. Elen briefly duels with Liza and, after arranging a peace treaty between Lebus and Leitmeritz, regroups with Tigre and the others. To prove Regin's royal lineage, Tigre and his allies enter the Holy Grotto Saint-Groel and battle Thenardier and his men; Bertrand is killed in the process. After Thenardier's death, the public celebrates the end of the war and Tigre is pardoned for his actions. On his death bed, Faron further awards Tigre as the Knight of Lumiere, which only the Brunish prime minister Pierre Baudoin realizes is the traditional title given to the heir apparent. After Faron's death, Regin becomes Queen of Brune. Meanwhile, Ganelon and Greast go into exile and are sheltered by the Osterode war maiden Valentina Glinka Estes.


title: Lord Marksman and Vanadis

text: Six months later, Tigre and Sofy are dispatched to the kingdom of to stop a civil war between the princes Germaine and Eliot due to the king's death; Tigre befriends Sasha and Olga Tamm, the war maiden of Brest, in the process. Tigre and Sasha travel to Asvarre, encountering the Asvarrian general Tallard Graham in the process. As Eliot captures Sofy and detains her at Fort Lux, Tallard mutinies and kills Germaine. Hearing of the invasion, Eliot summons the demon Torbalan to fight Tigre's party, but they rescue Sofy and defeat his soldiers. Eliot is sentenced to death and Tallard becomes King of Asvarre. On their way back to Zhcted, Tigre, Sofy and Olga are attacked by Torbalan and separated. Later, Sasha and Liza kill Torbalan, but Sasha dies due to her frail health and exhaustion.


title: Lord Marksman and Vanadis

text: Finding an amnesiac Tigre, Liza takes him to Lebus. Back in Silesia, Valentina plots to assume the throne of Zhcted by tricking Viktor's heirs - Eugene Shevarin, the count of Pardu; and Ilda Krutis, the duke of Bydgauche - into fighting each other. Hearing of this, Liza, Tigre and their allies travel to Bydgauche to duel Ilda. After ending the dispute between Lebus and Bydgauche, Tigre becomes Lebus's adviser, having passed a series of tests in doing so. Liza and Tigre soon encounter the demon Baba Yaga, who is revealed to have given Liza some of her powers because of her jealously towards Elen. After demanding that Liza returns her powers, Baba Yaga briefly duels Tigre and Liza, but is overpowered and Tigre is separated from Liza. Tigre is soon found by the Muozinelian soldier Damad, who was summoned by Kureys to learn of his whereabouts, and the two befriend each other. Damad becomes suspicious of Tigre's true identity and they return to Lebus before Elen and her allies reunite with Tigre. Damad, having known Tigre's true identity, leaves for Muozinel, and Tigre and the others help Liza fight Baba Yaga again, Tigre's memories are eventually restored and he overpowers Baba Yaga, who is killed by Ganelon. After the Lebus forces repel an attack by an army from Polus, Liza and Elen reconcile and Tigre becomes their mediator.


title: Lord Marksman and Vanadis

text: In the following year, Sheravin is named Viktor's official heir when Thenardier's widowed wife, Melisande, orders the neighboring kingdom of to invade Brune. Tigre organizes the Zhcted and Brune armies into an alliance called the Moonlight Knights to repel the invasion. Tigre realizes that the citizens of Nice have been tricked into thinking that Tigre is being charged with treason once again. Later, the Moonlight Knights and Valentina battle against Ganelon and Melisande; in the chaos, Melisande is killed and Tigre clears his name. As a young girl named Figneria Alshavin is appointed the new war maiden of Legnica, Tigre convinces Asvarre to help repel the Sachstein invasion. The Moonlight Knights, traveling to Nice, are ambushed by Greast, who captures Elen. In Muozinel, Mila senses that Elen is in danger and travels to Brune to help Tigre rescue Elen from Greast's torture. Tigre and his allies reunite with the Moonlight Knights to defeat Greast, who is eventually killed. Tigre and Elen profess their love, and Tigre and his allies help stop the Muozinel invasion.


title: Lord Marksman and Vanadis

text: "Lord Marksman and Vanadis" entered development after author Tsukasa Kawaguchi accepted an offer by the "MF Bunko J" editorial department to write a fantasy novel for them. Kawaguchi contributed the concept of a young male archer and a female fighter who uses a sword as the protagonists, which the editorial department approved of. At the editorial department's suggestion, Kawaguchi included seven additional fighting girls and called them "war maidens". Kawaguchi wanted to have another weapon from a novel he had previously worked on for Tigre. The "Monster Hunter" video game franchise gave Kawaguchi the inspiration to develop Tigre's archery skills. Other influences for Tigre included historical archers such as Nasu no Yoichi and Robin Hood. Kawaguchi came up with the catch phrases "Strongest Bishōjo Fantasy" as well as the "Bishōjo Battle Fantasy" during the early part of development. When Kawaguchi was planning the second arc, he wanted to set the second arc in three years time. However, his editor requested that it should be set six months after the first arc.


title: Lord Marksman and Vanadis

text: According to Kawaguchi, he was influenced by "Record of Lodoss War", "Fortune Quest" as well as foreign and domestic light novels. He also based the five main kingdoms on European countries, such as France for Brune, Russia for Zhcted, Persia for Muozinel, Germany for Sachstein and the United Kingdom for Asvarre.


title: Lord Marksman and Vanadis

text: "Lord Marksman and Vanadis" began as a light novel series written by Tsukasa Kawaguchi. Illustrations were provided by Yoshi☆o for the first eight volumes, and by Hinata Katagiri since the ninth volume. The first light novel volume was released by Media Factory under their MF Bunko J imprint on April 25, 2011. In June 2017, Kawaguchi announced via his Twitter account that the light novel series would conclude with the 18th volume later that year.


title: Lord Marksman and Vanadis

text: A manga adaptation illustrated by Nobuhiko Yanai began serialization in the November 2011 issue of "Monthly Comic Flapper" which was released on October 5, 2011. The first "tankōbon" volume was released by Media Factory on April 23, 2012. As of September 23, 2016, ten volumes have been released. Additionally, a "yonkoma" anthology was published by Medi Factory on October 23, 2014. The manga is licensed in North America by Seven Seas Entertainment.


title: Lord Marksman and Vanadis

text: At the MF Bunko Summer School Festival 2013 event, Media Factory announced that an anime adaptation of "Lord Marksman and Vanadis" was green-lit for production. The 2014 MF Bunko Summer School Festival announced the cast and staff; it is produced by Satelight and directed by Tatsuo Sato with Kaito Ishikawa starring as Tigrevurmud Vorn and Haruka Tomatsu voicing Eleonora Viltaria. The 13-episode series, which covers the first five volumes, was broadcast on AT-X from October 4 to December 27, 2014. Six DVD and Blu-ray Disc compilations are to be released by Media Factory from December 24, 2014 to May 27, 2015. In conjunction with the anime, a weekly mini series called and a short narration by Yuka Iguchi as Limalisha called the "Lim's Report" was streamed online. "Tigre and Vanadish" is 2D animated with chibi sized characters that play out short segments of the light novel that were cut from the anime. "Lim's Report" is a brief summary and analysis of the war tactics used by each forces in each episode.


title: Lord Marksman and Vanadis

text: In North America, the series has been licensed by Funimation for streaming on their video website before releasing the series on DVD and Blu-ray, and in Australia by Madman Entertainment. Crunchyroll licensed the series for streaming in Middle East, North Africa, and Europe excluding the Nordics, the United Kingdom, and Ireland. In the United Kingdom, the series was licensed by Anime Limited.


title: Lord Marksman and Vanadis

text: According to Japanese light novel news website LN News, the series had 1.8 million copies sold as of February 2017. In May 2015, Oricon ranked "Lord Marksman and Vanadis" as the 28th top-selling light novel series for the first half of 2015. Richard Eisenbeis of Kotaku featured the opening theme "Ginsen no Kaze" on the website's "Ten Awesome Anime Openings and Endings" list. He cited that the song "is a perfect fit for a series about medieval warfare where noble knights battle against armies of the corrupt."


title: Lord Marksman and Vanadis

text: Can Tran, writing for "Digital Journal", compared the storyline of the series to the "Valkyria Chronicles" video game franchise and also that the series "embodies the empowerment of women as most of the female characters are incredibly formidable warriors that brandish special mythical weapons." On the characters, Tran not only liked the diversity of the female characters and villains, but also liked the relationship between Tigre and Elen. Tran also said that Tigre "proves to be a true underdog hero."


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: The Fender Jazz Bass (often shortened to "J-Bass") is the second model of electric bass created by Leo Fender. It is distinct from the Precision Bass in that its tone is brighter and richer in the midrange and treble with less emphasis on the fundamental frequency. The body shape is also different from the Precision Bass, in that the Precision Bass has a symmetrical lower bout on the body, designed after the Telecaster and Stratocaster lines of guitars, while the Jazz Bass has an offset lower bout, mimicking the design aesthetic of the Jaguar and Jazzmaster guitars.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: First introduced in 1960 as the Deluxe Model, it borrowed design elements from the Jazzmaster guitar. It was renamed the Jazz Bass as Fender felt that its redesigned neck—narrower and more rounded than that of the Precision Bass—would appeal more to jazz musicians.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: The Jazz Bass has two single coil pickups with two pole pieces per string. As well as having a slightly different, less symmetrical and more contoured body shape (known in Fender advertising as the "Offset Waist Contour" body), the Jazz Bass neck is noticeably narrower at the nut than that of the Fender Precision Bass. While the Precision Bass was originally styled similarly to the Telecaster guitar, the Jazz Bass' styling was inspired by the Jazzmaster guitar, with which the Jazz shared its offset body and sculpted edges, which differentiate it from other slab-style bass bodies.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: The original intention of the instrument was to appeal to upright bass players. The original Jazz Bass had two stacked knob pots with volume and tone control for each pickup. Original instruments with this stacked configuration are highly valued in the vintage guitar market. In late 1961, it received three control knobs: one volume knob for each pickup and a third to control the overall tone. Despite this new feature, many stacked knob models were made until about 1962. Another feature the initial models had were the "Spring Felt Mutes", which were present on basses from 1960 until 1962. The mutes were designed to dampen the overtones and the sustain; they were screwed in place between the bridge and aft pickup. Those felt mutes were not a tremendous success and were replaced by a cheaper, more simple foam mute glued underneath the bridge cover, as was used by the Precision Bass from 1963 onwards. Over the following years, as the use of mutes gradually declined, both the Precision and Jazz Bass models eventually began to be produced without bridge/tailpiece covers.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: A number of cosmetic changes were made to the instrument when CBS purchased the Fender companies in 1965. During 1965/66, the Jazz Bass received bound rosewood fingerboards with pearloid dot position inlays (which replaced the older "clay"-style of the early 1960s) and oval-shaped tuning machines. Block-shaped fingerboard inlays and an optional maple fingerboard were introduced after 1966/67. At first, necks with rosewood fretboards received pearloid blocks/binding, and maple fretboard necks received black. Fender switched to pearloid blocks/binding on all necks in mid-to-late 1973. Fender also switched to the three-bolt neck "micro-tilt adjustable" neck and the "bullet" truss rod in mid-to-late 1974, before reverting to the more standard four-bolt neck fixing and dot-shaped fretboard markers in 1983. White pickup covers and a pickguard/control plate were introduced the same year. In 1986, Fender introduced the Japanese-made Fender Performer Bass, also with micro-tilt neck, designed by John Page and intended to be an Elite version of the Jazz Bass; however, the radical styling was not popular and production ceased the same year.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: Two other changes that were more important to the tone of the instrument also occurred in the early 1970s. From 1960 until late 1970, the two pickups on the Jazz Bass were spaced apart. The bridge pickup was then moved closer to the bridge, creating a spacing of . Many players believe that this change contributed to a somewhat brighter tone from the bridge pickup. According to Fender itself, this change happened in 1972. However, Fender's own history is clearly incorrect, as there are unquestionably examples of Jazz basses made in late 1970 that use the 4" pickup spacing. Both 3.6" and 4' spacing are found in Jazz basses made in 1971, and there are even a few Jazz basses made in 1972 that use the older 3.6" spacing. Around the same time, Fender began using ash for most of the instrument bodies. Prior to the early 70's, most Jazz basses had bodies made of alder, except for those that were finished in a clear or ("natural") finish - for those basses, ash was nearly always the wood of choice. In the early 70s, ash bodies became increasingly common, and by 1974 ash bodies were the rule, rather than the exception. Ash is generally thought to produce a somewhat brighter (and correspondingly less warm) tone than alder. By the mid-1970s, the combination of 4" pickup spacing and the use of heavier ash bodies with maple fingerboards combined to produce a notably brighter tone than that produced by Jazz basses from the 60s.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: American Standard Jazz Basses produced between 1989 and mid-1994 featured a larger body shape, a 'curved' neck plate set into a chambered pocket for greater sustain and a 22-fret neck, similar to that of a Precision Bass Plus, with a standard vintage-style top-load bridge, two separate volumes and a master TBX tone circuit.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: Usually known as "Boner" Jazz Basses, these early American Standard models (designed by George Blanda, who was Fender's senior R&D engineer during that period) were discontinued in 1994 and shouldn't be confused with the Fender Jazz Bass Plus, which has the same 22-fret neck design, but utilizes a different (downsized) body styling, Lace Sensor pickups, Schaller "Elite" fine-tuner bridge on the four-string model or Gotoh Hardware high-mass bridge on the 5-string model, and Phil Kubicki-designed active electronics. Unlike the Fender Precision Bass Plus, which had an optional maple neck, the Boner Jazz Bass was offered only with a rosewood fingerboard.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: The Jazz Plus Bass was available with an alder body and the option of a natural-finish ash body on the four-string model for a $100 upcharge, either a maple or rosewood fretboard on the four-string and pau ferro (an exotic hardwood whose tone is brighter than rosewood yet warmer than ebony) on the five-string. The Jazz Plus debuted in 1989 (the five-string model was released in 1990), but was discontinued in 1994 and replaced by the USA Deluxe Series Jazz Bass the following year.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: The two pickups are built to be opposite from each other in both magnetic polarity and electrical phase, so that when heard together, hum is cancelled—the humbucking effect. The Highway One Jazz Bass is a moderately priced American-made bass introduced in 2003, featuring a Leo Quan BadAss II bridge with grooved saddles, Posiflex graphite neck support rods, 1970s styling, and a Greasebucket tone circuit since 2006.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: In 2008, the American Series models were replaced by a new American Standard line, which greatly differs from the first-generation American Standard Series basses introduced in 1994. The 2008 American Standard Jazz Bass retained the "American Series" rolled-edge neck with highly detailed nut and fret work, as well as the familiar rounded body shape with the vintage body radius, but deleted the S-1 switching system and incorporated a new high-mass vintage bridge, Hipshot lightweight vintage-style tuning machines, a richer and deeper neck tint, gloss maple or rosewood fingerboard and satin back for smooth playability. It also has a thinner finish undercoat that lets the body breathe and improves resonance. In March 2012, Fender updated the American Standard Jazz Bass (except the five-string version) with Custom Shop 1960s Jazz Bass pickups.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Jazz Bass, first introduced in 1960, Fender released in 2010 the 50th Anniversary Limited Edition Jazz Bass. This bass sports a selected alder body, finished in a Candy Apple Red nitrocellulose lacquer, and incorporates design elements from several periods in the instrument's history, including 1960s-era lacquer finish, headstock logo, chrome bridge and pickup covers, 1970s-era thumb rest and bridge pickup positioning, modern-era high-mass bridge and Posiflex graphite neck support rods.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: The Jazz Bass has a bright sound, with more high end than the Precision Bass. This makes it ideal for slap playing as well as finger-style players. This bright sound is because of the two pickups at different points in the string's length. The bridge pickup gives a tone with more treble, while the neck pickup will yield a rounder sound. The ability to blend the volume of both pickups allows for a wider variety of tones than the Precision Bass can produce. Pickups are RWRP (reverse wound, reverse polarity) from one another, so all hum will be canceled when both pickups are at full volume.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: Having both pickups cranked up at full volume produces the classic scooped, "growling" sound which many players—such as Marcus Miller and Will Lee—use for slap bass playing. This sound is the product of certain frequencies from both pickups being out of phase and cancelling each other, leaving a "scoop" on the midrange. This is similar to what happens on some guitars when one blends the sounds from two different pickups, such as the Fender Stratocaster.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: Some "Deluxe" Jazz Bass models feature an active pre-amp (usually with three bands of equalization) in place of a single passive tone control; these basses have three separate equalizer controls: bass and treble responses are controlled by the base and top of a stacked double pot, while midrange is controlled by a second knob. They came with 22 frets, abalone dot position inlays and an 18-volt power supply on some models. Known as the Jazz Bass Deluxe since being introduced as part of a major reworking of Fender's Electric Bass lineup in 1995, they have been renamed the American Deluxe Jazz Bass.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: The American Deluxe Jazz Bass (available in four-string fretted and fretless, five-string fretted and left-hand versions) featured two samarium-cobalt Noiseless Jazz Bass pickups, designed by Bill Lawrence. Fender used downsized bodies to accommodate the 22-fret neck and reshaped the pickguard with nine screw holes.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: American Deluxes produced between 1995 and 1999 were initially available with "single-pole" pickups designed by John Suhr. These were soon changed to the Bill Turner-designed dual-coil Ceramic Noiseless units with nickel-plated (gold-plated on certain models) polepieces until the advent of the Bill Lawrence-designed Samarium Cobalt series in 2004.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: Other refinements include a strings-through-body/top-load bridge, "Posiflex" graphite neck support rods, rolled fingerboard edges, highly detailed nut- and fretwork. Five-string versions are presented with a 4+1 tuner arrangement and two Hipshot string trees since 2002. The asymmetrical five-bolt neck plate, along with the smooth contoured heel allow much easier access to the upper registers. Bound fingerboards with pearloid block inlays were added with the introduction of the American Deluxe Jazz Bass FMT & QMT in late 2001, featuring flamed or quilted maple tops and gold-plated hardware. Fender discontinued these models in 2007.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: In 2010 the American Deluxe Jazz Bass was updated with a pair of N3 stacked-coil Noiseless Jazz Bass pickups, an active/passive toggle switch, CBS styling and a 21-fret bound compound radius maple neck featuring rosewood or maple fingerboards with rectangular block inlays. Other features include Hipshot vintage lightweight tuners, "Strong Arm" string retainer bar for the A and low B strings, and Fender's High Mass Vintage (HMV) bridge. The American Deluxe series was discontinued in 2016.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: The American Elite Jazz Bass, introduced in 2016, sports a compound modern C-to-D neck shape, fourth-generation noiseless pickups, a "spoke-wheel" truss rod system for easier neck relief adjustments and a new asymmetrical neck heel. It is offered with a compound radius ebony (since 2017) or maple fingerboard, in 4 and 5-string versions.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: The Mexican Deluxe Active Jazz Bass combines many of the features of the American Deluxe models with a traditional Standard Jazz Bass body, vintage-style hardware, a contoured neck heel and a 12"-radius 20-fret rosewood or maple fingerboard. It comes in 4 and 5-string versions and sports a three-band active circuit powered by two dual-coil ceramic Noiseless Jazz Bass pickups and an 18V power supply with an active/passive switch (as of 2016).


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: The Custom Classic model was made at the Fender Custom Shop. This Custom Shop Jazz Bass was a cross between the American Vintage and the American Deluxe series. Features include an oversized select alder or premium ash body, a modern 34"-scale C-shape maple neck with an unbound rosewood, pau ferro or maple fingerboard featuring triangular pearloid block inlays and 21 medium-jumbo frets. Available in four- and five-string versions, all Custom Classic Jazz Basses came with a pair of custom-wound dual-coil Noiseless Jazz Bass pickups, a three-band active preamp, five-bolt neck plate, 18V power supply and a Deluxe string-through-body/top-load bridge with milled nickel-plated brass saddles. Models manufactured prior to 2003 (formerly known as "American Classics") were identical to the mid-1990s American Deluxe basses in appearance, excepting the 22-fret bound maple neck featuring a rosewood fretboard and white block inlays. Fender discontinued the five-string version in 2009. The Custom Classic four-string Jazz Bass has been renamed Custom Active Jazz Bass as of 2010, featuring Fender's high-mass vintage (HMV) bridge and a 1960s Jazz Bass "U" shape neck.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: The Standard Jazz Bass model is sanded, painted and assembled in Ensenada, Baja California along with the other Standard Series guitars (replaced by the Player models in 2018). On December 5, 2008, the Standard J-Bass has given CBS era-style decals, a three-ply parchment pickguard and a tinted maple neck with rosewood or maple fingerboard (also available in a fretless version with a rosewood fingerboard and 20 inlaid white fretline markers). Other features included two staggered bi-pole single-coil pickups and a return to the black bakelite control knobs. Models produced before 2003 came for a period with black Stratocaster control knobs. The five-string version (introduced in 1992), available with pao ferro or rosewood fingerboard and a five-in-line tuner configuration with Gotoh Mini machineheads (c. 2006), has been updated with a tinted maple neck featuring a dark rosewood fingerboard and a 4+1 tuner configuration with Fender/Ping tuning machines as of 2009. In 2017 Fender switched to pao ferro fingerboards before discontinuing the Standard series in 2018.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: All five-string Jazz basses came with pau ferro fretboard since 1990 (some US Deluxe models were also available with a plain maple neck option). Fender offers its 5-string basses with rosewood or maple fretboard as of 2006 after discontinuing the pau ferro fingerboard option in late 2005. In 2008, Fender introduced the fretted and fretless Steve Bailey signature models, its first six-string Jazz Basses to feature a 9.5" to 14" compound-radius ebony fingerboard.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: The long list of bassists well-known for using the Jazz Bass most notably include Robert Sledge, Jaco Pastorius, John Klingberg, Marcus Miller, Flea, Geddy Lee, John Entwistle, Tom Hamilton, Jason McCaslin, David Desrosiers, Pete Wentz, Paul McCartney, Noel Redding, Paul McGuigan, Sting, Steve Fossen, Andy Kulberg, Joe Schermie, John McVie, Greg Lake, Kim Gordon, Chris Squire, Stu Cook, Rick Danko, Brian Wilson, Bruce Johnston, John Paul Jones and Adam Clayton.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: In July 2005, Fender introduced its first 24-fret bass since the Fender Performer Bass, the Fender Jazz Bass 24. The Jazz Bass 24 featured a sleek alder body, a 34"-scale length, modern "C" shaped maple neck with a two-octave rosewood fingerboard, abalone dot inlays, 24 medium-jumbo frets, Hipshot-licensed tuners, Fender/Gotoh High Mass top-loading bridge, two custom-wound Seymour Duncan SJB-3 Quarter Pound pickups, a passive/active push/pull volume knob and a 3-band active EQ with a "slap" mid-scoop switch. It was available in the Fender price list as part of the Deluxe Series line, with Cherry Sunburst (discontinued as of 2007) and Tobacco Sunburst finishes over a quilted maple top and chrome-plated hardware. The 5-string version was introduced in 2007.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: In 2008, Fender offered both the four- and five-string versions of the 24-fret Jazz Bass in a stealthy Flat Black finish (with matching headstocks and hardware). These two-octave Jazz Basses were gone from the Fender pricelist as of 2009.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: In 2005, Fender introduced the Fender Jaguar Bass, as of 2008 available in Hot Rod Red, Olympic White, Sunburst and Black finishes, with a three-ply white or tortoise pickguard. This is a variation on the traditional Jazz Bass design—differences being that it has only one master volume and tone, but additional on/off switches for pickup selection, series/parallel switching, and a two-band active preamp with bypass switch.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: The Jaguar bass retains the slim Jazz neck, bi-pole pickups, Jazzmaster/Jaguar body design and the trademark Jazz Bass growl.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: As of 2008, the Jaguar Bass comes in Olympic White and three-colour Sunburst finishes, together with a four-ply brown tortoise shell pickguard. These colours were previously available only for the Japanese domestic market.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: In 2012, Fender also introduced the Reverse Jaguar Bass in its line of Pawn Shop Series guitars. This special issue features a reversed body stock orientation, and also reverses the humbucking pickups for a unique tone.


title: Fender Jazz Bass

text: Fender also offers several models of the Jaguar Bass in the Squier line (and an American Standard version since 2014), most with a Precision/Jazz "P-J" pickup configuration.