title: National Security Intelligence

text: According to Human Rights Watch's May 2009 issue, during the 2006–08 Bangladeshi political crisis in Bangladesh, the NSI was actively involved in harassment and arbitrary arrest of labor activists.


title: National Security Intelligence

text: Several high ranking NSI officers and field officers were sacked by the BNP government after being found connected with the 10-Truck Arms and Ammunition Haul in Chittagong case and were later convicted, who were:


title: National Security Intelligence

text: NSI's name had appeared several times during the trial of the mysterious murder of labor rights activist Aminul Islam in April 2012. The only convict, Aminul's friend Mostafijur Rahman was found a mystery man, about whom no one knew much, who apparently had a cover job at an EPZ clinic and regularly met with security officers, is believed to be linked with NSI, though the court has not asked the agency for clarification and nor did the prosecution try to bring them, media has speculated such controversies, though denied by the agency.


title: Value of life

text: The value of life is an economic value used to quantify the benefit of avoiding a fatality. It is also referred to as the cost of life, value of preventing a fatality (VPF), implied cost of averting a fatality (ICAF), and value of a statistical life (VSL). In social and political sciences, it is the marginal cost of death prevention in a certain class of circumstances. In many studies the value also includes the quality of life, the expected life time remaining, as well as the earning potential of a given person especially for an after-the-fact payment in a wrongful death claim lawsuit.


title: Value of life

text: As such, it is a statistical term, the cost of reducing the average number of deaths by one. It is an important issue in a wide range of disciplines including economics, health care, adoption, political economy, insurance, worker safety, environmental impact assessment, and globalization.


title: Value of life

text: The motivation for placing a monetary value on life is to enable policy and regulatory analysts to allocate the limited supply of resources, infrastructure, labor, and tax revenue. Estimates for the value of a life are used to compare the life-saving and risk-reduction benefits of new policies, regulations, and projects against a variety of other factors.


title: Value of life

text: Estimates for the statistical value of life are published and used in practice by various government agencies. In Western countries and other liberal democracies, estimates for the value of a statistical life typically range from —; for example, the United States FEMA estimated the value of a statistical life at in 2020.


title: Value of life

text: There is no standard concept for the value of a specific human life in economics. However, when looking at risk/reward trade-offs that people make with regard to their health, economists often consider the value of a statistical life (VSL). Note that the VSL is very different from the value of an actual life. It is the value placed on changes in the likelihood of death, not the price someone would pay to avoid certain death. This is best explained by way of an example. From the EPA's website:Suppose each person in a sample of 100,000 people were asked how much he or she would be willing to pay for a reduction in their individual risk of dying by 1 in 100,000, or 0.001%, over the next year. Since this reduction in risk would mean that we would expect one fewer death among the sample of 100,000 people over the next year on average, this is sometimes described as "one statistical life saved.” Now suppose that the average response to this hypothetical question was $100. Then the total dollar amount that the group would be willing to pay to save one statistical life in a year would be $100 per person × 100,000 people, or $10 million. This is what is meant by the "value of a statistical life.”


title: Value of life

text: This again emphasizes that VSL is more of an estimate of willingness to pay for small reductions in mortality risks rather than how much a human life is worth. Using government spending to see how much is spent to save lives in order to estimate the average individual VSL is a popular method of calculation. The United States government does not have an official value of life threshold, but different values are used in different agencies. It might be that the government values lives quite highly or that calculation standards are not applied uniformly. Using the EPA as an example, the Agency uses estimates of how much people are willing to pay for small reductions in their risks of dying from adverse health conditions that may be caused by environmental pollution in their cost-benefit analyses.


title: Value of life

text: Economists often estimate the VSL by looking at the risks that people are voluntarily willing to take and how much they must be paid for taking them. This method is known as revealed preference, where the actions of the individual reveal how much they value something. In this context, economists would look at how much individuals are willing to pay for something that reduces their chance of dying. Similarly, compensating differentials, which are the reduced or additional wage payments that are intended to compensate workers for conveniences or downsides of a job, can be used for VSL calculations. For example, a job that is more dangerous for a worker's health might require that the worker be compensated more. The compensating differentials method has several weaknesses. One issue is that the approach assumes that people have information, which is not always available. Another issue is that people may have higher or lower perceptions of risk they are facing that do not equate to actual statistical risk. In general, it is difficult for people to accurately understand and assess risk. It is also hard to control for other aspects of a job or different types of work when using this method. Overall, revealed preference may not represent population preferences as a whole because of the differences between individuals.


title: Value of life

text: One method that can be used to calculate VSL is summing the total present discounted value of lifetime earnings. There are a couple of problems using this method. One potential source of variability is that different discount rates can be used in this calculation, resulting in dissimilar VSL estimates. Another potential issue when using wages to value life is that the calculation does not take into account the value of time that is not spent working, such as vacation or leisure. As a result, VSL estimates may be inaccurate because time spent on leisure could be valued at a higher rate than an individual's wage.


title: Value of life

text: Another method used to estimate VSL is contingent valuation. Contingent valuation asks individuals to value an option either that they have not chosen or are unable to currently choose. Economists might estimate the VSL by simply asking people (e.g. through questionnaires) how much they would be willing to pay for a reduction in the likelihood of dying, perhaps by purchasing safety improvements. These types of studies are referred to as stated preference studies. However, contingent valuation has some flaws. The first problem is known as the isolation of issues, where participants may give different values when asked to value something alone versus when they are asked to value multiple things. The order of how these issues are presented to people matters as well. Another potential issue is the “embedding effect” identified by Diamond and Hausman 1994. All of these methods might result in a VSL that is overstated or understated.


title: Value of life

text: When calculating value of statistical life, it is important to discount and adjust it for inflation and real income growth over the years. An example of a formula needed to adjust the VSL of a specific year is given by the following:


title: Value of life

text: The value of statistical life (VSL) estimates are often used in the transport sector. In health economics and in the pharmaceutical sector, however, the value of a quality-adjusted life-year (QALY) is used more often than the VSL. Both of these measures are used in cost-benefit analyses as a method of assigning a monetary value of bettering or worsening one's life conditions. While QALY measures the quality of life ranging from 0–1, VSL monetizes the values using willingness-to-pay.


title: Value of life

text: Researchers have first attempted to monetize QALY in the 1970s, with countless studies being done to standardize values between and within countries. However, as with the QALY, VSL estimates have also had a history of vastly differing ranges of estimates within countries, notwithstanding a standardization among countries. One of the biggest movements to do so was the EuroVaQ project which used a sample of 40,000 individuals to develop the WTP of several European countries.


title: Value of life

text: Value of life estimates are frequently used to estimate the benefits added due to a new policy or act passed by the government. One example is the 6-year retroactive study on the benefits and costs of the 1970 Clean Air Act in the period from 1970 to 1990. This study was commissioned by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Office of Air and Radiation and Office of Policy, Planning and Evaluation, but was carried out by an independent board of public health experts, economists, and scientists headed by Dr. Richard Schmalensee of MIT.


title: Value of life

text: On conducting the benefit-cost analysis, the team measured each dollar value of an environmental benefit by estimating a how many dollars a person is willing to pay in order to decrease or eliminate a current threat to their health, otherwise known as their "willingness-to-pay" (WTP). The WTP of the U.S. population was estimated and summed for separate categories including mortality, chronic bronchitis, hypertension, IQ changes, and strokes. Thus, the individual WTPs were added to get the value of a statistical life (VSL) for each category considered in the valuation of the act's benefits. Each valuation in figure 1 was the product of several studies which compiled both solicited WTP information from individuals and estimated WTP estimates from risk compensation demanded in the current labor market and was averaged to find a singular VSL. Such data from the labor market was taken from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.


title: Value of life

text: For example, the valuation estimates used for mortality were divided by the typical life expectancy of each survey sample in order to get a dollar estimate per life-year lost or saved which was discounted with a 5 percent discount rate.


title: Value of life

text: Using these estimates, the paper concluded that the benefits, ranging from $5.6 to $49.4 trillion in 1990 dollars, of implementing the Clean Air Act from 1970 to 1990 outweighed the economic costs of $523 billion in 1990 dollars.


title: Value of life

text: Knowing the value of life is helpful when performing a cost-benefit analysis, especially in regard to public policy. In order to decide whether or not a policy is worth undertaking, it is important to accurately measure costs and benefits. Public programs that deal with things like safety (i.e. highways, disease control, housing) require accurate valuations in order to budget spending.


title: Value of life

text: Since resources are finite, trade-offs are inevitable, even regarding potential life-or-death decisions. The assignment of a value to individual life is one possible approach to attempting to make rational decisions about these trade-offs.


title: Value of life

text: When deciding on the appropriate level of health care spending, a typical method is to equate the marginal cost of the health care to the marginal benefits received. In order to obtain a marginal benefit amount, some estimation of the dollar value of life is required. One notable example was found by Stanford professor Stefanos Zenios, whose team calculated the cost-effectiveness of kidney dialysis. His team found that the VSL implied by then current dialysis practice averages about US$129,000 per quality-adjusted life year (QALY). This calculation has important implications for health care as Zenios explained: "That means that if Medicare paid an additional $129,000 to treat a group of patients, on average, group members would get one more quality-adjusted life year."


title: Value of life

text: In risk management activities such as in the areas of workplace safety, and insurance, it is often useful to put a precise economic value on a given life. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration under the Department of Labor sets penalties and regulations for companies to comply with safety standards to prevent workplace injuries and deaths. It can be argued that these high penalties are intended to act as a deterrent so that companies have an incentive to avoid them. As such, the price of the fines would have to be roughly equivalent to the value of a human life. Although some studies of the effectiveness of fines as a deterrent have found mixed results.


title: Value of life

text: In transportation modes it is very important to consider the external cost that is paid by the society but is not calculated, for making it more sustainable. The external cost, although consisting of impacts on climate, crops and public health among others, is largely determined by impacts on mortality rate.


title: Value of life

text: Using a hedonic wage approach, the VSL in India among blue-collar male workers in manufacturing industries of Ahmedabad, Gujarat has been estimated to be INR 44.69 million (US$0.64 million) in 2018.


title: Value of life

text: In Sweden, the value of a statistical life has been estimated from 9 to 98 million SEK (€0.9 - 10.6 million).


title: Value of life

text: Studies by Hacettepe University estimated the VSL at about half a million purchasing power parity adjusted 2012 US dollars, the value of a healthier and longer life (VHLL) for Turkey at about 42,000 lira (about $27,600 in PPP-adjusted 2012 USD), and the value of a life year (VOLY) as about 10,300 TL (about $6,800 in PPP-adjusted 2012 USD), all .


title: Value of life

text: According to different estimates life value in Russia varies from $40,000 up to $2 million. On the results of opinion poll life value (as the cost of financial compensation for the death) in the beginning of 2015 was about $71,500.


title: Value of life

text: The following estimates have been applied to the value of life. The estimates are either for "one year" of additional life or for the statistical value of a "single" life.


title: Value of life

text: The income elasticity of the value of statistical life has been estimated at 0.5 to 0.6. Developing markets have smaller statistical value of life. The statistical value of life also decreases with age.


title: Value of life

text: Historically, children were valued little monetarily, but changes in cultural norms have resulted in a substantial increase as evinced by trends in damage compensation from wrongful death lawsuits.


title: Value of life

text: The value of a statistical life has come under criticism from a range of sources both in economics and philosophy. These criticisms range from concerns with the specific methodology used, to value a statistical life to the very prospect of valuing life and using it in cost benefit analyses.


title: Value of life

text: Some economists have argued that the value of a statistical life should be "disaggregated" to better capture the differences in mortality risk reduction preferences. Cass Sunstein and others have argued that the value of a statistical life should vary by type of risks, as people are more concerned about some risks than others, and by individuals, as some people are more risk seeking than others. This is proposed to ensure the accuracy of the measurement, as using an average may force some people to pay more than they are willing to for risk reduction, and prevent policies from being enacted for people who are willing to pay more than average for mortality risk reduction.


title: Value of life

text: Some philosophers and policymakers have concerns about the underlying idea of valuing a statistical life at all. While some of these concerns represent a misunderstanding of what is meant by the value of a statistical life, many express legitimate concerns with the project of valuing lives. Elizabeth Anderson and other philosophers have argued that the methods for measuring the value of a statistical life are insufficiently accurate as they rely on wage studies that are conducted in non-competitive labor markets where workers have insufficient information about their working conditions to accurately determine the risk of death from taking a particular job. Further these philosophers contend that some goods (including mortality risk, as well as environmental goods) are simply incommensurate, it is impossible to compare them, and therefore impossible to monetize them and put them on a single scale, making the very practice of valuing a statistical life problematic.


title: Value of life

text: Economists have responded to the more superficial concerns by advocating renaming or rebranding the value of a statistical life as a "micromort" or the amount someone would be willing to pay to reduce a one in one million risk of death, though philosophers contend that this does not resolve the underlying issues.


title: Orlando Pace

text: Orlando Lamar Pace (born November 4, 1975) is a former American football tackle who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons, primarily with the St. Louis Rams. Pace played college football at Ohio State, where he twice received Unanimous All-American honors, and was selected by the Rams first overall in the 1997 NFL Draft. He spent all but one season of his professional career in St. Louis, concluding his NFL tenure as a member of the Chicago Bears.


title: Orlando Pace

text: Pace was recognized as the cornerstone of a Rams offensive line blocked for an offense with the most gross yardage, second-highest completion percentage, and fifth-most touchdown passes during his 12 years with the team. Under Pace's protection, the Rams' passing offense compiled more than 3,000 yards in all of his seasons, seven different quarterbacks eclipsed 3,000 yards in a season, and seven players rushed for 1,000 yards. Pace also protected the league's Most Valuable Player (MVP) recipient for three consecutive seasons, blocking for 1999/2001 MVP Kurt Warner and 2000 MVP Marshall Faulk.


title: Orlando Pace

text: Retiring as a seven-time Pro Bowl and three-time first-team All-Pro selection, Pace was a core contributor of the Rams' Greatest Show on Turf offense that won the franchise's first Super Bowl title in Super Bowl XXXIV. He was inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2013 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2016.


title: Orlando Pace

text: Pace was born in Sandusky, Ohio. He was a two-sport athlete for the Sandusky Blue Streaks at Sandusky High School. He had a successful football career. He was named to the "Parade" magazine high school All-America team as an offensive lineman and the "USA Today" All-America team as a defensive lineman.


title: Orlando Pace

text: Pace attended Ohio State University, where he majored in business and played for the Ohio State Buckeyes football team from 1994 to 1996. He was only the second true freshman ever to start on opening day for the Buckeyes football team. He was a two-time consensus first-team All-American, and won the Outland Trophy in 1996 for the best college football interior lineman. He won the Lombardi Award for the best college lineman or linebacker in 1995 and 1996, becoming the only two-time winner of that award, and the most recent (through 2021) offensive lineman to be honored. He is one of only twelve players to have won both the Outland Trophy and the Lombardi Award. He and Dave Rimington are the only three-time winners in the Outland/Lombardi category. He was a finalist for the 1996 Heisman Trophy, finishing fourth in the voting, the highest finish for a lineman (offense or defense) since Hugh Green finished second in 1980. Pace also lined up at defensive tackle during some goal line situations during his junior year at Ohio State.


title: Orlando Pace

text: Pace was so dominant that the term "pancake block"—referring to when an offensive lineman knocks a defender on his back—gained popularity at Ohio State due to his play. He was nicknamed "The Pancake Man." Several other college teams have been using the term since the 1980s, most notably Nebraska. In fact, the Ohio State Athletic Department distributed Orlando Pace pancake magnets as a promotion for his Heisman Trophy run. Pace did not allow a sack in his last two years at Ohio State. Pace finished fourth in the Heisman trophy in 1996, which was practically unheard of for an offensive lineman, and demonstrated his dominance at the college level.


title: Orlando Pace

text: In 1999, Pace was selected as a starting offensive tackle by "Sports Illustrated" in their "NCAA Football All-Century Team". The other starting offensive tackle on that list was Bill Fralic. Pace was one of five Ohio State Buckeyes on Sport Illustrated's All-Century Team 85-man roster; the others being Jim Parker, Archie Griffin, Chris Spielman and Jack Tatum. In 2013, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.


title: Orlando Pace

text: After Peyton Manning chose to skip the 1997 NFL Draft and return to Tennessee, Pace was considered to be the top candidate for the Jets′ selection at No. 1 in the draft. The Jets traded their top pick to the Rams one day before the draft. Pace was picked by the Rams as the first offensive lineman since Ron Yary in 1968 to be drafted first overall.


title: Orlando Pace

text: After a three-week holdout, on August 15, 1997, Pace signed a seven-year $29.4 million contract that included a $6.3 million signing bonus. Pace played 13 games during the 1997 season, his rookie year. He made his first start against the Oakland Raiders on September 28, 1997, and started every game for the rest of the season.


title: Orlando Pace

text: In the 1999 season, Pace played in 896 of 994 offensive plays and was selected to his first Pro Bowl. It was the first time that a Rams' offensive tackle was named to the Pro Bowl since Jackie Slater in 1990. Pace was also a First-team All-Pro for the Super Bowl winning Rams.


title: Orlando Pace

text: In the 2000 season, Pace earned second consecutive Pro Bowl invitation, starting all 16 regular season games and 1 playoff game. Pace was anchor of offensive line that helped offense produce most passing yards in NFL history, playing in 1,006 of possible 1,013 offensive plays (99.3 percent), second highest total on offensive line. Pace was one of three Rams' offensive linemen (C Andy McCollum, RT Ryan Tucker) who were not penalized for holding.


title: Orlando Pace

text: In 2001, Pace started every game for the fourth consecutive season. He played in 100 percent of offensive plays, joining Adam Timmerman as the only Rams to play in every offensive play. He started all three playoff contests, the St. Louis Rams claimed the NFC West title and advanced to Super Bowl XXXVI falling to the New England Patriots, 20–17. He earned third consecutive Pro Bowl invitation.


title: Orlando Pace

text: In 2002, despite missing six games due to injury (three to calf injury games 4–6; three to hamstring games 13–16), Pace earned his fourth consecutive Pro Bowl invitation.


title: Orlando Pace

text: Pace had a lengthy holdout by reporting to camp on August 26, 2003, and signing a one-year deal as the Rams franchise player. The deal was worth $5.7 million. In 2003, Pace started all 16 regular season games and one playoff game, he helped the Rams' offense to rank second in the NFL with an average of 27.9 points a game. He earned a fifth consecutive Pro Bowl invitation as the Rams claimed their third NFC West title in five years.


title: Orlando Pace

text: On September 5, 2004, Pace ended another holdout and signed the Rams' $7.02 million offer. It marked the second straight year Pace missed most or all of the preseason before signing his one-year tender. By designating Pace as a franchise player, the Rams were obligated to pay him the average salary of the five highest-paid offensive linemen in the NFL. Pace went on to start all 16 regular season games at left tackle and both playoff games. He was one of three linemen to start every game (C Andy McCollum, G Adam Timmerman) and blocked for an offense that ranked eighth in the NFL (third in the NFC) in first downs (321). Pace helped Rams convert 13-of-16 fourth down attempts, second highest fourth-down conversion percentage in the NFL (68.4%). He earned his sixth consecutive Pro Bowl invitation.


title: Orlando Pace

text: Pace was a free agent in 2005 and explored the possibility of signing with another team. The Rams placed the franchise tag on Pace again. In March, he visited the Houston Texans. The problem for Pace and the Texans was that if they work out an agreement, the Texans would have had to agree with the Rams on a compensation package, which would be two first-round draft choices which the Rams would be entitled to under the franchise-player rules. However, the day before the deadline, Pace accepted a seven-year, $52.9 million deal. The deal included $18 million in first-year salary and bonus.


title: Orlando Pace

text: In 2005, Pace earned seventh consecutive Pro Bowl invitation, tying him for fourth in Rams history, behind Hall of Famer DT Merlin Olsen (14), Hall of Famer G Tom Mack (11), and LB Les Richter (8). That season, Pace started all 16 games at left tackle, joining C Andy McCollum and G Adam Timmerman as only Rams linemen to start every game.


title: Orlando Pace

text: In 2006, Pace started the 8 games he appeared in until he left in the second quarter against the Seattle Seahawks on November 12, 2006, after he tore his triceps, ending his 2006 season. He was placed on Injured Reserve on November 14.


title: Orlando Pace

text: Pace was injured during the Rams' 2007 season opener against the Carolina Panthers on September 9, 2007. Officials confirmed that Pace would be out for the entire 2007 season, severely jeopardizing the Rams' offense for the remainder of the season.


title: Orlando Pace

text: In 2008, Pace played in and started 14 games, missing only two with an injury, compared to the 15 he missed in 2007 and the 8 he missed in 2006. However, the Rams struggled on the field and their head coach Scott Linehan was fired mid-season and the team fared little better under interim head coach Jim Haslett and the team finished 2–14.


title: Orlando Pace

text: Dogged by injuries in recent seasons, Pace was released by the Rams on March 10, 2009, to save $6 million under the salary cap.


title: Orlando Pace

text: Pace signed a three-year $15 million deal (with $6.1 million guaranteed), with the Chicago Bears on April 2, 2009. Pace started the first 11 games at left tackle in his lone season with the Bears in 2009 before sustaining a groin injury on November 29 in a loss to the Minnesota Vikings. He later finished the year as a reserve behind 2008 first-round draft pick Chris Williams. He was released on March 1, 2010.


title: Orlando Pace

text: Pace owned "Big O's Ltd" in his home town of Sandusky, Ohio. It was a family-friendly sports bar located on W. Perkins Avenue. Pace made appearances at his restaurant, occasionally signing autographs for his hometown fans. Big O's Ltd has since been closed.


title: Orlando Pace

text: Pace was inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame on December 30, 2013, at the Pasadena Convention Center.


title: Orlando Pace

text: Pace was a finalist in the 2015 Hall of Fame induction class and his second year of eligibility has made the final 15. On February 6, 2016, he was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.


title: Caldecott Medal

text: The Randolph Caldecott Medal, frequently shortened to just the Caldecott, annually recognizes the preceding year's "most distinguished American picture book for children". It is awarded to the illustrator by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA). The Caldecott and Newbery Medals are considered the most prestigious American children's book awards. Beside the Caldecott Medal, the committee awards a variable number of citations to runners-up they deem worthy, called the Caldecott Honor or Caldecott Honor Books.


title: Caldecott Medal

text: The Caldecott Medal was first proposed by Frederic G. Melcher, in 1937. The award was named after English illustrator Randolph Caldecott. Unchanged since its founding, the medal, which is given to every winner, features two of Caldecott's illustrations. The awarding process has changed several times over the years, including in 1971 which began use of the term "Honor" for the runner-ups. There have between one and five honor books named each year.


title: Caldecott Medal

text: To be eligible for a Caldecott, the book must be published in English, in the United States first, and be drawn by an American illustrator. An award committee decides on a winner in January or February, voting using a multi-round point system. The committee judges books on several criteria to meet the Caldecott's goal of recognizing "distinguished illustrations in a picture book and for excellence of pictorial presentation for children."


title: Caldecott Medal

text: Winning the award can lead to a substantial rise in books sold. It can also increase the prominence of illustrators. Illustrator and author Marcia Brown is the most recognized Caldecott illustrator having won three medals and having six honor books. In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of minority characters and illustrators recognized, however, this is something which has fluctuated over the history of the award.


title: Caldecott Medal

text: The Caldecott was suggested in 1937 by Frederic G. Melcher, former editor of "Publishers Weekly," following the establishment of the Newbery Medal in 1921. The American Library Association adopted Melcher's suggestion of awarding a medal to the illustrator "who had created the most distinguished picture book of the year." According to children's literature expert Leonard S. Marcus, the award helped draw American artists into the field of children's books.


title: Caldecott Medal

text: The award has been tweaked over the years, with the most recent changes in 2009. When the award was founded, books could be considered either for the Newbery or the Caldecott, with the same committee judging both awards. The committee noted other books of merit, which were frequently referred to as runner-ups. In 1971, these books were formally named Caldecott Honor books, with this name applied retroactively. In 1977 books became eligible for both awards and, beginning with the 1980 award, separate committees for each award were formed. Until 1958, a previous winner could win again only by unanimous vote of the committee, and in 1963 joint winners were first permitted.


title: Caldecott Medal

text: The award is named for Randolph Caldecott, a nineteenth-century English illustrator. Rene Paul Chambellan designed the Medal in 1937. The obverse scene is derived from Randolph Caldecott's front cover illustration for "The Diverting History of John Gilpin" (Routledge, 1878, an edition of the 1782 poem by William Cowper), which depicts Gilpin astride a runaway horse. The reverse is based on "Four and twenty blackbirds baked in a pie", one of Caldecott's illustrations for the nursery rhyme "Sing a Song of Sixpence". Each illustrator receives a bronze copy of the medal, which, despite being awarded by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), lists Children's Librarian's Section, the original awarding group, for historical reasons.


title: Caldecott Medal

text: A picture book, according to the award criteria, provides "a visual experience. A picture book has a collective unity of story-line, theme, or concept, developed through the series of pictures" that constitute the book. The Medal is "for distinguished illustrations in a picture book and for excellence of pictorial presentation for children". Specifically the illustrations are judged on their artistic technique, interpretation of the book's story and theme, the fit between the illustrations and the story and themes, the precision of depiction of elements of the book, like characters and mood, and how well the illustrations serve their targeted audience. Honor books need to fulfill the same criteria. The book must be self-contained, independent of other media for its enjoyment. Components other than illustration, including the book's text or overall design, may be considered as they affect the overall effectiveness of the book's illustrations.


title: Caldecott Medal

text: To be eligible for the Caldecott, the artist must be a US citizen or resident, the book must have been published in English, in the United States first, or simultaneously in other countries. Picture books for any audience up to the age of 14 may be considered. In December 2019, children's literature expert Leonard S. Marcus suggested that the Caldecott had achieved its mission in the US and the award should be expanded so children's book illustrations from anywhere in the world be considered.


title: Caldecott Medal

text: The committee that decides on the Caldecott Award winner comprises fifteen members of ALSC. Seven members are elected by the entire ALSC membership and eight, including the chairperson, are appointed by the ALSC President. Members are chosen based on their experience and to ensure a diversity of libraries (e.g. public and school, small and large) and geographical areas are represented. Publishers send copies of books to the committee; 2009 members each received more than 700. However, a book does not need to be sent to the committee to be considered. Instead, to help identify possible contenders, committee members formally nominate seven books in three rounds over the year, and less formally recommend others.


title: Caldecott Medal

text: At ALSC's annual midwinter meeting, held in late January or early February, the committee will discuss the nominations and hold a vote on the winner. When voting, committee members list their first place, second place, and third place selections. Each vote is assigned a point value, with first place votes receiving four points, second place three points, and third place two points. The winner must receive at least eight first place votes and be at least eight points ahead of the second-place finisher. After a winner is selected, the committee can decide whether to award any honor books. They may be chosen from runner-ups to the winner, or be selected in a separate ballot. The winner and honor books are kept secret until they are publicly announced, with the committee calling the winning illustrators the morning of the announcement.


title: Caldecott Medal

text: In 2015, K. T. Horning of the University of Wisconsin–Madison's Cooperative Children's Book Center proposed to ALSC that old discussions of the Newbery and Caldecott be made public in the service of researchers and historians. This proposal was met with both support and criticism by former committee members and recognized authors. no change has been made.


title: Caldecott Medal

text: The Caldecott and Newbery awards have historically been considered the most important children's book awards. Anita Silvey, children's book author, editor, and critic, suggests they might even be the most important book awards, saying that "no other award has the economic significance of the Newbery and Caldecott". According to Silvey, a Caldecott winner can have sales increased from 2,000 to 100,000–200,000. Silvey also credits the Caldecott for helping to establish Bradbury Press and Roaring Brook Press as important publishers. It can also be an important recognition for authors. According to Leonard Marcus, "Where the Wild Things Are"s recognition brought its author and illustrator, Maurice Sendak, to national prominence.


title: Caldecott Medal

text: A 1999 study on the reading levels of Caldecott recipients suggested that most winners were written at the elementary age level, with the average reading level having decreased over time. A 2007 study of Caldecott recipients found that the prevalence and importance of female characters had risen and fallen several times over the history of the Caldecott. It also found that, unlike recipients of the Pura Belpré Award and Coretta Scott King Award, the behaviors of male and female characters remained distinct and adhered to traditional gender norms. A different 2007 study, by one of the same authors, also found an increase in the number of minority characters following a 1965 critique by Nancy Larrick, however the number of minorities had fallen by the 2000s. In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of minority characters and illustrators recognized. "The Horn Book Magazine" editor Martha Parravano has noted how rarely non-fiction books, especially non-fiction books about science, are recognized by the Caldecott.


title: Caldecott Medal

text: Listed below are all illustrators who have won at least two Caldecott Medals or who have won a Medal and multiple honors.


title: Grasshopper (cocktail)

text: A Grasshopper is a sweet, mint-flavored, after-dinner drink. The name of the drink derives from its green color, which comes from crème de menthe. A bar in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Louisiana, Tujague's, claims the drink was invented in 1918 by its owner, Philip Guichet. The drink gained popularity during the 1950s and 1960s throughout the American South.


title: Grasshopper (cocktail)

text: A typical Grasshopper cocktail consists of equal parts green crème de menthe, white crème de cacao, and cream shaken with ice and strained into a chilled cocktail glass.


title: Grasshopper (cocktail)

text: An "After Eight" adds a layer of dark chocolate liqueur to the crème de menthe, crème de cacao and cream.


title: Grasshopper (cocktail)

text: In the North Central United States, especially Wisconsin, Grasshoppers are blended drinks, with ice cream substituted for cream. A related variation is the "Grasshopper milkshake", which contains mint chocolate chip ice cream, milk, and crème de menthe. This is blended and served in a tall glass decorated with a miniature or broken cream-filled chocolate sandwich cookie.


title: Grasshopper (cocktail)

text: In celebrating the 85th anniversary of the snackfood, Hostess released a cooking book of recipes using Twinkies. One of the recipes is called a "Twinkie Grasshopper" which is akin to a milkshake.


title: R. M. Veerappan

text: R. M. Veerappan (also referred to as RMV or Rama Veerappan) is an Indian politician, an early Dravidian Leader, and a movie producer and screenwriter from the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. He is the founder and leader of the MGR Kazhagam party. He served as a Cabinet Minister in five governments from 1977 to 1996, is a three-time Member of Legislative Council and a two-time member of the Legislative Assembly. He was the Leader of the House for Legislative Assembly and Leader of ADMK party of the Legislative Council. He was the architect behind the ADMK organization, unified the MGR fan clubs for the party formation. He was called as the 'Chanakya' of AIADMK politics in the 70's and 80's.


title: R. M. Veerappan

text: RMV was introduced to Periyar in Karaikudi by Rama Subbaiah. He soon began to follow his Dravidian ideologies. He moved to Erode with Periyar and was there with him for some time. He met many other Dravidian leaders. He subsequently joined K R Ramaswamy's Krishnan Drama Company as supervisor. During this period, he became an admirer of Arignar Anna and also friends with Chevalier Sivaji Ganesan. The company was closed in 1950 and R. M. V. went to Madras.


title: R. M. Veerappan

text: In 1953 he met MGR through the advice of his mentor C N Annadurai and joined his drama company as Manager, later becoming an executive director of the Company Em.Gee.Yar Pictures. "Nadodi Mannan" was the first film under this banner which was released on 22 August 1958. The company later filmed "Adimai Penn" and "Ulagam sutrum Valiban".


title: R. M. Veerappan

text: RMV later started his own production house and the banner's debut movie titled "Deiva Thai," with MGR in the lead role, was released in 1964. Director K Balachander made his debut into the Tamil film industry by writing the dialogues for this movie. Following that, MGR and RMV appeared together in many movies under this banner, such as "Naan Anayittal", "Kaavalkaran", "Kannan En Kadhalan" and "Idhaya Kani". "Rickshawkaran", produced by Sathya Movies, helped MGR achieve the National award for his performance. In addition to this, the production house made films including "Kadhal Parisu", "Kakki Chattai", "Ranuva Veeran", "Moondru Mugam", "Thanga Magan", "Oor Kavalan", "Panakaran", "Baasha", "Mandhira Punnagai", and "Puthiya Vaanam". Among his movies, "Basha", was remarkable and set box office records in all major South Indian languages.


title: R. M. Veerappan

text: RMV was using the super star status of MGR to propagate the DMK ideologies in his films and Rickshawkaran was a prime example where the movie was used to propagate Arignar Anna's DMK ideology during 1971 elections. When MGR moved out of the DMK following differences with M. Karunanidhi in 1972, RMV organised the fan clubs and helped him in starting the AIADMK party. In 1984, while MGR was ill, K. RMV, oversaw the party proceedings and election campaigning. Following the death of MGR in 1987, the party broke up into two factions where the larger faction was headed by him. He garnered support of 98 MLA's to instill V.N. Janaki as the Chief Minister and then later reconciled with J. Jayalalithaa's faction and was the Joint General Secretary of the party.


title: R. M. Veerappan

text: He has been elected to the legislative assembly two times and to the legislative council three times. He was elected to the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly in the Tirunelveli constituency as an Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam candidate in the Tamil Nadu state assembly bye-election in 1986 and in the Kangayam constituency of Tamil Nadu state assembly bye-election in 1991[2].


title: R. M. Veerappan

text: MGR Kazhagam (MGR Federation), a political party in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The president of MGR Kazhagam is R. M. Veerappan, a former All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) founder and leader of the House.


title: R. M. Veerappan

text: MGR Kazhagam supported the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)-led Democratic Progressive Alliance in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections.


title: R. M. Veerappan

text: He is the founder and President of Kamban Kazhagam and Azhvargal Aaiyvu Maiyam. He also runs an education trust which funds the education of the oppressed.


title: R. M. Veerappan

text: R.M.V married Thirumathi Rajammal on 12 March 1956, in Thiruparangundram. The wedding was conducted in the Tamil tradition under Arignar Anna. They have 3 daughters and 3 sons. The eldest daughter, Thirumathi Selvi, married T. G. Thyagarajan of Sathya Jyothi Films, son of Thiru. Venus Govindarajan of Venus Pictures.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: The London Borough of Waltham Forest () is a London borough in north-east London, England. Its population is estimated to be 276,983 in 2019. It borders five other London boroughs: Enfield to the north-west, Haringey to the west, Hackney to the south-west, Newham to the south-east and Redbridge to the east, as well as the non-metropolitan county of Essex to the north.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: The borough was formed in 1965 from the merger of the municipal boroughs of Leyton, Walthamstow and Chingford; it took its name from Waltham Forest – an institution which managed deer in south-west Essex.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: Epping Forest is a remainder of the former Waltham Forest and forms the eastern and northern fringe of the borough. The River Lea lies to the west where its associated marshes and parkland form a green corridor which, along the reservoir-lined reaches, separates north and east London, and is the historic border between Middlesex and Essex.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: Waltham Forest was one of the host boroughs of the London Olympics in 2012, with the Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre and part of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park providing an ongoing legacy in the UK and London.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: The area was in the territory of the Trinovantes tribe during the Iron Age and through the Roman period, when the tribal area was a unit of local government. It subsequently became part of the Kingdom of the East Saxons a unit which is likely to have its roots in the territory of the Trinovantes. After the Kingdom of Essex lost its independence, it evolved into the county of Essex.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: The Domesday book of 1086 records four manors in the area, Chingford, Walthamstow, Higham and Leyton. At some point, before or after the Domesday survey these also became parishes, with Higham becoming part of the parish of Walthamstow. These parishes had largely stable borders from which those of the later Municipal Boroughs were derived, and these are the basis of our understanding of the extent of these local areas today.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: The southern part of Epping Forest still extends into the north of the borough, 90% of it having been preserved by the Epping Forest Act of 1878. This not only assisted in preserving the forest, the attraction value also helped stimulate urbanisation of nearby areas.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: Until the late Victorian era, the area that became the modern borough was rural in nature with a small dispersed population and a primarily agricultural landscape. Leyton, in particular, grew quite rapidly between 1870 and 1910.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: In 1892, a private citizen named Frederick Bremer built the first British motorcar in a workshop in his garden, at Connaught Road, Walthamstow. The vehicle is on display at the Vestry House Museum in Walthamstow.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: In 1909, the aviation pioneer A V Roe successfully tested the first all-British aeroplane, the Roe I Triplane, on land at Walthamstow Marshes.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: The area now known as Waltham Forest experienced at least two Zeppelin raids during World War I. On 17/18 August 1915, Airship L10 took a route roughly following the Gospel Oak to Barking railway line, dropping incendiary and high-explosive bombs. The first bomb, an incendiary, fell on Hoe St, Walthamstow, at the junction of Orford and Queens Road; the last was dropped in Aldersbrook area. Ten people were killed in Leyton and another 48 injured across the wider area. On 23/24 September 1916 the German Navy airship L 31 dropped around ten bombs along the line of Lea Bridge Road, Leyton, killing eight there. On both occasions the Germans believed they were bombing the City, and it is thought they mistook the Lee Valley Reservoir Chain for the Thames.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: During the most intense period of the Blitz (October 1940 to June 1941), the area was hit by around 728 high explosive bombs, 17 parachute mines and an unknown, but much greater number of small incendiary bombs. Subsequent raids were lighter and less frequent, but 1944 saw a number of V-1 'flying bombs' and V-2 long-range ballistic missiles hit the area, including a V-1 which landed on central Walthamstow killing 22 and a V-2 which landed on Chingford Road, Walthamstow killing 8.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: The London Government Act 1963 established the borough in 1965 from the combined areas of the former Municipal Borough of Chingford, Municipal Borough of Leyton and Municipal Borough of Walthamstow.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: A petition opposed calling the new borough "Walthamstow", so perhaps for that reason the new borough took its name from the former Waltham Forest, an institution responsible for managing deer in an area that stretched eastwards from the River Lea and included large areas of agricultural land as well as the wooded areas subsequently known as Epping Forest and Hainault Forest.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: The main centres of population in the borough are Chingford in the north, Walthamstow in the centre (the administrative hub including the council offices) and Leyton and Leytonstone to the South. Waltham Forest has the fifth largest Muslim population in England and the third largest in London (coming after its neighbouring boroughs, Newham and Tower Hamlets).


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: Epping Forest and the green corridor along the River Lea provide some of the borough's many open spaces, which include:


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: Historically known as the seat of the Arts and Crafts Movement under the stewardship of William Morris, Waltham Forest has continued to succour many contemporary artists & art groups. These include the North East London Independent Artists (NELIA) group, based at the Changing Room Gallery in Lloyd Park, the 491 Gallery in Leytonstone, and a number of independent artists, also mainly in the Leytonstone area. The annual E17 Art Trail, which includes open studios, exhibitions and events, is the biggest art event in the borough, and there is now a similar event in Leytonstone. Eamon Everall, founder member of the Stuckism art movement is a long-time resident in the borough where he also maintains a studio.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: Waltham Forest is home to a number of musicians that have found success in the UK, including East 17, Blazin' Squad, and Indie band Hefner, who formed in Walthamstow. The borough is also a centre of the grime musical genre; grime acts hailing from the borough include More Fire Crew, Lethal Bizzle, and Jammer amongst others.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: The borough had a key role in the history of rave music culture, whether it be clubs, artists, and DJs. Widely regarded as one of the seminal tracks of jungle music, the creator of "We Are I.E." Lennie de Ice grew up and lived in Walthamstow. Walthamstow was also home to DJ Rap and MC Navigator. The venue Dungeons was located on the Lea Bridge Road in Leyton, and a number of pirate radio stations including Friends FM, Dance FM, and Eruption FM broadcast from tower blocks such as the Cathall Estate in Leytonstone.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: The only theatre in the borough, The Waltham Forest Theatre, was situated in Lloyd Park. Though a local campaign was launched to save it in 2008 the theatre was demolished in 2011.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: Leyton Orient F.C. is the local professional football team, based at Brisbane Road, Leyton. In the 1962–63 season the club played in the top tier of English football, the Football League First Division, but currently are in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: Truman's Brewery is moving to Waltham Forest close to Blackhorse Road underground station in 2020, which will be a new entertainment hub in Walthamstow.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: Waltham Forest is the first ever London Borough of Culture. The award from the Mayor of London ensures that arts and culture are placed at the heart of our communities. Some of the programmes are: Hennography, Polish Jazz London Series, Human Library, E17: My Home, Waltham Forest Cello Fest - "London Borough of Culture meets Classical Music", We're all bats, E17 Designers Winter Night Market, Red Light Busking, Underground Lunchtime Recitals, Forest Uprising, Welcome to the Forest and Fighter Workshops.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: Waltham Forest was one of six local authorities to set up a Housing Action Trust under the Housing Act 1988. The Waltham Forest HAT covered various estates in need of regeneration: Cathall Road in Leytonstone, Oliver Close in Leyton, Boundary Road in Walthamstow and Chingford Hall in Chingford. The HAT transferred its redeveloped estates to Community-based Housing Association and shut down in April 2002. English Partnerships then demolished four empty tower blocks.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: The remaining Council housing in the borough is now managed by an arms-length management organisation, Waltham Forest Housing (formerly Ascham Homes).


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: Waltham Forest was one of four host boroughs in east London for the 2012 Olympics. The northern part of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park is located in Eton Manor. The borough hosted events in its three Olympic-size swimming pools, one synchronised swimming pool and one water polo pool. These pools were used for athlete training.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: During the Paralympic Games, Eton Manor hosted the Wheelchair Tennis events, with temporary seating for 10,500 spectators.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: In April 2012, the Ministry of Defence identified the roof of Fred Wigg Tower as a potential location for surface-to-air missile defences during the Games.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: Waltham Forest has a number of institutes, including 3 colleges of further education. Leyton Sixth Form College was the second sixth form college in Southern England to get a licence, and was awarded the title of best college in London for sport in 2013. Others include Waltham Forest College and Sir George Monoux College. Waltham Forest has a sixth form college reorganised system which it adopted in 1985.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: Neighbouring authorities are Epping Forest (Essex) in the north, Redbridge in the east, with Newham and Hackney to the south. Haringey and Enfield lie to the west.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: The Central line of the London Underground serves the south of the borough, running alongside the A12 road with stations at Leyton and Leytonstone. The Victoria line runs roughly through the middle of the borough with stations at Walthamstow Central and Blackhorse Road. The Gospel Oak to Barking line of London Overground has stations at Walthamstow Queen's Road, Blackhorse Road, Leyton Midland Road and Leytonstone High Road. London Overground also runs services on the Lea Valley lines from Liverpool Street station in the City of London and serves stations at St James Street, Walthamstow Central, Wood Street, Highams Park and Chingford. Greater Anglia serves the south-west of the borough with a station at Lea Bridge. A number of London Buses routes serve the borough, as well as six night bus routes. The Central line and the Victoria line are both part of the Night Tube, which provides overnight tube services on Friday and Saturday nights. The pioneering Mini Holland program has begun to provide protected cycle lanes across the southern half of the borough, increasing the ability to use bicycles as a transport option.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: In March 2011, the main forms of transport that residents used to travel to work were: underground, metro, light rail, tram, 21.0% of all residents aged 16–74; driving a car or van, 7.0%; bus, minibus or coach, 7.0%; train, 6.5%; on foot, 4.3%; work mainly at or from home, 2.1%; bicycle, 1.8%.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: There is one police station which is based in Chingford and a number of additional patrol centres throughout the borough. Policing is now provided by the North-East Basic Command Unit (BCU) following a merger of Waltham Forest's and Newham's policing in 2018


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: Waltham Forest is the birthplace of William Morris, best known as one of the principal founders of the British Arts and Crafts Movement. Morris was a designer of wallpaper and patterned fabrics, a writer of poetry and fiction, and a pioneer of the socialist movement in Britain.


title: London Borough of Waltham Forest

text: Other notable people, such as footballer and former England Captain David Beckham, rapper, songwriter and actor Redzz, "I, Claudius" star Derek Jacobi, former Essex and England cricket Captain Graham Gooch, and the film director and producer Alfred Hitchcock, were also born in the borough. The heavy metal band Iron Maiden was formed in Leyton, and Eastenders actress Rita Simons was born in Leytonstone. Notable Eastenders Actor Adam Woodyatt is from Walthamstow. The poet Pascale Petit, shortlisted three times for the TS Eliot poetry prize, lives in Walthamstow. Notable rap/grime artist Lethal Bizzle is from Walthamstow, and Grayson Perry, the 2003 Turner Prize-winning artist, has his studio in Walthamstow. X Factor finalist Fleur East is also from Walthamstow as well as British Taekwondo Athlete Lutalo Muhammad.


title: Carl Barks

text: Carl Barks (March 27, 1901 – August 25, 2000) was an American cartoonist, author, and painter. He is best known for his work in Disney comic books, as the writer and artist of the first Donald Duck stories and as the creator of Scrooge McDuck. He worked anonymously until late in his career; fans dubbed him The Duck Man and The Good Duck Artist. In 1987, Barks was one of the three inaugural inductees of the Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame.


title: Carl Barks

text: Barks worked for the Disney Studio and Western Publishing where he created Duckburg and many of its inhabitants, such as Scrooge McDuck (1947), Gladstone Gander (1948), the Beagle Boys (1951), The Junior Woodchucks (1951), Gyro Gearloose (1952), Cornelius Coot (1952), Flintheart Glomgold (1956), John D. Rockerduck (1961) and Magica De Spell (1961).


title: Carl Barks

text: He has been named by animation historian Leonard Maltin as "the most popular and widely read artist-writer in the world". Will Eisner called him "the Hans Christian Andersen of comic books." Beginning especially in the 1980s, Barks' artistic contributions would be a primary source for animated adaptations such as "DuckTales" and its 2017 remake.


title: Carl Barks

text: Barks was born in Merrill, Oregon, to William Barks and his wife, Arminta Johnson. He had an older brother named Clyde. His paternal grandparents were David Barks and his wife Ruth Shrum. Barks' maternal grandparents were Carl Johnson and his wife, Suzanna Massey, but little else is known about his ancestors. Barks was the descendant of Jacob Barks, who came to Missouri from North Carolina 1800. They lived in Marble Hill in Bollinger County. Jacob Barks' son Isaac was the father of the David Barks noted above.


title: Carl Barks

text: According to Barks's description of his childhood, he was a rather lonely child. His parents owned one square mile (2.6 km) of land that served as their farm. The nearest neighbor lived half a mile (800 m) away, but he was more an acquaintance to Barks's parents than a friend. The closest school was about away and Barks had to walk that distance every day. The rural area had few children, though, and Barks later remembered that his school had only about eight or ten students including him. He had high praise for the quality of the education he received in that small school. "Schools were good in those days", he used to say.


title: Carl Barks

text: The lessons lasted from nine o'clock in the morning to four o'clock in the afternoon and then he had to return to the farm. There he remembered not having anybody to talk to, as his parents were busy and he had little in common with his brother.


title: Carl Barks

text: In 1908, William Barks (in an attempt to increase the family income) moved with his family to Midland, Oregon, some miles north of Merrill, to be closer to the new railway lines. He established a new stock-breeding farm and sold his produce to the local slaughterhouses.


title: Carl Barks

text: Nine-year-old Clyde and seven-year-old Carl worked long hours there. But Carl later remembered that the crowd which gathered at Midland's market place made a strong impression on him. This was expected, as he was not used to crowds up until then. According to Barks, his attention was mostly drawn to the cowboys that frequented the market with their revolvers, strange nicknames for each other and sense of humor.


title: Carl Barks

text: By 1911, they had been successful enough to move to Santa Rosa, California. There they started cultivating vegetables and set up some orchards. Unfortunately, the profits were not as high as William expected and they started having financial difficulties. William's anxiety over them was probably what caused his first nervous breakdown.


title: Carl Barks

text: As soon as William recovered, he made the decision to move back to Merrill. The year was 1913, and Barks was already 12-years-old; but, due to the constant moving, he had not yet managed to complete grade school. He resumed his education at this point and finally managed to graduate in 1916.


title: Carl Barks

text: 1916 served as a turning point in Barks's life for various reasons. First, Arminta, his mother, died in this year. Second, his hearing problems, which had already appeared earlier, had at the time become severe enough for him to have difficulties listening to his teachers talking. His hearing would continue to get worse later, but at that point he had not yet acquired a hearing aid. Later in life, he couldn't do without one. Third, the closest high school to their farm was away and even if he did enroll in it, his bad hearing was likely to contribute to his learning problems. He had to decide to stop his school education, much to his disappointment.


title: Carl Barks

text: Barks started taking various jobs but had little success in such occupations as a farmer, woodcutter, turner, mule driver, cowboy and printer. From his jobs he learned, he later averred, how eccentric, stubborn and unpredictable men, animals and machines can be. At the same time he interacted with colleagues, fellow breadwinners who had satirical disposition towards even their worst troubles. Barks later declared that he was sure that if not for a little humor in their troubled lives, they would certainly go insane. It was an attitude towards life that Barks would adopt. Later he would say it was natural for him to satirize the secret yearnings and desires, the pompous style and the disappointments of his characters. According to Barks, this period of his life would later influence his best known fictional characters: Walt Disney's Donald Duck and his own Scrooge McDuck.


title: Carl Barks

text: Donald's drifting from job to job was reportedly inspired by Barks's own experiences. So was his usual lack of success. And even in those that he was successful this would be temporary, just until a mistake or chance event caused another failure, another disappointment for the frustrated duck. Barks also reported that this was another thing he was familiar with.


title: Carl Barks

text: Scrooge's main difference to Donald, according to Barks, was that he too had faced the same difficulties in his past but through intelligence, determination and hard work, he was able to overcome them. Or, as Scrooge himself would say to Huey, Dewey and Louie: by being "tougher than the toughies and smarter than the smarties." In Barks's stories Scrooge would work to solve his many problems, even though the stories would often point out that his constant efforts seemed futile at the end. In addition, Scrooge was quite similar to his creator in appearing often to be as melancholic, introspective and secretive as he was.


title: Carl Barks

text: Through both characters Barks would often exhibit his rather sarcastic sense of humor. It seems that this difficult period for the artist helped shape many of his later views in life that were expressed through his characters.


title: Carl Barks

text: At the same time Barks had started thinking about turning a hobby that he always enjoyed into a profession: that of drawing. Since his early childhood he spent his free time by drawing on any material he could find. He had attempted to improve his style by copying the drawings of his favorite comic strip artists from the newspapers where he could find them. As he later said, he wanted to create his own facial expressions, figures and comical situations in his drawings but wanted to study the master comic artists' use of the pen and their use of color and shading.


title: Carl Barks

text: Among his early favorites were Winsor McCay (mostly known for "Little Nemo") and Frederick Burr Opper (mostly known for "Happy Hooligan") but he would later study any style that managed to draw his attention.


title: Carl Barks

text: At age 16, he was mostly self-taught but at this point he decided to take some lessons through correspondence. He only followed the first four lessons and then had to stop because his working left him with little free time. But as he later said, the lessons proved very useful in improving his style.


title: Carl Barks

text: By December 1918, he left his father's home to attempt to find a job in San Francisco, California. He worked for a while in a small publishing house while attempting to sell his drawings to newspapers and other printed material with little success.


title: Carl Barks

text: While he continued drifting through various jobs, he met Pearl Turner (1904–1987). In 1921 they married and had two daughters:


title: Carl Barks

text: In 1923 he returned to his paternal farm in Merrill in an attempt to return to the life of a farmer, but that ended soon. He continued searching for a job while attempting to sell his drawings. He soon managed to sell some of them to "Judge" magazine and then started having success submitting to the Minneapolis-based "Calgary Eye-Opener", a racy men's cartoon magazine of the era. He was eventually hired as editor and scripted and drew most of the contents while continuing to sell occasional work to other magazines. His salary of $90 per month was considered respectable enough for the time. A facsimile of one of the racy magazines he did cartoons for in this period, "Coo Coo" #1, was published by Hamilton Comics in 1997.


title: Carl Barks

text: Meanwhile, he had his first divorce. He and Pearl were separated in 1929 and divorced in 1930. After he moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota, where "Calgary-Eye-Opener" had its offices he met Clara Balken, who in 1938 became his second wife.


title: Carl Barks

text: In November 1935, when he learned that Walt Disney was seeking more artists for his studio, Barks decided to apply. He was approved for a try-out which entailed a move to Los Angeles, California. He was one of two in his class of trainees who was hired. His starting salary was 20 dollars a week. He started at Disney Studios in 1935, more than a year after the debut of Donald Duck on June 9, 1934, in the short animated film "The Wise Little Hen".


title: Carl Barks

text: Barks initially worked as an inbetweener. This involved being teamed and supervised by one of the head animators who did the key poses of character action (often known as extremes) for which the inbetweeners did the drawings between the extremes to create the illusion of movement. While an inbetweener, Barks submitted gag ideas for cartoon story lines being developed and showed such a knack for creating comical situations that by 1937 he was transferred to the story department. His first story sale was the climax of "Modern Inventions", for a sequence where a robot barber chair gives Donald Duck a haircut on his bottom.


title: Carl Barks

text: In 1937 when Donald Duck became the star of his own series of cartoons instead of co-starring with Mickey Mouse and Goofy as previously, a new unit of storymen and animators was created devoted solely to this series. Though he originally just contributed gag ideas to some duck cartoons by 1937 Barks was (principally with partner Jack Hannah) originating story ideas that were storyboarded and (if approved by Walt) put into production. He collaborated on such cartoons as "Donald's Nephews" (1938), "Donald's Cousin Gus" (1939), "Mr. Duck Steps Out" (1940), "Timber" (1941), "The Vanishing Private" (1942) and "The Plastics Inventor" (1944).


title: Carl Barks

text: Unhappy at the emerging wartime working conditions at Disney, and bothered by ongoing sinus problems caused by the studio's air conditioning, Barks quit in 1942. Shortly before quitting, he moonlighted as a comic book artist, contributing half the artwork for a one-shot comic book (the other half of the art being done by story partner Jack Hannah) titled "Donald Duck Finds Pirate Gold". This 64-page story was adapted by Donald Duck comic strip writer Bob Karp from an unproduced feature, and published in October 1942 in Dell Comics "Four Color Comics" #9. It was the first Donald Duck story originally produced for an American comic book and also the first involving Donald and his nephews in a treasure hunting expedition, in this case for the treasure of Henry Morgan. Barks would later use the treasure hunting theme in many of his stories. This actually was not his first work in comics, as earlier the same year Barks along with Hannah and fellow storyman Nick George scripted "Pluto Saves the Ship", which was among the first original Disney comic book stories published in the United States.


title: Carl Barks

text: After quitting the Disney Studio, Barks relocated to the Hemet/San Jacinto area in the semi-desert Inland Empire region east of Los Angeles where he hoped to start a chicken farm.


title: Carl Barks

text: When asked which of his stories was a favorite in several interviews Barks cited the ten-pager in "Walt Disney's Comics and Stories" #146 (Nov. 1952) in which Donald tells the story of the chain of unfortunate events that took place when he owned a chicken farm in a town which subsequently was renamed Omelet. Likely one reason it was a favorite is that it was inspired by Barks' own experiences in the poultry business.


title: Carl Barks

text: But to earn a living in the meantime he inquired whether Western Publishing, which had published "Pirate Gold", had any need for artists for Donald Duck comic book stories. He was immediately assigned to illustrate the script for a ten-page Donald Duck story for the monthly "Walt Disney's Comics and Stories". At the publisher's invitation he revised the storyline and the improvements impressed the editor sufficiently to invite Barks to try his hand at contributing both the script and the artwork of his follow-up story. This set the pattern for Barks' career in that (with rare exceptions) he provided art (pencil, inking, solid blacks and lettering) and scripting for his stories.


title: Carl Barks

text: "The Victory Garden", that initial ten-page story published in April, 1943 was the first of about 500 stories featuring the Disney ducks Barks would produce for Western Publishing over the next three decades, well into his purported retirement. These can be mostly divided into three categories:


title: Carl Barks

text: Barks' artistic growth during his first decade in comics saw a transformation from rather rudimentary storytelling derived from his years as an animation artist and storyman into a virtuoso creator of complex narratives, notably in his longer adventure tales. According to critic Geoffrey Blum, the process that saw its beginnings in 1942's Pirate Gold first bore its full fruit in 1950's "Vacation Time", which he describes as "a visual primer for reading comics and understanding ... the form".


title: Carl Barks

text: He surrounded Donald Duck and nephews Huey, Dewey and Louie with a cast of eccentric and colorful characters, such as the aforementioned Scrooge McDuck, the wealthiest duck in the world; Gladstone Gander, Donald's obscenely lucky cousin; inventor Gyro Gearloose; the persistent Beagle Boys; the sorceress Magica De Spell; Scrooge's rivals Flintheart Glomgold and John D. Rockerduck; Daisy's nieces April, May and June; Donald's neighbor Jones, and The Junior Woodchucks organization.


title: Carl Barks

text: Barks's stories (whether humorous adventures or domestic comedies) often exhibited a wry, dark irony born of hard experience. The ten-pagers showcased Donald as everyman, struggling against the cruel bumps and bruises of everyday life with the nephews often acting as a Greek chorus commenting on the unfolding disasters Donald wrought upon himself. Yet while seemingly defeatist in tone, the humanity of the characters shines through in their persistence despite the obstacles. These stories found popularity not only among young children but adults as well. Despite the fact that Barks had done little traveling his adventure stories often had the duck clan globe-trotting to the most remote or spectacular of places. This allowed Barks to indulge his penchant for elaborate backgrounds that hinted at his thwarted ambitions of doing realistic stories in the vein of Hal Foster's "Prince Valiant".


title: Carl Barks

text: As Barks blossomed creatively, his marriage to Clara deteriorated. This is the period referred to in Barks' famed quip that he could feel his creative juices flowing while the whiskey bottles hurled at him by a tipsy Clara flew by his head. They were divorced in 1951, his second and last divorce. In this period Barks dabbled in fine art, exhibiting paintings at local art shows. It was at one of these in 1952 he became acquainted with fellow exhibitor Margaret Wynnfred Williams (1917 – March 10, 1993), nicknamed Garé. She was an accomplished landscape artist, some of whose paintings are in the collection of the Leanin' Tree Museum of Western Art. During her lifetime, and to this day, note cards of her paintings are available from Leanin' Tree. Her nickname appears as a store name in the story "Christmas in Duckburg", featured on page 1 of Walt Disney's Christmas Parade #9, published in 1958. Soon after they met, she started assisting Barks, handling the solid blacks and lettering, both of which he had found onerous. They married in 1954 and the union lasted until her death.


title: Carl Barks

text: People who worked for Disney (and its comic book licensees) generally did so in relative anonymity; stories would only carry Walt Disney's name and (sometimes) a short identification number. Prior to 1960 Barks' identity remained a mystery to his readers. However, many readers recognized Barks' work and drawing style and began to call him the Good Duck Artist, a label that stuck even after his true identity was discovered by fans in the late 1950s. Malcolm Willits was the first person to learn Barks's name and address, but two brothers named John and Bill Spicer became the first fans to contact Barks after independently discovering the same information. After Barks received a 1960 visit from the Spicer brothers and Ron Leonard, he was no longer anonymous, as word of his identity spread through the emerging network of comic book fandom fanzines and conventions.


title: Carl Barks

text: Carl Barks retired in 1966, but was persuaded by editor Chase Craig to continue to script stories for Western. The last new comic book story drawn by Carl Barks was a Daisy Duck tale ("The Dainty Daredevil") published in "Walt Disney Comics Digest" issue 5 (Nov. 1968). When bibliographer Michael Barrier asked Barks why he drew it, Barks' vague recollection was no one was available and he was asked to do it as a favor by Craig.


title: Carl Barks

text: He wrote one Uncle Scrooge story, and three Donald Duck stories. From 1970 to 1974, Barks was the main writer for the Junior Woodchucks comic book (issues 6 through 25). The latter included environmental themes that Barks first explored in 1957 ["Land of the Pygmy Indians", "Uncle Scrooge" #18]. Barks also sold a few sketches to Western that were redrawn as covers. For a time the Barkses lived in Goleta, California, before returning to the Inland Empire by moving to Temecula.


title: Carl Barks

text: To make a little extra money beyond what his pension and scripting earnings brought in, Barks started doing oil paintings to sell at the local art shows where he and Garé exhibited. Subjects included humorous depictions of life on the farm and portraits of Native American princesses. These skillfully rendered paintings encouraged fan Glenn Bray to ask Barks if he could commission a painting of the ducks ("A Tall Ship and a Star to Steer Her By", taken from the cover of "Walt Disney's Comics and Stories" #108 by Barks). This prompted Barks to contact George Sherman at Disney's Publications Department to request permission to produce and sell oil paintings of scenes from his stories. In July 1971 Barks was granted a royalty-free license by Disney. When word spread that Barks was taking commissions from those interested in purchasing an oil of the ducks, much to his astonishment the response quickly outstripped what he reasonably could produce in the next few years.


title: Carl Barks

text: When Barks expressed dismay at coping with the backlog of orders he faced, fan/dealers Bruce Hamilton and Russ Cochran suggested Barks instead auction his paintings at conventions and via Cochran's catalog "Graphic Gallery". By September 1974 Barks had discontinued taking commissions.


title: Carl Barks

text: At Boston's NewCon convention, in October 1975, the first Carl Barks oil painting auctioned at a comic book convention ("She Was Spangled and Flashy") sold for $2,500. Subsequent offerings saw an escalation in the prices realized.


title: Carl Barks

text: In 1976, Barks and Garé went to Boston for the NewCon show, their first comic convention appearance. Among the other attendees was famed "Little Lulu" comic book scripter John Stanley; despite both having worked for Western Publishing this was the first time they met. The highlight of the convention was the auctioning of what was to that time the largest duck oil painting Barks had done, "July Fourth in Duckburg", which included depictions of several prominent Barks fans and collectors. It sold for a then record high amount: $6,400.


title: Carl Barks

text: Soon thereafter a fan sold unauthorized prints of some of the Scrooge McDuck paintings, leading Disney to withdraw permission for further paintings. To meet demand for new work Barks embarked on a series of paintings of non-Disney ducks and fantasy subjects such as Beowulf and Xerxes. These were eventually collected in the limited-edition book "Animal Quackers".


title: Carl Barks

text: As the result of heroic efforts by "Star Wars" producer Gary Kurtz and screenwriter Edward Summer, Disney relented and, in 1981, allowed Barks to do a now seminal oil painting called "Wanderers of Wonderlands" for a breakthrough limited edition book entitled "Uncle Scrooge McDuck: His Life and Times". The book collected 11 classic Barks stories of Uncle Scrooge colored by artist Peter Ledger along with a new Scrooge story by Barks done storybook style with watercolor illustrations, "Go Slowly, Sands of Time". After being turned down by every major publisher in New York City, Kurtz and Summer published the book through Celestial Arts, which Kurtz acquired partly for this purpose. The book went on to become the model for virtually every important collection of comic book stories. It was the first book of its kind ever reviewed in "Time" magazine and subsequently in "Newsweek", and the first book review in "Time" with large color illustrations.


title: Carl Barks

text: In 1977 and 1982, Barks attended the San Diego Comic-Con. As with his appearance in Boston, the response to his presence was overwhelming, with long lines of fans waiting to meet Barks and get his autograph.


title: Carl Barks

text: In 1981, Bruce Hamilton and Russ Cochran, two long-time Disney comics fans, decided to combine forces to bring greater recognition to the works of Carl Barks. Their first efforts went into establishing Another Rainbow Publishing, the banner under which they produced and issued the award-winning book "The Fine Art of Walt Disney's Donald Duck by Carl Barks", a comprehensive collection of the Disney duck paintings of this artist and storyteller. Not long after, the company began producing fine art lithographs of many of these paintings, in strictly limited editions, all signed by Barks, who eventually produced many original works for the series.


title: Carl Barks

text: In 1983, Barks relocated one last time to Grants Pass, Oregon, near where he grew up, partly at the urging of friend and "Broom Hilda" artist Russell Myers, who lived in the area. The move also was motivated, Barks stated in another famous quip, by Temecula being too close to Disneyland and thus facilitating a growing torrent of drop-in visits by vacationing fans. In this period Barks made only one public appearance, at a comic book shop near Grants Pass.


title: Carl Barks

text: In 1983, Another Rainbow took up the daunting task of collecting the entire Disney comic book oeuvre of Barks—over 500 stories in all—in the ten-set, thirty-volume "Carl Barks Library". These oversized hardbound volumes reproduced Barks' pages in pristine black and white line art, as close as possible to the way he would originally draw them, and included mountains of special features, articles, reminiscences, interviews, storyboards, critiques, and more than a few surprises. This monumental project was finally completed in mid-1990.


title: Carl Barks

text: In 1985, a new division was founded, Gladstone Publishing, which took up the then-dormant Disney comic book license. Gladstone introduced a new generation of Disney comic book readers to the storytelling of Barks, Paul Murry, and Floyd Gottfredson, as well as presenting the first works of modern Disney comics artists Don Rosa and William Van Horn. Seven years after Gladstone's founding, the "Carl Barks Library" was revived as the "Carl Barks Library in Color", as full-color, high-quality squarebound comic albums (including the first-ever Carl Barks trading cards).


title: Carl Barks

text: From 1993 to 1998, Barks' career was managed by the "Carl Barks Studio" (Bill Grandey and Kathy Morby—they had sold Barks original art since 1979). This involved numerous art projects and activities, including a tour of 11 European countries in 1994, Iceland being the first foreign country he ever visited. Barks appeared at the first of many Disneyana conventions in 1993. Silk screen prints of paintings along with high-end art objects (such as original water colors, bronze figurines and ceramic tiles) were produced based on designs by Barks.


title: Carl Barks

text: During the summer of 1994 and until his death, Barks and his studio personally assigned Peter Reichelt, a museum exhibition producer from Mannheim, Germany, as his agent for Europe. Publisher "Edition 313" put out numerous lithographs. In 1997, tensions between Barks and the Studio eventually resulted in a lawsuit that was settled with an agreement that included the disbanding of the Studio. Barks never traveled to make another Disney appearance. He was represented by Ed Bergen, as he completed a final project. Gerry Tank and Jim Mitchell were to assist Barks in his final years.


title: Carl Barks

text: During his Carl Barks Studio years, Barks created two more stories: the script for the final Uncle Scrooge story "Horsing Around with History", which was first published in Denmark in 1994 with Bill Van Horn art. The outlines for Barks' final Donald Duck story "Somewhere in Nowhere", were first published in 1997, in Italy, with art by Pat Block.


title: Carl Barks

text: Austrian artist Gottfried Helnwein curated and organized the first solo museum-exhibition of Barks. Between 1994 and 1998 the retrospective was shown in ten European museums and seen by more than 400,000 visitors.


title: Carl Barks

text: At the same time in spring 1994, Reichelt and Ina Brockmann designed a special museum exhibition tour about Barks' life and work. Also represented for the first time at this exhibition were Disney artists Al Taliaferro and Floyd Gottfredson. Since 1995, more than 500,000 visitors have attended the shows in Europe.


title: Carl Barks

text: Barks spent his final years in a new home in Grants Pass, Oregon, which he and Garé, who died in 1993, had built next door to their original home. In July 1999, he was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, a form of cancer arising from the white blood cells in the bone marrow, for which he received oral chemotherapy. However, as the disease progressed, causing him great discomfort, the ailing Barks decided to stop receiving treatment in June 2000. In spite of his terminal condition, Barks remained, according to caregiver Serene Hunicke, "funny up to the end".


title: Carl Barks

text: I have no apprehension, no fear of death. I do not believe in an afterlife. ... I think of death as total peace. You're beyond the clutches of all those who would crush you.


title: Carl Barks

text: On August 25, 2000, shortly after midnight, Carl Barks died quietly in his sleep at the age of 99. He was interred in Hillcrest Memorial Cemetery in Grants Pass, beside Garé's grave.


title: Carl Barks

text: Barks' Donald Duck stories were rated #7 on "The Comics Journal" list of 100 top comics; his Uncle Scrooge stories were rated #20.


title: Carl Barks

text: Steven Spielberg and George Lucas have acknowledged that the rolling-boulder booby trap in the opening scene of "Raiders of the Lost Ark" was inspired by the 1954 Carl Barks Uncle Scrooge adventure "The Seven Cities of Cibola" ("Uncle Scrooge" #7). Lucas and Spielberg have also said that some of Barks' stories about space travel and the depiction of aliens had an influence on them. Lucas wrote the foreword to the 1982 "Uncle Scrooge McDuck: His Life and Times". In it he calls Barks' stories "cinematic" and "a priceless part of our literary heritage".


title: Carl Barks

text: In Almere, Netherlands, a street was named after him: Carl Barksweg. The same neighborhood also includes a Donald Ducklaan and a Goofystraat.


title: Carl Barks

text: Japanese animator and cartoonist Osamu Tezuka, who created manga such as "Astro Boy" and "Black Jack", was a fan of Barks' work. "New Treasure Island", one of Tezuka's first works, was partly influenced by "Donald Duck Finds Pirate Gold".


title: Carl Barks

text: A 1949 Donald Duck ten-pager features Donald raising a yacht from the ocean floor by filling it with ping pong balls. In December 1965 Karl Krøyer, a Dane, lifted the sunken freight vessel "Al Kuwait" in the Kuwait Harbor by filling the hull with 27 million tiny inflatable balls of polystyrene. Krøyer denies having been inspired by this Barks story. Some sources claim Krøyer was denied a Dutch patent registration (application number NL 6514306) for his invention on the grounds that the Barks story was a prior publication of the invention. Krøyer later successfully raised another ship off Greenland using the same method, and several other sunken vessels worldwide have since been raised by modified versions of this concept. The television show "MythBusters" also tested this method and was able to raise a small boat.


title: Carl Barks

text: Don Rosa, one of the most popular living Disney artists, and possibly the one who has been most keen on connecting the various stories into a coherent universe and chronology, considers (with few exceptions) all Barks' duck stories as canon, and all others as apocryphal. Rosa has said that a number of novelists and movie-makers cite Carl Barks as their 'major influence and inspiration'.


title: Carl Barks

text: When the news of Barks' passing was hardly covered by the press in America, "in Europe the sad news was flashed instantly across the airwaves and every newspaper — they realized the world had lost one of the most beloved, influential and well-known creators in international culture."


title: Carl Barks

text: In 2010 Oregon Cartoon Institute produced a video about the influence of Carl Barks and Basil Wolverton on Robert Crumb.


title: Carl Barks

text: Carl Barks drew an early Andy Panda comic book story published in "New Funnies" #76, 1943. It is one of his few stories to feature humans interacting with talking animal characters (another is "Dangerous Disguise", "Four Color" #308, 1951). See List of Fictional Pandas.


title: Carl Barks

text: The life story of Carl Barks, largely drawing upon his relationship with Disney and the phonetic similarity of his name to Karl Marx, serves as a loose inspiration to one of the subplots in "The Last Song of Manuel Sendero" by Ariel Dorfman.


title: Carl Barks

text: Barks was an enthusiastic user of Esterbrook pens, and used a Nº 356 model to ink and letter his Donald Duck comic-book pages.


title: Kidnapping of Kamiyah Mobley

text: Kamiyah Teresiah Tasha Mobley was abducted from a Florida hospital on July 10, 1998, when she was only eight hours old. In January 2017, she was found alive in Walterboro, South Carolina. DNA testing proved that she was not the daughter of Gloria Williams, her abductor. She had been raised under the name Alexis Kelli Manigo.


title: Kidnapping of Kamiyah Mobley

text: Her biological mother in Florida, Shanara Mobley, was awarded 1.5 million after settling a lawsuit against the former University Medical Center. She has since had three other children.


title: Kidnapping of Kamiyah Mobley

text: Kamiyah Mobley was born on July 10, 1998, to 16-year-old Shanara Mobley. She was abducted eight hours after birth by a woman impersonating a nurse, reportedly dressed in hospital attire, who entered the room, assisted and conversed with the mother, and later walked out of the room with Kamiyah in her arms. Employees initially believed that the woman who kidnapped Kamiyah was a member of the Mobley family. Shanara was interviewed later, pleading for the return of her daughter.


title: Kidnapping of Kamiyah Mobley

text: The abductor was believed to be between 25 and 35 years old, and possibly wore a pair of glasses and a wig. She was dressed in a floral blue smock and green scrub pants. It is known that Gloria Williams, about 33 at the time, later forged documents to create a new identity for Mobley. Williams was in an abusive relationship and had just miscarried a child a week before, which is believed to be her motive for the abduction.


title: Kidnapping of Kamiyah Mobley

text: The case made national headlines in 2017 after new tips led investigators to Walterboro, South Carolina. Because there were no photographs taken of Kamiyah before her abduction, a computer-generated composite of her was created to distribute to the media. Distinctive features, such as Mongolian spots and an umbilical hernia, were included in reports. Mobley was swabbed, and a DNA sample taken from Mobley after she was born was matched to a swab taken from the potential match.


title: Kidnapping of Kamiyah Mobley

text: After the match was confirmed, Mobley was described as "in good health but overwhelmed". She had been living in South Carolina under the name Alexis Manigo and had since graduated from Colleton County High School and had a boyfriend. She had been raised alongside Gloria Williams' two other children. Mobley connected with her father and grandmother over FaceTime and planned to reunite with other biological family members in person. She had never met her biological father, as he was incarcerated at the time of her birth for drug possession and delivery, and because he was 19 while Shanara was 15 at the time of Kamiyah's conception.


title: Kidnapping of Kamiyah Mobley

text: Williams was arrested in South Carolina and extradited to Florida, where she was charged with kidnapping and interfering with custody. She had a prior history with law enforcement, having previously been charged with check and welfare fraud. Mobley described Williams as "no felon" and insisted that Williams raised her with "everything [she] needed".


title: Kidnapping of Kamiyah Mobley

text: In February 2018, Williams pleaded guilty to kidnapping. She admitted she acted alone in the 1998 abduction.


title: Kidnapping of Kamiyah Mobley

text: On June 8, 2018, Williams was sentenced to 18 years in prison for the kidnapping of Mobley, who still communicates with Williams and refers to as her mother. In March 2022, Williams was denied a motion to reduce her sentence to nine years. The plea included a handwritten letter from Mobley in support of the motion, stating "I would like to make it very clear that she is my mother." Williams is pursuing a master's degree in business administration and completing community service while serving her sentence at the Hernando Correctional Institution. She is scheduled for release on July 9, 2034.


title: Kidnapping of Kamiyah Mobley

text: Lifetime announced a film called "Stolen by My Mother: The Kamiyah Mobley Story", which aired on January 18, 2020, as part of its "Ripped from the Headlines" feature film. The film stars Rayven Ferrell as Kamiyah Mobley, Niecy Nash as Gloria Williams, and Ta'Rhonda Jones as Shanara Mobley. Robin Roberts serves as the executive producer.


title: Medusa (Caravaggio)

text: Two versions of Medusa were created by Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio – one in 1596 and the other in 1597 – depicting the exact moment she was executed by Perseus. He plays with the concept by replacing Medusa's face with his own, as an indication of his immunity to her dreadful gaze. Due to its bizarre and intricate design, the painting is said to complement Caravaggio's unique fascination with violence and realism. It was commissioned by Italian diplomat Francesco Maria del Monte as a means of giving it to the Grand Duke of Tuscany, and is now located in the Uffizi Museum in Florence without signature.


title: Medusa (Caravaggio)

text: In the 1590s Caravaggio had just started becoming a successful and wealthy artist in Rome. However, the time in which he painted the two versions of the Medusa were characterized by several run-ins with the law. In July 1597, Caravaggio and his partner Prospero Orsi became involved as witnesses in a crime that occurred near San Luigi de' Francesi. In one instance, a barber named Luca gave a testimony about Caravaggio where he provided a description regarding his mysterious attire: ""This painter is a stocky young man…with a thin black beard, thick eyebrows and black eyes, who goes dressed all in black, in a rather disorderly fashion, wearing black hose that is a little bit threadbare, and who has a thick head of hair, long over his forehead."" At the time, there was an unsolved case in which two items were reported as being missing – a dark cloak and a small dagger. As a result of his mysterious behavior and also due to his affiliation with cloaks, Caravaggio was arrested several times in which he indicated that he favored dressing in dark attire to avoid being seen by the public, which is also why he preferred to make late night trips to evade excessive or unnecessary attention. On May 4, 1598, he was arrested again for possessing a sword in public, in which he asserted: “I was arrested last night…because I was carrying a sword. I carry the sword by right because I am Painter to Cardinal del Monte. I am in his service and live in his house. I am entered on his household payroll.”


title: Medusa (Caravaggio)

text: Caravaggio's paintings were never in tune with the idealized themes that were prevalent during the time period. Instead, he became more intrigued with the idea of realism and incorporated it into his paintings such as "Boy with a Basket of Fruit", "The Fortune Teller", "The Cardsharps", "Bacchus", and even "The Musicians", which were all painted within the same time period. When he painted Medusa, Caravaggio hit a great milestone in his life - he was given a chance to decorate the Contarelli Chapel, in which he created realistic images regarding the life of St. Matthew himself. Some of these paintings include "Saint Matthew and the Angel", "The Martyrdom of Saint Matthew", and "The Calling of Saint Matthew". This opportunity to paint the chapel gave him great advantage and a sense of motivation to incorporate more realism in his artworks.


title: Medusa (Caravaggio)

text: The first version of the painting created in 1596 is known as "Murtula", named after poet Gaspare Murtola, who wrote "flee, for if your eyes are petrified in amazement, she will turn you to stone." It measures 48 by 55 cm in length and is signed Michel A F (Latin: ), indicating "Michel Angelo made [this]", with Michelangelo being Caravaggio's first name after all. This work is privately owned.


title: Medusa (Caravaggio)

text: The second version of the painting created in 1597 is known as "Medusa" (Italian: Testa di Medusa). It is slightly bigger than the first, measuring 60×55 cm in length and although it's not signed, it is often dated with the year 1597. This work is held in the Uffizi Museum located in Florence.


title: Medusa (Caravaggio)

text: For its subject matter, Caravaggio drew on the myth of Medusa. The painting depicts the severed head of Medusa, a monster described as a woman with bronze hands and golden wings who had countless venomous snakes on her head in place of her own hair. Anyone who even so much as glanced at her would be turned to stone. Medusa, along with her two sisters Stheno and Euryale, was known as a Gorgon, a powerful mythical creature in ancient Greek mythology. She was cursed by the Roman goddess Minerva (or the Greek goddess Athena), who turned her into the venomous monster she was. Perseus, son of Greek god Zeus and princess Danae, decapitated Medusa using a shield given by Athena.


title: Medusa (Caravaggio)

text: In his painting, Caravaggio depicts a self-portrait of his own face in the place of Medusa's, as a way of indicating his immunity to her dreadful gaze. Though the head is decapitated, it still appears conscious as the painting captures its final moments in silence before being atrociously defeated. Blood pours down in many streaks, while the mouth hangs wide open baring teeth. With brows creased and eyes amplified, an appalling expression is portrayed.


title: Medusa (Caravaggio)

text: The painting was commissioned as a commemoration shield by Cardinal Francesco Maria Del Monte, who wanted to give it to the Grand Duke of Tuscany, Ferdinando I de' Medici, for his courage, and have it placed in the Medici collection.