Julia Glum wrote about Vinicius and Tom in an article in the "International Business Times." She said that the "mascot for the Olympic Games is almost always strange-looking, and Rio de Janeiro is no exception. ... though they're by far not the craziest Olympic animals to ever exist ..." In an article published by "Mic", Brianna Provenzano called the mascots "lovable". She described their appearance as "sweet and simple", and she highlighted their symbolisms for the animals and plants of Brazil. On the other hand, Charlotte Wilder wrote an article in "USA Today"s sports column "For The Win." She said that she was unimpressed by Vinicius's design: "Whoever was in charge of coming up with this creature of the huge hands and feet did exactly what it looks like, which is mash up a bunch of animals, video game characters, and cartoons, stuff it with some synthetic filling, and call it day." Robert John Young, Professor of Wildlife Conservation at the University of Salford, thought that Rio 2016 should have given more attention to environmental protection by using actual animal species instead of inventing their own animal. Young also thought that the organizers should have included a female name in the public vote.
Carlos Merigo wrote on Brazilian website "B9" that the mascots bring back "the colorful, loving and fun atmosphere that marked the Olympic mascots over the decades". Merigo called them a "return to origins" following the "shapelessness" of Wenlock and Mandeville, the mascots of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Neha Prakash wrote an article on digital media website "Mashable". Prakash said that Vinicius and Tom "are more nostalgia-inducing than nightmarish" compared to the "terror" of the mascots of the 2014 Winter Olympics. Many people compared the art style of the mascots to that of the "Pokémon" franchise. Stephen Wood wrote an article on the history of Olympic mascots in "Paste", and he compared them to the style of "Adventure Time", an American animated television series. In an article published on "Slate"'s culture blog "Brow Beat", Matthew Dessem wrote that there were no big problems with the mascots when compared to previous Olympic mascots: "Like the best Olympic mascots of yore, Vinicius and Tom are well-suited to plush toys and licensing deals and will be completely forgotten within a year." Leila Cobo wrote an article published by "Billboard", and she praised the organizers of Rio 2016 for "celebrating music in a most joyful and profound way" by naming the Olympic mascot after Vinicius de Moraes.
Serayu River
Serayu River is a river in Central Java, Indonesia.
Arsène Tchakarian
Arsène Tchakarian (December 21, 1916 – August 4, 2018) was a French-Armenian historian, former tailor and member of the French resistance. He was a member of the Manouchian Group of the FTP-MOI. Tchakarian was the last surviving member of the Manouchian Group ("Groupe Manouchian"), a Paris-based resistance group led by Missak Manouchian. He was born in Sapanca, Ottoman Empire.
Tchakarian died of a heart attack in Villejuif, France on August 4, 2018, aged 101.
National Museum of Brazil
The National Museum of Brazil is the oldest scientific institution of Brazil. Until 2018 it had one of the largest collections of natural history and anthropology in the Americas. Despite this, the museum was already in bad condition when it burned in September 2018.
From 2014 the museum had budget cuts that dropped its maintenance to less than R$520,000 annually. The budget was so low, there was $0.01 to spend on each of the artifacts.
The building fell into disrepair, with peeling wall material, exposed electrical wiring, and a termite problem. Some of the artifacts lost in the fire included Egyptian mummies, remains from the oldest human skeleton found in the Americas, frescoes from Pompeii, and dinosaur skeletons.
By June 2018, the museum's 200th anniversary, it had reached a state of near-complete abandonment.
There was an offer from The World Bank to buy the museum for $80m. It was turned down because the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro would have to give up ownership.
On 2 September 2018, at around 19:30 local time, a large fire broke out at the Paço de São Cristóvão. The museum was almost completely destroyed. The museum's holdings included over 20 million items. About 90% were destroyed.
Brazil's President Michel Temer called the loss of the historical and cultural heritage "incalculable". The cause of the fire is not known, but many connected it to the museum's lack of funding.
No injuries were reported.
Samuel Conti
Samuel Conti (July 16, 1922 – August 29, 2018) was an American jurist. He was a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California from 1970 until his retirement in 1987. In 1987, he became senior judge of the court. He was born in Los Angeles, California.
Conti died on August 29, 2018 in Oakland, California at the age of 96.
James Mirrlees
Sir James Alexander Mirrlees (5 July 1936 – 29 August 2018) was a Scottish economist. He was the winner of the 1996 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences. He was knighted in the 1997 Birthday Honours.
Mirrlees died on 29 August 2018 in Cambridge, England at the age of 82.
Carilda Oliver Labra
Carilda Oliver Labra (6 July 1922 – 29 August 2018) was a Cuban poet. She was born in Matanzas.
Oliver Labra studied law at the University of Havana. She was known as one of the most influential Cuban poets.
Oliver Labra won many national and international prizes including the National Poetry Prize (1950), National Literature Award (1997) and the José de Vasconcelos International Prize (2002). "Me desordeno, amor, me desordeno" might be her most famous poem.
Oliver Labra died of pneumonia in Matanzas on 29 August 2018, aged 96.
Paul Taylor
Paul Belville Taylor, Jr. (July 29, 1930 – August 29, 2018) was an American choreographer. He was among the last living members of the third generation of America's modern dance artists. He was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Taylor works include "Big Bertha" (1970), "Airs" (1978), "Arden Court" (1981), "Sunset" (1983), "Last Look" (1985), "Speaking in Tongues" (1988), "Brandenburgs" (1988), "Company B" (1991), "Piazolla Caldera" (1996), "Black Tuesday" (2001), "Promethean Fire" (2002), and "Beloved Renegade" (2008).
In 1992, he won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Choreography and was awarded the Kennedy Center Honorees.
Taylor died of renal failure on August 29, 2018, at a Manhattan hospital at the age of 88.
Joseph Kobzon
Iosif (Joseph) Davydovich Kobzon (; 11 September 1937 — 30 August 2018) was a Soviet-Russian singer. He was born in Chasiv Yar, Donetsk Oblast. He performed concerts for Joseph Stalin when he was younger. His best-known song is "Instants" from the Soviet TV series "Seventeen Moments of Spring" (1973).
Kobzon died on 30 August 2018 in Moscow from prostate cancer at the age of 80.
Ray (wrestler)
Ray (February 14, 1982 – August 30, 2018) was a Hong Kong professional wrestler. Ray made her professional wrestling debut in September 2003 and would for the next several years wrestle under different masks, before she began working for Smash in March 2010. She remained with Smash until the promotion folded in March 2012.
During her career, Ray held the CMLL-Reina International Junior, International Ribbon Tag Team and WNC Women's Championships, among other titles.
After being diagnosed with brain cancer in December 2015, she died on August 30, 2018 at the age of 36.
Marie Severin
Marie Severin (; August 21, 1929 – August 29, 2018) was an American comics artist and colorist. She was best known for her work for Marvel Comics such as on "Spider-Man", "Thor", and "Iron Man" and the 1950s' EC Comics. Severin was born in East Rockaway, New York.
Severin was added into the Will Eisner Comics Hall of Fame in 2001.
Severin died in Massapequa, New York on August 29, 2018 from a stroke at the age of 89.
East Rockaway, New York