IN: Highsmith was born Mary Patricia Plangman in Fort Worth, Texas. She was the only child of artists Jay Bernard Plangman (1889-1975), who was of German descent, and Mary Plangman (nee Coates; September 13, 1895 - March 12, 1991). The couple divorced ten days before their daughter's birth. In 1927, Highsmith, her mother and her adoptive stepfather, artist Stanley Highsmith, whom her mother had married in 1924, moved to New York City.

In 1955, Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, a novel about Tom Ripley, a charming criminal who murders a rich man and steals his identity. Highsmith wrote four sequels: Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley's Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991), about Ripley's exploits as a con artist and serial killer who always gets away with his crimes. The series--collectively dubbed "The Ripliad"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works and have sold millions of copies worldwide. The "suave, agreeable and utterly amoral" Ripley is Highsmith's most famous character, and has been critically acclaimed for being "both a likable character and a cold-blooded killer." He has typically been regarded as "cultivated," a "dapper sociopath," and an "agreeable and urbane psychopath." Sam Jordison of The Guardian wrote, "It is near impossible, I would say, not to root for Tom Ripley. Not to like him. Not, on some level, to want him to win. Patricia Highsmith does a fine job of ensuring he wheedles his way into our sympathies." Film critic Roger Ebert made a similar appraisal of the character in his review of Purple Noon, Rene Clement's 1960 film adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley: "Ripley is a criminal of intelligence and cunning who gets away with murder. He's charming and literate, and a monster. It's insidious, the way Highsmith seduces us into identifying with him and sharing his selfishness; Ripley believes that getting his own way is worth whatever price anyone else might have to pay. We all have a little of that in us." Novelist Sarah Waters esteemed The Talented Mr. Ripley as the "one book I wish I'd written." The first three books of the "Ripley" series have been adapted into films five times. In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a group of production companies were planning a television series based on the novels. The series is currently in development.

what is the Ripliad?

OUT: The series--collectively dubbed "The Ripliad"--are some of Highsmith's most popular works

IN: Manowar is an American heavy metal band from Auburn, New York. Formed in 1980, the group is known for lyrics based on fantasy (particularly sword and sorcery) and mythology (particularly Norse mythology and Greco-Roman mythology). The band is also known for a loud and bombastic sound. In an interview for MTV in February 2007, bassist Joey DeMaio lamented that "these days, there's a real lack of big, epic metal that is drenched with crushing guitars and choirs and orchestras...

On June 1, 2010, Classic Rock magazine published an interview with drummer Scott Columbus who said he had not worked with the band since April 2008 and had left the band. No official statement from Manowar has been made as yet and their website still includes Columbus on the promotional pictures and current lineup. He also said that statements made in the past, regarding his break in 1990 and 2008 because of an illness and a personal tragedy, were largely untrue and were made without his agreement. Later that year, on October 15, 2010, Joey DeMaio announced on Facebook that Hamzik was officially a member of Manowar again after a 26-year absence. Scott Columbus died less than a year later on April 4, 2011, aged 54. His cause of death is still uncertain. Manowar's subsequent release was a re-recording of their 1982 debut album, Battle Hymns. This album was released on November 26, 2010, with the narration of Sir Christopher Lee and formally entitled Battle Hymns MMXI. A special edition of the album featuring 4 live tracks from the first leg of the Battle Hymns Tour was released on July 26, 2011. On July 21, 2011 the band played a UK tour for the first time in 16 years in November and played Battle Hymns in its entirety. Manowar's new studio album, The Lord of Steel, was released worldwide on June 16, 2012 exclusively on iTunes and on the band's own online store. The album sees a reversion from the symphonic elements present on the Gods of War album back to a more straightforward, heavy metal sound. The song 'El Gringo' from the album has also been featured as a part of the soundtrack to the film El Gringo. After the Lord of Steel tour was over in 2013, Manowar released a live EP, titled The Lord of Steel Live, which included six live tracks recorded during the tour.

Did they go on tour at all during this time?

OUT: On July 21, 2011 the band played a UK tour for the first time in 16 years in

IN: Henryk Mikolaj Gorecki (Polish: ['xenrik mji'kowaj gu'retski]; English pronunciation Go-RET-ski; December 6, 1933 - November 12, 2010) was a Polish composer of contemporary classical music. According to critic Alex Ross, no recent classical composer has had as much commercial success as Gorecki. Gorecki became a leading figure of the Polish avant-garde during the post-Stalin cultural thaw.

During the last decade of his life, Gorecki suffered from frequent illnesses. His Symphony No. 4 was due to be premiered in London in 2010, by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, but the event was cancelled due to the composer's ill health. He died on November 12, 2010, in his home city of Katowice, of complications due to a lung infection. Reacting to his death, the head of the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music, Professor Eugeniusz Knapik, said "Gorecki's work is like a huge boulder that lies in our path and forces us to make a spiritual and emotional effort". Adrian Thomas, Professor of Music at Cardiff University, said "The strength and startling originality of Gorecki's character shone through his music [...] Yet he was an intensely private man, sometimes impossible, with a strong belief in family, a great sense of humour, a physical courage in the face of unrelenting illness, and a capacity for firm friendship". Gorecki was awarded the Order of the White Eagle by the President of the Republic of Poland Bronislaw Komorowski, Poland's highest honour, just a month before his death. The Order was presented by the wife of President Komorowski in Gorecki's hospital bed. Earlier, Gorecki was awarded the Order Odrodzenia Polski II class and III class and the Order of St. Gregory the Great. He was married to Jadwiga, a piano teacher. His daughter, Anna Gorecka-Stanczyk, is a pianist, and his son, Mikolaj Gorecki, is a composer as well. He was also survived by five grandchildren. The world premiere of the Fourth Symphony took place on April 12, 2014. It was performed, as originally scheduled in 2010, by the London Philharmonic Orchestra at the Royal Festival Hall, London, but with Andrey Boreyko conducting, instead of Marin Alsop.

Was this the cause of his death?

OUT:
lung infection.