Early life and education.

Robertson was born in La Jolla, California, the son of Clifford Parker Robertson Jr. (1902–1968), and his first wife, Audrey Olga Robertson ("née" Willingham; 1903–1925). His Texas-born father was described as "the idle heir to a tidy sum of ranching money". Robertson once said, "[My father] was a very romantic figure – tall, handsome. He married four or five times, and between marriages he'd pop in to see me. He was a great raconteur, and he was always surrounded by sycophants who let him pick up the tab. During the Great Depression, he tapped the trust for $500,000, and six months later he was back for more."  Robertson's parents divorced when he was one, and his mother died of peritonitis a year later in El Paso, Texas, at the age of 21. He was raised by his maternal grandmother, Mary Eleanor "Eleanora" Willingham ("née" Sawyer, 1875–1957), in California, and rarely saw his father. He graduated in 1941 from La Jolla High School, where he was known as "The Walking Phoenix".  He served in the U.S. Merchant Marine in World War II, before attending Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, and dropping out to work as a journalist for a short time.

Career.

Robertson studied at the Actors Studio, becoming a life member. In the early 1950s he worked steadily on television, including a stint in the lead of "Rod Brown of the Rocket Rangers" (1953–54). He appeared in Broadway in "Late Love" (1953–54) and "The Wisteria Tree" (1955), the latter written by Joshua Logan.

Columbia.

Robertson made his film debut in "Picnic" (1955), directed by Logan. Robertson played the role of William Holden's best friend - a part originated on stage by Paul Newman.  The film was a box office success and Robertson was promoted to Joan Crawford's co star in "Autumn Leaves" (1956), also at Columbia, playing her mentally unstable younger lover. This meant he had to pass up the chance to replace Ben Gazzara on Broadway in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof". However he did return to Broadway to appear in "Orpheus Descending" by Tennessee Williams, which only had a short run. Robertson went to RKO to make two films: "The Naked and the Dead" (1958), an adaptation of the famous novel, co-starring Aldo Ray; and "The Girl Most Likely" (1958), a musical - the last film made by RKO Studios. Robertson received superb reviews for "Days of Wine and Roses" on TV with Piper Laurie.  He was in Columbia's "Gidget" (1959) appearing opposite Sandra Dee as the Big Kahuna. It was popular and led to two sequels, neither of which Robertson appeared in. Less successful was a war film at Columbia, "Battle of the Coral Sea" (1959).  Robertson had better luck on TV, appearing in "A Hundred Yards Over the Rim" for "The Twilight Zone". He was the third lead in Paramount's "All in a Night's Work" (1961) and starred in Samuel Fuller's "Underworld U.S.A." (1961) at Columbia.  Robertson supported Esther Williams in "The Big Show" (1961). He had his first film hit since "Gidget" with Columbia's "The Interns" (1962). After supporting Debbie Reynolds in "My Six Loves" (1963), Robertson was President John F. Kennedy's personal choice to play him in 1963's "PT 109". The film was not a success at the box office.  More popular was "Sunday in New York" (1963), where Robertson supported Rod Taylor and Jane Fonda, and "The Best Man" where he was a ruthless presidential candidate.  Robertson appeared in a popular war film "633 Squadron" (1964) then supported Lana Turner in a melodrama, "Love Has Many Faces" (1965). In 1965 he said his contract with Columbia was for one film a year.

"Charly".

In 1961 Robertson had played the lead role in a "United States Steel Hour" television production titled "The Two Worlds of Charlie Gordon", based on the novel "Flowers for Algernon" by Daniel Keyes. Frustrated at the progress of his career, Robertson optioned the rights to the teleplay and hired William Goldman to write a script. Before Goldman completed his work, Robertson arranged for Goldman to be hired to Americanize the dialogue for "Masquerade" (1965), a spy spoof which Robertson starred in, replacing Rex Harrison.  Robertson then made a war film, "Up from the Beach" (1965) for Fox and guest-starred on that studio's TV show, "Batman" (1966). He co-starred with Harrison in "The Honey Pot" (1967) for Joseph L. Mankiewicz then was in another war film, "The Devil's Brigade" (1968) with William Holden.  Robertson disliked Goldman's "Algernon" script and replaced the writer with Stirling Silliphant for what became "Charly" (1968). The film was another box office success and Robertson won the 1968 Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of a mentally disabled man.

Stardom.

"Charly" was made by ABC Pictures, which insisted that Robert Aldrich use Robertson in "Too Late the Hero" (1970), a war film with Michael Caine that disappointed at the box office.  Robertson turned down roles in "The Anderson Tapes", "Straw Dogs" (before Peckinpah was involved), and "Dirty Harry". Instead Robertson co-wrote, starred in, and directed "J. W. Coop" (1972), another commercial disappointment despite excellent reviews.  Looking back on his career, Robertson said: "nobody made more mediocre movies than I did. Nobody ever did such a wide variety of mediocrity".  In 1969, immediately after winning the Academy Award for "Charly", Robertson, a lifelong aviation enthusiast, attempted to produce and direct an aviation film, "I Shot Down the Red Baron, I Think", featuring World War I aerial combat, using Lynn Garrison's Irish aviation facility. The comedic storyline portrayed the Red Baron as gay. The aircraft featured garish paint schemes. The film was never completed, or released.  Robertson played Cole Younger in "The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid" (1972) and a pilot in "Ace Eli and Rodger of the Skies" (1973). He appeared in the 1974 thriller "Man on a Swing" and the 1975 British drama "Out of Season".

Career decline.

Robertson returned to supporting parts in "Three Days of the Condor" (1975), which was a big hit. He played the lead in "Obsession" (1976), a popular thriller from Brian De Palma and Paul Schrader, and in the Canadian drama, "Shoot" (1976). He was also one of several stars in "Midway" (1976).  Robertson turned to television for "" (1977), then had the lead in a thriller, "Dominique" (1978). He returned to directing for "The Pilot" (1980), also playing the title role, an alcoholic flyer. Robertson played Hugh Hefner in "Star 80" (1980). He attempted to make "Charly II" in 1980 but it did not happen.

Later career.

From the 1980s onwards, Robertson was a predominantly character actor. He played villains in "Class" (1983) and "Brainstorm" (1983). He did have the lead in "Shaker Run" (1985) in New Zealand, and "" (1986) on TV.  He was a villain in "Malone" (1987), did "Dead Reckoning" (1990) on TV and supported in "Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken" (1991), "Wind" (1991), "Renaissance Man" (1994) and John Carpenter's "Escape from L.A." (1996).  Late in his life Robertson's career had a resurgence. He appeared as Uncle Ben Parker in Sam Raimi's "Spider-Man" (2002), as well as in the sequels "Spider-Man 2" (2004) and "Spider-Man 3" (2007; his last acting role). He commented on his website: "Since "Spider-Man 1" and "2", I seem to have a whole new generation of fans. That in itself is a fine residual." He also starred in and wrote "13th Child" (2002) and appeared in "Riding the Bullet" (2004), both horror films.  In 1989, he was a member of the jury at the 39th Berlin International Film Festival.

Television.

Robertson's early television appearances included a starring role in the live space opera "Rod Brown of the Rocket Rangers" (1953–1954), as well as recurring roles on "Hallmark Hall of Fame" (1952), "Alcoa Theatre" (1959), and "Playhouse 90" (1958, 1960), "The Outlaws" (three episodes). Robertson also appeared as a special guest star on "Wagon Train" for one episode, portraying an Irish immigrant.  In 1958, Robertson portrayed Joe Clay in the first broadcast of "Playhouse 90"'s "Days of Wine and Roses". In 1960, he was cast as Martinus Van Der Brig, a con man, in the episode "End of a Dream" of "Riverboat".  Other appearances included, 1958 "Wagon Train", "The Twilight Zone" episodes "A Hundred Yards Over the Rim" (1961) and "The Dummy" (1962), followed by "The Eleventh Hour" in the 1963 episode, "The Man Who Came Home Late". He guest-starred on such television series as "The Greatest Show on Earth", "Breaking Point" and "ABC Stage 67". He had starring roles in episodes of both the 1960s and 1990s versions of "The Outer Limits". He was awarded an Emmy for his leading role in a 1965 episode, "The Game" of "Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre". He appeared twice as a guest-villain on ABC's "Batman" as the gunfighter "Shame" (1966 and 1968), the second time with his wife, Dina Merrill, as "Calamity Jan".  In 1976, he portrayed a retired Buzz Aldrin in an adaptation of Aldrin's autobiography "Return to Earth". The next year, he portrayed a fictional Director of Central Intelligence (based on Richard Helms) in "", an adaptation of John Ehrlichman's roman a clef "The Company", in turn based on the Watergate scandal. In 1987, he portrayed Henry Ford in "Ford: The Man and The Machine". From 1983-84, he played Dr. Michael Ranson in "Falcon Crest".

Young Eagles initiative.

A certified private pilot, he was a longtime member of the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA), working his way through the ranks in prominence and eventually co-founding the Young Eagles Program with EAA president Tom Poberezny. Robertson chaired the program from its 1992 inception to 1994 (succeeded by former test pilot Gen. Chuck Yeager). Along with educating youth around aviation, the initial goal of the Young Eagles was to fly one million children (many of them never having flown before) prior to the 100th Anniversary of Flight celebration on December 17, 2003. That goal was achieved on November 13, 2003. On July 28, 2016, the two millionth Young Eagle was flown by actor Harrison Ford.

Columbia Pictures scandal.

In 1977, Robertson discovered that his signature had been forged on a $10,000 check payable to him, although it was for work he had not performed. He also learned that the forgery had been carried out by Columbia Pictures head David Begelman, and on reporting it he inadvertently triggered one of the biggest Hollywood scandals of the 1970s. Begelman was charged with embezzlement, convicted, and later fired from Columbia. Despite pressure to remain quiet, Robertson and his wife Dina Merrill spoke to the press. As a result, Hollywood producers blacklisted him.  He finally returned to studio film five years later, starring in "Brainstorm" (1983). The story of the scandal is told in David McClintick's 1982 bestseller "Indecent Exposure".

Personal life.

In 1957, Robertson married actress Cynthia Stone, the former wife of actor Jack Lemmon. They had a daughter, Stephanie, before divorcing in 1959; he also had a stepson by this marriage, Chris Lemmon. In 1966, he married actress and Post Cereals heiress Dina Merrill, the former wife of Stanley M. Rumbough Jr.; they had a daughter, Heather (1969–2007), before divorcing. By this marriage, he also had stepchildren Stanley Hutton Rumbough, David Post Rumbough, and Nedenia Colgate Rumbough. He resided in Water Mill, New York.  Robertson was a Democrat and supported Arizona congressman Morris K. Udall during the 1976 Democratic presidential primaries.

Aviation.

One of Robertson's main hobbies was flying and, among other aircraft, he owned several de Havilland Tiger Moths, a Messerschmitt Bf 108, and a genuine World War II - era Mk.IX Supermarine Spitfire MK923. His first plane ride was in a Lockheed Model 9 Orion. As a 13-year-old he would clean hangars for airplane rides. He met Paul Mantz, Art Scholl, and Charles Lindbergh while flying at local California airports. His piloting skills helped him get the part as the squadron leader in the British war film "633 Squadron". He entered balloon races, including one in 1964 from the mainland to Catalina Island that ended with him being rescued from the Pacific Ocean.  In 1969, during the civil war conflict in Nigeria, Robertson helped organize an effort to fly food and medical supplies into the area. He also organized flights of supplies to the ravaged country of Ethiopia when it experienced famine in 1978. Within the EAA, he founded the Cliff Robertson Work Experience in 1993, which offers youths the chance to work for flight and ground school instruction.  Robertson was flying a private Beechcraft Baron over New York City on the morning of September 11, 2001. He was directly above the World Trade Center climbing through 7,500 feet when the first Boeing 767 struck. He was instructed by air traffic control to land immediately at the nearest airport after a nationwide order to ground all civilian and commercial aircraft following the attacks.

Death.

On September 10, 2011, one day after his 88th birthday, Robertson died of natural causes in Stony Brook, New York. His body was cremated, and a private funeral was held at St. Luke's Episcopal Church in East Hampton, New York.

Awards.

Robertson was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 2006. He received the Rebecca Rice Alumni Award from Antioch College in 2007. In addition to his Oscar and Emmy and several lifetime achievement awards from various film festivals, Robertson has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6801 Hollywood Blvd. He was also awarded the 2008 Ambassador of Good Will Aviation Award by the National Transportation Safety Board Bar Association in Alexandria, Virginia, for his leadership in and promotion of general aviation. In 2009, Robertson was inducted into the International Air & Space Hall of Fame at the San Diego Air & Space Museum.

Clifford Parker Robertson III (September 9, 1923 – September 10, 2011) was an American actor with a film and television career that spanned half a century. Robertson portrayed a young John F. Kennedy in the 1963 film "PT 109", and won the 1968 Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in the film "Charly". On television, he portrayed retired astronaut Buzz Aldrin in the 1976 adaptation of Aldrin's autobiographic "Return to Earth", played a fictional character based on Director of Central Intelligence Richard Helms in the 1977 miniseries "", and portrayed Henry Ford in the 1987 "Ford: The Man and the Machine". His last well-known film appearances were from 2002–2007 as Uncle Ben in the "Spider-Man" film trilogy.

Cliff Robertson, de son vrai nom Clifford Parker Robertson III, né le à La Jolla, en Californie, aux (États-Unis), et mort le à Stony Brook, dans le Grand New York, aux (États-Unis), est un acteur, scénariste, réalisateur et producteur américain.


Early life.

O'Connor was born in Srinagar, Kashmir, India, on 21 August 1889. His father was a major in the Royal Irish Fusiliers, and his mother was the daughter of a former governor of India's central provinces. He attended Tonbridge Castle School in 1899 and The Towers School in Crowthorne in 1902. In 1903, after his father's death in an accident, he moved to Wellington College and thereafter to the Royal Military College, Sandhurst in 1908. In September of the following year he was commissioned, as a second lieutenant and posted to the 2nd Battalion, Cameronians (Scottish Rifles). He maintained close ties with the regiment for the rest of his life. In January 1910, the battalion was rotated to Colchester, where he received signals and rifle training. It was then stationed in Malta from 1911 to 1912 where O'Connor served as regimental signals officer.

First World War.

During the First World War, O'Connor served as signals officer of 22 Brigade in the 7th Division and captain in command of 7th Division's Signals Company. From October 1916, as a captain and later as a brevet major, he served as brigade major of 91 Brigade, 7th Division. He was awarded the Military Cross in February 1915. In March of that year he saw action at Arras and Bullecourt. O'Connor was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) and appointed brevet lieutenant-colonel in command of 2nd Infantry Battalion of the Honourable Artillery Company, part of the 7th Division, in June 1917. In November, the division was ordered to support the Italians against the Austro-Hungarian forces at the River Piave which then formed part of the Italian Front. In late October 1918 the 2nd Battalion captured the island of Grave di Papadopoli on the Piave River for which O'Connor received the Italian Silver Medal of Military Valor and a Bar to his DSO.  At the end of the war, O'Connor reverted to his rank of captain and served as regimental adjutant from April to December 1919.

Between the wars.

O'Connor attended the Staff College, Camberley in 1920. O'Connor's other service in the years between the world wars included an appointment from 1921 to 1924 as brigade major of the Experimental Brigade (or 5 Brigade) under the command of J. F. C. Fuller, which was formed to test methods and procedures for using tanks and aircraft in co-ordination with infantry and artillery.  He returned to his old unit, the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles), as adjutant from February 1924 to 1925. From 1925 to 1927 he served as a company commander at Sandhurst. He returned to the Staff College, Camberley as an instructor from October 1927 to January 1930. In 1930 O'Connor again served with the 1st Battalion, Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) in Egypt and from 1931 to 1932 in Lucknow, India. From April 1932 to January 1935 he was a general staff officer, grade 2 at the War Office. He attended the Imperial Defence College in London in 1935. In April 1936 O'Connor was promoted to full colonel and appointed temporary brigadier to assume command of the Peshawar Brigade in north west India. In September 1938 O'Connor was promoted to major-general and appointed General Officer Commanding 7th Infantry Division in Palestine, along with the additional responsibility as Military Governor of Jerusalem. For his services in Palestine O'Connor was mentioned in despatches.  In August 1939, shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War, the 7th Division was transferred to the fortress at Mersa Matruh, Egypt, where O'Connor was concerned with defending the area against a potential attack from the massed forces of the Italian Tenth Army over the border in Libya. The 7th Division later converted to become the 6th Division in November 1939. He was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in July 1940.

Second World War.

Italian Offensive and Operation Compass.

Italy declared war on Britain and France on 10 June 1940 and, soon after, O'Connor was appointed commander of the Western Desert Force. He was tasked by Lieutenant-General Henry Maitland Wilson, commander of the British troops in Egypt, to push the Italian force out of Egypt, to protect the Suez Canal and British interests from attack.  On 13 September, Graziani struck: his leading divisions advanced sixty miles into Egypt where they reached the town of Sidi Barrani and, short of supplies, began to dig in. O'Connor then began to prepare for a counterattack. He had the 7th Armoured Division and the Indian 4th Infantry Division along with two brigades. British and Commonwealth troops in Egypt totalled around 36,000 men. The Italians had nearly five times as many troops along with hundreds more tanks and artillery pieces and the support of a much larger air force. Meanwhile, small raiding columns were sent out from the 7th Armoured and newly formed Long Range Desert Group to probe, harass, and disrupt the Italians (this marked the start of what became the Special Air Service). The Royal Navy and Royal Air Force supported by bombarding enemy strongpoints, airfields and rear areas.  The counteroffensive, Operation Compass, began on 8 December 1940. O'Connor's relatively small force of 31,000 men, 275 tanks and 120 artillery pieces, ably supported by an RAF wing and the Royal Navy, broke through a gap in the Italian defences at Sidi Barrani near the coast. The Desert Force cut a swath through the Italian rear areas, stitching its way between the desert and the coast, capturing strongpoint after strongpoint by cutting off and isolating them. The Italian guns proved to be no match for the heavy British Matilda tanks and their shells bounced off the armour. By mid-December the Italians had been pushed completely out of Egypt, leaving behind 38,000 prisoners and large stores of equipment.  The Desert Force paused to rest briefly before continuing the assault into Italian Libya against the remainder of Graziani's disorganised army. At that point, the Commander-in-Chief Middle East General Sir Archibald Wavell ordered the 4th Indian Division withdrawn to spearhead the invasion of Italian East Africa. This veteran division was to be replaced by the inexperienced 6th Australian Division, which, although tough, was untrained for desert warfare. Despite this setback, the offensive continued with minimal delay. By the end of 6 December the Australians besieged and took Bardia along with 40,000 more prisoners and 400 guns. In early January 1941, the Western Desert Force was redesignated XIII Corps. On 9 January, the offensive resumed. By 12 January the strategic fortress port of Tobruk was surrounded. On 22 January it fell and another 27,000 Italian POWs were taken along with valuable supplies, food, and weapons. As Tobruk fell it was decided to have XIII Corps answerable directly to Wavell at HQ Middle East Command, removing HQ British troops Egypt from the chain of command. On 26 January the remaining Italian divisions in eastern Libya began to retreat to the northwest along the coast. O'Connor promptly moved to pursue and cut them off, sending his armour southwest through the desert in a wide flanking movement, while the infantry gave chase along the coast to the north. The lightly armoured advance units of 4th Armoured Brigade arrived at Beda Fomm before the fleeing Italians on 5 February, blocking the main coast road and their route of escape. Two days later, after a costly and failed attempt to break through the blockade, and with the main British infantry force fast bearing down on them from Benghazi to the north, the demoralised, exhausted Italians unconditionally capitulated. O'Connor and Eric Dorman-Smith cabled back to Wavell, "Fox killed in the open..."  In two months, the XIII Corps/Western Desert Force had advanced over, destroyed an entire Italian army of ten divisions, taken over 130,000 prisoners, 400 tanks and 1,292 guns at the cost of 500 killed and 1,373 wounded. In recognition of this, O'Connor was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath.

Reversal and capture.

In a strategic sense, however, the victory of Operation Compass was not yet complete; the Italians still controlled most of Libya and possessed forces which would have to be dealt with. The Axis foothold in North Africa would remain a potential threat to Egypt and the Suez Canal so long as this situation continued. O'Connor was aware of this and urged Wavell to allow him to push on to Tripoli with all due haste to finish off the Italians. Wavell concurred as did Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Maitland Wilson, now the military governor of Cyrenaica, and XIII Corps resumed its advance. However, O'Connor's new offensive would prove short-lived: when the corps reached El Agheila, just to the southwest of Beda Fomm, Churchill ordered the advance to halt there. The Axis had invaded Greece and Wavell was ordered to send all available forces there as soon as possible to oppose this. Wavell took the 6th Australian Division, along with part of 7th Armoured Division and most of the supplies and air support for this ultimately doomed operation. XIII Corps HQ was wound down and in February 1941 O'Connor was appointed General Officer Commanding-in-Chief the British Troops in Egypt.  Matters were soon to become much worse for the British. By March 1941, Hitler had dispatched General Erwin Rommel along with the Afrika Korps to bolster the Italians in Libya. Wavell and O'Connor now faced a formidable foe under a commander whose cunning, resourcefulness, and daring would earn him the nickname "the Desert Fox". Rommel wasted little time in launching his own offensive on 31 March. The inexperienced 2nd Armoured Division was soundly defeated and on 2 April Wavell came forward to review matters with Lieutenant-General Sir Philip Neame, by now the commander of British and Commonwealth troops in Cyrenaica (Wilson having left to command the Allied expeditionary force in Greece). O'Connor was called forward and arrived from Cairo the next day, but declined to assume Neame's command because of his lack of familiarity with the prevailing conditions. However, he agreed to stay to advise.  On 6 April O'Connor and Neame, while travelling to their headquarters which had been withdrawn from Maraua to Timimi, were captured by a German patrol near Martuba.

Captivity and escape.

O'Connor spent the next two and a half years as a prisoner of war, mainly at the Castello di Vincigliata near Florence, Italy. Here he and Neame were in the company of such figures as Major-General Sir Adrian Carton de Wiart and Air Vice Marshal Owen Tudor Boyd. Although the conditions of their imprisonment were not unpleasant, the officers soon formed an escape club and began planning a break-out. Their first attempt, a simple attempt to climb over the castle walls, resulted in a month's solitary confinement. The second attempt, by an escape tunnel built between October 1942 and March 1943, had some success, with two New Zealander brigadiers, James Hargest and Reginald Miles, reaching Switzerland. O'Connor and de Wiart, travelling on foot, were at large for a week but were captured near Bologna in the Po Valley. Once again, a month's solitary confinement was the result.  It was only after the Italian surrender in September 1943 that the final, successful, attempt was made. With help from the Italian resistance movement, Boyd, O'Connor and Neame escaped while being transferred from Vincigliati. After a failed rendezvous with a submarine, they arrived by boat at Termoli, then went on to Bari where they were welcomed as guests by General Sir Harold Alexander, commanding the Allied Armies fighting on the Italian Front, on 21 December 1943. Upon his return to Britain, O'Connor was presented with the knighthood he had been awarded in 1941 and promoted to lieutenant-general. Montgomery suggested that O'Connor be his successor as British Eighth Army commander, but that post was instead given to Oliver Leese and O'Connor was given a corps to command.

VIII Corps and Normandy.

On 21 January 1944 O'Connor became commander of VIII Corps, which consisted of the Guards Armoured Division, 11th Armoured Division, 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division, along with 6th Guards Tank Brigade, 8th Army Group Royal Artillery and 2nd Household Cavalry Regiment.  On 11 June 1944, O'Connor and the leading elements of VIII Corps arrived in Normandy in the sector around Caen, which would be the scene of much hard fighting during the next few weeks. O'Connor's first mission (with 43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division under command) was to mount Operation Epsom, a break out from the bridgehead established by the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division, cross the Odon and Orne rivers, then secure the high-ground positions northeast of Bretteville-sur-Laize and cut Caen off from the south. The break-out and river crossings were accomplished promptly. Montgomery, O'Connor's commanding officer and friend from his days in Palestine, congratulated him and his Corps on their success. But cutting off Caen would prove much harder. VIII Corps was pushed back over the Orne. O'Connor tried to re-establish a bridgehead during Operation Jupiter with the 43rd (Wessex) Division, but met with little success. Although the operation had failed to achieve its tactical objectives, General Sir Bernard Montgomery was pleased with the strategic benefits in the commitment and fixing of the German armoured reserves to the Caen sector.  After being withdrawn into reserve on 12 July, the next major action for VIII Corps would be Operation Goodwood, for which the corps was stripped of its infantry divisions but had a third armoured division (7th Armoured Division) attached. The attack began on 18 July with a massive aerial bombardment by the 9th USAAF, and ended on 20 July with a three-pronged drive to capture Bras and Hubert-Folie on the right, Fontenay on the left, and Bourguébus Ridge in the centre. However, the attack ground to a halt in pouring rain, turning the battlefield into a quagmire, with the major objectives still not taken, notably the Bourguebus Ridge which was the key to any break-out.  Restored to its pre-invasion formation but with British 3rd Infantry Division attached, the corps was switched to the southwest of Caen to take part in Operation Bluecoat. 15th (Scottish) Division attacked towards Vire to the east and west of Bois du Homme in order to facilitate the American advance in Operation Cobra (O'Connor, 5/3/25 July 29 1944). A swift drive was followed by fierce fighting to the south during the first two days of the advance, with both sides taking heavy losses.  As the allies prepared to pursue the Germans from France, O'Connor learned that VIII Corps would not take part in this phase of the campaign. VIII Corps was placed in reserve, and its transport used to supply XXX Corps and XII Corps. His command was reduced in mid-August, with the transfer of the Guards Armoured Divisions and 11th Armoured Division to XXX Corps and 15th (Scottish) Division to XII Corps. While in reserve, O'Connor maintained an active correspondence with Montgomery, Hobart and others, making suggestions for improvements of armoured vehicles and addressing various other problems such as combat fatigue. Some of his recommendations were followed up; such as for mounting "rams" on armoured vehicles in order to cope with the difficult hedgerow country (O'Connor, 5/3/41- 5/3/44 Aug 24, 26 1944).

Operation Market Garden, India and afterwards.

O'Connor remained in command of VIII Corps, for the time being, and was given the task of supporting Lieutenant-General Brian Horrocks' XXX Corps in Operation Market Garden, the plan by Montgomery to establish a bridgehead across the Rhine in the Netherlands. Following their entry into Weert at the end of September, VIII Corps prepared for and took part in Operation Aintree, the advance towards Venray and Venlo beginning on 12 October.  However, on 27 November O'Connor was removed from his post and was ordered to take over from Lieutenant-General Sir Mosley Mayne as GOC-in-C, Eastern Command, India. Smart's account says that Montgomery prompted the move for "not being ruthless enough with his American subordinates" although Mead states that the initiative was taken by Field Marshal Sir Alan Brooke, the Chief of the Imperial General Staff, but Montgomery made no attempt to retain O'Connor. He was succeeded as GOC VIII Corps by Major-General Evelyn Barker, formerly the GOC of the 49th (West Riding) Infantry Division, and one of O'Connor's students at the Staff College, Camberley in the late 1920s. This marked the end of a long and distinguished combat career, although the new job was an important one, controlling the lines of communication of the Fourteenth Army. O'Connor was Mentioned in Despatches for the thirteenth and final time of his career on 22 March 1945.  Having been promoted to full general in April 1945, O'Connor was appointed GOC-in-C North Western Army in India in October that year (the formation was renamed Northern Command in November of that year). From 1946 to 1947 he was Adjutant-General to the Forces and aide-de-camp general to the King. His career as adjutant general was to be short-lived, however. After a disagreement over a cancelled demobilisation for troops stationed in the Far East, O'Connor offered his resignation in September 1947, which was accepted. Montgomery, then Chief of the Imperial General Staff, maintained that he had been sacked, rather than resigned, for being "not up to the job". Not long after this he was installed as a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath.

In retirement.

O'Connor retired in 1948 at the age of fifty-eight. However, he maintained his links with the army and took on other responsibilities. He was Commandant of the Army Cadet Force in Scotland from 1948 to 1959; Colonel of the Cameronians, 1951 to 1954; Lord Lieutenant of Ross and Cromarty from 1955 to 1964 and served as Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1964. His first wife, Jean, died in 1959, and in 1963 he married Dorothy Russell. In July 1971 he was created Knight of the Order of the Thistle. O’Connor was interviewed concerning North African operations in episode 8, “The Desert: North Africa (1940–1943)”, of the acclaimed British documentary television series, "The World at War." O'Connor died in London on 17 June 1981, just two months shy of his 92nd birthday.

External links.

General Sir Richard Nugent O'Connor, (21 August 1889 – 17 June 1981) was a senior British Army officer who fought in both the First and Second World Wars, and commanded the Western Desert Force in the early years of the Second World War. He was the field commander for Operation Compass, in which his forces destroyed a much larger Italian army – a victory which nearly drove the Axis from Africa, and in turn, led Adolf Hitler to send the Afrika Korps under Erwin Rommel to try to reverse the situation. O'Connor was captured by a German reconnaissance patrol during the night of 7 April 1941 and spent over two years in an Italian prisoner of war camp. He eventually escaped after the fall of Mussolini in the autumn of 1943. In 1944 he commanded VIII Corps in the Battle of Normandy and later during Operation Market Garden. In 1945 he was General Officer in Command of the Eastern Command in India and then, in the closing days of British rule in the subcontinent, he headed Northern Command. His final job in the army was Adjutant-General to the Forces in London, in charge of the British Army's administration, personnel and organisation.

Richard O'Connor, né le en Inde et mort le à Londres, est un général de l'armée britannique durant la Seconde Guerre mondiale.


History.

The word "chalumeau" first begins to appear in writing during the 1630s, but may have been in use as early as the twelfth century. Several French dictionaries in the sixteenth century use the word to refer to various types of simple, idioglot reed-pipes all with tone holes. The heteroglot style reed was later adopted in the seventeenth and into the eighteenth centuries. These single-pipe instruments probably evolved from earlier multiple-pipe instruments through the abandonment of the drone tube. (See Similar instruments, below. The etymology is discussed in detail at Shawm#Etymology.)  The use of the chalumeau originated in France and later spread to Germany by the late seventeenth century. By 1700, the chalumeau was an established instrument on the European musical scene. Around this time, well-known Nuremberg instrument maker Johann Christoph (J.C.) Denner made improvements to the chalumeau, eventually developing it into the Baroque clarinet. The chalumeau is distinguished by two keys (thought to be added by Denner), which cover tone holes drilled diametrically to each other. The position of these tone holes prohibits the instrument from overblowing, limiting its range to only twelve notes. In order to counteract the limited range, multiple sizes of chalumeau were produced ranging from bass to soprano.  Over a period of about 20 years, the clarinet became distinguishable from the chalumeau due to a number of structural improvements. The first and most important development was the displacement of the rear key up towards the mouthpiece. Denner also reduced the size of the hole and inserted a small tube to facilitate overblowing, greatly increasing the range of the instrument to nearly three octaves. The instrument was also lengthened to increase accuracy of tuning, the recorder like foot joint of the chalumeau was replaced by a bell similar to the oboe, and a key on the lower joint was eventually added to sound a b’. This new instrument eventually became the Baroque clarinet and specialized in the higher "clarino" register, as opposed to the lower chalumeau register. In its early development, the clarinet could not be tuned across the range of the instrument, so the chalumeau was still used for music in the lower range. Later developments in the key work allowed better intonation throughout the range of the clarinet, and the chalumeau register on the clarinet eventually rendered the chalumeau itself superfluous. The limited range and modest strength of sound compared with the clarinet made the chalumeau increasingly impractical. By 1800, the chalumeau had disappeared from the repertoire entirely and the clarinet was well-established on the European musical scene.  These improvements are attributed to J.C. Denner, but may have also been an invention of his son Jacob Denner who was trained by his father. Another son, Johann David, helped with the business but is not recorded as an instrument builder. The Denners were the only instrument builders to produce both chalumeaux and clarinets.

Music for the chalumeau.

Composers initially favored the chalumeau, but the clarinet soon overtook it in repertoire and ubiquity. Estienne Roger in Amsterdam published a set of duets for two chalumeaux in 1706 (prior to the first duets for clarinet). And in 1716, the same publisher released six volumes of duets for chalumeaux. In the first decades of the eighteenth century, the chalumeau was especially popular in the Habsburg court, as evidenced by chalumeau parts in over forty operas and oratorios, and the Denners had many orders for chalumeaux from royalty all over Europe. Composers Fux, the Bononcini brothers, Zelenka, de Rossi, Vivaldi, Telemann and Hasse wrote for the chalumeau but chalumeau parts were not common in the second half of the century. Graupner wrote extensively for all sizes of chalumeaux and featured the instrument, often in groups of two or three, in numerous Ouverture-Suites, Concertos, Church Cantatas and Trio Sonatas. During the brief revival of chalumeau after 1760, Florian Gassmann included a chalumeau part in two pieces, and chalumeau parts were included in several ballets in the 1770s. But later renditions of these pieces transposed the chalumeau parts to clarinet or flute. The chalumeau was often included in music dictionaries until the early nineteenth century.

Timbre and tone.

The chalumeau sounds much lower than one might expect, due to the acoustical nature of a cylindrical stopped pipe. It has an intimate, cantabile-like quality – as opposed to the trumpet-like sound of the Baroque clarinet – and is very similar to the sound of speaking.

Historical and modern chalumeaux.

About ten original chalumeaux are extant, but modern craftsmen produce replicas based on these original instruments. Of the original instruments, most are made of boxwood and all feature two keys placed opposite each other to be played by the thumb and first finger of the left hand. The mouthpieces of these instruments usually have the reed placed on top so that it vibrates against the upper lip when played. The surviving chalumeaux were made between the beginning of the eighteenth century and about 1760 by five known instrument makers including J.C. Denner, W. Kress, Liebau, Klenig, and Muller. Of these instruments, there is one soprano and one bass chalumeau, several tenor and alto chalumeaux, and one rare chalumeau d’amour. The chalumeau d’amour has a bulbous bell like its rare contemporary the clarinette d’amour and the modern-day English horn. Present day makers of replica chalumeaux include Peter van der Poel, Andreas Schöni, R. Tutz, François Masson, and Guntram Wolf. Other makers, including Tupian, Hahl, and Kunath, produce modern adaptations of the chalumeau. Today, the band In Extremo has three chalumeau players: Marco Ernst-Felix Zorzytzky, Andre Strugalla, and Boris Pfeiffer.

Similar instruments.

Similar single-reed folk instruments with single, cylindrical tubes are found in many Arabic and European cultures throughout history. See Single-reed instrument, Albogue, Alboka, Diplica, Hornpipe, pibgorn, and Sipsi. A similar instrument called the xaphoon (also called "Maui bamboo sax" or "pocket sax") was developed by Hawaiian craftsman Brian Wittman. A similar instrument called the venova was created and sold by Yamaha Corporation in 2017.

Notes.

The name 'chalumeau' is used by European organ-builders to denote an eight-foot short-resonator organ stop used for color effects. This was first encountered in the organ of the Frauenkirche at Dresden and was built by celebrated organ builder Gottfried Silbermann between 1732 and 1736. Silbermann was so pleased with the sound of this new invention that he included it in most of his later organs.

The chalumeau (; ; plural chalumeaux) is a single-reed woodwind instrument of the late baroque and early classical eras. The chalumeau is a folk instrument that is the predecessor to the modern-day clarinet. It has a cylindrical bore with eight tone holes (seven in front and one in back for the thumb) and a broad mouthpiece with a single heteroglot reed ("i.e." not a continuous part of the instrument's body) made of cane. Similar to the clarinet, the chalumeau overblows a twelfth.

Nom générique au Moyen Âge et à la Renaissance, le chalumeau désigne les Instruments à vent de la famille des bois composés d'un tuyau conique ou cylindrique percé de trous pour changer les notes, et d'une anche simple ou double pour créer le son. Pendant les périodes baroque et classique, le chalumeau désigne plus spécifiquement un instrument de perce cylindrique et à anche simple, la chalemie ou « hautbois ancien » désignant, elle, un instrument de perce conique et à anche double. « Chalumeau » est le nom donné aux premières clarinettes qui ont gardé ce terme pour leur registre grave.


Background.

Most of the songs on "Rubber Soul" were composed soon after the Beatles' return to London following their August 1965 North American tour. The album reflects the influence of their month in America.<ref name="Lewisohn/MojoSpecial">Lewisohn, Mark. "High Times". In:.</ref> Aside from setting a new attendance record when they played to over 55,000 at Shea Stadium on 15 August, the tour allowed the band to meet with Bob Dylan in New York and their longtime hero Elvis Presley in Los Angeles. Although the Beatles had released their album "Help!" that same month, the requirement for a new album in time for Christmas was in keeping with the schedule established in 1963 by Brian Epstein, the group's manager, and George Martin, their record producer.  In their new songs, the Beatles drew inspiration from soul music, particularly the singles they heard on US radio that summer, by acts signed to the Motown and Stax record labels, and from the contemporary folk rock of Dylan and the Byrds. Author Robert Rodriguez highlights the

Production.

Recording history.

Recording for "Rubber Soul" began on 12 October 1965 at EMI Studios (now Abbey Road Studios), with final production and mix down taking place on 15 November. During the sessions, the Beatles typically focused on fine-tuning the musical arrangement for each song, an approach that reflected the growing division between the band as a live act and their ambitions as recording artists. The album was one of the first projects that Martin undertook after leaving EMI's staff and co-founding Associated Independent Recording (AIR). Martin later described "Rubber Soul" as "the first album to present a new, growing Beatles to the world", adding: "For the first time we began to think of albums as art on their own, as complete entities." This was the final Beatle album that recording engineer Norman Smith worked on before he was promoted by EMI to record producer. The sessions were held over thirteen days and totalled 113 hours, with a further seventeen hours (spread over six days) allowed for mixing.  The band were forced to work to a tight deadline to ensure the album was completed in time for a pre-Christmas release. They were nevertheless in the unfamiliar position of being able

Studio aesthetic and sounds.

Lennon recalled that "Rubber Soul" was the first album on which the Beatles were in complete creative control, with enough studio time to develop and refine new sound ideas. According to Riley, the album reflects "a new affection for recording" over live performance. Author Philip Norman similarly writes that, with the Beatles increasingly drawn towards EMI's large cache of "exotic" musical instruments, and the band's readiness to incorporate "every possible resource of the studio itself" as well as Martin's skills as a classical arranger, "Implicitly, from the very start, this [music] was not stuff intended to be played live on stage."  According to Barry Miles, a leading figure in the UK

Band dynamics.

While Martin recalled it as having been "a very joyful time", Smith said the sessions revealed the first signs of artistic conflict between Lennon and McCartney, and friction within the band as more effort was spent on perfecting each song. This also manifested in a struggle over which song should be the A-side of their next

Songs.

Overview.

Author Andrew Grant Jackson describes "Rubber Soul" as a "synthesis of folk, rock, soul, baroque, proto-psychedelia, and the sitar". According to author Joe Harrington, the album contained the Beatles' first "psychedelic experiments", heralding the transformational effect of LSD on many of the original British Invasion acts. Author Bernard Gendron dismisses the commonly held view that "Rubber Soul" is a folk rock album; he cites its incorporation of baroque and Eastern sounds as examples of the Beatles' "nascent experimentalism and eclectic power of appropriation", aspects that he says suggest an artistic approach that transcends the genre. According to "The Encyclopedia of Country Music", building on the Beatles' 1964 track

Side one.

"Drive My Car".

The album opens with a pair of lead guitar parts that are soon rendered off-metre by the arrival of McCartney's bass. "Drive My Car" is a McCartney composition with substantial contribution from Lennon with the lyrics. Harrison, as the Beatles' most knowledgeable soul-music enthusiast, contributed heavily to the recording by suggesting they arrange the song with a dual guitar–bass riff in the style of Otis Redding's contemporary single "Respect". In their joint lead vocals, McCartney and

"Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)".

Lennon said he wrote "Norwegian Wood" about an extramarital affair and that he worded the narrative to hide the truth from his wife, Cynthia. The lyrics sketch a failed meeting between the singer and a mysterious girl, where she goes to bed and he sleeps in the bath;<ref name="Unterberger/NW"></ref> in retaliation at the girl's aloofness, the

"You Won't See Me".

Written by McCartney, "You Won't See Me" reflects the difficulties he was experiencing in his relationship with actress Jane Asher due to her refusal to put her acting career second to his needs. Gould identifies the song as the third consecutive track in

"Nowhere Man".

Lennon recalled that "Nowhere Man" came to him fully formed one night at his home in Surrey, after he had struggled to write anything for several hours. The song reflects the existential concerns raised by his experiences with LSD, and, like "I'm a Loser" and "Help!", his self-loathing during a time he later called his "fat Elvis period". It was the first Beatles song to completely avoid boy–girl relationships, and through Lennon conveying his feelings of inadequacy in the third person, the

"Think for Yourself".

Harrison's lyrics to "Think for Yourself" suggest the influence of Dylan's September 1965 single "Positively 4th Street", as Harrison appears to rebuke a friend or lover. The song's accusatory message was unprecedented in the Beatles' work; Jackson identifies it as the band's contribution to a "subgenre" of protest songs that emerged

"The Word".

In his book "1965: The Year Modern Britain Was Born", Bray writes that "The Word" marks the start of the Beatles' "high psychedelic period". Lennon's exhortation that "The word is love" anticipates the ethos behind the counterculture's 1967 Summer of Love. The lyrics focus on the concept of

"Michelle".

"Michelle" was conceived by McCartney in the late 1950s. During a writing session for "Rubber Soul", Lennon added a new middle eight, part of which was taken from Nina Simone's recent cover of "I Put a Spell on You".<ref name="Halpin/Louder"></ref> MacDonald identifies the song as another example of the Beatles' "comedy song" approach, which, in a contemporary interview, McCartney had suggested was a possible new direction for the group. In Womack's view, the French phrases in the lyrics accentuate the premise whereby a language barrier separates two lovers, and the narrative conveys an acceptance that their relationship is doomed to fail, such that the singer is already looking back nostalgically at what could have been. Gould describes the performance as "sentimental... French cabaret" which, following McCartney's declaration of "I love you", leads into a guitar solo by Harrison that represents "one of Jean-Paul Sartre's existential café workers".

Side two.

"What Goes On".

The Beatles had attempted to record an early version of Lennon's "What Goes On" in 1963. With little time to complete "Rubber Soul", the song was reworked by Lennon and McCartney as a vocal spot for

"Girl".

Lennon said he wrote "Girl" about an archetypal woman he had been searching for and would finally find in Yoko Ono, the Japanese artist he met in November 1966. In the lyrics, he also expresses his disdain for Christian and Catholic moral values. The song was the final track recorded for the album. The composition incorporates aspects of Greek folk music, while the arrangement includes an instrumental passage set as a German two-step and an acoustic guitar part played to sound like a Greek bouzouki. High

"I'm Looking Through You".

Like "You Won't See Me" and "We Can Work It Out", "I'm Looking Through You" focuses on McCartney's troubled relationship with Asher. Gould describes it as the "disillusioned sequel" to McCartney's other 1965 songs centring on "a face-to-face (if not necessarily eye-to-eye) encounter between two lovers". Decker likens the lyrics to a less philosophical version of

"In My Life".

Lennon credited Allsop's rebuke about "A Spaniard in the Works" as the catalyst for "In My Life", which he considered his "first real major piece of work". The lyrics evoke Lennon's youth in Liverpool and reflect his nostalgia for a time before the onset of international fame. McCartney, who claims to have written much of the melody, recalled that the song's musical inspiration came from Smokey Robinson and the Miracles. In Gould's description, the

"Wait".

"Wait" was a Lennon composition to which McCartney contributed a middle eight. Gould includes the song among a category of Beatles "'coming home' songs", while Riley pairs it with "It Won't Be Long" but adds that, relative to that 1963 song, in "Wait" "the lovers' reunion has more anxiety than euphoria goading

"If I Needed Someone".

Harrison wrote "If I Needed Someone" as a love song to Pattie Boyd, the English model to whom he became engaged in December 1965 and was married the following month. In the song's Rickenbacker 12-string guitar riff, the Beatles returned the compliment paid to them earlier in 1965 by the Byrds, whose jangly guitar-based sound McGuinn had sourced from Harrison's playing the previous year. In MacDonald's view, the song is influenced "far more" by Indian classical music

"Run for Your Life".

Lennon wrote "Run for Your Life" based on "Baby Let's Play House", which was one of Presley's early singles on the Sun record label. Lennon retained a line from the Presley track – "I'd rather see you dead, little girl, than to be with another man". The lyrical theme is jealousy, and Lennon later disavowed the song as a misogynistic piece. Performed in the country style, it was the first track recorded for the album and features a descending guitar riff played by Harrison and slide guitar parts.

North American format.

In keeping with the company's policy for the Beatles' albums in the United States, Capitol Records altered the content of "Rubber Soul" for its release there. They removed four songs from the running order – "Drive My Car", "Nowhere Man", "What Goes On" and "If I Needed Someone" – all of which were instead issued on the Beatles' next North American album, "Yesterday and Today", in June 1966. The four songs were replaced with "I've Just Seen a Face" and "It's Only Love", which had been cut from "Help!" as part of Capitol's reconfiguring of that LP to serve as a true soundtrack album, consisting of Beatles songs and orchestral

Title and artwork.

The album title was intended as a pun combining the falseness intrinsic to pop music and rubber-soled shoes. Lennon said the title was McCartney's idea and referred to "English soul". In a 1966 press conference, Starr said they called the album "Rubber Soul" to acknowledge that, in comparison to American soul artists, "we are white and haven't got what they've got", and he added that this was true of all the British acts who attempted to play soul music. McCartney recalled that he conceived the title after overhearing an American musician describing Mick Jagger's singing style as "plastic soul". In Phillip Norman's view, the title served as "a sly dig at their archrivals (and private best mates) the Rolling Stones", with the added implication that the Beatles' "variety" of soul music "at least was stamped out by a good strong northern [English] Wellington boot".  "Rubber

Release.

"Rubber Soul" was issued on EMI's Parlophone label on 3 December 1965. The "Day Tripper" / "We Can Work It Out" single was also released that day and was the first example of a double A-side single in Britain.<ref name="White/OCC"></ref> EMI announced that it had pressed 750,000 copies of the LP to cater to local demand. Its advance orders of 500,000 almost equalled the total sales for the new single and were announced by the "Daily Mirror"s show business reporter as marking a new record for pre-release orders for an LP. On the day of the album's release, the Beatles performed at the Odeon Cinema in Glasgow, marking the start of what would be their final UK tour. Weary of Beatlemania, the group had conceded to do a short tour but refused to also reprise their Christmas Show from the 1963–64 and 1964–65 holiday seasons. The band performed both sides of the single throughout the tour, but only "If I Needed Someone" and "Nowhere Man" from the new album. In the United States, "Rubber Soul" was their tenth album and their first to consist entirely of original songs. The release took place there on 6 December.  According to author Michael Frontani, writing in his book "The Beatles: Image and

Commercial performance.

"Rubber Soul" was commercially successful, beginning a 42-week run on the "Record Retailer" LPs chart (subsequently adopted as the UK Albums Chart) on 12 December 1965. The following week it replaced the "Sound of Music" soundtrack at the top of the chart, where it remained for eight weeks in total. On the national chart compiled by "Melody Maker", "Rubber Soul" entered at number 1 and held the position for thirteen weeks; it remained in the top ten until mid July 1966. In the United States, "Rubber Soul" topped the "Billboard" Top LPs chart on 8 January 1966, having sold 1.2 million copies there within nine days of release. These initial sales were unprecedented for an LP and were cited by "Billboard" magazine as evidence of a new market trend in the US, whereby pop albums started to match the numbers of singles sold. The album was number 1 for six weeks in total; it remained in the top twenty until the start of July, before leaving the chart in mid December. As the more popular of the joint A-sides, "We Can Work It Out" became the Beatles' sixth consecutive number 1 on the "Billboard" Hot 100 chart, all of which were achieved over a twelve-month period from January 1965.  While British albums typically avoided including previously released songs, the lack of a hit single on the North American version of "Rubber Soul" added to the album's identity there as

Critical reception.

Contemporary reviews.

Critical response to "Rubber Soul" was highly favourable. Allen Evans of the "NME" wrote that the band were "still finding different ways to make us enjoy listening to them" and described the LP as "a fine piece of recording artistry and adventure in group sound". While outlining to American readers the differences in the UK-format release, "KRLA Beat" said "Rubber Soul" was an "unbelievably sensational" work on which the Beatles were "once again... setting trends in this world of pop". "Newsweek" lauded the Beatles as "the Bards of Pop", saying that the

Retrospective assessment.

According to Decker, notwithstanding the band's advances in 1964, music critics generally view "Rubber Soul" as the Beatles' "'transitional' album... from successful pop act to unparalleled masters of the studio". It is frequently cited by commentators as the first of their "classic" albums. Greil Marcus described it as the best of all the band's LPs. In his 1979 essay on the Beatles in "The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock & Roll", Marcus wrote: ""Rubber Soul" was an album "made" as an album; with the exception of 'Michelle' (which, to be fair, paid the bills for years to come), every cut was an inspiration, something new and remarkable in and of itself."  Neil McCormick of "The Daily Telegraph" wrote in 2009: "this is where things start

Influence and legacy.

Rivals' response.

Music historian Bill Martin says that the release of "Rubber Soul" was a "turning point" for pop music, in that for the first time "the "album" rather than the song became the basic unit of artistic production." In author David Howard's description, "pop's stakes had been raised into the stratosphere" by "Rubber Soul", resulting in a shift in focus from singles to creating albums without the usual filler tracks. The release marked the start of a period when other artists, in an attempt to emulate the Beatles' achievement, sought to create albums as works of artistic merit and with increasingly novel sounds. According to Steve Turner, by galvanising the Beatles' most ambitious rivals in Britain and America, "Rubber Soul" launched "the pop equivalent of an arms race".  Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys described "Rubber Soul" as "the first album I listened to where every song was a gas" and planned his band's next project, "Pet Sounds", as an attempt to surpass it. "Rubber Soul" similarly inspired Pete Townshend of the Who

Cultural legitimisation of pop music.

"Rubber Soul" is widely viewed as the first pop album to make an artistic statement through the quality of its songs, a point that was reinforced by its artsy cover photo. The belated acceptance of the Beatles by the editors of "Newsweek" was indicative of the magazine's recognition of the band's popularity among American intellectuals and the cultural elite. This in turn was reflected in "The Village Voice"s appointment of Richard Goldstein, a recent graduate and New Journalism writer, to the new position of rock critic, in June 1966, and the Beatles' central role in achieving cultural legitimisation for pop music over 1966–67. Referring to the praise afforded the band, particularly the songwriting partnership of Lennon and McCartney, by "Newsweek" in early 1966,

Development of subgenres.

According to Joe Harrington, the album coincided with rock 'n' roll's development into a variety of new styles, for which the Beatles remained the "conduit through which all... ideas were filtered". Andrew Loog Oldham, the Rolling Stones' manager and producer at the time, has described "Rubber Soul" as "the album that changed the musical world we lived in then to the one we still live in today". The use of sitar on "Norwegian Wood" launched what Indian classical musician Ravi Shankar described as "the great sitar explosion", as the Indian string

Appearances on best-album lists and further recognition.

"Rubber Soul" was voted fifth in Paul Gambaccini's 1978 book "", based on submissions from a panel of 47 critics and broadcasters including Richard Williams, Christgau and Marcus. In the first edition of Colin Larkin's book "All Time Top 1000 Albums", in 1994, it was ranked at number 10, and in 1997 it was named the 39th greatest album of all time in the BBC's "Music of the Millennium" poll. It was listed at number 34 in the third edition of Larkin's "All Time Top 1000 Albums", published in 2000. Since 2001, "Rubber Soul" has appeared in critics' best-album lists compiled by VH1 (at number 6), "Mojo" (number 27) and "Rolling Stone" (number 5), was among "Time" magazine's selection of the "All-Time 100 Albums", and was favoured over "Revolver" in Chris Smith's "101 Albums That Changed Popular Music". In 2012, "Rolling Stone" again placed it at number 5 on the magazine's revised list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time".  "Rubber Soul" appeared in "Rolling Stone"s 2014 list of the "40 Most Groundbreaking Albums of All Time",

Compact disc reissues.

"Rubber Soul" was released on compact disc on 30 April 1987, with the fourteen-song track line-up now the international standard. As with "Help!", the album featured a contemporary stereo digital remix prepared by George Martin. Martin had expressed concern to EMI over the original 1965 stereo mix, claiming it sounded "very woolly, and not at all what I thought should be a good issue". He went back to the original four-track tapes and remixed them for stereo.  A newly remastered version of "Rubber Soul", again using the 1987 Martin remix,

Personnel.

According to Mark Lewisohn and Ian MacDonald,

References.

Sources

Rubber Soul is the sixth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. It was released on 3 December 1965 in the United Kingdom, on EMI's Parlophone label, accompanied by the non-album double A-side single "Day Tripper" / "We Can Work It Out". The original North American version of the album, issued by Capitol Records, contained ten of the fourteen songs and two tracks withheld from the band's "Help!" album. "Rubber Soul" met with a highly favourable critical response and topped sales charts in Britain and the United States for several weeks.

<dfn>'</dfn> est le sixième album des Beatles, paru le en Grande-Bretagne. Il est enregistré en seulement cinq semaines d'octobre et, afin d’être disponible pour les fêtes de Noël. Ce deuxième opus de l'année 1965 est un album-charnière dans la carrière des Beatles. Toutes les chansons sont des compositions originales, comme sur ', écrites par les membres du groupe ; il en est ainsi pour tous les albums suivants. Les sortent de leur période « bons garçons souriants et gais », et écrivent des textes beaucoup plus mûrs qu'auparavant. Toutes leurs chansons traitaient jusque-là des filles et des relations amoureuses. "Nowhere Man" de John Lennon est le premier titre des Beatles qui n'aborde pas ce thème. Le groupe s'inspire par ailleurs de Bob Dylan pour les paroles. L'instrumentation s'élargit, notamment avec l'introduction du sitar, et surtout la trame habituelle de leurs chansons (A-B-pont musical-reprise de B) fait place à des alternances plus élaborées.


Premise.

"It Takes a Thief", which was created by television writer Roland Kibbee, featured the adventures of cat burglar, pickpocket, and thief Alexander Mundy, who steals to finance his life as a polished playboy and sophisticate. He is in prison when the U.S. government's SIA (the fictional Secret Intelligence Agency) proposes a deal to Mundy: steal for the government in exchange for his freedom. Mundy is puzzled and asks, "Let me get this straight. You "want" me to steal?" In the main opening titles, his new SIA boss, Noah Bain, uses the catch phrase, "Oh, look, Al, I'm not asking you to "spy". I'm just asking you to "steal"." In pre-production, the title for a while was "Once a Crook".  The series opened with its pilot episode, a ninety-minute (with commercials) special premiere titled "A Thief is a Thief is a Thief", written by Kibbee and directed by Leslie Stevens. When the series was released in syndication in the 1970s, the pilot episode was withheld from the package and was expanded into a 99-minute feature film for overseas release; this was eventually released in a separate domestic syndication package, under the title "Magnificent Thief". The pilot feature film version was released on home video in the 1990s.  In the series' third season, Throne was replaced by Edward Binns as Mundy's SIA boss, Wallie Powers. As Throne explained: "They had this idea of shooting the whole season in Italy, but they wanted me to stay behind and give Wagner’s character...orders over the phone. I told them if I didn't go I'd quit, and I did. The show didn't last another half a season." Throne's version of events was incorrect, as the third season was not shortened. In the end, portions of season three were filmed in Europe and Binns, Throne's replacement, filmed some scenes there.  Also during the third season, Fred Astaire played Alistair Mundy, Alexander's father, in five episodes. Alistair is also a master gentleman-thief, who says bemusedly, at the start of each episode in which he appears, "I've heard of stealing "from" the government, but "for" the government?" Alistair was the lead character in most episodes in which he appeared, rather than Wagner's character of Alexander, who was relegated to supporting or even cameo roles in these episodes. This is somewhat reminiscent of the way the 1950s TV series "Maverick" would introduce a relative of the previously established main character, and then alternate the two characters the leading series role from week to week.  The following is drawn from Dean Brierly's writings in "Cinema Retro" magazine on Friday, July 18, 2008:  For all Wagner's abilities, however, "It Takes a Thief" was its most effective when Throne made his powerful presence as Noah Bain manifest. Wagner's stage-trained primary castmate, whose trademarks included a deep distinctive voice, was a working actor in many "cult" television productions during the 1960s and 1970s. His burly physique and stolid slab-like face enabled Throne to excel as gruff authority figures, and his keen intelligence and surprisingly wide emotional range added fascinating layers to his performances. The potent onscreen chemistry he and Wagner displayed gave a real edge to their characters' adversarial relationship. Bain, whom "Magnificent Thief" had shown to be the police detective who had brought about Mundy's arrest and imprisonment, was hard-nosed, with a ruthless streak, and he frequently threatened to return Mundy to prison if the latter stepped out of line. Yet he also maintained a healthy respect for Mundy's criminal talents, as well as a grudging affection for the master criminal himself.  Susan Saint James appeared in five episodes. Charlene Holt appeared in three episodes. Other guest stars included prominent veteran Hollywood movie stars such as Bette Davis, Joseph Cotten, Hermione Gingold, Paul Henreid, Fernando Lamas, and Ida Lupino.

Cast.

Source:

Home media.

On November 15, 2011, Entertainment One released "It Takes a Thief: The Complete Series" on DVD in Region 1. The 18-disc set features all 66 episodes of the series, several bonus features, an interview with Robert Wagner, and a special feature-length cut of the pilot episode. The DVD set was promoted in commercials broadcast on Antenna TV, which featured Wagner publicizing the DVD set. Entertainment One would later release the complete first season as a standalone DVD set on October 2, 2012; this set also had the feature-length pilot episode.  In Region 2, March 2017 saw the complete series released under its German title "Ihr Auftritt Al Mundy", with both German and English soundtracks included.  In Region 4, Madman Entertainment has released the entire series on DVD in Australia and New Zealand as three season box sets.

Syndication.

As of early May 2012, "It Takes a Thief" could be seen in syndication on the Antenna TV network.

Film.

In 2013, Universal Pictures announced they were developing a film version of the series with John Davis producing through Davis Entertainment, along with Joseph Singer. Derek Dauchy would supervise the project for Davis and Scott Bernstein for Universal. Greg Russo would write the script. There have been no developments since that time.

It Takes a Thief is an American action-adventure television series that aired on ABC for three seasons between 1968 and 1970. It stars Robert Wagner in his television debut as sophisticated thief Alexander Mundy, who works for the U.S. government in return for his release from prison. For most of the series, Malachi Throne played Noah Bain, Mundy's boss.

Opération vol (en France) ou Ça prend un voleur (au Québec) ("It Takes a Thief") est une série télévisée américaine en un pilote de et de, créée par Roland Kibbee et diffusée entre le et le sur le réseau ABC.


Discovery.

The first mention of a Uranian ring system comes from William Herschel's notes detailing his observations of Uranus in the 18th century, which include the following passage: "February 22, 1789: A ring was suspected". Herschel drew a small diagram of the ring and noted that it was "a little inclined to the red". The Keck Telescope in Hawaii has since confirmed this to be the case, at least for the ν ring. Herschel's notes were published in a Royal Society journal in 1797. In the two centuries between 1797 and 1977 the rings are rarely mentioned, if at all. This casts serious doubt on whether Herschel could have seen anything of the sort while hundreds of other astronomers saw nothing. It has been claimed that Herschel gave accurate descriptions of the ε ring's size relative to Uranus, its changes as Uranus travelled around the Sun, and its color.  The definitive discovery of the Uranian rings was made by astronomers James L. Elliot, Edward W. Dunham, and Jessica Mink on March 10, 1977, using the Kuiper Airborne Observatory, and was serendipitous. They planned to use the occultation of the star SAO 158687 by Uranus to study the planet's atmosphere. When their observations were analysed, they found that the star disappeared briefly from view five times both before and after it was eclipsed by the planet. They deduced that a system of narrow rings was present. The five occultation events they observed were denoted by the Greek letters α, β, γ, δ and ε in their papers. These designations have been used as the rings' names since then. Later they found four additional rings: one between the β and γ rings and three inside the α ring. The former was named the η ring. The latter were dubbed rings 4, 5 and 6—according to the numbering of the occultation events in one paper. Uranus's ring system was the second to be discovered in the Solar System, after that of Saturn.  The rings were directly imaged when the "Voyager 2" spacecraft flew through the Uranian system in 1986. Two more faint rings were revealed, bringing the total to eleven. The Hubble Space Telescope detected an additional pair of previously unseen rings in 2003–2005, bringing the total number known to 13. The discovery of these outer rings doubled the known radius of the ring system. Hubble also imaged two small satellites for the first time, one of which, Mab, shares its orbit with the outermost newly discovered μ ring.

General properties.

As currently understood, the ring system of Uranus comprises thirteen distinct rings. In order of increasing distance from the planet they are: 1986U2R/ζ, 6, 5, 4, α, β, η, γ, δ, λ, ε, ν, μ rings. They can be divided into three groups: nine narrow main rings (6, 5, 4, α, β, η, γ, δ, ε), two dusty rings (1986U2R/ζ, λ) and two outer rings (ν, μ). The rings of Uranus consist mainly of macroscopic particles and little dust, although dust is known to be present in 1986U2R/ζ, η, δ, λ, ν and μ rings. In addition to these well-known rings, there may be numerous optically thin dust bands and faint rings between them. These faint rings and dust bands may exist only temporarily or consist of a number of separate arcs, which are sometimes detected during occultations. Some of them became visible during a series of ring plane-crossing events in 2007. A number of dust bands between the rings were observed in forward-scattering geometry by "Voyager 2". All rings of Uranus show azimuthal brightness variations.  The rings are made of an extremely dark material. The geometric albedo of the ring particles does not exceed 5–6%, while the Bond albedo is even lower—about 2%. The rings particles demonstrate a steep opposition surge—an increase of the albedo when the phase angle is close to zero. This means that their albedo is much lower when they are observed slightly off the opposition. The rings are slightly red in the ultraviolet and visible parts of the spectrum and grey in near-infrared. They exhibit no identifiable spectral features. The chemical composition of the ring particles is not known. They cannot be made of pure water ice like the rings of Saturn because they are too dark, darker than the inner moons of Uranus. This indicates that they are probably composed of a mixture of the ice and a dark material. The nature of this material is not clear, but it may be organic compounds considerably darkened by the charged particle irradiation from the Uranian magnetosphere. The rings' particles may consist of a heavily processed material which was initially similar to that of the inner moons.  As a whole, the ring system of Uranus is unlike either the faint dusty rings of Jupiter or the broad and complex rings of Saturn, some of which are composed of very bright material—water ice. There are similarities with some parts of the latter ring system; the Saturnian F ring and the Uranian ε ring are both narrow, relatively dark and are shepherded by a pair of moons. The newly discovered outer ν and μ rings of Uranus are similar to the outer G and E rings of Saturn. Narrow ringlets existing in the broad Saturnian rings also resemble the narrow rings of Uranus. In addition, dust bands observed between the main rings of Uranus may be similar to the rings of Jupiter. In contrast, the Neptunian ring system is quite similar to that of Uranus, although it is less complex, darker and contains more dust; the Neptunian rings are also positioned further from the planet.

Narrow main rings.

ε ring.

The ε ring is the brightest and densest part of the Uranian ring system, and is responsible for about two-thirds of the light reflected by the rings. While it is the most eccentric of the Uranian rings, it has negligible orbital inclination. The ring's eccentricity causes its brightness to vary over the course of its orbit. The radially integrated brightness of the ε ring is highest near apoapsis and lowest near periapsis. The maximum/minimum brightness ratio is about 2.5–3.0. These variations are connected with the variations of the ring width, which is 19.7 km at the periapsis and 96.4 km at the apoapsis. As the ring becomes wider, the amount of shadowing between particles decreases and more of them come into view, leading to higher integrated brightness. The width variations were measured directly from "Voyager 2" images, as the ε ring was one of only two rings resolved by Voyager's cameras. Such behavior indicates that the ring is not optically thin. Indeed, occultation observations conducted from the ground and the spacecraft showed that its normal optical depth varies between 0.5 and 2.5, being highest near the periapsis. The equivalent depth of the ε ring is around 47 km and is invariant around the orbit.  The geometric thickness of the ε ring is not precisely known, although the ring is certainly very thin—by some estimates as thin as 150 m. Despite such infinitesimal thickness, it consists of several layers of particles. The ε ring is a rather crowded place with a filling factor near the apoapsis estimated by different sources at from 0.008 to 0.06. The mean size of the ring particles is 0.2–20.0 m, and the mean separation is around 4.5 times their radius. The ring is almost devoid of dust, possibly due to the aerodynamic drag from Uranus's extended atmospheric corona. Due to its razor-thin nature the ε ring is invisible when viewed edge-on. This happened in 2007 when a ring plane-crossing was observed.  The "Voyager 2" spacecraft observed a strange signal from the ε ring during the radio occultation experiment. The signal looked like a strong enhancement of the forward-scattering at the wavelength 3.6 cm near ring's apoapsis. Such strong scattering requires the existence of a coherent structure. That the ε ring does have such a fine structure has been confirmed by many occultation observations. The ε ring seems to consist of a number of narrow and optically dense ringlets, some of which may have incomplete arcs.  The ε ring is known to have interior and exterior shepherd moons—Cordelia and Ophelia, respectively. The inner edge of the ring is in 24:25 resonance with Cordelia, and the outer edge is in 14:13 resonance with Ophelia. The masses of the moons need to be at least three times the mass of the ring to confine it effectively. The mass of the ε ring is estimated to be about 10 kg.

δ ring.

The δ ring is circular and slightly inclined. It shows significant unexplained azimuthal variations in normal optical depth and width. One possible explanation is that the ring has an azimuthal wave-like structure, excited by a small moonlet just inside it. The sharp outer edge of the δ ring is in 23:22 resonance with Cordelia. The δ ring consists of two components: a narrow optically dense component and a broad inward shoulder with low optical depth. The width of the narrow component is 4.1–6.1 km and the equivalent depth is about 2.2 km, which corresponds to a normal optical depth of about 0.3–0.6. The ring's broad component is about 10–12 km wide and its equivalent depth is close to 0.3 km, indicating a low normal optical depth of 3 × 10. This is known only from occultation data because "Voyager 2's" imaging experiment failed to resolve the δ ring. When observed in forward-scattering geometry by "Voyager 2", the δ ring appeared relatively bright, which is compatible with the presence of dust in its broad component. The broad component is geometrically thicker than the narrow component. This is supported by the observations of a ring plane-crossing event in 2007, when the δ ring remained visible, which is consistent with the behavior of a simultaneously geometrically thick and optically thin ring.

γ ring.

The γ ring is narrow, optically dense and slightly eccentric. Its orbital inclination is almost zero. The width of the ring varies in the range 3.6–4.7 km, although equivalent optical depth is constant at 3.3 km. The normal optical depth of the γ ring is 0.7–0.9. During a ring plane-crossing event in 2007 the γ ring disappeared, which means it is geometrically thin like the ε ring and devoid of dust. The width and normal optical depth of the γ ring show significant azimuthal variations. The mechanism of confinement of such a narrow ring is not known, but it has been noticed that the sharp inner edge of the γ ring is in a 6:5 resonance with Ophelia.

η ring.

The η ring has zero orbital eccentricity and inclination. Like the δ ring, it consists of two components: a narrow optically dense component and a broad outward shoulder with low optical depth. The width of the narrow component is 1.9–2.7 km and the equivalent depth is about 0.42 km, which corresponds to the normal optical depth of about 0.16–0.25. The broad component is about 40 km wide and its equivalent depth is close to 0.85 km, indicating a low normal optical depth of 2 × 10. It was resolved in "Voyager 2" images. In forward-scattered light, the η ring looked bright, which indicated the presence of a considerable amount of dust in this ring, probably in the broad component. The broad component is much thicker (geometrically) than the narrow one. This conclusion is supported by the observations of a ring plane-crossing event in 2007, when the η ring demonstrated increased brightness, becoming the second brightest feature in the ring system. This is consistent with the behavior of a geometrically thick but simultaneously optically thin ring. Like the majority of other rings, the η ring shows significant azimuthal variations in the normal optical depth and width. The narrow component even vanishes in some places.

α and β rings.

After the ε ring, the α and β rings are the brightest of Uranus's rings. Like the ε ring, they exhibit regular variations in brightness and width. They are brightest and widest 30° from the apoapsis and dimmest and narrowest 30° from the periapsis. The α and β rings have sizable orbital eccentricity and non-negligible inclination. The widths of these rings are 4.8–10 km and 6.1–11.4 km, respectively. The equivalent optical depths are 3.29 km and 2.14 km, resulting in normal optical depths of 0.3–0.7 and 0.2–0.35, respectively. During a ring plane-crossing event in 2007 the rings disappeared, which means they are geometrically thin like the ε ring and devoid of dust. The same event revealed a thick and optically thin dust band just outside the β ring, which was also observed earlier by "Voyager 2". The masses of the α and β rings are estimated to be about 5 kg (each)—half the mass of the ε ring.

Rings 6, 5 and 4.

Rings 6, 5 and 4 are the innermost and dimmest of Uranus's narrow rings. They are the most inclined rings, and their orbital eccentricities are the largest excluding the ε ring. In fact, their inclinations (0.06°, 0.05° and 0.03°) were large enough for "Voyager 2" to observe their elevations above the Uranian equatorial plane, which were 24–46 km. Rings 6, 5 and 4 are also the narrowest rings of Uranus, measuring 1.6–2.2 km, 1.9–4.9 km and 2.4–4.4 km wide, respectively. Their equivalent depths are 0.41 km, 0.91 and 0.71 km resulting in normal optical depth 0.18–0.25, 0.18–0.48 and 0.16–0.3. They were not visible during a ring plane-crossing event in 2007 due to their narrowness and lack of dust.

Dusty rings.

λ ring.

The λ ring was one of two rings discovered by "Voyager 2" in 1986. It is a narrow, faint ring located just inside the ε ring, between it and the shepherd moon Cordelia. This moon clears a dark lane just inside the λ ring. When viewed in back-scattered light, the λ ring is extremely narrow—about 1–2 km—and has the equivalent optical depth 0.1–0.2 km at the wavelength 2.2 μm. The normal optical depth is 0.1–0.2. The optical depth of the λ ring shows strong wavelength dependence, which is atypical for the Uranian ring system. The equivalent depth is as high as 0.36 km in the ultraviolet part of the spectrum, which explains why λ ring was initially detected only in UV stellar occultations by "Voyager 2". The detection during a stellar occultation at the wavelength 2.2 μm was only announced in 1996.  The appearance of the λ ring changed dramatically when it was observed in forward-scattered light in 1986. In this geometry the ring became the brightest feature of the Uranian ring system, outshining the ε ring. This observation, together with the wavelength dependence of the optical depth, indicates that the λ ring contains significant amount of micrometre-sized dust. The normal optical depth of this dust is 10–10. Observations in 2007 by the Keck telescope during the ring plane-crossing event confirmed this conclusion, because the λ ring became one of the brightest features in the Uranian ring system.  Detailed analysis of the "Voyager 2" images revealed azimuthal variations in the brightness of the λ ring. The variations appear to be periodic, resembling a standing wave. The origin of this fine structure in the λ ring remains a mystery.

1986U2R/ζ ring.

In 1986 "Voyager 2" detected a broad and faint sheet of material inward of ring 6. This ring was given the temporary designation 1986U2R. It had a normal optical depth of 10 or less and was extremely faint. It was visible only in a single "Voyager 2" image. The ring was located between 37,000 and 39,500 km from the centre of Uranus, or only about 12,000 km above the clouds. It was not observed again until 2003–2004, when the Keck telescope found a broad and faint sheet of material just inside ring 6. This ring was dubbed the ζ ring. The position of the recovered ζ ring differs significantly from that observed in 1986. Now it is situated between 37,850 and 41,350 km from the centre of the planet. There is an inward gradually fading extension reaching to at least 32,600 km, or possibly even to 27,000 km—to the atmosphere of Uranus. These extensions are labelled as the ζ and ζ rings respectively.  The ζ ring was observed again during the ring plane-crossing event in 2007 when it became the brightest feature of the ring system, outshining all other rings combined. The equivalent optical depth of this ring is near 1 km (0.6 km for the inward extension), while the normal optical depth is again less than 10. Rather different appearances of the 1986U2R and ζ rings may be caused by different viewing geometries: back-scattering geometry in 2003–2007 and side-scattering geometry in 1986. Changes during the past 20 years in the distribution of dust, which is thought to predominate in the ring, cannot be ruled out.

Other dust bands.

In addition to the 1986U2R/ζ and λ rings, there are other extremely faint dust bands in the Uranian ring system. They are invisible during occultations because they have negligible optical depth, though they are bright in forward-scattered light. "Voyager 2"'s images of forward-scattered light revealed the existence of bright dust bands between the λ and δ rings, between the η and β rings, and between the α ring and ring 4. Many of these bands were detected again in 2003–2004 by the Keck Telescope and during the 2007 ring-plane crossing event in backscattered light, but their precise locations and relative brightnesses were different from during the "Voyager" observations. The normal optical depth of the dust bands is about 10 or less. The dust particle size distribution is thought to obey a power law with the index "p" = 2.5 ± 0.5.  In addition to separate dust bands the system of Uranian rings appears to be immersed into wide and faint sheet of dust with the normal optical depth not exceeding 10.

Outer ring system.

In 2003–2005, the Hubble Space Telescope detected a pair of previously unknown rings, now called the outer ring system, which brought the number of known Uranian rings to 13. These rings were subsequently named the μ and ν rings. The μ ring is the outermost of the pair, and is twice the distance from the planet as the bright η ring. The outer rings differ from the inner narrow rings in a number of respects. They are broad, 17,000 and 3,800 km wide, respectively, and very faint. Their peak normal optical depths are 8.5 × 10 and 5.4 × 10, respectively. The resulting equivalent optical depths are 0.14 km and 0.012 km. The rings have triangular radial brightness profiles.  The peak brightness of the μ ring lies almost exactly on the orbit of the small Uranian moon Mab, which is probably the source of the ring’s particles. The ν ring is positioned between Portia and Rosalind and does not contain any moons inside it. A reanalysis of the "Voyager 2" images of forward-scattered light clearly reveals the μ and ν rings. In this geometry the rings are much brighter, which indicates that they contain much micrometer-sized dust. The outer rings of Uranus may be similar to the G and E rings of Saturn as E ring is extremely broad and receives dust from Enceladus.  The μ ring may consist entirely of dust, without any large particles at all. This hypothesis is supported by observations performed by the Keck telescope, which failed to detect the μ ring in the near infrared at 2.2 μm, but detected the ν ring. This failure means that the μ ring is blue in color, which in turn indicates that very small (submicrometer) dust predominates within it. The dust may be made of water ice. In contrast, the ν ring is slightly red in color.

Dynamics and origin.

An outstanding problem concerning the physics governing the narrow Uranian rings is their confinement. Without some mechanism to hold their particles together, the rings would quickly spread out radially. The lifetime of the Uranian rings without such a mechanism cannot be more than 1 million years. The most widely cited model for such confinement, proposed initially by Goldreich and Tremaine, is that a pair of nearby moons, outer and inner shepherds, interact gravitationally with a ring and act like sinks and donors, respectively, for excessive and insufficient angular momentum (or equivalently, energy). The shepherds thus keep ring particles in place, but gradually move away from the ring themselves. To be effective, the masses of the shepherds should exceed the mass of the ring by at least a factor of two to three. This mechanism is known to be at work in the case of the ε ring, where Cordelia and Ophelia serve as shepherds. Cordelia is also the outer shepherd of the δ ring, and Ophelia is the outer shepherd of the γ ring. No moon larger than 10 km is known in the vicinity of other rings. The current distance of Cordelia and Ophelia from the ε ring can be used to estimate the ring’s age. The calculations show that the ε ring cannot be older than 600 million years.  Since the rings of Uranus appear to be young, they must be continuously renewed by the collisional fragmentation of larger bodies. The estimates show that the lifetime against collisional disruption of a moon with the size like that of Puck is a few billion years. The lifetime of a smaller satellite is much shorter. Therefore, all current inner moons and rings can be products of disruption of several Puck-sized satellites during the last four and half billion years. Every such disruption would have started a collisional cascade that quickly ground almost all large bodies into much smaller particles, including dust. Eventually the majority of mass was lost, and particles survived only in positions that were stabilized by mutual resonances and shepherding. The end product of such a disruptive evolution would be a system of narrow rings. A few moonlets must still be embedded within the rings at present. The maximum size of such moonlets is probably around 10 km.  The origin of the dust bands is less problematic. The dust has a very short lifetime, 100–1000 years, and should be continuously replenished by collisions between larger ring particles, moonlets and meteoroids from outside the Uranian system. The belts of the parent moonlets and particles are themselves invisible due to their low optical depth, while the dust reveals itself in forward-scattered light. The narrow main rings and the moonlet belts that create dust bands are expected to differ in particle size distribution. The main rings have more centimeter to meter-sized bodies. Such a distribution increases the surface area of the material in the rings, leading to high optical density in back-scattered light. In contrast, the dust bands have relatively few large particles, which results in low optical depth.

Exploration.

The rings were thoroughly investigated by the Voyager 2 spacecraft in January 1986. Two new faint rings—λ and 1986U2R—were discovered bringing the total number then known to eleven. Rings were studied by analyzing results of radio, ultraviolet and optical occultations. "Voyager 2" observed the rings in different geometries relative to the sun, producing images with back-scattered, forward-scattered and side-scattered light. Analysis of these images allowed derivation of the complete phase function, geometrical and Bond albedo of ring particles. Two rings—ε and η—were resolved in the images revealing a complicated fine structure. Analysis of Voyager's images also led to discovery of eleven inner moons of Uranus, including the two shepherd moons of the ε ring—Cordelia and Ophelia.

List of properties.

This table summarizes the properties of the planetary ring system of Uranus.

The rings of Uranus are a system of rings around the planet Uranus, intermediate in complexity between the more extensive set around Saturn and the simpler systems around Jupiter and Neptune. The rings of Uranus were discovered on March 10, 1977, by James L. Elliot, Edward W. Dunham, and Jessica Mink. William Herschel had also reported observing rings in 1789; modern astronomers are divided on whether he could have seen them, as they are very dark and faint.

Les anneaux d’Uranus sont un système d’anneaux de la planète Uranus, moins complexes que les anneaux de Saturne, mais plus élaborés que ceux de Jupiter ou de Neptune. Ils ont été découverts le par James L. Elliot, Edward W. Dunham et Douglas J. Mink. Près de deux siècles auparavant, l'astronome William Herschel avait déjà rapporté l’observation d’anneaux, mais les astronomes modernes doutent que les anneaux sombres et ténus aient pu être vus à cette époque. Deux anneaux supplémentaires ont été découverts en 1986 grâce aux images prises par la sonde spatiale "Voyager 2", puis deux anneaux externes, en 2003-2005, sur les photos du télescope spatial Hubble.


Process.

Case-based reasoning has been formalized for purposes of computer reasoning as a four-step process:

Comparison to other methods.

At first glance, CBR may seem similar to the rule induction algorithms of machine learning. Like a rule-induction algorithm, CBR starts with a set of cases or training examples; it forms generalizations of these examples, albeit implicit ones, by identifying commonalities between a retrieved case and the target problem.  If for instance a procedure for plain pancakes is mapped to blueberry pancakes, a decision is made to use the same basic batter and frying method, thus implicitly generalizing the set of situations under which the batter and frying method can be used. The key difference, however, between the implicit generalization in CBR and the generalization in rule induction lies in when the generalization is made. A rule-induction algorithm draws its generalizations from a set of training examples before the target problem is even known; that is, it performs eager generalization.  For instance, if a rule-induction algorithm were given recipes for plain pancakes, Dutch apple pancakes, and banana pancakes as its training examples, it would have to derive, at training time, a set of general rules for making all types of pancakes. It would not be until testing time that it would be given, say, the task of cooking blueberry pancakes. The difficulty for the rule-induction algorithm is in anticipating the different directions in which it should attempt to generalize its training examples. This is in contrast to CBR, which delays (implicit) generalization of its cases until testing time – a strategy of lazy generalization. In the pancake example, CBR has already been given the target problem of cooking blueberry pancakes; thus it can generalize its cases exactly as needed to cover this situation. CBR therefore tends to be a good approach for rich, complex domains in which there are myriad ways to generalize a case.  In law, there is often explicit delegation of CBR to courts, recognizing the limits of rule based reasons: limiting delay, limited knowledge of future context, limit of negotiated agreement, etc. While CBR in law and cognitively inspired CBR have long been associated, the former is more clearly an interpolation of rule based reasoning, and judgment, while the latter is more closely tied to recall and process adaptation. The difference is clear in their attitude toward error and appellate review.

Criticism.

Critics of CBR argue that it is an approach that accepts anecdotal evidence as its main operating principle. Without statistically relevant data for backing and implicit generalization, there is no guarantee that the generalization is correct. However, all inductive reasoning where data is too scarce for statistical relevance is inherently based on anecdotal evidence. There is recent work that develops CBR within a statistical framework and formalizes case-based inference as a specific type of probabilistic inference; thus, it becomes possible to produce case-based predictions equipped with a certain level of confidence. One description of the difference between CBR and induction from instances is that statistical inference aims to find what tends to make cases similar while CBR aims to encode what suffices to claim similarly.

History.

CBR traces its roots to the work of Roger Schank and his students at Yale University in the early 1980s. Schank's model of dynamic memory was the basis for the earliest CBR systems: Janet Kolodner's CYRUS and Michael Lebowitz's IPP.  Other schools of CBR and closely allied fields emerged in the 1980s, which directed at topics such as legal reasoning, memory-based reasoning (a way of reasoning from examples on massively parallel machines), and combinations of CBR with other reasoning methods. In the 1990s, interest in CBR grew internationally, as evidenced by the establishment of an International Conference on Case-Based Reasoning in 1995, as well as European, German, British, Italian, and other CBR workshops.  CBR technology has resulted in the deployment of a number of successful systems, the earliest being Lockheed's CLAVIER, a system for laying out composite parts to be baked in an industrial convection oven. CBR has been used extensively in help desk applications such as the Compaq SMART system and has found a major application area in the health sciences.  "An earlier version of the above article was posted on Nupedia."

Case-based reasoning (CBR), broadly construed, is the process of solving new problems based on the solutions of similar past problems. An auto mechanic who fixes an engine by recalling another car that exhibited similar symptoms is using case-based reasoning. A lawyer who advocates a particular outcome in a trial based on legal precedents or a judge who creates case law is using case-based reasoning. So, too, an engineer copying working elements of nature (practicing biomimicry), is treating nature as a database of solutions to problems. Case-based reasoning is a prominent type of analogy solution making.

Le raisonnement à partir de cas (RàPC) (nommé en anglais case-based reasoning (CBR)) est un type de raisonnement qui copie le comportement humain qui consiste à faire naturellement appel à l'expérience pour résoudre les problèmes de la vie quotidienne, en se remémorant les situations semblables déjà rencontrées et en les comparant à la situation actuelle pour construire une nouvelle solution qui, à son tour, s’ajoutera à l'expérience.