"S" Is for Silence, Plot summary
Winston admits to originally hiding the fact that he saw the Bel Air abandoned on an offbeat road. While visiting with Daisy's friend Tannie, whose property overlooks the road, Kinsey spots an oblong depression in the soil and correctly theorizes that the car, along with Violet, is buried beneath. The curtain Violet is wrapped in initially implicates her husband Foley, as he ripped them off the window during a fight the couple had the previous day.


"S" Is for Silence, Plot summary
However, Kinsey is able to confirm that he could not have spent the 24 hours digging the hole as he was in prison for public drunkenness the previous night and assisted the local sergeant with a woodworking project upon being released the next day. On a final hunch, Kinsey tracks down the breeder of Violet's dog and finds the name of the killer, Tom Padgett, who gave her the dog to try to subdue her for a loan to start up his heavy equipment business.


"S" Is for Silence, Plot summary
The plot differs from other novels in the "Alphabet Mystery" series in that it switches perspective between Violet and Kinsey, and switches the period between 1953 and 1987. Grafton would again use this narrative device in the next instalment, "T" is for Trespass.


"S" Is for Silence, Reviews
In December 2005, this novel topped The New York Times best-seller list for hardcover fiction. By December 2006, there were 1.2 million copies in print.


"S" Is for Silence, Spoofs
The Great News episode "Carol Has A Bully" features a spoof version of this novel, renaming it S Is For Sex Murder.


"Scarface" John Williams
"Scarface" John Williams (October 19, 1938 – March 4, 1972) was an American R&B singer and Mardi Gras Indian. He performed with the New Orleans band Huey "Piano" Smith and the Clowns.


"Scarface" John Williams, Early years
John Williams was born October 19, 1938, to Mary Palmer, aged sixteen from Port Allen, Louisiana. Mary was forced to give the infant away at five days old to Adelle "Della" Gatlin Williams. He was raised by Della and her husband Lucius Williams on Terpsichore Street in uptown New Orleans. According to John Williams' daughter Deborah, "Lucius was a laborer. John's mother Adelle influenced him musically because she sang and played guitar and piano. It was told to me that she once played piano for Mahalia Jackson.


"Scarface" John Williams, Early years
My father's mother was very religious and only sang gospel music, sometimes on street corners in the French Quarter. She never recorded, just travelled everywhere to spread the gospel." Deborah Williams related to author John Broven, "I think my grandmother influenced John the most because my mother, Mary Marks, said that my grandmother told my father, 'You are meant to sing', and she didn't want him to have a regular job – she didn't want him to do anything but just that. By the age of 18 he was performing.


"Scarface" John Williams, Early years
John Williams had a scar that ran from his eye to his chin that was the origin of his nickname. Huey "Piano" Smith said later that the scar proved useful one night when a promoter came up short with the group's money. Smith recalled the promoter told him, "I'm go' pay you now, because, see, first of all my boys are scared of y'all boys, especially the one with the scar on his face!" The scar was the consequence of being hit by a car when he was a small boy.


"Scarface" John Williams, Career
Huey Smith recruited eighteen-year-old "Scarface" John Williams and Sidney Rayfield (Huey's barber) to join him and sometime vocalist Bobby Marchan in the newly formed Huey Smith and the Clowns. The band was signed to a long-term contract with Ace Records. In early 1957, Huey recorded the song with which he's most identified – "Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu". On the session, in addition to Smith on piano, were sax man Lee Allen, Earl King on guitar, Frank Fields on bass, and Charles "Hungry" Williams on drums. Not caring for the sound of his own voice, Huey instructed John Williams to move nearer to the mic. "Get in closer John," he said. "I'm trying to get a hit out of this."


"Scarface" John Williams, Career
A parade of musicians moved through the ranks of the Clowns. Williams, who was also a Mardi Gras Indian, sang lead or back-up vocals in various Clown configurations. Huey Smith had an open-minded approach to who sang lead vocals. "Some things like 'Beatnik Blues', 'Genevieve', I figure John Williams can do better than Bobby (Marchan)," Huey said. Williams was the lead singer on other songs for Huey, including "Tu-Ber-Cu-Lucas And The Sinus Blues", and "Quit My Job".


"Scarface" John Williams, Career
He sang with Bobby Marchan on "Don't You Just Know It", Gerri Hall on "Would You Believe It (I Have A Cold)" and "Pop-Eye", as well as on "Just A Lonely Clown", "For Crying Out Loud", "Scald-Dog", and "Talk To Me Baby". Huey Smith and the Clowns, including Williams, recorded the massive two-sided hit "High Blood Pressure" and "Don't You Just Know It", which stayed thirteen weeks on the Hot 100, the latter climbing to #9. It was one of the biggest records of 1958.


"Scarface" John Williams, Career
Williams was among the many Clowns who left to pursue a solo career, including Curley Moore, Gerri Hall, Bobby Marchan, Issachar "Junior" "Izzycoo" Gordon, and Raymond Lewis among others. John Williams, James Black, and Eugene Harris left the Clowns in the early 1960s to form the Tick-Tocks. They first recorded with Bobby Marchan as Bobby Marchan and the Tick Tocks for Bobby Robinson's Fury Records in 1960. In 1962 they recorded for Robinson's Enjoy Records as the Tick-Tocks, and Rush Records as Johnny Williams and the Tic Tocs.


"Scarface" John Williams, Career
From 1966 through 1967 John Williams & the Tick Tocks recorded for Allen Toussaint and Marshall Sehorn's Sansu Records. Deacon John Moore, who worked with Huey Smith and the Clowns also gigged with the Tick-Tocks at the Dew Drop Inn. "The Tick-Tocks did all the Clowns' songs and some Coaster songs," Moore said. They were like a show group. They had crazy antics and a lot of good choreography, a lot of tumble sets and splits. They would come out in costumes. Some would be dressed as women." Harold Battiste who recorded the Tick Tocks for New Orleans' AFO Records remembered they were "very energetic on stage". At the time, the Tick Tocks comprised John Williams, Eugene Harris, Alvin Carter and a young Walter "Wolfman" Washington.


"Scarface" John Williams, Career
A new Huey Smith and the Clowns recording of "Rocking Pneumonia"- featuring original vocalist "Scarface" John Williams- came out on Atlantic Records subsidiary label Cotillion Records in 1972. It had been recorded along with remakes "High Blood Pressure", "Don't You Just Know It", and "We Like Mambo" in 1970. Williams, was a member of the Apache Hunters Mardi Gras Indian tribe, and "We Like Mambo" contained Indian references.


"Scarface" John Williams, Big Chief
It was "Scarface" John Williams who contributed the trademark "Mardi Gras" sound to Huey Smith's records. He was a founding member, and later Big Chief, of the Apache Hunters Mardi Gras Indian tribe. Howard Miller, Chief of the Creole Wild West Indians, remembered that as a twelve-year-old he knew a little bit about the Mardi Gras Indian tradition. A few neighborhood kids were participants, including one friend. "I didn't know he masked Indian until I saw him and I stayed with him all day," he said.


"Scarface" John Williams, Big Chief
"A lot of times, back in the 1960s, they didn't tell you nothing about that they were masking. Everything was sealed in that sacred secret mode." Miller told his companion he wanted to mask Indian and his friend said he would take him to meet his chief. "I would go around there (by chief's house) but they never would let me in, and in fact they wouldn't let me in the yard," Miller recalled with a laugh. He finally entered the yard and then went onto the porch.


"Scarface" John Williams, Big Chief
"I'm looking through the screen door and I'm seeing all this magical stuff going on in there." It then started to rain and Miller heard the chief say, "Is that boy still on the porch?' and he finally asked him in. The chief, John 'Scarface' 'Crazy Horse' Williams, had knocked over some beads and Miller offered to pick them up and also sweep the floor. Then the chief said the words the youngster had been longing to hear, "So you want to mask Indian." "That's the chief who gave me my first feather and made me an Indian."


"Scarface" John Williams, Brother John Is Gone
The song "Brother John", first recorded by the Wild Tchoupitoulas, was adapted from street lore by Cyril Neville as a eulogy to "Scarface" John Williams. Chief Jolly (George Landry) of the Wild Tchoupitoulas stated that it was in 1972 that Williams "got stabbed to death outside a bar at St. Andrew and Rampart. It was right after Carnival when he died. So they made up a song about him, just made up- out in the streets." New Orleans musician Aaron Neville said, "I was close with Scarface when we were teens.


"Scarface" John Williams, Brother John Is Gone
He sang with Huey 'Piano' Smith and the Clowns in the early 1950s and then with the Tick Tocks—significant R&B groups in New Orleans. Scarface and I hung out a lot at the Dew Drop Inn on LaSalle Street. His death was a big blow, not only because he was a well-known musician but also because he was the Big Chief of the Mo Hawk Hunters (Apache Hunters) and a friend of our uncle, Big Chief Jolly." "In the case of 'Brother John'", Cyril Neville noted, "I wrote the lyrics in the early '70s with my Uncle Jolly.


"Scarface" John Williams, Brother John Is Gone
They're set to a song with an African rhythm that was popular with every Mardi Gras Indian tribe then. James "Sugar Boy" Crawford was first to popularize this rhythm on his 1954 hit 'Jock-a-Mo.' I wrote 'Brother John's' lyrics with my uncle as a tribute to a friend—John 'Scarface' Williams—who had been killed a short time earlier." Art Neville added, "My three brothers and I were all singers and musicians, but we didn't officially come together as a group until 1976, when we sang back-up harmony on 'The Wild Tchoupitoulas' --my Uncle Jolly's album.


"Scarface" John Williams, Brother John Is Gone
It was named after his tribe and featured Mardi Gras Indian call-and-response chants. Members of the New Orleans band the Meters were on there, and it was co-produced by Allen Toussaint. That's the first time we recorded Cyril's 'Brother John'." Mac Rebennack remembered, "'Scar' John was a special cat. He saved my life one time. We were standing outside the Robin Hood Club listening to Little Miss Cornshucks when he suddenly said, 'Look out, man.' So I looked out and half a St. Louis brick came sailing past my head. All the Nevilles singing about him was special on that record."


"Scarface" John Williams, Brother John Is Gone
Cyril Neville's lyrics refer to "Brother John" as "a mighty brave, with a heart of steel" who "never would bow and he never would kneel." The reference to Cora in the song refers to "Corrine Died On The Battlefield" a song by Danny Barker, based on a story Barker had heard of a woman killed in a much earlier Indian altercation. According to Paul Longpre, former Chief of the Golden Blades, Cora Anne was a Queen who masked with the Battlefield Hunters. "She got killed in '27 or '28 at the Magnolia bridge... She got caught in a crossfire between the Hunters and the Wild Squatoolas." "There have been many songs about John", said Cyril Neville, "I hope mine expressed that weird mixture of violence and beauty that was part of our R&B street life".


"Scarface" John Williams, Brother John Is Gone
On March 4, 1972, just eighteen days after Mardi Gras, "Scarface" John Williams, the 33-year-old chief of the Apache Hunters, was stabbed in the heart as he tried to stop a fight at a Dryades St. bar in New Orleans. The incident happened a few blocks from Sidney Rayfield's barbershop. Rayfield ran to the scene and lifted his fellow Clown from the gutter. Williams, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reported on March 5, 1972, "wounded in the chest and neck, was pronounced dead on the scene. A seven-inch butcher knife was used." John's wife, Mary, remembered seeing his body lying by a street drainage portal. "The blood was running down the drain," she said. "The blood stayed in that spot for years. Even the rain didn't wash it away."


"Scarface" John Williams, Brother John Is Gone
The funeral procession for Williams was described in the Times-Picayune as "not unlike a traditional jazz funeral", and included the Apache Hunters, Wild Magnolias, Golden Stars, White Eagles,and Yellow Pocahontas tribes accompanying his body from Fourth and Daneel streets to Melpomene and S. Claiborne Avenues. The musical accompaniment was by Mardi Gras Indians chanting and the rhythm of tambourines. The Times-Picayune reported "an improvised jazz band joined in" at the conclusion with a rendition of "Just A Closer Walk With Thee". The procession also stopped to chant and dance at the bar where the chief was slain. "We gonna do our thing outside where he got killed," Golden Star Indian Warren Williams told a Times-Picayune reporter. "Scarface" John Williams was buried in Providence Memorial Cemetery.


"Scarface" John Williams, Discography
– Snoopin' And Accusing' b/w This Is The Life by Bobby Marchan and the Tick Tocks-  Fire 1014 (1960)


"Scarface" John Williams, Discography
– Stop b/w True By You by the Tic Tocs featuring Johnny Williams-  Rush 1042 (1961)


"Scarface" John Williams, Discography
– Mary b/w I'm Gonna Get You Yet by the Tick Tocks-  Enjoy 1006 (1962)


"Scarface" John Williams, Discography
– A Little Tighter b/w Operation Heartache by John Williams and the Tick Tocks-  Sansu 459 (1966)


"Scarface" John Williams, Discography
– Blues, Tears And Sorrow b/w Do Me Like You Do Me by John Williams and the Tick Tocks-  Sansu 472 (1967)


"Scarface" John Williams, Discography
– Mary and Is It Too Late from Gumbo Stew (Original A.F.O. New Orleans R&B) Ace U.K. CDCHD 450 (1993)


"Scarface" John Williams, Discography
– Gonna Get You Yet from More Gumbo Stew (More A.F.O. New Orleans R&B) Ace U.K.  CDCHD 462 (1993)


"Scarface" John Williams, Discography
– Somebody's Got To Go from Still Spicy Gumbo Stew (Original A.F.O. New Orleans R&B) Ace U.K. CDCHD 520 (1994)


"Scarface" John Williams, Discography
– Do Me Like You Do Me, Operation Heartache, A Little Tighter, and Blues, Tears and Sorrow from Get Low Down! The Soul of New Orleans '65–'67 Sundazed SC 11094 (2001)


"Shariah Police" incident in Wuppertal, Germany (2014)
Hardline Salafist Muslims  patrolled the streets of Wuppertal, a city in the west of Germany, to "influence and recruit young people", according to local police. Dressed in bright orange reflective vests with "Shariah Police" printed on the back, the male patrollers loitered around discotheques and gambling houses, telling passers-by to refrain from gambling and alcohol. Wuppertal's police have pressed charges.


"Shariah Police" incident in Wuppertal, Germany (2014)
A German Salafist posted on YouTube a propaganda video showing a poster with the English headline "Shariah Controlled Zone", followed by images of Salafists recruiting young people and visiting gambling houses. Joerg Rademacher, spokesman for the interior ministry, said the video was "a new provocation and part of the Salafist propaganda, which shows that the scene does not acknowledge Germany's rule of law". Officials of Northrhein-Westphalia say there are about 1,800 Salafists in the state, of whom 10 percent are considered to be violent extremists. Justice Minister, Heiko Maas, told Bild that "the state alone" was responsible for the administration of justice in Germany, and any illegal parallel system of law enforcement would not be tolerated.


"Shariah Police" incident in Wuppertal, Germany (2014)
The 33-year-old behind the Wuppertal patrols, former fireman and one of the leaders of the German Salafist movement Sven Lau, published a video on his website, claiming that the men involved had simply worn mock uniforms for a few hours and that "Sharia police" never existed. "We knew that this would raise attention," Lau said, claiming that his goal was to spark a debate about Sharia law in Germany.


"Shariah Police" incident in Wuppertal, Germany (2014)
Eight of the men involved in the patrols were later prosecuted under a law that bans wearing uniforms to convey a common political conviction.


"Shariah Police" incident in Wuppertal, Germany (2014)
In November 2016, the court ruled that the actions of the "sharia police" was legal under Germany's free speech laws and that their orange vests were not "suggestively militant or intimidating" uniforms.


"Shariah Police" incident in Wuppertal, Germany (2014)
Later in 2020 the German Supreme Court (Bundesgerichtshof) overruled that decision and ruled that wearing the sharia uniforms was a violation of German law ( § 3 Abs. 1, § 28VersammlG) and sentenced the participants accordingly.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly
"Shotgun Tom" Kelly (August 8, 1949) is an American radio and television personality, two-time Emmy award winner, Billboard Air Personality of the Year winner and recipient of a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly
Born in San Diego as Thomas Joseph Irwin, Kelly worked  at KDEO, KPRI, KGB, KCBQ, KOGO, KBZS and KFMB-FM before replacing the late Don Steele in the afternoon slot at Los Angeles oldies station KRTH-FM, K-Earth 101. In August 2015, Kelly was taken off the air and became KRTH's "Ambassador," doing personal appearances throughout Southern California. He eventually returned to the air as a weekend host. Kelly exited KRTH in November 2016. In September 2018, Kelly debuted on SiriusXM Satellite Radio's '60s On 6 channel.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, Early life
Thomas Joseph Irwin was born in San Diego, California at Mercy Hospital. He attended Our Lady of the Sacred Heart and Saint John of the Cross parochial schools for his elementary years. He attended Mount Miguel High School and was the announcer for the morning bulletin. In high school, he joined Junior Achievement which had a radio show on KOGO.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, Early life
At ten, his mother, La Von Irwin (née Driscoll), mentioned to Tom that there was a disc jockey doing a radio show in a shopping center in Lemon Grove, California. The disc jockey was Frank Thompson on KOGO-AM, who saw the young Tom Irwin looking through the window and interviewed him on the air. Following that experience, Tom became fascinated with radio shows, even putting together his own mock radio studio in his bedroom.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, Early life
A few years later, 13 year-old Tom went to other radio stations and watched the disc jockeys on the air. Tom visited Radio KDEO where he met program director "Sunny Jim" Price, who wanted to get a teenager's opinion of a song he was considering adding to the playlist. Price played the song for Tom, who liked it. The song was "California Dreamin'" by The Mamas & The Papas. Radio KDEO was the first station in the country to play it. Price gave Tom his first job at a radio station helping with remote broadcasts.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, Early career – 1960s
In 1966, at the age of 16, Tom was hired by Program Director George Manning to work on Sunday mornings at KPRI-FM 106.5 in San Diego, playing "beautiful music" and standards. Every Sunday morning, he also did a children's radio show, "The Uncle Tommy Show", and played recordings from Disney Records. After high school, he attended the William B. Ogden Radio Operational Engineering school. He graduated in 1969 with his FCC First Class radio license and went to work at KYOS in Merced, California.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, 1970s
At 21, Tom worked at KACY in Port Hueneme, California using the name Bobby McAllister. There, he met DJ Dave Conley who named him Bobby "Shotgun" McAllister. Less than a year later, Tom and Dave moved to radio station KAFY in Bakersfield, California. Tom wanted to use his real name, but the general manager did not like the name Irwin, and asked Tom to change his last name on the air to Kelly. Dave Conley suggested the name "Shotgun," from Bobby "Shotgun" McAllister, and they ended up using the name "Shotgun Tom" Kelly. In addition to radio, Tom took a weekend job at television station KERO, and did a television kid's show as NEMO the Clown.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, 1970s
In 1971, Tom was offered an opportunity to return to his hometown, San Diego, California when Charlie Van Dyke hired him at Boss Radio 136/KGB. Less than a year later, he was hired by Buzz Bennett to work at KCBQ. In 1972 Tom returned to 136/KGB.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, 1970s
Shortly thereafter, he joined Buzz Bennett for a job at KRIZ in Phoenix. He returned to San Diego and was on air weekday afternoons at KCBQ. It was while at KCBQ that Tom started wearing his trademark ranger hat.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, 1970s
During this time, he was asked to host the kids' TV game show "Words-A-Poppin" airing on KGTV Channel 10 in San Diego, and syndicated to other cities. He won an Emmy for Words-A-Poppin' that same year.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, 1970s
In 1976, Shotgun Tom hosted a local television show in San Diego called, "Disco 10," which aired on KGTV on Saturdays at 12:30pm. As they would on the more popular, nationally syndicated, "American Bandstand", local high school kids would dance on Disco 10, then get to watch themselves on television at a later date.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, 1970s
In 1976, Tom was hired by Bobby Rich to be the morning man at KFMB-FM, known as "B-100". Tom won the 1976 Billboard Magazine Air Personality of the Year Award and remained at B-100 for the next four years. In 1978, Tom won a second Emmy for Words-A-Poppin'.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, 1980s
While at B100, Kelly was offered a position at KUSI-TV as a booth announcer/on camera children's TV host with cartoons on The KUSI Kids Club. He hosted the KUSI Kids Club for 12 years.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, 1980s
In November 1987, Congressman Duncan Hunter invited Tom to the White House to meet President Ronald Reagan. While visiting, Tom presented the President with one of his trademark ranger hats, which President Reagan donned for a photo op.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, 1980s
In 1989 Mark Larson hired Tom at KFMB-AM to do a radio show from David Cohn's Corvette Diner in Hillcrest, and at The T-Bird Diner in Escondido.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, 1990s
In 1993, Kelly was hired to work at KBZT K-Best-95 in San Diego. In September 1997, he was hired to succeed the late Real Don Steele and work in afternoon drive at KRTH K-Earth 101.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, 2000s
On August 28, 2010, Kelly hosted the dedication of a monument at the former site of the KCBQ building and its six, 200-foot towers. The dedication was attended by over 400 of the radio station's fans and former on air personalities.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, Television
Kelly has appeared on several television stations since the early 1970s. In 1970, he took a weekend job at television station KERO, Bakersfield to host a Saturday morning television kids show as NEMO the Clown. In 1972, Kelly was asked to host Words-A'Poppin', a game show for kids. The show aired in San Diego on KGTV Channel 10, and was also syndicated in several other cities. Kelly went on to win two Emmy Awards as host for the show.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, Television
That same year, Kelly was invited to host the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon; he would serve as host of the telethon for more than 30 years. In 1982, he was offered a position at KUSI-TV as a booth announcer and on-camera host on The KUSI Kids Club. Tom would continue as host of the show for 12 years. He has also served as station announcer for WFLX-TV FOX 29 in West Palm Beach, Florida.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, Voice over
Shotgun Tom's voice is featured in the motion picture Déjà Vu, starring Denzel Washington, and on America's Most Wanted and Spike TV's 1000 Ways to Die.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, Voice over
Tom also did voice work for his hometown San Diego Chargers. Tom's voice could be heard on the Jumbotron during Chargers home games.


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, Voice over
Kelly's voice is heard on Fred Falke's song "Radio Days".


"Shotgun Tom" Kelly, Hollywood Walk of Fame
On April 30, 2013, "Shotgun Tom" Kelly was honored with a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. His star is located adjacent to another K-Earth personality, The Real Don Steele.


"Showtime" Marching Band
"Showtime" is the official name of the marching band at Howard University in Washington, D.C.


"Showtime" Marching Band, History and appearances
The "Showtime" Band performs at all home football contests. In addition to performances at Howard, "Showtime" has a travel schedule that has included performances at numerous NFL games including: the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Jets, Buffalo Bills, Washington Redskins, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Baltimore Ravens, to name a few. These performances have received both national and international attention. Invitations were extended to participate in the 1990 Shrewsbury Music Festival in London, England, the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade in New York, Bermuda Day festivities in Bermuda, and the Inaugural Parade for President Barack Obama.


"Showtime" Marching Band, Rivalries
Showtime maintains rivalries with Hampton University's "The Force" Marching Band, North Carolina A&T's "Blue and Gold Marching Machine," and Morgan State University's "Magnificent Marching Machine."


"Showtime" Marching Band, Eligibility for membership
The "Showtime" Marching Band is open to all Howard University students. Admission into the Marching Band is by audition only. Students interested in joining the Marching band should contact the Director of Bands, Kelvin W. Washington.


"Showtime" Marching Band, Eligibility for membership
Students who are interested in becoming an Auxiliary member of the band (Dancers - Ooh La La! Dance Line, Flag Corps - The Flashy Flags,) should also contact the Director of Bands.


"Showtime" Marching Band, Auditions
Students interested in joining the Marching Band should prepare an audition which contains the following:


"Showtime" Marching Band, Auditions
- Major Scales- Chromatic Scales- A prepared solo which exhibits your best abilities on your instrument.


"Showtime" Marching Band, Auditions
The auxiliary sections hold clinics and auditions twice a year. In the spring, current students (rising sophomores, juniors, seniors) interested in becoming a member must attend the week long clinic and audition before the directors. In the fall, only incoming freshmen and transfer students are eligible to attend the mini-clinic and audition."


"Showtime" Marching Band, Scholarships
Scholarships are available to instrumentalists who have been auditioned by the band directors. Scholarships are also awarded on a per year basis at the discretion of the directors based on playing ability and instrumentation until funds are exhausted.


"Showtime" Marching Band, The Directors
Kelvin W. Washington is a native of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He received both his undergraduate and graduate degrees from Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana in Instrumental Music Education. Currently he is a Doctoral candidate at the American Conservatory of Music in Hammond, Indiana.


"Showtime" Marching Band, The Directors
Mr. Washington began his teaching career at Livonia High School in Louisiana. He later moved to Detroit, Michigan where he was appointed Director of Bands at Nolan Middle School and McKenzie High School in 1987. In 1989 he accepted the position of Chief Arranger and Assistant Director of Bands at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, where he was later appointed Director of Bands.


"Showtime" Marching Band, The Directors
Now in his sixteenth year as the Conductor for the Howard University Concert Band and Associate Director of Bands, Kelvin Washington has served as clinician and adjudicator for a number of school music programs and festivals. As a professional instrumentalist, Mr. Washington has toured across the United States, Canada, Poland, England and Scotland.


"Showtime" Marching Band, The Directors
In addition to his university responsibilities, Mr. Washington serves as Orchestra Director and Arranger for many church ministries within the Washington, DC metropolitan area. He is married to Dianna Washington (née Duckett) of Washington, DC. They have one daughter - SuMayah Flousell Washington."


"Steeplejack" Charles Miller
Steeplejack Charles Miller (1882–1910), nicknamed the Human Fly, was an American man famous for climbing buildings. He began climbing in 1900, and earned a living from his stunts. Miller did not use any climbing equipment. He died after falling sixty feet from the fourth floor of the Hamburger building in Los Angeles in full view of hundreds of spectators, who transported his unconscious body to the hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries.


"Straightaway" Jazz Themes
"Straightaway" Jazz Themes is an album released by Canadian jazz trumpeter Maynard Ferguson containing music composed for the 1961–1962 television series Straightaway. The album was recorded in 1961 and released by Roulette.


"Straightaway" Jazz Themes, Reception
At AllMusic, Scott Yanow gave the album three stars, writing, "this is one of the lesser Maynard recordings from this busy era (none of the material is all that memorable) but fans of his big band should enjoy the somewhat obscure music anyway."


"Sunshine" Sonny Payne
John William Payne (November 29, 1925 – February 10, 2018), better known as "Sunshine" Sonny Payne, was an American radio host, who had presented blues music as the host of the King Biscuit Time radio show on KFFA in Helena, Arkansas from 1951 until his death. In 2010 he was nominated for induction into the Blues Hall of Fame.


"Sunshine" Sonny Payne, Life and career
John William Payne was born in Helena, the son of Gladys Swope Payne and William G. Payne. In 1940 he began working as a paper boy, and met and became friends with blues musicians Robert Lockwood, Jr. and Sonny Boy Williamson. He applied for work at radio station KFFA when it began operating in 1941, and started as a janitor and errand boy at the station two days before broadcasts began.


"Sunshine" Sonny Payne, Life and career
In 1942, in the absence of the station's owner and announcer Sam Anderson, he also began reading commercials on the station's 15-minute slot sponsored by the King Biscuit Flour company, and began learning to play bass. Later that year, he lied about his age and joined the U.S. Army, going on to serve in the 75th Signal Battalion in the Aleutian Islands and New Guinea.


"Sunshine" Sonny Payne, Life and career
He left the armed forces in 1948 in San Antonio, Texas, and joined with guitarist friend Bud Davis to accompany Tex Ritter on tour. He worked as a bass player with Ritter, Harry James and others, touring and working in Chicago until 1951, when he returned to Helena and secured a job as an announcer at KFFA. That year, he began working as host of the King Biscuit Time show.


"Sunshine" Sonny Payne, Life and career
By the time he began regular broadcasting, the show had already won a wide audience as a hugely influential medium for blues in the Delta at a time when little African-American music was heard on the air. Initially, blues musicians such as Sonny Boy Williamson mainly played live in the studio, and later the program switched primarily to playing records. The show's reputation grew over the years to international proportions, enhanced by Sonny Payne's off-the-cuff patter.


"Sunshine" Sonny Payne, Life and career
He gained the nickname "Sunshine" after a grumpy on-air comment about the weather, when taking part one day in a live outside broadcast, was taken up as a running joke by Robert Lockwood Jr. It is currently broadcast from the KFFA studio located in the Delta Cultural Center in Helena. Payne died on February 10, 2018, at the age of 92, having suffered a stroke sometime recently.


"Sunshine" Sonny Payne, Awards
Payne received the George Foster Peabody Award in 1992, for outstanding achievement in the field of radio and broadcast journalism. and twice received the Blues Foundation's Keeping the Blues Alive award. He was inducted into the Blues Foundation's Hall of Fame on May 5, 2010.


"Sweets" for the Sweet
"Sweets" for the Sweet is an album  by trumpeter Harry "Sweets" Edison that was recorded in 1964 and released by the Sue label.


"Sweets" for the Sweet, Critical reception
AllMusic reviewer Ken Dryden stated "Veteran trumpeter Harry "Sweets" Edison is awash in strings on this collection of ballads ... Edison's solos, whether muted or with open horn, are enjoyable, though rather reserved due to the nature of the arrangements. ... this disc will be of minimal interest to jazz fan".


"T" Is for Trespass
"T" Is for Trespass is the 20th novel in Sue Grafton's "Alphabet" series of mystery novels and features Kinsey Millhone, a private eye based in the fictional Santa Teresa, California.


"T" Is for Trespass, Plot summary
Kinsey's cantankerous neighbor Gus is badly injured in a fall and hires Solana Rojas, a private nurse, to help him while he recuperates. Kinsey becomes suspicious when Gus becomes isolated and withdrawn. She finds out that Solana is a con artist who  engages in identity theft. What Kinsey does not know is that Solana is a dangerous sociopath with an accomplice and a history of clients who died under her care. Kinsey works with other neighbors and friends to rescue Gus and expose the con-artist without rousing her suspicions.


"T" Is for Trespass, Plot summary
At the same time, Kinsey investigates a case of possible insurance fraud involving a student who drove into another car. The female passenger in the other car had extensive injuries and she and her husband are suing the student and the insurance company. Kinsey must track down a reluctant witness and use her rather rough charm to get him to come forward.


"T" Is for Trespass, Plot summary
Unlike previous books in this series, this book alternates between two perspectives: that of Kinsey and that of Solana.


"The Above Ground Sound" of Jake Holmes
"The Above Ground Sound" of Jake Holmes is the debut album of American singer songwriter Jake Holmes, released in June 1967 on Tower Records. The album consists of songs played on bass and two electric guitars with no drummer. Both this record and Holmes' subsequent record, A Letter to Katherine December, were not well received and neither made the charts. Holmes played guitar. Tim Irwin also played guitar with Rick Randle on bass.


"The Above Ground Sound" of Jake Holmes, "Dazed and Confused"
The album is best known for the song "Dazed and Confused" because Led Zeppelin released their interpretation of the song on their 1969 debut album Led Zeppelin. Page was familiar with Holmes' song because his previous band, The Yardbirds, had covered the song. The Led Zeppelin song was not credited to Jake Holmes. While Holmes took no action at the time, he did later contact Jimmy Page in regards to the matter but received no reply.


"The Above Ground Sound" of Jake Holmes, "Dazed and Confused"
In June 2010, Holmes filed a lawsuit against the guitarist for copyright infringement in a United States District Court, claiming Page knowingly copied his work. The lawsuit was settled out of court, with future Led Zeppelin releases crediting "Dazed and Confused" to "By Page – Inspired by Jake Holmes. ", and the case was permanently closed.


"The Only Unavoidable Subject of Regret"
"The Only Unavoidable Subject of Regret": George Washington, Slavery and the Enslaved Community at Mount Vernon is a scholarly book on the history of slavery at Mount Vernon during the times of George Washington. Written by Mary V. Thompson, the book was published in the United States in 2019.


"The Only Unavoidable Subject of Regret", Background
Thompson stated that she had worked on the book for "about thirty years, although for a lot of that time, it didn't know that it wanted to be a book."


"The Only Unavoidable Subject of Regret", Topics covered
Thompson's book contains major chapters that focus on topics that include George Washington and Martha Washington as slave owners; George Washington's changes in views about slavery over time; supervisors of slaves who were hired, indentured, or enslaved; family life in Mount Vernon's slave community; the slaves' quarters; the slaves' diets; slaves' recreation and private enterprise; and control and resistance and among Mount Vernon's slaves.


"The Only Unavoidable Subject of Regret", Reviews and influence
Reviews have appeared in the London Review of Books,Journal of Social History, the Washington Independent Review of Books, The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, the Journal of the American Revolution,and Choice.


"The Only Unavoidable Subject of Regret", Reviews and influence
In the London Review of Books, Eric Foner wrote that


"The Only Unavoidable Subject of Regret", Reviews and influence
virtually all the information Thompson draws on comes from whites; as she ruefully notes, 'only occasionally can the voice of one of the slaves be heard.' Nonetheless, her command of the sources makes possible an almost encyclopedic description of theconditions of slave life. What did slaves eat? At Mount Vernon, cornmeal, buttermilk, fish and, at harvest time, meat, supplemented by food grown in their own gardens or stolen from the big house. What clothing did Washington provide?


"The Only Unavoidable Subject of Regret", Reviews and influence
Aside from the livery for domesticslaves, male slaves each year received a wool jacket and two pairs of trousers, two coarse linen shirts and a pair of shoes; females got a jacket, a skirt, a pair of stockings and two linen shifts.... On the much debated question of whether African elements survived in slave culture, Thompson acknowledges that the evidence is scanty but cautiously suggests that some naming practices, religious beliefs and methods of food preparation reflect an African inheritance....


"The Only Unavoidable Subject of Regret", Reviews and influence
In the Washington Independent Review of Books, Henry Wiencek wrote that


"The Only Unavoidable Subject of Regret", Reviews and influence
Drawing upon decades of research and writings as staff historian at Mount Vernon, Mary V. Thompson has, in “The Only Unavoidable Subject of Regret,” produced a superb, moving portrait of the plantation's enslaved community. Thompson's admiration for George and Martha Washington is strong, but her focus is on the enslaved, whose stories she tells vividly and without sentimentality.


"The Only Unavoidable Subject of Regret", Editions
The book was published by in 2019 by University of Virginia Press:


"The Spaghetti Incident?"
"The Spaghetti Incident?" is the fifth studio album by the American hard rock band Guns N' Roses. The album is composed of covers of older punk rock, hard rock, and other songs. "The Spaghetti Incident?" is the only studio album to feature rhythm guitarist Gilby Clarke, who replaced original Guns N' Roses member Izzy Stradlin during the band's Use Your Illusion tour in 1991, as well as the last album to feature guitarist Slash, bassist Duff McKagan and drummer Matt Sorum, following the departure of them in 1996 and 1997, respectively (until the return of Slash and McKagan in 2016). It is also the only Guns N' Roses album not to be promoted with a tour, as well as their final album to date featuring their longtime producer Mike Clink.


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Background
Many of the tracks were recorded with original Guns N' Roses guitarist Izzy Stradlin during the Use Your Illusion I and II sessions and then were later re-recorded with Gilby Clarke. Those tracks were previously intended to be included in a combined Use Your Illusion album, consisting of three (or possibly four) discs, instead of the two separate discs they ended up being.


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Background
In 1992, the band prepared to release the leftover cover tracks as an EP, with Clarke replacing Stradlin's guitar tracks. They later decided on making the album a full release and recorded several more tracks for it. Bassist Duff McKagan sings on many of the album's tracks and Hanoi Rocks frontman Michael Monroe appears on "Ain't It Fun" as a guest vocalist. This was the last Guns N' Roses album to feature lead guitarist Slash, bassist Duff McKagan, drummer Matt Sorum, and the only album to feature Clarke. It was also the band's last studio album for 15 years until Chinese Democracy, and its last album until the live compilation album six years later with Live Era: '87-'93.


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Background
During the studio sessions the band also recorded instrumental tracks of the song titled "Beer and a Cigarette", originally by Hanoi Rocks. The vocals were not recorded and the song was left off the record because the band did not want songwriter Andy McCoy to receive any money. The band also did an instrumental version of the song "Down on the Street" by The Stooges which also was never released.


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Background
On the bottom of the cover art of the album, there is a code written with the Zodiac Killer's symbols, which has been deciphered as "fuck'em all".


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Titling and release
The title references an incident Steven Adler had in 1989 while the band was temporarily staying at an apartment in Chicago. Adler stored his drugs in a refrigerator next to the band's takeout containers, which contained Italian food. McKagan explained that Adler's code word for his stash was 'spaghetti'. In his lawsuit against the band, Adler's lawyer asked the band to "tell us about the spaghetti incident," which the band found amusing and used as the title of the album.


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Titling and release
During a discussion between Rose, Slash and the album's cover designer in the "Making of Estranged" video, it is made clear that the correct form of the title is within quotation marks and with a question mark.


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Titling and release
The album was released shortly after the conclusion of the Use Your Illusion World Tour which had lasted until mid-1993. The vinyl copy of the album was released on orange vinyl, and the CD was released with a design to mimic vinyl, with black concentric rings around the outer edge, and a central circle of a cartoon jack-o-lantern eating spaghetti out of a shocked head in the center (although for the 1997 reissue this was changed to a standard plain silver CD).


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Controversy
An unadvertised cover of the Charles Manson song "Look at Your Game, Girl" was included on the album. The track was kept secret, including not being on advance tapes sent out to reviewers. Band manager Doug Goldstein stated, "There is a bonus track on the album, but Axl wants it to speak for itself" and, "It wasn't done for the critics or anybody else. It was a bonus for the fans." The inclusion of the song caused controversy, with law-enforcement and victims-rights groups expressing outrage over its inclusion.


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Controversy
Rose claimed "the reason we didn't list that song on our album is we wanted to downplay it. We don't give any credit to Charles Manson on the album; it's like a hidden bonus track." The band considered removing the song from new pressings of the album, with David Geffen stating in a phone interview, "I would hope that if Axl Rose had realized how offensive people would find this, he would not have ever recorded this song in the first place.


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Controversy
The fact that Charles Manson would be earning money based on the fame he derived committing one of the most horrific crimes of the 20th century is unthinkable to me." Slash mentioned that the song was "done with naive and innocent black humor on our part". Rose stated he would donate all performance royalties from the song to a nonprofit environmental organization.


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Controversy
Slash stated that the group intended to remove the song before deciding to keep it once they learned that royalties from the song would be donated to Bartek Frykowski, the son of Wojciech Frykowski, a victim of Manson during the Tate Murders. Geffen Records released a statement mentioning their share of royalties would be donated to the Doris Tate Crime Victims Bureau. Years later, Rose said the song would be removed from new pressings of the album, claiming that critics and the media had misinterpreted his interest in Manson.


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Controversy
Rose can be seen wearing a Manson shirt in the video for "Estranged" and during a concert in Milton Keynes, England, in 1993. Rose explained wearing the shirt as "trying to make a statement" because "a lot of people enjoy playing me as the bad guy and the crazy. Sorry, I'm not that guy. I'm nothing like him." Despite the statement that the track would be removed, "Look at Your Game, Girl" is still featured on pressings of the album.


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Live performances
Although Guns N' Roses never toured in support of "The Spaghetti Incident? ", some of the songs were performed live prior to its release. The first track, "Since I Don't Have You", was performed a few times as an intro to songs "Sweet Child o' Mine" or "Paradise City" in 1992 and 1993. "Down on the Farm" was performed once in its full length during the 1990 performance in the Farm Aid IV show. It was also played a few times during the Chinese Democracy Tour in 2006.


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Live performances
The band performed "Hair of the Dog" once in 1988, and again in 1990, during the only known "The Gak" (band featuring members of Guns N' Roses, Metallica and Skid Row) performance. "Attitude" was performed frequently during the Use Your Illusion Tour, and Duff still plays it in Loaded and his solo career. Other songs played live by Duff McKagan are "New Rose", "You Can't Put Your Arms Around a Memory" and "Raw Power".


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Live performances
The other songs were never played live by Guns N' Roses, but might have been played by some of the members' side projects, like Matt Sorum's supergroup Camp Freddy, that plays cover versions of famous songs, as well as Neurotic Outsiders, the supergroup Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum were part of. Guns N' Roses played "Attitude" and - for the first time - "Raw Power" live in Buenos Aires (Argentina) in April 2014 with Duff McKagan on vocals. "Attitude", "Raw Power" and "New Rose" were played during the Not in This Lifetime... Tour.


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Commercial performance and reception
"The Spaghetti Incident?" debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200, selling about 190,000 albums in its first week of release, significantly fewer than their previous releases. The album was certified platinum by RIAA on January 26, 1994.


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Commercial performance and reception
In his review for AllMusic, music critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine said that, "As punk albums go, "The Spaghetti Incident?" lacks righteous anger and rage. As Guns N' Roses albums go, it's a complete delight, returning to the ferocious, hard-rocking days of Appetite for Destruction."


"The Spaghetti Incident?", Certifications
* Sales figures based on certification alone.^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.


"There Are Things I Want You to Know" About Stieg Larsson and Me
"There Are Things I Want You to Know" About Stieg Larsson and Me is a memoir written by Eva Gabrielsson, the life partner of Stieg Larsson, about life with the author and all of the complications surrounding his legacy. Larsson is best known for his posthumously published Millennium series.


"There Are Things I Want You to Know" About Stieg Larsson and Me, Relationship
Gabrielsson and Larsson met when they were 18 at an anti-Vietnam War meeting and they remained together for 32 years until his unexpected death in 2004.


"There Are Things I Want You to Know" About Stieg Larsson and Me, Background and contents
The memoir originated with a series of diary entries that Gabrielsson wrote in order to cope with the loss of her partner. It chronicles their life together and puts Larsson's life into context. The title of the book comes from a love letter that Larsson wrote to Gabrielsson when he thought he might die during a trip to Africa in 1977. The letter is included in the memoir along with the details of Larsson's trip to Africa.


"There Are Things I Want You to Know" About Stieg Larsson and Me, Background and contents
Her partner, she says, was a feminist, a hopeless businessman, a journalist who could not hold down a staff job, and a passionate fighter and investigator for social causes and against the Far Right. The memoir details how the couple met and their struggles together at Expo, the anti-fascist publication Larsson founded in 1995.


"There Are Things I Want You to Know" About Stieg Larsson and Me, Background and contents
Larsson's crusade against Sweden's right wing fascist movements put him in constant danger and Gabrielsson writes that neo-Nazis left death threats on the couple's answering machine and sent bullets in the mail, and suggests that part of the reason the two of them never married was that it would have made Larsson an easier target for his opponents on the right.


"There Are Things I Want You to Know" About Stieg Larsson and Me, Background and contents, Legacy issues
In her book, Gabrielsson also describes her struggle with Erland and Joakim Larsson, Stieg's estranged father and brother, over control of Larsson's work. Gabrielsson explains feeling "dispossessed" after Larsson's death because, as a common law partner in Sweden with no children, she had no inheritance rights. At one point, Erland and Joakim offered Gabrielsson roughly $3.3 million, but she does not want money and will continue to fight for the literary rights of Larsson's work. One source interviewed a friend who said that Gabrielsson "will not be bought."


"There Are Things I Want You to Know" About Stieg Larsson and Me, Background and contents, Legacy issues
According to Gabrielsson, Larsson had written 200 pages of a fourth novel in his internationally successful Millennium series before he died; she has been seeking the legal authority to be in charge of what will happen to these 200 pages as well as with all of Larsson's literary work and success, though so far Larsson's family has refused to give her these rights. If granted the literary rights of Stieg Larsson's Millennium series, however, Gabrielsson explains that she is not sure that it is fair for a ghostwriter to complete the work that Larsson had started.


"There Are Things I Want You to Know" About Stieg Larsson and Me, Publication
The memoir was written in Swedish and was first published by Actes Sud in 2011. It was translated into English by Linda Coverdale and published by Seven Stories Press also in 2011.


"This Is Our Punk-Rock," Thee Rusted Satellites Gather + Sing,
"This Is Our Punk-Rock," Thee Rusted Satellites Gather + Sing, is the third studio album by Canadian post-rock band The Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra & Tra-la-la Band (with choir). It was released August 25, 2003, in Europe and September 2, 2003, in the rest of the world by Constellation Records.


"This Is Our Punk-Rock," Thee Rusted Satellites Gather + Sing,
For this album, an amateur choir was assembled from a few dozen friends and colleagues. The liner notes contain a page of the score used by the choir in the opening track (the "fasola" section).


"This Is Our Punk-Rock," Thee Rusted Satellites Gather + Sing,
This album was essentially created as a requiem for open and abandoned spaces in Montreal (the band's home town), as well as for similar loss and decay around the world, due to either urban development or military action.


"U" Is for Undertow
"U" Is for Undertow is the 21st novel in the "Alphabet" series of mystery novels by Sue Grafton. It features Kinsey Millhone, a private eye based in Santa Teresa, California.


"U" Is for Undertow
The novel, set in 1988, finds Kinsey investigating the disappearance of a 4-year-old girl in 1967 and the narrative weaves between both time periods. The novel has reached the top position on several best-seller lists.


"U" Is for Undertow, Plot summary
In April 1988, Kinsey Millhone is hired by a young man named Michael Sutton to investigate a memory that he claims to have recovered of two people burying a body in the woods in the exclusive Horton Ravine neighborhood in 1967, when he turned six years old. He claims that the burial took place on his birthday, two days after a famous unsolved kidnapping of a four-year-old named Mary Claire in the neighborhood, in which the kidnappers requested $25,000 but never picked up the ransom after police were called. She was never found.


"U" Is for Undertow, Plot summary
Although Michael's memory is hazy, he and Kinsey manage to locate the spot of the burial, but a police dig uncovers only the body of a wolfdog named Ulf. One of the bystanders watching the dig, a banker named Walker McNally, who was a high school classmate of Kinsey, spends the entire weekend drinking and kills a young woman in a DUI on Sunday night.


"U" Is for Undertow, Plot summary
Kinsey learns that Sutton was involved in a past "recovered memory" event that proved false, while greatly disrupting his family. Bothered by this, Kinsey traces the dogtag back to the dog's owner, who told her that the dog had been euthanized around that time. No one has any idea how the remains ended up in Horton Ravine.


"U" Is for Undertow, Plot summary
Upon returning to Horton Ravine to talk to the neighbors, Kinsey learns that Rain, the four-year-old granddaughter/adopted daughter of the couple that formerly owned the lot, had been kidnapped in a similar fashion just before Mary Claire but was returned unharmed after her parents paid a ransom of $15,000 using marked bills, which also never turned up.


"U" Is for Undertow, Plot summary
A parallel story set in the 1960s is initially told from the viewpoint of Deborah Unruh, Rain's grandmother. Greg, the Unruhs' son, returned home with his pregnant girlfriend Shelly after dropping out of college in 1963. Five days after she gave birth to their daughter Rain, they left, leaving the baby behind. Two years later, the Unruhs formally adopted Rain. Two years after that, in 1967, Greg and Shelly (now calling themselves Creed and Destiny) returned to borrow $40,000 against Greg's trust, but the Unruhs refused to make such a loan. Greg and Shelly left unexpectedly not long thereafter. Almost immediately after they left, Rain was kidnapped.


"U" Is for Undertow, Plot summary
Kinsey talks to Deborah, who believes that Shelly was behind Rain's kidnapping because of the $40,000 total ransom. However, Kinsey learns that Greg and Shelly had hurriedly fled the area because the Selective Service had been tipped off to draft dodger Greg's location, ruling them out as suspects. Michael's family finds evidence that the date Michael claimed to see the burial was a week earlier, making it prior to Mary Claire's kidnapping, discrediting Michael and leaving Kinsey at a dead end.


"U" Is for Undertow, Plot summary
In another set of flashbacks, the story of the successful writer Jon Corso, Walker's best friend in high school, is told. Walker and Jon became friends with Greg and Shelly during their second visit, and Jon started an intense sexual affair with Shelly. Shelly told Jon her plan to kidnap Rain for ransom, but Jon decided to implement the plan on his own so that he and Walker could afford their own apartment when they started college in the fall. Walker, in fact, was the person who tipped off the draft board about Greg.


"U" Is for Undertow, Plot summary
Jon and Walker buried the ransom money after realizing it was marked; but they moved the money and substituted the dog after being seen, to make their digging look harmless. Still needing money after burying Rain's ransom, they kidnapped Mary Claire; but she died from an allergic reaction to Valium, which they used to keep her sedated during her kidnapping.


"U" Is for Undertow, Plot summary
Back in the present, Michael Sutton sees Walker at an AA meeting (which Walker has attended since his DUI) and follows him, remembering him as one of the two diggers. Michael calls Kinsey to tell her, since no one else believes him any longer. Panicked by his role in two deaths (the "undertow" of the title), Walker calls Jon and says he is going to turn himself in for the kidnapping, despite the lack of evidence. Jon talks him into a small delay and then shoots and kills Michael.


"U" Is for Undertow, Plot summary
Since Walker has an airtight alibi for the time of the killing, Kinsey immediately suspects Jon due to their close friendship in high school. She heads to Jon's house, where she sees him leaving with suitcases, and follows him to a secluded meeting with Walker. Jon's plan to murder Walker and flee the country is foiled by Kinsey, who shoots him after he pulls a gun on her; and both Jon and Walker are arrested. Mary Claire's body and the marked money are both recovered on Jon's family's property.


"U" Is for Undertow, Plot summary
In a side story, Kinsey is invited to a family event. During the preparation for the event, which Kinsey resists attending, she is given letters from her grandmother that her Aunt Gin, who raised her, had refused. She learns that, far from ignoring her, her grandmother had wanted to adopt her after her parents' deaths and had even hired a private investigator to gain custody of her. In a final irony, she learns that Gin and the private investigator had had an affair and that little Kinsey had gone on outings with them. In the end, she attends the family event, where her grandmother, who is increasingly senile, mistakes her for her late mother and tells her how happy she would be if Kinsey were to come visit her.


"U" Is for Undertow, Critical reaction
Sarah Weinman of the Los Angeles Times wrote that Grafton "has produced a better book each time out, and "U" is her most structurally complex, psychologically potent book to date. Marilyn Stasio of The New York Times wrote, "So has this reliable series lost its addictive appeal? Not at all — though it’s a shock to realize that the stories, set in a California coastal town in the 1980s, now read more like historical narratives than contemporary novels with a slight time lag. But it’s an object lesson in disciplined storytelling to watch Grafton manipulate that time frame to broaden the story and deepen the mystery."


"U" Is for Undertow, Best seller rankings
Upon its release, "U" Is for Undertow leapt to the top of several notable best-seller lists, including those maintained by the New York Times, Publishers Weekly, and the Palm Beach Post.


"Uncle Tom's Cabin" Contrasted with Buckingham Hall, the Planter's Home
"Uncle Tom's Cabin" Contrasted with Buckingham Hall, the Planter's Home is an 1852 novel by Robert Criswell, combining elements of Anti- Tom literature and romantic fiction.


"Uncle Tom's Cabin" Contrasted with Buckingham Hall, the Planter's Home, Overview
The novel is one of several written in response to Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe, which had been criticised by writers from both North and South for its allegedly exaggerated and/or inaccurate depiction of slavery.


"Uncle Tom's Cabin" Contrasted with Buckingham Hall, the Planter's Home, Overview
However, despite being written initially as a response to Stowe, Criswell's novel is a romance novel depicting love between a northern woman and a southern plantation owner. Slavery is largely ignored for most of the novel, save only for a brief discussion of Uncle Tom's Cabin in Chapter 12.


"Uncle Tom's Cabin" Contrasted with Buckingham Hall, the Planter's Home, Plot
The novel follows Eugene Buckingham, the only son of a South Carolina planter, as he crosses paths with Julia Tennyson, a Scottish American journalist who has written a number of pamphlets under various pseudonyms. What begins as mutual friendship eventually evolves into love, despite the anxieties of the opposing fathers. Col. Buckingham – Eugene's father and a (fictional) descendant of the Duke of Buckingham – contests the partnership on the grounds that Julia has written pamphlets degrading all planters as vicious sadists, even though he is not. Likewise Dr. Tennyson – Julia's father and a Scotsman – objects because he supports the view of all planters as violent and cruel.


"Uncle Tom's Cabin" Contrasted with Buckingham Hall, the Planter's Home, Plot
The Tennysons eventually make their way to South Carolina from New York, and after several philosophical discussions regarding American slavery, Eugene and Julia are allowed to marry. The story ends as the newlyweds embark on a ship to England for their honeymoon.


"Uncle Tom's Cabin" Contrasted with Buckingham Hall, the Planter's Home, Publication
The novel was first published in 1852 in hardback form by D. Fanshaw of New York City. It has been recently reprinted by Kessinger Publishing.


"Unk" in Funk
"Unk" in Funk is an album by blues musician Muddy Waters released by the Chess label in 1974.


"Unk" in Funk, Reception
AllMusic reviewer Lindsay Planer stated "The nine sides on Unk in Funk (1974) are among the last newly recorded material that Muddy Waters would issue during his nearly 30 year association with Chess Records. Backing up the Chicago blues icon is a band he'd carry with him for the remainder of his performing career ... They run through a better than average selection of Waters' classics with newer compositions more or less tossed in, presumably to keep the track list fresh. Although Waters certainly has nothing to prove, he attacks his old catalog with the drive and command of a man putting it all on the line".


"Unplugged" Live
"Unplugged" Live is a live album by the McAuley Schenker Group, recorded in California, during a tour with a completely acoustic set. Michael Schenker released this live album at the height of "unplugged" mania in the early 1990s, revising his blistering guitar antics as reflective, nylon-string, semi-classical ballads. The album features Shark Island guitarist Spencer Sercombe on second guitar and backing vocals. "Unplugged" Live is the final release of the McAuley Schenker Group, which disbanded in 1993; Robin McAuley got married and retired from the music scene for a few years, while Michael Schenker began working on instrumental solo projects.


"V" Is for Vagina
"V" Is for Vagina is the debut studio album by Maynard James Keenan's side project Puscifer, released on October 30, 2007. The album features a significantly different, electronic sound and arrangements than Keenan's other bands: the progressive Tool and alternative A Perfect Circle. Keenan himself compared the sound of "V" Is for Vagina to "driving around in your car listening to those old Motown hits, James Brown, and cool R&B stuff". "V" is for Vagina has sold 112,000 copies.


"V" Is for Vagina, Release
The album was preceded by a non-album, retail-only single called "Cuntry Boner", released on October 2, 2007. Released a week later was an iTunes-only four track EP titled Don't Shoot the Messenger, with tracks previously released only on soundtracks.


"V" Is for Vagina, Release
On October 30, 2007, a second single, and first actual radio single from the album, "Queen B." was posted into a flash audio player on the official website, along with selected tracks by Keenan projects. On October 1, 2007, the video was posted on the Puscifer YouTube channel. The video features several fully CGI Maynards as pawns in a chess game between two women. The album debuted at number 25 on the Billboard 200, selling about 27,000 copies in its first week. On October 7, 2007, "Trekka (Sean Beaven Mix)" was published on Puscifer.com. And on October 25, 2007, the entire album was put up for listening.


"V" Is for Vagina, Release
In a message Maynard sent out on October 27, 2007, he said that Target stores decided not to carry the album after seeing the cover image, and Walmart never even returned a call to carry the record. In Canada, the album was available at Walmart, but with a large sticker obscuring most of the cover.


"V" Is for Vagina, Release
On October 17, 2008, an official music video for the song Momma Sed was released online via the official Puscifer YouTube channel.


"V" Is for Vagina, Release
The vinyl edition of "V" is for Vagina was re-released in August 2016.


"V" Is for Vagina, Release, Remix album
On April 28, 2008, a remix album with versions of tracks from "V" Is for Vagina was released, entitled "V" Is for Viagra. The Remixes.


"V" Is for Vagina, Release, Dub remix album
Additionally, on October 17, 2008, a dub remix album with versions of tracks from "V" Is for Vagina was released, entitled "D" Is for Dubby – The Lustmord Dub Mixes.


"V" Is for Vagina, Track listing, Vinyl edition
Also on April 29, 2008, the album was released as a limited edition double vinyl album featuring two bonus tracks (which were also made available on the E-Deluxe Edition).


"V" Is for Vengeance
"V" Is for Vengeance is the 22nd novel in Sue Grafton's "Alphabet" series of mystery novels and features Kinsey Millhone, a private eye based in Santa Teresa, California, a fictional version of Santa Barbara, California.


"V" Is for Vengeance
The novel, set in 1988, was released in the United States in November 2011.


"V" Is for Vengeance, Plot summary
For the fourth straight novel in the Alphabet Mystery series, the viewpoint alternates between Millhone and other characters, principally Nora Vogelsang and Lorenzo Dante. The opening chapter, however, is told from the perspective of a well-to-do young man, Phillip Lanahan, who borrows money from Dante, misses the payback date, and then loses it playing poker in Las Vegas. Dante and his brother Cappi show up, and Dante agrees to take Phillip's Porsche as satisfaction of the debt. However, after Dante sends Phillip and Cappi up to look at the car, Cappi has thugs throw Phillip off the top of the parking garage to his death.


"V" Is for Vengeance, Plot summary
In the main storyline, Millhone witnesses a woman shoplifting with a confederate inside the department store Nordstrom's. She tells a nearby clerk, who alerts store security, and they capture and arrest the woman, named Audrey, before she can escape. While this is going on, Millhone follows her confederate and is almost run over by her in the parking garage. Right after her release from jail, Audrey apparently commits suicide. Shortly thereafter, Millhone runs into a former boyfriend in the police department, Cheney Phillips, who is out for the evening with a vice officer, Len Priddy, and his much-younger girlfriend, Abbey. Len Priddy was a friend of Millhone's first husband and is a longtime enemy of hers. Priddy mocks the theory that Audrey was part of a shoplifting ring, but Audrey's boyfriend hires Millhone to investigate that theory.


"V" Is for Vengeance, Plot summary
Meanwhile, Dante realizes that the police are closing in on his operation. Audrey had been head of his shoplifting operation, but Cappi murders her upon her release from jail because he believed she was about to turn them in. Dante believes that Cappi has been giving information to Priddy to set up his brother, so that he can take over.


"V" Is for Vengeance, Plot summary
Nora, who has been drifting apart from her husband for the last three years (which we later learn began with the death of her son Phillip from her first marriage), learns that her lawyer husband is having an affair with his secretary. She decides to sell some jewelry to provide her with enough money to be able to leave her husband. She is referred to Dante, who is instantly drawn to her and offers her more than fair value for the ring. Against her better judgement she agrees to meet Dante, who becomes fascinated by Nora and all that she represents.


"V" Is for Vengeance, Plot summary
Kinsey, still investigating the death of Audrey, has a sudden flash of inspiration from an offhanded comment by her client; she returns to the department store to view the video footage and notices a bumper sticker on the car which had almost run her down. This leads her to the accomplice. She discovers after trailing her for several days that she is the drop off person who deposits stolen goods into a fake charity's drop off box. The bags are then picked up minutes later by a truck that takes them to Dante's warehouse for distribution to various second hand stores around Southern California.


"V" Is for Vengeance, Plot summary
When Kinsey gives Cheney a copy of her findings thus far, he tells her to back off as she could be endangering the life of a confidential informant. This causes her to do the exact opposite. She investigates further and slowly peels back the layers of the syndicate. Her old friend Pinky Ford (the man who gave her her first set of lock picks) comes to her office and asks her to hold on to some photos for him. Kinsey refuses. Later Lt. Priddy comes to the office looking for the photos and threatens Kinsey physically. She manages to track down Pinky and find out that the photos are blackmail material that Priddy has been using to get information from Pinky about Dante's operation.


"V" Is for Vengeance, Plot summary
Pinky leaves Kinsey's care and returns home. Kinsey tracks Pinky to his home, to find Cappi holding Pinky's wife hostage. Cappi orders Kinsey to burn the photos and the negatives in the fireplace. Cappi leaves without harming anyone further, but an enraged Pinky gets his shotgun from the closet and follows him out to the street and shoots at him, but misses Cappi completely. Cappi fires off a couple of rounds that seem to miss everyone, and he flees the scene. When Kinsey and Pinky go back into the house, they see that his wife has been shot. She is taken to the hospital, where Pinky worries about how they can afford her treatment.


"V" Is for Vengeance, Plot summary
Kinsey tracks down Dante at his office, where she tells him what has happened. Dante takes the time to set up an account at the hospital to take care of Pinky's wife, even though he is in the middle of preparing to leave the country. After feeding bad information to his brother Cappi, whom he suspected of leaking information to Priddy, Dante had tried to convince Nora to join him. He confessed that it was because of him that her son had been murdered, but that it was done without his knowledge or consent. He explained his motivation for lending Phillip the money and gave her the details of his trip. He leaves hoping that she will join him.


"V" Is for Vengeance, Plot summary
On the day that Dante had told Cappi the computer records would be wiped out, Pinky's wife dies from her gunshot wound. Kinsey goes to Dante's warehouse to try to keep Pinky from killing Cappi, and sees federal authorities preparing to raid the warehouse. Looking for Pinky at the warehouse, she encounters Dante again. When the raid begins, Pinky is wounded in the leg by Cappi, who is eventually shot by police. Dante punches Kinsey in the face, knocking her out and preventing her from getting between Cappi and Pinky and possibly being shot herself.


"V" Is for Vengeance, Plot summary
He then disappears into the maze of tunnels under the warehouse. He is picked up by his real secretary and makes it to the airport, where he has chartered a flight out of the country. Just as his plane is taxiing away from the gate, Nora arrives and leaves with him.


"V" Is for Vengeance, Plot summary
Weeks later Dante's secretary comes to Kinsey's office to give her an envelope full of cash to make up for Dante punching her in the face, and also as payment for a job he wants her to do for him. Dante had recorded a conversation with Priddy that would implicate him in trying to gain control of Dante's operations, and which would put him in prison. Wary of contacting the proper authorities who might bury the information and never go after Priddy, Kinsey calls a 'gung ho' reporter who she knows will publish the story, after which the authorities will have no choice but to arrest and prosecute Priddy.


"V" Is for Vengeance, Title
In late-April 2010, Grafton reported being "around 100 pages into [writing] it [this novel]" and that she "hasn't glommed onto a title yet". The book's title was officially announced on the author's Facebook page on April 8, 2011.


"V" Is for Viagra. The Remixes
"V" Is for Viagra. The Remixes is a remix album by Puscifer, a side project of Maynard James Keenan, which was released on April 29, 2008. It contains ten remixes of tracks from the first Puscifer album "V" Is for Vagina, as well as two remixes of the non-album single "Cuntry Boner".


"V" Is for Viagra. The Remixes
On November, 2008, "Indigo Children" (JLE Dub Mix) and "Momma Sed" (Tandemonium Mix) appeared on the official soundtrack for the video game Need for Speed: Undercover.


"V" Is for Viagra. The Remixes
An additional track, "Lighten Up, Francis" (JLE Dub Mix) appears on the official soundtrack to the film Underworld: Rise of the Lycans.


"V" device
A "V" device is a metal 1⁄4-inch (6.4 mm) capital letter "V" with serifs which, when worn on certain decorations awarded by the United States Armed Forces, distinguishes an award for heroism or valor in combat instead of for meritorious service or achievement.


"V" device
The decorations with which a "V" may be authorized differ among the military services, as well as the manner in which the "V" is worn and the name by which it is referred to. Until 2017, each service also used different criteria in determining whether a "V" could be authorized.


"V" device, Etymology
The Department of Defense, Army, and Air Force refer to the "V" as the "V" Device. The Coast Guard refers to it as the Valor Device, while the Navy and Marine Corps refer to it as the Combat Distinguishing Device or Combat "V". When referring to a medal that has been awarded with the "V" device, it is often referred to as having been awarded "with valor".


"V" device, History
On 22 December 1945, in War Department Circular 383, the United States Army decided to introduce the "V" device to distinguish the award of a Bronze Star Medal for acts of valor and heroism, rather than meritorious service. Soldiers, including Army airmen, who were awarded the Bronze Star Medal for heroism in combat were now authorized to wear a bronze "V" on the suspension and service ribbon of the medal. Only one "V" was allowed to be worn on a ribbon.


"V" device, History
The Department of the Navy introduced the "V" as the "Combat Distinguishing Device", and on 15 February 1946, authorized the "V" device to be worn on the Legion of Merit and Bronze Star Medal for services or acts performed in actual combat with the enemy; in February 1947, this was changed to acts or services involving direct participation in combat operations. Most World War II veterans who were entitled to the "V" probably did not know about or apply for the device, since large-scale separations from the services were taking place after the war ended. Stocks of the device also were not available for issue for at least a year after the issuance of the Army circular.


"V" device, History
To be worn on a decoration, the "V" device must have been specifically authorized in the written award citation issued with the medal. In 1996, the "V" device garnered public attention after the suicide of Admiral Jeremy Boorda, who was the Chief of Naval Operations.


"V" device, History
The news media reported that his death by suicide may have been caused by a Navy investigation following a story by Newsweek about Boorda wearing two "combat valor pins" on the service ribbons of his uniform, which he received for duty as a weapons officer and executive officer aboard two naval ships off the coast of Indochina during the Vietnam War.


"V" device, History
Although there were indications these "combat distinguishing devices" were authorized to be worn on his Navy Commendation Medal and Navy Achievement Medal, the Department of the Navy Board For Correction of Naval Records determined after his death that both of the devices were not authorized to be worn on the two decorations.


"V" device, History
In 2011, the Department of Defense changed its awards manual regulations concerning the Medal of Honor, specifying that the "V" device instead of the oak leaf cluster and 5⁄16 inch star would be used to denote additional citations in the rare event of a service member being awarded a second MoH. By May 2015, the Department of Defense changed its awards manual again concerning the Medal of Honor, specifying that a separate MOH is presented to an individual for each succeeding act that justifies an award. There has not been a living repeat Medal of Honor recipient since the World War I era, so the "V" device has never actually been worn in this fashion.


"V" device, History
Until 2017, the criteria and conditions under which the "V" device could be awarded differed among the services. For the Army, the "V" was worn solely to denote "participation in acts of heroism involving conflict with an armed enemy". For the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard, the "V" could be worn to denote combat heroism, or to recognize individuals who were "exposed to personal hazard during direct participation in combat operations". For the Air Force, the "V" could be worn on the Bronze Star Medal to denote heroism in combat, but also on the Commendation Medal and Achievement Medal to denote heroism or for being "placed in harm's way" during contingency deployment operations.


"V" device, History
Prior to 1 January 2014, the device was also authorized on Outstanding Unit Awards and Organizational Excellence Awards to indicate the unit participated in direct combat support actions. The "V" device is also authorized for the Air Medal by all the services where heroism in aerial combat was involved on an individual mission. On 15 August 2016, the Coast Guard changed their criteria such that new awards of the "V" would be for valor only, to denote a heroic act or acts while participating in conflict or combat with an armed enemy.


"V" device, History
On 6 January 2016, the Department of Defense announced that it was revising its military decorations and awards program to include a "V" device change to its original 1940s use of denoting heroism in combat only on specific decorations for the military services. Two new "C" and "R" devices will also be used on relevant awards.


"V" device, History, Device changes
On 2 February 2017, new silver-plated and gold-plated "V" devices were introduced, followed by wreathed versions in September which led to speculation that the various versions of the "V" device would now indicate how many times a specific medal was awarded with the "V." The U.S. Air Force uniform regulations update of 15 April 2019, was the first to describe and depict the new "V" devices as follows:


"V" device, History, Device changes
Bronze "V" device for first award (standard device for the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force before December 2016)


"V" device, History, Device changes
Gold "V" device for third award (standard device for the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps before December 2016)


"V" device, History, Device changes
Gold "V" with wreath device for six or more awards


"V" device, History, Device changes
On 21 December 2016, the "V" device ceased being authorized for Achievement Medals. Retroactive to January 2016, the "V" device ceased being authorized for the Legion of Merit, being replaced by the "C" device.


"V" device, Decorations eligible for the "V" device
Currently, the following decorations of the United States Armed Forces are eligible to be awarded with a "V" device.


"V" device, Army and Air Force
For the Army and the Air Force, the "V" is positioned to the right of any bronze or silver oak leaf clusters from the wearer's perspective, or positioned in the center of the service ribbon if worn alone.


"V" device, Army and Air Force
Only 4 devices may be worn per ribbon; an additional ribbon is worn to the wearer's left when necessary to support additional devices:


"V" device, Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard
For the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard, the "V" is always worn in the center of the service ribbon, while any gold or silver 5⁄16 Inch Stars are added in balance to the right and left of the "V" starting with the right side from the wearer's perspective. Marine Corps refer to it as Combat Distinguishing Device. The Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard continue to award and issue the bronze version. The Marine Corps allows anodized medals and anodized Combat "V"s to be worn on the dress blues uniform.


"V" device, Combined with Arabic numerals
Golden or brass Arabic numerals may be used to indicate the total number of times the medal was awarded if the total number of devices, of any types, exceed 4 total devices and would thus not fit on a single ribbon.


"W" Is for Wasted
"W" Is for Wasted is the twenty-third novel in the "Alphabet" series of mystery novels by Sue Grafton. It features Kinsey Millhone, a private detective based in Santa Teresa, California, a fictional version of Santa Barbara, California.


"W" Is for Wasted
The novel finds Kinsey investigating the deaths of a local private investigator and an unidentified homeless man. The novel was published in September 2013 by G.P. Putnam's Sons.


"W" Is for Wasted, Plot summary
The narrative is set in Santa Teresa, a small fictional town near the California coast where Kinsey lives and spends time with her elderly landlord. The story, however, takes place in the very real town of Bakersfield. There is also a fair amount of speculation around the novel’s time period. Why the ’80s? Especially since Kinsey Millhone is not your typical ’80s girl. She is a woman out of time, but while the period doesn’t exactly fit the character, it does avoid the fast-paced twenty-first-century culture that very easily could have choked the life out of the book.


"W" Is for Wasted, Plot summary
When the novel begins, Kinsey is thirty-eight and not particularly fond of homeless people. She has a low tolerance for shiftlessness and able-bodied people who cannot (or choose not) to take care of themselves. She says, “I could understand the needs of the infirm and the mentally ill. The able-bodied? Not so much.” It stands to reason then that Grafton throws her headfirst into a series of crimes that involve the very people she disdains.


"W" Is for Wasted, Plot summary
The first is a former colleague who has been shot to death. The other is R. T. Dace, who is found dead on a beach. And it is here that Grafton tosses the first of many curveballs at the reader. Kinsey discovers a slip of paper with her name on it in the dead man’s pocket. She is further surprised to learn that Dace was sitting on a pretty hefty sum of money, about $600,000.


"W" Is for Wasted, Plot summary
Kinsey travels to Bakersfield to notify family members, who, much to her surprise, do not take the news very well. This may have more to do with the fact that they had been cut out of their deceased relative's estate more than any feeling of genuine sorrow at the news. Returning home, Kinsey connects with two of Dace’s former friends. They cajole her into joining them on a trip to the homeless camp where Dace lived in order to scavenge some of his stuff. As it turns out, what he left behind provides valuable clues about both murders.


"W" Is for Wasted, Plot summary
As a PI, Kinsey is more than accustomed to connecting with people close to the victims. It’s part of her job, a facet she has become particularly skilled at. However, Dace’s demise hits particularly close to home when she discovers a connection between the homeless man and her father. She is further shocked to discover that Dace has left the entire inheritance in her name. Grafton’s use of this common plot device is even more significant in Dace’s case, given the estrangement between him and his immediate family.


"W" Is for Wasted, Plot summary
In fact, from Kinsey’s perspective, the homeless people Dace had been consorting with seem to be of a particular breed. As one writer puts it, his homeless compadres “seem more like balanced libertarians,” drawing a surprisingly stark contrast between the shiftless riff-raff of Dace’s later life and the family he has shunned even in death.


"W" Is for Wasted, Plot summary
The narrative’s compelling questions center not only on the murderer’s motive and identity, but also on Kinsey’s stake in the whole sordid mess. To help sort through it all, Grafton pulls in a few characters from Kinsey’s past, as well as fellow PI Pete Wolinsky. Pete is a less than reputable fellow and not very devoted to justice for all mankind. It’s fitting that Grafton includes him in a novel already inundated with more than a few shady characters.


"W" Is for Wasted, Plot summary
But perhaps the most compelling aspect of the narrative is the insight the reader gains about Kinsey’s relatives and her interaction with them. There is also the connection with Dace to consider, and the fact that all that money is just sitting there, waiting for Kinsey to figure out what to do with it.


"W" Is for Wasted, Title
Of the 5,700 fans who participated in a "guess the title" contest on Grafton's website, fewer than 50 guessed that "W" stood for "Wasted" for the 23rd installment in the "Alphabet" series. The title was revealed on May 1, 2013, in an interview with USA Today. Grafton explained that several meanings of "Wasted" apply to the novel, including "out of it on drugs" and "the notion of all the waste in crime".


"WE" (1927 book)
"WE" is an autobiographical account by Charles A. Lindbergh (1902-1974) about his life and the events leading up to and including his May 1927 New York to Paris solo trans-Atlantic flight in the Spirit of St. Louis, a custom-built, single engine, single-seat Ryan monoplane (Registration: N-X-211). It was first published on July 27, 1927 by G.P. Putnam's Sons in New York.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
Just 57 days after then 25-year old former US Air Mail pilot Charles Lindbergh had completed his historic Orteig Prize-winning first-ever non-stop solo transatlantic flight from New York (Roosevelt Field) to Paris (Le Bourget) on May 20–21, 1927 in the single-engine Ryan monoplane Spirit of St. Louis, "WE", the first of what would eventually be 15 books Lindbergh would either author or significantly contribute to, was released on July 27, 1927.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
The 318-page illustrated volume was published by G.P. Putnam's Sons (The Knickerbocker Press), the New York publishing house run by prominent promoter and aviation enthusiast George P. Putnam (1887-1950) who later promoted the career (and eventually married) another almost equally famous flyer of the era, the ill-fated American aviatrix Amelia Earhart. The suddenly world-famous young aviator noted on the book's dust jacket cover that he wrote it himself to provide the public with his "own story of his life and his transatlantic flight together with his views on the future of aviation". As such Lindbergh's virtually "instant" autobiography proved to be an immediate best seller and remained so for over a year.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
Both the dust jacket notes of the first edition as well as the frontispiece illustration reveal that the book's simple, one-word "flying pronoun" title "WE" was meant to refer to a "spiritual" partnership between Lindbergh and his airplane developed "through the dark hours of his flight". However Putnam's had selected the title without its author's knowledge or approval, and Lindbergh would later often complain about that interpretation of its meaning as being incorrect. Instead he said that "we" referred to himself and his financial backers in St. Louis, not his airplane, as the press had people believing, although his frequent unconscious use of the phrase referring to himself and the Spirit seemed to suggest otherwise.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
While Lindbergh had been busy being continuously feted in Washington, New York, St. Louis and elsewhere over the first couple of weeks after his return to the United States on June 10, a first manuscript for the book was quickly ghostwritten by New York Times reporter J. Carlisle MacDonald who had interviewed Lindbergh extensively in both Paris and during the six-day crossing of the Atlantic from Cherbourg to Washington on board the US Navy cruiser USS Memphis and had been holed up with a staff of secretaries in publisher George Putnam's house in Rye, New York. MacDonald had earlier ghostwritten from Paris a pair of "first person" accounts of the flight that had appeared under Lindbergh's name on the front page of the paper on May 23 and 24, two and three days after the flight.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
The fastest book produced up to that time, a complete set of galley proofs of MacDonald's manuscript was ready for Lindbergh's approval within two weeks of his return to America.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
However, as with MacDonald's two original ghostwritten Times stories which the meticulous Army trained aviator had disapproved of as not only being rife with factual errors, but having been "cheaply done" and written in a "false, fawning" tone, Lindbergh rejected the ghostwritten book manuscript as well for similar reasons, i.e., MacDonald had written the book in the first person and had reverted to the bombast Lindbergh thought they had abandoned back in Paris. Lindbergh knew, however, that he could not renege on his contract with Putnam's that had already begun to publicize the book promising copies by July 1.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
When Fitzhugh Green, the book's editor at Putnam's, told him that "it is your book, we wouldn't want to publish it if it weren't", Lindbergh undertook to completely rewrite it himself "painstakingly in longhand" using MacDonald's manuscript as a template. Lindbergh accomplished that daunting task in less than three weeks working in solitude while a guest of businessman, philanthropist, and aviation promoter Harry Frank Guggenheim at , his sprawling waterfront mansion at Sands Point, Long Island.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
"The noted young aviator has excited real admiration in the way he refuses to hurry publication of his story," the Times noted in reporting the unexpected delay in the publication of the book. "Had he been willing to dash off a careless job, he might have taken advantage of his wonderful notoriety and made a lot of money quickly. Instead, he insists that the book shall be the most accurate and perfect account of his life, his transatlantic flight and his experience after he reached Paris, that he can possibly put together.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
When his publisher urged him to hurry, his response was a new mass of hand-written manuscript so clear and so precise that the publishers felt reproved for their importunity." Lindbergh worked most of every day "writing in blue ink with a fountain pen on plain eight-by-ten-inch white bond in his largest, most readable script", counting his output by running the total at the top of each page to assure meeting his contract to produce at least 40,000 words. In less than three weeks Lindbergh delivered the last of his pages to Fitzhugh Green at just under the agreed length.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
"WE" was officially published little more than a week later on July 27 and within six weeks it had sold over 190,000 copies at $2.50 apiece while a special limited edition of 1,000 numbered autographed copies also sold out quickly at $25 each. Soon translated into most major world languages, "WE" remained at the top of best-seller lists well into 1928. With dozens of printings and more than 650,000 copies sold in the first year, "WE" earned Lindbergh more than $250,000 in royalties.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
The book's great commercial success was considerably aided by its publication coinciding with the start of his three-month tour of the United States in the Spirit on behalf of the Daniel Guggenheim Fund for the Promotion of Aeronautics. The nation became obsessed with Lindbergh during the tour in which he was seen in person by more than 30 million Americans, a quarter of the nation's then population.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
No other author before or since ever had such an extensive, highly publicized tour that helped promote a book than did Lindbergh's "We" of himself and the Spirit during their 22,350-mile, July 20 to October 23, 1927 tour of the U.S., visiting 82 cities in all 48 states during which the nation's nascent aviation superhero delivered 147 speeches and rode 1,290 mi (2,080 km) in parades.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
US Ambassador to France Myron T. Herrick, Lindbergh's host in Paris, contributed an impassioned foreword to "WE". "Flying was his trade, his means of livelihood," Herrick wrote. "But the love of it burned in him with fine passion, and now that his fame will give him a wider scope of usefulness, he has announced that he will devote himself wholeheartedly to the advancement of aeronautics. His first step in that direction is the publishing of this book and no one can doubt that its influence will be of enormous value in pushing on man's conquest of the air.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
It will be idle for me or any one else to estimate now what these results will be. But America vibrates with glowing pride at the thought that out from our country has come this fresh spirit of the air and that the whole world hails Lindbergh not only as a brave aviator but as an example of American idealism, character and conduct."


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
In addition to Herrick's foreword, also included as an appendix is an 85-page essay by editor Green entitled A Little of what the World thought of Lindbergh describing the post-flight welcomes in Paris, Brussels, London, Washington, New York and St. Louis. While the precipitating event for the publication of "WE" was the solo non-stop flight from New York to Paris, Lindbergh's account of this takes up only 18 pages (pp. 213–230) in the book which is mostly about his life before May 20, 1927. It would not be until Lindbergh wrote his Pulitzer Prize winning The Spirit of St. Louis a quarter-of-a-century later in 1953 that he provided a first hand book length account of the flight itself.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
Reviews for the book were generally positive although expressed disappointment that so little of the text provided an account of the preparation for and the flight to Paris itself. "Now that Lindbergh has spoken, we inquisitors are apt to be disappointed, at least upon superficial reading of his story," noted Horace Green in his review of "WE" in the New York Times in which he nonetheless applauded Lindbergh's meticulous attention to detail. "Where is the 'inside' story that 50,000 advance buyers of the volume have been led to expect? There is none.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
And on second thought it is apparent that if the recital was to be in any degree a real Lindbergh product there could be no inside story. The young flying Colonel, as his friends know, has no Imagination in the personal sense, but great Imagination in the mechanical sense. His mind works without embroidery. He thinks and speaks in condensed terms suitable to his purpose.


"WE" (1927 book), Production and summary
One is grateful to say that the delay in publication of the long heralded "WE" whether brought about by Lindbergh's refusal to be stampeded or by the counsel of other heads, has permitted Lindbergh to tell his own story without the interpolations, as they are known in the editorial world, of too many ghosts."


"WE" (1927 book), Quotation
Lindbergh noted in "WE" that his year of US Army flight training (1924–25) was the key factor in his development as both a focused, goal-oriented individual, and as a skillful and resourceful aviator capable of making his remarkable transatlantic flight just two years later.


"WE" (1927 book), Quotation
"Always there was some new experience, always something interesting going on to make the time spent at Brooks and Kelly one of the banner years in a pilot's life." Lindbergh noted. "The training is difficult and rigid, but there is none better. A cadet must be willing to forget all other interest in life when he enters the Texas flying schools and he must enter with the intention of devoting every effort and all of the energy during the next 12 months towards a single goal. But when he receives the wings at Kelly a year later, he has the satisfaction of knowing that he has graduated from one of the world's finest flying schools." ("WE", p. 125)


"Weird Al" Yankovic
Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic (/ˈjæŋkəvɪk/ YANG-kə-vik; born October 23, 1959) is an American singer, musician, record producer, and actor who is known for humorous songs that make light of pop culture and often parody specific songs by contemporary musical acts. He also performs original songs that are style pastiches of the work of other acts, as well as polka medleys of several popular songs, most of which feature his trademark accordion.


"Weird Al" Yankovic
Since having a comedy song aired in 1976, Yankovic has sold more than 12 million albums (as of 2007), recorded more than 150 parodies and original songs, and performed more than 1,000 live shows. His work has earned him five Grammy Awards and a further 11 nominations, four gold records, and six platinum records in the U.S. His first top ten Billboard album (Straight Outta Lynwood) and single ("White & Nerdy") were both released in 2006, nearly three decades into his career. His latest album, Mandatory Fun (2014), became his first No. 1 album during its debut week.


"Weird Al" Yankovic
Yankovic's success comes in part from his effective use of music videos to further parody pop culture, the song's original artist, and the original music videos themselves, scene-for-scene in some cases. He directed later videos himself and went on to direct for other artists, including Ben Folds, Hanson, the Black Crowes, and the Presidents of the United States of America. With the decline of music television and the onset of social media, he used YouTube and other video sites to publish his videos; this strategy helped to boost sales of his later albums. He has stated that he may forgo traditional albums in favor of timely releases of singles from the 2010s onwards.


"Weird Al" Yankovic
In addition to recording his albums, Yankovic wrote and starred in the film UHF (1989) and the television series The Weird Al Show (1997). He has also made guest appearances and performed voice acting roles on many television shows and video web content, in addition to starring in Al TV specials on MTV. He has also written two children's books, When I Grow Up (2011) and My New Teacher and Me! (2013).