American Bison (Arnold)

American Bison, is a public sculpture by American wire sculptor William E. Arnold, located in Indianapolis, Indiana within White River State Park. The sculpture is a life-sized male bison constructed of barbed wire, densely coiled and woven. The figure is facing north and stands on a rough limestone block base. It is located on the west end of the Washington Street Bridge at the entrance to the Indianapolis Zoo. It is 5'9" in height, 7'2" in length and 2'2" in width. The barbed wire bison with the limestone pedestal weighs 17 tons.
Description.
"American Bison" is a life-sized bison made of intertwining barbed wire that is painted brown. The bison is standing on a jagged limestone base, as if on a cliff ledge. A bronze label on the front of the base reads:
THE AMERICAN BISON / SYMBOL OF INB FINANCIAL CORPORATION / WILLIAM E. ARNOLD / SCULPTOR / INB FINE ARTS COLLECTION / 1989
Information.
"American Bison" was originally created in 1989 and installed outside Indiana National Bank (INB) in the 100 North block of Pennsylvania Street, One Indiana Square, in downtown Indianapolis. The sculpture served as INB Financial Corporation's mascot. In 1993, the bison was relocated to the Indianapolis Zoo after Detroit-based NBD Bancorp acquired Indiana National Bank.
Condition.
The condition of "American Bison" was assessed in 1993 as part of the Indiana Save Outdoor Sculpture initiative to document public art. In 1993 the sculpture was considered to be well maintained. In 2009, the sculpture was still well maintained, with minor rusting of the metal and chipped paint revealing the metallic wire underneath. There is also staining on the base caused by runoff from the barbed wire.
Artist.
William E. Arnold is from Wilkinson, IN. He has had a lifelong love of animals and by the age of 14 had taught himself taxidermy from library books. Arnold has a background as a float sculptor for the Indianapolis 500 Festival Parade. In 1983 he began creating wreaths and baskets from grapevines, which he sold at wholesale to local flower shops. He began his work with barbed wire and fence wire when he saw rolls of wire laying in a field at a four-way stop. Arnold said, "I was on the way to pull vines and I saw rolls of wire lying in the pastures and thought it was a buffalo lying in the grass."
In 1989 Arnold made Christmas decorations for the Indianapolis Museum of Art, including a 14-foot grapevine tree and 125 feet of grapevine garland. By 1993 Arnold had opened "The Indiana Field Guide Park" at his home in Wilkinson, IN. The two acre park included approximately 100 animal sculptures and over one thousand types of plants.


Billa (2009 film)

Billa is a 2009 Indian Telugu-language action thriller film directed by Meher Ramesh. The film stars Prabhas in a dual role, alongside Krishnam Raju, Anushka Shetty, Hansika Motwani, Namitha, Rahman, and Kelly Dorjee. A remake of the 1978 Hindi film "Don" by Salim–Javed, it is the second remake of "Don" in Telugu after "Yugandhar" (1979).
The film began its production in October 2008 and was released on 3 April 2009.
Plot.
The movie begins with an underworld don Billa hiding and operating out of Malaysia, hiding from Interpol's international criminal list. Krishnamoorthy, an ACP working for the Interpol, has spent the last few years looking for Billa, leaving behind a life in India.
During a chase with the police, Billa is severely wounded after an accident, and dies in front of the ACP. The ACP then secretly holds a funeral for Billa. Interpol Officer Dharmendra is assigned to work with the ACP to capture the elusive Billa as no-one knows of Billa's death. The ACP keeps the death of Billa as a secret even from his fellow officers, and tracks down a look-alike called Swami Ranga, a petty thief based in Visakhapatnam. He asks Ranga to infiltrate Billa's gang by pretending to be Billa. In return, he will make sure that the children Ranga adopted, Lakshmi and Sreenu, get a proper education in Hyderabad.
The ACP trains Ranga and sends him back to Billa's gang as a person who has lost his memory. Slowly Ranga starts to learn about Billa's gang and even speaks to Devil, Billa's boss, on the phone. Ranga provides a pen drive with the secret information of the crime network to the ACP, but he is about to be killed by a woman named Maya because her brother Vikram as well as his fiancée Priya were killed by Billa. At this juncture, the ACP arrives and tells her that he is Ranga and not Billa. Since then, she begins to assist Ranga and the ACP in their mission and soon falls in love with Ranga. Later before a party, Ranga secretly provides information to the ACP about a meeting of Billa's network, and Lisa, Billa's girlfriend, overhears his conversation. She challenges Ranga, but in the fight, he accidentally kills her. A shootout occurs at the party, and the ACP is secretly killed by someone, leaving his gun behind. Ranga finds the ACP's body and the gun, but is taken into the custody of the police team, now headed by Interpol Officer Dharmendra. He argues during interrogation that he is Ranga and not Billa to Dharmendra. Ranga mentions a piece of evidence – the pen drive, which may prove his innocence, but the pen drive is nowhere to be found.
Unable to prove his innocence, he escapes from a police van. He phones Dharmendra and asks him to meet at the Aero bridge. Here it is revealed that Dharmendra is none other than the Underworld Crime Don Devil, and he is the one who killed ACP Krishnamoorthy. While escaping from Devil's gang, he meets Officer Adithya, who apparently had the pen drive all along, and strikes a deal with Ranga to get hold of Devil. Meanwhile, Maya has been kidnapped by Devil after she tried to defend Ranga from Devil. Maya is tied up and kept in a car with her mouth taped shut. Ranga decides to pose as Billa to Devil, and provides Russian explosives to an arms dealer Rashid, who insisted on dealing with Billa. Enraged at being slighted by Rashid, following the completion of the deal, Devil and his henchman Ranjith fight with Ranga. Soon the police arrive and Devil, posing as Dharmendra, asks the police to arrest Ranga as Billa but gets shot by the squad of police and dies as the police have wired the entire conversation between Devil and Ranga, thus proving Ranga's innocence.
The movie ends with Ranga returning to Visakhapatnam with Maya, and deciding to start a school and college there with the government reward given to him and four suitcases of cash he stole from Malaysia.
Production.
The Below is Based on an interview by Meher Ramesh to Mr. Jeevi of idlebrain.com.
Development.
It was during the shooting of Vayassunami's song for Kantri in Ramoji Film City, NTR asked me if I were interested in watching Tamil Billa film. He got a print mailed from Chennai. He wanted to watch it because it was done by legend NTR as 'Yugandhar'. He said that if we like the movie, we might remake it in Telugu immediately after the Kantri film. I loved the film, but opined that NTR might not suit the role at this stage of his career and told him frankly about it.
I still had the idea of remaking Billa. The same producer came up with the proposal of remaking it with Ravi Teja as the hero. I watched the movie again with Ravi Teja in my mind. I modified certain scenes to suit him. Then I opined that a high budget film might not work out with Ravi Teja as the hero. The producer will end up suffering for the kind of budget we ask for. Hence we collectively decided not to make the movie.
I got an offer to work with Prabhas. I told him another story, and he didn't look excited enough. I casually asked him if he saw Billa. I told him that it has all elements of commercial hits like Rowdy Alludu and Donga Mogudu, which Chiranjeevi has done in his peak time of the career. He loved it, and I told him the script changes. We need a comfortable producer who can spend a lot of money at the same time who doesn't pressurize us. Prabhas suggested that we should make it on his home banner Gopi Krishna Movies. I told him another script which is equally exciting. It would cost only 60% of what Billa would have cost. But Prabhas wanted to make Billa. We narrated it to Krishnam Raju, and he loved it. I wanted Krishnam Raju to do the role of police commissioner. I wanted to capture the first combination of Prabhas and Krishnam Raju.
I made some changes in the screenplay. I made Billa an out and out commercial entertainer. I visualized every shot before making the movie. We went to Malaysia and selected the required locations a month in advance.
Casting.
Meher Ramesh explained his casting decisions in an interview.
Anushka: I knew Sweety (Anushka Shetty) even before she entered the movies. It was me who introduced her to Puri Jagannadh for "Super". I told her that she is going to be paired up with Prabhas, and I need her in the best shape. She worked hard, and when I met her after two months, she slimmed down a lot.
Hansika: I told Hansika Motwani that a slot is done by Kareena Kapoor in "Don" is available and asked her if she is interested in doing that role. She trusted me and told me yes immediately.
Namitha: I didn't have Namitha in my mind for that character. I tried many new faces. Namitha asked me that she want to re-enter Telugu films with "Billa". She slimmed down for this role, and we had a photo shoot before signing her.
Supreet: Supreet is highly impressive as Katraju in "Chhatrapati". He matched the masculinity of Prabhas in that film. I cast him as an associate of Prabhas in this film. He looks cool in black suits.
Rahman: Tamil actor Rahman did an important role as an associate of Krishnam Raju in this film. I noticed that he is also a perfectionist like Prakash Raj. He learned each and every word of his dialogue before hand. He uttered all Telugu dialogues with no prompting.
Filming.
Most of the Indian and Bollywood films shot in Malaysia have William Wong as the action director. But I have good tuning with Stun Siva. I employed Stun Siva as fight master for Billa, and we took the help of William Wong whenever we required. We shot a chase that never came in the Indian screen before. It will be like watching terrific chases in Bond flicks. We used choppers for 15 days. When we asked for 2 helicopters, the producer granted us four. This credit should go to producer D Narendra and production designer Krishna. We stayed in Malaysia for 3 months at a stretch to shoot this movie.
I wanted to have either Sameer Reddy or Chota K Naidu for cinematography. But the dates of both of them were not available. Not many people know about Soundar Rajan, who worked as an associate to KV Anand in the past. He also worked for four forgettable Tamil flicks. He got busy in doing commercial ads. We wanted to shoot Billa with a Super 35 camera. When I met him for the first time, we shared good vibes. We spoke for 5 hours about moviemaking. I signed him without looking at his work because I realized that he is extremely talented through our discussion. He is a friend of Vishnu Vardhan, who directed Tamil Billa. We met Vishnu Vardhan, and I informed him of the changes I made in the Billa script. He was impressed with it. Soundar is an excellent technician with an amazing sense of using lenses. He is one of the reasons why Billa is made in less time with more quality.
Billa is shot in 104 working days. We shot this film in the unpredictable weather of Malaysia. The total runtime of the final cut is 2 hours and 30 minutes.
Soundtrack.
Music of Billa was launched at a packed auditorium in Shilpakala Vedika on the night of 18 March 2009 with Dasari Narayana Rao, S. S. Rajamouli, V. V. Vinayak, Gopichand and Allu Arjun as guests. Dasari Narayana Rao launched the music. Mani Sharma composed music for the film and Lahari music bought audio rights. The song "My Name is Billa" was re-used by Sharma for the Tamil film "Sura" (2010) as "Naan Nadanthaal Adhiradi" and "Bommali " as "Thanjavoor Jillakkaari".
Release.
The film was released on 3 April 2009. The film was later dubbed and released in Hindi as "The Return of Rebel 2" and released on YouTube on 10 June 2017.


Engagement between the United States and the Macedonian

"Engagement between the "United States" and the "Macedonian is 1813 oil painting by American painter Thomas Birch depicting the naval engagement fought near Madeira on October 25, 1812 between the US Navy heavy frigate and the Royal Navy frigate . The battle resulted on the capture of the "Macedonian", which became the first British warship to be brought to an American harbour as a prize.
Birch painted the subject at least three times. An original painting was displayed in the Oval Office at the White House from 1961 to 1963 during the presidency of John F. Kennedy. Kennedy made plans to redecorate the Oval Office after his inauguration in 1961, and he wanted a painting of a naval battle to hang over the fireplace. A report in the "Philadelphia Inquirer" led J. Welles Henderson (the lawyer, and son of Joseph Welles Henderson) to lend a painting of the engagement between the "United States" and the "Macedonian" and a second naval painting by Birch, which were part of his personal collection displayed at Philadelphia Maritime Museum. The other painting depicted the earlier battle of USS "Constitution" against HMS "Guerriere". was captured in August 1812, but was too damaged and could not be brought back to port, so was set on fire and abandoned.
The work measures . After being displayed at the White House, it was held at museums in Philadelphia. It was sold by the estate of J. Welles Henderson at auction at Sotheby's in May 2008 for $481,000.
A slightly different and slightly larger version, which measures , also attributed to Birch 1813, has been held by the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, since 1978. A third version, which measures , also Birch 1813, is held by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania.
A version by or after Birch is at the Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site, in Hyde Park, New York; and a version "After Thomas Birch" was sold at Christie's in 2017 for $11,250.
An engraving of the painting by Benjamin Tanner was published on 25 October 1813. Another engraving was made by Samuel Seymour, 1815, and published by James Webster.


Dongala Mutha

Dongala Mutha () is a 2011 Indian Telugu-language action thriller film directed by Ram Gopal Varma. The film stars Ravi Teja, Charmy, Prakash Raj, Lakshmi Manchu, Sunil, Bramhanandam, Subbaraju and Supreeth Reddy. This film is the first of its kind in Indian cinema as it was shot with just 7 crew members and in a record of 5 days. Prior to filming, Varma announced that this film has no budget and that the cast and crew will not be taking remunerations until the film hits theaters.
Puri Jagannadh is co-director while director Harish Shankar (Mirapakaya fame) is associate director. Music is composed by Sathyam while the background score has been rendered by Amar Mohile (of "Sarkar Raj" fame).
Dongala Mutha was released on 18 March 2011, which was exactly 33 days after the shooting ended. The filmmaking process was revolutionized through Canon 5D cameras. The film remained an instant hit at the box office.
Plot.
A couple, Sudheer (Ravi Teja) and Rani (Charmy), is traveling in a car on a deserted road for friend’s marriage. They take a shortcut to reach the venue, when their car conks out and they end up in an old, dilapidated, a seedy resort. They meet a weird hotel staff member (Subbaraju) who claims he is the receptionist. He tells them that the hotel is full. Another guy, who calls himself the manager (Supreeth), tells them that one room is vacant and they are allotted room 8. Inside the hotel, Sudheer and Rani realize the room has not been cleaned for many days. When they order lunch, the resort staff brings the menu but says that nothing is available. Sudheer shouts at the staff, and they tell him that he can take their car and drive to a nearby village where he can get a mechanic, but they tell him he cannot take his wife with him. Sudheer gets irritated and asks them to get out. Soon, both hear weird sounds from the next room. But to their surprise, that adjacent room is locked. Sudheer slowly starts realizing that he and Rani are getting more and more trapped in a do-or-die situation.
When asked, the receptionist tells them the source of the sound from the neighboring room is a ghost. The manager says it is not a ghost, but a thief. Frightened at their gestures, Sudheer and Rani try to get out of the resort, but the manager, receptionist, and servant (Brahmaji) hold them captive and keep Rani in room 9 - the same room as the one with the ghost. However, Sudheer and Rani manage to escape from them but are trapped in the same building. The three men at the resort are actually kidnappers working for a don Munna Bhai. They have kidnapped a businessman Narayana Murthy (Brahmanandam) and locked him up in room number 9. To solve the kidnap mystery, cops Shiva (Lakshmi Manchu) and Richard (Sunil) arrive at the resort feigning to convey the message that Munna has been arrested. What ensues now is a game of hide and seek as Sudheer, Rani and Narayana are now on the run. Finally, a cop-on-duty (Prakash Raj) arrives to arrest "The Mutha", later revealing himself to be Munna.
Production.
Development.
Normally a film takes between 2-6 to shoot and more than 150 to 200 crew members will be working on it. However, the unique thing about this film is that this 2 hour long feature film was completed in just 5 days from start to finish, with a crew of just 5 people including Ram Gopal Varma. No one in this film was paid. It was made only with those actors and technicians who were excited to be a part of the project. All the people who were working for the film were only be paid after the release, if and only if the film would make profits and those payments would be in accordance with their individual value additions.
There was no generator, no lights, no equipment of any sort including jibs, trolleys etc., as the entire film was shot hand-held and in natural light. The pilot track for the sound was recorded by the cameras themselves.
Filming.
The innovative challenge of using Canon cameras as opposed to the traditional movie cameras was first technically proved before shooting commenced by making a test print out of a few scenes shot that came out perfectly. Principal photography then started on 9 February 2011 and the entire shooting of Dongala Mutha was completed ahead of schedule. The entire film was shot hand held and in natural light with 5 Canon cameras which were used to capture every shot in 5 different angles simultaneously. No lights or equipment of any sort including jibs, trolleys etc. were used. There was no D.O.P for the film and all the individual operators chose the angles or compositions without the director or anyone guiding or coordinating them.
Canon 5D cameras were used because they give excellent output with naked-eye quality without using any additional lights. It costs around 1.5 lakhs to buy each of these cameras. The film was wrapped up in a record four and a half days, earlier than the announced five days and was released on 18 March. Finally, Ram Gopal Varma revealed in a press conference at the Promo Launch that the production cost of the movie is just 6,50,000, mostly for renting out a premises and other miscellaneous expenses.
Crew.
The seven member crew on location consisted of the Director, an Assistant Director and 5 Camera operators and the unit breakup is as follows:
"The Making" Video.
Ram Gopal Varma's main idea for making Dongala Mutha is to explain to the world that a film need not have a whole bunch of technicians taking care of camera work but could be done with just Canon 5D cameras. He has revealed his idea at the end of the film with ‘The Making of Dongala Mutha’ video. How the FX School students have used the hand held cameras and shot the film without using regular cranes and other machinery, how Varma himself has looked after everything instead of making use of assistant directors, associate directors, managers and make-up artistes, light boys and others, etc., forms the plot of the 2 minute 34 seconds video. He has penned the dialogues to the characters and has tried to derive comedy by repeating the same dialogues between the characters. The video also reveals the action choreography to have been handled by Varma himself. Music for the video is by 'Deyyam' fame Sathyam.
Soundtrack.
Composer Sathyam scored the film's title track, his second collaboration with Ram Gopal Varma after Deyyam. The music video for the song was picturised on the cast which included Ravi Teja, Charmme Kaur, Lakshmi Manchu, Sunil (actor), Subbaraju, Brahmaji, Prakash Raj, Brahmanandam and Supreet by noted director S. Harish Shankar at the deserted Aluminium Factory in Gachibowli, Hyderabad. The song was shot completely on Canon DSLR Camera in one day.


The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit

The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit is a 1998 comedy film directed by Stuart Gordon, written by Ray Bradbury and starring Edward James Olmos, Joe Mantegna, Esai Morales, Clifton Collins Jr. (credited as Clifton Gonzalez Gonzalez), Sid Caesar, Howard Morris and Gregory Sierra. It is set in East Los Angeles. Despite some well-known actors and the writing credit of Bradbury, the film was released direct-to-video by Touchstone Pictures.
Plot.
Jose Martinez is a poor young man living in East Los Angeles who is in love with the girl next door. He encounters a strange man eyeing him and runs away, and throwing his wallet with his last $20 to escape. When cornered in the alley he is given back his money where the man measures his body frame. This man is Gómez who introduces himself and then whisks Martinez off to a run-down bar. There he meets two other similarly-sized Latinos, Dominguez, a wandering guitar player, and Villanazul, a burgeoning philosopher and speaker for the people.
Barely letting the dust settle, Gómez shows them that they all have the same measurements, height, and weight. It is at that moment that Gómez shares his vision. The most beautiful, exquisite, vanilla-ice-cream-white summer suit is for sale at the downtown suit emporium. It is one of a kind and costs only $100. Alone, none of them have enough to purchase the suit, but by combining their money, they may be able to own the one-of-a-kind suit together. Each of the four has only $20, leaving them with $80 – just $20 short. They need one more person to complete their dream. In their haste, they choose to go along with a bum outside, Vámonos, who has the last $20 they need.
Once they buy the suit, they work out a system to decide who will wear it. Each partner will get to wear it for the entire night, one night a week. However, on the first night, they will each wear it for one hour, then return to the bar. Dominguez goes first, and stirs up a parade with his guitar playing, inspiring those who hear it to "¡Muévete!" Villanazul is second, and during his hour he interrupts a politician on a soapbox to perform a poem he has written. Martinez, third in line, returns to the balcony where he first saw the girl next door. While she had previously not noticed him (because she did not have her glasses on), this time the bright white suit attracts her attention and Martinez gets her name: Celia Obregon.
Gómez is next. Acting on an earlier hunch that Gómez's plan was a scam to get the money from the others to buy the suit and then leave town, Villanazul reminds Gómez to "go with God." This was indeed the plan all along, but on the way to the bus station, Gómez encounters a mural of five men, each resembling a member of their group. Gómez decides not to leave, and returns.
Finally it is Vámonos's turn. Gómez is infuriated that the filthy Vámonos did not get clean before it was his turn. Along with the others, they force Vámonos to take a bath, something he hadn't done in years. Once clean, Gómez lays down a series of rules, aimed at keeping the suit clean: no eating juicy tacos, drinking wine, smoking cigars, even standing under trees with birds. Furthermore, he insists that Vámonos avoid meeting with a woman named Ruby Escadrío, whose boyfriend, Toro, would ruin the suit in a fight. Vámonos heads off to a club. He is followed by the other four members, who watch him ignore every one of Gómez's rules.
Ruby Escadrío shows up, and she and Vámonos dance. Toro, predictably, is angry. The others protect Vámonos from Toro, Gómez even going so far as to insist Toro hit him instead of Vámonos. The fight ends after Toro hits Vámonos with his car. His leg is broken, but Vámonos insists that they quickly take off the suit before the ambulance arrives, because the paramedics would cut the suit off and ruin it. They do, and Vámonos is rushed to the hospital.
In the final scene, Dominguez has ironed the suit and placed it on a mannequin. As the scene continues, it becomes apparent that the suit is one of the few things the group has left: they are sleeping on a rooftop, with only a few hammocks between them. Vámonos is fine, though his leg is still in a cast. Martinez contemplates that if they were rich, they would never have had the great time they have spent together, before Villanazul tells him to get some sleep.
Background and release.
The story's life and inspiration comes from Ray Bradbury's 1958 "Saturday Evening Post" short story "The Magic White Suit". The story was later renamed "The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit" and was adapted into a short play published in "The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit and Other Plays" (), a 1972 collection of three plays by Ray Bradbury: "The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit", "The Veldt", and "To the Chicago Abyss". All are adaptations from short stories of the same names.
The story has gone on to see numerous incarnations as a television drama, a stage musical, and play. The first screen adaptation of "The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit" was a television version broadcast. A Los Angeles production of the play featured the debut of actor F. Murray Abraham.
The 1998 version of the film was originally shown at that year's Sundance Film Festival. Ray Bradbury wrote the screenplay. He has called that film version "the best film I've ever made." The film was director Stuart Gordon's first departure from science fiction and horror genres. He had previously directed a stage adaptation of "The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit".
Awards.
Nomination:
Winner:


Agony in the Garden (El Greco, London)

Agony in the Garden is a 1590 oil on canvas painting by El Greco or his studio, dating to his second stay in Toledo and still showing the major influence of Titian on his work. It is now on display in the Toledo Art Museum in Toledo, Ohio.
An angel appears to Christ in the left foreground, holding a chalice in his hand. In the right-hand background, Judas and a group of soldiers approach to arrest Christ, marching through a dry landscape without vegetation.


Rice brothers

John Rice (December 3, 1951 – November 5, 2005) and Greg Rice (born December 3, 1951), sometimes known as the Rice Brothers or Rice Twins, were identical twin dwarfs, known throughout the United States for their appearances in various commercials and infomercials. Until the death of John Rice on November 5, 2005, the two held the world record for being the shortest living twins, standing only .
Early lives.
John and Greg Rice were born on December 3, 1951 at St. Mary's Hospital in West Palm Beach, Florida. Their biological mother abandoned them a few hours after giving birth, purportedly due to the diagnosis of dwarfism. After eight months of being cared for by hospital staff, the infants were taken in as foster children by Frank and Mildred Windsor. Mildred died when the boys were in eighth grade due to ovarian cancer. Following the loss of their foster mother and the death of their foster father three years later, the two were raised by their foster sister, Betty Windsor. Despite the difficulties of their condition as well as the loss of their foster parents, John and Greg participated in "normal" childhood activities such as the Boy Scouts, took regular classes throughout their education, and even played cornet in the junior high and high school band.
During their senior year at Palm Beach High School, John and Greg made money selling cleaning and personal care products door to door. After a number of years practicing their sales skills the two enrolled in community college, and after a year of school were promoted to training other salespeople in the company they worked for.
Professional careers.
In the mid-seventies the Rice Brothers went into the real estate business, starting out as real estate agents and then successful investors. It was there they became two of the most recognizable experts in their field in the U.S. They later went into the motivational speaking business.
in 1980, the brothers appeared in "Hardly Working", a comedy directed by Jerry Lewis. The twins appeared on the television series "Real People" as motivational speakers, and then went on to play landlords in the 1981 television series "Foul Play". They also hosted a short-lived game show titled "That . . . Quiz Show" in 1982. In 1989, the twins appeared in commercials for a chain of pizza restaurants known as Pizza Factory.
In the 1990s, the twins became local celebrities in south Florida when they began starring in commercials for a pest control company.
Death of John.
John Rice died November 5, 2005 from complications of injuries when he broke his leg coming out of a Palm Beach bank. He was scheduled for surgery and died as they started the anesthesia.
Greg Rice continues to carry on the work that he began with his late brother in marketing and advertising as well as teaching and lecturing people.


Jesus Insulted by the Soldiers

Jesus Insulted by the Soldiers is an 1865 oil on canvas painting by Édouard Manet, his last religious work. It is now in the Art Institute of Chicago, to which it was left in 1925 by James Deering, heir to the Deering Harvester Company (International Harvester).
According to Théophile Thoré-Burger, the painting was based on Anthony van Dyck's "Christ Crowned with Thorns" (destroyed in Berlin in 1945, though a version of it survives in the Princeton University Art Museum). Other authors argue it draws on Titian's 1542–43 work of the same title, now in the Louvre. In 1959 Michel Leiris noted its similarities to an engraving by Schelte Adams Bolswert, whilst Theodore Reff saw it as influenced by "Ecce homo" (Madrid, Prado Museum) or "Christ Mocked by the Soldiers", both by Van Dyck. Julius Meier-Graefe also noted the influence of Diego Velázquez on the work and Ann Coffin Hanson that of Hendrick ter Brugghen.
This work and his "The Dead Christ with Angels" (1864) were adjudged violent and insufficiently academic by art critics and the public. Paul de Saint-Victor referred to the 1865 work as "the horrible "Ecce Homo" by Monsieur Manet". Manet's usual critics such as Bertall, Cham, André Gill, Draner, Stop and Albert Robida also attacked the work in "Le Charivari", the "Journal amusant ", "Le Monde pour rire", "L'Éclipse" (replaced by the "La Lune"), "Le Tintamarre", "La Vie parisienne" and several other publications.
In his 1872 inventory of his works, Manet valued the work at 15000 francs. It was put on sale in 1883 but was withdrawn from the sale before finally being bought from Léon Leehoff by the art dealers Boussod and Valadon in 1893. According to Tabarant, it was Durand-Ruel who bought it from Manet's widow, but Durand-Ruel's records show he bought the work jointly with Jean-Baptiste Faure in 1894, Faure exhibited it in New York and finally Durand-Ruel sold it for 22,000 francs to James Deering.


Cashback (film)

Cashback is a 2006 British romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Sean Ellis. Originally exhibited as a short in 2004, it was expanded to feature length in 2006. Both versions were produced by Lene Bausager, starring Sean Biggerstaff and Emilia Fox.
Plot.
Aspiring artist Ben Willis develops insomnia after a painful breakup with his girlfriend, Suzy. To take his mind off Suzy and to occupy the extra waking hours he has recently gained, Ben begins working at a local Sainsbury's supermarket, where he meets colourful co-workers. Among them is his colleague Sharon, with whom he soon develops a mutual crush. As his personal means to escape the boredom inherent in the night shift, Ben lets his imagination run wild. In particular, he imagines that he can stop time so that he can walk around in a world that is "frozen" like the pause of a film. He imagines female patrons of the supermarket stopped in time, allowing him to undress and draw them. Finally the ability to stop time becomes real.
A series of flashbacks occur with each progression of the plot, accompanied by Ben's narration and an examination of the effect the situation had had upon him. He explains how he always has been impressed by the beauty of the female body: how he, as a young boy, witnessed a Swedish boarder walk naked from the shower to her room. In another flashback, the young Ben and his best friend Sean share Sean's discovery of his parents' adult magazines, and Sean pays a neighbourhood girl called Natalie fifty pence to show him her vulva. Other neighbourhood boys repeat this trade.
Ben's boss, Alan Jenkins, recruits the staff for a weekend football game and, after an embarrassing defeat, 26-Nil, Ben freezes time again. This time he discovers that he is not alone when he sees a mysterious stranger who is able to move inside the frozen world as he can. When Jenkins throws a party to honour his own birthday and as a consolation for their defeat, Sharon asks Ben to be her date, to which he eagerly but nervously agrees. While there, Ben encounters Natalie, who is now a stripper, as well as his ex-girlfriend Suzy, who implores him to try their relationship again. Ben refuses her advance but she kisses him, just as Sharon witnesses from afar. Sharon angrily leaves the party. Ben realizes Sharon has seen the kiss, and freezes time. After spending several days "frozen", Ben concludes that although he can stop time, he cannot reverse it to correct the mistake. He eventually seeks to explain himself to Sharon at her apartment, and a confrontation similar to the film-opening breakup occurs. Sharon henceforth does not show up to work at the supermarket.
As a practical joke, colleagues Barry and Matt phone Ben; Matt poses as an art gallery owner who is interested in displaying Ben's drawings, and schedules an appointment for Ben to present more to him. When Ben arrives as agreed, the reaction of the owner quickly reveals that he has been pranked. However, the gallery owner is nonetheless interested in Ben's work and decides to exhibit Ben's drawings. Sharon receives an invitation to the exhibition and visits. She is moved as most of the pieces depict her and she happily greets Ben, congratulating him on his success. The finale occurs as Ben shares his ability to stop time with her and the two step outside into a time-frozen snowfall.
Production.
Originally exhibited as a short film in 2004, it was expanded to feature length in 2006. The feature film includes nearly all of the content of the short. Following a decision in December 2005 to proceed with the feature, Ellis completed the expanded script in seven days. After getting commitments from his cast in March he secured financing and the film went into production in May. This schedule was exceedingly condensed by modern film making standards. As all of the key players were available to appear in the feature, it was possible to incorporate the original short virtually without change.
The feature film uses an original score composed by Guy Farley including one piece, "Frozen" which featured on the Classic FM album, "The Quiet Room" in July 2006.
Release.
The feature had its North American premiere on September 10, 2006, at the Toronto International Film Festival. It was later screened at a number of other international festivals. The film got a limited theatrical release in the US on 17 July 2007 and in the UK May 2008. The DVD for the European region was released in September 2007. The UK DVD was released in September 2008.
Critical response.
On Rotten Tomatoes, "Cashback" holds a score of 48% based on 54 reviews, with an average rating of 5.50/10. The consensus reads, "An unlikable protagonist, messy editing, and gratuitous nudity might make audiences ask for their cash back." In contrast, Justin Chang of "Variety" described it as "slickly charming, gently erotic and directed with supreme polish". Roger Ebert of the "Chicago Sun-Times" said the film is "lightweight, as it should be", adding that Ben and Sharon "are delighted to be admired by such wonderful partners, and we are happy for them. And that's about it." Matt Seitz of "The New York Times" called the film a "crock", criticizing its "validation of Ben’s adolescent concept of beauty, its wafer-thin characterizations, its gorgeous but overwrought widescreen photography and its abundance of 'How did they do that?' trick shots." Steven Rea of "The Philadelphia Inquirer" gave the film three of four stars, calling it "a sleek little meditation on beauty, desire, love and time", but saying it "isn't as deep as it pretends to be." Scott Tobias of "The A.V. Club" graded the film as a "C–", noting its "luscious imagery" but ultimately calling it trite and unremarkable. Jeff Shannon of "The Seattle Times" gave the film a positive review, commending its account of love and its visual style. Ed Gonzalez of "Slant Magazine" gave a particularly negative review, criticizing it for misogyny and sexual objectification, adding that Ben is "just as skuzzily self-absorbed as his perpetually horny mates." Jim Ridley of "The Village Voice" said "[t]he movie is too cute by half, made close to unbearable whenever Ben's narration spews glib pseudo-profundities about memory and temporal stillness", while also complimenting some of its comic and visual elements. Desson Thomson of "The Washington Post" was also critical, describing Ben and Sharon's romance as uninventive and the film as shallow.
Accolades.
The short film won 14 awards at international film festivals and was nominated for the 2006 Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film. After the nomination, it was a popular download from iTunes (US).


Saint Catherine (Caravaggio)

Saint Catherine of Alexandria (c. 1598) is an oil painting (173x133 cm) by the Italian Baroque master Caravaggio, painted from 1598-1599. It is part of the Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection of Madrid.
History and Description.
The painting was part of the collection of Cardinal Francesco Maria Del Monte, where it was cataloged in 1627 The saint, together with Mary Magdelene, were among the Cardinal's favorites.
According to Alessandro Zuccari, it was painted on the suggestion of the Cardinal when Caravaggio was living with him in the Palazzo Madama.
As the model for the saint, Caravaggio controversially chose Fillide Melandroni, a well known Roman prostitute he had fallen in love with and who caused him many problems. Fillide would again model for him in "Martha and Mary Magdalene", "Judith Beheading Holofernes", and in a single portrait burned in Berlin during World War II.
Story of St. Catherine.
Saint Catherine of Alexandria was a popular figure in Catholic iconography. Her qualities are supposed to be those of beauty, fearlessness, virginity, and intelligence. She was of noble origins, and dedicated herself as a Christian after having a vision. At the age of 18 she confronted the Roman Emperor Maximus (presumably this refers to Galerius Maximianus), debated his pagan philosophers, and succeeded in converting many of them to Christianity. Imprisoned by the emperor, she converted his empress and the leader of his armies. Maximus executed her converts (including the empress) and ordered that Catherine herself be put to death on a spiked wheel. The wheel reportedly shattered the moment Catherine touched it. Maximus then had her beheaded.
She became patron saint of libraries and librarians, as well as teachers, archivists, and all those associated with wisdom and teaching, and all those whose livelihoods depended upon wheels. The year of her martyrdom was traditionally held to have been 305, (the year of a major persecution of Christians under Galerius), and her feastday was celebrated on 25 November.
In 1969 the Church removed her from the calendar of saints, persuaded by the overwhelming opinion of historians that Catherine had probably never existed. By 2002, while the majority of historians had not changed their minds, the Church had, and she was reinstated.


Repeat Performance

Repeat Performance is a 1947 American film noir crime (with fantasy elements) starring Louis Hayward and Joan Leslie. The film was released by Eagle-Lion Films, directed by Alfred L. Werker, and produced by Aubrey Schenck.
Plot.
On New Year's Eve 1946, a woman is standing over her dead husband with a gun in her hand. She panics and goes to her friends for help. While seeking help from her friends at a pair of parties, she wishes that she could live 1946 all over again.
Magically, because she wished exactly at the strike of midnight on New Year's, her wish is granted and she is transported back to the beginning of 1946 with her husband alive. She attempts to relive the year without making the mistakes she and her friends made throughout the year, but certain events repeat themselves nonetheless, leaving Sheila to question whether there really is such a thing as fate or not.
The story climaxes again on New Year's Eve, when through Sheila's interferences over the year, her husband becomes convinced that she's trying to destroy him. He violently confronts her. Her friend William, who believed in Sheila's foresight, shoots her husband with her gun.
Production.
The film changed the original story where the girl was the villain because it was felt Joan Leslie could not play a villain.
Remake.
This film was remade as the television film "Turn Back the Clock" (1989) directed by Larry Elikann. It featured Jere Burns, Wendy Kilbourne and original cast member Joan Leslie.


Saint Praxedis (painting)

Saint Praxedis is an oil painting attributed to Johannes Vermeer. This attribution has often been questioned. However, in 2014 the auction house Christie's announced the results of new investigations which in their opinion demonstrate conclusively that it is a Vermeer. The painting is a copy of a work by Felice Ficherelli, and depicts the early Roman martyr, Saint Praxedis or Praxedes. It may be Vermeer's earliest surviving work, dating from 1655.
Description and date.
The painting shows the saint squeezing a martyr's blood from a sponge into an ornate vessel. It is closely related to a work by Ficherelli from 1640–45, now in the Collection Fergnani in Ferrara, and is generally assumed to be a copy of it (though see below for an alternative interpretation). The most obvious difference between the two is that there is no crucifix in the Ferrara work. It is Vermeer's only known close copy of another work.
This is one of only four dated Vermeer paintings, the others being "The Procuress" (1656), "The Astronomer" (1668) and "The Geographer" (1669). Vermeer's two early history paintings, "Christ in the House of Martha and Mary" and "Diana and Her Companions", are dated by almost all art historians to 1654-6, although opinions differ as to which is earlier.
Provenance and 2014 sale.
The painting's provenance before the mid-twentieth century is unknown. The collector Jacob Reder bought it at a minor auction house in New York in 1943. It first received significant attention as a possible Vermeer when being shown as a part of an exhibition of Florentine Baroque art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York in 1969. The exhibition catalogue drew attention to the signature "Meer 1655" and Michael Kitson, reviewing the exhibition, suggested it could be a genuine Vermeer on the basis of stylistic similarities to "Diana and Her Companions". Following Reder's death (also in 1969) it was bought by the art dealer Spencer A. Samuels, who also believed it to be a Vermeer. The Barbara Piasecka Johnson Collection Foundation bought it from Spencer in 1987. The leading Vermeer scholar Arthur Wheelock subsequently argued the case for the attribution to Vermeer in an article devoted to it in 1986.
The painting was not included in the exhibition "The Young Vermeer" held in The Hague, Dresden and Edinburgh in 2010-11. However it was included in an exhibition of Vermeer's work held in Rome in 2012–13, curated by Wheelock, Liedtke and Sandrina Bandera.
It was sold at Christie's in London on 8 July 2014 on behalf of the Barbara Piasecka Johnson Collection Foundation. It sold to an unknown buyer for £6,242,500 (US$10,687,160), at the lower end of the estimated price range of £6-£8 million. Some art market commentators speculated that doubt about the attribution to Vermeer may have contributed to the relatively low price. From March 2015 it has been on display in the National Museum of Western Art in Tokyo, labelled as "attributed to Johannes Vermeer". This appears to be a long-term loan to the museum from a private collector.
Debates over attribution.
The painting may have two signatures. The more obvious of the two reads "Meer 1655", while the second appears as "Meer N R o o". It is possible that this second signature originally read "Meer naar Riposo", or "Vermeer after Riposo": Riposo was Ficherelli's nickname. The Doerner Institute's examination of the signatures concluded that both signatures were original and composed of pigments typical of the painting. Wheelock's examination also led him to conclude that both signatures were original, and recent technical examination has demonstrated that the clearer signature is likely to have been added at, or close to, the date the painting was created. However these new investigations agreed with the earlier opinion of the conservator Jørgen Wadum that the possible second signature is too indistinct to be deciphered.
Analysis of the lead white, performed by the Rijksmuseum, in association with the Free University, Amsterdam used in the painting demonstrates a Dutch or Flemish origin, with a strong possibility that the pigment came from the same batch used for Vermeer's "Diana and Her Companions". The use of a chalk ground is also typically Dutch, and there is an unusually extensive use of ultramarine, typical of Vermeer's later work, though not of "Diana and Her Companions" or "Christ in the House of Martha and Mary". Wheelock identifies stylistic similarities with two history paintings which are universally attributed to Vermeer. He also notes similarities between the depiction of the saint's face and the figure in Vermeer's "A Girl Asleep" and argues that the painter's conversion to Catholicism would have given him an interest in the subject matter. Although it is thought unlikely that the Ferrara painting ever left Italy, or that Vermeer visited Italy, Wheelock points out that he had a reputation as an authority on Italian art. It is possible that another version or copy of the Ferrara painting was the model for Vermeer's work.
In 1998, Wadum argued that the painting was not a copy of the work in Ferrara, or indeed of any other work, because the background elements were painted before the foreground, as is typical of an original work rather than a copy. In 2014 Christie's put forward the argument that this could be explained as experimentation by Vermeer, the young artist trying to recreate and adapt the technique used to create the original.


Billy Curtis

Billy Curtis (born Luigi Curto, June 27, 1909 – November 9, 1988) was an American film and television actor with dwarfism, who had a 50-year career in the entertainment industry.
Career.
The bulk of his work was in the western and science fiction genres, portraying a little person. One of his early roles was uncredited as a Munchkin city father in "The Wizard of Oz" (1939). He had a featured role as part of the circus troupe in Alfred Hitchcock's "Saboteur" (1942). He also appeared in "Superman and the Mole Men" (1951), a B-Picture intended as the pilot for the "Adventures of Superman" TV series. Curtis followed up this role by playing yet another alien visitor in an untitled episode of the last season in the Adventures of Superman television series. Known as "Mister Zero" he portrayed a stranded refugee from Mars who visits Metropolis's The Daily Planet newspaper office, asking to be taken to Earth's leader.
Curtis's work in westerns included the Clint Eastwood feature, "High Plains Drifter" (1973) in which he was featured as Mordecai, a friendly dwarf sympathetic to Eastwood's character. He also appeared in the Musical/Western "The Terror of Tiny Town" (1938). This film is, as far as is known, the world's only Western with an all-midget cast. Many of the actors in "Tiny Town" were part of a performing troupe called Singer's Midgets, who also played Munchkins in "The Wizard of Oz". In 1973 he appeared as Arizona in an episode of "Gunsmoke" titled "Arizona Midnight." He had a starring role in American International Pictures' "Little Cigars" (1973), about a gang of small people on a crime spree.
Death.
Curtis died November 9, 1988, aged 79 in Dayton, Nevada of a heart attack.


The Vision of Saint Eustace (Carracci)

The Vision of Saint Eustace is a painting by Annibale Carracci, showing saint Eustace and his vision of a crucifix between the horns of a stag whilst out hunting. The saint is set in one of the first landscapes by either of the Carracci brothers, showing how he was influenced by Venetian landscape painting until about 1598 after a stay in the city in 1587 and 1588. Specific influences include Titian's "Penitent Saint Jerome" (Louvre) and the naturalism of Jacopo Bassano. Critics argue the composition is based on two prints by Cornelis Cort, a Flemish printer - "Penitent St Jerome" and "The Vision of Saint Eustace". These prints were in turn based on ideas by the Lombard painter Girolamo Muziano, who was also influenced by Venetian models. The dogs and some other details are drawn from "Saint Eustace", an engraving by Albrecht Dürer of the same subject.
It is generally dated to 1585-1586 due to its stylistic similarities with other more-securely dated works from those years by the artist. It is theorised that the painting was taken to Rome by the artist to give to cardinal Odoardo Farnese, who became titular cardinal of the Basilica of Sant'Eustachio in 1595, the same year as Carracci moved to Rome permanently to work for Odoardo. It remained in the Farnese collection, moving initially to Parma and then to Naples, where it finally ended up in its present home in the National Museum of Capodimonte in Naples.


Mike Edmonds

Mike Edmonds (born 13 January 1944) is an English actor with dwarfism, known for his role as Little Ron in the children's television show "Maid Marian and Her Merry Men".
Edmonds has appeared in several films, including "Flash Gordon" (1980), "The Dark Crystal" (1982), and "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" (1988). He played the role of Og in the Terry Gilliam film "Time Bandits" (1981). In "Return of the Jedi," (1983) he performed as the Ewok Logray as well as the operator for Jabba the Hutt's tail.
Edmonds can be seen dancing in the Men Without Hats music video "The Safety Dance" as a dwarf jester, wearing a shirt for their "Rhythm of Youth" album.


Fredric Westin

Fredric Westin (22 September 1782, in Stockholm – 13 May 1862, in Stockholm) was a Swedish history and portrait painter.
Biography.
He studied with Lorens Pasch the Younger and Louis Masreliez at the Royal Swedish Academy of Arts. In 1808, he became an "Agré" (a type of junior associate) at the Academy. Four years later, he was appointed a Director at the Nationalmuseum and joined the board of directors at the Academy. In 1815, he became a Vice-Professor and, the following year, a full Professor. He served as Director there from 1828 to 1840 and, in 1843, was appointed a "Hovintendent" (a largely honorary position) at the Royal Court.
After 1812, many of his works were done for the Royal Families, including door panels for the bedchamber of Crown Prince (later King) Charles at Rosersberg Palace, a mural of the Four Seasons at Sävstaholm Castle, and Hebe with her father Zeus in the form of an eagle at Rosendal Palace.
He was very popular as a portrait painter during the reign of Charles XIV, but was not universally appreciated. The well known author and art critic Lorenzo Hammarsköld felt that he had no talent. Many years later, Fredrik Wilhelm Scholander said that his portraits looked like wax figures.
Despite the criticism, he was commissioned to do many portraits of the Bernadottes. In 1824, he created a popular allegorical painting of Crown Princess Josephine returning to Sweden, borne in the clouds by cupids. His 1838 equestrian painting of the King is also very well known.
In 1828, after Johan Gustaf Sandberg failed to produce an altarpiece commissioned for Saint James's Church, the project was given to Westin, who completed it with a transfiguration of Christ. Over the next decade, he produced several other altarpieces on themes from the Gospels at Kungsholms Church, Turku Cathedral, Uddevalla Church and Carl Gustafs Church.


On the Platte River, Nebraska

On the Platte River, Nebraska is an 1863 oil landscape painting by the Hudson River School artist Albert Bierstadt.
References.


Bialosky Bear

Bialosky was a line of teddy bear toys and related children's products popular in the USA during the 1970s and 80s.
The stuffed animals were manufactured by Gund.
In addition to the stuffed animals, Bialosky products included a children's book series.
Partial list of Bialosky titles.
Bialosky and the Big Parade Mystery (1986)
Bialosky's Special Picnic (1985)
My First Cookbook: A Bialosky & Friends Book
Bialosky's Christmas (1984)


The Other Love

The Other Love is a 1947 American film noir drama romance film directed by Andre DeToth and starring Barbara Stanwyck, David Niven, and Richard Conte. Written by Ladislas Fodor and Harry Brown based on the story "Beyond" by Erich Maria Remarque, the film is about a concert pianist who is sent to a sanatorium in Switzerland to treat a serious lung illness.
In his review for "The New York Times", Bosley Crowther called the film "a typical artificial romance on the heart-rending theme of "Camille"".
Plot.
Not knowing her illness is terminal, concert pianist Karen Duncan checks into a Switzerland sanatorium under the care of Dr. Tony Stanton, whose stern manner Karen does not like. One day she and another patient, Celestine Miller, enjoy a day away from the clinic and a night on the town, despite their doctor's advice.
Auto racer Paul Clermont is introduced to Karen and invites her to Monte Carlo. Although she is attracted to her doctor, Tony's seeming lack of interest in anything but her health causes Karen to accept Paul's invitation. She gambles, smokes and drinks, then returns to the sanatorium to discover that Celestine has died.
Panic-stricken, Karen's first impulse is to follow her doctor's orders to refrain from exerting herself. She disobeys, going away with Paul again and endangering her well-being. Only at the last possible minute does she return to Tony's side, where he proposes marriage to her and watches carefully as their future together hangs by a thread.


The Old Oregon Trail (film)

The Old Oregon Trail is a 1928 American silent film directed by Denver Dixon, starring F. C. Rose and Delores Booth.


Paysage Bords de Seine

Paysage Bords de Seine ("On the Shore of the Seine" or "Landscape on the Banks of the Seine") is an 1879 oil painting by Pierre-Auguste Renoir. It was stolen in 1951 from the Baltimore Museum of Art and resurfaced in 2012.
History.
"Paysage Bords de Seine" was painted by Renoir in 1879. In June 1925, the painting was purchased by the Paris art gallery Bernheim-Jeune from a "Madame Papillon" (possibly Alphonsine Fournaise Papillon, a figure in the artist's "Luncheon of the Boating Party"). In January 1926, Herbert L. May purchased the painting from Bernheim-Jeune. In 1937, May's ex-wife, Saidie May, loaned the painting to the Baltimore Museum of Art. In her will, Saidie May bequeathed the painting, along with all her other artworks, to the Baltimore Museum of Art. She died on May 28, 1951.
Theft and rediscovery.
Sometime between the evening of November 16, 1951, and a little after noon on November 17, "Paysage Bords de Seine" was stolen from the Baltimore Museum of Art during the "From Ingres to Gauguin" show. The museum sold the title of the painting in an insurance claim of $2,500 to Fireman's Fund Insurance Company, which paid the museum for the loss. In July 2012, Marcia Fuqua brought the painting to The Potomack Company auction house in Alexandria, Virginia, to sell. Fuqua claimed that she bought the painting at a flea market in West Virginia for $7 in late 2009, however a family member said the painting had been in the family for "50 or 60 years" (he later changed his account) and other witnesses claimed to have seen the painting in the family's possession decades before the attempted sale. The Potomack Company cancelled the auction scheduled for September 29, 2012, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation seized the painting and opened an investigation into the theft. In November 2013, the Fireman's Fund Insurance Company transferred the title of the painting from the insurance claim back to the Baltimore Museum of Art.
On January 10, 2014, U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema ruled that the painting rightfully belongs to the Baltimore Museum of Art. The FBI returned the painting to the museum on January 31, 2014.
Return to Baltimore Museum of Art.
Shortly after regaining possession of the painting, the Baltimore Museum of Art put the artwork on display in an exhibition titled "The Renoir Returns" running from March 30 through July 20, 2014.


Jordan Prentice

Jordan Prentice (born January 30, 1973) is a Canadian actor. A self-described "person of short stature", he is known for his portrayal of Rock in "" and Jimmy in "In Bruges", and for appearing in the music videos for Vengaboys' "Shalala Lala" and The Bloodhound Gang's "The Bad Touch." He was also one of the actors to play "Howard the Duck". He is the lead actor in Toronto Playwright, Eric Woolfe's "Revenger's Medicine Show" which is currently in development by Eldritch Theatre.
Prentice developed an interest in acting when he was a child and was a member of the Young Players from the Drama Program, Department of English at the University of Western Ontario. Later he attended École Alexandra, the "Module scolaire de langue française" at London Central Secondary School and Dalhousie University. He was 13 when he played in "Howard the Duck".
Prentice appeared on British TV in a series of nine commercials for British radio station Absolute Radio, with DJ Christian O'Connell, as Doug, the station's new music-mad security guard with attitude.
He currently resides in Montreal, Quebec.


Doomsday Gun

Doomsday Gun is a 1994 television film produced by HBO, dramatizing the life of Canadian supergun designer Dr. Gerald Bull and his involvement in Project Babylon, Saddam Hussein's plan to build a supergun with a range of over 500 miles.
Synopsis.
The young Catholic Gerald Bull is fascinated with large-bore guns, inspired by Jules Verne's novel "From The Earth To The Moon". The adult Dr. Gerald Bull's career as a successful large-bore gun designer takes a turn as he is defunded by the U.S. Army; he then produces weapons for China, Israel, and ultimately South Africa which results in his arrest and conviction for illegal arms dealing.
After his release, Bull promotes his supergun idea to Saddam Hussein, and, with funding through BCCI, begins design work on the top secret project, "Babylon". Bull solves several manufacturing challenges by forging and assembling it in sections which are bolted together by flanges, and lining the relatively soft barrel material with an alloy sleeve to reduce wear on the barrel. British and U.S. government agencies are shown to be aware of Bull's activities, but do nothing to stop him. The Israeli Mossad tries to dissuade Bull, and goes so far as to threaten his life, with no effect.
As the "Baby Babylon" version of the gun is assembled and tested successfully horizontally in Iraq, Bull's second in command, Cowley, quits after a roadside run-in with Mossad agent Dov, who also shadowed Bull. The Iraqis demand an additional, 45-degree, test of the prototype gun, using threats to coerce Bull into compliance. That completed test firing results in a direct hit on a target 100 miles away, and Bull brags that the full size "Babylon" gun can fire "ten times as far."
As production of the full-size sections of the gun continues in England and elsewhere, falsely documented as oil pipeline parts in order to evade export restrictions, the film depicts increasing threats to Bull's life from Saddam, and the Mossad agent/handler Col Yossi tells Dov that assassination of Bull will happen one way or another as he has too many enemies and not many friends. A threat to Iran, the Iraqis due to his knowing too much, Syrians, some African nations, and the Saudis. An embarrassment and liability to the UK and there is also the US who consider him a possible liability too. As the gun nears completion, Bull, while returning home, is gunned down at his apartment, where his body is discovered by his wife.
The end text crawl states that Dr. Bull's murder remains unsolved, and that the U.S. contributed over $3 billion to Iraq in the years preceding the first Gulf War.
Production.
The film was shot on location in England, Belgium, and Spain, with post production at Twickenham Studios. It premiered Saturday, July 23, 1994 on HBO.
Reception.
Reviews were mixed, noting good performances, with several faulting the script and direction. "Variety" reviewer Ray Loynd described the film as "politically biting", Langella's performance as "absorbing", and "fascinating, buoyant, ebullient", but described the story as appealing to "your brain, not your heart or your gut" and lacking major empathetic characters. "TV Guide" noted that though the film's direction was "competent without being eye-openingly fresh, it cannot override flaws in the script which make the film a dull experience", and gave the film two out of four stars. Its ratings notice indicates "extreme profanity, violence, adult situations." "The New York Times" review found the film's conceit of a "daunting but lovable" protagonist as a weapons designer to be "loopy", contrasting Bull in real-life as "a difficult man, prickly and quick to take offense" with Langella's portrayal as "endlessly charming." The film's writing was criticized for "quips and zingers that aren't worth the effort" and for "thoroughly defusing what might have been a tense drama with genuinely high stakes." The Los Angeles Times review noted no flaws with the film, describing it as an "intricately woven thriller that demands the viewer's undivided attention" and praising Langella's portrayal of Bull.
The film was nominated for a 1995 cable Ace Award for best original soundtrack.


Rough Sea at a Jetty

Rough Sea at a Jetty (c. 1650s) is an oil on canvas painting by the Dutch landscape painter Jacob van Ruisdael.
It is an example of Dutch Golden Age painting and is now in the collection of the Kimbell Art Museum.
This painting was documented by Hofstede de Groot in 1911, who wrote; "945. A ROUGH SEA, Sm. 2. A storm is coming on. In the
centre foreground the waves dash on two jetties. Near a beacon at the end of one jetty, two men with long poles wait to help a fishing-boat
which is running under full sail for the harbour. Two other boats ride at anchor near the jetty, to the right. Dark cloudy sky. A " magnificent
picture " (Sm.). Canvas, 37 inches by 51 inches.
Another example, equally genuine, was in the possession of the London dealers Agnew. Exhibited at the Royal Academy Winter Exhibition, London, 1884,
No. 191. Sales. Antony Sijdervelt, Amsterdam, April 23, 1766 (Terw. 519), No. 49 (250 florins, Loquet).
Gerard Braamcamp, Amsterdam, July 31, 1771, No. 198 (264 florins, P. Fouquet).
Paillet, Paris, July 19, 1802 (1460 francs). Bought privately by Sm. from the family of the Marquis Merialva, 1824
(for 9000 francs), and sold to the Earl of Liverpool (for £500). Sale. Earl of Liverpool, London, March 25, 1829 (£535 Lord Lansdowne).
In the collection of the Marquess of Lansdowne, Bowood."
This scene is very similar to other paintings Ruisdael made in this period and these often served as inspiration for later painters of seascape.


Selene Luna

Selene Luna (born September 19, 1971, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico) is a Mexican-American actress, comedian, burlesque performer, and model known for her roles on comedian Margaret Cho's reality TV series "The Cho Show" and in such films as "My Bloody Valentine 3D".
She also performed with the burlesque troupe "Velvet Hammer Burlesque" and is the creator of her own one woman show entitled "I Don't Care Anymore". She appeared on the cover for the Dwarves 2001 album "How to Win Friends and Influence People".


Patty Maloney

Patricia Anne Maloney (born March 17, 1936) is an American actress with dwarfism.
Biography.
She was born in Perkinsville, New York. She stands 3 feet 11 inches (119 cm) and weighs 60 pounds (27 kg). Maloney is best known as Honk from "Far Out Space Nuts", as Lumpy from the "Star Wars Holiday Special", and as Darla Hood from the animated TV series version of "The Little Rascals". She appeared in in 1996.
She was often a guest on the 1970s variety series "Donny & Marie", and portrayed the robot waitress Tina in the "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century" episode "Cruise Ship to the Stars".
Since 1982, she has also been an animation voice actor, worked on the "Monopoly" game show pilot, and even operated the Crypt Keeper puppet on "Tales from the Crypt". Maloney appeared in "Ernest Saves Christmas" with California native Buddy Douglas as Santa's two elves. In 2011, she appeared as herself in "Hanlet: Episode 4 – Attack of the Phantom Special", an independent documentary film about the making of "Star Wars Holiday Special".
Personal Life.
In 1961, Maloney married Joseph Vitek, a Chicago printer, at the Actors' Chapel in New York. During their marriage, she worked as a keypunch operator at Clipper Carloading in Chicago until Vitek died in 1968.


Michael Gilden

Michael Jeffrey Gilden (September 22, 1962 – December 5, 2006) was an American actor. The tall Gilden had a form of dwarfism. He lived and worked in Los Angeles.
Gilden performed or did stunt work in a variety of television series and films, including "Charmed", "", "Family Law", "Cybill", "NCIS" and "Pulp Fiction", and had a role as an Ewok in the film "Return of the Jedi". He appeared twice in Season 4 of the hit series "NCIS". Gilden was also a Financial Advisor.
In August 1997, he met Meredith Eaton through mutual friends in Atlanta, Georgia. Gilden encouraged Eaton to pursue a career in acting, and she became an actress in 1999. The couple married on May 20, 2001.
Gilden committed suicide by hanging on December 5, 2006, in his Los Angeles home. He was 44.


Chng Seok Tin

Chng Seok Tin (; 6 October 1946 – 6 September 2019) was a visually-impaired printmaker, sculptor and multi-media artist from Singapore. She was often inspired by the i-Ching and Buddhism. Her work has been shown internationally; Chng had over 26 solo shows and 100 group shows. In addition to her art, she was also a prolific writer and has published 11 collections of her writing, mostly in Chinese. She also advocated for artists with disabilities.
Biography.
Early life and education.
Chng grew up poor in Katong, in a "leaky "attap" house in Kampung Chai Chee." Her parents wanted all of their seven children to go to school. Chng attended Chung Cheng High School which had an excellent art department, taught by teachers from the Shanghai Art Academy. Later, in 1966, she attended the Teachers' Training College. She began to teach Chinese at the Tanjong Katong Girls' School later that year. Eventually, Chng started taking art lessons privately, and then attended the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts where she received a diploma in Western painting. In 1979, she received a BA from the Hull College of Higher Education in England. Also in 1979, she had an exhibition of prints at the National Museum of Art Gallery in Singapore. Chng then received an award from the Ministry of Culture to study advanced printmaking in 1980. In 1983 she earned her masters in arts from New Mexico State University and then a masters of fine arts from the University of Iowa in 1985.
In 1986, Chng headed the print-making department at Lasalle-SIA College of the Arts. She was also an art editor for the Joint Publishing Company in Hong Kong.
Visual impairment.
In June 1988, Chng and a group of her students were visiting art museums of Europe. While trying to catch a bus with her students, Chng fell and hit her head on the pavement in London. After the accident, Chng experienced bouts of dizziness and while back in Singapore, found out that she had a brain abscess. Chng lost 90% of her vision in 1988 after she had surgery on the brain abscess caused by the fall. For about a year after becoming nearly blind, she felt "tormented" but then she became "philosophical about it." She said that finally meeting other blind people was a turning point. Another turning point was an invitation to return to the print-making department at Lasalle. Brother Joseph McNally, president emeritus at Lasalle, reached out to her because he said that even without her sight, Chng still commanded good print-making technique. Chng was able to "see" the colors of her prints in her mind. She said of her work, "I had all the basics in my mind and I had to slowly start using them." She said that losing her sight forced her to "rely on her feelings." Chng taught at Lasalle until 1997.
Later career.
Chng "never hesitated to comment on the social milieu" in her work. In 2001, she was named Women of the Year by Singapore's magazine, "Her World".
While Chng was a fellow at the Vermont Studio Center in 2003, she protested the United States invasion of Iraq with other artists. The work that resulted from her experience range from landscapes of Vermont to prints inspired by the Iraq War.
In 2005, she was the first person from Singapore to hold a solo exhibition at the Headquarters of the United Nations. Chng explored the opportunity of showing her work at the UN after she heard about a Chinese artist showing work there. She contacted an old schoolmate, Lee Fong Yang who works at the UN Headquarters, who inquired on her behalf and helped her arrange the show. She also received the Cultural Medallion that same year.
In 2007, she received the Singapore Chinese Literary Award from the Singapore Literature Society.
Chng had a retrospective exhibition at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts in 2011. In 2014, she was inducted into the Singapore Women's Hall of Fame. In 2015, Chng was recognized by the Singapore Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth "as a pioneer of the modern printmaking practice in Singapore."
Chng died of cancer at the age of 73 on 6 September 2019.


Master of the Worcester Panel

The Master of the Worcester Panel, or Master of the Worcester Carrying of the Cross was a Bavarian Gothic painter, active from c.1420-c.1430.
Works.
The artist's notname is in reference to a panel from an altarpiece that was in the collection of the painter, Charles Henry Worcester (1864-1956) and his wife Mary, which they donated to the Art Institute of Chicago. Another panel, "Mocking Christ", is in the British Museum. He may also be the creator of a "Calvary", in possession of the Städel Museum, Frankfurt.
He was a major figure in the artistic renaissance of Southern Germany and was well-known for over a century after his presumed time of death. Copies and imitations of his works may be found in Nuremberg, Nördlingen, Augsburg, Munich, Vienna, Salzburg, Wrocław and Kraków. At least three graduates of his workshop are known to have been active in Regensburg.
His own style was derived from illuminated manuscripts and he was influenced by the Master of the Saint Lambrecht Votive Altarpiece. Some influences from Northern Italy may also be detected.


Jo Hanson

Jo Hanson (1918–2007) was an environmental artist and activist based in San Francisco.
Biography.
Jo Hanson was born on August 1, 1918 in Carbondale, Illinois. She moved to California in 1955, first living in Marin County, before settling in San Francisco in the early 1970s where she purchased and restored Nightingale House, located on Buchanan Street to landmark status. Hanson obtained a Master of Education from the University of Illinois and a Master of Fine Arts from San Francisco State University.
Hanson died at her home, of cancer, on March 13, 2007.
Career.
As an extension of her work on the Nightingale House, Hanson set out to address the litter on her street. Her commitment to sweeping the sidewalk outside her home evolved into a public art project and citywide initiative against littering. Hanson's work was known for incorporating the detritus she collected while sweeping. She analyzed and classified what she found as a way of documenting daily life in her district and felt that it reflected a disconnect between the consumption and production of goods and the natural world.
For six years during the 1980s Hanson was a vocal member of the San Francisco Arts Commission pushing for the inclusion of underrepresented artists of in the city's art collections, specifically women and people of colour. She also played a key role in saving the murals of Coit Tower and the restoration of the murals at Golden Gate Park's Beach Chalet.
In 1990 Hanson conceived of and initiated the establishment of the Artist in Residence Program at Recology. The residency assists artists who use discarded materials in their art and raises public awareness about recycling. Its launch coincided with the introduction of curbside recycling in San Francisco due to state legislation passed in 1989. To date more than 100 artists have participated in the program including Estelle Akamine, Jim Growden, Susan Leibovitz Steinman and William Wareham. Recology has also influenced the development of similar programs such in Philadelphia and Portland.
Awards.
In 1997 Hanson was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Northern California Women's Caucus for Art.
Works.
One of Hanson's best known works was "Crab Orchard Cemetery", a recreation of her ancestral cemetery in Illinois, which opened at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. in 1974.


The Funeral Games of Patroclus

The Funeral Games of Patroclus is a 1778 oil on canvas by Jacques-Louis David. It shows the funeral games for Patroclus during Trojan War, with his body and Achilles at the foot of the pyre and Hector resting on his chariot on the right. It was first exhibited at the Palazzo Mancini in Rome in September 1778, where it was a critical success. It was then lost until 1972, when it was acquired by the National Gallery of Ireland, its present home.


George Edward Hunt (jeweller)

George Edward Hunt (1892-1960) was a notable Birmingham Arts and Crafts jeweller. He was born on 2 September 1892 in Dudley, near Birmingham. At the age of five he contracted diphtheria and became deaf. The family left the Black Country and moved to Harborne, a suburb of Birmingham, where Hunt remained until his death in 1960.
In 1908, at the age of sixteen, Hunt won free admission to the Margaret Street Art School in Birmingham, where he was taught by Bernard Cuzner. He was awarded several prizes for both design and metalwork in national competitions.
Hunt opened a shop at Five Ways, near Birmingham city centre. By the 1920s his clientele included aristocracy such as Eileen Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, Duchess of Sutherland, for whom he made a series of enamelled miniatures of her ancestors.
He is buried at St Peter's Church, Harborne, alongside his parents.
An exhibition of his work, "The Silent World of an Arts and Crafts Jeweller" was held by Bonhams in 2006, at their premises in London, Bath and Knowle, near Birmingham.


Greg Rice


Maurycy Minkowski

Maurycy Minkowski (1881/82, Warsaw - 23 November 1930, Buenos Aires) was a Polish painter of Jewish ancestry, best-known for his genre scenes of daily life in the shtetls.
Biography.
He was born to a wealthy family. An illness he had when he was a small child left him deaf and without speech. At the age of seven, he entered the "" and showed an early talent for drawing, which encouraged his parents to pay for private lessons. In 1901, he began his formal studies at the Kraków Academy of Fine Arts, where he was a student of Józef Mehoffer, Jan Stanisławski and Leon Wyczółkowski. He graduated in 1905 with a gold medal.
Having been informed of the pogroms taking place in Odessa, he went there to document the events with a series of drawings. After that, he made a study trip through Germany and Austria and returned to Warsaw. He stayed for only a short time however, then went to Paris in 1908, where he got married and decided to settle permanently, although he frequently went back to Poland to participate in open-air painting workshops in Kazimierz Dolny, Sniatyn and Kraśnik. His paintings were exhibited in Vilnius and Łódź, as well as at the Zachęta.
In early November of 1930, he went to Argentina to help prepare the first overseas exhibition of his paintings. Later that month, unable to hear the honking of an oncoming taxi, he was struck and killed. The exhibition was presented as a posthumous tribute to his work, under the aegis of the Jewish Association of Argentina. In 1931, a committee was established to raise funds for the purchase of his works.
In 1942, a great majority of his works were auctioned off. Most were purchased by the "Fundación IWO" (the Argentine branch of YIVO) and were stored at the Asociación Mutual Israelita Argentina. A few of the paintings were destroyed and many suffered some degree of damage in 1994, when the building was destroyed by a car-bomb, killing 85 people. The surviving paintings were exhibited at the Eduardo Sívori Museum in 2011.


SGUL Teddy Bear Hospital

Teddy Bear Hospital (TBH) is an international project, whose aim is to reduce childhood anxiety about medical environments, procedures and professionals. TBH exists at 21 Medical Schools in the UK at 8 Medical Schools in Australia and 2 medical schools in Ireland, one Medical School in Israel, NUIG and more recently University of Limerick.
Unlike other projects in the country, St George's University of London TBH is not operated as a project under Medsin, it is considered its own society. It is run by a dedicated committee of 6-8 people and has trained over 400 Teddy Bear Doctors, each of whom has been CRB checked and holds a NSPCC Child Protection Awareness Certificate.
Projects run by TBH at St George's, University of London:
The clinics are the main focus of the society and form the main method of achieving its aim. Clinics have been run for schools, beaver scouts, brownie groups and Student Action for refugees’ after-school club in South West London since March 2009 and regularly receive outstanding feedback. The society currently offers 12 stations for clinics. They use a creative and multi-sensory approach, which is inclusive for all children.
The majority of the time is spent with the children doing various tasks, for example building a large jigsaw of the skeleton, or learning how to use stethoscopes. Aspects of the stations complement or cover parts of the KS1/KS2 curriculum, in particular PHSE. Children are asked to bring along a teddy tear to the clinic on which new skills are learnt and practised. "If the Teddy Bear is already sick, its even better!"
SGUL Teddy Bear Hospital ran the first Community Day in 2018, held at St George's, University of London, where members of the public were invited to attend with their children to get involved and explore the stations on offer. It was successful in providing another method for TBH to engage the local community in Tooting in life at the hospital and university.
Stations on offer at clinics:
Talks.
The FGM talk took place at St George's University London in 2009. With a large number of people attending, it was informative and increased awareness on the topic.
Fundraising.
As well as fundraising within St George's Hospital and the university, TBH have also organised other, larger, events for example the TBH Fun Run in Hyde Park in May 2010


Legs (Beanie Baby)


The Glorification of the Virgin

The Glorification of the Virgin () is a 15th-century painting attributed to Geertgen tot Sint Jans. The painting was made in circa 1490–1495 and was originally part of a diptych.
It shows the Virgin Mary holding Jesus and surrounded by three rings of angels.
The panel is in the collection of Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, Netherlands.


Sam Humphrey

Sam Humphrey (born 1994) is a New Zealand-born actor from Frankston, Victoria, Australia. He is best known for playing Charles Stratton in the 2017 film "The Greatest Showman".
Early life.
Humphrey was born with a rare genetic disorder called acrodysplasia. As a child, he was also diagnosed with Crohn's disease, and spent much of his life in hospitals.
In an interview, he said that he had attempted suicide several times, but with support from his family, his faith and his resilience, he was able to overcome his challenges and pursue his dream of becoming an actor.
Humphrey has two siblings; his older brother is entrepreneur Josiah Humphrey, who co-founded the tech company Appster in 2011.
Humphrey attended Tawa intermediate, Wellington, New Zealand in 2006.
Humphrey is of half Asian descent.
Career.
Prior to his professional debut, Humphrey appeared in numerous school productions.
Humphrey began his acting career in television, his first role on "Neighbours", where he appeared on four episodes. He made his film debut in the historical drama musical film "The Greatest Showman", he played Charles Stratton, a dwarf performer who is also known by his stage name of General Tom Thumb. As he was taller than the real Tom Thumb, he had to walk on his knees and his voice was digitally altered to sound deeper.
In 2017, Humphrey starred in the television film "Jeremy the Dud".


Avenging Angel (2007 film)

Avenging Angel is a Western television film that originally aired on Hallmark Channel on July 7, 2007, as part of the network's "Western Month". It was filmed at Simi Valley, California, Sable Ranch in Santa Clarita, California as well as Vasquez Rocks Natural Area Park in Agua Dulce, California.
Plot.
A preacher (Kevin Sorbo) witnesses his family and a group of refugees seeking shelter in his church murdered by a gang of ruthless outlaws led by Colonel Cusack (Wings Hauser). After his wife makes him promise to never seek revenge, he instead becomes a bounty hunter. When he steps in to defend a woman in a saloon, the bad guy and his two friends (who happen to be allied with The Colonel), give him a beating and toss him into the street.
A woman with a "past", named Maggie (Cynthia Watros), takes him in to care for him. He stays in her extra room, but she insists he give up his gun while at her home because she has a daughter.
The local sheriff, on Cusacks's payroll, is meanwhile trying to run off some squatters. The Sheriff's gang attempts to intimidate the squatters, but once The Preacher learns of the Sheriff's and The Colonel's dealings, he visits the squatters, who tell him they paid for the land but never got the deed. A few days later the Sheriff's posse burns down a few of the squatter's tents.
The Preacher attempts to negotiate peacefully with the Sheriff, and so visits Cusack. Cusack tries to persuade The Preacher to join his mob, which he refuses. The Sheriff then sends a message to The Preacher by having some of his men rough up Maggie. Unarmed still because of his agreement with Maggie, The Preacher catches the gang in the act and overcomes one of the men's guns, scaring the men off.
The Preacher gets his gun back from Maggie and sets out to visit the Squatters again, and is met by the Sheriff and some of his gang. The Preacher, now armed, tells the Sheriff that the squatters have a right to stay. Gunfire ensues, and The Preacher shoots the sheriff. The rest of the bad guys run off.
The Preacher then pays a visit to Cusack for a final showdown, and obtains the deed for the squatters. As he turns to leave, having satisfied his purpose for the visit, the Colonel tries to shoot him, but The Preacher is faster and kills Cusack. The Preacher returns to Maggie and her daughter.
Cast.
The production designer was Scott H. Campbell, while casting was handled by Penny Perry and Amy Reese.
Reception.
"Avenging Angel" did moderately well for Hallmark Channel when it premiered. The film scored a 2.6 household rating, making it the highest-rated ad supported cable movie for the day. A reviewer at Chud.com called it: However, TrailerFan.com wrote that ""Avenging Angel" delivers the goods at point-blank range." The "Variety" review found it to be unoriginal stating "'Avenging Angel' feels less written than simply stitched together from pieces of classic oaters, without stretching much meat over those old bones."


Radius (film)

Radius is a 2017 Canadian science fiction thriller film directed and written by Caroline Labrèche and Steeve Léonard. It stars Diego Klattenhoff, Charlotte Sullivan, and Brett Donahue. Klattenhoff and Sullivan play two survivors of a car accident who discover that one causes the death of anyone who comes within a certain radius of him, and the other has the ability to nullify this effect.
Plot.
A man wakes bloodied and disoriented from a car crash. He staggers to the road and flags down help from a passing motorist, but the driver dies suddenly after swerving off the road. After calling for help on his cell phone, he realizes he does not know where he is or what his name is. Checking his wallet, he learns his name is Liam Hartwell. While heading back into town, Liam stops at a roadside diner, where he finds everyone dead. At his house, news reports speculate a virus may be responsible, and in response he covers his nose and mouth with cloth for protection. When he notices a nearby farmer, he attempts to warn the man to leave the area. The farmer approaches Liam and suddenly drops dead. When Liam notices animals also die when he approaches, he realizes he is the cause of the unexplained deaths, not a virus.
A woman also suffering from amnesia comes looking for Liam at his house, revealing that she was with him during the car accident. He is surprised when she can approach him without dying, and he agrees to talk with her. Neither knows why they were traveling together, nor what caused the crash. Liam does not mention his theory about the deaths but presses the woman, dubbed Jane Doe, for details about whether anything weird has happened to her. When she says that hospital tests showed nothing out of the ordinary, they investigate the site of the crash. They find a charred circle, and Liam finally explains his theory. Jane reacts fearfully, insisting that he stay away from her. A passing cop sees their altercation and questions Liam. She drops dead as soon as Jane walks off.
Using a goat, Liam proves to Jane that any living creature who approaches him dies unless Jane is within . Liam at first wants to contact the authorities, but Jane convinces him they will not believe him. Instead, she suggests he be tested at a hospital. The police arrive at the hospital as the doctor reveals Liam is healthy. Worried the police may attempt to separate them, Liam and Jane flee. Jane pauses at a missing persons board, remembering something about a poster. When she comes to, she sees Liam has already entered an elevator. She races to follow it as closely as possible. Liam urges the occupants to leave as soon as the doors open, and he tries to isolate himself until Jane can rejoin him. They finally leave the hospital together, relieved nobody has died.
News reports reveal Jane's real name to be Rose Daerwood. Her husband, Sam, appeals for her to come home. Though cautious, Rose suggests they ask him for help. Sam does not believe their story at first, but Liam once again demonstrates by killing animals who get too close to him. Sam explains that Rose disappeared while searching for her long-lost twin sister, Lily. Rose remembers becoming suicidal and that Liam saved her life. As Liam and Rose grow closer, Sam becomes jealous and warns Rose that she does not even know Liam. This worsens when Liam and Rose insist on fleeing together to Liam's remote cabin without Sam. Sam calls the cops but regrets doing so, warning them at the last moment. The cops die while separating Liam and Rose, forcing Sam to agree to their original plan.
On the way to the cabin, they learn an unexplained cosmic anomaly struck the Earth in the spot where they had their accident. While exploring the cabin, Rose discovers evidence that Liam is a serial killer who abducted and killed Lily. Separately, Liam remembers attempting to abduct and kill Rose at the time of the cosmic anomaly. As Rose confronts Liam, a father and his sons take both Rose and Liam hostage. The father instructs his sons to kill Liam, whom he dubs a terrorist. Rose initially protests but allows them to separate her from Liam. When one of the boys and his father die, the remaining son shoots Rose. Liam's aura kills the remaining son, and he takes Rose to the hospital. There, as Rose and Liam are separated, Liam shoots himself in the head.
Production.
The initial idea came from two sources. The first one was the climactic reveal from "Oldboy", where two characters were revealed to have a secret connection. The second was an old comic book storyline in which Superman was helpless to save people because they would die if they came into contact with him. Shooting took place in Manitoba, starting in June 2016.
Release.
"Radius" premiered at the Fantasia International Film Festival on 17 July 2017.
Critical response.
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 92% based on 12 reviews and an average rating of 7.34/10.


The Dance Class (Degas, Metropolitan Museum of Art)

The Dance Class is an 1874 painting by Edgar Degas. It is in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
The painting and its companion work in the Musée d'Orsay, Paris are amongst the most ambitious works by Degas on the theme of ballet. The imaginary scene depicts a dance class being held under the supervision of Jules Perrot, a famous ballet master, in the old Paris Opera, which had actually burnt down the previous year.
The poster on the wall for Rossini’s "Guillaume Tell" is a tribute to the operatic singer Jean-Baptiste Faure, who had commissioned the work.
The painting is on view in the Metropolitan Museum's Gallery 815.


Henri Charrier

Henri Georges Charrier (19 September 1859, Paris - 6 January 1950, Paris) was a French painter; best known for his works in tempera, many of which feature scenes from mythology and nudes.
Biography.
He was a student of Jean-Paul Laurens and Joseph Blanc. His debut at the Salon came in 1881, and he was elected a member of the Société des artistes français in 1892. Two years later, he was awarded a third-class medal at the Salon. In 1933, he was named a Knight in the Legion of Honor.
Much of his work was done in the vicinity of Creuse, but he also travelled to Brittany, Auvergne and Allier, as well as providing decorations for several churches in Normandy. These included large, mounted paintings at the church of Saint Stephen in Fécamp, and monumental frescoes, depicting the Assumption, at the main church in Fauville. He also worked at the church of Saint Vincent in Charonne, and at a private location in Perros-Guirec.
His discovery of tempera (water-based paint with egg white) gave his works more subtle, delicate shades, and led him to gradually abandon painting with oils. He also researched various methods of fresco painting, which was then enjoying a vogue.
After his death, the organized a major retrospective of his works. They may be seen at the Louvre, and in museums in Guéret, Lille, Poitiers, Pontoise, and Quimper.


Johannes Michalski

Johannes Michalski (c. 1936 – November 4, 2019) was a Belgian-born American painter. A double amputee, he painted by holding the brush with his mouth.


Gerhardt Wilhelm von Reutern

Gerhardt Wilhelm von Reutern (17 July 1794, Walk - 22 March 1865, Frankfurt) was a Baltic-German military officer and painter who co-founded the Artists' Colony at Willingshausen.
Life.
He was born into a noble family of Baltic-Germans dating back to the 15th Century. He participated in several campaigns during the Napoleonic Wars as a cavalry lieutenant and lost his right arm at the Battle of Leipzig. While recuperating with relatives, he took up drawing as a hobby. In the Summer of 1814, he made the acquaintance of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, who urged him to become a painter. They maintained a steady correspondence until Goethe's death in 1832.
After serving in several adjutant positions, he resigned from the Army in 1819 with the rank of lieutenant-colonel. As part of his convalescence, he moved to Willingshausen and was married there in 1820. Four years later, he met Ludwig Emil Grimm and the idea for an Artists' Colony was born. They focused on genre scenes and landscapes from the Schwalm.
Studies.
Having been self-taught up to this point, he began taking private lessons from his friend Grimm. When the climate in Willingshausen aggravated his wound, he moved to Geneva and studied with the Swiss painter Matthias Gabriel Lory, then attended the Kassel Art Academy where he studied under Karl Glinzer and Johann Martin von Rohden. In 1835, he moved to Düsseldorf and studied with Theodor Hildebrandt at the Art Academy there. Two years later, he was appointed to a position as Court Painter for the Imperial Russian family, with the right to live abroad, a concession obtained by his friend Vasily Zhukovsky, who would later become his son-in-law. In 1841, he invited his friend Jakob Fürchtegott Dielmann to oversee the Artists' Colony and spent his time moving between Russia, Germany, Switzerland and Italy. After three years of travelling, he settled in Frankfurt where he established a studio at the Villa Metzler.
In the early 1860s, he was forced to give up painting due to failing eyesight, rheumatism and unspecified "nervous complaints", probably brought about by the successive deaths of several friends and family members; including his wife, daughter Elisabeth and youngest son, Christoph.


August Friedrich Schenck

August Friedrich Albrecht Schenck (23 April 1828 – 1 January 1901) was a painter who was born in Glückstadt in Holstein, now in Germany but then in Denmark. He lived and worked for most of his life in France. He was both French and German by nationality.
Schenck was a pupil of Léon Cogniet in France. He became well known for his landscapes and paintings of animals. His works were first exhibited publicly in 1855. "Anguish", perhaps his most famous painting, is an oil-on-canvas work showing a ewe grieving over the dead body of her lamb as they are encircled by ominous black crows. It was acquired by the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne in 1880. In 1885 he became knight of the Legion of Honour. Schenck died in Écouen near Paris.
Biography.
As a young man, Schenck left Glückstadt, which was then still Danish, in order to earn a lucrative income as a "wine traveler" in Germany, Russia, and finally, Portugal. After five years he left Portugal for Paris, where he trained as a painter. He became a student of Léon Cogniet (1794-1880), a professor at the École des Beaux-Arts. Schenck then settled permanently in France.
At the age of 27, he made his debut as a painter at the World Exhibition in Paris in 1855. In 1857, he took part in the Schleswig-Holstein anniversary exhibition. A successful creative period ensued. He was particularly famous for his paintings of animals. Schenck and the French painter Rosa Bonheur (1822–1899) were the most sought-after animal painters whose works were collected internationally.
Around 1862 Schenck and his wife, Ludowika Stapaczinska, who was born in Warsaw, settled in the town of Écouen, about 20 km north of Paris. The town was known as an artist colony. The École d’Écouen attracted well-known artists, including Charles-François Daubigny, Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot, and Mary Cassatt. There are still traces of Schenck in Écouen today: Rue de la Beauvette, on which his property that contained his house and studio was located, was renamed Rue Auguste Schenck in 1906 to honor him. His painting "L’Échir" hangs in the town hall, and his painting entitled, "Lamb of God - Agnus dei", hangs in the church.
Schenck was known nationwide during his lifetime, when major museums acquired his works. Since then his paintings have been acquired by museums internationally. Depicted in a painting he entitled, "Lost", is a flock of sheep attended by two dogs. In the foreground the sheep are shown huddled together during a blizzard and a religious sentiment is represented in the background by a monument with a cross. The painting now hangs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Manhattan.
August Schenck died on 1 January 1901. His grave is in Écouen, where a road ("rue Auguste Schenck") is also named after him.


Sleep and His Half-Brother Death

Sleep and His Half-Brother Death is a painting by John William Waterhouse completed in 1874.
Waterhouse's first Royal Academy exhibit (submitted from his father's house at 1 Scarsdale Villas), it was painted after both his younger brothers died of tuberculosis.
Hypnos and Thanatos.
The painting itself is a reference to the Greek gods Hypnos (sleep) and Thanatos (death) who, in the Greek mythology, were brothers. Despite their similar poses in the painting, the character in the foreground is bathed in light, while his brother is shrouded in darkness; the first therefore represents Sleep, the latter Death. The personification of Sleep clasps poppies, symbolic of narcosis and dreamlike-states.