The Return of the Living Dead

The Return of the Living Dead is a 1985 American comedy horror film written and directed by Dan O'Bannon, and starring Clu Gulager, James Karen, Thom Matthews and Don Calfa. The film tells the story of how a warehouse owner, accompanied by his two employees, mortician friend, and a group of teenage punks, deal with the accidental release of a horde of brain-hungry zombies onto an unsuspecting town over the Fourth of July weekend.
The film, described as a "mordant punk comedy", is known for introducing the popular concept of zombies eating brains, as opposed to eating human flesh, like previous zombie iterations. It is also known as the first film to ever show zombies running, as well as zombies being able to speak. The film is also quite unique from virtually all other cinematic depictions of the living dead, in that the zombies portrayed in the film cannot be killed by a standard "head shot".
The film is also notable for its soundtrack, which features several legendary Los Angeles based deathrock and punk rock bands of the era. The film was a critical success and performed moderately well at the box office. Its enduring popularity has spawned four sequels and turned it into a cult classic.
Plot.
On July 3, at the Uneeda medical supply warehouse, foreman Frank tries to impress new employee Freddy by showing him military drums that wound up in the basement of the building. Frank accidentally unleashes the toxic gas in one of the barrels, which seemingly melts the cadaver inside and reanimates another cadaver stored in a meat locker. Joined by their boss Burt, the three discover that every part of the zombie can survive independently. Burt has the zombie incinerated at a nearby mortuary by his friend Ernie, but this inadvertently causes the deadly gas to contaminate the air, creating a toxic rainfall that reanimates the corpses in a cemetery.
Meanwhile, Freddy's girlfriend Tina and his friends Spider, Trash, Chuck, Casey, Scuz, and Suicide arrive at the cemetery to meet Freddy at his job. While Trash starts stripping, Tina goes to the warehouse first and wanders into the basement, where she encounters the reanimated but horribly disfigured cadaver from the barrel that was assumed to have dissolved. The rest of the group arrives shortly after and saves her in the nick of time, although Suicide is killed. After Casey realizes she saw Freddy entering the mortuary, the group attempts to reach him through the cemetery, where they are attacked by the re-emerging zombies. Trash is killed and Chuck and Casey flee back to the warehouse, but Spider, Tina, and Scuz reach the mortuary. The three discover Frank and Freddy growing ill from their exposure to the gas, with a medical test implying they are no longer alive. When Burt and Ernie learn of the dead rising from their graves, they barricade the mortuary thereafter. Scuz is killed while protecting the barricade and the zombies eat the paramedics and police who arrive on the scene.
With Frank and Freddy showing signs of becoming zombies themselves, Burt has them locked in the chapel, accompanied by Tina when she refuses to abandon Freddy. Freddy soon attempts to eat Tina, prompting Burt, Ernie, and Spider to rescue her by reopening the chapel. Frank manages to escape during the chaos and, still having control over his mind, commits suicide by immolating himself. Burt and Spider flee the mortuary in a police car, but the large number of zombies forces Burt to leave Ernie and Tina behind. Ernie and Tina hide in the mortuary's attic, while a blinded Freddy attempts to break in.
Burt and Spider manage to get back inside the warehouse where they find Casey and Chuck. After incapacitating the basement zombie, whom Spider names "Tarman", Burt attempts to contact the police but learns they are being massacred by the zombies. Burt then decides to call the number on the military drums, which reaches military officer Colonel Glover. Notified that the zombies have taken over the area, Glover has the town destroyed by nuclear artillery on the morning of July 4.
In the wake of the nuclear strike on Louisville, Colonel Glover is heard telling his commanding officer that everything went as planned and that the results couldn’t be more positive. Only a small area was destroyed, he says, and casualties are limited; plus, the toxic rain - which, again, is burning skin on contact - is putting out the fires. As he speaks, more zombies in Resurrection Cemetery are heard screaming in their graves, indicating that the invasion is about to begin again.
Cast.
Additionally, Cathleen Cordell portrays Glover's wife, while Drew Deighan and James Dalesandro play the paramedics killed by zombies. The zombie actors include Allan Trautman as Tarman, Terrence Houlihan as the yellow cadaver in the warehouse, Jerome Coleman as a legless corpse, Cherry Davis as the voice of a female zombie missing half her body, and John Durbin and David Bond as corpses who intercept radio transmissions.
Production.
Concept.
The film has its roots in a novel by John Russo also called "Return of the Living Dead". When Russo and George A. Romero parted ways after their 1968 film "Night of the Living Dead", Russo retained the rights to any titles featuring "Living Dead" while Romero was free to create his own series of sequels, beginning with "Dawn of the Dead". Russo and producer Tom Fox planned to bring "Return of the Living Dead" to the screen in 3D and directed by Tobe Hooper.
Dan O'Bannon was brought in to give the script a polish and after Hooper backed out to make "Lifeforce" (also from a script by Dan O'Bannon), O'Bannon was offered the director's seat, becoming his 'first big film'. He accepted on the condition he could rewrite the film radically so as to differentiate it from Romero's films;The film was the first production design credit for William Stout, who would go on to do production design for the "Conan the Barbarian" franchise among other films. The appearance of the zombies in the film was inspired by the mummies of Guanajuato, Mexico and the Bog People of Wales, as well as artwork from EC Comics.
Filming.
Although the movie is set in Louisville, Kentucky, it was filmed in Bakersfield, California. The "Tarman" zombie is performed by actor and puppeteer Allan Trautman.
Reception.
"The Return of the Living Dead" was a critical and a moderate box office success, grossing domestically on an estimated budget of . It currently holds a 91% approval rating on the review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes, with a rating average of 7.2/10 based on 43 reviews. Its consensus reads: "A punk take on the zombie genre, "Return of the Living Dead" injects a healthy dose of '80s silliness to the flesh consuming."
It was also nominated for four Saturn Awards, including Best Horror Film, Best Actor for James Karen, Best Director and Best Make-up, by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films.
Roger Ebert gave the film three out of four stars, writing that the film is "kind of a sensation-machine, made out of the usual ingredients, and the real question is whether it's done with style. It is." Stephen Holden of "The New York Times" called the film a "mordant punk comedy", stating that it "is by no means the ultimate horror movie it aspires to be".
Colin Greenland reviewed "The Return of the Living Dead" for "White Dwarf", and stated that "The movie sprawls shapelessly but comfortably, with plenty of gruesome jokes."
Home video.
The film was originally released on DVD in the U.K. by Tartan Home Video on March 19, 2001. Up until 2012, this was the only time it had been issued in its original form. In early 2002, a fan-led online campaign was started, which attracted the attention of the director and many of the cast and crew. Several of them commented online that the popular and robust efforts of campaign organizer, Michael Allred, were the direct result of not only the DVD release but that MGM created new supplements due to overwhelming fan support.
On August 27, 2002, MGM released a Special Edition DVD in the U.S. with a new cut of the movie (with music alterations due to copyright issues) with a commentary by O'Bannon and a documentary on the making of the film. The cover of the DVD case for the 2002 release glows in the dark. On September 11, 2007, a Collector's Edition of the film was released with additional extra features involving the cast. The different home video releases have featured different soundtracks, often changing the songs used. Also, the basement zombie's ("Tar-Man") voice was altered. Originally, the zombie had a higher, raspier voice that can still be heard in theatrical trailers and releases that contain the original audio.
A 25th anniversary edition was released on September 14, 2010, exclusively for Blu-ray Disc. The Blu-ray Disc version is a 2-disc combo pack with both a Blu-ray Disc and DVD. This release is very similar to the MGM/Fox print from three years earlier.
On June 4, 2012, Second Sight Films in the U.K. released DVD and Blu-ray Disc versions of the film where the original audio and soundtrack in its original form can be selected, the first time since 2001 a release has had this option. The release had its first insight into the movie with the inclusion on a booklet (claimed to be based on Ernie's notes from the events of the film) which was edited from Gary Smart and Christian Seller's publication "The Complete History of The Return of the Living Dead".
Scream Factory released a 30th anniversary Collector's Edition Blu-Ray on July 19, 2016. It contains a new 2K scan of the interpositive, along with including the original mono audio. Though note while everything else was restored (the original "Tar-Man" voice and the other songs), the song "Dead Beat Dance" by The Damned could not be restored. MGM also released another edition with hand-drawn cover art.
Legacy.
"Return of the Living Dead" invented the popularized notion in the public conscious of zombies eating specifically brains (as opposed to simply flesh) and that zombies groan "Braaiinnsss!" as they walk. In a critical scene in the movie, a zombie who has killed one of the characters is tied to a table (she exists only as a half-torso) and explains that the dead seek brains because eating brains "makes the pain go away--the pain of being dead". It is a popular misconception that George Romero invented this specific trait as part of his "Night of the Living Dead" series, though he has emphasised that it was not his idea.


Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science

Pittsburgh Institute of the Mortuary Science is a funeral service program based in the Shadyside neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States.


Radnage War Memorial

Radnage War Memorial is located at Mudds Bank, Radnage, Buckinghamshire, England. It is a grade II listed building with Historic England and commemorates the men of the village who died in the First and Second World Wars.


Texas Ranch House

Texas Ranch House is an PBS American reality television series that premiered in May 2006. Produced by Thirteen/WNET New York, Wall to Wall Media Limited, and PBS, the show placed fifteen modern day people in the context of 1867 Texas. Show participants attempted to run a ranch for two and a-half months using 19th century tools and techniques.
The historian Alwyn Barr, professor emeritus at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, was the consultant on the program.


Janusz Korczak Monument in Warsaw

Janusz Korczak Monument in Warsaw at Świętokrzyski Park has been unveiled in 2006. It is dedicated to the memory of Janusz Korczak. It has been designed by Jan Bohdan Chmielewski and Zbigniew Mikielewicz.
The initiative to build a monument to commemorate Korczak appeared just after the war. However, due to difficulties in raising funds, the works did not go beyond the stage of plans.
In 1999, on the initiative of Gołda Tencer, General Director of the Shalom Foundation and Prof. Jadwiga Bińczycka, President of the Janusz Korczak Polish Association, the issue of building a monument was revived. Many people from the worlds of art, science and politics took patronage of the initiative. Funds for the construction of the monument were raised by organizing charity concerts, art auctions and support from the city authorities. The design of the monument was selected as a result of an international contest, announced in 2001. The project by Bohdan Chmielewski and Zbigniew Wilma won. The cornerstone of the monument was placed in 2003 by the Mayor of Warsaw, Lech Kaczyński. The monument was unveiled in 2006, on June 1, on Children's Day. The ceremony was a state event, attended by the President of the Republic of Poland Lech Kaczyński and the President of the Polish Janusz Korczak Association Prof. Jadwiga Bińczycka, Rabbi Michael Schudrich and the General Director of the Shalom Foundation Gołda Tencer.
The monument was erected at the site of a house for Jewish orphans, from which Janusz Korczak set off on his journey to the concentration camp with his pupils.
There are several monuments commemorating Janusz Korczak in Warsaw itself, the best known of which is the one located in the Jewish cemetery on Okopowa Street, which serves as his symbolic grave. However, the monument set up in the Świętokrzyski Park is not only the largest but also, due to its very convenient location, the most frequently visited by school trips and tourists monument commemorating Janusz Korczak. Every year, around June 1st, on Children's Day, trips from Warsaw schools go to the monument.

Harry on Broadway, Act I

Harry on Broadway, Act I, is a two-disc set recorded in 2006. The first disc contains the cast recording from "The Pajama Game" (2006), and disc two is a selection of new recordings from "Thou Shalt Not" (2001), now with Harry Connick Jr. featuring Kelli O'Hara.
Barnes & Noble Exclusive.
Disc Three.
The Barnes & Noble exclusive edition adds a bonus third disc featuring two additional tracks:


War rugs

The war rug ( "farš jangi") tradition of Afghanistan has its origins in the decade of Soviet occupation of Afghanistan from 1979 and has continued through the subsequent military, political and social conflicts. Afghan rug-makers began incorporating the apparatus of war into their designs almost immediately after the Soviet Union invaded their country. They continue to do so today in the wake of the United States' 2001 invasion of Afghanistan which ousted the Taliban government of Mullah Omar but has failed to bring an end to violence in the country. The rugs produced in response to these events are among the world's richest traditions of war art of the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
The terms "Baluch" and "war rug" are generalisations given to the genre by rug dealers, commercial galleries, collectors, critics, and commentators. The distinctive characteristic of these rugs is their capacity to convey their makers' experiences and interpretations of the circumstances and politics of war and conflict in the region.
Since the withdrawal of the USSR, the same themes and subjects have been reused and remade. Additionally, after 9/11 the events of that day were recorded in carpets, and more recently – since 2015 – drones have appeared as subject matter.


Karabakhname (opera)

Karabakhname () is an opera by Franghiz Ali-Zadeh. The libretto is by philologist-scientist Nargiz Pashayeva. The premiere of the work was put on the stage of the Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater on December 15, 2007.
History.
The author of the opera was Mstislav Rostropovich.
It offered composer Franghiz Ali-Zadeh to write an opera about the Karabakh conflict.
Mstislav Rostropovich wanted to conduct the first performance of the opera, but death did not allow it. However, Franghiz Ali-Zadeh put the first performance of the opera to one of the days of the festival, named after Mstislav Rostropovich.


Shakespeare Theatre Association

The Shakespeare Theatre Association (STA), Formally known as The Shakespeare Theatre Association of America, was established to provide a forum for the artistic and managerial leadership of theatres whose central activity is the production of Shakespeare's plays; to discuss issues and share methods of work, resources, and information; and to act as an advocate for Shakespearean productions throughout the world. The name was changed in January 2011 to reflect the increasingly international reach of Shakespeare and the Shakespeare Theatre Association.
History.
The Shakespeare Theatre Association of America was organized at a meeting held January 12 and 13, 1991 at the Folger Library and the Kennedy Center, Washington DC. Sidney Berger, Producing Director of the Houston Shakespeare Festival, and Douglas Cook, Producing Artistic Director of the Utah Shakespearean Festival, invited the producers, artistic directors and managing directors of over thirty-seven Shakespeare festivals and companies from the United States and Canada to this meeting. Berger was elected the first President, and Cook the first Vice President.
Past Conferences.
The annual conference is the most important activity of the STA.


Madama Butterfly discography

This is a partial discography of "Madama Butterfly" ("Madame Butterfly"), an opera by Giacomo Puccini. The original version of the opera premiered on February 17, 1904, at La Scala in Milan.
References.
Notes
Sources


Downtown Halifax

Downtown Halifax is the central business district of Halifax, Nova Scotia. Located on the eastern-central portion of the Halifax Peninsula, on Halifax Harbour, it serves as the business, entertainment, and tourism hub of the region.
Architecture.
Historic areas and buildings.
Unlike other historic Canadian cities such as Quebec and Montreal and comparably-sized New England cities such as Portland, Maine, Halifax has not preserved any heritage districts and has few intact blocks of historic buildings, but the downtown is known for the historic architecture of some individual landmark buildings. Demolition and urban renewal in the 1960s and 1970s replaced most of the downtown with blocks with office towers.
One of the few blocks to have retained its heritage character is Granville Mall, a pedestrian mall formerly part of Granville Street, made up of an array of shops and pubs in a conglomeration of rowed historic buildings built in the 1860s. It is known for the stone facades on each building. Historic Properties, a collection of 19th-century warehouses converted into shops and restaurants, is located nearby. Despite the heritage focus of these remaining blocks of heritage buildings, none are protected as heritage districts.
The downtown is home to individual government landmarks such as Province House, built in 1819 and home to the Nova Scotia House of Assembly. Builders such as George Lang created many landmark Victorian Era buildings.
Citadel Hill, a star-shaped fort, is another historic attraction in the downtown. Originally established with the arrival of Edward Cornwallis and the out break of Father Le Loutre's War (1749), the current fort was built in the Victorian Era as the hub of the historic defence system for the port. As a result, there is viewplane legislation that restricts vertical development that might block the direct line of sight from Citadel Hill to the harbour and George's Island in particular. Recent developments have challenged the viewplane limits.
The Halifax Public Gardens and Victoria Park bear many Victorian era monuments.
Demographics.
Downtown Halifax consists of three census-tracts; 2050004.01, 2050008.00, and 2050009.00. In 2016, the three census-tracts produced a population of 8,601, up 842 from the 2006 Census where 7,759 people were recorded.
Geography.
Sourced from halifax.ca, Downtown Halifax consists of three census-tracts; 2050004.01, 2050008.00, and 2050009.00. These three census-tracts equal of land area. It is a small portion of land that forms Halifax's central business district.
Economy.
Downtown Halifax is the financial centre of Atlantic Canada. Bell Aliant and Emera are headquartered in downtown Halifax. All Big Five Canadian banks have major operations in the CBD. The Bank of Canada also has one of its five Canadian regional offices located in the area.
Major recent commercial developments include the Waterside Centre and the Nova Centre. The latter development will house the new Halifax Convention Centre as well as commercial, office and hotel space.
Hotels.
Many of the Halifax region's hotels are located in the downtown area, with many major hotel chains maintaining a location here. There are also a considerable number of small hostels nearby.
Hotels in the downtown area include:
Government.
Downtown Halifax is the home of the Halifax Regional Council chamber at Halifax City Hall. Offices for the mayor, city councillors, and additional staff can also be found downtown.
At the provincial level, the downtown is the home of Nova Scotia's Province House where the Nova Scotia House of Assembly meets. Government House, where the Lieutenant-Governor resides, is located on Barrington Street. The provincial government also has offices in several other downtown office buildings.
Canada's federal government also maintains a significant presence in the area, working from various buildings including the Dominion Public Building, the Ralston Building, and previously, the Maritime Centre.
Recreation.
Downtown Halifax has hotels, annual festivals and events, an array of attractions, and many restaurants.
Museums.
There are several museums and art galleries in downtown Halifax. Pier 21, an immigrant entry point prominent throughout the 1930s, 40s, and 50s, was opened to the public as a National Historic Site of Canada in 1999. The Maritime Museum of the Atlantic is a maritime museum containing extensive galleries including a large exhibit on the famous , over 70 small craft and a steamship . In summertime the preserved World War II corvette operates as a museum ship and Canada's naval memorial. The Art Gallery of Nova Scotia is housed in a 150-year-old building containing over 9,000 works of art.
Waterfront.
The waterfront in Downtown Halifax is the site of the "Halifax Harbourwalk", a boardwalk popular amongst tourists and locals alike. Many mid-sized ships dock here at one of the many wharves. The harbourwalk is home to a Halifax Transit ferry terminal, hundreds of stores, "Historic Properties", several office buildings, the Casino Nova Scotia, and several public squares where buskers perform, most prominently at the annual Halifax International Busker Festival in early August.
Shopping.
Downtown Halifax, being home to many small shops and vendors, is a major shopping area in the HRM. It is also home to several small malls, including Scotia Square, Barrington Place Shops, and Maritime Mall.
Restaurants and nightlife.
The area is home to approximately 200 restaurants and bars, providing an interesting array of world cuisine. There are also over 60 sidewalk cafes that open in the summer months. The nightlife is made up of bars and small music venues as well as Casino Nova Scotia, a large facility built partially over the water. Pizza Corner, located at the intersection of Blowers Street and Grafton Street, is a popular location for pizzerias serving Halifax-style donairs and other street food for the neighbouring bars and pubs.
Theatre.
Neptune Theatre, a 43-year-old establishment located on Argyle Street, is Halifax's largest theatre. It performs an assortment of professionally produced plays year-round. The Shakespeare by the Sea theatre company performs at nearby Point Pleasant Park. Eastern Front Theatre performs at Alderney Landing in Downtown Dartmouth which can easily be accessed from the area via the Halifax Transit ferry service.
Events and festivals.
The Scotiabank Centre is one of the largest buildings in Downtown Halifax, as well as the largest arena in Atlantic Canada. It is the home of the popular Halifax Mooseheads hockey team, and it also plays host to most of the major sporting events and concerts that visit Halifax. The Nova Scotia International Tattoo is held here every year. It is connected to the Downtown Halifax Link, and directly to the World Trade and Convention Centre. The Atlantic Film Festival, Atlantic Jazz Festival and the Halifax Pop Explosion also take place in some downtown venues.
The Halifax Convention Centre offers more than of space for meetings and events.
Transportation.
Harbour.
The waterfront area is home to a Halifax Transit ferry terminal, which takes commuters across Halifax Harbour to terminals at Alderney Landing and Woodside in Dartmouth. These trips usually take around 12 minutes, and cost $2.75 for adults and $2.00 for seniors or children. Additional routes are being planned, and in mid-2005 a high-speed ferry route between the downtown terminal and a new Bedford terminal was demonstrated. The results were generally positive.
There are also many tour boats available at the waterfront, ranging from spacious paddleboats to amphibious vehicles such as the locally famous Harbour Hoppers, adapted LARC-V vehicles.
Road.
The streets in the downtown area are set in a grid pattern like the rest of the Halifax Peninsula, the way the town officials originally planned in the 18th century. Some of these streets have been altered in recent years due to large developments, such as the Scotiabank Centre, which split Albemarle Street into two sections when it was constructed. The street was renamed Market Street and only recently did one segment revert to its original name.
City planners in the 1960s developed a controversial plan for a six-lane elevated freeway called Harbour Drive. This project was cancelled after protests over the proposed destruction of many historic buildings. All that remains of the project today is the Cogswell Interchange, a massive concrete structure that some consider a barrier between the North End and the downtown area. Its demolition is currently being considered. Traffic problems are currently avoided through the use of one-way streets, and mass transit.
Many Halifax Transit bus routes also pass through the downtown, with major terminals at Scotia Square and on Lower Water Street (adjacent to the ferry terminal). Barrington Street is the primary bus route through the area.


Chinese patchwork

Chinese patchwork is a traditional form of Chinese needlework which has been widely circulated in Chinese folk arts. In China, patchwork has been used for millennia.
Chinese patchwork is made by sewing scraps of fabric together into a desired shape to form design art with a distinctive theme. This technique is still used in Chinese quilting. Silk or cotton is used to make the patchwork. The design for the patchwork often told a story of Chinese folklore. Traditional Chinese patchwork continues to exist in many rural areas in China; it is made by women.
Types of Chinese patchwork.
Baijia yi.
Baijia yi ) or baijia pao ), also known Hundred-Families robe, or One hundred families robe, or One hundred families clothing, is a form of Chinese patchwork jacket, particular for male children. The baijia yi is used as a protective talisman for a child. It is a traditional Han Chinese custom.
The baijia yi is a symbol of longevity, and it was one of the ritual procedures of the One-hundred-day celebration, along with the baijia locks. It is made of donated fabrics, and it was composed of one hundred pieces of fabrics which could be shaped into tessellated squares, triangles, diamonds, rectangles, and hexagon. It could also be embroidered with symbols and motifs which were considered auspicious such as the Chinese zodiac, the bagua and the five poisons.
In the past, due to the lag in health care and education, infant mortality was relatively high. Nevertheless, people believed that an infant's death was due to a ghost. The baijia yi was supposed to protect the child from evil spirits through the use of many donated fabrics of multiple colours. These small pieces of cloth was collected from various families. The mother would receive the pieces of fabrics in order to make the finished baijia yi for her child. The baijia yi could not be taken off until the child reaches one year old.
Origins of Baijia yi.
People started making Chinese patchwork in the Liu Song of the Southern Dynasty. The first emperor of Liu Song Dynasty, named Liu Yu, was born in an underprivileged family. His mother gathered rags from the neighbourhoods to make a patchwork. When he became the emperor, he perceived this kind of patchwork as the symbol for his impoverished childhood. All the infants in Liu’s family had to use the patchwork so that his offspring could know how fortunate they were. Afterwards, his citizens followed this royal custom to make "Bai jia yi" for their babies.
Baijia bei.
Baijia bei (lit. translated as "one hundred families quilt"), also known as the "100 Good Wishes Quilt" or "one hundred families bedcovers", is a Northern Chinese patchwork tradition; it is customary to seek 100 people to donate a square piece of cloth in order to contribute to the quilt. These pieces of donated fabric are then sewn into a quilt which embodies the good wishes, luck and energy of the quilt contributors.
Although the Chinese word "bei" is translated as "quilt" in English, it does not conform to the Western definition of a quilt, i.e. a three-layers bed covering held together with quilting stitch.
Jia sha.
Jia sha is a form of patchwork robes worn by Chinese buddhist priests to demonstrate their commitments to asceticism. It was made of fabric donated by patrons, often wealthy patrons, who give them silk fabrics out of charity and in order to collect spiritual merits. The small pieces of fabric were sewn together before being decorated. The jia sha was derived from the kasaya (i.e. Indian Buddhist robe).
Shuitianyi.
Shuitianyi is a form of women's patchwork garment which was popular in the Ming dynasty. It was made of irregular fabrics sewn together. This form of garment reflected the Ming dynasty's tendency towards fashion novelty.
Yanchuan patchwork.
Yanchuan patchwork is a distinctive form of traditional Chinese patchwork which is performed by a great number of people in the Yanchuan region of northern Shaanxi province in China. It uses combines the use of sewing and embroidery along with a variety of colours, textures and cloths of different shapes to create patterns. It originated as a mean to extend the use of damaged clothing by sewing and mending it into traditional patterns while simultaneously increase its aesthetic value.
Other uses.
The uses of Chinese patchwork are not limited to traditional clothing but have been widely used in modern society for curtains, children's shoes, caps, dudous, scarves, women's handbags, aprons, men's cigarette cases and wallets.
Influences and derivatives.
One hundred Good Wishes Quilts.
One Hundred Good Wishes quilt (acronym: OHGWQ) is an early 21st century commemorative form of quilt which is made by American families to welcome a Chinese child adoptee. This practice originated from a northern Chinese patchwork practice and spread quickly through the China adoption community through the use of the internet. This form of hybrid quilting projects are also described as "baijia bei" (百家被) on OHGWQ websites.
It may have been inspired by the baijia yi. It is made of donated fabric from friends, family members, and internet acquaintances who may have themselves adopted Chinese children. The quilt also contains both Chinese and American culture elements (i.e the use of quilt as a commemorative object in US and the protective aspect of Chinese patchwork) and represent a point of contact between these two cultures which are distinctive from each other.
Patchwork process.
The patches are cut into similar sizes and shapes and then leave at least 1/2-inch on each side of the patch for a seam. Arrange them in patterns or at random. Hold two patches face-to-face and stitch them together. Continue this process until the front of the quilt has been sewn into one solid piece.
Patterns.
Many patterns exist, while the quilting block is one that is widely used. Other patterns include the Chinese coin, 100 good wishes and lattice. Some may include squares, triangles, hexagons and diamonds.
Traditional culture and folk legends are often the themes for patchworks, such as the Qilin Bringing the Child, Door Gods, the Dragon King and the Kitchen God.
Embroidery.
Some Chinese patchwork are made of pieces of fabric which are adorned with embroideries; this marks a difference from the Korean patchwork which are usually made of pieces of unadorned fabric instead of embroidered fabrics.


The Ladies Who Lunch (song)

"The Ladies Who Lunch" is a song from the Broadway musical "Company", sung by the character Joanne. It was written by Stephen Sondheim, and was introduced by Elaine Stritch. It became her signature song.
Production.
In regard to her performance, which one interviewer described as filled with "rage", Elaine Stritch responded "I don’t think I sang it with rage. First of all, she drank. I should have made you understand that. Anyway, when you drink, you can do anything you want, and it’s not always very attractive. I tried to say to the audience, 'And here’s to the ones who just watch—and they’re not here anymore.
"Stritch’s epic struggle with her big number" serves as the climax to the D.A. Pennebaker’s 1970 documentary, "". "Stritch, Stephen Sondheim, and the orchestra were all exhausted because it was after midnight and the end of a long day of recording". After struggling several times to perform the vocals, the recording session was suspended. Stritch returned two days later, after a matinee performance of "Company", and successfully recorded the final take for the album.
Synopsis.
"Bustle" magazine gives this synopsis: The Ladies Who Lunch' is a song that mockingly judges the rich and wealthy women who waste their middle-aged lives doing nothing meaningful, sung by Joanne (Stritch) while out at a nightclub with her third husband Larry and their friend Robert".
Critical reception.
"Bustle" wrote of Stritch: "The performance is so famous, in fact, that it has been parodied many times in pop culture". "The Wire" called it Stritch's "signature song", while "The New York Times"' obituary named it "her theme, until her 70s, when Sondheim's 'I'm Still Here' from "Follies" took over".
"The Guardian" described Stritch's performance of the song in the 1972 London production:
The site compared it to a performance she gave in 2002, writing in this performance "the song is an anthem of forgiveness. Whatever those ladies had been doing was just human, and she's tolerating it, wryly, dryly. The dame has forgiven everybody: she has forgiven herself".
Covers.
The song has been sung by every actress who played Joanne in "Company", including Debra Monk (1995 Broadway revival), Sheila Gish (1996 London Revival), Barbara Walsh (2006 Broadway Revival), Lynn Redgrave (2002 Kennedy Center), Haydn Gwynne (2010 London Revival), Patti LuPone (2011 Concert, 2018 London Revival, 2020 Broadway Revival), and Alan Cumming (2013 New York Reading). Anna Kendrick covered the song in the 2003 film "Camp".
The song was included on Barbra Streisand’s 1985 hit album "The Broadway Album", as a medley with Sondheim’s “Pretty Women” from the musical "" (1979).
A parody of the song was performed by drag performer Jinkx Monsoon, who included it in her debut album "The Inevitable Album" (2014) under the title "Ladies in Drag".
Meryl Streep, Audra McDonald and Christine Baranski sang the song over a three-way Zoom video conferencing call during the COVID-19 quarantine to commemorate Sondheim's 90th birthday.


Gairm

Gairm was a Scottish Gaelic quarterly magazine founded in 1951 by Derick Thomson, and Finlay J. MacDonald (Fionnlagh Domhnallach). Its first issue was published in Autumn 1952. MacDonald served as an editor until 1964; Thomson remained present for decades until it ceased publication in 2004, producing just over 200 issues in total. According to Alan Campbell, the magazine was a "one-man show;" he explained that Thomson "sustained something very valuable for a long period of time." Although it had a relatively low circulation, it was influential on Gaelic literature as it was the longest-running Gaelic literary magazine of the 20th century, in circulation for more than twice as long as its predecessor, "Guth na Bliadhna". Gairm attempted to encompass a variety of perspectives and themes, and "disseminated a lot of work that we weren't aware of" in the words of Martin MacDonald. As well as being familiar to most literate Gaels, the magazine attracted almost all influential Gaelic writers who were active, including Sorley MacLean, Iain Crichton Smith, George Campbell Hay, and Dòmhnall MacAmhlaigh.
Some of the most influential Gaelic poems of the twentieth century were published in the magazine, most notably "Hallaig" by Sorley MacLean in 1954. Gairm also published short stories by Eilidh Watt and Iain Crichton Smith. There were also translations (for example the poetry of Anna Achmatova translated by Crìsdean Whyte, Issue 125, Winter 1983–1984) and other Gaelic literary works (by Dòmhnall Eachann Meek or Dòmhnall MacAmhlaigh) were an important part of "Gairm".
When "Gairm" ceased to publish, a new magazine, "Gath" (2003–8), took its place, followed by "Steall", whose first issue was published in 2016.
An index of articles in "Gairm" can be found on the Am Baile website using their newspaper index search.


Radka Donnell

Radka Donnell, (24 November 1928 Sofia, Bulgaria – 13 February 2013 Zurich, Switzerland) was a feminist, painter, art therapist, poet, translator, storyteller, and pioneer of modern quilt-making. She explored what quilts can mean and look like, as distinct from traditional quilting and the fine arts culture.
Early life and education.
Born in Bulgaria, Donnell's early years were spent in Germany with her family during World War II. In 1951, she immigrated to the United States, where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree at Stanford University in 1954, followed by a Master of Fine Arts at the University of Colorado-Boulder. Donnell lived in Cambridge, Massachusetts in the early 1970s, where she influenced younger artists, and worked to secure and organize shows of her own and other contemporary quilters, seeking recognition for quilt artists on equal footing with those working in more recognized media.
Quilt art.
By 1965, Donnell was using fabric as her medium. She was the first quilt artist to take a feminist stance and speak of quilts as a liberation issue. As she wrote in 1977, "Quilt making politicized me.″ In her lectures and writings, she eloquently articulated the expressive possibilities of the quilt and made a powerful case for the quilt as "an associative field of the body," a direct link to the most primal human needs and acts. "By its original closeness to a person's body the quilt can become an icon of personal feeling and hope."
She was one of the first to employ machine quilting for speed and sturdiness. She employed other professional quilters to assure the quilts would stand up to hard use and repeated washes. She created over 700 quilts in her lifetime, both hand and machine quilted. Although she always intended her quilts to be functional, her designs broke with tradition in many ways, and they remain unique today. She often used whatever fabric she had at hand, cutting up clothing as well as pieces of cloth she gathered or that others had sent to her. Her quilts, complex layerings of energetic prints and bold solids, represent inner landscapes.
Theoretical and philosophical impact.
Emphasizing the liberation and freedom of expression quilting gave her, Donnell used quilts to reach out to other women and enable dialogue about the body, emotions, and human contact. She spoke about the tactile "touchy" nature of the quilt, the physical and symbolic comfort they provide as representations of "home" and their link to traditional roles of women as caregivers and homemakers.
One of Donnell's artist colleagues, Michael James, likens her quilts to maps, saying, "They become embodiments of the struggle across time and generations, across gender, across race and ethnicity, to map out a pathway for the self that is compassionate, loving, inclusive, and deeply human."
Writings.
Donnell wrote and published in both German and English, with most of her poetry books in German. Of the many books Donnell authored, she is best known for "Quilts as Women's Art: a Quilt Poetics", published in 1990.


Horse hair raku

Horse hair raku is a method of decorating pottery through the application of horsehair and other dry carbonaceous material to the heated ware. The burning carbonaceous material creates smoke patterns and carbon trails on the surface of the heated ware that remain as decoration after the ware cools. Although preparation is similar to pit fired pottery and other primitive firing techniques, horsehair raku is generally considered an alternative form of Western-style Raku ware, because it uses Western-style Raku kilns, firing techniques and tools.
Horsehair raku usually utilizes burnishing and/or Terra sigillata techniques to prepare the unglazed surface before Bisque firing. The bisque ware is heated in a kiln, then removed while still extremely hot. The decorating is performed when the ware is between 480 and 700 °C; lower temperatures do not effectively combust the horsehair and other materials, while higher temperatures cause the carbon makings to burn off leaving no lasting decorative effect, though success with horsehair has been achieved at temperatures up to 1000 °C. Strands of horsehair laid across hot ware leave a wandering linear smoke design on the surface. Other materials which can be used to create surface effects include sugar sprinkled on the hot surface to leave spotted smoke marks and feathers applied to the hot surface to give dark, feather shaped silhouettes. Additionally, leaves can be used to attain a leaf shaped pattern on bisqued surface.
It is not known precisely how horsehair pottery was first developed, but several stories connect the beginnings of this technique to Native American Pueblo women.


Mina Napartuk

Mina Napartuk (1913 – 2001) is a Canadian Inuit artist known for her fabric and fur crafts, as well as her management of the women’s craftshop in Kuujjuarapik.
Biography.
Napartuk was born in 1913 in Kuujjuarapik, Quebec. She trained in the traditional arts of working with fur, skins, and fabric to create dolls, clothing (including kamiks), and wall-hangings known as "akinnamiutak". Starting in the 1980s Napartuk managed the women’s craftshop in Kuujjuarapik which focused on traditional crafts of the area. In the mid-1980s she moved to nearby Umiujaq.
Selected exhibitions that Napartuk's work has appeared in include "Group Show of Wallhangings" at the Innuit Gallery of Eskimo Art; "Things Made by Inuit" at La Federation des Cooperatives du Nouveau-Quebec; and "Inuit Art: A Selection of Inuit Art from the Collection of the National Museum of Man, Ottawa, and the Rothmans Permanent Collection of Inuit Sculpture, Canada" at the National Museum of Man, Ottawa.
She has participated in workshops in Montreal and Toronto.
Napartuk died in 2001 in Umiujaq.


Shin-ik Hahm

Shinik Hahm (born 1958) is a Korean American conductor and a professor in the Practice of Conducting and Music Director of the Yale Philharmonia. Hahm has led North American, South American, European, and Far Eastern orchestras. Recent appearances include debuts in Geneva, Switzerland, and Besançon, France; at Bolshoi Hall in St. Petersburg, Russia, with the St. Petersburg Symphony Orchestra; and reengagement with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra at Disney Hall. He is an active opera conductor and has led productions with the Silesian National Opera in Poland, has collaborated with musicians including Salvatore Accardo, Emanuel Ax, Joshua Bell, Yefim Bronfman and has recorded with the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra for Vision and Britstar.
Biography.
Maestro Shinik Hahm is a Korean conductor based in the U.S. He is a professor of Practice of Conducting at Yale School of Music and Music Director of Yale Philharmonia. Maestro Hahm has also served as Music Director of Abilene Philharmonic and Green Bay Symphony Orchestras, and performs with the Silesian Opera in Poland as guest conductor. During his position as Music Director and Chief Conductor at the Daejeon Philharmonic Orchestra from 2001 to 2006, Maestro Hahm garnered much public interest through his enthusiastic activities and creative productions. From 2010 to 2012, Maestro Hahm led the Korean Broadcasting System (KBS) Symphony as Artistic Director. In 2014, Maestro Hahm launched Symphony Orchestra for the Next Generation (Symphony S.O.N.G.) based on innovative talent support policies and working principles. The inaugural concert was successfully held on August 23, 2014, at the Seoul Arts Center. Maestro Hahm’s goal is to break free from the existing bureaucratic and conventional symphonic orchestra management system and pursue creative, independent, and free artistic values through Symphony S.O.N.G.


Losing My Mind

"Losing My Mind" is a song written by Stephen Sondheim originally for the 1971 musical "Follies" for the character of a former showgirl, Sally Durant Plummer. The song became a popular top ten hit for singer and actress Liza Minnelli in 1989 on the UK Singles Chart and in Europe. "Losing My Mind" has been covered by many artists over the years.
"Follies".
Background.
"Losing My Mind" was first performed by Dorothy Collins in the role of Sally Durant Plummer in the original Broadway production of "Follies". Other performers who have sung the song in later productions of "Follies" include Barbara Cook (1985), Julia McKenzie (1987), Donna McKechnie (1998), Judith Ivey (2001), Victoria Clark (2007),Bernadette Peters (2011) and Imelda Staunton (2017)
The song was written as a torch song for the character of Sally to sing in the "Loveland" portion of the musical. The song "expresses her preoccupation with Ben, her idealized lover...With infinite attention to detail, Sondheim leads Sally from sunrise to sleepless night, revealing that every second of her existence is defined by her longing...the number ...explores the extent to which she has lost herself in this make-believe world of undying desire." As originally staged, Sally comes onstage in a "clinging, beaded silver" dress, holding a microphone. The "cute" Sally from Phoenix "has become a languid torch singer." She repeats her lines, reflecting "the paralysis about which she sings...the phrase 'It's like I'm losing my mind' occurs no less than six times."
In the first literary resume of his career, "Look, I Made a Hat", Sondheim reveals that the song is a pastiche of George and Ira Gershwin's "The Man I Love".
Liza Minnelli version.
Background.
In the UK Singles Chart, the most successful version has been by American singer and actress Liza Minnelli, reaching number six. It was the lead single from her 1989 studio album, "Results", produced by Pet Shop Boys and Julian Mendelsohn. The 12" release peaked at number eleven on the "Billboard" Maxi Singles Sales chart. It also peaked at number twenty-six on the American dance chart.
The Pet Shop Boys demo version of "Losing My Mind" (which has Neil Tennant singing the vocal) was later remixed and released as a B-side on the Pet Shop Boys' single, "Jealousy". This demo version contains a scream that Minnelli opted not to include on her release.


Gianfranco Chiarini

Gianfranco Chiarini (born January 8, 1966) is an Italian celebrity chef, food engineer, television personality and restaurateur. His career ranges from Michelin starred restaurants, cruise lines, deluxe hotels and resorts, restaurateur, consultancy chef, TV chef, chef to presidents and royalty, research and development chef for the mass manufacturing food companies across Europe, Middle East and Africa, food technology applications chef, culinary teacher and book writer. In addition, Chiarini speaks seven languages: English, Italian, Spanish, French, Portuguese, German and Arabic. These varieties of languages have made him an intercultural chef, permitting him to cross over to many countries and culinary styles internationally.
Early life.
Gianfranco Chiarini was born in Ferrara, Italy, and raised in a multicultural environment with Italian-Colombian origins, growing up between Italy, Venezuela and the United States.
Personal life.
On September 7, 2010 Chiarini married Anna Kinga Chiarini, a nutritionist chef and Italian literature graduate, born in Słupsk, Poland. The couple share a partnership in a culinary consultancy company Chiarini Culinary Consultants that has opened more than 200 restaurants in over 100 countries. They live currently in their 2 acres farm in Bulgaria which is concurrently the site of their newest gourmet sustainable and boutique restaurant named Dieci
Music career.
Chiarini played music on his earlier years, first as a rock singer in pubs and nightclubs opening for American rock bands. When Chiarini grew weary of his rock music career he became a singer with the award winning latin-pop music band Barranco Mix. This band was widely known across the Spanish, and English speaking countries in the Americas and Europe. The band played in the Johnny Canales show in Corpus Christi, Texas with the legendary queen of tejano, Selena and contemporary rock band Maná. Barranco also became the opening band at the Feria de Cali in Colombia where many celebrities from the Salsa music world performed. In 1994 the band won three Ronda Awards and were nominated for the Latin Grammy Awards. The band also was awarded Double Platinum recognition for exceeding a million sales in the United States, Colombia, Mexico and Venezuela. The band has had recording contracts with Polygram Latino in the United States and North America, Sonolux in Colombia, Sonografica in Venezuela. Chiarini performed as one of the lead vocalists of the band from 1993 – 1996. He then retired from his music career and returned to pursuing his career as a chef.
Early Cooking Career.
In 1986, the young Chiarini enrolled in the Instituto de Alta Gastronomia de Caracas, Venezuela, which has been closed due to political unbalances in the country. In 1996, he decided to go back to the United States where he enrolled at the Pittsburgh Culinary Institute a branch of the world renowned, Le Cordon Bleu. After graduation, he moved to France where he enroll at Le Cordon Bleu Paris one of the most ambitious and prestigious culinary schools in Europe. Chiarini worked under masters like Alain Dutournier chef/owner of Carré des Feuillants (*** Michelin stars), and later while in Rome, Italy working under the enigmatic Executive Chef Heinz Beck at La Pergola Restaurant (***Michelin stars), and in Ferrara, Italy working for top-level restaurants such as, Antichi Sapori and Hostaria Savonarola as a sous chef. Moving became again imminent, when The Pirsch Mühle (* Michelin star), restaurant in Germany offered him the opportunity to run the kitchen along with the Executive Chef and owner, S. Leypold. In early 2000’s Chiarini decided to move to the Middle East, starting with Intercontinental hotels, Al Bustan Palace and Shangri-La Hotels. Later he moved to Bahrain, and developed culinary concepts for Mövenpick and Marriott hotels. His next target was Kuwait, where he fully engaged his culinary career as chef with Marriott Hotels. In Kuwait Chiarini developed a close relationship with the late Highness Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, where he created exotic dinners for the family. There he became widely known as a celebrity TV chef, with the broadcasting channel “Al Rai TV”. Chiarini starred in more than 50 cooking shows. Chiarini continues his culinary journey in Africa with the Starwood hotels chain, in one of the most luxurious and posh properties in Eastern Africa; the Sheraton Addis, part of the Luxury Collection of Starwood hotels. Ethiopia is well known for being the diplomatic capital of Africa. Here Chiarini served personalities like; the 39th President of the United States of America, Jimmy Carter and first lady Rosalyn Carter the president of Israel Shimon Peres, the Presidents of the (AU) African Union, including Muammar al- Qaddaf, and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. His time spent in Asia has inspired him to travel throughout the continent immersing him in the food, and absorbing the culture giving him a great appreciation and deep understanding of the Asian culture. Countries like China, South Korea, Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan and the Philippines.
Books and Publications.
Chiarini’s, The New Renaissance of Italian Fusion Cuisine Trilogy, contains recipes that fuses Italian culinary with all the continents of the world. Later on in 2015 Chiarini published The Golden Collection of this trilogy and a book dedicated to his native Ferrara entitled, Ferrara Il Gioiello Culinario Nascosto (Ferrara the hidden culinary jewel). Finally in 2020 Chiarini published Ancient Techniques - Modern Looks, a book dedicated to the most ancient cooking techniques plated with avant garde looks. Chiarini has published a total of 6 books to date.
Dieci Boutique Restaurant.
Dieci Boutique Restaurant is Chiarini's latest creation, in partnership with Jimmy Beasley. Opened in 2021, Dieci is located on a 2 acre farm in the countryside of Bulgaria, and serves only 10 guests per night for a seasonal 10 course tasting menu.


Anas el-Wugood

Anas el-Wugood is an opera in Arabic by the Egyptian composer Aziz El-Shawan. It was written in 1970 but not premiered until 1995.
The plot is based on a character from the Arabian Nights, Uns el Wujud "Delight of the World," who was beloved by the fair Zahar el-Waard "Flower of the Rose".


Warwick Braithwaite

Henry Warwick Braithwaite (9 January 1896 – 19 January 1971) was a New Zealand-born orchestral conductor. He worked mostly in Great Britain and was especially known for his work in opera.
Early life and family.
Braithwaite was one of the youngest of a large number of children (at least 16 and as many as 22 children, but the records are inadequate) born to Joseph Braithwaite and Mary Ann Braithwaite (née Bellett) in Dunedin. His father was later mayor of Dunedin between 1905 and 1906.
The family were musical – the Braithwaite family would perform Gilbert and Sullivan to friends and relatives in their 20-room house in Dunedin, and his elder sister Mabel Manson emigrated to England before he was born, where she made a considerable career as a singer.
Braithwaite's brothers included John Braithwaite, who was convicted and executed for mutiny during World War I and pardoned by the New Zealand government in 2000, and Rewi Braithwaite, who played in New Zealand's first official international soccer match, against Australia in 1922.
Braithwaite served briefly in the New Zealand armed forces during World War I. He won various competitions as both a composer and pianist and then followed his sister to England in 1916 as the Goring Thomas Compositions Scholar at the Royal Academy of Music in London, where he studied composition and piano.
Musical career.
He joined the O’Mara Opera Company as chorus master, a touring opera company run by the Irish tenor Joseph O'Mara, and with them made his debut as a conductor with Auber's "Fra Diavolo" in 1919. After this he joined the British National Opera Company as a repetiteur and also in 1922 spent a year working for Bruno Walter at the Bavarian State Opera in Munich. When Walter left to go to America, Hans Knappertsbusch was appointed to the job and immediately terminated the employment of any non-Germans working for the company. Thereafter he became the first Assistant Musical Director of 2LO, the precursor to the BBC, and then moved to the BBC's Cardiff 5WA Station Orchestra where he conducted many of the first UK performances of Sibelius's music. That orchestra was closed down when the BBC decided to centralise its efforts and put its money into the newly formed BBC Symphony Orchestra in London under Sir Adrian Boult.
In 1931 Braithwaite joined the Vic-Wells, later the Sadler's Wells Opera Company, the company run by the fiercely autocratic Lilian Baylis, who persuaded the politicians Winston Churchill and Stanley Baldwin, the writers G. K. Chesterton and John Galsworthy, the composer Ethel Smyth, and the conductor Thomas Beecham to raise funds for a new theatre at Sadler's Wells in Islington, where there had been a theatre since 1683.
The company performed not only opera, but ballet and theatre as well: among its stars were Laurence Olivier, John Gielgud, Margot Fonteyn, Robert Helpmann, Joan Cross, Constant Lambert. In 1931, Braithwaite's first year, the company performed fourteen operas; the next year it performed twenty six operas. In all the company put on fifty operas between 1931 and 1939: a remarkably ambitious undertaking. Braithwaite conducted Wagner's "Mastersingers" and "Lohengrin" Beethoven's "Fidelio", the Mozart operas (including "Cosi Fan Tutte", then rarely done), Verdi's "Don Carlos" and a highly successful "Falstaff", the Puccini operas, and Ethel Smythe's "The Wreckers". The theatre closed down briefly when the war began but soon reopened. Braithwaite conducted Puccini's "Tosca" at Sadler's Wells on the afternoon of 7 September 1940. Lawrance Collingwood conducted Gounod's "Faust" the same evening. That was the first night of the Blitz, and one of the worst. London was set on fire by waves of German bombs, 430 people were killed and 1,600 badly injured. Braithwaite watched the raid from the roof of the theatre.
In 1940 he succeeded George Szell as principal conductor of the Scottish Orchestra and while there oversaw the expansion of its season from a three months to six months per year. While in Glasgow he also conducted the US Army Air Force Band, the band founded by Glenn Miller. During the war he was also much involved in the campaign to save the London Philharmonic Orchestra during these years and can be seen in the film "Battle for Music", which documents that story.
After the war he joined the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, as Music Director of the Ballet Company where he conducted the western premiere of Prokofiev's "Cinderella" with Moira Shearer in the title role. He also conducted operas with some of the period's greatest singers, among them Boris Christoff in "Boris Godunov", and Victoria de los Ángeles in her debut as Puccini's Mimi. And also a performance of "Aida" with Astrid Varnay singing Aida in Italian, Hans Hopf singing Radames in German and Jess Walters singing Ramphis in English.
He toured Australia in 1947 as a guest conductor, with concerts in all of the mainland capital cities.
In 1953, he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal. He was conductor of the National Orchestra of New Zealand in 1954 and then music director of the National Opera of Australia in 1954–55. In 1956 he returned to Britain as musical director of the Welsh National Opera from 1956 to 1960, where he conducted a range of interesting and little known repertoire such as Verdi's "I Lombardi" and "La battaglia di Legnano", Boito's "Mefistofele" and Rimsky-Korsakov's "May Night" as well as the standard repertoire. In 1960 he rejoined Sadler's Wells Opera where he conducted until his retirement in 1968.
In 1970 he travelled to Australia where he conducted "Fidelio" with the Australian Opera Company.
He was a fellow of the Royal Academy of Music.
Personal life and death.
Braithwaite married first Phyllis Greatrex (née Bain) in 1925, with whom he had a daughter, Barbara, a nurse. Then, in 1931, he married Lorna Constance Davies with whom he had two sons, Sir Rodric Braithwaite, diplomat and author, and the conductor Nicholas Braithwaite. He died in London on 19 January 1971, and was buried at Levington in Suffolk in the same grave as his three-year-old grandson Mark who had died the same year.
Legacy.
His recording legacy is mainly as an accompanist to some of the greatest singers of the mid twentieth century – Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Sena Jurinac, Kirsten Flagstad, Tito Gobbi, Nicola Rossi-Lemeni and Joan Hammond amongst others. There are also some recordings of ballet music with the Royal Opera House Orchestra which were released on the Parlophone label, and there are a few recordings of BBC broadcasts of complete operas, among them Puccini's La fanciulla del West with Sadler's Wells and I Lombardi with the Welsh National Opera.
Also active as a composer, writing two operas (including "The Pendragon", about King Arthur) as well as a varied collection of other pieces Braithwaite wrote the book "The Conductor's Art" (), published in 1952. His compositions and other papers are held in the Alexander Turnbull Library in Wellington, New Zealand.


Yuen Cheung-yan

Yuen Cheung-yan is an actor, director, stuntman, and fight choreographer who has worked for many years in the Hong Kong film industry. During the 1970s and early 1980s, he worked with his elder brother, Yuen Woo-ping, and other members of the Yuen family on several films, some of them kung fu comedies such as "Shaolin Drunkard" (1983) and "The Miracle Fighters" (1983).


Nem-Catacoa Festival

The Nem-Catacoa Festival was a music festival held in 2010 in Cajicá, Colombia, a town just north of the capital Bogotá. It was named after the mythical Nencatacoa. Plans were made for a second edition of the festival in 2011, but this never materialised, and with the rise in popularity of the Estéreo Picnic Festival, which began in the same year and has a similar music policy, it seems unlikely that the Nem-Catacoa Festival will ever return.
History.
The festival was held on 9 and 10 October 2010 in the Polo Club, Cajicá. Green Day, Jamiroquai and Cobra Starship were the headliners.
Saturday 9 October
Zipa Stage (main stage):
Zaque Stage (second stage):
Maloka Stage (electronic tent):
Sunday 10 October
Zipa Stage (main stage):
Zaque Stage (second stage):
Maloka Stage (electronic tent):


Henk Van der Kolk

Henk Van der Kolk is a Canadian film producer, best known as a cofounder of the Toronto International Film Festival and the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television.
Originally from Zwolle, Netherlands, Van der Kolk emigrated to Canada in 1959. His credits as a film producer include "Outrageous!" (1977), "Wild Horse Hank" (1979), "Mr. Patman" (1980), "" (1980) and "Circle of Two" (1981). Most of the films were coproduced with Bill Marshall through their firm Film Consortium of Canada.
More recently, Van der Kolk was a founder of a new film festival in Panama. He and his wife Yanka are currently partners in Imaging & Photography, a professional portrait photography studio.


Akazu ware

 is a type of Japanese pottery traditionally from Aichi Prefecture.


Insha Literature

The Arabic word "Insha" means "Construction", or "Creation". It has been used in this sense in classical Arabic Literature such as the Quran. Over time it acquired the meaning of composition, especially denoting the Prose composition of letters, documents, and state papers. Subsequently, it was used as a synonym of "Munshaat", which are documents composed in accordance with specific norms of diction and style that distinguish these prose compositions from ordinary prose. Gradually the term "Insha " came to represent a distinct branch of learning that enabled one to discern the merits and defects of the prose composition of letters and documents as a distinct type of writing from regular treatises and books.
"Insha" writing is mainly concerned with the expression of one's innermost feelings, rather than the use of prose in scientific treatises. Insha writing developed into an art form and,involved detailed rules and regulations that a well lettered person was supposed to learn, and artful and well written epistolography, was considered a form of "Adab." The devices employed in Insha include verbal puns, and tricks, riddles, and a mannered , elegant style of writing. A model of stately Insha prose in Arabic was provided by Al Qadi al fadil, (d.1199), and later by Al-Qalqashandi (d.1418). In the classical Persian literature, the most representative type of "Insha is identified as "Rasail", meaning "letters".
Generally "Rasail" literature can be categorized into two types of literature- a.) "Tauqi'at" and b.) "muhawarat. Tauqi'at" consists of the orders and directives of rulers and officials, and "Muhawarat" consists of letters and correspondence. If the addressee is superior in status then the form of letters are called "Murafa'a," and in case the addressee is inferior in status, then the type of letters are called "ruq'a." If both the addressee and the writer are of equal status, then the type of letters are called "murasala".
Further categories exist due to the nature of the letters and the relationship and comparative status of the addressee and the writer. for instance if the writer is the ruler of a kingdom, then the Insha issuing from him could be categorized into "farman, manshur" or "fathnama", depending on the nature of its contents.
Medieval India has a very rich tradition of Insha writing. Many intellectuals such as Amir khusrau, Khwaja-i- Jahan Mohammad Gawan and Abul Fazl set a model of Insha writing, which was followed by generations of Insha writers. In admiration of superb Insha writing, many collections of Insha writing were collected. "Munshaat -i- Namakin" is one of the largest collections of Insha writings, which is dated from the early Mughal period.


The Queen of Golconda

Drottningen av Golconda ("The Queen of Golconda") is a three-act romantic opera by Franz Berwald. The libretto was adapted by the composer from one by Vial and Favières intended for Henri Montan Berton; this had been based on another by Michel-Jean Sedaine. Berwald may have known the Berton opera from when he played in the opera orchestra in Stockholm.
Background.
The work is the culmination of a project Berwald commenced in 1863 as "Lochleven Castle", (based on "The Abbot" by Walter Scott). This was considerably revised for a potential production the composer hoped for at the Théâtre Lyrique in Paris starring Christina Nilsson. The opera was not seen during Berwald’s lifetime, and first staged at the Royal Swedish Opera, Stockholm on 3 April 1968.
The attractive overture may be a later version of the tone poem 'Humorous Capriccio' (1841) from Berwald’s Viennese years; it has occasionally been recorded.
Synopsis.
The story concerns the widowed Queen of Golconda, Aline, who as a girl in Provence had loved Saint Phar. However, she was abducted as a child and sold as a slave to the old King of Golconda who then married her. Saint Phar has recently appeared at court as the new French ambassador. The veiled Aline is not recognised by Saint Phar who delivers to her a friendship treaty with France. At a later meeting in the French gardens where Aline comes in Provençal attire, it emerges that he is still in love with her. Aline and her court are held prisoner during a revolution led by Sadomar, but she is rescued by Saint Phar, to whom she finally reveals her face.
Sources.
Forbes E. Drottningen av Golconda. In: "The New Grove Dictionary of Opera." Macmillan, London and New York, 1997.


Pelton Mill

Pelton Mill is a historic carpet mill located at Poughkeepsie, Dutchess County, New York. It was built about 1834 and rebuilt after the fire of 1854. It is a -story, three-bay brick building with a gable roof.
It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.


Munchie Strikes Back

Munchie Strikes Back is a 1994 American comedy feature film directed by Jim Wynorski and written by Wynorski and R. J. Robertson, as a sequel to "Munchie". While Dom DeLuise provided the voice of Munchie in the first movie, this time it was done by Howard Hesseman.
Synopsis.
Because of the repercussions left from his last adventure, Munchie must appear before a celestial court presided over by Kronus. The tribunal proceeds to blame Munchie for a number of historical calamities, including the sinking of Atlantis, the crash of the "Hindenburg", the cataclysm of Vesuvius and the meltdown of Chernobyl. As punishment, he is sentenced to help single mother Linda McClelland. Linda's son Chris is the only one who can see Munchie and Munchie and he become best friends. Chris is the pitcher of a Little League team and is being bullied by Brett Carlisle, who is his rival in baseball as well as for the attentions of the girl next door, Jennifer. While out of town on a business trip, Linda's boss makes improper advances to her. When she refuses his advances, he fires her. This creates financial hardship on the family. Munchie intervenes in their lives, making it so Chris has a perfect game and impresses Jennifer, and Linda finds a bag of money to prevent eviction. Munchie appears back before the tribunal, who assign his next punishment...to help Bill Clinton.
Critical response.
Reviewers generally found the movie a poor sequel to "Munchie". "TV Guide" offered that "Munchie Strikes Back" "...turns an annoying, no-budget children's movie into an annoying, no-budget children's series," and in considering the film's attempts at humour, wrote the film "is the sort of ill-considered comedy in which a Little League team can be named the 'Hillside Stranglers', and big laughs are expected from the sight of a woman kicking a dog." "X-Entertainment" was only slightly less harsh, offering in their review "...the series saw its last hurrah in the movie we're reviewing today, 1992's "Munchie Strikes Back". Assuming that at least some of you have seen "Munchies", throw away everything you think you know about the lore. The last two films were entirely different and strictly for kids. It's for this reason that I'm having trouble calling this pile of shit a pile of shit—putting myself in the mindset of a seven-year-old, it's not too terrible. Can't really recommend it as fodder for your bad movie nights (stick with the original for those), but if you've ever wanted 80 minutes' worth of Howard Heeseman voicing the poor man's ALF, "Munchie Strikes Back" caters to your unique and pitiful whim." John Stanley gave the film one-and-a-half stars, denouncing it as a watered "down kiddie fantasy from the Roger Corman factory..."


Nicola da Urbino

Nicola da Urbino (ca. 1480 – 1540/1547) formerly confused with Nicola Pellipario has traditionally been designated as the Italian ceramicist from Castel Durante in Marche who introduced into painted maiolica the new "istoriato" style, in which the whole surface of a plate or charger is devoted to a single representational scene. Nicola's scenes were often derived by freely adapting woodcuts from Romances or the Latin classics, such as the illustrated Ovid's "Metamorphoses" printed at Venice, 1497, to which he returned so often that it appears that a copy of it must have lain in his shop; however, he did not merely copy: "the often crude outlines of the black-and-white figures are converted by him into embodiments of supple vitality," Bernard Rackham observed. Later he gave up book illustrations in favour of compositions of Raphael, mediated through the engravings of Marcantonio Raimondi, and, in at least one case, by direct access to a drawing by Raphael of Michelangelo's David, seen from the rear. Nicola often introduced prominently pieces of schematic and severely frontal architecture in the Renaissance manner. His plate of "Solomon Adoring an Idol" in the Museo Correr adapts an illustration from "Hypnerotomachia Poliphilii."


Marula Muniyana Kagga

Marula Muniyana Kagga is practically the extension of Mankuthimmana Kagga. These are the stray poems of Devanahalli Venkataramanaiah Gundappa, referred to as DVG, which have been collected together and published after his death. We can find in these poems the expression of fine thoughts of a person who had immense interest in the affairs of divinity. Written by an amateur person each poem contains ripened wisdom of a great scholar. Though the poet claims that Marula Muniya is the brother of Mankuthimma, one could realize before long that Muniya is none other than Mankuthimma himself.
It is no wonder if DVG himself must have felt the development of this kind of writing.
<poem>
Like the growing tail of
Hanuman in Lanka,
Questions and problems keep
Surging forth for this talkative,
a stammerer, Marula Muniya
No Comic story is this Kagga, nor
It is an emotional outpouring,
Stuff it is for cogitation in mind,
Enjoy each poem, one at a time, Marula Muniya
</poem>
There are 825 poems in this book, 120 poems less than the number of poems in Kagga.


American Culinary Federation

The American Culinary Federation (ACF) was established in 1929 in New York City and is the largest professional chefs' organization in North America. It was the progeny of the combined visions of three chefs' associations in New York City, the Société Culinaire Philanthropique, the Vatel Club and the Chefs de Cuisine Association of America.
ACF, now based in St. Augustine, Florida, comprises more than 17,500 members in over 150 chapters across the United States, and is known as the authority on cooking in America. Its mission is to make a positive difference for culinarians through education, apprenticeship and certification, while creating a fraternal bond of respect and integrity among culinarians everywhere. One of ACF's defining historical moments remains the ACF-led initiative that resulted in the upgrade of the definition of chef from domestic to professional in 1976. The ACF is a member of the World Association of Chefs Societies.
Today, ACF is the leader in offering educational resources, training, apprenticeship, competitions and programmatic accreditation designed to enhance professional growth for all current and future chefs and pastry chefs. In addition, ACF operates the most comprehensive culinary certification program in the world. ACF is home to ACF Culinary Team USA, the official representative for the United States in major international competitions. ACF also publishes The National Culinary Review, a bi-monthly print and digital magazine featuring articles on food, drink and menu trends, product application, management and lifestyle issues, recipes and professional development.
Education.
Through the American Culinary Federation Educational Foundation (ACFEF), ACF offers accreditation of secondary and post-secondary culinary education programs to ensure these programs meet the highest standards of education and professionalism. ACF-accredited culinary programs can be found across the United States as well as in Guam, Puerto Rico, Bermuda, Philippines, Bulgaria, Italy, Peru, Russia, and Switzerland.
In addition to accrediting education programs, ACF also oversees apprenticeship programs that combine on-the-job training and classroom instruction for future chefs. ACF assists establishments in setting up their own apprenticeship programs for students and has created a set of national apprenticeship guidelines and standards that are registered with the U.S. Department of Labor. In 2012, the ACF apprenticeship program received the 21st Century Registered Trailblazers and Innovators Award by the U.S. Department of Labor for its partnership with the U.S. Army.
Certification.
ACF offers 16 different professional certifications for chefs and culinary educators. Certification levels are based on a chef's educational and work experience. Culinary students may earn a basic level of certification through an ACF-accredited educational program or apprenticeship. Higher levels of certification are achieved by passing written and practical exams and certification is maintained through earning continuing education hours. Continuing education hours are offered at ACF events such as local chapter meetings, regional conferences, the annual National Convention, or through the ACF Online Learning Center.
The highest level of certification that can be reached is Certified Master Chef (CMC). There are only 68 people in the world that currently hold this distinction. The practical exam for the CMC level is held every other year and is widely considered to be one of the most difficult examinations on Earth. The most recent CMC exam was held in March 2019, with five candidates participating and only one passing the exam to earn the title of Certified Master Chef.
Culinary competitions.
Culinary Competitions are a vital and evolving branch of the American Culinary Federation. Some competitions are single events taking place at individual ACF chapters, while other student and professional competitions that include individual and team events engage in a rigorous qualifying process that begins at the local ACF chapter level, advances at the ACF Regional Conferences and culminates with the finals at the ACF National Convention. Regardless of the level, the purpose is to continually raise the standards of culinary excellence in the United States while promoting camaraderie and educational opportunities among culinary professionals.
Some of the many ACF Culinary competitions include Chef of the Year, Pastry Chef of the Year, and Student Chef of the Year. These awards recognize chefs or students who have displayed a passion for the craft, a high level of professionalism, depth of knowledge, and a strong culinary skill set.
Advocacy and Philanthropy.
Scholarships.
The American Culinary Federation Education Foundation (ACFEF) provides scholarships for culinary students participating in apprenticeship programs, certificate programs, and post-secondary degree programs. Additionally, professional development grants are awarded on a competitive basis to exemplary working culinary professionals who wish to update their skills through continuing education.
The Chef & Child Foundation.
Founded in 1989, The Chef & Child Foundation seeks to "foster, promote, encourage and stimulate an awareness of proper nutrition in preschool and elementary school children", as well as fight against childhood obesity. Children benefit from the financial support which the foundation gives to other organizations which support childhood nutrition and obesity causes. They also support a yearly Chef & Child Day, where the ACF chapters from across the United States participate in local and national events to support children's causes.
Disaster Relief.
Funds from the ACFEF Disaster Relief Fund are available to assist ACF members, schools with ACFEF programmatic accreditation and their students, communities and individuals affected by catastrophic events and natural disasters. The fund aims to lift the financial burden of those without food, shelter, power or employment in the wake of a disaster.
ACF Culinary Team USA.
ACF Culinary Team USA, a program of the American Culinary Federation (ACF), is the official representative team of the United States in major national and international culinary competitions. ACF Culinary Team USA comprises one national team of six members, two regional teams of five members each, and a youth team of five members less than 23 years old. The regional teams, considered a training ground for the national team, work with and assist the national team when they are not competing. ACF Culinary Team USA competes in many competitions including three major international culinary competitions: International Exhibition of Culinary Art (IKA) also known as the "Culinary Olympics", The American Culinary Classic, and Culinary World Cup.


Sally Mae Pettway

Sally Mae Pettway (b. 1965) is an American artist. She is associated with the Gee's Bend quilting collective, alongside her mother, Candis Pettway, and her sisters Qunnie Pettway and Edwina Pettway.


Hello, Dolly! (song)

"Hello, Dolly!" is the title song of the popular 1964 musical of the same name. Louis Armstrong's version was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2001.
The music and lyrics were written by Jerry Herman, who also wrote the scores for many other popular musicals including "Mame" and "La Cage aux Folles".
History.
"Hello, Dolly!" was first sung by Carol Channing, who starred as Dolly Gallagher Levi in the original 1964 Broadway cast. In December 1963, at the behest of his manager, Louis Armstrong made a demonstration recording of "Hello, Dolly!" for the song's publisher to use to promote the show. "Hello, Dolly!" opened on January 16, 1964, at the St. James Theatre in New York City, and it quickly became a major success.
The same month, Kapp Records released Armstrong's publishing demo as a commercial single. His version reached 1 on the U.S. "Billboard" Hot 100, ending the Beatles' streak of 3 chart-topping hits in a row over 14 consecutive weeks. "Hello Dolly!" became the most successful single of Armstrong's career, followed by a Gold-selling album of the same name. The song also spent nine weeks atop the adult contemporary chart shortly after the opening of the musical. The song also made Armstrong the oldest artist ever to reach 1 on the Hot 100 since its introduction in 1958. "Billboard" ranked the record as the 3 song of 1964, behind the Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" and "She Loves You."
"Hello, Dolly!" won the Grammy Award for Song of the Year in 1965, and Armstrong received a Grammy for Best Vocal Performance, Male. Louis Armstrong also performed the song (together with Barbra Streisand) in the popular 1969 film "Hello, Dolly!".
Notable cover versions.
"Hello, Dolly!" is a pop standard, and has been covered by many artists, including:
"Hello, Lyndon!".
Lyndon B. Johnson, often referred to by the moniker "LBJ", used the tune, rechristened "Hello, Lyndon!", as a campaign song for his run in the 1964 U.S. presidential election. This version of the song was performed by Carol Channing at that year's Democratic National Convention, and a recording was made by Ed Ames for distribution at the convention.
The "Sunflower" controversy.
As successful as the stage show and title song itself turned out to be, however, the tune "Hello, Dolly!" became caught up in a lawsuit which could have endangered timely plans for bringing the musical to the silver screen. Mack David, an Academy Award-nominated composer, sued for infringement of copyright, because the first four bars of "Hello, Dolly!" were the same as those in the refrain of David's song "Sunflower" from 1948. As he recounts in his memoirs, Herman had never heard "Sunflower" before the lawsuit, and wanted a chance to defend himself in court, but, for the sake of those involved in the show and the potential film, he reluctantly agreed to pay a settlement before the case would have gone to trial.


Katazome

 is a Japanese method of dyeing fabrics using a resist paste applied through a stencil, typically a rice flour mixture applied with a brush or a tool such as a palette knife. Pigment is added by hand-painting, immersion dyeing, or both. The area of the fabric covered and permeated by the paste mixture resists the later application of dye, thus creating undyed areas within the fabric.
 was first invented as an inexpensive and faster alternative to highly-patterned woven brocade fabrics. Over time, evolved into a respected fibre art form of its own.
Thin fabrics dyed in the style show the fabric's design on the back of the fabric, whereas thicker or more tightly-woven fabrics generally have a solid colour underside, typically indigo blue for cotton fabrics. Futon covers made from multiple panels of fabric, if the stencils are properly placed and the panels joined correctly, can display a seamless stencilled pattern. Besides cotton, has been used to decorate linen, silk and fabrics that are all-or partially-synthetic.


Bryant Vase

The Bryant Vase is a late 19th-century vase currently in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Description.
The vase was created in celebration of American poet William Cullen Bryant's 80th birthday in 1875. A group of Bryant's friends commissioned Tiffany & Co. to craft modern vase in the style of Greek vases. The new vase, done in silver, was then endowed with themes and motifs reflecting some of Bryant's poetry. To this end, the vase's fretwork depicts various plants, including stalks of corn, apple blossoms, cattails, and water lilies. Elsewhere on the vase, silver medallions depict scenes from Bryant's life. On the neck of the vase the line "Truth crushed to earth shall rise again" - from Bryant's 1839 poem "The Battlefield" - is inscribed in gold.


Sandra Sider

Sandra Sider (born 1949, Sylacauga, Alabama) is an American quilt artist, author, and curator. She holds a Ph.D. in comparative literature from University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, specializing in Renaissance studies. She also holds an M.A. in art history from the New York University Institute of Fine Arts.
Sider has been curator for the Texas Quilt Museum since 2012 and editor in chief of "Art Quilt Quarterly" as of 2017.
She has taught art history at the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, in New York City, and at the Fashion Institute of Technology, Adelphi University, The Parsons School of Design, and the University of Colorado online. Her publications include several books and numerous articles pertaining to Renaissance history, visual culture, and contemporary quilt art, including "Bibliography of Emblematic Manuscripts" (with Barbara Obrist) published by McGill-Queen's University Press; "Maps, Charts, Globes: Five Centuries of Exploration," published by the Hispanic Society of America, where she was Curator of Manuscripts and Rare Books from 1985 until 1994; "Handbook to Life in Renaissance Europe," published by Facts on File; "Pioneering Quilt Artists, 1960-1980: A New Direction in American Art"; her monograph series The Studio Quilt published via Amazon from 2010-2013; and, "1000 Quilt Inspirations", published by Quarry. Sider has also published translations of two Spanish poets: "Journeys of a Mystic Soul in Poetry and Prose: Cecilia del Nacimiento:" (ACMRS Press, 2012); and "Selected Sonnets of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz"(Peregrina Publishers, 1991).
Art Quilts.
Since the mid 1990s, many of Sider's quilt constructions have employed fabric processed with photographic printing. "The quilts are assembled from blocks of fabric on each of which a segment of the photographic image has been printed with a process called cyanotype. Imparting an image to a fabric by means of an iron stain, this process is compared to that of making blueprints. It requires that the cloth be sensitized to light in order to accept the image from a negative. What develops is a reversal of the positive-negative relationship, with elements that would normally be dark appearing light. Seeming to glow from an imperceptible light source, the images have an unsettling effect."
Sider's body of work references traditional quilting with the use of block forms and repetition, but also pays homage to more recent artworks by employing techniques and approaches often associated with post modern art characteristics. "Each block, adding to the visual complexity, contains part of an image, sometimes varying in scale from one to another rather than a whole picture. The result is an ambiguous fragmentation that keeps the eye moving to collect information. In applying photographic methods to piecework, Sider seems to have absorbed the ubiquitous influence of innovative 20th-century artists -- most notably, Robert Rauschenberg and Andy Warhol -- as well as the language of traditional quilts. Like many other artists working in the genre known as the "contemporary art quilt," Sider mixes the visual conventions of historic quilts with present-day design approaches to two-dimensional space."
Art Quilt Advocacy.
Sandra Sider has been a proponent for increased museum acquisitions of Art Quilts. Sider states, "To my mind, the only way to accomplish a major change in attitudes of museum curators is to flood them with the possibility of establishing art quilts as an exciting collecting category"
Through survey information gathered from 140 museums in the United States, Sider found that there are more than 1800 art quilts in museum collections. Some of these museums include the American Folk Art Museum, Baltimore Museum of Art, Denver Art Museum, Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco, Indianapolis Museum of Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Shelburne Museum, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, and the Renwick Gallery - Smithsonian American Art Museum.
Sandra Sider has advocated for museum curators to have better access to quantifiable information about the art quilt medium. "Acquisition committees can be quite demanding, and museums have limited budgets specifically reserved for various mediums. When an artist, collector, or dealer attempts to sell or donate a quilt to a museum, the acquisitions committee usually asks the curator, "How does this work fit into our collection? How would it fit into an exhibition or publication?" That curator needs to be able to come into the acquisitions meeting with solid information about other works in the same medium, and she or he hardly ever has enough time to make an exhaustive foray into the collection."
Sider has noted a recent trend of increasing museum acquisitions of Art Quilts. "My survey inquired about quilts owned by museums dated after 2000. The total was nearly 25 percent of all art quilts in my survey...Almost all of the museums answering my inquiry are interested in acquiring 21st century quilt art..."


Star Theater (Portland, Oregon)

The Star Theater, formerly known as Princess Theatre and several other names, is a historic former silent film theater in Portland, Oregon, United States. The address was originally 9 Northwest Sixth Avenue, but since 2001 has been 13 Northwest Sixth Avenue. The theater operated as a film theater as well as a burlesque theater and an adult movie theater.
History.
It opened in May 1911 as the Princess Theatre at Sixth and Burnside Street with 300 seats. It was one of many "semi-fireproof picture show[s]" that opened that year in Portland and the first in Downtown Portland to comply with the new fire codes. It was being run by the Sax Amusement Company circa 1923; it became the Star Theater in 1939, but was also known as the Star Burlesk, 4 Star Theater or New Star Theater at various times.
In the 1940s it became a live burlesque theater. Featured dancers included Tempest Storm, Betty Roth as Candy Renee, and Arabella Andre. It closed briefly during Dorothy McCullough Lee's mayorship, but reopened in 1953. Jim Purcell, Portland's Chief of Police, was a regular at the Star Theater and was especially interested in Candy Renee.
In the late 1960s, the Star Theater became an adult theater which showed erotic movies and also had strippers on stage. In the 1970s the Star Theater experimented with presenting everything from underground and classic comedy films to controversial "live sex shows". Eventually the Star Theater went back to the somewhat less controversial adult movies and live strippers. In the period of 1979–1983 one of the strippers at the Star Theater was a teenage Courtney Love. The Star Theater was closed in 1985.
The Star Theater was the business in question in the landmark City of "Portland v. Tidyman" Oregon Supreme Court ruling handed down by Oregon Supreme Court Justice Hans A. Linde in 1988 (long after the incident(s) in question happened in 1979), which helped establish the State of Oregon's strong free speech protections, possibly the strongest free speech protections in the U.S. This ruling eventually led to an abundance of strip clubs and live nude entertainment in and around the city of Portland, now known around the country as having "the most strip clubs per capita" of any city in the U.S.
The property was owned for several years by Portland film director Gus Van Sant. Van Sant sold it to "embattled restaurateur" Andrew Sugar in 2001. Sugar opened Vivid, a restaurant/nightclub in September 2002, it became Level by 2004 and the business was sold and closed in 2008.
The theater briefly re-opened as another nightclub called Five Star Theater, held some shows in October 2008, but then was shut down again on September 27, 2009 by the Portland Police Bureau and the Oregon Liquor Control Commission for selling alcohol without a liquor license and violating building codes. Local news outlet KATU described Five Star as a modern speakeasy.
As of 2011, the theater seating and original interior have been removed. The upper two-thirds of the exterior facade is almost completely original except for the marquee and sign, but the lower third was completely covered over in the 2001 remodel.
In February 2011, the owners of Dante's took possession of the business and began to remodel and restore the theater into a live music and performance space. The old neon marquee sign was rebuilt in August 2011 in time for the 100th anniversary of the building.
Awards.
Star Theater won "Best Music Venue" in Willamette Week's "Best of Portland" (under Media and Entertainment) contest which was voted on by readers of the weekly periodical.


Reggie Bannister

Reginald Horace "Reggie" Bannister (born September 29, 1945) is an American musician, actor, producer, writer, and activist.
Biography.
Bannister is known for playing the shotgun-toting, ex-ice cream man Reggie, from film director Don Coscarelli's "Phantasm" series in which he starred alongside A. Michael Baldwin, Bill Thornbury, and Angus Scrimm.
Bannister has appeared in several films and worked with such notables as Ossie Davis, Bruce Campbell, Ella Joyce, Daniel Roebuck, Andy Griffith, Joe Estevez and Andrew Divoff, and many others. Bannister has played many roles from Reggie in the "Phantasm" series to Herb Tooklander in the latest Stephen King adaption of "One for the Road".
And most recently, Bannister and his wife, Gigi, have collaborated with co-writer Shelby McIntyre and co-writer/director Vito Trabucco on the comedy/horror extravaganza "Bloody Bloody Bible Camp". Also having a great experience working with Sullivan on "One for the Road", he had even asked Sullivan to co-produce and star in the film as the main villain, Sister Mary Chopper, which he accepted.
Along with co-producer Tim Sullivan and writer/director Paul Ward, he has also co-produced and starred in the short sequel to "Salem's Lot", entitled, "One for the Road". This film stars Bannister as well as Adam Robitel as Booth and Audrey Walters as Janey Lumley.
Music career.
He composed the song "Have You Seen It" (used in "Phantasm IV: Oblivion") and arranged "Sittin' Here at Midnight" with Bill Thornbury (used in "Phantasm").
Personal life.
Bannister currently resides in Crestline, California, where he lives with his wife.