Derek Hilton

# Derek Hilton

## Abstract

Derek Redvers Hilton (3 February 1927 – 11 July 2005) was an English musician and composer who worked for most of his professional career as musical director at Granada Television. He is mostly remembered for his television themes and is credited as writing a total of 241. He also composed under the pseudonym John Snow.

## Childhood

Derek Hilton was born on 3 February 1927 at a modest terraced house in York Street, Whitefield, near Bury, Lancashire. The son of Alfred Redvers Hilton, a keen amateur operatic singer, and Emily, a Shropshire girl in service as a maid, Derek began piano lessons at six-years old. Showbusiness had fired his imagination after visiting the music hall at Bury Hippodrome, where he recalled the spotlights transforming the dingy hall into a pink and magical palace. 'When I was nine or ten I used to make stages and put tiny musicians on them,' he said. 'I always wanted to play music.’

## Experience

By fourteen years of age Derek was leading his band 'The Rhythmic Blue Notes' on the accordion, as well as becoming a founder member of Besses o' th' Barn Brass Band on the trombone. Conscripted at 18, he joined the King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry and persuaded his officers at Berwick-on-Tweed that he was more useful playing the piano in the Mess than out on the parade ground. Next came postings to Italy, Austria, Germany and France with " Stars in Battledress " alongside Harry Secombe, Peter Sellers and Spike Milligan. Working with stars including Gracie Fields, Kay Kendall and Richard Tauber as pianist and arranger gave him invaluable experience in jotting down parts at high speed for each night's performance.

In Germany Derek met his first wife Mary Witsenburg, a Dutch girl stranded in Hamburg throughout the war and they married in London in 1949. There followed a busy time touring as pianist with orchestras and leaders such as Johnny Dankworth and Sonny Rose, eventually spending three happy years working in dance bands in Jersey. After settling back in Manchester in 1953, he taught at the Regional Schools of Music led by Johnny Roadhouse at Decibel Studios, Oxford Road.

## Big Break

Hilton's big break came when his trio provided the music at the Press Reception for the newly launched Granada TV in 1956. A few weeks later, Derek was called in to play 'Mountain Greenery' on 'Spot the Tune' leading to a permanent spot. Soon Derek's professionalism led to his regularly playing at two shows a day, five days a week: ‘Sharp at Four’ and ‘People and Places’ at 6 pm. The Derek Hilton Trio, originally with Derek at the piano, Bob Duffy on bass and Bob Turner at the drums were a staple of Granada’s ‘People and Places’, exchanging sardonic repartee with presenter Billy Grundy. The line-up changed over time to Amos Smith on drums and finally to Dave Lynane on bass and Dave Hassall as drummer. From 1963 – 1964 The Derek Hilton Trio were also resident musicians at Manchester nightclub Mr Smiths. By 1963 Derek had composed, arranged or played more than 500 TV themes. As musical director at Granada TV Derek is credited with writing the highest number of television themes in the United Kingdom – a total of 241.

## Granada Television credits

- A Kind of Loving

- All Our Yesterdays

- Big Breadwinner Hog

- The Caesars

- Laurence Olivier Presents: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Glass Menagerie

- Comedians

- Country Matters

- The Corridor People

- Cribb

- Criss-Cross Quiz

- The Cuckoo Waltz

- D H Lawrence

- The Division

- The Dustbin Men

- The Entertainers

- Fallen Hero

- The Flower of Gloster

- The Glamour Girls

- For King and Country

- Ghost of Motley Hall

- Granada Close Down Music

- Haunted

- Hickory House

- Inheritance

- ITV Playhouse (12 episodes 1967–1969)

- Judge Dee

- Last of the Baskets

- Leave it to Charlie

- Lift Off

- The Lovers

- Lost Empires

- Man in Room 17

- Maths is Fun

- Murder

- Nearest and Dearest (TV theme and film)

- The Odd Man/It's Dark Outside/Mr Rose (Mr Rose theme composed under pseudonym John Snow)

- Once Upon A Time

- Paris 1900

- Shabby Tiger

- Shades of Darkness

- The Sinners

- Spindoe

- This Year Next Year

- Yanks Go Home

## Notable performance credits

- Spot That Tune (209 shows)

- People and Places (Derek Hilton Trio daily spot 1958 -1963)

- World in Action Theme jam

- Coronation Street – piano accompanist to Rita Fairclough (Barbara Knox)

- The Wheeltappers and Shunters Social Club

## Stage credits

- Feed

- Clogs

## Awards

- Country Matters 1973 Ivor Novello Award, Outstanding Contribution to British Popular Music.

## Nominations

- Lost Empires Best Original Television Music.

- Lost Empires Ivor Novello nomination for Best Theme

## Miscellaneous Work

In 1969 he created the theme to radio's long-standing ' Waggoner's Walk, heard daily on Radio 2. Other credits are incidental music for Sherlock Holmes, Inspector Morse, and Brideshead Revisited. To the general viewer Derek was perhaps best known for re-recording and re-arranging the Coronation Street theme in 1972 and accompanying Rita Fairclough (Barbara Knox) at the piano when she sang on the show. He was also a regular at the keyboard at The Wheeltapper's and Shunter's Social Club where he was the MD overseeing 'the turns.' A passionate Bury FC fan, in 1972 Derek wrote Bury's anthem Aye, aye, Up the Shakers sung by The Bury Tones which was for many years a rousing anthem for Shakers fans.

De Wolfe Music contains several of Derek's' library tracks which are available currently.

## Personal life

After thirty-two years with Granada, Hilton retired, though continuing to write music, for the stage play Feed and as Musical Director on P & O and Cunard cruise ships. He was married twice, the second time to Valerie George, whom he later divorced. Hilton died on 11 July 2005 and leaves three daughters from his first marriage, Marijke Snell, Lorraine Howell, a designer and Martine Bailey, a writer.


Soyuz 7K-OKS

# Soyuz 7K-OKS

## Abstract

Soyuz 7K-OKS (also known as Soyuz 7KT-OK) is a version of the Soyuz spacecraft and was the first spacecraft designed for space station flights. Its only crewed flights were conducted in 1971, with Soyuz 10 and Soyuz 11.

## Design

The two craft of the Soyuz 7K-OKS generation were modified from the original Soyuz 7K-OK. The new "probe and drogue" docking mechanism, which was first used by these two missions, featured an internal docking hatch that allowed for the first time internal transfer between Soviet spacecraft. This "probe and drogue" docking mechanism introduced with Soyuz 7K-OKS is still in use today at the International Space Station (ISS). The external toroidal fuel tank, a holdover from the original lunar mission models of the Soyuz, was dropped from the 7K-OKS since it was unneeded for Earth orbital flights.

## Flights

The Soyuz 7K-OKS flew only twice, Soyuz 10 and Soyuz 11.

On its maiden flight, the Soyuz 7K-OKS successfully launched into Earth orbit, but failed to dock completely with the Salyut 1 space station. Upon reentry, the spacecraft encountered problems with toxic fumes.

This generation of Soyuz spacecraft is notable for the first successful delivery of crew to the first space station Salyut 1 by Soyuz 11 – this success was however overshadowed by the death of the crew, who were killed when the capsule depressurised during the re-entry phase.

## Missions

- Soyuz 10

- Soyuz 11


Manglehorn

# Manglehorn

## Abstract

Manglehorn is a 2014 American drama film directed by David Gordon Green and written by Paul Logan. The film stars Al Pacino, Holly Hunter, Harmony Korine, and Chris Messina. It was selected to compete for the Golden Lion at the 71st Venice International Film Festival. The film was released in theaters on June 19, 2015 by IFC Films.

## Plot

A.J. Manglehorn is a reclusive Texas key-maker who spends his days caring for his cat, finding comfort in his work, and lamenting a long lost love. Enter kind-hearted bank teller Dawn whose interest in the eccentric Manglehorn may just be able to draw him out of his shell.

## Cast

- Al Pacino as A.J. Manglehorn

- Holly Hunter as Dawn

- Harmony Korine as Gary

- Chris Messina as Jacob

- Marisa Varela as Patricia

- Skylar Gasper as Kylie

## Production

The shooting of the film began on November 4, 2013 in Austin, Texas and the filming lasted for twenty-five days at different locations in the city. The film was scored by Austin post-rock band Explosions in the Sky and David Wingo.

## Release

The film premiered in competition at the 71st Venice International Film Festival. It was also screened in the Special Presentations section at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival. The film was released in theaters on June 19, 2015 by IFC Films.

## Reception

Manglehorn received mixed reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 50%, based on 84 reviews, with a rating of 5.4/10. The consensus reads: " Manglehorn boasts a nicely understated performance from Al Pacino, but that isn't enough to compensate for a slight story and uneven script." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 56 out of 100, based on reviews from 26 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".


The House of Usher (2006 film)

# The House of Usher (2006 film)

## Abstract

The House of Usher is a 2006 American drama thriller film based on the 1839 Edgar Allan Poe short story " The Fall of the House of Usher ". The film was directed by Hayley Cloake and written by Collin Chang. It stars Austin Nichols, Izabella Miko and Beth Grant.

## Plot

Jill Masters (Izabella Miko) has not seen or heard from her ex-lover, Roderick "Rick" Usher (Austin Nichols), or her best friend (Rick's twin), Madeline "Maddy" Usher (Danielle McCarthy), for three years. One night, Rick contacts Jill and informs her of Maddy's sudden death. Her last wish was for Jill to attend the funeral. Conflicted, Jill returns to the family home of the Usher family. Her love affair with Rick is rekindled as she learns he suffers from the same malady that robbed his twin sister, Maddy, of her sharp mind before taking her life. His affliction is manifested in a rare nerve condition, which renders him hypersensitive. Under the watchful eye of the caretaker, Nurse Thatcher (Beth Grant), Jill appears to be haunted by Maddy's ghost.

Meanwhile, Jill becomes intimate with Rick and tells him she has missed her period. A pregnancy test confirms Jill is pregnant. In the meantime, Jill has discovered that the Usher family has practiced twincest for the past five or six generations, right down to Maddy and Rick. All the prior generations had twins, who later became a couple and birthed twins of their own and so on down the line to Maddy and Rick, who were to continue the Usher curse.

## Cast

- Austin Nichols as Roderick "Rick" Usher

- Izabella Miko as Jill Michaelson

- Beth Grant as Nurse Thatcher

- Stephen C. Fischer as Rupert Johnson

- Danielle McCarthy as Madeline "Maddy" Usher

- Elizabeth Duff as Nurse Lambert

- Robin Kurian as Shay

- Ann Richardson Howland as Edith

## Production

The film was shot throughout Massachusetts: Danvers, Newburyport, and Rowley in April 2005 on a $130,000 budget.


Butler High School (Augusta, Georgia)

# Butler High School (Augusta, Georgia)

## Abstract

George P. Butler Comprehensive High School is a public high school located in the South Augusta area of Augusta, Georgia, United States. It is named for George Phineas Butler.

Butler was the second white high school built in Richmond County prior to desegregation. It opened in 1960 and remained segregated until 1967.

## History

On March 23, 1983, the new music complex at Butler High School was named the "Terri Gibbs Music Center" in honor of country and gospel singer Terri Gibbs, a 1972 Butler High graduate. At the dedicatory service, Gibbs played the piano and sang the state song, "Georgia on My Mind." Terri, blind from birth, was a resident of Columbia County and was allowed to attend Butler High School because Butler offered a special education program for handicapped students.

The center is an impressive structure to develop the musical talents of students. At one end of the building is a large chorus rehearsal room, and at the other end is a large room for rehearsal of Butler High's band. Between these anchor rooms are several individual practice rooms and individual offices for the band and choral directors.

## Student activities

### Athletics

The school mascot is the bulldog, and the school colors are old gold and white. The school's athletic complexes are called "Bulldog Country."

Butler was the 1966 State Basketball Champion under Coach Sonny Poss. There were no substitutions for the entire tournament. Barry Timmerman was MVP, scoring a record 44 points in a single game, a high school record that stood for over 40 years. Don Coleman now has the record with 49 points in a single game in the region championship game.


Garden Prairie, Illinois

# Garden Prairie, Illinois

## Abstract

Garden Prairie is an unincorporated former village and census-designated place located in Boone County, Illinois, United States. It is part of the Rockford, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area.

## History

Garden Prairie was originally called Amesville, in honor of a pioneer settler. The present name refers to the fertility of their surrounding land on the prairie. A post office was established as Amesville in 1838, and renamed Garden Prairie in 1853.

On February 2, 2010, residents voted 57-46 to dissolve the village, only 2 years after incorporating by a 62 - 44 vote on February 5, 2008.

## Geography

Garden Prairie is located at 42°15′12″N 88°43′29″W / 42.25333°N 88.72472°W (42.25333, -88.72472). According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Garden Prairie has a total area of 0.65 square miles (1.68 km), of which 0.64 square miles (1.66 km) (or 98.15%) is land and 0.01 square miles (0.03 km) (or 1.85%) is water. It is roughly centered between Marengo and Belvidere, at the intersection of US Highway 20 and Garden Prairie Road.

## Demographics

As of the 2020 census there were 300 people, 118 households, and 66 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 461.54 inhabitants per square mile (178.20/km). There were 135 housing units at an average density of 207.69 per square mile (80.19/km). The racial makeup of the CDP was 85.00% White, 0.33% African American, 1.33% Native American, 0.67% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 1.33% from other races, and 11.33% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 12.33% of the population.

There were 118 households, out of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 23.73% were married couples living together, 32.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.07% were non-families. 11.86% of all households were made up of individuals, and 0.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 2.25.

The CDP's age distribution consisted of 13.6% under the age of 18, 14.3% from 18 to 24, 5.3% from 25 to 44, 37.4% from 45 to 64, and 29.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47.0 years. For every 100 females, there were 136.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 104.5 males.


The House on Sorority Row

# The House on Sorority Row

## Abstract

The House on Sorority Row (also known as House of Evil in the United Kingdom) is a 1982 American slasher film written and directed by Mark Rosman, produced by John G. Clark, and starring Eileen Davidson and Kathryn McNeil. The plot follows a group of sorority sisters being stalked and murdered during their graduation party after they conceal a fatal prank against their house mother.

Partly inspired by the 1955 French film Les Diaboliques, first-time writer-director Rosman wrote the screenplay for the film in 1980, then titled Seven Sisters. The film was shot on location in Pikesville, Maryland in the summer months of 1980, with additional photography taking place in Los Angeles.

In November 1982, it received a limited regional theatrical release before expanding on January 21, 1983. The following week it rose to number one, eventually going on to gross $10.6 million at the box office. Despite a mixed critical response on release, the film has obtained a large cult following among fans of the genre since its release.

The House on Sorority Row was named one of the greatest slasher films of all time by Complex in 2017. A remake, titled Sorority Row, was released in 2009.

## Plot

Seven sorority sisters – Katey, Vicki, Liz, Jeanie, Diane, Morgan, and Stevie – celebrate their graduation ceremony at their sorority house, located at the far end of a sorority row. Their celebration is interrupted by their domineering house mother, Mrs. Slater, who denies the girls' plan to throw a graduation party. Angered, the girls devise a prank to get back at Slater; they steal her walking cane, place it in the house's unused outdoor pool, and force her at gunpoint to retrieve it. After doing so, however, Slater startles Vicki, causing her to accidentally shoot Slater in the chest. In an effort to cover up their apparent murder, the girls reluctantly hide the body in the pool.

At the ceremony, an unseen figure uses Slater's cane to stab a partygoer. Meanwhile, after finding guests attempting to enter the pool, the girls realize that if the pool lights are turned on, Slater's body will be revealed. Stevie goes into the basement to disable the breaker, where she is accosted and stabbed to death by the killer. Later, the pool lights are turned on, much to the girls' alarm, but Slater's body is nowhere to be found.

Deciding that Slater must be alive, the girls begin searching for her after the party comes to a close. Morgan enters Slater's room, where the latter's body falls on her from the attic hatch. Vicki suggests hiding the body in the old cemetery. In the attic, Katey discovers children's toys and a dead caged bird. Morgan is subsequently stabbed with Slater's cane.

Diane goes to an outlying garage to start the van to transport Slater's body, but is murdered by the killer, who soon after decapitates Jeanie. Meanwhile, Katey finds a medical alert tag on a necklace belonging to Slater. She calls the number and is put through to a Dr. Beck, who comes to the house. The pair discover Stevie, Morgan, and Diane's bodies in the pool. Meanwhile, after finding Diane missing, Vicki and Liz drive to the cemetery without her to bury Slater's body. When they arrive, both girls are killed by the assailant. Dr. Beck accompanies Katey to the cemetery, where they find Vicki and Liz's bodies as well as Slater's still in the van.

After returning to the house and forcibly giving Katey a sedative, Dr. Beck reveals that Slater had a son named Eric, who was deformed and mentally underdeveloped due to an illegal fertility treatment he had given her. Dr. Beck uses Katey as bait so he can capture Eric and cover up his crime. Eric arrives and hacks Dr. Beck to death while Katey searches for Vicki's gun, which does not fire. She flees to the bathroom and finds Jeanie's severed head. Horrified, she climbs to the attic, where Eric attacks her. She shoots him repeatedly, only to realize the gun is loaded with blanks. She then uses a pin to stab Eric numerous times and he falls through the attic door to the floor below. Katey believes he is dead and rests from exhaustion. However, Eric opens his eyes.

## Cast

- Kathryn McNeil as Katherine "Katey" Rose

- Eileen Davidson as Vicki

- Janis Zido as Liz

- Robin Meloy as Jeanie

- Harley Kozak as Diane

- Jodi Draigie as Morgan

- Ellen Dorsher as Stevie

- Lois Kelso Hunt as Dorothy Slater

- Christopher Lawrence as Dr. Nelson Beck

- Michael Kuhn as Peter

- Michael Sergio as Rick

- Charles Serio as Eric Slater

- Ruth Walsh as Mrs. Rose

## Production

### Screenplay

Writer-director Mark Rosman, who had attended the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and later graduated from New York University, got the idea for The House on Sorority Row after returning to his hometown in Los Angeles. Rosman had been a fraternity member at UCLA, which he used as a partial basis for writing the screenplay, which focused on a group of sorority sisters who find their lives threatened after covering up a fatal prank. Some elements of the film, primarily the usage of a pool to conceal their crime, were inspired by Les Diaboliques (1955), a French suspense film directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot. He later stated he envisioned a suspense film in which "the female characters would not just be victims – the whole idea of it was that they were culpable, and that they were sort of bringing this on themselves". The screenplay had several working titles, including Screamer and Seven Sisters. Rosman initially accrued $125,000 as a starting budget, with the help of a friend who worked for VAE Productions, an independent studio that specialized in documentaries, based in Washington, D.C.

### Casting

The majority of the casting for The House on Sorority Row took place in New York City, though Eileen Davidson and Janis Zido were cast out of the Los Angeles area. Davidson recalled auditioning at Rosman's house in Beverly Hills. Kate McNeil, who was cast in the role of Katey, won the part while still attending graduate courses in New York City.

Harley Jane Kozak recalled attending a casting call in a "warehouse in Manhattan" and receiving a phone call several weeks later with the news that she had won the part. Lois Kelso Hunt, who portrays the cantankerous housemother, was a local stage actress cast out of Washington, D.C.

### Filming

The House on Sorority Row was the directorial debut of director Rosman as well as the first feature film of cinematographer Tim Suhrstedt. Both had met while working as assistant directors on Brian De Palma 's Home Movies (1980). Filming took place on location in Pikesville, Maryland, with establishing campus shots at the University of Maryland, in the summer of 1981. The production had originally been slated to shoot in Washington, D.C., where the production company was located. However, Rosman found the house location featured in the film in Pikesville, which was in foreclosure, allowing the crew to film for a low cost. Upon arriving at the house to shoot, the crew found two squatters living in the house, who they allowed to work as video assistants. Vincent Peranio, a frequent collaborator with John Waters, agreed to serve as the film's production designer, and dressed the entire house to appear as a sorority.

The budget for the film was $300,000. However, the production ran out of funds midway through filming, and Rosman had to secure a loan from a cousin in Los Angeles in order to complete the film. Throughout principal photography, the cast stayed at Koinonia, a farm retreat in Pikesville where they lived together in "dorm-like" conditions. The film was a non- Screen Actors Guild production, and Kozak and McNeil both recall receiving $50 per diem compensation for their days on set.

While principal photography occurred exclusively in Maryland, additional transitional shots and pickups were completed in Los Angeles. Among these included the shot of Davidson's character being impaled through the eye with the cane.

### Post-production

Film Ventures International, an independent distributor, purchased the film for distribution after principal photography was complete, and also gave the filmmakers an additional $125,000 to complete post-production (the majority of which went toward scoring and mixing the film). In an interview with director Mark Rosman, it was revealed that Lois Kelso Hunt's performance is entirely dubbed, as her natural speaking voice was deemed not "scary" enough for the role of Mrs. Slater. While her demeanor and performance were apt, Rosman found her voice not as husky as he had envisioned.

According to Rosman, Film Ventures requested two changes to the final cut of the film: The first was that the opening flashback scene, which was shot in black and white, be colorized; the sequence was then color-tinted to be black and blue. The second change was in regards to the original ending. In the director's original ending, Katherine is discovered floating dead in the pool, apparently Eric's final victim. Film Ventures felt the ending too downbeat, so as a result Katherine survives in the finished version.

### Music

The film's music score was written by Richard Band and performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, recorded at Wembley Studios. The Washington, D.C.-based powerpop band 4 Out of 5 Doctors appears in the movie, performing several of their songs.

La-La Land Records issued a disc of Band's score in 2015.

## Release

The one-sheet poster and advertising were created by Film Ventures International's regular advertising agency, Design Projects Incorporated. Design Project's owner, Rick Albert art directed the key art and title treatment design. The key art was illustrated by Jack Lynwood, who painted illustrations for many motion picture campaigns during the late 1970s and '80s. The copylines were written by distributor Film Ventures International 's Edward L. Montoro.

Initially, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer expressed interest in distributing the film, but ultimately backed out, after which Film Ventures International bought it for distribution. The House on Sorority Row was given a limited theatrical release on November 19, 1982 in the United States, opening in Albuquerque, New Mexico and Las Vegas, Nevada. The theatrical release expanded to major cities such as Los Angeles on January 21, 1983.

### Box office

During its wide release opening weekend in January 1983, the film earned $617,661 showing on 153 screens, ranking a low number 15 at the box office. However, the film jumped to number 1 and grossed nearly $10 million in its second weekend. Its ultimate gross totaled $10,604,986. The film was released in the United Kingdom in December 1983 under the title House of Evil.

Another account says its rentals were $3.8 million.

### Critical response

During a 1982 theatrical run of the film, critic Anthony DellaFlora of the Albuquerque Journal wrote of the film: " are supposed to put you in a state of unmitigated terror. This one does neither. The House on Sorority Row may have brought new meaning to the term "Greek tragedy", but it certainly didn't scare anyone. Mark Rosman, who produced, directed and wrote the alleged thriller must take most of the blame for this". Lou Cedrone of The Baltimore Sun felt that there were "no surprises" or mystery in the film, adding that "the movie, bad as it is, is great fun if you are part of an audience that talks back to it". Stephen Hunter, also of the Baltimore Sun, felt the film was similarly predictable, but noted that "technically, the strongest element in the production is the photography, which is keen-edged, brightly colored and evocative", comparing it to the film of Rainer Werner Fassbinder.

Film scholar Adam Rockoff notes that the film was frequently compared to the films of Brian De Palma upon release, as Rosman had previously worked as an assistant for De Palma. Frank Hagen, published in the Standard-Speaker, favorably compared the film to the works of De Palma and Alfred Hitchcock, adding that it is "cuts above the routine rip-and-slash fare... Rosman knows how to maintain suspense and deliver a shock or two". Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times praised the film as a "skillfully made horror picture that builds suspense and terror in which obligatory gore is presented with surprising restraint", ultimately deeming it a "promising debut from writer-director Rosman". The Daily Press ' s Henry Edgar echoed this sentiment, writing that the film favors suspense over gore, noting it as a "quality" thriller, and praising the performances of McNeil and Davidson, describing them as "credible" and "cunning, and realistic", respectively.

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, The House on Sorority Row holds a 50% approval rating based on 12 reviews, with an average rating of 5.23/10. Film scholar Scott Aaron Stine notes that the film has "competent production values, but this in no way compensates for the rote proceedings". John Kenneth Muir refers to the film as "a textbook example of the 1980s slasher film" that "boasts a devilish sense of humor". Critic Jim Harper notes the film as a moralistic slasher film and probable influence on films such as I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997).

In 2017, Complex included the film in a retrospective of the best slasher films of all time. In a May 2018 retrospective published by Inquisitr, the film was deemed "a disturbing tale of revenge that plays as timely social commentary" and noted it as a horror film that "has stood the test of time".

### Home media

Elite Entertainment released The House on Sorority Row on DVD in November 2000. The disc featured the film's original theatrical trailer as a supplementary feature. The DVD was re-printed and released again on November 18, 2003. It was again re-released on January 12, 2010 to commemorate the film's 25th anniversary.

Scorpion Releasing and Katarina's Nightmare Theater released a remastered edition on a 2-disc Blu-ray /DVD combo in January 2011. Scorpion Releasing and Code Red released a new Blu-ray edition on May 11, 2018, featuring a new 2K scan of the original master negative. This edition, sold exclusively online and limited to 1,600 units, features a slipcover and newly commissioned artwork.

## Remake

A remake titled Sorority Row was released by Summit Entertainment in 2009. The film was directed by Stewart Hendler, with Mark Rosman, the director of the original, serving as an executive producer. It stars Briana Evigan, Leah Pipes, Rumer Willis, Jamie Chung, Audrina Patridge, Margo Harshman, and Carrie Fisher. The script was rewritten by Josh Stolberg and Pete Goldfinger.

## Legacy

In 2017, Complex named The House on Sorority Row the 21st-best slasher film of all time, writing: " The House on Sorority Row is, fortunately, more than just a puberty motivator for young boys. Director Mark Rosman does his best to stage prolonged moments of suspense, approaching the film’s kill scenes with his Hitchcock influences intact". Filmmaker Quentin Tarantino included the film in his inaugural film festival in 1997, screening it alongside other horror films such as Don't Go in the House (1980) and The Beyond (1981).

The House on Sorority Row is mentioned in the film Scream 2, along with four other college-themed slasher films: The Dorm That Dripped Blood, Splatter University, Graduation Day, and Final Exam.


Delanipur Jama Mosque

# Delanipur Jama Mosque

## Abstract

The Jama Masjid is a mosque located in Delanipur area of Port Blair in Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the India.It is also known as Delanipur Mosque or Jama Mosque.

## Prayer

This mosque is a venue of celebration during festivals of Id-Ul-Fitr and Id-Ul-Zuha, by the local Muslim community. The mosque holds prayer sessions every day.


The Hurt Locker

# The Hurt Locker

## Abstract

The Hurt Locker is a 2009 American war thriller film directed by Kathryn Bigelow and written by Mark Boal. It stars Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, Christian Camargo, Ralph Fiennes, David Morse, and Guy Pearce. The film follows an Iraq War Explosive Ordnance Disposal team who are targeted by insurgents and shows their psychological reactions to the stress of combat. Boal drew on his experience during embedded access to write the screenplay.

The Hurt Locker premiered at the 2008 Venice International Film Festival before it was released in the United States on June 26, 2009, by Summit Entertainment. The film earned acclaim from critics, who praised Bigelow's directing, Renner's performance, Boal's screenplay, editing, musical score, cinematography, sound design and action sequences, although some veterans have criticized the film's depiction of Iraq War combat as inaccurate. The film was nominated for nine Academy Awards and won six, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay. It was the first Best Picture winner to have been directed by a woman. The film grossed $49.2 million worldwide.

It is now considered to be one of the most influential war films of the 2000s and the 21st century. In 2020, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

## Plot

During the second year of the Iraq War, a U.S. Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal team with Bravo Company identifies and attempts to destroy an improvised explosive device with a robot, but the wagon carrying the trigger charge breaks. Team leader Staff Sergeant Matthew Thompson places the charge by hand, but is killed when an Iraqi insurgent uses a cell phone to detonate the charge. Squadmate Specialist Owen Eldridge feels guilty for failing to kill the man with the phone.

Staff Sergeant William James replaces Staff Sergeant Thompson. He is often at odds with Sergeant J.T. Sanborn because he prefers to defuse devices by hand and does not communicate his plans. He blocks Sanborn's view with smoke grenades as he approaches an IED and defuses it only moments before an Iraqi insurgent attempts to detonate it with a 9-volt battery. In another incident, James insists on disarming a complex car bomb despite Sanborn's protests that it is taking too long; James responds by taking off his headset and " flipping off " Sanborn. Sanborn is so worried by his conduct that he openly suggests fragging James to Eldridge while they are exploding unused ordnance outside of base.

On their return to base, they encounter five armed men in Iraqi garb by an SUV which has a flat tire. After a tense encounter, James learns they are friendly British private military contractors. While fixing the tire, they come under sniper fire. Three of the contractors are killed before James and Sanborn take over counter-sniping, killing three insurgents. Eldridge kills the fourth who attempts to flank their position.

During a raid on a warehouse, James discovers a " body bomb " he believes is Beckham, an Iraqi boy who sells DVDs and plays soccer outside of base. During the evacuation, Lieutenant Colonel John Cambridge, the camp's psychiatrist and Eldridge's counselor, is killed in an explosion; Eldridge is further traumatized. James sneaks off base with Beckham's apparent associate at gunpoint, telling him to take him to Beckham's home. He is left at the home of an unrelated Iraqi professor, and James flees.

Called to a petrol tanker detonation, James decides to hunt for the insurgents responsible nearby. Sanborn protests, but when James begins a pursuit, he and Eldridge follow. After they split up, insurgents capture Eldridge. James and Sanborn rescue him, although Eldridge is shot in the leg. The following morning, James is approached by Beckham, alive and well, whom James ignores and walks by silently. Before being airlifted for surgery, Eldridge angrily blames James for his injury.

The day before their deployment ends, they are called to disarm a suicide bomb strapped to a man against his will. James cannot cut the locks off before the timer expires, and they are forced to abandon the man. Sanborn is distraught at the near-death experience, and lamenting that no one other than his parents would have been sad at his death, tells James that he wishes to leave the service in order to have a son.

After Bravo Company's rotation ends, James returns to his ex-wife Connie and their infant son. However, he is unfulfilled by routine civilian life at home. James confesses to his son there is only one thing he knows he loves. He starts another year-long tour of duty with Delta Company.

## Cast

- Jeremy Renner as Staff Sergeant William James

- Anthony Mackie as Sergeant J. T. Sanborn

- Brian Geraghty as Specialist Owen Eldridge

- Guy Pearce as Staff Sergeant Matthew Thompson

- Christian Camargo as Lieutenant Colonel John Cambridge

- David Morse as Colonel Reed

- Ralph Fiennes as the leader of a Private Military Company unit

- Evangeline Lilly as Connie James

- Christopher Sayegh as Beckham

- Malcolm Barrett as Sergeant Foster

- Sam Spruell as Contractor Charlie

- Suhail Dabbach as a man forced to wear a bomb vest

## Production

The small-budget film was independently produced and directed by Kathryn Bigelow. The screenplay was written by Mark Boal, a freelance writer who was embedded as a journalist in 2004 with a U.S. Army EOD team in Iraq.

The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival in Italy during 2008. After being shown at the Toronto International Film Festival, it was picked up for distribution in the United States by Summit Entertainment. In May 2009, it was the Closing Night selection for Maryland Film Festival. The film was released in the United States on June 26, 2009, but received a more widespread theatrical release on July 24, 2009.

The film was nominated for nine Oscars at the 82nd Academy Awards in 2010, although the film had not yet recovered its budget by the time of the ceremony. It won six Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director for Bigelow (the first woman to win this award), and Best Original Screenplay for Boal.

### Writing

The Hurt Locker is based on accounts of Mark Boal, a freelance journalist who was embedded with an American bomb squad in the war in Iraq for two weeks in 2004. In 2005, Boal pitched a film based on his Playboy article "The Man in the Bomb Suit" to director Kathryn Bigelow. Director Bigelow was familiar with Boal's work before his experiences, having adapted one of his other Playboy articles as the short-lived television series The Inside in 2002. When Boal was embedded with the squad, he accompanied its members 10 to 15 times a day to watch their tasks, and kept in touch with Bigelow via email about his experiences. Boal used his experiences as the basis of a fictional drama based on real events.

He said of the film's goal, "The idea is that it's the first movie about the Iraq War that purports to show the experience of the soldiers. We wanted to show the kinds of things that soldiers go through that you can't see on CNN, and I don't mean that in a censorship-conspiracy way. I just mean the news doesn't actually put photographers in with units that are this elite." Bigelow was fascinated with exploring "the psychology behind the type of soldier who volunteers for this particular conflict and then, because of aptitude, is chosen and given the opportunity to go into bomb disarmament and goes toward what everybody else is running from." Bigelow and Boal subsequently decided to avoid "polemics" about the conflict itself in order to focus on suspense.

While working with Boal in 2005 on the script, originally titled The Something Jacket, Bigelow began to do some preliminary, rough storyboards to get an idea of the specific location needed. Bomb disarmament protocol requires a containment area. She wanted to make the film as authentic as possible and "put the audience into the Humvee, into a boots-on-the-ground experience."

Most major studios were uninterested in producing the screenplay because Bigelow's previous film K-19: The Widowmaker (2002) had been a box-office bomb and because Iraq War films tended to be unprofitable. Nicolas Chertier finally greenlit the film at Voltage Pictures with a $30 million budget.

### Casting

For the main characters, Bigelow made a point of casting relatively unknown actors: "it underscored the tension because with the lack of familiarity also comes a sense of unpredictability." Renner's character, Staff Sergeant William James, is a composite character, with qualities based on individuals whom screenwriter Boal knew when embedded with the bomb squad. Bigelow cast Renner based on his work in Dahmer, a film about Jeffrey Dahmer, the notorious serial killer whose victims were boys. To prepare for the film, the cast spent a week living and training at Fort Irwin, a United States Army reservation in the Mojave Desert in California. They were taught to use C4 explosives, learned how to render safe improvised explosive devices, and how to wear a bomb suit.

Mackie plays Sergeant J. T. Sanborn. Describing the experience of filming in Jordan in the summer, he said, "It was so desperately hot, and we were so easily agitated. But that movie was like doing a play. We really looked out for each other, and it was a great experience. It made me believe in film."

Several hundred thousand Iraqi refugees live in Jordan. Bigelow cast refugees who had theatrical backgrounds, such as Suhail Dabbach who plays the innocent man used as a suicide bomber at the film's end.

### Filming

The film was shot in Jordan, within miles of the Iraqi border, to achieve Bigelow's goal of authenticity. Iraqi refugees were used for extras and the cast worked in the intense heat of the Middle East. Bigelow had wanted to film in Iraq, but the production security team could not guarantee their safety from Iraqi insurgents. The filmmakers had scouted for locations in Morocco, which Chertier preferred due to its cheaper cost but which Bigelow felt did not resemble Iraq closely enough. Boal's contacts in the Central Intelligence Agency suggested Jordan because its capital city of Amman strongly resembled Baghdad and because the Jordanian royal family was very supportive of Western film productions. The Jordanian government, which was trying to start a domestic film industry, would indeed be very generous towards the film. It offered discounted shipping rates and even helped fund the film when its bond was nearly withdrawn after a line producer quit in the first three weeks of filming. This assistance allowed Bigelow to cut the budget to just $15 million. Jordan also used the making of the movie to found a film school and an internship program. In addition, Bigelow wanted to get as close to the war zone as possible. Some of the locations were less than three miles from the Iraqi border, and were within a few miles of active conflict zones in Iraq itself.

The production also initially had permission from the United States Department of Defense 's film liaison unit to film at a real United States Army logistics base in Camp Arifjan, Kuwait. However, the filming clearance was withdrawn because military officials believed new scenes which were not in the approved screenplay were being shot. After the U.S. Department of Defense suspended cooperation with the film, it used Royal Jordanian Army equipment instead.

Principal photography began in July 2007 in Jordan. Temperatures averaged 120 °F (49 °C) over the 44 days of shooting. The actors were housed in a tent with dirt floors and encouraged to method act. Often four or more camera crews filmed simultaneously, which resulted in nearly 200 hours of footage. The producer Greg Shapiro spoke about security concerns of filming in Jordan, "It was interesting telling people we were going to make the movie in Jordan because the first question everybody asked was about the security situation here."

Bigelow's choice to film in Jordan met some resistance. In discussion, she found that her cast and crew shared stereotypes of the region from American culture. "Sadly people in America and Los Angeles have these perceptions", she said. "But once you get off the plane you realize it's like Manhattan without the trees", she continued. As Iraq dominated discourse in America and around the world, Bigelow believed that filmmakers would continue to explore the conflict, making Jordan the natural place to film.

According to producer Tony Mark, the blood, sweat and heat captured on-camera in the production was mirrored behind the scenes.

"It's a tough, tough movie about a tough, tough subject", Mark said in an interview, "There was a palpable tension throughout on the set. It was just like the onscreen story of three guys who fight with each other, but when the time comes to do the work, they come together to get the job done."

Renner remembered, "I got food bugs. Then I got food poisoning: lost 15 lbs in three days". In addition to the burden of the heat, the bomb suit he had to wear all day weighed 80–100 lb (36–45 kg). In a scene in which his character carries a dead Iraqi boy, Renner fell down some stairs and twisted his ankle, which delayed filming because he could not walk. At that point, "people wanted to quit. All the departments were struggling to get their job done, none of them were communicating". A week later, filming resumed.

Tony Mark recalled the armorer David Fencl's finishing a 12-hour day. He found he had to stay up all night to make proper ammunition for a sniper rifle, as the supplies did not clear Jordanian customs in time for the scheduled shoot. Due to import restrictions on military props, the film's special effects artist Richard Stutsman used Chinese fireworks for gunpowder. One day, he was assembling a prop, and the heat and friction caused the fireworks to blow up in his face. Two days later, he returned to work. The film shoot had few of the normal Hollywood perks; nobody on the set got an air-conditioned trailer or a private bathroom. Renner said that great care was taken to ensure the film's authenticity. According to Renner, shooting the film in the Middle East contributed to this. "There were two-by-fours with nails being dropped from two-story buildings that hit me in the helmet, and they were throwing rocks.... We got shot at a few times while we were filming", Renner said. "When you see it, you're gonna feel like you've been in war."

"You can't fake that amount of heat", Mackie says, adding, "When you are on set and all of the extras are Iraqi refugees, it really informs the movie that you're making. When you start hearing the stories from a true perspective... of people who were actually there, it gives you a clear viewpoint of where you are as an artist and the story you would like to tell. It was a great experience to be there."

### Cinematography

For the film, director Bigelow sought to immerse audiences "into something that was raw, immediate and visceral". Impressed with cinematographer Barry Ackroyd 's work on United 93 and The Wind That Shakes the Barley, Bigelow invited him to work on her film. While the film was independently produced and filmed on a low budget, Bigelow used four Super 16 mm cameras to capture multiple perspectives, saying,

"That's how we experience reality, by looking at the microcosm and the macrocosm simultaneously. The eye sees differently than the lens, but with multiple focal lengths and a muscular editorial style, the lens can give you that microcosm/macrocosm perspective and that contributes to the feeling of total immersion."

In staging the film's action sequences, Bigelow did not want to lose a sense of the geography and used multiple cameras to allow her to "look at any particular set-piece from every possible perspective."

### Editing

The Hurt Locker was edited by Chris Innis and Bob Murawski. The two editors worked with almost 200 hours of footage from the multiple hand-held cameras in use during the shoot. Adding to the challenge, Boal's screenplay had a non-traditional, asymmetrical, episodic structure. There was no traditional "villain", and tension was derived from the characters' internal conflicts and the suspense from the explosives and snipers.

"This movie is kind of like a horror film where you're unable to see the killer," says Innis. "You know a bomb could go off at any minute, but you never know just when it's going to happen, so the ideas of Hitchcock—about making your audience anxious—were influential for us when we did the editing."

The raw footage was described as a "hodge-podge of disconnected, nausea-inducing motion that was constantly crossing the 180-degree line ".

Innis spent the first eight weeks editing the film on location in Jordan, before returning to Los Angeles, where Murawski joined her. The process took over eight months to complete. The goal was to edit a brutally realistic portrayal of the realities of war, using minimal special effects or technical enhancement. Innis stated that they "really wanted the film to retain that 'newsreel' documentary quality... Too many stage-y effects would have been distracting. The editing in this film was all about restraint".

Editing on location led to additional complications in post-production. The production was unwilling to risk sending undeveloped film through high-security airports where the cans could be opened, X-rayed, or damaged. Accordingly, film was hand-carried on a flight by a production assistant from Amman to London. After the Super 16mm film was transferred to DVcam at a lab in London, the video dailies were transported by plane back to the Middle East to be imported into the editing system. The whole journey would take anywhere from three days to a week and was described by Innis as the "modern-day equivalent of shipping via donkey cart." The low production budget and the lack of a developed film infrastructure in the area hampered the process, according to Innis. "We were working with grainy Super 16mm film, editing in standard definition. We tried doing FTP downloads, but at the time, the facilities in Jordan simply couldn't handle it." Producer Tony Mark later negotiated the use of a local radio station late at night to receive low-grade QuickTime clips over the Internet so the crew would not be shooting blindly.

### Musical score and sound

Marco Beltrami and Buck Sanders composed the score. Bigelow wanted Beltrami to score for the film, as she liked his critically acclaimed work in 3:10 to Yuma (2007). Paul N. J. Ottosson worked on the film's sound design. The score was released in June 2009 through Lakeshore Records.

## Release

### Festival screenings

The Hurt Locker had its world premiere at the Venice International Film Festival on September 4, 2008, and the film received a 10-minute standing ovation at the end of its screening. At the festival, the film won the SIGNIS award, the Arca Cinemagiovani Award (Arca Young Cinema Award) for "Best Film Venezia 65" (chosen by an international youth jury); the Human Rights Film Network Award; and the Venezia Cinema Award known as the "Navicella". The film also screened at the 33rd Annual Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, where it generated "keen interest", though distributors were reluctant to buy it since previous films about the Iraq War performed poorly at the box office. Summit Entertainment purchased the film for distribution in the United States in what was perceived as "a skittish climate for pic sales".

In the rest of 2008, The Hurt Locker screened at the 3rd Zurich Film Festival, the 37th Festival du Nouveau Cinéma, the 21st Mar del Plata Film Festival, the 5th Dubai International Film Festival, and the 12th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival. In 2009, The Hurt Locker screened at the Göteborg International Film Festival, the 10th Film Comment Selects festival, and the South by Southwest film festival. It was the closing night film at Maryland Film Festival 2009, with Bigelow presenting. It had a centerpiece screening at the 3rd AFI Dallas International Film Festival, where director Kathryn Bigelow received the Dallas Star Award. Other 2009 festivals included the Human Rights Nights International Film Festival, the Seattle International Film Festival, and the Philadelphia Film Festival.

### Theatrical run

The Hurt Locker was first publicly released in Italy by Warner Bros. on October 10, 2008. Summit Entertainment picked the film up for distribution in the United States for $1.5 million after it was shown at the Toronto International Film Festival. The Hurt Locker was released in the United States on June 26, 2009, with a limited release at four theaters in Los Angeles and New York City. Over its first weekend the film grossed $145,352, averaging $36,338 per theater. The following weekend, beginning July 3, the film grossed $131,202 at nine theaters, averaging $14,578 per theater. It held the highest per-screen average of any film playing theatrically in the United States for the first two weeks of its release, gradually moving into the top 20 chart with much wider-released, bigger budget studio films. It held around number 13 or number 14 on box office charts for an additional four weeks. Summit Entertainment took The Hurt Locker wider to more than 200 screens on July 24, 2009, and more than 500 screens on July 31, 2009.

The film's final gross was $17,017,811 in the United States and Canada, and $32,212,961 in other countries, bringing its worldwide total to $49,230,772. It was a success against its budget of $15 million.

According to the Los Angeles Times, The Hurt Locker performed better than most recent dramas about Middle East conflict. The film outperformed all other Iraq-war-themed films such as In the Valley of Elah (2007), Stop-Loss (2008) and Afghanistan -themed Lions for Lambs (2007).

In the United States, The Hurt Locker is one of only five Best Picture winners (The English Patient, Amadeus, The Artist, and The Shape of Water being the other four) to never enter the weekend box office top 5 since top 10 rankings were first recorded in 1982. It is also one of the only two Best Picture winners on record never to have entered the weekend box office top 10 (The Artist being the other).

The Hurt Locker opened in the top ten in the United Kingdom in 103 theaters, scoring the fourth-highest per-screen average of $3,607, ranking between G-Force and G.I. Joe in overall grosses. The film garnered half a million dollars in its opening weekend in the United Kingdom of August 28 through August 30, 2009, and grossed over a million dollars in the UK, Japan, Spain, and France through March.

### Distribution: Independent film print shortage

According to an article in the Springfield, Illinois State Journal-Register, as of August 2009, there was a shortage of film prints of The Hurt Locker, as well as other hit independent films such as Food, Inc. Distributors told theater owners that they would have to wait weeks or months past the initial U.S. release date to get the few available prints that were already in distribution. "Sometimes the distributors goof up," said a film buyer for one theater. "They misjudge how wide they should go." One theory is that the independent films have a hard time competing for screen space during the summer against blockbuster tent-pole films that take up as much as half the screens in any given city, flooding the United States market with thousands of prints. Theater owners have also complained about distributors "bunching too many movies too close together". It is also thought that independent film distributors are trying to cut their losses on prints by recycling them. Given the popularity of some of the films that are "hard to come by", this strategy may be leaving box office money on the table.

### Home media

The Hurt Locker was released on DVD and Blu-ray in North America on January 12, 2010. This disc includes an added audio commentary featuring director Kathryn Bigelow, writer Mark Boal, and other members of the production crew; an image gallery of photos from shooting; and a 15-minute EPK featurette highlighting the filming experience in Jordan and the film's production. The UK DVD and Blu-ray have no commentary.

On February 22, 2022, two years after getting a digital 4K release, Lionsgate and Best Buy released a steelbook of the movie, marking the first time it came to 4K resolution.U.S. sales of the DVD topped $30 million by mid-August 2010.

## Reception

### Critical response

The Hurt Locker received widespread acclaim, with Renner's performance receiving praise from critics. Rotten Tomatoes gives the film an approval rating of 97%, based on 290 reviews, with a weighted average rating of 8.5/10. It was the second highest-rated film of 2009, behind Pixar 's Up. The critics' consensus reads, "A well-acted, intensely shot, action filled war epic, Kathryn Bigelow's The Hurt Locker is thus far the best of the recent dramatizations of the Iraq War." Metacritic, which assigns a normalized score, gave the film an average score of 95 out of 100, based on 37 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".

Roger Ebert of The Chicago Sun Times rated the film as the best of 2009, writing, " The Hurt Locker is a great film, an intelligent film, a film shot clearly so that we know exactly who everybody is and where they are and what they're doing and why." He applauded how the suspense was built, calling the film "spellbinding". Ebert considered Renner "a leading contender for Academy Awards", writing, "His performance is not built on complex speeches but on a visceral projection of who this man is and what he feels. He is not a hero in a conventional sense." He eventually ranked it the second-best film of the decade, behind only Synecdoche, New York.

Richard Corliss of Time magazine also spoke highly of Renner's performance, calling it a highlight of the film. Corliss wrote,

"He's ordinary, pudgy-faced, quiet, and at first seems to lack the screen charisma to carry a film. That supposition vanishes in a few minutes, as Renner slowly reveals the strength, confidence and unpredictability of a young Russell Crowe. The merging of actor and character is one of the big things to love about this movie... It's a creepy marvel to watch James in action. He has the cool aplomb, analytical acumen and attention to detail of a great athlete, or a master psychopath, maybe both."

Corliss praised the film's "steely calm" tone, reflective of its main character. Corliss summarized, " The Hurt Locker is a near-perfect movie about men in war, men at work. Through sturdy imagery and violent action, it says that even Hell needs heroes."

A. O. Scott of The New York Times called The Hurt Locker the best American feature film yet made about the war in Iraq:

"You may emerge from The Hurt Locker shaken, exhilarated and drained, but you will also be thinking... The movie is a viscerally exciting, adrenaline-soaked tour de force of suspense and surprise, full of explosions and hectic scenes of combat, but it blows a hole in the condescending assumption that such effects are just empty spectacle or mindless noise."

Scott noticed that the film reserved criticism of the war but wrote of how the director handled the film's limits, "Ms. Bigelow, practicing a kind of hyperbolic realism, distills the psychological essence and moral complications of modern warfare into a series of brilliant, agonizing set pieces." He also applauded the convergence of the characters in the film, saying that it "focuses on three men whose contrasting temperaments knit this episodic exploration of peril and bravery into a coherent and satisfying story." Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the performances of Renner, Mackie, and Geraghty would raise their profiles considerably, and said their characters reveal their "unlooked-for aspects," such as Renner's character being playful with an Iraqi boy. Turan applauded Boal's "lean and compelling" script and said of Bigelow's direction, "Bigelow and her team bring an awesome ferocity to re-creating the unhinged mania of bomb removal in an alien, culturally unfathomable atmosphere."

Guy Westwell of Sight & Sound wrote that the cinematographer Barry Ackroyd provided "sharp handheld coverage" and that Paul N.J. Ottosson's sound design "uses the barely perceptible ringing of tinnitus to amp up the tension." Westwell praised the director's skill:

"The careful mapping of the subtle differences between each bomb, the play with point of view... and the attenuation of key action sequences... lends the film a distinctive quality that can only be attributed to Bigelow's clever, confident direction."

The critic noted the film's different take on the Iraq War, writing that "it confronts the fact that men often take great pleasure in war." He concluded,

"This unapologetic celebration of a testosterone-fuelled lust for war may gall. Yet there is something original and distinctive about the film's willingness to admit that for some men (and many moviegoers) war carries an intrinsic dramatic charge."

Amy Taubin of Film Comment described The Hurt Locker as "a structuralist war movie" and "a totally immersive, off-the-charts high-anxiety experience from beginning to end." Taubin praised Ackroyd's "brilliant" cinematography with multiple viewpoints. She said of the film's editing, "Bob Murawski and Chris Innis's editing is similarly quick and nervous; the rapid changes in POV as they cut from one camera's coverage to another's, makes you feel as if you, like the characters, are under threat from all sides."

Joe Morgenstern of The Wall Street Journal called it "A first-rate action thriller, a vivid evocation of urban warfare in Iraq, a penetrating study of heroism and a showcase for austere technique, terse writing and a trio of brilliant performances." The Toronto Star critic Peter Howell said, "Just when you think the battle of Iraq war dramas has been fought and lost, along comes one that demands to be seen... If you can sit through The Hurt Locker without your heart nearly pounding through your chest, you must be made of granite." Entertainment Weekly ' s film critic Lisa Schwarzbaum gave the film the rare "A" rating, calling it, "an intense, action-driven war pic, a muscular, efficient standout that simultaneously conveys the feeling of combat from within as well as what it looks like on the ground. This ain't no war videogame."

Derek Elley of Variety found The Hurt Locker to be "gripping" as a thriller but felt that the film was weakened by, "its fuzzy (and hardly original) psychology." Elley wrote that it was unclear to know where the drama lay: "These guys get by on old-fashioned guts and instinct rather than sissy hardware—but it's not a pure men-under-stress drama either." The critic also felt that the script showed "signs of artificially straining for character depth." Anne Thompson, also writing for Variety, believed The Hurt Locker to be a contender for Best Picture, particularly based on the unique subject matter pursued by a female director and on being an exception to other films about the Iraq War, which had performed poorly.

Tara McKelvey from The American Prospect wrote that the film is pro-U.S. Army propaganda, although it suggests it is anti-war with the opening statement: "War is a drug." She continues,

"You feel empathy for the soldiers when they shoot. And in this way, the full impact of the Iraq war—at least as it was fought in 2004—becomes clear: American soldiers shot at Iraqi civilians even when, for example, they just happened to be holding a cell phone and standing near an IED." She concludes, "For all the graphic violence, bloody explosions and, literally, human butchery that is shown in the film, The Hurt Locker is one of the most effective recruiting vehicles for the U.S. Army that I have seen."

John Pilger, journalist and documentarian, criticized the film in the New Statesman, writing that it "offers a vicarious thrill via yet another standard-issue psychopath high on violence in somebody else's country where the deaths of a million people are consigned to cinematic oblivion."

In 2010, the Independent Film & Television Alliance selected the film as one of the 30 Most Significant Independent Films of the last 30 years.

The Hurt Locker was named the tenth "Best Film of the 21st Century So Far" in 2017 by The New York Times chief film critics A. O. Scott and Manohla Dargis.

Media Historian Prof Stuart Ewen criticised in the movie what he described as “a complete celebration of a lone lunatic, but who ultimately is the quintessential American Hero, because lone lunatics are very big in this country”

### Response among veterans

The film was criticized by some Iraq veterans and embedded reporters for inaccurately portraying wartime conditions. Writing for The Huffington Post, Iraq veteran Kate Hoit said that The Hurt Locker is "Hollywood's version of the Iraq war and of the soldiers who fight it, and their version is inaccurate." She described the film as being "better than a lot of the recent war movies that have been released" but expressed concerns that several errors—among them wrong uniforms, lack of radio communication, or misbehavior of the soldiers—would alienate service members from enjoying the film.

Author Brandon Friedman, also a combat veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, shared a similar view at VetVoice: " The Hurt Locker is a high-tension, well-made, action movie that will certainly keep most viewers on the edges of their seats. But if you know anything about the Army, or about operations or life in Iraq, you'll be so distracted by the nonsensical sequences and plot twists that it will ruin the movie for you. It certainly did for me." Friedman criticized the inaccuracy of the film's representation of combat, saying, "in real life, EOD techs don't conduct dangerous missions as autonomous three-man teams without communications gear... Another thing you'll rarely hear in combat is an EOD E-7 suggesting to two or three of his guys that they leave the scene of an explosion in an Iraqi city by saying: 'C'mon, let's split up. We can cover more ground that way. ' "

At the blog Army of Dude, infantryman and Iraq veteran Alex Horton noted that "the way the team goes about their missions is completely absurd." He still generally enjoyed it and called it "the best Iraq movie to date."

Troy Steward, another combat veteran, wrote on the blog Bouhammer that while the film accurately depicted the scale of bomb violence and the relations between Iraqis and troops, "just about everything else wasn't realistic." Steward went on to say: "I was amazed that a movie so bad could get any kind of accolades from anyone."

A review published March 8, 2010, in the Air Force Times cited overall negative reviews from bomb experts in Iraq attached to the 4th Brigade, 1st Armored Division, quoting a bomb disposal team leader who called the film's portrayal of a bomb expert "grossly exaggerated and not appropriate," and describing the lead character as "more of a run and gun cowboy type … exactly the kind of person that we're not looking for." Another bomb disposal team member said that the lead character's "swagger would put a whole team at risk. Our team leaders don't have that kind of invincibility complex, and if they do, they aren't allowed to operate. A team leader's first priority is getting his team home in one piece."

On the embedded side, former correspondent for The Politico and Military Times Christian Lowe (who embedded with U.S. military units each year from 2002 to 2005) explained at DefenseTech: "Some of the scenes are so disconnected with reality to be almost parody."

Former British bomb disposal officer Guy Marot said, "James makes us look like hot-headed, irrational adrenaline junkies with no self-discipline. It’s immensely disrespectful to the many officers who have lost their lives."

On the other hand, Henry Engelhardt, an adjutant with the National Explosive Ordnance Disposal Association having twenty years' experience in bomb defusal, complimented the film's atmosphere and depiction of the difficulties of the job, saying, "Of course, no film is realistic in all its details, but the important things were done very well."

### Top ten lists

The Hurt Locker was listed on many critics' top ten lists.

- 1st – David Ansen, Newsweek

- 1st – J. Hoberman, The Village Voice

- 1st – Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times

- 1st – Claudia Puig, USA Today

- 1st – Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly

- 1st – Peter Hartlaub, San Francisco Chronicle

- 1st – Ella Taylor, L.A. Weekly

- 1st – Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

- 1st – Mike Scott, The Times-Picayune

- 1st – Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News

- 1st – Joe Morgenstern, The Wall Street Journal

- 1st – Andrea Gronvall, Chicago Reader

- 1st – David Germain, Associated Press

- 1st – David Denby, The New Yorker

- 1st – Bob Mondello, NPR

- 2nd – A.O. Scott, The New York Times

- 2nd – Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

- 2nd – Tasha Robinson, The A.V. Club

- 2nd – Michael Sragow, Baltimore Sun

- 2nd – Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald

- 2nd – Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News

- 2nd – J.R. Jones, Chicago Reader

- 2nd – Michael Rechtshaffen, Ray Bennett, & Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter

- 3rd – Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times

- 3rd – Christy Lemire, Associated Press

- 3rd – V.A. Musetto, New York Post

- 3rd – David Fear, Time Out New York

- 3rd – Richard Roeper

- 3rd – Stephen Farber, The Hollywood Reporter

- 3rd – Scott Foundas, L.A. Weekly

- 4th – Richard Corliss, Time

- 4th – Ty Burr, Boston Globe

- 4th – Carrie Rickey, Philadelphia Inquirer

- 4th – Liam Lacey, The Globe and Mail

- 4th – Kirk Honeycutt, The Hollywood Reporter

- 5th – Nathan Rabin, The A.V. Club

- 5th – James Berardinelli, Reelviews

- 5th – Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune

- 5th – Joshua Rothkopf, Time Out New York

- 5th – Marjorie Baumgarten, Austin Chronicle

- 5th – Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

- 6th – Stephen Holden, The New York Times

- 6th – Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

- 7th – Ty Burr, Boston Globe

- 7th – Marc Savlov, Austin Chronicle

- 9th – Kimberly Jones, Austin Chronicle

- 9th – Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly

- 10th – Keith Phipps & Scott Tobias, The A.V. Club

- 10th – David Edelstein, New York Magazine

- Top 10 (listed alphabetically) – Manohla Dargis, The New York Times

- Top 10 (listed alphabetically) – Bob Mondello, NPR

- Top 10 (listed alphabetically) – David Denby, The New Yorker

- Top 10 (listed alphabetically) – Dana Stevens, Slate

## Accolades

Starting with its initial screening at the 2008 Venice International Film Festival, The Hurt Locker has earned many awards and honors. It also ranked on more film critics' top 10 lists than any other film of 2009. It was nominated in nine categories at the 82nd Academy Awards and won in six: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, and Best Film Editing. It lost the award for Best Actor to Crazy Heart, Best Original Score to Up, and Best Cinematography to Avatar. Bigelow became the first woman to win an Oscar for Best Director.

Kathryn Bigelow was awarded the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Achievement in Feature Film for the film, being only one of three women to do so along with Chloe Zhao for Nomadland and Jane Campion for The Power of the Dog. The film won six awards at the BAFTAs held on February 21, 2010, including Best Film and Best Director for Bigelow. The Hurt Locker was nominated for three Golden Globe Awards.

The Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Director was given to Kathryn Bigelow, the first time the honor has gone to a woman. The film swept most critics groups awards for Best Director and Best Picture, including Chicago, Boston, and Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New York' film critics group associations. The Hurt Locker is one of only six films that have won all three major U.S. critics group prizes (LA, NY, NSFC), together with Goodfellas, Schindler's List, L.A. Confidential, The Social Network, and Drive My Car; and also the second to win Best Picture after Schindler's List.

The five awards from the Boston Society of Film Critics were the most by that organization to a single film in the group's 30-year history.

In February 2010, the film's producer Nicolas Chartier emailed a group of Academy Award voters in an attempt to sway them to vote for The Hurt Locker instead of "a $500M film" (referring to Avatar) for the Best Picture award. He later issued a public apology, saying that it was "out of line and not in the spirit of the celebration of cinema that this acknowledgment is". The Academy banned him from attending the award ceremony, the first time the academy has ever banned an individual nominee.

## Lawsuits

### Sarver lawsuit

In early March 2010, U.S. Army bomb disposal expert Master Sergeant Jeffrey Sarver filed a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against The Hurt Locker. Sarver's lawsuit claimed he used the term "hurt locker" and the phrase "war is a drug" around Boal, that his likeness was used to create the character William James, and that the portrayal of James defames Sarver. Sarver said he felt "just a little bit hurt, a little bit felt left out" and cheated out of "financial participation" in the film. Sarver claimed he originated the title of the film; however, according to the film's website, the title is a decades-old colloquialism for being injured, as in "they sent him to the hurt locker." It dates back to the Vietnam War where it was one of several phrases meaning "in trouble or at a disadvantage; in bad shape."

Boal defended himself to the press, saying "the film is a work of fiction inspired by many people's stories." He said he talked to more than 100 soldiers during his research. Jody Simon, a Los Angeles-based entertainment lawyer, noted that "soldiers don't have privacy," and that when the military embedded Boal they gave him full permission to use his observations as he saw fit. Summit Entertainment, the producers of the film, said in early March that they hoped for a quick resolution to the suit. In the December 8, 2011, issue of The Hollywood Reporter, it was announced that the court threw out Sarver's lawsuit. A federal judge ordered him to pay more than $180,000 in attorney fees.

### Copyright infringement lawsuit

On May 12, 2010, Voltage Pictures, the production company behind The Hurt Locker, announced that it would attempt to sue "potentially tens of thousands" of online computer users who downloaded unlicensed copies of the film using the BitTorrent and P2P networks. It would be the largest lawsuit of its kind. On May 28, 2010, it filed a complaint against 5,000 unidentified BitTorrent users in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia; Voltage announced its intention to demand $1,500 from each defendant to release him or her from the suit. Several people, however, refused to settle with the studio. The US Copyright Group (USCG) has since dropped all cases against the alleged Hurt Locker downloaders.

On August 29, 2011, the Federal Court of Canada ordered three Canadian ISPs — Bell Canada, Cogeco, and Vidéotron —to disclose the names and addresses of the subscribers whose IP addresses were suspected of having downloaded a copy of the film. The ISPs were given two weeks to comply with the order.


Garden Prairie, Illinois


Miguel Ángel Yunes Linares

# Miguel Ángel Yunes Linares

## Abstract

Miguel Ángel Yunes Linares (born December 5, 1952) is a Mexican politician. He has served three terms in the Chamber of Deputies and was the governor of Veracruz from 2016 to 2018. Most recently he served for the space of a few hours as an alternate senator for the state of Veracruz. He has been a member of both the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), from which he resigned, and the National Action Party (PAN), from which he was expelled.

## Biography

### Early political career in the PRI

Yunes graduated from the Universidad Veracruzana with a law degree in 1974; during his studies, he worked as a legal advisor in his hometown of Soledad de Doblado. He worked in the civil service from 1974 to 1975 and then as the president of the state's Fiscal Tribunal between 1977 and 1978.

In 1969, Yunes joined the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). In 1980, he was elected as a deputy for the first time, to the 51st session of the Congress of Veracruz. Yunes's political career developed simultaneously in the PRI and the civil service. He was an official in the Chamber of Deputies between 1982 and 1985, and he served as a national coordinator of state federations within the PRI's Confederación Nacional de Organizaciones Populares (CNOP). Between 1985 and 1987, Yunes was the director deputy general of the Secretariat of Communications and Transportation 's Department of Airports and Auxiliary Services (ASA).

In 1988, the PRI ran Yunes as a candidate for federal deputy; while he did not win, he instead worked in the Secretariat of Urban Development and Ecology (SEDUE), and he also picked up a diploma in political analysis from the Universidad Iberoamericana in 1990. In the 1991 midterm elections, Yunes was elected to the 55th Congress as a federal deputy, the first of three terms he would serve in San Lázaro. From 1992 to 1997, overlapping with his time as a federal deputy, he coordinated the State Public Security Council.

In 1997, Yunes became the president of the PRI in Veracruz and served as the national coordinator for legal matters between 2002 and 2003.

From 1999 to 2000, Yunes served as the director general of Prevention and Social Readaptation within the Secretariat of the Interior; he took up a similar post in 2005 with the Secretariat of Public Security.

### Party switch and first run for governor

In 2003, the PRI returned Yunes to the Chamber of Deputies for the 59th Congress. He was elected from the third electoral region representing the state of Campeche. He presided over the Constitutional Points Commission and sat on two others: Jurisdictional, and Justice and Human Rights.

His second term in San Lázaro was also noteworthy for his resignation from the party. When he left the Chamber in 2005, he was officially an independent, though he had been dropped from all of his commissions; he was replaced by his alternate, another Veracruz native representing Campeche, Aníbal Peralta Galicia.

From 2006 to 2010, Yunes Linares presided over the Institute for Social Security and Services for State Workers (ISSSTE). During this time, in 2008, he formally affiliated with the National Action Party (PAN).

In 2010, Yunes resigned from the ISSSTE and made his first run for governor, backed by a coalition of the PAN and Nueva Alianza. In one of the closest gubernatorial elections of the year, Yunes came in second, losing out to Javier Duarte of the PRI by three percentage points.

Yunes Linares returned to the Chamber of Deputies in 2015, for the 63rd Congress when the PAN placed him on their list from the third electoral region. He presided over the Public Security Commission and served on those dealing with Human Rights and Constitutional Points.

### Success in 2016

In 2016, Yunes ran again for governor, this time under the joint banner of the PAN and the Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD). He obtained 33.9 percent of the vote, edging out PRI candidate Héctor Yunes Landa, his cousin, and becoming the first non-PRI candidate to win the governorship of Veracruz in 86 years. During the election campaign, Yunes Landa said that he regretted sharing a surname with Yunes Linares and that he had "insulted" the family.

As a result of Veracruz and other states aligning their gubernatorial elections to the presidential calendar, Yunes Linares served a two-year term, and the office went up for election in 2018. One of the unsuccessful contenders in the 2018 gubernatorial election was his son, Miguel Ángel Yunes Márquez /

On June 4, 2019, former governor Yunes Linares was accused of embezzling MXN$36 billion (US$1.8 billion), which he claimed was "petty cash".

### Senate

On 10 September 2024, during the debate on the controversial 2024 judicial reform bill, Yunes Linares was sworn in as an alternate senator for Veracruz after his son, Miguel Ángel Yunes Márquez, was granted a temporary leave of absence from his seat on health grounds. Later the same day, however, Yunes Márquez returned to his seat and broke the party whip by voting for the reform package. The following day, the PAN expelled both father and son from the party "for betraying the country with their vote".

## Personal life

Yunes Linares's family includes other noteworthy politicians in addition to Yunes Landa. He has two sons who have been elected to the Senate: Fernando Yunes Márquez, who also served as mayor of Veracruz, and Miguel Ángel Yunes Márquez, two-time mayor of Boca del Río, Veracruz, and 2018 candidate for the governorship.


Larry Gonick

# Larry Gonick

## Abstract

Larry Gonick (born 1946) is an American cartoonist best known for The Cartoon History of the Universe, a history of the world in comic book form, which he published in installments from 1977 to 2009. He has also written The Cartoon History of the United States, and he has adapted the format for a series of co-written guidebooks on other subjects, beginning with The Cartoon Guide to Genetics in 1983. The diversity of his interests, and the success with which his books have met, have together earned Gonick the distinction of being "the most well-known and respected of cartoonists who have applied their craft to unravelling the mysteries of science".

## Early life

Gonick was born in 1946, in San Francisco, California. He studied mathematics at Harvard University, receiving his bachelor's degree in 1967 and his master's degree in 1969. He currently lives in San Francisco, California.

## Comic strips and cartoons

From 1990 to 1997, Gonick penned a bimonthly "Science Classics" cartoon for the science magazine Discover. Each two-page comic discussed a recent scientific development, often one in interdisciplinary research.

During the 1994-95 academic year, Gonick was a Knight Science Journalism Fellow at MIT.

In 1997, his 14-issue series, Candide in China, published on the World Wide Web, described Chinese inventions.

He also used to write the Kokopelli & Company comic that appeared in the magazine Muse.

He drew the satirical, anti-corporate comic Commoners for Common Ground and later explained:

Between 2009 and 2011 Gonick drew a humorous webcomic entitled Raw Materials that deals with technology and business matters, especially database administration.

## Awards

In 1999, Gonick was awarded the Inkpot Award.


The Inspection

# The Inspection

## Abstract

The Inspection is a 2022 American drama film written and directed by Elegance Bratton. Inspired by Bratton's real-life experiences, the film follows a young gay black man who defiantly endures brutal training at a Marine Corps boot camp, seeking approval from his homophobic mother. It stars Jeremy Pope, Raúl Castillo, McCaul Lombardi, Aaron Dominguez, Nicholas Logan, Eman Esfandi, Andrew Kai, Aubrey Joseph, Bokeem Woodbine, and Gabrielle Union.

The Inspection had its world premiere at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2022, and was theatrically released in the United States on November 18 by A24. The film received generally positive reviews from critics, with Pope's performance being praised and earning a Golden Globe nomination.

## Synopsis

Ellis French enlists in the Marine Corps and ends up at boot camp on Parris Island, South Carolina. He initially meets the physical requirements, but is not as successful in disguising his sexual orientation, making him the target of a near-lethal hazing from training instructor Leland Laws and a fellow recruit, Laurence Harvey.

## Cast

- Jeremy Pope as Ellis French

- Raúl Castillo as Rosales

- Bokeem Woodbine as Leland Laws

- Gabrielle Union as Inez French

- McCaul Lombardi as Laurence Harvey

- Aaron Dominguez as Castro

- Nicholas Logan as Brooks

- Eman Esfandi as Ismail

- Andrew Kai Tripodi as Label

- Aubrey Joseph as Boles

- Brad Napp as Graduation officer

## Production

In June 2021, it was announced Jeremy Pope, Gabrielle Union, Bokeem Woodbine and Raúl Castillo had joined the cast of the film, with Elegance Bratton directing from a screenplay he wrote, with Gamechanger Films set to produce, and A24 set to produce and distribute. Principal photography concluded by November 2021.

### Music

Bratton enlisted Animal Collective to compose and perform a score for the film. The soundtrack album, which features a collaboration with Indigo De Souza titled "Wish I Knew You", was released on November 18. Art pop musician Serpentwithfeet composed "The Hands", featured in the film's end credits.

## Release

The film had its world premiere at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2022. It also screened at the 60th New York Film Festival on October 14, 2022. It was released in the United States on November 18, 2022.

The film was released for VOD on January 24, 2023, followed by a Blu-ray and DVD release on February 21, 2023.

## Reception

### Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 89% of 140 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.1/10. The website's consensus reads: "Although it's frustratingly clumsy in certain respects, The Inspection is an affecting actors' showcase in service of some truly worthy themes." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 73 out of 100, based on 33 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.

Dieter Oßwald, film correspondent for the Guild of German Film Art Theaters, writes that Bratton's impressive feature debut, which he describes as a "queer Full Metal Jacket ", tells of a chapter of intolerance, discrimination and homophobia in the U.S., where until 2005 the official motto in the U.S. military was still "don't ask, don't tell" and coming out in uniform was considered unthinkable. In this context, Oßwald quotes an instructor in the film: "If we kicked all the gays out of the Army, there would be no more Marines." Showing such an ambivalent figure is part of the dramaturgical cleverness of the drama, which does not leave conflicts in the cliché, but deliberately presents the contradictions.


Soile Ojala

# Soile Ojala

## Abstract

Soile Ojala (born 5 November 1963) is a retired Finnish footballer who played for Hammarby IF and the Finnish women's national team. She represented Finland 59 times.

Since retiring Ojala has worked in the financial sector for Sonera.


Starhead Comix

# Starhead Comix

## Abstract

Starhead Comix was an alternative / underground comics publisher that operated from 1984 to c. 1999. Founded by Michael Dowers, Starhead was based in Seattle, Washington. Mostly known for limited-edition minicomics, Starhead also published standard-sized, black-and-white comics in the early 1990s.

Creators associated with Starhead included Dennis Eichhorn, Ellen Forney, Roberta Gregory, David Lasky, Pat Moriarity, Art Penn, Ed "Big Daddy" Roth, J. R. Williams, Steve Willis, and Dennis Worden.

## History

Self-described " hippie " Michael Dowers discovered minicomics in 1982 and was immediately enthralled by the form. He began writing, drawing, printing, copying, and distributing his own mini comics (under the name Nessie Productions), and by 1984 formed Starhead Comix to publish his work and that of fellow cartoonists, including Ronald Roach, Steve Willis and J. R. Williams.

In the late 1980s, Starhead experimented with standard format comics, and from 1991–1995 the company focused almost exclusively on this form, often publishing Pacific Northwest -based creators like Dennis P. Eichhorn, Forney, Gregory, Lasky, Colin Upton, and J. R. Williams.

The company's last few years were limited to publishing reprints and updates of the pornographic Tijuana Bibles from the 1930s.

In 1999, publisher Dowers retired the Starhead Comix name and created Brownfield Press to sell remaining titles and occasionally publish new projects.

In 2010, Fantagraphics Books published Newave!: The Underground Mini Comix of the 1980s, a nearly 900-page collection of minicomics (many of which originally saw print via Starhead), edited by Dowers. This was followed in 2013 by Dowers' Treasury of Mini Comics — Volume One, also published by Fantagraphics (ISBN 978-1606996577).

## Titles (selected)

### Minicomics

- 3R Cosmix (8 issues, 1984–1986) — Ronald Roach

- Skinboy Fights Back (1984) ---- J. R. Williams

- Armageddonquest (1984–1986) — Ronald Roach; followed by a full-size comics series in 1994

- Exquisite Corpse Comix (1985–1990) — anthology

- Morty the Dog (2 issues, 1987) — Steve Willis

- Outside In (7 issues, 1984–1985) — numbering continued from self-published Steve Willis title

- Seattle Star (1985–1990) — newsprint tabloid-size

- Starhead Presents (3 issues, 1987) — anthology

### Comics

- Amazing Adventures of Ace International (1 issue, 1993) — Dennis Eichhorn

- Armageddonquest (3 issues, 1994) — Ronald Roach

- Artistic Licentiousness (3 issues, 1991–1994) — Roberta Gregory

- Bezango Obscuro (1 issue, 1994) — Steve Willis

- Big Black Thing (1 issue, 1994) — Colin Upton

- Big Mouth (2 issues, 1992–1993) — Pat Moriarity

- Bumber Comix (2 issues, 1985–1988) — second issue published with a grant from the Bumbershoot Arts Festival

- Cruel and Unusual Punishment (2 issues, 1993–1994)

- Fun House (1 issue, 1993) — J. R. Williams

- Hemp for Victory (1 issue, 1995)

- The Mutant Book of the Dead (1 issue, 1994) — Mack White

- Northwest Cartoon Cookery (1 issue, 1995) - edited by Dennis Eichhorn

- Rat Fink Comix (1 issue, 1987) — Ed "Big Daddy" Roth

- Real Schmuck (1 issue, 1993) — Dennis Eichhorn

- Seattle Sketchbook (1 issue, 1995) — David Collier

- Stickboy (2 issues, 1993–1995)— Dennis Worden; numbering continues from Fantagraphics Books / Revolutionary Comics title

- The Tijuana Bible (9 issues, 1994–1998) — reprints of stories from the 1930s

- Tomato (2 issues, 1994–1995) — Ellen Forney


Lomandra brevis

# Lomandra brevis

## Abstract

Lomandra brevis is a species of plant in the Asparagaceae family, first described in 1962 by Alma Theodora Lee.

It is a perennial, which is endemic to New South Wales.