Early life.

Kashif was born Michael Jones on December 26, 1956, in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City. (Some media outlets have listed his year of birth as 1959.) His only connection to his birth family is his birth certificate, which indicates that his biological mother was incarcerated when he was four months old. He was immediately put in foster care. He was constantly abused physically and mentally by his foster parents, and at the age of six, he moved into a more stable foster home. His introduction to music came in the form of a $3.00 song flute when he was in elementary school. He was instantly hooked and insisted on playing his flute all throughout the school day. His teacher encouraged him and delivered on her promise that she would help to enroll him at a junior high school that had a great music program. That is where he first learned to play trumpet, piano, flute, saxophone, and tuba. By age 12, with the mentoring of his junior high school music teacher (Robert Wedlaw) he had mastered several musical instruments and began performing in some of New York's finest night clubs (Copacabana (nightclub) and Lloyd Price's Turntable).

Career.

Musician.

In 1974, at the age of 17, Kashif was recruited as a keyboard player and vocalist to join the funk band B. T. Express, whose credits included the hits "Express" and "Do It ('Til You're Satisfied)", among others. Seeking a more challenging musical assignment in 1978, Kashif exited B. T. Express and landed a job as a keyboardist for R&B musician Stephanie Mills.

1983–1989: Solo career and nominations.

In 1983, Kashif signed with Arista Records as a solo artist and continued with hits like "I Just Gotta Have You (Lover Turn Me On)", "Stone Love", "Help Yourself to My Love", and the Grammy-nominated instrumental "The Mood". In 1984, his second album, "Send Me Your Love" resulted in two Grammy nominations, "Edgartown Groove", featuring Al Jarreau, and the instrumental "Call Me Tonight" along with the hits "Baby Don't Break Your Baby's Heart" and "Are You the Woman". Introduced to Arista by Milton Allen, its artist development director in 1983, his self-titled debut album "Kashif" (1983) spawned the hits "I Just Gotta Have You (Lover Turn Me On)", "Stone Love", "Help Yourself to My Love", and "Say Something Love". With this release, Kashif was well received as an innovator in music, as R&B artists were only beginning to experiment with synthesizers and other electronic instruments. He is said to have been Arista Records' attempt to respond to Warner Bros. Records' Prince.

Record producer and activist.

1981: I'm in Love.

In 1981 Kashif wrote and produced the hit "I'm in Love" for Evelyn "Champagne" King, which was a shift in sound from King's "Shame" to a minimalist becoming Kashif's signature sound. The song revitalized King's career and branded Kashif as one of the most sought-after producers of the day. Over the next ten years, he created hits including "So Fine" for Howard Johnson, "Love Come Down", "Betcha She Don't Love You", and "Back to Love", among many others.  His other albums include "Send Me Your Love" and "Condition of the Heart". On the album "Love Changes", Exposé provided background vocals. 1989's "Kashif" included the cover of the Four Tops' hit "Ain't No Woman (Like the One I've Got)", "Baby Don't Break Your Baby's Heart", and "Are You the Woman".

1983–1987.

Kashif can be heard on releases by Kenny G, George Benson, Evelyn "Champagne" King, Johnny Kemp, Melba Moore, Dionne Warwick, Giorge Pettus, Stacy Lattisaw, Meli'sa Morgan, Exposé, The Wootens, Freda Payne, Whitney Houston, and others. His Grammy nominations are for the instrumentals "The Mood", "Call Me Tonight", "Edgartown Groove" featuring Al Jarreau.  In 1985, he received another Grammy nomination for another instrumental entitled "The Movie Song". He also wrote and produced "Inside Love" for his musical idol, George Benson. It was during this time that he met and launched the career of then unknown Kenny G with "Hi How Ya Doin" and "Nighttime in Tribeca".  In 1985, Kashif teamed up with then newcomer, Whitney Houston. The result was the hit "You Give Good Love". Kashif also produced and was her duet partner on "Thinking About You", a single track from Houston's 17-million selling (30 million until current day) debut album. The album became the bestselling debut album by a female artist. Kashif also produced "Where You Are" on Houston's second project, the result, a 15-million selling (25 million until current day) album entitled "Whitney".  In 1987, he produced "Love Changes", a chart topper in which Me'lisa Morgan was his duet partner and that name was taken from his bestselling album, which had the same name. The track also appears on Meli'sa Morgan's album "Good Love". Also contained on that album was another duet that yielded yet another international hit, the song "Reservations For Two" with Dionne Warwick. Between 1987 and 1989, Kashif continued to churn out the hits for Jermaine Jackson, The Stylistics, Melba Moore, George Benson, Stacy Lattisaw, and many others.

1996–2016.

In 1996, with an invitation from the UCLA Extension program, Kashif created "Contemporary Record Production With Kashif". He also wrote and self-published the book "Everything You'd Better Know About The Record Industry"; it has sold over 375,000 copies worldwide.  In 2000, Kashif produced the theme song for the Para-Olympics, and wrote and produced "Brooklyn Breezes" for R&B great Will Downing. He also co-produced along with George Duke the Duke Ellington Tribute CD for The Duke Ellington Foundation. On November 14, 2004, Kashif was inducted into the R&B Hall of Fame as a "Living Legend". That year Janet Jackson's hit "R&B Junkie" used a sample of "I'm in Love" written and produced by Kashif.  Growing up in the foster care system inspired Kashif to lend his time and energy to help find ways to improve the lives of the more than 518,000 young people who are in foster care every day in America. In 2006, he created and founded Team iCare Foundation and produced the very first Walk/Run for Foster Care at the Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, California. The result was 247 individuals signed up to become foster parents. He also created the Mentorship Dinner Cruise for youth in foster care, an event where 200 youth went on a cruise in Marina Del Rey, California and were paired with 250 professionals in various industries for the purpose of creating mentoring relationships.  Kashif received community awards from the California State Senate, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Los Angeles Mayor, Antonio Villariagosa, all five Los Angeles County members of the Board of Supervisors, the Los Angeles County Children & Family Services and others. In 2006, Kashif founded Kashif University, which was located on the campus of Morningside High School in Inglewood California. It is an integrated education and arts training program for at-risk-youth ages 8–18.  Kashif also wrote, directed, and produced commercials and corporate films for Hyundai Motors America, Casey Family Programs, UPS, St. Joseph Health System, Patten Academy, and many others. He produced and directed a ten-part documentary series entitled "The History of R&B Music and Its Influence on World Culture" for worldwide distribution. He died of a massive heart attack on September 25, 2016.

Kashif Saleem (born Michael Jones; December 26, 1956 – September 25, 2016) was an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, record producer, artist, composer, author, director and educator from New York City. Kashif first taught himself to play a $3 song flute at age seven and later the piano in the basement of his church. At age 15, Kashif joined B. T. Express and performed on stages around the world. He studied Islam and changed his name from Michael Jones to Kashif, which means discoverer and inventor. He crafted his own distinctive sound and later signed with Arista Records enjoying success as a solo artist.


History.

Hadrian's Wall was begun in AD 122. A fort was built in stone at the Housesteads Roman Fort site around AD 124 overlying the original Broad Wall foundation and Turret 36B. The fort was repaired and rebuilt several times, its northern defences being particularly prone to collapse. A substantial civil settlement (vicus) existed to the south, outside the fort, and some of the stone foundations can still be seen, including the so-called "Murder House", where two skeletons were found beneath an apparently newly-laid floor when excavated.  In the 2nd century AD, the garrison consisted of an unknown double-sized auxiliary infantry cohort and a detachment of legionaries from "Legio II Augusta". In the 3rd century, it comprised "Cohors I Tungrorum", augmented by the "numerus Hnaudifridi" and the "Cuneus Frisiorum", a Frisian cavalry unit, "cuneus" referring to a wedge formation. The Tungrians were still there in the 4th century, according to the "Notitia Dignitatum". By 409 AD the Romans had withdrawn.  Most other early forts straddle the Wall and therefore protrude into barbarian territory. It is also unusual for Britain in that it has no running water supply and is dependent upon rainwater collection (for which purpose there is a series of large stone-lined tanks around the periphery of the defences). It also has one of the best-preserved stone latrines in Roman Britain.  The name of the fort has been given as Borcovicus, Borcovicium, and Velurtion. An inscription found at Housesteads with the letters VER, is believed to be short for Ver(covicianorum) – the letters ver being interchangeable with bor in later Latin. The name of the 18th-century farmhouse of Housesteads provides the modern name.  The site is now owned by the National Trust and is currently in the care of English Heritage. Finds from Vercovicium can be seen in the site museum, in the museum at Chesters, and in the in Newcastle upon Tyne.

Housesteads farm.

Housesteads is a former farm whose lands include the ruins of the fort. In 1604 Hugh Nixon, "Stealer of cattle and receiver of stolen goods", became the tenant of Housesteads farm. From 1663, Housesteads was the home of the Armstrongs, a notorious family of Border Reivers. Nicholas Armstrong bought the farm in 1692, only to have to sell it again in 1694 to Thomas Gibson of Hexham for the sum of £485. They remained as tenants. They were a well-known band of horse thieves and cattle rustlers who used the old fort as a place to hold the stolen horses and cattle. They traded as far afield as Aberdeen and the south of England. At one time every male member of the family was said to have been a 'broken man', formally outlawed by English or Scottish authorities. Nicholas was hanged in 1704, and his brothers fled to America. The Armstrongs lived in a typical 16th-century defensive bastle house of two storeys: the ground floor for livestock and the upper level for living quarters. Its ruins remain built up against the south gate of the Roman fort, with external stone steps and narrow loop windows. A corn-drying kiln was inserted into the gate's guard chamber in the 17th century.  In 1698, the farm had been sold to Thomas Gibson who turned the land around the fort to agriculture and thus ploughed up numerous Roman artefacts. The 17th-century bastle house was replaced by a farmhouse located over the Roman hospital, which was sketched by William Stukeley in 1725. Throughout the 18th century Housesteads was farmed by a single tenant farming family. Since Hodgson recorded the presence of William Magnay as the tenant during that period this fixes the tenure. In particular, the well (thought to be Roman) was documented as having actually been built by William, and used by the family as a bath. Interest in the fort increased in the 19th century, particularly after the farm was purchased by the amateur historian John Clayton in 1838, to add to his collection of Roman Wall farms. The Roman site was cleared of later buildings by Clayton, and the present farmhouse built about 1860. John Maurice Clayton attempted to auction the fort in 1929. It did not reach its reserve and was donated to the National Trust in 1930. The farm was later owned by the Trevelyans who gave the land for the site museum.

Housesteads Roman Fort is the remains of an auxiliary fort on Hadrian's Wall. Its ruins are at Housesteads in the civil parish of Bardon Mill in Northumberland, England, south of Broomlee Lough. The fort was built in stone around AD 124, soon after the construction of the wall began in AD 122 when the area was part of the Roman province of Britannia. Its name has been variously given as Vercovicium, Borcovicus, Borcovicium, and Velurtion. The name of the 18th-century farmhouse of Housesteads gives the modern name. The site is owned by the National Trust and is in the care of English Heritage. Finds can be seen in the site museum, in the museum at Chesters, and in the in Newcastle upon Tyne.


Plot.

Bobby Dorfman (Jesse Eisenberg) is the youngest son of a Jewish family in New York City in the 1930s; his elder sister Evelyn is a married school teacher, while his elder brother Ben is a gangster. Discontented with working for his father, a jeweler, Bobby decides to move to Hollywood, where he takes a job running menial errands for his uncle Phil (Steve Carell), a powerhouse talent agent.  Phil introduces Bobby to his secretary Veronica, nicknamed Vonnie (Kristen Stewart), who is tasked with helping Bobby settle into Hollywood. Bobby is drawn to her unpretentiousness as opposed to most young women living in Hollywood, and falls deeply in love with her. She rebuffs his advances, telling him she has a journalist boyfriend named Doug. In reality, "Doug" is Phil, with whom Vonnie is carrying on an illicit romance; he promises to divorce his wife and marry her.  On the first-year "paper anniversary" of their affair, Vonnie gives Phil a letter written and signed by Rudolph Valentino as a gift. However, Phil proceeds to tell her that he is incapable of divorcing his wife, so he ends the affair. Vonnie subsequently surrenders to Bobby's love for her and their friendship turns into a romance.  A forlorn Phil confides in Bobby about his affair—without naming his mistress—before telling him he has determined to divorce his wife. Bobby passingly mentions his relationship with Vonnie and his intention to marry her and return to New York. Phil begins petitioning Vonnie privately to leave Bobby and marry him instead.  While having a conversation with Phil in his office, Bobby notices the Valentino letter. Recognizing it from Vonnie's account about her breakup with "Doug", he confronts her and asks her to choose between himself and Phil. Vonnie chooses Phil.  A heartbroken Bobby returns to New York City where he begins to run a high-end nightclub with his gangster brother, Ben (Corey Stoll). It soon becomes a famous hangout for the rich and powerful, from politicians to gangsters. Bobby meets divorcée Veronica Hayes (Blake Lively) at the nightclub, and they begin dating, soon getting married and starting a family together.  On an extended visit to New York, a happily married Phil and Vonnie stop at the nightclub and insist on seeing Bobby. Vonnie has become a pretentious name-dropper and Bobby is at first repulsed by her. However, he agrees to show her around New York—as she had once done for him in Hollywood. They spend an evening without Phil, visiting Bobby's favorite haunts and, as dawn breaks over Central Park, share a kiss; but it's clear that it can go no further.  Bobby's sister Evelyn (Sari Lennick) asks their brother, Ben, to "talk to" her disagreeable neighbor; Ben promptly kills him. He is arrested and convicted for murder and racketeering. Shortly before he goes to the electric chair, he converts to Christianity, mortifying his parents. His late brother's notoriety propels the nightclub to new heights, and Bobby travels to Los Angeles to contemplate opening a Hollywood version. He ultimately decides against it, but, before he leaves, he and Vonnie have lunch together, where she mentions that she and Phil will be returning to New York for a short visit. However, they both decide that it is better if they don't see each other.  Months later, on New Year's Eve, Bobby and Vonnie are apart—Bobby in New York City hosting festivities in his nightclub, and Vonnie with her husband at a Hollywood house party. As the new year is rung in, they both seem distant to their spouses, and both have a faraway look in their eyes.

Production.

By March 9, 2015, Jesse Eisenberg, Bruce Willis and Kristen Stewart were added to the cast of the Woody Allen film, which was produced by Letty Aronson, Stephen Tenenbaum and Edward Walson. On May 6, 2015, Blake Lively was cast, followed by Parker Posey in mid-July. By August 4, 2015, more cast was added, including Jeannie Berlin, Corey Stoll and Ken Stott, along with Anna Camp, Stephen Kunken, Sari Lennick and Paul Schneider. In August, Tony Sirico was cast and Max Adler had also joined the cast. Vittorio Storaro is the cinematographer.  On August 24, 2015, it was reported that Willis had exited the film due to his scheduling conflicts with the Broadway stage adaptation of the Stephen King novel "Misery". On August 28, 2015, Steve Carell was cast to replace Willis. In March 2016, the title was confirmed as "Café Society".

Filming.

Principal photography on the film began on August 17, 2015, in and around Los Angeles. On September 8, 2015, filming moved to New York City, where it was shot in Brooklyn. Allen moved to digital for the first time, using a Sony CineAlta F65 camera for this, his 47th film.  The film began with a budget of $18 million, however went over and by the end of production reached $30 million, making it one of the most expensive films of Allen's career.

Release.

In February 2016, Amazon Studios acquired distribution rights to the film. In March 2016, the film was selected to open the 2016 Cannes Film Festival. The film also opened the Seattle International Film Festival, on May 19, 2016, and served as the closing night film of the Karlovy Vary Film Festival. It was announced that Lionsgate would team up with Amazon to release the film on August 12, 2016. It was then moved up to July 15, 2016, in a limited release, before expanding to July 22 and opening wide on August 5.

Reception.

Box office.

"Café Society" grossed $11.1 million in the United States and Canada and $32.7 million in other countries, for a worldwide total of $43.8 million.  The film was released in five theaters on July 15, 2016, and grossed $359,289 in its opening weekend, an average per-theater gross of $71,858, the biggest average of 2016 to that point (its record was broken the following week by "Don't Think Twice"s $92,835 average). The film had its wide release on July 29 and grossed $2.3 million, finishing 12th at the box office.

Critical response.

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 71% based on 251 reviews, with an average rating of 6.13/10. The site's critical consensus reads, ""Café Society"s lovely visuals and charming performances round out a lightweight late-period Allen comedy whose genuine pleasures offset its amiable predictability." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 64 out of 100, based on 37 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".  Writing for "New York", David Edelstein gave the film a positive review, stating: ""Cafe Society" is a surprisingly graceful work. It's a young man's tale of woe rendered with an old man's aversion to dawdling over what can't be helped, over questions of human nature that have long been settled to everyone's dissatisfaction. The worldview is weary, and Allen narrates in a voice that, for the first time, suggests his 80 years of age. But his touch lightens with each film, and the melancholy bubbles up from below and catches you off guard." Owen Gleiberman of "Variety" gave the film a mixed review, writing, ""Café Society" leaves you dreaming of the movie it might have been had Woody Allen made it by doing what he's done in his best work: nudging himself out of his comfort zone."

Café Society is a 2016 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Woody Allen. It stars Jeannie Berlin, Steve Carell, Jesse Eisenberg, Blake Lively, Parker Posey, Kristen Stewart, Corey Stoll, and Ken Stott. The plot follows a young man who moves to 1930s Hollywood, where he falls in love with the assistant to his uncle, a powerful talent agent.


Early life and education.

He was born on 18 April 1863 to Charles Henri Joseph Pellé, French artillery officer and later general, and his wife Céline Virginie Aimée Augustine Pellé (née Bruneau). He studied at Douai lycée, from October 1882 to July 1884 at École Polytechnique and to July 1885 at École d'application de l'artillerie. In 1888–1889 he studied at École d'application de Cavallerie.

Military career.

In September 1885 he was assigned to 12th Artillery Regiment as a platoon commander. In December 1888 he became an instructor at École d'application de l'artillerie. In November 1891 he was appointed to 11th Artillery Regiment as a first officer and in April 1892 to 16th Artillery Regiment as a deputy commander.  Between 1900 and 1903, he was chief of staff of Colonel Joffre in Madagascar. As a Colonel, Pellé was the French military attaché in Berlin, in the service of Ambassador Jules Cambon between 1909 and 1912. In this period he met many German personalities and became an expert on the German Empire. In 1913, he was transferred to Morocco, as chief of staff to General Hubert Lyautey.  At the outbreak of World War I, he commanded the 2nd Moroccan Brigade, but was right away called by Joffre to serve in the Bureau for External Theatres of War of the Grand Quartier Général.<br> In December 1916 he was placed at the head of the 153rd Infantry Division with which he distinguished himself at the Second Battle of the Aisne. Promoted to "Général de division" on 2 May 1917, he took command of the 5th Army Corps (France) until January 1919. With this corps he participated in the Spring Offensive and Hundred Days Offensive (Noyon, Marne and Argonne).

Czechoslovakia and Constantinople.

After the war he was leader of the French Military Mission to Czechoslovakia and one of the fathers and first Chief of staff of the new Czechoslovak Army.  In 1921, he becomes French High Commissioner for the Orient and Ambassador in Constantinople. He signed the Armistice of Mudanya for France and was leader of the French delegation at the Conference of Lausanne, which led to the Treaty of Lausanne signed on 24 July 1923, which defined the borders of the modern Turkish Republic.  He died the next year, only 60 years old.<br> He is buried in the Batignolles Cemetery in Paris.

Decorations.

Awarded by Belgium:  Awarded by Czechoslovakia:  Awarded by France:  Awarded by Italy:  Awarded by Japan:  Awarded by Marocco:  Awarded by Persia:  Awarded by Romania:  Awarded by Russia:  Awarded by Serbia:  Awarded by Spain:  Awarded by Tunisia:  Awarded by United Kingdom:

Maurice César Joseph Pellé (18 April 1863 – 16 March 1924) was a French général de division, leader of the French Military Mission to Czechoslovakia and first Chief of staff of Czechoslovak Army from February 1919 to January 1921.


Early life.

Brown was born in Marbella, Málaga, Andalusia, Spain, the third of four children of British parents, Kelly and Robert Brown. The family moved to Bournemouth, Dorset when she was around four years old, then to Windermere, Florida four years later. She was born with partial hearing in one ear, gradually losing all hearing in that ear over several years.  Brown resides between London, United Kingdom and Atlanta, Georgia.

Career.

In 2013, Brown made her acting debut as a guest star in the ABC fantasy drama series "Once Upon a Time in Wonderland", a spin-off of "Once Upon a Time", portraying the role of Young Alice. In 2014, she had a starring role in the BBC America paranormal drama-thriller series "Intruders" as Madison O'Donnell. She then made guest appearances in the CBS police procedural drama "NCIS", the ABC sitcom "Modern Family", and the ABC medical drama series "Grey's Anatomy".  In 2016, Brown played Eleven ('El') in the Netflix science fiction horror series "Stranger Things". Her portrayal received critical acclaim and she was nominated for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series and the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. She won the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series with her co-stars and won the 43rd Saturn Award for Best Performance by a Younger Actor in a Television Series. For her role as Eleven in the second season of "Stranger Things", she received her second Emmy nomination in 2018.  In November 2016, Brown starred in the music video for Sigma and Birdy's single "Find Me". Since November 2016, she has appeared in commercial advertisements for Citigroup. In January 2017, she made her modelling debut in Calvin Klein's By Appointment campaign. The following month, she was signed to the agency IMG Models. She appeared in the campaign of the Italian brand "Moncler" in the summer of 2018.  In January 2018, Brown was cast to star in and produce the film adaptation of "Enola Holmes Mysteries". On 20 April 2018, she was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by "Time" magazine, becoming the youngest person ever to be included in the list. and on 20 November 2018, it was announced that she had become the youngest person ever to be appointed a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.  In November 2018, EA Games announced that Brown collaborated with "The Sims 4" programmers to feature in the Sims 4 Positivity Challenge. She was named by "Time" magazine as one of the most influential teens of 2017 and of 2018. In 2018, "The Hollywood Reporter" named Brown among Hollywood's top thirty stars under age eighteen.  Brown made her feature film debut in 2019, in the sequel to "Godzilla", titled "". She will reprise her role in "Godzilla vs. Kong". In March the same year, it was announced Brown will be starring in the film adaptation of "The Thing About Jellyfish" by Ali Benjamin as Suzy. Also in March 2019, she became the ambassador of UEFA's Together #WePlayStrong campaign.

Millie Bobby Brown (born 19 February 2004) is a British actress. She rose to prominence for her role as Eleven in the Netflix science fiction horror series "Stranger Things" (2016–present), for which she received Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. At age 13, she became one of the youngest nominees in Emmy history. Her film debut came in 2019 with the monster film "".


Early life.

Hamel was born on 30 November 1930 in Darnétal, France. At the age of six he became a choirboy in and at 14 he entered the minor seminary. He served in the military for 18 months in Algeria. He did not wish to be an officer as he did not want to issue orders to other men to kill.

Ministry.

Hamel was ordained as a priest on 30 June 1958. He served as a vicar at the St. Antoine church in Le Petit-Quevilly from 1958, a vicar at the Notre-Dame de Lourdes church in Sotteville-lès-Rouen from 1967, a parish priest in Saint-Pierre-lès-Elbeuf from 1975, and a parish priest in Cléon from 1988. He joined the church in Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray in 2000. He officially retired at the age of 75, but was allowed to keep serving in the parish. As a result, he assumed his role as the parish's assistant priest from 2005 to his death.  With local imam Mohammed Karabila, the president of Normandy's regional council of Muslims, Hamel worked since early 2015 on an interfaith committee. After Hamel's death, Karabila described him as his friend with whom he had discussed religion and as also someone who gave his life for others.

Death and legacy.

Hamel died when his throat was slit by two Muslim men, Adel Kermiche and Abdel Malik Petitjean, who both pledged allegiance to the Islamic State. The attack occurred while Hamel was saying Mass in his parish in Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray on 26 July 2016. During the attack, Hamel said "Satan, go!" when confronted by his killers.

Commemorations and funeral.

A Mass was held in his memory at Notre Dame de Paris on 27 July 2016. It was celebrated by the archbishop of Paris, André Vingt-Trois, and attended by president François Hollande, prime minister Manuel Valls and ministers Jean-Marc Ayrault, Bernard Cazeneuve, Emmanuel Macron and Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, as well as former presidents Nicolas Sarkozy and Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, the archbishop of Rouen, Dominique Lebrun, and the apostolic nuncio to France, Luigi Ventura. The Funeral Mass was held at Rouen Cathedral on 2 August 2016, drawing a crowd of thousands and a large number of luminaries including senior clerics, the French interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve and former prime minister Laurent Fabius. Pope Francis instructed Lebrun to place images of Hamel in all the local churches.  In August 2016, the Italian arm of Aid to the Church in Need announced it would cover the cost of training 1,000 new priests in countries like Nigeria, Cuba, Zambia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and India in response to Hamel's murder. Likewise, in August 2016, in memory of Father Hamel, Br. Alexis Bugnolo founded the Ordo Militaris Catholicus, "international defense and security initiative of Catholics for Catholics who are suffering persecution for their faith, where their defense and liberation requires military intervention or security actions, and this is allowed by local and/or international law.."  His legacy was also celebrated by French singer-songwriter Vianney Bureau in his song 'L' homme et l'âme'which was dedicated to Père Hamel as well as victims of terror attacks throughout France.

Canonization cause.

On the same day of the murder, public figures like the president of Lombardy, Roberto Maroni, called on Pope Francis to "immediately proclaim him St Jacques". The hashtag #santosubito ("saint now") trended on Twitter.  Hamel was called a martyr by some international press shortly after his death. On 13 August, "La Croix" reported that archbishop Dominique Lebrun of Rouen said he thought Hamel was a martyr, but the decision to declare him so was the pope's. He added that "formally, it is the bishop of the person's place of death to initiate the procedure." Anthony Fisher, the archbishop of Sydney, suggested he died "in odium fidei" ("in hatred of the faith"), adding, "This is a term Catholics use to describe the characteristic death of a martyr, as one who dies for his or her faith, and because of that faith." On 14 September 2016, Pope Francis referred to Hamel as "blessed", a title used prior to canonisation. "This man accepted his martyrdom next to the martyrdom of Christ, on the altar," Pope Francis said on 14 September during a homily at a Mass held for Hamel's soul at the Vatican. "He is a martyr and martyrs are beatified," the pope continued.. Two weeks later Archbishop Lebrun announced in a homily that the Pope had formally waived the five-year waiting period needed before the start of a canonization process, and that he had decided to prepare it without delay.  During Chrism Mass (on Holy Thursday, 13 April 2017), Archbishop Lebrun publicly announced the opening of the Canonization cause, with all of Rouen's clergy gathered. Archbishop Lebrun also said the Pope himself allowed a photo of Fr. Jacques to be put in a church, and called him blessed. Fr Paul Vigouroux, vice-chancellor of the diocese of Rouen, has been appointed postulator of the Cause, in charge of the local investigation. The Archdiocese of Rouen distributed a prayer to request Father Jacques's intercession. The prayer makes reference to the circumstances of his murder, including his unmasking of "Satan, the divisor" and his death "in the habits of prayer".  Archbishop Lebrun announced on 1 February 2019 that the diocesan inquiry for the beatification process would be solemnly closed on 9 March 2019.

Jacques Hamel (30 November 1930 – 26 July 2016) was a French Catholic priest who served in Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray. On 26 July 2016, Hamel was murdered during the 2016 Normandy church attack by two Muslim men pledging allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant while he celebrated Mass in his church.


Early life.

Desmond Doss was born in Lynchburg, Virginia, to William Thomas Doss (1893–1989), a carpenter, and Bertha Edward Doss (née Oliver) (1899–1983), a homemaker and shoe factory worker. His mother raised him as a devout Seventh-day Adventist and instilled Sabbath-keeping, nonviolence, and a vegetarian lifestyle in his upbringing. He grew up in the Fairview Heights area of Lynchburg, Virginia, alongside his older sister Audrey and younger brother Harold.  Doss attended the Park Avenue Seventh-day Adventist Church school until the eighth grade, and subsequently found a job at the Lynchburg Lumber Company to support his family during the Great Depression.

World War II service.

Before the outbreak of World War II, Doss was employed as a joiner at a shipyard in Newport News, Virginia. He chose military service, despite being offered a deferment because of his shipyard work, on April 1, 1942, at Camp Lee, Virginia. He was sent to Fort Jackson in South Carolina for training with the reactivated 77th Infantry Division. Meanwhile, his brother Harold served aboard the.  Doss refused to kill an enemy soldier or carry a weapon into combat because of his personal beliefs as a Seventh-day Adventist. He consequently became a medic assigned to the 2nd Platoon, Company B, 1st Battalion, 307th Infantry, 77th Infantry Division.  While serving with his platoon in 1944 on Guam and the Philippines, he was awarded two Bronze Star Medals with a "V" device, for exceptional valor in aiding wounded soldiers under fire. During the Battle of Okinawa, he saved the lives of 50–100 wounded infantrymen atop the area known by the 96th Division as the Maeda Escarpment or Hacksaw Ridge. Doss was wounded four times in Okinawa, and was evacuated on May 21, 1945, aboard the. Doss suffered a left arm fracture from a sniper's bullet and at one point had seventeen pieces of shrapnel embedded in his body. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions in Okinawa.

Post-war life.

After the war, Doss initially planned to continue his career in carpentry, but extensive damage to his left arm made him unable to do so. In 1946, Doss was diagnosed with tuberculosis, which he had contracted on Leyte. He underwent treatment for five and a half years – which cost him a lung and five ribs – before being discharged from the hospital in August 1951 with 90% disability.  Doss continued to receive treatment from the military, but after an overdose of antibiotics rendered him completely deaf in 1976, he was given 100% disability; he was able to regain his hearing after receiving a cochlear implant in 1988. Despite the severity of his injuries, Doss managed to raise a family on a small farm in Rising Fawn, Georgia.  Doss married Dorothy Pauline Schutte on August 17, 1942, and they had one child, Desmond "Tommy" Doss Jr., born in 1946. Dorothy died on November 17, 1991 in a car accident (Desmond was driving and lost control of the vehicle). Doss remarried on July 1, 1993, to Frances May Duman.  After being hospitalized for difficulty breathing, Doss died on March 23, 2006, at his home in Piedmont, Alabama. He was buried on April 3, 2006, in the National Cemetery in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Frances died three years later on February 3, 2009, at the Piedmont Health Care Center in Piedmont, Alabama.

Awards and decorations.

Other awards and decorations.

Including the Medal of Honor, Doss' awards are:

In media.

Television and cinema.

On February 18, 1959, Doss appeared on the Ralph Edwards NBC TV show "This Is Your Life".  Doss is the subject of "The Conscientious Objector", an award-winning 2004 documentary by Terry Benedict.  The feature film "Hacksaw Ridge", based on his life, was produced by Terry Benedict and directed by Mel Gibson. The film was released nationwide in the U.S. on November 4, 2016, to positive reviews. Doss is portrayed by Andrew Garfield, who was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance, and won Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actor in an Action Movie, and Satellite Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture. Desmond's wife, Dorothy, is played by Teresa Palmer.  Doss was profiled in a three-part TV series by "It Is Written" in November 2016.

Print.

Doss is the subject of four biographical books:  Doss was featured in the "Medal of Honor Special" comic written by Doug Murray and published by Dark Horse Comics. The comic was a special edition of the series "Medal of Honor", published April 1, 1994. The title was sanctioned by the United States Congressional Medal of Honor Society. The issue features Corporal Desmond Doss along with another Medal of Honor recipient, Lieutenant Charles Q. Williams.

Desmond Thomas Doss (February 7, 1919 – March 23, 2006) was a United States Army corporal who served as a combat medic with an infantry company in World War II. He was twice awarded the Bronze Star Medal for actions in Guam and the Philippines. Doss further distinguished himself in the Battle of Okinawa by saving 75 men, becoming the only conscientious objector to receive the Medal of Honor for his actions during the war. His life has been the subject of books, the documentary "The Conscientious Objector", and the 2016 film "Hacksaw Ridge".


Club career.

Youth career.

Born in Aachen, Germany, Havertz received his first experience in football at the age of four when he joined amateur side Alemannia Mariadorf, where his grandfather, Richard, was chairman of the club. In 2009, he was signed by second division side Alemannia Aachen where he spent only a year in the club's academy before joining Bayer Leverkusen at the age of 11. In the years that followed, he had to overcome the challenges associated with growth spurts and in 2016, after scoring 18 goals for the club's U-17 side, he was awarded the silver U-17 Fritz Walter Medal before breaking into Leverkusen's senior side the following year.

Bayer Leverkusen.

Havertz made his debut for Bayer Leverkusen on 15 October 2016, coming on as a second-half substitute for Charles Aránguiz in a 2–1 Bundesliga loss to Werder Bremen. Upon entering the field of play, he became the club's youngest ever Bundesliga debutant at the age of 17 years and 126 days, although his record was broken by 111 days by Florian Wirtz in 2020. On 17 February 2017, he assisted teammate Karim Bellarabi to score the 50 000th Bundesliga goal. Four days later, following the suspension of teammate Hakan Çalhanoğlu, he was handed his first Champions League start in the first leg of a round of 16 loss to Atlético Madrid. He was ruled out of the return leg of the fixture in March, however, as the match clashed with the examinations period at his school. He scored his first goal for the club on 2 April, netting a later equalizer in a 3–3 draw with VfL Wolfsburg. Upon doing so, Havertz broke another club record to become Leverkusen's youngest-ever goalscorer in the Bundesliga at the age of 17. He ultimately made 28 appearances across all competitions and scored four goals, including a brace against Hertha BSC on the final day of the season, as Leverkusen ended the campaign in 12th position.  On 14 April 2018, Havertz became the youngest player in the history of the Bundesliga to reach 50 appearances at 18 years and 307 days old, breaking the record previously held by Timo Werner. He went on to end his second full campaign with the club with 30 league appearances and three goals to his name as Leverkusen ended the season in fifth place.  Havertz continued to impress during the following season, despite Leverkusen initially struggling in the league, and by the mid-way point of the campaign was the only player to have started every match for the club, scoring six goals along the way. On 26 January 2019, he became Leverkusen's youngest-ever penalty scorer when he scored from the spot in a 3–0 league win over Wolfsburg, aged 19 years, seven months and 16 days. The following month, he became the second youngest-ever player to achieve 75 Bundesliga appearances, behind Julian Draxler, when he started and scored in a 2–0 win over Fortuna Düsseldorf. On 13 April, he scored on his 100th appearance for Leverkusen to help the club to a 1–0 league win over Stuttgart. The goal, his 13th for the campaign, also saw him become the youngest player since Stuttgart's own Horst Köppel in 1967–68 to score 13 goals in a single league season. On 5 May, he scored his 15th goal of the campaign during a 6–1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt; a match which for the first time ever saw seven goals scored in the first half of a Bundesliga match. On the final day of the season, he became the highest scoring teenager in a single Bundesliga campaign when he scored his 17th goal during a 5–1 win over Hertha BSC. At the end of the season, he was named runner-up to Marco Reus for the German Footballer of the Year award, losing out by just 37 votes.  On the opening day of the 2019–20 campaign, Havertz scored in Leverkusen's 3–2 win over Paderborn, becoming the second-youngest player of all time behind Köppel to score 25 Bundesliga goals. In December, at the age of 20 years, six months and four days, he broke another of Werner's records to become the youngest-ever player to reach 100 Bundesliga appearances when he started in his side's 2–0 defeat to Köln.

International career.

Youth.

Havertz made his debut for the Germany national under-16 team on 11 November 2014, starting in the friendly match against the Czech Republic before being substituted out in the 57th minute for Tom Baack. The match finished as a 3–1 win for Germany.  Havertz was included in Germany's squad for the 2016 UEFA European Under-17 Championship in Azerbaijan. He appeared in all five of Germany's matches, scoring once before Germany were eliminated by Spain in the semi-finals.  Following a 15-month absence from youth internationals, Havertz made his debut for Germany's under-19 team, debuting on 31 August 2017 in the 0–0 friendly draw against Switzerland, coming on in the 72nd minute for Palkó Dárdai. On 4 October 2017, in his third appearance for the under-19 team, Havertz scored four goals in a 5–1 win against Belarus in the first round of European Under-19 Championship qualifying. He was later named captain of the under-19 side.

Senior.

On 29 August 2018, Havertz was called up to Germany's senior team for the first time by head coach Joachim Löw. He was included in the squad for Germany's UEFA Nations League match against France and friendly against Peru. Havertz made his international debut on 9 September 2018, coming on as a substitute in the 88th minute for Timo Werner against Peru, with the match finishing as a 2–1 home win for Germany. Upon making his debut, he became the first player born in 1999 to represent the national team.

Style of play.

Havertz has been described as technically-gifted, two-footed midfielder who is comfortable with the ball on either foot and adept with his head. During his formative years, his style of play drew early comparisons to compatriot Mesut Özil, with Havertz himself admitting the Arsenal midfielder was a player he looked up to. By the age of 19, and following numerous impressive performances in the Bundesliga, further comparisons had been drawn between Havertz and former Leverkusen players such as Michael Ballack, Toni Kroos and Arturo Vidal, and German media began describing him as a combination of the lot and an "Alleskönner" – a player who can do everything.

Career statistics.

Club.

Notes

Honours.

Individual.

Medals  Other

Kai Havertz (born 11 June 1999) is a German professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or right winger for Bayer Leverkusen and the German national team.


Gameplay.

There are four official game modes: "osu!standard" (often just called "osu!"), "osu!taiko", "osu!catch" (formerly "osu!ctb"), and "osu!mania". These are played with beatmaps. For standard, beatmaps consist of three main items – hit circles, sliders, and spinners. These objects are arranged in different positions on the screen and in different points of time. Catch beatmaps have fruits and spinners, which are arranged in a horizontal manner. Mania beatmaps consist of circles (depicted as one small bar in the default skin) and holds. The beatmap is then played with accompanying music, simulating a sense of rhythm as the player interacts with the objects to the beat of the music. Each beatmap is accompanied by a background. The game can be played using various peripherals, but the most common is a graphics tablet or computer mouse, paired with a keyboard.

osu!standard.

osu!standard, sometimes referred to as osu!std or just osu!, is the most played game mode and consists of playing beatmaps by clicking circles, holding sliders, and rotating spinners. Other gameplay modifiers (or often called mods) add additional gameplay features or change the difficulty by raising it (Double Time/Nightcore, Hidden, Flashlight, Hard Rock, Sudden Death/Perfect), or lowering it (Easy, Half Time, No Fail, Spun Out). Inspiration for this mode was taken from "Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan" and "Elite Beat Agents".

osu!taiko.

osu!taiko is a game mode which consists of clicking notes to the beat on a drum-like interface, inspired by the "Taiko no Tatsujin" series.

osu!catch.

osu!catch, formerly known as osu!ctb (catch the beat), is a game mode which consists of catching fruit to the beat by controlling a mini-character holding a plate.

osu!mania.

osu!mania is a game mode which consists of a piano-like style of clicking notes to the beat, similar to the "Beatmania IIDX" series. The number of keys ranges from 1 to 9, with 4 keys and 7 keys being more popular among players.

Beatmaps.

"osu!" has five different beatmap categories:

Subscription service (osu!supporter).

The game offers a subscription-based service, osu!supporter, that allows players to download beatmaps directly from inside the game, without the lengthy process of using browsers, through a service called osu!direct, a heart icon beside the username on the official o"su!" website, additional pending beatmap slots, faster download speeds, access to multiplayer on cutting edge build, friend and country-specific leaderboards, one free username change, more in-game customization, a yellow username in the in-game chat, and more customization on one's user page (the "me" tab). osu!supporter does not affect ranking whatsoever and all funds are directed to the maintenance of "osu!".

osu!lazer.

"osu!lazer" is an upcoming free and open-source remake of the original game client that features a graphics framework built from the ground up with rhythm games in mind. This results in improved visuals, performance and more flexibility for future changes. Users are able to create their own game modes using this framework which can then be played in the osu!lazer client. The osu!standard game mode features various gameplay changes such as a new scoring system focused more on rhythm and the addition of more gameplay modifiers. The development of osu!lazer started in 2016 and development versions of osu!lazer are currently available for testing on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS.  Since osu!lazer is written entirely in.NET Core, it is theoretically compatible with any operating environment that can run.NET Core programs.

Music.

Music from o"su!"s "featured artists" are selected by the community as being suitable for play, and for having a compatible copyright status. Currently there are over 50 featured artists. Some featured artists have created tracks specifically for use in o"su!", and some artists are also known for making music for other rhythm games, such as Camellia (Masaya Oya) and Cranky (Hiroshi Watanabe) who are known for their works in Konami's "Sound Voltex" and "Beatmania IIDX" series of games.

Reception.

Jeuxvideo.com reviewed o"su!" favorably with 18/20 points in 2015. In 2010, MMOGames.com reviewer Daniel Ball said that while the game was very similar to "Elite Beat Agents", it was differentiated by its community's large library of high-quality community made content and customization.  "osu!" has been used and recommended by e-sport players such as Ninja and EFFECT, as a way to warm-up and practice their aim.

Community and competitive play.

o"su!" has 17,400,851 players worldwide.  "osu!" contains three main facets of competition between players. In multiplayer lobbies, up to 16 users play a map simultaneously. On individual maps, players compete for high scores on various leaderboards. Players also compete with their ranks, which are calculated by accumulating "performance points" (pp). pp is based on a map's difficulty and the player's accuracy. According to "PC Gamer", most competitive osu! players score between 100 and 400 pp on a map, with few ever exceeding 500. In July 2019, a player, Vaxei, exceeded 1,000 pp for the first time, followed by another player, idke, less than twenty-four hours later.  Since 2014, there have been five annual "o"su!" World Cups" (usually abbreviated and referred to as "o!wc" or "owc"), one for each game mode (osu!mania having two for 4 key and 7 key). Teams for World Cups are country-based, with up to eight players per team. There are also many different community-hosted tournaments, differing in rank range, types of maps played, and how the teams are composed. Winners of tournaments typically receive prizes such as cash, merchandise, profile badges and/or osu!supporter subscriptions.  "osu!" also features different events, such as fanart and beatmapping contests. Unofficial events and conventions are also being held. The biggest unofficial event held in the community is ""cavoe's osu! event"" (usually referred to as "osu! event" or "COE"), held at The Brabanthallen in's Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands. The event has been arranged three times since 2017 yearly.

Mobile clients.

iOS.

"osu!stream" is an adaptation of o"su!" for iOS devices running iOS 6 and later, also developed by Dean Herbert. The main difference between o"su!" and "osu!stream" is that "osu!stream" beatmaps are not user-created and are instead made by the developers of "osu!stream". The version also includes some new gameplay elements. On 26 February 2020, Herbert announced that he released the source code and plans to halt development of the game, releasing one final update that made all the levels free to download.  It is possible to play the beta of osu!lazer on iOS via TestFlight.

Android.

"osu!droid" is a fan client of o"su!" for Android devices. The official "osu!droid" was released through the Play Store, though many players complained of problems. Since then, an unofficial release, titled "osu!evolution", has been used as a substitute for "osu!droid".  "opsu!" is a client available on Android devices and contains a port to be played on a PC, but is no longer being serviced as of 2019. However, the servers for this service are still online, so this game is still available to play. Its main feature was an osu!direct-like system for downloading beatmaps from within the game.  It is possible to play the beta of osu!lazer on Android devices using an APK.

osu! is a rhythm game primarily developed, published and created by Dean "peppy" Herbert. Originally released for Microsoft Windows on September 16, 2007, the game has also been ported to macOS, Linux, Android and IOS. Its gameplay is based on titles including "Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan", "Taiko no Tatsujin", "Beatmania IIDX", "Elite Beat Agents", "O2Jam", StepMania, and "DJMax". The game has an active esports community, and is also sometimes recommended by professional players of other games to practice or warm up.


Life.

She was born Josepha Hambacher in Prague, then a provincial capital of the Austrian Empire, on 6 March 1754, and lived in Prague all of her life. Her father was a prosperous apothecary, Anton Adalbert Hambacher (also "Hampacher") and her mother was Maria Domenica Colomba, who came from Salzburg. Her father’s pharmacy was in the house called "Zum weissen Einhorn" ("The White Unicorn"). Built in the Baroque style, it was situated in the Old Town Square where the pharmaceutical business flourished until the 20th century.  In her youth Josepha studied music with František Xaver Dušek, whom she married on 21 October 1776. Josefa’s husband already had an international reputation as a music teacher. He was a welcome guest in the music salons and he and his wife became well-known hosts at their home, Villa Bertramka. It is not known whether the couple performed together as musicians, but they hosted frequent musical gatherings at which many famous people were present.  Josepha had earlier been the lover of the art patron Count Christian Philipp Clam-Gallas, and it was said that she continued to profit long afterwards from the relationship as the Count provided her with an annuity of 900 Gulden and even contributed to the purchase of the Villa Bertramka.  Her career as a singer was long and successful; she gave concerts in many different cities, including Prague, Vienna, Salzburg, Dresden, Weimar, Leipzig, Warsaw and Berlin.  The singer and her husband were also close with the composer Ludwig van Beethoven. While Beethoven was in Prague in 1796, he wrote his concert aria "", Op. 65, for this talented singer. She was not able to sing the piece at its debut because of a conflicting engagement, but she did perform the piece in both Prague and later in Leipzig. The debut was performed by the Countess Josephine Clary, to whom Beethoven later dedicated the piece. This concert aria was also featured on Beethoven's mammoth "Akademie" concert at the Theater an der Wien in 1808, sung by a 17-year-old Josephine Killitschgy, who was unable to meet the vocal demands of the piece.  Duschek never accepted a permanent engagement, but always remained a freelance singer.  After her husband’s death in 1799 she retired from public life. She sold Bertramka, and lived in increasingly smaller apartments in Prague. By the time of her death in 1824 she had become impoverished.

Duschek and Mozart.

Duschek met Mozart in 1777 when she visited Salzburg, where her mother was from and she had relatives. At that time Mozart composed for her the recitative and aria "Ah, lo previdi," K. 272.  Mozart accompanied her at a private concert before the Viennese court in 1786, shortly after the success of his opera "The Marriage of Figaro".  While Duschek was on friendly terms with the Mozart family at this time, Leopold was critical of her singing, writing to his daughter on 21 April 1786: 'How did Madame Duschek sing? I have to say it! She shrieked an aria by Naumann, quite astonishingly, with exaggerated expression as before but even more annoyingly.'  In 1787, "The Marriage of Figaro" was mounted in a Prague production. A number of Prague music lovers invited Mozart to come to Prague and hear the production; the "Grove Dictionary" suggested that Duschek and her husband František were among them.  Later that year Mozart returned to Prague in order to complete and then produce his next opera, "Don Giovanni". At this time, he stayed with the Duscheks in their summer house, called the Villa Bertramka, at Smíchov near Prague. Mozart may also have stayed there while completing his opera "La clemenza di Tito" in September 1791.

The composition of "Bella mia fiamma, addio".

During the 1787 visit, Mozart wrote the concert aria "Bella mia fiamma, addio," K. 528 (it is dated 3 November 1787). The composition of this aria was somewhat unusual; the following tale is attributed to Mozart's son Karl Thomas:  Bernard Wilson, commenting on the story, adds: "There seems to be some corroboration of this account in the aria itself. The words "Quest' affano, questo passo è terribile per me" (mm. 27–34) are set to an awesome tangle of chromatic sequences artfully calculated to test the singer's sense of intonation and powers of interpretation. Apparently Mme. Duschek survived the "passo terribile", since the autograph bears her name in Mozart's hand.  In 1789 Duschek sang the work along with other arias at concerts given by Mozart in Dresden and Leipzig, during his German tour of that year.

Were Mozart and Duschek lovers?

Maynard Solomon has suggested that Mozart and Duschek were lovers. The available information does not permit such assertions to be made with certainty. For discussion, see Mozart's Berlin journey.

Assessment.

Duschek's voice was praised for its range and flexibility. Her admirers used to call her "a Bohemian Gabrielli" after the famous Italian coloratura singer Caterina Gabrielli. The "Grove Dictionary" assesses her singing thus: "She was appreciated for the sonority, range and flexibility of her voice, for her musicianship, and superb execution of both bravura arias and recitatives."

Josepha Duschek (1754–1824) was an outstanding soprano of the Classical era. She was a friend of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, who wrote a few works for her to sing.


Plot summary.

An example of what Asimov called his "late style," the story is a journalist's recollection of the events surrounding the discovery of an anti-gravity device in the mid-21st century. Heavy with physics theory, the story describes the relationship between the creator of the device, the billionaire inventor Edward Bloom, and his former classmate James Priss, a Nobel Prize-winning theoretical physicist who had discovered most of the theory that made the device possible. The men are expert billiards players and bitter rivals. Challenged to execute a shot on a table which is equipped with the device, Priss sends a ball on a complicated trajectory, which finishes when it enters the device's field. At that point the ball vanishes and Bloom collapses, dead. There is a mysterious hole drilled completely through his chest.  Central to the story is the concept of a pure anti-gravity machine that turns out to be a perpetual motion machine of the first order. Energy can be freely created in a volume of space time which is pulled "flat," as defined within the Theory of Relativity as determined by Albert Einstein. However, this field possesses remarkable properties, which are the centerpiece of the story: any object which enters the field is reduced to zero mass, and hence must assume the speed of light. There is also the unprovable speculation as to whether Priss knew, from his own theory and the nature of the blue glow produced by the field (possibly due to Cherenkov radiation), what would happen, and if he then directed the ball in such a way as to kill Bloom.  Asimov himself had some reservations about the name of the story, and noted that his friend Frederik Pohl's suggested title of "Dirty Pool" was far better than his own. The story retains its title despite the feeling of its author, as he preferred to remain consistent.

"The Billiard Ball" is a science fiction short story by American author Isaac Asimov, written in September 1966 and first published in the March 1967 issue of "If". It appeared in Asimov's 1968 collection "Asimov's Mysteries", in his 1973 collection "The Best of Isaac Asimov", in his 1986 collection "Robot Dreams" and in "The Complete Stories, Vol. 2".


Plot.

On the eve of Bastille Day in Paris, American drifter and pickpocket Michael Mason steals a woman's handbag, not knowing that it contains explosives. After he drops the bag off, it detonates and kills four people. Upon being captured by CIA agent Sean Briar, who is being reprimanded for irresponsible conduct on the job, Mason protests that he is not a terrorist, and tells Briar that the bag contained a cell-phone owned by a woman named Zoe. The bomb was set up by a group of corrupt policemen led by Rafi Bertrand, all of them members in the French special force RAPID who intend to pull a robbery at the French National Bank. Zoe was told to plant the bomb at the office of the French Nationalist Party (as part of a diversion for the heist), but after seeing the night cleaning crew arrive, she was unwilling to kill innocents and so abandoned the plan. Zoe's boyfriend Jean, one of the conspirators, allows her to escape, realizing that his compatriots will kill her.  The group tracks Zoe's phone to Briar's and Mason's location. Briar engages the conspirators, who subdue him, while Mason escapes. Bertrand's team proceeds to plant fake evidence at a mosque and stir up a nationwide uproar among its Islamic population, using agitating hashtags on the Internet. Chased by the French authorities and Bertrand's forces, Mason is picked up by Briar, who has come to believe his story and intends to clear the case with his help, even against the orders of his superiors. They track Zoe to the hideout of her friend Paul and his motorcycle gang, but the gang firebombs their car to cover their escape. Appropriating another car, they track Paul down to the bar where he works, and Mason instigates a brawl, during which he steals Paul's ID card.  Mason and Briar use the card to find out Paul's address, where Zoe is hiding, and manage to gain her cooperation. Zoe leads them to Jean's apartment, where they find his body and an ID and badge identifying him as a police officer. Briar informs his colleague, Karen Dacre, who confers with her French contact, DGSI Director Victor Gamieux, about taking Mason and Zoe into protective custody. However, Gamieux, actually the mastermind of the heist conspiracy, kills Dacre after obtaining the information he needs and sends a pickup team consisting of his henchmen. Briar, Mason and Zoe manage to pick up clues about the men's true allegiance and fight their way out of the deathtrap. Now realizing Gamieux's hand in the game, the three head toward the French National Bank.  When a crowd of protestors masses at the front of the bank—as the conspirators have intended—Gamieux assigns Bertrand's RAPID team to the building to provide interior security, thus facilitating the digital robbery of its entire monetary reserves (half a billion euros). Upon arriving at the bank, Briar disguises himself as a RAPID officer and manages to gain access to the building before he is found out. Hearing of his predicament over their stolen police van's radio, Zoe and Mason start a riot among the protestors, who storm the bank and overpower the RAPID troopers closing in on Briar. Briar subsequently infiltrates the vault and engages Bertrand and his remaining henchman. Bertrand escapes with the USB flash drive on which the money has been downloaded, but Briar contacts Mason, who steals the flash drive from Bertrand. Upon noticing the theft, Bertrand takes Zoe hostage. Gamieux, trying to salvage his plan, commands a squad of policemen to shoot and kill Bertrand, and Mason escapes with the flash drive.  Some time later, Mason, working with Briar and French law enforcement, meets with Gamieux on the pretense of trading the flash drive for a passport and a ride out of the country, leading to the latter's arrest. The charges against Mason are dropped, and he is offered a job with the CIA.

Production.

On 11 November 2013, Idris Elba joined the cast of the film. On 2 October 2014, Richard Madden joined the cast. On 18 May 2014, Focus Features acquired the rights to distribute the film in North America. Principal photography began on 13 October 2014 in Paris, and ended on 17 December 2014.

Release.

The film was scheduled to be released on 19 February 2016 in the United Kingdom. However, following the terrorist attacks in Paris in November 2015, the film was delayed. "Bastille Day" was released simultaneously in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Sweden on 22 April 2016. In France, the film was released on 13 July 2016 to coincide with the dates in the story. Following the 2016 Nice truck attack, Studiocanal pulled the film from theatres on 17 July 2016, citing it as a "sign of respect for the victims and their families."

Reception.

"Bastille Day" received mixed reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 48%, based on 80 reviews, with a rating of 5.2/10. The site's critical consensus reads, ""Bastille Day" proves Idris Elba is an action hero in waiting – specifically, waiting for a script that deserves his talents". On Metacritic, the film has a score of 49 out of 100, based on 8 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

Bastille Day (released as The Take in North America and on international home release) is a 2016 action thriller film directed and co-written by James Watkins. It is a Luxembourgian, French and American venture produced by Anonymous Content, Vendôme Pictures, TF1 Films Production and StudioCanal. The film stars Idris Elba, Richard Madden, Charlotte Le Bon, Eriq Ebouaney and José Garcia. The film was released in the United Kingdom on 22 April 2016 and 13 July 2016 in France, and on 18 November 2016 in the United States.


Biography.

Kovpak was born to a poor peasant family in Kotelva village in Kharkov Governorate, Russian Empire (in present-day Ukraine). For his military service in World War I, he was awarded two Crosses of St. George personally by the Emperor Nicholas II of Russia (an award for exceptional military heroism). After the Russian Revolution he joined the "All-Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks)" and fought for the Red Army partisan units against the German forces, as well as against Denikin's White Army in a Vasily Chapayev's cavalry division. In the interwar period he was a head of the local government in the town of Putyvl, Sumy Oblast (province).

World War II.

At the time of the German invasion of Soviet Ukraine partisan units led by Sydir Kovpak waged guerrilla warfare against Axis forces originally in partisan strongholds in Sumy and Bryansk regions but later its operation spread deep into German occupied territory including Kiev, Zhytomyr, Rivne, Homyel, Volyn and other regions. These partisan units also fought against the nationalist Ukrainian Insurgent Army. In 1944 partisans under Kovpak's leadership raided enemy forces throughout western Ukraine and Belarus and even reached Romanian border regions during the Carpathian raid inflicting heavy casualties on the Germans.  Kovpak mastered guerrilla tactics and was awarded Hero of the Soviet Union title twice. In the summer of 1943 Germans managed to hunt down and kill Kovpak's second in command Semyon Rudnev who was replaced by a new right-hand man Petro Vershigora who would later become a writer and dedicate his books to Kovpak's underground resistance.  Sydir Kovpak was promoted to the rank of Major General in 1943. According to the memoirs of his lieutenant Vershigora, his promotion and General's stars were airdropped to his partisan unit's position deep behind the front lines. After the end of the Second World War Sydir Kovpak held key positions in the leadership of Soviet Ukraine, including Vice Chairman of the Supreme Court of Ukraine in 1947 and Supreme Council of Ukraine in 1967. He also was a member of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union for the 2nd through 7th convocations.

Movies.

Kovpak was portrayed (by Konstantin Stepankov) in Soviet film trilogy "Duma o Kovpake" ("Дума о Ковпаке", "Poem of Kovpak"):  A TV documentary "Его звали ДЕД" ("He was called GRANDPA") (Ukrainian language, produced by TRK Era, director Oleksiy Barbaruk-Trypilsky, 36 min, screened in 2011) documents Kovpak's life during the war.

Sydir Artemovych Kovpak (;, ), (June 7, 1887December 11, 1967) was one of the partisan leaders of the Soviet partisans in Ukraine during the World War II.


Club career.

Early career.

Born in Maubeuge, Nord, near the Belgian border, Pavard first played with his hometown club in Jeumont, where former France international striker Jean-Pierre Papin also began his career.  Pavard joined Lille's academy at the age of nine. He made his Ligue 1 debut on 31 January 2015 against FC Nantes, playing the full game in a 1–1 away draw. Pavard made 21 league appearances across two seasons for Lille, before leaving the club in 2016.

VfB Stuttgart.

On 30 August 2016, Pavard moved to VfB Stuttgart, signing a four-year contract. He made his debut in the 2. Bundesliga on 3 October, scoring in a 4–0 home win over SpVgg Greuther Fürth. He played 21 games and his team ended the season as league champions.  Pavard made his Bundesliga debut on 19 August in a 2–0 loss at Hertha BSC. He scored his first goal in the Bundesliga with a delightful back header on 29 October in a 3–0 win over SC Freiburg at the Mercedes-Benz Arena. He extended his contract with Stuttgart on 20 December 2017 until 30 June 2021.  He was one of only four players to feature in every single second of the 2017–18 Bundesliga season. He played in several positions, namely right-back, centre-back, defensive midfielder and right wing, but after the appointment of Tayfun Korkut as manager in January 2018 he was exclusively a centre back; the team conceded 10 goals in their last 14 games as they went from near the relegation places to finish 7th, only just missing out on a UEFA Europa League place.  In 2018–19, Pavard was again a regular as Stuttgart fought relegation all season, which was confirmed with defeat to 1. FC Union Berlin in a playoff.

Bayern Munich.

On 9 January 2019, Bayern Munich confirmed Pavard would join the club for the 2019–20 season, signing a five-year contract lasting until 30 June 2024.  He made his competitive debut on 3 August in a 2–0 defeat in the 2019 DFL-Supercup against Borussia Dortmund, as an 80th-minute substitute for Thiago Alcântara. On 31 August he scored for the first time to equalise in a 6–1 home win over 1. FSV Mainz 05.

International career.

On 6 November 2017, Pavard was selected by France's head coach Didier Deschamps for the friendly matches against Wales and Germany. He made his debut against the Welsh on 10 November in a 2–0 win at the Stade de France, replacing Christophe Jallet at half time.  On 17 May 2018, he was called up to the 23-man French squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. On 16 June, Pavard made his World Cup debut in a 2–1 victory over Australia. On 30 June, Pavard scored his first international goal, a long range shot from outside the penalty area, in a 4–3 victory over Argentina in the World Cup's round of 16. The goal was later voted as goal of the tournament and nominated for goal of the year. He also became the first French defender to score a goal in the World Cup since Lilian Thuram scored against Croatia in the 1998 semi-final. Pavard won the World Cup, after starting all of France's games except for their last group match against Denmark.

Honours.

VfB Stuttgart  Bayern Munich  France  Individual  Orders

Benjamin Jacques Marcel Pavard (; born 28 March 1996) is a French professional footballer who plays as a defender for Bayern Munich and the France national team. Although usually deployed as a centre-back, he is also capable of playing as a right-back.


History.

The company was founded as FinTech-Start-up in 2013 by Valentin Stalf and Maximilian Tayenthal. The name is derived from the 26-sided Rubik’s Cube. In April 2015, N26 received €10 million in a series A round by Valar Ventures. Valar Ventures was co-founded by Peter Thiel, PayPal's co-founder.  Initially Number 26 started operations without holding a banking license; instead it was merely an interface while the back end was provided by Wirecard. In July 2016 it re-branded as N26 Bank, having received its own banking license from BaFin.  In July 2016 N26 also announced its Fair Use Policy for customers residing in Germany. This created a backlash on social media by unhappy customers.  In November 2016 customers were asked to transfer their accounts to N26 Bank's infrastructure. As a result, they would have to get a new account IBAN number, while the previous accounts held by Wirecard would be terminated.  In December 2016 N26 announced that its basic current account would become available to 17 Eurozone countries.  In March 2018, N26 raised $160 million in a series C round by Chinese internet giant Tencent Holdings and Allianz X (Allianz). On the same date, N26 claimed a customer base of 850,000, with the goal of having 5,000,000 customers by 2020.  In January 2019, N26 raised an additional $300 million in a series D round led by Insight Venture Partners with Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC and a few existing investors also participating at a valuation of $2.7 billion. With its new valuation of $2.7 billion, N26 overtook Revolut as the most valuable mobile bank in Europe.  On 11 July 2019, N26 soft launched in the United States, initially allowing customers to sign up for a waiting list. Due to differences in the U.S. market (particularly in regards to regulatory schemes for financial providers), N26 partnered with Axos Bank to serve as the provider of its services, insured under FDIC. Unlike in Europe, where they are provided by MasterCard, N26 uses Visa cards for U.S. customers. The following week, the company extended its series D round with an additional $170 million investment, valuing the company at $3.5 billion. In May 2020, the company announced the extension of its recent Series D round with an additional $100M raised at the same valuation.  On 11 February 2020, N26 announced that it will cease doing business in the United Kingdom and close all accounts effective 15 April, due to the UK withdrawal from the European Union. The company cited that European financial institutions can no longer operate in the region without applying for a banking license in the UK (rather than being allowed to operate under its EU license), as well as "the timings and framework outlined in the EU Withdrawal Agreement".

Product overview.

N26 provides a free basic current account and a Debit MasterCard card to all its customers, as well as a Maestro card for their customers in certain markets. Additionally, customers can request overdraft and investment products. N26 also offers premium accounts ("N26 You" and "N26 Metal") which offer additional features for a monthly fee.  The account opening process can be completed via a video chat with N26's identity verification partner, IDnow. Only holders of certain passports and ID cards can verify their identity online; others will have to visit a German post office if it is supported by Postident.

Availability.

N26 offers its services in 23 European countries, plus the United States. In Austria, Germany and the Netherlands customers can additionally request a Maestro card.  Some parts of the website and customer service are provided in English, German, French, Italian and Spanish regardless of the customer's residency.

Mobile payments.

N26 customers in several of its markets can use their smartphone for in-store purchases. N26 supports Google Pay in the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Slovakia, and Spain, while it supports Apple Pay in Austria, Germany, Greece, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Slovenia and Spain. Additional countries are added as both Google Pay and Apple Pay gradually expand throughout N26's markets.

Fees.

N26 has a basic account with no monthly fee and charges no fees for basic banking transactions or credit card payments in foreign currencies. In the Eurozone (except Austria and Italy) ATM withdrawals are limited to five per month for primary account holders and three per month for others. N26 charges a €2 fee for any additional withdrawal. In the UK, free ATM withdrawals are unlimited.  ATM withdrawals in foreign currencies are also subject to a 1.70% fee for basic account and are free for N26 You and Metal account holders.  German customers can also withdraw and deposit money at retail locations. While there is no fee for withdrawals up to €999, free deposits are limited to €100 and additional amounts are subject to a 1.5% fee.

Security.

Customers can lock and unlock their MasterCard through the mobile app without having to contact N26 support. They can also enable and disable it for usage abroad or online usage and modify the daily limits for cash withdrawals and card payments.

Mobile transfers.

The N26 app can scan the users' contacts in their smartphone and identify other N26 account holders. Using a service called Moneybeam a N26 customer can send funds to these contacts without having to fill in their IBAN. Moneybeam transfers are executed instantaneously.

Controversy.

In June 2016 N26 notified several customers that their accounts were going to be terminated. The company cited as main reasons that some customers were making too many ATM withdrawals, while others were suspected of money laundering. The introduction of the Fair Use Policy in July 2016 came as an aftermath of these terminations.  During the transfer of its customer base to its own banking infrastructure, N26 customers took to social media to report various problems.  In December 2016 Vincent Haupert, a research fellow in computer science from the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, demonstrated how he could take advantage of security vulnerabilities in order to get access to N26 users' accounts. Haupert had already notified N26 of the vulnerabilities back in September 2016. N26 acknowledged the issues and claimed that they had been fixed before they became public, adding that no user account had actually been compromised.  In March 2019, German media reported that customers who had their account credentials stolen found it difficult to contact the bank and resolve the situation. Customer advocates reported that there was a growing number of complaints from phishing victims who were unable to access their accounts and found it difficult to contact the bank. In a widely reported case N26 took more than two weeks to restore access for a customer who had €80,000 stolen from their account. The reports raised the question if the rapid growth of the bank had left it ill-equipped to deal with the increasing number of support cases.

N26 (known as "Number 26" until July 2016) is a German neobank, headquartered in Berlin, Germany. N26 currently offers its services throughout various member states of the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) and in the US. The UK operations have been suspended in April 2020 due to the Brexit process uncertainties.


Overview.

Earlier, it was assumed that the new SUV would be called "Snowman" or "Polar", but this was rejected by the former head of Škoda (Vahland) as a media speculation. On 23 December 2015, Škoda registered the name "Kodiaq". The name refers to the largest brown bear, the Kodiak bear, living on the island of the same name off the south coast of Alaska.  In February 2016, images of the "Vision S" concept were released, and the concept model appeared in March 2016 at the Geneva Motor Show. The final SUV was introduced at the Paris Motor Show on 29 September 2016. The first cars were officially delivered to customers in February 2017.  As part of its marketing campaign, the Kodiak town on the Alaskan island was renamed Kodiaq for one day.  The Kodiaq is the first vehicle in the Škoda lineup to have Area View, Tow Assist, Manoeuvre Assist and Predictive Pedestrian Protection. It is also the first vehicle in the VAG MQB platform lineup to feature capacitive shortcut buttons instead of physical buttons for the 8" infotainment systems.  The trim levels available are: Active (entrance equipment, bluetooth, LED rear lights, seven airbags), Ambition (good balance of price and equipment), Style (advanced technology in attractive package), Laurin & Klement (exclusive design), Sportline (dynamic driving), Scout (adventurous driving) and RS (most powerful).

Selected acknowledgements.

In November 2016, the Škoda Kodiaq was named the "Best Family Car in the World" by "Top Gear Magazine". Kodiaq won the title of the "Car of the Year" 2017 in the Czech Republic, Poland and Bulgaria, the SUV of the Year in China and France, and the all wheel drive car in Germany.  The Kodiaq also won in German magazine competition "Auto Test" for 2017, and is the winner of competitions in British magazines "Auto Express" and "What Car?" for 2017. The Kodiaq also received the Red Dot Design Award for 2017.  In 2020, Skoda Kodiaq won carsales award for the Best Family SUV award for 2020

Scout, Sportline, RS and GT.

The new Kodiaq Scout and Kodiaq Sportline were introduced at the Geneva Motor Show in March 2017. Kodiaq Scout ground clearance has gone up from 187mm to 194mm, and there have some design changes. These changes include front and rear underbody protection with bumper trim, silver mirror caps, and badging on the front wing and the glove compartment. The Scout comes in 4x4 with one turbo petrol TSi engines and two turbo diesel TDi engines. Kodiaq Sportline brings new styling tweaks, some parts are made in black, sports seats, steering wheel in leather, big alloy wheels and pedals made from aluminium.  The Kodiaq RS (vRS in the United Kingdom) was introduced at the Paris Motor Show in October 2018. It is at the top of the range, the fastest Kodiaq and the most expensive Škoda available. Price with all extras could rise up to 1.5 million CZK (about 51 thousand GBP). It includes the Škoda's most powerful diesel engine, the 4x4 2.0 litre biturbo diesel engine, which produces a maximum output of and a maximum torque of. The Kodiaq RS has got a more aggressive design, from leather and carbon leather are made the sports upholstered seats, steering wheel, the door threshold and the entrance rails of the doors. It comes with Virtual Cockpit, a gloss black grille, 20" alloy wheels Xtreme, 17 inch red painted brake calipers, different front and rear bumper designs, heated front sports seats and full LED headlights. It holds the track record at the Nürburgring for any seven seat SUV. Since 2019, the British Police use Škoda Kodiaq vRS as police cars.  The Kodiaq GT is the first Škoda coupé since the 1980s. It was introduced at the Guangzhou Motor Show on 16 November 2018. It is sold only in China, and is available with two 2.0 L petrol engines (137 kW and 162 kW).

Engines.

The Škoda Kodiaq is available with a range of turbocharged petrol and diesel engines, ranging from 1.5 to 2.0 litres, and a choice of front or all wheel drive.  Petrol engines Diesel engines

The Škoda Kodiaq is a mid-size crossover SUV (J-segment) manufactured by the Czech automaker Škoda Auto. The car is larger than Škoda Kamiq and Škoda Karoq. The vehicle is based on VW Group's modular MQB platform, shared with a new generation of Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace and the SEAT Tarraco, however the Kodiaq is longer than Tiguan, and comes in a seven seat version. The Škoda Kodiaq RS is the brand's flagship model.


Richard Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos

Background and education.

Born at Stowe, Buckinghamshire, the Duke of Buckingham and Chandos was the son of the Richard Nugent-Temple-Grenville, Earl Temple (later created the Duke of Buckingham and Chandos) and Lady Anne Brydges, the only surviving child of the 3rd Duke of Chandos. In addition to being the Duchess of Buckingham and Chandos, Lady Anne was "suo jure" Lady Kinloss. In 1799, Richard Temple-Nugent-Grenville changed the already triple-barrelled family name to Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville by royal license to reflect his wife's family.  The second Duke was a paternal grandson of the 1st Marquess of Buckingham and a great-grandson of Prime Minister George Grenville. He was educated at Eton and Oriel College, Oxford.

Political career.

Buckingham sat as Member of Parliament for Buckinghamshire between 1818 and 1839, when he succeeded his father in the dukedom and entered the House of Lords. Two years later, in September 1841, he was sworn of the Privy Council and appointed Lord Privy Seal by Sir Robert Peel, a post he held only until February 1842. He was appointed a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Hanoverian Order in 1835, elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries in 1840 and made a Knight of the Garter in 1842.  According to the "Legacies of British Slave-Ownership" at the University College London, Buckingham was a recipient of payment as a slave trader in the aftermath of the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 with the Slave Compensation Act 1837. The British Government took out a £15 million loan (worth £1.8 billion in 2020) with interest from Nathan Mayer Rothschild and Moses Montefiore which was subsequently paid off by the British taxpayers (ending in 2015). Buckingham was associated with "T71/865 St Andrew claim no. 114 (Hope Estate)", he owned 379 slaves in Jamaica and received a £6,630 payment at the time.

Personal life.

In 1819, Buckingham married Lady Mary Campbell, daughter of Lieut-Gen The 4th Earl of Breadalbane (later created Marquess of Breadalbane). They had one son, Richard, 3rd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos, and one daughter, Lady Anna, but were divorced in 1850 after Buckingham had lost his inheritance. Anna went to campaign for women's rights. At that time, divorce required an Act of Parliament.  In 1847, eight years after succeeding his father as Duke of Buckingham and Chandos, Richard was declared bankrupt with debts over a million pounds (£ as of ). This occasioned the sale of his Keynsham estate in Somerset in 1841, Avington Park in 1847 and ultimately the auction sale of the contents of the main family seat at Stowe House in August–September 1848, one of the handful of most prominent English country house contents auctions of the 19th century.  Buckingham died at the Great Western Hotel, Paddington, London, in July 1861, aged 64, and was succeeded in the dukedom by his only son. His former wife died less than a year later in June 1862, aged 66.

Richard Plantagenet Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos, (11 February 1797 – 29 July 1861), styled Viscount Cobham from birth until 1813, Earl Temple between 1813 and 1822 and Marquess of Chandos between 1822 and 1839, was a British Tory politician. He served as Lord Privy Seal between 1841 and 1842.


Early life.

Rory Charles Graham was born on 29 January 1985 in Uckfield, East Sussex. He attended King's Academy Ringmer in Ringmer, from which he was expelled, and then enrolled at Uckfield College in his hometown. At the age of 15, he began MCing with a drum and bass crew using the handle Rag 'N' Bonez, inspired by watching repeats of the British sitcom "Steptoe and Son". While at school, he was part of a group of youths supported by The Prince's Trust who developed a community project which involved painting and gardening in Crowborough.

Career.

When he moved to Brighton, his friend Gi3mo formed the rap group Rum Committee and invited him to join them. He started performing at Slip-jam B, where he met people who helped him start his career. Over the next few years, they supported hip hop artists Pharoahe Monch and KRS-One at Brighton's Concorde 2, and released their own album titled "Boozetown" (2012) through Bandcamp and other digital stores. Just weeks before the Rum Committee album release, Rory Graham was asked to support Joan Armatrading at Brighton Dome. With no solo releases to his name to distribute on the night, he worked with Rum Committee producers Gi3mo and Sherlock Bones to create his first official release, the eight-track "Bluestown EP" (2012), which included one feature from the rap artist Ceezlin.

"Wolves" and "Disfigured" EPs (2011–2015).

In 2011, Graham started working with UK hip hop label High Focus Records, releasing a number of recordings with them such as a collaboration with MC/producer Leaf Dog titled "Dog 'n Bone EP" (2013) and a project with MC/producer Dirty Dike titled "Put That Soul on Me" (2014). Shortly afterwards, he began to collaborate with record producer Mark Crew, who at the time was working on Bastille's debut album "Bad Blood". Graham signed a publishing deal with Warner Chappell in 2013.  In 2014, in collaboration with Mark Crew, Graham released the EP "Wolves" through Best Laid Plans Records, containing nine tracks with guests including rapper Vince Staples, Stig of the Dump, and Kate Tempest. Graham, along with Skunk Anansie, also featured on Bastille's third mixtape, "VS.", on the song "Remains". His follow-up in 2015, the "Disfigured" EP, was also released through Best Laid Plans Records. The lead track "Bitter End" was playlisted on BBC Radio 1 Xtra, and made it onto BBC Radio 1's "In New Music We Trust" playlist.

"Human" (2016–present).

Graham's first hit single, "Human", was released on Columbia Records in July 2016. It peaked at number one in the official singles charts in Austria, Belgium, Germany and Switzerland. It was certified Gold in Austria, Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland. "Human" was used as the theme music to the Amazon Prime series "Oasis", in the official launch trailer for the video game "", in the trailer for the 2017 film "Thank You for Your Service", in the television series "Inhumans", and in the season 2 intro for the TV show "Into the Badlands". The song was also used in the outro for "Ash vs. Evil Dead" Season 3 Episode 9, as well as the "Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan" television series.  Graham's debut album, also titled "Human", was released on 10 February 2017. The album opens with the song "Human", features the single "Skin", and has tracks produced by Mark Crew, Two Inch Punch, and Jonny Coffer. The album won the BBC Music Award for British Album of the Year in 2017 and he was nominated for Artist of the Year. Later in 2017, Graham collaborated with British virtual band Gorillaz, appearing on the song "The Apprentice" from the deluxe edition of their fifth studio album "Humanz".  Graham also sang and co-wrote one of the songs, "Broken People", from Will Smith’s 2017 Netflix film "Bright".  In January 2019, Graham collaborated with Scottish DJ and record producer Calvin Harris to record the song "Giant". It peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. He also collaborated with the Italian singer Zucchero Fornaciari to write the song "Freedom", for the album "D.O.C.".

Personal life.

Graham and his wife, Beth Rouy, have a son named Reuben (born September 2017). They married in May 2019 at Lewes Registry Office. They have since separated.  Graham endorsed Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn in the 2017 UK general election. During an interview with Channel 4, he said he saw Corbyn as a "man that speaks with passion" and added that he could "relate to what [Corbyn] says and have never felt like that before".  Graham is a patron of the Brighton-based young people's music charity AudioActive. In an official statement for the charity, he said, "AudioActive are doing something to ensure that regardless of wealth or background, young people get a chance to be creative. I can't support that enough."

Rory Charles Graham (born 29 January 1985), better known as Rag'n'Bone Man, is an English singer and songwriter. He is known for his deep baritone voice. His first hit single, "Human", was released in 2016, and his debut album of the same name was released in 2017. At the 2017 Brit Awards, he was named British Breakthrough Act and received the Critics' Choice Award.


Club career.

Atlético / Rayo.

Pérez was born in A Coruña, Galicia. After appearing for three clubs as a youth he moved to Madrid and joined Atlético Madrid's C-team, playing two seasons in Tercera División. In summer 2009 he signed with Rayo Vallecano, helping the reserves promote from the same level in his first year.  In the 2010–11 season, Pérez contributed with five games and one goal (in a 3–0 home win against Real Valladolid on 6 November 2010) as Rayo returned to La Liga after eight years. He continued to be mainly registered with the B side, however.

Karpaty Lviv.

On 17 January 2011, free agent Pérez joined FC Karpaty Lviv on a three-year deal. He scored his first goal for the team on 17 July, against FC Chornomorets Odesa in a 1–1 Ukrainian Premier League draw.  Pérez netted a hat-trick on 4 November 2012 in a 4–0 home win over FC Kryvbas Kryvyi Rih, including a long-distance volley from a corner kick delivery. In January 2013 he joined fellow league club FC Dynamo Kyiv on loan for the remainder of the campaign, and later labelled his experience as "a nightmare".

PAOK / Deportivo.

On 5 July 2013, Pérez signed on a fee of €700,000 a three-year contract with Superleague Greece team PAOK FC. He scored his first competitive goal on 17 August, contributing to a 3–0 home success over Skoda Xanthi FC, and on 24 November he equalised in a 3–1 win over Aris Thessaloniki F.C. in the Derby of Northern Greece; he also helped to a runner-up run in the national cup, losing the decisive match to Panathinaikos FC.  On 18 July 2014, Pérez returned to Spain and joined his newly promoted hometown side Deportivo de La Coruña in a one-year loan deal, with a buyout clause. He scored in his first official appearance, having started in a 3–0 home win against Valencia CF on 19 October which also marked his La Liga debut; the following matchday he was replaced in the 15th minute of a 0–0 away draw against RCD Espanyol, due to a knee injury.  Pérez only returned to action in January of the following year, appearing 12 minutes in a 0–4 home loss against FC Barcelona. On 23 May, against the same opponent at the Camp Nou, he helped "Dépor" come from behind by scoring in the 67th minute of a 2–2 draw in the last round that prevented relegation.  On 23 July 2015, in his first competitive match upon his return to PAOK, against NK Lokomotiva for the second preliminary round of the UEFA Europa League, Pérez scored the opener after Róbert Mak's shot was saved, in an eventual 6–0 home success. One week later, against FC Spartak Trnava for the same competition, he netted the game's only goal in the first leg.  On 12 August 2015, Pérez signed a permanent four-year deal with Deportivo. On 12 December, he took his season tally to 11 goals in only 15 games, helping to a 2–2 draw at Barcelona.  Pérez totalled a career-best 17 goals at the end of the campaign, eventually helping his team escape relegation again.

Arsenal.

On 27 August 2016, Arsène Wenger said that Pérez had completed a medical examination in order to join Arsenal after the paperwork was done. Three days later the transfer was confirmed by the club, for a reported fee of £17.1 million. He made his competitive debut in the 2–1 Premier League home win over Southampton on 10 September, which coincided with both his birthday and that of teammate Laurent Koscielny, whom he assisted for his team's equaliser.  On 20 September 2016, during an EFL Cup away match against Nottingham Forest, Pérez scored his first goals for the Gunners, grabbing a brace in an eventual 4–0 triumph for the third round. On 6 December, he contributed with three goals in 39 minutes to a 4–1 away win over FC Basel in the UEFA Champions League's group stage, helping Arsenal win the group.  On 3 January 2017, Pérez netted for the first time in the domestic league, helping his team come back from 3–0 down to draw 3–3 at AFC Bournemouth. Towards the end of the month, he provided an assist to Danny Welbeck's first-ever brace for Arsenal, in a 5–0 away win against Southampton in the FA Cup.  On 31 August 2017, Pérez rejoined Deportivo on a season-long loan deal.

West Ham United.

On 9 August 2018, Pérez signed a three-year contract with West Ham United for a reported fee of £4 million. He made his league debut for his new club nine days later, coming on as a 77th-minute substitute for Mark Noble in a 1–2 home loss to Bournemouth. He scored his first goal for them on 26 September, in their 8–0 defeat of Macclesfield Town in the EFL Cup.  On 4 December 2018, Pérez scored his first league goals for 700 days: coming on for Marko Arnautović, he scored twice in a 3–1 home win against Cardiff City, becoming the first West Ham player to achieve the feat as a substitute since Paulo Wanchope in 2000.

Alavés.

In May 2019, West Ham accepted an offer from Deportivo Alavés for Peréz for a fee of €2.5m subject to a medical. He officially signed for the club on 3 June, making his league debut on 18 August by playing the last minutes of the 1–0 home victory over Levante UD. He scored his first goal on 29 September, the first in a 2–0 win against RCD Mallorca also at Mendizorrotza Stadium.  On 29 October 2019, Pérez equalised in a 1–1 home draw to Atlético Madrid, becoming the first Alavés player to score in five consecutive La Liga games since 1955. He repeated the feat the following match (at CA Osasuna, 4–2 loss), and in the process became their first player to achieve that in six consecutive fixtures. He found the net for the seventh time on 9 November against Real Valladolid, becoming the first player in the history of the competition to score in seven consecutive matches with two different teams, as he had done it before with Deportivo.

International career.

Pérez earned his first cap for the Galicia autonomous team on 20 May 2016, appearing in the 2–2 friendly with Venezuela.

Honours.

PAOK  Arsenal

Lucas Pérez Martínez (, born 10 September 1988) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a forward for Deportivo Alavés.