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Category Archives: Corporate Intrigue
Corporate Intrigue, Documentary
SIFF 2019: Halston (***)
May 29, 2019 Dennis Hartley	Leave a comment
(Originally posted on Digby's Hullabaloo on June 1, 2019)
Fashion…turn to the left! Beep-beep. If I had to name my two "least favorite" subjects, they'd be: sports, and fashion. I usually have to be dragged kicking and screaming into films dealing with either. However, it's my duty as a critic to cover all the bases (how I've suffered for you people…and fashion). Nonetheless, I found this portrait of the enigmatic gentleman who designed Jackie K's first pillbox hat to be fascinating and engrossing.
Big Money, Corporate Intrigue, Documentary, Politics
Can't buy me love: Dark Money (***½) & Generation Wealth (**)
August 6, 2018 Dennis Hartley	Leave a comment
(Originally posted on Digby's Hullabaloo on August 4, 2018)
If you want to know what God thinks of money, just look at the people he gave it to.
-Dorothy Parker
What is this "dark money" of which "they" speak these days? You know, "them"…all those smarty-pants news anchors and political pundits and conspiracy theorists on the internet, radio and TV who bandy the term about with worried tone and furrowed brows?
According to a new documentary by Kimbery Reed helpfully entitled Dark Money, that term should be bandied about with worried tone and furrowed brow. To paraphrase Jason Robards' wry understatement in All the President's Men: "Nothing's riding on this except the First Amendment to the Constitution, freedom of the press and maybe the future of the country." Oh…there is also a little matter of the continuing integrity of our elections.
Before you panic, I should clarify that there is a "New Coke" (New Koch?) element here. The implementation of "dark money" is nothing new. The concept of "buying an election" is deeply embedded in the DNA of our republic… it's as American as apple pie. It's just that the semantics have evolved. Terms like "graft" and "influence peddling" have been part of our lexicon for a long time ("a rose by any other name"…and all that).
Even the Father of Our Country played a little footsie under the table (some 30 years prior to the Constitution, no less). From a 2014 Washington Post article by Jamie Fuller:
When George Washington lost an election to the Virginia House of Burgesses in 1755, he decided to improve outreach. Two years later, he bought about $195 worth of punch and hard cider for friends and managed to win. However, the newly elected legislature quickly passed a law prohibiting candidates from giving voters "meat, drink, entertainment or provision or…any present, gift, reward, or entertainment etc. in order to be elected."
How quaint. The point of course is that campaign finance reform has unquestionably been there all along, as well. However, the effectiveness of such legislation is perennially…questionable. One thing's for sure…the Founding Fathers could never have envisioned the SCOTUS's "Citizens United" decision of 2010. Also from Fuller's piece:
2010-In Citizens United vs. FEC, the Supreme Court held that independent expenditures by corporations and labor unions were protected by the First Amendment, which struck down BCRA provisions—building on previous campaign finance laws—banning these types of expenditures.
A few months later, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals applied the decision in Citizens United to the case Speechnow.org v. FEC. The federal judges decided arguments that unlimited independent expenditures would lead to corruption were invalid. The chief judge noted that these arguments "plainly have no merit after Citizens United." These two cases paved the way for the creation of super PACs and the growing power of 501(c) 4s.
Man that is some byzantine postmodern influence peddling, in contrast to a couple jugs of hard cider and a set of wooden teeth. I am aware that most of Digby's regular readers are much more politically astute than I. But for someone like me, who doesn't know a "501(c) 4" from a petit four…you have to literally draw me a picture.
Thankfully, the "star" of Reed's documentary, investigative journalist and founder of the online Montana Free Press John S. Adams, does just that at one point in the film. He summarizes thus: "[Backdoor corporate campaign financing via super PACs] is not the people controlling the government. It's a government, controlled by a corporation, controlling the people."
Reed has found two perfect framing devices for her treatise; firstly, Adams with his mission to expose the insidiousness of elections that are ("thanks" to the Citizens United ruling) bought and sold by untraceable corporate money, and secondly the state of Montana itself, posited as the "front line" in the fight to preserve fair elections nationwide.
Montana makes a fascinating case study on many levels, from its "citizen legislature" (a unique practice shared by a handful of states), to its history of campaign finance reform (e.g. the "Corrupt Practices Act of 1912"). Rich in resources, the state has a sad tradition of being exploited by special interest groups; every level of their political system is dominated by corporate interests (not unlike many Third World countries, n'est-ce pas?).
Reed takes a few side trips around the country as well, to illustrate the many tendrils of dark money interests. For example, she points to the 2010 election of Wisconsin governor Scott Walker, whose victory was due in no small part to the Koch brothers-funded conservative political advocacy group Americans For Prosperity. Walker is also held up as an example of how crucial the control of state supreme courts is to dark money interests (pointing to his cronyism in appointing some of his major supporters as justices).
Admittedly, it's all a bit of a downer. Still, Reed gives us glimmers of hope here and there. Case in point: Beginning in February 2019, right here where I live, in Seattle, the "Democracy Voucher" program will kick in. As explained on the Seattle.gov website:
In November 2015, Seattle voters passed a citizen-led initiative known as "Honest Elections Seattle" (I-122). I-122 enacted several campaign finance reforms that changed the way campaigns are typically financed for Seattle candidates.
One major reform allows the Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission to distribute "Democracy Vouchers" to eligible Seattle residents. Other campaign reforms include campaign contribution limits for lobbyists and contractors.
Seattle is the first city in the nation to try this type of public campaign financing. The Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission is committed to increasing transparency, accountability, and accessibility for how Seattle elections are financed.
It's a start. But Seattle is only one city, and it's a big country (and look who's in charge).
If "dark money" is the antithesis of "democracy" to you, and gives you cause for concern, then this film is in your wheelhouse. Granted, if you are a political junkie Reed may be preaching to the choir, but her film is accessible enough to work for the casually engaged and/or wonky-curious voter as an easy-to-digest primer on a complex (and timely) issue.
Greed is the lack of confidence in one's own ability to create.
-Vanna Bonta
Here's a stupid question: Who wants to be a millionaire? Yeah, pretty much everybody. But is a million enough? And if not, why not? Why is it always "more more more (how do you like it, how do you like it?)". And why are people who have more than they could ever spend so goddam unhappy until they can figure out a new way to make even more?
In 2008, filmmaker and photo-journalist Lauren Greenfield set out to answer those questions. The culmination of her decade-long project is a "multi-platform" release including a museum exhibition, monograph book, and the documentary Generation Wealth. This is solely a review of the film portion of Greenfield's triptych.
Spurred by the accelerating worldwide obsession with wealth and all that it implies, Greenfield literally goes all over the map (L.A., Monaco, Russia, China) in this sprawling study. She profiles a jarringly disparate cavalcade of subjects, from porn stars and plastic surgery addicts to convicted Wall Street swindlers; people who have gained and lost fortunes, people who live beyond their means to feed their narcissism, to people who got fucked up because they were born into wealth…pretty much the entire, erm, rich pageant.
It's a great concept, and I understand what she was trying to do, but unfortunately, the project turns into a case of the dog finally catching the bus but not knowing what do next. Adding to the unfocused approach, and glorified reality show memes, Greenfield does a 180 and turns the camera on herself and her family.
In a tangential sense, this reminded me of one my favorite documentaries, Ross McElwee's Sherman's March, which began as a project to retrace the Union general's path of destruction through the South but ended up as rumination on the eternal human quest for love and validation, filtered through McElwee's search for the perfect mate. Now, there's one thing money can't buy.
Corporate Intrigue, Road Movie, Romantic Comedy, Social Satire
Blu-ray reissue: Lost in America ***1/2
December 11, 2017 Dennis Hartley	Leave a comment
(Originally posted on Digby's Hullabaloo on December 9, 2017)
Lost in America– Criterion Collection Blu-ray
Released at the height of Reaganomics, this 1985 gem can now be viewed in hindsight as a spot-on satirical smack down of the Yuppie cosmology that shaped the Decade of Greed. Director/co-writer Albert Brooks and Julie Hagerty portray a 30-something, upwardly mobile couple who quit their high-paying jobs, liquidate their assets, buy a Winnebago, and hit the road with a "nest egg" of $145,000 to find themselves. Their goals are nebulous ("we'll touch Indians").
Unfortunately, due to unforeseen circumstances, the "egg" is soon off the table, and the couple find themselves on the wrong end of "trickle down", to Brooks' chagrin. Like most Brooks films, it is as painfully funny as it is to watch it (I consider him the founding father of the Larry David/Ricky Gervais school of "cringe comedy"). Criterion's extras are skimpy, but the 2K restoration is fabulous.
Big Money, Conspiracy a-go-go, Corporate Intrigue, Politics
Kleptocracy Now: A Top 10 List
January 16, 2017 Dennis Hartley	Leave a comment
(Originally posted on Digby's Hullabaloo on January 14, 2017)
"To assess the 'personality' of the corporate 'person' a checklist is employed, using diagnostic criteria of the World Health Organization and the standard diagnostic tool of psychiatrists and psychologists. The operational principles of the corporation give it a highly anti-social 'personality': it is self-interested, inherently amoral, callous and deceitful; it breaches social and legal standards to get its way; it does not suffer from guilt, yet it can mimic the human qualities of empathy, caring and altruism."
– from the official website for the film, The Corporation
I don't know about you, but my jaw is getting pretty sore from repeatedly dropping to the floor with each successive cabinet nomination by our incoming CEO-in-chief of the United States of Blind Trust. It seems that candidate Trump, who ran on an oft-bleated promise to "drain the swamp" in Washington D.C. bears little resemblance to President-elect Trump, who is currently hell-bent on loading the place up with even more alligators.
When I heard the name "Rex Tillerson" bandied about as Trump's pick for Secretary of State, it rang a bell. I knew he was the former head of Exxon, so it wasn't that. Then I remembered. Mr. Tillerson was one of the "stars" of a documentary I reviewed several years back, called Greedy Lying Bastards (conversely, if I hear the words "greedy lying bastards," bandied about, "Trump's cabinet picks" is the first phrase that comes to mind).
So with that in mind, and in keeping with my occasional unifying theme, "Hollywood saw this coming", I was inspired to comb my review archives of the last 10 years to see if any bellwethers were emerging that may have been dropping hints that the planets were aligning in such a manner as to set up a path to the White House for an orange TV clown (the "self-interested, inherently amoral, callous and deceitful" kind of orange TV clown).
All 10 of these films were released within the last 10 years. I'll let you be the judge:
The Big Short – Want the good news first? Writer-director Adam McKay and co-scripter Charles Randolph's adaptation of Michael Lewis' eponymous 2010 non-fiction book is an outstanding comedy-drama; an incisive parsing of what led to the crash of the global financial system in 2008. The bad news is…it made me pissed off about it all over again.
Yes, it's a bitter pill to swallow, this ever-maddening tale of how we stood by, blissfully unaware, as unchecked colonies of greedy, lying Wall Street investment bankers were eventually able to morph into the parasitic gestalt monster journalist Matt Taibbi famously compared to a "…great vampire squid wrapped around the face of humanity, relentlessly jamming its blood funnel into anything that smells like money." Good times! (Full review)
Capitalism: A Love Story – Back in 2009, Digby and I did a double post on this film, which was Michael Moore's reaction to the 2008 crash. Here's how I viewed his intent:
So how did we arrive to this sorry state of our Union, where the number of banks being robbed by desperate people is running neck and neck with the number of desperate banks ostensibly robbing We The People? What paved the way for the near-total collapse of our financial system and its subsequent government bailout, which Moore provocatively refers to as nothing less than a "financial coup d'etat"? The enabler, Moore suggests, may very well be our sacred capitalist system itself-and proceeds to build a case (in his inimitable fashion) that results in his most engaging and thought-provoking film since Roger and Me […] at the end of the day I didn't really find his message to be so much "down with capitalism" as it is "up with people".
Digby gleaned something else from the film that did a flyover on me at the time:
But this movie, as Dennis notes, isn't really about saviors or criminals, although it features some of both. It's a call for citizens to focus their minds on what's actually gone wrong and take to the streets or man the barricades or do whatever defines political engagement in this day and age and demand that the people who brought us to this place are identified and that the system is reformed. Indeed, I would guess that if it didn't feature the stuff about capitalism being evil he could have shown this to audiences of all political stripes and most of the latent teabaggers would have given him a standing ovation.
If the film manages to focus the citizenry on the most important story of our time then it will be tremendously important. If it gets lost in a cacophony of commie bashing and primitive tribalism then it will probably not be recognized for what it is until sometime later. As with all of his films, he's ahead of the zeitgeist, so I am hopeful that this epic call to leftwing populist engagement is at the very least a hopeful sign of things to come.
She called it. "Someone" did tap into that populist sentiment; but sadly, it wasn't the Left.
The Corporation – While it's not news to any thinking person that corporate greed and manipulation affects everyone's life on this planet, co-directors Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott deliver the message in a unique and engrossing fashion. By applying a psychological profile to the rudiments of corporate think, Achbar and Abbott build a solid case; proving that if the "corporation" were corporeal, then "he" would be Norman Bates.
Mixing archival footage with observations from some of the expected talking heads (Michael Moore, Noam Chomsky, etc.) the unexpected (CEOs actually sympathetic with the filmmakers' point of view) along with the colorful (like a "corporate spy"), the film offers perspective not only from the watchdogs, but from the belly of the beast itself. Be warned: there are enough exposes trotted out here to keep conspiracy theorists, environmentalists and human rights activists tossing and turning in bed for nights on end.
The Forecaster – There's a conspiracy nut axiom that "everything is rigged". Turns out it's not just paranoia…it's a fact. At least that's according to this absorbing documentary from German filmmaker Marcus Vetter, profiling economic "forecaster" Martin Armstrong. In the late 70s, Armstrong formulated a predictive algorithm ("The Economic Confidence Model") that proved so accurate at prophesying global financial crashes and armed conflicts, that a shadowy cabal of everyone from his Wall Street competitors to the CIA made Wile E. Coyote-worthy attempts for years to get their hands on that formula.
And once Armstrong told the CIA to "fuck off", he put himself on a path that culminated in serving a 12-year prison sentence for what the FBI called a "3 billion dollar Ponzi scheme". Funny thing, no evidence was ever produced, nor was any judgement passed (most of the time he served was for "civil contempt"…for not giving up that coveted formula, which the FBI eventually snagged when they seized his assets). Another funny thing…Armstrong's formula solidly backs up his contention that it's the world's governments running the biggest Ponzi schemes…again and again, all throughout history.
And something tells me that we ain't seen nuthin' yet…
Greedy Lying Bastards – I know it's cliché to quote Joseph Goebbels, but: "If you repeat a lie often enough, it becomes the truth." That's the theme of Craig Rosebraugh's 2013 documentary. As one interviewee offers: "On one side you have all the facts. On the other side, you have none. But the folks without the facts are far more effective at convincing the public that this is not a problem, than scientists are about convincing them that we need to do something about this." What is the debate in question here? Global warming.
Using simple but damning flow charts, Rosebraugh follows the money and connects dots between high-profile deniers ("career skeptics…in the business of selling doubt") and their special interest sugar daddies. Shills range from media pundits (with no background in hard science) to members of Congress, presidential candidates and Supreme Court justices. Think tanks and other organizations are exposed as mouthpieces for Big Money.
Sadly, the villains outnumber the heroes-which is not reassuring. What does reassure are suggested action steps in the film's coda…which might come in handy after January 20th. (Full review)
Inside Job – I have good news and bad news about documentary filmmaker Charles Ferguson's incisive parsing of what led to the crash of the global financial system in 2008. The good news is that I believe I finally grok what "derivatives" and "toxic loans" are. The bad news is…that doesn't make me feel any better about how fucked we are.
Ferguson starts where the seeds were sown-rampant financial deregulation during the Reagan administration ("morning in America"-remember?). The film illustrates, point by point, how every subsequent administration, Democratic and Republican alike, did their "part" to enable the 2008 crisis- through political cronyism and legislative manipulation. The result of this decades long circle jerk involving Wall Street, the mortgage industry, Congress, the White House and lobbyists (with Ivy League professors as pivot men) is what we are still living with today…and I suspect it is about to get unimaginably worse. (Full review)
The International – Get this. In the Bizarro World of Tom Tykwer's conspiracy thriller, people don't rob banks…. banks rob people. That's crazy! And if you think that's weird, check this out: at one point in the film, one of the characters puts forth the proposition that true power belongs to he who controls the debt. Are you swallowing this malarkey? The filmmakers even go so far as to suggest that some Third World military coups are seeded by powerful financial groups and directed from shadowy corporate boardrooms…
What a fantasy! (Not.)
The international bank in question is under investigation by an Interpol agent (Clive Owen), who is following a trail of shady arms deals all over Europe and the Near East that appear to be linked to the organization. Whenever anyone gets close to exposing the truth about the bank's Machiavellian schemes, they die under mysterious circumstances. Once the agent teams up with an American D.A. (Naomi Watts), much more complexity ensues, with tastefully-attired assassins lurking behind every silver-tongued bank exec.
The timing of the film's release (in 2010) was interesting, in light of the then-current banking crisis and plethora of financial scandals. Screenwriter Eric Singer (no relation to the KISS drummer) based certain elements of the story on the real-life B.C.C.I. scandal. (Full review)
The Queen of Versailles — In Lauren Greenfield's 2012 doc, billionaire David Siegel shares an anecdote about his 52-story luxury timeshare complex in Vegas. In 2010, Donald Trump called him and said, "Congratulations on your new tower! I've got one problem with it. When I stay in my penthouse suite, I look out the window and all I see is 'WESTGATE'. Could you turn your sign down a little bit?" (how he must have suffered).
While Greenfield's portrait of Siegal, his wife Jackie, their eight kids, nanny, cook, maids, chauffeur and (unknown) quantity of yippy, prolifically turd-laying teacup dogs is chock full of wacky "you couldn't make this shit up" reality TV moments, there is an elephant in the room…the family's unfinished Orlando, Florida mansion, the infamous "largest home in America", a 90,000 square foot behemoth inspired by the palace at Versailles. Drama arises when the bank threatens to foreclose on it, along with the PH Towers Westgate. So does the family end up living in cardboard boxes? I'm not telling.
However, there is a more chilling message, buried near the end of the film. When Siegel boasts he was "personally responsible" for the election of George W. Bush in 2000, the director asks him to elaborate. "I'd rather not say," he replies, "…because it may not necessarily have been legal." Any further thoughts? "Had I not stuck my big nose into it, there probably would not have been an Iraqi War, and maybe we would have been better off…I don't know." Gosh, imagine a billionaire having the power to "buy" the POTUS of their choice. Worse yet, imagine a similarly odious billionaire becoming the POTUS. Oh. (Full review)
Welcome to New York — While it is not a "action thriller" per se, Abel Ferrara's film is likewise "ripped from the headlines", involves an evil banker, and agog with backroom deals and secret handshakes. More specifically, the film is based on the Dominique Strauss-Kahn scandal. In case you need a refresher, he was the fine fellow who was accused and indicted for an alleged sexual assault and attempted rape of a maid employed by the ritzy NYC hotel he was staying at during a 2011 business trip. The case was dismissed after the maid's credibility was brought into question (Strauss-Kahn later admitted in a TV interview that a liaison did occur, but denied any criminal wrongdoing).
I'm sure that the fact that Strauss-Kahn was head of the International Monetary Fund at the time (and a front-runner in France's 2012 presidential race) had absolutely nothing to do with him traipsing out from the sordid affair smelling like a rose (as of this writing, we don't know the veracity of intelligence reports alleging shenanigans in a Russian hotel room that involve a "certain" President-elect, so I won't draw any parallels…just sayin').
It is interesting watching the hulking Gerard Depardieu wrestle with the motivations (and what passes as the "conscience") of his Dostoevskian character. It doesn't make this creep any more sympathetic, but it is a fearless late-career performance, as naked (literally and emotionally) as Brando was playing a similarly loathsome study in Last Tango in Paris. Jacqueline Bisset gives a good supporting turn as the long-suffering wife. (Full review)
The Yes Men Fix the World – Anti-corporate activist/pranksters Andy Bichlbaum and Mike Bonanno (aka "The Yes Men") and co-director Kurt Engfehr come out swinging, vowing to do a take-down of a powerful nemesis…an Idea. If money makes the world go 'round, then this particular Idea is the one that oils the crank on the money-go-round, regardless of the human cost. It is the free market cosmology of economist Milton Friedman, which the Yes Men posit as the root of much evil in the world.
Once this springboard is established, the fun begins. Perhaps "fun" isn't the right term, but there are hijinks afoot, and you'll find yourself chuckling through most of the film (when you're not crying). However, the filmmakers have a loftier goal than mining laughs: corporate accountability; and ideally, atonement. "Corporate accountability" is an oxymoron, but one has to admire the dogged determination (and boundless creativity) of the Yes Men and their co-conspirators, despite the odds. It's a call to activism that is as timely as ever. (Full review)
2017 ReviewsTop 10 Lists
Big Money, Corporate Intrigue, Documentary
Horrible bosses: Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine ***
October 2, 2015 Dennis Hartley	Leave a comment
(Originally posted on Digby's Hullabaloo on September 13, 2015)
"How big of an asshole do you have to be to be successful?"
I am so glad you asked that rhetorical question, Random Guy from the new documentary Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine, because it's a conundrum I have often pondered myself (speaking as one of those "nice guys" who is doomed to "…always finish last").
Maybe it depends on how you define "success". Join me in welcoming our musical panel:
First you get that money, then you get that power
If you tune ya nose up, boy he on that powder
-from "Power" by Young Thug
Thanks, Y.T. You say money is the starter. But isn't there a nicer way to get the money?
If you want to be rich
You've got to be a bitch
-from "White Horse" by Laid Back
I see. But what about the aesthetic? Money doesn't speak for anything; as does, say…art.
Not like you
-from "Pablo Picasso" by the Modern Lovers
Jeez, no need to be insulting…but I think I hear what you're saying. Back to the review…
So, was Steve Jobs an asshole? Was he a soulless capitalist? Or was he an aesthete, as he frequently positioned himself? Is it possible he was both soulless capitalist and aesthete?
Director Alex Gibney (Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief, We Steal Secrets: The Story of Wikileaks, Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room) tackles the dichotomous nature of the Steve Jobs mystique head on in his latest film (in theaters and available on VOD). Gibney borrows a page from Citizen Kane; opening with the massive media coverage of Jobs' passing and the (surprising) profundity of the grief around the world, then running the chalk backward from there in hopes of unearthing his "Rosebud".
Good luck, right? Like Gibney, I was amazed by images of candlelight vigils and tearful consumers holding iPhones aloft like sacred talismans. Yes, it was sad, but it's not like he was Gandhi; I don't necessarily get misty-eyed over Alexander Graham Bell whenever my phone rings. It's interesting that Gibney's previous film was about Scientology, as there is an undercurrent to the Jobs/Apple success story that always struck me as cultish (ever received one of those "PC vs Mac" sermons from a Mac disciple? Jesus H. Christ!).
Gibney doesn't expend much screen time on Jobs' pre-Apple biography; a judicious choice considering it's been retold ad nauseam in previous documentaries, feature films, books, print articles, blogs, and stories around the campfire (college dropout, trip to India, study of Buddhism, Steve and Woz in the garage, blah blah blah).
This is more the story of Apple, which ultimately is the story of Jobs anyway, because in essence he was the corporation (and the corporation was him). This is an unauthorized project, so Gibney lets all the poisons that lurk in the mud hatch out. Jobs was a marketing genius and major game changer, but (just like a corporation) he did also show a few sociopathic tendencies.
I've never owned an Apple product, nor hungered for further details regarding Steve Jobs' rise to iconography than have already been chiseled into the stone tablets of Silicon Valley mythology. That said, I learned a few things about Jobs' personal life that were new to me.
On a sliding scale, this is one of the more compelling documentaries about him. If you miss this one, don't despair, because you shouldn't have to wait too long for the next Steve Jobs biopic. Oh look, here comes one now! Danny Boyle's Steve Jobs is due out on October 9th, with Michael Fassbender in the lead. Put that in your Blackberry.
UPDATE: He has risen. There is a corollary linking the Jobs legacy to the current Syrian refugee crisis in the form of an internet meme that has been gaining momentum over the past week. As you may (or may not) be aware, Jobs' biological father was a Syrian political refugee. It's a hopeful reminder of what America is supposed to be about, and an immunization against the moronic, knee-jerk fear-mongering already being propagated about how ISIS operatives will surely embed themselves with U.S bound Syrian refugees.
Send these, the homeless, the tempest-tossed, to me. Except for you. I didn't mean you.
Good god.
Big Money, Corporate Intrigue, Drama
Rich and strange: Welcome to New York **1/2
(Originally posted on Digby's Hullabaloo on April 4, 2015)
In my 2009 review of Tom Tykwer's conspiracy thriller, The International, I observed:
The timing of the film's release is interesting, in light of the current banking crisis and plethora of financial scandals. From what I understand, certain elements of the story are based on the B.C.C.I. scandal. I predict this will become the new trend in screen villains-the R. Allen Stanfords and Bernie Madoffs seem heaven-sent to replace Middle-Eastern terrorists as the newest Heavies du Jour in action thrillers. You can take that to the bank.
While it is not a "action thriller" per se, Abel Ferrara's new film, Welcome to New York, is likewise "ripped from the headlines", involves an evil banker, and agog with backroom deals and secret handshakes. More specifically, the film is based on the Dominique Strauss-Kahn scandal. In case you need a refresher, he was the fine fellow who was accused and indicted for an alleged sexual assault and attempted rape of a maid employed by the ritzy NYC hotel he was staying at during a 2011 business trip.
The case was dismissed after the maid's credibility was brought into question (Strauss-Kahn later admitted in a TV interview that a liaison did occur, but denied any criminal wrongdoing). I'm sure that the fact that Strauss-Kahn happened to be head of the International Monetary Fund at the time (and a front-runner in France's 2012 presidential race) had absolutely nothing to do with him traipsing out from the sordid affair smelling like a rose.
There's no question that Bronx native Ferrara loves New York; nearly all of the two dozen or so films to his credit have been set in the Big Apple. And like many New Yorkers, Ferrara loves a parade, which is likely why he opens his new film with a veritable parade of high-priced call girls, rotating in and out of one particular NYC hotel room in cadres of three or four at a time. Their insatiable client is one Mr. Devereaux (Gerard Depardieu), a powerful international financier. Sweaty, wheezing and boorish, he's nobody's dream date, but the sad fact remains…money talks, bullshit walks (bringing to mind my favorite line from Swingers: "What do you drive?").
Sometime after the revelries subside, a maid enters (thinking the room unoccupied), and encounters our apparently still frisky Mr. Devereaux, fresh from the shower. Ferrara cleverly (and thankfully) pulls away before we can bear witness to what happens next, but then devotes the remainder of the film dealing with the fallout.
This film left me feeling ambivalent; I think this is because the director seems ambivalent toward his subject. Not that a film inspired by a true story (especially one that so closely mirrors the actual events) is required to be didactic, or a morality play, but Ferrara has taken a hyper-realistic approach that can be stultifying at times.
Still, it was a pleasant surprise to see Jacqueline Bisset back on the big screen (as Devereaux's long-suffering wife). She seems to have made a graceful transition into a full-blooded performer; while perennially easy on the eye, I always found her characterizations wooden-but she puts more "character" into her work nowadays.
It is interesting watching the hulking Depardieu wrestle with the motivations (and what passes as the "conscience") of his Dostoevskian character. It doesn't make this creep any more sympathetic, but it is a fearless late-career performance, as naked (literally and emotionally) as Brando was playing a similarly loathsome study in Last Tango in Paris (not to go so far as to say that Ferrara is quite in the same league as Bertolucci, mind you).
Action, Corporate Intrigue, Dystopian, Sci-Fi
I bling the body electric: Chappie ***
(Originally posted on Digby's Hullabaloo on March 7, 2015)
The mathematician/cryptologist I.J. Good (an Alan Turing associate) once famously postulated:
Let an ultra-intelligent machine be defined as a machine that can far surpass all the intellectual activities of any man…however clever. Since the design of machines is one of these intellectual activities, an ultra-intelligent machine could design even better machines; there would then unquestionably be an 'intelligence explosion', and the intelligence of man would be left far behind. Thus, the first ultra-intelligent machine is the last invention that man need ever make, provided that the machine is docile enough to tell us how to keep it under control.
Good raised this warning in 1965, about the same time director Stanley Kubrick and sci-fi writer Arthur C. Clarke were formulating the narrative that would evolve into both the novel and film versions of 2001: a Space Odyssey. And it's no coincidence that the "heavy" in 2001 was an ultra-intelligent machine that wreaks havoc once its human overseers lose "control" …Good was a consultant on the film.
While the "A-I gone awry" prototype dates as far back as the metallic "Maria" in the 1927 silent Metropolis, it was "HAL 9000" that took techno-phobia to a new level, spawning a sci-fi film sub-genre that includes The Demon Seed, Colossus: The Forbin Project, Blade Runner, The Terminator, Robocop, I, Robot, and (of course) A.I. Artificial Intelligence.
There are echoes of all the aforementioned (plus a large orange soda) in Chappie, the third feature film from South African writer-director Neill Blomkamp. In this outing, Blomkamp returns to his native Johannesburg (which provided the backdrop for his 2009 debut, District 9). And for the third time in a row, his story takes place in a near-future dystopia (call me Sherlock, but I'm sensing a theme).
Johannesburg is a crime-riddled hellhole, ruled by ultra-violent drug lords and roving gangs of thugs. The streets are so dangerous that the police department is reticent to put officers on the front lines. So they do what any self-respecting police department of a near-future dystopia does…they send droids out to apprehend criminals.
The popularity of these programmable robocops has created lucrative contracts for Tetravaal, the company which employs mild-mannered designer Deon (Dev Patel). In his spare time, Deon has been working on an A.I. chip that approximates "consciousness".
Jacked on Red Bull, Deon pulls an all-niter and makes his breakthrough. Excited, Deon approaches Tetravaal's CEO (Sigourney Weaver) with a proposal to work up a prototype. Unfortunately, she doesn't share his vision, and Deon is laughed out of her office. Who needs a police droid with "feelings", right?
Determined to carry out his experiment, he re-appropriates a damaged droid scheduled for destruction. Before he can make it safely home, he is carjacked and abducted by a trio of inept gang bangers (Ninja, Yolandi Visser, and Jose Pablo Cantillo) who figure they can coerce Deon into securing them a remote control that shuts down police droids (they are only speculating such a device exists).
What they do end up with is a droid with self-awareness, and the ability to absorb and mimic human behavior. Will he "grow up" as the enlightened being that his Gepetto-like creator intended, or will he turn into the "gangsta" that his thug "Daddy" wants him to be?
Through their creation of the character "Chappie", Blomkamp and co-writer Terri Tatchell have managed to put a fresh spin on a well-worn trope. When you cut through all the obligatory action tropes, "his" story resonates at its core with a universal, timeless appeal. The film has more in common with Oliver Twist than with Robocop. Chappie is, by definition of his inception, an "orphan"; innocent and pure of heart. The child-like droid is shuffled by fate into the thug life, where he is tutored in street smarts and criminal behavior by "Ninja", who plays Fagin to his Oliver (on one level, Blomkamp and Tatchell are exploring the "nature vs nurture" theme).
This is a return to form for the director, especially after his slightly disappointing sophomore effort Elysium. I really got a kick out of the performances, especially the scene-stealing Ninja and Visser, who are slumming from their day job as rap outfit Die Antwoord (apparently popular with the "zef" crowd…I'll let you look that up, like grandpa had to prepping this review). Hugh Jackman hams it up as a heavy, and Blomkamp's favorite leading man Sharlto Copley does a marvelous job breathing "life" and personality into Chappie (move over, Andy Serkis). BTW, despite my references to Pinocchio and David Copperfield, this one is definitely not for the kids; it's rated 'R' .
Big Money, Biopic, Corporate Intrigue, True Crime
Oh, that mean, mean, mean, lean green: The Wolf of Wall Street ***1/2
(Originally posted on Digby's Hullabaloo on January 4, 2014)
Do funny things to some people: DiCaprio in The Wolf of Wall Street
A few weeks back, in my review of David O. Russell's American Hustle, I wrote that the film was "…best described as New Yorkers screaming at each other for an interminable 2 hours and 19 minutes". I went on to lament that it was "…kinda like GoodFellas, except not as stylish." OK, so it's time for full disclosure.
On one level, The Wolf of Wall Street, Martin Scorsese's very similarly-themed film, could be described as "New Yorkers screaming at each other for three hours" (and I suppose that technically, most Scorsese films fit that bill). One could also say that it is "…kinda like GoodFellas". However in this case, it is as stylish…because (as they say) there ain't nuthin' like the real thing, baby.
The American hustle takes many forms. For example, your everyday "con artists" can't hold a candle to the institutional grifters of Wall Street. And when it comes to the American Oligarchy, nothing exceeds like excess.
That axiom seems to propel Scorsese's deliriously vulgar, spun-out tweaker of a biopic, based on the 2007 memoir by Jordan Belfort, a successful "penny" stockbroker whose career crashed in 1998, when he was indicted for securities fraud and money laundering. Belfort wasn't shy about reveling in his wealth; and Scorsese is not shy about reveling in Belfort's revels.
Breaking the fourth wall and addressing the camera a la Ray Liotta's protagonist in GoodFellas, Belfort (Leonardo DiCaprio) narrates his own rise and fall with that air of smug, coked-out alacrity that has become de rigueur for such self-styled Masters of the Universe.
We see the wide-eyed neophyte at his first brokerage gig, where he receives the first of several variations on the classic "second prize is a set of steak knives" monologue from Glengarry Glen Ross that screenwriter Terence Winter sprinkles throughout The Wolf of Wall Street, delivered by his boss (Matthew McConaughey). He imparts a dictum that comes to define Jordan's career: "Fuck the client." He also ascribes his financial acumen to a daily regimen of masturbation and cocaine consumption (hmm…a few possible root causes for the Global Financial Crisis are suddenly coming into focus, eh?).
Belfort takes to both the work and the lifestyle like a fish to water, soon becoming a top earner. However, when a recession hits (1988, I'm guessing?) he finds himself unceremoniously out of a gig. After scraping by for a spell, he lands a job at a low-rent Long Island brokerage that specializes in "penny stocks". His effortless mastery of the "boiler room" bait-and-switch playbook gives him the inspiration to start his own brokerage.
With a stalwart (if initially ungainly-seeming) right-hand man named Donnie Azoff (Jonah Hill) by his side, Belfort leases a vacant warehouse, persuades some of his pot dealer pals and boiler room co-workers to come aboard, bestows the business with a prestigious-sounding moniker ("Stratton Oakmont"), and he's off to the proverbial races.
The 1990's turn out to be belly belly good to Stratton Oakmont, which starts raking in money by the truckload, in fact so much that Belfort starts running out of ways to spend it and places to put it (hello, Switzerland!). I mean, you can only buy so many cars, mansions and yachts, snort so much coke, drop so many 'ludes, and hire so many hookers (or little people, to be tossed at Velcro targets) before you have to really start getting creative. But…but…what about the victims of the financial scams Belfort and co. cooked up in order to make all that filthy lucre, you might ask? Well, fuck them!
This is the most polarizing aspect of the film; and indeed Scorsese has been catching considerable flak from some quarters for seemingly glorifying the bad, bad behavior of the perpetrators, and barely acknowledging the countless number of people who were fleeced by these scam artists.
To my perception, however, that is precisely the point of the film-to demonstrate how inherently corrupt the culture of Wall Street is. It is a culture that rewards the Jordan Belforts and Michael Milkens of the world for their arrogance and enables them to thrive. Oh sure, eventually they "get caught" and "pay" for their crimes, but more often than not it amounts to a slap on the wrist (Belfort and Milken both served a whopping 22 months in jail), after which they happily reinvent themselves; in this case Belfort as a motivational speaker, Milken as a philanthropist. It's the American Way!
This is one of Scorsese's most engaging films in years, and a return to form; even if its overdose of style borders on self-parody (Swooping crane shots! Talking directly to the camera! Hip music cues! Marty does Marty!).
I probably should warn anyone who is offended by excessive use of profanity…there is excessive use of profanity (according to Variety, the film has set the all-time record for what they timidly refer to as "the f-bomb"…506 utterances (Fuck! I feel sorry for the poor fucker who had to sit through all three hours pushing a fucking clicker every time someone said "fuck". I hope he gets fucking Workman's Comp for the fucking carpal tunnel. Fuck!).
DiCaprio and Hill pull out all the stops in their over-the-top performances; but then again they are playing over-the-top characters, so it is apropos. Other standouts among the sizable cast include Rob Reiner (as Belfort's father) and the always delightful Joanna Lumley and Jean Dujardin (adding continental class as Belfort's British aunt and Swiss banker, respectively). As your movie broker, I advise you to buy a share (or ticket) immediately.
Hard driver – Steve Jobs: The Lost Interview ***
Steve Jobs: The Lost Interview is just that; it is literally "found footage" discovered in director Paul Sen's garage at his London home. The interview runs about 70 minutes; only 10 minutes of the footage ended up being used for the original miniseries presentation. It may be a bit dubious to label this as a "documentary" when you consider that a) the tape was found last month, which allows scant time for post-production (it shows), and b) it is basically just a VHS dub of an unedited interview that was conducted in 1995 by Robert Cringely for Sen's 1996 PBS miniseries called Triumph of the Nerds: The Rise and Fall of Accidental Empires. In other words, don't expect a slick production (although…the press screener I viewed was subtitled "rough cut" so it's possible the version in theaters will be polished up). That being said, as an historical document, it's a doozey.
Famously, Jobs had a tendency to shun in-depth interviews (perhaps due to some, oh, I don't know, control issues?) which is what makes this piece so riveting. He's relaxed and quite candid throughout; it's obvious that he trusted Cringely. The whole of Jobs' dichotomy is laid out right there in that 70 minute conversation-the charisma, the vision, the shrewd intelligence -as well as the ego, the arrogance and the snarkiness. Jobs is also frequently quite funny (which I didn't expect), especially when he's ripping Bill Gates a new asshole with a few choice comments ("The only problem with Microsoft is that they just have no taste."). He's also a master of the Double Putdown, chasing his zingers with "…and I don't mean that in a small way."
To be honest, I've always been somewhat immune to the Cult of Steve Jobs. While I certainly understand and appreciate the game-changing nature of his innovations, I've never owned an iMac or an iPod or an iPad. But I have to say, this film was a real iOpener for me. I think I "get it" now. Oh, Bill? You can have your ring back…
Big Money, Corporate Intrigue, Family Issues, On Politics
This band of Lehman Brothers-Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps **1/2
July 4, 2015 Dennis Hartley	Leave a comment
Don't evah take sides against the family again. Evah.
Has it really been 23 years since writer-director Oliver Stone and co-scripter Stanley Weiser first "released the Gekko" in Wall Street? Michael Douglas' indelible portrayal of a ruthless, soulless corporate raider transformed the character of "Gordon Gekko" into the pop culture figurehead for the Decade of Excess. Gekko's immortal credo-"Greed, for lack of a better word…is good"-became a mantra for self-absorbed yuppies and anathema to anti-corporate activists.
Of course, with Oliver Stone being the lib'rul, anti-'Murcan, Chavez-lovin' DFH filmmaker that he is, he wasn't about to let Gekko get off scot-free for his veritable laundry list of highly profitable capitalist crimes. When we last saw him at the end of the 1987 film he was getting hauled away by the Feds, after being betrayed by his protégé (who learned from the best). It looked like the man who once admitted that "I create nothing…I own" was about to learn a new creative skill-how to make license plates.
The real world has since not only merged with Stone's hellish vision of a financial system driven by the avarice and bemused gamesmanship of a handful of self-serving weasels who "create" nothing but bigger piles of personal treasure, but surpassed it. The real life Gekkos of the 80s, like Michael Milken and Ivan Boesky (who also ended up in handcuffs) have since been eclipsed by financial super villains like Bernie Madoff. And so it goes.
In view of current events (I assume) Stone and co-writers Allan Loeb and Stephen Schiff have seen fit to resurrect Gordon Gekko, in the new film Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps. In the prelude we catch up with Gekko in 2001, as he is being released from prison. Stone has a little fun with this sequence, especially as Gekko's personal effects are summarily returned to him. "One gold money clip…no money," says the poker-faced clerk. The biggest audience laugh in the film is prompted by a cameo of Gekko's elephantine DynaTAC mobile phone, an amusing techno-relic from our not-so-distant past.
Fast-forward to 2008, on the eve of the Lehman Brothers collapse. Gekko is making a comfortable living (if not up to the standards to which he had been accustomed) on the lecture circuit, where he is plugging that inevitable memoir that every white collar crook publishes after getting out of prison. In the meantime, we are introduced to an up and coming young Wall Streeter named Jake (Shia LaBeouf) and his girlfriend Winnie (Carey Mulligan)-a liberal blogger who happens to be Gekko's daughter. Winnie has disowned her father for years, blaming him for a family tragedy.
Unlike the recklessly ambitious young stockbroker played by Charlie Sheen in the previous film, Jake brings a certain amount of idealism to his work; he is trying to steer his employers (a group of investment bankers) toward putting capital into "green" projects (talk about lost causes). The only sympathetic ear belongs to his long-time mentor, Louis (Frank Langella) who is the managing director of the company. Louis is also a Wall Street rarity-a thoughtful man who actually seems to possess a heart and soul; you can glean why Jake looks up to him.
All bets are off, however, when the financial collapse of 2008 intervenes, and Jake's employers feel themselves beginning to circle the drain. When Louis attempts to finagle a government bailout, he finds himself "Gekkoed" by an old rival, Bretton James (Josh Brolin), who buys out the company at pennies on the dollar.
Although he knows his girlfriend (and now fiancée) would not be pleased, the suddenly rudderless Jake, curious about his future father-in-law, introduces himself after attending one of Gekko's public appearances. The two begin a cautious relationship, based on "trades". Gekko wants to re-bond with Winnie; Jake wants to exact Machiavellian revenge on Bretton James. Of course, this is Gordon Gekko-so maybe he has his own Machiavellian plan brewing here.
Curiously, Stone has not so much made "Wall Street 2" here, but remade Godfather III. Gekko is at a point in his life not unlike that of Michael Corleone in the aforementioned film. He is older, his empire has crumbled, and the pull of the abyss is now more palpable than the lure of acquisition. Both characters are taking inventory of their past; and each man, in his own self-deluding fashion, is making atonement for his sins.
And Stone's emphasis, as was Coppola's, is on the family melodrama, not the family "business". It's about trust and betrayal. It's about the father-daughter relationship. I could go on with the parallels (and point out that weirdly, Eli Wallach has a supporting role in both films), but at this point, you're likely wondering about the most important consideration: does Stone tell an interesting story? Well, that depends on what you seek.
If you seek the Oliver Stone of Salvador, Talk Radio, and JFK– i.e., the passionate, angry prophet of the American cinema, denouncing the hypocrisy of our times, you might want to look elsewhere. Considering the potential he had here to be "bullish" and deliver a scathing, spleen-venting indictment of our royally fucked-up financial system, Stone is leaning more on the "bearish" side.
On the other hand, if you're up for a slightly better-than-average family soaper (with a beautifully captured NYC backdrop by DP Rodrigo Prieto), then go for it. Douglas steals the show as Gekko. Langella is excellent. Brolin is suitably slimy as the villain. Also, it was fun to see Austin Pendleton (!) back on the big screen.
Not all of the casting works; Susan Sarandon's formidable talents are wasted. As for the leading man-this was only my second exposure to LaBeouf (my first was when he hosted Saturday Night Live a while back, when I said to myself- "Shia who?") so I'm ambivalent about his performance; it's not "bad"-but not particularly noteworthy either. I hope that Stone (and know I am a fan) still has more great films in him down the road. It would be a lesser, more complacent universe where people felt compelled to say "Oliver who?"


text:
Peter Anthony Scott Farquhar (3 January 1946 – 26 October 2015) was a British novelist and former teacher of English for 34 years, at the Manchester Grammar School and Stowe School. He later lectured at Buckingham University.

Early life

Peter Farquhar was born in Edinburgh on 3 January 1946, the son of a physician. He was educated at Latymer Upper School in London and then Churchill College, Cambridge, where he achieved a first-class degree in English.

Career

Farquhar was a teacher of English for 34 years, firstly at the Manchester Grammar School (1970–82) and then Stowe School (1983–2004). From 2007 he was an occasional lecturer at Buckingham University. He was described by his friend and former pupil at Manchester, Michael Crick, as having "an acute understanding of the problems of modern adolescent boys. For some, he became almost like a second father."

His first novel, A Wide Wide Sea, a coming-of-age story about three teenagers from Edinburgh who travel to France and Spain on a voyage of self-discovery, was written in 1997 but not published until 2015. It was only published after two Buckingham University students, Ben Field and Martyn Smith, discovered the manuscript and persuaded Farquhar to publish it. His novel, Between Boy and Man, was published in 2010. The plot was heavily based on Farquhar's experience at Stowe School and concerns the struggle of a school chaplain to reconcile his Christian faith with his homosexuality.

The character of Dr Farquhar, played by Toby Stephens in the 2013 film Believe, directed by the former Manchester Grammar School pupil David Scheinmann, was partly based on Farquhar.

Farquhar was an evangelical Christian who once considered becoming a minister. He worshipped and preached at Stowe Parish Church for 20 years.

Murder
Farquhar died in Maids Moreton, Buckinghamshire, on 26 October 2015. His death was recorded as accidental as the result of acute alcohol intoxication. He was "betrothed" to former student Benjamin Field in 2015 and was survived by his brother, Ian. In January 2018, Field and magician friend Martyn Smith were arrested by police on suspicion of murdering Farquhar and attempting to murder his neighbour Ann Moore-Martin, 83. During his trial at Oxford Crown Court, Field admitted to drugging Farquhar with benzodiazepines and hallucinogens to "torment" him, telling the jury that he did it "for no other reason other than it was cruel, to upset and torment Peter – purely out of meanness". He also spiked his drink with bioethanol and Poitín in order to make him question his sanity, a form of gaslighting. According to prosecutors, Field suffocated Farquhar when he was too weak to resist.

On 9 August 2019, Benjamin Field was convicted of his murder, and on 18 October 2019 sentenced to life imprisonment.  Field was acquitted of the attempted murder of Moore-Martin.

"A Diary From the Grave", a documentary about the murders, aired on 13 January 2020 on Channel 4 as part of the Catching a Killer series.

Selected publications
 Between Boy and Man. AuthorHouse, 2010.
 A Bitter Heart. AuthorHouse, 2012.
 A Wide Wide Sea. Farquhar Studies, 2015.

In popular media
In 2020, BBC One commissioned The Sixth Commandment, a true crime drama written by Sarah Phelps about the murder.

References

2015 deaths
Writers from Edinburgh
Schoolteachers from Edinburgh
People educated at Latymer Upper School
Alumni of Churchill College, Cambridge
1946 births
Scottish novelists
Scottish evangelicals
Scottish murder victims
People murdered in England
2015 murders in the United Kingdom

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
WORLD: INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLIES
USA vs Serbia Live Score and Live Stream
USA played Serbia in a friendly match on January 26. The match kicked off 03:00 UTC. Serbia won 1-2.
USA national football team (also known as United States) and Serbia national football team meet again 6 years after the friendly match which ended in a draw 0-0. USA national football team are aproaching the match after a defeat from Netherlands on December 3.
Serbia national football team are preparing for the match after a loss against Switzerland in Group G on December 2 failing to win in 3 straight games. They're going to need to sort out the problems in the back first to improve the results as they have been conceding goals for 4 consecutive matches now.
ScoreBat is covering USA vs Serbia in real time, providing the live stream and live score of the match, team line-ups, full match stats, live match commentary and official video highlights. We cover all World INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLIES in real time and provide live streaming whenever possible.
URL: https://www.scorebat.com/serbia-vs-usa-live-stream/
You can watch USA vs Serbia live stream here on ScoreBat when an official broadcast is available. We will provide only official live stream strictly from the official channels of the league or the teams whenever it is available. Live streaming will begin when the match is about to kick off.
We aggregate all official videos from official websites and Youtube channels of Serbia national football team and USA national football team as well as the channels of the leagues that they compete in. So, whenever there is an official live broadcast of USA - Serbia match available that isn't behind a paywall - you will be able to watch it on ScoreBat.
We are updating team formations and line-ups for USA - Serbia in real time.
USA kicked off the game with Walker Zimmerman who got substituted by Aaron Long on the 46th minute as starters, with Kellyn Acosta, Jesus Ferreira, Sean Johnson and Aaron Long on the bench.
Referee showed the yellow card 3 times throughout the game. , and were the ones to receive it.
Explore stats from USA vs Serbia on ScoreBat - we are updating the numbers on this page every second of the game.
USA and Serbia have met once since January 2017. That match ended in a draw. The most recent match between them took place on January 29, 2017 in a friendly which ended in a draw - 0-0. USA have scored 0 goals in these 1 head-to-head match in total and Serbia have also scored 0. So, overall, USA and Serbia have almost identical head-to-head record against each other in their recent history.
USA have lost to Netherlands in their previous match while Serbia have lost to Switzerland in their previous match. Overall, USA have won 9 of their last 20 matches, losing 4 and drawing 7, while Serbia have won 12 of their last 20 matches, losing 4 and drawing 4.
USA have won once (0-1 against Iran on 29th of November), lost twice (3-1 against Netherlands on 3rd of December and 2-0 against Japan on 23rd of September) and drew 3 times (0-0 against England on 25th of November, 1-1 against Wales on 21st of November and 0-0 against Saudi Arabia on 27th of September) in their most recent 6 matches.
Serbia have won 3 times (1-5 against Bahrain on 18th of November, 0-2 against Norway on 27th of September and 4-1 against Sweden on 24th of September), lost twice (2-3 against Switzerland on 2nd of December and 2-0 against Brazil on 24th of November) and drew once (3-3 against Cameroon on 28th of November) in their most recent 6 matches.
USA are undefeated in their previous 10 home matches.
Serbia have gone 4 consecutive matches without a clean sheet.
We are adding goal videos and full video highlights of the match between USA and Serbia in real time. You can watch the goal by as the videos of the goals are added usually minutes after the actual event if there are any official videos available. Full video highlights of USA - Serbia are being added as they become available on the official social media channels of the league or the teams.
Match ends. USA 1, Serbia 2.
Serbia's player is shown the yellow card.
USA's player is shown the yellow card.
Substitution for USA. Aaron Long replaces Walker Zimmerman
Goal for Serbia.
Goal for USA.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Q: Codesys Wago CAN communication I have connected a Wago PFC200 750-8204 between two Components which communicates via CAN bus in order to receive the messages and for further processing. My approach was to implement it in codesys 2.3 with the WagoCanLayer2_02.lib library but i fail with the readind the canbus.
The Code.
open(BAUDRATE := 500000 ,ENABLE := TRUE );
can11BitFrame(
CAN_ID:= 16#380,
CAN_BUFFER:= FALSE,
ENABLE:= TRUE,
READ_FRAME:= frame,
DATA=> data);

Have you any idea how i can solve this and have you code examples?

A: I can't comment so I have to answer (although it's probably too late anyway).
Assuming that the CAN interface is initialized and working and that your can11BitFrame is a CAN_RX_11BIT_FRAME instance, the following should work:
can11BitFrame(
    CAN_ID := 16#380,
    CAN_BUFFER := FALSE,
    CAN_PORT := 0,    (* not sure if this is really necessary here *)
    ENABLE := TRUE,
    READ_FRAME := frame);

data := can11BitFrame.DATA;

or maybe
IF can11BitFrame.error = CAN_RECEIVE_OK THEN
    data := can11BitFrame.DATA;
END_IF

And you have to set frame to true each time you want to read the message.
I have no idea if and how the DATA => data is supposed to work (I am using FUP here). As far as I know. in ST you have to execute the function block first and can then access the output parameters.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


It is when you will be talking about an online multiplayer community that you will also be referring to it as a social network. It is the members of these communities that share the same interest and that is online gaming. With the help of this communities and technology, it is them that will be able to make an effective communication with each other. The communication aspect of online gaming has been studied already by a number of different experts and they have revealed a lot with regards to the social circle that these individuals have.
It is common for online multiplayer to encouraged communication. It is communication that some players will be demanding depending also from the kind of game that they will be playing. Games that needs collaboration to win ad to be competitive is what you will get with online multiplayer games. There are much online game that will allow you to play alone. Communicating with other players is what most players would want and that is why there are many of them that prefer multiplayer games. Anoter thing is that they also do want to have lasting relationships with other players.
The basis of the online games are basically the computer networks. This is why there are various forms of communications in multiplayer game. There are many games that would be able to provide tools for interaction between two people. Communication with other groups is also available when you will be playing online games. Aside from that, they can also do the traditional forms of communication like phone, email and many more.
The moment that you will be communicating via online gaming, the experience that you will get is also the same with that of interacting with people face to face. It is the interaction of many communities that is also based on shared values and goals. It is through the existence f the community that the values and goals are also being changed every now and then. It is the values and goals of each and every individual that will depend on his role in the community that they have. Conflicts can also happen due to some disagreements that each member will have just like any other community. It is when disagreements will be resolved that the community will now be able to become stronger.
Having members on any of the member can easily be done nowadays. It id when a long-term social interaction and communication is done that there will be a significant relationship that will happen between members of the community. The group will have a leader and the one that usually holds that position is the one that is the most active.


How about you? What is your favorite beaches in Southeast Asia?
It's no surprise that Southeast Asia is absolutely alive and thriving with some of the most beautiful and visited beaches in the world. It seems every country has their own answer for the sand-seeker, and so it depends on what each individual traveller is looking for as to the country or type of beach they are looking for. In the article below, I have listed some of the best beaches in Southeast Asia that you may want to explore.
Thailand for example has many beaches which vary in quietness and seclusion, party atmosphere and crowds. The beaches of Koh Lanta for example are significantly quieter and less party-heavy than those of Koh Penang, Koh Phi Phi or Koh Samui where any traveller looking to revel at the full, quarter, half moon, no moon, blue moon, black moon, any moon parties can easily find something going on.
Beaches in Southeast Asia like Ao Nang are a good mix of party and quietness – with the parties typically kicking off around sunset, but by day the lazing around, snorkelling and swimming are the key activities. Almost every beach around the Thai islands also offer half and full day snorkelling trips which will take you around several of the islands to enjoy the different diving and snorkelling sites, often times with lunch and dinner included on the full day trips.
Of course for travellers who want something more off the beaten trail and a bit more adventurous, countries that are more opened up now like Myanmar (formerly Burma) also have beautiful, unspoilt strings of beaches along the western edge. Keep in mind though that there is very little in the way of tourist infrastructure on many of these beaches, so you will be lucky to have a beach hut offering barbecues, much less a party heavy atmosphere.
Malaysia is also a haven of beaches that are relatively unspoilt, and due to the extremely heavy taxation on alcohol, the beaches here are much more low key than in neighbouring Thailand.
However, for the person who is really looking for something almost bordering on explorer-level beaches, Indonesia is your mecca. Some of the beaches here literally take days to get to, but once there you're rewarded with true, unspoilt, cultural experiences featuring homestays for accommodation as well as all food. These are places where power is almost a luxury, so don't expect any frills, including internet in many places.
Lastly, If you are looking for unspoiled and less crowded beaches, save the best for last and head to the Philippines. Boracay is definitely the most popular beach destination in the country but it may not be appealing for people who hates loud music and party places. If you want to experience more adventure and total relaxation, beaches in Coron and El Nido in Palawan should definitely on top of your list. With more than 7,000 beautiful islands, the Philippines will surely surprise you.
So there you have a couple of great suggestions on beaches in Southeast Asia. There is a great mix of beaches, and so any traveller to the region should have no issue at all finding the perfect beach for their individual tastes and preferences. Enjoy, and stay safe!


Sansa Stark has gone through the ringer on "Game of Thrones" — and so has Sophie Turner.
In an interview published by InStyle on Thursday, the 22-year-old actress revealed she was asked by producers not to wash her hair while filming the HBO series, and that it went on for years.
"[It was] really itchy! Also, we would have the snow machines going so we would have little snow paper particles that would get stuck in the grease. It was disgusting," she added.
Turner is a natural blonde and dyed her hair for years to become Sansa. It wasn't until 2017 that she went back to her natural colour, which has saved her hair from damage on "Game of Thrones" but added time to her hair-and-makeup schedule.
Turner said Kit Harington has the most intensive hair routine off-screen: "Before red carpets you would always see him scrunching the ends of his curls to make sure they're perfect. We all take the piss out on him for that," she joked.
Turner says she's looking forward to fans seeing the cast's onscreen hair transformations in the show's upcoming eighth and final season.
As for how things end up on the final season, Harington recently told the "Zoe Ball Breakfast Show" that he's "maybe not happy, but very satisfied" with the ending of "Game of Thrones".


text:
Die Liste der Biografien führt alle Personen auf, die in der deutschsprachigen Wikipedia einen Artikel haben. Dieses ist eine Teilliste mit 319 Einträgen von Personen, deren Namen mit den Buchstaben "Gras" beginnt.

Gras

 Gras de Mereles, Louise Noëlle (* 1944), mexikanische Kunsthistorikerin
 Gras du Villard, Pierre († 1785), französischer Theologe und Schriftsteller
 Gras, Basile (1836–1901), französischer General
 Gras, Caspar (1585–1674), österreichischer Bildhauer, Bronzegießer und Vertreter des Manierismus
 Gras, Claude-Lupicin (1738–1805), französischer Chirurg
 Gras, Enrico (1919–1981), italienischer Dokumentarfilmer
 Gras, Fred (* 1927), deutscher Sportsoziologe und Hochschullehrer
 Gras, Henri († 1665), französischer Arzt
 Gras, Laurent (* 1976), französischer Eishockeyspieler
 Graś, Paweł (* 1964), polnischer Politiker, Mitglied des Sejm
 Gras, Philipp (* 1989), deutscher Komponist, Arrangeur und Jazzpianist
 Gras, Thekla, deutsche Schauspielerin und Sängerin

Grasb
 Grasberger, Franz (1915–1981), österreichischer Musikwissenschaftler
 Grasberger, Hans (1836–1898), österreichischer Dichter, Lyriker und Kunstkritiker
 Grasberger, Renate (* 1941), österreichische Kunsthistorikerin und Musikwissenschaftlerin
 Grasberger, Thomas (* 1964), deutscher Journalist und Schriftsteller
 Grasberger, Walter (* 1958), österreichischer Politiker (ÖVP), Mitglied des Bundesrates
 Grasböck, Theobald (1846–1915), österreichischer Ordensgeistlicher, Abt des Stifts Wilhering und Politiker, Landtagsabgeordneter

Grasc
 Grascha, Christian (* 1978), deutscher Politiker (FDP), MdL
 Graschberger, Antonia (* 1958), deutsche Grafikerin
 Graschberger, Toni (* 1915), deutscher Schauspieler und Intendant
 Graschew, Martin (* 1987), bulgarischer Straßenradrennfahrer
 Graschi, Christoph (* 2001), österreichischer Fußballspieler
 Graschopf, Birgit (* 1978), österreichische Künstlerin
 Graschtat, Alice (* 1952), deutsche Politikerin (SPD), MdL

Grase
 Grase, Martin (1891–1963), deutscher Offizier, General der Infanterie im Zweiten Weltkrieg
 Grasedieck, Dieter (* 1945), deutscher Politiker (SPD), MdB
 Grasegger, Georg (1873–1927), deutscher Bildhauer
 Grasegger, Joseph (1900–1967), deutscher Kommunalpolitiker
 Grasegger, Käthe (1917–2001), deutsche Skirennläuferin
 Grasegger, Martin (* 1989), österreichischer Fußballspieler
 Gräsel, Cornelia (* 1966), deutsche Psychologin, Pädagogin und Hochschullehrerin
 Gräsel, Friedrich (1927–2013), deutscher Künstler
 Grasel, Johann Georg (1790–1818), österreichischer Räuber
 Grasel, Mathias (* 1984), deutscher Rechtsanwalt und Strafverteidiger
 Graselli, Emma (1856–1922), österreichische Tänzerin
 Graselli-Magnus, Gisela (* 1864), österreichische Theaterschauspielerin
 Grasemann, Christian Heinrich (1783–1838), deutscher Arzt und Botaniker
 Grasemann, Herbert (1917–1983), deutscher Schachkomponist
 Grasemann, Laura (* 1992), deutsche Freestyle-Skierin in der Disziplin Buckelpiste (Moguls)
 Grasenauer, Quirin († 1592), römisch-katholischer Geistlicher
 Grasenick, Fritz (1916–2003), österreichischer Chemiker und Pionier der Elektronenmikroskopie
 Gräser, Adolf Heinrich (1801–1879), deutscher evangelischer Theologe und Politiker
 Graser, Andreas († 1609), Abt des Stiftes Sankt Peter (Salzburg)
 Graser, Annika (* 1999), deutsche Fußballspielerin
 Gräser, August (1877–1961), deutscher Kommunalbeamter und -politiker
 Graser, Bernhard (1841–1909), deutscher Altphilologe und Diplomat
 Graser, Ernst (1860–1929), deutscher Chirurg und Hochschullehrer
 Gräser, Ferenc (1892–1918), ungarischer Pilot und Jagdflieger
 Gräser, Fritz-Hubert (1888–1960), deutscher General der Panzertruppe im Zweiten Weltkrieg
 Gräser, Gustav (1879–1958), deutsch-österreichischer Künstler und Aussteiger
 Graser, Heinrich (1887–1957), deutscher Jurist und Oberbürgermeister von Lörrach (1927–1933)
 Graser, Hermann (1835–1903), deutscher Verlagsbuchhändler
 Graser, Johann Baptist (1766–1841), deutscher Pädagoge und Beamter, römisch-katholischer Geistlicher
 Graser, Jörg (* 1951), deutscher Filmregisseur und Drehbuchautor
 Gräser, Karl (1875–1920), ungarischer Anarchist, Aussteiger und Naturmensch
 Gräser, Leopold (1869–1927), badischer Verwaltungsbeamter
 Gräser, Marcus (* 1964), deutscher Historiker und Hochschullehrer
 Graser, Max (1902–1980), deutscher Politiker
 Gräser, Patrick (* 1969), deutscher Schauspieler
 Graser, Rudolph (1728–1787), österreichischer Benediktiner und Homilet
 Graser, Sebastian (* 1996), österreichischer Skirennläufer und Fallschirmspringer
 Gräser, Toni (* 1933), Schweizer Radrennfahrer
 Grases, Montserrat (1941–1959), spanische Frau, Mitglied der katholischen Organisation Opus Dei

Grash
 Grashey, Hellmut (1914–1990), stellvertretender Inspekteur des Heeres der Bundeswehr
 Grashey, Hubert von (1839–1914), deutscher Psychiater
 Grashey, Rudolf (1876–1950), deutscher Röntgenologe und Arzt
 Grashin, Mauri (1901–1991), US-amerikanischer Drehbuchautor
 Grashof, Christian (* 1943), deutscher Schauspieler
 Grashof, Franz (1826–1893), deutscher Ingenieur
 Grashof, Hermann (1809–1867), deutscher Jurist und Politiker aus dem Sauerland
 Grashof, Karl Friedrich August (1770–1841), deutscher Theologe, Pädagoge, Mathematiker, Schulrat und Gymnasialdirektor
 Grashof, Manfred (* 1946), deutscher Terrorist der Rote Armee Fraktion
 Grashof, Otto (1812–1876), deutscher Porträt-, Historien-, Genre-, Tier- und Landschaftsmaler
 Grashoff, David (* 1973), deutscher Schriftsteller
 Grashoff, Eberhard (1928–2020), deutscher Journalist
 Grashoff, Hans (1862–1938), deutscher Verwaltungsbeamter, Regierungspräsident
 Grashoff, Helmut (1928–1997), deutscher Manager von Borussia Mönchengladbach
 Grashoff, Malte (* 1992), deutscher Fußballspieler
 Grashoff, Rik (* 1961), niederländischer Politiker
 Grashoff, Udo (* 1966), deutscher Schriftsteller
 Grashoff, Wilhelm (1828–1903), deutscher evangelischer Pfarrer
 Grashorn, Burkhard (1940–2017), deutscher Architekt und Hochschullehrer
 Grashorn, Rashmi (* 1988), deutsche Politikerin indischer Herkunft (Bündnis 90/Die Grünen), MdL Niedersachsen
 Grashuis, Joannes (1699–1772), niederländischer Mediziner, Arzt in Amsterdam

Grasl
 Grasl, Markus (* 1980), österreichischer römisch-katholischer Ordenspriester und Propst von Stift Reichersberg
 Grasl, Richard (* 1973), österreichischer Redakteur des ORF-NÖ
 Graslie, Emily (* 1989), US-amerikanische Wissenschaftsjournalistin
 Graslin, Adolphe de (1802–1882), französischer Entomologe

Grasm
 Grasmair, Johann Georg Dominikus (1691–1751), österreichischer Maler des Barock
 Grasmann, Christian (* 1981), deutscher Radrennfahrer
 Grasmann, Eustachius (1856–1935), deutscher Forstwissenschaftler
 Grasmann, Max (1875–1942), deutscher Chirurg
 Grasmann, Max (1889–1977), deutscher Jurist, Wirtschaftswissenschaftler, Verbandsfunktionär, Bankier und Politiker (CSU)
 Grasmayr, Alois (1876–1955), österreichischer Lehrer, Hotelier und Schriftsteller
 Grasmeyer, Christa (* 1935), deutsche Schriftstellerin
 Grasmück, Ernst Ludwig (1933–2017), deutscher römisch-katholischer Kirchenhistoriker
 Grasmuck, Günter (* 1957), österreichischer Schlagzeuger und Rockmusiker
 Grasmück, Hartmut (* 1955), deutscher Polizeipräsident
 Grasmück, Jürgen (1940–2007), deutscher Science-Fiction-Autor
 Grasmück, Martin (* 1970), deutscher Journalist
 Grasmück, Oliver, deutscher Religionswissenschaftler, u. a. tätig als Lektor und Übersetzer
 Grasmüller, Andreas (1925–2005), deutscher Tierschützer, Anwalt, und Fernsehmoderator

Grasn
 Grasner, Günter (1909–2000), deutscher Kriminalpolizist, Direktor des Landeskriminalamtes Nordrhein-Westfalen
 Gräsner, Jan-Thorsten (* 1971), deutscher Anästhesiologe, Notfallmediziner, Hochschullehrer und Versorgungsforscher
 Grasnick, Charlotte (1939–2009), deutsche Dichterin
 Grasnick, Fred (1930–1996), deutscher Schauspieler, Regisseur und Intendant
 Grasnick, Georg (1927–2016), deutscher Journalist
 Grasnick, Ulrich (* 1938), deutscher Dichter

Graso
 Grašo, Petar (* 1976), kroatischer Popsänger und Songwriter
 Grason, William (1788–1868), US-amerikanischer Politiker, Gouverneur von Maryland

Grass
 Graß, Adolf (1841–1926), deutscher Historien- und Porträtmaler der Düsseldorfer Schule
 Grass, Bartholomäus (1743–1815), Schweizer reformierter Pfarrer und Schulreformer
 Grass, Brigitte (* 1953), deutsche Florettfechterin und Wirtschaftswissenschaftlerin
 Grass, Caspar (1639–1721), Schweizer reformierter Pfarrer, Theologe und Bibelübersetzer
 Grass, Ernst Sigismund, schlesischer Arzt und Mitglied der Gelehrtenakademie "Leopoldina"
 Grass, Frank J. (* 1951), US-amerikanischer General (US Army); Chief of the National Guard Bureau
 Grass, Franz (1914–1993), österreichischer Rechtshistoriker
 Grass, Franz Xaver (1758–1833), österreichischer Mönch, Bibliothekar und Orientalist
 Graß, Friedrich (1902–1971), deutscher Volkswirt und Politiker (CDU), MdL
 Grass, Fritz (1891–1956), deutscher Politiker (Zentrum)
 Grass, Gerrit (* 1969), deutscher Schauspieler
 Grass, Günter (1927–2015), deutscher Schriftsteller, Bildhauer, Maler und Grafiker
 Graß, Hans (1909–1994), deutscher evangelischer Geistlicher und Hochschullehrer
 Grass, Helene (* 1974), deutsche Film- und Theaterschauspielerin
 Grass, Johann Christoph (1639–1702), Schweizer reformierter Pfarrer
 Graß, Justus (1799–1869), deutscher Bürgermeister und Politiker
 Grass, Karl Konrad (1870–1927), deutscher evangelischer Theologe, Historiker und Religionswissenschaftler
 Graß, Karl Martin (* 1937), deutscher Historiker und Politiker (CDU), MdB
 Grass, Michael der Ältere (1541–1595), deutscher Jurist
 Grass, Michael der Jüngere (1657–1731), deutscher Rechtswissenschaftler und Hochschullehrer
 Grass, Nikolaus (1913–1999), österreichischer Volkskundler, Rechtshistoriker und Staatswissenschaftler
 Graß, Philipp (1801–1876), elsässischer Bildhauer des Klassizismus
 Grass, Samuel (1653–1730), Erster Physikus in Breslau und Mitglied der Leopoldina
 Grass, Samuel (1684–1745), schlesischer Mediziner, Oberarzt in Breslau, Mitglied der "Leopoldina"
 Graß, Stanislaus (* 1885), Polizeipräsident in Bochum
 Grass, Thierry (* 1960), französischer Sprachwissenschaftler und Terminologe
 Grass, Vincent (* 1949), belgischer Schauspieler
 Graß-Klanin, Leo von (1832–1917), deutscher Rittergutsbesitzer und Parlamentarier
 Grassalkovich, Antal I. (1694–1771), ungarischer Graf und Präsident der Ungarischen Hofkammer
 Grassam, Billy († 1943), schottischer Fußballspieler
 Grassberger, Peter (* 1940), österreichischer Physiker
 Graßberger, Roland (1867–1956), österreichischer Hygieniker
 Graßberger, Roland (1905–1991), österreichischer Jurist, Kriminologe sowie Hochschullehrer
 Grasse, Adrian (* 1975), deutscher Politiker (CDU), MdA
 Grasse, Alexander (* 1968), deutscher Politologe, Germanist, Erziehungswissenschaftler, italienischer Philologe und Hochschullehrer (Universität Gießen)
 Grasse, François Joseph Paul de (1722–1788), französischer Admiral, Ritter des Malteserordens und Kommandeur des Ordens vom heiligen Ludwig
 Grasse, Gerd (* 1943), deutscher Schauspieler
 Grasse, Herbert (1910–1942), deutscher Widerstandskämpfer gegen den Nationalsozialismus (Rote Kapelle)
 Grässe, Johann Georg Theodor (1814–1885), deutscher Bibliograf und Literaturhistoriker
 Grässe, Johann Gottlob (1769–1827), deutscher Schulmann
 Grasse, Kati (* 1969), deutsche Schauspielerin
 Grasse, Martha (* 1901), deutsche Leichtathletin
 Grasse, Paul (1883–1946), deutscher kommunistischer Widerstandskämpfer
 Grassé, Pierre-Paul (1895–1985), französischer Zoologe und Entomologe
 Grasse, Sam De (1875–1953), kanadischer Schauspieler
 Grasse, Silvia De (1922–1978), panamaische Sängerin
 Grasse, Stefan (* 1962), deutscher Konzertgitarrist, Komponist und Musikproduzent
 Grasse, Vanessa, britische Schauspielerin
 Gräßel, Elmar (* 1959), deutscher Mediziner
 Gräßel, Franz (1861–1948), deutscher Maler
 Grässel, Hans (* 1860), deutscher Architekt und Baubeamter
 Grasselli, Jeanette G. (* 1928), US-amerikanische Chemikerin und Spektroskopikerin
 Grasselli, Viktor (* 1936), deutscher Rechtsanwalt und Bürgermeister
 Grassellino, Anna (* 1981), italienische Elektroingenieurin
 Grasser, Anton (1891–1976), deutscher General der Infanterie, Inspekteur des Bundesgrenzschutzes
 Grasser, Carl (1845–1902), österreichischer Waffenfabrikant
 Grasser, Erasmus († 1518), deutscher Bildhauer, Skulptor und Baumeister
 Gräßer, Erich (1927–2017), deutscher Hochschullehrer, Theologe und Politiker (Die Tierschutzpartei)
 Grasser, Franz (1911–1944), deutscher Fotograf
 Grasser, Georg (* 1990), österreichischer Fußballspieler
 Grasser, Helmut (* 1961), österreichischer Filmproduzent
 Grasser, Johann Jacob (1579–1627), Schweizer Theologe und Polyhistor
 Gräßer, Jürgen (1940–2010), deutscher Rennfahrer und Bauunternehmer
 Grasser, Karl-Heinz (* 1969), österreichischer Politiker und Finanzminister
 Gräßer, Leopold (1825–1895), deutscher Politiker, MdL (Königreich Sachsen)
 Grasser, Markus (* 1972), deutscher Fußballspieler
 Grasser, Patrick (* 1981), deutscher Autor und Religionspädagoge
 Grasser, Tibor (* 1970), österreichischer Blues- und Boogiepianist
 Grassert, Emil (1919–2003), deutscher Maler, Grafiker und Glasmaler
 Grasset de Saint-Sauveur, Jacques (1757–1810), französischer Diplomat, Literat, Zeichner und Publizist
 Grasset, Eugène (1845–1917), schweizerisch-französischer Bildhauer, Maler und Illustrator
 Grasset, Jean-Jacques (1769–1839), französischer Violinist, Komponist und Dirigent
 Grasset, Roger, französischer Jazzmusiker
 Grassetti, Giacomo (1579–1656), italienischer Jesuit
 Grassetti, Ippolito (1603–1663), italienischer Jesuit
 Graßhof, Benjamin Christoph von (1702–1778), deutscher Rechtsgelehrter
 Graßhof, Karin (* 1937), deutsche Juristin, Richterin des Bundesverfassungsgerichts
 Graßhof, Malte (* 1970), deutscher Jurist und Richter
 Grasshoff, Alexander (1928–2008), US-amerikanischer Regisseur
 Grasshoff, Franziska (1957–1999), deutsche Schauspielerin
 Grasshoff, Friederike (* 1985), deutsche Schauspielerin
 Graßhoff, Fritz (1913–1997), deutscher Maler, Zeichner, Schriftsteller und Schlagertexter
 Graßhoff, Gerd (* 1957), deutscher Wissenschaftshistoriker und Philosoph
 Graßhoff, Hans-Ulrich (* 1943), deutscher Volleyballspieler und -trainer
 Graßhoff, Heinz (1915–2002), deutscher Bauingenieur für Geotechnik
 Graßhoff, Helmut (1925–1983), deutscher Slawist
 Grasshoff, Johann († 1618), deutscher Alchemist
 Graßhoff, Kurt (1869–1952), deutscher Konteradmiral
 Graßhoff, Marie (* 1990), deutsche Schriftstellerin
 Grasshoff, Paul T. (* 1969), deutscher Schauspieler
 Grassi, Achille (1456–1523), Kardinal der Römisch-katholischen Kirche
 Grassi, Alberto (* 1995), italienischer Fußballspieler
 Grassi, Alex de (* 1952), US-amerikanischer Gitarrist
 Grassi, Alfio (1766–1827), italienischer Offizier und Militärschriftsteller
 Grassi, Annick (* 1985), deutsche Boulespielerin und Bürgermeisterin
 Grassi, Anton (1755–1807), österreichischer Bildhauer und Porzellanmodelleur
 Grassi, Carlo (1520–1571), Kardinal der katholischen Kirche
 Grassi, Cecilia († 1791), italienische Sängerin
 Grassi, Claudio (* 1985), italienischer Tennisspieler
 Grassi, Daniele (* 1993), Schweizer Eishockeyspieler
 Grassi, Danilo (* 1941), italienischer Radsportler, Weltmeister im Radsport
 Grassi, Davide (* 1986), italienischer Fußballspieler
 Grassi, Ernesto (1902–1991), italienischer Philosoph
 Grassi, Franz Dominic (1801–1880), Leipziger Kaufmann und Mäzen
 Grassi, Giacomo di, italienischer Waffenmeister
 Grassi, Giorgio (* 1935), italienischer Architekt
 Grassi, Giovanni Battista (1854–1925), italienischer Zoologe und Anatom
 Grassi, Giovannino de' († 1398), italienischer Maler, Bildhauer und Baumeister der Spätgotik
 Grassi, Giuseppe (1883–1950), italienischer Jurist und Politiker (UDN, PLI), Mitglied der Camera dei deputati
 Grassi, Giuseppe (* 1942), italienischer Radrennfahrer
 Grassi, Josef Mathias (1757–1838), österreichischer Maler
 Grassi, Libero (1924–1991), italienischer Unternehmer, Mafiaopfer
 Grassi, Lino (* 1931), italienischer Radrennfahrer
 Grassi, Lou (* 1947), US-amerikanischer Jazzmusiker
 Grassi, Lucas di (* 1984), brasilianischer Automobilrennfahrer
 Grassi, Luigi, italienischer Opernsänger
 Grassi, Marco (* 1968), Schweizer Fussballspieler
 Grassi, Orazio (1583–1654), italienischer Mathematiker, Astronom und Architekt
 Grassi, Paolo (1919–1981), italienischer Theaterintendant
 Grassi, Tullio (1910–1985), Schweizer Fußballspieler und -trainer
 Grassia, Ninì (1944–2010), italienischer Filmregisseur und Drehbuchautor
 Grassin, Robert (1898–1980), französischer Radrennfahrer
 Grassinger, Armin (* 1977), deutscher Kommunalpolitiker (Unabhängige Wählergemeinschaft Dingolfing), Bürgermeister von Dingolfing
 Grassinger, Dagmar, deutsche Klassische Archäologin
 Grassini, Bruno, italienischer Musicaldarsteller
 Grassini, Giuseppina (1773–1850), italienische Opernsängerin (Alt)
 Grassini, Paolo (* 1954), italienischer Filmregisseur und Drehbuchautor
 Grasskamp, Walter (* 1950), deutscher Kunstkritiker und -soziologe
 Graßl, Anton (1909–1990), deutscher Ministerialbeamter
 Grassl, Daniel (* 2002), italienischer Eiskunstläufer
 Graßl, Erich (1913–2008), deutscher Allgemeinarzt und Psychologe
 Grassl, Florian (* 1980), deutscher Skeletonfahrer
 Graßl, Franz (* 1965), deutscher Bergsteiger und Alpinsportler
 Grassl, Georg (1865–1948), Verbandsfunktionär, Volkstumspolitiker, Chefredakteur und Schulpädagoge
 Graßl, Georg (1926–1995), deutscher Politiker (CSU), MdL
 Grassl, Gerald (* 1953), österreichischer Schriftsteller
 Grassl, Hans (1908–1980), österreichischer Bauingenieur
 Graßl, Hartmut (* 1940), deutscher Klimaforscher
 Graßl, Herbert (* 1948), österreichischer Althistoriker
 Grassl, Hermann (1896–1969), deutscher Politiker (NSDAP), MdR und SA-Führer
 Grassl, Johannes (* 1976), Schweizer Autor
 Gräßl, Josef (1887–1964), deutscher Bäckermeister und Politiker
 Graßl, Judith (* 1968), deutsche Skibergsteigerin
 Grassl, Martin (* 1958), deutscher Filmkomponist
 Graßl, Maximilian (* 1991), deutscher Skeletonsportler
 Grassl, Otto (1891–1976), deutscher Maler und Grafiker
 Grassl, Waltraud, tschechoslowakisch-deutsche Rennrodlerin
 Graßl, Wolfgang (1970–2010), deutscher alpiner Skirennläufer und -trainer
 Gräßle, Ingeborg (* 1961), deutsche Politikerin (CDU), MdL, MdEP, MdB
 Grassle, Karen (* 1942), US-amerikanische Schauspielerin
 Grässle, Robert (1887–1964), deutscher Steinmetz und Bildhauer
 Gräßle, Thomas (* 1976), deutscher Schauspieler
 Grassler, Franz (1912–1998), deutscher Jurist und Autor
 Gräßler, Fritz (1904–1972), deutscher Politiker (SPD), MdL
 Grassler, Herbert (* 1973), österreichischer Fußballspieler und -trainer
 Gräßler, Iris (* 1969), deutsche Maschinenbauingenieurin
 Graßler, Ludwig (1925–2019), deutscher Bergwanderer und Autor von Wanderführern
 Gräßler, Ulrike (* 1987), deutsche Skispringerin
 Grassley, Chuck (* 1933), amerikanischer Politiker der Republikanischen Partei
 Grässli, Muriel (* 1987), Schweizer Volleyball- und Beachvolleyballspielerin
 Grässlin, Bärbel (* 1954), deutsche Galeristin und Kunsthändlerin
 Grässlin, Jürgen (* 1957), deutscher Publizist und Friedensaktivist
 Gräßmann, Adolf (* 1938), deutscher Biochemiker und Mediziner, Erfinder der Mikroinjektion
 Graßmann, Albert, deutscher Fußballspieler
 Graßmann, Andreas (* 1982), deutscher römisch-katholischer Theologe
 Graßmann, Antjekathrin (* 1940), deutsche Historikerin
 Graßmann, Ferdinand (1843–1918), deutscher Jurist und Politiker (NLP), MdR
 Grassmann, Franz (* 1987), österreichischer Radrennfahrer
 Grassmann, Fritz (1913–1969), deutscher Politiker (SPD), MdA
 Graßmann, Gottfried Ludolf (1738–1798), deutscher evangelisch-lutherischer Geistlicher und Agrarschriftsteller
 Graßmann, Günther (1900–1993), deutscher Maler und Grafiker
 Graßmann, Hans (* 1960), deutscher Physiker und Autor
 Graßmann, Hermann (1809–1877), deutscher Mathematiker
 Graßmann, Hermann der Jüngere (1857–1922), deutscher Mathematiker
 Graßmann, Josef von (1864–1928), deutscher Beamter und Industrieller
 Graßmann, Justus Günther (1779–1852), deutscher Gymnasiallehrer und Mathematiker
 Graßmann, Peter (1873–1939), deutscher Gewerkschafter und Politiker (SPD), MdR
 Grassmann, Peter (1907–1994), deutsch-schweizerischer Physiker, Mathematiker und Hochschullehrer
 Grassmann, Peter (* 1939), deutscher Manager und Wirtschaftsethiker
 Grassmann, Ralph (1957–2008), deutscher Virologe und Hochschullehrer
 Graßmann, Robert (1815–1901), deutscher Verleger und Schriftsteller
 Graßmann, Walther Hellmuth Karl Otto (1885–1918), deutscher Ornithologe
 Grassmann, Werner (1888–1943), deutscher Vizeadmiral der Kriegsmarine
 Grassmann, Wolfgang (1898–1978), deutscher Chemiker, KWI-Direktor
 Graßmück, Daniel (* 1987), österreichischer Badmintonspieler
 Grassmuck, Volker (* 1961), deutscher Publizist und Soziologe
 Grassmüller, Heinrich (1632–1683), deutscher lutherischer Prediger
 Graßnack, Christiane (* 1967), deutsche Juristin, Richterin am Bundesgerichtshof
 Graßnick, Martin (1917–2020), deutscher Architekt, Architekturhistoriker und Denkmalpfleger
 Grasso, Alfio (* 1912), italienischer Jazz- und Unterhaltungsmusiker
 Grasso, Ella T. (1919–1981), US-amerikanische Politikerin und Gouverneurin von Connecticut
 Grasso, Franz Ludwig (1798–1870), Landrat des Kreises Paderborn (1842–??)
 Grasso, Luigi (* 1986), italienischer Jazzmusiker (Saxophone, Komposition)
 Grasso, Mario (1941–2018), Schweizer Illustrator und Autor
 Grasso, Pasquale (* 1988), italienischer Jazzmusiker (Gitarre, Komposition)
 Grasso, Pietro (* 1945), italienischer Jurist und Politiker
 Grasso, Richard (* 1946), US-amerikanischer Vorsitzender der New York Stock Exchange
 Grassoldt, Bernhard (1695–1754), böhmischer Jesuit
 Grassotto, Matteo (* 1980), italienischer Rennfahrer
 Grassow, Dennis (* 1971), deutscher Fußballspieler
 Grassow, Mathias (* 1963), deutscher Musiker
 Grassow, Tina (* 1988), deutsche Shorttrackerin
 Grassy, József (1894–1946), ungarischer Offizier und Kriegsverbrecher im Zweiten Weltkrieg

Grasu
 Grasu, Nicoleta (* 1971), rumänische Leichtathletin

Grasw
 Graswander, Helene (* 1952), österreichische Skirennläuferin
 Graswander-Hainz, Karoline (* 1974), österreichische Politikerin (SPÖ), MdEP
 Graswurm, Joachim (1934–1986), deutscher Jazzmusiker

Grasz
 Graszl, Ottilie (1916–1993), österreichische Tischtennisspielerin


By the reduction of the mixing amount of alumina cement, CLC shows following characteristics.
Spalling resistance at high temperature is strengthened.
Alkali resistant against foreign alkaline component is strengthened.
No deterioration occurred in strength.


Yoke Collective join Word in Transit for the combined SCREEN TIME performance event / publication launch for the 5th Word in Transit. SCREEN TIME is looking for ways to communicate through these distractions using the broad idea of the screen, through experimental and interactive performance. Yoke Collective and Word in Transit invite submissions of live performative works (1-5 minutes in duration) that take place on the Underground itself and works for an A5 publication that will launch at Banner Repeater – these could relate to your performance or other work relating to the themes of the SCREEN TIME performance event. Publication submissions could range from diagrams, screenshots, text or image works, the resolution of which you should specify.