You are bidding on one BRAND NEW aluminum metal tin license plate .....
It is a brand new metal tin license plate that would be very much
enjoyed indeed by any car driver .
The license plate is unopened and still in the original shrink-wrap.
I image this plate on the car of a grandparent lover..
or better yet in your GARAGE.
It is a hoot. I was made here in the USA , and it measures
12 inches by 6 inches in size.
It has 4 holes for easy mounting.
I hope this finds a nice home. Thank you , Harry
fun facts from wikipedia...
Guinness
 | |
| Type | Beer; dry stout |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Diageo |
| Country of origin | Ireland |
| Introduced | 1759 |
Guinness (/ˈɡɪnɨs/ gin-is) is an Irish dry stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness (1725–1803) at St. James's Gate, Dublin. Guinness is one of the most successful beer brands worldwide. It is brewed in almost 60 countries and is available in over 120.[1][2] Annual sales total 850 million litres (1.5 billion Imperial or 1.8 billion US pints).[1]
A feature of the product is the burnt flavour that is derived from roasted unmalted barley, although this is a relatively modern development, not becoming part of the grist until the mid-20th century. For many years a portion of aged brew was blended with freshly brewed beer to give a sharp lactic flavour. Although the Guinness palate still features a characteristic "tang", the company has refused to confirm whether this type of blending still occurs. The draught beer's thick, creamy head comes from mixing the beer with nitrogen when poured. It is popular with the Irish both in Ireland and abroad, and, in spite of a decline in consumption since 2001,[3] is still the best-selling alcoholic drink in Ireland[4][5] where Guinness & Co. makes almost €2 billion annually.
The company moved its headquarters to London at the beginning of the Anglo-Irish Trade War in 1932. In 1997, it merged with Grand Metropolitan to form the multinational alcoholic drinks producer Diageo.
Ireland
| |
|---|---|
.jpg) Satellite image of Ireland on 11 October 2010 | |
 Location of Ireland (dark green) in Europe (green & dark grey) | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Western Europe |
| Coordinates | 53°25′N 8°0′WCoordinates: 53°25′N 8°0′W |
| Area | 84,421 km2(32,595 sq mi)[1] |
| Area rank | 20th[2] |
| Coastline | 2,797 km (1,738 mi) |
| Highest elevation | 1,041 m (3,415 ft) |
| Highest point | Carrauntoohil |
| Sovereign states | |
| Largest settlement | Dublin |
| Country | Northern Ireland |
| Largest settlement | Belfast |
| Demographics | |
| Demonym | Irish |
| Population | 6,378,000[3] (as of 2011) |
| Population rank | 19th |
| Density | 73.4 /km2 (190.1 /sq mi) |
| Ethnic groups | |
| Additional information | |
| Time zone | |
| • Summer (DST) | |
| Languages | English, Irish, Ulster Scots |
| Internet TLD | .ie |
| Patron saints | Saint Brigit Saint Colmcille Saint Patrick |
Ireland (
i/ˈaɪərlənd/; Irish: Éire [ˈeːɾʲə] (
listen); Ulster-Scots: Airlann [ˈɑːrlən]) is an island in the North Atlantic separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. It is the second-largest island of the British Isles after Great Britain, the third-largest in Europe and the twentieth-largest on Earth.[6]
Politically, Ireland is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially named Ireland), which covers five-sixths of the island, and Northern Ireland, a part of the United Kingdom, which covers the remaining area and is located in the north-east of the island. In 2011 the population of Ireland was about 6.4 million, ranking it the second-most populous island in Europe. Just under 4.6 million live in the Republic of Ireland and just over 1.8 million live in Northern Ireland.[7]
Great Smoky Mountains
| Great Smoky Mountains | |
|---|---|
 The Smoky Mountains in April 2007, viewed from atop Mount Le Conte. | |
| Highest point | |
| Peak | Clingmans Dome |
| Elevation | 6,643 ft (2,025 m) |
| Coordinates | 35°33′46″N 83°29′55″WCoordinates: 35°33′46″N 83°29′55″W |
| Geography | |
 | |
| Country | United States |
| States | North Carolina and Tennessee |
| Parent range | Blue Ridge Mountains |
| Borders on | Bald Mountains, Unicoi Mountains,Plott Balsams |
| Geology | |
| Orogeny | Alleghenian |
The Great Smoky Mountains are a mountain range rising along the Tennessee–North Carolina border in the southeastern United States. They are a subrange of the Appalachian Mountains, and form part of theBlue Ridge Physiographic Province. The range is sometimes called the Smoky Mountains and the name is commonly shortened to the Smokies. The Great Smokies are best known as the home of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which protects most of the range. The park was established in 1934, and, with over 9 million visits per year, it is the most-visited national park in the United States.[1]
The Great Smokies are part of an International Biosphere Reserve. The range is home to an estimated 187,000 acres (76,000 ha) of old growth forest, constituting the largest such stand east of the Mississippi River.[2][3] The cove hardwood forests in the range's lower elevations are among the most diverse ecosystems in North America, and the Southern Appalachian spruce-fir forest that coats the range's upper elevations is the largest of its kind.[4] The Great Smokies are also home to the densest black bear population in the Eastern United States and the most diverse salamander population outside of the tropics.[5]
Along with the Biosphere reserve, the Great Smokies have been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The U.S. National Park Service preserves and maintains 78 structures within the national park that were once part of the numerous small Appalachian communities scattered throughout the range's river valleys and coves. The park contains five historic districts and nine individual listings on the National Register of Historic Places.
The name "Smoky" comes from the natural fog that often hangs over the range and presents as large smoke plumes from a distance. This fog is caused by the vegetation exhaling volatile organic compounds, chemicals that have a high vapor pressure and easily form vapors at normal temperature and pressure.[6]
God Bless America (film)
| God Bless America | |
|---|---|
 Promotional poster | |
| Directed by | Bobcat Goldthwait |
| Produced by | Jeff Culotta |
| Written by | Bobcat Goldthwait |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Matt Kollar |
| Cinematography | Bradley Stonesifer |
| Edited by | Jason Stewart |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Magnolia Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 104 minutes[1] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $122,550[2] |
God Bless America is a 2011 dark comedy film that combines elements of political satire with black humor. The film was written and directed by Bobcat Goldthwait, and stars Joel Murray and Tara Lynne Barr.
God Bless America
| "God Bless America" | |
|---|---|
| Song | |
| Published | 1918, 1938 (revised) |
| Genre | Patriotic song |
| Composer | Irving Berlin |
"God Bless America" is an American patriotic song written by Irving Berlin in 1918 and revised by him in 1938. The later version has notably been recorded by Kate Smith, becoming her signature song.[1][2]
"God Bless America" takes the form of a prayer (intro lyrics "as we raise our voices, in a solemn prayer") for God's blessing and peace for the nation ("...stand beside her and guide her through the night...").
History[edit]
Irving Berlin wrote the song in 1918 while serving the U.S. Army at Camp Upton in Yaphank, New York, but decided that it did not fit in a revue called Yip Yip Yaphank, so he set it aside.[3] The lyrics at that time included the line "Make her victorious on land and foam, God bless America..."[4] as well as "Stand beside her and guide her to the right with the light from above".[5]
Music critic Jody Rosen says that a 1906 Jewish dialect novelty song, "When Mose with His Nose Leads the Band," contains a six-note fragment that is "instantly recognizable as the opening strains of "God Bless America"". He interprets this as an example of Berlin's "habit of interpolating bits of half-remembered songs into his own numbers."[6] Berlin, born Israel Baline, had himself written several Jewish-themed novelty tunes.[7]
In 1938, with the rise of Adolf Hitler, Berlin, who was Jewish and a Russian immigrant, felt it was time to revive it as a "peace song," and it was introduced on an Armistice Day broadcast in 1938, sung by Kate Smith on her radio show.[8] Berlin had made some minor changes; by this time, "to the right" might have been considered a call to the political right, so he substituted "through the night" instead. He also provided an introduction that is now rarely heard but which Smith always used: "While the storm clouds gather far across the sea / Let us swear allegiance to a land that's free / Let us all be grateful for a land so fair, / As we raise our voices in a solemn prayer." (In her first broadcast of the song, Kate Smith sang "that we're far from there" rather than "for a land so fair".)[5] This was changed when Berlin published the sheet music in March 1939.[5]
Woody Guthrie criticized the song, which he considered unrealistic and complacent, and in 1940 he wrote "This Land Is Your Land," originally titled "God Blessed America For Me," as a response.[9] Anti-Semitic groups such as the Ku Klux Klan also protest the song due to its authorship by a Jewish immigrant.[5]
In 1943, Smith's rendition was featured in the patriotic musical This is the Army along with other Berlin songs. The manuscripts in the Library of Congress reveal the evolution of the song from victory to peace. Berlin gave the royalties of the song to the God Bless America Fund for redistribution to the Boy Scouts of America and the Girl Scouts of the USA. Smith performed the song on her two NBC television series in the 1950s and in her short-lived The Kate Smith Show on CBS, which aired on CBS from January 25 to July 18, 1960.[10] "God Bless America" also spawned another of Irving Berlin's tunes, "Heaven Watch The Philippines," during the end of World War II after he heard the Filipinos sing a slightly revised version of the song replacing "America" with "The Philippines."
The song was used early in the Civil Rights Movement as well as at labor rallies.[5] During the 1960s, the song was increasingly used by Christian conservatives in the US to signal their opposition to secular liberalism and to silence dissenters who were speaking in favor of communism or in opposition to the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War.[11]
Later, from December 11, 1969,[8] through the early 1970s, the playing of Smith singing the song before many home games of the National Hockey League's Philadelphia Flyers brought it renewed popularity as well as a reputation for being a "good luck charm" to the Flyers[8] long before it became a staple of nationwide sporting events.[8] The Flyers even brought Smith in to perform live before Game 6 of the 1974 Stanley Cup Finals on May 19, 1974, and the Flyers won the Cup that day.[8][10]
Notable public performances[edit]
Use by American government[edit]
"America" was the official campaign song for Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1940, as well as his Republican opponent, Wendell Willkie. At that time, the song represented cultural and religious tolerance.[11]
During a live television broadcast on the evening of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, following addresses by then House and Senate leaders Dennis Hastert and Tom Daschle, members of the United States Congress broke out into an apparently spontaneous verse of "God Bless America" on the steps of the Capitol building in Washington, D.C.[12]
On July 21, 2011, Smith's version of the song was played as NASA's final wakeup call for the space shuttle Atlantis (STS-135), capping the 30-year shuttle program.
Sports events[edit]
National Hockey League[edit]
"God Bless America" has been performed at home games of the National Hockey League's Philadelphia Flyers and those of the Ottawa Senators in which the visiting team is from the United States. (The NHL requires arenas in both the U.S. and Canada to perform both "The Star-Spangled Banner" and "O Canada," the Canadian national anthem, at games that involve teams from both countries.[13])
At some Flyers' home games, especially during big games and the playoffs, their main anthem singer, Lauren Hart, has sung "God Bless America" alternating lyrics with Kate Smith on a video screen. Kate Smith actually appeared in person to sing at select Flyers games, including their 1974 Stanley Cup clinching game against the Boston Bruins, to which she received a thunderous ovation from the passionate Philadelphia fans. Before games whenever "God Bless America" is performed, Lou Nolan, the PA announcer for the Flyers at the Wells Fargo Center, would say: "Ladies and gentlemen, at this time, we ask that you please rise and remove your hats and salute to our flags and welcome the number 1 ranked anthemist in the NHL, Lauren Hart, as she sings (if the visiting team is from Canada, O Canada, followed by) God Bless America, accompanied by the great Kate Smith."[14]
At some Senators home games since 2000–01,[15] if the visiting team is from the U.S., their main anthem singer, Ontario Provincial Police Constable Lyndon Slewidge, has sung "God Bless America" and "O Canada."[15] An example of this came during the Senators' home opener during the 2002-03 season, when they were home against the New Jersey Devils.[16]
During Tom Golisano's time as owner of the Buffalo Sabres, the team occasionally substituted "The Star Spangled Banner" with "God Bless America" for certain special events. When this occurred, Ronan Tynan would be brought in to sing the song while usual anthem singer Doug Allen sang "O Canada."
Major League Baseball[edit]
On August 26, 2008, a fan at a Boston Red Sox game at Yankee Stadium, who had attempted to leave for the restroom during the playing of the song, was restrained and ejected by NYPD officers. As part of the settlement of a subsequent lawsuit, the New York Yankees announced that they would no longer restrict the movement of fans during the playing of the song.[17]
At Chicago's Wrigley Field during the Vietnam War, the song was often played by the organist as part of his postgame playlist while fans filed out of the stadium.[18]
On September 15, 2009, three high school teens filed a lawsuit against New Jersey's minor league Newark Bears for being ejected from Eagles Riverfront Stadium over their refusal to stand during the playing of "God Bless America" on June 29, 2009. Before being ejected, they were asked to leave the stadium by Bears president and co-owner Thomas Cetnar.[19]
Since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, "God Bless America" is commonly sung during the seventh-inning stretch in Major League Baseball games, most often on Sundays,[20] Opening Day,[21] Memorial Day,[22] Independence Day, All-Star Game, Labor Day, September 11,[23] and all post-season Major League Baseball games. Following the attacks, John Dever, then the Assistant Media Relations Director with the San Diego Padres, suggested the song replace "Take Me Out to the Ball Game", the more traditional 7th inning anthem.[24] MLB quickly followed the Padres lead and instituted it league-wide for the rest of the season; presently, teams decide individually when to play the song. Yankee Stadium,[25] Dodger Stadium,[26] and Turner Field[21] are currently the only Major League ballparks to play "God Bless America" in every game during the seventh-inning stretch. The Yankees' YES Network and the Dodgers' telecast on Fox Sports West televises its performance during some (mainly home) games before going to a commercial. During major games (playoff contests, Opening Day, national holidays, or games against Boston or the Mets), the Yankees will often have Irish tenor Ronan Tynan perform the song.[27]
American football[edit]
To honor the start of the United States Bicentennial, Kate Smith sang "God Bless America" for a national television audience, accompanied by the UCLA Band at the 1976 Rose Bowl.
Indianapolis 500[edit]
The Indianapolis 500 is traditionally run at the end of the month of May, and "God Bless America" has been sung there since 2003. The song "America the Beautiful" was sung before, but it was switched to "God Bless America" in the post-9/11 era. The song has traditionally been performed by Florence Henderson, a native Hoosier, and is a friend of the Hulman-George family, the track's owners. Her performance, often not televised, immediately precedes the national anthem.[28] Henderson routinely sings the entire song, including the prologue, and in some years sings the chorus a second time.
Celine Dion[edit]
| "God Bless America" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Celine Dion | ||||
| from the album God Bless America | ||||
| Released | October 24, 2001 | |||
| Format | Radio single | |||
| Genre | Pop | |||
| Length | 3:47 | |||
| Label | Columbia, Epic | |||
| Writer(s) | Irving Berlin | |||
| Producer(s) | David Foster | |||
| Celine Dion singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Following the September 11 terrorist attacks, Canadian pop star Celine Dion performed the song on the TV special America: A Tribute to Heroes. Shortly afterwards on October 16, Sony Music Entertainment released a benefit album called God Bless America, which featured Dion singing the song. The album debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200 and became the first charity album to reach the top since USA for Africa's "We Are the World" in 1985.[29] Dion's version also received enough radio airplay to reach number fourteen on Billboard's Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart. The music video was made and aired in September 2001. Dion performed the song also a few times during 2002. In 2003, she performed it at Super Bowl XXXVII, which was the first time that "God Bless America" was performed at a Super Bowl.[30] She sang it on July 4, 2004 in her A New Day... show as well. "God Bless America" performed by Dion exists in two versions, live and studio. Both included on collections to gather funds for the victims of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and their families. The live version, on America: A Tribute to Heroes, is from the telethon event of the same name that took place on September 21, 2001. The studio version is on the God Bless America album, a patriotic songs CD. It was recorded on September 20, 2001, the day before the American telethon. It was meant to be a replacement for the performance in the event something happened and Dion couldn't appear.
Daniel Rodríguez[edit]
The song was recorded by New York City's "singing cop," Daniel Rodríguez, and charted for one week at number 99 on the Billboard Hot 100 as a single. Before the 2001 versions, the last time "God Bless America" had been a Billboard chart hit was in 1959 when Connie Francis reached number 36 with her version (the B-side of her Top 10 hit "Among My Souvenirs").
Fire department
 | The examples and perspective in this article deal primarily with the United States and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. (October 2013) |
A fire department (United States and Canada) or fire brigade (United Kingdom and Commonwealth) (also known as a fire and rescue service or simply fire service) is a public or private organization that provides predominantly emergency firefighting and rescueservices for a certain jurisdiction, which is typically a municipality, county, or fire protection district. A fire department usually contains one or more fire stations within its boundaries, and may be staffed by career firefighters, volunteer firefighters, or a combination thereof (referred to as a combination department).[1]
A fire department may also provide "fire protection" or fire prevention services, whereby firefighters visit homes and give fire safety advice and fit smoke alarms for members of the public. In many countries fire protection or prevention is seen as an important role for the fire service, as preventing a fire from occurring in the first place can save lives and property.
Most public or municipal fire departments also carry out an enforcement role, to ensure that buildings (homes, hotels, offices, factories, and so on) are equipped with adequate fire precautions to limit the chances of fire and ensure that in the event of fire, people can safely evacuate the premises unharmed. This is also part of the protection or prevention role.
Bella Swan
| Bella Swan | |
|---|---|
| Twilight character | |
 | |
| First appearance | Twilight |
| Last appearance | Breaking Dawn |
| Created by | Stephenie Meyer |
| Portrayed by | Kristen Stewart |
| Information | |
| Nickname(s) | Bella Bells Bell Vampire girl (by Emily Young & Embry Call) Arizona (in films) |
| Species | Human (Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse,Breaking Dawn Vampire Breaking Dawn |
| Gender | Female |
| Occupation | Student (through Twilight to Eclipse) Employee at Newton's Olympic Outfitters (New Moon and Eclipse) |
| Family | Charlie Swan (father) Renée Dwyer (mother) Phil Dwyer (stepfather) Carlisle Cullen (adoptive father-in-law) Esme Cullen (adoptive mother-in-law) Emmett Cullen and Jasper Hale(adoptive brothers-in-law) Alice Cullen and Rosalie Hale(adoptive sisters-in-law) |
| Spouse(s) | Edward Cullen |
| Children | Renesmee Cullen |
Isabella Marie "Bella" Swan (later Bella Cullen) is a character and the protagonist of the Twilight series, written by Stephenie Meyer. The Twilight series, consisting of the novels Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, andBreaking Dawn, is primarily narrated from Bella's point of view. In the film series, Bella is portrayed by actress Kristen Stewart.
In Twilight, Bella moves to her father's home in Forks, Washington, meets the mysterious Cullen family, and falls in love with Edward Cullen. However, she soon discovers that the family is a coven of vampires. Bella expresses a desire to become a vampire herself, against Edward's wishes. In the second novel, New Moon, Edward and the other Cullens leave Forks in an effort to keep Bella safe from the vampire world. Jacob Black, a member of the Quileute tribe who is also a shape shifter taking a wolf form, comforts the distraught and severely depressed Bella. She comes to care deeply for Jacob, though less than she loves Edward. At the end ofEclipse, Bella becomes engaged to Edward, and they marry in Breaking Dawn. On their honeymoon, she becomes pregnant by Edward and, due to the peculiar nature of her baby, Bella nearly dies giving birth to their daughter, Renesmee Cullen. Edward turns her into a vampire to save her life.
| Elvis Presley | |
|---|---|
 Presley in a publicity photograph for the 1957 film Jailhouse Rock | |
| Born | Elvis Aaron Presley January 8, 1935 Tupelo, Mississippi, U.S. |
| Died | August 16, 1977 (aged 42) Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. |
Resting place | Graceland, Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Education | L.C. Humes High School |
| Occupation | Singer, actor |
| Home town | Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Spouse(s) | Priscilla Beaulieu (m. 1967;div. 1973) |
| Children | Lisa Marie Presley |
| Relatives | Danielle Riley Keough(granddaughter) |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  United States of America |
| Service/branch |  United States Army |
| Years of service | 1958–1960 |
| Rank |  Sergeant |
| Unit | Company A, 1st Medium Tank Battalion, 32nd Armor Regiment, 3rd Armored Division |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1953–1977 |
| Labels | Sun, RCA (Victor), HMV |
| Associated acts | The Blue Moon Boys, The Jordanaires, The Imperials |
| Website | www |
| Signature |  |
Elvis Aaron Presley[a] (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Regarded as one of the most significant cultural icons of the 20th century, he is often referred to as "the King of Rock and Roll", or simply, "the King".
Presley was born in Tupelo, Mississippi, and when he was 13 years old, he and his family relocated to Memphis, Tennessee. His music career began there in 1954, when he recorded a song with producer Sam Phillips atSun Records. Accompanied by guitarist Scotty Moore and bassist Bill Black, Presley was an early popularizer of rockabilly, an uptempo, backbeat-driven fusion of country music and rhythm and blues. RCA Victor acquired his contract in a deal arranged by Colonel Tom Parker, who managed the singer for more than two decades. Presley's first RCA single, "Heartbreak Hotel", was released in January 1956 and became a number-one hit in the United States. He was regarded as the leading figure of rock and roll after a series of successful network television appearances and chart-topping records. His energized interpretations of songs and sexually provocative performance style, combined with a singularly potent mix of influences across color lines that coincided with the dawn of the Civil Rights Movement, made him enormously popular—and controversial.
In November 1956, he made his film debut in Love Me Tender. In 1958, he was drafted into military service. He resumed his recording career two years later, producing some of his most commercially successful work before devoting much of the 1960s to making Hollywood movies and their accompanying soundtrack albums, most of which were critically derided. In 1968, following a seven-year break from live performances, he returned to the stage in the acclaimed televised comeback special Elvis, which led to an extended Las Vegas concert residency and a string of highly profitable tours. In 1973, Presley was featured in the first globally broadcast concert via satellite, Aloha from Hawaii. Several years of prescription drug abuse severely damaged his health, and he died in 1977 at the age of 42.
Presley is one of the most celebrated and influential musicians of the 20th century. Commercially successful in many genres, including pop, blues and gospel, he is the best-selling solo artist in the history of recorded music,[1][2][3][4] with estimated record sales of around 600 million units worldwide.[5] He won three Grammys, also receiving the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award at age 36, and has been inducted into multiple musichalls of fame. Forbes named Elvis Presley as the 2nd top earning dead celebrity with $55 million as of 2011.[6][7]
Number one albums
| Year | Album | Type | Chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US[385] | US Country[386] | UK[277][387] | |||
| 1956 | Elvis Presley | studio/comp. | 1 | n.a. | 1 |
| Elvis | studio | 1 | n.a. | 3 | |
| 1957 | Loving You | sound./studio | 1 | n.a. | 1 |
| Elvis' Christmas Album | studio | 1 | n.a. | 2 | |
| 1960 | Elvis Is Back! | studio | 2 | n.a. | 1 |
| G.I. Blues | soundtrack | 1 | n.a. | 1 | |
| 1961 | Something for Everybody | studio | 1 | n.a. | 2 |
| Blue Hawaii | soundtrack | 1 | n.a. | 1 | |
| 1962 | Pot Luck | studio | 4 | n.a. | 1 |
| 1964 | Roustabout | soundtrack | 1 | — | 12 |
| 1969 | From Elvis in Memphis | studio | 13 | 2 | 1 |
| 1973 | Aloha from Hawaii Via Satellite | live | 1 | 1 | 11 |
| 1974 | Elvis: A Legendary Performer Volume 1 | compilation | 43 | 1 | 20 |
| 1975 | Promised Land | studio | 47 | 1 | 21 |
| 1976 | From Elvis Presley Boulevard, Memphis, Tennessee | studio | 41 | 1 | 29 |
| 1977 | Elvis' 40 Greatest | compilation | — | — | 1 |
| Moody Blue | studio/live | 3 | 1 | 3 | |
| Elvis in Concert | live | 5 | 1 | 13 | |
| 2002 | ELV1S: 30 No. 1 Hits | compilation | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2007 | Elvis the King | compilation | — | — | 1 |
Number one singles
Filmography
|
|
|
TV concert specials
- Elvis (1968)
- Elvis: Aloha from Hawaii via Satellite (1973)
- Elvis in Concert (1977)
| The Big Bang Theory | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Sitcom[1] |
| Created by | Chuck Lorre Bill Prady |
| Directed by | Mark Cendrowski |
| Starring | |
| Theme music composer | Barenaked Ladies |
| Opening theme | "Big Bang Theory Theme"[3][4] |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Originallanguage(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 8 |
| No. of episodes | 183 (list of episodes) |
The Big Bang Theory is an American sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, both of whom serve as executive producers on the show along with Steven Molaro. All three also serve as head writers. The show premiered on CBS on September 24, 2007.[5] The eighth season premiered on September 22, 2014.
The show is primarily centered on five characters living in Pasadena, California: Leonard Hofstadter and Sheldon Cooper, both physicists at Caltech, who share an apartment; Penny, a waitress and aspiring actress who later becomes a pharmaceutical representative, and who lives across the hall; and Leonard and Sheldon's equally geeky and socially awkward friends and co-workers, aerospace engineer Howard Wolowitz andastrophysicist Raj Koothrappali. Geekiness and intellect of the four guys is contrasted for comic effect with Penny's social skills and common sense.[6][7]
Over time, supporting characters have been promoted to starring roles: Bernadette Rostenkowski, Howard's girlfriend (later his wife), a microbiologist and former part-time waitress alongside Penny; neuroscientist Amy Farrah Fowler, who joins the group after being matched to Sheldon on a dating website (and later becomes Sheldon's girlfriend); and Stuart Bloom, the cash-strapped owner of the comic book store the characters often visit, who, in season 8, moves in with Howard's mother.
Sheldon is often described as the stereotypical "geek". He is usually characterized as extremely intelligent, socially inept, and rigidly logical. Despite his intellect, he sometimes displays a lack of common sense. He has a superiority complex, but also possesses childlike qualities, of which he seems unaware, such as extreme stubbornness. He is unknowingly nasty to the others, even his friends, not by choice. It is claimed by Bernadette that the reason Sheldon is sometimes nasty is because the part of his brain that tells him it is wrong to be nasty is "getting a wedgie off of the other parts of his brain". The first four episodes of The Big Bang Theoryportray Sheldon inconsistently with his later characterization. According to Prady, the character "began to evolve after episode five or so and became his own thing."[17]
Sheldon possesses an eidetic memory and an IQ of 187,[18] although he claims his IQ cannot be accurately measured by normal tests.[19] He originally claimed to have a master's degree and two doctoral degrees, but this list has increased.[20][21] Sheldon has an extensive general knowledge in many subjects including physics, chemistry, biology, astronomy, cosmology, algebra, calculus, differential equations, vector calculus, computers, electronics, engineering, history, geography, linguistics, football and various languages like Finnish, Spanish, French, Mandarin Chinese, Persian, Arabic, and Klingon from Star Trek.[22] He also shows great talent in music, knowing how to play the piano, recorderand theremin and having perfect pitch.[23] Although his friends have similar intellects to him, his eccentricities, stubbornness, and lack of empathy often frustrate them. Sheldon occasionally uses slang (in a very unnatural fashion), and follows jokes with hiscatchphrase "Bazinga!" which is now an officially registered trademark of Warner Bros.[24][25] He is uncomfortable with human physical contact and has germophobia, which makes his exceptionally rare hugs extremely awkward and painful-looking. He also has blood phobia, which causes him to faint at the sight of it.[26] Sheldon has difficulty coping when he is interrupted, when asked to keep a secret, or when he hears arguing.[27][28][29] He is also a notary public and uses his knowledge in law and contracts usually for his own advantage and is always distressed when challenged in a legal aspect that he cannot logically defend. In his mannerisms, Sheldon also shows symptoms associated with obsessive-compulsive personality disorder. Whenever approaching a person's home, he must knock three times, then say the person's name, and must repeat this at least three times. Upon entering a person's home, he must select the proper seat before sitting down. When it is suggested by Penny that he "Just sit anywhere", his response is "Oh, no, that's crazy!" This extends to his inability to accept change. His rigidity in maintaining homeostasis often causes him frustration. Because of his rigidity and stubbornness, only his mother and Bernadette – both possessing strong maternal instincts – are able to control him.
Like his friends, Sheldon is scientifically inclined and is fond of comic books (especially the DC Universe), costumes, roleplaying games, video games, tabletop games, collectible card games, action figures, fantasy, science fiction, and cartoons. Sheldon hasrestraining orders from his heroes Leonard Nimoy, Carl Sagan, and Stan Lee,[30][31][32] as well as television scientist Bill Nye.[33] Sheldon often wears vintage T-shirts adorned with superhero logos.
| Ford Mustang | |
|---|---|
 2015 Ford Mustang | |
 | |
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Ford |
| Production | April 1964–present |
| Model years | 1965–present |
| Designer | John Najjar Ferzely, Philip T. Clark, Joe Oros |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Pony car |
| Body style |
|
| Layout | FR layout |
The Ford Mustang is an American automobile manufactured by the Ford Motor Company. It was originally based on the platform of the second generation North American Ford Falcon, a compact car.[1] The original Ford Mustang I four-seater concept car had evolved into the 1963 Mustang II two-seater prototype, which Ford used to pretest how the public would take interest in the first production Mustang which was released as the 1964 1/2, with a slight variation on the frontend and a top that was 2.7 inches shorter than the 1963 Mustang II.[2] Introduced early on April 17, 1964,[3] and thus dubbed as a "1964½" model by Mustang fans, the 1965 Mustang was the automaker's most successful launch since the Model A.[4] The Mustang has undergone several transformations to its current sixth generation.
The Mustang created the "pony car" class of American automobiles—sports-car like coupes with long hoods and short rear decks[5]—and gave rise to competitors such as the Chevrolet Camaro,[6] Pontiac Firebird, AMC Javelin,[7] Chrysler's revamped Plymouth Barracuda and the first generation Dodge Challenger.[8] The Mustang is also credited for inspiring the designs of coupés such as the Toyota Celica and Ford Capri, which were imported to the United States.
Racing[edit]
 | This section needs additional citations for verification. (April 2008) |
The Mustang made its first public appearance on a racetrack little more than a month after its April 17 introduction, as pace car for the 1964 Indianapolis 500.[13]
The same year, Mustangs achieved the first of many notable competition successes, winning first and second in class in the Tour de France international rally. The car's American competition debut, also in 1964, was in drag racing, where private individuals and dealer-sponsored teams campaigned Mustangs powered by 427 cu. in. V8s.
In late 1964, Ford contracted Holman & Moody to prepare ten 427-powered Mustangs to contest the National Hot Rod Association's (NHRA) A/Factory Experimental class in the 1965 drag racing season. Five of these special Mustangs made their competition debut at the 1965 NHRA Winternationals, where they qualified in the Factory Stock Eliminator class. The car driven by Bill Lawton won the class.[68]
A decade later Bob Glidden won the Mustang's first NHRA Pro Stock title.
Early Mustangs also proved successful in road racing. The GT 350 R, the race version of the Shelby GT 350, won five of the Sports Car Club of America's (SCCA) six divisions in 1965. Drivers were Jerry Titus, Bob Johnson and Mark Donohue, and Titus won the (SCCA) B-Production national championship. GT 350s won the B-Production title again in 1966 and 1967. They also won the 1966 manufacturers’ championship in the inaugural SCCA Trans-Am series, and repeated the win the following year.[13]
In 1969, modified versions of the 428 Mach 1, Boss 429 and Boss 302 took 295 United States Auto Club-certified records at Bonneville Salt Flats. The outing included a 24-hour run on a 10-mile (16 km) course at an average speed of 157 mph (253 km/h). Drivers were Mickey Thompson, Danny Ongais, Ray Brock, and Bob Ottum.[13]
In 1970, Mustang won the SCCA series manufacturers’ championship again, with Parnelli Jones and George Follmer driving for car owner/builder Bud Moore and crew chief Lanky Foushee. Jones won the "unofficial" drivers’ title.
Two years later Dick Trickle won 67 short-track oval feature races, a national record for wins in a single season.
In 1975 Ron Smaldone's Mustang became the first-ever American car to win the Showroom Stock national championship in SCCA road racing.
Mustangs also competed in the IMSA GTO class, with wins in 1984 and 1985. In 1985 John Jones also won the 1985 GTO drivers’ championship; Wally Dallenbach Jr., John Jones and Doc Bundy won the GTO class at the Daytona 24 Hours; and Ford won its first manufacturers’ championship in road racing since 1970. Three class wins went to Lynn St. James, the first woman to win in the series.
1986 brought eight more GTO wins and another manufacturers’ title. Scott Pruett won the drivers’ championship. The GT Endurance Championship also went to Ford.
In drag racing Rickie Smith's Motorcraft Mustang won the International Hot Rod Association Pro Stock world championship.
In 1987 Saleen Autosport Mustangs driven by Steve Saleen and Rick Titus won the SCCA Escort Endurance SSGT championship, and in International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) racing a Mustang again won the GTO class in the Daytona 24 Hours. In 1989, its silver anniversary year, the Mustang won Ford its first Trans-Am manufacturers’ title since 1970, with Dorsey Schroeder winning the drivers’ championship.[69]
In 1997, Tommy Kendall’s Roush-prepared Mustang won a record 11 consecutive races in Trans-Am to secure his third straight driver's championship.
In 2002 John Force broke his own NHRA drag racing record by winning his 12th national championship in his Ford Mustang Funny Car, Force beat that record again in 2006, becoming the first-ever 14-time champion, again, driving a Mustang.[13]
Currently, Mustangs compete in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge (formerly known as the KONI Challenge), where they have won the manufacturer's title in 2005 and 2008, and the Canada Drift, Formula Drift and D1 Grand Prix series. They are highly competitive in the SCCA World Challenge, with Brandon Davis winning the 2009 GT driver's championship. Mustangs competed in the now-defunct Grand-Am Road Racing Ford Racing Mustang Challenge for the Miller Cup series as well.
Ford has been successful in the Grand-Am Road Racing Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge winning championships in 2005, 2008, and 2009 with the Mustang FR500C and GT models. In 2004, Ford Racing retained Multimatic to design, engineer, build and race the Mustang FR500C turn-key race car. Multimatic Motorsports won the championship in 2005 with Scott Maxwell and David Empringham taking the driver's title. In 2010, Ford Racing contracted Multimatic again to design, engineer, develop and race the next generation of Mustang race car, known as the Boss 302R. With any new race car, it had various kinks and bugs to work through. The new Mustang Boss 302R achieved numerous pole positions, however reliability hampered race results. The following season the Mustang Boss 302R took its maiden victory at Barber Motorsports Park in early 2011. Multimatic Motorsports drivers Scott Maxwell and Joe Foster brought home the win for Ford.
In 2010 the Ford Mustang became Ford's Car of Tomorrow for the NASCAR Nationwide Series with full-time racing of the Mustang beginning in 2011. This opened a new chapter in both the Mustang's history and Ford's history. NASCAR insiders expect to see Mustang racing in NASCAR Sprint Cup by 2014 (the model's 50th anniversary). Unlike other racing series, the NASCAR vehicles are not based on production Mustangs, but are a silhouette racing car with decals that give them a superficial resemblance to the production road cars. Carl Edwards won the first-ever race with a NASCAR-prepped Mustang on April 8, 2011 at the Texas Motor Speedway.
Ford Mustangs compete in the FIA GT3 European Championship, and compete in the GT4 European Cup and other sports car races such as the 24 Hours of Spa. The Marc VDS Racing Team has been developing the GT3 spec Mustang since 2010.[70] The car has most recently competed in the 2011 24 hours of Spa.
In 2012, Jack Roush won the Daytona International Speedway's opening race of the 50th Anniversary Rolex 24 At Daytona weekend in a Mustang Boss 302R. Leading the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge's final 18 laps, Johnson held off a veritable conga line of six BMW M3's behind as he closed on the driving pair's first win of 2012 in the BMW Performance 200 at Daytona.[71]
Awards[edit]
The 1965 Mustang won the Tiffany Gold Medal for excellence in American design, the first automobile ever to do so.
The Mustang was on the Car and Driver Ten Best list in 1983, 1987, 1988, 2005, 2006, and 2011. It won the Motor Trend Car of the Year award in 1974 and 1994.
In 2005 it was runner-up to the Chrysler 300 for the North American Car of the Year award and was named Canadian Car of the Year.[72]
Cowgirl
 | Look up cowgirl in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
A cowgirl is the female equivalent of a cowboy.
Cowgirl may also refer to:
In entertainment:
- "Cowgirl" (song), a 1994 single by Underworld
- "Legend of a Cowgirl", a 1997 single by Imani Coppola
- "Cowgirl", a 2001 song by Bambee from her album Fairytales
- Cowgirl (album), a 2006 album by Lynn Anderson
- Cowgirl (film), a German film starring Alexandra Maria Lara
- Cowgirl (short subject film), a short subject film featuring Sandra Oh
- Jillian "Cowgirl" Pearlman, a character in the Green Lantern comics featuring Hal Jordan
- Cowgirl, a character in the comic book mini-series Ultra
In sports:
- Oklahoma State Cowgirls, the women's athletic teams of Oklahoma State University–Stillwater
- Wyoming Cowgirls, the women's athletic teams of the University of Wyoming
In other uses:
- Cowgirl (sex position), another name for the "woman on top" position
- The Cowgirl, Jenn Sterger, model and television personality, known for a brief TV appearance in a cowboy hat and tight shirt while a student at Florida State University
- FSU Cowgirls, a group of FSU coeds of which Sterger was a member
- Cowgirl Creamery, an artisanal cheese company in California, US
Development of the modern cowboy image
The traditions of the working cowboy were further etched into the minds of the general public with the development of Wild West Shows in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which showcased and romanticized the life of both cowboys and Native Americans.[61] Beginning in the 1920s and continuing to the present day, Western movies popularized the cowboy lifestyle but also formed persistent stereotypes, both positive and negative. In some cases, the cowboy and the violent gunslinger are often associated with one another. On the other hand, some actors who portrayed cowboys promoted positive values, such as the "cowboy code" of Gene Autry, that encouraged honorable behavior, respect and patriotism.[62]
Likewise, cowboys in movies were often shown fighting with American Indians. However, the reality was that, while cowboys were armed against both predators and human thieves, and often used their guns to run off people of any race who attempted to steal, or rustle cattle, nearly all actual armed conflicts occurred between Indian people and cavalry units of the U.S. Army.[citation needed]
In reality, working ranch hands past and present had very little time for anything other than the constant, hard work involved in maintaining a ranch.
Cowgirls
The history of women in the west, and women who worked on cattle ranches in particular, is not as well documented as that of men. However, institutions such as the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame have made significant efforts in recent years to gather and document the contributions of women.[2]
There are few records mentioning girls or women working to drive cattle up the cattle trails of the Old West. However women did considerable ranch work, and in some cases (especially when the men went to war or on long cattle drives) ran them. There is little doubt that women, particularly the wives and daughters of men who owned small ranches and could not afford to hire large numbers of outside laborers, worked side by side with men and thus needed to ride horses and be able to perform related tasks. The largely undocumented contributions of women to the west were acknowledged in law; the western states led the United States in granting women the right to vote, beginning with Wyoming in 1869.[63] Early photographers such as Evelyn Cameron documented the life of working ranch women and cowgirls during the late 19th and early 20th century.
While impractical for everyday work, the sidesaddle was a tool that gave women the ability to ride horses in "respectable" public settings instead of being left on foot or confined tohorse-drawn vehicles. Following the Civil War, Charles Goodnight modified the traditional English sidesaddle, creating a western-styled design. The traditional charras of Mexicopreserve a similar tradition and ride sidesaddles today in charreada exhibitions on both sides of the border.
It wasn't until the advent of Wild West Shows that "cowgirls" came into their own. These adult women were skilled performers, demonstrating riding, expert marksmanship, and trick roping that entertained audiences around the world. Women such as Annie Oakley became household names. By 1900, skirts split for riding astride became popular, and allowed women to compete with the men without scandalizing Victorian Era audiences by wearing men's clothing or, worse yet, bloomers. In the movies that followed from the early 20th century on, cowgirls expanded their roles in the popular culture and movie designers developed attractive clothing suitable for riding Western saddles.
Independently of the entertainment industry, the growth of rodeo brought about the rodeo cowgirl. In the early Wild West shows and rodeos, women competed in all events, sometimes against other women, sometimes with the men. Cowgirls such as Fannie Sperry Steele rode the same "rough stock" and took the same risks as the men (and all while wearing a heavy split skirt that was more encumbering than men's trousers) and competed at major rodeos such as the Calgary Stampede and Cheyenne Frontier Days.[64]
Rodeo competition for women changed in the 1920s due to several factors. After 1925, when Eastern promoters started staging indoor rodeos in places like Madison Square Garden, women were generally excluded from the men's events and many of the women's events were dropped. Also, the public had difficulties with seeing women seriously injured or killed, and in particular, the death of Bonnie McCarroll at the 1929 Pendleton Round-Up led to the elimination of women's bronc riding from rodeo competition.[65]
In today's rodeos, men and women compete equally together only in the event of team roping, though technically women now could enter other open events. There also are all-women rodeos where women compete in bronc riding, bull riding and all other traditional rodeo events. However, in open rodeos, cowgirls primarily compete in the timed riding events such as barrel racing, and most professional rodeos do not offer as many women's events as men's events.
Boys and girls are more apt to compete against one another in all events in high-school rodeos as well as O-Mok-See competition, where even boys can be seen in traditionally "women's" events such as barrel racing. Outside of the rodeo world, women compete equally with men in nearly all other equestrian events, including the Olympics, and western riding events such as cutting, reining, and endurance riding.
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cowgirls. |
Today's working cowgirls generally use clothing, tools and equipment indistinguishable from that of men, other than in color and design, usually preferring a flashier look in competition. Sidesaddles are only seen in exhibitions and a limited number of specialty horse show classes. A modern working cowgirl wears jeans, close-fitting shirts, boots, hat, and when needed, chaps and gloves. If working on the ranch, they perform the same chores as cowboys and dress to suit the situation.