title: Execution of Charles I

text: On the other side, the parliamentarians led their own propaganda war against these royalists reports. They suppressed royalist works like the and the other various elegies to the deceased king by arresting and suppressing the printers of such books. Simultaneously, they worked with radical booksellers and publishers to push pro-regicide works, outprinting their opponents by two to one in the month of February, following Charles' execution. Even commissioning Milton to publish as a parliamentarian rejoinder to —sharply mocking the piety of and the "image-doting rabble" who latched on to its depiction of Charles—attacking its royalist arguments in a chapter-by-chapter fashion. Charles's prosecutor, John Cook, published a pamphlet defending the execution of Charles, giving "an appeal to all rational men concerning his tryal at the High Court of Justice", in which he asserted that the execution had "pronounced sentence not only against one tyrant but against tyranny itself". These publications had such an effect on the public perception that—despite the regicide going against nearly every conception of social order in the period—the regicides of Charles felt safe in their positions soon after. A contemporary source described Cromwell and Ireton as "very cheerfull & well pleased" at the events by 24 February.


title: Execution of Charles I

text: The reaction among European statesmen was almost universally negative, with the princes and rulers of Europe quick to voice their horror at the regicide. Despite this, very little action was taken against the new English government, as foreign governments carefully avoided cutting off relations with England over their condemnations of the execution. Even the allies of the royalists in the Vatican, France and the Netherlands avoided straining relationships with the parliamentarians in England; the official statement of sympathy to Charles II from the Dutch went as far as possible to avoid calling him "your majesty". Most European nations had their own troubles occupying their minds, such as negotiating the terms of the recently signed Peace of Westphalia, and the regicide was treated with what Richard Bonney described as a "half-hearted irrelevance". As C. V. Wedgwood put it, the general conduct of the statesmen of Europe was to "pay lip-service alone to the idea of avenging the outrage [of the execution], and to govern their conduct towards its perpetrators by purely practical considerations".


title: Execution of Charles I

text: One notable exception was the Russian Tsar Alexis, who broke off diplomatic relations with England and accepted Royalist refugees in Moscow. He also banned all English merchants from his country (notably members of the Muscovy Company) and provided financial assistance to Charles II, sending his condolences to Henrietta Maria, "the disconsolate widow of that glorious martyr, King Charles I".


title: Execution of Charles I

text: The image of Charles' execution became vital to the cult of St. Charles the Martyr in English royalism. Shortly after Charles' death, relics of Charles' execution were reported to perform miracles – with handkerchiefs of Charles' blood supposedly curing the King's Evil among peasants. Many elegies and works of devotion were produced to glorify the dead Charles and his cause. After the Restoration of the English monarchy in 1660, this private devotion was transformed into official worship; in 1661, the Church of England declared 30 January a solemn fast for the martyrdom of Charles and Charles occupied a saint-like status in contemporary prayer books. In Charles II's reign, (as estimated by Francis Turner) around 3000 sermons were given annually to commemorate the martyrdom of Charles. Much Restoration historiography of the Civil War emphasised the regicide as a grand and theatrical tragedy, depicting the last days of Charles' life in a hagiographical fashion. Few saw the executed king's character as fallible. Britain's Lord Chancellor after the Restoration, Edward Hyde, for example, in his monumental "History of the Rebellion" (1702–1704), was one of the few sometimes critical of Charles's actions and perceived his flaws as a king, but his account the year of Charles' execution ended with a passionate condemnation of:


title: Execution of Charles I

text: After the Glorious Revolution, even as royalism declined, the cult continued to enjoy support; the anniversaries of Charles' execution created an annual "general madding-day" of Royal support—as Whig Edmund Ludlow put it—up until the 18th-century. Early Whig historians such as James Wellwood and Roger Coke, even as they criticised and mocked the Stuarts, were hesitant to criticise Charles and quick to condemn the execution as an abomination. The memory of Charles' execution remained uncomfortable for many Whigs in Britain. To delegitimise this cult, later Whigs spread the view of Charles as a tyrant, and his execution as a step towards constitutional government in Britain. In opposition, British Tory literary and political figures, including Isaac D'Israeli and Walter Scott, attempted to rejuvenate the cult with romanticised tales of Charles' execution—emphasising the same tropes of martyrdom the royalists had done before them. D'Israeli narrated the execution of Charles I in his "Commentaries on the Life and Reign of Charles the First" (1828), in which Charles dies "having received the axe with the same collectedness of thought and died with the majesty with which he had lived". For D'Israeli, "the martyrdom of Charles was a civil and political one", which "seems an expiation of the errors and infirmities of the early years of his reign." However, by the Victorian era, the view of the Whig historians had prevailed in British historiography and the public consciousness. The observance of 30 January as the "martyrdom" of Charles was officially removed from the services of the Church of England with the Anniversary Days Observance Act 1859, and the number of sermons given upon the death of Charles I of dwindled. This Whig view was exemplified by the Victorian historian Samuel Rawson Gardiner as he closed his late 19th-century "History of the Great Civil War":


title: Execution of Charles I

text: Charles I's life and his execution has often been a subject of popular representations in the modern day. Popular historians, such as Samuel Rawson Gardiner, Veronica Wedgwood and J.G. Muddiman, have retold the tale of Charles I's decline and fall, through his trial and to his execution, in narrative histories. Films and television have exploited the dramatic tension and shock of the execution for many purposes: from comedy as in "", to period drama as in "To Kill a King". The subject of the execution, though, has suffered from a notable lack of serious scholarship throughout the modern era; perhaps partly out of what Jason Peacey, a leading figure in the scholarship of Charles I's execution, has called a discomfort at "such a thoroughly 'un-English' project as removing the head of their monarch". This stigma has slowly been lifted, as academic interest has risen into the late 20th century; eliciting much interest in 1999, upon the 350th anniversary of the trial and execution of Charles I.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: Matthew Paul Le Tissier (; born 14 October 1968) is a former professional footballer. Born in Guernsey, he won eight caps for the England national team.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: Le Tissier spent his entire professional club career with Southampton before turning to non-League football in 2002; his loyalty garnered special affection from Southampton's fans who nicknamed him "Le God".


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: A creative attacking midfielder with exceptional technical skills, Le Tissier is the second-highest ever scorer for Southampton behind Mick Channon and was voted PFA Young Player of the Year in 1990. He was the first midfielder to score 100 goals in the Premier League. He is notable for his record at scoring penalty kicks – converting from the spot 47 times from 48 attempts – and is considered one of the greatest ever from the 12-yard spot.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: Following his retirement as a player, Le Tissier became a football pundit, and worked as a panellist on the Sky Sports show "Soccer Saturday" until August 2020. In 2011, he became honorary president of Guernsey F.C. In his retirement, he has made several posts on social media, concerning Covid-19 and the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, which were met with criticism.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: Le Tissier was born in Guernsey, a British crown dependency, and played youth football on the island with Vale Recreation between the ages of seven and sixteen. At fifteen, he had a trial at English club Oxford United, but nothing came of it.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: Signing for Southampton on YTS forms in 1985 and then signing professional forms in October 1986, Le Tissier made his club debut in a 4–3 defeat at Norwich City in the Football League First Division, and by the end of that season had scored six goals in 24 league games, including a hat-trick against Leicester City in the league. He scored his first two competitive goals in a League Cup third round replay at home to Manchester United on 4 November 1986, a game which Southampton won 4–1 and was Ron Atkinson's last in charge of the visitors, his sacking coming within 48 hours of the result. Le Tissier made 19 first team league appearances in 1987–88, failing to score, but in 1988–89, scored nine times in 28 league games.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: He was voted PFA Young Player of the Year for the 1989–90 season, in which he was one of the league's top goalscorers with 20 goals as Southampton finished seventh in the First Division, the club's highest finish for five years.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: Le Tissier's highest scoring league season was 1993–94, when he scored 25 league goals. The following season he won the Match of the Day Goal of the Season award for his drifting 40-yard chip against Blackburn Rovers, scoring against his long-term friend, and former Southampton keeper, Tim Flowers.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: Le Tissier's goal tally for the season regularly went well into double figures for the league alone throughout the 1990s, playing a major role in Southampton preserving their top flight status into the new millennium as they came close to relegation on five occasions in the first seven seasons of the Premier League – including one season when they only survived on goal difference. He was the subject of interest from many big clubs in England and overseas during this time, particularly from Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United, but the transfer never happened and Le Tissier would ultimately remain a Southampton player until his retirement. In August 1995, Chelsea reportedly made a £10million bid for Le Tissier which would have made him the most expensive player in English football at the time. Shortly afterwards, defending league champions Blackburn Rovers were reportedly planning to sign him for a similar-sized fee.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: On 2 April 2000, Le Tissier scored a last minute penalty for Southampton in a 2–1 defeat to Sunderland. This brought his tally of Premiership goals to 100, making him only the sixth player and first midfielder to reach this milestone.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: He scored the last goal in the final competitive match played at The Dell on 19 May 2001, against Arsenal. This turned out to be his last goal for Southampton. He played several games for the club during 2001–02, the first season at the new St Mary's Stadium, in an eventual 11th-place finish. His final competitive appearance for the Saints came against West Ham on 30 January 2002. He announced on 29 March 2002 that he would retire from playing at the season's end after limping off with a recurrence of a calf strain during a reserve team game against Charlton Athletic.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: His final match, a testimonial against an England XI in May 2002, ended in a 9–9 draw, with Le Tissier playing 45 minutes for each side, while his 10-year-old son Mitchell came on as a substitute in the second half, scoring four times.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: Throughout his career, Le Tissier had a fearsome reputation for scoring from the spot, converting 47 of the 48 penalties that he took for Southampton. His sole failure to convert came on 24 March 1993 in a match against Nottingham Forest, his spot kick being saved by Forest keeper Mark Crossley, the feat being so unique that Crossley describes it as the save of which he is most proud.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: After leaving Southampton, he had a two-season-long spell with non-league side Eastleigh, where he played alongside his former Southampton teammate David Hughes. He made his debut in a 3–0 victory over Newport (IOW) in the Hampshire Senior Cup in October 2002. He played his last match for the club early in August 2003, starring in the Hampshire Chronicle Cup Final second leg victory against Winchester City.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: On 7 April 2013, ten years after retiring from football, Le Tissier announced he had come out of retirement and signed with his hometown club Guernsey. A number of fixture postponements meant that they had to play 17 league fixtures in a month, and Le Tissier announced that he would be able to play in four or five games, also saying he was unable to play Saturday games due to his job as a television pundit on Soccer Saturday. He made his debut for the club on 24 April, as a substitute for Ollie McKenzie, in a 4–2 defeat in their Combined Counties League Premier Division clash with Colliers Wood United. The fixture was his only appearance for the club.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: Le Tissier represented Guernsey's under-15 side, playing in the 1983 Muratti Vase final against Jersey U15.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: He chose to play for England, joining a relatively small group of players who were not born in the country, and earned eight caps over three years. Guernsey, although largely self-governing, does not have an official FIFA national team, which made Le Tissier eligible to play for England. He was picked by the manager Terry Venables to start the ill-fated friendly match against the Republic of Ireland at Lansdowne Road, on 15 February 1995. With Ireland leading from a 22nd-minute goal by David Kelly, a group of England fans began to riot, causing the Dutch referee Dick Jol to abandon the match.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: In the run-up to the 1998 FIFA World Cup, Le Tissier scored a hat-trick in a 4–1 victory for England B against Russia B at Loftus Road; despite this, he was overlooked by manager Glenn Hoddle for the final squad. He never played for England again after the tournament.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: Le Tissier was a creative and technically gifted attacking midfielder, with an eye for goal, known for his ball striking, and ability to get into good attacking positions, in addition to his vision, and ability to create chances for teammates; these abilities also enabled him to play as a supporting striker on occasion, or even on the right wing, although this was not his favoured position. Despite his poor work-rate, and lack of notable pace or stamina, he was known for his excellent control, technique, balance, and dribbling skills, as well as his intelligence on the ball, and his use of tricks and feints, which allowed him to beat opponents. He was also known for his extreme accuracy on penalties.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: On the former site of The Dell, which was Southampton FC’s old stadium, the names of apartment blocks honour Southampton Football Club players; one is named Le Tissier Court. At Southampton FC’s current ground, St Mary's Stadium, one of the hospitality suites is named after him.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: On 7 February 2007, a plane in the Flybe fleet was named after him on his home island of Guernsey. It was withdrawn from use in July 2011.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: After Southampton's relegation to level three in 2008–09, Le Tissier initially offered to help with a bid to take over the club, but later withdrew, amidst some controversy.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: In September 2009, Le Tissier revealed in his autobiography that he had placed a spread bet on a match he was involved in during his playing career. During an April 1995 match at Wimbledon, Le Tissier stood to win "well into four figures" after betting on the time of the first throw-in. After kicking off, he tried to overhit a pass to unsuspecting teammate Neil Shipperley, but due to nerves, underhit it and Shipperley was able to keep the ball in play. Le Tissier revealed he had "never run so much" in his life as he tried to put the ball out of play to avoid losing money, with the ball eventually going out of play after 70 seconds, meaning Le Tissier and his associates neither won nor lost money. The event was investigated by Hampshire Police but the Crown Prosecution Service refused to take the case further, citing that it did "not represent appropriate use of police resources" and "would not be in the public interest".


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: Le Tissier made a cameo appearance for Southampton in Claus Lundekvam's testimonial against Celtic, on 18 July 2008. Lundekvam had previously played with him at Southampton from 1996 to 2002.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: In August 2016, Le Tissier and ex-Southampton teammate Francis Benali announced that they had gone into business as football agents. Speaking about their joint business venture, Le Tissier commented that their aim was to provide "guidance and support on every aspect of a footballer's career – on and off the field". Benali added: "We've got a real passion for football and are keen to impart our experience and knowledge to help players make the right decisions for their careers. He was a long-term panellist on Sky Sports show "Soccer Saturday" until August 2020 when he was dropped. Whilst working for Sky Sports, Le Tissier claimed that he was required to wear a Black Lives Matter badge and was only told this "about a minute" before the show started. After wearing the badge for one show he subsequently refused to and he believed that this contributed to his dismissal.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: In 2019 and 2020, Le Tissier featured in both seasons of ITV show Harry's Heroes, which featured former football manager Harry Redknapp attempting get a squad of former England international footballers back fit and healthy for a game against Germany legends.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: In 2020, Le Tissier became an outspoken critic of the reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom. He issued several tweets criticising what he deemed to be an "overreaction" by the government and media, among others, opposing lockdowns and mask orders. An image he posted on Twitter which implied a comparison between the Holocaust and having to wear masks during the pandemic was deleted. In 2021, Le Tissier drew widespread criticism again for promoting unverified theories, when he suggested that Christian Eriksen's on-pitch cardiac arrest was an adverse reaction to being vaccinated, despite Eriksen not being vaccinated. In November 2021 he faced further criticism, this time by epidemiologists, as one of several former professional footballers "demanding investigations into links" between onfield collapses and COVID vaccinations, after three footballers collapsed in one week.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: Le Tissier controversially retweeted a post on Twitter concerning the Bucha massacre, committed during Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, suggesting the media was lying in its coverage of the event. Following backlash, Le Tissier stepped down from his role as a Club Ambassador at Southampton on 6 April.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: On 4 May 2022, Jersey Bulls cancelled an appearance of Le Tissier after he was previously announced as the special guest at their awards dinner following fan backlash.


title: Matt Le Tissier

text: Le Tissier married childhood sweetheart Cathy and had two children, Mitchell and Keeleigh. The couple divorced in 1997 and Cathy and the children moved back to Guernsey, after which he had a relationship with "Home and Away" and "Emmerdale" actress Emily Symons., before marrying Angela Nabulsi in April 2008 in a small ceremony. They have one daughter, Ava, together. All three of Le Tissier's brothers – Mark, Kevin and Carl – also played football, but never professionally. Mark is currently secretary of Guernsey F.C.


title: Daveigh Chase

text: Daveigh Elizabeth Chase ( ; née Chase-Schwallier; born July 24, 1990) is an American actress, singer, and model. She began her career appearing in minor television roles before being cast as Samantha Darko in Richard Kelly's cult film "Donnie Darko". She would subsequently provide the voices of Chihiro Ogino in the English dub of the Studio Ghibli film "Spirited Away", and Lilo Pelekai in the Disney animated feature film "Lilo & Stitch" and its subsequent franchise, before appearing as Samara Morgan, the child antagonist in the 2002 horror film "The Ring".


title: Daveigh Chase

text: Between 2006 and 2011, she played a supporting part in the HBO series "Big Love", portraying Rhonda Volmer, a sociopathic teenager raised in a polygamist family. In 2009, she reprised her role as Samantha Darko in "S. Darko", a sequel to "Donnie Darko". She appeared in the 2016 horror film "Jack Goes Home".


title: Daveigh Chase

text: Chase was born on July 24, 1990, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Her name was changed to Daveigh Elizabeth Chase after her parents, Cathy Chase and John Schwallier, divorced. Chase was raised in Albany, Oregon.


title: Daveigh Chase

text: Chase's big break came in 2002 when she won the lead role as the voice of a Hawaiian girl, Lilo Pelekai, in the Disney animated feature, "Lilo & Stitch". The film relates how Lilo befriends a strange and destructive blue alien thinly disguised as a dog, whom she calls "Stitch", and how she tries to teach him how to behave using Elvis Presley music as exemplars. For her performance, Chase would go on to win an Annie Award in 2003 and star in the follow-up TV series, "". Chase also voiced the role of the lead character, Chihiro Ogino, a 10 year-old Japanese girl, in the American dub of the anime Japanese feature, "Spirited Away".


title: Daveigh Chase

text: In 2002, Chase starred in the role of Samara Morgan in the feature film, "The Ring". Chase was awarded the 2003 Best Villain award at the MTV Movie Awards for her performance, beating out Mike Myers, Colin Farrell, Willem Dafoe and Daniel Day-Lewis. In the sequel to "The Ring", "The Ring Two" (2005), Chase was credited for her role as Samara Morgan because of the use of archive footage from the first "Ring", but Kelly Stables performed all of the new archive footage.


title: Daveigh Chase

text: Chase's main other major film and TV credits between 2000 and 2005 were the film "Donnie Darko" (2001), as Donnie's younger sister, Samantha, and "Oliver Beene" (2003–2004), as Oliver's quirky girlfriend Joyce. Other credits include "The Rats" (2002), "Carolina" (2003), "R.L. Stine's Haunted Lighthouse" (2003) in which she played a flying ghost called Annabel, and "Beethoven's 5th" (2003). She also made guest appearances in "Touched by an Angel", "Charmed", "ER", "Family Law", and "The Practice".


title: Daveigh Chase

text: In 2006, Chase was given the role of Rhonda Volmer in the HBO drama series "Big Love" which centers on a polygamist family and its patriarch, Bill Henrickson, played by Bill Paxton. The show focuses upon Henrickson's relationship with his three wives. Chase's character is the child bride of a prophet, Roman Grant, played by Harry Dean Stanton.


title: Daveigh Chase

text: "Leroy & Stitch", the finale to "Lilo & Stitch: The Series", was released in 2006. Chase then appeared in the second season of "Big Love", which aired in 2007. She also voiced Betsy in the PBS show "Betsy's Kindergarten Adventures" the same year. She reprised her role as Donnie Darko's younger sister, Samantha, in the film "S. Darko". The story picks up seven years after the first film when Samantha Darko and her best friend Corey are now 18 years old and on a road trip to Los Angeles when they are afflicted by bizarre visions.


title: Daveigh Chase

text: In 2015, she starred in the thriller film "Killer Crush" and in the independent horror film "Wild in Blue" with Karen Black. In 2016, she starred in the thriller film "American Romance" with Nolan Gerard Funk, and appeared in the thriller film "Jack Goes Home" with Rory Culkin, Britt Robertson, Lin Shaye and Nikki Reed.


title: Daveigh Chase

text: Chase was arrested in November 2017 for riding in a stolen car. She was arrested again in 2018 for drug possession charges 18 months after allegedly leaving a dying man outside an emergency room.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, often referred to simply as LaGuardia, is a public high school specializing in teaching visual arts and performing arts, located near Lincoln Center in the Lincoln Square neighborhood of the Upper West Side in Manhattan, New York City. Located at 100 Amsterdam Avenue between West 64th and 65th Streets, the school is operated by the New York City Department of Education, and resulted from the merger of the High School of Music & Art and the School of Performing Arts. The school has a dual mission of arts and academics, preparing students for a career in the arts or conservatory study as well as a pursuit of higher education.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: The school is the only one of New York City's nine specialized high schools to receive special funding from the New York State Legislature through the Hecht-Calandra Act, as well as the only specialized high school that does not use the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) as admissions criteria.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: The school in 2019–2020 had 3,011 students and 164 staff members, with a teacher–student ratio of 1:20.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: The High School of Music & Art was founded by Mayor Fiorello H. LaGuardia in 1936. He wanted to establish a public school in which students could hone their talents in music, art and the performing arts. In 1948, a similar institution – the High School of Performing Arts – was created in an effort to harness students' talents in dance. The schools merged on paper in 1961 and were to be combined in one building. However, this took many years.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: In 1984, the schools moved to a new concrete building, designed by Argentine architect Eduardo Catalano and adjacent to Lincoln Center. The Board of education honored Mayor LaGuardia posthumously by naming the new building after him. Prior to the building's completion in 1985, Music & Art – colloquially known as "The Castle on the Hill" – was located in Manhattan at Convent Avenue and 135th Street in what has since become part of City College of New York's South Campus; the building is home to A. Philip Randolph Campus High School. Performing Arts was located in Midtown Manhattan on West 46th Street. Mayor La Guardia regarded Music & Art as the "most hopeful accomplishment" of his long administration as mayor.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: Alumni from LaGuardia and its two legacy schools, High School of Music and Art and School of Performing Arts, are active in supporting the students and the school through scholarships and support for special programs, school events, and reunions held at the school and throughout the world. The school's alumni organization has a full-time executive director and offices at the school. It functions as an independent charitable organization organized under the laws of New York. The prestigious Fame School has built up a reputation as the #1 ranked performing arts high school in NYC.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: Students at LaGuardia take a full academic course load while participating in conservatory-style arts concentration. Each student majors in one studio, choosing from either Dance, Drama, Art, Vocal Music, Instrumental Music, or Technical Theater.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: Many graduates from LaGuardia continue their studies in universities or conservatories after graduation.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: Students can take honors classes by choice or programming. LaGuardia also offers several Advanced Placement courses.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: The school presents an annual musical. The Musical Theater class, an elective school-wide course, is offered through the collaboration of faculty members from Music, Drama, Dance, and the Tech Theater Studios, culminating in a major musical theater performance. Recent productions have included "Gypsy", "Les Misérables", "West Side Story", "Hair", "Ragtime", "Hairspray", "Guys and Dolls", "Sweet Charity", "Grease", "In the Heights", "Beauty and the Beast", "The Sound of Music", and Cinderella.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: For the first two years of education, the art department stresses traditional artistic skills and discipline. Students work on drawing from observation, learning color theory, and the principles of design. Following this, students elect vocationally oriented courses in the fine arts such as Digital Media, Architecture, Painting, Sculpture, and Photography. In their senior year, art majors can submit portfolios to the department for consideration for a place in the senior galleries, which are a series of shows organized and constructed by the chosen students and a student curator.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: The music department features two symphony orchestras, five choirs, four string ensembles, two concert bands, two jazz bands, a chamber group, a gospel choir, a show choir, and an opera company with a pit orchestra. Vocal and instrumental students study in a conservatory curriculum featuring three hours of music per day, including performing ensembles, electives (in areas such as music technology and composition), music theory and history. The department has done featured work with composers and organizations such as Eric Whitacre, Josh Groban, Arturo O'Farrill, Béla Fleck and NPR's "Radiolab".


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: Every student in the instrumental department must join a performing ensemble as well as a class specific to their instrument's musicological classification (one of three winds ensembles, three string orchestras or a percussion corp). After completing their first year with an ensemble, students may fulfill the remainder of performance credits with electives.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: Every student in the vocal department must perform with Elementary Chorus within their first or second year. At the secondary level, students must perform with either Mixed Chorus or Girls' Chorus. Third-year vocal music majors must complete an additional year of chorus, performing either with Mixed Chorus, Women's Chorus, or Senior Chorus.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: Every music student must pass an elementary sight singing course as well as a year of music theory and history in order to graduate.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: The drama studio at LaGuardia is highly competitive. The students do not get a chance to perform publicly until their junior year with musical theater, or senior year during the Spring Drama Festival. The exceptions for drama students' ability to perform are the annual school musical, in which any second-, third-, or fourth-year student may audition for any number of roles, and the Rising Stars talent show, where any group of students can prepare an act.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: There are several guest teachers in the drama department, who are featured particularly in the junior and senior courses. Jake Gyllenhaal, Alan Rickman and Darren Criss have visited to speak with students, and recent graduates Timothée Chalamet and Ansel Elgort have also returned. Rapper Nicki Minaj is also a drama department graduate. The faculty members of the department include AP Sandy Faison, Harry Shifman, Lee Lobenhoffer and Robert Krausz. Actress Ally Sheedy teaches at the school full time.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: The Dance Department is based strictly on pre-conservatory-based training in the field of dance. Students spend the first two years training solely in classical ballet and the combined modern techniques of Graham and Horton. In their junior year they are given the opportunity to take musical theater and tap classes. Beyond that, the junior class performs for the first time junior year. The second semester of junior year they take a choreography class in which they create pieces of their own to perform. Senior year, the dancers take career management classes to support their success and take part in two performances: the Winter Showcase and the Graduation Dance Concert of the spring.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: The Technical Theater Studio is a professional training program that provides students with the skills and techniques necessary to pursue a career in technical theater. Concepts and aesthetics are taught using contemporary teaching methods that utilize state-of-the-art equipment. Professionally produced events in the concert hall, thrust-stage theater, and black-box theater provide students with practical hands-on work experiences.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: Fiorello H. LaGuardia Highschool's extra curriculum programs come in different forms. People can join clubs in accordance to their interests/values, or volunteer in school-related activities. There are tens of clubs to join in the school for students and students can access volunteer opportunities through a website named X2VOL


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: Clubs meet up to share common interests such as environmental awareness, social equity, cultural passions, technology, and more. To join a club, a student must 'show up' to the club and express interest in participating in it. Clubs usually meet up bi-weekly or weekly depending on the convenience for club board members or members alike. A percentage of the clubs are solely independent of other external organizations outside of Fiorello H. Laguardia Highschool, and the other percentage is run under the administration


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: The New York City Subway's 66th Street–Lincoln Center () and 59th Street–Columbus Circle () stations are located nearby. Additionally, New York City Bus's routes stop near LaGuardia High School. Students residing more than a certain distance from the school are provided full-fare or half-fare student MetroCards for public transportation.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: LaGuardia offers 21 different sports on the Varsity level. It is one of 8 schools in New York City which still runs the Gymnastics Program. LaGuardia competes with the Public School Athletic League (PSAL). Fall season sports include bowling, swimming, volleyball, cross country (girls'), fencing (co-ed), soccer, and cross country (boys'). Winter season sports include basketball, gymnastics, and indoor track (boys' and girls'). In the spring, the school offers baseball, outdoor track, tennis, volleyball (boys'), handball, softball and tennis (girls').


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: The 1980 dramatic film "Fame" was based on student life at the School of Performing Arts prior to its merger into LaGuardia High School. A television series based on the film, "Fame", was launched in 1982. It was adapted again as a stage musical, which premiered in 1988. A loose remake of the film was released in 2009.


title: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School

text: The use of illegal substances is very prevalent in Laguardia High School. The school has documented issues with heavy drugs such as opioids and other pharmaceuticals. Mental health is also a very big issue at the school. The school day at Laguardia is the longest in the city, with most students in school from 8 am to 4:10 pm and some having a shorter school day due to opting-out of a period. This paired with homework and practicing talents as well as other obligations has taken a toll on the mental health of the student body, especially in recent years. This is evident in the NYCDOE's school snapshot surveys which reveal that 81% of students say they experienced stress while learning at Laguardia High School. Additionally, in the 2019–2020 NYCDOE surveys, only 46% of students reported that their teachers support them when they're upset.


title: United States Navy SEAL selection and training

text: The average member of the United States Navy's Sea, Air, Land Teams (SEALs) spends over a year in a series of formal training environments before being awarded the Special Warfare Operator Naval Rating and the Navy Enlisted Classification (NEC) O26A Combatant Swimmer (SEAL) or, in the case of commissioned naval officers, the designation 113X Special Warfare Officer. All Navy SEALs must attend and graduate from their rating's 24-week "A" School known as Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) school, a basic parachutist course and then the 26-week SEAL Qualification Training program.


text: All sailors entering the SEAL training pipeline chosen by Naval Special Warfare Command must also attend the six-month SEAL specific Special Operations Tactical Medic course in Stennis, MS and subsequently earn the NEC SO-5393 Naval Special Warfare Medic before joining an operational Team. Once outside the formal schooling environment SEALs entering a new Team at the beginning of an operational rotation can expect 18 months of training interspersed with leave and other time off before each six-month deployment.


text: Training to become a Navy SEAL is voluntary, and officers and enlisted sailors train side by side. To volunteer, a SEAL candidate must be a US citizen between 18 and 29 years old in the U.S. Navy. Occasionally, personnel from foreign armed forces allied with the United States have been invited to train at BUD/S. For two years, of seven initially planned, members of the Coast Guard were allowed to obtain SEAL training, until the program was suspended in 2011. Waivers are available for 17-year-olds with parental permission, and case-by-case for 29- and 30-year-olds. Academically, all applicants must have the equivalent of a high school education, have a composite score of at least 220 on the ASVAB and be proficient in all aspects of the English language. Medically, all potential applicants must have at least 20/70 vision, correctable to 20/25, be able to pass the SEAL Physical Screening Test and have no recent history of drug abuse. Lastly applicants must have "good moral character" as determined by their history of criminal convictions and civil citations.


text: Since December 2015, women have been eligible to enter the SEAL training pipeline provided they can meet the same acceptance guidelines as men. Women accepted into the program undergo the same training regimen as do the men, although this policy is under review.


text: The first woman to enter the training pipeline dropped out during the 3-week Indoctrination phase in August 2017 prior to entering BUD/S.


text: The first woman to complete the screening required to enter BUD/S did so in 2019. She was subsequently assigned to the unit listed as her first choice, which was not the SEALs.


text: The first female officer to ever pass assessment and screening for the SWCC pipeline, did so in September 2021, though afterwards she was not offered a contract.


text: Assignment to BUD/S is conditional on the SEAL Physical Screening Test (PST). Prospective trainees are expected to exceed the minimums. The minimum requirements are swim using breast or combat sidestroke in under 12:30 with a competitive time of 9:00 or less, at least 50 push-ups in 2 minutes with a competitive count of 90 or more, at least 50 sit-ups in 2 minutes with a competitive count of 90 or more, at least 10 pull-ups from a dead hang (no time limit) with a competitive count of 18 or more, run running in pants and boots (now changed to shorts and sneakers) under 10:30 with a competitive time of 9:30 or less.


text: The training curriculum begins at Naval Special Warfare Preparatory School in Great Lakes, Illinois. Here, aspiring SEALs are given a crash course in the physical standards required to even attempt to become a SEAL.


text: It starts with the initial Physical Screening Test and ends with a more demanding Modified Physical Screening Test, one that includes a minimum of 70 push-ups in 2 minutes, a timed four-mile run in 31 minutes, and a timed 1,000-meter swim with fins in 20 minutes. The goal is to increase the SEAL candidates' physical readiness between the two tests so that they are ready to move on to Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) Training. Those unable to pass the final modified PST test are removed from the SEAL training pipeline and reclassified into other jobs in the Navy.


text: BUD/S is a 24-week training course that develops the SEAL candidates' mental and physical stamina and leadership skills. Each BUD/S phase includes timed physical condition tests, with the time requirements becoming more demanding each week. BUD/S consists of a three-week orientation followed by three phases, covering physical conditioning (seven weeks), combat diving (seven weeks), and land warfare (seven weeks) respectively. Officer and enlisted personnel go through the same training program. It is designed to develop and test their stamina, leadership, and ability to work as a team. BUD/S has been controversial due to candidates' use of performance-enhancing drugs and a number of candidate deaths.


text: BUD/S Orientation, previously known as Indoctrination, is a three-week course that introduces candidates to the Naval Special Warfare Center and the BUD/S lifestyle. Navy SEAL instructors introduce candidates to BUD/S physical training, the obstacle course, swimming and other unique training aspects. This part of training is designed to prepare candidates for day one of the first phase.


text: The first phase of BUD/S assesses SEAL candidates in physical conditioning, water competency, teamwork, and mental tenacity.


text: Physical conditioning phase utilizes daily running, swimming, calisthenics, and grows harder as the weeks progress. Candidates are also divided into "boat crews" consisting of six to seven people with one small inflatable boat known as an IBS, and must paddle out from the shore, through the surf zone, and back again. Candidates participate in weekly timed runs in boots and pants (now changed to shorts and sneakers) and timed obstacle courses, swim distances up to two miles wearing fins in the ocean and learn small boat seamanship. Candidates that consistently do not meet specified time requirements for running and swimming tests are dropped from training.


text: The first three weeks of basic conditioning phase prepares candidates for the fourth week, known as "Hell Week". During Hell Week, candidates participate in five and a half days of continuous training. Each candidate sleeps at most four hours during the entire week, runs more than , and does physical training for more than 20 hours per day. Candidates are not restricted from meals and are fed breakfast, lunch and dinner. The remaining three weeks involve the acquisition of various methods of conducting hydrographic surveys and creating a hydrographic chart while still participating in timed runs and swim tests.


text: Because of its particularly challenging requirements, many candidates begin questioning their decision to come to BUD/S during First Phase, with a significant number deciding to Drop on Request (DOR). The tradition of DOR consists of dropping one's helmet liner next to a pole with a brass ship's bell attached to it and ringing the bell three times.


text: On 4 February 2022, shortly after completing the fourth week of training, also known as "Hell Week", two sailors began to "complain of symptoms" and were immediately taken to a local hospital. One sailor was pronounced dead after arriving, though no cause of death was reported. The second sailor was admitted in stable condition, but there was no cause of apparent illness or injury that was reported.


text: The diving phase of BUD/S training develops and qualifies SEAL candidates as competent basic combat swimmers. During this period, physical training continues and becomes even more intensive. This second phase concentrates on dive physics, underwater skills, and combat SCUBA. Candidates will learn two types of SCUBA: open circuit (compressed air) and closed circuit. Also, basic dive medicine and medical skills training is provided.


text: Emphasis is placed on long-distance underwater dives with the goal of training students to become basic combat divers, using swimming and diving techniques as a means of transportation from their launch point to their combat objective. This is what separates SEALs from all other US Special Operations Forces. By the end of Second Phase, candidates must complete timed 2-mile swim with fins in 80 minutes, the 4-mile run with boots in 31 minutes, a 3.5-mile and 5.5-mile swim.


text: Successful Second Phase Candidates demonstrate a high level of comfort in the water and the ability to perform in stressful and often uncomfortable environments. Candidates who are not completely comfortable in the water often struggle to succeed.


text: The land warfare phase teaches the class basic weapons, demolitions, land navigation, patrolling, rappelling, marksmanship, infantry tactics, and small-unit tactics. During the third phase, the class is taught to gather and process information that will complete the overall mission. There is more classroom work that teaches map, compass, land navigation, and basic weapon skill sets. These skill-sets allow the class to transition from having novice skills to becoming more comfortable out in the field. Most of this training is new to the class, and the learning pace becomes faster and faster.


text: For the final five weeks of training, the class goes offshore, about from Coronado to San Clemente Island. On the island, the class practices the skills they learned in the third phase. The days become longer and more work-intensive, set to mirror the work hours spent in the field. Many students view this as one of the hardest parts of training, as training is conducted seven days a week, with very minimal sleep, all while handling live explosives and ammunition. Interaction with instructors is also never-ending, and punishments are at their harshest levels yet. By the end of the Third Phase, candidates must complete a timed 2-mile ocean swim with fins in 75 minutes, 4-mile timed run with boots in 30 minutes, and complete a run.


text: Upon successful completion of BUD/S, SEAL Candidates go on to receive both static line and free-fall training at Tactical Air Operations in San Diego, CA. The accelerated three-week program is highly regimented, facilitated by world-class Instructors, and designed to develop safe and competent free-fall jumpers in a short period of time.


text: To complete the course, Candidates must pass through a series of jump progressions, from basic static line to accelerated free fall to combat equipment – ultimately completing night descents with combat equipment from a minimum altitude of 9,500 feet.


text: SEAL Qualification Training (SQT) is a 26-week course that will take the student from the basic elementary level of Naval Special Warfare to a more advanced degree of tactical training. SQT is designed to provide students with the core tactical knowledge they will need to join a SEAL Platoon.


text: The class will learn advanced skill sets in weapons training, close-quarters combat, Small Unit Tactics, land navigation, demolitions, unarmed combat, cold weather training in Kodiak, Alaska, medical skills and maritime operations. Before graduating, students also attend Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape Training (SERE Training).


text: Graduation from SQT culminates in the awarding of the coveted Navy SEAL Trident and granting of the Navy Enlisted Classification (NEC) 5326 Combatant Swimmer (SEAL) or 1130 Special Warfare (SEAL) Officer. New SEALs are immediately assigned to a SEAL Team at Coronado, CA or Little Creek, VA and begin advanced training for their first deployment.


text: Following SQT, new SEALs will receive orders to a SEAL Team and assignment to a Troop (TRP) and subordinate Platoon (PLT). New operators will join their Platoon wherever they are in their deployment cycle. The normal workup or pre-deployment workup is a 12- to 18-month cycle divided into three phases.


text: Phase one of a work-up is Individual Specialty Training. Individual Specialty Training is 6 months long where individual operators attend a number of formal or informal schools and courses. These schools lead to required qualifications and designations that collectively allow the platoon to perform as an operational combat team. Depending on the team's and platoon's needs, operators can expect to acquire some of the following skills (Items in parentheses are Joint SOF Unit Course equivalent):


text: Phase two of a work-up is called Unit Level Training (ULT). ULT is a 6-month block run by the respective group (NSWG1/NSWG2) training detachment, where the TRP/PLT's train in their core mission area skills: Small unit tactics, land warfare, close quarters combat, urban warfare, hostile maritime interdiction (VBSS/GOPLATS), combat swimming, long range target interdiction, rotary and fixed wing air/surface operations and special reconnaissance.


text: Phase three of a work-up is Task Group Level Training. Task Group Level Training is the last 6-month block wherein a troop conducts advanced training with the supporting attachments/enablers of a SEAL Squadron: Special Boat Teams (SWCC), Intelligence(SI/HI/ETC)Teams, Cryptological Support Teams, Communications (MCT/JCSE) Medical Teams, EOD, Interpreters/Linguist, etc. A final Certification Exercise (CERTEX) is conducted with the entire SEAL Squadron (SQDN) to synchronize Troop (TRP) operations under the Joint Special Operations Task Force (JSOTF) umbrella. Following CERTEX, a SEAL Team becomes a SEAL Squadron and is certified for deployment.


text: Once certified, a SEAL Team/Squadron will deploy to a Joint Special Operations Task Force or Area of Responsibility to become a Special Operations Task Force (SOTF), combine with a Joint Task Force (JTF) or Task Force (TF) in support of other National Objectives. Once assigned, the Troops will be given an Area of Operations (AOR) where they will either work as a centralized/intact Troop or task organize into decentralized elements (PLT-20/SQD-10/TM-5) to conduct operations. NSW Troops have ranged in size from 60 personnel to over 200 and can consist of SEAL's and any USSOCOM operational element and enablers. A SEAL Team/Squadron deployment currently is approximately 6 months, keeping the entire cycle at 12 to 24 months.


title: Elaine Hendrix

text: Katherine Elaine Hendrix (born December 28, 1970) is an American actress. She is known for her roles in "Superstar", "Romy and Michele's High School Reunion", the 1995 "Get Smart" series, the 1998 remake of "The Parent Trap", "Dynasty", "Inspector Gadget 2", and the 2004 documentary film "What the Bleep Do We Know!?"


title: Elaine Hendrix

text: Hendrix was born and raised in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Her father was serving in the Vietnam War at the time of her birth and had little input into her name. Her mother named her Katherine Elaine, but most of her relatives called her by her middle name, and the practice stuck.


title: Elaine Hendrix

text: In her senior year of high school, Hendrix won a model search and became a professional dancer with the Gary Harrison Dance Company. She soon split her time as a professional model and dancer for such companies as Nike, Levi's, Mattel, and Sun Microsystems, and for a number of hip-hop artists including Whodini, Keith Sweat and MC Hammer.


title: Elaine Hendrix

text: In 1992, she moved to Los Angeles, California, and, shortly after, was hit by a car while riding her bike, ending her early career as a model and dancer.


title: Elaine Hendrix

text: After recuperating from her accident, Hendrix was cast in the short-lived 1995 "Get Smart" series. She has also appeared on the television series "Joan of Arcadia", "Friends", "Ellen", "Charmed" and "" and had a recurring role in "Married... with Children", "User Friendly" (1995) and "Lez Be Friends" (1997).


title: Elaine Hendrix

text: Films in which she appeared include "Romy and Michele's High School Reunion", the remake of "The Parent Trap", "Superstar", "Inspector Gadget 2", and "What the Bleep Do We Know!?". In 2006, she also appeared in an episode of "Ghost Whisperer" and the movie "Coffee Date". In 2018, Hendrix appeared in "Christmas at Pemberley Manor", a Hallmark Channel feature TV movie.


title: Elaine Hendrix

text: In 2008 Hendrix appeared in two episodes of the single-season "ABC Family" show "The Middleman" as Roxy Wasserman, a succubus who works as a fashion designer. She was seen in a 2008 episode of "Criminal Minds" ("Normal"). In 2009 Hendrix made an appearance on the ABC show "Castle" and in the film "Rock Slyde".


title: Elaine Hendrix

text: Hendrix has also appeared as Renee on "90210" in season three in "They're Playing Her Song" and "Holiday Madness". In 2014, she appeared alongside Charlie Sheen for a three-episode story arc as Warden Hartley in the FX sitcom "Anger Management". She appears in the web-series "Fetching", which is also a nod to her love of animals.


title: Elaine Hendrix

text: She also co-starred as Ava in the FX comedy series "Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll" with Denis Leary, Elizabeth Gillies, John Corbett, Bobby Kelly and John Ales.


title: Elaine Hendrix

text: On September 13, 2018, it was announced that Hendrix would appear as the recurring character Susan Andrews in the Fox series "Proven Innocent".


title: Elaine Hendrix

text: In October 2019, Hendrix was cast as Alexis Carrington Colby for season three of The CW's "Dynasty" reboot series.


title: Elaine Hendrix

text: Hendrix starred as Lisa in the cast of the Off-Broadway play "It's Just Sex" at the Actors Temple Theatre in Manhattan for its June 2013 to January 2014 run.


title: Elaine Hendrix

text: In 2016, Hendrix reprised the role of Truvy in "Steel Magnolias" at the Bucks County Playhouse in New Hope, Pennsylvania. This production was directed by four time Oscar nominee, Marsha Mason, and also starred Patricia Richardson, Lucy DeVito, Jessica Walter and Susan Sullivan.


title: Elaine Hendrix

text: On June 9, 2016, this production became the highest-grossing show in the history of the Bucks County Playhouse.


title: Elaine Hendrix

text: As an avid animal rights activist, Hendrix has been advocating for animals since 2006, when she also adopted a vegan lifestyle. When she's not filming, she travels throughout North America and works with organizations around the globe to educate, demonstrate, speak, protest, build habitats, transport and rescue. In 2012 she founded The Pet Matchmaker, an organization dedicated to celebrating and inspiring the rescue, foster and adoption of homeless pets everywhere. She serves on the board of Stray Rescue of St. Louis as well as the US chapter of No to Dog Meat.


title: Mooncake

text: A mooncake () is a Chinese bakery product traditionally eaten during the Mid-Autumn Festival (中秋節). The festival is about lunar appreciation and Moon watching, and mooncakes are regarded as a delicacy. Mooncakes are offered between friends or on family gatherings while celebrating the festival. The Mid-Autumn Festival is widely regarded as one of the four most important Chinese festivals.


title: Mooncake

text: There are numerous varieties of mooncakes consumed within China and outside of China in overseas Chinese communities. The Cantonese mooncake is the most famous variety. A traditional Cantonese mooncake is a round pastry, measuring about in diameter and thick, with a rich thick filling usually made from lotus seed paste (other typical fillings include red bean paste or mixed nuts) surrounded by a thin, 2–3 mm (approximately 1/8 of an inch) crust and may contain yolks from salted duck eggs.


title: Mooncake

text: Mooncakes are usually eaten in small wedges, accompanied by tea. Today, it is customary for business people and families to present them to their clients or relatives as presents, helping to fuel a demand for high-end mooncakes.


title: Mooncake

text: Just as how the Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated in various Asian localities due to the presence of Chinese communities throughout the region, mooncakes are enjoyed in other parts of Asia too. Mooncakes have also appeared in western countries as a form of delicacy.


title: Mooncake

text: Most mooncakes consist of a thick, tender pastry skin enveloping a sweet, dense filling, and may contain one or more whole salted egg yolks in their center that symbolizes the full moon. Very rarely, mooncakes are also served steamed or fried.


title: Mooncake

text: Traditional mooncakes have an imprint on top consisting of the Chinese characters for "longevity" or "harmony", as well as the name of the bakery and the filling inside. Imprints of the Moon, the Chinese goddess of the Moon (Chang'e), flowers, vines, or a rabbit (symbol of the Moon) may surround the characters for additional decoration.


title: Mooncake

text: According to the "Liji", an ancient Chinese book recording customs and ceremonies, the Chinese Emperor should offer sacrifices to the Sun in spring and the Moon in autumn. The 15th day of the 8th lunar month is the day called "Mid-Autumn". The night on the 15th of the 8th lunar month is also called "Night of the Moon".


title: Mooncake

text: Because of its central role in the Mid-Autumn festival, mooncakes remained popular even in recent years. For many, they form a central part of the Mid-Autumn festival experience such that it is now commonly known as 'Mooncake Festival'.


title: Mooncake

text: There is a folk tale about the overthrow of the Yuan dynasty facilitated by messages smuggled in moon cakes.


title: Mooncake

text: Mooncakes were used by revolutionaries in their effort to overthrow the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty, eventually resulting in the establishment of the Ming dynasty. The idea is said to have been conceived by Zhu Yuanzhang and his advisor Liu Bowen, who circulated a rumor that a deadly plague was spreading and that the only way to prevent it was to eat special mooncakes, which would instantly revive and give special powers to the user. This prompted the quick distribution of mooncakes. The mooncakes contained a secret message: on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month, kill the rulers.


title: Mooncake

text: Another method of hiding a message was to print it on the surfaces of mooncakes (which came in packages of four), as a simple puzzle or mosaic. To read the message, each of the four mooncakes was cut into four parts. The resulting 16 pieces were pieced together to reveal the message. The pieces of mooncake were then eaten to destroy the message.


title: Mooncake

text: Traditional mooncakes vary widely depending on the region where they are produced. Most regions produce them with many types of fillings, but with only one type of crust. Although vegetarian mooncakes may use vegetable oil, many mooncakes use lard in their recipes. Three types of mooncake crust are used in Chinese cuisine:


title: Mooncake

text: Over time, both the crusts and the composition of the fillings of mooncakes have diversified, in particular, due to a commercial need to drive up sales in the face of intense competition between producers and from other food types. Part of these trends are also to cater to changing taste preferences, and because people are more health-conscious. Therefore, most of these contemporary styles are especially prominent amongst the cosmopolitan and younger Chinese and amongst the overseas Chinese community. However, traditional mooncakes are often sold alongside contemporary ones to cater to individual preferences.


title: Mooncake

text: Some of the earliest forms of diversification were by changing the fillings with ingredients considered unusual then. Taro paste (芋泥, "yù ní"), pineapple and durian were amongst the first to be introduced, especially amongst the overseas Chinese communities in Southeast Asia. The crust itself also evolved, particularly with the introduction of "snow skin mooncake". It is different from the traditional mooncake - the snow skin mooncake needs to be stored inside a refrigerator and is white on the outside. Traditionally the colour white means something bad in China, for example, people will wear a white collar to a funeral. However, this kind of white coloured mooncake is popular with teenagers. Miniature mooncakes also appeared, in part to allow for easier individual consumption without the need to cut the large cakes.


title: Mooncake

text: To adapt to today's health-conscious lifestyle, fat-free mooncakes also appeared. Some are made of yogurt, jelly, and fat-free ice-cream. Customers pick and choose the size and filling of mooncakes that suits their taste and diet. For added hygiene, each cake is often wrapped in airtight plastic, accompanied by a tiny food preserver packet.


title: Mooncake

text: Contemporary-style mooncakes, while increasingly popular, have their detractors. Pricey ingredients have pushed up prices, causing worry of a "mooncake bubble" forming in China. Food critics sometimes point out that "chocolate mooncakes" are in reality just chocolate shaped into mooncakes, and not mooncakes made of chocolate, while others complain that food chains appear intent on coming up with exotic flavors to take advantage of the market, without much thought for how well the tastes fuse together.


title: Mooncake

text: Fillings in contemporary style mooncakes have diversified to include just about anything which can be made into a paste. Mooncakes containing taro paste and pineapple, which were considered novelty items at their time of invention, have become commonplace in recent years. In addition, filling composed of ingredients such as coffee, chocolate, nuts (walnuts, mixed nuts, etc.), fruits (prunes, pineapples, melons, lychees, etc.), vegetables (sweet potatoes, etc.), and even ham have been added to give a modern twist to the traditional recipes.


title: Mooncake

text: Traditional Chinese delicacies such as ginseng and bird's nest were soon followed by abalone and shark fin. Foreign food companies have also tried to cash in. Häagen-Dazs were one of the first to create an ice-cream mooncake, with a choice of either the "traditional," snow-skin, or Belgian/Swiss white, milk, and dark chocolate crusts. Other ice-cream and restaurant chains soon followed up with their own versions. Other Western ingredients, including champagne ganache, malt whisky, volcanic-salt caramel and even Black truffles, caviar and foie gras have made it into mooncakes.


title: Mooncake

text: Snowy mooncakes first appeared on the market in the early 1980s. These non-baked, chilled mooncakes usually come with two types of crusts:


title: Mooncake

text: There are three major cities that have diverse types of moon cakes. George Town, Kuala Lumpur and Sabah. Mooncakes are quite similar to the traditional Chinese. However, many prefer to add 100% pure Hunan lotus seed to maintain the quality of mooncake. The most popular types, especially in Kuala Lumpur, are White Lotus Seed Paste Cake, Snow Skins and Black Sesame With Yolk.


title: Mooncake

text: In Indonesia, there are several main types of mooncakes, from the traditional to the modern mooncakes. The very traditional mooncake has been there ever since the Chinese and Japanese entered Indonesia, they are circular like a moon, white and thinner than regular mooncake. Fillings may include pork, chocolate, cheese, milk, durian, jackfruit and many other exotic fruits made into a paste. This type of mooncake is widely available all year long while the regular modern mooncakes are usually only sold around the mid-autumn festival season.


title: Mooncake

text: Mooncakes in Japan are known as , a transliteration of the Chinese name, even though the latter character does not normally refer to a "cake" in Japanese but to a paste made from glutinous rice. Their designs are based on the Cantonese mooncake, are associated with Chinese culture and are sold all year round, mainly in Japan's Chinatowns. Azuki (red bean) paste is the most popular filling for these mooncakes, but other sorts of beans, as well as chestnut, are also used.


title: Mooncake

text: In Vietnam, mooncakes are known as "bánh trung thu" (literally "mid-autumn cake"). Vietnamese mooncakes are usually sold either individually or in a set of four. There are two kinds of mooncake: "bánh nướng" (baked mooncake) and "bánh dẻo" (sticky rice mooncake).


title: Mooncake

text: It can be said that "bánh nướng" and "bánh dẻo" are two special kinds of cake in Vietnam. They are widely popular and are sold only during the Mid-Autumn Festival season. Vietnamese mooncakes are often in the shape of a circle (10 cm in diameter) or a square (a length of about 7–8 cm), and 4–5 cm thick. Larger sizes are not uncommon. Their designs largely resemble that of the Cantonese mooncake, though some other images, such as the sow with cub, fish, shrimp, etc. can also be found.


title: Mooncake

text: Vietnamese mooncakes have two basic parts: crust and filling. The ingredients usually consist of: jam, dried sausage, mung bean paste, salt, sugar, cooking oil, sugared lard, lotus seed, watermelon seed, etc. Compared to other variants, Vietnamese mooncakes' flavor is more on the sweet side. Thus, to balance it, salted egg yolk is often added. They can be baked or eaten immediately.


title: Mooncake

text: "Bánh nướng" (baked mooncake) is made from wheat flour, cooking oil, and simple syrup boiled with malt. After being filled with various combinations of salted egg yolk, dried sausage, mung bean paste, salt, sugar, cooking oil, sugared pig fat, lotus seed, watermelon seed, it will be brushed with egg wash, then baked in the oven. The egg wash will protect the crust of the cake from drying out and create the aroma of the cake. The cakes have to be rotated constantly in the oven to prevent burning.


title: Mooncake

text: "Bánh dẻo" (sticky rice mooncake) is easier to make than "bánh nướng". The crust and filling are pre-cooked. The crust is made from roasted glutinous rice flour, pomelo blossom water or vanilla and simple syrup. After malaxating rice flour, fillings similar to that of baked mooncake is stuffed inside the crust and then the cake is put into the mold dusted with a thin layer of flour to prevent sticking to fingers. The cake can be used immediately without any further steps. "Bánh dẻo" is not as popular as "bánh nướng", however.


title: Mooncake

text: The most traditional mooncake found within Taiwan resembles those from southern Fujian. Taiwanese mooncakes are filled with sweetened red bean paste, sometimes with mochi in the center. The most common traditional mooncakes coming from Taiwan are filled mung bean ("lu dou") or taro paste, generally with a salted duck egg yolk in the mung bean mooncakes, and either salted duck egg or a savory treat in the taro mooncakes. They typically have a flaky crust and are spherical in shape. Instead of the imprinted pattern on top common in Cantonese versions, Taiwanese mooncakes have a red stamp typically in celebratory Chinese character. Modern, more trendy Taiwanese moon cakes are wide in variety that include low fat, lard free and ice cream versions. Popular modern flavors include green tea, chocolate, strawberry and tiramisu.


title: Mooncake

text: In Thailand, mooncakes (in Thai, ขนมไหว้พระจันทร์) are sold in Thai-Chinese bakeries during festival season. In Bangkok, traditional and modern moon cakes are not limited to Chinatown on Yaowarat Road, but they are also found in stalls of large supermarkets.


title: Mooncake

text: In Singapore, mooncakes are luxury gifts. They come in a wide variety of flavors ranging from the traditional baked ones, to the Teochew flaky ones filled with yam paste, to snowskin varieties filled with chilled fruit pastes. Traditional mooncakes feature base fillings of red lotus paste, white lotus paste or red bean paste, with 0-4 salted duck egg yolks embedded within. Variations include adding other ingredients such as macadamia nuts, osmanthus, orange peel and melon seeds.


title: Mooncake

text: Snowskin mooncakes in Singapore feature flavors ranging from Lychee Martini, Baileys, Matcha Red Bean, durian, and various fruit pastes.


title: Mooncake

text: Mooncakes are luxurious gifts in Singapore and are very popular as gifts to clients, friends and family. An average box of 4 mooncakes cost US$60. Many hotels and fine Chinese cuisine restaurants offer mooncakes packaged in elaborate boxes with multiple compartments and jeweled clasps. Mooncake boxes are commonly repurposed as jewelry boxes after the festival ends.


title: Panna cotta

text: Panna cotta (Italian for "cooked cream") is an Italian dessert of sweetened cream thickened with gelatin and molded. The cream may be aromatized with coffee, vanilla, or other flavorings.


title: Panna cotta

text: The name "panna cotta" is not mentioned in Italian cookbooks before the 1960s, yet it is often cited as a traditional dessert of the northern Italian region of Piedmont. One unverified story says that it was invented by a Hungarian woman in the Langhe in the early 1900s. An 1879 dictionary mentions a dish called "latte inglese" 'English milk,' made of cream cooked with gelatin and molded, though other sources say that "latte inglese" is made with egg yolks, like crème anglaise; perhaps the name covered any thickened custard-like preparation.


title: Panna cotta

text: It could also come from the French recipe of "fromage bavarois" from Marie-Antoine Carême. Actually, this recipe that we can find in "le pâtissier royal parisien" is the same as the modern "panna cotta" with the difference that one part of the cream is whipped to make chantilly and included to the preparation before adding the gelatin.


title: Panna cotta

text: The Region of Piedmont includes panna cotta in its 2001 list of traditional food products. Its recipe includes cream, milk, sugar, vanilla, gelatin, rum, and marsala poured into a mold with caramel. Another author considers the traditional flavoring to be peach eau-de-vie, and the traditional presentation not to have sauce or other garnishes.


title: Panna cotta

text: Sugar is dissolved in warm cream. The cream may be flavored by infusing spices and the like in it or by adding rum, coffee, vanilla, and so on. Gelatin is dissolved in a cold liquid (usually water), then added to the warm cream mixture. This is poured into molds and allowed to set. The molds may have caramel in the bottoms, giving a result similar to a crème caramel. After it solidifies, the panna cotta is usually unmolded onto a serving plate.


title: Panna cotta

text: Although the name means 'cooked cream,' the ingredients are only warm enough to dissolve the gelatin and sugar. Italian recipes sometimes call for "colla di pesce" 'fish glue,' which may literally be isinglass or, more likely, simply a name for common gelatin.


title: Panna cotta

text: Panna cotta is often served with a coulis of berries or a sauce of caramel or chocolate. It may be covered with other fruits or liqueurs.


title: Panna cotta

text: Bavarian cream is similar to "panna cotta" but usually includes eggs as well as gelatin and is mixed with whipped cream before setting.


title: Panna cotta

text: Panna cotta is sometimes called a custard, but true custard is thickened with egg yolks, not gelatin.


title: S.C. Braga

text: Sporting Clube de Braga () (), commonly known as Sporting de Braga or just Braga, is a Portuguese sports club from the city of Braga. It is best known for the professional football team playing in the Primeira Liga, the top flight of Portuguese football at the Estádio Municipal de Braga.


title: S.C. Braga

text: Founded on 19 January 1921, Braga are nicknamed, "Braguistas", and "Os Arsenalistas" (The Arsenalists) for the shirt colour that resembles English club Arsenal. Since 2003, Braga have played their home matches at the Estádio Municipal de Braga, which replaced the Estádio 1º de Maio, now used for the club's reserve team. Unlike most European sporting entities, Braga's members ("sócios") have owned and operated the club throughout its history.


title: S.C. Braga

text: In the 2000s, Braga became one of Portugal's most decorated clubs (7th) after the Big Three and has had some success in European competitions, winning the last UEFA Intertoto Cup (the only Portuguese club to do so) in 2008, and reaching the final of the UEFA Europa League in 2011, cultivating the reputation of being regarded as the fourth strongest club in Portugal, outside of the Big Three. Domestically, they have also won another 6 domestic trophies: three Taça de Portugal in 1965–66, 2015–16, and in 2020–21, and the Taça da Liga twice in 2012–13 and 2019–20. Braga have a long-standing rivalry with nearby club Vitória de Guimarães, with whom they contest the "Derby do Minho".


title: S.C. Braga

text: The club qualified for the 2010–11 UEFA Champions League, reaching the competition for the first time in their history, by eliminating Celtic and Sevilla following a 2nd place finish in the 2009–10 Primeira Liga season. This represented the highest finish in the league in the club's history. Moreover, in the 2010s, Braga have cultivated a reputation for spotting and developing young talent, and have remained focused on developing a youth system.


title: S.C. Braga

text: Braga changed their kits from green and white to their current red and white during the 1945–46 season (for the reserve squad) and the 1946–47 season (for the first team). The change, according to one version of the story, was at the behest of their president, José Antunes Guimarães, who had business connections in London and was an Arsenal fan; according to an alternate version, it was József Szabó, Braga's Hungarian coach, who asked the president to change the green and white uniform to an Arsenal-style red and white. In 1947, Braga won the Second division title in the new kit, reaching the First division for the first time. Braga even renamed their youth team "Arsenal de Braga".


title: S.C. Braga

text: Braga's emblem is the city of Braga's shield with Mother Mary and baby Jesus with the blue from the city's shield changed to red. On the top of the emblem is the golden Mural Crown of Braga, with the name "Sporting Clube de Braga" on it. Many Braga fans have said that Mother Mary gives them luck. The fans of Braga are known as "Arsenalistas" due to their team home kit that resembles that of English club Arsenal. They are also known as "Bracarenses" because of being from the city of Bracari, later named Bracara Augusta, city of Portugal that is now known as Braga.


title: S.C. Braga

text: Aside from the loyalty of its supporters, the Minho derby against Vitória de Guimarães is a match that both sets of fans eagerly await. This match is more than football – it is a way people from the north view each city. The derby is one of Portugal's most intense matches, and children under 13 are restricted from entering unless an adult is with them. The rivalry goes back to when the City of Braga was the ancient capital of Gallaecia and the largest Portuguese city by the time the Kingdom of Portugal was formed by Afonso I of Portugal. At that time, Guimarães became the seat of the King and nobility, whereas the city of Braga remained the centre of trade and religious power (the largest city and seat of the Archbishop).


title: S.C. Braga

text: In the 1960s and 1970s, Braga began to climb up the league ladder and eventually participated in the UEFA competitions. Braga's recent run of successive European participations began in the 2004–05 UEFA Cup after finishing fifth in the league under Jesualdo Ferreira's first full season in the club. In the 2006–07 UEFA Cup, the side reached the last 16 before a 6–4 aggregate loss to Tottenham Hotspur. That summer, the club signed a three-year sponsorship deal with French insurance company Axa, who took over the naming rights for the stadium for €4.5 million; this was renewed for a further three years in 2010.


title: S.C. Braga

text: In 2008–09 under Jorge Jesus, Braga finished as runners-up for the only time in the league and again reached the UEFA Cup last 16, where they lost by a single goal to Paris Saint-Germain. Entering the UEFA Champions League for the first time, in the fourth qualifying round Braga beat Sevilla 1–0 at home and 4–3 away, thus making the group stage. On 15 September 2010, Braga were heavily defeated 6–0 by Arsenal in its first group stage match. Eliminated in third place, they dropped into the Europa League and reached the final in Dublin, where they lost to a goal by FC Porto's Radamel Falcao.


title: S.C. Braga

text: Braga won the Taça da Liga for the first time in 2013 under José Peseiro, with one goal from Alan against Porto. Two years later, Sérgio Conceição's side lost on penalties to Sporting CP in the Taça de Portugal final, but triumphed over Porto on the same method in 2016 to win their first such cup in 50 years.


title: S.C. Braga

text: In 2019–20, Braga went through four managers over the course of the season. The second of these, Rúben Amorim, led them to a league cup victory over Porto, with Ricardo Horta scoring in added time to secure the trophy on home soil.


title: S.C. Braga

text: On 28 July 2020, Carlos Carvalhal was announced as the new head coach, after 14 years away from the club. He led the club to the league cup final again, where they lost to Amorim's new team Sporting, but won the 2021 Taça de Portugal Final 2–0 against Benfica. He would leave the club and be replaced by Artur Jorge after the 2021–22 season ended.


title: S.C. Braga

text: On 10 October 2022, 21.67% of the club shares were bought for €80 million by Qatar Sports Investments (QSI), a subsidiary of Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), the state-run sovereign-wealth fund in Qatar owned by Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar, who is also the owner of Ligue 1 side Paris Saint-Germain through the QSI.


title: Andy Summers

text: Andrew James Summers (born 31 December 1942), is an English guitarist who was a member of the rock band the Police. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a band member in 2003. Summers has recorded solo albums, collaborated with other musicians, composed film scores, and exhibited his photography in galleries.


title: Andy Summers

text: During his childhood, his family moved to Bournemouth, which was then in Hampshire. After several years of piano lessons, he took up the guitar.


title: Andy Summers

text: At an early age, he played jazz guitar. In his teens, he saw a concert by Thelonious Monk and Dizzy Gillespie in London that left a lasting impression. By 16, he was playing in local clubs, and by 19, he had moved to London with his friend Zoot Money to form Zoot Money's Big Roll Band.


title: Andy Summers

text: Summers's professional career began in the mid-1960s in London as guitarist for the British rhythm and blues band Zoot Money's Big Roll Band, which eventually came under the influence of the psychedelic scene and evolved into the acid rock group Dantalian's Chariot. In September 1966, Summers was the first guitarist encountered by Jimi Hendrix after landing in the UK. The young Summers is portrayed in fiction as one of the "two main love interests" in Jenny Fabian and Johnny Byrne's 1969 book "Groupie", in which he is given the pseudonym "Davey".


title: Andy Summers

text: After the demise of Dantalian's Chariot, Summers joined Soft Machine for three months and toured the United States. For a brief time in 1968, he was a member of the Animals, then known as Eric Burdon and the Animals, with whom he recorded one album, "Love Is". The album features a recording of Traffic's "Coloured Rain", which includes a 4minute and 15 second guitar solo by Summers. The LP also included a reworked version of Dantalian's Chariot's sole single "Madman Running Through the Fields".


title: Andy Summers

text: After five years in Los Angeles, mostly spent studying classical guitar and composition in the music programme at California State University, Northridge, from which he graduated in 1972, he returned to London with his American girlfriend, Kate Lunken.


title: Andy Summers

text: In London, Summers recorded and toured with acts including Kevin Coyne, Jon Lord, Joan Armatrading, David Essex, Neil Sedaka and Kevin Ayers. In October 1975 he participated in an orchestral rendition of Mike Oldfield's "Tubular Bells".


title: Andy Summers

text: In 1977, Summers was invited by ex-Gong bassist Mike Howlett to join his band Strontium 90, but was soon coaxed away by future Police bandmates Sting and Stewart Copeland.


title: Andy Summers

text: Summers achieved international fame as the guitarist for the Police, which he joined in 1977, eventually replacing original guitarist Henry Padovani. Emerging from London's punk scene, the Police gained international renown with many hit songs, including "Message in a Bottle", "Roxanne", "Don't Stand So Close to Me", "Every Breath You Take", and "Every Little Thing She Does is Magic". During his time with the band, Summers twice won a Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance, first in 1979 for "Reggatta de Blanc" (written with Copeland and Sting) and in 1980 for "Behind My Camel".


title: Andy Summers

text: Although Sting was the lead singer of the band, Summers occasionally contributed lead vocals, as in "Be My Girl/Sally" (1978), "Friends" (1980), "Mother" (1983), and "Someone to Talk To" (1983). Other notable Summers compositions from this period are "Omegaman" (which would have been released as the debut single from the 1981 "Ghost in the Machine" album had Sting not objected), "Shambelle" (1981), "Once Upon a Daydream," and "Murder by Numbers" both co-written with Sting (both 1983). In early 1984, after seven years together and record sales around 80 million, the Police disbanded.


title: Andy Summers

text: Summers wrote the guitar riff for "Every Breath You Take", though was not given a songwriting credit. It was recorded in one take with his 1961 Fender Stratocaster during the "Synchronicity" sessions. The song was number one for eight weeks. Sting won the 1983 Grammy Award for Song of the Year, and the Police won Best Pop Performance by a Duo Or Group With Vocal for this song. Summers provides an account of the session in his memoir, "One Train Later".


title: Andy Summers

text: As a member of the Police, Summers created a trademark guitar sound, which relied heavily on a chorus effect. He explained in 2017 how the sound came about:


title: Andy Summers

text: "I created it sort of out of necessity; my mission was 'We're going to play for two hours each night as a trio,' so I wanted to have this fantastic, coloured guitar sound that was different for every song. So, I used the Echoplex, then a chorus, and a few other pedals…envelope filters. As we went on, I acquired more stuff and got a Pete Cornish board, but what was driving it was to invade and push the edge of what the guitar was supposed to sound like, and make it really interesting over a show. So, it wasn't just one straight sound all the time. I could move it around. And it was appreciated by many millions of people (laughs). Of course, it's very tired and a bit 'retro' now; I'm not very keen on it anymore. But in those days it was new, fresh, and exciting."


title: Andy Summers

text: Summers's solo career has included recording, touring, composing for films (including "Down and Out in Beverly Hills" and "Weekend at Bernie's"), and exhibiting his photography in art galleries around the world.


title: Andy Summers

text: He recorded the duet albums "I Advance Masked" (1982) and "Bewitched" (1984) with guitarist Robert Fripp of King Crimson, as well as duet albums with Victor Biglione, John Etheridge, and Benjamin Verdery. His solo debut album, "XYZ", was released in 1987 and is the only noninstrumental album in his solo catalogue. Although it included pop material, such as the single "Love is the Strangest Way", it failed to dent the charts. In 1987, Sting invited Summers to perform on his second album "...Nothing Like the Sun", a favour the singer returned by playing bass on "Charming Snakes" (1990) and later contributing vocals to "'Round Midnight" on Summers' tribute album to Thelonious Monk, "Green Chimneys", in 1999. In the mid-1990s Summers briefly returned to a more rock-oriented sound with "Synesthesia" (1995) and "The Last Dance of Mr X" (1997) before recording a string of jazz albums. He also participated in the formation of Animal Logic. In 1992, he led the house band (credited as musical director) for "The Dennis Miller Show".


title: Andy Summers

text: During the 2007 Grammy Awards show, the Police played "Roxanne" and subsequently announced that they would be going on tour. The Police Reunion Tour began in Vancouver, Canada, on 28 May 2007 and continued until August 2008, becoming the third-highest-grossing tour of all time.


title: Andy Summers

text: In August 2013, Summers announced he had formed the band Circa Zero with Rob Giles from the Rescues. Originally, drummer Emmanuelle Caplette was also a member of the band. Their debut show was 25 July 2013 at the El Rey Theatre in Los Angeles. The band's debut album, "Circus Hero", was released 25 March 2014. It is titled after a malapropism of the band's name made by a radio disc jockey during an interview of Summers.


title: Andy Summers

text: In March 2017, Summers announced he had formed Call the Police, a Police tribute band, with two Brazilian musicians, Rodrigo Santos (Barão Vermelho or Red Baron) on bass guitar and vocals and Joao Barone (Os Paralamas do Sucesso) on drums.


title: Andy Summers

text: In 2019, "The New York Times Magazine" listed Summers among hundreds of musicians whose material was destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.


title: Andy Summers

text: Summers was married to American singer Robin Lane between 1969 and 1970. He married his second wife, Kate, in 1973 and they had one daughter in 1978, Layla Zoe Summers. Summers' years with The Police took its toll on their marriage, however, leading them to divorce in 1981, although they remarried in 1985. In 1987, Kate and Andy's twin sons Maurice X and Anton Y were born. As of 2022, Summers resides in Santa Monica, California, with his wife and family.


title: Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

text: The Avengers are a team of superheroes and the protagonists of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) media franchise, based on the Marvel Comics team of the same name created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in 1963. Founded by S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Nick Fury, the team is a United States-based organization composed primarily of superpowered and gifted individuals, described as "Earth's Mightiest Heroes", who are committed to the world's protection from a variety of threats. The Avengers are depicted as operating in the state of New York: originally from the Avengers Tower in Midtown Manhattan and subsequently from the Avengers Compound in Upstate New York.


title: Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

text: The concept of the Avengers was teased in the post-credits scene of "Iron Man" (2008), the first MCU film, by Nick Fury as an initiative planned by him. The concept was further explored in "Iron Man 2" (2010), with the introduction of Natasha Romanoff. The team was eventually established in the crossover-style film "The Avengers" (2012), which, followed by "" (2015), "" (2018) and "" (2019), established a series of four films that headlined the MCU and became the sixth highest-grossing film series of all time, with the MCU franchise overall ranking first. Arranged as an ensemble of core MCU characters such as Iron Man, Captain America and Thor, they are central to the MCU's Infinity Saga and have been acclaimed as an important part of the franchise. The Avengers are set to return two films "" and "", with the former releasing in 2025 and the latter in 2026. Both films will be the conclusion of the MCU's Multiverse Saga.


title: Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

text: In the mid-2000s, Kevin Feige realized that Marvel still owned the rights to the core members of the Avengers. Feige, a self-professed "fanboy", envisioned creating a shared universe just as creators Stan Lee and Jack Kirby had done with their comic books in the early 1960s.


title: Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

text: Ideas for a film based on the Avengers began in 2003, with Avi Arad, the CEO of Marvel Studios, first announcing plans to develop the film in April 2005, after Marvel Enterprises declared independence by allying with Merrill Lynch to produce a slate of films that would be distributed by Paramount Pictures. Marvel discussed their plans in a brief presentation to Wall Street analysts; the studio's intention was to release individual films for the main characters—to establish their identities and familiarise audiences with them—before merging the characters together in a crossover film. Screenwriter Zak Penn, who wrote "The Incredible Hulk" which introduced Hulk, became attached to the film in 2006 and was hired by Marvel Studios to write the film in June 2007. In the wake of the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, Marvel negotiated with the Writers Guild of America to ensure that it could create films based on its comic book counterparts, including Captain America, Ant-Man and The Avengers. After the successful release of "Iron Man" (2008) in May which introduced Iron Man, the company set a July 2011 release date for "The Avengers". In September 2008, Marvel Studios reached an agreement with Paramount—an extension of a previous partnership—which gave the company distribution rights for five future Marvel films.


title: Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

text: In October 2008, two major prospects occurred for Marvel Studios: Jon Favreau was brought in as an executive producer for the film, and the company signed a long-term lease with Raleigh Studios to produce three other big-budget films—"Iron Man 2", introducing Black Widow; "Thor", introducing Thor with a cameo appearance of Hawkeye; and "", introducing Captain America—at their Manhattan Beach, California complex. Executive producer Jon Favreau stated that he would not direct the film, but would "definitely have input and a say". Favreau also expressed concerns, stating, "It's going to be hard, because I was so involved in creating the world of Iron Man, and Iron Man is very much a tech-based hero, and then with "Avengers" you're going to be introducing some supernatural aspects because of Thor [Mixing] the two of those works very well in the comic books, but it's going to take a lot of thoughtfulness to make that all work and not blow the reality that we've created". In March 2009, Marvel announced that the film's release date had been pushed back to May 4, 2012, almost a full year later.


title: Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

text: In July 2009, Penn talked about the crossover process, stating, "My job is to kind of shuttle between the different movies and make sure that finally we're mimicking that comic book structure where all of these movies are connected. There's just a board that tracks 'Here's where everything that happens in this movie overlaps with that movie'. I'm pushing them to do as many animatics as possible to animate the movie, to draw boards so that we're all working off the same visual ideas. But the exigencies of production take first priority". At first, Penn tried to reduce Thor's role in the script because he had doubts about the character's ability to succeed on film. He changed his mind once Chris Hemsworth was cast as Thor. The film had always intended to use Loki as its villain, but Penn noted that early discussion had considered using Red Skull.


title: Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

text: In January 2010, Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige was asked if it would be difficult to meld the fantasy of "Thor" with the high-tech science fiction in "Iron Man" and "The Avengers". "No," he said, "because we're doing the Jack Kirby/Stan Lee/Walt Simonson/J. Michael Straczynski "Thor". We're not doing the blow-the-dust-off-of-the-old-Norse-book-in-your-library "Thor". And in the "Thor" of the Marvel Universe, there's a race called the Asgardians. And we're linked through this Tree of Life that we're unaware of. It's real science, but we don't know about it yet. The 'Thor' movie is about teaching people that". In March, it was reported that Penn had completed the first draft of the script, and that Marvel editor-in-chief Joe Quesada and "Avengers" comic-book writer Brian Michael Bendis had received copies. Numerous aspects and elements of both the Ultimates and the Earth-616 Avengers were utilized for the look and storyline of the 2012 live action film "Marvel's The Avengers", which introduced the assembled team of Avengers.


title: Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

text: The Avengers play a central role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Infinity Saga, being the focus in multiple feature films, beginning with the eponymous 2012 live-action film, "The Avengers", and followed by the sequels "" (2015), "" (2018), and "" (2019), the latter two of which were based on "The Infinity Gauntlet" storyline. The Avengers were featured in "" (2016), which was loosely based on the "Civil War" storyline. They also appeared in the mid-credits scene of "Captain Marvel" (2019), set immediately after "Infinity War" and before "Endgame". They are set to return in "" in 2025 and "" in 2026.


title: Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

text: In 1995, the Avengers Initiative is created by S.H.I.E.L.D. director Nick Fury, who envisions a group of heroes working together in response to planetary threats, following the appearance of superhumans such as Carol Danvers. He names his plan after her U.S. Air Force callsign, "Avenger". Years later, Fury assesses various individuals for the initiative, including Tony Stark and Steve Rogers. Stark's membership is declined after a negative report on his suitability by Natasha Romanoff. The World Security Council expresses a desire for Emil Blonsky to join the initiative, although they abandon their wish after Stark deters Thaddeus Ross from the idea, instead bringing in Bruce Banner.


title: Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

text: In 2012, the Asgardian Loki teleports to the Joint Dark Energy Mission Facility on Earth, where he steals the Tesseract and brainwashes Clint Barton and Dr. Erik Selvig using his scepter. Following the attack, Fury recruits Stark and Banner to locate the Tesseract. Rogers, Romanoff, and Stark apprehend Loki, but are disrupted by the arrival of Thor. This leads to confrontations between the group, exacerbated by the revelation that S.H.I.E.L.D. is building weapons of mass destruction using the Tesseract, during which the brainwashed Barton attacks the Helicarrier, provoking Banner to transform into the Hulk and go on a rampage.


title: Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

text: After Loki kills S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Phil Coulson, the team unites to avenge him. Romanoff frees Barton from mind control, and the Avengers depart to confront Loki, who subsequently opens a wormhole on Stark Tower using the Tesseract and begins his invasion, with the Avengers, led by Rogers, fighting his Chitauri army. During the battle, the World Security Council launches a nuclear strike toward Manhattan against Fury's wishes, but the missile is intercepted by Stark, who flies it through the wormhole and destroys the Chitauri mother ship, deactivating the army. Romanoff uses Loki's scepter to close the portal, and Loki is apprehended and taken to Asgard. The Avengers also unite to eat shawarma in the aftermath of the battle, while Stark Tower is renamed "Avengers Tower".


title: Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

text: Three years after his attack on New York City, Loki's scepter, formerly in the possession of S.H.I.E.L.D., is used by Hydra following the collapse of S.H.I.E.L.D. The Avengers track it down to the Eastern European nation of Sokovia, where they fight to recover it, and encounter the superhuman Hydra test subjects Wanda Maximoff and Pietro Maximoff. Barton is wounded in the battle, Rogers captures Hydra's leader Wolfgang von Strucker and Stark manages to retrieve the scepter despite being subjected to apocalyptic hallucinations by Wanda's telepathy. Stark and Banner decide to use the scepter to create the Ultron Program as an artificial intelligence peacekeeping force. Meanwhile, the Avengers celebrate their victory. However, the newly designed A.I. attacks the Avengers as Ultron, intent on destroying the Avengers, and later kills Strucker. The Avengers are divided over Stark's creation, who maintains it was intended to protect Earth from looming cosmic threats.


title: Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

text: In Africa, the Avengers confront Ultron, now allied with the Maximoff twins, and a fight ensues. Wanda induces telekinetic hallucinations upon the Avengers, and triggers Banner's transformation into the Hulk before she is stopped by Barton. The Hulk rampages through Johannesburg until being stopped by Stark in his Hulkbuster armor. After regrouping and encountering Nick Fury at Clint Barton's farmhouse, Rogers, Barton and Romanoff retrieve a new vibranium body created by Ultron. Stark and Banner upload J.A.R.V.I.S. into the body, although they face resistance from Rogers and the Maximoffs. Thor, having experienced a vision of the Infinity Stones, uses Mjolnir to supercharge the process, creating The Vision.