Philip Seymour Hoffman (July 23, 1967 – February 2, 2014) was an American actor. Known for his distinctive supporting and character roles— eccentrics, lowlifes, underdogs, and misfits—he acted in many films and theatrical productions, including leading roles, from the early 1990s until his death in 2014. He was voted one of the 50 greatest actors of all time in a 2022 readers' poll by Empire magazine.

Hoffman studied acting at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. He gained recognition for his supporting work, notably in Scent of a Woman (1992), Boogie Nights (1997),  Happiness (1998), The Big Lebowski (1998), Magnolia (1999), The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), and Almost Famous (2000). He began to occasionally play leading roles, and for his portrayal of the author Truman Capote in Capote (2005), won the Academy Award for Best Actor. Further Oscar nominations came for playing a brutally frank CIA officer in Charlie Wilson's War (2007), a priest accused of child sexual abuse in Doubt (2008), and the charismatic leader of a Scientology-type movement in The Master (2012).

While he mainly worked in independent films, including The Savages (2007) and Synecdoche, New York (2008), Hoffman also appeared in Hollywood blockbusters, such as Twister (1996) and Mission: Impossible III (2006). He played Plutarch Heavensbee in the Hunger Games series (2013–2015), in one of his final roles. The feature Jack Goes Boating (2010) marked his debut as a filmmaker. Hoffman was also an accomplished theater actor and director. He joined the off-Broadway LAByrinth Theater Company in 1995, where he directed, produced, and appeared in numerous stage productions. His performances in three Broadway plays—True West (2000), Long Day's Journey into Night (2003), and Death of a Salesman (2012)—all led to Tony Award nominations.

Hoffman struggled with drug addiction as a young adult and relapsed in 2012 after many years of sobriety. In February 2014, he died of combined drug intoxication. Remembered for bringing nuance, depth, and humanity to the versatile roles he inhabited, Hoffman was described in his New York Times obituary as "perhaps the most ambitious and widely admired American actor of his generation".

Early life
Philip Hoffman was born on July 23, 1967, in the Rochester suburb of Fairport, New York. His mother, Marilyn O'Connor (née Loucks), came from nearby Waterloo and worked as an elementary school teacher before becoming a lawyer and eventually a family court judge. His father, Gordon Stowell Hoffman, was a native of Geneva, New York, and worked for the Xerox Corporation. Hoffman had one brother, Gordy, and two sisters, Jill and Emily. His ancestry included German and Irish.

Hoffman was baptized a Catholic and attended Mass as a child, but did not have a heavily religious upbringing. His parents divorced when he was nine, and the children were raised primarily by their mother. Hoffman's childhood passion was sports, particularly wrestling and baseball, but at age 12, he attended a stage production of Arthur Miller's All My Sons and was transfixed. He recalled in 2008, "I was changed—permanently changed—by that experience. It was like a miracle to me". Hoffman developed a love for the theater, and proceeded to attend regularly with his mother, who was a lifelong enthusiast. He remembered that productions of Quilters and Alms for the Middle Class, the latter starring a teenaged Robert Downey, Jr., were also particularly inspirational. At the age of 14, Hoffman suffered a neck injury that ended his sporting activity, and he began to consider acting. Encouraged by his mother, he joined a drama club, and initially committed to it because he was attracted to a female member.

Acting gradually became a passion for Hoffman: "I loved the camaraderie of it, the people, and that's when I decided it was what I wanted to do." At the age of 17, he was selected to attend the 1984 New York State Summer School of the Arts in Saratoga Springs, where he met his future collaborators Bennett Miller and Dan Futterman. Miller later commented on Hoffman's popularity at the time: "We were attracted to the fact that he was genuinely serious about what he was doing. Even then, he was passionate." Hoffman applied for several drama degree programs and was accepted to New York University's (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts. Between graduating from Fairport High School and beginning the program, he continued his training at the Circle in the Square Theatre's summer program. Hoffman had positive memories of his time at NYU, where he supported himself by working as an usher. With friends, he co-founded the Bullstoi Ensemble acting troupe. He received a drama degree in 1989.

Career

1991–1995: Early career
After graduating, Hoffman worked in off-Broadway theater and made additional money with customer service jobs. He made his screen debut in 1991, in a Law & Order episode called "The Violence of Summer", playing a man accused of rape. He made his film debut the following year, when he was credited as "Phil Hoffman" in the independent film Triple Bogey on a Par Five Hole. After this, he adopted his grandfather's name, Seymour, to avoid confusion with another actor. More film roles promptly followed, with appearances in the studio production My New Gun, and a small role in the comedy Leap of Faith, starring Steve Martin. Following these roles, he gained attention playing a spoiled private school student in the Oscar-winning Al Pacino film Scent of a Woman (1992). Hoffman auditioned five times for his role, which The Guardian journalist Ryan Gilbey says gave him an early opportunity "to indulge his skill for making unctuousness compelling". The film earned US$134 million worldwide and was the first to get Hoffman noticed. Reflecting on Scent of a Woman, Hoffman later said, "If I hadn't gotten into that film, I wouldn't be where I am today." At this time, he quit his job in a delicatessen to become a professional actor.

Hoffman continued playing small roles throughout the early 1990s. After appearing in Joey Breaker and the critically panned teen zombie picture My Boyfriend's Back, he had a more notable role playing John Cusack's wealthy friend in the crime comedy Money for Nothing. In 1994, he portrayed an inexperienced mobster in the crime thriller The Getaway, starring Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger, and he subsequently appeared with Andy García and Meg Ryan in the romantic drama When a Man Loves a Woman. He then played an uptight police deputy who gets punched by Paul Newman—one of Hoffman's acting idols—in the drama Nobody's Fool.

Still considering stage work to be fundamental to his career, Hoffman joined the LAByrinth Theater Company of New York City in 1995. This association lasted the remainder of his life; along with appearing in multiple productions, he later became co-artistic director of the theater company with John Ortiz, and directed various plays over the years. Hoffman's only film appearance of 1995 was in the 22-minute short comedy The Fifteen Minute Hamlet, which satirized the film industry in an Elizabethan setting. He played the characters of Bernardo, Horatio, and Laertes alongside Austin Pendleton's Hamlet.

1996–1999: Rising star
Between April and May 1996, Hoffman appeared at the Joseph Papp Public Theater in a Mark Wing-Davey production of Caryl Churchill's The Skriker. Following this, based on his work in Scent of a Woman, he was cast by writer–director Paul Thomas Anderson to appear in his debut feature Hard Eight (1996). Hoffman had only a brief role in the crime thriller, playing a cocksure young craps player, but it began the most important collaboration of his career.
Before cementing his creative partnership with Anderson, Hoffman appeared in one of the year's biggest blockbusters, Twister, playing a grubby, hyperactive storm chaser alongside Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton. According to a People survey of Twitter and Facebook users, Twister is the film with which Hoffman is most popularly associated. He then reunited with Anderson for the director's second feature, Boogie Nights, about the Golden Age of Pornography. The ensemble piece starred Mark Wahlberg, Julianne Moore, and Burt Reynolds; Hoffman played a boom operator, described by David Fear of Rolling Stone as a "complete, unabashed loser", who attempts to seduce Wahlberg's character. Warmly received by critics, the film grew into a cult classic, and has been cited as the role in which Hoffman first showed his full ability. Fear commended the "naked emotional neediness" of the performance, adding that it made for compulsive viewing. Hoffman later expressed his appreciation for Anderson when he called the director "incomparable".

Continuing with this momentum, Hoffman appeared in five films in 1998. He had supporting roles in the crime thriller Montana and the romantic comedy Next Stop Wonderland, both of which were commercial failures, before working with the Coen brothers in their dark comedy The Big Lebowski. Hoffman had long been a fan of the directors, and relished the experience of working with them. Appearing alongside Jeff Bridges and John Goodman, Hoffman played Brandt, the smug personal assistant of the titular character. Although it was only a small role, he claimed it was one for which he was most recognized, in a film that has achieved cult status and a large fan base. Between March and April 1998, Hoffman made 30 appearances on stage at the New York Theatre Workshop in a production of Mark Ravenhill's Shopping and Fucking, portraying an ex-heroin addict.

Hoffman took an unflattering role in Todd Solondz's Happiness (1998), a misanthropic black comedy about the lives of three sisters and those around them. He played Allen, a strange loner who makes crude phone calls to women; the character furiously masturbates during one conversation, producing what film scholar Jerry Mosher calls an "embarrassingly raw performance". Jake Coyle of the Associated Press rated Allen as one of the creepiest characters in American cinema, but critic Xan Brooks highlighted the pathos that Hoffman brought to the role. Happiness was controversial but widely praised, and Hoffman's role has been cited by critics as one of his best. His final 1998 release was more mainstream, as he appeared as a medical graduate in the Robin Williams comedy Patch Adams. The film was critically panned, but one of the highest-grossing of Hoffman's career.

In 1999, Hoffman starred opposite Robert De Niro as drag queen Rusty Zimmerman in Joel Schumacher's drama Flawless. Hoffman considered De Niro the most imposing actor with whom he had appeared, and he felt that working with the veteran performer profoundly improved his own acting. Hoffman's ability to avoid clichés in playing such a delicate role was noted by critics, and Roger Ebert said it confirmed him as "one of the best new character actors". He was rewarded with his first Screen Actors Guild Award nomination. Hoffman then reunited with Paul Thomas Anderson, where he was given an atypically virtuous role in the ensemble drama Magnolia. The film, set over one day in Los Angeles, features Hoffman as a nurse who cares for Jason Robards' character. The performance was approved of by the medical industry, and Jessica Winter of the Village Voice considered it Hoffman's most indelible work, likening him to a guardian angel in his caring for the dying father. Magnolia has been included in lists of the greatest films of all time, and it was a personal favorite of Hoffman's.

One of the most critically and commercially successful films of Hoffman's career was The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), which he considered "as edgy as you can get for a Hollywood movie". He played a "preppy bully" who taunts Matt Damon's Ripley in the thriller, a character which Jeff Simon of The Buffalo News called "the truest upper class twit in all of American movies". Hoffman's performance caught the attention of Meryl Streep, another of his cinematic idols: "I sat up straight in my seat and said, 'Who is that?' I thought to myself: My God, this actor is fearless. He's done what we all strive for—he's given this awful character the respect he deserves, and he's made him fascinating." In recognition of his work in Magnolia and The Talented Mr. Ripley, Hoffman was named the year's Best Supporting Actor by the National Board of Review.

2000–2004: Established star

Following a string of roles in successful films in the late 1990s, Hoffman had established a reputation as a top supporting player who could be relied on to make an impression with each performance. His film appearances were likened by David Kamp of GQ to "discovering a prize in a box of cereal, receiving a bonus, or bumping unexpectedly into an old friend". According to Jerry Mosher, as the year 2000 began, "it seemed Hoffman was everywhere, poised on the cusp of stardom".

Hoffman had begun to be recognized as a theater actor in 1999, when he received a Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Featured Actor for the off-Broadway play The Author's Voice. This success continued with the 2000 Broadway revival of Sam Shepard's True West, where Hoffman alternated roles nightly with co-star John C. Reilly, making 154 appearances between March and July 2000. Ben Brantley of The New York Times felt that it was the best stage performance of Hoffman's career, calling him "brilliant", and the actor earned a Tony Award nomination for Best Actor in a Play. The following year, Hoffman appeared with Meryl Streep, Natalie Portman, and John Goodman in a Delacorte Theater production of Chekhov's The Seagull—although Brantley felt that this performance was less fully realized. As a stage director, Hoffman received two Drama Desk Award nominations for Outstanding Director of a Play: one for Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train in 2001, and another for Our Lady of 121st Street in 2003. In a 2008 interview, Hoffman opined that "switching hats" between acting and directing helped him improve in both roles.

David Mamet's comedy State and Main, about the difficulties of shooting a film in rural New England, was Hoffman's first film role of 2000 and had a limited release. He had a more prominent supporting role that year in Almost Famous, Cameron Crowe's popular coming-of-age film set in the 1970s music industry. Hoffman portrayed the enthusiastic rock critic Lester Bangs, a task by which he felt burdened, but he managed to convey the real figure's mannerisms and sharp wit after watching him in a BBC interview. The following year, Hoffman featured as the narrator and interviewer in The Party's Over, a documentary about the 2000 U.S. elections. He assumed the position of a "politically informed and alienated Generation-Xer" who seeks to be educated in U.S. politics, but ultimately reveals the extent of public dissatisfaction in this area.

In 2002, Hoffman was given his first leading role (despite joking at the time "Even if I was hired into a leading-man part, I'd probably turn it into the non-leading-man part") in Todd Louiso's tragicomedy Love Liza (2002). His brother Gordy wrote the script, which Hoffman had seen at their mother's house five years earlier, about a widower who starts sniffing gasoline to cope with his wife's suicide. He considered it the finest piece of writing he had ever read, "incredibly humble in its exploration of grief", but critics were less enthusiastic about the production. A review for the BBC wrote that Hoffman had finally been given a part that showed "what he's truly capable of", but few witnessed this as the film had a limited release and earned only US$210,000.

Later in 2002, Hoffman starred opposite Adam Sandler and Emily Watson in Anderson's critically acclaimed fourth picture, the surrealist romantic comedy-drama Punch-Drunk Love (2002), where he played an illegal phone-sex "supervisor". Drew Hunt of the Chicago Reader saw the performance as a fine example of Hoffman's "knack for turning small roles into seminal performances" and praised the actor's comedic ability. In a very different film, Hoffman was next seen with Anthony Hopkins in the high-budget thriller Red Dragon, a prequel to The Silence of the Lambs, portraying the meddlesome tabloid journalist Freddy Lounds. His fourth appearance of 2002 came in Spike Lee's drama 25th Hour, playing an English teacher who makes a devastating drunken mistake. Both Lee and the film's lead Edward Norton were thrilled to work with Hoffman, and Lee confessed that he had long wanted to do a picture with the actor, but had waited until he found the right role. Hoffman considered his character, Jakob, to be one of the most reticent characters he had ever played, a straight-laced "corduroy-pants-wearing kind of guy." Roger Ebert promoted 25th Hour to one of his "Great Movies" in 2009, and along with A. O. Scott, considered it to be one of the best films of the 2000s.

The drama Owning Mahowny (2003) gave Hoffman his second lead role, starring opposite Minnie Driver as a bank employee who embezzles money to feed his gambling addiction. Based on the true story of Toronto banker Brian Molony, who committed the largest fraud in Canadian history, Hoffman met with Molony to prepare for the role and help him play the character as accurately as possible. He was determined not to conform to "movie character" stereotypes, and his portrayal of addiction won approval from the Royal College of Psychiatrists. Roger Ebert assessed Hoffman's performance as "a masterpiece of discipline and precision," but the film earned little at the box office.

Hoffman's second 2003 appearance was a small role in Anthony Minghella's successful Civil War epic Cold Mountain. He played an immoral preacher, a complex character that Hoffman described as a "mass of contradictions". The same year, from April to August, he appeared with Vanessa Redgrave, Brian Dennehy, and Robert Sean Leonard in a Broadway revival of Eugene O'Neill's Long Day's Journey into Night. Director Robert Falls later commented on the dedication and experience that Hoffman brought to his role of alcoholic Jamie Tyrone: "Every night he ripped it up to an extent that he couldn't leave [the role]. Phil carried it with him." Hoffman received his second Tony Award nomination, this time for Best Featured Actor in a Play. In 2004, he appeared as the crude, has-been actor friend of Ben Stiller's character in the box-office hit Along Came Polly. Reflecting on the role, People said it proved that "Hoffman could deliver comedic performances with the best of them".

2005–2009: Critical acclaim

A turning point in Hoffman's career came with the biographical film Capote (2005), which dramatized Truman Capote's experience of writing his true crime novel In Cold Blood (1966). Hoffman took the title role for a project that he co-produced and helped bring to fruition. Portraying the idiosyncratic writer proved highly demanding, requiring significant weight loss and four months of research—such as watching video clips of Capote to help him affect the author's effeminate voice and mannerisms. Hoffman stated that he was not concerned with perfectly imitating Capote's speech, but he did feel a great duty to "express the vitality and the nuances" of the writer. During filming, he stayed in character constantly so as not to lose the voice and posture: "Otherwise," he explained, "I would give my body a chance to bail on me." Capote was released to great acclaim, particularly regarding Hoffman's performance. Many critics commented that the role was designed to win awards, and indeed Hoffman received an Oscar, Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild Award, BAFTA, and various other critics' awards. In 2006, Premiere listed his role in Capote as the 35th-greatest movie performance of all time. After the film, several commentators began to describe Hoffman as one of the finest, most ambitious actors of his generation.

Hoffman received his only Primetime Emmy Award nomination for his supporting role in the HBO miniseries Empire Falls (2005), about life in a New England town. He ultimately lost to castmate Paul Newman. In 2006, he appeared in the summer blockbuster Mission: Impossible III, playing the villainous arms dealer Owen Davian opposite Tom Cruise. A journalist for Vanity Fair stated that Hoffman's "black-hat performance was one of the most delicious in a Hollywood film since Alan Rickman's in Die Hard ", and he was generally approved of for bringing gravitas to the action film. With a gross of nearly US$400 million, it exposed Hoffman to a mainstream audience.

Returning to independent films in 2007, Hoffman began with a starring role in Tamara Jenkins's The Savages, where Laura Linney and he played siblings responsible for putting their dementia-ridden father (Philip Bosco) in a care home. Jake Coyle of the Associated Press stated that it was "the epitome of a Hoffman film: a mix of comedy and tragedy told with subtlety, bone-dry humor, and flashes of grace". Hoffman received a Golden Globe nomination for his performance in The Savages. He next appeared in Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, the final film by veteran director Sidney Lumet, where he played a realtor who embezzles funds from his employer to support his drug habit. Mosher comments that the character was one of the most unpleasant of Hoffman's career, but that his "fearlessness again revealed the humanity within a deeply flawed character" as he appeared naked in the opening sex scene. The film was received positively by critics as a powerful and affecting thriller.

Mike Nichols's political film Charlie Wilson's War (2007) gave Hoffman his second Academy Award nomination, again for playing a real individual—Gust Avrakotos, the CIA agent who conspired with Congressman Charlie Wilson (played by Tom Hanks) to aid Afghani rebels in their fight against the Soviet Union. Todd McCarthy wrote of Hoffman's performance: "Decked out with a pouffy '80s hairdo, moustache, protruding gut and ever-present smokes ... whenever he's on, the picture vibrates with conspiratorial electricity." The film was a critical and commercial success, and along with his Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor, Hoffman was nominated for a BAFTA and a Golden Globe Award.

The year 2008 contained two significant Hoffman roles. In Charlie Kaufman's enigmatic drama Synecdoche, New York, he starred as Caden Cotard, a frustrated dramatist who attempts to build a scale replica of New York inside a warehouse for a play. Hoffman again showed his willingness to reveal unattractive traits, as the character ages and deteriorates, and committed to a deeply psychological role. Critics were divided in their response to the "ambitious and baffling" film. Sonny Bunch of The Washington Times found it "impressionistic, inaccessible, and endlessly frustrating", likening Hoffman's character to "God, if God lacked imagination". Conversely, Roger Ebert named it the best film of the decade and considered it one of the greatest of all time, and Robbie Collin, film critic for The Daily Telegraph, believes Hoffman gave one of cinema's best performances.

Hoffman's second role of the year came opposite Meryl Streep and Amy Adams in John Patrick Shanley's Doubt, where he played Father Brendan Flynn—a priest accused of sexually abusing a 12-year-old African-American student in the 1960s. Hoffman was already familiar with the play and appreciated the opportunity to bring it to the screen; in preparing for the role, he talked extensively to a priest who lived through the era. The film had a mixed reception, with some critics such as Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian suspicious of it as Oscar bait, but Hoffman gained second consecutive Best Supporting Actor nominations at the Oscars, BAFTAs, and Golden Globes, and was also nominated by the Screen Actors Guild.

On stage in 2009, Hoffman played Iago in Peter Sellars' futuristic production of Othello (with the title role by John Ortiz), which received mixed reviews. Ben Brantley, theatre critic of The New York Times, found it to be "exasperatingly misconceived", remarking that even when Hoffman is attempting to "manipulate others into self-destruction, he comes close to spoiling everything by erupting into genuine, volcanic fury". Hoffman also did his first vocal performance for the claymation film Mary and Max, although the film did not initially have an American release. He played Max, a depressed New Yorker with Asperger syndrome, while Toni Collette voiced Mary—the Australian girl who becomes his pen pal. Continuing with animation, Hoffman then worked on an episode of the children's show Arthur and received a Daytime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Performer In An Animated Program. Later in the year, he played a brash American disc jockey opposite Bill Nighy and Rhys Ifans in Richard Curtis's British comedy The Boat That Rocked (also known as Pirate Radio)—a character based on Emperor Rosko, a host of Radio Caroline in 1966. He also had a cameo role as a bartender in Ricky Gervais's The Invention of Lying.

Reflecting on Hoffman's work in the late 2000s, Mosher writes that the actor remained impressive, but had not delivered a testing performance on the level of his work in Capote. The film critic David Thomson believed that Hoffman showed indecisiveness at this time, unsure whether to play spectacular supporting roles or become a lead actor who is capable of controlling the emotional dynamic and outcome of a film.

2010–2014: Final years
Hoffman's profile continued to grow with the new decade, and he became an increasingly recognizable figure. Despite earlier reservations about directing for the screen, his first release of the 2010s was also his first as a film director. The independent drama Jack Goes Boating was adapted from Robert Glaudini's play of the same name, in which Hoffman had starred and directed for the LAByrinth Theater Company in 2007. He originally intended to only direct the film, but decided to reprise the main role of Jack—a lonely limousine driver looking for love—after the actor he wanted for it was unavailable. The low-key film had a limited release, and was not a high earner, though it received many positive reviews. However, Dave Edwards of the Daily Mirror remarked that "Hoffman's directing debut delivers a film so weak I could barely remember what it was about as I left", while critic Mark Kermode appreciated the cinematic qualities that Hoffman brought to the film, and stated that he showed potential as a director. In addition to Jack Goes Boating, in 2010 Hoffman also directed Brett C. Leonard's tragic drama The Long Red Road for the Goodman Theatre in Chicago. Steven Oxman of Variety described the production as "heavy handed" and "predictable", but "intriguing and at least partially successful".

Hoffman next had significant supporting roles in two films, both released in the last third of 2011. In Bennett Miller's Moneyball, a sports drama about the 2002 season of the Oakland Athletics baseball team, he played the manager Art Howe. The film was a critical and commercial success, and Hoffman was described as "perfectly cast" by Ann Hornaday of The Washington Post, but the real-life Art Howe accused the filmmakers of giving an "unfair and untrue" portrayal of him. Hoffman's second film of the year was George Clooney's political drama The Ides of March, in which he played the earnest campaign manager to the Democratic presidential candidate Mike Morris (Clooney). The film was well-received and Hoffman's performance, especially in the scenes opposite Paul Giamatti—who played the rival campaign manager—was positively noted. Hoffman's work on the film earned him his fourth BAFTA Award nomination.

In the spring of 2012, Hoffman made his final stage appearance, starring as Willy Loman in a Broadway revival of Death of a Salesman opposite Andrew Garfield. Directed by Mike Nichols, the production ran for 78 performances and was the highest-grossing show in the Ethel Barrymore Theatre's history. Many critics felt that Hoffman, at 44, was too young for the role of 62-year-old Loman, and Chris Jones of the Chicago Tribune felt that the character had been interpreted poorly. Hoffman admitted that he found the role difficult, but he nevertheless earned his third Tony Award nomination.

Hoffman collaborated with Paul Thomas Anderson for the fifth time in The Master (2012), where he turned in what critic Peter Bradshaw considered the most memorable performance of his career. Set in 1950s America, the film featured Hoffman as Lancaster Dodd, the charismatic leader of a nascent Scientology-type movement who brings a troubled man (Joaquin Phoenix) under his tutelage. Hoffman was instrumental in the project's development, having been involved with it for three years. He assisted Anderson in the writing of the script by reviewing samples of it, and suggested making Phoenix's character, Freddie Quell, the protagonist instead of Dodd. A talented dancer, Hoffman was able to showcase his abilities by performing a jig during a surreal sequence; Bradshaw called it an "extraordinary moment" that "only Hoffman could have carried off." The Master was praised as an intelligent and challenging drama, and Drew Hunt of the Chicago Reader also felt that it contained Hoffman's finest work: "He's inscrutable yet welcoming, intimidating yet charismatic, villainous yet fatherly. He epitomizes so many things at once that it's impossible to think of [Dodd] as mere movie character". Hoffman and Phoenix received a joint Volpi Cup Award at the Venice Film Festival for their performances, and Hoffman was also nominated for an Academy Award, a Golden Globe, a BAFTA Award and a SAG Award for the supporting role.

A Late Quartet was Hoffman's other film release of 2012, where he played a violinist in a string quartet whose members (played by Christopher Walken, Catherine Keener, and Mark Ivanir) face a crisis when one is diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. The drama received favorable reviews, and Stephen Holden of The New York Times called Hoffman's performance "exceptional". In 2013, Hoffman joined the popular Hunger Games series in its second film, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, where he played gamemaker Plutarch Heavensbee. The film finished as the 10th-highest grossing in history to that point, and Hoffman became recognizable to a new generation of film-goers. In January 2014, shortly before his death, he attended the Sundance Film Festival to promote two films. In Anton Corbijn's A Most Wanted Man, a thriller based on John le Carré's novel, Hoffman played a German intelligence officer. His performance was praised by Xan Brooks as one of "terrific, lip-smacking relish: full of mischief, anchored by integrity." The other was God's Pocket, the directorial debut of actor John Slattery, in which Hoffman played a thief. In November 2014, nine months after his death, Hoffman was seen in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1.

At the time of his death, Hoffman was filming The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2, the fourth film in the series, and had already completed the majority of his scenes. His two remaining scenes were rewritten to compensate for his absence, and the film was released in November 2015. Hoffman was also preparing for his second directorial effort, a Prohibition-era drama titled Ezekiel Moss, which was to star Amy Adams and Jake Gyllenhaal. In addition, he had filmed a pilot episode for the Showtime series Happyish, in which he played the lead role of an advertising executive, but plans for a full season were put on hold following his death. The role was later passed on to Steve Coogan.

Personal life

Hoffman rarely mentioned his personal life in interviews, stating in 2012 that he would "rather not because my family doesn't have any choice. If I talk about them in the press, I'm giving them no choice. So I choose not to." For 14 years, he was in a relationship with costume designer Mimi O'Donnell, whom he had met in 1999 when they were both working on the Hoffman-directed play In Arabia We'd All Be Kings. They lived in New York City and had a son, Cooper, and two daughters. While some reports stated Hoffman and O'Donnell separated in late 2013, O'Donnell later said she and Hoffman were both committed to their relationship, but he had moved out of their longtime residence to a nearby apartment to protect their children from the effects of his relapse into substance abuse.

He felt that keeping his personal life private was beneficial to his career: "The less you know about me the more interesting it will be to watch me do what I do". Hoffman was also discreet about his religious and political beliefs, but it is known that he voted for the Green Party candidate Ralph Nader in the 2000 presidential election. He also donated to Al Franken's senate campaign and the Democratic National Committee.

In a 2006 interview with 60 Minutes, Hoffman revealed he had engaged in drug and alcohol misuse during his time at New York University, saying he had used "anything I could get my hands on. I liked it all." Following his graduation in 1989, he entered a drug rehabilitation program aged 22, and remained sober for 23 years. However, he relapsed in 2012, and admitted himself to drug rehabilitation for about ten days in May 2013.

Death
On February 2, 2014, Hoffman was found dead in the bathroom of his Manhattan apartment by his friend, the playwright and screenwriter David Bar Katz. He was 46 years old. Although friends stated that Hoffman's drug use was under control at the time, detectives searching the apartment found heroin and prescription medication at the scene and revealed that he had a syringe in his arm. Hoffman's death was officially ruled an accident caused by "acute mixed drug intoxication, including heroin, cocaine, benzodiazepines, and amphetamine". Michael Schwirtz of The New York Times said, "whether Hoffman had taken all of the substances on the same day, or whether any of the substances had remained in his system from earlier use, was not reported."

A funeral Mass was held at St. Ignatius Loyola Church in Manhattan on February 7, 2014, and was attended by many of his close friends and former co-stars including Amy Adams, Cate Blanchett, Ellen Burstyn, Louis C.K., Ethan Hawke, Laura Linney, Julianne Moore, Mike Nichols, Joaquin Phoenix, Chris Rock, Diane Sawyer, Ben Stiller, Meryl Streep, Marisa Tomei, and Michelle Williams. At the end of the ceremony, Hoffman was cremated, with his ashes given to his partner and children. He left his fortune of around $35 million to Mimi O'Donnell in his October 2004 will, trusting her to distribute money to their children.

Hoffman's death was lamented by fans and the film industry and was described by several commentators as a considerable loss to the profession. On February 5, 2014, the LAByrinth Theatre Company honored his memory by holding a candlelight vigil, and Broadway dimmed its lights for one minute. Three weeks after Hoffman's death, Katz established the American Playwriting Foundation in Hoffman's memory. With the money received from a libel lawsuit against the National Enquirer which inaccurately claimed that Hoffman and Katz were lovers, the foundation awards an annual prize of $45,000 to the author of an unproduced play. Katz named this the "Relentless Prize" in honor of Hoffman's dedication to the profession. He would later remember Hoffman with a poem published in The Guardian in December 2014. At the 90th Academy Awards, Sam Rockwell dedicated his win for Best Supporting Actor to Hoffman. In another tribute, actress Cate Blanchett dedicated her BAFTA trophy to Hoffman when she received the award for Blue Jasmine on February 16.

Reception and acting style
Hoffman was held in high regard within both the film and theater industries, and he was often cited in the media as one of the finest actors of his generation. In a 2022 readers' poll by Empire magazine, he was voted one of the 50 greatest actors of all time. With his being overweight, one writer considered Hoffman to be "too pudgy to look romantic or heroic"; however, the actor claimed that he was grateful for his appearance, as it made him believable in a wide range of roles. Joel Schumacher once said of him in 2000, "The bad news is that Philip won't be a $25-million star. The good news is that he'll work for the rest of his life". The Aiken Standard of South Carolina referred to him as an "anti-star", whose real identity remained "amorphous and unmoored". Hoffman was acutely aware that he was often too unorthodox for the Academy voters. He remarked, "I'm sure that people in the big corporations that run Hollywood don't know quite what to do with someone like me, but that's OK. I think there are other people who are interested in what I do."

Most of Hoffman's notable roles came in independent films, including particularly original ones, but he also featured in several Hollywood blockbusters. He generally played supporting roles, appearing in both dramas and comedies, but was noted for his ability to make small parts memorable. Peter Bradshaw, film critic for The Guardian, felt that "Almost every single one of his credits had something special about it". David Fear of Rolling Stone wrote that Hoffman "added heft to low-budget art films, and nuance and unpredictability to blockbuster franchises. He was a transformative performer who worked from the inside out, blessed with an emotional transparency that could be overwhelming, invigorating, compelling, devastating."

Hoffman was praised for his versatility and ability to fully inhabit any role, but specialized in playing creeps and misfits: "his CV was populated almost exclusively by snivelling wretches, insufferable prigs, braggarts and outright bullies" writes the journalist Ryan Gilbey. Hoffman was appreciated for making these roles real, complex and even sympathetic; while Todd Louiso, director of Love Liza, believed that Hoffman connected to people on screen because he looked like an ordinary man and revealed his vulnerability. Xan Brooks of The Guardian remarked that the actor's particular talent was to "take thwarted, twisted humanity and ennoble it". "The more pathetic or deluded the character," writes Gilbey, "the greater Hoffman's relish seemed in rescuing them from the realms of the merely monstrous." When asked in 2006 why he undertook such roles, Hoffman responded, "I didn't go out looking for negative characters; I went out looking for people who have a struggle and a fight to tackle. That's what interests me."

Work ethic
The journalist Jeff Simon described Hoffman as "probably the most in-demand character actor of his generation", but Hoffman claimed never to take it for granted that he would be offered roles. Although he worked hard and regularly, he was humble about his acting success, and when asked by a friend if he was having any luck he quietly replied, "I'm in a film, Cold Mountain, that has just come out." Patrick Fugit, who worked with Hoffman on Almost Famous, recalled the actor was intimidating but an exceptional mentor and influence in "a school-of-hard-knocks way", remarking that "there was a certain weight that came with him". Hoffman admitted that he sometimes appeared in big-budget studio films for the money, but said, "ultimately my main goal is to do good work. If it doesn't pay well, so be it." He kept himself grounded and invigorated as an actor by attempting to appear on stage once a year.

Hoffman occasionally changed his hair and lost or gained weight for parts, and he went to great lengths to reveal the worst in his characters. But in a 2012 interview, he confessed that performing to a high standard was a challenge: "The job isn't difficult. Doing it well is difficult." In an earlier interview with The New York Times, he explained how deeply he loved acting but added, "that deep kind of love comes at a price: for me, acting is torturous, and it's torturous because you know it's a beautiful thing ... Wanting it is easy, but trying to be great—well, that's absolutely torturous." This struggle was confirmed by the author John le Carré, who met Hoffman during the adaptation of his novel A Most Wanted Man. While praising the actor's intelligence and intuition, le Carré acknowledged the burden that Hoffman felt: "It was painful and exhausting work, and probably in the end his undoing. The world was too bright for him to handle."

Filmography, awards, and honors

Hoffman appeared in 55 films and one miniseries during his screen career spanning 22 years. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for Capote (2005), and was nominated three times for Best Supporting Actor for Charlie Wilson's War (2007), Doubt (2008), and The Master (2012). He also received five Golden Globe Award nominations (winning one), five BAFTA Award nominations (winning one), four Screen Actors Guild Awards (winning one), and won the Volpi Cup at the Venice Film Festival. Hoffman remained active in theater throughout his career, starring in ten and directing 19 stage productions (predominantly in New York). He received three Tony Award nominations for his Broadway performances: two for Best Leading Actor, in True West (2000) and Death of a Salesman (2012), and one for Best Featured Actor in Long Day's Journey into Night (2003).

In 2022, a statue of Hoffman was unveiled in his hometown of Fairport, New York. The statue was sculpted by David A. Annand and commissioned by James Declan Tobin, a film producer who befriended Hoffman's mother at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. Originally on loan from a gallery in New York City, the statue was permanently installed outside the George Eastman Museum in 2023. Hoffman's mother, Marilyn O'Connor, called the sculpture "a loving memorial" to her son.

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

External links

 Philip Seymour Hoffman collected news and commentary at The New York Times

1967 births
2014 deaths
American male film actors
American male stage actors
American male television actors
American male voice actors
20th-century American male actors
21st-century American male actors
Best Actor Academy Award winners
Best Drama Actor Golden Globe (film) winners
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role Screen Actors Guild Award winners
Best Actor BAFTA Award winners
Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead winners
Volpi Cup for Best Actor winners
Theatre World Award winners
Method actors
Male actors from Rochester, New York
American theatre directors
American film producers
Tisch School of the Arts alumni
Circle in the Square Theatre School alumni
People from Fairport, New York
American people of German descent
American people of Irish descent
Drug-related deaths in New York City
Deaths by heroin overdose in New York (state)
Cocaine-related deaths in New York (state)

Philip Seymour Hoffman


Kamensk-Uralsky Metallurgical Works J.S.Co. (KUMZ) is one of the town-forming enterprises of Kamensk-Uralsky, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia.  KUMZ was founded especially for supplying of aerospace industry with semi-finished products in aluminium and magnesium alloys.  Currently, the plant produces aluminium alloy billets, forged and rolled plates, roll bond heat exchangers, extruded rods, bars, tubes, drill pipes, profiles, die-forgings.

History

The History of KUMZ starts with Decision of Government of the Soviet Union No. 513-99C dated June 3 of year 1939 regarding building of the Works No. 268 for magnesium alloy products. The construction started in May 1940. During World War II the plant has received casting and rolling production equipment of Stupino metallurgical works evacuated from Moscow region. First aluminium alloy slabs were produced in February 1942.

First forged and extruded products were produced in the autumn of 1943. On May 5, 1944 in Pravda newspaper the report about the launch of the plant was published. This date is considered as birthday of the KUMZ. In 1945 new equipment for rolling production was installed. In 1949 KUMZ began the production of aluminium cookware.

In the 1950s the plant increased its production capacity and products range. New workshops were built: forging-extrusion (1951), casting (1958), extrusion (1959). In 1958 KUMZ has made first export delivery which included 2952 metric tons of aluminium alloy rolled products. In the same year for the first time magnesium rolled products were produced.

While initial production of aluminium alloy light weight drill pipes started at KUMZ in the 1950s. In 1972 KUMZ has built a new specially meant workshop.

In March 1966 the first mechanized line for roll bond heat exchangers production was launched at the plant. From that moment KUMZ supports high quality household refrigerators production.

On 8 July 1978 the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union awarded to the plant the Order of the Red Banner of Labour for successful development of production and realization of new technologies.

On November 30 of 1992 the plant was reorganized in Joint stock company.

In December 2007 green-field project for heat treatment of plates was launched.

In December 2011 KUMZ has entered in contracts for construction of new rolling mill complex comprising cold rolling mill, hot rolling mill and heat treatment of sheets. The total investments are estimated as 550 million euro.

In May 2012 unique vertical 300 MN forging press was launched after modernization.

Space Programmes
KUMZ takes part in all Russian (Vostok spacecraft, Voskhod spacecraft, Salyut program, Mir, Proton) and International space programs (International Space Station, Sea Launch).

Production
KUMZ main facilities are
Casting shop
Extruded tube production shop
Extrusion shop
Tool shop
Forging shop
Heat exchanger production shop
Plate treatment shop
Rolling-mill shop
Research and development center

Casting production
The raw material for the shop are pure aluminium purchased from smelters, alloying components and aluminium scrap. KUMZ has a number of furnaces: electric, gas, coreless type induction, electric vacuum holding; and equipment for cutting and scalping. This allows KUMZ to supply its own workshops with high quality wrought aluminium alloy billets, ingots, slabs produced in situ. About 70 aluminium alloys per Russian standards, more than 20 per international standards EN, DIN, ASTM and own Al-Li alloys are mastered.

Rolling production
KUMZ has one hot-rolling mill and two cold-rolling mills "Quarto". Hot-rolling mill was recently modernized in several steps.

The plant is one among few world producers of aluminium-lithium alloy sheets and plates.

Beside the flat surface products tread plates and sheets are produced with diamond pattern by means of special rollers. Such product is used for floors of bus, trucks, rail cars, drill towers.

In 2012 KUMZ installed water jet cutter. It allows pattern cutting of rectangular plates to blanks with desired complex shape.

KUMZ Rolling production serves needs of aerospace industry. Specially treated aluminium plates and sheets are used by Boeing and Bombardier companies in their production of airplanes.

The plant has a production line for aluminium roll bond heat exchangers which are used in household refrigerators and flat plate solar thermal collectors.

Extrusion production
KUMZ has 39 horizontal hydraulic extrusion presses with power from 500 to 12000 tons. They are situated in four buildings. With help of tools shop KUMZ produces more than 20000 kinds of aluminium profiles, 550 different sizes of bars and rods, 850 kinds of tubes.

Forging production
Forging production of KUMZ serves the needs of leading Russian design bureaus for passenger aircraft Tupolev, Ilyushin, Sukhoi, Yakovlev, Antonov.

Equipment includes hydraulic vertical die-forging presses from 1250 to 30000 ton-force, hydraulic forging press with capacity of 6000 ton-force, radial ring forging press.
1500 items of die-forged products, 1200 items of forged products and 1600 types of rolled rings from 0.1 kg to 3000 kg are already available.

Special production
KUMZ produces closed-cell aluminium foam plates which are used as energy and sound absorbing material for automobile industry, building and interior design, aerospace, shipbuilding, railroad transport.

On-site Laboratory

KUMZ has its own laboratory on-site which can perform different testing of aluminium alloy semifinished products in order to evaluate strength, ductility, chemical composition, uniformity of material:
 Spectral analysis
 Measuring content of the gas in metal
 Tensile testing
 Bending testing
 Hardness testing
 Macrostructure, microstructure control
 Fracture toughness testing
 Electroconductivity measurement
 Ultrasonic testing

World export
Nowadays main part of products produced by KUMZ is meant for export. Aluminium semi-fabricated products are delivered to 46 countries of the World – in Europe, North and South Americas, Asia, Africa, Oceania.

According to requirements of leading consumers of aluminium semis KUMZ received following certificates: ISO 9001:2000 and AS9100 (by SGS from 2006 till 2009, by TÜV from 2009), ISO 14001, OSHAS18001, Lloyd's Register, Interstate Aviation Committee, Det Norske Veritas, Nadcap (NDT, Heat treating), IRIS (International Railway Industry Standard).

KUMZ products for export ex Russia are exclusively marketed by:
A.S. Mill Products GmbH (Switzerland)
A.S. Mill Products Inc (United States)
A.S. Mill Products HK (Hong-Kong)

Company social policy

Big number of large industrial enterprises in Kamensk-Uralsky resulted in lack of personnel and struggle for both workers and qualified engineers from the beginning of the 1950s. Solving the problem of housing was the main argument. Near the KUMZ site a new micro district has grown. It was named after Valery Chkalov. Ordinal habitation building pace in the 1980s was about 11000 m² per year. Company looks after of kindergartens, medical care and leisure of the staff:
In 1964 the House of sports «Metallurgist» was built.
In 1966 works polyclinic launched, in 1967 KUMZ launched policlinic for children in Chkalov microdistrict.
In 1967 boating station on Iset river started its work (now it is the only working boating station in town).
In 1969 the Palace of culture «Metallurgist» was built.
In 1979 new therapeutic building was launched.
In 1991 plant acquires recreation department «Ray» situated on the bank of Chervyanoe Lake.
In 1992 the building of new school with winter garden in Chkalov micro district was finished.
Two times a year competitions in football, volleyball, basketball, chess, checkers, and track-and-field athletics between workshops teams take place.

Every year on the eve of New Year on the square in front of Palace of culture «Metallurgist» KUMZ builds Chkalovsky town of ice and snow. Ice-hills, snow and ice figures of famous fairy tales characters and Ded Moroz with Snegurochka, New Year's trees with colored garlands are opened for all townsmen.

Ecology
KUMZ as well as any of metallurgical enterprises harms the environment. In 2014 the contribution in atmosphere pollution of the plant was not marked as considerable in comparison to other enterprises of the region. KUMZ share in the discharge of sewage into the Iset River was 11.6% (3rd place in the town).

References

Aluminium companies of Russia
Metal companies of the Soviet Union
1944 establishments in Russia
Manufacturing companies established in 1944
Companies based in Sverdlovsk Oblast
Russian brands

Kamensk-Uralsky Metallurgical Works


A marble cake (, ), or Marmor ()) is a cake with a streaked or mottled appearance (like marble) achieved by very lightly blending light and dark batter. Due to its zebra-striped pattern, it is also called Zebra Cake. It can be a mixture of vanilla and chocolate cake, in which case it is mainly vanilla, with streaks of chocolate. Other possibilities are strawberry or other fruit flavors, or (particularly in marbled coffee cakes) cinnamon or other spices.

History
Marmor is the German or Yiddish word for marble. The idea of marble cake seems to have originated in early nineteenth century Germany. The earliest version of marble cake consisted of a kugelhopf (sweet yeast bread), one half of which was colored with molasses and spices to achieve a dark colored batter. Bakers next began to do the same thing with sponge cake batter. The usage of chocolate in the Rhein-Ruhr area in the twentieth century has now made this a common version of marble cake across Germany and Austria.

The cake was brought to America shortly before the Civil War, and the term marble cake was first recorded in English in September 29, 1859 issue of Illinois State Chronicle (Decatur). One popular variation of this recipe during Victorian times was "Harlequin cake," which was baked with checkerboard patterns.

Use as an academic metaphor
In the field of geology, the "Marble Cake Mantle" model refers to the theory of an earth wherein "elongated strips of subducted oceanic lithosphere... are stretched and thinned by the normal and shear strains in the convecting mantle, and are destroyed by being reprocessed at ocean ridges or, on the centimetre scale, by dissolution processes."

In politics, marble cake federalism, also known as cooperative federalism, is defined in contrast to dual federalism, also known as layer cake federalism. The metaphor of marble cake is meant to conceptualize how local, state, and federal governments have interacting, interrelated policy goals. The term was coined by American political scientist Morton Grodzins.

World records
The largest marble cake in recorded history measured , and was unveiled in 2019 by British-American television host John Oliver on an episode of his comedy series Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. It featured a photographic image of Turkmenistan's autocratic president Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow falling off a horse during a race, intended to satirize Berdimuhamedow's penchant for amassing world records. The cake was submitted to Guinness World Records, but was denied – one of the conditions for certification was a non-disparagement agreement against Guinness, including its relationships with authoritarian regimes, which Oliver described as "clearly ridiculous". Guinness World Records instead claims that the largest marble cake was baked in 2017 by Betty Crocker in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, measuring  and .

References

External links

German cakes

Marble cake


The Mali War has been ongoing since 2012. The war has three sides. One side is Mali, who are supported by many other countries. Another, many of whom are Tuareg people, are separatists who want northern Mali - which they call Azawad - to become a separate country. Northern Mali is hot desert and is in the southern part of the Sahara. The third side is Islamist groups - including Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and al-Qaeda - who want Mali to be part of an Islamist caliphate.

The United Nations has reported many human rights violations, both by the forces close to the government, and by the different rebel groups. Allegedly, there have been amputations, floggings, and extrajudicial executions. A couple was stoned in 2012, for allegedly having an extramarital affair. Based on these reports, the International Criminal Court started investigations into war crimes and human rights abuses. According to the BBC, about 250,000 people have left because of the fighting. They are now refugees and internally displaced people. Another problem is that World Heritage Sites are threatened by the war. There are mosques built of mud, in Timbuktu, which are threatened. In September 2021, a contract was signed between the Malian state and a private Russian military company linked to the Russian military group Wagner. The document provides for the deployment of mercenaries in the country, in liaison with the Malian army, and the protection of senior figures.

Related pages

List of ongoing armed conflicts

2012
2013 in Africa
2014
2015 in Africa
2016 in Africa
2017 in Africa
2018
2019 in Africa
2020 in Africa
2021 in Africa
Civil wars involving Africa
History of Mali
Wars involving Belgium
Wars involving Canada
Wars involving China
Wars involving France
Wars involving Germany
Wars involving India
Wars involving Japan
Wars involving Portugal
Wars involving South Africa
Wars involving Spain
Wars involving the Netherlands
Wars involving the United Kingdom
Wars involving the United States
Wars of independence
2010s conflicts

Mali War


Kharak Singh (22 February 1801 – 5 November 1840) was the second Maharaja of the Sikh Empire. He was the eldest son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, founder of the Sikh Empire and his consort, Maharani Datar Kaur. He succeeded his father on 27 June 1839 and reigned until his dethronement and imprisonment on 8 October 1839. He was succeeded by his only son Nau Nihal Singh.

Early life
He was born on 22 February 1801 in Lahore, Punjab. He was the first son of Ranjit Singh and his second wife Datar Kaur Nakai. His mother was the daughter of Ran Singh Nakai, third ruler of the Nakai Misl. The prince was named by his father  "Kharak" (ਖਰਕ) which means 'Wielder of the Sword' he was named after the unconquerable warrior mentioned in Dasam Granth. According to Gyani Sher Singh, Ranjit Singh knew the entire Dasam Granth by heart. It was his birth that persuaded his father to proclaim himself the Maharaja of Punjab.

He married four times. In 1812, at the age of 11 he was married to Chand Kaur Kanhaiya, daughter of Sardar Jaimal Singh, chief of the Kanhaiya Misl. Their son Nau Nihal Singh was born in 1821. In 1816, the prince was married to Bibi Khem Kaur Dhillon, a Jat Sikh daughter of Jodh Singh Kalalvala and granddaughter of Sahib Singh Dhillon. After the Second Anglo-Sikh War in 1849, Bibi Khem's jagirs were reduced by the British raj due to her anti-British role in the war. His third wife was, Kishan Kaur Samra, a daughter of Chaudhari Raja Singh of Amritsar of the Samra clan; they were married in 1818. She was the only queen to live after the fall of the Sikh Empire in 1849, had an annual pension paid by the British Raj of RS 2324 and died in Lahore in 1876 while living at the Lahore Fort. His last wife, Inder Kaur Bajwa was married by proxy in a "chadar dalna" ceremony, in 1815. She was a relative of Chet Singh Bajwa.

Early military campaigns and administration

Kharak Singh was brought up in his family's martial tradition and assigned to a variety of military expeditions. While barely six years old, he was given the command of the Sheikhupura expedition. In 1811, he was placed in charge of the Kanhaiya estates, and deputed in 1812 to punish the recalcitrant chiefs of Bhimbar and Rajauri. Kharak received the principality of Jammu as his jagir in 1812.

Since his birth he was heir of his father. But Sada Kaur only viewed him as heir presumptive as her daughter Mehtab Kaur was the first queen of Ranjit Singh. In 1816 to put an end to all intrigues Ranjit Singh officially announced Kharak Singh as his heir apparent and anointed him "Tikka Kanwar Yuvraj" (Crown prince).

The same year, his mother, Mai Nakain took over his training for 18 months and even accompanied him to his expedition Multan. During the battle the queen herself oversaw the steady supply of grain, horses, and ammunition being sent to the at Kot Kamalia, a town equally distanced between Multan and Lahore. In 1818, together with Misr Diwan Chand he commanded an expedition against the Afghan ruler of Multan Nawab Muzaffar Khan, achieving a decisive victory at the Battle of Multan. He was invested with the command of Siege of Multan (1818) as well as of Battle of Shopian in 1819, which resulted in Srinagar and Kashmir getting annexed into the Sikh Empire. When the Sikh army entered the city of Srinagar after the battle, Prince Kharak Singh guaranteed the personal safety of every citizen and ensured the city was not plundered. The peaceful capture of Srinagar was important as Srinagar, besides having a large Shawl-making industry, was also the center of trade between Panjab, Tibet, Skardu, and Ladakh.

He was also sent on similar campaigns undertaken by Ranjit Singh for the conquest of Peshawar and against the Mazaris of Shikarpur.

In 1839, Ranjit Singh awarded Kashmir to Kharak Singh, which was seen as a check on the ambitions of Gulab Singh Dogra.

On the advice of Fakir Azizuddin, before his death his father proclaimed him the Maharaja of the Sikh Empire.

Maharaja of the Sikh Empire

On the death of his father he was proclaimed the Maharajah and installed on the throne at Lahore Fort on 1 September 1839.

Kharak Singh was a patron of arts and had commissioned a Sanskrit astronomy manuscript – the Sarvasiddhantattvacudamani.

Though courageous and good in battle, Kharak was regarded as simple minded. It was believed he lacked his father's diplomatic skills. He developed a close relationship with his tutor Chet Singh Bajwa after the death of his mother, who gained such an ascendancy over him as to render him a puppet. This relationship with Chet Singh created tensions with Prime Minister Raja Dhian Singh.

The Austrian physician, Johann Martin Honigberger who was present at court, described his coronation as a dark day for the Punjab, and referred to the Maharaja as a blockhead who twice a day deprived himself of his senses and spent his whole time in a state of stupefaction. Historians challenge the popular oriental notion of Kharak Singh being considered "imbecile", as said by Alexander Burnes and Henry Montgomery Lawrence -who has never met Kharak Singh. Burns was the first to refer to Kharak Singh as imbecile but also mentions that Prince Kharak is extremely kind hearted and noted that the prince is the master of an impressive military and good at the administrating and handling important strategic and governing duties assigned to him.

Claude Martin Wade, who was at the Lahore Durbar for 16 years disagreed as well, stating that Kharak Singh was a man with a "mild and humane disposition, who was "loved by his dependants". Wade suggests that Kharak Singh seemed to have a has a dismal reputation as he maintained a low profile. Dr. Priya Atwal and Sarbpreet Singh note that Kharak Singh was politically intelligent and well versed in multiple language, the most educated prince of Maharaja Ranjit Singh who not only led military expeditions but also diplomatic events. Sarbjeet Singh states Kharak Singh along with his brothers is a victim of circumstance, something he labeled "A Shakespearean tragedy".

Death
Raja Dhian Singh Dogra is known to resent the influence of Chet Singh Bajwa, tutor of Kharak Singh on the emperor, as well as the court. It was whispered that both the Maharaja and Chet Singh were secretly planning to sell out the Punjab to the British, pay them six annas in every rupee of state revenue and, worse of all, disband the Sikh army. Misled by these fictitious tales, the court and Nau Nihal Singh became estranged from Kharak Singh.

Chet Singh was assassinated on Oct. 9, 1839. Early that morning the conspirators entered the Maharaja's residence in the Fort and assassinated Chet Singh in the presence of their royal master, who vainly implored them to spare the life of his friend.

Kharak Singh was poisoned with white lead and mercury. Within six months he was bedridden, and eleven months after the poisoning he died on 5 November 1840 in Lahore. The official announcement blamed a sudden mysterious illness. Though never proven, most contemporaries believed Raja Dhian Singh to be behind the poisoning. Dhian Singh also murdered one of Kharak Singh's wife, Rani Inder Kaur by setting her on fire.

Raja Dhian Singh had previously resisted attempts to allow Kharak training in statecraft, and on 8 October 1839 he instigated his removal from the throne with Nau Nihal Singh becoming de facto ruler.

See also
Gurdaspur District

References

Singh, Harbans "The encyclopedia of Sikhism. Vol III." pages 494–495
"Bibi Khem Kaur Dhillon", URL accessed 11/16/06

External links
 Genealogy of Kharak Singh

Sikh emperors
1801 births
1840 deaths
Indian Sikhs
Ranjit Singh
Punjabi people
People from Lahore

Kharak Singh


The Björk–Shiley valve is a mechanical artificial heart valve. The valve was co-invented by American engineer Donald Shiley and Swedish heart surgeon Viking Björk.

Beginning in 1971, it has been used to replace aortic valves and mitral valves. It was the first successful tilting-disc valve. It was manufactured first by Shiley Laboratories, then later by Pfizer after that company purchased Shiley. One model of the Bjork–Shiley valve became the subject of a famous lawsuit and recall after it was shown to malfunction.

Construction
The Björk–Shiley valve consists of a single carbon-coated disc in a metal housing. The disc is held in place by two metal struts, an inflow and an outflow strut. The housing is made from the alloy Haynes 25, which is composed of 51% cobalt, 20% chromium, 15% tungsten, and 10% nickel. The  Björk–Shiley valve was considered very durable and was widely used in the 1970s. However, later research indicated it was susceptible to long-term wear problems, and could shed microscopic metal fragments.

Convexo-concave valve defects
Attempts to improve the design of the valve and speed manufacturing, however, led to a weaker structure, with serious consequences. Beginning in 1979, Björk–Shiley valves with the convexo-concave design had a tendency to develop fractures in the outflow strut which could result in catastrophic valve failure and possibly sudden cardiac death. Later analysis revealed that the strut was fracturing at the place where it was welded onto the metal valve ring. One end of the strut would fracture first, followed by the second strut some months later. Eventually, 619 of the 80,000 convexo-concave valves implanted fractured in this way, with the patient dying in two-thirds of those cases. The FDA withdrew approval of the convexo-concave valve in 1986. Valves welded by specific welders were at greater risk of fracture.

The convexo-concave valve was withdrawn from the market and multiple lawsuits were filed.

In 1992, Pfizer (Shiley's parent company) and patients with defective valves agreed to a settlement, with Pfizer proposing a fund of $80 million to $130 million in compensation, and to set aside $75 million for research to identify recipients of heart valves with a significant risk of fracture. The eventual settlement totaled $215 million. A separate part of the agreement required Pfizer to provide up to $300 million for patient or survivor claims in the event of valve fractures.

Not all of these valves have been removed and replaced. The risk of valve fracture has been balanced against the risk of the surgery to replace the valve. Decision tools have been published and are available from a trust set up for this purpose during the litigation surrounding the valve "recall". The tools take into account patient age, the size and location of the valve (aortic  or mitral) and other factors to come up with a recommendation as to whether surgery to replace the valve is worthwhile. In some patients the risk of surgery to replace the valve is higher than the risk of the valve fracturing. A fund was also established for patient compensation and to pay for the costs of heart surgery to replace the valve.

More recent models of the Björk–Shiley valve did away with the convexo-concave design and are reliable valves that do not require replacement.

References

Heart valves
Implants (medicine)
Cardiac anatomy
Prosthetics

Björk–Shiley valve


P.T.O. (Pacific Theater of Operations), released as  in Japan, is a console strategy video game released by Koei. It was originally released for the PC-9801 in 1989 and had been ported to various platforms, such as the X68000, FM Towns, PC-8801 (1990), MSX2 (1991), Sega Genesis and the Super NES (all three in 1992). Players could assume one side of the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II, acting as naval commander, organizing fleets, building new ships, appropriating supplies and fuel, and even engaging in diplomacy with other countries. The player can choose one of several World War Two battles to simulate, or could control the entire Pacific campaign well before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

A sequel, P.T.O. II, was released by Koei in 1993. Teitoku no Ketsudan III was never released outside Japan, but a P.T.O. IV was released for the PlayStation 2 in the US and Europe.

Gameplay

Scenarios
Players must choose one of nine scenarios when starting a game. The first scenario (Negotiations Breakdown) is a long-term campaign, where the player must win the war from mid-1941 before the war is declared. Victory can only be obtained by controlling all ports or eliminating all enemy ships. The other scenarios begin in the midst of a certain major Pacific conflict, where the goal is to capture or defend a certain port or sink or protect a number of enemy ships. If a scenario's goal is achieved, the player can continue with the full campaign.

Naval powers
The player has the option of playing as one of the two major World War II Pacific maritime powers: the United States for the Allies, or Japan for the Axis. Other countries begin as allies of the two nations as they were at whatever point in the war gameplay begins; over time, non-allied nations can be convinced to ally with your side after significant gifts and diplomacy. Nations can also break alliances with poor diplomacy, which can lead to the departure of ships loaned from their navy. For instance, if the United Kingdom breaks off from the Allied forces, the US will lose all British ships from their fleet, such as the Hermes.

Other countries will behave as they did historically; for example, Italy will cease being a member of the Axis in 1943, due to Allied invasion. The countries available as allies are:
 Germany
 Italy
 England
 France
 Holland
 China
 Australia
 Thailand
 India
 Sweden
 Switzerland
 USSR
 Brazil

Territory
Each power starts out with control over a number of Pacific bases depending on when the scenario begins. The focus of the long-term campaign is to capture enemy territories while defending one's own, reducing the number of ports under enemy control to zero. Territories produce fuel and materials for the power that controls them; fuel refers to both oil for ships, and supplies for soldiers. Materials refer to all ores and metals and can be used for base repair, ship repair, and construction of new warships. Money is used to fund construction of aircraft and transports, and fund improvement in technologies. Capturing territories thus increases the resources available to a player while denying their use to the enemy.

Each power has one home port, to which newly manufactured ships and aircraft are stationed upon completion. During the turn, aircraft, fuel, and materials can be assigned to any base; however, depending on the safety and distance of the trade route, some resources may not arrive. Certain ports are capable of 'Urgent Repair', meaning they can affect some small repairs to ships docked there.  As not all ports have this capability, control of these key regions is crucial in order to maintain the fighting capabilities of one's fleet at sea with less turnaround time for ship repair when ships are damaged in combat.

Ships
P.T.O. faithfully recreates many of the actual battleships available in the Pacific during the war, and displays a ship icon relative to that ships. Ships are given several attributes: Fortitude, Speed, Anti-air capability, and Anti-ship capability. Ships can also be fitted with radar (search and gunnery), rockets or scouts, and marines for a land invasion. Ships are also given an overall 'Luck' rating from 1 to 99; ships that survived many conflicts in history, like the Enterprise, have a Luck rating of 99.

There are several types of warship available: dreadnought battleships, battleships, cruisers, fleet aircraft carriers, light carriers, destroyers, and submarines. Each power starts out with a certain number of ships of each type, and a number of ships under construction, usually launching around their historical commission date. Additional ships can be constructed, but only to replace ships previously lost in battle, either by the player or prior to the scenario's start date. Ship construction can be scheduled for 6–24 months out; the closer the launch date, the more industrial power will be expended during construction. Materials are consumed as well, dependent on the type of hull being built, and the ship ratings are chosen during design. The ship class chosen during construction is cosmetic only; it does not affect actual ship limitations or attributes like the actual hull type does.

Ships are organized into fleets, which can comprise up to 16 ships. Up to 16 fleets can be arranged from inactive ships at the home port. Only one fleet from each side can engage in a battle at any one time, so fleets must attack an enemy in succession rather than at once.  Fleets have a rating for Morale and Fatigue, between 0 and 99; morale goes up after victories or during shore leave, and down during defeats or when a flagship is lost. It can also be raised by an emergency banquet at sea. Fatigue goes up after every battle, and when the crew is infected by the plague.

Ships also have individual levels of crew experience; this value starts high for the Japanese, and low for the US. Experience levels gradually increase through combat, or by conducting training drills.

Another type of ship that can be constructed is transports. These are used for carrying additional fuel to extend fleet range, and for transporting resources from territories to home ports.

Additional, non-controlled shipping fleets are constantly active in the game, though not displayed on the tactical maps. Transport fleets supplying bases can be protected by unlisted destroyers and cruisers, but will not engage an enemy fleet.

Aircraft
The following types of aircraft are immediately available: fighters, bombers, and scouts. Later in the game, when technology levels have advanced, jet fighters and long-range bombers become available. Aircraft carriers can be fitted to allow jets once the technology levels are sufficient; the modified carrier will only carry jet fighters and not normal fighters. Long-range bombers can only be launched from land bases.

Aircraft can be deployed to bases or to aircraft carriers, although some ship types allow scouts to be launched via catapult. Aircraft placed at bases take a defensive role against attacking fleet(s) or aircraft and are used to scout for enemy fleets during the day. After enemy fleets are found, the land-based aircraft will then sortie to attack.

Commanders
Each naval fleet begins with a certain number of fictional fleet commanders, depending on the scenario chosen. These commanders can be placed in command of any of the 16 fleets the player arranges. The player creates the commanders with a set of rolled scores in certain attributes – Air command ability, Sea command ability, Bravery, and overall War ability. Scores range from 01 to 99, and the total between the four scores is 102. Air and Sea abilities affect the actual combat performance of ships and planes under that commander's control. Bravery affects the commander's decision making when the fleet is under AI control. War is an overall rating, which is useful when it comes to convincing the Army and other military officials to agree with your submissions for objectives, budgeting, and industrial production.

Soundtrack

The music was composed by longtime anime musician Hiroshi Miyagawa, who wrote a completely orchestral score. The soundtrack was recorded with the Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra featuring soprano voice of Kazuko Kawashima among July 18-August 4, 1989. An album CD titled Teitoku no Ketsudan was published by KOEI Sound Ware and distributed by Polydor K.K. on September 5. The disc covers a total duration of 41:01 with 8 tracks, the first half dedicated to the orchestral suite in four movements.

This soundtrack has the honor of being the first in-game orchestral score for a video game in history, a milestone achieved in April 1990 when it was released on CD-ROM for FM Towns. In fact, the previous version released for PC-88 already used the Teitoku no Ketsudan album synchronized with the game taking advantage of Sound Ware system made up by KOEI.

Track listing

Reception
Computer Gaming World in 1993 approved of the Genesis version of P.T.O. as suitable for "the core group of strategy wargamers who normally do not play videogames". While criticizing the "inadequate" documentation, it reported that the game's randomized campaigns provided "200-300 hours of play time—more than can be had from any other comparatively priced cartridge". The magazine favorably concluded that "P.T.O. establishes a new trend in video gaming".

References

External links
GameSpot P.T.O. page
MobyGames P.T.O. page
IGN Game Guide and Walkthrough
Koei P.T.O. and other games Community Forum

1989 video games
Koei games
Koei Tecmo franchises
Video games set in China
FM Towns games
MSX2 games
NEC PC-8801 games
NEC PC-9801 games
Sega Genesis games
X68000 games
Super Nintendo Entertainment System games
Video games developed in Japan
World War II video games
Video games set in the Soviet Union
Video games set in Japan
Video games set in the 1940s
Video games set in the United States
Multiplayer and single-player video games
Naval video games

P.T.O. (video game)


Alyaksey Mikalayevich Kulbakow (; born 27 December 1979) is a Belarusian football referee, who is a listed international referee since 2005. He is a FIFA-licensed and UEFA elite group referee. He is the only Belarusian official who regularly takes part in the group stages of UEFA club competitions.

Kulbakov started his refereeing career very early – at the age of 16. He went through all Belarusian divisions quite quickly and has officiated his first top league match in Belarus in 2003 when he was only 23. It happened quite often those times that Kulbakov was the youngest man on the pitch. Kulbakow became a FIFA-licensed referee just two years later, in 2005, at the age of 25 (minimal possible age for FIFA referees).

His debut in international A-team level took place 12 September 2007 when Cyprus won 3–0 against San-Marino in EURO 2008 qualifier.  In 2008, he was selected as one of the 19 participants of the UEFA Talents and Mentors program for perspective European referees.  During the next two years (2008 and 2009) in the framework of this program Alexey officiated all his UEFA matches under supervision of the same referee observer Andreas Schluchter from Switzerland.  Starting from the season 2009/2010 Kulbakov regularly officiates matches in the UEFA Europa League group stage. His first match at this level took place 17 September 2009 CFR Cluj won 2–0 against København in Cluj-Napoca.

He is also in charge in A-team international matches, including 2010 and 2014 World Cup qualifiers as well as 2008 and 2012 UEFA EURO qualifiers.

Kulbakov has missed the first half of 2013 national championship due to injury. In June 2013 Kulbakov together with 5 other referees was selected to officiate the final tournament of UEFA U-19 EURO 2013 which took place in Lithuania in July 2013.

References

External links

1979 births
Living people
People from Gomel
Belarusian football referees
UEFA Europa League referees
UEFA Champions League referees

Aleksei Kulbakov


Alain Corneau (7 August 1943 – 30 August 2010) was a French movie director and writer.

Corneau was born in Meung-sur-Loire, Loiret. Originally a musician, he worked with Costa-Gavras as an assistant, which was also his first opportunity to work with the actor Yves Montand, with whom he would collaborate three times later in his career, including Police Python 357 (1976) and La Menace (1977). He directed Gérard Depardieu in the screen adaptation of Tous les matins du monde in 1991.

References

1943 births
2010 deaths
French movie directors
People from Loiret

Alain Corneau


In Memoriam 2014 is a project which will provide greater protection for war memorials in the United Kingdom.

In Memoriam 2014 was unofficially launched to supporters in July and was formally launched in October 2011 in the House of Commons. The aim is to help prepare communities for remembrance of the start of The Great War in 1914. The project will locate and log memorials while offering them greater protection by marking them with SmartWater.

War Memorials Trust, a partner on the project, will benefit from improved information about memorial custodians, enabling the charity to contact them more efficiently when a problem is reported. Due to the increased awareness of war memorial issues that this campaign will create, it is hoped that the issue of protecting and conserving war memorials appropriately will be highlighted.

External links
 In Memoriam 2014
 SmartWater Technology
 War Memorials Trust

British military memorials and cemeteries
Monuments and memorials in the United Kingdom
Veterans' affairs in the United Kingdom

In Memoriam 2014