Charles H. Roe

Charles H Roe was a Yorkshire coachbuilding company. It was for most of its life based at "Crossgates Carriage Works", in Leeds.
In 1947 it was taken over by Park Royal Vehicles. Two years later, along with its parent, it became part of Associated Commercial Vehicles (ACV) in 1949, which was merged with Leyland Motors in 1962. In 1965, 30% of Park Royal and Roe's shares were exchanged by Leyland Motor Corporation for shares in Bristol Commercial Vehicles and Eastern Coach Works held by the Transport Holding Company (THC). Later the THC was succeeded by the National Bus Company (NBC) and Park Royal Vehicles, Charles H Roe, Bristol Commercial Vehicles, Eastern Coach Works and Leyland National Limited became subsidiaries of a new company Bus Manufacturers Holdings, 50% owned by British Leyland and 50% by NBC. Leyland took complete control in 1982 and closed Charles H Roe in September 1984. In the following year, a group of employees from the former business, began the Optare coachbuilding business in the former Roe carriage works.
History overview.
Charles Henry Roe was a coachbuilder, draughtsman, engineer and entrepreneur who established a coachworks business bearing his name in Leeds, Yorkshire in 1917. He continued to be its managing director until 1952. Charles H. Roe Limited produced distinctive and durable coachwork which although associated most strongly with municipal operators, particularly in Yorkshire, sold to a wide range of bus, trolleybus and coach operators, and there were even a few car, railway carriage, tram and commercial vehicle bodies too. Eventually becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of British Leyland in 1982 it was closed in September 1984. Former workers and management pooled their redundancy money and in 1985 returned to the Roe factory in Leeds with a new bus-building business under the new name of Optare.
History.
Early years.
Charles Henry Roe was born 22 May 1887 in York. His father Charles Roe worked for the North Eastern Railway at their carriage works in the town, eventually rising to a foreman's position. C.H. Roe served his apprenticeship at the drawing office of the carriage works and his first job after gaining his trade in 1912 was as a draughtsman at the Wakefield works of Charles Roberts & Company who built railway rolling stock. A year later he moved to Leeds to work as an assistant to the chief engineer at the Hunslet-based RET Construction Co who was a pioneer builder of trolleybuses. Whilst there he worked on a twin-shaft drive transmission system from the traction motors of the trolleybus chassis to replace a previous chain-drive arrangement and designed a lightweight body featuring steel panels over a suitably reinforced teak body frame. As an engineer and draughtsman he was exempt from World War I conscription. Customers for the RET vehicle with Roe-designed bodies included the trolleybus systems of Bloemfontein Corporation, the Shanghai Transport Company and Ramsbottom Urban District Council. The Ramsbottom examples were to a steel-frame design but it was wood and metal composite construction particularly using teak that became synonymous with the C.H. Roe name. The RET business had gone through one bankruptcy prior to C.H. Roe joining, originally having been founded as the Railless Electric Traction Company Ltd in 1908. In 1916, the RET Company was required under war regulations to turn over production to munitions and being unable to supply orders in hand for trolleybuses was closed down in 1917.
Sole trader.
By August 1917 C.H. Roe had set up on his own account as an engineer and coachbuilder in a nearby factory unit. Always an innovator with a shrewd grasp of the value of intellectual property Roe applied for his first patent (relating to driving pulleys) on Armistice Day 11 November 1918. During this time Roe continually extended his site, which adjoined that of his former employer which had now been requisitioned by the Royal Flying Corps. As a sole trader, Roe built a wide variety of products from simple flatbed trailers for traction engines to a refrigerated mobile fish shop body and stylish charabanc bodies on the ubiquitous Ford Model T. Another early patent was for a tipping body for lorries (spelt in true Yorkshire style 'lurries' in the application) with compartments to allow discrete loads to be kept separate. Railless Ltd had reformed after the war to build trolleybuses and Roe designed and/or built bodies went on examples supplied to the North Ormesby, South Bank, Normanby & Grangetown Railless Traction Company and to York Corporation.
The first company.
Expansion at the Hunslet site was by the end of 1919 impossible, but C.H. Roe lived with his wife in the Cross Gates area of the city of Leeds and knew that a large shell-filling factory there had been vacated by the government. Thus for the purpose of purchasing this large site with a modern factory building and space for expansion he registered Charles H Roe Limited on 26 May 1920. The shareholders included his father and a number of family friends. Whilst the formation of the company and negotiations to buy the Cross Gates site commenced, coachbuilding continued at the Hunslet factory, bodies including Charabancs on Karrier and Lancia chassis. After taking possession of the Cross Gates site the first Roe double-deck bodies were built for Birmingham Corporation on Railless chassis, a second trolleybus maker to patronise Roe was Clough, Smith whose trolleybuses comprised their Leeds-built electrical equipment on Straker-Squire chassis and were hence known as Straker-Clough; Roe bodies supplied to them were then supplied to the Teesside Railless Traction Board (a municipal joint committee who had taken over the North Ormesby Company) and Rotherham Corporation. Other products of this era included a number of charabancs on chassis including Leyland, Thornycroft and Fiat and a stylish limousine on a Lancia chassis. All types of bodies from other builders were also repaired and painted.
Trading difficulties in the early 1920s recession affected many businesses, the under-capitalised original Roe company being just one, during 1921 two debentures had to be secured to continue trading, the second relating directly to the Birmingham Corporation double deckers. Unfortunately it wasn't enough and the first company was voluntarily wound-up after a directors' meeting in November 1922. The receiver of the original company was able to give the bank a small surplus, whilst among the debts received £3,000 had come from various other purchasers plus £900 from Railless Ltd, who had subcontracted the Birmingham bodybuilding contract to Roe. Late payment can kill many a new business and it seems to have been the death of the original Roe company. C.H. Roe in a personal capacity bought the remaining assets from the receiver for £1,140.
Charles H Roe (1923) Limited.
The early years.
One lesson had been learned in the formation of the second company (initially Charles H. Roe (1923) Limited) in that share capital was one third larger (£8,500 rather than £5,850). At this time motorbus, rather than trolleybus or charabanc bodies began to assume a greater prominence. Like trolleybuses however a lot of the coachbuilding work on motorbuses was subcontracted either from the chassis manufacturer or from a dealership company. Thus many early Roe bus bodies on Karrier chassis were sold by the Huddersfield company as complete products.
An even more complicated situation arose with the Leeds-based operation Tramway Supplies Ltd. They tendered for complete vehicles and then subcontracted the chassis supply to one manufacturer and the body supply to another. One of the body subcontractors was the Blackburn Aircraft who also had a factory in Leeds. They built their last bus bodies in 1924, just as Government orders for aircraft (particularly flying boats, a Blackburn specialty) began to pick up. Railless Ltd (the third Railless company) were, incidentally, backed by Short Brothers another aeroplane manufacturer with a specialism in flying boats and a sideline in bus bodies.
An example of how complicated the whole complete vehicle contract thing could get concerns a Tilling-Stevens bi-mode petrol-electric/trolley bus (type PERC1) built-for and patented-by the Teesside Railless Traction Board's manager. Tilling-Stevens had contracted to supply a complete vehicle; they then subcontracted the body to Tramway Supplies who sub-subcontracted it to Blackburn, who sub-sub-subcontracted it to Roe.
Other odd work in the early years of the new company included in 1924 a 36-seat petrol-fuelled rail vehicle for the Derwent Valley Light Railway. It was based on two Ford Model T chassis fitted with flanged steel tyres and coupled back-to-back, this rail minibus or petrol multiple unit seated 18 in each carriage and was driven from one end only, the rearward-facing car running in neutral gear with the engine switched off. When worked coupled fuel consumption was stated to be 14.33 mpg and if one unit was run the even more efficient figure of 17.55 mpg was obtained. It wasn't enough to save passenger operations on the line from oblivion however and the units were exported in 1926 to the County Donegal Railways Joint Committee (CDR) in the north-west of Ireland who converted them from standard gauge to 3 ft gauge, lowering the bodies in the process. The CDR thus became the first railway in Ireland to use internal combustion engines and by the time of closure ran all passenger services and a number of freights using Gardner-powered diesel units.
By 1925 Roe were receiving orders directly from municipal bus companies, many of them previous customers for sub-contracted bodies, Mr Roe's approachability during body construction may have played a part in this, letters from general managers of the time thank C.H. Roe for his enabling inspection of bodies in-build. Among municipals taking Roe bodies by this time were Ramsbottom, Rotherham, Northampton, Doncaster, Leeds, Oldham, Bradford and the Teesside Railless Board, most of whom would continue to be Roe customers for a long time; chassis included Bristol, Guy, Thornycroft and AEC. The first double-deck motorbuses were for Doncaster in 1925 on AEC, a year later Roe were building 30 ft-long six wheeled double-decks for Oldham on Guy chassis. Unlike Londonat the time all of Roe's double-deck customers specified closed-tops on the upper deck. In 1926 Straker-Squire finally folded and Roe stored uncompleted vehicles for Clough, Smith prior to a new arrangement which saw their electrical equipment fitted to Karrier chassis. Also at this time Roe started building enclosed, or saloon, coaches which were often fitted to chassis which had previously carried charabanc bodies, Roe having a surplus of second-hand charabanc bodies by 1925. Two further debentures were called for, but this time it wasn't to keep the business going, but to fund the expansion of the premises.
Independent prosperity.
One of the more significant patents to emerge from Cross Gates was number 313720 registered in 1928 the name of the company, Mr C.H Roe and Mr William Bramham, the works manager who was later to be general manager at Eastern Coach Works at Lowestoft, Northern Coachbuilders of Newcastle upon Tyne and Saunders-Roe of Beaumaris. This concerned a continuous machined teak waist rail designed to double-interlock with the vertical teak pillars and the steel reinforcing strips, once assembled also binding those to the outer panels; it could be accurately described as an early example of system-built coachwork. New chassis makes bodied in the late 1920s included Albion and Crossley, both of whom chose Roe bodies for demonstrators, in Crossley's case for its first double-decker. Trolleybuses continued to figure, makes including Karrier-Clough and Guy, the three-axled double deck now being the common form for these, customers including Bloemfontein, South Lancashire Transport and corporation fleets including some detailed above, Doncaster for example taking one of the only two Bristol trolleybuses with a Roe body in 1928.
Another significant patent was jointly granted in 1930 to the company, Mr Roe and J.C. Whitely the general manager of Grimsby Corporation for a central entrance double decker with a distinctive design of staircase which rose transversely two steps to a wide landing and then branched into forward and rearward ascending longitudinal flights to the upper deck. Roe built bodies to this style until 1950 and licencees included H. V. Burlingham of Blackpool.
In 1934 five years after the original company was wound up, the board agreed to remove the (1923) from the current company name. At the same time share capital rose to £12,000 and the current mortgages and debenture were repaid in favour of a new first mortgage.
In 1935, encouraged by the chassis builder, a Commercial Motor Show exhibit was built on an AEC Regent I chassis for Leeds Corporation, this bus had a rakish streamlined outline and a full-width cab but more importantly had an all-new steel framework patented by the company, Roe and Bramham (who became a director that year) and a 'Safety Staircase' patented by the company, Roe, Bramham and William Vane Moreland, the general manager of Leeds City Transport. This staircase on a rear platform bus gave less loss of seating capacity than the straight staircase favoured in London and Birmingham but intruded less onto the boarding platform than the normal semi-spiral arrangement whilst being superior to either layout in having two broad landings allowing boarding and alighting passengers to pass on the staircase. It became a standard feature of all subsequent peacetime Roe double-deck bodies for Leeds Corporation and was widely employed by other fleets, 777 examples being built by Roe prior to expiry of the patent in 1950.
During World War II, Roe mainly continued to build passenger bodies, although supplying the war effort more directly with such specialised bodywork as mobile printing presses for field communications use on Foden lorries and articulated mobile kitchens, canteens and dormitories to assist blitzed factories. These were on semi-trailer chassis coupled to Bedford tractor units. Similar bus-seated vehicles were built mainly for use within Ordnance factories (where they became known as Bevin buses) but two were supplied to Liverpool Corporation and briefly used as service buses (1942–44) before being converted to mobile canteens. More normal passenger vehicle bodies were built during the war to the Government-mandated 'utility' outline including 240 single-deck 32 seaters on Bedford OWB chassis and over 400 double-deck bodies on Guy and Daimler motorbuses and Sunbeam trolleybuses, most to the sunken upper deck offside gangway or lowbridge layout.
In 1945 nominal share capital increased to £108,000 and the valuation of the works increased to £98,000. In 1939 both the English Electric Company and Metro Cammell Weymann had approached Roe about amalgamation or takeover and in 1945 talks were opened with Mumford of Lydney in Gloucestershire. These talks were inconclusive but in 1947 Park Royal Vehicles bought a controlling shareholding in the company, three Roe board members were replaced by Park Royal directors and C.H Roe joined the board of Park Royal. In 1949 Park Royal were taken over by Associated Commercial Vehicles by then the parent company of AEC, Crossley and Maudslay.
The ACV years.
Although ACV owned three chassis manufacturers and three coachbuilders (Park Royal, Roe and Crossley) they did not try to tie the hands of customers. Some rationalisation happened early in that any orders for Park Royal composite bodies were transferred to Roe, and steel-framed bodies were either built by Park Royal or by Roe using Park Royal frames. By the mid-1950s all metal-framed bodies by ACV, regardless of coachbuilder, had a Park Royal outline.
The flagship of the Roe composite body range was however exclusively built on AEC Regent III; this was the Pullman body, the only Roe bus ever to be named. The prototype – a Leeds bus to the specifications of W. Vane Moreland – with its deep windows and four window bays rather than the then standard five had looked ultra-modern when shown on a pre-war Regent at the 1937 Commercial Motor Show in London, it is an acknowledged influence on the London Transport designers whose RT1 appeared two years later with similar construction and outline.
Trolleybuses continued to figure, on Sunbeam/Karrier, Crossley or BUT chassis. The most striking of these were the Coronation class vehicles built on Sunbeam MF2B chassis for Kingston upon Hull Corporation Transport. These had a front entrance on the front overhang and a central exit; they were fitted with twin staircases and were intended to be one-man operated so were equipped with trolley-pole retriever equipment at the rear.
After the initial post-war boom Roe also took on a great deal of repair, rebuilding and refurbishment work, adding a workshop for this purpose. Plymouth Corporation had its entire fleet of Guy Arab utility buses thoroughly rebuilt by Roe, some 100 passing through the works. Roe also extended the Brush or Metro-Cammell bodies of Midland Red's post-war underfloor engined single deckers from 27 ft 6in to 29 ft 3in, allowing an extra four seats to be fitted. This work covered classes S6, S8, S9, S11 and all but one of S10, a grand total of 455 buses all converted in 1952 or 1953. In 1952 Charles H Roe resigned from the position of managing director, although he remained as chairman.
As pressure of work eased Roe also introduced a coach body for the AEC Reliance. This was known as the Roe Dalesman and ran through four separate marks, from 1953-59. It was mainly stock-built for coach dealers selling to small independents but major operators to use the type included West Riding Automobile Company and Black and White Motorways. Other specialist work undertaken included two single deck trams for Leeds, a mobile chest X-ray unit for tuberculosis control and crew cab lorries on Ford Thames Trader for the Uganda police force. Box vans were supplied on Bedford to the Bradford Dyers Association.
The composite body had been revised post-war, with a new patent waist rail, the teak structural member now covered by rolled steel plate. In 1957 the composite double decker reached its final form with teak framing to the lower deck ceiling or upper deck floor and an aluminium framework above. This was to continue in production, mainly on Daimler half-cab chassis until 1968, the last batch being built for Northampton Corporation on CVG6, replacing earlier Roe-bodied CVG6s which at the time comprised the entire Northampton fleet, all but five having composite bodies.
Simultaneously Park Royal bowed to pressure from the British Electric Traction (BET) group of major regional bus operators and replaced their rather elegant mid-1950s aluminium-framed body with a steel-framed structure of very angular outline, this first appeared as the production version of the integral AEC Bridgemaster, but soon spread to all other steel-framed Park Royal and Roe double deckers. Crossley had been closed by ACV in 1958, having ceased to make chassis five years previously.
Roe metal-framed bodies to this new outline went on a wide range of double deck chassis. A large batch were built for BET on the new Leyland Atlantean, these were delivered in 1960 to Trent Motor Traction, Devon General and the Northern General Transport group. As well as looking ungainly these buses became notorious for their propensity to corrode. Roe also built both forward and rear entrance bodies using this structure on conventional chassis, Swindon Corporation taking Daimler CVG6 and both Yorkshire Traction and Stratford Blue Motors taking rebodied Leyland Tigers.
Far less conventional was the Guy Wulfrunian which was even more avant-garde than the Atlantean, it was designed to the requirements of the independent West Riding company and featured a front engine on the front entrance platform, instead of a front radiator it had two Cave-Browne-Cave heat exchangers on the upper deck front face to provide passenger heating and ventilation as well as engine cooling. The front wheels had double wishbone independent suspension and like the rear axle had a self-levelling air suspension system, the foundation braking was by disc brakes on all four wheels with a drum brake on the driveshaft providing the parking brake and the fluid flywheel adapted to serve as an integral retarder. At a time when only Jaguar and Ferrari road cars had front discs this was a technological adventure, like the AEC Routemaster and Midland Red's motorway coach it was shown with its Roe body in a cutaway-centre spread of boy's comic The Eagle where it took its place alongside V-Bombers, nuclear submarines and Deltic locomotives. Roe bodied 131 out of the 137 Wulfruninans built from 1959 to 1965.
The Wulfrunian body was lower built as this chassis was designed as a low height bus with stepless entrance and centre gangways on both decks. Roe also softened the outline of the body with a subtly curved rear dome; the use of equal-depth windows on both decks produced a much more balanced look.
Other oddities at the dawn of the 1960s included single-deck buses on the double-deck AEC Regent V chassis, most of these were built for South Wales Transport for a route with a very low railway bridge in Llanelli under which underfloor engined single decks could not work but there were also one each for the Leeds Council Welfare department (with a rear ramp for wheelchair access) and for the Coal Industry Social Welfare Organisation.
In 1962 ACV merged with Leyland Motors to form the Leyland Motor Corporation. In 1965 LMC sold a 30% shareholding in Park Royal Vehicles and Charles H Roe to the state-owned Transport Holding Company in return for a 25% stake in Bristol Commercial Vehicles and Eastern Coach Works.
By 1939 Charles & Kathleen Roe were living in Boston Hall, Boston Spa. Charles H Roe retired as company chairman in 1962 and died in 1965.
The mixed economy.
The original outline of the body for rear-engined double deckers was widely considered unsatisfactory and Sunderland Corporation took a heavily revised version on Daimler Fleetline from 1962-66 featuring a prominent peak at the front dome and a reverse rake to the upper-deck rear in the style of the contemporary Ford Anglia saloon car. Great Yarmouth Corporation instead specified double curvature windscreens of Alexander design on its Leyland Atlanteans (including a unique short-wheelbase batch in 1967) and on the last three Daimler Freeline single deckers. This then became a standard option at Roe who also optionally fitted the Alexander style double-curvature upper-deck front window on rear engined chassis, curving the line of the foremost upper deck side windows down to meet this, producing an elegant style which suited the Fleetline and the post 1964 low height Atlantean. Also in 1964 for that year's Commercial Motor show Roe built its first body to the 36 ft length permissible since 1961, it was an early Leyland Panther for the Kingston upon Hull Corporation Transport fleet. Unlike the Coronation trolleybuses they were to replace, the Hull Panthers were allowed to be one man operated. Roe then built versions of this body for Leeds on the similar AEC Swift from 1967 to 1972 and also built standee single decks on Daimler Roadliner and Fleetline for Darlington and on Seddon Pennine RU for Doncaster.
In 1964 Leeds, the last provincial bastion of the rear-open platform double decker took a batch of Fleetlines to Great Yarmouth outline and the first of these was also shown at the 1964 show, Leeds continually revised this design over the next few years, in 1966 it was extended to 33 ft long rather than the previous 30 ft 10in, both decks had double curvature screens and side glazing became panoramic, with double-width window glasses. In 1968 angled flat glass at the front and a glass-fibre dash was added and a centre exit was fitted whilst the rear dome reverted to a square outline. This made the appearance similar to the Oldham Corporation variant supplied with conventional side glazing on standard wheelbase Atlanteans since 1965. The Leeds design was produced until 1975 with a few going to independent operators in England and Scotland. The Leeds and Oldham designs in turn led to the Park Royal–Roe standard design for Atlantean and Fleetline built from 1969 to 1981, which had a deeper front screen optionally to Alexander layout or flat-glazed and wider pillar spacing than the previous standard but not as long as that fitted to the Leeds style or the Manchester Corporation Mancunian. Roe built one batch of 34 Mancunians on long Fleetlines in 1972. These buses had been due to be bodied by East Lancashire Coachbuilders in 1970, but they suffered a fire destroying their works in Blackburn, so the contract was transferred to Park Royal, who in turn transferred it to Roe.
The standard design was adopted by West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executuve (successor to the Leeds, Bradford, Huddersfield Halifax and Calderdale fleets) and many municipals and also (from 1972) on the AN68 Atlantean became the National Bus Company's second-choice double decker, being especially associated with 'Leyland' fleets such as Ribble Motor Services, Northern General and Southdown Motor Services but it also became the standard double decker with London Country who had over 300.
Nearing the end.
In 1982 Leyland Vehicles, the truck and bus division of the by now state-owned British Leyland bought out the National Bus Company's 50% shareholding in the joint-venture Bus Manufacturers Holdings Ltd which had not only owned Bristol, ECW, Park Royal and Roe but also the Leyland National factory at Workington.
In 1981 and 1982 Roe-bodied six 18-metre long articulated buses for British Airways, these employed Leyland National body sections on Leyland-DAB underfloor-engined chassis, Roe modifying the body for the higher frame height. They featured five entry-exit doors, two on the offside, and were used to transport passengers from their aircraft to the terminal at Heathrow Airport.
In 1981, production peaked at Roe, with 182 bodies built, the highest total since 1966 (the year when double-decks were finally allowed to be operated without a conductor, the first bus to do so, on the day of the law change, being a Great Yarmouth Roe-bodied Atlantean). The standard body was phased out in 1981, as the Fleetline had been discontinued and the Atlantean could not be sold after 1983 as it fell foul of noise-pollution laws. In 1981 the Park Royal coachworks were closed. The new body to take its place was for the new Leyland Olympian chassis and Roe produced 299 of these prior to closure. Most went to three fleets, West Yorkshire PTE and NBC subsidiaries Bristol Omnibus Company and London Country, with one batch to Strathclyde Passenger Transport Executive and a sole vehicle to the Scottish Arts Council, which was equipped as a travelling art gallery.
Production peaked at this point, because the Government was phasing out the New Bus Grant which had provided up to 50% of the cost of a bus used on local services, provided it met certain rules. In order to compensate for this drop in bus sales, Leyland Bus (as it had now become) decided to produce a new flagship product for the booming deregulated coach market, following the Transport Act 1980. This was the Royal Tiger underframe and the Roe Doyen body. This was a sophisticated product, as the Tiger coach chassis competed head-on with the Volvo B10M. The Royal Tiger Doyen was designed to provide a British alternative to the high-end Setra coach from Germany. Production got off to a slow start, not helped by overly centralised control from Leyland and a rigid set of body specifications, which did not initially provide all the features more demanding coach customers wanted. In 1983, the year of launch, only 10 complete Royal Tiger Doyens entered service, a further 13 underframes being supplied to Van Hool and Plaxton to receive versions of their standard coachwork. In 1983, production of the underframe was moved to Workington and 22 coaches were completed by Roe, as well as 86 Olympians. The plant was not at that point viable for British Leyland, who had been impoverished by the chronic failure of its Austin mass-production car division. It closed on 17 September 1984, thus, Roe followed Daimler, Guy, AEC, Park Royal and Bristol into oblivion.
Former workers and management pooled their redundancy money and in February 1985 returned to the Roe factory in Cross Gates with a new bus-building business under the new name of Optare. The factory closed in 2011 when Optare relocated and was demolished in 2012.
Many Roe bodies survive in preservation and some on special tourist services, the earliest design being a replica of a 1929 body on a Leyland Lion at the Museum of Transport, Greater Manchester.
Three diecast model manufacturers produce 1:76 scale models of Roe vehicles, EFE have a pre-war Leyland Tiger bus, Corgi OOC produce the final style of rear entrance composite body as a half-cab or a trolleybus and Britbus make the NBC version of the standard Atlantean body in single or dual-door format.
Recognition.
In 2016, the Transport Yorkshire Preservation Group started a campaign to get some form of recognition for Mr Roe, after the Leeds Civic Trust had refused a request for a blue plaque on account of no original fabric remaining. The developer Avant Homes who built houses on the factory site did not respond to requests to allow a memorial garden. Pub developer Wetherspoons did however respond positively to lobbying and have agreed their forthcoming Cross Gates outlet, opened on July 21, 2020, would be named 'The Charles Henry Roe'.


Keye Luke

Keye Luke (, Cantonese: Luk Shek Kee; June 18, 1904 – January 12, 1991) was a Chinese-born American film and television actor, technical advisor and artist and a founding member of the Screen Actors Guild.
He was known for playing Lee Chan, the "Number One Son" in the Charlie Chan films, the original Kato in the 1939–1941 Green Hornet film serials, Brak in the 1960s "Space Ghost" cartoons, Master Po in the television series "Kung Fu", and Mr. Wing in the "Gremlins" films.
He was the first Chinese-American contract player signed by RKO, Universal Pictures and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and was one of the most prominent Asian actors of American cinema in the mid-20th century.
Early life.
Luke was born in Guangzhou, China, to a father who owned an art shop, but he was raised in Seattle. He was part of the Luke family, a relative of Washington assistant attorney-general Wing Luke, for whom Seattle's Wing Luke Asian Museum was named. He had four siblings who all emigrated from China to California during the Great Depression. His younger brother Edwin Luke also became an actor in the Charlie Chan series.
In Seattle, Luke attended Franklin High School, where he contributed cartoons and illustrations to school publications. Keye Luke became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1944.
Artist.
Before becoming an actor, he was a local artist in Seattle and, later, Hollywood, working on several of the murals inside Grauman's Chinese Theatre. He did some of the original artwork for the pressbook of the original "King Kong" (1933). Luke also painted the casino's mural in "The Shanghai Gesture" (1941).
He published a limited edition set of pen and ink drawings of the "Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam" in the 1950s. He also created illustrations for the books "The Unfinished Song of Achmed Mohammed" by Earle Liederman, "Blessed Mother Goose" by Frank Scully and an edition of "Messer Marco Polo" by Brian Oswald Donn-Byrne (unpublished). Other artwork completed by Luke included the dust jackets for books published in the 1950s and 1960s. It was through his studio art work that he was recruited for his earliest movie roles.
Acting career.
Luke made his film debut in "The Painted Veil" (1934), and the following year gained his first big role, as Charlie Chan's eldest son, Lee Chan, in "Charlie Chan in Paris" (1935). He worked so well with Warner Oland, the actor playing Chan, that "Number One Son" became a regular character in the series, alternately helping and distracting 'Pop' Chan in each of his murder cases. Regardless, Lee is depicted as an enthusiastic American youth of some accomplishment, including becoming an Olympic Gold Medalist in 100-metre swimming in "Charlie Chan at the Olympics" (1937). Luke appeared seven times as Lee Chan opposite Oland's Chan. Keye Luke left the Charlie Chan series in 1938, shortly after Oland died. The unfinished Oland-Luke film "Charlie Chan at the Ringside" was completed as "Mr. Moto's Gamble" (1938), with Luke now opposite Peter Lorre.
Unlike some performers who failed to establish themselves beyond a single role, Keye Luke continued to work prolifically in Hollywood, at several studios. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cast him in a recurring role in its "Dr. Kildare" film series, and Monogram Pictures featured him in its Frankie Darro comedies and starred him as Mr. Wong in "Phantom of Chinatown". Unlike Boris Karloff, who had preceded him in the Mr. Wong role, Luke played the detective without any exotic touches. Though his Mr. Wong was of Chinese descent and able to speak Chinese, he was otherwise an ordinary American gumshoe, with no trace of a foreign accent or "Oriental" philosophy.
RKO Radio Pictures used Luke in its "The Falcon" series and "Mexican Spitfire". Luke also worked at Universal Pictures, where he played two-fisted valet/chauffeur Kato in its "Green Hornet" serials. Universal mounted a low-budget serial consisting largely of action footage from older films; Keye Luke was hired to match old footage of Sabu in the serial "Lost City of the Jungle" (1946).
Keye Luke returned to the Chan mysteries, which were now being produced by Monogram and starred Roland Winters as Chan. "Number One Son" appeared in the last two Chan features, "The Feathered Serpent" (1948), along with "Number Two Son" Tommy Chan (Victor Sen Yung) in their only appearance together, and "Sky Dragon" (1949). In both of these films, Luke was older than the actor playing his father. Luke had a featured Broadway role in the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical "Flower Drum Song", directed by Gene Kelly in 1958. The original cast album captures his singing of the part of Mr. Wang, the family patriarch.
Luke continued to play character parts in motion pictures. He had a featured role in "The Chairman" (1969) starring Gregory Peck. He provided the voice of the evil Mr. Han (played by Shih Kien) in "Enter the Dragon" (1973) starring Bruce Lee. Luke played the mysterious old Chinatown shopowner Mr. Wing in the two "Gremlins" movies and he had a significant role in Woody Allen's movie "Alice" (1990).
Keye Luke also worked extensively in television, making numerous guest appearances, including four on "The F.B.I." and seven TV movies. He was a regular cast member in two short lived sitcoms, "Anna and the King" (1972) starring Yul Brynner and "Sidekicks" (1986–87). "Number One Son" ascended to the role of Charlie Chan himself, thus becoming the first actor of Chinese descent to play the role: he supplied the voice of "Mr. Chan" in the animated television series "The Amazing Chan and the Chan Clan" (1972).
He was also known for his role of Master Po in the television series "Kung Fu" (1972–1975). In 1985, Luke played 'The Ancient One' on the soap opera "General Hospital", for the Asian Quarter storyline, which showcased strong chemistry between Luke and young actress Kimberly McCullough, whom he mentored. In 1986, Luke appeared in season two of "The Golden Girls" as Sophia's love interest. Additionally Luke voiced many animated series including Brak in Space Ghost, the aforementioned Charlie Chan, and Zoltar/The Great Spirit/Colonel Cronus in "Battle of the Planets".
Luke played Governor Donald Cory in an episode of the original ' entitled " (1969), and was going to play Doctor Noonien Soong in the ' episode " but illness prevented him from doing so; Brent Spiner ultimately took over the role.
In the "Fractured Fairy Tales" episode "The Enchanted Fly," one of the rewards offered to the man who would rescue and marry the princess is "an autographed picture of Keye Luke."
Honors.
He was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by Asian/Pacific American Artists in 1986. For his contribution to show business, Luke was also honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, on the sidewalk in front of 7000 Hollywood Blvd.
Death.
Luke died of a stroke on January 12, 1991, at the age of 86. He is buried at Rose Hills Memorial Park in Whittier, California.
Legacy.
Writer and filmmaker Timothy Tau wrote, directed and produced a short film about Keye Luke's earlier life and work, entitled "Keye Luke", which premiered at the 2012 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival as a Visual Communications Armed with a Camera Fellowship film. The film was also the Closing Night choice of the inaugural 2013 Seattle Asian American Film Festival. Feodor Chin starred as Keye Luke. Archie Kao starred as Edwin Luke, Keye Luke's brother. Kelvin Han Yee starred as Lee Luke, Keye Luke's father.


Gordon Herbert Vasse

Air Commodore Gordon Herbert Vasse, (23 April 1899 – 26 March 1965) was a fighter pilot in the First World War and a senior Royal Air Force commander during the Second World War and into the early 1950s. During most of the Second World War he was Director of Air Tactics for the RAF.
In his final appointment Vasse also served as the seventh Commandant of the Royal Observer Corps. Vasse was chosen as one of the RAF's principal representatives to the funeral of King George VI in 1952.
RAF career.
Early career.
In 1917 Vasse joined the Royal Naval Air Service as a trainee pilot in the rank of Probationery Flight Officer and was later promoted to flight sub-lieutenant. When the Royal Air Force (RAF) was formed in March 1918 Vasse transferred to the new service in the rank of second lieutenant and was rapidly promoted to pilot officer and then flying officer. After seeing active combat duty as a fighter pilot in the latter stages of the First World War Vasse was transferred to the unemployed officer list in September 1919.
Back to the RAF.
In October 1921 Vasse rejoined the RAF on a short service commission in the rank of flying officer and posted as a supernumerary pilot at the RAF Central Depot. After a further supernumerary posting to the School of Technical Training he was posted to No. 6 Squadron RAF as a pilot in April 1923. After a short one-month period as a supernumerary at the Central Depot over the Christmas of 1925 he was granted a permanent commission in January 1926 and posted as an instructor to the RAF's Air Armament and Gunnery School. Promoted to flight lieutenant in July 1927, in March 1929 he was appointed Armaments Officer at the RAF North Coates gunnery practice range in Lincolnshire where he remained until November 1930.
Returning to flying duties as a flight commander with No. XV Squadron RAF on 1 November 1930, Vasse remained with the squadron until February 1933, apart from a two-month period while suffering from an illness that prevented him from flying. In November he was posted overseas firstly as Armaments Officer for No. 3 (Indian) Wing RAF and later as Staff Armament Officer at Headquarters No. 1 (Indian) Group.
Returning to the United Kingdom in 1936 he was appointed as a Staff Instructor at the Air Armament School on promotion to squadron leader. After a short armament officer posting to RAF Northolt he was promoted to wing commander and granted his first command as Officer Commanding the Air Fighting Development Unit (AFDU) at RAF Duxford.
Commands.
Vasse would remain at Duxford, becoming Station Commander there, on promotion to group captain, until July 1941 when he was appointed Deputy Director of the RAF Air Tactics department. In October the following year he became Director of the department in the rank of Acting Air Commodore. In July 1945 he was honoured as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire by King George VI in the King's Birthday Honours.
Between 1944 and 1945 Vasse filled a number of senior appointments in quick succession including Deputy Senior Air Staff Officer (SASO) at Headquarters Air Command South East Asia, SASO No. 221 Group RAF and SASO HQ RAF Burma. As the war ended Vasse was serving as AOC RAF Seletar in Singapore.
Returning to post war England in the Autumn of 1946 Vasse served in a number of AOC appointments with No. 21 Group RAF, No. 25 Group and latterly No. 63 Group where he remained from March 1948 until March 1951. His rank as an Air Commodore was confirmed on 1 July 1947.
Royal Observer Corps.
In March 1951 Vasse was posted to RAF Bentley Priory and took over as the seventh Commandant Royal Observer Corps from Air Commodore Sir Richard Bowen Jordan.


Tristan Ludlow


Military Ordinariate of Bolivia

The Military Bishopric of Bolivia (, ) is a military ordinariate of the Roman Catholic Church. Immediately subject to the Holy See, it provides pastoral care to Roman Catholics serving in the Bolivian Armed Forces and their families.
History.
It was created as a military vicariate on 19 March 1961, with the first military vicar appointed on 26 July 1961. It was elevated to a military ordinariate on 21 July 1986. The military ordinary's seat is located at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Luján ("Catedral Nuestra Señora de Luján") in the Irpavi district of the city of La Paz.


Military Ordinariate of Venezuela

The Military Ordinariate of Venezuela () is a military ordinariate of the Roman Catholic Church. Immediately subject to the Holy See, it provides pastoral care to Roman Catholics serving in the Venezuelan Armed Forces and their families.
History.
The military ordinary was established by Pope John Paul II on 31 October 1995.


Hugh Jenkins, Baron Jenkins of Putney

Hugh Gater Jenkins, Baron Jenkins of Putney, (27 July 1908 – 26 January 2004) was a British Labour politician, campaigner and member of Parliament (MP) and the House of Lords.
Jenkins was MP for Putney and served as Arts Minister from 1974 to 1976. He was the Chair of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) between 1979 and 1981, succeeded by Joan Ruddock.
His private papers are held at the London School of Economics.
Before politics.
Jenkins was born in Enfield, Middlesex, into a 'modest' family, his parents being a dairyman and a butcher's daughter. He attended Enfield Grammar School and went to work for the Prudential Assurance 1930–40. He married his first wife, Marie Crosbie, in 1936. She died in 1989 and he married a second time to Helena Maria Pavlidis in 1991. Helena died in 1994. During World War II he served with the Royal Observer Corps and the Royal Air Force from 1941, and after the war worked at Rangoon Radio until 1947, where he was director of English programmes.
Political life.
An ardent left-winger, Jenkins was active in the Prudential Staff Association, the National Union of Bank Employees and the actors' union Equity, of which he was assistant general secretary 1957–64. He and his wife, Marie, became active in the politics of his local community in the County Borough of Croydon, Surrey. Jenkins chaired his local Upper Norwood Labour Party and stood for the council, and Marie was elected to Croydon Council for Whitehorse Manor ward in 1949. He stood for Parliament without success in Enfield West in 1950 and Mitcham in 1955. Jenkins was involved in the Victory for Socialism group opposed to the 1956 Suez War and had been a supporter of CND and nuclear disarmament since its foundation in 1957. In 1958 he became a London County Councillor for Hackney North and Stoke Newington, serving until 1965, and he served on the London Labour Party executive in 1962. He was also involved with the Arts Council.
Jenkins won Putney, where he and Marie had moved, in the 1964 election, quickly becoming involved in the Tribune Group of MPs. He was made Shadow Arts Minister in 1973 and became the Arts Minister in 1974, being sacked in 1976 by the Prime Minister James Callaghan. He lost his seat in the 1979 General Election to David Mellor of the Conservative Party, and became Chair of CND in the same year. He was made a life peer as Baron Jenkins of Putney, of Wandsworth in Greater London on 14 May 1981. He attended every day at the House of Lords when it was in session and he was in good health. Jenkins was highly active in the House of Lords. So skilfully did he exploit the informal procedures of the Upper House that a limit had to be imposed on the number of questions a peer could ask each day. He circumvented the government's ban on the publication of "Spycatcher" by reading lengthy extracts from it to ensure it was on public record in "Hansard".
He continued to write pamphlets and radio plays, serving on the board of the Royal National Theatre. His later plays were typed on an early Amstrad 256. Jenkins claimed he became 'computerised' late in life. His parliamentary correspondence and speeches continued to be typed on the same Amstrad 256 until he entered a care home at the end of his life in 2004.
CND.
Jenkins was a long time anti-nuclear campaigner and supporter of CND. His anti-nuclear activities before the formation of CND led to rightwingers within the Labour Party attempting to block him as a parliamentary candidate. He was CND Chair from 1979 to 1981 and Vice-Chair from 1981. As a Member of the House of Lords, he was chair of the Lords CND group. This was the period in which CND underwent a major revival known as the 'Second Wave'.


Hers to Hold

Hers to Hold (aka Three Smart Girls Join Up) is a 1943 American romantic musical comedy film and is the third film in the unofficial "Three Smart Girls" trilogy. In "Hers to Hold", Deanna Durbin reprises her role as Penny Craig, who is the only sister remaining at home.
Plot.
Vega Aircraft Corporation employees pilot Bill Morley, a former Flying Tiger is awaiting commissioning with the United States Army Air Forces. Along with his sidekick Rosey, he is donating blood for the American Red Cross. During their mandatory rest period following the donation, the pair sight a bevy of photographers following singing socialite Penny Craig giving her donation. As all donors are given the temporary use of hospital white coats, wolf bachelor Bill sees his chance to get Penny's address and details by impersonating a doctor.
Bill continues his doctor charade when he and Rosey crash a society soiree held by Penny's parents. Penny decides to get her revenge by attempting to humiliate Bill by turning him over to one of the Craig family's raving hypochondriac friends and introducing him to a real medical professional. The embarrassed but still cool Bill takes his leave but not before publicly kissing Penny. Penny instantly falls in love with Bill and tracks him down by getting a job herself at the Vega Aircraft Factory as a riveter that also satisfies her desire to help the war effort.
Between working and singing, Penny schemes to keep Bill from going on active service and although Bill is slowly finding his way with Penny he is afraid of leaving her a widow during World War II.
Production.
"Hers to Hold" was originally planned to be filmed in 1942 and titled Three Smart Girls Join Up to be directed by Jean Renoir and produced by Bruce Manning with a screenplay by Paul Gallico and Richard J. Collins. It was based on a story by RAF pilot Derek Bolto, who sold it to Universal's office in London. The studio announced it in April. It was to be Durbin's first film following her suspension by Universal in October 1941.
The pair were replaced when the producer felt that the film should be about the relationship of the three Craig sisters at home rather than the submitted screenplay about Penny's relationship with the other workers at the aircraft plant. In April Kay Van Riper was signed to do the script.
Filming was to start 15 May 1942. Then in April Universal decided to put Durbin in "The Amazing Mrs Holliday" first and assigned Renoir to that film. (He would not complete it.)
In December 1942 Universal announced that Bruce Manning, who produced and took over direction of "Holliday" would possibly produce and direct "Smart Girls".
In January 1943 Universal revived the project, announcing that Frank Ryan, who had worked on the script for "The Amazing Mrs Holliday", would direct, and that it would be called "Hers to Hold".
The title was changed as the screenplay concentrated on Penny's romance with a flier and Penny being the only one of the Craig sisters to appear in the film; a line in the screenplay mentions that she will write letters to her unseen sisters. Reference to the other films of the series appear as Penny's father shows home movies of scenes from those films.
In March 1943 Joseph Cotten was borrowed from David O Selznick to play Durbin's leading man. Evelyn Ankers was given the second female lead.
Shooting.
Filming took place in May 1943. "Hers to Hold" was shot on location at the Vega Aircraft Factory in Burbank, California on Sundays, to avoid disruption of aircraft manufacture and at the Lockheed Air Terminal. The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress shown being built in the film flew several combat missions with the Eighth Air Force over Europe, where it was named "Tinkertoy". "Tinkertoy" was considered a "jinx ship" that no one wanted to fly in, due to its crews taking an unusual amount of frequent and gruesome deaths.
Durbin was particularly proud of the music numbers in the film.
Soundtrack.
from "Carmen"

Music by Georges Bizet

Libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy

Sung by Deanna Durbin
Written by Cole Porter

Sung by Deanna Durbin
Music by Jimmy McHugh

Lyrics by Herb Magidson

Sung by Deanna Durbin
Music by Amy Woodforde-Finden

Lyrics by Lawrence Hope

Sung by Deanna Durbin
Reception.
A contemporary review in "Variety", noted that "In 'Hers to Hold', Deanna Durbin successfully and permanently completes transition from cinematic sub-deb to young ladyhood. ... Durbin again demonstrates capabilities in carrying acting responsibilities of lead, with her four song numbers neatly spotted along the way." The review also indicated, "Story, although lightly contrived, generates audience attention through the deft business generously inserted in the script and carried through via direction."
Although concentrating on the aviation aspects of the production, aviation film historian James M. Farmer in "Celluloid Wings: The Impact of Movies on Aviation" (1984), characterized that "Hers to Hold" (was) "a lightweight formula romance."
Awards.
The song "Say a Pray'r for the Boys Over There" from "Hers to Hold" was nominated for Best Song at the 16th Academy Awards.


Lu Zhuguo

Lu Zhuguo (; born 12 October 1928) is a Chinese screenwriter and writer.
Career.
In 1951, Lu became the chief editor of "PLA Literature and Art". In 1958, he entered August 1 Studio. In 1977, Lu won Xia Yan Film Literary Prize. In 2005, China Film Literature Society honored him Lifetime Achievement Award.


Andy Sipowicz

Andrew Sipowicz Sr. is a fictional character on the popular ABC television series "NYPD Blue". The character began as the secondary focus of a more ensemble-like show, but by the middle of Season 6 Sipowicz is the clear protagonist of the show and receives the main storyline in every episode. Dennis Franz portrayed the character for its entire run.
Character overview.
Sipowicz was a New York City police detective working in the detective squad of the fictitious 15th Precinct of the NYPD, placed on the lower east side of Manhattan. He was a major character of the show during its twelve-year run, and the only one to have been a regular cast member in every episode. (Detective Greg Medavoy (Gordon Clapp) did not appear until episode 3 of the first season and did not become a regular until the start of season 2.)
In October 2018, creators Jesse Bochco, Matt Olmstead, and Nick Wootton revealed that the pilot for an "NYPD Blue" sequel was in production. The sequel will focus on Andy Sipowicz's son Theo, who has joined the police department and earns promotion to detective while trying to solve the murder of his father.
Background and personality.
Jason Gay of "The Boston Phoenix" described Sipowicz as a "drunken, racist goon with a heart of gold" who was "the moral core" of "NYPD Blue". In 1997, he described Sipowicz as becoming "sobered up" but said Sipowicz "won't ever go totally soft." Gay describes Dennis Franz as adding "underrated, edgy mixture of grit and sensitivity" to Sipowicz.
According to a second-season episode aired in 1995, Sipowicz was about to celebrate his 47th birthday on April 7, implying he was born in 1948. He is from Brooklyn, where his father, a World War II veteran of Polish-American ancestry who worked as a meter reader for ConEd, originally raised the family in temporary Quonset housing. At some time in the mid-1950s, Andy's father moved the family to a new, mostly white housing project in which he was able to purchase a federally subsidized apartment. Subsequently, the neighborhood became more diverse and a young Andy was frequently in verbal and physical conflict with his black peers. Andy worked in a local candy store as a boy, later returning under sad conditions when a son of the shop owners organized a robbery that led to his mother's death. His father was an alcoholic whose frequent drunkenness cost him his job as a meter reader. He defiantly returned to finish his route after dark, but was hit in the head with a hammer by a black man who mistook him for a burglar, causing him to lose one eye. He claimed that the black man had tried to rob him; Andy grew up hearing the story, which was the basis for his racism. In season 6, however, he realizes that his father was lying about the circumstances of the incident, and begins to question the values he was raised with.
Before becoming a policeman, Sipowicz served in the U.S. Marine Corps, including an 18-month tour in Vietnam beginning in either 1968 that he did not talk much about, although it is an underlying theme in the show. He once became incensed when an obnoxious fellow cop named Sgt. Ray Kahlins, also a Vietnam veteran, lied about being in combat, and told Kahlins he could lie to his heart's content about anything else, but not about his Vietnam War service. In 1970, he joined the NYPD "right out of 'Nam" (as referenced in episode 4 of season 4). While in uniform, Sipowicz was partnered with Kurt Kreizer and served under Al Angelotti, then a sergeant, in the 25th precinct. One of his early police assignments was infiltrating the Black Panthers organization and posing as a white leftist radical. These events accentuated his already-developing racist tendencies.
In 1979, Sipowicz received the gold shield of Detective Third Grade (the "beginning" rank) and briefly worked in the Robbery Squad before transferring back as a detective to the 15th, where he previously worked as a uniformed officer, in the same year. He was promoted to Second Grade at an unknown time prior to the start of the series in fall 1993, and was promoted to First Grade in late 2001.
Like many television characters on New York-set police shows, Sipowicz takes advantage of an NYPD regulation allowing officers who were on the force prior to 1993 to carry a .38 caliber Smith & Wesson Model 36 five-shot revolver as his main sidearm. Police who were hired in 1993 or later use one of three models of semi-automatic 9mm pistols. This is accurately reflected in depictions of Sipowicz's younger colleagues.
Based on information revealed in various episodes cited above, the timeline of Sipowicz's career can be fairly accurately assembled:
Role within the show.
In the first season of "NYPD Blue", Sipowicz's partner is John Kelly, who leaves the force in 1994 after withholding evidence in a murder investigation of his lover Janice Licalsi. After Kelly's resignation, Bobby Simone becomes Sipowicz's partner. They soon become best friends; Sipowicz is devastated when Simone dies of a heart infection. In 1994, Andy begins to date Assistant District Attorney Sylvia Costas, with whom he previously clashed due to professional differences (Sipowicz calls her a "pissy little bitch" in the pilot episode). They get married in 1995 and have a son, Theo, in 1996.
Andy was married to Katie Sipowicz for 11 years and they had a son, Andy Jr. (born 1973). However, by 1993 both his ex-wife and son were estranged from him, due to his heavy drinking, and his job is perpetually in jeopardy due to the effects of his alcoholism and his increasingly outdated bigoted attitudes. In the spring of 1992 the 15th squad, where Sipowicz has been a detective for just over 12 years, receives a new commander, the straitlaced African-American lieutenant Arthur Fancy, who has little patience for Sipowicz's racism, sloppy personal habits, and rogue tendencies. In the show's pilot episode, after being shot six times in an ambush by a mobster named Alphonse Giardella and almost dying, Sipowicz decides to change his life. He stops drinking, focuses on the job, and rebuilds his relationship with his son. Fancy states outright that he was prepared to have Sipowicz removed from the force on the day of his shooting and only gives him another chance, starting with restricted desk duty, because of the incident.
On his route to becoming a better man, Sipowicz struggles to overcome his bigotry with the help of his partner Bobby Simone, he and Fancy continue to have beefs but always resolve them. He also eventually comes to terms with his homophobia, mainly due to his initially grudging friendship with precinct Police Administrative Assistant John Irvin. With the birth of his second son, Sipowicz's life seems to be going well. However, a series of devastating personal tragedies over the next few years arise: in May 1996, Andy Jr., who is about to start work as a policeman in Hackensack, New Jersey, is shot and killed while trying to stop a robbery. The shooting sends Andy Sr. into an alcoholic relapse, during which Sylvia briefly throws him out of the house. In November 1998, Bobby Simone dies of an infection caused by heart transplant complications, and less than a year later in May 1999, Sylvia is accidentally killed by the distraught father of PAA Dolores Mayo (whose killer she had been prosecuting) outside the courtroom. This is then followed by the disappearance and subsequent murder of Simone's successor Danny Sorenson during an undercover assignment in 2001. He also survives a serious bout with prostate cancer in 1998. With the exception of Andy Jr.'s death, however, Sipowicz remains sober in the face of all of these tragedies. He also has to deal with the fact that he had been instrumental in putting an innocent black man in prison for 18 years for the murder of a teenager, remembering that he had no experience as a detective and deferred to a lazy veteran cop. He is the only cop to apologize when the man is released (he learns that the perpetrator was a white man who later died of a drug overdose, and while Sipowicz and the now-retired veteran cop basically knew he'd been murdered, the end result of the case was left unresolved).
In 2003, Sipowicz marries for the third time, this time to a fellow detective named Connie McDowell, who had recently joined the squad. The year before, Connie's pregnant sister is killed by her abusive husband. The baby survives, so Connie and Sipowicz take custody of the child and name her Michelle, after her mother. Soon after, Connie, who had believed she could not have children due to scarring of her Fallopian tubes, becomes pregnant and gives birth to a baby boy named Matthew. With two infants to raise, Connie resigns from the police force to be a stay-at-home mother. Later that year, Sipowicz overcomes a personality clash with new Lt. Thomas Bale, is promoted to sergeant, and persuades a reluctant chief of detectives to name him the new squad commander.
Reception.
In 1999, "TV Guide" ranked him # 23 on its 50 Greatest TV Characters of All Time list.


Marine Corps Total Force System

Marine Corps Total Force System (MCTFS) is the integrated pay and personnel system for active duty and reserve Marines, and the authoritative source of data for all Marine Corps (MC) pay and personnel information consisting of over 550,000 records. MCTFS has been successfully fielded and is currently in the post-deployment system support phase of its lifecycle. MCTFS supports centralized business-critical pay functions for the Marine Corps Enterprise on time and accurately, including computation and payment of net pay to individual Marines, while accommodating all necessary system change requests to meet current legislative, regulatory, mission essential, force reset, and contingency change requirements. MCTFS is maintained in an audit compliant state to ensure accurate financial transactions and reporting. MCTFS includes a comprehensive history of pay entitlements, deductions, and payments for each active duty and reserve Marine. The principal advocate within the Marine Corps is the Deputy Commandant, Manpower and Reserve Affairs.
Mission.
The mission of the MCTFS is to provide integrated personnel and pay functionality for all active and reserve Marines within a single system and personnel management for retirees, by using a single, logical database which incorporates the records of all active, reserve and retired Marines. Additionally, the MCTFS will provide limited functionality for training and security management matters that pertain to personnel and pay management.
Purpose.
The system provides for recording, processing, and maintaining of military personnel and pay data on a continuing basis within the Marine Corps. It provides information for pay, personnel administration, and manpower management. It uses an integrated, single logical data base to process transactions, at one central location at the Defense Enterprise Computing Center (DECC) in Mechanicsburg. This supports all operating forces and supporting establishment organizations, which total over 800 reporting units (RU's). Use of this information facilitates:
Reporting purposes.
The data collection of the MCTFS is based on the principle of singular reporting. Whenever practical, an event is reported when and where it occurs to ensure accuracy and timeliness of reporting. An item of information is entered into the system only once; thereafter, only changes, deletions, or corrections to this information are reported. MCTFS uses a centralized strategy and management style with decentralized execution at the lowest reporting level. The information maintained within the MCTFS is used for the functions described above. Additionally, the purposes for which information is maintained within the MCTFS are adequately described per the requirements of the Privacy Act of 1974 and manpower Life Cycle Management (LCM) documentation maintained by the Deputy Commandant Manpower and Reserve Affairs (Code MI) and Deputy Commandant Programs & Resources (Code RFF). Data maintained in MCTFS on Marines is categorized as the Official Electronic Military File (OEMF) for that individual. As such, the OEMF is subordinate in precedence to the Official Military Personnel File (OMPF) maintained by the Commandant of the Marine Corps (Code MMSB). The data contained in the OEMF must be carefully safeguarded under the provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974. Commanders who fail to do so may be held personally accountable.
Reporting feedback.
Prompt and complete feedback is essential in the MCTFS. Reporting Units (RU) are provided access to several files holding cyclic data retrievable by the unit as desired. This feedback results in the reentry of corrected data if required. Usage of the information contained in the data files depicted in the MCTFS Input/Output Model Figure 1-1 of the MCTFS PRIUM is encouraged by all levels of command and management. Feedback to these levels of command and management via reports and to the RU's via online files is critical to the quality control of information within the MCTFS.
MCTFS database.
The MCTFS central database is maintained by TSO - Indianapolis, IN (though it is physically resident at the Defense Enterprise Computing Center (DECC), Mechanicsburg) and contains all data elements resident in the MCTFS. Information concerning the overall security parameters of the MCTFS is contained in the MCTFS Decision Paper IV as well as within other chapters of the MCTFSPRIUM. Records containing specified data elements for all military personnel (Active and Reserve components, to include retirees) comprise the Central Master File (CMF). The central database contains all data elements resident in the MCTFS.


Mountain ration

The Mountain Ration (or "M-Ration") was a United States military ration developed for use by U.S. troops operating in high-altitude or mountainous regions of the European theater of operations (ETO) during World War II.
Origin, development, and use.
The components of what would become the Mountain ration were developed in 1941-42 by U.S. Army officers in experimental mountain warfare companies, largely consisting of former ski instructors, forest rangers, and other experienced alpine travelers. Based on their recommendations, the Mountain ration was finalized and packaged for use by mountain and alpine troops by personnel at the Quartermaster Corps' Subsistence Research Laboratory in Chicago, Illinois.
In order to make the rations suitable for high-altitude climates, the Mountain ration was designed as a specialized compact ration that was easier to prepare in high-altitude environments, have adequate roughage, and enough bulk and quantity when heated to satisfy four men in one day at high altitude, weigh less than , and contain a total of per man per day. The ration was formally adopted in November 1942.
The Mountain ration was produced from 1942 to 1943, and issued to soldiers of several elite U.S. and British Commonwealth forces then in training for alpine or winter combat, especially the 10th Mountain Division, and the First Special Service Force. As packaged, the Mountain ration was sized to serve four men for one day (three meals per man). It was normally prepared at the platoon or squad level, though 10th Division troopers were also taught to prepare it individually. The 1st Special Service Force first tried out the Mountain ration on November 28, 1942 during a training patrol to MacDonald Pass, Montana:
"At 1400 hours all company commanders and one other officer from each company and a few others left by truck for MacDonald Pass to try living under winter conditions and try a new mountain ration ... On arrival at the selected spot the party broke up into groups of four and built shelters and fires of many different types. The Mountain ration, which comes in four varieties, is packed in boxes, each box containing the rations of 4 men for 3 meals, this proved to be more than the average man could eat. They included powdered soup and milk, canned meat and butter, cereal, chocolate, biscuits, compressed fruits, sugar, tea and coffee and powdered lemon."
Because of its generous portions, specialization, and significantly higher cost, the Mountain ration was intensely disliked by the Quartermaster Command, headed by Quartermaster General Edmund B. Gregory, whose organization had to procure, store, and ship it. To bolster their argument, Quartermaster Corps and Subsistence Branch staff heavily criticized the Mountain ration for its weight, although for its caloric content a day's ration was lighter than alternative canned C rations, and it had nearly more than the K ration.
The Mountain ration was also criticized for its involved preparation times; the Mountain ration required heating, which was difficult to accomplish for ordinary infantry soldiers without individual or squad-level cooking stoves, though this did not affect mountain troops such as the 10th Mountain Division, who had such equipment. In common with the alpine troops of other countries, the 10th's officers recognized the distinct benefits of heated, easily digested foods at high altitudes. However, the noise and bulk of heating equipment and additional cooking utensils was disliked by some 10th Mountain troopers, who viewed the mountain ration as better suited to bivouac areas or mountain strongholds not subject to sudden enemy assault. Significantly, diagnosed cases of malnourishment and vitamin deficiency, which had been reported among other light infantry units of the U.S. Army in the ETO who had been forced to consume the K ration for extended periods of time, did not arise among troops of the 10th Mountain Division, who received a wider variety of food rations including the Mountain ration, K ration, C ration, and 10-in-1 group ration while in the field.
By early 1943, less than three months after adoption, the Quartermaster Corps' Food Services Branch was already requesting the Army to abolish all non-standard lightweight individual rations except for the K and D rations. To the immense relief of the Quartermaster Corps's Food Services branch, the Mountain ration was discontinued and production terminated in 1943, though supplies continued to be issued well into 1944. The 10th Mountain Division, which was issued the ration while in training, did not deploy to combat until January 1945; in the last months of the war, with supplies of the Mountain ration exhausted, most of the 10th's troopers serving in combat were issued the K ration, the C ration, or the 10-in-1 ration.
At war's end, after the shortcomings of the C ration (monotony and weight) and the K ration (malnourishment and vitamin deficiency) had become apparent, the Quartermaster Corps attempted to shift responsibility for individual ration inadequacies. Contravening their earlier statements, the QC now asserted that overuse of the K and C rations (beyond two or three days) had caused the problem. Having successfully obtained the discontinuance of suitable alternative packaged rations, the QMC's Historical Summary report was conspicuously silent on how Army commanders could have observed this new ration restriction for troops in daily contact with a determined enemy. Surprisingly, even with this new admission, the QC still refused to abandon their prior recommendation for standardization on a single type of canned wet individual ration, a recommendation that was eventually adopted.
At war's end, rather than introduce a new and improved lightweight ration designed for prolonged use, the K ration was itself promptly discontinued (along with the 10-in-1 small group ration, which had proven somewhat useful in boosting nourishment levels for men living for extended periods on C or K rations). Instead, the C ration, still designated for "infrequent use", went through a series of largely unsuccessful minor revisions.
Contents.
The mountain ration contained:
In addition to the basic components listed, the 10th Mountain Division's officers and NCOs, many with a pre-war background in high altitude and alpine cooking, were known to significantly augment the Mountain ration with a stocked supply of numerous additional ingredients and spices.


Rosie the Riveter World War II Home Front National Historical Park

Rosie the Riveter World War II Home Front National Historical Park is a United States national historical park located in Richmond, California, near San Francisco. The park preserves and interprets the legacy of the United States home front during World War II, including the Kaiser Richmond Shipyards, the Victory ship SS "Red Oak Victory", a tank factory, housing developments and other facilities built to support America's entry into World War II. In particular, the role of women and in war industries is explored and honored.
The park is a "partnership park", meaning that no land or buildings are actually owned by the National Park Service, which only administers the park. This relatively new National Park was established in 2000 and is still under development. Bus tours of the park began in 2007.
Park attractions.
The park has a visitor center in the restored Ford Building, with a number of permanent and temporary exhibits about the history of Richmond's wartime industries and workers. A film also illustrates the home-front battle. Rangers are available to answer questions, and also lead guided tours and conduct other interpretive programs.
A self-guided auto tour with optional walking tour is available for downloading. In the summer of 2007, preliminary bus tours were begun with a new guideless model, which instead filled half of the bus with residents who spoke of their experiences from the time to put what are otherwise everyday streets for residents into a greater historical perspective.
The Rosie the Riveter Memorial in Marina Bay Park is open year-round, dawn to dusk, as are the other Richmond city parks within the National Park's boundaries.
Rosie Memorial.
The park's creation was spurred by the construction of a Rosie the Riveter memorial in a city shoreline park (three years prior to the creation of the national park), to honor the "Rosies", women who made up much of the workforce at the shipyards. The four Richmond shipyards, with their combined 27 shipways, produced 747 ships, more than any other shipyard complex in the country. Richmond was home to 56 different war industries, more than any other city of its size in the United States. The city grew nearly overnight from 24,000 people to 100,000 people, overwhelming the available housing stock, roads, schools, businesses and community services.
The effort behind the memorial was initiated by then-Councilwoman Donna Powers. It grew under Project Director Donna Graves to become the first national tribute to home front American women.
The memorial is located at Marina Bay Park, the site of former Kaiser Richmond Shipyard #2. It is the length of a Liberty ship with a form of the ship being built. The simple metal pier represents the stern at the water's edge, a simple cylinder frame is the smoke stack, and the bow is made of prefabricated parts similar to those assembled by the shipyard workers. A timeline of World War II is placed along the walkway running the length of the memorial. Interpretive panels within the structures present information on women's history, labor history, and the home front.
Ford Richmond Plant.
The Ford Motor Company Assembly Plant was the largest assembly plant to be built on the West Coast. One of only three tank depots in the entire country, approximately 49,000 jeeps were assembled and 91,000 other military vehicles were processed here. Ford employed thousands of workers at the site during World War II, many of them women who were entering the work force for the first time. "Rosie the Riveter" was a period song representing these women.
In mobilizing the wartime production effort to its full potential, Federal military authorities and private industry began to work closely together on a scale never seen before in American history. This laid the groundwork for what became known as the "military-industrial complex" during the Cold War years.
Noted architect Albert Kahn is credited with the design of the Ford plant in Richmond. After World War II, Ford moved its Northern California factory to Milpitas, where it became known as the San Jose Assembly Plant.
The plant building has been restored and now houses a variety of private businesses along with the NPS visitor center.
Richmond Shipyards.
The four Richmond Shipyards were part of the Kaiser Shipyards. The construction of 747 ships during the war here is a feat not equaled anywhere else in the world, before or since. The park's Rosie memorial is located on the former grounds of Shipyard No.2. Shipyard No.3 is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Both Liberty and Victory ships were constructed here. These ships were completed in two-thirds the amount of time and at a quarter of the cost of the average of all other shipyards. The SS "Robert E. Peary" was assembled in less than five days as a part of a special competition among shipyards; but by 1944 it was only taking the astonishingly brief time of a little over two weeks to assemble a Liberty ship by standard methods.
SS "Red Oak Victory".
The SS "Red Oak Victory" is a Victory ship preserved as a museum ship. It was one of 414 Victories built during World War II (constructed at the Richmond Shipyards), but one of only a few of these ships to be transferred from the Merchant Marine to the U.S. Navy. The vessel issued cargo and munitions to various ships in the fleet throughout 1945. During a hazardous tour of duty in the Pacific, SS "Red Oak Victory" handled many tons of ammunition, supplying the fleet without a single casualty.
Atchison Village Housing Project.
The huge explosion of workers coming to live in cities like Richmond, caused intense strain on city infrastructure. One of these strains was the severe lack of housing. Workers arriving in these rapidly expanding urban centers were forced to find what they could. They slept in all night movie houses, shared "hot beds" (i.e. when one person got in bed, it was still hot from the last person getting out), or just camped out.
Atchison Village Housing Project is an example of the local-Federal collaboration that provided much needed housing and domestic support for defense workers and their families. The modest, wood-frame buildings clearly reflect the constraints (time, money and materials) placed on publicly funded housing construction during the period. Just prior to and during the war, the Lanham Act of 1940 provided $150 million to the Works Progress Administration, which built approximately 625,000 units of housing in conjunction with local authorities nationwide. These were highly sought after and company managers were the most likely to be able to procure housing in Atchison Village.
Due to racial discrimination, minorities fared very poorly in gaining housing. They often lived in shacks, in the crates that brought the raw materials to the city, in trailers, or in automobiles. They and other lower income earning workers were lucky when they were able to move to barrack-like dormitories constructed for the mass of World War II workers.
The Richmond Housing Authority was selected to be the first authority in the country to manage a defense project. Atchison Village represents one of 20 public housing projects built in Richmond before and during World War II. Constructed in 1941 as Richmond's first public defense housing project, it is the only project funded by the Lanham Act that still exists in Richmond, and one of the few in the nation not destroyed after the war.
Today, Atchison Village is a collection of privately owned houses managed by a cooperative of the homeowners. While most of the dormitories and other low income housing of World War II are gone, Atchison Village, built as permanent housing, remains.
Kaiser Richmond Field Hospital.
Prior to the invasion of Europe in June 1944, more Americans were dying in Home Front accidents than on World War II battlefields. Henry J. Kaiser, founder of the Richmond Shipyards, recognized that only a healthy work force could meet his deadlines and construction needs. He institutionalized a revolutionary idea, pre-paid medical care for workers, which soon expanded beyond workers. For many workers, this was the first time they had seen a doctor.
The Kaiser Richmond Field Hospital for the Richmond Shipyards was financed by the U.S. Maritime Commission, and opened on August 10, 1942.
By August 1944, 92.2 percent of all Richmond shipyard employees had joined the plan, the first voluntary group plan in the country to feature group medical practice, prepayment and substantial medical facilities on such a large scale. By 1990, Kaiser Permanente was still the country's largest nonprofit HMO.
In part due to wartime materials rationing, the Field Hospital is a single-story wood frame structure designed in a simple modernist mode. The Field Hospital operated as a Kaiser Permanente hospital until closing in 1995, after a new hospital was built downtown.
Maritime and Ruth Powers Child Development Centers.
The Maritime and Ruth Powers Child Development Centers were two of approximately 35 nursery school units of varying sizes established in the Richmond area during World War II in order to provide child care for women working in the Kaiser shipyards. The Maritime center was funded and constructed by the Maritime Commission as part of a larger development that also included housing, an elementary school and a fire station. The temporary housing was demolished after the war but a larger permanent housing complex remains as do the other buildings.
The Maritime Child Development Center, a wood frame, modernist style building operated by the Richmond School District, incorporated progressive educational programming, and was staffed with nutritionists, psychiatrists and certified teachers. It had a capacity of 180 children per day. At its peak, with 24,500 women on the Kaiser payroll, Richmond's citywide child care program maintained a total daily attendance of 1,400 children. Unlike the federally funded WPA day care facilities implemented during the New Deal, the World War II centers were not intended for use by the destitute, but for working mothers.
The Kaiser-sponsored Child Care Centers, particularly those at Kaiser's industrial sites in Vanport, Oregon, and Vancouver, Washington, gained a reputation for innovative and high quality child care. The center is still in operation today.
Lucretia Edwards Shoreline Park.
Lucretia Edwards Shoreline Park, named in honor of local community activist Lucretia W. Edwards, honors the wartime contributions made by the Bay Area Shipyards during World War II.
In addition to the local Richmond Shipyards, shipworker's bootprints with plaques set in the sidewalks and long low seating walls point visitors to the other Bay Area shipyards.
The following inscriptions are engraved into the concrete walls:
External links.
All of the following are filed under Richmond, Contra Costa County, CA:


Armin Tamzarian


Yang Bi

Yang Bi (; born May 1922 - 4 March 1968) was a Chinese translator and associate professor at Fudan University.
Biography.
Yang was born in May 1922 in Shanghai, while her ancestral home in Wuxi, Jiangsu. Her father Yang Yinhang ((); 1878 - 1945) was a jurist who graduated from Waseda University and the University of Pennsylvania. Her mother Tang Xu'an () was a housewife. Her sister Yang Jiang was a writer and translator. She was raised in Suzhou. She studied and then taught at Aurora Women's College of Arts and Sciences. In 1952, Aurora Women's College of Arts and Sciences was merged into Fudan University, she was promoted to associate professor. In 1968, she was asked to account for the International Labour Office in the "Cleaning up the Class Movement" (). She died during that movement at the age of 46.


Gochomu J. Mudzingwa

Gochomu J. Mudzingwa (1916 – 16 February 2018) was a Zimbabwean traditional ruler, who had been substantive Chief of Wozhele since 18 February 2008 after the death of his uncle, Ndaba, who ruled the tribe since 1954. Wozheri, Hozhele and Hozheri were his synonyms. He worked as a cattle middle man for the colonial white settlers when he was young.
Death.
Mudzingwa died on 16 February 2018 at the age of 101 from pneumonia, and was survived by his daughter. He was buried in Sanyati.


Tonderai Kasu

Tonderai Kasu is a community leader in Chitungwiza, Zimbabwe. A medical doctor by training, he is the substantive Director of Health and Environmental Services for Chitungwiza, and has been the Acting Town Clerk or Acting Chief Executive, of the Chitungwiza Town Council.
Early life and education.
Kasu was born in Harare. His family comes from Nyanga, Zimbabwe in Manicaland Province. He is from the Tangwena people, and he bears the same totem or mutupo, as the late Chief Rekayi Tangwena, that is Nhewa or Simboti (leopard). Kasu attended Peterhouse Boys' School near Marondera. He qualified as a medical doctor from the University of Zimbabwe. He holds a Master's degree in Public Sector Management from Africa University. He studied for a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Public Health at Africa University.
Career.
Kasu was appointed to the position of Acting Town Clerk by a resolution of the full council of the Municipality of Chitungwiza at its ordinary meeting held on the 10th of December 2019, and served in this capacity until the 21st of August 2020. He is currently the substantive Director of Health and Environmental Services of the Municipality in Chitungwiza, and has served in this capacity since April 2016. He is also a member of the Environmental Management Committee for the Harare Metropolitan Province. He is the former head of the accident and emergency department for St. Anne's Hospital. As a leader in the health sector, he has managed facilities that have won awards for high quality of clinical care. In the country's third largest urban center, he has led the response to two cholera outbreaks. He is currently leading Chitungwiza's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a senior public official having a background as a professional and as an administrator, and not as a politician, he has often encountered and experienced problems and setbacks in managing and meeting the expectations of the Chitungwiza community's multiple stakeholders, given the politically polarized environment in Chitungwiza. Although having been criticized as a harsh enforcer of government policies, particularly with respect to illegal and informal trading in Chitungwiza, he has been at the forefront of spearheading urban renewal and development in Chitungwiza. He has been active in sports development and in philanthropic work in the Chitungiwza community.


George Miyagusuku


Alan Rice-Oxley

Lieutenant Alan Rice-Oxley (1 July 1896 – 21 July 1961) was a British pilot during World War I. He became a flying ace in 1918, credited with six aerial victories.
Early life.
He was born as Alan Rice Oxley in Kings Langley, Hertfordshire on 1 July 1896. His parents were Edward Charles Rice Oxley (c. 185414 Mar 1927) and Emily Armstrong (18161883) His parents had married in Shrewsbury on 14 January 1896. This was the his father's second marriage, his father's first wife, Ann Eliza Hall (c. 18571894) had borne 5 children and Rice was the middle child of three from the second marriage. Rice-Oxley was educated at Watford Grammar School for Boys, which he attended between January 1908 and July 1914.
Military career.
Rice-Oxley first served as a private in the 21st (County of London) Battalion, The London Regiment (1st Surrey Rifles), until 5 February 1915 when he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the 4th Battalion, The King's (Shropshire Light Infantry).
He was seconded for duty with the Royal Flying Corps, and appointed a flying officer on 10 September 1916. He trained as a pilot and initially served with No. 15 Squadron in France, tasked with artillery-spotting and reconnaissance. He was wounded in action during the Battle of the Somme in October 1916, and after recuperating became a fighter pilot. He was promoted to lieutenant on 1 July 1917. Subsequently, in 1918 he joined the Sopwith Camel equipped No. 45 Squadron on the Italian Front. He recorded his first victories in a combat on 12 July 1918. Piloting Camel D8240, he and Captain Cedric Howell engaged a formation of between ten and fifteen Austro-Hungarian aircraft in proximity to the town of Feltre. In the ensuing dogfight Rice-Oxley destroyed two of the enemy, and for his conduct in this action was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. Over the course of the following three days, he destroyed another enemy aircraft and drove a further two down out of control. On 16 August he was appointed a flight commander with the temporary rank of captain, and achieved his sixth and final victory on 22 August.
Rice-Oxley was transferred to the RAF's unemployed list on 26 March 1919, and relinquished his commission in the King's Shropshire Light Infantry on 30 September 1921.
Later life.
In 1921 Rice-Oxley emigrated to North Borneo to join the armed constabulary there, and was appointed as an officer of Class B in the following year, with the rank of captain. His duties included showing visitors around and, in 1926, while motoring with the author Somerset Maugham, Rice-Oxley came across a 13-foot (4-metre) snake and killed it with his malacca cane. He was appointed Superintendent of Police, Adjutant, and Superintendent of Prisons, in Jesselton in 1929. His career continued apace and he attained the position of Commissioner of Police. On 12 November 1936 he officially changed his name from Alan Rice Oxley to Alan Rice-Oxley by deed poll.
In early 1937 he married Valerie Helen Gardner. Valerie was the widow of a fellow former RAF officer, Herbert Gardner, who had left the RAF in 1926 to move to the Federated Malay States, but was killed in Marseille in 1929. After their marriage the coupled sailed in May 1937 from London on the P&O "SS Ranchi"; after the outbreak of the second World War the couple returned to England; later during the war Valerie remained in England when Rice-Oxley returned to North Borneo.
From 1942–1945 Rice-Oxley was interned by the Japanese as a civilian internee at Batu Lintang camp near Kuching, Sarawak. Post-war, he returned to Britain and was working as a dairy farmer at Knowle Farm, Uploders, Dorset, when he died on 21 July 1961. He is buried in the churchyard of St. Mary Magdalene, Loders, Dorset.


Military Ordinariate of Belgium

The Military Ordinariate of Belgium (; ) is a military ordinariate of the Roman Catholic Church. Immediately subject to the Holy See, it provides pastoral care to Roman Catholics serving in the Belgian Armed Forces and their families.
History.
It was established as a military vicariate on 7 September 1957, and elevated to a military ordinariate on 21 July 1986. The Military Ordinary's seat is located at the Co-cathedral of Saint Jacques-sur-Coudenberg (Sint-Jacob op de Koudenbergkerk) in Brussels, Belgium. The post of Military Ordinary is vested in the Archbishop of Mechelen and Primate of Belgium.