1.
New York City
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The City of New York, often called New York City or simply New York, is the most populous city in the United States. With an estimated 2015 population of 8,550,405 distributed over an area of about 302.6 square miles. Located at the tip of the state of New York. Home to the headquarters of the United Nations, New York is an important center for international diplomacy and has described as the cultural and financial capital of the world. Situated on one of the worlds largest natural harbors, New York City consists of five boroughs, the five boroughs – Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, The Bronx, and Staten Island – were consolidated into a single city in 1898. In 2013, the MSA produced a gross metropolitan product of nearly US$1.39 trillion, in 2012, the CSA generated a GMP of over US$1.55 trillion. NYCs MSA and CSA GDP are higher than all but 11 and 12 countries, New York City traces its origin to its 1624 founding in Lower Manhattan as a trading post by colonists of the Dutch Republic and was named New Amsterdam in 1626. The city and its surroundings came under English control in 1664 and were renamed New York after King Charles II of England granted the lands to his brother, New York served as the capital of the United States from 1785 until 1790. It has been the countrys largest city since 1790, the Statue of Liberty greeted millions of immigrants as they came to the Americas by ship in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and is a symbol of the United States and its democracy. In the 21st century, New York has emerged as a node of creativity and entrepreneurship, social tolerance. Several sources have ranked New York the most photographed city in the world, the names of many of the citys bridges, tapered skyscrapers, and parks are known around the world. Manhattans real estate market is among the most expensive in the world, Manhattans Chinatown incorporates the highest concentration of Chinese people in the Western Hemisphere, with multiple signature Chinatowns developing across the city. Providing continuous 24/7 service, the New York City Subway is one of the most extensive metro systems worldwide, with 472 stations in operation. Over 120 colleges and universities are located in New York City, including Columbia University, New York University, and Rockefeller University, during the Wisconsinan glaciation, the New York City region was situated at the edge of a large ice sheet over 1,000 feet in depth. The ice sheet scraped away large amounts of soil, leaving the bedrock that serves as the foundation for much of New York City today. Later on, movement of the ice sheet would contribute to the separation of what are now Long Island and Staten Island. The first documented visit by a European was in 1524 by Giovanni da Verrazzano, a Florentine explorer in the service of the French crown and he claimed the area for France and named it Nouvelle Angoulême. Heavy ice kept him from further exploration, and he returned to Spain in August and he proceeded to sail up what the Dutch would name the North River, named first by Hudson as the Mauritius after Maurice, Prince of Orange
2.
Los Angeles
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Los Angeles, officially the City of Los Angeles and often known by its initials L. A. is the cultural, financial, and commercial center of Southern California. With a census-estimated 2015 population of 3,971,883, it is the second-most populous city in the United States, Los Angeles is also the seat of Los Angeles County, the most populated county in the United States. The citys inhabitants are referred to as Angelenos, historically home to the Chumash and Tongva, Los Angeles was claimed by Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo for Spain in 1542 along with the rest of what would become Alta California. The city was founded on September 4,1781, by Spanish governor Felipe de Neve. It became a part of Mexico in 1821 following the Mexican War of Independence, in 1848, at the end of the Mexican–American War, Los Angeles and the rest of California were purchased as part of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, thereby becoming part of the United States. Los Angeles was incorporated as a municipality on April 4,1850, the discovery of oil in the 1890s brought rapid growth to the city. The completion of the Los Angeles Aqueduct in 1913, delivering water from Eastern California, nicknamed the City of Angels, Los Angeles is known for its Mediterranean climate, ethnic diversity, and sprawling metropolis. Los Angeles also has an economy in culture, media, fashion, science, sports, technology, education, medicine. A global city, it has been ranked 6th in the Global Cities Index, the city is home to renowned institutions covering a broad range of professional and cultural fields, and is one of the most substantial economic engines within the United States. The Los Angeles combined statistical area has a gross metropolitan product of $831 billion, making it the third-largest in the world, after the Greater Tokyo and New York metropolitan areas. The city has hosted the Summer Olympic Games in 1932 and 1984 and is bidding to host the 2024 Summer Olympics and thus become the second city after London to have hosted the Games three times. The Los Angeles area also hosted the 1994 FIFA mens World Cup final match as well as the 1999 FIFA womens World Cup final match, the mens event was watched on television by over 700 million people worldwide. The Los Angeles coastal area was first settled by the Tongva, a Gabrielino settlement in the area was called iyáangẚ, meaning poison oak place. Gaspar de Portolà and Franciscan missionary Juan Crespí, reached the present site of Los Angeles on August 2,1769, in 1771, Franciscan friar Junípero Serra directed the building of the Mission San Gabriel Arcángel, the first mission in the area. The Queen of the Angels is an honorific of the Virgin Mary, two-thirds of the settlers were mestizo or mulatto with a mixture of African, indigenous and European ancestry. The settlement remained a small town for decades, but by 1820. Today, the pueblo is commemorated in the district of Los Angeles Pueblo Plaza and Olvera Street. New Spain achieved its independence from the Spanish Empire in 1821, during Mexican rule, Governor Pío Pico made Los Angeles Alta Californias regional capital
3.
University of Pennsylvania
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The University of Pennsylvania is a private Ivy League research university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Incorporated as The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania, Penn is one of 14 founding members of the Association of American Universities, the university coat of arms features a dolphin on the red chief, adopted directly from the Franklin familys own coat of arms. Penn was one of the first academic institutions to follow a multidisciplinary model pioneered by several European universities and it was also home to many other educational innovations. The first school of medicine in North America, the first collegiate school. With an endowment of $10.72 billion, Penn had the seventh largest endowment of all colleges in the United States, all of Penns schools exhibit very high research activity. In fiscal year 2015, Penns academic research budget was $851 million, over its history, the university has also produced many distinguished alumni. S. House of Representatives,8 signers of the United States Declaration of Independence, in addition, some 30 Nobel laureates,169 Guggenheim Fellows, and 80 members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, have been affiliated with Penn. In addition, Penn has produced a significant number of Fortune 500 CEOs, in 1740, a group of Philadelphians joined together to erect a great preaching hall for the traveling evangelist George Whitefield, who toured the American colonies delivering open air sermons. The building was designed and built by Edmund Woolley and was the largest building in the city at the time and it was initially planned to serve as a charity school as well, however, a lack of funds forced plans for the chapel and school to be suspended. According to Franklins autobiography, it was in 1743 when he first had the idea to establish an academy, however, Peters declined a casual inquiry from Franklin and nothing further was done for another six years. Unlike the other Colonial colleges that existed in 1749—Harvard, William and Mary, Yale, Franklin assembled a board of trustees from among the leading citizens of Philadelphia, the first such non-sectarian board in America. At the first meeting of the 24 members of the Board of Trustees the issue of where to locate the school was a prime concern. The original sponsors of the dormant building still owed considerable construction debts and asked Franklins group to assume their debts and, accordingly, on February 1,1750 the new board took over the building and trusts of the old board. On August 13,1751, the Academy of Philadelphia, using the hall at 4th and Arch Streets. A charity school also was chartered July 13,1753 in accordance with the intentions of the original New Building donors, June 16,1755, the College of Philadelphia was chartered, paving the way for the addition of undergraduate instruction. All three schools shared the same Board of Trustees and were considered to be part of the same institution, the institution of higher learning was known as the College of Philadelphia from 1755 to 1779. In 1779, not trusting then-provost the Rev. William Smiths Loyalist tendencies, the result was a schism, with Smith continuing to operate an attenuated version of the College of Philadelphia. In 1791 the Legislature issued a new charter, merging the two institutions into a new University of Pennsylvania with twelve men from each institution on the new Board of Trustees
4.
Swashbuckler
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A swashbuckler is an heroic archetype in European adventure literature that is typified by the use of a sword and chivalric ideals. The archetype also became common as a film genre, a swashbuckler is a protagonist who is heroic and idealistic, he rescues damsels in distress, defends the downtrodden, and in general saves the day. Swashbucklers are not unrepentant brigands or pirates, although some may rise from such disreputable stations in redemption and his opponent is typically characterized as the dastardly villain. Swashbuckler is a compound of swash and buckler dating from the 16th century, the larger-than-life heroics portrayed in some film franchise adventures set in the modern era have been described as swashbuckling. Jeffrey Richards traces the swashbuckling novel to the rise of Romanticism, Medieval tales of chivalry, love and adventure rediscovered in the eighteenth century. This type of novel was further developed by Alexandre Dumas. John Galsworthy said of Robert Louis Stevensons 1888 swashbuckling romance, The Black Arrow, Anthony Hopes 1894, the The Prisoner of Zenda initiated an additional subset of the swashbuckling novel, the Ruritanian romance. Soon actors were taught to fence in an entertaining, dramatic manner, eventually fencing became an established part of a classical formation for actors. Consequently, when movie theaters mushroomed, ambitious actors took the chance to present their accordant skills on the screen. Since silent movies were no proper medium for long dialogues, the stories about heroes who would defend their honor with sword in hand were simplified. This was the birth of a new kind of film hero, four of the most famous instructors for swashbuckling swordplay are William Hobbs, Anthony De Longis, Bob Anderson and Peter Diamond. The genre has, apart from swordplay, always characterized by influences that can be traced back to the chivalry tales of Medieval Europe, such as the legends of Robin Hood. It soon created its own based on classic examples like The Mark of Zorro, The Three Musketeers. Some films did also use motifs of pirate stories, swashbucklers are one of the most flamboyant Hollywood film genres, unlike cinema verite or modern realistic filmmaking. The genre attracted large audiences who relished the blend of escapist adventure, historic romance, as a first variation of the classic swashbuckler there have also been female swashbucklers. Maureen OHara in Against All Flags and Jean Peters in Anne of the Indies were very early action film heroines, eventually the typical swashbuckler motifs were used up because they had so often been shown on TV screens. Later films such as The Princess Bride, the Pirates of the Caribbean series, television followed the films, especially in the UK, with The Adventures of Robin Hood, Sword of Freedom, The Buccaneers, and Willam Tell between 1955 and 1960. US TV produced two series of Zorro in 1957 and 1990, following the 1998 film The Mask of Zorro, a TV series about a female swashbuckler, the Queen of Swords, aired in 2000
5.
Errol Flynn
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Errol Leslie Flynn was an Australian-born actor who achieved fame in Hollywood after 1935. He was known for his romantic roles in Hollywood films, as well as frequent partnerships with Olivia De Havilland. Errol Leslie Flynn was born in a suburb of Hobart, Tasmania and his mother was born Lily Mary Young, but shortly after marrying Theodore at St. Johns Church of England, Birchgrove, Sydney, on 23 January 1909, she changed her first name to Marelle. Flynn described his mothers family as seafaring folk and this appears to be where his lifelong interest in boats, both of his parents were native-born Australians of Irish, English, and Scottish descent. Despite Flynns claims, the evidence indicates that he was not descended from any of the Bounty mutineers and his formal education ended with his expulsion from Shore for theft, and, he later claimed, for a sexual encounter with the schools laundress. He spent the five years oscillating between the New Guinea frontier territory and Sydney. In January 1931, he engaged to Naomi Campbell-Dibbs, the youngest daughter of Mr and Mrs R Campbell-Dibbs of Temora and Bowral NSW. Chauvel was looking for someone to play the role of Fletcher Christian, there are different stories how Errol Flynn was cast. According to one, Chauvel saw his picture in an article about a wreck involving Flynn. The most popular account is that he was discovered by cast member John Warwick, the film was not a strong success at the box office, but it was the lead role and seemed to ignite Flynns interest in acting. In late 1933 he returned to Britain to pursue a career in acting, Northampton is home to an art-house cinema named after him, the Errol Flynn Filmhouse. He performed at the 1934 Malvern Festival and in Glasgow, in 1934 Flynn was dismissed from Northampton Rep. after he threw a female stage manager down a stairwell. Asher cast him as the lead in Murder at Monte Carlo, the movie was not widely seen ), but Asher was enthusiastic about Flynns performance and cabled Warner Bros in Hollywood, recommending him for a contract. Executives agreed, and Flynn was sent out to Los Angeles, on the ship from London, Flynn met Lili Damita, an actress five years his senior whose contacts proved valuable when Flynn arrived in Los Angeles. Warner Bros publicity described him as an Irish leading man of the London stage and his first appearance was a small role in The Case of the Curious Bride. Flynn had two scenes, one as a corpse and one in flashback and his next part was slightly bigger, in Dont Bet on Blondes, a B-picture screwball comedy. Warner Bros were preparing a big budget movie, Captain Blood, based on the novel by Rafael Sabatini. They originally intended to cast Robert Donat but he turned down the role, Warners considered a number of other actors, including Leslie Howard and conducted screen tests of those they had under contract, such as Flynn
6.
Danny Kaye
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David Daniel Kaminsky, better known by his screen name Danny Kaye, was an American actor, singer, dancer, comedian, and musician. His performances featured physical comedy, idiosyncratic pantomimes, and rapid-fire novelty songs, Kaye starred in 17 movies, notably Wonder Man, The Kid from Brooklyn, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, The Inspector General, Hans Christian Andersen, White Christmas, and The Court Jester. His films were popular, especially his performances of songs and favorites such as Inchworm. He was the first ambassador-at-large of UNICEF in 1954 and received the French Legion of Honour in 1986 for his years of work with the organization, david Daniel Kaminsky was born to Ukrainian Jewish immigrants in Brooklyn on January 18,1911. Kaye was the youngest of three born to Jacob and Clara Nemerovsky Kaminsky. Jacob and Clara and their two sons, Larry and Mac, left Dnipropetrovsk two years before his birth, he was the son born in the United States. His mother died when he was in his early teens, not long after his mothers death, Kaye and his friend Louis ran away to Florida. Kaye sang while Louis played the guitar, the pair eked out a living for a while, when Kaye returned to New York, his father did not pressure him to return to school or work, giving his son the chance to mature and discover his own abilities. Kaye said that as a boy he had wanted to be a surgeon. He held a succession of jobs after leaving school, as a jerk, insurance investigator. Most ended with his being fired and he lost the insurance job when he made an error that cost the insurance company $40,000. The dentist who hired him to look after his office at lunch hour did the same when he found Kaye using his drill on the office woodwork and he learned his trade in his teenage years in the Catskills as a tummler in the Borscht Belt. Kayes first break came in 1933 when he joined the Three Terpsichoreans and they opened in Utica, New York, where he used the name Danny Kaye for the first time. The act toured the United States, then performed in Asia with the show La Vie Paree, the troupe left for a six-month tour of the Far East on February 8,1934. While they were in Osaka, Japan, a hit the city. The hotel where Kaye and his colleagues stayed suffered heavy damage, the strong wind hurled a piece of the hotels cornice into Kayes room, had he been hit, he might well have been killed. By performance time that evening, the city was in the grip of the storm, there was no power, and the audience was restless and nervous. To calm them, Kaye went on stage, holding a flashlight to illuminate his face, the experience of trying to entertain audiences who did not speak English inspired him to the pantomime, gestures, songs, and facial expressions that eventually made his reputation
7.
Philadelphia
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In 1682, William Penn, an English Quaker, founded the city to serve as capital of the Pennsylvania Colony. Philadelphia was one of the capitals in the Revolutionary War. In the 19th century, Philadelphia became an industrial center. It became a destination for African-Americans in the Great Migration. The areas many universities and colleges make Philadelphia a top international study destination, as the city has evolved into an educational, with a gross domestic product of $388 billion, Philadelphia ranks ninth among world cities and fourth in the nation. Philadelphia is the center of activity in Pennsylvania and is home to seven Fortune 1000 companies. The Philadelphia skyline is growing, with a market of almost 81,900 commercial properties in 2016 including several prominent skyscrapers. The city is known for its arts, culture, and rich history, Philadelphia has more outdoor sculptures and murals than any other American city. Fairmount Park, when combined with the adjacent Wissahickon Valley Park in the watershed, is one of the largest contiguous urban park areas in the United States. The 67 National Historic Landmarks in the city helped account for the $10 billion generated by tourism, Philadelphia is the only World Heritage City in the United States. Before Europeans arrived, the Philadelphia area was home to the Lenape Indians in the village of Shackamaxon, the Lenape are a Native American tribe and First Nations band government. They are also called Delaware Indians and their territory was along the Delaware River watershed, western Long Island. Most Lenape were pushed out of their Delaware homeland during the 18th century by expanding European colonies, Lenape communities were weakened by newly introduced diseases, mainly smallpox, and violent conflict with Europeans. Iroquois people occasionally fought the Lenape, surviving Lenape moved west into the upper Ohio River basin. The American Revolutionary War and United States independence pushed them further west, in the 1860s, the United States government sent most Lenape remaining in the eastern United States to the Indian Territory under the Indian removal policy. In the 21st century, most Lenape now reside in the US state of Oklahoma, with communities living also in Wisconsin, Ontario. The Dutch considered the entire Delaware River valley to be part of their New Netherland colony, in 1638, Swedish settlers led by renegade Dutch established the colony of New Sweden at Fort Christina and quickly spread out in the valley. In 1644, New Sweden supported the Susquehannocks in their defeat of the English colony of Maryland
8.
Fast Company (1938 film)
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Fast Company is a 1938 mystery film starring Melvyn Douglas and Florence Rice as married rare-book dealers who try to solve a murder case. It is based on the novel of the name by Marco Page. It was followed by two 1939 films featuring the couple, Fast and Loose and Fast and Furious, though they were played by different actors in each. Apparently, cinema distributors were complaining about the lag between The Thin Man movies, so MGM started this trilogy featuring married amateur sleuths. To avoid confusion with a 1953 MGM film of the same title, Joel and Garda Sloane run a rare book business in New York City. To supplement their income, Joel recovers stolen books. Insurance man Steve Langner drops off a check for his latest success, the couple also tries to help Ned Morgan, recently released from prison, find a job, they do not believe he was guilty of the theft of books from dealer Otto Brockler. Ned is in love with Brocklers daughter Leah, Eli Bannerman barges into Ottos office, despite the best efforts of secretary Julia Thorne. Otto is not pleased to see his business associate and he warns Eli that Joel is snooping around, but reluctantly agrees to take another shipment of fake first editions created by Sid Wheeler for $5000. Eli tells Sid that Otto only paid $2000, incensed, Sid insists on going to see Otto to complain. That night, Otto is struck with a bust sitting on his desk, Ned is the main suspect, especially since he was seen entering the office around the time of the murder. When Sid suggests that Eli might have killed Otto, Eli slugs him, Sid produces a gun, ends their partnership and takes Elis wallet, full of cash. Joel begins seeing Julia, pretending to be attracted to her in order to try to obtain information, Julia eventually tells him about a secret compartment in the office which holds the books Ned supposedly stole, but Ned is arrested before Joel can notify the police. Meanwhile, Eli convinces Sid that Joel is after him, sure that he is the murderer, Sid shoots at Joel on the sidewalk, but Joel is only hit in the buttocks. Later, Eli kills Sid and takes back his money, then he hires Danny Scolado and Paul Terison to murder Joel. The two knock Joel out, but do not kill him right away, instead, they tie him up, having seen how concerned Eli was, Danny talks him into paying more money. In the meantime, Joel frees himself and knocks Paul out, when Danny and Eli return, they spot Garda following them and take her prisoner. Joel is forced to give up his gun, but Garda manages to disconnect the lamp, in the confusion, Eli gets away, while the police arrive and take Danny and Paul into custody
9.
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
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Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of feature films and television programs. Its headquarters are in Beverly Hills, California and it is one of the worlds oldest film studios. In 1971, it was announced that MGM would merge with 20th Century Fox, over the next thirty-nine years, the studio was bought and sold at various points in its history until, on November 3,2010, MGM filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. MGM Resorts International, a Las Vegas-based hotel and casino company listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol MGM, is not currently affiliated with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. In 1966, MGM was sold to Canadian investor Edgar Bronfman Sr. whose son Edgar Jr. would later buy Universal Studios, the studio continued to produce five to six films a year that were released through other studios, mostly United Artists. Kerkorian did, however, commit to increased production and a film library when he bought United Artists in 1981. MGM ramped up production, as well as keeping production going at UA. It also incurred significant amounts of debt to increase production, the studio took on additional debt as a series of owners took charge in the 1980s and early 1990s. In 1986, Ted Turner bought MGM, but a few later, sold the company back to Kerkorian to recoup massive debt. The series of deals left MGM even more heavily in debt, MGM was bought by Pathé Communications in 1990, but Parretti lost control of Pathé and defaulted on the loans used to purchase the studio. The French banking conglomerate Crédit Lyonnais, the major creditor. Even more deeply in debt, MGM was purchased by a joint venture between Kerkorian, producer Frank Mancuso, and Australias Seven Network in 1996, the debt load from these and subsequent business deals negatively affected MGMs ability to survive as an independent motion picture studio. In 1924, movie theater magnate Marcus Loew had a problem and he had bought Metro Pictures Corporation in 1919 for a steady supply of films for his large Loews Theatres chain. With Loews lackluster assortment of Metro films, Loew purchased Goldwyn Pictures in 1924 to improve the quality, however, these purchases created a need for someone to oversee his new Hollywood operations, since longtime assistant Nicholas Schenck was needed in New York headquarters to oversee the 150 theaters. Mayer, Loew addressed the situation by buying Louis B. Mayer Pictures on April 17,1924, Mayer became head of the renamed Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, with Irving Thalberg as head of production. MGM produced more than 100 feature films in its first two years, in 1925, MGM released the extravagant and successful Ben-Hur, taking a $4.7 million profit that year, its first full year. Marcus Loew died in 1927, and control of Loews passed to Nicholas Schenck, in 1929, William Fox of Fox Film Corporation bought the Loew familys holdings with Schencks assent. Mayer and Thalberg disagreed with the decision, Mayer was active in the California Republican Party and used his political connections to persuade the Justice Department to delay final approval of the deal on antitrust grounds
