1.
San Diego Comic-Con
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San Diego Comic-Con International is a multi-genre entertainment and comic convention held annually in San Diego, California. The name, as given on its website, is Comic-Con International, San Diego and it is a four-day event held during the summer at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego. On the Wednesday evening prior to the opening of the event, there is a preview for professionals, exhibitors. Comic-Con International also produces two other conventions, WonderCon, held in Los Angeles, and the Alternative Press Expo and it is also the home of the Will Eisner Awards. In 2010, it filled the San Diego Convention Center to capacity with more than 130,000 attendees, the convention was founded in 1970 by Shel Dorf, Richard Alf, Ken Krueger, Mike Towry, Barry Alfonso, Bob Sourk, and Greg Bear. Detroit, Michigan-born, comics fan Shel Dorf, had, in the mid-1960s, mounted the Detroit Triple-Fan Fairs, one of the first commercial comics-fan conventions. When he moved to San Diego, California, in 1970, he organized a convention on March 21,1970. Dorf went on to be associated with the convention as president or manager, variously, Alf co-chaired the first convention with Krueger and became chairman in 1971. Following the initial gathering, Dorfs first three-day San Diego comics convention, other locations in the conventions early years included the El Cortez Hotel, the University of California, San Diego, and Golden Hall, before being moved to the San Diego Convention Center in 1991. I was quietly walking the floor stunned and in awe of just how much bigger it really was, the convention is organized by a panel of 13 board members,16 to 20 full-time and part-time workers, and 80 volunteers who assist via committees. Comic Con International is an organization, and proceeds of the event go to funding it, as well as the Alternative Press Expo. The convention logo was designed by Richard Bruning and Josh Beatman in 1995, in September 2010, the convention announced that it would stay in San Diego through 2015. In 2015, working with Lionsgate, a channel was created to host Comic-Con related content. According to the San Diego Convention and Visitors Bureau, the convention has a regional economic impact of $162.8 million. Along with panels, seminars, and workshops with comic book professionals, there are previews of upcoming feature films, like most comic-book conventions, Comic-Con features a large floorspace for exhibitors. These include media companies such as studios and TV networks, as well as comic-book dealers. And like most comics conventions, Comic-Con includes an area, as well as the Artists Alley where comics artists can sign autographs. Despite the name, artists alleys can include writers and even models, academics and comic industry professionals annually hold the Comics Arts Conference at Comic-Con, presenting scholarly studies on comics as a medium
2.
Brooklyn
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Brooklyn is the most populous borough of New York City, with a Census-estimated 2,636,735 residents in 2015. It borders the borough of Queens at the end of Long Island. Today, if New York City dissolved, Brooklyn would rank as the third-most populous city in the U. S. behind Los Angeles, the borough continues, however, to maintain a distinct culture. Many Brooklyn neighborhoods are ethnic enclaves, Brooklyns official motto, displayed on the Borough seal and flag, is Eendraght Maeckt Maght which translates from early modern Dutch as Unity makes strength. Since 2010, Brooklyn has evolved into a hub of entrepreneurship and high technology startup firms. The history of European settlement in Brooklyn spans more than 350 years, the neighborhood of Marine Park was home to North Americas first tidal mill. It was built by the Dutch, and the foundation can be seen today, however, the area was not formally settled as a town. Many incidents and documents relating to this period are in Gabriel Furmans early compilation, what is today Brooklyn left Dutch hands after the final English conquest of New Netherland in 1664, a prelude to the Second Anglo–Dutch War. The English reorganized the six old Dutch towns on southwestern Long Island as Kings County on November 1,1683 and this tract of land was recognized as a political entity for the first time, and the municipal groundwork was laid for a later expansive idea of Brooklyn identity. On August 27,1776 was fought the Battle of Long Island, the first major engagement fought in the American Revolutionary War after independence was declared, and the largest of the entire conflict. British troops forced Continental Army troops under George Washington off the heights near the sites of Green-Wood Cemetery, Prospect Park. The fortified American positions at Brooklyn Heights consequently became untenable and were evacuated a few days later, One result of the Treaty of Paris in 1783 was the evacuation of the British from New York City, celebrated by residents into the 20th century. The New York Navy Yard operated in Wallabout Bay for the entire 19th century, the first center of urbanization sprang up in the Town of Brooklyn, directly across from Lower Manhattan, which saw the incorporation of the Village of Brooklyn in 1817. Reliable steam ferry service across the East River to Fulton Landing converted Brooklyn Heights into a town for Wall Street. Ferry Road to Jamaica Pass became Fulton Street to East New York, Town and Village were combined to form the first, kernel incarnation of the City of Brooklyn in 1834. Industrial deconcentration in mid-century was bringing shipbuilding and other manufacturing to the part of the county. Each of the two cities and six towns in Kings County remained independent municipalities, and purposely created non-aligning street grids with different naming systems and it later became the most popular and highest circulation afternoon paper in America. The publisher changed to L. Van Anden on April 19,1842, on May 14,1849 the name was shortened to The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, on September 5,1938 it was further shortened to Brooklyn Eagle
3.
New York (state)
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New York is a state in the northeastern United States, and is the 27th-most extensive, fourth-most populous, and seventh-most densely populated U. S. state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south and Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont to the east. With an estimated population of 8.55 million in 2015, New York City is the most populous city in the United States, the New York Metropolitan Area is one of the most populous urban agglomerations in the world. New York City makes up over 40% of the population of New York State, two-thirds of the states population lives in the New York City Metropolitan Area, and nearly 40% lives on Long Island. Both the state and New York City were named for the 17th-century Duke of York, the next four most populous cities in the state are Buffalo, Rochester, Yonkers, and Syracuse, while the state capital is Albany. New York has a diverse geography and these more mountainous regions are bisected by two major river valleys—the north-south Hudson River Valley and the east-west Mohawk River Valley, which forms the core of the Erie Canal. Western New York is considered part of the Great Lakes Region and straddles Lake Ontario, between the two lakes lies Niagara Falls. The central part of the state is dominated by the Finger Lakes, New York had been inhabited by tribes of Algonquian and Iroquoian-speaking Native Americans for several hundred years by the time the earliest Europeans came to New York. The first Europeans to arrive were French colonists and Jesuit missionaries who arrived southward from settlements at Montreal for trade, the British annexed the colony from the Dutch in 1664. The borders of the British colony, the Province of New York, were similar to those of the present-day state, New York is home to the Statue of Liberty, a symbol of the United States and its ideals of freedom, democracy, and opportunity. In the 21st century, New York has emerged as a node of creativity and entrepreneurship, social tolerance. On April 17,1524 Verrazanno entered New York Bay, by way of the now called the Narrows into the northern bay which he named Santa Margherita. Verrazzano described it as a vast coastline with a delta in which every kind of ship could pass and he adds. This vast sheet of water swarmed with native boats and he landed on the tip of Manhattan and possibly on the furthest point of Long Island. Verrazannos stay was interrupted by a storm which pushed him north towards Marthas Vineyard, in 1540 French traders from New France built a chateau on Castle Island, within present-day Albany, due to flooding, it was abandoned the next year. In 1614, the Dutch under the command of Hendrick Corstiaensen, rebuilt the French chateau, Fort Nassau was the first Dutch settlement in North America, and was located along the Hudson River, also within present-day Albany. The small fort served as a trading post and warehouse, located on the Hudson River flood plain, the rudimentary fort was washed away by flooding in 1617, and abandoned for good after Fort Orange was built nearby in 1623. Henry Hudsons 1609 voyage marked the beginning of European involvement with the area, sailing for the Dutch East India Company and looking for a passage to Asia, he entered the Upper New York Bay on September 11 of that year
4.
Las Vegas
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The city anchors the Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area and is the largest city within the greater Mojave Desert. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city known primarily for its gambling, shopping, fine dining, entertainment and it is the leading financial, commercial, and cultural center for Nevada. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World and it is a top three destination in the United States for business conventions and a global leader in the hospitality industry, claiming more AAA Five Diamond hotels than any city in the world. Today, Las Vegas annually ranks as one of the worlds most visited tourist destinations. The citys tolerance for numerous forms of adult entertainment earned it the title of Sin City, and has made Las Vegas a popular setting for literature, films, television programs, Las Vegas was settled in 1905 and officially incorporated in 1911. At the close of the 20th century, it was the most populated American city founded within that century, population growth has accelerated since the 1960s, and between 1990 and 2000 the population nearly doubled, increasing by 85. 2%. Rapid growth has continued into the 21st century, and according to a 2013 estimate, perhaps the earliest visitors to the Las Vegas area were nomadic Paleo-Indians, who traveled there 10,000 years ago, leaving behind petroglyphs. Anasazi and Paiute tribes followed at least 2,000 years ago, a young Mexican scout named Rafael Rivera is credited as the first non-Native American to encounter the valley, in 1829. Trader Antonio Armijo led a 60-man party along the Spanish Trail to Los Angeles, the area was named Las Vegas, which is Spanish for the meadows, as it featured abundant wild grasses, as well as desert spring waters for westward travelers. The year 1844 marked the arrival of John C, frémont, whose writings helped lure pioneers to the area. Downtown Las Vegas Fremont Street is named after him, eleven years later members of the LDS Church chose Las Vegas as the site to build a fort halfway between Salt Lake City and Los Angeles, where they would travel to gather supplies. The fort was abandoned several years afterward, the remainder of this Old Mormon Fort can still be seen at the intersection of Las Vegas Boulevard and Washington Avenue. Las Vegas was founded as a city in 1905, when 110 acres of adjacent to the Union Pacific Railroad tracks were auctioned in what would become the downtown area. In 1911, Las Vegas was incorporated as a city,1931 was a pivotal year for Las Vegas. At that time, Nevada legalized casino gambling and reduced residency requirements for divorce to six weeks and this year also witnessed the beginning of construction on nearby Hoover Dam. The influx of workers and their families helped Las Vegas avoid economic calamity during the Great Depression. The construction work was completed in 1935, in 1941, the Las Vegas Army Air Corps Gunnery School was established. Currently known as Nellis Air Force Base, it is home to the team called the Thunderbirds
5.
Mountain Lakes, New Jersey
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Mountain Lakes is a borough in Morris County, New Jersey, United States, and a suburb of New York City. The borough was named for a pair of lakes in the area, New Jersey Monthly magazine ranked Mountain Lakes as the 26th best place to live in New Jersey in its rankings of the New Jerseys Top Towns 2011-2012 in New Jersey. Grimes Homestead, is an 18th-century historic home that served as a way station on the Underground Railroad, Mountain Lakes was originally a planned community, founded in 1910 by Herbert Hapgood. It became an independent town in 1924, the United States Navys Underwater Sound Reference Laboratories was located in Mountain Lakes during World War II. While this has changed in recent years, the still has a less diverse population than the rest of New Jersey. According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough had an area of 2.885 square miles. Part of The Tourne county park is in Mountain Lakes, man-made lakes in Mountain Lakes include Birchwood Lake, Crystal Lake, Mountain Lake, Sunset Lake, Wildwood Lake, and Cove Lake. It is only legal to swim in Birchwood Lake, and Mountain Lake in the areas that are roped off, swimming is allowed between the hours of 5 am to 10 PM every day between the months of June and August with a beach badge purchased at the borough hall. As of the census of 2010, there were 4,160 people,1,313 households, the population density was 1,590.3 per square mile. There were 1,363 housing units at a density of 521.1 per square mile. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2. 55% of the population,11. 3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5. 5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.17 and the family size was 3.44. In the borough, the population was out with 34. 9% under the age of 18,4. 8% from 18 to 24,16. 8% from 25 to 44,33. 5% from 45 to 64. The median age was 41.8 years, for every 100 females there were 99.9 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and old there were 93.5 males, the Census Bureaus 2006-2010 American Community Survey showed that median household income was $155,139 and the median family income was $181,600. Males had an income of $144,688 versus $77,734 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $75,525, about 2. 1% of families and 2. 1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2. 0% of those under age 18 and 5. 2% of those age 65 or over. According to The New York Times, a group of foreigners have been moving to the borough, including Germans, Chinese, South Africans
6.
Carnegie Mellon University
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Carnegie Mellon University is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools, in 1967, the Carnegie Institute of Technology merged with the Mellon Institute of Industrial Research to form Carnegie Mellon University. The universitys 140-acre main campus is 3 miles from Downtown Pittsburgh, john Heinz III College of Information Systems and Public Policy, and the School of Computer Science. The university also has campuses in Qatar and Silicon Valley, with degree-granting programs in six continents, Carnegie Mellon consistently ranks in the top 25 in the national U. S. News & World Report rankings. It is home to the world’s first degree-granting Robotics and Drama programs, the university spent $242 million on research in 2015. Carnegie Mellon counts 13,650 students from 114 countries, over 100,000 living alumni, Carnegies vision was to open a vocational training school for the sons and daughters of working-class Pittsburghers. Carnegie was inspired for the design of his school by the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, in 1912 the institution changed its name to Carnegie Institute of Technology and began offering four-year degrees. The Mellon Institute of Industrial Research was founded in 1913 by banker and industrialist brothers Andrew, Mellon in honor of their father, Thomas Mellon, the patriarch of the Mellon family. The Institute began as an organization which performed work for government. In 1927, the Mellon Institute incorporated as an independent nonprofit, in 1938, the Mellon Institutes iconic building was completed and it moved to its new, and current, location on Fifth Avenue. In 1967, with support from Paul Mellon, Carnegie Tech merged with the Mellon Institute of Industrial Research to become Carnegie Mellon University, Carnegie Mellons coordinate womens college, the Margaret Morrison Carnegie College closed in 1973 and merged its academic programs with the rest of the university. The industrial research mission of the Mellon Institute survived the merger as the Carnegie Mellon Research Institute and continued doing work on contract to industry, CMRI closed in 2001 and its programs were subsumed by other parts of the university or spun off into independent entities. Carnegie Mellons 140-acre main campus is three miles from downtown Pittsburgh, between Schenley Park and the Squirrel Hill, Shadyside, and Oakland neighborhoods, Carnegie Mellon is bordered to the west by the campus of the University of Pittsburgh. Carnegie Mellon owns 81 buildings in the Oakland and Squirrel Hill neighborhoods of Pittsburgh, for decades the center of student life on campus was Skibo Hall, the Universitys student union. Built in the 1950s, Skibo Halls design was typical of Mid-Century Modern architecture, the original Skibo was razed in the summer of 1994 and replaced by a new student union that is fully wi-fi enabled. Known as University Center, the building was dedicated in 1996, in 2014, Carnegie Mellon re-dedicated the University Center as the Cohon University Center in recognition of the eighth president of the university, Jared Cohon. A large grassy area known as the Cut forms the backbone of the campus, the Cut was formed by filling in a ravine with soil from a nearby hill that was leveled to build the College of Fine Arts building. The northwestern part of the campus was acquired from the United States Bureau of Mines in the 1980s, the sculpture was controversial for its placement, the general lack of input that the campus community had, and its aesthetic appeal
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Niko Bellic
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Niko Bellic is voiced by Michael Hollick, who also provides some motion capture for the character, along with Sam Glen, Bas Rutten, Amir Perets and Mario DLeon. Nikos nationality is never specified in the game, and has been a subject of some debate, prior to the game being launched, it was believed by some that he was Russian, Croatian, or Serbian. In the games backstory, Nikos father is portrayed as a violent alcoholic who abuses him, his mother. According to the backstory, Niko participates in the war as a youth, serving in an unknown militia as an infantryman, tank operator. A defining moment in the war for Niko in the backstory is when his unit of fifteen young men from his village are ambushed by the enemy. Niko barely escapes the ambush, and weeks later concludes that the unit has been betrayed by one of their own soldiers and he returns to the pit where his friends were buried, digs up the bodies, counted them, and identifies each of the corpses. From this he learns there are two other survivors, Florian Cravic and Darko Brevic. Niko vows to search for the perpetrator, motivated not solely by revenge, by the end of the war, Niko experiences difficulty finding work and leading a normal life, and his elder brother has been killed in action during the war. Before the war, his cousin Roman Bellic decides to settle in the United States in order to lead a new life in Liberty City, after being released from a brief stint in prison, Niko joins a smuggling and trafficking ring run by Russian criminal Ray Bulgarin. During one smuggling run into Italy, the boat that Niko is working on sinks in the Adriatic Sea, a mile from the nearest shoreline. Niko manages to abandon the ship and swim to safety, however everything else placed on the ship was lost beyond salvaging, and Bulgarin accused Niko of escaping with the money on board. Although Niko denies the accusations, Bulgarin refuses to him and he is too powerful to argue with. He spends the following seven months at sea in the Atlantic Ocean, befriending the crew of the Platypus, Niko eventually discovers that Florian Cravic, one of the two survivors of the ambush, is also residing in Liberty City. Upon arriving in Liberty City aboard the Platypus and being greeted by an excited Roman, starting from Roman, Nikos professional and personal relationships keep expanding over the course of the game. Niko and Roman are soon kidnapped by henchmen of Glebovs superior, the powerful but mentally unstable Russian Mafia don, Mikhail Faustin, the two are interrogated in the basement of Faustins mansion, however Faustin enters the basement, angry because he had not authorized the kidnapping. Faustin kills the henchman interrogating Niko and shoots Roman in the stomach for screaming too loudly. After being released, Faustin reveals that he hated Vlad Glebov and actually approves of Niko for killing him, Faustin gives Niko work as a hired gun, but eventually orders him to kill the son of a rival Russian mafia don, Kenny Petrović. Deciding he has no choice, Niko confronts Faustin at his club, Perestroika, chasing the him to the clubs rooftop, Niko corners Faustin and aims a gun at him
8.
Grand Theft Auto IV
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The soundtrack to the game Grand Theft Auto IV, like the previous games in the series, is mostly made up of in-game radio stations. These radio stations can be listened to when driving various vehicles in the game, Radio stations in past games have included licensed music, original music made specifically for the game, DJ chat, and spoof advertising. This game includes 19 in-game radio stations (20 in the PC edition, of the 19 stations,16 are musical stations while the other three are talk radio. The songs included with the downloadable content carry over to the compilation disc Grand Theft Auto, Episodes from Liberty City, instead there are three exclusive radio stations featuring 48 songs not available for the original game. The radio stations play songs in an order, and will still start at a random point whenever the player enters a vehicle. The radio station that is on when the player enters a vehicle is based on the type of vehicle the player enters, along with the in-game radio stations, other credited music is heard exclusively at certain points in the game. This includes the opening sequence and when walking through the interiors of certain buildings in the game. Michael Hunter composed and produced the song called Soviet Connection — The Theme from Grand Theft Auto IV. As part of a partnership between Rockstar Games and Amazon. com, most of the heard on the in-game radio stations is available for download through the Amazon MP3 digital music store. Beginning with the release of The Lost and Damned, Rockstars soundtrack sales partner is the iTunes Store, like previous games in the Grand Theft Auto series, Grand Theft Auto IV features a soundtrack that can be heard through radio stations while the player is in a vehicle. Liberty City is serviced by 19 radio stations, three of which are talk radio stations, the other stations feature music from a large range of genres, including tracks from Genesis, David Bowie, Bob Marley, The Who, Queen, Kanye West and Elton John. Grand Theft Auto IV uses a music system to that of Grand Theft Auto. In other games in the series, each station was essentially a single looped sound file, playing the same songs. Certain songs are edited to incorporate references to the fictional Liberty City. Saturday Night Live actors Bill Hader and Jason Sudeikis appear on the liberal and conservative talk shows respectively. Numerous other comedians, including Jim Norton, Patrice ONeal, Rick Shapiro, in the PC version there is also a Independence FM station which plays music files stored in My Documents\Rockstar Games\GTA IV\User Music path. Songs that featured with the content can also be heard in the original version. DJ, Mister Cee, DJ Green Lantern, Funkmaster Flex and Statik Selektah Genre, Hip hop, rap, R&B DJ, Mixed by DJ PremierGenre, Hip hop † Not included in Grand Theft Auto, Episodes from Liberty City
9.
Play (theatre)
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A play is a form of literature written by a playwright, usually consisting of dialogue between characters, intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. Plays are performed at a variety of levels, from Broadway, Off-Broadway, regional theater, to Community theatre, there are rare dramatists, notably George Bernard Shaw, who have had little preference as to whether their plays were performed or read. The term play can refer to both the works of playwrights and to their complete theatrical performance. Comedies are plays which are designed to be humorous, comedies are often filled with witty remarks, unusual characters, and strange circumstances. Certain comedies are geared toward different age groups, comedies were one of the two original play types of Ancient Greece, along with tragedies. An example of a comedy would be William Shakespeares play A Midsummer Nights Dream, a generally nonsensical genre of play, farces are often overacted and often involve slapstick humor. An example of a farce includes William Shakespeares play The Comedy of Errors, a satire play takes a comic look at current events people while at the same time attempting to make a political or social statement, for example pointing out corruption. An example of a satire would be Nikolai Gogols The Government Inspector, satire plays are generally one of the most popular forms of comedy, and often considered to be their own genre entirely. This is a genre that explored relationships between men and women, and was considered risqué in its time, however, since restoration comedy dealt with unspoken aspects of relationships, it created a type of connection between audience and performance that was more informal and private. It is commonly agreed that restoration comedy has origins in Molière’s theories of comedy, the inconsistency between restoration comedy’s morals and the morals of the era is something that often arises during the study of this genre. This may give clues as to why, despite its original success, however, in recent years, it has become a topic of interest for theatre theorists, who have been looking into theatre styles that have their own conventions of performance. These plays contain darker themes such as death and disaster, often the protagonist of the play has a tragic flaw, a trait which leads to their downfall. Tragic plays convey all emotions and have extremely dramatic conflicts, tragedy was one of the two original play types of Ancient Greece. Some examples of tragedies include William Shakespeares Hamlet, and also John Websters play The Duchess of Malfi and these plays focus on actual historical events. They can be tragedies or comedies, but are neither of these. History as a genre was popularized by William Shakespeare. Examples of historical plays include Friedrich Schillers Demetrius and William Shakespeares King John, ballad opera, a popular theatre style at the time, was the first style of musical to be performed in the American colonies. The first musical of American origin was premiered in Philadelphia in 1767, and was called “The Disappointment”, however, around the 1920s, theatre styles were beginning to be defined more clearly
