1.
The Alamo (1960 film)
–
The Alamo is a 1960 American historical epic war film about the 1836 Battle of the Alamo produced and directed by John Wayne and starring Wayne as Davy Crockett. The picture also stars Richard Widmark as Jim Bowie and Laurence Harvey as William B, the movie was photographed in 70 mm Todd-AO by William H. Clothier and released by United Artists, the film depicts the Battle of the Alamo and the events leading up to it. Sam Houston leads the forces fighting for Texas independence and needs time to build an army, the opposing Mexican forces, led by General Santa Anna, are numerically stronger and also better armed and trained. Nevertheless, the Texans have spirit and morale remains generally high, lieutenant Colonel William Travis is tasked with defending the Alamo, a former mission in San Antonio. Jim Bowie arrives with reinforcements and the dig in. Santa Annas armies arrive and surround the fort, Jim Bowie goes to Santa Anna under the peace flag, so Travis, angered by Jim Bowie, shoots a cannon at the armies, saying he will negotiate peace from a position of power only. In a nighttime raid, the Texans sabotage the Mexicans biggest cannon, the Texans maintain high hopes as they are told a strong force led by Colonel James Fannin is on its way to break the siege. Crockett, however, sensing an imminent attack, sends one of his men, Smitty. Crockett knows this will perhaps save Smittys life, the Mexicans frontally attack the Alamo. The defenders hold out and kill hundreds of charging Mexican soldiers, further boosting morale, the movie then depicts morale dropping when Travis tells his men that Fannins reinforcements have been ambushed, and, after surrendering, slaughtered by the Mexicans. Travis chooses to stay with his command and defend the Alamo, Crockett, Bowie and their men prepare to leave, but an inspired tribute by Travis convinces them to stay and fight to the end. On the thirteenth day of the siege, Santa Annas artillery bombards the Alamo, the entire Mexican army sweeps forward, attacking on all sides. The defenders kill dozens of charging Mexicans, but the attack is overwhelming, the Mexicans blast a hole in the Alamo wall and soldiers swarm through. Travis tries to rally the men but is shot and killed, Crockett leads the Texans in the final defense of the fort. The Mexicans take heavy losses, but swarm through and overwhelm the Texans, the Texans retreat to their final defensive positions. Crockett is killed in the chaos when he is run through by a lance, Bowie, in bed with his wound, kills several Mexicans but is bayoneted and dies. As the last Texan is killed, the Mexican soldiers discover the place of the wife
2.
Battle of the Alamo
–
The Battle of the Alamo was a pivotal event in the Texas Revolution. Following a 13-day siege, Mexican troops under President General Antonio López de Santa Anna launched an assault on the Alamo Mission near San Antonio de Béxar, Santa Annas cruelty during the battle inspired many Texians—both Texas settlers and adventurers from the United States—to join the Texian Army. Buoyed by a desire for revenge, the Texians defeated the Mexican Army at the Battle of San Jacinto, on April 21,1836, several months previously, Texians had driven all Mexican troops out of Mexican Texas. About 100 Texians were then garrisoned at the Alamo, the Texian force grew slightly with the arrival of reinforcements led by eventual Alamo co-commanders James Bowie and William B. On February 23, approximately 1,500 Mexicans marched into San Antonio de Béxar as the first step in a campaign to retake Texas, for the next 10 days, the two armies engaged in several skirmishes with minimal casualties. Aware that his garrison could not withstand an attack by such a force, Travis wrote multiple letters pleading for more men and supplies. In the early morning hours of March 6, the Mexican Army advanced on the Alamo, after repelling two attacks, the Texians were unable to fend off a third attack. As Mexican soldiers scaled the walls, most of the Texian soldiers withdrew into interior buildings, Defenders unable to reach these points were slain by the Mexican cavalry as they attempted to escape. Between five and seven Texians may have surrendered, if so, most eyewitness accounts reported between 182 and 257 Texians died, while most historians of the Alamo agree that around 600 Mexicans were killed or wounded. Several noncombatants were sent to Gonzales to spread word of the Texian defeat, within Mexico, the battle has often been overshadowed by events from the Mexican–American War of 1846–48. In 19th-century Texas, the Alamo complex gradually became known as a battle rather than a former mission. The Texas Legislature purchased the land and buildings in the part of the 20th century. The Alamo is now the most popular tourist site in Texas, the Alamo has been the subject of numerous non-fiction works beginning in 1843. Under President Antonio López de Santa Anna, the Mexican government began to shift away from a federalist model, the increasingly dictatorial policies, including the revocation of the Constitution of 1824 in early 1835, incited many federalists to revolt. The border region of Mexican Texas was largely populated by immigrants from the United States and these people were accustomed to a federalist government and to extensive individual rights, and they were quite vocal in their displeasure at Mexicos shift towards centralism. In October, Texians engaged Mexican troops in the first official battle of the Texas Revolution, determined to quell the rebellion, Santa Anna began assembling a large force, the Army of Operations in Texas, to restore order. Most of his soldiers were raw recruits, and a number had been forcibly conscripted. The Texians systematically defeated the Mexican troops already stationed in Texas, the last group of Mexican soldiers in the region—commanded by Santa Annas brother-in-law, General Martín Perfecto de Cos—surrendered on December 9 following the siege of Béxar
3.
Ron Howard
–
Ronald William Ron Howard is an American actor and filmmaker. Howard is best known for playing two roles in television sitcoms in his youth and directing a number of successful feature films later in his career. Howard first came to prominence playing young Opie Taylor in the sitcom The Andy Griffith Show for eight years, in 1980, Howard left Happy Days to focus on directing. His films include, the science-fiction/fantasy film Cocoon, the historical docudrama Apollo 13, the biographical drama A Beautiful Mind, in 2002, Howard narrated the Fox comedy series, Arrested Development, on which he would also serve as producer and play a semi-fictionalized version of himself. In 2003, Howard was awarded the National Medal of Arts, asteroid 12561 Howard is named after him. He was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 2013, Howard has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contributions in the television and motion pictures industries. Howard was born in Duncan, Oklahoma, the son of Jean Speegle Howard, an actress, and Rance Howard, a director, a writer. He has German, English, Scottish, Irish, and Dutch ancestry and his father was born with the surname Beckenholdt, and had taken the stage name Howard by 1948, for his acting career. Rance Howard was serving three years in the United States Air Force at the time of Rons birth, the family moved to Hollywood in 1958, the year before the birth of his younger brother, Clint Howard. They rented a house on the south of the Desilu Studios. They lived in Hollywood for at least three years, before moving to Burbank, Howard was tutored at Desilu Studios in his younger years, and graduated from John Burroughs High School. He later attended the University of Southern Californias School of Cinematic Arts, Howard has said he knew from a young age he might want to go into directing thanks to his early experience as an actor. In 1959, Howard had his first credited role, in The Journey. Howard played Timmy in Counterfeit Gun, Season 4, Episode 2 of the TV series, in 1960, Howard was cast as Opie Taylor in The Andy Griffith Show. Credited as Ronny Howard, he portrayed the son of the character for all eight seasons of the show. He and Griffith remained close until Griffiths death nearly 45 years later, in the 1962 film version of The Music Man, Howard played Winthrop Paroo, the child with the lisp, the film starred Robert Preston and Shirley Jones. He also starred in the 1963 film The Courtship of Eddies Father and he appeared as Barry Stewart on The Eleventh Hour, in the episode Is Mr. Martian Coming Back. In the 1970s, he appeared in at least one episode of The Bold Ones, Howard appeared on the 1969 Disneyland Records album The Story and Song from the Haunted Mansion
4.
Mark Johnson (producer)
–
Mark Johnson is an American film producer. Johnson won the Best Picture Academy Award for producing the 1988 drama movie Rain Man, starring Dustin Hoffman, the film, winner of four Oscars, also captured a Golden Globe for Best Picture. Johnson was born in Washington, D. C. the son of Dorothy, a realtor, and Emery Johnson and he graduated from the University of Virginia in 1971. Johnson first became involved in business in 1965, as an actor playing the sheriffs deputy in the Spanish spaghetti western Brandy. He spent ten years of his youth in Spain, where he worked as an extra in films such as Franklin Schaffners Nicholas and Alexandra. His early experiences led to acting roles in the European western Ride and Kill. After earning an degree in Drama from the University of Virginia. There he entered the Directors Guild training program, one of his first projects was Paul Mazurskys autobiographical drama Next Stop, Greenwich Village. As part of Baltimore Pictures, his partnership with Levinson, Johnson produced all of the films from 1982–1994. Bugsy also captured a Best Picture Golden Globe Award, under his new banner, Johnson produced the comedy Home Fries, starring Drew Barrymore, and the dramatic thriller Donnie Brasco, starring Al Pacino and Johnny Depp. He also served as producer for CBS-TVs L. A. Doctors and Falcone, and for the hit drama The Guardian, in recent years Johnson produced Nick Cassavetess drama The Notebook, The Wendell Baker Story, which marked the directorial debuts of brothers Luke and Andrew Wilson, and How to Eat Fried Worms. He is working with Guillermo del Toro to produce the movie adaption of David Moodys novel Hater, in 2005 Johnson produced The Chronicles of Narnia, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, directed by Andrew Adamson and starring Tilda Swinton. The film was nominated for three Academy Awards and three BAFTAs, winning one of each, in 2008 he produced a sequel, Prince Caspian. The third film in the Narnia series, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and he produced 2015s thriller Secret in Their Eyes. Johnson was a producer on AMCs Emmy Award-winning series Breaking Bad. He is also a producer on the Sundance Channel original series Rectify. Johnson is a member of the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts, Mark Johnson Biography – Yahoo Movies Mark Johnson at the Internet Movie Database
5.
Stephen Gaghan
–
Stephen Gaghan is an American screenwriter and director. He is noted for writing the screenplay for Steven Soderberghs film Traffic, based on a Channel 4 series, for which he won the Academy Award, as well as Syriana which he wrote and directed. Gaghan was born in Louisville, Kentucky, the son of the former Elizabeth Jane Whorton and her first husband, Stephen Gaghan, Gaghan attended Kentucky Country Day School, a college preparatory school in Louisville. He was an All-State soccer player where he held the assist record at the school for three decades. He is a grandson of Jerry Gaghan, a newspaper columnist and drama critic for Variety and the Philadelphia Daily News. Gaghan wrote in a 2001 article in Newsweek, I also wanted to be a writer, like my grandfather, in his final days of high school before graduation, Gaghan was expelled for driving a go-cart through the halls of the school. Gaghan has stated that he began dealing with his addictions in 1997, over one long, five-day weekend, I had three separate heroin dealers get arrested, he said. My dealer, my backup dealer and my backup-backup dealer, I was left alone, and I just hit that place, that total incomprehensible demoralization. That was the end of it, up five straight, locked in the bathroom, convinced there was nowhere else to go, I had to kill myself. I just couldnt take another minute of it and he attended the University of Kentucky and was a member of Delta Tau Delta fraternity. He was a student on the Fall 1986 Voyage of the Semester at Sea Study Abroad Program where he attended classes on board the SS Universe and he attended Babson College in Massachusetts. He also started a company, Fallen Empire Inc. which he hoped would support his writing career. Gaghan wrote the screenplay for Traffic, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay in 2000, other writing credits include Havoc, The Alamo and Rules of Engagement, as well as a handful of episodes of various television series. Gaghan turned down the chance to adapt Dan Browns novel, The Da Vinci Code, in his television writing career, he won an Emmy Award for co-writing a NYPD Blue episode entitled Wheres Swaldo, in 1997. In addition to NYPD Blue, he has written for The Practice. His next project is a adaptation of Malcolm Gladwells book, Blink. He has also hired by Warner Bros. to write the screenplay of the Dead Spy Running franchise written by author Jon Stock. He is also set to direct crime thriller Candy Store, Gaghan has a son Gardner and a daughter Elizabeth from a previous relationship with actress Michael McCraine
6.
Dennis Quaid
–
Dennis William Quaid is an American actor known for a wide variety of dramatic and comedic roles. First gaining widespread attention in the 1980s, his career rebounded in the 1990s after he overcame an addiction to drugs, for his role in Far from Heaven he won the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor and several other accolades. Quaid was born in Houston, Texas, the son of Juanita B, nita Quaid, a real estate agent, and William Rudy Quaid, an electrician. Quaid has English, Irish, Scots-Irish, and Cajun ancestry, Quaid dropped out of the University of Houston before graduating and moved to Hollywood to pursue an acting career. He initially had trouble finding work but began to notice when he appeared in Breaking Away. Known for his grin, Quaid has appeared in comedic and dramatic roles. Quaid had starring roles in the films Enemy Mine, Innerspace and he also achieved acclaim for his portrayal of Jerry Lee Lewis in Great Balls of Fire. In 1989, he appeared throughout the Bonnie Raitt music video for the song Thing Called Love. He continued to garner positive reviews in a variety of films, Quaid was also the guest star of a season 2 episode of Muppets Tonight. I. Joe, The Rise of Cobra, and Pandorum, in 2009, Quaid guest starred in an episode of SpongeBob SquarePants, playing Mr. Krabs grandfather, Captain Redbeard. He portrayed U. S. President Bill Clinton, alongside Michael Sheen as Tony Blair and Hope Davis as Hillary Clinton, in 2012 and 2013, Quaid played Sheriff Ralph Lamb in the CBS TV drama series Vegas. In 2017 he starred in A Dogs Purpose, billed as a celebration of the connection between humans and their dogs. He received nominations for Best Supporting Actor from the Golden Globe Awards, the Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards, Quaid was also honored with a Distinguished Alumni Award from his alma mater, the University of Houston, in April 2012. Quaid has been married three times and has three children, Quaid and his first wife, actress P. J. Soles, were married on November 25,1978. On February 14,1991, Quaid married actress Meg Ryan, Quaid and Ryan fell in love during the shooting of their second film together, D. O. A. Quaid and Ryan have a son, Jack Henry and they announced their separation on June 28,2000, saying they had been separated six weeks by then. Their divorce was finalized July 16,2001, Meg Ryan later revealed to InStyle Quaid had been unfaithful to her for a long time while they were married. Quaid dated model Shanna Moakler in 2001 and they were together when she was approached by Playboy, and they discussed it before she posed nude in the magazine
7.
Billy Bob Thornton
–
Billy Bob Thornton is an American actor, filmmaker, singer, songwriter, and musician. In 2016, he starred in an Amazon original series, Goliath about a washed up attorney with a new case. He has been vocal about his disrespect for celebrity culture, choosing to keep his life out of the public eye, however, the attention of the media has proven unavoidable in certain cases, his marriage to Angelina Jolie being a notable example. Thornton has appeared in at least one film per year every year since 1991. Thornton has written a variety of films, usually set in the Southern United States and mainly co-written with Tom Epperson, including A Family Thing, after Sling Blade, he directed several other films, including Daddy and Them, All the Pretty Horses, and Jayne Mansfields Car. He was also nominated for an Emmy Award, four Golden Globes, in addition to film work, Thornton began a career as a singer-songwriter. He has released four albums and is the vocalist of a blues rock band The Boxmasters. His brother Jimmy Don wrote a number of songs, two of which Thornton has recorded on his solo albums, during his childhood, Thornton lived in numerous places in Arkansas, including Alpine, Mount Holly, and Malvern. He was raised a Methodist in a family in a shack that had neither electricity nor plumbing. He graduated from school in 1973. A good high school player, he tried out for the Kansas City Royals. After a short period laying asphalt for the Arkansas State Transportation Department, he attended Henderson State University to pursue studies in psychology, in the mid-1980s, Thornton settled in Los Angeles to pursue his career as an actor, with future writing partner Tom Epperson. He initially had a difficult time succeeding as an actor, and worked in telemarketing, offshore wind farming and he also played drums and sang with South African rock band Jack Hammer. While Thornton worked as a waiter for an event, he served film director. Thornton struck up a conversation with Wilder, who advised Thornton to consider a career as a screenwriter, thorntons first screen role was in 1980s South of Reno, where he played a small role as a counter man in a restaurant. He also made an appearance as a store clerk in the 1987 Matlock episode The Photographer. Another one of his screen roles was as a cast member on the CBS sitcom Hearts Afire. His role as the villain in 1992s One False Move, which he also co-wrote and he also had small roles in the 1990s films Indecent Proposal, On Deadly Ground, Bound by Honor, and Tombstone
8.
Patrick Wilson (American actor)
–
Patrick Joseph Wilson is an American actor and singer. He spent his career starring in Broadway musicals, beginning in 1995. He is a two-time Tony Award nominee for his roles in The Full Monty and Oklahoma. On television, he starred in the CBS drama series A Gifted Man and he has been cast as Orm Marius / Ocean Master in the DC Extended Universe superhero film Aquaman. Wilsons oldest brother, Paul, works as an advertising executive, Wilson grew up in St. Petersburg, Florida and attended Shorecrest Preparatory School. In 1995, Wilson graduated with a B. F. A. in Drama from Carnegie Mellon University, shortly after, in 1995, Wilson made his acting debut as an understudy in the role of Chris Scott in the national touring production of Miss Saigon. The following year, he portrayed Billy Bigelow in the tour of Carousel. In 1999, he starred as Jamie Conway in the Off-Broadway production of Bright Lights, Big City, for his performance in the role, he was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical. Circa 2000, Wilson completed work on the film My Sisters Wedding and he sang On the Street Where You Live from My Fair Lady for Julie Andrews awards ceremony when she received the Kennedy Center Honors in 2001. In 2002, his performance as Curly McLain in the Broadway production of Oklahoma, received critical acclaim, with Wilson being nominated for the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical for the second time each. In 2004, Wilson made his first film appearance in The Alamo and that same year, he co-starred in the musical film The Phantom of the Opera as Viscount Raoul de Chagny. The following year, he starred alongside Ellen Page in the thriller film Hard Candy. In 2006, he starred as Brad Adamson in Todd Fields Little Children, also in 2006, he appeared in the Golden Globe Award-nominated Running With Scissors as Michael Shephard, which was directed by Ryan Murphy and produced by Brad Pitt. In 2007, he starred as Brian Callahan in the independent film Purple Violets, in 2008, he starred in Neil LaButes Lakeview Terrace. Wilson played Dan Dreiberg / Nite Owl II in Zack Snyders 2009 film adaptation of the graphic novel Watchmen and this film reunited Wilson with his Little Children co-star, Jackie Earle Haley. On November 20,2010, in Yankee Stadium, he sang the United States National Anthem before the first football game in the new stadium, Wilson played the primary antagonist Lynch in 2010s The A-Team, and co-starred with Rose Byrne in James Wans horror film Insidious. He returned for the films sequel, Insidious, Chapter 2. In 2013, Wilson portrayed the famous paranormal investigator Ed Warren, alongside Vera Farmiga starring as his wife Lorraine, the film was critically acclaimed, becoming one of the highest grossing horror films of all time
9.
Touchstone Pictures
–
Touchstone Pictures is an American film distribution label of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. Previously, Touchstone operated as an film production banner of Walt Disney Studios. Touchstone Pictures merely serves as a brand, not a business operation. In 2009, Disney entered into a 5-year, 30-picture distribution deal with DreamWorks Pictures by which DreamWorks productions would be released through the Touchstone banner, Touchstone then distributed DreamWorks films from 2011 to 2016. Due to increased public assumption that Disney films were aimed at children and families, in late 1979, Disney Productions released The Black Hole, a science-fiction movie that was the studios first production to receive a PG rating. Over the next few years, Disney experimented with more PG-rated fare, tron was considered a potential Star Wars-level success film by the film division. A loss of $33 million was registered by the division in 1983 with the majority resulting from Something Wicked This Way Comes. Never Cry Wolf, a 1983 PG release that featured male nudity did well as the studio downplayed the films association with the Disney brand. Touchstone Films was started by then-Disney CEO Ron W. Miller on February 15,1984 as a label for their PG films with an expected 3 to 4 movies released under the label. Touchstones first film was Splash, a hit for grossing $68 million at the domestic box office was released that year. Incoming Disney CEO Michael Eisner and film chief Jeffrey Katzenberg considered renaming the label to Hollywood Pictures, following in 1986, Down and Out in Beverly Hills was another early success for Touchstone and is noted as Disneys first R-rated film. Allowing the momentum to increase with films with Ruthless People, Outrageous Fortune, Tin Men. In April 1985, Touchstone Films were licensed to Showtime/The Movie Channel for five years starting in 1986, Touchstone Films was renamed Touchstone Pictures after the film Ruthless People in 1986. With the Touchstone movies, Disney moved to the top of box office receipts beating out all the major film studios by 1988. In April 1988, Touchstone became a unit of Walt Disney Pictures with newly appointed president Ricardo Mestres, on October 23,1990, The Walt Disney Company formed Touchwood Pacific Partners I to supplant the Silver Screen Partnership series as their movie studios primary funding source. Mestres was appointed president of Hollywood, in 2006, Disney limited Touchstones output to 2 or 3 films in favor of Walt Disney Pictures titles due to an increase in film industry costs. Two Touchstone co-productions flopped at the box office minimized by its co-producers financial contributions to the movies, Disney revived Touchstone in 2009 to serve as a distribution label for DreamWorks Studios films. DreamWorks was expected to allow Disney to release additional family fare that could be used at its parks and on its channels, Disney has been financing DreamWorks productions with an $90 million more available under its agreement if DreamWorks cannot get additional equity funding
10.
Imagine Entertainment
–
Imagine Entertainment is an American film and television production company founded in 1986 by director Ron Howard and producer Brian Grazer. Brian Grazer and Ron Howard met in 1982 on Night Shift with Howard directing, then followed it up with working on 1984s Splash. Early on the company sealed a production and distribution deal with Universal Pictures expiring in November 1992, universals deal was to fund 50% of 30 films. The company had an IPO in 1986 at $8 for a package of one share, shares rose to $19.25 before falling in the stock market crash in 1987 to $2.25. A pay television broadcast agreement was made with Showtime, by May 1992, 48% of the stock was public traded and worth $9.375. The duo agreed to a new six deal with Universal while concurrently offering $9 a share to buy the companys public outstanding share to start a new company with its assets. If not they planned to leave the company at their contract expiration in November to start the new company anyway, Universal was providing the cash for the buy out for an equity stake in the new company. In 2000, the partnership partnered for TV series development with 20th Century Fox, in 2011, the company had three weak box office performers with The Dilemma, Cowboys & Aliens and Tower Heist. Because of their weak financial pact renewal with Universal in January 2012 and this also moves Imagine from exclusive to a first look deal. By 2013, Imagine was considering other funding methods for the films including crowdfunding for a Friday Night Lights movie. In November 2013, Michael Rosenberg was promoted to Co-chairman followed in December 2013 with Erica Huggins being promoted to his previous position of president. Industry insiders indicated in late January 2016 that a deal with Raine Group was in the works that would have Raine become a partner of the company while contributing $100 million. The feature-film division has participated in over sixty productions and is associated with Universal Pictures, Erica Huggins was hired as senior vice president of motion pictures and was elevated to exec vice president in 2006 then in 2010 to co-president of production. 2010 Robin Hood 2011 Take Me Home Tonight The Dilemma Cowboys & Aliens Restless Tower Heist J
11.
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
–
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures is an American film distributor owned by The Walt Disney Company. The division took on its current name in late 2007, which before that had been Buena Vista Pictures Distribution since 1987, before 1953, Walt Disneys productions were distributed by Columbia Pictures, United Artists and RKO Radio Pictures. The name Buena Vista came from the street in Burbank, California, Buena Vistas first release was the Academy Award–winning live-action feature The Living Desert on November 10,1953 along with Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom, Buena Vistas first animated release. Notable subsequent releases include the film, Yang Kwei Fei, released in US theaters in September 1956, The Missouri Traveler in March 1958. In April 1960, the company dropped Film from its name, in 1961, Disney incorporated Buena Vista International, distributing its first PG rated film, Take Down, in January 1979. The low-budget movie was not produced by the Disney studios and was acquired from an independent studio, in July 1987, Buena Vista changed its name to Buena Vista Pictures Distribution, Inc. Late in the 1980s, Disney purchased a stake in one of Pacific Theatres chain leading to Disneys Buena Vista Theaters and Pacific to renovate the El Capitan Theatre. The Crest was finished first while El Capitan opened with the premiere of The Rocketeer film on June 19,1991, the corporation purchased a 12. 8% share in Cinergi with its initial public offering in 1994. Soon, BVPD signed a 25 picture distribution deal with Cinergi, the Gaumont Film Company and Walt Disney formed Gaumont Buena Vista International, their joint venture French distribution company, in 1993. In August 1996, Disney and Tokuma Shoten Publishing agreed that Disney would distribute internationally Studio Ghibli animated films, in September 1996, following Disneys acquisition of Capital Cities/ABC, Buena Vista Pictures Distribution, Inc. was merged into ABC, Inc. the parent company of that group. In July 1998, Buena Vista Pictures Distribution purchased the Hollywood Masonic Temple building to continue using it as a promotional venue, by 1997, BVPDs share in Cinergi dropped to 5%.4 million and other loans. In 2002, Disney signed a four animated film deal with Vanguard Animation, however, since 2004, BVI and Gaumont dissolved their French distribution joint venture, Gaumont Buena Vista International. Buena Vista International agreed to a deal with MegaStar Joint Venture Company Limited in April 2006 for the Vietnam market. In April 2007, Disney discontinued using the Buena Vista brand in its distribution branding, the distribution deal ended in 2016, after DreamWorks and Disney decided to not renew their agreement in December 2015, with Universal replacing Disney as DreamWorks distributor. By the end of the deal, Disney had distributed 14 of DreamWorks original 30-picture agreement, Disney took complete ownership of the DreamWorks II film library in exchange for loans made to that company. In addition, Disney is the first of three studios that have released at least two billion-dollar films in the same year. Furthermore, Disney is the studio that has achieved this four times, in 2010,2013,2015, and 2016—that latter year of which included four $1 billion releases. Four of the top five highest-grossing animated films have been released by Disney, in addition, four of the top-five opening weekends were Disney releases
12.
War film
–
War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about naval, air, or land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle scenes means that war films often end with them, themes explored include combat, survival and escape, sacrifice, the futility and inhumanity of battle, the effects of war on society, and the moral and human issues raised by war. War films are categorized by their milieu, such as the Korean War. The stories told may be fiction, historical drama, or biographical, critics have noted similarities between the Western and the war film. Subgenres, not necessarily distinct, include anti-war, comedy, animated, propaganda, the war film genre is not necessarily tightly defined, the American Film Institute, for example, speaks of films to grapple with the Great War without attempting to classify these. However, some directors and critics have offered at least tentative definitions, the director Sam Fuller defined the genre by saying that a war film’s objective, no matter how personal or emotional, is to make a viewer feel war. However, Neale notes, films set in the American Civil War or the American Indian Wars of the 19th century were called war films in the time before the First World War, the film scholar Kathryn Kane points out some similarities between the war film genre and the Western. Both genres use opposing concepts like war and peace, civilization, james Clarke notes the similarity between a Western like Sam Peckinpahs The Wild Bunch and war-movie escapades like The Dirty Dozen. They take place in the combat zones of World War II, against the established enemies, on the ground. They contain many repeated events, such as mail call, all presented visually with appropriate uniforms, equipment and she argues that the combat film is not a subgenre but the only genuine kind of war film. This in turn pushes combat scenes to the ends of war films. Not all critics agree, either, that war films must be about 20th century wars, the costliest war in U. S. history in terms of American life, this war has been the subject of, or the backdrop to, numerous films, documentaries and mini-series. One of the earliest films using the Civil War as its subject was D. W. Griffiths 1910 silent picture, The Fugitive. Some films such as Gettysburg focused on a battle during the war, or even on a single incident, like the French short film. Others like the 1993 miniseries North and South spanned the entire breadth of the war, some films deal with the human aspects of the war, such as The Red Badge of Courage, or Shenandoah, on the tragedy that the war inflicted on the civilian population. Ken Burnss The Civil War is the most watched documentary in the history of PBS, the first war films come from the Spanish–American War of 1898. Short actualities – documentary film-clips – included Burial of the Maine Victims, Blanket-Tossing of a New Recruit and these non-combat films were accompanied by reenactments of fighting, such as of Theodore Roosevelts Rough Riders in action against the Spanish, staged in the United States
13.
Texas Revolution
–
The Texas Revolution began when colonists in the Mexican province of Texas rebelled against the increasingly centralized Mexican government. After a decade of political and cultural clashes between the Mexican government and the large population of American settlers in Texas, hostilities erupted in October 1835. Texians disagreed on whether the goal was independence or a return to the Mexican Constitution of 1824. While delegates at the Consultation debated the wars motives, Texians, the Consultation declined to declare independence and installed an interim government, whose infighting led to political paralysis and a dearth of effective governance in Texas. An ill-conceived proposal to invade Matamoros siphoned much-needed volunteers and provisions from the fledgling Texas army, in March 1836, a second political convention declared independence and appointed leadership for the new Republic of Texas. Determined to avenge Mexicos honor, President Antonio López de Santa Anna vowed to personally retake Texas and his Army of Operations entered Texas in mid-February 1836 and found the Texians completely unprepared. Mexican General José de Urrea led a contingent of troops on the Goliad Campaign up the Texas coast, defeating all Texian troops in his path and executing most of those who surrendered. Santa Anna led a force to San Antonio de Béxar. On March 31, Houston paused his men at Groces Landing on the Brazos River, becoming complacent and underestimating the strength of his foes, Santa Anna further subdivided his troops. On April 21, Houstons army staged an assault on Santa Anna. The Mexican troops were routed, and vengeful Texians executed many who tried to surrender. Santa Anna was taken hostage, in exchange for his life, Mexico refused to recognize the Republic of Texas, and intermittent conflicts between the two countries continued into the 1840s. The annexation of Texas as the 28th state of the United States, in 1845, after a failed attempt by France to colonize Texas in the late 17th century, Spain developed a plan to settle the region. On its southern edge, along the Medina and Nueces Rivers, on the east, Texas bordered Louisiana. Following the Louisiana Purchase of 1803, the United States also claimed the land west of the Sabine River, following the Mexican War of Independence, Texas became part of Mexico. Under the Constitution of 1824, which defined the country as a federal republic, Texas was granted only a single seat in the state legislature, which met in Saltillo, hundreds of miles away. Texas was very sparsely populated, with fewer than 3,500 residents, and only about 200 soldiers, in the hopes that an influx of settlers could control the Indian raids, the bankrupt Mexican government liberalized immigration policies for the region. Finally able to settle legally in Texas, Anglos from the United States soon vastly outnumbered the Tejanos, most of the immigrants came from the southern United States
14.
Texas
–
Texas is the second largest state in the United States by both area and population. Other major cities include Austin, the second most populous state capital in the U. S. Texas is nicknamed the Lone Star State to signify its former status as an independent republic, and as a reminder of the states struggle for independence from Mexico. The Lone Star can be found on the Texan state flag, the origin of Texass name is from the word Tejas, which means friends in the Caddo language. Due to its size and geologic features such as the Balcones Fault, although Texas is popularly associated with the U. S. southwestern deserts, less than 10 percent of Texas land area is desert. Most of the centers are located in areas of former prairies, grasslands, forests. Traveling from east to west, one can observe terrain that ranges from coastal swamps and piney woods, to rolling plains and rugged hills, the term six flags over Texas refers to several nations that have ruled over the territory. Spain was the first European country to claim the area of Texas, Mexico controlled the territory until 1836 when Texas won its independence, becoming an independent Republic. In 1845, Texas joined the United States as the 28th state, the states annexation set off a chain of events that caused the Mexican–American War in 1846. A slave state before the American Civil War, Texas declared its secession from the U. S. in early 1861, after the Civil War and the restoration of its representation in the federal government, Texas entered a long period of economic stagnation. One Texan industry that thrived after the Civil War was cattle, due to its long history as a center of the industry, Texas is associated with the image of the cowboy. The states economic fortunes changed in the early 20th century, when oil discoveries initiated a boom in the state. With strong investments in universities, Texas developed a diversified economy, as of 2010 it shares the top of the list of the most Fortune 500 companies with California at 57. With a growing base of industry, the leads in many industries, including agriculture, petrochemicals, energy, computers and electronics, aerospace. Texas has led the nation in export revenue since 2002 and has the second-highest gross state product. The name Texas, based on the Caddo word tejas meaning friends or allies, was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves, during Spanish colonial rule, the area was officially known as the Nuevo Reino de Filipinas, La Provincia de Texas. Texas is the second largest U. S. state, behind Alaska, though 10 percent larger than France and almost twice as large as Germany or Japan, it ranks only 27th worldwide amongst country subdivisions by size. If it were an independent country, Texas would be the 40th largest behind Chile, Texas is in the south central part of the United States of America. Three of its borders are defined by rivers, the Rio Grande forms a natural border with the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas to the south
15.
Brian Grazer
–
Brian Thomas Grazer is an American film and television producer. He co-founded Imagine Entertainment in 1986, with Ron Howard, the films they produced have grossed over $13 billion. The movies include four for which Grazer was personally nominated for an Academy Award, Splash, Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind and his films and TV series have been nominated for 43 Academy Awards, and 131 Emmys. In 2002, Grazer won an Oscar for Best Picture for A Beautiful Mind, in 2007, he was named one of Times 100 Most Influential People in the World. Grazer was born in Los Angeles, California, to Arlene Becker Grazer and he is the older brother of Nora Beth Grazer and actor/director Gavin Grazer. He was raised in Sherman Oaks and Northridge, in Los Angeless San Fernando Valley, Grazers mother is Jewish and his father was Catholic, and he described himself in 2000 as half-Jewish. Subsequently, third-party reports conflicted as to whether he was Jewish or a practicing Christian and his parents divorced when he was in high school. Grazer said My best buddy, the most important person in my growing up, was my little 4-foot-10 Jewish grandmother, no ones going to get it for you, Brian. Grazer won a scholarship to the University of Southern California as a psychology major and he graduated from USCs School of Cinema-Television in 1974. He then attended USC Law School for one year, but quit in 1975 to pursue a life in Hollywood, Grazer began his career as a producer developing television projects. While executive-producing TV pilots at Paramount Pictures in the early 1980s, he met current long-time friend and he produced his first feature-film, Night Shift, in 1982, directed by Howard. Grazer and Howard teamed up again for Splash in 1984, which Grazer produced, Splash earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay of 1984. In 1986, Grazer and Howard co-founded Imagine Entertainment, which one of Hollywoods most prolific. Over the years, Grazers films and TV shows have been nominated for a total of 43 Academy Awards, at the same time, his movies have generated more than $13.5 billion in worldwide theatrical, music, and video grosses. Grazers early film successes include Parenthood and Backdraft and he produced Apollo 13, for which he won the Producers Guild of America’s Daryl F. Zanuck Motion Picture Producer of the Year Award, as well as an Oscar nomination for Best Picture of 1995. In 1998, he earned two honors, he was given his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 2001, Grazer won an Academy Award for Best Picture for A Beautiful Mind, which took home Oscars for Best Supporting Actress, Best Director. In 2002, Grazers 8 Mile was released and it proved not only to be a huge box office hit, but also the first film with a rap song to win a Best Original Song Oscar, for Eminems Lose Yourself
16.
Sam Houston
–
Samuel Sam Houston was an American politician and soldier, best known for his role in bringing Texas into the United States as a constituent state. His victory at the Battle of San Jacinto secured the independence of Texas from Mexico in one of the shortest decisive battles in modern history, Houston was born at Timber Ridge Plantation in Rockbridge County, Virginia. After moving to Tennessee, he spent time with the Cherokee Nation, performed service during the War of 1812. In 1827, Houston was elected Governor of Tennessee as a Jacksonian, in 1829, he resigned as governor and relocated to the Arkansas Territory. In 1832, Houston was involved in an altercation with a U. S. Congressman, shortly afterwards, he moved west to Coahuila y Tejas, then a Mexican state, and became a leader of the Texas Revolution. After the war, Houston became a key figure in Texas and was elected as the first and he supported annexation by the United States and upon achieving it in 1845, he became a U. S. As governor, he refused to swear loyalty to the Confederacy when Texas seceded from the Union in 1861 with the outbreak of the American Civil War, to avoid bloodshed, he refused an offer of a Union army to put down the Confederate rebellion. Instead, he retired to Huntsville, Texas, where he died before the end of the war, Houstons name has been honored in numerous ways. He is the namesake of the city of Houston, Texass most populous city, Sam Houston was the fifth son of Major Samuel Houston and Elizabeth Paxton. Houstons paternal ancestry is traced to his great-great grandfather Sir John Houston. His second son, John Houston, emigrated to Ulster, Ireland, under the system of primogeniture, he did not inherit the estate. A historic plaque near Larne in County Antrim, Northern Ireland tells the story of the Houston family and it is located in Ballyboley Forest Park near the site of the original John Houston estate. After several years in Ireland, John Houston immigrated in 1735 with his family to the North American colonies, Houston decided to migrate south with other Scots-Irish, who settled in the backcountry of lands in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. Scots-Irish newcomers included the Lyle family of the Raloo area, who helped found Timber Ridge Presbyterian Church, gradually, John Houston developed his land and purchased slaves. His son, Robert, inherited his fathers land, the youngest of Roberts five sons was Samuel Houston. Samuel Houston became a member of Morgans Rifle Brigade and was commissioned a major during the American Revolutionary War, at the time, militia officers were expected to pay their own expenses. He had married Elizabeth Paxton and inherited his fathers land, but he was not a manager and got into debt. Their children were born on his familys plantation near Timber Ridge Church, including Sam Houston on March 2,1793, the fifth of nine children and the fifth son
17.
David Crockett
–
David Davy Crockett was a 19th-century American folk hero, frontiersman, soldier, and politician. He is commonly referred to in culture by the epithet King of the Wild Frontier. He represented Tennessee in the U. S. House of Representatives, Crockett grew up in East Tennessee, where he gained a reputation for hunting and storytelling. After being made a colonel in the militia of Lawrence County, Tennessee, in 1825, Crockett was elected to the U. S. Congress, where he vehemently opposed many of the policies of President Andrew Jackson, most notably the Indian Removal Act. Crocketts opposition to Jacksons policies led to his defeat in the 1831 elections and he won again in 1833, then narrowly lost in 1835, prompting his angry departure to Texas shortly thereafter. In early 1836, Crockett took part in the Texas Revolution and was killed at the Battle of the Alamo in March, Crockett became famous in his own lifetime for larger-than-life exploits popularized by stage plays and almanacs. After his death, he continued to be credited with acts of mythical proportion and these led in the 20th century to television and movie portrayals, and he became one of the best-known American folk heroes. The Crocketts were of Ulster Scots, English, Scottish, antoine married Louise de Saix and immigrated to Ireland with her, changing the family name to Crockett. Their son Joseph Louis was born in Ireland and married Sarah Stewart, Joseph and Sarah immigrated to New York, where their son William David was born in 1709. William and Elizabeths son David was born in Pennsylvania and married Elizabeth Hedge and they were the parents of William, David Jr. Robert, Alexander, James, Joseph and John, the father of David Crockett who died at the Alamo. John was born c.1753 in Frederick County, Virginia, the family moved to Tryon County, North Carolina c. In 1776, the moved to northeast Tennessee, in the area now known as Hawkins County. John was one of the Overmountain Men who fought in the Battle of Kings Mountain during the American Revolutionary War. While John was away as a volunteer in 1777, David and Elizabeth were killed at their home near todays Rogersville by Creeks. Johns brother Joseph was wounded in the skirmish and his brother James was taken prisoner and held for seventeen years. John married Rebecca Hawkins in 1780, when their son David was born August 17,1786, they named him after Johns father. David was born in what is now Greene County, Tennessee, close to the Nolichucky River, John continually struggled to make ends meet, and in 1792, the Crocketts moved to a tract of land on Lick Creek. Selling that tract of land in 1794, John moved the family to Cove Creek, a flood destroyed the gristmill and the Crockett homestead
18.
James Bowie
–
James Jim Bowie was a 19th-century American pioneer, who played a prominent role in the Texas Revolution, culminating in his death at the Battle of the Alamo. Stories of him as a fighter and frontiersman, both real and fictitious, have him a legendary figure in Texas history and a folk hero of American culture. Born in Kentucky, Bowie spent most of his life in Louisiana, where he was raised and his rise to fame began in 1827 on reports of the Sandbar Fight. What began as a duel between two men deteriorated into a melée in which Bowie, having been shot and stabbed, killed the sheriff of Rapides Parish with a large knife. This, and other stories of Bowies prowess with a knife, Bowies reputation was cemented by his role in the Texas Revolution. After moving to Texas in 1830, Bowie became a Mexican citizen and married Ursula Veramendi and his fame in Texas grew following his failed expedition to find the lost San Saba mine, during which his small party repelled an attack by a large Indian raiding party. At the outbreak of the Texas Revolution, Bowie joined the Texas militia, leading forces at the Battle of Concepción, in January 1836, he arrived at the Alamo, where he commanded the volunteer forces until an illness left him bedridden. Bowie died with the other Alamo defenders on March 6, according to his older brother John, James Bowie was born in Logan County, Kentucky, on March 10,1796. Historian Raymond Thorp gave his date as April 10. Bowies surname was pronounced to rhyme with the French Louis, Bowie was the ninth of ten children born to Elve Ap-Catesby Jones and John Bowie. His father had been wounded fighting in the American Revolution. The Bowies moved frequently, first settling in Georgia, before moving to Kentucky, at the time of Bowies birth, his father owned eight slaves, eleven head of cattle, seven horses, and one stud horse. The following year the family acquired 200 acres along the Red River and they sold that property in 1800 and relocated to Missouri, before moving to Spanish Louisiana in 1802, where they settled on Bushley Bayou in Rapides Parish. The family moved again in 1809, settling on Bayou Teche in Louisiana before finding a permanent home in Opelousas in 1812, the Bowie children were raised on the frontier and even as small children were expected to help clear the land and plant crops. All the children learned to read and write in English, but James and his elder brother Rezin could also read, write, the children learned to survive on the frontier and how to fish and run a farm and plantation. James Bowie became proficient with pistol, rifle, and knife, when he was a boy, one of his Indian friends even taught him to rope alligators. In response to Andrew Jacksons plea for volunteers to fight the British in the War of 1812, James, the Bowie brothers arrived in New Orleans too late to participate in the fighting. After mustering out of the militia, Bowie settled in Rapides Parish, in June 1819, he joined the Long expedition, an effort to liberate Texas from Spanish rule
19.
John Sayles
–
John Thomas Sayles is an American independent film director, screenwriter, editor, actor and novelist. He has twice been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for Passion Fish and his film Men with Guns has been nominated for the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film. His directorial debut, Return of the Secaucus 7, has added to the National Film Registry. Sayles was born in Schenectady, New York, the son of Mary, a teacher, and Donald John Sayles, both of Sayless parents were of half-Irish descent and were Catholic. Like Martin Scorsese and James Cameron, Sayles began his working with Roger Corman. In 1979, Sayles used $30,000 he earned writing scripts for Corman to fund his first film, the film received near-unanimous critical acclaim at the time and has held its reputation. In 1983, after the films Baby Its You and Lianna and he put the money into the fantasy The Brother from Another Planet, a film about a black, three-toed slave who escapes from another planet and finds himself at home among the people of Harlem. In 1989, Sayles created and wrote the episode for the short-lived television show Shannons Deal about a down-and-out Philadelphia lawyer played by Jamey Sheridan. Sayles received a 1990 Edgar Award for his teleplay for the pilot, the show ran for 16 episodes before being cancelled in 1991. Sayles has funded most of his films by writing scripts, such as Piranha, Alligator, The Howling. Having collaborated with Joe Dante on Piranha and The Howling, Sayles acted in Dantes movie, in deciding whether to take a job, Sayles reports that he is interested mostly in whether there is the germ of an idea for a movie which he would want to watch. Sayles gets the rest of his funding by working as a doctor, he did rewrites for Apollo 13. A genre script, called Night Skies, inspired what would become the film E. T. the Extra-Terrestrial. That films director, Steven Spielberg, later commissioned Sayles to write a script for the fourth Jurassic Park film and he has written and directed his own films, including Lone Star, Passion Fish, Eight Men Out, The Secret of Roan Inish, and Matewan. He serves on the board for the Austin Film Society. Maggie Renzi has been John Sayles long-time companion, but they have not married, Renzi has produced most of his films since Lianna. They met as students at Williams College, Sayles works with a regular repertory of actors, most notably Chris Cooper, David Strathairn, and Gordon Clapp, each of whom has appeared in at least four of his films. In early 2003, Sayles signed the Not In Our Name Statement of Conscience which opposed the invasion of Iraq, in February 2009, Sayles was reported to be writing an HBO series based on the early life of Anthony Kiedis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers
20.
San Antonio
–
San Antonio, officially the City of San Antonio, is the seventh-most populated city in the United States and the second-most populous city in the state of Texas, with a population of 1,409,019. It was the fastest growing of the top 10 largest cities in the United States from 2000 to 2010, the city straddles South Texas and Central Texas and is on the southwestern corner of an urban megaregion known as the Texas Triangle. San Antonio serves as the seat of Bexar County, recent annexations have extended the citys boundaries into Medina County and, though for only a very tiny area near the city of Garden Ridge, into Comal County. Due to its placement, the city has characteristics of other urban centers in which there are sparsely populated areas. San Antonio is the center of the San Antonio–New Braunfels Metropolitan Statistical Area, growth along the Interstate 35 and Interstate 10 corridors to the north, west and east make it likely that the metropolitan area will continue to expand. San Antonio was named for Saint Anthony of Padua, whose feast day is on June 13, the city contains five 18th-century Spanish frontier missions, including The Alamo and San Antonio Missions National Historical Park, which were designated UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2015. Other notable attractions include the River Walk, the Tower of the Americas, the Alamo Bowl, the city is home to the five-time NBA champion San Antonio Spurs and hosts the annual San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo, one of the largest such events in the country. The U. S. Kelly Air Force Base operated out of San Antonio until 2001, the remaining portions of the base were developed as Port San Antonio, an industrial/business park and aerospace complex. San Antonio is home to six Fortune 500 companies and the South Texas Medical Center, at the time of European encounter, Payaya Indians lived near the San Antonio River Valley in the San Pedro Springs area, calling the vicinity Yanaguana, meaning refreshing waters. In 1691, a group of Spanish Catholic explorers and missionaries came upon the river and Payaya settlement on June 13 and they named the place and river San Antonio in his honor. It was years before any Spanish settlement took place, father Antonio de Olivares visited the site in 1709, and he was determined to found a mission and civilian settlement there. He directed Martin de Alarcón, the governor of Coahuila and Texas, differences between Alarcón and Olivares resulted in delays, and construction did not start until 1718. The families who clustered around the presidio and mission formed the beginnings of Villa de Béjar, on May 1, the governor transferred ownership of the Mission San Antonio de Valero to Fray Antonio de Olivares. On May 5,1718 he commissioned the Presidio San Antonio de Béxar on the west side of the San Antonio River, one-fourth league from the mission. On February 14,1719, the Marquis of San Miguel de Aguayo proposed to the king of Spain that 400 families be transported from the Canary Islands, Galicia, or Havana to populate the province of Texas. By June 1730,25 families had reached Cuba, and 10 families had sent to Veracruz before orders from Spain came to stop the re-settlement. Under the leadership of Juan Leal Goraz, the group marched overland from Veracruz to the Presidio San Antonio de Béxar, due to marriages along the way, the party now included 15 families, a total of 56 persons. They joined the community established in 1718
21.
San Felipe, Texas
–
San Felipe, also known as San Felipe de Austin, is a town in Austin County, Texas, United States. The town was the social, economic, and political center of the early Stephen F. Austin colony, the population was 747 at the 2010 census. San Felipe is located in eastern Austin County at 29°47′40″N 96°6′17″W, the town limits extend south below Interstate 10, with access at Exit 723. Sealy is 3 miles to the west, and downtown Houston is 46 miles to the east, Stephen F. Austin State Park is located in the northern part of the town. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has an area of 8.7 square miles. The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers, according to the Köppen Climate Classification system, San Felipe has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated Cfa on climate maps. San Felipe is served by the Sealy Independent School District, in 1823 John McFarland operated a ferry on the Brazos River near this location. In the fall of same year, the site was chosen by Stephen F. Austin with the help of Baron de Bastrop to be the site in Texas for colonization. Founded in 1824 as San Felipe de Austin, the served as the capital of Stephen F. Austins first colony. It was first governed by James Cummins who was appointed the first alcalde, in 1828, the population numbered about 200. The town had three stores, two taverns, a hotel, a blacksmith shop, and forty to fifty log cabins. By 1835, its population had increased to around 600 and it was home to the first post office and one of the earliest newspapers and land offices in Texas. San Felipe was second only to San Antonio as the center of Texas. The Texas conventions of 1832,1833 and the Consultation of November 3,1835, were held here, San Felipe would act as the capital for the provisional government of Texas until the Convention of 1836. The town was burned in 1836 to prevent the Mexican army from capturing it, and rebuilt a few years later, the oldest post office in Texas is located here. The population was 747 at the 2010 census, as of the census of 2000, there were 868 people,312 households, and 234 families residing in the town. The population density was 103.7 people per square mile, there were 347 housing units at an average density of 41. 5/sq mi. The racial makeup of the town was 60. 83% White,34. 56% African American,0. 35% Native American,3. 00% from other races, hispanic or Latino of any race were 9. 45% of the population
22.
Matamoros, Tamaulipas
–
Matamoros, officially known as Heroica Matamoros, is a city in the northeastern Mexican state of Tamaulipas. It is located on the bank of the Rio Grande, directly across the border from Brownsville, Texas. Matamoros is the second largest city in the state of Tamaulipas, as of 2016, Matamoros had a population of 520,367. In addition, the Matamoros–Brownsville Metropolitan Area has a population of 1387985, Matamoros is the 39th largest city in Mexico and anchors the second largest metropolitan area in Tamaulipas. Matamoros is one of the fastest growing cities in Mexico, and has one of the fastest growing economies in the country, in Matamoros, the automotive industry hosts the assembly and accessories plants for brands such as General Motors, Ford, Chrysler, BMW, and Mercedes Benz. Likewise, Matamoros economy has historically been based on agriculture, since northern Mexicos biggest irrigation zones are in the municipality, PEMEX announced a multi-billion offshore drilling project for the port of Matamoros, one of the future prospects for Mexicos oil industry. The Mexican National Anthem was played for the first time in public at The Opera Theatre in Matamoros, on another note, Matamoros has a semi-arid climate, with mild winters, and hot, humid summers. Matamoros and Brownsville, Texas are home to the Charro Days and Sombrero Festival, two-nation fiestas that commemorate the heritage of the U. S. there is very little historical evidence about the native tribes that lived in present-day Matamoros. In the year 1749, thirteen enterprising families, twelve from Camargo and one from Reynosa, decided to invest and begin a new, nonetheless, these thirteen families effectively carried out their business plan and structuralized 113 cattle-raising sites. In the year 1774, they named the area San Juan de los Esteros Hermosos. In 1793, to colonize the province of Nuevo Santander, two Franciscan missionaries named Francisco Pueyes and Manuel Júlio Silva established a parish in the plaza of Matamoros. They proposed a new name for the community, Villa del Refugio, in honor of the parish and patron saint, during the Texas Revolution, Matamoros was the fortress for many Mexican soldiers against rebel attacks. In 1851, the city of Matamoros was again heroic for defending soldiers against attacks, after that victory, the state congress granted Matamoros the title of Heroic, countersigned by the Mexican Congress. The future of the city radically changed after Matamoros declared itself a free trade zone in 1858. The Port of Matamoros, also known as the Port of Bagdad, was during the American Civil War one of the commercial ports of the world. The city of Matamoros, Tamaulipas was a strategic and fortified city during the Texas Revolution, the Matamoros Expedition was launched to attack Matamoros and defeat the forces of Antonio López de Santa Anna. At the beginning of the American Civil War, the city of Matamoros was simply a little border town across the Rio Grande from Brownsville. It had, for years, been considered a port
23.
William B. Travis
–
William Barret Buck Travis was a 19th-century American lawyer and soldier. At the age of 26, he was a lieutenant colonel in the Texas Army and he died at the Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution. Travis County and Travis Park were named after him for being the commander of the Republic of Texas at the Battle of the Alamo. Traviss grandfather, Berwick Travis, came to the British Colonies of North America at the age of 12, where he was placed in indentured servitude for more than a decade. Berwicks ancestors came to North America in the late 1600s, and Berwicks grandfather was born in Perquimans, North Carolina, a descendant of the Travers of Tulketh Castle in Preston, England, Berwick had a life that hardly resembled his ancestors glory and wealth. After working his period of servitude, he traveled south to the colony of South Carolina, a year later, he married Anne Smallwood, and they lived out their lives there. They had four daughters and three sons, including Mark Travis and the Baptist missionary Alexander Travis, Mark Travis married Jemima Stallworth on June 1,1808. She gave birth to William Barret Travis on August 1,1809, records differ as to whether his date of birth was the first or ninth of August, but his youngest brother James C. Travis, who was in possession of the Travis family Bible at the time of his statement, Mark and Jemima had nine other children over the next twenty years. Traviss uncle Alexander migrated to the new territory of Alabama following the War of 1812, settling in modern-day Conecuh County. He urged his brother and family to join him, where he said that the land was cheap and easy to acquire, so Mark took his family, including young William, then age 9. They settled in the newly forming town of Sparta, where Mark Travis purchased the very first certificate from the Sparta Land company, during that same time, Alexander also founded the Sparta Academy and served as its superintendent. Travis received his first formal education at the Sparta Academy, studying subjects ranging from Greek and Latin to history, after a few years, Travis moved to the academy of Professor William H. McCurdy in Claiborne, Alabama. After completing his education at the age of 18, Travis gained a position as an assistant teacher in Monroe County and he met a student, Rosanna Cato, whom he immediately felt attracted to and with whom he began a romantic relationship. Eager to get away from life, Travis made his move to Claiborne permanent where he began studying law. Famed lawyer James Dellet accepted Travis as his apprentice, at that time, Claiborne was a major city in Alabama that was right next to the Alabama River, where trade and social life seemed to be miles ahead of the still-growing community of Sparta. Travis and Cato married on October 26,1828, Cato gave birth to their first son, Charlie, a year later, though there is evidence to support that Charlie was born out of wedlock or possibly even a year beforehand. While still studying law under Dellet, Travis was eager to resume his professional career, Travis essentially operated the newspaper himself, and while it provided a modest income during the first few months of operation, it was hardly enough to support himself, Rosanna and young Charlie
24.
Battle of San Jacinto
–
The Battle of San Jacinto, fought on April 21,1836, in present-day Harris County, Texas, was the decisive battle of the Texas Revolution. Led by General Sam Houston, the Texian Army engaged and defeated General Antonio López de Santa Annas Mexican army in a fight that lasted just 18 minutes, Santa Anna, the President of Mexico, was captured and surrendered the following day and held as a prisoner of war. Three weeks later, he signed the treaty that dictated that the Mexican army leave the region. These treaties did not specifically recognize Texas as a sovereign nation, Sam Houston became a national celebrity, and the Texans rallying cries from events of the war, Remember the Alamo. and Remember Goliad. became etched into Texan history and legend. General Antonio López de Santa Anna was a proponent of governmental federalism when he helped oust Mexican president Anastasio Bustamante in December 1832. Upon his election as president in April 1833, Santa Anna switched his political ideology, while in Mexico City awaiting a meeting with Santa Anna, Texian empresario Stephen F. Austin wrote to the Béxar ayuntamiento urging a break-away state. In response, the Mexican government kept him imprisoned for most of 1834, Colonel Juan Almonte was appointed Director of Colonization in Texas, ostensibly to ease relations with the colonists and mitigate their anxieties about Austins imprisonment. He delivered promises of self-governance, and conveyed regrets that the Mexican congress deemed it impossible for Texas to be a separate state. In consolidating his power base, Santa Anna installed General Martín Perfecto de Cos as the military authority over Texas in 1835. Cos established headquarters in San Antonio on October 9, triggering what became known as the Siege of Béxar, after two months of trying to repel the Texian forces, Cos raised a white flag on December 9, and signed surrender terms two days later. The surrender of Cos effectively removed the occupying Mexican army from Texas, many believed the war was over, and volunteers began returning home. In compliance with orders from Santa Anna, Mexicos Minister of War José María Tornel issued his December 30 Circular No,5, often referred to as the Tornel Decree, aimed at dealing with United States intervention in the uprising in Texas. It declared that foreigners who entered Mexico for the purpose of joining the rebellion were to be treated as pirates, to be put to death if captured. In adding since they are not subjects of any nation at war with the republic nor do they militate under any recognized flag, the Mexican Army of Operations numbered 6,019 soldiers and was spread out over 300 miles on its march to Béxar. General Joaquín Ramírez y Sesma was put in command of the Vanguard of the Advance that crossed into Texas. Santa Anna and his aide-de-camp Almonte forded the Rio Grande at Guerrero, Coahuila on February 16,1836, Béxar was captured on February 23 and when the assault commenced, attempts at negotiation for surrender were initiated from inside the fortress. Travis sent Albert Martin to request a meeting with Almonte, who replied that he did not have the authority to speak for Santa Anna. Bowie dispatched Green B. Jameson with a letter, translated into Spanish by Juan Seguín, requesting a meeting with Santa Anna, Santa Anna did, however, extend an offer of amnesty to Tejanos inside the fortress
25.
Davy Crockett
–
David Davy Crockett was a 19th-century American folk hero, frontiersman, soldier, and politician. He is commonly referred to in culture by the epithet King of the Wild Frontier. He represented Tennessee in the U. S. House of Representatives, Crockett grew up in East Tennessee, where he gained a reputation for hunting and storytelling. After being made a colonel in the militia of Lawrence County, Tennessee, in 1825, Crockett was elected to the U. S. Congress, where he vehemently opposed many of the policies of President Andrew Jackson, most notably the Indian Removal Act. Crocketts opposition to Jacksons policies led to his defeat in the 1831 elections and he won again in 1833, then narrowly lost in 1835, prompting his angry departure to Texas shortly thereafter. In early 1836, Crockett took part in the Texas Revolution and was killed at the Battle of the Alamo in March, Crockett became famous in his own lifetime for larger-than-life exploits popularized by stage plays and almanacs. After his death, he continued to be credited with acts of mythical proportion and these led in the 20th century to television and movie portrayals, and he became one of the best-known American folk heroes. The Crocketts were of Irish, English, Scottish, and French-Huguenot ancestry, antoine married Louise de Saix and immigrated to Ireland with her, changing the family name to Crockett. Their son Joseph Louis was born in Ireland and married Sarah Stewart, Joseph and Sarah immigrated to New York, where their son William David was born in 1709. William and Elizabeths son David was born in Pennsylvania and married Elizabeth Hedge and they were the parents of William, David Jr. Robert, Alexander, James, Joseph and John, the father of David Crockett who died at the Alamo. John was born c.1753 in Frederick County, Virginia, the family moved to Tryon County, North Carolina c. In 1776, the moved to northeast Tennessee, in the area now known as Hawkins County. John was one of the Overmountain Men who fought in the Battle of Kings Mountain during the American Revolutionary War. While John was away as a volunteer in 1777, David and Elizabeth were killed at their home near todays Rogersville by Creeks. Johns brother Joseph was wounded in the skirmish and his brother James was taken prisoner and held for seventeen years. John married Rebecca Hawkins in 1780, when their son David was born August 17,1786, they named him after Johns father. David was born in what is now Greene County, Tennessee, close to the Nolichucky River, John continually struggled to make ends meet, and in 1792, the Crocketts moved to a tract of land on Lick Creek. Selling that tract of land in 1794, John moved the family to Cove Creek, a flood destroyed the gristmill and the Crockett homestead
26.
Marc Blucas
–
Marcus Paul Marc Blucas is an American actor, known for playing Riley Finn in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Matthew Donnelly in Necessary Roughness and recently, abolitionist John Hawkes in Underground. Blucas was born in Butler, Pennsylvania and his mother, Mary Catherine, is an educator, and his father, Walter Joseph Blucas, is a school superintendent. After moving to Girard, Pennsylvania, Blucas became the player on the Girard High School basketball team. He also played basketball at Wake Forest University, graduating in 1994 after one season playing on the court as Tim Duncan. He was also a member of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity, after Blucas failed to make it into the NBA, he moved to England, where he played professional basketball for a year with British Basketball Leagues Manchester Giants. He later decided to become a lawyer, but changed his mind, blucass first television role was in the television movie Inflammable, made in 1995. From there, he found roles in television and film. He starred as the Basketball Hero in Gary Rosss Pleasantville, however, Blucas landed his first major role in 1999 as Agent Riley Finn in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Initially, Blucas was certain that he had blown his audition and had left apologizing for having wasted creator Joss Whedons time, whedon asked him to audition again, and he received the part two weeks later. He played Buffys love interest until 2000, after Blucas departure from the series, he went on to act in such films as Summer Catch, We Were Soldiers, alongside Mel Gibson and Chris Klein, and First Daughter, with Katie Holmes. His character in Summer Catch was based on real life Cape League baseball player Michael Macone, in 2007, Blucas began to land leading roles in films such as Thr3e and The Killing Floor. In February 2010, Blucas joined the cast of the ABC television drama pilot True Blue, Blucas was part of the regular cast of the USA Network show Necessary Roughness for the first two seasons, playing Matthew Donnelly. The series premiered on June 29,2011, on July 25,2009, Blucas married journalist Ryan Haddon, daughter of Dayle Haddon and is stepfather to her children from her first marriage to actor Christian Slater. Marc Blucas at the Internet Movie Database Marc Blucas at AllMovie
27.
James Bonham
–
James Butler Bonham was a 19th-century American soldier who died at the Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution. He was a cousin of William B. Travis and was a messenger of the Battle of the Alamo and his younger brother, Milledge Luke Bonham, was a brigadier general in the Confederate States Army in the American Civil War, and served as Governor of South Carolina from 1862 to 1864. Bonham was born, along with his sibling in the Redbank area on February 20,1807, the son of James and Sophia Butler Bonham. Bonham entered South Carolina College in 1824, in 1827, in his senior year, he led a student protest over harsh attendance regulations and the poor food served at the college boardinghouse. He was expelled, along with the senior class. In 1830, Bonham practiced law in Pendleton, but was found in contempt of court after caning an attorney who had insulted one of Bonhams clients, when ordered to apologize by the sitting judge, he refused and threatened to tweak the judge’s nose. Bonham was sentenced to ninety days for contempt of court and he served as an aide to Governor James Hamilton Jr. during the Nullification Crisis in 1832. Bonham brandished a sword and pistol, condemning Andrew Jackson and the Washington politicians and his outspoken position brought him the rank of lieutenant colonel. At the same time he served as captain of a Charleston artillery company, in October 1834, Bonham moved to Montgomery, Alabama, where relatives lived. The following year he went to Mobile, where he helped organize a company of militia called the Mobile Greys to serve in Texas. The company reached San Felipe, Texas in November 1835, on December 1,1835, he wrote to Sam Houston from San Felipe volunteering his services for Texas and declining all pay, lands, or rations in return. In December 1835, he was commissioned a lieutenant in the Texas cavalry. He had time to set up a law practice in Brazoria and was advertising the fact in the Telegraph, Bonham and Houston quickly developed a mutual admiration. After being in Texas for only one month Bonham recommended to Houston that William S. Blount of North Carolina be granted a commission as a captain in the Texas cavalry. On January 11,1836, Houston recommended to James W. Robinson that Bonham be promoted to major, for His influence in the army is great, Bonham probably traveled to San Antonio de Béxar and the Alamo with James Bowie and arrived on January 19,1836. On January 26 he was appointed one of a committee of seven to draft a preamble, on February 1 he was an unsuccessful candidate in the election of delegates to represent the Bexar garrison at the Texas constitutional convention. He was sent by Travis to obtain aid for the garrison at Bexar on or about February 16,1836 and he visited Goliad, but the commander of the forces there, James Fannin, was unable to provide assistance
28.
Albert Grimes
–
The Battle of the Alamo was a crucial conflict of the Texas Revolution. In 1835, colonists from the United States joined with Tejanos in putting up armed resistance to the centralization of the Mexican government, president Antonio López de Santa Anna and the government in Mexico City believed the United States had instigated the insurrection with a goal of annexing Texas. Most Texian soldiers in Béxar left to join a planned invasion of Matamoros, neill went home on family matters February 11,1836, leaving James Bowie and William B. Travis as co-commanders over the volunteer force. When the Mexican Army of Operations under the command of Santa Anna arrived in Béxar with 1,500 troops on February 23, the remaining Alamo garrison numbered 150. Over the course of the several days, new volunteers arrived inside the fortress while others were sent out as couriers, to forage for food. A fierce defense was launched from within the walls, even as Bowie, Travis repeatedly dispatched couriers with pleas for reinforcements. Although Santa Anna refused to consider a proposed conditional surrender, he extended an offer of amnesty for all Tejanos inside the fortress to walk away unharmed. Most Tejanos evacuated from the fortress about February 25, either as part of the amnesty, in response to pleas from Travis, James Fannin started from Goliad with 320 men, supplies and armaments, yet had to abort a day later due to a wagon breakdown. Final reinforcements were able to enter the Alamo during March 1–4, others who had left intending to return were unable to re-enter. At 5,30 a. m. on March 6, an hour later, all combatants inside the Alamo were dead. The bodies, with the exception of Gregorio Esparzas, were cremated on pyres, Esparzas brother Francisco was a soldier in the Mexican army and received permission from Santa Anna for a Christian burial. Juan Seguín oversaw the 1837 recovery of the ashes and officiated at the February 25 funeral. The March 28 issue of the Telegraph and Texas Register only gave the location as where the principal heap of ashes had been found. In the following decades, the wanted to know the location of the burial site. Remains thought to be those of the Alamo defenders were discovered at the Cathedral of San Fernando during the Texas 1936 centennial, purported to hold the ashes of Travis, Bowie and Crockett, some have doubted it can be proven whose remains are entombed there. Below are 256 known combatants,212 who died during the siege,43 survivors, Mexican Colonel Juan Almonte, Santa Annas aide-de-camp, recorded the Texian fatality toll as 250 in his March 6 journal entry. He listed the survivors as five women, one Mexican soldier, Almonte did not record names, and his count was based solely on who was there during the final assault
29.
Mial Scurlock
–
The Battle of the Alamo was a crucial conflict of the Texas Revolution. In 1835, colonists from the United States joined with Tejanos in putting up armed resistance to the centralization of the Mexican government, president Antonio López de Santa Anna and the government in Mexico City believed the United States had instigated the insurrection with a goal of annexing Texas. Most Texian soldiers in Béxar left to join a planned invasion of Matamoros, neill went home on family matters February 11,1836, leaving James Bowie and William B. Travis as co-commanders over the volunteer force. When the Mexican Army of Operations under the command of Santa Anna arrived in Béxar with 1,500 troops on February 23, the remaining Alamo garrison numbered 150. Over the course of the several days, new volunteers arrived inside the fortress while others were sent out as couriers, to forage for food. A fierce defense was launched from within the walls, even as Bowie, Travis repeatedly dispatched couriers with pleas for reinforcements. Although Santa Anna refused to consider a proposed conditional surrender, he extended an offer of amnesty for all Tejanos inside the fortress to walk away unharmed. Most Tejanos evacuated from the fortress about February 25, either as part of the amnesty, in response to pleas from Travis, James Fannin started from Goliad with 320 men, supplies and armaments, yet had to abort a day later due to a wagon breakdown. Final reinforcements were able to enter the Alamo during March 1–4, others who had left intending to return were unable to re-enter. At 5,30 a. m. on March 6, an hour later, all combatants inside the Alamo were dead. The bodies, with the exception of Gregorio Esparzas, were cremated on pyres, Esparzas brother Francisco was a soldier in the Mexican army and received permission from Santa Anna for a Christian burial. Juan Seguín oversaw the 1837 recovery of the ashes and officiated at the February 25 funeral. The March 28 issue of the Telegraph and Texas Register only gave the location as where the principal heap of ashes had been found. In the following decades, the wanted to know the location of the burial site. Remains thought to be those of the Alamo defenders were discovered at the Cathedral of San Fernando during the Texas 1936 centennial, purported to hold the ashes of Travis, Bowie and Crockett, some have doubted it can be proven whose remains are entombed there. Below are 256 known combatants,212 who died during the siege,43 survivors, Mexican Colonel Juan Almonte, Santa Annas aide-de-camp, recorded the Texian fatality toll as 250 in his March 6 journal entry. He listed the survivors as five women, one Mexican soldier, Almonte did not record names, and his count was based solely on who was there during the final assault
30.
Susanna Dickinson
–
Susanna Wilkerson Dickinson and her infant daughter Angelina were among the few American survivors of the 1836 Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution. Her husband, Captain Almaron Dickinson, and 182 other Texian defenders were killed by the Mexican Army. Little is known of her life, other than that Susanna Dickinson was born in 1814 in the U. S. state of Tennessee. On May 24,1829, when she was 15, Justice of the Peace Joseph W. McKean married Susanna to Almaron Dickinson. As the Mexican government increasingly abandoned its federalist structure in favor of a centralized government. Almaron Dickinson would later join with other volunteers during the Battle of Gonzales, by the end of the year, the Texian army had driven all Mexican soldiers from the territory. Soon after, Susanna joined her husband at the former Alamo Mission in San Antonio de Bexar shortly after his assignment to the garrison there, the Dickinson family lived outside the Alamo, boarding with the Ruiz family. In early 1836, Mexican President Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna led troops into Texas, the unprepared garrison did not even have food stocked inside the mission to withstand the siege. The men thus quickly herded cattle into the Alamo and scrounged for food in the abandoned houses outside the fortress. Susanna Dickinson and her daughter Angelina were among the families of members who were brought inside the Alamo for safety. For the next days, the Alamo lay under siege. Santa Anna planned an early morning assault for March 6, at 8,10 pm on March 5 the Mexican artillery ceased their bombardment. As Santa Anna had planned, the exhausted Texans soon fell into the first uninterrupted sleep many had had since the siege began, Santa Anna gave the order to advance. As the Mexican soldiers began to yell and their buglers sounded, Dickinson, her daughter and most other noncombatants gathered in the church sacristy for safety. She later mentioned that Davy Crockett stopped briefly in the chapel to pray before taking his assigned position, the Mexican soldiers soon breached the Alamos outer walls. As previously planned, most of the Texians fell back to the barracks, Almaron Dickinson briefly slipped from his post manning a cannon in the chapel to join his wife in the sacristy. He yelled Great God, Sue, the Mexicans are inside our walls, if they spare you, save my child. Then kissed her and returned to his cannon and it took an hour for the Mexican army to secure complete control of the Alamo
31.
Ricardo Antonio Chavira
–
Ricardo Antonio Chavira is an American actor, known for his role as Carlos Solis in the ABC comedy-drama series, Desperate Housewives. Chavira was born in Austin, Texas, the son of a Bexar County judge, raised in San Antonio, he graduated from Robert E. Lee High School and the University of the Incarnate Word. Since then, he has worked in film, television and theatre, from 2004 to 2012, Chavira starred in Desperate Housewives. He played Carlos Solis, husband of Gabrielle Solis and he also guest starred on ABCs George Lopez. Following Desperate Housewives, Chavira guest starred on two Season 7 episodes of Burn Notice, playing crime leader Rafael Serrano, Chavira starred in a production of Tracers at the Odyssey Theatre in Los Angeles, and also starred in a co-production of Living Out. He played Stanley Kowalski in the Guthrie Theaters production of Tennessee Williams A Streetcar Named Desire, is film credits include The Alamo and Piranha 3D. He also had roles as Alejandro Borges in the film Dead Space, Aftermath. In 2013, Chavira starred in the short-lived NBC sitcom Welcome to the Family, the series was canceled after three episodes. Chavira guest starred in the Castle episode At Close Range, Chavira returned to ABC with a recurring role on Scandal. He plays the role of Governor Vargas, Chavira plays Xiomaras ex-fiancé Bruce on The CWs Jane the Virgin. In 2017, Chavira starred in the Netflix horror-comedy Santa Clarita Diet alongside Timothy Olyphant, Chavira has two children with his wife Marcea Dietzel, Tomas Antonio Chavira and Belen Elysabeth Chavira. The couple had been together for 18 years when they decided to marry on September 22,2007 in a ceremony at their San Antonio. Chavira is a supporter of breast cancer research as his mother, Elizabeth Ries Chavira, died of breast and ovarian cancer when she was 43 years old. Chavira is San Antonios honorary spokesman for the charity Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Chavira was the 2005 co-spokesperson for the Lee National Denim Day breast cancer fundraiser. Ricardo Antonio Chavira at the Internet Movie Database
