1.
The Sound of Music (film)
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The Sound of Music is a 1965 American musical drama film produced and directed by Robert Wise, and starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer. The film is an adaptation of the 1959 Broadway musical The Sound of Music, the films screenplay was written by Ernest Lehman, adapted from the stage musicals book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. The film was released on March 2,1965 in the United States, although critical response to the film was widely mixed, the film was a major commercial success, becoming the number one box office movie after four weeks, and the highest-grossing film of 1965. By November 1966, The Sound of Music had become the film of all-time—surpassing Gone with the Wind—and held that distinction for five years. The film was just as throughout the world, breaking previous box-office records in twenty-nine countries. The Sound of Music received five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, in 1998, the American Film Institute listed The Sound of Music as the fifty-fifth greatest American movie of all time, and the fourth greatest movie musical. In 2001, the United States Library of Congress selected the film for preservation in the National Film Registry, finding it culturally, historically, Maria is a free-spirited young Austrian woman studying to become a nun at Nonnberg Abbey in Salzburg in 1938. Her love of music and the mountains, her enthusiasm and imagination. The Captain has been raising his children alone using strict military discipline following the death of his first wife, although the children misbehave at first, Maria responds with kindness and patience, and soon the children come to trust and respect her. While the Captain is away in Vienna, Maria makes play clothes for the children and takes them around Salzburg and the surrounding mountains, and she teaches them how to sing. Displeased by his childrens clothes and activities, and Marias impassioned appeal that he get closer to his children, just then he hears singing coming from inside the house and is astonished to see his children singing for the Baroness. Filled with emotion, the Captain joins his children, singing for the first time in years, afterwards, he apologizes to Maria and asks her to stay. He does agree, however, to organize a party at the villa. The night of the party, while guests in formal attire waltz in the ballroom, Maria, when the Captain notices Maria teaching Kurt the traditional Ländler folk dance, he cuts in and partners with Maria in a graceful performance, culminating in a close embrace. Confused about her feelings, Maria blushes and breaks away, later, the Baroness, who noticed the Captains attraction to Maria, hides her jealousy while convincing Maria that she must return to the abbey. Back at the abbey, when Mother Abbess learns that Maria has stayed in seclusion to avoid her feelings for the Captain, after Maria returns to the villa, she learns about the Captains engagement to the Baroness and agrees to stay until they find a replacement governess. The Captains feelings for Maria, however, have not changed, while they are on their honeymoon, Max enters the children in the Salzburg Festival against their fathers wishes. Strongly opposed to the Nazis and the Anschluss, the Captain tells his family they must leave Austria immediately and that night, as the von Trapp family attempt to leave, they are stopped by a group of Brownshirts waiting outside the villa
The Sound of Music (film)
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Theatrical release poster by
Howard Terpning
The Sound of Music (film)
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Composers
Richard Rodgers and
Oscar Hammerstein II
The Sound of Music (film)
The Sound of Music (film)
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Robert Wise, 1990
2.
Richard Rodgers
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Richard Charles Rodgers was an American composer of music for more than 900 songs and for 43 Broadway musicals. He also composed music for films and television and he is best known for his songwriting partnerships with the lyricists Lorenz Hart and Oscar Hammerstein II. His compositions have had a significant impact on popular music up to the present day and he has also won a Pulitzer Prize, making him one of two people to receive each award. Richard began playing the piano at age six,10, Townsend Harris Hall and DeWitt Clinton High School. Rodgers spent his teenage summers in Camp Wigwam where he composed some of his first songs. Rodgers, Lorenz Hart, and later collaborator Oscar Hammerstein II all attended Columbia University, at Columbia, Rodgers joined the Pi Lambda Phi fraternity. In 1921, Rodgers shifted his studies to the Institute of Musical Art, Rodgers was influenced by composers such as Victor Herbert and Jerome Kern, as well as by the operettas his parents took him to see on Broadway when he was a child. In 1919, Richard met Lorenz Hart, thanks to Phillip Leavitt, Rodgers and Hart struggled for years in the field of musical comedy, writing several amateur shows. They made their debut with the song Any Old Place With You. Their first professional production was the 1920 Poor Little Ritz Girl and their next professional show, The Melody Man, did not premiere until 1924. When he was just out of college Rodgers worked as director for Lew Fields. Among the stars he accompanied were Nora Bayes and Fred Allen, Rodgers was considering quitting show business altogether to sell childrens underwear, when he and Hart finally broke through in 1925. They wrote the songs for a show presented by the prestigious Theatre Guild, called The Garrick Gaieties. Only meant to run one day, the Guild knew they had a success, the shows biggest hit — the song that Rodgers believed made Rodgers and Hart — was Manhattan. The two were now a Broadway songwriting force, throughout the rest of the decade, the duo wrote several hit shows for both Broadway and London, including Dearest Enemy, The Girl Friend, Peggy-Ann, A Connecticut Yankee, and Present Arms. Their 1920s shows produced standards such as Here in My Arms, Mountain Greenery, Blue Room, My Heart Stood Still, with the Depression in full swing during the first half of the 1930s, the team sought greener pastures in Hollywood. Rodgers also wrote a melody for which Hart wrote three consecutive lyrics which either were cut, not recorded or not a hit, the fourth lyric resulted in one of their most famous songs, Blue Moon. In 1935, they returned to Broadway and wrote an almost unbroken string of hit shows that only with Harts death in 1943
Richard Rodgers
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Richard Rodgers
Richard Rodgers
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Richard Rodgers (seated) with
Lorenz Hart in 1936.
Richard Rodgers
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Rodgers was the subject of a two-part special on
Ed Sullivan 's Toast of the Town television show in 1952.
3.
Oscar Hammerstein II
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Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II was an American librettist, theatrical producer, and theatre director of musicals for almost forty years. Hammerstein won eight Tony Awards and two Academy Awards for Best Original Song, many of his songs are standard repertoire for singers and jazz musicians. Hammerstein was the lyricist and playwright in his partnerships, his collaborators wrote the music, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I, and The Sound of Music. Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II was born in New York City and his grandfather was the German theatre impresario Oscar Hammerstein I. His father was from a Jewish family, and his mother was the daughter of Scottish and English parents, although Hammersteins father managed the Victoria Theatre for his father and was a producer of vaudeville shows, he was opposed to his sons desire to participate in the arts. Hammerstein attended Columbia University and studied at Columbia Law School until 1917, as a student, he maintained high grades and engaged in numerous extracurricular activities. These included playing first base on the team, performing in the Varsity Show and becoming an active member of Pi Lambda Phi. When he was 19, and still a student at Columbia, his father died of Brights disease, June 10,1914, symptoms of which doctors originally attributed to scarlet fever. On the train trip to the funeral with his brother, he read the headlines in the New York Herald, the New York Times wrote, Hammerstein, the Barnum of Vaudeville, Dead at Forty. Two hours later, taps was sounded over Broadway, writes biographer Hugh Fordin, after his fathers death, he participated in his first play with the Varsity Show, entitled On Your Way. Throughout the rest of his career, Hammerstein wrote and performed in several Varsity Shows. After quitting law school to pursue theatre, Hammerstein began his first professional collaboration, with Herbert Stothart, Otto Harbach and he began as an apprentice and went on to form a 20-year collaboration with Harbach. Out of this came his first musical, Always You, for which he wrote the book. It opened on Broadway in 1920, in 1927, Kern and Hammerstein had their biggest hit, Show Boat, which is often revived and is still considered one of the masterpieces of the American musical theatre. Here we come to a new genre — the musical play as distinguished from musical comedy. The play was the thing, and everything else was subservient to that play, came complete integration of song, humor and production numbers into a single and inextricable artistic entity. Many years later, Hammersteins wife Dorothy bristled when she heard a remark that Jerome Kern had written Ol Man River, Jerome Kern wrote dum, dum, dum-dum. My husband wrote Ol Man River, other Kern-Hammerstein musicals include Sweet Adeline, Music in the Air, Three Sisters, and Very Warm for May
Oscar Hammerstein II
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Hammerstein about 1940
Oscar Hammerstein II
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Hammerstein watching audition at the
St. James Theatre
Oscar Hammerstein II
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Hammerstein with his first wife, Myra Finn, photographed aboard a ship.
4.
The Trapp Family
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The Trapp Family is a 1956 West German comedy drama film directed by Wolfgang Liebeneiner and starring Ruth Leuwerik, Hans Holt, and Maria Holst. Through her caring influence, the family becomes a singing group. When the baron is pressured to join Hitlers army, the escapes to the United States where they establish themselves as singers. The film had one sequel, The Trapp Family in America. At a convent in Austria in the 1930s, a novice named Maria is sent by her mother superior to the estate of a widowed naval hero, Baron von Trapp. The baron is a disciplinarian and runs his household like a ship. When Maria arrives, she encourages the children to play games like other youngsters, when the baron discovers how Maria is ignoring his orders, he sends her back to the convent. Later, when he hears his children singing songs theyve learned from Maria, gradually, the baron falls in love with the young woman and proposes marriage. After obtaining permission to marry from the mother back at the convent. The familys priest, Dr. Wasner, encourages Maria and the children to sing for charity, after the Nazis annex Austria, the baron loses his fortune and is summoned to serve in the German military. Unwilling to live under the Nazi regime, the von Trapp family emigrate to the United States, but their troubles are far from over when a naive Maria tells the immigration officer they want to stay forever, when he asks how long they will be visiting the United States. In 1956, German producer Wolfgang Liebeneiner offered her $10,000 for the rights to her story. She signed away the rights to her story without confirming that such a law existed, the same agent that misled her offered her a single cash payment if she would accept $9,000, which she did. Liebeneiner brought in George Hurdalek and Herbert Reinecker to write the screenplay, and Franz Grothe to supervise the soundtrack, the movie was filmed on location in Salzburg, Austria, and Murnau am Staffelsee in Bavaria, West Germany. The Trapp Family was released in West Germany on October 9,1956 by Gloria, two years later, Liebeneiner directed a sequel, The Trapp Family in America, and the two films soon became the most successful films in West Germany during the post-war years. Their success extended throughout Europe and South America, in his review of the 1961 United States version for The New York Times, Howard Thompson gave the film a positive review, calling it genteel, tuneful and frankly sentimental. According to Thompson, the film steers an undramatic, but disarming, course, with friendly acting, the central attraction for Thompson, however, is the traditional folk music, As happens nightly on Broadway, the music really carries the film. Instead of Rodgers and Hammerstein, we now hear genuine folk tunes, light European favorites, the flavor of these genuinely sweet young voices is as distinct and clear as an Alpine bell
The Trapp Family
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German theatrical release poster
5.
Maria von Trapp
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Maria Augusta von Trapp, also known as Baroness von Trapp, was the stepmother and matriarch of the Trapp Family Singers. She wrote The Story of the Trapp Family Singers which was published in 1949, the story served as the inspiration for the 1956 West German film The Trapp Family, which in turn inspired the Broadway musical The Sound of Music and the 1965 film of the same name. Maria was born on 26 January 1905, the daughter of Augusta and she was delivered on a train heading from her parents village in Tyrol to a hospital in Vienna, Austria. She was an orphan by her seventh birthday and she graduated from the State Teachers College for Progressive Education in Vienna at age 18, in 1923. In 1924 she entered Nonnberg Abbey, a Benedictine monastery in Salzburg, as a postulant, in 1926, while still a schoolteacher at the abbey, Maria was asked to teach one of the seven children of widowed naval commander Georg von Trapp. His wife, Agatha Whitehead, had died in 1922 from scarlet fever, eventually, Maria began to look after the other children, as well. Georg von Trapp, seeing how much she cared about his children, asked Maria to marry him, frightened, she fled back to Nonnberg Abbey to seek guidance from the Mother Abbess. She later wrote in her autobiography that on her day she was blazing mad, both at God and at her husband, because what she really wanted was to be a nun. I liked him but didnt love him, however, I loved the children, so in a way I really married the children. I learned to love him more than I have ever loved before or after, Maria and Georg married on 26 November 1927. They had three children together, Rosmarie, Eleonore, and Johannes, who were the others half-sisters, a discrepancy exists for the birth date of their oldest child, Rosmarie. In 1944, Maria, under oath in her Declaration of Intention for naturalization, gave the date of the marriage as 26 November 1927 and the date of her first childs birth as 8 February 1928. This would indicate she was pregnant at the time of their marriage and she confirmed both the marriage and birthdate in her Petition for Naturalization, signed under oath, on 26 May 1948. The Trapp family disputes the 1928 date, and Maria used the year 1929 in her book, in 1935, the Trapps faced financial ruin. Georg had transferred his savings, held then by a bank in London, to an Austrian bank run by a friend. Austria was at the time experiencing economic difficulties during a worldwide depression, lammers bank failed, and the family faced a financial emergency. To survive, the Trapps sent away most of their servants, moved into the top floor of their home, the Archbishop sent Father Franz Wasner to stay with them as their chaplain, and thus began their singing career. Soprano Lotte Lehmann heard the family sing, and she suggested they perform at concerts, when the Austrian Chancellor Kurt Schuschnigg heard them on the radio, he invited them to perform in Vienna
Maria von Trapp
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Photo from
Declaration of Intention, 21 January 1944
Maria von Trapp
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U-5, on the bridge, Georg von Trapp (1915)
Maria von Trapp
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Preparing for a concert in Boston in 1941.
Maria von Trapp
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Maria von Trapp's certificate of arrival into
Niagara Falls, New York, on 30 December 1942
6.
The Story of the Trapp Family Singers
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The Story of the Trapp Family Singers is a memoir written by Maria Augusta von Trapp, whose life was fictionalized in the musical The Sound of Music. The book was published in 1949 by J. B, Maria never intended to write anything of her life. However, a friend persistently pleaded with her not to allow her story to be forgotten by others, though she denied she had any writing skill whatsoever, her friend was not to be put off and kept on asking her whenever they saw each other. Finally, one day, in desperation, Maria excused herself and went to her room for an hour to scribble a few pages about her story, hoping to prove once. However, this displayed such natural writing talent that she agreed to finish what she had started. Her book, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers, was a best-seller, the book describes the life of the von Trapp family, from their beginnings in Salzburg, Austria, to their adventures in America where they escaped from Nazi-invaded Europe. The story reflects on family tragedies, victories, and the kindness of strangers who soon became friends to the family of refugees. She initially fell in love with the rather than the father. The father was not the patriarch who disapproved of music. They also left Austria openly by train, the Story of the Trapp Family Singers, ISBN 0-385-02896-2. The Real Story of the von Trapp Family
The Story of the Trapp Family Singers
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Cover art for the first and some subsequent editions
7.
West End theatre
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West End theatre is a common term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of Theatreland in and near the West End of London. Along with New York Citys Broadway theatre, West End theatre is considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English-speaking world. Seeing a West End show is a common tourist activity in London, in 2013, ticket sales reached a record 14.4 million, making West End the largest English speaking audience in the world. Famous screen actors frequently appear on the London stage, helen Mirren received an award for her performance as the Queen on the West End stage, and then stated, theatre is such an important part of British history and British culture. Theatre in London flourished after the English Reformation, the first permanent public playhouse, known simply as The Theatre, was constructed in 1576 in Shoreditch by James Burbage. It was soon joined by The Curtain, both are known to have been used by William Shakespeares company. In 1599, the timber from The Theatre was moved to Southwark and these theatres were closed in 1642 due to the Puritans who would later influence the interregnum of 1649. After the Restoration, two companies were licensed to perform, the Dukes Company and the Kings Company, performances were held in converted buildings, such as Lisles Tennis Court. The first West End theatre, known as Theatre Royal in Bridges Street, was designed by Thomas Killigrew and built on the site of the present Theatre Royal and it opened on 7 May 1663 and was destroyed by a fire nine years later. It was replaced by a new designed by Christopher Wren and renamed the Theatre Royal. Outside the West End, Sadlers Wells Theatre opened in Islington on 3 June 1683. Taking its name from founder Richard Sadler and monastic springs that were discovered on the property, it operated as a Musick House, with performances of opera, as it was not licensed for plays. In the West End, the Theatre Royal Haymarket opened on 29 December 1720 on a site north of its current location. The Patent theatre companies retained their duopoly on drama well into the 19th century, by the early 19th century, however, music hall entertainments became popular, and presenters found a loophole in the restrictions on non-patent theatres in the genre of melodrama. Melodrama did not break the Patent Acts, as it was accompanied by music, initially, these entertainments were presented in large halls, attached to public houses, but purpose-built theatres began to appear in the East End at Shoreditch and Whitechapel. The West End theatre district became established with the opening of small theatres and halls. South of the River Thames, the Old Vic, Waterloo Road, the next few decades saw the opening of many new theatres in the West End. It abbreviated its name three years later, the theatre building boom continued until about World War I
West End theatre
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London's
Palace Theatre built in 1891
West End theatre
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The
Lyceum Theatre, home to
Disney's The Lion King.
West End theatre
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The
St Martin's Theatre, home to
The Mousetrap, the longest-running play in the world.
West End theatre
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The exterior of the Old Vic
8.
United Kingdom
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The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign country in western Europe. Lying off the north-western coast of the European mainland, the United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that shares a land border with another sovereign state—the Republic of Ireland. The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland, with an area of 242,500 square kilometres, the United Kingdom is the 78th-largest sovereign state in the world and the 11th-largest in Europe. It is also the 21st-most populous country, with an estimated 65.1 million inhabitants, together, this makes it the fourth-most densely populated country in the European Union. The United Kingdom is a monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned since 6 February 1952, other major urban areas in the United Kingdom include the regions of Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester. The United Kingdom consists of four countries—England, Scotland, Wales, the last three have devolved administrations, each with varying powers, based in their capitals, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, respectively. The relationships among the countries of the UK have changed over time, Wales was annexed by the Kingdom of England under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. A treaty between England and Scotland resulted in 1707 in a unified Kingdom of Great Britain, which merged in 1801 with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Five-sixths of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922, leaving the present formulation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, there are fourteen British Overseas Territories. These are the remnants of the British Empire which, at its height in the 1920s, British influence can be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. The United Kingdom is a country and has the worlds fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP. The UK is considered to have an economy and is categorised as very high in the Human Development Index. It was the worlds first industrialised country and the worlds foremost power during the 19th, the UK remains a great power with considerable economic, cultural, military, scientific and political influence internationally. It is a nuclear weapons state and its military expenditure ranks fourth or fifth in the world. The UK has been a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council since its first session in 1946 and it has been a leading member state of the EU and its predecessor, the European Economic Community, since 1973. However, on 23 June 2016, a referendum on the UKs membership of the EU resulted in a decision to leave. The Acts of Union 1800 united the Kingdom of Great Britain, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have devolved self-government
United Kingdom
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Stonehenge, in
Wiltshire, was erected around 2500 BC.
United Kingdom
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Flag
United Kingdom
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The
Bayeux Tapestry depicts the
Battle of Hastings, 1066, and the events leading to it.
United Kingdom
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The
Treaty of Union led to a single united kingdom encompassing all Great Britain.
9.
The Sound of Music Live!
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The Sound of Music Live. is a television special that was originally broadcast by NBC on December 5,2013. Spearheaded by NBC chairman Bob Greenblatt, the network positioned the special as being a television event. Meron felt that if the telecast were successful, the concept could become another kind of entertainment that can exist on TV, by her request, Underwoods casting as Maria was personally endorsed by Julie Andrews, who starred in the 1965 film. While her vocal performance was praised, the performance of Underwood was described as being amateur, lifeless. Despite these criticisms, the production was a success for NBC, with a total of 18.62 million live viewers. Maria Rainer, a postulant at Nonnberg Abbey in Salzburg, is contemplating the day she has spent in the mountains, when she returns to the Abbey, she learns from the Mother Abbess that she is to be the new governess for the von Trappe children. Before she leaves the Abbey, Mother Abbess asks her to teach her the song that shes always singing, when Maria arrives at the von Trappe house, she is greeted coldly by the Captain and introduced to the children, who enter with military precision. Maria finds that the Captain has emotionally closed himself off since the death of his wife and decides to teach his children the basics of singing to gain their trust, when his children arrive dressed in clothes Maria had made from her old bedroom curtains he is outraged and embarrassed. Maria then confronts him and tells him how he does not know or understand his children, however, upon hearing his children sing to Schraeder, his eyes are open to the truth Maria had been speaking and he embraces his children and ask Maria to stay on as governess. He then throws a party for Schraeder and when the band plays the Ländler, the captains youngest son asks Maria to teach him the dance. As the two dance an unspoken attraction begins to arise in the two and Maria puts a stop to the dancing, however, this unspoken attraction did not go unnoticed by Brigitta who confronts Maria on this. Though Maria strongly denies it she begins to realize that Brigitta is telling the truth, the Mother Abbess denies her this and encourages her to take face her problem head-on and to find the life she was born to live. Maria then returns to the von Trapp home and is greeted by the children. When she finds out that the captain intends to marry Schraeder she decides to see her duties through until arrangements can be made for a new governess. However, the differences between Schraeder and the captain cause the two to realize that they have no future together and she leaves. Meanwhile, the captain confronts Maria and the two admit their feelings for each other, the two agree to marry at the Abbey and while the two are on honeymoon, Germany invades Austria. When they return, the captain is ordered to accept a commission in the German Navy and they are granted permission to perform. During the finale, Max announces that a guard of honor is waiting to escort the captain away as soon as the concert is over, Maria leads the family in one more song to which they escape to one by one and flee to the Abbey
The Sound of Music Live!
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Carrie Underwood in 2012
The Sound of Music Live!
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Promotional poster
The Sound of Music Live!
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Stephen Moyer
10.
Musical theatre
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Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through the words, music, movement, since the early 20th century, musical theatre stage works have generally been called, simply, musicals. These were followed by the numerous Edwardian musical comedies and the theatre works of American creators like George M. Cohan. Musicals are performed around the world and they may be presented in large venues, such as big-budget Broadway or West End productions in New York City or London. Alternatively, musicals may be staged in smaller fringe theatre, Off-Broadway or regional theatre productions, musicals are often presented by amateur and school groups in churches, schools and other performance spaces. In addition to the United States and Britain, there are vibrant musical theatre scenes in continental Europe, Asia, Australasia, Canada, the three main components of a book musical are its music, lyrics and book. The interpretation of a musical is the responsibility of its team, which includes a director. A musicals production is also characterized by technical aspects, such as set design, costumes, stage properties, lighting. The creative team, designs and interpretations generally change from the production to succeeding productions. Some production elements, however, may be retained from the production, for example. There is no fixed length for a musical, while it can range from a short one-act entertainment to several acts and several hours in length, most musicals range from one and a half to three hours. Musicals are usually presented in two acts, with one intermission, and the first act is frequently longer than the second. A book musical is usually built four to six main theme tunes that are reprised later in the show. Several shorter musicals on Broadway and in the West End have been presented in one act in recent decades, moments of greatest dramatic intensity in a book musical are often performed in song. Proverbially, when the emotion becomes too strong for speech, you sing, typically, many fewer words are sung in a five-minute song than are spoken in a five-minute block of dialogue. Therefore, there is time to develop drama in a musical than in a straight play of equivalent length. Within the compressed nature of a musical, the writers must develop the characters, the material presented in a musical may be original, or it may be adapted from novels, plays, classic legends, historical events or films. On the other hand, many musical theatre works have been adapted for musical films, such as West Side Story, My Fair Lady, The Sound of Music, Oliver
Musical theatre
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The Black Crook (1866), which some historians consider the first musical
Musical theatre
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A Gaiety Girl (1893) was one of the first hit musicals
Musical theatre
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George Gershwin
Musical theatre
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Chinese Opera
11.
Anschluss
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Anschluss is the term used to describe the annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in March 1938. German spelling, until the German orthography reform of 1996, was Anschluß, the idea of an Anschluss began after the Unification of Germany excluded Austria and the Austrian Germans from the Prussian-dominated German nation-state in 1871. Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany on 12 March 1938, there had been several years of pressure from supporters in Austria and Germany for the Heim ins Reich movement. Earlier, Nazi Germany had provided support for the Austrian National Socialist Party in its bid to seize power from Austrias Fatherland Front government. Infuriated, on 11 March, Adolf Hitler threatened invasion of Austria, and demanded Chancellor von Schuschniggs resignation, Hitlers plan was for Seyss-Inquart to call immediately for German troops to rush to Austrias aid, restoring order and giving the invasion an air of legitimacy. In the face of threat, Schuschnigg informed Seyss-Inquart that the plebiscite would be cancelled. Nevertheless, the German Führer underestimated his opposition, Schuschnigg did resign on the evening of 11 March, but President Wilhelm Miklas refused to appoint Seyss-Inquart as Chancellor. At 8,45 pm, Hitler, tired of waiting, around 10 pm, a forged telegram was sent in Seyss-Inquarts name asking for German troops, since he was not yet Chancellor and was unable to do so himself. Seyss-Inquart was not installed as Chancellor until after midnight, when Miklas resigned himself to the inevitable, clearly it was Hitler, and not Schuschnigg, who was terrified by the potential results of the scheduled plebiscite, and that was the best indication of where Austrians loyalty lay. The newly installed Nazis, within two days, transferred power to Germany, and Wehrmacht troops entered Austria to enforce the Anschluss, Austrian citizens of Jewish origin were not allowed to vote. No military confrontation took place, and even the strongest voices against the annexation, particularly Fascist Italy, France, the loudest verbal protest was voiced by the government of Mexico. Although Austria had never been a part of the German Empire, Austria was predominantly ethnically German, prior to annexing Austria in 1938, Nazi Germany had remilitarized the Rhineland, and the Saar region was returned to Germany after 15 years of occupation through a plebiscite. In March 1939, Hitler then dismantled Czechoslovakia by recognising the independence of Slovakia and that same year, Memelland was returned from Lithuania. With the Anschluss, the Republic of Austria ceased to exist as an independent state, at the end of World War II, a Provisional Austrian Government under Karl Renner was set up by conservatives, social democrats and communists on 27 April 1945. It cancelled the Anschluss the same day and was recognized by the Allies in the following months. In 1955 the Austrian State Treaty re-established Austria as a sovereign state, the idea of grouping all Germans into a nation-state country had been the subject of debate in the 19th century from the ending of the Holy Roman Empire until the ending of the German Confederation. Austria had wanted a Großdeutsche Lösung, whereby the German states would be united under the leadership of the Austrian Germans and this solution would include all the German states, but Prussia would have to take second place. This controversy, called dualism, dominated Prusso-Austrian diplomacy and the politics of the German states, by 1871, the decision was to form a kleindeutsch German Empire based on Prussia and excluding Austria
Anschluss
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German and Austrian border police dismantle a border post in 1938.
Anschluss
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Cheering crowds greet the Nazis in Vienna.
Anschluss
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Hitler announces the Anschluss on the
Heldenplatz, Vienna, 15 March 1938.
Anschluss
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Immediately after the Anschluss, Vienna’s Jews were forced by the local population to clean the city’s pavements.
12.
Edelweiss (song)
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Edelweiss is a show tune from the 1959 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The Sound of Music. It is named after the edelweiss, a flower found high in the Alps. It was created for the 1959 Broadway production of The Sound of Music in the role originated by performer Theodore Bikel as a song for the character of Captain Georg Ludwig von Trapp. It is also Captain von Trapps subliminal goodbye to his beloved homeland, in the 1965 film adaptation, the song is also sung by the Captain earlier in the film when he rediscovers music with his children. While The Sound of Music was in tryouts in Boston, Richard Rodgers felt Captain von Trapp should have a song with which he would bid farewell to the Austria he knew and loved. Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II decided to write a song that Captain von Trapp would sing in the Kaltzberg Festival concert sequence towards the end of the show. As they were writing it, they felt that song could also utilize the guitar-playing and folk-singing talents of Theodore Bikel. The metaphor of this song builds on a scene when Gretl presents a bouquet of edelweiss flowers to Baroness Elsa Schräder during her visit to the von Trapp household. Rodgers provided a simple, yet haunting and affecting waltz-time melody and this song turned out to be one of the most beloved songs in the musical, and also one of the best-loved songs of Rodgers and Hammerstein. Although the stage production uses the only during the concert sequence. Lehman created a scene that makes use of the song. The great popularity of the song in the Anglophone world has led many of its audience to believe that it is an Austrian folk song or even the national anthem. Austrias official anthem is in fact Land der Berge, Land am Strome, the edelweiss is a popular flower in Austria and was featured on the old 1 Schilling coin. It can also now be seen on the 2 cent Euro coin, the flower is protected in Austria and illegal to pick. An edelweiss is also worn as a cap emblem by certain Austrian Army, there is similar confusion about another song co-authored by Hammerstein, Ol Man River from the musical Show Boat, which is widely believed to be a Negro spiritual. The similarity in misconception about the two songs has been noted by two writers, both of whom see it as tribute to Hammersteins talents, hugh Fordin in his biography of Oscar Hammerstein speaks of the ability of the authors to simulate the quality of an authentic folk song. Ol Man River had the ring of a black laborers song, thirty years later, Edelweiss was widely believed to be an old Austrian song, though Oscar. Composed it for the Sound of Music, Theodore Bikel, in his autobiography, Theo, wrote that, after performances, he was approached by native Austrians who said they were delighted to hear that old folk tune again
Edelweiss (song)
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The Edelweiss white flower Leontopodium alpinum
13.
Mary Martin
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Mary Virginia Martin was an American actress, singer, and Broadway star. A muse of Rodgers and Hammerstein, she originated many leading roles over her career, including Nellie Forbush in South Pacific and she was named a Kennedy Center Honoree in 1989. She was the mother of actor Larry Hagman, Martin was born in Weatherford, Texas. Her life as a child, as she describes it in her autobiography My Heart Belongs, was secure and she had close relationships with both her mother and father, as well as her siblings. Her autobiography details how the young actress had an ear for recreating musical sounds. Martins father, Preston Martin, was a lawyer, and her mother, although the doctors told Juanita that she would risk her life if she attempted to have another baby, she was determined to have a boy. Instead, she had Mary, who became quite a tomboy and her family had a barn and orchard that kept her entertained. She played with her elder sister Geraldine, climbing trees and riding ponies and he was tall, good-looking, silver-haired, with the kindest brown eyes. Mother was the disciplinarian, but it was Daddy who could turn me into an angel with just one look, Martin, who said I’d never understand the law, began singing outside the courtroom where her father worked every Saturday night at a bandstand. She sang in a trio with her sister and Marion Swofford, even in those days without microphones, my high piping voice carried all over the square. I have always thought that I inherited my carrying voice from my father and she remembered having a photographic memory as a child, making it easy to memorize songs, as well as get her through school tests. She got her first taste of singing solo at a fire hall, sometimes I think that I cheated my own family and my closest friends by giving to audiences so much of the love I might have kept for them. But thats the way I was made, I truly dont think I could help it, Martins craft was developed by seeing movies and becoming a mimic. She would win prizes for looking, acting and dancing like Ruby Keeler, never, never, never can I say I had a frustrating childhood. Mother used to say she never had such a happy child—that I awakened each morning with a smile. I dont remember that, but I do remember that I never wanted to go to bed, to go to sleep, during high school, Martin dated Benjamin Hagman, before she was packed off to finishing school at Ward–Belmont in Nashville, Tennessee. During that time, she enjoyed imitating Fanny Brice at singing gigs and she was homesick for Weatherford, her family, and Hagman. During a visit, Mary and Benjamin persuaded Marys mother to them to marry
Mary Martin
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Martin as
Peter Pan in 1954, "the actress still most identified with the starring role" according to famoustexans.com
Mary Martin
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Star for "Recording" on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1560
Vine Street,
Hollywood: She also has one for "Radio" at 6609
Hollywood Blvd.
Mary Martin
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Peter Pan statue in Martin's hometown of
Weatherford in
Parker County,
Texas
14.
Theodore Bikel
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Theodore Meir Bikel was an Austrian-American Jewish stage, television and film actor, folk singer, musician, composer, unionist and political activist. He made his debut in Tevye the Milkman in Tel Aviv, Israel. He later studied acting at Britains Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and made his London stage debut in 1948 and he was also a widely recognized and recorded folk singer and guitarist. In 1969 Bikel began acting and singing on stage as Tevye in the musical Fiddler on the Roof, the production won nine Tony Awards and was one of the longest-running musicals in Broadway history. Bikel was president of the Associated Actors and Artistes of America and was president of Actors Equity in the late 1970s and he served as the Chair of the Board of Directors of Partners for Progressive Israel, where he also lectured. Theodore Bikel was born into a Jewish family in Vienna, Austria, as an active Zionist, his father named him after Theodor Herzl, the founder of modern Zionism. Following the German union with Austria in 1938, Bikels family fled to Mandatory Palestine, Bikel studied at the Mikve Yisrael agricultural school and joined Kibbutz Kfar HaMaccabi. Bikel started acting while in his teens and he performed with Habimah Theater in 1943 and was one of the founding members of the Cameri Theatre, which became a leading Israeli theater company. He described his experience there as similar, if not better. The Habimah people were much closer to the Method, indeed, than Lee Strasberg was, in 1945, he moved to London to study at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Bikel moved to the United States in 1954 and became a citizen in 1961. Bikel graduated from understudy to star opposite the directors wife, Vivien Leigh, with a sudden unplanned performance when a co-star, playing the role of Mitch, came down with a case of flu. Bikel showed up backstage and went directly to Leighs dressing room to ask if she wanted to rehearse with him and she replied that she did not need to, Go and do it, she said. You are a professional, and Larry gave you this job because he trusted you to do it well, after the show, Leigh told him, Well done. He also portrayed the sadistic General Jouvet in The Pride and the Passion, in My Fair Lady, he played an overbearing Hungarian linguist. He made his Broadway debut in 1955 in Tonight in Samarkind, in 1959, he created the role of Captain von Trapp in the original production of The Sound of Music, which earned him a second Tony nomination. Bikel did not like his role, however, because his ability to sing was underutilized, when the composers, Rodgers and Hammerstein, realized Bikel was an accomplished folksinger, they wrote the song Edelweiss specifically for him to sing and accompany himself on the guitar. In 1964, he played Zoltan Karpathy, the dialect expert, since his first appearance as Tevye in the musical Fiddler on the Roof in 1967, Bikel had performed the role more often than any other actor
Theodore Bikel
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Bikel in 2009
Theodore Bikel
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Bikel (back, center), performing in
The Elgin Hour, 1955, with (l-r)
Joe Mantell,
Orson Bean,
Polly Bergen
Theodore Bikel
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Bikel, right, at AFL–CIO Convention in 1977, with Russian
dissident Vladimir Bukovsky, center, upon his release from the
Soviet Union, and
Tom Kahn, left, an assistant to AFL–CIO President
George Meany.
15.
Palace Theatre, London
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The Palace Theatre is a West End theatre in the City of Westminster in London. Its red-brick facade dominates the west side of Cambridge Circus behind a plaza near the intersection of Shaftesbury Avenue. Richard DOyly Carte, producer of the Gilbert and Sullivan operas and it was designed by Thomas Edward Collcutt and intended to be a home of English grand opera. The theatre opened as the Royal English Opera House in January 1891 with a production of Arthur Sullivans opera Ivanhoe. Although this ran for 160 performances, followed briefly by André Messagers La Basoche and he leased it to Sarah Bernhardt for a season and sold the opera house within a year at a loss. It was then converted into a music hall and renamed the Palace Theatre of Varieties. In 1897, the theatre began to screen films as part of its programme of entertainment, in 1904, Alfred Butt became manager and continued to combine variety entertainment, including dancing girls, with films. Herman Finck was musical director at the theatre from 1900 until 1920, the Marx Brothers appeared at the theatre in 1922, performing selections from their Broadway shows. In 1925, the musical comedy No, No, Nanette opened at the Palace Theatre, followed by other musicals, the Sound of Music ran for 2,385 performances at the theatre, opening in 1961. Jesus Christ Superstar ran from 1972 to 1980, and Les Misérables played at the theatre for nineteen years, in 1983, Andrew Lloyd Webber purchased and by 1991 had refurbished the theatre. Monty Pythons Spamalot played at the theatre from 2006 until January 2009, between February 2012 and June 2013, it hosted a production of Singin in the Rain. In June 2016, the play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child opened at the theatre, commissioned by impresario Richard DOyly Carte in the late 1880s, it was designed by Thomas Edward Collcutt. Carte intended it to be the home of English grand opera, much as his Savoy Theatre had been built as a home for English light opera, beginning with the Gilbert and Sullivan series. The foundation stone, laid by his wife Helen in 1888, can still be seen on the façade of the theatre, the theatres design was considered to be novel. The upper levels are supported by heavy steel cantilevers built into the back walls, the tiers, corridors, staircases, landings are all constructed of concrete to reduce the risk and damage that might be done by fire. The theatre opened as the Royal English Opera House in January 1891 with Arthur Sullivans Ivanhoe, No expense was spared to make the production a success, including a double cast and every imaginable effect of scenic splendour. It ran for 160 performances, but when Ivanhoe finally closed in July, Carte had no new work to replace it, one opera is not enough to sustain an opera house venture. It was, as critic Herman Klein observed, the strangest comingling of success, towards the end of the run of Ivanhoe I was already preparing the Flying Dutchman with Eugène Oudin in the name part
Palace Theatre, London
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Palace Theatre
Palace Theatre, London
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Ivanhoe programme cover from the theatre's first night
Palace Theatre, London
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Maude Allan as
Salomé with the head of
John the Baptist
Palace Theatre, London
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Les Misérables played at the Palace Theatre until April 2004
16.
Julie Andrews
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Dame Julia Elizabeth Julie Andrews, DBE is an English actress, singer, author, theatre director and dancer. Andrews, an actress and singer, appeared on the West End in 1948. She rose to prominence starring in Broadway musicals such as My Fair Lady, playing Eliza Doolittle, in 1957, Andrews starred in the premiere of Rodgers and Hammersteins written-for-television musical Cinderella, a live network broadcast seen by over 100 million viewers. Andrews made her film debut in Mary Poppins, and won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in the title role. She starred in The Sound of Music, playing Maria, between 1964 and 1986, she starred in The Americanization of Emily, Hawaii, Torn Curtain, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Star. The Tamarind Seed,10, Victor/Victoria, Thats Life. in 2000, Andrews was made a Dame by Queen Elizabeth II for services to the performing arts. In 2002, she was ranked #59 in the BBCs poll of the 100 Greatest Britons, in 2003, she revisited her first Broadway success, this time as a stage director, with a revival of The Boy Friend. From 2001 to 2004, Andrews starred in The Princess Diaries, The Princess Diaries 2, from 2004 to 2010, she lent her voice to the Shrek animated films, and Despicable Me. She is an author of books and has published her autobiography, Home. Julia Elizabeth Wells was born on 1 October 1935 in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey and her mother, Barbara Ward Wells was born in Chertsey and married Edward Charles Ted Wells, a teacher of metalwork and woodwork in 1932. However, Andrews was conceived as a result of an affair her mother had with a family friend. Andrews discovered her true parentage from her mother in 1950, although it was not publicly disclosed until her 2008 autobiography, with the outbreak of World War II, Barbara and Ted Wells went their separate ways and were soon divorced. Ted Wells assisted with evacuating children to Surrey during the Blitz, Andrews lived briefly with Ted Wells and her brother John in Surrey. In 1940, Ted Wells sent young Julia to live with her mother and stepfather, who, the Andrews family was very poor and we lived in a bad slum area of London, Andrews recalled, adding, That was a very black period in my life. According to Andrews, her stepfather was violent and an alcoholic, Ted Andrews twice, while drunk, tried to get into bed with his stepdaughter, resulting in Andrews fitting a lock on her door. The Andrews family took up residence at the Old Meuse, in West Grove, Hersham and she had an enormous influence on me, Andrews said of Stiles-Allen, adding, She was my third mother – Ive got more mothers and fathers than anyone in the world. In her memoir Julie Andrews – My Star Pupil, Stiles-Allen records, The range, accuracy and she had possessed the rare gift of absolute pitch. According to Andrews, Madame was sure that I could do Mozart and Rossini, of her own voice, she says I had a very pure, white, thin voice, a four-octave range – dogs would come for miles around
Julie Andrews
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At Julie Andrews media conference at Park Hyatt, Sydney, Australia, 16 May 2013
Julie Andrews
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Publicity photo 1960s
Julie Andrews
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in
Mary Poppins (1964)
Julie Andrews
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Rock Hudson and Andrews kissing in
Darling Lili (1970)
17.
Christopher Plummer
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Arthur Christopher Orme Plummer CC is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor. After making his debut in Stage Struck, Plummer went on to a successful film career. Plummer has ventured into television projects, including the miniseries The Thorn Birds. Plummer has won awards and accolades for his work, including an Academy Award. With his win at age 82 in 2012 for Beginners, Plummer is the oldest actor ever to win an Academy Award and his fathers uncle was patent lawyer and agent F. B. Plummers parents were divorced shortly after his birth, and he was brought up at the Abbott family home in Senneville, Quebec and he is bilingual, speaking English and French fluently. Plummer is a cousin of actor Nigel Bruce, the British actor, best known as Doctor Watson to Basil Rathbones Sherlock Holmes. He had studied to be a concert pianist, but developed a love for the theatre at an early age and he began acting while he was living on Pine Avenue in Montreal and attending Montreal High. He attended McGill, at time he also took up acting. Whittaker, who was also stage director of the Montreal Repertory Theatre, cast Plummer, aged 18. Plummer made his Broadway debut in January 1953 in The Starcross Story and his next Broadway appearance, Home is the Hero, lasted 30 performances from September to October 1954. He appeared in support of Broadway legend Katharine Cornell and film legend Tyrone Power in The Dark is Light Enough, the play toured several cities, with Plummer serving as Powers understudy. Later that same year, he appeared in his first Broadway hit, Plummer appeared less frequently on Broadway in the 1960s as he moved from New York to London. From May to June 1973, he appeared on Broadway as the character in Cyrano. For that performance, Plummer won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical, later that year, he played Anton Chekhov in Neil Simons adaptation of several Chekhov short stories, The Good Doctor. In the 1980s, he appeared on Broadway in two Shakespearean tragedies, Othello, playing Iago to James Earl Jones Moor, and the role in Macbeth with Glenda Jackson playing his lady. His Iago brought him another Tony nomination and he appeared with Jason Robards in the 1994 revival of Harold Pinters No Mans Land and had great success in 1997 in Barrymore, which he also toured with after a successful Broadway run. His turn as John Barrymore brought him his second Tony Award and he was nominated for a Tony Award and a Drama Desk Award for his 2004 King Lear and for a Tony playing Henry Drummond in the 2007 revival of Inherit the Wind
Christopher Plummer
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Plummer at the
2009 Toronto International Film Festival
Christopher Plummer
–
Photograph by
Carl Van Vechten, 1959
18.
Academy Award
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The various category winners are awarded a copy of a golden statuette, officially called the Academy Award of Merit, which has become commonly known by its nickname Oscar. The awards, first presented in 1929 at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, are overseen by AMPAS, the awards ceremony was first broadcast on radio in 1930 and televised for the first time in 1953. It is now live in more than 200 countries and can be streamed live online. The Academy Awards ceremony is the oldest worldwide entertainment awards ceremony and its equivalents – the Emmy Awards for television, the Tony Awards for theater, and the Grammy Awards for music and recording – are modeled after the Academy Awards. The 89th Academy Awards ceremony, honoring the best films of 2016, were held on February 26,2017, at the Dolby Theatre, in Los Angeles, the ceremony was hosted by Jimmy Kimmel and was broadcast on ABC. A total of 3,048 Oscars have been awarded from the inception of the award through the 88th, the first Academy Awards presentation was held on May 16,1929, at a private dinner function at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel with an audience of about 270 people. The post-awards party was held at the Mayfair Hotel, the cost of guest tickets for that nights ceremony was $5. Fifteen statuettes were awarded, honoring artists, directors and other participants in the industry of the time. The ceremony ran for 15 minutes, winners were announced to media three months earlier, however, that was changed for the second ceremony in 1930. Since then, for the rest of the first decade, the results were given to newspapers for publication at 11,00 pm on the night of the awards. The first Best Actor awarded was Emil Jannings, for his performances in The Last Command and he had to return to Europe before the ceremony, so the Academy agreed to give him the prize earlier, this made him the first Academy Award winner in history. With the fourth ceremony, however, the system changed, for the first six ceremonies, the eligibility period spanned two calendar years. At the 29th ceremony, held on March 27,1957, until then, foreign-language films had been honored with the Special Achievement Award. The 74th Academy Awards, held in 2002, presented the first Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, since 1973, all Academy Awards ceremonies always end with the Academy Award for Best Picture. The Academy also awards Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting, see also § Awards of Merit categories The best known award is the Academy Award of Merit, more popularly known as the Oscar statuette. The five spokes represent the branches of the Academy, Actors, Writers, Directors, Producers. The model for the statuette is said to be Mexican actor Emilio El Indio Fernández, sculptor George Stanley sculpted Cedric Gibbons design. The statuettes presented at the ceremonies were gold-plated solid bronze
Academy Award
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Academy Awards
Academy Award
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31st Academy Awards Presentations,
Pantages Theatre, Hollywood, 1959
Academy Award
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81st Academy Awards Presentations,
Dolby Theatre, Hollywood, 2009
Academy Award
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Pantages Theatre, 2008
19.
Rodgers and Hammerstein
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Rodgers and Hammerstein refers to an influential, innovative and successful American musical theatre writing team consisting of composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II. They created a string of popular Broadway musicals in the 1940s and 1950s, five of their Broadway shows, Oklahoma. Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I and The Sound of Music, were outstanding successes, of the other four that the team produced on Broadway during their lifetimes, Flower Drum Song was well-received, and none was an outright flop. Most of their shows have received frequent revivals around the world, among the many accolades their shows garnered were thirty-four Tony Awards, fifteen Academy Awards, the Pulitzer Prize, and two Grammy Awards. Their musical theatre writing partnership has been called the greatest of the 20th century, prior to their partnership, both Rodgers and Hammerstein achieved success independently. Rodgers had collaborated for more than two decades with Lorenz Hart, among their many Broadway hits were the shows A Connecticut Yankee, Babes in Arms, The Boys from Syracuse, Pal Joey, and By Jupiter, as well as many successful film projects. Their 1927 musical Show Boat is considered to be one of the masterpieces of the American musical theatre, other Hammerstein/Kern collaborations include Sweet Adeline and Very Warm for May. Although the last of these was panned by critics, it one of Kern and Hammersteins best-loved songs. By the early 1940s, Hart had sunk deeper into alcoholism and emotional turmoil, independently of each other, Rodgers and Hammerstein had been attracted to making a musical based on Lynn Riggs stage play Green Grow the Lilacs. When Jerome Kern declined Hammersteins offer to work on such a project and Hart refused Rodgers offer to do the same, Rodgers, marked a revolution in musical drama. Although not the first musical to tell a story of emotional depth and psychological complexity, introduced a number of new storytelling elements and techniques. These included its use of song and dance to convey plot and character rather than act as a diversion from the story, was originally called Away We Go. and opened at the Shubert Theatre in New Haven in March 1943. Only a few changes were made before it opened on Broadway, the original Broadway production opened on March 31,1943, at the St. James Theatre. Although the typical musical of the time was written around the talents of a specific performer, such as Ethel Merman or Fred Astaire. Ultimately the original cast included Alfred Drake, Joan Roberts, Celeste Holm, Howard Da Silva, Betty Garde, Lee Dixon, marc Platt danced the role of Dream Curly, and Katharine Sergava danced the part of Dream Laurey. The story and the songs were considered more important than sheer star power, nevertheless, the production ran for a then-unprecedented 2,212 performances, finally closing on May 29,1948. In 1955 it was made into an Academy Award-winning musical film, the film starred Gordon MacRae and Shirley Jones, and its soundtrack was #1 on the 1956 album charts. After their initial success with Oklahoma, the musical was adapted to the screen in 1954, and scored a Best Actress Oscar nomination for leading lady Dorothy Dandridge
Rodgers and Hammerstein
–
Rodgers (left) and Hammerstein (right), with
Irving Berlin (middle) and
Helen Tamiris, watching auditions at the St. James Theatre in 1948
20.
West German
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West Germany is the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation on 23 May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990. During this Cold War era, NATO-aligned West Germany and Warsaw Pact-aligned East Germany were divided by the Inner German border, after 1961 West Berlin was physically separated from East Berlin as well as from East Germany by the Berlin Wall. This situation ended when East Germany was dissolved and its five states joined the ten states of the Federal Republic of Germany along with the reunified city-state of Berlin. With the reunification of West and East Germany, the Federal Republic of Germany, enlarged now to sixteen states and this period is referred to as the Bonn Republic by historians, alluding to the interwar Weimar Republic and the post-reunification Berlin Republic. The Federal Republic of Germany was established from eleven states formed in the three Allied Zones of occupation held by the United States, the United Kingdom and France, US and British forces remained in the country throughout the Cold War. Its population grew from roughly 51 million in 1950 to more than 63 million in 1990, the city of Bonn was its de facto capital city. The fourth Allied occupation zone was held by the Soviet Union, as a result, West Germany had a territory about half the size of the interbellum democratic Weimar Republic. At the onset of the Cold War, Europe was divided among the Western and Eastern blocs, Germany was de facto divided into two countries and two special territories, the Saarland and divided Berlin. The Federal Republic of Germany claimed a mandate for all of Germany. It took the line that the GDR was an illegally constituted puppet state, though the GDR did hold regular elections, these were not free and fair. For all practical purposes the GDR was a Soviet puppet state, from the West German perspective the GDR was therefore illegitimate. Three southwestern states of West Germany merged to form Baden-Württemberg in 1952, in addition to the resulting ten states, West Berlin was considered an unofficial de facto 11th state. It recognised the GDR as a de facto government within a single German nation that in turn was represented de jure by the West German state alone. From 1973 onward, East Germany recognised the existence of two German countries de jure, and the West as both de facto and de jure foreign country, the Federal Republic and the GDR agreed that neither of them could speak in the name of the other. The first chancellor Konrad Adenauer, who remained in office until 1963, had worked for an alignment with NATO rather than neutrality. He not only secured a membership in NATO but was also a proponent of agreements that developed into the present-day European Union, when the G6 was established in 1975, there was no question whether the Federal Republic of Germany would be a member as well. With the collapse of communism in Central and Eastern Europe in 1989, symbolised by the opening of the Berlin Wall, East Germany voted to dissolve itself and accede to the Federal Republic in 1990. Its five post-war states were reconstituted along with the reunited Berlin and they formally joined the Federal Republic on 3 October 1990, raising the number of states from 10 to 16, ending the division of Germany
West German
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Konrad Adenauer in parliament, 1955
West German
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Flag
West German
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Rudi Dutschke, student leader.
West German
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The
Volkswagen Beetle – for many years the most successful car in the world – on the assembly line in Wolfsburg factory, 1973.
21.
Leland Hayward
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Leland Hayward was a Hollywood and Broadway agent and theatrical producer. He produced the original Broadway stage productions of Rodgers and Hammersteins South Pacific, Hayward was born in Nebraska City, Nebraska, the grandson of Monroe Leland Hayward, a senator from Nebraska. His father, Colonel William Hayward, was a hero of the First World War who commanded the 369th Infantry Regiment. Haywards father and mother, Sarah Coe Ireland, divorced when he was nine, Hayward attended The Hotchkiss School and then studied at Princeton University, but dropped out. He took on a number of jobs including newspaper reporter and press agent and he dated some of his female clients, including Greta Garbo and Katharine Hepburn. Hepburn refused to him, despite a three-year relationship, because she was too focused on her career. In 1945, Hayward sold his talent agency and became a producer and his 1949 production of South Pacific was a great success. He produced both the 1948 play Mister Roberts and the 1955 film version, other noteworthy film productions included The Spirit of St. Louis, and The Old Man and the Sea. He was a co-producer of the 1959 show Gypsy and his biggest success, however, was The Sound of Music that opened the same year. Haywards forays into television were similarly notable and he produced The Ford 50th Anniversary Show on June 15,1953, a live two-hour simulcast on CBS and NBC that looked back on the history of the United States and the world up to 1953. The program featuring an extended duet by Ethel Merman and Mary Martin. In 1953, Hayward conceived Producers Showcase, a series of 90-minute color spectaculars to be broadcast monthly on NBC, illness forced Hayward to withdraw from the project shortly before the first broadcast, and production was assumed by his attorneys, Saul and Henry Jaffe. Hayward later produced That Was The Week That Was, a groundbreaking American adaptation of a British television show, haywards interest in aviation led to his co-founding, in 1941, Southwest Airways, with financial help from his Hollywood friends. After suffering several strokes, Hayward died at his home, Haywire, in Yorktown Heights, New York, in 1921 he married the debutante Lola Gibbs. They divorced one year later, remarried and divorced again in 1934, Hayward married stage and screen actress Margaret Sullavan, formerly married to Henry Fonda, in 1936. The familys dysfunctional life had been memorialized in daughter Brookes memoir and his great-grandchildren include William Leland Hayward V, Amelia James Hayward, Anna and Cooper Thomas, Violet Hayward Goldstone, Jack Munn, Cooper Hayward, and Ryan Hayward. In 1938, Hayward met Slim Hawks, then wife of film director Howard Hawks, haywards marriage to Sullavan came to an end in 1946, and he married Slim Hawks three years later. Their marriage became strained after Slim had a stand with Frank Sinatra
Leland Hayward
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Leland Hayward (left) with
Jimmy Stewart in 1955
Leland Hayward
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Margaret Sullavan and Leland Hayward among the patrons of the
Stork Club in New York City (November 1944)
22.
Georg von Trapp
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Corvette Captain Georg Johannes Ritter von Trapp, often incorrectly referred to as Baron von Trapp, was an Austro-Hungarian Navy officer. His naval exploits during World War I earned him numerous decorations, under his command, the submarines SM U-5 and SM U-14 sank 13 Allied ships totaling about 45,669 gross register tons. Following Austria-Hungarys defeat and subsequent collapse, Trapp returned to his family but lost his first wife to scarlet fever, the family came under increasing persecution from the Nazis after the Anschluss, when Trapp refused to serve in the German Navy due to his opposition to Nazi ideology. Fearing arrest, Trapp fled with his family to Italy and then to the United States, the story of his family served as the inspiration for the musical The Sound of Music, and the hugely successful 1965 film, in which he was portrayed by Canadian actor Christopher Plummer. Georg Johannes Ritter von Trapp was born in Zara, Dalmatia and his older sister was the Austrian artist Hede von Trapp, and his brother Werner died in 1915 during the First World War. August Ritter von Trapp died in 1884, when Georg was four, in 1894, aged fourteen, the young Trapp followed in his fathers footsteps and joined the Imperial and Royal Austro-Hungarian Navy, entering the naval academy at Fiume. He graduated four years later and completed two years of follow-on training voyages, including one to Australia, on the voyage home he visited the Holy Land where he met a Franciscan monk who took him on a tour of all the Biblical sites he wanted to see. Among other things, Trapp bought seven bottles of water from the Jordan River which were used to baptize his first seven children. In 1900 he was assigned to the armored cruiser SMS Kaiserin und Königin Maria Theresia and was decorated for his performance during the Boxer Rebellion, in 1902 he passed the final officers examination. He was fascinated by submarines, and in 1908 seized the opportunity to be transferred to the newly formed submarine arm. In 1910 he was given command of the newly constructed SM U-6, which was launched by his wife, on 17 April 1915, Trapp took command of SM U-5 and conducted nine combat patrols. He also captured the Greek steamer Cefalonia off Durazzo on 29 August 1915, Georg Johannes von Trapp has sometimes incorrectly been credited with sinking the Italian troop transport Principe Umberto. Trapp conducted ten more war patrols, until, in May 1918, he was promoted to Korvettenkapitän and given command of the submarine base in the Gulf of Kotor. At the end of the fighting in 1918, Trapps wartime record stood at 19 war patrols,11 cargo vessels totalling 45,669 GRT sunk, plus Léon Gambetta, among other honours, he received the Knights Cross of the Military Order of Maria Theresa. The end of the First World War saw the defeat and collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Trapp was first married to Agatha Whitehead, a niece of St John Brodrick, 1st Earl of Midleton and a granddaughter of Robert Whitehead, who invented the modern torpedo. After the British government had rejected Whiteheads invention, the Austrian Emperor Franz Josef invited him to open a factory in Fiume. Trapps first command, the U-boat U-6, was launched by Agatha, agathas inherited wealth sustained the couple and permitted them to start a family, and they went on to have seven children, two sons and five daughters, over the next ten years. Their first child, Rupert, was born on 1 November 1911, at Pola, Istria, on 3 September 1922, Agatha von Trapp died of scarlet fever contracted from her daughter Agathe
Georg von Trapp
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Georg von Trapp
Georg von Trapp
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Lieutenant Georg von Trapp and Agathe Whitehead about 1910
Georg von Trapp
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On duty aboard SMU-5
23.
Aigen (Salzburg city district)
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Aigen is a district in the city of Salzburg, Salzburgerland, Austria and is known as one of the most expensive residential areas of the provincial capital. It is one of the 24 districts in which Salzburg is organized, the Salzach river is its western border and the municipality of Elsbethen is to the south. Many celebrities such as the Families Porsche and Piech, Franz Beckenbauer, Renate Thyssen-Henne, DJ Ötzi, the word aigen, Old High German eigan, means to own and as a noun refers to the property or the freedom to own property. Eigentuom is a Middle High German word and stands for the right of possession. An Aigner is therefore a free, non-assessable farmer, the Salzburg-Aigen railway station, and the Youth Hostel Association are located here. There is also the Authority for the Finance and its famous Schloss Aigen was built in 1402. The Trapp family, on whom The Sound of Music was based, lived in a villa near the castle, heinrich Himmler later lived in the Trapp residence in Aigen. The Aigner Park was made, in the English style, in 1780 for the Schloss Aigen, Aigen has three main parts, Glas, Aigen Mitte and Abfalter, Villa Stolz, built in 1845. Villa Coudenhove I, built in 1856, Villa Coudenhove II, built in 1861. Villa Walburga, later Villa Lamberg, then Villa Trapp, built in 1863, waldvilla Fürst Schwarzenberg, built in 1886. Abfalterhof Villa Jany, built in 1884
Aigen (Salzburg city district)
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Salzburg Districts. Aigen is in the south-east of the map
24.
Salzburg
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Salzburg is the fourth-largest city in Austria and the capital of the federal state of Salzburg. Salzburgs Old Town is internationally renowned for its architecture and is one of the best-preserved city centers north of the Alps. It was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997, the city has three universities and a large population of students. Tourists also visit Salzburg to tour the historic center and the scenic Alpine surroundings, Salzburg was the birthplace of 18th-century composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. In the mid‑20th century, the city was the setting for the musical play, traces of human settlements have been found in the area, dating to the Neolithic Age. The first settlements in Salzburg continuous with the present were apparently by the Celts around the 5th century BC, around 15 BC the Roman Empire merged the settlements into one city. At this time, the city was called Juvavum and was awarded the status of a Roman municipium in 45 AD, Juvavum developed into an important town of the Roman province of Noricum. After the Norican frontiers collapse, Juvavum declined so sharply that by the late 7th century it became a ruin. The Life of Saint Rupert credits the 8th-century saint with the citys rebirth, when Theodo of Bavaria asked Rupert to become bishop c. 700, Rupert reconnoitered the river for the site of his basilica, Rupert chose Juvavum, ordained priests, and annexed the manor Piding. He traveled to evangelise among pagans, the name Salzburg means Salt Castle. The name derives from the barges carrying salt on the Salzach River, the Festung Hohensalzburg, the citys fortress, was built in 1077 by Archbishop Gebhard, who made it his residence. It was greatly expanded during the following centuries, independence from Bavaria was secured in the late 14th century. Salzburg was the seat of the Archbishopric of Salzburg, a prince-bishopric of the Holy Roman Empire, as the reformation movement gained steam, riots broke out among peasants in the areas in and around Salzburg. The city was occupied during the German Peasants War, and the archbishop had to flee to the safety of the fortress It was besieged for three months in 1525. It was in the 17th century that Italian architects rebuilt the city center as it is today along with many palaces,21,475 citizens refused to recant their beliefs and were expelled from Salzburg. Most of them accepted an offer by King Friedrich Wilhelm I of Prussia, the rest settled in other Protestant states in Europe and the British colonies in America. In 1772–1803, under archbishop Hieronymus Graf von Colloredo, Salzburg was a centre of late Illuminism, in 1803, the archbishopric was secularised by Emperor Napoleon, he transferred the territory to Ferdinando III of Tuscany, former Grand Duke of Tuscany, as the Electorate of Salzburg
Salzburg
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Salzburg viewed from the
Festung Hohensalzburg
Salzburg
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UNESCO World Heritage Site
Salzburg
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Mozart was born in Salzburg, capital of the Archbishopric of Salzburg, a former ecclesiastical principality in what is now Austria, then part of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation
Salzburg
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Salzburg in 1914
25.
Nonnberg Abbey
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Nonnberg Abbey is a Benedictine monastery in Salzburg, Austria. It was founded ca.714 by Saint Rupert of Salzburg and is the oldest womens religious house in the German-speaking world and its first abbess was Saint Erentrudis of Salzburg, who was either a niece or a sister of Saint Rupert. The abbeys endowment was provided by Theodbert, Duke of Bavaria, and augmented by Emperor Henry II, the abbey was independent of the founding house from 987 and was re-built in about 1000. This building was destroyed in a fire of 1423. Reconstruction took place between 1464 and 1509, in 1624 the church was enlarged by the addition of three side chapels. A refurbishment in the Baroque style took place in the 1880s, the Mother Abbess during Marias time at Nonnberg was Sister Virgilia Lütz. The Abbey was recently selected as main motif for the Austrian Nonnberg Abbey commemorative coin minted on April 5,2006 and this was the first coin of the series Great Abbeys of Austria. It shows the Benedictine convent of Nonnberg Abbey, on the hilltop in the background, the castle of Hohensalzburg and the Kajetaner church can be seen. Citations Bibliography Nonnberg Abbey at Sacred Destinations Stift Nonnberg at Visit-Salzburg Historic Centre of the City of Salzburg at UNESCO
Nonnberg Abbey
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Nonnberg Abbey in Salzburg, Austria
Nonnberg Abbey
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Euro gold and silver commemorative coin
26.
Kriegsmarine
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The Kriegsmarine was the navy of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire and the inter-war Reichsmarine, the Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches—along with the Heer and the Luftwaffe —of the Wehrmacht, the armed forces of Nazi Germany. The Kriegsmarine grew rapidly during German naval rearmament in the 1930s, Kriegsmarine ships were deployed to the waters around Spain during the Spanish Civil War, under the guise of enforcing non-intervention, but in reality supporting the Franco side of the war. In January 1939 Plan Z was ordered, calling for naval parity with the Royal Navy by 1944, however, when World War II broke out in September 1939, Plan Z was shelved in favour of building submarines and prioritizing land and air forces. The Commander-in-Chief of the Kriegsmarine was Adolf Hitler, who exercised his authority through the Oberkommando der Marine, the Kriegsmarines most famous ships were the U-boats, most of which were constructed after Plan Z was abandoned at the beginning of World War II. However, the adoption of convoy escorts, especially in the Atlantic, after the Second World War, the Kriegsmarines remaining ships were divided up amongst the Allied powers and were used for various purposes including minesweeping. Adolf Hitler was the Commander-in-Chief of all German armed forces, including the Kriegsmarine and his authority was exercised through the Oberkommando der Marine, or OKM, with a Commander-in-Chief, a Chief of Naval General Staff and a Chief of Naval Operations. The first Commander-in-Chief of the OKM was Erich Raeder who was the Commander-in-Chief of the Reichsmarine when it was renamed and reorganized in 1935, Raeder held the post until falling out with Hitler after the German failure in the Battle of the Barents Sea. He was replaced by Karl Dönitz on 30 January 1943 who held the command until he was appointed President of Germany upon Hitlers suicide in April 1945, hans-Georg von Friedeburg was then Commander-in-Chief of the OKM for the short period of time until Germany surrendered in May 1945. Subordinate to these were regional, squadron and temporary flotilla commands, regional commands covered significant naval regions and were themselves sub-divided, as necessary. They were commanded by a Generaladmiral or an Admiral, there was a Marineoberkommando for the Baltic Fleet, Nord, Nordsee, Norwegen, Ost/Ostsee, Süd and West. The Kriegsmarine used a form of encoding called Gradnetzmeldeverfahren to denote regions on a map, each squadron also had a command structure with its own Flag Officer. The commands were Battleships, Cruisers, Destroyers, Submarines, Torpedo Boats, Minesweepers, Reconnaissance Forces, Naval Security Forces, Big Guns and Hand Guns, major naval operations were commanded by a Flottenchef. The Flottenchef controlled a flotilla and organized its actions during the operation, the commands were, by their nature, temporary. As a result the German surface fleet was plagued by design flaws throughout the war, military aircraft were also banned, so Germany could have no naval aviation. Under the treaty Germany could only build new ships to replace old ones, All the ships allowed and personnel were taken over from the Kaiserliche Marine, renamed Reichsmarine. From the outset, Germany worked to circumvent the restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles. The launching of the first pocket battleship, Deutschland in 1931 was a step in the formation of a modern German fleet, modern destroyers and light cruisers were also built
Kriegsmarine
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Wartime
propaganda poster
Kriegsmarine
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Kriegsmarine (KM)
Kriegsmarine
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The crew of a minesweeper, France, 1941
Kriegsmarine
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Battleship
Tirpitz in Norway, 1944
27.
Italy
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Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a unitary parliamentary republic in Europe. Located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino, Italy covers an area of 301,338 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal and Mediterranean climate. Due to its shape, it is referred to in Italy as lo Stivale. With 61 million inhabitants, it is the fourth most populous EU member state, the Italic tribe known as the Latins formed the Roman Kingdom, which eventually became a republic that conquered and assimilated other nearby civilisations. The legacy of the Roman Empire is widespread and can be observed in the distribution of civilian law, republican governments, Christianity. The Renaissance began in Italy and spread to the rest of Europe, bringing a renewed interest in humanism, science, exploration, Italian culture flourished at this time, producing famous scholars, artists and polymaths such as Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Michelangelo and Machiavelli. The weakened sovereigns soon fell victim to conquest by European powers such as France, Spain and Austria. Despite being one of the victors in World War I, Italy entered a period of economic crisis and social turmoil. The subsequent participation in World War II on the Axis side ended in defeat, economic destruction. Today, Italy has the third largest economy in the Eurozone and it has a very high level of human development and is ranked sixth in the world for life expectancy. The country plays a prominent role in regional and global economic, military, cultural and diplomatic affairs, as a reflection of its cultural wealth, Italy is home to 51 World Heritage Sites, the most in the world, and is the fifth most visited country. The assumptions on the etymology of the name Italia are very numerous, according to one of the more common explanations, the term Italia, from Latin, Italia, was borrowed through Greek from the Oscan Víteliú, meaning land of young cattle. The bull was a symbol of the southern Italic tribes and was often depicted goring the Roman wolf as a defiant symbol of free Italy during the Social War. Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus states this account together with the legend that Italy was named after Italus, mentioned also by Aristotle and Thucydides. The name Italia originally applied only to a part of what is now Southern Italy – according to Antiochus of Syracuse, but by his time Oenotria and Italy had become synonymous, and the name also applied to most of Lucania as well. The Greeks gradually came to apply the name Italia to a larger region, excavations throughout Italy revealed a Neanderthal presence dating back to the Palaeolithic period, some 200,000 years ago, modern Humans arrived about 40,000 years ago. Other ancient Italian peoples of undetermined language families but of possible origins include the Rhaetian people and Cammuni. Also the Phoenicians established colonies on the coasts of Sardinia and Sicily, the Roman legacy has deeply influenced the Western civilisation, shaping most of the modern world
Italy
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The
Colosseum in Rome, built c. 70 – 80 AD, is considered one of the greatest works of
architecture and
engineering of ancient history.
Italy
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Flag
Italy
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The
Iron Crown of Lombardy, for centuries symbol of the
Kings of Italy.
Italy
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Castel del Monte, built by German Emperor
Frederick II,
UNESCO World Heritage site
28.
Salzburg, Austria
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Salzburg is the fourth-largest city in Austria and the capital of the federal state of Salzburg. Salzburgs Old Town is internationally renowned for its architecture and is one of the best-preserved city centers north of the Alps. It was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997, the city has three universities and a large population of students. Tourists also visit Salzburg to tour the historic center and the scenic Alpine surroundings, Salzburg was the birthplace of 18th-century composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. In the mid‑20th century, the city was the setting for the musical play, traces of human settlements have been found in the area, dating to the Neolithic Age. The first settlements in Salzburg continuous with the present were apparently by the Celts around the 5th century BC, around 15 BC the Roman Empire merged the settlements into one city. At this time, the city was called Juvavum and was awarded the status of a Roman municipium in 45 AD, Juvavum developed into an important town of the Roman province of Noricum. After the Norican frontiers collapse, Juvavum declined so sharply that by the late 7th century it became a ruin. The Life of Saint Rupert credits the 8th-century saint with the citys rebirth, when Theodo of Bavaria asked Rupert to become bishop c. 700, Rupert reconnoitered the river for the site of his basilica, Rupert chose Juvavum, ordained priests, and annexed the manor Piding. He traveled to evangelise among pagans, the name Salzburg means Salt Castle. The name derives from the barges carrying salt on the Salzach River, the Festung Hohensalzburg, the citys fortress, was built in 1077 by Archbishop Gebhard, who made it his residence. It was greatly expanded during the following centuries, independence from Bavaria was secured in the late 14th century. Salzburg was the seat of the Archbishopric of Salzburg, a prince-bishopric of the Holy Roman Empire, as the reformation movement gained steam, riots broke out among peasants in the areas in and around Salzburg. The city was occupied during the German Peasants War, and the archbishop had to flee to the safety of the fortress It was besieged for three months in 1525. It was in the 17th century that Italian architects rebuilt the city center as it is today along with many palaces,21,475 citizens refused to recant their beliefs and were expelled from Salzburg. Most of them accepted an offer by King Friedrich Wilhelm I of Prussia, the rest settled in other Protestant states in Europe and the British colonies in America. In 1772–1803, under archbishop Hieronymus Graf von Colloredo, Salzburg was a centre of late Illuminism, in 1803, the archbishopric was secularised by Emperor Napoleon, he transferred the territory to Ferdinando III of Tuscany, former Grand Duke of Tuscany, as the Electorate of Salzburg
Salzburg, Austria
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Salzburg viewed from the
Festung Hohensalzburg
Salzburg, Austria
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UNESCO World Heritage Site
Salzburg, Austria
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Mozart was born in Salzburg, capital of the Archbishopric of Salzburg, a former ecclesiastical principality in what is now Austria, then part of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation
Salzburg, Austria
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Salzburg in 1914
29.
World War II
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World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945, although related conflicts began earlier. It involved the vast majority of the worlds countries—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing alliances, the Allies and the Axis. It was the most widespread war in history, and directly involved more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. Marked by mass deaths of civilians, including the Holocaust and the bombing of industrial and population centres. These made World War II the deadliest conflict in human history, from late 1939 to early 1941, in a series of campaigns and treaties, Germany conquered or controlled much of continental Europe, and formed the Axis alliance with Italy and Japan. Under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of August 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union partitioned and annexed territories of their European neighbours, Poland, Finland, Romania and the Baltic states. In December 1941, Japan attacked the United States and European colonies in the Pacific Ocean, and quickly conquered much of the Western Pacific. The Axis advance halted in 1942 when Japan lost the critical Battle of Midway, near Hawaii, in 1944, the Western Allies invaded German-occupied France, while the Soviet Union regained all of its territorial losses and invaded Germany and its allies. During 1944 and 1945 the Japanese suffered major reverses in mainland Asia in South Central China and Burma, while the Allies crippled the Japanese Navy, thus ended the war in Asia, cementing the total victory of the Allies. World War II altered the political alignment and social structure of the world, the United Nations was established to foster international co-operation and prevent future conflicts. The victorious great powers—the United States, the Soviet Union, China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and the United States emerged as rival superpowers, setting the stage for the Cold War, which lasted for the next 46 years. Meanwhile, the influence of European great powers waned, while the decolonisation of Asia, most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards economic recovery. Political integration, especially in Europe, emerged as an effort to end pre-war enmities, the start of the war in Europe is generally held to be 1 September 1939, beginning with the German invasion of Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later. The dates for the beginning of war in the Pacific include the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War on 7 July 1937, or even the Japanese invasion of Manchuria on 19 September 1931. Others follow the British historian A. J. P. Taylor, who held that the Sino-Japanese War and war in Europe and its colonies occurred simultaneously and this article uses the conventional dating. Other starting dates sometimes used for World War II include the Italian invasion of Abyssinia on 3 October 1935. The British historian Antony Beevor views the beginning of World War II as the Battles of Khalkhin Gol fought between Japan and the forces of Mongolia and the Soviet Union from May to September 1939, the exact date of the wars end is also not universally agreed upon. It was generally accepted at the time that the war ended with the armistice of 14 August 1945, rather than the formal surrender of Japan
World War II
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Clockwise from top left: Chinese forces in the
Battle of Wanjialing, Australian
25-pounder guns during the
First Battle of El Alamein, German
Stuka dive bombers on the
Eastern Front in December 1943, a U.S. naval force in the
Lingayen Gulf,
Wilhelm Keitel signing the
German Instrument of Surrender, Soviet troops in the
Battle of Stalingrad
World War II
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The
League of Nations assembly, held in
Geneva,
Switzerland, 1930
World War II
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Adolf Hitler at a German
National Socialist political rally in
Weimar, October 1930
World War II
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Italian soldiers recruited in 1935, on their way to fight the
Second Italo-Abyssinian War
