1.
Phoenix Comicon
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Phoenix Comicon is a multigenre entertainment and comic book convention held annually in Phoenix, Arizona. It was founded as the Phoenix Cactus Comicon in June 2002, PCC plays host to comic related panels, programming events, art contests, and autograph signings for all ages. It is an event held during the summer at the Phoenix Convention Center in downtown Phoenix. On Thursday evening prior to the opening of the event, there is a preview for professionals, exhibitors. In 2016, the set a attendance record of 106,096. Phoenix Comicon has also begun to expand programming into the hotels, including the Hyatt Regency, Marriott Renaissance. It was re-branded as Phoenix Fan Fest and moved to October in 2016 at the Phoenix Convention Center, the first Phoenix Comicon was held in June 2002 as Phoenix Cactus Comicon. It was a convention for six hours held at a Best Western in Ahwatukee. Admission was $3 per person and there were 432 attendees, along with a few local creators and exhibitors, the following three years, the convention was held at the Glendale Civic Center. The size of the convention and the attendance were doubled from the year. The convention began to bring out some guests from out of state including Spider-Man artist Todd Nauck, the programming was increased to include Q&As with guests, how-to workshops, and film trailer presentations. In 2006, the convention was held at the Mesa Convention Center in Mesa and it also became a two-day convention, with Friday preview night, and had guests such as voice actors Johnny Young Bosche and Greg Ayres. The exhibitor room was expanded, as was the amount of programming offered. This was the first convention to expand beyond comic books into the pop culture community, including Anime, Manga, Sci-Fi, Fantasy. Attendance was over 2,600 people for the weekend, the convention was held in January from 2007 to 2009, at the Mesa Convention Center. 2007 was considered the conventions first foray into media guests, with Feedback, in 2009, the event was expanded to 3 days, with a Thursday preview night. Beginning in 2010 the convention was held on Memorial Day weekend, at the Phoenix Convention Center and this change was due to the large increase in attendance, and the availability of funds to hold the convention in a larger venue. Bigger names, such as Leonard Nimoy, George Takei, in 2014, due to a scheduling conflict, the convention was moved to the first week of June as opposed to Memorial Day weekend
2.
Chicago
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Chicago, officially the City of Chicago, is the third-most populous city in the United States. With over 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the state of Illinois, and it is the county seat of Cook County. In 2012, Chicago was listed as a global city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network. Chicago has the third-largest gross metropolitan product in the United States—about $640 billion according to 2015 estimates, the city has one of the worlds largest and most diversified economies with no single industry employing more than 14% of the workforce. In 2016, Chicago hosted over 54 million domestic and international visitors, landmarks in the city include Millennium Park, Navy Pier, the Magnificent Mile, Art Institute of Chicago, Museum Campus, the Willis Tower, Museum of Science and Industry, and Lincoln Park Zoo. Chicagos culture includes the arts, novels, film, theater, especially improvisational comedy. Chicago also has sports teams in each of the major professional leagues. The city has many nicknames, the best-known being the Windy City, the name Chicago is derived from a French rendering of the Native American word shikaakwa, known to botanists as Allium tricoccum, from the Miami-Illinois language. The first known reference to the site of the current city of Chicago as Checagou was by Robert de LaSalle around 1679 in a memoir, henri Joutel, in his journal of 1688, noted that the wild garlic, called chicagoua, grew abundantly in the area. In the mid-18th century, the area was inhabited by a Native American tribe known as the Potawatomi, the first known non-indigenous permanent settler in Chicago was Jean Baptiste Point du Sable. Du Sable was of African and French descent and arrived in the 1780s and he is commonly known as the Founder of Chicago. In 1803, the United States Army built Fort Dearborn, which was destroyed in 1812 in the Battle of Fort Dearborn, the Ottawa, Ojibwe, and Potawatomi tribes had ceded additional land to the United States in the 1816 Treaty of St. Louis. The Potawatomi were forcibly removed from their land after the Treaty of Chicago in 1833, on August 12,1833, the Town of Chicago was organized with a population of about 200. Within seven years it grew to more than 4,000 people, on June 15,1835, the first public land sales began with Edmund Dick Taylor as U. S. The City of Chicago was incorporated on Saturday, March 4,1837, as the site of the Chicago Portage, the city became an important transportation hub between the eastern and western United States. Chicagos first railway, Galena and Chicago Union Railroad, and the Illinois, the canal allowed steamboats and sailing ships on the Great Lakes to connect to the Mississippi River. A flourishing economy brought residents from rural communities and immigrants from abroad, manufacturing and retail and finance sectors became dominant, influencing the American economy. The Chicago Board of Trade listed the first ever standardized exchange traded forward contracts and these issues also helped propel another Illinoisan, Abraham Lincoln, to the national stage
3.
North Hollywood, Los Angeles
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North Hollywood is a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley region of the city of Los Angeles. It is home to the NoHo Arts District and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, there is a municipal park and a recreation center. The neighborhood is an important transportation center, and it is also a place where many people have lived or worked. North Hollywood was established by the Lankershim Ranch Land and Water Company in 1887 and it was first named Toluca before being renamed Lankershim in 1896 and finally North Hollywood in 1927. It is not contiguous with Hollywood, being separated by parts of the San Fernando Valley. In 2008, the city estimated that the population had increased to 87,241, in 2000 the median age for residents was 30, considered an average age for city and county neighborhoods, the percentage of residents aged 19 to 34 was among the countys highest. The neighborhood was considered moderately diverse ethnically within Los Angeles, the breakdown was Latinos,57. 7%, whites, 27%, Asians,5. 7%, blacks,5. 6%, and others, 4%. Mexico and El Salvador were the most common places of birth for the 46. 4% of the residents who were born abroad—a high percentage for Los Angeles, the percentages of never-married men and never-married women were among the countys highest. The median yearly income in 2008 dollars was $42,791, considered average for the city. The percentages of households that earned $40,000 or less were high for the county, renters occupied 75. 4% of the housing stock, and house- or apartment-owners held 24. 6%. North Hollywood is bordered on the north by Sun Valley and on the northeast and east by Burbank, Toluca Lake borders North Hollywood on the southeast and south, and Studio City abuts it on the southwest. It is flanked by Valley Village and Valley Glen on the west, North Hollywood was once part of the vast landholdings of the Mission San Fernando Rey de España, which was confiscated by the government during the Mexican period of rule. A group of investors assembled as the San Fernando Farm Homestead Association purchased the half of the Rancho Ex-Mission San Fernando. The leading investor was Isaac Lankershim, a Northern California stockman and grain farmer, in 1873, Isaac Lankershims son and future son-in-law, James Boon Lankershim and Isaac Newton Van Nuys, moved to the San Ferndando Valley and took over management of the property. Van Nuys thought the property could profitably grow wheat using the dryland farming developed on the Great Plains. In time the Lankershim property, under its name, the Los Angeles Farming and Milling Company. Lankershim established a townsite which the residents named Toluca along the old road from Cahuenga Pass to San Fernando, the land boom of the 1880s went bust by the 1890s, but despite another brutal drought cycle in the late 1890s, the fruit and nut farmers remained solvent. The Toluca Fruit Growers Association was formed in 1894, the next year the Southern Pacific opened a branch line slanting northwest across the Valley to Chatsworth
4.
Grinnell College
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Grinnell College is a private liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, U. S. known for its rigorous academics and tradition of social responsibility. It was founded in 1846, when a group of New England Congregationalists established the Trustees of Iowa College, in 1843, eleven Congregational ministers, all of whom trained at Andover Theological Seminary in Massachusetts, set out to proselytize on the frontier. Each man pledged to gather a church and together the group or band would seek to establish a college, when the group arrived in Iowa later that year, each selected a different town in which to establish a congregation. In 1846, they collectively established Iowa College in Davenport, a few months later, Iowa joined the Union. The first 25 years of Grinnells history saw a change in name, however, Greeley vehemently denied ever saying this to Grinnell, or to anyone. The name of the corporation The Trustees of Iowa College remained, in its early years, the College experienced setbacks. Although two students received bachelor of arts degrees in 1854, within 10 years the Civil War had claimed most of Grinnells students, in 1882, Grinnell College was struck by a tornado — then called a cyclone, after which the college yearbook was named. The storm devastated the campus and destroyed both College buildings, rebuilding began immediately, and the determination to expand wasnt limited to architecture, the curriculum was again extended to include departments in political science and modern languages. Grinnell became known as the center of the Social Gospel reform movement, as Robert Handy writes and its leading figures were Professor George D. Herron and President George A. Gates. Other firsts pointed to the side of college life, the first intercollegiate football and baseball games west of the Mississippi were played in Grinnell. Concern with social issues, educational innovation, and individual expression continue to shape Grinnell, as an example, the school’s 5th year travel-service program, preceded the establishment of the Peace Corps by many years. Other recent innovations include first-year tutorials, cooperative programs, and programs in quantitative studies. In its 2016 edition of Americas Best Colleges, U. S. Grinnell College is located in the town of Grinnell, Iowa, about halfway between Des Moines and Iowa City. The main campus is bounded by 6th Avenue on the south, 10th Avenue on the north, East Street on the east, the 120-acre campus contains sixty-three buildings ranging in style from Collegiate Gothic to Bauhaus. Goodnow Hall and Mears Cottage are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the residential part of campus is divided into three sections, North Campus, East Campus, and South Campus. North and South Campus dormitories are modeled explicitly after the colleges of Oxford. The East Campus dormitories were designed by William Rawn Associates and feature a modern design Upon completion East Campus was awarded LEED certification, the four East Campus dorms are made out of Iowa limestone which helped in securing the LEED certification. All three campuses feature dormitory buildings that are connected by a loggia, a signature of the college
5.
University of California, Los Angeles
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The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university in the Westwood district of Los Angeles, California, United States. It became the Southern Branch of the University of California in 1919 and it offers 337 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in a wide range of disciplines. UCLA enrolls about 31,000 undergraduate and 13,000 graduate students, and had 119,000 applicants for Fall 2016, including transfer applicants, the university is organized into six undergraduate colleges, seven professional schools, and four professional health science schools. Fourteen Nobel laureates, three Fields Medalists, two Chief Scientists of the U. S. Air Force and three Turing Award winners have been faculty, researchers, or alumni, the university was elected to the Association of American Universities in 1974. The Times Higher Education World University Rankings for 2015–2016 ranked UCLA 16th in the world for academics, in 2015-2016, UCLA ranked 12th in the world by the Academic Ranking of World Universities and 31st in the 2016/17 QS World University Rankings. UCLA student-athletes compete as the Bruins in the Pac-12 Conference, the Bruins won 126 national championships, including 113 NCAA team championships, more than any other university. UCLA student-athletes, coaches and staff won 251 Olympic medals,126 gold,65 silver and 60 bronze, UCLA student-athletes competed in every Olympics since 1920 with one exception, and won a gold medal in every Olympics that the United States participated in since 1932. The State Normal School at Los Angeles opened on August 29,1882, the facility included an elementary school where teachers-in-training could practice their technique with children. That elementary school is related to the present day version, UCLA Lab School, in 1887, the school became known as the Los Angeles State Normal School. In 1914, the moved to a new campus on Vermont Avenue in East Hollywood. However, David Prescott Barrows, the new President of the University of California, the same legislation added its general undergraduate program, the College of Letters and Science. After the athletic teams entered the Pacific Coast conference in 1926, the Southern Branch student council adopted the nickname Bruins, in 1927, the Regents renamed the Southern Branch the University of California at Los Angeles. In the same year, the state broke ground in Westwood on land sold for $1 million, less than one-third its value, by real estate developers Edwin and Harold Janss, the campus in Westwood opened to students in 1929. The original four buildings were the College Library, Royce Hall, the Physics-Biology Building, the first undergraduate classes on the new campus were held in 1929 with 5,500 students. A timeline of the history can be found on its website, during its first 32 years, UCLA was treated as an off-site department of UC. As such, its presiding officer was called a provost, in 1951, UCLA was formally elevated to co-equal status with UC Berkeley, and its presiding officer Raymond B. Allen was the first chief executive to be granted the title of chancellor. The appointment of Franklin David Murphy to the position of Chancellor in 1960 helped spark an era of growth of facilities. By the end of the decade, UCLA had achieved distinction in a range of subjects
6.
Pavel Chekov
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Pavel Andreievich Chekov is a fictional character in the Star Trek universe. Walter Koenig portrayed Chekov in the second and third seasons of the original Star Trek series, anton Yelchin portrayed the character in the 2009 Star Trek reboot film and two sequels, Star Trek Into Darkness and Star Trek Beyond. Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry wanted to include a younger cast member, with a second season of Star Trek to be produced, Roddenberry interviewed Walter Koenig on the recommendation of director Joseph Pevney. Roddenberry had previously mentioned, in a memo to his casting director and we badly need a young man aboard the Enterprise -- we need youthful attitudes and perspectives. Chekov can be used potently here, in actuality, Koenig is only five years younger than co-stars Leonard Nimoy and William Shatner. The episode Amok Time, which was the first episode aired during the season, was Chekovs first television appearance. Because of budgetary constraints the character did not appear in the animated Star Trek, Pavel Andreievich Chekov was born in 2241 in Russia and is a young and naïve ensign who first appears on-screen in The Original Series’ second season as the Enterprises navigator. According to Roddenberry, he is a capable young man—almost Spocks equal in some areas. An honor graduate of the Space Academy, Chekov also substitutes for Mr. Spock at the science officer station when necessary. His promotion to lieutenant for Star Trek, The Motion Picture brings with it his transfer as the tactical officer. By the events of Star Trek II, The Wrath of Khan, in that film, Khan Noonien Singh uses a creature that wraps itself around Chekovs cerebral cortex to control him and his captain. Chekov overcomes the mind control and serves as Enterprise tactical officer in the films climactic battle. Although Khan recognizes Chekov in the film, the Chekov character is not a part of the crew during Space Seed. Adaptations, From Text to Screen, Screen to Text calls this the apparent gaffe notorious throughout Star Trek fandom, Koenig joked that Khan remembers Chekov from the episode after he takes too long in a restroom Khan wants to use. Chekov is an accomplice in Kirks theft of the Enterprise to rescue Spock in Star Trek III, The Search for Spock and he serves as navigator aboard the Enterprise-A during the events of Star Trek V, The Final Frontier and Star Trek VI, The Undiscovered Country. The characters final appearance is as a guest aboard the Enterprise-B on its maiden voyage in Star Trek Generations. Spinoff novels show a continued career path, but these are not considered canon in the Star Trek universe, novels written by William Shatner detail that Chekov reaches the rank of Admiral, and even serves as Commander in Chief of Starfleet. The 2009 Star Trek film creates a timeline in the franchise
7.
Alfred Bester (Babylon 5)
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Alfred Bester is a Babylon 5 character played by Walter Koenig. He is a senior Psi Cop and a recurring antagonist in the series, J. Michael Straczynski named the character after the science fiction writer Alfred Bester, since telepathy is a recurring theme in his work. His chosen assumed name refers to the science author, Alfred Bester. His biological parents were Matthew and Fiona Dexter, both leaders in the earliest days of the resistance against the Psi Corps and this led directly to the purges of 2189, a Psi Corps offensive which decimated the resistance and in which Besters parents were killed. He was found by the Psi Corps, renamed, and placed in Cadre Prime, Bester was told that his parents were members in good standing of the Corps who had been murdered by the resistance, though he was not told their names or shown any photographs. This did not distress him, as he had confidence in the Corps slogan, The Corps is Mother. Being a P-12, the strongest naturally occurring category of human telepaths, he was able to join the police and eventually tracked down the resistances leader. He did not yet know that Walters had been his parents closest friend and ally, or that the man was in fact his godfather, when Walters revealed Besters true heritage, Bester went berserk and emptied his PPG at the man. Bester was left with a tight knot of rage, guilt and denial. Throughout the TV series, Besters left fist is always clenched, only with the appearance of the second novel in the Bester trilogy, do we get the explanation. He also had a willingness to perform so-called Deathbed Scans. Such scans were known to be harmful to the mental health, with some believing that one lost a piece of ones soul by being in contact with the person as they crossed the threshold. Almost no telepath, having once done so, would willingly do so a second time, however, Bester repeatedly volunteered for such duty, believing that he could gain some special knowledge from the experience, ultimately performing an unprecedented eight deathbed scans. During his career as a member of the Psi Corps, he was responsible for retaking the post of director of the Psi Corps from the mundanes by assassinating the director of the Psi Corps. Bester didnt get along with the staff, a point which continually occurred throughout the series. Bester eventually agreed to work with Captain John Sheridan at several points during the Shadow War particularly after the Shadows captured someone very close to Bester. However, after Michael Garibaldi was captured during an attack by the Shadows on the station, Bester was able to secretly recover, Bester had become aware of an anti-telepath conspiracy, and decided to try to use Garibaldi to expose it. Bester subjected him to subtle reprogramming in order to use him as a sleeper agent, the wealthy industrialist William Edgars, the plots mastermind, believed that a civil war among humanity would be counterproductive no matter how totalitarian the current regime
8.
New York City
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The City of New York, often called New York City or simply New York, is the most populous city in the United States. With an estimated 2015 population of 8,550,405 distributed over an area of about 302.6 square miles. Located at the tip of the state of New York. Home to the headquarters of the United Nations, New York is an important center for international diplomacy and has described as the cultural and financial capital of the world. Situated on one of the worlds largest natural harbors, New York City consists of five boroughs, the five boroughs – Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, The Bronx, and Staten Island – were consolidated into a single city in 1898. In 2013, the MSA produced a gross metropolitan product of nearly US$1.39 trillion, in 2012, the CSA generated a GMP of over US$1.55 trillion. NYCs MSA and CSA GDP are higher than all but 11 and 12 countries, New York City traces its origin to its 1624 founding in Lower Manhattan as a trading post by colonists of the Dutch Republic and was named New Amsterdam in 1626. The city and its surroundings came under English control in 1664 and were renamed New York after King Charles II of England granted the lands to his brother, New York served as the capital of the United States from 1785 until 1790. It has been the countrys largest city since 1790, the Statue of Liberty greeted millions of immigrants as they came to the Americas by ship in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and is a symbol of the United States and its democracy. In the 21st century, New York has emerged as a node of creativity and entrepreneurship, social tolerance. Several sources have ranked New York the most photographed city in the world, the names of many of the citys bridges, tapered skyscrapers, and parks are known around the world. Manhattans real estate market is among the most expensive in the world, Manhattans Chinatown incorporates the highest concentration of Chinese people in the Western Hemisphere, with multiple signature Chinatowns developing across the city. Providing continuous 24/7 service, the New York City Subway is one of the most extensive metro systems worldwide, with 472 stations in operation. Over 120 colleges and universities are located in New York City, including Columbia University, New York University, and Rockefeller University, during the Wisconsinan glaciation, the New York City region was situated at the edge of a large ice sheet over 1,000 feet in depth. The ice sheet scraped away large amounts of soil, leaving the bedrock that serves as the foundation for much of New York City today. Later on, movement of the ice sheet would contribute to the separation of what are now Long Island and Staten Island. The first documented visit by a European was in 1524 by Giovanni da Verrazzano, a Florentine explorer in the service of the French crown and he claimed the area for France and named it Nouvelle Angoulême. Heavy ice kept him from further exploration, and he returned to Spain in August and he proceeded to sail up what the Dutch would name the North River, named first by Hudson as the Mauritius after Maurice, Prince of Orange
9.
Star Trek: The Original Series
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Star Trek is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry that follows the adventures of the starship USS Enterprise and its crew. It later acquired the retronym of Star Trek, The Original Series to distinguish the show within the franchise that it began. The show is set in the Milky Way galaxy, roughly during the 2260s, the ship and crew are led by Captain James T. Kirk, first officer and science officer Spock, and chief medical officer Leonard McCoy. Shatners voice-over introduction during each episodes opening credits stated the purpose, Space. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise and its five-year mission, to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before. The series was produced from September 1966 to December 1967 by Norway Productions and Desilu Productions, Star Trek aired on NBC from September 8,1966 to June 3,1969 and was actually seen first on September 6,1966, on Canadas CTV network. Star Treks Nielsen ratings while on NBC were low, and the network cancelled it after three seasons and 79 episodes. Several years later, the became a bona fide hit in broadcast syndication, remaining so throughout the 1970s, achieving cult classic status. The series contains significant elements of Space Western, as described by Gene Roddenberry, on March 11,1964, Gene Roddenberry, a long-time fan of science fiction, drafted a short treatment for a science-fiction television series that he called Star Trek. This was to be set on board a large interstellar spaceship S. S. Yorktown in the 23rd century, whose crew was dedicated to exploring a small portion of our galaxy. Some of the influences on his idea that Roddenberry noted included A. E. van Vogts tales of the spaceship Space Beagle, Eric Frank Russells Marathon series of stories, and the film Forbidden Planet. Roddenberry also drew heavily from C. S. Foresters Horatio Hornblower novels that depict a sea captain who exercises broad discretionary authority on distant sea missions of noble purpose. Roddenberry often humorously referred to Captain Kirk as Horatio Hornblower in Space, Roddenberry had extensive experience in writing for series about the Old West that had been popular television fare earlier in the 1960s and the 1950s. Armed with this background, the first draft deliberately characterizes the new show as Wagon Train to the stars. Like the familiar Wagon Train, each episode was to be an adventure story, set within the overarching structure of a continuing journey. With the notable exception of Star Trek, Deep Space Nine, all future television, in Roddenberrys original concept, the protagonist was Captain Robert April of the starship S. S. Yorktown. This character was developed into Captain Christopher Pike, first portrayed by Jeffrey Hunter, in April 1964, Roddenberry presented the Star Trek draft to Desilu Productions, a leading independent television production company. He met with Herb Solow, Desilus Director of Production, Solow saw promise in the idea and signed a three-year program-development contract with Roddenberry
10.
Babylon 5
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The first season premiered in the US on January 26,1994, and the series ultimately ran for the intended five seasons. Set between the years 2257 and 2262, it depicts a future where Earth has sovereign states, colonies within the solar system, and beyond, make up the Earth Alliance, and contact has been made with other spacefaring species. The ensemble cast portray alien ambassadorial staff and humans assigned to the 5-mile -long Babylon 5 space station, a center for trade and diplomacy. Not appearing on American television since 2003, it continues to be shown in international markets such as Fox in the UK, the TV4-ScifFi Channel in Sweden, excepting movie rights, which are retained by Straczynski, all production rights for the franchise are owned by Warner Bros. At the beginning of the series, five dominant civilizations are presented, the Shadows and their various allies are malevolent species who appear later in the series. Several dozen less powerful species from the League of Non-Aligned Worlds appear, including the Drazi, Brakiri, Vree, Markab, the stations first three predecessors were sabotaged or accidentally destroyed before their completion. The fourth station, Babylon 4, vanished without a trace twenty-four hours after it fully operational. The television series takes its name from the Babylon 5 space station, located in the Epsilon Eridani star system, Babylon 5 is an ONeill cylinder five miles long and a half-mile to a mile in diameter. Living areas accommodate the various species, providing differing atmospheres and gravities. Human visitors to the sectors are shown using breathing equipment. The five seasons of the series each correspond to one fictional sequential year in the period 2258–2262, each season shares its name with an episode that is central to that seasons plot. As the series starts, the Babylon 5 station is welcoming ambassadors from various races in the galaxy, during 2258, Commander Jeffrey Sinclair is in charge of the station. Much of the story revolves around his gradual discovery that it was his capture by the Minbari at the Battle of the Line which ended the war against Earth. Upon capturing Sinclair, the Minbari came to believe that he was the reincarnation of Valen, meanwhile, tensions between the Centauri Republic, which is an empire in decline, and the Narn Regime, a former dominion which rebelled and gained freedom, are increasing. As part of these struggles, Mollari makes a deal with an ally to strike back at the Narn. It is gradually revealed that Ambassador Delenn is a member of the mysterious and powerful Grey Council, towards the end of 2258, she begins the transformation into a Minbari-human hybrid, ostensibly to build a bridge between the humans and Minbari. The year ends with the death of Earth Alliance president Luis Santiago, the death is officially ruled an accident, but some members of the military, including the staff of Babylon 5, believe it to be an assassination. At the beginning of 2259, Captain John Sheridan replaces Sinclair as the governor of the station after Sinclair is reassigned as ambassador to Minbar
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