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Jesse James (television personality)

Jesse Gregory James (born April 19, 1969) is an American entrepreneur, automotive mechanic, and television personality. He is the founder of West Coast Choppers and former partner of Austin Speed Shop and current CEO of Jesse James Firearms Unlimited, both based in Austin, Texas.

James rose to fame as the host of the reality TV shows Monster Garage on the Discovery Channel and Jesse James Is a Dead Man on Spike TV. He also appeared in the 2004 skateboarding video game Tony Hawk's Underground 2.

Career
James played as an outside linebacker at Riverside City College in Riverside, but two injuries forced him to begin his professional career.

At age 19, he became a bouncer and then a bodyguard, notably for Slayer, Glenn Danzig, and Soundgarden.

In 1992, James opened West Coast Choppers in his mother's garage. Additionally, he has also built and is racing an off-road Trophy Truck and a Figure-8 race car.

James was the owner of the Cisco Burger restaurant, which opened on April 28, 2006, across the street from West Coast Choppers which has officially closed. James also had partial ownership in Austin Speed Shop in Austin, Texas, which he left in 2013 to focus on the re-opening of West Coast Choppers in Austin.

Other business ventures include the fan club Chopperdogs and Jesse's Girl clothing line. James published the now-defunct custom-car magazine Garage.

In November 2013, Jesse James Firearms Unlimited unveiled its first two firearms, a 1911 pistol and an AR-15 rifle. His first rifle-caliber suppressor was a basic reworking of an original Maxim design that he claimed could impossibly bend the laws of physics by offering a 78 dB rating at the muzzle, lower than even what the De Lisle carbine achieved in testing; although James was careful to note that it only achieved that number with subsonic ammunition that does not produce a sonic boom.

, James lives in Austin, Texas, operates Jesse James Fire Arms Unlimited, and manages the intellectual properties of West Coast Choppers.

Television

In 2000, the Discovery Channel made the documentary Motorcycle Mania, which chronicled James' everyday life. Following the success of the documentary, the Discovery Channel approached James with an offer to host a new show called Monster Garage where James and a crew of mechanics modified vehicles under a short deadline. James later established Payupsucker Productions, under which he produced shows like History of the Chopper, Iraq Confidential with Jesse James and Green Scream, in which James plans to break the land speed record with an eco-friendly hydrogen car.

Through James' show "History of the Chopper" there are also glimpses of his involvement with the Hells Angels.

He also made an appearance on the Discovery Channel's Sons of Guns. He appeared on the second season of Celebrity Apprentice. Each celebrity played to raise money for a favorite charity; James selected to play for the Long Beach Education Foundation. Due to his poor performance in raising funds, James was eliminated by Donald Trump on the second-to-last show (ultimately placing third) which aired May 3, 2009. Trump repeatedly cited James' stoic refusal to contact then-wife Sandra Bullock to raise funds for the show's challenges, though other celebrities had no problem tapping high-rolling contacts for cash. His show Jesse James Is a Dead Man premiered on Spike TV on May 31, 2009. The show features James doing death-defying stunts. The first episode set a rating record for Spike, drawing the largest audience ever for an unscripted series on the network, with 2 million viewers. The show is produced by Spike TV, BASE Productions and James' company, PayupSucker Productions. In conjunction with that appearance Marvel Comics created a special one-shot comic book where he evades death once again after considering retirement, and made it available in comic book stores for free distribution.

James appeared on an episode of Street Customs where he had his pickup truck customized by West Coast Customs.

He appeared in an advertisement for T-Mobile's Google mobile phone with Whoopi Goldberg and Phil Jackson. Jesse James appeared on Sons of Guns on March 28, 2012. He asked the Red Jacket Firearms team to build a customized Browning Automatic Rifle for him and even assisted in the build himself.

Jesse appeared in special "Biker Build-Off" episodes of American Chopper in 2011 and 2012 for bike build-off competitions with Paul Teutul Jr. (representing Paul Jr. Designs) and Paul Teutul Sr. (representing Orange County Choppers), with Gas Monkey Garage (featured on the Discovery series Fast N' Loud) entering the competition in 2012.

Family and relationships
James' Discovery Channel website states that his great-great-grandfather was the notorious outlaw's cousin.

However, Eric James, president of the James Preservation Trust, which tracks claims of being a relative of the outlaw, says it cannot find a record of him in the family tree and has asked him to provide a family genealogy and DNA sample for the trust to review; he has not provided the requested information.

James has four children: a daughter and a son with his first wife, Karla James, to whom he was married from 1991 to 2002; a daughter with his second wife, stripper/adult actress/producer Janine Lindemulder, to whom he was married from 2002 to 2004; and a son with his fifth wife, former adult actress and model Bonnie Rotten, whom he married in 2022.

On July 16, 2005, James married his third wife, actress Sandra Bullock. They met when she arranged for her ten-year-old godson, a fan, to tour the set of Monster Garage.

In October 2009, James' ex-wife Lindemulder, who had been in federal prison for six months for tax evasion, sought to regain custody of her then five-year-old daughter with James, after James had been granted sole guardianship of her. James sought to retain full guardianship, citing fear of the environment in which his daughter would be placed if returned to Lindemulder. In December, James won custody, and Lindemulder was given weekly visitation rights during the daytime.

In March 2010, a media scandal arose when several women claimed to have had affairs with James during his marriage to Bullock. Bullock canceled European promotional appearances for The Blind Side citing "unforeseen personal reasons." On March 18, 2010, James responded to the rumors of infidelity by issuing a public apology to Bullock. James declared that "There is only one person to blame for this whole situation, and that is me," and asked that his wife and children one day "find it in their hearts to forgive me" for their current "pain and embarrassment." James' publicist subsequently announced on March 30, 2010, that James had checked into a rehab facility "to deal with personal issues" and "save his marriage" to Bullock. However, on April 28, 2010, it was reported that Bullock had filed for divorce on April 23 in Austin, Texas. Bullock also stated that she had planned to adopt a baby boy born in New Orleans. Bullock and James had begun an initial adoption process four years earlier. The child began living with them in January 2010, but they kept the news private until after the Oscars in March 2010. However, given the couple's separation and then divorce, Bullock continued the adoption of the baby as a single parent. The divorce was finalized on June 28, 2010, with "conflict of personalities" cited as the reason.

In August 2010, tattoo artist Kat Von D confirmed reports that she and James were dating. James and Von D became engaged in January 2011. Von D announced that they had split in July 2011. However, in August 2011, James and Von D announced their engagement was back on. In September 2011, Von D announced that she and James had broken up again. Von D later accused James of cheating on her with multiple women during their relationship.

In late 2012, James became engaged to professional drag racer Alexis DeJoria. They married on March 24, 2013, at the estate of the bride's father, entrepreneur John Paul DeJoria. In March 2020, James announced his separation from DeJoria after seven years of marriage, stating, "Our lives were just headed in different directions."

Since late 2021, James has been in a relationship with former adult film star Bonnie Rotten. They married on June 25, 2022, and welcomed a son exactly one year later.

Legal troubles
In 2007, James was fined $271,250 by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) after state officials determined that he had sold motorcycles violating California's clean-air laws. According to authorities, James' customized bikes were emitting 11 times the legal limits of hydrocarbons. Investigators also found that the motorcycles did not have state-certified emissions equipment on their fuel tanks. The bikes were sold between 1997 and 2006. James explained that he was unaware of rule changes that required small-volume manufacturers to comply with regulations. James said the CARB refused his offer to recall and modify the uncompliant choppers. Since 2005, West Coast Choppers has built emissions-compliant choppers. James said the fines were excessive and intended to make an example of him due to his company's fame and his celebrity marriage to actress Sandra Bullock, but CARB spokesmen stated their enforcement efforts were aimed at the entire custom industry and further that they were aware of no offer by West Coast Choppers to recall the motorcycles in question.

In July 2008, James faced a $422,680 breach of contract lawsuit from Michael Jones, a customer who hired James to build him a custom car, who contended that after paying $270,000 over two years, the car was not completed and that James informed him that it would cost between $600,000 and $700,000. That September, James faced another lawsuit from his former lawyer for $327,533 in unpaid fees.

In 2010, James was accused by Fortune Fashions Industries, LLC of working with Walmart and stealing one of Fortune Fashions Industries' executives to work on the clothing line after a failed collaboration between Jesse and Fortune Fashions. The company claimed over 6million dollars in damage, and lawyer LawrenceH. Nagler, representing the LLC, claimed "Jesse has stolen the benefit of Fortune Fashions' work and manpower to put this together." James' lawyer JosephA. Yanny pointed out that James was a prolific entrepreneur, selling his West Coast Choppers brand apparel in his shop and online, long before he met Fred Kayne (owner of Fortune Fashions). The trial concluded with a verdict in favor of James. When Fortune Fashion Industries asked the judge to quash the jury decision, the judge stated they were "not entitled to any proceeds from an unrelated line of clothing that came into being a year after the failed venture."

Controversial photos
After James entered rehab after giving a Nazi salute, he explained to the ABC News show Nightline that the photo, taken in 2004 before his marriage to Bullock, was meant as a joke, and that he was not a racist. James' lawyer claimed that the hat was a gift from a Jewish mentor and that James is not a neo-Nazi. Us subsequently printed additional photos that had been posted to Facebook by former West Coast Choppers employees showing James and Nazi imagery. A friend of James explained to the magazine that the "swastika deal" is "part of biker culture".

title: Jesse James (television personality)


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Ston

Ston is a settlement and a municipality in the Dubrovnik-Neretva County of Croatia, located at the south of isthmus of the Pelješac peninsula.

History
Because of its geopolitical and strategic position, Ston has had a rich history since ancient times. Located at the gates of the peninsula, surrounded by three seas, protected by four hills, rich in fresh water and saltwater, fertile plains, it has been an important political, cultural and ecclesiastical centre. There may have been a bishop at Ston as early as the late 7th or early 8th century.

Initially it was an Illyrian settlement until the Romans established their own colony there, in 167 BC.

In 533, at Salona, a diocese was established in Sarsenterum for the Zachlumia (Hum) area, which belonged to the church in Ston (Pardui). Later Sarsenterum was destroyed, most likely at the time of the Avars' campaign. Since Ston was not reached by the Avars, it was spared and became the seat of the local župa. As the secular and ecclesial powers grew, it is assumed that after the disappearance of Sarsenterum, Ston became a local ecclesiastical center. The diocese is first mentioned in 877, as an institution from an earlier time, and the bishop is listed as a suffragan of the metropolis of Split. With the establishment of a metropolis in Ragusa, Ston became a suffragan of the latter.

Upon the arrival of the South Slavs, the area of the Neretva (from the northern Herzegovina mountains to Rijeka Dubrovačka) was organized as the principality of Zachlumia - same as Neretva, Primorje and Zahulje, which also belonged to Ston with Rat (Pelješac) and Mljet. Local rulers acknowledged the supremacy of the Byzantine Empire. After Mihailo Višević, who acknowledged the authority of the Bulgarian Emperor Simeon, Zachlumia was ruled over by different dynasties. Around 950, it was briefly ruled by the Serbian Prince Časlav. At the end of the 10th century, Samuilo was the Lord of Zachlumia, and the dukedom belonged to the Doclean King Jovan Vladimir. In 1168, the dukedom and Zachlumia were conquered by Stefan Nemanja. Thirty years later, Zachlumia was invaded by Andrija, the Duke of Croatia and Dalmatia. In 1254, Béla IV of Hungary conquered Bosnia and Zachlumia. From 1304, Zachlumia was ruled by Mladen II Šubić, then again for a short period by a Serbian župan, and then became part of the medieval Bosnian state, acquired by Stjepan Kotromanić in 1325, until it was finally sold to Dubrovnik.

The old Ston was located on the slopes of the hills of Gorica and St. Michael, south of the Ston field. There were several early Christian churches, the largest of which was St. Stephen's Church. The bishopric church of Mary Magdalene stood until it was bombed by the Allies in 1944. The only church that still remains is the church of St. Michael, built in the middle of the late antique castrum.

The original old town was demolished in the earthquake of 1252. With the arrival of the Republic, a new city was built on today's location. When renovations were made at the church of St. Michael at the top of the hill, fragments of Roman decorative plaster, Roman tombstones and antique ceramics were found, confirming this assumption. According to some sources, Ston experienced a destructive civil war in 1250, and in these conflicts the city suffered a great deal of destruction.

The turbulent times at the beginning of the 14th century spread across the entire country of Zahumlje. The usurpation by the Branivojević brothers, forced the people of Dubrovnik to fight them in 1326 with the help of Stjepan Kotromanić. That year, Dubrovnik occupied Ston. The Dubrovnik people immediately began to build and establish a new Ston, to defend the Pelješac and protect the slaves from which they had earned big revenue. Since the conflict between the Bosnian Ban and the king of Zahumlje, Dubrovnik purchased Pelješac with Ston from both rulers in 1333.

The first cathedral was that of St. Mary Magdalene in Gorica. The church of Our Lady of Lužina was built in the 10th century. The cathedral of St. Blaise was built in 1342 by decision of the Senate after Ston joined the Republic of Ragusa, on the site of the present damaged parish church. From then on, Ston was an integral part of the Republic until its fall, and was its second most important city.

In 1333, Dubrovnik began the planned construction of the fortresses of Ston (Veliki Ston) and Little Ston (Mali Ston) on the present site. The cladding between the two towns along their entire length consisted of large walls which were supposed to defend Pelješac. This whole complex of fortifications, unique in Europe, was built in a short period of time.

The downfall of the Republic of Dubrovnik took place due to the sudden and often incomprehensible operations in the 19th century. The city walls of Little Ston were demolished to suppress malaria. The monumental stone fortification complex of Ston suddenly collapsed in preparation for the official visit by the Austrian Emperor, Franz Joseph - the stones became a quarry for nearby new outcrops and foundations. The restoration of the stone monuments and the reconstruction of the fortifications and the tower resumed only after 1945, however they were again damaged in the Croatian War of Independence (1991-1995), followed by the devastating earthquake of 1996. Recently, thanks to the Society of Friends of the Dubrovnik Walls, the stone forts and towers are being reconstructed, so that the monumental stonewall complex now begins to live again in its old dignity.

Demographics
According to the 2021 census, its population was 2,491, with 500 living in the town proper. In 2011 it was 2,407.

Walls of Ston
After the Republic of Dubrovnik acquired the Pelješac in 1334, it required the protection of Ston. First, in thirty years, one of the longest defense walls in Europe was erected on one side of the peninsula, and according to a unique project, two new towns were planned: southern Ston and northern Little Ston with the aim of encompassing people to preserve the boundaries and work in solanas the state had acquired. Between 1461 and 1464, the Florentine architect Michelozzo commissioned the building of the wall by the order of the Dubrovnik Republic. The Great Wall is 1200 m long, and was built to ensure protection from neighbours. The chronicles state that the construction of the wall lasted for 18 months and cost 12,000 ducats.

The fortress of Ston was one of the largest construction projects of the time, with an original length of 7000 m, consisting of the walls of Ston and Little Ston. The Great Wall consists of three fortresses, and the walls and fortresses are flanked by 10 rounds of 31 squares and 6 semi-circular bastions. The complex defense corps has been shaped over the course of four centuries, due to the development of weapons.

The walls were of great importance because they were defending the saltworks that gave 15,900 ducats every year to the Dubrovnik Republic, the shellfish farm and the city itself.

In 1667, about 0.5 km of walls were destroyed in a catastrophic earthquake, and the walls were significantly damaged in the earthquakes in 1979 and 1996.

In 2004, work on the restoration of obsolete walls was started, with the aim of facilitating visits to the area between Ston and Little Ston. It was assumed that the works would be completed by May 2008, but only the original part of the Ston Bridge was rebuilt. The reconstruction of the Great Wall in Ston, worth about five million kuna (€673,000), was completed, and it was announced that the stone walls with public entrance fee will be opened in May 2009. Part of the wall is open to the public since October 2009 for a fee. Until 2013, the original part of the city, the road have been restored. It takes 15 minutes to get to the first part, and 30 minutes to get from the Great to the Small Wall. Today the greater part of the walls have been restored.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Ston


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James Bay Energy

The Société d'énergie de la Baie James is the company in charge of building the hydroelectric development known as the James Bay Project in northern Quebec. It was established in December 1971 by the Société de développement de la Baie James (SDBJ), a Crown corporation of the province of Quebec and became a wholly owned subsididiary of Hydro-Québec in 1978.

Origins
In the summer of 1971, the National Assembly of Quebec passed Bill 50, an Act establishing the Société de développement de la Baie James (SDBJ), a Crown corporation tasked with the development of natural resources as well as the general administration of the James Bay territory. The development of the hydroelectric potential was the focus of a newly created subsidiary (the SEBJ) with Hydro-Québec as a majority shareholder along with the SDBJ. Both corporations would be chaired by Pierre A. Nadeau, an insurance executive recruited by Robert Bourassa's money man, Paul Desrochers.

The passage of Bill 50 was controversial with Hydro-Québec's top executives, who felt the government tried to bypass the powerful utility. As the party picking up the bill, Hydro wanted control over the development of the hydroelectric project. Commissioner Robert A. Boyd, who was slated as the top Hydro-Québec executive and Nadeau's right-hand man at the SEBJ, first declined the appointment, explaining that with no background in public works, Nadeau would have little credibility with the engineers running the operations. Conflict soon erupted between Hydro-Québec and Nadeau, who left less than a year after his appointment. He was replaced by Boyd, who kept informed of the latest development on the project by consulting with colleagues on the board on a daily basis.

title: James Bay Energy


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Scarp, Scotland

Scarp (An Sgarp) is an uninhabited island in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, west of Hushinish on Harris. Once inhabited, the island was the scene of unsuccessful experiments with rocket mail, since commemorated in two films.

Geography
Scarp has an area of 1045 ha, divided into 16 crofts. The majority of the land is rocky and uncultivated, and is dominated by two hills, of which the higher reaches 308 m. There is a small area of low-lying fertile land in the south-east corner of the island, and here, closest to Harris, is where the inhabitants of the island once lived. The population of Scarp peaked at 213 in 1881, and as recently as the 1940s it was reported to be over 100. The island was settled by eight farming families in 1810, and the population rose, following clearances on Harris, to over two hundred. This population could not be supported as there is little cultivatable land and no all-weather harbour, resulting in many families drifting away. Even in the 1950s the economy was still basic, relying on potatoes, cabbages, oats, turnips, milk, fish, and some lobster fishing. Scarp was one of several Scottish islands, including St Kilda and Handa, where all the men of the island would gather every morning in a so-called "parliament", to agree the work to be done on that day. Such meetings would sometimes last for many hours, and on these occasions no work would be done, except by the women of the island.

Crofting was the way of life on the island, mainly comprising sheep and dairy cattle rearing and fishing, in latter years principally lobster fishing, which provided an income for around 12 families.

Islanders were deeply religious and a Church of Scotland Mission House was the focal point for Sunday worship and weekly prayer meetings.

The 1950s and 1960s saw a further decline in the island's population. The closure of the primary school in 1967 and the post office in 1968 were final blows and by the time of the 1971 census the population had dwindled to 12. By the end of 1971, the last permanent inhabitants of Scarp had moved to Harris. However, a few houses on the island are still in occasional use as private holiday homes.

Communication
The island is reached by a short boat crossing across the Kyle of Scarp from Hushinish, but the sea here is very shallow and landing on Scarp can be difficult when there is a swell.

Scarp was the site of an experiment by German inventor Gerhard Zucker to deliver the island's post by rocket mail. In July 1934 Zucker made two unsuccessful attempts at firing rocket mail between Scarp and Harris. Singed envelopes from the exploded rocket can still be seen at the island museum.

Media and the arts
A fictionalised account of the rocket mail experiment was used as the basis of the film, The Rocket Post, filmed on Harris and Taransay and directed by Stephen Whittaker, which was finally released in 2006. The film was originally intended to be filmed on location on Scarp but the owner later refused permission and location was moved to Taransay.

The artist Norman Adams bought a croft house on the island in 1963 with his wife Anna and two sons, and painted many of his well-known works there in his distinctive style over the next ten summers.

There are many references to the grave of Donald John MacLennan, who is buried at Scarp Burial Ground, in the book Not Forgotten (2006) by author Neil Oliver. Donald John died on 18 March 1917 when his ship PS Duchess of Montrose struck a mine and was lost near Dunkirk during the First World War.

Ownership
Scarp was bought by a Panamanian company for £100 in 1978 as a speculation, sold in 1983 for £50,000 to Libco Ltd, then resold almost immediately to Orbitglen Ltd for £500,000. The last two deals were financed by the now-failed BCCI bank. Nazmudin Virani, a Ugandan businessman who was a director of BCCI, brokered the deals. Virani was jailed for fraud and when BCCI collapsed the property was resold in 1995 for £155,000 to Mr Anderson Duke Bakewell who is the current owner.

title: Scarp, Scotland


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Rahu

Rāhu (Sanskrit: राहु, ) is one of the nine major celestial bodies (navagraha) in Hindu texts and the king of meteors. It represents the ascension of the Moon in its precessional orbit around the Earth, also referred as the north lunar node, and along with Ketu, is a "shadow planet" that causes eclipses. Despite having no physical existence, Rahu has been allocated the status of the planet by ancient seers owing to its strong influence in astrology.

Rahu is usually paired with Ketu, another shadow planet. The time of day considered to be under the influence of Rahu is called Rāhu kāla and is considered inauspicious.

As per Hindu astrology, Rahu and Ketu have an orbital cycle of 18 years and are always 180 degrees from each other orbitally (as well as in the birth charts). This coincides with the precessional orbit of the Moon or the ~18 year rotational cycle of the lunar ascending and descending nodes on the Earth's ecliptic plane. This also corresponds to a saros, a period of approximately 223 synodic months (approximately 6585.3211 days, or 18 years, 11 days, 8 hours), that can be used to predict eclipses of the Sun and Moon. Rahu rules the zodiac sign of Aquarius together with Shani (traditional ruling planet).

Astronomically, Rahu and Ketu denote the points of intersection of the paths of the Sun and the Moon as they move on the celestial sphere. Therefore, Rahu and Ketu are respectively called the north and the south lunar nodes. Eclipses occur when the Sun and the Moon are at one of these points, giving rise to the understanding of swallowing of the Sun and the Moon by the snake. Rahu is responsible for causing the solar eclipse.

Samudra Manthana
Rahu is mentioned in the Puranic texts. The tales begin in the "remotest periods of the earliest of time, when the devas and asuras churned the ocean of milk to extract from it the amrita, the elixir of immortality." Mohini, the female avatar of Vishnu, started distributing amrita to the devas. However, one of the asuras, Svarbhanu, sat in the row of devas and drank the amrita. Surya and Chandra noticed him and they informed Mohini; however, by that time, Svarbhanu had already become immortal. Vishnu, as Mohini, cut off Svarbhanu's head with his discus, the Sudarshana Chakra. Svarbhanu, henceforth referred to as Rahu and Ketu, could not die, but his head was separated from his body; his head came to be known as Rahu, while his body came to be known as Ketu. Following this event, Rahu and Ketu gained the status of planets, and could influence the lives of humans on Earth. Rahu and Ketu became bitter enemies with Surya (Sun) and Chandra (Moon) for exposing his deception and leading to his decapitation. For this, Rahu pursues them and attempts to consume the Sun and Moon. Since Rahu is the head without the body, the Sun and Moon exit from his throat when he tries to swallow them. This recurring cycle creates the grahana, an eclipse of the Sun and the Moon, which represents the temporary revenge of Rahu.

Jalandhara
Following his ascent to power, the asura Jalandhara was advised by the great sage Narada to seek out a consort. Narada hinted that the beautiful Parvati, consort of Shiva, would be an excellent choice. Infatuated with her beauty and impaired in his judgment, Jalandhara summoned his emissary Rahu, and sent him to the mountain Kailasa, to demand that Shiva give up his wife to Jalandhara. Rahu delivered the message informing Shiva that being a humble yogi who lived in the cremation grounds and the jungle as a naked ascetic, he was unworthy of the fairest goddess. He added that since Jalandhara was the powerful new lord of the heavens, the underworld, and the Earth, he was more worthy of her. Upon hearing these insults, Shiva produced a thunderous sound and a great lion-like monster from his brow named Kirtimukha. The monster chased and seized Rahu with the intention of devouring him. Rahu pleaded with Shiva for his life and retracted his claims, instead praising Shiva and seeking protection and refuge with him. In response, Shiva called off Kirtimukha’s attack and set Rahu free to relay these events back to Jalandhara.

Hanuman
When Hanuman was an infant, he was once left unattended by his earthly mother and father. He became hungry, and when the Sun rose, he believed it to be a ripe fruit. So, Hanuman leapt up towards the Sun with extreme speed. Vayu, the wind god and his celestial father, blew cold wind on him to protect him from the burning Sun. Coincidentally, Rahu was meant to swallow the Sun and eclipse it that day. As Rahu approached the Sun, he saw Hanuman about to eat it. Hanuman saw Rahu and thought Rahu to be a fruit as well, so he attempted to eat him too. Rahu fled to the court of the king of the devas, Indra, and complained that while he was meant to satisfy his hunger with the Sun, there was now a bigger Rahu who tried to consume the Sun and himself. Indra set out on Airavata, his divine elephant, to investigate alongside Rahu, who retreated once more when he saw how enormous Hanuman had grown. Hanuman was playing with the Sun's chariot and reached for Rahu again. As Rahu cried out to Indra for help, Hanuman saw the Airavata and mistook it for yet another fruit. When he approached in his giant form, Indra struck his left jaw with a thunderbolt and injured him. Hanuman began falling back towards the Earth when he was caught by Vayu. Furious over his son's injury, Vayu withdrew all the air from the universe until all the devas, the asuras, and men began to suffer and suffocate. They appealed to Brahma, who revealed the cause of their distress and accompanied them to the wind god in order to appease him. Brahma revived Hanuman, and the other deities took turns bestowing different blessings, boons, and powers upon him.

Astrology
Since Rahu and Ketu are two opposite lunar nodes, they always appear in diametrically opposite houses in horoscopes. Both nodes are always in retrograde motion.

In Hindu astrology, Rahu represents materialism, mischief, fear, dissatisfaction, obsession and confusion. Rahu is also associated with science and occultism. Like Ketu, Rahu is also an enemy against the Sun and Moon. It is generally considered as a malefic planet in astrology.

Jyotisha is Hindu astrology, which entails the concepts of Nakshatra (see also List of Natchathara temples), Navagraha (see also List of Navagraha temples), and Saptarishi (included in the list of Hindu deities whose dedicated temples are found at various Hindu pilgrimage sites to which Hindus take yatra).

Buddhist culture
Rāhu is mentioned explicitly in a pair of scriptures from the Samyutta Nikaya of the Pali Canon. In the Candima Sutta and the Suriya Sutta, Rahu attacks Surya, the Sun deity and Chandra, the Moon deity before being compelled to release them by their recitation of a brief stanza conveying their reverence for the Buddha. The Buddha responds by enjoining Rāhu to release them, which Rāhu does rather than have his "head split into seven pieces". The verses recited by the two celestial deities and the Buddha have since been incorporated into Buddhist liturgy as protective verses recited by monks as prayers of protection.

title: Rahu


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Constitutional court

A constitutional court is a high court that deals primarily with constitutional law. Its main authority is to rule on whether laws that are challenged are in fact unconstitutional, i.e. whether they conflict with constitutionally established rules, rights, and freedoms, among other things.

Before establishment of independent constitutional court
Prior to 1919, the United States, Canada and Australia had adopted the concept of judicial review by their courts, following shared principles of their similar common law legal systems, which they, in turn, had inherited from British colonial law. The Parthenopean Republic's constitution of 1799, written by Mario Pagano, envisaged an organ of magistrates reviewing constitutional law, the eforato, but lasted only 6 months. The 1776 Constitution of Pennsylvania and 1777 Constitution of Vermont both establish a "Council of Censors" separate from the other branches of government, with the task of "recommending to the legislature the repealing of such laws as appear to them to have been enacted contrary to the principles of the constitution," an institution somewhat similar to a modern constitutional court.

After establishment of independent constitutional court
In 1919 the First Austrian Republic established the first dedicated constitutional court, the Constitutional Court of Austria, which however existed in name only until 10 October 1920, when the country's new constitution came into effect, upon which the court gained the power to review the laws of Austria's federal states. The 1920 Constitution of Czechoslovakia, which came into effect on 2 February 1920, was the first to provide for a dedicated court for judicial review of parliamentary laws, but the court did not convene until November 1921. The organization and competences of both courts were influenced by constitutional theories of Hans Kelsen. Subsequently, this idea of having a separate special constitutional court that only heard cases concerning the constitutionality of the national legislature's acts became known as the Austrian System, and it was subsequently adopted by many other countries e.g. Liechtenstein (1925), Greece (1927), Spain (1931), Germany (1949) etc.

National Constitutional Courts
Following list consists countries with separate constitutional courts. Yet some other countries do not have separate constitutional courts, but instead delegate constitutional judicial authority to their ordinary court system, with the final decision-making power resting in the supreme ordinary court. Nonetheless, such courts are sometimes also called "constitutional courts". For example, the Supreme Court of the United States has been called the world's oldest constitutional court because it was one of the earliest courts in the world to invalidate a law as unconstitutional (Marbury v. Madison), even though it is not a separate constitutional court, hearing as it does cases not touching on the Constitution.

 * Albania
 * Angola
 * Armenia
 * Austria
 * Azerbaijan
 * Belarus
 * Belgium
 * Benin
 * Bosnia and Herzegovina
 * Bulgaria
 * Myanmar
 * Chad
 * Chile
 * Colombia
 * Democratic Republic of the Congo
 * Croatia
 * Czech Republic
 * Dominican Republic
 * Ecuador
 * Egypt
 * Gabon
 * Georgia
 * Germany
 * Guatemala
 * Hungary
 * Indonesia
 * Iran
 * Italy
 * Jordan
 * Kazakhstan
 * Republic of Korea (South Korea)
 * Kosovo
 * Kuwait
 * Kyrgyzstan
 * Latvia
 * Lebanon
 * Lithuania
 * Luxembourg
 * Republic of North Macedonia
 * Malta
 * Moldova
 * Mongolia
 * Montenegro
 * Niger
 * Peru
 * Poland
 * Portugal
 * Romania
 * Russia
 * Serbia
 * Singapore
 * Slovakia
 * Slovenia
 * South Africa
 * Spain
 * Suriname
 * Syria
 * Republic of China (Taiwan)
 * Tajikistan
 * Thailand
 * Turkey
 * Uganda
 * Ukraine
 * Uzbekistan
 * Zambia
 * Zimbabwe

Germany
Source:

(German: Verfassungsgerichthof für das Land Baden-Württemberg; abbreviated: VerfGH BW) is the constiutional court for the German Land (state) of Baden-Württemberg and thereby a constitutional organ on the state level. Besides its power of judicial review, it has a number of other powers and responsibilities which are assign to it by the.

(German: Bayrischer Verfassungsgerichthof; abbreviated: VerfGH BY) is the state constitutional court for the Free State of Bavaria. It is, along with the Landesregierung (state government) and the Landtag (state parliament), one of the three state constitutional institutions and has the power of judicial review: It may examine the compatibility of state laws with the state constitution.

Constitutional Court of Berlin (German: Verfassungsgerichthof des Landes Berlin; abbreviated: VerfGH BE) is the constitutional court of the city-state of Berlin which is simultaneously the capital of the Federal Republic of Germany. It is located in the same building as the Kammergericht (Oberlandesgericht) and is authorized by Article 84. It has the power of judicial review, the power to review electoral complaints and the power to hear cases concerning complaints against referendums and popular initiatives among others.

(German: Verfassungsgerichthof des Landes Brandenburg; abbreviated: VerfG BB)

(German: Staatsgerichtshof der Freien Hansestadt Bremen; abbreviated: StGH HB)

(German: Hamburgisches Verfassungsgericht; abbreviated: VerfG HH)

State Constitutional Court of Hesse (StGH HE)

Land Constitutional Court of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (VerfG MV)

State Constitutional Court of Lower Saxony (StGH NDS)

Constitutional Court of North Rhine-Westphalia (German: Verfassungsgericht für das Land Nordrhein-Westfalen; abbreviated: VerfGH NRW or VGH NRW)

Constitutional Court of Rhineland-Palatinate (VerfGH RP)

Constitutional Court of Saarland (VerfGH SL)

Constitutional Court of the Free State of Saxony (VerfGH SN)

Land Constitutional Court of Saxony-Anhalt (VerfG ST)

Land Constitutional Court of Schleswig-Holstein (VerfG SH)

Thuringian Constitutional Court (VerfGH TH)

Russia
Before 2020, several republics of Russia had their own constitutional courts, while in other federal subjects like oblasts and federal cities they were known as charter courts, as republics are the only federal subjects to have their own constitutions. Constitutional and charter courts were completely independent and were not subordinate courts to the Constitutional Court of Russia.

Constitutional and charter courts used to hear cases relating to conformity with regional constitutions or charters of laws adopted by regional legislatures and governors' decrees, and in this category of cases constitutional and charter courts were courts of single instance.

Constitutional and charter courts of the federal subjects were disestablished by the 2020 amendments to the Constitution of Russia.

As for 2020, constitutional courts remained in force in the 12 (out of 22) following republics:
 * Adygea (known as the Constitutional Chamber of Adygea until 2000)
 * Bashkortostan (see Constitutional Court of Bashkortostan)
 * Chechnya
 * Dagestan
 * Ingushetia
 * Kabardino-Balkaria
 * Karelia
 * Komi
 * Mari El
 * North Ossetia–Alania
 * Sakha
 * Tatarstan (see Constitutional Court of Tatarstan)

In the republics of Buryatia and Tuva, the constitutional courts were abolished by the republican constitutional laws in 2018 and 2019, respectively. In the republics of Bashkortostan, Tatarstan, and Sakha, the disestablished constitutional courts were transformed into constitutional councils, without any judicial powers.

Until 2020, charter courts existed in following federal subjects:
 * Kaliningrad Oblast
 * Saint Petersburg
 * Sverdlovsk Oblast

The charter court of Chelyabinsk Oblast was disestablished in 2014.

title: Constitutional court


text:
Lilith Sternin

Lilith Sternin (formerly Sternin-Crane), M.D., Ph.D., Ed.D, A.P.A. is a fictional character on the American television sitcoms Cheers and Frasier, portrayed by Bebe Neuwirth. The character first appears as a date for Frasier Crane, though mutual hostility and discomfort causes the evening to end badly. Several months later, Lilith meets Frasier again and, with some help from Frasier's ex-fiancée, Diane Chambers (Shelley Long), they start a romantic relationship, eventually living together, marrying, and having a son, Frederick.

In the final season of Cheers, Lilith has an affair with another man and leaves Frasier. The affair later unravels and Lilith returns, seeking reconciliation with Frasier. Although Cheers ended ambiguously with regard to Frasier and Lilith's marriage, at the beginning of the spin-off series Frasier, their divorce had been finalized, with Lilith gaining custody of Frederick and remaining in Boston while Frasier has moved back to his hometown of Seattle. Lilith occasionally appears in Frasier, sometimes with Frederick.

Role in Cheers
Lilith debuts in the Cheers episode "Second Time Around" (1986), as Frasier Crane's (Kelsey Grammer) date. In the episode, their first date does not go well. Lilith walks out of the date because she disdains the bar as Frasier's location for their date and Frasier's activities at the bar. In "Abnormal Psychology" (1986), they feel mutual attraction again when he becomes accustomed to her makeover done by Diane Chambers (Shelley Long). At first reluctant to start over again, they then decide to go on another date. For years they live together, as first shown in "Dinner at Eight-ish" (1987). "Our Hourly Bread" (1988) reveals that they wed one month before the episode. (In "Smotherly Love" (1992), they re-enact their wedding to please Lilith's mother Betty (Marilyn Cooper), who was irritated that she had not been present for their marriage.) In "The Stork Brings a Crane" (1989), Lilith gives birth to Frederick during the taxi ride home after false labor in the hospital.

The tenth-season Cheers episode "I'm Okay, You're Defective" (1991) features two plots: one subplot about Lilith pressuring Frasier to finalize his will and one main plot about Sam Malone's (Ted Danson) concern that his sperm count may be low. The episode's epilogue is described as "Many years later" with an elderly Lilith and adult Frederick (Rob Neukirch) sitting for the reading of Frasier's will. The lawyer opens the sealed envelope and is surprised to find Sam's sperm count report, which turns out stable. In response to the mix-up, Lilith bitterly remarks, "That damn bar."

In the eleventh and final season (1992–93), in "Teaching with the Enemy" (1992), Lilith admits her affair with another man – Dr. Louis Pascal (Peter Vogt). In "The Girl in the Plastic Bubble" (1992), Lilith leaves Frasier, with him contemplating suicide until she promises to him that the marriage can be saved, to live with Pascal in Pascal's experimental underground eco-pod. In "Is There a Doctor in the Howe?" (1993), a depressed Frasier almost has sex with Rebecca Howe (Kirstie Alley) in their bed until Lilith unexpectedly returns. In the following episode, "The Bar Manager, The Shrink, His Wife and Her Lover" (1993), Lilith storms out of the room to go to Cheers, demanding the others tell her how long Frasier and Rebecca have been having an affair. The other characters have no idea as the affair has barely started that very evening. Lilith reveals that the eco-pod experiment with Pascal was a disaster — Pascal turned out to be claustrophobic, among other mental problems — and she abandons the project to return to Boston. Frasier and Rebecca, and eventually Pascal, converge on Cheers in pursuit of Lilith. Pascal, armed with a pistol, demands Lilith return to him, threatening to shoot Frasier and the others. Lilith demands that he shoot her first, which causes him to back down and surrender to police. Although Frasier initially refuses to take Lilith back, her pathetic sobbing wins him over, suggesting a reconciliation can occur.

Role in Frasier
In the spin-off Frasier, Lilith and Frasier have divorced, and Frederick continually lives with Lilith in Boston after Frasier's move to Seattle. In the opening scene of the 1993 pilot episode of Frasier ("The Good Son"), Frasier is hosting his call-in radio show and relates the following:

"Six months ago, I was living in Boston. My wife had left me, which was very painful. Then she came back to me, which was excruciating. ...So I ended the marriage once and for all, packed up my things, and moved back here to my home town of Seattle."

Actress Bebe Neuwirth reprises the role of Lilith in several episodes of Frasier. In her debut Frasier episode, "The Show Where Lilith Comes Back" (1994), Lilith calls Frasier during his radio show, which surprises him, and mocks Frasier's psychiatric advice to his callers, especially one who overeats and whom Lilith attempts to help. Later at his apartment, Lilith reminds him about their times together during marriage. They make love at one point, but end up regretting it, strongly indicating no chance of a lasting reconciliation. Throughout the series, Lilith reappears on occasion, often rekindling hers and Frasier's lingering emotional bond, sometimes over concern about the future of Frederick (Trevor Einhorn), who also makes recurring appearances.

A running gag throughout Frasier is that Frasier's father and brother, Martin Crane (John Mahoney) and Niles Crane (David Hyde Pierce), are never pleased to see Lilith. Martin finds her "weird" and usually shouts out in shock when he unexpectedly sees her in his and Frasier's apartment. Niles resents her for mocking the vows at his wedding but forgives her when she apologizes. Lilith's presence frightens Martin's dog Eddie, terrifying the normally defiant dog into obedience. Martin's live-in physical therapist, Daphne Moon (Jane Leeves), who fancies herself as having minor psychic abilities, routinely suffers debilitating headaches when Lilith is in town, citing an evil spiritual presence.

Lilith marries her fiancé Brian (James Morrison), an MIT seismologist who appears in only one episode "Adventures in Paradise, Part Two" (1994). A later episode, "Room Service" (1998), reveals that Lilith is recently divorced from Brian after he came out of the closet.

Her final Frasier episode is "Guns 'N Neuroses" (2003), where Lilith's colleague Nancy (Christine Dunford), sets Frasier up on a blind date with Lilith, having no idea of their mutual history. However, the two meet up for a drink while Lilith is in Seattle and, when it overruns, they both end up cancelling on the blind date (never learning they had been set up with each other). When the two are interrupted by a loud argument between a young married couple in the next room, Frasier and Lilith successfully resolve the couple's dispute, then spend the night together watching television and finally falling asleep together on the couch. The next morning, they part ways as loving friends without restarting their romance.

Lilith returned in the 2023 edition of Frasier. Frasier and Lilith avoid each other in the wake of the former's returning to Boston, only running into her by chance a few weeks later. In spite of their earlier detente, the pair immediately start sparring verbally, much to their son's chagrin. They nonetheless attempt to share a place in Freddy's life, but after passionately kissing on his bed, they agree to divide the holidays between them so that Freddy never has to deal with the two of them together.

Creation and development
A stereotypical "intelligent ice queen" Lilith Sternin first appeared in one single scene of a Cheers episode "Second Time Around" (1986; season 4, episode 17), intended as a one-off character. However, she was brought back in the fifth season and became a recurring character thereafter. Over the years, like Diane Chambers, an educated Lilith is often mocked yet "manages to put people in their place."

Cheers and Frasier writers Ken Levine and David Isaacs found the chemistry of Frasier and Lilith "special" enough to compare them with Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy mixed with "Prozac" and to comfortably write stories about. Nevertheless, Neuwirth did not want to appear as a regular player, and left the role of Lilith on Cheers. Neuwirth's career has since been focused on stage work. However, she made several guest appearances as Lilith in the spin-off Frasier.

"I find Lilith very innocent, very sweet, very naïve. She's socially inept. She has no idea how to react with other people. She's shy and uncomfortable with people. She's a scientist, she's very analytical, she's very honest. And she loves her husband [Frasier] very, very much. ... And she loves her child Frederick, too."

The Frasier episode "Wheels of Fortune" (2002) reveals that Lilith has a half-brother, Blaine (Michael Keaton), whom Frasier despises due to Blaine's relentless swindling.

Reception
This role earned Neuwirth two Emmy Awards as an Outstanding Supporting Actress in 1990 and 1991.

According to an April 1–4, 1993, telephone survey of 1,011 people by the Times Mirror Center for the People and the Press (now Pew Research Center), before the Frasier premiere and the Cheers finale, Sam Malone (Ted Danson) was voted a favorite character by 26 percent, and Frasier Crane and Lilith Sternin were voted favorites by 1 percent each. In response to a question of spinning off a character, 15 percent voted Sam, 12 percent voted Woody Boyd (Woody Harrelson), 10 percent voted Norm Peterson (George Wendt), and 29 percent voted no spin-offs. Frasier Crane, whose own spin-off Frasier debuted in September 1993, was voted 2 percent to have his own show.

Bill Simmons, who at the time worked for ESPN, deemed Lilith Sternin one of his least favorite Cheers characters. Martha Nolan from The New York Times called Frasier and Lilith "repressed" when married together in Cheers. Josh Bell from About.com called Frasier and his ex-wife Lilith Sternin one of the "best sitcom divorced couples" of all-time.

Steven H. Scheuer from Sarasota Herald-Tribune considered Lilith's significance to and marriage with Frasier "fun" to watch, especially when, in "Severe Crane Damage" (1990), she used comparisons between "the duller good boy" Frasier and "the interesting bad boy" Sam Malone as "psychiatric examples of the good boy–bad boy syndrome". Faye Zuckerman and John Martin from The New York Times called their marriage in Cheers a hilariously "[perfect mismatch]". Television critic Kevin McDonough from New York praised Kelsey Grammer and Bebe Neuwirth's performances as "repressed individuals" and "separate couple on TV" with "acidic and hilarious" chemistry together.

General bibliography

 * Bjorklund, Dennis A. Cheers TV Show: A Comprehensive Reference. Praetorian Publishing, 1993. Google Books. Web. 8 April 2012. Another edition
 * Gates, Anita. "TELEVISION; Yes, America Has a Class System. See 'Frasier'. The New York Times, 19 Apr. 1998. Web. 9 Feb. 2012.

title: Lilith Sternin


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William Lee Knous

William Lee Knous (February 2, 1889 – December 12, 1959) was an American attorney serving as Chief Justice of the Colorado Supreme Court, the 31st Governor of Colorado and a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Colorado.

The National Governors Association states that he is the only person "to have occupied the highest seat in the legislative, judicial, and executive branches of government" in Colorado.

Early life and education
Born on February 2, 1889, in Ouray, Colorado, he was the son of John F. Knous of Pennsylvania Dutch descent. His mother, Julia Bain, was of Irish and Scottish ancestry. Both parents descended from men who fought in the Revolutionary War. In the early 1870s, John Knous moved from Iowa to Colorado, where he worked as a wagon boss and freighter that hauled supplies for the mining industry in Leadville. In Ouray, he drove a stagecoach between Ouray and Silverton. He also mined and prospected before becoming the town marshal and undersheriff.

As a boy, William Knous began a lifelong interest in fishing and hunting. He graduated from Ouray High School, where he was the class valedictorian. He began working in the mines because it paid well. He played semi-pro baseball and entered local boxing matches, from which he earned money for college. Knous received a Bachelor of Law degree with honors in 1911 from the University of Colorado Law School. He was admitted to the bar in Colorado in 1911.

Career
Knous entered private practice first in Ouray from 1911 to 1916, when he had fewer clients due to an economic downturn in the mining industry. He was a deputy district attorney for Ouray County, Colorado from 1913 to 1918, except a portion of one year from 1916 to 1917 when he wrote for legal publications in Rochester, New York. Realizing his preference to live in the Rocky Mountains, he returned to Colorado. He then worked with the Moynihan-Hughes-Knous law firm in Montrose, where he became a mining and irrigation legal expert. He was the Mayor of Montrose, Colorado from 1926 to 1930. He was a member of the Colorado House of Representatives from 1928 to 1930. A western conservative, he was interested in issues faced by cattle ranchers and water rights. While in Montrose, he was the Chamber of Commerce president and city attorney.

He was in private practice in Denver, Colorado to 1937. He was a member of the Colorado Senate from 1930 to 1936, serving as President pro Tem from 1935 to 1936. He was a justice of the Colorado Supreme Court from 1937 to 1947, serving as chief justice from 1946 to 1947. He helped solve a major oil workers' strike and other national issues when he served on the national War Labor Board during World War II.

He was the 31st Governor of Colorado from 1947 to 1950. Under his administration, a bill was enacted to combat specific diseases and public health units were established. Support was increased for workmen's compensation and schools. The state system of accounts and controls was improved, and the general fund for the state increased to a significant surplus.

Knous was nominated by President Harry S. Truman on March 1, 1950, to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Colorado vacated by Judge John Foster Symes. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on April 4, 1950, and received his commission on April 7, 1950. He served as Chief Judge from 1954 to 1959. His service terminated on December 12, 1959, due to his death.

Personal life
He eloped with Elsie Marie Grabow, a friend of his sister and a teacher, in 1916. They had three sons, all of whom fought in World War II.

 * Robert Knous was a state senator and lieutenant governor of Colorado
 * Merle Knous was a state district judge
 * William Knous was a district attorney in Montrose

He died of a heart attack on December 12, 1959, and was buried at Fairmount Cemetery.

title: William Lee Knous


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Cliff Clavin

Clifford C. Clavin, Jr. (born 1947 or 1949) is a fictional character on the American television show Cheers played by John Ratzenberger. A postal worker, he is the bar's resident know-it-all and was a contestant on the game show Jeopardy! Cliff was not originally scripted in the series' pilot episode, "Give Me a Ring Sometime", but the producers decided to add a know-it-all character and Ratzenberger helped flesh it out. The actor made guest appearances as Cliff on The Tortellis, St. Elsewhere, Wings, and Frasier.

Creation
The original script for the 1982 pilot, "Give Me a Ring Sometime", did not include Norm Peterson or Cliff Clavin. George Wendt and John Ratzenberger originally auditioned for a minor character, George, and George Wendt was hired for that role. George was Diane Chambers' first customer, had one line (consisting of the order, "Beer!") and was intended for only one episode.

Since Wendt was cast as George (who evolved into Norm Peterson), Ratzenberger suggested to the producers that a know-it-all character should be added; this led to the creation of Cliff Clavin. Ratzenberger based his role on a police officer in his hometown of Bridgeport, Connecticut. Cliff was originally a security guard, but two days before the pilot's filming he was changed to a postman; the producers thought a postman would be more knowledgeable than a security guard. Ratzenberger agreed to seven episodes of the first season, but his role expanded. "Cliff is the kind of guy who wishes he'd been a combat Marine, but maybe he was nearsighted or had flat feet and became a mailman. He loves the respect he gets. [...] As for women, Cliff is like the construction workers who whistle at women but turn to a quivering mass when they're face-to-face with a woman. The greatest fear of men is that they won't live up to their expectations."

Stephen Tobolowsky told SplitSider.com that he had auditioned for Cliff.

Other appearances
On the Cheers 200th-episode special, host John McLaughlin asked Ratzenberger about Cliff Clavin. The actor replied that Cliff would describe himself as the "wingnut that holds Western civilization together"; however, Ratzenberger said he would describe Cliff simply as "a winged nut". When McLaughlin asked Ratzenberger if there was any part of him in Cliff, the actor replied that although he was interested in fascinating facts, the only part of Cliff in him was that they both wear white socks.

Cliff appeared in 273 episodes of Cheers between 1982 and 1993. He also made guest appearances as an animated character (voiced by Ratzenberger) in The Simpsons episode "Fear of Flying", in The Tortellis episode "Frankie Comes to Dinner", in the Wings episode "The Story of Joe" and the Frasier episode "Cheerful Goodbyes".

In 2014, Ratzenberger reprised his role as Cliff in the RadioShack Super Bowl XLVIII commercial "The '80s Called".

Role
Cliff is a postal worker, and Norm Peterson's best friend. He lives with his mother, Esther Clavin (Frances Sternhagen)—first in his childhood two-story house (which was bulldozed in the sixth season's "The Last Angry Mailman" after Esther sold it to a convenience-store builder), and then in a condominium (which first appears in the season 6 episode "My Fair Clavin") with a sofabed. He is ridiculed by friends and enemies alike, including Carla (Rhea Perlman) and Norm, for his know-it-all attitude. He appears on Jeopardy! in the season-eight episode "What Is... Cliff Clavin?", where he wins $22,000 in the first two rounds with questions that favor him, but loses it all with a wrong answer in Final Jeopardy (launching into a tirade which frightens host Alex Trebek). Cliff has a few relationships (mostly short-lived and hopeless) with women. He then has a relationship with fellow postal worker Margaret O'Keefe (Annie Golden) since Cheers' seventh season (1988–89). When Margaret becomes pregnant with another man's child in 1993's "Do Not Forsake Me O My Postman", Cliff stays by her side as the baby's stepfather before Margaret returns to the child's biological father.

In "The Barstoolie" (1985), Cliff meets his father, Cliff Clavin Sr. (Dick O'Neill), who left Cliff and his mother years earlier when Cliff was still a child. Cliff later realizes that his father is a fraudster and a fugitive from justice, and will run off again. Cliff does not want to turn his father in; Cliff Sr. disappears, leaving his son devastated.

In the 1993 series finale, Cliff finally receives a promotion. In "The Show Where Sam Shows Up" (1995), an episode of the Cheers spinoff Frasier, Sam (Ted Danson) tells Frasier that Cliff has not left home since he read an article about flesh-eating bacteria; however, Sam then discovers that Cliff is one of the other men with whom Sam's fiancé Sheila (Téa Leoni) had had sex. In another Frasier episode, "The Show Where Woody Shows Up", Woody tells Frasier that Cliff almost married a mail-order bride, but she decided to go back to Bosnia after spending a few days with him. In another Frasier episode, "Cheerful Goodbyes", Cliff has his retirement party at the airport bar; he had planned to move to Florida, but decides to stay in Boston (to Carla's dismay).

Reception
On the NBC News website, Wendall Wittler called Cliff a "classic" character; however, Wittler found his friendship with Norm Peterson "superficial" and unworthy of comparison with the relationship between Ralph Kramden (Jackie Gleason) and Ed Norton (Art Carney) on The Honeymooners.

According to an April 1–4, 1993 telephone survey of 1,011 people by the Times Mirror Center for the People and the Press (now the Pew Research Center), Sam Malone was voted a "favorite character" by twenty-six percent of respondents and Cliff Clavin by two percent. Choosing a character for a spinoff, 15 percent voted for Sam Malone, 29 percent opposed a character spinoff, and less than 10 percent voted for Cliff.

Cliff's appearance on Jeopardy! in "What Is... Cliff Clavin?" received several reviews. In his book Hope, Andrew Razeghi described Cliff as a poster child for psychologist J. P. Guilford for a response to the Final Jeopardy! clue which Razeghi considered neither right nor wrong. Jeffrey Robinson of DVD Talk found the Jeopardy! category topics during Cliff's appearance (relating to the post office, beer, and other items fitting Cliff) a "riot". In the Jeopardy! fan community, Cliff's losing $22,000 (won in two rounds) in Final Jeopardy! inspired "Clavin's rule", discouraging future contestants from attempting the same.

Lawsuit
In 1993, Ratzenberger and Wendt sued Host International for copyright infringement, trademark infringement and violating the actors' personality rights. The company operated airport lounges styled similarly to Cheers which included two robots, one heavyset and the other a postal worker, which the actors claimed resembled Cliff Clavin and Norm Peterson. The lawsuit was declined at its first and second hearings. At the first, the judge ruled that the defendant did not violate copyright because Paramount Pictures had already granted it a license to produce Cheers-based bars. At the second, the judge ruled that the robots did not resemble the characters. In 1997, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed both rulings on the grounds that Paramount's copyright claim might not have more weight than Ratzenberger and Wendt's ownership of publicity and that the resemblance claim should be decided by a jury, not a judge. The case resulted in an undisclosed 2001 settlement by Host International.

title: Cliff Clavin


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Red-legged kittiwake

The red-legged kittiwake (Rissa brevirostris) is a seabird species in the gull family Laridae. It breeds in the Pribilof Islands, Bogoslof Island, and Buldir Island in the Bering Sea off the coast of Alaska, and the Commander Islands, Russia, and spends the winter at sea.

Description
The red-legged kittiwake is a very localised subarctic Pacific species. Apart from the distinguishing feature implicit in its name, it is very similar to its better-known relative, the black-legged kittiwake; other differences include the shorter bill, larger eyes, a larger, rounder head, and darker grey wings, and in the juveniles, which barely differ from the adults, lacking the black tail band and "W" across the wings of juvenile black-legged kittiwakes. Juveniles take three years to reach maturity. Adults are 35 - 39 cm long, with an 84 - 92 cm wingspan and a body mass of 325 - 510 g.

Like the Pacific race of black-legged kittiwakes, the red-legged kittiwake has a well-developed hind toe. As occasional individual black-legged kittiwakes have reddish legs, any reports of red-legged away from the subarctic Pacific must record all of the other differences, not just the leg colour, for acceptance by bird recording authorities.

Behavior
The red-legged kittiwake feeds on fish such as lanternfish (Myctophidae), squid, and invertebrates. It spends the summer at the cliff breeding colonies, nesting on ledges, and migrates out to sea in September to overwinter in the northwestern Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Alaska.

Status
This species is listed as "vulnerable" by the IUCN, as its population appears to be in decline. It has a global population in the region of 337,000 to 377,000 mature individuals and its breeding range is 192,000 km2. Its numbers are thought to have decreased by about 35% between the mid-1970s and the mid-1990s though numbers may have stabilized since. Why they have declined is unclear, but may be related to a change in the availability of prey, possibly associated excessive commercial fishing or climate change.

title: Red-legged kittiwake


text:
Paramount Media Networks

Paramount Media Networks (founded as MTV Networks in 1984 and known under this name until 2011; thereafter known as Viacom Media Networks until 2019; then known as ViacomCBS Domestic Media Networks until 2022) is an American mass media division of Paramount Global that oversees the operations of many of its television channels and online brands. Its related international division is Paramount International Networks.

The division's original namesake, MTV, is managed through a subsidiary called MTV Entertainment Group.

Pre-launch: Warner Communications joint venture (1977–1984)
Warner Cable Communications was formed on December 1, 1977, by Warner Cable, itself a division of Warner Communications, to launch QUBE, an interactive cable television network. Seeing the potential in the creation of new cable networks, Warner Cable divested QUBE's biggest brands, Star Channel, Pinwheel and Sight on Sound, into nationwide outlets. Star Channel began by satellite in January 1979 and was renamed The Movie Channel by the end of the year. The original Channel C-3, by then known as Pinwheel, became Nickelodeon in April 1979. As a result of these actions, Warner Cable Communications would then be rebranded as Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, becoming a joint venture between Warner Cable and American Express.

In 1980, Warner-Amex formed a joint venture with Cablevision's Rainbow Media division to launch Bravo, a cable network dedicated to arts and films, on December 1, 1980. Full control of the channel, however, was sold to Rainbow Media in 1984; NBC would acquire Bravo in 2003, and the channel is now currently owned by Comcast's NBCUniversal.

On August 1, 1981, MTV debuted.

In 1983, concerned by the strategic and financial failure of its pay-TV venture The Movie Channel (started to reap the benefits Time Inc. was having with HBO and Cinemax), WASEC established a joint venture with Viacom, merging TMC with their premium movie network Showtime to form Showtime/The Movie Channel, Inc.; WASEC, however, had no operational involvement in the joint venture.

Launch as MTV Networks, Viacom gets full ownership (1984–2011)
On June 25, 1984, Warner Communications made the decision to divest Nickelodeon, MTV, and VH-1 (launched in 1985 over the channel space of Turner's Cable Music Channel) into a new public corporation called MTV Networks. A year later, Warner would acquire the 50% stake from American Express.

On August 27, 1985, Warner sold 31% of MTV Networks to Viacom, with Warner also selling 19% of its Showtime/The Movie Channel, Inc. joint to Viacom as well.

In November 1985, Viacom announced that it had plans to buy the remaining 69% of MTV Networks from Warner for $326 million, The acquisition was completed on May 20, 1986.

In 1988, the company partnered with fellow Viacom subsidiary Viacom Enterprises to handle advertising sales of Superboy, a syndicated television series. The division was later evolved into One World Entertainment in the early 1990s, who partnered to launch a VH1 syndicated series.

In 2003, MTV Networks assumed full ownership of Comedy Central from AOL Time Warner.

On December 31, 2005, the remnants of MTV Networks and Showtime Networks were separated following Viacom's split into two entities: CBS Corporation, which retained CBS, UPN, Simon & Schuster and Showtime Networks (Showtime, The Movie Channel, and Flix), and a spun-off company under the Viacom name, which took ownership of Paramount Pictures, BET Networks and MTV Networks (Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, and VH1). MTV Networks was renamed Viacom Media Networks in 2011.

Expansion (2011–2019)
In the fall of 2012, media analysts began to report that ratings among some of Viacom's leading brands in the U.S. were experiencing declines in viewership. MTV, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon were of most concern to investors as the three account for roughly 50% of Viacom's operating profit, estimated David Bank of RBC Capital Markets.

In 2017, Viacom announced a five-point restructuring plan, in which the company would pour most of its resources behind six "flagship brands". These were MTV, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr. Channel, BET, and Paramount Pictures. In February 2017, cable channels CMT and TV Land were moved from the Kids and Family Group to the Global Entertainment Group under Kevin Kay, joining up with Spike TV. During the same month, it was announced that Spike would be relaunched as Paramount Network in 2018, aligning with the namesake film studio and being positioned as Viacom's main general entertainment outlet.

In October 2018, Kevin Kay was announced to be leaving his position as head of the Entertainment Group. CMT was transferred from the Entertainment Group to the Music Group under president Chris McCarthy, with his exit. Executive Kent Alterman would take charge of Paramount Network and TV Land to go with his current leadership of Comedy Central and Bellator MMA.

In 2019, after acquiring the free streaming service Pluto TV, Viacom would launch several channels on the service branded after its Media Networks and company–owned IP.

Reintroduction and re-merger with CBS (2019–present)
In August 2019, Viacom announced that it would merge with CBS Corporation, reuniting the two entities under the ViacomCBS name. The merger closed on December 4, 2019. Announced on November 11, 2019, as part of the re–merger, the Media Networks division was renamed ViacomCBS Domestic Media Networks, and reorganized.

MTV, VH1, CMT and Logo were reorganized into the "Entertainment & Youth Group", with the addition of Comedy Central, Paramount Network, Smithsonian Channel, and TV Land. BET Networks was merged with Showtime Networks under CEO David Nevins, who also temporarily gained oversight of Pop TV (formerly co-owned with Lionsgate); Pop TV was transferred to the Entertainment & Youth Group on January 15, 2020.

On February 16, 2022, ViacomCBS was renamed as Paramount Global, and ViacomCBS Domestic Media Networks was renamed Paramount Media Networks. On May 9, 2023, Paramount announced that it would restructure its U.S. domestic network business.

Former channels and blocks

 * BET Networks (moved under CBS Entertainment Group)
 * Bravo (sold to Rainbow Media in 1984; later purchased by General Electric's NBC Entertainment division in 2003, and NBCUniversal a year after)
 * C-3 (officially launched as Nickelodeon, in 1988, the "Pinwheel" block replaced with the "Nick Jr." block)
 * Sight on Sound (officially launched as MTV in 1981)
 * Nick GAS ((1999–2007), 2009 (on Dish Network)); replaced by the 24-hour The N on cable, DirecTV and more with Turner's Cartoon Network (West feed on Dish Network)
 * VH1 Uno (2000–2008); became MTVU, focusing on music videos aimed at college-aged students.
 * NickMom (2012–2015), late-night block on the Nick Jr. Channel, focusing on mothers.
 * Noggin (TV Channel) (1999–2009); replaced by the Nick Jr. Channel in 2009, but relaunched with the "Noggin" streaming app in March 2015
 * TEENick (Nickelodeon block) (2001–2009)); merged brand with "The N" to form TeenNick
 * The N (Noggin block) (2002–2007), channel (2007-2009); merged brand with "TEENick" to form TeenNick
 * NickRewind (2011–2022), classic-oriented, late-night block on TeenNick
 * SNICK (1992–2005)
 * Nick on CBS/Nick Jr. on CBS (2000–2006)
 * Showtime Beyond (1999–2020), became SHO×BET focusing on African-American actors in film.
 * MTVX, became MTV Jams in 2002, focusing on hip-hop music, rebranding under the BET banner in October 2015.
 * VH121 (moved under BET Networks)
 * VH1 MegaHits, became Logo TV in 2005, focusing on cultural gay themes.

Internet
Through its Networks division, Paramount also owns internet properties, such as MTV News and AwesomenessTV. The company ran a virtual world system, Virtual MTV, in the late 2000s.

The company has owned various other internet properties including virtual pets website Neopets; Flash game websites AddictingGames.com and Shockwave.com; online content production company Atom Entertainment; along with RateMyProfessors.com, GameTrailers, and iFilm, all of which have been shut down or sold off during 2000s and 2010s.

During the first quarter of 2008, iFilm was merged into Spike with its website re–branded and re–purposed as Spike.com.

In 2014, Viacom purchased a stake in multi-channel network Defy Media, while offloading GameTrailers, Addicting Games, and Shockwave to Defy.

Gaming
In 2006, Viacom acquired Harmonix, a video game studio oriented towards music video games and the original developer of the Guitar Hero franchise, for $175 million. The two subsequently collaborated on the creation of Rock Band. That year, Viacom also acquired the gaming–oriented communications platform Xfire.

In 2010, Harmonix was divested to an investment firm to become an independent studio, and Xfire was sold.

In 2011, Viacom established a short–lived, in–house development studio known as 345 Games, which was dedicated primarily to developing games based on Comedy Central, MTV and Spike properties.

MTV Entertainment Group
MTV Entertainment Group is a division that serves as the holdings company for the more general and mature entertainment brands such as its flagships MTV, Comedy Central and Paramount Network.

 * MTV
 * MTV2
 * MTV Classic
 * MTV Live
 * MTVU
 * MTV Tres
 * Comedy Central
 * Comedy Central Now (defunct)
 * Comedy Central Records (inactive)
 * South Park Digital Studios (joint venture with Trey Parker & Matt Stone's South Park Studios)
 * CMT
 * CMT Canada (10%)
 * CMT Music
 * Logo TV
 * SnowGlobe Music Festival (defunct)
 * Paramount Network
 * Pop
 * Smithsonian Channel
 * United Kingdom (closed in 2023)
 * Canada (6.67% minority stake; joint venture with Blue Ant Media)
 * TV Land

In 2022, MTV Entertainment Group partnered up with Second Chance Studios to launch Media careers.

Showtime Networks
Showtime Networks is a subsidiary of Paramount Media Networks that oversees the company's premium cable television channels, including its flagship service Showtime.

 * Showtime
 * The Movie Channel
 * Flix

Nickelodeon Group
Nickelodeon Group (also known as "Nickelodeon Networks Inc." and as its family distribution name called "Paramount Kids and Family Group") is an American entertainment company that oversees Paramount's kids' cable television channels, including its flagship service Nickelodeon.

 * Nickelodeon
 * Nick at Nite
 * Nick Jr. Channel
 * Nicktoons
 * TeenNick
 * NickMusic

title: Paramount Media Networks


text:
Wikipedia talk:Requests for adminship/Archive 12

Who can vote?
Hi - Who exactly can vote on this page? Can anyone, or is it only existing Sysops? I've had opinions about some of the candidates before, but I was unsure of if I was eligible to support or oppose nominations? Can this information be posted on the article page? -- DropDeadGorgias 18:19, 19 Feb 2004 (UTC)

 * Anyone can vote here, although anonymous users or users with near-zero contribution history (less than 10 edits, say) might well have votes removed as they would be presumed by many to be either sock puppets or trolls. I'll post this on your talk page too.  Anyone have an idea for how to word this to be placed on the meta page itself? Jwrosenzweig 18:22, 19 Feb 2004 (UTC)

 * Thanks for the info. I was definitely confused at first (mostly cause all of the votes were from SysOps, as far as I could tell).  This information would be useful on the main page. - DropDeadGorgias 19:33, 19 Feb 2004 (UTC)

 * Any information on less than ideal conduct in disagreements would be particularly welcome - it's the first thing I look for when trying to decide whether I think somoene should be an admin. Next is how they handle being wrong - how or if they accept it. Jamesday 05:34, 21 Feb 2004 (UTC)

What's special about bureaucrats?
Ummm, another technical question. I notice on the Wikimedia page that the only distinction between an Administrator and a Bureaucrat is that a Bureaucrat can promote other Admins. Is there a pressing need for more of them? As far as I can tell, Adminship requests are not THAT frequent. Isn't this really more of a status issue than anything else? - DropDeadGorgias 20:53, Feb 20, 2004 (UTC)

 * Until recently, a developer (and there are only about 7 of them, and not all of them pay attention here) has to do it by hand. Now they have an automated way to do it, but you have to have beauracrat status which no one has as yet (except Eloquence, apparently).People are nominated/nominate themselves all the time - usually about 3-5 a week. That's a lot of work to do by hand, especially foe just 7 people. →Raul654 20:56, Feb 20, 2004 (UTC)

 * Thanks- I was a little confused by the lack of information on the process. I guess the reason I'm asking is that I don't see why every admin won't just request bureaucrat status right now.  It seems like a dangerous movement; a hasty Admin can only do so much damage, but a hasty Bureaucrat could really create problems- just looking at how long the de-sysop process takes. - DropDeadGorgias 21:04, Feb 20, 2004 (UTC)

 * Thats why I am so horrified to see how many people were promoted behiond closed doors. While many of them might be good, I'm certainly not comfortable seeing arbitrary promotion in scorn of due process. Sam Spade 21:08, 20 Feb 2004 (UTC)

 * Sam, what are you talking about? To my knowledge, no one is a buearacrat besides Eloquence (who is a developer and could do it by hand, if he wanted). So what is this talk about people being promoted behind closed doors? -- User:Raul654 03:56, 21 Feb 2004 (UTC)

what's the big deal about being a bureaucrat? Why shouldn't all admins have the ability to create new sysops? What are the particular arguments against letting all admins have the bureaucrat power? Kingturtle 23:41, 20 Feb 2004 (UTC)

 * Bureaucrats should be very trusted people, because if they get in a dispute with someone, they must be trusted not to abuse their powers and sysop the other per... No, wait a moment... Never mind, that wouldn't work... Κσυπ Cyp    23:47, 20 Feb 2004 (UTC)

 * The reason no-one has been made a bureacrat except Erik is probably because Brion and myself are opposed to the idea (although Brion not as strongly as me). Brion and I think allowing any sysop to make sysops would be a quite acceptable model. This model was implemented for a short period, but Erik reverted it to the bureaucrat system, explaining on my talk page that Silsor didn't think it was a good idea, and that a quorum of three sysops should be required.

 * Although it may be safer to require the approval of three sysops, it is much more difficult to implement. I don't see much potential for abuse in the one-sysop system, after all, sysops who abuse their powers can and should be desysopped. -- Tim Starling 03:53, Feb 21, 2004 (UTC)

 * Although it's amusing that my opinion seems to carry weight now, the issue some were hashing out in the IRC channel was that a rogue admin could wreak havoc with the "make admin" function. I suggested a system where no one person could "make admin" but would require at least one other person to turn the key, so to speak, by performing the same action at some point, in a manner analogous to the separate keys required to launch nuclear missiles. This system would complement the abilities of sysops to handle regular site maintenance (that's the whole point of having sysops) while making abuse difficult and eliminating the need for a new class of users. silsor 05:26, Feb 21, 2004 (UTC)

 * It's not solely silsor. Improper unilateral actions have been and remain a problem. A multiple key system is a more effective way of limiting that than any highly trusted user setup and should be used for anything which is troublesome to undo. Jamesday 05:41, 21 Feb 2004 (UTC)

This is what I was talking about (Bureaucrats). There seem to be a good number of people on that list who wern't voted in. This is ominous. Why are we voting on ed, when these others have been given the power so readilly? Why the inconsistancy? If the wiki is ment to be anything other than an oligarchy, there is going to need to be a certain amount of transparancy, accountability, and perhaps even a bit of consensus ;) Sam Spade 06:04, 21 Feb 2004 (UTC)

 * A little bit of wiki-digging reveals the source of those undemocratically selected bureaucrats: User talk:MyRedDice, User_talk:TUF-KAT/Gospel_to_fair_use, User_talk:Angela/Archive8, User talk:Secretlondon.    - DropDeadGorgias 20:07, Feb 25, 2004 (UTC)

Note that Ed Poor (hi! it's me!) is the first bureacrat to have been promoted through the community process -- rather than having been appointed. I hope this starts a trend away from unilateralism and toward making decisions by consensus. --Uncle Ed 19:08, 26 Feb 2004 (UTC)


text:
Nephrosis

Nephrosis is any of various forms of kidney disease (nephropathy). In an old and broad sense of the term, it is any nephropathy, but in current usage the term is usually restricted to a narrower sense of nephropathy without inflammation or neoplasia, in which sense it is distinguished from nephritis, which involves inflammation. It is also defined as any purely degenerative disease of the renal tubules. Nephrosis is characterized by a set of signs called the nephrotic syndrome. Nephrosis can be a primary disorder or can be secondary to another disorder. Nephrotic complications of another disorder can coexist with nephritic complications. In other words, nephrosis and nephritis can be pathophysiologically contradistinguished, but that does not mean that they cannot occur simultaneously. Types of nephrosis include amyloid nephrosis and osmotic nephrosis.

title: Nephrosis