text:
Talk:Marxian economics

Archives
Earlier material for this talk page can be found at:
 * Archive 1: March 2004−January 2007 Marxian/Marxist; merge from other articles, etc.
 * Archive 2: January 2007−May 26 2007 Establishing groundrules for discussion
 * Archive 3: May 26 2007−May 27 2007 Hoax tag issue
 * Archive 4: May 27 2007−June 5 2007 Process issues; civility
 * Archive 5: June 5 2007−June 7 2007 Process issues (cont.)
 * Archive 6: June 7 2007−July 31 2007 Neutrality issue; criticism section

1. Fix "Current theorizing in Marxian economics" section
This section needs some work. One of its problems is the list of "recent economists who have made significant contributions in the Marxian vein." Lists in articles tend to be problematic because they always beg the question of inclusion/exclusion. They are hard to maintain, as anyone can (and usually will) drop by and add their favorite name to the list. In short, they are hard to defend and hard to keep current. I suggest we eliminate the list and upgrade the section. If no one objects, I will begin by removing the list. Sunray 18:51, 21 August 2007 (UTC)
 * I agree. The list of names is bad because of the inclusion/exclusion problem, and because Stalin had Rubin murdered almost 80 years ago, so he's hardly current.  The list of schools and the list of journals suffer from the same inclusion/exclusion problem.  The first paragraph of the section is good, though, IMO. andrew-the-k 20:44, 21 August 2007 (UTC)
 * I recommend the deletion of Sunray's new sentence: "Marxian economics may be viewed not as an all-encompassing approach, but as one important element in an analytical toolset - perhaps part of a broader category of heterodox economics or radical political economy."
 * First, I think it has a weasel-words problem: "perhaps" and "may be viewed." (It may also be viewed as a sardine.)
 * Second, it has a serious neutrality problem, IMO, suggesting that ME may properly be viewed in this manner, though this is very contentious, partly because of the "analytical toolset" claim, partly because "all-encompassing approach" is a strawperson, IMO.
 * Third, although ME is part of heterodox economics, I don't think it is part of it, or of "radical political economy," in the sense that the sentence requires. The sentence is about (at the start) a theoretical and/or methodological approach, but heterodox and "radical political" economics aren't "broader" (or any) theoretical and/or methodological approaches.
 * Maybe the sentence can be fixed and made neutral; I don't know. Since I don't think it says much, especially on its own like this, I think it's better to delete it.  A serious section on "current theorizing" won't be constructed sentence-by-sentence.

 * The sentence, however, functions to legitimize the list of schools that follows. I also recommend that this list be eliminated.
 * First, there's the inclusion/exclusion problem we talked about.
 * Second, none of the schools is an "academic Marxian or heterodox economics program[ ]," but this could be fixed.
 * Third, the phrase "academic Marxian or heterodox economics programs" is a catch-all. I'm not familiar with all of the departments, but among those I am familiar with, none has a program in ME as such.  And there's very little ME in some of those mentioned.  Once breadth is allowed, so that all heterodox programs are referred to, the list is very partial, excluding e.g., rightwing but non-mainstream programs.

 * Actually, I recommend deletion of the whole section and starting from scratch, though the 1st paragraph is fine with me. I don't think a competent and accurate section can be written under WP policies.  A competent and accurate section cannot be written by those lacking substantial knowledge; someone who has the required knowledge would have to put in a LOT of work in order to get it right; and then all this work would immediately go down the drain because it will be mercilessly edited by people who don't understand it, or are pushing an agenda, or are adding trivia, etc.  No one will agree to write a competent and accurate section under these rules.  So unless an exception to the rules is made and the section is protected ad infinitum, it may be better to say nothing than to say what ain't so.

 * andrew-the-k 15:37, 23 August 2007 (UTC)

 * Dear Sunray,
 * In your edit summary explaining your removal of my weasel-word, etc. tags, you wrote, "Suggest you just fix problems like weasel words rather than adding tags. And please, if I've gotten something wrong, Be Bold and fix it."  But I don't understand the intended point well enough to fix it.  It is much easier to flag a problem than to fix it.  I could guess at your point and then outline various positions on what may be the issue in order to make the text balanced, but it'd be maybe 5-10 times as long as what you have and not terribly important, in my book.  Also, I couldn't readily, if at all, provide evidence that this or that position is held by people, so why bother?  Plus, I've recommended that the section be blanked and re-composed from the ground up.  Plus, I really don't want to write stuff that will be, at best, mercilessly edited.  I prefer to limit the nature of my contribution to this section to that of providing feedback.  The text remains problematic, IMO. andrew-the-k 04:18, 24 August 2007 (UTC)

 * Re: "Sunray's new sentence": The words in the section were not originally mine. All I did was edit them and add some ME schools -- it didn't make sense to have Amherst there by itself and no one seemed to be able to find a source to support it being the "leading" ME school.

 * Re: tags: Tags are a barrier to the reader and are at best a short-term thing. But I have to say I really don't understand the "weasel-word" tag. If an editor sees weasel words, why not take them out? That was all I did in my last edit, BTW.

 * As to blanking: If there is inaccurate info, let's take it out. If you don't like the list of schools, we can take that out (or add all the schools listed by HETecon.com), or do something else. You like the first paragraph, so do I. Let's add what seems appropriate and leave it at that. Sunray 09:55, 24 August 2007 (UTC)

 * One more thing: I think that the article is better today than it was before. Thus, today, I think that Wikipedia works. I can see lots of things that can be further improved, so it is far from perfect. Sunray 09:59, 24 August 2007 (UTC)

Re: AK's recent edits: Great. Now it is beginning to look like a reasonable section.Sunray 16:55, 24 August 2007 (UTC)

2. Deal with neutrality issues in "Criticism" section
Some time ago (May 24, 2007 to be exact) Watchdog07 provided the following reasons for placing the neutrality tag on the "Criticism" section of this article:

 * Reasons for neutrality-section tag
 * a. there is a claim of consensus for which there is no consensus among scholars - "since internally inconsistent theories can not be right ...." A reliable source must be shown that there is consensus on this question. Andrew KLiman has his opinion, and that's OK if it was expressed as his opinion, but it is presented as a fact which there is no agreement that it is.

 * b. "suppression of Marx's critique of political economy and current-day research on it". This is an exceptional claim  (the claim of suppression) and exceptional claims need exceptional sources.  There is also a WP:BLP issue since some of those who Kliman implies have engaged in "suppression" are living persons.

 * c. having read the discussion on the David Laibman page, which was attacked by Andrew Kliman, I know that Laibman - a living person - would not agree that he should be described as someone who "allege that Marx has been proven internally inconsistent". He has offered alternative interpretations of Marx to those put forward by the "New Orthodox Marxists" (i.e. the proponents of the TSSI). This is quite different from Kliman's claim.

 * d. "Even critics of Marx and/or the TSSI have come to accept, implicitly or explicitly ...." This is an exceptional claim, a claim of consensus (where none exists) and a claim which concerns living persons.  It's also frankly ridiculous: there is no agreement by scholars about what they accept or do not accept regarding the TSSI. To claim otherwise, is not truthful.

Tags are warning flags for issues needing the attention of editors. They are usually of short duration. Since we have dealt with other issues raised on this page in May, could we now return to the neutrality tag? Sunray 16:49, 2 September 2007 (UTC)

Given the previous work on this section, I believe that the concerns raised in Watchdog07's points "a" and "d" have been addressed (I know I can rely on him to correct me if I am wrong). Perhaps we could review the remaining two points:

 * b. Watchdog07 has suggested that the statement, "suppression of Marx's critique of political economy and current-day research on it," is an exceptional claim. Would wording such as "raises questions about Marx's critique..." be easier to defend?

 * c. A re-wording is implicit in the comments by Watchdog07: "... have offered alternative interpretations to those put forward by proponents of the TSSI."  Would such a statement be adequate? Would there be a need to state what those alternative interpretations are?

In addition to the above, I think that the third paragraph ("Critics who have alleged...") could benefit from a more neutral wording. For example: "... economists... who wish the field to be grounded in their "correct" versions of Marxian economics" The word "wish" seems hard to verify—we don't know what they wish unless they have said "I wish," which I doubt is the case. The word "correct," in quotes, should perhaps be removed. Thoughts, suggestions? Sunray 17:51, 2 September 2007 (UTC)

 * Regarding b, the sentence is
 * Andrew Kliman argues that, since internally inconsistent theories cannot possibly be right, the inconsistency charges serve to legitimate the suppression of Marx's critique of political economy and current-day research based upon it, as well as the "correction" of Marx's alleged inconsistencies.
 * and a footnote follows. This is a neutral formulation, since it reports what an RS says without endorsing it. If a contrary statement by another RS can be found, it should be added as well.  I don't know if any such contrary statement exists.  David Laibman certainly likes to spin things his way, but I doubt that even he could actually disagree with what I argue here.
 * However, it seems that some readers misconstrue the sentence and that it might be revised to make it clearer to them. It is not a claim about the amount of suppression, and its not even about Marx's theories in particular.  It is an explanation of the purpose and import of charges of internal inconsistency.  Also, I'm not wedded to the word suppression.  (For more on these points, please see the discussion under NPOV? on the TSSI talk page.)
 * I therefore suggest the following changed wording (without attributing it to any particular source, since it is generally accepted and indeed obvious):
 * Since internally inconsistent arguments cannot possibly be right, theories containing such arguments must be rejected or corrected. Thus, charges that a theory is internally inconsistent serve to inhibit, on seemingly legitimate grounds, the public's access to the theory, and the study, discussion, and current development of it.
 * "... raises questions about Marx's critique..." doesn't get at the specificity of internal consistency. Consistency isn't just one desirable property for a theory to have.  It is a mimimum threshold requirement for it to be a legitimate theory at all.  I think readers need to know this in order to understand what the fuss is about.

 * Regarding c, David Laibman does indeed charge that Marx left "us" with errors--see footnote 14. He also has an interpretation that differs from the TSSI, but that just isn't relevant to the sentence, which concerns the internal (in)consistency of Marx's own theory, as he himself presented it.

 * Regarding the word "wish," I agree that a change is needed. How about, "who propose that the field be grounded" instead of "who wish the field to be grounded"?

 * Regarding the word "correct," with quotation marks, this is actually a reference to the title of a paper by Bortkiewicz ("On the Correction of Marx's ...") that got the internal inconsistency bandwagon rolling. Also, "correct" with quotation marks is completely neutral.  One side claims that its revisions to the original theory correct it--i.e. preserve its essence but make it logically sound.  The other side claims that the original theory doesn't need to be corrected (because the supposed logical errors that have been identified aren't actually there), and therefore that the alleged corrections aren't actually corrections (of error or inconsistency), but alternative theories.  To remove the quotation marks would be to take one side.  If style is at issue here, I could live with "grounded in their allegedly correct versions".

 * andrew-the-k 18:07, 7 September 2007 (UTC)

 * Andrew makes a case that the wording is, by and large, neutral. I actually think that his original wording for "b" is preferable to his suggested re-wording. He further suggests "who propose that the field be grounded" instead of "wish." I agree with that and, if no one objects, will make that change.

 * Perhaps we could get a comment from Watchdog07 as to what other changes he would suggest so that we can remove the "neutrality" tag. Sunray 19:24, 29 September 2007 (UTC)

 * Hearing none, I have made the change suggested above and removed the "neutrality" tag. Sunray 01:04, 15 November 2007 (UTC)

Rubentomas (talk) 20:35, 12 February 2014 (UTC) Hello User:Bobrayner I find lack of neutrality in Criticism when referring Klinman without clarifying first that his work is against theories of inconsistency, not the opposite. I simply expanded Klinman's reference so the reader wouldn't have to scroll down to find about the paper's title.

Reference tags
Hello User:Spylab, I took your "unreferenced" tags off sections where references to Capital are given. Some of these are in the supporting quotes; some are in parentheses right in the text. I think putting the references right in the text is better than sticking them in a note at the bottm of the page if the reference can be brief enough not to clutter the text; it makes it more accessible.

I may take the "cleanup" tag off "Labour" soon too, after I add some things to it. If you still think it's messy or unclear, I would appreciate yor comments on where or how to improve it. -- User:Gonji ha, January 2009 —Preceding undated comment was added at 00:58, 1 February 2009 (UTC).

Also, the reason I bold-face terms the first time they appear is so that readers can use this as sort of a glossary to the key -- and to the uninitiated, mysterious -- terms in Marxian economics. The bolding makes terms easier to locate. -- User:Gonji ha —Preceding undated comment was added at 01:03, 1 February 2009 (UTC).

 * I re-added the unreferences tags because there are no footnotes in those sections. I unbolded the words you bolded, because in Wikipedia, that's not what bolding is for.Spylab (talk) 01:25, 1 February 2009 (UTC)

 * There aren't footnotes, but there are references. So why call it unreferenced? Surely any reasonable format is OK? Next point: what is bolding for? -- User:Gonji ha, February 2009 —Preceding undated comment was added at 02:05, 1 February 2009 (UTC).

 * I suggest you read the Wikipedia guidelines that are linked on your talk page, as well as read a bunch of Wikipedia articles, to see how the pages are supposed to look, and how they are supposed to be referenced.Spylab (talk) 18:54, 1 February 2009 (UTC)

Marxist Political Economy
The title of this article should be "Marxist Political Economy", since political economy is the name of the science, and "economics" is the invented term by bourgeois vulgar economists to deny the scientific nature of political economy. In this sense "Marxian economics" is very misleading title.北東北国際 (talk) 07:22, 6 October 2009 (UTC)

 * Created a redirect for this. Marxist political-economic model already points to the topic main. Lycurgus (talk) 21:31, 14 June 2011 (UTC)

Marxian economics
This article has suffered a great deal because people have meddled with it who are either sectarians, or Marxist enthusiasts without any relevant qualifications or experience in the field. In China, "Marxist political economy" may be the norm, but in the West, "Marxian economics" is a quite acceptable label for a branch of heterodox economics. The article should be revised by a knowledgeable professional in the field who is not subject to sectarian bias, or the original versions should be restored. It is sad that good contributions to the article in the past have been lost, because somebody thought they would change the content to their own liking. Emotionally this may be satisfying to the writer but it does not help the reader of the article intending to learn more about the topic - this article is now so bad that it would turn anybody that reads it off the topic altogether. User:Jurriaan 20:25 3 May 2010 (UTC)

 * Your opinion would not seem to be worth much as there seemed to be a general consensus before and after your last permanent adieu that you were a pushy troll with a superficial understanding of the subject matter in question. Perhaps you can reenter a community dialog at Commodity Fetishism and we can see where things stand now. However judging by above same ole same ole. Also the archives should be moved to the normal namespace (archive_n). Lycurgus (talk) 20:58, 14 June 2011 (UTC)

 * Looking briefly at your userspace and recalling the matter at the other article see that you present the officious profile of a Mandarin with less than full credentials and perhaps also of less than stellar level of general intelligence seeking to assert somekina expertise in a blanket fashion, ironically the same complaint that SIRubenstein lodged against you at the other article you now make here. It looks like you've put a lot a time in articles in this space, that you're active again and there's certainly nothing wrong with that, if you can work constructively and objectively with others, but you're not like a priest shaman of Marxism that can impose your subjective judgement on matters, your specially determined reception of everything as in "Marxian economics" vs "Marxian political-economy" above. This body of knowledge above all is open to anyone who is willing to put the effort into reading and understanding the source materials. There are a relatively large number of such persons at this point whether you wish to acknowledge the fact or not, certainly in the many tens if not hundreds of thousands as a minimum, depending on the specified degree of proficiency/understanding, not for that matter counting pro forma sets such as the 70 million members of the Chinese communist party. If there are specific issues these must be addressed specifically addressed. I assume that as a Nederlander you can read Hochdeutsch as can I and the de.wikipedia.org is marked as being in a state with this one can benefit from with appropriate translation. Lycurgus (talk) 04:22, 15 June 2011 (UTC)

 * Wikipedia has a policy of No personal attacks. I encourage editors to review the policy at this point in time. Fifelfoo (talk) 04:30, 15 June 2011 (UTC)

 * Yeah, perhaps WP:APR is more appropriate. I was at some pains to tone it down. Unfortunately there are times when personality issues are the thing that must be dealt with. Obviously I'm not here to do what I complain about, namely impose my personal judgements, so carry on. (adjusted your indentation). Lycurgus (talk) 16:33, 15 June 2011 (UTC)

 * Sticks and stones, Lycurgus... I was told by a friend who is an IISH staff member that there are some plans among Chinese academic authorities to scan all of Marx's manuscripts and make them available online - IPR permitting. That wouldn't be such as bad idea, since then people could check the interpretations against the originals more easily. If, for example, Marx himself makes it very explicit that his initial discussion of "the commodity" does NOT presuppose a capitalist mode of production, and that commodity production existed long before capitalist production did (Cap. Vol. 1, p. 273-274 in the Penguin edition), then if some wikipedian "authority" argues that this is just an "interpretation" of Marx's text, he or she is plainly mistaken. It is not an interpretation, but what Marx literally says himself, and one can quote chapter and verse to prove that. If one quotes Marx himself in this sense, this does not portend or intend arrogance of pretentiousness - it merely verifies a fact. It does not really advance the discussion about the article a great deal, if the wikipedian then keeps arguing that pointing out such a plain error of fact is itself an interpretation. As for myself, I do not have the pretensions that Lycurgus accuses me of. Since however I have studied these issues across 30 years or more, as scholar, activist and researcher, discussed them with world authorities on these topics, and worked through the relevant scientific literature, I don't regard my understanding as "superficial posturing". Instead I distinguish appropriately between what Marx says about his own views, and what Marxists or others say about them. I have not worked on the "Marxian economics" article much at all, and it is not really my aim to do so anyway, given the level of controversy about it; I have concentrated mainly on some basic concepts of Marxian economic theory, that is all. Many people were glad that I had provided these reference articles. The best evidence that I have, that I am not doing too badly, is that most of the articles are still pretty much as I wrote them, years later, after tens or hundreds of thousands of views. I don't deny the right of anyone to re-edit the articles I wrote, my concern is only with whether the quality of the articles is thereby improved, or whether it makes the articles unreliable, inaccurate or nonsensical. The corresponding German articles are certainly useful, but just because something about Marx is written in the German wikipedia, is of itself no guarantee of accuracy or validity. German wiki's (or for that matter German Marxist articles) are just as much susceptible to error as their English counterparts. If I note that "in China, "Marxist political economy" may be the norm, but in the West, "Marxian economics" is a quite acceptable label for a branch of heterodox economics", I don't think I am saying anything particularly controversial. User:Jurriaan 16 June 2011 10:25 (UTC)

Rubentomas (talk) 20:38, 12 February 2014 (UTC) Hello User:Bobrayner Added clarification on difference between value and price (even if for you is obvious). Not the same in Marxian economics.

Educational assignment at Symbiosis School of Economics supported by Wikipedia ambassadors
Basic.atari (talk) 02:31, 10 August 2011 (UTC)

removing POV tag with no active discussion per Template:POV
I've removed an old neutrality tag from this page that appears to have no active discussion per the instructions at Template:POV:
 * This template is not meant to be a permanent resident on any article. Remove this template whenever:
 * There is consensus on the talkpage or the NPOV Noticeboard that the issue has been resolved
 * It is not clear what the neutrality issue is, and no satisfactory explanation has been given
 * In the absence of any discussion, or if the discussion has become dormant.

Since there's no evidence of ongoing discussion, I'm removing the tag for now. If discussion is continuing and I've failed to see it, however, please feel free to restore the template and continue to address the issues. Thanks to everybody working on this one! -- Khazar2 (talk) 15:43, 17 July 2013 (UTC)

part of a series?
where are the other articles in the series on marxian economics? did the editor mean series on marxism? Darkstar1st (talk) 00:38, 4 April 2015 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 29 April 2015
Add Mount Holyoke College to the list of universities who provide courses on Marxian Theory

138.110.33.62 (talk) 21:01, 29 April 2015 (UTC)
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done: please provide reliable sources that support the change you want to be made.  Edgars2007  (talk/contribs) 06:03, 30 April 2015 (UTC)

External links modified (January 2018)
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A more apropriate title
Marxist economics should be the title here, since it better captures the relationship of these theories of classical political economy to the movement of "marxism". Marxist economics has relatively little in common with Marx critique of political economy other than names such as Ricardo and Smith.

Pauloroboto (talk) 12:06, 3 October 2021 (UTC)

Reversion of Recent Changes
I reverted a few big changes (all done on April 12th) by Rvtcbckt. While they may or may not have merit, they were all completely uncited and were written in a difficult to understand style. I suspect they may have been translations, or perhaps the editor is a second language speaker of English.

I also noticed that someone contacted that user on their talkpage about these changes, but to no avail.

I would have simply fixed the language, but they also rubbed off as opinionated and I believe they may have been original research. In any case, because they made the article less legible, I decided to revert them. I would be grateful if someone who has a better understanding of the topic can give his or her opinion. Av = λv (talk) 23:42, 16 April 2022 (UTC)

Wiki Education assignment: Human Resource Economics Fall 2021
— Assignment last updated by Karen.ulloa (talk) 03:40, 8 December 2022 (UTC)

India Education Program course assignment
This article was the subject of an educational assignment at Symbiosis School of Economics supported by Wikipedia Ambassadors through the India Education Program during the 2011 Q3 term. Further details are available on the course page.

The above message was substituted from by PrimeBOT (talk) on 19:55, 1 February 2023 (UTC)

title: Talk:Marxian economics


text:
Baron Stamp

Baron Stamp, of Shortlands in the County of Kent, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1938 for the civil servant, industrialist, economist, statistician and banker, Sir Josiah Stamp. The second Baron, Wilfred Carlyle Stamp, holds the record for having held a peerage for the shortest length of time. On 16 April 1941, the first Baron Stamp was killed by a German bomb, as was his son Wilfred. Legally, the son was presumed to have died a fraction of a second after his father, and therefore is supposed to have succeeded to the title for that short amount of time. The second Baron was succeeded by his younger brother, the third Baron. the title is held by the latter's grandson, the fifth Baron.

Barons Stamp (1938)

 * Josiah Charles Stamp, 1st Baron Stamp (1880–1941)
 * Wilfred Carlyle Stamp, 2nd Baron Stamp (1904–1941)
 * Trevor Charles Stamp, 3rd Baron Stamp (1907–1987)
 * Trevor Charles Bosworth Stamp, 4th Baron Stamp (1935–2022)
 * Nicholas Charles Trevor Stamp, 5th Baron Stamp (b. 1978)

The heir apparent is the present holder's son the Hon. Leo Charles Xie Stamp (b. 2021).

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

title: Baron Stamp


text:
Baron Palmer

Baron Palmer, of Reading in the County of Berkshire, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1933 for the businessman and patron of music, Sir Ernest Palmer, 1st Baronet. He had already been created a baronet, of Grosvenor Crescent in the City of Westminster, in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom on 26 January 1916. The Palmer family had made its fortune from their ownership of the firm of Huntley & Palmers, biscuit manufacturers, of Reading. the titles are held by the first Baron's great-great-grandson, the fifth Baron, who succeeded his father in 2023.

The family seat is Manderston, near Duns, Berwickshire.

Baron Palmer (1933)

 * (Samuel) Ernest Palmer, 1st Baron Palmer (1858–1948)
 * (Ernest) Cecil Nottage Palmer, 2nd Baron Palmer (1882–1950)
 * Raymond Cecil Palmer, 3rd Baron Palmer (1916–1990)
 * Adrian Bailie Nottage Palmer, 4th Baron Palmer (1951–2023)
 * Hugo Bailie Rohan Palmer, 5th Baron Palmer (b. 1980)

The heir apparent is the present holder's son, the Hon. Ernest Bailie Rohan Palmer (b. 2019).

title: Baron Palmer


text:
Dan Ryan Expressway

The Dan Ryan Expressway is an expressway in Chicago that runs from the Jane Byrne Interchange with Interstate 290 (I-290) near Downtown Chicago through the South Side of the city. It is designated as both I-90 and I-94 south to 66th Street, a distance of 7.44 mi. South of 66th Street, the expressway meets the Chicago Skyway, which travels southeast; the I-90 designation transfers over to the Skyway, while the Dan Ryan Expressway retains the I-94 designation and continues south for 4.03 mi, ending at an interchange with I-57. This is a total distance of 11.47 mi. The highway was named for Dan Ryan Jr., a former president of the Cook County Board of Commissioners.

Route description
On an average day, up to 307,100 vehicles use a portion of the Dan Ryan (2005 data). The Dan Ryan, and its North Side counterpart the Kennedy Expressway, are the busiest roads in the entire state of Illinois. Utilizing an express-local system, the Dan Ryan has 14 lanes of traffic; seven in each direction, with four of those as express lanes and the other three providing access for exit and on-ramps. Because of its width, the Dan Ryan is very popular with commuters who live south of the Loop, making the road prone to traffic jams during weekday rush hour.

The posted directions on the Dan Ryan are different from the actual compass direction of the expressway, which may cause confusion to many travelers. The Dan Ryan for its entire 12 mi length runs north–south. However, the Dan Ryan is a part of the larger Interstates 90 and 94, which both run east–west through the United States. Therefore, one who is traveling "west" on I-90/94 is actually driving north on the Dan Ryan as it passes through Chicago; I-90 continues northwest from the Kennedy split, while I-94 runs north–south until the Marquette Interchange in Milwaukee. Similarly, "east" on 90 and 94 on the entire system is really south through Chicago; the interstates will continue on an easterly path outside of the city. Chicagoans also typically refer to the direction of travel as either "inbound" or "outbound" from the downtown area.

Four miles of continuous high-rise housing projects (Stateway Gardens and the Robert Taylor Homes) formerly ran parallel to the expressway on its eastern side from Cermak Road south to Garfield Boulevard. However, nearly all of these buildings have been demolished as part of the CHA's transformation plan.

The Red Line runs in the median of the Dan Ryan. This section of the Chicago "L" opened on September 28, 1969. Chicago pioneered the location of rapid transit line in expressway medians, a practice that has since been followed in several other cities, such as Toronto, and Pasadena.

The control cities for the Dan Ryan Expressway are Indiana south, and the Chicago Loop northbound.

History
The first segment of the Dan Ryan, opened on December 12, 1961, and ran between US 12/US 20, 95th Street north to 71st Street in Chicago's Grand Crossing neighborhood. It was named after the recently deceased Dan Ryan, Jr., who was President of the Cook County Board of Commissioners who had worked to accelerate construction of Chicago-area expressways. A year later on December 15, 1962, the 8 mi stretch of the Dan Ryan between 71st Street and I-90/Eisenhower Expressway (now signed as I-290) opened to the public as well as a 0.2 mi stretch that connected it to the Bishop Ford Freeway (then known as the Calumet Expressway). During the planning stages it was also known as the South Route Expressway.

In 1988–1989, the northern 3 mi of the Dan Ryan, known as the Elevated Bridge, were completely reconstructed.

In 2006 and 2007, the Illinois Department of Transportation reconstructed the entire length of the Dan Ryan Expressway, including the addition of a travel lane from 47th Street to 95th Street. The project was the largest expressway reconstruction plan in Chicago history. The total cost of the project was $975 million, nearly twice the $550 million original estimate for the project.

title: Dan Ryan Expressway


text:
Mickledore

Mickledore (the name means great door or pass) is a narrow ridge, 840 metres (2755 ft) high, connecting the mountains of Scafell and Scafell Pike in the English Lake District. It is also a pass between the valleys of Wasdale and Eskdale.

Ridge
The ridge is easily reached and traversed from Scafell Pike to the north, or from the valleys to the east and west. However, access to the summit of Scafell is barred by the rockface of Broad Stand, which looks much easier to climb than it is.

Broad Stand
Broad Stand is a steep buttress wall requiring sequential bouldering moves, which have been described as anything from scrambling to rock climbing. It is described as 'extremely dangerous' by Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team, and the climb is "Difficult" in the British grading system. In descent, the cliff is even more dangerous.

The poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge probably made a descent of Broad Stand on 5 August 1802; he wrote:

 * . . ."I began to suspect that I ought not to go on, but then unfortunately tho' I could with ease drop down a smooth Rock 7 ft high, I could not climb it, so go on I must and on I went. The next 3 drops were not half a Foot, at least not a foot more than my own height, but every Drop increased the Palsy of my Limbs — I shook all over, Heaven knows without the least influence of Fear, and now I had only two more to drop down, to return was impossible — but of these two the first was tremendous, it was twice my own height, and the Ledge at the bottom was so exceedingly narrow, that if I dropt down upon it I must of necessity have fallen backwards and of course killed myself. My Limbs were all in a tremble — I lay upon my Back to rest myself, and was beginning according to my Custom to laugh at myself for a Madman, when the sight of the Crags above me on each side, and the impetuous Clouds just over them, posting so luridly and so rapidly northward, overawed me. I lay in a state of almost prophetic Trance and Delight — and blessed God aloud, for the powers of Reason and the Will, which remaining no Danger can overpower us! — Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772–1834)

The historian and outdoor enthusiast W. G. Collingwood wrote the following in his classic guide book The Lake Counties: ". . .'Indeed, it stands up with pinnacles and buttresses so high, and flanking precipice's so deep, and even in places overhanging, that here, if anywhere in these mountains, one can get the impression of size and awesomeness. . .Right in front of Mickledore ridge the blocky volcanic-ash formation cleaves into a set of gigantic steps, as it were tilted from behind, so that the top of each step slopes outwards, and what should be vertical overhangs. . .That is the Broad Stand. . . — W. G. Collingwood (1854–1932)"

Route to Scafell
The walker seeking a safe route between England's highest mountains must go via Foxes Tarn, which involves a descent to 680 m or so, about 160 m below the height of the ridge. The more challenging routes of Lord's Rake, and the West Wall Traverse, offer alternative ways to reach Scafell.

Route to Scafell via Foxes Tarn
From the Mickledore ridge it is necessary to descend on the south side to pick up the path to Foxes Tarn. Older OS maps show the path junction near the confluence of two streams at about 680m, however later maps show the path junction lower down at about 650m. It is possible that the old path has been replaced with a newer one.

Rescue box 1974

The Mickledore mountain rescue stretcher box was airlifted to the site by the crew of an RAF helicopter in 1974.

..."In 1974, Flt Lt John Nowell and his crew - Fg Off Lex Brown and crewman, Sgt Brian Gladwell of Number 230 Squadron RAF, RV'd with a party of students from the Eskdale Outward Bound School near Wasdale head pub. A party of about 10 students were first flown to Mickledore. The help returned to the RV point and the MRT 'Box' was loaded crosswise into the help with the ends sticking out. The box was flown back to Mickledore where the 1st party manhandled the box out of the help - which only had the nose wheel in contact with the ridge. The help then went back to the RV point, collected the remaining chaps and landed up towards Scafell Pike on a patch of flatfish ground and shut down. The box was manoeuvred into position and once it was deemed secure, the crew flew everyone back to Eskdale School. A 10-minute film shot that day showing the help emerging from the clouds to land on the ridge where the box was extracted was shown in its entirety of the 6 o'clock ITV news. The photographs taken that day were published in the book A Day Above The Lake District The book contains a specially written amusing poem by Pam Ayers to be the Foreword to the book. — John J. Nowell BA(Hons) Cfs FRGS LRPS RAF (Flt Lt Retired) – 13 December 2022

title: Mickledore


text:
Baron Poltimore

Baron Poltimore, of Poltimore in the County of Devon, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1831 for Sir George Bampfylde, 6th Baronet. His son, the second Baron, held office as Treasurer of the Household from 1872 to 1874 in the first Liberal administration of William Ewart Gladstone.

the titles are held by the latter's great-great-grandson, the seventh Baron, who succeeded his grandfather in 1978. He has notably been a director of Sotheby's and appears on the Antiques Roadshow as Mark Poltimore, one of the experts on paintings. In 2013 he appeared in the film Trance playing the role of Francis Lemaitre, an auctioneer.

The Bampfylde Baronetcy, of Poltimore in the County of Devon, was created in the Baronetage of England on 14 July 1641 for John Bampfylde, the ancestor of the first Baron. He represented Penryn in the House of Commons. His son, the second Baronet, sat as Member of Parliament for Tiverton and Devonshire. His grandson, the third Baronet, and great-grandson, the fourth Baronet, both represented Exeter and Devonshire in the House of Commons. The latter's son, the fifth Baronet, also sat as Member of Parliament for Exeter. He was shot by an ex-servant on 7 April 1823 and died twelve days later. He was succeeded by his son, the aforementioned sixth Baronet, who was elevated to the peerage in 1831.

Another member of the Bampfylde family was Thomas Bampfylde, brother of the first Baronet. He served briefly as Speaker of the House of Commons in 1659. Also, John Codrington Bampfylde, younger son of the fourth Baronet, was a poet.

The ancestral seat of the Bampfylde family was Poltimore House, near Exeter, Devon, and from the 15th century at North Molton, North Devon. Their Exeter townhouse was Bampfylde House, built c. 1590, destroyed by bombing in 1942 during WW II. The seventh Baron and his family live near Hungerford, Berkshire.

Bampfylde baronets, of Poltimore (1641)

 * Sir John Bampfylde, 1st Baronet (c. 1610–1650)
 * Sir Coplestone Bampfylde, 2nd Baronet (c. 1633–1692)
 * Hugh Bampfylde (c. 1663–1691)
 * Sir Coplestone Warwick Bampfylde, 3rd Baronet (c. 1689–1727)
 * Sir Richard Warwick Bampfylde, 4th Baronet (1722–1776)
 * Sir Charles Warwick Bampfylde, 5th Baronet (1753–1823)
 * Sir George Warwick Bampfylde, 6th Baronet (1786–1858) (created Baron Poltimore in 1831)

Barons Poltimore (1831)

 * George Warwick Bampfylde, 1st Baron Poltimore (1786–1858)
 * Augustus Frederick George Warwick Bampfylde, 2nd Baron Poltimore (1837–1908); only son of the 1st Baron
 * Coplestone Richard George Warwick Bampfylde, 3rd Baron Poltimore (1859–1918); eldest son of the 2nd Baron
 * George Wentworth Warwick Bampfylde, 4th Baron Poltimore (1882–1965); eldest son of the 3rd Baron
 * Hon. (Coplestone) John de Grey Warwick Bampfylde (1914–1936); only son of the 4th Baron, predeceased his father unmarried.
 * Arthur Blackett Warwick Bampfylde, 5th Baron Poltimore (1883–1967); 2nd son of 3rd Baron
 * Hugh de Burgh Warwick Bampfylde, 6th Baron Poltimore (1888–1978); 3rd and youngest son of 3rd Baron
 * Hon. Anthony Gerard Hugh Bampfylde (1920–1969); eldest son of the 6th Baron
 * Mark Coplestone Bampfylde, 7th Baron Poltimore (b. 1957); grandson of the 6th Baron through his eldest son

The heir apparent is the present holder's eldest son, the Hon. Henry Anthony Warwick Bampfylde (b. 1985)

title: Baron Poltimore


text:
Transmissions from the Satellite Heart

Transmissions from the Satellite Heart is the sixth studio album by American rock band the Flaming Lips, released in 1993 by Warner Bros. Records. The album marked the departure of Jonathan Donahue (to Mercury Rev) and Nathan Roberts, and the addition of guitarist Ronald Jones and drummer Steven Drozd.

The track "She Don't Use Jelly" is notable for being the band's first charting radio hit, after its video was featured on the MTV series Beavis and Butt-Head nearly a year after the album's release. "Turn It On" was also a moderately successful single, and also had two different music videos, one of which was shot at a laundromat. By 2002, Transmissions from the Satellite Heart had sold 300,000 copies worldwide.

The EP Due to High Expectations... The Flaming Lips Are Providing Needles for Your Balloons was released the following year to promote the album and featured live versions of "Chewin the Apple of Yer Eye" and "Slow•Nerve•Action."

Critical reception
Trouser Press wrote that "as post-punk novelty singles go, 'She Don’t Use Jelly' ... is grade-A whimsy, with Coyne’s wobbly singing the perfect complement to the band’s loose-limbed rumble."

Track listing
All songs written by the Flaming Lips except where noted.
 * Notes

Personnel

 * Wayne Coyne – vocals, guitar
 * Steven Drozd – drums, keyboards, guitar, vocals
 * Michael Ivins – bass, backing vocals
 * Ronald Jones – guitar, backing vocals
 * Keith Cleversley – recording engineer, mixing engineer

title: Transmissions from the Satellite Heart


text:
Pappus of Alexandria

Pappus of Alexandria (Πάππος ὁ Ἀλεξανδρεύς; c. 290 AD) was a Greek mathematician of late antiquity known for his Synagoge (Συναγωγή) or Collection (c. 340), and for Pappus's hexagon theorem in projective geometry. Almost nothing is known about his life except for what can be found in his own writings, many of which are lost. Pappus apparently lived in Alexandria, where he worked as a mathematics teacher to higher level students, such one named Hermodorus.

The Collection, his best-known work, is a compendium of mathematics in eight volumes, the bulk of which survives. It covers a wide range of topics that were part of the ancient mathematics curriculum, including geometry, astronomy, and mechanics.

Pappus was active in a period generally considered one of stagnation in mathematical studies, where he stands out as a remarkable exception. In many respects, his fate strikingly resembles that of Diophantus', originally of limited importance but becoming very influential in the late Renaissance and Early Modern periods.

Dating
In his surviving writings, Pappus gives no indication of the date of the authors whose works he makes use of, or of the time (but see below) when he himself wrote. If no other date information were available, all that could be known would be that he was later than Ptolemy (died c. 168 AD), whom he quotes, and earlier than Proclus (born c. 411), who quotes him.

The 10th century Suda states that Pappus was of the same age as Theon of Alexandria, who was active in the reign of Emperor Theodosius I (372–395). A different date is given by a marginal note to a late 10th-century manuscript (a copy of a chronological table by the same Theon), which states, next to an entry on Emperor Diocletian (reigned 284–305), that "at that time wrote Pappus".

However, a verifiable date comes from the dating of a solar eclipse mentioned by Pappus himself. In his commentary on the Almagest he calculates "the place and time of conjunction which gave rise to the eclipse in Tybi in 1068 after Nabonassar". This works out as 18 October 320, and so Pappus must have been active around 320.

Works

The great work of Pappus, in eight books and titled Synagoge or Collection, has not survived in complete form: the first book is lost, and the rest have suffered considerably. The Suda enumerates other works of Pappus: Χωρογραφία οἰκουμενική (Chorographia oikoumenike or Description of the Inhabited World), commentary on the four books of Ptolemy's Almagest, Ποταμοὺς τοὺς ἐν Λιβύῃ (The Rivers in Libya), and Ὀνειροκριτικά (The Interpretation of Dreams). Pappus himself mentions another commentary of his own on the Ἀνάλημμα (Analemma) of Diodorus of Alexandria. Pappus also wrote commentaries on Euclid's Elements (of which fragments are preserved in Proclus and the Scholia, while that on the tenth Book has been found in an Arabic manuscript), and on Ptolemy's Ἁρμονικά (Harmonika).

Federico Commandino translated the Collection of Pappus into Latin in 1588. The German classicist and mathematical historian Friedrich Hultsch (1833–1908) published a definitive three-volume presentation of Commandino's translation with both the Greek and Latin versions (Berlin, 1875–1878). Using Hultsch's work, the Belgian mathematical historian Paul ver Eecke was the first to publish a translation of the Collection into a modern European language; his two-volume, French translation has the title ''Pappus d'Alexandrie. La Collection Mathématique.'' (Paris and Bruges, 1933).

Collection
The characteristics of Pappus's Collection are that it contains an account, systematically arranged, of the most important results obtained by his predecessors, and, secondly, notes explanatory of, or extending, previous discoveries. These discoveries form, in fact, a text upon which Pappus enlarges discursively. Heath considered the systematic introductions to the various books as valuable, for they set forth clearly an outline of the contents and the general scope of the subjects to be treated. From these introductions one can judge of the style of Pappus's writing, which is excellent and even elegant the moment he is free from the shackles of mathematical formulae and expressions. Heath also found his characteristic exactness made his Collection "a most admirable substitute for the texts of the many valuable treatises of earlier mathematicians of which time has deprived us".

The surviving portions of Collection can be summarized as follows.

Book I
Book I has been completely lost. We can only conjecture that the lost Book I, like Book II, was concerned with arithmetic due to Book III being clearly introduced as beginning a new subject.

Book II
The whole of Book II (the former part of which is lost, the existing fragment beginning in the middle of the 14th proposition) discusses a method of multiplication from an unnamed book by Apollonius of Perga. The final propositions deal with multiplying together the numerical values of Greek letters in two lines of poetry, producing two very large numbers approximately equal to $2,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000$ and $200,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000$.

Book III
Book III contains geometrical problems, plane and solid. It may be divided into five sections:

 * 1) On the famous problem of finding two mean proportionals between two given lines, which arose from that of duplicating the cube, reduced by Hippocrates of Chios to the former. Pappus gives several solutions of this problem, including a method of making successive approximations to the solution, the significance of which he apparently failed to appreciate; he adds his own solution of the more general problem of finding geometrically the side of a cube whose content is in any given ratio to that of a given one.
 * 2) On the arithmetic, geometric and harmonic means between two straight lines, and the problem of representing all three in one and the same geometrical figure. This serves as an introduction to a general theory of means, of which Pappus distinguishes ten kinds, and gives a table representing examples of each in whole numbers.
 * 3) On a curious problem suggested by Euclid I. 21.
 * 4) On the inscribing of each of the five regular polyhedra in a sphere. Here Pappus observed that a regular dodecahedron and a regular icosahedron could be inscribed in the same sphere such that their vertices all lay on the same 4 circles of latitude, with 3 of the icosahedron's 12 vertices on each circle, and 5 of the dodecahedron's 20 vertices on each circle. This observation has been generalised to higher dimensional dual polytopes.
 * 5) An addition by a later writer on another solution of the first problem of the book.

Book IV
Of Book IV the title and preface have been lost, so that the program has to be gathered from the book itself. At the beginning is the well-known generalization of Euclid I.47 (Pappus's area theorem), then follow various theorems on the circle, leading up to the problem of the construction of a circle which shall circumscribe three given circles, touching each other two and two. This and several other propositions on contact, e.g. cases of circles touching one another and inscribed in the figure made of three semicircles and known as arbelos ("shoemakers knife") form the first division of the book; Pappus turns then to a consideration of certain properties of Archimedes's spiral, the conchoid of Nicomedes (already mentioned in Book I as supplying a method of doubling the cube), and the curve discovered most probably by Hippias of Elis about 420 BC, and known by the name, τετραγωνισμός, or quadratrix. Proposition 30 describes the construction of a curve of double curvature called by Pappus the helix on a sphere; it is described by a point moving uniformly along the arc of a great circle, which itself turns about its diameter uniformly, the point describing a quadrant and the great circle a complete revolution in the same time. The area of the surface included between this curve and its base is found – the first known instance of a quadrature of a curved surface. The rest of the book treats of the trisection of an angle, and the solution of more general problems of the same kind by means of the quadratrix and spiral. In one solution of the former problem is the first recorded use of the property of a conic (a hyperbola) with reference to the focus and directrix.

Book V
In Book V, after an interesting preface concerning regular polygons, and containing remarks upon the hexagonal form of the cells of honeycombs, Pappus addresses himself to the comparison of the areas of different plane figures which have all the same perimeter (following Zenodorus's treatise on this subject), and of the volumes of different solid figures which have all the same superficial area, and, lastly, a comparison of the five regular solids of Plato. Incidentally Pappus describes the thirteen other polyhedra bounded by equilateral and equiangular but not similar polygons, discovered by Archimedes, and finds, by a method recalling that of Archimedes, the surface and volume of a sphere.

Book VI
According to the preface, Book VI is intended to resolve difficulties occurring in the so-called "Lesser Astronomical Works" (Μικρὸς Ἀστρονομούμενος), i.e. works other than the Almagest. It accordingly comments on the Sphaerica of Theodosius, the Moving Sphere of Autolycus, Theodosius's book on Day and Night, the treatise of Aristarchus On the Size and Distances of the Sun and Moon, and Euclid's Optics and Phaenomena.

Book VII
Since Michel Chasles cited this book of Pappus in his history of geometric methods, it has become the object of considerable attention.

The preface of Book VII explains the terms analysis and synthesis, and the distinction between theorem and problem. Pappus then enumerates works of Euclid, Apollonius, Aristaeus and Eratosthenes, thirty-three books in all, the substance of which he intends to give, with the lemmas necessary for their elucidation. With the mention of the Porisms of Euclid we have an account of the relation of porism to theorem and problem. In the same preface is included (a) the famous problem known by Pappus's name, often enunciated thus: Having given a number of straight lines, to find the geometric locus of a point such that the lengths of the perpendiculars upon, or (more generally) the lines drawn from it obliquely at given inclinations to, the given lines satisfy the condition that the product of certain of them may bear a constant ratio to the product of the remaining ones; (Pappus does not express it in this form but by means of composition of ratios, saying that if the ratio is given which is compounded of the ratios of pairs one of one set and one of another of the lines so drawn, and of the ratio of the odd one, if any, to a given straight line, the point will lie on a curve given in position); (b) the theorems which were rediscovered by and named after Paul Guldin, but appear to have been discovered by Pappus himself.

Book VII also contains

 * 1) under the head of the De Sectione Determinata of Apollonius, lemmas which, closely examined, are seen to be cases of the involution of six points;
 * 2) important lemmas on the Porisms of Euclid, including what is called Pappus's hexagon theorem;
 * 3) a lemma upon the Surface Loci of Euclid which states that the locus of a point such that its distance from a given point bears a constant ratio to its distance from a given straight line is a conic, and is followed by proofs that the conic is a parabola, ellipse, or hyperbola according as the constant ratio is equal to, less than or greater than 1 (the first recorded proofs of the properties, which do not appear in Apollonius).

Chasles's citation of Pappus was repeated by Wilhelm Blaschke and Dirk Struik. In Cambridge, England, John J. Milne gave readers the benefit of his reading of Pappus. In 1985 Alexander Jones wrote his thesis at Brown University on the subject. A revised form of his translation and commentary was published by Springer-Verlag the following year. Jones succeeds in showing how Pappus manipulated the complete quadrangle, used the relation of projective harmonic conjugates, and displayed an awareness of cross-ratios of points and lines. Furthermore, the concept of pole and polar is revealed as a lemma in Book VII.

Book VIII
Book VIII principally treats mechanics, the properties of the center of gravity, and some mechanical powers. Interspersed are some propositions on pure geometry. Proposition 14 shows how to draw an ellipse through five given points, and Prop. 15 gives a simple construction for the axes of an ellipse when a pair of conjugate diameters are given.

Legacy
Pappus's Collection was virtually unknown to the Arabs and medieval Europeans, but exerted great influence on 17th-century mathematics after being translated to Latin by Federico Commandino. Diophantus's Arithmetica and Pappus's Collection were the two major sources of Viète's Isagoge in artem analyticam (1591). The Pappus's problem and its generalization led Descartes to the development of analytic geometry. Fermat also developed his version of analytic geometry and his method of Maxima and Minima from Pappus's summaries of Apollonius's lost works Plane Loci and On Determinate Section. Other mathematicians influenced by Pappus were Pacioli, da Vinci, Kepler, van Roomen, Pascal, Newton, Bernoulli, Euler, Gauss, Gergonne, Steiner and Poncelet.

title: Pappus of Alexandria


text:
Pappus (botany)

In Asteraceae, the pappus is the modified calyx, the part of an individual floret, that surrounds the base of the corolla tube in flower. It functions as a dispersal mechanism for the achenes that contain the seeds.

In Asteraceae, the pappus may be composed of bristles (sometimes feathery), awns, scales, or may be absent, and in some species, is too small to see without magnification. In genera such as Taraxacum or Eupatorium, feathery bristles of the pappus function as a "parachute" which enables the seed to be carried by the wind. In genera such as Bidens the pappus has hooks that function in mechanical dispersal.

The name derives from the Ancient Greek word pappos, Latin pappus, meaning "old man", so used for a plant (assumed to be an Erigeron species) having bristles and also for the woolly, hairy seed of certain plants.

The pappus of the dandelion plays a vital role in the wind-aided dispersal of its seeds. By creating a separated vortex ring in its wake, the flight of the pappus is stabilized and more lift and drag are produced. The pappus also has the property of being able to change its morphology in the presence of moisture in various ways that aid germination. The change of shape can adjust the rate of abscission, allowing increased or decreased germination depending on the favorability of conditions.

Biomimicry
The pappus of the dandelion has been studied and reproduced for a variety of applications. It has the ability to retain about 100 times its weight in water and pappus-inspired mechanisms have been proposed and fabricated which would allow highly efficient and specialized liquid transport. Another application of the pappus is in the use of minute airflow detection around walls which is important for measuring small fluctuations in airflow in neonatal incubators or to measure low velocity airflow in heating and ventilation systems.

title: Pappus (botany)


text:
Toys "R" Us

Toys "R" Us is an American toy, clothing, and baby product retailer owned by Tru Kids (doing business as Tru Kids Brands) and various others. The company was founded in 1948; its first store was built in April 1948, with its headquarters located in Parsippany-Troy Hills, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area.

While originally considered a category killer, the rise of mass merchants and online retailers cost Toys "R" Us its share of the toy market. The company was further hampered by a significant debt load, the result of a leveraged buyout organized by private equity firms, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, Bain Capital and real estate firm Vornado. The company filed for bankruptcy in 2017 and 2018, closing all of its stores in the US, UK, and Australia, with the last US stores closing in 2021. Operations in other international markets such as Asia and Africa were less affected, but chains in Canada, parts of Europe and Asia were eventually sold to third parties.

In August 2021, WHP Global announced that Toys "R" Us would be opening over 400 stores within Macy's starting in 2022. The flagship store is located in New Jersey at the American Dream shopping and entertainment complex. A second flagship store was opened inside the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, in November 2023.

Origins
In April 1948, Charles P. Lazarus founded a baby-furniture retailer, Children's Bargain Town, in Washington, D.C. during the postwar baby boom; the store's site at at 2461 18th St NW later became Madam's Organ Blues Bar. The store was acquired in 1966 by Interstate Department Stores, Inc.

The focus of the store changed in June 1957, and the first Toys "R" Us, dedicated exclusively to toys rather than furniture, was opened by Lazarus in Rockville, Maryland. Lazarus also designed and stylized the Toys "R" Us logo, which featured a backwards "R" to give the impression that a child wrote it. The store chain grew successfully and built a brand which was recognizable to many children born in the 1960s and 1970s, and it shared in the success of the birth of popular culture successes of action figures (Star Wars, G.I. Joe), dolls (Cabbage Patch Kids, Rainbow Brite), video games (Nintendo's Super Mario series and other co-developed names, original Sega Genesis stations and titles), and ultimately the co-branded FAO series, as the higher-end FAO Schwarz stores folded.

21st century
The board of directors installed John Eyler as CEO (formerly of FAO Schwarz) in May 2000. Eyler launched a plan to remodel and re-launch the chain. Blaming market pressures (primarily competition from Walmart and Target), Toys "R" Us considered splitting its toy and baby businesses. On March 17, 2005, a consortium of Bain Capital Partners LLC, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) and Vornado Realty Trust announced a $6.6 billion leveraged buyout of the company. Public stock closed for the last time on July 21, 2005, at $26.75—a 63% increase since when it first announced that the company was put up for sale. Toys "R" Us became a privately owned entity after the buyout. The company still files with the Securities and Exchange Commission, as required by its debt agreements.

In December 2013, eight days before Christmas, Toys "R" Us announced their stores in the United States would stay open for 87 hours straight. The flagship store of the retailer in Times Square was open for 24 hours a day from December 1 to 24, to cater to tourists. The announcement came after snow and rain caused a nearly 9 percent year-over-year decline in U.S. store foot traffic. This move also pushed the retailer to hire an additional 45,000 seasonal workers to cater to the demand of the extended store hours. Since the toy business is highly seasonal, more than 40% of the company's sales come in during the last quarter of the year.

In 2014, Toys "R" Us announced its "TRU Transformation" strategy, which concentrated on efforts to fix foundational issues affecting future growth, including making stores less cluttered, improving the customer experience, clearer pricing strategies and promotions, and tighter integration of its retail and online businesses. In 2015, the company launched the first of a new concept store called the "Toy Lab" in Freehold, New Jersey. The new layout provided more space for interactive exhibits and areas to play with new toys before purchase. This concept has since been expanded to stores in California, Delaware, Florida, New York and Pennsylvania.

Bankruptcy
On September 18, 2017, Toys "R" Us, Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, stating the move would give it flexibility to deal with $5 billion in long-term debt by borrowing $2 billion so it could pay suppliers for the upcoming holiday season and invest in improving current operations. The company has not had an annual profit since 2013. It reported a net loss of US$164 million in the quarter ending April 29, 2017. It lost US$126 million in the same period in the prior year. It had been paying US$400 million per year to service its debt, which prevented it from investing in improvements to in-store experiences to compete with Amazon and Walmart. Although the "retail apocalypse" was a factor, some analysts cited that the rapid increase in debt occurred under its private equity ownership. The company was reported to have a total workforce of 64,000 in September 2017.

It was initially stated that only the U.S. and Canadian operations would be affected, and that its brick-and-mortar stores and online sales sites would continue to operate. In January 2018, the company announced it would liquidate and close up to 182 of its stores in the U.S. as part of its restructuring, as well as convert up to 12 stores into co-branded Toys "R" Us and Babies "R" Us stores.

On February 28, 2018, it was reported that the company was exploring retaining its stronger Canadian operations, and the divestiture of some of its corporate-owned stores to franchises (leaving approximately 200 in a downsized chain). Toys "R" Us Inc. later announced that all U.S. locations would be closed.

On March 15, 2018, Toys "R" Us received approval from the bankruptcy court to liquidate its stores. There were buyers interested in acquiring groups of stores to use as showrooms, as well as others interested in acquiring the chain's brand and associated intellectual property. The company indicated in filings that the Canadian operations were profitable, and desired to preserve the operations of the 82-store chain through a sale. MGA Entertainment had made an offer to acquire the Canadian operations. MGA Entertainment CEO Isaac Larian attempted to raise $200 million through investments and public crowdfunding to purchase at least 400 of the U.S. locations.

Liquidation sales began on March 23, 2018. The chain's online store shut down on March 29, redirecting visitors to information on the liquidation and closures. On April 24, 2018, it was announced that the Canadian division would be sold to Fairfax Financial for approximately $234 million, and would continue to operate the locations under the Toys "R" Us name. Fairfax stated that it was potentially interested in purchasing U.S. locations as an extension of these Canadian operations.

On April 13, a bid was made by Isaac Larian to buy 356 Toys "R" Us stores for $890 million, but was rejected on April 17 and was fully scrapped on April 23.

On June 29, 2018, Toys "R" Us permanently closed all of its remaining U.S. locations, after 70 years of operations. In early July 2018, it was reported that unknown benefactors had bought all of the remaining stock of two locations in North Carolina so they could be donated to charity.

In November 2018, Fortune noted that the absence of the retailer during the 2018 holiday season represented a US$4 billion chunk of toy sales from which other retailers could benefit. Party supply retailer Party City capitalized on the closures by establishing temporary pop-up stores under the branding Toy City, some of which filled vacancies left by Toys "R" Us locations.

Restructuring, Tru Kids, Inc., WHP Global, second restructuring, and third restructuring
On October 1, 2018, the company issued a bankruptcy court filing which stated that it would no longer auction off its intellectual property, since its controlling lender planned to "[revive] the business behind the Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us brand names" with a focus on maintaining existing licensing agreements and establishing new retail opportunities. The company evaluated that selling its brand at auction "[was] not reasonably likely to yield a superior alternative."

At the Toy Industry Association's Fall Toy Preview, the company unveiled plans for a preliminary venture to be known as Geoffrey's Toy Box, a wholesale store-within-a-store concept that the company planned to deploy in time for the holiday shopping season. The company planned to revive the Toys "R" Us and Babies "R" Us brands in the future. In November 2018, it was announced that grocery market chain Kroger would add toy displays under the Geoffrey's Toy Box brand to some of its locations, to sell selections of Toys "R" Us private-label products. The brand operates under Geoffrey LLC, an intellectual property holding company within Toys "R" Us.

On January 20, 2019, the company emerged from bankruptcy as Tru Kids.

As of June 21, 2019, the company planned to open new stores in the US slated to be 10,000 square feet, roughly a third of the size of the big box brand that closed in 2018. On November 27, 2019, Toys "R" Us opened a retail store at Westfield Garden State Plaza in Paramus, New Jersey. On December 7, 2019, a second location was opened at The Galleria in Houston, Texas.

On October 8, 2019, the company relaunched the Toys "R" Us website, which would feature a focus on resources and videos highlighting popular toys. The site was established in partnership with Target, with users being redirected to Target.com to place their orders. In 2020, the agreement lapsed, and Amazon replaced Target as the site's fulfillment partner.

In 2021, as a result of financial losses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the only two U.S. stores once again closed down. The Houston location closed on January 15, 2021, and the Paramus location closed on January 26, 2021. The company stated that they made a strategic decision to pivot their store strategy, so they can look for new stores and platforms that will offer better traffic and that they continue to invest in channels where customers will want to experience their brand.

On March 15, 2021, it was announced that brand management company WHP Global acquired a controlling interest in Tru Kids, which is the parent company of the Toys R Us, Babies R Us and Geoffrey the Giraffe brands. Going forward WHP will be managing Tru Kids business, and help guiding its expansion. In North America WHP plans to open Toys R Us stores, again — ideally ahead of the holiday season and could come on various formats to include flagships, pop-ups, airport locations or mini stores inside other retailers' shops. WHP has not yet set a number of locations it plans to open in the United States. WHP is backed by a $350 million equity commitment from funds that are managed by Oaktree Capital Management. Financial terms of the deal have yet to be disclosed.

On August 19, 2021, WHP announced a new shift in branding by partnering with Macy's to sell toys on the retailer's website and open store-within-a-store locations at 400 department store locations.

On December 16, 2021, Toys "R" Us opened a two-story flagship store at a size of 20,000 square feet in the American Dream Meadowlands mall in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

On August 7, 2022, Toys "R" Us opened new locations in nine states: California, Georgia, New Jersey, Illinois, Nevada, Louisiana, New York, Maryland and Missouri. These stores are located inside Macy's stores and range from 1,000 to 10,000 square feet. The company plans to open a store in every Macy's location in the United States by October 15, 2022, just in time for the holiday season.

A second flagship store was opened inside the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, in November 2023.

On September 29, 2023, WHP announced their intention to open 24 new physical stores in the United States. These stores would be stand-alone locations and would begin to open in 2024. WHP also announced smaller stores that would be located in airports and cruise ships. The first of these smaller stores opened in November 2023, and is located in Dallas Fort Worth International Airport.

Flagship store
In July 2001, Toys "R" Us opened an international flagship store in New York's Times Square at a cost of $35 million. The 110,000 square-foot store included various themed zones such as Barbie (with a life-size dreamhouse), Jurassic Park (with an animatronic T-Rex), Lego, and the signature indoor Ferris wheel. The flagship store also served as a gaming destination, partnering with Microsoft to be the world's first location to launch the original Xbox console on November 15, 2001. In 2006, the store added a Dance Dance Revolution SuperNova arcade machine in its electronics department. The store later added a full amusement arcade, known as "R"Cade. In 2010, a Wonka shop opened on the second floor of the flagship store. The store drew thousands of tourists for over a decade before the company decided to cancel its lease on the space in December 2015.

In August 2017, Toys "R" Us announced a 35,000 square-foot temporary store near the original one that would be open around the Christmas shopping season.

Charitable giving
From 2004 until its demise in 2018, Toys "R" Us Inc., the former owner of Toys "R" Us, had partnered with the Toys for Tots foundation to serve as a donation site for anyone donating unwrapped toys or monetary gifts. However, there is no evidence that the current parent, Tru Kids Inc., has continued Toys "R" Us's relationship with Toys for Tots and the Toys for Tots Foundation has not included any recent information on their website concerning Toys "R" Us since the Toys "R" Us Inc. bankruptcy filing in 2018.

Product safety
Toys "R" Us had reportedly implemented high safety standards in 2007 and had vowed to take an aggressive approach towards holding vendors accountable for meeting those standards. Former chairman and CEO Gerald L. Storch, testifying before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government on toy safety in September 2007, said he supported new legislation strengthening toy-safety standards and outlined new initiatives the retailer had set forth to ensure that its customers receive timely information on recalls (including a new website).

In 2008, the company introduced stricter product safety standards exceeding federal requirements. Among the new standards was a requirement for materials inside toys to meet a standard of 250 parts per million of lead for all products manufactured exclusively for the retailer (compared with the federal standard of 600 ppm). Toys "R" Us also announced the requirement that baby products be produced without the addition of phthalates, which have raised concerns about infant safety. The company had adjusted its requirements to meet new federal standards enacted with the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008.

International operations
During its most recent entry into a new market in November 2011, when it opened its first licensed store in Poland (Blue City), Toys "R" Us, International operated more than 600 international stores and over 140 licensed stores in 35 countries and jurisdictions outside the United States. At its peak, Toys "R" Us, International had presence in 40 countries.

Many of these stores were corporate-owned, but stores in some countries were independently owned and operated with Toys "R" Us licensing its name to a local company.

Canada
In addition to its expansion in the United States, Toys "R" Us launched a worldwide presence in September 1984 when the company opened its first international wholly-owned store in Canada.

As of its sale to Fairfax Financial on June 1, 2018, the chain comprises 82 stores that continue to operate under the Toys "R" Us name following the sale. In 2021, Doug Putman, through his company Putman Investments, announced that he would buy Toys "R" Us Canada from Fairfax Financial.

Australia
The Australian wing of Toys "R" Us entered voluntary administration on May 22, 2018. On June 20, it was announced that all of their Australian stores would be closing as well. The closure of all 44 stores was concluded on August 5, 2018.

On June 5, 2019, Toys "R" Us returned in Australia when Tru Kids partnered with Hobby Warehouse to relaunch the website for the chain.

Africa and the Middle East
Since 1995 the Al-Futtaim Group has operated stores in Bahrain, Egypt, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. Stores in Israel are operated by the Fishman retail group, while stores in Saudi Arabia are owned by Tasweeq Company. Stores in South Africa, Namibia, and Zambia are also independently owned and operated.

Asia
Toys "R" Us has extensive presence in East Asian territories and Southeast Asia under the umbrella of Toys "R" Us Asia, a loose amalgamation of joint ventures with local companies. Toys "R" Us stores operate in Brunei, China (mainland, Hong Kong, and Macau), India, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand.

The Asian unit was originally established in 1985 as a partnership between Toys "R" Us and Fung Retailing, the retail subsidiary of the Fung Group (a Hong Kong-based conglomerate that also owns Li & Fung, a major retail distributor), with the parent company owning a majority 85% stake while Fung Retailing owns the remainder of the shares. Following Toys "R" Us' sale of the Asian unit in November 2018, Fung Retailing becomes the lead shareholder of the unit, holding an increased share of 21% while Toys "R" Us' remaining 79% is distributed among a consortium of Toys "R" Us' lenders.

In 1991, Toys "R" Us opened their first stores in Japan as a joint venture with List of countries with McDonald's restaurants. The joint venture was supposed to last until 2018, but Toys "R" Us withdrew in 2006; after suing for breach of contract, McDonald's Holdings was awarded an ¥1.38 billion ($13.35 million) settlement in 2008. After their joint venture ended, Toys "R" Us increased their ownership from approximately 48% to about 61%, and integrated it into their overall Asian operation in 2017.

Locations in South Korea and India are established through joint ventures formed in conjunction with Lotte Mart in 2007 and Lulu Hypermarket in 2017, respectively.

For RRHI to compete with SM Retail's Toy Kingdom, in 2006, RRHI obtained the license to operate Toys "R" Us stores in the Philippines, with the first one to open in Robinsons Galleria.

Buoyed by increasing demand for toys in the Asia Pacific region, the Asian and Japanese arms of Toys "R" Us are among the Toys "R" Us subsidiaries that have remained profitable into the 2000s and 2010s, registering "double-digit" revenue growth through the mid-to-late 2010s. In 2015, Toys "R" Us Asia posted a total turnover of US$1.85 billion; for the year ended January 2017, net sales from China and Southeast Asia totaled at approximately US$375 million while the Japanese arm would net sales of US$1.3 billion from Toys "R" Us, despite recently declining yearly profits, and US$20.3 million from Babies "R" Us.

While representatives of the Asian arm of Toys "R" Us have consistently cited that they operate as a separate legal entity from the parent company and are unaffected by events at the parent company, Toys "R" Us had engaged in talks since February 2018 to offload Toys "R" Us Asia's majority stake to a bidder for a proposed US$1 billion while outlets in Asia continue to operate unaffected. The planned bid was revised downwards to US$760 million in August and scheduled for September while Toys "R" Us sought a United States court order to strip Fung Retailing, a Hong Kong-based partner managing the majority of Toys "R" Us Asian operations, of its right-of-first-refusal purchase option and force Fung Retailing to release its share of the unit. This follows allegations by Toys "R" Us of Fung Retailing delaying the sale via court proceedings filed through the Hong Kong judiciary system to discourage rival bidders and acquire Toys "R" Us share at a lower price; the Eastern District of Virginia bankruptcy court would subsequently issue an order for Fung Retailing to drop its court order for the delay in a September 28, 2018, report.

On November 16, 2018, Toys "R" Us Asia announced that the parent company has formally sold the Asian unit to Fung Retailing and multiple Toys "R" Us lenders at a valuation of US$900 million (later revised to US$760 million ), with Fung Retailing receiving an increase in shares of the unit to become the lead shareholder of Toys "R" Us Asia and the unit securing the licensing rights to retain the Toys "R" Us namebrand.

Turkey
Toys "R" Us entered Turkey in 1996 by licensing its brand to Turkish firm Uluslararası Çocuk Çarşıları A.S. In 2008, the firm terminated Toys "R" Us' licensing agreement and rebranded the 35 stores as Toyiki. However, under the new brand, the company struggled and had entered bankruptcy various times. In July 2010, Toyiki shut down their 32 remaining stores in exchange for debts.

Poland
Toys "R" Us entered the Polish market in October 2011, with their first store opening in Blue City, Warsaw. In October 2014, they began online operations.

The Polish operations remained unaffected during the bankruptcy, and by 2017 16 stores were operating. Eventually, the Polish chain began to close stores to cover the cost of debts and losses affected from the COVID-19 pandemic, closing seven of them in 2021. In February 2022, the store's website was shuttered and the remaining stores were closed throughout the year, and currently, only the Łódź store remains in operation.

United Kingdom
The first European Toys "R" Us stores were located in the United Kingdom, with the first store opening in 1985. At its peak, the chain had over 105 stores in the country. They were operated by Toys "R" Us Limited.

On December 4, 2017, the company reported that it would be liquidating and closing at least 26 stores in the United Kingdom as part of an insolvency restructuring known as a company voluntary arrangement. After amassing £15 million in unpaid taxes, Toys "R" Us Limited entered administration on February 28, 2018, after failing to find a buyer. On March 2, 2018, it was announced that all UK stores would begin a liquidation sale, and on March 14, 2018, it was announced that all UK stores were expected to close within six weeks. On April 24, 2018, Toys "R" Us stopped trading in the United Kingdom after 33 years of service. All stores were closed by April 24, 2018.

On 28 October 2021, Toys "R" Us announced plans to reopen its UK arm, initially through online purchasing from its Australian arm, then with physical branches opening from 2022 onwards. The online store reopened the following year, and this was followed up with a deal with WH Smith to open up Toys "R" Us branded concessions inside nine WH Smith stores. Following the success of the pilot stores, WHP Global extended it's contract in April 2024, with the retailer opening up 30 more concessions in the Summer.

DACH countries
Stores in Germany, Austria and Switzerland were operated by Toys "R" Us AG.

In April 2018, it was announced that Smyths would acquire Toys "R" Us AG, although they were still pending by July. The deal was completed in January 2019, and all stores were rebranded as Smyths shortly afterward.

France
In July 2018, Toys "R" Us France went into receivership in order to look for a buyer. The franchise including 44 of the stores was purchased by French company Jellej Jouets in October 2018. In April 2019, they sold the stores over to Luderix International, the owners of rival chain PicWic. The merger was soon completed, and by July 2019 all Toys "R" Us and PicWic stores were rebranded as PicWicToys.

Due to profit losses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the chain closed several of their stores in 2020, and soon went into receivership in May 2022. In July 2022, Smyths, who already owned the ex-Toys "R" Us stores in German-speaking areas, purchased PicWicToys.

Iberia
In August 2018, Toys "R" Us Iberia, consisting of stores in Spain and Portugal, was sold to Green Swan. In April 2022, Toys "R" Us Iberia filed for bankruptcy. In July 2022, Italian business Prenatal Retail Group purchased Toys "R" Us Iberia under a long-term agreement with the brand owners WHP Global, and continue operating the stores and website under the brand.

Scandinavia
In Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden, Toys "R" Us stores were independently operated by Top-Toy under license. Because of this, these respective stores were not affected by the bankruptcy of Toys "R" Us' parent company. However, Top Toy would file for bankruptcy itself on December 30, 2018, due to poor holiday sales, with all Toys "R" Us stores closing by January 10, 2019.

Netherlands
In the Netherlands, 17 stores were operated under the brand by third-party licensee Speelhoorn. In March 2009, the contract between the two companies was not renewed, with Speelhoorn re-branding all the stores as Toys XL, which would be later purchased by rival business Intertoys in 2017. They originally attempted to sell the stores in 1997 to Blokker but were denied permission due to competition costs.

Stores
Until their liquidation and closing in 2018, the company owned 739 stores in the United States, in addition to more than 750 international stores and more than 245 licensed stores in 37 countries and jurisdictions.

Imaginarium
Imaginarium was a private label brand of Toys "R" Us for most of their toys that was acquired in 1999. Originally after the acquisition by Toys "R" Us in 1999, it also operated stores until 2004.

Kids "R" Us
Kids "R" Us was a children's discount clothing retailer. Their first stores opened in February 1983 in Paramus, New Jersey, and Brooklyn, New York. The chain folded in January 2004 after the retailer suffered deteriorating same-store sales and to focus more on the Toys "R" Us brand. While the standalone stores closed in 2003, the stores combined with Toys "R" Us would stay until at least 2007 when they all closed.

Babies "R" Us
The first Babies "R" Us store opened in April 1996 in Westbury, New York. In February 1997, Toys "R" Us acquired Duncan-based Baby Superstore, Inc., a 78-store chain, for $376 million. The locations were converted into Babies "R" Us. The store operates as a specialty baby products retailer and grew to about 260 stores in the United States. The stores offer an assortment of products for newborns, infants, and toddlers. The company also maintains a registry and offers pre- and post-natal classes and events.

In 2011, Toys "R" Us began to open co-branded locations with Babies "R" Us departments at 21 new locations and 23 remodeled locations.

Babies "R" Us reopened in July 2023 with a brand-new flagship location inside the American Dream mall in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

FAO Schwarz
In May 2006, Toys "R" Us, Inc., acquired toy retailer FAO Schwarz including the retailer's flagship store on Fifth Avenue in New York City, as well as its e-commerce site, FAO.com. The company closed the FAO Schwarz flagship store in New York on July 15, 2015, citing rising rental costs, but continued to carry FAO Schwarz-branded toys in its Toys "R" Us and Babies "R" Us stores until 2017.

Toys "R" Us Express
For the 2009 holiday-shopping season, Toys "R" Us tried a smaller-store concept to attract customers and 90 "Holiday Express" stores across the United States and Canada were opened. The Holiday Express stores are smaller than regular Toys "R" Us stores, often in malls, and offer a more limited selection of merchandise than would be available at a stand-alone Toys "R" Us store. Most (if not all) of these 90 stores were opened in shopping-center and mall spaces that had been vacated by store chains closing their doors during the recession (including KB Toys, several of which were taken over by Toys "R" Us). Toys "R" Us's plan was to keep the Holiday Express stores open until early January 2010 and close them shortly thereafter, but the success of so many prompted the company to reconsider and several were kept open. These stores are known as "Toys "R" Us Express". Beginning in May 2010, Toys "R" Us opened a total of 600 Express stores. Four more were converted to Toys "R" Us outlet stores. As with the larger basic Toys "R" Us stores, these locations also closed along with the outlet stores in the United States during summer 2018.

Web operations
Toys "R" Us began selling toys online with the launch of Toysrus.com in 1998. Following a disastrous Christmas 1999 trading period during which the company failed to deliver gifts on time, Toys "R" Us entered into a ten-year contract with online retailer Amazon in 2000 to be the exclusive supplier of toys on the website. Amazon eventually reneged on the terms of the contract by allowing third-party retailers to use its marketplace to sell toys, citing Toys "R" Us's failure to carry a sufficiently large range of goods, including the most popular lines. In 2006, Toys "R" Us successfully sued Amazon; the company was awarded $51 million in damages in 2009, just over half of the $93 million initially claimed.

It placed at No. 29 in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide for 2012. Toysrus.com was one of the most visited sites in the specialty toy and baby products retail category with an assortment of toys. In addition, Babiesrus.com offered a wide selection of baby products and supplies and access to the company's baby registry.

Looking to expand its web portfolio, in February 2009, the company acquired online toy seller eToys.com from Parent Co., which filed for bankruptcy protection in December 2008. Financial terms were not disclosed. Around the same time, it was reported that Toys "R" Us, Inc. bought Toys.com for an estimated $5.1 million. Today, the company operates Toys.com to list unadvertised and exclusive deals available on its portfolio of e-commerce sites.

In 2010, Toys "R" Us, Inc. reported that its Internet sales grew 29.9% year-over-year to $782 million from $602 million, and in April 2011, the company announced plans to open a dedicated e-commerce fulfillment center in McCarran, Nevada. The company later reported online sales of $1 billion for 2011 and $1.1 billion for 2012.

Under Tru Kids, the Toys "R" Us website was revived in 2019 in partnership with Target, with online orders being redirected to Target.com for fulfillment. In 2020, the site switched to Amazon as its fulfillment partner. This lasted until 2021, when fulfillment was handed over to Macys.com as part of their deal with Toys "R" Us.

Mascot
Formerly known as "Dr. G. Raffe" in 1950s print advertisements for Children's Bargaintown, Geoffrey the Giraffe evolved in name and appearance over the next decade to become the official mascot of the renamed Toys "R" Us. He also made his first TV commercial appearance on television in 1973. Serving as a "spokesanimal" for the brand, Geoffrey's design went through several phases for more than 50 years before the star-spotted iteration was finalized in November 2007.

In 2017, the company sponsored the live camera broadcast for April the Giraffe, which helped support giraffe conservation and awareness. The sponsored camera of pregnant April the giraffe went viral with millions of views on YouTube and across social media platforms.

title: Toys "R" Us


text:
John Stevens (singer)

John Basset Stevens IV (born July 28, 1987) is an American classic pop singer and was the sixth-place finalist on the third season of the television series American Idol.

Biography
Stevens was born in Buffalo, New York and his permanent residence is in nearby East Amherst. He attended Williamsville East High School and sang in a select jazz group. He auditioned for American Idol in New York City, singing "That's Amore" as an impression of Dean Martin. When the judges asked him to sing in his normal voice, he performed "The Way You Look Tonight" and was sent through to the next round.

Stevens was a member of the fourth group of semifinalists. He finished first in the voting among his group of eight semifinalists, earning 28% of the vote. At 16, he was the youngest contestant ever to make the finals on American Idol.

Stevens' favorite singer is Frank Sinatra, to whom his vocal style has been compared. He has also earned the nickname "Teen Martin" because of his Dean Martin impersonation and ability to croon at such a young age. Stevens' style was not typical Idol fare, causing him to struggle with unfamiliar genres during the competition.

For "Country Week," Stevens sang "King of the Road." During "Elton John Week," he performed "Crocodile Rock."

The last week in April 2004 was "Latin Week," a tribute to the music of Gloria Estefan. Stevens performed "Music of My Heart," and Simon Cowell credited Stevens with "taking every bullet thrown at you like a man." The next day, Stevens was voted off the show, coming in sixth place despite receiving over four million votes.

Stevens was signed to Maverick Records and released his debut album Red on June 28, 2005. It was produced by Steve Tyrell and executive produced by David Foster. It features covers of The Beatles' "Here, There and Everywhere" and Maroon 5's "This Love," both arranged and performed in a relaxed jazz/lounge style. Its first week sales put it into the top 10 of the Billboard jazz charts. It sold 18,000 copies as of March 2006. He and Maverick Records have since parted ways.

Stevens graduated from the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts in May 2009 and released a Christmas album, "Home for Christmas," on November 1, 2009.

Stevens currently sings with the Boston-based Beantown Swing Orchestra, focusing on the classic big band arrangements that were originally performed by Frank Sinatra and Bobby Darin.

Stevens sang "My Way" at the funeral of former Boston Mayor Thomas Menino on November 3, 2014.

title: John Stevens (singer)