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Charles de Gontaut, 1st Duke of Biron

Charles de Gontaut, 1st Duke of Biron (c. 1562–31 July 1602) was a French noble, military commander, Admiral, Marshal and governor during the final days of the French Wars of Religion. The son of Marshal Armand de Gontaut, baron de Biron who had served the crown militarily throughout the religious wars, Biron made his entry into French politics in the late 1580s. Initially a follower of the chief royal favourite Épernon by 1589 he was a candidate to become Admiral of France. In August 1589 Henri III was assassinated, and Biron and his father transferred their loyalties to the Protestant Henri IV putting them at war with the Catholic ligue. He fought at the royalist victories of Arques and Ivry in late 1589 and early 1590, during which he developed a reputation as an exceptional commander. In 1592 he became Admiral of France, a post he would hold for two years, before being compelled to trade it for the title of Marshal so that it could be offered to a rebel. In 1593 Biron invaded Bourgogne, and succeeded in capturing many villages, but was unable to secure any major cities. In 1595 he would again invade Bourgogne with considerably more success, Beaune, Auxonne, Autun and finally Dijon falling to him in late May of that year. During the campaign, Henri would grant him the governate of Bourgogne. A Spanish army under the Constable of Castilla invaded in response and joined forces with the duke of Mayenne lieutenant-general of the ligue. Having called on Henri for support, Biron and his king would best the Constable and duke against the odds at Fontaine-Française.

This largely marked the end of the domestic civil war, as the conflict transformed into an international one against España. In 1597 Biron led the successful siege of Amiens, the city having recently been taken by surprise by the Spanish. He signed the Treaty of Vervins with the Spanish the following year. He was then tasked with making war on the duke of Savoie which he would conduct for the next few years, seeing continued success. Around this time, he began to be courted by the Savoyard duke, who saw in his tense relations with Henri the potential for a useful defection. According to the testimony of La Fin he entered a formal treaty to betray Henri in 1600, by whose terms he would be established as a largely independent ruler of Bourgogne under the overall authority of the Spanish, in return for his betrayal of Henri. No such treaty has however ever been found. In January 1601 France made peace with Savoie in the Treaty of Lyon, by the terms of which France traded their former possession of Saluzzo for a collection of other territories. Biron was established as governor of these, but a fortress he had to fight particularly bitterly for was granted to a Protestant governor, embittering him. Shortly thereafter, Biron confessed to Henri that in the heat of the moment after this he had entertained treasonous thoughts, he was forgiven for this by Henri who dispatched him on a diplomatic mission. In March 1602 La Fin came to Henri, claiming to have evidence that Biron's treason ran far deeper, alleging a treaty had been formed, and that Biron was to have put Henri in line of enemy fire during the prior campaign. Henri, believed these accusations, and arranged for Biron to come to court in June. Biron was reluctant but was eventually coaxed into appearing. Repeatedly urged to confess to treason, Biron maintained his innocence. He would be convicted by the Paris Parlement on 27 July, and despite the protests of much of the upper nobility he would be executed at the Bastille on 31 July 1602.

Early life and family
Charles de Gontaut was born in 1562, the eldest son of the Catholic Armand de Gontaut, the baron de Biron and Protestant Jeanne, dame d'Ornezan. His father served the king throughout the French Wars of Religion seeing service at the siege of La Rochelle in 1573 and continuing his service through the following decades as a Marshal.

His father was killed in July 1592 while conducting the siege of Épernay.

Reign of Henri III
In 1586 Biron was involved in a major duel with La Vauguyon, a great noble of Limousin over the prospect of being able to marry Anne de Caumont. Several men were killed in the duel.

At court he became a follower of the chief royal favourite the duke of Épernon, joining his Gascon entourage. To reward those in his orbit, Épernon provided an income of 200 écus.

In early 1589, La Valette was forced to yield the office of Admiral. His initial choice to succeed him was Biron, however it would be granted instead first to the royal favourite Beauvais-Nangis. In 1592 it was transferred from him to Biron in line with La Valette's original vision.

Loyalist
Upon the assassination of Henri III in August 1589, Biron and his father quickly transferred their loyalties to his Protestant heir, Navarre, who now styled himself Henri IV. Former loyalists to Henri III such as the Biron, Longueville and Schomberg among others formed the second generation of courtiers Henri would rely upon.

Ivry
Biron fought with the royal army against the lieutenant-general of the Catholic ligue, Mayenne at the victory of Arques in September 1589. Following from this victory, Henri advanced towards the capital, near which he would face Mayenne again at Ivry in March 1590. During the battle Biron commanded a cavalry formation alongside the royal bastard the count of Auvergne. The two would be opposite the count of Egmont and a contingent of German mercenaries. Egmont initially had success against the royalists, destroying Auvergne's formations, however Biron then charged in at the head of his troops first halting and then reversing Egmonts attack, his formations being scattered with Egmont himeslf left dead on the field. With victory against Egmont, Biron would become involved in an inconclusive struggle with the chevalier d'Aumale before reinforcements under his father Marshal Biron swung the tide. The battle would be a decisive royalist victory. He fought at the abortive siege of Paris which followed the victory at Ivry. In these combats he acquired considerable reputation for his military skill.

In early 1593, Biron was in a place of some disenchantment with Henri, and was for a brief time drawn towards the 'third party' at the nascent court, that sought to promote Cardinal Bourbon as an alternate candidate to the throne. In response to these rumblings, Henri accelerated his plans to convert to Catholicism.

First campaign into Bourgogne
Biron led a campaign for Henri into Bourgogne in late 1593, with considerable success. After 20 villages had fallen to him the authorities of Dijon wrote in panic to Mayenne urging him to come and protect the city from Biron, ultimately he would not capture any major cities at this time.

Marshal Biron
Having occupied the post of Admiral for a brief time, Biron was obliged to relinquish it to Villars-Brancas in 1594. This was due to the fact that Villars-Brancas was in command of Rouen, and the Admiralty was one of his several demands for defection. In exchange for yielding the post, he was established as a Marshal of France by Henri, just as his father had been, he was further granted a monetary compensation of 420,000 livres. The Marshal baton had recently been granted to several ligueur defectors, La Châtre, Brissac and Boisdauphin.

Second invasion of Bourgogne
By the advent of 1595, the war against the ligue was entering its final stages. Biron was tasked in January with invading Bourgogne, to crush the duke of Mayenne. He swept through the province, with Beaune, Nuits, Auxonne and Autun falling to him in quick succession. Dijon, capital of Bourgogne was defended by Jean de Saulx. Though the post of governor was currently held by Mayenne, Henri considered him to have forfeited his right to the office by his continued resistance to him. Therefore on 20 April 1595 Henri conferred the governate of Bourgogne on Biron. This was a heavy blow to the Lorraine family, with the governate they had held since 1543 lost from the family permanently due to Mayenne's intransigence. It proved a strategic choice for Henri, as Mayenne had long built patronage networks in Bourgogne that he could rely on to support him.

For a time Henri may have considered establishing a system of creating a system of hereditary fiefs in France, establishing the young duke of Guise as count of Provence, and Biron as count of Périgord. However this would not come to pass.

In late May Biron's troops surrounded Dijon and worked on breaching the walls. Concurrent to the military efforts against the city, Biron conducted negotiations with the local elites to secure the cities surrender. As a result of these negotiations Dijon could not celebrate Corpus Christi day. The terms that he was up to with the city were continually read aloud to a public assembly.

By June 1595, Dijon had made its submission to Henri. Henri was sensitive to the urban notables of the city, and therefore was cautious in the impositions he made of the city. For the first year under royalist control half of the échevins were to be selected from a shortlist drawn up by Henri as opposed to their usual appointment by the mayor. He further chose the various captains of the city militia. Biron was charged with explaining the latter innovation to the grandees of Dijon. He stressed that it was his desire to expand the privileges that the city enjoyed. It was a 'one time imposition', and the king would soon be in Dijon for them to discuss it with. Henri entered Dijon on 4 June, and went out of his way to demonstrate the veracity of his conversion to Catholicism. After his victory at Fontaine-Française, he arranged a special procession for the consecrated host on 1 July to replace the festivities that Biron had disrupted.

Fontaine-Française
Biron and Henri did not have time to rest on their laurels in Dijon for long however. An army under the Constable of Castilla linked up with Mayenne, and moved to meet the royalists. Biron, fearful that this army was about to advance on Dijon, called on Henri to bring up reinforcements. Having linked with Biron, the two probed at the advancing enemy, which for the moment far outnumbered them, stumbling into battle at Fontaine-Française on 5 June. Despite being heavily outnumbered, Henri refused to countenance a retreat, and he and Biron would lead two successful defences against assaults from the enemy before starting a counterattack. Mayenne urged the Constable to engage his entire army, but he was cautious, suspecting Henri would not dare attack unless he had far greater forces in the area. With this victory Mayenne could no longer maintain his presence in Bourgogne. Henri was ecstatic at the victory, and was generous in his praise towards Biron and other nobleman in his ranks. Soon thereafter Mayenne came to terms with Henri.

Henri was true to the word he had given the people of Dijon, and would maintain distance from the elections of the city in the coming years. The Parlement of Dijon was less interested in maintaining distance, and after the victory of the former ligueur Bernard Coussin in 1598 with 72% of the vote the Parlement sought to change the electoral process. Henceforth the mayor was to be selected by lot from the top three candidates. Coussin protested and appealed to Biron to intervene against this. Biron and the city council succeeded in overruling the Parlement, and it was declared that elections would occur 'in the traditional format... without any changes, alterations or innovations of any kind'.

Amiens
With the ligue defeated, Henri's attention turned to their chief backer, España. Biron led preparations in September 1596 for a campaign into the Spanish Netherlands. To this end military supplies and food were stocked up, however Amiens was conscious that a garrison would infringe upon its traditional liberties and refused the royal presence. The town also neglected to maintain a proper guard or keep its walls in good shape. Therefore, España was able to pre-empt the offensive with a coup of their own, seizing Amiens by surprise on 11 March 1597 without firing a shot. The news of the fall of Amiens fell on the capital like a bombshell.

Biron and Mayenne led the effort that recaptured the city for the French crown. Biron had begun the siege early in April, with an insigificant force of 3000 men, which was outnumbered 2:1 by the Spanish garrison and lacked artillery. The king arrived with reinforcements in June. In one particularly dire episode in July, the Spanish attempted to seize a French artillery position, Biron and the young duke of Guise attempted to rebuff them, in the combat that followed the hair was burned off the right side of Biron's head. During the contact of the siege of Amiens, Biron was elevated to the authority of lieutenant of the French army.

The following year peace would be established with España in the Peace of Vervins, and Biron led the embassy that travelled to Bruxelles to swear to uphold the French end of the peace. As early as 1596, Biron and others in the French court had been approached by Spanish agents, looking for potential malcontents in the French court that might be turned against the crown. These attempts to coax men from his court were revealed to Henri.

Savoie campaign
After the victory against España, Biron led several campaigns against the duke of Savoie. By this time Biron was able to boast that he had sustained '32 wounds' in the service of Henri. In 1598 his barony of Biron was erected into a duché-pairie. Despite the great favour being shown to him, relations between Biron and Henri were increasingly tense. Biron's military service led to a degree of arrogance, with him boasting that if not for his service, the only crown Henri would wear would be one of thorns. Henri for his part sneered at the social pretensions of the family and mocked Biron's father who had died in service to him. Henri's lack of time for the advice of many of the grandees who had enabled his rise to power led to Biron remarking 'courage was of no value' in this new order. Henri for his part admitted the great utility of Biron on the battlefield, but opined that he was not to be entrusted with anything more serious than this. Therefore Biron found himself open to proposals raised with him by the duke of Savoie upon a visit to Paris in 1598 for a marriage with the dukes daughter. Henri ridiculed the prospect, Biron was not of a good enough birth or economic standing for such a match.

He would continue to campaign against the duke in 1600. With Henri attempting to reach a peace with the duke in February 1600 in the Treaty of Paris. The duke however refused, securing instead a several month truce in which he hoped Biron would strike at Henri, however no blow against the king came. Henri was annoyed at the continued delays and determined to best the duke before España began to look to intervene on their behalf. Biron led a force into the duke's territory in mid 1600, and in August besieged the key town of Bourg-en-Bresse, to the Savoyard dukes disappointment, he was not granted command of the entire army. The duke still hoped that Biron would defect and turn his army on Henri. Still excelling at tactics Biron seized the town by surprise on 13 August, however the citadel would hold out against him for a while longer. During the campaign, Biron saved the king from an arquebus shot during the siege of Sainte-Catherine. Soon thereafter, peace was established in the Treaty of Lyon, signed 17 January 1601 which traded the French possession of Saluzzo for Bresse, Bugey, Pays de Gex and Valromey. The government of these new territories was added onto Biron's governate as a reward for his military performance in the war, however the formidable fortress of Bourg-en-Bresse was granted to a Protestant, the sieur de Bouaïsse, arousing Biron's fury. Biron recognised this as a personal slight, given his considerable role in securing the fortress.

Malcontent
This personal discontent was combined with a more general disquiet among the great nobles of Henri's autocratic centralising tendencies which were beginning to express themselves. Resultingly his negotiations with the duke of Savoie became more serious and conspiratorial, with talks conducted through Jacques de La Fin.

He would however get cold feet in his plotting, and during January 1601 he confessed during an interview to the king to having heard these propositions to Henri, and was verbally pardoned by the king in return. Biron outlined that the king's refusal to grant him Bourg-en-Bresse had led to him holding treasonable thoughts, and that he had desired to secure the hand of the duke of Savoie's third daughter in marriage. Henri was partially reassured by this confession, but still held doubts.

La Fin
La Fin would later allege that in the wake of this confession, Biron returned straight to plotting, receiving an offer that exchanged the hand of the duke's daughter, and Bourgogne as his personal fiefdom in return for paying homage to España and declaring war on Henri. La Fin claimed that he was subsequently dispatched by Biron to sign a treaty with the duke to this effect.

In September 1601, Henri and Biron would together visit Calais, in the hopes of watching the Spanish Siege of Ostend. Shortly thereafter The king would entrust him with a diplomatic mission to England that year as an indication that he harboured Biron no ill will. He travelled to the country alongside Auvergne, and was warmly received. There would however be an air of menace to his visit, with Elizabeth emphasising for him the punishments that befell rebels, even showing him the severed head of the earl of Essex. She told Biron that if she ruled in France there would be many such heads in Paris.

In 1602 he conducted a diplomatic mission to the Confederaziun svizra.

In March of that year, La Fin told the king that Biron had plotted to have him killed during the final campaign against Savoie and had provided secret military information to the Savoyards. According to La Fin, Biron was to lead Henri to an unsafe place, then allow the Savoyard forces to kill him. La Fin alleged that Biron's treasonable dealings had continued after he had been granted a pardon in January 1601. La Fin's defection from Biron in March was motivated by his eclipse in the duke's favour by the baron de Lux. As a reward for his defection, his debts were relieved by the king.

Henri ordered La Fin not to include other lords that he wished to implicate in his depositions, focusing the treason trial on the person of Biron. La Fin had alleged that Auvergne, Bouillon, Constable Montmorency and Épernon were aware of his dealings. Henri then travelled to Périgord to crush some tax rebellions, during which he began to wonder if these too were the work of Biron. Some historians have leant credence to this notion. At this time Henri quizzed Bouillon who was with him on campaign on the subject of treason, but Bouillon proved evasive, and departed from the campaign shortly thereafter.

Confrontation
In May Henri established himself at Poitiers, ultimately deciding to abolish the tax that had caused the protest, fearing that it might be a channel of support to Biron in any future showdown. Henri was keen to lull Biron into a sense of security, and wrote to him to warn him of Spanish movements across the border from his governate. Meanwhile he dispatched Pierre Jeannin to discuss with Biron various 'false' accusations against him, and upon his return, he wrote to Biron that the matter was closed and to come to court. To further entice Biron he wrote to the baron de Lux, an intimate of Biron that he harboured no suspicions concerning Biron. With some reservations, Biron arrived at court in Fontainbleau on 12 June.

Henri put on a welcome face publicly after Biron arrived, playing Jeu de Paume with the Marshal, showing him his new statue and plans for Fontainbleau. Upon showing Biron the statue, Henri asked Biron, what would the king of España say if he could see me like this, Biron responded that the king would not be afraid of him which Henri found insulting. After playing jeu de paume with Henri, Épernon and Soissons, he would be left with Soissons in the evening, who attempted to coax him into an admission, but Biron was adamant. Behind closed doors Henri took a different tack with Biron, accusing him of treason, and promising that he would be pardoned if he confessed. Historians are not in agreement as to whether this was a genuine offer. Having been summoned to meet with the king early the next morning in the garden of Tibre, Biron was kept waiting by the king who after his arrival again pressed Biron to confess. Getting nowhere the two parted ways. Henri summoning him again that night at midnight to ask him whether he has reconsidered his position. Biron again denied the accusations. Henri dismissed him 'Farewell baron de Biron, you know what I told you', Biron had been elevated from baron to duke several years previous. Soon thereafter he would be arrested by the marquis de Vitry captain of Henri's guard. Auvergne was also arrested at this time.

Treason
The two men were taken under heavy guard to Paris. Their interrogations were led by the chancellor of France, Bellièvre. Henri for his part was conscious that Birons trial would be a sensitive matter for the high nobility, and assembled many grandees, so he could read the documentary evidence La Fin had prepared to them. This proved a failure however, the high nobility largely disgusted by Birons treatment, refusing to take up their roles in the Parlement to oversee the case. Biron continued to deny the accusations levelled at him and defended himself in front of the Parlement of Paris after his trial began on 17 June. He demonstrated that many of La Fin's accusations were impossible. La Fin was unable to produce the treaty he had allegedly signed with the duke of Savoie. He stressed the service he and his father had rendered to the king and his Catholicism. Henri scoffed at the latter, rumours of Biron's atheistic religious leanings having swirled for years.

He was condemned on the charge of treason by the Paris Parlement on 27 July, with a sentence of death. Biron was shocked that this was not commuted by Henri. He noted that the king had taken to his side men like Mayenne who had spent years fighting against him, and yet would not have mercy on a man who had served him for years. Birons friends and family plead for his life, arguing that his death would be a great dishonour for them, Henri retorted that the dishonour was only that of the 'criminal'.

Execution
On 31 July 1602 he was executed at the Bastille. The only privilege Henri granted him was that the execution took place in the courtyard of the Bastille as opposed to a public execution at the Place de Grève. Henri wrote to Lesdiguières on the day of the execution, insisting that Biron was a prideful and atheistic man. He argued that Biron was ignorant of the Catholic creed and religion. In defiance of Henri, many senior aristocrats would visit his final resting place at the church of Saint-Paul in the coming years.

According to Pierre de L'Estoile, a Parisian diarist in years previous Biron had been warned that he would be killed be a strike from behind delivered by a man from Dijon. Biron dismissed the warning, however his executioner was allegedly from the city.

Henri wrote that with the execution of Biron he wished to set an example to the nobility, however there would be many more plots against Henri in the coming years. His treatment contrasts with that handed out to other noble conspirators against the crown. Bouillon who had been responsible for disorders in the centre of the kingdom, was treated relatively leniently in comparison. It has therefore been concluded by some historians that an element of personal score settling was involved in his trial.

Legacy
His seigneuries would be restored to the Gontaut family after his death, however that of Biron would no longer be a duché-pairie. Henri wrote to Biron's brother in law La Force to assure him the king maintained his affections for the other members of the family, La Force was however disgusted at the execution of Biron.

Biron had an extensive clientèle network in the Quercy and Périgord, and it was partly to redirect the opposition of clientèle systems such as his into the royalist orbit that the duke of Sully, chief minister to Henri, established hereditary venal office through the Paulette. This effort would be largely in vain, and for a long time there were bitter feelings in Périgord concerning Biron's execution. Meanwhile in Bourgogne, the various commanders under Biron's authority acquiesced to his execution with relatively little trouble.

In 1604, Auvergne was again suspected of involvement in conspiracy against the crown. Henri tried to lure him to court, however Auvergne well aware of what had befallen Biron after such an invitation refused. He would however be arrested in November of that year, and lodged in Biron's former cell at the Bastille. There would be no death penalty for him however. In 1606, Biron's brother killed La Fin. He would not be prosecuted for the act.

In literature and pop culture
He was the inspiration behind the character Berowne in William Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost, which was written during his lifetime.

title: Charles de Gontaut, 1st Duke of Biron


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Lisa Nowak

Lisa Marie Nowak (née Caputo; born May 10, 1963) is an American aeronautical engineer and former NASA astronaut and United States Navy officer. Nowak served as naval flight officer and test pilot in the Navy, and was selected by NASA for NASA Astronaut Group 16 in 1996, qualifying as a mission specialist in robotics. She flew in space aboard during the STS-121 mission in July 2006, when she was responsible for operating the robotic arms of the shuttle and the International Space Station. In 2007, Nowak was involved in a highly publicized incident of criminal misconduct for which she eventually pled guilty to felony burglary and misdemeanor battery charges, resulting in her demotion from captain to commander, and termination by NASA and the Navy.

Born in Washington, D.C., Nowak graduated from the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, in 1985. She was assigned to VAQ-34 at Naval Air Station Point Mugu, California, where she flew the EA-7L Corsair and ERA-3B Skywarrior. She earned a Master of Science degree in aeronautical engineering and a degree in aeronautical and astronautical engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California. In 1993 she was selected to attend the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland. After graduation, she remained at Patuxent River, flying in the F/A-18 Hornet and EA-6B Prowler. During her Navy career she logged over 1,500 hours in more than 30 aircraft and was awarded the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Navy Commendation Medal and the Navy Achievement Medal.

In February 2007, Nowak was arrested in Orlando, Florida, after she accosted and pepper-sprayed Colleen Shipman, a U.S. Air Force captain romantically involved with astronaut William Oefelein, who had been in a relationship with Nowak. She was released on bail and initially pleaded not guilty to the charges, which included attempted kidnapping, burglary with assault, and battery. Subsequently, her assignment as an astronaut was terminated by NASA. In 2009, Nowak agreed to a plea deal with prosecutors and pleaded guilty to charges of felony burglary of a car and misdemeanor battery. She remained a Navy captain until the following year when a Naval Board of Inquiry voted unanimously to reduce her in rank to commander and to dismiss her from the Navy under other than honorable conditions after 25 years of service. it was reported that she was working in the private sector in Texas.

Early life and education
Lisa Marie Caputo was born in Washington, D.C., on May 10, 1963, to Alfredo F. Caputo, a computer consultant, and Jane L. Caputo, a biological specialist. Caputo and her two younger sisters, Andrea and Marisa, grew up in Rockville, Maryland. In 1969, she watched the Apollo 11 Moon mission and became interested in the space program. While growing up, she followed the Space Shuttle program, particularly the introduction of female astronauts in 1978, and paid frequent visits to the National Air and Space Museum.

Caputo was educated at Luxmanor Elementary School, Tilden Middle School, and Charles W. Woodward High School in North Bethesda, Maryland. In the January of her junior year of high school, she told her mother that she was going to become an astronaut. She was a Girl Scout, and a member of the Société Honoraire de Français, which required students to maintain an A average in French and a B average in all other subjects. She competed on the math team and served on her class student council. She played field hockey and competed in track and field athletics. In 1981 she was named Student Athlete of the Year, a school award granted to the student who excelled most in both sports and academics, and graduated as co-valedictorian. In her final year of high school, Caputo was accepted by Brown University, a private Ivy League university in Providence, Rhode Island, and by the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. Her parents thought Brown was the best choice, but Caputo felt that she had more chance of achieving her goal of becoming an astronaut by going to the Naval Academy.

Women were first admitted to Annapolis in 1976, and by the time Caputo entered as a plebe in 1981, there were women in each of the four classes, but were only 6 percent of the student body. Female midshipmen were still harassed by some male classmates in 1981, and occasionally a male professor would inform a class that he did not think women belonged there. As a student, she competed on the track team. She graduated on May 22, 1985, with a Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical engineering, and was commissioned as an ensign in the United States Navy.

Navy career
For her first assignment, Caputo chose a six-month secondment to the Johnson Space Center, where she worked as an aerospace engineer at its branch at Ellington Air Force Base near Houston, Texas. During this time, there were six Space Shuttle launches. "What impressed me", she later said, "was the whole idea that everybody was so into what they were doing and excited that each of their parts was so important."

In December 1985, Caputo received orders to report to Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida for flight training. By law, women were still banned from combat assignments, so half the jobs in the Navy were unavailable to women regardless of aptitude or ability, and there were doubts about the wisdom of training women for jobs they were not permitted to do. Getting accepted into flight training was a major achievement, and those women that did so were often resented by men who were passed over. Caputo completed primary flight training at Naval Air Station Pensacola on the T-2 Buckeye, T-39 Sabreliner and TA-4J Skyhawk and qualified as a naval flight officer (NFO) in June 1987.

Caputo's NFO training continued at the Electronic Warfare School at Corry Station in preparation to fly electronic warfare aircraft. She then went to the Naval Air Station Lemoore, where she qualified to operate the electronic systems on the LTV EA-7L Corsair II. On April 6, 1988, she married an Annapolis classmate, Richard T. Nowak, at the Naval Academy Chapel with Catholic rites, and changed her last name to "Nowak". Her next assignment was to Electronic Warfare Aggressor Squadron 34 (VAQ-34) at Naval Air Station Point Mugu, California, where she flew on both the Corsair II and the Douglas ERA-3B Skywarrior, supporting the U.S. Pacific Fleet on reconnaissance mission exercises. She qualified as a mission commander and electronic warfare lead.

In 1990, Nowak entered the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, where she earned both a Master of Science degree in aeronautical engineering and a degree in aeronautical and astronautical engineering in September 1992, writing a thesis on Computational Investigations of a NACA 0012 Airfoil in Low Reynolds Number Flows. She gave birth to a son in February 1992. After graduate school, she transferred to the restricted line as an Aerospace Engineering Duty Officer. She was selected to attend the United States Naval Test Pilot School at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland, after she applied six times. She graduated in June 1994, and then became an aircraft systems project officer at the Air Combat Environment Test and Evaluation Facility and at Strike Aircraft Test Squadron at Patuxent River. As a naval flying officer/flight test engineer, she participated in the development of the F/A-18 Hornet and EA-6B Prowler. Her next assignment was to the Naval Air Systems Command, where she was involved in the acquisition of new systems for naval aircraft. During her career in the Navy, Nowak logged over 1,500 hours of flight time in more than 30 different aircraft and was awarded the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Navy Commendation Medal and the Navy Achievement Medal.

Astronaut training
On June 15, 1995, NASA announced that it was selecting a new group of astronauts. As a naval officer, Nowak could not apply directly, like a civilian could, but had to submit her application to a review board that would then approve it and forward it on to NASA, which it did. NASA received over 2,400 applications, and in early 1996, Nowak was informed that she was one of 150 finalists deemed highly qualified, and she was asked to report to Johnson Space Center for a week of orientation, interviews and medical evaluations.

On May 1, 1996, NASA publicly announced the names of 10 pilot and 25 mission specialist candidates; Nowak was one of the latter. The class of 1996, the 16th group of NASA astronauts, was the largest selected since the first class of Space Shuttle astronauts in 1978, which also numbered 35. They were ordered to report for duty at Johnson Space Center to commence their astronaut training on August 12, 1996. They were joined by nine international astronauts. Because there were so many of them, they were often packed into classrooms and training facilities, and called themselves "The Sardines".

Nowak and her family moved to Texas, where they built a house in Clear Lake City. Her husband, another naval flight officer, left active duty in 1998 but continued to fly in the United States Naval Reserve. He found a job as a space communications contractor with Barrios Technology, an aerospace company, and worked at the Johnson Space Center as a flight controller at the mission control center.

Astronaut training included survival training, a three-day trip to the Grand Canyon to study geology, and classwork on the Space Shuttle's many systems. As a mission specialist, she was expected to fly a minimum of four hours a month in NASA's Northrop T-38 Talon aircraft. Training was conducted in the waters of the Weightless Environment Training Facility and in the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker known as the Vomit Comet that flies a trajectory that gives the sensation of being in space. She completed her astronaut training in August 1998. On September 28, 1998, she returned to Annapolis along with fellow astronaut alumni Jim Lovell, Charles O. Hobaugh, David Leestma, John M. Lounge, Bryan D. O'Connor and Pierre J. Thuot, for a celebration of the life of Mercury Seven astronaut Alan Shepard, who had died two months before.

In early 2001, Nowak became pregnant with twins. At the Astronaut Office, Nowak specialized in the operation of the Space Shuttle's robotic arm. She also served with the CAPCOM Branch, the astronauts that worked with the mission control center as the primary communicators with the spacecraft. She performed this duty during the STS-100 mission in April 2001, when the crew of the installed a robot arm in the International Space Station (ISS). In October 2001, she gave birth to twin daughters. Nowak and her husband alternated their work schedules so one of them was always with the children. This arrangement lasted until Richard was recalled to active duty in 2002 to participate in Operation Enduring Freedom, which effectively left Nowak a single mother with three young children.

On December 12, 2002, NASA announced the crew for STS-118, a mission scheduled for November 2003. Scott Kelly would be the mission commander, Hobaugh the pilot, and the mission specialists would be Nowak, Scott Parazynski, Dafydd Williams, and Barbara Morgan. The Space Shuttle Columbia disaster on February 1, 2003, killed seven astronauts on the STS-107 mission, including three from Nowak's 1996 astronaut class. It was NASA's practice to provide the families of astronauts who had died with a personal casualty assistance officer, and Nowak performed this duty for the family of her close friend Laurel Clark. Clark's widower, Jonathon Clark, a former NASA flight surgeon, recalled that:"She did everything. She went through everything: Navy paperwork, finances, bills, bank accounts. She took care of [Clark's son] Iain during the months afterward. She saw what it was like to lose one of her best friends and for Iain to lose a mother. And the thing is, while Lisa was doing this, she was not at home with her kids. She has two very young children and she is here twelve to fourteen hours a day under the most difficult circumstances. I have to think it was hugely stressful."

The disaster resulted in a series of schedule and hardware changes. The task of testing all the changes was assigned to STS-114, the Return to Flight mission, but the list of changes that required testing grew so large that a second Return to Flight mission was added to the schedule to accommodate them. Despite the numbering, this mission, STS-121, would be the second mission flown after the Columbia disaster. STS-121 was primarily concerned with testing and developing new hardware and procedures to make Space Shuttle flights safer. It would also re-supply the ISS with equipment and consumables.

In January 2004, Nowak participated in an eleven-day cold weather survival training course in Canada with fellow NASA astronauts Dominic Antonelli and William Oefelein, Swedish astronaut Christer Fuglesang, Russian cosmonaut Dmitri Kondratyev, and Canadian astronaut (and future Governor General) Julie Payette. The course commenced on January 19, and included four days of instruction with the Canadian Armed Forces. They were then dropped off in the wilderness in northern Quebec and had to make their way back on foot. They covered 20 km in eleven days, completing the course on January 29. Nowak had worked together with Oefelein, who had been selected as an astronaut with the class of 1998, when they were both stationed at Patuxent River in 1995.

When Nowak and Oefelein returned to Houston they began an extramarital affair, which they attempted to conceal. As serving Navy officers, they could have been charged with conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman, which includes adultery, under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Oefelein's wife filed for divorce in February 2005 after discovering emails between him and Nowak. Their divorce was finalized in May 2005. Oefelein moved into a small apartment, to which he gave Nowak a key. She left personal effects there, and she soon became a familiar sight to other residents of the complex.

Space flight
NASA announced in December 2003 that STS-121 would be commanded by Steven Lindsey, with Mark Kelly as pilot and Michael Fossum and Carlos Noriega as mission specialists. On November 18, 2004, NASA announced that Nowak and her classmate Stephanie Wilson would join the STS-121 crew as additional mission specialists. They were assigned the task of manipulating the robotic arms of the Space Shuttle and the ISS. The STS-121 mission was originally scheduled for March or April 2005, but was soon postponed to July owing to difficulty implementing all the changes required. During the launch of for STS-114 in July 2005, debris separated from the external tank, the very problem which had caused the loss of the, and STS-121 was further postponed until a solution to the problem could be found. In February 2006, the mission was rescheduled for a launch window between May 3 and 22, but in March multiple problems forced a further postponement until July.

A prelaunch reception was held for Nowak at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, and she was joined by her parents, her husband Richard and three children, family members, and friends from school, Annapolis and the Navy. Among the personal effects she packed for the flight was a small owl figurine of the mascot of Luxmanor Elementary School, a koozie from Tilden Middle School, a banner from Charles W. Woodward High School, an Annapolis Class of 1985 flag, and her grandmother's engagement ring.

On July 1, 2006, the STS-121 crew ate the traditional prelaunch cake decorated with the mission's insignia and boarded Discovery at Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39B. Nowak was the last crew member to enter the spacecraft, taking her seat as the flight engineer on the flight deck immediately behind Lindsey and Kelly. At 15:42, the launch was scrubbed due to thunderstorm activity in the area. A second launch attempt the following day was also canceled due to inclement weather. STS-121 successfully launched on July 4 at 14:38. It was the first time a Space Shuttle launch had taken place on Independence Day.

After she entered orbit, Nowak felt nauseated, a symptom of space adaptation syndrome. The first day in space was devoted to inspecting the orbiter for possible damage, as the crew had noticed debris falling off the external tank during liftoff. Nowak deployed the robotic arm to inspect the wing tips, nose and underside of the spacecraft using digital and video cameras and laser scanning. After six and a half hours of examination, all that was found was a white splotch on the nose cap. NASA engineers were initially concerned that this might be the result of a high-velocity impact, but after closer examination they determined it to be bird droppings. Some discoloration found on the leading edges was attributed to hydraulic fluid spills.

After Discovery docked with the ISS, Wilson and Nowak used the Canadarm to unload the Italian-built Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM). The 7400 lbs of equipment and supplies it contained included the Minus Eighty Lab Freezer for use in scientific experiments and a 1400 lb Oxygen Generation System to allow the ISS to support up to six crew members. Nowak carried out her assigned tasks, but other crew members noted a reluctance to assist with tasks that were not assigned to her and for which she had not trained.

While Discovery was docked with the ISS, the STS-121 crew conducted three spacewalks. The women were not considered for this activity; when NASA trimmed the space suit budget in the 1990s, small sizes were omitted. Women astronauts were assigned to other tasks like operating the robotic arms. From the Destiny laboratory on the ISS, Nowak operated the robotic arm whose installation she had overseen as CAPCOM years before. It was more challenging to operate than the one on the Space Shuttle, since it was larger and had an extra joint.

Some 4300 lb of trash, experiment results and broken equipment were packed into Leonardo, and Nowak and Wilson used the robotic arm to re-stow the module in Discovery's cargo bay. It was then used to make a final check of the Space Shuttle to ensure that no damage had been done by micrometeorites or space debris. Discovery undocked from the ISS and commenced its two-day return to Earth. In all, she spent 12 days 18 hours and 36 minutes in space, during which she traveled 5 e6mi. Discovery landed at the Shuttle Landing Facility at the Kennedy Space Center at 09:14 on July 17.

Homecoming
As was usual, the six crew members of STS-121 embarked on a series of publicity events and interviews. They attended X Games XII at the Home Depot Center in Los Angeles from August 3 to 6, and the Houston Astros game on August 14 at Minute Maid Park, where the crew met pitcher Roger Clemens and threw ceremonial first pitches. On September 9, Nowak attended a tailgate party at the Naval Academy versus University of Massachusetts football game, where she gave her classmates the Class of 1985 flag she had carried on the Space Shuttle and signed photographs of herself. At half time she presented Annapolis with a Navy jersey she had carried on board Discovery. She gave a long interview with the Ladies' Home Journal for its Mother's Day issue and presented awards at NASA's Stennis Space Center. She went back to Luxmanor Elementary School and Tilden Middle School where she spoke to the children and attended celebrations at Annapolis for the 30th anniversary of its admission of women, during which she gave a presentation as part of the academy's Forrestal Lecture Series. In December, the STS-121 crew flew to the UK, where they visited the University of Edinburgh and the National Space Centre in Leicester, and spoke at the University of Leeds, fellow STS-121 crewmember Piers Sellers's alma mater.

Orlando International Airport incident
Nowak's marriage failed, and she separated from Richard in January 2007. Her relationship with Oefelein also cooled, although she continued to call him almost every day. In late 2006, Oefelein began a relationship with U.S. Air Force Captain Colleen Shipman, who worked as an engineer with the 45th Space Wing at Patrick Air Force Base in Florida. Oefelein informed Nowak about Shipman in January. He thought Nowak took it well, and that they could remain friends. They continued to train for the MS 150, a charity bicycle race, but Shipman became uncomfortable with Nowak's bicycle being kept at Oefelein's place and asked him to get Nowak to remove it.

On January 29, 2007, NASA announced that Stephanie Wilson had been chosen as the mission specialist for the STS-120 mission to replace Michael Foreman, who had been reassigned to the STS-123 mission, scheduled for February. Nowak had hoped for this assignment. According to Mark Kelly, Wilson was chosen because "she was a team player and well deserving. Nowak was not." Nowak was assigned to CAPCOM duties for STS-123 instead.

Altercation
On February 4, 2007, Nowak packed latex gloves, a black wig, a BB pistol and ammunition, pepper spray, a hooded tan trench coat, a drilling hammer, black gloves, an 8 in Gerber folding knife and other items. She then drove her husband's car 900 mi from Houston to Orlando, Florida, to confront Shipman. Early police reports stated that she wore Maximum Absorbency Garments during the trip, but she later denied this. On February 5, 2007, Nowak went to the Orlando International Airport and waited for about half an hour for Shipman's plane to touch down at 01:05. Shipman went to claim her suitcase, but it did not appear on the carousel. At the baggage claim office she was told that it would arrive on the next flight, at 03:00, and she was given a $12 food and drink voucher. Shipman finally collected her suitcase from the baggage claim office at 03:15, and took a shuttle bus to the parking area at 03:28.

Shipman said that after arriving, she became aware of someone following her to an airport satellite parking area. When she got into her car, she heard running footsteps and quickly locked the door. Nowak slapped the window and tried to open the car door, asked for a ride, then started crying. Shipman rolled down the window a couple of inches after which Nowak sprayed the pepper spray into the car. Shipman drove off to the parking lot booth where she called the police. Several Orlando Police Department Airport Division officers arrived minutes later with the first officer observing Nowak throwing a bag into the trash at a parking shuttle bus stop. Nowak was subsequently arrested at Orlando International Airport on charges of attempted kidnapping, battery, attempted vehicle burglary with battery, and destruction of evidence.

In a handwritten request for a restraining order against Nowak after her arrest, Shipman referred to Nowak as an acquaintance of her boyfriend, but did not identify Oefelein. She claimed that Nowak had been stalking her for two months. Nowak told investigators she was involved in a relationship with Oefelein, which she described as being "more than a working relationship but less than a romantic relationship". Citing evidence of elaborate planning, disguises and weapons, police recommended she be held without bail.

Arraignment
Two fellow astronauts flew to Florida in T-38 jets for Nowak's arraignment: Captain Christopher Ferguson, the senior active duty Naval Officer in the NASA Astronaut Corps at the time, went as Nowak's commanding officer, and Lindsey, the commander of Nowak's shuttle mission, went as Chief of the Astronaut Office, the senior astronaut at NASA. On February 6, 2007, both appeared before a judge on her behalf. The state's assistant attorney, Amanda Cowan, argued that the facts indicated a well-thought-out plan to kidnap and perhaps to injure Shipman. In arguing for pre-trial release, Nowak's attorney remarked, "One's good works must count for something." Nowak was ordered released on $15,500 bail under the condition she wear a GPS tracking device and not contact Shipman, but before Nowak could be released, Orlando police charged Nowak with attempted first-degree murder and announced she would not be released on bail. Her lawyer alleged that police and prosecutors, unhappy that Nowak had been granted bail, pressed more serious charges solely to keep her in jail. In the second arraignment Nowak was charged with attempted first-degree murder with a deadly weapon, for which the judge raised bail by $10,000. After posting bail, Nowak was released from jail. Shipman dropped her request for a protection order on February 15.

Reactions
On February 6, 2007, Nowak was placed on 30-day leave by NASA. She returned to Houston on a commercial airline flight on February 8, and upon arrival was reportedly taken immediately under police escort to the Johnson Space Center for medical and psychiatric evaluation. Nowak's assignment to NASA as a serving Navy officer was terminated by the space agency on March 7, 2007. There was widespread public reaction to her arrest, concerns being expressed about NASA's astronaut selection and screening processes. Some commentators opined that NASA's presentation of astronauts as heroes was part of the problem.

In response to concerns over Nowak's mental health, NASA Administrator Michael D. Griffin commissioned the NASA Astronaut Health Care System Review Committee, an independent panel, to examine how well NASA attended to the mental health of its astronauts. Patricia Santy, a former NASA flight surgeon and the author of the book Choosing the Right Stuff: Psychological Selection of Astronauts and Cosmonauts, described a culture among the Astronaut Corps to avoid discussing physical and psychological issues with medical personnel, due to the perception that any issues could jeopardize one's career and flight status. Policies at NASA were changed in a variety of ways: flight surgeons would receive further training in psychiatric evaluation, and a new "Astronaut Code of Professional Responsibility" was issued. Behavioral health evaluations would be included in the astronauts' annual flight physicals.

Evidence
On April 10, 2007, Florida prosecutors released more material in the case. The previous week, the trial judge had agreed to unseal some of the documents that described items found in Nowak's car after her arrest. Among these items were a handwritten note on USS Nimitz (CVN-68) stationery listing Shipman's flight information and one on "Flight Controller's Log" paper listing more than 24 items, including sneakers, plastic gloves, contacts, cash, an umbrella, and black sweats. A floppy disk contained two photographs of Nowak riding in a bicycle race, and 15 images depicting an unidentified woman in different stages of undress. An evidence report dated March 15 indicated that nearly all of the photographs and drawings depicted scenes of bondage. Also found were $585.00 and £41.00 (GBP) in cash and four brown paper bags with 69 orange pills that were not publicly identified. Investigators also examined two USB flash drives found in the car. They contained family pictures, digital movies, and NASA-related materials. Investigators concluded that the information on the disk and USB drives did not have any direct relationship to the alleged kidnapping attempt.

Oefelein had provided Nowak with a cell phone to communicate with him. Phone records show that she called him at least twelve times, and sent seven text messages the day after he returned from his Space Shuttle flight on December 22, 2006, that he did not retrieve until December 24, when they had a seven-minute conversation. During December and January, over one hundred calls were made, although it is unclear who called whom. Under questioning by NASA and military investigators, Oefelein reportedly stated that he had broken off the relationship with Nowak. He did, however, have lunch with her in his apartment at least once in January, they continued to train together for the bicycle race, and they went to the gym together.

On May 11, 2007, authorities released a surveillance video from the Orlando International Airport terminal showing Nowak waiting for nearly an hour, standing near the baggage claim, then donning a trench coat and following Shipman after she retrieved her bags.

Developments
On February 6, 2007, Nowak pleaded not guilty to the charges of attempted murder and attempted kidnapping. On March 2, Florida prosecutors filed three formal charges against Nowak: (1) attempted kidnapping with intent to inflict bodily harm or terrorize, (2) burglary of a conveyance with a weapon, and (3) battery. The prosecutors declined to file the attempted murder charge that had been recommended by Orlando police. She was ordered to wear an electronic monitoring ankle bracelet as a condition of her release. A pre-trial hearing was held on July 17, 2007, and further hearings were to be held on September 19, to argue defense motions to suppress some of the evidence obtained on the day of her arrest. On August 12, 2007, Nowak asked to have her GPS ankle bracelet removed, to which the judge agreed on August 30. On August 28, the trial judge unsealed a court document indicating that Nowak intended to pursue an insanity defense. According to documents submitted by her lawyer, Nowak was evaluated by two psychiatrists who diagnosed her with obsessive–compulsive personality disorder, Asperger syndrome, a single episode of major depressive disorder and a "brief psychotic disorder with marked stressors" at the time of the incident.

The trial judge suppressed Nowak's initial (pre-Miranda) statements to police, as well as all evidence found in her vehicle, on November 2, 2007, citing police misconduct in their initial search and questioning. The prosecution appealed that ruling on November 8. A hearing on that appeal occurred on October 21, 2008. On December 5, 2008, the Florida Fifth District Court of Appeal held that her statements were taken in violation of her Miranda rights, but that the search of her car was still valid under the inevitable discovery exception to the search warrant requirement because the police would have inevitably found the evidence in the normal course of the investigation, even without her illegally obtained statements. The case was sent back for trial. A pre-trial status hearing was scheduled for June 22, 2009. On April 1, 2009, the judge ordered Nowak to undergo two psychiatric evaluations before June 12, 2009.

On May 15, 2009, it was reported that Nowak would not claim insanity if her case ever went to trial. Nowak's attorney withdrew a previous motion filed in 2007, which would have left open the opportunity to use an insanity defense in the case. On October 7, 2009, a judge in Orlando ruled in favor of allowing Nowak's attorneys to take a second deposition from Shipman to inquire whether Nowak actually pepper-sprayed Shipman. A medical report by paramedics raised some questions according to Nowak's attorneys as to the factual basis for it. If it was found not to have occurred, Nowak's attorneys wanted the criminal charges related to the assault and battery to be dropped before trial began. The trial was scheduled for December 7, 2009. On November 10, 2009, Nowak entered a guilty plea to felony burglary and misdemeanor battery as part of a plea deal. She was sentenced to a year's probation and the two days already served in jail, with no additional jail time. In March 2011, Nowak petitioned the court to seal the record of her criminal proceedings, citing harm to her family and their livelihood. The motion was granted.

After NASA
After the incident in Orlando, the Navy insisted on Nowak and Oefelein being returned to the Navy from NASA because they had violated the Navy's rules prohibiting adultery. Naval officials waited for Nowak's kidnapping case to be resolved before taking further action against her. She remained on active duty with the Navy and was subsequently ordered to work on the staff of the Chief of Naval Air Training (CNATRA) at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas. There, she was involved in the development of flight training curricula for broad use throughout the Navy. Nowak received the NASA Space Flight Medal on August 22, 2006, and on June 5, 2007. Nowak and her husband Richard divorced in June 2008, and she was given full custody of their three children.

A Naval Board of Inquiry consisting of Rear Admirals Mark S. Boensel, Eleanor V. Valentin and Timothy S. Matthews voted on August 19, 2010, to recommend Nowak be separated from the Navy under other than honorable conditions and reduced in rank from captain to commander. The panel's recommendation had to be reviewed by the Naval Personnel Command, and ultimately it would be determined by the Secretary of the Navy. On July 28, 2011, Assistant Secretary of Navy Juan M. Garcia III confirmed the panel's sentence. Nowak's conduct, Garcia said in a statement, "fell well short" of what is expected of Navy officers and "demonstrated a complete disregard for the well-being of a fellow service member". She retired from the Navy with an other than honorable discharge and the rank of commander on September 1, 2011.

Astronaut Michael Coats, the director of the Johnson Space Center from 2005 to 2012, recalled that Nowak struggled after leaving the Navy, as the notoriety of her case kept potential employers from hiring her. In 2017, People magazine reported that Nowak was living quietly in Texas, where she was working in the private sector. Her attorney stated: "She's doing well."

In popular culture
Many found Nowak's story fascinating, and it has been adapted for music, film, and television. "Rocket Man", a 2007 episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent, was inspired by Nowak's story and featured a love triangle among astronauts. A 2008 Molly Lewis song, "Road Trip", recounts the details of early news reports about Nowak's trip from Houston to Orlando. The 2008 song, "Cologne", on Ben Folds' album Way to Normal also mentions the incident. The 2017 Austra music video for "I Love You More Than You Love Yourself" references the actions leading up to Nowak's final arrest, with bandleader Katie Stelmanis playing the role of Nowak. Nowak was also the subject of a play, Starcrosser's Cut, which opened in Los Angeles in June 2013. The 2019 film Lucy in the Sky, starring Natalie Portman, was loosely based on Nowak's story.

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

title: Lisa Nowak


text:
The Naked Truth (1957 film)

The Naked Truth (U.S. title: Your Past Is Showing ) is a 1957 British black comedy film directed and produced by Mario Zampi, starring Terry-Thomas, Peter Sellers and Dennis Price. The screenplay was by Michael Pertwee.

In the film, a blackmailer with his own magazine threatens several potential victims. He survives several murder attempts by his victims, but is then arrested and placed on trial for an earlier crime. His victims conspire to break him out of prison and send him into exile before he reveals anything about their respective pasts.

Plot
Nigel Dennis is a blackmailer who threatens to publish embarrassing secrets in his magazine The Naked Truth. After attempting to blackmail a famous scientist (who commits suicide), and an MP (who suffers a heart attack in parliament, and probably succumbs), his latest targets are Lord Henry Mayley, television host Sonny MacGregor, writer Flora Ransom, and model Melissa Right. Several of them decide independently that murder would be a better solution than paying. However, it is Mayley who by sheer bad luck nearly ends up the victim of both MacGregor and Ransom's schemes. The four eventually join forces and try again. That attempt also fails, but Dennis is then arrested for an earlier crime.

When Dennis threatens to reveal all at his trial, Mayley comes up with a scheme to break him out of prison and send him to South America, with the help of hundreds of his other victims. They phone in numerous fake calls for help, distracting the London police, while Mayley, MacGregor, and MacGregor's reluctant assistant Porter, disguised as policemen, whisk Dennis away.

Knocking Dennis unconscious periodically, they finally end up in the cabin of a blimp on the way to a rendezvous with an outbound ship. To their dismay, when he comes to, Dennis refuses to go along with their plan, as he in fact never wanted to reveal any of their secrets in court. He was, in fact, optimistic about the trial anyway, and reveals that the evidence was his copies of The Naked Truth which had been destroyed by the plotters earlier. Happy to have outsmarted his opponents again, but unaware of where he is, Dennis then steps out for some air and plummets to the ocean below. When MacGregor celebrates by shooting his pistol, it punctures the blimp, which shoots away into the distance.

Cast

 * Terry-Thomas as Lord Henry Mayley
 * Peter Sellers as Sonny MacGregor
 * Peggy Mount as Flora Ransom
 * Shirley Eaton as Melissa Right
 * Dennis Price as Nigel Dennis
 * Georgina Cookson as Lady Lucy Mayley, Henry's wife
 * Joan Sims as Ethel Ransom, Flora's daughter and reluctant accomplice
 * Miles Malleson as Reverend Cedric Bastable, Flora's fiancé
 * Kenneth Griffith as porter
 * Moultrie Kelsall as Mactavish
 * Bill Edwards as Bill Murphy, Melissa's rich Texan boyfriend
 * Wally Patch as Fred, paunchy old man
 * Henry Hewitt as gunsmith
 * John Stuart as police Inspector
 * David Lodge as Constable Johnson
 * Joan Hurley as authoress
 * Peter Noble as television announcer
 * Victor Rietti as doctor
 * Wilfrid Lawson as TV contestant
 * Ronald Adam as chemist
 * Michael Ripper as greengrocer

Critical reception
Allmovie described the film as: "a prescient satire of tabloid journalists and celebrity culture, The Naked Truth, is a well-acted British comedy that doesn't quite succeed in melding its black and broad comedy".

The Radio Times reviewer wrote: "This black comedy supplied Peter Sellers with some of his funniest, and finest, pre-Hollywood material. It's based – as the best British humour often is – on class and sex ... Mario Zampi directs the gags in Michael Pertwee's satisfying script with superb timing."

Leonard Maltin observed: "Sellers (cast as a television star) is a special treat in this amusing satire."

In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan rated the film as "good", writing: "Ealing-style black comedy, full of laughs."

title: The Naked Truth (1957 film)


text:
Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Gary space

 This page is an archive of the proposed deletion of the article below. Further comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or on a Votes for Undeletion nomination). No further edits should be made to this page.

The result of the debate was delete. – ABCD✉ 23:38, 3 August 2005 (UTC)

Gary space
Appears to be a vanity page, along with Gary J Campbell Motor 15:39, July 26, 2005 (UTC)
 * Delete Non-notable. - Chairboy 16:03, 26 July 2005 (UTC)
 * Delete — no evidence of notability. If not delete, then at least merge with Gary J Campbell page. :) — RJH 20:35, 26 July 2005 (UTC)
 * Delete notability not established. JamesBurns 09:26, 27 July 2005 (UTC)

 * The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in an undeletion request). No further edits should be made to this page.


text:
Stephanie Wilson

Stephanie Diana Wilson (born September 27, 1966) is an American engineer and a NASA astronaut. She flew to space onboard three Space Shuttle missions, and is the second African American woman to go into space, after Mae Jemison. her 42 days in space are the second most of any female African American astronaut, having been surpassed by Jessica Watkins in 2022, however in 2024 she was assigned to the Crew-9 mission during which she should retake the lead.

Early life and education
Stephanie Wilson was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on September 27, 1966. About a year later, her parents, Eugene and Barbara Wilson, decided to move to Pittsfield, Massachusetts. Eugene, a native of Nesmith, South Carolina, used his electronics training from his time in the Navy to get himself a degree from Northeastern University and a long career in electrical engineering for Raytheon, Sprague Electric, and Lockheed Martin, while Barbara, from Talbot County, Georgia, worked as a production assistant for Lockheed Martin.

After attending Stearns Elementary School, she attended Crosby Junior High School. For a career awareness class in middle school, Wilson was assigned to interview someone in a field that interested her. Since she liked to look up at the sky, she interviewed Williams College astronomer Jay Pasachoff, clarifying her potential career interest in space. In high school, Eugene encouraged Stephanie to go into engineering, so she decided to become an aerospace engineer.

Wilson graduated from Taconic High School, Pittsfield, Massachusetts, in 1984. She attended Harvard University, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering science in 1988. Wilson earned a Master of Science degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Texas, in 1992. Wilson has returned to Harvard as a member of the Harvard Board of Overseers. She was the Chief Marshal for the 362nd Harvard Commencement on May 30, 2013.

Engineering
Wilson worked for two years for the former Martin Marietta Astronautics Group in Denver, Colorado. As a Loads and Dynamics engineer for the Titan IV rocket, Wilson was responsible for performing coupled loads analyses for the launch vehicle and payloads during flight events. Wilson left Martin Marietta in 1990 to attend graduate school at the University of Texas. Her research focused on the control and modeling of large, flexible space structures.

Following the completion of her graduate work, Wilson began working for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, in 1992. As a member of the Attitude and Articulation Control Subsystem for the Galileo spacecraft, Wilson was responsible for assessing attitude controller performance, science platform pointing accuracy, antenna pointing accuracy, and spin rate accuracy. She worked in the areas of sequence development and testing as well. While at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Wilson also supported the Interferometery Technology Program as a member of the Integrated Modeling Team, which was responsible for finite element modeling, controller design, and software development.

NASA
Selected by NASA as an astronaut candidate in April 1996, Wilson reported to the Johnson Space Center in August 1996. Having completed two years of training and evaluation, she is qualified for flight assignment as a mission specialist. She was initially assigned technical duties in the Astronaut Office Space Station Operations Branch to work with Space Station payload displays and procedures. She then served in the Astronaut Office CAPCOM Branch, working in Mission Control as a prime communicator with on-orbit crews. Following her work in Mission Control, Wilson was assigned technical duties in the Astronaut Office Shuttle Operations Branch involving the Space Shuttle Main Engines, External Tank and Solid Rocket Boosters.

Wilson has flown on three shuttle missions. On STS-121, Wilson flew aboard as a mission specialist. She also flew on the STS-120 mission that delivered the Harmony connecting module to the International Space Station. In April 2010, Wilson flew as a mission specialist on STS-131.

On October 18, 2019, Wilson was ground controller at Houston for the first all woman spacewalk by Christina Koch and Jessica Meir

On December 9, 2020, NASA announced that Stephanie Wilson was among the candidates for the Artemis program and if selected, she could be both the first woman and the first African-American on the Moon.

On January 31, 2024, NASA announced that Wilson would return to the International Space Station on SpaceX Crew-9 for the Expedition 71/72 mission. Since sequential crew rotation missions typically overlap on the ISS for a few days, and Jeanette Epps from the Crew-8 mission will already be onboard, this will be the first time that two female African-American astronauts will be in space simultaneously.

STS-121
STS-121 (July 4–17, 2006), was a return-to-flight test mission and assembly flight to the International Space Station. During the 13-day flight, the crew of Space Shuttle Discovery tested new equipment and procedures that increase the safety of space shuttles, repaired a rail car on the International Space Station and produced never-before-seen, high-resolution images of the Shuttle during and after its July 4 launch. Wilson supported robotic arm operations for vehicle inspection, Multi-Purpose Logistics Module installation and EVAs and was responsible for the transfer of more than 28,000 pounds of supplies and equipment to the ISS. The crew also performed maintenance on the space station and delivered a new Expedition 13 crew member to the station. The mission was accomplished in 306 hours, 37 minutes and 54 seconds.

STS-120
STS-120 (October 23 – November 7, 2007) was a 6.25 million mile Space Shuttle mission to the International Space Station (ISS). It delivered the Harmony module, and reconfigured the P6 truss in preparation for future assembly missions. STS-120 carried a new Expedition 16 crew member, Daniel Tani, and returned Expedition 15 and Expedition 16 crewmember Clayton Anderson. The crew conducted four spacewalks and performed a previously untested repair method on the station's solar array. The mission was accomplished in 15 days, 2 hours, 23 minutes, during 238 orbits.

STS-131

STS-131 (April 5–20, 2010) was a resupply mission to the International Space Station. Space Shuttle Discovery was launched pre-dawn from Kennedy Space Center. Once docked to the space station, the crew delivered more than 27,000 pounds of hardware, supplies, experiments and equipment, including a tank full of ammonia coolant that required three spacewalks and robotics to install, new crew sleeping quarters, a window observation facility and a freezer for experiments.

During the mission, Wilson was responsible for robotics for spacewalking support using the space station robotic arm and for robotic removal of the "Leonardo" Multi-Purpose Logistics Module from the payload bay of Discovery. For the return to Earth, Wilson robotically installed Leonardo, which was packed with more than 6,000 pounds of hardware, science results and used supplies, inside Discovery's payload bay. The STS-131 mission was accomplished in 15 days, 2 hours, 47 minutes and 10 seconds and traveled 6,232,235 statute miles in 238 orbits.

Artemis
Artemis (2017–Present) is the mission NASA announced in 2020 to return to the Moon, scheduled for 2024. Wilson has been selected as one of eighteen astronauts comprising the Artemis team. This mission will send the first woman and next man to walk on the lunar surface.

Personal life
Wilson is a Christian. She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority. Her hobbies include skiing and stamp collecting. She married Julius "BJ" McCurdy, a television producer, in June 1999. The couple divorced in 2003.

Awards and honors

 * NASA Distinguished Service Medal (2009, 2011)
 * NASA Space Flight Medal (2006, 2007, 2010)
 * Honorary Doctorate of Science from Williams College (2011)
 * Harvard College Women's Professional Achievement Award (2008)
 * Harvard Foundation Scientist of the Year Award (2008)
 * Young Outstanding Texas Exes Award (2005)
 * Johnson Space Center Innovation Group Achievement Award (2013)
 * Johnson Space Center Director Commendation Award (2013)
 * Salem Trailblazer Award (2019)

title: Stephanie Wilson


text:
LCISD

LCISD can refer to:

 * Lamar Consolidated Independent School District
 * Lubbock-Cooper Independent School District
 * Lyford Consolidated Independent School District

title: LCISD


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Talk:Portland and Ogdensburg Railway

Figuring out what happened to the Vermont section
1886 - all B&L 1887 - B&L, at least west of St. Johnsbury 1888 - SJ&C, at least west of St. Johnsbury Image:1898 Boston and Maine Railroad.jpg - SJ&C, at least west of St. Johnsbury 1916 - SJ&C (B&M owned), only west of St. Johnsbury — Preceding unsigned comment added by SPUI (talk • contribs) 21:44, 4 August 2005 (UTC)

title: Talk:Portland and Ogdensburg Railway


text:
Sopa de pata

Sopa de pata is a hearty Salvadoran soup made from cow's feet, tripe, yuca (also called cassava or manioc), cabbage leaves, chayotes, sweet corn, plantains, and green beans. It may be seasoned with Mexican coriander leaves and flavored to taste with lemon or chile powder.

title: Sopa de pata


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Ray Anderson (entrepreneur)

Ray C. Anderson (July 28, 1934 – August 8, 2011) was founder and chairman of Interface Inc., one of the world's largest manufacturers of modular carpet for commercial and residential applications and a leading producer of commercial broadloom and commercial fabrics. He was known in environmental circles for his advanced and progressive stance on industrial ecology and sustainability.

Anderson died on August 8, 2011, aged 77, twenty months after being diagnosed with cancer. On July 28, 2012, Anderson's family re-launched the Ray C. Anderson Foundation. with a new purpose.

Originally created to fund Ray Anderson's personal philanthropic giving, family members announced the rebirth and refocus of the Foundation on Anderson's birthday, nearly one year after his 2011 death. The purpose of the Ray C. Anderson Foundation is to perpetuate shared values and continue the legacy that Anderson left behind. The Ray C. Anderson Foundation is a not-for-profit 501(c)3 organization whose mission is to promote and advance the concepts of sustainable production and consumption.

Life and career
Anderson was an honors graduate of the Georgia Institute of Technology in the school of industrial and systems engineering in 1956. He learned the carpet trade through more than 14 years at Deering, Milliken & Company and Callaway Mills.

Anderson founded Interface in 1973 to produce the first free-lay carpet tiles in America. Interface is one of the world's largest producers of modular commercial floorcoverings, with sales in 110 countries and manufacturing facilities on four continents.

Environmental focus
Anderson first turned his focus toward the environment in 1994 when he read The Ecology of Commerce by Paul Hawken, and also Ishmael by Daniel Quinn, seeking inspiration for a speech to an internal task force on the company's environmental vision. Hawken argues that the industrial system is destroying the planet and only industry leaders are powerful enough to stop it.

In 2009, Anderson estimated that Interface was more than halfway towards the vision of “Mission Zero,” the company's promise to eliminate any negative impact it may have on the environment by the year 2020 through the redesign of processes and products, the pioneering of new technologies, and efforts to reduce or eliminate waste and harmful emissions while increasing the use of renewable materials and sources of energy.

Anderson chronicled the Mission Zero journey in two books, Mid-Course Correction: Toward a Sustainable Enterprise:  The Interface Model (1998) and Confessions of a Radical Industrialist: Profits, People, Purpose: Doing Business by Respecting the Earth (2009). The latter was released in paperback as Business Lessons from a Radical Industrialist in 2011.

Recognition and awards
Anderson was featured several documentaries and films, such as The Corporation, (2004 Canadian documentary); The 11th Hour (2007 Leonardo DiCaprio film); I Am (2011 Tom Shadyac documentary); Big Ideas for a Small Planet (Sundance Channel series); and others. The Interface story is the focus of the documentary film “So Right, So Smart” (2009).

Ray served a stint as co-chair of the President's Council on Sustainable Development during President Clinton's administration, which led to him co-chairing the Presidential Climate Action Plan in 2008, a team that presented the Obama Administration with a 100-day action plan on climate. Together, he and Interface funded the creation of the Anderson-Interface Chair in Natural Systems at Georgia Tech, where Associate Professor Valerie Thomas conducts research in sustainability.

Anderson received a host of accolades throughout his life, including:
 * In 2007, he was named one of Time’s Heroes of the Environment.
 * Inaugural Millennium Award from Global Green, presented by Mikhail Gorbachev (1996)
 * Recognized by Forbes magazine and Ernst & Young, which named him Entrepreneur of the Year in 1996.
 * The American Society of Interior Designers Design for Humanity Award (2010)
 * Lifetime Achievement Award from GreenLaw (2010)
 * The inaugural Global Sustainability Prize from the University of Kentucky Tracy Farmer Institute for Sustainability and the Environment (2010)
 * River Guardian Award from the Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper (2010)
 * Sustainability Award from the Women's Network for a Sustainable Future (WNSF), the first time the WNSF has honored a businessman (2010)
 * Pillars of EARTH Sustainable Leadership Awards given by EARTH University in Costa Rica (2010)
 * Purpose Prize from Encore.org (2007)
 * Auburn University’s International Quality of Life Award (2007)
 * George and Cynthia Mitchell International Prize for Sustainable Development (2001)

Under Anderson's leadership, Interface was named to CRO magazine's (formerly Business Ethics magazine) 100 Best Corporate Citizens List for three years. In 2006, Sustainablebusiness.com named Interface to their SB20 list of Companies Changing the World, and in 2006 GlobeScan listed Interface #1 in the world for corporate sustainability.

Anderson was former Board Chair for The Georgia Conservancy and served on the boards of the Ida Cason Callaway Foundation, Rocky Mountain Institute, the David Suzuki Foundation, Emory University Board of Ethics Advisory Council, the ASID Foundation, Worldwatch Institute, and the Arizona State University Global Institute of Sustainability Advisory Board. He was on the Advisory Boards of the Harvard Medical School Center for Health and the Global Environment and the Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper.

He was awarded 12 honorary doctorates from Northland College (public service), LaGrange College (business), N.C. State University (humane letters), University of Southern Maine (humane letters), The University of the South (civil law), and Colby College (law), Kendall College of Art and Design (art), Emory University (science), Central College in Pella, Iowa, (humane letters), Chapman University (humane letters), Clarkson University (science), and the Georgia Institute of Technology (philosophy).

Anderson's papers were donated to the Georgia Historical Society by the Ray C. Anderson Foundation and Interface, Inc. in late 2015. The collection, which includes biographical materials, business records, correspondence, organizational records, photographs, presentations, speeches, writings, travel files, and books, is available at the Georgia Historical Society's Research Center in Savannah. The online finding aid can be found here.

title: Ray Anderson (entrepreneur)


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Category:CAC 40

The CAC 40 is a French stock market index, a benchmark index for Euronext Paris.

title: Category:CAC 40


text:
Category:Ontario secondary highways

Secondary highways are lower-class provincially-maintained roads, found mostly in Northern Ontario, Canada, with some along the Georgian Bay, and in Central Ontario.

title: Category:Ontario secondary highways