title: The Washington Post

text: In 1975, the pressmen's union went on strike. The "Post" hired replacement workers to replace the pressmen's union, and other unions returned to work in February 1976.


title: The Washington Post

text: In 1995, the domain name washingtonpost.com was purchased. That same year, a failed effort to create an online news repository called Digital Ink launched. The following year it was shut down and the first website was launched in June 1996.


title: The Washington Post

text: In late September 2013, Jeff Bezos purchased the "Washington Post" and other local publications, websites, and real estate for , transferring ownership to Nash Holdings LLC, Bezos's private investment company. The paper's former parent company, which retained some other assets such as Kaplan and a group of TV stations, was renamed Graham Holdings Company shortly after the sale.


title: The Washington Post

text: Nash Holdings, including the "Post", is operated separately from technology company Amazon, which Bezos founded and where he is executive chairman and the largest single shareholder, with 12.7% of voting rights.


title: The Washington Post

text: Bezos said he has a vision that recreates "the 'daily ritual' of reading the "Post" as a bundle, not merely a series of individual stories..." He has been described as a "hands-off owner", holding teleconference calls with executive editor Martin Baron every two weeks. Bezos appointed Fred Ryan (founder and CEO of "Politico") to serve as publisher and chief executive officer. This signaled Bezos' intent to shift the "Post" to a more digital focus with a national and global readership.


title: The Washington Post

text: In 2015 the "Post" moved from the building it owned at 1150 15th Street to a leased space three blocks away at One Franklin Square on K Street. Since 2014 the "Post" launched an online personal finance section, a blog, and a podcast with a retro theme. The "Post" won the 2020 Webby People's Voice Award for News & Politics in the Social and Web categories.


title: The Washington Post

text: In 2017, the paper hired columnist Jamal Khashoggi, who was murdered by Saudi agents in Istanbul in 2018.


title: The Washington Post

text: When financier Eugene Meyer bought the bankrupt "Post" in 1933, he assured the public he would not be beholden to any party. But as a leading Republican (it was his old friend Herbert Hoover who had made him Federal Reserve Chairman in 1930), his opposition to FDR's New Deal colored the paper's editorial stance as well as its news coverage. This included editorializing "news" stories written by Meyer under a pseudonym. His wife Agnes Ernst Meyer was a journalist from the other end of the spectrum politically. The "Post" ran many of her pieces including tributes to her personal friends John Dewey and Saul Alinsky.


title: The Washington Post

text: Eugene Meyer became head of the World Bank in 1946, and he named his son-in-law Phil Graham to succeed him as "Post" publisher. The post-war years saw the developing friendship of Phil and Kay Graham with the Kennedys, the Bradlees and the rest of the "Georgetown Set" (many Harvard alumni) that would color the "Post's" political orientation. Kay Graham's most memorable Georgetown soirée guest list included British diplomat/communist spy Donald Maclean.


title: The Washington Post

text: The "Post" is credited with coining the term "McCarthyism" in a 1950 editorial cartoon by Herbert Block. Depicting buckets of tar, it made fun of Sen. Joseph McCarthy's "tarring" tactics, i.e., smear campaigns and character assassination against those targeted by his accusations. Sen. McCarthy was attempting to do for the Senate what the House Un-American Activities Committee had been doing for years—investigating Soviet espionage in America. The HUAC made Richard Nixon nationally known for his role in the Hiss/Chambers case that exposed communist spying in the State Department. The committee had evolved from the McCormack-Dickstein Committee of the 1930s.


title: The Washington Post

text: Phil Graham's friendship with JFK remained strong until their untimely deaths in 1963. FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover reportedly told the new President Lyndon B. Johnson, "I don't have much influence with the "Post" because I frankly don't read it. I view it like the "Daily Worker"."


title: The Washington Post

text: Ben Bradlee became the editor-in-chief in 1968, and Kay Graham officially became the publisher in 1969, paving the way for the aggressive reporting of the "Pentagon Papers" and Watergate scandals. The "Post" strengthened public opposition to the Vietnam War in 1971 when it published the "Pentagon Papers". In the mid-1970s, some conservatives referred to the "Post" as ""Pravda" on the Potomac" because of its perceived left-wing bias in both reporting and editorials. Since then, the appellation has been used by both liberal and conservative critics of the newspaper.


title: The Washington Post

text: In the PBS documentary "Buying the War", journalist Bill Moyers said in the year prior to the Iraq War there were 27 editorials supporting the Bush administration's ambitions to invade the country. National security correspondent Walter Pincus reported that he had been ordered to cease his reports that were critical of the administration. According to author and journalist Greg Mitchell: "By the "Post" own admission, in the months before the war, it ran more than 140 stories on its front page promoting the war, while contrary information got lost".


title: The Washington Post

text: On March 26, 2007, Chris Matthews said on his television program, "Well, "The Washington Post" is not the liberal newspaper it was, Congressman, let me tell you. I have been reading it for years and it is a neocon newspaper". It has regularly published a mixture of op-ed columnists, with some of them left-leaning (including E. J. Dionne, Dana Milbank, Greg Sargent, and Eugene Robinson), and some of them right-leaning (including George Will, Marc Thiessen, Michael Gerson and Charles Krauthammer).


title: The Washington Post

text: In a study published on April 18, 2007, by Yale professors Alan Gerber, Dean Karlan, and Daniel Bergan, citizens were given a subscription to either the conservative-leaning "Washington Times" or the liberal-leaning "Washington Post" to see the effect that media has on voting patterns. Gerber had estimated based on his work that the "Post" slanted as much to the left as the "Times" did to the right. Gerber found those who were given a free subscription of the "Post" were 7.9–11.4% more likely to vote for the Democratic candidate for governor than those assigned to the control group, depending on the adjustment for the date on which individual participants were surveyed and the survey interviewer; however, people who received the "Times" were also more likely than controls to vote for the Democrat, with an effect approximately 60% as large as that estimated for the "Post". The study authors said that sampling error might have played a role in the effect of the conservative-leaning "Times", as might the fact that the Democratic candidate took more conservative-leaning positions than is typical for his party, and "the month prior to the post-election survey was a difficult period for President Bush, one in which his overall approval rating fell by approximately 4 percentage points nationwide. It appears that heightened exposure to both papers' news coverage, despite opposing ideological slants, moved public opinion away from Republicans."


title: The Washington Post

text: In November 2007, the newspaper was criticized by independent journalist Robert Parry for reporting on anti-Obama chain e-mails without sufficiently emphasizing to its readers the false nature of the anonymous claims. In 2009, Parry criticized the newspaper for its allegedly unfair reporting on liberal politicians, including Vice President Al Gore and President Barack Obama.


title: The Washington Post

text: Responding to criticism of the newspaper's coverage during the run-up to the 2008 presidential election, former "Post" ombudsman Deborah Howell wrote: "The opinion pages have strong conservative voices; the editorial board includes centrists and conservatives; and there were editorials critical of Obama. Yet opinion was still weighted toward Obama." According to a 2009 Oxford University Press book by Richard Davis on the impact of blogs on American politics, liberal bloggers link to "The Washington Post" and "The New York Times" more often than other major newspapers; however, conservative bloggers also link predominantly to liberal newspapers.


title: The Washington Post

text: In mid-September 2016, Matthew Ingram of "Forbes" joined Glenn Greenwald of "The Intercept", and Trevor Timm of "The Guardian" in criticizing "The Washington Post" for "demanding that [former National Security Agency contractor Edward] Snowden ... stand trial on espionage charges".


title: The Washington Post

text: Since 2011, the "Post" has been running a column called "The Fact Checker" that the "Post" describes as a "truth squad". The Fact Checker received a $250,000 grant from Google News Initiative/YouTube to expand production of video fact checks.


title: The Washington Post

text: In the vast majority of U.S. elections, for federal, state, and local office, the "Post" editorial board has endorsed Democratic candidates. The paper's editorial board and endorsement decision-making are separate from newsroom operations. Until 1976, the "Post" did not regularly make endorsements in presidential elections. Since it endorsed Jimmy Carter in 1976, the "Post" has endorsed Democrats in presidential elections, and has never endorsed a Republican for president in the general election, although in the 1988 presidential election, the "Post" declined to endorse either Governor Michael Dukakis (the Democratic candidate) or Vice President George H. W. Bush (the Republican candidate). The "Post" editorial board endorsed Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012; Hillary Clinton in 2016; and Joe Biden for 2020.


title: The Washington Post

text: While the newspaper predominantly endorses Democrats in congressional, state, and local elections, it has occasionally endorsed Republican candidates. While the paper has not endorsed Republican candidates for governor of Virginia, it endorsed Maryland Governor Robert Ehrlich's unsuccessful bid for a second term in 2006. In 2006, it repeated its historic endorsements of every Republican incumbent for Congress in Northern Virginia. The "Post" editorial board endorsed Virginia's Republican U.S. Senator John Warner in his Senate reelection campaign in 1990, 1996 and 2002; the paper's most recent endorsement of a Maryland Republican for U.S. Senate was in the 1980s, when the paper endorsed Senator Charlies "Mac" Mathias Jr. In U.S. House of Representatives elections, moderate Republicans in Virginia and Maryland, such as Wayne Gilchrest, Thomas M. Davis, and Frank Wolf, have enjoyed the support of the "Post"; the "Post" also has endorsed some Republicans, such as Carol Schwartz, in some D.C. races.


title: The Washington Post

text: In September 1980, a Sunday feature story appeared on the front page of the "Post" titled "Jimmy's World" in which reporter Janet Cooke wrote a profile of the life of an eight-year-old heroin addict. Although some within the "Post" doubted the story's veracity, the paper's editors defended it, and assistant managing editor Bob Woodward submitted the story to the Pulitzer Prize Board at Columbia University for consideration. Cooke was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Feature Writing on April 13, 1981. The story was subsequently found to be a complete fabrication, and the Pulitzer was returned.


title: The Washington Post

text: In July 2009, in the midst of an intense debate over health care reform, "The Politico" reported that a health-care lobbyist had received an "astonishing" offer of access to the "Post's" "health-care reporting and editorial staff." "Post" publisher Katharine Weymouth had planned a series of exclusive dinner parties or "salons" at her private residence, to which she had invited prominent lobbyists, trade group members, politicians, and business people. Participants were to be charged $25,000 to sponsor a single salon, and $250,000 for 11 sessions, with the events being closed to the public and to the non-"Post" press. "Politico"s revelation gained a somewhat mixed response in Washington as it gave the impression that the parties' sole purpose was to allow insiders to purchase face time with "Post" staff.


title: The Washington Post

text: Almost immediately following the disclosure, Weymouth canceled the salons, saying, "This should never have happened." White House counsel Gregory B. Craig reminded officials that under federal ethics rules, they need advance approval for such events. "Post" Executive Editor Marcus Brauchli, who was named on the flier as one of the salon's "Hosts and Discussion Leaders", said he was "appalled" by the plan, adding, "It suggests that access to "Washington Post" journalists was available for purchase."


title: The Washington Post

text: Dating back to 2011, "The Washington Post" began to include "China Watch" advertising supplements provided by "China Daily", an English language newspaper owned by the Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party, on the print and online editions. Although the header to the online "China Watch" section included the text "A Paid Supplement to The Washington Post", James Fallows of "The Atlantic" suggested that the notice was not clear enough for most readers to see. Distributed to the "Post" and multiple newspapers around the world, the "China Watch" advertising supplements range from four to eight pages and appear at least monthly. According to a 2018 report by "The Guardian", "China Watch" uses "a didactic, old-school approach to propaganda."


title: The Washington Post

text: In 2020, a report by Freedom House titled "Beijing's Global Megaphone" was also critical of the "Post" and other newspapers for distributing "China Watch". In the same year, 35 Republican members of the U.S. Congress wrote a letter to the U.S. Department of Justice in February 2020 calling for an investigation of potential FARA violations by "China Daily". The letter named an article that appeared in the "Post", "Education Flaws Linked to Hong Kong Unrest", as an example of "articles [that] serve as cover for China's atrocities, including ... its support for the crackdown in Hong Kong." According to "The Guardian," the "Post" had already stopped running "China Watch" in 2019.


title: The Washington Post

text: In 1986, five employees (including "Newspaper Guild" unit chairman Thomas R. Sherwood and assistant Maryland editor Claudia Levy) sued "The Washington Post" for overtime pay, stating that the newspaper had claimed that budgets did not allow for overtime wages.


title: The Washington Post

text: In June 2018, over 400 employees of "The Washington Post" signed an open letter to the owner Jeff Bezos demanding "fair wages; fair benefits for retirement, family leave and health care; and a fair amount of job security." The open letter was accompanied by video testimonials from employees, who alleged "shocking pay practices" despite record growth in subscriptions at the newspaper, with salaries rising an average of $10 per week, which the letter claimed was less than half the rate of inflation. The petition followed on a year of unsuccessful negotiations between "The Washington Post" Guild and upper management over pay and benefit increases.


title: The Washington Post

text: In 2020, "The Post" suspended reporter Felicia Sonmez after she posted a series of tweets about the 2003 rape allegation against basketball star Kobe Bryant after Bryant's death. She was reinstated after over 200 "Post" journalists wrote an open letter criticizing the paper's decision. In July 2021, Sonmez sued "The Post" and several of its top editors, alleging workplace discrimination; the suit was dismissed in March 2022, with the court determining that Sonmez had failed to make plausible claims. In June 2022, Sonmez engaged in a Twitter feud with fellow "Post" staffers David Weigel (criticizing him over what he later described as "an offensive joke") and Jose A. Del Real (who accused Sonmez of "engaging in repeated and targeted public harassment of a colleague"). Following the feud, the newspaper suspended Weigel for a month for violating the company's social media guidelines, and the newspaper's executive editor Sally Buzbee sent out a newsroom-wide memorandum directing employees to "Be constructive and collegial" in their interactions with colleagues. The newspaper fired Sonmez, writing in an emailed termination letter that she had engaged in "misconduct that includes insubordination, maligning your co-workers online and violating "The Post"s standards on workplace collegiality and inclusivity."


title: The Washington Post

text: In 2019, Covington Catholic High School student Nick Sandmann filed a defamation lawsuit against the "Post", alleging that it libeled him in seven articles regarding the January 2019 Lincoln Memorial confrontation between Covington students and the Indigenous Peoples March. A federal judge dismissed the case, ruling that 30 of the 33 statements in the "Post" that Sandmann alleged were libelous were not, but allowed Sandmann to file an amended complaint as to three statements. After Sandmann's lawyers amended the complaint, the suit was reopened on October 28, 2019. In 2020, "The Post" settled the lawsuit brought by Sandmann for an undisclosed amount.


title: The Washington Post

text: Several "Washington Post" op-eds and columns have prompted criticism, including a number of comments on race by columnist Richard Cohen over the years, and a controversial 2014 column on campus sexual assault by George Will. The "Post"s decision to run an op-ed by Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, a leader in Yemen's Houthi movement, was criticized by some activists on the basis that it provided a platform to an "anti-Western and antisemitic group supported by Iran." The headline of a 2020 op-ed titled "It's time to give the elites a bigger say in choosing the president" was changed, without an editor's note, after backlash. In 2022, actor Johnny Depp successfully sued ex-wife Amber Heard for an op-ed she wrote in "The Washington Post" where she described herself as a public figure representing domestic abuse two years after she had publicly accused him of domestic violence.


title: The Washington Post

text: Former president Donald Trump repeatedly railed against "The Washington Post" on his Twitter account, having "tweeted or retweeted criticism of the paper, tying it to Amazon more than 20 times since his campaign for president" by August 2018. In addition to often attacking the paper itself, Trump used Twitter to blast various "Post" journalists and columnists.


title: The Washington Post

text: During the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries, Senator Bernie Sanders repeatedly criticized "The Washington Post", saying that its coverage of his campaign was slanted against him and attributing this to Jeff Bezos' purchase of the newspaper. Sanders' criticism was echoed by the socialist magazine "Jacobin" and the progressive journalist watchdog Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting. "Washington Post" executive editor Marty Baron responded by saying that Sanders' criticism was "baseless and conspiratorial".


title: Billy Corgan

text: William Patrick Corgan Jr. (born March 17, 1967) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and professional wrestling promoter. He is best known as the lead singer, primary songwriter, guitarist, and only permanent member of the rock band the Smashing Pumpkins. He is currently the owner and promoter of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA).


title: Billy Corgan

text: Corgan formed The Smashing Pumpkins in Chicago in 1988 along with guitarist James Iha, followed by bassist D'arcy Wretzky and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin. Strong album sales and large-scale tours propelled the band's increasing fame in the 1990s until their break-up in 2000. Corgan started a new band called Zwan, and after their demise he released a solo album, "TheFutureEmbrace", in 2005 and a collection of poetry, "Blinking with Fists", before reforming the Smashing Pumpkins. The new version of the band, consisting of Corgan and a revolving lineup, has released and toured new albums extensively since 2007. In October 2017, Corgan released "Ogilala", his first solo album in over a decade. His latest album, "Cotillions", was released on November 22, 2019.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In 2011, Corgan founded Resistance Pro Wrestling. He later joined Total Nonstop Action Wrestling in 2015, becoming its president in August 2016. After leaving TNA in November 2016, he purchased the NWA in October 2017, transforming it from a brand licensing organization to a singular promotion.


title: Billy Corgan

text: William Patrick Corgan Jr. was born at Columbus Hospital in the Lincoln Park neighborhood of Chicago on March 17, 1967, the oldest son of guitarist William Dale Corgan (1947-2021) and his wife Martha Louise Maes Corgan Lutz. He was raised Catholic and is of Irish and German-Swiss descent. His parents had one more son, Ricky, before divorcing in 1970. His father was remarried to a flight attendant, and Corgan and his brother went to live with them in Glendale Heights, Illinois. Corgan alleges that his stepmother was abusive to him, both physically and emotionally. He developed a protective bond with his younger paternal half-brother, who had special needs as a child. When Corgan's father and stepmother separated, all three boys lived alone with their stepmother, and both of his birth parents lived separately within an hour's drive.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Corgan described his father as a "drug dealing, gun-toting, musician [and] mad man". Although this had a huge negative impact on his childhood, in retrospect he respects his father as a great musician.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Corgan, who grew much faster than his fellow students, was a strong athlete in elementary school. In addition to being a member of his baseball team at Marquardt Middle School, he amassed over 10,000 baseball cards and listened to every Chicago Cubs game on the radio. However, by the time he began attending Glenbard North High School, his athletic prowess had greatly diminished. He decided to start playing guitar after seeing a Flying V when he went over to a friend's house. Corgan gave his savings to his father, who bought him a used Les Paul knock-off. His father encouraged him to listen to Jeff Beck and Jimi Hendrix but offered little other support, so Corgan taught himself to play the instrument. His musical interests in his formative years included hard rock like "Guts"-era John Cale, heavy metal pioneers Black Sabbath, and mainstream rock like Van Halen, Queen, Boston, ELO, Rush, and Cheap Trick. In high school, Corgan discovered alternative rock through Bauhaus and The Cure. He performed in a string of bands in high school and graduated as an honor student. Despite grant and scholarship offers from a number of schools, and a tuition fund left by his grandmother, Corgan decided to pursue music full-time.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Not finding the Chicago music scene to his liking, Corgan moved to St. Petersburg, Florida in 1985 with his first major band, The Marked (so named for the conspicuous birthmarks of both Corgan and drummer Ron Roesing). Not finding success in St. Petersburg, the band dissolved; Corgan moved back to Chicago to live with his father. From 1987 to 1988, he played guitar in Chicago band Deep Blue Dream, which also featured future Static-X frontman Wayne Static. He left the band to focus on The Smashing Pumpkins.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Upon his return to Chicago, Corgan had already devised his next project – a band that would be called The Smashing Pumpkins. Corgan met guitarist James Iha while working in a record store, and the two began recording demos, which Corgan describes as "gloomy little goth-pop records". He met bassist D'arcy Wretzky after a local show, arguing with her about a band that had just played, The Dan Reed Network. Soon after, the Smashing Pumpkins were formed. The trio began to play together at local clubs with a drum machine for percussion. To secure a show at the Metro in Chicago, the band recruited drummer Jimmy Chamberlin, and played for the first time as a quartet on October 5, 1988.


title: Billy Corgan

text: The addition of Chamberlin drove the band in a heavier direction almost immediately. On the band's debut album, "Gish" (1991), the band integrated psychedelic rock and heavy metal into their sound. "Gish" fared better than expected, but the follow-up, "Siamese Dream", released on Virgin Records in 1993, became a multi-platinum hit. The band became known for internal drama during this period, with Corgan frequently characterized in the music press as a "control freak" due to rumors that Corgan played all the guitar and bass parts on "Siamese Dream" (a rumor that Corgan later confirmed as true). Despite this, the album was well received by critics, and the songs "Today", "Cherub Rock", and "Disarm" became hits.


title: Billy Corgan

text: The band's 1995 follow-up effort, the double album "Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness", was more successful, spawning a string of hit singles. According to Jon Pareles from "The New York Times", Corgan wanted to "lose himself and find himself..." in this album. The album was nominated for seven Grammy awards that year, and would eventually be certified ten times platinum in the United States. The song "1979" was Corgan's biggest hit to date, reaching No. 1 on "Billboard"'s modern rock and mainstream rock charts. Their appearance on "Saturday Night Live" on November 11, 1995, to promote this material (their second appearance on the show overall) was also the television debut appearance of Corgan's shaved head, which he has maintained consistently since.


title: Billy Corgan

text: On July 12, 1996, touring keyboardist Jonathan Melvoin died in a Manhattan hotel room of a heroin overdose after he and Chamberlin used the drug together. Chamberlin was later arrested on a misdemeanor drug possession charge. The Smashing Pumpkins made the decision to fire Chamberlin and continue as a trio. This shakeup, coupled with Corgan going through a divorce and the death of his mother, influenced the somber mood of the band's next album, 1998's "Adore". Featuring a darker, more subdued and heavily electronic sound at a time when alternative rock was declining in mainstream cachet, "Adore" divided both critics and fans, resulting in a significant decrease in album sales (it sold 1.3 million discs in the US).


title: Billy Corgan

text: Chamberlin was reunited with the band in 1999. In 2000, they released "Machina/The Machines of God", a concept album on which the band deliberately played to their public image. Critics were again divided, and sales were lower than before; "Machina" is the second lowest-selling commercially released Smashing Pumpkins album to date, with U.S. sales of 583,000 units up to 2005. During the recording for "Machina", Wretzky quit the band and was replaced for the upcoming tour by former Hole bassist Melissa Auf der Maur. In 2000 the band released "Machina II/The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music" free over the Internet and broke up at the end of the year, playing their last show on December 2, 2000, at the Cabaret Metro.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Following a brief stint touring with New Order in the summer, Corgan reunited with Chamberlin to form the band Zwan with Corgan's old friend Matt Sweeney in late 2001. According to Neil Strauss of New York Times, during his few live performances with the band, Corgan says "is still a work in progress". The lineup was completed with guitarist David Pajo and bassist Paz Lenchantin. The band had two distinct incarnations, the primary approach being an upbeat rock band with a three-guitar-driven sound, the second, a folk and gospel inspired acoustic side with live strings. The quintet performed throughout 2002, and their debut album, "Mary Star of the Sea", was released in early 2003 to generally positive reviews. In the midst of their supporting tour for the album, mounting conflict between Corgan and Chamberlin, and the other band members led to the cancellation of the rest of the tour as the band entered an apparent hiatus, formally breaking up in September 2003.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In 2004, Corgan began writing revealing autobiographical posts on his website and his MySpace page, blaming Iha for the breakup of the Smashing Pumpkins, calling Wretzky "a mean spirited drug addict," and criticizing his former Zwan bandmates' fixation with "indie cred" and calling them "filthy", opportunistic, and selfish.


title: Billy Corgan

text: On September 17, 2003, Billy presented his poetry at the Art Institute of Chicago's Rubloff Auditorium. In late 2004, Corgan published "Blinking with Fists", a book of poetry. Despite mixed reviews, the book debuted on The New York Times Best Seller list. Around this time, he began posting autobiographical writings online under the title "The Confessions of Billy Corgan".


title: Billy Corgan

text: Also in 2004, he began a solo music career, landing on an electronic/shoegaze/alternative rock sound for his first solo album, "TheFutureEmbrace", co-produced and arranged by Bon Harris of Nitzer Ebb. Released on June 21, 2005, through Reprise Records, it garnered mixed reviews from the press and only sold 69,000 copies. Corgan toured behind his solo album with a touring band that included Linda Strawberry, Brian Liesegang and Matt Walker in 2005. This tour was not as extensive as previous Smashing Pumpkins or Zwan tours. Prior to recording "TheFutureEmbrace", Corgan had recorded some 72 songs inspired by Chicago history for the largely acoustic "ChicagoSongs" project, which have yet to be released.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In 2005, Corgan took out a full-page ad in Chicago's two major newspapers ("Chicago Tribune" and "The Chicago Sun-Times") revealing his desire to re-form the Smashing Pumpkins. Several days later, Jimmy Chamberlin accepted Corgan's offer for a reunion.


title: Billy Corgan

text: On April 20, 2006, the band's official website confirmed that the group was indeed reuniting. The re-formed Smashing Pumpkins went into studio for much of 2006 and early 2007, and performed its first show in seven years on May 22, 2007, with new members Ginger Pooley (bass) and Jeff Schroeder (guitar) replacing Wretzky and Iha. The new album, titled "Zeitgeist," was released in the United States on July 10, 2007, and debuted at No. 2 on the "Billboard" charts. Corgan and the rest of the Pumpkins toured extensively throughout 2007 and 2008, also releasing the EP "American Gothic" and the singles "G.L.O.W." and "Superchrist". Chamberlin left the band in March 2009, and Corgan elected to continue under the name.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In summer 2009, Corgan formed the band Spirits in the Sky to play a tribute concert to the late Sky Saxon of the Seeds. He toured with the band, composed of ex-Catherine member and "Superchrist" producer Kerry Brown, the Electric Prunes bassist Mark Tulin, Strawberry Alarm Clock keyboardist Mark Weitz, frequent Corgan collaborator Linda Strawberry, flautist Kevin Dippold, "Superchrist" violinist Ysanne Spevack, saxist Justin Norman, new Pumpkins drummer Mike Byrne, and Jane's Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro, playing covers and new Pumpkins material at several clubs in California. At the end of the tour, Corgan, Byrne, Tulin, and Brown headed back to Chicago to begin work on the new Smashing Pumpkins album, "Teargarden by Kaleidyscope". The lineup at the time which included new bassist Nicole Fiorentino, toured through much of 2010, then spent 2011 recording the "album-within-an-album" "Oceania" and mounting tours of the United States and Europe. However, Byrne and Fiorentino would later leave the band in 2014.


title: Billy Corgan

text: On May 15, 2014, Corgan released "AEGEA", a new solo record of experimental recordings he made in 2007 Limited to 250 vinyl copies, the album was mostly sold online, with a few copies sold at Madame Zuzu's, a tea house he owns and operates in Highland Park, a suburb of Chicago.


title: Billy Corgan

text: On July 25, 2014, Corgan also released the tapes from his "Siddhartha" show from March 2014, much in the vein of "AEGEA." The set was expected to contain between 5 and 6 discs.


title: Billy Corgan

text: During the summer 2014, Corgan recorded The Smashing Pumpkins's tenth studio album, "Monuments to an Elegy," with Tommy Lee and Jeff Schroeder. The album was released in early December 2014.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In September 2015, Corgan started a blog of vintage photographs that he himself curated, and which he called "People and Their Cars". The website also included an email listing for the blog, titled "The Red Border Club". This list was to be used for information on upcoming People and Their Cars and "Hexestential" books and merchandise, along with access to additional images.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In July 2018, The Smashing Pumpkins embarked on a reunion tour, the Shiny And Oh So Bright Tour, with a focus on performing material from their first five studio albums. The lineup consists of himself, James Iha, Jimmy Chamberlin, and Jeff Schroeder. Former bassist D'arcy Wretzky was not a part of the lineup, reportedly due to unresolved tension between her and Corgan. Wretzky has stated that Corgan offered her a contract but later retracted the offer, saying that "we also have to balance the forces at play... there is no room for error." After Wretzky released text messages between her and Corgan, a feud ensued, with each party attacking each other with biting remarks.


title: Billy Corgan

text: On November 22, 2019, Corgan released his third solo album "Cotillions", which he called "a labor of love". He also said, "This is absolutely an album from my heart."


title: Billy Corgan

text: On July 14, 2022, Corgan and his partner, Chloe Mendel announced that they would host a livestream charity show on July 27 to benefit the victims of the July 4 Highland Park, Ill., shooting.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In 2011 Corgan formed a Chicago-based independent wrestling promotion called Resistance Pro. Two years later, in 2013, he starred in a commercial for Walter E. Smithe Furniture, using the platform to promote his wrestling company.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In March 2014 it was reported that Corgan was in discussions with American television channel AMC to develop an unscripted reality series about Resistance Pro. The premise being a behind-the-scenes look at the promotion as Corgan "takes over creative direction for the independent wrestling company". The show was given the green light by AMC, under the working title of "Untitled Billy Corgan Wrestling Project," the same month.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In April 2015 Corgan became the new Senior Producer of Creative and Talent Development for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), where his role was to "develop characters and create story lines", which he has called "a dream come true". In August 2016, Corgan took over as the promotion's new president.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In November 2016 Corgan had left TNA after disputes about not being paid on time, and subsequently, Anthem Sports & Entertainment Corp and Impact Ventures, parent company of TNA Impact Wrestling, provided a credit facility to TNA to fund operations. In 2016, he loaned money to Anthem Sports & Entertainment to fund TNA, and they promised to pay him back. On November 11, Corgan and Anthem signed a settlement, with Anthem repaying TNA's loan from Corgan.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Newly appointed TNA/Impact Wrestling President Ed Nordholm credits the invention of and the vision behind the Matt Hardy "Broken" gimmick to Jeremy Borash, David Lagana and Billy Corgan. While Borash specifically had the most input into the gimmick of the three aside from Matt, the Hardy family deny that Borash was the sole person behind the gimmick.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In May 2017, Corgan purchased the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), including its name, rights, trademarks and championship belts. Corgan's ownership took effect on October 1, 2017.


title: Billy Corgan

text: For much of his life, Corgan has struggled with anxiety, depression, panic attacks, self-harm, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and suicidal ideation. He attributes these problems to the abuse he endured as a child at the hands of his father and stepmother, as well as other personal issues. He has since become an advocate for abuse support networks.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Corgan is a keen supporter of the Chicago Cubs, and an occasional commentator on the team for WXRT DJ Lin Brehmer. He has appeared at many Cubs games, occasionally throwing the ceremonial first pitch or singing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame". He is also a fan of the Chicago Bulls, Chicago Blackhawks and Chicago Bears, and became personal friends with Dennis Rodman and Chris Chelios. He is an avid professional wrestling fan, and appeared at an ECW event wielding an acoustic guitar as a weapon. In 2008, the Pumpkins song "Doomsday Clock" was used by ROH for promotional videos. On April 26, 2010, Corgan appeared on the SIRIUS Satellite Radio program "Right After Wrestling" with Arda Ocal to discuss his love for wrestling and the importance of unique theme songs for characters. On August 26, 2010, he took part in a storyline with AAA during a concert for MTV World Stage. As far as other entertainment, Corgan once commented that all he watches on TV are "sports and the Three Stooges". In March 2008, he was spotted in the crowd at the final day of the cricket test match between New Zealand and England.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Corgan accepts some elements of Catholicism, Buddhism and Ken Wilber's spiritual ideas. In 2009, he launched Everything From Here to There, an interfaith website that is devoted to "Mind-Body-Soul" integration. He mentions praying each morning and night to be able to see through Jesus Christ's eyes and feel with his heart. An analysis of the symbolism of Corgan's lyrics considered the blend of beliefs he has cited in various interviews, which include ideas about religion, multiple dimensions, and psychic phenomena. In an interview on the Howard Stern Show, Corgan claimed to have once had an encounter with a person who had the ability to shapeshift.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Corgan's mother Martha died in December 1996. The song "For Martha", from "Adore", was written in her memory. In the early 2000s Corgan named his label Martha's Music after her as well. A picture of Martha as a young girl sitting on a fake moon at Riverview Park is featured on the flipside of the "Siamese Dream" booklet.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In 1993, Corgan married art conservator and artist Chris Fabian, his longtime on-again, off-again girlfriend. They were married at a small ceremony at his house in Wrigleyville. Corgan and Fabian separated in late 1995. Corgan filed for divorce in December 1996 on grounds of "irreconcilable differences," and the divorce was granted in 1997. Corgan refused to discuss the marriage for years, only allowing that it was "unhappy." In 2005 he described the circumstances of his marriage in depth via his personal blog.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In late 1995, Corgan started dating Ukrainian photographer Yelena Yemchuk, who later contributed to several Smashing Pumpkins videos and album art. He continued to date Yemchuk until around 2004. According to Corgan, his breakup with her contributed to the themes of his 2005 solo release "TheFutureEmbrace". In 2005, Corgan dated musician Emilie Autumn for a number of months. The pair collaborated on multiple occasions during this time, with Autumn providing vocals and violin on his solo album and costume for a supporting music video.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In early 2006, Corgan moved in with Courtney Love and her daughter. According to Love, he had his own wing in her Hollywood Hills mansion. Two years later, Love criticized him publicly over his alleged refusal to attend her daughter's sweet 16 party. After they parted ways, Corgan stated in a March 2010 interview, "I have no interest in supporting [Love] in any way, shape or form. You can't throw enough things down the abyss with a person like that." Shortly after, when her band's album "Nobody's Daughter" was released, Corgan used Twitter to post anger-filled rants against her in reference to two songs he had written, "Samantha" and "How Dirty Girls Get Clean", which ended up on the album without his permission. Love then wrote an apology to him on her Facebook account, but the feud continued. Corgan took to Twitter to rant against her again. She responded to him on Twitter, saying, "All i am is nice about you so if you wanna be mean be mean i don't feel anything. i have too much to feel dear." In 2008, he blamed his dedication to music for what he called "a bad marriage and seven bad girlfriends in a row". The two eventually reconciled, and Love was invited to perform at Smashing Pumpkins 30th Anniversary Show.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In 2009, Corgan was linked with pop star Jessica Simpson. He started dating Australian singer Jessica Origliasso in 2010, and remained in a relationship with her until early June 2012. Origliasso blamed their split on their careers forcing them to spend too much time apart.


title: Billy Corgan

text: He began dating Chloe Mendel in 2013. She gave birth to a son named Augustus Juppiter Corgan on November 16, 2015. Their second child, a daughter named Philomena Clementine Corgan, was born on October 2, 2018.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In 1998, Corgan said he had not participated in an election since 1992, when he voted for Bill Clinton.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Following the election of Barack Obama in 2008, Corgan stated: "I'm very proud of my country right now for doing the right thing." He has since said that he was disappointed with Obama's presidency, and that he lacks faith in both major political parties. In 2009, he posted a transcript of a webcast by political activist Lyndon LaRouche to the official Smashing Pumpkins forum. On March 10, 2009, Corgan testified in front of Congress on behalf of the musicFIRST Coalition. He spoke in favor of H.R. 848, the Performance Rights Act, which gives musicians and artists their share of compensation when their music is played on radio stations.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In an interview with radio host and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones in 2016, Corgan voiced discontent with "social justice warriors", comparing them to Maoists, cult members, and the Ku Klux Klan, and calling their actions a threat to freedom of speech. In 2018, he called himself a "free-market libertarian capitalist".


title: Billy Corgan

text: Corgan adopted a pescetarian diet in 2013, and stated in 2017 that he had begun following a vegan and gluten-free diet. In 2012, he opened a tea house in Ravinia, Highland Park called Madame Zuzu's Tea House, which closed in 2018 and reopened in downtown Highland Park in 2020.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In addition to performing, Corgan has produced albums for Ric Ocasek, The Frogs, and Catherine. He shared songwriting credit on several songs on Hole's 1998 album "Celebrity Skin"; the title track became Corgan's second No. 1 modern rock hit. He also acted as a consultant for Marilyn Manson during the recording of the album "Mechanical Animals". He has produced three soundtracks for the movies "Ransom" (1996), "Stigmata" (1999) and "Spun" (2002) in which he appeared as a doctor.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Corgan appeared at the 1996 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremonies. He inducted one of his biggest musical influences, Pink Floyd. He played acoustic guitar during the ceremony with Pink Floyd, when they performed their song "Wish You Were Here".


title: Billy Corgan

text: In particular, Corgan guided and collaborated with three bands in the 2000s—Breaking Benjamin (during sessions for 2004's "We Are Not Alone"), Taproot (for "Blue-Sky Research", 2005), and Sky Saxon.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In 2010, Corgan claimed co-writing credit (with ex-girlfriend Courtney Love) on at least two of the songs on Hole's final album "Nobody's Daughter" and tried to assert a right of approval before the album could be released. Corgan had helped develop the album during its early stages. The album was released without the writing controversy ever being litigated or publicly resolved.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Corgan appeared as a guest vocalist on the song "Loki Cat" on Jimmy Chamberlin's first solo album, "Life Begins Again", and Chamberlin played drums for the song "DIA" on Corgan's solo debut, where Robert Smith from The Cure teamed up with Corgan to do a cover of the Bee Gees' "To Love Somebody". In 2007, Corgan provided vocals on the Scorpions' song "The Cross", on their album "". In 2010 Corgan featured on Ray Davies' album See My Friends on the album's closer, a mash-up of the Kinks songs "All Day and All of the Night" and "Destroyer". He also contributed his guitar work on "Did You Miss Me" by The Veronicas. Corgan has also collaborated with Tony Iommi, Blindside, David Bowie (singing "All the Young Dudes" with Bowie at Bowie's 50th birthday party), New Order and Marianne Faithfull.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Corgan wrote six articles for "Guitar World" in 1995, and his solos for "Cherub Rock" and "Geek U.S.A." were included on their list of the top guitar solos of all time. AllMusic said "Starla" "proves that Corgan was one of the finest (and most underrated) rock guitarists of the '90s", while "Rolling Stone" called him and his Smashing Pumpkins bandmates "ruthless virtuosos". His solo for "Soma" was No. 24 on "Rolling Stone" list of the top guitar solos. He is a fan of Eddie Van Halen and interviewed him in 1996 for "Guitar World". Other guitarists Corgan rates highly include Uli Jon Roth, Tony Iommi, Ritchie Blackmore, Leslie West, Dimebag Darrell and Robin Trower.


title: Billy Corgan

text: His bass playing, which has featured on nearly every Smashing Pumpkins album, was influenced by post-punk figures like Peter Hook and Simon Gallup.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Corgan has praised Radiohead, saying "if they're not the best band in the world, then they're one of the best". He is also a fan of Pantera and appeared briefly in their home video 3 Watch It Go. Other favorites include Depeche Mode, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Rush, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, The Cure, Metallica, Slayer, Queen, Electric Light Orchestra, Dinosaur Jr., My Bloody Valentine, and Spiritualized. Corgan stated in 1997 that upon hearing the U2 song "New Year's Day", at 16, "[U2] quickly became the most important band in the world to me." Corgan particularly went out of his way to praise Rush in his interview for "", a documentary on the band, where he criticized mainstream reviewers for consciously marginalizing the band and their influence, and highlighted the fact that many of his musical peers were influenced by Rush.


title: Billy Corgan

text: He has listed his artistic influences as William S. Burroughs, Pablo Picasso, Jimi Hendrix, Jack Kerouac, and Philip K. Dick.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Corgan played (during the "Gish"-"Siamese Dream" era) a customized '57 Reissue Fender Stratocaster equipped with three Fender Lace Sensor pickups (the Lace Sensor Blue in the neck position, the Lace Sensor Silver in the middle position, and the Lace Sensor Red at the bridge position). It also has a five-position pickup selector switch which he installed himself. This battered Strat became his number one guitar by default. He owned a '74 Strat that was stolen shortly after "Gish" was completed. Corgan was reunited with this guitar in early 2019.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Corgan also used a wide variety of guitars on "Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness". On "Where Boys Fear to Tread", Corgan used a Les Paul Junior Reissue, and on "Tonight Tonight" he used a '72 Gibson ES-335. He is also known to use a '74 Strat which has since been painted baby blue. That guitar was used on the recordings for "Bullet with Butterfly Wings" and also "Muzzle", because the heavier wood gave it the basic Strat sound with a bit more bottom.


title: Billy Corgan

text: During the recording and tour of the album "Zeitgeist", Corgan used a Schecter C-1 EX baritone, finished in black with Tony Iommi signature pickups. Corgan also endorsed Reverend Guitars in his "Zwan" era, most notably playing a Reverend Slingshot.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In 2008 Corgan released to the market his own Fender Stratocaster. This new guitar was made to Corgan's exact specs to create his famous mid-'90s buzzsaw tone; the instrument features three DiMarzio pickups (two custom for this instrument), a string-through hardtail bridge and a satin nitrocellulose lacquer finish. When playing live, he uses both his signature Strats as well as two other Fender Strats, one in red with a white pick guard and one in silver-grey with a black pick guard; a Gibson Tony Iommi signature SG; and his Schecter C-1 (only used on the "Zeitgeist" song "United States").


title: Billy Corgan

text: A video called 'Stompland' on the official Smashing Pumpkins YouTube channel is informative on Corgan's choice of effects pedals. In the video he reveals an extensive collection of pedals used throughout his career with the Smashing Pumpkins. Corgan's tone is often characterized by his use of fuzz pedals, particularly vintage versions of the Electro-Harmonix Big Muff


title: Billy Corgan

text: In 2016 Reverend Guitars released the BC-1 Billy Corgan signature guitar featuring Railhammer Billy Corgan signature pickups.


title: Billy Corgan

text: The Reverend Billy Corgan Signature Terz was launched at the 2018 NAMM show—an electric version of a 19th-century instrument that is played as if the guitar is capoed at the third fret, and tuned G-g standard. Corgan often uses the capo at the third fret and asked for a higher-register guitar.


title: Billy Corgan

text: Corgan is noted for having used Marshall and Diezel amps. He has also used modular preamps based on many different amps in conjunction with Mesa Boogie poweramps. The preamps were custom built by Salvation Mods.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In August 2017, Corgan sold a large collection of instruments and gear used throughout his career via music gear website Reverb.


title: Billy Corgan

text: In 2020, Billy Corgan collaborated with Brian Carstens of Carstens Amplification to produce Grace, Billy's first and only signature guitar amplifier to date.


title: Gil Birmingham

text: Gil Birmingham (born July 13, 1953) is an American actor known for his role as Tribal Chairman Thomas Rainwater in the Paramount Network's television series "Yellowstone". He is also known for his portrayal of Billy Black in "The Twilight Saga" film series and recurring television roles as George Hunter in "Banshee" and Virgil White in "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt".


title: Gil Birmingham

text: Birmingham was born in San Antonio, Texas. He identifies his father as being of Comanche descent. His family moved frequently during his childhood due to his father's career in the military. Birmingham learned to play the guitar at an early age and considers music to be his "first love." After obtaining a Bachelor of Science from the USC Price School of Public Policy, he worked as a petrochemical engineer, but later decided to become an actor.


title: Gil Birmingham

text: In the early 1980s, a talent scout spotted Birmingham at a local gym, where he had been bodybuilding and entering bodybuilding contests. He was recruited for his first acting experience, in a music video for Diana Ross, for her 1982 hit song "Muscles".


title: Gil Birmingham

text: After appearing in Ross' music video, Birmingham began to pursue acting as his primary career. He studied acting with Larry Moss and Charles Conrad. He portrayed the character of Conan the Barbarian in Universal Studios Hollywood's theme park attraction "".


title: Gil Birmingham

text: In 1986, Birmingham made his television debut on an episode of the series "Riptide". By 2002, he had a recurring role as the character Oz in the medical drama "Body & Soul", starring Peter Strauss. In 2005, he was cast as the older Dogstar in the Steven Spielberg six-part miniseries "Into the West".


title: Gil Birmingham

text: He has appeared in a number of television series, including "Animal Kingdom", "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", "Veronica Mars", "10 Items or Less", "Nip/Tuck", "Castle", "The Mentalist", "House of Cards", "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" and "Siren". He has also had roles in several television films, such as "Gentle Ben" (with Dean Cain) and "Gentle Ben 2", "Dreamkeeper", "The Lone Ranger", and "Love's Long Journey" (with Erin Cottrell and Irene Bedard).


title: Gil Birmingham

text: In 2001, Birmingham appeared in his first feature film, "The Doe Boy", in which he portrayed Manny Deadmarsh.


title: Gil Birmingham

text: In 2008, Birmingham was cast as the character Billy Black in "The Twilight Saga" film series. He performed in all five of the films.


title: Gil Birmingham

text: The "Twilight" series has led to roles in other major film roles, including that of Sheriff Johnny Cortez in "Love Ranch" (with Joe Pesci and Helen Mirren), and Cal Bishnik in "Shouting Secrets" (with "" castmate Chaske Spencer). In September 2011, Birmingham appeared in the film "Crooked Arrows", cast in the role of Ben Logan.


title: Gil Birmingham

text: Birmingham voiced Wounded Bird in the animated film "Rango" and has provided voice work for the television series "The Wild Thornberrys" (in which he voiced an Inuit elder) and the film "Night at the Museum".


title: Gil Birmingham

text: He played the partnering Texas Ranger to Jeff Bridges' character in the 2016 bank robbery film "Hell or High Water".


title: Gil Birmingham

text: In the Chickasaw Nation production of "Te Ata", Birmingham plays Thomas Benjamin 'T.B.' Thompson, Mary Frances 'Te Ata' (Thompson) Fisher's father. Birmingham attended the film's premiere in Moore, Oklahoma, on September 13, 2016.


title: Gil Birmingham

text: He was featured in "The Space Between Us" as Shaman Neka, which was released on February 3, 2017. He was featured as the father of a girl who dies on an Arapaho reservation in the 2017 film "Wind River".


title: Gil Birmingham

text: In February 2021, it was announced that Birmingham was cast as Charlie Bass in the upcoming Netflix thriller series "Pieces of Her", which is adapted from the Karin Slaughter novel of the same name.


title: Cannabis

text: Cannabis () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: "Cannabis sativa", "C. indica", and "C. ruderalis". Alternatively, "C. ruderalis" may be included within "C. sativa", all three may be treated as subspecies of "C. sativa", or "C. sativa" may be accepted as a single undivided species. The genus is widely accepted as being indigenous to and originating from Asia.


title: Cannabis

text: The plant is also known as hemp, although this term is often used to refer only to varieties of "Cannabis" cultivated for non-drug use. Cannabis has long been used for hemp fibre, hemp seeds and their oils, hemp leaves for use as vegetables and as juice, medicinal purposes, and as a recreational drug. Industrial hemp products are made from cannabis plants selected to produce an abundance of fibre. Various cannabis strains have been bred, often selectively to produce high or low levels of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), a cannabinoid and the plant's principal psychoactive constituent. Compounds such as hashish and hash oil are extracted from the plant.


title: Cannabis

text: Cannabis is an annual, dioecious, flowering herb. The leaves are palmately compound or digitate, with serrate leaflets. The first pair of leaves usually have a single leaflet, the number gradually increasing up to a maximum of about thirteen leaflets per leaf (usually seven or nine), depending on variety and growing conditions. At the top of a flowering plant, this number again diminishes to a single leaflet per leaf. The lower leaf pairs usually occur in an opposite leaf arrangement and the upper leaf pairs in an alternate arrangement on the main stem of a mature plant.


title: Cannabis

text: The leaves have a peculiar and diagnostic venation pattern (which varies slightly among varieties) that allows for easy identification of cannabis leaves from unrelated species with similar leaves. As is common in serrated leaves, each serration has a central vein extending to its tip, but in cannabis this originates from lower down the central vein of the leaflet, typically opposite to the position of the second notch down. This means that on its way from the midrib of the leaflet to the point of the serration, the vein serving the tip of the serration passes close by the intervening notch. Sometimes the vein will pass tangentially to the notch, but often will pass by at a small distance; when the latter happens a spur vein (or occasionally two) branches off and joins the leaf margin at the deepest point of the notch. Tiny samples of "Cannabis" also can be identified with precision by microscopic examination of leaf cells and similar features, requiring special equipment and expertise.


title: Cannabis

text: All known strains of "Cannabis" are wind-pollinated and the fruit is an achene. Most strains of "Cannabis" are short day plants, with the possible exception of "C. sativa" subsp. "sativa" var. "spontanea" (= "C. ruderalis"), which is commonly described as "auto-flowering" and may be day-neutral.


title: Cannabis

text: "Cannabis" is predominantly dioecious, having imperfect flowers, with staminate "male" and pistillate "female" flowers occurring on separate plants. "At a very early period the Chinese recognized the "Cannabis" plant as dioecious", and the (c. 3rd century BCE) "Erya" dictionary defined "xi" "male "Cannabis"" and "fu" (or "ju" ) "female "Cannabis"". Male flowers are normally borne on loose panicles, and female flowers are borne on racemes.


title: Cannabis

text: Many monoecious varieties have also been described, in which individual plants bear both male and female flowers. (Although monoecious plants are often referred to as "hermaphrodites", true hermaphrodites – which are less common in "Cannabis" – bear staminate and pistillate structures together on individual flowers, whereas monoecious plants bear male and female flowers at different locations on the same plant.) Subdioecy (the occurrence of monoecious individuals and dioecious individuals within the same population) is widespread. Many populations have been described as sexually labile.


title: Cannabis

text: As a result of intensive selection in cultivation, "Cannabis" exhibits many sexual phenotypes that can be described in terms of the ratio of female to male flowers occurring in the individual, or typical in the cultivar. Dioecious varieties are preferred for drug production, where the fruits (produced by female flowers) are used. Dioecious varieties are also preferred for textile fiber production, whereas monoecious varieties are preferred for pulp and paper production. It has been suggested that the presence of monoecy can be used to differentiate licit crops of monoecious hemp from illicit drug crops, but "sativa" strains often produce monoecious individuals, which is possibly as a result of inbreeding.


title: Cannabis

text: "Cannabis" has been described as having one of the most complicated mechanisms of sex determination among the dioecious plants. Many models have been proposed to explain sex determination in "Cannabis".


title: Cannabis

text: Based on studies of sex reversal in hemp, it was first reported by K. Hirata in 1924 that an XY sex-determination system is present. At the time, the XY system was the only known system of sex determination. The X:A system was first described in Drosophila spp in 1925. Soon thereafter, Schaffner disputed Hirata's interpretation, and published results from his own studies of sex reversal in hemp, concluding that an X:A system was in use and that furthermore sex was strongly influenced by environmental conditions.


title: Cannabis

text: Since then, many different types of sex determination systems have been discovered, particularly in plants. Dioecy is relatively uncommon in the plant kingdom, and a very low percentage of dioecious plant species have been determined to use the XY system. In most cases where the XY system is found it is believed to have evolved recently and independently.


title: Cannabis

text: Since the 1920s, a number of sex determination models have been proposed for "Cannabis". Ainsworth describes sex determination in the genus as using "an X/autosome dosage type".


title: Cannabis

text: The question of whether heteromorphic sex chromosomes are indeed present is most conveniently answered if such chromosomes were clearly visible in a karyotype. "Cannabis" was one of the first plant species to be karyotyped; however, this was in a period when karyotype preparation was primitive by modern standards. Heteromorphic sex chromosomes were reported to occur in staminate individuals of dioecious "Kentucky" hemp, but were not found in pistillate individuals of the same variety. Dioecious "Kentucky" hemp was assumed to use an XY mechanism. Heterosomes were not observed in analyzed individuals of monoecious "Kentucky" hemp, nor in an unidentified German cultivar. These varieties were assumed to have sex chromosome composition XX. According to other researchers, no modern karyotype of "Cannabis" had been published as of 1996. Proponents of the XY system state that Y chromosome is slightly larger than the X, but difficult to differentiate cytologically.


title: Cannabis

text: More recently, Sakamoto and various co-authors have used random amplification of polymorphic DNA (RAPD) to isolate several genetic marker sequences that they name Male-Associated DNA in "Cannabis" (MADC), and which they interpret as indirect evidence of a male chromosome. Several other research groups have reported identification of male-associated markers using RAPD and amplified fragment length polymorphism. Ainsworth commented on these findings, stating,


title: Cannabis

text: Environmental sex determination is known to occur in a variety of species. Many researchers have suggested that sex in "Cannabis" is determined or strongly influenced by environmental factors. Ainsworth reviews that treatment with auxin and ethylene have feminizing effects, and that treatment with cytokinins and gibberellins have masculinizing effects. It has been reported that sex can be reversed in "Cannabis" using chemical treatment. A polymerase chain reaction-based method for the detection of female-associated DNA polymorphisms by genotyping has been developed.


title: Cannabis

text: "Cannabis" plants produce a large number of chemicals as part of their defense against herbivory. One group of these is called cannabinoids, which induce mental and physical effects when consumed.


title: Cannabis

text: Cannabinoids, terpenoids, and other compounds are secreted by glandular trichomes that occur most abundantly on the floral calyxes and bracts of female plants.


title: Cannabis

text: "Cannabis", like many organisms, is diploid, having a chromosome complement of 2n=20, although polyploid individuals have been artificially produced. The first genome sequence of "Cannabis", which is estimated to be 820 Mb in size, was published in 2011 by a team of Canadian scientists.


title: Cannabis

text: The genus "Cannabis" was formerly placed in the nettle family (Urticaceae) or mulberry family (Moraceae), and later, along with the genus "Humulus" (hops), in a separate family, the hemp family (Cannabaceae sensu stricto). Recent phylogenetic studies based on cpDNA restriction site analysis and gene sequencing strongly suggest that the Cannabaceae sensu stricto arose from within the former family Celtidaceae, and that the two families should be merged to form a single monophyletic family, the Cannabaceae sensu lato.


title: Cannabis

text: Various types of "Cannabis" have been described, and variously classified as species, subspecies, or varieties:


title: Cannabis

text: "Cannabis" plants produce a unique family of terpeno-phenolic compounds called cannabinoids, some of which produce the "high" which may be experienced from consuming marijuana. There are 483 identifiable chemical constituents known to exist in the cannabis plant, and at least 85 different cannabinoids have been isolated from the plant. The two cannabinoids usually produced in greatest abundance are cannabidiol (CBD) and/or Δ-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), but only THC is psychoactive. Since the early 1970s, "Cannabis" plants have been categorized by their chemical phenotype or "chemotype", based on the overall amount of THC produced, and on the ratio of THC to CBD. Although overall cannabinoid production is influenced by environmental factors, the THC/CBD ratio is genetically determined and remains fixed throughout the life of a plant. Non-drug plants produce relatively low levels of THC and high levels of CBD, while drug plants produce high levels of THC and low levels of CBD. When plants of these two chemotypes cross-pollinate, the plants in the first filial (F) generation have an intermediate chemotype and produce intermediate amounts of CBD and THC. Female plants of this chemotype may produce enough THC to be utilized for drug production.


title: Cannabis

text: Whether the drug and non-drug, cultivated and wild types of "Cannabis" constitute a single, highly variable species, or the genus is polytypic with more than one species, has been a subject of debate for well over two centuries. This is a contentious issue because there is no universally accepted definition of a species. One widely applied criterion for species recognition is that species are "groups of actually or potentially interbreeding natural populations which are reproductively isolated from other such groups." Populations that are physiologically capable of interbreeding, but morphologically or genetically divergent and isolated by geography or ecology, are sometimes considered to be separate species. Physiological barriers to reproduction are not known to occur within "Cannabis", and plants from widely divergent sources are interfertile. However, physical barriers to gene exchange (such as the Himalayan mountain range) might have enabled "Cannabis" gene pools to diverge before the onset of human intervention, resulting in speciation. It remains controversial whether sufficient morphological and genetic divergence occurs within the genus as a result of geographical or ecological isolation to justify recognition of more than one species.


title: Cannabis

text: The genus "Cannabis" was first classified using the "modern" system of taxonomic nomenclature by Carl Linnaeus in 1753, who devised the system still in use for the naming of species. He considered the genus to be monotypic, having just a single species that he named "Cannabis sativa" L. (L. stands for Linnaeus, and indicates the authority who first named the species). Linnaeus was familiar with European hemp, which was widely cultivated at the time. In 1785, noted evolutionary biologist Jean-Baptiste de Lamarck published a description of a second species of "Cannabis", which he named "Cannabis indica" Lam. Lamarck based his description of the newly named species on plant specimens collected in India. He described "C. indica" as having poorer fiber quality than "C. sativa", but greater utility as an inebriant. Additional "Cannabis" species were proposed in the 19th century, including strains from China and Vietnam (Indo-China) assigned the names "Cannabis chinensis" Delile, and "Cannabis gigantea" Delile ex Vilmorin. However, many taxonomists found these putative species difficult to distinguish. In the early 20th century, the single-species concept was still widely accepted, except in the Soviet Union where "Cannabis" continued to be the subject of active taxonomic study. The name "Cannabis indica" was listed in various Pharmacopoeias, and was widely used to designate "Cannabis" suitable for the manufacture of medicinal preparations.


title: Cannabis

text: In 1924, Russian botanist D.E. Janichevsky concluded that ruderal "Cannabis" in central Russia is either a variety of "C. sativa" or a separate species, and proposed "C. sativa" L. var. "ruderalis" Janisch, and "Cannabis ruderalis" Janisch, as alternative names. In 1929, renowned plant explorer Nikolai Vavilov assigned wild or feral populations of "Cannabis" in Afghanistan to "C. indica" Lam. var. "kafiristanica" Vav., and ruderal populations in Europe to "C. sativa" L. var. "spontanea" Vav. In 1940, Russian botanists Serebriakova and Sizov proposed a complex classification in which they also recognized "C. sativa" and "C. indica" as separate species. Within "C. sativa" they recognized two subspecies: "C. sativa" L. subsp. "culta" Serebr. (consisting of cultivated plants), and "C. sativa" L. subsp. "spontanea" (Vav.) Serebr. (consisting of wild or feral plants). Serebriakova and Sizov split the two "C. sativa" subspecies into 13 varieties, including four distinct groups within subspecies "culta". However, they did not divide "C. indica" into subspecies or varieties.


title: Cannabis

text: In the 1970s, the taxonomic classification of "Cannabis" took on added significance in North America. Laws prohibiting "Cannabis" in the United States and Canada specifically named products of "C. sativa" as prohibited materials. Enterprising attorneys for the defense in a few drug busts argued that the seized "Cannabis" material may not have been "C. sativa", and was therefore not prohibited by law. Attorneys on both sides recruited botanists to provide expert testimony. Among those testifying for the prosecution was Dr. Ernest Small, while Dr. Richard E. Schultes and others testified for the defense. The botanists engaged in heated debate (outside of court), and both camps impugned the other's integrity. The defense attorneys were not often successful in winning their case, because the intent of the law was clear.


title: Cannabis

text: In 1976, Canadian botanist Ernest Small and American taxonomist Arthur Cronquist published a taxonomic revision that recognizes a single species of "Cannabis" with two subspecies and two varieties in each. The framework is thus:


title: Cannabis

text: This classification was based on several factors including interfertility, chromosome uniformity, chemotype, and numerical analysis of phenotypic characters.


title: Cannabis

text: Professors William Emboden, Loran Anderson, and Harvard botanist Richard E. Schultes and coworkers also conducted taxonomic studies of "Cannabis" in the 1970s, and concluded that stable morphological differences exist that support recognition of at least three species, "C. sativa", "C. indica", and "C. ruderalis." For Schultes, this was a reversal of his previous interpretation that "Cannabis" is monotypic, with only a single species. According to Schultes' and Anderson's descriptions, "C. sativa" is tall and laxly branched with relatively narrow leaflets, "C. indica" is shorter, conical in shape, and has relatively wide leaflets, and "C. ruderalis" is short, branchless, and grows wild in Central Asia. This taxonomic interpretation was embraced by "Cannabis" aficionados who commonly distinguish narrow-leafed "sativa" strains from wide-leafed "indica" strains. McPartland's review finds the Schultes taxonomy inconsistent with prior work (protologs) and partly responsible for the popular usage.


title: Cannabis

text: Molecular analytical techniques developed in the late 20th century are being applied to questions of taxonomic classification. This has resulted in many reclassifications based on evolutionary systematics. Several studies of random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and other types of genetic markers have been conducted on drug and fiber strains of "Cannabis", primarily for plant breeding and forensic purposes. Dutch "Cannabis" researcher E.P.M. de Meijer and coworkers described some of their RAPD studies as showing an "extremely high" degree of genetic polymorphism between and within populations, suggesting a high degree of potential variation for selection, even in heavily selected hemp cultivars. They also commented that these analyses confirm the continuity of the "Cannabis" gene pool throughout the studied accessions, and provide further confirmation that the genus consists of a single species, although theirs was not a systematic study "per se".


title: Cannabis

text: An investigation of genetic, morphological, and chemotaxonomic variation among 157 "Cannabis" accessions of known geographic origin, including fiber, drug, and feral populations showed cannabinoid variation in "Cannabis" germplasm. The patterns of cannabinoid variation support recognition of "C. sativa" and "C. indica" as separate species, but not "C. ruderalis". "C. sativa" contains fiber and seed landraces, and feral populations, derived from Europe, Central Asia, and Turkey. Narrow-leaflet and wide-leaflet drug accessions, southern and eastern Asian hemp accessions, and feral Himalayan populations were assigned to "C. indica". In 2005, a genetic analysis of the same set of accessions led to a three-species classification, recognizing "C. sativa", "C. indica", and (tentatively) "C. ruderalis". Another paper in the series on chemotaxonomic variation in the terpenoid content of the essential oil of "Cannabis" revealed that several wide-leaflet drug strains in the collection had relatively high levels of certain sesquiterpene alcohols, including guaiol and isomers of eudesmol, that set them apart from the other putative taxa.


title: Cannabis

text: An 2020 analysis of single-nucleotide polymorphisms reports five clusters of "Cannabis", roughly corresponding to hemps (including folk "Ruderalis"), folk "Indica", and folk "Sativa".


title: Cannabis

text: Despite advanced analytical techniques, much of the cannabis used recreationally is inaccurately classified. One laboratory at the University of British Columbia found that Jamaican Lamb's Bread, claimed to be 100% sativa, was in fact almost 100% indica (the opposite strain). Legalization of cannabis in Canada () may help spur private-sector research, especially in terms of diversification of strains. It should also improve classification accuracy for cannabis used recreationally. Legalization coupled with Canadian government (Health Canada) oversight of production and labelling will likely result in more—and more accurate—testing to determine exact strains and content. Furthermore, the rise of craft cannabis growers in Canada should ensure quality, experimentation/research, and diversification of strains among private-sector producers.


title: Cannabis

text: The scientific debate regarding taxonomy has had little effect on the terminology in widespread use among cultivators and users of drug-type "Cannabis". "Cannabis" aficionados recognize three distinct types based on such factors as morphology, native range, aroma, and subjective psychoactive characteristics. "Sativa" is the most widespread variety, which is usually tall, laxly branched, and found in warm lowland regions. "Indica" designates shorter, bushier plants adapted to cooler climates and highland environments. "Ruderalis" is the informal name for the short plants that grow wild in Europe and Central Asia.


title: Cannabis

text: Mapping the morphological concepts to scientific names in the Small 1976 framework, "Sativa" generally refers to "C. sativa" subsp. "indica" var. "indica", "Indica" generally refers to "C. sativa" subsp. "i." "kafiristanica" (also known as "afghanica"), and "Ruderalis", being lower in THC, is the one that can fall into "C. sativa" subsp. "sativa". The three names fit in Schultes's framework better, if one overlooks its inconsistencies with prior work. Definitions of the three terms using factors other than morphology produces different, often conflicting results.


title: Cannabis

text: Breeders, seed companies, and cultivators of drug type "Cannabis" often describe the ancestry or gross phenotypic characteristics of cultivars by categorizing them as "pure indica", "mostly indica", "indica/sativa", "mostly sativa", or "pure sativa". These categories are highly arbitrary, however: one "AK-47" hybrid strain has received both "Best Sativa" and "Best Indica" awards.


title: Cannabis

text: "Cannabis" likely split from its closest relative, "Humulus" (hops), during the mid Oligocene, around 27.8 million years ago according to molecular clock estimates. The centre of origin of "Cannabis" is likely in the northeastern Tibetan Plateau. The pollen of "Humulus" and "Cannabis" are very similar and difficult to distinguish. The oldest pollen thought to be from "Cannabis" is from Ningxia, China, on the boundary between the Tibetan Plateau and the Loess Plateau, dating to the early Miocene, around 19.6 million years ago. "Cannabis" was widely distributed over Asia by the Late Pleistocene. The oldest known "Cannabis" in South Asia dates to around 32,000 years ago.


title: Cannabis

text: The word "cannabis" is from Greek (') (see Latin '), which was originally Scythian or Thracian. It is related to the Persian "kanab", the English "canvas" and possibly the English "hemp" (Old English "").


title: Cannabis

text: According to genetic and archaeological evidence, cannabis was first domesticated about 12,000 years ago in East Asia during the early Neolithic period. The use of cannabis as a mind-altering drug has been documented by archaeological finds in prehistoric societies in Eurasia and Africa. The oldest written record of cannabis usage is the Greek historian Herodotus's reference to the central Eurasian Scythians taking cannabis steam baths. His () "Histories" records, "The Scythians, as I said, take some of this hemp-seed [presumably, flowers], and, creeping under the felt coverings, throw it upon the red-hot stones; immediately it smokes, and gives out such a vapour as no Greek vapour-bath can exceed; the Scyths, delighted, shout for joy." Classical Greeks and Romans also used cannabis.


title: Cannabis

text: In China, the psychoactive properties of cannabis are described in the "Shennong Bencaojing" (3rd century AD). Cannabis smoke was inhaled by Daoists, who burned it in incense burners.


title: Cannabis

text: In the Middle East, use spread throughout the Islamic empire to North Africa. In 1545, cannabis spread to the western hemisphere where Spaniards imported it to Chile for its use as fiber. In North America, cannabis, in the form of hemp, was grown for use in rope, cloth and paper.


title: Cannabis

text: Cannabinol (CBN) was the first compound to be isolated from cannabis extract in the late 1800s. Its structure and chemical synthesis were achieved by 1940, followed by some of the first preclinical research studies to determine the effects of individual cannabis-derived compounds in vivo.


title: Cannabis

text: Cannabis is a popular recreational drug around the world, only behind alcohol, caffeine, and tobacco. In the U.S. alone, it is believed that over 100 million Americans have tried cannabis, with 25 million Americans having used it within the past year. As a drug it usually comes in the form of dried infructescences ("buds" or "marijuana"), resin (hashish), or various extracts collectively known as hash oil. During the 20th century, it became illegal in most of the world to cultivate or possess "Cannabis" for sale, and even sometimes for personal use.


title: Cannabis

text: The psychoactive effects of "cannabis" are known to have a triphasic nature. Primary psychoactive effects include a state of relaxation, and to a lesser degree, euphoria from its main psychoactive compound, THC. Secondary psychoactive effects, such as a facility for philosophical thinking, introspection and metacognition have been reported among cases of anxiety and paranoia. Finally, the tertiary psychoactive effects of the drug cannabis, can include an increase in heart rate and hunger, believed to be caused by 11-OH-THC, a psychoactive metabolite of THC produced in the liver.


title: Cannabis

text: Normal cognition is restored after approximately three hours for larger doses via a smoking pipe, bong or vaporizer. However, if a large amount is taken orally the effects may last much longer. After 24 hours to a few days, minuscule psychoactive effects may be felt, depending on dosage, frequency and tolerance to the drug.


title: Cannabis

text: Various forms of the drug cannabis exist, including extracts such as hashish and hash oil which, because of appearance, are more susceptible to adulterants when left unregulated.


title: Cannabis

text: Cannabidiol (CBD), which has no intoxicating effects by itself (although sometimes showing a small stimulant effect, similar to caffeine), is thought to attenuate (i.e., reduce) the anxiety-inducing effects of high doses of THC, particularly if administered orally prior to THC exposure.


title: Cannabis

text: According to Delphic analysis by British researchers in 2007, cannabis has a lower risk factor for dependence compared to both nicotine and alcohol. However, everyday use of cannabis may be correlated with psychological withdrawal symptoms, such as irritability or insomnia, and susceptibility to a panic attack may increase as levels of THC metabolites rise. Cannabis withdrawal symptoms are typically mild and are not life-threatening. Risk of adverse outcomes from cannabis use may be reduced by implementation of evidence-based education and intervention tools communicated to the public with practical regulation measures.


title: Cannabis

text: In 2014 there were an estimated 182.5 million cannabis users worldwide (3.8% of the global population aged 15–64). This percentage did not change significantly between 1998 and 2014.


title: Cannabis

text: Medical cannabis (or medical marijuana) refers to the use of cannabis and its constituent cannabinoids, in an effort to treat disease or improve symptoms. Cannabis is used to reduce nausea and vomiting during chemotherapy, to improve appetite in people with HIV/AIDS, and to treat chronic pain and muscle spasms. Cannabinoids are under preliminary research for their potential to affect stroke. Evidence is lacking for depression, anxiety, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, Tourette syndrome, post-traumatic stress disorder, and psychosis. Two extracts of cannabis – dronabinol and nabilone – are approved by the FDA as medications in pill form for treating the side effects of chemotherapy and AIDS.


title: Cannabis

text: Short-term use increases both minor and major adverse effects. Common side effects include dizziness, feeling tired, vomiting, and hallucinations. Long-term effects of cannabis are not clear. Concerns including memory and cognition problems, risk of addiction, schizophrenia in young people, and the risk of children taking it by accident.


title: Cannabis

text: The term "hemp" is used to name the durable soft fiber from the "Cannabis" plant stem (stalk). "Cannabis sativa" cultivars are used for fibers due to their long stems; Sativa varieties may grow more than six metres tall. However, "hemp" can refer to any industrial or foodstuff product that is not intended for use as a drug. Many countries regulate limits for psychoactive compound (THC) concentrations in products labeled as hemp.


title: Cannabis

text: Cannabis for industrial uses is valuable in tens of thousands of commercial products, especially as fibre ranging from paper, cordage, construction material and textiles in general, to clothing. Hemp is stronger and longer-lasting than cotton. It also is a useful source of foodstuffs (hemp milk, hemp seed, hemp oil) and biofuels. Hemp has been used by many civilizations, from China to Europe (and later North America) during the last 12,000 years. In modern times novel applications and improvements have been explored with modest commercial success.


title: Cannabis

text: In the US, "industrial hemp" is classified by the federal government as cannabis containing no more than 0.3% THC by dry weight. This classification was established in the 2018 Farm Bill and was refined to include hemp-sourced extracts, cannabinoids, and derivatives in the definition of hemp.


title: Cannabis

text: The Cannabis plant has a history of medicinal use dating back thousands of years across many cultures. The Yanghai Tombs, a vast ancient cemetery (54 000 m) situated in the Turfan district of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in northwest China, have revealed the 2700-year-old grave of a shaman. He is thought to have belonged to the Jushi culture recorded in the area centuries later in the "Hanshu", Chap 96B. Near the head and foot of the shaman was a large leather basket and wooden bowl filled with 789g of cannabis, superbly preserved by climatic and burial conditions. An international team demonstrated that this material contained THC. The cannabis was presumably employed by this culture as a medicinal or psychoactive agent, or an aid to divination. This is the oldest documentation of cannabis as a pharmacologically active agent. The earliest evidence of cannabis smoking has been found in the 2,500-year-old tombs of Jirzankal Cemetery in the Pamir Mountains in Western China, where cannabis residue were found in burners with charred pebbles possibly used during funeral rituals.


title: Cannabis

text: Settlements which date from c. 2200–1700 BCE in the Bactria and Margiana contained elaborate ritual structures with rooms containing everything needed for making drinks containing extracts from poppy (opium), hemp (cannabis), and ephedra (which contains ephedrine). Although there is no evidence of ephedra being used by steppe tribes, they engaged in cultic use of hemp. Cultic use ranged from Romania to the Yenisei River and had begun by 3rd millennium BC Smoking hemp has been found at Pazyryk.


title: Cannabis

text: "Cannabis" is first referred to in Hindu Vedas between 2000 and 1400 BCE, in the "Atharvaveda". By the 10th century CE, it has been suggested that it was referred to by some in India as "food of the gods". Cannabis use eventually became a ritual part of the Hindu festival of Holi. One of the earliest to use this plant in medical purposes was Korakkar, one of the 18 Siddhas. The plant is called "Korakkar Mooli" in the Tamil language, meaning Korakkar's herb.


title: Cannabis

text: In Buddhism, cannabis is generally regarded as an intoxicant and may be a hindrance to development of meditation and clear awareness. In ancient Germanic culture, "Cannabis" was associated with the Norse love goddess, Freya. An anointing oil mentioned in Exodus is, by some translators, said to contain "Cannabis". Sufis have used "Cannabis" in a spiritual context since the 13th century CE.


title: Cannabis

text: In modern times, the Rastafari movement has embraced "Cannabis" as a sacrament. Elders of the Ethiopian Zion Coptic Church, a religious movement founded in the U.S. in 1975 with no ties to either Ethiopia or the Coptic Church, consider "Cannabis" to be the Eucharist, claiming it as an oral tradition from Ethiopia dating back to the time of Christ. Like the Rastafari, some modern Gnostic Christian sects have asserted that "Cannabis" is the Tree of Life. Other organized religions founded in the 20th century that treat "Cannabis" as a sacrament are the THC Ministry, Cantheism, the Cannabis Assembly and the Church of Cognizance.


title: Cannabis

text: Cannabis is frequently used among Sufis – the mystical interpretation of Islam that exerts strong influence over local Muslim practices in Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Turkey, and Pakistan. Cannabis preparations are frequently used at Sufi festivals in those countries. Pakistan's Shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar in Sindh province is particularly renowned for the widespread use of cannabis at the shrine's celebrations, especially its annual "Urs" festival and Thursday evening "dhamaal" sessions – or meditative dancing sessions.


title: Crazy, Stupid, Love

text: Crazy, Stupid, Love is a 2011 American romantic comedy film directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa, written by Dan Fogelman and starring Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, Julianne Moore, Emma Stone, Marisa Tomei and Kevin Bacon. It follows a recently separated man who seeks to rediscover his manhood and is taught how to pick up women at bars.


title: Crazy, Stupid, Love

text: The film was released in the United States by Warner Bros. Pictures on July 29, 2011, grossing over $142 million against its $50 million budget and was well-received by critics. Gosling was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for his performance.


title: Crazy, Stupid, Love

text: Cal Weaver is a middle-aged man whose wife Emily asks for a divorce after she reveals an affair she had with co-worker David Lindhagen. After moving into his own apartment, Cal begins frequenting an upscale bar, talking loudly about his divorce, until he attracts the attention of a young man named Jacob Palmer. Jacob, a womanizer who beds different women each night, was recently rejected by a woman named Hannah. Jacob takes pity on Cal and offers to teach him how to pick up women. After a few awkward attempts to talk to women, Cal seduces Kate at the bar. This experience gives Cal the confidence to approach other women, and Cal begins to emulate Jacob's example successfully.


title: Crazy, Stupid, Love

text: Eventually, Cal and Emily reunite at their 13-year-old son Robbie's parent-teacher conference, where Emily is impressed by Cal's newfound confidence and fitted clothes. Their reunion goes well until Robbie's teacher is revealed as Kate, who shares with Emily that she and Cal have had sex. Cal inadvertently confesses to having sex with nine women since their separation and Emily leaves in disgust. Meanwhile, Hannah, a recent law school graduate, is offended by her boyfriend as he offered her a position as a permanent lawyer instead of proposing to her. She returns to the bar where she originally rejected Jacob's advances, finds him, and asks if he still wants to take her home. Jacob takes her back to his luxurious home, but instead of becoming physically intimate, they spend the night talking and laughing until they both fall asleep.


title: Crazy, Stupid, Love

text: Cal and Emily's son Robbie makes numerous grand gestures to try to win the heart of Jessica Riley, his 17-year-old babysitter, who has a crush on Cal. At the advice of a classmate, Jessica takes nude photos of herself, intending to send them to Cal. Emily calls Cal under the guise of needing help with the house's pilot light, but Cal sees through the ruse. Realizing that she called just because she missed him, Cal decides to win her back. Jacob returns Cal's calls and asks for advice about being in a real relationship and meeting his girlfriend's parents. Jessica's mother discovers the naked photos and Jessica's father, Bernie, rushes to the Weaver residence to confront him about the photos, with Jessica in pursuit. Cal and his kids create a makeshift mini golf set in their backyard to remind Emily of their first date. During the gathering, Jacob and Hannah show up at the house, and Hannah is revealed to be Cal and Emily's first daughter born to them right out of high school. Cal is appalled that Jacob is dating his daughter, and forbids her from seeing him. Bernie shows up and attacks Cal. Jessica arrives and tells her father that Cal knew nothing of the pictures. David arrives on the scene to return Emily's sweater from a previous date. When Jacob identifies him, he punches David in the face for the pain he caused Cal. Cal, Jacob, David, and Bernie then get into a scuffle which is soon broken up by the police. Cal starts spending time at the bar again and receives a visit from Jacob, who confesses that he is in love and has begun to re-evaluate his life as a result. Cal replies that he is happy that Jacob is a changed man but does not approve of Jacob and Hannah's relationship, having seen Jacob's former lifestyle. Jacob resigns without harboring any ill feelings; rather, he expresses his respect for Cal and praises him for being a great father.


title: Crazy, Stupid, Love

text: At Robbie's eighth grade graduation, Robbie is the salutatorian and gives a pessimistic speech about how he no longer believes in true love and soulmates. Cal stops him, and instead begins to recount his courtship with Emily to the audience, saying that, while he does not know if things will work out, he will never give up on Emily. With renewed faith, Robbie reaffirms his love for Jessica, to the audience's applause. After the ceremony, Cal gives Jacob and Hannah his blessing. Jessica gives Robbie an envelope containing the nude photos of herself that were originally intended for Cal to "get him through high school." Cal and Emily have a laugh talking about the events that have transpired the past year, and watching them from afar, Robbie smiles optimistically.


title: Crazy, Stupid, Love

text: Dan Fogelman started writing the screenplay in 2009 about love among a group of people. It is based on his own experiences and was written with Steve Carell in mind. After Fogelman sent it to his manager, within a week Carell read it and came aboard the project. In December 2009, Warner Bros. secured the rights of the then-untitled project for $2.5 million. In January 2010, the film was in pre-production. On March 16, 2010, Emma Stone was in negotiations to star in the film. On April 7, 2010, Lio Tipton was in final talks to appear in the film. On April 12, Kevin Bacon also joined the cast. It is the first project produced by Carell's Carousel Productions.


title: Crazy, Stupid, Love

text: Principal photography took place in and around Los Angeles, California. Filming started on April 16, 2010 and lasted for 53 days. Locations included Westfield Century City mall, Ventura Boulevard, Hollywood Hills where Jacob's house is located, Taft High School in Woodland Hills, Portola Middle School in Tarzana and Grant High School in Van Nuys, which stood for Robbie and Jessica's campuses, El Torito Grill at the Sherman Oaks Galleria and Equinox Fitness in Woodland Hills, which became the sports club featured in the film. Before editing, the original cut was three hours long.


title: Crazy, Stupid, Love

text: "Crazy, Stupid, Love" was released on DVD and Blu-ray on November 6, 2011. DVD sales grossed $19.8 million and Blu-ray sales $5.6 million.


title: Crazy, Stupid, Love

text: "Crazy, Stupid, Love" grossed $84.2 million in the United States and Canada and $58.5 million in other countries, for a worldwide total of $142.7 million, against its production of $50 million.


title: Crazy, Stupid, Love

text: On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 79% based on 235 reviews and an average rating of 6.9/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "It never lives up to the first part of its title, but "Crazy, Stupid, Love"s unabashed sweetness – and its terrifically talented cast – more than make up for its flaws." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 68 out of 100 based on 40 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.


title: Crazy, Stupid, Love

text: Owen Gleiberman of "Entertainment Weekly" called it "Nothing more (or less) than an enchanting light comedy of romantic confusion... It's a movie that understands love because it understands pain." He gave it a grade "A". Roger Ebert gave "Crazy, Stupid, Love" 3 out of 4 stars and remarked that it "is a sweet romantic comedy about good-hearted people". A. O. Scott of "The New York Times" gave the film 4 out of 5 stars, and wrote: ""Crazy, Stupid, Love" is, on balance, remarkably sane and reasonably smart". Betsy Sharkey of the "Los Angeles Times" gave the film a 4 out of 5 review as well and said that it "conjures up the bittersweet magic of first loves, lasting loves, lost loves and all the loves in between".


title: Crazy, Stupid, Love

text: Some reviewers were less favorable, such as Christy Lemire at the Associated Press, who wrote that "it never gets crazy or stupid enough to make you truly fall in love with it", giving the film a 2 out of 4 rating. James Rocchi of MSN Movies was particularly critical, giving it 1 out of 5 and remarking that it is "a star-studded lump of fantasy and falsehood".


title: Gog and Magog

text: Gog and Magog (; , "Gōg ū-Māgōg") appear in the Hebrew Bible and the Quran as individuals, tribes, or lands. In Ezekiel 38, Gog is an individual and Magog is his land; in Genesis 10, Magog is a man and eponymous ancestor of a nation, but no Gog is mentioned; by the time of Jewish tradition had long since changed Ezekiel's "Gog "from" Magog" into "Gog "and" Magog".


title: Gog and Magog

text: The Gog prophecy is meant to be fulfilled at the approach of what is called the "end of days", but not necessarily the end of the world. Jewish eschatology viewed Gog and Magog as enemies to be defeated by the Messiah, which would usher in the age of the Messiah. Christianity's interpretation is more starkly apocalyptic, making Gog and Magog, here indicating nations rather than individuals, allies of Satan against God at the end of the millennium, as described in the Book of Revelation.


title: Gog and Magog

text: A legend was attached to Gog and Magog by the time of the Roman period, that the Gates of Alexander were erected by Alexander the Great to repel the tribe. Romanized Jewish historian Josephus knew them as the nation descended from Magog the Japhetite, as in Genesis, and explained them to be the Scythians. In the hands of Early Christian writers they became apocalyptic hordes. Throughout the Middle Ages, they were variously identified as the Vikings, Huns, Khazars, Mongols, Turanians or other nomads, or even the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel.


title: Gog and Magog

text: The legend of Gog and Magog and the gates were also interpolated into the Alexander romances. In one version, "Goth and Magothy" are kings of the Unclean Nations, driven beyond a mountain pass by Alexander, and blocked from returning by his new wall. Gog and Magog are said to engage in human cannibalism in the romances and derived literature. They have also been depicted on Medieval cosmological maps, or "mappae mundi", sometimes alongside Alexander's wall.