title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: At club level, Stoichkov spent six years at CSKA Sofia and became the top goalscorer in Europe in 1990, receiving the European Golden Shoe. In 1990, he joined Barcelona where he earned the Spanish nickname ""El Pistolero"" ("The Gunslinger"), and was part of Johan Cruyff's "Dream Team" that won four consecutive La Liga titles and the 1992 European Cup. During his time at the club, he formed a prolific strike partnership with Romário. Cruyff was largely instrumental in bringing him to Barcelona where he quickly developed into one of the most prolific forwards in the world.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: Stoichkov was a member of the Bulgaria national team that finished fourth at the 1994 FIFA World Cup, of which he was the top scorer with six goals and received the World Cup Golden Boot. He was ranked the third-best player at the World Cup, after Romário and Roberto Baggio, and received the World Cup Bronze Ball. Apart from his footballing talent, he was notable for his on-pitch temper. In his playing career, he was also nicknamed "The Dagger" (Камата).


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: Stoichkov began his football career playing for hometown club Maritsa Plovdiv at age 11. In 1982, he moved to Hebros Harmanli, scoring 14 goals in the third level of Bulgarian football.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: In early 1985, Stoichkov joined CSKA Sofia. At the beginning of his five-year stay at CSKA, Stoichkov (who later became famous for his short temper) became involved in a fight during the 1985 Bulgarian Cup Final, which resulted in an original lifelong ban, later reduced to an year suspension. He made his comeback for CSKA on 30 April 1986, in a 3–1 away win over Sliven in a game of the Cup of the Soviet Army. On 21 May, Stoichkov opened the scoring in the final of tournament against Lokomotiv Sofia, which CSKA won 2–0.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: He continued his progress during 1986–87, becoming a regular in the left side of CSKA's attack. Stoichkov collected his first A Group title winner's medal at the end of the season. He scored 6 league goals that season.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: Stoichkov managed to win the European Golden Boot with CSKA by scoring 38 goals in 30 matches during the 1989–90 A Group season.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: After five years with CSKA, Stoichkov transferred to Barcelona. In his first season with the club, Stoichkov was suspended for two months for stomping on a referee's foot, but he still scored 14 league goals and 6 more in the European Cup Winners' Cup. He became part of manager Johan Cruyff's "Dream Team" and helped Barcelona to one of the most successful eras of the club, winning La Liga four years in a row between 1991 and 1994 and the European Cup after defeating Sampdoria in 1992. During his stay in Barcelona, he became an idol for the club's fans, and played in tandem with Romário in attack. Stoichkov was also known for making sure Romario attended training sessions on time, as the latter often indulged in late-night fiestas. Stoichkov was twice named runner up for the FIFA World Player of the Year, in 1992 and 1994, and he won the 1994 Ballon d'Or after leading his national team to the 1994 World Cup semi-finals.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: Stoichkov then had a short spell in Italy with Parma scoring a total of seven goals and soon returned to FC Barcelona where he played until early '98. He also had a second stint with CSKA Sofia in the spring of 1998. In April 1998 he signed a two-match contract for Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr helping them win the Asian Cup Winners' Cup. In the semi-final against Kopetdag, he earned a penalty and assisted the winning goal and in the final against Suwon Bluewings, he scored the only goal in the 12th minute. For those two games Hristo received $200.000. He subsequently went in Japan to play with Kashiwa Reysol, before finishing his career in the United States with the Chicago Fire and D.C. United, winning the U.S. Open Cup (and scoring the first goal in the final) with the former.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: Stoichkov debuted for the Bulgaria national team in a UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying match against Belgium on 23 September 1987. He scored his first international goal in his fourth appearance, a 3–2 friendly defeat of Qatar in Doha.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: During qualification for the 1994 FIFA World Cup, Stoichkov scored five goals to help Bulgaria qualify for its first major tournament since the 1986 World Cup. At the tournament finals, Stoichkov was awarded the World Cup Golden Boot as the joint top goal scorer of the tournament (with Oleg Salenko), with six goals, as well as earning the Bronze Ball award. He led Bulgaria past Germany in the quarter-finals 2–1, a shock result as Germany were the then-defending champions. In the semi-finals, Bulgaria lost 2–1 to Italy. They subsequently lost the third place play-off to Sweden, 4–0.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: Bulgaria finished second in the qualifying group for Euro 1996 behind Germany. Stoichkov scored ten goals for his team during the qualifiers, as Bulgaria qualified as one of the best six runners-up. In the first match against Germany in Sofia, Bulgaria were 2–0 down at half-time. Stoichkov equalized with two goals from penalties and Emil Kostadinov also scored for a 3–2 win. Bulgaria lost the second match in Germany 3–1. During the finals, Bulgaria lost 3–1 in the decisive group match against a strong France side; in the other match, Spain won 2–1 against Romania and so the Bulgarians went out. In that tournament, Stoichkov scored three goals in three matches.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: He was also part of the squad that was eliminated in the first round of the 1998 World Cup. Bulgaria was not nearly as strong as in previous years, earning only one point in a 0–0 draw against Paraguay and scoring only one goal through Kostadinov in a 6–1 defeat by Spain. Stoichkov retired from internationals in 1999 with 37 goals in 83 appearances. His last game was during the Euro 2000 Qualification against England which ended 1-1 and Stoichkov assisted Georgi Markov for the equalizer goal from free kick goal. In the same game he was substituted with Martin Petrov for whom it was debut with Bulgarian shirt. Ironically both are Bulgaria's only Goalscorers in a UEFA Euro Tournament, Stoichkov was the only Goalscorer in 1996 with 3 Goals while Petrov in 2004 in the 2–1 loss against Italy. Bulgaria failed to Qualify for the Euro 2000 in Belgium and the Netherlands after the game, as they needed a win to have chances to qualify.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: Stoichkov had explosive pace, and was a creative, tenacious and prolific left-footed forward who was primarily deployed as a striker, but was also capable of playing in a creative role, as an attacking midfielder, due to his ability to provide assists for teammates. He was also deployed as a supporting striker throughout his career, forming a strike partnership with Romário at Barcelona, and occasionally he played as a right winger during his time at the club, although he was also capable of playing on the left or through the middle. In his early years he also used to play as a left full-back. A powerful, physically strong and technically gifted player, Stoichkov was known for his explosive acceleration, and his dribbling ability at speed, as well as for his tendency to take unpredictable, powerful shots on goal. The top goalscorer at the 1994 World Cup, he was also notable at taking free-kicks and penalties, as well as being a very good crosser and passer of the ball. Manager Dimitar Dimitrov described Stoichkov as "one of the greatest players of all time" in 2006, and as a player who had "a winning mentality."


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: Stoichkov was criticised for his work-rate at times, and he also gained infamy because of his aggressive temper on the pitch; he could often be seen arguing with the referee, or with his opponents. At Euro 1996, after Bulgaria's final group stage match against France, he was accused by French defender Marcel Desailly of making insulting remarks about Desailly's race.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: In 2006, he was sued by a former American University college student whose leg he broke with a violent tackle while playing in a friendly match for D.C. United in 2003. The case was settled out of court in 2007 with undisclosed financial terms. The student's coach called Stoichkov's challenge "criminal". Ray Hudson, who coached D.C. United for whom Stoichkov played at the time, called it a "rash tackle". Following an investigation by Major League Soccer (MLS), Stoichkov was suspended two games and fined US$2,000.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: Stoichkov features in EA Sports' "FIFA" video game series; he was included in the "FIFA 15" Ultimate Team Legends.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: In 2018 he published his authorized biography "Hristo Stoichkov. The Story". The official unveiling of the autobiography in November was attended by many footballers, other sportspeople, former Bulgarian presidents Petar Stoyanov, Georgi Parvanov and Rosen Plevneliev as well as former Spanish referee Idefonso Urízar Azpitarte, who had sent off Stoichkov during the first match of the 1990 Spanish Super Cup final and was given the opportunity to symbolically stomp on Stoichkov's foot.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: In the 2003–04 season, Stoichkov started a managing career, serving as a forwards coach at Barcelona. After Bulgarian national team manager Plamen Markov resigned in the wake of the team's first-round exit from Euro 2004, the Bulgarian Football Union named him as the new national team manager on 15 July.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: Stoichkov's managing career got off to a poor start, with him failing to lead Bulgaria to qualification for the 2006 World Cup. He brought his bad temper from his career as a player to the bench. A couple of proven players quit the team due to personal differences with Stoichkov. The most notable scandal was on 5 September 2005, in a game against Sweden, where he was sent-off for insulting the referee.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: The biggest blow to Stoichkov as a manager of the national team of Bulgaria came on 12 October 2006, when Stiliyan Petrov, the captain of the team, announced he would not play for Bulgaria so long as Stoichkov was manager. Petrov was the third player and the second captain in two years to leave the team because of differences with Stoichkov. On 17 March 2007, however, Petrov announced that he had had a private conversation with Stoichkov, in which they were able to work their differences out. As a result, Petrov would return to the team.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: On 10 April 2007, the Bulgarian Football Union announced they had accepted the resignation of Stoichkov from his post with the national team. That was as a result of the poor performance of the team at the ongoing Euro 2008 qualifying campaign, followed by widely spread criticism and debate over the qualities of the manager. The specific game, which led to increased pressure on Stoichkov, was the 0–0 home draw with Albania (despite the fact that the Bulgarians generally controlled the game and hit the post twice). He had a short disappointing stint as manager at Celta Vigo, for which he was sacked following the team's slump that took them to the lower reaches of the Spanish Second Division. On 8 October 2007, he was replaced by ex-Real Madrid manager Juan Ramón López Caro. On 12 March 2009, Stoichkov visited the Manchester City training ground after requesting a visit.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: On 29 June 2009, Stoichkov moved to Mamelodi Sundowns, where he replaced Henri Michel. On 16 March 2010, he quit Mamelodi Sundowns, with the former South Africa national team manager Trott Moloto named caretaker until a full-time replacement is found.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: In 2011, the Vietnam Football Federation invited Stoichkov to become the head manager of Vietnam national team; however, he declined the position. In the 2011–12 season, he worked as an advisor at Russian club Rostov.


title: Hristo Stoichkov

text: In January 2012, Stoichkov was appointed manager of Bulgarian side Litex Lovech, replacing Lyuboslav Penev, who left to become manager of the Bulgaria national team. In May 2013, Stoichkov was recognized as the A PFG manager of the season following a vote by the professional footballers in the Bulgarian league. In June 2013, he was named the manager of Bulgarian powerhouse – and former club – CSKA Sofia, but quit one month later after he lost faith in the troubled club.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: The Secret Life of Pets is a 2016 American computer-animated comedy film produced by Illumination Entertainment and distributed by Universal Pictures. It is directed by Chris Renaud, co-directed by Yarrow Cheney (in his feature directorial debut), and produced by Chris Meledandri and Janet Healy, from a screenplay written by Brian Lynch and the writing team of Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio. It serves as the first film in the franchise of the same name. The film stars the voices of Louis C.K., Eric Stonestreet, Kevin Hart, Steve Coogan, Ellie Kemper, Bobby Moynihan, Lake Bell, Dana Carvey, Hannibal Buress, Jenny Slate, and Albert Brooks.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: "The Secret Life of Pets" premiered at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival on June 16, 2016, and was released in theaters in the United States on July 8, by Universal Pictures. The film received generally positive reviews and grossed $894.3 million worldwide, making it the sixth-highest-grossing film of 2016 as well as the year's most profitable release.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: A sequel, "The Secret Life of Pets 2", was released on June 7, 2019, with Patton Oswalt taking over the role of Max from Louis C.K.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: A Jack Russell Terrier named Max lives with his owner Katie in a New York apartment. While she works, he socializes with other pets in the building: tabby cat Chloe, pug Mel, dachshund Buddy, and budgerigar Sweet Pea. One day, Katie adopts the mongrel Duke, making Max envious. Enraged by Max's attitude, Duke tries to abandon Max in an alley, but they are both attacked by cats led by Sphynx cat Ozone who removes their collars and leaves them to be caught by Animal Control. Duke fears that he will be killed if he goes back to the pound. When Gidget, a white Pomeranian who is in love with Max, discovers that he is missing, she decides to find him.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: Max and Duke are rescued by a white rabbit named Snowball, the leader of "the Flushed Pets," a gang of drain-dwelling animals who hate humans because their owners mistreated and rejected them. After Max and Duke pretend to despise humans by saying they killed their owners, the Flushed Pets invite them to join. Before they can prove their loyalty through a viper bite, Snowball learns that Max and Duke are domesticated. Realizing they had blown their cover, Max and Duke escape the drains and board a ferry to Brooklyn, inadvertently killing the viper in the process. Snowball vows revenge and leads the Flushed Pets after them.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: Meanwhile, Gidget recruits a red-tailed hawk named Tiberius to find Max, but he mistakenly locates Ozone, whom Gidget coerces into telling what he knows about the dogs. They then enlist Mel, Buddy, Chloe, guinea pig Norman and Sweet Pea. On the way, they meet Pops, an old Basset Hound who helps Gidget and the pets find Max. Gidget and her team later encounter Snowball, who vows to kill them as well, and Norman is captured as the rest of Gidget's team flees.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: In the meantime, Duke tells Max about his previous owner Fred, who adopted him as a puppy and loved spending time with him. One day, Duke got lost while chasing a butterfly and was caught by Animal Control, but Fred never came to claim him. They visit Fred's house nearby, confident Fred will still love him and take him back, but they learn from the resident cat Reginald that Fred has died. Heartbroken, Duke accuses Max of attempting to get rid of him and barks at the new homeowners who have just returned to the house and called Animal Control. The handlers catch Max, but Duke interferes long enough for Max to escape and ends up being captured instead.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: While trying to rescue Duke, Max is attacked by Snowball who tries to kill him. However, when his gang is captured, Snowball realizes that he and Max must work together to rescue them. They drive a city bus into the Animal Control van on the Brooklyn Bridge, stopping traffic. The Flushed Pets encircle Max intending to harm him, unaware of Max's new partnership with Snowball, but they are saved by Gidget and her team. The van plummets into the East River as Max tries to free Duke, Snowball decides to jump into the river to give them the keys to Duke's cage and escape the van.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: The entire group returns to the apartment block by pig-driven taxi. Snowball and the Flushed Pets form a new plan to annihilate all humans, but a little girl named Molly arrives and adopts Snowball, and the remaining Flushed Pets head back to the drain. At first, Snowball resists, but gives in and lets himself become re-domesticated. The other pets return to their homes and embrace their owners, and Max and Duke finally reunite with Katie.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: Renaud first became involved with the project in 2012, while he was still working on "Despicable Me 2". At that time, Illumination's CEO Chris Meledandri pitched him an idea on a film about what pets do when their caretakers are away. Although Renaud found the premise interesting, he and his team did not know what form the story would take, with them at one point considering making it a murder mystery, before deciding to make something "that was a bit more relatable". Additional characters were created by author Simon Rich while main character design and production design is provided by Eric Guillon.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: The team used Jean-Jacques Sempé as an influence in designing the environment and attention was specifically paid to keep the designs "very vertically oriented". In keeping with the tradition of old WB cartoons, the owners' faces are only occasionally seen. The home of the Flushed Pets was created to "hint at the darker side" of pet ownership "without, hopefully, getting too heavy", as well as to explore "this whole mythology in New York of the world that's unseen", while still maintaining the pet theme. The animation was created entirely in France by Illumination Mac Guff.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: The original score for the film was composed by Alexandre Desplat. The soundtrack was released on July 1, 2016 by Back Lot Music.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: The film was originally scheduled to be released on February 12, 2016, but was pushed back to July 8. It was released in 2D, 3D, and IMAX 3D using DMR. "The Secret Life of Pets" premiered at the 2016 Annecy International Animated Film Festival on June 16 and was screened at VidCon. The film is accompanied by a "Despicable Me" short film entitled "Mower Minions".


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: "The Secret Life of Pets" was released on Digital HD on November 22, 2016, and on Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D, Ultra HD Blu-ray, and DVD on December 6. In addition to the short film "Mower Minions" which was released theatrically with the feature film, the releases also include two short films: "Norman Television" and "Weenie".


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: "The Secret Life of Pets" grossed $368.4 million in Canada and the U.S. and $525.9 million in other countries for a worldwide total of $894.3 million against a production budget of $75 million. Its international takings helped push Universal Pictures [International] past $1 billion for the tenth consecutive year and aided Illumination Entertainment to pass the $4 billion mark for the first time since 2010.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: It is the fifth-highest-grossing original worldwide film of all time (behind "Avatar", "Zootopia", "The Lion King", and "Finding Nemo"), the sixth-highest-grossing film of 2016, and the 18th-highest-grossing animated film of all time. "Deadline Hollywood" calculated the net profit of the film to be $374.6 million when factoring together all expenses and revenues for the film, making it the most profitable release of 2016.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: In Canada and the United States, the film was projected to gross around $70 million in its opening weekend with some predictions going as high as $100 million. It received the widest release for an animated film as well as for a PG-rated film (breaking "Shrek Forever After"s record) and the seventh-widest of all time overall across 4,370 theaters, the widest release since "The Dark Knight Rises". It made $5.3 million from Thursday night previews in 3,009 theaters which is the second-biggest of all time for Illumination behind only "Minions" ($6.2 million), and the third biggest of all time for an animated film behind "Finding Dory" ($9.2 million) and "Minions". This was followed by a record-breaking $38.5 million opening day gross (including previews), the biggest for an original film. In its opening weekend, it exceeded expectations and grossed $104.4 million, finishing first at the box office. Its debut is the sixth-biggest for an animated film, the sixth highest weekend debut in July, and the fourth-biggest opening weekend for Universal Pictures. It also set the record for the largest opening for an original animated film, eclipsing the $90.4 million debut of "Inside Out".


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: In its second weekend, the film made $50.8 million (-51.3%) while maintaining the top spot, despite facing stiff competition with newcomer "Ghostbusters". Although it slipped into second place when overtaken by "Star Trek Beyond" in its third weekend, it was still able to fend off the two other new releases—"Lights Out" and ""—by earning another $29.6 million. It passed $300 million on its twenty-sixth day—the same day it crossed $400 million worldwide—becoming the seventh film of 2016, the seventh Universal Pictures film (the first for the year), and the twelfth animated film overall to reach the benchmark.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: Internationally, "The Secret Life of Pets" received a scattered release from June to September in a total of 69 markets, and faced competition from other animated films such as "Finding Dory" and "Ice Age: Collision Course" in the course of its release. In total, it had number-one openings in 45 markets and recorded the biggest opening for an original animated film in 17 territories, and the No. 1 animated film of 2016 to date in 13 markets. It topped the international box office in its ninth weekend after earning $43.8 million in 53 markets (dethroning "Suicide Squad"). However, this was not the film's biggest single weekend gross. Its biggest weekend gross was actually in its seventh weekend when it grossed $69.3 million. It opened at No. 3 behind "Suicide Squad" ($133.3 million) and the Chinese film "Time Raiders" ($64.6 million) that weekend.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: It was released in the United Kingdom and Norway two weeks ahead of its U.S. release, where it grossed a combined total of $14.1 million in the two markets. Prior to its official debut in the UK and the Republic of Ireland on June 24, the film had two days' worth of previews on June 18 and 19 from which it made £3.63 million ($5.2 million) in two days. This figure was later counted in the film's official opening weekend. It went on to score the fourth-biggest original animation opening weekend ever there, with £9.58 million ($13.4 million) from 592 theaters, trailing behind "Inside Out", "Monsters, Inc.", and "Up". Excluding previews, its total three-day opening was $8.1 million. This was amidst Brexit and despite facing competition from "". The film held off extremely well in its second and third weekend falling just 20% and 24%, earning £4.47 million ($6.1 million) and £3.62 million ($4.8 million) respectively despite facing some competitions. It has topped the box office for three consecutive weekends and has grossed total of $41 million there. In Norway, it took the number one spot as well, with $778,000. It scored the biggest animation opening of 2016 and the second-biggest of all time overall in both Taiwan ($2 million)—behind "Madagascar", and Hong Kong ($1.9 million)—behind "Inside Out".


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: In Argentina, the film had a record-breaking number-one debut with $4 million from 195 screens—the biggest opening weekend ever for an animated film and the second-biggest opening ever for any film (behind "Furious 7"). Similarly, Chile also recorded the second-biggest animated opening ever with $1.7 million (behind "Minions"). Colombia also opened at No. 1 with a huge $1.5 million. In Mexico, other than opening at No. 1, it posted the biggest original animated opening of all time with $7.6 million, surpassing the studio's own previous record holder "Inside Out". Also in Russia, it scored the biggest original animated opening and the second-biggest ever for an animated film behind "Minions" with $16.3 million, although this included $6.4 million five days' worth of previews. It went on to become the highest-grossing film of the summer that year. In Japan, the film opened on August 11—the date of Japan's first Mountain Day national holiday—with Toho-Towa distributing, and earned $4.6 million on 370,000 admissions for its two-day opening weekend dethroning "Shin Godzilla" off the top spot. The cumulative total for the four-day holiday (August 11–14) was $9.7 million. Similarly, it had number-one debuts in Germany ($7.1 million), France ($5.9 million), Australia ($5.6 million), Italy ($5.1 million), Brazil ($4.4 million), Spain ($4.5 million), Poland ($1.7 million), Singapore ($1.3 million), Belgium ($1.2 million), Denmark ($1.2 million), Indonesia ($1.1 million), the Philippines ($1 million), and South Africa ($463,000). In Germany, it scored the best animation opening since "Minions". It topped the box office in Israel for five straight weekends and in Australia, Russia and Spain for three weekends. In Japan, the film was the highest-grossing foreign release of the weekend, holding the top spot for four consecutive weekends.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: In China—the world's second-biggest film market—the film opened on a Tuesday, earning a modest $5.2 million on its opening day. To Sunday, it achieved a six-day opening of $29.3 million and $15.5 million for the weekend alone (Friday to Sunday), with per screen averages over $500 per screen per day. In both instances, it was behind the local film "Time Raiders". In South Korea, despite debuting in fifth place, it had an opening of $6.9 million. Elsewhere, it grossed $2.7 million in the Netherlands, $1.2 million in Sweden and in Hungary, it scored the biggest opening of the year with $738,000, and also in Portugal ($965,000), Latvia ($224,000), and South Africa.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: In terms of total earnings, its biggest markets are China ($58 million), United Kingdom and Ireland ($47.2 million), Japan ($41.6 million) and Russia ($34.2 million). It became the third-highest-grossing film of all time in Russia (behind "Avatar" and "Zootopia") and the highest-grossing film of 2016 in Spain.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of based on reviews with an average rating of . The website's critical consensus reads: "Fast-paced, funny, and blessed with a talented voice cast, "The Secret Life of Pets" offers a beautifully animated, cheerfully undemanding family-friendly diversion." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 61 out of 100 based on 39 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews." Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale, while PostTrak reported filmgoers gave it a 85% overall positive score and a 93% "definite recommend".


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: Peter Travers of "Rolling Stone" gave the film three out of four stars and called it "an animated fluffball—a sort of "Toy Story" with pets does everything to drive you crazy and ends up being totally irresistible." Scott Tobias, writing for NPR, characterized the film's concept as ""Toy Story" but with house pets," highlighting the film's "thinly distinguished characters" and "gloppy sentimentality." Steven Rea of "The Philadelphia Inquirer" gave the film three out of four stars and said "In much the same way that the smash "Zootopia" demonstrated that creatures of different culture and class and species are better off when they come together, "The Secret Life of Pets" is a testament to teamwork and friendship and fixing the rifts that divide us. Let the fur—and the warm, fuzzy feelings—fly."


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: Some critics disliked the film's similarities to Walt Disney and Pixar's "Toy Story". Matthew Parkinson of "The Escapist" compared the plots of both films and wrote that ""The Secret Life of Pets" feels like one of those hour-long ripoffs you'd see on a children's television network." Ethan Anderton of the website /Film criticised the film's characterisation, and noted that the relationship between Max and Duke was akin to "Woody and Buzz Lightyear all over again."


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: A sequel, "The Secret Life of Pets 2", with director Chris Renaud, producers Chris Meledandri and Janet Healy, and writer Brian Lynch, was released on June 7, 2019. Louis C.K. was replaced by Patton Oswalt.


title: The Secret Life of Pets

text: In an interview on the podcast "The Gary and Kenny Show", Meledandri stated that a third film is in development.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: The Boondock Saints is a 1999 American vigilante action thriller film written and directed by Troy Duffy. The film stars Sean Patrick Flanery and Norman Reedus as fraternal twin brothers Connor and Murphy MacManus, who become vigilantes after killing two members of the Russian Mafia in self-defense. After both experience an epiphany, the twins, together with their friend "Funny Man" Rocco (David Della Rocco), set out to rid their home city of Boston of crime and evil, all the while being pursued by FBI special agent Paul Smecker (Willem Dafoe).


title: The Boondock Saints

text: Duffy indicates that the screenplay was inspired by personal experience while living in Los Angeles. Initially regarded as one of the hottest scripts in Hollywood, the film had a troubled production. Miramax Films dropped the project in 1997 before Franchise Pictures picked it up the following year. It was finally given a limited theatrical release of only five theaters for one week due to movie-studio politics and worries about association with the 1999 Columbine High School massacre. "The Boondock Saints" was met with poor critical reviews; however, it ultimately grossed about $50 million in domestic video sales and developed a large cult following. Duffy followed the film with a sequel, "", released in 2009.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: In Boston, two Irish American fraternal twin brothers, Connor and Murphy MacManus (Sean Patrick Flanery and Norman Reedus), attend Mass, where the priest mentions the fate of Kitty Genovese. Later, when Connor and Murphy are celebrating Saint Patrick's Day with friends, three Russian mobsters arrive and announce they want to close the pub and take over the land it is built on. A brawl ensues, in which the Russians are defeated and humiliated. The next morning, when two of the Russians seek revenge on Connor and Murphy, the mobsters are killed in self-defense.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: FBI agent Paul Smecker (Willem Dafoe) is assigned to the case, and finds that the police and local news reporters see the MacManus twins as heroes. The duo turn themselves in at a police station, where Smecker interviews them. After the twins retell their incident to Smecker, he declines to press charges and allows them to spend the night in a holding cell to avoid attention from the media. That night, they receive a "calling" from God telling them to hunt down wicked men so that the innocent will flourish.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: Connor and Murphy resolve to rid Boston of evil men. Connor learns of a meeting of Russian syndicate bosses at a hotel. Having equipped themselves with weaponry from a local underground gun dealer, the twins kill all nine Russian mobsters, while Rocco, a friend of the twins and errand boy for local mafia boss Giuseppe "Papa Joe" Yakavetta (Carlo Rota), is sent on a hit as an unknowing pawn. The next day, learning that he was betrayed, having been sent to kill nine Russian mobsters with only a six-shooter revolver, Rocco agrees to help Connor and Murphy. That night, they hunt down and kill Vincenzo Lapazzi (Ron Jeremy), an underboss of the Yakavetta crime family.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: Concerned he may be a target, Papa Joe contacts a hitman, Il Duce (Billy Connolly), to deal with them. After killing a criminal that Rocco had a personal hatred for, the three men are ambushed by Il Duce. Although they manage to chase Il Duce away, the three men suffer serious wounds, including the loss of Rocco's finger. The three return to a safehouse where they treat their wounds.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: Hours later as the police conduct an investigation at the crime scene, the investigation seems futile since the twins covered their tracks by spraying any blood left behind with ammonia. However, Smecker happens upon the part of the finger lost by Rocco and decides to do an independent investigation to see who was behind the gun battle. Smecker is able to track the evidence down to Rocco and his two allies. This leaves Smecker in a difficult scenario, and struggles with the choice of whether to prosecute the three men, or join them in their cause, as Smecker believes they are doing the right thing. After getting drunk at a gay bar and subsequently getting advice from a reluctant priest, Smecker decides to help the trio.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: Later, the twins and Rocco inform Smecker that they plan to infiltrate the Yakavetta headquarters to finish off the family, but Smecker learns they are walking into a trap. The twins are captured, and Rocco is shot and killed by Papa Joe, but the twins are able to free themselves. As Papa Joe leaves his house, Smecker arrives in drag and kills a number of soldiers before being knocked unconscious by Il Duce. As the twins say their family prayer over Rocco, Il Duce enters the room and prepares to open fire. However, he instead finishes the prayer – revealing he is the twins' father and decides to join his sons in their mission.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: Three months later, Papa Joe is sent to trial for a third time. However, the reporters on-scene anticipate his acquittal. The twins and Il Duce, aided by Smecker, Dolly, Duffy and Greenly, infiltrate the trial after sliding their weapons over the metal detector. Unmasked, they make a speech stating that they intend to eradicate evil wherever they find it before reciting their family prayer and killing Papa Joe. The media dubs the three as "the Saints".


title: The Boondock Saints

text: Duffy's screenplay was inspired by his disgust at seeing a drug dealer taking money from a corpse across the hall from his apartment. Duffy, who was working as a bartender and bouncer, had never written a screenplay before.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: Duffy completed the screenplay in fall of 1996 and passed it to a producer's assistant at New Line Cinema to be read by a senior executive. The screenplay changed hands through multiple studios and Duffy was approached by multiple producers for the rights. In March 1997, he was contracted by Paramount Pictures for $500,000, and later in the month, Miramax Films won a bidding war to buy "The Boondock Saints". The studio offered $450,000 to Duffy to write and direct the film. The documentary "Overnight", which chronicled Duffy's "rags-to-riches-to-rags" story, showed that the script was worth $300,000, and the film itself was originally given a $15 million budget by Miramax's Harvey Weinstein. Duffy's band "The Brood" would do the soundtrack, and as a bonus, Miramax offered to buy and throw in co-ownership of J. Sloan's, where Duffy worked. "Overnight" showed that Duffy frequently exhibited abrasive behavior, causing tension for many people involved in the project. Filming of "The Boondock Saints" was scheduled for the coming autumn in Boston.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: Duffy sought to cast Stephen Dorff and Mark Wahlberg as the brothers, though Wahlberg passed for "Boogie Nights". The director also wanted to cast Billy Connolly and Kenneth Branagh in the film, with Branagh playing FBI Agent Paul Smecker. Duffy also expressed interest in casting Brendan Fraser, Nicky Katt, and Ewan McGregor, with two of them as the brothers, but no decisions were finalized. The director later sought Patrick Swayze to play Smecker, but Miramax preferred Sylvester Stallone (with whom the studio had an existing relationship), Bill Murray, or Mike Myers. Kevin Spacey and Robert De Niro were also considered for the role of Smecker. Before pre-production work was supposed to begin in Boston in December 1997, Miramax pulled out of the project. Producer Lloyd Segan said that the project had stalled because of casting and location problems. While Duffy was able to keep the writer's fee of $300,000, the studio required the reimbursement of the $150,000 director's fee and the $700,000 advance to develop the project.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: The independent studio Franchise Pictures sought to finance the project once other elements were in place. Duffy approached Sean Patrick Flanery and Norman Reedus to play the brothers, and Willem Dafoe to play the FBI agent. Having found someone to back the film, filming began in Toronto, with the final scenes being filmed in Boston. The name of Duffy's band, The Brood, was changed to The Boondock Saints, following the movie's release. The film featured two songs from the band: "Holy Fool", which played during Rocco's tavern shootout, and "Pipes", which played during the credits.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: "The Boondock Saints" had a very limited theatrical release through Indican Pictures showing the film in 2000 on only five screens in the United States for several weeks. However, the original unrated version of the film was later re-released in theaters on May 22, 2006. Duffy later funded screenings of the film with help from Blockbuster Video. "Indican Pictures and Blockbuster saved us [...] They agreed to take it on exclusively, and from there the rest is history." According to Troy Duffy on his audio commentary of the film on DVD, the film's distributor allowed the limited screening in the United States because of the then-recent Columbine High School massacre and the pending Blockbuster exclusive. The film was shown on major foreign screens (most notably in Japan) with success. Blockbuster released "The Boondock Saints" as a "Blockbuster Exclusive", a collection of independent direct-to-video films. "The Boondock Saints" gained a following mostly due to word-of-mouth publicity and was a bestseller when released on DVD. Despite its success, Troy Duffy and Indican Pictures never saw any of the profits from DVD distribution, having signed away the DVD rights to 20th Century Fox as part of the settlement with Franchise Pictures. According to Duffy, neither he, his producers, nor his principal cast got paid. He sued Franchise Pictures and other undisclosed companies for royalties of the first film and rights to the sequel. After a lengthy lawsuit, Troy Duffy, his producers, and the principal cast received an undisclosed amount of "The Boondock Saints" royalties, as well as the sequel rights.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: "The Boondock Saints" has been released numerous times on DVD, including an import on March 13, 2001, and an uncut Japanese release published by Toshiba Entertainment, whose special features include anamorphic widescreen, audio commentary, trailers, and interviews with the Japanese media. On May 23, 2006, "The Boondock Saints" Collector's Edition was published and released by 20th Century Fox on DVD, as well as UMD for the PlayStation Portable. The special features include English and Spanish subtitles, commentary by Billy Connolly and Troy Duffy, deleted scenes, and outtakes. It also featured the film's trailer, cast and crew filmographies, and a printable script of the film. 20th Century Fox and Duffy showed an interest in doing a new audio commentary for the special release, but he was unable to because of unresolved legal issues.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes the film has a score of 27% based on 30 reviews, with an average rating of 4.7/10. The site's consensus calls the film, "A juvenile, ugly movie that represents the worst tendencies of directors channeling Tarantino." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 44 out of 100, based on 4 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".


title: The Boondock Saints

text: Nathan Rabin of "The A.V. Club" described the film, in his review of the DVD, as "less a proper action-thriller" than "a series of gratuitously violent setpieces strung together with only the sketchiest semblance of a plot". Rabin went on to describe the film as "all style and no substance, a film so gleeful in its endorsement of vigilante justice that it almost veers (or ascends) into self-parody." Robert Koehler of "Variety" wrote in his review: "A belated entry in the hipster crime movie movement that began with "Reservoir Dogs", Troy Duffy's "Boondock Saints" mixes blood and Catholic-tinged vigilante justice in excessive portions for sometimes wacky and always brutal effect. [The film is] more interested in finding fresh ways to stage execution scenes than in finding meaning behind the human urge for self-appointed righting of wrongs."


title: The Boondock Saints

text: Koehler also described Flanery and Reedus as "curiously stolid and blank", while praising supporting actors Connolly, Dafoe, and Rota for making the most of their screen time. Koehler also praised the tech personnel: "This uneven exercise in pacing and cutting is abetted by an eclectic score by Jeff Danna and whiz lensing by Adam Kane. Other tech credits fire bull's-eyes."


title: The Boondock Saints

text: In its original run, the film only earned $30,471 at five theaters. It later developed a cult following and has grossed about $50 million in domestic video sales.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: The documentary film "Overnight" was released in 2003, following the story of Troy Duffy during his negotiations with Miramax over "The Boondock Saints" script, as well as his band's struggles to secure a recording contract. Duffy's abrasive behavior strained his relationships with friends and people in the film industry and ultimately led to Miramax pulling out of the project, leaving the film to be made by another studio at half the originally proposed budget.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: After numerous delays, Troy Duffy shot a sequel, "The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day", in which the MacManus twins return to Boston in order to continue their reign of vengeance. It was released October 30, 2009.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: In an October 27, 2009, article, director Duffy and actor Connolly mention details regarding a possible third film. They maintained that "it is slowly in the works and is still just an idea". Duffy insists that he wants to get a few more of his films done before returning to the Boondock Saints. Duffy also added that the proposed working title for the third film would be called "Boondock Saints III: Saints Preserve Us".


title: The Boondock Saints

text: Again, on February 26, 2013, Duffy stated that he was getting together with Reedus and Flanery to resume talks about "The Boondock Saints 3", in hopes that they could make the film a reality for fans.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: As of July 2013, Duffy has confirmed in an interview that he is working on the script for the third film, and possibly a TV series, later named as "The Boondock Saints: Origins".


title: The Boondock Saints

text: In 2017, Flanery tweeted that he and Reedus had walked away from "The Boondock Saints 3". While he did not elaborate on much, he suggested that the "unethical" production of the project caused their departure.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: In November 2021, a third Boondock Saints film was officially announced with production slated to begin in May 2022. Sean Patrick Flanery and Norman Reedus will reprise their roles as Connor and Murphy MacManus and Troy Duffy will return to direct the third film.


title: The Boondock Saints

text: A two-part comic-book story, serving as a companion to the movie sequel, was released in May 2010. The series is written by Troy Duffy, produced by Innfusion Inc., and released through 12 Gauge Comics. The book focuses on a more in-depth version of Il Duce's back story, as well as telling the story of the brothers during a hit they performed that is not featured in the film. It was paired with a minibook that was featured on the official "Boondock Saints" website that told a ministory that takes place before the strip-club scene from the first film. These will eventually be released in one single graphic novel. "The Boondock Saints: In Nomine Patris" was written with J.B. Love and published in November 2011.


title: Asian elephant

text: The Asian elephant (Elephas maximus), also known as the Asiatic elephant, is the only living species of the genus "Elephas" and is distributed throughout the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, from India in the west, Nepal in the north, Sumatra in the south, and to Borneo in the east. Three subspecies are recognised—"E. m. maximus" from Sri Lanka, "E. m. indicus" from mainland Asia and "E. m. sumatranus" from the island of Sumatra. Formerly, there was also the Syrian elephant or Western Asiatic elephant ("Elephas maximus asurus") which was the westernmost population of the Asian elephant ("Elephas maximus"). This subspecies became extinct in ancient times. Skeletal remains of "E. m. asurus" have been recorded from the Middle East: Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey from periods dating between at least 1800 BC and likely 700 BC. It is one of only three living species of elephants or elephantids anywhere in the world, the others being the African bush elephant and African forest elephant.


title: Asian elephant

text: The Asian elephant is the largest living land animal in Asia. Since 1986, the Asian elephant has been listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, as the population has declined by at least 50 percent over the last three elephant generations, which is about 60–75 years. It is primarily threatened by loss of habitat, habitat degradation, fragmentation and poaching. In 2019, the wild population was estimated at 48,323–51,680 individuals. Female captive elephants have lived beyond 60 years when kept in semi-natural surroundings, such as forest camps. In zoos, Asian elephants die at a much younger age; captive populations are declining due to a low birth and high death rate.


title: Asian elephant

text: The genus "Elephas" originated in Sub-Saharan Africa during the Pliocene and spread throughout Africa before expanding into the southern half of Asia. The earliest indications of captive use of Asian elephants are engravings on seals of the Indus Valley civilisation dated to the 3rd millennium BC.


title: Asian elephant

text: Carl Linnaeus proposed the scientific name "Elephas maximus" in 1758 for an elephant from Ceylon. "Elephas indicus" was proposed by Georges Cuvier in 1798, who described an elephant from India. Coenraad Jacob Temminck named an elephant from Sumatra "Elephas sumatranus" in 1847. Frederick Nutter Chasen classified all three as subspecies of the Asian elephant in 1940. These three subspecies are currently recognised as valid taxa. Results of phylogeographic and morphological analyses indicate that the Sri Lankan and Indian elephants are not distinct enough to warrant classification as separate subspecies.


title: Asian elephant

text: "Elephas maximus borneensis" was proposed by Paules Edward Pieris Deraniyagala in 1950 who described an elephant in an illustration published in the "National Geographic" magazine, but not a living elephant in accordance with the rules of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature. The Asian elephants living in northern Borneo are smaller than all the other subspecies, but with larger ears, a longer tail, and straight tusks. Results of genetic analysis indicate that their ancestors separated from the mainland population about 300,000 years ago.


title: Asian elephant

text: The following Asian elephants were proposed as extinct subspecies, but are now considered synonymous with the Indian elephant:


title: Asian elephant

text: The Asian elephant is the closest living relative of the extinct mammoths; the last common ancestor of the two is estimated to have lived between .


title: Asian elephant

text: In general, the Asian elephant is smaller than the African bush elephant and has the highest body point on the head. The back is convex or level. The ears are small with dorsal borders folded laterally. It has up to 20 pairs of ribs and 34 caudal vertebrae. The feet have more nail-like structures than those of African elephants—five on each forefoot, and four on each hind foot. The forehead has two hemispherical bulges, unlike the flat front of the African elephants.


title: Asian elephant

text: On average, when fully-grown, bulls are about tall at the shoulder and in weight, while cows are smaller at about at the shoulder and in weight. Sexual dimorphism in body size is relatively less pronounced in Asian elephants than in African bush elephants; with bulls averaging 15% and 23% taller in the former and latter respectively. Length of body and head including trunk is with the tail being long. The largest bull elephant ever recorded was shot by the Maharajah of Susang in the Garo Hills of Assam, India in 1924, it weighed an estimated , stood tall at the shoulder and was long from head to tail. There are reports of larger individuals as tall as .


title: Asian elephant

text: The distinctive trunk is an elongation of the nose and upper lip combined; the nostrils are at its tip, which has one finger-like process. The trunk contains as many as 60,000 muscles, which consist of longitudinal and radiating sets. The longitudinals are mostly superficial and subdivided into anterior, lateral, and posterior. The deeper muscles are best seen as numerous distinct fasciculi in a cross-section of the trunk. The trunk is a multipurpose prehensile organ and highly sensitive, innervated by the maxillary division of the trigeminal nerve and by the facial nerve. The acute sense of smell uses both the trunk and Jacobson's organ. Elephants use their trunks for breathing, watering, feeding, touching, dusting, sound production and communication, washing, pinching, grasping, defence and offence.


title: Asian elephant

text: The "proboscis" or trunk consists wholly of muscular and membranous tissue, and is a tapering muscular structure of nearly circular cross-section extending proximally from the attachment at the anterior nasal orifice, and ending distally in a tip or finger. The length may vary from or longer depending on the species and age. Four basic muscle masses—the radial, the longitudinal and two oblique layers—and the size and attachments points of the tendon masses allow the shortening, extension, bending, and twisting movements accounting for the ability to hold, and manipulate loads of up to . Muscular and tendinous ability combined with nervous control allows extraordinary strength and agility movements of the trunk, such as sucking and spraying of water or dust and directed airflow blowing.


title: Asian elephant

text: The trunk can hold about four litres of water. Elephants will playfully wrestle with each other using their trunks, but generally use their trunks only for gesturing when fighting.


title: Asian elephant

text: Tusks serve to dig for water, salt, and rocks, to debark and uproot trees, as levers for maneuvering fallen trees and branches, for work, for display, for marking trees, as a weapon for offence and defence, as trunk-rests, and as protection for the trunk. Elephants are known to be right or left tusked.


title: Asian elephant

text: Cows usually lack tusks; if tusks—in that case, called "tushes"—are present, they are barely visible and only seen when the mouth is open. The enamel plates of the molars are greater in number and closer together in Asian elephants. Some bulls may also lack tusks; these individuals are called "filsy makhnas", and are especially common among the Sri Lankan elephant population.


title: Asian elephant

text: A record tusk described by George P. Sanderson measured along the curve, with a girth of at the point of emergence from the jaw, the weight being . This was from an elephant killed by Sir Brooke and measured in length, and nearly in circumference, and weighed . The tusk's weight was, however, exceeded by the weight of a shorter tusk of about in length which weighed .


title: Asian elephant

text: Skin colour is usually grey, and may be masked by soil because of dusting and wallowing. Their wrinkled skin is movable and contains many nerve centres. It is smoother than that of African elephants and may be depigmented on the trunk, ears, or neck. The epidermis and dermis of the body average thick; skin on the dorsum is thick providing protection against bites, bumps, and adverse weather. Its folds increase surface area for heat dissipation. They can tolerate cold better than excessive heat. Skin temperature varies from . Body temperature averages .


title: Asian elephant

text: Asian elephants have a very large and highly developed neocortex, a trait also shared by humans, apes and certain dolphin species. They have a greater volume of cerebral cortex available for cognitive processing than all other existing land animals. Results of studies indicate that Asian elephants have cognitive abilities for tool use and tool-making similar to great apes. They exhibit a wide variety of behaviours, including those associated with grief, learning, allomothering, mimicry, play, altruism, use of tools, compassion, cooperation, self-awareness, memory, and language. Elephants reportedly head to safer ground during natural disasters like tsunamis and earthquakes, but data from two satellite-collared Sri Lankan elephants indicate this may be untrue.


title: Asian elephant

text: Several students of elephant cognition and neuroanatomy are convinced that Asian elephants are highly intelligent and self-aware. Others contest this view.


title: Asian elephant

text: Asian elephants inhabit grasslands, tropical evergreen forests, semi-evergreen forests, moist deciduous forests, dry deciduous forests and dry thorn forests, in addition to cultivated and secondary forests and scrublands. Over this range of habitat types elephants occur from sea level to over . In the eastern Himalaya in northeast India, they regularly move up above in summer at a few sites.


title: Asian elephant

text: In China, the Asian elephant survives only in the prefectures of Xishuangbanna, Simao, and Lincang of southern Yunnan. Estimated population is around 300 individual (in 2020).


title: Asian elephant

text: In Bangladesh, some isolated populations survive in the south-east Chittagong Hills. A herd of 20–25 wild elephants was reported as being present in the Garo Hills of Mymensingh in the late-1990s, being detached from a big herd in the Peack hills of India and prevented from returning by fences put up in the meantime by the Indian border security force. The herd was estimated at about 60 individuals in 2014.


title: Asian elephant

text: A fourth potential subspecies, the Borneo elephant, occurs in Borneo's northeastern parts, primarily in Sabah (Malaysia), and sometimes in Kalimantan (Indonesia). In 2003, mitochondrial DNA analysis and microsatellite data indicated that the Borneo elephant population is derived from stock that originated in the region of the Sunda Islands. The genetic divergence of Borneo elephants warrants their recognition as a separate Evolutionarily Significant Unit.


title: Asian elephant

text: Asian elephants are crepuscular. They are classified as megaherbivores and consume up to of plant matter per day. They are generalist feeders, and are both grazers and browsers. They are known to feed on at least 112 different plant species, most commonly of the order Malvales, as well as the legume, palm, sedge and true grass families. They browse more in the dry season with bark constituting a major part of their diet in the cool part of that season. They drink at least once a day and are never far from a permanent source of fresh water. They need 80–200 litres of water a day and use even more for bathing. At times, they scrape the soil for clay or minerals.


title: Asian elephant

text: Cows and calves move about together as groups, while bulls disperse from their mothers upon reaching adolescence. Bulls are solitary or form temporary "bachelor groups". Cow-calf units generally tend to be small, typically consisting of three adults (most likely related females) and their offspring. Larger groups of as many as 15 adult females have also been recorded. Seasonal aggregations of 17 individuals including calves and young adults have been observed in Sri Lanka's Uda Walawe National Park. Until recently, Asian elephants, like African elephants, were thought to be under the leadership of older adult females, or matriarchs. It is now recognized that cows form extensive and very fluid social networks, with varying degrees of associations between individuals. Social ties generally tend to be weaker than in African elephants.


title: Asian elephant

text: Unlike African elephants, which rarely use their forefeet for anything other than digging or scraping soil, Asian elephants are more agile at using their feet in conjunction with the trunk for manipulating objects. They can sometimes be known for their violent behavior.


title: Asian elephant

text: Asian elephants are recorded to make three basic sounds: growls, squeaks and snorts. Growls in their basic form are used for short distance communication. During mild arousal, growls resonate in the trunk and become rumbles while for long-distance communication, they escalate into roars. Low-frequency growls are infrasonic and made in many contexts. Squeaks come in two forms; chirpings and trumpets. Chirping consists of multiple short squeaks and signal conflict and nervousness. Trumpets are lengthened squeaks with increased loudness and produced during extreme arousal. Snorts signal changes in activity and increase in loudness during mild or strong arousal. During the latter case, when an elephant bounces the tip of the trunk it creates booms which serve as threat displays. Elephants are able to distinguish low-amplitude sounds.


title: Asian elephant

text: Rarely, tigers have been recorded attacking and killing calves, especially if the calves become separated from their mothers, stranded from their herd, or orphaned. Adults are largely invulnerable to natural predation. There is a singular anecdotal case of a mother Asian elephant allegedly being killed alongside her calf; however, this account is contestable. In 2011 and 2014, two instances were recorded of tigers successfully killing adult elephants; one by a single tiger in Jim Corbett National Park on a 20-year-old elephant, and another on a 28-year-old elephant in Kaziranga National Park further east, which was taken down and eaten by several tigers hunting cooperatively.


title: Asian elephant

text: Reproduction in Asian elephants can be attributed to the production and perception of signaling compounds called pheromones. These signals are transmitted through various bodily fluids. They are commonly released in urine but in males they are also found in special secretions from the temporal glands. Once integrated and perceived, these signals provide the receiver with information about the reproductive status of the sender. If both parties are ready to breed, reproductive ritualic behavior occurs and the process of sexual reproduction proceeds.


title: Asian elephant

text: Bulls will fight one another to get access to oestrus cows. Strong fights over access to females are extremely rare. Bulls reach sexual maturity around the age of 12–15. Between the age of 10 and 20 years, bulls undergo an annual phenomenon known as "musth". This is a period where the testosterone level is up to 100 times greater than non-musth periods, and they become aggressive. Secretions containing pheromones occur during this period, from the paired temporal glands located on the head between the lateral edge of the eye and the base of the ear. The aggressive behaviors observed during musth can be attributed to varying amounts of frontalin (1,5-dimethyl-6,8-dioxabicyclo[3.2.1]octane) throughout the maturation process of bulls. Frontalin is a pheromone that was first isolated in bark beetles but can also be produced in the bulls of both Asian and African Elephants.The compound can be excreted through urine as well as through the temporal glands of the bull allowing signaling to occur. During musth, increased concentrations of frontalin in the bull's urine communicate the reproductive status of the bull to female elephants.


title: Asian elephant

text: Similar to other mammals, hormone secretion in female elephants is regulated by an estrous cycle. This cycle is regulated by surges in Luteinizing Hormone that are observed 3 weeks from each other. This type of estrous cycle has also been observed in African Elephants but not known to affect other mammals. The first surge in Luteinizing Hormone is not followed by the release of an egg from the ovaries. However, some female elephants still exhibit the expected mating protocols during this surge. Female elephants give ovulatory cues by utilizing sex pheromones. A principal component thereof, (Z)-7-dodecen-1-yl acetate, has also been found to be a sex pheromone in numerous species of insects. In both insects and elephants, this chemical compound is used as an attractant to assist the mating process. In elephants, the chemical is secreted through urination and this aids in the attraction of bulls to mate. Once detected, the chemical stimulates the vomeronasal organ of the bull thus providing information on the maturity of the female.


title: Asian elephant

text: Reproductive signaling exchange between male and female elephants are transmitted through olfactory cues in bodily fluids. In males, the increase in frontalin during musth heightens their sensitivity to the (Z)-7-dodecen-1-yl acetate produced by female elephants. Once perceived by receptors in the trunk, a sequence of ritualistic behaviors follow. The responses in males vary based on both the stage of development and the temperment of the elephant. This process of receiving and processing signals through the trunk is referred to as flehmen. The difference in body movements give cues to gauge if the male is interested in breeding with the female that produced the secretion. A bull that is ready to breed will move closer to the urine and in some cases an erection response is elicited. A bull that is not ready to breed will be timid and try to dissociate themselves from the signal.


title: Asian elephant

text: In addition to reproductive communication, chemosensory signaling is used to facilitate same-sex interactions. When less developed males detect pheromones from a male in musth, they often retreat to avoid coming in contact with aggressive behaviors. Female elephants have also been seen to communicate with each other through pheromone in urine. The purpose of this type of intersex communication is still being investigated. However, there are clear differences in signaling strength and receiver response throughout different stages of the estrous cycle.


title: Asian elephant

text: The gestation period is 18–22 months, and the cow gives birth to one calf, only occasionally twins. The calf is fully developed by the 19th month, but stays in the womb to grow so that it can reach its mother to feed. At birth, the calf weighs about , and is suckled for up to three years. Once a female gives birth, she usually does not breed again until the first calf is weaned, resulting in a four to five-year birth interval. During this period, mother to calf communication primarily takes place through temporal means. However, male calves have been known to develop sex pheromone producing organs at a young age. Early maturity of the vomeronasal organ allows immature elephants to produce and receive pheromones. It is unlikely that the integration of these pheromones will result in a flehmen response in a calf. Females stay on with the herd, but mature males are chased away.


title: Asian elephant

text: Asian elephants reach adulthood at 17 years of age in both sexes. Average elephant life expectancy is 60 years in the wild and 80 in captivity, although this has been exaggerated in the past. Generation length of the Asian elephant is 22 years.


title: Asian elephant

text: The pre-eminent threats to the Asian elephant today are the loss, degradation and fragmentation of its habitat, which leads to increasing conflicts between humans and elephants. Asian elephants are poached for ivory and a variety of other products including meat and leather. The demand for elephant skin has risen due to it being an increasingly-common ingredient in traditional Chinese medicine.


title: Asian elephant

text: One of the major instigators of human–wildlife conflict in general is competition for space. This is especially true for wild Asian elephants, which require relatively large territories to live in. Destruction of forests through logging, encroachment, slash-and-burn, shifting cultivation, and monoculture tree plantations are major threats to the survival of elephants. Human–elephant conflicts occur when elephants raid crops of shifting cultivators in fields, which are scattered over a large area interspersed with forests. Depredation in human settlements is another major area of human–elephant conflict occurring in small forest pockets, encroachments into elephant habitat, and on elephant migration routes. However, studies in Sri Lanka indicate that traditional slash-and-burn agriculture may create optimal habitat for elephants by creating a mosaic of successional-stage vegetation. Populations inhabiting small habitat fragments are much more liable to come into conflict with humans.


title: Asian elephant

text: Development such as border fencing along the India–Bangladesh border has become a major impediment to the free movement of elephants. In Assam, more than 1,150 humans and 370 elephants died as a result of human-elephant conflict between 1980 and 2003. In India alone, over 400 people are killed by elephants every year, and 0.8 to 1 million hectares are damaged, affecting at least 500,000 families across the country. Moreover, elephants are known to destroy crops worth up to US$2–3 million annually. This has major impacts on the welfare and livelihoods of local communities, as well as the future conservation of this species. In countries like Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, the Asian elephant is one of the most feared wild animals, even though they are less deadly than other local animals such as venomous snakes (which were estimated to claim more than 30 times more lives in Sri Lanka than elephants). As a whole, Asian elephants display highly sophisticated and sometimes unpredictable behaviour. Most untamed elephants try to avoid humans, but if they are caught off guard by any perceived physical threat, including humans, they will likely charge. This is especially true of males in musth and of females with young. Gunfire and other similar methods of deterring, which are known to be effective against many kinds of wild animals including tigers, may or may not work with elephants, and can even worsen the situation. Elephants that have been abused by humans in the past often become "rogue elephants", which regularly attack people with no provocation.


title: Asian elephant

text: The demand for ivory during the 1970s and 1980s, particularly in East Asia, led to rampant poaching and the serious decline of elephants in both Africa and Asia. In Thailand, the illegal trade in live elephants and ivory still flourishes. Although the amount of ivory being openly sold has decreased substantially since 2001, Thailand still has one of the largest and most active black markets for ivory seen anywhere in the world. Tusks from Thai poached elephants also enter the market; between 1992 and 1997 at least 24 male elephants were killed for their tusks.


title: Asian elephant

text: Up to the early 1990s, Vietnamese ivory craftsmen used exclusively Asian elephant ivory from Vietnam and neighbouring Lao and Cambodia. Before 1990, there were few tourists and the low demand for worked ivory could be supplied by domestic elephants. Economic liberalisation and an increase in tourism raised both local and visitors' demands for worked ivory, which resulted in heavy poaching.


title: Asian elephant

text: The skin of the Asian elephant is used as an ingredient in Chinese medicine as well as in the manufacture of ornamental beads. The practice has been aided by China's State Forestry Administration (SFA), which has issued licences for the manufacture and sale of pharmaceutical products containing elephant skin, thereby making trading legal. In 2010, four skinned elephants were found in a forest in Myanmar; 26 elephants were killed by poachers in 2013 and 61 in 2016. According to the NGO Elephant Family, Myanmar is the main source of elephant skin, where a poaching crisis has developed rapidly since 2010.


title: Asian elephant

text: Young elephants are captured and illegally imported to Thailand from Myanmar for use in the tourism industry; calves are used mainly in amusement parks and are trained to perform various stunts for tourists.


title: Asian elephant

text: The calves are often subjected to a 'breaking in' process, which may involve being tied up, confined, starved, beaten and tortured; as a result, two-thirds may perish. Handlers use a technique known as the training crush, in which "handlers use sleep-deprivation, hunger, and thirst to "break" the elephants' spirit and make them submissive to their owners"; moreover, handlers drive nails into the elephants' ears and feet.


title: Asian elephant

text: The Asian elephant is listed on CITES Appendix I. It is a quintessential flagship species, deployed to catalyze a range of conservation goals, including habitat conservation at landscape scales, generating public awareness on conservation issues, and mobilisation as a popular cultural icon both in India and the West. A key aspect of Asian elephant conservation is connectivity, and preserving the preferred movement routes of elephants through areas of high vegetation cover and with "low human population density".


title: Asian elephant

text: The World Elephant Day is celebrated on 12 August since 2012. Events are organized to divulge information and to engage people about the problems that the Asian elephant is facing. August has been established as the Asian Elephant Awareness Month by zoos and conservation partners in the United States.


title: Asian elephant

text: In China, Asian elephants are under first-level protection. Yunnan province has 11 national and regional nature reserves. In total, the covered protected area in China is about . In 2020, the population of Asian elephants in Yunnan was estimated at around 300 individuals. As conflicts between humans and wild elephants have emerged around protected areas in the last years, the prefecture of Xishuangbanna built food bases and planted bananas and bamboo to create a better habitat.


title: Asian elephant

text: In Thailand, Salakpra Wildlife Sanctuary and Tham Than Lot National Park are protected areas hosting around 250–300 elephants, according to figures from 2013. In recent years the National Park has faced issues due to encroachment and over-exploitation.


title: Asian elephant

text: In India, the National Board of Wildlife did a recommendation, allowing coal mining in the Dehing Patkai elephant reserve in April 2020. The decision raised concerns between students and environmental activists who launched an online campaign to stop the project.


title: Asian elephant

text: About half of the global zoo elephant population is kept in European zoos, where they have about half the median life span of conspecifics in protected populations in range countries. This discrepancy is clearest in Asian elephants: infant mortality is twice that seen in Burmese timber camps, and adult survivorship in zoos has not improved significantly in recent years. One risk factor for Asian zoo elephants is being moved between institutions, with early removal from the mother tending to have additional adverse effects. Another risk factor is being born into a zoo rather than being imported from the wild, with poor adult survivorship in zoo-born Asians apparently being conferred prenatally or in early infancy. Likely causes for compromised survivorship is stress and/or obesity. Foot problems are commonly observed in captives elephants. These are related to lack of exercise, long hours standing on hard substrates, and contamination resulting from standing in their dung. Many of the problems are treatable. However, mistreatment may lead to serious disability or death.


title: Asian elephant

text: Demographic analysis of captive Asian elephants in North America indicates that the population is not self-sustaining. First year mortality is nearly 30 per cent, and fecundity is extremely low throughout the prime reproductive years. Data from North American and European regional studbooks from 1962 to 2006 were analysed for deviation of the birth and juvenile death sex ratio. Of 349 captive calves born, 142 died prematurely. They died within one month of birth, major causes being stillbirth and infanticide by either the calf's mother or by one of the exhibition mates. The sex ratio of stillbirths in Europe was found to have a tendency for excess of males.


title: Asian elephant

text: Bones of Asian elephants excavated at Mohenjo-daro in the Indus Valley indicate that they were tamed in the Indus Valley civilization and used for work. Decorated elephants are also depicted on seals and were modelled in clay.


title: Asian elephant

text: The Asian elephant became a siege engine, a mount in war, a status symbol, a beast of burden, and an elevated platform for hunting during historical times in South Asia.


title: Asian elephant

text: Asian elephants have been captured from the wild and tamed for use by humans. Their ability to work under instruction makes them particularly useful for carrying heavy objects. They have been used particularly for timber-carrying in jungle areas. Other than their work use, they have been used in war, in ceremonies, and for carriage. It is reported that war elephants are still in use by the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) to take control of Kachin State in northern Myanmar from Myanmar's military. The KIA use about four dozen elephants to carry supplies.


title: Asian elephant

text: The Asian elephant plays an important part in the culture of the subcontinent and beyond, being featured prominently in the "Panchatantra" fables and the Buddhist "Jataka" tales. They play a major role in Hinduism: the god Ganesha's head is that of an elephant, and the "blessings" of a temple elephant are highly valued. Elephants are frequently used in processions where the animals are adorned with festive outfits.


title: Asian elephant

text: The Asian elephant is depicted in several Indian manuscripts and treatises. Notable amongst these is the Matanga Lila (elephant sport) of Nilakantha. The manuscript Hastividyarnava is from Assam in northeast India.


title: Asian elephant

text: In the Burmese, Thai and Sinhalese animal and planetary zodiac, the Asian elephant, both tusked and tuskless, are the fourth and fifth animal zodiacs of the Burmese, the fourth animal zodiac of the Thai, and the second animal zodiac of the Sinhalese people of Sri Lanka. Similarly, the elephant is the twelfth animal zodiac in the Dai animal zodiac of the Dai people in southern China.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: Unsolved Mysteries is an American mystery documentary television show, created by John Cosgrove and Terry Dunn Meurer. Documenting cold cases and paranormal phenomena, it began as a series of seven specials, presented by Raymond Burr, Karl Malden, and Robert Stack, beginning on NBC on January 20, 1987, becoming a full-fledged series on October 5, 1988, hosted by Stack. After nine seasons on NBC, the series moved to CBS for its 10th season on November 13, 1997. After adding Virginia Madsen as a co-host during season 11 failed to boost slipping ratings, CBS canceled the series after only a two-season, 12-episode run on June 11, 1999. The series was revived by Lifetime in 2000, with season 12 beginning on July 2, 2001. "Unsolved Mysteries" aired 103 episodes on Lifetime, before ending on September 20, 2002, an end that coincided with Stack's illness and eventual death.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: After a six-year absence, the series was resurrected by Spike in 2007, and began airing on October 13, 2008. This new, revived version was hosted by Dennis Farina, who mainly tied together repackaged segments from the original episodes. Farina hosted 175 episodes before the series ended again on April 27, 2010. Cosgrove-Meurer Productions maintains a website for the show, featuring popular accounts and ongoing cold cases (murder or missing persons), with a link to an online form should a viewer have information on an unsolved crime. As of 2017, the show maintains a YouTube page where viewers can submit their own mysteries. If accepted, "Unsolved Mysteries" posts a video of the viewer describing the mystery. That same year, FilmRise acquired worldwide digital distribution rights to the series and announced its intent to release updated versions of its episodes. These shows are currently streaming on Amazon Prime, Tubi TV, and on its own dedicated channel on Pluto TV in the United States and the United Kingdom. Since February 2017, the Spike episodes have been officially posted on YouTube, split into eight seasons. In July 2017, the series began streaming on Hulu in the United States. Between February and March 2019, FilmRise began posting digitally restored and re-edited episodes, hosted by Stack, on YouTube.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: On June 22, 2018, Terror Vision Records released the official soundtrack for the series. In 2017, the show's creators expressed interest in reviving the series. On January 18, 2019, Netflix picked up a reboot of the series which premiered on July 1, 2020. The first season of the reboot was split into two volumes containing six episodes each. In September 2022, Netflix announced that a third volume of new episodes would begin streaming in October 2022.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: "Unsolved Mysteries" used a documentary format to profile real-life mysteries and featured re-enactments of unsolved crimes, missing persons cases, conspiracy theories and unexplained paranormal phenomena (alien abductions, ghosts, UFOs, and "secret history" theories).


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: The concept was created in a series of three specials produced by John Cosgrove and Terry-Dunn Meurer, which were pitched to NBC in 1985 and shown in 1986 with the title, "Missing... Have You Seen This Person?" The success of the specials led Cosgrove and Meurer to broaden the series to include mysteries of all kinds.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: The pilot of what eventually became "Unsolved Mysteries" was a special that aired on NBC on January 20, 1987, with Raymond Burr as host/narrator. Throughout the 1987–88 television season, six more specials aired, the first two hosted by Karl Malden and the final four by Robert Stack. Because of the incorporation of paranormal mysteries, NBC News disowned the series when the network aired on NBC and required that a disclaimer aired before each show clarify that it was "not a news broadcast."


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: In 1988, the show debuted as a weekly program on NBC. Ratings steadily dropped after the 1993–94 season. Until 2002, it was hosted by Stack. In its second season on CBS in 1999, Stack was joined by co-host Virginia Madsen. Episodes released between 1995 and 1997 featured journalist Keely Shaye Smith and television host Lu Hanessian as correspondents in the show's "phone center", where they provided updates on previous stories as information for "special bulletin" segments. A March 14, 1997, episode featured journalist Cathy Scott in the reenactment of rapper Tupac Shakur's 1996 unsolved murder. This broadcast was one week after the murder of Biggie Smalls. In 2002, the series was canceled by Lifetime. In 2008, television network Spike revived the series with Dennis Farina as its host; the Spike revival ended in 2010.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: The show was known for its eerie theme song composed by Michael Boyd and Gary Remal Malkin, and for Stack's grim presence and ominous narration. The theme music was changed seven times, in 1993, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2008, and 2020. The 2020 version of the theme was arranged, performed, and recorded by West Dylan Thordson.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: Viewers were occasionally given updates on success stories, where suspects were brought to justice and loved ones were reunited.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: The show itself has been credited for bringing increased attention to certain cases and thus allowing them to be solved. One episode featured a video of an arsonist filming an unidentified house being burned down while he was giving strange commentary. Once it had been featured on the show, viewers were able to identify the house involved, and two suspects were arrested.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: The show first aired on NBC from 1987 to 1997. The pilot episode was hosted by actor Raymond Burr. Karl Malden and Robert Stack were also hired to host further specials. When the series became a full-fledged television program in 1988, Stack became the full-time host. "Unsolved Mysteries" was also one of the few prime-time shows of its era to appeal to fans of the supernatural and used effective special effects to enhance tales of the unexplained.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: In 1992, NBC aired a short-lived dramatized court show spin-off program called "Final Appeal: From the Files of Unsolved Mysteries", also hosted by Stack. The premise of this program was to try to give the unjustly accused a final appeal for help, with the debut episode taking an in-depth look at the Jeffrey MacDonald case. The program was canceled after only a few episodes due to poor ratings.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: The ratings for "Unsolved Mysteries"' had been steadily declining ever since it was moved from its original Wednesday evening timeslot to Friday evenings in the fall of 1994. At the end of the 1996–97 season, it was canceled by NBC. Upon the cancelation from NBC, CBS picked up the series for a tenth season. The first episode aired in November of 1997 as an "Unsolved Mysteries" special. When CBS canceled its Block Party line-up in the spring of 1998, the network moved the show to its Friday 9:00 pm timeslot. During the show's run on CBS, the series was limited to only six-episode seasons, and was airing only on a sporadic schedule. Reruns aired during the summer of 1998 with heavy promotion of the return of the NFL on CBS with the upcoming 1998 NFL season. When the series returned for its abbreviated 11th season in the spring of 1999, Stack was joined by actress Virginia Madsen for hosting duties in an attempt to boost its female audience. But the effort failed, and CBS canceled the show soon afterwards. Later cable reruns of segments originally narrated by Madsen were re-dubbed with Stack's voice.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: Lifetime Television, which had been airing re-runs of the NBC episodes since the early 1990s, had ordered a two-season run of new episodes which began airing in 2001. Consisting of a mixture of new and old cases, these episodes were produced between 2001 and 2002, and usually aired on weekdays between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. The program ceased producing new episodes when Stack was diagnosed with prostate cancer in late 2002. He died of heart failure in May 2003.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: After Stack's death, old episodes continued to run in syndication on several television networks in the U.S., Canada, and Australia.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: During some shows, callers gave tips to the telecenter. When the show was in active production, the Toll Free number was displayed on the bottom of the screen below the title logo at the end of each segment. When the show left active production following Stack's death and went into reruns, the number was removed and replaced with a P.O. box address.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: According to "Broadcasting & Cable", in 2007, HBO Distribution announced plans to bring back "Unsolved Mysteries" when the cable channel Lifetime's contract expired in 2008. The show featured a new set, a new logo, new music, and updates on old cases. In addition, actor Dennis Farina became the new host, as Stack had died five years earlier. The show debuted on Spike on October 13, 2008.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: This repackaged series run was criticized by fans for its presentation of past cases only, with no new case segments being produced. The existing segments were also edited to be shorter so the show could be expanded to present five cases in an hour rather than the four of the original series. Because the majority of the cases were now between 20 and 40 years old, the re-edited segments usually did not reference the years in which the events presented originally occurred. When updates for solved cases aired, Dennis Farina's voiceover would refer to cases "in a recent broadcast...", when the case may have already been solved during the show's original run or during the series' hiatus from 2002 onward. "Unsolved Mysteries" ended its run on Spike on April 27, 2010.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: As of November 24, 2020, Oxygen Network airs 12 episode marathons of this version on Tuesdays from Noon ET/11:00 AM CT.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: A 12-part reboot was announced by "Deadline Hollywood" on January 18, 2019. The series is being "refreshed" by "Stranger Things" executive producer Shawn Levy and his company 21 Laps Entertainment along with Cosgrove-Meurer Productions and Netflix. Cosgrove and Meurer are showrunners for the series, with Levy and Josh Barry being executive producers. Robert Wise is a co-executive producer, along with showrunner Dunn Meurer. Each episode focuses on a single mystery. Cosgrove stated that the reboot would be "pure documentary style" and would have no host or narrator; however, an image of longtime host Robert Stack can be seen in the title sequence for each episode as an homage to his impact on the show. The first six episodes of the new season became available to stream starting July 1, 2020. In August 2020, it was reported that 13.7% of subscribers had watched the series over its first month. On September 1, 2021, Netflix formally announced that it had ordered an additional season of the series set to launch in the summer of 2022. On September 6, 2022, Netflix announced a third volume of nine new episodes, billed as a "three-night event", would begin streaming October 18, October 25, November 1, 2022.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: Famous actors and celebrities have appeared on the show, both as role actors (before finding stardom) and also in episodes where they had a connection with the events being portrayed.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: In 1992, "Unsolved Mysteries" filmed in Texas and cast Matthew McConaughey to play a murder victim. This was one of McConaughey's earliest on-screen roles. Cheryl Hines, Stephnie Weir, Bill Moseley, Ned Bellamy, Scott Wilkinson, Daniel Dae Kim, David Ramsey, and Taran Killam also appeared on the program before receiving more notable work in Hollywood. Hill Harper also appeared in an episode about a woman looking for a childhood friend whom she later discovered was indeed her sister.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: The figure reflected starting with the 1988–89 season and ending with the 1996–97 season represents the total number of households viewing the program. Starting with the 1997–98 season, the viewing figure is based on total number of viewers.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: The original NBC telecast was nominated six times for an Emmy Award for "outstanding informational series" in 1989–1993 and 1995. The series won the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers Award for Top TV Series twice, in 1992 and 1993; both times, the recipients were Michael Boyd and Gary Malkin for their work on the show's music theme.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: First Look Studios released six theme-based DVD sets in Region 1 in 2004/2005. The sets were re-released on June 21, 2005 with a lower suggested retail price. On March 21, 2006, a compilation set called "The Best of Unsolved Mysteries" was released, which contained selected segments from each of the earlier DVD sets along with some previously unreleased-on-DVD content. A special boxed set featuring the first six sets along with the new content from the "Best of" collection was also produced.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: In 2018, Terror Vision Records made a deal with program creator John Cosgrove to release the show's official score on vinyl, "Unsolved Mysteries: Ghosts/Hauntings/The Unexplained". Two sets on color vinyl were released on June 22, 2018 – the first, a three vinyl set collecting the scores written for each of the show's ghost and missing/wanted segments along with three theme songs; the second, a 34 tracks single vinyl collection featuring the best cuts off the first three vinyl set. Segment cues were taken from the show's original DAT tapes. A second collection entitled "Unsolved Mysteries Volume Two: Bizarre Murders/UFOs/The Unknown" was released in December 2019.


title: Unsolved Mysteries

text: On October 21, 2020, it was announced that Cosgrove/Meurer Productions had struck a deal with Entercom-owned Cadence13 for an official "Unsolved Mysteries" weekly podcast. The podcast is narrated by voice-over artist Steve French.


title: Richard Halsey Best

text: Richard Halsey Best (March 24, 1910 – October 28, 2001) was a dive bomber pilot and squadron commander in the United States Navy during World War II. Stationed on the aircraft carrier , Best led his dive bomber squadron at the 1942 Battle of Midway, sinking two Japanese aircraft carriers in one day, before being medically retired that same year due to damage to his lungs caused by breathing bad oxygen during the battle.


title: Richard Halsey Best

text: His grandfather Edward Best emigrated to the United States from England in the 1800s, living first in Wisconsin where he mustered into "F" Company of the 13th Wisconsin Infantry during the American Civil War, and later moving to California and then Oregon in his old age. Edward's son Burt Best, born in California in 1878 would later be the father of Richard H. Best. Richard H. Best was born in New Jersey in 1910. Richard married Doris Avis Albro (November 21, 1914 - December 6, 1968) on June 24, 1932, in Washington, D.C and they divorced on January 24, 1966.


title: Richard Halsey Best

text: Richard H. Best was appointed to the United States Naval Academy (USNA) in 1928. Having graduated with honors in 1932, he served for two years aboard the light cruiser . In 1934 he was transferred to the Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida, as a naval aviation student. He completed his flight training in December 1935. His first assignment was Fighting Squadron Two (VF-2B) aboard the aircraft carrier , flying the Grumman F2F.


title: Richard Halsey Best

text: In June 1938, Best was given the choice to either join a patrol squadron at Panama or Hawaii, or become a flight instructor at Pensacola: he chose Pensacola, and was assigned to instruct Training Squadron Five. Anticipating what was probably coming, after a year and some months of instructing, Best decided that he could be of most use as a dive bomber pilot. He put in a request for a transfer to the Pacific Fleet in that capacity.


title: Richard Halsey Best

text: On May 31, 1940, Best received orders to join Bombing Squadron Six (VB-6), which was assigned to the aircraft carrier . Upon arrival at the squadron's base on land, Naval Air Station North Island, California, on June 10, Best was made flight officer (operations officer) of the squadron, who was third-in-command. By early 1942, after the war in the Pacific had begun, he had advanced to executive officer (XO), a standard navy term for second-in-command, under his close friend and USNA classmate, William Hollingsworth, known as "Holly," as commander. Best subsequently became squadron commander in time for the Battle of Midway.


title: Richard Halsey Best

text: On December 7, 1941, Best was aboard "Enterprise" awaiting her return to port when he learned (along with most of VB-6) that several of his squadmates on morning search had flown into the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. That evening, he flew in the first "Enterprise" strike of the war as one of six SBDs carrying smoke generators. His group was tasked with providing cover for Lieutenant Eugene E. Lindsey's torpedo bombers should they find the Japanese carriers. However, the strike found nothing, and Best's group returned to "Enterprise" without incident, although he later called the resulting night landing "the worst...of [his] 330 carrier landings."


title: Richard Halsey Best

text: Best saw his first real combat on February 1, 1942, flying in two strikes against the Marshall Islands. At dawn, he led VB-6's second division as part of a full-scale strike against Japanese shipping off Kwajalein. Before noon, he led eight SBDs from VB-6 and one from VS-6 to attack Taroa Island, Maloelap Atoll, a mission that would cost him one plane. On February 24, 1942, Best took part in the attack of Wake Island by the "Enterprise" Air Group, and on March 4 Marcus Island was attacked. After these raids "Enterprise" returned to Pearl Harbor and accompanied during the Doolittle Raid in mid-April. Both carriers then sped to the south, but were too late to take part in the Battle of the Coral Sea. Both carriers and their sister ship were then recalled to participate in what was to be the Battle of Midway.


title: Richard Halsey Best

text: After contact reports from Midway-based PBY Catalina patrol aircraft on the morning of June 4, 1942, "Enterprise" started to launch her air group starting at 07:06. Under the overall command of the air group commander (CAG) Lt.Cdr. Wade McClusky were 14 TBD-1 Devastator torpedo bombers of Torpedo Squadron 6 (VT-6), 34 SBDs of VB-6 and VS-6, and ten F4F-4 Wildcat fighters of Fighting Squadron 6 (VF-6). However, the squadrons became separated and reached the Japanese independently. Only the dive bombers stayed together and reached the Japanese by 09:55. At about 10:22, the "Enterprise" dive bombers (minus three that had dropped out with engine trouble) started to attack the two nearest Japanese carriers, and .


title: Richard Halsey Best

text: At this point, the attack became confused, as all 31 remaining Dauntlesses moved to attack "Kaga". Best expected to attack according to U.S. dive bomber doctrine, which stated that the trailing squadron (VB-6) would attack the nearer target (in this case "Kaga"), while the leading squadron (VS-6) would take the farther of the two (here "Akagi"). However, McClusky, who had been a fighter pilot before becoming CEAG, was apparently unaware of this, and decided to lead VS-6 against "Kaga". As the leading squadron dove past him, Best realized what was happening and broke off to attack "Akagi". However, most of VB-6 missed his signal to abort and continued their dives on "Kaga". Left with only his two wingmen, Best now had just three planes to attack "Akagi".


title: Richard Halsey Best

text: Best's three SBDs launched their attack at 10:26am. The first bomb, dropped by Lieutenant(jg) Edwin John Kroeger, hit the water opposite the carrier's bridge. The second bomb, dropped by Best, penetrated the flight deck and exploded in the upper hangar amongst 18 fuelled and armed Nakajima B5N2 aircraft. The third bomb, dropped by Ensign Frederick Thomas Weber, exploded in the water near the stern, jamming "Akagi"s rudder. Although only Best's bomb struck "Akagi", the resulting fuel- and ordnance-induced explosions in the confined hangar deck were enough to doom the carrier.


title: Richard Halsey Best

text: Later that day, Best participated in the attack on the last remaining Japanese carrier, , possibly scoring one of the four hits that sank her. Best's gunner, James Francis Murray, believed that he "saw the flash of [Best's] bomb through the smoke as it struck ["Hiryū"] amidships forward of the island." After the battle, Best was awarded the Navy Cross and the Distinguished Flying Cross. The Citation said "Defying extreme danger from concentrated anti-aircraft barrage and powerful fighter opposition, Lieutenant Commander Best, with bold determination and courageous zeal, led his squadron in dive-bombing assaults against Japanese naval units. Flying at a distance from his own forces which rendered return unlikely because of probable fuel exhaustion, he pressed home his attacks with extreme disregard for his own personal safety. His gallant intrepidity and loyal devotion to duty contributed greatly to the success of our forces and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service". According to Stephen L. Moore, Best may have been "the first pilot to successfully bomb two Japanese carriers in one day". Considering this unique accomplishment, Admiral Thomas Moorer and Vice Admiral William D. Houser made a serious but unsuccessful effort to recommend Best for the Medal of Honor after Best's death in 2001.