title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: A notable family of strong reductionist accounts are the higher-order theories of consciousness. In 2005, the philosopher Peter Carruthers wrote about "recognitional concepts of experience", that is, "a capacity to recognize [a] type of experience when it occurs in one's own mental life," and suggested that such a capacity could explain phenomenal consciousness without positing qualia. On the higher-order view, since consciousness is a representation, and representation is fully functionally analyzable, there is no hard problem of consciousness.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: The philosophers Glenn Carruthers and Elizabeth Schier said in 2012 that the main arguments for the existence of a hard problem—philosophical zombies, Mary's room, and Nagel's bats—are only persuasive if one already assumes that "consciousness must be independent of the structure and function of mental states, i.e. that there is a hard problem." Hence, the arguments beg the question. The authors suggest that "instead of letting our conclusions on the thought experiments guide our theories of consciousness, we should let our theories of consciousness guide our conclusions from the thought experiments."


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: The philosopher Massimo Pigliucci argued in 2013 that the hard problem is misguided, resulting from a "category mistake". He said: "Of course an explanation isn't the same as an experience, but that's because the two are completely independent categories, like colors and triangles. It is obvious that I cannot experience what it is like to be you, but I can potentially have a complete explanation of how and why it is possible to be you."


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: In 2017, the philosopher Marco Stango, in a paper on John Dewey's approach to the problem of consciousness (which preceded Chalmers' formulation of the hard problem by over half a century), noted that Dewey's approach would see the hard problem as the consequence of an unjustified assumption that feelings and functional behaviors are not the same physical process: "For the Deweyan philosopher, the 'hard problem' of consciousness is a 'conceptual fact' only in the sense that it is a : the mistake of failing to see that the physical can be had as an episode of immediate sentiency."


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: The philosopher Thomas Metzinger likens the hard problem of consciousness to vitalism, a formerly widespread view in biology which was not so much solved as abandoned. Brian Jonathan Garrett has also argued that the hard problem suffers from flaws analogous to those of vitalism.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: Eliminative materialism or eliminativism is the view that many or all of the mental states used in folk psychology (i.e., common-sense ways of discussing the mind) do not, upon scientific examination, correspond to real brain mechanisms. While Patricia Churchland and Paul Churchland have famously applied eliminative materialism to propositional attitudes, philosophers including Daniel Dennett, Georges Rey, and Keith Frankish have applied it to qualia or phenomenal consciousness (i.e., conscious experience). On their view, it is mistaken not only to believe there is a hard problem of consciousness, but to believe consciousness exists at all (in the sense of phenomenal consciousness).


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: Dennett asserts that the so-called "hard problem" will be solved in the process of solving what Chalmers terms the "easy problems". He compares consciousness to stage magic and its capability to create extraordinary illusions out of ordinary things. To show how people might be commonly fooled into overstating the accuracy of their introspective abilities, he describes a phenomenon called change blindness, a visual process that involves failure to detect scenery changes in a series of alternating images. He accordingly argues that consciousness need not be what it seems to be based on introspection. To address the question of the hard problem, or how and why physical processes give rise to experience, Dennett states that the phenomenon of having experience is nothing more than the performance of functions or the production of behavior, which can also be referred to as the easy problems of consciousness. Thus, Dennett argues that the hard problem of experience is included among—not separate from—the easy problems, and therefore they can only be explained together as a cohesive unit.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: In 2013, the philosopher Elizabeth Irvine argued that both science and folk psychology do not treat mental states as having phenomenal properties, and therefore "the hard problem of consciousness may not be a genuine problem for non-philosophers (despite its overwhelming obviousness to philosophers), and questions about consciousness may well 'shatter' into more specific questions about particular capacities."


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: In 2016, Frankish proposed the term "illusionism" as superior to "eliminativism" for describing the position that phenomenal consciousness is an illusion. In the introduction to his paper, he states: "Theories of consciousness typically address the hard problem. They accept that phenomenal consciousness is real and aim to explain how it comes to exist. There is, however, another approach, which holds that phenomenal consciousness is an illusion and aims to explain why it seems to exist." After offering arguments in favor and responding to objections, Frankish concludes that illusionism "replaces the hard problem with the illusion problem—the problem of explaining how the illusion of phenomenality arises and why it is so powerful."


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: In 2022, Jacy Reese Anthis published "Consciousness Semanticism: A Precise Eliminativist Theory of Consciousness". The consciousness semanticism position, a formulation of eliminative materialism, highlights semantic ambiguity in discussions of consciousness. Anthis argues that while many philosophers have engaged in "intuition jousting," we can instead approach the hard problem with "formal argumentation from precise semantics." On this view, there is no hard problem because consciousness does not exist as a property beyond what can be understood through logical and empirical analysis.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: A complete illusionist theory of consciousness must include the description of a mechanism by which the apparently subjective aspect of consciousness is perceived and reported by people. Various philosophers and scientists have proposed possible theories. For example, in his book "Consciousness and the Social Brain" neuroscientist Michael Graziano advocates what he calls attention schema theory, in which our perception of being conscious is merely an error in perception, held by brains which evolved to hold erroneous and incomplete models of their own internal workings, just as they hold erroneous and incomplete models of their own bodies and of the external world.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: The philosopher Peter Hacker argues that the hard problem is misguided in that it asks how consciousness can emerge from matter, whereas in fact sentience emerges from the evolution of living organisms. He states: "The hard problem isn’t a hard problem at all. The really hard problems are the problems the scientists are dealing with. [...] The philosophical problem, like all philosophical problems, is a confusion in the conceptual scheme." Hacker's critique extends beyond Chalmers and the hard problem and is directed against contemporary philosophy of mind and neuroscience more broadly. Along with the neuroscientist Max Bennett, he has argued that most of contemporary neuroscience remains implicitly dualistic in its conceptualizations and is predicated on the "mereological fallacy" of ascribing psychological concepts to the brain that can properly be ascribed only to the person as a whole. Hacker further states that "consciousness studies", as it exists today, is "literally a total waste of time":


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: The whole endeavour of the consciousness studies community is absurd—they are in pursuit of a chimera. They misunderstand the nature of consciousness. The conception of consciousness which they have is incoherent. The questions they are asking don't make sense. They have to go back to the drawing board and start all over again.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: New mysterianism, most significantly associated with the philosopher Colin McGinn, proposes that the human mind, in its current form, will not be able to explain consciousness. McGinn draws on Noam Chomsky's distinction between problems, which are in principle solvable, and mysteries, which human cognitive faculties are unequipped to ever understand, and places the mind-body problem in the latter category. His position is that a naturalistic explanation does exist but that the human mind is cognitively closed to it due to its limited range of intellectual abilities. He cites Jerry Fodor's concept of the modularity of mind in support of cognitive closure.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: While in McGinn's strong form, new mysterianism states that the relationship between consciousness and the material world can "never" be understood by the human mind, there are also weaker forms that argue it cannot be understood within existing paradigms but that advances in science or philosophy may open the way to other solutions (see above). The ideas of Thomas Nagel and Joseph Levine fall into the second category. The cognitive psychologist Steven Pinker has also endorsed this weaker version of the view, summarizing it as follows:


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: And then there is the theory put forward by philosopher Colin McGinn that our vertigo when pondering the Hard Problem is itself a quirk of our brains. The brain is a product of evolution, and just as animal brains have their limitations, we have ours. Our brains can't hold a hundred numbers in memory, can't visualize seven-dimensional space and perhaps can't intuitively grasp why neural information processing observed from the outside should give rise to subjective experience on the inside. This is where I place my bet, though I admit that the theory could be demolished when an unborn genius—a Darwin or Einstein of consciousness—comes up with a flabbergasting new idea that suddenly makes it all clear to us.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: Most neuroscientists and cognitive scientists believe that Chalmers' alleged hard problem will be solved in the course of solving what he terms the easy problems, although a significant minority disagrees.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: Since 1990, researchers including the molecular biologist Francis Crick and the neuroscientist Christof Koch have made significant progress toward identifying which neurobiological events occur concurrently to the experience of subjective consciousness. These postulated events are referred to as "neural correlates of consciousness" or NCCs. However, this research arguably addresses the question of "which" neurobiological mechanisms are linked to consciousness but not the question of "why" they should give rise to consciousness at all, the latter being the hard problem of consciousness as Chalmers formulated it. In "On the Search for the Neural Correlate of Consciousness", Chalmers said he is confident that, granting the principle that something such as what he terms global availability can be used as an indicator of consciousness, the neural correlates will be discovered "in a century or two". Nevertheless, he stated regarding their relationship to the hard problem of consciousness:


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: One can always ask why these processes of availability should give rise to consciousness in the first place. As yet we cannot explain why they do so, and it may well be that full details about the processes of availability will still fail to answer this question. Certainly, nothing in the standard methodology I have outlined answers the question; that methodology assumes a relation between availability and consciousness, and therefore does nothing to explain it. [...] So the hard problem remains. But who knows: Somewhere along the line we may be led to the relevant insights that show why the link is there, and the hard problem may then be solved.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: The neuroscientist and Nobel laureate Eric Kandel wrote that locating the NCCs would not solve the hard problem, but rather one of the so-called easy problems to which the hard problem is contrasted. Kandel went on to note Crick and Koch's suggestion that once the binding problem—understanding what accounts for the unity of experience—is solved, it will be possible to solve the hard problem empirically. However, neuroscientist Anil Seth argued that emphasis on the so-called hard problem is a distraction from what he calls the "real problem": understanding the neurobiology underlying consciousness, namely the neural correlates of various conscious processes. This more modest goal is the focus of most scientists working on consciousness. Psychologist Susan Blackmore believes, by contrast, that the search for the neural correlates of consciousness is futile and itself predicated on an erroneous belief in the hard problem of consciousness.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: Integrated information theory (IIT), developed by the neuroscientist and psychiatrist Giulio Tononi in 2004 and more recently also advocated by Koch, is one of the most discussed models of consciousness in neuroscience and elsewhere. The theory proposes an identity between consciousness and integrated information, with the latter item (denoted as Φ) defined mathematically and thus in principle measurable. The hard problem of consciousness, write Tononi and Koch, may indeed be intractable when working from matter to consciousness. However, because IIT inverts this relationship and works from phenomenological axioms to matter, they say it could be able to solve the hard problem. In this vein, proponents have said the theory goes beyond identifying human neural correlates and can be extrapolated to all physical systems. Tononi wrote (along with two colleagues):


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: While identifying the "neural correlates of consciousness" is undoubtedly important, it is hard to see how it could ever lead to a satisfactory explanation of what consciousness is and how it comes about. As will be illustrated below, IIT offers a way to analyze systems of mechanisms to determine if they are properly structured to give rise to consciousness, how much of it, and of which kind.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: As part of a broader critique of IIT, Michael Cerullo suggested that the theory's proposed explanation is in fact for what he dubs (following Scott Aaronson) the "Pretty Hard Problem" of methodically inferring which physical systems are conscious—but would not solve Chalmers' hard problem. "Even if IIT is correct," he argues, "it does not explain why integrated information generates (or is) consciousness." Chalmers agrees that IIT, if correct, would solve the "Pretty Hard Problem" rather than the hard problem.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: Global workspace theory (GWT) is a cognitive architecture and theory of consciousness proposed by the cognitive psychologist Bernard Baars in 1988. Baars explains the theory with the metaphor of a theater, with conscious processes represented by an illuminated stage. This theater integrates inputs from a variety of unconscious and otherwise autonomous networks in the brain and then broadcasts them to unconscious networks (represented in the metaphor by a broad, unlit "audience"). The theory has since been expanded upon by other scientists including cognitive neuroscientist Stanislas Dehaene.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: In his original paper outlining the hard problem of consciousness, Chalmers discussed GWT as a theory that only targets one of the "easy problems" of consciousness. In particular, he said GWT provided a promising account of how information in the brain could become globally accessible, but argued that "now the question arises in a different form: why should global accessibility give rise to conscious experience? As always, this bridging question is unanswered." J. W. Dalton similarly criticized GWT on the grounds that it provides, at best, an account of the cognitive "function" of consciousness, and fails to explain its experiential aspect. By contrast, A. C. Elitzur argued: "While [GWT] does not address the 'hard problem', namely, the very nature of consciousness, it constrains any theory that attempts to do so and provides important insights into the relation between consciousness and cognition."


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: For his part, Baars writes (along with two colleagues) that there is no hard problem of explaining qualia over and above the problem of explaining causal functions, because qualia are entailed by neural activity and themselves causal. Dehaene, in his 2014 book "Consciousness and the Brain", rejected the concept of qualia and argued that Chalmers' "easy problems" of consciousness are actually the hard problems. He further stated that the "hard problem" is based only upon ill-defined intuitions that are continually shifting as understanding evolves:


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: Once our intuitions are educated by cognitive neuroscience and computer simulations, Chalmers' hard problem will evaporate. The hypothetical concept of qualia, pure mental experience, detached from any information-processing role, will be viewed as a peculiar idea of the prescientific era, much like vitalism... [Just as science dispatched vitalism] the science of consciousness will keep eating away at the hard problem of consciousness until it vanishes.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: In 2018, Chalmers highlighted what he calls the "meta-problem of consciousness", another problem related to the hard problem of consciousness:


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: The meta-problem of consciousness is (to a first approximation) the problem of explaining why we think that there is a [hard] problem of consciousness.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: In his "second approximation", he says it is the problem of explaining the behavior of "phenomenal reports", and the behavior of expressing a belief that there is a hard problem of consciousness.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: Although the meta-problem is strictly speaking an easy problem, it is deeply connected to the hard problem. We can reasonably hope that a solution to the meta-problem will shed significant light on the hard problem. A particularly strong line holds that a solution to the meta-problem will solve or dissolve the hard problem. A weaker line holds that it will not remove the hard problem, but it will constrain the form of a solution.In other words, the 'strong line' holds that the solution to the meta-problem would provide an explanation of our beliefs about consciousness that is independent of consciousness. That would debunk our beliefs about consciousness, in the same way that explaining beliefs about god in evolutionary terms may provide arguments against theism itself.


title: Hard problem of consciousness

text: British playwright Sir Tom Stoppard's play "The Hard Problem", first produced in 2015, is named after the hard problem of consciousness, which Stoppard defines as having "subjective First Person experiences".


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen (Adelaide Amelia Louise Theresa Caroline; 13 August 1792 – 2 December 1849) was Queen of the United Kingdom and Hanover from 26 June 1830 to 20 June 1837 as the wife of King William IV. Adelaide was the daughter of Georg I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen, and Luise Eleonore of Hohenlohe-Langenburg. Adelaide, the capital city of South Australia, is named after her.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: Adelaide was born on 13 August 1792 at Meiningen, Thuringia, Germany, the eldest child of Georg I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen and Luise Eleonore, daughter of Christian Albrecht, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg. She was baptised at the castle chapel on 19 August and was titled "Princess Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, Duchess in Saxony" with the style "Serene Highness". Her godparents numbered twenty-one, including her mother, the Holy Roman Empress, the Queen of Naples and Sicily, the Crown Princess of Saxony, the Duchess of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, the Duchess of Saxe-Coburg, the Duchess of Saxe-Weimar, the Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, and the Landgrave of Hesse-Philippsthal-Barchfeld.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: Saxe-Meiningen was a small state, covering about . It was the most liberal German state and, unlike its neighbours, permitted a free press and criticism of the ruler. At the time, no statute existed which barred a female ruling over the small duchy and it was not until the birth of her brother, Bernhard, in 1800, that the law of primogeniture was introduced.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: By the end of 1811, King George III was incapacitated and, although he was still king in name, his heir-apparent and eldest son, Prince George, was regent. On 6 November 1817, the Prince Regent's only child, Princess Charlotte, died in childbirth. Princess Charlotte was second in line to the throne: had she outlived her father and grandfather, she would have become queen. With her death, the King was left with twelve children and no legitimate grandchildren. The Prince Regent was estranged from his wife, who was 49 years old, thus there was little likelihood that he would have any further legitimate children. To secure the line of succession, Prince William, Duke of Clarence, and the other sons of George III sought quick marriages with the intent of producing offspring who could inherit the throne. William already had ten children by the popular actress Dorothea Jordan, but, being illegitimate, they were barred from the succession.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: Considerable allowances were likely to be voted by Parliament to any royal duke who married, and this acted as a further incentive for William to marry. While Adelaide was a princess from an unimportant German state, William had a limited choice of available princesses, and, after deals with other candidates fell through, a marriage to Adelaide was arranged. The allowance proposed was slashed by Parliament, and the outraged Duke considered calling off the marriage. However, Adelaide still seemed the ideal candidate of a wife: amiable, home-loving, and willing to accept William's illegitimate children as part of the family. The arrangement was settled and William wrote to his eldest son, "She is doomed, "poor dear innocent young" creature, to be my wife." William eventually accepted the reduced increase in his allowance voted by Parliament, her dowry was set at 20,000 florins, with additional three separate annuities being promised by her future husband, the English regent, and the state of Saxe-Meiningen.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: Adelaide married William in a double wedding with William's brother, Prince Edward Augustus, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, and his bride Victoria, Dowager Princess of Leiningen, on 11 July 1818, at Kew Palace in Surrey, England. They had only met for the first time a week earlier on 4 July at Grillon's Hotel in Bond Street. Neither William nor Adelaide had been married before, and William was 27 years her senior. Despite these unromantic circumstances, the couple settled amicably in Hanover, where the cost of living was much lower than in England, and by all accounts were devoted to each other throughout their marriage. Adelaide improved William's behaviour; he drank less, swore less, and became more tactful. Observers thought them parsimonious, and their lifestyle simple.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: Adelaide soon became pregnant, but in her seventh month of pregnancy, she caught pleurisy and gave birth prematurely on 27 March 1819 at the Fürstenhof Palace in Hanover. Her daughter, Charlotte Augusta Louise, lived only a few hours. Another pregnancy in the same year caused William to move the household to England so his future heir would be born on British soil; however, Adelaide miscarried at Calais or Dunkirk during the journey on 5 September 1819. Back in London, they moved into Clarence House, but preferred to stay at Bushy House near Hampton Court, where William had already lived with Dorothea Jordan. Adelaide became pregnant again, and a second daughter, Elizabeth Georgiana Adelaide, was born on 10 December 1820 at St James's Palace. Elizabeth seemed strong but died less than three months old on 4 March 1821 of "inflammation in the Bowels". Twin boys were stillborn on 8 April 1822 at Bushy Park and a possible brief pregnancy may have occurred within the same year. Ultimately, William and Adelaide had no surviving children.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: At the time of their marriage, William was not heir-presumptive to the throne, but became so when his brother Frederick, Duke of York, died childless in 1827. Given the small likelihood of his older brothers producing heirs, and William's relative youth and good health, it had long been considered extremely likely that he would become king in due course. In 1830, on the death of his elder brother, George IV, William acceded to the throne. He and Adelaide were crowned on 8 September 1831 at Westminster Abbey. William despised the ceremony and acted throughout, it is presumed deliberately, as if he was "a character in a comic opera", making a mockery of what he thought to be a ridiculous charade. In contrast, Adelaide took the service very seriously and, among those attending, received praise for her "dignity, repose and characteristic grace".


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: One of King William's first acts was to confer the Rangership of Bushy Park (for 33 years held by himself) on Queen Adelaide, which allowed her to remain at Bushy House for her lifetime. A large portion of her household income was given to several charitable causes. She refused to have women of questionable virtue attend her Court; the Clerk of the Privy Council, Charles Greville, wrote, "The Queen is a prude and refuses to have the ladies come "décolletées" to her parties. George the 4th, who liked ample expanses of that kind, would not let them be covered." In any case, Adelaide was beloved by the British people for her piety, modesty, charity, and her tragic childbirth history.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: Princess Alexandrina Victoria of Kent (later Queen Victoria) came to be acknowledged as William's heir presumptive, as Adelaide had no further pregnancies. While there were rumours of pregnancies well into William's reign (dismissed by the King as "damned stuff"), they seem to have been without basis. Adelaide treated the young Princess Victoria with kindness, despite her inability to produce an heir and the open hostility between her husband and Victoria's mother, the Dowager Duchess of Kent. She and her husband were fond of their niece and wanted her to be closer to them, but their efforts were frustrated by the Duchess of Kent, who refused to acknowledge Adelaide's precedence, left letters from Adelaide unanswered, and commandeered space in the royal stables and apartments for her use. William, aggrieved at what he took to be disrespect from the Duchess to his wife, bluntly announced in the presence of Adelaide, the Duchess, Victoria, and many guests, that the Duchess was "incompetent to act with propriety", that he had been "grossly and continually insulted by that person", and that he hoped to have the satisfaction of living beyond Victoria's age of majority so that the Duchess of Kent would never be regent. Everyone was aghast at the vehemence of the speech, and all three ladies were deeply upset. The breach between the Duchess and the King and Queen was never fully healed, but Victoria always viewed both of them with kindness.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: Adelaide attempted, perhaps unsuccessfully, to influence William politically. She never spoke about politics in public; however, she was strongly Tory. It is unclear how much of his attitudes during the passage of the Reform Act 1832 were due to her influence. The Press, the public, and courtiers assumed that she was agitating behind the scenes against reform, but she was careful to be non-committal in public. As a result of her alleged partiality, she became unpopular with reformers. False rumours circulated that she was having an affair with her Lord Chamberlain, the Tory Lord Howe, but almost everyone at court knew that Adelaide was inflexibly pious and was always faithful to her husband. The Whig prime minister, Lord Grey, had Lord Howe removed from Adelaide's household, and the attempts to reinstate him after the Reform Bill had passed were not successful, as Lord Grey could not agree as to how independent Howe could be of the government. In October 1834, a great fire destroyed much of the Palace of Westminster, which Adelaide considered divine retribution for the vagaries of reform. When the King dismissed the Whig ministry of Lord Melbourne, "The Times" newspaper blamed the Queen's influence, though she seems to have had very little to do with it. Influenced by her similarly reactionary brother-in-law, the Duke of Cumberland, however, she did write to her husband against reform of the Church of Ireland.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: Queen Adelaide was dangerously ill in April 1837, at around the same time that she was present at her mother's deathbed in Meiningen, but she recovered. By June, it became evident that the King was fatally ill himself. Adelaide stayed beside William's deathbed devotedly, not going to bed herself for more than ten days. William IV died from heart failure in the early hours of the morning of 20 June 1837 at Windsor Castle, where he was buried. Victoria was proclaimed as queen, but subject to the rights of any issue that might be born to Adelaide on the remotely possible chance that she was pregnant. The first queen dowager in over a century (Charles II's widow, Catherine of Braganza, had died in 1705, and Mary of Modena, wife of the deposed James II, died in 1718), Adelaide survived her husband by twelve years.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: In early October 1838, for health reasons, Adelaide travelled to Malta aboard HMS "Hastings", stopping at Gibraltar on the way, and staying on Malta for three months. Lacking a Protestant church on Malta, the queen dowager paid for the construction of St Paul's Pro-Cathedral in Valletta. In the summer of 1844, she paid her last visit to her native country, visiting Altenstein Palace and Meiningen.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: Adelaide had been given the use of Marlborough House, Pall Mall in 1831, and held it until her death in 1849. She also had the use of Bushy House and Bushy Park at Hampton Court. Suffering from chronic illness, she often moved her place of residence in a vain search for health, staying at the country houses of various British aristocracy. She became a tenant of William Ward and took up residence at the latter's newly purchased house, Witley Court in Worcestershire, from 1842 until 1846. While at Witley Court, she had two chaplains – Rev. John Ryle Wood, Canon of Worcester and Rev. Thomas Pearson, Rector of Great Witley. She financed the first village school in Great Witley.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: From 1846 to 1848, Adelaide rented Cassiobury House from Lord Essex. During her time there, she played host to Victoria and Albert. Within three years, Adelaide had moved on again, renting Bentley Priory in Stanmore from Lord Abercorn. Semi-invalid by 1847, Adelaide was advised to try the climate of Madeira for the winter that year, for her health. She donated money to the poor of the island and paid for the construction of a road from Ribeiro Seco to Camara de Lobos.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: Queen Adelaide's last public appearance was to lay the foundation stone of the church of St John the Evangelist, Great Stanmore. She gave the font and when the church was completed after her death, the east window was dedicated to her memory. She died during the reign of her niece, Queen Victoria, on 2 December 1849 of natural causes at Bentley Priory in Middlesex. She was buried at St. George's Chapel, Windsor. She wrote instructions for her funeral during an illness in 1841 at Sudbury Hall:


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: I die in all humility … we are alike before the throne of God, and I request therefore that my mortal remains be conveyed to the grave without pomp or state … to have as private and quiet a funeral as possible. I particularly desire not to be laid out in state … I die in peace and wish to be carried to the fount in peace, and free from the vanities and pomp of this world.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: Queen Adelaide's name is probably best remembered in the Australian state of South Australia, founded during the brief reign of William IV. In 1836, the capital city of Adelaide was named after her. The Queen Adelaide Club for women is still active, and a bronze statue of Queen Adelaide stands in the foyer of the Town Hall. The Queen Adelaide Society was inaugurated in Adelaide in 1981 by the late Dorothy Howie with the twin objectives of promoting public awareness of Queen Adelaide and to provide an annual donation to a South Australian children's charity.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: There is a village named Queen Adelaide in Cambridgeshire, which takes its name from one of the many public houses named after her.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: There are Adelaide Streets, Adelaide Avenues, and Adelaide Roads throughout the former empire. There is also Adelaide Hospital (now the Adelaide and Meath Hospital, Tallaght) in Dublin, and an Adelaide railway station in Belfast. Australia has two Adelaide Rivers, in the Northern Territory and Tasmania, and an Adelaide Reef in Queensland. The town of Adelaide (originally Fort Adelaide) in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, as well as Sir Benjamin D'Urban's short-lived colony in the same area, Queen Adelaide Province. Queen's Park, Brighton is also named in her honour, as is Adelheidsdorf in Lower Saxony, Germany. The Citadel in Port Louis, capital of the Republic of Mauritius, is named Fort Adelaide, the building having been started during the reign of William in 1834. In 1832 Adelaide Township was surveyed in what became the western part of Middlesex County in Ontario (now part of the municipality of the Township of Adelaide-Metcalfe). There is a small group of islands in southern Chile named Queen Adelaide Archipelago and Adelaide Island in the British Antarctic Territory.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: In honour of the Queen's many visits, several places in Leicestershire were named after Queen Adelaide. They include Queen Street in Measham and the Queen Adelaide Inn (now demolished) in Appleby Magna. There is also the Queen Adelaide Oak in Bradgate Park (once home to Lady Jane Grey), under which Queen Adelaide had picnicked on venison and crayfish from the estate.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: In 1849 there was a cholera epidemic in the East End of London. The following year, Queen Adelaide's dispensary opened in Warner Place, Bethnal Green. It moved to William Street in 1866 and by 1899 was handling 10,000 medical and dental patients a year. In 1963, the funds that had set up the dispensary became Queen Adelaide's charity, which still operates today.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: Queen Victoria's firstborn child, Victoria Adelaide Mary Louise, took her second name from her great-aunt, who was also the child's godmother.


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: Queen Adelaide was played by Harriet Walter in the 2009 film "The Young Victoria", as a kindly but practical counsellor to the inexperienced queen. Delena Kidd portrayed her in the 2001 television serial "Victoria & Albert".


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: The Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom are impaled with her father's arms as Duke of Saxe-Meiningen. The arms were Quarterly of nineteen, 1st, Azure, a lion barry Argent and Gules (Landgrave of Thuringia); 2nd, Gules, an escarbuncle Or and a shield at the centre point Argent (Cleves); 3rd, Or, a lion rampant Sable (Meissen); 4th, Or, a lion rampant Sable (Jülich); 5th, Argent, a lion rampant Gules crowned Azure (Berg); 6th, Azure, an eagle displayed Or (Palatinate of Saxony); 7th, Or, two pales Azure (Landsberg); 8th, Sable, an eagle displayed Or (Palatinate of Thuringia); 9th, Or, semé of hearts Gules a lion rampant Sable crowned of the second (Orlamünde); 10th, Argent, three bars Azure (Eisenberg); 11th, Azure, a lion passant per fess Or and Argent (Tonna in Gleichen); 12th, Argent, a rose Gules barbed and seeded Proper (Burgraviate of Altenburg); 13th, Gules plain (Sovereign rights); 14th, Argent, three beetles' pincers Gules (Engern); 15th, Or a fess chequy Gules and Argent (Marck); 16th, Per pale, dexter, Gules, a column Argent crowned Or (Roemhild), sinister, Or, on a mount Vert, a cock Sable, wattled Gules (Hannenberg); 17th, Argent three chevronels Gules (Ravensberg); and over all an inescutcheon barry Or and Sable, a crown of rue (or a crancelin) in bend Vert (Saxony).


title: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen

text: As the Duchess of Clarence, she used the arms of her husband (the royal arms with a label of three points Argent, the centre point bearing a cross Gules, the outer points each bearing an anchor Azure) impaled with those of her father, the whole surmounted by a coronet of a child of the sovereign.


title: One Piece (season 15)

text: The fifteenth season of the "One Piece" anime series was produced by Toei Animation, and directed by Hiroaki Miyamoto. The season was broadcast in Japan on Fuji Television on October 2, 2011 to December 23, 2012. Like the rest of the series, it follows the adventures of Monkey D. Luffy and his Straw Hat Pirates. The first of fourteen DVD compilations was released on December 5, 2012, and the last one was released on December 3, 2013.


title: One Piece (season 15)

text: The main story arc, called , adapts material from the 61st to the end of the 66th volumes of the manga by Eiichiro Oda. Two years have passed since the war at Marineford, and Luffy regroups with the Straw Hats reunite at Sabaody after completing their training sessions. From there, they head off to Fishman Island. However, they end up facing Hordy Jones who plots to use a coup d'état to take control of Fishman Island. The final four episodes contain an original story arc, , which serves as a prologue to the concurrently released "".


title: One Piece (season 15)

text: Only a single piece of theme music is used for this season. The opening theme, titled , is performed by Hiroshi Kitadani.


title: One Piece (season 15)

text: In North America, the majority of the season was recategorized as ""Season Nine"" for its DVD release by Funimation Entertainment. The Australian "Season Nine" sets were renamed "Collection 43" through "47".


title: Val Venis

text: Sean Allen Morley (born March 6, 1971), better known by the ring name Val Venis, is a Canadian retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Entertainment (WWF/WWE) from 1998 to 2009. He has also worked for Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling.


title: Val Venis

text: During his career in WWF/WWE, Venis held the Intercontinental Championship twice, the European Championship once, and the World Tag Team Championship once with Lance Storm. As the masked Steele, he was the youngest person to win the CMLL World Heavyweight Championship.


title: Val Venis

text: He began his wrestling training in the early 1990s under the tutelage of Jason and Dewey "The Missing Link" Robertson and debuted on the Canadian independent circuit before making his way to the international circuit, finding work with All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) in Japan, Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL), Promo Azteca, International Wrestling Revolution Group (IWRG) in Mexico, International Wrestling Association (IWA) and World Wrestling Council (WWC) in Puerto Rico where he was one half of a tag team known as the Canadian Glamour Boys with Shane Sewell they were two time WWC World Tag Team Champions. In Japan, he was known as Sean Morgan as the name Morley was difficult to pronounce due to the lack of phonetic differences between the L and R in Japanese. In Mexico, he adopted a robot-like mask and gimmick, changed his name to Steele, and won the CMLL World Heavyweight Championship.


title: Val Venis

text: Morley was signed to the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) in 1998 and given the gimmick of an adult movie star named Val Venis. The character was introduced with a series of vignettes that showcased Venis' lifestyle on and off the set, the most notable of these featuring Venis with prominent real-life porn star Jenna Jameson.


title: Val Venis

text: He debuted on the May 18, 1998 episode of "Raw", defeating Scorpio. Almost immediately, he was involved in an angle with the Kaientai stable, involving him having an affair with Yamaguchi-San's kayfabe wife, Shian-Li Tsang. As a result, the members of Kaientai had a series of unsuccessful matches against him. Venis made his pay-per-view debut at , defeating Jeff Jarrett. On the August 3 episode of "Raw", his tag team partner Taka Michinoku would eventually betray him, which led to him and Kaientai tying Venis up backstage where Yamaguchi-San attempted to castrate him with a sword.


title: Val Venis

text: The next week, however, he reported that he was saved by "a little shrinkage" and help from his friend, John Wayne Bobbitt. He then challenged the four Japanese wrestlers to a match, which they accepted under the conditions that it must be a gauntlet match, meaning that Venis would have to fight all four of them individually in one match. The match ended with Michinoku executing the Michinoku Driver on Venis and getting the three-count, ending his undefeated streak. The feud ended a week later, after Venis fought Michinoku to a no contest.


title: Val Venis

text: After feuding with Kaientai, Venis got his first title shot in the WWF at SummerSlam 1998 against European Champion D'Lo Brown for his championship. Venis was disqualified and as a result, Brown retained the title. Venis got involved in a storyline where he slept with other people's wives. He started a feud with Dustin Runnels, on the September 14 episode of "Raw" when Venis showed Runnels his new porn movie, featuring Venis in bed with Dustin's wife, Terri Runnels. She then became his on-screen girlfriend. This culminated in a match at , which Venis won. On the October 12 episode of "Raw", Venis participated in a tournament for the Intercontinental Championship, defeating Marc Mero in the first round before losing in the semifinals to Ken Shamrock. On the same night, Runnels returned to his Goldust gimmick. Venis continued his feud with Goldust, with Goldust gaining a victory at . The two faced each other again at Capital Carnage, and Val went on to win the match, to end the feud. When Terri said she was pregnant, Val dumped her.


title: Val Venis

text: At the end of the year, he formed a short lived tag team with The Godfather, unofficially dubbed "Supply and Demand". They began teaming on the December 7 episode of "Raw" against The Acolytes. Their team only lasted a week, including a match against Mark Henry and D'Lo Brown at , and a match against the Brood. at Royal Rumble, Venis competed in the Royal Rumble match where he was eliminated by Triple H, On the February 1, 1999 episode of "Raw", he started a feud with Intercontinental Champion Ken Shamrock after Venis made a film starring him and Shamrock's kayfabe sister Ryan called "Saving Ryan's Privates". At , Venis defeated Shamrock with the help of special guest referee Billy Gunn to win the Intercontinental Championship. The next night on "Raw", Venis defended the title against Gunn and retained the title.


title: Val Venis

text: A few days later, he broke up with Ryan and eventually lost the Intercontinental Title to Road Dogg after only a one-month reign as champion. Venis began a feud with Road Dogg and made his WrestleMania debut at WrestleMania XV, where he challenged for the Intercontinental title in a Four Corners Elimination match which also included Ken Shamrock and Goldust. Venis failed to win the match. Throughout the rest of the year, he found himself having "woman troubles" with Nicole Bass, Chyna, and Debra. At Over the Edge, Venis and Nicole Bass defeated Jeff Jarrett and Debra, Venis reunited with the Godfather and they began challenging for the Tag Team titles. on the May 24 episode of "Raw", Venis was defeated by The Rock in the main event. Venis then entered the 1999 King of the Ring tournament but was eliminated in the first round by Chyna. On the July 12 episode of "Raw", Venis and The Godfather faced the Hardy Boyz for the titles, but the Hardy Boyz retained the titles by getting disqualified. Venis and the Godfather started a feud with Droz and Albert. The next week on "Raw", Venis and Godfather, Droz and Albert, and the Acolytes challenged the Hardys to a fatal four-way elimination tag team match for the titles, where the Hardys went on to retain the titles.


title: Val Venis

text: He started a feud with Steve Blackman and defeated him at Unforgiven. His next feud was with Mark Henry, whom he beat at Rebellion. He engaged in feuds with several main eventers including The Rock, Mankind, and Steve Austin. on the October 21 episode of "SmackDown!", Venis faced Stone Cold Steve Austin in the main event where he lost. At No Mercy, Venis faced Mankind in a winning effort. In late 1999, Venis started a feud with European Champion The British Bulldog over the title. At Survivor Series, Venis teamed up with Mark Henry, Gangrel, and Steve Blackman to face the British Bulldog and the Mean Street Posse with his team winning the match.


title: Val Venis

text: At Armageddon, Venis pinned the British Bulldog in a triple threat match with D-Lo Brown to win the WWF European Championship. At the Royal Rumble, Venis competed in the Royal Rumble match where he was eliminated by Kane. On the February 10, 2000 episode of "SmackDown!", he dropped the European Title to Kurt Angle, ending his two-month reign. Around this time, Morley largely disappeared from WWF television programming until mid-May, due to a legitimate neck injury which limited his mobility.


title: Val Venis

text: At King of the Ring, Venis participated in the King of the Ring tournament where he defeated Eddie Guerrero in the Quarter-Finals but was defeated by Rikishi in the semi-finals. This culminated in a feud between Venis and Rikishi which led to Venis turning heel by aligning himself with Trish Stratus. With Stratus as his manager, and a new look - including a haircut, white boots and trunks - and the near total disposal of the porn star gimmick, he defeated Rikishi to win his second Intercontinental Championship, and aligned himself with Test and Albert. Venis and Rikishi continued their rivalry as Venis defended the title in a rematch at Fully Loaded. During the match, Venis was put over by taking a splash from Rikishi from the top of a 15-foot high steel cage and still going on to defeat Rikishi later in the match to retain the title. Val's manager, Stratus, inadvertently lost Venis' Intercontinental title to Chyna in a mixed tag team match involving the pair against the team of Chyna and Eddie Guerrero at SummerSlam.


title: Val Venis

text: Shortly after, Venis underwent a complete change in persona and became a member of the Right to Censor (RTC) stable. Venis joined RTC after being abducted by Bull Buchanan and The Goodfather. He became a censorship-based character, directly contrasting with his previously provocative on-screen character. Of this change, Morley said in an interview that "the porn star gimmick and storylines kind of overshadowed my work," and that he wanted a more serious persona to better highlight his in-ring abilities and move towards being one of the WWF's top heels. Morley has gone on record saying, the Right To Censor character was his least favorite character, since he lost the core of his previous character and it was hard to wrestle wearing a tie and t-shirt. Right To Censor feuded with the Acolytes and the Dudley Boyz, culminating in an eight-man tag team match at Unforgiven, which RTC won. On the October 12 episode of "SmackDown!", Venis got a shot at the WWF Championship against The Rock but failed to win the title. At No Mercy, Venis teamed up with Steven Richards to face Chyna and Mr. Ass. After interference from Eddie Guerrero, RTC picked up the win. On the November 6 episode of "Raw", Venis lost to The Undertaker. On the November 23 episode of "SmackDown!", Venis defeated K-Kwik. Venis started a feud with Chyna, culminating in a match at Armageddon which Venis won. At the Royal Rumble, Venis competed in the Royal Rumble match where he was eliminated by The Undertaker.


title: Val Venis

text: At WrestleMania X-Seven, RTC faced Tazz and the APA in a six-man tag match which RTC lost. The next night on "Raw", he faced Kane for the Hardcore Championship but lost the match. On the April 26 episode of "SmackDown!", RTC faced The Undertaker in a 4 on 1 handicap match where the other members of the group walked out on Steven Richards. Venis stayed in RTC until they disbanded right before the Invasion storyline, feuding with Chyna and "The One" Billy Gunn during his tenure with the group. When RTC broke up and the Invasion began, Venis disappeared from WWF television while recovering from surgery on his hip to remove bone spurs from his motorcycle racing days. After recovering, he was kept off television along with several other wrestlers, for whom WWF bookers could not come up with any storylines.


title: Val Venis

text: Venis returned to action back in his old gimmick, at the 2002 Royal Rumble, where he entered at #20 in the Royal Rumble match but was shortly after eliminated by Steve Austin. On "Raw" he had two very short feuds with Stone Cold Steve Austin and Mr. Perfect before being drafted to SmackDown! during the brand extension.


title: Val Venis

text: On "SmackDown!", he began calling himself "The Big Valbowski" and he aligned himself with babyfaces Edge, Randy Orton, Billy Kidman, and Hardcore Holly and feuded with Chris Jericho, Deacon Batista, and Reverend D-Von.


title: Val Venis

text: In June, Venis competed in the 2002 King of the Ring tournament. He defeated Christian in the first round, then lost to Chris Jericho in the quarterfinals.


title: Val Venis

text: Morley was sidelined with a legitimate neck injury and laceration in late July, after gym equipment fell on him in Canada. He returned to wrestling "SmackDown!" dark matches in September, and made his last televised appearance as Venis on October 26 at Rebellion, where he teamed with Chuck Palumbo in a loss to Reverend D-Von and Ron Simmons.


title: Val Venis

text: He returned to television on the November 18 episode on "Raw" under his real name, Sean Morley. He was appointed Raw "Chief of Staff" by Raw General Manager, Eric Bischoff, turning heel once again by acting as Bischoff's assistant and going by Chief Morley. Morley began a feud with the Dudley Boyz in March 2003. On the March 24, 2003 episode of "Raw", he officially became one half of the World Tag Team Champions with Lance Storm after Storm's partner, William Regal, was sidelined with an illness. Storm and Morley successfully defended the World Tag Team Championship on the episode of "Heat" prior to WrestleMania XIX at Safeco Field against Rob Van Dam and Kane with help from the Dudley Boyz, only to lose them to Kane and Van Dam the next night.


title: Val Venis

text: Morley was "fired" from his assistant job by Bischoff after he lost a match to Jerry "The King" Lawler in which Jim Ross' job was on the line. He was quickly "rehired" by co-General Manager, Stone Cold Steve Austin. After returning as Val Venis, he participated in a battle royal at Judgment Day for the vacant Intercontinental Championship, won by Christian. Throughout mid-2003, 2004, and the first half of 2005, Venis became a face again, but did not get much in the way of a push. Venis began wrestling as a mid-carder on "Heat" and on the September 14, 2003 episode of "Heat", he faced Christian in another match for the Intercontinental Championship, which Christian won.


title: Val Venis

text: He reformed his previous tag team with Lance Storm as faces, but the partnership faded and Venis became utilized mainly as a "jobber to the stars". At Armageddon, Venis and Storm competed in a Tag Team Turmoil match for the World Tag Team Championship which was won by Batista and Ric Flair. He defeated Ring of Honor wrestler and future WWE Champion CM Punk in Punk's first WWE tryout match on May 9, 2005, which led to CM Punk getting a contract and being sent to developmental. On the January 2 episode of "Heat", Venis lost to Ric Flair in the main event of the night.


title: Val Venis

text: At WrestleMania 21, Venis competed in a 30-man Interpromotional battle royal which was won by Booker T. In the summer of 2005 he formed another team, V-Squared, with Viscera. While wrestling on "Heat", they squashed a number of other tag teams including the World Tag Team Champions Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch in a non-title match. On the December 5 episode of "Raw", V-Squared participated in a fatal four-way match for the World Tag Team Championship, including the champions Big Show and Kane, The Heart Throbs, and Snitsky and Tyson Tomko but were defeated. Venis and Viscera continued to team in 2006, getting another shot at Big Show and Kane's titles, while occasionally having solo matches. In March 2006, Venis suffered a kayfabe injury at the hands of the Spirit Squad which allowed him to take time off for legitimate elbow surgery, during which about a dozen more bone spurs were removed, six others were shaved down, and a nerve was transplanted.


title: Val Venis

text: While he was out, Viscera began teaming with Charlie Haas, leaving Venis to team with Snitsky upon his return in a team that didn't last long. Venis began a feud with Eugene on "Heat" when Eugene interrupted and attacked him during a "Kiss Cam" segment on December 4. On the following episode of "Heat", Venis and Eugene had a match which Eugene won. On the December 18 episode of "Raw", Val participated in a #1 contender's battle royal, won by Edge. In February 2007, Venis was given a video program entitled "Sex University" on WWE.com, which lasted until April when it and its archives were removed from the site. On the March 19, 2007 episode of "Raw", he participated in a Money in the Bank qualifying battle royal, won by Edge.


title: Val Venis

text: In late 2007, he began a feud with Santino Marella. During the feud, Marella gave Venis a sneak attack, causing him an injury. The two had a match on the October 15 episode of "Raw", which Marella won. On the February 18, 2008 episode of "Raw", he lost to Mr. Kennedy in a Money in the Bank qualifying match. On the March 25 episode of "ECW on Sci Fi", he participated in a twelve-on-twelve tag team match involving all the participants of the battle royal. At WrestleMania XXIV, he participated in a pre-show number one contender's battle royal, with the winner facing ECW Champion Chavo Guerrero later that night. Kane went on to win the battle royal. On the April 7 episode of "Raw", Venis fell to Umaga. On the April 14 tapings for "Heat", he lost his last WWE match to Snitsky. Morley spent the rest of 2008 out of action due to an injury. On January 9, 2009, he was released from his WWE contract after over a decade of working for the company.


title: Val Venis

text: After his release from WWE, Morley toured in Japan with New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), losing to Hiroshi Tanahashi on March 22, 2009, and with Hulk Hogan's tour of the world which started in Melbourne, Australia.


title: Val Venis

text: Morley made his debut for TNA on the January 4, 2010, episode of "Impact!" in a backstage segment with the Beautiful People. On the January 14 episode of "Impact!" Morley had another segment, complete with revamped theme music, where he explained that he was no longer an adult film star, but rather an adult film producer. This led to Daniels coming to the ring and attacking him, setting up a match at the Genesis pay-per-view. At the pay-per-view Morley defeated Daniels in his first match for the company with his patented Money Shot. On the January 28 episode of "Impact!" Morley suffered his first loss in TNA, losing to Desmond Wolfe in an 8 Card Stud Tournament qualifying match. On the March 4, 2010, episode of "Impact!", Morley pinned Jeff Jarrett in an impromptu Falls Count Anywhere match by order of Eric Bischoff, turning heel for the first time in TNA. However, the next day Morley announced on his Facebook page that largely due to the move of "Impact!" to Monday nights, his original plan to wrestle for both TNA and CMLL had to change and therefore he was done with TNA.


title: Val Venis

text: Morley worked with Elite Xtreme Wrestling now known as Future Stars of Wrestling as Val Venis where he was a former EXW Tag Team Champion with Dexter Verity. On April 16, 2011, Venis defeated Rhett Titus in Franklin, Pennsylvania for a special IWC Nights of Legends event. Three events later Venis challenged John McChesney for the IWC World Heavyweight Championship but was unsuccessful.


title: Val Venis

text: In late 2011, Morley returned to Canada wrestling for Championship Wrestling International, Venis defeated former World Tag Team Champion Sylvain Grenier in Lindsay, Ontario, Canada. The following day Venis defeated Chris Masters at CWI Fall Brawl 2 in Caledonia, Ontario, Canada.


title: Val Venis

text: On June 1, 2012, Morley lost to former WWE wrestler and tag partner Big Daddy V in New York City for ECPW Five Boros.


title: Val Venis

text: In 2013 Morley returned to Canada working in Manitoba's Canadian Wrestling's Elite and 2014 in British Columbia's Elite Canadian Championship Wrestling and Invasion Championship Wrestling where he reunited with his former WWE tag partner The Godfather.


title: Val Venis

text: Morley toured in England for House of Pain: Evolution where defeated Marty Scurll in Derby, England on June 19, 2015.


title: Val Venis

text: On April 5, 2019, Morely teamed with Joey Ryan and SeXXXy Eddy losing to Scarlett Bordeaux, Priscilla Kelly and Martina in a six tag intergender match at Wrestlecon Joey Ryan's Penis Party in New York City.


title: Val Venis

text: Morley speaks social Spanish, which he learned during the time he spent in Mexican lucha libre promotions. His sister, Alannah Morley, was married to Adam "Edge" Copeland between 2001 and 2004, after she had been in a relationship with Copeland since 1998.


title: Val Venis

text: Morley is an advocate for the legalisation of cannabis, and now works as a budtender at "Health for Life" marijuana dispensary in Mesa, Arizona.


title: Val Venis

text: In February 2020, Morley came under fire from many wrestlers and wrestling fans after making several comments criticizing All Elite Wrestling's decision to put their women's championship on a transgender wrestler, Nyla Rose. Morley commented on his Twitter and Facebook profiles, arguing that Rose was a biological man and saying only a "real woman" should be holding a women's championship. Several professional wrestlers in many promotions immediately came to Rose's defense, most notably Cody and Dustin Rhodes, and criticized Morley's views.


title: Val Venis

text: Morley has been known to express libertarian political beliefs and to be a believer in QAnon conspiracy theories. On his YouTube channel, "Top Shelf Anarchy," he advocates for anarchy and claims that "the government" is a "criminal organization." His channel features several videos of Morley attempting to film in facilities that prohibit video recording, and the resulting confrontations with security and law enforcement officers, a practice described by practitioners as "First Amendment audits," often associated with the sovereign citizen movement. In January 2021, Morley was temporarily banned from Twitter for violating their child sexual exploitation policy after posting a photo which he claimed showed Hunter Biden having sex with Malia Obama. He also claimed that 2020 president-elect Joe Biden is a pedophile.


title: Lisa McGee

text: Elizabeth "Lisa" McGee (born 1980) is an Irish playwright and screenwriter. McGee is the creator and writer of "Derry Girls", a comedy series that began airing on Channel 4 in the UK in January 2018. In 2018, she was listed as one of BBC's 100 Women.


title: Lisa McGee

text: She was writer on attachment with the Royal National Theatre in London in 2006. Her plays include "Jump", "The Heights", "Nineteen Ninety Two", and "Girls and Dolls", for which she won the Stewart Parker Trust New Playwright Bursary 2007.


title: Lisa McGee

text: McGee's television credits include "The Things I Haven't Told You" for BBC Three, the Irish television series "Raw" which she created for RTÉ, time as a writer for three series of the BAFTA-nominated "Being Human" for the BBC, the Channel 4 sitcom "London Irish", which she created, writing for the Golden Globe-nominated drama series "The White Queen" for BBC 1, "Indian Summers" for Channel 4, and "The Deceived" for Channel 5 co-written with her husband Tobias Beer. Her stage play "Jump" has been adapted into a film.


title: Lisa McGee

text: McGee was born in Derry, Northern Ireland to an Irish Catholic family. She studied at Thornhill College and then studied Drama at The Queen's University of Belfast.


title: Sodium benzoate

text: Sodium benzoate is the sodium salt of benzoic acid, widely used as a food preservative (with an E number of E211) and a pickling agent. It appears as a white crystalline chemical with the formula CHCOONa.


title: Sodium benzoate

text: Sodium benzoate is commonly produced by the neutralization of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) with benzoic acid (CHCOOH), which is itself produced commercially by partial oxidation of toluene with oxygen.


title: Sodium benzoate

text: Many foods are natural sources of benzoic acid, its salts, and its esters. Fruits and vegetables can be rich sources, particularly berries such as cranberry and bilberry. Other sources include seafood, such as prawns, and dairy products.


title: Sodium benzoate

text: Sodium benzoate can act as a food preservative. It is most widely used in acidic foods such as salad dressings (for example acetic acid in vinegar), carbonated drinks (carbonic acid), jams and fruit juices (citric acid), pickles (acetic acid), condiments, and frozen yogurt toppings. It is also used as a preservative in medicines and cosmetics. Under these conditions it is converted into benzoic acid (E210), which is bacteriostatic and fungistatic. Benzoic acid is generally not used directly due to its poor water solubility.


title: Sodium benzoate

text: Concentration as a food preservative is limited by the FDA in the U.S. to 0.1% by weight. Sodium benzoate is also allowed as an animal food additive at up to 0.1%, per the Association of American Feed Control Officials.


title: Sodium benzoate

text: Sodium benzoate has been replaced by potassium sorbate in the majority of soft drinks in the United Kingdom.


title: Sodium benzoate

text: Sodium benzoate was one of the chemicals used in 19th century industrialised food production that was investigated by Dr. Harvey W. Wiley with his famous 'Poison Squad' as part of the US Department of Agriculture. This led up to the 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act, a landmark event in the early history of food regulation in the United States.


title: Sodium benzoate

text: Sodium benzoate is used as a treatment for urea cycle disorders due to its ability to bind amino acids. This leads to excretion of these amino acids and a decrease in ammonia levels. Recent research shows that sodium benzoate may be beneficial as an add-on therapy (1 gram/day) in schizophrenia. Total Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale scores dropped by 21% compared to placebo.


title: Sodium benzoate

text: Sodium benzoate, along with caffeine, is used to treat postdural puncture headache, respiratory depression associated with overdosage of narcotics, and with ergotamine to treat vascular headache.


title: Sodium benzoate

text: Sodium benzoate is also used in fireworks as a fuel in whistle mix, a powder that emits a whistling noise when compressed into a tube and ignited.


title: Sodium benzoate

text: The mechanism starts with the absorption of benzoic acid into the cell. If the intracellular pH falls to 5 or lower, the anaerobic fermentation of glucose through phosphofructokinase decreases sharply, which inhibits the growth and survival of microorganisms that cause food spoilage.


title: Sodium benzoate

text: In the United States, sodium benzoate is designated as generally recognized as safe (GRAS) by the Food and Drug Administration. The International Programme on Chemical Safety found no adverse effects in humans at doses of 647–825 mg/kg of body weight per day.


title: Sodium benzoate

text: The human body rapidly clears sodium benzoate by combining it with glycine to form hippuric acid which is then excreted. The metabolic pathway for this begins with the conversion of benzoate by butyrate-CoA ligase into an intermediate product, benzoyl-CoA, which is then metabolized by glycine "N"-acyltransferase into hippuric acid.


title: Sodium benzoate

text: In combination with ascorbic acid (vitamin C, E300), sodium benzoate and potassium benzoate may form benzene. In 2006, the Food and Drug Administration tested 100 beverages available in the United States that contained both ascorbic acid and benzoate. Four had benzene levels that were above the 5 ppb Maximum Contaminant Level set by the Environmental Protection Agency for drinking water. Most of the beverages that tested above the limit have been reformulated and subsequently tested below the safety limit. Heat, light and shelf life can increase the rate at which benzene is formed. Hot peppers naturally contain vitamin C ("nearly as much as in one orange") so the observation about beverages applies to pepper sauces containing sodium benzoate, like Texas Pete.


title: Sodium benzoate

text: Research published in 2007 for the UK's Food Standards Agency (FSA) suggests that certain artificial colors, when paired with sodium benzoate, may be linked to hyperactive behavior. The results were inconsistent regarding sodium benzoate, so the FSA recommended further study. The Food Standards Agency concluded that the observed increases in hyperactive behavior, if real, were more likely to be linked to the artificial colors than to sodium benzoate. The report's author, Jim Stevenson from Southampton University, said: "The results suggest that consumption of certain mixtures of artificial food colours and sodium benzoate preservative are associated with increases in hyperactive behaviour in children. . . . Many other influences are at work but this at least is one a child can avoid."


title: Online banking

text: Online banking, also known as internet banking, web banking or home banking, is an electronic payment system that enables customers of a bank or other financial institution to conduct a range of financial transactions through the financial institution's website. The online banking system will typically connect to or be part of the core banking system operated by a bank to provide customers access to banking services in addition to or in place of traditional branch banking. Online banking significantly reduces the banks' operating cost by reducing reliance on a branch network and offers greater convenience to some customers by lessening the need to visit a branch bank as well as the convenience of being able to perform banking transactions even when branches are closed. Internet banking provides personal and corporate banking services offering features such as viewing account balances, obtaining statements, checking recent transactions, transferring money between accounts, and making payments.


title: Online banking

text: Some banks operate as a "direct bank", where they operate entirely via the internet or internet and telephone. They are different from


title: Online banking

text: The precursor to the modern online banking services was distance banking electronically and by telephone since the early 1980s. The term 'online' became popular in the late 1980s and referred to the use of a terminal, keyboard, and TV or monitor to access the banking system using a phone line. 'Home banking' can also refer to the use of a numeric keypad to send tones down a phone line with instructions to the bank.


title: Online banking

text: The first home banking service was offered to consumers in December 1980 by United American Bank, a community bank with headquarters in Knoxville, Tennessee. United American partnered with Radio Shack to produce a secure custom modem for its TRS-80 computer that allowed bank customers to access their account information securely. Services available in its first years included bill pay, account balance checks, and loan applications, as well as game access, budget and tax calculators and daily newspapers. Thousands of customers paid $25–30 per month for the service.


title: Online banking

text: Large banks, many working on parallel tracks to United American, followed in 1981 when four of New York's major banks (Citibank, Chase Manhattan, Chemical Bank, and Manufacturers Hanover) offered home banking services, using the videotex system. Because of the commercial failure of videotex, these banking services never became popular except in France (where millions of videotex terminals (Minitel) where given out by the telecom provider) and the UK, where the Prestel system was used.


title: Online banking

text: The first videotext banking service in France was launched on December 20, 1983, by CCF Bank (now part of HSBC). Videotext online Banking services eventually reached 19% market share by 1991


title: Online banking

text: The developers of United American Bank's first-to-market computer banking system aimed to license it nationally, but they were overtaken by competitors when United American failed in 1983 as a result of loan fraud on the part of bank owner Jake Butcher, the 1978 Tennessee Democratic nominee for governor and promoter of the 1982 Knoxville World's Fair. First Tennessee Bank, which purchased the failed bank, did not attempt to develop or commercialize the computer banking platform.


title: Online banking

text: When the clicks-and-bricks euphoria hit in the late 1990s, many banks began to view web-based banking as a strategic imperative. In 1996 OP Financial Group, a cooperative bank, became the second online bank in the world and the first in Europe. The attraction of online banking is fairly obvious: diminished transaction costs, easier integration of services, interactive marketing capabilities, and other benefits that boost customer lists and profit margins. Additionally, online banking services allow institutions to bundle more services into single packages, thereby luring customers and minimizing overhead.


title: Online banking

text: In 1995, Wells Fargo was the first U.S. bank to add account services to its website, with other banks quickly following suit. That same year, Presidential became the first U.S. bank to open bank accounts over the internet. According to research by Online Banking Report, at the end of 1999 less than 0.4% of households in the U.S. were using online banking. At the beginning of 2004, some 33 million U.S. households (31%) were using some form of online banking. Five years later, 47% of Americans used online banking, according to a survey by Gartner Group. Meanwhile, in the UK online banking grew from 63% to 70% of internet users between 2011 and 2012.


title: Online banking

text: By 2018, the number of digital banking users in the U.S. reached approximately 61 percent. The penetration of online banking in Europe has been increased as well. In 2019, 93 percent of the Norwegian population access online banking sites, which is the highest in Europe, followed by Denmark and Netherlands. Across Asia, more than 700 million consumers are estimated to use digital banking regularly, according to a 2015 survey by McKinsey and Company.


title: Online banking

text: By 2000, 80% of U.S. banks offered e-banking. Customer use grew slowly. At Bank of America, for example, it took 10 years to acquire 2 million e-banking customers. However, a significant cultural change took place after the Y2K scare ended.


title: Online banking

text: In 2001, Bank of America became the first bank to top 3 million online banking customers, more than 20% of its customer base. In comparison, larger national institutions, such as Citigroup claimed 2.2 million online relationships globally, while J.P. Morgan Chase estimated it had more than 750,000 online banking customers. Wells Fargo had 2.5 million online banking customers, including small businesses. Online customers proved more loyal and profitable than regular customers. In October 2001, Bank of America customers executed a record 3.1 million electronic bill payments, totaling more than $1 billion. As of 2017, the bank has 34 million active digital accounts, both online and mobile. In 2009, a report by Gartner Group estimated that 47% of United States adults and 30% in the United Kingdom bank online.


title: Online banking

text: The early 2000s saw the rise of the branch-less banks as internet only institutions. These internet-based banks incur lower overhead costs than their brick-and-mortar counterparts. In the United States, deposits at some direct banks are FDIC-insured and offer the same level of insurance protection as traditional banks. Neobanks are branch-less banks in the United States which are not FDIC-insured.


title: Online banking

text: Online banking started in the United Kingdom with the launch of Nottingham Building Society (NBS)'s Homelink service in September 1982, initially on a restricted basis, before it was expanded nationally in 1983. Homelink was delivered through a partnership with the Bank of Scotland and British Telecom's Prestel service. The system used Prestel viewlink system and a computer, such as the BBC Micro, or keyboard (Tandata Td1400) connected to the telephone system and television set. The system allowed users to "transfer money between accounts, pay bills and arrange loans... compare prices and order goods from a few major retailers, check local restaurant menus or real estate listings, arrange vacations... enter bids in Homelink's regular auctions and send electronic mail to other Homelink users." In order to make bank transfers and bill payments, a written instruction giving details of the intended recipient had to be sent to the NBS who set the details up on the Homelink system. Typical recipients were gas, electricity and telephone companies and accounts with other banks. Details of payments to be made were input into the NBS system by the account holder via Prestel. A cheque was then sent by NBS to the payee and an advice giving details of the payment was sent to the account holder. BACS was later used to transfer the payment directly.


title: Online banking

text: In the United States in-home banking was "is still in its infancy" with banks "cautiously testing consumer interest" in 1984, a year after online banking went national in the UK. At the time Chemical Bank in New York was "still working out the bugs from its service, which offers somewhat limited features". The service from Chemical, called Pronto, was launched in 1983 and was aimed at individuals and small businesses. It enabled them to maintain electronic checkbook registers, see account balances, and transfer funds between checking and savings accounts. The other three major banks — Citibank, Chase Bank and Manufacturers Hanover — started to offer home banking services soon after. Chemical's Pronto failed to attract enough customers to break even and was abandoned in 1989. Other banks had a similar experience.


title: Online banking

text: Since it first appeared in the United States, online banking has been federally governed by the "Electronic Funds Transfer Act of 1978".


title: Online banking

text: After a test period with 2,500 users starting in 1984, online banking services were launched in 1988, using Minitel terminals that were distributed freely to the population by the government. By 1990, 6.5 million Minitels were installed in households. Online banking was one of the most popular services.


title: Online banking

text: In January 1997, the first online banking service was launched by Sumitomo Bank. By 2010, most major banks implemented online banking services, however, the types of services offered varied. According to a poll conducted by Japanese Bankers Association (JBA) in 2012, 65.2% were the users of personal internet banking.


title: Online banking

text: In January 2015, WeBank, the online bank created by Tencent, started 4-month-long online banking trail operation.


title: Online banking

text: In December 1995, Advance Bank acquired by St.George Bank, started to provide customers with online banking with the rollout of the C++ Internet banking program.


title: Online banking

text: In 1996, Banco Original SA launched its online-only retail banking. In 2019 new banks began to emerge as the Conta Simples, focused only for companies.


title: Online banking

text: Virtual or online banking became a reality in Slovenia in 1997, when SKB bank launched this service under the name of SKB Net. Two years later, they were followed by the largest Slovenian bank, NLB bank, who started offering online banking services in 1999 under the name of NLB Klik. Nowadays, actually every bank in Slovenia is offering online banking services. The Slovenian Central bank's data shows that there was a rise of 5,1% in 2017 from the previous year and the number almost doubled from more than ten years ago. At the end of 2019, the number of users was almost 1 million. The number of payments is around 26 million per quarter, which means that there are more than 100 million payments made online in Slovenia every year, and another 3 million made to offshore accounts. Data from the Slovenian Central bank also show that the total value of payments in 2017 reached more than €240 million. More than 900,000 use online banking in Slovenia


title: Online banking

text: Virtual banking first became a possibility in 1996 with the Bank of Montreal's mbanx. mbanx was released at the very beginning of the internet banking revolution in Canada and was the first full-service online bank Also in 1996, RBC started providing banking information online and had the first personal computer banking software released that year


title: Online banking

text: In 1997, the bank ING Direct Canada (now known as Tangerine Bank) was founded with almost entirely online banking using only small cafes for meetings and very few physical branches. This was completely different from how banks had operated in Canada previously. By the early 2000s, all of the major banks in Canada rolled out some form of online banking.


title: Online banking

text: Remote customer service of banks via the internet or Online banking (e-banking) in Ukraine was introduced more than two decades ago. Legal entities have been using the remote control of bank accounts since the mid-1990s. PrivatBank, which launched the “Privat24” system in 2000, became a pioneer in retail online banking.


title: Online banking

text: Since 2000, most financial institutions have been actively implementing online offices and web banking.


title: Online banking

text: 2018 - the ability to manage accounts and make transfers online is available in almost all financial institutions in Ukraine.


title: Online banking

text: Nowadays, the list of Internet banking services, with rare exceptions, repeats the entire product line of banks. With the help of Internet banking (IB), you can not only control the movement of funds in their accounts, but also perform more complex operations: for example, order a payment card or open a deposit account, repay the loan, and recently it became possible to buy and sell currency.


title: Online banking

text: The rapid development of Internet banking in Ukraine is provoking the growth of Internet users. It is important to mention that the largest functionality, more than 40 options - from transfers and opening deposits to home accounting and purchasing tickets are available in PrivatBank. There are 37 options in the Internet banking system of the First Ukrainian International Bank, 35 - in Alfa-Bank. One of the most popular services in which Internet banking users are interested in the ability to pay remotely for utilities.


title: Online banking

text: Compared to several years ago, when the people living in Macedonia had to go directly to the banks to perform financial transactions, today there is a widely functional e-banking system. Macedonian banks today offer conventional e-banking services, electronic products including debit/credit cards and e-trading and contemporary electronic services like internet banking and online investing. What is important when it comes to e-banking is the trust in banks, usability of the platforms and the overall marketing for e-banking from banks. Moreover, it's also important to constantly update the e-banking services. One successful example regarding the above-mentioned characteristics in Macedonia is “Stopanska Banka” AD Skopje. In the country, several factors significantly influence the level of adoption and usage of e-banking services, such as age, level of education and complexity of the e-banking services offered by banks. Naturally, elderly clients use e-banking services less than younger people. In addition, the level of education has a significant influence on the level of usage, meaning that the higher the education level, the more likely is for the citizen to use e-banking services. As for the satisfaction, citizens are generally more satisfied with the e-banking services offered by various banks when they have a diverse portfolio of services and offer fast and simple completion of transactions.


title: Online banking

text: The Bank of the Cook Islands introduced online banking in 2015, under the leadership of Vaine Nooana-Arioka.


title: Online banking

text: To access a bank and online banking facility, a customer with internet access will need to register with the bank for the service, and set up a password and other credentials for customer verification. The customer visits the financial institution's secure website, and enters the online banking facility using the customer number and credentials previously set up.


title: Online banking

text: Each financial institution can determine the types of financial transactions which a customer may transact through online banking, but usually includes obtaining account balances, a list of recent transactions, electronic bill payments, financing loans and funds transfers between a customer's or another's accounts. Most banks set limits on the amounts that may be transacted, and other restrictions. Most banks also enable customers to download copies of bank statements, which can be printed at the customer's premises (some banks charge a fee for mailing hard copies of bank statements). Some banks also enable customers to download transactions directly into the customer's accounting software. The facility may also enable the customer to order a cheque book, statements, report loss of credit cards, stop payment on a cheque, advise change of address and other routine actions.


title: Online banking

text: Some financial institutions offer special internet banking services, for example, Personal financial management support, such as importing data into personal accounting software. Some online banking platforms support account aggregation to allow the customers to monitor all of their accounts in one place whether they are with their main bank or with other institutions.


title: Online banking

text: Security of a customer's financial information is very important, without which online banking could not operate. Similarly the reputational risks to banks themselves are important. Financial institutions have set up various security processes to reduce the risk of unauthorized online access to a customer's records, but there is no consistency to the various approaches adopted.


title: Online banking

text: Though single password authentication is still in use, it by itself is not considered secure enough for online banking in some countries. There are essentially two different security methods in use for online banking:


title: Online banking

text: Attacks on online banking used today are based on deceiving the user to steal login data and valid TANs. Two well known examples for those attacks are phishing and pharming. Cross-site scripting and keylogger/Trojan horses can also be used to steal login information.


title: Online banking

text: A method to attack signature based online banking methods is to manipulate the used software in a way, that correct transactions are shown on the screen and faked transactions are signed in the background.


title: Online banking

text: Another kind of attack is the so-called man-in-the-browser attack, a variation of the man-in-the-middle attack where a Trojan horse permits a remote attacker to secretly modify the destination account number and also the amount in the web browser.


title: Online banking

text: A 2008 U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Technology Incident Report, compiled from suspicious activity reports banks file quarterly, lists 536 cases of computer intrusion, with an average loss per incident of $30,000. That adds up to a nearly $16-million loss in the second quarter of 2007. Computer intrusions increased by 150 percent between the first quarter of 2007 and the second. In 80 percent of the cases, the source of the intrusion is unknown but it occurred during online banking, the report states.


title: Online banking

text: In 2014 in the UK, losses from online banking fraud rose by 48% compared with 2013. According to a study by a group of Cambridge University cybersecurity researchers in 2017, online banking fraud has doubled since 2011.


title: Online banking

text: As of 2012 there were also combined attacks using malware and social engineering to persuade the user himself to transfer money to the fraudsters on the ground of false claims (like the claim the bank would require a "test transfer" or the claim a company had falsely transferred money to the user's account and he should "send it back").


title: Online banking

text: Whatever operating system is used, it is advised that the operating system is still supported, and properly patched.


title: Online banking

text: Digital certificates are used against phishing and pharming, in signature based online banking variants (HBCI/FinTS) the use of "Secoder" card readers is a measurement to uncover software side manipulations of the transaction data.


title: Online banking

text: In 2001, the U.S. Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council issued guidance for multifactor authentication (MFA) and then required to be in place by the end of 2006.


title: Online banking

text: In 2012, the European Union Agency for Network and Information Security advised all banks to consider the PC systems of their users being infected by malware by default and therefore use security processes where the user can cross-check the transaction data against manipulations like for example (provided the security of the mobile phone holds up) SMS TAN where the transaction data is sent along with the TAN number or standalone smartcard readers with an own screen including the transaction data into the TAN generation process while displaying it beforehand to the user (see chipTAN) to counter man-in-the-middle attacks.


title: Online banking

text: The increase in online banking with a concomitant closure of local bank branch offices or reduced retail opening hours discriminates against people who cannot use online banking, for physical or mental limitations like age, or illness.


title: Online banking

text: In 2022, a retired Spanish urologist with Parkinson's disease gathered more than 600,000 signatures in an online petition asking banks and other institutions to serve all citizens, and not discriminate against the oldest and most vulnerable members. In Spain, the number of bank branches had shrunk to about 20,000 in 19 years since the bailout of 2012 and with the Coronavirus pandemic another 3000 branches closed in 2 years. "They are excluding those of us who have trouble using the internet."


title: Online banking

text: In February 2022, Spanish banks signed a protocol at the Ministry of Economy (Spain) pledging to offer better customer services to senior citizens, for example by "extending again their branch opening hours, giving priority to older people to access counters and simplifying the interface of their apps and web pages".


title: Online banking

text: With online banking, race discrimination is even less likely to be pinpointed, because of intransparent decision-making by algorithms.


title: Online banking

text: Online banking requires access to broadband services. However not everyone has equal access to the internet, which has been called the digital divide. In March 2022, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission formed a task force to prevent digital discrimination.


title: Johnny Horton

text: John LaGale Horton (April 30, 1925 – November 5, 1960) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. Initially performing traditional country, Horton later performed rockabilly songs. He is best known for a series of history-inspired narrative country saga songs that became international hits. His 1959 single "The Battle of New Orleans" was awarded the 1960 Grammy Award for Best Country & Western Recording. The song was awarded the Grammy Hall of Fame Award and in 2001 ranked No. 333 of the Recording Industry Association of America's "Songs of the Century". His first No. 1 country song was in 1959, "When It's Springtime in Alaska (It's Forty Below)".


title: Johnny Horton

text: He had two successes in 1960 with both "Sink the Bismarck" and "North to Alaska," the latter used over the opening credits to the John Wayne film of the same name. Horton died in November 1960 at the peak of his fame in a traffic collision, less than two years after his breakthrough. Horton is a member of the Rockabilly Hall of Fame and the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame.


title: Johnny Horton

text: Horton was born in Los Angeles, the youngest of the five children of the former Ella Claudia Robinson (1892-1966) and John Loly Horton (1889–1959), and raised in Rusk in Cherokee County in East Texas. His family often traveled between east Texas and southern California to work as migrant farm workers. After he graduated from high school in Gallatin, Texas, in 1944, Horton attended Lon Morris Junior College in Jacksonville, Texas, on a basketball scholarship. He later attended Seattle University and briefly Baylor University in Waco, although he did not graduate from any of these institutions.


title: Johnny Horton

text: Horton soon returned to California and got a job in the mail room at Selznick International Pictures, where his future wife, Donna Cook, was working in the studio as a secretary. After a short stint studying geology in Seattle in 1948, Horton went to Alaska to look for gold. During this period he began writing songs. Returning south, he entered and won a talent contest in Henderson, Texas. Encouraged by this result, he returned to California to pursue a music career.


title: Johnny Horton

text: His guest appearances on Cliffie Stone's "Hometown Jamboree" on KXLA-AM and KLAC-TV in Pasadena and his own half-hour show "The Singing Fisherman" led to the opportunity to record some songs on the Cormac record label. By the time the company folded in 1952, Horton recorded 10 singles for that label. Fabor Robison, owner of Abbott Records, acquired the master recordings. Around that time, Horton married Donna Cook.


title: Johnny Horton

text: By this time Horton was appearing regularly on "Louisiana Hayride", so he and Donna moved to Shreveport, Louisiana, where the show was recorded. He also signed a contract with Mercury Records and began recording. His first song for that label, "First Train Headin' South" b/w "(I Wished for an Angel) The Devil Sent Me You" (Mercury 6412), received good reviews. He and his new backup band, the Rowley Trio, began touring under the name The Singing Fisherman and the Rowley Trio in 1952, eventually changing the name to Johnny Horton and the Roadrunners. The group included Horton as lead singer and Jerry Rowley on fiddle as well Rowley's wife Evelyn on piano and his sister Vera (Dido) on guitars. The constant touring was hard on Horton's marriage, and Donna moved back to Los Angeles. They were soon divorced.


title: Johnny Horton

text: On September 26, 1953, Horton married Billie Jean Jones, widow of Hank Williams, who had died on January 1, 1953. Horton parted ways with the Rowley trio but continued to appear occasionally on "Louisiana Hayride". His contract with Mercury expired in late 1954, with his recording of "All for the Love of a Girl" (Mercury 70227) being his bestseller, at 35,000 to 45,000 copies. Horton, himself always an avid fisherman, got a job in a tackle shop and put his music career on hiatus. But by the following year, his new manager and bassist Tillman Franks had obtained Horton a one-year contract with Columbia Records. They traveled to Nashville in a borrowed car for their first recording session. Influenced by the work of Elvis Presley, Horton began adopting a more rockabilly style.


title: Johnny Horton

text: "Honky-Tonk Man" was recorded on 11 January 1956 at the Bradley Film & Recording Studios in Nashville, one of four songs Horton recorded that day. Session musicians on the recording were Grady Martin and Harold Bradley, as well as Bill Black (at the time Presley's bassist). Soon afterwards "Honky-Tonk Man" was released as a single (Columbia label: 4–21504) paired with another song from the same session, "I'm Ready if You're Willing". They went out on tour, with the band featuring Franks on bass and Tommy Tomlinson on guitar.


title: Johnny Horton

text: "Honky-Tonk Man" was reviewed by the March 10 issue of "Billboard", which said, "The wine women and song attractions exert a powerful hold on the singer, he admits. The funky sound and pounding beat in the backing suggest the kind of atmosphere he describes. A very good jukebox record." Their review of "I'm Ready if You're Willing" was also positive: "Horton sings out this cheerful material with amiable personality. This ever more popular stylist ought to expand his circle of fans with this one." The song peaked at No. 9 on the C&W Jockey chart (now Hot Country Songs) and at No. 14 on the Best Seller chart.


title: Johnny Horton

text: Horton returned to the studio on May 23, but the "A" side of his next single, "I'm a One Woman Man" (Columbia 21538), was one of the songs recorded back in January. The "B" side was "I Don't Like I Did". "Billboard" described "One Woman Man" as a "smart and polished job," and Horton as "singing with a light, airy touch. Guitar work is just as convincing, adding up to listenable, commercial stuff". He and his band toured through the United States and Canada to promote the record, which reached No. 7 on the Jockey chart and No. 9 on the Best Seller and Jukebox charts.


title: Johnny Horton

text: "I'm Coming Home" / "I Got A Hole In My Pirogue" (Columbia 40813) was released around this time as well. On February 9, "Billboard" noted that "not only Southern markets are doing good business with this, but Northern cities report that both country and pop customers are going for this in a big way". It was again a success on the country charts (No. 11 Jockey, No. 15 Best Seller) but it failed to score the popular music charts.


title: Johnny Horton

text: Later major successes include the song "The Battle of New Orleans" (written by Jimmy Driftwood), which was awarded the 1960 Grammy Award for Best Country & Western Recording. The song was awarded the Grammy Hall of Fame Award and in 2001 ranked No. 333 of the Recording Industry Association of America's "Songs of the Century". Horton had two other successes in 1960 with "Sink the Bismarck" and "North to Alaska" for John Wayne's movie, "North to Alaska".


title: Johnny Horton

text: On the night of November 4–5, 1960, Horton and two other band members, Tommy Tomlinson and Tillman Franks, were traveling from the Skyline Club in Austin, Texas, to Shreveport when they collided with an oncoming truck on a bridge near Milano in Milam County, Texas. Horton died en route to the hospital, and Tomlinson (1930–1982) was seriously injured; his leg later had to be amputated. Franks (1920–2006) suffered head injuries, and James Davis, the driver of the truck, had a broken ankle and other minor injuries.


title: Johnny Horton

text: The funeral was held in Shreveport on November 8, 1960, officiated by Tillman Franks' younger brother, William Derrel "Billy" Franks, a Church of God minister. Johnny Cash did one of the readings, choosing Chapter 20 from the Gospel of John. Horton is interred at Hillcrest Memorial Park and Mausoleum in Haughton, east of Bossier City in northwestern Louisiana.


title: Johnny Horton

text: When Johnny Cash, a good friend of Horton's, learned about the accident he said, "[I] locked myself in one of the hotel's barrooms and cried." Cash dedicated his rendition of "When It's Springtime in Alaska (It's Forty Below)" to Horton on his album "Personal File": "Johnny Horton was a good old friend of mine." Over time, Horton's material has been re-released a number of times, through boxsets and compilations.


title: Johnny Horton

text: Horton was inducted into The Louisiana Music Hall of Fame and posthumously inducted into the Delta Music Museum Hall of Fame in Ferriday, Louisiana.