title: Cindy McCain

text: In 1991, the AVMT went to Dhaka, Bangladesh, to provide assistance following the 1991 Bangladesh cyclone. While at Mother Teresa's Dhaka orphanage, the Sisters of Charity of Mother Teresa Children's Home, McCain met two infant girls she felt needed to be brought to the United States for medical treatment. She decided to adopt one of the girls, later named Bridget, with her husband readily agreeing; the adoption became final in 1993. She helped coordinate the adoption of the other little girl for family friend Wes Gullett.


title: Cindy McCain

text: In 1989, McCain developed an addiction to Percocet and Vicodin. She initially took the opioid painkillers to alleviate pain after two spinal surgeries for ruptured discs. She also used the drugs to ease emotional stress during the Keating Five scandal. The addiction progressed to where she was taking upwards of twenty pills a day, and she resorted to having an AVMT physician write illegal prescriptions in the names of three AVMT employees without their knowledge. In 1992, her parents staged an intervention to force her to get help; she told her husband about her problem and subsequently attended a drug treatment facility where she began outpatient sessions to begin recovery from drug addiction. In 1993, she underwent surgery, which resolved her back pain.


title: Cindy McCain

text: In January 1993, Tom Gosinski, an AVMT employee who had discovered her illegal drug use, was terminated on budgetary grounds. Subsequently, he tipped off the Drug Enforcement Administration about her prior actions and a federal investigation ensued. McCain's defense team, led by her husband's Keating Five lawyer John Dowd, secured an agreement with the U.S. Attorney's office for McCain, a first-time offender, which avoided charges while requiring her to pay financial restitution, enroll in a diversion program and do community service. Meanwhile, in early 1994, Gosinski filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against McCain, in which he alleged she ordered him to conceal "improper acts" and "misrepresent facts in a judicial proceeding;" he told her he would settle for $250,000. In response, Dowd characterized this request as blackmail, and requested Maricopa County attorney Rick Romley to investigate Gosinski for extortion. In the end, Gosinski's credibility was undermined by testimony in Romley's report from other charity staffers who asserted Gosinski privately vowed to blackmail McCain were he ever fired, and both Gosinski's lawsuit and the extortion investigation against him were dropped.


title: Cindy McCain

text: Before prosecutors were able to publicly disclose her addiction to pain medication, McCain preemptively revealed the story to reporters, stating that she was doing so willingly: "Although my conduct did not result in compromising any missions of AVMT, my actions were wrong, and I regret them ... if what I say can help just one person to face the problem, it's worthwhile."


title: Cindy McCain

text: AVMT concluded its activities in 1995 in the wake of the McCain prescription narcotics controversy. That year, McCain founded a new organization, the Hensley Family Foundation, which donates funds to children's programs nationally as well as in Arizona. She was largely a stay-at-home mom during the balance of the 1990s. She also held positions as vice president, director, and vice chair of Hensley & Co. In the mid-1990s, she began suffering from severe migraine headaches, for a while keeping them secret from her husband and minimizing their effect to the rest of her family. The condition frequently resulted in visits to an emergency room. Her attacks were caused by many different migraine triggers and she tried many different treatments.


title: Cindy McCain

text: Although wary of the media and still having no love for the political world, McCain was active in her husband's eventually unsuccessful campaign for President of the United States in 2000. She mostly provided good cheer, without discussing her opinions about national policy. She impressed Republican voters with her elegance at coffee shops and other small campaign settings, where she frequently referred to her children, carpooling and charity work.


title: Cindy McCain

text: McCain was upset by the notorious smear tactics against her husband in the South Carolina primary that year. These included allegations involving her adopted daughter Bridget that she found "despicable", as well as insinuations that McCain herself was currently a drug addict. Though deeply wounded by the attacks for a long time, McCain eventually forgave those responsible. She was chosen as the chair of the Arizona delegation to the 2000 Republican National Convention.


title: Cindy McCain

text: In 2000, she became chair of the now $300 million-a-year Hensley & Co. following her father's death. It is one of the largest Anheuser-Busch beer distributors in the United States. Together, McCain, her children, and one of John McCain's children from his first marriage own 68 percent of the company. As chair, her role takes the form of consultations with the company CEO on major initiatives such as new products, new plants or employee welfare, rather than that of an active physical presence. She does not have operational control of Hensley, and Anheuser-Busch considers her to be an absentee owner. By 2007, she had an annual income of over $400,000 from Hensley and an estimated net worth of $100 million. She also owned at least $2.7 million worth of shares of Anheuser-Busch stock. With her children, she owns a minority stake in the Arizona Diamondbacks baseball team.


title: Cindy McCain

text: McCain became actively involved with Operation Smile in 2001, taking parts in its medical missions to Morocco, Vietnam and India. She was honored by the organization in 2005 and sits on its board of directors.


title: Cindy McCain

text: McCain joined the board of directors of CARE in 2005. She is on the board of the HALO Trust, and has visited operations to remove landmines in Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Mozambique, and Angola. She makes financial contributions to these organizations via her family trust and views her role as watching them in the field to ensure they are frugal and their money is being spent effectively. On occasion she has criticized foreign regimes on human rights grounds, such as Myanmar's military junta.


title: Cindy McCain

text: In April 2004, McCain had a near-fatal stroke caused by high blood pressure, although she was still able to attend some events. After several months of physical therapy to overcome leg and arm limitations, she made a mostly full recovery, although she still had some short-term memory loss and difficulties in writing. She owns a home in Coronado, California, next to the Hotel del Coronado; her family had vacationed in Coronado growing up, and she has gone there for recuperation and family get-togethers. She or her family own other residential and commercial real estate in California, Arizona and Virginia and, including rental properties, McCain herself owns ten homes and part of three office complexes. She is an amateur pilot and race car driver.


title: Cindy McCain

text: She was active and visible in her husband's second presidential campaign during 2007 and 2008, despite not wanting her husband to run initially due to bad memories of their 2000 experience and worries the effect on her children, especially son Jimmy who was headed to serve in the Iraq War. She eventually supported her husband in his goals, but defined her own campaign roles; she frequently returned to Arizona to attend to domestic duties or interrupted campaigning for her overseas charitable work. She preferred to travel with her husband and introduce him rather than act as a campaign surrogate with a separate schedule. She wore her hair in a fashionable but severe style and was sometimes seen with an unsmiling countenance in her appearances. In August 2008, a member of the public shook her hand very vigorously, aggravating her existing carpal tunnel syndrome condition and causing her to slightly sprain her wrist. The campaign exacerbated her migraine headaches and she sometimes had to wear dark glasses to shield herself from bright lights. The pressures of the campaign also brought out a range of behaviors between her and her husband, varying from moments of great tenderness and concern to raging arguments that dismayed their staffs.


title: Cindy McCain

text: McCain stated that the American public wanted a First Lady of the United States who would tend toward a traditional role in that position. She would not attend Cabinet meetings, but would continue her involvement in overseas non-profit organizations and would urge Americans to do the same globally or locally. She envisioned herself as a possible figurehead for humanitarian work, along the lines of Diana, Princess of Wales. She continued to expand her roles in such organizations, joining in April 2008 the board of Grateful Nation Montana, which provides scholarships and services to the children of Montana service personnel killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.


title: Cindy McCain

text: She made statements critical of the Bush administration for not deploying enough troops during the Iraq War. Her close examination of the financial books of the McCain campaign during the first part of 2007 convinced the candidate that its profligate spending could not go on and led to the drastic mid-year reduction of the campaign's staff and scope. In February 2008, McCain made news by being critical of Michelle Obama, the wife of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, who had said, "And let me tell you something: For the first time in my adult lifetime I am really proud of my country." McCain, who was genuinely offended by the remark, replied: "I am proud of my country. I don't know about you—if you heard those words earlier—I am very proud of my country." Also in February 2008, she publicly appeared beside her husband during a press conference in response to a newspaper report regarding his connection to a lobbyist.


title: Cindy McCain

text: McCain faced media scrutiny about her wealth, spending habits, and financial obligations. She initially declined to release her separate income tax returns, saying that it was a privacy issue and she would not release the returns even if she became First Lady She later released the first two pages of her 2006 return, which showed $6 million in income for that year (including nearly $570,000 in itemized deductions and more than $1.7 million paid in federal income taxes). The campaign said that any decisions about how to handle her role in Hensley & Co. if she became First Lady would not be made until that time. While she stood to gain a considerable profit from the agreed-upon acquisition of Anheuser-Busch by the Belgian company InBev, she was initially under some political pressure to help oppose the deal and keep Anheuser-Busch under American ownership.


title: Cindy McCain

text: In June 2008, a Rasmussen Reports poll found that 49 percent of voters viewed McCain favorably and 29 percent unfavorably, while an ABC News/The Washington Post poll found figures of 39 percent and 25 percent respectively. Her style and fashion sense was the subject of much media scrutiny. McCain was compared to former first lady Nancy Reagan, due to both her style and wardrobe as well as her demeanor. Early in the campaign, some recipes attributed to McCain turned out to be copied from other sources; the campaign attributed the problem to an error by an intern.


title: Cindy McCain

text: McCain spoke on both the opening and final nights of the early September 2008 Republican National Convention. On the first night, truncated due to national attention regarding Hurricane Gustav, she appeared with First Lady Laura Bush to deliver short remarks encouraging support for hurricane relief efforts along the Gulf Coast, and on the last night, she introduced the seven McCain children and spoke about how her husband's love for his country had been passed on to them. In October 2008, she increased the intensity of her public remarks against Obama's candidacy, speaking with surprising vitriol in accusing the Obama campaign of being the dirtiest in history and saying of his position against a war-funding bill, "The day that Senator Obama cast a vote not to fund my son when he was serving sent a cold chill through my body." The stresses of the campaign caused the McCain's weight to fall under . On November 4, 2008, she fought back tears in an appearance as the McCain campaign reached its final day and subsequent loss to Obama.


title: Cindy McCain

text: After the election, McCain was approached about appearing on "Dancing with the Stars". She seriously considered participating, but according to her husband, was concerned that her surgically replaced knee would not be able to withstand the rigors of the competition.


title: Cindy McCain

text: Continuing her humanitarian aid work with a January 2009 trip to Dubai, India, and Cambodia, she said that she was relieved that the campaign was over and that, while it had been "wild and nuts" at times, it had also been "a remarkable experience to be a contender for the highest office in the land." She said the ongoing global economic crisis was adversely affecting humanitarian organizations, and she expressed hope that President Obama would be successful in dealing with it.


title: Cindy McCain

text: She expressed support for LGBT rights by appearing alongside her daughter Meghan at an April 2009 convention of the Log Cabin Republicans, and posing for the NOH8 Campaign, a gay rights project opposed to California Proposition 8, a ballot measure banning same-sex marriage. The following year she appeared in another NOH8 public service announcement against bullying, and in it appeared to break with her husband's position and express support for repeal of the "Don't ask, don't tell" policy prohibiting gays from serving openly in the U.S. military. However, she subsequently tweeted that "I fully support the NOH8 campaign and all it stands for and am proud to be a part of it. But I stand by my husband's stance on DADT."


title: Cindy McCain

text: In September 2009, she spoke about her migraines publicly for the first time and decided to speak at the International Headache Congress about raising awareness for others with the condition.


title: Cindy McCain

text: During her husband's eventually successful 2010 senatorial re-election campaign, she rarely made public appearances.


title: Cindy McCain

text: McCain appeared in March 2011 alongside Eastern Congo Initiative founder Ben Affleck to testify before a panel of the House Foreign Affairs Committee on behalf of continued monetary assistance to the Democratic Republic of Congo, in an environment where the Republican-controlled House was looking to make significant cuts to foreign aid. She has noted the difficulty of getting attention to some of the topics she feels most strongly about; at a Futures Without Violence summit in 2012, she said, "When I talk about rape in Congo, people turn their backs and run, especially the men."


title: Cindy McCain

text: In late 2013 and early 2014, McCain used the occasion of Super Bowl XLVIII to highlight her concerns about sex trafficking in the United States, an issue that she had begun working on in conjunction with The McCain Institute. She campaigned for legislation to address the problem at both the federal and state levels. She also served as co-chair of the Arizona Governor Jan Brewer's Task Force on Human Trafficking.


title: Cindy McCain

text: In April 2015, during the Sedona Forum, McCain and actress Demi Moore discussed ways to end sex trafficking. Later in that year she staged appearances with Heidi Heitkamp, Democratic Senator from North Dakota, to discuss human trafficking in that state and elsewhere. She said of trafficking, "Everybody has seen it; they just didn't know what they were looking at." She praised Obama and Congress for passage of the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015 and, together with Malika Saada Saar, executive director of the Human Rights Project for Girls, started the No Such Thing Campaign to end the use of the term "child prostitute", saying "there are only victims and survivors of child rape."


title: Cindy McCain

text: During the 2016 United States presidential election, McCain and her husband ended up not voting for the Republican nominee in the wake of the "Access Hollywood" controversy.


title: Cindy McCain

text: Nonetheless, following the change in administration in Washington, in May 2017 it was reported that McCain was under consideration for a prominent role at the U.S. Department of State, possibly focusing on issues related to human trafficking. In June 2017, there were further reports that after extensive recruiting by President Trump following a recommendation from Ivanka Trump, she had agreed to become an Ambassador-at-Large dealing with matters of human trafficking, refugees, and humanitarian aid. But no announcement ever came along the lines of this report.


title: Cindy McCain

text: In July 2017, her husband was diagnosed with a glioblastoma, an aggressive brain tumor. She issued a public statement saying that, "We as a family will face the next hurdle together. One thing I do know is he is the toughest person I know. He is my hero and I love him with all my heart." Senator McCain underwent treatment, and after December 2017 no longer went to Washington, D.C., remaining in Arizona.


title: Cindy McCain

text: The severity of her husband's illness led to the possibility that he would not be able to finish his term in office and that the Governor of Arizona would have to appoint a successor until a special election could be held. There is a tradition in such situations for politically involved spouses to be named as replacements, a practice known as "widow's succession". The possibility became an issue in the 2018 Arizona gubernatorial election, where in the Republican primary contest incumbent governor Doug Ducey was trying to fend off a challenge from former Secretary of State of Arizona Ken Bennett. In May 2018, some media reports stated that Ducey was planning on naming McCain if the seat became vacant. To this, Bennett, who was seeking to capitalize on the dissatisfaction that some conservatives in the state had long had with the long-time senator, stated, "I promise I will not appoint Cindy McCain to US Senate as Gov of AZ." For his part, Ducey refused to publicly speak about the possibility.


title: Cindy McCain

text: By 2018, McCain's net worth was estimated to be at least $200 million, with most of it still due to her share of Hensley & Co. In addition the couple owned properties in Phoenix, Sedona, the San Diego area, and in Virginia, although some properties were sold off in 2017.


title: Cindy McCain

text: McCain's attitude towards President Trump took another negative turn in February 2018, following repeated public criticism by the chief executive of her husband's nay vote that had doomed the so-called "Skinny repeal" effort to dismantle Obamacare. McCain said: "I think the president fails to understand this, but more importantly, in my own – from my own feeling, we need more compassion, we need more empathy, we need more togetherness in terms of working together. We don't need more bullying, and I'm tired of it." In July 2018 McCain issued a public statement one year after her husband's initial prognosis, saying that "Though this diagnosis has brought many challenges, our hearts are nevertheless filled with gratitude" towards caregivers, colleagues, and friends.


title: Cindy McCain

text: John McCain died at age 81 on August 25, 2018. She was present at, and later expressed gratitude for, the elaborate services for her husband, which involved lying in state in the rotunda at the Arizona State Capitol, a service at the North Phoenix Baptist Church, lying in state in the United States Capitol rotunda in Washington, a service at the Washington National Cathedral, and finally burial at the United States Naval Academy Cemetery.


title: Cindy McCain

text: Once it became time, McCain reportedly indicated that she was not interested in being appointed to her husband's Senate seat, as personal participation in electoral politics did not appeal to her. As one former aide stated, "It is a mistake to understand the McCains as a political family. They're a military family first and a political family second." Nonetheless, she still wielded some influence in terms of who would be picked. On September 4, Ducey – who had by this time easily won the Republican gubernatorial primary – appointed former Arizona senator Jon Kyl to the seat, in a choice that was satisfactory to all factions within the state Republican party. McCain referred to Kyl as "a dear friend of mine and John's. It's a great tribute to John that he is prepared to go back into public service to help the state of Arizona."


title: Cindy McCain

text: Following her husband's death, McCain moved back to her childhood neighborhood. She became chair of the McCain Institute's board of trustees. She also joined the family's #ActsofCivility campaign, with the aim of encouraging people to interact with those they disagree with.


title: Cindy McCain

text: In February 2019, she faced backlash after making claims on KTAR-FM that she saw human trafficking at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. Police rejected her claims, stating that there was "no evidence of criminal conduct or child endangerment". She later apologized in a tweet and praised police officers.


title: Cindy McCain

text: She continued to be critical of the state of American politics. In September 2019, she declaimed the Republican Party as "excluding people for the wrong reasons" and said it was no longer "the party that my husband and I belonged to." In contrast, with the 2020 United States presidential election underway, she praised Democratic presidential front-runner Joe Biden and his wife Jill Biden, saying that they were good friends to her and that "Joe has been a remarkable source of inspiration, kindness and just a shoulder throughout all of this." In June 2020, McCain stated that she would not endorse Donald Trump's re-election campaign. While not explicitly endorsing Biden at the time, McCain spoke in a video segment shown at the August 2020 Democratic National Convention about the friendship between her late husband and Biden. On September 22, McCain gave her full endorsement to Biden's presidential candidacy. McCain's endorsement, and the bad relationship between Trump and her late husband, has been given as one of a number of reasons why Biden was able to narrowly win the 2020 United States presidential election in Arizona. In doing so Biden became the first Democratic presidential candidate since 1996, and only the second since 1948, to do so.


title: Cindy McCain

text: McCain was a member of the advisory board of the Biden-Harris Transition Team, which was helping to plan for the presidential transition of Joe Biden, providing counsel on women's and children's issues. She was named to the board in September 2020, when the campaign was still underway. Nonetheless, she has said that she is still a registered Republican, intends to stay that way, and hopes that the Republican Party returns to stances that she can once again support.


title: Cindy McCain

text: In January 2021, McCain was censured by the Maricopa County Republican Party by a 4–1 margin in response to her support for Biden. In response, McCain tweeted that she would "continue to support candidates who put country over party and stand for the rule of law." Later that month, on a resolution that passed by a wide margin, McCain was censured by the Arizona Republican Party for her support of Biden and for "leftist causes such as gay marriage and growth of the administrative state". Making reference to the fact that the state party was in the habit of censuring other members deemed insufficiently conservative, including her husband several years prior, she replied, "It is a high honor to be included in a group of Arizonans who have served our state and our nation so well ... and who, like my late husband John, have been censured by the AZGOP. I'll wear this as a badge of honor."


title: Cindy McCain

text: McCain's account of her life with, and final days of, John McCain was published in April 2021. Entitled "Stronger: Courage, Hope, and Humor in My Life with John McCain" and published by Crown Forum, it also contained material on the struggles she faced in her own life.


title: Cindy McCain

text: McCain was seen by the Biden administration as a likely, or even a "must do", for an ambassadorship nomination. In late November 2020, the possible post of United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom was mentioned in connection to her. She responded to the notion of any potential nomination by saying, "In whatever way he sees fit, I would be proud and honored to serve".


title: Cindy McCain

text: In late May 2021, it was reported that President Biden would nominate McCain to serve as the Ambassador to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture. The White House officially announced her nomination on June 23, 2021. On August 9, 2021, her nomination was sent to the United States Senate. On September 28, 2021, her confirmation hearing was held by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee; she faced largely friendly questions mixed in with personal reminiscences from the committee members regarding times spent with either McCain or her husband. The committee favorably reported her nomination on October 19, 2021. The full Senate confirmed her by voice vote on October 26, 2021. She was sworn in as ambassador on November 5, 2021. She presented her credentials to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization on January 18, 2022, to the International Fund for Agricultural Development on January 25, 2022, and to the U.N. World Food Programme on January 28, 2022.


title: Hibachi

text: The is a traditional Japanese heating device. It is a brazier which is either round, cylindrical, or box-shaped, open-topped container, made from or lined with a heatproof material and designed to hold burning charcoal. It is believed date back to the Heian period (794 to 1185). It is filled with incombustible ash, and charcoal sits in the center of the ash. To handle the charcoal, a pair of metal chopsticks called is used, in a way similar to Western fire irons or tongs. were used for heating, not for cooking. It heats by radiation, and is too weak to warm a whole room, often disappointing foreigners who expected such power. Sometimes, people placed a over the to boil water for tea. Later, by the 1900s, some cooking was also done over the .


title: Hibachi

text: Traditional Japanese houses were well ventilated (or poorly sealed), so carbon monoxide poisoning or suffocation from carbon dioxide from burning charcoal were of lesser concern. Nevertheless, such risks do exist, and proper handling is necessary to avoid accidents. must never be used in airtight rooms such as those in Western buildings.


title: Hibachi

text: In North America, the term refers to a small cooking stove heated by charcoal (called a in Japanese), or to an iron hot plate (called a in Japanese) used in restaurants.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: Confessions is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Usher. It was released on March 23, 2004, by Arista Records. Recording sessions for the album took place during 2003 to 2004, with its production handled by his longtime collaborator Jermaine Dupri, along with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and Lil Jon, among others. Primarily an R&B album, "Confessions" showcases Usher as a crooner through a mixture of ballads and up-tempos, incorporating musical genres of dance-pop, hip hop and crunk. The album's themes generated controversy about Usher's personal relationships; however, the album's primary producer Jermaine Dupri claimed the album reflects Dupri's own personal story.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: In the United States, the album sold 1.1 million copies in its first week. To boost sales amid threats of bootlegging, the special edition for the album was issued, which includes the single, "My Boo"; a duet with Alicia Keys. "Confessions" earned Usher several awards, including the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary R&B Album.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: According to "Billboard", it is the second-best selling album of the 2000s decade in the United States, behind NSYNC's "No Strings Attached". With over eight million copies sold in 2004, the album was viewed as a sign of recovering album sales in the US, following three years of decline. It was also exemplary of urban music's commercial peak and dominance of the "Billboard" charts in 2004. "Confessions" has been certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and, as of 2006, has sold over 10.3 million copies in the US and over 15 million copies worldwide; making it the best-selling R&B album of the 21st century by a male artist.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: When he began recording "Confessions" in 2003, Usher claimed he did not want to work with any new producers. Production began between Usher and Jermaine Dupri, who produced his last two albums, "My Way" (1997) and "8701" (2001). In spite of his vision, Usher stated, "With this album I chose some new producers who I figured would definitely allow me to really articulate myself in a different way ... Every album you gotta grow. You gotta look for something different." Dupri also invited his frequent collaborator Bryan-Michael Cox. The album features productions by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Just Blaze, Usher's brother James Lackey, Dre and Vidal, among others.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: When Usher felt that the album was completed, with forty recorded songs, he submitted the album to his record label, Arista. However, he and the company's then-president, L. A. Reid, who listened to the record, thought something was missing in it. "You know what, there's like one or two more records that we just gotta get." Usher was displeased with the decision; he felt returning to the studio was the hardest part and needed to re-motivate himself. He went on recording a few more tracks with help from fellow Atlantian's Lil Jon and Ludacris. Eventually, the team was able to produce songs like "Red Light" and "Yeah!". He also recorded songs with P. Diddy and The Neptunes during one of those sessions, but those songs were not released.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: One of Usher's first steps in recording "Confessions" was deciding to reveal "his own little secrets". Friend and former A&R rep named Kawan "KP" Prather thought the album would let the public know Usher personally. Prather said, "The music has never been the question, but people tend to buy into the artist. The more they know about you, the more they feel like they're there with you." Primarily because of the album's personal content, Usher said that this is his chance to be real. He named the album "Confessions" because he felt it is his most personal record to date: "All of us have our Pandora's boxes or skeletons in our closets. I let a few of them out, you know. I've got a lot to say. I've got a lot of things and stuff built in me that I just want to let go of." He wrote more songs than he contributed to his previous album.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: Several of the songs in this album were conceptually based on a situation. For instance, "Burn" was built around the winding down of Usher's two-year relationship with Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas from American R&B-Hip hop girl group TLC. Dupri and Cox were talking and felt that there was a song in it, and started writing. Similarly, with the title track "Confessions Part II", they were conversing about an impregnated mistress, and its concept was written down. Usher recorded "Confessions Part II" during July 2003 recording sessions in New York City. When Usher sang the song's lyrics, the theme of cheating inspired him and Dupri to create two parts; "Confessions Part I" and "Confessions Part II". "Confessions Part I" can be heard at the beginning of the video for "Confessions Part II".


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: "Confessions" falls mainly in the R&B genre. Usher commented that he chose to work with collaborators who know "... how to interpret R&B from a jazz standpoint, an old school throwback standpoint, a new school point, a traditional classic standpoint ..." With producers and Usher set to produce such an album, however, other musical genres including hip hop were incorporated. While he wanted to do R&B, Usher also wanted his fans to experience hip hop at the same time: "I try to think outside the box." When Lil Jon came on the scene, crunk was introduced to the R&B-centered album, specifically on the Sean Garrett-penned song "Yeah!". Usher said, "'Yeah!' could be called the first consciously styled "crunk R&B" record." The album also includes various slow jams.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: This record also introduces a new style for Usher, focusing on his voice and technique. Andre "Dre" Harris and Vidal Davis listened to "8701" and felt that "Usher really needs to sing hard and let people know his vocal ability". With efforts focused on the record to demonstrate his vocal ability to listeners, songs such as "Superstar" and "Follow Me" exhibited Usher in a type of "crooner mode". The ballad-oriented "Burn" also showcases his vocal aptitude.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: "Confessions" was slated to be released on November 6, 2003. However, due to marketing issues, the scheduled date was moved to March 23 of the following year. With several songs recorded, Usher faced the challenge of determining the final track listing. Usher, Dupri, Reid, and then-A&R rep Mark Pitts each had their favorites among the forty, but decided to choose those which "came up consistently more". The collective was able to settle on fifteen of them, with two interludes completing the seventeen track list. Many songs were set aside for future use, including "Red Light" and a remix of "Yeah!". Usher and Arista held advance listenings for the album, a few months before its actual release; he also appeared on TV guestings to promote "Confessions".


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: With strategies to boost the album's sales albeit threats of stealing music in the internet, Usher and his management readied a follow-up release of "Confessions" with an additional marketing blitz. The idea was considered "musically driven" after Zomba, who absorbed Arista, management was excited about "My Boo", a song that was recorded for the original version of the album but failed to meet deadline. However, it actually began when American R&B and soul singer Alicia Keys, who is featured on the track, "brought in that the talk of repackaging started". With the inclusion of "My Boo", they thought of the album as complete. While they knew of other artists releasing special editions of their albums, the label felt that "Confessions" had the edge because of its previous success and its physical changes, including new cover art, an expanded CD booklet, a pullout poster and a letter to fans from Usher. The new version includes "My Boo" and "Red Light", which were leaked alongside other songs that did not appear in the album, and a remix of "Confessions Part II", and "Seduction"; original tracks were also improved like the extended version of "Confessions Part I" and a rap added by American rapper Jadakiss in "Throwback". The label itself treated the version a new album, with full media advertisements. The album was re-issued in October 2004, seven months after its initial release.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: In selecting which single to release first, Usher and the label considered various marketing strategies. With many potential lead singles that could fare well in music markets, they were choosing between "Yeah!" and "Burn". Even though "Burn" was just what the label was looking for, they believed that "Yeah!" would be a blockbuster. Meanwhile, they felt "Burn" also failed to meet their expectations: "'Burn' being a great song is one thing, but it's one of them things where people said, 'It's strong, but can we make history with that?' At the end of the day, you want an event."


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: Usher was skeptical about whether "Yeah!"—which is largely composed around crunk—would be a good choice, given his mindset envisioning "Confessions" as an R&B record. KP recalled, "Everybody was scared to make that first step."


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: With much debate between two songs, "Burn" was originally chosen as the lead single, with plans of filming its music video in late 2003. Meanwhile, Lil Jon leaked "Yeah!" to DJs across the United States in November 2003. Originally, the label did not intend "Yeah!" as a proper single. Released to street DJs and mixtapes, it was meant to cultivate fans who waited for three years since the release of "8701". While record labels stayed idle during the Christmas season, "Yeah!" was getting favorable and quick response from radio stations though nobody was promoting; it was finally released as the lead single.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: To keep the album atop the chart, "My Boo" was targeted for release after "Confessions Part II" was diminishing on the Hot 100. The B-side of the UK release includes "Red Light" and "Sweet Lies". The single again topped the Hot 100, giving the album its fourth consecutive number-one. "Caught Up" was released as the album's fifth and final single, and reached number eight in the United States.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: Usher supported the album with a two-month concert tour called "The Truth Tour". The tour set featured a small stage up on top of the main stage, where the band played with Usher and his supporting dancers left with enough room to perform. The smaller stage had a mini platform attached to it—which lowered to the main stage—and had two big staircases on both sides of it. To the left, a group of circular staircases climbed to the top, and to the right, there was a fire escape replete with steps and an elevator. Kanye West, who had finished his own headlining tour for his 2004 album "The College Dropout", was the opening act for "The Truth Tour".


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: Preceding Usher's entrance was a short movie showing him getting dressed, following on with him performing the opening song "Caught Up", with Usher dressed in all white. The second song performed was "You Make Me Wanna...", where two dancers stayed on the top stage with Usher while two male dancers came out to the lower level with two chairs each in their hands. Each dancer threw one chair up to the top, with Usher already in hand with his own chair, with everyone following a set dance routine. Following this, Usher performed "U Remind Me", where he danced by himself during a breakdown of the track. He then sang "That's What It's Made For", following on with the song "Bad Girl", where Usher was dressed up in a lavender suit and came out in a chrome chair. During the song, Usher picked out a female from the crowd, transitioning to "Superstar", singing to the fan. Usher continued singing to the fan, performing "Can U Handle It?", closing the song by kissing the fan who then left the stage. Usher closed his performance with "Confessions" lead single "Yeah!".


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: The American leg of the tour commenced on August 5, 2004, in Hampton, Virginia and concluded on October 7, 2004, in New York. It was ranked as one of the highest-grossing tours of 2004, grossing $29.1 million.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: After Usher and his label held a few listening parties for the album, controversies spread about the mistress-impregnating concept of "Confessions Part II". Although Usher did not foresee such a reaction to the album, Dupri already guessed, while making the album, what the public's reaction would be: "People are gonna question [Usher] on a couple of little lyrics ..." Coincidentally, Usher ended his relationship with Chilli early in 2004. People speculated about their breakup given the content of the album and Usher's early interviews about its themes. With lyrics Usher admitted to have written because of his guilty conscience, people assumed that he and Chilli broke up because he was unfaithful. In a February 2004 radio interview, Chilli claimed that Usher "cheated" on her, and that caused their relationship to split.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: Amidst widespread rumors, Usher stated, "People assume things, because as I said, I pull from my personal experiences to make my music." He added that he loved Chilli, however, "... it just didn't work out. But cheating is not what caused the relationship to collide and crash ..." Although "Burn" is a reference to his dying relationship with Chilli—hence the title—Usher answered the press that the impregnating issue was not taken from a specific situation in his life. He also revealed that his friends who went through similar situations inspired him to write those songs: "... it's just something that I collectively got energy from everybody around me that had been through it." In early 2006, Dupri revealed that the story behind the album is his: "... me cheating on my steady girlfriend, having a baby with that other woman and having to confess to everything that happened to my main girl."


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: "Confessions" was met with generally positive reviews. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received an average score of 71, based on 13 reviews.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: Matt Cibula of PopMatters wrote that it "might be the best English-language pop album of the year". "Entertainment Weekly"s Jem Aswad said that Usher "reveals his new-found maturity by opening with the grittiest song he's ever done." Laura Checkoway of "Vibe" said that, "Though "Confessions" doesn't bring Usher all the way to the artistic maturity one might hope for, tracking this star's progression definitely has its satisfactions." "Q" magazine observed "addictive R&B hooks and all-dancin', all-lovin' subject matter boosted with hot production tweaks." Amy Linden of "The Village Voice" commented that "Usher's (alleged) character flaws are easily forgiven, though, because he can sing his cheating ass off," and concluded, "Like 2002's big-selling but underrated "8701", "Confessions" is a top-of-the-line pop-soul showcase that ... manages to be commercially savvy without coming off as too desperate. Sorta like Usher himself." Kelefa Sanneh of "The New York Times" said that near the end, the songwriting "fails" Usher on a "heavily front-loaded" R&B album, but felt that his performance is solid throughout:


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: In a mixed review, Caroline Sullivan of "The Guardian" criticized its "production gloss" and said that, although Usher's "fluid delivery" redeems weak tracks, there are only two "great songs"—"Yeah!" and the title track—and "17 less so." "Rolling Stone" writer Laura Sinagra said that he "is coming of age, again", but "still doesn't quite cut it as a horny roughneck". Jon Caramanica of "Blender" viewed that Usher's songwriting "isn't a strength, and his ballads often drown in their own inanity". "The Washington Post"s Elizabeth Mendez Berry called "Confessions" "Usher's strongest recording to date" but found the more sexual songs mundane. Robert Christgau from "The Village Voice" cited "Confessions Part II" and "Bad Girl" as "choice cuts", indicating "a good song on an album that isn't worth your time or money".


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: The album earned Usher numerous accolades. At the 47th Grammy Awards, he was nominated for eight categories and won three: Best Contemporary R&B Album, Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal (for "My Boo") and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration (for "Yeah!"). Usher won awards at the 2005 Soul Train Music Awards: R&B/Soul Album, Male (for "Confessions"); R&B/Soul Single, Male for ("Confessions Part II"); R&B/Soul Single, Group, Band or Duo (for "My Boo"); and R&B/Soul or Rap Dance Cut (for "Yeah!"). At the 2004 American Music Awards, he won four, including Favorite Soul/R&B Album and Favorite Male Soul/R&B Artist. At the 2004 Billboard Music Awards, Usher racked up eleven awards, more than any other artist in one night at the time. These include Artist of the Year, Male Artist of the Year, and Hot 100 Song of the Year for "Yeah!". In December 2009 it was ranked as the best solo album and second best overall album of the 2000–2009 decade. Its singles Yeah!, Burn, and My Boo were all ranked as some of the best songs of the 2000–2009 decade, respectively placing in order at number two, number 21, and number 36.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: "Confessions" was commercially successful, selling 1.096 million copies in the United States in its first week of release. It became the highest-ever first week sales by an R&B artist, the second-highest first week sales for a male artist, and the seventh-highest first week sales of the recorded album charts history by SoundScan at the time of its release. It also equates the combined first-week sales of his four previous album releases, including his live album called "Live". The feat also carved history in Arista records having the first in any of their released albums to reach such sales. The success of the thirty-year-old record label, however, was attributed to its merging with Zomba Records. As of March 2013 it has the tenth highest first week album sales in history.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: The album debuted at number one on the US "Billboard" 200, becoming Usher's first number-one album. "Confessions" also hit number-one on the Canadian Albums Chart and the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. Its early, and successive, progress on the chart was said to be partly sustained by its strong single releases and plenty of press appearances and promotions. With "Yeah!" propelling the album's debut atop the chart, "Burn", the second single off the album, facilitated "Confessions" continuing dominance as well. The first two released singles were competing on the "Billboard" Hot 100; the latter ended the twelve-week number-one chart run of the former. As the album's third single, "Confessions Part II", was about to top the chart and Usher to join with English pop and rock group The Beatles as the only acts to achieve three consecutive number-one singles, American R&B singer Fantasia Barrino's debut single "I Believe" prevented it from happening. Despite this, Usher became the first artist to top the "Billboard" Hot 100 Airplay with three consecutive number-one singles. "Burn" achieved only eight non-consecutive weeks on the Hot 100 after "Confessions Part II" topped the chart; it became Usher's second time to replace his own single at the top. "Yeah!" and "Burn" were 2004's top best-selling singles in the United States, placing at number one and two respectively on the "Billboard" Chart Year-Ender. Again, it honored Usher being the first act to achieve the feat since 1964 with the Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" and "She Loves You".


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: The album continued its dominance on the chart. "D12 World" by D12 ended its five consecutive weeks run at the top spot; however, "Confessions" reclaimed the position the following week. The album spent a total 9 non-consecutive weeks at number one on the "Billboard" 200, becoming the longest-running number one album of the millennium until 2009, when country singer Taylor Swift spent 11 weeks atop the charts with "Fearless". Over one month after its release, "Confessions" was certified triple-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America for three million US shipments. "Confessions" topped the list of the most-shipped albums of 2004 in the United States and was the best selling album of the year with 7,978,594 copies sold. "Confessions" was the sixth best-selling album of the 2000s decade in the US. In November 2008, it reached 10 million shipments in the US, according to the Recording Industry Association of America."Confessions" had sold over 15 million copies worldwide, making it the best selling album by a black artist in the 21st century.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: With sales of nearly eight million in 2004, "Confessions" was the most-shipped album of the year in the US. Along with the success of the American singer Norah Jones's second album, "Feels like Home" (2004), as well as breakthroughs albums by many new and old artists, it was seen as a sign that US record sales were slowly recovering after three straight years of decline due to competing DVDs and video games and the prevalent music piracy. By the end of 2004, the industry had sold 667 million albums, an increase of about 1.6 percent, as recorded by Nielsen SoundScan. Compared with sales records in 2003, the figures showed eight percent increase. The album's success also exemplified urban music's commercial dominance during the early 2000s, which featured massive crossover success on the "Billboard" charts by R&B and hip hop artists. In 2004, all 12 songs that topped the "Billboard" Hot 100 were by African-American recording artists and accounted for 80% of the number-one R&B hits that year. Along with Usher's streak of singles, Top 40 radio and both pop and R&B charts were topped by OutKast's "Hey Ya!", Snoop Dogg's "Drop It Like It's Hot", Terror Squad's "Lean Back", and Ciara's "Goodies". Chris Molanphy of "The Village Voice" later remarked that "by the early 2000s, urban music "was" pop music."


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: In a year-end article for "The New York Times", writer Ben Sisario dubbed 2004 "the year of Usher". The success of the album put Usher in the mainstream, becoming the biggest artist of 2004. Others also said that Usher might be the successor of Michael Jackson. Uproxx says "Confessions" "has gone on to establish itself as one of the landmark albums in pop culture", describing it as "an irreplaceable pillar in R&B lore". According to Vibe magazine, the album is credited for having "birthed" many contemporary albums such as Adele's "21", Miguel's "Kaleidoscope Dream", Drake's "So Far Gone", Omarion's "O", Jason Derulo's self-titled debut and others.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: Bryan-Michael Cox, who co-wrote and co-produced "Burn", earned credibility in the music industry for his role in the album. Cox had been producing records for several notable American artists, including Alicia Keys, B2K, Mariah Carey and Destiny's Child, among others, but he considered "Burn" as his crowning moment, which earned him two Grammy Award nominations. With 2004 deemed to be his introduction to a larger, more mainstream audience, Cox stated in an interview for MTV that many people were starting to recount what he had done.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: In 2020, music industry magazine Billboard ranked Usher the "Greatest Pop Star of 2004". Referring to a 2008 article from MTV, writer Shaheem Reid declared that "with Confessions, Usher has made the Big Connection…. That connection our parents felt when Marvin Gaye sang on the "Here, My Dear" album." Billboard pointed out how most of the secrets revealed and storytelling in the album was inspired by Jermaine Dupri's situation, but they also noted Usher's marketing and "dalliances outside of his public relationship with TLC's Chilli that provided the material for "Confessions"." The writer praised Usher's commercial power during the "Confessions" era, as he would influence future pop stars: "Even if you didn't listen to R&B, you knew this album. And if you did listen to R&B, this was the blueprint for all your favorite stars to come: Drake, Justin Bieber, Miguel, Chris Brown and Omarion have all cited Usher's influence. And though Beyoncé spoke about Thriller as the touchstone for her career-defining self-titled release in 2013, the way the lyrics tease revelations about her personal life with her husband, both good and bad, feels more indebted to Confessions than anything Michael Jackson wrote."


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: According to an editor of web publication Bustle in an article on March 22, 2019 to celebrate the fifteenth anniversary of "Confessions", the album was a "catalyst that propelled him to superstardom" and "forever changed the landscape of music". The editor noted the album's impact on R&B and pop music with the success of "Yeah!" leading "countless R&B stars, from Ciara to T-Pain, to launch careers on the foundation of Crunk&B". The writer also noted the album's influence on trap music and future generations of R&B and hip-hop artists. Think of trap soul as Crunk&B's mellowed, more subdued successor. Like crunk, it's punchy and heavily steeped in hip-hop influences. But like Usher's take on songs like "Yeah!" and "Follow Me," trap soul has contoured edges and smoother textures. From 6LACK's acerbic laments on love to H.E.R.'s dark, smoky vocals, current trends in R&B can be traced back to Usher's techniques. In this regard, Usher's mark on R&B is indelible; he not only inspired countless artists in the early 2000s, but also charted a course for today's stars.The editor also pointed out the album's influence on the music industry and pop culture as a whole, as "Confessions" changed how albums are marketed and "proved that gossip can sell records". Later albums such as Beyoncé's "Lemonade", which was fueled by infidelity and divorce rumors with her rapper husband Jay-Z, relationship rumors around Janelle Monáe's "Dirty Computer", and Ariana Grande's "thank u, next" coming off the heels of her public break up with comedian Pete Davidson were used as examples of how Usher's "Confessions" brought "the relationship between the gossip pages and the album charts... stronger than before".


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: "Confessions" ranked 2nd best album of the 2000s on the "Billboard Top 200 Albums of the Decade" 2000s list, higher than any other solo album. The album is also ranked as the 16th best album on the "Billboard Top 200 Albums of All Time". In 2020, the album was ranked number 432 on the "Top 500 Albums of All-Time" by "Rolling Stone". With global sales exceeding 15 million, "Confessions" is the best-selling album by a black artist in the 21st century. "Confessions" makes Usher the only male solo R&B artist to sell 10 million copies of a single album in the United States during the Soundscan era and the first of only two black artists to reach this mark since the year 2000. (The other black artist being American rapper Nelly with his debut album "Country Grammar".) After "Confessions" was certified diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America for shipments of 10 million copies in the US, no new album was certified diamond until Adele's 2011 album "21" reached diamond-status, the longest between any two new diamond albums since the inception of the association.


title: Confessions (Usher album)

text: A songwriter was awarded $44 million in a lawsuit involving a song from Usher's diamond-certified album "Confessions" after a jury sided with Daniel Marino in a claim that his "Club Girl" became Usher's hit "Bad Girl"


title: R-37 (missile)

text: The Vympel R-37 (NATO reporting name: AA-13 "Axehead") is a Russian hypersonic air-to-air missile with very long range. The missile and its variants also had the names K-37, "izdeliye" 610 and RVV-BD (Ракета Воздух-Воздух Большой Дальности (Raketa Vozduh-Vozduh Bolshoy Dalnosti), "Long range air-to-air missile"), and the NATO codenames "Axehead" and "Andi". It was developed from the R-33.


title: R-37 (missile)

text: It is designed to shoot down tankers, AWACS and other C4ISTAR aircraft while keeping the launch platform out of range of any fighters that might be protecting the target.


title: R-37 (missile)

text: The missile was designed in the early 1980s and first flown in 1989. Testing of the R-37 continued through the 1990s, and in 1994, a trial round scored a kill at a range of . However, the program appears to have been dropped around 1998 on grounds of cost.


title: R-37 (missile)

text: Work on the missile appears to have restarted in late 2006, as part of the MiG-31BM program to update the Foxhound with a new radar and ground attack capability.


title: R-37 (missile)

text: Zvezda TV reports have recorded the Su-35 carrying the R-37, apparently as part of an air combat loadout. In this configuration, the craft carries two R-73s in the central wing pylon, two R-77s slung underneath the engine nacelles, and two R-37s on the hardpoints between the engines, with an option to carry a few more missiles, such as a Kh-31 anti-radar missile.


title: R-37 (missile)

text: The R-37 was developed from the R-33. For compatibility with aircraft that did not have the MiG-31's sophisticated radar, the semi-active seeker was replaced with a variant of the Agat 9B-1388 active seeker. Similarly, folding tail controls allow semi-conformal carriage on planes that are not as big as the MiG-31.


title: R-37 (missile)

text: Mid-body strakes enhance lift hence increases range. According to Defence Today, the range depends on the flight profile, from for a direct shot to for a cruise glide profile. According to Jane's speculation there could be two variants, the R-37 and the R-37M; the latter has a jettisonable rocket booster that increases the range to "300–400 km" (160–220 nm).


title: R-37 (missile)

text: The R-37M designation has since been used for a modernized variant of the missile, also known as RVV-BD (Raketa Vozduh-Vozduh Bolyshoy Dalnosty, or Long-Range Air-to-Air Missile). R-37M's range exceeds 200 km, and it is capable of hypersonic speed (~Mach 5) in the final stage of its flight. It will be carried by the modernized MiG-31BM interceptors and Su-35S and Su-57 multirole fighters. It is not known whether the long-range air-to-air missile for the Su-57, designated as "Izdeliye 810", is a derivative of the R-37M.


title: R-37 (missile)

text: The missile can attack targets at altitudes of 15–25,000 meters, guided semi-actively or actively through the Agat 9B-1388 system.


title: R-37 (missile)

text: The R-37M has, since October 2022, been the main threat against the Ukrainian Air Force. The Ukrainian Air Force has a significant lack of fire and forget missiles. They relied on the R-27 missiles, both the R-27ER and R-27ET, the R-27ET's range is 60 miles. The Ukrainian pilot must illuminate the Russian aircraft with their radar to guide the missile to the target. Russian pilots firing active radar, fire and forget, R-77 give the Russian pilots the ability to launch their missiles and then take evasive action. Ukrainian pilots were forced to "exploit ground clutter and terrain-masking to get close enough to fire before being engaged".


title: R-37 (missile)

text: During the first three days of the war both sides lost aircraft. The Ukrainians replaced them with older airframes that were made flyable. However the Russian Air Force turned to the MiG-31 with the R-37M missile that has a range of 200 miles. Combined with its superior radar, on the MiG-31, the Ukrainian Air Force has started losing more aircraft. A report by the Royal United Services Institute states that in October some six R-37Ms were being fired at the Ukrainian Air Force a day. The Su-35S is also used as a carrier for the R-37M. Four MiG-31 were also deployed to Crimea. Due to the protection offered by the range of R-37M missiles Ukraine has been forced to try and attack the air bases directly to destroy MiG-31s with the attack on the before the attack on the Belbek airbase and an attempted drone attack in August. Only one MiG-31 has been lost due to an accident.


title: R-37 (missile)

text: In August Russian forces maintained a Combat Air Patrol of either a pair of Su-35S or MiG-31s on station to shoot down Ukrainian aircraft. Since Ukrainian forces launched a counteroffensive in August they have lost "four MiG-29s, six Su-25s, a Su-24, and one Su-27". The Royal United Services Institute has credited most of the kills to the R-37M writing: “The VKS has been firing up to six R-37Ms per day during October. The extremely high speed of the weapon, coupled with very long effective range and a seeker designed for engaging low-altitude targets, makes it particularly difficult to evade,”


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: The Convair F-102 Delta Dagger was an American interceptor aircraft designed and manufactured by Convair.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: Built as part of the backbone of the United States Air Force's air defenses in the late 1950s, it entered service in 1956. Its main purpose was to intercept invading Soviet strategic bomber fleets (primarily the Tupolev Tu-95) during the Cold War. A total of 1,000 F-102s were built.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: A member of the Century Series, the F-102 was the USAF's first operational supersonic interceptor and delta-wing fighter. It used an internal weapons bay to carry both guided missiles and rockets. As originally designed, it could not achieve Mach 1 supersonic flight until redesigned with area ruling. The F-102 replaced subsonic fighter types such as the Northrop F-89 Scorpion, and by the 1960s, it saw limited service in the Vietnam War in bomber escort and ground-attack roles. It was supplemented by McDonnell F-101 Voodoos and, later, by McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom IIs.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: Many of the F-102s were transferred from the active duty Air Force to the Air National Guard by the mid-to-late 1960s, and, with the exception of those examples converted to unmanned QF-102 Full Scale Aerial Target (FSAT) drones, the type was totally retired from operational service in 1976. The follow-on replacement was the Mach-2 Convair F-106 Delta Dart, which was an extensive redesign of the F-102.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: On 8 October 1948, the board of senior officers of the U.S. Air Force (USAF) made recommendations that the service organize a competition for a new interceptor scheduled to enter service in 1954; as such, the all-new design would initially be dubbed the "1954 Ultimate Interceptor". Four months later, on 4 February 1949, the USAF approved the recommendation and prepared to hold the competition the following year. In November 1949, the Air Force decided that the new aircraft would be built around a fire-control system (FCS). The FCS was to be designed before the airframe to ensure compatibility. The airframe and FCS together were called the weapon system.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: In January 1950, the USAF Air Materiel Command issued request for proposals (RFPs) to 50 companies for the FCS, of which 18 responded. By May, the list was revised downward to 10. Meanwhile, a board at the U.S. Department of Defense headed by Major General Gordon P. Saville reviewed the proposals, and distributed some to the George E. Valley-led Air Defense Engineering Committee. Following recommendations by the committee to the Saville Board, the proposals were further reduced to two competitors, Hughes Aircraft and North American Aviation. Although the Valley Committee thought it was best to award the contract to both companies, Hughes was chosen by Saville and his team on 2 October 1950.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: Proposals for the airframe were issued on 18 June 1950, and in January 1951 six manufacturers responded. On 2 July 1954, three companies, Convair, Republic and Lockheed won the right to build a mockup. Until then, Convair had done research into delta-winged aircraft, experimenting with different designs, two of which fell under the name P-92. Of the three, the best design was to win the production contract under the name "Project MX-1554". In the end, Convair emerged as the victor with its design, designated "XF-102", after Lockheed dropped out and Republic built only a mockup. The development of three different designs was too expensive and in November, only Convair was allowed to continue with its Model 8-80. To speed development, it was proposed to equip the prototypes and pre-production aircraft with the less-powerful Westinghouse J40 turbojet. Continued delays to the J67 and MA-1 (formerly "MX-1179") FCS led to the decision to place an interim aircraft with the J40 and a simpler fire control system (dubbed "E-9") into production as the F-102A. The failure of the J40 led to the Pratt & Whitney J57 turbojet with afterburner, rated with of thrust being substituted for the prototypes and F-102As. This aircraft was intended to be temporary, pending the development of the F-102B, which would employ the more advanced Curtiss-Wright J67, a licensed derivative of the Bristol-Siddeley Olympus which was still in development. The F-102B would later evolve to become the F-106A, dubbed the "Ultimate Interceptor".


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: The prototype YF-102 made its first flight on 23 October 1953, at Edwards AFB, but was lost in an accident nine days later. The second aircraft flew on 11 January 1954, confirming a dismal performance. Transonic drag was much higher than expected, and the aircraft was limited to Mach 0.98 (i.e. subsonic), with a ceiling of 48,000 ft (14,630 m), far below the requirements.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: To solve the problem and save the F-102, Convair embarked on a major redesign, incorporating the recently discovered area rule, while at the same time simplifying production and maintenance. The redesign entailed lengthening the fuselage by 11 ft (3.35 m), being "pinched" at the midsection (dubbed the "Coke Bottle configuration"), with two large fairings on either side of the engine nozzle, with revised intakes and a new, narrower canopy. A more powerful model of the J57 was fitted, and the aircraft structure was lightened.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: At the same time the wing was redesigned, being made thinner and wider. The leading edge was given a conical droop, with the apex at the root, to improve handling at low speeds. Because the droop remained within the shock cone of the leading edge, the drag rise at supersonic speeds was minimal. A second, inboard fence was added.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: The first revised aircraft, designated YF-102A flew on 20 December 1954, 118 days after the redesign started, exceeding Mach 1 the next day. The revised design demonstrated a speed of Mach 1.22 and a ceiling of 53,000 ft (16,154 m). These improvements were sufficient for the Air Force to allow production of the F-102, with a new production contract signed in March 1954.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: The production F-102A had the Hughes MC-3 fire control system, later upgraded in service to the MG-10. It had a three-segment internal weapons bay under the fuselage for air-to-air missiles. Initial armament was three pairs of GAR-1/2/3/4 ("Later re-designated as AIM-4") Falcon missiles, which included both infrared homing and semi-active radar homing variants. The doors of the two forward bays each had tubes for 12 FFARs (for a total of 24) with initially 2 in (5.1 cm) being fitted and later 2.75 in (70 mm) replacing them. The F-102 was later upgraded to allow the carrying of up to two GAR-11/AIM-26 Nuclear Falcon missiles in the center bay. The larger size of this weapon required redesigned center bay doors with no rocket tubes. Plans were considered to fit the MB-1 Genie nuclear rocket to the design, but although a Genie was test fired from a YF-102A in May 1956, it was never adopted.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: The F-102 received several major modifications during its operational lifetime, with most airframes being retrofitted with infrared search/tracking systems, radar warning receivers, transponders, backup artificial horizons, and improvements to the fire control system. A proposed close-support version (never built) would have incorporated, in addition, an internal Gatling gun, an extra two hardpoints for bombs (in addition to the two underwing pylons for drop tanks that were fitted to all production F-102s), bigger internal fuel tanks, and an in-flight-refueling probe. The F-102 was subsonic when fitted with drop tanks.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: To train F-102A pilots, the TF-102A trainer was developed, with 111 eventually manufactured. The aircraft was designed with side-by-side seating to facilitate pilot training, a popular concept in the 1950s (also used with the American Cessna T-37, British Hawker Hunter T.7 and English Electric Lightning T.4, among others). This required a redesign of the cockpit and a nose almost as wide as that of a Convair 340 commercial airliner. The new nose introduced buffeting, the source of which was traced to the bulbous canopy. Vortex generators were added to the top of the canopy to prevent the buffet which had started at about Mach 0.72. The intake ducts were revised as the inlets were repositioned. Despite the many changes, the aircraft was combat-capable, although this variant was predictably slower, reaching only subsonic speeds in level flight.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: The numerous inherent design and technical limitations of the F-102 led to a proposed successor, initially known as the F-102B "Ultimate Interceptor". The improved design, in which the proposed Curtiss-Wright J67 jet engine was eventually replaced by a Pratt & Whitney J75, underwent so many aerodynamic changes (including variable-geometry inlets) that it essentially became an entirely new aircraft and hence was redesignated and produced as the F-106 Delta Dart. Convair would also use a delta wing design in the Mach 2 class Convair B-58 Hustler bomber.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: The first operational service of the F-102A was with the 327th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron at George Air Force Base, in April 1956, and eventually a total of 889 F-102As were built, production ending in September 1958. TF-102s and F-102s were used in the 1960s by the Air Defense Command (ADC) at Perrin AFB, Texas to train new F-102 pilots. They also provided platform training on flight characteristics of delta-winged aircraft for pilots who were destined to fly the B-58 Hustler bomber for the Strategic Air Command (SAC).


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: The F-102's official name, "Delta Dagger", was never used in common parlance, with the aircraft being universally known as the "Deuce." The TF-102 was known as the "Tub" because of its wider fuselage with side-by-side twin seating.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: During the time the F-102A was in service, several new wing designs were used to experiment with the application of increased conical camber to the wings. Ultimately, a design was selected that actually increased elevon area, reduced takeoff speed, improved the supersonic L/D ratio and increased the aircraft's ceiling to 56,000 ft (17,069 m). A modification was required to the landing gear doors due to the wing redesign.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: The Air Defense Command had F-102 Delta Daggers in service in 1960 and the type continued to serve in large numbers with both Air Force and Air National Guard units well into the 1970s. George W. Bush, later President of the United States, flew the F-102 in the 147th Fighter Interceptor Group based at Ellington AFB in Houston, Texas as part of his Texas Air National Guard service from 1968 to 1972.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: The F-102 served in the Vietnam War, flying fighter patrols and serving as bomber escorts. A total of 14 aircraft were lost in Vietnam: one to air-to-air combat, several to ground fire and the remainder to accidents.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: Initially, F-102 detachments began to be sent to bases in Southeast Asia in 1962 after radar contacts detected by ground radars were thought to possibly be North Vietnamese Vietnam People's Air Force (VPAF) Il-28 "Beagle" bombers considered to be a credible threat in that time period. The F-102s were sent to Thailand and other nearby countries to intercept these aircraft if they threatened South Vietnam.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: Later on, Boeing B-52 Stratofortress strikes, codenamed "Arc Light", were escorted by F-102s based in the theater. It was during one of these missions that an F-102 was shot down by a VPAF Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 using an AA-2 Atoll heat-seeking missile. The MiGs approached undetected, and one of the F-102s was hit by an air-to-air missile, which did not explode immediately, but remained lodged in the aft end of the aircraft, causing stability problems. As the pilot reported the problem to his wingman, the wingman observed the damaged Delta Dagger explode in midair, killing the pilot. This was the only air-to-air loss for the F-102 during the Vietnam War. The other F-102 pilot fired AIM-4 missiles at the departing MiG-21s, but no hit was recorded.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: The F-102 was employed in the air-to-ground role with limited success, although neither the aircraft nor the training for its pilots were designed for that role. The 509th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron's Deuces arrived at Da Nang Air Base, 4 August 1964 from Clark Air Base, Philippines. The interceptor was equipped with 24 2.75 in (70 mm) FFARs in the fuselage bay doors. These could be used to good effect against various types of North Vietnamese targets in daylight. At night it proved less dangerous to use heat-seeking Falcon missiles in conjunction with the F-102's nose-mounted IRST (Infrared Search & Track) on nighttime harassment raids along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Some F-102As were configured to accommodate a single AIM-26 Super Falcon in each side bay in lieu of the two conventional AIM-4 Falcons. Operations with both the F-102A and TF-102A two-seaters (which were used in a Forward Air Control role because its two seats and 2.75 in/70 mm rockets offered good versatility for the mission) continued in Vietnam until 1968 when all F-102s were returned to the United States.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: In 1973, six aircraft were converted to target drones as QF-102As and later PQM-102Bs (simulating MiG-21 threat aircraft) under a Full Scale Aerial Target (FSAT) project known as Pave Deuce. Eventually, the program converted hundreds of F-102s for use as target drones for newer fighter aircraft, as well as testing of the U.S. Army's Patriot missile system.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: The F-102 and TF-102 were exported overseas to both Turkey and Greece. The Turkish F-102s saw combat missions during the 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus. There have been claims of air combat between Greek F-5s and Turkish F-102s above the Aegean Sea during the Turkish invasion. A Greek internet website editor, Demetrius Stergiou, claims that the Greek F-5s had shot down two Turkish F-102s, while the Turkish side has claimed that their F-102s had shot down two Greek F-5s; however, both Greece and Turkey still officially deny any aircraft losses. The F-102 was finally retired from both of those air forces in 1979.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: The F-102 left U.S. service in 1976, while the last QF-102A / PQM-102B drone was expended in 1986. No F-102s remain in flyable condition today, although many can be seen at museums or as permanent static displays as gate guardians at Air Force and Air National Guard installations.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: In 1969, Greece acquired 24 of these aircraft for use by the 114th Combat Wing at Tanagra Air Base. 19 of them were single-seat F-102As, five were two-seat TF-102As. They served with the Greek air force until 1977, when the F-102s were replaced by Mirage F1CG fighters.


title: Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

text: Beginning in 1968, approximately 50 F-102As and TF-102As were transferred to Turkey from USAF stocks. Before transfer to Turkey, they were overhauled by CASA in Seville. They were initially assigned to the 191st Filo (Squadron) based at Murted, replacing the F-84F Thunderstreaks previously assigned to this unit. This unit was redesignated 142nd Filo in early 1973. In 1971, F-102s were also assigned to the 182nd Filo based at Diyarbakır, replacing the F-84Fs previously being flown by this unit. F-102s remained in service with these two squadrons until mid-1979, when they were replaced by the F-104G in the 142nd Filo and by the F-100C in the 182nd Filo.


title: William M. Branham

text: William Marrion Branham (April 6, 1909 – December 24, 1965) was an American Christian minister and faith healer who initiated the post–World War II healing revival, and claimed to be a prophet with the anointing of Elijah, who had come to prelude Christ's second coming; some of his followers have been labeled a "doomsday cult". He is credited as "a principal architect of restorationist thought" for charismatics by some Christian historians, and has been called the "leading individual in the Second Wave of Pentecostalism." He made a lasting influence on televangelism and the modern charismatic movement, and his "stage presence remains a legend unparalleled in the history of the Charismatic movement". At the time they were held, his inter-denominational meetings were the largest religious meetings ever held in some American cities. Branham was the first American deliverance minister to successfully campaign in Europe; his ministry reached global audiences with major campaigns held in North America, Europe, Africa, and India.


title: William M. Branham

text: Branham claimed that he had received an angelic visitation on May 7, 1946, commissioning his worldwide ministry and launching his campaigning career in mid-1946. His fame rapidly spread as crowds were drawn to his stories of angelic visitations and reports of miracles happening at his meetings. His ministry spawned many emulators and set the broader healing revival that later became the modern charismatic movement in motion. At the peak of his popularity in the 1950s, Branham was widely adored and "the neo-Pentecostal world believed Branham to be a prophet to their generation". From 1955, Branham's campaigning and popularity began to decline as the Pentecostal churches began to withdraw their support from the healing campaigns for primarily financial reasons. By 1960, Branham transitioned into a teaching ministry.


title: William M. Branham

text: Unlike his contemporaries, who followed doctrinal teachings which are known as the Full Gospel tradition, Branham developed an alternative theology which was primarily a mixture of Calvinist and Arminian doctrines, and had a heavy focus on dispensationalism and Branham's own unique eschatological views. While widely accepting the restoration doctrine he espoused during the healing revival, his divergent post-revival teachings were deemed increasingly controversial by his charismatic and Pentecostal contemporaries, who subsequently disavowed many of the doctrines as "revelatory madness". His racial teachings on serpent seed and his belief that membership in a Christian denomination was connected to the mark of the beast alienated many of his former supporters. His closest followers, however, accepted his sermons as oral scripture and refer to his teachings as The Message. Despite Branham's objections, some followers of his teachings placed him at the center of a cult of personality during his final years. Branham claimed that he had converted over one million people during his career. His teachings continue to be promoted by the William Branham Evangelistic Association, which reported that about 2 million people received its material in 2018. Branham died following a car accident in 1965.


title: William M. Branham

text: Throughout his healing revivals, Branham was accused of committing fraud by investigative news reporters, fellow ministers, host churches, and governmental agencies. Numerous people pronounced healed died shortly thereafter, investigators discovered evidence suggesting miracles may have been staged, and Branham was found to have significantly embellished and falsified numerous stories he presented to his audiences as fact. Branham faced legal problems as a result of his practices. The governments of South Africa and Norway intervened in order to stop his healing campaigns in their countries. In the United States, Branham was charged with tax evasion for failing to account for the donations received through his ministry; admitting his liability, he settled the case out of court. The news media has linked Branham to multiple notorious figures. Branham was baptized and ordained a minister by Roy Davis, the National Imperial Wizard (leader) of the Ku Klux Klan; the two men maintained a lifelong relationship. Branham helped launch and popularize the ministry of Jim Jones. Paul Schäfer, Robert Martin Gumbura, Leo Mercer, and other followers of William Branham's teachings have regularly been in the news due to the serious crimes which they committed. Followers of Branham's teachings in Colonia Dignidad were portrayed in the 2015 film "Colonia".


title: William M. Branham

text: William M. Branham was born near Burkesville, Kentucky, on April 6, 1909, the son of Charles and Ella Harvey Branham, the oldest of ten children. He claimed that at his birth, a "Light come whirling through the window, about the size of a pillow, and circled around where I was, and went down on the bed". Branham told his publicist Gordon Lindsay that he had mystical experiences from an early age; and that at age three he heard a "voice" speaking to him from a tree telling him "he would live near a city called New Albany". According to Branham, that year his family moved to Jeffersonville, Indiana. Branham also said that when he was seven years old, God told him to avoid smoking and drinking alcoholic beverages. Branham stated he never violated the command.


title: William M. Branham

text: Branham told his audiences that he grew up in "deep poverty", often not having adequate clothing, and that his family was involved in criminal activities. Branham's neighbors reported him as "someone who always seemed a little different", but said he was a dependable youth. Branham explained that his tendency towards "mystical experiences and moral purity" caused misunderstandings among his friends, family, and other young people; he was a "black sheep" from an early age. Branham called his childhood "a terrible life."


title: William M. Branham

text: Branham's father owned a farm near Utica, Indiana and took a job working for O.H. Wathen, owner of R.E. Wathen Distilleries in nearby Louisville, Kentucky. Wathen was a supplier for Al Capone's bootlegging operations. Branham told his audiences that he was required to help his father with the illegal production and sale of liquor during prohibition. In March 1924, Branham's father was arrested for his criminal activities; he was convicted and sentenced to a prison. The Indiana Ku Klux Klan claimed responsibility for attacking and shutting down the Jeffersonville liquor producing ring.


title: William M. Branham

text: Branham was involved in a firearms incident and was shot in both legs in March 1924, at age 14; he later told his audiences he was involved in a hunting accident. Two of his brothers also suffered life-threatening injuries at the same time. Branham was rushed to the hospital for treatment. His family was unable to pay for his medical bills, but members of the Indiana Ku Klux Klan stepped in to cover the expenses. The help of the Klan during his impoverished childhood had a profound impact on Branham throughout his life. As late as 1963, Branham continued to speak highly of the them saying, "the Ku Klux Klan, paid the hospital bill for me, Masons. I can never forget them. See? No matter what they do, or what, I still... there is something, and that stays with me..." Branham would go on to maintain lifelong connections to the KKK.


title: William M. Branham

text: Branham told his audiences that he left home at age 19 in search of a better life, traveling to Phoenix, Arizona, where he worked on a ranch for two years and began a successful career in boxing. While Branham was away, his brother Edward aged 18, shot and killed a Jeffersonville man and was charged with murder. Edward died of a sudden illness only a short time later. Branham returned to Jeffersonville in June 1929 to attend the funeral. Branham had no experience with religion as a child; he said that the first time he heard a prayer was at his brother's funeral.


title: William M. Branham

text: Soon afterward, while he was working for the Public Service Company of Indiana, Branham was overcome by gas and had to be hospitalized. Branham said that he heard a voice speaking to him while he was recovering from the accident, which led him to begin seeking God. Shortly thereafter, he began attending the First Pentecostal Baptist Church of Jeffersonville, where he converted to Christianity. The church was pastored by Roy Davis, a founding member of the second Ku Klux Klan and a leading recruiter for the organization. Davis later became the National Imperial Wizard (leader) of the KKK. Davis baptized Branham and six months later, he ordained Branham as an Independent Baptist minister and an elder in his church. Supported by the KKK's Imperial Kludd (chaplain) Caleb Ridley, Branham traveled with Davis and they participated together in revivals in other states.


title: William M. Branham

text: At the time of Branham's conversion, the First Pentecostal Baptist Church of Jeffersonville was a nominally Baptist church which adhered to some Pentecostal doctrines, including divine healing and speaking in tongues; Branham reported that his baptism at the church was done using the Jesus name formula of Oneness Pentecostalism. Branham claimed to have been opposed to Pentecostalism during the early years of his ministry. However, according to multiple Branham biographers, like Baptist historian Doug Weaver and Pentecostal historian Bernie Wade, Branham was exposed to Pentecostal teachings from his conversion.


title: William M. Branham

text: Branham claimed to his audiences he was first exposed to a Pentecostal church in 1936, which invited him to join, but he refused. Weaver speculated that Branham may have chosen to hide his early connections to Pentecostalism to make his conversion story more compelling to his Pentecostal audiences during the years of the healing revival. Weaver identified several parts of Branham's reported life story that conflicted with historical documentation and suggested Branham began significantly embellished his early life story to his audiences beginning in the 1940s.


title: William M. Branham

text: During June 1933, Branham held tent revival meetings that were sponsored by Davis and the First Pentecostal Baptist Church. On June 2 that year, the "Jeffersonville Evening News" said the Branham campaign reported 14 converts. His followers believed his ministry was accompanied by miraculous signs from its beginning, and that when he was baptizing converts on June 11, 1933, in the Ohio River near Jeffersonville, a bright light descended over him and that he heard a voice say, "As John the Baptist was sent to forerun the first coming of Jesus Christ, so your message will forerun His second coming".


title: William M. Branham

text: Belief in the baptismal story is a critical element of faith among Branham's followers. In his early references to the event during the healing revival, Branham interpreted it to refer to the restoration of the gifts of the spirit to the church. In later years, Branham significantly altered how he told the baptismal story, and came to connect the event to his teaching ministry. He claimed reports of the baptismal story were carried in newspapers across the United States and Canada. Because of the way Branham's telling of the baptismal story changed over the years, and because no newspaper actually covered the event, Weaver said Branham may have embellished the story after he began achieving success in the healing revival during the 1940s.


title: William M. Branham

text: Besides Roy Davis and the First Pentecostal Baptist Church, Branham reported interaction with other groups during the 1930s who were an influence on his ministry. During the early 1930s, he became acquainted with William Sowders' School of the Prophets, a Pentecostal group in Kentucky and Indiana. Through Sowders' group, he was introduced to the British Israelite House of David and in the autumn of 1934, Branham traveled to Michigan to meet with members of the group.


title: William M. Branham

text: Branham took over leadership of Roy Davis's Jeffersonville church in 1934, after Davis was arrested again and extradited to stand trial. Sometime during March or April 1934, the First Pentecostal Baptist Church was destroyed by a fire and Branham's supporters at the church helped him organize a new church in Jeffersonville. At first Branham preached out of a tent at 8th and Pratt street, and he also reported temporarily preaching in an orphanage building.


title: William M. Branham

text: By 1936, the congregation had constructed a new church on the same block as Branham's tent, at the corner of 8th and Penn street. The church was built on the same location reported by the local newspaper as the site of his June 1933 tent campaign. Newspaper articles reported the original name of Branham's new church to be the Pentecostal Tabernacle. The church was officially registered with the City of Jeffersonville as the Billie Branham Pentecostal Tabernacle in November 1936. Newspaper articles continued to refer to his church as the Pentecostal Tabernacle until 1943. Branham served as pastor until 1946, and the church name eventually shortened to the Branham Tabernacle. The church flourished at first, but its growth began to slow. Because of the Great Depression, it was often short of funds, so Branham served without compensation.


title: William M. Branham

text: Branham continued traveling and preaching among Pentecostal churches while serving as pastor of his new church. Branham obtained a truck and had it painted with advertisements for his healing ministry which he toured in. In September 1934, he traveled to Mishawaka, Indiana where he was invited to speak at the Pentecostal Assemblies of Jesus Christ (PAJC) General Assembly meetings organized by Bishop G. B. Rowe. Branham was "not impressed with the multi-cultural aspects of the PAJC as it was contrary to the dogmas advanced by his friends in the Ku Klux Klan."


title: William M. Branham

text: Branham and his future wife Amelia Hope Brumbach (b. July 16, 1913) attended the First Pentecostal Baptist Church together beginning in 1929 where Brumbach served as young people's leader. The couple began dating in 1933. Branham married Brumbach in June 1934. Their first child, William "Billy" Paul Branham was born soon after their marriage; the date given for his birth varies by source. In some of Branham's biographies, his first son's birth date is reported as September 13, 1935, but in government records his birth date is reported as September 13, 1934. Branham's wife became ill during the second year of their marriage. According to her death certificate, she was diagnosed with pulmonary tuberculosis in January 1936, beginning a period of declining health. Despite her diagnosis, the couple had a second child, Sharon Rose, who was born on October 27, 1936. In September 1936, the local news reported that Branham held a multi-week healing revival at the Pentecostal Tabernacle in which he reported eight healings.


title: William M. Branham

text: The following year, disaster struck when Jeffersonville was ravaged by the Ohio River flood of 1937. Branham's congregation was badly impacted by the disaster and his family was displaced from their home. By February 1937, the floodwaters had receded, his church survived intact and Branham resumed holding services at the Pentecostal Tabernacle. Following the January flood, Hope's health continued to decline, and she succumbed to her illness and died on July 22, 1937. Sharon Rose, who had been born with her mother's illness, died four days later (July 26, 1937). Their obituaries reported Branham as pastor of the Pentecostal Tabernacle, the same church where their funerals were held.


title: William M. Branham

text: Branham frequently related the story of the death of his wife and daughter during his ministry and evoked strong emotional responses from his audiences. Branham told his audiences that his wife and daughter had become suddenly ill and died during the January flood as God's punishment because of his failure to embrace Pentecostalism. Branham said he made several suicide attempts following their deaths. Peter Duyzer noted that Branham's story of the events surrounding the death of his wife and daughter conflicted with historical evidence; they did not die during the flood, he and his wife were both already Pentecostals before they married, and he was pastor of a Pentecostal church at the time of their deaths.


title: William M. Branham

text: By the summer of 1940, Branham had resumed traveling and held revival meetings in other nearby communities. Branham married his second wife Meda Marie Broy in 1941, and together they had three children; Rebekah (b. 1946), Sarah (b. 1950), and Joseph (b. 1955).


title: William M. Branham

text: Branham is known for his role in the healing revivals that occurred in the United States in the 1940s and 1950s, and most participants in the movement regarded him as its initiator. Christian writer John Crowder described the period of revivals as "the most extensive public display of miraculous power in modern history". Some, like Christian author and countercult activist Hank Hanegraaff, rejected the entire healing revival as a hoax and condemned the movement as cult in his 1997 book "Counterfeit Revival".


title: William M. Branham

text: Divine healing is a tradition and belief that was historically held by a majority of Christians but it became increasingly associated with Evangelical Protestantism. The fascination of most of American Christianity with divine healing played a significant role in the popularity and inter-denominational nature of the revival movement.


title: William M. Branham

text: Branham held massive inter-denominational meetings, from which came reports of hundreds of miracles. Historian David Harrell described Branham and Oral Roberts as the two giants of the movement and called Branham its "unlikely leader."


title: William M. Branham

text: Branham had been traveling and holding revival meetings since at least 1940 before attracting national attention. Branham's popularity began to grow following the 1942 meetings in Milltown, Indiana where it was reported that a young girl had been healed of tuberculosis. The news of the reported healing was slow to spread, but was eventually reported to a family in Missouri who in 1945 invited Branham to pray for their child who was suffering from a similar illness; Branham reported that the child recovered after his prayers.


title: William M. Branham

text: News of two events eventually reached W. E. Kidston. Kidston was intrigued by the reported miracles and invited Branham to participate in revival meetings that he was organizing. W. E. Kidston, was editor of "The Apostolic Herald" and had many contacts in the Pentecostal movement. Kidston served as Branham's first campaign manager and was instrumental in helping organize Branham's early revival meetings.


title: William M. Branham

text: Branham held his first large meetings as a faith healer in 1946. His healing services are well documented, and he is regarded as the pacesetter for those who followed him. At the time they were held, Branham's revival meetings were the largest religious meetings some American cities he visited had ever seen; reports of 1,000 to 1,500 converts per meeting were common.


title: William M. Branham

text: Historians name his June 1946 St. Louis meetings as the inauguration of the healing revival period. Branham said he had received an angelic visitation on May 7, 1946, commissioning his worldwide ministry. In his later years, he also connected the angelic visitation with the establishment of the nation of Israel, at one point mistakenly stating the vision occurred on the same day.


title: William M. Branham

text: His first reported revival meetings of the period were held over 12 days during June 1946 in St. Louis. "Time" magazine reported on his St. Louis campaign meetings, and according to the article, Branham drew a crowd of over 4,000 sick people who desired healing and recorded him diligently praying for each. Branham's fame began to grow as a result of the publicity and reports covering his meetings.


title: William M. Branham

text: "Herald of Faith" magazine which was edited by prominent Pentecostal minister Joseph Mattsson-Boze and published by Philadelphia Pentecostal Church in Chicago also began following and exclusively publishing stories from the Branham campaigns, giving Branham wide exposure to the Pentecostal movement. Following the St. Louis meetings, Branham launched a tour of small Oneness Pentecostal churches across the Midwest and southern United States, from which stemmed reports of healing and one report of a resurrection. By August his fame had spread widely. He held meetings that month in Jonesboro, Arkansas, and drew a crowd of 25,000 with attendees from 28 different states. The size of the crowds presented a problem for Branham's team as they found it difficult to find venues that could seat large numbers of attendees.


title: William M. Branham

text: Branham's revivals were interracial from their inception and were noted for their "racial openness" during the period of widespread racial unrest. An African American minister participating in the St. Louis meetings claimed to be healed during the revival, helping to bring Branham a sizable African American following from the early days of the revival. Branham held interracial meetings even in the southern states. To satisfy segregation laws when ministering in the south, Branham's team would use a rope to divide the crowd by race.


title: William M. Branham

text: Author and researcher Patsy Sims noted that venues used to host campaign meetings also hosted KKK rallies just days prior to the revival meetings, which sometimes led to racial tensions. Sims, who attended both the KKK rallies and the healing revivals, was surprised to see some of the same groups of people at both events. According to Steven Hassan, KKK recruitment was covertly conducted through Branham's ministry.