title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: A total of 96 aircraft were delivered between February 1948 and June 1949. Multiple improved versions of the B-45 were proposed by North American, some of which were realized. While the B-45B concept equipped with a radar-guided fire control system would never be ordered, the more advanced B-45C was. This variant featured a strengthened airframe, tip tanks for greater fuel capacity, and more powerful General Electric J47-15 turbojet engines. Only 10 would be delivered from an order of 43. Perhaps the most significant variant was the RB-45C, a dedicated reconnaissance aircraft that lacked a bomb bay; 33 aircraft were delivered. The B-45 was later replaced by the supersonic Convair B-58 Hustler.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: Early operations of the B-45 were plagued by engine problems which, along with numerous other minor flaws, undermined its usefulness. However, the aircraft regained importance when the United States entered the Korean War in 1950. In this theatre, the B-45 proved its value both as a bomber and as a reconnaissance aircraft. The mass deployment of U.S. forces to the war on the Korean peninsula exposed the vulnerability of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) forces in Europe to a potential Soviet attack. This realization was a major factor contributing to the USAF's decision regarding the future of the B-45. The B-45, like most post-World War II American bombers, could carry both nuclear and conventional bombs. The progress of weapons technology had led to a great reduction in both the weight and size of nuclear weapons in the U.S. inventory, which enabled smaller aircraft such as the B-45 to carry out nuclear strikes, a mission which had previously been confined to heavy bombers. Suddenly, the small fleet of B-45s once again possessed considerable value as a nuclear deterrent.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: On 4 December 1950, the first successful interception of a jet bomber by a jet fighter occurred when MiG-15 pilot Aleksandr F. Andrianov shot down an RB-45C over China. Captain Charles McDonough was the only member of the four-man crew to parachute from the plane, although he is believed to have died while being held by either the Chinese or the Soviet Union. Because of the sensitivity typically surrounding such missions, much of the information surrounding this flight and similar intelligence activities has remained classified.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: Operation Fandango, sometimes called Operation Backbreaker, modified the aircraft for nuclear missions. The 40 B-45s allocated to the program were equipped with a new defensive system and additional fuel tankage. Despite the magnitude of the modifications project, plus ongoing problems with the jet engines, nuclear-capable B-45s began reaching the United Kingdom in May 1952, and deployment of the 40 aircraft was completed in mid-June. It was at about the same time that RB-45s of the 323rd Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron began to arrive in Japan to fly alongside the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, supplementing the World War II-era piston-engine RB-29s which had been easy targets for North Korean MiGs. The RB-45s provided valuable intelligence throughout the remainder of the Korean War, despite the limited number available. RB-45Cs flew many daylight missions until early 1952, when they changed to night operations after an RB-45 was almost lost to a MiG-15.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: All 33 RB-45Cs built were assigned to the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Wing's 322nd, 323rd and 324th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadrons. The RB-45C also flew several long-range reconnaissance missions over the Soviet Union during the mid-1950s. On July 29, 1952, an RB-45C made the first non-stop trans-Pacific flight, having been refueled twice by KB-29s along the way. Maj. Lou Carrington and his crew of the 91st Reconnaissance Wing flew from Alaska to Japan in 9 hrs 50 mins, winning the MacKay Trophy for their achievement. Within the 91st SRW, by 1954 the RB-45C had been replaced by the RB-47E. The phased-out RB-45Cs then went to the 19th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, which operated them until they were withdrawn from operational use in the spring of 1958.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: By the end of the 1950s, all B-45s had been removed from active service. However, a few continued to act as test aircraft into the early 1970s.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: The only other nation to use the RB-45C was the United Kingdom, where it was operated by an "ad hoc" unit of crews largely drawn from Nos. 35 and 115 squadrons. Whilst the USAF was prohibited by the President of the United States from overflying the Soviet Union at the time, US allies closer to the European theatre of war could. In the United Kingdom, whilst successive Labour governments had refused, the return of Winston Churchill and a Conservative administration to Downing Street brought a more co-operative atmosphere to joint intelligence initiatives.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: As a result, under "Operation Ju-jitsu", in July 1951 four aircraft were leased to Britain from the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Wing to form 'Special Duties Flight, Sculthorpe', commanded by Squadron Leader John Crampton. Stripped of USAF markings and then applied with RAF markings, the four aircraft were attached to a USAF squadron based at RAF Sculthorpe, Norfolk in eastern England. The aircraft were tasked with flying deep-level reconnaissance missions over the Soviet Union to gather electronic and photographic intelligence. The Special Duties Flight conducted missions during the period 1952–54.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: On April 17, 1952, three aircraft were assigned to head for Kyiv from Germany, scheduled to return to Sculthorpe ten hours later. Flying at , Crampton's aircraft was tracked by ground radar and came under antiaircraft fire. Applying full power, he immediately turned and headed for Germany, none too soon, as Soviet night fighters had been dispatched to hunt down his aircraft.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: Subsequent flights over Ukrai were carried out using English Electric Canberras under the codename Project Robin, operating at higher altitudes of around . It was not until 1994 (under the "fifty-year rule" of the Public Records Act 1958) that the existence of the spy missions became public knowledge.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: The first flight of the XB-45 was on February 24, 1947 from Muroc Army Air Field. A total of 131 test flights were flown by the three prototype aircraft, one being destroyed early on, killing two pilots.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: The USAF accepted one of the two surviving aircraft on July 30, 1948, the other on August 31. One was damaged beyond repair in an accident. The last XB-45 was delivered to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in 1949. It proved excessively difficult to maintain and was relegated to being used as a ground trainer.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: The B-45A differed from the XB-45 in having improved ejection seats and communications equipment, an E-4 automatic pilot and bombing navigation radar.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: The first production B-45 flew in February 1948, and the Air Force took delivery of 22 B-45s in April 1948. Powered by J35 turbojets and not considered combat-ready, they were assigned to training duties and to conduct various test programs. The next batch were powered by the more powerful J47 turbojets. The first B-45As entered service in November 1948 with the 47th Bombardment Group, and the initial order of 96 was completed in March 1950.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: The first B-45As were not equipped with bomb fire control systems or bombsights. They suffered from gyrocompass failures at high speeds, unhooked bomb shackles, engine fires, and inaccurate cockpit gauges. The AN/APQ-24 bombing and navigation radar on some B-45s was maintenance heavy, and malfunctions in the pressurization limited the altitude at which the aircraft could operate.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: Fifty-five nuclear-capable B-45s arrived in the United Kingdom in 1952. These were modified with a 1,200 gal (4,542 L) fuel tank in the aft bomb bay. Despite technical problems, these were Tactical Air Command's first-line deterrent in Europe.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: The B-45B was a proposed variant of the B-45A with improved radar and fire-control systems. None were built.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: The B-45C was the first multiengine jet bomber in the world to be refueled in midair. It carried two 1,200 gal (4,542 L) wingtip fuel tanks, had a strengthened canopy, and an inflight refueling receptacle. The first B-45C was flown on May 3, 1949. Only ten were built, and the remaining 33 under construction were converted to RB-45Cs.


title: North American B-45 Tornado

text: The RB-45C was the final production variant of the B-45. The bombardier's canopy was faired over and replaced with an oblique camera system. The RB-45C carried two 214 gal (810 L) external fuel tanks, or two JATO rockets. It could carry up to 12 cameras in four positions, or a single camera with a 100 in (2.5 m) focal length lens. The RB-45C first flew in April 1950, and was delivered from June 1950 to October 1951. Thirty-eight were built, including the 33 converted from B-45Cs. It was this variant that was operated (clandestinely) over the Soviet Union by the RAF "special duties" unit at RAF Sculthorpe, with the first sortie of three aircraft commanded by Squadron Leader John Crampton taking place on the night of April 17, 1952.


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: Jacintha Saldanha (1966 – 7 December 2012) was an Indian nurse who worked at King Edward VII's Hospital in the City of Westminster, London. On 7 December 2012, she was found dead by suicide, three days after falling for a prank phone call as part of a radio stunt. In the prank call, the hosts of the Australian radio programme "Hot30 Countdown", broadcast on the Southern Cross Austereo owned station 2Day FM in Sydney, called Saldanha's hospital and impersonated the Queen and the Prince of Wales enquiring about the health of the Duchess of Cambridge, who was a patient there at the time. Saldanha fell for the hoax and transferred the call to the nurse looking after the Duchess.


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: Saldanha's suicide led to public outrage, including in Saldanha's home country against those responsible for perpetrating and broadcasting the prank. Despite numerous calls for legal action, no charges were laid.


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: Saldanha was 46 years old at the time of her death. She was born in Shirva, India, and had lived in the Sultanate of Oman for several years, before moving to England around 2002. In December 2012, she was staying in nurse's quarters at her London workplace, for the sake of convenience, while her family (husband, 16-year-old son, and 14-year-old daughter) lived in Bristol.


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: The family initially reported to the press that Saldanha did not have any history of mental illness or depression. However, multiple news sources later revealed that this was not Saldanha's first attempt at suicide, noting she had attempted suicide on two previous occasions and was taking antidepressant medication.


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: On 2 December 2012, St James's Palace announced that Catherine, Princess of Wales, was pregnant. On 4 December, at about 5:30 am London time (GMT) or 4:30 pm Sydney time (AEDT), the hosts of the "Hot30 Countdown" radio programme, Mel Greig and Mike Christian, called the hospital and spoke to the main nurse, Saldanha. Impersonating Elizabeth II, Greig said: "Oh hello there, could I please speak to Kate please, my granddaughter." Saldanha responded, "Oh yes. Hold on ma'am," and transferred the call to the Duchess's nurse, who spent approximately two minutes speaking with Greig as well as Christian, the latter impersonating The Prince of Wales. The hosts used what were later described as "ridiculous comedy accents."


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: The stunt was broadcast on 5 December, after it had been cleared by the radio station's lawyers. When hospital chief executive John Lofthouse learned of the prank call, he condemned it as an act of "journalistic trickery" that no nurse should have to deal with. The CEO of Southern Cross Austereo, Rhys Holleran, later claimed that station officials had made at least five attempts to contact the two nurses in the recording prior to greenlighting the call for broadcast – with Sydney University law professor, Barbara McDonald noting that his comments showed the station already understood they needed to "[get] consent (to air the interview) and they failed to".


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: On 6 December, the radio station issued a brief apology for "any inconvenience caused" by their actions, although Christian continued to promote "the royal prank" on Twitter. Neither Saldanha nor the other nurse was disciplined or suspended by the hospital; St. James's Palace also indicated that they did not blame the nurses for their part in the incident.


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: On the morning of 7 December 2012, Saldanha was found dead by security and other staff in her nurse's quarters at the hospital. She had died by suicide, and also had injuries.


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: It was reported that Saldanha had left three handwritten notes, one of which blamed the radio stunt for her death. Another note discussed her wishes for funeral arrangements, while the third was directed at her employer, criticising their handling of events that followed the prank call.


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: Following news of Saldanha's suicide, Austereo CEO Rhys Holleran said that Greig and Christian were both "deeply shocked" and would not return to their radio show until further notice. A day later, as advertisers boycotted or threatened to boycott the station, 2Day FM suspended all advertising indefinitely. On 10 December, Greig and Christian gave their first interviews since Saldanha's death, telling Nine Network's "A Current Affair" and Seven Network's "Today Tonight" that they were still "badly shaken" over the tragedy.


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: Advertising on 2Day FM resumed 13 December, with Austereo announcing that it would donate the remainder of station advertising proceeds for 2012—a minimum of A$500,000 (£320,000)—to a memorial fund to benefit Saldanha's family. Austereo also cancelled its annual Christmas party for employees in Sydney and donated the funds for the party to the non-profit organisations Beyond Blue and Lifeline.


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: On 27 January 2013, Austereo announced that "Hot30 Countdown" was cancelled. Christian returned to work in February and won Austereo's "Top Jock" award in June 2013 for his work on Fox FM in Melbourne, while Greig remained off-air. Greig later sued Austereo for failure to provide a safe workplace; the lawsuit was settled in December 2013. As part of the settlement, Austereo made a public statement that Greig was not responsible for the decision to air the hoax call and had suggested that it be edited before broadcast. Greig found work in advertising after leaving Austereo, but in 2016 returned to radio work in Wollongong, south of Sydney. In March 2018, Greig revealed that she became the target of online bullies following the prank and became a contributor for anti-bullying campaigns.


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: The burial function for Saldanha was held on 17 December 2012 in the town of Shirva in Karnataka, India. More than 1,000 people attended the mass and burial ceremony, including a minister of Karnataka state, a former Central Minister and other state functionaries. Several Karnataka dignitaries also visited Saldanha's mother, who lives in Mangalore with Saldanha's siblings.


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: Dozens of students staged a demonstration in front of the British High Commission in New Delhi, carrying banners demanding "Justice for Jacintha". The Chief Minister of Karnataka expressed concern over the back-to-back deaths of Saldanha and Savita Halappanavar, both women of Karnataka origin working abroad, and wrote letters to the Indian prime minister urging him to take steps to ensure the safety of Indian origin people abroad. RJ Balaji, based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, discontinued his radio show "Cross Talk" – where he made prank calls to unsuspecting victims – in response to Saldanha's death.


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: As part of their investigation into the death, the Metropolitan Police Service in London contacted the New South Wales Police Force in Sydney. However, on 28 December 2012, the New South Wales deputy police commissioner said that there had been no formal request from UK police to interview Greig and Christian, and that it seemed "unlikely any charges will be laid." British prosecutors confirmed in February 2013 that they would not be pressing charges against the presenters; although Greig and Christian may have committed offences under Britain's Data Protection Act 1998 and Malicious Communications Act 1988, prosecution was deemed to "not be in the public interest" because it would not be possible to extradite the Australians and because "however misguided, the telephone call was intended as a harmless prank".


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: On 13 December 2012, Australian media watchdog Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) launched an inquiry to assess whether the radio station had breached the conditions of their broadcasting licence. In September 2013, it was reported that ACMA had prepared a confidential preliminary report that found 2Day FM had acted illegally by broadcasting the hoax phone call without consent. Southern Cross Austereo was seeking to block the report's release, arguing that ACMA did not have standing to make a criminal finding. A Federal Court judge sided with ACMA in November 2013, but was reversed by a decision of the full bench of the Federal Court in March 2014. ACMA subsequently appealed to the High Court, which agreed in August 2014 to hear the case. On 4 March 2015 the High Court upheld the earlier decision of the Federal Court, ruling that the AMCA could validly exercise non-jurisdictional administrative power to make a determination in respect of whether the relevant conduct was unlawful.


title: Suicide of Jacintha Saldanha

text: In its report, which was released 22 April 2015, ACMA found that 2Day FM had breached the Australian commercial radio code of conduct by broadcasting a statement of an identifiable person without her consent and that they had treated her in a highly demeaning or highly exploitative manner. ACMA applied a third licence condition to 2Day FM as a sanction which consisted of staff ethics training and a three-hour broadcast raising awareness of bullying, depression and anxiety.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. is an American retailer headquartered in Saint Louis, Missouri that sells teddy bears and other stuffed animals and characters. Customers go through an interactive process in which the stuffed animal of their choice is assembled and tailored to their own preferences during their visit to the store. These preferences include numerous different stuffed animals, along with varying scents, sounds, and outfits. Build-A-Bear Workshop is the largest chain that operates in this style. The company's slogan was "Where Best Friends Are Made" from 1997–2013 when it was changed to "The Most Fun You'll Ever Make." As of April 2019, the company's president/CEO is Sharon Price John.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: In the mid-1990s, Maxine Clark resigned as president of Payless ShoeSource and started a string of retail stores with interactive experiences similar to her childhood of various events held at department stores. She went to toy factories and children's retail stores looking for ideas. She drew up three plans, then presented them to a panel of children. The build-a-bear concept was selected from the three, as the children were excited about it, and the stuffed animals offered a high-profit margin. Doll shops (known as Build-A-Doll) were also a part of the original business plan.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: Clark founded Build-A-Bear in 1997. In 1997, Clark also offered to purchase Basic Brown Bears, who has been operating since 1985 in the do-it-yourself stuffed animals space. Adrienne Weiss Co. of Los Angeles was hired to develop the concept. Clark wanted to expand the store into a chain from the beginning, expecting to open three to five stores in 1998 and six to ten stores in 1999 with the goal of having 100 stores within five years. She opened the first store in the Saint Louis Galleria in Richmond Heights, Missouri. The first year's sales at $377,600 were above projections.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: With store opening cost of $500,000 to $700,000 and estimated per store sales at $2 million, Clark quickly found capital firms to invest in for the expansions. Kansas City Equity Partners invested to allow her to open its second store in August 1998 in Overland Park, Kansas. Windsor Capital injected $4.5 million into the company, which allowed for two Chicago area stores to open. With the four stores opened in 1998, the chain had $3.3 million in sales.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: Build-A-Bear continued to impress investors, with Walnut Capital Partners investing in 1999 $5 million for expansion. The expansion consisted of opening stores in major cities to bring the chain to 14 stores. The stores were doubling the national mall averages of $350 sales per square foot.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: In 1999, the Workshop sent out legal letters with threats of federal lawsuits regarding supposed violations of its trademarks and copyrights to its competitors: Friends 2B Made LLC, Vermont Teddy Bear Co. Inc., and Basic Brown Bears Inc. With Friends 2B Made, the name was similar to Build-A-Bear's slogan "Where best friends are made"; the Workshop demanded that the company stop selling stuffed animals, recall its merchandise, and turn over its customer database and its proceeds. Vermont Teddy Bears had only two out of its three retail locations doing stuffed bears but had closed them down as being too expensive and stepping on its Bear-Gram program. Basic Brown Bears countersued, as the owners believed that Build-A-Bear swiped its information that was under a confidential disclosure agreement when Clark attempted to purchase the company in 1997 and from her visits to their Mall of America location, while Clark asserted that Basic Brown Bears had switched from plastic bags to copy the Workshops' signature cardboard carrier. The company settled with Basic Brown with a payment and a confidentiality agreement that hides any validity to these allegations. Build-A-Bear has 14 other lawsuits to protect 380 patents, trademarks and copyrights.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: Clark took Build-A-Bear Workshop public in 2004. The company opened its first international franchise in Sheffield, England and licensed Hasbro a home bear-stuffing kit.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: A few Build-A-Bear Workshop locations began testing the "make-your-own-doll" concept in early 2004. In November 2004, Clark opened the first Friends 2B Made store with this concept in Robinson near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania followed by a location in Columbus, Ohio on November 19, 2004. Existing mass doll makers had slipping sales, and a number of specialty doll makers entered the market, including eToys' My Twinn and Mattel's American Girl. By October 2006, there were 9 Friends 2B Made stores in operation. By October 1, 2009, they were all either shuttered or converted into expanded Build-A-Bear outlets, with their staff being offered jobs at Bear locations. The Friends 2B Made products display fixtures were removed from about 50 workshop locations.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: The Game Factory developed and released a Build-A-Bear Workshop video game for the Nintendo DS platform for Christmas 2007. A Build-A-Bear game for the Nintendo Wii, subtitled "A Friend Fur All Seasons", was released in fall 2008. Build-A-Bear released a feature film, available on the iPad through MoPix, in December 2011. From 2011 to 2013, Millennial women began increasing visiting the stores and purchasing accessories, which turn out to be for their pets not prior bear purchases.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: In 2008, a virtual game of Build-A-Bear was released where people could explore Bearville and play games online. Players had an inventory with items that they could trade amongst each other. The player could also listen to songs in the game. This game closed in 2015.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: Cepia, LLC settled a patent and copyright infringement lawsuit over a color-changing bear against Build-A-Bear in 2013. Also in 2013, founder Maxine Clark retired as CEO, and Sharon Price John took over the position around June. The company licensed My Little Pony and the musical group One Direction. With 400 stores, the company plans to trim 60 underperforming stores over two years. In 2015, a lawsuit sought damages for discriminating against blind people and lack of blind-accessible point-of-sale machines in Build-a-Bear shops.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: On July 12, 2018, Build-A-Bear held an event in the United Kingdom, United States and Canada where patrons could pay their child's age for a bear. The relatively low price of the stuffed bears for younger children attracted massive numbers of people, overwhelming the franchise's stores as well as many shopping malls in which Build-A-Bear franchises were located. The event prompted a surge in public awareness of the Build-A-Bear brand, according to a subsequent YouGov poll, nearly all of which was negative. Sharon Price John, president and CEO, apologized; the company stated that those who had waited in line would receive vouchers. In November 2017, the company expanded on its pop up shop locations with the opening of Build-A-Bear Bakeshop temporarily for the holidays in the West County Center near a Workshop location.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: In August 2018, the company launched Kabu pre-teen lifestyle brand based on Japanese kawaii-style art starting with three characters: Kabu Pawlette (bunny), Kabu Bearnice (bear) and Kabu Catlynn (kitten). A companion game app, Kabu Pop Party Quest, was also created.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: During the 2018 holiday season, Build-A-Bear opened six pop-up pilot shops in Walmart stores. The success of the pilot led to the expansion of Build-A-Bear into a further 25 Walmart locations in 2019.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: The company launched a streaming radio station in October 2018. Build-A-Bear Workshop teamed up with Warner Music Group's Arts Music and Warner Chappell Music in July 2019 to partner on a Build-A-Bear music label. Patrick Hughes (founder of Foundation Media Partners) and Harvey Russell (CEO) went on board to guide the label.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: With an announcement of having secured a deal with Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions in an August 2019 Q2 earnings report, Build-A-Bear was starting up an in-house production entity, Build-A-Bear Entertainment. The first planned movie is to be a "The Honey Girls" movie, which releases songs and music videos on its YouTube channel. CEO Price John also indicated two Christmas movies are in development for the Hallmark Channel with the first to be broadcast in winter 2019. RWS Entertainment Group, a custom entertainment, live events and branded experiences production company, formed a partnership with the company. In second-quarter 2020, the company moved its headquarters from Overland to St. Louis.


title: Build-A-Bear Workshop

text: Beyond the built bears, the store carried other merchandise, "Bearaphenalia," to encourage repeat business. These items included candy, greeting cards, jewelry, stationery, stickers, and t-shirts. Also, the stores had a photo booth that converts the pictures into stickers. For the video game "Kinectimals: Now with Bears!", it released four bears with scan tags, consisting of Champ Bear, Colorful Hearts Bear, Endless Hearts Teddy and Peace & Hearts Bear.


title: Comedy Circus

text: Comedy Circus 1: Hindi TV Show where daily soap stars perform stand-up comedy. Paired with the "finest" stand up talent from India and Pakistan. These soap stars perform stand-up comedy along with their comedian partners on stage. Show went live for 13 weeks in a grueling battle for supremacy to decide which pair will be the best stand-up comic.


title: Comedy Circus

text: The show was created by the Optimystix Entertainment, this Mega Laugh Riot with the tag line of 'Jodi Jamegi, Public Hassegi' guarantees hysterics on Sony TV.


title: Comedy Circus

text: Comedy Circus 2: Comedy TV Show that started its second season at Sony TV on 26 April 2008. The popular television actors and professional stand-up comedians were paired to perform on a highly competitive stage. Jodis (Pair or teams of two) were scored by the judges and the live studio audience to determine eliminations.


title: Comedy Circus

text: Kaante Ki Takkar: After Comedy Circus 1 & 2, Kaante Ki Takkar was the new comedy TV show which had the jodis of Comedy Circus 1 led by Archana Puran Singh versus the jodis of Comedy Circus 2, led by Shekhar Suman. The team of Archana Puran Singh were called as The Purans while the team of Shekhar Suman were called as The Sumans.


title: Comedy Circus

text: Chinchpokli To China: Another popular reality-based comedy TV Show from Sony Entertainment Television. This is the fourth season of Comedy Circus franchise comes with the tagline "Comedy Circus Chinchpokli to China – Jaha se koi bhi hanse bina jayena". It is a comedy based show like all the Comedy Circus seasons with a slight twist in the plot. Comedy Circus featured comedians in pairs to perform skits and impress the judges and get scored by them. Hosted by Purbi Joshi.


title: Comedy Circus

text: Comedy Circus 20-20: Comes with gags, jokes, laughter, hilarious acts, etc. adding the flavor of IPL (Indian Premier League) season. The stand-up performances were based on the happenings in IPL how cricket affects our daily lives and everything related to the game. The show will be hosted by Shruti Seth and the judges are Shekhar Suman and cricketer Ajay Jadeja.


title: Comedy Circus

text: Dekh India Dekh: Sixth season of the popular stand-up comedy series of Comedy Circus. It was aired on SonyTV and premiered on 30 May 2009. Ended on 30 October 2009. Shekar Suman who was seen hosting Dekh India Dekh will now be back as judge partnering Archana Puran Singh. This new format will see a new host in Shweta Gulati.


title: Comedy Circus

text: Teen(3) Ka Tadka: The unique reality-based comedy format with celebrities performing with professional stand-up comedian partners on a highly competitive stage. This time season offers the show with a new twist with not Jodis but Trios. The Tadka will be a unique hurdle that will be put before every Jodi in the form of a third contestant who will be a celebrity. Three is not a crowd but a spicy (tadka). Show was aired on 24 October 2009. Hosted by Mouni Roy, later by Roshni Chopra.


title: Comedy Circus

text: Comedy Circus Ke Superstars premiered on 24 October 2009. The first episode also contained Govinda who introduced new artists and was guest judge.


title: Comedy Circus

text: Comedy Circus – Maha Sangram involved contestants of three previous seasons. Archana represented season 1, Shekhar represented season 2 and Rohit represented season 3. Teams were scored by the opposite team representatives, with the audience watching the show to determine eliminations. The winners of this show were Swapnil Joshi and VIP .


title: Comedy Circus

text: This was a comeback for the comedy circus franchise. Aired on 15 September 2018, this season had new talent, new styles of comedy and new ways of scoring. The scoring would depend upon the laughter of the judges, like if they would experience 'mand mand' laughter the team would get 2500 rupees, for every 'HaHakar' laughter team gets 5000 rupees and for every 'phephada phad' laughter they would get 10000 rupees.


title: Comedy Circus

text: This show was produced by Vipul D. Shah through his TV shows production company "Optimistics." It was filmed in studios of Goregaon, Mumbai.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: Cineplex Inc. (formerly Cineplex Galaxy) is a Canadian movie theatre and family entertainment centre chain headquartered in Toronto.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: The company was formed in 2003 via the acquisition of Loews Cineplex's Canadian operations (which included the assets of the former Cineplex Odeon chain) by Onex Corporation and Oaktree Capital Management, and its subsequent merger with Onex's Galaxy Entertainment—a chain of cinemas that was established in 1999 by former Cineplex Odeon executives, and operated primarily in smaller markets. The company subsequently acquired Famous Players from National Amusements in 2005, went public in 2011, and acquired Empire Theatres' operations in Atlantic Canada and parts of Ontario in 2013. In December 2019, Cineplex agreed to be acquired by British exhibitor Cineworld Group for $2.8 billion, pending regulatory and shareholder approval, but Cineworld abandoned the sale in June 2020 due to unspecified breaches of the sale terms.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: The company operates cinemas across Canada, primarily under the brand Cineplex Cinemas. Some flagship locations operate as Scotiabank Theatre, while some locations use brands carried over from its corporate predecessors (such as Famous Players, SilverCity, Odeon, and Galaxy, although some of them have since been converted to the Cineplex banner). The company also owns family entertainment centres under the brands The Rec Room and Playdium.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: Cineplex stakes a partial claim to the history of the Famous Players Film Company (later Paramount Pictures), founded in 1912 by Adolph Zukor, as Cineplex's earliest predecessor; however, that company did not have any operations in Canada until 1920, when it bought Nathan Nathanson's Paramount Theatre chain, which Nathanson had established four years earlier. Nathanson, along with being the 5th richest person in the world, became the first president of the resulting entity, Famous Player Canadian Corporation. In 1923, Famous Players bought out rival Allen Theatres, acquiring many buildings in the process.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: Odeon Theatres of Canada was established in 1941, before merging with the Canadian Theatres chain in 1978, becoming Canadian Odeon Theatres.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: In 1979, Garth Drabinsky and Nat Taylor created the Cineplex Corporation and opened its first "Cineplex" theatre complex, in the Toronto Eaton Centre. Odeon merged with Cineplex in 1984 to form Cineplex Odeon Corporation, before being acquired by Loews Theatres in 1998, thereby becoming Loews Cineplex Entertainment.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: Galaxy Entertainment Inc. was established in 1999 by Ellis Jacob, a former Chief Operating Officer of Loews Cineplex Entertainment, and Stephen Brown, a former Cineplex Chief Financial Officer. With investments from Onex Corporation and Famous Players, the new company focused on smaller markets that were usually served by smaller theatres and old equipment, opening large, major chain-style locations under the "Galaxy Cinemas" banner. By 2003, Galaxy Entertainment had grown to 19 theatres and $75 million in box office revenue.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: In 2001, Loews Cineplex Entertainment (a 1998 merger of Cineplex Odeon and Sony's Loews Theatres) underwent bankruptcy due to the economic recession of the early 2000s. In June 2001, Onex Corporation announced its intent to acquire Loews Cineplex; as part of the deal, Loews Cineplex would close 46 cinemas (including 25 in Canada), and Onex would acquire the company for $1.3 billion with Oaktree Capital Management as a partner.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: In November 2003, Loews Cineplex Entertainment's Canadian operations merged with Galaxy Entertainment as Cineplex Galaxy Income Fund.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: On June 13, 2005, Cineplex Galaxy Income Fund announced its acquisition of Famous Players from Viacom for CA$500 million (about US$397 million). This deal was completed on July 22, 2005. To satisfy antitrust concerns, on August 22, 2005, the group announced the sale of 27 locations in Ontario and western Canada to Empire Theatres. On June 21, Loews Cineplex announced that it would merge with AMC Theatres. While AMC Theatres also operated in Canada and was ranked third behind Cineplex Galaxy and the enlarged Empire Theatres, Cineplex Odeon and AMC Theatres remained competitors.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: In October 2005, Cineplex Galaxy changed the name of its operating subsidiary Cineplex Galaxy LP to Cineplex Entertainment LP, to reflect their expanded operations. On March 31, 2006, Cineplex sold seven more theatres in Quebec to Chelsea-based Fortune Cinemas. On June 29, 2007, Cineplex Entertainment announced its purchase of three Cinema City theatres in western Canada, consisting of two theatres in Winnipeg and one in Edmonton.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: As Cineplex no longer held the rights to the branding, the Paramount Theatres locations were rebranded as Scotiabank Theatre as part of a joint venture with Scotiabank to launch a new loyalty program.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: With the bankruptcy of Fortune Cinemas, Cineplex Entertainment acquired (or in this case, re-acquired) some of Fortune Cinemas theatres. The Starcité Gatineau (Starcité Hull) and the Cavendish theaters were reopened as Cineplex Entertainment theatres.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: In June 2012, as part of its exit from the Canadian market, AMC sold four of its Canadian cinemas to Cineplex, including the Yonge Dundas 24 at 10 Dundas East (Cineplex's original location and namesake), and the Forum in Montreal. The company also earlier acquired the Tinseltown Movies 12 theatre from another American chain, Cinemark, in the Gastown neighbourhood of Vancouver.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: Over the subsequent years, Cineplex expanded into advertising, events programming and a new concept, The Rec Room, amusement venues with live entertainment that serve food and drink.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: In the 2010s, Cineplex began to deploy a new concept, "VIP Cinemas", at selected locations, featuring premium amenities such as reclining seats, in-seat meal services, and a licensed lounge. On August 15, 2014, Cineplex opened a dedicated VIP Cinemas Don Mills location, the first to be devoted solely to the format. By 2017, the company had also begun to retrofit selected non-VIP auditoriums to feature reclining seating, as part of an effort to improve the customer experience.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: On June 27, 2013, the Empire Company announced that it would divest its Empire Theatres operations in order to focus on its real-estate assets and grocery chain Sobeys. Cineplex acquired 24 former Empire locations in the Atlantic provinces as well as 2 in Ontario, for around $200 million (Landmark Cinemas acquired the remainder, predominantly in Western Canada and Ontario). In February 2014, Cineplex announced that it had acquired Empire's planned Lansdowne Park location in Ottawa, and would construct a new 10-screen cinema at the site with three VIP screens.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: On December 16, 2019, Cineplex announced a definitive agreement to be acquired by the British cinema operator Cineworld Group, the second-largest film exhibitor worldwide, pending shareholder and regulatory approval. Cineworld would be paying $34 per-share—a 42% premium over Cineplex's share price prior to the announcement, valuing the company at CDN$2.8 billion. Cineworld planned to pay US$1.65 billion, and to fund the remainder by taking on debt.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: Combined with its ownership of the 564-location Regal Cinemas chain in the United States (which it had acquired the previous year), the sale would have made Cineworld the largest cinema chain in North America. Cineworld stated that it planned to integrate Cineplex's operations with those of Regal, while maintaining Cineplex's banners for its Canadian operations. The company also stated that it planned to reach $120 million in cost efficiencies and revenue synergies (including the adoption of a subscription service scheme similar to Regal and Cineworld) by the end of fiscal year 2020.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: The sale was approved by Cineplex shareholders in February 2020. Activist shareholder Bluebell Capital Partners called for the Canadian government to block the sale due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which in turn led to the temporary closure of all Cineplex properties for several months starting on March 16. In May, Cineplex stated that Cineworld planned to complete the sale by June 2020, provided that it received federal approval under the "Investment Canada Act", and that it met the terms of the sale agreement (including its debt not exceeding $725 million).


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: On June 12, 2020, Cineworld abandoned the purchase, alleging that Cineplex had engaged in conduct that breached unspecified terms of the sale, and that the company had experienced a "material adverse effect" of an unspecified nature. Cineplex denied the claims and made counter-allegations. The agreement with Cineworld included a condition that the latter would pay a penalty in case it decided to cancel the deal. In February 2021, CEO Ellis Jacob offered to temporarily convert Cineplex facilities into COVID-19 vaccination sites. In July, Cineplex started legal action against Cineworld claiming financial damages and Cineworld counter-sued.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: In December 2021, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice ruled in favour of Cineplex, and ordered Cineworld to pay US$1 billion in damages for breach of contract. The company planned to appeal the ruling; Cineworld's shares fell by 40% in the immediate aftermath of the ruling. In September 2022, it was reported that the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas had denied the appeal, amid Cineworld's Chapter 11 bankruptcy. It was also reported by "The Wall Street Journal" that Cineplex was exploring the possibility of a separate merger with Regal.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: Cineplex's flagship banners include Cineplex Cinemas ( in Quebec), with some older locations still using the previous "Cineplex Odeon" branding, and Scotiabank Theatre. Selected banners originating from Famous Players are still used by some locations, such as Famous Players and SilverCity ( in Quebec), but these banners, as well as others (such as Coliseum and Colossus) have been largely replaced by Cineplex Cinemas (although in the case of Coliseum and Colossus, the unique architectural features of these theatres have been preserved), and Scotiabank Theatre in the case of Famous Players' Paramount cinemas. The Galaxy Theatres brand is primarily used by small and medium-market locations, although some have since been converted to the Cineplex Cinemas banner.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: Selected Cineplex locations offer premium screens and features for a higher ticket price, including large-screen formats, motion seats, and VIP. Following the premiere of "" in 2015, Cineplex reported that at least 80% of customers watched the film with one of its premium formats, and 40% of the company's overall box office revenue came from premium formats.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: Most Cineplex locations feature arcade areas under various brands. In June 2009, Cineplex began to deploy a new concept known as "Xscape Entertainment Centre", incorporating it into new locations or refurbishing existing locations to utilize the format. There are 28 locations as of September 30, 2017. Xscape feature both redemption games and traditional games, with some locations also including a licensed lounge and party rooms. They utilize card systems to store credits and points for prizes, and provide offers for Scene+ rewards users. About 77 other Cineplex locations continue to feature a "Cinescape" arcade, replacing the "TechTown" and "Zero Gravity" brands deployed by Famous Players (in partnership with Playdium) and Galaxy. In 2017, Cineplex began to expand the Xscape brand internationally, beginning with two standalone Xscape arcades at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: In January 2015, Cineplex announced a new entertainment restaurant chain known as The Rec Room. Comparable to the U.S.-based chain Dave & Buster's, The Rec Room features restaurant and bar areas, recreational game areas, simulators, and an auditorium equipped with a cinema-style screen. Cineplex CEO Ellis Jacob explained that the chain is meant to help the company diversify beyond its core cinema business in the wake of the growing streaming industry, The first location opened in South Edmonton Common in 2016. A second location in Toronto's Roundhouse Park opened in June 2017, along with a second Edmonton location at West Edmonton Mall. Cineplex aims to open 10-15 locations of The Rec Room nationally, ranging in size from 30,000 to 60,000 square feet. Further locations were announced for Brentwood Town Centre in Burnaby, Masonville Place in London, Square One Shopping Centre in Mississauga, Avalon Mall in St. Johns, Seasons of Tuxedo in Winnipeg, and Granville Street in Vancouver.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: Cineplex owned Playdium, a major arcade and family entertainment centre in Mississauga, Ontario. On October 2, 2017, Cineplex announced that it would re-launch the Playdium brand as a new entertainment restaurant chain oriented towards families; the first new location opened in Brampton, Ontario in 2019 (retrofitting the Cineplex Odeon Orion Gate theatre).


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: In November 2019, Cineplex announced that it would introduce a new cinema banner known as Junxion. They are being positioned as a merger of The Rec Room's entertainment restaurant concept with that of a traditional cinema, with its first planned location to open at Erin Mills Town Centre in Mississauga in late 2020, followed by Kildonan Place in Winnipeg afterwards.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: In November 2017, an IMAX VR centre opened at Scotiabank Theatre Toronto, as IMAX VR's first location in Canada. The following month, a D-Box VR experience launched at the Ottawa location. The IMAX VR centre closed in 2019, as part of the discontinuation of the IMAX VR pilot project.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: In July 2018, after having opened such an attraction at The Rec Room at Roundhouse Park, Cineplex Entertainment announced that it had reached an agreement to be the exclusive Canadian franchisee of The Void — a chain of mixed reality entertainment attractions.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: On September 13, 2018, Cineplex announced that it would acquire a stake in VRStudios—a Seattle-based provider of virtual reality installations, and utilize its equipment for as many as 40 VR centres across the country.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: Launched in 2007, Scene+ is the entertainment rewards program jointly owned by Scotiabank and Cineplex Entertainment.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: Cineplex has an Outtakes () restaurant in many of its theatres, some which replace previous restaurant partners (Burger King, KFC Express, Pizza Pizza/Pizza 73, Pizza Hut Express, Taco Bell Express and New York Fries) and others which introduce restaurants at locations which did not previously feature one. VIP Cinemas and some Xscape locations feature a licensed lounge with more premium offerings compared to Outtakes.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: Poptopia is a flavoured popcorn restaurant offered in a full-service format at 22 locations. Other Cineplex theatres may feature Poptopia at the concession stand, but only in the caramel corn and/or kettle corn flavours.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: Ice cream at Cineplex locations debuted with Baskin-Robbins and TCBY. Beginning in December 2007, Yogen Früz became the preferred partner. On January 1, 2014, Cineplex acquired a 50% stake in Yoyo's Yogurt Café. As of January 2017, 77 Cineplex theatres feature Yoyo's restaurants, while Yogen Fruz is still available in 23 Cineplex theatres while TCBY is available in 16 locations. Cineplex also manages Melt Sweet Creations, an in-house dessert boutique brand targeted at women ages 19–35 debuted in December 2017 at Cineplex Cinemas Queensway and VIP. Melt is available at 13 locations.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: Beverages are available in both cold and hot formats. Cold beverages include the Coca-Cola lineup, which replaced the Pepsi lineup used at locations formerly owned by Famous Players. 12 locations feature Coca-Cola Freestyle. Hot beverages include Starbucks as the incumbent provider with 105 locations, all which offer Pike Place Roast coffee (regular or decaf) and Tazo tea. Select locations also offer premium drinks such as caffè mocha or caramel macchiato. Tim Hortons is available as a full-service restaurant in five locations, with Brossard being the only location to offer both Tim Hortons and Starbucks.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: In most theatres, Cineplex offers sale of alcohol to 19+ guests in Ontario (18+ in Alberta) similar to the VIP theatres albeit from a selection of beer or cider beverages.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: The current Chief Executive Officer and President of Cineplex Entertainment is Ellis Jacob. Alongside with Jacob are Jordan Banks who serves as a Facebook executive, Robert Bruce, Joan Dea, Ian Greenberg, the founder of Astral Media, Sarabjit S. Marwah, Anthony Munk, Edward Sonshine, Christopher Medlock, Robert J. Steacy and Phyllis Yaffe, who serves as its chair.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: "The Motley Fool" described Cineplex as having a "virtual monopoly" over the cinema market in Canada.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: In 2012, a class-action lawsuit was filed against Cineplex over locations refusing to honour the company's "Cheap Tuesdays" promotion. The company agreed to a $7,000 settlement, including a $25,000 charitable donation.


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: In 2019, the producers of "Unplanned", an anti-abortion-themed film, criticized Cineplex for initially declining to pick up the film after securing a Canadian distributor. They felt it amounted to an effective "ban" of the film from Canada due to the company's scale. The film's co-director Cory Solomon also, along with other pro-life supporters and religious groups, called for a boycott of Cineplex. The company later announced that it would—joining competitor Landmark Cinemas and a handful of independent cinemas—screen "Unplanned" with a one-week limited release at 24 Cineplex locations. The decision was praised by pro-life supporters, but did lead to criticism from pro-choice groups due to disputes over the film's content (with the Alberta Pro-Choice Coalition stating that it planned to hold a peaceful protest outside Scotiabank Theatre Chinook Centre). The film itself had already attracted criticism from groups, such as the Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada, over its factual accuracy, with the Coalition describing it as "American propaganda".


title: Cineplex Entertainment

text: During the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival, festival organizers stated that Cineplex would no longer allow films distributed by an online video service (such as Amazon Video or Netflix) to be screened at the Scotiabank Theatre Toronto (which has been considered the "primary" venue of the event for major screenings) due to company policy, as the services do not adhere to industry-standard theatrical windows. "ScreenDaily" stated that this was "believed to be the first time an exhibitor’s position on theatrical windowing has affected scheduling at a major film festival".


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: The Sun Is Also a Star is a 2019 American teen drama film directed by Ry Russo-Young and written by Tracy Oliver, based on the young adult novel of the same name by Nicola Yoon. The film stars Yara Shahidi, Charles Melton, and John Leguizamo, and follows a young couple who fall in love, while one of their families faces deportation.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: It was theatrically released in the United States on May 17, 2019, by Warner Bros. Pictures and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures. The film received mixed reviews from critics and grossed $6.8 million worldwide.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: Teen Natasha Kingsley lives in New York City with her parents Samuel and Patricia, and her brother Peter, all of whom are illegally in the country. Natasha and her family are set to be deported back to Jamaica. The day before her family must leave, Natasha goes to the immigration office and makes a tearful plea for her parents’ case. Lester Barnes, the Immigration Case Worker, gives Natasha the contact info for Jeremy Martinez, who can do pro bono work for her case. Natasha contacts Mr. Martinez’s office and, after pleading, is told she can meet with him for 15 minutes during his lunch break.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: Daniel Bae is preparing for an interview for Dartmouth. While getting ready, he writes “Deus ex Machina” into his notebook. He comes from a Korean family, and his parents Dae Hyun and Min Soo encourage him to pursue a career as a doctor. His brother, Charles, is dismissive and rude to him.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: Daniel and his friend Omar get on the subway into the same subway car as Natasha, and the train stalls. The conductor reassures the passengers over the speakers that everything is fine and begins telling a story about a friend who missed a train and, had he been on time that day, would have died in the 9/11 attacks since he worked at the World Trade Center. The conductor tells the passengers to “open your heart to destiny.” When Daniel and Omar get off at Grand Central Station, Daniel notices Natasha staring at the ceiling of Grand Central’s main lobby. He also notices her jacket, which reads “Deus ex machina,” a phrase he had been thinking about that morning. Daniel decides to go after her.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: Daniel sees a car crash into a cyclist and narrowly saves Natasha from being hit. She is shaken, so they go somewhere to sit and talk. Natasha asks Daniel about his notebook, which he says is filled with poetry. Natasha dismisses the love poems and says she doesn’t believe in love. Daniel proposes he can make her fall in love with him in a day. Daniel gets a call saying his interview has been moved to the next day. Daniel tells Natasha about a love experiment in which couples ask each other a series of intimate questions and stare into each other’s eyes in silence for four minutes. They agree to answer several questions from the study.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: Daniel escorts Natasha to Jeremy’s office, which they realize is in the same building where Daniel is set to have his interview. Natasha is told by Jeremy’s assistant that he got hit by a car while biking (the same car that almost hit Natasha) and is in the hospital, so their meeting is pushed to 4:30. Natasha continues to hang out with Daniel.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: The two stop at a black haircare shop owned by Daniel’s parents, Daniel is embarrassed by his brother Charles, who belittles Daniel and Natasha, and Daniel’s father, who offers Natasha relaxers for her hair to make it “less big.” They go to a planetarium and a Korean karaoke bar, where Daniel sings “Crimson and Clover” to Natasha. Natasha imagines a life with her and Daniel together and they share their first kiss. Natasha remembers her appointment with Jeremy and rushes out of the karaoke bar upset. When Daniel chases after her, she reveals her family’s deportation. She goes to her meeting with Jeremy Martinez, who offers to set up a new trial for her parents’ case for the next day.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: Daniel goes back to his parents’ shop, where he gets into a fight with Charles. After Daniel leaves, Natasha enters the shop and asks Charles for Daniel’s number. After seeing that she really likes Daniel, Charles gives her Daniel’s number. Natasha and Daniel reunite and take the cable car to Roosevelt Island, where they spend the night outside together.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: The next morning, Daniel interviews for Dartmouth with Jeremy Martinez in his office. When Natasha barges in to ask about the verdict on her case, they realize that Daniel’s interviewer is Natasha’s lawyer. Jeremy tells Natasha that her case was rejected, and she and her family are still required to leave the country that day. When Natasha angrily leaves Jeremy’s office, Daniel cuts the interview short to go after her. He walks her home and meets her family before they head to the airport.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: At the airport, Daniel and Natasha complete the last part of the experiment and maintain direct eye contact for four minutes without speaking. While they are staring, Natasha is shown returning to Jamaica and going to school, while Daniel attends Hunter College instead and works in a restaurant. The four minutes end and Natasha tells Daniel she loves him. He tearfully says his experiment worked.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: Five years later, Natasha has returned to New York on her way to San Francisco for grad school. She meets Jeremy in the same coffee shop that she went to with Daniel. She catches up with him and learns that Jeremy married the doctor who treated him for his bicycle crash on the day they met. Natasha asks him about Daniel, but Jeremy says he hasn’t seen him since the interview. After Jeremy leaves, Natasha prepares to leave and hears Daniel’s voice in the coffee shop, preparing to read a poem. She turns around to see Daniel. Daniel asks to spend time with Natasha, who tells him she has only an hour. They kiss.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: Filming began on June 19, 2018. In June, Camrus Johnson was cast to play Omar in the film, and on June 29, 2018, Miriam A. Hyman also joined the cast, as Natasha's mother Mrs. Kingsley, a hard-working Jamaican-born waitress who is resigned to her family's imminent deportation. In July 2018, Cathy Shim was cast to play Min Soo Bae, a Korean immigrant in the film.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: Herdis Stefánsdóttir composed the score for the film, while Dustin O'Halloran served as score producer. The soundtrack was released at Sony Classical.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: "The Sun Is Also a Star" grossed $5 million in the United States and Canada, and $1.8 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $6.8 million, against a production budget of $9 million.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: In the United States and Canada, the film was released on May 17, 2019 alongside "" and "A Dog's Journey", and was initially projected to gross $6–12 million from 2,037 theaters in its opening weekend. However, after making $1 million on its first Friday, estimates were lowered to $3 million. It ended up debuting to $2.5 million, one of the worst-ever openings for a film playing in over 2,000 theaters.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: On review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of based on reviews, with an average rating of . The website's critical consensus reads: ""The Sun Is Also a Star" has a pair of easy-to-love leads, but tests the audience's affection with a storyline that strains credulity past the breaking point." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 52 out of 100, based on 25 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews." Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B−" on an A+ to F scale, while those at PostTrak gave it 2.5 out of 5 stars.


title: The Sun Is Also a Star

text: Amy Nicholson of "Variety" wrote: "this crowd-pleaser convinces us to spend one day savoring an American Dream."


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: John Eric Winchester is a fictional character on The CW's series "Supernatural", and the protagonist of the comic book spin-off series "". Developed by series creator Eric Kripke, the character is mainly portrayed by Jeffrey Dean Morgan. John is the father of Sam and Dean Winchester, the show's protagonists.


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: Seeking revenge after his wife Mary was killed by the demon Azazel, John Winchester became a hunter and raised his two sons to fight the supernatural. John disappears early in "Supernatural", and the first season revolves primarily around Sam and Dean trying to find him. Morgan was also filming episodes of "Grey's Anatomy" while the first season of "Supernatural" was under production, and future appearances of the character were hindered by his busy schedule. While Morgan's portrayal has been praised, fans and critics were generally frustrated at the character for keeping so many secrets.


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: On December 12, 2018 it was announced that Morgan would return for the show's 300th episode, "Lebanon", reprising his role as John Winchester.


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: On March 21, 2022, Drake Rodger was cast as young John in the spin off prequel series "The Winchesters".


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: The father of series protagonists Sam and Dean Winchester, John Winchester first appears in the pilot episode of the series, set in 1983 (age 29), but plot devices such as flashbacks and time travel detail his background in later seasons. Apparently abandoned by his father at a young age—his father actually died while serving a secret order known as the Men of Letters—John Winchester grew up hating the man. John left high school to join the Marine Corps, eventually attaining the rank of corporal and receiving many medals for his service in Vietnam. After leaving the service, he found a job as a mechanic, and fell in love with Mary Campbell.


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: In the fourth season episode "In the Beginning," Dean is sent back through time by the angel Castiel. Dean meets his parents' former selves, and ends up convincing John to buy the 67 Chevy Impala that he eventually inherits. Dean later watches John being killed by Azazel, though the demon then resurrects him in exchange for Mary's permission to enter her house in ten years. When the angel Anna Milton travels back in time in the fifth-season episode "The Song Remains the Same" to prevent the births of Sam and Dean, John agrees to serve as a temporary vessel for the archangel Michael to stop her. Michael subsequently kills Anna and erases John and Mary's memories of the incident.


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: Azazel later uses his pact with Mary to enter their home in the pilot episode, and ultimately kills her. The second-season episode "All Hell Breaks Loose, Part One" reveals that she had witnessed the demon secretly feeding his blood to Sam. John investigated the incident and learned of the existence of the supernatural. His desire to find and kill Azazel led him to become a hunter of supernatural creatures. He took his sons with him during his travels, but often left them alone in motels for long periods of time during his hunts, leaving Dean with instructions to "shoot first and ask questions later" while watching over Sam.


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: As revealed in the fourth season episode "Jump the Shark," John slept with a woman he met while away on a hunt. Learning over a decade later that he had fathered her son Adam, John made occasional visits over the years to partake in father-son activities with him. He hid the truth from Adam to protect him, and never revealed to him the existence of Sam and Dean, nor vice versa. Meanwhile, John trained Sam and Dean to become hunters. However, Sam later left this life to start anew in college, leading to a fallout between John and his son.


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: Twenty-two years after Mary's death, John disappears while on a hunt, forcing Sam and Dean to reunite in an unsuccessful attempt to find him. Sam returns to the life of a hunter after Azazel kills his girlfriend. John reluctantly chooses to avoid his sons throughout most of the season while he investigates something, eventually reuniting with them in the episode "Shadow." However, the demonic Meg Masters attacks them and reveals that Azazel is after John. After escaping from Meg, the brothers split up from their father to keep him from the demons. When vampires murder his old mentor and steal the Colt—a mystical gun capable of killing anything—John teams up with Sam and Dean in "Dead Man's Blood" to retrieve it. Because demons cannot be killed by conventional means, they hope that the Colt will be effective against Azazel. In response, Meg begins killing the Winchesters' friends in "Salvation," and threatens to kill more unless they deliver the Colt. John is captured after trying to give her a fake gun, and reveals himself to be possessed by Azazel when the brothers come to his rescue in the first-season finale "Devil's Trap." However, he manages to resist the demon's control. Despite John's pleas for Sam to shoot him with the Colt, Sam cannot bring himself to do so and allows Azazel to escape. As the Winchesters flee in Dean's Impala, a demonically-possessed trucker crashes into them.


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: In the second-season premiere, "In My Time of Dying," Sam and John awake in the hospital with only minor injuries, but a dying Dean is comatose. John secretly summons Azazel and seems to know what the demon's plans are. He then makes a deal to save Dean, giving up his life, soul, and the Colt. Before dying, John tells Dean, if he can't save Sam, he'll have to kill him, should he become evil. The fourth season episode "On the Head of a Pin" reveals that the demon Alastair tortured John in Hell for over a century, with John refusing the demon's offer to stop if he himself would torture someone else. His soul escapes from Hell in the second-season finale "All Hell Breaks Loose, Part 2" when a gateway to Hell is opened. He saves Dean from Azazel and distracts the demon by temporarily forcing him out of his host, long enough for Dean to kill Azazel with the Colt when he returns to his usual body. John then gives Sam and Dean a loving smile before becoming engulfed in a white light. However, the fifth-season episode "Dark Side of the Moon" suggests that he might not be in Heaven.


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: In the show's 300th episode, "Lebanon", Sam and Dean accidentally draw John from 2003 into their timeline when they acquire a Chinese pearl that grants the owner's greatest wish. This 'trip' allows John to learn of his father's disappearance, confirm his knowledge of the Apocalypse, witness the Men of Letters bunker, and learn about Mary's resurrection, as well as allowing Sam and Dean a chance to apologise to him for their past fights and forgive him for his failings as a parent. However, John being drawn into the future begins to cause changes to history; Dean and Sam see 'Wanted' posters identifying Dean as a serial killer, Sam is now an internet celebrity who is also the head of his own law firm, and Castiel is still a loyal servant of Heaven and the living Zachariah who attack the Winchesters to investigate the disruption to the timeline, although the Winchesters are able to kill Zachariah and banish Castiel. While the Winchesters debate about their next course of action before the new timeline changes them as well as everything else, they are eventually forced to send John back to his time believing that his trip to the future was just a dream, but he departs accepting his fate and assuring Dean and Sam that he understands their decision, also adding that he is proud of the men his sons have become.


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: After Mary is accidentally killed by the Nephilim Jack Kline in "Absence", Castiel attempts to retrieve her from Heaven, but decides to leave her alone when he finds that she is with John Winchester once again, affirming that John went to Heaven after his escape from Hell. In the next episode, the angel Dumah confirms John and Mary are sharing a Heaven together and threatens to end their peace with a snap of her fingers to force Castiel to comply with her demands. In retaliation, Castiel kills Dumah with an angel blade to protect John and Mary and end her reign of terror.


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: In the series finale, "Carry On", Dean arrives in Heaven after his death and meets with Bobby Singer, who confirms that John and Mary are still together in their own little piece of heaven. After Sam dies and arrives, it is assumed that the two brothers go to reunite with their parents as a family for the first time since the very beginning of the series (although this is never shown).


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: On March 23, 1972, John returns home from the Vietnam War and meets Mary Campbell. Having received a letter from his long-missing father Henry, John is drawn to a Men of Letters clubhouse in Lawrence, Kansas where Mary saves him from a demon. In the clubhouse, John learns that his father is a Man of Letters and becomes involved in Mary's hunt for her missing father Samuel who was after a magical box that can trap and destroy monsters. Introduced to the world of the supernatural, John quickly becomes enamored with both hunting and Mary, helping her to find the box in a New Orleans cemetery and slaying a loup-garou watchdog. Now aware of the dangers of the world, John decides to become a hunter, telling his mother that he feels that he was born for "saving people, hunting things," which would later become the basis of the Winchester family's motto. With the threat of the Akrida preparing to invade the Earth, John joins Mary and his new friends Latika, Carlos and Ada in searching for Samuel and stopping the Akrida.


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: John and his friends, dubbed the Monster Club, continue hunting for the Akrida and the missing Samuel, coming up against rare monsters from other cultures such as La Tunda and Bori Baba. John's hunting puts him at odds with his mother who fears losing him like she had lost Henry while he continues to grow closer to Mary. John is also reunited with his ex-fiancé Betty, now a Lawarence cop, having apparently ended their relationship before he left for Vietnam. The Bori Baba case brings them back together and they make amends, parting amicably with Betty returning his engagement ring and asking to remain friends.


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: Actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan deemed John a "tormented soul," motivated by an "equal combination of revenge and protecting his sons." Following the death of their mother, Sam and Dean became secondary to John's quest of killing the demon responsible, although Morgan believed that this aspect changed once John began spending more time with them again. Though he thought that John was not the world's best dad and "definitely made a lot of mistakes," the actor noted that "he did things, even when they were wrong, for the good of his sons." John Kubicek of BuddyTV felt that this reasoning extended to John's decision to hide the truth from Adam to protect him. Kubicek also suggested that John became involved in Adam's life to achieve "some level of normalcy" as a father, an opportunity he had previously lost following the death of Sam and Dean's mother. Overall, Morgan felt that John "loved those kids more than he loved his own life," with the character's demonic pact with Azazel serving as "his way of finding redemption."


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: Regarding his portrayal of the character, Morgan commented, "I played him with extra angst. I think what was on the page, what I foresaw—not knowing where it was going, because no one would ever tell me anything—there was always a lot more going on in his head than he was going to show anybody, including his sons. Because, indeed, there was a lot more going on." Kripke later confirmed this, stating, "It's our view that John knew everything the producers of the show know. John knew stuff we're not even ready to reveal, that won't come out for a couple of seasons. He was an awesome hunter, and by the time he showed up in 'Dead Man's Blood,' he knew it all."


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: In writing the pilot episode, series creator Eric Kripke made several dramatic revisions to John's storyline. The first draft of the script had Sam and Dean being raised by their aunt and uncle, though this was changed when Kripke realized that the backstory became much less complicated by having John raise them on the road. Another revision had John dying at the end of the episode instead of Sam's girlfriend Jessica. Though he survives in the final version of the pilot, the writers decided halfway through production of the first season that John did have to die, as they believed his separation from his sons "split the show" by having him away "doing more interesting things than the boys are doing." Kripke also felt that John kept Sam and Dean away from the "front lines," his death being required to allow the brothers to "explore, investigate and confront the yellow-eyed demon directly." The writers initially intended for John to die in the car accident in "Devil's Trap," but they ultimately postponed his death to prevent the finale from becoming too dark. Following the character's eventual escape from Hell, executive producer Ben Edlund stated that even the writers are unsure of where John's soul ended up.


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: "Evil Dead" actor Bruce Campbell was Kripke's first choice to portray the character. However, Campbell was unavailable, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan eventually received the role. Due to the fact that Morgan's scene in the pilot episode takes place 22 years before the series, Morgan expected to be replaced by an older actor for subsequent episodes. Being only 12 years older than Jensen Ackles, who portrays the eldest son Dean, Morgan was surprised when he was asked to reprise the role. Ackles and Jared Padalecki often teased him about the age difference during filming. Throughout the season, Morgan became frustrated at times due to his character's avoidance of his sons, stating, "It pissed off everybody, it pissed off us as actors, it pissed off the audience watching, because none of us really knew where we were gonna go." However, he reasoned that John's motivation for his actions was due to having knowledge that nobody else had.


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: During production of "Supernatural"<nowiki>'</nowiki>s first season, Morgan was also working on the shows "Weeds" and "Grey's Anatomy", so he was often traveling back and forth between Los Angeles and Vancouver, British Columbia. This interfered at times with Morgan's acting, as he had trouble getting "Winchester-y enough" after portraying the nice character of Denny Duquette on "Grey's Anatomy". Morgan commented, "I was stuck in Denny-land, where I was being too nice. Winchester's harder to find. Denny's more me. He's an intense guy, John is. And Denny, for a guy who's having trouble living, he's just a charming dude." Morgan was at first reluctant to return for "Supernatural"'s second season due to his role on "Grey's Anatomy". Although he lent his voice for the third season episode "Long-Distance Call," future appearances of Morgan as the character after the second season have been hindered due to the actor's busy schedule. Nevertheless, both Kripke and writer Sera Gamble have stated that they "would love to have him back." The scheduling conflict has continued into the sixth season of "Supernatural", with executive producer Robert Singer revealing that the writers had considered bringing the character back in the alternate reality episode "My Heart Will Go On" instead of Ellen Harvelle, but due to concerns that they would not be able to secure Morgan's return, they ultimately chose Ellen for the deceased character they would have (temporarily) return in the episode. During the production of the fifth season, Morgan had an interview with "MovieWeb" in which he stated that no one from the show had contacted him about making another appearance, and expressed the desire to return for at least one more episode in what was then-believed to be the show's final season, as he had enjoyed working with Ackles and Padalecki, and he felt that John's storyline had ended too soon.


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: While critics praised Morgan for his performance in the role, their reaction to the character has generally been mixed. Don Williams of "BuddyTV" felt that John is a "rather divisive character", with some fans not understanding John's motivation for keeping his sons in the dark. However, Williams himself found the character to be "completely fascinating". He chose "In My Time of Dying" as the second best episode of the series, mainly because of John's contributions, stating, "Even if you're not a huge fan of Poppa Winchester, I think it's impossible not to be moved by the final ten minutes of this episode... John's final speech to Dean, where he finally tells his son that he's proud of him, is one hell of a tear-jerker, and both Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Jensen Ackles knock that scene out of the park." Williams praised Matt Cohen's performance of a younger version of the character in the time-travel episode "In the Beginning", believing that he "did an excellent job at portraying a more innocent John Winchester than we've ever seen before".


title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: Diana Steenbergen of "IGN" also criticized John for his lack of explanation, feeling that "it is not exactly easy to watch John treat Dean and Sam so dismissively, especially after they have been nearly killing themselves all season to find him". However, Steenbergen praised Morgan for his acting, writing, "Even though he is used sparingly throughout the series, Jeffrey Dean Morgan is always effective as John." She also felt that he brought "emotional weight" to the character, allowing the audience to "feel John's weariness, and his resignation that things will most likely not go well". While Brian Tallerico of "UGO" enjoyed Morgan's performance, he was happy that the character was killed off because John's presence made Sam and Dean into "followers" that were "merely existing in the wake of their father". With their father gone, the brothers are no longer prevented from "heading up the battle with the other side".


title: Hawaii–Aleutian Time Zone

text: The Hawaii–Aleutian Time Zone observes Hawaii–Aleutian Standard Time (HST) by subtracting ten hours from Coordinated Universal Time (). The clock time in this zone is based on the mean solar time of the 150th meridian west of the Greenwich Observatory.


title: Hawaii–Aleutian Time Zone

text: The zone takes its name from the two areas it includes: Hawaii and the portion of Alaska's Aleutian Islands west of 169° 30′ W longitude.


title: Hawaii–Aleutian Time Zone

text: During daylight saving time (DST), the Alaskan portion observes Hawaii–Aleutian Daylight Time (HDT, ), while Hawaii stays on standard time. Hawaii has not observed daylight saving time since September 1945.


title: Hawaii–Aleutian Time Zone

text: French Polynesia uses UTC−10:00 for its major cities. The Cook Islands also use the same time. These areas do not use DST. "Hawaii–Aleutian Time Zone" is a U.S. term and for that reason the Polynesian areas are not considered to be a part of the Hawaii–Aleutian Time Zone.


title: Hawaii–Aleutian Time Zone

text: The largest city and metropolitan area in the Hawaii–Aleutian Time Zone are Honolulu and its metropolitan area, respectively.


title: Japan News Network

text: The , or JNN, is a Japanese commercial television network run by TBS Television. The network's responsibility includes the syndication of national television news bulletins to its regional affiliates, and news exchange between the stations. Its member stations also broadcast non-news programs originating from TBS Television.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: The Audi R8 (Type 42) is the first generation of the R8 sports car developed and manufactured by German automobile manufacturer Audi. Conceived in 2003 in concept form, the R8 was put into production in June 2006. The Type 42 is based on the Lamborghini Gallardo and shares its chassis and engine. Audi's parent company Volkswagen Group owns Lamborghini as well and components of both of the cars were shared mainly to save development costs. Production of the Type 42 ended in August 2015, following the introduction of the Type 4S at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show which was based on an entirely new platform.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: The Audi R8 was first conceived as the Audi LeMans Quattro concept car which was presented to the public at the 2003 Frankfurt Motor Show, followed by the 2003 Geneva Motor Show. Designed by Frank Lamberty, the car featured many unique features such as a Jet Blue exterior colour, the front curve of the front wings shared with the TT along with Nuvolari quattro GT, 20-inch wheels, a twin-turbocharged FSI V10 engine with a rated power output of and , a single-frame radiator grille, aluminium sports suspension with magnetic ride shock absorbers and dark interior colours. The body of the car was made of aluminium and carbon fibre in order to keep the weight low. Another unique feature of the car were its full LED headlamps.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: The R8 development program began in 2004 with Frank Lamberty's design being approved and frozen for production. In 2005, Audi announced that the name of the successful Audi R8 race car would be used for a new road car in 2007. Production body prototypes began field testing in January 2006 and the car was introduced to the public at the 2006 Paris Motor Show.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: The Audi R8 was initially equipped with a V8 engine. Specifically, it is an all-aluminium alloy 32-valve (four valves per cylinder) petrol engine, utilising Fuel Stratified Injection (FSI), and has a displacement of . It develops a motive power output of , and generates of torque, on 98 RON 'Super Unleaded' petrol. It is basically the same engine used in the B7 RS 4, but is modified to use a dry sump lubrication system. It uses two chain-driven double overhead camshafts (DOHC) per cylinder bank, and utilises variable valve timing for both inlet and exhaust camshafts. The 4 wheel drive system is biased towards the rear; it can send up to 70% of its power to the rear wheels and 30% to the front. According to Road & Track the 4.2-liter V-8 R8 did a zero to 60 mph sprint in 4.0 seconds in the manual version while the automatic version did it in 4.3 seconds. Both gearboxes were built by Graziano Trasmissioni.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: Audi AG unveiled the Audi R8 V10 on December 8, 2008. It uses a FSI V10 engine, based on the unit in the Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 (which in turn was based on the 5.2 FSI V10 as used in the C6 S6 and D3 S8), but is re-tuned to have a power output of , and of torque. Compared to the V8 variant, the R8 V10's performance numbers are enhanced. Audi states the new acceleration time as 3.9 seconds, in 8.1 seconds, and a top speed of . Other changes to the V10 version of the R8 include some aesthetic differences: such as all-LED headlights (a world-first), "V10" badging on the front fenders, interior enhancements such as Bang & Olufsen 465 watt sound system, a more aggressive body styling, larger rear brakes, a dual outlet exhaust system and different wheels.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: Although it was rumoured by the automotive press since the announcement of the production variant of the R8 in 2006, it was only in August 2008 that spy shots of a convertible R8 "Spyder" from filming scenes of the movie "Iron Man 2" were published online. The photos showed a clearly visible soft-top roof and the absence of the distinctive "sideblades" found on the V10 FSI coupé. The R8 Spyder was formally unveiled at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show. Compared with the coupé model, the convertible had extra chassis support, a pair of roll-over safety bars, as well as minor changes such as the location of the fuel filler cap. It was powered by the same uneven firing 5.2-litre V10 engine as the coupé.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: On April 11, 2011 automotive magazine Autocar reported that Audi has made the 4.2-litre FSI V8 engine available on the R8 Spyder, alongside the 5.2-litre V10 engine initially fitted. The (an increase of 14 PS as compared to the coupé), unit now completed the R8 Spyder range alongside the V10 Spyder offered. The V8 Spyder has a 0–100 km/h (0–62 mph) acceleration time of 4.3 seconds and could attain a top speed of 300 km/h (186 mph). Like the V10 model, the V8 Spyder features an aluminium spaceframe with carbon composite construction and an automatic retractable folding cloth roof.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: Introduced at the 2010 Wörthersee Tour, the Audi R8 GT is a high-performance variant of the R8 V10. The GT utilises a V10 with the quattro four-wheel drive system. Changes from the R8 5.2 FSI quattro include reduction in the curb weight by to and increased engine power to at 8,000 rpm ( per ton) and at 6,500 rpm of torque. Because of these changes, the R8 GT has an increased top speed of and accelerates from 0– in 3.6 seconds, 0.3 faster than the R8 V10. The car also features some visual changes including red brake calipers, a fixed rear wing, front bumper mounted winglets and GT badging in place of the standard V10 badging. The car was introduced for the 2012 model year and with a limited production of 333 cars worldwide with 35 destined for the UK market and 90 for the US market.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: Unveiled at the 2011 24 Hours of Le Mans, the R8 GT Spyder is the convertible version of the R8 GT. Limited to 333 units worldwide, the R8 GT Spyder combines the aggressiveness of the R8 GT with an open top driving experience. Aside from the roof, the only performance related change is the change in weight which has increased to (dry weight). The engine frame is made of ultra-light magnesium; the soft top cover and the large side panels at the rear are made of carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP). CFRP is also used for the modified front spoiler, the fixed rear spoiler and the new rear bumper; even the seats used are made of carbon fibre which result in a weight saving of alone. Together, these components provide a weight saving of over the standard V10 Spyder. Visual changes include add-on parts in contrasting titanium gray, a front splitter with a dual lip, flics at the sides of the front bumper, red GT badges, round exhaust tailpipes, an enlarged rear diffuser and tinted LED tail lights in a clear-glass design. A CFRP windshield frame is also available as an option. US model went on sale as a 2012 Model Year car, with delivery beginning in February 2012. Only 50 units were available for sale in the US.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: As the first-generation production for the R8 was coming to an end, Audi unveiled at the 2014 Los Angeles Auto Show the final version in the limited-edition 2015 R8 Competition – the most powerful production vehicle ever made by the company at the time. Only 60 examples of the Competition were produced for the USA. This version was more than just a trim package since power from the normal 5.2-liter V10 was revised to develop 570 horsepower, an extra 20 hp over the V10 Plus, and reached 8,800 rpm for redline. The only available transmission was the seven-speed, dual clutch S-Tronic gearbox, which allowed for downshifts with race car like exhaust overrun noises out of the standard sports exhaust. 0 to 60 miles per hour was manufacture rated to 3.2 seconds, even though actual measured times were slightly faster. The advertised maximum velocity was achieved at 199 mph. Carbon-ceramic brake disks with red calipers were standard. Audi took inspiration from the R8 LMS Ultra race car for the development of the Competition and applied many qualities to the street version. Unique to this version were matte carbon fiber pieces replacing the rear spoiler, mirror housings, side blades, front spoiler and rear diffuser. The 60 cars went through Audi Exclusive so buyers could specify their own specific interior and exterior colors. All cars also had interior matte carbon fiber trim over the center console and illuminated doorsills. Retail pricing started over $200,000 USD.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: For 2009, Audi announced the production of an R8 LMS racing car, designed for the GT3 rules in the FIA GT3 European Championship and various national racing series. Known within Audi Sport as the 'R16', the R8 LMS features a V10 engine. Because the GT3 regulations prohibit the use of four-wheel drive, Audi had to drop its 'trademark' quattro four-wheel drive system, and the R8 LMS was thus only available with the typical rear-wheel drive setup. The torque is transmitted via a newly developed six-speed sequential race oriented gearbox. The car was jointly manufactured by Audi Sport, quattro GmbH, and Audi Hungaria Motor Kft. (Győr). The first test races in various European racing series was scheduled for the 2009 season. Delivery to the customers was planned from the Autumn of 2010.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: Changes to the 2010 R8 LMS include the improvement of the engine cooling system capacity, suspension revisions, a race-optimised electronics and exhaust systems, and a 6-speed transmission that can be inspected through an opening in the housing without the need to dismantle the entire assembly. Previous variants could be upgraded via an update kit. The first deliveries of the car were made to the American-owned United Autosports team from Yorkshire in England.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: Unveiled at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show, the R8 LMS ultra is a modified version of the Audi R8 LMS with CFRP (carbon-fibre-reinforced plastic) doors with high-energy absorbing new crash foams, new PS1 safety seat developed by Audi, updated transmission providing additional reserves on long-distance runs, increased engine power to (depending on restrictor regulations) with higher torque at lower engine speeds, a larger engine oil cooler and transmission fluid cooler, relocated steering hydraulics oil cooler to the vehicle's midsection, enlarged air vents, improved air flow to radiator and interior, front 18-inch wheels with Michelin 30-65/18 tyres, optimized brake cooling at the front wheels, uniball joints transverse control arm mounts, weight-reduced compression and rebound-adjustable gas dampers from Bilstein, wider front hood with louvers, new wider rear wing with larger end plates, new front plate with optimised diffusion under the front end.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: As part of NASCAR's embracing of GT3 in their Grand American Road Racing Association Rolex Series races, GT3 cars were permitted to run with slight restrictions in the "national" GT3 in the United States. The R8 Grand-Am features an engine with its power reduced from to via an air restrictor and the engine electronics, a reduced fuel tank capacity of 83.3 litres, three-part rims for wheels and suspension, and deactivated anti-lock system and traction control (as NASCAR/Grand-Am does not permit either traction control nor anti-lock brakes). Additional changes include loss of aerodynamic grip via smaller front splitter and rear diffuser, stiffer roll cages, an Earnhardt bar (anti-intrusion bars on the windscreen), and side window nets on both sides, both of which are required in the Rolex Series. As per the rules, NASCAR specified Continental tyres are used. Compared to the Audi R8 LMS ultra, the R8 Grand AM has lower down force. This model made its debut at the 50th Daytona 24 Hours in January 2012.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: The R8 V12 TDI (later renamed the R8 TDI Le Mans) is a concept car based on the R8 V8 coupé with a twin-turbocharged V12 Diesel engine rated at and of torque at 1,750–3,000 rpm with Euro 6 emissions standard compliance via oxidizing catalyst and Diesel particulate filter, matt Grace Silver and brilliant red metallic body colours, 6-speed manual transmission with small-diameter double-plate clutch and quattro permanent all-wheel drive system with a ratio of 40:60 front and rear.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: The car also had many unique body features such as rhombus-pattern cover on the air inlets and outlets, continuous aluminum lip spoiler, glass roof with two large transparent sections, glazed engine compartment behind the seats, NACA duct in the middle of the roof for cooling of the bigger V12 engine, optional carbon fibre lining of the engine compartment, LED headlights with color temperature of 6,000 kelvin, three-spoke flat bottom diecast magnesium core sports steering wheel upholstered in Valcona leather, aluminum application on the center console, 24-piston (total) brake calipers (red six-piston monobloc aluminum front calipers, fixed six-piston rear calipers) and ventilated carbon fibre reinforced silicon carbide ceramic brake discs.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: The R8 TDI LeMans was unveiled first at the Detroit Auto Show in 2008 and then at the 2008 Geneva Motor Show. The development of the R8 TDI was cancelled, Audi cited the reason that the cost of re-engineering of the petrol R8 to accommodate the bigger twin-turbocharged diesel engine was simply too great, and that it would be unable to recoup its investment through sales alone.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: The all-electric Audi e-tron concept car was unveiled at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show, followed by the 2009 LA Auto Show (in orange body colour), and at the 2010 24 Hours of Le Mans.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: The Audi e-tron is a version of the R8 Coupé with a slightly smaller body utilising four electric motors rated at and of torque. However the proposed torque rating is the torque measured at the wheels, not at the output shaft — as is the industry standard, the true torque rating is at around . Other features included a 42.4 kWh liquid cooled lithium-ion battery pack, a need-based energy management system, LED technology used for all lighting units, independent cooling system for each axle; doors, covers, sidewalls and roof made from carbon fibre-reinforced plastic; 3-mode flush gear selector (forward, reverse and neutral), instrument cluster with fold-out central display with integrated Audi MMI functions, climate control unit located to the right above the steering wheel, racing-inspired lightweight bucket seats, snow white and cognac interior colours, heat pump, climate control system; triangular double wishbones at the front axle and trapezoidal wishbones made of forged aluminum components at the rear axle, direct rack-and-pinion steering with speed-sensitive electromechanical steering boost, 235/35R19 front and 295/30R19 rear tires with a new blade design and the prototype version of an information processing system (car-to-x communication).


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: Claimed performance figures for the R8 e-tron is a acceleration time of 4.8 seconds and a limited top speed of . The car has a limited all-electric range of . A full charge at 230 volts takes six to eight hours, while a 400-volt quick charger would reduce the charge time to about two and a half hours. Braking is accomplished and energy is recaptured through the electric motors’ regenerative function, unless the car detects more aggressive deceleration is required, at that point a conventional electromechanical system featuring carbon-ceramic discs starts functioning to assist. The battery pack and its necessary inverter and power accoutrements weigh about , or nearly a third of the E-Tron's approximately curb weight achieved by the excessive use of carbon fibre, magnesium and aluminium. The car has a weight distribution of 42% at the front and 58% at the rear.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: Audi originally announced the first e-tron model to be built by quattro GmbH at Neckarsulm, with a small production run beginning in late 2012. Keeping that announcement in place, Audi unveiled the R8 e-tron prototype at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show.


title: Audi R8 (Type 42)

text: Features included two permanent magnet synchronous motors at the rear axle rated and of total torque, a torque vectoring system, electric single-wheel anti-slip regulation, Multimaterial space Frame chassis with increased use of carbon-fibre-reinforced plastic, springs made from fiberglass-reinforced plastic, wheel hubs made of forged titanium, anti-roll bar boasts made from hybrid aluminum and carbon fibre, 19-inch wheels with friction-optimized 225-35 series tires, 48.6 kWh lithium-ion battery beneath the passenger cabin as structural element, Crescendo Red Metallic body colour, fine chrome horizontal struts on the grille, e-tron-specific LED headlamp design, diffuser at the rear, 7-inch Multi Media Interface display, 6.7-inch AMOLED (Active Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode) optic rear-view mirror system, leather and Alcantara upholstery, e-sound artificial engine noise emitting from a speaker system mounted in the underbody that is audible outside the car at speeds under .