Plot.

Anthony "Tick" Belrose (Hugo Weaving), using the drag pseudonym of Mitzi Del Bra, is a Sydney-based drag queen who accepts an offer to perform his drag act at Lasseters Hotel Casino Resort managed by his estranged wife Marion in Alice Springs, a remote town in central Australia. After persuading his friends and fellow performers, Bernadette Bassenger (Terence Stamp), a recently bereaved transgender woman, and Adam Whitely (Guy Pearce), a flamboyant and obnoxious younger drag queen who goes under the drag name Felicia Jollygoodfellow, to join him, the three set out for a four-week run at the casino in a large tour bus, which Adam christens "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert".  While on the long journey through remote lands bordering the Simpson Desert, they meet a variety of characters, including a group of friendly Aboriginal Australians for whom they perform, the less accepting attitudes of rural Australia in such towns as Coober Pedy, and are subjected to homophobic abuse, violence, including having their tour bus vandalized with homophobic graffiti.  When the tour bus breaks down in the middle of the desert, Adam spends the whole day repainting it lavender to cover up the vandalism. The trio later meet Bob, a middle-aged mechanic from a small outback town who joins them on their journey. Before they arrive at Alice Springs, Tick reveals that Marion is actually his wife, as they never divorced, and that they are actually going there as a favour to her. Continuing their journey, Adam is almost mutilated by a homophobic gang before he is saved by Bob and Bernadette. Adam is shaken and Bernadette comforts him, allowing them to reach an understanding. Likewise, the others come to terms with the secret of Tick's marriage and resolve their differences. Together, they fulfill a long-held dream of Adam's, which, in the original plan, is to climb Kings Canyon in full drag regalia.  Upon arrival at the hotel, it is revealed that Tick and Marion also have an eight-year-old son, Benjamin, whom Tick has not seen for many years. Tick is nervous about exposing his son to his drag profession and anxious about revealing his homosexuality, though he is surprised to discover that Benjamin already knows and is fully supportive of his father's sexuality and career. By the time their contract at the resort is over, Tick and Adam head back to Sydney, taking Benjamin back with them, so that Tick can get to know his son. However, Bernadette decides to remain at the resort for a while with Bob, who has decided to work at the hotel after the two of them had become close.

Production.

Development.

"The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" had originally been conceived by filmmakers Stephan Elliott and Stuart Quin, who were at the time in production of a film called "Frauds". They and producer Andrena Finlay initially tried to pitch "Priscilla" to various financiers at the 1991 Cannes Film Festival, but were unsuccessful, and so instead took the film's concept to PolyGram and, with the backing of the Australian Film Finance Corporation, were able to begin production of the film on a relatively low budget of 2.7 million Australian dollars.  Elliott and the film's producers, Michael Hamlyn and Al Clark, agreed to work for $50,000 each, a relatively low fee for filmmakers at the time, while the lack of funding meant that the crew agreed to receive takings of the film's eventual profits in compensation for their low salaries. Due to the involvement of the Australian FFC, only one non-Australian actor was allowed to appear in the film, and Clark initially considered David Bowie, whom he had known back in the 1980s, and later briefly thought of John Hurt, although neither was available.

Casting.

In May 1993, after travelling around the Australian Outback searching for appropriate sites to film in, "Priscilla"s creators attended the Cannes Film Festival and Marche to advertise their project, hoping to capitalise on the selection of Elliot's first film Frauds which was "In Competition" at the festival and despite the fact that they had not yet confirmed any actors for the roles. Their primary choice for the role of Bernadette was Tony Curtis, who read and approved of the script, but eventually became unavailable. They then approached John Cleese, who was not interested.  For the part of Tick, they had initially wanted Rupert Everett and for Adam they wanted Jason Donovan. However, at a pre-production casting meeting held at Cannes, Everett and Donovan did not get on well with one another and were found to be openly hostile toward the production staff. In light of this, it was readily agreed that they would not be suitable for the parts and the search for their three leading men would resume. However, Donovan would go on to play Tick in the West End musical adaptation of the film.  After unsuccessfully lobbying Colin Firth to play the role, producers eventually awarded the part to Hugo Weaving. Initially considering Tim Curry for the part of Bernadette, they cast Terence Stamp, who was initially anxious about the role because it was unlike anything that he had performed previously, although he eventually came on board with the concept. Stamp himself suggested Bill Hunter for the role of Bob, who accepted the role without even reading the script or being told anything about the greater concept of the film other than the basic character description, while Australian actor Guy Pearce was hired at the eleventh hour direct from the Australian soap opera "Snowy River" to portray the sassy but sprite Adam.

Filming.

Many scenes, including one where Bernadette encounters a butch, bigoted, Australian woman named Shirley, were filmed at the Outback town of Broken Hill in New South Wales, largely in a hotel known as Mario's Palace (now the Palace Hotel), which Al Clark believed was "drag queen heaven". Some small scenes were filmed in the All Nations Hotel. They also decided to film at Coober Pedy, a rough-and-tumble mining town in Central Australia featured prominently in the film. An interesting side note is that the Executive Producer, Rebel Penfold-Russell appears as the marathon runner.  Initially, they tried to get permission to film upon the geological formation formerly known as Ayers Rock or "the Rock" (Uluru), but this was rejected by organizations responsible for the monument, such as the Uluru Board of Management, as it would have been in violation of Indigenous Australian religious beliefs. Instead, the scene was filmed in King's Canyon. Dialogue from the scene was rewritten slightly to accommodate the new location.

Post-production.

With filming over, the director and producers began editing the footage, repeatedly travelling to both London and to Los Angeles, which had then just been hit by the 1994 Northridge earthquake. On the advice of early viewers, the film was shortened and scenes such as Adam's flashback about his paedophilic uncle were cut out.

Release.

Box office.

"The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" took $18,459,245 at the box office in Australia, which is.  Being an Australian film, not an American-produced Hollywood blockbuster, "Priscilla" was released as a minor commercial product in North America and other English-speaking nations.  Director Elliott noted that the audiences viewing the film in Australia, the United States, and France all reacted to it differently, going on to state that "At a screening we had for an Australian audience, they laughed at all the Aussieisms. The Americans laughed too, but at different jokes. There is a line where Tick says, 'Bernadette has left her cake out in the rain...' [The French audience] didn't get it, whereas the Americans laughed for ten minutes." Tom O'Regan, a scholar of film studies, remarked that the film actually carried different meanings for members of different nationalities and subcultural groups, with LGBT Americans believing that the film was "the big one that will bring gay lifestyles into the mainstream", while Australians tended to "embrace it as just another successful Australian film".

Critical reaction.

On Rotten Tomatoes, "Priscilla" has a 95% "Certified Fresh" rating based on 44 reviews, with an average rating of 7.31/10; the consensus states: "While its premise is ripe for comedy -- and it certainly delivers its fair share of laughs -- "Priscilla" is also a surprisingly tender and thoughtful road movie with some outstanding performances." Metacritic reports a 70 out of 100 rating, based on 20 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".  American film critic Roger Ebert of the "Chicago Sun-Times" felt that Bernadette was the key part of the film, stating that "the real subject of the movie is not homosexuality, not drag queens, not showbiz, but simply the life of a middle-aged person trapped in a job that has become tiresome." Janet Maslin of "The New York Times" wrote ""The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert" presents a defiant culture clash in generous, warmly entertaining ways." Peter Travers of "Rolling Stone" commented "In this roaringly comic and powerfully affecting road movie, Terence Stamp gives one of the year’s best performances." Kenneth Turan from the "Los Angeles Times" wrote "The comic pizazz and bawdy dazzle of this film’s vision of gaudy drag performers trekking across the Australian outback certainly has a boisterous, addictive way about it."

Accolades.

The film was ranked 7th on Logo's 50 Greatest Films with an LGBT theme, and #10 on AfterElton's Fifty Greatest Gay Movies list.

Cultural impact and legacy.

"Priscilla", along with other contemporary Australian films "Young Einstein" (1988), "Sweetie" (1989), "Strictly Ballroom" (1992), and "Muriel's Wedding" (1994), provided Australian cinema with a reputation for "quirkiness", "eccentricity" and "individuality" across the world. Both "Priscilla" and "Muriel's Wedding" (which had also featured a soundtrack containing ABBA songs) in particular became cult classics, not only in their native Australia, but also in the United Kingdom, where a wave of Australian influences, such as the soap operas "Neighbours" and "Home and Away", had made their mark in the late 1980s and early 1990s.  In 1995, an American film, "To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar", was released, featuring three drag queens who travel across the United States. According to Al Clark, the creators of "Priscilla" heard about the film while shooting theirs, and "for a moment [were] troubled" until they read the script of "To Wong Foo", when they decided that it was sufficiently different from "Priscilla" to not be a commercial and critical threat. "To Wong Foo" proved to be critically far less successful than "Priscilla", only gaining a 41% fresh score on Rotten Tomatoes. Financially however, "To Wong Foo" did better at the box office making three times as much in the U.S. with over 36 million dollars.  During the Closing Ceremony of the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, "Priscilla" was part of a parade of images of Australian popular culture. A 1980 Ford Denning (resembling the bus used in the film) featuring a giant steel stiletto heel which extended from and retracted into the roof — inspired by scenes from the film — paraded around the Olympic Stadium. The bus was accompanied by several stiletto heel tricycle floats and drag queens in big wigs in tribute to the film's international success and the local Sydney gay community. The music video for Iggy Azalea's 2013 single "Work" paid homage to scenes from the film.

Racism and sexism controversy.

The film has come under criticism for alleged racist and sexist elements, particularly in the portrayal of the Filipina character, Cynthia. Melba Margison of the Centre for Filipino Concerns stated that Cynthia was portrayed as "a gold-digger, a prostitute, an entertainer whose expertise is popping out ping-pong balls from her sex-organ, a manic depressive, loud and vulgar. The worst stereotype of the Filipina." She argued that, by portraying Cynthia in this manner, the filmmakers were "violently kill[ing]" the dignity of Filipina women, something that she feared would lead to "more violence against us". An editor writing in "The Age" echoed these concerns, highlighting that "It is perhaps a pity that a film with a message of tolerance and acceptance for homosexuals should feel the need of what looks very much to us like a racist and sexist stereotype." Similarly, in his study of bisexuality in cinema, Wayne M. Bryant argued that while it was "an excellent film", "The Adventures of Priscilla" was marred by "instances of gratuitous sexism".  Producer Clark defended the film against these accusations, arguing that while Cynthia was a stereotype, it was not the purpose of filmmakers to avoid the portrayal of "vulnerable characters" from specific minority backgrounds. He stated that she was "a misfit like the three protagonists are, and just about everybody else in the film is, and her presence is no more a statement about Filipino women than having three drag queens is a statement about Australian men." Tom O'Regan noted that as a result of this controversy, the film gained "an ambiguous reputation."

Soundtrack.

The film featured a soundtrack made up of pre-existing "camp classics" (pop music songs that have a particular fanbase in the LGBT community). The original plan by the film's creators was to have a Kylie Minogue song in the finale, although it was later decided that an ABBA song would be more appropriate because its "tacky qualities" were "more timeless" (although in the musical adaptation, the character Adam performs a medley of Kylie Minogue songs atop Uluru). The film itself featured four main songs, which were performed by two or more of the drag queens as a part of their show within the film; "I've Never Been to Me" by Charlene, "I Will Survive" by Gloria Gaynor, "Finally" by CeCe Peniston, and "Mamma Mia" by ABBA. On 23 August 1994, Fontana Island released the soundtrack on CD.  Original music for the soundtrack was composed by Guy Gross, with choral arrangements by Derek Williams, and released separately on CD.

Home media.

On 14 November 1995, the film was released on VHS. On 7 October 1997, it was released on DVD with a collectable trivia booklet.  In 2004, a 10th Anniversary Collector's Edition was released on DVD in Australia with the following special features: a feature-length audio commentary with writer/director Stephan Elliott, three deleted scenes, two featurettes: "Behind the Bus: Priscilla with Her Pants Down" and "Ladies Please", cast and crew biographies, the original Australian theatrical trailer, US theatrical and teaser trailers, and a number of hidden features  In 2006, it was re-released on DVD in Australia with the following special features: a feature-length audio commentary with writer/director Elliott, "Birth of a Queen" (featurette), deleted scenes, tidbits from the Set, "The Bus from Blooperville" – Gag reel documentary, a photo gallery, and US theatrical and teaser trailers.  On 5 June 2007, it was re-released in the United States as the "Extra Frills Edition" DVD. This edition includes the same special features as the Australian 2006 re-release. On 7 June 2011, it was released for US Blu-ray.  In Australia, it is available on the subscription streaming platform Stan.

The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert is a 1994 Australian comedy-drama film written and directed by Stephan Elliott. The plot follows two drag queens played by Hugo Weaving and Guy Pearce and a transgender woman, played by Terence Stamp, as they journey across the Australian Outback from Sydney to Alice Springs in a tour bus that they have named "Priscilla", along the way encountering various groups and individuals. The film's title references the slang term "queen" for a drag queen or female impersonator.

《沙漠妖姬》(英语:"The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert")是1994年澳大利亚出产的电影。纪录扮演三名异装皇后(泰伦斯·史坦普、雨果·威明与盖·皮尔斯)开着巴士,从雪梨前往澳大利亚内陆(北领地爱丽斯泉)道路上遇到的事情。这部电影的标题是意涵著双关语,英语文化里,「Queen」又代表着男同性恋者。


The letters.

These letters, comprising cuneiform tablets written primarily in Akkadian – the regional language of diplomacy for this period – were first discovered around 1887 by local Egyptians who secretly dug most of them from the ruined city of Amarna, and sold them in the antiquities market. They had originally been stored in an ancient building that archaeologists have since called the Bureau of Correspondence of Pharaoh. Once the location where they were found was determined, the ruins were explored for more. The first archaeologist who successfully recovered more tablets was Flinders Petrie, who in 1891 and 1892 uncovered 21 fragments. Émile Chassinat, then director of the French Institute for Oriental Archaeology in Cairo, acquired two more tablets in 1903. Since Knudtzon's edition, some 24 more tablets, or fragments, have been found, either in Egypt, or identified in the collections of various museums.  The initial group of letters recovered by local Egyptians have been scattered among museums in Germany, England, Egypt, France, Russia, and the United States. Either 202 or 203 tablets are at the Vorderasiatisches Museum in Berlin; 99 are at the British Museum in London; 49 or 50 are at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo; 7 at the Louvre in Paris; 3 at the Pushkin Museum in Moscow; and 1 in the collection of the Oriental Institute in Chicago.  The archive contains a wealth of information about cultures, kingdoms, events and individuals in a period from which few written sources survive. It includes correspondence from Akhenaten's reign (Akhenaten who was also titled Amenhotep IV), as well as his predecessor Amenhotep III's reign. The tablets consist of over 300 diplomatic letters; the remainder comprise miscellaneous literary and educational materials. These tablets shed much light on Egyptian relations with Babylonia, Assyria, Syria, Canaan, and Alashiya (Cyprus) as well as relations with the Mitanni, and the Hittites. The letters have been important in establishing both the history and the chronology of the period. Letters from the Babylonian king, Kadashman-Enlil I, anchor the timeframe of Akhenaten's reign to the mid-14th century BC. They also contain the first mention of a Near Eastern group known as the "Habiru", whose possible connection with the Hebrews—due to the similarity of the words and their geographic location—remains debated. Other rulers involved in the letters include Tushratta of Mitanni, Lib'ayu of Shechem, Abdi-Heba of Jerusalem, and the quarrelsome king, Rib-Hadda, of Byblos, who, in over 58 letters, continuously pleads for Egyptian military help. Specifically, the letters include requests for military help in the north against Hittite invaders, and in the south to fight against the Habiru.

Letter summary.

Amarna Letters are politically arranged in rough counterclockwise fashion:  Amarna Letters from Syria/Lebanon/Canaan are distributed roughly:

Amarna letters list.

Note: Many assignments are tentative; spellings vary widely. This is just a guide.

Chronology.

William L. Moran summarizes the state of the chronology of these tablets as follows:  From the internal evidence, the earliest possible date for this correspondence is the final decade of the reign of Amenhotep III, who ruled from 1388 to 1351 BC (or 1391 to 1353 BC), possibly as early as this king's 30th regnal year; the latest date any of these letters were written is the desertion of the city of Amarna, commonly believed to have happened in the second year of the reign of Tutankhamun later in the same century in 1332 BC. Moran notes that some scholars believe one tablet, EA 16, may have been addressed to Tutankhamun's successor Ay. However, this speculation appears improbable because the Amarna archives were closed by Year 2 of Tutankhamun, when this king transferred Egypt's capital from Amarna to Thebes.

Quotations and phrases.

A small number of the Amarna letters are in the class of poetry. An example is EA 153, (EA is for 'el Amarna'). EA 153, entitled: ""Ships on hold"", from Abimilku of Tyre is a short, 20-line letter. Lines 6-8, and 9-11 are parallel phrases, each ending with ""...before the troops of the king, my lord.""-('before', then line 8, line 11). Both sentences are identical, and repetitive, with only the subject statement changing.  The entire corpus of Amarna letters has many standard phrases. It also has some phrases, and quotations used only once. Some are parables: (EA 252: ""...when an ant is pinched (struck), does it not fight back and bite the hand of the man that struck it?""...)

Example, single letter photo gallery, multiple sides.

Amarna letter EA 15, from Ashur-uballit I; see also Amarna letter EA 153.

The Amarna letters (; sometimes referred to as the Amarna correspondence or Amarna tablets, and cited with the abbreviation EA, for "El Amarna") are an archive, written on clay tablets, primarily consisting of diplomatic correspondence between the Egyptian administration and its representatives in Canaan and Amurru during the New Kingdom, between c. 1360–1332 BC (see here for dates). The letters were found in Upper Egypt at el-Amarna, the modern name for the ancient Egyptian capital of "Akhetaten", founded by pharaoh Akhenaten (1350s–1330s BC) during the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt. The Amarna letters are unusual in Egyptological research, because they are mostly written in a script known as Akkadian cuneiform, the writing system of ancient Mesopotamia, rather than that of ancient Egypt, and the language used has sometimes been characterised as a mixed language, Canaanite-Akkadian. The written correspondence spans a period of at most thirty years.

阿马尔奈文书(Amarna letters),亦作阿马尔奈书信、亚马拿泥版或阿马尔纳泥板,是一批刻在泥板上的书信,在上埃及地区阿马尔奈(古埃及第十八王朝首都阿克特阿顿)被发掘,绝大部分是古埃及新王国时期统治者与驻守迦南、亚摩利地区官员的外交书信。


Definition.

The Canterbury scene is largely defined by a set of musicians and bands with intertwined members. These are not tied by very strong musical similarities, but a certain whimsicality, touches of psychedelia, rather abstruse lyrics, and a use of improvisation derived from jazz are common elements in their work. "The real essence of 'Canterbury Sound' is the tension between complicated harmonies, extended improvisations, and the sincere desire to write catchy pop songs." "In the very best Canterbury music...the musically silly and the musically serious are juxtaposed in an amusing and endearing way."  There is variation within the scene, for example from pop/rock like early Soft Machine and much Caravan to avant-garde composed pieces as with early National Health to improvised jazz as with later Soft Machine or In Cahoots. Didier Malherbe (of Gong) has defined the scene as having "certain chord changes, in particular the use of minor second chords, certain harmonic combinations, and a great clarity in the aesthetics, and a way of improvising that is very different from what is done in jazz."  There is debate about the existence and definition of the scene. Dave Stewart has complained at the nomenclature as he and many other musicians identified with the Canterbury scene never had anything to do with Canterbury, the place. The former Soft Machine bassist Hugh Hopper, who lived in Whitstable, near Canterbury, said: "I think it's a rather artificial label, a journalistic thing... I don't mind it, but people like Robert [Wyatt], he in fact hates that idea, because he was born somewhere else and just happened to go to school here. In the time when the Wilde Flowers started we hardly ever worked in Canterbury. It wasn't until Robert and Daevid [Allen] went to London to start Soft Machine that anything happened at all. They weren't really a Canterbury band [...] if it helps people understand or listen to more music then it is fine."

Others.

Poet, painter, singer Lady June has been regarded an "honorary member" of the Canterbury scene for having performed and recorded with some of the members, and being a "landlady" to many in her flat in Maida Vale, London.

The Canterbury scene (or Canterbury sound) was a musical scene centred around the city of Canterbury, Kent, England during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Associated with progressive rock, the term describes a loosely-defined, improvisational style that blended elements of jazz, rock, and psychedelia.

坎特柏里之声(Canterbury Scene or Canterbury Sound)是一个泛称的分类,用来代表在1960年代晚期至1970年代在英国肯特郡坎特柏里叠次兴起的前卫摇滚音乐家们。


History.

There was no indigenous population on the site of the modern city of Volzhsky until the 18th century. The first settlers were fugitives who called themselves "bezrodnye" (, "without kith or kin") and the village they set up had the name Bezrodnoye. In 1720, Peter the Great, noting the abundance of mulberry forests in the area, ordered building a state-run silk factory there.  Modern Volzhsky was founded in 1951. It had a population of about 10,000 at that time. In 1954, it was granted city status. Its biggest upsurge of population came for the construction of the Volga Hydroelectric Station.  Volzhsky grew around a hydroelectric power station which was built by Komsomol volunteers and by civil convict labor, who numbered almost 27,000 by 1953. Volzhsky was a city planned in a modern style with courtyard apartment blocks angled to deter hot summer winds off the steppes.  In April 2012, the work settlement of Krasnooktyabrsky, administratively subordinated to Volzhsky, and the rural locality (a settlement) of Uralsky from Sredneakhtubinsky District were merged into Volzhsky.

Administrative and municipal status.

Within the framework of administrative divisions, it is incorporated as the city of oblast significance of Volzhsky—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the districts. As a municipal division, the city of oblast significance of Volzhsky is incorporated as Volzhsky Urban Okrug.

Industry.

The main enterprises in the city are "Volga GES" (a hydroelectric station), "Volzhsky Trubny Zavod" (producing steel pipes), "Volzhsky Khimvolokno" (chemical fibers), "Volzhsky Orgsintez" (chemical products), "Volzhskrezinotekhnika" (rubber products), "Volzhsky Shinny Zavod" (tires), "Volzhsky Podshipnikovy Zavod" (bearings), and JSC "Zavod Meteor" (electronic components).

Volzhsky () is an industrial city in Volgograd Oblast, Russia, located on the east bank of the Volga River and its distributary the Akhtuba, northeast of Volgograd. Population:

伏尔加斯基()是俄罗斯伏尔加格勒州的一座工业城市,位于首府伏尔加格勒东北约20公里,伏尔加河分流阿赫图巴河畔。伏尔加斯基于2010年人口为314,255人。伏尔加斯基拥有两间剧院、四间电影院和一个水上乐园。其邮政编码为404100..404133,而拨号代码则为+7 8443。


Biography.

Xzibit was born on September 18, 1974 in Detroit and was raised by his mother. Xzibit's father left the family early, leaving his mother to care for the family which included four siblings (an older sister and brother, as well as a younger brother and sister). After her death in 1984 Xzibit moved in with his father who had remarried and relocated to Albuquerque.  Xzibit lived in Albuquerque until age 17 and began writing lyrics as a form of entertainment after suffering numerous bouts of minor incarceration. Ultimately a falling out with his father forced Xzibit to relocate to Los Angeles, where he lived with his sister. Due to the city's strong presence within hip-hop, Xzibit decided to pursue a music career. He would also reconcile with his father in 1998.

Career.

1992–1999: Early career and "At The Speed Of Life".

Xzibit started to rap at the age of 14, shortly after his relocation from Albuquerque to Los Angeles, then under the pseudonym "Exhibit A". He marked his first appearance on a professional record in February 1995 on The Alkaholiks' "Coast II Coast", on the song "Hit and Run" and also appeared on King Tee's "IV Life" shortly after, on the track "Free Style Ghetto". After touring with Likwit Crew the same year, Xzibit signed to Loud Records and released his acclaimed debut album, "At the Speed of Life" in October 1996, which peaked at number 74 on the "Billboard" Hot 200 and reached 38 on the Canadian Albums Chart. The album produced his first breakthrough single "Paparazzi" which peaked at No. 86 on the "Billboard" Hot 100 and proved very successful in Germany, where it peaked at number 11 on the German Singles Chart.  After spending the next two years with further building his reputation as a West Coast underground artist and touring with the Likwit Crew, he released his second album, "40 Dayz & 40 Nightz" on August 25, 1998 which charted in the U.S. at number 58 and 50 in Canada. Like its predecessor, it was well received by critics and is widely seen as a Classic West Coast Hip-hop record. It spawned four singles, the most successful being "What U See Is What U Get" charting at number 50 in the United States. With his growing following in the West, he caught the eye of rapper and producer Dr. Dre, who secured him high-profile guest spots, such as joining Snoop Dogg on the Dre-produced hit "Bitch Please" of his album "No Limit Top Dogg", and appearing on Dr. Dre's 6x platinum album "2001", on the songs "Lolo", "Some L.A. Niggaz", and "What's the Difference" with Eminem. He closed the year 1999 with his acting debut, starring in "The Breaks".

1999–2003: Rise to prominence and "Restless".

Xzibit started the year with the release of a compilation album "Likwit Rhymes", which featured mostly previously unreleased material from his earlier recordings and a guest spot on "Bitch Please II", along with Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre and Nate Dogg. His breakthrough came with his third studio album "Restless", with Dr. Dre as executive producer and guest appearances by Snoop Dogg, Nate Dogg, Eminem, Dr. Dre, DJ Quik and the Alkaholiks, among others, which sold almost 2 million copies and was certified platinum. It spawned three singles, the most successful being "X", which peaked at number 76 in the U.S., 14 in the UK and 4 in Germany. The album climbed to number 12 in America. Dr. Dre invited Xzibit to perform on his American "Up in Smoke Tour" in mid-2000, which featured Snoop Dogg, Eminem, and Ice Cube, among many others. The same year, he also starred in the direct-to-video crime film "Tha Eastsidaz" by the group of the same name and was a playable character in the video game "Madden NFL 2001". He continued to star in films involving fellow rap artists such as "The Wash", co-starring Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg, in 2001 and "The Slim Shady Show" and "8 Mile", co-starring Eminem, in 2001 and 2002, respectively. He released two concert films in 2001, "Xzibit: Restless Xposed", centered around the recording of his third studio album and various live-performances and was also seen in "Tha Alkaholiks: X.O. The Movie Experience" by the rap group of the same name. He also released a compilation album of songs that featured him, entitled "You Better Believe It".  In 2002, he guest-starred in the comedy series "Cedric the Entertainer Presents" as Mack Daddy in the eponymous episode and released his fourth studio album "Man vs. Machine" with mostly similar guest appearances like its predecessor, which spawned three singles, which all failed to chart in the "Hot 100", although "Multiply" reached number 39 in the UK and 33 in Germany. The album itself went gold, although Xzibit was unhappy with the crafting and promotion of his newest product, ending the cooperation with Dr. Dre. The album is his highest charting album to date, reaching number 3 in the U.S. and 8 in Canada. He starred in "8 Mile" and "The Country Bears" the same year. He continued to collaborate with his closest West Coast colleagues, primarily Ras Kass and Saafir, with whom he formed The Golden State Project (originally called Golden State Warriors) rap collective, and Tha Alkaholiks, along with bigger names like Snoop Dogg and Eminem, whom he accompanied on his "All Access Europe" tour in 2003.

2003–2006: "Pimp My Ride" and transition into acting.

The popular MTV show "Pimp My Ride" boosted his popularity even further, as it introduced him to a major audience in 2004. The show starred him as the host, who brings an individual's wrecked car to West Coast Customs, where it undergoes a rejuvenation. He continued hosting the show until its cancellation in 2007, those years can easily be seen as the most successful in his career.  Musically, he started the year off with the release of his second compilation album "Appetite for Destruction" featuring 50 Cent on one track, consisting mostly of tracks from his Dre period and songs that didn't make the cut for his fifth studio album "Weapons of Mass Destruction", which was released in December 2004, entering the charts at 43 in the U.S. For this album, he reunited with Columbia Records, after having parted ways with producer and mentor Dr. Dre. The album managed to go gold, but yet again Xzibit was unhappy with the promotion and backing of his label, claiming that they were trying to promote him like Jessica Simpson, leaving the label in anger and going independent. His single "Hey Now (Mean Muggin)" featuring Keri Hilson marked his last chart success on the "Billboard" Hot 100, peaking at number 93, while the second single "Muthafucka" failed to chart. Aside from his music and "Pimp My Ride", he starred in the movie "Full Clip", alongside Busta Rhymes, guest-starred in "" in the episode "", released a concert documentary with his new group, eponymously titled "Strong Arm Steady" and hosted the 2004 MTV Europe Music Awards in Rome. In 2005, he collaborated with shock rock legend Alice Cooper on a track entitled "Stand" from the album "Dirty Diamonds". This represented Cooper's first-ever foray into rap music. This year marks his most busy one, also being featured in three video games, "", where he lent his voice and likeness to the warden Abbott and "" and "NFL Street 2", where he was a playable character.  The following year, he mainly focused on acting, getting roles in the Hollywood blockbusters "Derailed" opposite Clive Owen and Jennifer Aniston in which he played as Dexter, "" as Zeke that also starred fellow L.A. rapper Ice Cube and "Hoodwinked", where he voiced Chief Ted Grizzly opposite Anne Hathaway, Glenn Close, and Patrick Warburton. In 2006, he starred in the drama "Gridiron Gang" as Malcolm Moore and made two guest-appearances in the animated sitcom "The Boondocks". The year also saw the release of his sixth studio album "Full Circle" released independently on Koch Records. The album charted at position 50 but was a commercial flop, selling merely 120,000 copies in the U.S.. None of the three singles were able to chart, although "Concentrate" climbed at number 68 in Germany. The album featured Kurupt, T-Pain and The Game, whom he assisted on his album "Doctor's Advocate", where he rapped on the track "California Vacation". He also worked on two video games that year, "" and "Pimp My Ride". The year 2007 saw him hosting the final season of "Pimp My Ride" only, although he competed in the Gumball 3000 2007 rally, where he lost his driver's license, due to a speed limit violation.

2006–2012: "Full Circle" and hiatus.

After the cancellation of "Pimp My Ride" in 2007, 2008 was the first year where Xzibit did not release an album in his former two-year cycle. Though starring in two movies "" as Mosley Drummy and "American Violet" as Darrell Hughes, this year marked a significant financial downstep for him, earning merely $70,000, opposed by almost $500,000 one year prior. He was also featured on The Alkaholiks "Tha Alkaholiks: Live from Rehab" concert film that year. In 2009, he played the mob leader Big Fate in the acclaimed "" and reprised his role as Abbott in the enhanced remake of 2004's "The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay", "", while Sony released his first greatest hits album, entitled "The Greatest Hits". Even though his financial troubles were increased even further, as he had to file for bankruptcy in July 2009 and January 2010, although both attempts were dismissed and his houses and belongings liened.  In 2010, he had a guest-spot in the crime series "Detroit 1-8-7", in the episode "Royal Bubbles / Needle Drop". He also had the role of the Jabberwock in "Malice n Wonderland", a short film based on the novel "Alice in Wonderland", included on the re-release of the eponymous Snoop Dogg album, entitled "More Malice". After having guest-starred three times in the, he was added to the permanent cast of "", where he is a part of the design team. After a four-year hiatus, he planned to release his seventh studio album "MMX" in 2010, but due to label issues the album was not released by the end of year. In March 2011, he teamed up with Extreme Music, to release a new compilation of material titled "Urban Ammo 2". Xzibit produced, composed and performed all 40 tracks on the compilation album, created primarily for professional music users and music supervisors in need of material for their movie/television productions. Xzibit enlisted veteran director Matt Alonzo to shoot the videos for the two singles, which are titled "Man on the Moon" and "What It Is", both featuring Young De. In April 2011 he teamed up with Fredwreck and Adil Omar for a song on The Mushroom Cloud Effect. He also appeared in the TV movie "Weekends at Bellevue" as a nurse in late 2011, an unsuccessful pilot that was not picked up in the end.

2012–present: "Napalm" and "Empire".

On October 19, 2011 it was announced that the title of the album had been changed to "Napalm". On October 9, 2012, "Napalm" was released and Xzibit made an appearance on the BET Cypher in the 2012 BET Hip Hop Awards. On October 29, 2012, Xzibit announced the "Collateral Damage" tour with the first 16 shows in Canada starting in early November. The tour eventually grew to 18 shows and Xzibit announced this was the first leg on a global tour that would continue into 2013. He starred in the TV movie as a Navy SEAL, depicting the death of Osama bin Laden. He also appeared in 3 episodes of Hawaii Five-0 as Jason "JC" Dekker starting in 2013. On November 8, 2013, Dutch symphonic metal band Within Temptation revealed the title, artwork and track listing of their upcoming sixth studio album, "Hydra". Xzibit features as a guest vocalist on the third track entitled "And We Run". In October 2013 Xzibit released an album with the hip hop group Serial Killers alongside Demrick and B-Real. Xzibit recently appeared on Dr. Dre's studio album "Compton", on the song "Loose Cannons" alongside Cold 187um and Sly Pyper.  During his UK tour, Xzibit spoke with Hip-Hop Kings regarding his upcoming work. He confirmed a brand new album to be released in 2016 with Dr. Dre as a featured producer. Furthermore, Xzibit told the crowd in Manchester that he would be returning next year for the Compton Tour. Xzibit confirmed that Dr. Dre and Kendrick Lamar were confirmed artists who would be on the Compton Tour.  On February 25, 2016, it was announced that he would be joining the cast of "Empire", playing the character of Shyne.

Personal life.

Xzibit and his wife Krista have had two children together; Xavier and Gatlyn. Xavier was born prematurely on May 15, 2008, and died eleven days after he was born. Xzibit also has another son Tremaine Joiner (born June 8, 1995) from a previous relationship. The song "The Foundation" from Xzibit's debut studio album "At the Speed of Life" is dedicated to Tremaine.

Controversies.

Rove McManus.

In June 2007, Xzibit left the "Rove Live" studios in Australia before a scheduled appearance. Media outlets reported that it was due to Xzibit not being given stand-alone billing on the program, even though he had not even been booked in advance. According to Xzibit, he walked off the set after taking offense to comments made by a "Rove" staffer, who after informing Xzibit that his performance time would be shorter than the rapper might have liked, allegedly said: "You know, we came a long way just having you on the program." Xzibit took this as a racist remark, although the staffer claimed that they were merely referring to his status as a late booking.

Gumball 3000.

In the Gumball 3000 2007 rally, Xzibit drove a black Jaguar XJ220. During the first day of the rally, Dutch police seized his driver's license for doing 160 km/h in a 100 km/h zone. After the penalty, his co-driver, producer Fredwreck Nassar took over the wheel and they were allowed to continue. In an interview with Dutch radio personality Reinout "Q-Bah" van Gendt, Xzibit says that he mistook the kilometers for miles (100 mph = 160 km/h). Ultimately, he never got his license back from the Dutch police and had to apply for a new one in the United States. Xzibit competed again in both the 2013 and 2014 Gumball 3000.

Tax evasion.

According to public records, as of late 2010 Xzibit owed more than $900,000 in delinquent federal taxes.  He tried to file for bankruptcy twice, in July 2009 and January 2010, but his bankruptcy filings were dismissed. The problems started after "Pimp My Ride" was cancelled: in 2007 he earned $497,175; after the cancellation his 2008 income was reported as $67,510.

Alvin Nathaniel Joiner (born September 18, 1974), better known by his stage name Xzibit (pronounced "Exhibit"), is an American rapper, actor and broadcaster.

艾勒比(英语:Xzibit,1974年-9月18日)美国著名饶舌歌手、影视演员、电视节目主持人。


Taxonomy and systematics.

The shoebill was known to both ancient Egyptians and Arabs, but was not classified until the 19th century, after skins and eventually live specimens were brought to Europe. John Gould described it in 1850, giving it the name "Balaeniceps rex". The genus name comes from the Latin words "balaena" "whale", and "caput" "head", abbreviated to "-ceps" in compound words.  Traditionally allied with the storks (Ciconiiformes), it was retained there in the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy which lumped a massive number of unrelated taxa into their "Ciconiiformes". More recently, the shoebill has been considered to be closer to the pelicans (based on anatomical comparisons) or the herons (based on biochemical evidence). Microscopic analysis of eggshell structure by Konstantin Mikhailov in 1995 found that the eggshells of shoebills closely resembled those of other Pelecaniformes in having a covering of thick microglobular material over the crystalline shells. A recent DNA study reinforces their membership of the Pelecaniformes.  So far, two fossil relatives of the shoebill have been described: "Goliathia" from the early Oligocene of Egypt and "Paludavis" from the Early Miocene of the same country. It has been suggested that the enigmatic African fossil bird "Eremopezus" was a relative too, but the evidence for that is unconfirmed. All that is known of "Eremopezus" is that it was a very large, probably flightless bird with a flexible foot, allowing it to handle either vegetation or prey.

Description.

The shoebill is a tall bird, with a typical height range of and some specimens reaching as much as. Length from tail to beak can range from and wingspan is. Weight has reportedly ranged from. A male will weigh on average around and is larger than a typical female of. The signature feature of the species is its huge, bulbous bill, which is straw-coloured with erratic greyish markings. The exposed culmen (or the measurement along the top of the upper mandible) is, the third longest bill among extant birds after pelicans and large storks, and can outrival the pelicans in bill circumference, especially if the bill is considered as the hard, bony keratin portion. As in the pelicans, the upper mandible is strongly keeled, ending in a sharp nail. The dark coloured legs are fairly long, with a tarsus length of. The shoebill's feet are exceptionally large, with the middle toe reaching in length, likely assisting the species in its ability to stand on aquatic vegetation while hunting. The neck is relatively shorter and thicker than other long-legged wading birds such as herons and cranes. The wings are broad, with a wing chord length of, and well-adapted to soaring. The plumage of adult birds is blue-grey with darker slaty-grey flight feathers. The breast presents some elongated feathers, which have dark shafts. The juvenile has a similar plumage colour, but is a darker grey with a brown tinge. When they are first born, shoebills have a more modestly-sized bill, which is initially silvery-grey. The bill becomes more noticeably large when the chicks are 23 days old and becomes well developed by 43 days.

Flight pattern.

Its wings are held flat while soaring and, as in the pelicans and the storks of the genus "Leptoptilos", the shoebill flies with its neck retracted. Its flapping rate, at an estimated 150 flaps per minute, is one of the slowest of any bird, with the exception of the larger stork species. The pattern is alternating flapping and gliding cycles of approximately seven seconds each, putting its gliding distance somewhere between the larger storks and the Andean condor ("Vultur gryphus"). When flushed, shoebills usually try to fly no more than. Long flights of the shoebill are rare, and only a few flights beyond its minimum foraging distance of have been recorded.

Identification.

At close range, it can be easily identified by its unique features. In flight, if its unique bill cannot be seen, the shoebill's silhouette resembles that of a stork or condor, but its feathers are a distinctive medium blue-grey. Also unusual, its tail is the same colour as its wings. Under poor viewing conditions, its size and wingspan can distinguish it from other birds in its habitat. Its legs, roughly the length of storks', extend straight back far past its tail when in flight. The wing to tail size cannot be used for identification; it is similar to those of several other birds.

Distribution and habitat.

The shoebill is distributed in freshwater swamps of central tropical Africa, from southern Sudan and South Sudan through parts of eastern Congo, Rwanda, Uganda, western Tanzania and northern Zambia. The species is most numerous in the West Nile sub-region and South Sudan (especially the Sudd, a main stronghold for the species); it is also significant in wetlands of Uganda and western Tanzania. More isolated records have been reported of shoebills in Kenya, the Central African Republic, northern Cameroon, south-western Ethiopia, Malawi. Vagrant strays to the Okavango Basin, Botswana and the upper Congo River have also been sighted. The distribution of this species seems to largely coincide with that of papyrus and lungfish. They are often found in areas of flood plain interspersed with undisturbed papyrus and reedbeds. When shoebill storks are in an area with deep water, a bed of floating vegetation is a requirement. They are also found where there is poorly oxygenated water. This causes the fish living in the water to surface for air more often, increasing the likelihood a shoebill stork will successfully capture it. The shoebill is non-migratory with limited seasonal movements due to habitat changes, food availability and disturbance by humans.  Petroglyphs from Oued Djerat, eastern Algeria, show that the shoebill occurred during the Early Holocene much more to the north, in the wetlands that covered the present-day Sahara Desert at that time.  The shoebill occurs in extensive, dense freshwater marshes. Almost all wetlands that attract the species have undisturbed "Cyperus papyrus" and reed beds of "Phragmites" and "Typha". Although their distribution largely seems to correspond with the distribution of papyrus in central Africa, the species seems to avoid pure papyrus swamps and is often attracted to areas with mixed vegetation. More rarely, the species has been seen foraging in rice fields and flooded plantations.

Behaviour and ecology.

The shoebill is noted for its slow movements and tendency to stay still for long periods, resulting in descriptions of the species as "statue-like". They are quite sensitive to human disturbance and may abandon their nests if flushed by humans. However, while foraging, if dense vegetation stands between it and humans, this wader can be fairly tame. The shoebill is attracted to poorly oxygenated waters where fish frequently surface to breathe. Exceptionally for a bird this large, the shoebill often stands and perches on floating vegetation, making them appear somewhat like a giant jacana, although the similarly sized and occasionally sympatric Goliath heron ("Ardea goliath") is also known to stand on aquatic vegetation. Shoebills typically feed in muddy waters and, being solitary, forage at or more from one another even where relatively densely populated. This species stalks its prey patiently, in a slow and lurking fashion. While hunting, the shoebill strides very slowly and is frequently motionless. Unlike some other large waders, this species hunts entirely using vision and is not known to engage in tactile hunting. When prey is spotted, it launches a quick violent strike. However, depending on the size of the prey, handling time after the strike can exceed 10 minutes. Around 60% of strikes yield prey. Frequently water and vegetation is snatched up during the strike and is spilled out from the edges of the mandibles. The activity of hippopotamus may inadvertently benefit the shoebill, as submerged hippos occasionally force fish to the surface. Shoebills are largely piscivorous but are assured predators of a considerable range of wetland vertebrates. Preferred prey species have reportedly included marbled lungfish ("Protopterus aethiopicus") and Senegal bichir ("Polypterus senegalus") and various "Tilapia" species and catfish, the latter mainly in the genus "Clarias". Other prey eaten by this species has included frogs, water snakes, Nile monitors ("Varanus niloticus") and baby crocodiles. More rarely, turtles, snails, rodents and small waterfowl have reportedly been eaten. There is a single unconfirmed report of shoebills feeding on lechwe ("Kobus leche") calves. Given its sharp-edged beak, huge bill and wide gape, the shoebill can hunt large prey, often targeting prey bigger than is taken by other large wading birds. Fish eaten by this species are commonly in the range of long and weigh around, though lungfish of as much as have been attacked. Snakes preyed upon are commonly from long. In the Bangweulu Swamps of Zambia, the main prey items fed to young by the parents were the catfish "Clarias gariepinus" (syn. "C. mossambicus") and water snakes. In Uganda, lungfish and catfish were mainly fed to the young. The big beak is sometimes used to dig into pond-bottom mud to extract lungfish from their aestivation burrows.

Breeding.

The solitary nature of shoebills extends to their breeding habits. Nests typically occur at less than three nests per square kilometre, unlike herons, cormorants, pelicans and storks which predominantly nest in colonies. The breeding pair of shoebills vigorously defends a territory of from conspecifics. In the extreme north and south of the species' range, nesting starts right after the rains end. In more central regions of the range, it may nest near end of wet season in order to hatch around the beginning of the following wet season. Both parents engage in building the nest on floating platform, after clearing out an area of approximately across. The large, flattish nesting platform is often partially submerged in water and can be as much as deep. The nest itself is about wide. Both the nest and platform are made of aquatic vegetation. In Sudan, the nests apparently were able to support the weight of an adult man, although this was not the case in Zambia. From one to three white eggs are laid. These eggs measure high by and weigh around. Incubation lasts for approximately 30 days. Both parents actively brood, shade, guard and feed the nestling, though the females are perhaps slightly more attentive. Food items are regurgitated whole from the gullet straight into the bill of the young. Shoebills rarely raise more than one chick, but will hatch more. The younger chicks eventually die and are intended as "back-ups" in case the eldest chick dies or is weak. Fledging is reached at around 105 days and the young birds can fly well by 112 days. However, they are still fed for possibly a month or more after this. It will take the young shoebills three years before they become fully sexually mature.

Voice.

The shoebill is normally silent, but they perform bill-clattering displays at the nest. When engaging in these displays, adult birds have also been noted to utter a cow-like "moo" as well as high-pitched whines. Both nestlings and adults engage in bill-clattering during the nesting season as a means of communication. When young are begging for food, they call out with a sound uncannily like human hiccups. In one case, a flying adult bird was heard uttering hoarse croaks, apparently as a sign of aggression at a nearby marabou stork ("Leptoptilos crumeniferus").

Status and conservation.

The population is estimated at between and individuals, the majority of which live in swamps in South Sudan, Uganda, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Zambia. There is also a viable population in the Malagarasi wetlands in Tanzania. BirdLife International has classified it as Vulnerable with the main threats being habitat destruction, disturbance and hunting. The bird is listed under Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

Relationship to humans.

This species is considered to be one of the five most desirable birds in Africa by birdwatchers. They are docile with humans and show no threatening behavior. Researchers were able to observe a bird on its nest at a close distance (within 2 meters).

External links.

Shoebill tracking In East Africa - Where to see the Elusive whale head in East Africa.

The shoebill ("Balaeniceps rex") also known as whalehead, whale-headed stork, or shoe-billed stork, is a very large stork-like bird. It derives its name from its enormous shoe-shaped bill. It has a somewhat stork-like overall form and has previously been classified with the storks in the order Ciconiiformes based on this morphology. However, genetic evidence places it with the Pelecaniformes. The adult is mainly grey while the juveniles are browner. It lives in tropical east Africa in large swamps from South Sudan to Zambia.

鲸头鹳(学名:')是一种大型鸟类,它是鲸头鹳科和鲸头鹳属"'唯一的一个物种。它的种名「"rex"」在拉丁文中意为「帝王」,来自它强大的喙。


Etymology.

The reconstructed Proto-Oceanic word "mana" is thought to have referred to "powerful forces of nature such as thunder and storm winds" rather than supernatural power. That meaning became detached as the Oceanic-speaking peoples spread eastward and the word started to refer to unseen supernatural powers.

Polynesian culture.

Mana is a foundation of the Polynesian worldview, a spiritual quality with a supernatural origin and a sacred, impersonal force. To have "mana" implies influence, authority, and efficacy—the ability to perform in a given situation. The quality of "mana" is not limited to individuals; peoples, governments, places and inanimate objects may also possess "mana", and its possessors are accorded respect.

Hawaiian and Tahitian culture.

In Hawaiian and Tahitian culture, mana is a spiritual energy and healing power which can exist in places, objects and persons. Hawaiians believe that mana may be gained or lost by actions, and Hawaiians and Tahitians believe that mana is both external and internal. Sites on the Hawaiian Islands and in French Polynesia are believed to possess mana—for example, the top rim of the Haleakalā volcano on the island of Maui and the Taputapuatea marae on the island of Raiatea in the Society Islands.  Ancient Hawaiian believed that the island of Molokaʻi possesses mana, compared with its neighboring islands. Before the unification of Hawaii by King Kamehameha I, battles were fought for possession of the island and its south-shore fish ponds which existed until the late 19th century.  A person may gain mana by "pono" (right actions). In ancient Hawaii, there were two paths to mana: sexual means or violence. Nature is dualistic, and everything has a counterpart. A balance between the gods Kū and Lono formed, through whom are the two paths to mana ("ʻimihaku", or the search for mana). Kū, the god of war and politics, offers mana through violence; this was how Kamehameha gained his mana. Lono, the god of peace and fertility, offers mana through sexuality.

Māori (New Zealand) culture.

Māori use.

In Māori, a tribe with "mana whenua" must have demonstrated their authority over a territory. In Māori culture, there are two essential aspects of a person's mana: "mana tangata", authority derived from whakapapa (genealogy) and "mana huaanga", defined as "authority derived from having a wealth of resources to gift to others to bind them into reciprocal obligations". Hemopereki Simon, from Ngāti Tūwharetoa, asserts that there are many forms of mana in Maori culture. The indigenous word reflects a non-Western view of reality, complicating translation. This is confirmed by the definition of mana provided by Maori Marsden who states that mana is:Spiritual power and authority as opposed to the purely psychic and natural force — ihi.According to Prof. Margaret Mutu mana in its traditional sense means:Power, authority, ownership, status, influence, dignity, respect derived from the god[/atua].In terms of leadership Ngāti Kahungunu legal scholar Carwyn Jones comments that, "mana is the central concept that underlies Māori leadership and accountability." He also considers mana as a fundamental aspect of the constitutional traditions of Māori society.  According to the New Zealand Ministry of Justice:

General use.

In contemporary New Zealand English, the word "mana", taken from the Māori, refers to a person or organisation of people of great personal prestige and character. The increased use of the term mana in New Zealand society is as a result of the politicisation of Maori issues stemming from the Māori Renaissance.

Academic study.

Missionary Robert Henry Codrington traveled widely in Melanesia, publishing several studies of its language and culture. His 1891 book "The Melanesians: Studies in their Anthropology and Folk-Lore" contains the first detailed description of mana. Codrington defines it as "a force altogether distinct from physical power, which acts in all kinds of ways for good and evil, and which it is of the greatest advantage to possess or control".  His era had already defined animism, the concept that the energy (or life) in an object derives from a spiritual component. Georg Ernst Stahl's 18th-century animism was adopted by Edward Burnett Tylor, the founder of cultural anthropology, who presented his initial ideas about the history of religion in his 1865 "Researches into the Early History of Mankind" and developed them in volumes one (1871) and two (1874) of "Primitive Culture".

Tylor's cultural evolution.

In Tylor's cultural anthropology, other primates did not appear to possess culture.  Tylor did not try to find evidence of a non-cultural human state because he considered it unreachable, "a condition not far removed from that of the lower animals" and "savage life as in some sort representing an early known state." He described such a hypothetical state as "the human savage naked in both mind and body, and destitute of laws, or arts, or ideas, and almost of language". According to Tylor, speculation about an acultural state is impossible. Using the method of comparative culture, similar to comparative anatomy and the comparative method of historical linguistics and following John Lubbock, he drew up a dual classification of cultural traits (memes and memeplexes): savage and civilised. Tylor wrote, "From an ideal point of view, civilization may be looked upon as the general improvement of mankind by higher organization of the individual and of society... " and identified his model with the "progression-theory of civilization".

Evolution of religion.

Tylor cited a "minimum definition" of religion as "the belief in Spiritual Beings". Noting that no savage societies lack religion and that the initial state of a religious man is beyond reach, he enumerated two stages in the evolution of religion: a simple belief in individual animae (or Doctrine of Souls) and the elaboration of dogmas. The dogmas are systems of higher spirits commanding phases of nature. In volume two of "Primitive Culture", Tylor called this stage the Doctrine of Spirits. He used the word "animism" in two different senses. The first is religion itself: a belief in the spiritual as an effective energy, shared by every specific religion. In his progression theory, an undogmatic version preceded rational theological systems. Animism is the simple Theory of the Soul, which comparative religion attempts to reconstruct.  Tylor's work predated Codrington's, and he was unfamiliar with the latter. The concept of mana occasioned a revision of Tylor's view of the evolution of religion. The first anthropologist to formulate a revision (which he called "pre-animistic religion") was Robert Ranulph Marett, in a series of papers collected and published as "Threshold of Religion". In its preface he takes credit for the adjective "pre-animistic" but not the noun "pre-animism", although he does not attribute it.  According to Marett, "Animism will not suffice as a minimum definition of religion." Tylor had used the term "natural religion", consistent with Georg Ernst Stahl's concept of a natural spiritual energy. The soul of an animal, for example, is its vital principle. Marett wrote, "One must dig deeper" to find the "roots of religion".

Pre-animism.

Describing pre-animism, Marett cited the Melanesian mana (primarily with Codrington's work): "When the science of Comparative Religion employs a native expression such as mana... it is obliged to disregard to some extent its original or local meaning... Science, then, may adopt mana as a general category... ". In Melanesia the "animae" are the souls of living men, the ghosts of deceased men, and spirits "of ghost-like appearance" or imitating living people. Spirits can inhabit other objects, such as animals or stones.  The most significant property of mana is that it is distinct from, and exists independently of, its source. "Animae" act only through mana. It is impersonal, undistinguished, and (like energy) transmissible between objects, which can have more or less of it. Mana is perceptible, appearing as a "Power of awfulness" (in the sense of awe or wonder). Objects possessing it impress an observer with "respect, veneration, propitiation, service" emanating from the mana's power. Marett lists a number of objects habitually possessing mana: "startling manifestations of nature", "curious stones", animals, "human remains", blood, thunderstorms, eclipses, eruptions, glaciers, and the sound of a bullroarer.  If mana is a distinct power, it may be treated distinctly. Marett distinguishes spells, which treat mana quasi-objectively, and prayers (which address the "anima"). An "anima" may have departed, leaving mana in the form of a spell which can be addressed by magic. Although Marett postulates an earlier pre-animistic phase, a "rudimentary religion" or "magico-religious" phase in which the mana figures without "animae", "no island of pure 'pre-animism' is to be found." Like Tylor, he theorizes a thread of commonality between animism and pre-animism identified with the supernatural—the "mysterious", as opposed to the reasonable.

Criticism.

In 1936, Ian Hogbin criticised the universality of Marett's pre-animism: "Mana is by no means universal and, consequently, to adopt it as a basis on which to build up a general theory of primitive religion is not only erroneous but indeed fallacious". However, Marett intended the concept as an abstraction. Spells, for example, may be found "from Central Australia to Scotland."  Early 20th-century scholars also saw mana as a universal concept, found in all human cultures and expressing fundamental human awareness of a sacred life energy. In his 1904 essay, "Outline of a General Theory of Magic", Marcel Mauss drew on the writings of Codrington and others to paint a picture of mana as "power "par excellence", the genuine effectiveness of things which corroborates their practical actions without annihilating them". Mauss pointed out the similarity of mana to the Iroquois orenda and the Algonquian manitou, convinced of the "universality of the institution"; "a concept, encompassing the idea of magical power, was once found everywhere".  Mauss and his collaborator, Henri Hubert, were criticised for this position when their 1904 "Outline of a General Theory of Magic" was published. "No one questioned the existence of the notion of mana", wrote Mauss's biographer Marcel Fournier, "but Hubert and Mauss were criticized for giving it a universal dimension". Criticism of mana as an archetype of life energy increased. According to Mircea Eliade, the idea of mana is not universal; in places where it is believed, not everyone has it, and "even among the varying formulae ("mana", "wakan", "orenda", etc.) there are, if not glaring differences, certainly nuances not sufficiently observed in the early studies". "With regard to these theories founded upon the primordial and universal character of mana, we must say without delay that they have been invalidated by later research".

Mana is the spiritual life force energy or healing power that permeates the universe, in the culture of the Melanesians and Polynesians. Anyone or thing can have Mana. It is a cultivation or possession of energy and power, rather than being a source of power. It is an intentional force.

玛那(mana)此一名词在于大洋洲诸语系中被普遍的使用,此概念被认为是无人格的力量,等量地存在于人类、动物甚至是非动物的物体当中。根据人类学的归纳,玛那此一话语的功能在于解释:“被视为是构成魔法的基本要素;同时也是灵魂的组成成分。”


Plot.

Amateur tennis star Guy Haines wants to divorce his vulgar, promiscuous wife Miriam so he can marry the elegant Anne Morton, the daughter of a US Senator. On a train, Haines meets a smooth-talking psychopath, Bruno Antony, who tells him about his idea for a murder scheme: two perfect strangers meet and "swap murders" — Bruno suggests he kill Miriam and Guy kill Bruno's hated father. Each will kill a total stranger with no apparent motive, so neither will be suspected.  Guy humors Bruno by pretending to find his idea amusing, but Bruno mistakes Guy's response as agreement to the scheme. Eager to get away from Bruno, Guy forgets his monogrammed cigarette lighter, engraved "A to G" with crossed tennis rackets, which Bruno keeps. Guy meets with Miriam, who is pregnant by someone else, at her workplace in Metcalf, their hometown. Miriam informs Guy that she no longer wants to end their marriage and threatens to blackmail him by claiming that the baby is his to thwart any divorce.  After they argue loudly in front of Miriam's co-workers and Guy shakes her violently, Guy calls Anne and, speaking figuratively, says he would like to kill Miriam. Later, Bruno follows Miriam to an amusement park and strangles her to death while Guy is traveling on a train. When Guy arrives home, Bruno informs him Miriam is dead and insists he honor their deal by killing Bruno's father.  Guy goes to the Mortons' Washington, D.C. home, where Anne's father, Senator Morton, informs Guy that his wife has been murdered. Guy feigns ignorance, but Anne's sister Barbara says that the police will think that Guy is the murderer since he has a motive. The police question Guy, but are unable to confirm his alibi: a professor Guy met on the train was so drunk that he cannot remember their encounter. Instead of arresting Guy, the police assign a round-the-clock escort to ensure that

Cast.

Alfred Hitchcock's cameo appearance in this movie occurs 11 minutes into the film. He is seen carrying a double bass as he climbs onto a train. Young Louis Lettieri, a child actor during the 1950s, plays a little boy who has his balloon maliciously popped by Bruno in the amusement park murder scene.  Hitchcock said that correct casting saved him "a reel of storytelling time", since audiences would sense qualities in the actors that did not have to be spelled out. Hitchcock said that he originally wanted William Holden for the Guy Haines role, but Holden declined. "Holden would have been all wrong—too sturdy, too put off by Bruno", writes critic Roger Ebert. "Granger is softer and more elusive, more convincing as he tries to slip out of Bruno's conversational web instead of flatly rejecting him."

Production.

Pre-production.

Hitchcock secured the rights to the Patricia Highsmith novel for just $7,500 since it was her first novel. As usual, Hitchcock kept his name out of the negotiations to keep the purchase price low. Highsmith was quite annoyed when she later discovered who bought the rights for such a small amount.  Securing the rights to the novel was the least of the hurdles Hitchcock would have to vault to get the property from printed page to screen. He got a treatment that pleased him on the second attempt, from writer Whitfield Cook, who wove a homoerotic subtext (only hinted at in the novel) into the story and softened Bruno from a coarse alcoholic into a dapper, charming mama's boy — a much more Hitchcockian villain. With treatment in hand, Hitchcock shopped for a screenwriter; he wanted a "name" writer to

Production.

With cast nailed down, a script in hand, and a director of photography in tune with Hitchcock's vision on board, the company was ready to commence filming. Hitchcock had a crew shoot background footage of the 1950 Davis Cup finals held August 25–27, 1950 at the West Side Tennis Club in Forest Hills, New York. While there, the crew had done some other location scouting. Exteriors would be shot on both coasts, and interiors on Warner Brothers' soundstages.  Hitchcock and his cast and crew decamped for the East Coast on October 17, 1950. For six days, they shot at Penn Station in New York City, at the railroad station at Danbury, Connecticut—which became Guy's hometown Metcalf—and in spots around Washington, D.C.  By month's end, they were back in California. Hitchcock had written exacting specifications for an amusement park, which was constructed on the ranch of director Rowland Lee in Chatsworth, California. The

Music.

Composer Dimitri Tiomkin was Jack Warner's choice to score "Strangers on a Train". While he had previous Hitchcock experience on "Shadow of a Doubt" (1943), and would go on to score two more consecutive Hitchcock films, the director and composer "simply never developed much of a kinship" and "the Hitchcock films are not Tiomkin's best".  Nevertheless, the score does pick up on the ubiquitous theme of "doubles" — often "contrasting" doubles — right from the opening title sequence: "The first shot — two sets of male shoes, loud versus

Promotion and release.

With a release scheduled for early summer, the studio press agents swung into high gear early in 1951. Hitchcock, promotionally photographed many times over the years strangling various actresses and other women — some one-handed, others two — found himself in front of a camera with his fingers around the neck of a bust of daughter Patricia; the photo found its way into newspapers nationwide. He was also photographed adding the letter "L" to "Strangers" on the official studio poster for the film, thus changing the word to "Stranglers".  One studio press release gave rise to a myth that still lingers on today. Hitchcock and Patricia both were afraid of heights, and father offered daughter a hundred dollars to ride the Ferris wheel — only to order the power cut, leaving her in the dark at the very top of the ride. The press release embellished the tale, claiming he left her "dangling in total darkness for an hour," only then allowing his "trembling daughter" to be lowered

Themes and motifs.

The film includes a number of puns and visual metaphors that demonstrate a running motif of crisscross, double-crossing, and crossing one's double. Talking about the structure of the film, Hitchcock said to Truffaut, "Isn't it a fascinating design? One could study it forever."  The two characters, Guy and Bruno, can be viewed as doppelgängers. As with "Shadow of a Doubt", "Strangers on a Train" is one of many Hitchcock films to explore the doppelgänger theme. The pair has what writer Peter Dellolio refers to as a "dark symbiosis." Bruno embodies Guy's dark desire to kill Miriam, a "real-life incarnation of Guy's wish-fulfillment fantasy".

Doubles.

The theme of "doubles" is "the key element in the film's structure," and Hitchcock starts right off in his title sequence making this point: there are two taxicabs, two redcaps, two pairs of feet, two sets of train rails that cross twice. Once on the train, Bruno orders a pair of double drinks — "The only kind of doubles I play", he says charmingly. In Hitchcock's cameo he carries a double bass.  Hitchcock carries the theme into his editing, crosscutting between Guy and Bruno with words and gestures: one asks the time and the other, miles away, looks at his watch; one says in anger "I could strangle her!" and the other, far distant, makes a choking gesture.  This doubling has some precedent in the novel; but more of it was deliberately

Darkness–light continuum.

It is those flaws that set up the real themes of "Strangers." It was not enough for Hitchcock to construct merely a world of doubles — even contrasting doubles — in a strict polar-opposite structure; for Hitchcock, the good-and-evil, darkness-and-light poles "didn't have to be mutually exclusive." Blurring the lines puts both Guy and Bruno on a good-evil continuum, and the infinite shades of gray in between, became Hitchcock's canvas for telling the story and painting his characters.  At first glance, Guy represents the ordered life where people stick to rules, while Bruno comes from the world of chaos, where they get thrown out of multiple colleges for drinking and gambling. Yet "[b]oth men, like so many of Hitchcock's protagonists, are insecure and uncertain of their identity. Guy is suspended between tennis and politics, between his tramp wife and his senator's daughter, and

Light and dark onscreen.

Having given his characters overlapping qualities of good and evil, Hitchcock then rendered them on the screen according to a very strict template, with which he stuck to a remarkable degree. Ebert wrote:  Nowhere is this more evident than the scene where Guy arrives home at his D.C. apartment to find Bruno lurking across the street; Bruno killed Miriam that evening in Metcalf, and has her glasses to give to Guy almost as a "receipt" that he has executed "his" part of their "deal". "On one side of the street, [are] stately respectable houses; towering in the background, on the right of the screen, the floodlit dome of the U.S. Capitol, the life to which Guy

Political subtext.

Although its first rumblings came in 1947 with the trial and conviction of the "Hollywood Ten", the so-called Red Scare was gathering steam in 1950, with the espionage-related arrests of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg and the trial of Alger Hiss. These events were the background to their work, while Hitchcock, Cook, Ormonde and Keon were preparing the script for "Strangers", and film scholar Robert L. Carringer has written of a political subtext

Differences from the novel.

Even before sewing up the rights for the novel, Hitchcock's mind was whirling with ideas about how to adapt it for the screen. He narrowed the geographic scope to the Northeast corridor, between Washington, D.C. and New York — the novel ranged through the southwest and Florida, among other locales. The scripting team added the tennis match — and the crosscutting with Bruno's storm drain travails in Metcalf — added the cigarette lighter, the Tunnel of Love, Miriam's eyeglasses; in fact, the amusement park is only a brief setting in the novel.  Hitchcock's biggest changes were in his two lead characters:  The character called Bruno Antony in the film is called Charles Anthony Bruno in the book. "Highsmith's Bruno is a physically repugnant alcoholic... but in [Whitfield Cook's] hands,

Reception.

Critical reaction.

Upon its release in 1951, "Strangers on a Train" received mixed reviews. "Variety" praised it, writing: "Performance-wise, the cast comes through strongly. Granger is excellent as the harassed young man innocently involved in murder. Roman's role as a nice, understanding girl is a switch for her, and she makes it warmly effective. Walker's role has extreme color, and he projects it deftly."  Conversely, Bosley Crowther of "The New York Times" criticized the film: "Mr. Hitchcock again is tossing a crazy murder story in the air and trying to con us into thinking that it will stand up without support.... Perhaps there will be those in the audience who will likewise be terrified by the villain's darkly menacing warnings and by Mr. Hitchcock's sleekly melodramatic tricks.... But, for all that, his basic premise of fear fired by menace is so thin and so utterly unconvincing that the story just does not stand." Leslie Halliwell felt that Hitchcock was "at his best" and that the film "makes superior suspense entertainment," but called the story "unsatisfactory."  More recent criticism is generally, though not

Box office.

According to Warner Bros' records, the

Accolades.

American Film Institute listed the

Alternate versions.

An early preview edit of the film, sometimes labeled the "British" version although it was never released in Britain or anywhere else, includes some scenes either not in, or else different from, the film as released. According to biographer Charlotte Chandler (Lyn Erhard), Hitchcock himself did not like either the "British" "or" the "American" version:  In 1997, Warner released the

Legacy.

"Strangers on a Train" was adapted for the radio program "Lux Radio Theatre" on two occasions: on December 3, 1951, with Ruth Roman, Frank Lovejoy, and Ray Milland, and on April 12, 1954, with Virginia Mayo, Dana Andrews, and Robert Cummings. In 2015, it was announced that director David Fincher and writer Gillian Flynn are working on a remake for Hitchcock's film, retitled as "Strangers", which is said to be a "modern take" on the story.  BBC Radio 4's "Afternoon Play" broadcast on 29 September 2011 was "Strangers on a Film" by Stephen Wyatt, which gives an imagined account of a series of meetings between Hitchcock (Clive Swift) and Raymond Chandler (Patrick Stewart), as they unsuccessfully attempt to create the screenplay for "Strangers on a Train".  The film has also been the inspiration for other book, film or television projects with similar themes of criss-cross murder, often treated comically. They include:

Strangers on a Train is a 1951 American psychological thriller film noir produced and directed by Alfred Hitchcock, and based on the 1950 novel "Strangers on a Train" by Patricia Highsmith. It was shot in the autumn of 1950 and released by Warner Bros. on June 30, 1951.

《火车怪客》(英语:"Strangers on a Train")是英国导演亚佛烈德·希区考克所执导的一部美国犯罪惊悚电影,于1951年上映,为希区考克生涯的代表作之一。改编自美国女作家派翠西亚·海史密斯所著的1950年Strangers on a Train (novel)。由花利·格兰加、露丝·罗曼、Robert Walker (actor)主演。


Club career.

River Plate.

Born in Justiniano Posse, Córdoba, Demichelis started playing professionally in 2001, with Buenos Aires-based Club Atlético River Plate, having arrived at the club's youth system three years earlier.  He made his first-team – and first division – debut on 2 September 2001 in a game against Estudiantes de La Plata, scoring his only goal for the team against Rosario Central.

Bayern Munich.

Demichelis signed for FC Bayern Munich in the 2003 summer, for €4.5 million. His first season in the Bundesliga was not very positive as he suffered a number of minor injuries, appearing in only 14 league games (21 in total) as the Bavarians finished in second position; in early 2004 he appeared in his only game with the reserves, against Stuttgarter Kickers.  Under new coach Felix Magath, Demichelis became a regular starter for Bayern, appearing in 75 official matches in two seasons combined as the team won back-to-back doubles, achieving a total of four during his spell.  New Bayern boss Ottmar Hitzfeld successfully reconverted Demichelis from a defensive midfielder into a central defender. In 2008–09 he netted a career-best four goals in 29 games, but the title was lost to VfL Wolfsburg. However, the player often clashed with the new manager Louis van Gaal, starting immediately after the first matchday after being dropped from the starting XI for the 2010–11 opener against Wolfsburg, with Demichelis requesting that van Gaal omit him from the squad altogether, which the coach did; the player thereafter voiced to the press that it would be probable that he and the club went separate ways.  On 29 October 2010, benefitting from a run of injuries in the squad, Demichelis made one of his last appearances for Bayern, heading a goal in a 4–2 home win against SC Freiburg.

Málaga / Atlético Madrid.

In late December 2010, Demichelis agreed to a deal with Spanish club Málaga CF, initially until the end of the 2010–11 season, with the latter retaining the option to extend the contract for a further two seasons. He rejoined former River Plate manager Manuel Pellegrini, and made his La Liga debut on 8 January 2011, scoring in a 1–1 home draw against Athletic Bilbao.  During his first four months with Málaga, Demichelis was sent off twice, but also started in all the matches he was available, being essential – as another January 2011 signee, Júlio Baptista – as the club eventually avoided relegation. On 22 August 2012 he scored the club's first-ever UEFA Champions League goal, netting the opener in the 2–0 playoff home win against Panathinaikos FC (also the aggregate score).  On 11 July 2013, Demichelis signed for Atlético Madrid on a one-year contract, after his link with Málaga expired. In December he started legal action against the latter over "non-payments", relating to "€400,000 of unpaid wages as well as bonuses".

Manchester City.

On 1 September 2013, Demichelis joined former Málaga boss Pellegrini and signed with Manchester City, penning a two-year contract for a reported £4.2 million. He had been with Atlético for less than two months, and had yet to make an appearance.  Demichelis made his first appearance for his new club on 27 October 2013, starting in a 1–2 Premier League loss at Chelsea after recovering from a knee injury. On 18 February of the following year, he was sent off against FC Barcelona in the club's Champions League round-of-16 0–2 home defeat, after fouling Lionel Messi and giving away a penalty.  Despite Demichelis's rocky start at City, Pellegrini kept faith in him. On 15 March 2014, after club captain Vincent Kompany was sent off, he was instrumental in a 2–0 victory over Hull City. The following weekend he scored his first goal, contributing to a 5–0 home win over Fulham; his good run of form in the last two months of the season helped his team win the league title, and also helped him rejoin the national side.  On 12 March 2015, Demichelis renewed his expiring contract until June of the following year. A year later, he was charged by The Football Association for 12 breaches of their rules against gambling on matches, and accepted the charge; he was fined £22,058 for the breach.  On 10 June 2016, Demichelis was released.

Espanyol.

On 10 August 2016, at nearly 36, Demichelis signed a one-year contract with Spanish club RCD Espanyol. On 10 January 2017, however, after only two appearances, he was released.

Málaga return.

Demichelis returned to the La Rosaleda Stadium on 17 January 2017, agreeing to a five-month deal. On 15 May, he announced his retirement.

International career.

Demichelis made his debut for Argentina in 2005. Also in that year he was selected by national team manager José Pekerman for the FIFA Confederations Cup, but did not leave the bench during the tournament.  On 11 September 2007, Demichelis scored his first international goal, in a friendly match against Australia, his header being the game's only goal. On 3 March 2010 he suffered a facial injury during an exhibition game with Germany, being sidelined for three weeks, but was nonetheless summoned for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.  Under Diego Maradona, Demichelis played in all of Argentina's games at the World Cup in South Africa, partnering Nicolás Burdisso in central defense in an eventual quarter-final exit. On 22 June 2010, he scored the first goal in the 2–0 group stage win against Greece.  Demichelis lost his place in the national side in November 2011, after a World Cup qualifier against Bolivia. A two-and-a-half-year absence followed, until he was included in Alejandro Sabella's provisional 30-man squad for the 2014 World Cup. He ending up making the final list. On the bench for the team's first four games, Demichelis made his debut in the tournament in the 1–0 quarter-final win over Belgium in which he played the full 90 minutes, taking the place of Federico Fernandez. He went on to start in the semi-finals where his team eliminated the Netherlands in a penalty shootout after a 0-0 draw, and again in the final against Germany and picked up the runners-up medal as Argentina lost 1–0 after extra time.

Personal life.

Demichelis also holds an Italian passport. He married model Evangelina Anderson in July 2015 in Buenos Aires, after the couple's child, Martín Bastian, had been born in Munich on 3 May 2009. On 19 February 2019, a group of burglars broke into his house. Demichelis reportedly found four hooded men in his Spanish property and protected his family by scaring them off. Some valuable items including cash and jewellery were stolen.

Honours.

Club.

River Plate  Bayern Munich  Manchester City

International.

Argentina

Martín Gastón Demichelis (; born 20 December 1980) is an Argentine retired professional footballer who played usually as a central defender, although he could also operate as a defensive midfielder.

马丁·德米凯利斯(,1980年-12月20日),已退役阿根廷职业足球员,绰号「将军」,司职后卫,曾效力英格兰球会曼城,以及西甲马拉加。