History.

The first known inhabitants of the Upper Peninsula were tribes speaking Algonquian languages. They arrived roughly around A.D. 800 and subsisted chiefly from fishing. Early tribes included the Menominee, Nocquet, and the Mishinimaki. Étienne Brûlé of France was probably the first European to visit the peninsula, crossing the St. Marys River around 1620 in search of a route to the Far East. French colonists laid claim to the land in the 17th century, establishing missions and fur trading posts such as Sault Ste. Marie and St. Ignace. Following the end of the French and Indian War (part of the Seven Years' War) in 1763, the territory was ceded to Great Britain. Sault Ste Marie is the oldest European settlement in Michigan and the site of Native American settlements for centuries.  American Indian tribes formerly allied with the French were dissatisfied with the British occupation, which brought new territorial policies. Whereas the French cultivated alliances among the Indians, the British postwar approach was to treat the tribes as conquered peoples. In 1763, tribes united in Pontiac's Rebellion to try to drive the British from the area. American Indians captured Fort Michilimackinac, at present-day Mackinaw City, then the principal fort of the British in the Michilimackinac region, as well as others and killed hundreds of British. In 1764, they began negotiations with the British which resulted in temporary peace and changes in objectionable British policies.  Although the Upper Peninsula nominally became United States territory with the 1783 Treaty of Paris, the British did not give up control until 1797 under terms of the Jay Treaty. As an American territory, the Upper Peninsula was still dominated by the fur trade. John Jacob Astor founded the American Fur Company on Mackinac Island in 1808; however, the industry began to decline in the 1830s as beaver and other game were overhunted.  When the Michigan Territory was first established in 1805, it included only the Lower Peninsula and the eastern portion of the Upper Peninsula. In 1819, the territory was expanded to include the remainder of the Upper Peninsula, all of what later became Wisconsin, and part of Minnesota (previously included in the Indiana and Illinois Territories). When Michigan applied for statehood in the 1830s, the proposal corresponded to the original territorial boundaries.  However, there was an armed conflict known as the Toledo War with the state of Ohio over the location of their mutual border. Meanwhile, the people of Michigan approved a constitution in May 1835 and elected state officials in late autumn 1835. Although the state government was not yet recognized by the United States Congress, the territorial government effectively ceased to exist. President Andrew Jackson's government offered the remainder of the Upper Peninsula to Michigan, if it would cede the Toledo Strip to Ohio. A constitutional convention of the state legislature refused, but a second convention, hastily convened by Governor Stevens Thomson Mason, consisting primarily of his supporters, agreed in December 1836 to the deal. In January 1837, the U.S. Congress admitted Michigan as a state of the Union. At the time, Michigan was considered the losing party in the compromise. The land in the Upper Peninsula was described in a federal report as a "sterile region on the shores of Lake Superior destined by soil and climate to remain forever a wilderness." This belief changed when rich mineral deposits (primarily copper and iron) were discovered in the 1840s. The Upper Peninsula's mines produced more mineral wealth than the California Gold Rush, especially after shipping was improved by the opening of the Soo Locks in 1855, and docks in Marquette in 1859. The Upper Peninsula supplied 90% of America's copper by the 1860s. It was the largest supplier of iron ore by the 1890s, and production continued to a peak in the 1920s, but sharply declined shortly afterward. The last copper mine closed in 1995, although the majority of mines had closed decades before. Some iron mining continues near Marquette. The Eagle Mine, a nickel-copper mine, opened in 2014.  Thousands of Americans and immigrants moved to the area during the mining boom, prompting the federal government to create Fort Wilkins near Copper Harbor to maintain order. The first wave were the Cornish from England, with centuries of mining experience; followed by Irish, Germans, and French Canadians. During the 1890s, Finnish immigrants began settling there in large numbers, forming the population plurality in the northwestern half of the peninsula. In the early 20th century, 75% of the population was foreign-born.  From 1861 to 1865, 90,000 Michigan men fought in the American Civil War, including 1,209 from the Upper Peninsula. Houghton County contributed 460 soldiers, while Marquette County, Michigan sent 265.  There was a boundary dispute over the border with Wisconsin. The northwestern most portion of the border follows a line from Lac Vieux Desert to the headwaters of the Montreal River. An 1847 survey established the east branch of the Montreal River as the border. However, the 1908 revision of the Constitution of Michigan specified that the west branch of the Montreal River was the proper border, which would have placed at additional 360 square miles of land on the Michigan side of the border. A 1926 Supreme Court decision awarded this tract of land to Wisconsin.

Geography.

The Upper Peninsula contains, about 29 percent of the land area of the state (exclusive of territorial waters, which constitute about 40% of Michigan's total jurisdictional area). The maximum east–west distance in the Upper Peninsula is about, and the maximum north–south distance is about. It is bounded on the north by Lake Superior, on the east by St. Marys River, on the south by Lake Michigan and Lake Huron, and on the west by Wisconsin and (counting the water border on Lake Superior) by Minnesota. It has about of continuous shoreline with the Great Lakes. There are about 4,300 inland lakes, the largest of which is Lake Gogebic, and of streams.  Michigan's Upper Peninsula is bounded on land by Wisconsin to the southwest and west; and in territorial waters by Minnesota to the west, Ontario to the west, north and east, and the Door Peninsula of Wisconsin extends into Lake Michigan east of the western Upper Peninsula.  Five Michigan Upper Peninsula counties include nearby major islands: Mackinac Island, Round Island and Bois Blanc Island in Lake Huron are in Mackinac County; Sugar Island and Neebish Island in the St. Marys River, and Drummond Island in Lake Huron are in Chippewa County; Grand Island is in Alger County; Summer Island is Delta County; and Isle Royale is part of Keweenaw County.The peninsula is divided between the flat, swampy areas in the east, part of the Great Lakes Plain, and the steeper, more rugged western half, called the Superior Upland, part of the Canadian Shield. The rock in the western portion is the result of volcanic eruptions and is estimated to be at least 3.5 billion years old (much older than the eastern portion) and contains the region's ore resources. Banded-iron formations were deposited 2 billion years ago; this is the Marquette Range Supergroup. A considerable amount of bedrock is visible. Mount Arvon, the highest point in Michigan, is found in the region, as well as the Porcupine and Huron mountains. All of the higher areas are the remnants of ancient peaks, worn down over millions of years by erosion and glaciers.  The Keweenaw Peninsula is the northernmost part of the peninsula (not counting Isle Royale, which is politically part of the UP). It projects into Lake Superior and was the site of the first copper boom in the United States, part of a larger region of the peninsula called the Copper Country. Copper Island is its northernmost section. Its lowest elevation is along the shoreline of Lake Huron and Lake Michigan, averaging above sea level. Its highest elevation is Mount Arvon, at.  About one third of the peninsula is government-owned recreational forest land today, including the Ottawa National Forest and Hiawatha National Forest. Although heavily logged in the 19th century, the majority of the land was forested with mature trees by the 1970s.

Wildlife.

The Upper Peninsula contains a large variety of wildlife. Some of the mammals found in the UP include shrews, moles, mice, white-tailed deer, moose, black bears, cougar, gray and red foxes, wolves, river otters, martens, fishers, muskrats, bobcats, coyotes, snowshoe hares, cotton-tail rabbits, porcupines, chipmunks, squirrels, raccoons, opossum and bats. There is a large variety of birds, including hawks, osprey, owls, gulls, hummingbirds, chickadees, robins (the state bird), woodpeckers, warblers, and bald eagles. In terms of reptiles and amphibians, the UP has common garter snakes, red bellied snakes, pine snakes, northern water snakes, brown snakes, eastern garter snakes, eastern fox snakes, eastern ribbon back snakes, green snakes, northern ringneck snakes, Eastern Milk Snakes (Mackinac and Marquette counties) and Eastern Hognose snakes (Menominee County only), plus snapping turtles, wood turtles, and painted turtles (the state reptile), green frogs, bullfrogs, northern leopard frogs, and salamanders. Lakes and rivers contain many fish such as walleye, muskie, northern pike, trout, salmon, bullhead catfish, and bass. Invasive species like the alewife and sea lamprey can be found in the Great Lakes. The UP also contains many shellfish, such as clams, aquatic snails, and crayfish. The American Bird Conservancy and the National Audubon Society have designated several locations as internationally Important Bird Areas.  There is significant controversy over the presence of Eastern Cougars in the UP. Historically, the last of the species, or subspecies, was extirpated near Newberry in 1906, although there have been sightings of the creatures over the years since. These reports increased in number over the first decade of the 21st century. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Environment (DNRE) formed a four-person team to investigate sightings in the state. The biologists with the DNRE currently do not believe that there is a breeding population anywhere in the state, rather that the sighted animals are visitors to the state. As late as January 2007, the DNRE's official position was that no cougars lived in Michigan. Several residents in the state disagree with both current and previous positions on the part of the DNRE. Researchers at Central Michigan University and the Michigan Wildlife Conservancy in 2006 published the findings of a study using DNA analysis of fecal samples taken in the Upper and Lower peninsulas that showed the presence of cougars at the time. These results were disputed in a second journal article in 2007 by other researchers from Eastern Michigan University and the U.S. Forest Service. A citizen's group, the Michigan Citizens for Cougar Recognition (MCCR), independently tracked sightings and in 2009 listed Delta County as the location with the greatest number of reports in the state. The DNRE verified five sets of tracks and two trail camera photos in Delta, Chippewa, Marquette, and Menominee counties since 2008. DNRE officials acknowledge that there are cougars in the UP, but not elsewhere in the state. Critics of the DNRE's position on the species, including the founder of the MCCR, say that the department is attempting to "avoid paying for a cougar management program".  There are also many invasive species that are primarily brought in the ballast water of foreign ships, usually from the ocean bordering Northeastern Asia. This water is dumped directly into the Great Lakes, depositing a variety of fresh and salt water fish and invertebrates, most notably the zebra mussel, "Dreissena polymorpha". There are also many plant species that have been transported to the Great Lakes, including Purple Loosestrife "Lythrum salicaria" and "Phragmites australis", both of which are considered to be a threat to native hydrophyte wetland plants.  The Emerald ash borer was first reported in the UP at Brimley State Park, and is considered to be a serious ecological threat to the habitat and economy.

Climate.

The Upper Peninsula has a humid continental climate ("Dfb" in the Köppen climate classification system). The Great Lakes have a great effect on the larger part of the peninsula. Winters tend to be long, cold, and snowy for most of the peninsula, and because of its northern latitude, the daylight hours are short—around 8 hours between sunrise and sunset in the winter. Lake Superior has the greatest effect on the area, especially the northern and western parts. Lake-effect snow causes many areas to get in excess of of snow per year—especially in the Keweenaw Peninsula and Gogebic County, and to a lesser extent Baraga, Marquette and Alger counties, making the western UP a prominent part of the midwestern snow belt.  Records of of snow or more have been set in many communities in this area. The Keweenaw Peninsula averages more snowfall than any other location east of the Mississippi River. Because of the howling storms across Lake Superior, which cause dramatic amounts of precipitation, it has been said that the lake-effect snow makes the Keweenaw Peninsula the snowiest place east of the Rockies. Herman averages of snow every year. Lake-effect snow can cause blinding whiteouts in just minutes, and some storms can last for days. Hancock is found frequently on lists of the snowiest cities in America.  The banana belt along the Wisconsin border has a more continental climate since most of its weather does not arrive from the lakes. Summers tend to be warmer and winter nights much colder. Coastal communities have temperatures tempered by the Great Lakes. In summer, it might be cooler at lakeside than it is inland, and the opposite effect is seen in winter. The area of the Upper Peninsula north of Green Bay though Menominee and Escanaba (and extending west to Iron River) does not have the extreme weather and precipitation found to the north. The coldest temperature officially recorded in the Upper Peninsula was in Humboldt in January 1915.

Time zones.

Like the entire Lower Peninsula, most of the Upper Peninsula observes Eastern Time. However, the four counties bordering Wisconsin are in the Central Time zone.  In 1967, when the Uniform Time Act came into effect, the Upper Peninsula went under year-round CST, with no daylight saving time. In 1973, the majority of the peninsula switched to Eastern Time; only the four western border counties of Gogebic, Iron, Dickinson, and Menominee continue to observe Central Time. Daylight saving time is observed peninsula-wide.

Government.

There are 15 counties in the Upper Peninsula.  State prisons are located in Baraga, Marquette, Munising, Newberry, Marenisco and Kincheloe.

Politics.

Historically, the Upper Peninsula tended to vote for the Democratic Party due to its legacy of mining and historically high union membership. However, as union strength in the peninsula has declined, the region has become steadily less receptive to the Democratic party, and has alternately swung toward either party in recent years. Split-ticket voting has become a common practice in the peninsula. In the 2012 presidential election, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney carried all but two counties. In the 2016 presidential election, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump won all counties across the Upper Peninsula except Marquette County.  All counties in the UP are part of Michigan's 1st congressional district. Jack Bergman, a Republican, has been the U.S. Representative for this district since January 2017.  In Michigan's 2010 gubernatorial election Republican Rick Snyder carried every UP county but one, Gogebic, on his way to victory over his Democratic opponent, Virg Bernero.

Proposed statehood.

Due to the geographic separation and perceived cultural and political differences from the Lower Peninsula, at various times there have been proposals for the Upper Peninsula to secede from Michigan as a 51st state named "Superior", sometimes including portions of northern Wisconsin and/or the northern Lower Peninsula. Several prominent legislators, including the region's long-serving state representative Dominic Jacobetti, attempted unsuccessfully to gain passage of such a bill in the 1970s. It would be the least populous state in the union, and as stronger connections to the rest of Michigan have developed since completion of the Mackinac Bridge in the 1950s, the proposal's future is unclear.

Demographics.

The Upper Peninsula remains a predominantly rural region. As of the 2010 census, the region had a population of 311,361—scarcely more than 3% of Michigan's total population.  According to the 2010 census, 103,211 people live in the 12 towns of at least 4,000 people, covering. A total of 116,548 people live in the 18 towns and villages of at least 2,000 people, which cover —less than 1% of the peninsula's land area.  Federal censuses indicate that the population of the Upper Peninsula grew throughout the 19th century as European settlers moved into the region, then boomed around the turn of the century, and experienced gradual decline overall during most of the 20th century. The decline was uneven, however: the population in the largest cities – Marquette, Sault Ste Marie, and Escanaba – grew somewhat, while smaller cities and non-urban areas have generally declined in population. The six westernmost counties experienced the largest decrease, from a 1920 population of 153,674 to a 2010 population of 82,668. Many ghost towns exist in the region.  A "" indicates an increase in population from the previous census, and a "" indicates a decrease in population from the previous census.

Economy.

Industries.

The Upper Peninsula is rich in mineral deposits, including iron, copper, nickel and silver. Small amounts of gold have also been discovered and mined. In the 19th century, mining dominated the economy, and the UP became home to many isolated company towns. For many years, mines in the Keweenaw Peninsula were the world's largest producers of copper (see Copper mining in Michigan). The mines began declining as early as 1913, with most closing temporarily during the Great Depression. Mines reopened during World War II, but almost all quickly closed after the war ended. The last copper mine in the Copper Country was the White Pine mine, which closed in 1995.  From approximately 1870 to 1915, about 32 quarries mined Jacobsville Sandstone in the Upper Peninsula, particularly near Marquette and the town of Jacobsville. The sandstone was used in many buildings, both locally and around the United States.  Since logging of white pine began in the 1880s, timber has been an important industry. Stands of hemlock and hardwood in the western reaches of the forest experienced larger scale selection-cutting beginning in the mid-20th century. Because of the highly seasonal climate and the short growing season, agriculture is limited in the Upper Peninsula, though potatoes, strawberries and a few other small fruits are grown.  Tourism has become the main industry in recent decades. In 2005, ShermanTravel, LLC listed the Upper Peninsula as #10 in its assessment of all travel destinations worldwide. The peninsula has extensive coastline on the Great Lakes, large tracts of state and national forests, cedar swamps, more than 150 waterfalls, and low population densities. Because of the camping, boating, fishing, snowmobiling, hunting, and hiking opportunities, many Lower Peninsula and Wisconsin families spend their vacations in the UP, and tourists visit from Detroit, Chicago, Grand Rapids, Milwaukee, and other metropolitan areas. The opening of the Mackinac Bridge in 1957 (see below) has made the Upper Peninsula easily accessible to tourists from the Lower Peninsula and southeast of Michigan, and has helped make the UP a year-round tourist destination.  In 2004, microbreweries began opening across the Upper Peninsula, with 14 by 2014, and 23 by 2019. In 2019, their annual economic impact totaled $346 million., three of Michigan's fifty largest breweries were in the Upper Peninsula: Keweenaw Brewing Company, Blackrocks Brewery, and the Ore Dock Brewing Company.

Casinos.

American Indian casinos contribute to the tourist attractions and are popular in the UP. Originally the casinos were simple, one-room affairs. Some of the casinos are now quite elaborate and are being developed as part of resort and conference facilities, including features such as golf courses, pool and spa, dining, and rooms to accommodate guests.

Transportation.

The Upper Peninsula is separated from the Lower by the Straits of Mackinac, five miles (8 km) across at the narrowest, and is connected to it by the Mackinac Bridge at St. Ignace, one of the longest suspension bridges in the world. Until the bridge was completed in 1957, travel between the two peninsulas was difficult and slow (and sometimes even impossible during winter months). In 1881, the Mackinac Transportation Company was established by three railroads, the Michigan Central Railroad, the Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad, and the Detroit, Mackinac and Marquette Railroad, to operate a railroad car ferry across the Straits. Beginning in 1923, the State of Michigan operated automobile ferries between the two peninsulas. At the busiest times of year the wait was several hours long. In winter, travel was possible over the ice only after the straits had solidly frozen.

Highways.

State trunkline highways.

Of the many "M-" prefixed trunklines crisscrossing the UP, the four longest (in order of length) are,

Airports.

There are 43 airports in the Upper Peninsula. Of these, six airports have commercial passenger service: Gogebic-Iron County Airport north of Ironwood, Houghton County Memorial Airport southwest of Calumet, Ford Airport west of Iron Mountain, Sawyer International Airport south of Marquette, Delta County Airport in Escanaba, and Chippewa County International Airport south of Sault Ste. Marie. There are 19 other public use airports with a hard surface runway. These are used for general aviation and charter. Notably, Mackinac Island, Beaver Island, and Drummond Island are all accessible by airports. There are five public access airports with turf runways and thirteen airports for the private use of their owners. There is only one control tower in the Upper Peninsula, at Sawyer.

Ferries and bridges.

The Eastern Upper Peninsula Transportation Authority operates car ferries in its area. These include ferries for Sugar Island, Neebish Island, and Drummond Island. Three ferry companies run passenger ferries from St. Ignace to Mackinac Island.  The three major bridges in the Upper Peninsula are:

Bus systems.

Despite its rural character, there are public buses in several counties of the Upper Peninsula.

Education.

The Upper Peninsula of Michigan has three state universities (Lake Superior State University in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan Technological University in Houghton, and Northern Michigan University in Marquette), one private university (Finlandia University located in Hancock, Michigan, on the Keweenaw Peninsula), and five community colleges (Bay Mills Community College in Brimley, Bay de Noc Community College in Escanaba and Iron Mountain, Gogebic Community College in Ironwood, and Keweenaw Bay Ojibwa Community College in Baraga).

Culture.

Early settlers included multiple waves of people from Nordic countries, and people of Finnish ancestry make up 16% of the peninsula's population; the UP is home to the highest concentration of Finns outside Europe and the only counties of the United States where a plurality of residents claim Finnish ancestry. The Finnish sauna and the concept of sisu have been adopted widely by residents of the Upper Peninsula. The television program "Finland Calling" was for a long period the only Finnish-language television broadcast in the United States; it aired on Marquette station WLUC-TV from March 25, 1962, until March 29, 2015. Finlandia University, America's only college with Finnish roots, is located in Hancock. Street signs in Hancock appear in English and Finnish to celebrate this heritage.  Other sizable ethnic communities in the Upper Peninsula include French-Canadian, German, Cornish, Italian, and Ojibwe ancestry.  Upper Peninsula natives speak a dialect influenced by Scandinavian and French-Canadian speech. A popular bumper sticker, a parody of the "Say YES to Michigan" slogan promoted by state tourism officials, shows an outline of the Upper Peninsula and the slogan, "Say ya to da UP, eh!" The dialect and culture are captured in many songs by Da Yoopers, a comedy music and skit troupe from Ishpeming, Michigan.  Throughout the Upper Peninsula there are newspapers, such as "The Daily News" in Iron Mountain, "The Menominee County Journal" in Stephenson, "The Daily Mining Gazette" in Houghton, "The Daily Press" in Escanaba, and the "Sault Ste. Marie Evening News" that serve the rest of the UP "The Mining Journal", based in Marquette, is the only daily newspaper that publishes a Sunday edition, which is distributed, with the exception of Chippewa and eastern Mackinac counties, across the entire UP (the other six days are distributed in its local area only).  The Keweenaw Peninsula is home to several ski areas. Mont Ripley, just outside Houghton, is popular among students of Michigan Technological University (the university actually owns the mountain). Further up the peninsula in the small town of Lac La Belle is Mt. Bohemia. A skiing purist's resort, Bohemia is a self-proclaimed "experts only" mountain, and it does not groom its heavily gladed slopes. Other ski areas are Pine Mountain located in Iron Mountain, Norway Mountain in the town of the same name, and the Porcupine Mountains located in Ontonagon.

Regional identity.

Today, the western Upper Peninsula is home to about 173,887 people, while the eastern Upper Peninsula is home to about 133,499 people, a total of 307,386—only about 3% of the state's population—living in almost one-third of the state's land area. Residents are known as Yoopers (from "UP-ers"), and many consider themselves Yoopers before they consider themselves Michiganders. (People living in the Lower Peninsula are commonly called "trolls" by Upper Peninsula residents, as they live "Under the Bridge".) This regionalism is not only a result of the physical separation of the two peninsulas, but also the history of the state.  Residents of the western Upper Peninsula take on some of the cultural identities of both Wisconsin and Michigan. In terms of sports fandom, residents may support Detroit professional teams or those of Wisconsin—particularly the Green Bay Packers. This is a result of both proximity and the broadcast and print media of the area. The four counties that border Wisconsin are also in the Central Time Zone, unlike the rest of Michigan, which is on Eastern time. In some cases, commercial cartographers draw incorrect maps that inadvertently annex the Upper Peninsula into Wisconsin.

Cuisine.

The Upper Peninsula has a distinctive local cuisine. The pasty (pronounced "pass-tee"), a kind of meat turnover originally brought to the region by Cornish miners, is popular among locals and tourists alike. Pasty varieties include chicken, venison, pork, hamburger, and pizza. Many restaurants serve potato sausage and "cudighi", a spicy Italian meat.  Finnish immigrants contributed "nisu", a cardamom-flavored sweet bread; "pannukakku", a variant on the pancake with a custard flavor; "viili" (sometimes spelled "fellia"), a stretchy, fermented Finnish milk; and "korppu", hard slices of toasted cinnamon bread, traditionally dipped in coffee. Some Finnish foods such as "juusto" (squeaky cheese, essentially a cheese curd, like Leipäjuusto) and "saunamakkara" (a ring-bologna sausage) have become so ubiquitous in Upper Peninsula cuisine that they are now commonly found in most grocery stores and supermarkets.  Maple syrup is a highly prized local delicacy. Fresh Great Lakes fish, such as the lake trout, whitefish, and (in the spring) smelt are widely eaten. There is minimal concern about contamination of fish from Lake Superior waters. Smoked fish is also popular. Thimbleberry jam and chokecherry jelly are a treat.

The Upper Peninsula of Michigan – also known as Upper Michigan or colloquially the U.P. – is the northern and more elevated of the two major landmasses that make up the U.S. state of Michigan, the other being the Lower Peninsula. It is bounded primarily by Lake Superior to the north, separated from the Canadian province of Ontario at the east end by the St. Marys River, and flanked by Lake Huron and Lake Michigan along much of its south. The Straits of Mackinac separate it from the Lower Peninsula of Michigan to the south. Although the peninsula extends as a geographic feature into the state of Wisconsin, the state boundary follows the Montreal and Menominee rivers and a line connecting them.

La péninsule supérieure du Michigan (' en anglais), ou Michigan supérieure (' en anglais), est l'une des deux grandes péninsules qui composent l'État du Michigan aux États-Unis (l'autre est la péninsule inférieure à laquelle elle est reliée depuis 1957 par le Pont Mackinac). Elle est souvent désignée par son abréviation anglaise, "U.P." La péninsule est limitée au nord par le lac Supérieur, à l'est par la rivière Sainte-Marie, au sud par les lacs Michigan et Huron (reliés entre eux par le Détroit de Mackinac), et à l'ouest par l'État de Wisconsin. Elle est devenue un territoire du Michigan après la guerre de Toledo, en échange de l'abandon des prétentions du Michigan sur la bande de Toledo.


History.

The history of Edgeøya's discovery has been a matter of dispute. Thomas Edge, writing in 1622, claimed the island was discovered by one of his ships in 1616. However, Joris Carolus, in a map published in 1614 and allegedly based on discoveries made by him the same year, shows what appears to be Edgeøya's south coast. Carolus showed the coastline split into two parts: "Onbekende Cust" (meaning "Unknown Coast" in Dutch) in the west, and "Morfyn" in the east. Islands are shown offshore of Morfyn. Martin Conway argued in 1901 that Carolus' chart indicated he discovered Edgeøya, but, as Wielder points out, Conway was ignorant of a map (engraved in 1612) by the Dutch cartographer Petrus Plancius, which illustrated a coastline to the east of Spitsbergen. The coastline, indented, with islands offshore, was labelled "Gerrits Eylant". Wielder believed this to be the first record of Edgeøya's south coast.  Schilder, an expert on Dutch cartography, said Carolus merely copied both coastlines from earlier charts, while he believed that Plancius had copied some names from a chart by Mouris Willemsz, unknown to Wielder, that was published in 1608 or earlier by Cornelis Claeszoon (British Library, London). Willemsz's chart, which Schilder says shows Edgeøya labeled as "Groen Landt", doesn't show Edgeøya at all, but only shows a single coastline (not two) that is supposed to represent Spitsbergen. In fact, what appears to be Bjørnøya is shown to the southeast of Spitsbergen. Plancius had thus only created a duplicate Spitsbergen. Carolus, as well, made a duplicate Spitsbergen, as his "Morfyn" has an uncanny resemblance to Willemsz's "Groen Landt". This would indicate that the island would not have been discovered until 1616, as claimed by Edge. A 1617 letter written between the English whalers proves that Europeans had discovered the island at least at that late of date, or earlier, as Edge claims.  Four Russian sailors were marooned on Edgeøya, or a small island off the coast of Edgeøya, from 1743 until September 1749. Three survived to tell an epic tale of survival. Author David Roberts wrote a book about his research on this story, "Four Against The Arctic." He concluded, although not definitively, that the men were probably on a small island to the southeast of Edgeøya called Halvmåneøya, or Half Moon Island.  While no major settlement grew upon Edgeøya, whaling and walrus hunting were extensive industries in the area. Remains of these can be found offshore of Edgeøya, on Bölscheøya in the Thousand Islands group.

Geography and ecology.

Edgeøya is located at geographical co-ordinates. To the west lies Storfjorden, which separates Edgeøya from Spitsbergen. To the north, the sound known as Freemansundet lies between Edgeøya and Barentsøya. In the northeast, Olgastretet separates Edgeøya from Kong Karls Land. Minor island groups lay to the east (Ryke Yseøyane) and to the south (Thousand Islands). The island's south coast in indented by its largest fjord, Tjuvfjorden. The island's northernmost point is Kapp Heuglin, a cape named in August 1870 for the German explorer Theodor von Heuglin (1824–76), during the Heuglin-Zeil expedition.  Geologically, the island resembles central Spitsbergen, with Mesozoic rocks (specifically, Triassic shales with subordinate sandstones, with occasional diabase intrusions, and, in the southwest, strata from the Jurassic), the effects of glacial erosion, and appearance of polar ice caps. On the eastern side of the island is the large glacier of Edgeøyjøkulen.  Along with Barentsøya and some of the neighbouring islands, Edgeøya forms part of South East Svalbard Nature Reserve, established by the Norwegian government in 1973. There is a significant reindeer population, and the island is an important site for polar bear reproduction; moreover, the polar bear population in this Barents Sea area is a unique deme (unique genetic population).

In popular culture.

Edgeøya is the setting for the novel "The Solitude of Thomas Cave" (2007), by Georgina Harding, in which the title character, on a wager, successfully over-winters on the island in 1616–17.

Edgeøya, occasionally anglicised as Edge Island, is a Norwegian island located in southeast of the Svalbard archipelago; with an area of, it is the third-largest island in this archipelago. An Arctic island, it forms part of the Søraust-Svalbard Nature Reserve, home to polar bears and reindeer. An ice field covers its eastern side. The island takes its name from Thomas Edge (died 1624), an English merchant and whaler. It is seldom visited today.

Edgeøya est une île inhabitée de l'archipel du Svalbard. Cette île se trouve à l'est du Spitzberg et au sud de Barentsøya (île de Barents). Sa surface est de (ce qui est légèrement plus grand que comté d’Akershus), dont sont pris par un glacier, ce qui en fait la troisième plus grande île de l'archipel. Cette île est une partie de la réserve naturelle du sud-est du Svalbard. C'est un lieu important de vie pour les ours polaires, on y trouve également des rennes du Svalbard. Elle doit son nom à Thomas Edge, un marchand anglais qui travaillait pour la Compagnie de Moscovie au début du. Il n’y a pas de colonies à Edgeøya et il faut se signaler au gouverneur lorsqu’on s'y rend.


Early life and career.

Alexis was born in Gonaïves, Haiti on 21 September 1947. He is the great-great grandson of President Pierre Nord Alexis and Princess Marie-Louise-Amelie-Celestina Pierrot, a daughter of Prince Jean-Louis Pierrot. He attended school at Lycée Geffrard in Gonaïves (1959–1964) and later Lycée Toussaint Louverture in Port-au-Prince (1964–1966). He received a degree in agricultural engineering from the State University of Haiti in 1973.  After graduation, Alexis held a series of jobs in academia. He was an assistant professor of chemistry at the State University of Haiti from 1973 to 1976 and a teaching and research assistant at Université Laval, Quebec, Canada, from 1977 to 1978, earning his master of science degree in food science and technology from Université Laval in 1979. He was then a professor of food technology and post-harvest technology at the State University of Haiti (1979–1987), a professor of post-harvest technology and human nutrition at Ecole Moyenne d’Agriculture (1979–1985), and Dean of the Faculty of Agronomy and Veterinary Medicine at the State University of Haiti (1985–1987). Between 1987 and 1990, he coordinated the founding of Quisqueya University, where he served as the school's first rector from 1990 to 1995.  Under President René Préval, Alexis served in the government as the Minister of National Education, Youth, and Sport (1996–1999), Minister of Culture (1997–1999), and Minister of the Interior and Territorial Communities (1999–2000).

As Prime Minister.

First term.

Alexis was nominated as Prime Minister by Préval on 16 July 1998, following congressional rejections of three prior nominees that had resulted in a year-long political crisis. His nomination was preliminarily ratified by the Senate on 17 December and by the Chamber of Deputies on 17 December despite an unfavorable report regarding his management of funds as Minister of Education. Completion of the ratification process requires ratification of the nominee's proposed cabinet and general policy; Alexis's final ratification was delayed by the insistence of opposition leaders that they receive cabinet posts. Parliament passed a bill extending their term so that they could continue the ratification process, but Préval denied that they had authority to do so, announcing on 11 January (the final day of the parliamentary session) that he intended to bypass Parliament and form a government by decree. Opposition parties accused Préval of having staged a bloodless coup and considered Alexis an illegitimate prime minister. Alexis served as Prime Minister from 26 March 1999 to 7 February 2001.

Second term.

Préval was re-elected in February 2006, and he again nominated Alexis as Prime Minister on 17 May 2006, three days after taking office as President. The nomination was ratified almost unanimously by both houses of parliament, and Alexis and his government were sworn in on 9 June 2006. His second government consisted of a coalition of six parties, including Préval's Lespwa party, the Fusion of Haitian Social Democrats, the Struggling People's Organization, and Jean-Bertrand Aristide's Fanmi Lavalas party. His stated policy objectives included the restoration of security in the country and the provision of basic services to citizens.

Resignation.

Criticism of Alexis's economic policies led to a no-confidence vote in February 2008, which Alexis survived. Riots broke out in early April 2008 regarding high food prices, and Alexis announced an investment program designed to lower the cost of living. On 10 April, it was announced that 16 Senators (a majority, as there are 30 seats in Haiti's Senate) had signed a letter advising Alexis to resign within two days. The letter described Alexis's proposals to resolve the economic crisis as "too little, too late" and said that "it is obvious that the majority of the people don't believe any more in the capacity of your government to take courageous measures to ease the misery that the population is facing daily." The Senate then voted unanimously to dismiss Alexis on 12 April, with all of the 16 Senators present in favor. Préval said that he would consult with Parliament to choose a new Prime Minister, but he also said that Alexis had done his best and should not receive all the blame for the situation.

Personal life.

Alexis is married and has five children.

Jacques-Édouard Alexis (born 21 September 1947) is a Haitian politician. He served as the Prime Minister of Haiti from 1999 to 2001 and was Prime Minister for a second term from 2006 to 2008 when he was dismissed due to political fallout from food riots.

Jacques-Édouard Alexis (né le aux Gonaïves, Haïti), est un homme d'État haïtien. Il fut Premier ministre du au et du au. Il fit également une carrière d'enseignant et d'universitaire.


Background.

The fighting on Vella Lavella took place following the Battle of Munda Point on New Georgia, which was fought in the aftermath of the Japanese evacuation from Guadalcanal as the Allies began advancing to main Japanese at Rabaul under the Operation Cartwheel plan. After the loss of the airfield at Munda Field to US forces, the Japanese had withdrawn to Kolombangara, where they established a 10,000 to 12,000-strong garrison under Major General Noboru Sasaki. Initial US plans following Munda Point had envisaged an assault on Kolombangara, but the US commander, Admiral William Halsey, decided to bypass Kolombangara and land forces around Barakoma near the southeastern tip of the island of Vella Lavella instead where they were to capture the Japanese airfield and develop a naval base. Situated northwest of Munda, Vella Lavella was the most northern island in the New Georgia chain, and offered a stepping stone for future operations against Japanese forces on the Shortland Islands and on Bougainville. It also offered better prospects for base development than at Kolombangara. At the same time, it was close enough to US airbases at Munda and Sergei Point to afford the required air support that would be necessary to defend against Japanese air attack.  In late July, a small reconnaissance party was dispatched to Vella Lavella, linking up with an Australian Coastwatcher, a New Zealand missionary and several natives, to gather intelligence on Barakoma and the southeast coast. These men and their native guides managed to explore the island for a full week, completely avoiding contact with the Japanese. On 31 July, they returned to Guadalcanal with thorough intelligence about the target. The village of Barakoma near the island's southeastern tip was selected as the landing place.  On 12 August, an advanced party, consisting of naval and military personnel and a small group of troops from the 103rd Infantry Regiment, was sent from Guadalcanal and Rendova to Barakoma aboard four torpedo boats. En route, the boats were subjected to aerial attack which resulted in several casualties, but their crews were able to continue on to their destination where they were met by a small group of natives in canoes. As reports were received about a larger-than-expected Japanese force near the landing beach, on 14 August this force was reinforced by more troops from the 103rd Infantry. The force was then tasked with marking and holding the beachhead for the assault force and for securing Japanese prisoners in the vicinity. They subsequently captured seven Japanese. As of 15 August, there were 250 Japanese personnel were present on Vella Lavella. These men were a mix of soldiers evacuated from New Georgia and sailors who had been stranded on the island.

Battle.

The initial landing on Vella Lavella was undertaken by a landing force of around 4,600 (rising to 5,800) US troops under Brigadier General Robert B. McClure. The main maneuver elements came from the 35th Regimental Combat Team. This regiment was commanded by Colonel Everett E. Brown. It was drawn from the 25th Infantry Division, under Major General J. Lawton Collins, and formed part of Major General Oscar Griswold's XIV Corps. These troops landed on 15 August as part of an expeditionary force (designated Task Force 31) under the command of Rear Admiral Theodore S. Wilkinson, which embarked from Guadalcanal. The expeditionary force consisted of a variety of vessels including: seven destroyer-transports, three LSTs, two submarine chasers and many LCIs. It was escorted by a destroyer screen of 12 ships, while P-40 and Corsair fighters patrolled the air above. The Japanese dispatched a large number of Zero fighters and Val dive-bombers in response to the landing. They attacked the LSTs around noon but were driven off by massed anti-aircraft fire. A further attempt late in the day was also spoiled. The returning Japanese aircraft were attacked by US Marine Corsairs that had been tasked to conduct a strafing mission around Kahili. In the early evening, a small group of Japanese torpedo aircraft unsuccessfully attacked the LCIs, while several seaplanes attacked the LSTs around midnight. Losses during these attacks were light for the Americans, with no ships being sunk and only two defending US aircraft being shot down, against Japanese losses of between 17 and 44 aircraft.  Casualties during the initial landing amounted to 12 killed and 50 wounded for the Americans. After the initial fighting, the Americans established a beachhead and began resupply operations. Meanwhile, the Japanese decided against a counterattack, electing to evacuate the island instead. A barge depot was established for the evacuation at Horaniu, on the northeast coast of the island. A group of destroyers ("Sazanami", "Hamakaze", "Shigure", and "Isokaze", under Rear Admiral Matsuji Ijuin) sailed from Rabaul while a group of reinforcements was also dispatched to secure Horaniu. These consisted of two companies of the 13th Infantry Regiment, with a combined strength of 390 soldiers, and a platoon of Special Naval Landing Force troops. In response, four US destroyers (,, and ) sailed from Purvis Bay under the command of Captain Thomas J. Ryan to disrupt the Japanese landing. Throughout 18 August, during the Battle off Horaniu, US and Japanese destroyers engaged each other off Horaniu, during which two Japanese destroyers were damaged and several smaller vessels destroyed. While this fighting was taking place at sea, the troop-laden Japanese barges made for the north coast, where they camouflaged themselves and hid. Their landing at Horaniu was completed the following day on 19 August. While the Japanese worked to establish their barge depot, two more echelons of US troops and supplies were dispatched for Barakoma, on 17 and 20 August respectively. These were subjected to further Japanese air attacks, during which "LST-396" was lost and several other ships were damaged, including the destroyer which accidentally collided with. Gordan Rottman has written that the Japanese force on Vella Lavella eventually reached 750 men. Jon Diamond provides a higher figure, stating that 1,000 Japanese served on the island.  While the main action occurred at sea and in the air, US troops ashore worked to improve the defenses around the beachhead and began limited patrol operations. In late August, a US reconnaissance patrol searching for a suitable location for a radar site discovered a strong concentration of Japanese troops around Kokolope Bay. The US commander, McClure, subsequently began an advance along the east coast of the island supported by native guides and a small group of Fijian scouts, aimed at capturing Kokolope Bay in order to establish the radar site. As the troops from the 1st Battalion, 35th Infantry pushed beyond their beachhead, a battalion of the 145th Infantry Regiment arrived from New Georgia to hold the perimeter. The 3rd Battalion, 35th Infantry and the 64th Field Artillery Battalion also joined the advance up the east coast. Several small scale skirmishes followed, but largely the Japanese sought to avoid decisive engagement. On 14 September, Horaniu was captured after the Japanese garrison withdrew to the northeast of the island.  In the aftermath of the US advance, the Japanese troops began concentrating between Paraso Bay and Mundi Mundi. Meanwhile, there were 121 Japanese air raids on Vella Lavella between 15 August and 6 October. The Marine 4th Defense Battalion provided defensive support during this time, and claimed to have shot down 42 Japanese aircraft.  In mid-September, the Americans were relieved by New Zealanders from Major General Harold Barrowclough's 3rd Division. The New Zealand 14th Brigade, consisting of around 3,700 men under Brigadier Leslie Potter, used a series of amphibious operations and cross-country marches to advance through the coastal areas, bounding from bay to bay and then clearing each area with patrols. Two infantry battalions, the 35th and 37th, each allocated eight landing craft, conducted a pincer movement to trap the 600-strong Japanese garrison, while the 30th Infantry Battalion was held in reserve around the main concentration of troops in the south of the island.  Departing from Maravari Beach on 21 September, the New Zealanders established their forward areas around Matu Soroto and Boro and then began their advance on 25 September. Over the course of ten days, the New Zealanders fought a series of minor actions as the 35th Infantry Battalion advanced up the western coast and the 37th moved up the east. During the advance, the terrain prevented the use of armour, while artillery had to be moved by landing craft and to be dragged ashore to support the infantry, which struggled to advance through the thick jungle amidst torrential rain. Progress was slow, and initially combat was confined to skirmishes against small groups of Japanese hiding in well concealed jungle positions.  The 35th Battalion advanced to Pakoi Bay and then pushed overland towards Timbala Bay, where they planned to attack the main Japanese garrison which was withdrawing on both fronts. In doing so, several patrols were pushed forward to block suspected Japanese withdrawal routes towards Marquana Bay. These patrols were subsequently ambushed and cut off, after which two platoons were dispatched to rescue them. These also came up against strong opposition and forced to turn back and the decision was made to wait for the 37th Battalion to join the 35th before attacking. While they waited, further patrols were sent out and the ambushed patrols fought their way out from Japanese lines, having inflicted heavy casualties and were subsequently rescued by barge.  Meanwhile, the 37th's advance had slowed due to the breakdown of many of its allotted landing craft. They subsequently had to borrow some of the craft allocated to the 35th Battalion, and supplemented these with a barge that was captured from the Japanese when a patrol boarded a vessel that had pulled into Tambana Bay. By 5 October they cleared Warambari Bay, amidst heavy fighting. The following day, the two New Zealand battalions were close to linking up, having squeezed the Japanese into a small pocket, which was reduced further when the 37th Battalion finally reached Mende Point on the afternoon of 6 October. A large scale attack was planned on the Japanese around Marziana Point and that night a heavy barrage was dialled in on the position. The appearance of Japanese aircraft, however, silenced the guns and throughout the night, the Japanese garrison was withdrawn from the island, replicating the withdrawal that had taken place from Kolombangara between 28 September and 4 October.

Aftermath.

Japanese withdrawal and casualties.

During the night and early of the morning of 6–7 October, Rear Admiral Matsuji Ijuin led a force consisting of three destroyer-transports and twelve small craft, which was able to evacuate 589 personnel by sub chasers and transports from Marziana Point in Marquana Bay. A large naval battle subsequently took place north of Vella Lavella, as a group of six US destroyers engaged Ijuin's covering force. For the loss of one destroyer, the Japanese transports were successful in evacuating the ground troops from Vella Lavella, while the US lost one destroyer sunk and two heavily damaged.  The evacuated troops were disembarked at Buin, on Bougainville. There, they joined many of the roughly 12,000 Japanese troops that had been withdrawn from Kolombangara; they would subsequently take part in the fighting on the island against Allied forces from late 1943 to 1945. Casualties during the fighting around Vella Lavella during this phase of the campaign amounted to 150 US and New Zealand naval and military personnel killed. The postwar, official New Zealand history reports estimated Japanese casualties at between 200 and 300. In contrast, Rottman has written that "less than 150" Japanese were killed. The fighting on Vella Lavella took place concurrently with fighting on Arundel Island as US troops secured western New Georgia, and represented the end of the New Georgia campaign. It was followed by operations to secure the Treasury Islands and the landings at Cape Torokina, on Bougainville.

Base development.

Seabees of the 58th Naval Construction Battalion began landing on 15 August and set to work unloading the landing ships under frequent air attack. Among the first items unloaded were bulldozers, which were used to construct roads inland to sites where supplies could be dumped, dispersed away from the beach and each other. The Seebees built of roads during August. Their next task was the construction of a dispensary and an underground sick bay. An underground radio room was also built. The airstrip was surveyed and cleared during August, followed by the construction of the signal tower, operations room, avgas storage tanks and an accommodation camp for personnel in September. The first landing was made on the airstrip of 24 September. Work continued on developing the airbase into December, including the provision of an avgas tank farm with six tanks. Vella Lavella became an important Allied airbase from which they were able to project air power towards Rabaul. It was the home base of Major Gregory Boyington's VMF-214, and other units.  The channel through the reef was deepened to allow the passage of PT boats into the lagoon. PT Squadron 11 established a base on the northeast coast of Vella Lavella on 25 September with seven PT boats and a small coastal transport (APc). A ramp was built for LSTs, and the jetty at Biloa was upgraded with the addition of an L-shaped end. This was subsequently improved by raising the surface, deepening the water, and adding pilings and ship camels. The 77th Naval Construction Battalion arrived on 25 September, in the midst of a Japanese air raid. During its tour on Vella Lavella, it would be bombed 47 times, and suffer ten casualties. Its main task was the construction of hospital facilities with 1,000 beds for the upcoming Bougainville campaign. This included wards, operating rooms and administrative buildings. The 58th Naval Construction Battalion established a sawmill that produced of cut lumber per day. The 77th Naval Construction Battalion operated two more to satisfy the demands of the campaigns in the Treasury Islands and Bougainville. A detachment of the 53rd Naval Construction Battalion operated two more sawmill between November 1943 and January 1944.  Two New Zealand field engineer companies (the 20th and 26th) were also sent to the island following the commitment of New Zealand troops. These worked alongside the Americans to improve roads and constructed several bridges. The last of the US naval construction battalions left Vella Lavella in January 1944, and responsibility for the installations on Vella Lavella passed to the 502nd Construction Battalion Maintenance Unit (CBMU). Salvage operations commenced in May 1944, and the airstrip was abandoned on 15 June 1944. The final task was dismantlement of the tank farm. The 502nd CBMU then departed for Emirau on 12 July 1944.

The Battle of Vella Lavella was fought from 15 August – 6 October 1943 between Japan and the Allied forces from New Zealand and the United States at the end of the New Georgia campaign. Vella Lavella, an island located in the Solomon Islands, had been occupied by Japanese forces early during the war in the Pacific. Following the fighting around Munda Point, the Allies recaptured the island in late 1943, following a decision to bypass a large concentration of Japanese troops on the island of Kolombangara.

La bataille de Vella Lavella est une bataille de la Seconde Guerre mondiale. Elle s'est déroulée du 15 août au 6 octobre 1943 dans le théâtre d'opérations de l'océan Pacifique, sur l'île de Vella Lavella dans les îles Salomon. Elle opposa le Japon aux forces alliées composées de Marines américains, d'unités néo-zélandaises et Fidjiennes.


List of Avatar: The Last Airbender episodes

Liste des épisodes d'Avatar, le dernier maître de l'air

Series overview.

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Video releases.

Region 1.

The first "Avatar: The Last Airbender" DVD set became available on January 31, 2006. The first season had five DVD sets, each containing four episodes. For season two and three, four DVD sets were released, with five episodes on each. The only exception to the release pattern was the last DVD set of season three, which contained a sixth episode. At the end of each season, a box set was released, containing all of the episodes from the season. Each box set contains an additional disc of bonus features not available as an individual disc release like every episode of the series. Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Complete Series DVD box set featuring all 3 books was released in North America on October 6, 2015. A Blu-ray version of The Complete Series box set was released in the North America on June 5, 2018.

Region 2.

In the United States, all Season One DVDs were encoded using NTSC. Since this is not compatible in most countries outside North America, Nickelodeon released separate DVDs in regions where the video would be encoded using PAL instead. These releases began on February 19, 2007; each DVD was released months after the original release. As with the original DVDs, each set contained five episodes on one disc, with the exception of The Complete Book One Collection Box Set, which contained all of the twenty episodes in the season on five discs. In the Netherlands, all episodes came out in a box.  Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Complete Series DVD box set featuring all 3 books was released in the United Kingdom on August 6, 2012. A Blu-ray version of The Complete Series box set was released in the United Kingdom on June 11, 2018.

Region 4.

The following release dates are the Australian release dates, and may or may not represent the release dates for all of region 4.

"" is an American animated television series created by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko. It first aired on February 21, 2005, on Nickelodeon with a one-hour series premiere and concluded its run with a two-hour TV movie on July 19, 2008. The "Avatar: The Last Airbender" franchise refers to each season as a "Book", in which each episode is referred to as a "chapter". Each "Book" takes its name from one of the elements that Aang, the protagonist, must master: Water, Earth, and Fire. The show's first two seasons each consisted of 20 episodes, while the third season had 21. In addition to the three seasons, there were two recap episodes and three "shorts". The first recap summarized the first seventeen episodes while the second summarized season two. The first self-parody was released via an online flash game. The second and third were released with the Complete Second Season Box Set DVD. The entire series has been released on DVD in Region One, Region Two and Region Four.

Ceci est une liste des épisodes de la série animée diffusée par Nickelodeon, intitulée "Avatar, le dernier maître de l'air". La série révélée au public le 21 février 2005 est déjà terminée.


History.

Before Europeans arrived, Ojibwe (Chippewa) Native Americans fished, traded, and maintained a portage around the rapids of the St. Marys River, which they referred to as ', meaning "at the cascading rapids". French explorer Étienne Brûlé was the first European to travel up the rapids in about 1621. In 1641 Jesuit priests Isaac Jogues and Charles Raymbault ventured the same route as Brûlé, finding many Ojibwe at the rapids, and named it Sault Ste. Marie. "Sault" (Middle and early Modern French spelling of ') means "jump"; hence, the secondary meaning "rapids" because the water 'jumps.'  Fort St. Joseph was built on the Canadian shore in 1796 to protect a trading post, and ensure continued British control of the area. The fort fulfilled its role in the War of 1812.  The first modern lock was completed in May 1855 by Erastus Corning's St. Mary's Falls Ship Canal Company, and was known as the "American Lock". Today, there are four parallel locks on the American side of the river, although only two are in regular use. The Soo Locks became part of the Great Lakes Waterway system in 1959.  Partially due to the American refusal of passage through the Soo Locks during the Wolseley Expedition, a Canadian Lock was built in 1895. The current Canadian Lock is used for recreational boats and is a National Historic Site of Canada.  During World War II, the Soo Locks and the St. Marys River waterway were heavily guarded by U.S. and Canadian forces coordinated by the U.S. Army's Central Defense Command. During the waterway's usable season from March through November, 90 percent of the United States' iron ore production for domestic use passed through it in 1939, making the waterway critical to maintaining war production. A battalion of infantry, stationed at nearby Fort Brady, provided security beginning just after the outbreak of the European war in September 1939; this was reduced to a company in mid-1940 and replaced by a military police battalion in May 1941. After Pearl Harbor in December 1941, fear of possible air or paratroop attacks by German forces led to a major expansion of defense measures. Scenarios envisioned included U-boats in Hudson Bay launching attack aircraft, and one-way bombing or paratroop missions along a great circle route from German-occupied Norway. Units deployed included the 131st Infantry Regiment, an anti-aircraft regiment, and a barrage balloon battalion for a total in mid-1942 of 7,000 troops in the area. Canada provided an anti-aircraft battalion, elements of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, barracks and defensive positions for some of the U.S. force, and a warning system of 266 aircraft observation posts of the Aircraft Identity Corps extending northward to Hudson Bay. This was augmented by five U.S.-staffed radar stations in northern Ontario. By late 1943, with no threat emerging and spare components stockpiled in the event of lock damage, the U.S. forces were cut to 2,500 troops, and the AA and air warning defenses were abandoned. In January 1944 the garrison was further reduced to a single military police battalion.

Works.

Bridges.

The Sault Ste. Marie International Bridge, a steel truss arch bridge, takes road traffic across the river. Directly to the west is the Sault Ste. Marie International Railroad Bridge, which carries rail traffic on a single set of tracks.

Power plants.

The Edison Sault Electric Hydroelectric Plant, located at the eastern end of the Sault Ste. Marie Power Canal which runs between Lake Superior and Lake Huron through the city south of the American locks, is one of the longest hydroelectric plants in the world at in length. The plant consists of 74 three-phase generators capable of generating 25 to 30 megawatts. It was completed in 1902. The hydro plant is faced with stone quarried during the excavation of the Sault Ste. Marie Power Canal.  The United States Army Corps of Engineers owns and operates a hydroelectric generating plant directly north of the American locks.  Finally, the Francis H. Clergue Generating Station, owned and operated by Brookfield Renewable Energy, Inc., is a hydroelectric generating plant located directly north of the Canadian lock with a generating capacity of 52 MW. It was completed in 1981.

Canal.

The Edison Sault Power Canal is used to power the Saint Marys Falls Hydropower Plant at its eastern end. The canal separated downtown Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, from its mainland, making it an island. It was begun in September 1898 as the Michigan Lake Superior Power Company Canal, but completed by Edison Sault Electric Company in June 1902. Measured from its headgates to its end at the power plant, it is in length, between and wide, and deep. The water runs down the canal at speeds upwards of.

Locks.

The American Soo Locks are the major transportation route around the St. Marys Rapids, but the Canadian Sault Ste. Marie Canal is still used by recreational and tour boats.

Other works.

A set of compensating works are located at the mouth of the rapids, which are used to control the outflow of water from Lake Superior. The works consists of 16 gates, half of which are on the American side, and the other half on the Canadian side of the river. They were completed between 1901 and 1921. This flow is controlled by the International Joint Commission.  A concrete berm was constructed along the north side of the rapids as remedial works to protect fish spawning habitat from lower outflow through the rapids. This was due, in part, to an increase of water outflow from the three hydroelectric dams.

Pollution.

The Saint Marys River is listed as a Great Lakes Areas of Concern in the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement between the United States and Canada.

The St. Marys River (), sometimes written as the St. Mary's River, drains Lake Superior, starting at the end of Whitefish Bay and flowing southeast into Lake Huron, with a fall of. For its entire length it is an international border, separating Michigan in the United States from Ontario, Canada.

La rivière Sainte-Marie ("St. Marys River" en anglais) est un cours d'eau provenant du lac Supérieur ; depuis l'extrémité de "Whitefish Bay", elle coule sur 120 kilomètres (74.5 milles) en direction du sud-est pour aller se jeter dans le lac Huron. Sur toute sa longueur, la Sainte-Marie est une frontière internationale séparant le Michigan aux États-Unis de l'Ontario au Canada.


Investigation.

The Pike Committee was the U.S. House counterpart of the Church Committee of the U.S. Senate. The Congressional committees were part of an effort to push back against the "imperial presidency," an Executive Branch seen as encompassing a national security state with vast, unchecked power at the helm of a superpower.  The Pike Committee interviewed some of the same witnesses as the Church Committee. Unlike the Church Committee, which concluded that much of the blame for illegal and embarrassing covert actions, such as assassinations of foreign political leaders, fell on the CIA, the Pike Committee found clear evidence that the orders for such activities emanated from the President's office. "The CIA does not go galloping off conducting operations by itself. The major things which are done are not done unilaterally by the CIA without approval from higher up the line...We did find evidence, upon evidence, upon evidence where the CIA said: 'No, don't do it,' The State Department or the White House said, 'We're going to do it.'...The CIA never did anything the White House didn't want. Sometimes they didn't want to do what they did," Chairman Pike wrote.

The CIA and the Administration "stone wall" and "deceive".

The Pike Committee's demands for information were resisted and stalled by US President Gerald Ford's Administration. The eventual report produced by the Pike Committee described the Administration's sandbagging this way: “when legal proceedings were not in the offing, the access experience was frequently one of foot-dragging, stone-walling, and careful deception.”  In fact, the Administration's reluctance to release documents requested by the Committee almost ignited a constitutional crisis in 1975. Newly declassified documents from the National Security Archive demonstrate the highly contentious nature of this conflict, showing the CIA's refusal to comply with the Pike Committee's requests for information. Ultimately, when the Pike Committee was preparing to sue for the documents’ release, the CIA determined the likelihood of winning the lawsuit was remote, and Ford was able to orchestrate a compromise. The Agency would release the requested documents “on loan” to the Committee, and if there were disagreements about a specific document, the President would have the final say. The Pike Committee was then able to proceed with their investigation, and generated a report.  The Pike Committee established important protocols for the declassification of intelligence documents, which would continue to evolve. It also created a precedent for the oversight of the Executive Branch and its agencies, leading to the creation of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, which now has the autonomy to declassify any of the information it receives. The Pike Committee constituted an extremely significant step in the tradition of government transparency.

Report of the Pike Committee.

The final report of the Pike Committee was never officially published due to White House opposition to Congressional approval of the report. However, unauthorized versions of the (draft) final report were leaked to the press. CBS News reporter Daniel Schorr was called to testify before Congress, but refused to divulge his source. Major portions of the report were published by "The Village Voice", and a full copy of the draft was published in the United Kingdom.

The Pike Committee is the common name for the United States House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence during the period when it was chaired by Democratic Representative Otis G. Pike of New York. Under Pike's chairmanship, the committee investigated illegal activities by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the National Security Agency (NSA). The Committee conducted much of its investigation, while the U.S. Senate Select Committee to Study Governmental Operations with Respect to Intelligence Activities, chaired by Senator Frank Church and informally known as the "Church Committee," conducted its own investigation. Unlike the report of the investigation of the Church Committee, which was eventually released to the public in the face of Executive Branch opposition to its release, the report of the investigation by the Pike Committee was suppressed from release to the American public, although portions of it were leaked and it was eventually published abroad.

La Commission Pike était une commission créée par la Chambre des représentants des États-Unis le, pour enquêter sur les activités de la CIA. D'abord nommée avant de prendre le nom du représentant de l'État de New York, son équivalent au Sénat est la Commission Church. Le rapport qu'elle publie le suggère un plus grand contrôle du Congrès sur les activités de renseignement.


Early life.

Born as Eugenio Saraceni in Harrison, New York, his parents were poor Sicilian immigrants. Sarazen began caddying at age ten at local golf clubs, took up golf himself, and gradually developed his skills; he was essentially self-taught. Somewhat novel at the time, he used the interlocking grip to hold the club.

Career.

Sarazen took a series of club professional jobs in the New York area from his mid-teens. In 1921 he became professional at Titusville (Pa.) Country Club, and he contracted to be the professional at Highland Country Club near Pittsburgh, Pa. in 1922. He arrived in April, stocked the golf shop and gave a few lessons, but spent most of his time at Oakmont Country Club practicing with Emil Loeffler. At some point, the pair visited Skokie Country Club to practice on the course that would hold the U.S. Open; in July, he came from four shots behind to win the tournament. He returned to Pittsburgh and was feted at the William Penn Hotel, where he burst from a paper mâché golf ball. He did not return to Highland CC, broke his contract and became a 'touring' golf professional. Later that summer, he won the PGA Championship at Oakmont.  He was a contemporary and rival of amateur Bobby Jones, who was born in the same year; Sarazen also had many battles with Walter Hagen, who was nine years older. Sarazen, Jones, and Hagen were the world's dominant players during the 1920s. Rivalries among the three great champions significantly expanded interest in golf around the world during this period, and made the United States the world's dominant golf power for the first time, taking over this position from Great Britain. Sarazen has a plaque in his honor placed 195 yards out from the 15th green at Hororata Golf Club where he famously made a double eagle in the final round of sectional qualifiers. He earned his spot in his first United States open in 1920 at age 18. Some say it was his greatest achievement as an amateur.  The winner of 39 PGA tour events, Sarazen was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974. He was the Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year in 1932, and won the PGA Tour's first Lifetime Achievement Award in 1996. He played on six U.S. Ryder Cup teams: 1927, 1929, 1931, 1933, 1935, and 1937.

Invents modern sand wedge.

Sarazen claimed to have invented the modern sand wedge, and debuted the club (while keeping it secret during preliminary practice rounds) at The Open Championship at Prince's Golf Club in 1932 (which he won). He called it the sand iron, and his original club is no longer on display at Prince's as it is worth too much for the insurers to cover. However, a similar club was patented in 1928 by Edwin Kerr McClain, and it is possible Sarazen saw this club.  Sarazen had previously struggled with his sand play and there had been earlier sand-specific clubs. But Bobby Jones's sand club, for example, had a concave face, which actually contacted the ball twice during a swing; this design was later banned. Sarazen's innovation was to weld solder onto the lower back of the club, building up the flange so that it sat lower than the leading edge when soled. The flange, not the leading edge, would contact the sand first, and explode sand as the shot was played. The additional weight provided punch to power through the thick sand. Sarazen's newly developed technique with the new club was to contact the sand a couple of inches behind the ball, not actually contacting the ball at all on most sand shots.  Every top-class golfer since has utilized this wedge design and technique, and the same club design and method are also used by amateur players around the world. The sand wedge also began to be used by top players for shots from grass, shortly after Sarazen introduced it, and this led to a revolution in short-game techniques, along with lower scoring by players who mastered the skills.

Masters Tournament win.

Sarazen hit "the shot heard 'round the world" at Augusta National Golf Club on the fifteenth hole in final round of the Masters Tournament in 1935. He struck a spoon (the loft of the modern four wood) 235 yards (215 meters) into the hole, scoring a double eagle. At the time he was trailing Craig Wood by three shots, and was then tied with Wood. Sarazen parred the 16th, 17th and 18th holes to preserve the tie. The following day, the pair played a 36-hole playoff, with Sarazen winning by five shots.  The Sarazen Bridge, approaching the left side of the 15th green, was named in 1955 to commemorate the double eagle's twentieth anniversary, which included a contest to duplicate, with the closest just over away. It remains one of the most famous shots in golf history.

Later years, legacy.

In spite of his height of, Sarazen was one of the longest hitters of his era. He played several lengthy exhibition tours around the world, promoting his skills and the sport of golf, and earned a very good living from golf. As a multiple past champion, he was eligible to continue competing after his best years were past, and occasionally did so in the top events, well into the 1960s, and occasionally into the 1970s. Throughout his life, Sarazen competed wearing knickers or plus-fours, which were the fashion when he broke into the top level.  For many years after his retirement, Sarazen was a familiar figure as an honorary starter at the Masters. From 1981 to 1999, he joined Byron Nelson and Sam Snead in hitting a ceremonial tee shot before each Masters tournament. He also popularized the sport with his role as a commentator on the "Wonderful World of Golf" television show, and was an early TV broadcaster at important events.  At age 71, Sarazen made a hole-in-one at The Open Championship in 1973, at the "Postage Stamp" at Troon in Scotland. In 1992, he was voted the Bob Jones Award, the highest honor given by the United States Golf Association in recognition of distinguished sportsmanship in golf. Sarazen had what is still the longest-running endorsement contract in professional sports – with Wilson Sporting Goods from 1923 until his death, a total of 75 years.  He received an honorary degree in 1978 from Siena College, in Loudonville, New York. In 1998, shortly before his death, the Sarazen Student Union was named in his honor. He also established an endowed scholarship fund at the college, The Gene and Mary Sarazen Scholarship, which is awarded annually to students reflecting the high personal, athletic, and intellectual ideals of Dr. Sarazen. For many years, kitted in his signature plus-fours, he hit the first ball in an annual golf tournament, held to raise funds for the scholarship.  Sarazen died at age 97 in 1999 from complications of pneumonia in Naples, Florida. His wife Mary died thirteen years earlier in 1986, and they are interred at Marco Island Cemetery in Marco.  In 2000, Sarazen was ranked as the 11th greatest golfer of all time by "Golf Digest" magazine. In 2018, T.J. Auclair ranked Sarazen as the ninth greatest golfer of all time.

Professional wins (49).

PGA Tour wins (39).

Major championships are shown in bold.  Source:

Other wins (6).

"this list may be incomplete"

Major championships.

Wins (7).

"Note: The PGA Championship was match play until 1958" <br>

Results timeline.

NYF = tournament not yet founded
 NT = no tournament
 WD = withdrew
 DNQ = did not qualify for match play portion
 CUT = missed the half-way cut
 R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play
 "T" indicates a tie for a place

Gene Sarazen (; February 27, 1902 – May 13, 1999) was an American professional golfer, one of the world's top players in the 1920s and 1930s, and the winner of seven major championships. He is one of five players (along with Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, and Tiger Woods) to win each of the four majors at least once, now known as the Career Grand Slam: U.S. Open (1922, 1932), PGA Championship (1922, 1923, 1933), The Open Championship (1932), and Masters Tournament (1935).

Gene Sarazen (de son nom de naissance Eugène Saraceni), né le – mort le, fait partie des cinq golfeurs (avec Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player et Tiger Woods) à avoir remporté tous les championnats majeurs au cours de sa carrière. Il a remporté le U.S. Open en 1922 et 1932, le PGA Championship en 1922, 1923 et 1933, le British Open en 1932 et le Masters en 1935.


Plot.

Joseph Rearden, a British Intelligence agent, arrives in London and makes a rendezvous with Mackintosh, the head of his organisation, in a discreet office located just off Trafalgar Square. Mackintosh and his deputy, Mrs Smith, inform him of a simple way to steal diamonds which are transported via the postal service to avoid attention. This he does, apparently getting successfully away after punching a postman, and making off with the diamond-filled parcel. However, that evening, in his hotel room he is paid a visit by two Metropolitan Police detectives who have received an anonymous phone call advising them about the robbery. They are unconvinced by Rearden's pretence to be an innocent Australian who had recently arrived in London.  The judge at his trial is angered by the failure to recover the stolen diamonds from Rearden, who he believes has stashed them away somewhere, and sentences him to twenty years in jail. Rearden is shipped off to HM Prison Chelmsford. He slowly begins to blend in with the other prisoners, and is assigned to laundry-washing duties. A few days after entering he encounters Slade, a former British intelligence officer kept in high security after having been exposed as a KGB mole. He makes innocent enquiries of his fellow inmates about Slade, but not a great deal is known about him.  A few weeks later, he is approached by a well-spoken inmate who offers to act as a go-between with an organisation which can spring him from the prison in exchange for a large cut of the stolen diamonds. They are used to helping prisoners escape, and have another exit planned shortly, which he can join, if he is prepared to put up the money, to which he agrees. Two days later a diversion is arranged, and smoke bombs are hurled over the walls. Using the smoke screen Rearden and a fellow prisoner, who turns out to be Slade, are lifted over the walls by a cargo net and driven away at high speed. They are then drugged by injection, and taken to a secret location, somewhere in wild, deserted countryside. When Slade and Rearden awake, they are told they will be kept there for a week until hunt for them dies down.  In London, Mackintosh discreetly monitors the progress of Rearden. His entry into prison has been a planned sting operation to smoke out the organisation. It is now intended they will be raided, rounded up and Slade returned to prison. Following a speech attacking the handling of the Slade escape by an old friend and war comrade, Sir George Wheeler MP in the House of Commons, Mackintosh approaches him and advises him it would be better to remain silent or risk embarrassing himself. Wheeler, however, despite masquerading as a staunchly patriotic right-winger, is actually a Communist and an agent of the KGB. He immediately tips off the head of the organisation where Rearden is being held. Mackintosh had suspected Wheeler and had used their meeting to try to flush him out. Before Mackintosh can act, he is run down by a car and dies soon afterwards.  In the meantime, Rearden falls under suspicion by the escape organisation. Doubting his claims to be an Australian criminal, they beat him violently and savage him with a guard dog. Eventually, he manages to fight back and escape the building, setting it on fire. He makes out across country, pursued by his guards and the dog. He is finally forced to drown the dog in a stream to throw his assailants off the scent. He then makes it to a nearby town, where he discovers he is on the west coast of Ireland and has apparently been staying on the estate of a close friend of Sir George Wheeler. He contacts Mrs Smith in London, who flies to meet him in Galway. Realising that Slade has been smuggled out of Ireland on the private yacht of Wheeler, they now head to Valletta, Malta, where Wheeler is heading.  Once in Malta, they try to infiltrate one of Wheeler's parties and discover the whereabouts of Slade. Wheeler soon recognises Mrs Smith — the daughter of his old friend Mackintosh — drugs her, and takes her aboard his yacht. Rearden tries to get the Maltese police to raid the boat, but they refuse to believe that a respected man as Wheeler can be involved in kidnapping and treason, so instead they move to arrest Rearden, who is still a wanted man for his earlier faked diamond robbery. So, Rearden is again forced to flee, but manages to follow Wheeler to a church where he and Slade are holding Mrs Smith. He pulls a gun on them, and orders them to hand over Mrs Smith. Presented with a Mexican standoff, Wheeler and Slade try to persuade Rearden to let them go unharmed, in return for which they will also spare him and Mrs Smith. Reluctantly Rearden agrees, but Mrs Smith takes up a gun and shoots Slade and Wheeler, avenging the murder of her father. She has fulfilled her orders and bitterly abandons Rearden, angry at the way he has not followed his own orders.

Production.

Scripting.

The script was written by Walter Hill who later recalled it as an unhappy experience. He was having a legal dispute with Warner Bros over the fact they had sold his script for "Hickey & Boggs" to United Artists without paying Hill any extra money. As a compromise, Warners sent Hill some novels they had optioned and offered to pay for him to write the script for one. He selected "The Freedom Trap" by Desmond Bagley. The novel was loosely based on the exposure and defection of George Blake, a Soviet mole in MI6.  Hill says, "I wrote a quick script which I was not particularly enamored with myself" and "much to my shock and surprise" Paul Newman agreed to star and John Huston wanted to direct. Newman's producing partner John Foreman would produce. The film was financed by Warners as part of the slate of films for Dick Shepherd.  "One would like to think you are mistaken about the wonders of your work, but I didn't believe it," said Hill. "That part turned out to be true."  Hill worked on the script with Huston and says the director was ill. Although Hill ended up with sole screen credit, he says "I wrote 90% of the first half, various people wrote the rest. I didn't think it was a very good film."  William Fairchild was one of the uncredited writers on the script.

Shooting.

According to a contemporary article on the making of the film, the script was not completed two weeks into shooting.  The film was shot in England, Republic of Ireland and Malta. The scene where Slade and Rearden escape from prison was inspired by Blake's escape from Wormwood Scrubs in 1966. The jail scenes were filmed at Liverpool Prison and Kilmainham Gaol in Dublin, Ireland.  The house where Slade and Rearden stay after their escape is Ardfry house, Oranmore, county Galway, Ireland, an abandoned castle in ruins.  The scene in which Rearden realises that Slade is on board Wheeler's yacht was shot at Roundstone, County Galway, Ireland.

Reception.

The film received a mixed reception when it was released, and did not perform well at the box office, in either the United Kingdom, United States or Canada. David Robinson, reviewer for "The Times", found the story a very predictable and typical espionage thriller, while the direction by John Huston still made it watchable because of Huston's gift for storytelling. "Variety" wrote it was "a tame tale of British espionage and counter-espionage", and added that "there’s a whole lot of nothing going on here." "The Hollywood Reporter" called it "a good genre film in the ice cold vein of "The Maltese Falcon"," and though "it isn't nearly as rich nor fine as that early Huston classic but tells an interesting story with a sure sense of atmosphere, location and supporting characters." Roger Ebert wrote it was "perhaps the first anti-spy movie", as it "seems to have been made by a group of people with no sympathy or understanding for spy movies." "Time Out" called it a "reasonably entertaining old-fashioned thriller" "if you can accept Newman as a totally unconvincing Australian..., an appalling array of accents (mainly Irish), and Dominique Sanda as an unlikely member of the British Secret Service."  Walter Hill says he never saw the final product, but was told it was "a real bomb".

The Mackintosh Man is a 1973 British-American Cold War neo noir spy thriller film, directed by John Huston and starring Paul Newman, Dominique Sanda and James Mason.

Le Piège ("The MacKintosh Man") est un film américano-britannique d’espionnage réalisé par John Huston, sorti en 1973 et ayant pour cadre le contexte de la guerre froide.


Plot.

A fake psychic, Blanche Tyler (Barbara Harris), and her boyfriend George Lumley (Bruce Dern), attempt to locate the nephew of a wealthy and guilt-ridden elderly woman, Julia Rainbird (Cathleen Nesbitt). Julia's recently deceased sister gave the baby boy up for adoption, but Julia now wants to make him her heir, and will pay Blanche $10,000 if the man, Edward Shoebridge, can be found. During his investigation George discovers that Shoebridge is thought to be dead, but he tracks down another criminal, Joseph Maloney (Ed Lauter), who paid for the tombstone over an empty grave.  Meanwhile, it is revealed to the viewers that Shoebridge murdered his adoptive parents, faked his own death and is now a successful jeweler in San Francisco known as Arthur Adamson (William Devane). He and his live-in girlfriend, Fran (Karen Black), kidnap millionaires and dignitaries, returning them in exchange for ransoms in the form of valuable gemstones. The duo conceal an enormous diamond in plain sight in a crystal chandelier.  When Adamson learns that George is investigating him, he enlists Maloney (the two had murdered Adamson's adoptive parents long ago), to kill Blanche and George. Maloney initially refuses to help, but then contacts Blanche and George, telling them to meet him at a café on a mountain road. He cuts the brake line of Blanche's car while the couple are in the café, but they manage to survive their dangerous high-speed descent. Maloney tries to run them over, but dies in a fiery explosion when he swerves to avoid an oncoming car and tumbles down the cliff.  At Maloney's funeral, his wife (Katherine Helmond) tearfully confesses to George that Shoebridge's name is now Arthur Adamson. George has to go to work driving his taxi for an evening shift, so Blanche tracks down various A. Adamsons in San Francisco, eventually reaching the jewelry store as it closes for the day. Arthur's assistant Mrs. Clay (Edith Atwater) offers to let Blanche leave a note. Blanche, lying that she is a friend of Arthur, convinces Mrs. Clay to give her his address, instead.  Arthur and Fran are bundling a kidnapped Bishop Wood (William Prince) into their car when Blanche rings their doorbell. They attempt to drive out of their garage, but Blanche's car is blocking their way. She tells Arthur that his aunt wants to make him her heir. Blanche sees the unconscious bishop, and swears she will not tell, but Arthur drugs her, leaving her in the cellar while they drop the bishop off for ransom.  Searching for Blanche, George finds her car outside Arthur and Fran's house, but no-one answers the door. He breaks in and searches for her. Arthur and Fran return home; George hides upstairs. He overhears Arthur's decision to kill Blanche and frame her death as a suicide. George manages to talk to Blanche, who is faking unconsciousness in the open cellar. Arthur and Fran enter to carry Blanche out to the car, but she darts out and George locks the kidnappers in.  Blanche then goes into a "trance", climbs the stairs into the house and halfway up the next stairs, where she points at the huge diamond hidden in the chandelier. Blanche then "wakes" and asks George what she is doing there. He excitedly tells her that she is indeed a real psychic. He calls the police to collect the reward for capturing the kidnappers and finding the jewels. A smiling Blanche looks at the camera and winks.

Production.

The film was adapted for the screen by Ernest Lehman, based on Victor Canning's 1972 novel "The Rainbird Pattern". Lehman wanted the film to be sweeping, dark and dramatic, but Hitchcock kept pushing him toward lightness and comedy. Lehman's screenplay earned him a 1977 Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America.  The novel on which the film is based had earlier been rejected by Lehman, to whom it had been submitted as a potential project for him to either produce or direct, or both. Hitchcock's other collaboration with the screenwriter, "North by Northwest" (1959), was followed by several aborted projects. Lehman had incurred the director's anger by declining an offer to write the screenplay for "No Bail for the Judge", a thriller set in London intended to star Audrey Hepburn, Laurence Harvey and actor John Williams. Although Hitchcock eventually had a fine screenplay, and pre-production (location scouting and costumes) was at an advanced stage, the film was never made; Hepburn became pregnant and Hitchcock turned to another project, "Psycho" (1960), instead.  Hitchcock, who often liked to specify the locales of his films by using on-screen titles or by using recognizable landmarks, deliberately left the story's location unspecific, using sites in both San Francisco and Los Angeles. The chase scene in the movie, which writer Donald Spoto called a spoof on car chases prevalent in films at the time, was filmed on the extensive Universal backlot. The restaurant used in the film was also built on the backlot and was shown on studio tours in 1975.  Hitchcock's signature cameo in "Family Plot" can be seen 40 minutes into the film. He appears in silhouette through the glass door of the Registrar of Births and Deaths.  Following "Family Plot", Hitchcock worked on the script for a projected spy thriller, "The Short Night". His declining health prevented the filming of the screenplay, which was published in a book during Hitchcock's last years. Universal chose not to film the script with another director, although it did authorize sequels to Hitchcock's "Psycho".

Casting.

Hitchcock considered such actors as Burt Reynolds and Roy Scheider (for Adamson), Al Pacino (for George), Faye Dunaway (for Fran), and Beverly Sills and Goldie Hawn (for Blanche) for the film. Cybill Shepherd wrote in her memoir that she had hoped to play the part of Fran, which eventually went to Karen Black. High salary demands were partly responsible for his turning to other actors. Although Liza Minnelli was among the stars recommended to Hitchcock, he was especially delighted to work with Barbara Harris as the medium. He had previously tried to hire her for other film projects.  Hitchcock had earlier worked with Bruce Dern on episodes of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" and on "Marnie" (1964), in which he had a brief role in a flashback playing a doomed sailor.

Music.

For the score, Universal's music executive, Harry Garfield recommended John Williams to Hitchcock, following the Oscar and critical acclaim of his music score for "Jaws".  The film was the only Hitchcock production to be scored by Williams, who has stated that Hitchcock wanted choir voices for Madame Blanche to make her seem psychic towards the beginning, and that Hitchcock was at the scoring sessions most of the time and would often give him suggestions. For the scene in which Maloney suddenly disappears from Adamson's office, Hitchcock suggested that Williams stop the music when the camera cuts to the open window to indicate to the audience that Maloney has left through it. Hitchcock then went on to say, "Mr. Williams, murder can be fun", when he suggested that he should conduct the music lightly for a darker scene of the film. Williams stated that it was a great privilege, and that he had a wonderful working experience with the director.  The complete soundtrack was not released upon the film's release date. Few themes from the film were released on John Williams and Alfred Hitchcock compilation albums. For years afterwards, the original soundtrack was not available, spawning many bootleg copies of the complete scoring sessions of the film over the internet. Finally in 2010, Varèse Sarabande officially released a limited edition of the complete Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, 34 years after the film's initial release.

Reception.

"Family Plot" has received positive reviews from critics. Vincent Canby of "The New York Times" called the film "a witty, relaxed lark", adding that it was "certainly Hitchcock's most cheerful film in a long time, but it's hardly innocent." Roger Ebert gave the film three out of four stars, saying of it: "And it's a delight for two contradictory reasons: because it's pure Hitchcock, with its meticulous construction and attention to detail, and because it's something new for Hitchcock—a macabre comedy, essentially. He doesn't go for shock here, or for violent effects, but for the gradual tightening of a narrative noose." "Variety" called the film "a dazzling achievement for Alfred Hitchcock. Masterfully controlling finely-tuned shifts from comedy to drama throughout a highly complex mystery-suspense plot, Hitchcock has created a film that has the involving detail work and teasing fascination of a novel to be read in front of a crackling fire on a rainy evening." Charles Champlin of the "Los Angeles Times" praised the film as "atmospheric, characterful, precisely paced, intricately plotted, exciting and suspenseful, beautifully acted and, perhaps more than anything else, amusing." Penelope Gilliatt of "The New Yorker" called the film "one of the saltiest and most endearing" films Hitchcock ever directed, adding, "Sometimes in his career, Hitchcock has seemed to manipulate the audience; in this, his fifty-third film, he is our accomplice, turning his sense of play to our benefit." Richard Combs of "The Monthly Film Bulletin" praised "the compact allusiveness and crisp elegance of Ernest Lehman's writing, which so deftly builds its own tongue-in-cheek attitudes into the material," and found that Bruce Dern and Barbara Harris made "a delightfully nuanced comic duet."  Not all reviews were as positive. Gene Siskel of the "Chicago Tribune" gave the film two-and-a-half stars and called it a "disappointment", finding that it "descends into dull jokes, plastic characters, and a television sitcom conclusion." Gary Arnold of "The Washington Post" called the film "a chore to sit through", adding, "Lehman and Hitchcock are trying to recapture the old magic, but they've lost their touch."  The film holds a 92% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 36 reviews, and an average rating of 7 out of 10. The film earned $6.5 million in rentals.  Released in the year of the United States Bicentennial "Family Plot" was chosen to open the 1976 Filmex (Los Angeles International Film Exposition) to honor American cinematography.  Barbara Harris was nominated for Best Actress – Motion Picture Comedy or Musical at the 34th Golden Globe Awards.

Family Plot is a 1976 American Technicolor comedy thriller that was the final film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. It was based on Victor Canning's 1972 novel "The Rainbird Pattern", which Ernest Lehman adapted for the screen. The film stars Karen Black, Bruce Dern, Barbara Harris and William Devane; it was screened at the 1976 Cannes Film Festival, but was not entered into the main competition.

Complot de famille ("Family Plot") est un film américain réalisé par Alfred Hitchcock, sorti en 1976. C'est le dernier film du réalisateur.