Takara
Takara Co., Ltd. was a Japanese toy company founded in 1955, that merged with another prominent Japanese toy company, Tomy Co., Ltd., on March 1, 2006 to form Takara Tomy, also known in English as TOMY Company Ltd.
The company motto was 「遊びは文化」 (asobi wa bunka), which means "playing is culture."
Products
Toys
Takara is perhaps best known for producing the transforming Diaclone and Microman's Micro Change toylines, known as "The First Transformers". These lines, created initially in 1975, were collectively re-branded as "Transformers" for the western market by Hasbro in 1984. Takara is also the originator of the hit toylines Battle Beasts (BeastFormers in Japan), E-kara karaoke microphone, Battle B-Daman and Beyblade (toy), all of which were sold or distributed internationally by Hasbro. Takara continues to sell Microman – the basis for the popular toyline "Micronauts" – which was first sold internationally by the now-defunct Mego in the 1970s, and Choro-Q, a mini pullback car, production of which has been running since 1978 and which has often been marketed in Western countries as Penny Racers.
Takara (band)
Takara is an American rock band, formed in 1987 in Los Angeles, California. Since 1992, Takara has recorded 6 studio albums for several different record labels in the U.S., Europe, and Japan. Founding member and lead guitarist Neal Grusky, and bassist Carl Demarco have remained permanent fixtures in the band since its early days.
Biography
1980s - Early days
Takara was formed in August 1987. After a few months of rehearsals the band made their debut in October with a show in Hollywood, California. The band proceeded to play many more shows throughout 1987-88. In November 1988, Takara went into the studio to record their first demo with producer Jeff Scott Soto. As they entered the studio it became apparent that the singer was not ready to record. In order to finish the new Takara demo, Soto was asked to help out by providing vocals for the demo. This was the beginning of a long relationship between the band and Jeff Scott Soto.
1990s - The Soto era
In 1990, Takara went back into the studio to record what would eventually become their debut album, Eternal Faith. In 1992 Takara regrouped and added new members who would perform in Eternal Faith. The line-up was ultimately completed with Jeff Scott Soto on vocals, Neal Grusky on guitar, Gary Schutt on bass and Bob Duda on drums. In August 1993, Zero Corporation (Japan) and Now and Then records (Europe) offered Takara a deal to release Eternal Faith in December 1993.
Believe
Believe may refer to:
Film and television
Music
Albums
Believe (Emerson Drive album)
Believe is the sixth studio album by Canadian country music group Emerson Drive. The album was released in Canada on May 5, 2009 via Midas/Valory/Open Road. The album's first single, "Belongs to You," reached the top forty on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in the United States.
Critical reception
The album received mixed reviews from music critics. It received a three-and-a-half star rating from Todd Sterling of AllMusic, who said that the album was "slickly produced" and that it "sticks to the well-worn formula of the group's previous releases," but said that it had "every color of the musical rainbow." Sterling cited "Your Last" as a standout, calling it a "lump-in-the-throat masterpiece." Jim Malec of The 9513 gave it one star out of five, referring to the song's lyrics as largely cliché in nature and saying, "There is not a single song on Believe worth hearing. It is an entirely disposable album that is unoriginal, uninteresting and unnecessary." Malec also criticized the album's sound, saying that the mixing of instruments and Brad Mates' vocals did not seem cohesive.
Criss Angel Believe
Criss Angel Believe (also written as CRISS ANGEL beLIEve) is the sixth Cirque du Soleil show in Las Vegas, which was premiered at the beLIEve theatre (which holds 1,600 when at capacity) inside the Luxor hotel in Las Vegas in 2008. It is a theatrical production created in partnership of Cirque du Soleil and magician Criss Angel, who is billed as the "co-writer, illusions creator and designer, original concept creator and star" of the show.
It was rumoured in September 2015 that beLIEve would close having concluded its 10-year contract at the Luxor in 2018 and this was later confirmed on the 'about' page which states that "BeLIEve is performed live eight to ten shows per week and will continue its 10 year run through 2018 exclusively at the Luxor Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas". Initially Cirque proposed a possible 5-year extension to the confirmed 10-year contract (depending on the success of the show), however they have since retracted this offer most likely due to lower than intended ticket sales.
Podcasts:
