Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (abbreviated as MGM or M-G-M, also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, or simply Metro) is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of feature films and television programs.

Once the largest, most glamorous, and most revered film studio, MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures and Louis B. Mayer Pictures. Its headquarters are in Beverly Hills, California. It is one of the oldest mini-major film studios and a former major film studio.

In 1971, it was announced that MGM would merge with 20th Century Fox, a plan which never came into fruition. Over the next thirty-nine years, the studio was bought and sold at various points in its history until, on November 3, 2010, MGM filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. MGM emerged from bankruptcy on December 20, 2010, at which time the executives of Spyglass Entertainment, Gary Barber and Roger Birnbaum, became co-Chairmen and co-CEOs of the holding company of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

MGM-31 Pershing

The MGM-31A Pershing was the missile used in the Pershing 1 and Pershing 1a field artillery missile systems. It was a solid-fueled two-stage ballistic missile designed and built by Martin Marietta to replace the PGM-11 Redstone missile as the primary nuclear-capable theater-level weapon of the United States Army and replaced the MGM-1 Matador cruise missiles operated by the German Air Force. Pershing later replaced the MGM-13 Mace cruise missiles deployed by the United States Air Force and the German Air Force. Development began in 1958, with the first test missile fired in 1960, the Pershing 1 system deployed in 1963 and the improved Pershing 1a deployed in 1969. The U.S. Army replaced the Pershing 1a with the Pershing II Weapon System in 1983 while the German Air Force retained Pershing 1a until all Pershings were eliminated in 1991. The U.S. Army Missile Command (MICOM) managed the development and improvements while the Field Artillery Branch deployed the systems and developed tactical doctrine.

United States military aircraft designation systems

The United States Military Aircraft Designation System was first designed in 1919 when the US Army's Aeronautical Division became the United States Army Air Service. Before this aircraft were put into service under their manufacturers' designations.

History

United States Army Air Service 1919 to 1924

During this period Type Designations used by the United States Army Air Service were allotted, using two or three letters, which were an abbreviation of the aircraft's purpose. Examples include GA for Ground Attack aircraft; NO for Night Observation aircraft and NBS for Night Bombardment, Short Distance aircraft.

Army aviation 1924 to 1962

From 1924 to 1947 the Air Service, United States Army Air Corps, United States Army Air Forces and United States Air Force used a designation system based on mission category, with each model in a category numbered sequentially. In 1947, the designation system was extensively overhauled, with several categories being dispensed with, and others renamed For instance, the Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star (Pursuit) was redesignated as F-80 (Fighter), while the A-26 medium bomber/attack aircraft was redesignated as the B-26, reusing the designation, the Martin B-26 having retired in the meantime.

Akira Toriyama

Akira Toriyama (鳥山 明, Toriyama Akira, born April 5, 1955 in Nagoya, Aichi) is a Japanese manga and game artist. He first achieved mainstream recognition for his highly successful manga Dr. Slump, before going on to create Dragon Ball—his best-known work—and acting as a character designer for several popular video games such as the Dragon Quest series, Blue Dragon, and Chrono Trigger. Toriyama is regarded as one of the artists that changed the history of manga, as his works are highly influential and popular, particularly Dragon Ball, which many manga artists cite as a source of inspiration.

He earned the 1981 Shogakukan Manga Award for best shōnen or shōjo manga with Dr. Slump, and it went on to sell over 35 million copies in Japan. It was adapted into a successful anime series, with a second anime created in 1997, 13 years after the manga ended. His next series, Dragon Ball, would become one of the most popular and successful manga in the world. Having sold more than 230 million copies worldwide, it is the third best-selling manga of all time and is considered to be one of the main reasons for the "Golden Age of Jump," the period between the mid-1980s and the mid-1990s when manga circulation was at its highest. Overseas, Dragon Ball's anime adaptations have been more successful than the manga and are credited with boosting Japanese animation's popularity in the Western world.

Ride the Lightning

Ride the Lightning is the second studio album by American heavy metal band Metallica. The album was released on July 27, 1984, by the independent label Megaforce Records. The album was recorded in three weeks with producer Flemming Rasmussen at the Sweet Silence Studios in Copenhagen, Denmark. The artwork, based on the band's concept, represents an electric chair in the midst of a thunderstorm. The album title was taken from a passage in Stephen King's novel The Stand. Whilst still rooted in the thrash metal genre, the album showcased the band's musical maturity and lyrical sophistication. This was partially because bassist Cliff Burton introduced the basics of music theory to the rest of the band and because he had more input in the songwriting. The overall recording cost was paid by Metallica's European label Music for Nations because Megaforce was unable to cover it. It was the last album to feature songwriting contribution from former lead guitarist Dave Mustaine.

Escape (2012 Norwegian film)

Escape (Norwegian: Flukt) is a 2012 action-thriller film directed by Roar Uthaug. It stars Isabel Christine Andreasen and Milla Olin as girls in 14th century Norway who must escape bandits led by Ingrid Bolsø Berdal. It premiered at the Slash Film Festival and was released in Norway in September 2012.

Plot

In fourteenth century Norway, 19-year-old Signe, her younger brother, and her parents travel through lands made dangerous by the lawlessness following the Black Death. Bandits led by Dagmar kill her entire family; Dagmar herself murders Signe's brother as she watches helplessly. Before the bandits can kill Signe, Dagmar stops them and orders them to take her prisoner. At their camp, Signe meets Frigg, a young girl that Dagmar has adopted. When Frigg shows kindness to Signe, Dagmar chastises her and says that Signe deserves no compassion, as her people have driven them to banditry.

Arvid, Dagmar's lover, stops Loke from raping Signe. As the others watch Arvid and Loke fight, Signe strains to recover Loke's dropped knife. Frigg notices and alerts Dagmar, who tasks Frigg with Signe's punishment, cutting off a finger. When Signe calls Dagmar a witch, Dagmar gloats that she will soon allow the men to rape Signe, as she wants Frigg to have a younger sister. Instead of cutting off Signe's finger, Frigg frees her. As the others sleep, the two girls sneak out of the camp. The bandits wake and give chase, though Signe and Frigg evade them in the nearby forest.