document_title: Dragon Ball Z

question_text: when was dragon ball z first aired in the us

text: Dragon Ball Z

text: Plot[edit]

text: Dragon Ball Z picks up five years after the end of the Dragon Ball anime, with Son Goku as a young adult and father to his son Gohan. A humanoid alien named Raditz arrives on Earth in a spacecraft and tracks down Goku, revealing to him that he is his long-lost big brother and that they are members of a nearly extinct extraterrestrial race called the Saiyans (サイヤ人, Saiya-jin). The Saiyans had sent Goku (originally named "Kakarrot") to Earth as an infant to conquer the planet for them, but he suffered a traumatic brain injury soon after his arrival and lost all memory of his mission, as well as his blood-thirsty Saiyan nature. Goku refuses to help Raditz continue the mission, which results in Raditz kidnapping Gohan. Goku decides to team up with his former enemy Piccolo in order to defeat Raditz and save his son, while sacrificing his own life in the process. In the afterlife, Goku trains under Kaiō-sama until he is revived by the Dragon Balls a year later in order to save the Earth from Raditz' comrades; Nappa and the Saiyan prince Vegeta. During the battle Piccolo is killed, along with Goku's allies Yamcha, Tenshinhan and Chaozu, and the Dragon Balls cease to exist because of Piccolo's death. Goku arrives at the battlefield late, but avenges his fallen friends by defeating Nappa with his new level of power. Vegeta himself enters into the battle with Goku and after numerous clashes, Goku manages to defeat him as well, with the help of Gohan, his best friend Krillin and Yajirobe . At Goku's request, they spare Vegeta's life and allow him to escape Earth. During the battle, Krillin overhears Vegeta mentioning the original set of Dragon Balls from Piccolo's home planet Namek (ナメック星, Namekku-sei). While Goku recovers from his injuries at the hospital, Gohan, Krillin and Goku's oldest friend Bulma depart for Namek in order to use these Dragon Balls to revive their dead friends. However, they discover that Vegeta's superior, the galactic tyrant Lord Frieza, is already there, seeking the Dragon Balls to be granted eternal life. A fully healed Vegeta arrives on Namek as well, seeking the Dragon Balls for himself, which leads to several battles between him and Frieza's henchmen. Realizing he is overpowered, Vegeta teams up with Gohan and Krillin to fight the Ginyu Force, a team of mercenaries summoned by Frieza. After Goku finally arrives on Namek, the epic battle with Frieza himself comes to a close when Goku transforms into a fabled Super Saiyan (超サイヤ人, Sūpā Saiya-jin) and defeats him.

text: Upon his return to Earth a year later, Goku encounters a time traveler named Trunks, the future son of Bulma and Vegeta, who warns Goku that two Artificial Humans (人造人間, Jinzōningen, lit. "Artificial Humans") will appear three years later, seeking revenge against Goku for destroying the Red Ribbon Army when he was a child. During this time, an evil life form called Cell emerges and after absorbing two of the Artificial Humans to achieve his "perfect form," holds his own fighting tournament to decide the fate of the Earth, called the "Cell Games". After Goku sacrifices his own life a second time, to no avail, Gohan avenges his father by defeating Cell after ascending to the second level of Super Saiyan. Seven years later Goku, who has been briefly revived for one day and meets his youngest son Goten, and his allies are drawn into a fight by the Kaioshin against a magical being named Majin Buu. After numerous battles resulting in the destruction and recreation of the Earth, Goku (whose life is permanently restored by the Elder Kaioshin) destroys Majin Buu with a Genki Dama attack containing the energy of everyone on Earth. Goku makes a wish for Buu to be reincarnated as a good person and ten years later, at another martial arts tournament, Goku meets Buu's human reincarnation, Uub. Leaving the match between them unfinished, Goku departs with Uub to train him to become Earth's new defender.

text: Production and broadcasting[edit]

text: Kazuhiko Torishima, Akira Toriyama's editor for Dr. Slump and the first half of Dragon Ball, felt that the Dragon Ball anime's ratings were gradually declining because it had the same producer that worked on Dr. Slump. Torishima said this producer had this "cute and funny" image connected to Toriyama's work and was missing the more serious tone in the newer series, and therefore asked the studio to change the producer. Impressed with their work on Saint Seiya, he asked its director Kōzō Morishita and writer Takao Koyama to help "reboot" Dragon Ball, which coincided with Goku growing up. The new producer explained that ending the first anime and creating a new one would result in more promotional money, and the result was the start of Dragon Ball Z.[2] The title was suggested by Toriyama because Z is the last letter of the alphabet and he wanted to finish the series because he was running out of ideas for it.[3]

text: Dragon Ball Z is adapted from the final 325 chapters of the manga series which were published in Weekly Shōnen Jump from 1988 to 1995. It premiered in Japan on Fuji Television on April 26, 1989, taking over its predecessor's time slot, and ran for 291 episodes until its conclusion on January 31, 1996.[4] Because Toriyama was writing the manga during the production of the anime,[5] Dragon Ball Z added original material not adapted from the manga, including lengthening scenes or adding new ones, and adding new attacks and characters not present in the manga. For example, Toriyama was asked to create an additional character for Goku's training with Kaiō-sama, resulting in the cricket Gregory.[6]

text: Throughout the production, the voice actors were tasked with playing different characters and performing their lines on cue, switching between roles as necessary.[7] The voice actors were unable to record the lines separately because of the close dialogue timing. When asked if juggling the different voices of Goku, Gohan and Goten was difficult, Masako Nozawa said that it was not, and that she was able to switch roles simply upon seeing the character's picture.[7] She did admit that when they were producing two films a year and television specials in addition to the regular series, there were times when they had only line art to look at while recording, which made giving finer nuanced details in her performance difficult.[8]

text: Series Director Daisuke Nishio left the series after personally directing Episode #202. Nishio left the series to become series director of Aoki Densetsu Shoot!. The role of series director was not officially filled for Episodes #200-291, despite Nishio's directing of Episode #202.[citation needed]

text: English dub production and broadcasting[edit]

text: In 1996, Funimation Productions licensed Dragon Ball Z for an English-language release in North America. They contracted Saban Entertainment to help distribute the series to television, and Pioneer Entertainment to handle home video distribution.[9] The Vancouver-based Ocean Studios were hired by Funimation to dub the anime (Funimation had previously used the Ocean voice cast in their short-lived 1995 dub of Dragon Ball).[10] Saban musicians Ron Wasserman[11] and Jeremy Sweet,[10] known for their work on the Power Rangers franchise, composed a new background score and theme song (nicknamed "Rock the Dragon").[Note 1] Funimation's initial English dub of Dragon Ball Z had mandated cuts to content and length, which reduced the first 67 episodes into 53.[12][13] It premiered in the United States on September 13, 1996 in first-run syndication, but halted production in 1998 after two seasons.[12] This was due to Saban scaling down its syndication operations, in order to focus on producing original material for the Fox Kids block.[14] Pioneer also ceased its home video release of the series at volume 17 (the end of the dub) and retained the rights to produce an uncut subtitled version,[12] but did not do so.

text: On August 31, 1998, reruns of this cancelled dub began airing on Cartoon Network as part of the channel's weekday afternoon programming block Toonami. Due to the success of these re-runs on Toonami, Funimation resumed production on the series' English dub without Saban's assistance, but could no longer afford the services of the Ocean voice cast due to financial constraints. This led to Funimation forming its own in-house voice cast at their Texas-based studio. The Saban-produced soundtrack from the first two seasons was replaced with a new background score composed by Bruce Faulconer and his team of musicians, which was used throughout the rest of Funimation's Dragon Ball Z dub.[11] This renewed dub featured less censorship (due to fewer restrictions on cable programming) and aired on Cartoon Network's Toonami block from September 13, 1999, to April 7, 2003; continuing in re-runs through 2008. Kids' WB briefly ran Dragon Ball Z in 2001 on its short-lived Toonami block.[15]

text: In 2004, Pioneer lost its distribution rights to the first 53/67 episodes of Dragon Ball Z, allowing Funimation to re-dub them with their in-house voice cast and restore the removed content.[16] This dub's background score was composed by Nathan M. Johnson. Funimation's new uncut dub of these episodes aired on Cartoon Network during the summer of 2005 (in late night, due to the unedited content).[17][18][19] Funimation's later remastered DVDs of the series saw minor changes made to their in-house dub for quality and consistency, mostly after the episode 67 gap, and had the option to play the entire series' dub with both the American and Japanese background music.

text: In January 2011, Funimation and Toei announced that they would stream Dragon Ball Z within 30 minutes before their simulcast of One Piece.[20] As of 2013, Dragon Ball Z is being streamed on Hulu, containing the English dub with the Japanese music and uncut footage, as well as subtitled Japanese episodes.

text: The Funimation dubbed episodes also aired in Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Belgium, Australia and New Zealand. However, beginning with episode 108 (123 uncut), AB Groupe and Westwood Media (in association with Ocean Studios) produced an alternate English dub. The alternate dub was created for broadcast in the UK, the Netherlands and Ireland, although it later aired in Canada. Funimation's in-house dub continued to air in the U.S., Australia and New Zealand. The Westwood Media production used the same voices from the original short-lived dub syndicated in the USA (Which later aired on Toonami), it featured an alternate soundtrack by Tom Keenlyside and John Mitchell,[21] and it used the same scripts and edits as the TV edit of Funimation's in-house dub (although the UK and Europe's version was slightly edited down from this). In Australia, Dragon Ball Z was broadcast by the free-to-air commercial network, Network Ten during morning children's programming, Cheez TV, originally using the censored Funimation/Saban dub before switching to Funimation's in-house dub. Dragon Ball Z originally aired on the British Comedy Network in Fall 1998.[22]

text: Dragon Ball Z Kai[edit]

text: In February 2009, Toei Animation announced that it would begin broadcasting a revised version of Dragon Ball Z as part of the series' 20th-anniversary celebrations. The series premiered on Fuji TV in Japan on April 5, 2009, under the name Dragon Ball Kai. The ending suffix Kai (改「かい」) in the name means "updated" or "altered" and reflects the improvements and corrections of the original work.[23] The original footage was remastered for HDTV, featuring updated opening and ending sequences, new music, and a rerecording of the vocal tracks.[23][24] The original material and any damaged frames were removed to more closely follow the manga, resulting in a faster-moving story.[25] Torishima later explained the origins of Kai; Bandai was having a hard time increasing their sales and asked if a new Dragon Ball anime could be made. But Toriyama refused to create a new story. Realizing that the anime-exclusive scenes that were added to increase the distance between the original anime and the manga hurt the pacing of the series, Torishima thought of cutting them so that it faithfully followed the manga. He said the reception to Kai was positive and Bandai had a hit with a card game, so it all worked out.[26]

text: The series initially concluded with the finale of the Cell arc, as opposed to including the Majin Buu arc. It was originally planned to run 98 episodes, however, due to the Tōhoku offshore earthquake and tsunami, the final episode of Dragon Ball Kai was not aired and the series ended on its 97th episode in Japan on March 27, 2011. The 98th episode was later released direct-to-video in Japan on August 2, 2011.[27]

text: In November 2012, Mayumi Tanaka, the Japanese voice of Krillin, announced that she and the rest of the cast were recording more episodes of Dragon Ball Kai.[28] In February 2014, the Kai adaptation of the Majin Buu arc was officially confirmed. The new run of the series, which is titled Dragon Ball Z Kai: The Final Chapters internationally, began airing in Japan on Fuji TV on April 6, 2014, and ended its run on June 28, 2015.[29] The final arc of Kai was originally produced to last 69 episodes (as most of the international versions run),[30] but the Japanese broadcast cut it down to 61 episodes.

text: Funimation licensed Dragon Ball Kai for an English-language release in North America, under the title Dragon Ball Z Kai. The series was broadcast on Nicktoons from May 24, 2010 to April 13, 2013.[31][32] In addition to Nicktoons, the series also began airing on The CW's Saturday morning programming block Toonzai in August 2010,[33] then on its successor, Vortexx, beginning in August 2012.[29] Both the Nicktoons and Toonzai/Vortexx airings were edited for content, though the Toonzai/Vortexx version was censored even more so than Nicktoons (perhaps most notoriously, Mr. Popo was tinted blue), most likely due to The CW being a broadcast network. Kai began airing uncut on Adult Swim's Toonami block in November 2014,[34] and re-runs of the previous week's episodes aired at the beginning of Adult Swim proper from February 2015 to June 2016.[35] CSC Media Group acquired the broadcast rights to Dragon Ball Z Kai in the United Kingdom and began airing it on Kix! in early 2013.[36][37][38]

text: Despite Kai's continuation not being officially confirmed at the time even in Japan, Sean Schemmel and Kyle Hebert, the Funimation dub voice actors of Goku and Gohan, announced in April 2013 that they had started recording an English dub for new episodes.[39] In November 2013, Kai's Australasian distributor Madman Entertainment revealed that the Majin Buu arc of Kai would be released in 2014 and that they were waiting on dubs to be finished.[40] However, in February 2014, Funimation officially stated that they did not record for the final arc of Kai.[41] On December 6, 2016, Funimation announced the continuation of Kai to begin airing on Adult Swim's Toonami block starting January 7, 2017.[42]

text: Editing[edit]

text: Dragon Ball Z's original North American release was the subject of heavy editing which resulted in a large amount of removed content and alterations that greatly changed the original work. Funimation CEO Gen Fukunaga is often criticized for his role in the editing; but it was the distributor Saban which required such changes or they would not air the work, as was the case with the episode dealing with orphans.[43][Note 2] These changes included altering every aspect of the show from character names, clothing, scenes and dialogue of the show. The character Mr. Satan was renamed Hercule and this change has been retained in other English media such as Viz's Dragon Ball Z manga and video games.[44] The dialogue changes would sometimes contradict the scenes itself; after the apparent fatal explosion of a helicopter, one of the characters said, "I can see their parachutes; they're okay!"[43] Funimation's redub for the 2005 release would address many of the issues raised by Saban, with the uncut releases preserving the integrity of the original Japanese release.

text: During the original Japanese TV airing of Dragon Ball Kai, scenes involving blood and brief nudity were removed. A rumor that Cartoon Network would be airing Kai uncut was met with an official statement to debunk the rumor in June 2010.[45] Nicktoons would also alter Kai; it released a preview showcasing these changes which included removing blood and cheek scar from Bardock and altering the color of Roshi's alcohol.[46] The show was further edited for its broadcast on Toonzai and Vortexx, but the show's DVD and Blu-ray releases only contained the edits present in the original Japanese version.

text: Steven Simmons, who did the subtitling for Funimation's home video releases, offered commentary on the subtitling from a project and technical standpoint, addressing several concerns.[47][Note 3] Simmons said that Gen Fukunaga did not want any swearing on the discs, but because there was no taboo word list Simmons would substitute a variation in the strength of the words by situation with the changes starting in episode 21.[48] The typographical errors in the script were caused by dashes (—) and double-quotes (") failing to appear, which resulted in confusing dialogue.[48]

text: Music[edit]

text:
"Cha-La Head-Cha-La"

Sample of "Cha-La Head-Cha-La" performed by Hironobu Kageyama, the opening theme song for the majority of the show.

Problems playing this file? See media help.

text: Shunsuke Kikuchi composed the score for Dragon Ball Z. The opening theme for the first 199 episodes is "Cha-La Head-Cha-La" performed by Hironobu Kageyama. The second opening theme used up until the series finale at episode 291 is "We Gotta Power" also performed by Kageyama. The ending theme used for the first 194 episodes is "Detekoi Tobikiri Zenkai Power!" (でてこいとびきりZENKAIパワー!, "Come Out, Incredible Full Power!") performed by MANNA. The second ending theme used for the remaining episodes is "Bokutachi wa Tenshi Datta" (僕達は天使だった, "We Used to be Angels") performed by Kageyama.

text: Kenji Yamamoto composed the score for Dragon Ball Kai. The opening theme, "Dragon Soul", and the first ending theme used for the first 54 episodes, "Yeah! Break! Care! Break!", are both performed by Takayoshi Tanimoto.[49] The second ending theme, used from episodes 55–98, is "Kokoro no Hane" (心の羽根, "Wings of the Heart") performed by Team Dragon, a unit of the idol girl group AKB48.[50] On March 9, 2011, Toei announced that due to Yamamoto's score infringing on the rights of an unknown third party or parties, the music for remaining episodes and reruns of previous episodes would be replaced.[51] Later reports from Toei stated that with the exception of the series' opening and closing songs, as well as eyecatch music, Yamamoto's score was replaced with Shunsuke Kikuchi's original from Dragon Ball Z. The music for the Majin Buu Saga of Kai is composed by Norihito Sumitomo.[52] The opening theme is "Kuu•Zen•Zetsu•Go" (空•前•絶•後) by Dragon Soul, while the first ending song is "Haikei, Tsuratsusutora" (拝啓、ツラツストラ, "Dear Zarathustra") by Japanese rock band Good Morning America,[53] and the second "Junjō" (純情, "Pure Heart") by Leo Ieiri from episode 112 to 123.[54] The third ending song is "Oh Yeah!!!!!!!" by Czecho No Republic from episode 124 to 136,[55] the fourth "Galaxy" by Kyūso Nekokami from 137 to 146, and the fifth is "Don't Let Me Down" by Gacharic Spin from 147 to 159.[56] The international broadcast features two pieces of theme music. The opening theme, titled "Fight It Out", is performed by rock singer Masatoshi Ono, while the ending theme is "Never Give Up!!!", performed by rhythm and blues vocalist Junear.

text: Related media[edit]

text: Home releases[edit]

text: In Japan, Dragon Ball Z did not receive a home video release until 2003, seven years after its broadcast. This was a remastering of the series in two 26-disc DVD box sets, that were made-to-order only, released on March 19 and September 18 and referred to as "Dragon Boxes." The content of these sets began being released on mass-produced individual 6-episode DVDs on November 2, 2005 and finished with the 49th volume released on February 7, 2007.[57][58]

text: The international home release structure of Dragon Ball Z is complicated by the licensing and release of the companies involved in producing and distributing the work. Releases of the media occurred on both VHS and DVD with separate edited and uncut versions being released simultaneously. Both versions of the edited and uncut material are treated as different entries and would frequently make Billboard rankings as separate entries. Home release sales were featured prominently on the Nielsen VideoScan charts.[16] Further complicating the release of the material was Funimation itself; which was known to release "DVDs out of sequence in order to get them out as fast as possible"; as in the case of their third season.[59] Pioneer Entertainment distributed the Funimation/Saban edited-only dub of 53 episodes on seventeen VHS between 1997 and 1999,[60][61] and seventeen DVDs throughout 1999.[62][63] Two box sets separating them into the Saiyan and Namek arcs were also released on VHS in 1999,[64][65] and on DVD in 2001.[66][67] Funimation's own distribution of their initial in-house dub, which began with episode 54, in edited or uncut VHS ran between 2000 and 2003.[68][69][70] A DVD version was produced alongside these, although they were only produced uncut and contained the option to watch the original Japanese with subtitles.[71][72]

text: In 2005, Funimation began releasing their in-house dub of the beginning of Dragon Ball Z on DVD, marking the first time the episodes were seen uncut in North America.[73] However, only nine volumes were released, leaving it incomplete.[74] Instead, Funimation remastered and cropped the entire series into 16:9 widescreen format and began re-releasing it to DVD in nine individual "season" box sets; the first set released on February 6, 2007 and the final on May 19, 2009.[75][76] In July 2009, Funimation announced that they would be releasing the Japanese frame-by-frame "Dragon Box" restoration of Dragon Ball Z in North America. These seven limited edition DVD box sets were released uncut in the show's original 4:3 fullscreen format between November 10, 2009 and October 11, 2011.[77]

text: In July 2011, Funimation announced plans to release Dragon Ball Z in Blu-ray format, with the first set released on November 8, 2011.[78][79][80] However, production of these 4:3 sets was suspended after the second volume, citing technical concerns over restoring the original film material frame by frame.[81] Only a year later, the company began producing a cropped 16:9 remastered Blu-ray release in 2013, with nine sets released in total.[82] On August 13, 2013, Funimation released all 53 episodes and the three movies from their first Dragon Ball Z dub created with Saban and Ocean Studios in a collector's DVD box set, titled the Rock the Dragon Edition.[83]

text: Kai[edit]

text: In Japan, Dragon Ball Kai was released in wide-screen on 33 DVDs and in fullscreen on a single Blu-ray and eight four-disc Blu-ray sets from September 18, 2009, to August 2, 2011.

text: Funimation released eight DVD and Blu-ray box sets of Dragon Ball Z Kai from May 18, 2010 to June 5, 2012.[84][85] These sets contain the original Japanese audio track with English subtitles, as well as the uncut version of the English dub, which does not contain any of the edits made for the TV airings. Before the final volume was even published, Funimation began re-releasing the series in four DVD and Blu-ray "season" sets between May 22, 2012 and March 12, 2013.[86][87]

text: Manga[edit]

text: While the manga was all titled Dragon Ball in Japan, due to the popularity of the Dragon Ball Z anime in the west, Viz Media initially changed the title of the last 26 volumes of the manga to "Dragon Ball Z" to avoid confusion. The volumes were originally published in Japan between 1988 and 1995. It began serialization in the American Shonen Jump, beginning in the middle of the series with the appearance of Trunks; the tankōbon volumes of both Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball were released simultaneously by Viz Media in the United States.[88][89] In March 2001, Viz continued this separation by re-shipping the Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z titles starting with the first volumes of each work.[90] Viz's marketing for the manga made distinct the differences between Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z tone. Viz billed Dragon Ball Z: "More action-packed than the stories of Goku's youth, Dragon Ball Z is pure adrenaline, with battles of truly Earth-shaking proportions!"[91] Between 2008 and 2010, Viz re-released the two series in a format called "Viz Big Edition," which collects three individual volumes into a single large volume.[92] However, in 2013 Viz began publishing new 3-in-1 volumes collecting the entire manga series, including what they previously released as Dragon Ball Z, under the Dragon Ball name.[93]

text: Films[edit]

text: The Dragon Ball Z films comprise a total of 15 entries as of 2015. The films are typically released in March and July in accordance with the spring and summer vacations of Japanese schools. They were typically double features paired up with other anime films, and were thus, usually an hour or less in length. The films themselves offer contradictions in both chronology and design that make them incompatible with a single continuity. All 14 films were licensed in North America by Funimation, and all have received in-house dubs by the company. Prior to Funimation, the third film was a part of the short-lived Saban syndication, being split into three episodes, and the first three films received uncut English dubs in 1998 produced by Funimation with Ocean Studios and released by Pioneer. Several of the films have been broadcast on Cartoon Network and Nicktoons in the United States, Toonami UK in the United Kingdom (these featured an alternate English dub produced by an unknown cast by AB Groupe), and Cartoon Network in Australia.

text: Television specials and original video animations[edit]

text: Three TV specials based on Dragon Ball Z were produced and broadcast on Fuji TV. The first two were Dragon Ball Z: Bardock – The Father of Goku in 1990 and Dragon Ball Z: The History of Trunks in 1993, the latter being based on a special chapter of the original manga. Both were licensed by Funimation in North America and AB Groupe in Europe. In 2013, a two-part hour-long crossover with One Piece and Toriko, titled Dream 9 Toriko & One Piece & Dragon Ball Z Chō Collaboration Special!!, was created and aired.

text: Additionally, two original video animations (OVAs) bearing the Dragon Ball Z title have been made. The first is Dragon Ball Z Side Story: Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans, which was originally released in 1993 in two parts as "Official Visual Guides" for the video game of the same title. Dragon Ball: Plan to Eradicate the Super Saiyans was a 2010 remake of this OVA. None of the OVAs have been dubbed into English, and the only one to see a release in North America is the 2010 remake, which was subtitled and included as a bonus feature in Dragon Ball: Raging Blast 2.

text: Video games[edit]

text: There are over 57 video games bearing the Dragon Ball Z name across a range of platforms from the Nintendo Entertainment System/Famicom to the current generation consoles. Also included are arcade games like Super Dragon Ball Z, which would eventually be ported to consoles.

text: In North America, licensing rights had been given to both Namco Bandai and Atari. In 1999, Atari acquired exclusive rights to the video games through Funimation, a deal which was extended for five more years in 2005.[94] A 2007 dispute would end with Atari paying Funimation $3.5 million.[95] In July 2009, Namco Bandai was reported to have obtained exclusive rights to release the games for a period of five years.[96] This presumably would have taken effect after Atari's licensing rights expired at the end of January 2010.[95]

text: Soundtracks[edit]

text: Dragon Ball Z has been host to numerous soundtrack releases with works like "Cha-La Head-Cha-La" and a series of 21 soundtracks released as part of the Dragon Ball Z Hit Song Collection Series. In total, dozens of releases exist for Dragon Ball Z which includes Japanese and foreign adapted releases of the anime themes and video game soundtracks.

text: Reception[edit]

text: Cultural impact and legacy[edit]

text: Dragon Ball Z was listed as the 78th best animated show in IGN's "Top 100 Animated Series",[97] and was also listed as the 50th greatest cartoon in Wizard magazine's "Top 100 Greatest Cartoons" list.[98] The series ranked #6 on Wizard's Anime Magazine on their "Top 50 Anime released in North America".[99]

text: Dragon Ball Z's popularity is reflected through a variety of data through online interactions which show the popularity of the media. In 2001, it was reported that the official website of Dragon Ball Z records 4.7 million hits per day and included 500,000+ registered fans.[100] The term "Dragonball Z" ranked 4th in 1999 and 2nd in 2000 by Lycos' web search engine.[101][102] For 2001, "Dragonball" was the most popular search on Lycos and "Dragonball Z" was fifth on Yahoo!.[103]

text: In 2015, Ford Motor Company released two commercials featuring characters from the series, the first advertising the Ford Fusion and the second for the Ford Focus.[104]

text: Ratings[edit]

text: Dragon Ball Z's Japanese run was very popular with an average viewer ratings of 20.5% across the series. Dragon Ball Z also proved to be a rating success in the United States, as the premiere of Season Three of Dragon Ball Z in 1999, done by Funimation's in-house dub, was the highest-rated program ever at the time on Cartoon Network.[105] In 2002, in the week ending September 22, Dragon Ball Z was the #1 program of the week on all of television with tweens 9-14, boys 9-14 and men 12-24, with the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday telecasts of Dragon Ball Z ranked as the top three programs in all of television, broadcast or cable, for delivery of boys 9-14.[106] In 2001, Cartoon Network obtained licensing to run 96 more episodes and air the original Dragon Ball anime and was the top rated show in the Toonami block of Cartoon network.[107] Beginning March 26, 2001, Cartoon Network ran a 12-week special promotion "Toonami Reactor" which included a focus on Dragon Ball Z, which would stream episodes online to high-speed internet users.[108] Many home video releases were met with both the edited and unedited versions placing on in the top 10 video charts of Billboard. For example, "The Dark Prince Returns" (containing episodes 226-228) and "Rivals" (containing episodes 229-231) edited and unedited, made the Billboard magazine top video list for October 20, 2001.[109][Note 4]

text: The first episode of Dragon Ball Kai earned a viewer ratings percentage of 11.3, ahead of One Piece and behind Crayon Shin-chan.[110] Although following episodes had lower ratings, Kai was among the top 10 anime in viewer ratings every week in Japan for most of its run.[111][112] Towards the end of the original run the ratings hovered around 9%-10%.[113][114] Dragon Ball Z Kai premiered on Nicktoons in May 2010 and set the record for the highest-rated premiere in total viewers, and in tweens and boys ages 9–14.[115] Nielsen Mega Manila viewer ratings ranked Dragon Ball Kai with a viewer ratings with a high of 18.4% for October 30 – November 4 in 2012.[116] At the end of April 2013, Dragon Ball Kai would trail just behind One Piece at 14.2%.[117] Broadcasters' Audience Research Board ranked Dragon Ball Z Kai as the second most viewed show in the week it debuted on Kix.[118] On its debut on Vortexx, Dragon Ball Z Kai was the third highest rated show on the Saturday morning block with 841,000 viewers and a 0.5 household rating.[119]

text: Merchandising[edit]

text: Dragon Ball Z merchandise was a success prior to its peak American interest, with more than $3 billion in sales from 1986–2000.[120]

text: In 1998, Animage-ine Entertainment, a division of Simitar, announced the sale of Chroma-Cels, mock animation cels to capitalize on the popularity of Dragon Ball Z.[121] The original sale was forecasted for late 1998, but were pushed back to January 12, 1999.[122]

text: In 2000, MGA Entertainment released more than twenty toys, consisting of table-top games and walkie-talkies.[123] Irwin Toy released more than 72 figures consisting of 2-inch and 5 inch action figures, which became top-selling toys in a market dominated by the Pokémon Trading Card Game.[124] Irwin Toys would release other unique Dragon Ball Z toys including a battery powered Flying Nimbus Cloud which hovered without touching the ground and a die-cast line of vehicles with collector capsules.[125] In June 2000, Burger King had a toy promotion which would see 20 million figurines; Burger King bore the cost of the promotion which provided free marketing for Funimation.[120] The Halloween Association found Dragon Ball Z costumes to be the fourth most popular costumes in their nationwide survey.[126]

text: In December 2002, Jakks Pacific signed a three-year deal for licensing Dragon Ball Z toys, which was possible because of the bankruptcy of Irwin Toy.[127] Jakks Pacific's Dragon Ball Z 5-inch figures were cited as impressive for their painting and articulation.[128]

text: In 2010, Toei closed deals in Central and South American countries which included Algazarra, Richtex, Pil Andina, DTM, Doobalo and Bondy Fiesta.[129] In 2012, Brazil's Abr-Art Bag Rio Comercio Importacao e Exportacao closed a deal with Toei.[130]

text: Notes[edit]

text:
Jump up ^ Shuki Levy and Kussa Mahehi (Haim Saban) were credited as composers for contractual reasons. This was standard practice at Saban Entertainment during the 1990s.
Jump up ^ The original interview was conducted by Steve Harmon with Funimation CEO Gen Fukunaga in 1999 and was hosted on Harmon's personal website "The Vault". A record of the website exists on Archive.org, but the original interview itself was lost. The record was kept by Chris Psaros who provided a copy for the website "The Dragon Ball Z Otaku Alliance" which republished the original interview for this source.
Jump up ^ Steven Simmons, who uses the nickname "Daimao" in websites like Toriyama.org, wrote the original scripts for the Funimation subtitles and was involved in the localization process. His comments are included as a primary source, but also definitively illustrate concerns with the subtitles, from its creator. This connection and background is noted at the accompanying Anime News Network reference.
Jump up ^ The releases for both The Dark Prince Returns and Babidi: Showdown were released on September 25, 2001. The title "Showdown" was replaced with "Rivals" and contains episodes 229–231, titled "Vegeta's Pride", "The Long Awaited Flight", and "Magic Ball of Buu". Prior to the release, Billboard and news outlets including the Anime News Network and Anime Nation were using the title "Showdown"; but the UPC codes match, indicating a re-titling for this release, "Rivals", also has a September 25, 2001, release date for the uncut material.

text: Jump up ^ Dragon Ball Kai (ドラゴンボール改 (カイ), Doragon Bōru Kai, lit. Dragon Ball Revised), retitled Dragon Ball Z Kai in most international releases


document_title: Horton Hears a Who! (film)

question_text: who played the kangaroo in horton hears a who

root

text: Horton Hears a Who! (film)

text: Plot[edit]

text: A dust speck is dislodged from its obscure place and sent adrift through the Jungle of Nool. At the same time, Horton the elephant, the jungle's eccentric nature teacher, takes a dip in the pool. The dust speck floats past him in the air, and he hears a tiny yelp coming from it. Believing that an entire society of microscopic creatures are living on that speck, he gives chase to it before placing it on top of a clover. Horton finds out the speck harbors the city of Whoville and its inhabitants, the Whos, led by Mayor Ned McDodd.

tag: p

text: He has a wife, Sally, 96 daughters (whose names all begin with the letter H), and one teenage son named JoJo. Despite being the oldest and next in line for the mayoral position, JoJo doesn't want to be the next mayor, and because he's so scared of disappointing his father, never talks. Once Horton begins carrying the speck with him, the city starts experiencing strange phenomena (earthquakes and changes in the weather), and the Mayor finds his attempts to caution Whoville challenged by the Town Council, led by the opportunistic yet condescending Chairman.

text: After he makes contact with Horton, the Mayor finds out from Dr. Mary Lou LaRue that Whoville will be destroyed if Horton does not find a "safer, more stable home". Horton resolves (with the help of his best friend Morton the mouse) to place the speck atop Mt. Nool, the safest place in the jungle. The head of the jungle, Jane Kangaroo, disbelieving Horton's beliefs and resenting him for overshadowing her authority, attempts several times to demand that Horton give up the speck, but Horton ignores her demands. Also taking force toward Horton are the Wickersham Brothers, a group of monkeys who love making misery. Eventually, the Kangaroo enlists a vulture named Vlad Vladikoff to get rid of the speck by force.

text: After a few failed attempts, Vlad manages to steal the clover away from Horton and drops it into a massive field of identical pink clovers, causing an apocalyptic tremor in Whoville. After unsuccessfully picking nearly three million clovers, Horton eventually recovers the clover (exactly the 3,000,000th clover). The Kangaroo eventually finds out, thanks to Mrs. Quilligan, that Horton still has the speck, and decides to rally the jungle community into fighting Horton, saying that Horton's goal will lead to anarchy. Upon cornering him, the Kangaroo offers Horton an escape from punishment by renouncing Whoville's existence.

text: Despite Horton's heartfelt speech when he refuses, the Kangaroo orders the animals to rope and cage him, and to have the speck and the Whos destroyed in a pot of boiling beezlenut oil. The Mayor enlists all of his people to make noise by shouting "We are here!", as well as playing a variety of instruments, so the animals may hear them, assisted by JoJo's "Symphonophone", an invention which creates a huge musical contribution (which reveals that JoJo's "true" passion is music), but still fails to penetrate the surface of the speck.

text: As Horton lies beaten and captured, the Kangaroo easily takes the clover, and drops it. Meanwhile, JoJo grabs the horn used to project Horton's voice, runs up the highest tower and screams "YOPP!", breaking through the sound barrier just seconds before the speck hits the oil.

text: The Kangaroo's son, Rudy grabs the clover and returns it to Horton. The animals finally hear the Whos, realizing the truth about the clover, and isolate the Kangaroo for tricking them. While being praised for his integrity by his neighbors, Horton even forgives the devastated Kangaroo, and she befriends him with a makeshift umbrella for Whoville. Here, the people of Whoville and the animals of Nool gather in song and recite the chorus from "Can't Fight This Feeling". The film ends with the narrator revealing that the Jungle of Nool, or rather Earth, is just one speck, like Whoville, among numerous others, floating in outer space.

text: Voice cast[edit]

text:
Jim Carrey as Horton, an outgoing, eccentric, big-hearted, loving, sweet, and thoughtful elephant and teacher in the Jungle of Nool. Horton has no tusks, lives by himself and possesses acute hearing abilities.
Steve Carell as Mayor Ned McDodd, the mayor of Whoville. He has 96 daughters, 1 son named JoJo and a wife named Sally.
Carol Burnett as Sour Kangaroo, who mistrusts Horton's inquisitive nature as a threat to her legal authority over Nool.
Will Arnett as Vlad Vladikoff, a scary, savage, eccentric Russian-accented[7] vulture hired by the Sour Kangaroo to steal Horton's clover.
Seth Rogen as Morton, a mouse and Horton's friend in the Jungle of Nool.
Dan Fogler as The Councilman, a councilman dedicated to Whoville tradition and mistrustful of Mayor McDodd.
Fogler also voices Yummo Wickersham, leader of the Wickersham ape tribe brothers.
Isla Fisher as Dr. Mary Lou LaRue, a professor at Who U.
Jonah Hill as Tommy, a bear and one of Horton's students.
Amy Poehler as Sally O'Malley, Mayor McDodd's wife and mother to Jojo and her 96 daughters.
Jaime Pressly as Mrs. Quilligan, a bird and Jessica's mother.
Charles Osgood as The Narrator
Jesse McCartney as JoJo McDodd, Mayor McDodd's quiet son.
Josh Flitter as Rudy Kangaroo, Sour Kangaroo's son.
Niecy Nash as Miss Yelp, Mayor McDodd's assistant.
Laura Ortiz as Jessica Quilligan, a bird, Mrs. Quilligan's daughter and one of Horton's students.
Joey King as Katie, a cute, but eccentric little baby yak.
Bill Farmer as Willie, a bear and Tommy's dad.
Heather Goldenhersh as Who Girl

tag: ul

text: Production[edit]

text: In March 2005, as Blue Sky Studios was completing Robots, the studio started courting Dr. Seuss' widow Audrey Geisel on getting the adaptation rights for Horton Hears a Who!.[8] The art director for Robots, Steve Martino, along with story consultant and additional scene director Jimmy Hayward,[9] created a model of protagonist Horton and some animation tests to showcase their design ideas to Geisel,[8] who eventually agreed on "a seven-figure deal" for both the book and its predecessor Horton Hatches the Egg. Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio were then hired to write the script,[10] to be directed by Hayward and Martino with a set release date of 2008.[9]

text: Geisel was credited as a supervising producer and watched production up close,[8] and also gave the directors full access to her late husband's archives, and thus they investigated on his original sketches, 3-D sculptures, work done for The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T and even memos Dr. Seuss traded with Chuck Jones during the production of the Grinch TV special.[11] For references in doing the character animation, along with footage of the voice actors performing their lines, the Blue Sky animators recorded themselves performing the script in an "acting room" to see what of their body language could translate well into the film.[12]

text: To make Horton different from the mammoths Blue Sky worked with in the Ice Age series, the elephant would at times walk on two legs, in a way that it looked like "a fat man in an elephant suit". While the design had a major difference from the original book, with a bigger mouth to allow for wider facial expressions like those of Jim Carrey, as the directors noticed  Horton's design in the book varied according to his emotion, the 3D wireframe tried to allow for the same effects.[13]

text: Soundtrack[edit]

text: The original score for the film's soundtrack album was composed by John Powell. A soundtrack, consisting of the film's score, was released on March 25, 2008, by Varèse Sarabande.[14][15] Near the end of the picture, the cast comes together and sings the song, "Can't Fight This Feeling" by REO Speedwagon.[16]

text:
Horton Hears a Who!(Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)Film score by John PowellReleased
March 25, 2008Genre
SoundtrackLength
59:56Label
Varèse SarabandeProducer
John Powell

tag: table

text: Others songs featured in the film are:[17]

text:
Title

Performer

"Can't Fight This Feeling"
Jim Carrey, Steve Carell, Amy Poehler, Carol Burnett, Dan Fogler, Seth Rogen, Will Arnett and Jesse McCartney

"Quickie"
Thomas Foyer

"Swingville Sashay"
Muff & Rezz

"Agua Melao"
Gilberto Candido

"The Blue Danube"
Johann Strauß (as Johann Strauss II)

text: Reception[edit]

text: Critical reception[edit]

text: Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 79% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 132 reviews. The site's consensus reads, "Horton Hears A Who! is both whimsical and heartwarming, and is the rare Dr. Seuss adaptation that stays true to the spirit of the source material."[18] Another review aggregator, Metacritic, calculated a score of 71 out of 100 based on 31 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews."[19] According to CinemaScore, the film version rated an "A−" on an "A+" to "F" scale.

text: Box office[edit]

text: Horton Hears a Who! grossed a total of $297 million on a $85 million budget. $155 million came from the United States and Canada, and $143 million from other territories.[20]

text: In its opening weekend, the film grossed $45 million in 3,954 theaters, averaging $11,384 per theater in the United States and Canada, and ranking #1 at the box office.[21]

text: The film previously had the fourth-largest opening weekend in March, behind Ice Age, Ice Age: The Meltdown and 300, and as of September 2012, it ranks on the 15th place.[22] In the United States and Canada, Horton Hears a Who! was also the #1 film its second weekend of release, grossing $25 million over the Easter frame, in 3,961 theaters and averaging $6,208 per venue. It dropped to #2 in its third weekend grossing $17.8 million in 3,826 theaters and averaging $4,637 per venue.

text: Interpretations[edit]

text: Horton Hears a Who!, like other Dr. Seuss creations, contains layered subtexts and messages. A major theme regards on learning about universal values between vastly different places and people, as shown by the quote "A person's a person, no matter how small". This is employed on many levels, primarily with Horton hearing a world in a speck, while also appearing with the Mayor's relationship with his son, and Sour Kangaroo learning the truth about Horton's beliefs.[23]

text: The movie characters display traditional gender roles. According to NPR host and father of three daughters Peter Sagal, "In a new subplot added by the filmmakers, the mayor of Whoville has 96 daughters. He has one son. Guess who gets all his attention? Guess who saves the day?"[24]

text: Awards[edit]

text:
Award

Category

Nominee

Result

Annie Award[25]

Best Animated Effects

Alen Lai

Nominated

Best Character Animation in a Feature Production

Jeff Gabor

Best Character Design in an Animated Feature Production

Sang Jun Lee

Best Music in an Animated Feature Production

John Powell

Best Writing in an Animated Feature Production

Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio

ASCAP Award[26]

Top Box Office Films
John Powell for Bolt, Hancock and Jumper
Won

Golden Trailer Award[27]

Best Animation/Family TV Spot for "Whomongous"

Horton Hears a Who!

Nominated

IFMCA Award[28]

Best Original Score for an Animated Feature Film

John Powell

Golden Reel Award[29]

Best Sound Editing - Sound Effects, Foley, Music, Dialogue and ADR Animation in a Feature Film
Randy Thom (supervising sound editor, sound designer)Dennis Leonard (supervising sound editor)Jonathan Null (supervising dialogue/adr editor)Sue Fox (supervising foley editor)Thomas A. Carlson (music editor)Steve Slanec (dialogue editor)Colette D. Dahanne (sound effects editor)Pete Horner (sound effects editor)Kyrsten Mate (sound effects editor)Mac Smith (sound effects editor)Jeremy Bowker (foley editor)Andrea Gard (foley editor)Ronni Brown (foley artist)Ellen Heuer (foley artist)Dennie Thorpe (foley artist)Jana Vance (foley artist)

OFCS Award[30]

Best Animated Feature

Horton Hears a Who!

Satellite Award[31]

Best Motion Picture, Animated or Mixed Media

Horton Hears a Who!

Best Original Score

John Powell

Young Artist Award[32]

Best Performance in a Voice-Over Role - Young Actress
Selena Gomez, Shelby Adamowsky and Joey King

text: Home media release[edit]

text: Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who! was released on DVD and Blu-ray on December 9, 2008. Three versions of the DVD are available: a single-disc edition, a 2-disc special edition, and a gift set packaged with a Horton plush.[33]

text: A Blu-ray combo pack with a DVD and digital copy was released on October 11, 2011.[34] The home media included an Ice Age-related short film, Surviving Sid.

text: In the United States, the film earned $77,630,768 from DVD sales and $180,434 from Blu-ray sales for a total of $77,811,202 in video sales.[35]


document_title: Quantum of Solace (soundtrack)

question_text: who sang the theme song to quantum of solace

text: Quantum of Solace (soundtrack)

text: Development[edit]

text: David Arnold, who composed the scores for the previous four Bond films, said that Quantum of Solace director Marc Forster likes to work very closely with his composers and that, in comparison to the accelerated schedule he was tied to on Casino Royale, the intention was to spend a long time scoring the film to "really work it out". He also said he would be "taking a different approach" with the score.[1] Arnold composed the music based on impressions from reading the script, and Forster edited those into the film.[2]

text: Mark Ronson and Amy Winehouse recorded a demo track for the film,[3] but Ronson explained that she was "not ready to record any music" at that time.[4] It was announced Jack White of The White Stripes and Alicia Keys would collaborate on "Another Way to Die", which is the first duet in Bond music history, on 29 July 2008.[5][6] They had wanted to work together for two years beforehand.[7] The song was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee; White played the drums while Keys performed on the piano.[8] The Memphis Horns also contributed to the track.[7] White's favourite Bond theme is John Barry's instrumental piece for On Her Majesty's Secret Service, and he watched various opening credit sequences from the series for inspiration while mixing the track.[8]

text: The soundtrack was released by J Records, Keys' record label, though Keys appears on only one track. The track listing follows the order of the music's use within the film, with the exception of the title song being moved to the end of the album (in the film, it appears immediately after track 1). It is presented in the full-length single-release version, rather than the shorter mix heard over the film's opening titles. One notable omission is the fully orchestrated James Bond Theme, which features, as it did in Casino Royale, only at the film's conclusion, but this time over the traditional gunbarrel walk-on-and-shoot as well as the start of the end titles. Another omission is Four Tet's instrumental closing theme that follows it, playing over the remainder of the credits and entitled Crawl, End Crawl within them. This track was later made available on iTunes. Other tracks listed are heard in the film (but not on the album) during scenes such as Dominic Greene's charity fundraising party Jaime Cuadra - Cholo Soy, Jaime Cuadra - Regresa, Jaime Cuadra - El Provinciano; and Puccini's opera Tosca forms the backdrop to a key sequence. Vesper's Theme from Arnold's Casino Royale soundtrack reappears at key moments in the film; it may be heard on the album in tracks 12, 15, 18 and 23.

text: Track listing[edit]

text: All music composed by David Arnold unless stated otherwise.

text: No.TitleLength1."Time to Get Out" (Contains the James Bond Theme, originally composed for the Dr. No soundtrack)3:282."The Palio"4:593."Inside Man" (Contains the James Bond Theme, originally composed for the Dr. No soundtrack)0:384."Bond in Haiti" (Contains the James Bond Theme, originally composed for the Dr. No soundtrack)0:355."Somebody Wants to Kill You"2:176."Greene & Camille"2:137."Pursuit at Port au Prince" (Contains the James Bond Theme, originally composed for the Dr. No soundtrack)5:588."No Interest in Dominic Greene"2:449."Night at the Opera"3:0210."Restrict Bond's Movements"1:3111."Talamone"0:3512."What's Keeping You Awake"1:4113."Bolivian Taxi Ride"0:4914."Field Trip" (Contains the James Bond Theme, originally composed for the Dr. No soundtrack)0:4115."Forgive Yourself"2:2616."DC3"1:1517."Target Terminated"3:5418."Camille's Story"3:5919."Oil Fields" (Contains the James Bond Theme, originally composed for the Dr. No soundtrack)2:2920."Have You Ever Killed Someone?"1:3321."Perla de las Dunas"8:0822."The Dead Don't Care About Vengeance"1:1423."I Never Left" (Contains the James Bond Theme, originally composed for the Dr. No soundtrack)0:4024."Another Way to Die" (Performed by Jack White and Alicia Keys)4:24


document_title: Inauguration of John F. Kennedy

question_text: who said this quote ask not what your country can do for you

text: Inauguration of John F. Kennedy

text: Sinatra inaugural ball[edit]

text:
"[Sinatra's ball] may have marked the moment when popular entertainment became an indispensable part of modern politics."

— Todd S. Purdum, Vanity Fair, Feb. 2011[3][4]

tag: div

text: Frank Sinatra and Peter Lawford organized and hosted a pre-inaugural ball at the D.C. Armory on the eve of Inauguration day, January 19, 1961, considered as one of the biggest parties ever held in Washington, D.C.[3][4] Sinatra recruited many Hollywood stars who performed and attended, and went as far as convincing Broadway theatres to suspend their shows for the night to accommodate some of their actors attending the gala.[4] With tickets ranging from $100 per person to $10,000 per group, Sinatra hoped to raise $1.7 million ($13.9 million in today's dollars) for the Democratic Party to eliminate its debt brought on by a hard-fought campaign.[3][4] Many Hollywood stars gave brief speeches or performed acts, rehearsed by Kay Thompson and directed by Roger Edens, and stayed at the Statler-Hilton Hotel where preparations and rehearsals were photographed by Phil Stern.[4] Performances and speeches included Fredric March, Sidney Poitier, Nat King Cole, Ella Fitzgerald, Gene Kelly, Tony Curtis, Janet Leigh, Bill Dana, Milton Berle, Jimmy Durante, Harry Belafonte, and Sinatra himself.

text: Sammy Davis, Jr., a long-time friend of Sinatra, supporter of the Democratic Party, and member of the Rat Pack, was asked by John F. Kennedy not to attend the gala at the behest of his father Joseph,[3] fearing that his interracial marriage to Swedish actress May Britt was too controversial for the time and occasion, much to Sammy's and Sinatra's dismay.[3][4] Davis had already postponed his wedding to Britt until after the election, also at the request of the Kennedy campaign via Sinatra.[5] Davis eventually switched his support to the Republican Party and Richard Nixon in the early 1970s. Harry Belafonte expressed sadness at the controversy, stating "It was the ambassador, [but] we didn't know that until after. Sammy not being there was a loss."[3]

text: At the end of the ball, Kennedy spoke to thank Sinatra on the festivities and his support of the Democratic Party throughout his life and the 1960 campaign, adding "The happy relationship between the arts and politics which has characterized our long history I think reached culmination tonight."[4] Jacqueline retired to the White House before the ball ended at 1:30am (ET), and John went to a second pre-inaugural ball hosted by his father Joseph Kennedy, and would finally return to the White House at around 3:30am.[4]

text: The inaugural nor'easter[edit]

text: A strong nor'easter fell the day before the inauguration, with temperatures at 20 °F (−7 °C) and snowfall at 1–2 inches (2.5–5.1 cm) per hour[6] and a total of 8 inches (20 cm) during the night,[7] causing transportation and logistical problems in Washington and serious concern for the inauguration.[6][7][8][9]

text: On inauguration day, January 20, 1961, the skies began to clear but the snow created chaos in Washington, almost canceling the inaugural parade.[6] The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was put in charge of clearing the streets during the evening and morning before the inauguration, and were assisted by more than 1,000 District of Columbia employees and 1,700 Boy Scouts.[6] This task force employed hundreds of dump trucks, front-end loaders, sanders, plows, rotaries, and flamethrowers to clear the route.[6] Over 1,400 cars which had been stranded due to the conditions and lack of fuel had to be removed from the parade route along Pennsylvania Avenue.[6]

text: The snowstorm dropped visibility at Washington National Airport to less than half a mile,[6] preventing former President Herbert Hoover from flying into Washington and attending the inauguration.[10]

text: Inauguration proceedings[edit]

text: Before the proceeding to the Capitol in company with outgoing President Dwight D. Eisenhower, Kennedy went to a morning Mass at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Georgetown.[3] Cardinal Richard Cushing gave the invocation at the inaugural which lasted for 12 minutes,[11] with additional prayers recited by Archbishop Iakovos of the Greek Orthodox Church and Reverend Dr. John Barclay of the Central Christian Church of Austin, Texas, and a blessing offered by Rabbi Nelson Glueck. The invocation and prayers lasted a total of 28 minutes.[11] Marian Anderson sang "The Star-Spangled Banner", and a composition by musical Leonard Bernstein titled "Fanfare for the Inauguration of John F. Kennedy" was played.

text: The oath of office for Vice President was administered by the Speaker of the House of Representatives Sam Rayburn to Lyndon Johnson.[12] This marked the first time a Speaker administered the oath, which had been given in previous inaugurations by either the President pro tempore of the Senate, the ex-Vice President, or a United States Senator.[13]

text: Robert Frost, then 86 years old,[14][15] recited his poem "The Gift Outright".[16][17] Kennedy requested Frost to read a poem at the inauguration, suggesting "The Gift Outright",[17][18][19] considered an act of gratitude towards Frost for his help during the campaign.[19] Kennedy would later state that he admired the "courage, the towering skill and daring" of Frost, and adding that "I've never taken the view the world of politics and the world of poetry are so far apart. I think politicians and poets share at least one thing, and that is their greatness depends upon the courage with which they face the challenges of life."[17] American poet William Meredith would say that the request "focused attention on Kennedy as a man of culture, as a man interested in culture."[19]

text:
For John F. Kennedy His Inauguration

"The glory of a next Augustan age
Of a power leading from its strength and pride,
Of young ambition eager to be tried,
Firm in our free beliefs without dismay,
In any game the nations want to play.
A golden age of poetry and power
Of which this noonday's the beginning hour."

—— Closing seven lines from Robert Frost's poem
"For John F. Kennedy His Inauguration",
the expanded version of "Dedication".[20]

text: Frost composed a new poem titled Dedication specifically for the ceremony as a preface to the poem Kennedy suggested,[15][19] to the surprise of Kennedy's friends.[21] On the morning of the inauguration, Frost asked Stewart Udall, Kennedy's future Secretary of the Interior, to have his handwritten draft type scripted for easier reading, to which Udall obliged.[21]

text: Once at the presidential podium, however, the glare of the sun and snow prevented him from reading his papers.[17][22] When Frost started reading, he stumbled on the first three lines, squinting at his papers in view of the crowd and cameras.[17] Vice-President Johnson tried to assist by using his top hat as a shade, however Frost waved the offer aside, took the hat and jokingly said "I'll help you with that", sparking laughter and applause from the crowd and President Kennedy. Understanding the immediacy of the situation, Frost stated to the microphones that "this [the poem] was to have been a preface to a poem which I do not have to read",[18] and began to recite "The Gift Outright" from memory.[15][17][22] This marks the first time a poem was read at a Presidential inauguration, a feature repeated by future Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama at their respective ceremonies.[14][23][24]

text: Frost gave the type scripted version of the undelivered "Dedication" poem to Udall after the ceremony, who eventually donated the document to the Library of Congress where it is stored today.[21] The original manuscript version, personally dedicated by Frost, was provided to the President and currently held by the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library.[20][25] Kennedy's wife Jacqueline framed this manuscript version, writing on the back of the frame: For Jack. First thing I had framed to be put in your office. First thing to be hung there.[20][25] Frost officially presented the poem, retitled to For John F. Kennedy His Inauguration and expanded from 42 to 77 lines, to Kennedy in March 1962.[17] The unread poem (published in 1962 as part of Frost's In the Clearing poetry collection) was finally recited at the U.S. Capitol by Chaplain Daniel P. Coughlin during the 50th anniversary celebrations of Kennedy's inauguration.[15]

text: Oath of office[edit]

text: The oath of office for the President was administered by Chief Justice of the United States Earl Warren to Kennedy using a closed family Bible at 12:51 (ET)[12][26][27][28][29] Kennedy did not wear an overcoat when taking the oath of office and delivering the inaugural address, despite the cold conditions of 22 °F (−6 °C) with windchill at 7 °F (−14 °C) at noon.[6][7][30]

text: The inaugural address[edit]

text:
"Inaugural address of John F. Kennedy"

Audio of John F. Kennedy giving his inaugural address. (Duration:14 minutes)

Problems playing this file? See media help.

text: Immediately after reciting the oath of office, President Kennedy turned to address the crowd gathered at the Capitol. His inaugural address, the first delivered to a televised audience in color,[14] is considered among the best presidential inaugural speeches in American history.[31][32][33] The address was 1364 words and took 13 minutes and 55 seconds to deliver, from the first word to the last word, not including applause at the end, making it the fourth-shortest inaugural address ever delivered.[citation needed]

text: And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.

text: Drafting[edit]

text: The speech was crafted by Kennedy and his speech writer Ted Sorensen. Kennedy had Sorensen study President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address as well as other inaugural speeches.[34] Kennedy began collecting thoughts and ideas for his inauguration speech in late November 1960. He took suggestions from various friends, aides and counselors, including suggestions from clergymen for biblical quotations. Kennedy then made several drafts using his own thoughts and some of those suggestions.[35] Kennedy included in his speech several suggestions made by Harvard economist John Kenneth Galbraith and by the former Democratic presidential candidate Adlai Stevenson II. Kennedy's line "Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate." is nearly identical to Galbraith's suggestion "We shall never negotiate out of fear. But we shall never fear to negotiate." Stevenson's suggestion "if the free way of life doesn’t help the many poor of this world it will never save the few rich." was the basis for Kennedy's line "If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich."[36]

text: Main ideas of the speech[edit]

text: As a president coming into power at the height of the Cold War, President Kennedy's duty of maintaining peaceful international relations with representing the United States as a force to be reckoned was daunting, at the very least. It is this overarching goal of his presidential term that dominates his inaugural address. Kennedy highlights the newly discovered dangers of nuclear power coupled with the accelerating arms race, and essentially makes the main point that this focus on pure firepower should be replaced with a focus on maintenance of international relations and helping the impoverished in the world.[37]

text: Rhetorical elements[edit]

text: The main focus of the speech can crudely be boiled down to one theme – the relationship between duty and power.[38] This is emphasized by Kennedy's strong use of juxtaposition in the first part of the speech. For example, he states in the second passage, "...Man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life," a clear calling-out of not only America, but also other nations of power for skewed Cold War priorities. He again employs the strategy in the fifth passage when he says, "United there is little we cannot do in a host of cooperative ventures. Divided there is little we can do," again appealing to the idea of refocusing of international values.[39] Again, after exhorting "both sides" to action, he calls on all of "us" to "to bear the burden of a long twilight struggle ... against the common enemies of man: tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself,"[40] though the phrase "long twilight struggle" came to be associated with the cold war struggle against communism.[41]

text: One of the main components of classical rhetoric, to prepon (the appropriate), is also extremely prevalent in this address.[42] Recognizing the fear and anxiety prevalent in the American people since the start of the Cold War, Kennedy geared his speech to have an optimistic and even idealistic tone as a means of providing comfort. He does this by quickly moving the time of the speech into the future, and invokes repetition of the phrase "Let both sides..." to allude to how he plans to deal with strained relations while also appealing to the end goal of international unity. He also phrases negative ideas in a manner so as to present them as opportunities – a challenge, appealing to innately American ideals. A great line to emphasize this is in the fourth from last passage, where he states, "In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger," a simple twist of words that challenges the American public rather than frightening them.

text: It was also in his inaugural address that John F. Kennedy spoke his famous words, "ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country." This use of chiasmus can be seen even as a thesis statement of his speech – a call to action for the public to do what is right for the greater good.

text: Invited guests[edit]

text: Along with official presidential guests and honorees, including former presidents, vice-presidents, cabinet members, and other Washington officials, the Kennedys invited famous men and women of the arts, including Carl Sandburg, John Steinbeck, Ernest Hemingway, Brendan Behan, Mark Rothko, and fashion icon and future Vogue editor Diana Vreeland.[3]

text: Congressman Tip O'Neill sat next to wealthy Boston businessman George Kara:[3]

text: O’Neill recalled that Kara had nudged him and said, "Years from now, historians will wonder what was on the young man’s mind as he strode to take his oath of office. I bet he’s asking himself how George Kara got such a good seat." That night, O’Neill and his wife danced over to the president’s box at the ball in the Mayflower Hotel to congratulate him, and sure enough, Kennedy asked, "Was that George Kara sitting beside you?" O’Neill told Kennedy what Kara had said, and J.F.K replied, "Tip, you’ll never believe it. I had my left hand on the Bible and my right hand in the air, and I was about to take the oath of office, and I said to myself, 'How the hell did Kara get that seat?'"

text: Presidents and First ladies[edit]

text: Five first Ladies, Edith Wilson, Eleanor Roosevelt, Bess Truman, Mamie Eisenhower and Jackie Kennedy attended the event, as did future First Ladies Lady Bird Johnson, Pat Nixon, and Betty Ford.

text: Former President Harry S Truman joined Presidents Eisenhower and Kennedy on the platform, as did future Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard M. Nixon and Gerald Ford, making this, retroactively, the largest conclave of the "presidential fraternity" prior to the opening of the Reagan Library in the 1990s.

text: Parade to the White House[edit]

text: A vast parade along Pennsylvania Avenue followed the inauguration ceremony, bearing the new President from Capitol Plaza to the White House. Upon his arrival, Kennedy mounted a reviewing stand shared with honored guests such as former President Harry Truman and former First Ladies Edith Wilson and Eleanor Roosevelt. Throngs of onlookers and millions of television viewers also watched the procession; it took three hours to pass by. Sixteen thousand members of the US armed forces marched with displays of modern weaponry like the Minuteman missile and the supersonic B-70 bomber. A further sixteen thousand marchers were civilians ranging from federal and state officials to high school bands and Boy Scouts, accompanied by forty floats.[43]

text: Impact[edit]

text: Kennedy's inauguration marked many firsts for the United States. Kennedy was the first, and to this date, the only Catholic inaugurated as commander-in-chief.[44] At the inauguration, Kennedy, then 43, was the youngest elected president and was replacing the oldest president in American history at that time, Eisenhower.[45][46][47] The age difference and visual impact of the turnover from Eisenhower's presence to Kennedy's was noticeable at the inauguration.[30][48] In addition, Kennedy was the first person born in the 20th century to have been inaugurated as President.[49]

text: The claim that Kennedy did not wear a hat to his inauguration, and so single-handedly killed the men's hat industry,[50][51][52] is false.[52][53] Kennedy wore a top hat to the inauguration and to the balls in the evening, removing it only to be sworn in and give his address. He in fact restored the tradition, after Eisenhower broke with it by wearing a homburg instead of a top hat to both of his inaugurations.[52] Johnson, at his inauguration in 1965, was the first President to go completely hatless.[52][53]