document_title: Superman

question_text: when did superman first appear in a comic book

question_tokens: when did superman first appear in a comic book

text: Superman

text: Creation and conception

text: In January 1933, Cleveland high school student[7] Jerry Siegel wrote a short story, illustrated by his friend and classmate Joe Shuster, titled "The Reign of the Superman", which Siegel self-published in his fanzine, Science Fiction. The titular character is a vagrant who gains vast psychic powers from an experimental drug and uses them maliciously for profit and amusement, only to lose them and become a vagrant again, ashamed that he will be remembered only as a villain.[8] Siegel's fanzine did not sell well. Siegel and Shuster shifted to making comic strips, which they self-published in a book they called Popular Comics. The pair dreamed of becoming professional authors and believed that syndicated newspaper strips offered more lucrative and stable work than pulp magazines. The art quality standards were also lower, making them more accessible to the inexperienced Shuster.[9]

text: In early 1933 or in 1934,[10] Siegel developed a new character, also named Superman, but now a heroic character, which Siegel felt would be more marketable.[11] This first prototype of Superman had no fantastic abilities and wore casual clothing. Siegel and Shuster often compared this version to Slam Bradley, a comics character they created in 1936.[12][13]

text: Siegel shared his idea with Shuster and they decided to turn it into a comic strip. The first publisher they solicited was Humor Publishing in Chicago, after having read one of their comic books, Detective Dan.[14][15][16] A representative of Humor Publishing was due to visit Cleveland on a business trip and so Siegel and Shuster hastily put together a comic story titled "The Superman" and presented it to the publisher.[17] Although Humor showed interest, it pulled out of the comics business before any book deal could be made.[18]

text: Siegel believed publishers kept rejecting them because he and Shuster were young and unknown, so he looked for an established artist to replace Shuster.[19] When Siegel told Shuster what he was doing, Shuster reacted by burning their rejected Superman comic, sparing only the cover.[20][21]

text: Siegel solicited multiple artists[19][22] and in 1934 Russell Keaton,[22] who worked on the Buck Rogers comic strip, responded. In nine sample strips Keaton produced based on Siegel's treatment, the Superman character further evolves: In the distant future, when Earth is on the verge of exploding due to "giant cataclysms", the last surviving man sends his child back in time to the year 1935, where he is adopted by Sam and Molly Kent. The boy exhibits superhuman strength and bulletproof skin, and the Kents teach the child, whom they name Clark, to use his powers for good.[23][24] However, the newspaper syndicates rejected their work and Keaton abandoned the project.[25]

text: Siegel and Shuster reconciled and resumed developing Superman. The character became an alien from the planet Krypton with the now-familiar costume: tights with an "S" on the chest, over-shorts, and a cape.[26][27][28] They made Clark Kent a journalist who pretends to be timid, and introduced his colleague Lois Lane, who is attracted to the bold and mighty Superman, but does not realize he and Kent are the same person.[29]

text:
Siegel and Shuster entered the comics field professionally in 1935, producing detective and adventure stories for the New York-based comic-book publisher National Allied Publications. Although National expressed interest in Superman,[30] Siegel and Shuster wanted to sell Superman as a syndicated comic strip, but the newspaper syndicates all turned them down.[31] Max Gaines, who worked at McClure Newspaper Syndicate, suggested they show their work to Detective Comics (which had recently bought out National Allied).[32] Siegel recalled,
In March 1938, Siegel and Shuster sold all rights to the character to Detective Comics, Inc.[33] for $130 (ten dollars per page, the equivalent of $2,300 when adjusted for inflation).[34][35] It was the company's policy to buy the full rights to the characters it published.[36] By this time, they had resigned themselves that Superman would never be a success, and with this deal they would at least see their character finally published.[37]

text: Influences

text: Siegel and Shuster read pulp science-fiction and adventure magazines, and many stories featured characters with extraordinary powers such as telepathy, clairvoyance, and superhuman strength. An influence was Edgar Rice Burroughs' John Carter of Mars, a human who was displaced to Mars, where the low gravity makes him stronger than the natives and allows him to leap great distances,[38] which were essentially the same kind of powers Superman had on Earth in the early days of the comic.[39] While it is widely assumed that the 1930 Philip Wylie novel Gladiator, featuring a protagonist, Hugo Danner, with similar powers, was an inspiration for Superman,[40][41] Siegel denied this.[42]

text: Siegel and Shuster were also avid moviegoers.[43] Shuster based Superman's stance and devil-may-care attitude on that of Douglas Fairbanks, who starred in adventure films such as The Mark of Zorro and Robin Hood.[44] The name of Superman's home city, Metropolis, was taken from the 1927 film of the same name.[43] Popeye cartoons were also an influence.[45]

text: The persona of Clark Kent was inspired by slapstick comedian Harold Lloyd. Lloyd wore glasses and often played gentle characters who were abused by bullies, but later in the story would snap and fight back furiously. Shuster, who also wore glasses and described himself as "mild-mannered", found Lloyd's characters relatable.[46] Kent is a journalist, because Siegel often imagined himself becoming one after leaving school. The inclusion of a romantic subplot with Lois Lane was inspired by Siegel's own awkwardness with girls.[47]

text: The pair collected comic strips in their youth, with a favorite being Winsor McCay's fantastical Little Nemo.[43] Shuster remarked on the artists which played an important part in the development of his own style: "Alex Raymond and Burne Hogarth were my idols – also Milt Caniff, Hal Foster, and Roy Crane."[43] Shuster taught himself to draw by tracing over the art in the strips and magazines they collected.[18]

text: As a boy, Shuster was obsessed with fitness culture[45] and a fan of strongmen such as Siegmund Breitbart and Joseph Greenstein. He collected fitness magazines and manuals and used their photographs as visual references for his art.[18]

text: The visual design of Superman came from multiple influences. The tight-fitting suit and shorts were inspired by the costumes of wrestlers, boxers, and strongmen. Shuster first gave Superman laced sandals like those of strongmen and classical heroes.[48] The emblem on his chest may have been inspired by the uniforms of athletic teams. Many pulp action heroes such as swashbucklers wore capes. Superman's face was based on Johnny Weissmuller's.[18]

text: The word "superman" was commonly used in the 1920s and 1930s to describe men of great ability, most often athletes and politicians.[49] It occasionally appeared in pulp fiction stories as well, such as "The Superman of Dr. Jukes"[50] and Doc Savage.[51] It is unclear whether Siegel and Shuster were influenced by Friedrich Nietzsche's concept of the Übermensch;[52] they never acknowledged as much.[53]

text: Publication history

text: Comic books and comic strips

text: Superman debuted as the cover feature of the anthology Action Comics #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and published on April 18, 1938).[54] The series was an immediate success,[55] and reader feedback showed it was because of the Superman character.[56] In June 1939, Detective Comics began a sister series, Superman, dedicated exclusively to the character.[57] Action Comics eventually became dedicated to Superman stories too, and both it and Superman have been published without interruption since 1938 (ignoring changes to the titles and numbering).[58][59] A large number of other series and miniseries have been published as well.[60] Superman has also appeared as a regular or semi-regular character in a number of superhero team series, such as Justice League of America and World's Finest Comics, and in spin-off series such as Supergirl. Sales of Action Comics and Superman declined steadily from the 1950s,[61][62] but rose again starting in 1987. Superman #75 (Nov 1992) sold over 6 million copies, making it the best-selling issue of a comic book of all time,[63] thanks to a media sensation over the possibly permanent death of the character in that issue.[64] Sales declined from that point on. In February 2016, Action Comics sold just over 31,000 copies.[65] The comic books are today considered a niche aspect of the Superman franchise due to low readership.[66]

text: Beginning in January 1939, a Superman daily comic strip appeared in newspapers, syndicated through the McClure Syndicate. A color Sunday version was added that November. The Sunday strips had a narrative continuity separate from the daily strips, possibly because Siegel had to delegate the Sunday strips to ghostwriters.[67] By 1941, the newspaper strips had an estimated readership of 20 million.[68] Shuster drew the early strips, then passed the job to Wayne Boring.[69] From 1949 to 1956, the newspaper strips were drawn by Win Mortimer.[70] The strip ended in May 1966, but was revived from 1977 to 1983 to coincide with a series of movies released by Warner Bros.[71]

text: After Shuster left National, Boring also succeeded him as the principal artist on Superman comic books.[72] He redrew Superman taller and more detailed.[73] Around 1955, Curt Swan in turn succeeded Boring.[74]

text: Creative management

text: Initially, Siegel was allowed to write Superman more or less as he saw fit,[75] because nobody had anticipated the success and rapid expansion of the franchise.[76] But soon Siegel and Shuster's work was put under careful oversight for fear of trouble with censors.[77] Siegel was forced to tone down the violence and social crusading that characterized his early stories.[78] Editor Whitney Ellsworth, hired in 1940, dictated that Superman not kill.[79] Sexuality was banned, and colorfully outlandish villains such as Ultra-Humanite and Toyman were thought to be less nightmarish for young readers.[80]

text: Mort Weisinger was the editor on Superman comics from 1941 to 1970, his tenure briefly interrupted by military service. Siegel and his fellow writers had developed the character with little thought of building a coherent mythology, but as the number of Superman titles and the pool of writers grew, Weisinger demanded a more disciplined approach.[81] Weisinger assigned story ideas, and the logic of Superman's powers, his origin, the locales, and his relationships with his growing cast of supporting characters were carefully planned. Elements such as Bizarro, Supergirl, the Phantom Zone, alternate varieties of kryptonite, robot doppelgangers, and Krypto were introduced. The complicated universe built under Weisinger was beguiling to devoted readers, but alienating to casuals.[82] Weisinger favored lighthearted stories over serious drama, and avoided sensitive subjects such as the Vietnam War and the civil rights movement, because he feared his right-wing views would alienate his writing staff and readers.[83] Weisinger also introduced letters columns in 1958 to encourage feedback and build intimacy with readers.[84] Superman was the best-selling comic book character of the 1960s.[85][86]

text: Weisinger retired in 1970 and Julius Schwartz took over. By his own admission, Weisinger had grown out of touch with newer readers.[87] Schwartz updated Superman by removing overused plot elements such as kryptonite and robot doppelgangers and making Clark Kent a television anchor.[88] Schwartz also scaled Superman's powers down to a level closer to Siegel's original. These changes would eventually be reversed by later writers. Schwartz allowed stories with serious drama, as in "For the Man Who Has Everything" (Superman Annual #11), in which the villain Mongul torments Superman with an illusion of happy family life on a living Krypton.

text: Schwartz retired from DC Comics in 1986, and was succeeded by Mike Carlin as editor on Superman comics His retirement coincided with DC Comics' decision to streamline the shared continuity called the DC Universe with the companywide-crossover storyline "Crisis on Infinite Earths". Writer John Byrne rewrote the Superman mythos, again reducing Superman's powers, which writers had slowly re-strengthened, and revised many supporting characters, such as making Lex Luthor a billionaire industrialist rather than a mad scientist, and making Supergirl an artificial shapeshifting organism, because DC wanted Superman to be the sole surviving Kryptonian.

text: Carlin was promoted to Executive Editor for the DC Universe books in 1996, a position he held until 2002. K.C. Carlson took his place as editor of the Superman comics.

text: The 1940s radio serial was produced by Robert Maxwell and Allen Ducovny, who were employees of Superman, Inc. and Detective Comics, respectively.[89][90] Robert Maxwell was later hired to produce the TV show starring George Reeves. DC Comics (then known as National Comics Publications) felt that the first season was too violent for what they expected to be a children's show, so they removed Maxwell and replaced him with Whitney Ellsworth, a veteran writer and editor at National Comics.[91] DC Comics had approval rights over all creative aspects of the Superboy TV series (1988–1992), from scripts to casting to shooting revisions.[92]

text: The first three movies starring Christopher Reeve were produced by Alexander and Ilya Salkind. When Warner Bros sold the movie rights to Superman to the Salkinds in 1974, it demanded control over the budget and the casting, but left everything else to the producers' discretion.[93] These movies influenced future stories, with the Salkinds insisting Clark Kent be a newspaper journalist, in order to appeal to older fans.[94] Kent left his TV anchor job and returned to the Daily Planet. Innovations such as John Barry's crystalline set designs for Krypton and the Fortress of Solitude, Superman's chest emblem being his family crest, and screenwriter Mario Puzo's messianic themes were also adopted by the comics' writers.[citation needed]

text: Aesthetic style

text: In the earlier decades of Superman comics, artists were expected to conform to a certain "house style".[95] Joe Shuster defined the aesthetic style of Superman in the 1940s, and not just in the comics: he also provided character model sheets for the Fleischer and Famous animated serial of the 1940s.[96] After Shuster left National, Wayne Boring succeeded him as the principal artist on Superman comic books.[72] He redrew Superman taller and more detailed.[73] Around 1955, Curt Swan in turn succeeded Boring.[74] The 1980s saw a boom in the diversity of comic book art and now there is no single "house style" in Superman comics.[97]

text: Copyright battles

text: Ownership lawsuits

text: Siegel wrote most of the comic-book and daily newspaper stories until he was conscripted in 1943.[98] While Siegel was serving in Hawaii, Detective Comics introduced a child version of Superman called "Superboy", based on a concept Siegel had submitted several years before. Siegel was furious, because Detective did this without having bought the character.[99] After Siegel's discharge from the Army, he and Shuster sued Detective Comics in 1947 for the rights to Superman and Superboy.  The judge ruled that the March 1938 sale of Superman was binding, but that Superboy was a separate entity that rightfully belonged to Siegel. Siegel and Shuster settled out-of-court with Detective, which paid the pair $94,000 ($960,000 when adjusted for inflation) in exchange for the full rights to both Superman and Superboy.[100] Detective then fired Siegel and Shuster.[101]

text: In 1969, Siegel and Shuster attempted to regain rights to Superman using the renewal option in the Copyright Act of 1909, but the court ruled Siegel and Shuster had transferred the renewal rights to Detective Comics in 1938. Siegel and Shuster appealed, but the appeals court upheld this decision. Detective had re-hired Siegel as a writer in 1957, but fired him again when he filed this second lawsuit.

text: In 1975, Siegel and a number of other comic book writers and artists launched a public campaign for better compensation and treatment of comic creators.  Warner Brothers agreed to give Siegel and Shuster a yearly stipend, full medical benefits, and credit their names in all future Superman productions in exchange for never contesting ownership of Superman. Siegel and Shuster upheld this bargain.[18]

text: Shuster died in 1992.  DC Comics offered Shuster's heirs a stipend in exchange for never challenging ownership of Superman, which they accepted for some years.[100]

text: Siegel died in 1996. His heirs attempted to take the rights to Superman using the termination provision of the Copyright Act of 1976. DC Comics negotiated an agreement wherein it would pay the Siegel heirs several million dollars and a yearly stipend of $500,000 in exchange for permanently granting DC the rights to Superman.  DC Comics also agreed to insert the line "By Special Arrangement with the Jerry Siegel Family" in all future Superman productions.[102] The Siegels accepted DC's offer in an October 2001 letter.[100]

text: Copyright lawyer and movie producer Marc Toberoff then struck a deal with the heirs of both Siegel and Shuster to help them get the rights to Superman in exchange for signing the rights over to his production company, Pacific Pictures. Both groups accepted. The Siegel heirs called off their deal with DC Comics and in 2004 sued DC for the rights to Superman and Superboy. In 2008, the judge ruled in favor of the Siegels. DC Comics appealed the decision, and the appeals court ruled in favored of DC, arguing that the October 2001 letter was binding. In 2003, the Shuster heirs served a termination notice for Shuster's grant of his half of the copyright to Superman. DC Comics sued the Shuster heirs in 2010, and the court ruled in DC's favor on the grounds that the 1992 agreement with the Shuster heirs barred them from terminating the grant.[100]

text: Superman is due to enter the public domain in 2033.[100] However, this would only apply to the character as he is depicted in Action Comics #1 (1938). Later developments, such as his power of "heat vision" (introduced in 1949), may persist under copyright until the works they were introduced in enter the public domain themselves.[103]

text: Copyright infringement lawsuits

text: Superman's success quickly spawned a wave of imitations, and Detective Comics defended its copyright vigorously.[104] Will Eisner created a character called Wonder Man in 1939, but a lawsuit from Detective Comics forced its cancellation after just one issue.[105] Fawcett Comics introduced Captain Marvel in 1940 and for some years that character outsold Superman,[106] but after protracted legal battles Fawcett was forced to cease publishing Captain Marvel in 1953.

text: Fictional character biography

text: In Action Comics #1 (April 1938), Superman is born on an alien world to a technologically advanced species that resembles humans. When his world is on the verge of destruction, his father, a scientist, places his infant son alone in a spaceship that takes him to Earth. The earliest newspaper strips name the planet "Krypton", the baby "Kal-L", and his biological parents "Jor-L" and "Lora";[107] their names become "Jor-el", and "Lara" in a 1942 spinoff novel by George Lowther.[108] The ship lands in the American countryside, where the baby is adopted by the Kents. In the original stories, they adopt him from an orphanage.[109] The Kents name the boy Clark and raise him in a farming community. A 1947 episode of the radio serial places the then-unnamed community in Iowa.[110] It is named Smallville in Superboy #2 (June 1949). New Adventures of Superboy #22 (Oct. 1981) places it in Maryland.  The 1978 Superman movie and most stories since place it in Kansas.[111]

text: The Kents teach Clark he must conceal his otherworldly origins and use his fantastic powers to do good. Clark creates the costumed identity of Superman so as to protect his personal privacy and the safety of his loved ones. As Clark Kent, he wears eyeglasses to disguise his face and wears his Superman costume underneath his clothes so that he can change at a moment's notice. To complete this disguise, Clark avoids violent confrontation, preferring to slip away and change into Superman when danger arises, and suffers occasional ridicule for his apparent cowardice.

text: Writers developed Superman's powers gradually. Since the beginning, he has had superhuman strength and a nigh-invulnerable body. In the earliest comics, Superman travels by running and leaping.  In the radio serial that began in 1940, Superman has the ability to fly.[112] Fleischer Studios also depicted Superman flying in a theatrical animated series they produced that same decade, because this required fewer frames of animation,[113] and their animation tests of Superman leaping looked "silly" anyway.[114] X-ray vision is introduced in Action Comics #11 (April 1939) and heat vision in Superman #59 (Aug. 1949).  Originally, Superman's powers were common on Krypton, but in later stories they are activated by the light of Earth's yellow sun, and can be deactivated by red sunlight similar to that of Krypton's sun.

text: Siegel understood that Superman's invulnerability diminished his appeal as an action hero, and so wrote a story introducing "K-metal", whose radiation harms Superman. This draft was never published since the story had Superman reveal his secret identity to Lois,[115] but the writers of the radio serial took inspiration and introduced the green mineral kryptonite in a 1943 episode.[116] It first appeared in comics in the story "Superman Returns To Krypton!", credited to writer Bill Finger, in Superman #61 (Dec. 1949).[117]

text: Clark works as a newspaper journalist. In the earliest stories, he is employed by George Taylor of The Daily Star, but the second episode of the radio serial changed this to Perry White of  The Daily Planet.[118] Action Comics #1 introduced Clark's colleague Lois Lane. Clark is romantically attracted to her, but she rejects the mild-mannered Clark and is infatuated with the bold and mighty Superman. This love triangle was conceived in 1934 and is present in most Superman stories. Jerry Siegel objected to any proposal that Lois discover that Clark is Superman, because he felt that, as implausible as Clark's disguise is, the love triangle was too important to the book's appeal.[119] For decades in comic stories, Lois suspects Clark is Superman and tries to prove it, but Superman always outwits her; the first such story was Superman #17 (1942).[120][121]

text: In Action Comics #662 (Feb. 1991) in a story by writer Roger Stern and artist Bob McLeod, Lois definitively learns of Clark's dual identity,[122] a status quo that would exist for two decades and was reflected in a 1995 episode of the TV series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman.[123] Both in that series and in the 1996 comic book special Superman: The Wedding Album, Clark and Lois marry.[124] The couple's biological child, Jonathan Samuel Kent, was born in Convergence: Superman #2 (July 2015).

text: The first story in which Superman dies was published in Superman #188 (April 1966) in which he is killed by kryptonite radiation, but is revived in the same issue by one of his android doppelgangers. In the 1990s The Death and Return of Superman story arc, after a deadly battle with Doomsday, Superman died in Superman #75 (Jan. 1993). He was later revived by the Eradicator. In Superman #52 (May 2016) Superman is killed by kryptonite poisoning, and this time he was not resurrected, but replaced by the Superman of a previous continuity.

text: In 2011, DC Comics rebooted its continuity and relaunched its entire line of comic books under the rubric The New 52, with a new version of Superman as the protagonist of the Superman books. In this new version of events, Clark's parents were killed by a drunk driver when he was a teenager, and he is not married to Lois.[125] In this continuity, he first encounters Lex Luthor early in his career as a superhero. Luthor, who is working for the government, tortures him in order to find out the limits of his powers. Superman eventually manages to escape, however. In Superman vol. 2, #43 (October 2015) Superman's identity is exposed to the world.[123][126][127] The pre-New 52 version of Superman was re-introduced in the comic book series Superman: Lois and Clark [128] and for a time Earth had two superheroes each called Superman. The older, more mature Superman remained on Earth after the younger Superman died in Superman vol. 3, #52 (May 25, 2016).

text: In June 2016, DC Comics once again relaunched its comic book titles with DC Rebirth. The publisher re-established the pre-New 52 Superman as the protagonist of the new comic books, with Lois Lane as his wife once more. He and Lois also conceive a biological son, Jonathan Samuel Kent, who eventually becomes Superboy.[129] The story arc Superman Reborn smooths over the discrepancies between the two versions of the character. According to Mister Mxyzptlk, the creation of the New 52 caused Superman to be separated into two people: the New 52 character that served as the protagonist of the Superman books and the pre-Flashpoint character that took part in the Convergence event and sired Jon. Thanks to Jon, the new Superboy, the two Supermen merge into one complete version of Superman, rearranging their shared histories and accommodating them into the restored DC Universe. This complete Superman features a new suit that combines elements from the two eras.[130][131] DC Comics ended the Rebirth branding in December 2017, opting to include everything under a larger "DC Universe" banner and naming. The continuity established by Rebirth continues across DC's comic book titles, including volume one of Action Comics and the fourth volume of Superman.[132][133]

text: Personality

text: In the original Siegel and Shuster stories, Superman's personality is rough and aggressive. The character often attacks and terrorizes wife beaters, profiteers, lynch mobs, and gangsters in a rough manner and with a looser moral code than audiences today might be used to.[134] Superman in the comics of the 1930s is unconcerned about the harm his strength may cause. He tosses villainous characters in such a manner that fatalities would presumably occur, although these are seldom shown explicitly on the page. This came to an end in late 1940 when new editor Whitney Ellsworth instituted a code of conduct for his characters to follow, banning Superman from ever killing.[135] The character was softened and given a sense of humanitarianism. Ellsworth's code, however, is not to be confused with "the Comics Code", which was created in 1954 by the Comics Code Authority and ultimately abandoned by every major comic book publisher by the early 21st century.[136]

text: In his first appearances, Superman was considered a vigilante by the authorities, being fired upon by the National Guard as he razed a slum so that the government would create better housing conditions for the poor. By 1942, however, Superman was working side-by-side with the police.[137][138] Today, Superman is commonly seen as a brave and kind-hearted hero with a strong sense of justice, morality, and righteousness. He adheres to an unwavering moral code instilled in him by his adoptive parents.[139] His commitment to operating within the law has been an example to many citizens and other heroes, but has stirred resentment and criticism among others, who refer to him as the "big blue boy scout". Superman can be rather rigid in this trait, causing tensions in the superhero community.[140] This was most notable with Wonder Woman, one of his closest friends, after she killed Maxwell Lord.[140] Booster Gold had an initial icy relationship with the Man of Steel, but grew to respect him.[141]

text: Having lost his home world of Krypton, Superman is very protective of Earth,[142] and especially of Clark Kent's family and friends. This same loss, combined with the pressure of using his powers responsibly, has caused Superman to feel lonely on Earth, despite having his friends and parents. Previous encounters with people he thought to be fellow Kryptonians, Power Girl[143] (who is, in fact from the Krypton of the Earth-Two universe) and Mon-El,[144] have led to disappointment. The arrival of Supergirl, who has been confirmed to be not only from Krypton, but also his cousin, has relieved this loneliness somewhat.[145] Superman's Fortress of Solitude acts as a place of solace for him in times of loneliness and despair.[146]

text: In Superman/Batman #3 (Dec. 2003), Batman, under writer Jeph Loeb, observes, "It is a remarkable dichotomy. In many ways, Clark is the most human of us all. Then ... he shoots fire from the skies, and it is difficult not to think of him as a god. And how fortunate we all are that it does not occur to 'him'." In writer Geoff Johns' Infinite Crisis #1 (Dec. 2005), part of the 2005–2006 "Infinite Crisis" crossover storyline, Batman admonishes him for identifying with humanity too much and failing to provide the strong leadership that superhumans need.

text: Age and birthday

text: Superman's age has varied through his history in comics, with the character typically being in his 30s. His age was originally left undefined, with real-time references to specific years sometimes given to past events in Golden Age and early Silver Age comics. In comics published between the early 1970s and early 1990s, his age was usually cited as 29 years old.[147] However, during "The Death of Superman" storyline, Clark's age was given as 34 years old (in a fictional promotional newspaper published), while 1994's "Zero Hour" timeline established his age as 35.

text: Action Comics #149 (Oct. 1950) gives October as Superman's birthdate. Comics of the 1960s through 1980s describe Superman's birthday as February 29.[148] Clark Kent, meanwhile, would celebrate his birthday on June 18, the date the Kents first found Clark;  June 18 is also the birthdate of Superman voice actor Bud Collyer.[149] Following the 1980s editorial-revamp DC called Crisis on Infinite Earths, Kent's birthday is given as February 29.[150] Superman: Secret Origin #1 (Nov. 2009) depicts Kent celebrating his birthday on December 1.

text: Other versions

text: The details Superman's story vary across his large body of fiction published since 1938.  Versions of Superman depicted on television and in movies are typically not part of the same narrative continuity presented in the comics, and even in the comic books there are many different depictions of the character, a few of which differ radically from the "classic" version (e.g., the graphic novel Superman: Red Son depicts a Communist Superman who rules the Soviet Union).  DC Comics has on some occasions published crossover stories where different depictions of Superman interact with each other using the plot device of parallel universes.  For instance, in the 1960s, the Superman of "Earth-One" would occasionally star in stories alongside the Superman of "Earth-Two", the latter of whom resembled Superman as he was portrayed in the 1940s.  DC Comics has not developed a consistent and universal system to classify all versions of the character.

text: Powers and abilities

text: As an influential archetype of the superhero genre, Superman possesses extraordinary powers, with the character traditionally described as "Faster than a speeding bullet.  More powerful than a locomotive.  Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound ... It's Superman!",[151] a phrase coined by Jay Morton and first used in the Superman radio serials and Max Fleischer animated shorts of the 1940s[152] as well as the TV series of the 1950s. For most of his existence, Superman's famous arsenal of powers has included flight, super-strength, invulnerability to non-magical attacks, super-speed, vision powers (including x-ray, heat-emitting, telescopic, infra-red, and microscopic vision), super-hearing, super-intelligence, and super-breath, which enables him to blow out air at freezing temperatures, as well as exert the propulsive force of high-speed winds.[153]

text: As originally conceived and presented in his early stories, Superman's powers were relatively limited, consisting of superhuman strength that allowed him to lift a car over his head, run at amazing speeds and leap one-eighth of a mile, as well as an incredibly dense body structure that could be pierced by nothing less than an exploding artillery shell.[153] He could be knocked unconscious and nearly killed by powerful electric fields [154] or bombs.[155] Siegel and Shuster compared his strength and leaping abilities to an ant and a grasshopper.[156] When making the Superman cartoons in the early 1940s, the Fleischer Brothers found it difficult to keep animating him leaping and requested to DC to change his ability to flying; this was an especially convenient concept for short films, which would have otherwise had to waste precious running time moving earthbound Clark Kent from place to place.[157] Writers gradually increased his powers to larger extents during the Silver Age, in which Superman could fly to other worlds and galaxies and even across universes with relative ease.[153] He would often fly across the solar system to stop meteors from hitting the Earth or sometimes just to clear his head. Writers found it increasingly difficult to write Superman stories in which the character was believably challenged,[158] so DC made a series of attempts to rein the character in. The most significant attempt, John Byrne's 1986 rewrite, established several hard limits on his abilities: He barely survives a nuclear blast, and his space flights are limited by how long he can hold his breath.[159] Superman's power levels have again increased since then, with Superman eventually possessing enough strength to hurl mountains, withstand nuclear blasts with ease, fly into the sun unharmed, and survive in the vacuum of outer space without oxygen.

text: The source of Superman's powers has changed subtly over the course of his history. It was originally stated that Superman's abilities derived from his Kryptonian heritage, which made him eons more evolved than humans.[135] This was soon amended, with the source for the powers now based upon the establishment of Krypton's gravity as having been stronger than that of the Earth. This situation mirrors that of Edgar Rice Burroughs' John Carter. As Superman's powers increased, the implication that all Kryptonians had possessed the same abilities became problematic for writers, making it doubtful that a race of such beings could have been wiped out by something as trifling as an exploding planet. In part to counter this, the Superman writers established that Kryptonians, whose native star Rao had been red, possessed superpowers only under the light of a yellow sun.[160]

text: Superman is most vulnerable to green Kryptonite, mineral debris from Krypton transformed into radioactive material by the forces that destroyed the planet. Exposure to green Kryptonite radiation nullifies Superman's powers and immobilizes him with pain and nausea; prolonged exposure will eventually kill him. The only substance on Earth that can protect him from Kryptonite is lead, which blocks the radiation. Lead is also the only known substance that Superman cannot see through with his x-ray vision. Kryptonite was introduced in 1943 as a plot device to allow the radio-serial voice actor, Bud Collyer, to take some time off.[161] Although green Kryptonite is the most commonly seen form, writers have introduced other forms over the years: such as red, gold, blue, white, and black, each with its own effect.[162]

text: Supporting characters

text: Clark Kent, Superman's secret identity, was based partly on Harold Lloyd and named after Clark Gable and Kent Taylor.[163][164] Creators have discussed the idea of whether Superman pretends to be Clark Kent or vice versa, and at differing times in the publication either approach has been adopted.[165][166] Although typically a newspaper reporter, during the 1970s the character left the Daily Planet for a time to work for television,[166] whilst the 1980s revamp by John Byrne saw the character become somewhat more aggressive.[159] This aggressiveness has since faded with subsequent creators restoring the mild mannerisms traditional to the character.

text: Allies

text: Superman's large cast of supporting characters includes Lois Lane, the character most commonly associated with Superman, being portrayed at different times as his colleague, competitor, love interest and wife. Other main supporting characters include Daily Planet coworkers such as photographer Jimmy Olsen and editor Perry White, Clark Kent's adoptive parents Jonathan and Martha Kent, childhood sweetheart Lana Lang and best friend Pete Ross, associates like Professor Hamilton and John Henry Irons who often provide scientific advice and tech support, and former college love interest Lori Lemaris (a mermaid). Stories making reference to the possibility of Superman siring children have been featured both in and out of mainstream continuity.

text: Incarnations of Supergirl, Krypto the Superdog, and Superboy have also been major characters in the mythos, as well as the Justice League of America (of which Superman is usually a member and often its leader) and Legion of Super-Heroes (which Superboy traveled through time to join). A feature shared by several supporting characters is alliterative names, especially with the initials "LL", including Lex Luthor, Lois Lane, Linda Lee, Lana Lang, Lori Lemaris, and Lucy Lane,[167] alliteration being common in early comics.

text: Team-ups with fellow comics icon Batman are common, inspiring many stories over the years. When paired, they are often referred to as the "World's Finest" in a nod to the name of the comic book series that features many team-up stories. In 2003, DC began to publish a new series featuring the two characters titled Superman/Batman or Batman/Superman. Following DC Comic's The New 52 line-wide relaunch, Superman established a romantic relationship with Wonder Woman. A comic book series titled Superman/Wonder Woman debuted in 2013, which explores their relationship and shared adventures.

text: Enemies

text: The villains Superman faced in the earliest stories were ordinary humans, such as gangsters, corrupt politicians, and violent husbands, but they soon grew more outlandish and collectively become Superman's rogues gallery. The mad scientist Ultra-Humanite,  introduced in Action Comics #13 (June 1939), was Superman's first recurring villain. The hero's best-known nemesis, Lex Luthor, was introduced in Action Comics #23 (April 1940) and has been envisioned over the years as both a recluse with advanced weaponry to a power-mad billionaire.[168] In 1944, the magical imp Mister Mxyzptlk, Superman's first recurring super-powered adversary, was introduced.[169] Superman's first alien villain, Brainiac, debuted in Action Comics #242 (July 1958). The monstrous Doomsday, introduced in Superman: The Man of Steel #17–18 (Nov.-Dec. 1992), was the first villain to evidently kill Superman in physical combat. Other adversaries include the odd Superman-doppelgänger Bizarro, the Kryptonian criminal General Zod, and alien tyrants Darkseid and Mongul.[170]

text: Cultural impact

text: Superman has come to be seen as an American cultural icon.[171][172] Superman is often thought of as the first superhero. This point is debated by historians: Doctor Occult, an earlier creation of Siegel and Shuster, appeared in comic books two years earlier, and the Phantom and Mandrake the Magician had previously appeared in newspaper strips. However, there is no debate that Superman started the 20th century's craze for costumed adventurers.

text: His adventures and popularity have established the character as an inspiring force within the public eye, with the character serving as inspiration for musicians, comedians and writers alike. Kryptonite, Brainiac and Bizarro have become synonymous in popular vernacular with Achilles' heel, extreme intelligence[173] and reversed logic[174] respectively. Similarly, the phrase "I'm not Superman" or "you're not Superman" is an idiom used to suggest a lack of omnipotence.[175][176][177]

text: Merchandising

text: Superman became popular very quickly, with an additional title, Superman Quarterly, rapidly added. In 1940 the character was represented in the annual Macy's parade for the first time.[178] In fact Superman had become popular to the extent that in 1942, with sales of the character's three titles standing at a combined total of over 1.5 million, Time was reporting that "the Navy Department (had) ruled that Superman comic books should be included among essential supplies destined for the Marine garrison at Midway Islands."[179] The character was soon licensed by companies keen to cash in on this success through merchandising. The earliest paraphernalia appeared in 1939, a button proclaiming membership in the Supermen of America club. By 1940 the amount of merchandise available increased dramatically, with jigsaw puzzles, paper dolls, bubble gum and trading cards available, as well as wooden or metal figures. The popularity of such merchandise increased when Superman was licensed to appear in other media, and Les Daniels has written that this represents "the start of the process that media moguls of later decades would describe as 'synergy.'"[180] By the release of Superman Returns, Warner Bros. had arranged a cross promotion with Burger King,[181] and licensed many other products for sale.

text: Superman's appeal to licensees rests upon the character's continuing popularity, cross market appeal and the status of the "S" shield, the stylized magenta and gold "S" emblem Superman wears on his chest, as a fashion symbol.[182][183] The "S" shield by itself is often used in media to symbolize the Superman character.[184][185]

text: In other media

text: The character of Superman has appeared in various media aside from comic books, including radio and television series, several films, and video games. The first adaptation was a daily newspaper comic strip, launched on January 16, 1939, and running through May 1966; Siegel and Shuster used the first strips to establish Superman's background, adding details such as the planet Krypton and Superman's father, Jor-El, concepts not yet established in the comic books.[135] A radio show, The Adventures of Superman, premiered February 12, 1940, and featured the voice of Bud Collyer as Superman. It ran through 1951. Collyer was also cast as the voice of Superman in Paramount Pictures' 17 Superman animated cartoons produced by Fleischer Studios and then Famous Studios for theatrical release in 1941–1943. The first episode had a budget of $50,000 with the remaining episodes at $30,000 each[186] ($831,900 when adjusted for inflation), which was exceptional for the time.[187] The first live-action film was a 15-part serial released in 1948.

text: In 1948, the movie serial Superman made Kirk Alyn the first actor to portray the hero onscreen. The first feature film, Superman and the Mole Men, starring George Reeves, was released in 1951, and was intended to promote the first television series Adventures of Superman, which aired from 1952 to 1958. National had creative control over the show.[188] Television series featuring Superman and Superboy would also debut in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. In 1966 came the Broadway musical It's a Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman, remade for television in 1975. Also in 1966, Superman starred in the first of several animated television series The New Adventures of Superman.

text: Superman also appeared in a Filmation-produced animation segment on the children's educational TV series Sesame Street, discussing the letter S.[189]

text: Superman returned to movie theaters in 1978 with director Richard Donner's Superman, starring Christopher Reeve, which spawned three sequels and was the most successful Superman feature film.[190] DC Comics has had little creative control over these in movies: When Warner Bros. sold the movie rights to Superman to the Salkinds in 1974, it demanded control over the budget and the casting, but left everything else to the producers' discretion.[191]

text: In 2006, Bryan Singer directed the feature Superman Returns, starring Brandon Routh. In 2013, director Zack Snyder rebooted the film franchise with Man of Steel, starring Henry Cavill. Snyder also directed its 2016 sequel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, which featured Superman alongside Batman and Wonder Woman for the first time in a live-action movie. Cavill reprised his role as Superman in the 2017 film Justice League and revealed he is under contract to play Superman for one more film.[192]. Tyler Hoechlin plays Superman in the second season of the Supergirl TV series.[193]

text: Musical references, parodies, and homages

text: Superman has also featured as an inspiration for musicians, with songs by numerous artists from several generations celebrating the character. Donovan's Billboard Hot 100 topping single "Sunshine Superman" utilized the character in both the title and the lyric, declaring "Superman and Green Lantern ain't got nothing on me."[194] Folk singer-songwriter Jim Croce sung about the character in a list of warnings in the chorus of his song "You Don't Mess Around with Jim", introducing the phrase "you don't tug on Superman's cape" into popular lexicon.[195] Other tracks to reference the character include Genesis' "Land of Confusion",[196] the video to which featured a Spitting Image puppet of Ronald Reagan dressed as Superman,[197] "(Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman" by The Kinks on their 1979 album Low Budget and "Superman" by The Clique, a track later covered by R.E.M. on its 1986 album Lifes Rich Pageant. This cover is referenced by Grant Morrison in Animal Man, in which Superman meets the character, and the track comes on Animal Man's Walkman immediately after.[198] Crash Test Dummies' "Superman's Song", from the 1991 album The Ghosts That Haunt Me explores the isolation and commitment inherent in Superman's life.[199] Five for Fighting released "Superman (It's Not Easy)" in 2000, which is from Superman's point of view, although Superman is never mentioned by name.[200] From 1988 to 1993, American composer Michael Daugherty composed "Metropolis Symphony", a five-movement orchestral work inspired by Superman comics.[201][202]

text: Parodies of Superman did not take long to appear, with Mighty Mouse introduced in "The Mouse of Tomorrow" animated short in 1942.[203] While the character swiftly took on a life of its own, moving beyond parody, other animated characters soon took their turn to parody the character. In 1943, Bugs Bunny was featured in a short, Super-Rabbit, which sees the character gaining powers through eating fortified carrots. This short ends with Bugs stepping into a phone booth to change into a real "Superman" and emerging as a U.S. Marine. In 1956 Daffy Duck assumes the mantle of "Cluck Trent" in the short "Stupor Duck", a role later reprised in various issues of the Looney Tunes comic book.[204] In the United Kingdom Monty Python created the character Bicycle Repairman, who fixes bicycles on a world full of Supermen, for a sketch in series of their BBC show.[205] Also on the BBC was the sitcom My Hero, which presented Thermoman as a slightly dense Superman pastiche, attempting to save the world and pursue romantic aspirations.[206] In the United States, Saturday Night Live has often parodied the figure, with Margot Kidder reprising her role as Lois Lane in a 1979 episode. The manga and anime series Dr. Slump featured the character Suppaman; a short, fat, pompous man who changes into a thinly veiled Superman-like alter-ego by eating a sour-tasting umeboshi. Jerry Seinfeld, a noted Superman fan, filled his series Seinfeld with references to the character and in 1997 asked for Superman to co-star with him in a commercial for American Express. The commercial aired during the 1998 NFL Playoffs and Super Bowl, Superman animated in the style of artist Curt Swan, again at the request of Seinfeld.[207] Superman has also been used as reference point for writers, with Steven T. Seagle's graphic novel Superman: It's a Bird exploring Seagle's feelings on his own mortality as he struggles to develop a story for a Superman tale.[208] Brad Fraser used the character as a reference point for his play Poor Super Man, with The Independent noting the central character, a gay man who has lost many friends to AIDS as someone who "identifies all the more keenly with Superman's alien-amid-deceptive-lookalikes status."[209] Superman's image was also used in an AIDS awareness campaign by French organization AIDES. Superman was depicted as emaciated and breathing from an oxygen tank, demonstrating that no-one is beyond the reach of the disease, and it can destroy the lives of everyone.[210]

text: Superman is also mentioned in several films, including Joel Schumacher's Batman & Robin, in which Batman states, "That's why Superman works alone ..." in reference to the many troubles caused by his partner Robin, and also in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man, in which Aunt May gives her nephew Peter Parker a word of advice not to strain himself too much, because, "You're not Superman, you know", among many others.

text: Literary analysis

text: Superman has been interpreted and discussed in many forms in the years since his debut. The character's status as the first costumed superhero has allowed him to be used in many studies discussing the genre, Umberto Eco noting that "he can be seen as the representative of all his similars".[211] Writing in Time in 1971, Gerald Clarke stated: "Superman's enormous popularity might be looked upon as signalling the beginning of the end for the Horatio Alger myth of the self-made man." Clarke viewed the comics characters as having to continuously update in order to maintain relevance, and thus representing the mood of the nation. He regarded Superman's character in the early seventies as a comment on the modern world, which he saw as a place in which "only the man with superpowers can survive and prosper."[212] Andrew Arnold, writing in the early 21st century, has noted Superman's partial role in exploring assimilation, the character's alien status allowing the reader to explore attempts to fit in on a somewhat superficial level.

text: A.C. Grayling, writing in The Spectator, traces Superman's stances through the decades, from his 1930s campaign against crime being relevant to a nation under the influence of Al Capone, through the 1940s and World War II, a period in which Superman helped sell war bonds,[213] and into the 1950s, where Superman explored the new technological threats. Grayling notes the period after the Cold War as being one where "matters become merely personal: the task of pitting his brawn against the brains of Lex Luthor and Brainiac appeared to be independent of bigger questions", and discusses events post 9/11, stating that as a nation "caught between the terrifying George W. Bush and the terrorist Osama bin Laden, America is in earnest need of a Saviour for everything from the minor inconveniences to the major horrors of world catastrophe. And here he is, the down-home clean-cut boy in the blue tights and red cape".[214]

text: An influence on early Superman stories is the context of the Great Depression. Superman took on the role of social activist, fighting crooked businessmen and politicians and demolishing run-down tenements.[134] Comics scholar Roger Sabin sees this as a reflection of "the liberal idealism of Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal", with Shuster and Siegel initially portraying Superman as champion to a variety of social causes.[52][215] In later Superman radio programs the character continued to take on such issues, tackling a version of the Ku Klux Klan in a 1946 broadcast, as well as combating anti-semitism and veteran discrimination.[216][217][218]

text: Scott Bukatman has discussed Superman, and the superhero in general, noting the ways in which they humanize large urban areas through their use of the space, especially in Superman's ability to soar over the large skyscrapers of Metropolis. He writes that the character "represented, in 1938, a kind of Corbusierian ideal. Superman has X-ray vision: walls become permeable, transparent. Through his benign, controlled authority, Superman renders the city open, modernist and democratic; he furthers a sense that Le Corbusier described in 1925, namely, that 'Everything is known to us'."[219]

text: Jules Feiffer has argued that Superman's real innovation lay in the creation of the Clark Kent persona, noting that what "made Superman extraordinary was his point of origin: Clark Kent." Feiffer develops the theme to establish Superman's popularity in simple wish fulfillment,[220] a point Siegel and Shuster themselves supported, Siegel commenting that "If you're interested in what made Superman what it is, here's one of the keys to what made it universally acceptable. Joe and I had certain inhibitions ... which led to wish-fulfillment which we expressed through our interest in science fiction and our comic strip. That's where the dual-identity concept came from" and Shuster supporting that as being "why so many people could relate to it".[221]

text: Ian Gordon suggests that the many incarnations of Superman across media use nostalgia to link the character to an ideology of the American Way. He defines this ideology as a means of associating individualism, consumerism, and democracy and as something that took shape around WWII and underpinned the war effort. Superman he notes was very much part of that effort.[222]

text: Superman's immigrant status is a key aspect of his appeal.[223][224][225] Aldo Regalado saw the character as pushing the boundaries of acceptance in America. The extraterrestrial origin was seen by Regalado as challenging the notion that Anglo-Saxon ancestry was the source of all might.[226] Gary Engle saw the "myth of Superman [asserting] with total confidence and a childlike innocence the value of the immigrant in American culture." He argues that Superman allowed the superhero genre to take over from the Western as the expression of immigrant sensibilities. Through the use of a dual identity, Superman allowed immigrants to identify with both their cultures. Clark Kent represents the assimilated individual, allowing Superman to express the immigrants cultural heritage for the greater good.[224] David Jenemann has offered a contrasting view. He argues that Superman's early stories portray a threat: "the possibility that the exile would overwhelm the country."[227] David Rooney, a theater critic for The New York Times, in his evaluation of the play, Year Zero, considers Superman to be the "quintessential immigrant story ... (b)orn on an alien planet, he grows stronger on Earth, but maintains a secret identity tied to a homeland that continues to exert a powerful hold on him even as his every contact with those origins does him harm."[228]

text: Some see Judaic themes in Superman. Simcha Weinstein notes that Superman's story has some parallels to that of Moses.  For example, Moses as a baby was sent away by his parents in a reed basket to escape death and adopted by a foreign culture. Weinstein also posits that Superman's Kryptonian name, "Kal-El", resembles the Hebrew words קל-אל, which can be taken to mean "voice of God".[229] Larry Tye suggests that this "Voice of God" is an allusion to Moses' role as a prophet.[230] The suffix "el", meaning "(of) God", is also found in the name of angels (e.g. Gabriel, Ariel), who are airborne humanoid agents of good with superhuman powers. The Nazis also thought Superman was a Jew and in 1940 Joseph Goebbels publicly denounced Superman and his creator Siegel.[231]

text: Superman stories have occasionally exhibited Christian themes as well. Screenwriter Tom Mankiewicz consciously made Superman an allegory for Christ in the 1978 movie starring Christopher Reeve:[232] baby Kal-El's ship resembles the Star of Bethlehem, and Jor-El's gives his son a messianic mission.

text: Critical reception and popularity

text: The character Superman and his various comic series have received various awards over the years.

text:
Superman placed first on IGN's Top 100 Comic Book Heroes.[233]
Empire magazine named him the greatest comic book character.[234]
The Reign of the Supermen is one of many storylines or works to have received a Comics Buyer's Guide Fan Award, winning the Favorite Comic Book Story category in 1993.[235]
Superman came in at number 2 in VH1's Top Pop Culture Icons 2004.[236]
Also in 2004, British moviegoers voted Superman the greatest superhero.[237]
Works featuring the character have also garnered six Eisner Awards,[238][239] and three Harvey Awards,[240] either for the works or the creators of the works.
The Superman films have received a number of nominations and awards, with Christopher Reeve winning a BAFTA for his performance in Superman (1978).
The Smallville television series has garnered Emmys for crew members and various other awards.[241][242][243]


document_title: Garcinia kola

question_text: what is the common name of garcinia cola

root

text: Garcinia kola

text:
Garcinia kola

Conservation status

Vulnerable (IUCN 3.1)[1]

Scientific classification

Kingdom:
Plantae

Clade:
Angiosperms

Clade:
Eudicots

Clade:
Rosids

Order:
Malpighiales

Family:
Clusiaceae

Genus:
Garcinia

Species:
G. kola

Binomial name

Garcinia kola
Heckel

tag: table

text: Garcinia kola (bitter kola, a name sometimes also used for G. afzelii) is a species of flowering plant in the Clusiaceae or Guttiferae family. It is found in Benin, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Senegal and Sierra Leone. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.

tag: p

text: The fruit, seeds, nuts and bark of the plant have been used for centuries in folk medicine to treat ailments from coughs to fever. According to a report from the Center For International Forestry Research, Garcinia kola trade is still important to the tribes and villages in Nigeria.

text: Traditional medicine[edit]

text: Garcinia kola is traditionally used by African medicine men who believe that it has purgative, antiparasitic, and antimicrobial properties.[2] The seeds are used for bronchitis, throat infections, colic, head or chest colds, and cough.[2] It is also used for liver disorders and as a chewing stick.[2]

text: Barriers to cultivation[edit]

text: Despite the socio-economic importance of Garcinia kola, cultivation of the species is limited. Factors that have discouraged farmers from growing Garcinia kola include difficulties in germination that reduces seedling availability. Most productive trees were left in the wild when farmers cut plots out of the forest (Adebisi, 2004). Researchers have studied the germination problems of G. kola seeds and suggested various means of breaking its dormancy (Gyimah, 2000, Anegbeh et al., 2006, Kanmegne and Ndoumou, 2007, Oboho and Urughu, 2010, Oboho and Ogana, 2011). However, there is still a need to investigate simple and practicable methods that farmers could easily adopt with low technological input. G. kola seeds has both seeds coat dormancy and physiological dormancy probably imposed by the chemicals in the seed (Oboho and Urughu 2010). Seed coat dormancy of Garcinia kola can be reduced by removing the seed coat before sowing, while physiological dormancy can be reduced by soaking in water for 72 hours (Yakubu et al., 2014). Removal of the seed coat, soaking in water for 72 hours, placing inside air tight transparent polythene bag and sprinkling of water on the seeds when needed for constant moisture gives an early germination period of two weeks (Yakubu et al., 2014).


document_title: John Winchester (Supernatural)

question_text: when does dean and sam find their dad

question_tokens: when does dean and sam find their dad

text: John Winchester (Supernatural)

text: Plot[edit]

text: The father of series protagonists Sam and Dean Winchester, John Winchester first appears in the pilot episode of the series, but plot devices such as flashbacks and time travel detail his background in later seasons. Apparently abandoned by his father at a young age—his father actually died while serving a secret order known as the Men of Letters—John Winchester grew up hating the man.[3] John left high school to join the Marine Corps, eventually attaining the rank of corporal and receiving many medals for his service in Vietnam. After leaving the service, he found a job as a mechanic, and fell in love with Mary Campbell.[4]

text: In the fourth season episode "In the Beginning," Dean is sent back through time by the angel Castiel. Dean meets his parents' former selves, and ends up convincing John to buy the 67 Chevy Impala that he eventually inherits. Dean later watches John being killed by Azazel, though the demon then resurrects him in exchange for Mary's permission to enter her house in ten years.[5] When the angel Anna Milton travels back in time in the fifth season episode "The Song Remains the Same" to prevent the births of Sam and Dean, John agrees to serve as a temporary vessel for the archangel Michael to stop her. Michael subsequently kills Anna and erases John and Mary's memories of the incident.[6]

text: Azazel later uses his pact with Mary to enter their home in the pilot episode, and ultimately kills her.[7] The second season episode "All Hell Breaks Loose, Part One" reveals that she had witnessed the demon secretly feeding his blood to Sam.[8] John investigated the incident and learned of the existence of the supernatural. His desire to find and kill Azazel led him to become a hunter of supernatural creatures.[7] He took his sons with him during his travels, but often left them alone in motels for long periods of time during his hunts,[9][10] leaving Dean with instructions to "shoot first and ask questions later" while watching over Sam.[9]

text: As revealed in the fourth season episode "Jump the Shark," John slept with a woman he met while away on a hunt. Learning over a decade later that he had fathered her son Adam, John made occasional visits over the years to partake in father-son activities with him. He hid the truth from Adam to protect him, and never revealed to him the existence of Sam and Dean, nor vice versa.[11] Meanwhile, John trained Sam and Dean to become hunters. However, Sam later left this life to start anew in college, leading to a fallout between John and his son.[7]

text: Twenty-two years after Mary's death, John disappears while on a hunt, forcing Sam and Dean to reunite in an unsuccessful attempt to find him. Sam returns to the life of a hunter after Azazel kills his girlfriend.[7] John reluctantly chooses to avoid his sons throughout most of the season while he investigates something,[12] eventually reuniting with them in the episode "Shadow." However, the demonic Meg Masters attacks them and reveals that Azazel is after John. After escaping from Meg, the brothers split up from their father to keep him from the demons.[13] When vampires murder his old mentor and steal the Colt—a mystical gun capable of killing anything—John teams up with Sam and Dean in "Dead Man's Blood" to retrieve it. Because demons cannot be killed by conventional means, they hope that the Colt will be effective against Azazel.[14] In response, Meg begins killing the Winchesters' friends in "Salvation," and threatens to kill more unless they deliver the Colt. John is captured after trying to give her a fake gun,[15] and reveals himself to be possessed by Azazel when the brothers come to his rescue in the first season finale "Devil's Trap." However, he manages to resist the demon's control. Despite John's pleas for Sam to shoot him with the Colt, Sam cannot bring himself to do so and allows Azazel to escape. As the Winchesters flee in Dean's Impala, a demonically-possessed trucker crashes into them.[16]

text: In the second season premiere, "In My Time of Dying," Sam and John awake in the hospital with only minor injuries, but a dying Dean is comatose. John secretly summons Azazel, and seems to know what the demon's plans are. He then makes a deal to save Dean, giving up his life, soul, and the Colt.[17] Before dying, John instructs Dean to kill Sam should he become evil.[18][19] The fourth season episode "On the Head of a Pin" reveals that the demon Alastair tortured John in Hell for over a century, with John refusing the demon's offer to stop if he himself would torture someone else.[20] His soul escapes from Hell in the second season finale "All Hell Breaks Loose, Part 2" when a gateway to Hell is opened. He saves Dean from Azazel, and distracts the demon by temporarily forcing him out of his host, long enough for Dean to kill Azazel with the Colt when he returns to his usual body. John then gives Sam and Dean a loving smile before becoming engulfed in a white light.[19] However, the fifth season episode "Dark Side of the Moon" suggests that he might not be in Heaven.[21]

text: Characterization[edit]

text: Actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan deemed John a "tormented soul," motivated by an "equal combination of revenge and protecting his sons." [22][23] Following the death of their mother, Sam and Dean became secondary to John's quest of killing the demon responsible, although Morgan believed that this aspect changed once John began spending more time with them again.[23] Though he thought that John was not the world's best dad and "definitely made a lot of mistakes," the actor noted that "he did things, even when they were wrong, for the good of his sons." [22] John Kubicek of BuddyTV felt that this reasoning extended to John's decision to hide the truth from Adam to protect him. Kubicek also suggested that John became involved in Adam's life to achieve "some level of normalcy" as a father, an opportunity he had previously lost following the death of Sam and Dean's mother.[24] Overall, Morgan felt that John "loved those kids more than he loved his own life," with the character's demonic pact with Azazel serving as "his way of finding redemption." [25]

text: Regarding his portrayal of the character, Morgan commented, "I played him with extra angst. I think what was on the page, what I foresaw—not knowing where it was going, because no one would ever tell me anything—there was always a lot more going on in his head than he was going to show anybody, including his sons. Because, indeed, there was a lot more going on."[22] Kripke later confirmed this, stating, "It's our view that John knew everything the producers of the show know. John knew stuff we're not even ready to reveal, that won't come out for a couple of seasons. He was an awesome hunter, and by the time he showed up in 'Dead Man's Blood,' he knew it all."[26]

text: Development[edit]

text: In writing the pilot episode, series creator Eric Kripke made several dramatic revisions to John's storyline. The first draft of the script had Sam and Dean being raised by their aunt and uncle, though this was changed when Kripke realized that the backstory became much less complicated by having John raise them on the road. Another revision had John dying at the end of the episode instead of Sam's girlfriend Jessica.[27] Though he survives in the final version of the pilot, the writers decided halfway through production of the first season that John did have to die, as they believed his separation from his sons "split the show" by having him away "doing more interesting things than the boys are doing."[28][29] Kripke also felt that John kept Sam and Dean away from the "front lines," his death being required to allow the brothers to "explore, investigate and confront the yellow-eyed demon directly." The writers initially intended for John to die in the car accident in "Devil's Trap," but they ultimately postponed his death to prevent the finale from becoming too dark.[30] Following the character's eventual escape from Hell, executive producer Ben Edlund stated that even the writers are unsure of where John's soul ended up.[31]

text: Evil Dead-actor Bruce Campbell was Kripke's first choice to portray the character. However, Campbell was unavailable, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan eventually received the role.[32] Due to the fact that Morgan's scene in the pilot episode takes place 22 years before the series, Morgan expected to be replaced by an older actor for subsequent episodes.[22] Being only 12 years older than Jensen Ackles, who portrays the eldest son Dean, Morgan was surprised when he was asked to reprise the role.[33][22] Ackles and Jared Padalecki often teased him about the age difference during filming.[34] Throughout the season, Morgan became frustrated at times due to his character's avoidance of his sons, stating, "It pissed off everybody, it pissed off us as actors, it pissed off the audience watching, because none of us really knew where we were gonna go." However, he reasoned that John's motivation for his actions was due to having knowledge that nobody else had.[23]

text: During production of Supernatural's first season, Morgan was also working on the shows Weeds and Grey's Anatomy, so he was often traveling back and forth between Los Angeles and Vancouver, British Columbia. This interfered at times with Morgan's acting, as he had trouble getting "Winchester-y enough" after portraying the nice character of Denny Duquette on Grey's Anatomy.[33] Morgan commented, "I was stuck in Denny-land, where I was being too nice. Winchester's harder to find. Denny's more me. He's an intense guy, John is. And Denny, for a guy who's having trouble living, he's just a charming dude."[33] Morgan was at first reluctant to return for Supernatural's second season due to his role on Grey's Anatomy.[35] Although he lent his voice for the third season episode "Long-Distance Call," future appearances of Morgan as the character after the second season have been hindered due to the actor's busy schedule.[36] Nevertheless, both Kripke and writer Sera Gamble have stated that they "would love to have him back."[36][37] The scheduling conflict has continued into the sixth season of Supernatural, with executive producer Robert Singer revealing that the writers had considered bringing the character back in the alternate reality episode "My Heart Will Go On" instead of Ellen Harvelle, but due to concerns that they would not be able to secure Morgan's return, they ultimately chose Ellen for the deceased character they would have (temporarily) return in the episode.[38] During the production of the fifth season, Morgan had an interview with MovieWeb in which he stated that no one from the show had contacted him about making another appearance, and expressed the desire to return for at least one more episode in what was then-believed to be the show's final season, as he had enjoyed working with on-screen sons Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki and he felt that John's storyline had ended too soon.[39]

text: Reception[edit]

text: While critics praised Morgan for his performance in the role, their reaction to the character has generally been mixed. Don Williams of BuddyTV felt that John is a "rather divisive character", with some fans not understanding John's motivation for keeping his sons in the dark. However, Williams himself found the character to be "completely fascinating". He chose "In My Time of Dying" as the second best episode of the series, mainly because of John's contributions, stating, "Even if you're not a huge fan of Poppa Winchester, I think it's impossible not to be moved by the final ten minutes of this episode... John's final speech to Dean, where he finally tells his son that he's proud of him, is one hell of a tear-jerker, and both Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Jensen Ackles knock that scene out of the park."[40] Williams praised Matt Cohen's performance of a younger version of the character in the time-travel episode "In the Beginning", believing that he "did an excellent job at portraying a more innocent John Winchester than we've ever seen before".[41]

text: Diana Steenbergen of IGN also criticized John for his lack of explanation, feeling that "it is not exactly easy to watch John treat Dean and Sam so dismissively, especially after they have been nearly killing themselves all season to find him".[42] However, Steenbergen praised Morgan for his acting, writing, "Even though he is used sparingly throughout the series, Jeffrey Dean Morgan is always effective as John."[43] She also felt that he brought "emotional weight" to the character, allowing the audience to "feel John's weariness, and his resignation that things will most likely not go well".[44] While Brian Tallerico of UGO enjoyed Morgan's performance, he was happy that the character was killed off because John's presence made Sam and Dean into "followers" that were "merely existing in the wake of their father". With their father gone, the brothers are no longer prevented from "heading up the battle with the other side".[45]


document_title: The Phantom of the Opera (2004 film)

question_text: who played the phantom in the phantom of the opera

text: The Phantom of the Opera (2004 film)

text: Plot[edit]

text: In 1919, the Opéra Populaire holds a public auction to clear the theatre's vaults. Raoul, Viscount de Chagny purchases a papier-mâché music box in the shape of a monkey and eyes it sadly as Madame Giry, an aged woman dressed in black, watches him. The auctioneer then presents a shattered chandelier as the next item up for bid, explaining that it once played a key role in "the strange affair of the Phantom of the Opera". As it flickers to life and slowly ascends to its original place in the rafters, the audience is transported back in time to the year 1870.

text: Back to this time, while the company rehearses for a performance of the grand opera Hannibal, manager Monsieur Lefèvre announces that he has decided to retire and that the opera has been purchased by Richard Firmin and Gilles André, two men who have no experience with the arts whatsoever. When resident soprano Carlotta Giudicelli begins to sing for the managers, a backdrop collapses and causes everyone to blame the "Opera Ghost", a mysterious figure who is rumored to live in the catacombs beneath the theater. Carlotta refuses to sing and storms offstage, leaving Firmin and André no choice but to cancel the performance. At the last minute, ballet mistress Madame Giry suggests that dancer Christine Daaé take Carlotta's place as she has been "well taught." The managers reluctantly agree and, to their surprise, Christine wins them over.

text: Later that night, after Christine's triumphant stage debut, she explains to Madame Giry's daughter, Meg, that she is being coached by a mysterious tutor who she refers to as the "Angel of Music"; a tutor who her late father said would teach her to sing. Christine returns to her dressing room to find Raoul, the opera's new patron and her former childhood sweetheart, waiting for her. The two reminisce about their youth as Christine tells Raoul her secret, only for him to laugh at her "fantasy" and invite her to dinner despite her protests. Unbeknownst to everyone, except Madame Giry, the Phantom of the Opera locks Christine in her dressing room and reveals himself in her mirror to her before hypnotizing her and taking her to his subterranean lair.

text: The Phantom reveals to her that he loves her and wants her to love him back. He shows Christine a bust of herself, wearing a wedding dress and veil, causing her to faint, and the Phantom places her in a bed. The next morning she awakes to find the Phantom writing music. She approaches him and removes his mask out of curiosity. He bursts into a fit of rage, covering his face with his hand. He at first says she must stay forever because she saw his deformities, revealing that he "dreams of beauty". Pitying him Christine hands him back his mask and the two have a moment of understanding. He then decides to return her to the opera house.

text: That morning, the two managers lament Christine's disappearance, as well as series of notes they received from the Opera Ghost trying to blackmail them for his payment and ordering them on how to run the opera house. When Carlotta returns, she is furious to find a note sent to her saying if she sang as the countess in Il Muto that night instead of Christine, then disaster "beyond [their] imagination" would occur. Firmin and André ignore the ghost's warnings and give Carlotta the lead role. That night, the Phantom interrupts the performance and criticizes their failure to follow his orders.

text: Carlotta continues to sing, but her voice croaks (as a result of the Phantom tampering with her throat spray) and the lead role is given to Christine. While the ballet is being performed, the Phantom, not realizing the performance change, encounters the chief stagehand Joseph Buquet and strangles him before hanging him from above, creating chaos. Christine flees to the roof with Raoul. She reveals to him that she has seen the Phantom's face and fears him, but also pities him because of his sadness. Raoul tells Christine he loves her and will protect her forevermore. Christine returns his love, kissing him passionately and they both leave the roof. The Phantom, who witnessed the scene, becomes heartbroken. He then hears them both singing together. Growing furious at Raoul, he vows revenge on them both.

text: Three months later, a masquerade party ensues in the opera house. At the party, Christine wears her new engagement ring from Raoul. The event is interrupted once again by the Phantom, who is dressed as Red Death. The Phantom brings his own composition, Don Juan Triumphant, and orders the managers to stage the opera. Raoul exits the room and Christine approaches the Phantom. At the sight of the engagement ring, the Phantom rips it from Christine and disappears into a trap on the floor. Raoul tries to follow him but is stopped by Madame Giry, who privately tells him the story of the Phantom's past. When she was a little girl, she went to a freak circus where they featured a deformed child in a cage. The child was beaten while everyone watched and laughed. The ringmaster then removed a burlap sack covering the child's face, revealing his deformity. Only the young Madame Giry pitied him. She was the last to leave and saw the child strangle the ringmaster with a rope. Chased by the police, Madame Giry helped him escape and found shelter for him beneath the opera house, where she has hidden him from the world ever since.

text: Christine takes a carriage to visit her father's grave, but the Phantom secretly takes over the reins. Raoul follows when he realizes she's gone. Christine arrives and laments over her father's death. The Phantom tries to win her back by pretending to be her father's angel, but Raoul arrives and stops him. A sword fight ensues in the cemetery, where Raoul eventually disarms the Phantom and is about to kill him, but Christine pleads for him not to. His rage seemingly augmented, the Phantom watches angrily as Christine and Raoul ride away.

text: Christine admits she is afraid of the Phantom and tells Raoul he will never stop trying to recapture her. Raoul realizes that they can use the Phantom's opera to capture him, as he will surely attend. Don Juan Triumphant is performed, and the Phantom makes his entrance (having secretly replaced the lead) with Christine. Raoul can do nothing but watch from his box as Christine falls for the Phantom yet again. However, she once again removes his mask, revealing his deformities to the entire audience, who scream in fear. He escapes with her by dropping the chandelier and setting the opera house on fire.

text: The Phantom brings Christine back down to his lair. Madame Giry shows Raoul where the Phantom lives, and he goes to rescue Christine. The Phantom forces Christine to don the wedding dress and once again professes his love, and orders Christine to marry him. Christine tries to convince the Phantom that she does not fear his ugliness, but rather his anger and willingness to kill to get what he wants. Just then, Raoul enters the lair, and the Phantom ties him to a gate and threatens to kill him if Christine refuses to marry him. Christine reflects over the impossible choice before passionately kissing the Phantom to show him he is not alone in the world. The Phantom is shocked from experiencing real human love for the first time in his life. Ashamed of his murderous actions, he allows Christine and Raoul to leave and orders them to never return. He finds comfort in a little monkey music box. Christine approaches the Phantom, who tells her that he loves her, and she silently gives him the diamond ring from her finger to remember her by. After Christine and Raoul leave, the Phantom smashes every mirror in his underground lair and disappears through a secret passage behind a velvet curtain just before the police arrive. Upon entering, Meg finds only the Phantom's white mask.

text: Moving back to 1919, the elderly Raoul visits Christine's gravesite and places the music box near her tombstone. He stands in silence for a moment and then turns to leave, but stops upon noticing a fresh red rose with a black ribbon tied around the stem lying on the ground with Christine's engagement ring attached to it; implying that the Phantom still lives and still loves Christine.

text: Cast[edit]

text:
Gerard Butler as The Phantom
Emmy Rossum as Christine Daaé
Patrick Wilson as Viscount Raoul de Chagny
Miranda Richardson as Madame Giry
Minnie Driver as Carlotta Giudicelli

Margaret Preece as Carlotta's singing voice

Simon Callow as Gilles André
Ciarán Hinds as Richard Firmin
Victor McGuire as Ubaldo Piangi
Jennifer Ellison as Meg Giry
Murray Melvin as Monsieur Reyer
Kevin McNally as Joseph Buquet
James Fleet as Monsieur Lefèvre
Ramin Karimloo as Gustave Daaé

tag: ul

text: Production[edit]

text: Development[edit]

text: Warner Bros. purchased the film rights to The Phantom of the Opera in early 1989, granting Andrew Lloyd Webber total artistic control.[3] Despite interest from A-list directors, Lloyd Webber and Warner Bros. instantly hired Joel Schumacher to direct; Lloyd Webber had been impressed with Schumacher's use of music in The Lost Boys.[4] The duo wrote the screenplay that same year,[5] while Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman were cast to reprise their roles from the original stage production. Filming was set to begin at Pinewood Studios in England in July 1990, under a $25 million budget.[6]

text: However, the start date was pushed to November 1990 at both Babelsberg Studios in Munich, Germany and Barrandov Studios in Prague, Czech Republic.[7] Production for The Phantom of the Opera was stalled with Lloyd Webber and Brightman's divorce.[8] "Everything got tied up in settlements", Schumacher reflected. "Then my career took off and I was really busy."[9] As a result, The Phantom of the Opera languished in development limbo for Warner Bros. throughout the 1990s.[10] In February 1997, Schumacher considered returning, but eventually dropped out in favour of Batman Unchained, Runaway Jury and Dreamgirls.[11] The studio was keen to cast John Travolta for the lead role,[12] but also held discussions with Antonio Banderas, who undertook vocal preparation and sang the role of the Phantom in the TV special Andrew Lloyd Webber: The Royal Albert Hall Celebration.[13]

text: Schumacher and Lloyd Webber restarted development for The Phantom of the Opera in December 2002.[5] It was then announced in January 2003 that Lloyd Webber's Really Useful Group had purchased the film rights from Warner Bros. in an attempt to produce The Phantom of the Opera independently.[13] As a result, Lloyd Webber invested $6 million of his own money.[14] The Phantom of the Opera was produced on a $55 million budget. A further $15 million was used for marketing, bringing the final budget to $70 million.[2] Warner Bros. was given a first look deal for distribution; the studio did not sign on until June 2003, when the principal cast was chosen.[15]

text: Casting[edit]

text: Hugh Jackman was offered the chance to audition for the Phantom, but he faced scheduling conflicts with Van Helsing. "They rang to ask about my availability", Jackman explained in an April 2003 interview, "probably about 20 other actors as well. I wasn't available, unfortunately. So, that was a bummer."[16] "We needed somebody who has a bit of rock and roll sensibility in him", Andrew Lloyd Webber explained. "He's got to be a bit rough, a bit dangerous; not a conventional singer. Christine is attracted to the Phantom because he's the right side of danger."[5] Director Joel Schumacher had been impressed with Gerard Butler's performance in Dracula 2000.[17] Prior to his audition, Butler had no professional singing experience and had only taken four voice lessons before singing "The Music of the Night" for Lloyd Webber.[3]

text: Katie Holmes, who began working with a vocal coach, was the front-runner for Christine Daaé in March 2003.[18] She was later replaced by Anne Hathaway, a classically trained soprano, in 2004. However, Hathaway dropped out of the role because the production schedule of the film overlapped with The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement, which she was contractually obligated to make.[19] Hathaway was then replaced with Emmy Rossum. The actress modeled the relationship between the Phantom and Christine after Suzanne Farrell and George Balanchine.[14] Patrick Wilson was cast as Raoul based on his previous Broadway theatre career. For the role of Carlotta, Minnie Driver devised an over-the-top, camp performance as the egotistical prima donna. Despite also lacking singing experience, Ciarán Hinds was cast by Schumacher as Richard Firmin; the two had previously worked together on Veronica Guerin.[4] Ramin Karimloo also briefly appears as the portrait of Gustave Daaé, Christine's father. Karimloo later played the Phantom as well as the role of Raoul on London's West End.

text: Filming[edit]

text: Principal photography lasted from 15 September 2003 to 15 January 2004. The film was shot entirely using eight sound stages at Pinewood Studios,[20] where, on the Pinewood backlot, the bottom half exterior of the Palais Garnier was constructed. The top half was implemented using a combination of computer-generated imagery (CGI) and a scale model created by Cinesite. The surrounding Paris skyline for "All I Ask of You" was entirely composed of matte paintings.[4] Cinesite also created a miniature falling chandelier, since a life-size model was too big for the actual set.[21]

text: Production designer Anthony D. G. Pratt was influenced by French architect Charles Garnier, designer of the original Paris opera house, as well as Edgar Degas, John Singer Sargent, Gustave Caillebotte, the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Schumacher was inspired by Jean Cocteau's Beauty and the Beast (1946), where a hallway is lined with arms holding candelabra. The cemetery was based on the Père Lachaise and Montparnasse.[22] Costume designer Alexandra Byrne utilised a limited black, white, gold and silver colour palette for the Masquerade ball.[4]

text: Reception[edit]

text: Release and awards[edit]

text: The Phantom of the Opera was released in the United States on 22 December 2004. With a limited release of 622 theaters, it opened at tenth place at the weekend box office, grossing $6.5 million across five days.[23] After expanding to 907 screens on 14 January 2005[24] the film obtained the 9th spot at the box office,[25] which it retained during its 1,511 screens wide release on 21 January 2005.[26][27] The total domestic gross was $51,225,796. With a further $107 million earned internationally, The Phantom of the Opera reached a worldwide total of $158,225,796.[2] A few foreign markets were particularly successful,[28] such as Japan, where the film's ¥4.20 billion ($35 million) gross stood as the 6th most successful foreign film and 9th overall of the year.[29][30] The United Kingdom and South Korea both had over $10 million in receipts, with $17.5 million and $11.9 million, respectively.[2][31]

text: Anthony Pratt and Celia Bobak were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Art Direction, as was John Mathieson for Cinematography. However, both categories were awarded to The Aviator. Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyricist Charles Hart were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song ("Learn to Be Lonely") but lost to "Al otro lado del río" from The Motorcycle Diaries.[32] The song was also nominated for the Golden Globe but it lost to Alfie's "Old Habits Die Hard". In the same ceremony, Emmy Rossum was nominated for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy, losing to Annette Bening in Being Julia.[33] At the Saturn Awards, Rossum won for Best Performance by a Younger Actor,[34] while The Phantom of the Opera was nominated for Best Action/Adventure/Thriller Film and Alexandra Byrne was nominated for Costume Design.[35]

text: The soundtrack of the film was released in two separate CD formats on 23 November 2004 as a two-disc deluxe edition which includes dialogue from the film and a single-disc highlights edition.

text: The film had its initial North America video release on DVD and VHS on 3 May 2005, following its first digital release on HD-DVD on 18 April 2006 and a Blu-ray edition on 31 October 2006.

text: Critical reception[edit]

text: The film received mixed to negative reviews from film critics. Rotten Tomatoes gives it 32% rotten with an average score of 5/10. "The music of the night has hit something of a sour note: Critics are calling the screen adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's popular musical histrionic, boring and lacking in both romance and danger", the consensus read. "Still, some have praised the film for its sheer spectacle".[36] By comparison, Metacritic calculated an average score of 40/100 from its 39 reviews collected.[37]

text:
"The film looks and sounds fabulous and I think it's an extraordinarily fine document of the stage show. While it doesn't deviate much from the stage material, the film has given it an even deeper emotional centre. It's not based on the theatre visually or direction-wise, but it's still got exactly the same essence. And that's all I could have ever hoped for."

— Andrew Lloyd Webber[5]

text: Despite having been impressed with the cast, Jonathan Rosenbaum of the Chicago Reader wrote that "Teen romance and operetta-style singing replace the horror elements familiar to film-goers, and director Joel Schumacher obscures any remnants of classy stage spectacle with the same disco overkill he brought to Batman Forever."[38] Stephanie Zacharek of Salon.com believed that Phantom of the Opera "takes everything that's wrong with Broadway and puts it on the big screen in a gaudy splat."[39]

text: In a mixed review for Newsweek, David Ansen praised Rossum's performance, but criticized the filmmakers for their focus on visual design rather than presenting a cohesive storyline. "Its kitschy romanticism bored me on Broadway and it bores me here—I may not be the most reliable witness. Still, I can easily imagine a more dashing, charismatic Phantom than Butler's. Rest assured, however, Lloyd Webber's neo-Puccinian songs are reprised and reprised and reprised until you're guaranteed to go out humming."[40] Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly believed Schumacher did not add enough dimension in adapting The Phantom of the Opera. "Schumacher, the man who added nipples to Batman's suit, has staged Phantom chastely, as if his job were to adhere the audience to every note".[41]

text: Roger Ebert reasoned that "part of the pleasure of movie-going is pure spectacle—of just sitting there and looking at great stuff and knowing it looks terrific. There wasn't much Schumacher could have done with the story or the music he was handed, but in the areas over which he held sway, he has triumphed."[42] In contrasting between the popularity of the Broadway musical, Michael Dequina of Film Threat magazine explained that "it conjures up this unexplainable spell that leaves audiences sad, sentimental, swooning, smiling—in some way transported and moved. Now, in Schumacher's film, that spell lives on."[43]


document_title: List of U.S. states by educational attainment

question_text: what is the number one state for education

text: This article presents a list of U.S. states sorted by educational attainment for persons 25 years of age and older. This table is an estimation based on the responses to the American Community Survey. This survey is a large demographic survey collected throughout the year using mailed questionnaires, telephone interviews, and visits from Census Bureau field representatives to about 3.5 million household addresses annually, regardless of their legal immigration status. The survey does not measure graduation rates from a state's high schools, rather, it measures the percentage of adult residents with a high school diploma.

text:
State
% High school graduate
Rank
% Bachelor's degree
Rank
% Advanced degree
Rank

Montana
92.8%
1
29.5%
20
9.5%
32

Minnesota
92.4%
2
33.7%
10
11.2%
17

Wyoming
92.3%
3
25.7%
40
8.6%
40

Alaska
92.1%
4
28.0%
26
10.1%
27

New Hampshire
92.0%
5
34.9%
8
13.0%
9

Vermont
91.8%
6
36.0%
7
14.3%
6

North Dakota
91.7%
7
27.7%
28
7.6%
48

Maine
91.6%
8
29.0%
22
10.3%
24

Iowa
91.5%
9
26.7%
35
8.5%
41

Utah
91.2%
10
31.1%
15
10.4%
23

Hawaii
91.0%
11
30.8%
17
10.5%
21

Wisconsin
91.0%
11
27.8%
27
9.4%
33

South Dakota
90.9%
13
27.0%
33
8.0%
43

Nebraska
90.7%
14
29.3%
21
9.7%
30

Colorado
90.7%
14
38.1%
2
14.0%
7

Washington
90.4%
16
32.9%
11
12.0%
13

Kansas
90.2%
17
31.0%
16
11.0%
19

Connecticut
89.9%
18
37.6%
4
16.6%
3

Oregon
89.8%
19
30.8%
17
11.5%
15

Massachusetts
89.8%
19
40.5%
1
17.7%
1

Michigan
89.6%
21
26.9%
34
10.5%
21

Idaho
89.5%
22
25.9%
38
8.2%
42

Maryland
89.4%
23
37.9%
3
17.3%
2

District of Columbia
89.3%

54.6%

31.3%

Pennsylvania
89.2%
24
28.6%
24
11.2%
17

Ohio
89.1%
25
26.1%
37
9.7%
30

New Jersey
88.6%
26
36.8%
5
14.0%
7

Delaware
88.4%
27
30.0%
19
12.2%
12

Missouri
88.4%
27
27.1%
32
10.2%
25

Virginia
88.3%
29
36.3%
6
15.4%
4

Texas
87.9%
30
32.3%
12
12.4%
11

Indiana
87.8%
31
24.1%
42
8.7%
38

Oklahoma
86.9%
32
24.1%
42
8.0%
43

Florida
86.9%
32
27.3%
31
9.8%
29

United States
86.7%

29.8%

11.2%

Rhode Island
86.2%
34
31.9%
13
12.8%
10

Arizona
86.0%
35
27.5%
30
10.2%
25

North Carolina
85.8%
36
28.4%
25
9.9%
28

New York
85.6%
37
34.2%
9
14.8%
5

South Carolina
85.6%
37
25.8%
39
9.3%
35

Tennessee
85.5%
39
24.9%
41
9.0%
37

Georgia
85.4%
40
28.8%
23
10.7%
20

Nevada
85.1%
41
23.0%
45
7.9%
45

West Virginia
85.0%
42
19.2%
50
7.4%
50

Arkansas
84.8%
43
21.1%
48
7.5%
49

Alabama
84.3%
44
23.5%
44
8.7%
38

New Mexico
84.2%
45
26.3%
36
11.5%
15

Kentucky
84.2%
45
22.3%
47
9.2%
36

Louisiana
83.4%
47
22.5%
46
7.7%
46

Mississippi
82.3%
48
20.7%
49
7.7%
46

Illinois
81.9%
49
27.6%
29
9.4%
33

California
79.8%
50
31.4%
14
11.6%
14

Puerto Rico
73.0%

text:
Education in the United States

By state and in insular areas
By subject area
History of
Issues: Finance – Law – Literacy – Reform
Levels: Pre-kindergarten – Primary – Secondary – Higher
Organizations

 Education portal
 United States portal

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