title: Junior Soprano

text: In the opening episode of "The Sopranos", Junior plans to kill "Little Pussy" Malanga at a restaurant owned by Tony's childhood friend, Artie Bucco. Tony makes many attempts to prevent the murder and eventually resorts to fire bombing the restaurant to force its closure so the hit would happen elsewhere, enraging Junior. Tensions escalate further when two of Tony's criminal associates Christopher Moltisanti and Brendan Filone hijack a truck owned by a Harrison, New Jersey company that pays protection to Junior. Junior constantly expresses outrage and threats over the issue despite Tony's attempts to resolve it. When Brendan hijacks another truck and the driver is accidentally killed, Junior orders Brendan's murder. He spares Christopher's life because he is a surrogate nephew of Tony's, ordering a mock execution instead.


title: Junior Soprano

text: Junior has been waiting a long time to become boss and with his senior rank, feels he is next in line. Upon Jackie's death, Tony has the support to take over the family but fears Junior will start a war if he is not named boss. Tony resolves the situation by letting Junior become boss in order to steer law enforcement attention away from the rest of the family. With the support of the other captains, Tony runs things behind the scenes, especially as Junior becomes greedier and more abusive of his authority. When Junior finds out about this from Tony's own mother he is furious.


title: Junior Soprano

text: Around this time, Junior's longtime "goomah", Bobbi Sanfillipo, inadvertently causes word of Junior's talent for oral sex to spread among the mob wives, eventually reaching Tony, who mocks him in front of several other men. Junior furiously breaks up with Bobbi over this, smashing a lemon meringue pie in her face. He also learns through Livia that Tony is seeing a psychiatrist. All these factors cause Junior to order Tony's failed assassination, which, due to his fondness for Tony, upsets him. Junior vomits while discussing details of the hit and is visibly upset when his associates discuss the hit with him. Tony retaliates by having two of Junior's enforcers, Mikey Palmice and Chucky Signore, murdered. Junior is spared only because the FBI arrests him on racketeering charges.


title: Junior Soprano

text: Junior's acting captain, Philly "Spoons" Parisi, keeps commenting on the conflict between Tony and his uncle and also Livia's involvement, so Tony has him killed. With Junior and his main supporters either in jail or dead, Tony takes full control of the family. He lets Junior keep the title of boss while Tony runs everything as the street boss. Junior is allowed to run his old crew but must give 95% of the proceeds to Tony. Along with a bigger share from his old high-end poker game, union rackets, and car theft ring, this enables Junior to live on a subsistence level, while also making enough to pay his legal fees.


title: Junior Soprano

text: Finally, Tony moves two soldiers from Junior's crew, Patsy Parisi (Philly's twin brother), and Gigi Cestone, over to his own crew. This leaves Junior the senile Murf Lupo as "capo", Beppy Scerbo, and Bobby Baccalieri as soldiers.


title: Junior Soprano

text: Soon, Junior is released from jail and placed under house arrest in his Belleville, New Jersey home while awaiting trial, after his attorney convinces the judge that Junior is much sicker than he actually is. While he is under house arrest, Soprano captain Richie Aprile is released from prison after serving ten years, and actively seeks Junior's friendship. Richie wants him and Junior to kill Tony and take over the crime family.


title: Junior Soprano

text: While Junior wants to take back control, he is cautious of Richie's plans. Junior is conflicted over which side to favor but eventually decides that while Tony can be selfish and impulsive, Richie simply is not respected enough by the rest of the family. Junior tells Tony of Richie's plans against him. Grateful for the warning, Tony increases Junior's take of his former rackets from 5% to 7.5%, and the two (more or less) bury the hatchet.


title: Junior Soprano

text: During this time, Bobby Baccalieri becomes Junior's replacement, right-hand man, and closest confidant. Bobby accompanies Junior on hospital visits during his battles with stomach cancer, which he eventually overcomes. Junior finds various ways to get around his house arrest—using his doctor's office and lawyer's office to conduct business and attending as many funerals and family functions as possible. Despite their disputes, Tony often seeks Junior's advice as the voice of experience.


title: Junior Soprano

text: In season four, Junior's trial ends in a mistrial after they are able to intimidate one of the jurors into voting not guilty and forcing a hung jury. Although Junior has survived cancer and possible prison time, the toll of a series of 'mini-strokes' and the confinement of house arrest has left him confused, depressed, and in failing health. By season five, Junior starts to show signs of dementia and becomes more dependent for care and support. In "Where's Johnny?", Junior goes wandering the streets in his bathrobe and slippers looking for his deceased brother.


title: Junior Soprano

text: In season six of "The Sopranos", Junior's dementia has worsened over the two-year interval, as he becomes paranoid that his long-deceased enemy, "Little Pussy" Malanga, is after him. Tony refuses to put his uncle in a nursing home, feeling obligated to care for Junior himself with the aid of his sisters and Bobby. In the season six debut episode, Tony arrives at Junior's house one evening. Junior, believing his nephew to be Malanga, shoots Tony in the abdomen. Frightened and in a state of panic, Junior runs upstairs, hiding away in his bedroom closet while Tony struggles to dial 9-1-1 before losing consciousness.


title: Junior Soprano

text: Junior is arrested and taken into federal custody over the shooting, but his lawyer secures him a release into a cushy mental institution, claiming he is currently unfit to stand trial. Junior remains confused and distressed by proceedings and denies that he could have deliberately shot his own nephew. Junior's dementia has progressed to such an extreme state that when his great-nephew A.J. Soprano visits him with the intention of killing him as revenge, Junior thinks A.J. is Tony and greets him with excitement. A.J.'s plan is botched when he inadvertently drops the knife on the floor. Tony pulls some strings with former Assemblyman, now State Senator, Ronald Zellman to get A.J. released without charges being filed.


title: Junior Soprano

text: In the Wyckoff therapeutic center, Junior begins to put portions of his old life back together. He still collects weekly payments from his organizations and is occasionally visited by Pat Blundetto and Beppy Scerbo. Within the confines of the mental home, Junior behaves like a typical Mafia chieftain; bribing orderlies, organizing card games, and even physically abusing a rival. A young patient named Carter Chong looks up to Junior as a mentor and father figure and admires his aggressive, imposing, and rebellious nature.


title: Junior Soprano

text: After Junior loses control of his bladder, the center's administrators conclude that he is not taking his medications. Junior is confronted with the choice of either taking the medication or being moved to a less pleasant facility. Junior agrees to take the medication. He begins to lose his aggressiveness and starts to become more docile. He is badly beaten by his anger-prone protégé, who doesn't want to lose Junior as a mentor. In the final scene of "Remember When" Junior sits passively, black and blue, with broken glasses from his beating, silently sitting and petting a cat sitting on his lap.


title: Junior Soprano

text: In the episode "The Blue Comet", Janice approaches Tony and tells him that Junior has run out of money, and will be removed from the Wyckoff therapeutic center and implores Tony to help him out. Tony shows no sympathy for Junior and offers no support, even spitefully telling Janice that she and Bobby are cut out of his life too, although it is just an empty threat. In the final episode, "Made in America", Junior is moved to a state facility. When Janice goes to visit him, Junior thinks she is her mother Livia and thinks that a picture of Janice's daughter is Janice herself.


title: Junior Soprano

text: She tries to tell him that Bobby has been murdered, but Junior does not comprehend, thinking she means Bobby Kennedy. Tony later visits a now sick and feeble Junior for the first time since the shooting. Junior now uses a wheelchair. Junior recognizes him as someone he used to play catch with, remembering playing with Tony 40 years earlier. Tony tries to remind Junior of who he was, and even who his brother was, but Junior cannot remember.


title: Junior Soprano

text: Tony tells him that he and his father used to run North Jersey, to which Junior simply smiles and replies, "Well, that's nice". Tony finally realizes Junior is in an advanced stage of dementia and is saddened and frustrated that Junior is lost for good. Tony simply looks at Junior and then tearfully leaves his uncle for the last time without saying another word.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: God of War: Chains of Olympus is an action-adventure hack and slash video game developed by Ready at Dawn and Santa Monica Studio, and published by Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE). It was first released for the PlayStation Portable (PSP) handheld console on March 4, 2008. The game is the fourth installment in the "God of War" series, the second chronologically, and a prequel to the original "God of War". It is loosely based on Greek mythology and set in ancient Greece, with vengeance as its central motif. The player controls Kratos, a Spartan warrior who serves the Olympian gods. Kratos is guided by the goddess Athena, who instructs him to find the Sun God Helios, as the Dream God Morpheus has caused many of the gods to slumber in Helios' absence. With the power of the Sun and the aid of the Titan Atlas, Morpheus and the Queen of the Underworld Persephone intend to destroy the Pillar of the World and in turn Olympus.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: The gameplay is similar to the previous installments, with a focus on combo-based combat, achieved through the player's main weapon—the Blades of Chaos—and secondary weapons acquired throughout the game. It features quick time events that require the player to complete game controller actions in a timed sequence to defeat stronger enemies and bosses. The player can use up to three magical attacks as alternative combat options. The game also features puzzles and platforming elements. The series' control scheme was reconfigured to compensate for the smaller number of buttons on the PSP compared to the PlayStation 2's controller; Ready at Dawn's solutions for the controls were praised by critics.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: "Chains of Olympus" was acclaimed by critics, becoming the highest rated PSP title on Metacritic and GameRankings. The game's graphics were particularly praised, with 1UP declaring the game was "a technical showpiece for Sony, and arguably the best-looking game on the system." It won several awards, including "Best PSP Action Game", "Best Graphics Technology", and "Best Use of Sound". As of June 2012, the game has sold 3.2 million copies worldwide, making it the seventh best-selling PlayStation Portable game of all time. Together with 2010's "", "Chains of Olympus" was remastered and released on September 13, 2011, as part of the "" for the PlayStation 3. The remastered version was included in the "God of War Saga" released on August 28, 2012, also for PlayStation 3.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: "God of War: Chains of Olympus" is a third-person single-player video game viewed from a fixed camera perspective. The player controls the character Kratos in combo-based combat, platforming, and puzzle game elements, and battles foes who primarily stem from Greek mythology, including cyclopes, Gorgons, satyrs, harpies, minotaurs, hoplites, and sphinxes. Morpheus beasts, shades, banshees, fire guards, fire sentries, hyperion guards, and death knights were created specifically for the game. Platforming elements require the player to climb walls, jump across chasms, swing on ropes, and balance across beams to proceed through sections of the game. Some puzzles are simple, such as moving a box so that the player can use it as a jumping-off point to access a pathway unreachable with normal jumping, but others are more complex, such as finding several items across different areas of the game to unlock one door.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: Kratos' main weapon is the Blades of Chaos: a pair of blades attached to chains that are wrapped around the character's wrists and forearms. In gameplay, the blades can be swung offensively in various maneuvers. As the game progresses, Kratos acquires new weapons—the Sun Shield and Gauntlet of Zeus—offering alternative combat options. Kratos only learns three magical abilities, as opposed to four in previous installments, including the Efreet, the Light of Dawn, and Charon's Wrath, giving him a variety of ways to attack and kill enemies. He acquires the relic Triton's Lance—similar to Poseidon's Trident in "God of War"— which allows him to breathe underwater; a necessary ability as parts of the game require long periods of time there.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: The challenge mode in this game is called the Challenge of Hades (five trials), and requires players to complete a series of specific tasks (e.g., Burn 50 soldiers with the Efreet). It is unlocked by completing the game. The player may unlock bonus costumes for Kratos, behind-the-scenes videos, and concept art of the characters and environments, as rewards. Completion of each of the game's difficulty levels unlocks additional rewards.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: As with the previous games in the "God of War" franchise, "God of War: Chains of Olympus" is set in an alternate version of ancient Greece, populated by the Olympian gods, Titans, and other beings of Greek mythology. With the exception of flashbacks, the events are set between those of the games "" (2013) and "God of War" (2005). Several locations are explored, including the real world locations of the ancient cities of Attica and Marathon, the latter including fictional settings of the Temple of Helios and the Caves of Olympus, and several other fictional locations, including the Underworld, which features scenes at the River Styx, Tartarus, the Fields of Elysium, and the Temple of Persephone.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: Attica is a war-torn city under assault by the Persian Empire and their pet basilisk, and is the site of Eurybiades' last battle. The city of Marathon is covered in the black fog of the Dream God, Morpheus. Just beyond the city is the Temple of Helios, which sits atop the Sun Chariot, which has plummeted to Earth in Helios' absence. Boreas, Zephyros, Euros, and Notos, gods of the north, west, east, and south winds, respectively, reside in the temple and guide the chariot. The Caves of Olympus is a cavern below Mount Olympus and houses the goddess Eos, the Primordial Fires, and a statue of Triton. The Underworld is the underground realm of the dead and is host to the River Styx and ferryman of the dead, Charon. Tartarus is the prison of the dead and the Titans where the massive Titan Hyperion is chained. The Fields of Elysium are home to deserving souls that roam peacefully and are overlooked by the Temple of Persephone.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: The protagonist of the game is Kratos (voiced by Terrence C. Carson), a former Captain of Sparta's Army, and once servant to the God of War, Ares. He now serves the other Olympian gods in hopes that they will free him of his nightmares. Other characters include Kratos' mentor and ally Athena (Erin Torpey), the Goddess of Wisdom; Eos (Erin Torpey), the Goddess of Dawn and sister of Helios; Persephone (Marina Gordon), the Queen of the Underworld and the main antagonist; and Atlas (Fred Tatasciore), a four-armed Titan imprisoned in Tartarus after the Great War. Kratos' deceased daughter Calliope (Debi Derryberry) briefly reunites with him in the Fields of Elysium and his wife Lysandra appears in a flashback. Minor characters include Helios (Dwight Schultz), the captured Sun God; Charon (Dwight Schultz), the ferryman of the Underworld; and the Persian King (Fred Tatasciore), leader of the Persian forces attacking Attica. The Dream God Morpheus is an unseen character that affects the plot.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: During Kratos' ten years of service to the Olympian gods, he is sent to the city of Attica to help defend it from the invading Persian army. After successfully killing the Persian King, decimating his army and slaying their pet basilisk, Kratos observes the Sun fall from the sky, plunging the world into darkness. As he fights his way through the city of Marathon, the Spartan witnesses the black fog of the Olympian Morpheus cover the land. He hears a haunting flute melody, which he recognizes as a melody once played by his deceased daughter Calliope. Finding the Temple of Helios, Kratos learns from Athena that Morpheus has caused many of the gods to fall into a deep slumber due to the absence of light. Before she succumbs to the slumber, Athena tasks Kratos to find Helios, return him to the sky, and break Morpheus’ grasp on the world. The Spartan eventually locates Helios' sister, Eos, who tells Kratos that the Titan Atlas has abducted her brother. Eos advises Kratos to seek the Primordial Fires, which he uses to awaken the fire steeds of Helios. The steeds take the Spartan to the Underworld, where he has two encounters with Charon at the River Styx. Although Charon initially defeats Kratos and banishes him to Tartarus, the Spartan returns and destroys the ferryman.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: After locating the Temple of Persephone and confronting the Queen of the Underworld, Kratos is given a choice: renounce his power and be with his deceased daughter (at a cost to mankind) or proceed with his mission. Kratos sacrifices his weapons and power to be reunited with his daughter, but discovers that Persephone is embittered by Zeus' betrayal and her imprisonment in the Underworld with her husband Hades. While he was distracted by his reunion with Calliope, Persephone's ally Atlas was using the power of the kidnapped Helios to destroy the Pillar of the World, which would also end Olympus. As the resulting destruction of the Pillar will also cause the souls of the Underworld, including Calliope, to be lost, Kratos abandons his daughter forever in order to save her life. Taking back his power, Kratos battles Persephone and Atlas, binding the Titan to the Pillar before slaying the goddess. Although victorious, he is warned by a dying Persephone that his suffering will never end. Atlas, forced to hold the weight of world on his shoulders for eternity, also warns Kratos that he will eventually regret helping the gods and that he and Atlas will meet again. Kratos then rides the Sun Chariot back to the mortal world and into the sky as Morpheus retreats.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: In a post-credits scene, Kratos is still riding Helios' chariot back into the sky and after seeing the return of the Sun, Kratos loses consciousness from the exertion and plummets to the ground. At the last moment, Kratos is saved by Athena and Helios, and Athena tells Helios that "He will live."


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: Game developer Ready at Dawn pitched the idea of a "God of War" game for the PlayStation Portable to Santa Monica Studio soon after the original "God of War" launched. In February 2007, Ready at Dawn posted a teaser featuring "Coming Soon" in the "God of War" font. An editor from 1UP obtained an early copy of "God of War II" and posted the game's instruction manual, featuring a one-page teaser with "PSP" in the Omega symbol and stating "Coming 2007". On March 12, 2007, "God of War II" was launched at the Metreon: "God of War II" Game Director Cory Barlog officially confirmed the development of "Chains of Olympus", stating "It is its own story that connects to the overall story. "God of War", "God of War II", and then if all the stars align "God of War III" will be the telling of a trilogy. This PSP story will be a further fleshing out." An initial trailer for "Chains of Olympus" was released on April 25, 2007, coinciding with the announcement of a demo on UMD—the optical disc medium for the PSP. The trailer is narrated by voice actress Linda Hunt.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: "God of War: Chains of Olympus" uses a proprietary, in-house engine referred to as the Ready at Dawn engine, which expanded on the engine created for their previous game, "Daxter" (2006), to include a fluid and cloth simulator. The camera system was modified to cater to the fixed cinematic camera for "God of War" gameplay, and the lighting system was reworked to aid in presenting realistic graphics. The game was originally designed for the PlayStation Portable's restricted 222 megahertz (MHz) processor. Ready at Dawn repeatedly contacted Sony regarding increasing the clock speed of the PSP on account of the difference to the game and had developed a version of the game with higher speed. Sony released a firmware upgrade that allowed games to use the full 333 MHz processor. The faster processor allowed for more realistic blood effects, lighting effects, and shadows as well as improved enemy intelligence. The upgrade, however, noticeably decreased battery life. After the game's completion, Game Director Ru Weerasuriya stated multiplayer options and other puzzles, characters, and dialogue had to be removed due to time constraints.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: Two of the voice actors returned from the previous installments to reprise their roles, which were Terrence C. Carson and Linda Hunt, who voiced Kratos and the narrator respectively. Erin Torpey adopted the dual roles of Athena and Eos. Fred Tatasciore, who voiced different characters in previous installments, returned, and in this game, voiced both Atlas and the Persian King. Carole Ruggier and Michael Clarke Duncan did not return to reprise their roles, which were Athena and Atlas respectively. Voice actor Dwight Schultz voiced both Charon and Helios; Debi Derryberry voiced Calliope and continued this role in a later installment; and Marina Gordon provided the voice of Persephone. Brian Kimmet, Don Luce, and Andrew Wheeler provided the voices of several minor characters and Keythe Farley was the Voice Director.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: The soundtrack was composed by Gerard K. Marino, but was never commercially released. After the release of the demo disc, Ready at Dawn offered pre-order customers a music track on disc titled "Battle of Attica". Composer Gerard Marino stated that it was the first cue written for the game, based on concept art and screenshots. Marino composed roughly thirteen minutes of music for the game and re-worked other music from the previous titles. Three tracks from the soundtrack are included as bonus tracks on the .


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: The demo disc, officially titled "God of War: Chains of Olympus – Special Edition: Battle of Attica", was released on September 27, 2007. In the demo, Kratos battles Persian soldiers and a giant basilisk. The demo progresses through the city of Attica as Kratos chases the basilisk, culminating with Kratos fighting the Persian King. The disc also included a developer video and a lanyard in the shape of the Greek letter Omega. Following the demo's release, a downloadable version was made available through the PlayStation Store in North American and European regions. Due to the delay of the game, Ready at Dawn offered a "special edition" version of the demo to pre-order customers, with one Ready at Dawn developer stating that preparation of the special demo disc took up to 40% of the team's production time.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: "God of War: Chains of Olympus" was originally scheduled to be released during the fourth quarter of 2007, but it was rescheduled and released on March 4, 2008, in North America, March 27 in Australia, March 28 in Europe, and July 10 in Japan, where it was published by Capcom. The game was a commercial success, debuting at No. 5 on the North American charts with 340,500 copies sold in the first month. The game was re-released in Europe on October 17, 2008, as part of Sony's Platinum Range and was also re-released in Japan and North America in April 2009 under Capcom's Best Price and Sony's Greatest Hits labels, respectively. It became available for download from the PlayStation Store on September 30, 2009, in North America, October 1 in Europe, and November 11, 2010, in Japan. Sony released a limited-edition bundle pack only in North America, on June 3, 2008. The pack included the game, a UMD of the 2007 film "Superbad", a voucher for the PSP title "", and a red edition of the console imprinted with an image of Kratos' face on the rear. As of June 2012, "Chains of Olympus" has sold more than 3.2 million copies worldwide.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: Together with "", the game was released for the PlayStation 3 as part of the "" (called "God of War Collection – Volume II" in Europe) on September 13, 2011, in North America, September 16 in Europe, September 29 in Australia, and October 6 in Japan. The collection is a remastered port of both games to the PS3 hardware, with features including high-definition resolution, stereoscopic 3D, anti-aliased graphics locked at 60 frames per second, DualShock 3 vibration function, and PlayStation 3 Trophies. "God of War: Origins Collection" and full trials of its two games were also released for download on the PlayStation Store on September 13, 2011, in North America. By June 2012, the collection had sold 711,737 copies worldwide. On August 28, 2012, "God of War Collection", "God of War III", and "Origins Collection" were released as part of the "God of War Saga" under Sony's line of PlayStation Collections for the PlayStation 3 in North America.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: "God of War: Chains of Olympus" received "universal acclaim", according to review aggregator Metacritic, achieving the highest composite score for a PlayStation Portable title. The game was praised for its graphics and presentation. Matt Leone of 1UP claimed "Chains of Olympus" is "a technical showpiece for Sony, and arguably the best-looking game on the system." Robert Falcon of Modojo.com similarly praised the presentation, calling it "an absolute stunner, the pinnacle of PSP development". He also praised the visuals as "absolutely breathtaking," and that the "game moves beautifully throughout, with very little loss in detail or speed." However, G4's Jonathan Hunt said that it "occasionally suffers from screen tearing and framerate drops."


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: Several reviewers praised Ready at Dawn's solution for the controls and gameplay. Because the PlayStation 2 (PS2) controller has two analog sticks and the PSP only has one, "GamePro" stated "the lack of a second analog stick could have been problematic but it's not." Modojo.com similarly stated that despite the lack of a second analog stick, "Kratos handles superbly on the PSP" and that the weapon and magic attacks are "mapped out perfectly around the PSP's control set-up." IGN's Chris Roper even claimed the control scheme "works better than on the PS2." Roper further claimed that Ready at Dawn "has done a stellar job of keeping Kratos' move set intact," stating that "combat is extremely responsive." Matt Leone of 1UP similarly praised developers solution for the control scheme as well as the game's "fantastic" pacing. However, "GamePro" criticized the relative lack of variety in enemies. The puzzles were criticized, and G4 claimed that some "are so maddeningly difficult to solve", while GameSpot's Aaron Thomas noted the lack of puzzles, claiming that it "could have used more". "GamePro" also criticized the fact that "You still have to lug boxes around to solve environmental puzzles". Kristan Reed of Eurogamer also criticized Ready at Dawn for cutting some puzzles, as well as cutting co-op play, multiplayer, dialogue, and characters.


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: GameSpot and IGN criticized the short length and minimal boss fights, although "GamePro" stated that it has "the same epic feel" as the previous installments and claimed that if it was the only "God of War" title, "it would still stand on its own merits." Cheat Code Central claimed "Chains of Olympus" is "one of the best games ever made for the PSP." They claimed that it is "definitely a must-buy game for all current fans" and that it "has everything you've come to expect from "God of War", just in a little disc and on a smaller screen." GameTrailers went on to praise the replay value for being able to "bring your powered-up methods of destruction with you."


title: God of War: Chains of Olympus

text: In IGN's Best of 2008 Awards, "Chains of Olympus" received the awards for "Best PSP Action Game", "Best Graphics Technology", and "Best Use of Sound". In GameSpot's Best Games of 2008, it received the "Readers' Choice Award". Diehard GameFAN awarded it "Best PSP Game" for 2008. At the 2008 Spike Video Game Awards, it was a nominee for "Best Handheld Game". It was Metacritic's 2008 "PSP Game of the Year". In September 2010, "GamePro" named "God of War: Chains of Olympus" the best PSP game.


title: Moncler

text: Moncler is an Italian high-end luxury fashion house specialized in ready-to-wear outerwear headquartered in Milan, Italy. Since its start as a down jacket boutique, Moncler has expanded to design vests, raincoats, windbreakers, knitwear, leather goods, footwear, fragrance, and related accessories. Its core branding includes the rooster (cockerel), "M" monogram, felt appliqué badge, crossed skis and cartoon goose mascot.


title: Moncler

text: Founded in 1952 in the Alpine town of Monestier-de-Clermont, France, Moncler quilted jackets were used by cold-weather workers, mountaineers, and skiers throughout Europe. Italian entrepreneur Remo Ruffini bought the near-bankrupt company in 2003 and moved it to Milan, re-launching Moncler as a global purveyor of luxury goods. Its use of private equity financing during the late-2000s and early-2010s saw to its listing on the Milan Stock Exchange in 2013. Moncler reported €2 billion in revenue in 2022.


title: Moncler

text: The house's collaborations with emerging designers and €1.15 billion-acquisition of Stone Island in 2020, has led to its increased presence in streetwear fashion. Its efforts in sustainable fashion were formalized with their 2020 "Born to Protect" mandate, featuring a range of environmental standards.


title: Moncler

text: Founded in 1952 by René Ramillon and André Vincent, the name is an abbreviation of Monestier-de-Clermont, a village in the mountains near Grenoble, France. The first quilted jackets were conceived for protecting workers from the cold. They used the jackets on top of their overalls in the small mountain establishment. The first to note them and realize their potential was French mountaineer Lionel Terray. The result saw the specialist range "Moncler pour Lionel Terray".


title: Moncler

text: In 1954, Moncler quilted jackets were chosen to equip the Italian expedition to K2, which culminated with the conquest of the earth's second-highest summit by Achille Compagnoni and Lino Lacedelli. Moncler also accompanied the French expedition which reached the summit of Makalu in 1955 and was the official supplier for expeditions in Alaska organised by Lionel Terray in 1964. On occasion of the Grenoble Winter Olympics in 1968, Moncler became the official supplier of the French national downhill skiing team. In 1968, a cartoon duck named "MonDuck" was introduced as a mascot for the fashion house.


title: Moncler

text: In 2003, Moncler was bought out by Italian entrepreneur Remo Ruffini, chairman and CEO, who was to introduce the strategy of the global quilted jacket, reinventing the near-bankrupt company. Eurazeo, a French shareholder, invested in the Moncler group in 2011, in order to take 45% of the shares and 50% of the voting rights before selling the company for 1.4 billion euros in March 2019.


title: Moncler

text: An IPO of Moncler on the Milan Stock Exchange took place on 16 December 2013, with an initial value of €10.20 per share. The shares were 27 times oversubscribed and rose 47% on the first day, resulting in a market capitalization of more than €4 billion. In February 2018 Moncler launched the Moncler Genius project, a new creative and business model where well-known designers create distinct collections interpreting Moncler's identity that are released on a monthly basis.


title: Moncler

text: In December 2020, Moncler purchased Italian luxury sportswear brand Stone Island in a reported €1.15 billion acquisition. In 2020, Moncler launched the "Born to Protect" sustainability plan which features renewable energy, animal welfare, recycling, and charitable giving standards. In December 2021 Moncler became the official formalwear partner of Italian football club Inter Milan.


title: Moncler

text: In 2018 Remo Ruffini conceived the Moncler Genius project, where designers create collections interpreting Moncler's identity that are released on a monthly basis.


title: Moncler

text: To deal with counterfeiting, the company instituted an online code verification system to authenticate purchased products.


title: Wally Cox

text: Wallace Maynard Cox (December 6, 1924 – February 15, 1973) was an American actor. He began his career as a standup comedian and then became the title character of the popular early U.S. television series "Mister Peepers" from 1952 to 1955. He also appeared as a character actor in over 20 films and dozens of television episodes. Cox was the voice of the animated canine superhero Underdog of the TV show of the same name.


title: Wally Cox

text: Cox was born on December 6, 1924, in Detroit, Michigan. When he was 10, he moved with his divorced mother, mystery author Eleanor Blake, and a younger sister to Evanston, Illinois, where he became close friends with another child in the neighborhood, Marlon Brando. His family moved several times, including a move to New York City, and Cox graduated from Denby High School after they returned to Detroit.


title: Wally Cox

text: During World War II, Cox and his family returned to New York City, where he attended City College of New York. He next spent four months in the United States Army, and on his discharge attended New York University. He supported his invalid mother and sister by making and selling jewelry in a small shop, and entertaining at parties doing comedy monologues. These led to regular performances at nightclubs, such as the Village Vanguard, beginning in December 1948.


title: Wally Cox

text: In 1949, Cox appeared on the CBS network-radio show "Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts", to the great amusement of host Godfrey. The first half of his act was a monologue in a slangy, almost-mumbled punk-kid characterization, telling listeners about his friend Dufo: "What a crazy guy." The gullible oaf Dufo would take any dares and fall for his gang's pranks time after time, and Cox would recount the awful consequences: "Sixteen stitches. What a crazy guy." Just as the studio audience had reached a peak of laughter, Cox suddenly switched gears, changed characters, and sang a high-pitched version of "The Drunkard Song" ("There Is a Tavern in the Town") punctuated by eccentric yodels. "Wallace Cox" earned a big hand that night, but lost by a narrow margin to The Chordettes; yet he made enough of a hit to record his radio routine for an RCA Victor single. The "Dufo" routine ("What a Crazy Guy") was paired with "Tavern in the Town."


title: Wally Cox

text: He appeared in Broadway musical reviews, night clubs, and early television comedy-variety programs between 1949 and 1951, including the short-lived (January–April 1949) DuMont series "The School House" and CBS Television's "Faye Emerson's Wonderful Town". He appeared on the "Goodyear Television Playhouse" in 1951, starring in the comedy episode "The Copper" as the titular policeman. Series producer Fred Coe approached Cox about a starring role in a proposed live television sitcom, "Mister Peepers", which he accepted. The show ran on NBC Television for three years. During this time, he guest-starred on NBC's "The Martha Raye Show".


title: Wally Cox

text: In 1953, Cox's comedy sketches were featured in "The Ford 50th Anniversary Show", a program that was broadcast live on both NBC and CBS. Cox's four sketches consisted of a man trying to improve his physique, an expert on relaxation methods, techniques that allowed him to change from wallflower to popularity, and learning to dance. The program attracted an audience of 60 million viewers. Forty years after the broadcast, television critic Tom Shales recalled it as both "a landmark in television" and "a milestone in the cultural life of the '50s".


title: Wally Cox

text: In 1959, Cox was featured in the guest-starring title role in "The Vincent Eaglewood Story" on NBC's Western series "Wagon Train". He played a prominent supporting role as Preacher Goodman in "Spencer's Mountain" (1963), a Navy sonar man in "The Bedford Incident" (1964), and a drug-addicted doctor opposite Marlon Brando in the World War II suspense film "Morituri" (1965).


title: Wally Cox

text: Other roles were as the hero of "The Adventures of Hiram Holliday", based on a series of short stories by Paul Gallico and co-starring with Ainslie Pryor. He was a regular occupant of the upper left square on the television game show "Hollywood Squares", and voiced the animated cartoon character "Underdog". He also was a guest on the game show "What's My Line?" and on the pilot episodes of "" and "It Takes a Thief". Cox made several appearances on "Here's Lucy", as well as "The Beverly Hillbillies", "Lost in Space", "I Spy", and evening talk shows. He played a pickpocket in an episode of "Car 54, Where Are You?". He also appeared on "The Twilight Zone", season five, episode number 140, titled "From Agnes—With Love".


title: Wally Cox

text: He played character roles in more than 20 motion pictures and worked frequently in guest-star roles in television drama, comedy, and variety series in the 1960s and early 1970s. These include a supporting role in the 20th Century Fox´s unfinished film "Something's Got to Give" (1962), the last film of Marilyn Monroe. He was cast in a role as a down-on-his-luck prospector seeking a better life for his family in an episode of "Alias Smith and Jones", a Western comedy; and in "Up Your Teddy Bear" (aka "Mother") (1970), he starred with Julie Newmar. His television and screen persona was that of a shy, timid, but kind man who wore thick eyeglasses and spoke in a pedantic, high-pitched voice.


title: Wally Cox

text: Cox wrote a number of books, including "Mister Peepers: A Sort of Novel", co-written with William Redfield, which was created by adapting several scripts from the television series; "My Life as a Small Boy", an idealized depiction of his childhood; a parody and update of Horatio Alger in "Ralph Makes Good", which was probably originally a screen treatment for an unmade film intended to star Cox; and a children's book, "The Tenth Life of Osiris Oakes".


title: Wally Cox

text: In a 1950s article on Cox's series "Mister Peepers", "Popular Science" reported that Cox kept a small workshop in his dressing room. (Cox's "Hollywood Squares" colleague Peter Marshall recalled in his memoir "Backstage with the Original Hollywood Square" that Cox installed and maintained all the wiring in his own home.)


title: Wally Cox

text: While he mostly maintained a meek onscreen persona, TV viewers did get to see a glimpse of Cox's physicality on an episode of "I've Got a Secret", aired on May 11, 1960, in which he and host Garry Moore ran around on stage assembling furniture while the panel was blindfolded. On the May 15, 1974, installment of "The Tonight Show", actor Robert Blake spoke of how much he missed his good friend Cox, who was described as being adventurous and athletic. Cox married three times—to Marilyn Gennaro, Milagros Tirado, and Patricia Tiernan—and was survived by his third wife and his two children.


title: Wally Cox

text: Cox and Marlon Brando remained close friends throughout Cox's life, and Brando appeared unannounced at Cox's wake. Brando is also reported to have kept Cox's ashes in his bedroom and conversed with them nightly. Their close friendship was the subject of rumors. Brando told a journalist: "If Wally had been a woman, I would have married him and we would have lived happily ever after." Writer-editor Beauregard Houston-Montgomery said that while under the influence of marijuana, Brando told him that Cox had been the love of his life.


title: Wally Cox

text: Cox was found dead on February 15, 1973, in his home in Hollywood, California, at age 48. According to an autopsy, Cox died of a heart attack caused by a coronary occlusion. Initial reports indicated that he wished to have no funeral and that his ashes be scattered at sea. A later report indicated his ashes were put in with those of Brando and another close friend, Sam Gilman, and scattered in Death Valley and Tahiti.


title: Syd (singer)

text: Sydney Loren Bennett (born April 23, 1992), known professionally as Syd (formerly Syd tha Kyd), is an American musician and singer from Los Angeles, California. She initially gained recognition as a member of the alternative hip hop collective Odd Future, and went on to found her own band The Internet, in 2011. Bennett released her 2017 debut solo album "Fin", followed by the EP "Always Never Home". She released her second album, "Broken Hearts Club", in 2022.


title: Syd (singer)

text: Growing up in a musical family influenced Bennett's interest in music. Her mother once aspired to be a DJ and her uncle is Mikey Bennett, an internationally popular reggae producer and studio owner from Jamaica. As she explained, "I began wishing I could take credit for some of my favorite songs. That was when I started to make my own – I only began singing on my own songs when I really started writing." When Bennett was 14, she built a small music studio in her home and worked on sound engineering before getting into production.


title: Syd (singer)

text: For the first half of her high school years, Syd attended Palisades Charter High School. She felt left out and had few friends at Palisades and moved to the Hamilton Music Academy, which she considered a more open-minded school.


title: Syd (singer)

text: Syd began making music while she was still living with her parents. Syd's stage name was given to her by her older brother, Ty, as a kid. After growing out of it, she reclaimed the name when she joined Odd Future. Most of the group's original songs were recorded in Syd's house, also known as "The Trap". In 2014, Syd opened for Eminem at Wembley Stadium as part of the Odd Future collective.


title: Syd (singer)

text: On January 13, 2017, Syd's debut solo single "All About Me" was released. It was produced by the Internet cohort Steve Lacy. On January 24, 2017, her second solo single "Body" was released in anticipation for her album in collaboration with Columbia Records, "Fin", which was released on February 3, 2017. On May 18, 2017, Syd starred together with Korean R&B artist Dean in his music video for their collaboration "Love".


title: Syd (singer)

text: On September 7, 2017, Syd released "Always Never Home", a three-track EP. It was the follow-up to her debut solo album "Fin".


title: Syd (singer)

text: Syd was featured on Lil Uzi Vert's second studio album "Eternal Atake" on the song "Urgency", which was released on March 6, 2020. She was featured on the song "When Love's Around" on Zayn's third studio album "Nobody Is Listening", which was released on January 15, 2021.


title: Syd (singer)

text: On February 12, 2021, Syd released a single titled "Missing Out" followed by "Fast Car" on July 16, 2021, and "Right Track" on August 10, 2021. Syd's single "Cybah" featuring Lucky Daye was released on March 18, 2022. She followed this release with the announcement of her 2022 Broken Hearts Club Tour with Destin Conrad as the opener.


title: Syd (singer)

text: Syd was credited on "Plastic Off the Sofa," the eighth track on Beyoncé's seventh studio album, "Renaissance". Syd also appeared on Duckwrth's single "Ce Soir", which later appeared on his third EP "Chrome Bull".


title: Syd (singer)

text: On April 8, 2022, Syd released her second album, "Broken Hearts Club." The project began as a collection of love songs, but was completed after Syd's relationship came to an end, culminating in a mix of tracks about love and heartbreak.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: The Coldstream Guards is the oldest continuously serving regular regiment in the British Army. As part of the Household Division, one of its principal roles is the protection of the monarchy; due to this, it often participates in state ceremonial occasions. The Regiment has consistently provided formations on deployments around the world and has fought in the majority of the major conflicts in which the British Army has been engaged.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: The Regiment has been in continuous service and has never been amalgamated. It was formed in 1650 as 'Monck's Regiment of Foot' and was then renamed 'The Lord General's Regiment of Foot Guards' after the restoration in 1660. With Monck's death in 1670 it was again renamed 'The Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards' after the location in Scotland from which it marched to help restore the monarchy in 1660. Its name was again changed to 'The Coldstream Guards' in 1855 and this is still its present title.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: Today, the Regiment consists of: Regimental Headquarters, a single battalion (the 1st Battalion), an independent incremental company (Number 7 Company, maintaining the customs and traditions, as well as carrying the Colours of 2nd Battalion), a Regimental Band, a reserve company (Number 17 Company) and individuals at training establishments and other extra regimental employment.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: The origin of The Coldstream Guards lies in the English Civil War when Oliver Cromwell gave Colonel George Monck permission to form his own regiment as part of the New Model Army. Monck took men from the regiments of George Fenwick and Sir Arthur Haselrig, five companies each, and on 13 August 1650 formed Monck's Regiment of Foot. Less than two weeks later, this force took part in the Battle of Dunbar, at which the Roundheads defeated the forces of Charles Stuart.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: After Richard Cromwell's abdication, Monck gave his support to the Stuarts, and on 1 January 1660 he crossed the River Tweed into England at the village of Coldstream, from where he made a five-week march to London. He arrived in London on 2 February and helped in the Restoration of the monarchy. For his help, Monck was given the Order of the Garter and his regiment was assigned to keep order in London. However, the new parliament soon ordered his regiment to be disbanded along with all of the other regiments of the New Model Army.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: Before that could happen, Parliament was forced to rely on the help of the regiment against the rebellion by the Fifth Monarchists led by Thomas Venner on 6 January 1661. The regiment defeated the rebels and on 14 February the men of the regiment symbolically laid down their arms as part of the New Model Army and were immediately ordered to take them up again as a royal regiment of The Lord General's Regiment of Foot Guards, a part of the Household Troops.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: The regiment was placed as the second senior regiment of Household Troops, as it entered the service of the Crown after the 1st Regiment of Foot Guards, but it answered to that by adopting the motto "Nulli Secundus" ("Second to None") as the regiment is older than the senior regiment. The regiment always stands on the left of the line when on parade with the rest of the Foot Guards, so standing "second to none". When Monck died in 1670, the Earl of Craven took command of the regiment and it adopted a new name, the Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: The regiment saw active service in Flanders and in the Monmouth Rebellion, including the decisive Battle of Sedgemoor in 1685. It fought in the Battle of Walcourt in 1689, the Battle of Landen and the Siege of Namur.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: In 1760, the 2nd Battalion was sent to Germany to campaign under Prince Ferdinand of Brunswick and fought in the Battle of Wilhelmstal and at the Castle of Amöneburg. Three Guards companies of 307 men under Coldstream commander Colonel Edward Mathew fought in the American Revolutionary War.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: The Coldstream Regiment saw extensive service in the wars against the French Revolution and in the Napoleonic Wars. Under the command of Sir Ralph Abercromby, it defeated French troops in Egypt. In 1807, it took part in the investment of Copenhagen. In January 1809, it sailed to Portugal to join the forces under Sir Arthur Wellesley. In 1814, it took part in the Battle of Bayonne, in France, where a keeps their memory. The 2nd Battalion joined the Walcheren Expedition. Later, it served as part of the 2nd Guards Brigade in the Chateau Hougoumont where they resisted French assaults all day during the Battle of Waterloo. This defence is considered one of the greatest achievements of the regiment, and an annual ceremony of "Hanging the Brick" is performed each year in the Sergeants' Mess to commemorate the efforts of Cpl James Graham and Lt-Col James Macdonnell, who shut the North Gate after a French attack. The Duke of Wellington himself declared after the battle that "the success of the battle turned upon closing the gates at Hougoumont".


title: Coldstream Guards

text: During the Crimean War, the Coldstream Regiment fought in the battles of Alma, Inkerman and Sevastopol. On its return, four men of the regiment were awarded the newly instituted Victoria Cross.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: The regiment received its current name, The Coldstream Guards, in 1855. In 1882, it was sent to Egypt against the rebels of Ahmed 'Urabi and in 1885 in the Suakin Campaign. In 1897, the Coldstreamers were reinforced with the addition of a 3rd battalion. The 1st and 2nd battalions were dispatched to South Africa at the outbreak of the Second Boer War.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: At the outbreak of the First World War, the Coldstream Guards was among the first British regiments to arrive in France after Britain declared war on Germany. In the following battles, it suffered heavy losses, in two cases losing all of its officers. At the First Battle of Ypres, the 1st battalion was virtually annihilated: by 1 November down to 150 men and the Lt Quartermaster. The regiment fought at Mons, Loos, the Somme, Ginchy and in the 3rd Battle of Ypres. The regiment also formed the 4th (Pioneer) Battalion, which was disbanded after the war, in 1919. The 5th Reserve battalion never left Britain before it was disbanded.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: When the Second World War began, the 1st and 2nd battalions of The Coldstream Guards were part of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in France; whilst the 3rd Battalion was on overseas service in the Middle East. Additional 4th and 5th battalions were also formed for the duration of the war. They fought extensively, as part of the Guards Armoured Division, in North Africa and Europe as dismounted infantry. The 4th battalion first became a motorized battalion in 1940 and then an armoured battalion in 1943.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: Coldstreamers gave up their tanks at the end of the war, the new battalions were disbanded, and the troops distributed to the 1st and 2nd Guard Training Battalions.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: After the war, the 1st and 3rd battalions served in Palestine. The 2nd battalion served in the Malayan Emergency. The 3rd battalion was placed in suspended animation in 1959. The remaining battalions served during the Mau Mau rebellion from 1959 to 1962, in Aden in 1964, in Mauritius in 1965, in the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974 and several times in Northern Ireland after 1969.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: The Regimental Band of The Coldstream Guards was the first act on stage at the Wembley leg of the 1985 Live Aid charity concert. It played for the Prince and Princess of Wales.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: In 1991, the 1st battalion was dispatched to the first Gulf War, where it was involved in prisoner of war handling and other roles. In 1993, due to defence cutbacks, the 2nd battalion was placed in suspended animation.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: For much of the 1990s, the 1st Battalion was stationed in Münster, Germany, in the Armoured Infantry Role with Warrior APCs as part of the 4th Armoured Brigade. In 1993–1994, the battalion served as an armoured infantry battalion in peacekeeping duties in Bosnia as part of UNPROFOR.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: The battalion was posted to Derry, Northern Ireland, on a two-year deployment in 2001. It then deployed to Iraq in April 2005 for a six-month tour with the rest of 12th Mechanised Brigade, based in the south of the country. The battalion lost two of its soldiers, on 2 May, near Al Amarah and on 18 October at Basra.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: Des Browne, Secretary of State for Defence, announced on 19 July 2007 that in October 2007 the battalion was to be sent to Afghanistan as part of 52 Infantry Brigade. In March 2008, while on patrol with the ANA, members of the Regiment discovered a Taliban torture chamber.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: In October 2009, the battalion was deployed on Operation Herrick 11, with units deploying to the Babaji area of central Helmand Province, Afghanistan, playing a major role in Operation Moshtarak in February 2010.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: Before the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2010 the battalion was part of the 12th Mechanised Brigade in a light infantry role. Under Army 2020 it transferred to London District as a public duties battalion, then in 2019 it joined the 11th Infantry Brigade and Headquarters South East. It will move to 4 Light Brigade Combat Team by 2025.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: Companies that make up the regiment are traditionally numbered. New officers destined for the regiment that are at Sandhurst or at the Infantry Battle School form No. 13 Coy, while Guardsmen under training at ITC Catterick make up No. 14 Coy. No. 7 Coy is one of the incremental companies formed to undertake public duties in London and Windsor, and maintains the colours and traditions of the former 2nd Battalion.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: Currently, the most prominent role of the 1st Battalion and No. 7 Company is the performance of ceremonial duties in London and Windsor as part of the Household Division. Operationally, The Coldstream Guards currently perform the role of light infantry. The 1st Battalion is based in Windsor at Victoria Barracks as an operational light infantry battalion.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: In 2027 1st Battalion will take over a security force assistance role from 1st Battalion the Irish Guards.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: The Corps of Drums, in addition to their ceremonial role, which has been primarily the musical accompaniment of Changing of the Guard for Windsor Castle, has the role of machine gun platoon. All Guardsmen for public duties wear the 'Home Service' Dress tunic in summer or greatcoat in winter and bearskin with a red plume. The Coldstream Guards regimental band plays at Changing of The Guard, state visits and many other events.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: Unlike the other four regiments of foot guards, which recruit from each of the four home nations, the Coldstream Guards has a specific recruiting area, which encompasses the counties that Monck's Regiment passed through on its march from Coldstream to London. The traditional recruiting area of the Coldstream Guards is the South West and North East of England.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: The Coldstream Guards and other Guards Regiments have a long-standing connection to The Parachute Regiment. Guardsmen who have completed P company have the option of being posted to the Guards Parachute Platoon, 3 PARA, still keeping the tradition of the No 1 (Guards) Independent Parachute Company, which was the original Pathfinder Group of 16th Parachute Brigade, now renamed 16th Air Assault Brigade.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: The grouping of buttons on the tunic is a common way to distinguish between the regiments of Foot Guards. Coldstream buttons are arranged in pairs, and a Star of the Garter is marked on their brassware.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: The regiment is ranked second in the order of precedence, behind The Grenadier Guards. The regiment have the motto "Nulli Secundus" (Second to None), which is a play on the fact that the regiment was originally the "Second Regiment of Foot Guards", a position they have never accepted as the regiment is older than the Grenadier Guards.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: The regiment's nickname is Lilywhites. An ordinary soldier of the regiment is called a Guardsman, a designation granted by King George V after the First World War. The regiment is always referred to as the Coldstream, never as the Coldstreams; likewise, a member of the regiment is referred to as a Coldstreamer.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: Recruits to the Guards Division go through an intensive training programme at the British Army's Infantry Training Centre (ITC). Their training is two weeks longer than the programme provided for recruits to the Regular line infantry regiments of the British Army; the extra training, carried out throughout the course, is devoted to drill and ceremonies.


title: Coldstream Guards

text: King Edward VII assumed the colonelcy-in-chief of the regiment on his accession, and subsequent monarchs have also been colonel-in-chief.


title: UFC 277

text: UFC 277: Peña vs. Nunes 2 was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on July 30, 2022, at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, United States.


title: UFC 277

text: A UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship rematch between current champion (also bantamweight winner) Julianna Peña and former champion (also current UFC Women's Featherweight Champion) Amanda Nunes headlined the event. The pairing previously met at UFC 269 in last December, where Peña captured the title by submission in the second round in a major upset. They were also the head coaches for the of The Ultimate Fighter. This was the seventh time in UFC history that champions in different divisions fought for the same title, following UFC 94, UFC 205, UFC 226, UFC 232, and UFC 259.


title: UFC 277

text: An interim UFC Flyweight Championship bout between former champion Brandon Moreno and Kai Kara-France took place at the event. The pairing previously met at UFC 245 in December 2019, with Moreno winning via unanimous decision. Alexandre Pantoja served as backup and potential replacement for this fight.


title: UFC 277

text: Sean Strickland was expected to face former Glory Middleweight and Light Heavyweight Champion Alex Pereira in a middleweight bout at this event. However, the promotion decided to move the pairing to UFC 276.


title: UFC 277

text: A middleweight bout between former Strikeforce and UFC Middleweight Champion Luke Rockhold and former title challenger Paulo Costa was expected to take place at the event. However, the bout was postponed to UFC 278 due to unknown reasons.


title: UFC 277

text: A welterweight bout between Orion Cosce and Mike Mathetha took place at the event. The duo was previously scheduled to meet at UFC 271 and UFC 275, but the bout was cancelled due to Mathetha getting injured and Cosce pulling out due to undisclosed reasons, respectively.


title: UFC 277

text: Ji Yeon Kim and Mariya Agapova were expected to meet in a women's flyweight bout at the event. However, Agapova was forced out of the fight due to a knee injury and was replaced by Joselyne Edwards who had fought only six weeks prior in UFC 275.


title: UFC 277

text: Carlos Diego Ferreira was scheduled to meet Drakkar Klose in a lightweight bout. However, Ferreira was forced out the event in mid July due to an injury. He was replaced by Rafa García.


title: UFC 277

text: A lightweight bout featuring Ignacio Bahamondes and Ľudovít Klein was originally scheduled for the preliminary card. However, Bahamondes pulled out on July 15 and Klein was relocated against Mason Jones a week earlier at .


title: UFC 277

text: Justin Tafa and Don'Tale Mayes were expected to meet in a heavyweight bout at the preliminary card. Tafa pulled out due to undisclosed reasons and was replaced by promotional newcomer Hamdy Abdelwahab on July 18.


title: UFC 277

text: Ramiz Brahimaj was scheduled to meet Michael Morales in a welterweight bout. However, Brahimaj was forced out the event in mid July due to an undisclosed injury. He was replaced by Adam Fugitt.


title: UFC 277

text: At the weigh-ins, two fighters missed weight for their respective bouts. Joselyne Edwards weighed in at 137.5 pounds, one and a half pounds over the bantamweight non-title fight limit. Orion Cosce weighed in at 172.5 pounds, one and a half pounds over the welterweight non-title fight limit. Both bouts proceeded at catchweight with Edwards and Cosce each fined 20% of their purses, which went to their opponents Ji Yeon Kim and Mike Mathetha respectively.


title: UFC 277

text: The following fighters received Crypto.com "Fan Bonus of the Night" awards paid in bitcoin of US$30,000 for first place, US$20,000 for second place, and US$10,000 for third place.


title: Suspicious Minds

text: "Suspicious Minds" is a 1968 song written and first recorded by American songwriter Mark James. After this recording failed commercially, it was cut by Elvis Presley with producer Chips Moman, becoming a No. 1 song in 1969, and one of the most memorable hits of Presley's career.


title: Suspicious Minds

text: The song is about a mistrusting and dysfunctional relationship, and the need of the characters to overcome their issues in order to maintain it. Written in 1968 by Mark James, who was also co-writer of "Always on My Mind" (which Presley would later record), the song was first recorded and released by James on Scepter Records in 1968. Chips Moman had asked James to come to Memphis to write songs for American Sound Studio. At the time, James was residing in Houston. He had written three songs that became No.1 hits in the Southern United States. American Sound Studio was gaining a reputation in the industry, as the Box Tops had just recorded "The Letter" there, so James relocated to Memphis.


title: Suspicious Minds

text: James said that late one night, he was fooling around on his Fender guitar and using his Hammond organ pedals for a bass line and came up with what he thought was a catchy melody. At the time, he was married to his first wife but still had feelings for his childhood sweetheart, who was married back in Houston. James's wife had suspicions about his feelings. He felt it was a confusing time for him and that all three were "caught in this trap that they could not walk out of." At the recording session, James sang the lead vocals and the studio band backed him; Moman produced. The horns, strings, and vocals of the Holladay Sisters were later overdubbed. After the tape was mixed, James and Moman flew to New York, where James's manager had contacts with Scepter Records. The label loved the song and put it out, but Scepter did not have the money to promote new artists and the song did not make the charts.


title: Suspicious Minds

text: Later that year, Don Crews, Moman's partner, told James that Presley had booked their studio to record what would become the "From Elvis in Memphis" album. Crews kept asking James if he had any songs that would be right for Presley. James felt Presley needed a mature rock 'n' roll song to bring him back, as Tom Jones was a hot artist at the time. Crews and James thought of "Suspicious Minds" and James began urging others to get Presley to hear it. Even though James's recording had not been commercially successful, upon reviewing the song, Presley decided he could turn it into a hit.


title: Suspicious Minds

text: Presley had not recorded in Memphis since 1955. Presley's 1969 recordings at American Sound Studio were a direct consequence of the '68 Comeback Special, that interested Chips Moman in producing recordings in Presley's new style; he was making his comeback to the Memphis musical scene by recording rock, gospel, country, rhythm & blues, and soul. Marty Lacker, a close friend of Elvis, suggested he record at the studio. These sessions produced the album "From Elvis in Memphis".


title: Suspicious Minds

text: "Suspicious Minds" was a product of a session that took place between 4 and 7 a.m. on Thursday, January 23, 1969. James was in Memphis, but he was not at the recording session. A few days earlier, he had walked into the recording studio during a session and sensed that Elvis was uncomfortable with his presence. James did not want to jinx the song, so he stayed away. When he heard the track the day after it was recorded, he initially thought it sounded too slow. When he later heard the embellished version, he said he was blown away. In later years, whenever Elvis saw James, he would cross the room to say hello.


title: Suspicious Minds

text: Production of the song was nearly scuttled over a copyright dispute. Elvis's business people said they wanted half of Moman's publishing rights. Moman accused them of stealing and threatened to halt the recording session. Harry Jenkins of RCA agreed with Moman because he sensed that "the song would be a big hit and there would be plenty to go around".


title: Suspicious Minds

text: The songs "I'll Hold You In My Heart (Till I Can Hold You In My Arms)", "Without Love (There Is Nothing)", and "I'll Be There" were recorded in the same session. On August 7, "Suspicious Minds" was again overdubbed to stereo and mono in Las Vegas, where the final master was produced. The song's time signature changes in the bridge section, from 4/4 to the slower 6/8, then back again to the faster 4/4 rhythm. The instrumental arrangement uses an electric guitar, bass guitar, organ, strings, trumpets, trombones, and drums. As "Parade" magazine wrote in a survey of some of Presley's biggest hits, the recording "boasts one of the most innovative arrangements in Elvis' career ... two time-signature changes, a jangling electric guitar, spiraling strings, pumping horns and a barreling backup choir."


title: Suspicious Minds

text: RCA staff producer Felton Jarvis made the unusual decision to add a fade-out to the song starting at 3:36 and lasting for nearly 15 seconds before fading back in. The first verse then continues repeatedly until the song completely fades out at 4:22. In a 2012 interview with Marc Myers of "The Wall Street Journal", Moman disclosed that Jarvis was never happy with Elvis recording at American Sound Studio, saying "it was a control thing". Moman added, "So when Jarvis took the tape of 'Suspicious Minds', he added this crazy 15-second fade toward the end, like the song was ending, and brought it back by overdubbing to extend it. I have no idea why he did that, but he messed it up. It was like a scar. None of which mattered. Soon after the song was released, Elvis was back on top of the charts."


title: Suspicious Minds

text: "Suspicious Minds" was one of the singles that revived Presley's chart success in the U.S., following his "'68 Comeback Special". It was his eighteenth and last No.1 single in the United States. In December 2003, "Rolling Stone" ranked it No. 91 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Session guitarist Reggie Young played on both the James and Presley versions.


title: Suspicious Minds

text: The song was later included on the legacy edition of "From Elvis in Memphis" and the follow that dream reissue of "Back In Memphis".


title: Suspicious Minds

text: Presley first performed the song at the Las Vegas International Hotel (later renamed the Hilton) on July 31, 1969, and the 45 rpm single was released 26 days later. It reached No.1 in the United States for the week of November 1 and stayed there for one week. It would be Presley's final No.1 single on the Billboard Hot 100, before his death ("Burning Love" in 1972 was a No.1 hit on the Cashbox chart; "The Wonder of You" in 1970, "Way Down" in 1977, and Junkie XL's remix of "A Little Less Conversation" in 2002 all hit No.1 on the British chart, followed by re-issues of several previous chart-toppers in 2005).


title: Suspicious Minds

text: In 1986, the band Fine Young Cannibals' cover version, which features backing vocals by Jimmy Somerville, reached No. 8 on the UK Singles chart. Singer Roland Gift said that Elvis had come to him in a dream and told him he would record the greatest version of "Suspicious Minds" ever.


title: Suspicious Minds

text: The Fine Young Cannibals' music video for the song was filmed in black and white and, for most of it, remains that way. However, the video is noted for its innovative use of colorization, following the bridge section of the song. The video pays homage to Elvis, both in its use of the monochrome filming (common during Elvis' early career) and the shiny spangled suits that the band wear in the second half of the video.


title: Suspicious Minds

text: In 1992, country singer Dwight Yoakam recorded his version, for the soundtrack of the film "Honeymoon in Vegas", and also filmed an accompanying video. The track was later released on his compilation album "The Very Best of Dwight Yoakam".


title: Suspicious Minds

text: Gareth Gates, a runner up of in the first series of the ITV talent show "Pop Idol", released a cover version on BMG on September 23, 2002. The single was a double-A side record containing "The Long and Winding Road"/"Suspicious Minds" with the Beatles song performed by Will Young, the winner of the same "Pop Idol" series, and Gates, with Gates performing the Elvis song on his own.


title: Suspicious Minds

text: The music video features Gates changing color, alternating between black and white in a white background, while clips from "Lilo & Stitch" are shown.


title: Suspicious Minds

text: The single reached the top of the UK Singles Chart where it stayed for two consecutive weeks (charts of September 29, 2002 and October 6, 2002), following two other No. 1 songs of Gareth Gates which were also covers ("Unchained Melody" - No. 1 for 4 consecutive weeks in March and April 2002 and "Anyone of Us (Stupid Mistake)" - for 3 weeks in July 2002).


title: Suspicious Minds

text: Dee Dee Warwick, Dionne's sister, covered "Suspicious Minds" while Elvis Presley's version was still on the charts. Warwick's version was a minor U.S. pop hit, peaking at No. 80 in 1970. It reached No.24 on the Billboard R&B chart for May 8, 1971.


title: Suspicious Minds

text: Waylon Jennings and Jessi Colter recorded the song for RCA in 1970. Their version reached No. 25 on the "Billboard" country chart in November of that year. The Jennings-Colter version was re-released by RCA in 1976, topping out at No. 2, and was included on the album "Wanted! The Outlaws" that same year. Their version was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.


title: Suspicious Minds

text: The melody of the song "Ignudi fra i nudisti", contained in the album Studentessi by Elio e le Storie Tese, was written by listening to this song in reverse.


title: Formula One Group

text: The Formula One Group is a group of companies responsible for the promotion of the FIA Formula One World Championship, and the exercising of the sport's commercial rights.


title: Formula One Group

text: The Group was previously owned by Delta Topco, a Jersey-based company owned primarily by investment companies CVC Capital Partners, Waddell & Reed, and LBI Group, with the remaining ownership split between Bernie Ecclestone, other investment companies, and company directors. It was bought by Liberty Media in 2017.


title: Formula One Group

text: Ecclestone, a former Formula One team boss, spent 40 years as chief executive of the company after gaining control of the commercial rights. , the group is run by Stefano Domenicali as president and chief executive officer. Ross Brawn is managing director of motor sports, and Chase Carey, who previously ran the group from 2017 to 2020, is non-executive chairman.


title: Formula One Group

text: In 1974, the Formula One Constructors' Association (FOCA) was founded in order to increase commercial organisation of Formula One for the benefit of the racing teams. In 1978, Bernie Ecclestone became the executive of FOCA, and fought the Fédération Internationale du Sport Automobile (FISA) for control of the commercial rights of F1. Disputes were settled by March 1981 when the Concorde Agreement gave FOCA the right to negotiate TV contracts. Under previous arrangements, TV contracts were risky and not very lucrative.


title: Formula One Group

text: When the second Concorde Agreement was agreed in 1987, Ecclestone ceased being a team owner and established the Formula One Promotions and Administration (FOPA) to manage TV rights for the teams. FOPA would later become known as "Formula One Management" (FOM). FOPA received 49% of TV revenues: 1% went to the teams, and 50% to the FIA. FOPA also received all the fees paid by promoters and paid prize money to the teams. The third Concorde Agreement was signed in 1992.


title: Formula One Group

text: When the fourth Concorde Agreement was signed in 1995, the FIA decided to grant the commercial rights of F1 to Formula One Administration (managed by FOM) for a 14-year period. In exchange, Ecclestone would provide an annual payment. With FOM having exclusive rights to popular team names like McLaren, Williams, and Tyrrell, the aforementioned teams protested by rejecting the following Concorde Agreement in 1997. A compromise was reached and a new Concorde Agreement was signed by all teams in 1998.


title: Formula One Group

text: McLaren, Williams, Ferrari and Renault formed GPWC Holdings, and threatened to form a rival racing franchise in 2008 when their contracts ended in 2007.


title: Formula One Group

text: SLEC Holdings was created as the holding company of the Formula One companies in 1996 when Ecclestone transferred his ownership of Formula One businesses to his wife, Slavica Ecclestone, in preparation for a 1997 flotation of the group.


title: Formula One Group

text: In June 1999, the European Commission announced it would investigate the FIA, and International Sportsworld Communicators for abusing dominant position and restricting competition. ISC, owned by Ecclestone, had signed a 14-year agreement with the FIA in 1996 for the exclusive broadcasting rights for 18 FIA championships.


title: Formula One Group

text: In October 1999, Morgan Grenfell Private Equity (MGPE) acquired 12.5% of SLEC for £234 million. In February 2000, Hellman and Friedman purchased a 37.5% share of SLEC for £625 million, and combined its share with that of MGPE to form Speed Investments, which had a combined holding of 50% of SLEC. On 22 March 2000, German media company EM.TV & Merchandising purchased Speed Investments for £1.1 billion.


title: Formula One Group

text: EM.TV's acquisitions caused it financial difficulties; following its announcement that its 2000 earnings would be below expectations and it was struggling with its debts, the share price dropped 90%. In February, the Kirch Group agreed to rescue EM.TV in return for a stake in the company and control of Speed Investments. Alan Henry of "The Guardian" reported that the two companies also agreed to exercise EM.TV's option to purchase another 25% of SLEC for approximately £600 million in late-March 2001. To raise Speed Investments' share of SLEC to 75% Kirch borrowed €1.6 billion, €1 billion from Bayerische Landesbank (BayernLB) and the rest from Lehman Brothers and JPMorgan Chase. Kirch's involvement raised concerns among the major automobile manufacturers who participate in Formula One; BMW, DaimlerChrysler, Fiat, Ford, and Renault formed GPWC Holding BV to secure better representation of the manufacturers in F1, improved financial conditions for the teams, stability for the championship, and maintenance of free-to-air television coverage.


title: Formula One Group

text: Due to the agreement associated with their shareholding, SLEC was controlled by Kirch, who controlled the board of Formula One Holdings (FOH). Due to huge losses and massive expenditure, Kirch's creditors put the company into receivership in 2002. These banks dismantled the group. Kirch's share of SLEC was retained by Bayerische Landesbank (BayernLB), JPMorgan Chase and Lehman Brothers (through Speed Investments).


title: Formula One Group

text: Before they could exercise their rights as shareholders, they had to seek clearance from the European Commission. In the intervening period, Ecclestone instituted changes in the boards of SLEC, FOH, Formula One Administration (FOA) and Formula One Management (FOM); which in effect put Bambino Holdings in control of those companies.


title: Formula One Group

text: In mid-November 2004, the three banks sued Ecclestone for more control over the sport, prompting speculation that Ecclestone might altogether lose the control he has maintained for then more than thirty years. A two-day court hearing began on 23 November, but after the proceedings had ended the following day, Justice Andrew Park announced his intention to reserve ruling for several weeks. On 6 December 2004, Park read his verdict, stating that "In [his] judgment it is clear that Speed's contentions are correct and [he] should therefore make the declarations which it requests". However, Ecclestone insisted that the verdict - seen almost universally as a legal blow to his control of Formula One - would mean "nothing at all". He stated his intention to appeal the decision.


title: Formula One Group

text: The following day, at a meeting of team bosses at Heathrow Airport, Ecclestone offered the teams a total of £260 million over three years in return for unanimous renewal of the Concorde Agreement, which was due to expire in 2008. Weeks later, Gerhard Gribkowsky, a board member of Bayerische Landesbank and the chairman of SLEC, stated that the banks had no intention to remove Ecclestone from his position of control.


title: Formula One Group

text: In November 2005, CVC Capital Partners announced it was to acquire the 25% and 48% shares of Bambino and Bayerische Landesbank in SLEC, and acquired the shares of JPMorgan Chase in December 2005. This deal was given approval by the European Commission on 21 March 2006 and finalised on 28 March. Ecclestone used the proceeds of the sale of Bambino Holdings' share to reinvest in the company to give the Ecclestone family a 13.8% stake in the holding company Alpha Prema. On 30 March 2006, CVC purchased the 14.1% share of SLEC held by Lehman Brothers to give CVC a majority ownership in the Formula One Group with 63.4%, with other shareholdings owned by LBI Group, JP Morgan, and company directors. The deputy team principal of Force India, Bob Fernley, accused CVC of "raping the sport" during the period of its involvement in Formula One.


title: Formula One Group

text: The Formula One Group planned an initial public offering on the Singapore Stock Exchange in June 2012, valuing the company at $10 billion. Up to 30% of the company would be listed, with most of the stock coming from the shareholding owned by the creditors of the bankrupt Lehman Brothers. However, the flotation was delayed until October 2012, with Ecclestone citing volatile markets and problems in the Eurozone. CVC sold part of its stake in the company to three investment companies: Waddell & Reed, BlackRock and Norges Bank; reducing its holding to 35.5%, and making Waddell & Reed the second-biggest shareholder. The planned flotation was kept on hold throughout 2012, until it was revived in April 2013 when Ecclestone announced it would take place within the year.


title: Formula One Group

text: In late 2016, Liberty Media agreed to buy controlling interest in the Formula One Group for $4.4 billion (£3.3 billion). The deal was approved by regulators and completed on 23 January 2017. Chase Carey subsequently became chief executive of the Group. In September 2020, it was announced that former Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali would become the new chief executive of the Formula One Group.


title: Formula One Group

text: The Formula One Group was controlled by its shareholders through the Delta Topco holding company, which through a number of holding companies registered in the United Kingdom, Jersey and Luxembourg controls the SLEC Holdings company, the Formula One Group's immediate owner. The Formula One Group comprises several subsidiary companies which control the various rights, management, and licensing operations of the Formula One World Championship.


title: Formula One Group

text: The commercial rights of Formula One are controlled by Formula One World Championship Limited (FOWC), which received the rights to Formula One for a period of 100 years from the FIA. Formula One World Championship's control of the rights began from the beginning of 2011, where it took over from sister company Formula One Administration (FOA), which controlled the rights for a 14-year period beginning in 1996. FOWC, as the commercial rights holder, negotiates the contracts for holding F1 Grands Prix, organising television contracts with broadcasters, and receiving licensing fees for use of Formula One material. The company also has a seat on the FIA World Motor Sport Council, the body responsible for regulating international motorsport. Formula One Licensing BV is a related Dutch registered company of the Formula One Group which claims ownership of the trademarks of Formula One; the F1 logo, "Formula 1", "Formula One", "F1" and the "Sweeping Curves device" shown before Grands Prix.


title: Formula One Group

text: Formula One Management (FOM) is the main operating company of the group, and controls the broadcasting, organisation and promotional rights of Formula One. The company produces the televised feeds of all Grand Prix sessions (except for the Monaco Grand Prix, which is produced by TMC), which are then supplied through the Eurovision satellites network (EBU) to broadcasters who provide commentary and distribute the feed in the authorised region(s) of said broadcasters. The production arm of FOM is based at Biggin Hill Airport, Kent, for easy travel of the equipment needed to broadcast the race. Financially, FOM provides partial investment for new tracks and teams, to allow them to establish themselves in the sport and grow Formula One's presence in new markets. The season calendar for the championship is structured by FOM, with the WMSC having oversight. Payments to the teams are determined by the Concorde Agreement, which gives the teams 50% of the television money in Constructors' Championship order, and awards a prize fund to teams based upon their results, which is drawn from the fees Grand Prix promoters pay for staging the race. The logistics of moving equipment and personnel from each race is also handled by FOM, which provides the teams with a set amount of transport for the races outside of Europe.


title: Formula One Group

text: The Formula One Group is used to refer to several related companies, which although not part of the Group, are controlled by the Delta Topco holding company, and have business related to Formula One. Formula Motorsport Limited (formerly GP2 Motorsport Limited) was acquired by CVC in 2007, with its ownership controlled by Formula One's holding companies. FML runs the FIA Formula 2 Championship, which is Formula One's main feeder series, and runs races at the European rounds of the F1 championship, in order to give drivers experience and exposure to Formula One teams. The FIA Formula 3 Championship, the next single-seater level down from Formula 2, is also controlled by Formula Motorsport Limited. The Formula One Group also owns the rights to the "GP1" name.


title: Formula One Group

text: Allsport Management SA is a Swiss registered company which manages the sale of almost all Formula One trackside advertising, and the Formula One Paddock Club. Allsport Management was founded by Paddy McNally, who had begun to work with Bernie Ecclestone in the late 1970s. McNally, who was a former Marlboro sponsorship consultant, came up with a solution to "tidy up" trackside advertising; this solution was called "themed advertising", where one advertiser is given total exposure at one part of the track. This is in contrast to the Monaco Grand Prix, the only grand prix where Allsport is not involved; where space is sold such that multiple advertisers are visible in every picture. The Paddock Club is Formula One's corporate hospitality organisation, which provides a luxury area for VIP's and sponsors for the Grand Prix weekend, and also gives access to teams and drivers and tours of the pits. In 2006, Allsport Management (and the related Allsopp Parker & Marsh companies) were acquired by CVC through Delta Topco, meaning that the sport's complete revenues are controlled by the Formula One Group.


title: Kreator

text: Kreator is a German thrash metal band from Essen, formed in 1982. Their current lineup consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Miland "Mille" Petrozza, drummer Jürgen "Ventor" Reil, lead guitarist Sami Yli-Sirniö, and bassist Frédéric Leclercq. The band's lineup has changed multiple times over its -year career, most noticeably with their bassists and lead guitarists. Petrozza and Reil are the only two original members left in Kreator, although the latter took a break from the band from 1994 to 1996. Yli-Sirniö has been the lead guitarist of Kreator since 2001, while Leclercq joined in 2019 as the replacement of Christian "Speesy" Giesler, who had been a member of the band since 1994.


title: Kreator

text: To date, Kreator has released fifteen studio albums, two EPs, two live albums and three compilation albums. They gained a large underground fanbase in the international thrash metal community, with their second studio album "Pleasure to Kill" (1986) regarded as an influential album of the genre. Many of their subsequent albums – including "Terrible Certainty" (1987), "Extreme Aggression" (1989) and "Coma of Souls" (1990) – were also highly acclaimed. Despite being an influential band, as well as one of the first European thrash metal acts to sign to a major label (signing to Epic Records in 1988), Kreator would not achieve mainstream popularity until later albums, including their thirteenth studio album "Phantom Antichrist" (2012) and its follow-up "Gods of Violence" (2017), both of which charted highly in many countries, with the latter reaching number one on the German charts. Their latest studio album, "Hate Über Alles", was released on 10 June 2022.


title: Kreator

text: The band has achieved worldwide sales of over two million units for combined sales of all their albums, making them one of the best-selling German thrash metal bands of all time. Along with Destruction, Sodom and Tankard, Kreator is one of the "big four" of Teutonic thrash metal, responsible for developing and popularizing the German thrash metal scene as well as pioneering the then-burgeoning death metal and black metal genres during the mid-1980s.


title: Kreator

text: The band was formed as Metal Militia in 1982 in Essen, Germany and then Tyrant. Later they used the title Tormentor until 1984, when they changed to the present name Kreator. The original lineup featured lead vocalist/guitarist Mille Petrozza, drummer Jürgen "Ventor" Reil, and bassist Rob Fioretti. Kreator recorded their debut album, "Endless Pain" (1985), in just ten days. The band hired the late Sodom guitarist Michael Wulf for the album's tour to play lead, while Petrozza switched to rhythm guitar.


title: Kreator

text: Wulf was in the band for a few days but never on the band's second album, "Pleasure to Kill" (1986), which is widely considered a thrash classic and a big influence on the death metal genre. It would not be until 31 years after its release that "Pleasure to Kill" entered the German album charts. Produced by Harris Johns (Sodom, Helloween, Voivod), the album showed the band growing in talent and technical ability. The song "Flag of Hate" became a concert standard, and the band became one of the most promising up-and-coming European metal acts. The band started their first tour ever (before the release of "Pleasure to Kill", they had only played five gigs total); they played their first shows outside of Germany in the fall of 1986, supporting bands like Destruction and Celtic Frost, and in the spring of 1987, they toured the US for the first time, opening for Voivod on their "Killing Technology" tour. Kreator's first EP, "Flag of Hate", was also released in 1986, and around this time, Jörg "Tritze" Trzebiatowski had joined the band.


title: Kreator

text: In 1987, Kreator released their third studio album, "Terrible Certainty", which is often considered a high-quality Kreator album as the arrangements on the album were more complex and the tempos more varied. The album featured another hit "Behind the Mirror", and the band's popularity continued to grow and a video for "Toxic Trace" received airplay on MTV. They managed to find enough time and money (coming from the concerts) to finance another EP, "Out of the Dark... Into the Light". By this point, Kreator had already graduated to headlining their own tours, as well as playing at theaters and arenas with bands such as Megadeth, Voivod, Overkill, D.R.I. and Holy Terror.


title: Kreator

text: Berlin based independent record label Noise Records licensed Kreator for the territories outside of Europe and Japan to the major label Epic Records in 1988. Their fourth studio album and debut with Epic (for limited territories) "Extreme Aggression", recorded in Los Angeles, became a metal hit in Europe upon its release in 1989; however, the album would not enter the German album charts until 28 years after its release. Continuing the "Terrible Certainty" formula while showing the band still progressing musically, and with better production by the well-regarded Randy Burns (also Megadeth, Possessed, Nuclear Assault, Death, Dark Angel, among others), the album featured the band's first major singles, the title track, "Betrayer" and the radio-only "Love Us or Hate Us", gaining support from the Southern California radio station KNAC, and the video for "Betrayer" receiving airplay on MTV's "Headbangers Ball". This – as well as playing with bands like King Diamond, Raven, Coroner, Suicidal Tendencies, Death and Sadus – greatly expanded their popularity outside of Germany.


title: Kreator

text: Also in 1989, German director Thomas Schadt made a documentary about Kreator (focusing on the social aspect of heavy metal in the Ruhr Area) titled "Thrash Altenessen" (named after the band's hometown, a suburb of Essen). Tritze left Kreator after "Extreme Aggression". In 1990, with new guitarist Frank "Blackfire" Gosdzik (also formerly of Sodom), the band released their fifth studio album "Coma of Souls", again produced by Burns. The album was not quite as praised as the band's previous few albums (many felt the album was "rushed" and repetitive), but still managed sell and maintain popularity quite well, with the singles "When the Sun Burns Red" and "People of the Lie" becoming hits.


title: Kreator

text: The early 1990s brought a decline in the popularity of traditional thrash metal. With many other thrash bands such as Metallica, Megadeth and Anthrax changing their style by incorporating more melodic elements into their compositions, Kreator began experimenting with groove metal and industrial metal around this time.


title: Kreator

text: The result was "Renewal", released in 1992, which featured heavy death metal and industrial influences. While reaching a newer audience, the band upset many longtime fans, accusing them of "selling out". The band experienced a decline in popularity as the result of the backlash against the album.


title: Kreator

text: The line-up of the band underwent significant changes too. Founding member Roberto Fioretti left the band after the recording of the album and was replaced by Andreas Herz. In 1994, Reil left as well, leaving Petrozza the sole original band member. Reil was replaced by Joe Cangelosi while Herz left the same year and was replaced by Christian Giesler. During this time "Epic Records" dropped the band from the contract making them enter into an agreement with GUN Records. The new lineup released the album "Cause for Conflict" the same year. The songs bore a heavy influence of such bands as Pantera and Machine Head as well as the partial resemblance of "Renewal".


title: Kreator

text: Gosdzik and Cangelosi left in 1996 and were replaced by Tommy Vetterli (formerly of Coroner). This new line-up saw Reil return. Kreator continued to experiment producing "Outcast" and "Endorama", with ambient and gothic influences, incorporated samples and loops. Petrozza employed different approaches for singing, and the albums retained the groove metal influences. However, the record sales went down and by the end of the 1990s the band reached commercial and critical nadir. Despite that, Mille Petrozza was quoted stating: ""For us, success doesn't define in record sales. So all our albums have been successful for us, because we've achieved what we were aiming for..."".


title: Kreator

text: In 2001, with new lead guitarist Sami Yli-Sirniö, Kreator released their "comeback" album "Violent Revolution", which saw the band returning to their classic thrash metal style. Despite containing a lot of melodic and so called "Gothenburg metal" riffs, "Violent Revolution" was praised by fans and critics alike and benefited from the 2000s thrash metal revival movement, led by bands like Overkill, Slayer, Megadeth, Exodus and Testament. The tour was extremely successful and introduced Kreator to a younger generation of metal fans. Yli-Sirniö, who lived in Germany, was known to be a good guitar player, so the band recruited him. A live album "Live Kreation" and live DVD "" were released in 2003, and a new studio album - emphasizing more on the Gothenburg influences – "Enemy of God" was released in 2005. This album also saw a special edition re-release in 2006 called "Enemy of God: Revisited". In early 2006, Kreator toured North America with Napalm Death, A Perfect Murder, and The Undying. There was a joint headline European tour with Celtic Frost in 2007 with support from Watain, Kreator were to tour 2008 with King Diamond, Leaves' Eyes, and Cellador, however, the tour was canceled due to back issues with King Diamond.


title: Kreator

text: In March 2008, the "At the Pulse of Kapitulation" DVD was released, featuring "Live in East Berlin" and "Hallucinative Comas" on one disc. Both had previously been available on VHS only and were long out of print. The band had also begun working on their 12th full-length album in late 2007/early 2008 and began recording in July 2008. Recording for the album, dubbed "Hordes of Chaos", was wrapped up in late August, with the album being released in January 2009. On 23 January 2009, the band began their "Chaos Over Europe" tour in Tilburg (the Netherlands) with Caliban, Eluveitie and Emergency Gate as other acts. In April 2009, the band embarked on a North American headlining tour, co-headlined by Exodus, and featuring Belphegor, Warbringer, and Epicurean. In late 2009, Reil was forced to sit out some tour dates due to personal issues, with Marco Minnemann temporarily taking his place.


title: Kreator

text: Kreator signed with Nuclear Blast in early 2010, before embarking on a North American tour in March to celebrate their 25th anniversary. A European tour with Exodus, Death Angel and Suicidal Angels, called "Thrashfest", took place in late 2010. On 1 June 2012, they released their thirteenth studio album, titled "Phantom Antichrist". Kreator co-headlined a 23 date North American tour that fall with Nuclear Blast labelmates Accept. Entitled the Teutonic Terror Attack 2012 Tour, they were supported by Finland's Swallow the Sun. Kreator performed alongside Suidakra in Bangalore on 16 June 2012.


title: Kreator

text: In a November 2013 interview, Mille Petrozza stated that Kreator would begin work on their fourteenth studio album after the "Phantom Antichrist" tour for a 2016 release. However, Petrozza said that the album would not be released until 2017. On 30 August that year, they released a two-disc live album called "Dying Alive". It contained 24 tracks recorded at Turbinehalle in Oberhausen, Germany. On 14 October 2016, it was announced that Kreator's fourteenth studio album would be called "Gods of Violence", and it was released on 27 January 2017. A music video for the album's title track was released on 18 November 2016. "Gods of Violence" received generally positive reviews, and was their first album to reach number one on the German charts. To promote the album, Kreator embarked on a headlining European tour in February and March 2017, with support from Sepultura, Soilwork and Aborted, and co-headlined the Decibel Magazine tour with Obituary in March and April. In late April, the band announced an Australian tour with Vader, which took place in September. They embarked on two tours in 2018: one in Europe with Decapitated and Dagoba in January, followed by a co-headlining U.S. tour with Sabaton in February and March.