title: Manhunt 2

text: Whyte reveals that, after the implant malfunctioned, Leo's personality asserted itself, suppressing Daniel's own, and he went on a rampage across the city, murdering police officers and members of the Project, destroying the Project's records of Daniel and himself, and finally making his way to Daniel's household and killing his wife. His goal was to weaken Daniel's grip on reality to the point where Leo could take complete control of his mind. However, the Project caught Daniel/Leo after the murder, erased his memory, torched his house, and had him committed to Dixmor, where they had been working to study the effects of the implant and repair the damage, without success. Upon learning the truth, Daniel determines that he must destroy Leo once and for all. He enters a deep hypnotic state and faces off against Leo within the confines of his own mind. He is finally able to let go of the guilt he feels over his wife's death, allowing him to destroy Leo and assert control.


title: Manhunt 2

text: Having done so, Daniel awakens on a deserted road with his memory erased once more. He is holding an envelope informing him that his name is "David Joiner", providing him with a new home address at 526 Hope Street, Apartment B, and wishing him luck. Daniel briefly hesitates before walking away.


title: Manhunt 2

text: An alternate ending is unlocked on the Hard difficulty or if the player killed too many civilians throughout the game, resulting in the final battle being played from Leo's perspective. He successfully destroys Daniel's personality and wakes up in control of his mind and body. Whyte, believing she is speaking to Daniel, asks him if he is okay, to which he replies he is keen to get back to work on the Bridge. As he looks at himself in the mirror, Daniel sees Leo's reflection looking back at him.


title: Manhunt 2

text: Development on "Manhunt 2" commenced shortly after the release of the first "Manhunt". Rockstar North, who had developed the first game, were working on "", so development was handed over to Rockstar Vienna. From Q1 to Q3 of 2005, German developer Rabcat Computer Graphics assisted them in the creation of 350+ 3D assets. However, on 11 May 2006 Rockstar Vienna was closed, and the main development of the game was handed to Rockstar London. Rockstar Toronto was tasked with developing a Wii version and Rockstar Leeds was tasked with the PSP version. It was officially announced by Take-Two on 6 February 2007, scheduled for a worldwide July 2007 release. Despite working on the game for two years, members of Rockstar Vienna received no credit in the final product.


title: Manhunt 2

text: Rockstar launched the first teaser website of the game on 7 February 2007, and the official website was launched two months later. Additional information was provided by the "Official PlayStation Magazine" who had the first look at the game. Press coverage from other sources such as Kotaku and IGN soon followed. Kotaku posted an eyes-on-preview of Manhunt 2 featuring a recording of someone playing the game, which showed the first footage of direct gameplay. The video was recorded at a Sony Computer Entertainment event held in North America.


title: Manhunt 2

text: The controversy surrounding "Manhunt 2" began two days after its announcement, before any footage or information on the game had been released. The initial topic of discussion was the fact that the first game had been erroneously connected to a murder in the UK. Take-Two themselves preempted this debate, issuing a statement on 8 February, in which they said "We are aware that in direct contradiction to all available evidence, certain individuals continue to link the original "Manhunt" title to the Warren Leblanc case in 2004. The transcript of the court case makes it quite clear what really happened. At sentencing the Judge, defence, prosecution and Leicester police all emphasised that "Manhunt" played no part in the case." Later that day, Patrick and Giselle Pakeerah (parents of Leblanc's victim) condemned the game and insisted that "Manhunt" was a factor in their son's murder. Leicester East MP Keith Vaz supported the Pakeerahs, claiming he was "astonished" that Rockstar were making a sequel.


title: Manhunt 2

text: On 23 February, activist Jack Thompson vowed to have the game banned, claiming that the police were incorrect in asserting the game belonged to Pakeerah, and that Take-Two were lying about the incident; "[I] have been asked by individuals in the United Kingdom to help stop the distribution of Take-Two/Rockstar's hyperviolent video game "Manhunt 2" in that country due out this summer. The game will feature stealth murder and torture. The last version allowed suffocation of victims with plastic bags. The original "Manhunt" was responsible for the bludgeoning death of a British youth by his friend who obsessively played the game. The killer used a hammer just as in the game he played. Take-Two/Rockstar, anticipating the firestorm of criticism with the release of the murder simulator sequel, is lying to the public on both sides of the pond in stating this week that the game had nothing to do with the murder." On 10 March, Thompson said he planned to sue Take-Two/Rockstar in an effort to have both "Manhunt 2" and "Grand Theft Auto IV" banned as "public nuisances".


title: Manhunt 2

text: On 16 March, Take-Two petitioned U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida to block the impending lawsuit, on the grounds that video games purchased for private entertainment could not be considered public nuisances. The following day, Thompson wrote on his website; "I have been praying, literally, that Take-Two and its lawyers would do something so stupid, that such a misstep would enable me to destroy Take-Two. The pit Take-Two has dug for itself will be patently clear next week when I strike back." On 21 March, Thompson filed a counter-suit, accusing Take-Two of multiple violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), specifically a continued effort to violate his constitutional rights. He also accused the Entertainment Software Association, Penny Arcade, IGN, GamePolitics.com, GameSpot, GameSpy, Eurogamer, Kotaku, Blank Rome and the US Justice Department of collaborating and conspiring with Take-Two to commit racketeering activities. He went on to refer to Rockstar North as "Scottish sociopaths sipping their single malt Glenlivet in between brainstorming software programming sessions", and accused Take-Two of "spewing its pop culture sewage to the world's children". However, his claim was weakened by several factual errors contained within it.


title: Manhunt 2

text: The dispute was ultimately settled before it went to the courts; Thompson agreed not to sue, threaten to sue or attempt to block the sale or distribution of any Take-Two game, and not to communicate to Take-Two or any store selling their games any accusation that they have committed a wrongdoing by selling such products. For their part, Take-Two agreed to drop a prior suit accusing Thompson of contempt of court concerning the game "Bully", which he attempted to have banned in 2005.


title: Manhunt 2

text: However, in a letter dated 8 May, to Wendy's CEO Kerrii Anderson, Thompson demanded that the restaurant drop an upcoming promotion featuring children's toys designed after the Wii games "Excite Truck", "Wii Sports" and "Super Mario Galaxy" because "Manhunt 2" was scheduled for release on the console. Wendy's did not respond to Thompson, and continued with their Wii promotion. On 12 May, he sent a letter to Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum and Florida Governor Charlie Crist which read, in part, "Florida retailers are scheduled to sell a very violent video game called "Manhunt 2" which will be available, remarkably, for "play" on the kids-friendly Nintendo Wii gaming platform. The Wii device does not utilize traditional push button game controllers but instead utilizes hand-held motion capture devices ... It is a training device." In a 6 June interview on Fox News, McCollum expressed concerns regarding how "Manhunt 2" utilized the Wii Remote in an interactive manner; for instance, in order to stab someone, the player would have to flick the Remote forward, in much the same fashion one would do when actually stabbing with a knife; when cutting someone's throat, the player would have to move the remote from left to right.


title: Manhunt 2

text: Also concerned about the Wii version of the game was the Center for a Commercial-Free Childhood (CCFC), who wrote to the ESRB demanding that the game be rated AO.


title: Manhunt 2

text: On 19 June 2007, less than a month prior to the game's worldwide release, "Manhunt 2" was rejected by both the BBFC and the IFCO. David Cooke, Director of the BBFC issued a statement, which read, in part;


title: Manhunt 2

text: Rejecting a work is a very serious action and one which we do not take lightly. Where possible we try to consider cuts or, in the case of games, modifications which remove the material which contravenes the Board's published Guidelines. In the case of "Manhunt 2" this has not been possible. "Manhunt 2" is distinguishable from recent high-end video games by its unremitting bleakness and callousness of tone in an overall game context which constantly encourages visceral killing with exceptionally little alleviation or distancing. There is sustained and cumulative casual sadism in the way in which these killings are committed, and encouraged, in the game. Although the difference should not be exaggerated the fact of the game's unrelenting focus on stalking and brutal slaying and the sheer lack of alternative pleasures on offer to the gamer, together with the different overall narrative context, contribute towards differentiating this submission from the original "Manhunt" game. That work was classified '18' in 2003, before the BBFC's recent games research had been undertaken, but was already at the very top end of what the Board judged to be acceptable at that category. Against this background, the Board's carefully considered view is that to issue a certificate to "Manhunt 2", on either platform, would involve a range of unjustifiable harm risks, to both adults and minors, within the terms of the Video Recordings Act, and accordingly that its availability, even if statutorily confined to adults, would be unacceptable to the public.


title: Manhunt 2

text: In response to the ban, Rockstar themselves were quick to issue a statement; "We are disappointed with the recent decision by the British Board of Film Classification to refuse classification of "Manhunt 2". While we respect the authority of the classification board and will abide by the rules, we emphatically disagree with this particular decision. "Manhunt 2" is an entertainment experience for fans of psychological thrillers and horror. The subject matter of this game is in line with other mainstream entertainment choices for adult consumers." Rockstar also stated that they felt the game was well within the guidelines to be granted an 18 cert, and they implied that the BBFC treated games differently from how they treated films, arguing that "Manhunt 2" was no more violent than recent films such as "Saw" and "Hostel". Later, the BBFC's press officer, Sue Clarke, told "IGN" that Rockstar was wrong in this assertion, and that "[they] haven't singled out" "Manhunt 2".


title: Manhunt 2

text: Later that same day, in an unexpected move, the ESRB issued the game with an AO rating. The initial impact of this decision was that major retail chains, such as Walmart, GameStop and Target would not stock the title. The following day, 20 June, Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony Computer Entertainment issued statements saying they do not allow AO titles on their platforms, which effectively meant the game would have been banned in the US.


title: Manhunt 2

text: A few months after news of the rating broke, an early uncut PlayStation 2 version was leaked online by a Sony Computer Entertainment Europe employee.


title: Manhunt 2

text: In light of the BBFC and ESRB decisions, Rockstar decided to censor the game. Censoring took five main forms. The primary alteration was the addition of a blurring effect over executions; during an execution the screen turns red, and flashes black-and-white. The second alteration was the removal of all but two decapitations. Initially, several weapons in the game could decapitate enemies, but with the exception of two plot-important decapitations, all such executions were removed. Thirdly, the pliers executions were changed. Originally, a gruesome execution with the pliers involved ripping off the enemy's testicles, whilst a level 2 execution involved tearing open his throat. In the edited version, the pliers are used to beat the enemy over the head. The fourth change was the removal of innocent characters from certain levels. Originally, the game was structured in such a way that the player had the choice as to whether or not to kill these characters. If they didn't, they got the ending where Daniel defeats Leo, if they did, they got the alternate ending. The final change involved the rating system. Originally, the game had a rating system similar to the first game, whereby the player was rated based on speed and severity of execution types. To achieve a maximum rating, one had to perform a set number of gruesome executions in each level. This rating system was completely removed from the edited version.


title: Manhunt 2

text: In August, Rockstar submitted the re-edited version to the ESRB and BBFC. The ESRB were satisfied and granted the game an M rating on 24 August. Later that day, the Campaign For a Commercial-Free Childhood called for a federal investigation into how the game had had its rating downgraded;


title: Manhunt 2

text: The [CCFC] is extremely concerned that the ESRB has downgraded its rating for "Manhunt 2" [...] Despite industry claims to the contrary, M-rated games continue to be marketed and sold to children under seventeen. The ESRB's reversal of its earlier decision dramatically increases the likelihood that "Manhunt 2" – the most violent game to date produced for the interactive Nintendo Wii platform – will be marketed and sold to children. Just three months ago, the ESRB felt that "Manhunt 2" was so violent that it took the extraordinary step of giving a game an AO rating for violent content for only the second time in its history. We urge the ESRB to make public their rationale for changing "Manhunt 2"s rating, including detailing any content that was removed from the game. We call upon Rockstar Games to allow the content of "Manhunt 2" to be reviewed by an independent review board with no ties to the video game industry. We ask the Federal Trade Commission to investigate the process by which "Manhunt 2"s rating was downgraded from AO to M.


title: Manhunt 2

text: California State Senator Leland Yee expressed similar sentiments: "Parents can't trust a rating system that doesn't even disclose how they come to a particular rating. The ESRB and Rockstar should end this game of secrecy by immediately unveiling what content has been changed to grant the new rating and what correspondence occurred between the ESRB and Rockstar to come to this conclusion. Unfortunately, history shows that we must be quite skeptical of these two entities. [...] Clearly the ESRB has a conflict of interest in rating these games. It is time to bring transparency to this rating system and for the industry to be held accountable. I join the CCFC in urging the Federal Trade Commission to investigate the process by which "Manhunt 2"s rating was downgraded from AO to M." On 29 August, ESRB President Patricia Vance stated that the ESRB had no intention of revealing how it came to the decision to downgrade the rating.


title: Manhunt 2

text: "Manhunt 2" was released for PSP, PS2 and Wii in the US on 31 October, with an M rating. The very next day, 1 November, a method that removed the blurring effect on the PSP and PS2 versions was released by a group of PSP crackers. A Wii version of the blur removal soon followed. Leland Yee and the Parents Television Council demanded that "Manhunt 2" be re-rated AO, but after examining the situation, the ESRB concluded it was not Rockstar's fault that these hacks could be used and decided to stick with the M rating.


title: Manhunt 2

text: On 22 November, US Senators Joe Lieberman, Sam Brownback, Evan Bayh and Hillary Clinton wrote an open letter to the ESRB asking for the game to be re-rated AO: "we ask your consideration of whether it is time to review the robustness, reliability and repeatability of your ratings process, particularly for this genre of 'ultraviolent' video games and the advances in game controllers. We have consistently urged parents to pay attention to the ESRB rating system. We must ensure that parents can rely on the consistency and accuracy of those ratings." The ESRB again refused to re-rate the game, and stuck with the M rating.


title: Manhunt 2

text: Despite the ESRB's decision to rate the game M in the US, on 8 October, the BBFC once again refused to classify the game. David Cooke, Director of the BBFC stated "We recognize that the distributor has made changes to the game, but we do not consider that these go far enough to address our concerns about the original version. The impact of the revisions on the bleakness and callousness of tone, or the essential nature of the gameplay, is clearly insufficient. There has been a reduction in the visual detail in some of the 'execution kills', but in others they retain their original visceral and casually sadistic nature. We did make suggestions for further changes to the game, but the distributor has chosen not to make them, and as a result we have rejected the game on both platforms."


title: Manhunt 2

text: On 26 November, Rockstar appealed the BBFC's second decision not to rate the game with their lawyer, Geoffrey Robertson. TIGA president Fred Hasson testified that he was "surprised at how tame ["Manhunt 2"] is compared to some very graphical scenes I've seen in other games which have received certification. I expected it to be a lot worse. I can't believe that this has been singled out as something that is worth banning." He went on to accuse the BBFC of making their decision based on media pressure, particularly from the "Daily Mail", which had run a campaign to have the first game banned.


title: Manhunt 2

text: On 10 December 2007, the Video Appeals Committee over-ruled the BBFC by four votes to three. However, On 17 December, the BBFC challenged the VAC decision in the High Court at the Royal Courts of Justice, claiming that the VAC had over-ruled them based on a "misinterpretation of the law" as laid out in the Video Recordings Act of 1984. This challenge superseded the VAC decision that the game could be classified, and halted any possibility of it going on sale. On 24 January 2008, the BBFC won their case in the High Court. Presiding Justice Mitting agreed with the BBFC's argument that the VAC had erred when considering whether the game could be considered harmful to minors. Whereas the VAC interpreted this as "actual harm", the BBFC and Mitting believed it referred to "potential harm and risk of harm". The BBFC also argued that the VAC based its decision on whether or not the game would have a "devastating effect on society", and argued that this "harm threshold" was too high. Mitting ordered that the same seven-member panel review their findings, and whatever decision they reach the second time would stand. The VAC did so, but they returned with exactly the same result as the first time - four votes to three in favor of classifying the game. The game was ultimately released on PS2, PSP and Wii on 31 October 2008 with an 18 certificate, a year after the US release and the same day as the rest of Europe.


title: Manhunt 2

text: Internationally, "Manhunt 2" proved just as controversial. The game was banned outright in Germany, Malaysia, New Zealand and South Korea. The uncensored version of the game was also banned in Ireland by the Irish Film Classification Office for a short time due to "gross, unrelenting and gratuitous violence", but was later allowed in its cut form under a PEGI "18" rating. In Italy, Minister of Communications Paolo Gentiloni expressed the desire to ban the game in the country, but no such ban came into effect. In Australia, where the original "Manhunt" was banned, the game was never submitted for classification to the Australian Classification Board.


title: Manhunt 2

text: On 31 October 2009, Rockstar started taking pre-orders for a PC version of the original unedited version of the game through Direct2Drive. It was released in the US on 6 November 2009 with an AO rating. However, the game was later removed from the service in July 2011 after Direct2Drive was purchased by GameFly, due to GameFly's policy of not carrying AO-rated games. On 25 November 2011, the uncut version was available again in GamersGate, but is only available for select regions. In May 2015, live-streaming service Twitch announced a list of games which are prohibited from being broadcast on its platform, including a unified ban for all games receiving the Adults Only rating, therefore banning the uncut version from the site.


title: Manhunt 2

text: "Manhunt 2" received "mixed or average reviews", according to reviewer aggregator Metacritic. Positive reception came from the game's presentation of graphic violence and its psychological horror-based storyline. "GameSpot"s Kevin VanOrd said the game was "not as shocking as you'd expect, but "Manhunt 2" still satisfies your primal instincts", and that the game was better to play on the PSP platform. Mikel Reparaz from "GamesRadar" stated that "if you're in the mood for something creepy and horrific that'll leave you feeling a little dirty, "Manhunt 2"s still-shocking murders and eerie, is-it-real-or-am-I-just-insane storyline won't disappoint." "Game Informer" gave the Wii version of the game 7.75/10, saying ""Manhunt 2" is every bit as grim and brutal as the first [...] the writing, as is typical of Rockstar's games, is top-notch, and Daniel and the rest of the characters do come off the screen as very real and human [...] It's a testament to this quality that I was really driven to see the tale out to its end." Similarly, "Nintendo Power" gave the Wii version 7.5/10, stating that while the game does deliver for the most part, they were disappointed by the way external influences led Rockstar to change the game, and that the story, while interesting, is "highly predictable". "Yahoo!" reviewed the PSP version, stating "there's simply never been a game quite as squeamishly immersive as this [...] it's even more terrifying for seeming like the most real thing in a game this year."


title: Manhunt 2

text: Jeff Haynes from "IGN" compared the game to the original, finding it fell short of the standard that game set; ""Manhunt 2" isn't the "tour de force" title that will grab your attention and keep you there like the first one did." The review went on to state that "the AI doesn't feel as good as the first game, the setting and environments don't feel as menacing, and the story is definitely weaker. That isn't to say that "Manhunt 2" isn't a good game, because it is." 1UP.com stated that "really, the game warrants a 4 [out of 10] because it's technically playable and, despite its best efforts, probably won't plunge the industry into a period of navel-gazing and political sanction. Everything else about it is largely forgettable." Jonathan Hunt from "X-Play" suggested that without the controversy concerning the rating, the game would be "nothing more than an obscure footnote in Rockstar's history." "Ars Technica"s Michael Thompson echoed similar thoughts, writing in a retrospective piece in 2009 that the controversy surrounding "Manhunt 2" "was more interesting than the game itself."


title: Manhunt 2

text: Because of its controversy the game is listed at #8 in IGN's "Top 10 Gaming Controversies" and was ranked (alongside the first game) as the sixth most controversial video game by UGO Networks. Machinima listed Daniel Lamb and Leo Kasper #7 in their "Top 10 Criminal Duos in Gaming".


title: Manhunt 2

text: In October 2007, Stephen Totilo of MTV Games asked Rockstar Games producer Jeronimo Barrera about the possibilities of a multiplayer component being added to future iterations of the "Manhunt" franchise, such as adding the game to the Rockstar Games Social Club. Barrera seemingly embraced the idea.


title: Islamic New Year

text: The Islamic New Year (, '), also called the Hijri New Year, is the day that marks the beginning of a new lunar Hijri year, and is the day on which the year count is incremented. The first day of the Islamic year is observed by most Muslims on the first day of the month of Muharram. The epoch (reference date) of the Islamic era was set as the year of the emigration of Muhammad and his followers from Mecca to Medina, known as the Hijrah, which equates to 622 CE in the Gregorian calendar. All religious duties, such as prayer, fasting in the month of Ramadan, and pilgrimage, and the dates of significant events, such as celebration of holy nights and festivals, are calculated according to the Islamic calendar.


title: Islamic New Year

text: While some Islamic organizations prefer determining the new month (and hence the new year) by local sightings of the moon, most Islamic institutions and countries, including Saudi Arabia, follow astronomical calculations to determine future dates of the Islamic calendar. There are various schemas for calculating the tabular Islamic calendar (i.e. not based on observation), which results in differences of typically one or even two days between countries using such schema and those that use actual lunar sightings. For example, the "Umm al-Qura" calendar used in Saudi Arabia was reformed several times in recent years. The current scheme was introduced in 1423 AH (15 March 2002).


title: Islamic New Year

text: A day in the Islamic calendar is defined as beginning at sunset. For example, 1 Muharram 1432 was defined to correspond to 7 or 8 December 2010 in civil calendars (depending on the country). For an observation-based calendar, a sighting of the new moon at sunset of 6 December would mean that 1 Muharram lasted from the moment of sunset of 6 December to the moment of sunset of 7 December, while in places where the new moon was not sighted on 6 December 1 Muharram would last from the moment of sunset of 7 December to the moment of sunset of 8 December.


title: Islamic New Year

text: Since the Islamic lunar year is eleven to twelve days shorter than the solar year as counted by the Gregorian calendar, the Islamic New Year does not occur on the same day of the Gregorian calendar every year.


title: Islamic New Year

text: The following dates are predicted for the Gregorian calendar dates to correspond with the Islamic new year:


title: Feud (TV series)

text: Feud is an American docudrama television series created by Ryan Murphy, Jaffe Cohen, and Michael Zam, which premiered on FX on March 5, 2017. Conceived as an anthology series, "Feud"s first season, "Bette and Joan", chronicles (over eight episodes) the well-documented rivalry between Hollywood actresses Joan Crawford and Bette Davis during and after the production of their psychological horror thriller film "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?" (1962). Jessica Lange and Susan Sarandon star as Crawford and Davis, respectively. Judy Davis, Jackie Hoffman, Alfred Molina, Stanley Tucci, and Alison Wright feature in supporting roles. Academy Award–winning actresses Catherine Zeta-Jones and Kathy Bates also appear.


title: Feud (TV series)

text: Critically acclaimed, with major praise for Lange and Sarandon's performances, the series garnered several accolades. It received 18 nominations at the 69th Primetime Emmy Awards and won two, including Outstanding Hairstyling and Makeup (Non-Prosthetic). "Bette and Joan" also received six Critics' Choice Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and three Television Critics Association Awards nominations.


title: Feud (TV series)

text: In February 2017, FX renewed the series for a 10-episode second season. Following a hiatus during which Murphy exited the series, in April 2022, it was announced that the second season would be "Capotes Women", with Jon Robin Baitz serving as showrunner/writer, Gus Van Sant as director, and Naomi Watts starring as Babe Paley. The season will focus on the fallout of a roman à clef story written by author Truman Capote based on the lives of several New York socialites.


title: Feud (TV series)

text: The series (subtitled "Bette and Joan" in anticipation of future seasons) centers on the backstage battle between Bette Davis (Susan Sarandon) and Joan Crawford (Jessica Lange) during and after the production of their 1962 film "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?".


title: Feud (TV series)

text: "Feud" features appearances by a number of actors, directors and other historical figures of the period, including:


title: Feud (TV series)

text: Ryan Murphy, a fan of Davis since his childhood, interviewed the actress just months before her death in 1989. The agreed-upon 20-minute interview lasted four hours, and inspired his characterization of Davis in "Feud". He said, "When I would ask her about Joan Crawford ... She would just go on about how much she hated her. But then she would sort of say ... 'She was a professional. And I admired that'." Murphy first conceived "Bette and Joan" as a film years before the FX series, and approached both Sarandon and Lange about the lead roles. Sarandon said, "It just felt like it didn't have a context, just being bitchy and kind of funny, but what else? In expanding it to eight hours, you could get more complexity and so many other characters."


title: Feud (TV series)

text: "Feud: Bette and Joan" was being written at the same time that Murphy was forming his Half Foundation, which promotes an increased presence of women in film and television production positions. The series features 15 acting roles for women over 40, and half the episodes were directed by women, including actress Helen Hunt. Initially conceived as an anthology series, "Feud", developed by Murphy, was picked up to series by FX on May 5, 2016. "Bette and Joan" was inspired by the real-life feud between Crawford and Davis, and explores issues of sexism, ageism, and misogyny in Hollywood. Its eight episodes were expanded from a feature-length screenplay Murphy had optioned called "Best Actress" by Jaffe Cohen and Michael Zam.


title: Feud (TV series)

text: Sarandon said, "In our story, it was a fact that [the people behind "Baby Jane"] encouraged the animosity [between Crawford and Davis], first of all to control them, second of all to make what they thought was more onscreen tension, and that really hasn't changed a lot." Melanie McFarland of "Salon" wrote that the series shows "just how brutal the Hollywood system was on some of the greatest talents in its firmament" and that it "cuts to the root of why collaborating and delighting in the fall of the mighty is eternally marketable." The Crawford-Davis feud was also documented in Shaun Considine's 1989 book "".


title: Feud (TV series)

text: Frequent Murphy collaborator Jessica Lange and Susan Sarandon were attached to star as Joan Crawford and Bette Davis in "Feud". Alfred Molina, Stanley Tucci, Judy Davis, and Dominic Burgess were also a part of the cast, in the roles of Robert Aldrich, Jack L. Warner, Hedda Hopper, and Victor Buono, respectively. In August 2016, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Sarah Paulson joined the cast playing Olivia de Havilland and Geraldine Page, respectively.


title: Feud (TV series)

text: In September 2016, it was reported that "American Horror Story" executive producer Tim Minear would be co-showrunning the series with Murphy. Jackie Hoffman joined the cast as Mamacita, Crawford's housekeeper. In November 2016, Molly Price, Kathy Bates and Alison Wright joined the cast of the series, in the roles of Harriet Foster, Joan Blondell, and Pauline Jameson. In January 2017, it was announced Kiernan Shipka was cast in the series as Davis's daughter, Barbara "B.D." Sherry.


title: Feud (TV series)

text: Sarandon admitted to initially being "overwhelmed and terrified" about the prospect of portraying Davis accurately. She said, "She's so big and she really was so big, so I tried not to make her a caricature or someone a female impersonator would do ... That was my fear, that she would just be kind of one-dimensional." Lange said her performance was informed by her view that Crawford's "brutal childhood" was masked by the "beautiful, impenetrable veneer of this great, gorgeous movie star ... So she was always on, which is a tremendous burden in and of itself, but always there was this thing lurking underneath of being this poverty-stricken, abused, unloved, abandoned young child and woman." Both Sarandon and Lange researched their roles by reading books by and about Davis and Crawford, and watching and listening to TV performances and recordings.


title: Feud (TV series)

text: For "Capote's Women", Naomi Watts was cast to star as Babe Paley in April 2022. In August, Chloë Sevigny, Tom Hollander, Calista Flockhart and Diane Lane would be added to the cast. The following month, Demi Moore and Molly Ringwald were added to the cast.


title: Feud (TV series)

text: On February 28, 2017, FX renewed the series for a 10-episode second season, subtitled "Charles and Diana". The season was to center on the relationship between Charles, Prince of Wales and Diana, Princess of Wales, with Murphy and Jon Robin Baitz attached as writers. It was later renamed "Buckingham Palace", while Matthew Goode and Rosamund Pike were cast in the titular roles. The plans for "Buckingham Palace" were eventually scrapped in August 2018, but Murphy still intends to do further cycles of "Feud". In November 2019, Murphy commented that he had no plans for another season but was open to resume work on "Feud": "My deal is with Netflix. That's not to say that years down the line that I couldn't redo it or renew if I had a great idea. I think everyone is open to that but I'm working on so many other things."


title: Feud (TV series)

text: On April 1, 2022, the second season, entitled "Capotes Women", was announced with Jon Robin Baitz serving as showrunner/writer, Gus Van Sant as director. The season will focus on the fallout of a roman à clef story written by author Truman Capote based on the lives of several New York socialites.


title: Feud (TV series)

text: Murphy gave several interviews about "Feud" during the 2017 Winter TCA Press Tour. The show's first teaser trailer was released on January 19, 2017, and the second the following day. That same week, Lange and Sarandon appeared on the cover of "Entertainment Weekly" as Crawford and Davis. FX released another teaser on January 23, two on February 5, one on February 7, and one on February 8. A short commercial for the show also aired during Super Bowl LI.


title: Feud (TV series)

text: "Feud" had its official premiere at the Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles on March 1, 2017. Before the show's premiere, FX held screenings of the pilot episode at several gay bars across the United States.


title: Feud (TV series)

text: The first season of eight episodes, "Bette and Joan", premiered in the United States on March 5, 2017 on FX and on BBC Two in the United Kingdom on December 16, 2017.


title: Feud (TV series)

text: The original television soundtrack of "Feud: Bette and Joan", with music by Mac Quayle, was released in two editions: a regular edition with 23 tracks, and a limited edition with 31 tracks.


title: Feud (TV series)

text: "Feud" received highly positive reviews, with major praise for Lange and Sarandon's performances. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the series has an approval rating of 91% based on 84 reviews, with an average rating of 8.1/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "While campily and sweetly indulgent, "Feud: Bette and Joan" provides poignant understanding of humanity, sorrow, and pain while breezily feeding inquisitive gossip-starved minds." On Metacritic, the series has a score of 81 out of 100, based on 44 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".


title: Feud (TV series)

text: Melanie McFarland of "Salon" called the writing "creatively wicked" and the series "outrageously fantastic", praising Lange and Sarandon for their performances and for "tempering their decadent rages and vengeful spats with a gutting sense of loneliness that tempers its lightness in solemnity." Verne Gay of "Newsday" wrote that the series is "Full of joy, humor, brilliant writing and performances, and a deep unabiding love for what really makes Hollywood great—the women." "People" called the series "bitter, biting and entertaining". "The Atlantic" Spencer Kornhaber described the first few episodes as "deft and satisfying" but suggested that "maybe six installments, rather than eight, were all this tale needed". Alan Sepinwall of Uproxx wrote that the series is "big and it's catty, but it's also smart and elegant, with the old Hollywood setting toning down some of Murphy's more scattershot creative impulses." Emily Nussbaum, in "The New Yorker", praised Murphy's ambition and lauded both stars, saying of the series, "Beneath the zingers and the poolside muumuus, the show's stark theme is how skillfully patriarchy screws with women's heads—mostly by building a home in there."


title: Feud (TV series)

text: Not all reviews were positive. Sonia Saraiya of "Variety " compared "Bette and Joan" unfavorably to Murphy's "", writing that "Feud" is "neither as brilliantly campy and hateful as "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?" nor as contextualizing and profound as "People v. O. J. Simpson"." David Weigand of the "San Francisco Chronicle" gave the series a mixed review, criticizing the script and Lange's performance, but praising Sarandon's, writing: "Lange is always interesting, but she’s only occasionally convincing here as Crawford. The voice is too high, for one thing. Sarandon fares better, as much good as that does with such a lousy script." "The Guardian" also criticized the series for being "lightweight", noting, "At just eight episodes, there’s almost too much to cover and at times, one craves a little more depth to certain moments." They singled out Lange's performance, however, writing, "Lange in particular moves past just an easy impression to something with far more weight. In a reversal of fortune that would make Crawford cackle in her grave, it’s likely that she’ll be the one up for awards at the end of the year rather than her co-star."


title: Feud (TV series)

text: On June 30, 2017, a day before her 101st birthday, actress Olivia de Havilland filed a lawsuit against "Feud: Bette and Joan" for inaccurately portraying her and using her likeness without permission. The lawsuit stated that the pseudo-documentary-style of the series leads viewers to believe that the statements made by the actress portraying de Havilland in the show are accurate, but that in fact de Havilland had not said such things in real life. The various defendants filed a motion to dismiss under California's "anti-SLAPP" law. The trial court denied the motion but, on March 26, 2018, the California Court of Appeal, Second District, reversed the decision and ordered the lawsuit dismissed on the grounds that no person can "own history". The Court of Appeal further ruled the defendants were entitled to be reimbursed their attorneys' fees. De Havilland filed for estoppels to pursue action with higher courts, securing a restraining order against Murphy and the production company from airing "Feud" until further review and a court date with the United States Supreme Court. In January 2019, the Supreme Court declined to hear the case.


title: Feud (TV series)

text: The first episode drew 2.26 million live-plus-same-day viewers, which Deadline.com characterized as "solid" and made it the most watched program on FX that week. In comparison, the premiere of "The People v. O. J. Simpson" attracted 5.1 million viewers in 2016, and the FX limited series "Fargo" got 2.66 million in 2014. The premiere earned 3.8 million viewers in the Nielsen live-plus-three-days ratings, and 5.17 million viewers total when including two encore broadcasts, making it the highest rated new series debut on FX since "The People v. O. J. Simpson".


title: Old money

text: Old money is "the inherited wealth of established upper-class families (i.e. gentry, patriciate)" or "a person, family, or lineage possessing inherited wealth". The term typically describes a social class of the rich who have been able to maintain their wealth over multiple generations, often referring to perceived members of the "de facto" aristocracy in societies that historically lack an officially established aristocratic class (such as the United States).


title: Old money

text: "Wealth"—assets held by an individual or by a household—provides an important dimension of social stratification because it can pass from generation to generation, ensuring that a family's offspring will remain financially stable. Families with "old money" use accumulated assets or savings to bridge interruptions in income, thus guarding against downward social mobility.


title: Old money

text: "Old money" applies to those of the upper class whose wealth separates them from lower social classes. According to anthropologist W. Lloyd Warner, the upper class in the United States during the 1930s was divided into the upper-upper and the lower-upper classes. The lower-upper were those who did not come from traditionally wealthy families. They earned their money from investments and business, rather than inheritance. Examples include John D. Rockefeller, whose father was a traveling peddler; Cornelius Vanderbilt, whose father operated a ferry in New York Harbor; Henry Flagler, who was the son of a Presbyterian minister; and Andrew Carnegie, who was the son of a Scottish weaver. In contrast to the "nouveau riche", whose riches were acquired in their own generation, the upper-upper class were families viewed as "quasi-aristocratic" and "high society". These families had been rich and prominent in the politics of the United States for generations. In many cases their prominence dated since before the American Revolution (1765–1783), when their ancestors had accumulated fortunes as members of the elite planter class, or as merchants, slave traders, ship-owners, or fur traders. In many cases, especially in Virginia, Maryland, and the Carolinas, the source of these families' wealth were vast tracts of land granted to their ancestors by the Crown or acquired by headright during the colonial period. These planter class families were often related to each other through intermarriage for more than 300 years, and are sometimes known as American gentry. They produced several Founding Fathers of the United States and a number of early presidents of the United States. An example of this social class was George Washington, who had an estimated net worth of $525 million (in 2016 dollars) due to his vast holdings of land and slaves, making him the second wealthiest man to serve as President of the United States.


title: Old money

text: After the American Civil War (1861–1865), many in this social class saw their wealth greatly reduced. Their slaves became freedmen. Union forces under Generals William Tecumseh Sherman and Philip Sheridan had also cut wide swaths of destruction through portions of Virginia, the Carolinas and Georgia. They destroyed crops, killed or confiscated livestock, burned barns and gristmills, and in some cases torched plantation houses and even entire cities such as Atlanta. They were using scorched earth tactics, designed to starve the Confederate States of America into submission. After the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution (1865) and the emancipation of the slaves, many plantations were converted to sharecropping. African American freedmen were working as sharecroppers on the same land which they had worked as slaves before the war. Despite the fact that their circumstances were greatly reduced, the enactment of Jim Crow laws and the disenfranchisement of freed black people allowed many planter class families in the Southern United States to regain their political prominence, if not their great wealth, following Reconstruction (1863–1877).


title: Old money

text: In the early 20th century, the upper-upper class were seen as more prestigious than the nouveau riche even if the nouveau riche had more wealth. During the late 19th century and early 20th century, the nouveau rich flaunted their wealth by building Gilded Age mansions that emulated the palaces of European royalty, while old money was more conservative. American "Old money" families tend to adhere to various Mainline Protestant denominations; Episcopalians and Presbyterians are the most prevalent among them.


title: Old money

text: Although many "old money" individuals do not rank as high on the list of Forbes 400 richest Americans as they once did, their wealth continues to grow. Many families increased their holdings by investment strategies such as the pooling of resources. For example, the Rockefeller family's estimated net worth of $1 billion in the 1930s grew to $8.5 billion by 2000—that is, not adjusted for inflation. In 60 years, four of the richest families in the United States increased their combined $2–4 billion in 1937 to $38 billion without holding large shares in emerging industries. When adjusted for inflation, the actual dollar wealth of many of these families has shrunk since the '30s.


title: Old money

text: From a private wealth manager's perspective, "old money" can be classified into two: active "old money" and passive "old money". The former includes inheritors who, despite the inherited wealth at their disposal or that which they can access in the future, choose to pursue their own career or set up their own businesses. Paris Hilton and Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou are examples of this category. On the other hand, passive "old money" are those who are the idle rich or those who are not wealth producers.


title: Old money

text: "Old money" contrasts with the "nouveau riche" and "parvenus". These fall under the category "new money" (those not from traditionally wealthy families).


title: Old money

text: The Rothschild family, as an example, established finance houses across Europe from the 18th century and was ennobled by the Habsburg Emperor and Queen Victoria. Throughout the 19th century, they controlled the largest fortune in the world, in today's terms many hundreds of billions. The family has, at least to some extent, maintained its wealth for over two centuries. The Rothschilds were not, however, considered "old money" by their British counterparts. In Britain, the term generally exclusively refers to the nobility - that is, the peerage and landed gentry - who traditionally live off the land inherited paternally. The British concept is analogous to good lineage and it is not uncommon to find someone with "old money" who is actually poor or insolvent. By 2001, however, those belonging to this category—the aristocratic landowners—are still part of the wealthiest list in the United Kingdom. For instance, the Duke of Westminster, by way of his Grosvenor estate, owns large swaths of properties in London that include 200 acres of Belgravia and 100 acres of Mayfair. There is also the case of Viscount Portman, who is the owner of 100 acres of land north of Oxford Street.


title: Old money

text: In France, the "200 families" controlled much of the nation's wealth after 1815. The "200" is based on the policy that of the 40,000 shareholders of the Bank of France, only 200 were allowed to attend the annual meeting and they cast all the votes. Out of a nation of 27 million people, only 80,000 to 90,000 were allowed to vote in 1820, and the richest one-quarter of them had two votes.


title: Old money

text: The ITV television series "Downton Abbey" frequently contrasts the differences between Old Money and New Money in Britain during the early 20th century. Notably between the newspaperman Sir Richard Carlisle and the heiress Lady Mary Crawley, the distinction being the aggression of the "parvenu" Sir Richard and the "noblesse oblige" of the Crawleys.


title: Old money

text: Perhaps the most famous critique of the tension between Old Money and New Money in American literature can be found in F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby". The characters in possession of old money, represented by the Buchanan family (Tom and Daisy), get away with murder; while those with new money, represented by Gatsby himself, are alternately embraced and scorned by other characters in the book. Fitzgerald vastly critiques people in possession of old money through his narrator Nick Carraway: "They were careless people, Tom and Daisy—they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made."


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: The AgustaWestland AW109, originally the Agusta A109, is a lightweight, twin-engine, eight-seat multi-purpose helicopter designed and initially produced by the Italian rotorcraft manufacturer Agusta. It was the first all-Italian helicopter to be mass-produced. Its production has been continued by Agusta's successor companies, presently Leonardo S.p.A. (formerly AgustaWestland, merged into the new Finmeccanica since 2016).


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: Development of the A109 commenced during the late 1960s as an indigenous rotorcraft suited to commercial operations. A twin-engine arrangement was pursued in response to market interest, while work on the civil model was prioritised over the military-orientated "A109B" project. On 4 August 1971, the first of three prototypes made its maiden flight. On 1 June 1975, the type received certification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), permitting its service entry in 1976. The A109 has been used in a wide variety of roles, including light utility, VIP transport, aeromedical, law enforcement, search and rescue (SAR), and several military roles. Dedicated military models have been produced for both land and sea operations. Several models with alternative engines, expanded fuselages, and alternative equipment fitouts have been produced. Some AW109s feature an convertible interior to quickly adapt the rotorcraft between roles. Various third party companies also offer adaptions and services for the type.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: Following the merger of Agusta and the British company Westland Helicopters to form AgustaWestland, the A109 has been rebranded as the "AW109". International involvement in the programme has also been pursued; the company has established final assembly lines at sites in both Italy and the US. Furthermore, hundreds of AW109 fuselages have been manufactured by the Polish aerospace company PZL-Świdnik since the mid-1990s. AgustaWestland formed a joint venture with the Changhe Aircraft Industries Corporation in 2004 that produces and supports the AW109, includes a final assembly line, in China. The AW109 has been in continuous production for 40 years. The AgustaWestland AW119 is a derivative of the AW109, the principal difference being that it is powered by a single engine and has a fixed undercarriage.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: Work on what would become the "AW109" commenced during the late 1960s at the Italian helicopter manufacturer Agusta, which sought to design an indigenous rotorcraft suitable for commercial activities. Known as the "A109", early designs were of a single-engine helicopter. However, the design team came to recognise that the market found a twin-engine rotorcraft to be more attractive, thus the project was reoriented to fulfil this in 1969, opting to outfit it with a pair of Allison 250-C14 turboshaft engines. While early considerations had been made for a militarised model, which the company internally referred to as the "A109B", Agusta intentionally placed a low priority on the work for this variant in favour of other market sectors. In particular, design efforts were concentrated on the eight-seat "A109C" model.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: On 4 August 1971, the first of three prototypes performed the type's maiden flight. The A109 was subject to a protracted flight testing phase, which was largely attributable to the discovery of dynamic instability that took roughly one year to resolve via a modified transmission design. Almost four years later, the first production helicopter was officially completed during April 1975. On 1 June 1975, the type received certification for visual flight rules (VFR) from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), permitting the A109 to be operated in North America.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: During 1976, deliveries of production A109s commenced to civil customers. The type offered several advantages over the then-market leading Bell 206, including its greater top speed, twin-engine redundancy, and increased seating capacity. In 1975, Agusta's design team revisited the concept of a military version; to support their work, a series of flying trials were carried out between 1976 and 1977 involving a total of five A109As that had been outfitted with Hughes Aircraft-built TOW missiles. From these endeavours, two different military versions of the A109 emerged, one being intended for light attack/close air support missions while the other was optimised for shipboard operations.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: Shortly following after the launch of the initial production model, Agusta begun work on additional models, primarily for the civil sector. During 1981, an "A109A Mk2", that featured a widened cabin, was made available to operators. In 1993, the "A109 K2" model was introduced, which was powered by alternative engine in the form of the Turbomeca Arriel 1K1. During 1996, the "A109 Power" was launched, which was broadly similar to the K2 except for the adoption of yet another powerplant, the Pratt & Whitney Canada PW206 engine. By 2008, according to AgustaWestland, the A109 Power was being operated across 46 countries. In 2006, an enlarged variant, the "A109S Grand", was introduced.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: The A109 was renamed the "AW109" as a consequence of the July 2000 merger of Finmeccanica S.p.A. and GKN plc's respective helicopter subsidiaries Agusta and Westland Helicopters to form AgustaWestland. Since the mid-1990s, fuselages for the AW109 have been manufactured by PZL-Świdnik, which became a subsidiary company of AgustaWestland in 2010. In June 2006, the 500th fuselage was delivered by the Polish aerospace company PZL-Świdnik, marking 10 years of co-operation on the AW109 between the two companies. In 2004, AgustaWestland formed a joint venture with the Changhe Aircraft Industries Corporation for the support and production of the AW109 in China; by 2009, the joint venture was reportedly capable of performing the final assembly of the AW109 in addition to independently manufacturing major sections, such as the fuselage.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: In February 2014, AgustaWestland announced the development of the AW109 Trekker, an updated models. It is equipped with skid landing gear (being the first twin-engine helicopter produced by the company to have this feature) and is powered by a pair of FADEC-equipped Pratt & Whitney Canada PW207C engines; its avionics are supplied by Genesys Aerospace, which have been designed for single-pilot operations. The Trekker reportedly expands upon the utility capabilities of the standard AW109. Akin to the prior models, the final assembly of the AW109 Trekker is undertaken at sites in both the US and Italy.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: The AW109 is a lightweight twin-engine helicopter, known for its speed, elegant appearance and ease of control. Since entering commercial service, several revisions and iterations have been made, frequently introducing new avionics and engine technologies. AgustaWestland have promoted the type for its multirole capabilities and serviceability. The type has proven highly popular with VIP/corporate customers; according to AgustaWestland, 50% of all of the AW109 Power variant had been sold in such configurations. Other roles for the AW109 have included emergency medical services, law enforcement, homeland security missions, harbor pilot shuttle duty, search and rescue, maritime operations, and military uses. In 2008, AgustaWestland claimed the AW109 to be "one of the industry’s best-selling helicopters".


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: A range of turboshaft powerplants have been used to power the numerous variants of the AW109, from the original Allison 250-C14 engines to the Turbomeca Arriel 1K1 and Pratt & Whitney Canada PW206 of more modern aircraft. Powerplants can be replaced or swapped for during airframe overhauls, resulting in increasing lifting capacity and other performance changes. In the case of single-engine failure, the AW109 is intended to have a generous power reserve even on a single engine. The engines drive a fully articulated four-blade rotor system. Over time, more advanced rotor blade designs have been progressively adopted for the AW109's main and tail rotors, such as composite materials being used to replace bonded metal, these improvements have typically been made with the aim of reducing operating costs and noise signature. According to Rotor&Wing, the type is well regarded for its "high, hot, and heavy" performance.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: According to AgustaWestland, the AW109 Power features various advanced avionics systems, these include a three-axis autopilot, an auto-coupled Instrument Landing System, integrated GPS, a Moving Map Display, weather radar, and a Traffic Alerting System. These systems are designed to reduce pilot workload (the AW109 can be flown under single or dual-pilot instrument flight rules (IFR)) and enable the use of night vision goggles (NVG) to conduct day-or-night operations. The AW109 has a forced trim system which can be readily and selectively activated by the controlling pilot using triggers located on the cyclic and collective which hold the control inputs at the last set position if activated. All critical systems are deliberately redundant for fail-safe operations; the hydraulic system, hydraulic actuators, and electrical system are all dual-redundant, while the power inverters are triple-redundant. The AW109 also has reduced maintenance requirements due to an emphasis on reliability across the range of components used.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: Some models of the AW109 feature the "quick convertible interior", a cabin configuration designed to be flexibly re-configured to allow the rotorcraft to be quickly adapted for different roles, such as the installation or removal of mission consoles or medical stretchers. Mission-specific equipment can also be installed in the externally accessible separate baggage compartment, which can be optionally expanded. Optional cabin equipment includes soundproofing, air conditioning, and bleed air heating. Aftermarket cabin configurations are offered by third parties; Pininfarina and Versace have both offered designer interiors for the AW109, while Aerolite Max Bucher has developed a lightweight emergency medical service interior. The majority of AW109s are fitted with a retractable wheeled tricycle undercarriage, providing greater comfort than skids and taxiing capability. For shipboard operations, the wheeled landing gear is reinforced, deck mooring points are fixed across the lower fuselage, and extensive corrosion protection is typically applied.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: Optional mission equipment for the AW109 has included dual controls, a rotor brake, windshield wipers, a fixed cargo hook, snow skis, external loudspeakers, wire-strike protection system, engine particle separator, engine compartment fire extinguishers, datalink, and rappelling fittings. A range of armaments can be installed upon the AW109, including pintle-mounted machine guns, machine gun pods, 20mm cannons, rocket pods, anti-tank missiles and air-to-air missiles. Those AW109s operated by the U.S. Coast Guard, later designated as "MH-68A", had the following equipment installed: a rescue hoist, emergency floats, FLIR, Spectrolab NightSun search light, a 7.62 mm M240D machine gun and a Barrett M107 semi-automatic 12.7 mm (.50 caliber) anti-material rifle with laser sight.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: Various branches of the Italian military have operated variants of the AW109; the Guardia di Finanza has operated its own variant of the AW109 since the 1980s for border patrol and customs duties, by 2010, it was in the process of replacing its original AW109s with a new-generation of AW109s.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: During 1982, the Argentine Army Aviation deployed three A109As to the Falkland Islands during the Falklands War. They operated with the helicopter fleet (9 UH-1H, 2 CH-47C and 2 Pumas) in reconnaissance and liaison roles. One of the helicopters was destroyed on the ground by a British Harrier attack; the others were captured and sent to Europe aboard HMS Fearless. The British Army Air Corps decided to use those helicopters in domestic operations (being flown by 8 Flight AAC to support SAS regiment deployments in the UK), alongside two additional A109 which were purchased later following favorable use of the first two; all were retired in 2009. The improved AW109E and SP – GrandNew versions have also been operated by No. 32 Squadron of the Royal Air Force to transport members of the British Royal Family.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: In 1988, 46 A109s were sold to the Belgian Armed Forces; it was later alleged that Agusta had given the Belgian Socialist Party over 50 million Belgian francs as a bribe to secure the sale. The resulting scandal led to the resignation and later conviction of NATO Secretary General Willy Claes. Belgium has operated an A109 aerial display team. In early 2013, a pair of Belgian AW109s were deployed to Sévaré, Mali, to perform medical evacuation mission in support of the French-led Operation Serval. In June 2013, Belgian newspaper La Libre Belgique alleged that several former Belgian military helicopters had been sold via a private company to South Sudan in violation of a European Union embargo on weapons sales.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: During the 1990s, the US Coast Guard, seeking to tackle drug trafficking on small speed boats via armed aerial interdiction helicopters, evaluated several options and selected the AW109 as the winner. For a number of years, eight armed AW109s, designated "MH-68A Sting Ray", were leased from AgustaWestland and deployed at Coast Guard land facilities and onboard cutters. Positive experience with the AW109 led to the Coast Guard deciding to arm all of its helicopters and, following adaptions of their existing assets, the AW109s were returned after the lease expired.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: In September 1999, the South African Air Force (SAAF) placed an order for 30 AW109s; 25 of the 30 rotorcraft were assembled locally by Denel Aviation, starting in 2003. As many as 16 SAAF AW109s were deployed for patrol, utility, and medical evacuation missions during the 2010 FIFA World Cup. In July 2013, the SAAF reported that 18 AW109s had effectively been grounded due to lack of funding, these rotorcraft being only occasionally activated but not conducting flights; in 2013, only 71 flight hours were allocated to the whole AW109 fleet. The type may be reduced to flying VIPs rather than being operationally capable; South Africa is also considering selling a number of AW109s, and may cease helicopter operations altogether.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: In 2001, 20 AW109s were ordered for the Swedish Armed Forces, receiving the Swedish military designation of "Hkp 15". In 2010, it was reported that considerable demands were being placed upon the AW109 fleet, in part due to the delayed delivery of the NHIndustries NH90. In early 2015, a pair of Swedish AW109s were deployed on board the Royal Netherlands Navy ship HNLMS "Johan de Witt", their first-ever deployment on board a foreign vessel, in support of a multinational anti-piracy mission off the coast of Somalia; the AW109 reportedly achieve a 100% availability rate over the course of three months.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: Between 2007 and 2012, three AW109E Power helicopters were operated under lease by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) to train naval aircrew.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: In May 2008, the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) placed an order for five AW109LUH rotorcraft to replace their aging Bell 47 Sioux in a training capacity; they are also used in the utility role to complement the larger NHIndustries NH90 and has seen limited use in VIP missions.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: During August 2008, Scott Kasprowicz and Steve Sheik broke the round-the-world speed record using a factory-standard AgustaWestland AW109S Grand, with a time of 11 days, 7 hours and 2 minutes. The AW109S Grand is also recorded as being the fastest helicopter from New York to Los Angeles.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: In 2013, the Philippine Air Force (PAF) and the Philippine Navy independently ordered batches of AW109 Power rotorcraft; additional AW109s were ordered in 2014. The PAF AW109s are used as armed gunships, while both armed and unarmed AW109s are operated by the Philippine Navy. During the Battle of Marawi, multiple PAF AW109s engaged in combat the ISIS-affiliated Maute Group. During November 2020, a PAF AW109 was involved in a joint operation of Armed Forces of the Philippines Joint Task Force (JTF) - Sulu against Abu Sayyaf kidnappers in northern Mindanao, firing upon a boat in conjunction with strafing fire from Philippine Navy Multipurpose Assault Craft.


title: AgustaWestland AW109

text: The AW109 is flown by a range of operators including private companies, military services, emergency services and air charter companies.


title: Krugerrand

text: The Krugerrand (; ) is a South African coin, first minted on 3 July 1967 to help market South African gold and produced by Rand Refinery and the South African Mint. The name is a compound of "Paul Kruger", the former President of the South African Republic (depicted on the obverse), and "rand", the South African unit of currency. On the reverse side of the Krugerrand is a pronking springbok, South Africa's national animal.


title: Krugerrand

text: By 1980 the Krugerrand accounted for more than 90% of the global gold coin market and was the number one choice for investors buying gold. However, during the 1980s and 1990s, Krugerrands fell out of favor as some western countries forbade import of the Krugerrand because of its association with the apartheid government of South Africa.


title: Krugerrand

text: Although gold Krugerrand coins have no face value, they are considered legal tender in South Africa by the South African Reserve Bank Act (SARBA) of 1989.


title: Krugerrand

text: In 2017, the Rand Refinery began minting silver versions, which have the same overall design as the gold coin.


title: Krugerrand

text: The Krugerrand was introduced in 1967 as a vehicle for private ownership of gold. It was minted in a copper-gold alloy more durable than pure gold. By 1980 the Krugerrand accounted for 90% of the global gold coin market. That year, South Africa introduced three smaller coins containing of gold.


title: Krugerrand

text: Economic sanctions against South Africa for its policy of apartheid made the Krugerrand an illegal import in many Western countries during the 1970s and 1980s, with the United States, which had historically been the largest market for the coin, banning imports in 1985: the previous year, over US$600 million of Krugerrands had been marketed in the country.


title: Krugerrand

text: Most of these sanctions were removed in 1991 after the South African government took steps to end its apartheid policies.


title: Krugerrand

text: During the bull market in gold of the 1970s, the gold Krugerrand quickly became the primary choice for gold investors worldwide. Between 1974 and 1985, it is estimated that 22 million gold Krugerrand coins were imported into the United States alone. This huge success of the Krugerrand encouraged other gold-producing countries to mint and issue gold bullion coins of their own, including the Canadian Gold Maple Leaf in 1979, the Australian Nugget in 1987, the Chinese Gold Panda in 1982, the American Gold Eagle in 1986, and the British Britannia coin in 1987.


title: Krugerrand

text: The coin is so named because the obverse, designed by Otto Schultz, bears the face of Boer statesman Paul Kruger, four-term president of the old South African Republic. The reverse depicts a springbok, the national animal of South Africa. The image was designed by Coert Steynberg, and was previously used on the reverse of the earlier South African five shillings (1947-51 and 1953-59) and 50 Cents (1961-64) coin. The name "South Africa" and the gold content are inscribed in both Afrikaans and English (as can be seen on the pictures of the coin).


title: Krugerrand

text: The South African Mint Company produces limited edition proof Krugerrands intended to be collectors' items rather than bullion investments. These coins are priced above bullion value, although non-proof Krugerrands also have a premium above gold bullion value. They can be distinguished from the bullion Krugerrands by the number of serrations on the edge of the coin. Proof coins have 220 edge serrations, while bullion coins have 160.


title: Krugerrand

text: 2017 marked the 50th year of issuance (1967–2017) and to commemorate the anniversary, the South African Mint produced "Premium Uncirculated" versions in gold (.916 or 22 carat) and for the first time also in platinum (.999 fine) and silver (.999 fine). The issue limit for these commemorative platinum, gold and silver coins was 2,017 for platinum, 5,000 for gold and 1,000,000 for silver. The commemorative issues are distinguished by a '50' privy seal mark above the springbok design on the reverse for the platinum and silver issues and to the right of the springbok design on the gold issues. In addition to the "Premium Uncirculated" issue, 15,000 silver "Proof" krugerrands were also issued as well as "Proof" krugerrands in gold and platinum.


title: Krugerrand

text: The South African Reserve Bank restricts the exportation of Krugerrands by a South African resident to a non-resident to a maximum of R30,000 (about US$2,100 or €1,870 as of June 2018). Visitors to South Africa can export up to 15 coins by declaring the items to the South African Revenue Service.


title: Krugerrand

text: In the 21st century, Krugerrands have received media attention in the United States after anonymous donors have left the valuable coin in the Salvation Army's annual "Christmas Kettle" donation jars in various cities around the country.


title: Purine

text: Purine is a heterocyclic aromatic organic compound that consists of two rings (pyrimidine and imidazole) fused together. It is water-soluble. Purine also gives its name to the wider class of molecules, purines, which include substituted purines and their tautomers. They are the most widely occurring nitrogen-containing heterocycles in nature.


title: Purine

text: Purines are found in high concentration in meat and meat products, especially internal organs such as liver and kidney. In general, plant-based diets are low in purines. High-purine plants and algae include some legumes (lentils and black eye peas) and spirulina. Examples of high-purine sources include: sweetbreads, anchovies, sardines, liver, beef kidneys, brains, meat extracts (e.g., Oxo, Bovril), herring, mackerel, scallops, game meats, yeast (beer, yeast extract, nutritional yeast) and gravy.


title: Purine

text: A moderate amount of purine is also contained in red meat, beef, pork, poultry, fish and seafood, asparagus, cauliflower, spinach, mushrooms, green peas, lentils, dried peas, beans, oatmeal, wheat bran, wheat germ, and haws.


title: Purine

text: Purines and pyrimidines make up the two groups of nitrogenous bases, including the two groups of nucleotide bases. The purine bases are guanine (G) and adenine (A) which form corresponding nucleosides-deoxyribonucleosides (deoxyguanosine and deoxyadenosine) with deoxyribose moiety and ribonucleosides (guanosine, adenosine) with ribose moiety. These nucleosides with phosphoric acid form corresponding nucleotides (deoxyguanylate, deoxyadenylate and guanylate, adenylate) which are the building blocks of DNA and RNA, respectively. Purine bases also play an essential role in many metabolic and signalling processes within the compounds guanosine monophosphate (GMP) and adenosine monophosphate (AMP).


title: Purine

text: In order to perform these essential cellular processes, both purines and pyrimidines are needed by the cell, and in similar quantities. Both purine and pyrimidine are self-inhibiting and activating. When purines are formed, they inhibit the enzymes required for more purine formation. This self-inhibition occurs as they also activate the enzymes needed for pyrimidine formation. Pyrimidine simultaneously self-inhibits and activates purine in similar manner. Because of this, there is nearly an equal amount of both substances in the cell at all times.


title: Purine

text: Purine is both a very weak acid (pK 8.93) and an even weaker base (pK 2.39). If dissolved in pure water, the pH is half way between these two pKa values.


title: Purine

text: Purine is aromatic, having four tautomers each with a hydrogen bonded to a different one of the four nitrogen atoms. These are identified as 1-H, 3-H, 7-H, and 9-H (see image of numbered ring). The common crystalline form favours the 7-H tautomer, while in polar solvents both the 9-H and 7-H tautomers predominate. Substituents to the rings and interactions with other molecules can shift the equilibrium of these tautomers.


title: Purine

text: There are many naturally occurring purines. They include the nucleobases adenine (2) and guanine (3). In DNA, these bases form hydrogen bonds with their complementary pyrimidines, thymine and cytosine, respectively. This is called complementary base pairing. In RNA, the complement of adenine is uracil instead of thymine.


title: Purine

text: Other notable purines are hypoxanthine, xanthine, theophylline, theobromine, caffeine, uric acid and isoguanine.


title: Purine

text: Aside from the crucial roles of purines (adenine and guanine) in DNA and RNA, purines are also significant components in a number of other important biomolecules, such as ATP, GTP, cyclic AMP, NADH, and coenzyme A. Purine (1) itself, has not been found in nature, but it can be produced by organic synthesis.


title: Purine

text: They may also function directly as neurotransmitters, acting upon purinergic receptors. Adenosine activates adenosine receptors.


title: Purine

text: The word "purine" ("pure urine") was coined by the German chemist Emil Fischer in 1884. He synthesized it for the first time in 1898. The starting material for the reaction sequence was uric acid (8), which had been isolated from kidney stones by Carl Wilhelm Scheele in 1776. Uric acid (8) was reacted with PCl to give 2,6,8-trichloropurine (10), which was converted with HI and PHI to give 2,6-diiodopurine (11). The product was reduced to purine (1) using zinc dust.


title: Purine

text: Accumulation of modified purine nucleotides is defective to various cellular processes, especially those involving DNA and RNA. To be viable, organisms possess a number of deoxypurine phosphohydrolases, which hydrolyze these purine derivatives removing them from the active NTP and dNTP pools. Deamination of purine bases can result in accumulation of such nucleotides as ITP, dITP, XTP and dXTP.


title: Purine

text: Defects in enzymes that control purine production and breakdown can severely alter a cell's DNA sequences, which may explain why people who carry certain genetic variants of purine metabolic enzymes have a higher risk for some types of cancer.


title: Purine

text: Organisms in all three domains of life, eukaryotes, bacteria and archaea, are able to carry out de novo biosynthesis of purines. This ability reflects the essentiality of purines for life. The biochemical pathway of synthesis is very similar in eukaryotes and bacterial species, but is more variable among archaeal species. A nearly complete, or complete, set of genes required for purine biosynthesis was determined to be present in 58 of the 65 archaeal species studied. However, also identified were seven archaeal species with entirely, or nearly entirely, absent purine encoding genes. Apparently the archaeal species unable to synthesize purines are able to acquire exogenous purines for growth., and are thus analogous to purine mutants of eukaryotes, e.g. purine mutants of the Ascomycete fungus "Neurospora crassa", that also require exogenous purines for growth.


title: Purine

text: Higher levels of meat and seafood consumption are associated with an increased risk of gout, whereas a higher level of consumption of dairy products is associated with a decreased risk. Moderate intake of purine-rich vegetables or protein is not associated with an increased risk of gout. Similar results have been found with the risk of hyperuricemia.


title: Purine

text: In addition to "in vivo" synthesis of purines in purine metabolism, purine can also be created artificially.


title: Purine

text: Purine (1) is obtained in good yield when formamide is heated in an open vessel at 170 °C for 28 hours.


title: Purine

text: This remarkable reaction and others like it have been discussed in the context of the origin of life.


title: Purine

text: Patented August 20, 1968, the current recognized method of industrial-scale production of adenine is a modified form of the formamide method. This method heats up formamide under 120 degree Celsius conditions within a sealed flask for 5 hours to form adenine. The reaction is heavily increased  in quantity by using a phosphorus oxychloride (phosphoryl chloride) or phosphorus pentachloride as an acid catalyst and sunlight or ultraviolet conditions. After the 5 hours have passed and the formamide-phosphorus oxychloride-adenine solution cools down, water is put into the flask containing the formamide and now-formed adenine. The water-formamide-adenine solution is then poured through a filtering column of activated charcoal. The water and formamide molecules, being small molecules, will pass through the charcoal and into the waste flask; the large adenine molecules, however, will attach or “adsorb” to the charcoal due to the van der waals forces that interact between the adenine and the carbon in the charcoal. Because charcoal has a large surface area, it's able to capture the majority of molecules that pass a certain size (greater than water and formamide) through it. To extract the adenine from the charcoal-adsorbed adenine, ammonia gas dissolved in water (aqua ammonia) is poured onto the activated charcoal-adenine structure to liberate the adenine into the ammonia-water solution. The solution containing water, ammonia, and adenine is then left to air dry, with the adenine losing solubility due to the loss of ammonia gas that previously made the solution basic and capable of dissolving adenine, thus causing it to crystallize into a pure white powder that can be stored.


title: Purine

text: Oro, Orgel and co-workers have shown that four molecules of HCN tetramerize to form diaminomaleodinitrile (12), which can be converted into almost all naturally occurring purines. For example, five molecules of HCN condense in an exothermic reaction to make adenine, especially in the presence of ammonia.


title: Purine

text: The Traube purine synthesis (1900) is a classic reaction (named after Wilhelm Traube) between an amine-substituted pyrimidine and formic acid.


title: Purine

text: In order to understand how life arose, knowledge is required of the chemical pathways that permit formation of the key building blocks of life under plausible prebiotic conditions. Nam et al. demonstrated the direct condensation of purine and pyrimidine nucleobases with ribose to give ribonucleosides in aqueous microdroplets, a key step leading to RNA formation. Also, a plausible prebiotic process for synthesizing purine ribonucleosides was presented by Becker et al.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: Nikola Corporation is an American manufacturer of heavy-duty commercial battery-electric vehicles, fuel-cell electric vehicles, and energy solutions. It presented several vehicle concepts from 2016 to 2020, the first of which was a natural gas fueled turbine-electric semi truck. The company went public on June 4, 2020. In February 2022, the company projected deliveries of between 300 and 500 of its first battery-electric semitrucks — known as the Nikola Tre — to customers. The company delivered its first two battery-electric trucks in December 2021. Like Tesla, Inc., the company is named in honor of Nikola Tesla, but is not related to the inventor. Nikola Corporation is based in Phoenix, Arizona.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: In September 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Department of Justice launched investigations into securities fraud allegations. In July 2021, a United States federal grand jury indicted Nikola founder and former CEO Trevor Milton, but did not indict the company. The indictment charged Milton with three counts of criminal fraud—for "lying about 'nearly all aspects of the business'"—and two counts of securities fraud. Publicly traded shares in Nikola dropped to around after falling from over $65 in mid-2020, when its market valuation had exceeded that of the Ford Motor Company. In October 2022 Milton was found guilty in federal court of three of four counts of fraud against him, over statements he made while CEO of the company.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: , the first 5,000 Nikola One hydrogen-powered glider trucks were slated to be built by Fitzgerald Glider Kits in Tennessee (gliders are truck vehicle platforms without engines). In March 2019, Nikola acquired a 389-acre parcel of land in Coolidge, Arizona, for $23 million, with future state and local tax breaks. Nikola said in 2019 that they expected truck factory construction to start in 2020, truck construction in 2021, and the fabrication of 35–50,000 trucks per year by 2023.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: In February 2019, Mark Russell was hired as company president. Russell had most recently been president and CEO of Nikola Corporation's investor, Worthington Industries.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: In April 2019, Nikola held the Nikola World event in Scottsdale, Arizona. The two-day midweek event included a public demo day to show off the Nikola Two truck, the Nikola Tre truck, the Nikola NZT UTV, and the Nikola WAV watercraft.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: In March 2020, Nikola Corporation announced its plans to merge with VectoIQ Acquisition Corporation (ticker VTIQ), a publicly traded special-purpose acquisition company run by former General Motors (GM) vice-chairman Steve Girsky. This resulted in the combined company being listed on the NASDAQ exchange with the NKLA ticker symbol. As part of the merger, founder and CEO Trevor Milton had his title changed from CEO to Executive Chairman and Nikola President Mark Russell became president and CEO. Nikola's stock began trading on June 4, 2020, a day after the merger was completed. By June 9, the shares had more than doubled since they began trading, as investors continued to bet on the growth potential of electric transportation. At the end of June, Nikola started taking reservations for pickup truck, the Badger, even though a prototype had not been shown to the public.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: The company was valued at around $13 billion in early August 2020, compared to its revenue in the first six months of 2020 of $80,000 ($36,000 of which was attributed to installation of solar facilities for CEO Milton).


title: Nikola Corporation

text: On September 8, 2020, Nikola and GM announced a partnership, by which GM would acquire an 11% stake in Nikola (valued at approximately $2 billion at the time of the announcement). GM would also earn the right to nominate one member to Nikola's board. In return, GM agreed to use its manufacturing facilities to begin production of the Badger, as well as supply fuel cells and batteries to Nikola globally. Nikola stock jumped by 50% after the announcement.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: On September 10, 2020, short seller firm Hindenburg Research released a report accusing Nikola of being "an intricate fraud" perpetrated largely by Milton. Further verification by "Financial Times" and "Research Enquirer" confirmed the report's claim regarding a showcased Nikola One rolling down a gradual slope with no onboard propulsion and instead by using the force of gravity. The stock fell by 10% that day while the stock of GM, which had made an agreement with Nikola days earlier, fell by 4%. By September 12, Nikola stock had fallen by 36%.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: Nikola called these claims "false and misleading" and threatened legal action against Hindenburg. The US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York showed interest in the report. Previously, Milton had alleged that those who were short-selling Nikola stocks are fans of rival company Tesla and are "anti-Nikola or paid attack accounts". In response to the release of the Hindenburg report, Mary Barra, CEO of GM, said her company conducted appropriate diligence before its deal with Nikola. Reports that became public on September 14 stated that the Securities and Exchange Commission had started a probe into the fraud allegations and on September 15, the Department of Justice began an investigation into Nikola as well.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: On September 21, 2020, Executive Chairman, founder and former CEO Trevor Milton announced his resignation from Nikola and Steve Girsky became non-executive chairman of the board. News of the allegations caused the share price of Nikola Corp to drop by 20%. Following the resignation, Nikola then "issued copyright-takedown notices targeting critics on YouTube who [citing fair use] used clips of the promotional video in which a Nikola One semi-truck was seen rolling down a hill" without a working drivetrain. "The Drive" called Nikola's action an "abuse of YouTube's copyright takedown system".


title: Nikola Corporation

text: On September 23, BP backed away from a potential partnership to develop hydrogen refueling stations for Nikola's EV Trucks; Nikola's stock price fell by more than 25% intraday after BP's statement. The partnership was cited as a critical component in Nikola's business plan for its electric vehicle trucks powered by hydrogen fuel cells. Nikola had planned to announce the BP partnership days after the GM partnership.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: In November 2020, GM announced that the proposed deal to take an equity stake in Nikola would no longer occur. A revised deal was proposed, having GM provide Nikola with the promised fuel-cell technology, but leaving out the 11% stake in the company as well as no longer producing the Badger electric pickup truck for the company. The Badger was subsequently cancelled.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: In December 2020, Republic Services stated that their previously announced partnership with Nikola would be terminated. The two companies had agreed to jointly develop zero-emissions garbage trucks in August 2020, including the production of at least 2,500 to 5,000 trucks for the Republic Services fleet by the start of 2023. Nikola's shares fell 9.8% after the announcement was released. Analysts call the canceled order a short-term setback, allowing the company to channel more focus towards the core of the business, being the production of semi-trucks designed for long-haul transport.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: In February 2021, the company publicly dropped their Powersports unit along with any plans they previously had to produce any of the powersports concept vehicles they had shown, including the Nikola WAV watersports vehicle. Also in February, as part of YE2020 filings with the SEC, the company stated that they now intended to produce just 50-100 Nikola Tre vehicles in 4Q2021. In June 2021, Nikola invested $50 million in a new hydrogen factory headed by Wabash Valley Resources to produce fuel for semi-truck fuel stations across the Midwest. In July 2021, the company announced plans to add five new Class 8 truck dealers in Arizona, Texas, Colorado, California, New Mexico, Delaware, Florida, Maryland and Virginia. In late July 2021, a United States federal grand jury returned an indictment against Trevor Milton that included three counts of criminal fraud, including "lying about 'nearly all aspects of the business'" and two counts of securities fraud. Milton pleaded not guilty to the charges and was freed on $100 million bail, secured by two Utah properties. Nikola's share price dropped further and traded at $12 after falling from near $65 in June 2020, when Nikola had a company valuation in excess of the Ford Motor Company.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: Following the indictment of Milton in July 2021, the company stated "We remain committed to our previously announced milestones and timelines and are focused on delivering Nikola Tre battery-electric trucks later this year (fewer than 100 Tre vehicles, per 1Q2021 SEC filings) from the company’s manufacturing facilities." In October 2022, Milton was found guilty in federal court of three of four counts of fraud against him, over statements he made while CEO of the company.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: In August 2022, Nikola announced that it would be acquiring the battery company Romeo Power. On August 4, 2022, it was reported that Nikola has delivered 48 vehicles to dealers, and reported a revenue of $18.1 million. In September 2022, all 93 of its Tre Class 8 battery-electric vehicles were recalled due to an issue with seat belt anchor assembly. Nikola published in October 2022 that they have completed the acquisition of Romeo and "look forward to executing on the opportunities ahead.”


title: Nikola Corporation

text: The company makes the Nikola Tre BEV battery electric semi-truck, a Class 8 truck. The total battery capacity (9 Pack) is 733 kWh, the connector type is CCS (CCS1 and CCS2) and charging time (80%) 160 minutes @ 175 kW. Charging up to 350 kW is expected to be available via update in Q4 2022


title: Nikola Corporation

text: Created to support the transition from diesel to zero-emission transportation, California’s Hybrid and Zero-Emission Truck and Bus Voucher Incentive Project (HVIP) still has limited vouchers available for California fleets to reduce the cost of a Class 8 Nikola Tre battery-electric vehicle (BEV) by up to $150,000 per truck.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: The Nikola Tre BEV is eligible for the New York Truck Voucher Incentive Program (NYTVIP) which provides vouchers, or discounts, to fleets across New York State that purchase or lease medium- and heavy-duty zero-emission battery-electric vehicles (BEV). Administered by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), NYTVIP helps make it easier for fleets to adopt zero-emission vehicle technologies by significantly reducing upfront costs. Purchasers of the Nikola Tre BEV can now qualify for an incentive valued at up to $185,000 per truck, with a scrappage requirement.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: Nikola has publicly announced a number of vehicle design concepts since 2016 and unveiled a few concept vehicles that the company aims to develop for public sale.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: In 2016, the company unveiled a high-level design for a natural gas fuelled Class 8 truck called the Nikola One, aimed then to be in production in 2020. The concept was changed in August 2016 to a hydrogen fuel-cell powered generator instead of a natural gas fuelled gas-turbine generator. In 2016 Nikola claimed to have received $2.3 Billion in pre-sales, to date no deliveries have been made.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: In May 2018, Nikola Motor Company filed a lawsuit against Tesla, Inc. seeking $2 billion in damages alleging that the Tesla Semi infringed on six patents that Nikola has been granted on the design of the Nikola One. Tesla responded that the lawsuit is without merit. In September 2019, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board denied Tesla's request to invalidate Nikola's side-door patent. As of September 2020, the lawsuit is still ongoing.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: In May 2018, Anheuser-Busch placed a provisional purchase order for up to 800 leases of the hydrogen-powered truck versions, and Nikola claimed then that the trucks would start being delivered in 2020. By 2019, total pre-orders for truck leases encompassing all Nikola Class 8 truck models were claimed to be worth $14 billion.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: The Nikola Two is a semi-tractor truck concept designed to be technically identical to the Nikola One. Unlike the Nikola One, a prototype driving under its own power was demonstrated in 2019, including when hauling a cargo of beer for a future customer.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: In November 2018, the company unveiled a Nikola Tre hydrogen-powered semi-truck concept aimed at the European market. The hydrogen ICE Tre was also stated to be targeted for the Australian and Asian markets. Nikola said the Tre concept was to have and a range of . Former CEO Trevor Milton stated in 2018 that production was planned to begin at the same time as the US truck versions, which was then thought to be 2022–2023.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: In November 2019, the company unveiled a Nikola Tre electric truck concept (a rebadged version of the Iveco S-Way) that would also be aimed at the European market, just as the original hydrogen Tre had been. In July 2021, the company restated that they intend to deliver the first production Nikola Tre battery electric trucks later in 2021. The Tre was delivered to the Port of Los Angeles in December 2021. It has a 753 kWh battery pack, rechargeable from 10 to 80% in 120 minutes at 240 kW. California qualified the Tre for its HVIP program in January 2022 at up to $120,000, and New York at up to $185,000.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: The first customer delivery of the Nikola Tre was made in April 2022, with 11 vehicles being delivered.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: In 2016, a prototype concept, the Nikola NZT (briefly originally referred to as the Nikola Zero) was unveiled as a utility task vehicle with a 72 or 107 kWh battery. The concept was stated to have total, provided by a motor at each wheel, weigh , and use the same clearance suspension as the Ford Raptor. By the end of 2016, it was listed as a powersports product, in the "Nikola Powersports" division.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: In 2017 Nikola took a journalist for a ride-along in a prototype of the car in a Utah desert to demonstrate the vehicle's capabilities. That was an open-cabin version, lacking doors or a windshield. On April 16, 2019, Nikola presented an NZT in Phoenix, Arizona, that appeared similar to the original one, except it had doors (but still lacked a roof and a windshield). Nikola says it offered rides in this vehicle to the attendees during the event, and published a video claiming to show it. The vehicle was supposed to have , and up to of range per electric charge. The vehicle was cancelled, alongside the rest of the powersports division, in February 2021.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: The Nikola Reckless was a concept vehicle that was projected to be a military grade fully-electric tactical off-highway vehicle. A prototype of the vehicle was displayed in the International Special Operations Forces Industry Exhibition Conference in May 2018.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: The vehicle's chassis would be 4×4 although it could switch to two-wheel drive. It would weigh and would be able to carry up to . Also, the vehicle would have a machine gun. The vehicle was removed from the website with the cancellation of the powersports division.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: The Nikola WAV was a concept vehicle unveiled in April 2019 as a Nikola Motors watersports offering and presented alongside the Nikola Zero. The Nikola WAV concept had a waterproof 4K resolution screen, and cruise control. The vehicle was cancelled, alongside the entire powersports division, in February 2021.


title: Nikola Corporation

text: The Badger was a proposed electric pickup truck announced in February 2020. Nikola planned two variants, the first powered by a combination of hydrogen fuel cells and batteries and second all-electric, without fuel cells. The truck was intended to go to market in 2022 with the assistance of GM. In November 2020, GM pulled out of the deal and Nikola canceled the truck.


title: Water scarcity

text: Water scarcity (closely related to water stress or water crisis) is the lack of fresh water resources to meet the standard water demand. There are two types of water scarcity: physical or economic water scarcity. Physical water scarcity is where there is not enough water to meet all demands, including that needed for ecosystems to function effectively. Arid areas for example Central and West Asia, and North Africa often suffer from physical water scarcity. On the other hand, economic water scarcity is caused by a lack of investment in infrastructure or technology to draw water from rivers, aquifers, or other water sources, or insufficient human capacity to satisfy the demand for water. Much of Sub-Saharan Africa has economic water scarcity.