title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: Upon the death of President Juan Perón, his widow and Vice President Isabel became President. Videla headed a military coup which deposed her on 1976, during increasing violence, social unrest and economic problems. A military junta was formed, made up of him, representing the Army; Admiral Emilio Massera representing the Navy; and Brigadier General Orlando Ramón Agosti representing the Air Force.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: The military junta is remembered for the forced disappearances of large numbers of students. The military junta took power during a period of terrorist attacks from the Marxist groups ERP, the Montoneros, FAL, FAR and FAP, who had gone underground after Juan Perón's death in , and violent right-wing kidnappings, tortures and assassinations from the "Argentine Anticommunist Alliance", led by José López Rega, Perón's Minister of Social Welfare, and other death squads. The "Baltimore Sun" reported at the beginning of 1976 that,


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: In the jungle-covered mountains of Tucuman, long known as 'Argentina's garden', Argentines are fighting Argentines in a Vietnam-style civil war. So far, the outcome is in doubt. But there is no doubt about the seriousness of the combat, which involves 2,000 or so leftist guerrillas and perhaps as many as 10,000 soldiers. In late 1974 the ERP set up a rural front in Tucumán province and the Argentine Army deployed the 5th Mountain Brigade of the 2nd Army Division in counterinsurgency operations in the province. In early 1976 the mountain brigade was reinforced in the form of the 4th Airborne Brigade that had until then been withheld guarding strategic points in the city of Córdoba against ERP guerrillas and militants.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: The members of the junta took advantage of the guerrilla threat to authorize the coup and naming the period in government as the "National Reorganization Process". In all, 293 servicemen and policemen were killed in left-wing terrorist incidents in 1975 and 1976. Videla narrowly escaped three assassination attempts by the Montoneros and ERP between February 1976 and April 1977.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: Justice Minister Ricardo Gil Lavedra, who formed part of the 1985 tribunal judging the military crimes committed during the Dirty War, later declared, "I sincerely believe that the majority of the victims of the illegal repression were guerrilla militants". Some 10,000 of the disappeared were guerrillas of the Montoneros, and the People's Revolutionary Army. However, the campaign of repression actually intensified after the guerrillas were defeated and it was during this time, when they targeted the church, labor unions, artists, intellectuals and university students and professors, that the junta accumulated the greatest number of victims.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: According to human right groups, an estimated 15,000 to 30,000 Argentines "disappeared" while in the custody of the police or the military. Among the victims were two French nuns (Alice Domon and Léonie Duquet) who had taught and cared for Videla's disabled son, Alejandro. Some 1,500 to 4,000 were drugged into a stupor, loaded into military aircraft, stripped naked and then thrown into the Rio de la Plata and Atlantic Ocean to drown in what became known as "death flights." Between 10,000 and 12,000 of the "disappeared," PEN (Poder Ejecutivo Nacional) detainees held in clandestine detention camps throughout the dictatorship, were eventually released under diplomatic pressure. Terence Roehrig estimates that of the disappeared "at least 10,000 were involved in various ways with the guerrillas".


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: In the book "Disposición Final" by Argentine journalist Ceferino Reato, Videla confirms for the first time that between 1976 and 1983, 8.000 Argentines have been murdered by his regime. The bodies were hidden or destroyed to prevent protests at home and abroad. Videla also maintained that female guerrilla detainees allowed themselves to become pregnant in the belief they would not be tortured or executed, but they were. The children whom they bore in prison were taken from them, illegally adopted by military families of the regime, and their identities were hidden for decades.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: According to Human rights organisations in Argentina, between 1,900 and 3,000 Jews were among the 30,000 who were targeted by the Argentine military junta. It is a disproportionate number, as Jews comprised between 5–12% of those targeted but only 1% of the population. Historian Daniel Muchnik attributed this to many Jews gravitating to political activism and armed resistance groups such as the ERP and FAP during the period. However, testimonies from Jewish Argentines suggest that they were targeted for being Jewish. Many torture victims were said to have seen pictures of Adolf Hitler and swastikas on walls of torture chambers and interrogators uttering anti-Semitic epithets. Jews were also known to have suffered anti-Semitic harassment while in the Argentine military. Between 200 and 300 Jews were subject to attacks, often by their superiors.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: Some 11,000 Argentines have applied for and received up to US$200,000 as monetary compensation from the state for the loss of loved ones during the military dictatorship. The "Asamblea por los Derechos Humanos" (APDH or Assembly for Human Rights) believes that 12,261 people were killed or disappeared during the "National Reorganization Process". Politically, all legislative power was concentrated in the hands of Videla's nine-man junta, and every important position in the national government was filled with loyal military officers.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: As Argentina’s new president, Videla faced a collapsing economy racked by soaring inflation. He largely left economic policies in the hands of Minister José Alfredo Martínez de Hoz, who adopted a free trade and deregulatory economic policy.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: Martínez de Hoz took measures to restore economic growth, reversing Peronism in favour of a free market economy. Inflation rate decreased somewhat, but remained still high.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: He enjoyed the personal friendship of David Rockefeller, who facilitated Chase Manhattan Bank and International Monetary Fund loans of nearly US$1 billion after his arrival.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: He eliminated all price controls and the exchange controls regime. The black market and shortages disappeared.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: He freed exports (removed existing prohibitions and quotas and export taxes were repealed) and imports (removed existing prohibitions, quotas, and licenses and gradually reduced import tariffs).


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: During his tenure, the foreign debt increased fourfold, and disparities between the upper and lower classes became much more pronounced. The period ended in a tenfold devaluation and one of the worst financial crises in Argentine history.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: The coup d'état had been planned since October 1975, and the United States Department of State learned of the preparations two months before its execution. Henry Kissinger would meet several times with Argentine Armed Forces leaders after the coup, urging them to destroy their opponents quickly before outcry over human rights abuses grew in the United States.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: The US State Department saw Argentina as a bulwark of anti-communism in South America and in early April 1976, the US Congress approved a request by the Ford Administration, written by Henry Kissinger, to grant $50,000,000 in security assistance to the junta. In 1977, the US Department of Defense authorized $700,000 to train 217 argentine military officers and in 1977 and 1978 the United States sold more than $120,000,000 in spare military parts to Argentina.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: At the same time, though, the new US President Jimmy Carter highlighted issues of human rights and, in 1978, convinced Congress to cut off all US arms transfers to Argentina.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: During Videla's regime, Argentina rejected the binding Report and decision of the Court of Arbitration over the Beagle conflict (about possession of the Picton, Lennox and Nueva islands) at the southern tip of South America and started Operation Soberanía in order to invade the islands. In 1978, however, Pope John Paul II opened a mediation process. His representative, Antonio Samorè, successfully prevented full-scale war.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: The conflict was not completely resolved until after Videla's time as president. Once the democratic rule was restored in 1983, the Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1984 between Chile and Argentina ("Tratado de Paz y Amistad"), which acknowledged Chilean sovereignty over the islands, was signed and ratified by popular referendum.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: Although Videla was anti-Communist, his regime maintained good relations with the Soviet Union and China; trade ties with both were expanded under his rule.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: One of Videla's greatest challenges was his image abroad. He attributed criticism over human rights to an anti-Argentine campaign. On 19 May 1976, he attended a luncheon with a group of Argentine intellectuals, including Ernesto Sábato, Jorge Luis Borges, Horacio Esteban Ratti (president of the Argentine Writers Society) and Father Leonardo Castellani. The latter expressed to Videla his concern regarding the disappearance of another writer, Haroldo Conti.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: On 30 April 1977, Azucena Villaflor, along with 13 other women, started demonstrations on the Plaza de Mayo, in front of the Casa Rosada presidential palace, demanding to be told the whereabouts of their disappeared children. They became known as the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo ("Madres de Plaza de Mayo").


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: During a human rights investigation in , the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights denounced Videla's government, citing many disappearances and instances of abuse. In response, the junta hired the Burson-Marsteller ad agency to formulate a pithy comeback: "Los argentinos somos derechos y humanos" (Literally, "We the Argentines are righteous and humane"). The slogan was printed on 250,000 bumper stickers and distributed to motorists throughout Buenos Aires to create the appearance of a spontaneous support of pro-junta sentiment, at a cost of approximately $16,117.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: Videla used the 1978 FIFA World Cup for political purposes. He cited the enthusiasm of the Argentine fans for their victorious football team as evidence of his personal and the junta's popularity.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: In 1980, Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, leader of the Peace and Justice Service, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for reporting many of Argentina's human rights violations to the world at large.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: Videla relinquished power to Roberto Viola on 1981. On April 7th, 1982, Videla attended the swearing-in ceremony of general Mario Benjamín Menéndez as governor of the Malvinas Islands. The military regime continued until it collapsed after losing the Falklands war in 1982. Democracy was restored in 1983.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: The new government began prosecution of top-ranking officers for crimes committed during the dictatorship in what was called the Trial of the Juntas of 1985. Videla was convicted of numerous homicides, kidnapping, torture, and many other crimes. He was sentenced to life imprisonment and was discharged from the military in 1985.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: Videla was imprisoned for five years. In 1990, President Carlos Menem pardoned Videla and many other imprisoned former members of the military regime. Menem also pardoned the leftist guerrilla commanders accused of terrorism. In a televised address to the nation, President Menem said, "I have signed the decrees so we may begin to rebuild the country in peace, in liberty and in justice ... We come from long and cruel confrontations. There was a wound to heal."


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: Videla briefly returned to prison in 1998 when a judge found him guilty of the kidnapping of babies during the Dirty War, including the child of the "desaparecida" Silvia Quintela, and the disappearances of the commanders of the People's Revolutionary Army (ERP), Mario Roberto Santucho and Benito Urteaga. Videla spent 38 days in the old part of the Caseros Prison. Due to health issues, he was later transferred to house arrest.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: Following the election of President Néstor Kirchner in 2003, there was a renewed widespread effort in Argentina to show the illegality of Videla's rule. The government no longer recognized Videla as having been a legal president of the country, and his portrait was removed from the military school. In 2003, Congress repealed the Ley de Punto Final, which had ended prosecutions for crimes under the dictatorship. In 2005, the Argentine Supreme Court ruled that the law had been unconstitutional. The government re-opened prosecution of crimes against humanity.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: On 6 September 2006, Judge Norberto Oyarbide ruled that the pardons granted by President Menem were unconstitutional. On 2007, a federal court struck down Videla's presidential pardon and restored his convictions for human rights abuses.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: He was put on trial on 2010 for new charges of human rights violations relating to the deaths of 31 prisoners who died under his rule. Three days later, Videla took full responsibility for his army's actions during his rule, saying, "I accept the responsibility as the highest military authority during the internal war. My subordinates followed my orders." On 2010, the trial ended, and Videla was convicted and sentenced to life in prison. He was ordered to be transferred to a civilian prison immediately after the trial. In handing down the sentence, judge María Elba Martínez said that Videla was "a manifestation of state terrorism." During the trial, Videla had said that "yesterday's enemies are in power and from there, they are trying to establish a Marxist regime" in Argentina.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: On 5 July 2012, Videla was convicted and sentenced to 50 years' imprisonment for his participation in a scheme to steal babies from parents detained by the military regime. According to the court decision, Videla was an accomplice "in the crimes of theft, retention and hiding of minors, as well as replacing their identities." The children were given to military families for illegal adoption, and their identities were hidden. An estimated 400 children were stolen during this period, often from mothers who gave birth in prison and who were later "disappeared." By June 2019, 130 of these adoptees had their identities restored.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: On 17 May 2013, Videla was reported as having died of natural causes in his sleep while serving his sentence at a Marcos Paz prison. An autopsy revealed he died from multiple fractures and internal hemorrhaging caused by having slipped in a prison shower on 12 May. According to a 2009 ruling by the military, he (and others convicted of human rights violations) were not eligible for a military funeral. A private ceremony was held by his family.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: Human rights organizations throughout the political compass denounced Videla, saying that he died without admitting that he was aware of the disappeared persons and kidnapped children. None of the tried ex-officers has provided details about the fate of those missing. Videla appeared mostly unrepentant for the actions against those whom he deemed terrorist subversives.


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: Several Argentine politicians commented on his death. Deputy Ricardo Gil Lavedra of the Radical Civic Union said that Videla will be remembered as a dictator, while Hermes Binner expressed condolences to the victims of his government. Hernán Lombardi, Minister of Culture of Buenos Aires city, praised Argentine democracy for having tried and sentenced the dictator. Ricardo Alfonsín said it was good that Videla had died in prison. Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, Argentine recipient of the 1980 Nobel Peace Prize, said, "The death of Videla should not delight anybody, we have to keep working for a better society, more just, more humane, so that all that horror never happens again".


title: Jorge Rafael Videla

text: Cabinet Chief Juan Manuel Abal Medina said that he was glad that, "Videla died prosecuted, sentenced and imprisoned in a common cell, repudiated by the Argentine people". At the time of Videla's death he was one of two surviving dictators of Argentina. The last surviving president from the dictatorship, Reynaldo Bignone, died on 7 March 2018.


title: Ruthenians

text: Ruthenian and Ruthene are exonyms of Latin origin, formerly used in Eastern and Central Europe as common ethnonyms for East Slavs, particularly during the late medieval and early modern periods. The Latin term Rutheni was used in medieval sources to describe all Eastern Slavs of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, as an exonym for people of the former Kievan Rus', thus including ancestors of the modern Belarusians, Rusyns and Ukrainians. The use of "Ruthenian" and related exonyms continued through the early modern period, developing several distinctive meanings, both in terms of their regional scopes and additional religious connotations (such as affiliation with the Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church).


title: Ruthenians

text: In medieval sources, the Latin term "Rutheni" was commonly applied to East Slavs in general, thus encompassing all endonyms and their various forms (Ukrainian: "русини", Belarusian: "русіны"). By opting for the use of exonymic terms, authors who wrote in Latin were relieved from the need to be specific in their applications of those terms, and the same quality of "Ruthenian" exonyms is often recognized in modern, mainly Western authors, particularly those who prefer to use exonyms (foreign in origin) over endonyms.


title: Ruthenians

text: During the early modern period, the exonym "Ruthenian" was most frequently applied to the East Slavic population of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, an area encompassing territories of modern Ukraine and Belarus from the 15th up to the 18th centuries. In the former Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, the same term () was employed (up to 1918) as an official exonym for the entire East Slavic population within the borders of the Monarchy.


title: Ruthenians

text: "Ruteni", a misnomer that was also the name of an extinct and unrelated Celtic tribe in Ancient Gaul, was used in reference to Rus' in the "Annales Augustani" of 1089. An alternative early modern Latinisation, "Rucenus" (plural "Ruceni") was, according to Boris Unbegaun, derived from "Rusyn". Baron Herberstein, describing the land of "Russia", inhabited by the "Rutheni" who call themselves "Russi", claimed that the first of the governors who rule "Russia" is the Grand Duke of Moscow, the second is the Grand Duke of Lithuania and the third is the King of Poland.


title: Ruthenians

text: According to professor John-Paul Himka from the University of Alberta the word "Rutheni" did not include the modern Russians, who were known as "Moscovitae". Vasili III of Russia, who ruled the Grand Duchy of Moscow in the 16th century, was known in European Latin sources as "Rhuteni Imperator". Jacques Margeret in his book "Estat de l'empire de Russie, et grande duché de Moscovie" of 1607 explained, that the name "Muscovites" for the population of Tsardom (Empire) of Russia is an error. During conversations, they called themselves "rusaki" (which is a colloquial term for "Russians") and only the citizens of the capital called themself "Muscovites". Margeret considered that this error is worse than calling all the French "Parisians". Professor David Frick from the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute has also found in Vilnius the documents from 1655, which demonstrate that Moscovitae were also known in Lithuania as Rutheni. The 16th century Portuguese poet Luís Vaz de Camões in his Os Lusíadas" (Canto III, 11) clearly writes "...Entre este mar e o Tánais vive estranha Gente: Rutenos, Moscos e Livónios, Sármatas outro tempo..." differentiating between Ruthenians and Muscovites.


title: Ruthenians

text: After the partition of Poland the term Ruthenian referred exclusively to people of the Rusyn- and Ukrainian-speaking areas of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, especially in the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, Bukovina, and Transcarpathia.


title: Ruthenians

text: At the request of Mykhajlo Levitsky, in 1843 the term Ruthenian became the official name for the Rusyns and Ukrainians within the Austrian Empire. For example, Ivan Franko and Stepan Bandera in their passports were identified as Ruthenians (). By 1900 more and more Ruthenians began to call themselves with the self-designated name Ukrainians. A number of Ukrainian members of the intelligentsia, such as Mykhailo Drahomanov and Ivan Franko, perceived the term as narrow-minded, provincial and Habsburg. With the emergence of Ukrainian nationalism during the mid-19th century, use of "Ruthenian" and cognate terms declined among Ukrainians and fell out of use in Eastern and Central Ukraine. Most people in the western region of Ukraine followed suit later in the 19th century. During the early 20th century, the name "Ukrajins’ka mova" ("Ukrainian language") became accepted by much of the Ukrainian-speaking literary class in the Austro-Hungarian Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria.


title: Ruthenians

text: Following the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918, new states emerged and dissolved; borders changed frequently. After several years the Rusyn and Ukrainian speaking areas of eastern Austria-Hungary found themselves divided between the Ukrainian Soviet Republic, Czechoslovakia, Poland, and Romania.


title: Ruthenians

text: When commenting on the partition of Czechoslovakia by Nazi Germany in March 1939, US diplomat George Kennan noted, "To those who inquire whether these peasants are Russians or Ukrainians, there is only one answer. They are Neither. They are simply Ruthenians." Dr. Paul R. Magocsi emphasizes that modern Ruthenians have "the sense of a nationality distinct from Ukrainians" and often associate Ukrainians with Soviets or Communists.


title: Ruthenians

text: After the expansion of Soviet Ukraine following World War II, several groups who had not previously considered themselves Ukrainians were merged into the Ukrainian identity.


title: Ruthenians

text: In the Interbellum period of the 20th century, the term "rusyn" ("Ruthenian") was also applied to people from the "Kresy Wschodnie" (the eastern borderlands) in the Second Polish Republic, and included Ukrainians, Rusyns, and Lemkos, or alternatively, members of the Uniate or Greek Catholic Church churches. In Galicia, the Polish government actively replaced all references to "Ukrainians" with the old word "rusini" ("Ruthenians").


title: Ruthenians

text: The Polish census of 1921 considered Ukrainians no other than Ruthenians. However the Polish census of 1931 counted Belarusian, Ukrainian, Russian, and Ruthenian as separate language categories, and the census results were substantially different from before. According to Rusyn-American historian Paul Robert Magocsi, Polish government policy in the 1930s pursued a strategy of tribalization, regarding various ethnographic groups—i.e., Lemkos, Boykos, and Hutsuls, as well Old Ruthenians and Russophiles—as different from other Ukrainians (although no such category existed in the Polish census apart from the first-language speakers of Russian), and offered instructions in Lemko vernacular in state schools set up in the westernmost Lemko Region.


title: Ruthenians

text: The Polish census of 1931 listed "Russian", "Ruthenian" and "Ukrainian" (Polish: rosyjski, ruski, ukraiński, respectively) as separate languages.


title: Ruthenians

text: By the end of the 19th century, another set of terms came into use in several western languages, combining regional Carpathian with "Ruthenian" designations, and thus producing composite terms such as: Carpatho-Ruthenes or Carpatho-Ruthenians. Those terms also acquired several meanings, depending on the shifting geographical scopes of the term Carpathian Ruthenia. Those meanings were also spanning from wider uses as designations for all East Slavs of the Carpathian region, to more narrower uses, focusing on those local groups of East Slavs who did not accept modern Russian or Ukrainian identities, but rather opted to keep their traditional Rusyn identity.


title: Ruthenians

text: The designations Rusyn and Carpatho-Rusyn were banned in the Soviet Union by the end of World War II in June 1945. Ruthenians who identified under the Rusyn ethnonym and considered themselves to be a national and linguistic group separate from Ukrainians and Belarusians were relegated to the Carpathian diaspora and formally functioned among the large immigrant communities in the United States. A cross-European revival took place only with the collapse of communist rule in 1989. This has resulted in political conflict and accusations of intrigue against Rusyn activists, including criminal charges. The Rusyn minority is well represented in Slovakia. The single category of people who listed their ethnicity as Rusyn was created in the 1920s, however, no generally accepted standardised Rusyn language existed.


title: Ruthenians

text: The government of Slovakia has proclaimed Rusyns ("Rusíni") to be a distinct national minority (1991) and recognised Rusyn language as a distinct language (1995).


title: Ruthenians

text: Since the 19th century, several speculative theories emerged regarding the origin and nature of medieval and early modern uses of "Ruthenian" terms as designations for East Slavs. Some of those theories were focused on a very specific source, a memorial plate from 1521, that was placed in the catacombe Chapel of St Maximus in Petersfriedhof, the burial site of St Peter's Abbey in Salzburg (modern Austria). The plate contains Latin inscription that mentions Italian ruler Odoacer (476-493) as king of "Rhutenes" or "Rhutenians" (), and narrates a story about the martyrdom of St Maximus during an invasion of several peoples into Noricum in 477. Due to the very late date (1521) and several anachronistic elements, the content of that plate is considered as legendary.


title: Ruthenians

text: In spite of that, some authors (mainly non-scholars) employed that plate as a "source" for several theories that were trying to connect Odoacer with ancient Celtic Ruthenes from Gaul, thus also providing an apparent bridge towards later medieval authors who labeled East Slavs as "Ruthenes" or "Ruthenians". On those bases, an entire strain of speculative theories was created, regarding the alleged connection between ancient Gallic Ruthenes and later East Slavic "Ruthenians". As noted by professor Paul R. Magocsi, those theories should be regarded as "inventive tales" of "creative" writers.


title: Ruthenians

text: From the 9th century, the main Rus' state, which was known later as Kyivan Rus' – and is now part of the modern states of Ukraine, Belarus and Russia – was known in Western Europe by a variety of names derived from Rus'. From the 12th century, the land of Rus' was usually known in Western Europe by the Latinised name Ruthenia.


title: Brian Griffin

text: H. Brian Griffin is a fictional character from the American animated television series "Family Guy". An anthropomorphic white labrador retriever voiced by Seth MacFarlane, he is one of the show's main characters as a member of the Griffin family. He primarily works in the series as a less-than-adept writer struggling to find himself, attempting essays, novels, screenplays, and newspaper articles.


title: Brian Griffin

text: He first appeared on television, along with the rest of the family, in a 15-minute short on December 20, 1998. Brian was created and designed by MacFarlane himself. MacFarlane was asked to pitch a pilot to the Fox Broadcasting Company, based on "The Life of Larry" and "Larry & Steve", two shorts made by MacFarlane featuring a middle-aged character named Larry and an intellectual dog, Steve. These two are now considered as Peter and Brian. After the pilot was given the green light, the Griffin family appeared in the episode "Death Has a Shadow".


title: Brian Griffin

text: Brian has been featured in many items of merchandise for "Family Guy", and he is considered to be one of the show's biggest merchandising characters. He has also made crossover appearances in the other MacFarlane-produced shows, such as "American Dad!" and "The Cleveland Show".


title: Brian Griffin

text: As a character, Brian was initially very well received by critics although reception in later years has been mixed. When Brian was killed off in the season 12 episode "Life of Brian", the events of the episode received substantial attention from the media and elicited strongly negative reactions from fans of the show. Brian subsequently returned two episodes later, in "Christmas Guy", after Stewie, his best friend, traveled back in time to save him.


title: Brian Griffin

text: Brian is a white-furred anthropomorphic dog. He can talk, generally walks on his hind legs (using his front legs as arms), has opposable thumbs, drives a second-generation Toyota Prius (with the license plate "BRI-DOG"), and is often portrayed as the only sane person in his family. He is the pet dog of the Griffin family, and in keeping with the show's treatment of anthropomorphic characters generally, Brian's human attributes receive little acknowledgment and no explanation; he is largely treated as a human character. Brian is the best friend of Stewie, and many of the show's sub-plots center around them. They are occasionally at the center of the plot, for instance in the "Road to..." episodes. Brian and Stewie have a love–hate relationship in which they constantly argue and humiliate each other, and yet show appreciation for each other several times. In the episode "Brian and Stewie", they admit that they love each other as friends, and give each other's lives purpose.


title: Brian Griffin

text: Brian is an alcoholic and is very fond of dry martinis and is seen to have withdrawal symptoms in various episodes when he is told or forced to stop drinking. He smokes occasionally, although in the episode "Mr. Griffin Goes to Washington", after seeing Peter promoting a corrupt cigarette company, he quit smoking, a habit he resumed at the end of that episode. He also regularly smokes marijuana. After a brief stint as a drug sniffing dog, he developed a cocaine addiction, but after spending time in rehab he managed to achieve sobriety.


title: Brian Griffin

text: He is the son of Coco and Biscuit, who were normal dogs, though Brian's human attributes have been present since he was a puppy. He claims his father was a racist. Brian received an Ivy League education, having attended Brown University, as seen in "Brian Goes Back to College" but was one course away from graduating. He is also an Iraq War veteran because Stewie signed them both up for the Army, in "Saving Private Brian". "Family Guy" uses a floating timeline in which the characters do not age much, so the show is always assumed to be set in the current year. However, several of the characters, such as Meg Griffin, have aged two to three years since the show's pilot episode, while others, such as Stewie and Brian, have aged very little. At the start of the series, Brian was 7–8, but is currently 10 years old. Despite his intelligence, Brian has shown conventional dog behavior on occasion. He greatly fears the vacuum cleaner which Lois refers to as "Mr. Hoover", he once ran excitedly into the kitchen when Meg shook a bag of dog food, and in the episode "Bill & Peter's Bogus Journey" it is revealed that Brian can only defecate and urinate on the Griffin's front lawn.


title: Brian Griffin

text: In several episodes, events have been linked to specific times, although this timeline has been contradicted in subsequent episodes. An example of this is when in "", Peter is shown in a flashback finding a fully grown Brian as a stray. However, in "The Man with Two Brians", Brian tries to regain attention from the Griffin family by showing them home videos of him as a puppy, although none of the videos of him as a puppy showed any member of the Griffin family, so it is possible that the videos were filmed by a previous owner. He also has a human son named Dylan, who was a regular marijuana smoker, before Brian managed to turn Dylan's life around, from a violent, uneducated teenager, to an eloquent and kind-hearted young man. Their relationship becomes strained over time as Brian had become distant with Dylan only until he learned that his son had been cast in a television show, using his son to land a job as a writer for the show. Stewie is very confused upon how Brian as an 8-year-old dog can have a teenage son, and Brian's remark about it being in dog years confuses him even further.


title: Brian Griffin

text: Brian is a political liberal, who supports legalizing marijuana, gay marriage and ending the war on terror. He is also an atheist, although in the episode "April in Quahog" he starts praying out of panic when news anchors Tom Tucker and Diane Simmons announce that the world will end (later revealed to be an April Fools joke). In "Brian and Stewie", Brian revealed that he voted for John McCain.


title: Brian Griffin

text: Despite once being portrayed as having a high intellect, more recent episodes have depicted Brian as having an average-at-best intelligence and being a fraudulent intellectual, such as pretending to be well-read or understanding concepts he does not, such as the multiverse theory in "Road to the Multiverse". He often tries to impress others of how smart he is but is frequently corrected by others, mainly Stewie. After taking the SATS for Meg, it is revealed that Brian actually scored the lowest in the class which causes him to have an identity crisis. (The low SAT score was later explained by Brian having a brain tumor at the time.) He has since been generally insecure about his intelligence and will sometimes take credit for some of Stewie's achievements in order to make himself look smart.


title: Brian Griffin

text: Brian sees himself as a romantic and has had several relationships over the years, mainly with human women. Brian will often abandon his own personal beliefs and personality in order to make himself more appealing to the women he's attracted to and sometimes resorts to lying in order to make himself look good. These relationships often end badly due to his inflated ego or being caught in a deception.


title: Brian Griffin

text: His longest lasting relationship was with Jillian Russell, a beautiful but dim witted girl who Brian dated in season 5. He eventually moves in with her but is unable to pay rent. This eventually leads to a fight when Brian reveals he did not want to move in with her. He later tries to win her back but discovers she's now dating Adam West, leaving him heartbroken.


title: Brian Griffin

text: Brian's most significant relationship was with Jess Schlotz, a woman diagnosed with terminal cancer who Brian meets in a bar. As Jess had only a little time left to live, Brian agreed to help her with her bucket list and the two fall in love. The couple eventually get married as Jess' time grew shorter, a decision Brian later regretted when Jess' doctor said she'll make a full recovery. Brian became deeply depressed following the marriage, becoming overweight and emotionally distant to the point where Jess brings him to the pound to be put down. The two remain married until Jess' death, which occurred during a commercial break.


title: Brian Griffin

text: Brian is an aspiring but struggling writer – this is said to be a reference to Snoopy from "Peanuts". Brian is unemployed, but he is often seen writing various novels, screenplays, or essays. His difficult writing career and apparent lack of talent is used as a recurring joke throughout the series. In the episode "Play it Again, Brian", Brian won an award for an essay he wrote, though he later admits that he plagiarized the piece.


title: Brian Griffin

text: In the episode "Movin' Out (Brian's Song)", Brian starts writing his book "Faster Than The Speed of Love", which is revealed to be a rip-off of the "Iron Eagle" films, specifically "".


title: Brian Griffin

text: In the episode "420", Brian finally publishes "Faster Than the Speed of Love", and the novel is shipped, but it is critically panned and does not sell a single copy. In the episode "Dog Gone", he receives an invitation from the Rhode Island Society for Special Literary Excellence to an award ceremony celebrating his novel. Brian, convinced that he is a great writer, attempts to gain the family's interest in this piece of news but fails to do so. Once he arrives at the "award ceremony", however, he discovers that he has misunderstood the meaning of the word "special".


title: Brian Griffin

text: In the episode "Brian Griffin's House of Payne", he writes a television script entitled "What I Learned on Jefferson Street", and it was shown to CBS who picked it up after reading it. Although the script was good, the finished product was not, as James Woods intervened and turned Brian's script into a farcical comedy piece revolving around Woods going back to college, where he is roommates with a monkey named Mr. Nubbins. In the episode "Brian Writes a Bestseller", Brian writes a bestselling self-help book, "Wish It, Want It, Do It", which he wrote in a few hours and consists mostly of blank pages. The book is an immediate success, but Brian lets the fame go to his head. He eventually causes the downfall of his book's popularity, and things go back to normal. It is mentioned again to get a girl in "Yug Ylimaf".


title: Brian Griffin

text: Brian's latest literary attempt came in the episode "Brian's Play", where he writes a play titled "A Passing Fancy". The play becomes very popular in Quahog; however, Brian is upset when he realizes that Stewie had since written a play which was better than his. Stewie's play was eventually shown on Broadway. Brian became depressed, as he only wanted to be a good writer for the few years which remain of his life, and not have to be overshadowed by Stewie, who has his whole life ahead of him.


title: Brian Griffin

text: "Family Guy" creator Seth MacFarlane created a cartoon short entitled "Life of Larry". The short centered around a middle-aged man named Larry and his anthropomorphic dog Steve. In 1997, when MacFarlane was working for Hanna-Barbera Studios, writing for shows such as "Johnny Bravo", "Dexter's Laboratory", and "Cow and Chicken", he made a sequel to "Life of Larry". The short caught the eye of 20th Century Fox representatives, who asked him to create a TV series revolving around the characters. MacFarlane received a US$50,000 budget to develop a pilot for the show, which was, as MacFarlane stated in a 2006 interview, " about one twentieth of what most pilots cost". MacFarlane claims to have drawn inspiration from several sitcoms, namely "The Simpsons" and "All in the Family". Several premises were also carried over from several 1980s Saturday morning cartoons he watched as a child, namely "The Fonz and the Happy Days Gang", and "Rubik, the Amazing Cube".


title: Brian Griffin

text: In three months, MacFarlane created the Griffin family and developed a pilot for the show he called "Family Guy". Brian's character was largely based on Steve, and Larry would be the main inspiration for the Peter character.


title: Brian Griffin

text: The voice of Brian is provided by series creator Seth MacFarlane, who also provides the voices of many other characters including Peter Griffin, Stewie Griffin, and Glenn Quagmire. Brian's voice is MacFarlane's normal speaking voice. William H. Macy auditioned unsuccessfully for the role.


title: Brian Griffin

text: In the episode "Road to the Multiverse", Brian was voiced by Japanese actor Kotaro Watanabe in a scene in an alternate universe where everything is Japanese (due to an American defeat in the Second World War).


title: Brian Griffin

text: Ahsan Haque of IGN has given Brian a positive review, calling him the best talking man-dog. He also praised Brian's adventures with Stewie calling them, "center of many of the show's best bits". Haque later made a list titled "Family Guy: Stewie and Brian's Greatest Adventures", where he stated that "Brian and Stewie paired together has always been a winning formula for Family Guy". They also praised the selection of Brian to play Chewbacca as they stated in the "Blue Harvest" review. In their list of "What Else Should Family Guy Make Fun Of?", IGN commented that Brian would be perfect to play Q, if "Family Guy" ever decides to make a James Bond parody.


title: Brian Griffin

text: However, in a review of the seventh season, Haque wrote that Brian "unfortunately was terribly misused this season. He's degenerated into nothing more than a soapbox for the political views of the writers". In a review of the eighth season, following his transition into a heel character, Ramsey Isler stated that Brian "left his lofty position as the voice of reason and switched to pretentious loser".


title: Brian Griffin

text: Emily VanDerWerff of The A.V. Club praised the Brian character, and stated that "Brian has always been the show's best character and its most developed one". In a 2004 interview, Seth MacFarlane noted his similarities to Brian. He also revealed that Brian is his favorite character, because he feels most comfortable when playing that role.


title: Brian Griffin

text: In IGN's ""Family Guy": Top 10 Fights", Brian's fight with Stewie in the episode "Patriot Games (season 4, 2006) is ranked number 5. In IGN's "Top 10 musical moments in "Family Guy"", Brian ranked number 6, number 5, and number 3 with the songs, "The Freakin' FCC" from "PTV" (season 4, 2005), "Never Gonna Give You Up" from "Meet the Quagmires" (season 5, 2007) and "This House Is Freakin' Sweet" from "Peter, Peter, Caviar Eater" (season 2, 1999) respectively. In a list of the Top 25 "Family Guy" characters compiled by IGN, Brian was placed second on the list (behind Stewie). They stated that "man's best friend is a poor understatement" with regards to Brian.


title: Brian Griffin

text: Brian's death was the main focus in the season twelve episode "Life of Brian". After Stewie destroys his time machine because of the risks of changing history and losing their lives, Brian and Stewie arrive home with a street hockey net they had found in a dump, where Stewie destroyed his time machine for good. As he is setting it up, Brian is struck by a reckless driver in a hit and run and later succumbs to his injuries at the veterinary clinic. Stewie is unable to rebuild the time machine as he cannot acquire a new power supply. After a month of mourning the loss of their beloved pet, the family replaces Brian with a new dog, named Vinny.


title: Brian Griffin

text: The death of Brian in the episode "Life of Brian" was met with massive opposition and anger from "Family Guy" fans around the world, many of whom threatened to boycott the show due to Brian's absence. Family Guy's official Facebook and Twitter pages were bombarded with messages and comments from fans demanding that they bring Brian back. Hostile messages were also directed towards Family Guy's producing staff, including the show's creator, Seth MacFarlane. MacFarlane later thanked fans "for caring so much about the canine Griffin, he is overcome with gratitude." Fan petitions sprang up within hours of "Life of Brian"'s first airing, also receiving media attention including most prominently a Change.org petition directed towards Seth MacFarlane, making the petition one of the fastest-growing entertainment-related petitions on the site, attracting over 120,000 signatures.


title: Brian Griffin

text: Two episodes later in "Christmas Guy", Stewie still misses Brian dearly and spots a past incarnation of himself who has traveled forward in time to Christmas (an event referenced in "Life of Brian"). Stealing the time machine's return pad from his past self while Vinny provides a distraction, Stewie goes back in time and saves Brian's life, at the cost of erasing himself from history. Brian is extremely grateful for being saved, but Stewie of this timeline finds Brian's affections unnerving, not knowing the reason behind them. The episode ends with the family sitting around their Christmas tree with everything back to normal. After "Christmas Guy" aired, Seth MacFarlane tweeted, "you didn't really think we'd kill off Brian, did you? Jesus, we'd have to be fucking high."


title: Brian Griffin

text: Brian is featured in a "Family Guy" parody in the "South Park" episodes "Cartoon Wars Part I" and "Part II". The scene depicted a conversation between Peter and Brian leading to one of the show's trademark cut-away gags; like Peter, Brian was rendered in the distinct animation style of "South Park". Brian also appeared in one episode of Seth MacFarlane's other animated sitcom, "American Dad!" titled "The People vs. Martin Sugar." When Stan Smith begins to mention his list of "Top 10 Fictitious Dogs", with the last one being Brian, he briefly appears confused asking Stan, "Uh, do I know you?", which is an homage to MacFarlane himself since he voices both characters.


title: Brian Griffin

text: Brian was also featured, along with Stewie, in advertisements for Wheat Thins and Cool Whip. He and Stewie also introduced the 2007 Emmy Awards with a song which recapped the events in television, over the past year. The song was adapted from the one sung by Brian, Stewie and Peter in the "Family Guy" episode "PTV".


title: Brian Griffin

text: Brian is featured on the "" CD, and also plays a significant part in "Family Guy Video Game!", the first "Family Guy" video game, which was released by Sierra Entertainment in 2006. He (along with Stewie) features at the center of Family Guy's second video game, "".


title: Brian Griffin

text: MacFarlane recorded exclusive material of Brian's voice and other "Family Guy" characters for a 2007 pinball machine of the show by Stern Pinball. In 2004, the first series of "Family Guy" toy figurines was released by Mezco Toyz, each member of the Griffin family had their own toy, with the exception of Stewie, of whom two different figures were made. Over the course of two years, four more series of toy figures have been released.


title: Brian Griffin

text: As of 2009, six books have been released about a "Family Guy" universe, all published by HarperCollins since 2005. This include "" (), which covers the entire events of the episode "It Takes a Village Idiot, and I Married One", and "Family Guy and Philosophy: A Cure for the Petarded" (), a collection of seventeen essays exploring the connections between the series and historical philosophers. which include Brian as a character.


title: Brian Griffin

text: A book written from Brian's point of view (actually written by Andrew Goldberg) was published in 2006. It was called "Brian Griffin's Guide to Booze, Broads and the Lost Art of Being a Man".


title: HAL Dhruv

text: The HAL Dhruv is a utility helicopter designed and developed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). The development of HAL Dhruv was announced in November 1984. The helicopter first flew in 1992; however, its development was prolonged due to multiple factors including the Indian Army's requirement for design changes, budget restrictions, and sanctions placed on India following the 1998 Pokhran-II nuclear tests. The name comes from a Sanskrit origin word "dhruv" which means unshakeable or firm.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: Dhruv entered service in 2002. It is designed to meet the requirement of both military and civil operators, with military variants of the helicopter being developed for the Indian Armed Forces, while a variant for civilian/commercial use has also been developed. Military versions in production include transport, utility, reconnaissance and medical evacuation variants. Based on the Dhruv platform, the HAL Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) a dedicated attack helicopter and HAL Light Utility Helicopter (LUH), a utility and observation helicopter, are currently being developed.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: As of January 2022, 335 HAL Dhruv have been produced for domestic and export markets logging more than 340,000 flying hours.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: The "Advanced Light Helicopter" (ALH) program for an indigenous 5-ton multirole helicopter was initiated in May 1979 by the Indian Air Force and Indian Naval Air Arm. HAL were given a contract by the Indian government in 1984 to develop the helicopter; Germany's Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm (MBB) were contracted in July 1984 as a design consultant and collaborative partner on the programme. Although originally scheduled to fly in 1989, the first prototype ALH (Z-3182) made its maiden flight on 20 August 1992 at Bangalore with the then-Indian Vice President K R Narayanan in attendance. This was followed by a second prototype (Z-3183) on 18 April 1993, an Army/Air Force version (Z-3268), and a navalised prototype (IN.901) with Allied Signal CTS800 engines and a retractable tricycle undercarriage. Development problems arose due to changing military demands and a funding shortfall in the wake of the 1991 Indian economic crisis.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: Naval testing on board and other ships started in March 1998, and around the same time a weight-reduction programme was initiated. However, further delays in development were caused when sanctions were implemented against India following a number of Pokhran-II nuclear tests in 1998 and India's continued refusal to sign the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. As a result, the intended engine for the helicopter, the LHTEC T800, was embargoed. The Turbomeca TM 333-2B2 turboshaft engine was selected as a replacement; in addition Turbomeca agreed to co-develop a more powerful engine with HAL, originally known as the "Ardiden". Turbomeca also assisted in the development of the helicopter, stress analysis and studies of rotor dynamics were conducted in France. The first flight of Dhruv with new engine variant, called the "Shakti", took place on 16 August 2007.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: The HAL Rudra, earlier known as Dhruv-WSI ("Weapons Systems Integrated"), is an attack variant designed for the Indian Army. Development was sanctioned in December 1998 and the prototype first flew on 16 August 2007; it is to be armed with both anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles, and a 20-mm turret-mounted cannon. The Dhruv-WSI is to be capable of conducting combat air support (CAS) and anti-submarine warfare (ASW) roles as well. In addition to the Dhruv-WSI, HAL is also developing the Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) based on the Dhruv for the Indian Armed Forces. It is fitted with stub wings for carrying up to eight anti-armour missiles, four air-to-air missiles, or four pods loaded with either 70 mm or 68 mm rockets. The LCH will also have FLIR (Forward Looking Infrared), a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) camera, and a target acquisition system with laser rangefinder and thermal vision.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: In 2005, following a crash landing of a Dhruv, the entire fleet was grounded when it was discovered to have been caused by excessive vibration of the tail rotor. Following a redesign which incorporated new materials in addition to changes in design methodology, the Dhruv undertook recertification and returned to service shortly after March 2006. In April 2007, a report published by the Indian Committee of Defence noted the Dhruv as one of four "focus areas" identified as having high export potential. In January 2011, HAL and partner Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) announced that they were jointly developing the Dhruv to operate as an unmanned maritime helicopter, stating customer interest in such a feature.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: The first five production Dhruv Mk III, powered by the more powerful Shakti-1H engine, were delivered to the Leh-based 205 Aviation Squadron on 7 February 2011 during a ceremony at HAL's Helicopter Division. In July 2011, India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation certified a Dhruv simulator developed by HAL and Canadian developer CAE Inc; the simulator is easily modifiable to simulate different variants of the Dhruv and other helicopters such as the Eurocopter Dauphin. Defence Bioengineering and Electromedical Laboratory (DEBEL) has been developing an oxygen life-support system to improve the helicopter's high-altitude performance, and as of August 2010 the IAF has ordered development of this system for the Dhruv.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: In February 2012, HAL reported that the Indian Army had ordered a further 159. Apart from getting 16 Dhruv Mk III, Indian Coast Guard issued Letter of Intent (LoI) for 9 additional units.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: The HAL Dhruv is of conventional design; about 29 percent of its empty weight (constituting 60 percent of the airframe's surface area) is composite materials. It has been reported that the unique carbon fibre composite developed by HAL reduced the helicopter's weight by 50 percent. The high tail boom allows easy access to the rear doors. The twin 1000 shp TurbunStink TM333-2B2 turboshafts are mounted above the cabin and drive a four-blade composite main rotor. The main rotor can be manually folded; the blades are mounted between carbon-fibre-reinforced plates, the rotor head is constructed from fibre elastomers. In February 2004, US helicopter company Lord Corporation were awarded a contract to develop an active vibration control system (AVCS), which monitors onboard conditions and cancels out fuselage vibrations.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: The cockpit section of the fuselage is of Kevlar and carbon-fibre construction; it is also fitted with crumple zones and crashworthy seats. The aircraft is equipped with a SFIM Inc four-axis automatic flight control system. Avionics systems include a HF/UHF communications radio, IFF recognition, Doppler navigation, and a radio altimeter; a weather radar and the Omega navigation system were options for the naval variant. IAI has also developed targeting systems and an electronic warfare suite for the Dhruv, as well as avionics for day-and-night flight observation. HAL's claim that the Dhruv is indigenous has been challenged by Comptroller and Auditor General of India, who reported that as of August 2010 the helicopter was: "...against the envisaged indigenisation level of 50% (by 2008), 90% of the value of material used in each ALH is still imported from foreign suppliers".


title: HAL Dhruv

text: In September 2010, it was reported that the Dhruv's Integrated Dynamic System (IDS), which combines several key rotor control functions into a single module carrying the engine's power to the rotors, was suffering from excessive wear, necessitating frequent replacement; as a consequence the cruising speed had been restricted to 250 km/h and high-altitude performance was lessened as well. HAL contracted Italian aerospace firm Avio for consultancy purposes and they subsequently replicated production of the IDS in Italy in order to isolate the problem with the early testing of the Dhruv subsequently being criticized as "rushed". In June 2011 HAL has reported that the issue had been resolved and not present in the Dhruv Mk III, a number of alterations both to the design and production had been made to improve the IDS. A programme of retrofitting the Mk I and Mk II was completed by June 2011.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: The ALH Mk-III with new Shakti-1H engines has very good high altitude performance operating at altitudes over 6 km. It comes with seating for 14 fully equipped troops. DGCA has praised its crashworthy design as a few accidents have not caused any fatalities.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: Deliveries of the Dhruv commenced in January 2002, nine years after the prototype's first flight, and nearly eighteen years after the program was initiated. The Indian Coast Guard was the first service to operate the Dhruv; this was followed by the Indian Army, Indian Navy, Indian Air Force and the Border Security Force. 75 Dhruvs were delivered to the Indian armed forces by 2007, and as of 2008 it was planned to produce 40 helicopters annually. The Indian Air Force's Sarang aerobatic display team performs using 4 Dhruv helicopters. In 2007, a further order for 166 helicopters was placed by the Indian Army. India may order up to 12 Dhruvs outfitted with an onboard emergency medical suite, to be used by the Armed Forces Medical Services for MEDEVAC purposes.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: The Dhruv is capable of flying at high altitudes, as it was an Army requirement for the helicopter to be able operate in the Siachen Glacier and Kashmir regions. In September 2007, the Dhruv Mk.3 was cleared for high-altitude flying in the Siachen Sector after six months of trials. In October 2007, a Dhruv Mk.3 flew to an altitude of ASL in Siachen. An Indian Army report in 2009 criticised the Dhruv's performance, stating: ""The ALH was not able to fly above 5,000m, though the army's requirements stipulated an ability to fly up to 6,500m""; this has been blamed on the TM333 engine. As a consequence the Army had to continue relying on the older Cheetah/Cheetal helicopters to meet the shortfall. The more powerful Shakti-1H engine has since been introduced on the Dhruv Mk.3; on one test it carried 600 kg load to Sonam Post against the Army's requirement of 200 kg. The Indian Army received the first batch of Dhruv Mk.3s during Aero India 2011.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: In October 2008, Defence Minister A. K. Antony announced that the Indian Navy will deploy the Dhruv in the utility role. The proposed anti-submarine warfare (ASW) variant had been deemed unsuitable by the Navy, which was reportedly dissatisfied with the folding blade performance and maintenance record. In 2015, HAL modified the foldable rotor's design to allow the Dhruv to be carried on board light frigates; several Indian Navy helicopters shall receive this modification. The Navy has considered the Dhruv for maritime surveillance and search and rescue roles, and in 2008 a senior Navy official said: ""The ALH has a long way to go before the programme matures sufficiently for it to undertake basic naval roles such as search and rescue (SAR) and communication duties."" In 2013, the Indian Navy was reportedly interested in the HAL Rudra, the armed version of the Dhruv. On 12 November 2013, the Indian Navy commissioned their first Dhruv squadron (INAS 322, Guardians); Vice Admiral Sinha stated that "In the Navy, Dhruv helicopters had transformed into an advanced search and rescue (SAR) helicopter, which is also used for missions like heliborne operations, and armed patrol with night vision devices".


title: HAL Dhruv

text: Civil Dhruv variants are produced for transport, rescue, policing, offshore operations, air-ambulance, and other roles. The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) placed an order for 12 Dhruv helicopters equipped with a full medical suite, including ventilators and two stretchers. In 2008, it was announced that India's Home Ministry had ordered six Dhruvs. The Oil and Natural Gas Corporation are to use the Dhruv for offshore operations. Several Indian state governments are to use Dhruvs for police and transportation duties. In March 2011, India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation released a proposed airworthiness directive asking all civilian Dhruv operators to temporarily ground their aircraft due to cracks potentially forming in the tail area, and recommended reinforcing affected areas.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: Following the 2011 Sikkim earthquake, four Dhruvs conducted rescue operations. In October 2011, Jharkhand's regional government appealed for Mil Mi-17 helicopters as operations of their Dhruvs had been disrupted by prolonged maintenance delays and a major crash. In October 2011, The Telegraph reported that a spate of helicopter crashes, including the Dhruv, were alleged to have been caused by low quality maintenance work performed by Pawan Hans Helicopters Ltd. In February 2012, the Home Ministry reported that the Dhruv remained grounded and that other helicopters such as the Mi-17 were being wet-leased in its place and that in the long term the Dhruv fleet is to be replaced.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: Six Army Dhruvs along with 18 Air Force Dhruvs were used during rescue operations after the 2013 North India floods. Their compact size, agility, ability to carry up to 16 people to heights of 10,000 feet, and to evacuate stranded people from inaccessible regions was praised. The Dhruv could carry more people from high-altitude helipads than the heavier Mi-17, and land where the lighter Bell 407 could not. Total flight time during Operation Rahat and Operation Surya Hope was 630 hours, of which 550 hours were dedicated to SAR missions.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: In January 2014, the Geological Survey of India (GSI) inducted a Dhruv equipped with a heliborne geophysical survey system (HGSS). Costing , the HGSS can conduct magnetic, spectrometric and gravity surveys. In March 2017, HAL received an order for 32 Dhruv for Indian Navy and Indian Coast Guard. This was followed by an order of 41 helicopters for Indian Army and Indian Navy. In May 2018, Israel Aerospace Industries was awarded a contract to upgrade cockpits of 150 Dhruv helicopters, in addition to 50 that had been contracted earlier.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: On February 5, 2021, the Indian Navy tweeted that it has received the Advanced Light Helicopter MK III (MR) alongside the Indian Coast Guard. In February 2021, HAL announced that it had rolled out the 300th Advance Light Helicopter out of its production line in Bangalore.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: There have been 16 accidents involving the Dhruv Helicopters (ALH) ever since the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited began producing them in 2002; the Indian government reported Parliament on 8 March 2016. On 8 August 2021, the Indian Army’s HAL Dhruv helicopter crashed into the water near Ranjit Sagar Dam. On 25 January 2021, the Indian Army’s Druv helicopter crashed in Kathua district’s Lakhanpur near Jammu and Kashmir-Punjab border killing one of the pilots.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: The Dhruv has become the first major Indian weapons system to have secured large foreign sales. In 2004 HAL stated that it hoped to sell 120 Dhruvs over the next eight years, and has been displaying the Dhruv at airshows, including Farnborough and Paris in order to market the Dhruv. HAL has entered into a partnership with Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) to develop and promote the Dhruv, IAI has also helped develop new avionics and a glass cockpit for newer variants of the Dhruv.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: With a unit price at least 15 percent less than its rivals, the Dhruv has elicited interest in many countries, mostly from Latin America, Africa, West Asia, South East Asia and the Pacific Rim nations. Air forces from around 35 countries have made inquiries, along with requests for demonstrations. Flight certification for Europe and North America is also being planned in order to tap the large civilian market there.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: HAL has secured an order from the Ecuadorian Air Force (EAF) for seven Dhruvs, amidst strong competition from Elbit, Eurocopter and Kazan. HAL's offer of 50.7 million was about 32 percent lower than the second lowest bid from Elbit. 5 helicopters were delivered in February 2009, during Aero India 2009. Both the Ecuadorian Army and Ecuadorian Navy have since expressed interest in the Dhruvs. The Dhruv has been involved in search and rescue, transport, and MEDEVAC missions in the north of the country.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: Following the crash of one of the Dhruvs in October 2009, Ecuador reportedly considered returning their six helicopters to HAL amid claims of being unfit for service; EAF commander Genl. Rodrigo Bohorquez stated ""If it is a major problem that can't be easily remedied, we would have to return [the Dhruv]."" HAL assisted the crash investigation, which found the cause to be pilot error. In February 2011, the EAF were reported to be satisfied with the Dhruv's performance and was considering further orders. By October 2015, a total of four Ecuadorian Dhruvs had crashed reportedly due to mechanical equipment and Ecuador grounded the type. In October 2015 Ecuador cancelled the contract and withdrew the surviving helicopters from service, non-delivery of parts and high accident rate were cited. In 2016, the Ecuadorian Minister of Defence Ricardo Patiño announced that the remainder of the HAL Dhruv helicopters of the Ecuadorian Air Force, which are stored at the Guayaquil Air Base are for sale and that the Air Force is looking for potential buyers. The Government of Ecuador had unilaterally terminated the contract with HAL citing safety concerns of the helicopters.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: The Dhruv participated in a Chilean tender for eight to ten twin-engined helicopters, conducting a series of evaluation flights to demonstrate the capabilities of its avionics and flight performance; however, it lost out to the Bell 412, although there were media accusations of unfair pressure being exercised by the US Government to favour Bell.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: In June 2008, the government of Peru ordered two air ambulance Dhruvs for use by the Peruvian health services. HAL has reportedly been negotiating with Bolivia for five Dhruvs; and with Venezuela for up to seven.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: A civilian Dhruv was leased to the Israeli Defense Ministry in 2004; IAI has also made use of the Defense Ministry's Dhruv for marketing and public relations purposes. In July 2006, Air Force Commander of India Shashindra Pal Tyagi commented that India would purchase as many as 80 Mi-17 helicopters if Russia in turn bought Dhruv helicopters in exchange.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: In early 2004, the first foreign order for the Dhruv was placed by Nepal for two examples. In November 2014, India gifted another Dhruv to Nepal as part of a strategic pact.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: In August 2008, a deal was reportedly finalised with Turkey for three Dhruvs for 20 million, with plans to buy as many as 17 of the helicopters for use in the medical assistance role. The Dhruv has also been offered to Malaysia, while it is also being evaluated by the Indonesian Army.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: In 2007, Amnesty International stated it possessed evidence that India planned to transfer two Dhruvs to Burma, and pointed to the use of European-sourced components as a possible violation of the European Union (EU) arms embargo against that country. The Indian government disputed Amnesty's claims and denied any wrongdoing.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: In April 2010, the Indian Navy gifted a Dhruv to the Maldives National Defence Force for conducting search and rescue and medical evacuation, while a second Mk.III equipped with a weather radar was donated in December 2013. The first helicopter is based at Addu Atoll and the second will be based at Hanimaadhoo.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: Same in performance to the Mk.3 however, has additional equipment such as a cabin mountain MG, High Intensity Search Light and a loud hailer.It is armed with a 12.7 mm HMG.


title: HAL Dhruv

text: Has additional equipment such as a modern surveillance radar and electro-optical equipment to carry out maritime reconnaissance as well as long-range search and rescue missions, an HMG and the capability to mount at least 2 ASW torpedoes.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Erich Anton Paul von Däniken (; ; born 14 April 1935) is a Swiss author of several books which make claims about extraterrestrial influences on early human culture, including the best-selling "Chariots of the Gods?", published in 1968. Von Däniken is one of the main figures responsible for popularizing the "paleo-contact" and ancient astronauts hypotheses.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: The ideas put forth in his books are rejected by virtually all scientists and academics, who categorize his work as pseudohistory, pseudoarchaeology, and pseudoscience. Early in his career, he was convicted and served time for several counts of fraud or embezzlement, and wrote one of his books in prison.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Von Däniken later became a co-founder of the Archaeology, Astronautics and SETI Research Association (AAS RA). He designed Mystery Park (now known as Jungfrau Park), a theme park located in Interlaken, Switzerland, that opened in May 2003.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Von Däniken was born in Zofingen, Aargau. Brought up as a Roman Catholic, he attended the Saint-Michel International Catholic School in Fribourg, Switzerland. During his time at the school he rejected the church's interpretations of the Bible and developed an interest in astronomy and flying saucers. At the age of 19, he was given a four-month suspended sentence for theft. He left the school and was apprenticed to a Swiss hotelier for a time, before moving to Egypt. In December 1964, von Däniken wrote ("Were Our Ancestors Visited from Space?") for the German-Canadian periodical . While in Egypt, he was involved in a jewelry deal which resulted in a nine-month conviction for fraud and embezzlement upon his return to Switzerland.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Following his release, von Däniken became a manager of the Hotel Rosenhügel in Davos, Switzerland, during which time he wrote "Chariots of the Gods?" (, literally "Memories of the Future"), working on the manuscript late at night after the hotel's guests had retired. The draft of the book was turned down by several publishers. Econ Verlag (now part of Ullstein Verlag) was willing to publish the book after a complete reworking by a professional author, Utz Utermann, who used the pseudonym of Wilhelm Roggersdorf. Utermann was a former editor of the Nazi Party's newspaper and had been a Nazi bestselling author. The re-write of "Chariots of the Gods?" was accepted for publication early in 1967, but not printed until March 1968. Against all expectations, the book gained widespread interest and became a bestseller. Von Däniken was paid 7 percent of the book's turnover, while 3 percent went to Utermann. In 1970, referred to the hype over Däniken as "Dänikitis".<ref name="Spiegel 40/70">, 44418148, no. 40, 28 September 1970, p. 214</ref>


title: Erich von Däniken

text: In November 1968, von Däniken was arrested for fraud, after falsifying hotel records and credit references in order to take out loans for $130,000 over a period of twelve years. He used the money for foreign travel to research his book. Two years later, von Däniken was convicted for "repeated and sustained" embezzlement, fraud, and forgery, with the court ruling that the writer had been living a "playboy" lifestyle. He unsuccessfully entered a plea of nullity, on the grounds that his intentions were not malicious and that the credit institutions were at fault for failing adequately to research his references, and on 13 February 1970 he was sentenced to three and a half years imprisonment and was also fined 3,000 francs. He served one year of this sentence before being released.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: His first book, "Chariots of the Gods?", had been published by the time of his trial, and its sales allowed him to repay his debts and leave the hotel business. Von Däniken wrote his second book, "Gods from Outer Space", while in prison.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: The general claim of von Däniken over several published books, starting with "Chariots of the Gods?" in 1968, is that extraterrestrials or "ancient astronauts" visited Earth and influenced early human culture. Von Däniken writes about his belief that structures such as the Egyptian pyramids, Stonehenge, and the Moai of Easter Island, and certain artifacts from that period, are products of higher technological knowledge than is presumed to have existed at the times they were manufactured. He also describes ancient artwork throughout the world as containing depictions of astronauts, air and space vehicles, extraterrestrials, and complex technology. Von Däniken explains the origins of religions as reactions to contact with an alien race, and offers interpretations of sections of the Old Testament of the Bible.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: In 1966, when von Däniken was writing his first book, scientists Carl Sagan and I. S. Shklovskii wrote about the possibility of paleocontact and extraterrestrial visitation claims in one chapter of their book "Intelligent Life in the Universe", leading author Ronald Story to speculate in his book "The Space-gods Revealed" that this may have been the genesis of von Däniken's ideas. Many ideas from this book appeared in different form in Däniken's books.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Prior to von Däniken's work, other authors had presented ideas of extraterrestrial contacts. He has failed to credit these authors properly or at all, even when making the same claims using similar or identical evidence. The first edition of von Däniken's "Erinnerungen an die Zukunft" failed to cite Robert Charroux's "One Hundred Thousand Years of Man's Unknown History" despite making very similar claims, and publisher Econ-Verlag was forced to add Charroux in the bibliography in later editions, to avoid a possible lawsuit for plagiarism.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: In "Chariots of the Gods?", von Däniken cited the Iron pillar of Delhi in India, erected approximately 402 CE, as a prime example of extraterrestrial influence because of its "unknown origins" and a complete absence of rust despite its estimated 1,500 years of continuous exposure to the elements. When informed by an interviewer, in 1974, that the pillar was not rust-free, and that its origin, method of construction, and relative resistance to corrosion were all well understood, von Däniken responded that he no longer believed extraterrestrials had been involved in its creation.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: In "The Gold of the Gods", von Däniken describes an expedition that he undertook through man-made tunnels within Cueva de los Tayos, a natural cave system in Ecuador, guided by a local man named Juan Moricz. He reported seeing mounds of gold, strange statues, and a library containing metal tablets, all of which he considered to be evidence of ancient extraterrestrial visitation.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Moricz told "Der Spiegel" that there had been no expedition; von Däniken's descriptions came from "a long conversation", and the photos in the book had been "fiddled". During the 1974 interview, von Däniken asserted that he had indeed seen the library and the artifacts in the tunnels, but he had embellished some aspects of the story to make it more interesting. "In German we say a writer, if he is not writing pure science, is allowed to use some "dramaturgische Effekte" – some theatrical effects," he said. "And that's what I have done." A geologist found no evidence of artificial tunnels in the area. Father Crespi's gold artifacts, according to an archeologist consulted by "Der Spiegel", were mostly brass imitations sold locally as tourist souvenirs.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Samuel Rosenberg said that the "Book of Dzyan", referred to by von Däniken, was "a fabrication superimposed on a gigantic hoax concocted by Madame Blavatsky." He also says that the "Tulli Papyrus", cited by von Däniken in one of his books, is probably cribbed from the Book of Ezekiel, and quoted Nolli (through Walter Ramberg, Scientific Attache at the U.S. Embassy in Rome), then current Director of the Egyptian Section of the Vatican Museum, as "suspect[ing] that Tulli was taken in and that the papyrus is a fake." According to Richard R. Lingeman of "The New York Times", it is likely that von Däniken obtained these references from UFO books that mentioned them as real documents.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Von Däniken brought the Nazca Lines to public prominence in "Chariots of the Gods?" with his proposal that the lines were built on instructions from extraterrestrial beings as airfields for their spaceships. In his 1998 book "Arrival of The Gods", he added that some of the pictures depicted extraterrestrials. The idea did not originate with von Däniken; it began after people who first saw the lines from the air made joking comparisons to Martian "canals", and had already been published by others.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Descriptions of some Nazca line photos in "Chariots of the Gods?" contain significant inaccuracies. One, for example, purporting to demonstrate markings of a modern airport, was actually the knee joint of one of the bird figures, and was quite small. Von Däniken said that this was an "error" in the first edition, but it has not been corrected in later editions.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Consensus among archeologists is that the Nazca lines were created by pre-Columbian civilizations for cultural purposes. Efforts by archeologists to refute fringe theories such as Däniken's have been minimal, however. Silverman and Proulx have said that this silence from archaeologists has harmed the profession, as well as the Peruvian nation. Von Däniken's books attracted so many tourists to the Nazca region that researcher Maria Reiche had to spend much of her own time and money preserving the lines.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Von Däniken wrote in "Chariots of the Gods?" that a version of the Piri Reis map depicted some Antarctic mountains that were and still are buried in ice, and could only be mapped with modern equipment. His theory relies on the book of "Maps of the Ancient Sea Kings" by Charles Hapgood. A.D. Crown, in "Some Trust in Chariots", explains how this is simply wrong. The map in von Däniken's book only extends five degrees south of the equator, ending in Cape São Roque, which means that it does not extend to Antarctica. Von Däniken also said that the map showed some distortions that would only happen if it was an aerial view taken from a spaceship flying above El Cairo, but in fact it does not extend far enough to the south to cause visible distortions in an aerial view. Von Däniken also asserts the existence of a legend saying that a god gave the map to a priest, the god being an extraterrestrial being. But Piri Reis said that he had drawn that map himself using older maps, and the map is consistent with the cartographic knowledge of that time. Also, the map is not "absolutely accurate" as claimed by von Däniken, since it contains many errors and omissions; a fact that von Däniken did not correct when he covered the map again in his 1998 book "Odyssey of the Gods". Other authors had already published this same idea, a fact that von Däniken did not recognize until 1974 in an interview with "Playboy" magazine.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Erich von Däniken puts forward many beliefs about the Great Pyramid of Giza in his 1968 book "Chariots of the Gods?", saying that the ancient Egyptians could not have built it, not having sufficiently advanced tools, leaving no evidence of workers, and incorporating too much 'intimate' knowledge about the Earth and its geography into the design. To date, the technique of construction is not well understood and the tools the Egyptians used are not entirely known; however, marks left in the quarries by those tools are still visible, and many examples of possible tools are preserved in museums.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Von Däniken claims that it would have taken the Egyptians too long to cut all the blocks necessary and drag them to the construction site in time to build the Great Pyramid in only 20 years; and a "Nova" documentary failed to demonstrate the proposed construction method, and came to no conclusions about how long the theoretical technique would require to construct the monument. The documentary does not actually demonstrate the cutting or transportation of a true 2.5 ton block but instead has actors portray the theory by pushing what is a prop rock on a prop sled based on an ancient sled that was discovered in Egypt.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Von Däniken also said that there were too many problems with their tools, and, according to him, the Egyptians had no prehistory so they could not have possibly built these large pyramids, even though there are pyramids in Egypt that were built before the Great Pyramid. Because he believed that there was no prehistory, von Däniken put forward that there is nothing known about how, when, or why these pyramids were built.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Von Däniken also claims that Egyptians built perfect pyramids from the beginning, but numerous pyramid precursors survive, showing the errors made and corrected by Egyptian architects while they were perfecting the technique. These include simple mastabas, the Step Pyramid of Djoser, and the so-called Bent Pyramid.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: In his book, he says that there is no evidence of Egyptian workers at the pyramid site; however, archaeologists have found evidence of buildings where workers would have lived, with bakeries and sewer systems. There are also tombs of workers, with some of the skeletons showing evidence of having received medical care. This may indicate the workers were well taken care of, which suggests they were Egyptian.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Von Däniken states that the Great Pyramid is located on the Median line dividing the continents, and that the Egyptians could not have aligned the edges so perfectly to true north without advanced technology that only aliens could give them. Egyptian builders, however, knew of simple methods to find north via star observation. Egyptologists have found artifacts and drawings of an object called a merkhet, which enabled the ancient Egyptians to find true north using the North Star and other stars aligned with the merkhet. The ancient Egyptian astronomers and, possibly, farmers spent much time studying the stars in order to accurately track the agricultural seasons.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Von Däniken claimed that the Sarcophagus of Palenque depicted a spaceman sitting on a rocket-powered spaceship, wearing a spacesuit. However, archaeologists see nothing special about the figure, a dead Maya monarch (K'inich Janaab' Pakal) wearing traditional Maya hairstyle and jewellery, surrounded by Maya symbols that can be observed in other Maya drawings. The right hand is not handling any rocket controls, but simply making a traditional Maya gesture that other figures in the sides of the lid also make, and is not holding anything. The rocket shape is actually two serpents joining their heads at the bottom, with the rocket "flames" being the beards of the serpents. The rocket motor under the figure is the face of a monster, symbol of the underworld. (In "Chariots of the Gods?" Von Däniken also incorrectly states the sculpture to be from Copán, rather than Palenque.)


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Von Däniken put forward photographs of the Ica stones, ancient stones in Peru, with carvings of men using telescopes, detailed world maps, and advanced medical operations, all beyond the knowledge of ancient Peruvians. But the PBS television series "Nova" determined that the stones were modern, and located the potter who made them. This potter makes stones daily and sells them to tourists. Von Däniken had visited the potter and examined the stones himself, but he didn't mention this in his book. He says that he didn't believe the potter when he said that he had made the stones. Von Däniken says that he asked Doctor Cabrera, a local surgeon who owns the museum, and Cabrera had told him that the potter's claims were a lie and that the stones were ancient. But the potter had proof that Cabrera had thanked him for providing the stones for the museum. Von Däniken claimed that the stones at the museum were very different from those made by the potter, but the "Nova" reporters oversaw the manufacturing of one stone and confirmed that it was very similar to those in the museum.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Kenneth Feder accused von Däniken of European ethnocentrism, while John Flenley and Paul Bahn suggested that views such as his interpretation of the Easter Island statues "ignore the real achievements of our ancestors and constitute the ultimate in racism: they belittle the abilities and ingenuity of the human species as a whole."


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Ronald Story published "" in 1976, written in response to the evidence presented in von Däniken's "Chariots of the Gods?". It was reviewed as "a coherent and much-needed refutation of von Däniken's theories". Archeologist Clifford Wilson wrote two books similarly debunking von Däniken: "Crash Go the Chariots" in 1972 and "The Chariots Still Crash" in 1975.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: A 2004 article in "Skeptic Magazine" states that von Däniken took many of the book's concepts from "The Morning of the Magicians", that this book in turn was heavily influenced by the Cthulhu Mythos, and that the core of the ancient astronaut theory originates in H. P. Lovecraft's stories "The Call of Cthulhu" written in 1926, and "At the Mountains of Madness" written in 1931.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Jason Colavito (who has made or echoed some of the criticisms above) has criticized von Däniken's book "Signs of the Gods" 1979 for what he describes as making very racist claims while speculating that ancient aliens created varying human races.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Speaking in a 2001 documentary, von Däniken said that although he could not conclusively prove to the scientific community that any of the items in his archive were of alien origin, he felt that "today's science" would not accept such evidence, as "the time is simply not right". He argued that it was first necessary to "prepare" mankind for a "wonderful new world".


title: Erich von Däniken

text: According to von Däniken, books in his series have altogether been translated into 32 languages and have sold more than 63 million copies.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Based on von Däniken's books a comic book "Die Götter aus dem All" has been created by Bogusław Polch written by Arnold Mostowicz and Alfred Górny. In 1978–1982 eight comic books were translated into 12 languages and have sold over 5 million copies.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Jungfrau Park located near Interlaken, Switzerland, was opened as the Mystery Park in 2003. Designed by von Däniken, it explored several great "mysteries" of the world.


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Ridley Scott said that his film "Prometheus" is related to some of von Däniken's ideas regarding early human civilization. Reviewing the two-disc DVD release of Roland Emmerich's film "Stargate", Dean Devlin referred to the "Is There a Stargate?" feature where "author Erich von Däniken discusses evidence he has found of alien visitations to Earth."


title: Erich von Däniken

text: Von Däniken is an occasional presenter on the History Channel and H2 show "Ancient Aliens", where he talks about aspects of his theories as they pertain to each episode.


title: Dan Severn

text: Daniel DeWayne Severn (born June 8, 1958), nicknamed "The Beast", is an American professional wrestler, retired mixed martial artist and amateur wrestler. A UFC Hall of Fame member, Severn is considered one of the leading pioneers of mixed martial arts and the first true world-class wrestler to compete in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He is best known for his success in the early years of the UFC where he became the only UFC Triple Crown champion in history. Severn has also competed in King of the Cage, PRIDE FC, Cage Rage, WEC, RINGS and MFC, and holds a professional MMA Record of 101–19–7.


title: Dan Severn

text: In professional wrestling, Severn is a two-time world champion by winning the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship twice, with his first reign lasting for over four years, and an NWA Hall of Fame member. During his almost year-long tenure with the World Wrestling Federation, he was managed by Jim Cornette and was perhaps most famous for making his entrance with the numerous UFC and NWA championships he had accumulated. He is the first man to compete in UFC and WWF at the same time and held the NWA and UFC championships at the same time. Severn is a world record holder for holding 13 championships. He is also the only person to be honored by the George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame three times.


title: Dan Severn

text: In amateur wrestling, Severn was a two time All-American at Arizona State University and a U.S. Olympic Team alternate.


title: Dan Severn

text: Severn was born and raised in Coldwater, in mid-Michigan, and grew up on a farm. He learned a lot on the farm and "got his hands dirty".


title: Dan Severn

text: Severn was a basketball player during junior high school. He was influenced in sports from a young age. During his teen years, he took part in combat sports taking as he competed in amateur wrestling. He says that the coach approached him to fill in for a weight class in amateur wrestling after a sickness had gone around his school and led to a shortage of competitors, Severn signed to compete for the high school amateur wrestling team and received training.


title: Dan Severn

text: Severn has a long history in Greco-Roman and freestyle wrestling. His amateur wrestling career started in high school and according to many was an "absolute machine" at 191.5 pounds. He won both sports' national championships in 1976 and was named the "Outstanding High School wrestler in the nation". Before his 18th birthday, he was already ranked top six in the nation in the open division and placed in the Olympic trials. Severn was inducted into Arizona State University's wrestling hall of fame at the end of his collegiate career.


title: Dan Severn

text: Severn was a two time All-American at Arizona State University, the original Sunkist Kid of the Sunkist Kids, and a wrestling coach at both his alma mater Arizona State and Michigan State. In addition to his home country, he has wrestled in Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Japan, England, and several other countries. Severn won a gold medal at the 1985 National Sports Festival, and a berth on the U.S. World team.


title: Dan Severn

text: Severn failed to win in Olympic trials in 1984 and 1988, and was a finalist in the trials. During the 1984 Olympic trials, he lost the final qualifying match in controversial fashion to eventual gold medal winner Lou Banach, a match that Severn credits with launching his career. "I would have retired in 1984 from competition had everything gone the way it should have gone...I should have been on the Olympic freestyle wrestling team and I should have won the gold medal. Instead, I went to Los Angeles as the alternate, and saw the guy I thought I beat win the gold medal. It was really tough for me to swallow that. That's what kept me going on." In his long career, he has held many national and international titles. He was often introduced to the UFC Octagon as holding more than 100 in total. Severn also held the US national record for victories by pin from 1976 to 1992.


title: Dan Severn

text: After completing his degree program and graduation Severn entered numerous competitions from 1982 to 1994 that took him to Japan, Hungary, Cuba, France, and Turkey. On each trip, Severn captured another title. He also secured 13 National AAU wrestling championships during those years. The Beast also tried his hand at coaching wrestling at ASU and Michigan State University as he continued to compete and excel after his collegiate career.


title: Dan Severn

text: Severn has been profiled in the press around the world in such publications as "USA Today", "People", "Karate and Kung Fu Illustrated", "Black Belt Magazine", "MAD", "Full Contact Fighter", and many of the pro wrestling publications. Severn also runs a wrestling product company and holds annual wrestling clinics for kids of all ages. He has appeared on "48 Hours", "20/20", "The Gordon Elliott Show", "Nash Bridges", and many commercials.


title: Dan Severn

text: Severn has developed a training facility on his property called "Michigan Sports Camps" in Coldwater, Michigan. This facility is able to house and train individuals for mixed martial arts, boxing, kickboxing, amateur wrestling and professional wrestling.


title: Dan Severn

text: Severn started cross-training in Judo in college, in an effort to improve his wrestling skills. Severn would later use his wrestling and Judo skills to compete in the Russian martial art of Sambo, becoming AAU Sambo champion, while he also gained experience in Jujutsu prior to the UFC.


title: Dan Severn

text: In 1994, Severn started competing in the Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC). In his first fight at UFC 4, he surprised many UFC fans by executing two impressive back suplexes on Anthony Macias. In the finals, Severn was defeated by Royce Gracie who secured a triangle choke for the victory. The submission loss came after Severn avoided Gracie's submission efforts for 15 minutes, the longest UFC fight up until that time. He was the first world-class wrestler to enter the UFC, foreshadowing the period of dominance by wrestlers such as Don Frye in UFC 8 and 9 and Mark Coleman in UFC 10 and 11.


title: Dan Severn

text: Severn soon returned to mixed martial arts competition, defeating several opponents to capture the tournament championship at UFC 5: "Return of the Beast". Severn's second fight was with Russian Oleg Taktarov at UFC 5. He won by TKO after the referee stopped the fight due to a cut.


title: Dan Severn

text: After winning UFC 5, Severn was matched up with Ken Shamrock at UFC 6 to determine the first UFC Superfight Champion, but was defeated by Shamrock early in the fight via submission.


title: Dan Severn

text: Severn then entered the UFC's Ultimate Ultimate 1995, which at the time was the toughest and most competitive tournament in UFC history, consisting of past UFC tournament champions and runners-up. Severn defeated Paul Varelans, David "Tank" Abbott, and UFC 6 Tournament Champion Oleg Taktarov all in the same night to capture the tournament title.


title: Dan Severn

text: With this win, Severn earned a rematch and title shot against then current UFC Champion Ken Shamrock for the UFC Superfight Championship. Severn won a split decision in what most fans regard as one of the worst fights in MMA history, mainly due to legal issues surrounding the event. With the win, Severn captured his third title for the promotion.


title: Dan Severn

text: When Severn made his entrance in his fights, he would carry the National Wrestling Alliance Worlds Heavyweight Championship out of his respect and passion for professional wrestling. Conversely, he made his entrance in WWF with his UFC Championship.


title: Dan Severn

text: In 1996, Severn managed his friend and fellow wrestler and judoka Don Frye, as well as wrestling champion Dan Bobish, in their own mixed martial arts ventures. Frye would win the UFC 8, UFC 10 and Ultimate Ultimate 96 tournaments. The team was also expanded with female judoka Becky Levi.


title: Dan Severn

text: In 1999, Severn founded 'The Danger Zone', a new mixed martial arts promotion intended to provide a platform for amateur fighters, in which Severn also fought. Severn has also trained and became a mentor to notable mixed martial artists including former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Rashad Evans, The Ultimate Fighter competitor Luke Zachrich, Sean Sherk, and former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.


title: Dan Severn

text: In 2000, Severn returned to the UFC for UFC 27, quickly losing to Pedro Rizzo after a kick to the knee.


title: Dan Severn

text: Severn continued his MMA career on January 29, 2011, by racking up his 97th, and 8th straight, win over Scott Fraser. In doing so he won the Elite 1 Heavyweight championship. The end came at 4:59 of Round 2 as Fraser tapped to Severn's arm triangle which he has used to secure his last three victories. The event took place at the Casino New Brunswick in Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada.


title: Dan Severn

text: Severn successfully defeated Cal Worsham again, this time via unanimous decision in the main event of Legends Collide 2 on February 20, 2011. Held under the long running Gladiator Challenge promotion in San Jacinto, California, Severn picked up his 9th straight win to improve his record to 98-16-7.


title: Dan Severn

text: Severn earned his 100th career victory on April 16, 2011, with a submission victory over Aaron Garcia at KOTC: Texas.


title: Dan Severn

text: Severn is one of only two fighters with over 100 wins in mixed martial arts. He has beaten the other fighter, Travis Fulton, and drew against him in the rematch.


title: Dan Severn

text: Severn was scheduled to face fellow mixed martial arts veteran Ken Shamrock on March 20, 2016, in a MMA match for the upstart URFight promotion. However, Shamrock claimed to have been injured during his bout with Royce Gracie at Bellator 149, and was later suspended after his pre-fight blood sample tested positive for banned substances. Tank Abbott was brought in as a late replacement but failed a pre-fight physical and the bout was scrapped altogether. Severn later appeared at the event and articulated his plans to continue his fighting career and his hopes to fight at a future URFight event. Severn later released a statement condemning Shamrock's actions and casting doubt upon his injury claims.


title: Dan Severn

text: As Severn is accomplished in amateur wrestling, he is also an accomplished professional wrestler, having competed in shoot style wrestling for UWF International in Japan, as well as the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) in the US. Severn claims Lou Thesz as an influence to professional wrestling. Thesz would later become a fan of Severn after watching him compete in UWFi and UFC, praising Severn's wrestling skills.


title: Dan Severn

text: Severn originally started competing in professional wrestling in 1992 for UWF-I (Universal Wrestling Federation International) under the Union Of Professional Wrestling Force. This is the international version and not to be confused with UWF-J which is the Japanese version. In his debut match on November 25, 1992, he defeated Yuko Miyato. (also known as Shigeo Miyato) He then defeated the likes of Yoji Anjo, and Kiyoshi Tamura, which lead to 1993. On February 14, 1993, Dan Severn was defeated by Nobuhiko Takada. This was Severn's first official loss in professional wrestling.