title: John Gorton

text: Gorton was born out of wedlock and had a turbulent childhood. He studied at Brasenose College, Oxford, after finishing his secondary education at Geelong Grammar School, and then returned to Australia to take over his father's property in northern Victoria. Gorton enlisted in the Royal Australian Air Force in 1940, and served as a fighter pilot in Malaya and New Guinea during the Second World War. He suffered severe facial injuries in a crash landing on Bintan Island in 1942, and whilst being evacuated, his ship was torpedoed and sunk by a Japanese submarine. He returned to farming after being discharged in 1944, and was elected to the Kerang Shire Council in 1946; he later served a term as shire president. After a previous unsuccessful candidacy at state level, Gorton was elected to the Senate at the 1949 federal election. He took a keen interest in foreign policy, and gained a reputation as a strident anti-Communist. Gorton was promoted to the ministry in 1958, and over the following decade held a variety of different portfolios in the governments of Robert Menzies and Harold Holt. He was responsible at various times for the Navy, public works, education, and science. He was elevated to the Cabinet in 1966, and the following year, he was promoted to Leader of the Government in the Senate.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton defeated three other candidates for the Liberal leadership after Harold Holt's disappearance on 17 December 1967. He became the first and only senator to assume the office of Prime Minister, but soon transferred to the House of Representatives in line with constitutional convention. The Gorton Government continued Australian involvement in the Vietnam War, but began withdrawing troops amid growing public discontent. It retained office at the 1969 federal election, albeit with a severely reduced majority. After alienating much of his government, he resigned as Liberal leader in 1971 after a confidence motion in his leadership was tied, and was replaced by William McMahon. After losing the premiership, Gorton was elected deputy leader under McMahon and appointed Minister for Defence. He was sacked for disloyalty after a few months. After the Coalition's defeat at the 1972 federal election, Gorton unsuccessfully stood as McMahon's replacement. He briefly served as an opposition frontbencher under Billy Snedden, but stood down in 1974 and spent the rest of his career as a backbencher. Gorton resigned from the Liberal Party when Malcolm Fraser was elected leader and he denounced the dismissal of the Whitlam Government; at the 1975 election he mounted an unsuccessful campaign for the Senate as an independent in the ACT and advocated for a Labor win. He later spent several years as a political commentator, retiring from public life in 1981.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton's domestic policies, which emphasised centralisation and economic nationalism, were often controversial in his own party, and his individualistic style alienated many of his Cabinet members. His political views widely varied and were incongruous, although he is generally regarded as having shifted further to the left over time after starting his parliamentary career on his party's hard right. Conservatively he opposed Indigenous land rights, was opposed to an Australian Republic, and at times fervently supported Australia developing nuclear weapons, but progressively, he staunchly supported drug decriminalisation, LGBT equality and reproductive rights, having introduced the legislation nominally decriminalising homosexuality in Australia. Evaluations of his prime ministership have been mixed; although he is generally ranked higher than either Holt or McMahon, Gorton is usually considered to have been a transitional prime minister who ultimately fell short of his potential for greatness.


title: John Gorton

text: John Grey Gorton was the second child of Alice Sinn and John Rose Gorton; his older sister Ruth was born in 1909. He had no birth certificate, but official forms recorded his date of birth as 9 September 1911 and his place of birth as Wellington, New Zealand. His birth was registered in the state of Victoria as occurring on that date, but in the inner Melbourne suburb of Prahran. However, that document contained a number of inaccuracies – his name was given as "John Alga Gordon", his parents were recorded as husband and wife, his father's name was incorrect, and his sister was recorded as deceased. At some point before 1932, Gorton's father told him that he had actually been born in Wellington. There are no records of his birth in New Zealand, but his parents are known to have travelled there on several occasions. John Gorton apparently believed he was born in Wellington, listing the city as his place of birth on his RAAF enlistment papers, and claiming so to a biographer in 1968. If he were so, it would make him the only Australian Prime Minister born in New Zealand (and the second to have been originally a New Zealander, after Chris Watson).


title: John Gorton

text: If John Gorton was indeed born in New Zealand, this would have made him a New Zealand citizen from 1 January 1949 under changes to New Zealand nationality law. Holding dual-citizenship would have rendered Gorton ineligible to sit in Australia's federal parliament under Section 44 of the Australian Constitution. Gorton's eligibility to have sat in parliament throughout his career is therefore unclear.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton's father was born to a middle-class family in Manchester, England, UK. As a young man he moved to Johannesburg, South Africa, where he went into business as a merchant – during the Boer War, he developed a reputation as a war profiteer. He reputedly escaped the Siege of Ladysmith by sneaking through Boer lines, and then made his way to Australia. He was involved in various business schemes in multiple states, and was to said to have "lived on the brink of a fortune which never quite materialised". One of his business partners was the inventor George Julius. At some point, Gorton's father separated from his first wife, Kathleen O'Brien, and began living with Alice Sinn – born in Melbourne to a German father and an Irish mother. However, Kathleen refused to grant him a divorce. Some official documents record Gorton's parents as having married in New Zealand at some point, but there are no records of this occurring; any such marriage would have been bigamous. Gorton never denied his illegitimacy as an adult, but it did not become generally known until a biography was published during his premiership.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton spent his early years living with his maternal grandparents in Port Melbourne, as his parents were frequently away on business trips. When he was about four years old, his parents took him to live with them in Sydney, where they had an apartment at Edgecliff. Gorton began his education at Edgecliff Preparatory School. When he was eight years old, his mother contracted tuberculosis and was sent to a sanatorium to avoid passing on the disease. She died in September 1920, aged 32. Gorton's grieving father sent his son to live with his estranged wife Kathleen. There, he met his sister Ruth for the first time; he had previously been told that she was dead. Although she was his full sibling, she had been raised by Kathleen since birth, and rarely saw her biological parents. Gorton initially lived with Kathleen and Ruth at their home in Cronulla. They later moved into a larger house in Killara, in the north of Sydney.


title: John Gorton

text: While living in Killara, Gorton began attending Headfort College, a short-lived private school run by a former Anglican minister. In 1924, he began boarding at Sydney Church of England Grammar School (Shore), initially on a weekly basis but later on a full-time one. He did not excel academically, failing the Intermediate Certificate on his first attempt, but was a well-liked boy and good at sports. Gorton began spending his holidays with his father, who had purchased a property in Mystic Park, Victoria, and planted a citrus orchard. He left Shore at the end of 1926, and the following year began boarding at Geelong Grammar School, which he would attend for four years from 1927 to 1930. He represented the school in athletics, football, and rowing, and in his final year was a school prefect and house captain.


title: John Gorton

text: After leaving Geelong Grammar, Gorton spent a year working on his father's property in Mystic Park. His father then took out a second mortgage to allow him to travel to England and attend Oxford University. Gorton arrived in England in early 1932, and after a period at a "cramming school" passed the exam to enter Brasenose College. He also took flying lessons around the same time, and was awarded a pilot's licence in June 1932. Gorton began his degree in October 1932 and finished in June 1935 with an "upper second" in history, politics and economics. He was initially something of an outsider, with relatively little money and no social connections. However, his prowess in rowing – he won the O.U.B.C. Fours in his first year, and was Captain of the Brasenose College Boat Club – saw him elected to Vincent's Club and Leander Club. In 1934, while on holiday in Spain, he met his future wife Bettina Brown, the younger sister of one of his College friends. They married in early 1935.


title: John Gorton

text: After his graduation, Gorton and his wife returned to Australia via the United States, spending some time with her family in Maine. He had expected to take up a position at The Herald and Weekly Times, Keith Murdoch's newspaper group. However, he arrived in Melbourne to find his father in failing health; he died in August 1936. Gorton had taken over the management of his father's orchard as soon as he entered hospital. He inherited an overdraft of £5,000, which took several years to pay off. However, the property – located on the western side of Kangaroo Lake – was in good condition, requiring only minor improvements. He employed up to ten seasonal workers during picking season. Mystic Park remained his primary residence until he was appointed to the ministry, at which point he and his family moved to Canberra.


title: John Gorton

text: On 31 May 1940, following the outbreak of World War II, Gorton enlisted in the Royal Australian Air Force Reserve. At the age of 29, Gorton was considered too old for pilot training, but he re-applied in September after this rule was relaxed. Gorton was accepted and commissioned into the RAAF on 8 November 1940. He trained as a fighter pilot at Somers, Victoria and Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, before being sent to the UK. Gorton completed his training at RAF Heston and RAF Honiley, with No. 61 Operational Training Unit RAF, flying Supermarine Spitfires. He was disappointed when his first operational posting was No. 135 Squadron RAF, a Hawker Hurricane unit, as he considered the type greatly inferior to Spitfires.


title: John Gorton

text: During late 1941, Gorton and other members of his squadron became part of the cadre of a Hurricane wing being formed for service in the Middle East. They were sent by sea, with 50 Hurricanes in crates, travelling around Africa to reduce the risk of attack. In December, when the ship was at Durban, South Africa, it was diverted to Singapore, after Japan entered the war. As it approached its destination in mid-January, Japanese forces were advancing down the Malayan Peninsula. The ship was attacked on at least one occasion by Japanese aircraft, but arrived and unloaded safely after tropical storms made enemy air raids impossible. As the Hurricanes were assembled, the pilots were formed into a composite operational squadron, No. 232 Squadron RAF.


title: John Gorton

text: In late January 1942, the squadron became operational and joined the remnants of several others that had been in Malaya, operating out of RAF Seletar and RAF Kallang. During one of his first sorties, Gorton was involved in a brief dogfight over the South China Sea, after which he suffered engine failure and was forced to land on Bintan island, 40 km (25 mi) south east of Singapore. As he landed, one of the Hurricane's wheels hit an embankment and flipped over. Gorton was not properly strapped in and his face hit the gun sight and windscreen, mutilating his nose and breaking both cheekbones. He also suffered severe lacerations to both arms. He made his way out of the wreck and was rescued by members of the Royal Dutch East Indies Army, who provided some medical treatment. Gorton later claimed that his face was so badly cut and bruised, that a member of the RAF sent to collect him assumed he was near death, collected his personal effects and returned to Singapore without him. By chance, one week later, Sgt Matt O'Mara of No. 453 Squadron RAAF also crash landed on Bintan, and arranged for them to be collected.


title: John Gorton

text: They arrived back in Singapore, on 11 February, three days after the island had been invaded. As the Allied air force units on Singapore had been destroyed or evacuated by this stage, Gorton was put on the "Derrymore", an ammunition ship bound for Batavia (Jakarta). On 13 February, as it neared its destination, the ship was torpedoed by Japanese submarine I-55 Kaidai class submarine and the "Derrymore" was abandoned. Gorton then spent almost a day on a crowded liferaft, in shark-infested waters, with little drinking water, until the raft was spotted by HMAS "Ballarat", which picked up the passengers and took them to Batavia.


title: John Gorton

text: Two schoolfriends, who had also been evacuated from Singapore to Batavia, heard that Gorton was in hospital, arranged for them to be put on a ship for Fremantle, which left on 23 February and treated Gorton's wounds. When the ship arrived in Fremantle, on 3 March, one of Gorton's arm wounds had become septic and needed extensive treatment. However, he was more concerned about the effect that the sight of his mutilated face would have on his wife. It is reported that Betty Gorton, who had been running the farm in his absence, was relieved to see Gorton alive.


title: John Gorton

text: After arriving in Australia he was posted to Darwin on 12 August 1942 with No. 77 Squadron RAAF (Kittyhawks). During this time he was involved in his second air accident. While flying P-40E A29-60 on 7 September 1942, he was forced to land due to an incorrectly set fuel cock. Both Gorton and his aircraft were recovered several days later after spending time in the bush. On 21 February 1943 the squadron was relocated to Milne Bay, New Guinea.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton's final air incident came on 18 March 1943. His A29-192 Kittyhawk's engine failed on takeoff, causing the aircraft to flip at the end of the strip. Gorton was unhurt. In March 1944, Gorton was sent back to Australia with the rank of Flight Lieutenant. His final posting was as a Flying Instructor with No. 2 Operational Training Unit at Mildura, Victoria. He was then discharged from the RAAF on 5 December 1944.


title: John Gorton

text: During late 1944 Gorton went to Heidelberg Hospital for surgery which could not fully repair his facial injuries; he was left permanently disfigured.


title: John Gorton

text: After resuming his life in Mystic Park, Gorton was elected unopposed to the Kerang Shire Council in September 1946. He remained on the council until 1952, overlapping with his first term in the Senate, and from 1949 to 1950 served as shire president. Although he had little previous experience, Gorton began to develop a reputation as a powerful public speaker. His first major speech, in April 1946, was an address to a welcome-home gathering for returned soldiers at the Mystic Park Hall. In what John Brogden has described as "Australia's best unknown political speech", he exhorted his audience to honour those who had died in the war by building "a world in which meanness and poverty, tyranny and hate, have no existence". Gorton's next major speech was made in September 1947, at a rally against the Chifley Government's attempt to nationalise private banks. He told the crowd in Kerang that they should oppose the establishment of banks run by politicians, and objected in particular to the government's decision not to take the issue to a referendum. According to his biographer Ian Hancock, "the bank nationalisation issue marked his advance beyond purely local politics and stamped him firmly and publicly as an anti-socialist".


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton had been a supporter of the Country Party before the war, along with most of his neighbours. Over time, he became frustrated with the party's frequent squabbles with the Liberal Party and its willingness to cooperate with the Labor Party. After the Victorian Country Party withdrew from its coalition with the Liberals in December 1948, Gorton became involved in efforts to form a new anti-socialist movement that would absorb both parties. At some point he was introduced to Magnus Cormack, the state president of the Liberals, who became something of a mentor. In March 1949, Gorton was elected to the state executive of the new organisation, which named itself the Liberal and Country Party (LCP). On a number of occasions he addressed Country Party gatherings, urging its members to join the new party and stressing that it would not neglect rural interests, as many feared. However, the LCP did not achieve its goal of uniting the anti-Labor forces, as most Country Party members viewed it as simply a takeover attempt; the new party affiliated with the federal Liberal Party of Australia.


title: John Gorton

text: In June 1949, Gorton stood for the Victorian Legislative Council as the LCP candidate in Northern Province. It was a safe Country Party seat, and at the preceding three elections no other parties had bothered to field a candidate. Making right-wing unity the focal point of his campaign, Gorton polled 48.8 percent of the vote to finish less than 400 votes behind the sitting member, George Tuckett. The result impressed the LCP's leadership, and the following month he was preselected in third place on its joint Senate ticket with the Country Party. He was relatively unknown within the party, and his rural background was a major factor in his selection. The Coalition won a large majority at the 1949 federal election, including four out of Victoria's seven senators. The LCP candidates joined the parliamentary Liberal Party.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton's term in the Senate began on 22 February 1950. He was re-elected to additional terms at the 1951, 1953, 1958, and 1964 elections, and from 1953 occupied first place on the Coalition's ticket in Victoria. Gorton's early speeches on domestic policy foreshadowed the stances and policy initiatives he would later adopt as prime minister, such as economic nationalism, support for a strong central government, and support for nuclear energy. One of his first notable actions in the Senate came in November 1951, when he successfully moved a motion opposing "any substantial measure of ownership or control over any Australian broadcasting station" being granted to non-Australians. In his early speeches on foreign policy, Gorton drew analogies between the actions of the Soviet Union and Communist China and those of Nazi Germany. He developed a reputation as a "hardline anti-communist", speaking in favour of the Communist Party Dissolution Bill and campaigning for the "Yes" vote during the 1951 referendum to ban the Communist Party. At a campaign rally in September 1951, he had to be restrained by police after attempting to drag a heckler from his seat and shouting at him to "come outside, you yellow rat".


title: John Gorton

text: From 1952 to 1958, Gorton served on the Joint Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs, including as chairman for a period. He developed a keen interest in Asia, which was rooted in his anti-communism, and joined parliamentary delegations to Malaya, South Vietnam, Thailand, and the Philippines. He strongly supported Australia joining the Southeast Asia Treaty Organisation (SEATO), a collective defence initiative designed to prevent the spread of communism in the region. He also supported Taiwanese independence and opposed Australian recognition of the People's Republic of China (PRC). On a number of occasions, Gorton spoke of the need for Australia to develop a foreign policy independent of Britain and the United States. In May 1957, he told the Senate that Australia should acquire its own nuclear deterrent, including intercontinental missiles.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton was elevated to the ministry after the 1958 election, as Minister for the Navy. This was a junior position subordinate to the Minister for Defence, Athol Townley. Although his promotion was unexpected, he would serve as Minister for the Navy for more than five years, the longest-serving navy minister in Australia's history. Gorton regularly attended meetings of the Naval Board, unlike previous ministers, and championed its recommendations at cabinet meetings. He was able to secure most elements of the board's desired modernisation program, despite Townley showing more interest in the air force. During Gorton's tenure, the navy acquired four Australian-built frigates and six British-built minesweepers, as well as placing orders for three "Charles F. Adams"-class destroyers and four "Oberon"-class submarines. He postponed the phasing out of the Fleet Air Arm, due to occur in 1963, and secured the purchase of 27 Westland Wessex helicopters.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton was a supporter and admirer of Robert Menzies, who was sympathetic to his ambitions for higher office and assigned him additional responsibilities. In 1959, he was tasked with securing the passage of the Matrimonial Causes Bill, which introduced uniform divorce laws; he described it as "a systematic attempt to make a new approach to the problem of divorce". The bill was opposed by religious conservatives (mostly Catholics) on both sides of politics, but it eventually passed the Senate with only a single amendment. Gorton was appointed assistant minister to the Minister for External Affairs in February 1960, working under Menzies and later under Garfield Barwick and Paul Hasluck. In February 1962, he was also made minister-in-charge of the CSIRO. During question time in the Senate, he represented ministers from the House of Representatives, allowing him to gain experience in portfolios beyond his own.


title: John Gorton

text: After the 1963 election, Gorton relinquished the navy portfolio and was placed in charge of the government's activities in education and scientific research. He was also made Minister for Works and Minister for the Interior, relatively low-profile positions dealing mostly with administrative matters; the latter post was taken over by Doug Anthony after a few months. Menzies had a personal interest in education, having previously handled the portfolio himself, and told Gorton that it should be his primary focus. He was given oversight of the Australian Universities Commission, the Australian National University, the Commonwealth Archives Office, the Commonwealth Literary Fund, and the National Library of Australia. In January 1966, Menzies retired and Harold Holt became prime minister. Gorton was elevated to cabinet, and at the end of the year was given the title Minister for Education and Science. He was placed in charge of the new Department of Education and Science, the first time those portfolios had been given a separate department at federal level.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton presided over a "major intrusion" of the federal government into the education sector. His tenure saw significant increases in the number of university scholarships available, the number of new university entrants, and overall funding of education. One of the first major issues Gorton confronted was that of state aid to non-government schools. He believed that private schools should have equal access to federal government funding, and in 1964 announced that the government would fund science laboratories for private schools. This stance, supported by the Catholic education sector but opposed by secularists and most Protestant schools, eventually achieved widespread acceptance. In September 1965, Gorton created the Commonwealth Advisory Committee on Advanced Education, tasked with advising the government on non-university technical and further education (TAFE). He announced that the federal government would fund technical colleges on a pro-rata basis with the states, and personally oversaw the establishment of the Canberra College of Advanced Education, the forerunner of the University of Canberra. As science minister, he lent his support to the Anglo-Australian Telescope project, securing cabinet approval for its construction in April 1967.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton's reputation was significantly enhanced by his role in the VIP aircraft affair, a political controversy relating to the use of Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) VIP aircraft by the Holt Government and its predecessor the Menzies Government that came to a head in October 1967. Holt had provided vague and inaccurate answers to parliamentary questions about the VIP fleet, notably denying the existence of passenger manifests which might confirm instances of misuse. Air Minister Peter Howson became aware of the inaccuracies and sought to protect Holt, but their statements were soon subjected to further scrutiny, leading to accusations that they had conspired to mislead parliament. Gorton, who had just replaced Denham Henty as Leader of the Government in the Senate on 16 October, helped resolve the situation by tabling the "missing" passenger manifests in their entirety on 25 October. He did so on the grounds that the government could not maintain such a cover-up.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton's act has been credited for helping thrust him into general public view; boosting his standing among his parliamentary colleagues; and for the first time Gorton began to be viewed as a serious future leadership contender, which proved to be critical to his election as Holt's successor three months later. However, although Gorton defended Howson in Parliament, the affair also sewed the seeds of long-term enmity between him and Howson, the latter turning into a staunch, vocal opponent of Gorton during his years as Prime Minister and beyond.


title: John Gorton

text: Harold Holt disappeared while swimming on 17 December 1967 and was declared presumed drowned two days later. His presumed successor was Liberal deputy leader William McMahon. However, on 18 December, the Country Party leader and Deputy Prime Minister John McEwen announced that if McMahon were named the new Liberal leader, he and his party would not serve under him. His reasons were never stated publicly, but in a private meeting with McMahon, he said "I will not serve under you because I do not trust you". McEwen's shock declaration triggered a leadership crisis within the Liberal Party; even more significantly, it raised the threat of a possible breaking of the Coalition, which would spell electoral disaster for the Liberals. Up to that time, the Liberals had never won enough seats in any House of Representatives election to be able to govern without Country Party support. Indeed, since the Coalition's formation in 1923, the major non-Labor party had only been able to govern alone once, during Joseph Lyons' first ministry. Even then, Lyons' United Australia Party had come up four seats short of a majority in its own right, and was only able to garner a bare majority of two when the five members of the Emergency Committee of South Australia joined the UAP party room.


title: John Gorton

text: The Governor-General Lord Casey swore McEwen in as Prime Minister, on an interim basis pending the Liberal Party electing its new leader. McEwen agreed to accept an interim appointment provided there was no formal statement of time limit. This appointment was in keeping with previous occasions when a conservative Coalition government had been deprived of its leader. Casey also concurred in the view put to him by McEwen that to commission a Liberal temporarily as Prime Minister would give that person an unfair advantage in the forthcoming party room ballot for the permanent leader.


title: John Gorton

text: In the subsequent leadership struggle, Gorton was championed by Army Minister Malcolm Fraser, Government Whip in the Senate Malcolm Scott and Liberal Party Whip Dudley Erwin, and with their support he was able to defeat rivals Paul Hasluck, Les Bury and Billy Snedden to become Liberal leader even though he was a member of the Senate. He was elected party leader on 9 January 1968, and appointed Prime Minister on 10 January, replacing McEwen. He was the only Senator in Australia's history to be Prime Minister and the only Prime Minister to have ever served in the Senate. He remained a Senator until, in accordance with the Westminster tradition that the Prime Minister is a member of the lower house of parliament, he resigned on 1 February 1968 to contest the by-election for Holt's old House of Representatives seat of Higgins in south Melbourne. The by-election in this comfortably safe Liberal seat was held on 24 February; there were three other candidates, but Gorton achieved a massive 68% of the formal vote. He visited all the polling places during the day, but was unable to vote for himself as he was still enrolled in Mallee, in rural western Victoria. Between 2 and 23 February (both dates inclusive) he was a member of neither house of parliament.


title: John Gorton

text: Although he was still a Senator when he was sworn in as Prime Minister, Gorton never sat in the Senate as Prime Minister because neither House of Parliament was in session between his swearing in as Prime Minister and his resignation from the Senate.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton was initially a very popular Prime Minister. He carved out a style quite distinct from those of his predecessors – the aloof Menzies and the affable, sporty Holt. Gorton liked to portray himself as a man of the people who enjoyed a beer and a gamble, with a bit of a "larrikin" streak about him – hence one of his nicknames, "Gort the sport". Unfortunately for him, this reputation later came back to haunt him.


title: John Gorton

text: He also began to follow new policies, pursuing independent defence and foreign policies and distancing Australia from its traditional ties to Britain. But he continued to support Australia's involvement in the Vietnam War, a position he had reluctantly inherited from Holt, which became increasingly unpopular after 1968. On domestic issues, he favoured centralist policies at the expense of the states, which alienated powerful Liberal state leaders like Sir Henry Bolte of Victoria and Bob Askin of New South Wales. He also fostered an independent Australian film industry and increased government funding for the arts.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton proved to be a surprisingly poor media performer and public speaker, and was portrayed by the media as a foolish and incompetent administrator. He was unlucky to come up against a new and formidable Labor Opposition Leader in Gough Whitlam. Also, he was subjected to media speculation about his drinking habits and his involvements with women. He generated great resentment within his party, and his opponents became increasingly critical of his reliance on an inner circle of advisers – most notably his private secretary Ainsley Gotto.


title: John Gorton

text: The Coalition suffered a 7% swing against it at the 1969 election, and Labor outpolled it on the two-party-preferred vote. During the close election Gorton promised to waive all future government rent on residential leaseholders in Canberra. After surviving the election Gorton came through on his promise, giving away an estimated $100 million in equity to leaseholders and abandoning future government rent revenue. Still, Gorton saw the sizeable 45-seat majority he had inherited from Holt cut down to only seven. Indeed, the Coalition might have lost government had it not been for the Democratic Labor Party's longstanding practice of preferencing against the ALP. The Coalition was only assured of a ninth term in government when DLP preferences tipped four marginal seats in Melbourne —the DLP's heartland—to the Liberals. Had those preferences gone the other way, Whitlam would have become Prime Minister.


title: John Gorton

text: After the 1969 election, Gorton was unsuccessfully challenged for the Liberal leadership by McMahon and National Development Minister David Fairbairn; although on this occasion McEwen decided to lift his veto on McMahon. In the subsequent ministerial reshuffle, Gorton reinstated Don Chipp and promoted Andrew Peacock, Jim Killen and Tom Hughes to the ministry, among others. The Coalition suffered a significant primary vote swing in the 1970 Senate-only election, though seat losses were stemmed to just two and Labor was also judged to have performed poorly.


title: John Gorton

text: On 8 March 1971, a challenge was launched when Defence Minister Malcolm Fraser resigned from the ministry. Fraser had strongly supported Gorton for the leadership three years earlier, but now attacked Gorton on the floor of parliament in his resignation speech, accusing him of disloyalty in a dispute Fraser had with General Sir Thomas Daly and of "interference in (his) ministerial responsibilities". Fraser concluded the speech by condemning Gorton as "not fit to hold the great office of Prime Minister". Gorton's response on the floor of the House was infamously interrupted when journalist Alan Ramsey shouted "You liar!" to Gorton from the press gallery; realising his error, Ramsey quickly conveyed his gravest apology both to the House and, most particularly, to the Prime Minister. Gorton graciously accepted the apology, while inviting the Opposition to withdraw its motion that Ramsey be immediately arrested by the serjeant-at-arms of the House.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton called a Liberal caucus meeting for 10 March 1971 to settle the matter. A motion of confidence in his leadership was tied. Under Liberal caucus rules of the time, a tied vote meant the motion was passed and hence Gorton could have remained as party leader and Prime Minister without further ado. However, he took it upon himself to resign, saying "Well, that is not a vote of confidence, so the party will have to elect a new leader." A ballot was held and McMahon was elected leader and thus Prime Minister. Australian television marked the end of Gorton's stormy premiership with a newsreel montage accompanied by Sinatra's anthem "My Way".


title: John Gorton

text: In a surprise move, Gorton contested and won the position of Deputy Leader, forcing McMahon to make him Defence Minister. This situation lasted until August, when Gorton published two articles detailing the problems he had with ministers leaking information from cabinet. McMahon forced Gorton's resignation on the grounds of disloyalty, and Gorton went to the backbench.


title: John Gorton

text: A number of polls during McMahon's prime ministership had Gorton as both the preferred Liberal leader and the preferred prime minister. In 1972, businessman David Hains commissioned a series of polls in marginal electorates that showed the Coalition would significantly increase its vote if Gorton mounted a successful comeback; for instance, polling in the Division of Henty found that his return would add eight points to the Liberal vote. However, Gorton generally downplayed the polling and did not mount an active campaign to oust McMahon. Labor went on to win a nine-seat majority at the 1972 election, ending 23 consecutive years of Coalition rule. A number of Gorton's contemporaries – including Country Party leader Doug Anthony and Labor ministers Clyde Cameron, Doug McClelland, and John Wheeldon – retrospectively expressed doubts as to whether Whitlam could have won if Gorton had returned to the prime ministership. Rupert Murdoch, whose newspapers endorsed the Labor Party, stated in 2000 that "we would most certainly have supported the re-election of a Gorton Government in 1972. And he would have won!".


title: John Gorton

text: The seat of Henty, which became a particular point of Hains' polling as Hains made his case for Gorton to be restored as prime minister, was narrowly retained by the Liberals despite a huge swing towards Labor.


title: John Gorton

text: McMahon resigned as Liberal leader a few weeks after the 1972 election. Gorton was one of five candidates who stood the resulting leadership ballot, but polled only the fourth-highest total as Billy Snedden won a narrow victory over Nigel Bowen. Snedden subsequently appointed him to the opposition frontbench as spokesman for urban and regional development, the environment, and conservation. Soon after being sworn in as prime minister, Whitlam responded to a congratulatory letter from Gorton by promising to "advance some of the causes which you were the first Australian Prime Minister to identify". Over the following years, several failed initiatives from Gorton's prime ministership were passed into law by the Whitlam Government. This included the establishment of the Australian Film, Television and Radio School and the assertion of sovereignty over the territorial seabed and continental shelf.


title: John Gorton

text: Early in 1973, Gorton stated his public support of "abortion on request, under certain conditions"; he was opposed to "compulsory pregnancy". He nonetheless voted against David McKenzie and Tony Lamb's private member's bill to legalise abortion in the Australian Capital Territory, as he believed it did not provide clear enough guidelines for medical practitioners. He preferred the conditions of the Menhennitt ruling. Gorton was also a supporter of no-fault divorce. During the debate over what became the "Family Law Act 1975", he crossed the floor to oppose a Coalition amendment which he thought complicated the requirements for divorce through separation.


title: John Gorton

text: In October 1973, Gorton introduced a motion in the House of Representatives calling for the decriminalisation of homosexuality, co-sponsored by Labor's Moss Cass. It was modelled on the recommendations of the UK's Wolfenden report. While noting his personal objections to homosexuality, Gorton stated that most gay people "hurt no one, harm no one and yet have this hanging over them". He dismissed arguments that decriminalisation would violate "God's law", noting that many religious leaders were in favour of a change, and stated that the existing law had led to "bashing", blackmail, and suicides. The motion passed by 24 votes, with all parties receiving a conscience vote. However, it was of no legal effect as homosexuality law was the province of state laws and territory ordinances.


title: John Gorton

text: Whitlam was re-elected at the 1974 election. Gorton was dropped from shadow cabinet after the election, as was McMahon. In November 1974, following an unsuccessful attempt to install Malcolm Fraser as Liberal leader, he condemned those involved and stated they had caused "irreparable damage" to the party. On 3 March 1975, as leadership tensions continued to build, Gorton announced that he would not recontest his seat in parliament at the next election, citing his unwillingness to be a perpetual backbencher. He also stated: "If Fraser got in, it would be a disaster. He is extreme right-wing. The Liberal Party can't be a right-leaning affair." When Fraser won a leadership spill on 21 March, Gorton reportedly stormed out of the meeting and slammed the door behind him.


title: John Gorton

text: On 23 May 1975, Gorton announced his resignation from the Liberal Party and his intention to be an independent candidate for one of the new Australian Capital Territory (ACT) Senate seats. He hoped to join Steele Hall on the crossbench and secure the balance of power. Opinion polling shortly after his announcement showed him winning 55 percent of the primary vote. His candidacy received endorsements from the small local branches of the Liberal Movement and the Australia Party. Gough Whitlam was dismissed as prime minister on 11 November, sparking an early election on 13 December. During the preceding constitutional crisis, Gorton had denounced Fraser's actions in blocking supply in the Senate. Gorton advocated a vote and "a resounding victory" for Labor in election ads aired nationally, in protest against the dismissal of the Whitlam government. In the election, he polled 11.9 percent of the ACT Senate vote running on a two-man ticket with Harold Hird. It was the second-highest percentage for an independent candidate nation-wide, after Brian Harradine's 12.8 percent in Tasmania, but nowhere near enough to win election. He had campaigned mainly on local issues, which obscured his candidacy somewhat in an election that was a virtual referendum on the Whitlam Government.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton retired to Canberra, where he largely kept out of the political limelight. However, in March 1983, he congratulated Bob Hawke "for rolling that bastard Fraser" at that year's election.


title: John Gorton

text: In 1977, Gorton was recruited to record a series of three-minute radio broadcasts on current affairs, titled "Sir John Gorton's viewpoints". He wrote and recorded around 400 segments over the following four years, which were syndicated and broadcast by over 80 radio stations around the country. His broadcasts covered a wide range of issues – he supported the decriminalisation of marijuana and prostitution, called on Australians to welcome Vietnamese boat people, opposed the creation of SBS, denounced "the cacophony known as modern music", opposed Aboriginal land rights, supported uranium mining, and opposed republicanism. He frequently criticised the Fraser Government, but grudgingly admired Fraser's ability to get his way as prime minister.


title: John Gorton

text: In the 1990s, Gorton quietly rejoined the Liberal Party; John Hewson credited himself with "returning Gorton to the fold." In 1993, Gorton was invited to open the Liberal Party's campaign headquarters for the 1993 election. He endorsed Hewson's Fightback! package. In his old age he was rehabilitated by the Liberals; his 90th birthday party was attended by Prime Minister John Howard who said at the event: "He (Gorton) was a person who above everything else was first, second and last an Australian." Although he was back within Liberal circles, he never forgave Fraser; as late as 2002 he told his biographer Ian Hancock that he still could not tolerate being in the same room as Fraser.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton died at Sydney's St Vincent's Hospital at the age of 90 in May 2002. A state funeral and memorial service was held on 30 May at St Andrews' Cathedral where extremely critical remarks of Fraser, who was in attendance with wife Tamie, were delivered during the eulogy by Gorton's former Attorney-General Tom Hughes. Current and former Prime Ministers Howard, Gough Whitlam and Bob Hawke were also in attendance. Gorton was cremated after a private service and his ashes interred within the 'Prime Ministers Garden' at Melbourne General Cemetery.


title: John Gorton

text: During a holiday in Spain while an undergraduate, Gorton met Bettina Brown of Bangor, Maine, United States. She was a language student at the Sorbonne. This meeting came about through Gorton's friend from Oxford, Arthur Brown, who was Bettina's brother. In 1935, Gorton and Brown were married in Oxford. After his studies were finished, they settled in Australia, taking over his father's orchard, "Mystic Park", at Lake Kangaroo near Kerang, Victoria. They had three children: Joanna, Michael, and Robin. Gorton's first wife died of cancer in 1983. In 1993, he remarried to Nancy Home (née Elliott), a long-time acquaintance.


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton was a nominal Christian at least in the early part of his life, but was not a churchgoer. Some sources have identified him as agnostic or even atheist. He attended Anglican schools, and was influenced by the Christian socialist views of James Ralph Darling, his headmaster at Geelong Grammar. In a 1948 speech, Gorton said that "the story of Christianity is the most tremendous in the history of the world". However, in the lead-up to the 1999 referendum he publicly opposed mentioning God in the preamble. According to his biographer Ian Hancock: "Gorton may not have been a believing, let alone a practising, Christian, and when he spoke of religion of 'the soul' he did not have a particular faith in mind. Rather, his religion was founded upon the injunction in the Book of Deuteronomy: 'Man doth not live by bread only'."


title: John Gorton

text: Gorton was appointed a Privy Counsellor in 1968, a Companion of Honour in 1971, a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George in 1977, and a Companion of the Order of Australia in 1988. He was awarded the Centenary Medal in 2001. Commonwealth Railways CL class locomotive CL1 was named "John Gorton" in February 1970.


title: 2 States: The Story of My Marriage

text: 2 States: The Story of My Marriage commonly known as 2 States is a 2009 novel written by Chetan Bhagat. It is the story about a couple coming from two states in India, who face hardships in convincing their parents to approve of their marriage. Bhagat wrote this novel after quitting his job as an investment banker. This is his fourth book after "Five Point Someone", "One Night @ the Call Center" and "The Three Mistakes of My Life".


title: 2 States: The Story of My Marriage

text: 2 States: The Story of My Marriage is autobiographical with only names changed. The story is about a couple Krish and Ananya, who hail from two states of India, Punjab and Tamil Nadu, respectively, who are deeply in love and want to marry. It is narrated from a first-person point of view in a humorous tone, often taking digs at both Tamil and Punjabi cultures.


title: 2 States: The Story of My Marriage

text: The story begins in the IIM Ahmedabad mess hall where Krish, a Punjabi boy from Delhi sights a beautiful girl Ananya, a Tamilian from Chennai quarreling with the mess staff about the food. Ananya was tagged as the "Best girl of the fresher batch". They become friends within a few days. Both graduate and get jobs with serious plans for their wedding. At first, Krish tries to convince his girlfriend Ananya's parents by helping Ananya's brother Manju IIT tuition and by helping her father Swaminathan create his first PowerPoint presentation. He later convinces her mom by helping her fulfill her biggest dream of singing at a concert by arranging for her to perform at the concert organised by Krish's employer City Bank.


title: 2 States: The Story of My Marriage

text: With Ananya's parents convinced, the couple then has to convince Krish's mother. But they run into problems as Krish's mother's relatives don't quite like the relationship and do not want Krish to marry a Tamilian. They are won over after Ananya intervenes to help one of Krish's cousins get married. Now as they have convinced both their parents, they decide to make a trip to Goa to give their parents an opportunity to get to know each other. But this too ends badly as Ananya's parents have a fallout with Krish's mother after which they leave, deciding that the families can never get along. Krish returns home and becomes a depressed workaholic.


title: 2 States: The Story of My Marriage

text: Throughout the story, Krish was not on good terms with his father and doesn't share a close bond with him. But finally, it is revealed that Krish's father travels to Chennai to meet Ananya's parents and successfully convinces them by spending a day with them. Thus, father and son are reconciled and the novel ends with Ananya giving birth to twin boys. Krish says that the babies belong to a state called 'India', with a thought to end inequality.


title: 2 States: The Story of My Marriage

text: When a film adaptation of the novel was first announced, it was to be directed by Siddharth Anand and the lead roles were played by Saif Ali Khan and Priyanka Chopra. The music was to be composed by Vishal–Shekhar. However, the project was called off due to creative differences over the script.


title: 2 States: The Story of My Marriage

text: Later, it was announced that the screen adaptation of 2 States would be produced by Sajid Nadiadwala with Shah Rukh Khan and Priyanka Chopra in the lead roles and Vishal Bhardwaj would be directing the movie.


title: 2 States: The Story of My Marriage

text: However, since Shahrukh Khan did not want to appear in back to back romantic movies, the director had to look at other options. It was later declared that Imran Khan will be playing the male lead in the movie. But then, due to clash of dates, Imran and Priyanka had to opt out of the movie as well. After a lot of brainstorming, it was finally confirmed by producers Karan Johar and Sajid Nadiadwala that Arjun Kapoor and Alia Bhatt will be seen playing the lead pair in the movie. This pair was then a crowd favorite. Amrita Singh and Ronit Roy were cast as Arjun Kapoor's parents and Revathy and Shiv Kumar Subramaniam were cast as Alia Bhatt's parents.


title: John Curry

text: John Anthony Curry, (9 September 1949 – 15 April 1994) was a British figure skater. He was the 1976 European, Olympic and World Champion. He was noted for combining ballet and modern dance influences into his skating.


title: John Curry

text: Curry was born on 9 September 1949 in Birmingham, England. He had two older brothers. He was educated at Solihull School, an independent school in the West Midlands and prior to this, at St Andrews, an independent boarding school in Somerset. As a child, Curry wanted to become a dancer, but his father disapproved of dance as an activity for boys. As a compromise, in 1957, he began to take figure skating lessons under the guidance of Ken Vickers at the Summerhill Road rink in Birmingham.


title: John Curry

text: After his father died from suicide when John was 16, he moved to London to study with Arnold Gerschwiler, who coached him to his first British title in 1971. In 1972 Curry found an American sponsor who enabled him to study in the United States with Gus Lussi and Carlo Fassi.


title: John Curry

text: Fassi coached Curry to European, World, and Olympic titles in 1976. He also won the British championships that year, giving him the coveted Grand Slam in figure skating with his four major titles in 1976. In the same year he was the flag bearer at the Winter Olympics for Great Britain and was voted BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 1976. He was the first male figure skater from Great Britain to win Olympic gold.


title: John Curry

text: As an amateur competitor, Curry was noted for his ballet-like posture and extension, and his superb body control. Along with Canadian skater Toller Cranston, Curry was responsible for bringing the artistic and presentation aspects of men's figure skating to a new level. At the peak of his competitive career, Curry was also accomplished both at compulsory figures and the athletic (jumping) aspects of free skating.


title: John Curry

text: During his 1976 Olympic free skate he successfully landed a triple toe loop, a triple Salchow and a triple loop jump. His performance is known to have garnered the highest score ever given during the era of the 6.0 scoring in figure skating. He earned 105.9 points out of a possible 108 points from a panel of 9 international judges. Only the judges from Canada and the Soviet Union did not place him first. The judges' decisions are noteworthy because the silver medallist was Vladimir Kovalev of USSR and the bronze medallist was Toller Cranston of Canada.


title: John Curry

text: His skating was unusual in that his jumps were performed counter-clockwise but most of his spins (except flying spins) were performed clockwise. In his 1978 biography, Curry is clear that if he were to do it over, his choice would have been in favour of ballet due to its highly defined structure which was a basis for his ability to jump and spin in either direction thanks to his command of a true center line understanding.


title: John Curry

text: Following the 1976 World Championships, Curry turned professional and founded a touring skating company along the same lines as a traditional dance company. Besides choreographing routines for the company, Curry commissioned works from such noted dance choreographers as Sir Kenneth MacMillan, Peter Martins and Twyla Tharp. Curry was reportedly a difficult person to get along with, and a dispute with the business managers of his company forced it to suspend operations in the mid-1980s. After that, Curry performed only rarely in public.


title: John Curry

text: Curry's Broadway theatre credits include "Icedancing" (1978) as a performer and director and the 1980 revival of "Brigadoon" as an actor and the Roundabout Theatre 1989 revival of "Privates on Parade" as an actor.


title: John Curry

text: It is speculated that Curry was outed as gay by a German tabloid newspaper, "Bild-Zeitung". before the March 1976 World Championships. In fact, he was competing in Gothenburg as Britain's (and the world's) first openly gay high profile sportsperson. The revelation had occurred in February 1976, when John Vinocur, a reporter from the Associated Press, interviewed him in the days prior


title: John Curry

text: to his Olympic victory. His report, which included quotes from Curry that were candid about his sexuality, was published 24 hours after the victory made headline news. Curry confirmed he was gay at a press conference in Innsbruck the same evening. It caused a brief scandal in Europe at the time, but Curry's sexual orientation was generally ignored by the press and public for many years afterwards.


title: John Curry

text: In 1987 Curry was diagnosed with HIV, and in 1991 with AIDS. In October 1992 he gave an interview to a newspaper in which he spoke about both his disease and his sexual orientation. He spent the last years of his life with his mother. He died of an AIDS-related heart attack on 15 April 1994 in Binton, Warwickshire, aged 44. In line with his own wishes, Curry had a humanist funeral, led by celebrant Nigel Collins. A humanist memorial service took place later that year at Conway Hall Ethical Society, London.


title: John Curry

text: Donald Spoto’s authorised biography of actor Alan Bates stated that Curry and Bates had a two-year affair and that Curry died in Bates's arms.


title: Philadelphia Freedom (song)

text: "Philadelphia Freedom" is a song by English musician Elton John and songwriter Bernie Taupin. It was released as a single in 1975, credited to The Elton John Band. The song was the fourth of John's six number 1 US hits during the early and mid-1970s, which saw his recordings dominating the charts. In Canada it was his eighth single to hit the top of the "RPM" national singles chart.


title: Philadelphia Freedom (song)

text: The song was written by John and Taupin as a favour to John's friend, tennis star Billie Jean King, who was part of the Philadelphia Freedoms professional tennis team. The song features an orchestral arrangement by Gene Page which includes flutes, horns, and strings.


title: Philadelphia Freedom (song)

text: The song made its album debut on 1977's "Elton John's Greatest Hits Volume II". The unedited version (without an early fade out) appears on the box set "To Be Continued..." and the 40th anniversary edition of the "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" album.


title: Philadelphia Freedom (song)

text: Recorded in the summer of 1974, during breaks between sessions for "Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy", the song was at the time the only song Elton John and Bernie Taupin had ever consciously written as a single, as John told journalist Paul Gambaccini. John was looking to honour Billie Jean King, and so asked Taupin to write a song called "Philadelphia Freedom" as a homage to her tennis team, the Philadelphia Freedoms.


title: Philadelphia Freedom (song)

text: In "His Song: The Musical History of Elton John", Elizabeth Rosenthal recounts that Taupin said, "I can't write a song about tennis," and did not. Taupin maintains that the lyrics bear no relation to tennis, Philadelphia soul, or even flag-waving patriotism. Nonetheless, the lyrics have been interpreted as patriotic and uplifting, and even though it was released in 1975, the song's sentiment, intentionally or not, meshed perfectly with an American music audience gearing up for the country's bicentennial celebration in July 1976. In the US, the song was certified Gold in 1975 and Platinum in 1995 by the Recording Industry Association of America. "Billboard" ranked it as the No. 3 song for 1975.


title: Philadelphia Freedom (song)

text: The song was dedicated in part to "the Philadelphia sound," which included the soul music of the Delfonics and the Spinners and the talents of writer-producers Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff, and Thom Bell; John would work with Bell two years later on an EP that came to be known as "The Thom Bell Sessions". "Philadelphia Freedom" plays in Philadelphia's Franklin Institute IMAX Theater before every show as a tribute to the city's love for freedom and its impact on the country. The lyrics are also printed on the walls of the Hard Rock Cafe in Philadelphia.


title: Philadelphia Freedom (song)

text: The B-side, "I Saw Her Standing There", is a live recording of the Elton John Band with John Lennon at Madison Square Garden on 28 November 1974. It was the last of three songs John and Lennon performed together that night – the performance would mark Lennon's last concert appearance. Three songs from that collaboration were featured on the 1975 12" EP "Elton John Band featuring John Lennon and the Muscle Shoals Horns" (DJM). These recordings can also be found on the "Lennon" box set and the remastered edition of John's "Here and There" album.


title: Philadelphia Freedom (song)

text: "Cash Box" said that it has "a thumping heartbeat," "big production," "soaring strings and bleating horns."


title: Philadelphia Freedom (song)

text: Elton John met Billie Jean King in 1973 and, according to reporters for CNN, they have since built a "powerful partnership in philanthropy, raising hundreds of millions of dollars...for equal rights and for HIV/AIDS causes."


title: Philadelphia Freedom (song)

text: Upon admiring and meeting King, John asked his long-term writing partner Bernie Taupin to write the lyrics to what became "Philadelphia Freedom" and dedicate it to his friend, King, who was a member of the Philadelphia Freedoms tennis team. The label on the vinyl for this record reads "with Love to B.J.K. and the sound of Philadelphia." At the time, King had just been ranked the "World Number 1 women's player" for the fifth time in the previous seven years. Additionally, one reporter argued that she had "alter[ed] the gender perception of professional tennis with her victory against Bobby Riggs in a highly-publicized 'Battle of the Sexes' exhibition match."


title: Philadelphia Freedom (song)

text: The lyrics of "Philadelphia Freedom" are not explicitly about the match or King, but stem from a love of King and her cause. Prior to their match, Riggs claimed that even as a 55-year-old man, he could still beat a woman (King was 29 at the time) in a tennis match because it was a man's game. The match was held on 20 September 1973 at the Astrodome in Houston and was telecast worldwide. Though usually cheering from the sidelines at every match, John lost his voice cheering King on from a Los Angeles hotel. The year before the "Battle of the Sexes" match, Congress adopted the Equal Rights Amendment and 1973 saw the decision of "Roe v. Wade" give women the right to choose to have an abortion. King made other steps in feminism in 1973 when she founded the Women's Tennis Association and "convinced the U.S. Open to award female champions the same prize money as men." This set the scene for King's match and victory against Riggs.


title: Philadelphia Freedom (song)

text: The win ignited even more advocacy efforts for sexual equality, shattered the stereotype Riggs had presented and, as feminist Gloria Steinem put it, "provided...a morale change." King is now known as a "champion for social change and equal rights."


title: Philadelphia Freedom (song)

text: Despite her success in the match and its historical importance, King told eltonjohn.com that they (she and Elton) did not want the song to be about tennis. "It's a feeling," she said. King and John also co-founded the World Team Tennis Smash Hits, a charity function benefitting AIDS charities. King spoke of her work with Elton, saying "We're out there every single day with our energy and we're going to make this world a better place, no matter if it's through tennis, through music, whatever, to try to help the LGBT community, just help humanity."


title: Philadelphia Freedom (song)

text: The song was covered in 1975 by MFSB on their album of the same name on Philadelphia International Records.


title: Philadelphia Freedom (song)

text: A version was recorded by Esther Phillips on her 1979 LP – "Here's Esther...Are You Ready" released on Mercury Records.


title: Philadelphia Freedom (song)

text: Live recordings include a full band version on "One Night Only – The Greatest Hits" and a solo piano version on "Live at Madison Square Garden", an exclusive CD released to Rocket Fan Club members.


title: The Iron Heel

text: The Iron Heel is a political novel in the form of science fiction by American writer Jack London, first published in 1908.


title: The Iron Heel

text: The main premise of the book is the rise of a socialist mass movement in the United Statesstrong enough to have a real chance of winning national elections, getting to power, and implementing a radical socialist regime. Conservatives feel alarmed and threatened by this prospect, to the point of seizing power and establishing a brutal dictatorship in order to avert it.


title: The Iron Heel

text: There were some grounds for London to speculate in that direction. In fact, the labor activity in the U.S. has been growing since the late 19th century, with a fourfold increase in union membership in the U.S. from 1880-1890 and a tide of union activity in the next few decades. The armament industry of U.S., among others, became strongholds of workers and antiwar militancy; labor unrest peaked in 1919 with over four million workers on strike. By the 1930s and into the 1940s, the largest share of the total labor unrest was in North America; from 1941, with over 4,300 strikes involving 2 million workers. In 1945, a strike by Oil Worker International Union at a Standard Oil facility, spread, affecting the highest number of workers in U.S. history – over 10 percent of the U.S. labor force, with over 5,000 strikes of 4.6 million workers..All that labor militancy was, however, never channeled into a political party with a radical Socialist program. Rather, American unions found a political home in the Democratic Party, which neither was nor claimed to be Socialist, and American Conservatives never felt impelled to take such drastic steps as London foresaw.


title: The Iron Heel

text: Something like London's scenario did happen in other countries. Mass left-wing movements arose in Italy in the early 1920s, in Germany in the early 1930s, and in Spain in the late 1930s, leading Conservatives in those countries to support, respectively, Benito Mussolini, Adolf Hitler, and Francisco Franco, out of motives similar to those of Jack London's "Oligarchs". London foresaw the oligarchic tyranny arising in the English-speaking United States and Britain while Germany and Austria would, for a time, hold out against it before finally succumbing; in practice, it would be Nazi Germany which spearheaded fascism in its most virulent form, while the British and Americans stood against it.


title: The Iron Heel

text: The book is considered to be "the earliest of the modern dystopian fiction", in the form of social science fiction as employed by novels such as "We", "Brave New World", and "A Canticle for Leibowitz", it chronicles the rise of an oligarchic tyranny in the United States. In "The Iron Heel", Jack London's socialist views are explicitly on display. A distant forerunner of dystopian political novels and stories of the 1950s, 1960s, and 70s, such as Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World", the book stresses future changes in society and politics while paying much less attention to technological changes. The book is unusual among London's writings (and in the literature of the time in general) in being a first-person narrative of a woman protagonist written by a man. Much of the narrative is set in the San Francisco Bay Area. Other events take place in Sonoma County.


title: The Iron Heel

text: The novel is told via the framing device of a manuscript found centuries after the action takes place and footnotes by a scholar, Anthony Meredith, circa 2600 AD or 419 B.O.M. (the Brotherhood of Man). Jack London writes at two levels, sporadically having Meredith correcting the errors of Avis Everhard through his own future prism, while at the same time exposing the often incomplete understanding of this distant future perspective. Meredith's introduction also reveals that the protagonist's efforts will fail, giving the work an air of foreordained tragedy.


title: The Iron Heel

text: The story proper begins with Avis Everhard, a daughter of a renowned physicist, John Cunningham, and future wife of socialist Ernest Everhard. At first, Avis Everhard does not agree with Ernest's assertion that the whole contemporary social system is based on exploitation of labour. She proceeds to investigate the conditions the workers live in, and those terrible conditions make her change her mind and accept Ernest's worldview. Similarly, Bishop Morehouse does not initially believe in the horrors described by Ernest but then becomes convinced of their truth and is confined to a madhouse because of his new views.


title: The Iron Heel

text: The story covers the years 1912 through 1932 in which the Oligarchy (or "Iron Heel") arises in the United States. Japan conquers East Asia and creates its own empire, India gains independence, and Europe becomes socialist. Canada, Mexico, and Cuba form their own Oligarchies and are aligned with the U.S. (London remains silent as to events transpiring in the rest of the world.)


title: The Iron Heel

text: In North America, the Oligarchy maintains power for three centuries until the Revolution succeeds and ushers in the Brotherhood of Man. During the years of the novel, the First Revolt is described and preparations for the Second Revolt are discussed. From the perspective of Everhard, the imminent Second Revolt is sure to succeed. Given Meredith's frame story, the reader knows that Ernest Everhard's hopes will go unfulfilled until centuries after his death.


title: The Iron Heel

text: The Oligarchy is the largest monopoly of trusts (or robber barons) who manage to squeeze out the middle class by bankrupting most small to mid-sized business as well as reducing all farmers to effective serfdom. This Oligarchy maintains power through a "labor caste" and the Mercenaries. Laborers in essential industries like steel and rail are elevated and given decent wages, housing, and education. Indeed, the tragic turn in the novel (and Jack London's core warning to his contemporaries) is the treachery of these favored unions which break with the other unions and side with the Oligarchy. Further, a second, military caste is formed: the Mercenaries. The Mercenaries are officially the army of the US but are in fact in the employ of the Oligarchs.


title: The Iron Heel

text: Asgard is the name of a fictional wonder-city, constructed by the Oligarchy to be admired and appreciated as well as lived in. Thousands of proletarians live in terrible poverty there, and are used whenever a public work needs to be completed, such as the building of a levee or a canal.


title: The Iron Heel

text: Jack London ambitiously predicted a breakdown of the US republic starting a few years past 1908, but various events have caused his predicted future to diverge from actual history. Most crucially, though London placed quite accurately the time when international tensions will reach their peak (1913 in "The Iron Heel", 1914 in actual history), he (like many others at the time) predicted that when this moment came, labor solidarity would prevent a war that would include the US, Germany and other nations.


title: The Iron Heel

text: Further, London assumed that the Socialist Party would become a mass party in the United States, strong enough to have a realistic chance of winning national elections and gaining power, while remaining a revolutionary party still committed to the dismantling of capitalism. The whole book is based on Marx's view that capitalism is inherently unsustainable. This would precipitate a brutal counter-reaction, with capitalists preserving their power by discarding democracy and instituting a brutal repressive regime. Although this exact did not come to pass in the US, where the Socialist Party remained small and marginal, events closely followed London's script elsewhere; for example, in Chile in 1973, the government of socialist president Salvador Allende was overthrown by a CIA-backed coup led by General Augusto Pinochet. This prompted later publishers of London's book to use a cover illustration depicting a poster of Allende being ground beneath the heel of a boot.


title: The Iron Heel

text: The idea of a strong "and" militant mass Socialist Party emerging in the US was linked by London with his prediction that the middle class would shrink as monopolistic trusts crushed labor and small- to mid-sized businesses. Instead the US Progressive Era led to a breakup of the trusts, notably the application of the Sherman Antitrust Act to Standard Oil in 1911. At the same time, reforms such as labor unions rights were passed during the Progressive Era, with further reforms during the New Deal of the 1930s. Further, economic prosperity led to dramatic growth of the middle class in the 1920s and after World War II.


title: The Iron Heel

text: Through the writing of Everhard and, particularly, the distant future perspective of Meredith, London demonstrated his belief in the historical materialism, which Marxists such as Friedrich Engels, Georgi Plekhanov or Vladimir Lenin have interpreted as predicting an inevitable succession from feudalism through capitalism and then socialism, ending in a period without a state (also known as full communism), based on Marx's maxim of "from each according to his ability, to each according to his need."


title: The Iron Heel

text: "The Iron Heel" was published in 1908 by George Platt Brett Sr., who suggested only the deletion of a footnote which he deemed libelous before publication. It sold 50,000 copies in hardcover but generally did not earn the praise of critics. A reviewer in "The Outlook" concluded that "as a work of fiction it has little to commend it, and as a socialist tract it is distinctly unconvincing".


title: The Iron Heel

text: "The Iron Heel" is cited by George Orwell's biographer Michael Shelden as having influenced Orwell's most famous novel "Nineteen Eighty-Four". Orwell himself described London as having made "a very remarkable prophecy of the rise of Fascism" and believed that London's understanding of the primitive had made him a better prophet "than many better-informed and more logical thinkers."


title: The Iron Heel

text: Specifically, Orwell's protagonist Winston Smith, like London's Avis Everhard, keeps a diary where he writes down his rebellious thoughts and experiences. However, while Everhard's diary remained hidden during the centuries of tyranny to be discovered and published later, Smith's diary falls into the hands of the book's harsh Thought Police, whose interrogator tells Smith not to expect posterity to vindicate him: "Posterity will never hear of you, we will vaporize you".


title: The Iron Heel

text: Harry Bridges, influential labor leader in the mid-1900s, was "set afire" by Jack London's "The Sea-Wolf" and "The Iron Heel."


title: The Iron Heel

text: Granville Hicks, reviewing Kurt Vonnegut's "Player Piano", was reminded of "The Iron Heel": "we are taken into the future and shown an America ruled by a tiny oligarchy, and here too there is a revolt that fails."


title: The Iron Heel

text: London's novella "The Scarlet Plague" (1912), and some of his short stories, are placed in a dystopian future setting that closely resembles that of "The Iron Heel," although there is no actual continuity of situations or characters.


title: The Iron Heel

text: Frederic Tuten's debut novel "The Adventures of Mao on the Long March" uses extensive quotes from "The Iron Heel", placing them alongside details of Chinese history from 1912 to Mao's rise to power.


title: The Iron Heel

text: The novel has been adapted into two Russian films: "The Iron Heel" (1919) and "The Iron Heel of Oligarchy" (1999). The first was produced in the immediate aftermath of the October Revolution, and the second was produced when real-life Oligarchs came to dominate the economy of post-Soviet Russia.


title: The Iron Heel

text: A stage adaptation by Edward Einhorn was produced in 2016 in New York. According to "The New York Times", "it serves up food for thought with an appealing heart-on-sleeve warmth". The adaptation was turned into a three-part audio drama podcast in 2021.


title: Abraham Ford

text: Sgt. Abraham Ford is a fictional character from the comic book series "The Walking Dead" and was portrayed by Michael Cudlitz in the American television series of the same name.


title: Abraham Ford

text: In both mediums Abraham traveled the country with his girlfriend Rosita Espinosa to escort Dr. Eugene Porter to Washington, D.C. where the supposed cure for the outbreak is located, eventually recruiting Rick Grimes' group to accompany them. Though tough, and a skilled shooter, Abraham displays aggressive outbursts and has volatile tendencies towards the other group members, but over time he gains a strong sense of respect for Rick and becomes one of his right-hand men. He is also displayed as being emotionally broken from the pain he endured due to his family being killed by zombies. Eventually, Eugene is revealed to have lied and has no cure; Abraham lashes out at Eugene, and then becomes reclusive until the group find the Alexandria Safe-Zone, where Abraham becomes head of the construction crew. Over time, he and Eugene are able to make amends. Later he and Rosita broke up and he decided to get with Sasha but the new romance didn’t last long because Abraham was killed by Negan's baseball bat named Lucille. He was buried at Hilltop.


title: Abraham Ford

text: Cudlitz received acclaim for his portrayal of Abraham in the show, and is noted for his numerous unique one-liners and catchphrases.


title: Abraham Ford

text: Abraham, Eugene, and Rosita were once part of a larger group based in Houston. Their camp was overrun a few weeks earlier, and Eugene has persuaded them to head to Washington, D.C., where he claims he was a scientist; Eugene says they're working on a cure there. The trio first appears at Hershel's farm shortly after the prison's destruction. They are at first held at gunpoint by Andrea until Abraham explains their story and they need to acquire supplies for their trip to Washington, and invites them to come along. Though the group remains skeptical and Abraham directly confronts Dale and yells at him which causes tensions between him and Andrea. Later a large pack of zombies finds the farm and Abraham takes them all out and informs the others they were part of a larger "herd" which will be coming their way, and fires a gunshot to force their co-operation. Eventually Rick agrees and they pack up their supplies into their truck and leave the farm for good,


title: Abraham Ford

text: Initially, there is hostility between Abraham and the others, particularly Rick Grimes. When Maggie Greene attempts suicide, he comes close to placing a bullet in her head before she regains consciousness, even when Rick holds a gun to his head and orders him not to. Rick's arguing with him enrages Abraham, and Abraham almost kills him the next morning. A zombie interrupts his plan, and Abraham saves Rick instead.


title: Abraham Ford

text: During a detour back to Rick's hometown, they run into a group of bandits who attempt to rape Carl. Abraham assists in rescuing him and stops Carl from watching Rick disembowel one of them. The next morning, Rick and Abraham bond after they realize they have suffered similar losses.


title: Abraham Ford

text: After gathering some supplies from Rick and Carl's hometown, and recruiting Morgan Jones, the four make the trip back to the survivors. During this trip they stumble upon the "herd" (the largest they have seen), and immediately try to break through. Instead, they total their car. On foot, Carl is nearly killed and Abraham rescues him.


title: Abraham Ford

text: They regroup with the rest of their team and head to DC. On the way, they stumble across two mysterious scavengers, and Abraham is wary of their true intentions. He insists to Rick that they follow anyway due to their limited options. They soon come across and integrate themselves into Alexandria, where Abraham (due to his physical strength) is made head of the construction crew, where he witnesses corruption with the other crew members sacrificing one of their own, a young woman named Holly. He stands up for her, which drives the two closer to one another, and eventually they hook up behind Rosita's back. Abraham initially feels guilt about cheating on Rosita, but rationalizes his action as normal because of the new world they're living in. He breaks off his relationship with Rosita and falls back into Holly's arms. At one point, Holly suggests he take over from Rick, though this never comes to light. Abraham continues to assist in daily zombie-slaying and muscle work as months go by.


title: Abraham Ford

text: He and Michonne later encounter Jesus and join Rick and a few others at the Hilltop community. They are ambushed on their way back by the Saviors, a ruthless gang that has been terrorizing the community. When they are back in Alexandria, he and Eugene go on a supply run, and are ambushed by Savior members. Their leader Dwight, right-hand man of Negan, puts an arrow through Abraham's head and takes Eugene hostage. Abraham's body is eventually discovered by Rick and Andrea and given a memorial service. His death devastates Holly and Rosita, who has forgiven him. Dwight is resented by everyone for some time for killing Abraham but he professes that he had no choice as to not kill him would mean his wife Sherry would be punished, which is ultimately proven right. Regardless of Rick's eventual alliance with Dwight, many members of the group still dislike him for killing Abraham.


title: Abraham Ford

text: In the episode "Inmates", Abraham, Rosita, and Eugene meet survivors Tara and an unconscious Glenn on the road as they escape the ruins of the destroyed prison. In the episode "Claimed", Abraham ignores Glenn's insistence on finding his wife Maggie, as he says Eugene knows the cure to the virus and they must get to DC. The two get into a scuffle over it, but Glenn's determination to find Maggie outvotes Abraham. In the episode "Us", Abraham leaves Glenn and Tara into a tunnel and wishes them safe travels, but eventually come back to rescue them after meeting Maggie, Sasha, and Bob. Eugene manages to convince Abraham to go to Terminus with the others, as they might be able to obtain supplies and recruit others at Terminus to come to Washington. They all head to Terminus, where they are greeted by a woman named Mary. In the season finale "A", when Rick, his son Carl, and Michonne and Daryl are locked up in a shipping container by the residents of Terminus, it is revealed that Abraham and the rest have all been captured and are being held there as well. Rick declares that the people holding them are "gonna feel pretty stupid when they find out [...] they're screwin' with the wrong people."


title: Abraham Ford

text: In the season premiere "No Sanctuary", Abraham escapes Terminus with the group. In the episode "Strangers", Abraham talks to Rick and tries to convince him to go to DC but he insists on staying in Father Gabriel Stokes (Seth Gilliam)'s church for the night and the others state that they do what Rick says and Abraham decides to wait. Later that night Abraham holds a toast during dinner praising their skills as survivors but also notes the danger it poses to their sanity. Rick agrees to go to DC. In the episode "Four Walls and a Roof", Abraham gets into a fight with Rick over leaving after Daryl, Carol and Bob go missing. A deal is made for Glenn and Maggie to leave after the night. Abraham then gives Rick a map, apologizing for his behavior and tells him to go to DC after he gets Daryl and Carol back. In the episode "Self Help", flashbacks show Abraham killing men to protect his family, but his wife and children are terrified by him and run off, only to be killed by walkers. Abraham almost commits suicide but Eugene comes asking for help on a mission. In present day, Abraham goes increasingly frustrated with the set-backs on the way to DC, only for Eugene to reveal he is not a scientist. Abraham punches Eugene repeatedly, almost killing him. Rosita steps in his way to stop him, hand on her pistol. He walks off some distance and falls to his knees, crying. In the episode "Crossed", Abraham remains reclusive and on his knees in shock. Rosita is unable to get through to him. In mid-season finale "Coda", Abraham and his group return to the church with the firetruck in time to save Carl, Michonne, Gabriel and Judith from walkers though Abraham is still noticeably mad at an unconscious Eugene. In the episode "Them", the group decide to continue their journey to Washington D.C. but their van breaks down forcing them to walk but the group suffers from a drought. Abraham has taken to drinking heavily and tries to make short talk with Sasha and stops Eugene from trying bottles of water left on the road, as Rick fears it may be poisoned. When a pack of walkers arrives Rick devises a plan to eliminate them without exhausting themselves by letting them fall into a ditch, with Abraham, Sasha, Michonne, Glenn and Maggie, but Sasha's recklessness almost gets Abraham killed when she cuts him. Eventually the group takes refuge inside a barn and are forced to hold the doors closed to keep walkers from entering. In the episode "The Distance", Maggie and Sasha bring in a stranger named Aaron and after Rick disbelieves his claim of a nearby community Abraham takes part in the barn's defense on Rick's orders. When Michonne, Glenn and Maggie are set on following Aaron's claim of there being cars nearby Rick orders Abraham and Rosita to accompany them, eventually finding an R.V. After clearing it out Abraham asks Rosita if she believed he was going to hurt her back at the fire truck but she says no, knowing him better. The group returns to the barn and Rick finally decides to travel to their community but are temporarily delayed by a "herd" and Abraham leads half the group to a shelter with Aaron's boyfriend Eric. After the group resumes their travels, Abraham driving the R.V., they see the White House and Abraham smiles happy they made it but is soon angered when the R.V. breaks down but Glenn quickly points out where the backup battery is, puzzling Abraham to how Glenn knew where to find it (as Dale Horvath had previously taught him). Eventually the group arrives at Aaron's community: The Alexandria Safe-Zone.


title: Abraham Ford

text: In "Remember", the group enters Alexandria where they are interviewed by its leader Deanna Monroe who gives them two houses among themselves but they decide to stay in one house the first night though Abraham and Sasha are more on guard than the others. In "Forget", Deanna holds a welcome party for the new group which Abraham attends with Rosita but they are troubled by the normalcy of it until they see beer and Abraham gets slightly drunk. Later he talks to Michonne about how their lives are finally looking better but also the difficulty of leaving behind the road and equally the danger of settling in which Michonne agrees on, after she humorously notes how drunk he is. In the episode "Spend", after having sex with Rosita, Abraham washes his face and appears stressed and joins Tobin's construction crew as they move materials from outside to expand the wall. However Abraham briefly pauses appearing stressed again but is quickly occupied with a pack of walkers nearby and Francine is caught between them and though Tobin is willing to abandon her Abraham saves her, using a wrecking ball to kill the walkers attacking him while she uses his rifle to kill the walkers sneaking up on him. Afterward Abraham confronts Tobin over the matter, before Francine punches him, and as the others suggest heading back Abraham insists they continue and gives them directions to position guards and unload materials which they agree to. Tobin later tells Deanna of Abraham's actions and she decides to assign him as leader of the construction crew. In the season finale "Conquer", following Rick and Pete's confrontation in the streets and him waving a revolver around Deanna considers kicking him out. Abraham, meets with Rick, Glenn, Carol and Michonne to discuss the matter and Carol tells him to make up a story of having a gun out of concern for Jessie's safety, but Abraham asks their backup plan if they do not buy it. Rick then tells them that if things go bad he, Carol and Michonne will hold Deanna, Reg and Spencer hostage as Abraham and Glenn cover them so they can raid the armory. Later Abraham visits an unconscious Tara but is surprised to see Eugene and tries to sit down without waking him but Rosita intentionally drops a dish to wake him up. Abraham and Eugene reconcile over their differences and Abraham admits to feeling guilty for almost killing him while Eugene also admits the guilt he feels for lying in the first place and thanks him for getting them to Washington. Later Abraham attends Deanna's meeting with Carol, Eugene, Michonne, Maggie and defends Rick's actions just as Rick appears with a dead walker in his arms and stresses to the others that the living and dead will always try to get inside and they need to be ready. As a drunken Pete appears and kills Reg with Michonne's sword during an assassination attempt on Rick's life, Abraham angrily tackles the still-irate Pete and holds down his head as Rick executes him on Deanna's orders and witnesses the arrival of Morgan Jones, Aaron, and Daryl.


title: Abraham Ford

text: In the season premiere episode "First Time Again", Abraham carries Reg's corpse to the graveyard and appears highly saddened, drink whisky and pouring some on Reg's corpse as tribute, then sits on the porch of his house and plays with Reg's wedding ring. The next day Rick addresses the community and reveals the nearby quarry is overrun with walkers kept inside only by a few trucks at the exits, the reason Alexandria has avoided being overrun, which is in danger of collapsing and Rick proposes re-directing the herd onto the main road and away from Alexandria. Daryl is tasked with using himself as bait to lure the walkers onto the road while he uses his bike to stay ahead of them, and Sasha volunteers to take a car with him insisting he cannot do it alone and Abraham volunteers to accompany her. As part of the plan Abraham leads the construction team to one of the main roads to build a large barricade to prevent the herd veering off course but as Rick is leading the group around the area, going over the plan in detail Abraham asks Sasha if she's participating because she wants to die, but she smiles and says "no", leaving Abraham feeling nervous. At the quarry Rick recites his plan one last time for tomorrow but as he speaks the trucks on the upper hill topple over and the herd begins to break free towards Alexandria, forcing them to execute their plan at that moment instead. Sasha and Abraham take their car and travel with Daryl along the main road but Abraham asks if Sasha is good and she insists she is but questions why Abraham wanted to come if he's nervous, which he does not answer. As the herd begins to veer off Abraham briefly jumps out of the car and throws himself at the walkers to keep them following which concerns Sasha. However, as they are halfway through their plan a loud horn goes off, distracting half the herd away. In the episode "Thank You", Daryl insists on going to help Rick but Sasha and Abraham insist he stay but he chooses the former but Abraham and Sasha continue on mission. Eventually Daryl comes to his senses and rejoins them and they continue leading the herd away.


title: Abraham Ford

text: In the episode "Always Accountable", Abraham, Sasha and Daryl have driven 20 miles away as planned and begin their trip home but are ambushed by other survivors in a car who separate Daryl from them and wreck the car. Abraham moves in to kill a nearby trapped walker but Sasha holds him back since there could be more attackers and he reluctantly agrees, then they wander into a nearby town to find shelter so they can wait for Daryl to find them, marking the door "Dixon", but Sasha becomes uncomfortable when Abraham insists on needlessly killing walkers at the risk of exposing himself to greater danger. While waiting Sasha confronts Abraham and calls him reckless but he shrugs it off, reminding Sasha of her outburst at Deanna's welcoming party. While Sasha sleeps Abraham explores the building and finds a soldier's uniform and a picture of the soldier's family (himself, his wife and two children) reigniting his own grief. Abraham explores outside and finds an abandoned military truck with rocket heads and cigars and notices a walker stuck over the bridge has an RPG and attempts to retrieve it but becomes aggressive and yells right at it. Realizing he cannot reach it without getting killed, Abraham stops. The walker falls, but, miraculously, the RPG gets stuck on a wire, allowing Abraham to retrieve it. Abraham carries all his new-found equipment and brings it back to Sasha, and admits that she is right about his recklessness. He insists that he was shaken up by Reg and Pete's death since he thought finding Alexandria would be the end of their troubles, but now knows they will have some work to do, but still insists that they have everything set for the rest of their lives back home. Abraham also compliments Sasha for calling bullshit and confesses a romantic interest in her. Sasha implies that she could return affection for him also but insists that before anything he needs to work on himself which he smiles back at her and the two are eventually found by Daryl. Before leaving Abraham puts on the soldier's uniform and as they drive back he smiles to himself, signaling change in him.


title: Abraham Ford

text: In the mid-season premiere "No Way Out", on the way back to Alexandria, Abraham, Sasha and Daryl are stopped by a group of armed men on motorcycles. The leader of the gang informs the trio that their guns and truck now belong to a man named Negan before taking their sidearms. He orders one of the men to take Daryl to the back of the truck and inspect its cargo while Sasha and Abraham stay behind. After some conversation between Abraham, Sasha and the leader of the gang, as the latter is threatening to shoot them, the whole group of bikers explodes. Daryl then comes out from behind the truck holding an RPG, having subdued and killed the biker who went to check cargo with him, and leaves with Abraham and Sasha. Later when Glenn is swarmed by walkers back at Alexandria, Abraham and Sasha suddenly appear. Standing on top of the fuel truck, they are able to gun down the walkers and save Glenn. Sasha then helps the Alexandrians and Rick fight the mega walker herd, eventually succeeding.


title: Abraham Ford

text: In the episode "Knots Untie", Abraham first appears in this episode returning from a patrol with Sasha. Sasha tells him that she and Eugene are going to switch patrols for a bit. Abraham is slightly saddened by this news but she flashes him a peace sign referencing to the peace sign he gave to her after Pete and Reg died. He promptly returns the sign to her. The scene then flashes forward to Abraham in bed with Rosita who's thinking about Sasha. Abraham tells her that he loves her and Rosita kisses him and tells him to prove it. She gives him a necklace she made and tells him to meet her in the shower. Abraham is later seen with Carl, Glenn, Rick who are talking to Jesus in Rick's house. Jesus explains that he is a recruiter for a settlement not too far away from here and that he trades with other communities. He offers to take Rick and a few others to go to the Hilltop Colony to trade for food to which Rick accepts. Abraham goes with Daryl, Glenn, Michonne, Rick and Maggie to the hilltop colony. Inside the RV, Abraham quietly asks Glenn if he was intending to have a child with Maggie to which he says yes but is confused as to why Abraham would ask that. Abraham is then seen with Rick and the others who are about to enter a building to save a few other members of the hilltop colony. Inside, Abraham draws his knife, grabs a member of the hilltop, Freddie, by the throat and nearly stabs him before being stopped by Rick. Inside the RV Freddie explains to how he saw his dead wife when Abraham nearly stabs him to which Abraham looks on remembering his dead wife. At the Hilltop, Abraham draws his rifle on Kal and Eduardo before Jesus calmly tells Rick and the others to trust him and that the hilltop is safe. Abraham enters the hilltop and takes in the sight and listens to Jesus's talk about the history of the place. Abraham enters the barrington house and notes how impressive the place is. Abraham and the others meet Gregory who rudely state that Rick and the others should get cleaned up. Later, Abraham asks Daryl how long he known that Rick and Michonne were a thing to which he says he knew not too long ago. Outside Abraham is with everyone when Ethan, Crystal and Andy return from a failed supply meeting with the saviors. When Ethan stabs Gregory, Abraham immediately tackles Andy who tries to attack Rick. Despite being significantly stronger than Andy, Abraham does not fight back and lets Andy choke him. As Andy chokes him, he hears Sasha's voice and right before Andy can kill him, Daryl comes along and snaps his arm. Daryl looks over to Abraham and asks if he is okay to which he says he is, seemingly un-phased that he almost dies. As he gets up he leaves behind Rosita's necklace. Abraham is seen with Rick, Jesus and the others who discuss the threat of Negan and the saviors. Rick tells Jesus that Daryl, Abraham and Sasha had a run in with the saviors a few months back to which Abraham recalls the event, calling it a barbecue. He is later seen loading food into the RV. As Rick and the others are leaving the hilltop, Daryl passes him a photo of Glenn and Maggie's unborn child to which Abraham looks to Glenn and smiles.


title: Abraham Ford

text: In the episode "Not Tomorrow Yet", Abraham breaks up with Rosita and moved in with Sasha. All three of them then participate in the assault on the Saviors' compound. In the episode "Twice as Far", Abraham and Eugene go to an industrial machine shop, which Eugene intends to use to manufacture ammunition. After some tense moments, they come to an understanding of mutual respect. In the episode "East", Abraham arrives at the watch post to take over from Sasha. She hands him a cigar and they talk while Rosita watches them. When Glenn and Michonne prepare to go after Daryl, Abraham insists on going with them. Rosita tells him to cover her shift, claiming she knows where Daryl is going. Abraham opens the gate for Rick when he returns from searching for Carol. He tells him that Morgan is still looking for her and asks where Michonne is. Abraham says that she is still out there and asks Rick if he is worried, to which he says he is. They share their fears over getting close to someone again. "I think I'm that much more ready to tear the world a brand new asshole," Abraham says. Rick smiles and nods.


title: Abraham Ford

text: In the season finale "Last Day on Earth", when Maggie starts feeling ill, Abraham joins Rick and the others to drive the RV towards the Hilltop. The group encounters a group of saviors led by Simon, who has a conversation with Rick about the last day on Earth. Later, the group is attacked by hidden saviors and encounter several road blocks. During the night, the group decides to travel on foot and after a brief conversation, Abraham lets Eugene drive the RV away. During their mission, the group ends up surrounded by Saviors. Negan soon introduces himself and gives a speech before deciding whom to kill as punishment for Rick's group.


title: Abraham Ford

text: In the season premiere "The Day Will Come When You Won't Be", Abraham is revealed to be Negan's chosen victim. As he gives Sasha the peace sign Negan smacks his head with Lucille. As Abraham sits back up, he defiantly tells Negan to "suck my nuts", and Negan bludgeons his head repeatedly until it is completely smashed in. After Daryl angrily punches Negan in retaliation, he then kills Glenn in the same manner. After Negan and the Saviors leave Abraham and Glenn's corpses are loaded onto a truck Maggie and Sasha take to Hilltop. Rick then hallucinates an idealistic lifestyle in Alexandria with everyone, Abraham and Glenn included, eating dinner together. In "Go Getters", Abraham and Glenn are shown to be buried together at Hilltop.


title: Abraham Ford

text: In the season finale, Abraham is shown in a flashback with Sasha as the two discuss the plans from season 6 to bring Maggie to the Hilltop. It is revealed during the episode that Sasha had ingested a poison capsule provided by Eugene in an attempt to foil Negan's plans at Alexandria. During the drive from the Sanctuary to Alexandria, Sasha was shown recalling the conversation with Abraham prior to joining the group before they left and were ultimately intercepted by the Saviors.


title: Abraham Ford

text: The Abraham, Eugene and Rosita characters were first announced in a casting call (coded "John Tyler") for Episode 10 in July 2013. The character's real name and the actor playing the role (Michael Cudlitz) were confirmed in "The Hollywood Reporter."