query: Angela Lansbury was part-owner of Corymore Productions.

pos: Angela Lansbury Dame Angela Brigid Lansbury , ( born 16 October 1925 ) is a British-American-Irish actress who has appeared in theatre , television and film , as well as a producer , voice actress , singer , and songwriter . Her career has spanned seven decades , much of it in the United States , and her work has attracted international attention .   Lansbury was born to an upper-middle-class family in central London , the daughter of actress Moyna Macgill and politician Edgar Lansbury . To escape the Blitz , in 1940 she moved to the United States with her mother and two younger brothers , and studied acting in New York City . Proceeding to Hollywood in 1942 , she signed to MGM and obtained her first film roles , in Gaslight ( 1944 ) and The Picture of Dorian Gray ( 1945 ) , earning her two Oscar nominations and a Golden Globe Award . She appeared in eleven further MGM films , mostly in minor roles , and after her contract ended in 1952 she began supplementing her cinematic work with theatrical appearances . Although largely seen as a B-list star during this period , her appearance in the film The Manchurian Candidate ( 1962 ) received widespread acclaim and is cited as being one of her finest performances . Moving into musical theatre , Lansbury finally gained stardom for playing the leading role in the Broadway musical Mame ( 1966 ) , which earned her a range of awards and established her as a gay icon .   Amid difficulties in her personal life , Lansbury moved from California to County Cork , Ireland , in 1970 , and continued with a variety of theatrical and cinematic appearances throughout that decade . These included leading roles in the stage musicals Gypsy , Sweeney Todd , and The King and I , as well as in the hit Disney film Bedknobs and Broomsticks ( 1971 ) . Moving into television , she achieved worldwide fame as fictional writer and sleuth Jessica Fletcher in the American whodunit series Murder , She Wrote , which ran for twelve seasons from 1984 until 1996 , becoming one of the longest-running and most popular detective drama series in television history . Through Corymore Productions , a company that she co-owned with her husband Peter Shaw , Lansbury assumed ownership of the series and was its executive producer for the final four seasons . She also moved into voice work , thereby contributing to animated films such as Disney 's Beauty and the Beast ( 1991 ) . Since then , she has toured in a variety of international theatrical productions and continued to make occasional film appearances .   In 2014 , Lansbury was made a Dame by Queen Elizabeth II in a ceremony at Windsor Castle for `` services to drama , charitable work , and philanthropy . '' Lansbury has received an Honorary Oscar and has won five Tony Awards , six Golden Globes , an Olivier Award , and one Grammy Award . She has also been nominated for numerous other industry awards , including the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress on three occasions , and various Primetime Emmy Awards on eighteen occasions . She has been the subject of three biographies .

neg: Little Britain Productions Little Britain Productions is a television production company founded in 2006 . Little Britain Productions mainly produces comedies and documentaries about comedy .

neg: Theatre of Australia Theatre of Australia refers to the history of the performing arts in Australia , or produced by Australians . There are theatrical and dramatic aspects to a number of Indigenous Australian ceremonies such as the corroboree . During its colonial period , Australian theatrical arts were generally linked to the broader traditions of English literature and to British and Irish theatre . Australian literature and theatrical artists ( including Aboriginal as well as Anglo-Celtic and multicultural migrant Australians ) have over the last two centuries introduced the culture of Australia and the character of a new continent to the world stage .   Individuals who have contributed to theatre in Australia and internationally include Sir Robert Helpmann , Dame Joan Sutherland , Barry Humphries , David Williamson , Cate Blanchett , Geoffrey Rush , Judy Davis , Jim Sharman , Tim Minchin and Baz Luhrmann . Notable theatrical institutions include the Sydney Opera House , and the National Institute of Dramatic Art in Sydney .

neg: The Brewhouse Theatre & Arts Centre The Brewhouse Theatre and Arts Centre ( or The Brewhouse ) is the largest theatre and arts centre in Taunton , a town in Somerset , England .   The building opened 28 March 1977 , on the banks of the River Tone , and offers a 350-seat auditorium and supporting studio and exhibition spaces . Its first professional production was Alan Ayckbourn 's The Norman Conquests , starring the then unknown David Jason .   The administrative offices are on the first floor of a Georgian Grade II listed building which gives the theatre its name .   In 2005 , Arts Council England announced that it would cut regular funding to The Brewhouse from 2006 , following a drop in artistic output . In September 2005 a new director Robert Miles was appointed to lead the artistic reinvigoration of the organisation , which now plays host to experimental theatre companies such as DEREVO , and No Fit State Circus . It was also the first theatre , apart from the Royal Court Theatre , to stage Caryl Churchill 's controversial play Seven Jewish Children .   In 2009 , ongoing under funding , combined with the impact of recession and a subsequent threat of cuts meant the venue was once again put under threat of closure . With support from its stakeholders The Brewhouse overcame these immediate funding concerns , and in March 2010 it was announced that the organisation had been awarded # 487,500 from Arts Council England 's Sustain fund to allow it to continue to programme arts and participatory activities during the economic downturn .   A feasibility study by ArtsService recommends the current site be expanded to create a 600 - to 750-seat auditorium , a larger gallery space and arthouse cinema with improved bar and catering provision as part of a new `` Coal Orchard '' - Taunton 's cultural quarter .   The venue closed in February 2013 and went into administration .   The venue reopened in April 2014 by the Taunton Theatre Association ( TTA ) , having been granted the lease from Taunton Deane Borough Council , who bought the 61-year lease of the site and its contents from administrator BDO .

neg: Belvoir St Theatre Belvoir St Theatre is an Australian theatre company venue in Sydney , New South Wales . The venue in Belvoir Street , Surry Hills previously operated as the Nimrod Theatre , and was founded as '' ` Belvoir St '' in 1984 by Sue Hill and Chris Westwood . It is the home of the theatre company Belvoir .   The building was purchased by a syndicate of people , and there are currently 600 owners , including noted actors , directors , writers and performers : Robyn Archer , Gillian Armstrong , Peter Carey , Judy Davis , Mel Gibson , Max Gillies , Nicole Kidman , Sam Neill , Patrick White , David Williamson , Neil Armfield , Michael Willesee and Colin Friels . Previous owners on the books have also included the late Dame Joan Sutherland , Ruth Cracknell , Gwen Plumb , Dorothy Hewett and Patrick White .   Renovations costing around $ 11.6 million commenced in 2005 and were delayed in 2006 with the discovery of asbestos in the building 's roof . The theatre reopened in October 2006 with the Sydney season of It Just Stopped by Stephen Sewell .

neg: Lansbury Park Lansbury Park is a residential suburb area of the town of Caerphilly in Wales .

neg: Blairstown Theater Festival The Blairstown Theater Festival operated from December 2006 through November 2007 at historic Roy 's Hall ( also known as Roy 's Theatre ) , a former silent movie theater built in 1913 at 30 Main Street in Blairstown , New Jersey .   On July 13 , 2007 , the company attracted considerable media attention when they presented three screenings of the classic horror film , Friday the 13th , which was shot in and around Blairstown in the fall of 1979 . Roy 's Hall appears in the film shortly after the opening credits .   The company 's January 2007 production of Letters from the Inside was selected by The Star-Ledger as one of the top five new plays of the 2006 -- 2007 New Jersey theater season and actress Kelli Ambrose , who played Mandy in Letters from the Inside , was selected as one of the top five Best Leading Actresses in a Play .   Among the other concerts and productions presented by the Blairstown Theater Festival were Nancy Anderson singing early Broadway songs backed by the Baroque Orchestra of North Jersey ( Baroque to Broadway ) , the Still River Band in Concert , Malachy McCourt and Jarlath Conroy in A Couple of Blaguards , Betsy Palmer and Will Hutchins in A.R. Gurney 's Love Letters , the New Jersey premiere of I Am Anne Frank , and concerts by cabaret performers KT Sullivan ( Vienna to Weimar ) , John O'Neil ( ` So Kaye ) , the Western Wind Vocal Ensemble ( Holiday Light ) , Cris Groenendaal ( Music of the Night ) , Jana Robbins ( One Hell of a Ride ! The Songs of Cy Coleman ) and jazz pianist Bill Mays and his Inventions Trio .   The company also presented several film festivals with such classic titles as Gone with the Wind , Casablanca , Seven Samurai , Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein , A Night at the Opera , The Court Jester , -LSB- -LSB- Beauty and the Beast ( 1946 film ) | La Belle et la Bête -RSB- -RSB- , Black Orpheus , Mon Oncle , The Wages of Fear and La Strada .   The Blairstown Theater Festival was not able to continue past its first season for several reasons . Most significantly , Blairstown Township suddenly increased the real estate taxes on the building by more than 680 % ( from $ 1,031.55 to $ 7,032.30 ) and the landlord decided to sell the theatre .   A CD featuring highlights from the Blairstown Theater Festival 's season was released in February 2008 .

neg: Muriel Box Muriel Box ( 22 September 1905 -- 18 May 1991 ) was an Oscar-winning English screenwriter and director .   She was born Violette Muriel Baker in Tolworth , Surrey , England in 1905 . When her attempts at acting and dancing proved to be unsuccessful , she accepted work as a continuity girl for British International Pictures . In 1935 , she met and married journalist Sydney Box , with whom she collaborated on nearly forty plays with mainly female roles for amateur theatre groups . Their production company , Verity Films , first released short propaganda films , including The English Inn ( 1941 ) , her first directing effort , after which it branched into fiction . The couple achieved their greatest joint success with The Seventh Veil ( 1945 ) for which they gained the Academy Award for Best Writing , Original Screenplay in the following year .   After the war , the Rank Organisation hired her husband to head Gainsborough Pictures , where she was in charge of the scenario department , writing scripts for a number of light comedies , including two for child star Petula Clark , Easy Money and Here Come the Huggetts ( both 1948 ) . She occasionally assisted as a dialogue director , or re-shot scenes during post-production . Her extensive work on The Lost People ( 1949 ) gained her a credit as co-director , her first for a full-length feature .   In 1951 , her husband created London Independent Producers , allowing Box more opportunities to direct . Many of her early films were adaptations of plays , and as such had a stage-bound feel , since she rarely shot on location . They were noteworthy more for their strong performances than they were for a distinctive directorial style . She favoured scripts with topical and frequently controversial themes , including Irish politics , teenage sex , abortion , illegitimacy , and syphilis , and several of her films were banned by local authorities .   She pursued her favorite subject -- the female experience -- in a number of films , including Street Corner ( 1953 ) about women police officers , Somerset Maugham 's The Beachcomber ( 1954 ) , with Donald Sinden and Glynis Johns as a resourceful missionary , again working with Donald Sinden on Eyewitness ( 1956 ) and a series of comedies about the battle of the sexes , including The Passionate Stranger ( 1957 ) , The Truth About Women ( 1958 ) and her final film , Rattle of a Simple Man ( 1964 ) .   Box often experienced prejudice in a male-dominated industry , especially hurtful when perpetrated by another female . In 1950 , Jean Simmons had her replaced on So Long at the Fair , and Kay Kendall unsuccessfully attempted to do the same with Simon and Laura ( 1955 ) . Many producers questioned her competence to direct large-scale feature films , and while the press was quick to note her position as one of very few women directors in the British film industry , their tone tended to be condescending rather than filled with praise .   She left film-making to write novels and created a successful publishing house , Femina , which proved to be a rewarding outlet for her feminism . She divorced Sydney Box in 1969 . The following year , she married Gerald Gardiner , who had been Lord Chancellor . She died in Hendon , London in 1991 .

neg: York Theatre York Theatre is an Off-Broadway theatre company base in East Midtown Manhattan , New York City . In its 48th year , York Theatre is dedicated to the production of new musicals and concert productions of forgotten musicals from the past . Each season consists of three or four mainstage productions , six or more concert presentations and dozens of developmental readings . It has had several transfers of its work to larger off-Broadway theatres and to Broadway . The company was awarded a special Drama Desk Award in 1996 to its artistic director Janet Hayes Walker and in 2006 for its `` vital contributions to theater by developing and presenting new musicals '' .   Since 1993 the company has performed in an intimate theatre that is part of St. Peter 's Church , in the Citigroup Center Complex at 619 Lexington Avenue at the corner of East 54th Street .   The Oscar Hammerstein Award  is named in honor of the legendary lyricist and librettist who helped shape American musical theatre through his collaborations with a number of different composers and writers . The award was created in 1988 by Janet Hayes Walker , the Founding Artistic Director of The York Theatre Company , and is presented with the endorsement of the Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization and the Hammerstein family . The Oscar Hammerstein Award Gala is the major annual fundraising event of The York , a mainstay of the Off-Broadway scene for more than 45 years .   Past recipients include Stephen Sondheim , Betty Comden & Adolph Green , Harold Prince , Cy Coleman , Charles Strouse , Arthur Laurents , Jerry Herman , Stephen Schwartz , Peter Stone , David Merrick , John Kander & Fred Ebb , Terrence McNally , Sir Cameron Mackintosh , Carol Channing , Tony Walton , Joseph Stein , Thomas Meehan , Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick , Barbara Cook , Paul Gemignani , Lynn Ahrens & Stephen Flaherty . In November , 2015 , the 24th Oscar Hammerstein Award was presented to Angela Lansbury in a star-studded tribute evening .

neg: Antidote Films For the Australian film distribution company , see Antidote Films ( Australia ) .   Antidote Films , also known as Antidote International Films , Inc. , is an independent film production company founded by producer Jeff Levy-Hinte based in the Hudson Square neighborhood of New York City . In 2008 , Antidote completed several documentaries , including Soul Power and The Dungeon Masters , both of which premiered at the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival .   Antidote produced Roman Polanski : Wanted and Desired , a documentary directed by Marina Zenovich , which was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize and winner of the Documentary Editing Award at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival , the film will be released domestically by HBO and internationally through The Weinstein Company .   Prior to this , Antidote produced several narrative films until The Last Winter , when the company shifted its focus to documentary .   Other Antidiote productions include the eco-horror thriller The Last Winter ; The Hawk Is Dying , adapted from Harry Crews ' novel and directed by Julian Goldberger ; Mysterious Skin , directed by Greg Araki ; and Thirteen , directed by Catherine Hardwicke .   In 2003 Daily Variety announced Antidote 's plans for a film adaptation of the JT LeRoy novel ` Sarah ' , to be directed by Steven Shainberg . According to The New York Times , when Shainberg learned that JT LeRoy was a literary persona and that Laura Albert was the actual author of Sarah , he decided `` to make a ` meta-film , ' a triple-layered movie that would blend the novel with the lives of its real and purported authors in a project he took to calling ` Sarah Plus . ' '' The Times also reported that this new project `` required the rights to Laura Albert 's story , rights that she in no uncertain terms refused to grant . '' In June 2007 Antidote sued Albert for fraud , claiming that a contract signed with JT LeRoy to make a feature film of Sarah was null and void . After a Manhattan jury found Albert liable in monetary damages for the tort of fraud because she had signed her nom de plume to the movie contract , The New York Times noted that Jeffrey Levy-Hinte said , `` if Ms. Albert , who never made a fortune from her literary works , could not afford to pay the judgment , he might have to consider laying claim to the rights to her past and future books . '' Levy-Hinte 's chief lawyer insisted , `` Neither Jeff nor I want to ruin Laura Albert . We just want her to behave with a little more integrity . '' After an appeal , the damages awarded were reduced by settlement with Antidote in 2009 , and Laura Albert retained the rights to her books and her life story .

neg: Noël Coward Society The Noël Coward Society is an international society founded with the agreement of Coward 's literary agent and Estate to celebrate the life and work of Sir Noël Coward .   The Noël Coward Society was founded in 1999 to study and promote and enjoy the many aspects of Cowards achievements . It owns an extensive archive of recordings and written works and is attempting to become the official on-line archive of all things `` Coward '' .   The Noël Coward Society is managed by Noël Coward Ltd. , a charitable company . It is currently administered from Norwich , Norfolk , UK , and has a membership of just over 700 people worldwide . The day-to-day running of the Society is managed by an organising committee . The Society has representatives in France , Australia and the USA . Each year it celebrates the birth of Noël Coward at the Noël Coward Theatre and the Theatre Royal , Drury Lane on the nearest Friday to his birthdate . The celebration consists of the AGM of the Society at the Noël Coward Theatre followed by a celebrity from the theatre world laying flowers on the statue of Sir Noël Coward in the foyer of the Theatre Royal . The Annual Lunch follows in the Grand Saloon at the theatre , followed by a cabaret .   In 2002 , Ken Starrett was appointed the North American Director of The Noel Coward Society and in 2003 , Starrett organized an annual birthday celebration which took place in December in the USA . The event included the flower laying ceremony at The Gershwin Theatre in Manhattan and a special lunch . Among the celebrities who have placed flowers in front of Coward 's statue are Tammy Grimes , Keir Dullea , Tony Walton , Kitty Carlisle Hart , Hayley Mills , Marian Seldes , Jim Dale , Victor Garber , Christine Ebersole , Dick Cavett . Stephen Fry , Joan Copeland , Jamie Ross , Penny Fuller , and Dana Ivey . There is also a similar ceremony at Firefly Estate ( Coward 's home ) in Jamaica . On December 31 , 2016 , Ken Starrett officially stepped down after serving as North American Director of The Noel Coward Society for fourteen years .

neg: Gateway Theatre (Chester) right | thumb | Gateway Theatre | alt = Gateway Theatre   The Gateway Theatre was a small producing and receiving theatre in the city of Chester , England .   The theatre has welcomed many famous performers , including Matthew Kelly , Les Dennis and Dennis Waterman .   The venue closed after its Christmas production at the end of 2007 to be replaced with a larger Performing Arts Centre , as part of a redevelopment of Chester city centre named The Northgate Development .   The last touring show to visit was Yippeee !!! by Lea Anderson MBE 's contemporary dance company The Cholmondeleys and Featherstonehaughs .   Later in 2007 the Gateway Theatre was partially reopened as The Forum Studio Theatre , run by an amateur company , Tip Top Productions . The company presents a number of in house and touring professional productions each season together with visiting music acts and other events . Tip Top Productions marks it 's 10th Anniversary at The Forum Studio Theatre in 2017 .   The opening of the planned performing arts centre as part of the Northgate Development became uncertain in 2008 , when it was announced the project would be put on hold until 2012 , due to the ongoing economic downturn . The newly named Storyhouse , housing the City 's new theatre , art house cinema and Library is now set to open on 11 May 2017 .

neg: Lightning Entertainment Lightning Entertainment is an American film distributor , sales agent , and production company based in Santa Monica , California . It was founded in 2002 by Richard Guardian , Rich Goldberg , and Marc Greenberg , focusing on sales and distribution of independent films . It began offering film production services in 2012 , which it stated were designed to help domestic films better target international markets .

neg: Iambic Productions Iambic Productions Limited is an independent television production company specializing in the fields of music , arts and drama founded by producer Chris Hunt in 1988 . The company was a part of production and distribution Group DCD Media since its acquisition by the Group in 2000 until 2008 , when Chris Hunt took Iambic back into private ownership

neg: Frank Gillmore Frank Parker Gillmore ( May 14 , 1867 , New York City , New York -- March 29 , 1943 , New York City , New York ) was an American playwright and a stage and early film actor . He was a founder and former President of Actor 's Equity .   He was born to John Parker Gillmore and his actress wife , Emily ( née Thorne : died March 5 , 1907 ) , sister of the actress Sarah Thorne and actors Thomas and George Thorne . At the time of his birth his parents were touring the United States , returning to Great Britain three weeks after their son 's birth . Frank Gillmore was educated at the Chiswick Collegiate School in London and made his stage debut in London in 1879 , then toured the British provinces for three years before returning to the London stage where he remained for a further five years . During this period he shared lodgings with George Arliss . Gillmore then alternated between appearances in Britain and America for a further five years . Aged 17 he appeared with Lillie Langtry .   He married the American actress Laura Margaret MacGillivray whom he met when they both appeared in an American tour of Lady Windermere 's Fan . With her he had two daughters , the actors Ruth Gillmore and Margalo Gillmore . Frank Gillmore appeared as a leading man with the companies of Minnie Fiske , Henrietta Crosman , Mary Mannering , Bertha Kalich and George Fawcett , among others .   Gillmore 's stage appearances included a single matinee performance of The Merchant of Venice on October 17 , 1895 at the Gaiety Theatre in London , when he played Bassanio , The Ghost of Jerry Bundler at the Haymarket Theatre in London in September 1902 , and A Japanese Nightingale which opened at Daly 's Theater in New York in November 1903 .   Gillmore returned to America semi-permanently sometime in the late 1890s , and took his family with him . He and his family were long time summer residents of the Actor 's Colony at Siasconset , and he was a former president of the Siasconset Casino . Gillmore became a founder of the Actors ' Equity Association in 1913 after the Actors Society of America disbanded in 1912 . He made two silent films , The Fairy and the Waif ( 1915 ) and The Lifted Veil ( 1917 ) .   From 1918 to 1929 he was the union 's Executive Secretary and eventual President , a position he held from 1929 to 1937 . He was also the international President of the Associated Actors and Artistes of America from 1938 to 1943 and a Freemason .   As President of Actor 's Equity Gillmore received The American Arbitration Association 's annual gold Commercial Peace Medal in May 1931 `` for distinguished service in the establishment of commercial peace through arbitration ''   Frank Gillmore died of cancer in New York City on March 29 , 1943 , aged 75 .

neg: Genesis Theatre Genesis Theatre were an amateur theatre group that existed from 1975 to 1982 in the Greater Manchester area . The name was taken from the book of Genesis , because when they started out they were literally at their beginning .   The group were known for attempting large productions more commonly associated with professional theatre groups ( such as the Who 's Tommy and an aborted first attempt at Jeff Wayne 's the War of the Worlds ) as well as several original musicals . They had several premieres amongst their productions , some being Amateur World Premieres , others simply Amateur North West Premieres .   The two key members were Chris Fogg ( Writer and Director ) and Chris Dumigan ( Musical Director ) . However the most well known former members are Mike Shaft ( who has his own radio station Radio Sunset ) and Louis Emerick ( who appeared in the Channel 4 soap opera Brookside BBC 's Casualty and many programmes besides ) .   The most critically well received show was the Who 's Tommy , which was the first North West stage presentation of the concept album and was approved by Pete Townshend . At the same time Townshend had given his sanction for a Southern Amateur company to present Tommy ; they beat Genesis Theatre to the stage by a matter of a few weeks . It was their production that Townshend saw and eventually took to the professional stage .   There was an aborted attempt to put on the first theatre performance of Jeff Wayne 's the War of the Worlds at the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester . This needed a reasonable budget and a sponsor was found in Renault . However two weeks before the initial performance Renault were taken over by a new company , who - refusing to pay towards any sponsorship - withdrew their funding , and the show was cancelled . Interestingly it was never put onto the live stage until 2005 , when Jeff Wayne finally toured with his own version of the complete musical .   Unsurprisingly the original musicals Stag and Marilyn are the ones discussed most often by former members .   Stag is a complex story about the half-man half-beast god Herne the Hunter seducing a woman .  Marilyn tells the story of an actress who plays the part of Marilyn Monroe and finds her life tragically mirroring her predecessor .   In 1979 Mike Mansfield , who was well known at the time for TV programmes such as Supersonic , expressed an interest in the group . He provided the funding for the group to go into the studio and record Stag , this caught the attention of Robert Stigwood who was the then manager of the Bee Gees , who had recently peaked with their Saturday Night Fever album . There were reports that Chris Fogg and Chris Dumigan were about to be signed , but when the Bee Gees sued their manager , this stopped dead any hopes of Stigwood having the necessary cash to fund Stag , so the idea was permanently shelved .   Genesis Theatre effectively ended in 1982 when Chris Fogg moved from Greater Manchester to Somerset . It was generally felt that the group were no longer moving forward and had either missed their lucky break or it was never going to arrive after 7 years . Several principal members have since died , including Graham Brittain ( Chairman ) , Nicky Baird ( Principal Cast Member ) and Mike Bonwick ( Bass player ) .   Chris Dumigan still lives in the Greater Manchester area as do several other former members and there are regular reunions .   In 2003 , Chris Dumigan wrote his memoirs of Genesis Theatre and can be found along with similar biographies by Chris Fogg , Guy Taylor , Alison Davis , Anita King and Alan Ratcliff on the website at www.genesistheatre.co.uk , along with hundreds of photographs of all the shows they did . There has also been some restoration work performed on the studio recordings of Stag and a live recording of Marilyn . Moreover , as most of the shows were recorded at least once during the live performances to stereo cassette , these have all now been transferred to a program that cleans up recordings , during which the recordings were de - hissed and maximised in a number of ways to make the end result as dynamic as possible.Then they have been transferred to CDs . Everyone of the shows listed above that were actually staged ( except ` Shakespeare 's Greatest Hit ' , and '' And Afterwards at ... ' ) have at least one full live recording in the archives , and in the case of ` You 're A Good Man Charlie Brown , the Royal Exchange performance exists on DVD . For any further information contact Chris Dumigan

neg: Whole World Theatre The Whole World Theatre is an improvisational theatre located in Atlanta , Georgia .   Whole World Theatre ( WWT ) is a non-profit theatre company that began in Atlanta , Georgia in late 1993 , when David Webster began teaching a group of student actors whom he would train to become the hottest improv company in town . Jennifer Horne and David Webster were co-founding members .   The original students of Whole World Theatre performed their first show in front of 25 people in September 1994 . Specializing in experiential improv and unconventional scripted works , and using a unique approach to improv , which put more emphasis on acting , character and atmosphere than on cheap laughs , Webster wrote and directed original ground breaking pieces such as , Blood Bath Bingo and Pimps , Queens , and Dope Fiends . Webster also produced scripted works included , Balm in Gillead , Bitches , Women Behind Bars , Four Dogs and a Bone and The House of Yes , among many others .   In June 1995 , Jennifer Horne and David Webster spent their honeymoon money to open Whole World Theatre at their current location at 1214 Spring Street in mid-town Atlanta . As their popularity grew , the cast of Whole World Theatre were given the opportunity to produce their live improv comedy show for television when Webster sold the show to television . `` Whole World Comedy '' - Whole World 's premier TV show - helped to launch the southern based Turner South Network .   David Webster taught every actor at Whole World Theater until 2001 . He wrote , directed and emceed every show for over 1000 shows . He won several awards including an Emmy award for writing .   In 2003 Managing Director , Emily Reily Russell , created a youth summer camp program and an improvisational acting program for teens and young adults at Whole World Theatre that still exists to this day . Many of the graduates of this program have entered the `` Performance Ready Group '' that hosts a more family oriented show the first Saturday of every month November through May . The Performance Ready Group is directed and mentored by Assistant Artistic Director , Eric Goins . Russell , in conjunction with Callanwolde Fine Arts Center and The Starlight Starbright Foundation has also created `` Improv in Dialysis . '' Providing monthly improvisational acting workshops to patients and their families at Egleston Children 's Hospital in Atlanta .   Lance Krall , one of Webster 's original students , eventually moved to Hollywood and went on to produce his own television show , The Lance Krall Show , which aired Spike TV , and Free Radio , which aired on Vh1 . Lance has hired several alumni from Whole World Theatre to guest star in his projects .   In 2004 , Webster moved on to write and direct independent movies and Jennifer Horne moved on to begin her own improv troupe in Charlottesville , Va. . That same year , a complete change in management occurred at Whole World Theatre .   In 2004 , Chip Powell became Artistic Director of Whole World Theatre . The Company continues to perform improv shows and remains one of Atlanta 's most successful theater companies . Under Powell 's leadership the company has produced Improv in the Park : an annual free improv show in Atlanta 's Piedmont Park and Central Park at Atlantic Station . Improv in the Park was voted `` Best Outdoor Event '' by Creative Loafing . Powell also went on to launch Whole World 's 3rd Space Theatre by Producing and Directing scripted works such as Sordid Lives and Southern Baptist Sissies by Del Shores .   In 2005 , the theatre started a television show for a network called MAV TV and is currently broadcast in over 200,000 homes across the U.S. . The show features Whole World 's Improv Comedy and is geared towards a more mature audience .  Official Website   Category : Theatres in Atlanta

neg: Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical The Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical is an annual award presented by The Society of London Theatre in recognition of achievements in commercial British theatre . The awards were established as the Society of West End Theatre Awards in 1976 , and , renamed in 1984 in honour of English actor Lord Olivier . The Olivier Awards are the most prestigious theatrical awards in the United Kingdom and are the UK equivalent of the Tony Awards .   Until 2015 , the Olivier Awards did not honour supporting musical performances separately and was therefore a unisex category , honouring both male and female actors . Starting with the 2015 ceremony , the awards have been separated into Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical and Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical

neg: Film director A film director is a person who directs the making of a film . Generally , a film director controls a film 's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay ( or script ) while guiding the technical crew and actors in the fulfillment of that vision . The director has a key role in choosing the cast members , production design , and the creative aspects of filmmaking . Under European Union law , the director is viewed as the author of the film .   The film director gives direction to the cast and crew and creates an overall vision through which a film eventually becomes realized , or noticed . Directors need to be able to mediate differences in creative visions and stay within the boundaries of the film 's budget . There are many pathways to becoming a film director . Some film directors started as screenwriters , cinematographers , film editors or actors . Other film directors have attended a film school . Directors use different approaches . Some outline a general plotline and let the actors improvise dialogue , while others control every aspect , and demand that the actors and crew follow instructions precisely . Some directors also write their own screenplays or collaborate on screenplays with long-standing writing partners . Some directors edit or appear in their films , or compose the music score for their films .

neg: Stage Right! Stage Right ! is a professional theatre company and performing arts school located in Greensburg , Pennsylvania . Established in 1998 as an organization for young people to take classes in musical theatre by Chris Rizk , Stage Right ! also became a professional theatre company in 1999 , established by artistic director Anthony Marino , Rizk 's brother . The company produces a full season of musicals , utilizing professional actors from the Pittsburgh theatre scene as well as students from their classes .   In spring 2013 , Stage Right moved its studio a few blocks to a larger space at 105 W Fourth Street , Greensburg .   The season is supplemented with many other opportunities to utilize the talents of the students , including an `` all-county musical '' featuring students from local high school theatre programs , children 's plays , summer camp productions , and Books Come Alive ! , a series of adaptations of children 's books performed at libraries throughout the area . The company is also notable for its annual production of The Rocky Horror Show every Halloween . Many of Stage Right ! 's students have had success in Pittsburgh Public Theater 's Shakespeare Monologue and Scene Contest , as well as going on to well-respected college theatre programs such as Carnegie Mellon University , Point Park University , New York University , Seton Hill University , Syracuse University , and Shenandoah University . Stage Right ! alums have also had success in professional theatre , working in such venues as York Theatre , Off the Wall Productions , Bricolage Production Company , Pittsburgh Irish and Classical Theatre , Prime Stage Theatre , Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera , Pittsburgh Musical Theater , St. Vincent Summer Theatre , City Theatre , Terra Nova Theatre Group , MCC Theater , and 12 Peers Theater , as well as having had their work featured in the Pittsburgh New Works Festival .

neg: Rysher Entertainment Rysher Entertainment was the owner of television and film programming content , primarily distributed around the world by CBS Television Distribution and Paramount Pictures . Select rights are also distributed by Warner Bros. , Universal , Lionsgate , Fox , Columbia Pictures , MGM and other entertainment distribution companies worldwide .   The company has its roots in Bing Crosby Productions ( `` BCP '' ) . Its namesake , actor-singer Bing Crosby , founded BCP in 1949 , and was best known for producing the sitcom Hogan 's Heroes and the medical drama Ben Casey -- in succeeding years , BCP was acquired by Cox Broadcasting .   In 1993 , Cox acquired Rysher Entertainment . Rysher , founded in April 1991 by Keith Samples , had been established as an independently owned company whose original sole product had been the distribution of NBC 's series Saved By The Bell . In 1993 , and later distribution of another NBC series California Dreams in 1994 , Rysher merged with Al Masini 's Television Program Enterprises to form Rysher TPE , its alternate name used from 1993 to 1995 . Through Rysher TPE , they produced and distributed shows such as Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous ( renamed Lifestyles with Robin Leach and Shari Belafonte for its final season ) and Star Search . Later , they produced and distributed George & Alana , which ran for one season in 1995 .  The company was shut down in 1999 and the library was acquired by Viacom who folded it into both the film and television division of Paramount .   Rysher 's library , today distributed by CBS Television Distribution ( CTD ) and Paramount Pictures ( for TV series and films , respectively ) , includes television and feature film classics such as Hogan 's Heroes ( whose partial rights are held by CBS ) , Ben Casey , and Walking Tall , as well as more recent programs and films including Nash Bridges ( 1999 -- 2001 episodes are produced by Paramount Network Television ) , Highlander : The Series , The Opposite of Sex ( with Sony Pictures Classics ) , Kingpin and Big Night .   Rysher also distributes internationally through CTD several of HBO 's award-winning titles including Arli $ $ , Oz and Sex and the City .   Rysher also produced House Arrest and Zeus and Roxanne , both of which were released by MGM and distributed by HBO Home Video for home release .


query: Andrew Jackson was the first President of the United States.

pos: Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson ( March 15 , 1767 -- June 8 , 1845 ) was an American soldier and statesman who served as the seventh President of the United States from 1829 to 1837 and was the founder of the Democratic Party . Before being elected to the presidency , Jackson served in Congress and gained fame as a general in the United States Army . As president , Jackson sought to advance the rights of the `` common man '' against a `` corrupt aristocracy '' and to preserve the Union .   He became a practicing lawyer in Tennessee and in 1791 he married Rachel Donelson Robards . Jackson served briefly in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate . Upon returning to Tennessee , he was appointed a justice on the Tennessee Supreme Court , serving from 1798 until 1804 . In 1801 , Jackson was appointed colonel in the Tennessee militia , and was elected its commander the following year . He led Tennessee militia and U.S. Army regulars during the Creek War of 1813 -- 1814 , winning a major victory at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend . The subsequent Treaty of Fort Jackson required the Creek surrender of vast lands in present-day Alabama and Georgia . Jackson won a decisive victory in the War of 1812 over the British army at the Battle of New Orleans , making him a national hero . Following the conclusion of the War of 1812 , Jackson led U.S. forces in the First Seminole War , which helped produce the Adams -- Onís Treaty of 1819 and the transfer of Florida from Spain to the United States . Following the ratification of the treaty , Jackson briefly served as Florida 's first territorial governor before winning election as a U.S. Senator from Tennessee .   Jackson was a candidate for president in 1824 but , lacking a majority of electoral votes , lost the election in the House of Representatives to John Quincy Adams . In reaction to a `` corrupt bargain '' between opponents Adams and Henry Clay , Jackson 's supporters founded the Democratic Party . He ran again for president in 1828 against Adams and won in a landslide . As president , Jackson faced a threat of secession by South Carolina over the `` Tariff of Abominations '' enacted under Adams . The Nullification Crisis was defused when the tariff was amended and Jackson threatened the use of military force if South Carolina attempted to secede . Congress , led by Clay , attempted to reauthorize the Second Bank of the United States ; Jackson regarded the Bank as a corrupt institution and vetoed the renewal of its charter . After a lengthy struggle , Jackson and the congressional Democrats thoroughly dismantled the Bank . In 1835 , Jackson became the only president to completely pay off the national debt , fulfilling a longtime goal .   In foreign affairs , Jackson 's administration concluded a `` most favored nation '' treaty with Great Britain , settled U.S. claims of damages by France from the Napoleonic Wars , and recognized the Republic of Texas . His presidency marked the beginning of the ascendancy of the `` spoils system '' in American politics . In 1830 , Jackson signed the Indian Removal Act , which relocated most members of the Native American tribes in the South to Indian Territory ( now Oklahoma ) . The relocation process dispossessed the Indians and resulted in widespread death and sickness . In his retirement , Jackson remained active in Democratic Party politics , supporting the presidencies of Martin Van Buren and James K. Polk .   Jackson was widely revered in the United States , but his reputation has declined since the mid-20th century , largely due to his role in Indian removal and support for slavery . Surveys of historians and scholars have ranked Jackson between 6th and 18th most successful among United States presidents .

neg: Jackson Township, Daviess County, Missouri Jackson Township is a township in Daviess County , in the U.S. state of Missouri .   Jackson Township has the name of President Andrew Jackson .

neg: United States elections, 1794 The 1794 United States elections occurred in the middle of President George Washington 's second term . Members of the 4th United States Congress were chosen in this election . Tennessee was admitted as a state during the 4th Congress . The election took place at the beginning of the First Party System , with the Democratic-Republican Party and Federalist Party emerging as political parties , succeeding the anti-administration faction and the pro-administration faction .   In the House , the Democratic-Republicans picked up a small number of seats , increasing their majority . However , Federalist Jonathan Dayton was elected Speaker of the House , defeating Frederick Muhlenberg , who had a less clear partisan affiliation .   In the Senate , the Federalists picked up a moderate number of seats , increasing their majority .   Washington remained unaffiliated with any political faction or party throughout his presidency .

neg: Inauguration of Andrew Johnson The inauguration of Andrew Johnson as the 17th President of the United States was held on April 15 , 1865 at the Kirkwood House in Washington , D.C. , following the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln . The inauguration marked the commencement of Andrew Johnson 's only term ( a partial term of ) as President . Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase administered the Oath of office . After the ceremony , President Johnson gave an impromptu inaugural address , which began with him begging the cabinet to remain with him and then attacking the Confederacy with such venom , that one witness remarked `` It would have been better had he been struck dumb . ''   As President Lincoln lay dying , Vice President Johnson visited the room where he lay , and when Mrs. Lincoln saw him , it was reported , she screamed and demanded he be removed . So he went back to his room at the Kirkwood House .   According to newspaper reports , the Vice President had gotten severely inebriated , and when aides to the now-dead president came to fetch the new President they were unable to wake him for several minutes . When he was finally awake , the accounts read , `` he had puffy eyes and his hair was caked with mud from the street , '' and that a barber and doctor were summoned to clean him up for the ten-o'clock ceremony , which most accounts agree went smoothly . However , there are other accounts , believed more reliable by some , which refute this claim .

neg: 1840 Democratic National Convention The 1840 Democratic National Convention was held in Baltimore . The Democrats nominated President Martin Van Buren for reelection in 1840 in spite of his unpopularity following the Panic of 1837 . Vice President Richard M. Johnson was not retained on the ticket , as he was largely seen as a liability in the 1836 election and had focused much of his time as vice president on his own economic affairs . Former President Andrew Jackson backed James K. Polk for the position of vice president , but Van Buren supported his vice president 's renomination . The convention ultimately decided not to nominate a running mate for Van Buren . As a result , Van Buren became the only major party presidential nominee since the passage of the 12th Amendment to seek election without a running mate .   Polk and Johnson both received electoral votes for vice president in the general election , but the Whig ticket won the election .   Delegates from 21 of 26 states were in attendance . States not in attendance were Connecticut , Delaware , Illinois , South Carolina and Virginia .

neg: 1801 State of the Union Address The 1801 State of the Union Address was written by Thomas Jefferson , the third President of the United States , on December 8 , 1801 . It was his first annual address , and it was presented in Washington , D.C , by a clerk . He did not speak it to the Congress , because he thought that would make him seem like a king . He said , `` Whilst we devoutly return thanks to the beneficent Being who has been pleased to breathe into them the spirit of conciliation and forgiveness , we are bound with peculiar gratitude to be thankful to Him that our own peace has been preserved through so perilous a season , and ourselves permitted quietly to cultivate the earth and to practice and improve those arts which tend to increase our comforts . '' During the address Jefferson proclaimed the Washington Doctrine of Unstable Alliances .

neg: Texas annexation The Texas annexation was the 1845 incorporation of the Republic of Texas into the United States of America , which was admitted to the Union as the 28th state on December 29 , 1845 .   The Republic of Texas declared independence from the Republic of Mexico on March 2 , 1836 . At the time the vast majority of the Texian population favored the annexation of the Republic by the United States . The leadership of both major American political parties , the Democrats and the Whigs , opposed the introduction of Texas , a vast slave-holding region , into the volatile political climate of the pro- and anti-slavery sectional controversies in Congress . Moreover , they wished to avoid a war with Mexico , whose government refused to acknowledge the sovereignty of its rebellious northern province . With Texas 's economic fortunes declining by the early 1840s , the President of the Texas Republic , Sam Houston , arranged talks with Mexico to explore the possibility of securing official recognition of independence , with Great Britain mediating .   In 1843 , U.S. President John Tyler , unaligned with any political party , decided independently to pursue the annexation of Texas in a bid to gain a base of popular support for another four years in office . His official motivation was to outmaneuver suspected diplomatic efforts by the British government for emancipation of slaves in Texas , which would undermine slavery in the United States . Through secret negotiations with the Houston administration , Tyler secured a treaty of annexation in April 1844 . When the documents were submitted to the US Senate for ratification , the details of the terms of annexation became public and the question of acquiring Texas took center stage in the presidential election of 1844 .  Pro-Texas-annexation southern Democratic delegates denied their anti-annexation leader Martin Van Buren the nomination at their party 's convention in May 1844 . In alliance with pro-expansion northern Democratic colleagues , they secured the nomination of James K. Polk , who ran on a pro-Texas Manifest Destiny platform .   In June 1844 , the Senate , with its Whig majority , soundly rejected the Tyler -- Texas treaty . The pro-annexation Democrat Polk narrowly defeated anti-annexation Whig Henry Clay in the November 1844 presidential election . In December 1844 , lame-duck President Tyler called on Congress to pass his treaty by simple majorities in each house . The Democratic-dominated House of Representatives complied with his request by passing an amended bill expanding on the pro-slavery provisions of the Tyler treaty . The Senate narrowly passed a compromise version of the House bill ( by the vote of the minority Democrats and several southern Whigs ) , designed to provide the incoming President-elect Polk the options of immediate annexation of Texas or new talks to revise the annexation terms of the House-amended bill .   On March 1 , 1845 , President Tyler signed the annexation bill , and on March 3 ( his last day in office ) , he forwarded the House version to Texas , offering immediate annexation ( which preempted Polk ) . When Polk took office the next day , he encouraged Texas to accept the Tyler offer . Texas ratified the agreement with popular approval from Texans . The bill was signed by Polk on December 29 , 1845 , accepting Texas as the 28th state of the Union . Texas formally relinquished its sovereignty to the United States on February 19 , 1846 .

neg: America's Critical Period The term America 's Critical Period , popularized by John Fiske in 1888 with his book The Critical Period of American History , refers to the period of United States history in the 1780s , right after the American Revolution , where the future of the newly formed nation was in the balance . More specifically , the `` Critical Period '' refers to the period of time following the end of the American Revolutionary War in 1783 to the inauguration of George Washington as President in 1789 . The phrase was first used to describe this era ( unbeknownst to Fiske ) by William Henry Trescot in his 1857 book The Diplomatic History of the Administrations of Washington and Adams .   During the 1780s , the loose confederation of states was beset with a wide array of foreign and domestic problems . Some historians believe it was a bleak , terrible time for Americans , while others such as Merrill Jensen believe the term `` Critical Period '' is exaggerated , and that , while the decade a time of dispute and change , they were also a time of economic growth and political maturation .

neg: William McKinley William McKinley Jr. ( January 29 , 1843 -- September 14 , 1901 ) was an American politician and lawyer who served as the 25th President of the United States from March 4 , 1897 until his assassination in September 1901 , six months into his second term . McKinley led the nation to victory in the Spanish -- American War , raised protective tariffs to promote American industry , and maintained the nation on the gold standard in a rejection of inflationary proposals .   McKinley was the last president to have served in the American Civil War , and the only one to have started the war as an enlisted soldier , beginning as a private in the Union Army and ending as a brevet major . After the war , he settled in Canton , Ohio , where he practiced law and married Ida Saxton . In 1876 , he was elected to Congress , where he became the Republican Party 's expert on the protective tariff , which he promised would bring prosperity . His 1890 McKinley Tariff was highly controversial ; which together with a Democratic redistricting aimed at gerrymandering him out of office , led to his defeat in the Democratic landslide of 1890 . He was elected Ohio 's governor in 1891 and 1893 , steering a moderate course between capital and labor interests . With the aid of his close adviser Mark Hanna , he secured the Republican nomination for president in 1896 , amid a deep economic depression . He defeated his Democratic rival , William Jennings Bryan , after a front-porch campaign in which he advocated `` sound money '' ( the gold standard unless altered by international agreement ) and promised that high tariffs would restore prosperity .   Rapid economic growth marked McKinley 's presidency . He promoted the 1897 Dingley Tariff to protect manufacturers and factory workers from foreign competition , and in 1900 , he secured the passage of the Gold Standard Act . McKinley hoped to persuade Spain to grant independence to rebellious Cuba without conflict , but when negotiation failed , he led the nation into the Spanish -- American War of 1898 ; the U.S. victory was quick and decisive . As part of the peace settlement , Spain turned over to the United States its main overseas colonies of Puerto Rico , Guam , and the Philippines ; Cuba was promised independence , but at that time remained under the control of the U.S. Army . The United States annexed the independent Republic of Hawaii in 1898 and it became a U.S. territory .   Historians regard McKinley 's 1896 victory as a realigning election , in which the political stalemate of the post -- Civil War era gave way to the Republican-dominated Fourth Party System , which began with the Progressive Era . McKinley defeated Bryan again in the 1900 presidential election , in a campaign focused on imperialism , protectionism , and free silver . However , his legacy was quickly cut short when he was shot on September 6 , 1901 by Leon Czolgosz , a second-generation Polish-American with anarchist leanings ; McKinley died eight days later , and was succeeded by his Vice President Theodore Roosevelt . As an innovator of American interventionism and pro-business sentiment , McKinley 's presidency is generally considered above average , though his universally positive public perception was soon overshadowed by Roosevelt .

neg: Jefferson Memorial The Jefferson Memorial is a presidential memorial in Washington , D.C. , dedicated to Thomas Jefferson ( 1743 -- 1826 ) , one of the most important of the American Founding Fathers as the main drafter and writer of the Declaration of Independence , member of the Continental Congress , governor of the newly independent Commonwealth of Virginia , American minister to King Louis XVI and the Kingdom of France , first U.S. Secretary of State under the first President George Washington , the second Vice President of the United States under second President John Adams , and also the third President ( 1801 -- 1809 ) , as well as being the founder of the University of Virginia at Charlottesville , Virginia .   The neoclassical Memorial building on the Tidal Basin off the Washington Channel of the Potomac River was designed by the architect John Russell Pope and built by the Philadelphia contractor John McShain . Construction of the building began in 1939 and was completed in 1943 . The bronze statue of Jefferson was added in 1947 .   The Jefferson Memorial is managed by the National Park Service of the United States Department of the Interior under its National Mall and Memorial Parks division . In 2007 , it was ranked fourth on the `` List of America 's Favorite Architecture '' by the American Institute of Architects .

neg: Inauguration of Franklin Pierce The inauguration of Franklin Pierce as the 14th President of the United States was held on Friday , March 4 , 1853 on the East Portico at the United States Capitol in Washington , D.C. . The inauguration marked the commencement of Franklin Pierce 's only four-year term as President and William R. King 's only term as Vice President . Chief Justice Roger B. Taney administered the presidential oath of office . Pierce affirmed the oath of office rather than swear it , and was also the first president to recite his inaugural address from memory .   Ill with tuberculosis , King was in Cuba in an effort to recover in the warmer climate , and was not able to be in Washington to take his oath of office on March 4 . By a Special Act of Congress , he was allowed to take the oath outside the United States , and was sworn in on March 24 , 1853 . He is the only vice president to be sworn in in a foreign country . King died days into his term , and the office remained vacant for the balance of it . ( Prior to ratification of the Twenty-fifth Amendment in 1967 , no constitutional provision existed for filling an intra-term vacancy in the vice presidency . )

neg: List of federal judges appointed by Andrew Jackson Following is a list of all United States federal judges appointed by President Andrew Jackson during his term of office . In total Jackson appointed 24 federal judges : six Justices to the Supreme Court of the United States and eighteen judges to the United States district courts .

neg: First Amendment to the United States Constitution The First Amendment ( Amendment I ) to the United States Constitution prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion , ensuring that there is no prohibition on the free exercise of religion , abridging the freedom of speech , infringing on the freedom of the press , interfering with the right to peaceably assemble , or prohibiting the petitioning for a governmental redress of grievances . It was adopted on December 15 , 1791 , as one of the ten amendments that constitute the Bill of Rights .   The Bill of Rights was originally proposed to assuage Anti-Federalist opposition to Constitutional ratification . Initially , the First Amendment applied only to laws enacted by the Congress , and many of its provisions were interpreted more narrowly than they are today . Beginning with Gitlow v. New York ( 1925 ) , the Supreme Court applied the First Amendment to states -- a process known as incorporation -- through the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment .   In Everson v. Board of Education ( 1947 ) , the Court drew on Thomas Jefferson 's correspondence to call for `` a wall of separation between church and State '' , though the precise boundary of this separation remains in dispute . Speech rights were expanded significantly in a series of 20th and 21st-century court decisions which protected various forms of political speech , anonymous speech , campaign financing , pornography , and school speech ; these rulings also defined a series of exceptions to First Amendment protections . The Supreme Court overturned English common law precedent to increase the burden of proof for defamation and libel suits , most notably in New York Times Co. v. Sullivan ( 1964 ) . Commercial speech , however , is less protected by the First Amendment than political speech , and is therefore subject to greater regulation .   The Free Press Clause protects publication of information and opinions , and applies to a wide variety of media . In Near v. Minnesota ( 1931 ) and New York Times v. United States ( 1971 ) , the Supreme Court ruled that the First Amendment protected against prior restraint -- pre-publication censorship -- in almost all cases . The Petition Clause protects the right to petition all branches and agencies of government for action . In addition to the right of assembly guaranteed by this clause , the Court has also ruled that the amendment implicitly protects freedom of association .

neg: Swing Around the Circle Swing Around the Circle refers to a disastrous speaking campaign undertaken by U.S. President Andrew Johnson between August 27 and September 15 , 1866 , in which he tried to gain support for his mild Reconstruction policies and for his preferred candidates ( mostly Democrats ) in the forthcoming midterm Congressional elections . The tour received its nickname due to the route that the campaign took : `` Washington , D.C. , to New York , west to Chicago , south to St. Louis , and east through the Ohio River valley back to the nation 's capital '' .   Johnson undertook the speaking tour in the face of increasing opposition in the northern states and in Washington to his lenient form of reconstruction in the south , which had led the southern states largely to revert to the social system that had predominated before the Civil War . Although he believed he could regain the trust of moderate northern Republicans by exploiting tensions between them and their Radical counterparts on the tour , Johnson only alienated them more . This caused a supporter of Johnson to say of the tour that it would have been better `` had it never been made . ''

neg: Articles of Confederation The Articles of Confederation , formally the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union , was an agreement among the 13 original states of the United States of America that served as its first constitution . Its drafting by a committee appointed by the Second Continental Congress began on July 12 , 1776 , and an approved version was sent to the states for ratification on November 15 , 1777 . The Articles of Confederation came into force on March 1 , 1781 , after being ratified by all 13 states . A guiding principle of the Articles was to preserve the independence and sovereignty of the states . The federal government received only those powers which the colonies had recognized as belonging to king and parliament .   The Articles formed a war-time confederation of states , with an extremely limited central government . Even unratified , the document was used by the Congress to conduct business , direct the American Revolutionary War , conduct diplomacy with foreign nations , and deal with territorial issues and Native American relations . Actually the adoption of the Articles made no perceptible change in the federal government , because it did little more than legalize what the Continental Congress had been doing . That body was now taken over as the Congress of the Confederation ; but Americans continued to call it the Continental Congress , since its organization remained the same .   As the Confederation Congress attempted to govern the continually growing American states , delegates discovered that the limitations placed upon the central government rendered it ineffective at doing so . As the government 's weaknesses became apparent , especially after Shays ' Rebellion , individuals began asking for changes to the Articles . Their hope was to create a stronger national government . Initially , some states met to deal with their trade and economic problems . However , as more states became interested in meeting to change the Articles , a meeting was set in Philadelphia on May 25 , 1787 . This became the Constitutional Convention . It was quickly realized that changes would not work , and instead the entire Articles needed to be replaced . On March 4 , 1789 , the general government under the Articles was replaced with the federal government under the Constitution . The new Constitution provided for a much stronger federal government by establishing a chief executive ( the President ) , courts , and taxing powers .

neg: United States presidential election in Alabama, 1832 The 1832 United States presidential election in Alabama took place between November 2 and December 5 , 1832 , as part of the 1832 United States presidential election . Voters chose seven representatives , or electors to the Electoral College , who voted for President and Vice President .   Alabama voted for the Democratic candidate , Andrew Jackson , over the National Republican candidate , Henry Clay . Jackson won Alabama by a margin of 99.94 % .

neg: Presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt The presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt began on March 4 , 1933 , when he was inaugurated as the 32nd President of the United States , and ended upon his death on April 12 , 1945 , a span of ( 4422 days ) . Roosevelt assumed the presidency in the midst of the Great Depression . Starting with his landslide victory over Republican President Herbert Hoover in the 1932 election . He won a record four presidential terms , and became a central figure in world affairs during World War II . His program for relief , recovery and reform , known as the New Deal , involved a great expansion of the role of the federal government in the economy . Under his steady leadership , the Democratic Party built a `` New Deal Coalition '' of labor unions , big city machines , white ethnics , African Americans , and rural white Southerners , that would significantly realign American politics for the next several decades in the Fifth Party System and also define modern American liberalism .   During his first hundred days in office , Roosevelt spearheaded unprecedented major legislation and issued a profusion of executive orders that instituted the New Deal -- a variety of programs designed to produce relief ( government jobs for the unemployed ) , recovery ( economic growth ) , and reform ( through regulation of Wall Street , banks and transportation ) . He created numerous programs to support the unemployed and farmers , and to encourage labor union growth while more closely regulating business and high finance . The repeal of Prohibition in 1933 added to his popularity , helping him win re-election by a landslide in 1936 . The economy improved rapidly from 1933 to 1937 , but then relapsed into a deep recession in 1937 -- 38 . The bipartisan Conservative Coalition that formed in 1937 prevented his attempted packing of the Supreme Court , and blocked most of his legislative proposals , aside from the Fair Labor Standards Act . When the war began and unemployment largely became a non-issue , conservatives in Congress repealed the two major relief programs , the WPA and CCC , but kept most of the regulations on business . Along with several smaller programs , major surviving programs from the New Deal include the Securities and Exchange Commission , the Wagner Act , the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation , and Social Security .   A potential worldwide war loomed after 1937 , with the Japanese invasion of China and the aggression of Nazi Germany , which invaded Poland in September 1939 . Roosevelt remained officially neutral but gave strong diplomatic and financial support to China , the United Kingdom , Free France , and the Soviet Union via initiatives such as the Lend-Lease programs . Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7 , 1941 , Roosevelt sought and obtained a declaration of war upon Japan . A few days later , he sought and obtained a declaration of war upon the other major Axis powers , Germany and Italy . Assisted by his top aide Harry Hopkins , and with very strong national support , he worked closely with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill , Soviet leader Joseph Stalin , and Chinese Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek in leading the Allies during World War II . He supervised the mobilization of the U.S. economy to support the war effort , and the war saw the end of the massive unemployment that characterized the Great Depression . Roosevelt sought to desegregate the federal workforce with the Fair Employment Practice Committee , but he also controversially ordered the internment of 100,000 Japanese American civilians . As an active military leader , Roosevelt implemented a war strategy on two fronts that ended in the defeat of the Axis Powers and the development of the world 's first nuclear bomb . Though he died months before the end of the war , his work on the post-war order shaped the new United Nations and the Bretton Woods international financial system . Roosevelt 's health seriously declined during the war years , and he died three months into his fourth term . He was succeeded by Vice President Harry S. Truman . It was on Roosevelt 's watch that the Democratic Party was returned to dominance , prosperity returned , and two great military enemies were destroyed .   Scholars , historians and the public typically rank Roosevelt alongside Abraham Lincoln and George Washington as one of the three greatest U.S. Presidents .

neg: Roger B. Taney Roger Brooke Taney ( -LSB- ˈtɔːni -RSB- March 17 , 1777 -- October 12 , 1864 ) was the fifth Chief Justice of the Supreme Court , holding that office from 1836 until his death in 1864 . He delivered the majority opinion in Dred Scott v. Sandford ( 1857 ) , that ruled , among other things , that African-Americans , having been considered inferior at the time the United States Constitution was drafted , were not part of the original community of citizens and , whether free or slave , could not be considered citizens of the United States , which created an uproar among abolitionists and the free states of the northern U.S. . He was the first Roman Catholic ( and first non-Protestant ) appointed both to a presidential cabinet , as Attorney General under President Andrew Jackson , as well as to the Court .   Taney , a Jacksonian Democrat , was made Chief Justice by Jackson . Taney was a believer in states ' rights . He inherited slaves from his father but manumitted them and gave pensions to the older ones . He believed that power and liberty were extremely important and if power became too concentrated , then it posed a grave threat to individual liberty . He opposed attempts by the national government to regulate or control matters that would restrict the rights of individuals . From Prince Frederick , Maryland , he had practiced law and politics simultaneously and succeeded in both . After abandoning the Federalist Party as a losing cause , he rose to the top of the state 's Jacksonian machine . As Attorney General ( 1831 -- 1833 ) and then Secretary of the Treasury ( 1833 -- 1834 ) , and as a prominent member of the Kitchen Cabinet , Taney became one of Jackson 's closest advisers , assisting Jackson in his populist crusade against the powerful Bank of the United States .   In Dred Scott v. Sandford , an African-American slave named Dred Scott had appealed to the Supreme Court in hopes of being granted his freedom based on his having been brought by his masters to live in free territories . The Taney Court ruled that persons of African descent could not be , nor were ever intended to be , citizens under the U.S. Constitution , and thus the plaintiff ( Scott ) was without legal standing to file a suit . The framers of the Constitution , Taney wrote , believed that blacks `` had no rights which the white man was bound to respect ; and that the negro might justly and lawfully be reduced to slavery for his benefit . He was bought and sold and treated as an ordinary article of merchandise and traffic , whenever profit could be made by it . '' The court also declared the Missouri Compromise ( 1820 ) unconstitutional , thus permitting slavery in all of the country 's territories . Taney died during the final months of the American Civil War on the same day that his home state of Maryland abolished slavery .

neg: The Hermitage (Nashville, Tennessee) The Hermitage is a historical plantation and museum located in Davidson County , Tennessee , United States , 10 mi east of downtown Nashville . The plantation was owned by Andrew Jackson , the seventh President of the United States , from 1804 until his death at the Hermitage in 1845 . Jackson only lived at the property occasionally until he retired from public life in 1837 . Enslaved men and women , numbering nine at the plantation 's purchase in 1804 and 110 at Jackson 's death , worked at the Hermitage , principally involved in growing cotton , its major cash crop . It is a National Historic Landmark .

neg: United States presidential election, 1836 The United States presidential election of 1836 was the 13th quadrennial presidential election , held from Thursday , November 3 , to Wednesday , December 7 , 1836 . As the third consecutive election victory for the Democratic Party , it ushered incumbent Vice President Martin Van Buren into the White House with 170 electoral votes to 124 electoral votes for William Henry Harrison and other Whigs . The popular vote was closer ; Martin Van Buren attracted 764,000 votes to the 738,000 won by the various Whig candidates .   The election of 1836 is principally remembered for three distinctive circumstances :  The Whig Party ran four candidates in different parts of the country in hopes that each would be popular enough to defeat Democrat Martin Van Buren in their respective region . The strategy failed , but had three of the four received more electoral votes then Van Buren , it would have been left to the House of Representatives to decide between the competing Whig candidates .  Richard Mentor Johnson became the first ( and to date only ) Vice President elected by the United States Senate . Although pledged to Van Buren and Johnson ( his running mate ) , Virginia 's 23 electors refused to vote for Johnson , which left him one electoral vote short of the 148-vote majority required to be elected . As such , it was left to the Senate to decide between the top two vote recipient recipients , Johnson and Francis Granger . Johnson was elected on the first ballot 33 to 16 .  This was the last election until the 1988 election ( of George H. W. Bush ) in which the incumbent Vice President was elected to succeed the president under whom he served .   The election of 1836 also marked an important turning point in American political history because of the part it played in establishing the Second Party System . In the 1830s the political party structure was still changing , rapidly , the Democratic Party was organized , but factional and personal leaders still played a major role in politics . By the end of the campaign of 1836 , the new party system was almost complete , as nearly every faction had been absorbed by either the Democrats or the Whigs .

neg: United States presidential election in New Jersey, 1824 The 1824 United States presidential election in New Jersey took place between October 26 and December 2 , 1824 , as part of the 1824 United States presidential election . Voters chose eight representatives , or electors to the Electoral College , who voted for President and Vice President .   During this election , the Democratic-Republican Party was the only major national party , and four different candidates from this party sought the Presidency . New Jersey voted for Andrew Jackson over John Quincy Adams , William H. Crawford , and Henry Clay . Jackson won New Jersey by a margin of 10.19 % .