Doraemon

Perhaps the most famous manga character in all of Japan is Doraemon. Almost the equivalent of Mickey Mouse in the U.S., Doraemon and his namesake series symbolize to many the foibles and adventures of childhood. Characters from DORAEMON are referenced in adult manga, Doraemon's face graces candy, and just about anyone you ask in Japan would recognize the name and the round face with the round button nose, long whiskers, big smiling mouth, and collar with a bell.
Penned by famous children's mangaka Abiko Motoo and the late Fujimoto Hiroshi, who for a long time co-authored the series and called themselves "Fujiko Fujio," DORAEMON was a big hit in the 1970s that continued through the 1980s, and even into the 1990s (though with only Fujimoto Hiroshi on the project, writing as "Fujiko F. Fujio"). The children who first grew up reading DORAEMON are now adults rising up through Japanese society.
What is DORAEMON? It is a humorous children's manga (later a TV-series) about a boy named Nobi Nobita who is so unlucky, weak and lazy that his descendants had to send the family robot back in time to help him out. That robot is Doraemon (where the "Dora" is presumably based on the word "dora-neko," or stray cat), and his four-dimensional pocket produces any number of futuristic gadgets and devices meant to help Nobita become something other than a complete failure in adulthood. Though smart and caring, Doraemon has his own foibles, and his partnership with Nobita produces both triumphs and disasters, hilarious situations and occasional poignant moments.
As a "gag" manga for children, the series has no real progression; our hero is always a fourth-grader, and rarely do changes carry over from story to story. As a glimpse into Japanese family life, though, DORAEMON is priceless. We see Nobita's parents as very typical for Japan of the 1970s, with the father a stocky and mellow salaryman, and the mother a hardworking housewife whose job it is to make sure Nobita studies hard and does his chores. Although ferocious when angry, she is also caring and smart; at heart she just wants her son to grow up to become a decent, hardworking adult with a bright future. Nobita's friends include the class bully nicknamed Gian (presumably based on the word "giant"), the class rich kid Suneo who usually acts as Gian's lieutenant, the gentle and smart girl Shizuka and the occasionally appearing super-brilliant Dekisugi (which can be read as "over done" or "overly perfect"). There's also their schoolteacher, a stern man who has no compunction against sending Nobita off to stand in the hallway for being late. In all this, Doraemon acts as the childhood friend or older sibling we all wish we could've had: caring, smarter than us, with a sense of justice, imperfect and fallible enough to not be irritating, and with a magic pocket that can produce the solution to any problem.
A typical DORAEMON story starts with Nobita suffering from the abuses of Gian and Suneo, or doing badly in school, coming home crying, and being comforted by a tried but true Doraemon. Doraemon patiently (or resignedly) digs into his four-dimensional pocket and produces a new gadget that (it seems) might offer the perfect cure for the problem...until Nobita or his friends get too greedy (and even Doraemon's been known to screw things up from time to time).
For example, after a day of forgetting his books at home and his pack at school, Doraemon produces a handbag that allows one to reach in and pick up something far away. Nobita retrieves his pack from school...and then promptly rushes out to show off the handbag to his friends. To prove its abilities, he grabs his mother's glasses from the handbag—which doesn't impress anyone—and then goes on to pull out Suneo's narcissistic diary and even Gian's suspiciously wet futon. But when he returns home, his mother is angry about her glasses—and she quickly finds the handbag very useful for retrieving her wayward son!
Doraemon also sometimes carelessly leaves devices lying around. Nobita once found a time vending machine, which allowed the user to buy products from other times with modern money: thanks to inflation, of course, things from the past cost much less in absolute yen terms. Nobita uses it to buy boxes of cheap 1933 cigarettes for his father and a mountain of jars of ink for his mother, and even fails to buy a camera from the year 745. But when Doraemon warns him not to use the machine for making a profit, Nobita naturally rushes off to do so. With his new earnings, he decides to buy something different—candy from 100 years in the future, indescribably delicious. Unfortunately, he forgot about cost inflation...and he finds himself 230,000 Yen in debt to the machine, which is now demanding its payment!
Almost every story brings a new gadget at play: a camera that turns objects into two-dimensional photos that need hot water to revert to normal (don't ask how Nobita returned to normal after he used it on himself!); a deluxe light that converts anything it shines on into a more deluxe model (which surprisingly makes some people unhappy); a cloud-shaping machine that alters the clouds in the sky (but don't let it overheat!); the flavor-sharing gum, which allows one to taste what someone else eats (great for rich friends, but very bad if a stray dog chews it); or the helping pill, which makes those who swallow it help out anyone they meet in need (and of course, Nobita winds up swallowing it instead of his friends). A few gadgets, though, return once in a while or are standard "staples" of the series. For example, the Dokodemo Doa ("Wherever Door"), which allows one to go anywhere; the Moshimo Box ("What If Phone Booth"), which allows one to go to an alternate world where a suggested proposition is true; the time machine in Nobita's desk drawer, which allows one to travel to any time; the take-copter, a tiny helicopter-style blade to wear on one's head, that allows one to fly; the time-cloth, which makes objects it is wrapped around younger or older; and of course, Doraemon's four dimentional pocket itself, which produces all these items. The stories, however, are not really about the gadgets; they are about Nobita and his decisions. The gadgets serve only as outlets for his character to shine through, whether in moments of greed, indignation, remorse or compassion. His mistakes, moments of weakness and occasional moments of bravery are what make the stories. And ultimately, the stories have a moral core. Nobita's misuse of the gadgets usually bring dire consequences back on his head, but when he champions justice and acts for worthy reasons, he usually manages to do lasting good. Thankfully, Nobita is at heart a good kid with a compassionate heart, if fraught with flaws.
A prime example of this is the story where a new transfer student turns out to be even worse off than Nobita: slower, weaker and with even poorer test scores. Nobita is overjoyed to find someone worse than himself, so he studies with, races against and plays games with the new kid; and in each case the new boy fares worse. At last, Nobita even gets him drafted into Gian's dreaded baseball games instead of himself. But Doraemon brings out a film viewer in which characters can be switched. He shows that Nobita's actions to the new kid were just like Suneo's usual behavior to Nobita: condescending, arrogant, mean and self-serving. Nobita sees the truth in this, and when he sees Gian and Suneo beating up the other kid over his poor baseball performance, exactly where Nobita would have been, Nobita jumps in and takes the beating instead.
Indeed, a number of DORAEMON stories depart from a simple gag routine and take a long, steady look at issues of moral and ethical importance. Stories have been told about environmental issues, caring for pets, self-sacrifice for another's sake, bravery in the face of danger, parental love and guidance, and the importance of reading. If not concerned with ethics, some stories are educational, touching on subjects ranging from biology, history, genetics, archaeology and geology (or even the notion of economic inflation, as mentioned above). When these elements are combined with comedy, familiar characters and a plethora of fun and fantastic gadgets, there is very little doubt about why DORAEMON became as popular as it did, or why so many Japanese can look back it with such fondness.
For anyone who has the chance to read DORAEMON, it offers an excellent look at child's eye view of Japanese home life of the 70s, and should not be missed.

Mikey Mouse

The history of Mickey Mouse begins in 1928, Walter Elias Disney (in art Walt Disney), after to have founded with its brother Roy, a study for the cartoons production, it devised its first personage who initially called Mortimer Mouse, but later on, behind suggestion of the wife, he renamed with the name of Mickey Mouse (in Italy came called Topolino). Is a rat with of the large round and black ears and with dell and arms and of the thin legs much. It wears of the red shorts with two yellow buttons, of the shoes and the yellow gloves. The first cartoon production, realized thanks also to the collaboration of the friend designer Ub Iwerks, entitled "Streamboat Willie" and had like Mickey Mouse protagonists and its Minnie fiancèe. Are introduced in a cinema of New York and was taken advantage of a beautiful musical comment in optimal synchrony with the animated scenes. Later on, the Disney study continued to produce to cartoos and thanks to the series of the "Silly Symphonies" , where you appeared wolf and the three pigs, in 1933 the 31 prizes Oscar won first of who would have received in all the career. Mickey Mouse made its first appearance in the world of the comic strips, in 1930. It was characterized from endured, like an intelligent personage, optimistic and brave. Thanks to its Mickey Mouse intuitions are extraordinary detective, but also a personage of able adventure with the single use of the reason (and not of the force) to overwhelm enemies, physically much stronger than he (as an example, Gambadilegno). Mickey Mouse does not carry out a very precise trade, collaborates like private investigator with the police of Topolinia, but often and gladly it manages with other jobs. House in style American, encircled from a beautiful garden lives in one, in the city of Topolinia. The first banns of Mickey Mouse were truly of the comics masterpiece and they were taken advantage of the great designer Floyd Gottfredson. To remember storys:"Mickey Mouse and the mystery of Black Spot ", "Mickey Mouse counterpart of king rat", "Mickey Mouse journalist", "Mickey Mouse and the mystery of the man cloud", "Mickey Mouse and gorilla the Phantom", "Mickey Mouse to the age of the stone". With the Mickey Mouse time one is graphically modern. Hour wears red long pants, one blue jersey with the short sleeves, yellow shoes bound together to the gloves of the same color. In the 1940 Mickey Mouse it was one of the protagonists of what the cinematographic critics us have defined the best cartoons than all the times: Fantasy. But to its debut in it knows them cinematographic, this cartoon was not received from many consents, in fact the attempt to visualize classic music (cultured) with the use of cartoons (poor art) are approval like true and just a cultural crime. Mickey Mouse apprentice wizard is this the assistant of a powerful wizard who take of its magical hat, succeeds to animate of the scope, but he loses the control of its magic and arranges a "sea" of troubles. But the happened one of Mickey Mouse must without doubt also to all the personages who have accompanied it in its history, first of all Goffy, its better and inseparable friend. In it originates them Goffy American came called Goofy, that he means "fool, funny" and sure this nickname is much guessing seen its personality. In fact Goffy, contrarily to Mickey Mouse perennially is distracted, ready to arrange some trouble. In spite of everything, more than once it is successful to resolve of the intricate situations that have seen protagonist to it. Goffy is a good, sensitive and poetic personage. In a history that saw it to amuse in making of the soap bubbles, while Mickey Mouse was deprived of hope more for problems prati to us, attract attention as Goffy had developed mainly the hemisphere celebrates them skillful (that one of the creativity and the art), while Mickey Mouse, being more pragmatic, must have developed mainly the hemisphere celebrates them left (that one of the rationality and the practical sense), this makes us to understand as these personages are completed to vicissitude. Goffy was devised in 1932 with the animated cartoons Mickey' s Revue.The characterization of the personage must to the entertainer Art Babbitt. But it is in 1936 that Bill Walsh and Floyd Gottfredson, made it to become the Goffy that all we know. But thanks to the amercian superheroes tradition, that it went strongly above all in the post-war period, Goffy gave to origin to its alter ego: Super Goof. The idea was of the scripteriter American Of the Connell that in 1965, in a history against "Black Spot", drinks one accidentally strange fuel invented from Gyro Gearloose for an apparatus of its invention, in a position to characterizing the bandit. In that history, but Goffy only was convinced of to have received of the super powers. It was as a result of the happened one of that history, than decided to invent Goffy like true and just Superhero and to exactly transform it in Super Goof . Dressed with one tights red, similar to pyjamas and with one a blue cape. In the banns Americans it has a "G" on the chest while in those Italians "S" has one. Goffy transforms the Super Goof after to have eaten of the special peanuts (comprised peel), that it cultivates in its garden and that hides in its inseparable one cup. It has the powers similar to those of Superman, like the powerfull force, the stratospheric speed, the look to beams X and a lot other anchor to second of the difficulties that meets. As we have pointed out to the beginning, Mickey Mouse sin from its first apparition, comes accompanied from the sweet Minnie fiancèe. This personage has incarnated from always the feminine figure of our society and also changing like attitudes with passing of the mode, Minnie is remained always sweet, sensitive, combative and from the strong temperament, although in its first apparition it recites the role of the defenseless woman, like stereotyped of the feminine figure in que period. Its graphical and psychological characterization must to the cartoonist, Floyd Gottfredson that is successful to create a complementary to Mickey Mouse and not subordinate personage to its great personality. Minnie appears in history of Mickey Mouse, in the greater part of the cases while kitchen some cake, while it takes the the with to its Clarabella friend (a anthropomorhic cow) or while it is intenta to organize some initiative (festivities, sales for beneficence, etc...). From always the brace of Mickey Mouse and Minnie it represents that one of the eternal fiancèes. Also not having sons, in history of Mickey Mouse, a lot often two rat appears twin; they are Tip and Tap, its grandsons. They made their first appearance in 1932, to the inside of the comic strip Mickey' s Nephews, designed from Floyd Gottfredson, while in the world of cartoons begining in 1934 with "Mickey' s Steamroller". Tip and Tap, graphically are similar the uncle Mickey Mouse and wear of the duffle coat with in head a sailor hat. They are intelligent, lives to us, onlookers and above all in first history, emphasize the inability of Mickey Mouse in holding them to attends, (a as all the adults in the comparisons of the children). To Tip and Tap oppose the nephew of Minnie, Melody, with which they are born often and gladly of the deep aversions. The joy of Tip and Tap is born when they meet Pluto, the dog of Mickey Mouse. Is affectionate, faithful, sensitive, curious a dog much and a lot often arranges troubles, but in many history Mickey Mouse has helped to capture the ladro of turn, thanks also to its one fiuto. It makes its debut in 1930 the inside of the series Mickey Mouse Cartoon. But Pluto reflects also a contradictions stylistic of the personages, in fact it is a dog that behaves as a dog (rather than to speak barks), while Goffy, Mickey Mouse and all the others are of the animals anthropomorphs, that they speak and they are behaved as they make the beings normally human. Between these personages, only humanize animals do not appear, but also men come from future like Eaga Beeva created from Bill Walsh, Floyd Gottfredson and To the Levin, in 1947. Its first history entitled "Eaga Beeva, the man of 2000". Is one strangest creature from the strange thin body and testone the triangular one, with hands on foot supplies of an only finger and an improbable nose. It precedes every word with letter "p", nutre of naphthalene (than he it calls p-naphthalene) and he is able to preview the future and to read in the thought. But the thing more absurd than this personage is that from its very small short black one, it succeeds to outside pull objects of all the types: closets, washing machines, hammerings, pictures etc..., moreover sleeps comfortably, in perfect horizontal position, over the head of a bed. Eaga Beeva is accompanied in its history from an equally strange small dog, called Flip. It has the property to understand if the persons are saying the truth or if they are false and she can force them not to say the lies. But who is the enemies of Micky Mouse? In the first place Peter Gambadilegno, its enemy number one. More than a thieving than are profession the "bad one", inasmuch as in its adventures it has interpreted you vary roles, from the classic thieving of chicken, to the gangster, the counterfeiter, the dog-chatcher, or quite to the head of the police (you see the cartoon of 1936, Moving Day). With its imposing stature, its size broad and its arrogance, Gambadilegno has one personality that incute fear of all, except to Micky Mouse, always ready ridicolizzar picking it it with "the hands in the bag" in some its suspicious enterprise. To its Gambadilegno debut it had a wood leg effectively, but in a history of the 1942 "Micky Mouse and the woodsman" it declares to have replaced it with one prosthesis. Now it walks and it runs like if null was. From the 1960 Gambadilegno it is accompanied from a feminine figure called Trudy, similar to he in the dimensions and analogous in the mind cheat, jealousy in the comparisons of its companion is characterized from one strongly. An other character much mysterious one is intriguer who confers to history of Micky Mouse the characterictic of the yellow is Black Spot, a brilliant criminal who wears a black sheet and company its messages with one spot of black ink. It makes its first apparition in 1939 with the history masterpiece "Micky Mouse and the mystery of Black Spot". Is one species of Diabolik, in a position to inventing brilliant equipment in order to steal valuables. Contrarily to Gambadilegno it has the most fine mind that puts to hard tries the realized one of Micky Mouse.

Mexican Mafia

The Mexican Mafia originated in the mid-1950s at the Duel Vocational Institute in Tracy, California. The prison, originally built to house young male offenders, soon became the home of many Mexican-American street gang members mostly from barrios, or neighborhoods, in East Lost Angeles.

During this time White inmates enjoyed control over most of the trustee positions which offered them many prison luxuries. But more importantly, the Whites controlled the prison underworld. The Mexican-American inmates wanted more freedom and more importantly, to control the prison drug trade.

A small group of Mexican-American inmates organized themselves into what would become to be known as the Mexican Mafia. They patterned their organization after the Italian Mafia, which was often discussed in the media during the 1950s. They even copied the Black Hand symbol used by the Italians. As the group recruited newly arriving Mexican-American inmates they soon took hold of the California prison system, however according to the Department of Justice, the group did not have a strong leadership structure until the 1960s. By this time they controlled the narcotic traffic throughout most of the California prisons.

Early requirements of the gang required prospective members to be Mexican. Members also had to have completed at least one ‘hit’ or stabbing and their status in the gang was then based on their seniority and dedication. Dedication was usually proven by how many assaults they had engaged in.

Over the years their membership rules have evolved. Most probationary members are now voted into the gang by three existing members. A few gained membership by murdering a Mexican Mafia member who had broken the gang’s rules. The Mexican Mafia, also known as La Eme, a Spanish word meaning ‘the M’ now instructs its members to;

• Never informing
• No homosexual acts
• No cowardice

Other violations include practicing Christianity and "politicking"—creating dissension among members. Violation of these rules could result in a death sentence.

While in prison, members are expected to engage in drug trafficking, extortion and any activity to acquire money and control over other inmates.

Former Mexican Mafia members have complained that La Eme is set up in a manner that only the top leaders collect all the profits from the illegal activities of others. They describe that 99% of the gang works to serve the less than 1% of those who control it. Others describe being ordered to commit various crimes that have lengthened their time in prison, with no reward for their sacrifice.

Even after leaving prison, the leadership still leaches off its members. Paroled members must pay a portion of all the money they make back to the leaders. Paroled members are also instructed to organize cells and to tax street gangs selling drugs. Paroled members regularly meet together to discuss and vote on actions in furtherance of their illegal activities. Leaders communicates with its members by passing small notes known as “kites” or “wilas.” They are given to visitors or other inmates who are to be paroled or transferring to another prison. In a few cases dishonest lawyers have passed messages for Eme members and even arranged court sanctioned meetings.

In the late 1960s a division occurred among Mexican-American inmates with a new group forming, which would later be known as the Nuestra Familia. It so happened that the majority of the Nuestra Familia members were from Northern California and the majority of Mexican Mafia members were from Southern California. As the war between the two groups continued some members began distinguishing themselves as either Nortenos, a Spanish word for Northerner, or Sureno, Spanish word for Southerner.

As Eme members paroled to the streets, they were tasked with creating new cells to help facilitate more crime. In addition, paroled members explained the North versus South war occuring in prison to the young street gang members. The youngsters were told that when they did enter the prison system that they should align themselves with the other Surenos. The term Sureno was soon adopted by Hispanic street gang members throughout Southern California.

Although some might identify themselves as being a Sureno gang member, the original meaning of the term denotes an umbrella of gangs who fall under the control of the Mexican Mafia. Sureno sets may have conflict with each other Sureno gangs on the streets, yet in prison they will bond together for protection under the leadership of the Mexican Mafia.

Sureno gang members often identify themselves with the number ‘13’ to represent the thirteenth letter of the alphabet, the letter ‘M’. This is used to pay homage to the Mexican Mafia. Surenos will use the symbols Sur, XIII, X3, 13, and 3-dots in their graffiti and tattoos. In many parts of the country they will identify themselves with the color blue. Mexican Mafia members may have Sureno idenitifers as they were probably a Sureno gang member before being recruited into the Mexican Mafia. Other Mexican Mafia symbols include a black hand, the letters “MM” or the term La Eme.

It is import to reinforce that the Mexican Mafia and Surenos are two separate identities. Some have described the Mexican Mafia as being the father of Surenos. The majority of Sureno gang members have no direct contact with Mexican Mafia members, yet the Mexican Mafia is able exercise control and influence over Sureno gangs located in Southern California and a few scattered cities throughout the nation, without the knowledge of the majority of the street gangs’ members.

The number of actual documented Mexican Mafia members is relatively low. They continue to pool their membership from Sureno gang members who are willing to serve the Mexican Mafia leaders.

The Mexican Mafia is also documented in the 1992 Edward James Olmos film, "American Me." There are other street gangs who have used the Mexican Mafia name, but have no connection to the gang and little knowledge of the actual gang.

The Mexican Mafia has been identified in nearly every federal and state institution in the United States. Sureno street gangs have been identified in every state in the country, although few outside California have any connection to the Mexican Mafia. Members have being involved in all facets of criminal activity.

Music can be beautiful, music can be throw away.. the stuff we sing in showers. It can be dancey and be so positive. I like all that but like a lot of others I'm drawn to the negative possibilities of rock'n'roll. I'm drawn to the Nihilism and iconoclasm of rock. Big words but what do they mean ? Iconoclasm is the desire to smash all that's gone before and kill your idols and Nihilism is the rejection of current moral and established beliefs without offering or seeking solutions to change it. Its the domain of the young who hope to die before they get old. In short its saying 'f**k you!' which we have all done at some time. As we look down the last 50 years all the good bands have embraced nihilism and still do. It links the Who to The Pistols to Nirvana. From My Generation to Pretty Vacant to Smells Like Teen Spirit the leap ain't that great. And why should they offer solutions ? The world will never change from a song. As Rotten once sang ..."Anger is an energy"... All these great songs by these bands have been simple, direct and infused with for want of a better phrase 'teen spirit'. Its why these bands live on because when you first pick up a guitar these are the songs you can play quickly and identify with. You try playing along to Zeppelins 'Achilles Last Stand' maaaaaan !!!!!

No matter how angry or politicised you are though its the music that's counts and trouble always comes when people confuse music and politics or try and read too much into a band and its output (hi Charlie Manson to name but one). Nearly every band in the world has just wanted one thing and that is to make music and music needs at least one listener whether to hate it or like it (even these arty bands). The artist is stuck really. Bands want in varying amounts the following: to make records that sell, fame and fortune, a career, to mean something, to be recognised, drugs and women and a rock star lifestyle. Often when they get it they implode ( Sid Vicious, Kurt Cobain) or struggle to come to terms (The Who), or make a career (Stones) pass out of view as fashions change (Stranglers), change direction (U2) realise they have nothing more to offer (Eater) or go too far (Hendrix, Brian Jones ad infinitum)

The problem most bands have found however is that you can only be angry for so long and what do you do afterwards before you become boring. The best bands have been short and sweet and then f****d off. Its hard being a rebel inside the machine. If you want to get your message across then you have to be in the machine and you have to play the game and the game changes all the time...Who's controlling who ? McLaren's incendiary publicity techniques are now part of the publicists armoury. You can't be a rebel and win... I'm sorry to say. You can win little battles but you still need to sell records and so you lose the war. Crass came close tho I'll dispute they were musical but how did they finish ? Bankrupted because they forgot to charge VAT. What a revolution !

Messages stink in music.... anger and frustration is a common currency and the best punk toons have them. But lets face it we need all the crap in music and all the varied sounds and images coz then the good stuff stands out. I'd hate to have punk every day. Variety really is the spice of life.

KFC Corporation is the largest fast-food chicken operator, developer, and franchiser in the world. KFC, a wholly owned subsidiary of PepsiCo, Inc. until late 1997, operates over 5,000 units in the United States, approximately 60 percent of which are franchises. Internationally, KFC has more than 3,700 units, of which two-thirds are also franchised. In addition to direct franchising and wholly owned operations, the company participates in joint ventures, and continues investigating alternative venues to gain market share in the increasingly competitive fast-food market. In late 1997 the company expected to become a wholly owned subsidiary of Tricon Global Restaurants, Inc., to be formed from the spin off of PepsiCo's restaurant holdings.

The Early Life of Colonel Sanders

Kentucky Fried Chicken was founded by Harland Sanders in Corbin, Kentucky. Sanders was born on a small farm in Henryville, Indiana, in 1890. Following the death of Sanders's father in 1896, Sanders's mother worked two jobs to support the family. The young Sanders learned to cook for his younger brother and sister by age six. When Mrs. Sanders remarried, her new husband didn't tolerate Harland. Sanders left home and school when he was 12 years old to work as a farm hand for four dollars a month. At age 15 he left that job to work at a variety of jobs, including painter, railroad fireman, plowman, streetcar conductor, ferryboat operator, insurance salesman, justice of the peace, and service-station operator.

In 1929 Sanders opened a gas station in Corbin, Kentucky, and cooked for his family and an occasional customer in the back room. Sanders enjoyed cooking the food his mother had taught him to make: pan-fried chicken, country ham, fresh vegetables, and homemade biscuits. Demand for Sanders's cooking rose; eventually he moved across the street to a facility with a 142-seat restaurant, a motel, and a gas station.

During the 1930s an image that would become known throughout the world began to develop. First, Sanders was named an honorary Kentucky Colonel by the state's governor; second, he developed a unique, quick method of spicing and pressure-frying chicken. Due to his regional popularity, the Harland Sanders Court and Cafe received an endorsement by Duncan Hines's Adventures in Good Eating in 1939.

Sanders Court and Cafe was Kentucky's first motel, but the Colonel was forced to close it when gas rationing during World War II cut tourism. Reopening the motel after the war, Sanders's hand was once again forced: in the early 1950s, planned Interstate 75 would bypass Corbin entirely. Though Sanders Cafe was valued at $165,000, the owner could only get $75,000 for it at auction, just enough to pay his debts.

Sanders' First Franchise in 1952

However, in 1952 the Colonel signed on his first franchise to Pete Harman, who owned a hamburger restaurant in Salt Lake City, Utah. Throughout the next four years, he convinced several other restaurant owners to add his Kentucky Fried Chicken to their menus.

Therefore, rather than struggle to live on his savings and Social Security, in 1955 Sanders incorporated and the following year took his chicken recipe to the road, doing demonstrations on-site to sell his method. Clad in a white suit, white shirt, and black string tie, sporting a white mustache and goatee, and carrying a cane, Sanders dressed in a way that expressed his energy and enthusiasm. In 1956 Sanders moved the business to Shelbyville, Kentucky, 30 miles east of Louisville, to more easily ship his spices, pressure cookers, carryout cartons, and advertising material. And by 1963 Sanders's recipe was franchised to more than 600 outlets in the United States and Canada. Sanders had 17 employees and travelled more than 200,000 miles in one year promoting Kentucky Fried Chicken. He was clearing $300,000 before taxes, and the business was getting too large for Sanders to handle.

New Management for Kentucky Fried Chicken

In 1964 Sanders sold Kentucky Fried Chicken for $2 million and a per-year salary of $40,000 for public appearances; that salary later rose to $200,000. The offer came from an investor group headed by John Y. Brown, Jr. a 29-year-old graduate of the University of Kentucky law school, and Nashville financier John (Jack) Massey. A notable member of the investor group was Pete Harman, who had been the first to purchase Sanders's recipe 12 years earlier.

Under the agreement, Brown and Massey owned national and international franchise rights, excluding England, Florida, Utah, and Montana, which Sanders had already apportioned. Sanders would also maintain ownership of the Canadian franchises. The company subsequently acquired the rights to operations in England, Canada, and Florida. As chairman and CEO, Massey trained Brown for the job; meanwhile, Harland Sanders enjoyed his less hectic role as roving ambassador. In Business Week, Massey remarked: "He's the greatest PR man I have ever known."

Within three years, Brown and Massey had transformed the "loosely knit, one-man show ... into a smoothly run corporation with all the trappings of modern management," according to Business Week. Retail outlets reached all 50 states, plus Puerto Rico, Mexico, Japan, Jamaica, and the Bahamas. With 1,500 take-out stores and restaurants, Kentucky Fried Chicken ranked sixth in volume among food-service companies; it trailed such giants as Howard Johnson, but was ahead of McDonald's Corporation and International Dairy Queen.

In 1967, franchising remained the foundation of the business. For an initial $3,000 fee, a franchisee went to "KFC University" to learn all the basics. While typical costs for a complete Kentucky Fried Chicken start-up ran close to $65,000, some franchisees had already become millionaires. Tying together a national image, the company began developing pre-fabricated red-and-white striped buildings to appeal to tourists and residents in the United States.

The revolutionary choice Massey and Brown made was to change the Colonel's concept of a sit-down Kentucky Fried Chicken dinner to a stand-up, take-out store emphasizing fast service and low labor costs. This idea created, by 1970, 130 millionaires, all from selling the Colonel's famous pressure-cooked chicken. But such unprecedented growth came with its cost, as Brown remarked in Business Week: "At one time, I had 21 millionaires reporting to me at eight o'clock every morning. It could drive you crazy." Despite the number of vocal franchisees, the corporation lacked management depth. Brown tried to use successful franchisees as managers, but their commitment rarely lasted more than a year or two. There was too much money to be made as entrepreneurs.

Stock Plummets in 1970

Several observations about franchise arrangements noted by stock market analysts and accountants in the late 1960s became widespread news by 1970. First, Wall Street noticed that profits for many successful franchisers came from company-owned stores, not from the independent shops--though this was not the case with Kentucky Fried Chicken. This fact tied in with a memorandum circulated at Peat, Marwick, Mitchell & Company, and an article published by Archibald MacKay in the Journal of Accountancy stating that income labeled "initial franchise fees" was added when a franchise agreement was signed, regardless of whether the store ever opened or fees were collected. Such loose accounting practices caused a Wall Street reaction: franchisers, enjoying the reputation as "glamour stocks" through the 1960s, were no longer so highly regarded. Kentucky Fried Chicken stock hit a high of $55.50 in 1969, then fell to as low as $10 per share within a year.

In early 1970, following a number of disagreements with Brown, Massey resigned. When several other key leaders departed the company, Brown found the housecleaning he planned already in progress. A number of food and finance specialists joined Kentucky Fried Chicken, including R. C. Beeson as chief operational officer and Joseph Kesselman as chief financial officer. Kesselman brought in new marketing, controlling, and computer experts; he also obtained the company's first large-scale loan package ($30 million plus a $20 million credit line). By August 1970 the shake-up was clear: Colonel Harland Sanders, his grandson Harland Adams, and George Baker, who had run company operations, resigned from the board of directors. Colonel Sanders, at 80, knew his limits. In a 1970 New York Times article, Sanders stated, "[I] realized that I was someplace I had no place being.... Everything that a board of a big corporation does is over my head and I'm confused by the talk and high finance discussed at these meetings."

CEO Brown spent the rough year of 1970 shoring up his company's base of operations. By September, Kentucky Fried Chicken operated a total of 3,400 fast-food outlets; the company owned 823 of these units. The company, once too large for the Colonel to handle, grew too mammoth for John Y. Brown as well. In July 1971 Kentucky Fried Chicken merged with Connecticut-based Heublein Inc., a specialty food and alcoholic beverage corporation. Sales for Kentucky Fried Chicken had reached $700 million, and Brown, at age 37, left the company with a personal net worth of $35 million. Interviewed for the Wall Street Journal regarding the company's 1970 financial overhaul, Brown commented, "You never saw a more negative bunch.... If I'd have listened to them in the first place, we'd never have started Kentucky Fried Chicken." Article author Frederick C. Klein included closing parenthetical remarks in which observers close to the company noted that "in engineering Kentucky Fried Chicken's explosive growth, Mr. Brown neglected to install needed financial controls and food-research facilities, and had let relations with some franchise holders go sour."

Heublein Makes Changes in 1970s

Heublein planned to increase Kentucky Fried Chicken's volume with its marketing know-how. Through the 1970s the company introduced some new products to compete with other fast-food markets. The popularity of barbecued spare ribs, introduced in 1975, kept the numbers for Kentucky Fried Chicken looking better than they really were. As management concentrated on overall store sales, they failed to notice that the basic chicken business was slacking off. Competitors' sales increased as Kentucky Fried Chicken's dropped.

For Heublein, acquisitions were doing more harm than good: Kentucky Fried Chicken was stumbling just when the parent company had managed to get United Vintners, bought in 1969, on its feet. In 1977 the company appointed Michael Miles, who was formerly responsible for the Kentucky Fried Chicken ad campaign at Leo Burnett and had joined Heublein's marketing team in 1971, to chair the ailing Kentucky Fried Chicken. Richard Mayer, vice-president of marketing and strategic planning for Heublein's grocery products, took charge of the Kentucky Fried Chicken U.S. division.

Mayer found that the product mainstay, fried chicken, wasn't up to the high quality Colonel Harland Sanders would expect. Miles and Mayer also faced the same problem John Y. Brown had not managed to surmount: relations with franchisees were sour. In the mid-1970s, the franchisees sold more per store than company-owned stores. Faring better without Heublein's help, they resented paying royalty fees to the ineffective corporate parent. To top that off, the stores were looking out of date.

Having unloaded well over 300 company-owned stores in the early 1970s, by the end of the decade Heublein began to buy some back from the franchisees. Renovation of the original red-and-white striped buildings began in earnest, with Heublein putting $35 million into the project. On the outside, Kentucky Fried Chicken facades were updated, while on the inside, cooking methods veered back to the Colonel's basics. Sticking to a limited menu kept Kentucky Fried Chicken's costs down, allowing the company time to recoup. Timing was fortunate on Kentucky Fried Chicken's turn-around; it happened just in time for Colonel Sanders to witness. After fighting leukemia for seven months, Harland Sanders died on December 16, 1980.

The 1980s: Profits and Expansion

Miles and Mayer's work culminated with the highly successful 1981 ad campaign, "We Do Chicken Right." A year later, in step with the fast-paced 1980s, R.J. Reynolds Industries Inc. acquired Heublein, giving Kentucky Fried Chicken another lift; the company had expansionary vision, capital, and the international presence to tie it all together. Kentucky Fried Chicken sales that year reached $2.4 billion. By 1983 the company had made impressive progress. With 4,500 stores in the United States and 1,400 units in 54 foreign countries, no other fast-food chain except McDonald's could compete. But while many industry insiders were crediting the team with victory, Mayer wasn't so quick to join in. As he noted in Nation's Restaurant News, "People keep talking about the turn-around at KFC. I'd really rather not talk about it. The turn-around is only halfway over."

With the entrance of R. J. Reynolds came the exit of Michael Miles, who resigned to become CEO of Kraft Foods; Mayer took over as chairman and CEO. Mayer continued on a cautious line for the next several years, refusing to introduce new products as obsessively as its competitors. "In the past two years," Mayer said in a KFC company profile in Nation's Restaurant News, "people have gone absolutely schizoid.... A lot of chains have blurred their image by adding so many new menu items." In further commentary, he added, "We don't roll out a flavor-of-the-month."

PepsiCo Buys Company in 1986

Mayer's conservatism gained him the respect of Wall Street and his peers in the fast-food industry. In 1986 soft-drink giant PepsiCo, Inc., bought Kentucky Fried Chicken for $840 million. Reasons cited were KFC's superior performance and its 1980--85 increase in worldwide revenue and earnings. The successful operator of the Pizza Hut and Taco Bell chains, PepsiCo did quite well introducing new products through those restaurants. It was just a matter of time before Kentucky Fried Chicken would be expected to create new products.

To foster new product introduction, in 1986 Kentucky Fried Chicken opened the $23 million, 2,000,000-square-foot Colonel Sanders Technical Center. In addition, the company began testing oven-roasted chicken through multiple-franchisee Collins Foods; further test-marketing of home delivery was undertaken using PepsiCo's successful Pizza Hut delivery system as an example. By late 1986 Donald E. Doyle, succeeding Mayer in the post of Kentucky Fried Chicken's U.S. president, inherited the task of developing new menu items.

The overall market for fast food seemed glutted by the late 1980s. PepsiCo CEO D. Wayne Calloway saw Kentucky Fried Chicken's national niche as secure for two reasons: first, with competition spurred by the large number of fast-food suppliers, weaker chains would inevitably leave the market; second, Kentucky Fried Chicken still had room to grow in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions. Internationally, the company planned 150 overseas openings in 1987. Japan, a major market, had 520 stores, Great Britain had 300, and South Africa had 160. KFC International, headed by Steven V. Fellingham, planned to concentrate on opening units in a handful of countries where its presence was limited. The People's Republic of China was the most notable new market secured in 1987; KFC was the first American fast-food chain to open there.

Franchisee Problems with New Parent Company

Imperative to the success of Kentucky Fried Chicken was the establishment of successful relations with the numerous franchisees. Most of them lauded parent PepsiCo's international strength and food-service experience; KFC had its own inherent strength, however, according to franchisees, which the parent company would do well to handle with care. That strength was the sharing of decision-making.

In 1966, for instance, the Kentucky Fried Chicken Advertising Co-Op was established, giving franchisees ten votes and the company three when determining advertising budgets and campaigns. As a result of an antitrust suit with franchisees, in 1972 the corporation organized a National Franchisee Advisory Council. By 1976, the company worked with franchisees to improve upon contracts made when Brown and Massey took over. Some contracts even dated back to when Colonel Sanders had sealed them with a handshake. The National Purchasing Co-Op, formed in 1979, ensured franchisees a cut of intercompany equipment and supply sales. All of these councils had created a democratic organization that not only served the franchisees well, but helped keep operations running smoothly as Kentucky Fried Chicken was shifted from one corporate parent to another. As time passed, however, PepsiCo's corporate hand seemed to come down too heavily for franchisee comfort.

In July 1989, CEO and Chairman Richard Mayer resigned to return as president to General Foods USA. Mayer, who together with Mike Miles was credited for bringing Kentucky Fried Chicken out of the 1970s slump, departed as the company battled over contract rights with franchisees. John M. Cranor, an executive who had joined PepsiCo 12 years earlier, took over as CEO. Kyle Craig, formerly with Burger King, Steak & Ale, and Bennigan's, began in an advisory role, later stepping up to become president of KFC-USA.

Within months Cranor was meeting with franchisee leaders in Louisville to defend parent PepsiCo's contract renewal. Among the issues debated was PepsiCo's plan to revise the franchisee-renewal policy, which guaranteed operators the right to sell the business, and an automatic ten-year extension on existing contracts with reasonable upgrading required. It was in KFC's long-term interest to settle the dispute without litigation, Cranor believed--and with good reason. In August of 1989 franchisees had established a $3.6 million legal fund, averaging $1,000 per unit, to fight the battle in court if necessary. Cranor remained optimistic, relying on the history of positive relations with franchisees.

Despite contract battles and communication troubles, in the fall of 1990 Kentucky Fried Chicken called a one-day truce to celebrate in honor of Colonel Sanders's 100th birthday. Meanwhile, fast-food competitors with stricter organization were keeping up with changes in consumer demand and introducing new products at a dizzying rate. KFC, in contrast, had difficulty in creating new products linked to the cornerstone fried chicken concept, as well as in getting them out quickly through franchisee stores. Hot Wings, brought out in 1990, were KFC's only hit in a number of attempts, including broiled, oven-roasted, skinless, and sandwich-style chicken.

In late September 1990, Kentucky Fried Chicken increased its holding of company-owned stores by buying 209 U.S. units from Collins Foods International Inc.; Collins retained its interest in the Australian KFC market. The acquisition boosted Kentucky Fried Chicken's control of total operating units to 32 percent. The corporation also added Canada's Scott's Hospitality franchises to its fold, an increase of 182 units.

To update its down-home image and respond to growing concerns about the health risks associated with fried foods, in February 1991 Kentucky Fried Chicken changed its name to KFC. New packaging still sported the classic red-and-white stripes, but this time wider and on an angle, implying movement and rapid service. While the Colonel's image was retained, packaging was in modern graphics and bolder colors. New menu introductions were postponed, as KFC once again went back to the basics to tighten up store operations and modernize units. A new $20 million computer system not only controlled fryer cooking times, it linked front counters with the kitchen, drive-thru window, manager's office, and company headquarters.

International Success in 1990s

Though KFC may have had problems competing in the domestic fast-food market, those same problems did not seem to trouble them in their international markets. In 1992 pretax profits were $92 million from international operations, as opposed to $86 million from the U.S. units. Also, in the five-year span from 1988 through 1992, sales and profits for the international business nearly doubled. In addition, franchise relations, always troublesome in the domestic business, ran smoothly in KFC's international markets. To continue capitalizing on their success abroad, KFC undertook an aggressive construction plan that called for an average of one non-U.S. unit to be built per day, with the expectation that by 1995 the number of international units would exceed those in the United States.

International sales, particularly in Asia, continued to bolster company profits. In 1993, sales and profits of KFC outlets in Asia were growing at 30 percent a year. Average per store sales in Asia were $1.2 million, significantly higher than in the United States, where per store sales stood at $750,000. In addition, profit margins in Asia were double those in the United States. KFC enjoyed many advantages in Asia: fast food's association with the West made it a status symbol; the restaurants were generally more hygienic than vendor stalls; and chicken was a familiar taste to Asian palates. The company saw great potential in the region and stepped up construction of new outlets there. It planned to open 1,000 restaurants between 1993 and 1998.

Non-traditional service, often stemming from successful innovations instituted in the company's international operations, was seen as a way for KFC to enter new markets. Delivery, drive-thru, carry-out, and supermarket kiosks were up and running. Other outlets in testing were mall and office-building snack shops, mobile trailer units, satellite units, and self-contained kiosks designed for universities, stadiums, airports, and amusement parks. To move toward the twenty-first century, executives believed KFC had to change its image. "We want to be the chicken store," Cranor stressed in a 1991 Nation's Restaurant News. Cranor's goal was total concept transformation, moving KFC to a more contemporary role.

New product introductions were part of the company's plan to keep up with competitors. Having allowed Boston Market to grab a significant portion of the chicken market, KFC tried to catch up with the introduction of Rotisserie Gold Chicken. The company's new CEO, David Novak, also decided to test Colonel's Kitchen, a clear imitation of the Boston Market format. To counter McDonald's and Burger King's "value meals," KFC brought out the "Mega-Meal dinner": an entire rotisserie chicken, chicken nuggets, mashed potatoes, macaroni, cole slaw, biscuits, and a chocolate chip cake for $14.99. In 1995, KFC expanded the idea to "Mega-Meal-For-One," and decided to test chicken pot pie and chicken salad.

These moves gave a small boost to KFC's image, which had grown somewhat out-of-date, and to its bottom line. However, problems with the franchisees continued, and PepsiCo was not seeing the return on its assets that it saw with its beverage and snack food divisions. PepsiCo was having similar problems with its other restaurant subsidiaries, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, and decided the drain of capital expenditure was not worth it.

In 1996 the company prepared to rid itself of its restaurant division by drawing together Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and KFC. All operations were now overseen by a single senior manager, and most back office operations, including payroll, data processing, and accounts payable, were combined. In January 1997 the company announced plans to spin off this restaurant division, creating an independent publicly traded company called Tricon Global Restaurants, Inc. The formal plan, approved by the PepsiCo board of directors in August 1997, stipulated that each PepsiCo shareholder would receive one share of Tricon stock for every ten shares of PepsiCo stock owned. The plan also required Tricon to pay a one-time distribution of $4.5 billion at the time of the spinoff. If approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the spinoff would take place on October 6, 1997.

PepsiCo CEO Roger Enrico explained the move: "Our goal in taking these steps is to dramatically sharpen PepsiCo's focus. Our restaurant business has tremendous financial strength and a very bright future. However, given the distinctly different dynamics of restaurants and packaged goods, we believe all our businesses can better flourish with two separate and distinct managements and corporate structures." KFC and its franchisees did settle their contract disputes; according to a press release, "the crux of the agreement revolves around KFC franchisees receiving permanent territorial protection. In turn, KFC Corporation will have more direct influence over certain national advertising and public relations activities." Still KFC faced the need to rennovate its restaurant buildings, and also faced stiff competition from Boston Market, Burger King, and McDonald's, so it remained to be seen if the new parent company would refresh KFC's image and profits.

Mercedes Benz

Mainly Mercedes Benz is very famous in the world for its variety of car models. In the year 1886 it produced the world’s first true internal combustion engine powered three wheeler automobile vehicles. In the year 1894, Mercedes Benz produced world’s first single cylinder four stroke engine powered four wheeler vehicle “Benz Velo’. In the year 1899, an automobile enthusiast dealer of Germany Mr. Emil Jellinek successfully raced the Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft (DMG) vehicles by painting his daughter’s name Mercedes on all these test vehicles for good luck and later this very name became the brand name of all the DMG vehicles. The first DMG make four wheeler vehicles bearing the brand name Mercedes rolled out of the factory in the year 1902.

The Mercedes 35 hp four wheeler vehicles which were produced in 1902 became an important mile stone in the advancement in the automobile design. While focusing on the land surfing vehicles Mercedes Benz also produced both civil and military boat and aircraft engines and even Zeppelins. Since 1920, Mercedes Benz regularly started producing limousine vehicle models. During that period Mercedes Benz also started producing sports car models. Explicitly for the American market Mercedes Benz started producing vehicles during the period of 1950s. Iconic 300SL sports car model was showcased in the New York automobile show in 1954, which was produced particularly for the American market. Mercedes Benz made rear engine cars produced that time had been rather unsuccessful attempt but later on it successfully produced similar category less expensive and higher volume cars. Recently Mercedes Benz made small 139 hp car has not been very successful in the market. Since 1994 Mercedes Benz has been successfully producing compact city cars along with in-expensive A-class range cars.

The History of BMW

Although BMW's current fame and reputation as one of the greatest automobile manufacturers can be mostly linked to models produced in the last two decades, the history of the marque stretches back almost 90 years and contains numerous achievements that have established it as a benchmark.

The origins of BMW trace back to 1913 when Karl Friedrich Rapp, a Bavarian who had been a well-known engineer in a German aircraft company, formed Rapp Motoren Werke in a suburb of Munich. The company specialized in airplane engines however Rapp found that they were problematic and suffered from excessive vibration. Nearby, Gustav Otto, also an airplane specialist, set up his own shop, Gustav Flugmaschinefabrik, building small aircraft.

Because of the faulty engines, Rapp Motoren Werke secured a contract with Austro-Daimler, who was unable to meet its demands, to build V12 Aero engines under license. The company expanded too quickly, however, and by 1916 Rapp resigned from the company because of financial troubles. In his place Franz Josef Popp and Max Friz, two Austrians, took over the company. In March that same year, Rapp Motoren Werke merged with Gustav Flugmaschinefabrik to form Bayersiche Flugzeungwerke. It was shortly afterwards renamed Bayersiche Motoren Werke (Bavarian Motor Works), or BMW, forming the company we know today.

In 1917, BMW's first aircraft engine went into production, the 6 cylinder Type IIIa. In 1919, using an aircraft powered by its successor, the Type IV, Franz Zeno Diemer set an altitude record of 9,760 metres (32,013 ft). After the Treaty of Versailles was signed in the same year, prohibiting BMW from building aircraft engines, production switched to air brakes for railway cars. When BMW started once again to build aircraft engines in 1922, no fewer than 29 world records in aviation were set with them. The current BMW logo, introduced in 1920, was based on the circular design of an aircraft propeller.

The first BMW motorcycle, the R 32, went into production in 1923 at the newly constructed Eisenach factory next to the Munich airport of the day. The R 32 used a flat-twin engine transversely mounted in a double-tubular frame producing 8.5 horsepower at 3300 rpm. The 2-cylinder 494cc motorcycle could reach a top speed of 59 mph (95 km/h). BMW manufactured 3090 of them during its 3 year life span.

It was 1928 that made history in terms of the BMW car. Produced at the Eisenbach factory, the Dixi 3/15 PS marked the beginning of BMW automobile production. It was built under license from Austin and was essentially the same model as the US Bantam and the Japanese Datsun. The first Dixis used an open roof and were powered by a 743cc 4 cylinder engine producing 15 horsepower. Top speed was in the neighbourhood of 50 mph (80 km/h). In 1929 a new improved version was launched, the DA2, which employed an all-steel body and 4-wheel brakes, and in 1930 the Dixi scored its first wins in motor racing. Total production: 18,976 units.

1932 was the year the BMW AM 4 (Ausfuhrung Munchen 4 Gange - Munich Version 4 Speeds) - a.k.a. BMW's first "real" car - went into production. The AM 4, also called the 3/20 PS, was the successor to the Dixi and the first production car to be built entirely in-house by BMW. The powerplant was a 782cc 4 cylinder unit which featured suspended valves and a double chain driving the camshafts, producing 20 horsepower at 3500 rpm and providing the saloon with a 50 mph top speed.

The next year mark ed the introduction of the 303 saloon and the first BMW inline-six cylinder power unit, a configuration that remains BMW's typical choice even in contemporary cars. The 303 was also the first BMW to use the twin-kidney shaped radiator grilles, another cur rent trademark. Using a welded tubular steel frame, independent front suspension and rack and pinion steering, the 303 was a benchmark in technological achievements. Its 1173cc engine provided 30 horsepower and a top speed of 56 mph (90 km/h).

3 years later, in 1936, the BMW 328 was introduced. It was the most popular and remains BMW's most famous pre-war sports car, the successor to the 315/1 (1934-36). The 328 was built mainly for motor sport, where it proved itself successful by winning the Mille Miglia in Italy in its class in 1938, but quickly became a popular road car as well. A curb weight of only 1830 lb was achieved through the use of an extra-light tubular spaceframe and light alloy parts for the hood, doors and tail end. Using a 1971cc inline-6 cylinder engine with three carburettors that produced a healthy 80 horsepower at 5000 rpm, the 328 could reach a maximum speed of 93 mph (150 km/h). 462 units of this classic were produced in total.

In 1935 BMW entered the record books once again, this time on two wheels. Riding a streamlined 500cc compressor machine developing 108 hp and an amazing power-to-weigh ratio (282 lb curb weight), Ernst Henne set a world speed record for motorcycles of 173.7 mph (279.5 km/h) in 1937. It stood for nearly two decades.

BMW's success was unfortunately short lived. After the Second World War, the company lay in ruins. Its factories had been destroyed or dismantled and a three-year ban on any production activities was imposed by the Allies in response to the production of aircraft engines and rockets by BMW during the War. The first post war model, the V8 equipped 501 luxury sedan produced in 1951 was a poor production choice for a country that was also devastated by the war. Demand was low and the 501 did not even com e close to meeting BMW's expectations.

It was a totally different approach that started to bring BMW back on its feet. In 1955, the Isetta 250 was launched and participated very successfully in the mini-car era of the 1950's. It was built under license from the Italian manufacturer Iso and used a motorcycle engine and a single door at the front. The engine was a single cylinder 245cc unit producing 12 horsepower at 5800 rpm and a top speed of 53 mph (85 km/h). During its 7 year production run a total of 161,728 Isettas were built.

A couple of years later, with BMW still having no secure financial foothold, one of the most memorable models in its history was introduced. Launched in 1956, the BMW 507 quickly became famous. The light-alloy 2-door bodyshell with a retractable soft top, designed by Alberecht Graf Foertz, has remained timeless as evidenced by the newly introduced Z8, which draws unmistakable clues and its overall shape from it. A large 3168cc V8 engine using dual downdraught carburettors powered the 507 and provided 150 horsepower at 5000rpm, enough for an impressive 124 mph top speed (200 km/h) but not enough to topple its main rival, the Mercedes 300SL. While only 252 examples of the instantly recognizable 507 were ever produced, it remains a symbol of BMW's struggles and ultimate triumphs during the fifties after the end of the War.

The next step in BMW's evolution and the predecessor to the cars we know today was launched in 1962. The 1500, which had been developed during the crisis of the '50s, was another of BMW's saviors. The excellent suspension and striking design for its time, employing a low waistline with a low-slung engine compartment and rear lid characterized the 1500. A 1499cc 4-cylinder engine producing 80 horsepower at 5700 rpm and providing a top speed of 92 mph (148 km/h) powered it. During its two year production run sales amounted to only 23,807 units; however between all of the models in its range (1500,1600,1800,2000) production totaled 334,165 cars. Based on these cars, the first generation 5 series, the E12, was launched 10 years later in 1972. The 3 series was introduced 3 years later and the 7 series 2 years after that, in 1977.

In 1990 BMW re-entered the aircraft engine manufacturing business after forming BMW Rolls-Royce GmbH jointly with Rolls Royce. In 1998, after extended talks concerning the sale of Rolls Royce, BMW officially bought the rights to the Rolls Royce name and logo from Volkswagen, with the transition expected to take place in 2003. 1994 brought about another purchase, as BMW acquired the Rover Group PLC. After heavy losses, the company was finally sold in 2000, with Rover being split up from Land Rover which was purchased by Ford. BMW held the rights to the new Mini and the hot-hatch goes on sale in early 2002.

Today, the Z3, Z8 and all of the 3, 5, 7 and Motorsport series models continue the BMW tradition of building excellent automobiles with a special emphasis on performance, style and technological advancements. 1992 was another year-to-be-remembered for BMW when it, for the first time, outsold Mercedes in Europe. Hopefully in the future the rivalry between these and other makes will persist and companies such as BMW will continue to build great cars.