( MENAFN - Daily News Egypt) Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty met with His Highness crown prince sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah and subsequently with Kuwait's Acting Prime Minister, Minister of Defence and Minister of Interior, Fahd Yousef Saud al-Sabah, during a visit to Kuwait on Sunday. The meetings focused on strengthening bilateral ties across a range of sectors, including economic cooperation, investment, labour, and security. According to Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Ambassador Tamim Khallaf, Abdelatty delivered a verbal message from the Egyptian President to the Amir of Kuwait, reinforcing the deep historical relationship and fraternal bonds between the two nations. The message highlighted the political will of both leaders to further develop relations, stressing the importance of strengthened cooperation and coordination. Abdelatty also expressed Egypt's commitment to maintaining regular meetings within existing bilateral frameworks to advance the relationship. He conveyed Egypt's desire to enhance economic, trade, and investment cooperation, noting the Egyptian government's efforts to attract investment through economic reforms and highlighting the potential for Egyptian expertise in Kuwaiti infrastructure projects. During a separate meeting with Kuwait's Acting Prime Minister, Abdelatty commended the strong historical ties between Egypt and Kuwait and emphasised Egypt's commitment to expanding cooperation to meet shared interests. He noted the significant potential for increased economic, trade, and investment collaboration. Abdelatty highlighted Egypt's continued economic progress despite global challenges, emphasizing the government's focus on private sector growth. The minister detailed government efforts to improve the investment climate, remove barriers for investors, and promote a business-friendly environment in Egypt, presenting several investment opportunities for Kuwaiti companies. An agreement was reached to facilitate exchanges of economic delegations and encourage greater Kuwaiti investment in Egypt. Abdelatty also praised Kuwait's treatment of Egyptian residents, specifically commending the treatment of Egyptian workers and acknowledging their vital role in Kuwait's development. He expressed satisfaction with the results of a joint labour committee meeting held in Cairo in late August and indicated Egypt's willingness to cooperate in providing skilled labour to meet Kuwaiti market demands, citing Egypt's experience with its electronic worker deployment system. Furthermore, he expressed interest in enhancing security and military cooperation, including in cybersecurity, stressing its vital importance to Egypt. MENAFN24112024000153011029ID1108920280 Legal Disclaimer: MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.
The Albanese government has faced mounting opposition to its proposed social media ban for children under 16 as a growing number of politicians have spoken out against it. Independent Senator Lidia Thorpe and independent MP Andrew Wilkie both revealed on Wednesday their intention to oppose the bill. Ms Thorpe said, “I won’t be supporting Labor’s social media ban. Young people use social media to participate in politics and activism”. Mr Wilkie backflipped on his prior approval and said, “I got it wrong and I’ve changed my mind”. He told ABC Radio National, “I realise the whole thing’s nonsense and frankly I’m doubtful it will ever be realised”. This comes after Liberal MP Alex Antic and Nationals Senator Matt Canavan defied broad party support for the ban and said they would cross the floor. Nationals MP Keith Pitt and Senator Bridget Archer have both criticised the bill but have not confirmed a final position. Education Minister Jason Clare called on Opposition Leader Peter Dutton to ensure the bill received Coalition endorsement at a press conference on Wednesday. “The opposition has said they want to pass the legislation this week as well. And I hope that that support sticks,” he told reporters. “I hope that the opposition leader can bring his party behind this.” Given Labor and broad Coalition support, the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Bill 2024 has still been expected to pass through the parliament. The backlash has extended to the crossbench as the Greens and One Nation have accused Labor of being “rushed and reckless” with the bill. Many of the Teal Independents have not confirmed their final position, although David Pocock, Kylea Tink and Zoe Daniel have criticised the government’s approach. The government provided only 24 hours for the public to make submissions in response to the legislation and about 15,000 submissions were made. Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth denied the government was hurrying the bill and called on the opposition to pass the ban on Tuesday. “I thought there was bipartisan support... Just a couple of weeks ago, Peter Dutton said he would facilitate this important piece of legislation,” she told the Today show. The majority of submissions published in the 24 hour period – including from UNICEF, Amnesty International and Shooters Fishers & Farmers Tasmania – opposed the bill. While most agree that social media can harm young people, there has also been widespread criticism of the government's blanket ban. The Australian Human Rights Commission argued social media offered young people “opportunities for inclusion and participation”. The Free Speech Union of Australia also condemned the bill as “draconian” and “authoritarian”, warning it could infringe upon fundamental online privacy rights. Digital Rights Watch similarly expressed concern the legislation “inadequately safeguards privacy and data protection”. The Digital Industry Group (DIGI), which represents tech giants like Meta, TikTok, Google, and X, also recently told Sky News the harms of a ban were as real as online harms. “A 21st-century response to these challenges means keeping young people safe when they’re on the internet,” Ms Bose said. “A 20th-century response aims to keep them off it.” The attempt to ban social media access for minors has included Snapchat, Facebook, Instagram, X and TikTok. YouTube, WhatsApp and Messenger Kids have been flagged as exemptions . The legislation will make it illegal for children under 16 to access banned platforms unless they meet specific age verification criteria. Social media companies will be threatened with $50 million fines for systematic failure to enforce the ban. Platforms will bear the onus of responsibility, and no penalties will be enforced against underage users who bypass the restrictions. The ban will come into effect 12 months after legislation passes parliament and will not be grandfathered in, meaning children already on social media will also be banned. This will impact millions of children and teenagers as some 97 per cent of youth use social media across an average of four platforms, surveys show.Donald Trump has promised to reveal the last of the JFK files , as an ‘expert’ says it could not have been Lee Harvey Oswald. The death of the 35th president in Dallas on November 22, 1963 has inspired dozens if not hundreds of conspiracy theories. They range from the more mundane idea that a second shooter could have been involved, to wild theories of alien involvement. Fanning the flames of conspiracy is the fact that some of the JFK files are yet to be released. President-elect Donald Trump promised during his reelection campaign that he would declassify all of the remaining government records surrounding the assassination if he returned to office. CIA fires whistleblower 'who said she was assaulted in a stairwell of the spy agency' Three Americans arrested in Venezuela for alleged plan to 'destabilize' country He has made this promise before, but he relented to the wishes of the CIA and FBI to keep some documents withheld during his last term as president. J Gary Shaw and Brain Edwards, authors of the new book Admitted Assassin, told The U.S. Sun : "I think that he will do his best to do it, but the problem is, they've had 61 years to do what they want to with those documents... There will not be one shred of evidence that will give us an indication as to who really killed John Kennedy. Shaw and Edwards believe there is more than meets the eye with the deaf of JFK. Shaw said: "I think there are still people alive that have information about what happened. Some of them don't even know they have it, but the kids are talking, and the grandkids of these people are talking, and that's going to shed further light on it." At this point, only a few thousand of the millions of governmental records related to the assassination have yet to be fully released, and those who have studied the records released so far say that even if the remaining files are declassified, the public shouldn't anticipate any earth-shattering revelations. “Anybody waiting for a smoking gun that’s going to turn this case upside down will be sorely disappointed,” said Gerald Posner, author of “Case Closed,” which concludes that assassin Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. Historical analysis and years of expert oversight leads to Oswald being a lone shooter as the most likely outcome. Known for erratic behaviour and communist sympathies, Oswald was a lonely man with delusions of grandeur and his claims he was a “patsy” were most likely hubris. A year after the assassination, the Warren Commission, which President Lyndon B. Johnson established to investigate the assassination, concluded that Oswald acted alone and there was no evidence of a conspiracy. But that hasn't quelled a web of alternative theories over the decades. In the early 1990s, the federal government mandated that all assassination-related documents be housed in a single collection in the National Archives and Records Administration. The collection of over 5 million records was required to be opened by 2017, barring any exemptions designated by the president. Trump, who took office for his first term in 2017, had boasted that he'd allow the release of all of the remaining records but ended up holding some back because of what he called the potential harm to national security. And while files have continued to be released during President Joe Biden's administration, some still remain unseen. Mark S. Zaid, a national security attorney in Washington, said what's been released so far has contributed to the understanding of the time period, giving “a great picture” of what was happening during the Cold War and the activities of the CIA. Posner estimates that there are still about 3,000 to 4,000 documents in the collection that haven’t yet been fully released. Of those documents, some are still completely redacted while others just have small redactions, like someone's Social Security number. “If you have been following it, as I have and others have, you sort of are zeroed in on the pages you think might provide some additional information for history,” Posner said. There are about 500 documents that have been completely withheld, Posner said, and those include Oswald’s and Ruby’s tax returns. Those files, the National Archives says on its website, weren't subject to the 2017 disclosure requirement.Larry J. Sabato, director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics, said his interest in the assassination dates back to the event itself, when he was a child. “It just seemed so fantastical that one very disturbed individual could end up pulling off the crime of the century," Sabato said. “But the more I studied it, the more I realized that is a very possible, maybe even probable in my view, hypothesis.” DAILY NEWSLETTER: Sign up here to get the latest news and updates from the Mirror US straight to your inbox with our FREE newsletter.
Share Tweet Share Share Email “Look to your right and then turn to your left. Those students seated next to you won’t be there next year.” College professors give this warning to first-year students to emphasize that a successful academic career requires discipline, focus, and preparation. Preparation is key. Reviews of existing work by recognized experts, completing past examinations in preparation for the academic year-end and even picking the brains of students who have completed courses are all essential strategies for success. In other words, you can learn from the past, and those who ignore the lessons of history are doomed to repeat its mistakes. The same could apply to the business world. Past failures (and successes) provide actionable insight into what it takes to succeed – and nowhere is this more true than in the field of cybersecurity. Although the battle between cybercriminals and security experts continues to evolve, the lessons of the past provide important best practice examples that can help businesses avoid the consequences of not adhering to cybersecurity best practices. The past and future of cybersecurity are central to the work of Richard Bird, Chief Security Officer at Traceable AI. In addition to his full-time role, Bird serves as a Senior Fellow with the CyberTheory Zero Trust Institute and an Executive Member of CyberEdBoard. He is also an internationally recognized presenter, author, and keynote speaker. Yet, when asked to describe himself, Bird offers a different perspective. “I like to think of myself as an anthropologist and archaeologist of technology,” Bird explains. “I travel the world, meeting companies and organizations to learn how they’re tackling security, privacy, and the adoption of new technologies. My goal is to gather these insights and share them in ways that help others solve similar challenges across the globe.” Bird, an internationally recognized cybersecurity personality, has spent nearly 25 years in the corporate world, overseeing global teams and advising leaders on cutting-edge security solutions. Two years ago he decided to transition out of the corporate sector and into the startup space, bringing with him a wealth of experience and fresh perspectives. This shift has opened new opportunities, allowing him to engage with a wide range of industries and apply his expertise in different contexts. A Fork in the Road Richard Bird joined Traceable AI right after the company secured its Series B funding, allowing him to add significant value to operations. It was a stage in the company’s growth that suited Bird perfectly, given his interest in the growing market for API security. Traceable is a new challenge for Bird as early-stage startups require different strategies to those employed by a company nearing the final stages of its startup cycle, as was the case during his previous role at Ping Identity, a late-stage startup that eventually went public. “Startups are a high-pressure environment, but they also offer tremendous opportunity for innovation,” says Bird. “The field of API security is tremendously competitive because the threat environment evolves at a speed that only a few years ago was unimaginable. However, this rapid evolution and the growing sophistication of threats means that many organizations underestimate the risks and continue to rely on outdated technologies and approaches in threat mitigation. Very Bad Things In his current role, Bird works with organizations to help them understand their API security vulnerabilities. Many large companies don’t even know how many APIs they have, which creates serious security risks. As he often says, “If the answer to a critical security question is ‘I don’t know,’ usually bad things happen.” Unfortunately, as companies continue to ignore their exposure, API security breaches are becoming more common. In his discussions about AI security, Bird often finds that organizations lack clarity on the potential risks associated with their AI engines and solution components. He frequently cites Grammarly, a tool he uses regularly, as an example of AI in practice. “I often wonder how much of the information I input into Grammarly for proofreading and editing is being ingested by its AI engine for other purposes. That’s my data and my intellectual property, it’s my professional life on the page. While I hope Grammarly handles that information responsibly, simply signing a user agreement isn’t sufficient, especially for larger organizations. As Bird notes, “My risk of losing control of my data or having my privacy rights violated is small compared to the potential exposure of sensitive data for major companies like banks or pharmaceutical firms. A small risk isn’t zero risk, and it’s something that organizations using AI need to take into account.” With over 50% of companies in the U.S. with more than 5,000 employees currently using AI Bird’s warning should be taken seriously by C-Suite executives. AI adoption is growing at an exponential rate, but the risks are growing as well. The Future Bird notes that AI is currently being used predominantly in social engineering attacks, allowing bad actors to mimic speech and writing patterns convincingly. However, he believes that while AI hasn’t yet been directly weaponized for cyberattacks, it’s only a matter of time. As with all technological advancements, malicious actors are actively working to weaponize AI, and Bird predicts that in the next 12 to 36 months, new, more sophisticated forms of AI-driven attacks will emerge. “It’s inevitable that cybercriminals will use AI in increasingly sophisticated ways. Finding case studies for best practices or examples of these ‘Bad Things’ is challenging due to the rapid evolution of AI, but there are lessons to be learned. Traceable AI is at the forefront of applying these lessons with current best practices – it’s the perfect environment for a tech archaeologist,” says Bird. To learn more about Richard Bird’s approach to current cybersecurity challenges visit LinkedIn , his personal website or learn more about the groundbreaking Traceable AI platform on the company webpage . Related Items: AI , API Security , Richard Bird Share Tweet Share Share Email Recommended for you Dr. Matt Hasan’s Book on AI’s Challenges and Opportunities Empowering Digital Transformation: How AI and Machine Learning are Redefining Enterprise Solutions Understanding ChatGPT: The Tool That Changed How We Communicate With AI CommentsBack in 2005 World of Warcraft was ravaged by a digital plague that once removed from the raid dungeon it spawned in infected some four million players, spread across servers as how to give it to others was discovered, and left cities barren, skeleton-littered wastelands for a month before developers Blizzard were able to fix it. Now, somehow, briefly, someone managed to yet again spread the dreaded disease in World of Warcraft Classic. Posted to Reddit a few days ago is a bit of footage of WoW classic characters in Alliance capital Stormwind spreading the plague amongst each other in true 2005 fashion. It's not clear how the debuff got out of the raid instance this time. Some have suggested it wasn't that precise Corrupted Blood effect from the raid, rather one created by a weaker version of boss Hakkar the Soulflayer in another dungeon. Corrupted Blood is perhaps one of the most famous events in the history of MMOs, breaking containment at that time to even be covered in mainstream press and receive attention from scientific authorities. In 2007 a study of the corrupted blood incident was published in The Lancet, one of the oldest and most respected peer-reviewed medical journals in the world. To quote that piece: "The Corrupted Blood outbreak in World of Warcraft represents both a missed opportunity and an exciting new direction for future epidemiological research." That turned out to be entirely true. During the 2020 Covid-19 Pandemic that data was referenced and considered by those same researchers while looking at the spread of the real-world disease . We told the story of the Corrupted Blood incident in full ourselves in the documentary series Tales from the Hard Drive, hosted by Lenval Brown, the voice actor who narrated Disco Elysium: World of Warcraft has remained the top of the pack in MMOs for the full 20 years since 2004, a fact we recently marveled over and examined in a big ol' feature. The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team.Sportscaster Greg Gumbel dies from cancer at age 78
Jowell Global Ltd. Announces First Half 2024 Unaudited Financial Results
Chile's State-run copper miner, Codelco, will start using explosives with a significantly lower carbon footprint at its Radomiro Tomic mine, the company announced on Thursday. Explosives are used in mines to break up rocks to more easily process them and extract valuable metals. Codelco is the world's largest copper producer and its decision to use alternative explosives underscores the increasing pressure on mining companies to enhance their environmental standards and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The pressure is especially high for copper mining which has traditionally been more carbon-intensive. The new explosives are expected to cause a significant reduction in the "Scope 3," or indirect, emissions, at the Radomiro Tomic mine, which accounts for about 40% of Codelco's explosive consumption. The company has said it aims to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. "Using an innovative product in the explosives market will contribute to fulfilling our commitments to sustainable development," chairperson Maximo Pacheco said in a statement. "Its production involves 40% fewer greenhouse gas emissions compared to grey ammonium," the statement added. The move to implement lower carbon explosives with the help from manufacturer Enaex is part of the miner's broader strategy to enhance production and achieve its annual targets, amid falling output of the key industrial metal to a 25-year low. Radomiro Tomic would be the first mining operation to use Prillex ECO2, an explosive whose main component is blue ammonium nitrate that is produced using advanced carbon capture and storage technologies, which significantly reduces CO2 emissions during the manufacturing process.CIBC Asset Management Inc purchased a new position in UniFirst Co. ( NYSE:UNF – Free Report ) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm purchased 1,017 shares of the textile maker’s stock, valued at approximately $202,000. Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of UniFirst by 1,627.3% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 190 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in UniFirst by 60.5% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 183 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in UniFirst during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $92,000. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in shares of UniFirst in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $109,000. Finally, Nvest Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of UniFirst during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $203,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.17% of the company’s stock. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of UniFirst from $199.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of UniFirst from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, UniFirst currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $186.25. UniFirst Trading Up 2.1 % Shares of NYSE UNF opened at $200.23 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.77 and a beta of 0.82. UniFirst Co. has a twelve month low of $149.58 and a twelve month high of $205.38. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $191.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $179.88. UniFirst Increases Dividend The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.70%. This is a boost from UniFirst’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio is 18.02%. Insider Transactions at UniFirst In related news, CEO Steven S. Sintros sold 3,207 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.04, for a total transaction of $619,079.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,571 shares in the company, valued at $4,357,105.84. This represents a 12.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink . Also, major shareholder The Ronald D. Croatti Trust – 1 sold 9,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.97, for a total value of $1,814,215.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 17,390 shares in the company, valued at $3,320,968.30. This represents a 35.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here . In the last three months, insiders have sold 13,294 shares of company stock worth $2,546,632. 0.74% of the stock is currently owned by insiders. About UniFirst ( Free Report ) UniFirst Corporation provides workplace uniforms and protective work wear clothing in the United States, Europe, and Canada. The company operates through U.S. and Canadian Rental and Cleaning, Manufacturing, Specialty Garments Rental and Cleaning, and First Aid segments. It designs, manufactures, personalizes, rents, cleans, delivers, and sells a range of uniforms and protective clothing, including shirts, pants, jackets, coveralls, lab coats, smocks, and aprons; and specialized protective wear, such as flame resistant and high visibility garments. Featured Articles Want to see what other hedge funds are holding UNF? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for UniFirst Co. ( NYSE:UNF – Free Report ). 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Israel, Lebanon agree to ceasefireNone
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Itron SVP Donald Reeves sells $27,182 in common stockFG FT Reb BRYANT Min M-A M-A O-T A PF PTS Evans 37 6-10 0-0 4-12 4 3 15 Mitchell 22 7-10 1-2 6-13 0 2 16 Withers 36 6-14 1-4 0-4 2 1 17 Pinzon 38 6-15 6-6 1-4 3 3 22 Timberlake 34 3-8 3-4 2-5 5 5 9 Cramer 17 5-5 2-2 3-5 2 2 12 Farris 16 2-5 0-0 0-1 2 1 6 Totals 200 35-67 13-18 16-44 18 17 97 Percentages: FG .522, FT .722.
Pep Guardiola labels Man City 'fragile' before Liverpool clash after Feyenoord capitulation deepens crisisBlack Music Sunday is a weekly series highlighting all things Black music, with over 235 stories covering performers, genres, history, and more, each featuring its own vibrant soundtrack. I hope you’ll find some familiar tunes and perhaps an introduction to something new. Three great keyboardists and composers share the same birthday today, so I’m throwing a party for all of them. According to many music historians, Scott Joplin was born on Nov. 24, 1868. Theodore Shaw Wilson, known to the world as Teddy Wilson, was born on Nov. 24, 1912. And William Strethen Davis, who used the stage name Wild Bill Davis, joined our world on Nov. 24, 1918. Scott Joplin was the first member of this distinguished trio to be born. Though some researchers dispute the actual year of his birth and even the day he was born, I’m going to stick with the day his birth is usually celebrated. Here’s a quick eight-minute video biography: x YouTube Video And here’s his biography from Musician Guide: As Johann Strauss is to the waltz and John Philip Sousa is to the march, so is Scott Joplin to ragtime: its guru, chief champion, the figure most closely associated with its composition. It was Joplin's short, hard-driving melodies--and the syncopated backbone he furnished them--that helped define the musical parameters of ragtime, a style that gave voice to the African-American experience during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Sadly, for all his accomplishments in putting a new musical form on the map, Joplin spent his final years madly obsessed with a fruitless crusade to enter, if not conquer, another arena: opera, the staid, classical venue accepted by a white community that had for so long ridiculed ragtime as cheap, vulgar, and facile black music. Many of the details of Joplin's life, like much of his music, have been lost to history. He was born November 24, 1868, in Texarkana, a small city straddling the border of Texas and Arkansas. Joplin's father, Giles, was a railroad laborer who was born into slavery and obtained his freedom five years before his son's birth. Florence Givens Joplin was a freeborn black woman who worked as a laundress when not taking care of her children. Like many in the black community, the Joplins saw in music a rewarding tool of expression, and the talented family was sought out to perform at weddings, funerals, and parties. Scott, whose first foray into the world of scales and half notes came on the guitar, discovered a richer lyrical agent in his neighbor's piano. At first, Giles Joplin was concerned that music would sidetrack his son from a solid, wage-earning trade, but he saw the clear inventive genius in Scott, who, by the time he was 11, was playing and improvising with unbelievable smoothness. A local German musician, similarly entranced with Scott Joplin's gift, gave the boy free lessons, teaching the works of European composers, as well as the nuts and bolts of musical theory and harmony. In a move not uncommon for young blacks at the time, Joplin left home in his early teens, working as an itinerant pianist at the honky-tonks and salons of the Midwest, South, and Southwest. Although some revisionist historians have placed the birth of ragtime at the feet of white composers, such as Irving Berlin, who published "Alexander's Ragtime Band" in 1911, the true origin of the music was to be found in these low-rent music halls. In explaining the black roots of the musical form, Rudi Blesh and Harriet Janis wrote in They All Played Ragtime, "Piano ragtime was developed by the Negro from folk melodies and from the syncopations of the plantation banjos. As it grew, it carried its basic principle of displaced accents played against a regular meter to a very high degree of elaboration." The signature fast and frenetic pace of ragtime reflected the jubilant side of the black experience--compared with the melancholy-heavy blues--and the music became, according to Blesh and Janis, America's "most original artistic creation." Joplin’s story continues via Biography : Writing Huge Hit: 'Maple Leaf Rag' Joplin studied music at Sedalia's George R. Smith College for Negroes during the 1890s and also worked as a teacher and mentor to other ragtime musicians. He published his first piano rag, "Original Rags," in the late 1890s, but was made to share credit with another arranger. Joplin then worked with a lawyer to ensure that he would receive a one-cent royalty of every sheet-music copy sold of his next composition, "The Maple Leaf Rag." In 1899, Joplin partnered with publisher John Stark to push the tune. Though sales were initially slight, it went on to become the biggest ragtime song ever, eventually selling more than a million copies. Joplin focused on composing more ragtime works, with the genre taking the country by storm and Joplin earning acclaim for his artistry. Some of Joplin's published compositions over the years included "The Entertainer," "Peacherine Rag," "Cleopha," "The Chrysanthemum," "The Ragtime Dance," "Heliotrope Bouquet," "Solace" and "Euphonic Sounds." Opera Ambitions Joplin was intensely concerned with making sure the genre received its proper due, taking note of the disparaging comments made by some white critics due to the music's African American origins and radical form. As such, he published a 1908 series that broke down the complexities of ragtime form for students: The School of Ragtime: Six Exercises for Piano. Joplin also aspired to produce long-form works. He published the ballet Rag Time Dance in 1902 and created his first opera, A Guest of Honor, for a Midwestern tour in 1903. The production was shut down due partially to the theft of box-office receipts, with Joplin ultimately dealing with great financial losses. He died on April 1, 1917, in New York City—broke and afflicted with tertiary syphilis. He is buried in St. Michael's Cemetery in East Elmhurst, Queens, where a small ceremony is held for him each year. This 12-minute Polyphonic video takes a close look at the roots of ragtime and syncopation, as well as Joplin’s life and career. x YouTube Video While a film reviewer and I agree that the 1977 Scott Joplin biopic starring Billy Dee Williams is a pass, there is one great scene: x YouTube Video I wonder if there is anyone who has never heard some version of Joplin’s “The Entertainer”? x YouTube Video Our next piano legend is the great swing-era pianist, conductor, composer, and arranger Teddy Wilson. Roger Kimmel Smith at The Syncopated Times , details his beginnings: Theodore Shaw Wilson, born November 24, 1912, in Austin, Texas, was the child of two accomplished educators. When he was six, the family moved to Alabama, where his father had been hired to head the English department at the famous Tuskegee Institute. Tuskegee’s longtime leader, Booker T. Washington, had died just a few years earlier. Wilson’s mother also taught at the school and later became head librarian. Teaching basic literacy to adult blacks “required a great deal of tact and insight on the part of the teacher,” Wilson recalls in his memoir, Teddy Wilson Talks Jazz , “but my mother fortunately possessed these qualities in ample measure.” Wilson received his elementary and secondary education at Tuskegee, and began music lessons around age seven, along with older brother Gus. He learned piano first, then violin, oboe, and clarinet. Around 1927, when he was 14, he got his first exposure to jazz on gramophone records such as Bix Beiderbecke and Frankie Trumbauer ’s “ Singin’ the Blues .” That summer on vacation in Detroit, the brothers heard McKinney’s Cotton Pickers at the Graystone Ballroom. They were both hooked and became dead set on musical careers. Pearl Wilson demanded her younger son give college a try first, so Teddy dutifully matriculated at Talladega College in Alabama. After one year studying music theory, he got his mother’s blessing to join Gus in Detroit. Soon they were both members of Speed Webb’s territory band, Gus on trombone, Teddy on piano. This 10-minute video, which opens with a rousing version of “Way Down Yonder in New Orleans,” teases that “While on European concert tour with the Dutch Swing College Band in 1972, Teddy Wilson talks about his piano playing and which piano players inspired him the most: Handful of keys - Fats Waller, Rosetta - Earl Hines, Tea for two - Art Tatum.” x YouTube Video AllAboutJazz continues his story: He traveled to New York in 1933 to join Benny Carter's orchestra, the Chocolate Dandies. After Carter disbanded the following year to take a position as arranger with Goodman's band Wilson worked with an all-star group led by Red Norvo in 1934 and with Willie Bryant's band during 1934 and 1935. He met Goodman in 1935 and in 1936 was asked to join the bandleader's trio, which also included drummer Gene Krupa. Lionel Hampton joined soon after, making it a quartet. Wilson became the first African-American publicly featured in Goodman's line-up. During his time with Goodman, Wilson put together several small groups for recording sessions, and began a long career as a freelance recording artist that culminated in his marvelous series of discs with Billie Holiday. Other sessions featured such artists as Lester Young, Roy Eldridge, Lena Horne, Ella Fitzgerald, Helen Ward, and Harry James. Wilson left Goodman in 1939 to form his own big band, which included such top musicians as Doc Cheatham, Ben Webster, Rudy Powell, and Hal Baker. Thelma Carpenter was vocalist. Wilson's subtle style failed to win over audiences, however, who often complained that his orchestra sounded ''too white.'' He disbanded the group after only a year and formed a sextet that played regularly at the Cafe Society in New York from 1940 to 1946. After 1946 Wilson worked mostly as a soloist or in a trio. In 1946 he became a staff musician for CBS radio and operated his own music school, and produced a series of recordings, the “Teddy Wilson School for Pianists,” (reissued on Mosaic) to demonstrate various elements of jazz piano. Listening to a 19-year-old Ella Fitzgerald sing with Wilson in 1936 is fascinating: x YouTube Video The following year, Wilson recorded with a 22-year-old Billie Holiday: x YouTube Video Jazz radio host Leigh Kammen interviewed Wilson, though the date this 14-minute program was recorded is unknown x YouTube Video Wilson’s life also had a lesser-known political element, as detailed in his Austin Jazz Society bio : He was sometimes called the "Marxist Mozart,” due to his support for left-wing causes. He performed in benefit concerts for The New Masses journal and for Russian War Relief. Later, the FBI suspended Wilson's performing activities on broadcast, radio, and social activities, alleging that he was involved in Communism. One of my favorite albums features Wilson playing with the great Lester Young, who was known as “Pres.” x YouTube Video Our third pianist in today’s trio, Wild Bill Davis is probably more well-known for his work not on keyboards but on the manuals and the pedalboard of the organ Boppinbob’s blog From The Vaults has a detailed bio: Davis was born in Glasgow, Missouri but the Davis family moved to Parsons, Kansas, while Bill was still a baby. His mother was a piano teacher and she taught her son intermittently - he was never very interested - until an orphaned relative came to live with the Davises and brought a Victrola with him, along with some Fats Waller records. In 1937 Davis won a music scholarship to Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, after two years transferring to Wiley College in Marshall, Texas. Davis originally played guitar and wrote arrangements for Milt Larkin's Texas-based big band during 1939–1942, a band which included Arnett Cobb, Illinois Jacquet, and Tom Archia on horns. After leaving the Larkin orchestra, Davis worked in Chicago as a pianist, recording with Buster Bennett in 1945. He also wrote arrangements for Earl Hines and for Sarah Vaughan. He played a crucial role as the pianist-arranger in Jordan's Tympany Five (1945–1947) at the peak of their success. After leaving Jordan, he returned to Chicago for a time, recording again with Buster Bennett and working with Claude McLin. After switching from piano to organ, Davis moved to the East Coast. In 1950, he began leading an influential trio of organ, guitar, and drums, which recorded for OKeh Records. Davis led the way for Milt Buckner, Bill Doggett, Jimmy Smith and the multitude of pianists who switched allegiance. In the early days Davis suffered criticism from churchgoers who considered the instrument had sacred connections. "Who wants a church organist in a night club?" But the church organ is a mere wind instrument and the Hammond could achieve all-pervading power through the use of electricity. Bill Davis, paradoxically, was a quiet and gentle person who completely belied his nickname "Wild Bill". But when it came to music Davis was transformed. He will best be remembered for his foundation- shattering arrangement of "April In Paris", written for and recorded by the Count Basie band of the Fifties. The arrangement alone forced the band to swing, not that it needed any coercion, and the recording was probably Basie's biggest ever hit, copied to this day by big bands across the world. Here’s Duke Ellington introducing Davis, who orchestrated Count Basie’s 1955 rendition of “April in Paris” and performed it live in Berlin in 1969. x YouTube Video From Davis’ obit in The Independent : "I finally joined Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five in 1945. He was about at his peak then. At first I worked for him as an arranger, writing all his things like 'Choo, Choo, Ch'Boogie' and 'Don't Worry 'Bout That Mule'. One of the first engagements I played for him was at the club Zanzibar, in New York. We were there three months, on the same bill as Duke Ellington, and that was when I got to know Duke. 'Love You Madly' was one of two arrangements I remember doing for him." The Hammond Company had been engaged on war contracts and hadn't been making organs: "When I ordered mine in 1945, I had to wait almost two years to get it. It cost me $2,290 and it was a gamble, absolutely. I was making $175 a week when I left Louis, and I started out on organ making $45 a week." He rejoined Jordan, this time on organ, in 1950, but from 1951 onwards worked in the leading clubs with his own trio and later in Europe. As the leading player of the Hammond, Davis became much in demand in the recording studios and made fine albums with Ella Fitzgerald (1963) and with another long-time friend, the Ellington alto saxophonist Johnny Hodges, with whom he worked often during the Sixties. Hodges liked the freedom of working with the Davis trio as opposed to the more demanding surroundings of the Ellington orchestra. Davis played a prominent part in Ellington's 1970 "Blues For New Orleans" which was a feature for Hodges and, since he died a few days later, his last recording for Ellington. Relax and enjoy Davis and Johnny Hodges’ 1965 album “Con-Soul And Sax”: x YouTube Video It’s appropriate to close this birthday tribute with Davis’ cover of “That’s All.” But rest assured, there will be lots more music in the comments section below. x YouTube Video
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