Kodak Theatre
Encyclopedia
The Kodak Theatre is a live theatre in the Hollywood and Highland
shopping mall and entertainment complex on Hollywood Boulevard
and North Highland Avenue in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles
. Since its opening on November 9, 2001, the theatre has been the home of the annual Academy Awards Ceremonies (The Oscars), which were first held there in March 2002, and is the first permanent home for the awards. Since 2002, the theater was also the home for American Idol
.
The theatre was designed by David Rockwell
of the Rockwell Group, and Theatre Projects Consultants specifically with the Oscars in mind. It has a seating capacity
for up to 3,401 people. The stage is one of the largest in the United States
, roughly tied with the Elliott Hall of Music
at Purdue University
, measuring 113 feet (34.4 m) wide by 60 feet (18.3 m) deep. The theatre was sponsored by the Eastman Kodak
company, which paid $75 million to have its name associated with the building. It is owned by CIM Group.
The theatre is particularly successful as a venue for a televised theatre performance (improving production values and economies in American Idol and the Academy Awards) through the planning and technical design. The architect and advisers undertook extensive consultation with many of the leading production personnel in Hollywood which led to highly functional production cable infrastructure systems including an underground cable bunker which passes below the theatre to truck locations in adjacent streets, accessible and substantial power, and a unique camera, sound and stage management cockpit designed by Rockwell and Theatre Projects in the orchestra seating area.
The Grand Staircase entrance columns hall to the Kodak Theatre is flanked by columns displaying the names of winners of the Academy Awards for Best Picture
since 1927-1928, with blank spaces left for future Best Picture winners well into the 21st century. Still, a visitor during the rest of the year might have a hard time recognizing the landmark. In a fashion reminiscent of Hollywood's movie-making process, the building is "dressed" before the ceremony, including a different sign (though not always), drapery to hide all the storefronts, and the famous large red carpet
.
The theatre is rented to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
for weeks before the Oscar night. During the rest of the year, it hosts numerous live concerts, award shows, symphony performances and others. However, the 7,000 seat Nokia Theatre at L.A. Live has largely replaced the Kodak Theatre as the premier auditorium in L.A. since it opened in 2007, and some events formerly held at the Kodak are now regularly held at the Nokia, including the American Idol
finals.
The Kodak Theatre is also the permanent home of Iris, a Cirque du Soleil production, which was premiered on September 25, 2011.
Artists who have appeared at the Kodak Theatre include Gloria Trevi
, Christina Aguilera
, Elissa
, Céline Dion
, Andrea Bocelli
, Dixie Chicks
, Mariah Carey
, Beyoncé Knowles
, Alicia Keys
, Elvis Costello
, Vanilla Ice
, Charice, Philipp Kirkorov
, The Corrs
, Barry Manilow
, Prince
, The New Power Generation, Ian Anderson
, David Gilmour
, Valy Hedjasi, Leila Forouhar
, Andy Madadian
, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Broadway
musicals, dance shows, symphony performances and opera
.
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Other events have included the AFI
Life Achievement Award
to Tom Hanks
, the ESPY Awards
for excellence in sports performance yearly, the BET Awards and American Idol
finales. In April 2006, it was home to the 33rd Daytime Emmy Awards
, and it hosted the 34th Daytime Emmy Awards
on June 15, 2007.
On March 20, 2004, 19-year-old Adán Sánchez
became the youngest headliner to perform a sell-out concert at the theatre. He died in a car accident only a week later.
In 2005, Nintendo
launched its latest game console, the Wii
, at the Kodak Theatre before E3 began. Nintendo
used the venue again in 2006 for its pre-E3 news conference. The 2007 Victoria's Secret
Fashion Show was also held at the Kodak Theatre for the first time, having been held in New York
in previous years.
The theatre has also hosted the Miss USA
pageant twice, in 2004 and 2007.
Nintendo once again borrowed the venue for their 2008 E3 Press Conference after holding their previous year's conference in Santa Monica
.
In December 2008, a production of "A Christmas Carol
" starring Christopher Lloyd
, John Goodman
and Jane Leeves
played sixteen performances over a two-week period.
In August 2009, the theatre hosted the So You Think You Can Dance
finale for the first time.
On September 15, 2009, a concert by Italian
tenor
Andrea Bocelli
, was filmed in the Theatre. The concert was a PBS
Great Performances
Christmas special of
Bocelli's first ever Holiday album
, My Christmas
.
On January 9, 2010, Japanese metal band X Japan
made their first U.S. public appearance on top of the Theatre recording four music videos for their songs "Rusty Nail
", "Jade
", "Endless Rain
", and "I.V.
".
Hollywood and Highland
The Hollywood & Highland Center is a shopping mall and entertainment complex at Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue in the Hollywood district in Los Angeles. The center also includes Grauman's Chinese Theatre and the Kodak Theatre, home to the Academy Awards. The historic site was once the...
shopping mall and entertainment complex on Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood Boulevard
-Revitalization:In recent years successful efforts have been made at cleaning up Hollywood Blvd., as the street had gained a reputation for crime and seediness. Central to these efforts was the construction of the Hollywood and Highland shopping center and adjacent Kodak Theatre in 2001...
and North Highland Avenue in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. Since its opening on November 9, 2001, the theatre has been the home of the annual Academy Awards Ceremonies (The Oscars), which were first held there in March 2002, and is the first permanent home for the awards. Since 2002, the theater was also the home for American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
.
The theatre was designed by David Rockwell
David Rockwell
David Rockwell is an American architect and designer, who is the founder and CEO of Rockwell Group, based in New York with satellite offices in Madrid and Dubai. Rockwell has long been fascinated with immersive environments.-Early life and education:...
of the Rockwell Group, and Theatre Projects Consultants specifically with the Oscars in mind. It has a seating capacity
Seating capacity
Seating capacity refers to the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, both in terms of the physical space available, and in terms of limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that seats two to a stadium that seats...
for up to 3,401 people. The stage is one of the largest in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, roughly tied with the Elliott Hall of Music
Edward C. Elliott Hall of Music
The Edward C. Elliott Hall of Music is located on the Purdue University campus in West Lafayette, Indiana, USA. With a seating capacity of 6,025, it is one of the largest proscenium theaters in the world, and is about 100 seats larger than Radio City Music Hall. The facility is named after Edward...
at Purdue University
Purdue University
Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, U.S., is the flagship university of the six-campus Purdue University system. Purdue was founded on May 6, 1869, as a land-grant university when the Indiana General Assembly, taking advantage of the Morrill Act, accepted a donation of land and...
, measuring 113 feet (34.4 m) wide by 60 feet (18.3 m) deep. The theatre was sponsored by the Eastman Kodak
Eastman Kodak
Eastman Kodak Company is a multinational imaging and photographic equipment, materials and services company headquarted in Rochester, New York, United States. It was founded by George Eastman in 1892....
company, which paid $75 million to have its name associated with the building. It is owned by CIM Group.
The theatre is particularly successful as a venue for a televised theatre performance (improving production values and economies in American Idol and the Academy Awards) through the planning and technical design. The architect and advisers undertook extensive consultation with many of the leading production personnel in Hollywood which led to highly functional production cable infrastructure systems including an underground cable bunker which passes below the theatre to truck locations in adjacent streets, accessible and substantial power, and a unique camera, sound and stage management cockpit designed by Rockwell and Theatre Projects in the orchestra seating area.
The Grand Staircase entrance columns hall to the Kodak Theatre is flanked by columns displaying the names of winners of the Academy Awards for Best Picture
Academy Award for Best Picture
The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only...
since 1927-1928, with blank spaces left for future Best Picture winners well into the 21st century. Still, a visitor during the rest of the year might have a hard time recognizing the landmark. In a fashion reminiscent of Hollywood's movie-making process, the building is "dressed" before the ceremony, including a different sign (though not always), drapery to hide all the storefronts, and the famous large red carpet
Red carpet
A red carpet is traditionally used to mark the route taken by heads of state on ceremonial and formal occasions, and has in recent decades been extended to use by VIPs and celebrities at formal events.- History :...
.
The theatre is rented to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is a professional honorary organization dedicated to the advancement of the arts and sciences of motion pictures...
for weeks before the Oscar night. During the rest of the year, it hosts numerous live concerts, award shows, symphony performances and others. However, the 7,000 seat Nokia Theatre at L.A. Live has largely replaced the Kodak Theatre as the premier auditorium in L.A. since it opened in 2007, and some events formerly held at the Kodak are now regularly held at the Nokia, including the American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
finals.
The Kodak Theatre is also the permanent home of Iris, a Cirque du Soleil production, which was premiered on September 25, 2011.
Past events
The Kodak Theatre is most commonly used for public cultural events such as concerts, shows, and performances. It is however used on occasion for private purposes such as weddings, etc.Artists who have appeared at the Kodak Theatre include Gloria Trevi
Gloria Trevi
Gloria Trevi is a Mexican pop-rock singer-songwriter. She was described as the "Supreme Diva of the Mexican Pop" by the music channel VH1 and sold over 20 million records.-Biography:...
, Christina Aguilera
Christina Aguilera
Christina María Aguilera is an American recording artist and actress. Aguilera first appeared on national television in 1990 as a contestant on the Star Search program, and went on to star in Disney Channel's television series The Mickey Mouse Club from 1993–1994...
, Elissa
Elissa (singer)
Elissar Zakaria Khoury simply known as Elissa is a Lebanese singer. She is known for her collaborations with well-known Arab and international artists, notably Ragheb Alama, Cheb Mami, Fadl Shaker, Chris DeBurgh and Gerard Ferrer.Born to a Lebanese father and a Syrian mother , her debut was in...
, Céline Dion
Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
, Andrea Bocelli
Andrea Bocelli
Andrea Bocelli, is an Italian tenor, multi-instrumentalist and classical crossover artist. Born with poor eyesight, he became blind at the age of twelve following a soccer accident....
, Dixie Chicks
Dixie Chicks
The Dixie Chicks are an American country band which has also successfully crossed over into other genres. The band is composed of founding members Martie Erwin Maguire and Emily Erwin Robison, and lead singer Natalie Maines...
, Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. She made her recording debut with the release of her eponymous studio album in 1990, under the guidance of Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola, whom she later married in 1993...
, Beyoncé Knowles
Beyoncé Knowles
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles , often known simply as Beyoncé, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Born and raised in Houston, Texas, she enrolled in various performing arts schools and was first exposed to singing and dancing competitions as a child...
, Alicia Keys
Alicia Keys
Alicia Augello Cook , better known by her stage name Alicia Keys, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and occasional actress. She was raised by a single mother in the Hell's Kitchen area of Manhattan in New York City. At age seven, Keys began playing the piano...
, Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
, Vanilla Ice
Vanilla Ice
Robert Matthew Van Winkle , best known by his stage name Vanilla Ice, is an American rapper, extreme athlete and home improvement television personality...
, Charice, Philipp Kirkorov
Philipp Kirkorov
Philipp Bedrosovich Kirkorov is a Bulgarian-born Russian singer and producer living and working in Moscow.-Biography:Philipp Kirkorov was born on April 30, 1967 in Varna, Bulgaria. His father is Bulgarian singer of Armenian and Belarusian ethnicity Bedros Kirkorov. His mother, Victoria, is...
, The Corrs
The Corrs
The Corrs are an Irish band which combine pop rock with traditional Celtic folk music. The brother and sisters are from Dundalk, Ireland. The group consists of the Corr siblings: Andrea ; Sharon ; Caroline ; and Jim .The Corrs came to international prominence with their performance at the...
, Barry Manilow
Barry Manilow
Barry Manilow is an American singer-songwriter, musician, arranger, producer, conductor, and performer, best known for such recordings as "Could It Be Magic", "Mandy", "Can't Smile Without You", and "Copacabana ."...
, Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
, The New Power Generation, Ian Anderson
Ian Anderson (musician)
Ian Scott Anderson, MBE is a Scottish singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, best known for his work as the leader and flautist of British rock band Jethro Tull.-Early life:...
, David Gilmour
David Gilmour
David Jon Gilmour, CBE, D.M. is an English rock musician and multi-instrumentalist who is best known as the guitarist, one of the lead singers and main songwriters in the progressive rock band Pink Floyd. In addition to his work with Pink Floyd, Gilmour has worked as a producer for a variety of...
, Valy Hedjasi, Leila Forouhar
Leila Forouhar
Leila Forouhar is a singer and actress from Iran. She relocated to Los Angeles after the Iranian Revolution.-Career:Leila is the daughter of the late Iranian actor Jahangir Forouhar, who had already established a solid background in the Iranian entertainment industry by the early 1970s. She speaks...
, Andy Madadian
Andy Madadian
Andranik Madadian , better known by his stage name, Andy , is a famous Iranian-Armenian singer-songwriter. He is a naturalized American and currently lives in Los Angeles, California.-Early life:...
, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
musicals, dance shows, symphony performances and opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
.
American Film Institute
The American Film Institute is an independent non-profit organization created by the National Endowment for the Arts, which was established in 1967 when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act...
Life Achievement Award
AFI Life Achievement Award
The AFI Life Achievement Award was established by the Board of Directors of the American Film Institute on February 26, 1973 to honor a single individual for his or her lifetime contribution to enriching American culture through motion pictures and television....
to Tom Hanks
Tom Hanks
Thomas Jeffrey "Tom" Hanks is an American actor, producer, writer, and director. Hanks worked in television and family-friendly comedies, gaining wide notice in 1988's Big, before achieving success as a dramatic actor in several notable roles, including Andrew Beckett in Philadelphia, the title...
, the ESPY Awards
ESPY Awards
An ESPY Award is an accolade presented by the American cable television network ESPN to recognize individual and team athletic achievement and other sports-related performance during the calendar year preceding a given annual ceremony. The first ESPYs were awarded in 1993...
for excellence in sports performance yearly, the BET Awards and American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
finales. In April 2006, it was home to the 33rd Daytime Emmy Awards
33rd Daytime Emmy Awards
The 33rd Daytime Emmy Awards, commemorating excellence in American daytime programming from 2005, was held on Friday, April 28, 2006 at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles. This was the first time that the Daytime Emmys were held outside of New York. ABC televised the ceremonies in the United States...
, and it hosted the 34th Daytime Emmy Awards
34th Daytime Emmy Awards
The 34th Daytime Emmy Awards, commemorating excellence in American daytime programming from 2006, was held on June 15, 2007 at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles, California. CBS televised the ceremonies in the United States...
on June 15, 2007.
On March 20, 2004, 19-year-old Adán Sánchez
Adán Sánchez
Adán Santos Sánchez , was a popular American singer.-Biography:Sánchez was born in Torrance, CA. He was the son of singer Chalino Sánchez. He was eight years old when his father was kidnapped and killed in the Mexican state of Sinaloa in 1992...
became the youngest headliner to perform a sell-out concert at the theatre. He died in a car accident only a week later.
In 2005, Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
launched its latest game console, the Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
, at the Kodak Theatre before E3 began. Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
used the venue again in 2006 for its pre-E3 news conference. The 2007 Victoria's Secret
Victoria's Secret
Victoria's Secret is an American retailer of women's wear, lingerie and beauty products. It is the largest segment of publicly-traded Limited Brands with sales of over US$5 billion and an operating income of $1 billion in 2006...
Fashion Show was also held at the Kodak Theatre for the first time, having been held in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
in previous years.
The theatre has also hosted the Miss USA
Miss USA
The Miss USA beauty contest has been held annually since 1952 to select the United States entrant in the Miss Universe pageant. The Miss Universe Organization operates both pageants, as well as Miss Teen USA...
pageant twice, in 2004 and 2007.
Nintendo once again borrowed the venue for their 2008 E3 Press Conference after holding their previous year's conference in Santa Monica
Santa Mônica
Santa Mônica is a town and municipality in the state of Paraná in the Southern Region of Brazil.-References:...
.
In December 2008, a production of "A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol is a novella by English author Charles Dickens first published by Chapman & Hall on 17 December 1843. The story tells of sour and stingy Ebenezer Scrooge's ideological, ethical, and emotional transformation after the supernatural visits of Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of...
" starring Christopher Lloyd
Christopher Lloyd
Christopher Allen Lloyd is an American actor. He is best known for playing Emmett Brown in the Back to the Future trilogy, Uncle Fester in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values, and Judge Doom in Who Framed Roger Rabbit. He played Reverend Jim Ignatowski in the television series Taxi and more...
, John Goodman
John Goodman
John Stephen Goodman is an American film, television, and stage actor. He is best known for his role as Dan Conner on the television series Roseanne for which he won a Best Actor Golden Globe Award in 1993, and for appearances in the films of the Coen brothers, with prominent roles in Raising...
and Jane Leeves
Jane Leeves
Jane Leeves is an English film, stage, and television actress, comedienne and dancer.Leeves made her screen debut with a small role in the 1983 popular British comedy television show The Benny Hill Show. Leeves moved to the United States, where she performed in small roles until she secured a...
played sixteen performances over a two-week period.
In August 2009, the theatre hosted the So You Think You Can Dance
So You Think You Can Dance (season 5)
So You Think You Can Dance is a United States television reality program and dance competition airing on the Fox Broadcasting Company network. Season five premiered on May 21, 2009, with Nigel Lythgoe and Mary Murphy returning as permanent judges and Cat Deeley returning to host...
finale for the first time.
On September 15, 2009, a concert by Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
Andrea Bocelli
Andrea Bocelli
Andrea Bocelli, is an Italian tenor, multi-instrumentalist and classical crossover artist. Born with poor eyesight, he became blind at the age of twelve following a soccer accident....
, was filmed in the Theatre. The concert was a PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
Great Performances
Great Performances
Great Performances, a television series devoted to the performing arts, has been telecast on Public Broadcasting Service public television since 1972...
Christmas special of
My Christmas Special
The Andrea Bocelli & David Foster Christmas Special, is the PBS Great Performances Christmas special of Andrea Bocelli's first ever Holiday album, My Christmas, produced by multiple Grammy Award winner David Foster...
Bocelli's first ever Holiday album
Christmas music
Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music normally performed or heard around the Christmas season, which tends to begin in the months leading up the actual holiday and end in the weeks shortly thereafter.-Early:...
, My Christmas
My Christmas
My Christmas is the thirteenth studio album and first holiday album released by Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli.The album is a compilation of seasonal holiday favorites, mainly in English, with a few selections in Italian, German, and French, produced by multiple Grammy Award winner David Foster,...
.
On January 9, 2010, Japanese metal band X Japan
X Japan
is a Japanese heavy metal band founded in 1982 by Yoshiki and Toshi. Originally named X , the group achieved their breakthrough success in 1989 with the release of their second album Blue Blood...
made their first U.S. public appearance on top of the Theatre recording four music videos for their songs "Rusty Nail
Rusty Nail (song)
"Rusty Nail" is a single released by X Japan on June 10, 1994. It was written and composed by Yoshiki, later appeared on the album Dahlia, and was used as the theme song for the 1994 Japanese TV drama Kimi ga Mienai...
", "Jade
Jade (X Japan song)
"Jade" is a single by X Japan released on June 28, 2011 in Europe, North and South America, and on July 13 in Japan and Southeast Asia. Originally set for March 15, 2011, the band decided to postpone it due to the March 11 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami...
", "Endless Rain
Endless Rain
-Music personnel:*Mixing engineer – Motonari Matsumoto*Recording engineers – Gremlin, Tetsuhiro Miyajima, Mitsuyasu Abe*Assistant engineers – Takashi Ohkubo, Fujishima, Naoki Yamada, Akiko Nakamura, Shigeki Kashii, Lee Chun Fin, Mitsumasa Iwata...
", and "I.V.
I.V.
"I.V." is a single released by X Japan on January 23, 2008 as a digital download. It is the band's first new song since "The Last Song" released in 1998. "I.V." is the main theme for the film Saw IV, which was released on October 26, 2007.- Overview :...
".