On December 15 and 16, Toledo Ballet will present its 72nd production of The Nutcracker.  This is the longest running annual Nutcracker in the United States.  (Thanks, Eric.)  Tchaikovsky composed The Nutcracker during four months in 1891.  A large part of the ballet was written at sea on a journey from Europe to the United States.  Perhaps the most beloved of all ballet, The Nutcracker had its premiere at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg in 1892.  The beloved classical ballet takes place one Christmas Eve in a nineteenth century Russian town.  Uncle Drosselmeyer, a conjurer and magician, delights the entire family with tricks and magic gifts.  He gives Marie, his young niece, a rather plain looking doll in a red uniform.  Marie loves the doll which has an unusual mouth ("...so strong it can crack nuts") -a toy mechanical nutcracker.  Marie's brother breaks the doll in jealousy, and Uncle Drosselmeyer places it under the Christmas tree to mend.  Marie falls asleep under the tree with her broken doll in her arms and enters a dream world where the Christmas tree shoots up to the sky and all the toys come alive!  http://www.kultur.com/The-Nutcracker-Bolshoi-Ballet-p/d0062.htm  In most versions of the popular holiday ballet the Nutcracker, the young girl who falls asleep and dreams about a prince is named Clara.  As the curtain opens, the wealthy Staulbahm family, including young children Clara and Fritz, is busily preparing for their annual Christmas Eve party.  Clara and Fritz are anxiously awaiting the arrival of several invited guests.  The original story of The Nutcracker is based on a tale by E.T.A. Hoffman entitled "Der Nussnacker und der Mausekonig", or "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King."  In the story, Clara is not the Stahlbaum's cherished daughter but an unloved and neglected orphan.  Somewhat like Cinderella, Clara is required to do chores in the household that usually go unappreciated.  In 1847, Alexandre Dumas rewrote Hoffman's story, removing some of its darker elements and changing the name of Clara.  He chose to refer to Clara as "Marie." 

http://dance.about.com/od/famousballets/f/Clara_Marie.htm

While it may be unusual in modern times for animals to avail themselves of our justice system, it wasn’t always so.  Thanks to one of our editors, we found “The Criminal Prosecution and Capital Punishment of Animals,” by E.P. Evans published in 1906:   http://archive.org/stream/criminalprosecut00evaniala#page/n9/mode/2up.  The book, which takes itself very seriously, explains that animal trials were common in the Middle Ages.  We were struck by the due process afforded some field mice in a 1519 case in Italy described in the book.  The community of Stelvio commenced criminal proceedings against field mice accused of damaging crops by burrowing.  A man named Hans Grinebner was appointed to defend the mice.  At trial, a long list of witnesses testified that the damage wrought by the mice prevented them from paying their rent.  Mr. Grinebner “urged in favour of his clients the many benefits which they conferred upon the community, and especially upon the agricultural class by destroying noxious insects and larvae and by stirring up and enriching the soil,” according to the article.  Mr. Grinebner also argued that, should the mice be sentenced “to depart,” that they be given safe passage from dogs, cats or other foe.  The judge, a rather decent man, apparently, exiled the male adult mice immediately but gave young and pregnant mice 14 days to pack up and leave. Seriously.  Read about pigs at:  http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2012/10/12/of-lawyers-and-mice/

Costa Rica is a central American nation, located between Nicaragua and Panama.  Its borders span 309 kilometers (192 miles) with Nicaragua and 330 kilometers (205 miles) with Panama.  Costa Rica also borders the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, its coastline reaching across 1,290 kilometers (802 miles).  The country has 51,100 square kilometers (19,730 square miles) of land, which is slightly less than the size of West Virginia, including the Isla del Coco (a small island in the Pacific Ocean).  San José, the capital, is located in a highland valley in central Costa Rica called the Meseta Central.  Most of the country's population is located in this area formed by 2 basins separated by low, volcanic hills ranging from 900 to 1,500 meters above sea level.

http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Americas/Costa-Rica.html

Panama is located in Central America between Costa Rica to the north and Colombia to the south.  It is at the southern end of the Central American isthmus (a narrow piece of land that connects two larger land areas) and forms the land bridge between North and South America.  The nation is S-shaped and runs from east to west with a length of 772 kilometers (480 miles) and a width that varies from 60 to 177 kilometers (37 to 110 miles).  Panama has an area of 77,381 square kilometers (29,762 square miles) which makes it slightly smaller than South Carolina.  This area consists of 75,990 square kilometers (29,340 square miles) of land and 2,210 square kilometers (853 square miles) of water.  The nation borders the Caribbean Sea on one coast and the Pacific Ocean on the other.  The 80-kilometer (50-mile) Panama Canal cuts the nation in half and joins the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.  http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Americas/Panama.html

Docufiction (or docu-fiction, often confused with docudrama) is a neologism which refers to the cinematographic combination of documentary and fiction.  It is a film genre which attempts to capture reality such as it is (as direct cinema or cinéma vérité) and which simultaneously introduces unreal elements or fictional situations in narrative in order to strength the representation of reality using some kind of artistic expression.  More precisely, it is a documentary contaminated with fictional elements, in real time, filmed when the events take place, and in which someone - the character - plays his own role in real life.  Film genre in expansion, it is adopted by an increasing number of filmmakers.  The new term appeared at the beginning of the 21st century.  It is now commonly used in several languages and widely accepted for classification by international film festivals.  In contrast, docudrama is usually a fictional and dramatized recreation of factual events in form of a documentary, at a time subsequent to the "real" events it portrays.  A docudrama is often confused with docufiction when drama is considered interchangeable with fiction (both words meaning the same).  Typically however, "docudrama" refers specifically to telefilms or other television media recreations that dramatize certain events often with actors.  A mockumentary (etymology:  mock documentary) is also a film or television show in which fictitious events are presented in documentary format, sometimes a recreation of factual events after they took place or a comment on current events, typically satirical or comedic (see genres: drama versus comedy and tragedy) or dramatic in nature.  The word docufiction is also sometimes used to refer to literary journalism (creative nonfiction).  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Docufiction

Definition of docusoap  noun   a documentary following people in a particular occupation or location over a period of time  Origin:  1990s:  blend of documentary and soap

http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/docusoap

Q:  Do the American people get reimbursed for President Barack Obama's use of Air Force One for his political campaign?
A:  Yes, but how much is always the question.  The most familiar Air Force One, a highly-modified Boeing 747, costs $179,750 an hour to fly with the president and his staff, Secret Service agents, military personnel, fuel and supplies.  The White House, regardless of the incumbent, always has decided how much of any trip is political and how much is official, and that includes the flights.  This year, Obama's campaign has been reimbursing the government based on the cost of chartering a smaller Boeing 737 for a comparable flight.  By the way, any Air Force aircraft with the president aboard carries the Air Force One call sign. -- Associated Press.
Q:  When, and who was the first person to say, "I'm blah-blah and I approve this message"?
A:  It probably was a candidate in a political ad in early 2004, the first year of the Bipartisan Reform Act of 2002, better known as "McCain-Feingold."  It requires candidates and groups campaigning for federal offices to disclose the source of radio or television ads.  The phrase has become funny.  For example, President Barack Obama has been telling crowds about a father who showed his 4-year-old a picture of Obama and asked what the president does.  The boy replied, "He approves this message!" -- Various sources.
Q:  Did Al Gore really say he invented the Internet?
A:  No.  In March 1999, he said, in classic politicianspeak, "During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet.  I took the initiative in moving forward a whole range of initiatives that have proven to be important to the nation's economic growth and environmental protection." -- The Washington Post.  http://www.thecourier.com/Opinion/columns/2012/Oct/JU/ar_JU_101512.asp?d=101512,2012,Oct,15&c=c_13