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Markku Toikka
Markku Tapani Toikka (born 5 April 1955 in Somero, Finland) is a Finnish stand-up comedian and actor. His acting roles include "Rahikainen" in Aki Kaurismäki's ''Crime and Punishment'' and "Pekka" in another Aki Kaurismäki film '' Calamari Union''. In Calamari Union, Pekka appears for most of the film to gibber in English in an apparent schizophrenic delusion about his days as a soldier of fortune. This viewer interpretation is subverted towards the end of the movie, as a group of Latin American freedom fighters wreak their vengeance by shooting him like a dog. As a stand-up comic, his shtick has largely been that of the balding middle aged man going through an identity crisis In psychology, identity crisis is a stage theory of identity development where it involves resolution of a conflict over the 8 stages of the lifespan.(Schultz, 216) The term was coined by German psychologist Erik Erikson. The stage of psychosoci .... He lives in Helsinki with his wife, Ulla-Mai ...
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Somero
Somero () is a town and municipality of Finland. It is part of the Southwest Finland region in the province of Western Finland, located northeast of Salo, east of Turku and northwest of Helsinki. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . Somero is unilingually Finnish. Somero's neighbouring municipalities are Jokioinen, Koski Tl, Lohja, Loimaa, Salo, Tammela and Ypäjä. History Somero has been known as a trading place since the 14th century. The municipality was officially founded in 1867. The municipality of Somerniemi merged with Somero proper in 1977. Somero was moved from the province of Häme to the province of Turku and Pori in 1990. Currently it belongs to the province of Western Finland. Somero became a town () on January 1, 1993. Scenery Häntälä Hollows are the traditional biotope area in the villages of Häntälä, Talvisilla, Syväoja and Kerkola. The nature trail that begins at the Häntä ...
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Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland across Estonia to the south. Finland covers an area of with a population of 5.6 million. Helsinki is the capital and largest city, forming a larger metropolitan area with the neighbouring cities of Espoo, Kauniainen, and Vantaa. The vast majority of the population are ethnic Finns. Finnish, alongside Swedish, are the official languages. Swedish is the native language of 5.2% of the population. Finland's climate varies from humid continental in the south to the boreal in the north. The land cover is primarily a boreal forest biome, with more than 180,000 recorded lakes. Finland was first inhabited around 9000 BC after the Last Glacial Period. The Stone Age introduced several differ ...
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Stand-up Comedian
Stand-up comedy is a comedy, comedic performance to a live audience in which the performer addresses the audience directly from the stage. The performer is known as a comedian, a comic or a stand-up. Stand-up comedy consists of One-line joke, one-liners, stories, observations or a shtick that may incorporate Theatrical property, props, comedy music, music, Magic (illusion), magic tricks or ventriloquism. It can be performed almost anywhere, including comedy clubs, comedy festivals, bars, nightclubs, colleges or theatres. History Stand-up as a Western world, Western art form has its roots in the Stump speech (minstrelsy), stump speech of American minstrel shows, which featured an actor in blackface delivering nonsensical monologue to the audience. While the intention of stump speeches was to mock African-Americans, they also occasionally contained political and social satire. The minstrel show would later influence theatrical traditions of the late 19th and early 20th centu ...
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Helsingin Sanomat
''Helsingin Sanomat'', abbreviated ''HS'' and colloquially known as , is the largest subscription newspaper in Finland and the Nordic countries, owned by Sanoma. Except after certain holidays, it is published daily. Its name derives from that of the Finnish capital, Helsinki, where it is published. It is considered a newspaper of record for Finland. History and profile The paper was founded in 1889 as ''Päivälehti'', when Finland was a Grand Duchy under the Tsar of Russia. Political censorship by the Russian authorities, prompted by the paper's strong advocacy of greater Finnish freedoms and even outright independence, forced Päivälehti to often temporarily suspend publication, and finally to close permanently in 1904. Its proprietors re-opened the paper under its current name in 1905. Founded as the organ of the Young Finnish Party, the paper has been politically independent and non-aligned since 1932. During the Cold War period ''Helsingin Sanomat'' was among the Finn ...
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New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid digital media, digital subscribers. It also is a producer of popular podcasts such as ''The Daily (podcast), The Daily''. Founded in 1851 by Henry Jarvis Raymond and George Jones (publisher), George Jones, it was initially published by Raymond, Jones & Company. The ''Times'' has won List of Pulitzer Prizes awarded to The New York Times, 132 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any newspaper, and has long been regarded as a national "newspaper of record". For print it is ranked List of newspapers by circulation, 18th in the world by circulation and List of newspapers in the United States, 3rd in the U.S. The paper is owned by the New York Times Company, which is Public company, publicly traded. It has been governed by the Sulzberger family since 189 ...
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Aki Kaurismäki
Aki Olavi Kaurismäki (; born 4 April 1957) is a Finnish film director and screenwriter. He is best known for the award-winning '' Drifting Clouds'' (1996), ''The Man Without a Past'' (2002), ''Le Havre'' (2011) and ''The Other Side of Hope'' (2017), as well as for the mockumentary ''Leningrad Cowboys Go America'' (1989). He is described as Finland's best-known film director. Career After graduating in media studies from the University of Tampere, Kaurismäki worked as a bricklayer, postman, and dish-washer, long before pursuing his interest in cinema, first as a critic, and later as a screenwriter & director. He started his career as a co-screenwriter and actor in films made by his older brother, Mika Kaurismäki. He played the main role in Mika's film '' The Liar'' (1981). Together they founded the production company Villealfa Filmproductions and later the Midnight Sun Film Festival. His debut as an independent director was ''Crime and Punishment'' (1983), an adaptation of Dost ...
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Crime And Punishment (1983 Film)
''Crime and Punishment'' () is a 1983 film directed by Aki Kaurismäki. It is the first full-length film by Kaurismäki and is based on Fyodor Dostoevsky's 1866 novel of the same title, ''Crime and Punishment''. The main character in the film is called Rahikainen. In 1984, it received two Jussi Award The Jussi Awards are Finland's premier film industry prizes, awarded annually to recognize the achievements of directors, actors, and writers. History The first Jussi Awards ceremony was held on 16 November 1944 at the Restaurant Adlon in Hels ...s: for best début film and best script. Plot A slaughterhouse worker, Antti Rahikainen (Markku Toikka), murders a man. A woman from a catering service who has arrived to set up a party is the only witness—she elects not to call the police but tells him to leave. As the police hunt him, Rahikainen skips work and begins to wander Helsinki, seeing an article about the murder in the newspaper. His coworker (Matti Pellonpää) tells him ...
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Calamari Union
''Calamari Union'' is a 1985 Finnish surreal comedy film, the second full-length film by the director Aki Kaurismäki. The film's cast includes well-known Finnish actors and rock musicians. Plot Fifteen desperate men named Frank band together to escape from a repressive Kallio district of Helsinki. An English-speaking man named Pekka joins the barroom conspirators, whose avoidance of last names help them outsmart obstructing forces as they sneak through dark alleys and the tunnels of the Helsinki metro. Taking advantage of the night, their goal is to reach the magical seaside district of Eira. Cast Reception An absurdist comedy, the film is considered to be a satirical cult classic. Caryn James of ''The New York Times'' described the film as "gleefully absurdist", adding that Kaurismäki "takes over the American gangster film and flavors it with his improbable humor". Others have drawn connections between ''The Saimaa Gesture ''The Saimaa Gesture'' ( fi, Saimaa-ilmiö) is a 198 ...
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Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by continuous or relapsing episodes of psychosis. Major symptoms include hallucinations (typically hearing voices), delusions, and disorganized thinking. Other symptoms include social withdrawal, decreased emotional expression, and apathy. Symptoms typically develop gradually, begin during young adulthood, and in many cases never become resolved. There is no objective diagnostic test; diagnosis is based on observed behavior, a history that includes the person's reported experiences, and reports of others familiar with the person. To be diagnosed with schizophrenia, symptoms and functional impairment need to be present for six months (DSM-5) or one month (ICD-11). Many people with schizophrenia have other mental disorders, especially substance use disorders, depressive disorders, anxiety disorders, and obsessive–compulsive disorder. About 0.3% to 0.7% of people are diagnosed with schizophrenia during their lifetime. In 2 ...
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Mercenary
A mercenary, sometimes also known as a soldier of fortune or hired gun, is a private individual, particularly a soldier, that joins a military conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any other official military. Mercenaries fight for money or other forms of payment rather than for political interests. Beginning in the 20th century, mercenaries have increasingly come to be seen as less entitled to protections by rules of war than non-mercenaries. The Geneva Conventions declare that mercenaries are not recognized as legitimate combatants and do not have to be granted the same legal protections as captured service personnel of the armed forces. In practice, whether or not a person is a mercenary may be a matter of degree, as financial and political interests may overlap. Modern mercenary organizations are generally referred to as private military companies or PMCs. Laws of war Protocol Additional GC 1977 (APGC77) is a 1 ...
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Shtick
A shtick ( yi, שטיק) is a comic theme or gimmick. The word entered the English language from the Yiddish ''shtik'' (שטיק), in turn derived from German ''Stück'' and Polish ''sztuka'' (both ultimately from Proto-Germanic *''stukkiją''), all meaning "piece", "thing" or "theatre play"; note that "Theaterstück" is the German word for play (and is a synonym of "Schauspiel", literally "viewing play" in contrast to the "Singspiel"). The English word "piece" is sometimes used in a similar context (for example, a musical piece). In stand-up comedy context a near equivalent term is a "bit". Another variant is "bits of business" or just "bits". ''Shtick'' may refer to an adopted persona, usually for comedy performances, that is maintained consistently (though not necessarily exclusively) across the performer's career. In this usage, the recurring personalities adopted by Laurel and Hardy through all of their many comedy films (although they often played characters with differe ...
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Identity Crisis
In psychology, identity crisis is a stage theory of identity development where it involves resolution of a conflict over the 8 stages of the lifespan.(Schultz, 216) The term was coined by German psychologist Erik Erikson. The stage of psychosocial development in which identity crisis may occur is called the identity cohesion vs. role confusion. During this stage, adolescents are faced with physical growth, sexual maturity, and integrating ideas of themselves and about what others think of them.(Schultz, 215–216) Adolescents therefore form their self-image and endure the task of resolving the crisis of their basic ego identity. Successful resolution of the crisis depends on one's progress through previous developmental stages, centering on issues such as trust, autonomy, and initiative. Erikson's own interest in identity began in childhood. Born Ashkenazic Jewish, Erikson felt that he was an outsider. His later studies of cultural life among the Yurok of northern California and ...
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