Friday the 13th (2009 film)

Friday the 13th is a 2009 American slasher film directed by Marcus Nispel, written by Damian Shannon and Mark Swift from a story by Shannon, Swift, and Mark Wheaton. It is a reboot and twelfth installment in the Friday the 13th franchise, which began in 1980. Nispel also directed the 2003 remake of Tobe Hooper's The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974), while Shannon and Swift wrote the screenplay for the crossover film Freddy vs. Jason (also 2003). The film was produced by New Line Cinema, Paramount Pictures, Platinum Dunes and Crystal Lake Entertainment and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures domestically and Paramount Pictures internationally. It stars Jared Padalecki, Danielle Panabaker, Aaron Yoo, Amanda Righetti, Travis Van Winkle, and Derek Mears and follows Clay Miller (Padalecki) as he searches for his missing sister, Whitney (Righetti), who is captured by Jason Voorhees (Mears) while camping in woodland at Crystal Lake.

The film was originally conceived as an origin story, but the project evolved into a re-imagining of the first four Friday the 13th films. The character Jason Voorhees was redesigned as a lean, quick killer with a backstory that allows the viewer to feel sympathy for him, but not enough that he would lose his menace. In keeping with the tone of the film, Jason's mask was recreated from a mold of the original mask used for Part III; though there were subtle changes. Friday the 13th includes some of Harry Manfredini's musical score from the previous Friday the 13th films because the producers recognized its iconic status.

Friday the 13th was theatrically released in the United States on February 13, 2009, by New Line Cinema in the United States and Canada and by Paramount Pictures in remaining worldwide territories. The film received generally negative reviews from critics, who felt that it did not add anything new to the franchise. The film would go on to gross \$92.7 million at the box office on a budget of \$19 million, becoming the second-highest-grossing film in the franchise after Freddy vs. Jason.

## Plot

On Friday, June 13, 1980, a young Jason Voorhees watches as his mother Pamela is beheaded by a camp counselor, who was trying to escape Mrs. Voorhees's murder spree around Camp Crystal Lake. Almost thirty years later, five friends—Wade, Richie, his girlfriend Amanda, Mike, and his girlfriend Whitney—arrive for a camping trip at Crystal Lake, where they hope to find a crop of marijuana growing in the woods. That night, an adult Jason kills everyone except Whitney, whom he captures as she resembles his mother at a young age.

Six weeks later, Trent, his girlfriend Jenna, and friends Chelsea, Bree, Chewie, Nolan, and Lawrence arrive at Trent's summer cabin on the shore of Crystal Lake. Meanwhile, Whitney's brother Clay Miller arrives at the lake to search for her, despite his local sheriff's pleas to look elsewhere. Clay visits Trent's cabin, and Jenna agrees to help him search for Whitney. Chelsea and Nolan go wakeboarding on the lake where Jason kills Nolan with an arrow, and fatally stabs Chelsea with his machete. Meanwhile, Clay and Jenna search the old Crystal Lake campgrounds, where they see Jason hauling a body into the abandoned camp house.

Jenna and Clay run back to the cabin to warn the others about Jason. Chewie is killed by Jason in a tool shed near the cabin, while Trent and Bree have sex in a bedroom. Jenna and Clay arrive, and Clay calls the police. Jason then disconnects the cabin's electricity. Lawrence heads outside to search for Chewie, and Jason kills him with an axe. Jason then sneaks inside and kills Bree. A police officer arrives and knocks on the front door, but is killed by Jason before he can enter. Trent, Clay, and Jenna escape the cabin and become separated, and Trent is killed by Jason when he reaches the main road.

Jason chases Clay and Jenna back to the campgrounds, where Clay discovers Jason's lair and finds his sister underground, chained to a wall. Clay frees Whitney, and all three try to escape as Jason arrives. They find an exit, but Jenna is impaled by Jason's machete before she can escape. Jason corners Clay and Whitney in a barn, and Whitney confuses Jason by pretending to be Pamela. Clay and Whitney subdue Jason with a chain, and Whitney stabs Jason in the chest with his machete. After sunrise, Clay and Whitney dump Jason's body into the lake, but before they leave, Jason bursts through the wooden dock and grabs Whitney.

## Cast

## Production

### Development

New Line Cinema's Toby Emmerich approached Platinum Dunes producers Michael Bay, Brad Fuller and Andrew Form about remaking Friday the 13th in the same way they restarted The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise. They agreed and spent over a year obtaining the film rights from Paramount Pictures, New Line and Crystal Lake Entertainment—the latter run by Friday the 13th creator Sean S. Cunningham. Paramount executives gave Platinum Dunes producers a license to use anything from the original films, including the title. Paramount was given the rights to distribute the film internationally and New Line retained U.S. distribution rights. Fuller and Form said they did not want to make Friday the 13th Part 11 or 12, but wanted to rework the mythology. They liked elements from the first four films—such as plot points and ways particular characters are killed—and planned to use these in their remake, which they did with Paramount's approval. Fuller said, "I think there are moments we want to address, like how does the hockey mask happen. It'll happen differently in our movie than in the third one. Where is Jason from, why do these killings happen, and what is Crystal Lake?" The producers initially expressed an interest in using Tommy Jarvis, a recurring character who first appeared in Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter, but the idea was scrapped.

Though the producers decided that Friday the 13th would not be an origin story, they said that they wanted to work out a logical origin story for Jason that would provide a sense of history as the film progressed. Form and Fuller explained that the audience gets to see how Jason attains his famous hockey mask, and is given a reason for why he puts it on. Jason would transition from wearing a bag over his head—similar to the one seen in Friday the 13th Part 2—to finding and wearing his hockey mask, whereas in Friday the 13th Part III he obtains the mask off-screen and comes out of a barn already wearing it.

Unlike both horror remakes, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) and The Amityville Horror (2005)—which were also produced by Bay, Form, and Fuller—it was decided that Friday the 13th would not be a period piece. Form and Fuller said the film was not strictly a remake so there was no reason they could not set the story in the 2000s. In October 2007, Damian Shannon and Mark Swift, the writers of Freddy vs. Jason, were hired to write a script for Friday the 13th. Jonathan Liebesman was in negotiations to direct the film, but scheduling conflicts meant he was unavailable and Fuller and Form chose Marcus Nispel. Nispel was apprehensive about taking the job, mainly because he would be taking over another film franchise, but Fuller eventually persuaded him to direct the project. Principal photography began on April 21, 2008, in Austin, Texas and ended on June 13, 2008. Additional scenes were shot on location at Camp Fern near Marshall, Texas.

### Casting

Stuntman Derek Mears was hired to portray Jason Voorhees at the recommendation of special make-up effects supervisor Scott Stoddard. Before the producers contacted him, Mears had already heard about the production of a new Friday the 13th and had decided to start physical training so he could pursue the role. He was unaware that Stoddard and other industry professionals were suggesting him to the producers. The studio worried that Mears' pleasant demeanor might affect his ability to portray a menacing character, but Mears assured them he was suitable for the role. According to Mears, "They were like, 'You're really nice  ...  are you going to be able to switch over, right?' I was like, 'I cage fight... and I've got a lot of dad issues. So yeah.'". Mears said he related to "Jason the victim" when he was growing up, and he wanted to portray Jason as a victim in the film. To Mears, Jason represents people who were bullied in high school—specifically those with physical deformities—for being outcasts. Jason is unusual because he exacts his revenge on those trying to take over his territory at Crystal Lake.

When Mears went to audition for the role, he was asked, "Why do we need an actor as opposed to just a guy in a mask?" Mears said portraying Jason is similar to Greek Mask Work, in which the mask and the actor are separate entities, and depending on the scene, there will be various combinations of mask and actor in the performance. Mears said the energy from the actor's thoughts will be picked up by the camera. He compared his experience behind the camera to a stock car race: he is the driver and the effects team is his pit crew. As he performs, the effects team subtly suggest ways he can give the character more life on camera.

Amanda Righetti had not read the script when she was offered the role of Whitney Miller. She wanted to be part of the Friday the 13th franchise from the start. Righetti said she wanted to act in the film to be a part of the franchise and was convinced by the script. Jared Padalecki describes Clay Miller as a real hero because he sets out "to do the right thing" when his sister goes missing, and goes about it as a "lone wolf" who wants to take on the responsibility alone. Adjustments were made to the filming schedule to accommodate Aaron Yoo, who portrays Chewie. Yoo had his appendix removed shortly before filming began, and could not film his scenes immediately. As soon as Yoo was ready for filming, Nispel immediately hung him upside down from some rafters, exposing the staples over his surgical wound for the character's post-death shot.

Fuller and Form said the casting process for Friday the 13th was more difficult than that for The Texas Chainsaw Massacre because thirteen young actors were involved in Friday the 13th, as opposed to five in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The pair continually recast roles to find which actors worked best together. This recasting process lasted until the start of filming. Hostel: Part II'''s Richard Burgi, who was cast as Sheriff Bracke, did not sign his contract until twelve hours before he was due to start filming his scenes.

### Writing

When Shannon and Swift began writing the script for Friday the 13th, they imposed some rules based on their experiences of writing Freddy vs. Jason on themselves. They wanted their teenage characters to "sound normal". Shannon and Swift said they did not want the characters to know Jason's name or to become what they considered "the Scooby-Doo cliché where it's a bunch of kids trying to figure something out". The writers also wanted to distance themselves from self-referential slasher films such as Scream and to give the film a gritty, more 1980s feel that had been lost in recent films. They wanted to create a quick, loose Jason. The writing team decided to create a version of Jason "who was actually in the woods surviving off the land", and whose killings are presented as a way of defending his territory rather than randomly murdering whoever came along.

The writers did not want to spend a lot of time covering Jason's childhood experiences, which they felt would remove the sense of mystery from the character. They tried to write scenes that would add verisimilitude, like the audience finding a deer carcass lying on the ground as they follow Jason through his tunnels. Fuller told the writers they would have to do without it because it would cost \$100,000. Because of budget constraints, certain character deaths and the ending of the film were also scaled back from what Shannon and Swift originally envisioned.

The writers had written a scene in which Willa Ford's character Chelsea is stranded on the lake for hours after she sees Jason standing on the shore. Eventually, the girl would tire and drown. Shannon and Swift felt this was something they had not seen in slasher films, but later decided to make the death quicker and more visceral. A similar incident occurred with Danielle Panabaker's character Jenna. Panabaker said Jenna was scripted to survive longer than she did in the final version of the film; Jenna was supposed to escape Jason's lair and recite a "cute line" about a second date with Clay before an elaborate fight sequence that ends in her death. The writers wanted to strike a balance between finding new and interesting ways to kill characters and paying homage to popular death scenes that appeared in installments of the previous series. To accomplish this, Shannon and Swift included the presence of a wheelchair and a sweater in Jason's tunnels; the character Mark (Tom McBride) was a paraplegic who was killed by Jason in Friday the 13th Part 2 and Mrs. Voorhees wore the sweater in the original version of Friday the 13th.

The writers altered Jason's character. Mears describes him as a combination of John Rambo, Tarzan, and the Abominable Snowman from Looney Tunes. To Mears, Jason is similar to Rambo because the audience sees him setting up the other characters to fall into his traps. Like Rambo, he is calculating because he feels he has been wronged and he is fighting back; he is supposed to be more sympathetic in this film. However, Fuller and Form said they learned from their experience with The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning not to make Jason too sympathetic to the audience. They decided against an origin story because they did not want to focus on Jason's tormented childhood because the producers felt that would "demystify" the character in an unhelpful manner. Fuller said, "We do not want him to be sympathetic. Jason is not a comedic character, he is not sympathetic. He's a killing machine. Plain and simple."

### Visual effects

The producers used Asylum Visual Effects to create digital effects for Friday the 13th. Although director Marcus Nispel is a proponent of practical effects, Asylum had to digitally create some shots to protect the actors and to allow the director to achieve a specific look. Visual effects supervisor Mitchell Drain assigned ten crew members to work on the visual effects; they first analyzed the script in pre-production to decide which shots would need digital effects. Asylum worked on 25 shots for the film.

One of the first scenes Asylum was given was the scene depicting the death of Amanda, in which Jason ties her into her sleeping bag and hangs her over a campfire. The risk to the actor and the surrounding woodland was deemed too great to physically perform the scene. Asylum created a composite of two shots to show Amanda burning to death in her sleeping bag. Instead of creating a computer generated (CGI) model of the campfire, a real campfire was filmed. Asylum compositor John Stewart blended that footage with shots of the hanging sleeping bag into a single shot. Stewart digitally altered the flames to keep continuity between frames. Another composite shot is used in the scene in which Chelsea is hit by a speedboat. Because the scene would be too dangerous for even a stuntperson to perform, Asylum digitally combined footage of Willa Ford reacting to an imaginary boat that runs over her with shots of the actual boat to create the effect.

Asylum also enhanced some of Jason's signature machete kills. In several scenes, the company used a computer-generated machete because Nispel wanted to show multiple characters' deaths in one shot instead of cutting from the acts of murder to the aftermath of their deaths. In one scene, Jason kills Richie by slamming a machete into his head. Instead of using a real machete with a fake head, Nispel had Feldman act dead as Mears pulled a handle—with only a portion of the blade attached—away from Feldman's head. Then, Asylum digitally created the rest of the machete blade to complete the effect. For this scene, Asylum adjusted the actor's facial expressions to create a "post mortem" look. The special effects team digitally drooped half of the actor's face to appear as though the nerves had been severed by Jason's machete.

Asylum digitally created weapons for various scenes. In the scene in which Nolan is killed suddenly by a shot in the head from Jason's arrow, Asylum created the arrow in post-production. Another scene involved Jason hurling a hatchet at Lawrence as he runs away, striking him in the back. The shot of a hatchet flying through the air—in one instance appearing in the same frame as the actor—would be too difficult to achieve practically. Asylum rendered a complete 3D model of the hatchet then inserted the model into the frames leading up to the frame in which it hits the character in the back. One of the final images added by Asylum was for Trent's death scene. Here, Asylum digitally created a metal spike that bursts through Trent's chest as Jason slams him onto the back of a tow truck.

### Creating Jason

Effects artist Scott Stoddard described his look for Jason's face as a combination of Carl Fullerton's design for Friday the 13th Part 2 and Tom Savini's design for Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter. Stoddard's vision of Jason included hair loss, skin rashes, and the traditional deformities in his face. Stoddard tried to craft Jason's look so it would allow more human side of the character to be seen. Mears was required to wear full body make-up from the chest upwards while performing as Jason. The actor wore a chest plate with fake skin that would adjust to his muscle movements. He wore a hump on his back to give the impression that Jason had scoliosis. A prosthetic eye was glued to Mears' face to show realistic eye movements. Stoddard initially spent three-and-a-half hours applying the make-up to Mears' head and torso. He was eventually able to reduce the required time to just over an hour for scenes in which Mears wore the hockey mask. For scenes in which Jason's face is revealed, it took approximately four hours to apply the make-up.

For Jason's wardrobe, Mears was given a pair of combat boots and a "high-priced t-shirt" that allowed the special effects make-up to be seen through holes in the shirt. The jacket Jason wears in the film was created by combining a hunting jacket and a military jacket. Mears wanted to use the hunting jacket, but the creative team liked the way the military jacket billowed as he was making his "kill movements", so the top of the hunting jacket was removed and placed over the top of the military jacket to create what Mears called a "giant Frankenstein jacket." He describes Jason as leaner in this film because the character does not eat much. A leaner Jason was deemed more functional and allowed more emphasis to be placed on the hump on his back. Stoddard was inspired by the third and fourth films when designing Jason's hockey mask. Using an original mold, Stoddard made six new versions of the mask. He said, "Because I didn't want to take something that already existed. There were things I thought were great, but there were things I wanted to change a bit. Make it custom, but keep all the fundamental designs. Especially the markings on the forehead and cheeks. Age them down a bit. Break them up."

## Music

Form and Fuller recognized the iconic status of the music used in the first four Friday the 13th films. For their 2009 film, they immediately had the studio attain the licensing rights to the music, which was composed and originally performed by Harry Manfredini. They did not plan to use the score in its entirety, but they had Steve Jablonsky compose a score that was reminiscent of Manfredini's and created the atmosphere for the 2009 film. Nispel contacted Jablonsky to score Friday the 13th after having worked with him on the remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Nispel told Jablonsky he wanted him to create something that Nispel could "whistle when [he] left the theater", but was subtle enough that it would not immediately register while watching the film. Nispel said, "I don't believe that, when you watch a Friday the 13th film, you want to feel like John Williams is sitting next to you with the London Symphony Orchestra".

## Release

### Theatrical

A teaser trailer of the film debuted at the 2008 Scream Awards held in October and was later released online. In December, the film's theatrical trailer was released along with the theatrical poster. On Friday, February 13, 2009, Friday the 13th was released in 3,105 theaters in North America. The 2009 film was given the widest release of any Friday the 13th film, including the crossover film with A Nightmare on Elm Street. It was released in nearly three times as many theaters as the original 1980 film and exceeded Freddy vs. Jason by 91 theaters. Friday the 13th was also released in 2,100 theaters in 28 markets outside North America.

### Home media

The film was released on DVD, Blu-ray, and Apple TV on June 16, 2009. The DVD and Blu-ray releases contain the theatrical release and an extended cut of the film. It grossed \$10.9 million in home sales. The film was re-released on September 13, 2013 for Friday the 13th: The Complete Collection, a box set featuring all twelve films in the franchise, then again on October 13, 2020, for Shout! Factory's "Special Edition" collection.

## Reception

### Box office

On its opening day, Friday the 13th grossed \$19,293,446, and immediately exceeded the individual box office grosses for The New Blood (1988), Jason Takes Manhattan (1989), Jason Goes to Hell (1993), and Jason X (2002), which earned \$19,170,001, \$14,343,976, \$15,935,068, and \$13,121,555, respectively. From February 14–16, Friday the 13th earned an additional \$24,292,003, making its four-day President's Day weekend total \$43,585,449. By the end of its three-day opening weekend, it was already the second highest-grossing film in the franchise, having earned \$40,570,365, slightly exceeding The Grudge (2004) for the best 3-day weekend opening of any horror film. When comparing the 2009 film's opening weekend to that of its 1980 counterpart in adjusted 2009 US dollars, the original Friday the 13th film earned \$17,251,975. Although the 2009 film made more money, when factoring in the number of theaters each film was released in, the 1980 film earned an average of \$15,683 per theater, compared to the 2009 film's average of \$13,066.

Friday the 13th saw a significant drop in attendance in its second weekend at the box office. On its second Friday, the film earned \$2,802,977—a decrease of 85.5% from its opening Friday. By the end of its second weekend, the film had earned \$7,942,472—a decrease of 80.4% from the previous weekend. As a result, the film went from first place to sixth in the weekend box office chart. By its third weekend, Friday the 13th had left the top ten, earning \$3,689,156—a 53.6% decrease from its second weekend. By the end of its box office run, Friday the 13th earned an estimated \$65 million at the United States box office, but failed to regain a top ten spot after its third weekend.

As of July 2014, the 2009 film is the fifth-highest earning President's Day weekend with \$45,033,454. It is the eighth-highest grossing weekend in the month of February, and the eighth- highest-grossing weekend for the winter season—the period from the first day after the New Year weekend until the first Thursday of March. Friday the 13th finished as the fourth-highest-grossing film of any February with \$59.8 million, just behind Taken with \$84.3 million, He's Just Not That Into You with \$77.2 million, and Madea Goes to Jail, with \$60.9 million.

Friday the 13th was the fifteenth-highest grossing R-rated film of 2009. Because of the significant decrease in box office revenues in its second weekend, the film had the sixth-largest second-weekend drop. It is the seventh-largest drop for a film that opened as the top-earning film in the United States. With its \$65 million revenue at the North American box office, Friday the 13th is the highest-grossing film among slasher film remakes from the 2000s, which comprise When a Stranger Calls (2006), Black Christmas (2006), Halloween (2007), Prom Night (2008), and My Bloody Valentine 3D (2009). The film is ranked seventh-highest earning of all horror remakes, and is the seventh-highest earning slasher film in unadjusted dollars.

In addition to its North American box office gross, Friday the 13th earned over \$9.5 million in foreign markets on its opening weekend. The film's biggest markets were the United Kingdom, Russia, Italy, Spain, and Germany. Friday the 13th took in approximately \$1.7 million in both the United Kingdom and Russia, an estimated \$1.1 million in Spain, and \$1 million in both Italy and Germany. According to Paramount, this was the largest opening outside North America of any of the Friday the 13th films. The film finished its North American box office run with \$65,002,019; coupled with its earnings of \$27,688,218 outside North America, the film has accumulated \$92,670,237 worldwide. The film earned \$10,344,904 in domestic video sales.

### Critical response

Based on 175 reviews collected by review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, Friday the 13th has a 25% approval rating from critics with an average score of 4.30/10. The consensus reads: "Though technically well-constructed, Friday the 13th is a series rehash that features little to distinguish it from its predecessors." Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, calculated an average score of 34 based on 29 reviews. CinemaScore polls reported that average grade cinemagoers gave the film a "B−" on a scale of A+ to F. Exit polls showed that 51% of the audience was male and 59% were at least 25 years old.

Alonso Duralde wrote that the film should please slasher fans, but that it added nothing new to the genre or the franchise and would not appeal to people who did not like slasher films. He also said the prospect of another Friday the 13th—crafted by the film's "sequel-friendly" ending—did not leave him with a feeling of dread. Bill Goodykoontz of The Arizona Republic said the film accepts the "ridiculousness" of what it is trying to accomplish—mainly the "death and dismemberment" of "party-hungry kids", and that audiences would enjoy it if they also recognized that. Although Goodykoontz acknowledges the unique touches the film brings to certain characters' deaths, he was unimpressed with the acting and said Padalecki's presence gave the film a "less-good episode of Supernatural" vibe.

The Washington Posts Dan Zak wrote that the film fails to provide laughs, scares, suspense, or gore. Zak also said it fails to provide the exhibition of nudity expected of horror films that cannot deliver on the previously listed criteria. Mark Olsen of the Los Angeles Times said Nispel captured the despair he created with his Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake. Olsen also said the film failed to provide the "giddiness", "teenage lust", and "rambunctiousness" that made the previous Friday the 13th films work. Wesley Morris said Friday the 13th did have humor; he said the characters continually act the clichéd role of would-be-victim, making it hard to fear for their safety. In his opinion, the 2009 film lacked the "psycho-social" aspect—a mother killing out of revenge for her son's death—crafted by its 1980 predecessor, and ultimately the film is "more hilarious than terrifying".

The New York Post's Kyle Smith said Nispel made no attempt to create a movie beyond blood and guts, and even those attempts were "forgettable". Smith said that apart from Clay and Trent, the rest of the cast were merely "faces in the crowd" with no attempt to give them any sort of backstory. USA Today'''s Claudia Puig said that the film keeps to the same formula as its predecessors, with a story that adds little to nothing to the franchise. She also said Padalecki and Panabaker filled their lead roles well, and that Aaron Yoo's comic relief made him one of the most likable characters on screen. Rob Nelson of Variety also praised Panabaker and Yoo's performances.

In contrast to the film's detractors, The New York Times's Nathan Lee said Friday the 13th managed to "reboot the concept" of the original films with style. Lee said the film takes pleasure in killing off each of its characters, that there is a desire among cinemagoers for this type of material, and that Friday the 13th satisfies that desire. Adam Graham from The Detroit News said that it is the most effective and scary film in the Friday the 13th franchise; he praised its choice of allowing Jason to run after his victims—as opposed to slowly walking behind them, as became prominent in later sequels—because it made him more menacing. Graham also said the film does not "soften" Jason's scariness by providing a sympathetic backstory. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times explained his review of the film, he stated: "It will come as little surprise that Jason still lives in the woods around Crystal Lake and is still sore about the death of his mom. Jason must be sore in general". Entertainment Weeklys Clark Collis said director Nispel made a competent film that performs better as a whole than the previously released remakes of Prom Night (2008) and My Bloody Valentine 3D (2009), although it does provide a few too many unbelievable character moments.

Jason Anderson of the Toronto Star said the film added freshness to the standard formula of the previous films by focusing on the chasing and killing aspects instead of lingering on the prolonged suffering of victims like the Saw films. IGN's Chris Carle said Aaron Yoo stole the film with his comic timing and with his "memorable death". Carle said Derek Mears' portrayal of Jason adds more to the character than being simply a stuntman; Mears's subtle movements, athleticism, and physicality created an imposing image of Jason.

## Cancelled sequel

In October 2009, Warner Bros. Pictures set a release date for a sequel to Friday the 13th as August 13, 2010. On December 10, however, the sequel was pulled from its release date and was delayed indefinitely. In April 2010, producer Brad Fuller announced that a sequel to the film was not happening. In February 2011, Fuller announced that Damian Shannon and Mark Swift had finished a script for the sequel. In June 2013, Warner Bros. relinquished their film rights to the Friday the 13th franchise to Paramount Pictures. During the same month, however, Derek Mears (who portrayed Jason Voorhees in the 2009 film) revealed that Paramount was working with Platinum Dunes to produce a sequel to the remake. However, the sequel was later developed into a separate installment of the franchise.

2009 American film by Marcus Nispel

Films with screenplays by Mark Swift and Damian Shannon


Hannah Montana: The Movie (soundtrack)

Hannah Montana: The Movie is the soundtrack for the film of the same name. The film is an adaptation of the popular Disney Channel original series Hannah Montana, which first aired in 2006. In the television series and film, American singer and actress Miley Cyrus portrays Miley Stewart, a girl with a secret double life as the popstar Hannah Montana. Cyrus performs twelve of the songs on the album, seven of which are credited to Hannah Montana. American singers Billy Ray Cyrus, Taylor Swift, and Rascal Flatts and English singer Steve Rushton also have songs on the soundtrack.

This album was released on March 24, 2009, by Walt Disney Records. All of the songs in the album were approved by the film's director Peter Chelsom. He felt the film needed music that was tightly woven into the film's plot and the character's background. Several producers worked on the album, mainly John Shanks and Matthew Gerrard. Shanks was more involved with Cyrus than the other artists. Meanwhile, Gerrard produced Cyrus' songs as Montana; he previously wrote her hit song "The Best of Both Worlds" (2006). A remix of "The Best of Both Worlds" is featured as the album's closing track. Musically, the album merges heavy influences from pop and country. Songwriters include Cyrus, Gerrard and Swift, among others. The songs' lyrics primarily discuss the film's themes of fame, family, and love.

Contemporary critics were pleased with the album. Cyrus was praised for being natural and reflected while performing as herself. They also complimented Swift's performance and debated if she or Cyrus were more dominant. The soundtrack received a nomination for a 2009 American Music Award for Favorite Soundtrack, but lost to the Twilight soundtrack. Hannah Montana: The Movie reached the top ten in many nations, and topped charts in countries such as Austria, Canada, and New Zealand. In the United States, it peaked at number one on the Billboard 200 and the Billboard Top Country Albums chart. By May 2009, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified the album platinum. The album was promoted through exclusive releases to Radio Disney and live performances at numerous venues. Cyrus performed four songs from the album on her first worldwide concert tour.

"The Climb", performed by Cyrus, was released as the lead single on March 5 on iTunes and later on a CD single. "Hoedown Throwdown" served as a promotional single released on March 10, 2009. "Let's Get Crazy", performed by Cyrus as Hannah Montana, was released in Italy as the album's second and final single on May 29, 2009.

## Writing and development

Most of the songs on the soundtrack were offered to Peter Chelsom, the film's director, for inclusion on the film. Producer Alfred Gough said, "Peter Chelsom describes the Stewart family [Cyrus' character's family in the film] as a bilingual family whose second language is music, and that's very true in this movie." Chelsom says the film's numerous songs are tightly woven into the fabric of the story and the characters, which is why he believes the film will feel like a musical without being one. "We continuously dance very close to the convention of a musical but are more integrated. Songs are going to sit within the film, not apart from the film. At times, you won't notice the music is happening; it'll just move the story along."

In regards to Cyrus' songs, Chelsom said, "We realized this was an opportunity to move forward with the music, to update it and make it more sophisticated, to move with Miley’s age. I’ve never had a better musical experience on any film." Cyrus noted that most of the songs included on the soundtrack were inspired by the return of Cyrus' character, Miley Stewart/Hannah Montana, to her Nashville roots. She explained, "The soundtrack is all about Nashville, and that's where I'm from, that's my roots. I think that's a lot of the reason I am who I am." Cyrus co-wrote "Don't Walk Away" because it was to be included on her own studio album Breakout (2008). "Hoedown Throwdown", a song in which Cyrus calls dance steps, took much time to write. It became an ongoing collaboration between Chelsom, Cyrus, choreographer Jamal Sims, and the song's writers, Adam Anders and Nikki Hasman.

Jessi Alexander said she was inspired to write "The Climb" while driving to the home of her songwriting partner, Jon Mabe. Once she arrived, they decided to write a song about overcoming obstacles. Alexander referred to the process as a form of "therapy". It had initially been passed over by several artists until Chelsom chose it and offered it to Cyrus. Under the name Hannah Montana, Cyrus performs the song "Let's Do This", which was originally written and recorded by American country singer Adam Tefteller. The last track is a remixed version of Cyrus' hit "The Best of Both Worlds" (2006). The song is used as the theme song of the Disney Channel television show Hannah Montana, the basis of the film, and was originally released on the television series' first soundtrack.

Several other artists appear on the soundtrack. Billy Ray Cyrus' song on the album, "Back to Tennessee", is the title track of his eleventh studio album. Written by Cyrus, Tamara Dunn and Matthew Wilder, the song reflects the desire of both Cyrus and his character in the film, Robbie Ray Stewart, to return to their roots. Disney artist Steve Rushton sings "Everything I Want" and "Game Over". Rascal Flatts perform acoustic versions of previous efforts originally released on Feels Like Today (2004) and Me and My Gang (2006). When approached about participating in the soundtrack, Taylor Swift sent her ballad "Crazier" because it "was perfect to fall in love to". Swift also wrote the opening track "You'll Always Find Your Way Back Home" with Martin Johnson of Boys Like Girls.

## Music structure and lyrics

Musically, it is a pop and country album. According to About.com, each of Cyrus' songs incorporate her "husky twang". The up-tempo songs are mainly performed by Montana and ballads are kept at a minimum. Songs like "You'll Always Find Your Way Back Home", "Let's Get Crazy", and "Spotlight" are the most true to pop. "Let's Get Crazy" carries a groove and creates a beat from paparazzi flashbulbs. Cyrus' songs are more mid-tempo. "Hoedown Throwdown" is an instructional dance song that mixes country and hip-hop. "The Climb" has solid, clear vocals and is a standard-issue power ballad that places piano solos between chiming electric guitars. "Crazier" is a waltzing ballad that has Swift in relaxed soprano vocals.

Lyrically, the album explores a variety of concepts. With the exception of "You'll Always Find Your Way Back Home", which speaks about staying grounded and relying on family, Montana's songs describe the "glitzy-world" and privileges of a celebrity. "Let's Get Crazy" centers on having fun at a party. "The Good Life" is a "sugar-coated celebration of Gucci handbags and Prada shoes". "The Best of Both Worlds" explicitly alludes to Cyrus' character's double life as Montana: regular adolescent that moved from Nashville, Tennessee to Malibu, California by day and pop star by night. In the song, Montana talks about the privileges and advantages that are faced in leading in two lives with references to Orlando Bloom, concerts, friendship and film premieres. The songs Cyrus performs as herself are more reflective, personal, and sentimental. "Hoedown Throwdown" is a tribute to down-home fun. "The Climb" describes life as a difficult but rewarding journey. "Butterfly Fly Away" is a father-daughter duet by Miley and Billy Ray Cyrus about the coming of age. In "Back to Tennessee" Billy Ray Cyrus laments leaving Tennessee. Country group Rascal Flatts provide an acoustic version of "Backwards" and "Bless the Broken Road" with Williamson County Youth Orchestra.

## Singles

"The Climb" was released as the lead single from the album on February 21, 2009, through digital distribution. The song was critically appreciated for its lyrical content and Cyrus' strong vocals. It achieved commercial success and reached the top ten on charts in the United States, Australia, Canada, and Norway, as well as reaching the top twenty in many other countries. In the United States, the song topped Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks for fifteen consecutive weeks.

Promotional singles

After the release of the soundtrack, Disney sent promotional songs.

"Hoedown Throwdown" was released as a Radio Disney Exclusive single on March 10, 2009. The song managed to make commercial success by reaching the top ten of the Irish Singles Chart and top twenty in numerous regions.

"Crazier" was premiered on Radio Disney and Disney Channel, the latter promoting the home release of the film. The song charting at number seventeen on the Billboard Hot 100, sixty-four in the Australian Singles Chart, sixty-seven in the Canadian Hot 100, and one-hundred on the UK Singles Chart.

Other charted songs

"You'll Always Find Your Way Back Home" peaked at number seventy-six on the Canadian Hot and at number eighty-one in the Billboard Hot 100.

## Promotion

On October 10, 2008, Cyrus performed "Let's Get Crazy", "Let's Do This", and the 2009 Movie Mix of "The Best of Both Worlds" as Montana for the taping of third season of Hannah Montana at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre in Irvine California. On January 19, 2009, Cyrus premiered "The Climb" at the Kids' Inaugural: "We Are the Future" event in celebration of Barack Obama's inauguration. Cyrus and her father performed in London in an Apple Store; the taped performance was sold exclusively by the United Kingdom iTunes Store as an extended play titled iTunes: Live from London. Cyrus has performed songs from the album on the Academy of Country Music, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, American Idol, Good Morning America, Live with Regis and Kelly, the AOL Sessions, the twentieth annual A Time for Heroes Celebrity Carnival, Today, and the first D23 Expo.

Promotional songs from Hannah Montana: The Movie were premiered on Radio Disney and Disney Channel. "Let's Do This" was first to premiere on Radio Disney and Disney Channel on December 13, 2008, the video being taken from the taping in Irvine. Due to digital downloads, the song peaked at number twenty-three on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles Chart (Hot 100 – 123); the song charted in the Hot Canadian Digital Singles at number sixty-nine, but failed to reach the Canadian Hot 100. "Let's Get Crazy" was then premiered on January 19, 2009. The music video is an excerpt from Hannah Montana: The Movie in which Miley Stewart, portrayed by Cyrus, is forced to enter Lilly Truscott's, portrayed by Emily Osment, Sweet Sixteen as Montana. The song peaked at number fifty-seven in the Billboard Hot 100 and twenty-six in the Canadian Hot 100, therefore becoming Montana's highest chart effort in Canada. "Back to Tennessee" was premiered only on Disney Channel with a video that interspersed scenes from the film. The song peaked at number forty-seven on Hot Country Songs.

Radio Disney premiered the entire soundtrack on March 21, 2009, with a rebroadcast the next day. The Miley Sessions, a series of promotional music videos that featured Cyrus singing in a recording studio were released to Disney.com in March 2009. The videos feature Cyrus in a recording studio singing. Disney Channel aired a series of commercial segments entitled Hannah Montana: The Movie Playback, in which Cyrus is in the same setting describing the music of the album. Cyrus also embarked for a five city acoustic radio promo tour that reached over two-hundred-fifty for six days to promote the album. In addition, Cyrus performed four songs from the album on her first worldwide concert tour, the Wonder World Tour.

## Critical reception

The album received generally positive reviews from critics. Warren Truitt of About.com described the album as Cyrus' attempt to gradually capture a more mature audience by sharing the album with artists like the Rascal Flatts and Swift. Truitt also made musical comparisons to Shania Twain in "Dream", Kelly Clarkson in "Don't Walk Away", Avril Lavigne in "The Good Life", and Gwen Stefani in "Spotlight" and "Let's Get Crazy". Heather Phares of AllMusic noted the presence of many drastically different genres makes the album "a little weird". She stated that Cyrus' songs which were performed as herself were "the best songs", and also compared Cyrus to Twain. Phares also noted that Swift's "Crazier" was "the best song on Hannah Montana: The Movie". Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly stated, "the distance between tween and twang isn't actually all that far; think of this [...] as a sort of country-lite starter kit for her legion of young Disney-fed fans". In the end, she said Hannah Montana: The Movie was "the Miley show — whether it broadcasts from Nashville or Hollywood", despite appearances by other artists.

## Commercial performance

Hannah Montana: The Movie debuted on the Billboard 200 at number two with 139,000 copies sold on the issue date April 11, 2009. After four weeks of ascending and descending the chart, the album reached the number one position, becoming the first soundtrack of the year to top the Billboard 200. In its fourth week the album sold 133,000 copies, a decline of 32 percent compared to previous week's haul of 196,000. It also topped Billboard Top Country Albums for nine non-consecutive weeks and Top Soundtracks for nineteen non-consecutive weeks. After two months, the album became certified platinum for shipments of one million copies by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The album has sold 2,085,000 copies in the US as of April 2014 and 3 million worldwide. In Canada, the album debuted at number two, and peaked at number one for two consecutive weeks.

Hannah Montana: The Movie made its debut in the New Zealand RIANZ Album Chart at number eleven and eventually topped the chart for a week. It was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ) for the shipment of 15,000 copies. In Australia, the soundtrack peaked at number six and was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), selling more than 70,000 copies. In Spain, the album debuted at number eighteen and peaked at the top spot for four weeks. The album was later certified platinum by the Productores de Música de España for the shipment of 80,000 copies. In Austria, the soundtrack peaked at number one for one week and was eventually certified gold for sales above 10,000. Hannah Montana: The Movie also topped the Portuguese chart and reached the top twenty of charts in Belgium, Denmark, Mexico, Norway, Poland, Sweden, and Switzerland.

## Awards and accolades

Hannah Montana: The Movie was nominated for "Choice Music: Album Soundtrack" and "Favorite Soundtrack" at the Teen Choice Awards and 2009 American Music Awards but lost to the Twilight soundtrack, respectively. Five of the songs, "Back to Tennessee", "Butterfly Fly Away", "Don't Walk Away", "Hoedown Throwdown", and "You'll Always Find Your Way Back Home" were included on the short list for the Academy Award for Best Original Song at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards.

## Track listing

Karaoke series Disney's Karaoke Series: Hannah Montana The Movie was released to selected countries. The artwork underwent minor changes, the background are yellow stripes, the Hannah Montana logo was placed at the bottom left corner, and in the top right corner letters spell "Karaoke Series". It features eight karaoke instrumental versions of tracks from the original soundtrack.

## Personnel

- Adam Anders – producer, engineer, vocal producer
- Glen Ballard – producer
- Mark Bright – producer
- Scott Campbell – engineer, mixing
- Chad Carlson – engineer
- Peter Chelsom – executive producer
- Desirée Craig Ramos – director
- Scott Cutler – producer
- Billy Ray Cyrus – vocals
- Miley Cyrus – vocals
- Taylor Swift – producer, vocals
- Nathan Chapman – producer
- Rascal Flatts – producer, vocals
- Alana Da Fonseca – producer
- Travis Ference – mixing
- Kaylin Frank – composer
- Steve Gerdes – creative director
- Matthew Gerrard – producer, mixing
- Jason Gleed – producer
- Alfred Gough – executive producer
- Mark Hagen – engineer
- Paul David Hager – mixing
- Nikki Hassman – vocal producer
- Dann Huff- producer
- Glen Lajeski – composer
- Mitchell Leib – producer, executive
- Russ "Russwell" Long – engineer
- Jeremy Luzier – mixing
- Gavin MacKillop – engineer
- Joseph Magee – mixing
- Fred Maher- mixing
- Brian Malouf – mixing
- Steve Marcantonio – mixing
- Kai Mckenzie – producer
- Miles Milalr – producer
- Anne Preven – producer
- Raz – producer
- Jeff Rothschild – engineer, mixing
- Ryan Rubin – supervising editor
- Steve Rushton – producer, vocals
- John Shanks – producer
- Anabel Sinn – design
- Monica "Blackheart" Zierhut – producer

## Charts

### Weekly charts

### Year-end charts

### Decade-end charts

## Certifications

2009 soundtrack album

Albums produced by Nathan Chapman (record producer)


The Heart of a Woman

The Heart of a Woman (1981) is an autobiography by American writer Maya Angelou. The book is the fourth installment in Angelou's series of seven autobiographies. The Heart of a Woman recounts events in Angelou's life between 1957 and 1962 and follows her travels to California, New York City, Cairo, and Ghana as she raises her teenage son, becomes a published author, becomes active in the civil rights movement, and becomes romantically involved with a South African anti-apartheid fighter. One of the most important themes of The Heart of a Woman is motherhood, as Angelou continues to raise her son. The book ends with her son leaving for college and Angelou looking forward to newfound independence and freedom.

Like Angelou's previous volumes, the book has been described as autobiographical fiction, though most critics, as well as Angelou, have characterized it as autobiography. Although most critics consider Angelou's first autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings more favorably, The Heart of a Woman has received positive reviews. It was chosen as an Oprah's Book Club selection in 1997.

Critic Mary Jane Lupton says it has "a narrative structure unsurpassed in American autobiography" and that it is Angelou's "most introspective" autobiography. The title is taken from a poem by Harlem Renaissance poet Georgia Douglas Johnson, which connects Angelou with other female African-American writers. African-American literature critic Lyman B. Hagen states, "Faithful to the ongoing themes of survival, sense of self, and continuing education, The Heart of a Woman moves its central figures to a point of full personhood". The book follows Angelou to several places in the US and Africa, but the most important journey she describes is "a voyage into the self."

## Background

The Heart of a Woman, published in 1981, is the fourth installment of Maya Angelou's series of seven autobiographies. The success of her previous autobiographies and the publication of three volumes of poetry had brought Angelou a considerable amount of fame by 1981. And Still I Rise, her third volume of poetry, was published in 1978 and reinforced Angelou's success as a writer. Her first volume of poetry, Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water 'fore I Diiie (1971), was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.

Writer Julian Mayfield states that Angelou's work set a precedent not only for other black women writers but for the genre of autobiography as a whole. Angelou had become recognized and highly respected as a spokesperson for Blacks and women through the writing of her life stories. It made her, as scholar Joanne Braxton stated, "without a doubt ... America's most visible black woman autobiographer." Angelou was one of the first African-American female writers to discuss her personal life publicly, and one of the first to use herself as a central character in her books. Writer Hilton Als calls her a pioneer of self-exposure, willing to focus honestly on the more negative aspects of her personality and choices. While Angelou was composing her second autobiography, Gather Together in My Name, she was concerned about how her readers would react to her disclosure that she had been a prostitute. Her husband Paul Du Feu talked her into publishing the book by encouraging her to "tell the truth as a writer" and to "be honest about it."

In 1957, the year The Heart of a Woman opens, Angelou had appeared in an off-Broadway revue that inspired her first film, Calypso Heat Wave, in which Angelou sang and performed her own compositions, something she does not mention in the book. Also in 1957 and not discussed in the book, her first album, Miss Calypso, was released; it was reissued as a CD in 1995. According to Als, Angelou sang and performed calypso music because it was popular at the time, and not to develop as an artist. As described in The Heart of a Woman, Angelou eventually gave up performing for a career as a writer and poet. According to Chuck Foster, who wrote the liner notes in Miss Calypso's 1995 reissue, her calypso music career is "given short shrift" and dismissed in the book.

### Title

> The heart of a woman goes forth with the dawn,
> As a lone bird, soft winging, so restlessly on,
> Afar o'er life's turrets and vales does it roam
> In the wake of those echoes the heart calls home.
> The heart of a woman falls back with the night,
> And enters some alien cage in its plight,
> And tries to forget it has dreamed of the stars
> While it breaks, breaks, breaks on the sheltering bars.
> -— "The Heart of a Woman", by Georgia Douglas Johnson

Angelou takes the title of her fourth autobiography from a poem by Georgia Douglas Johnson, a Harlem Renaissance writer. Critic Lyman B. Hagan states that although the title is "less striking or oblique than titles of her preceding books," it is appropriate because Johnson's poem mentions a caged bird and provides a connection to Angelou's first autobiography, whose title was taken from a poem by Paul Laurence Dunbar. The title suggests Angelou's painful loneliness and exposes a spiritual dilemma also present in her first volume. Johnson's use of the metaphor is different from Dunbar's because her bird is a female whose isolation is sexual rather than racial. The caged bird may also refer to Angelou after her failed marriage, but writer Mary Jane Lupton says that "the Maya Angelou of The Heart of a Woman is too strong and too self-determined to be kept in a cage".

The Heart of a Woman is the first time Angelou identifies with another female African-American writer. Her early literary influences were men, including James Weldon Johnson, Paul Laurence Dunbar, and William Shakespeare. Angelou has stated that she always admired women writers like Anne Spencer, Jessie Fauset, Nella Larsen, and Zora Neale Hurston. Her choice of title for this book is an acknowledgment of her legacy as a Black woman writer.

## Synopsis

The events described in The Heart of a Woman take place between 1957 and 1962, beginning shortly after the end of Angelou's previous autobiography, Singin' and Swingin' and Gettin' Merry Like Christmas. Angelou and her teenage son Guy have moved into a houseboat commune in Sausalito, California. After a year, they move to a rented house near San Francisco. Singer Billie Holiday visits Angelou and her son there, and Holiday sings "Strange Fruit", her famous song about the lynching of Black men, to Guy. Holiday tells Angelou, "You're going to be famous. But it won't be for singing." In 1959, Angelou and Guy moved to New York City. The transition is difficult for Guy, and Angelou is forced to protect him from a gang leader. No longer satisfied with performing in nightclubs, she dedicates herself to acting, writing, political organizing, and her son. Her friend, novelist John Killens, invites her to join the Harlem Writers Guild. She meets other important African-American artists and writers, including James Baldwin, who would become her mentor. She becomes a published writer for the first time.

Angelou becomes more politically active and participates in African-American and African protest rallies, including helping to organize a sit-in at the United Nations following the execution of Patrice Lumumba, the ousted prime minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. She meets Malcolm X and is struck by his good looks and magnetism. After hearing Martin Luther King Jr. speak, she and her friend, activist Godfrey Cambridge, are inspired to produce a successful fundraising event for King's Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) called Cabaret For Freedom. King names her coordinator of SCLC's office in New York. She performs in Jean Genet's play The Blacks, with Roscoe Lee Brown, James Earl Jones, and Cicely Tyson.

In 1961, Angelou meets South African freedom fighter Vusumzi Make. Angelou and Make never marry, but she and Guy move with Make to London and Cairo, where she acts as his political wife while he is in exile. Their relationship is full of cultural conflicts; he expects her to be a subservient African wife, and she yearns for the freedom of a working woman. She learns that Make is too friendly with other women and is irresponsible with money, so she accepts a position as assistant editor at the Arab Observer. Their relationship is examined by their community of friends, and Angelou and Make eventually separate. Angelou accepts a job in Liberia, and she and Guy travel to Accra, where he has been accepted to attend college. Guy is seriously injured in an automobile accident, so she begins working at the University of Ghana and remains there while he recuperates. The Heart of a Woman ends with Guy leaving for college and Angelou remarking to herself, "At last, I'll be able to eat the whole breast of a roast chicken by myself."

## Genre

All seven of Angelou's installments of her life story are in the tradition of African-American autobiography. Starting with I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Angelou challenges the usual structure of the autobiography by critiquing, changing, and expanding the genre. Angelou said in 1989 that she is the only serious writer to choose autobiography to express herself, but she reports not one person's story, but the collective's. Scholar Selwyn R. Cudjoe writes that Angelou is representative of the convention in African-American autobiography as a public gesture that speaks for an entire group of people. Her use of devices common in fictional writing, such as dialog, characterization and thematic development, has led some reviewers to categorize her books as autobiographical fiction.

All of Angelou's autobiographies conform to the autobiography's standard structure: they are written by a single author, they are chronological, and they contain elements of character, technique, and theme. In a 1983 interview with literature critic Claudia Tate, Angelou calls her books autobiographies, and later acknowledges that she follows the slave narrative tradition of "speaking in the first-person singular talking about the first-person plural, always saying 'I' meaning 'we'". Lupton compares The Heart of a Woman with other autobiographies, and states that for the first time in Angelou's series, she is able to present herself as a model for successful living. However, Angelou's "woman's heart"—her perspective as a woman with concerns about her self-esteem and the conflicts with her lovers and her son—is what makes her autobiography different. Angelou's feelings as described in The Heart of a Woman, which Lupton calls Angelou's "most introspective" book, are what dictates the book's form.

Angelou recognizes that there are fictional aspects to all her books, which differentiate her work from more traditional "truthful" autobiographies. Her approach parallels the conventions of many African-American autobiographies written during the abolitionist period in the US when truth was often censored for purposes of self-protection. Lyman B. Hagen places Angelou in the tradition of African-American autobiography, but insists that she has created a unique interpretation of the autobiographical form. In a 1998 interview with journalist George Plimpton, Angelou discusses her writing process, and "the sometimes slippery notion of truth in nonfiction" and memoirs. When asked if she changed the truth to improve her story, she states, "Sometimes I make a diameter from a composite of three or four people, because the essence in only one person is not sufficiently strong to be written about." Angelou has never admitted to changing the facts in her stories. Hagen states, "One can assume that 'the essence of the data' is present in Angelou's work", and that Angelou uses aspects of fiction writing to make her depictions of events and people more interesting. Angelou's long-time editor, Robert Loomis, said that she could rewrite any of her books by changing the order of her facts to make a different impact on the reader.

The Heart of a Woman is similar to Angelou's previous volumes because it is narrated from the intimate point of view of a woman and a mother, but by this time, she can refer to events that occurred in her past books. Angelou has become a serial autobiographer, something Lupton calls "a narrative structure unsurpassed in American autobiography". Angelou successfully draws upon her previous works, and can build upon the themes she has already explored; for example, Angelou threatens the gang leader who has been threatening her son, a powerful incident when considered in light of Angelou's rape in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Lupton calls Angelou's violent behavior an "unconscious effort to rewrite her own history".

## Style

Angelou does not begin to create her own narrative until The Heart of a Woman, which depends less upon the conventions of fiction than her previous books. For example, there is less dialog and fewer dramatic episodes. The Heart of a Woman is more uplifting than its predecessors due to Angelou's resolution of her conflict between her duties as a mother and her success as a performer.

Angelou perfects the use of the vignette in The Heart of a Woman to present her acquaintances and close associates. Two of her most developed vignettes in this book are of Billie Holiday and Malcolm X. The vignettes of those she knew well, like Vusumzi Make, also present her interactions and relationships. Hagen writes that although "frank talk seemed to be almost requisite for a commercially successful book" in the early 1980s, Angelou values monogamy, fidelity, and commitment in her relationships.

For the only time in this series, Angelou describes her son's accident in detail at both the end of this book and the beginning of her next one, All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes, a technique that centralizes the two books, connects them with each other, creates a strong, emotional link between them, and repeats Angelou's pattern of ending each book on a positive note. In this book, Angelou ends with a hopeful look to the future as her son attains his independence and she looks forward to hers. Hagen writes, "Faithful to the ongoing themes of survival, sense of self, and continuing education, The Heart of a Woman moves its central figures to a point of full personhood."

## Themes

### Race

Race, like in the rest of the series, is a central theme in The Heart of a Woman. The book opens with Angelou and Guy living in an experimental commune with white people, trying to participate in the new openness between Blacks and whites. She is not completely comfortable with the arrangement; Angelou never names her roommates, even though "naming" has been an important theme in her books thus far. For the most part, Angelou is able to get along well with whites, but she occasionally encounters prejudice, as when she needs help from white friends to rent a home in a segregated neighborhood. Hagen calls Angelou's descriptions of whites and the hopes for eventual equality in this book "optimistic". Angelou continues her indictment of white power structure and her protests against racial injustice.

Angelou becomes more politicized and develops a new sense of Black identity. Even Angelou's decision to leave show business is political. She sees herself as a social and cultural historian of her time, and of the civil rights and Black literary movement of the late 1950s and early 1960s. She becomes more attracted to the causes of Black militants in the US and Africa, to the point of entering into a relationship with a significant militant, and becomes more committed to activism. During this time, she becomes an active political protester, but she does not think of herself in that way. She places the focus upon herself and uses the autobiographical form to demonstrate how the civil rights movement influenced her. According to Hagen, Angelou's contributions to civil rights as a fundraiser and SCLC organizer were successful and "eminently effective".

### Journey

Travel is a common theme in American autobiography as a whole; McPherson writes that it is something of a national myth to Americans as a people. This is also the case for African-American autobiography, which has its roots in the slave narrative. The Heart of a Woman has three primary settings—the San Francisco Bay Area, New York, and Egypt—and two secondary ones—London and Accra.

Like all of Angelou's books, the structure of The Heart of a Woman is based on a journey. Angelou emphasizes the theme of movement by opening her book with a spiritual ("The ole ark's a-moverin'"), which McPherson calls "the theme song of the United States in 1957". This spiritual, which contains a reference to Noah's Ark, presents Angelou as a type of Noah and demonstrates her spirituality. Angelou mentions Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac's 1951 novel On the Road, thus connecting her own journey and uncertainty about the future with the journeys of literary figures. Even though Angelou travels to Africa for a relationship, she makes a connection with the continent. Lupton states, "Africa is the site of her growth". Angelou's time in Africa makes her more aware of her African roots as she searches for the past of her ancestors. Although Angelou journeys to many places in the book, the most important journey she describes is "a voyage into the self".

### Writing

Angelou's primary role in Singin' and Swingin' and Gettin' Merry Like Christmas was stage performer, but in The Heart of a Woman she changes from someone who uses others' method of expression—the songs and dances of the African, Caribbean, and African-American oral tradition—to a writer. Angelou makes this decision for political reasons as she becomes more involved with the civil rights movement, and so that she can care for her son. For the first time in Angelou's autobiographies, she begins to think of herself as a writer and recounts her literary development. Angelou begins to identify with other Black women writers for the first time in The Heart of a Woman. She has been influenced by several writers since her childhood, but this is the first time she mentions female authors. Up to this point, her identification has been with male writers; her new affiliations with female writers is due to her emerging feminism.

Angelou's concept of herself as an artist changed after her encounter with Billie Holiday. Up to that point, Angelou's career was more about fame than about art; Als states, "Developing her artistry was not the point". Als also says that Angelou's busy career, instead of revealing her ambition, shows "a woman who is only moderately talented and perpetually unable to understand who she is". Angelou, in spite of the mistakes of her youth, needed the approval and acceptance of others, and observes that Holiday was able to perceive this. Holiday tells her, "You're going to be famous. But it won't be for singing."

Angelou had begun to write sketches, songs and short stories, and shows her work to her friend John Killens, who invites her to New York City to develop her writing skills. She joins the Harlem Writers Guild and receives feedback from other African-American authors such as Killens, Rosa Guy, and Caribbean writer Paule Marshall, who would eventually make significant contributions to African-American literature. Angelou dedicates herself to improving her craft, forcing herself to understand the technical aspects of writing. Lupton writes, "Readers can actually envision in this volume the distinguished artist who becomes the Maya Angelou of the 1990s".

### Motherhood

Motherhood, a theme throughout Angelou's autobiographies, becomes more complex in The Heart of a Woman. Although Guy struggles with the developmentally appropriate process of adolescent separation from his mother, they remain close. Many years of experience as a mother, and her success as a writer, actress, and activist, enable Angelou to behave more competently and with more maturity, professionally and as a mother. Her self-assurance becomes a major part of her personality. Her past conflict between her professional and personal lives are resolved, and she fulfills her promise to Guy she made to him at the end of her previous autobiography that they would never be separated again. Lupton writes that Angelou resolves this conflict by subordinating her needs to her child's.

Lupton also writes that motherhood is important in Angelou's books, as is "the motif of the responsible mother". Angelou's commitment to caring for her son is revealed in her confrontation with the street gang leader who has threatened Guy. In this episode, which Lupton considers the most dramatic in the book, Angelou has become a powerful mother. Angelou is no longer torn by self-doubt, but is now a strong and aggressive Black mother. Angelou has become what Joanne Braxton calls the "outraged mother", which represents the Black mother's strength and dedication found throughout slave narratives. Lupton also writes that Angelou has become a reincarnation of her grandmother, a central figure in Caged Bird.

By the end of The Heart of a Woman, Angelou is alone; for example, after Guy recuperates from the car accident, he leaves her to attend college. The final word in the book is the negative "myself", a word that signifies Angelou's new-found freedom and independence. Angelou has become truly herself and is no longer defined as someone's wife or mother. Scholar Wallis Tinnie calls this moment one of "illusive transcendence" and "a scene of hope and completion". For the first time in many years, Angelou will be able to eat a chicken breast alone, something that is valued throughout her books. Lupton calls this thought "perfectly formed". Tinnie states that The Heart of a Woman's "lonely aching" hearkens back to the poem that inspired the book's title.

## Critical reception and sales

Critics gave The Heart of a Woman positive reviews, praising its professional qualities. The American Library Association's Choice magazine says that although Caged Bird was the best of Angelou's autobiographies, "every book since has been very much worth the reading and pondering". Janet B. Blundell writes that the book was "lively, revealing, and worth the reading", but also found it "too chatty and anecdotal". Hagen responded to this criticism by stating that all of Angelou's books consist of episodes connected by theme and character. Sheree Crute, writing for Ms., appreciated the episodic nature of Angelou's writing and praised her for her "wonderfully unaffected story telling skills". Cudjoe called it "the most political segment of Angelou's autobiographical statement".

In 1993, Angelou recited her poem "On the Pulse of Morning" at President Bill Clinton's inauguration; in the following week, sales of her works, including The Heart of a Woman, rose by 300–600 percent. Bantam Books printed 400,000 copies of her books to meet demand. Random House, which published Angelou's hardcover books and the poem later that year, reported that they sold more of her books in January 1993 than they did in all of 1992, marking a 1,200 percent increase. In 1997, Angelou's friend Oprah Winfrey named The Heart of a Woman as a selection in her book club, making it a bestseller and increasing its total printing to over one million copies, sixteen years after its publication.

1961 memoir by Maya Angelou


Hispanics in the United States Coast Guard can trace their tradition of service to the early 19th century, when they initially performed duties at light house stations as keepers and assistant keepers in its predecessor services (the United States Revenue Cutter Service and the United States Life-Saving Service). Hispanic is an ethnic term employed to categorize any citizen or resident of the United States, of any racial background, of any country, and of any religion, who has at least one ancestor from the people of Spain or is of non-Hispanic origin, but has an ancestor from Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Central or South America, or some other Hispanic origin. The three largest Hispanic groups in the United States are the Mexican-Americans, Puerto Ricans, and Cubans.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau the estimated Hispanic population of the United States is over 50 million, or 16% of the U.S. population, and Hispanics are the nation's largest ethnic or racial minority. The 2010 U.S. Census estimate of over 50 million Hispanics in the U.S. does not include the 3.9 million residents of Puerto Rico, thereby making the people of Hispanic origin the nation's largest ethnic or race minority as of July 1, 2005.

Amongst the Hispanic pioneers in the Coast Guard were the Andreu family of Florida; Joseph Ximenez, the first Hispanic-American to command a Coast Guard vessel; and Detlef Frederick Argentine de Otte, the first Hispanic to graduate from Revenue Cutter Service School of Instruction. The Coast Guard can be transferred to the Department of the Navy by the President or Congress during time of war. During World War I, Hispanics served in the United States Revenue Cutter Service and U.S. Life-Saving Service; and during World War II, Hispanics served aboard ships guarding the shores of the United States and the Atlantic Ocean against enemy submarines. However some men, such as Jose R. Zaragoza, served on missions on lonely atolls. Hispanics have served in every major conflict, and continue to do so. Coast guard service is not limited to armed conflicts with other nations; the Coast Guard also plays a vital role in the apprehension of illegal immigrants and drug smugglers.

Hispanic men and women have reached the top ranks of the Coast Guard, serving their country in sensitive leadership positions on domestic and foreign shores. In 1991, LTJG Katherine Tiongson became the first Hispanic-American female to command an afloat unit. In 2006, Ronald J. Rábago was the first Hispanic-American promoted to rear admiral (lower half). In 2009, Rear Admiral Joseph R. Castillo became the first Hispanic-American district commander in the U.S. Coast Guard. Hispanics currently account for 11% of the enlisted personnel, and 9% of the United States Coast Guard Academy's student body.

## History

### 1800–1900

The United States Coast Guard was formed in 1915 when its predecessors – the United States Life-Saving Service and the United States Revenue Cutter Service, which was established in 1790 by Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton as an armed maritime law enforcement service – were merged. According to Dr. William H. Thiesen, Ph.D., Atlantic Area Historian of the United States Coast Guard, the following events involving Hispanics occurred in the early years of the Coast Guard its predecessor services.

The first Hispanic to serve in the United States Revenue Cutter Service, predecessor to the Coast Guard, was Juan Andreu who from 1824 to 1845 served as the Keeper of the St. Augustine Lighthouse in Florida, thus making him also the first Hispanic to oversee a U.S. federal installation of any kind. Maria Andreu (a.k.a. Maria Mestre de los Dolores), a family member, followed in his footsteps and served as Keeper of the same lighthouse from 1859 to 1862, becoming the first Hispanic-American woman to serve in the Coast Guard (USRCS) and the first Hispanic-American woman to command a U.S. federal shore installation.

The first Hispanic-American to command a Coast Guard vessel (USRCS) was Joseph Ximenez, who took command of the Carysfort Reef Lightship in Florida in 1843. He was not, however, the first Hispanic officer. That distinction belongs to Domingo Castrano, who is listed by the United States Revenue Cutter Service Register as having served aboard USRC Grant in 1872, as an engineering officer. The first known Hispanics to have served in the U.S. Life-Saving Service were Surfmen Telesford Pena and Ramon Delgado who, in 1897, served at the Brazos Life-Saving Station in Texas.

Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Detlef Frederick Argentine de Otte entered the Revenue Cutter Service Academy in 1889 and graduated in 1891. During his career he served aboard the USRC Levi Woodbury as second lieutenant. During the Spanish–American War he served with the North Atlantic Squadron, which took part in the blockade of Havana. Cuba. He later assumed command of several cutters; served as captain of the port for Brest, France, during World War I; and became the first commander of the service's Norfolk District, now known as Coast Guard District "5." He rose to the rank of commodore and received a promotion to rear admiral in retirement.

### 1900–1941

In 1914, the schooner Isaiah K. Stetsen sank off the coast of Massachusetts during a storm. Mess Attendant First Class Arthur J. Flores and Seaman John E. Gomez, assigned to USRC Acushnet, volunteered to save survivors of the schooner and were awarded the Silver Lifesaving Medal for their heroism. That same year, USRC Algonquin, which was stationed in the Caribbean, set sail with fifteen Hispanic-Americans (a fourth of the cutter's complement) to San Juan, Puerto Rico to assist the Puerto Ricans battling fires that threatened to destroy parts of that city. In 1915, the City of San Juan, Puerto Rico, paid tribute to the crew of the cutter Algonquin and presented them with an Official Resolution of Thanks. The Coast Guard was already formed by September 1918, with the merger of United States Revenue Cutter Service and United States Life-Saving Service, when Seaman Richard E. Cordova became the first Hispanic Coast Guardsman to perish in a military conflict when his cutter, the USCGC Tampa, was torpedoed and sunk with all its crew by a German U-boat during World War I. The Coast Guard can be transferred to the Department of the Navy by the President or Congress during time of war. Boatswains Mate First Class Pablo Valent and Surfman Indalecio Lopez, members of the Texas Brazos Life-Saving Station crew were awarded the Coast Guard Silver Lifesaving Medal and The Grand Cross Medal from the American Cross of Honor Society for their assistance in the rescue of the crew of the schooner Cape Horn on September 16, 1919. In 1935, Chief Boatswains Mate Pablo Valent was given command of the Port Isabel (Texas) Boat Station, becoming the first Hispanic-American to do so.

On September 28, 1925, Chief Warrant Officer 2 Joseph B. Aviles, Sr. (1897–1990), born in a farm near the town of Naranjito, Puerto Rico when the island was still a Spanish colony, became the first Hispanic chief petty officer in the Coast Guard. During World War II he received a war-time promotion to chief warrant officer, becoming the first Hispanic to reach that level as well. Aviles joined the United States Navy in 1915 and served seven years and eight months, eventually reaching the rank of Chief Gunner's Mate. During the years that he served in the Navy, the United States Congress passed the Jones–Shafroth Act (1917) which conferred United States citizenship on all citizens of Puerto Rico. On September 28, 1925, he entered the United States Coast Guard with the rate of chief gunners mate and served for two years before re-enlisting on September 11, 1928.

### World War II

During World War II, the Coast Guard was transferred to the Department of the Navy and as such many men saw action in said conflict. During the invasion of Saipan, which began on June 15, 1944, Valentin R. Fernandez, a landing craft coxswain, was awarded a Silver Lifesaving Medal for maneuvering a Marine landing party ashore under constant Japanese attack. The first known Hispanic-American Coast Guardsman to be awarded with a Bronze Star Medal was Louis Rua, whose craft, a U.S. Army large tug en route to the Philippines, went to the rescue of another ship which had been torpedoed by enemy action and helped save 277 survivors from the abandoned ship.

Upon the outbreak of World War II, Joseph B. Aviles, Sr. received a war-time promotion to chief warrant officer (November 27, 1944), thus becoming the first Hispanic American to reach that level as well. He retired from the Coast Guard on July 27, 1946, and worked as a security guard at a hospital in Baltimore until 1962 when at the age of 65 he retired. Aviles died at his residence in Columbia, Maryland, on February 22, 1990, and was buried with full military honors in Plot D O 2220A of the Baltimore National Cemetery at Catonsville, Maryland.

Lieutenant Junior Grade Clarence Samuels, born on Bohio, Panama, enlisted in the Coast Guard on July 16, 1920, and became a naturalized citizen of the United States on July 21, 1923. On May 12, 1939, he was appointed a chief photographer's mate becoming not only the first Hispanic of African descent photographer in the Guard, but also only the second photographer in the entire history of the service. On July 29, 1944, he assumed command of Lightship No. 115, operating in the Panama Sea Frontier. Thus, he became the first admitted Hispanic of African descent to command a cutter, as well as the first one to be an officer-in-charge of a Coast Guard vessel during wartime. Samuels entered the Coast Guard as a seaman 2nd Class and reached the rank of lieutenant (as a part of the massive demobilization of the Coast Guard following the end of hostilities, his lieutenancy was revoked and he was dis-rated to chief photographer's mate). Samuels retired from the Coast Guard on September 1, 1947.

Gunner's Mate Second Class Joseph Tezanos, a native of Santander, Spain, was aboard LST-20 in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, when an explosion on board one of the armada's LSTs set off a chain reaction. Tezanos along with a gang of several other hastily assembled volunteers scrambled on board a rescue boat. Tezanos and his shipmates rescued men from the water in danger of drowning and evacuated others from the burning ships. He was awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for "distinguished heroism while serving as a volunteer member of a boat crew engaged in rescue operations during a fire in Pearl Harbor, Oahu, T.H. on 21 May 1944. Under conditions of great personal danger from fire and explosions and with disregard of his own safety he assisted in the rescuing of approximately 42 survivors some of whom were injured and exhausted from the water and from burning ships." Tezanos saw action at Kiska, Alaska; Tarawa Atoll in the Gilbert Islands; and Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. Tezanos was sent to New London, Connecticut, at the Coast Guard Academy to take the four-month program, from which he graduated in 1945, becoming the first known Hispanic American to complete the service's Reserve Officer Training Program and one of the first Hispanic American officers in the United States Coast Guard. After the war he built a successful career in the international business world.

In December 1942, Lt. Juan del Castillo became the first Hispanic American to receive an officer's commission upon his graduation from the Officer's Candidate School. Del Castillo, who enlisted in June 1942, served on convoys in the Caribbean and on board cutters in the North Pacific. He also received training at the Naval Communications School at Harvard University. After he retired he worked for the U.S. Department of Agriculture and developed "CSM," a high-protein food substance used in disaster relief, famines and mass feeding operations.

Another USCGA graduate was Lieutenant John Gazzo Martinez, who was born in New Orleans and entered the service during World War II. He received an Academy appointment in 1946, and in 1951 was commissioned an ensign in the Coast Guard. From 1954 to 1956 LTJG Martinez served as commanding officer at the LORAN Transmitting Station in Yonago, Japan. Martinez prepared and delivered classes in LORAN (Long Range Aids to Navigation) procedures at the U.S. Air Force 34th Bombardment Squadron which was stationed nearby. He was later assigned as advisor in the U.S. Naval Mission to the Haitian Garde-Cotes d'Haiti. He taught classes for the Haitian military leadership and later oversaw the overhaul of Garde-Cotes patrol vessels.

Not everyone served aboard ships during the war. Some men like Jose R. Zaragoza served on missions on some lonely atolls. When 19-year-old Zaragoza, a native of Los Angeles, California, joined the Coast Guard, he was sent on patrols in the Pacific coast of the United States to defend against sabotage and invasion from the Japanese. Later he received instructions in the then-emerging and secretive field of LORAN navigation and was sent to Ulithi atoll, located between Guam and the Philippines. He assisted with LORAN research and development, and served on Ulithi for 15 months.

### Vietnam War

During the Vietnam War, Fireman Heriberto S. "Ed" Hernandez from San Antonio, Texas, enlisted in the Coast Guard. In 1968, he was deployed for duty with Coast Guard Squadron One in Vietnam and was assigned to the , an 82-foot (25 m) cutter. On December 5, 1968 Point Cypress was attacked and Hernandez was killed during small boat operations. He was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star Medal with a combat "V" for valor and a Purple Heart Medal. Vice Admiral Elmo R. Zumwalt wrote: "Fireman Hernandez's heroic actions under enemy fire were instrumental to the success of friendly forces in harassing and destroying the enemy's morale and feeling of security. Fireman Hernandez's professional skill, courage under enemy fire, and devotion to duty reflected great credit upon himself, and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service." The first Hispanic-American Coast Guardsman to receive the Silver Star Medal for combat action in Vietnam was Engineman Second Class Larry D. Villareal on January 21, 1969.

### Post–Vietnam War

On September 16, 2000, Seaman Apprentice William Ray "Billy" Flores, was posthumously awarded the Coast Guard Medal in a ceremony near Ft. Worth, Texas. The Coast Guard Medal is awarded to any service member who, while serving in any capacity with the United States Coast Guard, distinguishes themselves by heroism not involving actual conflict with an enemy. On January 28, 1980, Flores' cutter, , collided with the tanker Capricorn. After the ships collided, Blackthorn capsized, and Flores and another crew member threw life-jackets to their shipmates who had jumped into the water. As the Blackthorn began to submerge, Flores used his own belt to strap open the life-jacket locker door, allowing additional life-jackets to float to the surface. He remained aboard to assist trapped shipmates and to comfort those who were injured and disoriented. Flores died in the line of duty.

In 2006, Ronald J. Rábago became the first person born in the United States of Hispanic American descent to be promoted to Rear Admiral (lower half) in the Coast Guard. He was the Coast Guard's Program Executive Officer (PEO) and Director of Acquisition Programs. On July 13, 2007, Rábago relieved Rear Adm. Gary T. Blore as the program executive officer of the U.S. Coast Guard's largest recapitalization and modernization initiative, the \$24 billion, 25-year programmed Integrated Deepwater System Program. The Integrated Deepwater System Program (IDS Program), or "Deepwater," is the 25-year program to recapitalize the United States Coast Guard's aircraft, ships, logistics, and command and control systems. The \$24 billion program includes equipment that will be used across all missions. Rábago not only acted as program executive officer of Deepwater, but also as director of all Coast Guard acquisition programs. His office oversaw all major acquisitions of cutters, aircraft, C4ISR and boats.

## Apprehending illegal immigrants and drug smugglers

The Coast Guard is focusing on retaining Hispanic and Spanish-speaking front-line workers as it aims to intercept illegal immigrants. The current Coast Guard workforce meets both diversity goals and operational demands for having Spanish-speaking workers on hand to communicate with apprehended illegal immigrants and human traffickers. These traffickers often pack people into boats and race along the Florida coastline, in an attempt to elude American enforcement.

The need for Spanish speaking Coast Guardsmen was emphasized on September 17, 2008, when two cocaine-laden semi-submarines from Colombia were captured en route to the eastern Pacific coast of the United States. Just five days later, a 60-foot (18 m) semi-submersible was seized about 200 nautical miles (370 km) south of Guatemala. As the boarding team unloaded the last few bales, the Coast Guard said, the unstable vessel began to take on water through its exhaust vents and sank. The U.S. Navy, Coast Guard and Drug Enforcement Administration officials say South American drug cartels are turning to semi-submersible vessels, which have a low profile to avoid detection, because of the government's success at thwarting other smuggling techniques, including the use of fishing trawlers and speed boats.

## The U.S. Coast Guard Academy

The U.S. Coast Guard Academy, located in New London, Connecticut, accepts about 250 young men and women into its program each year. The four-year academic program leads to a Bachelor of Science degree in a variety of majors.

Detlef Frederick Argentine de Otte, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, entered the Revenue Cutter Service School of Instruction (as the USCGA was previously known) in 1889 and graduated in 1891. He is the first Hispanic to the reach the rank of commodore and to receive a promotion to rear admiral in retirement.

Paul Powers Perez, class of 1945, was the first person born in the United States of Hispanic American descent to graduate from the academy. He was followed by John Gazzo Martinez, class of 1951. In 2002, Cadet 1/c Sarah Salazar became the first Hispanic female regimental commander at the Coast Guard Academy.

At 9% of the total student body, Hispanics are the largest minority group in the academy. As of 2010 the ethnic and racial breakdown of the student body in the academy is as follows: 81% White/Non-Hispanic, 9% Hispanic, 2% Black/Non-Hispanic, 3% Asian/Pacific Islander and 1% American Indian/Alaskan Native. The Coast Guard is actively promoting U.S. Coast Guard college and career opportunities amongst Hispanics. Captain Adolfo Ramirez is an in-house Executive on Loan at the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities at San Antonio, Texas, which represents more than 330 colleges and universities. His job is to explain the college programs, and military and civilian career opportunities that the Coast Guard can provide to Hispanic communities in education, and in service to the United States.

## Population representation

According to the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense, in 2003, Hispanic representation in the Coast Guard's NPS active component enlisted accessions was at 11 percent. Also in 2003, Hispanics represented slightly over 6 percent of the Coast Guard's active component officer accessions, and 13 percent of the Coast Guard's reserve enlisted accessions.

## Chronological list of personal Hispanic accomplishments in the USCG

The following Hispanic-Americans are the first in their respective USCG fields to accomplish the following:

- YNC Grisel Hollis was the first Hispanic-American female advanced to chief petty officer on May 1, 1991.
- In 1991, LTJG Katherine Tiongson became the first Hispanic-American female to command an afloat unit when she took command of USCGC Bainbridge Island. She was also the first Hispanic-American female intelligence officer in the Coast Guard.
- In 1992, Sonia Colon became the second Hispanic American female advanced to chief petty officer.
- The first Hispanic to command a TACLET (Tactical Law Enforcement Team), was then-Lieutenant Jose L. Rodriguez when he took command of TACLET South, 1996–1998. He was also the first Coast Guardsman to command a U.S. Marine Corps unit when he took command of the Riverine Training Center, Special Operations Training Group, II MEF at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina in July 1999. He was also the first Hispanic-American Coast Guardsman to earn his Gold Navy/Marine Corps jump wings while in the Coast Guard and assigned to a jump billet (USMC Majors Billet at Special Operations Training Group II MEF). He earned his wings that same year. He also became the first commanding officer of one of the two MSSTs commissioned in the Coast Guard.
- In 2002, Lieutenant Junior Grade Angelina Hidalgo became the second Hispanic-American female to command an afloat unit.
- Lieutenant Commander Quique Ramon Ortiz and Lieutenant Commander Jose Rodriguez commissioned the first Maritime Safety and Security Team (MSST)s in Coast Guard history, MSSTs 91101 and 91102 (East and West Coast). The MSST is an anti-terrorism team established to protect local maritime assets.
- On July 21, 2005, Captain Charley L. Diaz became the first Hispanic-American to command a high endurance cutter when he assumed command of the . In March 2007, he led the Sherman crew in the largest maritime drug bust in U.S. history with the seizure of the motor vessel Gatun off the coast of Panama carrying nearly 20 tons of cocaine worth an estimated \$600M.
- In 2006, LT Isabel Papp, USPHS, became the first female medical officer to be assigned to a Port Security Unit (PSU). PSU's are deployable units organized for sustained force protection operations. She was also the first Hispanic-American female MD to be assigned to a PSU. She had also been the first Hispanic-American female Physician's Assistant in the Coast Guard Reserve.
- In July 2009, RDML Joseph R. Castillo became the first Hispanic-American district commander in the U.S. Coast Guard when he was appointed Commander of District 11.

## See also

- Hispanics in the United States Navy
- Hispanics in the United States Marine Corps
- Hispanics in the United States Air Force
- Hispanic Admirals in the United States Navy
- Hispanics in the United States Naval Academy
- Hispanic Americans in World War II
- Hispanics in the American Civil War
- Vietnam War

## Note

Military branch demographic

Hispanic and Latino American military personnel

History of the United States Coast Guard