Presidential (Margins: 1/5/15)
Even though Trump got convicted a few days ago, my prediction for the presidential race from last month really hasn't changed yet. After the sentencing, if Trump's support starts to drop dramatically, then I would likely make changes in my August to early November predictions to reflect that. For now, I still think Biden has an underrated chance of winning, but it's still looking to be very close, closer than 2020. Unlike last month, however, I'd like to go into detail about why I have these placements.
Likely Republican States:

• Missouri: Even though this was a Safe Republican state in 2016 and 2020, it only barely went over 15% for Trump. In 2020, it even trended left relative to the nation (18.51% to 15.39%, 20.6% to 19.84%). More importantly, much like in Kansas, the percentage of vote the GOP gets in the rurals have largely been in the 70s-80s, while the suburbs are competitive and within reach for Democrats. With that in mind, I could see Missouri dipping just below 15% in 2024. I've seen the same argument made for Indiana too, though I'm a little more hesitant with that (for now) since it was a point or two redder than Missouri.
  • Predicted Margin: R+14-14.5
• South Carolina: Should be self-explanatory. For the last several elections, South Carolina has been in the Likely Republican range. When adjusting for national environment, SC has remained rather stagnant, hovering around 14-16% of the national environment. Right now, there's nothing to indicate that will change much at all.
  • Predicted Margin: R+12-12.5
• Kansas: As I mentioned with Missouri, Kansas' rurals are starting to max out, while the suburban areas are becoming better for Democrats. It's happening a lot faster for Kansas than for Missouri though. In particular, the state's 5 most populated counties, Johnson, Sedgwick, Shawnee, Wyandotte, and Douglas have all been moving to the left It's been trending to the left relative to the nation since 2012 (21.61%, 20.42%, 14.65%; when adjusting for NPV - 25.47%, 22.51%, 19.10%). As such, I expect Kansas to be more competitive in 2024, though not below 10%.
  • Predicted Margin: R+11.5-12
• Nebraska's 1st Congressional District: Similarly to Kansas, Nebraska's 1st has been seeing some strong trends to the left (alongside the 2nd District). While it has been redder than Kansas so far, the recent redistricting has flipped their positions, with NE-01 being bluer now (taking away from NE-02).
  • Predicted Margin: R+10.5-11
• Iowa: Iowa has been fairly red from 2016 onwards, and unlike in Ohio, Democrats have only one statewide office - Auditor. No senators, no members of Congress... almost nothing. It did go from R+9.41 to R+8.2 in 2020, but relative to the nation, it actually trended right (11.50% to 12.65%). I don't really see how this state could move left without Biden outperforming nationwide.
  • Predicted Margin: R+9-10
• Alaska: Alaska has s remained fairly Republican since 1968 (when Nixon narrowly won it), though it's been trending left for quite a while. In 2008, it voted for McCain by 21.53% (28.81% when adjusted for NPV), but in 2020, Trump only won it by 10.06% (14.51% when adjusted). Certain areas, like Anchorage, are getting a lot bluer. Additionally, Mary Peltola recently won the house race in 2022. That said, Anchorage is losing population despite its blue shift, and the WWC Mat-Su valley is growing in population. I still think it could shift left somewhat, but it will still be Likely Republican.
  • Predicted Margin: R+8.5-9.5
• Ohio: Similar to Iowa, Ohio has been competitive for a while until 2016, and since then it's been fairly red. In both 2016 and 2020, it voted for Trump by about 8%, even trending to the right of the nation (10.16% vs 12.48%). Unlike in Iowa, though, Ohio Dems hold one statewide office - Senator Sherrod Brown. Additionally, while the rurals have gotten much redder, the suburbs are shifting blue, which could offset some of the Republican trends going on in the state. I don't see it moving much either way right now.
  • Predicted Margin: R+8-9
• Florida: As with Ohio, Florida used to be a key battleground state, though the transition into a more Republican state was more gradual. Even before the 2022 midterms blowout, Florida seemed to be moving to the right. Although Biden did better nationwide than Clinton, he performed worse in Florida (1.20% vs 3.36%; adjusted - 3.29% vs 7.81%). Since then, Democrats have had only minor victories in Florida, and the registration numbers for Republicans have been going through the roof. While I think the rightward trends in Florida are sometimes exaggerated, they are real, and I don't see Biden doing well there.
  • Predicted Margin: R+7.5-8
• Maine's 2nd Congressional District: Once a decently Democratic district, ME-02 has become far more Republican since 2016. It moved a bit to the left in 2020 (10.29% to 7.44%; when adjusted for NPV - 12.38% to 11.89%), though I don't think it will move that far to the left. It's kind of hard to tell where it will go since its such a small district, though it should remain Likely Republican.
  • Predicted Margin: R+7-8

Likely Democrat States:

• Virginia: This state has been moving to the left since 2008, especially between 2016 and 2020 (5.32% to 10.11%, 3.23% to 5.66% to the left of the nation) due to growth in the suburbs and opposition to Trump. Yes, Youngkin did win the governor's race, and many polls have Virginia looking competitive, but I don't buy that Trump will do much better here than in 2020. He may gain a bit, but northern Virginia should still remain fairly opposed to Trump.
  • Predicted Margin: D+9.5-10.5
• New Mexico: After 2008, New Mexico has remained around 6-7% to the left of the national environment, being a Likely Blue state. Since 2020, many areas have seen a shift to the right among Hispanic voters, especially in Florida. While Hispanic voters aren't a monolith, Trump does seem to be making gains with this group across the board. As NM has a lot of Hispanic voters, this could lead to Trump making some gains in the state, though not enough to make it very competitive.
  • Predicted Margin: D+9.5-10
• New Hampshire: Historically, New Hampshire has been rather elastic, and its voting patterns suggest a tendency to go against incumbents. But in 2020, things changed - NH went from D+0.37 to D+7.35 (1.72% to the right of the nation to 2.90% to the right of the nation). Furthermore, New Hampshire has a lot that makes it a bright spot for Biden (linked because that comment explained it better than I could, and I don't want to make this explanation too long). For those reasons, I expect Biden to improve on his performance in New Hampshire by quite a bit.
  • Predicted Margin: D+9-9.5
• Maine: Like New Hampshire, although to a lesser extent, Maine became more competitive in 2016 (going to Clinton by 2.96%, 0.87% to the left of the nation). In 2020, though, Biden won Maine at large by 9.07% (and 4.62% to the left of the national environment). Unlike New Hampshire, I don't imagine this state moving to the left in 2024. It's a fairly rural state, and it isn't quite as socially liberal. I imagine it will move a bit to the right due to the growing urban/rural divide, though nowhere near enough for it to be Lean D.
  • Predicted Margin: D+8-8.5
• Nebraska's 2nd Congressional District: As a very suburban district, Nebraska's 2nd District has been trending to the left fairly quickly since 2012 - R+7.15, R+2.24, and D+6.64 (national environment comparison - R+11.01, R+4.33, D+2.19). While redistricting has made NE-02 less blue (and made NE-01 bluer), the suburban district is still trending to the left, and that should be enough to make up for the redistricting.
  • Predicted Margin: D+6.5-7.5
• Minnesota: Although Minnesota moved to the left in 2020 after being very close, similar to Maine and New Hampshire, it appears to be more likely to move right compared to those two states. Minnesota is very open to third parties, and those third parties tend to take votes away from Democrats. Third parties get a lot of votes in New Hampshire and Maine too, but their demographics are more favorable to Democrats (especially New Hampshire), while Minnesota has a large WWC population that Trump could pull from. While I doubt it will be Lean Democratic, it should be closer than in 2020.
  • Predicted Margin: D+5.5-6.5

Lean Republican States:

• Texas: Since 2012, Texas has been moving to the left due to population growth and blue trends in suburbs and urban areas, giving Democrats hope that the state may be flippable in the near future. In 2020, though, the Rio Grande Valley, a traditionally Democratic area, shifted very far to the right. Most of the region is low in population, with the exception of Hidalgo County, the 8th largest in the state. While Democrats have a fair amount of obstacles in the state of Texas, I do think Democrats are likely to make at least some gains here. The RGV, and other rural areas, while shifting to the right, are losing population, while many highly populated areas (not just the Bexar, Travis, and Dallas counties, but many surrounding ones such as Collin, Denton, and Tarrant too) are growing in population. While I think the rural trends will slow down the leftward trend of Texas, I don't think it will be enough to stop them fully, let alone reverse them. But they won't move the state very far left, which is why I put it at the higher end of Lean Republican.
  • Predicted Margin: R+4-4.5
• North Carolina: From 2012 to 2020, North Carolina has remained between 5.7 and 5.9 percent to the right of the national environment. The leftward urban trends and rural rightward trends appear to be cancelling each other out. Biden is capable of winning NC, particularly if things improve for him in the future (ex: Trump actually gets jailed), but right now, I see him doing better than Clinton did in 2016, and a bit worse than he did in 2020.
  • Predicted Margin: R+1.5-2

Lean Democrat States:

• Michigan: I really don't buy the argument that Michigan will be the second bluest or reddest out of the rust belt trio (MI, WI, and PA). Yes, Biden could struggle with getting turnout from Arab Americans and college voters because of Gaza and other issues, but these populations don't make up as much of the state as people think. Furthermore, the suburbs are growing in population and trending more to the left. If Trump continues to lose ground in Grand Rapids, Lansing, Grand Traverse, or suburban Detroit, lowered turnout in Arab-American and college areas won't be enough to offset that. I'm hesitant to say Michigan will be bluer than it was in 2020, but I don't think it will be much redder either, especially since it was the only one of the trio to move to the left relative to the national environment (R+0.22 to D+2.78; R+2.31 to R+1.67 when adjusted for NPV).
  • Predicted Margin: D+2-3
• Arizona: Even before the court decision on abortion came out not too long about, I've become more skeptical about Trump's chances to win Arizona. It's a state that has rejected Trump and his brand of Republicanism over the last several years - Mark Kelly won both the 2020 special senate election and his 2022 race, and Katie Hobbs overperformed polling to defeat Kari Lake, albeit narrowly. Furthermore, Maricopa and Pima are two counties that are not only trending left fairly quickly, but make up a massive chunk of the state. Combined, they make up 5,649,033 people, compared to the state's total population of 7,431,344 (76.02%). Also, Trump insulting McCain frequently hasn't helped him with traditional Republicans in the state. Trump can win Arizona, but I see this state being his worst swing state by far, besides (maybe) Michigan. Santa Cruz and Yuma are two areas I can see shifting right, but that's nowhere near enough to counter the shifts in Maricopa and Pima.
  • Predicted Margin: D+1.5-2.5

Tilt Republican States:

• Wisconsin: This one was really hard to decide for me. On one hand, Democrats outperformed polling expectations in the 2022 Senate and Gubernatorial races. Democrats have also been gaining in the WOW counties (Waukesha, Ozaukee, and Washington), and they've been able to win Wisconsin in 3/4 of the non-Obama elections in the 21st century (albeit by less than 1% every time). Plus, polling suggests that this state is one of Biden's better options. On the other hand, Wisconsin polling really overestimated Biden, putting it to the left of Pennsylvania, and even Michigan. Plus, Trump has a lot of room to grow in rural areas (and while it went from R+0.77 to D+0.63, when adjusted for NPV, it trended right; R+1.32 to R+3.82). I'm very unsure how this state will go, and I can see an argument for it being Tilt either way. For now, I'm keeping it at Tilt Republican, though that could easily change in the next few months. Either way, I'd say that this is Trump's easiest state to flip.
  • Predicted Margin: R+0-0.5

Tilt Democrat States:

• Georgia: Similarly to Arizona, many traditional conservatives are turning away from Trump. While Brian Kemp was able to win by a good margin, he's a decently popular incumbent who ran against a candidate who wasn't that strong (Stacey Abrams), survived a blue wave in 2018, and isn't a Trumpian Republican. I do think Biden will have some issues with minority voters, though that won't be enough for Trump to make up for Biden's huge gains in the suburbs and urban areas. Georgia trended left in 2020 even faster than Arizona (R+5.13 to D+0.23; R+7.24 to R+4.22 with NPV adjustment). Trump can definitely win here, but I can't see this being Trump's easiest state to flip.
  • Predicted Margin: D+0.5-1.5
• Pennsylvania: The opposite of Georgia, Pennsylvania is one swing state that I see as rather overrated for Biden. Given that he barely got it over 1%, and that it trended to the right of the nation (R+0.72 to D+1.17; R+1.37 to R+3.28 with adjustments), and Trump's base of support is generally stronger in the Rust Belt than in the Sun Belt (which is part of why I'm skeptical of current polling that says the opposite), I don't think Biden will improve here overall. That said, Biden does have room to grow in the suburbs in southeastern Pennsylvania, and I think that should be enough to help him narrowly win the state and counteract Trump's growth in rural areas.
  • Predicted Margin: D+0.5-1
• Nevada: In 2016 and 2020, Clinton and Biden both won Nevada by around 2.4% (meaning it trended right relative to the nation - D+0.33 to R+2.06). This state is kind of hard for me to decide. While it has arguably been moving to the right, partially due to Clarke County, Nevada polls underestimated Democrats in the Senate race for 2022, and it is a rather pro-choice state. Even Joe Lombardo, the GOP governor, signed pro-choice legislation. Plus, Catherine Cortez Masto's opponent was Adam Laxalt, a Trumpian candidate who supported the election fraud claims. This could indicate that, like Arizona, Trump would be in trouble. However, Masto barely won the Senate election. While Biden could do better than anticipated, I see this race as being one of the closest for 2024, albeit narrowly favoring Biden at the moment.
  • Predicted Margin: D+0-1

The states I'm the most shaky on are Wisconsin and Nevada. While I have an opinion on which candidate they tilt towards, it was very hard to decide whether I should change them from my May prediction, especially with the recent conviction.
Should Trump receive jail time for this case, I imagine that my prediction could change substantially among the seven battlegrounds (Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin). For now, though, this is what I expect - Biden improves over the next several months and outperforms polling expectations somewhat, having the same incumbency boost that Bush, Obama, and Trump all got (though to a lesser extent than those three, as Trump was the previous incumbent).

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Table of Contents:

1. Niantic's Anti-Cheat Behavior System is active
2. Things you must know before using Shungo!
3. What are Shungo's features?
4. Device Requirements
5. How to install Shungo
6. Frequently Asked Questions

#1: Niantic's Anti-Cheat Behavior System is active

If you decided to break Niantic's Terms of Service, it's your fault for getting the strike (or ban). As a reminder, I am not responsible nor liable for the loss of your Niantic game account(s). If you are not aware of the risks, you can read the post on "All About Gameplay Fairness Policy and Anti-Cheat Behavior System 2024" https://www.reddit.com/PoGoAndroidSpoofing/comments/18wdv5o/all_about_gameplay_fairness_policy_and_anticheat/ to educate yourself.

#2: Things you must know before using Shungo!

[#1] Shungo does not advertise their app as being "safe". Using Shungo app breaks the game's Terms of Service because it's an unathorized 3rd party app that does not have permission from Niantic to be used with their Pokemon Go game. This puts you at risk for getting punished by the 3-strikes system as mentioned above.
[#2] If you want to gain an advantage against the anti-cheat behavior system, you may be able to lower your chances for a strike by playing like a non-cheater. You can read this post on "How to Follow the Cooldown with the Anti-Cheat Behavior System in Mind" https://www.reddit.com/PoGoAndroidSpoofing/comments/16a0vvg/how_to_follow_the_cooldown_system_with_or_without/.
[#3] I do not have a paid partnership or sponsorship with Shungo because it allows me to freely discuss about the good and bad things about them without any repercussions.
[#4] This is a pay-to-use app with a limited free trial.

• Before buying a subscription, you can try the app for free and get up to 3 shundos, if you want to buy, go to https://shungo.app/ and login with your account, you can then find the Buy Now button and pay through Stripe with Debit/Credit card or PayPal. It's 14.99€ per month

[#5] In-game limits

To see the BSOD error picture, go to the Frequently Asked Question section at the bottom.

"Encounter" means you tap on the Pokemon to check if it's shiny and flee or you fail to catch it.

• Encounter limit is between 7,000 to 10,000, but Shungo recommends 5,000.
• This number is specific to Shungo and does not include the use of a "shiny scanner" that can be found in other rooted 3rd party apps like Pokemod, iPogo, Pgsharp, and Polygon. When a shiny scanner is used, there is no way to see how many wild Pokemon was checked.

"Catch" means you tap on the Pokemon and throw the Pokeball to capture it.

• Catch limit per day: 4,800 Pokemon
• Catch limit per week: 14,000 Pokemon

Punishment for exceeding the encounter or catch limit: "BSOD" (Blue Screen of Dead) / suspicious activity screen. You will be locked out of the game for a total of 24 hours. If you continue to get this screen multiple times, it could lead to a strike. There is a chance that Niantic can skip to the 2nd (30-day temporary ban) or 3rd strike (permanent ban)
--

• Spin limit per day: 1,200 Pokestops
• Spin limit per week: 7,000 Pokestops

Punishment for exceeding the spin limit: You get an error that's says "Try again later." when you attempt to spin over the limit and will not receive any more items.
[#6] Since this is considered botting, it may carry heavier punishment like the "Red Slashed" Pokemon.

• Red slashed Pokemon can only be transferred and are not usable in raids, gyms, battles, and cannot be traded. You will see a red line on your all your Pokemon in addition to receiving your strike.
• It's unclear whether Niantic may bring this type of punishment back because the last time it happened was during the major ban wave in November 2019.
• Don't forget, they can skip to the 3rd strike for instant permanent account bans.

Topic #3: What are Shungo's features?

Information pulled from their Discord.

• Overlay
• Spoof Location
• Hunt Automatically
• Auto Catch
• Feed Berry
• Auto Spin If out of pokéballs
• Instant Map Load
• Map Fix
• Cooldown Timer
• Excellent Throw Until Catched
• Performances (no map)
• Settings
• Filter Pokémons
• Custom start cooldown
• Hunt nearby while on cooldown
• Catch Logs
• Shadow Shundo hunt
• Proximity sensor
• Send gift
• Play, feed buddy
• Auto raid

Topic #4: Device Requirements

1. Android OS: 9, 10, 11, 12, or 13. *OS support list is not listed in their Discord.
2. Android smartphone or tablet that has been rooted with Magisk.
3. Should have LSposed or Smali Patcher applied to your device.
4. Can only be used with one app at a time: official Pokemon Go (Play Store).

How to get started in unlocking the bootloader for root: https://www.reddit.com/PoGoAndroidSpoofing/comments/uvovmb/rooted_method_how_to_buy_and_root_your_android/
[ROOTED METHOD #1] LSposed Guide for Android 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, and 13: https://www.reddit.com/PoGoAndroidSpoofing/comments/132dkye/rooted_method_1_lsposed_guide_for_android_7_8_9/
[ROOTED METHOD #2] Smali Patcher Guide for Android 7.0 to 11.0: https://www.reddit.com/PoGoAndroidSpoofing/comments/vg7a4d/rooted_method_2_smali_patcher_guide_for_android/

Topic #5: How to install and setup Shungo?

[1] Go to https://shungo.app/

• Press on "login" and then create an account.

[2] Join their Discord: https://discord.gg/bYua47eWQD
[3] Download the "Shungo.apk" from their #Downloads channel in Discord.
[4] Open your "Files", "My Files", or whatever is your file manager app.
[5] Go to your "Internal Storage" then "Downloads" folder.
[6] Press on "shungo_#.#.#.apk" then install.
[7] Set a location your joystick app.
[8] Open Shungo app.
[9] Press on "GRANT" to allow SuperUser access.
[10] Press on "Login" to enter your account for made for Shungo.

• If you have not created an account yet, press on "sign up" with username, email, and password.

[11] Now, you should see the main screen to change the settings.
[12] Press on "Other" then toggle on "BSOD Prevention" to stay under the daily 4,800 encountecatch limit. The picture of the BSOD (Blue Screen of Death) can been seen below in the Frequently Asked Questions section.
[13] Press on "Save Settings"
[14] Press Start then your game will load.
[15] When you are finished, close Pokemon Go, and press Stop in Shungo.

Topic #6: Frequently Asked Questions

• If you have a problem, you must go into their Discord Group to get help: https://discord.gg/bYua47eWQD
• All their FAQ on their apps are found in the #FAQ channel of their Discord group.

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Why am I getting the "We have detected unusual activity from your account. As a result, temporarily limitations have been placed on your play." ?

• This is the "BSOD" you get from hitting the encountecatch limited explained at the top.
• You can also hit the limit leave the "shiny scanner" feature on with other rooted 3rd party apps like Pokemod, iPogo, or Pgsharp while you walk your buddy for candies and to hatch eggs without catching any Pokemon.
• You should also limit how many times you repeat Spotlight Hour and Community Day events because Pokemon spawns are everywhere, so it's very easy to hit the check limit for one day.

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Why are I getting "Pokemon GO is currently down for maintenance. Please try again later." ?

• PTC account server is down.
• Niantic's servers are having problems.
• You switched accounts too fast. Log out, wait 5+ minutes, and then log in with a different account.

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Why am I getting Error 15 after switching accounts?

Red boxes are to censor my personal information along with time and date. If you post this screenshot without covering your information, Niantic can identify you and terminate all your accounts.

• I think this screen appears after you have received the server maintenance screen when you don't wait 5+ minutes before logging into a different account. You may or may not get this screen as a warning. If you fail to wait longer before you switch accounts, you will get the Error 15 screen.
• This is a temporary IP ban that lasts for a few hours to 72 hours.

To bypass the Error 15 screen:

1. Clear app cache and app data for all your web browser apps: Chrome, Internet (Samsung), FireFox, Opera, Dolphin, etc.
2. Clear app cache for Pokemon Go (includes no root 3rd party modified game apps).
3. Restart your device.
4. Connect to a VPN server.
5. www.whatismyip.com to check you are not using your home IP address.
6. Open the game and log in.
7. When you want to switch accounts, you log out, wait 5+ minutes, and then you log in with a different account while you are still using the VPN.
8. If you still get the Error 15 screen while using your VPN, this means the VPN IP address got temporarily banned because someone else tried to bypass the Error 15 but failed to correctly do it. Then, you would have to repeat the steps and try a different VPN server.

Which is better: PGTools, Shungo, or Polygon?

• Try them all to see which one you like the best.

Can you use botting apps to make money?

• Yes, you can. This is what people do to milk the game on eBay, Discord, and personal websites.

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MEGA POST #5: Everything You Need for Android Spoofing 2024 - Guides for No Root Spoofing, Rooted Spoofing, Botting, Cheap Poke Coins, In-game Exploits, Other Ways to Cheat - GPX Routes, Poke Maps, Nests, Discord Groups, and Frequently Asked Questions

• https://www.reddit.com/PoGoAndroidSpoofing/comments/18w4jlt/clickpress_here_mega_post_5_everything_you_need/
• This covers Guides for No Root Spoofing, Rooted Spoofing, and Botting
• Along with GPX Routes, Poke Maps, Nests, Discord Groups, and Frequently Asked Questions

​
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Table of Contents:

1. Niantic's Anti-Cheat Behavior System is active
2. Things you must know before using PGTools!
3. What are features?
4. Device Requirements
5. How to install PGTools app
6. How to install GPS Joystick Wrapper app
7. How to play with PGTools
8. How to use these apps
9. Frequently Asked Questions

#1: Niantic's Anti-Cheat Behavior System is active

If you decided to break Niantic's Terms of Service, it's your fault for getting the strike (or ban). As a reminder, I am not responsible nor liable for the loss of your Niantic game account(s). If you are not aware of the risks, you can read the post on "All About Gameplay Fairness Policy and Anti-Cheat Behavior System 2024" https://www.reddit.com/PoGoAndroidSpoofing/comments/18wdv5o/all_about_gameplay_fairness_policy_and_anticheat/ to educate yourself.

#2: Things you must know before using PGTools' apps!

[#1] PGTools does not advertise their app as being "safe". Using any of PGTools' apps breaks the game's Terms of Service because it's an unathorized 3rd party app that does not have permission from Niantic to be used with their Pokemon Go game. This puts you at risk for getting punished by the 3-strikes system as mentioned above.
[#2] If you want to gain an advantage against the anti-cheat behavior system, you may be able to lower your chances for a strike by playing like a non-cheater. You can read this post on "How to Follow the Cooldown with the Anti-Cheat Behavior System in Mind" https://www.reddit.com/PoGoAndroidSpoofing/comments/16a0vvg/how_to_follow_the_cooldown_system_with_or_without/.
[#3] I do not have a paid partnership or sponsorship with PGTools because it allows me to freely discuss about the good and bad things about them without any repercussions.
[#4] PGTools can sometimes offer free premium use during special events. This is a good time to try the app to see if you like it.
[#5] In-game limits

To see the error picture, go to the Frequently Asked Question section at the bottom.

"Encounter" means you tap on the Pokemon to check if it's shiny or you fail to catch it.
"Catch" means you tap on the Pokemon and throw the Pokeball to capture it.

• Encounter and Catch limit per day: 4,800 Pokemon
• Encounter and Catch limit per week: 14,000 Pokemon

This limit only applies to PaC for wild and quest Pokemon while PaG (team rocket bot) has no limits according to their Discord.
It is recommended you set your limits below the number like 4,000 to 4,400 instead of 4,799 to account for the Pokemon that may flee (failed to catch).
Punishment for exceeding the encountecatch limit: "BSOD" (Blue Screen of Dead) / suspicious activity screen. You will be locked out of the game for a total of 24 hours. If you continue to get this screen multiple times, it could lead to a strike. There is a chance that Niantic can skip to the 2nd (30-day temporary ban) or 3rd strike (permanent ban)

• Spin limit per day: 1,200 Pokestops
• Spin limit per week: 7,000 Pokestops

Punishment for exceeding the spin limit: You get an error that's says "Try again later." when you attempt to spin over the limit and will not receive any more items.
[#6] Since this is considered botting, it may carry heavier punishment like the "Red Slashed" Pokemon.

• Red slashed Pokemon can only be transferred and are not usable in raids, gyms, battles, and cannot be traded. You will see a red line on your all your Pokemon in addition to receiving your strike.
• It's unclear whether Niantic may bring this type of punishment back because the last time it happened was during the major ban wave in November 2019.
• Don't forget, they can skip to the 3rd strike for instant permanent account bans.

#3: What are features?

• To see the features of PaC and PaG, go to https://pgtools.net
• They also have additional information in their "#faq" channel of their Discord group https://discord.gg/pgtools.
• PaC (auto catcher) has a free option but the premium features will cost money, which includes PaH (auto hatch), PaG (auto team rocket grunt), and PaS (auto shundo).

#4: App Requirements

1. Android OS: 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, or 14
2. Android smartphone or tablet that has been rooted with Magisk.
3. Should have LSposed or Smali Patcher applied to your device.
4. Can only be used with the official Pokemon Go (Play Store).

How to get started in unlocking the bootloader for root:

• https://www.reddit.com/PoGoAndroidSpoofing/comments/19cdnfb/how_to_buy_an_android_device_for_rooted_spoofing/

[ROOTED Spoofing Technique #1]

• LSposed Guide for Android 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14 for 2024
• https://www.reddit.com/PoGoAndroidSpoofing/comments/1amus23/rooted_spoofing_technique_1_lsposed_guide_fo

[ROOTED Spoofing Technique #2]

• Smali Patcher Guide for Android 8, 9, 10, and 11 for 2024
• https://www.reddit.com/PoGoAndroidSpoofing/comments/1amwhck/rooted_spoofing_technique_2_smali_patcher_guide/

#5: How to install PGTools app

[1] Go to https://pgtools.net/.
[2] Press on Download button for Final PGTools or Beta PGTools.

• You need to download the one that matches your Pokemon Go app version.
• To check with the official Pokemon Go app: Press and hold on the Pokemon Go app > press the (!) exclamation symbol > scroll down > you'll see version.

[3] Open your file manager "My Files" or "Files" app.
[4] Go to your "Downloads" folder.
[5] Press on "test-pgtools-X.X.X.apk" or "pgtools-X.X.X.apk" depending on which version you downloaded.
[6] Allow the app from Unknown Sources to install.
[7] Press back a few times and install it.
[8] Open PGTools app.
[9] Grant Superuser always access.

• If you missed the pop-up, you can open Magisk app > press on Superuser > press on PGTools to enable it.

[10] Allow the app to run in the background.
[11] Configure your app and use it.

#6: How to install Joystick Wrapper app

[1] Go to https://pgtools.net/.
[2] Press on Download button for GPS Wrapper APK - Version X.X.XX.
[3] Open your file manager "My Files" or "Files" app.
[4] Go to your "Downloads" folder.
[5] Press on "gps-joystick-wrapper-X.X.X.apk" depending on which version you downloaded to install it.
[8] Open GPS Joystick Wrapper app.
[9] Press YES on "Do you want to grant draw over other apps permissions?"

• Scroll down and press on GPS Wrapper.
• Press on the toggle to enable it.
• Press back 2 times.

[10] Configure your app.

#7: How to use these apps

I only use the PaC from time to time and have never paid to use PaH, PaG, and PaS. To use these, you will need to go to their Discord group https://discord.gg/pgtools for help.

#8: Frequently Asked Questions

• If you have a problem, you must go into their Discord Group to get help: https://discord.gg/pgtool.
• All their FAQ on their apps are found in the #FAQ channel of their Discord group.

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https://preview.redd.it/efwax5om324d1.jpg?width=432&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fb878b6e1d831b156cc46c38ab01708790cbd067
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Why am I getting the "We have detected unusual activity from your account. As a result, temporarily limitations have been placed on your play." ?

• This is the "BSOD" you get from hitting the encountecatch limited explained at the top.
• You can also hit the limit leave the "shiny scanner" feature on with other rooted 3rd party apps like Pokemod, iPogo, or Pgsharp while you walk your buddy for candies and to hatch eggs without catching any Pokemon.
• You should also limit how many times you repeat Spotlight Hour and Community Day events because Pokemon spawns are everywhere, so it's very easy to hit the check limit for one day.

https://preview.redd.it/e7anrxfm424d1.jpg?width=456&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=24e5e50deb7531b30b82885bdf9bef169a28ca99
Why are I getting "Pokemon GO is currently down for maintenance. Please try again later." ?

• PTC account server is down.
• Niantic's servers are having problems.
• You switched accounts too fast. Log out, wait 5+ minutes, and then log in with a different account.

https://preview.redd.it/onq18iis424d1.jpg?width=720&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e6238ceb08a8631d845ca48b82743b53a4216703
Why am I getting Error 15 after switching accounts?

Red boxes are to censor my personal information along with time and date. If you post this screenshot without covering your information, Niantic can identify you and terminate all your accounts.

• I think this screen appears after you have received the server maintenance screen when you don't wait 5+ minutes before logging into a different account. You may or may not get this screen as a warning. If you fail to wait longer before you switch accounts, you will get the Error 15 screen.
• This is a temporary IP ban that lasts for a few hours to 72 hours.

To bypass the Error 15 screen:

1. Clear app cache and app data for all your web browser apps: Chrome, Internet (Samsung), FireFox, Opera, Dolphin, etc.
2. Clear app cache for Pokemon Go (includes no root 3rd party modified game apps).
3. Restart your device.
4. Connect to a VPN server.
5. www.whatismyip.com to check you are not using your home IP address.
6. Open the game and log in.
7. When you want to switch accounts, you log out, wait 5+ minutes, and then you log in with a different account while you are still using the VPN.
8. If you still get the Error 15 screen while using your VPN, this means the VPN IP address got temporarily banned because someone else tried to bypass the Error 15 but failed to correctly do it. Then, you would have to repeat the steps and try a different VPN server.

Why are I getting "Pokemon GO is currently down for maintenance. Please try again later." ?

• PTC account server is down.
• Niantic's servers are having problems.
• You switched accounts too fast. Log out, wait 3 to 5 minutes, and then log in with a different account.What is the difference between using a Go Plus, Go Plus Plus, and PGTools?
• Go Plus"(physical and virtual versions) uses red Poke balls with a straight throw and has about a 50% or less catch rate. The catch XP is 100 per Pokemon or 150 with Mega bonus.
• Go Plus Plus can use great and ultra balls with a straight throw and has maybe a slightly better catch rate but the catch XP is still 100 per Pokemon or 150 with Mega bonus.

PGTools' PaC uses whichever Pokeballs you choose using an excellent curve ball throw with AR+ enabled. Your catch rate is between 90 to 97% depending on if you increase the time delay between catches. Your catch XP is 1,470 per Pokemon. If you have a mega evolved Pokemon bonus, it's now 1,520 XP per catch. It's not a 100% catch rate because some Pokemon will flee as the result of catching too fast. Some Pokemon are just harder to catch.
Which is better: PGTools, Shungo, or Polygon?

• Try them all to see which one you like the best.

Can you use botting apps to make money?

• Yes, you can. This is what people do to milk the game on eBay, Discord, and personal websites.
  ----
  

MEGA POST #5: Everything You Need for Android Spoofing 2024 - Guides for No Root Spoofing, Rooted Spoofing, Botting, Cheap Poke Coins, In-game Exploits, Other Ways to Cheat - GPX Routes, Poke Maps, Nests, Discord Groups, and Frequently Asked Questions

• https://www.reddit.com/PoGoAndroidSpoofing/comments/18w4jlt/clickpress_here_mega_post_5_everything_you_need/
• This covers Guides for No Root Spoofing, Rooted Spoofing, and Botting
• Along with GPX Routes, Poke Maps, Nests, Discord Groups, and Frequently Asked Questions

The Beatles decide to do one more album. Each guy can pick any song they want. 6 songs per side. Each guy gets 1 song on an EP promo release which comes out prior to the album.

1. Gimme Some Truth
2. Jealous Guy
3. Look At Me
4. Hold On
5. Instant Karma
6. Working Class Hero
7. What Is Life
8. My Sweet Lord
9. Wah-Wah
10. Ballad Of Sir Frankie Crisp
11. Beware If Darkness
12. Run Of The Mill
13. Come And Get It
14. Maybe I'm Amazed
15. Another Day
16. Every Night
17. Junk
18. The Back Seat of My Car
19. It Don't Come Easy
20. Early 1970
21. Night and Day
22. Beaucoup of Blues
23. $15 Draw
24. Loser's Lounge
25. EP Track 1 - Cold Turkey
26. EP Track 2 - Oh Woman, Oh Why
27. EP Track 3 - I Live For You
28. EP Track 4 - Coochy Coochy

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0JrZ1vFafdwQjDDcPQF91J?si=7BDFVYj3R0WApXDuScb6hQ&pi=-Iiu_1mxR-KF2

Hello and thanks for reading.
THE PURPOSE OF THIS POST
Recently, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna mentioned she was "men-in-blacked". I find the MIB to be fascinating as a peripheral phenomenon to UAPs. Not only do they produce absolute bangers, but they are also one of the most obscure elements of this whole thing. Everyone appears to disagree on what they are (which is by design), it's even more interesting when you consider how long MIB sightings have occurred and the fact that it's not a US centric phenomenon. Many others have done extensive (and grounded) research into the MIB phenomenon and have arrived at interesting conclusions (paraphrased):

It becomes evident that encounters with the Men in Black can be broadly categorized into two types. The first implies interest from government entities in gathering information from witnesses and ensuring silence. The second type of encounter tends to manifest promptly after a UFO sighting. Numerous documented cases substantiate this distinction, suggesting a blend of both types of encounters. Once again, the UFO phenomenon appears to highlight its connection with our consciousness.

I don't know what the MIB are, I've never met one. But I think OP of this post is probably correct in that it's many things all at once. Funny how our perception creates that conundrum in all areas of our lives huh?! A user asked an interesting question months ago:

Is it possible that these men are working for the DoE (Department of Energy)?

I thought this was a fascinating theory, especially since you have people like Jonathan Weygandt stating that DOE was present at the Peru 1997 Crash. I know some have pointed toward CIA Office of Global Access, they've also said it's ex-military members employed by private aerospace, others have said it's the US Airforce Special Operations, some say JSOC is involved, at this point, who isn't?
I DIDN'T KNOW THE MIB FRANCHISE WAS MARVEL IP
I don't purport to know who the MIB are, but I think we can arrive at a mutual conclusion. In reality, it could be any entity with the capability of purchasing suits and hired guns if a need arose? The boogieman already exists, why not use it if you needed to? Truthfully, it aligns with the tactic utilized most often in this topic: Hide things in plain sight by adding to the discourse.
I had no idea MIB was one of Marvel's first big successes. I find it fascinating that recent documentaries and rumblings have many parallels to Marvel's Hydra story about Nazi's running a shadow government in the US. This Netflix documentary is called the Octopus Murders. In the Marvel universe, this is the fictional evil Nazi org Hydra's logo:
https://preview.redd.it/wsx0ah0trz3d1.png?width=474&format=png&auto=webp&s=8393b40de2e2e4efc3717b649100fb615d89e5d1
POST WORLD WAR 2 AMERICA SAW NAZIS RISE TO POWER IN PROMINENT POSITIONS
Post WWII, Operation Paperclip injected Nazi scientists/military/businessman into many positions of great authority across America.
The easiest example to highlight is Werner Von Braun, one of the developers of the V-2 Rocket. He eventually got an awesome job at NASA, and helped design the Apollo Saturn V. According to his Wikipedia Page. He worked with Walt Disney on a series of films, which popularized the idea of human space travel in the U.S. and beyond from 1955 to 1957. Would it surprise you that the military and intelligence community consult on media projects from time to time?
I wonder if he ever shared any multiverse ideas that sat in Disney's idea vault until the Marvel purchase?
As I dug into the history of some institutions, there appeared to be a significant amount of overlap between individuals implicated in the UFO coverup and Nazism. I also find it interesting that some of the content creators close to the UFO/UAP/NHI topic are beginning to speak on this specific aspect: Nazism in the early days of America's Intelligence apparatus and MIC.
HOW CAN SOMETHING SO BIG BE HIDDEN
My first question when I began to look into this topic was, "How on earth could they fund this?" no pun intended. Then I remembered how ridiculous of a question that was. We may not know where the money is, but somebody does. And it's a lot of money. When I say "a lot," I mean literally tons and tons of money. When I began pondering the avenues for funding based on the implied economic scale, I felt that it would need to be more complex than just misappropriations of funds.
This would have to involve points in time where people knowledgeable of the program had total control over the legislation that's passed. This would enable smart people to alter the financial, legal, and tax environments over time in a way that facilitated this funding. Grusch said the Manhattan Project framework was used for the UFO reverse engineering program. The primary architects of the Manhattan Project seem to be in close proximity to UFO related incidents during that era. Read this post for more information on the tendrils the high-ranking members of the Manhattan Project had in all thing's nuclear development post WWII.
The Manhattan project is the easiest example to point to when people challenge the possibility of secrets at scale. It cost billions, employed hundreds of thousands, and was funded without the general populace knowing what was going on. Most people think of the Manhattan Project because of the bomb, but when I think about the Manhattan Project, I think about public utilities (TVA) declaring eminent domain on land that was identified as the build site for Oak Ridge National Laboratories.
FALSE CLAIMS ACTS ARE IMPORTANT
It's been long said that these secrets were buried in nuclear power legislation, but from my perspective, it appears that the government has actually been picking apart this onion from many angles. Alot of the fun stuff has been going on since the early 2000's. According to the Justice Department, False Claims Acts are a serious issue. There is quite the Venn diagram of companies implicated in UFO claims over the years, and some of the companies that have FCA settlements. Just last year, the Dept of Justice busted Booz Allen Hamilton in one of the largest procurement fraud cases ever.
Defense contractors' partner on business all the time. Defense contractors sometimes cheat the system when they partner like that. It's extra serious when government employees are involved, like the ones identified in that link. According to that article that was last updated September of 2014, The Justice Department's total recoveries in False Claims Act cases since January 2009 exceeded $7.8 billion.
That particular SAIC case changed the game:
"The SAIC case also raised the issue of how to apply the False Claims Act’s scienterstandard to corporate entities. A person can be liable under the statute for making false claims only if one has knowledge of their falsity. Under the False Claims Act"
Later in that link:
The False Claims Act does not impose liability on those who make innocent mistakes or are simply negligent. However, when dealing with corporate defendants, drawing the line between “negligence” and “deliberate ignorance” of information can be difficult. As the SAIC court recognized, there may be situations where corporate managers have intentionally structured their organizations so that certain employees will not learn certain information, allowing the corporation plausible deniability against charges of fraud.
Here's SAIC settling for 5.75 million in 2013. Here's 11.75 million more in 2013. It was a busy time, they had a lot going on with the company splitting into Leidos and SAIC. Here's SAIC getting dinged another 6 million in 2020. They have been involved in quite a few of these types of settlements. It certainly makes you wonder what the DOJ is investigating SAIC for this time.
SAIC IS AN INTERESTING COMPANY, KNOWN FOR IT'S AWESOME CEO AND FOUNDER
The company's first contract was to analyze nuclear weapons.
SAIC was founded in 1969 with less than half a dozen employees and a $10,000 capital injection. SAIC grew to be one of the largest employee-owned companies in America. Beyster revolutionized business by building a company based on a wild premise, it would be owned by it's employees, not it's investors. Allowing little external oversight in how funds we're being used. No earnings calls, no need to disclose what's being worked on. He even wrote the book on employee-ownership. He popularized terms like "radical transparency". Robert Beyster (SAIC's founder) was really interesting, he wasn't a traditional CEO in many ways. He didn't believe in long-term planning.

Instead of wasting time with multi-year roadmaps and PowerPoint presentations, Beyster relied on his instinct and that of his workforce. When a promising business opportunity came along, SAIC would open a temporary new office close to the clients to help a division win the business. If all went according to plan, the office would become permanent. If not, it would be dissolved, and its people would start hunting for new opportunities on fresh ground.
When Beyster left in 2004, the progressive culture went with him. Within 18 months, SAIC went for an IPO. It was transformed into public company; its entrepreneurial and ownership culture — the key driver of success for all those years — was dismantled.

BEYSTER WAS VERY FAMILIAR WITH ATOMIC ENERGY
Robert Beyster was a huge proponent for Nuclear Energy. The University of Michigan's Nuclear Engineering Laboratory facilities are dedicated to his legacy. It's difficult to find much online about his pre-SAIC days but maybe someone has time to visit these archives and see what's there. Here's a few paragraphs from this link.

As he prepared to graduate from high school, the United States entered World War II, and he enlisted in the Navy. He was sent by the Navy to the University of Michigan, where he was enrolled in the V12 Officer Training Program. He was commissioned as an ensign, and eventually served on a destroyer based in Norfolk, Virginia, before leaving the service six months later. He received his BSE in engineering and physics (1945), and master’s (1947) and doctorate (1950) degrees in physics, from the University of Michigan.
In the early 1950s, Dr. Beyster worked briefly for the Westinghouse Atomic Power Division on the company’s nuclear submarine program. He soon followed many of his college associates to New Mexico to work as a research physicist at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, where he met his wife to be, Betty Jean Brock. The couple were married in Austin, Texas, in September 1955. In 1957, Bob joined General Atomic in La Jolla, as chair of the Accelerator Physics Department, where his research on neutron thermalization led him to co­author the book Slow Neutron Scattering and Thermalization (with D.E. Parks, M.S. Nelkin, and N.F. Wikner; Addison Wesley Longman, 1970).
In 1969 Dr. Beyster raised money to start SAIC by investing the proceeds from selling stock he had received from General Atomic, combined with funds raised from the early employees who bought stock in the young enterprise. Initially, the company’s focus was on projects for the US government related to nuclear power and weapons effects study programs. As SAIC grew, Dr. Beyster fought to preserve the values that had made the young company successful—employee ownership, entrepreneurship, a flexible and decentralized organizational structure, technical excellence, high standards of ethical conduct, and a firm belief in customer service.
He was a member of the National Academy of Engineering, a fellow of the American Physical Society, and served the US Strategic Command Strategic Advisory Group. He also served as chair emeritus of the board of directors of the UC San Diego Foundation. The Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) designated Dr. Beyster an Honorary Program Manager for his distinguished contributions to the agency over his career.

CONCLUSION
Men in Black and Marvel
Operation Paperclip brought Nazis to America. They infiltrated high-level positions in the government, military, and intelligence apparatus, and then they used their authority to obfuscate information, consolidate power, and ultimately direct the development of technology, industry, and economy in this country. Disney and Werner Von Braun worked together to shape American understanding of space. I find it interesting that Marvel also founded the MIB franchise.
SAIC and False Claims Act Settlements
Employee-owned companies like SAIC allowed facilitation of R&D without exposing financial information that would raise eyebrows. ESOP would allow enough obfuscation to be able to hide things internally since the financials don't need to be reported, as a private company. They even admitted that design was intentional for that exact reason in court. When they went public, they started being hit with the FCA cases.

“The political authorities, through systematic and extensive repressions, aim not only to physically punish and wear us down but also to discredit us in the eyes of the public by resorting to all sorts of slander and false accusations…”
(Lack of) Human Rights and Freedoms
On Thursday another detention was carried out in Baku. Economist Farid Mehralizadeh was detained, as reported by journalist Aytaj Tapdig, who noted on her social media that police officers took Mehralizadeh away in a black car in front of his house. Also, his wife, women’s rights researcher Nargiz Mukhtarova, could not be reached for information. Nargiz Mukhtarova is five months pregnant. There was also no news from activist Mesud Asger. The Ministry of Internal Affairs Press Service later reported that Farid Mehralizadeh was invited by the police and an investigation is underway. Later, it was confirmed that Nargiz Mukhtarova and activist Mesud Asger had not been detained, but their phones had been confiscated by the police. Both of them try to get information about Farid in front of the Baku City Main Police Department, as reported by journalist Ulviyya Ali.
Activist Elgiz Gahraman has once again been summoned for questioning at the Baku City Main Police Department (BCMPD). Gahraman himself has confirmed this. He disclosed that he received a summons to appear at the BCMPD on May 28th to undergo questioning as a witness, without being provided any explanation for the repeat summons. Previously, on May 2nd, Gahraman was summoned to the BCMPD to be questioned as a witness in the ‘Abzas Media case,’ a high-profile case involving the arrest of several individuals, including leaders and employees of ‘Abzas Media,’ on charges of ‘smuggling.’ They deny these charges, asserting their arrests are linked to their professional activities.
Since November of last year, a number of journalists and civil society representatives have been detained and brought in for questioning by the police in Azerbaijan under various criminal pretexts. Most recently, on April 18th, Imran Aliyev, the head of the ‘meclis.info’ website, which monitors parliamentary activities, and on April 30th, Anar Mammadli, the head of the Election Monitoring and Democracy Studies Center, was arrested on charges of ‘smuggling.’ The police allege their involvement in the ‘Abzas Media case.’ Earlier, 6 individuals, including leaders and employees of ‘Abzas Media,’ were arrested on similar charges, which they deny, asserting their arrests are linked to their professional activities. Both local and international human rights organizations view these arrests as politically motivated.
A group of political exiles hold a protest in front of the Azerbaijani embassy in Berlin on the occasion of Republic Day. The participants of the protest are demanding the release of political prisoners and the protection of the rights of Azerbaijani citizens.”
On May 27, the Baku Court of Appeal did not grant the complaints against the one-month extension of the detention periods of Aziz Orujov, the head of ‘Kanal 13‘ Internet TV, and Shamo Eminov, an employee of this media outlet. This was reported to Turan by Orujov‘s wife, Lamiya Orujova, and Eminov’s lawyer, Alibaba Rzayev. The defense considers the detention of the journalists and, in general, their prosecution to be baseless.”
During his court hearing, political detainee Akif Gurbanov delivered touching and impactful remarks addressing human rights infringements in Azerbaijan. Gurbanov: “Dear court, although we have not committed any violations of the law or engaged in any actions that would harm our society and country, the authorities have subjected us to their repression machine. The political authorities, through these systematic and extensive repressions, aim not only to physically punish and wear us down but also to discredit us in the eyes of the public by resorting to all sorts of slander and false accusations. In doing so, they do not hesitate, feel ashamed, or have any red lines in involving not only ourselves but also our family members, those close to us, who have no involvement in our public activities and are simply in personal relationships with us. Of course, by stating these thoughts, I do not intend to scare people or suggest that these actions have shaken us. These steps do not deter us for even a moment from our beliefs, values, and principles that we draw moral strength from. I simply want to convey the mindset that leads our country and controls our society, and at the same time, express my pity for them. Just as everyone acts in a manner that suits them, I intend to draw public attention to what these actions reveal about their character.”
Nigar Hezi, the daughter of opposition figure Tofig Yagublu, remarked that despite her father’s month-long detention, the investigation finally comes to an end without yielding any results. Hezi: “Since the investigation period in the case of Tofig Yagublu has concluded, the lawyers have filed a petition in court to replace his detention with house arrest. The court hearing will be either tomorrow or the day after. As the investigation has ended, I will now publicize the details that prove the criminal case is fake and fabricated. Until now, I deliberately refrained from writing anything related to the criminal case. I can say that to accuse Tofig Yagublu of forging documents, investigator Abdulla Jalilli has prepared a substantial amount of false documentation.”
The latest complaint of investigative journalist Hafiz Babali, who was arrested in the ‘Abzas Media‘ case, has not been granted. The journalist, who was arrested on charges of currency smuggling on December 13 last year, stated that his detention was baseless and appealed to the Prosecutor General in connection with the unlawful criminal prosecution. The journalist’s relatives reported this to Turan. In his appeal, Hafiz Babali noted that investigator Toghrul Huseynov of the Baku City Police Department and prosecutor Mobil Shafiev of the Baku City Prosecutor’s Office unjustifiably ensured his arrest and later the extension of his initial detention period. In this regard, he demanded the termination of the criminal case. However, the Prosecutor General’s Office responded that ‘the investigation is ongoing, and an appropriate decision will be made based on its results.’
In the Abzas Media case, on November 20 last year, Ulvi Hasanli, the director of ‘Abzas Media,’ and his deputy, Muhammad Kekalov, were detained. On November 21, the chief editor of the site, Sevinj Vagifgizi, was detained. On November 30, reporter Nargiz Absalamova was detained. On December 13, investigative journalist Hafiz Babali was detained. On January 13, journalist Elnara Gasimova was detained. They were all charged under Article 206.3.2 of the Criminal Code (smuggling committed by a group of persons in prior agreement), and preventive detention measures were chosen against them. Since February of this year, the detention period of the arrested journalists has been extended. Most recently, on May 25, the detention measure against journalist Nargiz Absalamova was extended for another 22 days for the second time. If the court considers the prosecution’s charges justified during the investigation, the journalists face up to 8 years of imprisonment. The journalists, however, reject the charges and link their arrests to the corruption investigations published on Abzas Media.
Teymur Karimov, the head of the internet television channel ‘Kanal 11’ and an imprisoned journalist, claims he was falsely arrested due to his reports about police misconduct. Teymur Karimov says that although he was beaten, he refused to admit to having drugs: ‘They told me that no one has failed to confess here, and you will too. Then they changed their minds. One said to the other that drugs don’t suit a journalist, so it’s better to charge him with 182 (extortion by threat). The colonel told them to hit in places where it wouldn’t show. When they took me to the investigator, he said, “The order came from above,” so it’s better for you not to get yourself beaten up, we’ll charge you under Article 182.1, which carries a sentence of 2 to 5 years. I still didn’t agree. They beat me a lot. Finally, one came and gave the order to rape me. I said, ‘If that’s the case, I’d accept the charges.’ Teymur Karimov also stated that when he said he would complain to the Presidential Administration about the illegalities against him at the Organized Crime Department, the deputy chief made inappropriate comments about the President.
The Gabala Police committed illegal actions against the journalist and activist Fatima Movlanli. She wrote about the accident on social media: “I have been in Gabala for several days now. I came both to relax and to prepare a report on household waste being discharged into the ‘Vendamchay’ river in the village of Vendam. Since I wrote about this on my page (yesterday), we have felt that we were being followed. Today, around noon, we were having lunch at one of the cafes near the river with animal rights activist Nijat Ismayil. At that moment, Nijat received a call from a friend, so he went out into the yard to talk. Suddenly, I heard Nijat’s voice saying, ‘Why are you using force against me?’ Two officers (visible in the video) from the Gabala District Police Department detained Nijat, claiming he was using inappropriate language in public. I approached and started filming the incident. Just as they did with Nijat, they neither introduced themselves to me nor explained the reason for my detention. When they tried to put me in the car, they attempted to take my phone away. I had to hide my phone inside my underwear to protect the material. Then they took us to the police station. They asked for my phone. I refused. This same officer rolled up his sleeve, showed his fist, and said, ‘You will have to give it now.’ Then he grabbed my arms from behind, and another officer put his hand inside my underwear and took out the phone. Then he said to me, ‘You are an Azerbaijani woman, our honor does not tolerate such incidents.’ I replied, ‘Does your honor allow you to stick your hand into a woman’s underwear?’ They wanted me to delete the video. I said, ‘Even if you smash the phone, I won’t delete it. Even if I do, the video has already been backed up, and I will publish it anyway.’ Because of this and the publicization of the matter, they released us.”
https://preview.redd.it/y59hg56v614d1.jpg?width=637&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=be3795029352fa7a3b3178c79013cb72fa2c240b

https://preview.redd.it/vy035zlxz04d1.png?width=1920&format=png&auto=webp&s=d0e44d2c15efeb0e4509665368da69df4b50c058
Here's a new edition of "Directors at the Box Office", which seeks to explore the directors' trajectory at the box office and analyze their hits and bombs. I already talked about a few, and as I promised, it's Richard Donner's turn.
Initially, Donner wanted to develop a career as an actor. He gained a bit part in a television program directed by Martin Ritt, who encouraged Donner to become a director instead, and he hired Donner as his assistant. Through his connections in Desilu, he started directing commercials. In the 60s, he transitioned into television, directing episodes for shows like The Twilight Zone, The Fugitive, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Get Smart, and Gilligan's Island. Afterwards, he had his chance to direct films.
From a box office perspective, how reliable was he to deliver a box office hit?
That's the point of this post. To analyze his career.

It should be noted that as he started his career in the 1960s, the domestic grosses here will be adjusted by inflation. The table with his highest grossing films, however, will be left in its unadjusted form, as the worldwide grosses are more difficult to adjust.

X-15 (1961)

"Actually filmed in space!"
His directorial debut. It stars David McLean, Charles Bronson, James Gregory and Mary Tyler Moore, and presents a fictionalized account of the X-15 research rocket aircraft program, the test pilots who flew the aircraft, and the associated NASA community that supported the program.
There are no box office numbers available, but it is said that it had a short and poor theatrical run. Reviews were mixed, and Moore said she's not proud of the film.

Salt and Pepper (1965)

"Join the club."
His second film. It stars Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford, Michael Bates, Ilona Rodgers and John Le Mesurier, and follows two nightclub owners finding themselves in trouble over a woman's death.
It received mixed reviews, and it earned $1.75 million in rentals.

• Budget: N/A.
  
• Domestic gross: $1,750,000 in rentals. ($17.4 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $1,750,000.
  

Lola (1970)

"It may be love... but it's definitely exhausting!"
His third film. It stars Charles Bronson and Susan George, and follows a 38-year-old writer of pornographic novels who meets and falls in love with a sixteen-year-old school girl whilst living in London.
There are no box office figures, but you can be sure of something: it was panned by everyone.

The Omen (1976)

"If something frightening happens to you today, think about it."
His fourth film. It stars Gregory Peck, Lee Remick, David Warner, Harvey Spencer Stephens, Billie Whitelaw, Patrick Troughton, Martin Benson, and Leo McKern. The film's plot follows Damien Thorn, a young child replaced at birth by his father, unbeknownst to his wife, after their biological child dies shortly after birth. As a series of mysterious events and violent deaths occur around the family and Damien enters childhood, they come to learn he is in fact the prophesied Antichrist.
Producer Harvey Bernhard came up with the idea for a film about the Antichrist after talking with one of his friends. WB was on board, but they later pulled out, so 20th Century Fox agreed to distribute the film. Donner favored an ambiguous reading of the script under which it would be left for the audience to decide whether Damien was the Antichrist or whether the series of violent deaths in the film were all just a string of unfortunate accidents. Seltzer rejected the ambiguity favored by Donner and pressed for an interpretation of his script that left no doubt for the audience that Damien Thorn was the Antichrist and that all of the deaths in the film were caused by the malevolent power of Satan, the interpretation that Bernhard chose to go with.
There were some... dark stories over the making of the film. Some aren't confirmed, but others are verified. So take the following with huge grains of salt.
In September 1975, Peck was flying to London, and during the flight, lightning struck the plane. Shortly after, executive producer Mace Neufeld's plane was also struck by lightning while en route to Los Angeles. That's twice in a span of only a few weeks. Then, writer David Seltzer's plane was also struck by lightning. And, while filming in Rome, lightning narrowly missed striking Bernhard. Lightning may never strike twice, but four times, and to different people whose only six degrees of separation at the time was The Omen? Oh, it gets even creepier. A scene was postponed, which meant Peck was not needed on the set, so a private jet that the crew was going to charter to bring Peck in was not necessary. The next day, it was reported that the plane they had intended to book hit a flock of birds and crashed, killing everyone on board.
Neufeld, probably already on edge after his plane was struck by lightning, was planning to eat at a restaurant nearby, but it was hit by an IRA bombing. The day after filming, the hotel that Donner had stayed at was also bombed.
John Richardson, the set designer, created a particularly macabre scene where a character dies from decapitation resulting from an automobile accident. While in Holland in August 1976, Richardson and his assistant, Liz Moore, were struck by a freakishly unfortunate fate. They fell victims to a head-on-collision, where Moore was cut in half, in similar fashion to the one Richardson had designed for the film. It happened in a Friday the 13th, near a road sign which says: “Ommen, 66.6 km.”
Does that send you shivers down your spine?
Is all of this true? I... I'm not sure. I don't fully believe it. But I also don't fully not believe it. Whatever the case, it's truly one of the most insane behind-the-scenes stuff.
After a slate of weak films, Donner finally got his big break here. The film earned $78 million worldwide, becoming a huge box office success. While it initially received mixed reviews, its reputation grew with time and it has been named as one of the best horror films of the 1970s. It would spawn a franchise, but Donner didn't return for the director's chair. Why? He was preparing for something super.

• Budget: $2,800,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $60,922,980. ($335.7 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $78,722,980.
  

Superman (1978)

"You'll believe a man can fly."
His fifth film. Based on the DC Comics character, it stars Marlon Brando, Gene Hackman, Christopher Reeve, Jeff East, Margot Kidder, Glenn Ford, Phyllis Thaxter, Jackie Cooper, Trevor Howard, Marc McClure, Terence Stamp, Valerie Perrine, Ned Beatty, Jack O'Halloran, Maria Schell, and Sarah Douglas. It depicts the origin of Superman, including his infancy as Kal-El of Krypton, son of Jor-El, and his youthful years in the rural town of Smallville. Disguised as reporter Clark Kent, he adopts a mild-mannered disposition in Metropolis and develops a romance with Lois Lane while battling the villainous Lex Luthor.
Ilya Salkind had first conceived the idea for a Superman film in late 1973, and he bought the rights with his father Alexander the following year. DC wanted a list of actors that were to be considered for Superman, and approved the producer's choices of Muhammad Ali, Al Pacino, James Caan, Steve McQueen, Clint Eastwood and Dustin Hoffman. The filmmakers felt it was best to film Superman and Superman II back-to-back, and to make a negative pickup deal with Warner Bros. To show how serious he was, Alexander hired Mario Puzo (The Godfather) and paid him $600,000 to write the script.
Francis Ford Coppola, George Lucas, William Friedkin, Richard Lester, Peter Yates, John Guillermin, Ronald Neame and Sam Peckinpah were in negotiations to direct. Ilya wanted to hire Steven Spielberg to direct, but Alexander was skeptical, feeling it was best to "wait until [Spielberg's] big fish opens." His film, Jaws, became the highest grossing film ever, and the Salkinds offered him the job, but by that point Spielberg chose to make Close Encounters of the Third Kind instead. Guy Hamilton was hired, but left before filming due to legal issues. After seeing The Omen, the producers offered the job to Donner. He was planning to direct the Omen sequel, but decided to take Superman instead. Donner was dissatisfied with the campy script and brought in Tom Mankiewicz to perform a rewrite to start from scratch. According to Mankiewicz, "not a word from the Puzo script was used."
Before Donner signed, the film already cast Marlon Brando as Jor-El in 1975. And his terms were insane; top billing, a salary of $3.7 million and 11.75% of the box office gross profits (totaling $19 million), and his scenes had to be filmed in 12 days. He also refused to memorize his dialogue, so cue cards were compiled across the set. Hackman was cast as Lex Luthor days later, getting a $2 million salary. The filmmakers made it a priority to shoot all of Brando's and Hackman's footage "because they would be committed to other films immediately."
The first plan was for a famous star to play Superman, although Robert Redford, Burt Reynolds, Sylvester Stallone and Paul Newman all declined. When Donner signed, he decided to get an unknown actor. Reeve was suggested, but Donner and the producers felt he was too young and skinny. When other actors weren't convincing, they decided to give a screen test to Reeve. They wanted him to wear a muscle suit, but Reeve instead decided to take a strict physical exercise regime headed by David Prowse. After gaining enough weight, he was cast. Compared to Brando and Hackman, Reeve was paid just $250,000 for Superman and its sequel.
Filming began in March 1977, and it lasted 19 months because they were filming two films. The budget was $55 million ($303 million adjusted), which made it the most expensive film by that point. Warner Bros. only planned to distribute the film in North America, but was so impressed by the Krypton sequence, that they decided to distribute it worldwide. It was supposed to last eight months, but there were conflicts on set.
Donner had tensions with the Salkinds and producer Pierre Spengler concerning the escalating production budget and the shooting schedule. Richard Lester, who worked with the Salkinds on The Three Musketeers and The Four Musketeers, was then brought in as a temporary co-producer to mediate the relationship between Donner and the Salkinds, who by now were refusing to talk to each other. On his relationship with Spengler, Donner remarked, "At one time if I'd seen him, I would have killed him." Due to this, they decided to stop filming back-to-back with the sequel, and Donner was assigned to finish the first film. By that point, 75% was already shot by Donner.
The film opened with $7.4 million in its first weekend, despite playing at just 508 theaters, breaking a record for Warner Bros. As it expanded, it earned $10.3 million in its third weekend, which was the biggest weekend in history. Through the December 22-28 week, it earned a colossal $18.5 million, a figure that no film achieved in just 7 days. It eventually closed its domestic run with $134 million. And WB was right in believing in its worldwide prospects, as the film earned a huge $300 million, becoming their highest grossing film.
The film also received critical acclaim, and it has been named as one of the best films of the 1970s. It won a Special Oscar for its Visual Effects. The film was deemed a cultural landmark for comic books, and it has been proclaimed by many as perhaps the most influential comic book film ever. For the world finally believed that, indeed, a man could fly.
With this, Superman was finally an icon on the big screen. While Donner filmed 75% of Superman II, he was controversially fired before resuming his duties. There would be more Superman films in subsequent years (including one next year), but none have captured the cultural zeitgeist that this one achieved.

• Budget: $55,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $134,478,449. ($646.7 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $300,478,449.
  

Inside Moves (1980)

"It'll make you feel good, and that ain't bad."
His sixth film. Based on the novel by Todd Walton, it stars John Savage, David Morse, Diana Scarwid, and Amy Wright. It follows a man who became crippled after a failed suicide attempt, and he turns to drink, favoring a local dive bar frequented by the handicapped. There, he befriends the bartender, an ex-basketball player saving up for corrective surgery in hopes of returning to the court, and meets a kind young lady who aids him with his physical and mental rehabilitation.
Donner states that he agreed to direct the film only to take his mind off being fired and replaced from Superman II. He referred to the film as "the smallest film I could do that was just very near and dear to me, at that point, and I felt this is going to take my mind totally off that."
It received mixed reviews, and made just $1.2 million at the box office.

• Budget: N/A.
  
• Domestic gross: $1,200,000. ($4.5 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $1,200,000.
  

The Toy (1982)

"When Jackie Gleason told his son he could have any present he wanted, he picked the most outrageous gift of all... Richard Pryor."
His seventh film. The film stars Richard Pryor, Jackie Gleason and Scott Schwartz, and follows a janitor at a department store. The owner's son is told that he may have anything in the toy department. He chooses the janitor, who the owner pays to spend a week with the boy.
The film was panned by critics, and was named as one of the worst films of the year. But with $47 million at the box office, it was still a success.

• Budget: $17,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $47,118,057. ($153 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $47,118,057.
  

The Goonies (1985)

"Join the adventure."
His eighth film. The film stars Sean Astin, Josh Brolin, Jeff Cohen, Corey Feldman, Kerri Green, Martha Plimpton, Ke Huy Quan, John Matuszak, Anne Ramsey, Robert Davi, Joe Pantoliano and Mary Ellen Trainor. In the film, a group of kids who live in the "Goon Docks" neighborhood of Astoria, Oregon, attempt to save their homes from foreclosure and, in doing so, they discover an old treasure map that takes them on an adventure to unearth the long-lost fortune of One-Eyed Willy, a legendary 17th-century pirate. During the adventure, they are pursued by a family of criminals who want the treasure for themselves.
Donner noted both the difficulties and pleasures of working with so many child actors. He praised them for their energy and excitement, but also said that they were also unruly when brought together. While Donner is credited as the director, some have referred to producer Steven Spielberg as co-director.
The film received a great response, and after a slate of weak films, Donner bounced back with a much needed box office hit. The film was very influential, and it helped launch the careers of many of its stars.

• Budget: $19,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $63,711,145. ($185.6 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $124,311,145.
  

Ladyhawke (1985)

"A magical adventure."
His ninth film. The film stars Matthew Broderick, Rutger Hauer and Michelle Pfeiffer. The story is about a young thief who becomes unwillingly involved with a warrior and his lady who are hunted by the Bishop of Aquila. As he learns about the couple's past and secret, he chooses to help them overcome the Bishop's forces, and to lift an infernal curse.
It received mixed reviews, and it failed to recoup its $20 million budget.

• Budget: $20,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $18,432,000. ($53.7 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $18,432,000.
  

Lethal Weapon (1987)

"Two cops. Glover carries a weapon. Gibson is one. He's the only L.A. cop registed as a..."
His tenth film. It stars Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, Gary Busey, Tom Atkins, Darlene Love, and Mitchell Ryan. The film follows a pair of mismatched LAPD detectives — Martin Riggs, a former Green Beret who has become suicidal following the death of his wife, and veteran officer and family man Roger Murtaugh — who work together as partners.
Recent UCLA graduate Shane Black wrote the screenplay in mid-1985. Black stated that his intention was to do an "urban western" inspired by Dirty Harry where a violent character "reviled for what he did, what he is capable of, the things he believed in" is eventually recruited for being the one that could solve the problem. His first draft was quite different from the final film; it was darker in tone and it included massive action scale sequences. The ending of the script contained a chase scene with helicopters and a trailer truck full of cocaine exploding over Hollywood Hills with cocaine snowing over the Hollywood sign.
The script was rejected by some studios, but Warner Bros. took an interest. Producer Joel Silver was brought in and worked with Black to further develop the script. Donner also brought in writer Jeffrey Boam to do some uncredited re-writes on Black's script after he found parts of it to be too dark. Donner got Gibson involved, while someone else suggested Danny Glover. After a successful screen test, the film was greenlit.
The film was a huge hit, earning $120 million worldwide and continued launching the careers of Gibson and Glover, even if they already had a few recognizable titles by that point. It also received very positive reviews, and was another prime example of the buddy cop genre. Another Donner W.

• Budget: $15,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $65,207,127. ($179.9 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $120,207,127.
  

Scrooged (1988)

"The spirits will move you in odd and hysterical ways."
His 11th film. Based on the novella A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, it stars Bill Murray, Karen Allen, John Forsythe, John Glover, Bobcat Goldthwait, Carol Kane, Robert Mitchum, Michael J. Pollard, and Alfre Woodard. The film is a modern retelling that follows Frank Cross, a cynical and selfish television executive who is visited by a succession of ghosts on Christmas Eve intent on helping him regain his Christmas spirit.
After Ghostbusters, Murray only took a brief appearance in Little Shop of Horrors and chose to take a break. When he did feel a desire to return to acting, he said the "scripts were just not that good", and he returned to the this project as he found the idea of making a funny Scrooge appealing. Murray was paid $6 million for his role. He helped the writers, Mitch Glazer and Michael O'Donoghue, in rewriting.
Murray struggled with a scene where he reveals his redemption live on TV. Wanting a central acting moment, however, Murray gave an emotional and intense performance, deviating from his marked positions and improvising his speech. Glazer and O'Donoghue thought that the actor was suffering a mental breakdown. After he was finished, the crew applauded Murray, but O'Donoghue remarked "What was that? The Jim Jones hour?" Donner turned and punched O'Donoghue in the arm, leaving him bruised for a week.
Despite the commitment, however, there was drama behind the scenes. Murray said that while he was enjoying the experience of the script and having fun as "the meanest person in the world", he found the production "sloppy" and has expressed unhappiness with the final cut. For his part, O'Donoghue later said that Donner did not understand comedy, omitting the script's subtler elements for louder and faster moments. He estimated that only 40% of his and Glazer's original script made it into the final film and the surviving content was "twisted". Murray was also not content with Donner, "Scrooged could have been a really, really great movie. The script was so good... He kept telling me to do things louder, louder, louder. I think he was deaf." Donner, meanwhile, has a much more positive memory of Murray, calling him "superbly creative but occasionally difficult - as difficult as any actor."
The film received polarizing reactions, particularly for the tone. But as it was Murray's follow-up to Ghostbusters, it made $100 million worldwide, making it a box office success. In subsequent years, it has become a Christmas classic.

• Budget: $32,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $60,328,558. ($159.8 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $100,328,558.
  

Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)

"The magic is back."
His 12th film. The second installment in the Lethal Weapon franchise, it stars Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, Joe Pesci, Joss Ackland, Derrick O'Connor and Patsy Kensit. In the film, Martin Riggs and Roger Murtaugh protect an irritating federal witness, Leo Getz, while taking on a gang of South African drug dealers hiding behind diplomatic immunity.
After the first film's success, Joel Silver asked Shane Black to write a sequel. Although he was struggling with personal issues, Black still managed to write the first draft along with his friend, novelist Warren Murphy. Although many people thought that their script was brilliant, it was rejected by Silver, Donner and the studio for being too dark and bloody, and because in the ending of the script Riggs dies, while they wanted to keep him alive in case of further sequels. They also wanted the second film to focus more on comedy, while Black's draft focused more on courage and heroics, like Riggs willing to die to protect Murtaugh and his family, due to his love for them.
When his script was rejected, Black felt that he had failed the producers. Black refused to re-write the script and quit from the project after working for six months on it. Black later said how the problem with the second film was that they did too much comedy, and how he dislikes the third and fourth films because of the way Riggs's character was changed. Donner got Jeffrey Boam back to rewrite, and one of the biggest changes was expanding Leo Getz's character.
The film received very great reviews, and saw a big increase from the original, earning $227 million worldwide.

• Budget: $30,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $147,253,986. ($372.3 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $227,853,986.
  

Radio Flyer (1992)

"Powered by imagination."
His 13th film. The film stars Lorraine Bracco, John Heard, Elijah Wood, Joseph Mazzello, Adam Baldwin, and Ben Johnson and is narrated by Tom Hanks. Two young boys try to transform their toy into an airplane after their stepfather turns abusive. They wish to escape the physical abuse and fly away to safety.
The film received negative reviews, and it barely got 10% of its budget. Luckily for Donner, he had another film for that year.

• Budget: $35,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $4,651,977. ($10.3 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $4,651,977.
  

Lethal Weapon 3 (1992)

"The magic is back again."
His 14th film. The third installment in the Lethal Weapon franchise, it stars Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, Joe Pesci, Rene Russo, and Stuart Wilson. In the film, Martin Riggs and Roger Murtaugh pursue Jack Travis, a former LAPD lieutenant turned ruthless arms dealer, during the six days prior to Murtaugh's retirement. Riggs and Murtaugh are joined by Leo Getz as well as internal affairs Sergeant Lorna Cole.
Jeffrey Boam's first two drafts of the script were different from the final film. The character of Lorna for example was not a woman in original drafts, but the original character still had the same personality and was just as lethal and crazy as Riggs, making him his match. Riggs also had an affair with Roger's daughter Rianne, and a few parts in the final film where Roger suspects that Riggs and Rianne are interested in each other are only parts left from the original drafts. Donner demanded some big changes on the script which included changing the original character of Lorna into a woman and turning her into Riggs's girlfriend. He also re-worked the script to be less story-oriented and not focus on the main villains but instead on the relationship between Riggs and Murtaugh. He also toned down action scenes from the script and brought back Leo Getz into the story. All of his scenes were written in afterwards.
The film received mixed reviews and was considered as weaker than the previous films. But it still earned $320 million worldwide, becoming the highest grossing film in the franchise and Donner's highest grossing film (although Superman still has that title adjusted for inflation).

• Budget: $35,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $144,731,527. ($323.4 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $321,731,527.
  

Maverick (1994)

"In their hands, a deck of cards was the only thing more dangerous than a gun."
His 15th film. Based on the 1957–1962 television series, it stars Mel Gibson, Jodie Foster and James Garner (who starred in the original series). The film follows Bret Maverick, a card player and con artist who collects money in order to enter a high-stakes poker game. He is joined in his adventure by Annabelle Bransford, another con artist, and Marshal Zane Cooper, a lawman.
The film received positive reviews, and was another great success at the box office, earning $183 million worldwide.

• Budget: $75,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $101,631,272. ($215 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $183,031,272.
  

Assassins (1995)

"In the shadows of life, in the business of death, one man found a reason to live..."
His 16th film. The film stars Sylvester Stallone, Antonio Banderas, and Julianne Moore. Professional hit-man Robert Rath wants to fulfill a few more contracts before retiring but unscrupulous ambitious newcomer hit-man Miguel Bain keeps killing Rath's targets.
The film was panned by critics, and was a box office flop.

• Budget: $50,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $30,303,072. ($62.3 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $83,306,268.
  

Conspiracy Theory (1997)

"Jerry Fletcher sees conspiracies everywhere... one has turned out to be true. Now his enemies want him dead. And she's the only one he can trust."
His 17th film. It stars Mel Gibson, Julia Roberts and Patrick Stewart, and centers on an eccentric taxi driver who believes many world events are triggered by government conspiracies, and the Justice Department attorney who becomes involved in his life.
The film received mixed reviews, and despite earning $137 million worldwide, it wasn't a box office success due to its high budget.

• Budget: $80,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $75,982,834. ($148.4 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $136,982,834.
  

Lethal Weapon 4 (1998)

"The gang's all here."
His 18th film. The fourth and final installment in the Lethal Weapon franchise, it stars Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, Joe Pesci, Rene Russo, Chris Rock, and Jet Li. It follows Martin Riggs and Roger Murtaugh as they investigate a Chinese immigrant smuggling ring. A crime boss named Benny Chan leads them to the Chinatown.
Wanting another film in the franchise, Warner Bros. and Joel Silver tried buying a new spec script titled Simon Says in hopes of rewriting it into a script for Lethal Weapon 4. Written by Jonathan Hensleigh, the story was about a police detective and a shop owner forced to find and stop bombs planted all over a city as part of a mad bomber's revenge plot against the detective. 20th Century Fox then bought the script, and decided to use it as the basis for a new Die Hard film, Die Hard with a Vengeance. Donner was committed to another film, but Gibson was not interested.
The film had a very difficult pre-production, as the script was still being re-written and rejected. Silver ultimately brought in TV writer Channing Gibson to work on the script, after he was impressed by Gibson's rewrite of a spec script titled Sandblast. Gibson took the gig thinking it would be a more relaxed writing job than anything he did for TV. However, much like the previous two sequels, the script kept getting changed and rewritten over and over again. Gibson would end up doing more work and revisions on it than on all of his TV work put together. Production even started with only half of the script.
Something you might have noticed, is that the budget was far larger than the previous films. While the previous two films cost $30-$35 million, Lethal Weapon 4 had a budget of... $150 million ($288 million adjusted). Which means that at that point, it was the most expensive R-rated film ever and the third most expensive film, just behind Titanic and Waterworld. Why? Because the delays kept coming... but Warner Bros. was desperate in greenlighting the film. Realizing they had no big tentpole releases scheduled for summer 1998, Warner Bros. finally greenlit the film in late 1997. So they opened all their wallets and started shooting in January 1998, despite having one third of the film not written yet, including the ending. Due to issues during filming, including the script changes, production ended around mid May, less than two months before its scheduled July release. The ending was not written until it was finally time to film it. Editors had to work very quickly to have the film ready, which is why the trailers feature some deleted and alternate scenes which are not in the film. So the film was greenlit, filmed and released in theaters in the span of just 7 months.
The film received mixed reviews. And if Warner Bros. was confident that spending $150 million to rush a film was worth it, they were in for a rude awakening. The film earned just $285 million worldwide, which meant that the film was a box office flop.
It was the last film in the franchise. Although a gang in a pub in Philadelphia kept the spirit alive by making three sequels, one of which had Danny DeVito as the bad guy.

• Budget: $150,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $130,444,603. ($250.9 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $285,444,603.
  

Timeline (2003)

"You're history."
His 19th film. Based on the novel by Michael Crichton, it stars Paul Walker, Frances O'Connor, Gerard Butler, Billy Connolly, David Thewlis, and Anna Friel. It follows a team of present-day archaeology and history students who are sent back in time to medieval France to rescue their professor from the middle of a battle.
The film was a critical and commercial failure.

• Budget: $80,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $19,481,943. ($33.1 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $43,935,763.
  

16 Blocks (2006)

"1 Witness... 118 Minutes."
His 20th and final film. It stars Bruce Willis, Mos Def, and David Morse. The film unfolds in the real time narration method, and follows Jack, who is assigned the task of escorting Eddie, a witness, from police custody to the courthouse. However, when they are attacked on the way, Jack learns that the entire NYPD wants Eddie dead.
The film received mixed reviews, and it marked his fifth bomb in a row. It was his final film before his death in 2021.

• Budget: $52,000,000.
  
• Domestic gross: $36,895,141. ($57.3 million adjusted)
  
• Worldwide gross: $65,664,721.
  

MOVIES (FROM HIGHEST GROSSING TO LEAST GROSSING)

No.	Movie	Year	Studio	Domestic Total	Overseas Total	Worldwide Total	Budget
1	Lethal Weapon 3	1992	Warner Bros.	$144,731,527	$177,000,000	$321,731,527	$35M
2	Superman	1978	Warner Bros.	$134,478,449	$166,000,000	$300,478,449	$55M
3	Lethal Weapon 4	1998	Warner Bros.	$130,444,603	$155,000,000	$285,444,603	$150M
4	Lethal Weapon 2	1989	Warner Bros.	$147,253,986	$80,600,000	$227,853,986	$30M
5	Maverick	1994	Warner Bros.	$101,631,272	$81,400,000	$183,031,272	$75M
6	Conspiracy Theory	1997	Warner Bros.	$75,982,834	$61,000,000	$136,982,834	$80M
7	The Goonies	1985	Warner Bros.	$63,711,145	$60,600,000	$124,311,145	$19M
8	Lethal Weapon	1987	Warner Bros.	$65,207,127	$55,000,000	$120,207,127	$15M
9	Scrooged	1988	Paramount	$60,328,558	$40,000,000	$100,328,558	$32M
10	Assassins	1995	Warner Bros.	$30,303,072	$53,000,000	$83,306,268	$50M
11	The Omen	1976	20th Century Fox	$60,922,980	$17,800,000	$78,722,980	$2.8M
12	16 Blocks	2006	Warner Bros.	$36,895,141	$28,769,580	$65,664,721	$52M
13	The Toy	1982	20th Century Fox	$47,118,057	$0	$47,118,057	$17M
14	Timeline	2003	Paramount	$19,481,943	$24,453,820	$43,935,763	$80M
15	Ladyhawke	1985	Warner Bros. / 20th Century Fox	$18,432,000	$0	$18,432,000	$20M
16	Radio Flyer	1992	Columbia	$4,651,977	$0	$4,651,977	$35M
17	Salt and Pepper	1965	United Artists	$1,750,000	$0	$1,750,000	N/A
18	Inside Moves	1980	Associated Film Distribution	$1,200,000	$0	$1,200,000	N/A

He made 20 films, but only 18 have reported box office numbers. Across those 18 films, he made $2,146,151,267 worldwide. That's $119,230,625 per film.

The Verdict

Despite the inconsistency of his filmography, it's hard to deny Donner as a very influential figure of cinema.
He was an expert in handling many genres; you'd expect the director of The Goonies to make 4 Lethal Weapon films? Or that the guy who made The Omen would make Scrooged? Sure, his last films indicated that he might have lost it, but you can't blame him for trying. The fact that he was willing to make Lethal Weapon 5 before his death show he was very committed. He was never too old for this shit.
And of course, there's Superman. The film that changed comic book films as we know them. It wasn't the first, but it was perhaps the most influential. There's an argument that either Batman, The Dark Knight, Iron Man, The Avengers, Deadpool or Joker are more influential, but those films wouldn't exist today if it wasn't for Donner. It's why Kevin Feige shows the film to all the cast and crew before filming any MCU film. If the film was put in the careless hands of a mediocre director, it would've been forgotten almost immediately. And the genre would be very different today. So it's a testament to the strength of the film of how much it could change the landscape of what was possible. He and Christopher Reeve really offered something fresh and exciting. They truly made the world believe a man could fly.
Hope you liked this edition. You can find this and more in the wiki for this section.
The next director will be Ang Lee. A very important filmmaker.
I asked you to choose who else should be in the run and the comment with the most upvotes would be chosen. Well, we'll later talk about... Roland Emmerich. Is it Joever for him?
This is the schedule for the following four:

Week	Director	Reasoning
June 3-9	Ang Lee	What happened to Lee?
June 10-16	Zack Snyder	RIP Inbox.
June 17-23	Tony Scott	Action films have not been the same ever since his death.
June 24-30	Roland Emmerich	The King of disaster films.

Who should be next after Emmerich? That's up to you. But there's a catch.
For this week, you'll choose from four options, all picked by me. So we won't accept any other suggestions this week. I'll give you four directors, and the director with the most upvotes will get his own post. And here they are:

• Joe Dante: Like Donner, a very influential figure of the 70s and 80s.
  
• Renny Harlin: One of the most popular directors with the biggest amount of flops. How does he do it?
  
• John McTiernan: An important action filmmaker... who literally went to jail.
  
• Rob Reiner: Another actor who had an incredible run as a director, before falling with North.
  

So which one should be next? That's up to you.