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Heylin has noted that , as is the case with a number of other of Basement Tape tracks , Dylan 's copyrighted , published " Santa @-@ Fe " lyrics differ from what can be heard on the song . Heylin speculates that the " dramatic reworking " in the later version arose from Dylan 's " 1973 musing in Malibu " , where Dylan had moved to , and that new lines like " build a geodesic dome and sail away " and " My shrimp boat 's in the bay " sound like the work of " someone sitting on the dock of the bay , not up on Meads Mountain [ in Woodstock ] " . Heylin also notes that the website maintained by Olof Björner , Words Fill My Head , contains a transcription of the song as Dylan performed it . The 1973 copyrighted lyrics are printed on Bobdylan.com.
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In his notes for The Bootleg Series Volumes 1 – 3 , Bauldie describes the song as " a typical combination of nonsense and fun , just for the hell of it , really ... " ; author Oliver Trager likewise describes it as a " nonsense " song . Heylin writes that the lyrics " revolve around ' dear , dear , dear , dear , Santa Fe ' — intended to be both a woman 's name and the town in New Mexico . After five verses of rolling said words around , he moves on . "
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Opinions about the song have been mixed . AllMusic critic Thomas Ward calls it " one of the great good @-@ time songs in Dylan 's canon " . Ward comments that " Dylan sings it as if he is having the time of his life " , adding that " rarely has he sung with such expressiveness " . Anthony Varesi , author of The Bob Dylan Albums , similarly praises the song 's " breadth of feeling " and " unparalleled expressiveness " , noting that " it appears Dylan simply improvised the song on the spot , and the passion within him allows the song to flow forth naturally " . Biographer John Nagowski has described the song as " delightful " , while a New York Times review rates it one of the highlights of Volume 2 of The Bootleg Series Volumes 1 – 3 , commenting that it is one of only a couple of mid @-@ 60s songs on the compilation that " live up to their vintage " . Griffin describes it as " catchy but slight " and " a slight if charming little ditty " , but criticizes the decision to include it on The Bootleg Series Volumes 1 – 3 rather than the " masterpiece " composition " Sign on the Cross " . Heylin concurs , characterizing " Santa @-@ Fe " in 1995 as a " pleasant enough throwaway " but suggesting that " Sign on the Cross " or another 1967 composition , " I 'm Not There " , would have been much better choices ( " I 'm Not There " was eventually released in 2007 on the I 'm Not There soundtrack , and both it and " Sign on the Cross " were included on The Basement Tapes Raw and The Basement Tapes Complete in 2014 ) . By 2009 , Heylin 's opinion had changed little and he writes that " of all the ' missing ' basement @-@ tape originals that appear on that three @-@ CD set , ' Santa Fe ' hardly represented an A @-@ list candidate . Just another discarded ditty , it relies on the usual wordplay and slurred diction to obscure any pretense to a deeper meaning " . Marcus dismisses it as no more than " a riff " , while a review in Stereophile magazine calls it " the most lightweight tune on all three CDs , with indecipherable lyrics " . Author Peter James , referring to Dylan and the Band 's Woodstock output , writes that " many great songs were written and recorded in [ Big Pink 's ] basement in 1967 , unfortunately ' Sante @-@ Fe ' is not one of them . " He goes on to describe the song 's inclusion on The Bootleg Series Volumes 1 – 3 as " little more than a joke " .
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The song has been covered by Howard Fishman on his album Performs Bob Dylan & The Band 's The Basement Tapes Live at Joe 's Pub . Fishman played more than sixty songs from Dylan and the Band 's Basement Tape sessions over three nights , of which selected tracks were included on the CD and an accompanying DVD . " Santa @-@ Fe " has also been covered by Steve Gibbons . On November 7 , 2007 at the Beacon Theatre in New York City , J Mascis and the Million Dollar Bashers performed the song at a special concert featuring numerous music artists celebrating the release of Todd Haynes 's film I 'm Not There . Thomas Ward notes that Dylan himself has never played the song live .
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" The Secret " is the thirteenth episode of the second season of the American comedy television series The Office , and the show 's nineteenth episode overall . It was written by Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky and directed by Dennie Gordon . The episode first aired on January 19 , 2006 on NBC . The episode guest stars Tom W. Chick as Gil .
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The series depicts the everyday lives of office employees in the Scranton , Pennsylvania branch of the fictional Dunder Mifflin Paper Company . In this episode , Jim Halpert ( John Krasinski ) is forced into spending time with Michael Scott ( Steve Carell ) so that Michael will not reveal Jim 's feelings for Pam Beesly ( Jenna Fischer ) . Meanwhile , Oscar Martinez ( Oscar Nunez ) takes a sick day and Dwight Schrute ( Rainn Wilson ) investigates whether he is actually sick .
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" The Secret " was written in roughly 26 hours and was the fastest episode written for the series at the time . The title for the episode is purposely vague and refers to Jim 's hidden feelings for Pam , Dwight and Angela 's relationship , and Oscar 's homosexuality . The shots at the Hooters restaurant were filmed relatively early in the day , and a majority of the scenes were improvised by Carell . " The Secret " received largely positive reviews from television critics and was watched by 8 @.@ 7 million viewers , ranking as the forty @-@ fourth most @-@ watched television episode of the week .
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Out of fear that Michael Scott ( Steve Carell ) will tell the others he has feelings for Pam Beesly ( Jenna Fischer ) , Jim Halpert ( John Krasinski ) allows Michael to believe that they are best friends , which leads to an awkward lunch at Hooters paid for with a corporate credit card . Michael ultimately reveals Jim 's secret to everyone , forcing Jim to confess his crush to Pam himself , although he tells her that he got over it three years ago . However , Michael later tells her that he learned of the crush during the " booze cruise " which occurred recently , leading her to suspect that Jim is still infatuated .
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Meanwhile , Dwight Schrute ( Rainn Wilson ) " investigates " Oscar Martinez 's ( Oscar Nunez ) claimed sick day from work , learning that the co @-@ worker is actually taking time off to ice @-@ skate . Dwight blackmails Oscar , threatening to reveal his unauthorized leave @-@ taking . He then cuts a deal for Oscar to owe him a favor , and watches a movie with Oscar and Oscar 's " roommate " Gil ( Tom W. Chick ) while completely failing to recognize evidence of Oscar 's homosexuality .
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" The Secret " was written by Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky . The episode was written in roughly 26 hours and was the fastest episode written for the series , at the time . The idea to make the entry the " spring cleaning episode " was " throw [ n ] in at the last minute " because the writers were " desperate " . The subplot was inspired by a friend of Eisenberg 's , who suggested the story after he was forced to undergo spring cleaning at his office .
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The title for the episode is purposely vague . During the commentary , the cast revealed that there are actually three " secrets " in the episode : Jim 's hidden feelings for Pam , Dwight and Angela 's relationship , and Oscar 's homosexuality . Stupkitsky later joked that there are " actually nine secrets in the episode " . The cold opening – wherein Michael tries to tell a joke where the punch line is " What 's up dog ? " – was inspired by the same prank being pulled on Stupnitsky . The original cold opening for the episode featured Michael playing golf in his office , but it was cut .
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Jenna Fischer felt that Krasinski 's performance in the episode was " really great " and called " The Secret " her " favorite John Krasinski episode " . Krasinski said that Creed Bratton 's line , " Which one is Pam ? " was his favorite moment " in the entire show , ever " . Fischer , in turn , said that her favorite moment was when Jim confesses that he does not have a crush on her , due to the emotion involved . Fischer later admitted that , after the shot was filmed , she cried because it " broke [ her ] heart " .
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" The Secret " was directed by Dennie Gordon , who would go on to direct the season two episode " Boys and Girls " . Tom W. Chick portrayed Gil . The cast were particularly impressed with his acting ; Fischer called him a " great casting " choice . Lindsey Stoddart , who plays one of the Hooters waitresses , was an improv acquaintance of Martin 's .
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The shots at the Hooters restaurant were filmed relatively early in the day , and a majority of the scenes were improvised by Carell . In fact , Carell decided to play the penis game – in which two or more people shout the word " penis " at varying levels in an attempt to out do each other – which Krasinski called " the craziest thing I have experienced . " The scene where Pam and Kelly discuss wedding plans was particularly difficult to shoot all in one scene , due to the amount of activity going on . John Krasinski later noted that he was impressed that the director and cameramen were able to successfully get the shot . The sequence featuring Michael and Jim talking in the break room was made of two composition shots , because Krasinski was laughing " the entire " time . Michael buying Stanley a peach ice tea and telling him that he will " hate it " was entirely improvised .
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The Season Two DVD contains a number of deleted scenes from this episode . Notable cut scenes include the cut cold opening of Michael playing with his new putting toy , Dwight expounding on his thoughts on dust bunnies , Michael surveying his " worker bees " , Ryan Howard ( B.J. Novak ) finding an unfinished People Magazine crossword puzzle from 1999 in Michael 's office , Michael describing his college fraternity experience , and Michael buying Jim a Hooters T @-@ shirt .
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Michael attributes the 1981 song " Our Lips Are Sealed " to The Bangles , when it was really sung by The Go @-@ Go 's . Michael and Jim go to Hooters , a company whose waiting staff are primarily young , attractive waitresses usually referred to simply as " Hooter Girls " whose revealing outfits and sex appeal is played up and is a primary component of the company 's image . At the restaurant , Michael makes several breast jokes . Near the end of the episode , Michael makes reference to a nonexistent Cinemax movie called More Secrets of a Call Girl .
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" The Secret " originally aired on NBC on the January 19 , 2006 . The episode was watched by 8 @.@ 7 million viewers . This marked a slight decrease in viewers from a lead @-@ in episode of " My Name is Earl " , but more than a follow @-@ up episode of " ER " . " The Secret " ranked as the forty @-@ fourth most @-@ watched episode for the week ending January 22 .
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M. Giant of Television Without Pity awarded the episode an " A " . Brendan Babish of DVD Verdict gave the episode a moderately positive review and awarded the entry a " B " . He wrote that while it was " " a solid episode " it " lacks any of the belly laughs the show frequently elicits . " Michael Sciannamea of AOLTV called the installment " a terrific episode " and wrote that the " Michael Scott [ … ] was at his obnoxious best [ … ] in this episode " . Furthermore , he highly praised the story , noting that " the Jim / Pam scenario has definitely taken a more interesting turn . " During the filming of " The Secret " , the cast of the show discovered that Carell had been nominated for a Golden Globe Award . Fischer later noted that it was " fun that [ ' The Secret ' is ] the episode that airs after his win . "
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Margaret " Maggie " Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons . She first appeared on television in the Tracey Ullman Show short " Good Night " on April 19 , 1987 . Maggie was created and designed by cartoonist Matt Groening while he was waiting in the lobby of James L. Brooks ' office . She received her first name from Groening 's youngest sister . After appearing on The Tracey Ullman Show for three years , the Simpson family was given their own series on the Fox Broadcasting Company which debuted December 17 , 1989 .
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Maggie is the youngest child of Marge and Homer , and sister to Bart and Lisa . She is often seen sucking on her red pacifier and , when she walks , she trips over her clothing and falls on her face ( this running gag is used much more in earlier seasons ) . Being an infant , she cannot talk . She is a counterpart to Lisa Simpson . However , she did appear to talk in the first Tracy Ullman short . Therefore , she is the least seen and heard member of the Simpson family .
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Maggie 's squeaking and occasional speaking parts are currently provided by Nancy Cartwright , but she has also been voiced by guest stars James Earl Jones , Elizabeth Taylor and Jodie Foster , and by series regulars Yeardley Smith and Harry Shearer . Maggie has appeared in various media relating to The Simpsons – including video games , The Simpsons Movie , The Simpsons Ride , commercials and comic books – and has inspired an entire line of merchandise .
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The Simpsons uses a floating timeline in which the characters do not physically age , and as such the show is assumed to be set in the current year . In several episodes , events have been linked to specific times , though sometimes this timeline has been contradicted in subsequent episodes . Maggie is the youngest child of Marge and Homer , and sister to Bart and Lisa . When Marge became pregnant with Bart , she and Homer got married at a chapel in Las Vegas . To support his impending family , Homer all but demanded a job at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant , impressing its owner , Mr Burns , with his aggressive submissiveness . When Marge became pregnant with Lisa , two years later , she and Homer bought their first house . Another six years later , Homer felt financially secure enough to finally quit his job at the Power Plant and take his dream job at Barney 's Bowlarama . However , Marge became pregnant with Maggie , so Homer , once again unable to support his family , was forced to reapply for his old job . By the time Maggie was born , Homer had shown great signs of distress , but he managed to find motivation in the form of his newborn baby girl .
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During the earlier seasons of the show , Maggie 's equivalent of a hallmark was to trip over her clothing and fall on her face while trying to walk , causing a loud thud on the floor , but this was toned down in the later seasons . She has penchant for her pacifier , on which she is always seen sucking .
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Maggie has performed a number of feats that suggest she is a baby genius . She has spelled out E = MC ² with her baby blocks , driven Homer 's car , escaped from the Springfield daycare center , and written her name on an Etch A Sketch . Maggie is keenly aware of her surroundings , and can usually be seen imitating the flow of action around her . She shows a high degree of dexterity , and she once hit Homer on the head with a mallet and shot a dart at a photograph of him in imitation of Itchy and Scratchy . Despite her age , Maggie is a formidable marksman , as seen in " Who Shot Mr. Burns ? " where she shoots Mr. Burns with a handgun that falls into her hands , and in a more intentional manner during " Poppa 's Got a Brand New Badge " where she is able to non @-@ fatally shoot a group of mobsters in rapid succession with a rifle that she apparently hides in her crib .
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Maggie is usually frightened and exasperated by Homer 's attempts to bond with her , but has on several occasions stepped in to save Homer 's life : once from drowning , once from being shot by mobsters , once from being kidnapped by a tow truck driver , and once from being shot by Russ Cargill , head of the United States Environmental Protection Agency .
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Matt Groening first conceived Maggie and the rest of the Simpson family in 1986 in the lobby of James L. Brooks 's office . Groening had been called in to pitch a series of animated shorts for The Tracey Ullman Show , and had intended to present an adaptation of his Life in Hell comic strip . When he realized that animating Life in Hell would require him to rescind publication rights for his life 's work , Groening decided to go in another direction , and hurriedly sketched out his version of a dysfunctional family and named the characters after members of his own family . The baby of the family was named Maggie after Groening 's youngest sister . Maggie then made her debut with the rest of the Simpsons family on April 19 , 1987 in the short " Good Night " . In 1989 , the shorts were adapted into The Simpsons , a half @-@ hour series that would air on the Fox Broadcasting Company . Maggie and the rest of the family remained the main characters on this new show .
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The entire Simpson family was designed so that they would be recognizable in silhouette . The family was crudely drawn , because Groening had submitted basic sketches to the animators , assuming they would clean them up ; instead , they just traced over his drawings . Maggie 's physical features are generally not used in other characters ; for example , in the later seasons , no character other than Lisa shares her hairline . While designing Maggie and Lisa , Groening " couldn 't be bothered to even think about girls ' hair styles " . At the time , Groening was primarily drawing in black and white and when designing Lisa and Maggie , he " just gave them this kind of spiky starfish hair style , not thinking that they would eventually be drawn in color " .
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Groening thought that it would be funny to have a baby character that did not talk and never grew up , but was scripted to show any emotions that the scene required . Maggie 's comedic hallmarks include her tendency to stumble and land on her face while attempting to walk , and a penchant for sucking on her pacifier , the sound of which has become the equivalent of her catchphrase and was originally created by Groening during the Tracey Ullman period . In the early seasons of the show , Maggie would suck her pacifier over other characters ' dialogue , but this was discontinued because the producers found it too distracting .
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With few exceptions , Maggie never speaks but participates in the events around her , emoting with subtle gestures and facial expressions . Maggie 's first lines were spoken in " Good Night " , the first short to air on The Tracey Ullman Show , after the family falls asleep . On this occasion , Liz Georges provided the voice of Maggie .
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Although she had previously spoken in fantasies and dream sequences , Maggie 's first word spoken in the normal continuity of the series occurred in " Lisa 's First Word " , when she was voiced by Elizabeth Taylor . Although it was only one word ( " Daddy " ) , Taylor had to record the part numerous times before the producers were satisfied . James Earl Jones voiced Maggie in " Treehouse of Horror V " . Maggie would later have brief dialogue in " Treehouse of Horror IX " , voiced by Harry Shearer , who used his Kang voice . In earlier episodes , Yeardley Smith did many of Maggie 's squeaks , cries , laughs and occasional speaking parts , although in the later seasons her parts are done by Nancy Cartwright ( including a single word spoken during the end credits of The Simpsons Movie ) . Jodie Foster voiced a Howard Roark @-@ inspired Maggie in the season 20 episode " Four Great Women and a Manicure " .
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In the occasional " Simpsons in the future " -themed episodes ( " Lisa 's Wedding " , " Bart to the Future " , " Future @-@ Drama " , " Holidays of Future Passed " , " Days of Future Future " ) , although an older Maggie is depicted , as a running gag within these episodes she is never shown speaking , so no voice actors have been utilized on these occasions .
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Nancy Basile at About.com said her favorite Maggie scenes on The Simpsons are the ones that show her acting more like an adult than a one @-@ year @-@ old . Some of her favorite Maggie scenes include scenes from " Sweet Seymour Skinner 's Baadasssss Song " and " Lady Bouvier 's Lover " where Maggie meets her unibrowed archenemy , Baby Gerald , and the one scene from " Itchy & Scratchy : The Movie " in which Bart is supposed to babysit Maggie , but she escapes and takes Homer 's car for a ride . Basile also added that " whether watching ' The Happy Elves ' or falling down , Maggie is the cutest baby in the Simpson family " . Comedian Ricky Gervais named " And Maggie Makes Three " his second favorite episode of the show and said that the scene in the end where Homer puts up pictures of Maggie over his desk gave him " a lump in the throat thinking about it " . Todd Everett at Variety called the scene in " Lisa 's First Word " where Maggie speaks her first word " quite a heart @-@ melter " .
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In 2006 , Elizabeth Taylor was named thirteenth on IGN 's " Top 25 Simpsons Guest Appearances " list for her performance as Maggie in " Lisa 's First Word " . James Earl Jones , voice of Maggie in " Treehouse of Horror V " , was named the seventh greatest guest star on the show in the same list . In 2000 , Maggie and the rest of the Simpson family were awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame located at 7021 Hollywood Boulevard .
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Four children 's books , written by Maggie Groening ( after whom Maggie was named ) and illustrated by Matt Groening , entitled Maggie Simpson 's Book of Animals , Maggie Simpson 's Counting Book , Maggie Simpson 's Book of Colors and Shapes and Maggie Simpson 's Alphabet Book were released on September 12 , 1991 . Other merchandise includes dolls , posters , figurines , jigsaw puzzles , and T @-@ shirts . Maggie was made into an action figure as part of the World of Springfield toy line , and was released in the wave one playset " Living Room " , featuring her and Marge in the living room of the Simpsons house . Maggie has appeared in commercials for Burger King , Butterfinger , C.C. Lemon , Domino 's Pizza , Ramada Inn and Subway .
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Maggie has appeared in other media relating to The Simpsons . She is a character in every one of The Simpsons video games , including the most recent , The Simpsons Game . Alongside the television series , Maggie regularly appears in issues of the Simpsons comics , which were first published on November 29 , 1993 and are still issued monthly . Maggie also plays a role in The Simpsons Ride , launched in 2008 at Universal Studios Florida and Hollywood . Maggie starred in the 3D short @-@ film The Longest Daycare , which was shown in theaters before Ice Age : Continental Drift in 2012 .
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On April 9 , 2009 , the United States Postal Service unveiled a series of five 44 cent stamps featuring Maggie and the four other members of the Simpson family . They are the first characters from a television series to receive this recognition while the show is still in production . The stamps , designed by Matt Groening , were made available for purchase on May 7 , 2009 . In a USPS poll , Maggie 's stamp was voted the most popular of the five .
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Chasing Vermeer is a 2004 children 's art mystery novel written by Blue Balliett and illustrated by Brett Helquist . Set in Hyde Park , Chicago near the University of Chicago , the novel follows two children , Calder Pillay and Petra Andalee . After a famous Johannes Vermeer painting is stolen on route to the Art Institute of Chicago , Calder and Petra work together to try to recover it . The thief publishes many advertisements in the newspaper , explaining that he will give the painting back if the community can discover which paintings under Vermeer 's name were really painted by him . This causes Petra , Calder , and the rest of Hyde Park to examine art more closely . Themes of art , chance , coincidence , deception , and problem @-@ solving are apparent .
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The novel was written for Balliett classroom intended to deal with real @-@ world issues . Balliett values children 's ideas and wrote the book specifically to highlight that . Chasing Vermeer has won several awards , including the Edgar and the Agatha . In 2006 , the sequel entitled The Wright 3 was published , followed by The Calder Game in 2008 , .
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Chasing Vermeer is Blue Balliett 's first published book . Its original purpose was a book to read to her class for fun . She realized that a mystery about " real " art issues had not been written since E.L. Konigsburg 's From the Mixed @-@ Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler and desired to write what she wished to read . Chasing Vermeer took about five years to complete , as Balliett was also a teacher and parent . She compared writing the book to weaving , as she first wrote mainly about art , but then incorporated the pentominoes and classroom scenes , creating many different levels to read on . She admits that it ended up more complex than she had thought it would be .
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Balliett used art and blank plates as inspiration for the characters ' names . Calder Pillay is derived from the artist Alexander Calder and Petra Andalee was inspired by the architecture in Petra , Jordan . The names were meant to be different , which Balliett considered " fun for a child . " Balliett felt that she could capture the attention of reluctant readers if they related to characters who enjoyed writing and math . Calder and Petra 's teacher , Ms. Hussey , was inspired by an old name on Nantucket Island and the old @-@ fashioned word hussy . Balliett compares herself to Ms. Hussey , stating that " [ we ] think a lot alike . " Some of Ms. Hussey 's assignments and dialogue even came from Balliett 's classroom . She chose the setting of Hyde Park , Chicago , where she currently lives , because she considered it full of secrets that children could discover .
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The book begins with a mysterious letter that is delivered to three unknown recipients , two women and one man . The letter tells them they are of great need to the sender , but begs them not to tell the police .
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Sixth @-@ graders Calder Pillay , who enjoys puzzles and pentominoes , and Petra Andalee , who aspires to be a writer , are classmates at the Middle School in Hyde Park , Chicago . Their young teacher , Ms. Hussey , is very interested in art and teaches them in a creative way . Through her pressing questions , they discover the artist Johannes Vermeer and his paintings , especially A Lady Writing and The Geographer . Petra also finds a used book called Lo ! , written by Charles Fort , at the local Powell 's Books , owned by a man named Mr. Watch . They also meet an elderly neighbor , Mrs. Sharpe , who is also a fan of Vermeer and Fort . Calder receives letters from his best friend Tommy Segovia , who is currently living in New York City with a new stepfather .
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The children learn that A Lady Writing was traveling from The National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. to Hyde Park . The next day there is a story in the paper of how the painting mysteriously disappeared . A letter from the thief appears in the newspaper , telling the public that he will not give back A Lady Writing until they prove which Vermeer paintings were truly painted by him . This sparks worldwide uproar . Calder and Petra investigate as their friendship grows . Mrs. Sharpe requests police protection and it is revealed that she and Ms. Hussey were two of the three recipients of the thief 's letter . Calder and Petra eventually conclude that the painting is hidden in the local Delia Dell Hall , and they sneak out and find it . They barely escape from the thief , who is later found dead from a massive heart attack on the train by the police . They learn that the man is Xavier Glitts , also knowned as Glitter Man , who was posing as Tommy 's stepfather under the name Fred Steadman . A known art thief , he was asked to steal the painting and sell it for sixty million dollars . The other recipient of the letter is revealed to be Mr. Watch .
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As stated in the preface , there is a code hidden in the paintings throughout the book . This was an idea of Brett Helquist and Balliett 's editor , Tracy Mack . The code involves images of pentominoes and frogs , which is a recurring theme in the book . To decode the code , one must count the number of frogs in every other illustration , as well as find the hidden pentomino . Once these facts are collected , you are to use the same code presented in the story that Calder and Tommy use in their letters in the book . For example , the first code in the book is V : 2 @.@ this means T when decoded with Calder and Tommy 's decoder . When the message is decoded , it spells out " The Lady Lives " .
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Chasing Vermeer is classified in the mystery genre , although it was described by Liz Szabla of Scholastic as " a puzzle , wrapped in a mystery , disguised as an adventure , and delivered as a work of art . " Scholastic 's teaching website additionally added suspense due to the surprise ending .
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Some of Balliett 's " real @-@ world ideas " in Chasing Vermeer were " Do coincidences mean anything ? " and " What is art and what makes it valuable ? " Balliett says her " central message " is " kids are powerful thinkers , and their ideas are valuable , and that adults don 't have all the answers . "
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A book by Rita Soltan entitled Reading Raps : A Book Club Guide for Librarians , Kids , and Families analyzed Chasing Vermeer 's themes as follows :
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Deception and problem solving are central themes in this novel as both the thief and the central adult players use a variety of ways to hide the truth while the children employ a series of mathematical and problem @-@ solving concepts to piece together the clues to the puzzle . In addition , Calder and Petra develop a special friendship and certain respect for the value of art .
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As the thief gains publicity by challenging the community to figure out which paintings claimed to be Vermeer 's were indeed painted by him , everyone starts to look at the depth in art . Sondra Eklund , who writes a book review blog , noted that the reader was left with the impression to study Vermeer 's paintings and art more closely . In the book , Ms. Hussey challenges her class to the question , " What is art ? "
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Other themes include chance and coincidence . During Chasing Vermeer , Charles Fort 's book , Lo ! , inspires the children to list and pay attention to coincidences as they realize that they are more than what they seem and explore the concept that they make up one unexplained pattern . Balliett stated that she wanted to convey how coincidences were noticeable and felt meaningful , and how they could matter even if they were unexplainable .
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The audiobook for Chasing Vermeer , read by Ellen Reilly , was released on November 27 , 2007 from Listening Library . It runs about 4 hours and 47 minutes . AudioFile magazine praised Reilly 's voices and pace , but noted that , " Once the mystery is solved , however , the ending seems tacked on , falling flat . "
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Chasing Vermeer received generally positive reviews . The New York Times praised the description and mystery . It was also listed as one of their " Notable Books of 2004 " . Kirkus Reviews awarded it a starred review with the consensus that " Art , intrigue , and plenty of twists and turns make this art mystery a great read . " Children 's Literature reviewer Claudia Mills gave generally positive comments , calling the novel " engrossing and engaging " . The website Kidsreads compared the book to classic mysteries such as The Westing Game and said , " Chasing Vermeer deserves a spot alongside many well @-@ loved children 's books . It 's that good . " A reviewer of The Trades website called it " an entertaining read that manages to serve several purposes in one concise novel " and found the characters " unusual yet likable " , but felt that " the disappointing bit of this novel is that the solutions always arrive through a series of disconnected events that just lead the kids to think in certain ways . " Kadon Enterprises , a game puzzle company , reviewed the book , praising the writing style and puzzles .
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Warner Brothers bought the rights to a film of Chasing Vermeer in June 2004 and Brad Pitt 's production company Plan B Entertainment planned to produce it . P.J. Hogan was slated as director and the novel was adapted by Matt Nix . However , when asked about the film in August 2010 , Balliett answered ,
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" It ’ s been fascinating , watching this whole process , because Plan B did a wonderful job . They went through two screenwriters , and they ’ ve gone through two directors . It ’ s sort of like a house of cards . I have rights again . If they get it all together again , they ’ ll jump on it . But they don ’ t have exclusive rights anymore . "
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" Caught Up " is a song by American R & B singer Usher . It was written by Ryan Toby , Andre Harris , Vidal Davis and Jason Boyd , and produced by Dre & Vidal for Usher 's 2004 album Confessions . The song was released as the fifth and final single from the album on November 30 , 2004 . The single peaked at number eight in the United States , the only single released from Confessions without topping the Billboard Hot 100 , and generally below top ten on most charts worldwide . It received positive reviews from contemporary critics .
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Although Usher " didn 't look too far " when starting working on his fourth studio album Confessions and decided to " continue building " with previous producers , he branched out with several musical collaborators . Usher enlisted Philadelphia producers Andre " Dre " Harris and Vidal Davis of Dre & Vidal , along with other musical collaborators . During the sessions , Usher asked them to create a " real up @-@ tempo beat " . When they worked on the track , they partied the whole time which Dre considered a " partly record " . He recalled , " We had some women , some drinks , some music . " After Dre created the beat , they decided to " make sure the mood was inspiring during recording . " They went to club to take a break , and played the song in Usher 's truck while on the way . Usher felt the collaboration was pleasing , seeing other people responded positively to the song .
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" Caught Up " was the fifth and final single from Confessions . It was released in the United States on November 30 , 2004 as a 12 " single . It was also released in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom on February 21 , 2005 and on March 8 in Germany . The Germany release contains the album version of the song , three of its remixes and the single 's music video . The song impacted US contemporary hit radio on January 11 , 2005 , alongside a remix featuring rapper , Fabolous .
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" Caught Up " received positive reviews from contemporary critics . Andrew McGregor of BBC called the song " meaty " and " hip @-@ grinding " . Jon Caramanica of Blender magazine referred to the song like a " Southern marching band performing late- ' 80s R & B " . He characterized Usher 's voice playing like a rhythm instruments . Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine complimented Dre and Vidal for producing an old @-@ sounding music without sampling records , calling it " super @-@ tight " alongside " Follow Me " , another song from the album . Andy Kellman of Allmusic complimented the song as one of Usher 's best moments in the album , together with " Burn " . Kelefa Sanneh of The New York Times called it a " thunderous song " from the album , adding that it gave Usher " a chance to do two of the things he does best : strut and pander " .
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" Caught Up " did not live up to the chart @-@ topping performances of Confessions ' previous four releases . In the United States , the single debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at number seventy @-@ six . It peaked at number eight for two non @-@ consecutive weeks , fifteen weeks after its release . " Caught Up " was the only single to not top the Hot 100 compared to the album 's four previous releases . The single stayed on the Hot 100 for twenty @-@ seven weeks .
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Outside the United States , responses from music markets were relatively similar . " Caught Up " debuted and peaked at number nine on the United Kingdom , remaining on the chart for also nine weeks . It reached number ten in the Netherlands , and under top ten on the rest of European countries ; much lesser in Finland where it only stayed for one week compared to other charts , remaining for several weeks . In Australia and New Zealand , the single reached number fifteen and twelve respectively .
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The music video for " Caught Up " was directed by Mr. X , who was behind the laser light treatment of Usher 's 2004 video " Yeah ! " . The video shows Usher and friends riding a car while heading to his live performance . On the way , they fist fight after Usher saves a woman from an antagonist . Usher realizes he is supposed to perform , and finally goes to the venue . The video ends with Usher performing the song in front of a large crowd . The music video debuted on MTV 's Total Request Live on January 10 , 2005 at number ten . The video remained on the countdown for thirty @-@ four days .
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Germany CD single
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" Caught Up " ( Album version ) – 3 : 48
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" Caught Up " ( Official Remix ) ( featuring Fabolous ) – 4 : 39
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" Caught Up " ( Bimbo Jones Remix ) – 3 : 33
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" Caught Up " ( Delinquent " Whistle Crew " Re @-@ Fix ) – 7 : 55
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" Caught Up " ( Music Video ) – 3 : 49
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" If I Never See Your Face Again " is a song by American pop rock band Maroon 5 from the June 2008 re @-@ release of the group 's second studio album , It Won 't Be Soon Before Long ( 2007 ) . It was also included on the June 2008 re @-@ release of Rihanna 's album Good Girl Gone Bad ( 2007 ) . The song was originally included on the standard version of the album without the inclusion of Rihanna . It was written by band members Adam Levine and James Valentine , with production of the song helmed by Christopher " Tricky " Stewart , Mike Elizondo , Mark Endert , Mark " Spike " Stent and Maroon 5 . It was released as an Extended Play ( EP ) in Australia on May 22 , 2007 , and as an official single on May 2 , 2008 , in the United States .
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" If I Never See Your Face Again " was originally intended to be a duet with Janet Jackson and appear on her Discipline album , although label problems interfered . The collaboration with Rihanna later came to fruition when Levine asked her to add her vocal to the remix version , which she accepted . " If I Never See Your Face Again " is a pop and R & B song featuring instrumentation provided by synthesizers and a guitar . The song received a mixed response from music critics , who praised the song 's composition but criticized Levine and Rihanna 's vocal performance . The song 's accompanying music video was directed by Anthony Mandler and shot on an indoor soundstage in Castaic , California . The concept for the video was " high @-@ end erotica " .
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" If I Never See Your Face Again " was written by Adam Levine and James Valentine , two of the five band members from Maroon 5 . Production of the song was helmed by Mike Elizondo , Mike Endert , Mike " Spike " Stent , Christopher " Tricky " Stewart and Maroon 5 . It was recorded by " Spike " Stent at Conway Studios , Hollywood , CA ; Glenwood Place Studios , Burbank , CA and Phantom Studios , Westlake Village , CA . The song was originally intended to be a duet with Janet Jackson and appear on her Discipline album , but due to label problems Rihanna later appeared on the song .
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The song was included on the standard version of It Won 't Be Soon Before Long without the inclusion of Rihanna , however , Levine stated in an interview with James Montgomery for MTV News whilst on set of the accompanying music video that he wanted to try something different for the album 's re @-@ release . The singer continued , saying that he asked Rihanna to do some " bits and pieces " in the recording studio and that it came together very quickly . Levine stated that if there is " magic " between two artists , then " you don 't even have to think about it . " During the interview , Rihanna confirmed that the song would be the only one to feature a collaboration on her re @-@ release of Good Girl Gone Bad , revealing that she had always wanted to work with the group and was honored when they contacted her . " If I Never See Your Face Again " was released as a single in the United States on May 2 , 2008 .
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" If I Never See Your Face Again " is a pop and R & B song , which lasts for 3 : 18 ( 3 minutes , 18 seconds ) . The song was composed using common time in the key of A minor , with a moderate groove of 106 beats per minute . Instrumentation is provided by synths , and a guitar . A reviewer for IGN noted that " If I Never See Your Face Again " is complete with " slinky synth insinuations , " whilst Jerome Blakeney for BBC wrote that it is a " guitar drenched " and " synth @-@ crunching " song . Alex Fletcher for Digital Spy commented that the song incorporated a " jagged " use of synthesizers . For the most part of the song , Levine sings in his falsetto register , whilst Rihanna adopts " silky tone " .
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Upon the release of It Won 't Be Soon Before Long , music critics commented on the original version of the song , which does not include guest vocals by Rihanna . Jerome Blakeney for BBC wrote that " If I Never See Your Face Again " , along with another It Won 't Be Soon Before Long track " Makes Me Wonder " , were " monster weapons of mass @-@ marketing aimed at the feet and riding on swathes of string @-@ drenched , synth @-@ crunching disco . " A reviewer for IGN was complimentary of ' If I Never See Your Face Again ' , writing that it is hard to resist listening to the song . The reviewer also noted that Levine appeared to adopt a vocal style reminiscent of techniques employed by Justin Timberlake , writing " Like Justin Timberlake it 's all about the high pitched tenor falsetto and some sinewy grooves . "
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Bill Lamb for About.com noted that " If I Never See Your Face Again " and " Makes Me Wonder " appeared to be inspired by British jazz funk and acid jazz band Jamiroquai , writing " Any Jamiroquai fan may call foul if they listen to ' If I Never See Your Face Again ' or ' Makes Me Wonder ' . " Sal Cinquemani was critical of the song , labeling it as " nasty . " Alex Fletcher for Digital Spy disapproved of the collaboration between the band and Rihanna , with specific thoughts on Levine and Rihanna 's pairing . Fletcher was critical of their vocal performance , writing that their voices clashed with one another and that " the sexual chemistry radar for the pairing registers at zero . " Fletcher commented about the song further , writing that it should never have left the recording studio .
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" If I Never See Your Face Again " achieved moderate chart success on singles charts around the world . It debuted on the Australian Singles Chart at number 28 June 1 , 2008 , and peaked at number 11 in its sixth week . The song debuted on the New Zealand Singles Chart at number 37 on June 9 , 2008 , and peaked at number 21 the following week . In Europe , the song debuted and peaked at number 15 on the Italian Singles Chart on July 17 , 2008 . The song remained on the chart for one week . It debuted on the Dutch Singles Chart at number 35 on June 14 , 2008 , and peaked at number 20 the following week . The song fluctuated between positions in the twenties and seventies for 13 weeks . It debuted on the Danish Singles Chart at number 36 on July 27 , 2008 , and peaked at number 31 in its sixth week .
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" If I Never See Your Face Again " debuted on the Swiss Singles Chart at number 61 on June 29 , 2008 , and peaked at number 52 the following week , where it remained in its third week . It debuted on the Austrian Singles Chart at number 67 on September 5 , 2008 , and peaked at number 54 the following week . " If I Never See Your Face Again " debuted and peaked on the UK Singles Chart at number 28 on June 14 , 2008 . Over the following two weeks , the song descend down the top @-@ forty , before falling out in its third week . The song made a re @-@ entry on the chart at number 36 on July 7 , 2008 . In the United States , the song peaked at number 51 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on July 26 , 2008 . It peaked at number 10 on the Adult Pop Songs chart ; number 30 on the Pop Songs chart and 21 on the Hot Digital Songs chart .
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The song 's accompanying music video was directed by Anthony Mandler , and shot on an indoor soundstage in Castaic , California on April 23 , 2008 . The concept for the video was " high @-@ end erotica " . In an interview with James Montgomery for MTV News whilst on set of the music video , Levine provided a summary of what the video would entail , saying : " It 's this kind of ultra @-@ glamorous , photography @-@ based , late- ' 70s / early- ' 80s situation . It 's really stylish and really beautiful ... It 's the most choreographed thing I 've ever done , because usually I just get up there and screw around . But with Rihanna , it 's completely different and so cool . " In response , Rihanna continued to say that " I don 't do a lot of videos where I have so much chemistry with the other artist , and this is only my second duet in a video ... It 's really intense , because you have to work with each other so much . It 's new for me , but I 'm enjoying it . "
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The video begins with the sound of a ticking clock and Levine and Rihanna sitting opposite each other at a table , tapping their hands and staring at one and other . As the songs audio begins to play , band members of Maroon 5 start to play their instruments as Rihanna sits and watches them . The table and band scenes are intercut with each other for the first verse and chorus . For the second verse , Levine and Rihanna appear to argue and try to ignore the other 's advances . Rihanna lays suggestively on a bed while Levine sits on a chair with his head turned in the opposite direction for the bridge . For the final chorus , the pair appear to reconcile , ending with Levine finally giving in to his temptations and walk to the end of the table where Rihanna sits and he caresses her neck causing Rihanna to lean towards him seductively and the two nearly kiss as the video ends . The video was made available to download digitally via iTunes on May 12 , 2008 .
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Recording
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Recorded at Conway Studios , Hollywood , CA ; Glenwood Place Studios , Burbank , CA ; Phantom Studios , Westlake Village , CA ; House of Blues Studios , Encino , CA and Henson Studios , Hollywood , CA .
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Mixed at Scream Studios , Miami , FL .
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Personnel
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Credits adapted from the liner notes of Good Girl Gone Bad : Reloaded , Def Jam Recordings .
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Yoko Shimomura ( 下村 陽子 , Shimomura Yōko , born October 19 , 1967 ) is a Japanese video game composer and pianist . Shimomura has worked in the video game industry ever since graduating from the Osaka College of Music in 1988 . From then until 1993 , she worked for Capcom , where she composed wholly or in part the scores for 16 games , including Final Fight and Street Fighter II : The World Warrior .
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From 1993 until 2002 , Shimomura worked for Square , where she composed for a further eight games . While working for Square , she was best known for her work on the soundtrack for Kingdom Hearts , which was her last game for the company before leaving . Starting with Mario & Luigi : Superstar Saga in 2003 , she began working as an active freelancer .
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Her works have gained a great deal of popularity , and have been performed in multiple video game music concerts , including one , Sinfonia Drammatica , that was focused half on her " greatest hits " album , Drammatica : The Very Best of Yoko Shimomura , and half on the music of a previous concert . Music from several of her games have been published as arranged albums , or as piano scores .
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Shimomura was born on October 19 , 1967 , in Hyōgo Prefecture , Japan . She developed an interest for music at a young age , and started taking piano lessons " at the age of four or five " . She began composing her own music by playing the piano randomly and pretending to compose , eventually coming up with her own pieces , the first of which she claims to still remember how to play . Shimomura attended Osaka College of Music , and graduated as a piano major in 1988 .
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Upon graduation , Shimomura intended to become a piano instructor and was extended a job offer to become a piano teacher at a music store , but as she had been an avid gamer for many years she decided to send some samples of her work to various video game companies that were recruiting at the university . Capcom invited her in for an audition and interview , and she was offered a job there . Her family and instructors were dismayed with her change in focus , as video game music was not well respected , and " they had paid [ her ] tuition for an expensive music school and couldn 't understand why [ she ] would accept such a job " , but Shimomura accepted the job at Capcom anyway .
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While working for Capcom , Shimomura contributed to the soundtracks of over 16 games , including the successful Street Fighter II : The World Warrior , which she composed all but three pieces for . The first soundtrack she worked on at the company was for Samurai Sword in 1988 . Final Fight , in 1989 , was her first work to receive a separate soundtrack album release , on an album of music from several Capcom games . The first soundtrack album to exclusively feature her work came a year later for the soundtrack to Street Fighter II . While she began her tenure at Capcom working on games for video game consoles , by 1990 she had moved to the arcade game division . She was a member of the company 's in @-@ house band Alph Lyla , which played various Capcom game music , including pieces written by Shimomura . She performed live with the group on a few occasions , including playing piano during Alph Lyla 's appearance at the 1992 Game Music Festival .
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In 1993 , Shimomura left Capcom to join another game company , Square ( now Square Enix ) . She stated that the move was done because she was interested in writing " classical @-@ style " music for fantasy role @-@ playing games . While working for Capcom , she was in the arcade department and was unable to transfer to the console department to work on their role @-@ playing video game series Breath of Fire , although she did contribute one track to the first game in the series . Her first project at the company was the score for the role @-@ playing video game Live A Live in 1994 . While she was working on the score to Super Mario RPG the following year , she was asked to join Noriko Matsueda on the music to the futuristic strategy RPG Front Mission . Although she was overworked doing both scores and it was not the genre that she was interested in , she found herself unable to refuse after her first attempt to do so unexpectedly happened in the presence of the president of Square , Tetsuo Mizuno . These games were followed by Tobal No. 1 , the last score she worked on with another composer for a decade .
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Over the next few years , she composed the soundtrack to several games , including Parasite Eve and Legend of Mana . Of all her compositions , Shimomura considers the soundtrack to Legend of Mana the one that best expresses herself and the soundtrack remains Shimomura 's personal favourite . Parasite Eve on the PlayStation had the first soundtrack by Shimomura that included a vocal song , as it was the first game she had written for running on a console system that had the sound capability for one . In 2002 she wrote the score for Kingdom Hearts , which she has said is the most " special " soundtrack to her , as well as a turning point in her career ; she named the soundtracks to Street Fighter II and Super Mario RPG as the other two significant points in her life as a composer .
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Kingdom Hearts was wildly successful , shipping more than four million copies worldwide ; Shimomura 's music was frequently cited as one of the highlights of the game , and the title track has been ranked as the fourth @-@ best role @-@ playing game title track of all time . The soundtrack has led to two albums of piano arrangements . Kingdom Hearts was the last soundtrack that she worked on at Square . After the release of Kingdom Hearts in 2002 , Shimomura left Square for maternity leave , and began work as a freelancer in 2003 . She has built on the work she did while at Square ; since leaving she has composed or is composing music for eleven Kingdom Hearts games and Nintendo 's Mario & Luigi series . She has also worked on many other projects , such as Heroes of Mana and various Premium Arrange albums . On February 10 and 11 , 2014 , Shimomura played piano at a retrospective 25th anniversary concert at Tokyo FM Hall . She performed songs from games such as Kingdom Hearts , Live a Live , and Street Fighter II . During the Beware the Forest 's Mushrooms performance from Super Mario RPG , Shimomura was joined onstage by fellow game composer Yasunori Mitsuda , who played the Irish bouzouki . She is currently working on the scores for Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts III .
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After composing soundtracks to over 45 different games , Shimomura has become one of the biggest names in video game music composition , and has been described as " the most famous female video game music composer in the world " . In March 2008 , Shimomura 's best works compilation album Drammatica : The Very Best of Yoko Shimomura was released containing her compositions from Kingdom Hearts and other games in a full orchestrated score . It includes music from Final Fantasy XV , Live A Live , Kingdom Hearts , Front Mission , Legend of Mana , and Heroes of Mana ; Shimomura has stated that she chose music that was popular among fans and well @-@ suited for orchestration , but had never been performed by an orchestra . In a 2008 interview with Music4Games regarding the project , Shimomura commented that with the sheet music generated for the project , she would be interested in pursuing a live performance of Drammatica for fans if the opportunity arose . On March 19 , 2009 that wish was realized when it was announced that Arnie Roth would conduct the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra at the concert Sinfonia Drammatica in the Stockholm Concert Hall , which would combine music from the album with performances of Chris Hülsbeck 's Symphonic Shades concert . The concert took place on August 4 , 2009 . On March 27 , 2007 , Shimomura released her first non @-@ video game album , Murmur , an album of vocal songs sung by Chata .
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Shimomura 's music for Kingdom Hearts made up one fourth of the music of the Symphonic Fantasies concerts in September 2009 , which were produced by the creators of the Symphonic Game Music Concert series and conducted by Arnie Roth . Legend of Mana 's title theme was also performed by the Australian Eminence Symphony Orchestra for its classical gaming music concert A Night in Fantasia 2007 .
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Music from the original soundtrack of Legend of Mana was arranged for the piano and published by DOREMI Music Publishing . Two compilation books of music from the series have also been published as Seiken Densetsu Best Collection Piano Solo Sheet Music first and second editions , with the second including Shimomura 's tracks from Legend of Mana . All songs in each book have been rewritten by Asako Niwa as beginning to intermediate level piano solos , though they are meant to sound as much like the originals as possible . Additionally , piano sheet music from Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II has been published as music books by Yamaha Music Media .
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Shimomura 's first dedicated concert performance outside Japan was held at the Salle Cortot in Paris on November 7 , 2015 . Later that month , on November 28 , she performed at the El Plaza Condesa in Mexico City .
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Shimomura lists Ludwig van Beethoven , Frédéric Chopin , and Maurice Ravel as some of her influences on her personal website . She has also stated that she has enjoyed " lounge @-@ style jazz " for a long time . Despite these influences and her classical training , the diverse musical styles that she has used throughout her career and sometimes in the same soundtrack include " rock , electronica , oriental , ambient , industrial , pop , symphonic , operatic , chiptune , and more " . She draws inspiration for her songs from things in her life that move her emotionally , which she describes as " a beautiful picture , scenery , tasting something delicious , scents that bring back memories , happy and sad things ... Anything that moves my emotion gives me inspiration " . Shimomura has also stated that she comes up with most of her songs when she is doing something that is " not part of [ her ] daily routine , like traveling . " Although her influences are mostly classical , she has said that in her opinion her " style has changed dramatically over the years , though the passion for music stays the same . " Shimomura has said that she believes that an important part of " the creative process behind music " is to " convey a subtle message , something that comes from your imagination and sticks with the listener , without being overly specific about what it means " , rather than only writing simple themes with obvious messages . Her favorite track that she has ever composed is " Dearly Beloved " from Kingdom Hearts .
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Composition
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Arrangement
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F @-@ 1 Dream ( PC Engine ) ( 1989 ) – original music by Manami Matsumae
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