[ http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Twister_%28film%29&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: Main Characters - edit ] Main Characters

Jo Harding: The leader of her storm team. When she was five, Jo's father was killed in an F5 tornado because of a less-than-perfect warning system. Ever since then, she's dedicated her life to creating the advanced warning system. During the film she is in the process of divorcing from Bill Harding, but because she still loves him, she is hesitant to do so. Jo is dedicated and persistent in what she does.

Bill Harding: Jo's husband. He quit storm chasing to become a weatherman and has also gotten engaged to Melissa, a therapist, despite his divorce not yet finalized. Bill has a short fuse and always must have things his way. When he was a storm chaser, he was noted for being exceedingly reckless in his methods, being described as "the most out-of-control son of a **edited** in the game."

Melissa Reeves: Bill's soft-tempered and easily frightened fiancee. The storm chasing makes her uneasy around Bill.

Jonas Miller: Jo and Bill's rival chaser. Unlike Jo, Jonas has corporate sponsors and tends to chase for the publicity and money. Jonas is cocky and enjoys taunting Bill. Jonas is a scientist with 'no survival instincts' as said by Bill. This point is later proven in the film - as Jo and Bill continuously warn Jonas to drive away from the twister to which Jonas ignores causing his death.

Eddie: Jonas' reluctant assistant. Eddie is more reasonable than Jonas in several ways.

Aunt Meg: Jo's aunt. She is close to everyone in Jo's team and feeds them steak and eggs when they stop by. She is either a spinster or a widow, and she lives in Wakita with her dog, Moze.

Dustin 'Dusty' Davis: A member of Jo's chase team. The most extroverted and wise-cracking of the team, Dusty is the 'frat-boy' type. He drives a mini-bus called the "Barn Burner" and listens to loud music constantly.

Robert 'Rabbit' Nurick: A member of Jo's chase team. He acts as the navigator for when the group is chasing, and he is goofy but a little smart-alecky as well.

Sanders: A member of Jo's chase team. He is Rabbit's co-navigator.

Tim 'Beltzer' Lewis: A member of Jo's chase team. Beltzer is a lot like Bill in the fact that he has a short-fuse.

Haynes: A member of Jo's chase team. Haynes is the only other female on the team besides Jo. She is calm and quiet, but does have a wild side.

Jason 'Preacher' Rowe: A member of Jo's chase team. Preacher is the oldest member of the team. It is not certain what his role in the group is. He seems to enjoy continually speaking in pseudo-poetic verse.

Laurence: A member of Jo's chase team. Laurence is a nervous and quiet guy and is in charge of photographs and video when the group chases.

Joey: A member of Jo's chase team. He handles the Doppler and machinery.

[ http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Twister_%28film%29&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: Plot - edit ] Plot

In June of 1969, the film begins in a rural farm, as a http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Severe_thunderstorm" title="Severe thunderstorm - severe thunderstorm hits. (They did not feature any downpours of rain in the beginning, just threatening skies and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightning" title="Lightning - lightning .) Jo's father is watching a TV news report about a http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tornado_warning" title="Tornado warning - tornado warning for http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oklahoma_County%2C_Oklahoma" title="Oklahoma County, Oklahoma - Oklahoma County . His wife quickly awakens their daughter, Jo ( Played by http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spy_Kids" title="Spy Kids - Spy Kids Co-star http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexa_Vega" title="Alexa Vega - Alexa Vega ), and all 3 take off for the storm cellar as a tornado hits the family farm. As lightning flashes all around them, one bolt hits a tree; sending branches crashing to the ground and chickens running. Once inside, his daughter screams that the family dog named Toby (named after http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toto_%28dog%29" title="Toto dog - Toto ) is still outside, and Jo's father opens the cellar door just in time to let Toby in. As Jo's mother lights a candle, the twister makes a direct hit on the cellar. The twister turns out to be too powerful, and after a struggle, it rips the cellar door off—which takes Jo's father with it-into the vortex while Jo and her mother scream in horror. Daylight reveals that the tornado destroyed everything it touched (except some of Jo's family's possesions).

Many years after, the story revolves around two married storm chasers—Dr. Jo Harding (Hunt), now an adult, and her soon to be ex-husband Bill Harding (Paxton). As the film begins, Bill has gone into the fields of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oklahoma" title="Oklahoma - Oklahoma to find Jo and her team of storm chasers. Bill is a former weather researcher and storm chaser who has taken a job as a weather reporter and is about to marry his new girlfriend, Dr. Melissa Reeves ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jami_Gertz" title="Jami Gertz - Jami Gertz ), a Reproductive Therapist. Bill is seeking Jo’s signature for the final divorce papers.

When they meet, Bill discovers that Jo has built DOROTHY(named after http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorothy_Gale" title="Dorothy Gale - Dorothy Gale ), a device that Bill invented. DOROTHY is designed to release hundreds of sensors into the center of a tornado to study its structure. He also meets up with Dr. Jonas Miller ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cary_Elwes" title="Cary Elwes - Cary Elwes ), a smug fellow meteorologist and storm chaser. Miller is a savvy fund raiser but has little instinct for field work and has questionable professional scruples. When Bill discovers that Jonas has “invented” a device almost identical to DOROTHY called D.O.T. 3, Bill is enraged and vows to deploy DOROTHY before Miller can claim credit for his idea.

Bill joins Jo and her eccentric team of storm chasers, which includes Dustin 'Dusty' Davis ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Seymour_Hoffman" title="Philip Seymour Hoffman - Philip Seymour Hoffman ) and Robert 'Rabbit' Nurick ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Ruck" title="Alan Ruck - Alan Ruck ). Jo's team enjoys the thrill of the chase, but to Jo it's more than that, as she is seeking to understand the thing that took her father. If the team is successful, DOROTHY will help increase warning times and save lives.

Tensions rise between Jo and Bill when they have several close calls with dangerous tornadoes as they try to implement the new device. Through these ordeals, it becomes obvious to everyone but them that they still have strong feelings for one another. | Jo's team stops in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canton%2C_Oklahoma" title="Canton, Oklahoma - Canton, Oklahoma for the night. An http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tornado" title="Tornado - F4 twister hits the town while they are in a http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drive-in" title="Drive-in - drive-in movie theater watching http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shining_%28film%29" title="The Shining film - The Shining . The squad doesn't have time to prepare for it so they seek refuge in a metal garage building. The garage takes a hard sideswipe from the tornado, which leaves the building severely damaged, and "Preacher" injured when he is struck in the head by an airborne http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hubcap" title="Hubcap - hubcap . Melissa is too frightened by it and decides to leave Bill since she does not want to go through it. The powerful F4 tornado next moves on to the town of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wakita%2C_Oklahoma" title="Wakita, Oklahoma - Wakita, Oklahoma , where Jo's Aunt Meg ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lois_Smith" title="Lois Smith - Lois Smith ) and her dog Moz live, wrecking her house and injuring her and many others.

The team then attacks their goal with even more fervor, wanting to succeed to prevent more injuries and deaths. They modify the sensors with an idea inspired by the windmill sculptures that Aunt Meg had in her front yard, by cutting up aluminum cans to create wings on each sensor so the tornado will pick them up more effectively. Soon, hot on the trail of another tornado, they next witness Jonas and his driver Eddie ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zach_Grenier" title="Zach Grenier - Zach Grenier ) drive right next to an F5 tornado. Jo and Bill try to warn Jonas that the tornado might shift its track and come at them, but Jonas won't listen. Sure enough, Bill's prediction proves to be true as the tornado changes course. A section of a radio tower antenna from the tornado flies right through the truck's windshield, and flies into the window. The twister then sucks the truck up. After a few moments of hovering in the air, the truck crashes back into the ground and explodes, killing Jonas and Eddie.

Jo and Bill decide that they will have to come dangerously close to the tornado in order to successfully release the sensors. They successfully release the sensors into the tornado, but to avoid DOROTHY being blown away too early they leave it strapped to the back of the truck to increase the weight and jump out, leaving the truck on cruise control. The idea works, but they lose their truck in the process. Suddenly, seeming alive, the tornado comes in their direction, and while running they take cover from the tornado in a farm pumphouse, tied to a water pipe by leather http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flat_belt" title="Flat belt - drive belts . After the tornado passes, Jo and Bill kiss, and the team begins to get the results they were hoping for, proving that DOROTHY was a success. The film ends with a retreating wideshot showing the damage path of the tornado, with only a farmhouse near where Bill and Jo took shelter remaining standing.

[ http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Twister_%28film%29&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: Cast - edit ] Cast

[ http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Twister_%28film%29&action=edit&section=4" title="Edit section: Theme park attraction - edit ] Theme park attraction

Twister... Ride It Out is an attraction located at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Studios_Florida" title="Universal Studios Florida - Universal Studios Florida . It is based on the 1996 blockbuster film staring http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helen_Hunt" title="Helen Hunt - Helen Hunt and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Paxton" title="Bill Paxton - Bill Paxton . The attraction takes guests to a small mock-up of the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oklahoma" title="Oklahoma - Oklahoma town of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wakita" title="Wakita - Wakita . Video monitors show home movies of tornadoes shot, and signs carry information about the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fujita_Scale" title="Fujita Scale - Fujita Scale .

As guests walk into the "Twister filming center", Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt talk about filming the movie. As soon as they are done, guests walk into a new room which is a square model of Aunt Meg's house after the twister. When guests walk into the kitchen, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television" title="Television - televisions are stuck into the wall, supposedly by force. Bill and Helen appear on the TV and talk about what is ahead. The moment they finish, guests walk into a scene, resembling the Drive-In scene in the movie. Suddenly, sirens go off, scenes from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shining_%28film%29" title="The Shining film - The Shining (which is being shown at the drive-in in the movie) appear on the screen, and then winds in the room get stronger. All of a sudden, a tornado drops from the sky, sprinklers turn on and a tree is split in half by http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightning" title="Lightning - lightning . Guests suddenly notice handlebars and grab on. Soon, the tornado wrecks the Screen, the food station, the car, and makes a thrilling effect with fire. As the storm dies, the stage drops, giving guests a final scare to remember the tornado's fury. There is a giftshop at the end named Aftermath.

[ http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Twister_%28film%29&action=edit&section=5" title="Edit section: Trivia - edit ] Trivia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Broom_icon.svg" class="image" title="Broom icon.svg">

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Trivia_sections" title="Wikipedia:Trivia sections - Trivia sections are discouraged under http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Policies_and_guidelines" title="Wikipedia:Policies and guidelines - Wikipedia guidelines . The article could be improved by http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Handling_trivia#Recommendations_for_handling_trivia" title="Wikipedia:Handling trivia - integrating relevant items and removing http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:What_Wikipedia_is_not" title="Wikipedia:What Wikipedia is not - inappropriate ones.

• The DOROTHY instrument in the film is loosely based on a real-life experiment that http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NOAA" title="NOAA - NOAA attempted in the 1980s with an instrument called the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TOtable_Tornado_Observatory" title="TOtable Tornado Observatory - TOtable Tornado Observatory , or TOTO. It was designed to be placed in the path of an oncoming tornado where various measurements could be taken. However, TOTO was ultimately unsuccessful and it was retired in 1987.^{[ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed - citation needed ]}
• A very young http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexa_Vega" title="Alexa Vega - Alexa Vega , co-star of the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spy_Kids" title="Spy Kids - Spy Kids films, plays Helen Hunt's character when she was little in the prologue. (The establishing caption at the start of the prologue reads 'JUNE 1969', and young Jo is confirmed as being '5 years old' in the closing credits.)
• Working titles for the film were Catch The Wind and Wind Devils.^{[ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed - citation needed ]}
• This movie features 2 tracks "associated" with Van Halen: the instrumental " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Respect_the_Wind" title="Respect the Wind - Respect the Wind " (performed by http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddie_Van_Halen" title="Eddie Van Halen - Eddie Van Halen and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_Van_Halen" title="Alex Van Halen - Alex Van Halen ) and a band track called " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humans_Being" title="Humans Being - Humans Being ". The former is the only song on which the elder of the two brothers, Alex, has worked on something without the band http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Van_Halen" title="Van Halen - Van Halen throughout his entire career (The song was credited to Eddie and Alex Van Halen).^{[ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed - citation needed ]}. Incidentally, the second song was the last one recorded with vocalist http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sammy_Hagar" title="Sammy Hagar - Sammy Hagar before his acrimonious exit from the band in 1996.
• A joint production between http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warner_Bros." title="Warner Bros. - Warner Bros. and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Pictures" title="Universal Pictures - Universal Pictures , which is why the movies on the drive-in marquee are http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shining_%28film%29" title="The Shining film - The Shining , a Warner Bros. release, and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psycho_%281960_film%29" title="Psycho 1960 film - Psycho , a Universal owned production.
• The original tagline for the movie was "It Sucks", but the producers ultimately decided to go in a different direction, thinking that this tagline would provide critics with ammunition if they didn't like the movie. The tagline that was eventually agreed upon was "The Dark Side of Nature".^{[ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed - citation needed ]}
• The movie received a PG-13 rating for "intense depiction of very bad weather".
• Many references were made incorrectly to the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fujita_Scale" title="Fujita Scale - Fujita Scale . For instance, the weatherman in the beginning of the movie (a flashback scene that is supposed to be to 1969 – see later errors) made reference to an F5 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tornado" title="Tornado - tornado . This is a mistake; the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fujita_Scale" title="Fujita Scale - Fujita Scale was not introduced until 1971.
• In several occasions during the movie, the storm chasers estimate a tornado's intensity while it is occurring. In reality, a tornado's intensity was only able to be measured by the damage it left behind, generally after ground and aerial surveys were conducted by the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Weather_Service" title="National Weather Service - National Weather Service , which used to take weeks to complete. While meteorologists now are able to more accurately predict tornados' intensities as they are occurring, in 1996 this was not feasible. A tornado's intensity could be determined by considering its size, speed, and debris cloud, but such predictions were just ballpark guesses.
• The sound of the tornado was produced by recording a camel's moan and slowing it down. ^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twister_%28film%29#_note-0" title=" - [1]}
• Several actual television http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meteorology" title="Meteorology - meteorologists from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oklahoma" title="Oklahoma - Oklahoma are featured throughout the movie. In the film's http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prologue" title="Prologue - prologue , http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gary_England" title="Gary England - Gary England of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KWTV" title="KWTV - KWTV -9 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oklahoma_City%2C_Oklahoma" title="Oklahoma City, Oklahoma - Oklahoma City can be seen on a small television in actual footage from the early http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1970s" title="1970s - 1970s . He can also be heard later in the movie reporting over the radio, and even delivering his (locally) famous closing http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tagline" title="Tagline - tagline , "Stay with News 9; we'll keep you advised." Gary also served as a http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technical_advisor" title="Technical advisor - technical advisor on the film. Former http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KFOR-TV" title="KFOR-TV - KFOR -4 Oklahoma City (and later http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KJRH" title="KJRH - KJRH -2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tulsa%2C_Oklahoma" title="Tulsa, Oklahoma - Tulsa ) meteorologist Jeff Lazalier is seen on television interviewing http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cary_Elwes" title="Cary Elwes - Cary Elwes 's character, Jonas Miller, during the meal scene at Aunt Meg's. Soon after, Rick Mitchell, Chief Meteorologist at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KOCO" title="KOCO - KOCO -5 Oklahoma City can also be heard giving a weather report over the radio. (On a related note: in the film's prologue the year is given as http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1969" title="1969 - 1969 , however, Gary England did not actually work as a meteorologist until http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1972" title="1972 - 1972 .)^{[ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed - citation needed ]} Mike Morgan also of KFOR was also briefly seen.
• Sega Pinball released a pinball machine based on this movie. ^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twister_%28film%29#_note-1" title=" - [2]}
• On May 21st, 1996, a tornado destroyed a http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drive-in_theater" title="Drive-in theater - Drive-in theater in St. Catharine's, Ontario which was scheduled to show the movie Twister. An Associated Press article titled http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=BG&p_theme=bg&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EADDC4B7A93E4D0&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM" class="external text" title="http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=BG&p_theme=bg&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EADDC4B7A93E4D0&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM" rel="nofollow - "TORNADO DESTROYS 'TWISTER" THEATER' was published in the Boston Globe on May 22nd, 1996. Snopes.com reports that the facts of this incident were exaggerated into an urban legend that the theatre was actually playing Twister during the tornado. Comedian http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Saget" title="Bob Saget - Bob Saget claims he was on his way to see the movie at this St. Catharines drive-in when the real thing hit. ^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twister_%28film%29#_note-2" title=" - [3]}
• The twister in the first destruction scene was a replica made of the one used to suck up Dorothy in the Wizard of OZ. On the widescreen DVD release of the film you can see her house being pulled up into the sky by the tornado.
• The movie http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Wars" title="Star Wars - Star Wars is referenced when a character exclaims, "That's no moon, it's a space station!" in regards to a tornado confirmation.
• While chasing the "sister" tornado the scene is supposed to take place on a muddy land bridge. However through the window of the truck you can clearly see that they are on a highway and can even see oncoming traffic pass.
• During the chase after the confrontation between Bill and Jonas, the beginning of the guitar solo portion of the song " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_in_Time" title="Child in Time - Child in Time " by http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deep_Purple" title="Deep Purple - Deep Purple is played as Dusty screams "The wonder of nature baby!". However, the video screen inside the car shows footage from Deep Purple's performance at the California Jam in 1974, featuring the MK III incarnation of the band, which NEVER performed this song live.
• After the final tornado tosses a tanker-truck onto the road, and it explodes, Bill and Jo escape the fire. But within the flames, there is an open door with a green exit sign above it.
• When they are trying to out-drive the F5 tornado, it begins to throw farm equipment onto the road. When a combine harvester lands on the road in front of the truck, Bill hits the extended auger and it shatters the passenger-side of the windshield. But in the next cut to the truck, the windshield is perfectly fine.
• the Original Motion Picture Score by Mark Mancina is considered a Collector's Item and is very difficult to find.
• During the summer run of Twister, an F3 tornado touched down in Bullitt County, Kentucky, causing major damage to some areas outside of Shepherdsville, Kentucky. The resulting disaster and local news coverage managed to boost interest in the film and its box office intake.

[ http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Twister_%28film%29&action=edit&section=6" title="Edit section: References - edit ] References

[ http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Twister_%28film%29&action=edit&section=7" title="Edit section: External links - edit ] External links

• http://movies.warnerbros.com/twister/" class="external text" title="http://movies.warnerbros.com/twister/" rel="nofollow - Official site for the film
• http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0117998/" class="external text" title="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0117998/" rel="nofollow - Twister at the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_Movie_Database" title="Internet Movie Database - Internet Movie Database
• http://www.twistercountry.com/" class="external text" title="http://www.twistercountry.com/" rel="nofollow - Twister Museum http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wakita%2C_Oklahoma" title="Wakita, Oklahoma - Wakita, Oklahoma
• http://www.jaydax.co.uk/showcase/tunnel/tornado/tornado.html" class="external text" title="http://www.jaydax.co.uk/showcase/tunnel/tornado/tornado.html" rel="nofollow - Hear the theme song

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[ http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Toaster&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: Toaster types - edit ] Toaster types

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Light_fitting_plug_with_toaster.jpg" class="image" title="Toaster with light-fitting plug ca.1909.">

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Light_fitting_plug_with_toaster.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge">

Toaster with light-fitting plug ca.1909.

Modern toasters are typically one of three varieties: pop-up toasters, toaster http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oven" title="Oven - ovens and conveyor toasters.

In pop-up or automatic toasters, bread slices are inserted vertically into slots (generally only large enough to admit a single slice of bread) on the top of the toaster. A lever on the side of the toaster is depressed, activating the toaster. When an internal device determines that the toasting cycle is complete, the toaster turns off and the toast pops up out of the slots. The heating elements of a pop-up toaster are usually oriented vertically, parallel to the bread slice - although there are some variations.

In earlier days, the completion of the toasting operation was determined by a mechanical clockwork timer; the user could adjust the running time of the timer to determine the degree of "doneness" of the toast, but the first cycle produced less toasted toast than subsequent cycles because the toaster was not yet warmed up. Toasters made since the 1940s frequently use a thermal http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sensor" title="Sensor - sensor , such as a bimetallic strip, located in close proximity to the toast. This allows the first cycle to run longer than subsequent cycles. The thermal device is also slightly responsive to the actual temperature of the toast itself. Like the timer, it can be adjusted by the user to determine the doneness of the toast.

By comparison, toaster ovens are small electric ovens with a door on one side and a tray within. To toast bread with a toaster oven, one lays down slices of bread horizontally on the tray, closes the door, and activates the toaster, usually by means of a lever. When the toast is done, the toaster turns off, but the door must be opened manually. Most toaster ovens are significantly larger than toasters, but are capable of performing most of the functions of electric ovens, albeit on a much smaller scale. They can be used to cook toast with toppings, like garlic bread or cheese, though they tend to produce drier toast and require longer operating times, since their heating elements are located further from the toast (to allow larger items to be cooked). They may also heat less evenly than either toasters or larger electric ovens, and some glass cookware cannot be used in them.

Conveyer toasters are designed to make many slices of toast and are generally used in the catering industry, being suitable for large-scale use. Bread is toasted 350-800 slices an hour, making conveyor toasters ideal for a large restaurant that is constantly busy with growing demand. However, such devices have occasionally been produced for home use as far back as 1938, when the Toast-A-Lator went into limited production.

As with so many home appliances, more elaborate toasters and toaster ovens now utilize computer-controlled mechanisms in place of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electromechanics" title="Electromechanics - electromechanical controls. Toasters are usually freestanding, counter-top appliances, although some toaster ovens may be hung beneath cabinets.

Sometimes toast gets stuck in a toaster, particularly pop-up toasters, and must be freed manually. As most toasters are in the kitchen, metal knives and forks are typically an easily available tool but are inadvisable to use, due to the risk of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_shock" title="Electric shock - electric shock , unless the appliance is disconnected from the mains.

[ http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Toaster&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: History of toasters - edit ] History of toasters

Prior to the development of the electric toaster, sliced bread was toasted by placing it in a metal frame and holding it over a http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire" title="Fire - fire or by holding it near to a fire using a long handled fork.

Utensils for toasting bread over open flames go back at least 200 years. Toasters for bread using electricity were invented by Crompton and Company, Leeds, England in 1893. ^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toaster#_note-0" title=" - [1]} The technology that makes electric toasters possible, a http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nichrome" title="Nichrome - nichrome wire that can endure high heat, has existed for a long time. At least two other brands of toasters had been introduced commercially around the time http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Electric" title="General Electric - GE submitted the first patent application for their model D-12 in 1909. ^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toaster#_note-1" title=" - [2]}

In 1913 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lloyd_Groff_Copeman" title="Lloyd Groff Copeman - Lloyd Groff Copeman and his wife Hazel Berger Copeman applied for various toaster patents and in that same year the Copeman Electric Stove Company introduced the toaster with automatic bread turner. ^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toaster#_note-lloydcopeman" title=" - [3]} The company also produced the "toaster that turns toast." Before this, electric toasters cooked bread on one side and then it was flipped by hand to toast the other side. Copeman's toaster turned the bread around without having to touch it. ^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toaster#_note-2" title=" - [4]} Copeman also invented the first http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_stove" title="Electric stove - electric stove and the rubber (flexible) ice cube tray. ^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toaster#_note-lloydcopeman" title=" - [3]}

The next development was the semi-automatic toaster, which turned off the heating element automatically after the bread toasted, using either a clockwork mechanism or a bimetallic strip. However, the toast was still manually lowered and raised from the toaster via a lever mechanism.

The automatic pop-up toaster, which ejects the toast after toasting it, was first patented by http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Strite" title="Charles Strite - Charles Strite in 1919. In 1925, using a redesigned version of Strite's toaster, the Waters Genter Company introduced the Model 1-A-1 Toastmaster, ^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toaster#_note-3" title=" - [5]} the first automatic pop-up, household toaster that could brown bread on both sides simultaneously, set the heating element on a timer, and eject the toast when finished. By 1950, some high-end U.S. toasters featured automatic toast lowering and raising, with no levers to operate - simply dropping the slices into the machine commenced the toasting procedure.

Significant ultramodern chrome designs were the Sunbeam T-9 "Half-Round" or "World's Fair" toaster, designed by http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scharfenberg" title="Scharfenberg - George Scharfenberg and introduced in 1939, and the General Electric 139T81, produced in quantity from 1946. ^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toaster#_note-4" title=" - [6]} Automatic electric toasters were very much a luxury item, with the better models costing up to $25 in 1939 (approximately $360 in 2006 dollars). Most toasters produced from the late 1930s through 1960 are generally considered to be of the highest standard in workmanship and material quality; many were built well enough to last for decades. Due to their aesthetic popularity, some of the classic toaster designs from the 1940s and 1950s are now being reintroduced into the market, though these reproductions for the most part are not constructed to the high standard of the original designs.

More recent additions to toaster technology include wider toasting slots for bagels and thick breads, the ability to toast frozen breads, and a single-side heating mode. Most toasters can also be used to toast other foods such as teacakes, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pop_Tarts" title="Pop Tarts - Pop Tarts , and crumpets, though the addition of melted butter and/or sugar to the interior components of automatic electric toasters often contributes to eventual mechanical or electrical failure.

Toasters can be modified to print images and logos on bread slices.

[ http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Toaster&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: High-tech toasters - edit ] High-tech toasters

There have been a number of projects adding advanced technology to toasters.

In 1990 Simon Hackett and John Romkey created The Internet Toaster, a toaster which could be controlled from the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet" title="Internet - Internet . ^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toaster#_note-tIn" title=" - [7]}

In 2001 Robin Southgate from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brunel_University" title="Brunel University - Brunel University in England created a toaster that could toast a graphic of the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weather_forecasting" title="Weather forecasting - weather prediction (limited to sunny or cloudy) onto a piece of toast. ^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toaster#_note-5" title=" - [8]} The toaster dials a pre-coded phone number to get the weather forecast. ^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toaster#_note-6" title=" - [9]}

In 2005, Technologic Systems, a vendor of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Embedded_systems" title="Embedded systems - embedded systems hardware, designed a toaster running the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NetBSD" title="NetBSD - NetBSD http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unix-like" title="Unix-like - Unix-like http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operating_system" title="Operating system - operating system as a sales demonstration system. ^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toaster#_note-7" title=" - [10]}

[ http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Toaster&action=edit&section=4" title="Edit section: Other uses of the word 'toaster' - edit ] Other uses of the word 'toaster'

• Toasters are commonly used as fictitious computer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peripheral" title="Peripheral - peripherals for http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Device_driver" title="Device driver - device driver sample http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Source_code" title="Source code - code ; for example, the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Windows" title="Microsoft Windows - Microsoft Windows Driver Development Kit includes a Toaster sample driver. ^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toaster#_note-8" title=" - [11]}
• The original http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Macintosh" title="Apple Macintosh - Apple Macintosh computer was sometimes referred to derogatorily as a http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beige_toaster" title="Beige toaster - beige toaster due to its lack of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooling_fan" title="Cooling fan - cooling fans .^{[ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed - citation needed ]}
• The http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commodore_1541" title="Commodore 1541 - Commodore 1541 floppy disk drive was also known among users as the "toaster", due to its internal power source which generated some heat.
• The term toaster is also used to refer to an email server via which users can retrieve their email using the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/POP3" title="POP3 - POP3 or http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IMAP" title="IMAP - IMAP protocols
• Toaster is slang for a recordable http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optical_disc" title="Optical disc - optical disc drive; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roxio_Toast" title="Roxio Toast - Roxio Toast is one program which works with such devices. The term http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coaster" title="Coaster - coaster toaster is also seen, particularly in reference to a drive with a high rate of recording errors.
• The New Zealand Railways EF Class ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NZR_EF_class" title="NZR EF class - NZR EF class ) locomotives are nicknamed toasters, probably due to the fact that they are currently the only electric locomotives in revenue service, and they have a very boxy shape.

[ http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Toaster&action=edit&section=5" title="Edit section: Toasters in popular culture - edit ] Toasters in popular culture

• A toaster is one of the main characters in the children's http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novella" title="Novella - novella http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Brave_Little_Toaster" title="The Brave Little Toaster - The Brave Little Toaster , which was made into http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Brave_Little_Toaster_%28film%29" title="The Brave Little Toaster film - a 1987 film .

• A toaster appears infrequently as a character in the British sci-fi comedy series http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Dwarf" title="Red Dwarf - Red Dwarf . Named http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Dwarf_characters#Talkie_Toaster" title="Red Dwarf characters - Talkie Toaster , it is obsessed with making http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toast" title="Toast - toast for the crewmembers much to their annoyance. He is eventually smashed to pieces with a 14 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pound_%28mass%29" title="Pound mass - lb hammer.

• Comedian http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heywood_Banks" title="Heywood Banks - Heywood Banks uses a metal toaster as a percussion instrument in his song entitled "Toast".

• Phil Conners, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Murray" title="Bill Murray - Bill Murray 's character in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groundhog_Day_%28film%29" title="Groundhog Day film - Groundhog Day , uses an electric toaster to commit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suicide" title="Suicide - suicide .

• In "The Puppy Episode" of the 1990s http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sitcom" title="Sitcom - sitcom http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ellen_%28TV_series%29" title="Ellen TV series - Ellen , a toaster oven is sardonically identified as the imaginary prize a http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lesbian" title="Lesbian - lesbian receives for "converting" a sufficient number of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heterosexual" title="Heterosexual - heterosexual women. The reference has since become a common joke in the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homosexuality" title="Homosexuality - gay community.

• One of the world's most famous screensavers shows http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_Toasters" title="Flying Toasters - Flying Toasters .

• In the 2003 version of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battlestar_Galactica_%28re-imagining%29" title="Battlestar Galactica re-imagining - Battlestar Galactica , the term "Toasters" is a derogatory reference to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cylon_%28Battlestar_Galactica%29" title="Cylon Battlestar Galactica - Cylons .

• In the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiny_Toon_Adventures" title="Tiny Toon Adventures - Tiny Toon Adventures episode " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prom-ise_Her_Anything" title="Prom-ise Her Anything - Prom-ise Her Anything ," http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montana_Max" title="Montana Max - Montana Max angrily declares that, on the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolution" title="Evolution - evolutionary chart, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elmyra_Duff" title="Elmyra Duff - Elmyra Duff ranks somewhere "between http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Head_cheese" title="Head cheese - head cheese and toaster ovens."

• In the Simpsons http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treehouse_of_Horror_V" title="Treehouse of Horror V - Treehouse of Horror V , Homer uses a modified toaster to travel back in time.

• In http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philips_Interactive_Media" title="Philips Interactive Media - Philips Interactive Media 's game http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotel_Mario" title="Hotel Mario - Hotel Mario for the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CD-i" title="CD-i - CD-i , there is a cut scene where Mario says "You know what they say, All toasters, toast toast.".