Simonds Farsons Cisk

Simonds Farsons Cisk plc is a group of companies on the island of Malta engaged in the brewing, production and sale and distribution of beers and other beverages, the importation, wholesale and retail of food and beverages including wines and spirits, the operation of franchised food retailing establishments and property development.

Brewery History

Established in 1928, Farsons was the first brewery to be established on the island, in the town of Hamrun, near the capital city Valletta. The brewery's first beer was Farsons Pale Ale, brewed to meet the preferences of the British garrison and navy stationed in Malta at the time. In 1929, Farsons merged with the H.G Simonds brewery from Reading to establish Simonds Farsons Ltd.

In the same year and a short distance from the Farsons brewery, the Marquis John Scicluna, whose family had established the first privately owned local bank, opened the Malta Export Brewery. While Simonds Farsons Ltd had been granted the licence to brew ales, the Malta Export Brewery was granted a temporary exclusive licence to brew Bavarian-style lagers under the names Cisk Pilsner and Cisk Munchener.

Rube Goldberg

Reuben Garrett Lucius "Rube" Goldberg (July 4, 1883 – December 7, 1970) was an American cartoonist, sculptor, author, engineer, and inventor.

He is best known for a series of popular cartoons depicting complicated gadgets that perform simple tasks in indirect, convoluted ways, similar to Heath Robinson devices in the UK, as well as the Storm P devices in Denmark. Goldberg received many honors in his lifetime, including a Pulitzer Prize for his political cartooning in 1948 and the Banshees' Silver Lady Award in 1959.

Goldberg was a founding member and the first president of the National Cartoonists Society, and he is the namesake of the Reuben Award, which the organization awards to the Cartoonist of the Year. He is the inspiration for various international competitions, known as Rube Goldberg Machine Contests, which challenge participants to make a complicated machine to perform a simple task.

Personal life

Reuben Lucius Goldberg was born July 4, 1883, in San Francisco, California, to Jewish parents Max and Hannah (Cohen) Goldberg. He was the third of seven children, three of whom died as children (older brother Garrett, younger brother Walter, and younger sister Lillian also survived).