Ryan's Hope

Ryan's Hope is an American soap opera created by Claire Labine and Paul Avila Mayer, originally airing for 13 years on ABC from July 7, 1975 to January 13, 1989. It revolves around the trials and tribulations within a large Irish-American family in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City.

Origins

In late 1974, ABC Daytime approached Claire Labine and Paul Avila Mayer, the head writers of CBS' Love of Life, about creating a new soap opera similar to General Hospital. Labine and Mayer added a large Irish-American family — the Ryans — to what ABC was initially calling City Hospital. Another of the show's working titles was "A Rage to Love," but that was soon changed. A pub theme originated with Mayer's and Labine's work on the earlier soap Where The Heart Is: "On WTHI we had had a prolonged sequence with two characters who were having an affair... on the other side of town in a small Irish bar."

Ryan's Hope (band)

Ryan's Hope is an American punk rock band from Joliet, Illinois, formed in 2000. They are known for blending heavy metal style instrumentals with punk rock. The band cites the Smoking Popes, Green Day, The Misfits, Snapcase, The Living End, The Ramones, The Mr T Experience, Dropkick Murphys, and Metallica as their influences.

History

The band formed in 2000 as a five piece hardcore outfit dubbed Bound. When that band fell apart, bassist Nick Mclenighan and guitarists Terry Morrow and Greg Alltop reformed as a more melodic rock band (with Alltop becoming the band's drummer and Morrow assuming vocal duties). The group's sound shows the influence of bands such as Bad Religion, the Alkaline Trio and the Smoking Popes.

The band has been mentored by Dan Precision, a guitarist who played in popular punk acts 88 Fingers Louie, Rise Against and Break The Silence. The band made early recordings at Precision's Bombshelter studio in Chicago in 2002 and 2003, completing their first proper full-length LP The Trials of Recession in February 2004. It was released on Double Zero Records, an outfit run by Mike Felumlee, former drummer of Chicago groups the Smoking Popes and Alkaline Trio. The band signed with upstart label Punknews Records in 2005 and released their second full length Apocalypse In Increments on April 11, 2006. The record was again produced by Dan Precision.

Ovation Brands

Ovation Brands, Inc., with a corporate support center in Eagan, Minnesota, is a company that owns several American national chains of buffet restaurants. Prior to October 30, 2013, the company was named Buffets, Inc.

In January 2008, predecessor company Buffets, Inc. and its affiliated companies operated at least 626 restaurants in 39 states. As of May 2013, the company had 347 restaurants in 35 states.

Their restaurants are now known as "Country Buffet", "Old Country Buffet", and "HomeTown Buffet".

History

The company was founded by Roe Hatlen and C. Dennis Scott in 1983 along with Dermot Rowland and Doron Jensen. Lisa, the first receptionist, started working on June 10, 1985. Rowland and Jensen left in 1986 to start Homestyle Buffet in Clearwater, Florida. Scott left in 1989 to start HomeTown, but the two chains merged in September 1996. The current Chief Executive Officer is Greg Graber.

On November 1, 2006, Buffets Inc. acquired Ryan's Restaurant Group adding 340 Ryan's Grill Buffet and Bakery and Fire Mountain Grills locations.