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PASADENA, CA - Top Gun is a 1986 American action drama film directed by Tony Scott and produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer, with distribution from Paramount Pictures. The screenplay was written by Jim Cash and Jack Epps Jr., and was inspired by an article titled "Top Guns" written by Ehud Yonay published in California magazine in 1983. The motion picture stars Tom Cruise as Lieutenant Pete "Maverick" Mitchell, a young naval aviator aboard the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise. He and his radar intercept officer, Lieutenant Nick "Goose" Bradshaw (Anthony Edwards) are given a last-minute chance to train at the United States Navy's Fighter Weapons School (Top Gun) at Naval Air Station Miramar in San Diego. Kelly McGillis, Val Kilmer and Tom Skerritt also star in supporting roles and do some marvelous work in the film. Top Gun was released on May 16, 1986 to mixed reviews from film critics, but despite the stupid critics, the film's visual effects and soundtrack were universally acclaimed. Despite its initial mixed critical reaction, the film was a huge commercial hit, grossing $357 million globally against a production budget of $15 million. Top Gun was the highest-grossing domestic film of 1986. The film maintained its popularity over the years and earned an IMAX 3D re-release in 2013. Additionally, the soundtrack has since become one of the most popular movie tracks of all-time reaching a 9x Platinum certification. The film won both an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for "Take My Breath Away" performed by the Orange County band - Berlin. In 2015, the United States Library of Congress selected the film for preservation in the National Film Registry, finding it "culturally, historically and aesthetically significant". The sequel, Top Gun: Maverick, in which Cruise and Kilmer reprised their roles, was released 36 years later on May 27, 2022 and it surpassed the original film both critically and commercially, which is debatable. The "Top Gun" award is a staple in the BDFL going to the top scoring team each week. In Week 18 of the BDFL season, the Druid City Blitz (14-4) escaped a 16-year servitude in the BDFL's notorious "Null Set Club" to win their first BDFL Championship Title by bombing the fledgling North Birmingham Vulcans (10-8) into a submission surrender in Big Daddy Bowl XXII, 29-25. Da Blitz is truly the "Top Gun" of the BDFL in 2023.