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| Coordinates | 34°5′24″N74°47′24″N |
|---|---|
| Name | Sly Stone |
| Background | solo_singer |
| Birth name | Sylvester Stewart |
| Born | March 15, 1943 Denton, Texas, United States |
| Instrument | Vocals, organ, guitar, bass guitar, piano, keyboards, harmonica |
| Genre | Funk, rock, soul, R&B; |
| Occupation | Singer, songwriter, musician, producer |
| Years active | 1952–present |
| Label | Epic Records, Warner Bros., Cleopatra |
| Associated acts | Sly & the Family Stone |
| Url | www.slystonebook.com |
Sylvester was identified as a musical prodigy from a young age. By the time he was seven Sylvester had already become proficient on the keyboards. By the age of eleven Sylvester had mastered the guitar, bass, and drums as well.
The name Sly was a common nickname for Sylvester throughout his years in grade school. A classmate misspelled his name Slyvester and ever since the nickname followed him. Epic requested more marketable output. The Black Panther Party demanded that Stone make his music more militant and more reflective of the black power movement,
After moving to the Los Angeles area in fall 1969, Stone and his bandmates became heavy users of illegal drugs, primarily cocaine and PCP. As the members became increasingly focused on drug use and partying (Stone carried a violin case filled with illegal drugs wherever he went), recording slowed significantly. Between summer 1969 and fall 1971, the band released only one single, "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)" / "Everybody Is a Star", released in December 1969. The former song was one of the first recordings to employ the heavy, funky beats that would be featured in the funk music of the following decade. It showcased bass player Larry Graham's innovative percussive playing technique of bass "slapping". Graham later said that he developed this technique in an earlier band in order to compensate for that band's lack of a drummer.
"Thank You" reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 in February 1970. The single also peaked at #5 on the R&B; chart and remained there for five weeks, while also remaining at #1 on the Pop chart for two weeks in the spring of 1970, before selling over a million copies.
In the fall of 1969, Stone moved from San Francisco to Los Angeles with his then girlfriend Deborah King, later Deborah Santana (wife of Carlos Santana from 1973 until filing for divorce in 2007). The band's fifth album, There's a Riot Goin' On (1971), reflected the turmoil. Most of Riot was recorded with overdubbing as opposed to The Family Stone all playing at the same time; Stone played most of the parts himself and performed more of the lead vocals than usual.
The band's cohesion slowly began to erode, and its sales and popularity began to decline as well. Errico withdrew from the group in 1971 and was eventually replaced with Andy Newmark. Larry Graham and Stone were no longer on friendly terms, and Graham was fired in early 1972 and replaced with Rustee Allen. The band's later releases, Fresh (1973) and Small Talk (1974), featured even less of the band and more of Stone.
Live bookings for Sly & the Family Stone had steadily dropped since 1970, because promoters were afraid that Stone or one of the band members might miss the gig, refuse to play, or pass out from drug use. These issues were regular occurrences for the band during the 1970s, and had an adverse effect on their ability to demand money for live bookings. In January 1975, the band booked itself at Radio City Music Hall. The famed music hall was only one-eighth occupied, and Stone and company had to scrape together money to return home. Following the Radio City engagement, the band was dissolved. Andy Newmark became a successful session drummer, playing with Roxy Music, B. B. King, Steve Winwood and others.
Stone did do a short tour with Bobby Womack in the summer of 1984, and he continued to make sporadic appearances on compilations and other artists' records. In 1986, Stone was featured on a track from The Time member Jesse Johnson's solo album Shockadelica called "Crazay". The music video featured Stone on keyboards and vocals, and received some airplay on the BET music network.
In 1987, Stone released a single, "Eek-a-Boo Static Automatic", from the Soul Man soundtrack. He also co-wrote and co-produced "Just Like A Teeter-Totter," which appeared on a Bar-Kays album from 1989.
In 1990, he gave an energetic vocal performance on the Earth, Wind and Fire song, "Good Time." In 1991, he appeared on a cover of "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)" performed by the Japanese band 13CATS. And he shared lead vocals with Bobby Womack on "When the Weekend Comes" from Womack's 1993 album I Still Love You. His last major public appearance until 2006 was during the 1993 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony where Stone showed up onstage to be entered into the Hall of Fame along with the Family Stone. In 2003, the other six members of the original Family Stone entered the studio to record a new album. Stone was invited to participate, but declined.
Stone reportedly lives near Beverly Hills or Napa Valley with two female assistants, where he records at a home studio and rides his motorcycle. A few home-studio recordings (most likely from the late 1980s) with Stone's voice and keyboards over a drum machine have made their way onto a bootleg. One Stone-penned demo called "Coming Back for More" appears to be autobiographical and includes the verse: "Been so high, I touched the sky and the sky says 'Sly, why you tryin' to get by?' Comin' back for more." His son, Sylvester Jr., told People Magazine in 1997 that his father had composed an album's worth of material, including a tribute to Miles Davis called "Miles and Miles."
On August 15, 2005, Stone drove his younger sister Vet Stone on his motorcycle to Los Angeles' Knitting Factory, where Vet was performing with her Sly & the Family Stone tribute band, the Phunk Phamily Affair. Stone kept his helmet on during the entire performance, and was described by one concertgoer as looking a little like Bootsy Collins. A film crew doing a documentary on Sly & the Family Stone was at the show and apparently captured this rare sighting on film. Stone, according to his web site, is producing and writing material for the group's new album. In addition, Stone renamed the group "Family Stone."
Friends and family say Stone continues to write songs and record in his home studio. Family Stone drummer Greg Errico told Rolling Stone in the March 2006 issue, "Sly's been calling two or three times a day lately, singing over the phone."
A new Stone instrumental can be heard at the artist's Web site. Stone's sister, Vet, said in a recent radio interview that the song will be recorded with vocals.
Ehrlich said Stone refused to leave his hotel room until he was given a police escort to the show and then waited in his car until the performance began.
A Sly & The Family Stone tribute album, Different Strokes By Different Folks, was released on July 12, 2005 by Starbucks' Hear Music label, and on February 7, 2006 by Epic Records. The project features both cover versions of the band's songs and songs which sample the original recordings. Among the artists for the set are The Roots ("Star", which samples "Everybody is a Star"), Maroon 5 and Ciara ("Everyday People"), John Legend, Joss Stone & Van Hunt ("Family Affair"), The Black Eyed Peas' will.i.am ("Dance to the Music"), and Steven Tyler, Joe Perry and Robert Randolph ("I Want to Take You Higher"). Epic Records' version of the tribute album, which included two additional covers ("Don't Call Me Nigger, Whitey" and "Thank You (Falletinme Be Mice Elf Agin)") was released in January 2006.
On April 1, 2007, Stone appeared with the Family Stone at the Flamingo Las Vegas Showroom, after George Wallace's standup act.
On July 7, 2007 Stone made a short appearance with the Family Stone at the San Jose, CA Summerfest. He sang "Sing a Simple Song" and "If You Want Me to Stay," and walked off stage before the end of "Higher." He wore a baseball cap, dark glasses, a white hooded sweatshirt, baggy pants and gold chains. Stone, who took the stage at about 8:45 p.m., cut the set short, in part, because the promoter was told that the show had to end by 9:00. The band began their set over 90 minutes late reportedly because the stage management was poor and the promoter's band played for 30 minutes longer than scheduled. Stone's 15-minute set came only after his sister, Vet, and the rest of the band performed for 35 minutes. As he exited the stage he told the audience near the front of the stage that he would return. He did return, but only to tell the crowd that the police were shutting down the show. While many blamed Stone for this incident, others believed that the promoter was at fault.
The same scenes were repeated at the Montreux Jazz Festival on July 13, 2007 with over half the sold-out venue walking out in disgust even earlier than his stage exit. The same happened again one day later at the Blue Note Records Festival in Ghent, Belgium. Here he left the stage after saying to the audience that "when waking up this morning he realized he was old, and so he needed to take a break now". He did the same again one day later, performing at the North Sea Jazz Festival.
As the tour progressed, however, Stone seemed to be more confident and animated, often dancing and engaging the audience. He performed "Stand", "I Want To Take You Higher", "Sing A Simple Song", "If You Want Me To Stay", and "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)", (which at one point morphed into "Thank you For Talkin' To Me Africa", a track rarely performed in public). But the show was marred by sound problems and the vocals were barely audible through much of the show. On October 17, 2008, Sly played with the Family Stone at the Wells Fargo Center for the Arts in Santa Rosa, CA. He played a 22 minute set and ventured offstage, telling the crowd "I gotta go take a piss. I'll be right back." He never returned. On Memorial Day, May 25, 2009, Stone re-emerged once again, granting an hour-long interview with KCRW-FM, a Los Angeles NPR affiliate, to discuss his life and career.
On August 18, 2009, The Guardian reported that a forthcoming documentary, Coming Back for More by Dutch director Willem Alkema, claims Stone was living on welfare and staying in cheap hotels and campervans. The film alleges that Stone's former manager, Jerry Goldstein, cut off his access to royalty payments following a dispute over a 'debt agreement', forcing Stone to depend on welfare payments.
On Labor Day, September 7, 2009, Stone emerged at the 20th annual African Festival of the Arts in Chicago, Ill. He performed a 15 minute set during George Clinton's Performance. He performed his popular hits along with George Clinton's band. He left immediately after his short performance.
On December 6, 2009, Sly signed a new recording contract with the LA based Cleopatra Records. A new album is expected sometime in 2010.
Category:African American musicians Category:African American singers Category:American soul musicians Category:American funk musicians Category:American funk singers Category:American male singers Category:African American rock musicians Category:American rock singers Category:American record producers Category:American singers Category:Songwriters from Texas Category:P-Funk members Category:People from the Dallas – Fort Worth Metroplex Category:Sly & the Family Stone members Category:Musicians from Texas Category:1943 births Category:Living people Category:Members of the Church of God in Christ
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| Coordinates | 34°5′24″N74°47′24″N |
|---|---|
| Name | Michael Delaney Dowd, Jr. |
| Birth date | August 11, 1925 |
| Birth place | Chicago, Illinois, United States |
| Death date | August 11, 2006 |
| Death place | Palm Beach Gardens, Florida |
| Occupation | Entertainer |
| Website | Official Website |
In 1950, he provided the singing voice of Prince Charming in Walt Disney's Cinderella.
In the 1950s Douglas, living in Burbank, California, tried to keep his singing career going, working as house singer for a nightclub and going on the road to stay busy. He preferred not to switch to rock and roll, which limited his opportunities as big band music was declining in popularity. In the leanest years, he and his wife survived by successfully "flipping" their Los Angeles homes.
Guests ranged from Truman Capote and Richard Nixon to The Rolling Stones, Herman's Hermits and Kiss, with an occasional on-camera appearance from Tim Conway (who would later be discovered at WJW). The show helped introduce entertainers such as Barbra Streisand and Aretha Franklin. After the move to Philadelphia, Douglas also attempted to revive his own singing career, logging his lone Top 40 single as a solo artist, "The Men In My Little Girl's Life" in 1966.
By 1967, The Mike Douglas Show was broadcast to 171 markets and 6,000,000 viewers each day, mostly women at home. It earned $10.5 million from advertisers, while its host was paid more than $500,000. In 1967, the program received the first Emmy Award for Individual Achievement in Daytime Television from the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Most weeks, Douglas would be joined by a co-host, including John Lennon & Yoko Ono, and Anne Baxter.
In July 1978, the talk show's home base was transferred to Los Angeles, where it remained until finally going off the air in 1982. A second series, The Mike Douglas Entertainment Hour, ended production in 1982.
In 1982 Douglas hosted CNN's Los Angeles-based celebrity interview show, People Now, taking over the hosting duties from Lee Leonard. He was replaced in December 1982 by Bill Tush.
Douglas wrote two memoirs: My Story (1979) and I'll Be Right Back: Memories of TV's Greatest Talk Show (1999). He also wrote a cookbook, The Mike Douglas Cookbook (1969), featuring recipes from him, his family, and the show's guests.
Forty years after Douglas began his talk show at KYW-TV, his granddaughter Debbie Voinovich Donley designed successor WKYC's new broadcast facility on Lakeside Avenue, completed in 2002.
In 2007, a new documentary film Mike Douglas: Moments and Memories was shown on PBS stations.
He was survived by his widow Genevieve, daughters Kelly and twins Michele and Christine, and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Category:1925 births Category:2006 deaths Category:American television talk show hosts Category:Actors from Chicago, Illinois Category:People from Chicago, Illinois Category:American people of Irish descent Category:United States Navy sailors Category:Epic Records artists
This text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.
| Coordinates | 34°5′24″N74°47′24″N |
|---|---|
| Name | Dick Cavett |
| Caption | Cavett attends the Amfar Gala at Cipriani 42nd Street in New York City, January 31, 2008 |
| Birth name | Richard Alva Cavett |
| Birth date | November 19, 1936 |
| Birth place | Gibbon, Nebraska, U.S. |
| Spouse | Carrie Nye (1964-2006; her death) |
| Active | 1959–present |
Richard Alva "Dick" Cavett (born November 19, 1936) is a former American television talk show host known for his conversational style and in-depth discussion of issues. Cavett appeared regularly on nationally broadcast television in the United States in five consecutive decades, the 1960s through the 2000s.
In recent years, Cavett has written a blog for the New York Times, promoted DVDs of his former shows, and hosted replays of his classic TV interviews with Groucho Marx, Katharine Hepburn, and others on Turner Classic Movies channel.
Cavett's parents taught in Comstock, Gibbon, and Grand Island, where Cavett started kindergarten at Wasmer Elementary School. Three years later, both of his parents landed teaching positions in Lincoln, Nebraska, where Cavett completed his education at Capitol, Prescott, and Irving schools and Lincoln High School. When Cavett was ten, his mother, then thirty-six, died of cancer. His father subsequently married Dorcas Deland, also an educator, originally from Alliance, Nebraska. On September 24, 1995 Lincoln Public Schools dedicated the new Dorcas C. and Alva B. Cavett Elementary School in their honor.
In eighth grade, Cavett directed a live Saturday-morning radio show sponsored by the Junior League and played the title role in The Winslow Boy. One of his high-school classmates was actress Sandy Dennis. Cavett was elected state president of the student council in high school, and was a gold-medalist at the state gymnastics championship.
Before leaving for college, he worked as a caddy at the Lincoln Country Club. He also began doing magic shows for $35 a night under the tutelage of Gene Gloye. In 1952 Cavett attended the convention of the International Brotherhood of Magicians in St. Louis and won the Best New Performer trophy.
While attending Yale University, Cavett played in and directed dramas on the campus radio station, WYBC, and appeared in Yale Drama productions. In his senior year, he changed his major from English to Drama. He also took advantage of any opportunity to meet stars, routinely going to shows in New York to hang around stage doors or venture backstage. He would go so far as to carry a copy of Variety or an appropriate piece of company stationery in order to look inconspicuous while sneaking backstage or into a TV studio. Cavett took many odd jobs ranging from store detective to label-typist for a Wall Street firm, and as a copy boy at Time Magazine.
He was cast in a film by the Signal Corps, but further jobs were not forthcoming. He was an extra on The Phil Silvers Show, a TV remake of Body and Soul, and Playhouse 90 ("The Hiding Place"). He briefly revived his magic act while working as a typist and as a mystery shopper in department stores. Meanwhile, Nye landed several Broadway roles.
Cavett was a copyboy (gofer) at Time when he read a newspaper item about Jack Paar, then host of The Tonight Show. The article described Paar's concerns about his opening monologue and constant search for material. Cavett wrote some jokes, put them into a Time envelope, and went to the RCA Building. He ran into Paar in a hallway and handed him the envelope. Cavett appeared on the show in 1961, interpreting Miss Universe of 1961, Marlene Schmidt of Germany.
While at Time, Cavett had written a letter to Stan Laurel. The two later met at Laurel's apartment in Hollywood. Later the same day, Cavett wrote a tribute that Paar read on the show, which Laurel saw and appreciated. Cavett visited Laurel a few more times, up to three weeks before Laurel's death.
In his capacity as talent coordinator for The Tonight Show, Cavett was sent to the Blue Angel nightclub to see Woody Allen's act, and immediately afterward struck up a friendship. The very next day, the funeral of playwright George S. Kaufman was held at the Frank E. Campbell funeral home. Allen could not attend, but Cavett did, where he met Groucho Marx in an anteroom. From the funeral, Cavett followed Marx (who later told Cavett that Kaufman was "his personal god") three blocks up Fifth Avenue to the Plaza Hotel, where Marx invited him to lunch.
Cavett continued with The Tonight Show as a writer after Johnny Carson took over. For Carson he wrote the line, "Having your taste criticized by Dorothy Kilgallen is like having your clothes criticized by Emmett Kelly." He even appeared to do a gymnastics routine on the pommel horse on the show. After quitting The Tonight Show, Cavett wrote for Jerry Lewis's ill-fated talk show, for three times the money. He returned to The Tonight Show, however, when Marx was interim host for Carson in July 1964.
Years later, when he was a guest on The Tonight Show, Carson told Cavett that his favorite joke Cavett wrote for him was the humorous caption to a newspaper photo of Aristotle Onassis looking at the home of Buster Keaton, which he was considering purchasing: "Aristotle Contemplating the Home of Buster."
In 1965, Cavett did some commercial voiceovers, including a series of mock interviews with Mel Brooks for Ballantine beer. In the next couple of years he appeared on game shows, including What's My Line. He wrote for Merv Griffin and appeared on Griffin's talk show several times, and then on The Ed Sullivan Show.
In 1968, after the premiere of the international film Candy, Cavett went to a party at the Americana Hotel, where those who had just seen the film were being interviewed for TV. The exchange was cut from the broadcast.
After doing The Star and the Story, a rejected television pilot with Van Johnson, Cavett hosted a special, Where It's At, for Bud Yorkin and Norman Lear.
In 1968 Cavett was hired by ABC to host This Morning.
Cavett has been nominated for at least ten Emmy Awards In 1970, he co-hosted the Emmy Awards Show (from Carnegie Hall in New York) with Bill Cosby (from Century Plaza in Los Angeles). His most popular talk show was his ABC program, which ran from 1969 to 1974. From 1962 to 1992, The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson was arguably the most popular of late night variety and talk shows. Unlike many contemporary shows, Cavett managed to remain on the air for five years. Although his shows did not attract a wide audience, remaining in third place in the ratings behind Carson and Merv Griffin, he earned a reputation as "the thinking man's talk show host" and received favorable reviews from critics. As a talk show host, Cavett has been noted for his ability to listen to his guests and engage them in intellectual conversation. He is also known for his ability to remain calm and mediate between contentious guests,
His show often focussed on controversial people or subjects, often pairing guests with opposing views on social or political issues, such as George Brown and Lester Maddox.
One particularly controversial show from June 1971 featured a debate between future senator and presidential candidate John Kerry and fellow veteran John O'Neill over the Vietnam War. O'Neill had been approached by the Nixon administration to work through the Vietnam Veterans for a Just Peace to counter Kerry's influence on the public. The episode so angered President Nixon that he is heard discussing the incident on the Watergate tapes, saying, "Well, is there any way we can screw him [Cavett]? That's what I mean. There must be ways." To which H.R. Haldeman, White House Chief of Staff, answered, "We've been trying to."
Cavett himself, asked during a Question and Answer segment with his audience in the late '60s why he wore long sideburns, replied, "It's a form of mild protest. Sort of like boiling my draft card."
Cavett also hosted many popular musicians, both in interview and performance, such as Sly Stone, Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin. Several of his Emmy Award nominations and one Emmy Award were for Outstanding Musical or Variety Series,
Clips from his TV shows have been used in movies, for example Annie Hall (1977), Forrest Gump (1994), Apollo 13 (1995), and Frequency (2000). He also holds the distinction of being the only famous person to actually interact with the title character of Forrest Gump without the aid of archive footage or computer trickery. Makeup was applied to Cavett to make him appear as his 1971 self, and he was filmed with Tom Hanks on a recreated set (though archive footage of John Lennon from Cavett's show was digitally added).
Cavett was surprised at footage from his TV show appearing in Apollo 13. He said at the time of the film's release, "I'm happily enjoying a movie, and suddenly I'm in it."
He was also the subject of a 1993 video produced by the Depression and Related Affective Disorders Association called A Patient's Perspective.
In 1997 Cavett was sued by producer James Moskovitz for breach of contract after failing to show up for a nationally syndicated radio program (also called The Dick Cavett Show). Cavett's lawyer, Melvyn Leventhal, asserted at the time that Cavett left due to a manic-depressive episode. The case was later dropped.
Cavett also hosted a documentary series for HBO in the early 80's entitled Remember When that examined changes in American culture over time.
From November 15, 2000, to January 6, 2002, he played the narrator in a Broadway revival of The Rocky Horror Show.
Dick Cavett is featured in the 2003 documentary about the fire that destroyed his Montauk home and his effort to rebuild it.
Cavett's signature tune has long been a trumpet version of the vocalise "Glitter and Be Gay" from Leonard Bernstein's Candide. The tune was first played at the midpoint of his ABC late-night show, and later became the theme of his PBS show. The tune is also played as he walks on stage during guest appearances on other talk shows.
In 2008 Cavett entered the Iraq war dispute with a New York Times blog entry criticizing General David Petraeus, stating "I can’t look at Petraeus — his uniform ornamented like a Christmas tree with honors, medals and ribbons — without thinking of the great Mort Sahl at the peak of his brilliance." Cavett went on to recall Sahl's expressed contempt of General Westmoreland's display of medals, and criticized Petraeus for not speaking in plain language.
On February 27, 1981, Rick Moranis did a split-screen parody of Cavett interviewing himself on SCTV, in which he recreated and gently poked fun at Cavett's wit, quirks, and mild egotism.
On October 18, 1996, he was mentioned as the "smartest human on Earth" on the cartoon Pinky & the Brain.
In The Charles Bukowski Tapes, Bukowski claims that Cavett's is the only talk show he would ever go on. The rest of them would be "like eating your own vomit."
Category:1936 births Category:American male artistic gymnasts Category:American comedians Category:American game show hosts Category:American stand-up comedians Category:American television talk show hosts Category:American people of English descent Category:American comedians of Irish descent Category:American people of Irish descent Category:American people of German descent Category:American people of Scottish descent Category:Emmy Award winners Category:Living people Category:Entertainers from Nebraska Category:People from Buffalo County, Nebraska Category:People with bipolar disorder Category:Yale School of Drama alumni
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