This is a frequent day for the winter solstice to occur in the northern hemisphere and summer solstice to occur in the southern hemisphere.

Events

1140 – Conrad III of Germany besieged Weinsberg.

1598 – Battle of Curalaba: The revolting Mapuche, led by cacique Pelentaru, inflict a major defeat on Spanish troops in southern Chile.

1620 – Plymouth Colony: William Bradford and the ''Mayflower'' Pilgrims land on what is now known as Plymouth Rock in Plymouth, Massachusetts.

1832 – Egyptian–Ottoman War: Egyptian forces decisively defeat Ottoman troops at the Battle of Konya.

1844 – The Rochdale Pioneers commence business at their cooperative in Rochdale, England, starting the Cooperative movement.

1861 – Medal of Honor: Public Resolution 82, containing a provision for a Navy Medal of Valor, is signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln.

1872 – Challenger expedition: , commanded by Captain George Nares, sails from Portsmouth.

1879 – World première of Henrik Ibsen's ''A Doll's House'' at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen.

1883 – The first Permanent Force cavalry and infantry regiments of the Canadian Army are formed: The Royal Canadian Dragoons and The Royal Canadian Regiment.

1913 – Arthur Wynne's "word-cross", the first crossword puzzle, is published in the ''New York World''.

1937 – ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'', the world's first full-length animated feature, premieres at the Carthay Circle Theater.

1941 – World War II: A formal treaty of alliance between Thailand and Japan is signed in the presence of the Emerald Buddha in Wat Phra Kaew.

1962 – Rondane National Park is established as Norway's first national park.

1967 – Louis Washkansky, the first man to undergo a heart transplant, dies in Cape Town, South Africa, after living for 18 days after the transplant.

1968 – Apollo program: ''Apollo 8'', the first manned mission to the moon, is launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The crew performs the first ever manned Trans Lunar Injection and become the first humans to leave Earth's gravity.

1969 – The Gay Activists Alliance is formed in New York City.

1969 – The United Nations adopts the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.

1973 – The Geneva Conference on the Arab-Israeli conflict opens.

1979 – Lancaster House Agreement: An independence agreement for Rhodesia is signed in London by Lord Carrington, Sir Ian Gilmour, Robert Mugabe, Joshua Nkomo, Bishop Abel Muzorewa and S.C. Mundawarara.

1988 – A bomb explodes on board Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, killing 270.

1992 – A Dutch DC-10, flight Martinair MP 495, crashes at Faro Airport, killing 56 people.

1994 – Mexican volcano Popocatepetl, dormant for 47 years, erupts gases and ash.

1995 – The city of Bethlehem passes from Israeli to Palestinian control.

1999 – The Spanish Civil Guard intercepts a van loaded with 950 kg of explosives that ETA intended to use to blow up Torre Picasso in Madrid.

2004 – Iraq War: A suicide bomber killed 22 at the forward operating base next to the main U.S. military airfield at Mosul, the single deadliest suicide attack on American soldiers.

Births

1118 – Thomas Becket, Lord Chancellor of England and Archbishop of Canterbury (d. 1170)

1401 – Tommaso Masaccio, Italian painter (d. 1428)

1596 – Petro Mohyla, Moldovan religious figure (d. 1646)

1603 – Roger Williams, English theologian and colonist (d. 1684)

1682 – Calico Jack Rackham, English pirate (d. 1720)

1714 – John Bradstreet, Canadian-born soldier (d. 1774)

1778 – Anders Sandøe Ørsted, Danish politician (d. 1860)

1795 – Leopold von Ranke, German historian (d. 1886)

1795 – John Russell, English parson and dog breeder (d. 1883)

1804 – Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1881)

1805 – Thomas Graham, British chemist (d. 1869)

1811 – Archibald Campbell Tait, Archbishop of Canterbury (d. 1882)

1815 – Thomas Couture French painter and teacher (d. 1879)

1818 – Amalia of Oldenburg, Queen of Greece (d. 1875)

1832 – John H. Ketcham, American politician (d. 1906)

1840 – Namık Kemal, Turkish nationalist poet (d. 1888)

1843 – Thomas Bracken, Irish-born New Zealand poet (d. 1898)

1850 – Zdeněk Fibich, Bohemian composer (d. 1900)

1850 – William Wallace Lincoln, son of Abraham Lincoln (d. 1862)

1851 – Thomas Chipman McRae, American politician (d. 1929)

1859 – Gustave Kahn, French poet (d. 1936)

1866 – Maud Gonne, Irish activist (d. 1953)

1872 – Sidney Ainsworth, British actor (d. 1922)

1872 – Don Lorenzo Perosi, Italian composer (d. 1956)

1872 – Albert Payson Terhune, American author (d. 1942)

1873 – Blagoje Bersa, Croatian composer (d. 1934)

1876 – Jack Lang, Australian politician (d. 1975)

1878 – Jan Łukasiewicz, Polish philosopher and mathematician (d. 1956)

1885 – Frank Patrick, Canadian hockey player (d. 1960)

1889 – Sewall Wright, American biologist (d. 1988)

1890 – Hermann Joseph Muller, American geneticist and Nobel laureate (d. 1967)

1891 – John William McCormack, American politician (d. 1980)

1892 – Amy Key Clarke, English mystical poet (d. 1980)

1892 – Walter Hagen, American golfer (d. 1969)

1892 – Rebecca West, British writer (d. 1983)

1896 – Leroy Robertson, American composer (d. 1971)

1905 – Anthony Powell, British author (d. 2000)

1908 – Herbert Hutner, American banker and attorney (d. 2008)

1909 – Seicho Matsumoto, Japanese mystery writer and journalist (d. 1992)

1911 – Josh Gibson, American baseball player (d. 1947)

1913 – Arnold Friberg, American illustrator (d. 2010)

1914 – Frank Fenner, Australian microbiologist (d. 2010)

1914 – Ivan Generalić, Austro-Hungarian-born Croatian painter (d. 1992)

1915 – Werner von Trapp, member of the Trapp Family Singers (d. 2007)

1917 – Heinrich Böll, German writer and Nobel laureate (d. 1985)

1917 – Sophie Masloff, American politician

1918 – Donald Regan, American civil servant (d. 2003)

1918 – Kurt Waldheim, Austrian politician and diplomat (d. 2007)

1920 – Alicia Alonso, Cuban ballerina

1920 – Bob Bindig, American cartoonist (d. 2006)

1920 – Jean Gascon, Canadian actor (d. 1988)

1921 – Robert Lipshutz, American attorney and counsel to the Carter Adminisrtation (d. 2010)

1921 – John Severin, American comics artist

1922 – Itubwa Amram, Nauruan pastor and politician (d. 1989)

1922 – Paul Winchell, American ventriloquist (d. 2005)

1923 – Intizar Hussain, Urdu writer and columnist

1926 – Arnošt Lustig, Czech author

1926 – Joe Paterno, American football coach

1932 – Edward Hoagland, American essayist

1935 – John G. Avildsen, American film director

1935 – Lorenzo Bandini, Italian racecar driver (d. 1967)

1935 – Yusuf Bey, American activist (d. 2003)

1935 – Phil Donahue, American talk show host

1935 – Edward Schreyer, Canadian politician, Premier of Manitoba

1937 – Jane Fonda, American actress

1937 – Donald F. Munson, American politician

1938 – Frank Moorhouse, Australian author

1939 – Lloyd Axworthy, Canadian politician

1940 – Arvi Lind, Finnish news broadcaster

1940 – Ray Hildebrand, American singer (Paul & Paula)

1940 – Frank Zappa, American musician (d. 1993)

1942 – Hu Jintao, Chinese president

1942 – Reinhard Mey, German singer

1942 – Carla Thomas, American singer

1943 – André Arthur. Canadian radio host

1943 – Albert Lee, English guitarist

1943 – Jack Nance, American actor (d. 1996)

1944 – Bill Atkinson, English footballer

1944 – Michael Tilson Thomas, American conductor

1944 – Zheng Xiaoyu, Chinese bureaucrat (d. 2007)

1946 – Christopher Keene, American conductor (d. 1995)

1946 – Carl Wilson, American musician (The Beach Boys) (d. 1998)

1947 – Bryan Hamilton, Northern Irish footballer

1947 – Paco de Lucía, Spanish musician

1948 – Samuel L. Jackson, American actor

1948 – Dave Kingman, American baseball player

1948 – Willi Resetarits, Austrian musician

1949 – Thomas Sankara, Burkinabé military figure (d. 1987)

1949 – Nikolaos Sifounakis, Greek politician

1950 – Jeffrey Katzenberg, American film producer

1950 – Lillebjørn Nilsen, Norwegian singer-songwriter

1951 – Nick Gilder, English musician (Sweeney Todd)

1952 – Joaquín Andújar, Dominican baseball player

1953 – Betty Wright, American singer

1954 – Chris Evert, American tennis player

1955 – Jane Kaczmarek, American actress

1955 – Kazuyuki Sekiguchi, Japanese musician

1957 – Tom Henke, American baseball player

1957 – Ray Romano, Italian-American comedian

1959 – Florence Griffith Joyner, American sprinter (d. 1998)

1960 – Louis Demetrius Alvanis, British pianist

1960 – Roger McDowell, American baseball player

1960 – Andy Van Slyke, American baseball player

1961 – Francis Ng, Hong Kong actor

1961 – Ryuji Sasai, Japanese video game composer

1961 – Del Wilkes, American pro wrestler

1963 – Govinda Ahuja, Indian actor and politician

1964 – Rob Kelly, English football manager

1964 – Fabiana Udenio, Argentine actress

1964 – Joe Kocur, Canadian hockey player

1965 – Andy Dick, American actor and comedian

1965 – Anke Engelke, German comedian

1965 – Stuart Mitchell, Scottish Composer

1966 – Adam Schefter, American sports journalist

1966 – Kiefer Sutherland, British-born Canadian actor

1966 – Karri Turner, American actress

1967 – Ervin Johnson, American basketball player

1967 – Fritz Karl, Austrian actor

1967 – Terry Mills, American basketball player

1967 – Mikhail Saakashvili, Soviet-born President of Georgia

1969 – Julie Delpy, French actress

1969 – Jack Noseworthy, American actor

1969 – Mihails Zemļinskis, Latvian footballer

1971 – Matthieu Chedid, French musician

1971 – Fenton Keogh, Australian celebrity chef

1971 – Brett Scallions, American singer (Fuel)

1972 – Gloria De Piero, English journalist

1972 – Latroy Hawkins, American baseball player

1972 – Dustin Hermanson, American baseball player

1972 – Claudia Poll, Costa Rican swimmer

1972 – Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, Indian politician

1972 – Erwin Schrott, Uruguayan opera singer

1973 – Irakli Alasania, Georgian politician and diplomat

1973 – Mike Alstott, American football player

1973 – Karmen Stavec, German-born Slovenian singer

1974 – Karrie Webb, Australian golfer

1975 – Paloma Herrera, Argentine ballet dancer

1976 – Mirela Manjani, Greek javelin thrower

1976 – Lukas Rossi, Canadian rock singer (Rock Star Supernova)

1977 – Toby Rand, Australian singer (Juke Kartel)

1978 – Emiliano Brembilla, Italian swimmer

1978 – Mike Vitar, American actor

1979 – Tuva Novotny, Swedish actress and singer

1980 – Royce Ring, American baseball player

1981 – Frankie Abernathy, American actress (d. 2007)

1981 – Lynda Thomas, Mexican singer

1981 – Cristian Zaccardo, Italian football player

1982 – Charlie Cox, English actor

1982 – Mike Gansey, American basketball player

1982 – Erica Hayden, American journalist and radio personality

1982 – Philip Humber, American baseball player

1982 – Iljo Keisse, Belgian cyclist

1982 – Tom Payne, British actor

1984 – Darren Potter, Irish football player

1984 – Jackson Rathbone, American actor

1985 – James Stewart Jr., American motorcycle racer

1987 – Valerie Concepcion, Filipino actress

1987 – Brad Howard, Australian footballer

1988 – Alexa Goddard, British R&B; singer

1988 – Yasmin, British DJ and Singer

1989 – Tamannaah Bhatia, Indian actress

1989 – Mark Ingram Jr., American football player

Deaths

72 – Thomas the Apostle

882 – Hincmar, French bishop (b. 806)

1295 – Marguerite Berenger of Provence, wife of Louis IX of France (b. c.1221)

1308 – Henry I of Hesse (b. 1244)

1375 – Giovanni Boccaccio, Italian writer (b. 1313)

1504 – Bertold von Henneberg-Römhild, German archbishop and elector (b. 1442)

1549 – Marguerite of Navarre, wife of Henry II of Navarre (b. 1492)

1579 – Vicente Masip, Spanish painter

1597 – Petrus Canisius, Dutch Jesuit (b. 1521)

1799 – Philip Affleck, British Admiral and First Lord of the Admiralty (b. 1726)

1807 – John Newton, English cleric and hymnist (b. 1725)

1824 – James Parkinson, English physician and paleontologist (b. 1755)

1869 – Friedrich Ernst Scheller, German jurist and politician (b. 1791)

1873 – Francis Garnier, French explorer (b. 1839)

1889 – Friedrich August von Quenstedt, German geologist (b. 1809)

1900 – Roger Wolcott, American politician (b. 1847)

1920 – Mohammed Abdullah Hassan, Somalian nationalist leader (b. 1856)

1933 – Knud Rasmussen, Greenlandic polar explorer and anthropologist (b. 1879)

1935 – Kurt Tucholsky, German journalist and satirist (b. 1890)

1937 – Frank B. Kellogg, American diplomat, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1856)

1940 – F. Scott Fitzgerald, American writer (b. 1896)

1945 – George Smith Patton Jr., American military commander (b. 1885)

1957 – Eric Coates, English-born American composer (b. 1886)

1958 – Lion Feuchtwanger, German writer (b. 1884)

1959 – Rosanjin, Japanese calligrapher, restaurateur and ceramicist (b. 1883)

1964 – Carl Van Vechten, American writer and photographer (b. 1880)

1963 – Jack Hobbs, English cricketer (b. 1882)

1965 – Claude Champagne, Canadian composer (b. 1891)

1967 – Stuart Erwin, American actor (b. 1903)

1974 – James Henry Govier, British artist (b. 1910)

1974 – Richard Long, American actor (b. 1927)

1983 – Paul de Man, Belgian-born literary critic (b. 1919)

1986 – Bill Simpson, Scottish actor (b. 1931)

1987 – John Spence, American musician (No Doubt) (b. 1969)

1988 – Nikolaas Tinbergen, Dutch ornithologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1907)

1989 – Rotimi Fani-Kayode, Nigerian-born British photographer (b.1955)

1990 – Clarence Johnson, American aeronautical engineer (b. 1910)

1992 – Albert King, American blues musician (b. 1924)

1992 – Nathan Milstein, Ukrainian violinist (b. 1903)

1997 – Amie Comeaux, American country music singer (b. 1976)

1998 – Roger Avon, Durham actor (b. 1914)

1998 – Karl Denver, Scottish singer (b. 1931)

1998 – Ernst-Günther Schenck, German physician (b. 1904)

2001 – Dick Schaap, American sports journalist (b. 1934)

2003 – Prince Alfonso of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, Spanish businessman (b. 1924)

2004 – Autar Singh Paintal, Indian medical scientist (b. 1925)

2005 – Elrod Hendricks, American baseball player and coach (b. 1940)

2006 – Scobie Breasley, Australian jockey (b. 1914)

2006 – Saparmurat Niyazov, Turkmenistanian politician (b. 1940)

2007 – Ken Hendricks, American businessman (b. 1941)

2010 – Enzo Bearzot, Italian football player and manager (b. 1927)

Holidays and observances

Christian Feast Day:

*O Oriens

*Petrus Canisius

*Thomas the apostle (pre-1970 Roman Calendar)

Divalia, in honour of Angerona, (Roman Empire)

Earliest date for the winter solstice:

*Earliest date for Yule in the northern hemisphere, and Midsummer in the southern hemisphere. (Neopagan Wheel of the Year)

*Sanghamitta Day

*Ziemassvētki (ancient Latvia)

Forefathers' Day (Plymouth, Massachusetts)

The first day of Pancha Ganapati, celebrated until December 25 (India)

External links

BBC: On This Day

On This Day in Canada

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Category:Days of the year Category:December

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Coordinates	52°30′42″N13°22′55″N
name	Rooney Mara
birth name	Patricia Rooney Mara
birth date
birth place	Bedford, New York
othername	Patricia MaraTricia Mara
occupation	Actress
yearsactive	2005–present }}

Patricia Rooney Mara (born 1985) is an American film and television actress. Mara made her acting début in 2005 and has gone on to star in films including ''A Nightmare on Elm Street'', the remake of the 1984 horror film, and ''The Social Network''. Mara will portray Lisbeth Salander, the title character in ''The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'', the first of three Sony Pictures films based on Stieg Larsson’s ''Millennium'' book series.

Mara is also known for her charity work. She oversees the charity Faces of Kibera, which benefits orphans from the Kibera slum in Nairobi, Kenya, one of the largest slums in Africa. She is also the younger sister of actress Kate Mara.

Early life

Mara was born and raised in Bedford, New York, a town in Westchester County, a suburb of New York City. She is the daughter of Timothy Christopher Mara, the vice president of player evaluation for the New York Giants, and Kathleen McNulty (née Rooney). She has three siblings: Daniel, Conor and Kate.

Mara is of Italian (from her maternal grandmother) and Irish descent; the Rooney family trace their Irish ancestry to County Down. Mara is the great-granddaughter of Pittsburgh Steelers founder Art Rooney, Sr. and New York Giants founder Tim Mara. Her paternal grandfather, Wellington Mara, was the long-time co-owner of the Giants, succeeded by her uncle, John Mara. Her maternal grandfather, Tim Rooney, has run Yonkers Raceway in Yonkers, New York since 1972. She is the grand-niece of Daniel Rooney, chairman of the Steelers, the United States Ambassador to Ireland, and the co-founder of The Ireland Funds charitable organization.

Mara graduated from Fox Lane High School in 2003, and then traveled to Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia in South America for four months as part of the Traveling School, an open learning environment. She attended the Gallatin School of Individualized Study at New York University, where she studied psychology, international social policy, and nonprofits. She graduated in 2010.

Mara was inspired to act by going to see musical theatre and by watching old movies, like ''Gone with the Wind'' (1939), ''Rebecca'' (1940), and ''Bringing Up Baby'' (1938), with her mother. She also wanted to be like her older sister, Kate Mara, a professional actress. Mara resisted pursuing acting as a child, stating to ''The Journal News'' that "it never seemed that honorable to me, and I guess I was always afraid that I might fail." She won the role of Juliet, in ''Romeo and Juliet'', after being signed up to audition by a friend, and acted in a few student films while at NYU. Mara then began pursuing a career in acting.

Acting career

Mara made her professional acting debut in a bit-part in the 2005 direct-to-video horror film ''Urban Legends: Bloody Mary'', which starred her sister. She found work in television, appearing on the New York City-based drama ''Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'' in 2006, as a girl who dislikes fat people. She guest-starred on the legal drama ''Women's Murder Club'' in 2007, and played a drug addict in an episode of ''The Cleaner'' in 2008. Mara appeared in the feature films ''Dream Boy'' and ''Friends (With Benefits)'' that year, and guest-starred as Megan for two episodes of NBC's ''ER'' in 2009.

Mara landed her first lead role in the film ''Tanner Hall'', starring Amy Sedaris and Tom Everett Scott, a story of four teenage girls set in a New England boarding school. Mara played Fernanda, who has an affair with a married family friend (Tom Everett Scott). The coming-of-age film was the debut feature by filmmakers Tatiana von Fürstenberg and Francesca Gregorini. Mara dropped her first name, Patricia, to be known professionally by her middle name after working on the project. "I never really liked my first name," Mara stated to ''Paper'' magazine. "I never felt like a Tricia. And Rooney is more memorable".

Mara's experience lead to other film work. She appeared in the comedy ''Youth in Revolt'', starring Michael Cera and directed by Miguel Arteta, based on the 1993 cult novel of the same name by C.D. Payne. Mara played Taggarty, the love interest of Cera’s best friend. Her character tries to sleep with 50 guys before she goes to college. Mara had auditioned for the starring role, but was offered the smaller part when the lead went to Portia Doubleday.

Mara appeared in the 2009 independent film ''Dare'' as Courtney, the best friend of Alexa (Emmy Rossum), a high school student set on expanding her life experience. She also filmed ''The Winning Season'' that year, starring Emma Roberts and Sam Rockwell, playing a high school basketball player in a story similar to ''The Bad News Bears''. Her character has an affair with a 40-something year old shoe salesman (Kevin Breznahan). ''Dare'' and ''The Winning Season'' premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. Mara was included on ''Filmmaker'' magazine's list of "25 New Faces of Independent Film" that year.

Mara starred in ''A Nightmare on Elm Street'', a 2010 remake of the 1984 horror film of the same name. She played the protagonist Nancy Holbrook, based on the original film's Nancy Thompson, a teenage girl who is eager to leave town after graduating from high school. Mara began shooting the film in Chicago on May 5, 2009, directed by Samuel Bayer. Mara told ''Filmmaker'' that she felt that the remake's Nancy was "completely different from the original" and could be described as "the loneliest girl in the world". The film was released on April 30, 2010. Depending on its box office performance, Mara will appear in a sequel to the remake, continuing her role as Nancy.

Mara appeared at the Hamptons International Film Festival in October 2009 as part of its Breakthrough Performers Program, where she was tutored alongside Zach Gilford, Emmy Rossum and Emma Stone by Sharon Stone. She appeared in the 2010 film ''The Social Network'' by David Fincher, starring Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield, Brenda Song and Justin Timberlake. Her character breaks up with Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, which inspires him to start the social networking website.

In August 2010, Mara was cast as the lead in an upcoming film adaptation of the ''Millennium'' book series by Stieg Larsson. She won the role over several other actresses, including Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, Jennifer Lawrence and Katie Jarvis, after auditioning with a rape scene from the film, and performing multiple screen tests. David Fincher will direct the first of three films, based on the novel ''The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'', with Scott Rudin producing; ''The Girl Who Played with Fire'' and ''The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest'' will also be adapted. Fincher convinced executives at Columbia Pictures to cast Mara for the part. She plays Lisbeth Salander, a damaged bisexual computer hacker who helps journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig) attempt to solve a series of murders.

''The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'' began shooting in Sweden in September 2010, and has a release date of December 21, 2011. Mara doesn't consider the film to be a remake, but an interpretation of the novel. "I plan on giving my interpretation of the character", she stated to ''Variety''. Mara's long brown hair was cut short and dyed black, in a style reminiscent of 1970s punk and 1980s goth fashions. She also had each of her ears pierced four times, and had her lip, brow, nose, and nipple pierced for the role. Her eyebrows were bleached, and she wears a temporary dragon tattoo.

Mara will work with filmmaker Francesca Gregorini again, the writer and director of ''Tanner Hall'', in the film ''Emanuel and the Truth About Fishes''. Mara will play a troubled teenager, hired to babysit a lifelike doll in the independent drama. The project will be Mara's first time co-producing a film, and will begin shooting in mid 2011.

Faces of Kibera

Mara oversees the charity Faces of Kibera, which provides housing, food, and medical care for orphans in Kibera, a slum in Nairobi, Kenya where approximately 1 million people live in a single square mile. The charity's goal is to build an orphanage in the region, for which 6 acres of land have been purchased. The charity auctions memorabilia from the Steelers and Giants, as well as training camp events on eBay to raise money.

Mara visited the area as a volunteer in 2006, at age 21, and was moved to help the orphans, many whose parents have died from AIDS and HIV-related illnesses. She began the charity due to her frustration with, according to Mara, the growing number of nonprofits that are just business opportunities. "The people who need help aren’t really getting it. So I started my own", she told ''Interview'' magazine in 2009. Mara was not really working yet when she started the charity, so now finds it challenging to balance her charity work with her acting career. "I need to do both; I can't just do acting,“ she stated to ''The Journal News''.

Personal life

Mara moved to Los Angeles in early 2007, and lived with her sister temporarily. Although they do not live together anymore, Mara felt that the experience brought them closer together, and they still regularly discuss the film business and movie scripts. Mara described American football as "....the glue that holds our family together," to the ''New York Post''. She includes Gena Rowlands among the actors that inspire her, especially her performances in ''A Woman Under the Influence'' (1974) and ''Opening Night'' (1977).

Filmography

! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
2005	''Urban Legends: Bloody Mary''	Classroom Girl #1	Video
2006	''Law & Order: Special Victims Unit''	Jessica DeLay
2007	''Women's Murder Club''	Alexis Sherman
2008		Evelyn
2008		Rebecca Smith
2009		Courtney
2009	''The Winning Season''	Wendy
2009		Megan	Episode: "ER_(season_15)#Episodes
2009	''[[Friends (With Benefits)''	Tara
2009		Taggarty
2009		Fernanda
2010		Nancy Holbrook
2010	''The Social Network''	Erica Albright	Hollywood Film Award for Ensemble of the YearNominated – Washington DC Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Acting EnsembleNominated – Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Acting EnsemblePalm Springs International Film Festival Award for Ensemble Performance
2011		Lisbeth Salander

References

External links

Faces of Kibera website

Category:1985 births Category:Actors from New York Category:American film actors Category:American people of Irish descent Category:American people of Italian descent Category:American television actors Category:Living people Category:New York University alumni Category:People from Westchester County, New York

ar:روني مارا de:Rooney Mara es:Rooney Mara fr:Rooney Mara it:Rooney Mara he:רוני מארה ja:ルーニー・マーラ pl:Rooney Mara pt:Rooney Mara ru:Мара, Руни sv:Rooney Mara uk:Руні Мара

Coordinates	52°30′42″N13°22′55″N
birthname	Daniel Wroughton Craig
birth date	March 02, 1968
birth place	Chester, Cheshire, England
occupation	Actor
yearsactive	1992–present
spouse
domesticpartner	Heike Makatsch (1994–2001)Satsuki Mitchell (2004–2010)
children	Ella Craig
signature	}}

Daniel Wroughton Craig (born 2 March 1968) is an English actor. His early film roles include ''Elizabeth'', ''The Power of One'', ''A Kid in King Arthur's Court'' and the television episodes ''Sharpe's Eagle'', ''Zorro'' and ''The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles: Daredevils of the Desert''. His breakthrough performances were in the films ''Lara Croft: Tomb Raider'', ''Road to Perdition'', ''Layer Cake'', ''Munich'', and ''The Golden Compass''.

Craig became well known internationally after he was cast as the sixth actor to portray fictional secret agent James Bond in the film series. He made his début as the character in the 2006 film, ''Casino Royale''. He was critically acclaimed, and was nominated for a BAFTA award, for his portrayal in the film. He grew into other roles in films such as ''Defiance'', ''Cowboys and Aliens'', the upcoming English-language adaptation of ''The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo'', and ''The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn''.

Early life

Craig was born in Chester, Cheshire, England. His mother, Carol Olivia (née Williams), was an art teacher, and his father, Timothy John Wroughton Craig, was the landlord of the pubs "Ring o' Bells" (in Frodsham) and "The Boot Inn", and also served as a midshipman in the Merchant Navy. Both of Craig's parents were of half Welsh descent. He was brought up on the Wirral Peninsula, and attended a primary school in Frodsham and Hoylake called Holy Trinity Primary School. He attended Hilbre High School in later years. He began acting in school plays at age six.

Craig moved to London when he was sixteen to join the National Youth Theatre after a stay at Calday. He and his older sister, Lea, attended Hilbre High School and Calday Grange Grammar School in West Kirby. He played for Hoylake Rugby Club. He attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama at the Barbican and graduated in 1991 after three years of study under Colin McCormack.

Career

Craig appeared as Joe in the Royal National Theatre's production of Tony Kushner's ''Angels in America'' in November 1993. An early starring role was as 'Geordie' in the BBC's 1996 drama ''Our Friends in the North'', with early film roles being as Angelina Jolie's rival and love interest in ''Lara Croft: Tomb Raider'' (2001), before appearing in Sam Mendes's movie ''Road to Perdition'' (2002), with Tom Hanks and Paul Newman. Other leading film roles include ''Sword of Honour'' (2001), ''The Mother'' (2003) with Anne Reid, ''Sylvia'' (2003) with Gwyneth Paltrow, ''Layer Cake'' (2004) with Sienna Miller, ''Enduring Love'' (2004) with Rhys Ifans, Steven Spielberg's ''Munich'' (2005) with Eric Bana, ''Infamous'' (2006), ''The Golden Compass'' (2007) and ''Defiance'' (2008).

James Bond: 2005–present

In 2005, Craig was contracted by EON Productions to portray James Bond. He stated that he "was aware of the challenges" of the James Bond franchise which he considers "a big machine" that "makes a lot of money". He aimed at bringing more "emotional depth" to the character. Being born in 1968, Craig is the first actor to portray James Bond to have been born after the Bond series already started, and Ian Fleming, the novels' writer, had died.

Numerous actors publicly voiced their support of Craig's casting. Most notably, four of the five actors who had previously portrayed Bond – Pierce Brosnan, Timothy Dalton, Sean Connery, and Roger Moore – called his casting a good decision. Clive Owen, who had been linked to the role, also spoke in defence of Craig.

The first film, ''Casino Royale'', premièred on 14 November 2006 and grossed a total of US$594,239,066 worldwide, which makes the film the highest grossing Bond film to date. After the film was released, Craig's performance was highly acclaimed.

As production of ''Casino Royale'' reached its conclusion, producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli announced that pre-production work had already begun on the 22nd Bond film. After several months of speculation as to the release date, Wilson and Broccoli officially announced on 20 July 2006 that the follow-up film, ''Quantum of Solace'', was to be released on 7 November 2008 and that Craig plays Bond with an option for a third film. On 25 October 2007, MGM CEO Harry Sloan revealed at the Forbes Meet II Conference that Craig had signed on for four more Bond films, through to ''Bond 25''.

In 2006, Craig was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

On 12 June 2008, Craig sliced the top of one of his fingers off while filming ''Quantum of Solace''. The accident was the latest in a string of incidents surrounding the shoot, including a fire at one of the sets in Pinewood Studios, UK; a car crash that left the stunt driver in a serious condition; and an Aston Martin skidding off the roads in heavy rains while being transported to the set in northern Italy and plunging into Lake Garda.

Craig describes his portrayal of Bond as an anti-hero: “The question I keep asking myself while playing the role is, ‘Am I the good guy or just a bad guy who works for the good side?’ Bond’s role, after all, is that of an assassin when you come down to it. I have never played a role in which someone’s dark side shouldn’t be explored. I don’t think it should be confusing by the end of the movie, but during the movie you should be questioning who he is.” Craig also states that his favourite previous Bond actor was Sean Connery, but says, "I'd never copy somebody else. I would never do an impression of anybody else or try and improve on what they did. That would be a pointless exercise for me". His favourite Bond film is ''From Russia with Love''. On a James Bond-centric episode of ''The South Bank Show'', Connery divulged his thoughts on Craig's casting as Bond, whom he described as "fantastic, marvelous in the part." When he was told that Craig had taken particular note of his performances, Connery said that he was "flattered," and that Craig "really gets" the 'danger element' to Bond's character.

On 19 April 2010, Craig's expected third Bond film (the 23rd overall in the series) was announced to have been suspended indefinitely due to the crippling debt and uncertain future of MGM. However, both Craig and Sam Mendes hoped to resume work on the film soon. The film has since resumed and Craig will return as Bond once again, with the film due for release on 9 November 2012.

Other projects

In 1999, Craig starred as Richard in a TV drama called ''Shockers: The Visitor''. In 2007, he portrayed Lord Asriel in ''The Golden Compass'', the film adaptation of Philip Pullman's novel. Eva Green, who played Bond girl Vesper Lynd in ''Casino Royale'', also starred in the film, although she did not appear in any scenes with Craig. In a stage version of the book, Asriel had previously been played by Timothy Dalton, one of Craig's predecessors in the role of James Bond.

In early 2001, Craig expressed an interest in being a part of the ''Star Trek'' franchise, professing his love of the series to the World Entertainment News Network and a desire to have a "stint in the TV show or a film. It's been a secret ambition of mine for years." On 16 March 2007, Craig made a cameo appearance as himself in a sketch with Catherine Tate who appeared in the guise of her character Elaine Figgis from ''The Catherine Tate Show''. The sketch was made for the BBC Red Nose Day 2007 fundraising programme.

In 2008's ''Defiance'', he played Tuvia Bielski, a Jewish resistance fighter in the woods of Belarus during World War II who saved 1,200 people.

The shot in ''Casino Royale'' of Craig sporting swimming trunks has often topped many sexiest male celebrity polls, and in 2009 Del Monte Foods launched an ice pop moulded to resemble Craig emerging from the sea.

Craig co-starred with Hugh Jackman, in a limited engagement of the play ''A Steady Rain'', on Broadway at the Schoenfeld Theatre, which opened in previews on 10 September 2009 and closed on 6 December 2009.

Craig lent his voice and likeness as James Bond for both the Wii game ''GoldenEye 007'', an enhanced remake of the 1997 game for the Nintendo 64, and ''Blood Stone'', an original game for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo DS, and Microsoft Windows.

As of August 2010, Craig has been cast as crusading journalist Mikael Blomkvist in David Fincher's adaptation of Stieg Larsson's novel ''The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo''.

Craig co-starred with Harrison Ford and Olivia Wilde in Cowboys & Aliens, an American science fiction Western film, based on Scott Mitchell Rosenberg's 2006 graphic novel Cowboys & Aliens.

Personal life

In 1992, Craig married Scottish actress Fiona Loudon, with whom he has a daughter, Ella. However, the marriage ended in divorce in 1994.

After his divorce, he was in a seven-year relationship with German actress Heike Makatsch, ending in 2001. He subsequently dated film producer Satsuki Mitchell from 2004 until 2010.

Craig and actress Rachel Weisz began dating in December 2010. Craig and Weisz married on 22 June 2011 in a private New York ceremony, with only four guests in attendance, including Craig's 18-year-old daughter Ella, and Weisz's four-year-old son Henry. Craig and Weisz had been friends for many years and had worked together on the movie Dream House (film) shortly before they began dating in late 2010.

In October 2008, Craig paid £4 million for an apartment near Regent's Park, London. He is a Liverpool F.C. supporter.

Filmography

''Zorro (1990 TV series) ''Sharpe's Eagle (TV programme) '''' ''Kiss And Tell'' '''' ''Our Friends in the North'' ''Obsession – Besessene Seelen'' '''' '''' ''Love Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis Bacon'' ''Love and Rage (film) ''Elizabeth (film) '''' '''' ''Some Voices (film) ''Hotel Splendide (film) ''I Dreamed of Africa'' ''Lara Croft: Tomb Raider'' ''Sword of Honour'' ''Copenhagen (play) ''Ten Minutes Older: The Cello'' ''Road to Perdition'' ''Sylvia (2003 film) '''' ''[[Layer Cake (film) ''[[Enduring Love (film) ''[[Munich (film) ''Archangel (Robert Harris novel) ''Fateless (film) '''' ''Casino Royale (2006 film) ''[[Renaissance (film) ''Infamous (film) '''' '''' ''Flashbacks of a Fool'' ''Defiance (2008 film) ''Cowboys & Aliens (film) ''Dream House (film) ''Bond 23''

+ Film and television
Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
1992	''''	Sgt. Botha, a.k.a. The Judge
1993	Zorro'' ||	Lt Hidalgo	Two episodes of a US TV series filmed in Madrid.
1993	Sharpe's Eagle'' ||	Lt. Berry	Television drama
1995	|	Master Kane
1996	|	Matt Kearney	TV film
1996	|	James "Jemmy" Seagrave	Television drama
1996	|	George "Geordie" Peacock	Television drama: 8 episodes
1997	|	John McHale
1997	|	D.S. Andy McLoughlin	TV mystery/drama from the novel by Minette Walters
1997	|
1998	|	George Dyer	Edinburgh International Film Festival>Edinburgh International Film Festival Award for Best British Performance
1998	Love and Rage'' ||	James Lynchehaun
1998	Elizabeth'' ||	John Ballard
1999	|	Sgt. Telford Winter	Nominated – British Independent Film Award for Best Actor
1999	|	Schiller
2000	Some Voices'' ||	Ray	British Independent Film Award for Best Actor
2000	Hotel Splendide'' ||	Ronald Blanche
2000	|	Declan Fielding
2001	|	Alex West
2001	|	Guy Crouchback
2002	Copenhagen'' ||	Werner Heisenberg	Television drama (stage adaptation)
2002	|	Cecil
2002	|	Connor Rooney
2003	Sylvia'' ||	Ted Hughes
2003	|	Darren	Nominated—British Independent Film Award
2004	Layer Cake'' ||	Mr. X	Sony Ericsson Empire Awards>Empire Award for Best ActorNominated—European Film Awards
2004	Enduring Love'' ||	Joe	Nominated – British Independent Film Award for Best ActorNominated – European Film Awards
2005	Munich'' ||	Steve
2005	Archangel'' ||	Christopher Kelso	Television drama
2005	Fateless'' ||	American Soldier
2005	|	Rudy Mackenzie
2006	Casino Royale'' ||	James Bond (character)>James Bond	Sony Ericsson Empire Awards>Empire Award for Best ActorEvening Standard British Film Awards
2006	Renaissance'' ||	Barthélémy Karas	Voice role
2006	Infamous ||	Perry Smith (murderer)>Perry Smith	Nominated—Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male
2007	|	Lord Asriel
2007	|	Ben Driscoll
2008	|	Joe Scot	Also Executive Producer
2008	Quantum of Solace'' >
2008	Defiance ||	Tuvie Bielski>Tuvia Bielski
2011	Cowboys & Aliens'' ||	Jake Lonergan
2011	Dream House'' ||	Will Attenton	''Post-production''
2011	''''
2011	''''
2012	|	James Bond	''Pre-production''

Video games

''GoldenEye 007 (2010 video game) ''James Bond 007: Blood Stone''

+ Film and television
Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
2008	Quantum of Solace (video game)>Quantum of Solace''	James Bond
2010	GoldenEye 007'' ||	James Bond	voice-over
2010	|	James Bond	voice-over

Further reading

References

External links

A very detailed biography from Tiscali Film & TV

Personal interview on "being Bond", Parade Magazine 26 Oct 2008

Category:Alumni of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama Category:English actors Category:English film actors Category:English male models Category:English people of Welsh descent Category:English radio actors Category:English stage actors Category:English television actors Category:James Bond Category:Living people Category:People from Chester Category:Royal National Theatre Company members Category:1968 births Category:People educated at Calday Grange Grammar School

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