Coordinates	37°46′45.48″N122°25′9.12″N
name	The Times
type	Daily newspaper
format	Compact
price	UK£0.90 (Monday–Friday)£2 (Saturday) £1.30(Sat., Scotland)
foundation	1 January 1785
owners	News Corporation
sister newspapers	''The Sunday Times''
political	Moderate Conservative
headquarters	Wapping, London, UK
editor	James Harding
issn	0140-0460
website	www.thetimes.co.uk
circulation	502,436 March 2010 }}

''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper published in London since 1785, when it was known as ''The Daily Universal Register''.

''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' are published by Times Newspapers Limited, since 1981 a subsidiary of News International. News International is entirely owned by the News Corporation group, headed by Rupert Murdoch. Though traditionally a moderately centre-right newspaper and a supporter of the Conservatives, it supported the Labour Party in the 2001 and 2005 general elections. In 2004, according to MORI, the voting intentions of its readership were 40% for the Conservative Party, 29% for the Liberal Democrats, 26% for Labour.

''The Times'' is the original "Times" newspaper, lending its name to many other papers around the world, such as ''The New York Times'', ''The Los Angeles Times'', ''The Seattle Times'', ''The Daily Times (Malawi)'', Jimma Times (Ethiopia), ''The Times of India'', ''The Straits Times'', ''Polska The Times'' ''The Times of Malta'' and ''The Irish Times''. For distinguishing purposes it is therefore sometimes referred to, particularly in North America, as the 'London Times' or 'The Times of London'. The paper is also the originator of the ubiquitous Times Roman typeface, originally developed by Stanley Morison of ''The Times'' in collaboration with the Monotype Corporation for its legibility in low-tech printing.

The Times was printed in broadsheet format for 219 years, but switched to compact size in 2004 partly in an attempt to appeal to younger readers and partly to appeal to commuters using public transport. An American edition has been published since 6 June 2006.

Today

The newspaper's cover price in the United Kingdom is £1 on weekdays (30p for students at some university campus shops) and £1.50 on Saturday. ''The Times's'' sister paper, ''The Sunday Times'', is a broadsheet and priced at £2.20. Although ''The Times'' and ''The Sunday Times'' are both owned by News International, a subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch's Newscorp, they do not share editorial staff, were founded independently and have shared the same owner only since 1967. In November 2006 ''The Times'' began printing headlines in its new font, Times Modern.

History

''The Times'' was founded by publisher John Walter on 1 January 1785 as ''The Daily Universal Register'', with Walter in the role of editor. Walter changed the title after 940 editions on 1 January 1788 to ''The Times''. In 1803, John Walter handed ownership and editorship to his son of the same name. John Walter Sr. had already spent sixteen months in Newgate prison for libel printed in ''The Times'', but his pioneering efforts to obtain Continental news, especially from France, helped build the paper's reputation among policy makers and financiers.

''The Times'' used contributions from significant figures in the fields of politics, science, literature, and the arts to build its reputation. For much of its early life, the profits of ''The Times'' were very large and the competition minimal, so it could pay far better than its rivals for information or writers.

In 1809, John Stoddart was appointed general editor, replaced in 1817 with Thomas Barnes. Under Barnes and his successor in 1841, John Thadeus Delane, the influence of ''The Times'' rose to great heights, especially in politics and amongst the City of London. Peter Fraser and Edward Sterling were two noted journalists, and gained for ''The Times'' the pompous/satirical nickname 'The Thunderer' (from "We thundered out the other day an article on social and political reform.").The increased circulation and influence of the paper was based in part to its early adoption of the steam driven rotary printing press. Distribution via steam trains to rapidly growing concentrations of urban populations helped ensure the profitability of the paper and its growing influence.

''The Times'' was the first newspaper to send war correspondents to cover particular conflicts. W. H. Russell, the paper's correspondent with the army in the Crimean War, was immensely influential with his dispatches back to England. In other events of the nineteenth century, ''The Times'' opposed the repeal of the Corn Laws until the number of demonstrations convinced the editorial board otherwise, and only reluctantly supported aid to victims of the Irish Potato Famine. It enthusiastically supported the Great Reform Bill of 1832 which reduced corruption and increased the electorate from 400 000 people to 800 000 people (still a small minority of the population). During the American Civil War, ''The Times'' represented the view of the wealthy classes, favouring the secessionists, but it was not a supporter of slavery.

The third John Walter (the founder's grandson) succeeded his father in 1847. The paper continued as more or less independent. From the 1850s, however, ''The Times'' was beginning to suffer from the rise in competition from the penny press, notably ''The Daily Telegraph'' and ''The Morning Post''.

During the 19th century, it was not infrequent for the Foreign Office to approach ''The Times'' and ask for continental intelligence, which was often superior to that conveyed by official sources.

''The Times'' faced financial extinction in 1890 under Arthur Fraser Walter, but it was rescued by an energetic editor, Charles Frederic Moberly Bell. During his tenure (1890–1911), ''The Times'' became associated with selling the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' using aggressive American marketing methods introduced by Horace Everett Hooper and his advertising executive, Henry Haxton. However, due to legal fights between the ''Britannica's'' two owners, Hooper and Walter Montgomery Jackson, ''The Times'' severed its connection in 1908 and was bought by pioneering newspaper magnate, Alfred Harmsworth, later Lord Northcliffe.

In editorials published on 29 and 31 July 1914 Wickham Steed, the ''Times'''s Chief Editor argued that the British Empire should enter World War I. On 8 May 1920, under the editorship of Wickham Steed, the ''Times'' in an editorial endorsed the anti-Semitic forgery ''The Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion'' as a genuine document, and called Jews the world's greatest danger. In the leader entitled "The Jewish Peril, a Disturbing Pamphlet: Call for Inquiry", Steed wrote about ''The Protocols of the Elders of Zion'':

What are these 'Protocols'? Are they authentic? If so, what malevolent assembly concocted these plans and gloated over their exposition? Are they forgery? If so, whence comes the uncanny note of prophecy, prophecy in part fulfilled, in part so far gone in the way of fulfillment?".

The following year, when Philip Graves, the Constantinople (modern Istanbul) correspondent of the ''Times'', exposed ''The Protocols'' as a forgery, the ''Times'' retracted the editorial of the previous year.

In 1922, John Jacob Astor, a son of the 1st Viscount Astor, bought ''The Times'' from the Northcliffe estate. The paper gained a measure of notoriety in the 1930s with its advocacy of German appeasement; then-editor Geoffrey Dawson was closely allied with those in the government who practised appeasement, most notably Neville Chamberlain.

Kim Philby, a Soviet double agent, served as a correspondent for the newspaper in Spain during the Spanish Civil War of the late 1930s. Philby was admired for his courage in obtaining high-quality reporting from the front lines of the bloody conflict. He later joined MI6 during World War II, was promoted into senior positions after the war ended, then eventually defected to the Soviet Union in 1963.

Between 1941 and 1946, the left-wing British historian E.H. Carr was Assistant Editor. Carr was well known for the strongly pro-Soviet tone of his editorials. In December 1944, when fighting broke out in Athens between the Greek Communist ELAS and the British Army, Carr in a ''Times'' editorial sided with the Communists, leading Winston Churchill to condemn him and that leader in a speech to the House of Commons. As a result of Carr's editorial, the ''Times'' became popularly known during World War II as the threepenny ''Daily Worker'' (the price of the ''Daily Worker'' was one penny)

In 1967, members of the Astor family sold the paper to Canadian publishing magnate Roy Thomson, and on 3 May 1966 it started printing news on the front page for the first time. (Previously, the paper's front page featured small advertisements, usually of interest to the moneyed classes in British society.) The Thomson Corporation merged it with ''The Sunday Times'' to form Times Newspapers Limited.

An industrial dispute prompted the management to shut the paper for nearly a year (1 December 1978 – 12 November 1979).

The Thomson Corporation management were struggling to run the business due to the 1979 Energy Crisis and union demands. Management were left with no choice but to save both titles by finding a buyer who was in a position to guarantee the survival of both titles, and also one who had the resources and was committed to funding the introduction of modern printing methods.

Several suitors appeared, including Robert Maxwell, Tiny Rowland and Lord Rothermere; however, only one buyer was in a position to meet the full Thomson remit. That buyer was the Australian media magnate Rupert Murdoch.

Rupert Murdoch

In 1981, ''The Times'' and ''The Sunday Times'' were bought from Thomson by Rupert Murdoch's News International. The acquisition followed three weeks of intensive bargaining with the unions by company negotiators, John Collier and Bill O'Neill.

Murdoch soon began making his mark on the paper, replacing its editor, William Rees-Mogg, with Harold Evans in 1981. One of his most important changes was the introduction of new technology and efficiency measures. In March–May 1982, following agreement with print unions, the hot-metal Linotype printing process used to print ''The Times'' since the 19th century was phased out and replaced by computer input and photo-composition. This allowed print room staff at ''The Times'' and ''The Sunday Times'' to be reduced by half. However, direct input of text by journalists ("single stroke" input) was still not achieved, and this was to remain an interim measure until the Wapping dispute of 1986, when ''The Times'' moved from New Printing House Square in Gray's Inn Road (near Fleet Street) to new offices in Wapping.

In June 1990, ''The Times'' ceased its policy of using courtesy titles ("Mr", "Mrs", or "Miss" prefixes for living persons) before full names on first reference, but it continues to use them before surnames on subsequent references. The more formal style is now confined to the "Court and Social" page, though "Ms" is now acceptable in that section, as well as before surnames in news sections.

In November 2003, News International began producing the newspaper in both broadsheet and tabloid sizes. On 13 September 2004, the weekday broadsheet was withdrawn from sale in Northern Ireland. Since 1 November 2004, the paper has been printed solely in tabloid format.

The Conservative Party announced plans to launch litigation against ''The Times'' over an incident in which the newspaper claimed that Conservative election strategist Lynton Crosby had admitted that his party would not win the 2005 General Election. ''The Times'' later published a clarification, and the litigation was dropped.

On 6 June 2005, ''The Times'' redesigned its Letters page, dropping the practice of printing correspondents' full postal addresses. Published letters were long regarded as one of the paper's key constituents. Author/solicitor David Green of Castle Morris Pembrokeshire has had more letters published on the main letters page than any known contributor – 158 by 31 January 2008. According to its leading article, "From Our Own Correspondents", removal of full postal addresses was in order to fit more letters onto the page.

In a 2007 meeting with the House of Lords Select Committee on Communications, which was investigating media ownership and the news, Murdoch stated that the law and the independent board prevented him from exercising editorial control.

In May 2008 printing of ''The Times'' switched from Wapping to new plants at Broxbourne on the outskirts of London, and Merseyside and Glasgow, enabling the paper to be produced with full colour on every page for the first time.

Controversy and image

Long considered the UK's newspaper of record, ''The Times'' is generally seen as a serious publication with high standards of journalism. It is not without trenchant critics: Robert Fisk, seven times British International Journalist of the Year, resigned as foreign correspondent in 1988 over what he saw as "political censorship" of his article on the shooting-down of Iran Air Flight 655 in July 1988. He wrote in detail about his reasons for resigning from the paper due to meddling with his stories, and the papers' pro-Israel stance.

Some allege that ''The Times''' partisan opinion pieces also damage its status as 'paper of record,' particularly when attacking interests that go against those of its parent company – News International. In 2010 it published an opinion piece attacking the BBC for being 'one of a group of' signatories to a letter criticising BSkyB share options in October 2010.

Readership profile and image

The British Business Survey 2005 named ''The Times'' as the UK's leading daily newspaper for business people. This independent survey was sponsored by ''The Financial Times'', ''The Guardian'', ''The Daily Telegraph'', ''The Economist'', and ''The Times''.

The latest figures from the national readership survey show ''The Times'' to have the highest number of ABC1 25–44 readers and the largest numbers of readers in London of any of the "quality" papers. The certified average circulation figures for November 2005 show that The Times sold 692,581 copies per day. This was the highest achieved under the last editor, Robert Thomson, and ensured that the newspaper remained ahead of ''The Daily Telegraph'' in terms of full-rate sales, although the ''Telegraph'' remains the market leader for broadsheets, with a circulation of 905,955 copies. Tabloid newspapers, such as ''The Sun'' and middle-market newspapers such as the ''Daily Mail'', at present outsell both papers with a circulation of around 3,005,308 and 2,082,352 respectively. By March 2010 the paper's circulation had fallen to 502,436 copies daily and the ''Telegraph's'' to 686,679, according to ABC figures.

Format and supplements

''The Times'' features news for the first half of the paper with the leading articles on the second page, the Opinion/Comment section begins after the first news section, the world news normally follows this. The business pages begin on the centre spread, and are followed by The Register, containing obituaries, Court & Social section, and related material. The sport section is at the end of the main paper.

''Literary Supplement''

''The Times Literary Supplement'' (TLS) is a separately-paid-for weekly literature and society magazine.

''Science Reviews''

Between 1951 and 1966 ''The Times'' published a separately-paid-for quarterly science review, ''The Times Science Review''. Remarkably, in 1953 both the newspaper and its science supplement failed to report on the discovery of the structure of DNA in Cambridge, which was reported on by both the ''News Chronicle'' and ''The New York Times''.

''The Times'' started another new (but free) monthly science magazine, ''Eureka'', in October 2009.

''Times2''

''The Times'''s main supplement was the ''times2'', featuring various lifestyle columns. It was discontinued on 1 March 2010, most of its regular features being absorbed into the main paper, the puzzles into a new supplement called ''Mind Games''. Its previous incarnation began on 5 September 2005, before which it was called ''T2'' and previously ''Times 2''. Regular features included columns by a different columnist each weekday. There was a column by Marcus du Sautoy each Wednesday, for example. The back pages were devoted to puzzles and contain sudoku, "Killer Sudoku", "KenKen", word polygon puzzles, and a crossword simpler and more concise than the main "Times Crossword". The penultimate page was "Young Times", with puzzles and news for children. All these features are now found in ''Mind Games''.

The supplement also contained arts and lifestyle features, TV and radio listings and reviews which have now become their own weekly supplements.

''The Game''

''The Game'' is included in the newspaper on a Monday, and details all the weekend's football activity (Premier League and Football League Championship, League One and League Two.) The Scottish edition of ''The Game'' also includes results and analysis from Scottish Premier League games.

Saturday supplements

The Saturday edition of ''The Times'' contains a variety of supplements. These supplements were relaunched in January 2009 as: ''Sport'', ''Weekend'' (including travel and lifestyle features), ''Saturday Review'' (arts, books, and ideas), ''The Times Magazine'' (columns on various topics), and ''Playlist'' (an entertainment listings guide).

''Saturday Review'' is the first regular supplement published in broadsheet format again since the paper switched to a compact size in 2004.

At the beginning of Summer 2011 ''Saturday Review'' switched to the tabloid format

''The Times Magazine'' features columns touching on various subjects such as celebrities, fashion and beauty, food and drink, homes and gardens or simply writers' anecdotes. Notable contributors include Giles Coren, Food And Drink Writer of the Year in 2005.

Online presence

The ''Times'' and ''Sunday Times'' have had an online presence since March 1999, originally at ''the-times.co.uk'' and ''sunday-times.co.uk'', and later at ''timesonline.co.uk''. In April 2009, the ''timesonline'' site had a readership of 750,000 readers per day.

Paywall

Rupert Murdoch argued that readers should pay for online content, and since July 2010, News International requires readers that do not already subscribe to the print edition to pay £1 per day or £2 per week to access ''Times'' and ''Sunday Times'' content.

There are now two websites, instead of one: ''thetimes.co.uk'' is aimed at daily readers, and the ''thesundaytimes.co.uk'' site at providing weekly magazine-like content.

According to figures released in November 2010 by ''The Times'', 100,000 people had paid to use the service in its first four months of operation, and another 100,000 received free access because they subscribe to the printed paper. Visits to the websites have decreased by 87% since the paywall was introduced, from 21 million unique users per month to 2.7 million.

Typeface

''The Times'' commissioned the serif typeface ''Times New Roman'', created by Victor Lardent at the English branch of Monotype, in 1931. It was commissioned after Stanley Morison had written an article criticizing ''The Times'' for being badly printed and typographically antiquated. The font was supervised by Morison and drawn by Victor Lardent, an artist from the advertising department of ''The Times''. Morison used an older font named Plantin as the basis for his design, but made revisions for legibility and economy of space. ''Times New Roman'' made its debut in the 3 October 1932 issue of ''The Times'' newspaper. After one year, the design was released for commercial sale. ''The Times'' stayed with ''Times New Roman'' for 40 years, but new production techniques and the format change from broadsheet to tabloid in 2004 have caused the newspaper to switch font five times since 1972. However, all the new fonts have been variants of the original New Roman font:

''Times Europa'' was designed by Walter Tracy in 1972 for The Times, as a sturdier alternative to the Times font family, designed for the demands of faster printing presses and cheaper paper. The typeface features more open counter spaces.

''Times Roman'' replaced Times Europa on 30 August 1982. ''Times Millennium'' was made in 1991, drawn by Gunnlaugur Briem on the instructions of Aurobind Patel, composing manager of News International. ''Times Classic'' first appeared in 2001. Designed as an economical face by the British type team of Dave Farey and Richard Dawson, it took advantage of the new PC-based publishing system at the newspaper, while obviating the production shortcomings of its predecessor Times Millennium. The new typeface included 120 letters per font. Initially the family comprised ten fonts, but a condensed version was added in 2004. ''Times Modern'' was unveiled on 20 November 2006, as the successor of ''Times Classic''. Designed for improving legibility in smaller font sizes, it uses 45-degree angled bracket serifs. The font was published by Elsner + Flake as ''EF Times Modern''; it was designed by Research Studios, led by Ben Preston (deputy editor of The Times) and designer Neville Brody.

Sponsored events

''The Times'', along with the British Film Institute, sponsors the London Film Festival (or more specifically, The Times ''bfi'' London Film Festival). As of 2005, it is Europe's largest public event for motion pictures.

''The Times'' also sponsors the Cheltenham Literature Festival and the Asia House Festival of Asian Literature at Asia House, London.

Political allegiance

''The Times'' was a traditional Conservative Party supporter, even after its 18-year rule in government was ended by the Labour landslide of 1997, but for the 2001 general election the paper declared its support for Tony Blair's Labour government, which was re-elected by a landslide. It supported Labour again in 2005, when it achieved a third successive election win, though with a reduced majority. For the 2010 general election, however, the newspaper declared its support for the Tories once again; the election ended in the Tories taking the most votes and seats but having to form a coalition with the Liberal Democrats in order to form a government as they had failed to gain an overall majority.

The Times had declared its support for Clement Attlee's Labour at the 1945 general election; the party went on to win the election by a landslide over Winston Churchill's Conservative government. However, the newspaper reverted to the Tories for the next election five years later. It would not switch sides again for more than 50 years.

Ownership

John Walter (1785–1803)

John Walter, 2nd (1803–1847)

John Walter, 3rd (1847–1894)

Arthur Fraser Walter (1894–1908)

Lord Northcliffe (1908–1922)

Astor family (1922–1966)

Roy Thomson (1966–1981)

News International (subsidiary of News Corporation), run by Rupert Murdoch (1981– )

Editorship

!Editor's name	!Years
	1785–1803
	1803–1812
John Stoddart	1812–1816
	1817–1841
John Delane	1841–1877
Thomas Chenery	1877–1884
George Earle Buckle	1884–1912
George Geoffrey Dawson	1912–1919
	1919–1922
George Geoffrey Dawson	1923–1941
Robert McGowan Barrington-Ward	1941–1948
William Francis Casey	1948–1952
William Haley	1952–1966
William Rees-Mogg	1967–1981
Harold Evans	1981–1982
	1982–1985
	1985–1990
Simon Jenkins	1990–1992
Peter Stothard	1992–2002
	2002–2007
	2007–

Columnists and journalists

Murad Ahmed

Michael Atherton

Guillem Balague

Simon Barnes

Alice Bowe

Peter Brookes, leader-page cartoonist

David Brown

Kaya Burgess

Rachel Campbell-Johnston

Sam Coates

Giles Coren

Robert Crampton

Ginny Dougary

Stephen Farrell

Daniel Finkelstein

Richard Ford

Adam Fresco

Joanna Geary

Frances Gibb

Brian Glanville

Ruth Gledhill

Michael Gove

Nico Hines

Anthony Howard

Philip Howard

Ben Hoyle

Mick Hume

Anatole Kaletsky

Patrick Kidd

Magnus Linklater

Richard Lloyd Parry

Anthony Loyd, war correspondent on retainer

Ben Macintyre

Sam Marlowe, theatre reviewer

Stefanie Marsh

Hugh McIlvanney

Alice Miles

Caitlin Moran

Michael Moran

Morten Morland, political cartoonist

Richard Morrison

Kate Muir

Matthew Parris

Grayson Perry

Catherine Philp

Libby Purves

Lord Rees-Mogg

Peter Riddell

Hugo Rifkind

Aki Riihilahti

Nick Robinson

Alyson Rudd

Dan Sabbagh

Sathnam Sanghera

Marcus du Sautoy

David Sinclair

Graham Stewart

Andrew Sullivan

Richard Susskind

Ann Treneman

Janice Turner

Philip Webster

Tom Whipple

Tom Whitwell

Tony Halpin

Alexander Williams, cartoonist

Jeremy Clarkson

Other publications

(Times Books Group Ltd)

The Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World, 2007 ISBN 978-0-00-780150-3

Biography

Harold Evans, ''Good Times, Bad Times''. Includes sections of black-and-white photographic plates, plus a few charts and diagrams in text pages.

In fiction

In the dystopian future world of George Orwell's ''Nineteen Eighty-Four'', ''The Times'' has been transformed into the organ of the totalitarian ruling party, its editorials—of which several are quoted in the book—reflecting Big Brother's pronouncements.

Rex Stout's fictional detective Nero Wolfe is described as fond of solving the London ''Times'' crossword puzzle at his New York home, in preference to those of American papers.

In the James Bond series, written by Ian Fleming, the title character, James Bond, reads ''The Times''. As described by Fleming in ''From Russia, with Love'': "The Times was the only paper that Bond ever read."

See also

List of newspapers by date

References

External links

The Sunday Times site

Times World Atlases official website including a History and Heritage section detailing landmark Times atlases

Archive from 1785 to 1985 – full text and original layout, searchable (not free of charge, registration required)

The Times editor Robert Thomson lecture online: From the editorial desk of ''The Times'', RMIT School of Applied Communication Public Lecture series

Anthony Trollope's satire on the mid-nineteenth century Times

Journalism Now: The Times Winchester University Journalism History project on the Times in the nineteenth century

Category:Newspapers published in the United Kingdom Category:News Corporation subsidiaries * Category:Publications established in 1785 Category:1785 establishments in Great Britain

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Coordinates	37°46′45.48″N122°25′9.12″N
|name	Trent Reznor
background	solo_singer
birth name	Michael Trent Reznor
born	May 17, 1965Mercer, Pennsylvania, U.S.
spouse	Mariqueen Maandig (May 17, 2009)
instrument	Vocals, guitar, piano, synthesizer, mellotron, keyboards, bass guitar, saxophone, cello, double bass, drums, tuba, sousaphone, harmonium, marimba, pan flute, harpsichord, vibraphone
genre	Industrial rock, industrial metal, dark ambient, electronica, EBM
occupation	Musician, singer-songwriter, sound designer, record producer, film score composer
years active	1982–present
label	The Null Corporation, Nothing, Interscope, Universal, TVT
associated acts	Option 30, The Innocent, Exotic Birds, Lucky Pierre, Nine Inch Nails, How to Destroy Angels, Tapeworm, Atticus Ross, Marilyn Manson, Saul Williams, Karen O
website	www.nin.com
spouse	Mariqueen Maandig }}

Michael Trent Reznor (born May 17, 1965) is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, composer, record producer, and leader of industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails. Reznor is also a member of How to Destroy Angels alongside his wife, Mariqueen Maandig, and Atticus Ross. He was previously associated with bands Option 30, Exotic Birds, and Tapeworm, among others. Reznor left Interscope Records in 2007, and is now an independent musician.

Reznor began creating music early in his life, and cites his Western Pennsylvania childhood as an early influence. After being involved with a number of synthesizer-based bands in the mid-80s, Reznor gained employment at Right Track Studios and began creating his own music during the studio's closing hours under the moniker Nine Inch Nails. Reznor's first release as Nine Inch Nails, ''Pretty Hate Machine'' (1989), was a commercial and critical success, and he has since released seven major studio releases. Outside of Reznor's chief project Nine Inch Nails, he has contributed to many other artists' albums, including Marilyn Manson and Saul Williams. In 1997, Reznor appeared in ''Time'' magazine's list of the year's most influential people, and ''Spin'' magazine described him as "the most vital artist in music."

Reznor, in collaboration with Atticus Ross, composed the score for ''The Social Network'', a 2010 theatrical film about the founding of Facebook. The duo won the 2010 Golden Globe for Best Original Score and the Academy Award for Best Original Score for their collaboration. The soundtrack album was released by The Null Corporation, Reznor's own independent record label. Earlier this year, Reznor announced that the pair would once again be collaborating with David Fincher by composing the score to the US film adaptation of the novel ''The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'', set for release in late 2011.

Personal life

Early life

Michael Trent Reznor was born in Mercer, Pennsylvania, halfway between Pittsburgh and Erie, the son of Nancy Lou (née Clark) and Michael Reznor. After his parents divorced, he lived with his maternal grandparents, while his sister Tera lived with their mother. Reznor is a direct descendant of George Reznor, founder of the Reznor Company (founded 1888), a heating and air conditioning company. The family sold the business in the 1960s.

Reznor began playing the piano at the age of five and showed an early aptitude for music. In a 1995 interview, his grandfather, Bill Clark, remarked, "Music was his life, from the time he was a wee boy. He was so gifted." His former piano teacher Rita Beglin said "Reznor always reminded me of Harry Connick, Jr." when he played.

Reznor has acknowledged that his sheltered life in Pennsylvania left him feeling isolated from the outside world. In a 1994 interview with ''Rolling Stone'', he references his choices in the music industry. However, Reznor later said, "I don't want to give the impression it was a miserable childhood."

At Mercer Area Junior/Senior High School, Reznor learned to play the tenor saxophone and tuba. He was a member of both the jazz and marching band. Former Mercer High School band director Dr. Hendley Hoge remembered Reznor as "very upbeat and friendly." Reznor also became involved in theater while in high school. He was voted "Best in Drama" by classmates for his roles as Judas in ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' and Professor Harold Hill in ''The Music Man''. Reznor graduated from this high school in 1983 and enrolled at Allegheny College, where he studied computer engineering.

Reznor married Mariqueen Maandig in October 2009 and their son, Lazarus Echo, was born in October 2010.

Drug abuse and depression

During the five years following the release of ''The Downward Spiral'', Reznor struggled with depression, social anxiety disorder, and the death of his grandmother, who raised him. During this period of intense grief, Reznor began abusing alcohol and other drugs. He eventually became addicted to alcohol and cocaine. Five years elapsed before Nine Inch Nails' next album, ''The Fragile'', a double CD that debuted in September 1999 at number one on the Billboard 200, selling 228,000 copies in its first week and receiving favorable reviews.

In 2001, Reznor successfully completed rehab, and eventually moved from New Orleans to Los Angeles. In a 2005 interview with ''Kerrang!'', Reznor reflected on his self-destructive past: "There was a persona that had run its course. I needed to get my priorities straight, my head screwed on. Instead of always working, I took a couple of years off, just to figure out who I was and working out if I wanted to keep doing this or not. I had become a terrible addict; I needed to get my shit together, figure out what had happened". In contrast with his former suicidal tendencies, Reznor also admitted in another interview that "[he is] pretty happy right now." Nine Inch Nails' next full-length album, ''With Teeth'' (2005), reached number one on ''Billboard'' 200.

Music career

Early musical projects

While he was enrolled in Allegheny College, Reznor joined local band Option 30, playing three shows a week with them. After only a year of college, Reznor dropped out and moved to Cleveland, Ohio to pursue a career in music. In 1985, he joined The Innocent as a keyboardist. They released one album, ''Livin' in the Street'', but Reznor quit after just three months. In 1986, Reznor joined local band Exotic Birds. He also appeared with them as the fictional band "The Problems" in the 1987 film ''Light of Day''.

Reznor got a job at Cleveland's Right Track Studio as an assistant engineer and janitor. Studio owner Bart Koster later commented that Reznor was "so focused in everything he [did]. When that guy waxed the floor, it looked great." Reznor asked Koster for permission to record demos of his own songs for free during unused studio time. Koster agreed, remarking that it cost him "just a little wear on [his] tape heads". While assembling these, the earliest Nine Inch Nails recordings, Reznor was unable to find a band that could articulate his songs as he wanted. Instead, inspired by Prince, he played all the instruments himself, except drums. This role remains Reznor's on most of the band's studio recordings, though he has occasionally involved other musicians and assistants. Several labels responded favorably to the demo material, and Reznor signed with TVT Records. Nine selections from the Right Track demos were unofficially released in 1988 as ''Purest Feeling''; many of these songs had appeared in revised form on his 1989 debut studio album under the stage name Nine Inch Nails.

Formation of Nine Inch Nails

Most of Reznor's work as a musician has been as founding and primary member of Nine Inch Nails.

Nine Inch Nails' debut album, ''Pretty Hate Machine'' was released in 1989. It was a moderate commercial success, and was certified Gold in 1992. Amid pressure from Reznor's record label to produce a follow-up to ''Pretty Hate Machine'', Reznor secretly began recording under various pseudonyms to avoid record company interference, resulting in the ''Broken'' EP, released in 1992. In the summer of 1991 Nine Inch Nails was included in the Lollapalooza package tour. They later won a Grammy Award in 1993 for the song "Wish" in the Best Heavy Metal Performance category.

Nine Inch Nails' second full-length album, ''The Downward Spiral'', entered the ''Billboard'' 200 chart in 1994 at number two, and remains the highest-selling Nine Inch Nails release in the United States. To record the album, Reznor rented and moved into the 10050 Cielo Drive mansion, site of the 1969 Manson Family murders. Reznor built a studio space in the house, which he renamed Le Pig, after the word that was scrawled on the front door in Sharon Tate's blood by her murderers. Reznor told ''Entertainment Weekly'' that despite the notoriety attached to the house, he chose to record there because, "I looked at a lot of places, and this just happened to be the one I liked most".

Nine Inch Nails toured extensively over the next few years, including a performance at Woodstock '94, although he admitted to the audience that he did not like to play large venues. Around this time, Reznor's studio perfectionism, struggles with addiction, and bouts of writer's block prolonged the production of a follow-up.

Collaboration with other artists

Reznor produced Marilyn Manson's first album ''Portrait of an American Family'' (1994), several tracks on Marilyn Manson's albums ''Smells Like Children'' (1995), and ''Antichrist Superstar'' (1996), as well as the film soundtracks for Oliver Stone's ''Natural Born Killers'' (1994) and David Lynch's ''Lost Highway'' (1997). Reznor is credited for "Driver Down" and "Videodrones; Questions" on the soundtrack for ''Lost Highway'', while another track, "The Perfect Drug", is credited to Nine Inch Nails instead. Reznor sang backing vocals on Tori Amos' 1994 album ''Under the Pink'' on a track called "Past The Mission." In 1998 Reznor produced a remix of Notorious B.I.G.'s song "Victory" which also featured Busta Rhymes. Reznor also sang vocals for the song "Black Bomb" on the Josh Wink album ''Herehear'' (1998).

Under the band name Tapeworm, Reznor collaborated over the span of nearly 10 years with Danny Lohner, Maynard James Keenan, and Atticus Ross, but the project was eventually terminated before any official material was released. The only known released Tapeworm material is a reworked version of a track called "Vacant," retitled "Passive", on A Perfect Circle's 2004 album ''eMOTIVe'', as well as a track called "Potions," off Puscifer's 2009 "C is for ..."

In 2006, Reznor played his first "solo" show(s) at Neil Young's annual Bridge School Benefit. Backed by a four piece string section, he performed stripped-down versions of many Nine Inch Nails songs. Reznor featured on El-P's 2007 album I'll Sleep When You're Dead, guesting on the track "Flyentology". The accompanying music video for the song and its artwork was created by Adult Swim, who aired the music video.

Reznor co-produced Saul Williams' 2007 album ''The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust!'' after Williams toured with Nine Inch Nails in 2005 and 2006. Reznor convinced Williams to release the album as a free download, while giving fans the option of paying $5 for higher quality files, or downloading all of the songs at a lower quality for free. Reznor was also credited as "Musical Consultant" on the 2004 film ''Man on Fire''. The movie features six Nine Inch Nails songs. He has produced a number of songs for Jane's Addiction in his home studio in Beverly Hills. The first recordings, new versions of the early tracks "Chip Away" and "Whores," were released simultaneously on Jane's Addiction's website and the NINJA 2009 Tour Sampler digital EP.

How to Destroy Angels

In April 2010, it was announced that Reznor had formed a new band with his wife, Mariqueen Maandig, and Atticus Ross, called How to Destroy Angels. The group released a self-titled six song EP digitally on June 1, 2010, with the retail edition becoming available on July 6, 2010.

As an independent artist

In May 2008 Reznor founded The Null Corporation and Nine Inch Nails released the studio album ''The Slip'' as a free digital download. In his appreciation for his following and fan base, and having no contractual obligation, he made "The Slip" available for free on his website, stating “This one’s on me.” A month and a half after its online release, ''The Slip'' had been downloaded 1.4 million times from the official Nine Inch Nails website.

In February 2009, Reznor posted his thoughts about the future of Nine Inch Nails on NIN.com, stating that "I've been thinking for some time now it's time to make NIN disappear for a while." Reznor noted in an interview on the official website that while he has not stopped creating music as Nine Inch Nails, the group will not be touring in the foreseeable future.

Video games

The original music from id Software's video game ''Quake'' is credited to "Trent Reznor and Nine Inch Nails"; Reznor helped record sound effects and ambient audio, and the NIN logo appears on ammunition boxes in the game. Reznor's association with id Software began with Reznor being a fan of the original ''Doom''. He reunited with id Software in 2003 as the sound engineer for ''Doom 3'', though due to "time, money and bad management", he had to abandon the project, and his audio work did not make it into the game's final release.

Nine Inch Nails' 2007 major studio recording, ''Year Zero'', was released alongside an accompanying alternate reality game. With its lyrics written from the perspective of multiple fictitious characters, Reznor described ''Year Zero'' as a concept album criticizing the United States government's current policies and how they will affect the world 15 years in the future.

Film soundtrack work and score composition

Reznor produced and arranged soundtracks for the films ''Natural Born Killers'', which showcased the Nine Inch Nails single "Burn", and ''Lost Highway'', which included the single "The Perfect Drug". The music video for the former track featured clips from the film, focusing on the anger and rage that is a product of child abuse, which was also a key theme in the movie.

In 2001, Reznor was asked by Mark Romanek to provide the score for ''One Hour Photo'' but the music didn't work for the film and was not used. These compositions eventually evolved into ''Still''.

Reznor collaborated with Atticus Ross to compose the score for David Fincher's ''The Social Network'', a 2010 drama film about the founding of Facebook. Says Reznor, "When I actually read the script and realized what he was up to, I said goodbye to that free time I had planned." The score was noted for portraying "Mark Zuckerberg the genius, developing a brilliant idea over ominous undertones," and received nearly unanimous praise across the board. On September 16, 2010, Reznor announced that the film's score would be released in October 2010 in multiple formats, including digital download, compact disc, 5.1 surround on Blu-ray disc, and vinyl record. A 5-song sampler EP was released for free via digital download. In 2011 Reznor and Ross won the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score and the Academy Award for Original Score for this work.

On January 7, 2011, Reznor announced that he would again be working with Fincher, this time to provide the score for the American adaptation of ''The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo''. A cover of "Immigrant Song" by Led Zeppelin produced by Reznor and Ross, with Karen O (of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs) as featured singer, was released by way of a trailer for the film. The cover extended for the entirety of the trailer and was well received by critics.

Business activity

Suit and counter-suit with John Malm

In 2004, Reznor's former manager John Malm Jr. filed suit in the United States district court of Ohio against Reznor for over $2 million in deferred commissions. The suit alleged that Reznor "reneged on every single contract he and Malm ever entered into", and that Reznor refused to pay Malm payments which he was contractually entitled to. Weeks later, Reznor filed a counter-suit in the U.S. District Court of New York, charging Malm with fraud and breach of fiduciary duties. Reznor's suit arose from a five-year management contract signed in the early days of Nine Inch Nails, between Reznor and Malm's management company J. Artist Management. This contract, according to the suit, was unlawful and immoral in that it secured Malm 20% of Reznor's ''gross'' earnings, rather than his ''net'' earnings, as is the standard practice between artists and their management. The suit also alleged that the contract secured this percentage even if Malm was no longer representing Reznor, and for all Reznor's album advances. The suit also described how Malm had misappropriated the ownership rights regarding Nine Inch Nails, including the trademark name "NIN". According to testimony by Malm, Reznor gave him half of the "NIN" trademark "as a gift."

Reznor stated that he began to fully understand his financial situation after tackling his addiction to drugs and alcohol. Reznor requested a financial statement from Malm in 2003, only to discover that he had only $400,000 in liquid assets. "It was not pleasant discovering you have a 10th as much as you've been told you have," Reznor told the court. Malm's lawyers, however, claimed that Malm had worked for years "pro bono", and that Reznor's inability to release an album or tour and his uninhibited spending were the reasons for Reznor's financial situation.

After a three week trial in 2005, jurors sided with Reznor, awarding him upwards of $2.95 million and returning to him complete control of his trademarks. After adjustment for inflation, Reznor's award rose to nearly $5 million.

Independence from major record labels

Following the release of ''Year Zero'', Reznor announced later that Nine Inch Nails split from its contractual obligations with Interscope Records, and would distribute its next major albums independently. The last Nine Inch Nails release on Interscope was ''Year Zero Remixed'', based on material from ''Year Zero''.

Criticism of the music industry

In May 2007, Reznor made a post on the official Nine Inch Nails website condemning Universal Music Group—the parent company of the band's record label, Interscope Records—for their pricing and distribution plans for Nine Inch Nails' 2007 album ''Year Zero''. He labeled the company's retail pricing of ''Year Zero'' in Australia as "ABSURD," concluding that "as a reward for being a 'true fan' you get ripped off". Reznor went on to say that as "the climate grows more and more desperate for record labels, their answer to their mostly self-inflicted wounds seems to be to screw the consumer over even more." Reznor's post, specifically his criticism of the recording industry at large, elicited considerable media attention. In September 2007, Reznor continued his attack on Universal Music Group at a concert in Australia, urging fans there to "steal" his music online instead of purchasing it legally. Reznor went on to encourage the crowd to "steal and steal and steal some more and give it to all your friends and keep on stealin'."

Musical style and influence

Reznor is a fan of David Bowie, and has cited Bowie's 1977 album ''Low'' as one of his favorite albums. Reznor has stated that he played the album constantly during the recording of ''The Downward Spiral'' for inspiration. In 1995, Nine Inch Nails and David Bowie toured as a co-headlining act on the Outside Tour. Reznor also appeared in Bowie's video for "I'm Afraid of Americans", cast as Bowie's stalker. Reznor also made several remixes for the single release of the same song, as well as a remix of "The Hearts Filthy Lesson". Reznor also states in the 2010 documentary ''Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage'' that the band Rush had played a major part in his childhood influences. He also stated that he considered Rush to be "one of the best bands ever" and had gained a perspective on how keyboards could be introduced into hard rock after listening to their 1982 album ''Signals''. Reznor also stated "Freddie Mercury's death meant more to me than John Lennon's" and covered Queen's "Get Down Make Love", which was produced by Paul Barker & Al Jourgensen of Ministry and released on the single for "Sin". In many interviews in ''Musician'', ''Spin'', and ''Alternative Press'', Reznor mentioned The Cars, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Soft Cell, Prince, Gary Numan, and The Cure's 1985 album, ''The Head on the Door'', as important influences.

Reznor's work as Nine Inch Nails has influenced many newer artists, which according to Reznor range from "generic imitations" dating from the band's initial success to younger bands echoing his style in a "truer, less imitative way". Following the release of ''The Downward Spiral'', mainstream artists began to take notice of Nine Inch Nails' influence: David Bowie compared NIN's impact to that of The Velvet Underground. In 1997, Reznor appeared in ''Time'' magazine's list of the year's most influential people, and ''Spin'' magazine described him as "the most vital artist in music." Bob Ezrin, producer for Pink Floyd, Kiss, Alice Cooper, and Peter Gabriel, described Reznor in 2007 as a "true visionary" and advised aspiring artists to take note of his no-compromise attitude. During a rare appearance at the ''Kerrang! Awards'' in London that year, Reznor accepted the ''Kerrang!'' Icon, honoring Nine Inch Nails' long-standing influence on rock music. Timbaland, one of pop music's most successful producers in recent years, has cited Reznor as his favorite studio producer.

Discography

References

External links

Category:1965 births Category:Living people Category:American multi-instrumentalists Category:American male singers Category:American music video directors Category:American record producers Category:American rock singers Category:American rock pianists Category:American singer-songwriters Category:American industrial musicians Category:Copyright activists Category:Nine Inch Nails Category:Nine Inch Nails members Category:Allegheny College alumni Category:Musicians from Cleveland, Ohio Category:Musicians from Ohio Category:People from Mercer County, Pennsylvania Category:Musicians from Pennsylvania Category:Best Original Music Score Academy Award winners Category:Pigface members Category:Quake Category:Video game composers Category:Jewish musicians Category:People from New Orleans, Louisiana Category:People self-identifying as alcoholics Category:People self-identifying as substance abusers

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Coordinates	37°46′45.48″N122°25′9.12″N
name	Marion Cotillard
birth date	September 30, 1975
birth place	Paris, France
occupation	Actress, singer
years active	1993–present
domesticpartner	Guillaume Canet (2007–present; 1 child) }}

Marion Cotillard (; born 30 September 1975) is a French actress and singer. She garnered critical acclaim for her roles in films such as ''La Vie en Rose'', ''My Sex Life... or How I Got Into an Argument'', ''Taxi'', ''Furia'' and ''Jeux d'enfants''. She has also appeared in such films as ''Big Fish'', ''A Very Long Engagement'' (for which she received a César Award for Best Supporting Actress), ''A Good Year'', ''Public Enemies'', ''Nine'', and ''Inception''.

She won the Academy Award for Best Actress, BAFTA Award for Best Actress, César for Best Actress and the Golden Globe for Best Actress in Musical or a Comedy for her portrayal of French singer Édith Piaf in ''La Vie en Rose''. She made film history by becoming the first person to win an Academy Award for a French language performance. In 2010, she received a Golden Globe nomination for her performance in the musical ''Nine''.

Family and early life

Cotillard was born in Paris and grew up around Orléans, Loiret in an artistically inclined, "bustling, creative household". Her father, Jean-Claude Cotillard, is an actor, teacher, former mime, and 2006 Molière Award-winning director. Cotillard's mother, Monique (now known as Niseema) Theillaud, is also an actress and drama teacher. She has two younger twin brothers, Quentin and Guillaume. She began acting during her childhood, appearing on stage in one of her father's plays.

Career

Early work (1993–2002)

After small appearances and performances in theater, Cotillard had occasional and minor roles in television series such as ''Highlander'', but her career as a film actress began in the mid-1990s with small but noticeable roles in such films as Arnaud Desplechin's ''My Sex Life... or How I Got Into an Argument''. Cotillard appeared in the comedy ''La belle verte'', directed by Coline Serreau. In 1998, she starred in Gérard Pirès' action comedy ''Taxi''. In the film, she plays Lili Bertineau, who becomes Daniel's girlfriend. Cotillard reprised the role in two sequels. She then ventured into anticipation science fiction with Alexandre Aja's ''Furia'' (1999).

Cotillard appeared in Pierre Grimblat's film ''Lisa'' as Young Lisa, alongside Jeanne Moreau, Benoît Magimel and Sagamore Stévenin in the Swiss war drama ''In The Highlands''. She starred in Gilles Paquet-Brenner's film ''Les jolies choses'', adapted from the work of feminist writer Virginie Despentes. In the drama, Cotillard portrayed the characters of two twins of completely opposite characters, Lucie and Marie. She was nominated for a César Award for her performance. In Guillaume Nicloux's thriller ''Une affaire privée'' she portrayed Clarisse, friend of the disappeared.

Breakthrough (2003–2006)

Cotillard starred with Guillaume Canet in the romantic comedy film ''Love Me If You Dare'' as Sophie Kowalsky, the daughter of Polish immigrants. The film was directed by Yann Samuel. Cotillard had a notable supporting role in Tim Burton's film ''Big Fish'', where she appeared alongside Ewan McGregor, Billy Crudup, Jessica Lange and Allison Lohman. In the film she plays Joséphine, the French wife of William Bloom. She appeared in two critically successful films, Jean-Pierre Jeunet's ''A Very Long Engagement'' as Tina Lombardi, for which she won a César Award for Best Supporting Actress, and appeared in the mystery thriller ''Innocence'' as Mademoiselle Éva.

In 2005, Cotillard starred in Steve Suissa's romantic drama ''Cavalcade'' as Alizée. She also appeared in Abel Ferrara's religious drama ''Mary'' alongside Forest Whitaker and Juliette Binoche. Marion played Isabelle Kruger and Alice in the thriller film ''La Boîte noire'', directed by Richard Berry. She appeared in the film ''Fair Play'' as Nicole. Cotillard starred in Ridley Scott's romantic comedy ''A Good Year'', in which she portrayed Fanny Chenal, a French café owner in a small Provençal town, opposite Russell Crowe as a Londoner who inherits a local property. She appeared in the Belgian comedy ''Dikkenek'', and learned to play the cello for her role as a soloist in the satirical coming-of-age film ''You and Me''.

2007–present

She was chosen by director Olivier Dahan to portray the French singer Édith Piaf in the biopic ''La Vie en Rose'' before he had even met her, saying that he noticed a similarity between Piaf's and Cotillard's eyes. Producer Ilan Goldman accepted and defended the choice even though distributors TFM reduced the money they gave to finance the film thinking Cotillard wasn't "bankable" enough an actress. Her portrayal was widely praised, including by the eminent theatre director Sir Trevor Nunn, who described it as "one of the greatest performances on film ever." It was dubbed "the most awaited film of 2007" in France, where some critics said that she had reincarnated Édith Piaf to sing one last time on stage.

On 10 February 2008, Cotillard became the first French actress to be awarded the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role since Stéphane Audran in 1973. She is the first actress to win a Golden Globe for a foreign language performance since 1972, when Liv Ullmann won for ''The Emigrants''. She is also the first person to win a (Comedy or Musical) Golden Globe for a foreign language performance.

On 22 February 2008, she was awarded the César Award for Best Actress for her role in ''La Vie en Rose'', becoming the first woman and second person (after Adrien Brody, ''The Pianist'') to win both a Cesar and an Oscar for the same performance. Cotillard is the second French cinema actress to win this award and the third overall to receive an Academy Award. She is the first Best Actress winner in a non-English language performance since Sophia Loren's win in 1961. She is also the first and so far only winner of an Academy Award for a performance in the French language. In her Oscar acceptance speech, Cotillard proclaimed "thank you life, thank you love" and, speaking of Los Angeles, said "it is true, there is some angels ''(sic)'' in this city!" The day following the ceremony, Cotillard was congratulated and praised by the President of France Nicolas Sarkozy in a statement saying,

}}

As ''La Vie En Rose'' was also a Czech production, as she mentioned in her César acceptance speech, on 1 March 2008, Cotillard won a Czech Lion Award for Best Actress. She could not attend the ceremony in Prague due to the filming of ''Public Enemies''. Her friend Pavlína Němcová – who played the journalist in ''La vie en Rose'' – was there to accept the award on her behalf. On 24 June 2008, Cotillard was one of 105 individuals invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Cotillard starred alongside Johnny Depp in ''Public Enemies'', released in the United States on 1 July 2009. Later that year, Cotillard appeared in the film adaptation of the musical ''Nine'', directed by Rob Marshall, and co-starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Penélope Cruz, Judi Dench, Nicole Kidman, Sophia Loren and Kate Hudson. On 15 December 2009, Cotillard was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Actress – Musical or Comedy for her performance in the film. The film was released on 18 December 2009.

For her role in the musical ''Nine'' as Luisa Contini, ''Time'' magazine ranked her as the fifth best performance by a female in 2009. She was ranked just behind Mo'Nique, Carey Mulligan, Saoirse Ronan and Meryl Streep. She was awarded the Desert Palm Achievement Actress Award at the 2010 Palm Springs International Film Festival for the role.

She appeared as the main antagonist "Mal Cobb" in Christopher Nolan's film ''Inception'', alongside Leonardo DiCaprio and Ellen Page, and released on 16 July 2010. She will co-star alongside Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law, Kate Winslet and Matt Damon in Steven Soderberg's thriller film ''Contagion''.

She appears in Woody Allen's ''Midnight in Paris'' (2011) alongside Rachel McAdams and Owen Wilson, cast as Adriana, a fictionalized mistress of Pablo Picasso. On 15 March 2010 Cotillard was made a Chevalier (Knight) of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Order of the Arts and Letters) by the French government for her "contribution to the enrichment of French culture". On 19 April 2011, Cotillard was signed on to star in Christopher Nolan's film ''The Dark Knight Rises'' playing Miranda Tate, a board member at Wayne Enterprises that is also an ally of Bruce Wayne. The film opens on 20 July 2012.

Other projects

In addition to her film work, Cotillard is interested in environmental activism, and has participated in campaigns for environmental protection. Cotillard used her high public profile to bring attention to the aims of Greenpeace, working for the environmental organization as a spokesperson, allowing the organization to use her apartment to test products. In 2005, she also contributed to Dessins pour le climat ("Drawings for the Climate"), a book of drawings published by Greenpeace to raise funds for the group.

In 2009, Cotillard was chosen as the face for Dior's "Lady Dior" advertising campaign and was featured in an online mini-movie directed by John Cameron Mitchell about the fictional character created by John Galliano. This campaign has also resulted in a musical collaboration with British indie rock band Franz Ferdinand, where Cotillard has provided the vocals for a composition performed by the group, entitled "The Eyes of Mars". Cotillard appeared on the cover of the November 2009 issue of ''Vogue'' with ''Nine'' co-stars Sophia Loren, Nicole Kidman, Penélope Cruz, Kate Hudson and Fergie, and on the July 2010 cover by herself.

Personal life

Cotillard currently lives with French actor and director Guillaume Canet. Many reports say the couple prefer to live a simple lifestyle, and they are often spotted in cafes and shopping together in Paris. Neither star discusses their relationship with the media, although photos of the couple being affectionate regularly surface in the European tabloids. The birth of the couple's first child, called Marcel, was announced on 20 May 2011.

She is a fan of Radiohead and Canadian singer Hawksley Workman; she has appeared in two of the latter's music videos, most notably "No Reason to Cry Out your Eyes (On the Highway Tonight)". Workman even revealed in interviews about his last album ''Between the Beautifuls'' that he worked and wrote songs with Cotillard while they both were in Los Angeles during the movie awards season. She is a supporter of the English football club Leeds United, a passion she developed after her compatriot Eric Cantona's spell at the club in the early 1990s.

In 2008, Cotillard generated controversy due to the re-publishing of a 2007 interview in which she publicly questioned the official explanation of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States and implied the destruction of the World Trade Center towers was an intentional demolition.

Filmography

+List of film credits
! Year	! Title	! Role	! Notes
1994	''''	Mathilde
1996	''My Sex Life... or How I Got Into an Argument''	Student	''Comment je me suis disputé... (ma vie sexuelle) ''
1996	''''	Nurse
1996	''Chloé''	Chloé
1998		Lili Bertineau	Nominated—César Award for Most Promising Actress
1999	''War in the Highlands''	Julie Bonzon	''''
1999		Élia
1999	''Blue Away to America''	Solange	''Du bleu jusqu'en Amérique''
2000	''Taxi 2''	Lili Bertineau	Cabourg Romantic Film Festival – Best Actress
2001	''Lisa''	Young Lisa	Verona Love Screens Film Festival – Best Actress
2001	''Pretty Things''	Marie/Lucie	''''Nominated—César Award for Most Promising Actress
2002	''''	Clarisse Entoven	''''
2003	''Taxi 3''	Lili Bertineau
2003	''Love Me If You Dare''	Sophie Kowalsky	''Jeux d'enfants''Newport Beach Film Festival – Best Actress
2003	''Big Fish''	Joséphine Bloom
2004		Mademoiselle Éva
2004	''''	Tina Lombardi	''''César Award for Best Supporting Actress
2005	''Cavalcade''	Alizée
2005	''Edy''	Céline/La chanteuse du rêve
2005	''Love Is in the Air''	Alice	''Ma vie en l'air''
2005		Gretchen Mol
2005	''Burnt Out''	Lisa	''Sauf le respect que je vous dois''
2005	''''	Isabelle Kruger/Alice
2006	''You and Me''	Léna	''Toi et Moi''
2006	''Dikkenek''	Nadine
2006	''Fair Play''	Nicole
2006	''''	Fanny Chenal
2007	''''	Édith Piaf	Academy Award for Best ActressAfrican American Film Critics Association Award for Best ActressBAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading RoleBoston Society of Film Critics Award for Best ActressCésar Award for Best ActressCzech Lion Award for Best ActressGolden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or ComedyHollywood Film Festival – Actress of the YearKansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best ActressLondon Film Critics Circle Award for Best ActressLos Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best ActressPalm Springs International Film Festival – Best ActressSanta Barbara International Film Festival – Virtuosos AwardSatellite Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture DramaSeattle International Film Festival – Best ActressVancouver Film Critics Circle Award for Best ActressNominated—Berlin International Film Festival – Best ActressNominated—Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best ActressNominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best ActressNominated—Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best ActressNominated—Detroit Film Critics Society Awards 2007
2009		[[Billie Frechette
2009	''OceanWorld 3D''	Narrator
2009	''''	Marie Vallières de Beaumont	''''
2009		Luisa Contini	Palm Springs International Film Festival – Desert Palm Achievement Actress AwardSatellite Award for Best Cast – Motion PictureNominated—Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting ActressNominated—Detroit Film Critics Society Awards 2009
2010	''[[Inception''	Mallorie "Mal" Cobb	Nominated—Central Ohio Film Critics Association Award for Best EnsembleNominated—IGN Movie Award for Best ActressNominated—Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best EnsembleNominated—Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion PictureNominated—Scream Award for Best EnsembleNominated—Scream Award for Best Supporting ActressNominated—Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Ensemble
2010		Marie	''''
2011	''Midnight in Paris''	Adriana
2011		Dr. Leonora Orantes
2012	''''	Miranda Tate	filming

Awards and nominations

Cotillard won a César Award for Best Supporting Actress for ''A Very Long Engagement'' (2004). Cotillard won an Academy Award for Best Actress, a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy, a BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role, a Satellite Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama and a César Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Édith Piaf in ''La Vie en Rose'' (2007). Cotillard and her co-stars of ''Nine'' won a Satellite Award for Best Cast – Motion Picture for the performance in the film.

Cotillard also has been nominated for numerous awards, including César Award for Most Promising Actress for ''Taxi'' (1998) and ''Les Jolies choses'' (2001), and a European Film Award for Best Actress for ''La Vie en Rose'' (2007). Additionally, Cotillard was nominated for an Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for ''Nine'' (2009).

Academy Award milestones

Cotillard received the Academy Award for Best Actress in 2007, becoming only the second French cinema actress, after Simone Signoret in 1959, to win this award and the third overall to receive an Academy Award (Juliette Binoche won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1997 for her critically acclaimed role in the picture ''The English Patient''), although French expatriate Claudette Colbert was given an Oscar in 1934. She is the first Best Actress winner in a non-English language performance since Sophia Loren's win in 1961 and also became the first – and so far only – winner of an Academy Award for a performance in the French language.

Other awards

Cotillard for her portrayal of Lisa Young in the French film ''Lisa'' (2001), was the winner of Verona Love Screens Film Festival for Best Actress, she was the winner of Newport Beach Film Festival for Best Actress – Drama for ''Love Me If You Dare'' (2003).

References

External links

Category:BAFTA winners (people) Category:Best Actress Academy Award winners Category:Best Actress César Award winners Category:Best Musical or Comedy Actress Golden Globe (film) winners Category:Best Supporting Actress César Award winners Category:César Award winners Category:French ecologists Category:French film actors Category:People from Orléans Category:People from Caen Category:1975 births Category:Living people

ar:ماريون كوتيار an:Marion Cotillard bn:মারিয়ন ক্যাটিলার্ড zh-min-nan:Marion Cotillard be:Марыён Каціяр be-x-old:Марыён Катыяр bg:Марион Котияр ca:Marion Cotillard cs:Marion Cotillard da:Marion Cotillard de:Marion Cotillard el:Μαριόν Κοτιγιάρ es:Marion Cotillard eo:Marion Cotillard eu:Marion Cotillard fa:ماریون کوتیار fr:Marion Cotillard gl:Marion Cotillard ko:마리옹 코티야르 hy:Մարիոն Քոտիար id:Marion Cotillard it:Marion Cotillard he:מריון קוטיאר ka:მარიონ კოტიარი ku:Marion Cotillard la:Mariana Cotillard lv:Mariona Kotijāra hu:Marion Cotillard nl:Marion Cotillard ja:マリオン・コティヤール no:Marion Cotillard oc:Marion Cotillard pl:Marion Cotillard pt:Marion Cotillard ro:Marion Cotillard ru:Котийяр, Марион sr:Марион Котијар fi:Marion Cotillard sv:Marion Cotillard tl:Marion Cotillard th:มารีออง คอทียารด์ tr:Marion Cotillard uk:Маріон Котіяр vi:Marion Cotillard wuu:玛丽咏 高帝娅 yo:Marion Cotillard zh-yue:瑪香莪 zh:瑪莉安·歌迪雅

Coordinates	37°46′45.48″N122°25′9.12″N
birth date	August 07, 1975
birth place	Benoni, Transvaal Province, South Africa
years active	1995–present
occupation	Actress, producer, director, fashion model
website	Official website
partner	Stuart Townsend (2000–2010; separated) }}

Charlize Theron (; born 7 August 1975) is a South African actress, film producer and former fashion model.

She rose to fame in the late 1990s following her roles in ''2 Days in the Valley'', ''Mighty Joe Young'', ''The Devil's Advocate'' and ''The Cider House Rules''. She received critical acclaim and an Academy Award for her portrayal of serial killer Aileen Wuornos in the film ''Monster'', for which she became the first South African to win an Academy Award in a major acting category. She received another Academy Award nomination for her performance in ''North Country''.

Early life

Theron was born in Benoni, in the then Transvaal Province of South Africa, the only child of Gerda Jacoba Aletta (née Maritz; born 27 January 1953) and Charles Jacobus Theron (27 November 1947 – 21 June 1991). Her mother is of German descent and her father was of Occitan and Dutch ancestry; Theron is descended from early Huguenot settlers, and Boer War figure Daniel Theron was her great-great uncle. "Theron" is an Occitan surname (originally spelled Théron) pronounced in Afrikaans as "Tronn", although she has said that the way it is pronounced in South Africa is "Thrown". She changed the pronunciation when she moved to the U.S.

Although fluent in English, her first language is Afrikaans. She grew up on her parents' farm in Benoni, near Johannesburg. Her father died on 21 June 1991, after he was shot by Theron's mother. Theron's father, who suffered from alcoholism, physically attacked her mother and threatened both women while being drunk. The shooting was legally adjudged to have been self-defence and her mother faced no charges.

Theron attended Putfontein Primary School (Laerskool Putfontein). At the age of thirteen, Theron was sent to boarding school and began her studies at the National School of the Arts in Johannesburg.

Career

At the age of sixteen, Theron travelled to Milan on a one-year modelling contract, after winning a local competition. She went to New York with Pauline's Model Management. She decided to remain after her contract ended, attending the Joffrey Ballet School, where she trained as a ballet dancer. A knee injury closed this career path when Theron was 19.

Unable to dance, Theron flew to Los Angeles on a one-way ticket her mother bought her. During her early months there, she went to a bank to cash a cheque her mother had sent her to help with the rent. When the teller refused to cash it, Theron immediately started a shouting match with her. Afterwards, a talent agent in line behind her handed her his business card and subsequently introduced her to some casting agents and also an acting school. She later fired him as her manager after he kept sending her scripts for films similar to ''Showgirls'' and ''Species''. After several months in the city, she was cast in her first film part, a non-speaking role in the direct-to-video film ''Children of the Corn III'' (1995). Her fist speaking role was a supporting but significant part in ''2 Days in the Valley''. Larger roles in widely released Hollywood films followed, and her career expanded in the late 1990s with box office successes like ''The Devil's Advocate'' (1997), ''Mighty Joe Young'' (1998), and ''The Cider House Rules'' (1999). She was on the cover of the January 1999 issue of ''Vanity Fair'' as the "White Hot Venus".

After appearing in a few notable films, Theron starred as the serial killer Aileen Wuornos in ''Monster'' (2003). Film critic Roger Ebert called it "one of the greatest performances in the history of the cinema". For this role, Theron won the Academy Award for Best Actress at the 76th Academy Awards in February 2004, as well as the SAG Award and the Golden Globe Award. She is the first South African to win an Oscar for Best Actress. The Oscar win pushed her to ''The Hollywood Reporter's'' 2006 list of highest-paid actresses in Hollywood; earning $10,000,000 for both her subsequent films, ''North Country'' and ''Æon Flux'', she ranked seventh, behind Halle Berry, Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, Renée Zellweger, Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman.

On 30 September 2005, Theron received her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In the same year, she starred in the financially unsuccessful science fiction thriller ''Æon Flux''.

Theron received Best Actress Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for her lead performance in the drama ''North Country''. ''Ms.'' magazine also honoured her for this performance with a feature article in its Fall 2005 issue. She also received the 2005 Spike Video Game Award for Best Performance by a Human Female for her voiceover work in the Æon Flux video game.

In 2005 Theron portrayed Rita, Michael Bluth's (Jason Bateman) love interest, on the third season of Fox's critically acclaimed television series ''Arrested Development''. She also received Golden Globe and Emmy nominations for her role of Britt Ekland in the 2004 HBO movie ''The Life and Death of Peter Sellers''.

In 2008 Theron was named the Hasty Pudding Theatricals Woman of the Year. That year she also starred with Will Smith in ''Hancock'', a film that grossed $227.9M in the U.S. and $396.4M internationally, and in late 2008 she was asked to be a UN Messenger of Peace by the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon.

In October 2009, Theron was cast to star in a sequel to the ''Mad Max'' films, titled ''Mad Max: Road Fury'', which will commence filming at Broken Hill in New South Wales, Australia in late 2010.

On 4 December 2009, Theron co-presented the draw for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in Cape Town, South Africa, accompanied by several other celebrities of South African origin. During rehearsals she drew an Ireland ball instead of France as a joke at the expense of FIFA, referring to Thierry Henry's handball controversy in the play off match between France and Ireland. The stunt alarmed FIFA enough for it to fear she might do it again in front of a live global audience.

As reported on Piers Morgan Tonight on 2 July 2011, Theron's movies have earned a combine total of 800 Million dollars.

Theron has been cast in the role of The Wicked Queen in ''Snow White and the Huntsman''.

Personal life

Theron lives in the Los Angeles area. She separated from her partner of almost a decade, Irish actor Stuart Townsend (with whom she starred in the 2004 film ''Head in the Clouds'' as well as in the 2002 film ''Trapped''), in January 2010.

Theron became a naturalised citizen of the United States in May 2007.

She signed with William Morris Endeavour in 2009 and is represented by CEO Ari Emanuel.

Health concerns

While filming ''Æon Flux'' in Berlin, Germany, Theron suffered a herniated disc in her neck, which occurred as a result of her suffering a fall while filming a series of back handsprings. This required her to wear a neck collar for a month.

In July 2009 Theron was diagnosed with a serious stomach virus, thought to be contracted while travelling outside the United States. She was hospitalised at Cedars-Sinai Hospital and she finished convalescing in her own home.

Promotional deals

Having signed a deal with John Galliano in 2004, Theron replaced Estonian model Tiiu Kuik as the spokeswoman in the ''J'ADORE'' advertisements by Christian Dior. Galliano has reputedly cited her as a muse and has been creating couture dresses for her to wear to formal red carpet events such as the Academy Awards and the Golden Globe Awards.

From October 2005 to December 2006 Theron earned $3,000,000 for the use of her image in a worldwide print media advertising campaign for Raymond Weil watches. In February 2006, she and her loan-out corporation were sued by Weil for breach of contract. The lawsuit was settled on 4 November 2008.

Activism

Theron is involved in women's rights organisations, and has marched in pro-choice rallies.

Theron also is a supporter of animal rights and active member of PETA. She appeared in a PETA ad for their anti-fur campaign. She is a supporter of same-sex marriage and attended a march to support that in Fresno, California, on 30 May 2009.

In July 2009 it was announced that Theron's Africa Outreach Project (CTAOP) would form a coalition with LAFC Soccer Club to give soccer fields to rural areas in South Africa. LAFC Chelsea, one of the United States's most successful and prominent youth soccer clubs, made a three-year commitment to help build a community-wide soccer programme for the schools in the Umkhanyakude District. This help includes uniforms, cleats, balls and equipment, along with professional training for local coaches, referees and administrators. The soccer league training will also include life-saving health education administered through a CTAOP-funded mobile health program. With the 2010 FIFA World Cup on African soil for the very first time, CTAOP wants to put a spotlight on the urgent need to provide sustainable health, education and recreational resources to remote areas where HIV/AIDS rates are unacceptably high.

Don Sheppards, president of LAFC Chelsea, said:

In December 2009, CTAOP and TOMS Shoes partnered to create a limited edition unisex shoe. The shoe was made from vegan-materials and was inspired by the African Baobab tree, whose silhouette was embroidered on blue and orange canvas. 10,000 pairs were given to destitute children, and a portion of the proceeds went direcly to CTAOP.

Filmography

+ Films
! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
1995	''Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest''	Young Woman	Uncredited
1996	''2 Days in the Valley''	Helga Svelgen
1996	''That Thing You Do!''	Tina Powers
1997	''Hollywood Confidential''	Sally	TV film
1997		Billie Tyler
1997	''''	Mary Ann Lomax
1998		Supermodel
1998		Jill Young	Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress
1999	''''	Jillian Armacost
1999	''''	Candy Kendall
2000	''Reindeer Games''	Ashley Mercer
2000	''''	Erica Stoltz
2000	''''	Adele Invergordon
2000	''Men of Honor''	Gwen Sunday
2001		Sara Deever
2001	''''	Laura Kensington
2001	''15 Minutes''	Rose Heam
2002		Karen Jennings
2002	''Waking Up in Reno''	Candy Kirkendall
2003	''''	Stella Bridger
2003		Aileen Wuornos	Academy Award for Best ActressBroadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best ActressCentral Ohio Film Critics Association Award for Best ActressChicago Film Critics Association Award for Best ActressDallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best ActressGolden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture DramaIndependent Spirit Award for Best First FeatureIndependent Spirit Award for Best Lead FemaleLas Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best ActressNational Board of Review Award for Best Breakthrough Performance by an ActressNational Society of Film Critics Award for Best ActressSan Francisco Film Critics Circle Award for Best ActressSatellite Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture DramaScreen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role - Motion PictureSilver Bear for Best Actress (tied with Catalina Sandino Moreno for ''Maria full of Grace'')Vancouver Film Critics Circle Award for Best ActressNominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading RoleNominated—London Film Critics Circle Award for Best ActressNominated—Irish Film & Television Award for Best International Actress
2004	''''	Britt Ekland	Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress In A Mini-series or Motion Picture Made for TelevisionNominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress - Miniseries or a MovieNominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie
2004	''Head in the Clouds''	Gilda Bessé
2005		Josey Aimes	Women Film Critics Circle
2005	''''	[[Æon Flux
2007	''In the Valley of Elah''	Det. Emily Sanders
2008		Joleen	Also producer
2008		Mary Embrey	Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress
2008	''Battle in Seattle''	Ella	Stuart Townsend directing
2009	''''	Sylvia	Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Actress
2009	''''	Wife
2009		Narrator
2011		Mavis Gary	''Post-production''
2012		The Queen	''Filming''
2012		Meredith Vickers	''Filming''

+ Television
! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
2005		Rita	5 episodes
2006	''Robot Chicken''	Daniel's Mom / Mother / Waitress	1 episode

+ Music Videos
! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
2010		Mysterious and dangerous rescuer	Song by Brandon Flowers

References

External links

Charlize Theron at AskMen

Charlize Africa Outreach Project (CTAOP)

Category:1975 births Category:Afrikaner people Category:American activists Category:American film actors Category:American people of South African descent Category:Article Feedback Pilot Category:Best Actress Academy Award winners Category:Best Drama Actress Golden Globe (film) winners Category:GLAAD Media Awards winners Category:Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead winners Category:Living people Category:Naturalized citizens of the United States Category:Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role Screen Actors Guild Award winners Category:People from Benoni Category:South African emigrants to the United States Category:South African female models Category:South African film actors Category:South African people of Dutch descent Category:South African people of German descent Category:South African people of Huguenot descent Category:United Nations Messengers of Peace Category:White South African people

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Coordinates	37°46′45.48″N122°25′9.12″N
name	Steve Coogan
birth date	October 14, 1965
birth place	Middleton, Manchester, England
birth name	Stephen John Coogan
spouse	Caroline Hickman(2002–05; divorced)
occupation	Actor, Comedian, Writer, Producer
years active	1988–present }}

Stephen John "Steve" Coogan (born 14 October 1965) is an English comedian, actor, writer and producer.

His best known character in the United Kingdom is Alan Partridge, a socially awkward and politically incorrect regional media personality, who featured in several television series, such as ''The Day Today'', ''Knowing Me Knowing You with Alan Partridge'' and ''I'm Alan Partridge''. Outside the UK, Coogan is better known for his roles in films such as ''Night at the Museum'', ''Tropic Thunder'', ''Hamlet 2'', and ''The Other Guys''.

Early life

Stephen Coogan is one of seven children born to Kathleen (née Coonan), a homemaker, and Anthony Coogan, an IBM engineer. He was born in his parents' house and raised in Alkrington, a suburb of Middleton, north of Manchester, in an Irish working class family. Coogan was raised as a Roman Catholic. He had a happy childhood growing up with four brothers and two sisters, and in addition his parents fostered children on a short-term basis, sometimes accommodating two or three foster children at a time. Coogan had a talent for impersonation, and wanted to go to drama school, despite being advised by a teacher that it could lead to a precarious profession.

He went to five interviews for drama school in London, and then – after gaining confidence by joining a theatre company in Manchester called New Music – gained a place at the Manchester Polytechnic School of Theatre. Coogan's brother Martin was the vocalist and wrote the music for The Mock Turtles, a successful indie rock band in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Coogan started out as a comic and mimic in Ipswich, as well as doing voice-over work for adverts and impressions on ''Spitting Image''. In 1988, he did impressions of Prince Charles which featured on the Urban label release "Don't Believe the Hype" by acid house artist Mista E. The impressions were also used as jingles in 1988/89 on the BBC Radio 1 FM Friday night dance music show ''Jeff Young's Big Beat''.

In 1993 Steve starred alongside Caroline Aherne and John Thomson in a one-off Granada TV sketch show The Dead Good Show.

Alan Partridge

He collaborated with Chris Morris and Armando Iannucci, amongst others, on the Radio 4 comedy show ''On the Hour'', where he helped give birth to his most famous creation, Alan Partridge. Alan went on to have his own radio show, as well as appearing on TV in ''The Day Today'' and his own chat show, ''Knowing Me Knowing You with Alan Partridge''. In 1997, he returned with the sitcom ''I'm Alan Partridge'', which was followed by a second series in 2002. Partridge is part of Coogan's 2008 stand-up tour, and an Alan Partridge movie is in production.

Other TV roles

''Paul Calf'' first began as a character named 'Duncan Disorderly' in Coogan's early stand-up routines. Calf first came to wider public notice in 1993, with several appearances on ''Saturday Zoo'', a late-night variety show presented by Jonathan Ross on Channel 4. Paul has appeared in two video diaries, an episode of ''Coogan's Run'', and in various stand-up performances. He is an unemployed Mancunian wastrel with a particular hatred of students. His catchphrase is "Bag o' shite".

Paul lives in a council house in the fictional town of Ottle with his mother and his sister, Pauline Calf (also played by Coogan). His father died some time before the first video diary was made. For a long time he was obsessed with getting back together with his ex-girlfriend, Julie. Paul's best friend is "Fat" Bob (played by John Thomson), a car mechanic who eventually married Pauline. Paul supports Manchester City and is very partial to Wagon Wheels. He wears Burton suits, sports a bleached mullet and drives a Ford Cortina.

Other Coogan creations include ''Tommy Saxondale'', ''Duncan Thicket'', and Portuguese Eurovision winner ''Tony Ferrino''. Duncan Thicket has appeared in a tour of live shows. Other TV shows he has starred in include ''Coogan's Run'', ''Dr. Terrible's House of Horrible'', ''Monkey Trousers'' and ''Saxondale''. Coogan has provided voices for the animated series ''I Am Not an Animal'' and ''Bob and Margaret'', the one-off BBC2 comedy about sheep ''Combat Sheep'', two Christmas specials starring ''Robbie the Reindeer'', and an episode of the BBC Radio Four spoof sci-fi series ''Nebulous''.

During the 1989 series of The Krypton Factor, Coogan was invited to participate in a series of mini-movies for the observation round.

He starred in BBC2's ''The Private Life of Samuel Pepys'' in 2003, and ''Cruise of the Gods'' in 2002. In 2006, he had a cameo in the ''Little Britain'' Christmas special as a pilot taking Lou and Andy to Disneyland. In 2007, Coogan played a psychiatrist on HBO's ''Curb Your Enthusiasm'', and in 2008, starred in the BBC1 drama ''Sunshine''.

In 2010, he reunited with actor Rob Brydon and director Michael Winterbottom (both of whom he had worked with on the 2006 film ''A Cock and Bull Story'' (see Film Roles below)), for the partially improvised BBC2 sitcom ''The Trip'', in which he and Brydon do a tour of northern restaurants, which he is writing up for the Observer. ''The Trip'' was nominated for a 2011 Television BAFTA for Best Situation Comedy, and Coogan won Best Male Performance in a Comedy Role.

He provided the voices of Philip Masterson-Bowie (a horse) and Mark Andrews (a sparrow) for animated comedy series ''I Am Not an Animal''. He was also the voice of Satan on ''Neighbors from Hell''.

Film roles

Notable film roles include Factory Records boss Tony Wilson in the film ''24 Hour Party People'', Mole in Terry Jones' ''The Wind in the Willows'', Phileas Fogg in a remake of Jules Verne's ''Around the World in 80 Days'' with Jackie Chan, Ambassador Mercy in ''Marie Antoinette'', Bruce Tick in ''Sweet Revenge'', and Octavius in ''Night at the Museum''. He has also played himself twice on screen. First, in one of the vignettes of Jim Jarmusch's 2003 film ''Coffee and Cigarettes'', alongside Alfred Molina. Second, in 2006 Coogan starred with Rob Brydon in Michael Winterbottom's ''A Cock and Bull Story'', a self-referential film of the "unfilmable" self-referential novel ''Tristram Shandy'' by Laurence Sterne. In the film, Coogan plays a fictional, womanizing version of himself.

The first film he co-wrote with Henry Normal was ''The Parole Officer''. He also acted in this alongside Ben Miller and Lena Headey. Coogan has an uncredited cameo in ''Hot Fuzz'', scripted by ''Shaun of the Dead'' writers Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright. He stars as a failed actor turned high school drama teacher in the 2008 film ''Hamlet 2'' and had a role in ''Tropic Thunder''. It was announced on 8 August 2007, that he is also to star in a film adaptation of the life of Eddie "The Eagle" Edwards, which is still in pre-production. In 2009, he also starred as a lying reporter in'' What Goes Up'' with Olivia Thirlby, Molly Shannon and Hilary Duff. Also recently, he appeared in ''Finding Amanda'' alongside Brittany Snow and Matthew Broderick, returned as Octavius in ''Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian'', and played Hades in ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief''.

Filmography

Year !! Film !! Role !! Notes
	1989	''Resurrected (film)	Resurrected''	Youth 2
	1995	''The Indian in the Cupboard (film)	The Indian in the Cupboard''	Tommy Atkins
	1996	''The Wind in the Willows (1996 film)	The Wind in the Willows''	Mole
	1998	''Sweet Revenge (1998 film)	Sweet Revenge''	Bruce Tick
	2001	''The Parole Officer''	Simon Garden	Also WriterNominated – BAFTA Award for Best Newcomer
	2002	''24 Hour Party People''	Tony Wilson
	2003	''Coffee and Cigarettes''	Steve	Segment: Cousins?
		Heston the snake	Voice Only
	Phileas Fogg
		Charley
''A Cock and Bull Story''	Tristram Shandy/ Walter Shandy/ Steve Coogan
	''The Alibi''	Ray Elliot
''Night at the Museum''	Octavius
	2006-2007	''Saxondale''	Tommy Saxondale
		Graham
''Hot Fuzz''	Metropolitan Police Inspector	Uncredited
	''Finding Amanda''	Michael Henry
''Tales of the Riverbank''	Roderick	Voice Only
''Tropic Thunder''	Damien Cockburn
''Hamlet 2''	Dana Marschz
	''What Goes Up''	Campbell Babbitt	Also Producer
	Paul Michaelson	Chlotrudis Award for Best Cast
''Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian''	Octavius
	''Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief''	Hades
''The Other Guys''	David Ershon
	Raisin	Voice Only
		Steve Coogan	Limited Release
''Our Idiot Brother''	Dylan	Post-production
''Osmosian James''	Pillbot	Voice Only Pre-production

Achievements

Coogan's show ''Steve Coogan in character with John Thomson'' was winner of the Perrier award for best show at the 1992 Edinburgh Fringe. He has won numerous awards for his work in TV including British Comedy Awards, BAFTAs, and The South Bank Show award for comedy. In 2003, he was listed in ''The Observer'' as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy. In 2005, a poll to find ''The Comedians' Comedian'' saw him being voted amongst the top 20 greatest comedy acts ever by fellow comedians and comedy insiders.

Awards and nominations

British Comedy Awards ''Pauline Calf's Wedding Video'' ''Knowing Me Knowing You with Alan Partridge'' ''I'm Alan Partridge'' ''I'm Alan Partridge'' ''I'm Alan Partridge'' ''The Parole Officer'' ''Cruise of the Gods'' ''I'm Alan Partridge'' ''I'm Alan Partridge'' ''24 Hour Party People'' ''24 Hour Party People'' ''Happy Endings (film) ''In the Loop (film) ''The Trip (2010 TV series)

Year !! Nominated For !! Award !! Category !! Result
1994	''Knowing Me Knowing You with Alan Partridge''	|	Best Male TV Performer
1995	|	BAFTAs	Best Comedy Performance
1995	|	BAFTAs	Best Light Entertainment Performance
1998	|	British Comedy Awards	Best TV Comedy Actor
1998	|	BAFTAs	Best Comedy Performance
1998	|	BAFTAs	Best Comedy (Programme or Series)
2002	|	BAFTAs	BAFTA Award for Best Newcomer
2003	|	British Comedy Awards	Best TV Comedy Actor
2003	|	BAFTAs	Best Comedy Performance
2003	|	Royal Television Society	Best Comedy Performance
2003	|	Empire Awards	Best British Actor
2003	|	Online Film Critics Society	Best Breakthrough Performance
2005	Happy Endings'' ||	Satellite Award	Best Supporting Actor
2010	In the Loop'' ||	Chlotrudis Society for Independent Film>Chlotrudis Award	Chlotrudis Award for Best Cast>Best Cast
2011	The Trip ||	BAFTAs	Best Male Comedy Performance

Awards and Nominations sourced from IMDb http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0176869/awards 2/12/2010

Return to stand-up

In March 2008, it was confirmed that Coogan would return to doing stand-up comedy as part of his first stand-up tour in ten years. The tour, named "Steve Coogan as Alan Partridge and other less successful characters", saw the return of some of his old characters including Paul Calf and Alan Partridge. Reviews of the opening night were mixed and such reviews continued as the tour progressed.

Production company

Coogan, along with writing partner Henry Normal, founded Baby Cow Productions in 1999. Together they are the executive producers for such shows as ''The Mighty Boosh'', starring Noel Fielding and Julian Barratt, ''Nighty Night'', starring Julia Davis, ''Marion and Geoff'', starring Rob Brydon, and ''Human Remains'', starring Davis and Brydon. Baby Cow Productions latest venture is ''Where Are the Joneses'', an online sitcom which uses wiki technology to allow the audience to upload scripts and storyline ideas.

Personal life

One of his brothers, Brendan, is a former ''Top Gear'' presenter, and another, Martin, was the lead singer of the early 1990s band The Mock Turtles. All the brothers attended the Cardinal Langley RC High School.

A favourite of the British tabloids, Coogan's personal life has made headlines since the early 1990s. In August 2005, the ''News of the World'' stated that rock star Courtney Love had claimed to be pregnant with Coogan's child, following a two-week long fling the pair allegedly had while staying at the same hotel, although this claim has been dismissed by both parties. The news came a month after Coogan had divorced his wife, Caroline Hickman, whom he married in 2002, on the grounds that the marriage had irretrievably broken down. He lives in Brighton to be close to Clare, his daughter from a previous relationship.

On the commentary for Series 2 of ''I'm Alan Partridge'', Coogan states that he is a socialist who enjoys paying taxes, whilst discussing the eponymous character's investigation by the Inland Revenue.

Coogan reportedly has a wealth of £5 million and supports the Labour Party

A well noted car enthusiast, he has had a succession of Ferraris, but stopped buying them after realising that the depreciation and running costs were greater than hiring a private plane. He helped Jeremy Clarkson test a Ferrari 575M against an Aston Martin Vanquish S on the fifth series of Top Gear. Coogan currently drives one of the final air-cooled Porsche 911 Carrera 4s.

Stand-Up VHS & DVDs

''Live 'N' Lewd'' (7 November 1994)

''Live – The Man Who Thinks He's It'' (9 November 1998)

''As Alan Partridge And Other Less Successful Characters – Live'' (30 November 2009)

References

External links

Coming to a cinema near you... Alan Partridge as Our Man in Tashkent

Steve Coogan: From a Partridge to 'Cock and Bull Fresh Air interview by Terry Gross

Steve Coogan on BBC Radio Desert Island Discs

Category:1965 births Category:Alumni of Manchester Metropolitan University Category:English actors Category:English comedians Category:English film actors Category:English impressionists (entertainers) Category:English people of Irish descent Category:English socialists Category:English television actors Category:English voice actors Category:Living people Category:People from Middleton, Greater Manchester

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