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A. R. Rahman
Allah Rakha Rahman (; born 6 January 1966 as A. S. Dileep Kumar) is an Indian film composer, record producer, musician and singer. His film scoring career began in the early 1990s. He has won fourteen Filmfare Awards, four National Film Awards, a BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe, two Grammy Awards, and two Academy Awards.
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Akon
Akon (born Aliaune Badara Akon Thiam), (), is a Senegalese-American R&B; singer-songwriter, rapper, record producer, businessman, and philanthropist.
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Alan Pottasch
Alan Maxwell Pottasch (born August 13, 1927 Long Island, NY - July 27, 2007 Los Angeles) was an American advertising executive and marketer, best known for his five decades of work for PepsiCo. Specifically, Pottasch is best known as the creator behind the "Pepsi Generation" advertising campaign.
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Andrea Bocelli
Andrea Bocelli, (; born 22 September 1958) is an Italian tenor, multi-instrumentalist and classical crossover artist. Born with poor eyesight, he became totally blind at the age of twelve following a soccer accident.
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Arnold Klein
Arnold William "Arnie" Klein (born February 27, 1945) is an American dermatologist and professor of dermatology at the David Geffen School of Medicine in Los Angeles, California.
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Beck
Beck Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist known by the stage name Beck. With a pop art collage of musical styles, oblique and ironic lyrics, and postmodern arrangements incorporating samples, drum machines, live instrumentation and sound effects, Beck has been hailed by critics and the public throughout his musical career as being amongst the most creative and idiosyncratic musicians of 1990s and 2000s alternative rock.
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Bee Gees
The Bee Gees
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Berry Gordy
Berry Gordy, Jr. (born November 28, 1929) is an American record producer, and the founder of the Motown record label, as well as its many subsidiaries.
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Beyoncé Knowles
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles (born September 4, 1981), often known simply as Beyoncé ( ), is an American Pop/R&B; singer, songwriter, actress and fashion designer. Born and raised in Houston, Texas, she enrolled in various performing arts schools and was first exposed to singing and dancing competitions as a child. Knowles rose to fame in the late 1990s as the lead singer of the R&B; girl group Destiny's Child, one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time.
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Bobby Day
Bobby Day (July 1, 1928 - July 27, 1990), was an early African American rock and roll and R&B; musician.
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Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American recording artist and entertainer. Born in McComb, Mississippi and raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears began performing as a child, landing acting roles in stage productions and television shows. She signed with Jive Records in 1997 and released her debut album in 1999. During her first decade within the music industry, she became a prominent figure in mainstream popular music and popular culture, followed by a much-publicized personal life. Her first two albums established her as a pop icon and broke sales records, while title tracks "...Baby One More Time" and "Oops!... I Did It Again" became international number-one hits. Spears was credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s.
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Bruce Swedien
Bruce Swedien is a Grammy Award-winning audio engineer and music producer. He is known for his work with Quincy Jones.
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Bubbles (chimpanzee)
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Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was the most popular British novelist of the Victorian era, and he remains popular, responsible for some of English literature's most iconic characters.
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Charles H. Zeanah
Charles H. Zeanah Jr., M.D. is a child and adolescent psychiatrist who is a member of the Council (Board) of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP).
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Charles Koppelman
Charles Koppelman (born March 30, 1940, in Brooklyn, New York City, New York) is the chairman of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, and was Martha Stewart's right-hand man on NBC's (fall 2005).
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Christian Audigier
Christian Audigier (born May 21, 1958) is a French fashion designer and entrepreneur. Originally from Gap, France, he has designed for such brands as Lee, Liberto, Kookai, Von Dutch and Naf Naf. He made his first mark as a fashion jeans designer. One of his most notable achievements was being the primary force behind the rise of Von Dutch, and making the Von Dutch hat a style trend.
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Connie Chung
Connie Chung, full name: Constance Yu-Hwa Chung Povich (; born August 20, 1946) is an American journalist who has been an anchor and reporter for several U.S. television news networks. She is married to talk show host Maury Povich.
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Daniel Schechter
Daniel S. Schechter (born in Miami, Florida in 1962) is an American psychiatrist currently living in Geneva, Switzerland. He is known for his clinical work and research on intergenerational transmission or "communication" of violent trauma and related psychopathology involving parents and very young children.. His published work in this area following the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York of September 11, 2001 led to a co-edited book entitled "September 11: Trauma and Human Bonds" (2003) and additional original articles with clinical psychologist Susan Coates that were translated into multiple languages and remain among the very first accounts of 9/11 related loss and trauma described by mental health professionals who also experienced the attacks and their aftermath His observation of how developmentally salient separation anxiety among infants and young children who had either lost or feared loss of their caregivers had triggered posttraumatic stress symptoms and other forms of psychobiological dysregulation in the surviving caregivers validated his prior observations of the adverse impact of family violence on the early parent-child relationship, formative social-emotional development and related attachment disturbances This body of work on trauma and attachment has been cited by prominent authors in the attachment theory, psychological trauma, and developmental psychobiology literatures
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David Ruffin
Davis Eli "David" Ruffin (January 18, 1941 – June 1, 1991) was an American soul singer and musician most famous for his work as one of the lead singers of the Temptations from 1964 to 1968 (or the group's "Classic Five" period as it was later known). He was the lead voice on such famous songs as "My Girl" and "Ain't Too Proud to Beg." Known for his unique raspy and anguished tenor vocals, Ruffin was ranked as one of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time by Rolling Stone magazine in 2008. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989 for his work with the Temptations. Fellow Motown recording artist Marvin Gaye once said admiringly of Ruffin that, "I heard in [his voice] a strength my own voice lacked."
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Debbie Rowe
Deborah Jeanne "Debbie" Rowe (born December 6, 1958) is an ex-wife of pop singer, Michael Jackson, and the mother of two of his children. She currently lives in Palmdale, California.
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Diana Ross
Diana Ernestine Earle Ross (born March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. During the 1960s, she helped shape the Motown sound as lead singer of The Supremes, before leaving the group for a solo career on January 14, 1970. Since the beginning of her career with The Supremes and as a solo artist, Ross has sold more than 150 million records.
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Eddie Murphy
Edward Regan "Eddie" Murphy (born April 3, 1961) is an American actor, voice actor, film director, producer, comedian and singer. The box office take from his films makes him the second highest grossing actor in the United States. He was a regular cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1980 to 1984, and has worked as a stand-up comedian. He was ranked #10 on Comedy Central's list of the 100 Greatest Stand-ups of All Time.
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Elizabeth Taylor
Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor, DBE (born 27 February 1932), also known as Liz Taylor, is an English-American actress. She is known for her acting talent and beauty, as well as her Hollywood lifestyle, including many marriages. Taylor is considered one of the great actresses of Hollywood's golden age.
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Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King".
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Eminem
Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), better known by his stage name Eminem, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Eminem quickly gained popularity in 1999 with his major-label debut album, The Slim Shady LP, which won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Album. The following album, The Marshall Mathers LP, became the fastest-selling solo album in United States history. It brought Eminem increased popularity, including his own record label, Shady Records, and brought his group project, D12, to mainstream recognition.
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Francis Ford Coppola
Francis Ford Coppola (born April 7, 1939) is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Away from show business, Coppola is also a vintner, magazine publisher and hotelier. He is a graduate of Hofstra University where he studied theatre. He earned an M.F.A. in film directing from the UCLA Film School. He is primarily known for directing the Godfather Trilogy, Apocalypse Now, Dracula, and The Conversation and for writing Patton.
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Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire (May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987), born Frederick Austerlitz, was an American film and Broadway stage dancer, choreographer, singer and actor. His stage and subsequent film career spanned a total of 76 years, during which he made 31 musical films. He was named the fifth Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute. He is particularly associated with Ginger Rogers, with whom he made ten films.
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Gene Kelly
Eugene Curran "Gene" Kelly (August 23, 1912 – February 2, 1996) was an American dancer, actor, singer, film director and producer, and choreographer. A major exponent of 20th century filmed dance, Kelly was known for his energetic and athletic dancing style, his good looks and the likeable characters that he played on screen.
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George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush (born June 12, 1924, in Milton, Massachusetts) was the 41st President of the United States (1989–1993). He was also Ronald Reagan's Vice President (1981–1989), a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.
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George Wendt
George Robert Wendt (October 17, 1948) is an American actor, best known for the role of Norm Peterson on the television show Cheers.
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Humberto Gatica
Humberto Gatica is a Chilean-born American record producer, music mixer and audio engineer. Son of humberto gatica brother of lucho gatica the great singer from latin america
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Iman (model)
Iman Mohamed Abdulmajid (, ) (born July 25, 1955), professionally known as Iman (which means "faith" in Arabic), is a Somali-American model, actress and entrepreneur. A pioneer in the field of ethnic cosmetics, she is also noted for her charitable work. She is married to David Bowie.
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Irv Gotti
Irv Gotti (born Irving Lorenzo on June 26, 1970) is a prominent hip hop and R&B; record producer and is the head and founder of The Inc record label. He is known for producing many hit rap songs such as Jay-Z's "Can I Get A...", DMX's "What's My Name?", and Ja Rule's "Holla Holla". He chose the stage name Irv Gotti by naming himself after John Gotti.
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Jackie Jackson
Sigmund Esco "Jackie" Jackson (born May 4, 1951) is an American singer and musician, a member of The Jackson 5, and the second child in the Jackson family.
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Jackie Wilson
Jack Leroy "Jackie" Wilson, Jr. (June 9, 1934 – January 21, 1984) was an American singer and performer. Known as "Mr. Excitement", Wilson was important in the transition of rhythm and blues into soul. He was known as a master showman, and as one of the most dynamic singers and performers in R&B; and rock history. Gaining fame in his early years as a member of the R&B; vocal group Billy Ward and His Dominoes, he went solo in 1957 and recorded over 50 hit singles that spanned R&B;, pop, soul, doo-wop and easy listening. During a 1975 benefit concert, he collapsed on-stage from a heart attack and subsequently fell into a coma that persisted for nearly nine years until his death in 1984. By this time, he had become one of the most influential artists of his generation.
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James Brown
James Joseph Brown, Jr. (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer and entertainer. Eventually referred to as "The Godfather of Soul", Brown started singing in church groups and worked his way up. He has been recognized as one of the most influential figures in the 20th century popular music and was renowned for his vocals and feverish dancing. He was also called "the hardest working man in show business".cite news| url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/25/AR2006122500049.html | work=The Washington Post | title=Hardworking Godfather of Soul | first=
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Janet Jackson
Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American recording artist and actress. Born in Gary, Indiana, and raised in Encino, Los Angeles, she is the youngest child of the Jackson family of musicians. She first performed on stage with her family at the age of seven, and started her career as an actress with the variety television series The Jacksons in 1976. She went on to appear in other television shows throughout the 1970s and early 1980s, including Good Times and Fame.
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Jay Cocks
Jay Cocks (born January 12, 1944) is a film critic and motion picture screenwriter.
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Jeffrey Daniel
Jeffrey Daniel (often misspelled as Jeffrey Daniels) (born 24 August 1955, Los Angeles, California) is an American dancer and singer, most notable for being a member of the soul vocal group Shalamar.
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Jennifer Hudson
Jennifer Kate Hudson (born September 12, 1981) is an American recording artist, actress and spokesperson. She came to prominence in 2004 as one of the finalists on the third season of American Idol coming in seventh place. She made her film debut in the 2006 film Dreamgirls which won her an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, a Golden Globe Award, a BAFTA Award, an NAACP Image Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award.
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Jermaine Jackson
Jermaine La Jaune Jackson (born December 11, 1954) is an American singer, bassist, composer, a member of The Jackson 5, older brother of American pop stars Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson and occasional film director. He also produced and recorded several duets with the legendary diva Whitney Houston in her early years as a recording artist.
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Joe Pesci
Joseph Frank "Joe" Pesci (, ; born February 9, 1943) is an American actor, comedian, singer and musician.
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John Branca
John G. Branca (born 1950) is an entertainment lawyer who specializes in representing rock and roll acts, as well as independent investors, music publishing catalogs, and independent music labels. He has represented 29 acts in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, including The Rolling Stones, Michael Jackson, The Jackson 5, Carlos Santana, Aerosmith, The Beach Boys, ZZ Top, Fleetwood Mac, Bee Gees and The Doors, which is believed to be more than any other entertainment attorney.
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John Mayer
John Clayton Mayer ( ; born October 16, 1977) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, recording artist, and music producer. Raised in Fairfield, Connecticut, he attended Berklee College of Music in Boston before moving to Atlanta, Georgia in 1997, where he refined his skills and gained a following. His first two studio albums, Room for Squares and Heavier Things, did well commercially, achieving multi-platinum status. In 2003, he won a Best Male Pop Vocal Performance Grammy Award for "Your Body Is a Wonderland".
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Joseph Merrick
Joseph Carey Merrick (5 August 1862 – 11 April 1890), sometimes incorrectly referred to as John Merrick, was an English man with severe deformities who was exhibited as a human curiosity named the Elephant Man. He became well known in London society after he went to live at the London Hospital. Merrick was born in Leicester and began to develop abnormally during the first few years of his life. His skin appeared thick and lumpy, he developed an enlargement of his lips, and a bony lump grew on his forehead. One of his arms and both feet became enlarged and at some point during his childhood he fell and damaged his hip, resulting in permanent lameness. When he was 11, his mother died and his father soon remarried. Merrick left school at 12, and had difficulty finding employment. Rejected by his father and stepmother, he left home. In late 1879, aged 17, Merrick entered the Leicester Union workhouse.
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Justin Timberlake
Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) is an American pop musician and actor. He has won six Grammy Awards as well as two Emmy Awards. He achieved early fame when he appeared as a contestant on Star Search, and went on to star in the Disney Channel television series The New Mickey Mouse Club, where he met future bandmate JC Chasez. Timberlake became famous in the late 1990s as the lead singer of the boy band 'N Sync, whose launch was financed by Lou Pearlman.
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Katherine Jackson
Katherine Esther Scruse-Jackson (born May 4, 1930) is the matriarch of the Jackson musical family.
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Kenny Ortega
Kenneth John "Kenny" Ortega (born April 18, 1950) is an American producer, director, and choreographer. He is known for directing the High School Musical series and Michael Jackson's "This Is It" tour, as well as for choreographing Dirty Dancing.
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La Toya Jackson
La Toya Yvonne Jackson (born May 29, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, television personality, actress, businesswoman, activist and former model . She is the fifth child of the Jackson family. She had a career as a singer throughout the 1980s and 1990s, and returned to music in 2004 with her Billboard charting songs "Just Wanna Dance" and "Free the World". A forthcoming album, ''Startin' Over'', has yet to be released.
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Lisa Marie Presley
Lisa Marie Presley (born February 1, 1968) is an American singer–songwriter, also known as the "Princess of Rock and Roll". She is the only child of singer Elvis Presley, and daughter of Priscilla Presley.
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Little Richard
Richard Wayne Penniman (born December 5, 1932), known by the stage name Little Richard, is an American singer, songwriter, pianist, bandleader and recording artist, considered key in the transition from rhythm and blues to rock and roll in the 1950s. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame web site entry on Penniman states that:
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Luciano Pavarotti
Luciano Pavarotti, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI (12 October 1935 – 6 September 2007) was an Italian operatic tenor, who also crossed over into popular music, eventually becoming one of the most commercially successful tenors of all time. He was one of "The Three Tenors" and became well-known for his televised concerts and media appearances. Pavarotti was also noted for his charity work on behalf of refugees and the Red Cross, amongst others.
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Luther Vandross
Luther Vandross (April 20, 1951 – July 1, 2005) was an American R&B; and soul singer-songwriter, and record producer. During his career, Vandross sold over twenty-five million albums and won eight Grammy Awards including Best Male R&B; Vocal Performance four times. He won four Grammy Awards in 2004 including the Grammy Award for Song of the Year for the track "Dance with My Father", co-written with Richard Marx.
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Macaulay Culkin
Macaulay Carson Culkin (born August 26, 1980) is an American actor. He became widely known for his potrayal of Kevin McCallister in Home Alone and . At the height of his fame, he was regarded as the most successful child actor since Shirley Temple. He was also considered one of the late entertainer Michael Jackson's best friends.
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Magic Johnson
Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. (born August 14, 1959) is a retired American professional basketball player who played point guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). After winning championships in high school and college, Johnson was selected first overall in the 1979 NBA Draft by the Lakers. He won a championship and an NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award in his rookie season, and won four more championships with the Lakers during the 1980s. Johnson retired abruptly in 1991 after announcing that he had HIV, but returned to play in the 1992 All-Star Game, winning the All-Star MVP Award. After protests from his fellow players, he retired again for four years, but returned in 1996 to play 32 games for the Lakers before retiring for the third and final time.
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Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey (born March 27, 1970) is an American R&B; singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. She made her recording debut, in 1990, under the guidance of Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola and became the first recording artist to have her first five singles top the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart. Following her marriage to Mottola, in 1993, a series of hit records established her position as Columbia's highest-selling act. In 1998, Carey received the World Music Awards for becoming the "World's Best Selling Recording Artist of the 1990's" as well as the award for "World's Best Selling R&B; Artist."
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Mark Romanek
Mark Romanek (born September 18, 1959) is an American music video director who has also moved into directing theatrical films.
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Marlon Jackson
Marlon David Jackson (born March 12, 1957) is an American entertainer singer, dancer, former member of The Jackson 5, and elder brother of American pop stars Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson.
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Martin Bashir
Martin Bashir (born 19 January 1963) is a Pakistani-British journalist and media personality, currently with NBC News as a contributor for its Dateline program, and an afternoon anchor for MSNBC. He was previously an anchor for ABC's Nightline and is known for his interviews with Diana, Princess of Wales and Michael Jackson.
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Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese (; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. He is the founder of the World Cinema Foundation and a recipient of the AFI Life Achievement Award for his contributions to the cinema, and has won awards from the Oscars, Golden Globe, BAFTA, and Directors Guild of America. Scorsese is president of The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation.
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Maya Angelou
Maya Angelou (; born Marguerite Ann Johnson on April 4, 1928) is an American autobiographer and poet who has been called "America's most visible black female autobiographer" by scholar Joanne M. Braxton. She is best known for her series of six autobiographical volumes, which focus on her childhood and early adult experiences. The first and most highly acclaimed, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969), tells of her first seventeen years. It brought her international recognition, and was nominated for a National Book Award. She has been awarded over 30 honorary degrees and was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for her 1971 volume of poetry, ''Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water 'Fore I Diiie''.
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Mohamed Al-Fayed
Mohamed Abdel Moneim Fayed (; born 27 January 1933) is an Egyptian businessman. Amongst his business interests are ownership of the English Premiership football team Fulham Football Club, Hôtel Ritz Paris and formerly Harrods Department Store, Knightsbridge.
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Monica (entertainer)
Monica Denise Arnold (born October 24, 1980), professionally known as Monica, is an American R&B; recording artist and entertainer. Born and raised in College Park, Georgia, Monica began performing as a child, enrolling in several local singing competitions prior to becoming part of Charles Thompson and the Majestics, a traveling gospel choir, by the time she was ten.
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Mýa
Mýa Marie Harrison (born October 10, 1979), who performs under the mononym Mýa is an American singer-songwriter, dancer, record producer, actress, and model. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Harrison's eponymous debut album with Interscope Records was released in April 1998, and sold over one million copies in the United States, producing the gold-certified top ten single "It's All About Me" featuring Sisqo.
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Nancy Reagan
Nancy Davis Reagan (born Anne Frances Robbins on July 6, 1921) is the widow of former United States President Ronald Reagan and served as an influential First Lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989. She was born in New York; her parents divorced soon after her birth and she grew up in Maryland, living with an aunt and uncle while her mother pursued acting jobs. As Nancy Davis, she was an actress in Hollywood in the 1940s and 1950s, starring in films such as ''Donovan's Brain, Night into Morning, and Hellcats of the Navy''. In 1952 she married Ronald Reagan, who was then president of the Screen Actors Guild, and they had two children. Nancy was the First Lady of California when her husband was Governor from 1967 to 1975. In that capacity, she began work with the Foster Grandparents Program.
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Naomi Campbell
Naomi Campbell (born 22 May 1970) is an English model. "Discovered" while shopping in London, Campbell started her career in the 1980s and soon appeared on the catwalks of Milan and Paris as well as on the cover pages of internationally renowned fashion magazines. She is also known for perfumes associated with her name, and for a series of legal issues.
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Nelson George
Nelson George (born September 1, 1957) is an African American author, columnist, music and culture critic, journalist, and filmmaker. He has been nominated twice for the National Book Critics Circle Award.
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nigger
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Patrick Stump
Patrick Vaughn Stump (born Patrick Martin Stumph) April 27, 1984 is a singer-songwriter, composer, record producer, and music critic. He is the composer, lead singer, and multi-instrumentalist for Fall Out Boy, an American alternative rock band from Wilmette, Illinois.(The band is currently on an indefinite hiatus.)
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Paul Anka
Paul Albert Anka, OC (born July 30, 1941) is a Canadian American singer, songwriter, and actor.
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Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE (born 18 June 1942) is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles (1960–1970) and Wings (1971–1981), McCartney is the most successful songwriter in the history of popular music, according to Guinness World Records.
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Peggy Lipton
Peggy Lipton (born August 30, 1946) is an American television actress. She played "Julie Barnes" in The Mod Squad, and Norma Jennings in Twin Peaks.
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Phil Dusenberry
Philip Bernard Dusenberry (April 28, 1936 – December 29, 2007) was an American advertising executive for the BBDO advertising agency.
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Prabhu Deva
Prabhu Deva (, , ) (born 3 April 1973) is a two time National Film Award-winning Indian dancer, choreographer, actor and film director. He has been called "India's Michael Jackson" for his fast-paced dance movements, though he has given performances in a wide range of dancing styles.
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Queen Latifah
Dana Elaine Owens (born March 18, 1970), better known by her stage name Queen Latifah, is an American rapper, actress and singer. Queen Latifah's work in music, film and television has earned her a Golden Globe award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, two Image Awards, a Grammy Award, six additional Grammy nominations, an Emmy Award nomination and an Academy Award nomination.
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Quincy Jones
Quincy Delight Jones, Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American music conductor, record producer, musical arranger, film composer, television producer, and trumpeter. During five decades in the entertainment industry, Jones has earned a record 79 Grammy Award nominations, 27 Grammys, including a Grammy Legend Award in 1991. He is best known as the producer of the album Thriller, by pop icon Michael Jackson, which has sold over 110 million copies worldwide, and as the producer and conductor of the charity song “We Are the World”.
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Rebbie Jackson
Maureen Reillette Brown (née Jackson; born May 29, 1950) is an American singer professionally known as Rebbie Jackson (IPA pronunciation: ). Born and raised in Gary, Indiana, she is the eldest child of the Jackson family of musicians. She first performed on stage with her siblings during shows in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in 1974, before subsequently appearing in the television series The Jacksons.
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RedOne
Nadir Khayat, known by the stage name RedOne was born in Tétouan, Morocco and is a Moroccan-Swedish producer/songwriter. He has been described as the key to Lady Gaga's musical sound. Khayat is currently based in Los Angeles.
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Rod Temperton
Rodney Lynn "Rod" Temperton (born 1947 in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire, England) is an English songwriter, record producer and musician most famous for writing a number of songs performed by Michael Jackson, including the title track of Jackson's Thriller, the biggest-selling album of all time.
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Rodney Jerkins
Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins (born July 29, 1977) is a songwriter, record producer, and musician. Working largely with writer/vocal producer LaShawn Daniels. He has been requested by such artists as Michael Jackson, Britney Spears, Spice Girls, Jennifer Lopez, Jessica Simpson, Janet Jackson, Danity Kane, Beyoncé, Linda Király, Lady Gaga, Pussycat Dolls, Whitney Houston, Mary J. Blige, Lionel Richie, and Austin Brown. The words "Darkchild" appear in some form in many of his tracks. He is currently working on forthcoming albums from *Ashanti, Ciara, Jennifer Lopez, Cassie, Anastacia,Shontelle, Se7en, Natasha, Alesha Dixon, Britney Spears ,De'fina, Beyoncé, and his new R&B; girl group Purple Reign, recently signed to Motown/Darkchild/Universal as well as signing pop recording artist, Tiffany Dunn to Epic/Darkchild/Sony in the same month. Darkchild is also currently completing tracks that himself and Michael Jackson had worked on for Jackson's forthcoming posthumous album.
http://wn.com/Rodney_Jerkins -
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was the 40th President of the United States (1981–1989) and the 33rd Governor of California (1967–1975).
http://wn.com/Ronald_Reagan -
Ryan White
Ryan Wayne White (December 6, 1971 – April 8, 1990) was an American teenager from Kokomo, Indiana who became a national poster child for HIV/AIDS in the United States, after being expelled from middle school because of his infection. A hemophiliac, he became infected with HIV from a contaminated blood treatment and, when diagnosed in December 1984, was given six months to live. Doctors said he posed no risk to other students, but AIDS was poorly understood at the time, and when White tried to return to school, many parents and teachers in Kokomo rallied against his attendance. A lengthy legal battle with the school system ensued, and media coverage of the case made White into a national celebrity and spokesman for AIDS research and public education. He appeared frequently in the media with celebrities such as Elton John, Michael Jackson and Phil Donahue. Surprising his doctors, White lived five years longer than predicted and died in April 1990, one month prior to his high school graduation.
http://wn.com/Ryan_White -
Sammy Davis, Jr.
Samuel George "Sammy" Davis, Jr. (December 8, 1925 – May 16, 1990) was an American entertainer.
http://wn.com/Sammy_Davis_Jr -
Scorpions (band)
Scorpions is a heavy metal/hard rock band from Hannover, Germany, known for their 1980s rock anthem "Rock You Like a Hurricane" and their singles "No One Like You", "Send Me an Angel", "Still Loving You", and "Wind of Change". The band was ranked #46 on VH1's Greatest Artists of Hard Rock program. "Rock You Like a Hurricane" is also #18 on VH1's list of the 100 Greatest Hard Rock Songs. On January 24, 2010, after 45 years of performing, the band announced that they will be retiring after touring in support of their new album Sting in the Tail. Scorpions have sold between 100 and 150 million albums worldwide.
http://wn.com/Scorpions_(band) -
Shaheen Jafargholi
Shaheen Jafargholi (born 23 January 1997) is an Welsh teen actor and singer from Swansea, Wales. He is of Iranian and Welsh descent. He appeared on ITV's ''Britain's Got Talent'' show and sang "Who's Lovin' You" at Michael Jackson's globally televised public memorial service in July 2009. In May 2010, Jafargholi signed a record deal with Island Records, with his debut album "When I Come of Age" due for release in November, along with his debut double A side single "Last Train Home/Hip Teens".
http://wn.com/Shaheen_Jafargholi -
Shakira
Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll (born February 2, 1977), known professionally as Shakira (, or ), is a Colombian singer, songwriter, musician, record producer, dancer, and philanthropist who emerged in the music scene of Colombia and Latin America in the early 1990s. Born and raised in Barranquilla, Colombia, Shakira revealed many of her talents in school as a live performer, demonstrating her vocal ability with rock and roll, Latin and Middle Eastern influences with her own original twist on belly dancing. Shakira is a native Spanish speaker and also speaks fluent English and Portuguese and is proficient in Italian.
http://wn.com/Shakira -
Shobana
Shobana Chandrakumar popularly known mononymously as Shobana (; born 21 March 1966), is an acclaimed Indian actress, choreographer, and an exponent of Bharatanatyam dance. She has won the National Film Award for Best Actress twice and mainly acts in Malayalam cinema.
http://wn.com/Shobana -
Slash (musician)
Saul Hudson (born July 23, 1965), better known by his stage name Slash, is a British-American musician. He is the former lead guitarist of the American hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he performed and recorded between 1985 and 1996. He later formed Slash's Snakepit and co-founded Velvet Revolver with his former bandmates Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum, and his debut solo album, Slash, was released in April 2010.
http://wn.com/Slash_(musician) -
Smokey Robinson
William "Smokey" Robinson, Jr. (born February 19, 1940) is an American R&B; and soul singer-songwriter, record producer, and former record executive. Robinson is one of the primary figures associated with Motown, second only to the company's founder, Berry Gordy. Robinson's consistent commercial success and creative contributions to the label have earned him the title "King of Motown."
http://wn.com/Smokey_Robinson -
Stan Winston
Stanley Winston (April 7, 1946 – June 15, 2008) was an American visual effects supervisor, makeup artist, and film director. He was best known for his work in the Terminator series, the Jurassic Park series, Aliens, the Predator series, Iron Man, and Edward Scissorhands. He won four Academy Awards for his work.
http://wn.com/Stan_Winston -
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 500 million copies and have been made into many movies. He is known for novels such as Carrie, The Shining, The Stand, It, Misery, and the seven-novel series The Dark Tower, which King wrote over a period of 27 years. As of 2010, King has written and published 49 novels, including seven under the pen name Richard Bachman, five non-fiction books, and nine collections of short stories including Night Shift, Skeleton Crew, and ''Everything's Eventual''. Many of his stories are set in his homestate of Maine. He has collaborated with authors Peter Straub and Stewart O'Nan. Some of his novels have been also been turned into comic books, such are The Stand, The Talisman, and The Dark Tower series.
http://wn.com/Stephen_King -
Stevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Judkins (born May 13, 1950), name later changed to Stevland Hardaway Morris, known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist. Blind from shortly after birth, Wonder signed with Motown Records' Tamla label at the age of eleven, and continues to perform and record for Motown to this day.
http://wn.com/Stevie_Wonder -
The Times
The Times is a daily national newspaper published in the United Kingdom since 1785, when it was known as The Daily Universal Register.
http://wn.com/The_Times -
Tito Jackson
Toriano Adaryll "Tito" Jackson (born October 15, 1953) is an American singer and guitarist and original member of The Jackson 5. He is the older brother of American pop stars Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson.
http://wn.com/Tito_Jackson -
Tom Sneddon
http://wn.com/Tom_Sneddon -
Tom Utley
Tom Utley is a British journalist who currently writes for the Daily Mail. He had previously written for The Daily Telegraph, where he was described by The Independent as a 'star columnist', but left in early 2006 after being offered a salary of £120,000 by the Daily Mail. He is the son of the journalist T. E. Utley. A Roman Catholic, Utley is the father of four boys. He is a smoker who has opposed various restrictions on smoking..
http://wn.com/Tom_Utley -
Tommy Mottola
Thomas Daniel "Tommy" Mottola is an American music executive, co-owner of Casablanca Records in a joint venture with the Universal Music Group. He was the husband of Mariah Carey, and is married to Mexican singer Thalía. He headed Sony Music Entertainment, parent of the Columbia label, for nearly 15 years.
http://wn.com/Tommy_Mottola -
Usher (entertainer)
Usher Raymond IV (born October 14, 1978; ), who performs under the mononym Usher, is an American recording artist and actor. He rose to fame in the late 1990s with the release of his sophmore album My Way, which spawned his first Billboard Hot 100 number-one hit, "Nice and Slow". It also spawned two more successful singles "You Make Me Wanna...", and "My Way". Both reached number-two on the Hot 100. His followup album 8701 (2001) produced the Billboard Hot 100 number-one hits "U Remind Me" and "U Got It Bad". As well "U Don't Have to Call" which reached number-three on the Hot 100. My Way has been certified six-times platinum by the RIAA and 8701 has been certified four-times platinum by the RIAA. Both albums sold over 8 million copies worldwide.
http://wn.com/Usher_(entertainer) -
Wesley Snipes
Wesley Trent Snipes (born July 31, 1962) is an American actor, film producer, and martial artist. He has starred in numerous action-adventures, thrillers, and dramatic feature films and is well known for his role as Blade in the Blade trilogy. Snipes formed a production company titled Amen-Ra Films in 1991 and a subsidiary, Black Dot Media, to develop projects for film and television. Snipes has been training in martial arts since age twelve, earning a high ranking 5th dan black belt in Shotokan Karate and 2nd dan black belt in Hapkido. He has also trained as a student of Capoeira under Mestre Jelon Vieira and in a number of other disciplines including various styles of kung fu and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.
http://wn.com/Wesley_Snipes -
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston (born August 9, 1963) is an American R&B;/Pop singer, actress, and former fashion model. A relative of several soul singers, including her mother Cissy Houston, cousins Dionne Warwick and Dee Dee Warwick, and close family friend Aretha Franklin, Houston began singing at her New Jersey church as a member of a junior gospel choir at age eleven. After she began performing alongside her mother at night clubs in the New York City area, she was discovered by Arista Records label head Clive Davis. Houston has released studio albums and movie soundtrack albums throughout her career, all of which have had diamond, multi-platinum, platinum, or gold certification.
http://wn.com/Whitney_Houston -
Yoko Ono
is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon. Ono brought feminism to the forefront through her music, and is also considered a pioneer and major influence of the 1970s new wave genre. She is a supporter of gay rights and is known for her philanthropic contributions to the arts, peace and AIDS outreach programs.
http://wn.com/Yoko_Ono
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Augusta, Georgia
Augusta (also known as Augusta–Richmond County) is a consolidated city in the U.S. state of Georgia, located along the Savannah River. The city of Augusta and Richmond County governments merged operations in 1996; as of 2008, the Augusta-Richmond County estimated population was 199,768 not counting the unconsolidated cities of Hephzibah and Blythe.
http://wn.com/Augusta_Georgia -
Bahrain
Bahrain, officially Kingdom of Bahrain (, , literally: "Kingdom of the Two Seas"), is a small island country in the Persian Gulf ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. While Bahrain is an archipelago of thirty-three islands, the largest (Bahrain Island) is long by wide. Saudi Arabia lies to the west and is connected to Bahrain via the King Fahd Causeway, which was officially opened on 25 November 1986. Qatar is to the southeast across the Gulf of Bahrain.
http://wn.com/Bahrain -
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes Film Festival (), founded in 1946, is one of the world's oldest and most prestigious film festivals. The private festival is held annually (usually in May) at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès, in the resort town of Cannes, in the south of France.
http://wn.com/Cannes_Film_Festival -
County Westmeath
County Westmeath (; ) is one of the twenty-six counties of the Republic of Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. It is located in the province of Leinster. The population of the county is 79,403 according to the 2006 census. Westmeath is the 20th largest of Ireland’s 32 counties in area and 22nd largest in terms of population. It is the sixth largest of Leinster’s 12 counties in size and eighth largest in terms of population. It was named after the historic kingdom and province of Mide, the original extant of the kingdom conforming to the present county. Westmeath was created under The Counties of Meath and Westmeath Act of 1543. The Hill of Uisneach in the barony of Moycashel is sometimes regarded as the notional geographical centre of Ireland.
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Côte d'Ivoire
The Republic of (; ), commonly known in English as Ivory Coast, is a country in West Africa. It has an area of 322,462 km2, and borders the countries of Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana; its southern boundary is along the Gulf of Guinea. The country's population which was 15,366,672 in 1998, was estimated to be 20,617,068 in 2009.
http://wn.com/Côte_d'Ivoire -
Disneyland
Disneyland Park is a theme park located in Anaheim, California, owned and operated by the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts division of The Walt Disney Company. Originally, and still often colloquially, called Disneyland, it was dedicated with a televised press preview on July 17, 1955, and opened to the general public on July 18, 1955. Disneyland holds the distinction of being the only theme park to be designed and built under the direct supervision of Walt Disney himself. In 1998, the theme park was re-branded "Disneyland Park" to distinguish it from the larger Disneyland Resort complex.
http://wn.com/Disneyland -
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic (; , ) is a nation on the island of Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries. Both by area and population, the Dominican Republic is the second largest Caribbean nation (after Cuba), with and an estimated 10 million people.
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Egypt
Egypt (; , Miṣr, ; Egyptian Arabic: مصر, Maṣr, ; Coptic: , ; Greek: Αίγυπτος, Aiguptos; Egyptian:
http://wn.com/Egypt -
EPCOT
http://wn.com/EPCOT -
Gabon
Gabon (; ) is a state in west central Africa sharing borders with Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, and with the Republic of the Congo curving around the east and south. The Gulf of Guinea, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean is to the west. It covers a land area of nearly 270,000 km² and has an estimated population of 1,500,000. Its capital and largest city is Libreville.
http://wn.com/Gabon -
Gary, Indiana
Gary is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The city is in the southeastern portion of the Chicago metropolitan area and is 25 miles from downtown Chicago. The population was 102,746 at the 2000 census, making it the fifth-largest city in the state. Gary was once the second-largest city in Indiana, behind Indianapolis, a position now held by Fort Wayne. It borders Lake Michigan and is best known for its large steel mills.
http://wn.com/Gary_Indiana -
Glendale, California
Glendale () is a upper middle class city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. According to Mapping L.A. by the Los Angeles Times, the average income in Glendale is $57,112 which is considered about average for the County of Los Angeles. It lies at the eastern end of the San Fernando Valley, is bisected by the Verdugo Mountains, and is a suburb in the Greater Los Angeles Area. The city is bordered to the northwest by the Sun Valley and Tujunga neighborhoods of Los Angeles; to the northeast by La Cañada Flintridge and the unincorporated area of La Crescenta; to the west by Burbank and Griffith Park; to the east by Eagle Rock and Pasadena; to the south by the Atwater Village neighborhood of Los Angeles; and to the southeast by Glassell Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. The Golden State, Ventura, Glendale, and Foothill freeways run through the city. The city is policed by the Glendale Police Department.
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Hotel Adlon
Hotel Adlon is a hotel on Unter den Linden, the main boulevard in the Berlin city centre, directly opposite the Brandenburg Gate.
http://wn.com/Hotel_Adlon -
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and number of books. The head of the Library is the Librarian of Congress, currently James H. Billington.
http://wn.com/Library_of_Congress -
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; , Spanish for "The Angels") is the second most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of California and the western United States, with a population of 3.83 million within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Los Angeles extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of over 14.8 million and it is the 14th largest urban area in the world, affording it megacity status. The metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is home to nearly 12.9 million residents while the broader Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside combined statistical area (CSA) contains nearly 17.8 million people. Los Angeles is also the seat of Los Angeles County, the most populated and one of the most multicultural counties in the United States. The city's inhabitants are referred to as "Angelenos" ().
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Mumbai
Mumbai (; , ', ), previously known as Bombay' (), is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the second most populous city in the world, with a population of approximately 14 million. The official language of Mumbai is Marathi. But many other languages are also widely used, particularly the Mumbaiian Hindi''. Along with the neighbouring urban areas, including the cities of Navi Mumbai and Thane, it is one of the most populous urban regions in the world. Mumbai lies on the west coast of India and has a deep natural harbour. As of 2009, Mumbai was named an Alpha world city. Mumbai is also the richest city in India, and has the highest GDP of any city in South or Central Asia.
http://wn.com/Mumbai -
Soviet Union
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR, , abbreviated СССР, SSSR), informally known as the Soviet Union () or Soviet Russia, was a constitutionally socialist state that existed on the territory of most of the former Russian Empire in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991.
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Tokyo Disneyland
is a 115 acre (465,000 m²) theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort located in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan, near Tokyo. Its main gate is directly adjacent to both Maihama Station and Tokyo Disneyland Station. It was the first Disney park to be built outside of the United States and opened April 15, 1983. The park was constructed by Walt Disney Imagineering in the same style as Disneyland in California and Magic Kingdom in Florida. It is owned by The Oriental Land Company, which licenses the theme from The Walt Disney Company. Tokyo Disneyland and its companion park, Tokyo DisneySea, are the only Disney parks not owned by The Walt Disney Company.
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White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical style. It has been the residence of every U.S. President since John Adams. When Thomas Jefferson moved into the house in 1801, he (with architect Benjamin Henry Latrobe) expanded the building outward, creating two colonnades that were meant to conceal stables and storage.
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Wikimedia Foundation
Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. is a non-profit charitable organization headquartered in San Francisco, California, United States, and organized under the laws of the state of Florida, where it was initially based. It operates several online collaborative wiki projects including Wikipedia, Wiktionary, Wikiquote, Wikibooks, Wikisource, Wikimedia Commons, Wikispecies, Wikinews, Wikiversity, and . Its flagship project, Wikipedia, ranks among the top ten most-visited websites worldwide.
http://wn.com/Wikimedia_Foundation
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Michael, Michael Filmography
Michael, Michael Filmography
Michael, Michael Filmography
RELEASE
ALBUMS
The Day After My Confidence
(Released 2002)
- Token Laureate
- Still Life
- Wishing Hour
- An Angel Smiles on Oceans
- Rear Window
- Finish Line
- Left as One
- Letter to Self
- Sacrificial Spiders
You Must Be This Tall
(Released 1999)
- Two Minutes
- Gravity's Pilot
- Sweet Reunion
- Oppression for a Poet
- Make the World Forget Me
- Potential
- Hope Comes to Kill
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- Manifest Destiny
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"Michael" - PS3 Long Live Play -- Full Length
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 2:13
- Published: 04 Oct 2011
- Uploaded: 26 Jan 2012
- Author: PlayStation
When they tell your story, what will they say? www.longliveplay.com
http://wn.com/Michael__PS3_Long_Live_Play_-_Full_Length
Michael Jackson - Thriller
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 13:43
- Published: 03 Oct 2009
- Uploaded: 26 Jan 2012
- Author: michaeljacksonVEVO
Music video by Michael Jackson performing Thriller. (C) 1982 MJJ Productions Inc.
http://wn.com/Michael_Jackson__Thriller
Michael Jackson - They Don't Care About Us
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 4:42
- Published: 03 Oct 2009
- Uploaded: 26 Jan 2012
- Author: michaeljacksonVEVO
Music video by Michael Jackson performing They Don't Care About Us. (C) 1996 MJJ Productions Inc.
http://wn.com/Michael_Jackson__They_Don't_Care_About_Us
Moonwalk - Michael Jackson - Billie Jean - The First Moonwalk King Of Pop
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 4:57
- Published: 05 Jul 2009
- Uploaded: 26 Jan 2012
- Author: ClipMan2008
Michael Jackson - Billie Jean (Motown 25th Anniversary Yesterday Today Forever ) The First Moonwalk King Of Pop on " Billie Jean " at the 25th anniversary of Motown. A moment of anthology ! 1983 Le premier Moonwalk du King Of Pop sur " Billie Jean " à l'occasion du 25ème anniversaire de la Motown. Un moment d'anthologie ! 1983 Der erste Moonwalk des King Of Pop von " Billie Jean " anlässlich des 25. Jahrestages der Motown. Ein Moment der Sammlung ! 1983 Moonwalk La Primera King Of Pop sobre el tema " Billie Jean " en el 25 º aniversario de Motown. Un momento de antología ! 1983 Jeudi 25 juin 2009 : La plus grande star de tous les temps nous quittait Il était l'homme de tous les superlatifs Le plus doué, le plus mystérieux, le plus touchant, le plus génial, le plus fou, le plus généreux, le plus grand de tous les artistes. Michal Jackson nous a quittés le jeudi 25 juin 2009, terrassé par un arrêt cardiaque. Bon nombre d'entre nous aimaient Michael Jackson, les ventes d'album parlent pour lui. Lui, l'artiste recordman aux + de 750 millions d'albums vendus. RIP Michael Jackson "Billie Jean" is a 1983 hit single from Michael Jackson's Thriller album. A number-one hit on the Billboard Hot 100, the song was also the number-one R&B single for nine weeks in the United States and is one of Jackson's most critically acclaimed songs. It was voted best single of the year in The Village Voice Pazz & Jop critics' poll, and received two Grammy Awards in 1984 in the categories Best Male <b>...</b>
http://wn.com/Moonwalk__Michael_Jackson__Billie_Jean__The_First_Moonwalk_King_Of_Pop
Michael Jackson - Beat It
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 4:57
- Published: 11 Apr 2011
- Uploaded: 26 Jan 2012
- Author: michaeljacksonVEVO
Music video by Michael Jackson performing Beat It. © 1982 MJJ Productions Inc.
http://wn.com/Michael_Jackson__Beat_It
Jack Sparrow (feat. Michael Bolton)
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 3:17
- Published: 08 May 2011
- Uploaded: 27 Jan 2012
- Author: thelonelyisland
Buy at iTunes: goo.gl New album on sale now! turtleneckandchain.com
http://wn.com/Jack_Sparrow_feat_Michael_Bolton
Michael Jackson - This Is It
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 3:47
- Published: 26 Nov 2009
- Uploaded: 26 Jan 2012
- Author: michaeljacksonVEVO
Music video by Michael Jackson performing This Is It. (C) 2009 MJJ Productions Inc.
http://wn.com/Michael_Jackson__This_Is_It
Michael Jackson - Remember The Time
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 9:17
- Published: 03 Oct 2009
- Uploaded: 27 Jan 2012
- Author: michaeljacksonVEVO
Music video by Michael Jackson performing Remember The Time. (C) 1992 MJJ Productions Inc.
http://wn.com/Michael_Jackson__Remember_The_Time
Michael Jackson - Jam
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 8:02
- Published: 03 Oct 2009
- Uploaded: 27 Jan 2012
- Author: michaeljacksonVEVO
Music video by Michael Jackson performing Jam. (C) 1992 MJJ Productions Inc.
http://wn.com/Michael_Jackson__Jam
Michael Jordan
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 3:57
- Published: 19 Aug 2006
- Uploaded: 26 Jan 2012
- Author: MichaelAir23Jordan
Michael Jordan is the best player ever to be in the NBA. Lebron James is NOT better than MJ. song--remember the name by fort minor.
http://wn.com/Michael_Jordan
Michael Jackson Medley
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 3:56
- Published: 25 Jul 2009
- Uploaded: 26 Jan 2012
- Author: KurtHugoSchneider
Sam Tsui - Vocals Kurt Schneider - Arrangement, Production To download the mp3 of this song on iTunes: www.itunes.com If you want to share this on Facebook: on.fb.me Check out more of Sam here: www.Facebook.com www.Twitter.com www.Myspace.com Also, here's Kurt's new official Facebook Page: www.Facebook.com And... we're on iTunes Now! Thanks so much for all your support, we couldn't have done it without you guys :) www.itunes.com www.itunes.com --------------------------------- To download the sheet music PDF (in SATB) for this song: 1. Go here: bit.ly and click "Download." There is one little error on the sheet music: For mm 43-44, the bass part should be on a D, not a B as written. 2. Click the "Save" function or the "Save Page As..." and save it where you'd like 3. You could download the music for free... but you could also donate here (wink wink): bit.ly (recommended donation is $1, like an iTunes song. If you don't have a PayPal account, click "Continue" in the lower middle of the page to donate via credit card) Good luck!
http://wn.com/Michael_Jackson_Medley
Michael Jackson - Hold My Hand Duet ft. Akon
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 3:44
- Published: 08 Dec 2010
- Uploaded: 26 Jan 2012
- Author: michaeljacksonVEVO
Music video by Michael Jackson Duet with Akon performing Hold My Hand. (C) 2010 Optimum Productions
http://wn.com/Michael_Jackson__Hold_My_Hand_Duet_ft_Akon
Michael Jackson - You Are Not Alone
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 5:35
- Published: 03 Oct 2009
- Uploaded: 26 Jan 2012
- Author: michaeljacksonVEVO
Music video by Michael Jackson performing You Are Not Alone. © 1995 MJJ Productions Inc.
http://wn.com/Michael_Jackson__You_Are_Not_Alone
Michael Kiwanuka - Home Again
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 3:40
- Published: 17 Nov 2011
- Uploaded: 26 Jan 2012
- Author: MichaelKiwanukaVEVO
Michael Kiwanuka, 'Home Again' EP available to buy now at at iTunes: bit.ly Available from 1 January 2012. Connect with Michael at: www.michaelkiwanuka.com http twitter.com www.myspace.com www.youtube.com soundcloud.com Directed by Ben Reed
http://wn.com/Michael_Kiwanuka__Home_Again
Michael Jackson Pepsi Generation
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 1:32
- Published: 26 Jun 2009
- Uploaded: 26 Jan 2012
- Author: GiraldiMedia
Michael Jackson teams up with director Bob Giraldi in a Pepsi commerical for the "new generation".
http://wn.com/Michael_Jackson_Pepsi_Generation
Michael Jackson - Earth Song
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 6:43
- Published: 03 Oct 2009
- Uploaded: 27 Jan 2012
- Author: michaeljacksonVEVO
Music video by Michael Jackson performing Earth Song. © 1995 MJJ Productions Inc.
http://wn.com/Michael_Jackson__Earth_Song
Michael Jackson - Bad
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 4:20
- Published: 03 Oct 2009
- Uploaded: 26 Jan 2012
- Author: michaeljacksonVEVO
Music video by Michael Jackson performing Bad. © 1987 MJJ Productions Inc.
http://wn.com/Michael_Jackson__Bad
Michael Jackson - Billie Jean
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 4:54
- Published: 03 Oct 2009
- Uploaded: 27 Jan 2012
- Author: michaeljacksonVEVO
Music video by Michael Jackson performing Billie Jean. © 1982 MJJ Productions Inc.
http://wn.com/Michael_Jackson__Billie_Jean
George Michael - Freedom! '90
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 6:36
- Published: 03 Oct 2009
- Uploaded: 26 Jan 2012
- Author: georgemichaelVEVO
Music video by George Michael performing Freedom! '90. (c) 1990 Sony BMG Music Entertainment (UK) Limited
http://wn.com/George_Michael__Freedom!_'90
Michael Jackson - You Rock My World (Extended Version)
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 13:30
- Published: 03 Oct 2009
- Uploaded: 26 Jan 2012
- Author: michaeljacksonVEVO
Music video by Michael Jackson performing You Rock My World. (C) 2001 MJJ Productions Inc.
http://wn.com/Michael_Jackson__You_Rock_My_World_Extended_Version
Michael Jackson - The Way You Make Me Feel
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 6:44
- Published: 03 Oct 2009
- Uploaded: 27 Jan 2012
- Author: michaeljacksonVEVO
Music video by Michael Jackson performing The Way You Make Me Feel. © 1987 MJJ Productions Inc.
http://wn.com/Michael_Jackson__The_Way_You_Make_Me_Feel
Michael Jackson - Hollywood Tonight
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 4:02
- Published: 10 Mar 2011
- Uploaded: 27 Jan 2012
- Author: michaeljacksonVEVO
Music video by Michael Jackson performing "Hollywood Tonight." (C) 2011 Optimum Productions
http://wn.com/Michael_Jackson__Hollywood_Tonight
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US Navy / Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Michael M. Scichilone
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| Coordinates | 45°30′″N73°40′″N |
|---|---|
| alt | A mid-twenties African American man wearing a sequined military jacket and dark sunglasses. He is walking while waving his right hand, which is adorned with a white glove. His left hand is bare. |
| background | solo_singer |
| birth name | Michael Joseph Jackson |
| alias | Michael Joe Jackson, MJ, King of Pop |
| birth date | August 29, 1958 |
| birth place | Gary, Indiana, U.S. |
| death date | June 25, 2009 |
| death place | Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| instrument | vocals, guitar, drums, percussion, keyboards |
| genre | R&B;, pop, rock, soul, dance, funk, disco, new jack swing |
| occupation | Singer-songwriter, musician, composer, dancer, choreographer, record producer, actor, businessman, philanthropist |
| years active | 1964–2009 |
| label | Motown, Epic, Legacy |
| associated acts | The Jackson 5 |
| relatives | Janet Jackson (sister) |
| website | 130pxMichael Jackson's signature }} |
Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Often referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records. His contribution to music, dance, and fashion, along with a much-publicized personal life, made him a global figure in popular culture for over four decades. The seventh child of the Jackson family, he debuted on the professional music scene along with his brothers as a member of The Jackson 5, then the Jacksons in 1964, and began his solo career in 1971.
In the early 1980s, Jackson became a dominant figure in popular music. The music videos for his songs, including those of "Beat It", "Billie Jean", and "Thriller", were credited with transforming the medium into an art form and a promotional tool, and the popularity of these videos helped to bring the relatively new television channel MTV to fame. Videos such as "Black or White" and "Scream" made him a staple on MTV in the 1990s. Through stage performances and music videos, Jackson popularized a number of complicated dance techniques, such as the robot and the moonwalk, to which he gave the name. His distinctive musical sound and vocal style have influenced numerous hip hop, post-disco, contemporary R&B;, pop and rock artists.
Jackson's 1982 album ''Thriller'' is the best-selling album of all time. His other records, including ''Off the Wall'' (1979), ''Bad'' (1987), ''Dangerous'' (1991), and ''HIStory'' (1995), also rank among the world's best-selling. Jackson is one of the few artists to have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice. He was also inducted into the Dance Hall of Fame as the first (and currently only) dancer from the world of pop and rock 'n' roll. Some of his other achievements include multiple Guinness World Records; 13 Grammy Awards (as well as the Grammy Legend Award and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award); 26 American Music Awards (more than any other artist, including the "Artist of the Century"); 13 number-one singles in the United States in his solo career (more than any other male artist in the Hot 100 era); and the estimated sale of over 750 million records worldwide. Jackson won hundreds of awards, which have made him the most-awarded recording artist in the history of popular music.
Life and career
Early life and The Jackson 5 (1958–1975)
Michael Jackson was born on August 29, 1958, the eighth of ten children in an African American working-class family who lived in a small 3-room house in Gary, Indiana, an industrial city near Chicago. His mother, Katherine Esther Scruse, was a devout Jehovah's Witness, and his father, Joseph Walter "Joe" Jackson, was a steel mill worker who performed with an R&B; band called The Falcons. Jackson had three sisters: Rebbie, La Toya, and Janet, and five brothers: Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and Randy. A sixth brother, Brandon, died shortly after birth.Jackson had a troubled relationship with his father, Joe. In 1980, Jackson won three awards at the American Music Awards for his solo efforts: Favorite Soul/R&B; Album, Favorite Soul/R&B; Male Artist, and Favorite Soul/R&B; Single for "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough". That year, he also won Billboard Year-End for Top Black Artist and Top Black Album and a Grammy Award for Best Male R&B; Vocal Performance, also for "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough". Jackson again won at the American Music Awards in 1981 for Favorite Soul/R&B; Album and Favorite Soul/R&B; Male Artist. Despite its commercial success, Jackson felt ''Off the Wall'' should have made a much bigger impact, and was determined to exceed expectations with his next release. In 1980, he secured the highest royalty rate in the music industry: 37 percent of wholesale album profit.
''Thriller'' and ''Motown 25'' (1982–83)
In 1982, Jackson contributed the song "Someone In the Dark" to the storybook for the film ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial''; the record won a Grammy for Best Recording for Children in 1984. In the same year he won another seven Grammys and eight American Music Awards (including the Award of Merit, the youngest artist to win it), making him the most awarded in one night for both award shows. The album topped the ''Billboard'' 200 chart for 37 weeks and was in the top 10 of the 200 for 80 consecutive weeks. It was the first album to have seven ''Billboard'' Hot 100 top 10 singles, including "Billie Jean", "Beat It," and "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'." ''Thriller'' was certified for 29 million shipments by the RIAA, giving it Double Diamond status in the United States. The album won also another Grammy for Best Engineered Recording – Non Classical in 1984, awarding Bruce Swedien for his work. Thanks to the ''Bad'' album, Bruce Swedien and Humberto Gatica won one Grammy in 1988 for Best Engineered Recording – Non Classical and Michael Jackson won one Grammy for Best Music Video, Short Form for "Leave Me Alone" in 1989. ''HIStory'' received a Grammy nomination for Album of the Year. However, the sales for ''Invincible'' were lower than those of his previous releases, due in part to a lack of promotion, no supporting world tour and the label dispute. The album also came out at a bad time for the music industry in general. Jackson rehearsed in Los Angeles in the weeks leading up to the tour under the direction of choreographer Kenny Ortega. Most of these rehearsals took place at the Staples Center, which was owned by AEG. With ''Thriller'', Christopher Connelly of ''Rolling Stone'' commented that Jackson developed his long association with the subliminal theme of paranoia and darker imagery. Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine noted this is evident on the songs "Billie Jean" and "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'". In "Billie Jean", Jackson sings about an obsessive fan who alleges he has fathered a child of hers. In "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" he argues against gossip and the media. "Beat It" decried gang violence in an homage to ''West Side Story'', and was Jackson's first successful rock cross-over piece, according to Huey. He also observed that the title track "Thriller" began Jackson's interest with the theme of the supernatural, a topic he revisited in subsequent years. In 1985, Jackson co-wrote the charity anthem "We Are the World"; humanitarian themes later became a recurring theme in his lyrics and public persona.In ''Bad'', Jackson's concept of the predatory lover can be seen on the rock song "Dirty Diana". The lead single "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" is a traditional love ballad, while "Man in the Mirror" is an anthemic ballad of confession and resolution. "Smooth Criminal" was an evocation of bloody assault, rape and likely murder. Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine states that ''Dangerous'' presents Jackson as a very paradoxical individual. He comments the album is more diverse than his previous ''Bad'', as it appeals to an urban audience while also attracting the middle class with anthems like "Heal the World". The first half of the record is dedicated to new jack swing, including songs like "Jam" and "Remember the Time". The album is Jackson's first where social ills become a primary theme; "Why You Wanna Trip on Me", for example, protests against world hunger, AIDS, homelessness and drugs. ''Dangerous'' contains sexually charged efforts such as the multifaceted love song, "In the Closet". The title track continues the theme of the predatory lover and compulsive desire. The second half includes introspective, pop-gospel anthems such as "Will You Be There", "Heal the World" and "Keep the Faith"; these songs show Jackson opening up about various personal struggles and worries. In the ballad "Gone Too Soon", Jackson gives tribute to his friend Ryan White and the plight of those with AIDS.
''HIStory'' creates an atmosphere of paranoia. Its content focuses on the hardships and public struggles Jackson went through just prior to its production. In the new jack swing-funk-rock efforts "Scream" and "Tabloid Junkie", along with the R&B; ballad "You Are Not Alone", Jackson retaliates against the injustice and isolation he feels, and directs much of his anger at the media. In the introspective ballad "Stranger in Moscow", Jackson laments over his "fall from grace", while songs like "Earth Song", "Childhood", "Little Susie" and "Smile" are all operatic pop pieces. In the track "D.S.", Jackson launched a verbal attack against Tom Sneddon. He describes Sneddon as an antisocial, white supremacist who wanted to "get my ass, dead or alive". Of the song, Sneddon said, "I have not—shall we say—done him the honor of listening to it, but I've been told that it ends with the sound of a gunshot". ''Invincible'' found Jackson working heavily with producer Rodney Jerkins. It is a record made up of urban soul like "Cry" and "The Lost Children", ballads such as "Speechless", "Break of Dawn" and "Butterflies" and mixes hip-hop, pop and R&B; in "2000 Watts", "Heartbreaker" and "Invincible".
Vocal style
Jackson sang from childhood, and over time his voice and vocal style changed noticeably. Between 1971 and 1975, Jackson's voice descended from boy soprano to high tenor. Jackson first used a technique called the "vocal hiccup" in 1973, starting with the song "It's Too Late to Change the Time" from The Jackson 5's ''G.I.T.: Get It Together'' album. Jackson did not use the hiccup technique— somewhat like a gulping for air or gasping— fully until the recording of ''Off the Wall'': it can be seen in full force in the "Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)" promotional video. With the arrival of ''Off the Wall'' in the late 1970s, Jackson's abilities as a vocalist were well regarded. At the time, ''Rolling Stone'' compared his vocals to the "breathless, dreamy stutter" of Stevie Wonder. Their analysis was also that "Jackson's feathery-timbred tenor is extraordinarily beautiful. It slides smoothly into a startling falsetto that's used very daringly". 1982 saw the release of ''Thriller'', and ''Rolling Stone'' was of the opinion that Jackson was then singing in a "fully adult voice" that was "tinged by sadness".
A distinctive deliberate mispronunciation of "come on", used frequently by Jackson, occasionally spelled "cha'mone" or "shamone", is also a staple in impressions and caricatures of him. The turn of the 1990s saw the release of the introspective album ''Dangerous''. ''The New York Times'' noted that on some tracks, "he gulps for breath, his voice quivers with anxiety or drops to a desperate whisper, hissing through clenched teeth" and he had a "wretched tone". When singing of brotherhood or self-esteem the musician would return to "smooth" vocals. When commenting on ''Invincible'', ''Rolling Stone'' were of the opinion that—at the age of 43—Jackson still performed "exquisitely voiced rhythm tracks and vibrating vocal harmonies". Nelson George summed up Jackson's vocals by stating "The grace, the aggression, the growling, the natural boyishness, the falsetto, the smoothness—that combination of elements mark him as a major vocalist".
Music videos and choreography
Referred to as the King of Music Videos, Steve Huey of Allmusic observed how Jackson transformed the music video into an art form and a promotional tool through complex story lines, dance routines, special effects and famous cameo appearances; simultaneously breaking down racial barriers. Before ''Thriller'', Jackson struggled to receive coverage on MTV, allegedly because he was African American. Pressure from CBS Records persuaded MTV to start showing "Billie Jean" and later "Beat It", leading to a lengthy partnership with Jackson, also helping other black music artists gain recognition. MTV employees deny any racism in their coverage, or pressure to change their stance. MTV maintains that they played rock music, regardless of race. The popularity of his videos on MTV helped to put the relatively young channel "on the map"; MTV's focus shifted in favor of pop and R&B.; His performance on ''Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever'' changed the scope of live stage show; "That Jackson lip-synced 'Billie Jean' is, in itself, not extraordinary, but the fact that it did not change the impact of the performance is extraordinary; whether the performance was live or lip-synced made no difference to the audience" thus creating an era in which artists re-create the spectacle of music video imagery on stage. Short films like ''Thriller'' largely remained unique to Jackson, while the group dance sequence in "Beat It" has frequently been imitated. The choreography in ''Thriller'' has become a part of global pop culture, replicated everywhere from Indian films to prisons in the Philippines. The ''Thriller'' short film marked an increase in scale for music videos, and has been named the most successful music video ever by the ''Guinness World Records''.In the 19-minute music video for "Bad"—directed by Martin Scorsese—Jackson began using sexual imagery and choreography not previously seen in his work. He occasionally grabbed or touched his chest, torso and crotch. When asked by Oprah in the 1993 interview about why he grabbed his crotch, he replied, "I think it happens subliminally" and he described it as something that was not planned, but rather, as something that was compelled by the music. "Bad" garnered a mixed reception from both fans and critics; ''Time'' magazine described it as "infamous". The video also featured Wesley Snipes; in the future Jackson's videos would often feature famous cameo roles.
}} ;Bibliography
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Captain Jack Sparrow is a fictional character and a lead protagonist in the ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' film series created by screenwriters Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio, portrayed by Johnny Depp. He is first introduced in the film ''Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl'' (2003). He appears in the sequels ''Dead Man's Chest'' (2006), ''At World's End'' (2007), and ''On Stranger Tides'' (2011). Jack Sparrow was conceived by Elliott and Rossio initially as a supporting character, but Jack serves as a central protagonist in the films. He was brought to life by the actor Johnny Depp, who based his characterization on The Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards and cartoon character Pepé Le Pew.
Jack Sparrow at the Internet Movie Database
Jack Sparrow at the ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' wiki
Pirates of the Caribbean 4 Online
The series ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' was inspired by a Disney theme park ride, and in 2006, when the ride was revamped, the character of Jack Sparrow was introduced to it. Jack Sparrow is also the subject of a children's book series, ''Pirates of the Caribbean: Jack Sparrow'', which chronicles his teenage years and the character has also appeared in numerous video games.
In the context of the films, Sparrow is one of the Brethren Court, the Pirate Lords of the Seven Seas. He can be treacherous, but survives mostly by using wit and negotiation rather than weapons or force, preferring to flee most dangerous situations and fight only when necessary. Sparrow is introduced seeking to regain his ship, the ''Black Pearl'', from his mutinous first mate, Hector Barbossa, and attempts to escape his blood debt to the legendary Davy Jones while battling the East India Trading Company.
Films
''The Curse of the Black Pearl''
Captain Jack Sparrow first appears in ''Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl'' (2003), where he arrives in Port Royal looking to commandeer a ship. Despite rescuing Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley), the daughter of Governor Weatherby Swann (Jonathan Pryce) from drowning, he is jailed for piracy. That night, a cursed ship called the ''Black Pearl'' attacks Port Royal, capturing Elizabeth in the process. Its captain, Hector Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush), is trying desperately to break an ancient Aztec curse that he and the crew are under. Will Turner (Orlando Bloom), a blacksmith who loves Elizabeth, frees Sparrow to aid him in rescuing her. They steal the HMS ''Interceptor'' and acquire a crew in Tortuga before heading to Isla de Muerta, where Elizabeth is being held captive. They are quickly captured, and Barbossa maroons Sparrow and Elizabeth on a deserted island.The pair are rescued by the British Royal Navy, after Elizabeth uses some rum found on the island to send off a smoke bomb signal. In order to escape hanging, Sparrow cuts a deal to deliver them the ''Black Pearl''. During the film's final battle at Isla de Muerta, Sparrow steals a cursed coin, making himself immortal so he can fight Barbossa. He shoots his rival with the same bullet he has carried for ten years just as Will breaks the curse, killing Barbossa. Sparrow is captured and later sentenced to death.
At his scheduled execution in Port Royal, Will comes to his rescue, but they are quickly caught. Right at that moment Elizabeth shows her love for Will, and he is pardoned, while Sparrow escapes by falling off the sea wall. He is rescued by the ''Black Pearl'' crew, and made captain once more. Apparently impressed by the clever pirate, Commodore James Norrington (Jack Davenport) allows him one day's head start before giving chase.
''Dead Man's Chest''
In the sequel, ''Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest'' (2006), Sparrow searches for the Dead Man's Chest, which will help him to "control" the seas and save himself: thirteen years earlier, Sparrow bartered his soul to Captain Davy Jones (Bill Nighy) in return for Jones raising the sunken ''Black Pearl'' and making Sparrow captain. In the film, Sparrow must either serve for one hundred years aboard the ''Flying Dutchman'', or be taken by the Kraken to Davy Jones's Locker.The Dead Man's Chest contains Jones's heart, which Sparrow can use as leverage against Jones and end his debt. Adding to Sparrow's woes, Lord Cutler Beckett (Tom Hollander) of the East India Trading Company wants to settle his own debt with Sparrow and forces Will Turner to search for him. Will finds Sparrow and his crew hiding from the Kraken on Pelegosto, where they have been captured by cannibals. They escape, but Davy Jones captures them and demands that Jack pay his debt. Jack argues that he was captain for only two years before he was mutinied by Barbossa, but Jones rejects his argument, stating that he's been calling himself "Captain" Jack Sparrow for the allotted years.
Sparrow betrays Will to Davy Jones as part of a new deal to deliver 100 souls in exchange for his own. Sparrow recruits sailors in Tortuga, where he unexpectedly encounters Elizabeth and the disgraced James Norrington, who has turned to alcohol. Convincing Elizabeth that she can free Will by finding the Chest, Sparrow and she head for Isla Cruces after she pinpoints its location with Jack's magic compass. Will also arrives, having escaped Jones's ship after stealing the key to the Chest. Will wants to stab the heart and free his father who is in Jones's service, while Norrington—who has discovered that Lord Cutler Beckett desires the heart in order to control Davy Jones and the seas—hopes to regain his career and honor by delivering the heart to Beckett. Sparrow fears that if Jones is dead, the Kraken will continue hunting him, and wants the heart as leverage.
Jones' crew arrives, and during the ensuing battle, Norrington steals the heart. Jones summons the Kraken to attack the ''Black Pearl''. After seeing his crew get attacked by the Kraken, Jack tries to escape in the last undamaged longboat, but just as he nears an island, he is struck with remorse at abandoning his crew, and goes back to help rescue them. Once there, he helps blow up the kraken before sadly gives orders to abandon the ship; when Gibbs asks if he is sure that he (Jack) wants to leave his ship behind to the Kraken, he replies, "She's only a ship, mate."
Realizing that the Kraken only wants Sparrow, Elizabeth tricks him by giving him a passionate kiss while chaining him to the mast to save the crew, with Jack looking on smirking, he calls her a pirate. The Kraken then arrives, spitting out Jack's hat, which he had lost earlier. Jack, having freed himself, resigns himself to his fate and charges the beast's mouth muttering, " 'Ello beastie." Sparrow and the ship are dragged down to Davy Jones's Locker. The crew seeks solace at the home of Tia Dalma, who surprises them by offering a captain who can help rescue Sparrow: Barbossa, brought back to life at her doing.
''At World's End''
''Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End'' (2007) opens with Davy Jones's heart now in Beckett's possession, and the nine pirate lords of the Brethren Court are summoned to convene at Shipwreck Cove to combat the combined threat of Beckett and Jones. Though taken to Davy Jones's Locker at the end of the previous film, Sparrow, who is a Pirate Lord of the Caribbean, must attend the meeting, as he failed to bequeath his "piece of eight", a pirate lord's identification marker, to an heir. The collective "pieces of eight" can free the sea goddess Calypso. A resurrected Barbossa leads Sparrow's crew to Davy Jones's Locker using the Singaporean pirate lord Sao Feng (Chow Yun-fat)'s navigational charts. There Sparrow has been hallucinating an entire crew of himself, each member representing a facet of his personality. After Barbossa and the crew find him, Sparrow deciphers a clue on the charts that indicates (in a clever nod to the Fata Morgana mirages attributed to the real life legend of the Flying Dutchman) they must capsize the ''Black Pearl'' to escape the Locker; at sunset, the ship upturns back into the living world. Sparrow and Barbossa journey to the Brethren Court where they encounter Elizabeth, who was traded to Sao Feng, and was made a Pirate Lord by him just before he died. At the Brethren Court, she is elected "Pirate King" after Sparrow breaks a stalemate (in all previous meetings, Pirate Lords had always voted for themselves). During parley, he is traded for Will, who was captured by Jones and Beckett after Sparrow sent him overboard on the ''Black Pearl''. The ''Black Pearl'' and the ''Flying Dutchman'' face off in battle during a maelstrom created by Calypso, Sparrow steals Davy Jones's heart to become immortal. During the act Jones breaks Jack's cutlass. When Jones mortally wounds Will, Sparrow instead saves Will by helping him stab the heart with his own broken sword, killing Jones and making Will the ''Flying Dutchman'''s new captain. Together, the ''Black Pearl'' and the ''Flying Dutchman'' destroy Beckett's ship. At the end of the film Barbossa again commandeers the ''Black Pearl'' and Feng's charts, and maroons Sparrow and Mr. Gibbs in Tortuga. Fortunately, Jack has already removed the chart's center, and he sets sail in a dinghy, using his compass and the chart to guide him to the Fountain of Youth.
''On Stranger Tides''
After reaching a dead end in his search for the Fountain of Youth, Jack Sparrow makes his way to London where he heard of someone going by his name while gathering a crew. Along the way, Sparrow poses as a judge to save the convicted Gibbs before being captured and then escaping the British Royal guard. By then, Jack Sparrow crosses paths with his impostor, revealed to be an old flame named Angelica (Penélope Cruz) who shanghais him to the ''Queen Anne's Revenge'', the ship of the horrific Blackbeard (Ian McShane) who forces Jack into helping him reach the Fountain of Youth. Learning the full story behind it, Jack attempts to set up Blackbeard's demise and save the naive Angelica from her father. After some trouble with mermaids and the Spanish Navy, he succeeds by tricking Blackbeard into giving up his life to save hers. Jack marooned Angelica out of fear for her retaliation when she announces she is with Jack's child(which was a lie out of desperation), while having Gibbs retrieve the shrunken ''Black Pearl''. When asked about giving up his chance for immortality while he begins to search for a way to get his ship back to its original size, Jack answers that immortality is not everything, though he admits making a name for himself as the one who found the Fountain is good enough immortality at the moment.
Tie-ins
Outside films, Jack Sparrow first appeared as a companion character in the 2006 video game ''Kingdom Hearts II'', where he was voiced by James Arnold Taylor in the English version and Hiroaki Hirata (who also dubbed Sparrow in the film's Japanese dubs) in the Japanese version. Sparrow has since appeared in other video games, ''Pirates of the Caribbean: The Legend of Jack Sparrow'' where he was voiced by Johnny Depp, the adaptation of ''Dead Man's Chest'' and various game versions of ''At World's End'', where he was voiced by Jared Butler with motion capture movements provided by Johnny Paton. The character was also voiced by Jared Butler in ''Pirates of the Caribbean Online'', which takes place before the films.Sparrow's backstory in ''Pirates of the Caribbean: The Complete Visual Guide'' indicates he was born on a pirate ship during a typhoon in the Indian Ocean, and that he was trained to fence by an Italian. Rob Kidd wrote an ongoing book series entitled ''Pirates of the Caribbean: Jack Sparrow'', following a teenage Sparrow and his crew on the ''Barnacle'' as they battle sirens, mermaids and adult pirates while looking for various treasures. The first book, ''The Coming Storm'', was published on June 1, 2006.
A parody of him called Jack Swallows, was featured in the film Epic Movie played by Darrell Hammond
Concept and creation
Character creation
When writing the screenplay for ''Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl'', Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio envisioned Jack Sparrow as a supporting character, citing Bugs Bunny and Groucho Marx as influences. The producers saw him as a young Burt Lancaster. Director Gore Verbinski admitted, "The first film was a movie, and then Jack was put into it almost. He doesn't have the obligations of the plot in the same ways that the other characters have. He meanders his way through, and he kind of affects everybody else." Sparrow represents an ethical pirate, with Captain Barbossa as his corrupt foil. His true motives usually remain masked, and whether he is honorable or evil depends on the audience's perspective. This acts as part of Will Turner's arc, in which Sparrow tells him a pirate can be a good man, like his father.Following the success of ''The Curse of the Black Pearl'', the challenge to creating a sequel was, according to Verbinski, "You don't want just the Jack Sparrow movie. It's like having a garlic milkshake. He's the spice and you need a lot of straight men ... Let's not give them too much Jack. It's like too much dessert or too much of a good thing." Although ''Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest'' was written to propel the trilogy's plot, Sparrow's state-of-mind as he is pursued by Davy Jones becomes increasingly edgy, and the writers concocted the cannibal sequence to show that he was in danger whether on land or at sea. Sparrow is also perplexed over his attraction to Elizabeth Swann, and attempts to justify it throughout the film.
''Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End'' was meant to return it tonally to a character piece. Sparrow, in particular, is tinged with madness after extended solitary confinement in Davy Jones's Locker, and now desires immortality. Sparrow struggles with what it takes to be a moral person, after his honest streak caused his doom in the second film. By the end of ''At World's End'' Sparrow is sailing to the Fountain of Youth, an early concept for the second film. Rossio has said they may write the screenplay for a fourth film, and producer Jerry Bruckheimer has expressed interest in a spin-off. Gore Verbinski concurred that "all of the stories set in motion by the first film have been resolved. If there ever were another ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' film, I would start fresh and focus on the further adventures of Captain Jack Sparrow."
''Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides'' was first announced on September 28, 2008 during a Disney event at the Kodak Theater. On September 11, 2009 the title of the film was officially announced. Gore Verbinski did not return to direct the fourth installment, and is instead directed by Rob Marshall. The movie uses elements from Tim Powers novel ''On Stranger Tides'', particularly Blackbeard and the Fountain of Youth but the film is not a straight adaptation of the novel.
Johnny Depp
Johnny Depp was looking to do a family film in 2001, and was visiting the Walt Disney Studios when he heard there were plans to adapt the ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' ride into a film. Depp was excited by the possibility of reviving an old Hollywood genre, and was further delighted that the script met his quirky sensibilities: the crew of the ''Black Pearl'' were not searching for treasure, but were instead trying to return it to lift their curse. In addition, the traditional mutiny had already occurred. Depp was cast on June 10, 2002. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer felt Depp was "an edgy actor who will kind of counter the Disney ''Country Bears'' soft quality and tell an audience that an adult and teenager can go see this and have a good time with it."At the first read-through, Depp surprised the cast and crew by portraying the character in an off-kilter manner. After researching 18th century pirates, Depp compared them to modern rock stars and decided to base his performance on Keith Richards. Verbinski and Bruckheimer had confidence in Depp, partly because Orlando Bloom would be playing the traditional Errol Flynn-type character. Depp also improvised the film's final line, "Now, bring me that horizon.", which is the writer's favorite line. Disney executives were initially confused by Depp's performance, asking him whether the character was drunk or gay. Michael Eisner even proclaimed while watching rushes, "He's ruining the film!" Depp responded, "Look, these are the choices I made. You know my work. So either trust me or give me the boot." Many industry insiders also questioned Depp's casting, as he was an unconventional actor not known for working within the traditional studio system.
Depp's performance was highly acclaimed by film critics. Alan Morrison found it "Gloriously over-the-top ... In terms of physical precision and verbal delivery, it's a master-class in comedy acting." Roger Ebert also found his performance "original in its every atom. There has never been a pirate, or for that matter a human being, like this in any other movie ... his behavior shows a lifetime of rehearsal." Ebert also praised Depp for drawing away from the way the character was written. Although he disliked the film, critic Kenneth Turan enjoyed Depp's performance, but Mark Kermode wrote it was some of Depp's "worst work to date ... under [director Gore Verbinski]'s slack direction Depp defaults to an untrammelled showiness not seen since the sub-Buster Keaton antics of ''Benny & Joon''." Depp won a Screen Actor's Guild award for his performance, and was also nominated for a Golden Globe and the Academy Award for Best Actor, the first in his career. ''Film School Rejects'' argued that because of the film, Depp became as much a movie star as he was a character actor. Johnny Depp returned as Jack Sparrow in 2006's ''Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest'', the first time the actor ever made a sequel. Drew McWeeny noted, "Remember how cool Han Solo was in ''Star Wars'' the first time you saw it? And then remember how much cooler he seemed when ''Empire'' came out? This is that big a jump." Yet, Eric Vespe felt that "In the first movie he was playing a fool that was hiding a great pirate on the inside and in this one he's a great pirate hiding a cowardly fool." By ''At World's End'', Peter Travers felt it proved "there can indeed be too much of a good thing." Nonetheless, Depp received an MTV Movie Award and a Teen Choice Award for ''Dead Man's Chest'', and was also nominated for a Golden Globe, which he lost to Sacha Baron Cohen for his portrayal of Borat Sagdiev in ''Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan''. Depp was also nominated at the 2007 Empire Awards for best actor but lost to Daniel Craig for ''Casino Royale''. For his performance in ''At World's End'', Depp won an MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance, as well as a People's Choice Award and a Kids' Choice Award. He has signed on to reprise the role for future sequels.
Make-up and costumes
Johnny Depp wore a wig to portray Sparrow's dreadlocks, an aesthetic influenced by Depp's rock n' roll approach to pirates. In addition to a red bandanna Sparrow wears numerous objects in his hair, influenced by Keith Richards' habit of collecting souvenirs from his travels; Sparrow's decorations include his "piece of eight". Sparrow wears kohl around his eyes, which was inspired by Depp's study of nomads, whom he compared to pirates, and Depp also wore contacts that acted as sunglasses. Sparrow has several gold teeth, two of which belong to Depp, although they were applied during filming. Depp forgot to have them removed after shooting ''The Curse of the Black Pearl'', and decided to keep them throughout shooting of the sequels. Like all aspects of Depp's performance, Disney initially expressed great concern over Depp's teeth. Sparrow wears his goatee in two braids. Initially wire was used in them, but the wires were abandoned because they made the braids stick up when Depp lay down. Sparrow also has numerous tattoos, and has been branded a pirate on his right arm by Cutler Beckett, underneath a tattoo of a swallow. In ''At World's End'', one of the "Jack" incarnations is working stripped to the waist, and a full body tattoo of the poem Desiderata is clearly seen.Depp collaborated with costume designer Penny Rose on his character's appearance, handpicking a tricorne as Sparrow's signature leather hat: the other characters in the series could not wear leather hats, to make Sparrow's unique. For the scene when it floats on water in ''Dead Man's Chest'', a rubber version was used. Depp liked to stick to one costume, wearing one lightweight silk tweed frock coat throughout the series, and he had to be coaxed out of wearing his boots for a version without a sole or heel in beach scenes. The official line is that none of the costumes from ''The Curse of the Black Pearl'' survived, which allowed the opportunity to create tougher linen shirts for stunts. However, one remains which has been displayed in an exhibition of screen costumes in Worcester, England. It was a nightmare for Rose to track down the same makers of Sparrow's sash in Turkey. Rose did not want to silkscreen it, as the homewoven piece had the correct worn feel. Sparrow wears an additional belt in the sequels, because Depp liked a new buckle which did not fit with the original piece.
Sparrow's weapons are genuine 18th century pieces: his sword dates to the 1740s, while his pistol is from the 1760s. Both were made in London. Depp used two pistols on set, one being rubber. Both props survived after production of the first film. Sparrow's magic compass also survived into the sequels, though director Gore Verbinski had a red arrow added to the dial as it became a more prominent prop. As it does not act like a normal compass, a magnet was used to make it spin. Sparrow wears four rings, two of which belong to Depp. Depp bought the green ring in 1989, and the gold ring is a replica of a 2400-year old ring Depp gave to the crew, though the original was later stolen. The other two are props to which Depp gave backstories: the gold-and-black ring is stolen from a Spanish widow Sparrow seduced, and the green dragon ring recalls his adventures in the Far East. Among Depp's additional ideas was the necklace made of human toes that Sparrow wears as the Pelegosto prepare to eat him, and the sceptre was based on one a friend of Depp's owned.
During the course of the trilogy, Sparrow undergoes physical transformations. In ''The Curse of the Black Pearl'' Sparrow curses himself to battle the undead Barbossa. Like all the actors playing the ''Black Pearl'' crew, Depp had to shoot scenes in costume as a reference for the animators, and his shots as a skeleton were shot again without him. Depp reprised the scene again on a motion capture stage. In ''At World's End'', Sparrow hallucinates a version of himself as a member of Davy Jones's crew, adhered to a wall and encrusted with barnacles. Director Gore Verbinski oversaw that the design retained Sparrow's distinctive look, and rejected initial designs which portrayed him as over 100 years old.
Characterization
According to screen writers Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio, Sparrow is a trickster who uses wit and deceit to attain his goals, preferring to end disputes verbally instead of by force. He walks with a slightly drunken swagger and has slurred speech and flailing hand gestures, which are slightly based on Tuco, from ''The Good, The Bad and The Ugly''.Although Barbossa does not respect him much, as evidenced by naming his monkey Jack, Sparrow is shrewd, calculating and intelligent. He fools Commodore Norrington and his entire crew to set sail on the royal ship Interceptor, which compels the admiration of Lieutenant Groves (Greg Ellis) as he concedes: 'That's got to be the best pirate I have ever seen'. Norrington himself acquiesces to this praise: 'So it would seem', in sharp contrast to what he had previously proclaimed: 'You are without doubt the worst pirate I have ever heard of'. In the third film, while he leaves Beckett's ship stranded and makes off, Lieutenant Groves asks him: "Do you think he plans it all out, or just makes it up as he goes along?". It was he who deciphered the seemingly unintelligible map in the same film while the others were still grappling with the problem of returning to the real world. When the Brethren Court convenes but the pirate lords fail to reach a consensus as to whether to fight the Armada or not (he and Elizabeth are inclined to go to war, while the others are not), Jack suggests a way out of this impasse by calling for a ritual vote whose results determine who will be the king. Every pirate lord votes only for himself or herself, but he votes for Elizabeth, resulting her being elected the 'king', after which she announces 'Prepare every vessel that floats. At dawn we are at war', which was what he had intended, and which other pirates are now bound to obey.
In combat, Sparrow is an extremely skilled swordsman (capable of quite easily holding his own against Davy Jones and also Will Turner), but uses his superior intelligence to his advantage during fights. Jack usually prefers the strategies of non-violent negotiations and turning his enemies against each other, reasoning "Why fight when you can negotiate? All one needs is the proper leverage." He will invoke parley and tempt his enemies away from their murderous intentions, encouraging them to see the bigger picture, as he does when he persuades Hector Barbossa to delay returning to mortal form so he can battle the British Royal Navy. He often uses complex wordplay and vocabulary to confound his enemies, and it is suggested that his pacifism may be one reason Barbossa and the ''Black Pearl'' crew mutinied; Barbossa says in the first film, "Jack, that's exactly the attitude that lost you the Pearl. People are easier to search when they're dead." His pacifism is further indicated by the tattoo of the Desiderata on his back.
Although a pirate and willing to kill his enemies in a fight, Jack has also shown a reluctance to kill people who do not actually wish ''him'' harm, as seen when he preferred to simply avoid a fight with Will Turner in their first meeting, the fight being provoked by Will's insistence. When Will is fatally wounded by Davy Jones, he relinquishes his dream of stabbing Jones' heart and becoming immortal and lets a dying Will stab it instead, thus ensuring that he lives, albeit not in the usual way. When searching for the Fountain of Youth, Jack noted that his desire for the Fountain had lessened when he learned that the Fountain would only provide someone with extra life if another died at the same time.
The character is portrayed as having created, or at least contributed to, his own reputation. When Gibbs tells Will that Sparrow escaped from a desert island by strapping two sea turtles together, Sparrow embellishes the story by claiming the rope was made from hair from his own back, while in reality, Sparrow escaped the island by bartering with rum traders. The video game ''Pirates of the Caribbean: The Legend of Jack Sparrow'' bases itself around these tall tales, including the sacking of Nassau port without firing a single shot. In a script draft of ''Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest'' Will's guide says that he heard Sparrow escaped execution in Port Royal by grabbing two parrots and flying away. Johnny Depp has said pirates were like rock stars in that their fame preceded them, which suggests a reason for the portrayal of Sparrow as having an enormous ego. Sparrow also insists on being addressed as "Captain" Jack Sparrow and often gives the farewell, "This is the day you will always remember as the day that you ''almost'' caught Captain Jack Sparrow!," which is sometimes humorously cut off. When accused by Norrington as being the worst pirate he has ever heard of, Sparrow replies, "But you ''have'' heard of me." In a deleted scene from ''Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl'' Sparrow ponders being "the immortal Captain Jack Sparrow", and during the third film he seeks immortality, although his father, Captain Teague, warns it can be a terrible curse. Sparrow also ponders being "Captain Jack Sparrow, the last pirate," as the East India Trading Company purges piracy.
Despite his many heroics, Sparrow is a pirate and a morally ambiguous character. When agreeing to trade 100 souls, including Will, to Davy Jones in exchange for his freedom, Jones asks Sparrow whether he can, "condemn an innocent man—a ''friend''—to a lifetime of servitude in your name while you roam free?" After a hesitation Sparrow merrily replies, "Yep! I'm good with it!" He carelessly runs up debts with Anamaria, Davy Jones, and the other pirate lords. Sao Feng (Chow Yun-fat), pirate lord of Singapore, is particularly hateful towards him. In a cowardly moment, Sparrow abandons his crew during the Kraken's attack, but underlying loyalty and morality compel him to return and save them. Sparrow claims to be a man of his word, and expresses surprise that people doubt his truthfulness; there is no murder or other major felonies on his criminal record.
Depp partly based the character on Pepé Le Pew, a womanizing skunk from ''Looney Tunes''. Sparrow claims to have a "tremendous intuitive sense of the female creature", although his conquests are often left with a sour memory of him. Former flames, Scarlett and Giselle, usually slap him or anyone looking for him. His witty charm easily attracts women, and even has Elizabeth Swann questioning her feelings. Director Gore Verbinski noted phallic connotations in Sparrow's relationship with his vessel, as he grips the steering wheel. The ''Black Pearl'' is described as "the only ship which can outrun the ''Flying Dutchman''". The Freudian overtones continue in the third film when Sparrow and Barbossa battle for captaincy of the ''Black Pearl'', showing off the length of their telescopes, and in a deleted scene, they fight over the steering wheel. Sparrow claims his "first and only love is the sea," and describes his ship as representing freedom. Davy Jones's Locker is represented as a desert, symbolizing his personal hell.
Sparrow also has bad personal hygiene, a trait of Pepé Le Pew. Verbinski described Sparrow's breath as "a donkey's ass". Sparrow knocks Will off his ship simply by huffing at him. Lastly, Sparrow has an insatiable thirst for rum, which can confuse his magic compass as to what he wants most. According to his criminal record on the ''At World's End'' website, he even sacked a shipment of rum to quench his thirst.
Impact
When ''Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest'' grossed over worldwide, Ian Nathan attributed this to Sparrow's popularity: "''Pirates'', the franchise, only had to turn up. There was a powerful holdover from the cheeky delights of its debut, something we hadn't felt since the Clone Wars called it a day." ''Empire'' declared Johnny Depp's performance to be the seventy-fourth "thing that rocked our world" in 2006 when celebrating 200 issues and later named him as the eighth greatest movie character of all time. A survey of more than 3,000 people showed Jack Sparrow was the most popular Halloween costume of 2006, and a 2007 poll held by the Internet Movie Database showed Sparrow to be the second most popular live action hero, after Indiana Jones. In a 2007 Pearl & Dean poll, Jack Sparrow is Depp's most popular performance.Emanuel Levy feels the character is the only iconic film character of the 2000s decade, while Todd Gilchrist feels Sparrow is the only element of the films that will remain timeless. According to Sharon Eberson, the character's popularity can be attributed to being a "scoundrel whose occasional bouts of conscience allow viewers to go with the flaws because, as played to the larger-than-life hilt by Depp, he owns every scene he is in." Film history professor at UCLA Jonathan Kuntz also attributed his popularity to the increased questioning of masculinity in the 21st century, and Sparrow's personality contrasts with action-adventure heroes in cinema. Leonard Maltin concurs that Sparrow has a carefree attitude and does not take himself seriously. Mark Fox also noted Sparrow is an escapist fantasy figure for women, free from much of the responsibility of most heroes. Sparrow is listed by IGN as one of their ten favorite film outlaws, as he "lives for himself and the freedom to do whatever it is that he damn well pleases. Precious few film characters have epitomized what makes the outlaw such a romantic figure for audiences as Captain Jack Sparrow has." ''Entertainment Weekly'' put it on its end-of-the-decade, "best-of" list, saying, "Part Keith Richards rift, part sozzled lounge lizard, Johnny Depp's swizzleshtick pirate was definitely one of the most dazzling characters of the decade."
In 2011, comedic group The Lonely Island, with singer Michael Bolton, released a song called Jack Sparrow as an homage to the character, declaring him "The Pauper of the Surf" and "The Jester of Tortuga."
Johnny Depp reprised his Captain Jack persona for a special episode of Doraemon. However, on the show, he was called "Captain Johnny".
The British metalcore band Bring Me the Horizon took its name from Sparrow's last line in ''The Curse of the Black Pearl'', "Now... Bring me that horizon".
References
External links
Category:Article Feedback Pilot Category:Pirates of the Caribbean characters Category:Kingdom Hearts characters Category:Fictional captains Category:Fictional English people Category:Fictional pirates Category:Fictional criminals Category:Fictional undead Category:Fictional sword fighters Category:Fictional characters who have made pacts with devils Category:Fictional characters introduced in 2003 Category:Film characters
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| Coordinates | 45°30′″N73°40′″N |
|---|---|
| Width | 200 |
| Position | Shooting guard / Small forward |
| Height ft | 6|height_in 6 |
| Weight lbs | 216 |
| Number | 23, 45, 9, 12 |
| Birth date | February 17, 1963 |
| Birth place | Brooklyn, New York |
| High school | Emsley A. Laney |
| League | |
| Career start | 1984 |
| Career end | 2003 |
| Draftyear | 1984 |
| Draftround | 1 |
| Draftpick | 3 |
| Draftteam | Chicago Bulls |
| College | North Carolina (1981–1984) |
| Years1 | –, – |team1 Chicago Bulls |
| Years2 | – |team2 Washington Wizards |
| Stat1label | Points |
| Stat1value | 32,292 (30.1 ppg) |
| Stat2label | Rebounds |
| Stat2value | 6,672 (6.2 rpg) |
| Stat3label | Assists |
| Stat3value | 5,633 (5.3 apg) |
| Letter | j |
| Bbr | jordami01 |
| Highlights | |
| Hof player | michael-jordan }} |
Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963) is a former American professional basketball player, active businessman, and majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats. His biography on the National Basketball Association (NBA) website states, "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time." Jordan was one of the most effectively marketed athletes of his generation and was instrumental in popularizing the NBA around the world in the 1980s and 1990s.
After a standout career at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was a member of the Tar Heels' National Championship team in 1982, Jordan joined the NBA's Chicago Bulls in 1984. He quickly emerged as a league star, entertaining crowds with his prolific scoring. His leaping ability, illustrated by performing slam dunks from the free throw line in slam dunk contests, earned him the nicknames "Air Jordan" and "His Airness". He also gained a reputation for being one of the best defensive players in basketball. In 1991, he won his first NBA championship with the Bulls, and followed that achievement with titles in 1992 and 1993, securing a "three-peat". Although Jordan abruptly retired from basketball at the beginning of the 1993–94 NBA season to pursue a career in baseball, he rejoined the Bulls in 1995 and led them to three additional championships (1996, 1997, and 1998) as well as an NBA-record 72 regular-season wins in the 1995–96 NBA season. Jordan retired for a second time in 1999, but returned for two more NBA seasons from 2001 to 2003 as a member of the Washington Wizards.
Jordan's individual accolades and accomplishments include five MVP awards, ten All-NBA First Team designations, nine All-Defensive First Team honors, fourteen NBA All-Star Game appearances, three All-Star Game MVP awards, ten scoring titles, three steals titles, six NBA Finals MVP awards, and the 1988 NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award. He holds the NBA records for highest career regular season scoring average (30.12 points per game) and highest career playoff scoring average (33.45 points per game). In 1999, he was named the greatest North American athlete of the 20th century by ESPN, and was second to Babe Ruth on the Associated Press's list of athletes of the century. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009.
Jordan is also noted for his product endorsements. He fueled the success of Nike's Air Jordan sneakers, which were introduced in 1985 and remain popular today. Jordan also starred in the 1996 feature film ''Space Jam'' as himself. He is the majority owner and head of basketball operations for the NBA's Charlotte Bobcats, having won a bidding war to buy controlling interest in the team from founding owner Robert L. Johnson.
Early years
Jordan was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Deloris (née Peoples), who worked in banking, and James R. Jordan, Sr., an equipment supervisor. His family moved to Wilmington, North Carolina, when he was a toddler. Jordan attended Emsley A. Laney High School in Wilmington, where he anchored his athletic career by playing baseball, football, and basketball. He tried out for the varsity basketball team during his sophomore year, but at 5'11" (1.80 m), he was deemed too short to play at that level. His taller friend, Harvest Leroy Smith, was the only sophomore to make the team.Motivated to prove his worth, Jordan became the star of Laney's junior varsity squad, and tallied several 40 point games. The following summer, he grew four inches (10 cm) and trained rigorously. Upon earning a spot on the varsity roster, Jordan averaged about 20 points per game over his final two seasons of high school play. As a senior, he was selected to the McDonald's All-American Team During his three seasons at North Carolina, he averaged 17.7 ppg on 54.0% shooting, and added 5.0 rebounds per game (rpg). He was selected by consensus to the NCAA All-American First Team in both his sophomore (1983) and junior (1984) seasons. After winning the Naismith and the Wooden College Player of the Year awards in 1984, Jordan left North Carolina one year before his scheduled graduation to enter the 1984 NBA Draft. The Chicago Bulls selected Jordan with the third overall pick, after Hakeem Olajuwon (Houston Rockets) and Sam Bowie (Portland Trail Blazers). Jordan returned to North Carolina to complete his degree in 1986.
Professional career
During his first season in the NBA, Jordan averaged 28.2 ppg on 51.5% shooting. He quickly became a fan favorite even in opposing arenas, and appeared on the cover of ''Sports Illustrated'' with the heading "A Star is Born" just over a month into his professional career. Jordan was also voted in as an All-Star starter by the fans in his rookie season. Controversy arose before the All-Star game when word surfaced that several veteran players, led by Isiah Thomas, were upset by the amount of attention Jordan was receiving. This led to a so called "freeze-out" on Jordan, where players refused to pass him the ball throughout the game. The controversy left Jordan relatively unaffected when he returned to regular season play, and he would go on to be voted Rookie of the Year. The Bulls finished the season 38–44, and lost in the first round of the playoffs in four games to the Milwaukee Bucks.Jordan's second season was cut short by a broken foot which caused him to miss 64 games. Despite Jordan's injury and a 30–52 record, the Bulls made the playoffs. Jordan recovered in time to participate in the playoffs and performed well upon his return. Against a 1985–86 Boston Celtics team that is often considered one of the greatest in NBA history, Jordan set the still-unbroken record for points in a playoff game with 63 in Game 2. The Celtics, however, managed to sweep the series.
Jordan had recovered completely by the 1986–87 season, and had one of the most prolific scoring seasons in NBA history. He became the only player other than Wilt Chamberlain to score 3,000 points in a season, averaging a league high 37.1 points on 48.2% shooting. In addition, Jordan demonstrated his defensive prowess, as he became the first player in NBA history to record 200 steals and 100 blocks in a season. Despite Jordan's success, Magic Johnson won the league's Most Valuable Player Award. The Bulls reached 40 wins, and advanced to the playoffs for the third consecutive year. However, they were again swept by the Celtics.
Mid-career: Pistons roadblock
Jordan led the league in scoring again in the 1987–88 season, averaging 35.0 ppg on 53.5% shooting and won his first league MVP award. He was also named the Defensive Player of the Year, as he had averaged 1.6 blocks and a league high 3.16 steals per game. The Bulls finished 50–32, and made it out of the first round of the playoffs for the first time in Jordan's career, as they defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers in five games. However, the Bulls then lost in five games to the more experienced Detroit Pistons, who were led by Isiah Thomas and a group of physical players known as the "Bad Boys".In the 1988–89 season, Jordan again led the league in scoring, averaging 32.5 ppg on 53.8% shooting from the field, along with 8 rpg and 8 assists per game (apg). The Bulls finished with a 47–35 record, and advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals, defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks along the way. The Cavaliers series included a career highlight for Jordan when he hit a series-winning shot over Craig Ehlo in the closing moments of the deciding fifth game of the series. However, the Pistons again defeated the Bulls, this time in six games, by utilizing their "Jordan Rules" method of guarding Jordan, which consisted of double and triple teaming him every time he touched the ball.
The Bulls entered the 1989–90 season as a team on the rise, with their core group of Jordan and young improving players like Scottie Pippen and Horace Grant, and under the guidance of new coach Phil Jackson. Jordan averaged a league leading 33.6 ppg on 52.6% shooting, to go with 6.9 rpg and 6.3 apg in leading the Bulls to a 55–27 record. They again advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals beating the Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers en route. However, despite pushing the series to seven games, the Bulls lost to the Pistons for the third consecutive season.
First three-peat
In the 1990–91 season, Jordan won his second MVP award after averaging 31.5 ppg on 53.9% shooting, 6.0 rpg, and 5.5 apg for the regular season. The Bulls finished in first place in their division for the first time in 16 years and set a franchise record with 61 wins in the regular season. With Scottie Pippen developing into an All-Star, the Bulls had elevated their play. The Bulls defeated the New York Knicks and the Philadelphia 76ers in the opening two rounds of the playoffs. They advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals where their rival, the Detroit Pistons, awaited them. However, this time the Bulls beat the Pistons in a surprising sweep. In an unusual ending to the fourth and final game, Isiah Thomas led his team off the court before the final minute had concluded. Most of the Pistons went directly to their locker room instead of shaking hands with the Bulls.The Bulls compiled an outstanding 15–2 record during the playoffs, and advanced to the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history, where they beat the Los Angeles Lakers four games to one. Perhaps the best known moment of the series came in Game 2 when, attempting a dunk, Jordan avoided a potential Sam Perkins block by switching the ball from his right hand to his left in mid-air to lay the shot in. In his first Finals appearance, Jordan posted per game averages of 31.2 points on 56% shooting from the field, 11.4 assists, 6.6 rebounds, 2.8 steals and 1.4 blocks. Jordan won his first NBA Finals MVP award, and he cried while holding the NBA Finals trophy.
Jordan and the Bulls continued their dominance in the 1991–92 season, establishing a 67–15 record, topping their franchise record from 1990 to 91. Jordan won his second consecutive MVP award with averages of 30.1 points, 6.4 rebounds and 6.1 assists per game on 52% shooting. After winning a physical 7-game series over the New York Knicks in the second round of the playoffs and finishing off the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Conference Finals in 6 games, the Bulls met Clyde Drexler and the Portland Trail Blazers in the Finals. The media, hoping to recreate a Magic-Bird rivalry, highlighted the similarities between "Air" Jordan and Clyde "The Glide" during the pre-Finals hype. In the first game, Jordan scored a Finals-record 35 points in the first half, including a record-setting six three-point field goals. After the sixth three-pointer, he jogged down the court shrugging as he looked courtside. Marv Albert, who broadcast the game, later stated that it was as if Jordan was saying, "I can't believe I'm doing this." The Bulls went on to win Game 1, and defeat the Blazers in six games. Jordan was named Finals MVP for the second year in a row and finished the series averaging 35.8 ppg, 4.8 rpg, and 6.5 apg, while shooting 53% from the floor.
In 1992–93, despite a 32.6 ppg, 6.7 rpg and 5.5 apg campaign, Jordan's streak of consecutive MVP seasons ended as he lost the award to his friend Charles Barkley. Coincidentally, Jordan and the Bulls met Barkley and his Phoenix Suns in the 1993 NBA Finals. The Bulls captured their third consecutive NBA championship on a game-winning shot by John Paxson and a last-second block by Horace Grant, but Jordan was once again Chicago's catalyst. He averaged a Finals-record 41.0 ppg during the six-game series, and became the first player in NBA history to win three straight Finals MVP awards. He scored more than 30 points in every game of the series, including 40 or more points in 4 consecutive games. With his third Finals triumph, Jordan capped off a seven-year run where he attained seven scoring titles and three championships, but there were signs that Jordan was tiring of his massive celebrity and all of the non-basketball hassles in his life.
Gambling controversy
During the Bulls' playoff run in 1993, controversy arose when Jordan was seen gambling in Atlantic City, New Jersey the night before a game against the New York Knicks. In that same year, he admitted to having to cover $57,000 in gambling losses, and author Richard Esquinas wrote a book claiming he had won $1.25 million from Jordan on the golf course. In 2005, Jordan talked to Ed Bradley of the CBS evening show ''60 Minutes'' about his gambling and admitted that he made some reckless decisions. Jordan stated, "Yeah, I've gotten myself into situations where I would not walk away and I've pushed the envelope. Is that compulsive? Yeah, it depends on how you look at it. If you're willing to jeopardize your livelihood and your family, then yeah." When Bradley asked him if his gambling ever got to the level where it jeopardized his livelihood or family, Jordan replied, "No."
First retirement and baseball career
On October 6, 1993, Jordan announced his retirement, citing a loss of desire to play the game. Jordan later stated that the murder of his father earlier in the year shaped his decision. James R. Jordan, Sr. was murdered on July 23, 1993, at a highway rest area in Lumberton, North Carolina, by two teenagers, Daniel Green and Larry Martin Demery. The assailants were traced from calls they made on James Jordan's cellular phone, caught, convicted, and sentenced to life in prison. Jordan was close to his father; as a child he had imitated his father's proclivity to stick out his tongue while absorbed in work. He later adopted it as his own signature, displaying it each time he drove to the basket. In 1996 he founded a Chicago area Boys & Girls Club and dedicated it to his father.In his 1998 autobiography ''For the Love of the Game'', Jordan wrote that he had been preparing for retirement as early as the summer of 1992. The added exhaustion due to the Dream Team run in the 1992 Olympics solidified Jordan's feelings about the game and his ever-growing celebrity status. Jordan's announcement sent shock waves throughout the NBA and appeared on the front pages of newspapers around the world.
Jordan then further surprised the sports world by signing a minor league baseball contract with the Chicago White Sox. He reported to spring training and was assigned to the team's minor league system on March 31, 1994. Jordan has stated this decision was made to pursue the dream of his late father, who had always envisioned his son as a Major League Baseball player. The White Sox were another team owned by Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf, who continued to honor Jordan's basketball contract during the years he played baseball. In 1994, Jordan played for the Birmingham Barons, a Double-A minor league affiliate of the Chicago White Sox, batting .202 with three home runs, 51 runs batted in, 30 stolen bases, and 11 errors. He also appeared for the Scottsdale Scorpions in the 1994 Arizona Fall League, batting .252 against the top prospects in baseball.
"I'm back": Return to the NBA
In the 1993–94 season, the Bulls, without Jordan, achieved a 55–27 record, and lost to the New York Knicks in the second round of the playoffs. But the 1994–95 version of the Bulls was a shell of the championship squad of just two years earlier. Struggling at mid-season to ensure a spot in the playoffs, Chicago was 31–31 at one point in mid-March. The team received a lift, however, when Jordan decided to return to the NBA for the Bulls.On March 18, 1995, Jordan announced his return to the NBA through a pithy press release: "I'm back." The next day, Jordan donned jersey number 45 (his number with the Barons), as his familiar 23 had been retired in his honor following his first retirement. He took to the court with the Bulls to face the Indiana Pacers in Indianapolis, scoring 19 points. The game had the highest Nielsen rating of a regular season NBA game since 1975.
Although he had not played in an NBA game in a year and a half, Jordan played well upon his return, making a game-winning jump shot against Atlanta in his fourth game back. He then scored 55 points in his fifth game back against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden on March 28, 1995 (his first appearance at Madison Square Garden since retiring). Boosted by Jordan's comeback, the Bulls went 13-4 to make the playoffs and advanced to the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Orlando Magic. At the end of the first game of the series, though, Orlando's Nick Anderson would strip Jordan from behind, leading to the game-winning basket for the Magic; he would later comment that Jordan "didn't look like the old Michael Jordan", after which Jordan returned to wearing his old number (23). Jordan averaged 31 points per game in that series, but Orlando prevailed in six games.
Second three-peat
Freshly motivated by the playoff defeat, Jordan trained aggressively for the 1995–96 season. Strengthened by the addition of rebound specialist Dennis Rodman, the Bulls dominated the league, starting the season 41–3, and eventually finishing with the best regular season record in NBA history: 72–10. Jordan led the league in scoring with 30.4 ppg, and won the league's regular season and All-Star Game MVP awards. In the playoffs, the Bulls lost only three games in four series, defeating the Seattle SuperSonics in the NBA Finals to win the championship. Jordan was named Finals MVP for a record fourth time, surpassing Magic Johnson's three Finals MVP awards. He also achieved only the second sweep of the MVP Awards in the All-Star Game, regular season and NBA Finals, Willis Reed having achieved the first, during the 1969–70 season. Because this was Jordan's first championship since his father's death, and it was won on Father's Day, Jordan reacted very emotionally upon winning the title, including a memorable scene of him sobbing on the locker room floor with the game ball.In the 1996–97 season, the Bulls started out 69–11, but narrowly missed out on a second consecutive 70-win season by losing their final two games to finish 69–13. However, this year Jordan was beaten for the NBA MVP Award by Karl Malone. The team again advanced to the Finals, where they faced Malone and the Utah Jazz. The series against the Jazz featured two of the more memorable clutch moments of Jordan's career. He won Game 1 for the Bulls with a buzzer-beating jump shot. In Game 5, with the series tied 2–2, Jordan played despite being feverish and dehydrated from a stomach virus. In what is known as the "flu game", Jordan scored 38 points including the game-deciding three-pointer with less than a minute remaining. The Bulls won 90–88 and went on to win the series in six games. For the fifth time in as many Finals appearances, Jordan received the Finals MVP award. During the 1997 NBA All-Star Game, Jordan posted the first triple double in All-Star Game history in a victorious effort; however, he did not receive the MVP award.
Jordan and the Bulls compiled a 62–20 record in the 1997–98 season. Jordan led the league with 28.7 points per game, securing his fifth regular-season MVP award, plus honors for All-NBA First Team, First Defensive Team and the All-Star Game MVP. The Bulls captured the Eastern Conference Championship for a third straight season, including surviving a grueling seven-game series with Reggie Miller's Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals; it was the first time Jordan had played in a Game 7 since the 1992 series with the Knicks. After prevailing, they moved on for a rematch with the Jazz in the Finals.
The Bulls returned to Utah for Game 6 on June 14, 1998 leading the series 3–2. Jordan executed a series of plays, considered to be one of the greatest clutch performances in NBA Finals history. With the Bulls trailing 86–83 with 40 seconds remaining, coach Jackson called a timeout. When play resumed, Jordan received the inbound pass, drove to the basket, and hit a layup over several Jazz defenders. The Jazz brought the ball upcourt and passed the ball to forward Karl Malone, who was set up in the low post and was being guarded by Rodman. Malone jostled with Rodman and caught the pass, but Jordan cut behind him and swatted the ball out of his hands for a steal. Jordan then slowly dribbled upcourt and paused at the top of the key, eyeing his defender, Jazz guard Bryon Russell. With fewer than 10 seconds remaining, Jordan started to dribble right, then crossed over to his left, possibly pushing off Russell, although the officials did not call a foul. Jordan then made what would become the climactic shot of his career. After a desperation three-point shot by John Stockton missed, Jordan and the Bulls claimed their sixth NBA championship, and secured a second three-peat. Once again, Jordan was voted the Finals MVP, having led all scorers by averaging 33.5 points per game, including 45 in the deciding Game 6. Jordan's six Finals MVPs is a record; Shaquille O'Neal, Magic Johnson, and Tim Duncan are tied for second place with three apiece. The 1998 Finals holds the highest television rating of any Finals series in history, and Game 6 holds the highest television rating of any game in NBA history.
Second retirement
With Phil Jackson's contract expiring, the pending departures of Scottie Pippen (who stated his desire to be traded during the season) and Dennis Rodman (who would sign with the Los Angeles Lakers as a free agent) looming, and being in the latter stages of an owner-induced lockout of NBA players, Jordan retired for the second time on January 13, 1999.On January 19, 2000, Jordan returned to the NBA not as a player, but as part owner and President of Basketball Operations for the Washington Wizards. Jordan's responsibilities with the Wizards were comprehensive. He controlled all aspects of the Wizards' basketball operations, and had the final say in all personnel matters. Opinions of Jordan as a basketball executive were mixed. He managed to purge the team of several highly paid, unpopular players (such as forward Juwan Howard and point guard Rod Strickland), but used the first pick in the 2001 NBA Draft to select high schooler Kwame Brown, who did not live up to expectations and was traded away after four seasons.
Despite his January 1999 claim that he was "99.9% certain" that he would never play another NBA game, in the summer of 2001 Jordan expressed interest in making another comeback, this time with his new team. Inspired by the NHL comeback of his friend Mario Lemieux the previous winter, Jordan spent much of the spring and summer of 2001 in training, holding several invitation-only camps for NBA players in Chicago. In addition, Jordan hired his old Chicago Bulls head coach, Doug Collins, as Washington's coach for the upcoming season, a decision that many saw as foreshadowing another Jordan return.
Washington Wizards comeback
On September 25, 2001 Jordan announced his return to professional play with the Wizards, indicating his intention to donate his salary as a player to a relief effort for the victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks. In an injury-plagued 2001–02 season, he led the team in scoring (22.9 ppg), assists (5.2 apg), and steals (1.42 spg). However, torn cartilage in his right knee ended Jordan's season after only 60 games, the fewest he had played in a regular season since playing 17 games after returning from his first retirement during the 1994–95 season.Playing in his 14th and final NBA All-Star Game in 2003, Jordan passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the all-time leading scorer in All-Star game history. That year, Jordan was the only Washington player to play in all 82 games, starting in 67 of them. He averaged 20.0 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 1.5 steals per game. He also shot 45% from the field, and 82% from the free throw line. Even though he turned 40 during the season, he scored 20 or more points 42 times, 30 or more points nine times, and 40 or more points three times. On February 21, 2003, Jordan became the first 40-year-old to tally 43 points in an NBA game. During his stint with the Wizards, all of Jordan's home games at the MCI Center were sold out, and the Wizards were the second most-watched team in the NBA, averaging 20,172 fans a game at home and 19,311 on the road. However, neither of Jordan's final two seasons resulted in a playoff appearance for the Wizards, and Jordan was often unsatisfied with the play of those around him. At several points he openly criticized his teammates to the media, citing their lack of focus and intensity, notably that of the number one draft pick in the 2001 NBA Draft, Kwame Brown.
With the recognition that 2002–03 would be Jordan's final season, tributes were paid to him throughout the NBA. In his final game at his old home court, the United Center in Chicago, Jordan received a four-minute standing ovation. The Miami Heat retired the number 23 jersey on April 11, 2003, even though Jordan had never played for the team. At the 2003 All-Star Game, Jordan was offered a starting spot from Tracy McGrady and Allen Iverson, but refused both; in the end, however, he accepted the spot of Vince Carter, who decided to give it up under great public pressure.
Jordan's final NBA game was on April 16, 2003 in Philadelphia. After scoring only 13 points in the game, Jordan went to the bench with 4 minutes and 13 seconds remaining in the third quarter and with his team trailing the Philadelphia 76ers, 75–56. Just after the start of the fourth quarter, the First Union Center crowd began chanting "We want Mike!". After much encouragement from coach Doug Collins, Jordan finally rose from the bench and re-entered the game for Larry Hughes with 2:35 remaining. At 1:45, Jordan was intentionally fouled by the 76ers' Eric Snow, and stepped to the line to make both free throws. After the second foul shot, the 76ers in-bounded the ball to rookie John Salmons, who in turn was intentionally fouled by Bobby Simmons one second later, stopping time so that Jordan could return to the bench. Jordan received a three-minute standing ovation from his teammates, his opponents, the officials and a crowd of 21,257 fans.
Olympic career
Jordan played on two Olympic gold medal-winning American basketball teams. As a college player he participated, and won the gold, in the 1984 Summer Olympics. Jordan led the team in scoring averaging 17.1 ppg for the tournament.
In the 1992 Summer Olympics he was a member of the star-studded squad that included Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, and David Robinson and was dubbed the "Dream Team". Playing limited minutes due to the frequent blowouts, Jordan averaged 12.7 ppg, finishing fourth on the team in scoring. Jordan, Patrick Ewing, and fellow Dream Team member Chris Mullin are the only American men's basketball players to win Olympic gold as amateurs (all in 1984) and professionals.
In addition, Jordan and fellow Dream Team member (and Bulls teammate) Scottie Pippen are the only players to have won both NBA championship and Olympic gold medal in the same year (1992).
After retiring as a player
After his third retirement, Jordan assumed that he would be able to return to his front office position of Director of Basketball Operations with the Wizards. However, his previous tenure in the Wizards' front office had produced the aforementioned mixed results and may have also influenced the trade of Richard "Rip" Hamilton for Jerry Stackhouse (although Jordan was not technically Director of Basketball Operations in 2002). On May 7, 2003, Wizards owner Abe Pollin fired Jordan as Washington's President of Basketball Operations. Jordan later stated that he felt betrayed, and that if he knew he would be fired upon retiring he never would have come back to play for the Wizards.Jordan kept busy over the next few years by staying in shape, playing golf in celebrity charity tournaments, spending time with his family in Chicago, promoting his Jordan Brand clothing line, and riding motorcycles. Since 2004, Jordan has owned Michael Jordan Motorsports, a professional closed-course motorcycle road racing team that competes with two Suzukis in the premier Superbike class sanctioned by the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA). Jordan and his then-wife Juanita pledged $5 million to Chicago's Hales Franciscan High School in 2006, and the Jordan Brand has made donations to Habitat for Humanity and a Louisiana branch of the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. On June 15, 2006, Jordan bought a minority stake in the Charlotte Bobcats, becoming the team's second-largest shareholder behind majority owner Robert L. Johnson. As part of the deal, Jordan was named "Managing Member of Basketball Operations," with full control over the basketball side of the operation. Despite Jordan's previous success as an endorser, he has made an effort not to be included in Charlotte's marketing campaigns.
In February 2010, it was reported that Jordan was seeking majority ownership of the Bobcats. As February wore on, it emerged that the leading contenders for the team were Jordan and former Houston Rockets president George Postolos. On February 27, the Bobcats announced that Johnson had reached an agreement with Jordan and his group, MJ Basketball Holdings, to buy the team pending NBA approval. On March 17, the NBA Board of Governors unanimously approved Jordan's purchase, making him the first former NBA player ever to become the majority owner of a league franchise.
Player profile
Jordan was a shooting guard who was also capable of playing small forward (the position he would primarily play during his second return to professional basketball with the Washington Wizards). Jordan was known throughout his career for being a strong clutch performer. He decided numerous games with last-second plays (e.g., The Shot) and performed at a high level even under adverse circumstances (e.g., Flu Game). His competitiveness was visible in his prolific trash-talk and well-known work ethic.Jordan had a versatile offensive game. He was capable of aggressively driving to the basket, as well as drawing fouls from his opponents at a high rate; his 8,772 free throw attempts are the ninth highest total of all time. As his career progressed, Jordan also developed the ability to post up his opponents and score with his trademark fadeaway jump shot, using his leaping ability to "fade away" from block attempts. According to Hubie Brown, this move alone made him nearly unstoppable. Despite media criticism as a "selfish" player early in his career, Jordan's 5.3 assists per game also indicate his willingness to defer to his teammates. In later years, the NBA shortened its three-point line to 22 feet (from 23 feet, 9 inches), which coupled with Jordan's extended shooting range to make him a long-range threat as well—his 3-point stroke developed from a low 9 / 52 rate (.173) in his rookie year into a stellar 111 / 260 (.427) shooter in the 1995–96 season. For a guard, Jordan was also a good rebounder (6.2 per game).
In 1988, Jordan was honored with the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year Award and became the first NBA player to win both the Defensive Player of the Year and MVP awards in a career (since equaled by Hakeem Olajuwon, David Robinson, and Kevin Garnett; Olajuwon is the only player other than Jordan to win both during the same season). In addition he set both seasonal and career records for blocked shots by a guard, and combined this with his ball-thieving ability to become a standout defensive player. His 2,514 steals are the second highest total of all-time behind John Stockton, while his steals per game average is third all-time. Jerry West often stated that he was more impressed with Jordan's defensive contributions than his offensive ones.
Legacy
Jordan's basketball talent was clear from his rookie season. In his first game in Madison Square Garden against the New York Knicks, Jordan received a prolonged standing ovation, a rarity for an opposing player. After Jordan scored a playoff record 63 points against the Boston Celtics in 1986, Celtics star Larry Bird described him as "God disguised as Michael Jordan."Jordan led the NBA in scoring in 10 seasons (NBA record) and tied Wilt Chamberlain's record of seven consecutive scoring titles. He was also a fixture on the NBA All-Defensive First Team, making the roster nine times (NBA record shared with Gary Payton). Jordan also holds the top career regular season and playoff scoring averages of 30.1 and 33.4 points per game, respectively. By 1998, the season of his Finals-winning shot against the Jazz, he was well known throughout the league as a clutch performer. In the regular season, Jordan was the Bulls' primary threat in the final seconds of a close game and in the playoffs, Jordan would always demand the ball at crunch time. Jordan's total of 5,987 points in the playoffs is the highest in NBA history. He retired with 32,292 points in regular season play, placing him third on the NBA's all-time scoring list behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone.
With five regular-season MVPs (tied for second place with Bill Russell; only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has won more, six), six Finals MVPs (NBA record), and three All-Star MVPs, Jordan is the most decorated player ever to play in the NBA. Jordan finished among the top three in regular-season MVP voting a record 10 times, and was named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History in 1996.
Many of Jordan's contemporaries label Jordan as the greatest basketball player of all time. An ESPN survey of journalists, athletes and other sports figures ranked Jordan the greatest North American athlete of the 20th century, above icons such as Babe Ruth and Muhammad Ali. Jordan placed second to Babe Ruth in the Associated Press's list of 20th century athletes. In addition, the Associated Press voted him as the basketball player of the 20th century. Jordan has also appeared on the front cover of ''Sports Illustrated'' a record 49 times. In the September 1996 issue of ''Sport'', which was the publication's 50th anniversary issue, Jordan was named the greatest athlete of the past 50 years.
Jordan's athletic leaping ability, highlighted in his back-to-back slam dunk contest championships in 1987 and 1988, is credited by many with having influenced a generation of young players. Several current NBA All-Stars have stated that they considered Jordan their role model while growing up, including LeBron James and Dwyane Wade. In addition, commentators have dubbed a number of next-generation players "the next Michael Jordan" upon their entry to the NBA, including Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway, Grant Hill, Allen Iverson, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Vince Carter, and Dwyane Wade. Although Jordan was a well-rounded player, his "Air Jordan" image is also often credited with inadvertently decreasing the jump shooting skills, defense, and fundamentals of young players, a fact which Jordan himself has lamented. Although Jordan has done much to increase the status of the game, some of his impact on the game's popularity in America appears to be fleeting. Television ratings in particular increased only during his time in the league and have subsequently lowered each time he left the game.
In August 2009, the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts, opened a Michael Jordan exhibit containing items from his college and NBA careers, as well as from the 1992 "Dream Team". The exhibit also has a batting glove to signify Jordan's short career in baseball. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in September 2009, with former Bulls teammates Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, Charles Oakley, Ron Harper, Steve Kerr, and Toni Kukoc in attendance.
Personal life
Jordan is the fourth of five children. He has two older brothers, Larry Jordan and James R. Jordan, Jr., one older sister, Deloris, and a younger sister, Roslyn. Jordan's brother James retired in 2006 as the Command Sergeant Major of the 35th Signal Brigade of the XVIII Airborne Corps in the U.S. Army.He married Juanita Vanoy in September 1989, and they have two sons, Jeffrey Michael and Marcus James, and a daughter, Jasmine. Jordan and Vanoy filed for divorce on January 4, 2002, citing irreconcilable differences, but reconciled shortly thereafter. They again filed for divorce and were granted a final decree of dissolution of marriage on December 29, 2006, commenting that the decision was made "mutually and amicably". It is reported that Juanita received a $168 million settlement, making it the largest celebrity divorce settlement in history at the time on public record.
On July 21, 2006, a Cook County, Illinois judge determined that Jordan did not owe his alleged former lover Karla Knafel $5 million. Jordan had allegedly paid Knafel $250,000 to keep their relationship a secret. Knafel claimed Jordan promised her $5 million for remaining silent and agreeing not to file a paternity suit after Knafel learned she was pregnant in 1991. A DNA test showed Jordan was not the father of the child.
As of 2007, Jordan lived in Highland Park, Illinois, and both of his sons attended Loyola Academy, a private Roman Catholic high school located in Wilmette, Illinois. Jeffrey graduated as a member of the 2007 graduating class and played his first collegiate basketball game on November 11, 2007, for the University of Illinois. After two seasons, Jeffrey left the Illinois basketball team in 2009. He later rejoined the team for a third season, then received a release to transfer to the University of Central Florida, where Marcus was attending. Marcus transferred to Whitney Young High School after his sophomore year and graduated in 2009. He began attending UCF in the fall of 2009.
Media figure and business interests
Jordan is one of the most marketed sports figures in history. He has been a major spokesman for such brands as Nike, Coca-Cola, Chevrolet, Gatorade, McDonald's, Ball Park Franks, Rayovac, Wheaties, Hanes, and MCI. Jordan has had a long relationship with Gatorade, appearing in over 20 commercials for the company since 1991, including the "Like Mike" commercials in which a song was sung by children wishing to be like Jordan.Nike created a signature shoe for him, called the ''Air Jordan''. One of Jordan's more popular commercials for the shoe involved Spike Lee playing the part of Mars Blackmon. In the commercials Lee, as Blackmon, attempted to find the source of Jordan's abilities and became convinced that "it's gotta be the shoes". The hype and demand for the shoes even brought on a spate of "shoe-jackings" where people were robbed of their sneakers at gunpoint. Subsequently Nike spun off the Jordan line into its own division named the "Jordan Brand". The company features an impressive list of athletes and celebrities as endorsers. The brand has also sponsored college sports programs such as those of North Carolina, Cincinnati, Cal, St. John's, Georgetown, and North Carolina A&T;.
Jordan also has been associated with the Looney Tunes cartoon characters. A Nike commercial shown during the 1993 Super Bowl XXVII featured Jordan and Bugs Bunny playing basketball against a group of Martian characters. The Super Bowl commercial inspired the 1996 live action/animated movie ''Space Jam'', which starred Jordan and Bugs in a fictional story set during his first retirement. They have subsequently appeared together in several commercials for MCI.
Jordan's yearly income from the endorsements is estimated to be over forty million dollars. In addition, when Jordan's power at the ticket gates was at its highest point the Bulls regularly sold out every game they played in, whether home or away. Due to this, Jordan set records in player salary by signing annual contracts worth in excess of $30 million US$ per season. An academic study found that Jordan’s first NBA comeback resulted in an increase in the market capitalization of his client firms of more than $1 billion.
Most of Jordan's endorsement deals, including the first deal with Nike, were engineered by his agent, David Falk. Jordan has said of Falk that "he's the best at what he does", and that "marketing-wise, he's great. He's the one who came up with the concept of 'Air Jordan.'"
In June 2010, Jordan was ranked by Forbes Magazine as the 20th most powerful celebrity in the world with $55 million earned between June 2009 and June 2010. According to the Forbes article, Brand Jordan generates $1 billion in sales for Nike.
Honors and awards
Jordan won numerous awards and set many records during his career. The following are some of his achievements:
See also
References
Further reading
External links
Category:1963 births Category:ACC Athlete of the Year Category:African American basketball players Category:African American sports executives Category:Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees Category:Basketball players at the 1983 Pan American Games Category:Basketball players at the 1984 Summer Olympics Category:Basketball players at the 1992 Summer Olympics Category:Basketball players from North Carolina Category:Birmingham Barons players Category:Charlotte Bobcats executives Category:Charlotte Bobcats owners Category:Chicago Bulls draft picks Category:Chicago Bulls players Category:Living people Category:McDonald's High School All-Americans Category:Minor league baseball players Category:National Basketball Association executives Category:National Basketball Association owners Category:NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award winners Category:NBA Finals MVP Award winners Category:NBA Slam Dunk Contest champions Category:North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball players Category:National Basketball Association players with retired numbers Category:Olympic basketball players of the United States Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States Category:Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Category:Sportspeople from Brooklyn Category:Sportspeople from Chicago, Illinois Category:People from Highland Park, Illinois Category:People from Wilmington, North Carolina Category:Shooting guards Category:Basketball players from New York Category:Sportspeople of multiple sports Category:United States men's national basketball team members Category:Washington Wizards executives Category:Washington Wizards players Category:Olympic medalists in basketball
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Michael Kiwanuka is a British soul musician who has been compared to Bill Withers and Otis Redding, as well as Van Morrison and the Temptations.
Early life
Kiwanuka grew up in London; his parents are from Uganda.
Career
His debut EP ''Tell Me A Tale'' was released on 13 June 2011.Kiwanuka has supported Adele on Adele Live 2011 tour as well at her iTunes Festival gig 2011, and will play at the 2011 Hard Rock Calling.
Discography
| Album !! Year | |
| Tell Me a Tale EP | 2011 |
| I'm Getting Ready EP | 2011 |
External links
References
Category:1980s births Category:Living people Category:British musicians Category:British soul singers Category:British people of Ugandan descent
This text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.
| Coordinates | 45°30′″N73°40′″N |
|---|---|
| name | George Michael |
| background | solo_singer |
| birth name | Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou |
| born | June 25, 1963East Finchley, North London, England |
| instrument | Vocals, multiple instruments |
| genre | Pop rock, New Wave, |
| occupation | Musician, singer-songwriter, record producer |
| years active | 1980–present |
| label | Columbia, Sony |
| associated acts | Wham!, Band Aid, Elton John, Aretha Franklin, Mary J. Blige, Mutya Buena, Whitney Houston |
| influences | Stevie Wonder, Elton John, Paul McCartney, Aretha Franklin, Paul Young, The Temptations, Queen, Marvin Gaye |
| website | |
| notable instruments | Piano''John Lennon'' model "Z" Steinway }} |
George Michael (born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou (); on 25 June 1963) is an English musician, singer-songwriter and record producer who rose to fame in the 1980s when he formed the pop duo Wham! with his school friend, Andrew Ridgeley. His first solo single, "Careless Whisper", was released when he was still in the duo and sold about six million copies worldwide.
As one of the world's best-selling music artists, Michael has sold over 100 million albums worldwide as of 2010. His 1987 debut solo album, ''Faith'', has sold over 25 million copies worldwide and made several records and achievements in the United States. Michael has garnered seven number one singles in the UK and eight number one hits on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the U.S. In 2008, ''Billboard'' magazine ranked Michael the 40th most successful artist on the "The Billboard Hot 100 Top All-Time Artists".
Michael has won numerous music awards throughout his 30 year career, including three Brit Awards—winning Best British Male twice, four MTV Video Music Awards, four Ivor Novello Awards, three American Music Awards, and two Grammy Awards from eight nominations.
In 2004, the Radio Academy named Michael as the most played artist on British radio between the period of 1984–2004. The documentary ''A Different Story'' was released in 2005; it covered his personal life and professional career. In 2006, George Michael announced his first tour in 15 years. The 25 Live tour was a massive, worldwide undertaking by Michael, spanning three individual tours over the course of three years (2006, 2007 and 2008).
Early life
Michael was born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou in East Finchley, North London. His father was Kyriacos Panayiotou, a Greek Cypriot restaurateur who moved to England in the 1950s and changed his name to Jack Michael. Michael's mother, Lesley Angold (née Harrison, 1937–1997), was an English dancer who died from cancer in Fulham. Michael spent the majority of his childhood in North London, in the home his parents bought soon after his birth. While in his early teens, the family moved to Radlett. There Michael attended the Bushey Meads School, where he met Andrew Ridgeley. The two had the same career ambition of being musicians.His involvement in the music business began with his working as a DJ, playing at clubs and local schools around Bushey, Stanmore and Watford. This was followed by the formation of a short-lived ska band called The Executive with Ridgeley, Ridgeley's brother Paul, Andrew Leaver, and David Mortimer (aka David Austin).
Musical career
1981–1986: Wham!
Michael first found success after forming the duo Wham! with Andrew Ridgeley in 1981. The band's first album ''Fantastic'' reached no. 1 in the UK and produced a series of top 10 singles including "Young Guns (Go For It!)", "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)" and "Club Tropicana". Their second album, ''Make It Big'', was the breakthrough that made the duo international superstars, reaching No. 1 on the charts in the US. Singles from that album included "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go", "Freedom", "Everything She Wants", and "Careless Whisper", the latter of which was Michael's first solo effort as a single.Michael sang on the original Band Aid recording of "Do They Know It's Christmas?" and donated the profits from "Last Christmas/Everything She Wants" to charity. In addition, he contributed background vocals to David Cassidy's 1985 hit "The Last Kiss", as well as Elton John's 1985 successes "Nikita" and "Wrap Her Up". In 1985, in an exclusive foray into popular journalism, Michael interviewed David Cassidy for David Litchfield's legendary Ritz Newspaper.
Wham!'s tour of China in April 1985, the first visit to China by a Western popular music act, generated enormous worldwide media coverage, much of it centred on Michael. The tour was documented by celebrated film director Lindsay Anderson and producer Martin Lewis in their film ''Foreign Skies: Wham! In China'' and contributed to Michael's ever-increasing fame.
With the success of Michael's solo singles, "Careless Whisper" (1984) and "A Different Corner" (1986), rumours of an impending break up of Wham! intensified. The duo officially separated during the summer of 1986, after releasing a farewell single, "The Edge of Heaven" and a singles compilation, ''The Final'', plus a sell-out concert at Wembley Stadium that included the world premiere of the China film. The Wham! partnership ended officially with the commercially successful single "The Edge of Heaven", which reached no.1 on the UK chart in June 1986.
Solo career
The beginning of his solo career, during early 1987, was a duet with soul music icon Aretha Franklin. "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)" was a one-off project that helped Michael achieve an ambition by singing with one of his favourite artists, and it scored number one on both the UK Singles Chart and the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 upon its release.For Michael, it became his third consecutive solo number one in the UK from three releases, after 1984's "Careless Whisper" (though the single was actually from the Wham! album ''Make It Big'') and 1986's "A Different Corner". The single was also the first Michael had recorded as a solo artist which he had not written himself. The co-writer, Simon Climie, was unknown at the time, although he would have success as a performer with the band Climie Fisher in 1988. Michael and Aretha Franklin won a Grammy Award in 1988 for Best R&B; Performance – Duo or Group with Vocal for the song.
1987–1989: Faith
During the autumn of 1987, Michael released his first solo album, ''Faith''. In addition to playing a large number of instruments on the album, he wrote and produced every track on the recording, except for one, which he co-wrote.The first single released from the album was "I Want Your Sex," during the summer of 1987. The song was banned by many radio stations in the UK and U.S., due to its sexually suggestive lyrics. MTV would broadcast the video, featuring celebrity make-up artist Kathy Jeung in a basque and suspenders, only during the late night hours. Michael argued that the act was beautiful if the sex was monogamous. Michael even recorded a brief prologue for the video in which he said: "This song is not about casual sex." One of the racier scenes involved Michael writing the words "explore monogamy" on his partner's back in lipstick. Some radio stations played a toned-down version of the song, "I Want Your Love," which was mainly the word "love" replacing "sex." When the tune reached the US charts, ''American Top 40'' host Casey Kasem refused to say the song's title, referring to it only as "the new single by George Michael." Despite censorship and radio play problems, "I Want Your Sex" reached No.2 on the US Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and at No.3 in Britain.
The second single, "Faith", was released during October 1987, just a few weeks before the album. "Faith" would become one of his most popular songs. The song hit No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S. and maintained that position for four consecutive weeks. It also reached no.2 in the UK singles chart. The famous video provided some definitive images of the 1980s music industry in the process—Michael in shades, leather jacket, cowboy boots, and Levi's jeans, playing a guitar near a classic-design jukebox. On 30 October, Faith was released in the UK and in several markets worldwide. In the United States, the album had 51 non-consecutive weeks in the Top 10 of Billboard 200, including 12 weeks at no.1. "Faith" had many successes, four of which ("Faith," "Father Figure", "One More Try", and "Monkey") reached no.1. Eventually, "Faith" received Diamond certification by the RIAA for sales of 10 million copies in the US. To date, global sales of ''Faith'' are more than 25 million units.
In 1988, Michael embarked on a world tour. The nightly set list included from the Wham! era "Everything She Wants" and "I'm Your Man", as well as covers of "Lady Marmalade" or "Play That Funky Music". In Los Angeles, California, Michael was joined on stage by Aretha Franklin for "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)". It was the second highest grossing event of 1988, earning $17.7 million. According to Michael in his film, ''A Different Story'', success did not make him happy and he started to think there was something wrong in being an idol for millions of teenage girls. The whole ''Faith'' process (promotion, videos, tour, awards) left him exhausted, lonely and frustrated, and far from his friends and family. In 1990, he told his record company Sony that, for his second album, he did not want to do promotions like the one for Faith.
1990–1992: Listen Without Prejudice
''Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1'' was released in September 1990. For this album, Michael tried to create a new reputation as a serious-minded artist; the title is an indication of his desire to be taken more seriously as a songwriter. Michael refused to make any kind of promotion for this album, including no music videos for the singles released. The first single, "Praying for Time", was released in August 1990. It concerned social ills and injustice; the song was an instant success, reaching No. 6 in the UK and No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100, despite the absence of a video. A video was released shortly thereafter, consisting of the lyrics on a dark background. Michael did not appear in this video or any subsequent videos for the album.
The second single "Waiting for That Day" was an acoustic-heavy single, released as an immediate follow-up to "Praying For Time". It reached No. 27 in the US and No. 23 in the UK in October 1990. The album was released in Europe on 3 September 1990 (and one week later in the United States). It reached No. 1 in the UK Albums Chart and peaked at No. 2 on the U.S Billboard 200. It spent a total of 88 weeks on the UK album charts and was certified 4 times Platinum by the BPI. The album produced 5 UK singles, which were released quickly, within an at eight-month period: "Praying For Time", "Waiting For That Day", "Freedom! '90", "Heal the Pain", and "Cowboys and Angels" (the latter being his only single not to chart in the UK top 40).
"Freedom '90" was the only single to be supported by a music video. The song alludes to the struggles of being a closeted gay man and acted as a catalyst for his effort to end his publishing contract with Sony Music. As if to prove the song's sentiment, Michael refused to appear in the video, directed by David Fincher, and instead recruited supermodels Naomi Campbell, Linda Evangelista, Christy Turlington, Tatjana Patitz, and Cindy Crawford to lip sync. It also featured the reduction of his sex symbol status. It had contrasting fortunes on each side of the Atlantic—a No.8 success on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US, but only No.28 on the UK singles chart. "Mother's Pride" gained significant radio play in the United States during the first Persian Gulf War during 1991, often with radio stations mixing in callers' tributes to soldiers with the music. It reached No.46 on Billboard Hot 100 with only airplay. In the end ''Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1'' sold around 8 million copies.
In 1991, George Michael embarked on the "Cover to Cover Tour" in Japan, England, the US, and Brazil, where he performed at the "Rock in Rio" event. In the audience in Rio, he saw and later met Anselmo Feleppa, the man who would become his partner. The tour was not a proper promotion for ''Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1''. Rather, it was more about Michael singing his favourite cover songs. Among his favourites was "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me," a 1974 song by Elton John; Michael and John had performed the song together at the Live Aid concert in 1985, and again for Michael's concert at London's Wembley Arena on 25 March 1991, where the duet was recorded. The single was released at the end of 1991 and became a success on both sides of the Atlantic.
In the meantime, the expected follow-up album, ''Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 2'', was scrapped due to Michael's lawsuit with Sony. Among Michael's complaints was that Sony had not completely supported the release of his second album, resulting in its poor performance in the US as compared to ''Faith''. Sony responded that Michael's refusal to appear in promotional videos had caused the bad response. Michael ended the idea for ''Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 2'' and donated three songs to the charity project ''Red Hot + Dance'', for the Red Hot Organization which raised money for AIDS awareness, while a fourth track "Crazyman Dance" was the B-side of 1992's "Too Funky". Michael donated the royalties from "Too Funky" to the same cause. The song did not appear on any George Michael studio album, although later it was included on his solo collections ''Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael'' in 1998 and ''Twenty Five'' in 2006. The video featured Michael (sporadically) as a director filming supermodels Linda Evangelista, Beverly Peele, Estelle Lefébure and Nadja Auermann at a fashion show. "Too Funky" was a success, reaching number 4 in the UK singles chart and number 10 in the US Billboard Hot 100.
1993: Five Live
George Michael performed at The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert on 20 April 1992 at London's Wembley Stadium. The concert was a tribute to the life of the late Queen frontman, Freddie Mercury, with some proceeds going to AIDS research. Michael performed "'39" and "Somebody to Love". The performance of the latter was released on the "Five Live" EP.
''Five Live'', released in 1993 for Parlophone in the UK and Hollywood Records in the US, features five—and in some countries, six—tracks performed by George Michael, Queen, and Lisa Stansfield."Somebody to Love" and "These Are the Days of Our Lives" were recorded at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert. "Killer", "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone", and "Calling You" were all live performances recorded during his "Cover to Cover Tour" from 1991. Michael's performances of "Somebody to Love" was hailed as "one of best performances of the tribute concert". The idea of having George Michael take over as full-time lead singer of Queen was even given serious consideration.
All proceeds from the sale of the EP benefited the Mercury Phoenix Trust. Sales of the EP were very strong through Europe, where it debuted at number 1 in the UK and several European countries. Chart success in the United States was less spectacular, where it peaked at number 40 on the Billboard 200 ("Somebody to Love" reached No.30 on the US Billboard Hot 100).
1994–1997: Older
During November 1994, after a long period of seclusion, George Michael appeared at the first MTV Europe Music Awards show, where he gave a touching performance of a brand-new song, "Jesus to a Child". The song was a melancholy tribute to his lover, Anselmo Feleppa, who had died in March of 1993.The song was Michael's first self-penned success in his homeland in almost four years; it entered the UK singles chart at No. 1 and No. 7 on Billboard in the same month of release. It was also Michael's longest UK Top 40 single, at almost seven minutes long. The exact identity of the song's subject—and the nature of Michael's relationship with Feleppa—was shrouded in innuendo and speculation, as Michael had not confirmed he was homosexual and did not do so until 1998. The video for "Jesus to a Child" was a picture of images recalling loss, pain and suffering. Nowadays, Michael consistently dedicates the song to Feleppa before performing it live.
The second single, released in April 1996, was "Fastlove", an energetic tune about wanting gratification and fulfilment without commitment. The song was somewhat unusual for a popular song, in that it did not have a defined chorus and that the single version was nearly five minutes long. "Fastlove" was supported by a futuristic virtual reality-related video. It scored No. 1 in the UK singles chart, spending three weeks at the top spot. In the US, "Fastlove" peaked at No. 8, his most recent single to reach the top 10 on the US charts. Following "Fastlove", Michael finally released ''Older'', his first studio album in six years and only the third in his ten year solo career. The album's US and Canada release was particularly notable as it was the first album released by David Geffen's (now-defunct) DreamWorks Records. Older was particularly notable for the release of its six singles. Each of them reached the UK Top 3, a record for the most singles in the British Top 3 released from a single album. At the time of release of the album's fifth single, "Star People '97", chart specialist James Masterton noted George Michael's success on the singles charts, writing: "George Michael nonetheless makes an impressive Top 3 entry with this single. The Older album has now proved itself to be far and away his most commercially successful recording ever. Five singles now lifted and every single one has been a Top 3 hit. Compare this with the two Top 3 hits produced by ''Faith'' and ''Listen Without Prejudice's'' scant total of one Top Tenner and one single which missed the Top 40 altogether. This sustained single success has, of course, been achieved with a little help from marketing tricks such as remixes – or in this case a new recording of the album track which gives it a much-needed transformation into a deserved commercial smash."
In 1996, Michael was voted 'Best British Male', at the MTV Europe Music Awards and the Brit Awards; and at The Ivor Novello Awards, he was awarded the prestigious title of 'Songwriter of The Year' for the third time. Michael performed a concert at Three Mills Studios, London, for ''MTV Unplugged''. It was his first long performance in years, and in the audience was Michael's mother. The next year, she died of cancer.
1998: Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael
''Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael'' was Michael's first solo greatest hits collection released in 1998. The collection of 28 songs (29 songs are included on the European and Australian release) are separated into two halves, with each containing a particular theme and mood. The first CD, titled "For the Heart," predominantly contains Michael's successful ballads, while the second CD, "For the Feet", consists mainly of his popular dance tunes. It was released through Sony Music Entertainment as a condition of severing contractual ties with the label. He would later return to Sony to release his 2004 album ''Patience''.
The album is notable for containing a large number of compilation tracks and duets that had not previously appeared on his albums, including his duet with Aretha Franklin, "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)"; "Desafinado", a duet in Portuguese with Brazilian legendary singer Astrud Gilberto; and the Elton John duet "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me".
''Ladies & Gentlemen'' was an instant success, peaking at number one on the UK Album Chart for 8 weeks. It has spent over 200 weeks in the UK Charts, and it is the 38 best-selling album of all time in the UK. It is certified 7 times platinum in the United Kingdom and Multi-Platinum in the United States, and it's George Michael's most commercially successful album in his homeland having sold more than 2.8 million copies. To date, the album has reached worldwide sales of approximately 15 million copies.
The first single of the album, "Outside" was a humorous song about his arrest for soliciting a policeman in a public restroom. "As", his duet with Mary J. Blige, was released as the second single in many territories around the world. Both of singles reached top 5 in the UK Singles Chart.
1999: Songs from the Last Century
''Songs from the Last Century'' is a studio album of cover tracks. It was released in 1999 and was the final George Michael album to be released through Virgin Records. To date, the album has peaked the lowest of his solo effort. The album debuted at number 157 on the American Billboard Charts, which was also the album's peak positions. It was also his lowest charting album in the UK, becoming his only solo effort not to reach number 1. It peaked at number 2 in the UK Album.Chart It consists of old standards, plus new interpretations of more recent popular songs such as "Roxanne (song)" ,"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face"; and the Frank Sinatra classic "Where or When". Each of the 11 tracks was co-produced by Phil Ramone and George Michael.
2000–2005: Patience
Michael began working on what would be his fifth studio album, spending two years in the recording studio. His first single "Freeek!", taken from what would become the new album, was successful in Europe going to number one in Italy, Portugal, Spain and Denmark in 2002 and reaching the top 10 in the UK and ther top 5 in Australia. It made 22 charts around the world. However, his next single "Shoot the Dog" proved to be highly controversial when released in July 2002. It was highly critical of George W. Bush and Tony Blair in the leadup to the 2003 invasion of Iraq. It reached number one in Denmark and made the top 5 in most European charts. However, in Britain it peaked at only number 12 in the UK Singles Chart.
On 17 November 2003, George Michael re-signed with Sony Music after a legal battle with the company led to his contract being sold to rival record companies Virgin Records and DreamWorks Records. When Michael's fifth studio album, ''Patience'', was released in 2004, it went straight to number 1 on the UK Albums Chart, and became one of the fastest selling albums in the UK, selling over 200,000 copies in the first week alone. In Australia it reached number 2 on 22 March. It reached the Top 5 on most European charts, and peaked at number 12 in the United States, selling over 500,000 copies to earn a Gold certification from the RIAA. Critically acclaimed, it is considered the album of George Michael's comeback to the spotlight in the new millennium, selling around 7 million copies worldwide and spawning four (of six) new hit singles.
"Amazing", the first single off the album, became a number one hit in Europe. When Michael appeared on the ''Oprah Winfrey Show'' on 26 May 2004, to promote the album, he performed "Amazing", along with his classic songs "Father Figure" and "Faith". On the show Michael spoke of his arrest, revealing his homosexuality, and his resumption of public performances. He allowed Oprah's crew inside his home outside of London. The second single taken off the album was "Flawless (Go to the City)", It was a dance hit in Europe as well as North America, reaching no.1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot Dance Club Play and became Michael's last number one single on the United States Dance chart. In November, Sony released another single – "Round Here". It was the least successful single taken from ''Patience'' when it stalled the UK charts at no. 32. In 2005, "John and Elvis Are Dead" was released as the final single from the album; it was released as a download single and was therefore unable to chart in the United Kingdom.
George Michael announced that ''Patience'' will be the last record on sale to the public. He told BBC Radio 1 on 10 March 2004 that future music that he puts out will be available for download, with fans encouraged to make a donation to charity.
2005–2008: Twenty Five and concert tours
''Twenty Five'' was George Michael's second greatest hits album, celebrating the 25th anniversary of his music career. Released in November 2006 by Sony BMG, it debuted at no.1 in the UK.
The album contains songs chiefly from George Michael's solo career but also from his earlier days in Wham!. It comes in two formats: two CDs or a limited edition three-CD set. The 2-CD set contained 26 tracks, including four recorded with Wham! and three new songs: "An Easier Affair"; "This Is Not Real Love" (a duet with Mutya Buena, formerly of Sugababes, which peaked at No.15 in the UK Charts); and a new version of "Heal the Pain" recorded with Paul McCartney. The limited edition three-CD version contains an additional 14 lesser known tracks, including one from Wham! and another completely new song, "Understand".
''Twenty Five'' was released in North America on 1 April 2008 as a 29-song, two-CD set featuring several new songs (including duets with Paul McCartney and Mary J. Blige and a song from the short-lived TV series Eli Stone) in addition to many of Michael's successful songs from both his solo and Wham! career. To commemorate the ''Twenty Five'' album, George Michael toured North America for the first time in 17 years, playing large venues in major cities including New York, Los Angeles, St. Paul/Minneapolis, Chicago and Dallas.
The DVD version of ''Twenty Five'' contains 40 videos on two discs, including seven with Wham!.
During the 2005 Live 8 concert, Michael joined Paul McCartney on stage, harmonising on The Beatles classic "Drive My Car". Michael was one of several remixers commissioned in 1990 to work on dance mixes for Bananarama's "Tripping on Your Love". Bananarama covered "Careless Whisper" for their ''Exotica'' album in 2001, and the track was also released as a single in France.
In 2006, Michael started his first tour in 15 years, 25 Live. The tour began in Barcelona, Spain, on 23 September and finished in December at Wembley Arena in England. According to his website, the 80-show tour was seen by 1.3 million fans. On 12 May 2007 in Coimbra, Portugal, he began the European "25 Live Stadium Tour 2007", including London and Athens, and ending on 4 August 2007 in Belfast, UK. There were 29 tour dates (as of 21 April 2007) across Europe. On 9 June 2007 Michael became the first artist to perform live at the newly renovated Wembley Stadium in London, where he was later fined £130,000 for overrunning the programme for 13 minutes.
On 25 March 2008 a third part of the 25 Live Tour was announced for North America. This part included 21 dates in the United States and Canada. This was Michael's first tour of North America in 17 years. Following news of Michael's North American tour, ''Twenty Five'' was released in North America on 1 April 2008 as a 29-song, 2-CD set featuring several new songs (including duets with Paul McCartney and Mary J. Blige and a song from the short-lived TV series, ''Eli Stone'') in addition to many of Michael's successful songs from both his solo and Wham! career. In addition, a companion 2-disc DVD of 40 videos was also made available.
Michael made his American acting debut by playing a guardian angel to Jonny Lee Miller's character on Eli Stone, a TV series that was broadcast in the United States. In addition to performing on the show as himself and as "visions", each episode of the show's first season was named after a song of his. Michael appeared on the 2008 finale show of ''American Idol'' on 21 May singing "Praying for Time". When asked what he thought Simon will say of his performance, he replied "I think he'll probably tell me I shouldn't have done a George Michael song. He's told plenty of people that in the past, so I think that'd be quite funny."
On 1 December, Michael played a last concert in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, as part of the 37th National Day Celebrations.
2008–present: Latest projects
On 25 December 2008, Michael released a new track "December Song" on his website for free. It was hoped that fans who download the song would donate money to charity. Though the song is not available any more on his website, it remains available on file sharing networks and on 29 October 2009 the BBC said that George Michael was to join the race for the UK Christmas number one as a remastered version of "December Song" would go on sale on 13 December. The popularity of the single was boosted by a promotional appearance that Michael made on The X Factor UK, where he performed the song with David Austin playing piano.At the end of 2009, Michael announced, after months of speculation, that he would be performing shows in the Australian cities of Melbourne, Perth and Sydney, his first concerts in Australia since 1988. On 20 February 2010, Michael performed his first show in Perth at the Burswood dome to an audience of 15,000.
On 5 March 2010, Michael confirmed that he would be a guest performer at the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras After Party, where he performed at 1 am, followed by Kelly Rowland at 3 am.
On 2 March 2011 Michael announced the release of his cover version of New Order's 1987 hit "True Faith" in aid of the Comic Relief charity. Michael released a cover of Stevie Wonder's 1972 song, "You and I" on 15 April 2011, as an MP3 gift to Prince William of Wales and Kate Middleton on the occasion of their royal wedding on 29 April 2011.
Although the MP3 was released for free download, Michael appealed that those who do download the special track that make a contribution to "The Prince William & Miss Catherine Middleton Charitable Gift Fund".
On 11 May 2011, the Symphonica Tour was announced. Currently, only European dates have been released. The first show on the tour was preformed at the Prague State Opera House on 22 August.
Personal life
Sexuality
In a 2007 interview, Michael admitted that he hid the fact he is gay because of worries over the effect it might have on his mother.
Relationships
Michael established a relationship with Anselmo Feleppa, whom he had met at the 1991 concert Rock in Rio. Feleppa died of a brain haemorrhage in 1993. Michael's single "Jesus to a Child" is a tribute to Feleppa (he consistently dedicates it to him before performing it live), as is his 1996 album ''Older''.Since 1996, Michael has been in a long-term relationship with businessman, Kenny Goss. Goss opened the Goss Gallery in May 2005 in Dallas, which shows contemporary art and works from their private collection, which includes many artworks by YBAs such as Sarah Lucas. They have homes in London and Dallas. In late November 2005, it was reported that Michael and Goss would register their relationship as a civil partnership in the UK, but because of negative publicity and his upcoming tour, they postponed it to a later date. There are reports of their relationship secretly ending in December 2008, though this has been denied by Michael. Goss was present at Michael's British sentencing for driving under the influence of marijuana on 14 September 2010.
Los Angeles incident
Questions of Michael's sexual orientation persisted in public until 7 April 1998, when he was arrested for "engaging in a lewd act" in a public toilet in a park in Beverly Hills, California. He was arrested by an undercover policeman named Marcelo Rodríguez, in a sting operation using so-called "pretty police."In an MTV interview, Michael stated: "I got followed into the restroom and then this cop—I didn't know it was a cop, obviously—he started playing this game, which I think is called, 'I'll show you mine, you show me yours, and then when you show me yours, I'm going to nick you!"
After pleading "no contest" to the charge, Michael was fined US$810 and sentenced to 80 hours of community service. Soon afterwards, Michael made a video for his single "Outside" which was obviously based on the public toilet incident and which featured men dressed as policemen kissing. Rodríguez claimed that this video "mocked" him, and that Michael had slandered him in interviews. In 1999, he brought a US$10 million court case in California against the singer. The court dismissed the case, but an Appellate court reinstated the case on 3 December 2002. The court then ruled Rodríguez, as a public official, could not legally recover damages for emotional distress.
After the incident, Michael became explicit about his sexuality and his relationship with Kenny Goss, a former cheerleader coach and sportswear executive from Dallas, and his partner since June 1996.
On 23 July 2006. Michael was again accused of engaging in anonymous public sex, this time at London's Hampstead Heath. The anonymous partner was later discovered to be 58-year-old Norman Kirtland, an unemployed van driver. Despite stating that he intended to sue both the ''News of the World'' tabloid who photographed the incident and Norman Kirtland for slander, Michael stated that he openly cruises for anonymous sex and that this was not an issue in his relationship with partner Kenny Goss.
On 17 June 2008, Michael said he was thrilled by California's legalisation of same-sex marriage, calling the move "way overdue."
Drugs
On 26 February 2006, Michael was arrested for possession of Class C drugs, an incident that he described as "my own stupid fault, as usual." He was cautioned by the police and released.Michael was arrested in Cricklewood, North-West London, after motorists reported a car obstructing the road at traffic lights. He pleaded guilty on 8 May 2007 to driving while unfit through drugs. He was banned from driving for two years, and sentenced to community service. During September 2007, on Desert Island Discs, he said that his cannabis use was a problem; he wished he could smoke less of it and was constantly trying to do so.
On 19 September 2008, Michael was arrested in a public toilet in the Hampstead Heath area of London for possession of Class A and C drugs. He was taken to the police station and cautioned for controlled substance possession.
On 5 December 2009, in an interview with ''The Guardian'', Michael explains he had cut back on cannabis and now smokes only 'seven or eight' spliffs per day instead of the 25 he used to smoke.
In the early hours of Sunday 4 July 2010 he was returning from the Gay Pride parade. The singer was spotted on CCTV driving into the front of a Snappy Snaps store in Hampstead, North London and was arrested on suspicion of being unfit to drive after reports that a car had crashed into a building. On 12 August, London's Metropolitan Police said he was "charged with possession of cannabis and with driving while unfit through drink or drugs". Michael had also been taking the prescription medication Amitriptyline.
On 24 August 2010 the singer pleaded guilty at Highbury Corner Magistrates' Court in London after admitting driving under the influence of drugs and on 14 September 2010 at the same court, was sentenced to eight weeks in prison, a fine, and a five year ban from driving. Michael was released from Highpoint Prison in Suffolk on 11 October 2010, after serving four weeks.
It was reported that Michael had also been taking the prescription medication, Amitriptyline, some of the side effects of which are listed on Medline include tiredness, drowsiness, blurred vision, fainting, dizziness and hallucinating.
Politics
Michael wrote "Shoot the Dog", a song critical about the friendly relationship between the American and British governments and their involvement in the Iraq War.During 2000, Michael joined Melissa Etheridge, Garth Brooks, Queen Latifah, the Pet Shop Boys, and k.d. lang, to perform in Washington, D.C. as part of 'Equality Rocks' – a concert to benefit the Human Rights Campaign.
During 2007, he sent the £1.45 million piano that John Lennon used to write "Imagine" around the United States on a "peace tour," having it on display at places where violence had taken place, such as Dallas' Dealey Plaza, where U.S. President John. F. Kennedy was shot.
He devoted his concert in Sofia, Bulgaria from his "Twenty Five Tour" to the Bulgarian nurses prosecuted in the HIV trial in Libya.
Charity
During 1984, he sang as part of Band Aid on the charity song "Do They Know It's Christmas?" for famine relief in Ethiopia. This single scored No.1 on the UK music charts over Christmas 1984, holding Michael's own song, "Last Christmas" by Wham!, at #2. Michael donated the royalties from "Last Christmas" to Band Aid and subsequently sang with Elton John at Live Aid (the Band Aid charity concert) in 1985.In 2003 he paired up with Ronan Keating on the British version of ''Who Wants to be a Millionaire?'' and won £32,000 (this after having their original £64,000 winnings halved after missing the £125,000 question).
The proceeds from the single "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" were divided among 10 different charities for children, AIDS and education.
Michael is supporting a campaign to help raise US$32 million (GBP15 million) for terminally ill children.
Assets
According to reports, between the years 2006 and 2008, he is said to have earned £48.5 million ($97 million) from the 25 Live tour alone, as well as earning millions more for private concerts that he periodically does, such as for Billionaire Vladimir Potanin and super rich fashion shop owner Sir Philip Green. According to the Sunday Times Rich List 2009, George Michael is worth £90 million in currency alone.
Memoirs
In 1991 George released an autobiography titled "Bare" through Penguin Books, which he co-wrote with writer Tony Parsons. The over 200 page book covers various aspects of his life, including details of his relationship with a former girlfriend. On 16 January 2008, Michael signed a contract with HarperCollins for an autobiography which he is to write "entirely himself".
Discography
Studio albums
Awards
Tours
See also
References
External links
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